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Hainan yacht industry buoyed by policy vision

08:35, August 22, 2024 By Chen Bowen ( China Daily

Yachts moor in a port in Sanya, Hainan province, in February. (ZHAO YINGQUAN/XINHUA)

Almost every morning, the coastline of Sanya in Hainan province transforms into a shimmering spectacle, with a flotilla of yachts moored at bustling ports poised to set sail on their maritime adventures.

Sanya, with its abundant aquatic resources and favorable tropical climate, has emerged as a magnet for international and domestic visitors eager to embark on yachting trips and enjoy blue skies and sparkling waters.

"Except for occasional typhoons, Sanya can almost achieve more than 350 seagoing days throughout the year," said Gao Yongning, deputy director of the cruise and yacht department of the Sanya Central Business District Administration.

Hainan is home to over 13,000 yacht-related enterprises, and boasts 14 operational marinas and 2,511 yacht berths.

Sanya, a southern coastal city of the province, has emerged as a standout destination for leisure activity. More than 7,300 yacht enterprises, making up 22.7 percent of China's total yacht-related businesses, were located there as of June, according to a report by Hainan Daily.

The city also accommodates a registered yacht fleet exceeding 1,400 vessels, according to the Sanya Maritime Safety Administration, with the number exceeding its reputation as the "city of 1,000 yachts".

In the first half of the year, yachts made around 58,000 port entries and exits in Sanya, which received about 367,000 visitors.

During the 40-day Spring Festival travel season, 30,944 port entries and exits were recorded and 212,154 visitors were welcomed. The numbers were a record for the holiday period, the administration said.

Free trade benefits

The establishment of the Hainan Free Trade Port has emerged as a catalyst to propel Sanya's yacht tourism. In 2021, Hainan introduced a zero-tariff policy on vehicle and yacht imports, exempting registered enterprises in the province's transportation and tourism sectors from import duties on vehicles, aircraft, ships, and yachts.

In July 2022, the government in Hainan issued regulations aimed at accelerating the growth of the yacht industry in the free trade port. These regulations enable overseas residents working in Hainan and holding a residence permit to apply for yacht registration in Hainan, bolstering efforts to boost yacht sales.

On Feb 5, 2024, the Sanya Central Business District Special Fund Incentive Measures for Cruise And Yacht Industry Development was announced.

The fund provides incentives and support for the development of the yacht industry in five aspects: operational rewards; operational space subsidies; scientific and technological innovation support; fixed asset investment incentives; and incentives for the sale of new energy yachts.

"Following the introduction of regulations and policies, the yacht-leasing sector has entered a period of rapid growth," said Liu Yangliu, general manager of Hainan Visun Yacht Industry Development (Investment) Group.

Wakesurfing, a favorite water activity among younger people, is also gaining greater attention.

Chen Xiaoyu, executive director of Sanya Serenity Marina, said there has been an influx of wakesurfing clubs in the area in recent years, with over 50 wave-making boats mooring at the marina.

The development of the yacht industry has also dovetailed with sectors such as wedding photography, catering, event hosting, and provision of accommodation, which have also enjoyed notable success.

(Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun)
A report by The New York Times has highlighted the challenges faced by people in Pakistan due to a significant internet slowdown, which digital researchers and analysts suggest is an attempt by the government to stifle dissent. The report shares the experience of Shafi Naeem, a Karachi-based freelance software designer, who has been unable to upload the websites he is working on. Clients have sent him WhatsApp voice notes and photos that would not download, with an outline of a clock at the bottom right of every image -- the symbol that it had not yet been sent -- frustrating his efforts. "It's not just bad for business; it's devastating," Naeem, 39, told The New York Times. He estimates that he has already lost more than half of his roughly $4,000 monthly income. "Our work depends on fast, reliable internet." Across Pakistan, internet speeds have slowed to a crawl in recent days, stoking anger and raising suspicions that the government is secretly testing a new firewall-like system to better monitor and control the country's internet. The government has denied any involvement in the slowdown, which has impacted millions of users and disrupted businesses nationwide. The New York Times quoted trade groups and business owners who reported that internet speeds have dropped to half their usual rates. Files that once took minutes to upload now take hours, while online calls and video conferencing are marred by frozen screens and delayed voices. The Pakistan Software Houses Association, which represents software companies across the country, condemned the "grave consequences of the hastily implemented national firewall," warning that the disruptions could cost Pakistan's economy up to $300 million. The Pakistan Freelancers Association also cautioned that ongoing issues could lead to Pakistan being downgraded on online freelancing platforms, which would damage the nascent industry. Pakistani authorities have claimed they are upgrading their systems to improve cybersecurity but have denied that government surveillance technology is behind the disruptions. Instead, they blamed the use of virtual private networks (VPNs) for straining the networks. However, digital researchers and analysts attributed the slow speeds to efforts by the authorities to control the country's digital space, warning that this could curb free speech and civil liberties in Pakistan's already fragile democracy. They allege that the Pakistani authorities are deploying a new firewall-like system that is significantly more advanced than previous web-monitoring systems used to block certain websites. According to analysts, this new technology enables the government to continue blocking access to parts of the internet -- including social media, websites, and messaging platforms -- while also enhancing its ability to monitor, control, and censor digital spaces. Usama Khilji, director of the Islamabad-based digital rights watchdog Bolo Bhi, told The New York Times that the new system appears to allow authorities to target and block specific components of mobile apps, such as voice notes, photos, and videos on WhatsApp, while permitting text messages and voice calls. Digital rights groups have raised concerns that this system could eventually allow authorities to trace online messages to the phone or computer from which they originated, as well as to block specific content. Some rights groups suspect that the new technology is not properly configured for Pakistan's internet infrastructure, leading to the recent slowdown. These allegations come amid a broader government-led crackdown on supporters of the jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). Military leaders have a history of arresting opposition figures, imprisoning journalists, and occasionally shutting down the country's internet to suppress dissent, according to rights groups. Since general elections took place in February, Pakistanis have only had intermittent access to social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter). The military's media and public relations wing, Inter-Services Public Relations, has added senior officers to its ranks in recent years to combat the flood of anti-military messages on social media. The New York Times report also noted that military officials have begun using the term "digital terrorism" in speeches and news releases since May, vowing to defeat those they claim are attempting to sow discord in the country. This month, the army's chief, Gen. Asim Munir, intensified this rhetoric, suggesting in a speech that there are limits to free speech in Pakistan and accusing foreign powers of inciting "digital terrorism." "Those who seek to create a rift between state institutions and the people of Pakistan will not succeed," General Munir warned on Aug. 14 at the Pakistan Military Academy in Kakul. (ANI)
Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Thursday expressed his belief that India could play a crucial role in resolving the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. He also noted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has confirmed his willingness that he is ready for a peaceful, and rightful end to war. During a joint press meeting in Warsaw with PM Modi, Tusk said, "We began with a clarification on very emotional issues. PM Modi confirmed his willingness that he is ready for peaceful, rightful and immediate end to war. We believe that India can play an essential and very constructive role. So, this announcement is very important for us. PM, in 10 hours you will visit Ukraine. We believe that your visit to Ukraine will be historic." He further added that to raise the relationship with India to the level of strategic partnership. "Today, we have decided to take our relations to the level of strategic partnership. This is not just a definition, not mere words. There is our resolution for mutual cooperation in various areas behind this," said the Poland PM. Tusk also spoke about strengthening cooperation in sectors like trade and defence and added, "As far as exchanges between India and Poland are concerned, we discussed various topics. We want to strengthen our cooperation in the area of defence and trade. There are immense mutual possibilities." He said that Poland is ready to take part in India's defence modernisation. "We have the necessary technological capability and experts...India is a global leader in the field of Artificial Intelligence and we are using this technology in several areas, including defence. We express gratitude to you for inviting our companies to your country. We want investment in the field of defence and that we cooperate." PM Modi arrived in Poland on Wednesday, the first Indian leader to visit the Central European country in 45 years on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the strategic ties between the two countries. Tusk also highlighted that PM Modi's visit to Poland is important and said, "This is a very important day for both of our countries. It is a great honour for us that we are hosting the Prime Minister of India on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the strategic ties between our countries. This is evidence to the fact that this is visit is highly important..." He further said that despite the geographical and traditional differences between India and Poland, both nations understand each other well. "Undoubtedly, it is evident that the relations between our two countries are getting even better. This is essential for the entire region. There is no dispute, no struggle between our countries. We understand each other well, despite our geographical differences, different traditions and histories. But history has taught both our countries to respect principles, borders, regional integrity, sovereignty, law of the land." Tusk also congratulated PM Modi for winning the 18th Lok Sabha elections and said, "The entire world praises India because India's government is very democratic. We don't see much of this in that part of the world. Once again, I would like to congratulate you on your electoral victory. This is very satisfying. I too know that government is elected in your country as per the mandate of the people..." As the second day of Prime Minister Modi's Warsaw visit begins, he has numerous engagements lined up, which also include talks with President Andrzej Duda, followed by a lunch hosted by Tusk. The Prime Minister will also lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. He will also meet the business leaders and Polish influencers in Warsaw. Notably, PM Modi's visit to Warsaw comes as India and Poland are celebrating the 70th anniversary of the establishment of their diplomatic relations. PM Modi, after wrapping up his engagements in Poland, will travel to Ukraine at the invitation of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. It will be the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Ukraine. (ANI)
Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Ukraine, the Indian diaspora residing in the country expressed happiness and said that his visit amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine is historical. Speaking with ANI, Sanjay Sharma, a member of the Indian diaspora who has been in Ukraine since 1991 said, "There can be good bilateral trade between India and Ukraine. For the re-development of Ukrainian cities, India can provide manpower and technology. We will consider it our good fortune if we get to meet the PM." Another member of the Indian diaspora said that he considers the visit of PM Modi historical amid the ongoing war. "We consider this visit by the Prime Minister of India as historical. This is the first time that an Indian PM is visiting Ukraine and that too during a time of war. It is a big thing for Indians here and the image of India. The world has to understand that peace is very important. I hope he will bring peace talks," he said. PM Modi arrived in Poland on Wednesday, the first Indian leader to visit the Central European country in 45 years. PM Modi, after wrapping up his engagements in Poland, will travel to Ukraine at the invitation of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. It will be the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Ukraine. While addressing the Indian community in Poland's Warsaw, PM Modi stated, "Innovation and youth are going to give energy to the development of both nations. Today I have come to you with a big good news. Both India and Poland have agreed on a social security agreement which is going to benefit all the friends like you." He also lauded Indian community members for helping Indian students who were stuck in Ukraine when the war erupted in 2022. He also thanked the Poland government for opening doors for Indian students and removing visa restrictions. Expressing gratitude to people for giving him a warm welcome in Poland, he stated, "You all have come here from different parts of Poland. Everyone has different languages, dialects, food habits, but you all are connected with the feeling of Indianness. You have given me such a wonderful welcome here, I am very grateful to all of you, to the people of Poland, for this welcome." (ANI)
The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is a monument to the fallen soldiers in Poland's thousand-year history. The grave houses a Nameless Soldier who defended Lviv from the Bolsheviks in 1920.

Notably, PM Modi's visit to Warsaw comes as India and Poland are celebrating the 70th anniversary of the establishment of their diplomatic relations.

Earlier, following a ceremonial welcome, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held a bilateral meeting with his Polish counterpart, Donald Tusk in Warsaw.

Before the meeting between the leaders, PM Modi received a grand ceremonial welcome at the Chancellery in Warsaw in the presence of Polish PM Donald Tusk.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday laso held constructive discussions with his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk in Warsaw. The leaders agreed to elevate relations to a 'Strategic Partnership'.

Their discussions covered diverse areas of bilateral ties, including trade & investment, Science and technology, Defence and security, and cultural and people-to-people connections. The two leaders also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual concern.

Shortly after the meeting PM Narendra Modi posted on X, "I am glad to have met my friend, Prime Minister Donald Tusk. In our talks, we took stock of the full range of India-Poland relations. We are particularly keen to deepen linkages in areas such as food processing, urban infrastructure, renewable energy and AI."

PM Donald Tusk and I also discussed ways to expand cooperation in defence and security. It is equally gladdening that we have agreed on a social security agreement, which will benefit our people," the Prime Minister further said.

"A new landmark in the India-Poland partnership. PM Narendra Modi was warmly received by PM Donald Tusk of Poland at the Federal Chancellery in Warsaw and accorded a ceremonial welcome. This visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Poland after 45 years will impart fresh momentum to the India-Poland partnership," said the MEA in a post on X. (ANI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday announced the launch of a youth exchange program between India and Poland. Under this initiative, each year, 20 young people from Poland will be given the opportunity to visit India. While addressing a press meeting with Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk, PM Modi said Poland has an old and rich tradition of Indology and Sanskrit. "Poland has a very old and rich tradition of Indology and Sanskrit. The strong foundation of our relations was laid by our deep interest in Indian culture and languages. I witnessed a visible and vivid example of our deep people-to-people ties yesterday. I had the privilege of paying homage to the monuments built in memory of the "Dobre Maharaja" and the Maharaja of Kolhapur. He added, "I am glad that even today the people of Poland respect his philanthropy and generosity. To immortalize his memory, we are going to start Jam Saheb of Nawanagar Youth Exchange Program between India and Poland. Every year 20 youth from Poland will be taken on a trip to India." The Prime Minister reached Poland on Wednesday in the first leg of his two-nation visit. He will go to Ukraine from Poland. PM Modi also said that India and Poland are celebrating the 70th anniversary of their diplomatic relations and have decided to convert the relationship into a strategic partnership. "Relations between India and Poland are based on shared values like democracy and the rule of law. Today, we have identified several initiatives to give a new direction to the relations. As two democratic countries, the exchange of views between our parliaments should be encouraged. Work will be done to connect the private sector to broaden economic cooperation. Poland has world leaders in the field of food processing. We want Polish companies to be associated with the mega food park being built in India," he said. PM Modi said that rapid urbanization in India is opening up new opportunities for cooperation in areas such as water treatment, solid waste management and urban infrastructure. "Clean coal technology, green, hydrogen, renewable energy and Artificial Intelligence are also our common priorities. We invite Polish companies to join Make in India and Make for the World. India has achieved many milestones in areas such as Fintech, Pharma and Space. We will be happy to share our experience with Poland in these areas," he said. (ANI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held constructive discussions with his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk in Warsaw. The leaders agreed to elevate relations to a 'Strategic Partnership'. Their discussions covered diverse areas of bilateral ties, including trade & investment, Science and technology, Defence and security, and cultural and people-to-people connections. The two leaders also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual concern. Shortly after the meeting PM Narendra Modi posted on X, "I am glad to have met my friend, Prime Minister Donald Tusk. In our talks, we took stock of the full range of India-Poland relations. We are particularly keen to deepen linkages in areas such as food processing, urban infrastructure, renewable energy and AI. "PM Donald Tusk and I also discussed ways to expand cooperation in defence and security. It is equally gladdening that we have agreed on a social security agreement, which will benefit our people," the Prime Minister further said. Earlier the Polish Prime Minister in his post on X posted, " Finally. After 45 years. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, it's good to see you in Warsaw." Addressing a press meeting with Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk, PM Modi said India supports dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability and is ready to provide all possible cooperation along with its friendly countries. "The ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia are a matter of deep concern for all of us. India firmly believes that no problem can be solved on the battlefield. The loss of innocent lives in any crisis has become the biggest challenge for the entire humanity. We support dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability. For this, India is ready to provide all possible cooperation along with its friendly countries," the Prime Minister said. Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk expressed his belief that India could play a crucial role in resolving the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. He also noted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has confirmed his willingness that he is ready for a peaceful, and rightful end to war. Tusk said, "We began with a clarification on very emotional issues. PM Modi confirmed his willingness that he is ready for a peaceful, rightful and immediate end to war. We believe that India can play an essential and very constructive role. So, this announcement is very important for us. PM, in 10 hours you will visit Ukraine. We believe that your visit to Ukraine will be historic." He further added that both countries had agreed to raise the relationship to the level of strategic partnership. Prime Minister Narendra Modi later paid tributes at the Tomb of the Unkown Soldier, a monument to the fallen soldiers in Poland's thousand-year history. The grave houses a Nameless Soldier who defended Lviv from the Bolsheviks in 1920. (ANI)
India and Poland on Thursday decided to elevate their bilateral relations to a 'Strategic Partnership' with Prime Minister Narendra Modi stating that the relations between the two countries are based on shared values like democracy and the rule of law and they have identified several initiatives to give a new direction to the relations. In his statement at the joint press conference with Prime Minister of Poland Donald Tusk, PM Modi said that close cooperation in the field of defence is a symbol of deep mutual trust between the two countries. "Mutual cooperation in this area will be made a priority. Innovation and talent are the identity of the youth power of both our countries," he said. PM Modi said a Social Security Agreement has been agreed upon between the two sides for the welfare of the skilled workforce and to promote mobility. India and Poland are also moving forward in close coordination on the international platform. "We both agree that reforms in the United Nations and international institutions are the need of the hour to face global challenges. Terrorism is a big challenge for us. Climate change is a matter of common priority for us. We will work for a green future by combining our capabilities," he said. The Prime Minister thanked PM Tusk for a warm welcome. "You have been a friend of India for a long time and you have a huge contribution to enhancing the relationship between India and Poland. Today after 45 years, an Indian Prime Minister has visited Poland. I got this opportunity at the beginning of my third term. I want to thank the government and the people of Poland for this," he said. The Prime Minister said the people of India can never forget the help that Poland's PM extended in rescuing Indian students when the Ukraine conflict began in 2022. "This year, we are celebrating the 70th anniversary of our diplomatic relations. On this occasion, we have decided to convert the relationship into a strategic partnership. Relations between India and Poland are based on shared values like democracy and rule of law. Today, we have identified several initiatives to give a new direction to the relations. As two democratic countries, the exchange of views between our parliaments should be encouraged. Work will be done to connect the private sector to broaden economic cooperation," the Prime Minister said. He said Poland has world leaders in the field of food processing and India offers a lot of opportunities. "We want Polish companies to be associated with the mega food park being built in India. The rapid urbanization in India is opening up new opportunities for our cooperation in areas such as water treatment, solid waste management and urban infrastructure. Clean coal technology, green, hydrogen, renewable energy and Artificial Intelligence are also our common priorities." PM Modi invited Polish companies to join Make in India and Make for the World. "India has achieved many milestones in areas such as Fintech, Pharma and Space. We will be happy to share our experience with Poland in these areas," he said. He said Poland will assume the presidency of the European Union in January 2025 and expressed confidence that with PM Donald Tusk's support, relations between India and the EU will be strengthened further. PM Modi said Poland has a very old and rich tradition of Indology and Sanskrit and a strong foundation of our relations has been laid by the deep interest in Indian civilization and languages. "I saw a direct and living example of our deep people-to-people ties yesterday. I had the privilege of paying tribute at the memorial of Maharaja of Kolhapur. I am happy that even today the people of Poland respect his philanthropy and generosity. To immortalize his memory, we are going to start the Jam Saheb Nawanagar Youth Action Program between India and Poland. Every year, 20 young people from Poland will be taken on a visit to India," he said. Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said PM Modi held constructive discussions with Poland's Prime Minister. "The leaders agreed to elevate - relations to a 'Strategic Partnership'. Discussions covered diverse areas of bilateral ties, including trade & investment, S&T, defence & security, cultural and people-to-people connections. Leaders also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual concern," he said in a post on X. The Prime Minister reached Poland on Wednesday on a two-day visit. A Prime Ministerial visit to Poland from India is taking place after 45 years. From Poland, PM will proceed to Ukraine in the second leg of his two-nation visit. (ANI)
The Office of the Raksha Mantri shared a picture of Rajnath Singh and said, "Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh has landed in Washington DC. He is on an official visit to the United States."

Notably, Rajnath Singh will be undertaking an official visit to the US from August 23 to 26, 2024, at the invitation of the US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin.

During the visit, the Defence Minister will hold a bilateral meeting with his US counterpart Secretary Austin. He will also meet the US Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs Jake Sullivan, the Ministry of Defence said in a press release on Wednesday.

The visit comes in the backdrop of the growing momentum in India-US relations and defence engagements at multiple levels. The visit is expected to further deepen and broaden the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership, the release had said.

A day earlier, Singh said that he would discuss areas of strategic interests and seek to strengthen defence cooperation between India and US with Lloyd Austin.

Taking to X, Rajnath Singh stated, "Leaving for Washington. India and the United States share a Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership. Looking forward to meet my friend @SecDef Austin. Will discuss areas of strategic interests, while seeking to strengthen defence cooperation." (ANI)
The Baloch Women Forum on Thursday convened its Third General Meeting, emphasising the vital role of Baloch women in the ongoing national struggle and highlighting the need for their continued engagement and leadership in the face of oppression. The meeting, held under the leadership of Dr Shelly Baloch, saw the participation of 10 key members. In her address, Dr Baloch reflected on the historical significance of Baloch women's contributions, noting that the strength and determination of "Baloch lionesses" have long been celebrated in stories. She asserted that today's Baloch women are now defining their roles through meaningful actions. "History shows that societies progress through action, not just by living and dreaming," Dr Baloch stated, urging Baloch women to seize the opportunities presented by the current times. She warned that failing to adapt and keep pace with evolving challenges would not only harm women but also jeopardize the future of the entire Baloch community. In a rough translation of the post shared by Baloch Women Forum on X, it said, "The third general meeting of Baloch Women Forum was held under the chairmanship of Baloch Women Forum Organizer Dr Shelly Baloch." Quoting Dr Baloch, the post added, "There was a time when the struggle of Baloch lionesses was written in story books. Today, Baloch women are giving meaning to their role with these writings. History is a witness that societies develop by action, not just by living and dreaming. This is a time of opportunity. If Baloch women soldiers do not keep pace with the times, it is not only an external loss but it will trample the entire Baloch community under the feet of oppression. Today's Baloch must mean the line of his national hand. This struggle is our trust and [?]we have to pass it on to our future generations." The meeting's agenda included a comprehensive six-month report presented by the Secretary-General, who expressed confidence in the Forum's progress. The report emphasised the importance of continuous self-assessment and proactive engagement in community work. "We must avoid stagnation and instead strive to improve our efforts, much like cleansing with fresh water," the Secretary-General remarked. The need for constructive criticism within appropriate platforms was also highlighted, with a focus on ensuring that critiques serve the purpose of growth and development rather than mere fault-finding. Participants further discussed the unique challenges faced by a colonized nation and the imperative to address these issues with the support of the people. The meeting stressed the importance of aligning with the people's needs and preparing them for the necessary steps to advance the national struggle. Additionally, the Forum underscored the need for cadre formation to ready the community for impending challenges. Dr Baloch and other speakers recognized the significant sacrifices made by women in successful movements worldwide, noting the crucial role they have played. The establishment of women's wings and groups, led by women, was identified as a key strategy for empowering Baloch women to take on greater responsibility in the national struggle. The Baloch Women Forum's Third General Meeting concluded with a renewed commitment to advancing the role of women in the Baloch liberation movement, ensuring their active participation and leadership in shaping the future of the community. (ANI)
Quetta (Pakistan) August 22 (AN): In Balochistan, the Pakistani armed forces have been implicated in enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings, targeting prominent activists and political leaders who speak out against the country's abuses. Zaheer Ahmed Baloch's family, who alleged that he was forcibly disappeared by Pakistani forces in Quetta on June 27, continues to demand his recovery. They accused the government of failing to meet its commitments, as the agreed-upon deadline has passed without any progress, the Balochistan Post reported. Earlier, Zaheer's family held a protest in Quetta on July 3 for his safe return. The situation escalated on July 11 when the family, supported by the Baloch Yakjehti Committee, a Baloch rights organization, attempted to march towards Quetta's Red Zone. The protesters faced a heavy-handed response from Pakistani security forces, resulting in injuries to several demonstrators and the detention of 21 activists. The government's use of force drew criticism from both local and international groups, including Amnesty International. Facing increasing pressure, government officials began negotiations with Zaheer's family. The report further stated that on July 15, an agreement was reached in which the Pakistani government committed to filing an FIR against an unidentified official of the armed forces and forming a committee to locate Zaheer within 15 days. In response, the family agreed to halt the protest. However, despite more than a month having elapsed since the deadline, Zaheer is still missing. His family has voiced their frustration, accusing the government of delays and ineffective measures. Zaheer's sister has stated that the committee formed to manage his recovery has made little progress and lacks genuine authority. The report also highlighted that the family now plans to hold a press conference to announce their next steps, which may include resuming broader protests. They are also seeking support from international and regional human rights organizations to amplify their demands for Zaheer's safe return. (ANI)
PM Modi's visit to Ukraine is the first by an Indian Prime Minister after the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1992.

The Prime Minister reached Poland on Wednesday on a two-day visit. A Prime Ministerial visit to Poland from India took place after 45 years.

PM Modi said his visit to Poland has been special and India looks forward to closer business and cultural connect with the country.

"My Poland visit has been special. It is after decades that an Indian PM set foot on Polish soil. This visit gave an opportunity to deepen cooperation with a valued friend. We look forward to closer business and cultural connect with Poland. Our friendship can certainly contribute to a better planet. I thank the Polish people and Government for their warmth," PM Modi said in a post on X.

Earlier in the day, PM Modi held constructive discussions with Poland Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Warsaw. The leaders agreed to elevate relations to a 'Strategic Partnership'.

Their discussions covered diverse areas of bilateral ties, including trade and investment, Science and technology, Defence and security, and cultural and people-to-people connections. The two leaders also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual concern. (ANI)
Indian High Commissioner Pranay Verma on Thursday paid his introductory call to Professor Muhammad Yunus, head of Bangladesh interim government, and reiterated New Delhi's commitment to work with Dhaka. "HC Pranay Verma paid his introductory call to Professor Muhammad Yunus, head of Bangladesh interim government, today. Reiterated India's commitment to working with Bangladesh to fulfil the shared aspirations of the peoples of India and Bangladesh for peace, security and development," posted the High Commission of India in Bangladesh on X. Notably, the interim government headed by Mohd Yunus, under the control of the Bangladesh Army, has been grappling with the situation and trying to restore order after days of lawlessness and violence in the country after the resignation of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on August 5. Bangladesh witnessed several incidents of violence and chaos, especially targeting minorities, including Hindus after Sheikh Hasina was forced to resign and flee Bangladesh after student protests turned into a massive anti-government movement. Earlier today the Ministry of External Affairs clarified that the opening of the Dumbur dam upstream of the Gumti River in Tripura has not caused the current flood situation in districts on Bangladesh's eastern borders. "We would like to point out that the catchment areas of Gumti River that flows through India and Bangladesh have witnessed the heaviest rains of this year over the last few days," the MEA said in a release. It also mentioned that the catchment areas of the Gumti River that flows through India and Bangladesh have witnessed the heaviest rains of this year over the last few days. The flood in Bangladesh is primarily due to waters from these large catchments downstream of the dam. The Ministry also asserted that the Dumbur dam is located quite far from the border - over 120 km upstream of Bangladesh. It is a low-height (about 30m) dam that generates power that feeds into a grid from which Bangladesh also draws 40 MW of power from Tripura. "Along the about 120 km river course, we have three water level observation sites at Amarpur, Sonamura, and Sonamura 2. Heavy rainfall has been continuing since 21 August in the whole of Tripura and adjoining districts of Bangladesh. In the event of heavy inflow, automatic releases have been observed," it said. "Amarpur station is in part of a bilateral protocol under which we are transmitting real-time flood data to Bangladesh," it added. It also pointed out that data showing a rising trend has been supplied to Bangladesh up to 1500 hrs on August 21. At 1800 hrs, due to flooding, there was a power outage leading to problems in communication. Still, we have tried to maintain communication through other means created for urgent transmission of data, it said. "Floods on the common rivers between India and Bangladesh are a shared problem inflicting suffering to people on both sides and requires close cooperation towards resolving them. As two countries sharing 54 common cross-border rivers, river water cooperation is an important part of our bilateral engagement. We remain committed to resolving issues and mutual concerns in water resources and river water management through bilateral consultations and technical discussions," the MEA added. (ANI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his visit to Warsaw met with Polish Indologists and appreciated their interest in Indian subjects. He highlighted that their scholarly contributions have played a significant role in enhancing India-Poland cultural relations and boosting mutual understanding between the two nations. PM Modi appreciated the deep interest of the scholars in Indian subjects. He noted that their work and academic research have played a significant role in strengthening India-Poland cultural ties and promoting mutual understanding. There has been a long interest in Indology in Poland dating back to the 19th century, a press release by the Prime Minister's Office said. PM Modi today met with a group of prominent Polish Indologists which included Prof Maria Christopher Byrski, a distinguished Polish Sanskrit scholar and Professor Emeritus of the University of Warsaw. Prof Byrski served as the Ambassador of Poland to India from 1993 to 1996 and was conferred the prestigious Padma Shri Award by the President of India in March 2022. He also met Prof Monika Browarczyk, a renowned Polish Hindi scholar and the Head of the Department of Asian Studies at Adam Mickiewicz University (AMU), Poznan. Prof Browarczyk was awarded the Vishwa Hindi Samman in February 2023 during the 12th Vishwa Hindi Sammelan in Fiji. PM Modi also met Prof Halina Marlewicz, a prominent Polish scholar in Indian philosophy and the Head of Institute of Oriental Studies at Jagiellonian University (JU), Krakow and Prof Danuta Stasik, a prominent Polish Indologist and former Head of the Department of South Asia Studies at the University of Warsaw; and Prof Przemyslaw Szurek, renowned Polish Indologist and the Head of Indian Studies in University of Wroclaw. While speaking with ANI, Indologist Maria Christopher Byrski said that PM Modi pays a lot of attention to the fact that Indian culture should go out to the world. "We are happy that after 40 years, the Prime Minister of India came here again. He is the PM who established the International Yoga Day and due to this, the knowledge of Indian culture is increasing in the world. After today's meeting, it felt that the Prime Minister pays a lot of attention to the fact that Indian culture, Indian tradition, and ancient Indian thinking should go out to the world and us... Not only politics but the cultural aspect which is in international relations, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid attention to this and finally told us that we should try to make the Indian tradition, Indian knowledge and thinking known to the people and society well. This is the duty of an Indologist," he said. PM Modi also shared a post on his X about his meeting with the Indologists and said, "Met Prof Maria Christopher Byrski, Prof Monika Browarczyk, Prof Halina Marlewicz, Prof Danuta Stasik and Prof Przemyslaw Szurek in Warsaw. These eminent scholars and Indologists are working on different aspects of Indian history and culture. We talked about ways to make Indology more widespread. The distinguished academics also expressed joy on the increasing popularity of Yoga across Poland and Europe." Randhir Jaiswal, the official spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs shared pictures on his X handle and said, "Furthering India-Poland cultural ties! A fruitful exchange of views between PM Narendra Modi and leading Indologists of Poland in Warsaw." "PM deeply appreciated the Indologists for their scholarship and work on Indian culture, language and arts. He commended them for their efforts in strengthening cultural ties between the two countries," the post further said. (ANI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk on Thursday agreed to formulate and execute a five-year action plan that will guide bilateral collaboration in the years 2024-2028 across several sectors including trade, investment, health, transport, cyber security and others. In a press release by the Prime Minister's Office, the five-year action plan covers political dialogue and security cooperation in which the two sides will maintain regular contact with foreign ministers, and they will use both bilateral and multilateral fora for these interactions. Both sides will consider supporting each other's aspirations on a case-by-case basis to contribute to multilateral cooperation in the spirit of the United Nations Charter. The two sides will ensure the holding of annual political dialogue at the level of deputy minister in charge of foreign relations, the press release said. The two sides will also encourage relevant institutions to hold regular consultations on security and defence cooperation to promote contact between defence industries, modernise military equipment, and address outstanding issues. The two sides decided that the next round of the Joint Working Group for defence cooperation would take place in 2024. In the trade and investment sector, recognizing opportunities in high-tech, agriculture, agritech, food tech, energy, climate, green technologies, infrastructure, smart cities, defence, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, and mining, the two sides will explore further cooperation in these sectors during next Joint Commission for Economic Cooperation (JCEC) meeting scheduled for the end of 2024. The two sides will strive to organize meetings of JCEC at least twice every five years, with the possibility of more frequent meetings, if necessary. Both sides will work towards achieving balanced bilateral trade and addressing all issues to facilitate smooth trade and investment and will also enhance cooperation in economic security by focusing on increasing supply chain resilience and mitigating risks associated with trade dependencies, added the release. Under climate, energy, mining, science and technology, the two sides will expand their cooperation in sustainable and environmentally friendly technological solutions for the circular economy and waste-water management. Acknowledging their historical reliance on domestic supplies for energy security, both sides will work together on advancing cleaner energy approaches and exploring cooperation in Clean Coal Technologies to minimize environmental impact, the release said. Recognizing the crucial role of innovation and the growing importance of critical minerals, the two sides will also collaborate on advanced mining systems, high-tech machinery, pioneering safety standards, and increase exchanges and cooperation in mining-related industries. Both sides agreed to work on concluding a cooperation agreement to promote the safe, sustainable, and secure use of space and commercial space ecosystems. They also agreed to promote human and robotic exploration. Poland also recognized India's ambition to join the International Energy Agency. Under the transport and connectivity sector, the two sides will explore developing cooperation in the field of transport infrastructure. The two sides will work to enhance connectivity between their countries and respective regions by discussing and pursuing further expansion of flight connections. The two sides also reiterated their unequivocal condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and emphasized that no country should provide a safe haven to those who finance, plan, support or commit terrorist acts. Both sides will make concerted efforts against all terrorists, including by designating individuals affiliated with groups that are listed by the UN Security Council 1267 sanctions committee, the press release said. Under the sector of cyber security, recognizing the critical importance of cyber security for economic and social development, both sides will enhance close interaction and increased exchanges in ICT-related fields, with particular attention to international cooperation, legislative and regulatory solutions, judicial and police activities, deterrence, prevention and responses to cyber-attacks, awareness-building and educational programs, scientific and technological research and development, business and economic exchanges. Both sides also underlined the vital role of strengthening collaboration in the field of health by exchanging and sharing information on areas of mutual interest, enhancing contacts among health experts, and supporting cooperation between health institutions in both countries. Both sides also decided to work together to implement the agreement on social security and they will make efforts to complete their respective internal legal procedures in this regard. The two sides will strengthen cooperation between cultural institutions and organisations of the two countries. The two sides will strengthen exchanges between artists, language experts, scholars, and cultural institutions from both countries. They will also explore establishing cooperation and dialogue between their think tanks and experts. The two sides will work together to strengthen cooperation in higher education and encourage universities from both sides to organise relevant activities. They will also encourage respective authorities to establish partnerships between academic institutions in both countries. Both sides emphasized the importance of education and linguistic and cultural exchange in building mutual understanding and fostering bilateral cultural ties. They also recognized the role of Hindi and Indian studies in Poland and Polish language and culture studies in India and agreed to work on an agreement between the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange and respective Indian agencies on teaching Polish language at various universities in India, the release by PMO said. Both sides will continue to expand tourist flows in both directions by strengthening cooperation in tourism. This includes organizing tourism missions, arranging family trips for influencers and travel agencies, and participating in tourism fairs and roadshows in both countries. To mark the 75th Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations, both sides will hold cultural festivals in each other's countries organized by the diplomatic missions. Dates for such special events will be decided in mutual consultations. Both sides will also promote a Student Exchange Programme and build mutual understanding with the younger generation. Recognizing that the EU and India are key international partners with a significant role in promoting peace, stability, and prosperity, both countries will support the early conclusion of the ongoing India-EU trade and investment negotiations, the operationalization of the India-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC), and the implementation of the India-EU Connectivity Partnership to advance the India-EU Strategic Partnership in trade, new technologies, and security. Both sides will ensure regular monitoring of the implementation of the Action Plan, with the annual political consultation as the primary mechanism for reviewing and updating the activities. The extension of the action plan for another five years will be adopted by the respective ministers in charge of foreign affairs, the release added. (ANI)
Warsaw (Poland) August 22 (AN): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held a meeting with Alina Posluszny, MD of TZMO India, a prominent Polish producer of hygiene products. During their discussion, Modi emphasized the significance of various policies and initiatives, including the 'Make in India' campaign. PM Modi highlighted various policies and initiatives such as the 'Make in India' campaign and recent liberalizations in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policies, being taken in India. They also exchanged views on TZMO's expansion plans, given the thriving market and investment opportunities in India, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a press release. Posluszny conveyed her gratitude for the support and opportunities offered in India. Posluszny also said, "It is a great honour to be here in Poland with the presence of PM Modi in my country. PM Modi is a very friendly and warm person. I am very excited and proud that I could represent our capital group here in Poland." She added, "In this meeting, as a foreign company in India, we can see a lot of changes that happened in the last few years when this government was running, which are really helpful for us to invest in India. We see that the upcoming years are very promising years for India and Poland. So I hope our relationship will be more tight." Meanwhile, Randhir Jaiswal, the official spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs shared a picture of PM Modi and Posluszny and said, "PM Narendra Modi met Alina Posluszny, MD of TZMO India, a leading Polish manufacturer of diversified hygiene products, with presence in India. PM invited TZMO to expand its manufacturing footprint in India and collaborate on long-term care initiatives." Notably, during his visit to Poland, PM Modi said that Poland has world leaders in the field of food processing and India offers a lot of opportunities. "We want Polish companies to be associated with the mega food park being built in India. The rapid urbanization in India is opening up new opportunities for our cooperation in areas such as water treatment, solid waste management and urban infrastructure. Clean coal technology, green, hydrogen, renewable energy and Artificial Intelligence are also our common priorities." PM Modi invited Polish companies to join Make in India and Make for the World."India has achieved many milestones in areas such as Fintech, Pharma and Space. We will be happy to share our experience with Poland in these areas," he said. (ANI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday met with Gawel Lopinski, CEO of Billenium Pvt Ltd, a prominent Polish IT company and enquired about his expansion plans and also spoke about significant opportunities for business collaboration between India and Poland in the field of new and emerging technologies. PM Modi met with Gawel Lopinski, CEO of Billenium Pvt. Ltd., a company with a notable presence in Pune, a press release by the Prime Minister's Office said. During the meeting, the Prime Minister highlighted India's growth story propelled by a favourable investment climate and the 'Make in India' programme. PM Modi also enquired about his expansion plans and mentioned the significant opportunities for business collaboration between India-Poland in the field of new and emerging technologies, AI, cybersecurity and digital economy, the release said. Prime Minister assured Lopinski of India's commitment to Ease of Doing Business and investment-friendly environment. Randhir Jaiswal shared pictures of PM Modi with Lopinski and said, "PM Narendra Modi met Gawel Lopinski, CEO of Billenium Pvt. Ltd., a leading Polish IT company with a notable presence in Pune." The post added, "PM appreciated Billenium's venture in India. PM noted that the rapid growth of digital economy in the country has generated new opportunities for collaborations between the Indian and Polish IT industries. PM highlighted the complementary nature of the IT industries in both countries." Meanwhile, Lopinski said that he discussed about potential investments, responsibilities and how India is becoming one of the superpowers. "I'm very honoured and privileged to be here. We talked about the values in leadership, trust in particular at the pace India is growing, we are happy to be there to invest and take the opportunity to have such a great talent pool in India as we operate in the new technology IT industry, especially in life science and healthcare sector. We also discussed potential investments, responsibilities and how India is becoming one of the superpowers, probably top 3 in the foreseeable future as far as the economy is concerned." He added, "With great power comes great responsibility and it seems India is taking this responsibility very seriously by influencing not only locally but in in our region and effectively in the world. I took the opportunity to express gratitude for becoming one of the global leaders..." (ANI)
EAM affirmed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit will give a "fresh impetus" to India-Poland ties.

"A good conversation this morning with FM @sikorskiradek of Poland. Discussed the Ukraine conflict, Indo-Pacific situation and bilateral cooperation. Confident that Prime Minister @narendramodi's visit will give a fresh impetus to India-Poland ties," Jaishankar stated in a post on X.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Modi on Thursday concluded his Poland visit and emplaned from Warsaw for the second leg of his visit in which he will travel to Ukraine.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in Poland on Wednesday for a two-day visit, the first visit by an Indian PM after 45 years.

PM Modi said his visit to Poland has been special and India looks forward to closer business and cultural connect with the country.

"My Poland visit has been special. It is after decades that an Indian PM set foot on Polish soil. This visit gave an opportunity to deepen cooperation with a valued friend. We look forward to closer business and cultural connect with Poland. Our friendship can certainly contribute to a better planet. I thank the Polish people and Government for their warmth," PM Modi said in a post on X.

Earlier in the day, PM Modi held constructive discussions with Poland Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Warsaw. The leaders agreed to elevate relations to a 'Strategic Partnership'.

Their discussions covered diverse areas of bilateral ties, including trade and investment, Science and technology, Defence and security, and cultural and people-to-people connections. The two leaders also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual concern.

Notably, PM Modi's visit to Ukraine is the first by an Indian Prime Minister after the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1992. (ANI)
India and Poland decided to elevate their ties to the level of strategic partnership, and reinforced their commitment to a free, open and rules-based Indo-Pacific, during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Ukraine. The leaders expressed "deepest concern" over the Ukraine conflict including its "terrible and tragic humanitarian consequences" and reiterated the need for a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace. The visit, the first by an Indian PM in 45 years, came as both nations celebrated the 70th anniversary of their diplomatic relations. Prime Minister Modi and Polish PM Donald Tusk, during their meeting, affirmed their mutual commitment to upholding peace and rules-based international order. Both leaders also agreed to strengthen collaboration within multilateral forums to advocate for the respect of international norms and to work together in promoting a stable and secure global environment. Ministry of External Affairs, in a press briefing termed PM Modi's visit to Poland as "historic and very successful" and emphasised that the two nations have decided to elevate their ties to strategic partnership. "PM Narendra Modi is completing his official visit to Poland and he was here at the invitation of PM Donald Tusk. The visit has been historic and very successful. Historic, since this was after 45 years that an Indian PM was visiting Poland and also this year marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations," MEA Secretary West, Tanmaya Lal said at a press briefing on Thursday. "One of the main aspects of the visit has been that both the countries have decided to take their relationship to the level of strategic partnership. In this contest, a joint statement has been released and an action plan has been finalised. So, there have been multiple aspects where the two countries have decided to cooperate even further...Poland is a very important partner for India in this region," he added. Stating that Poland will be holding the Presidency of the European Union Council next year, the MEA said the two nations are having negotiations on finalising a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with India and the EU. Tanmaya Lal also spoke about the Social Security Agreement which is of importance for the professionals that are working in each other's countries Being asked about the agreement, he said, "There has been an understanding which has been reached on the Social Security Agreement. You will have to wait for the Agreement to be signed which, we expect, will be done in the coming short time. That will really facilitate the issues relating to the professionals working in each other's countries." Meanwhile, Prime Minister Modi on Thursday concluded his Poland visit and emplaned from Warsaw for the second leg of his visit in which he will travel to Ukraine. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in Poland on Wednesday for a two-day visit, the first visit by an Indian PM after 45 years. PM Modi said his visit to Poland has been special and India looks forward to closer business and cultural connect with the country. "My Poland visit has been special. It is after decades that an Indian PM set foot on Polish soil. This visit gave an opportunity to deepen cooperation with a valued friend. We look forward to closer business and cultural connect with Poland. Our friendship can certainly contribute to a better planet. I thank the Polish people and Government for their warmth," PM Modi said in a post on X. Earlier in the day, PM Modi held constructive discussions with Poland Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Warsaw. The leaders agreed to elevate relations to a 'Strategic Partnership'. Their discussions covered diverse areas of bilateral ties, including trade and investment, Science and technology, Defence and security, and cultural and people-to-people connections. The two leaders also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual concern. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk on Thursday agreed to formulate and execute a five-year action plan that will guide bilateral collaboration in the years 2024-2028 across several sectors including trade, investment, health, transport, cyber security and others. The five-year action plan covers political dialogue and security cooperation in which the two sides will maintain regular contact with foreign ministers, and they will use both bilateral and multilateral fora for these interactions. The two leaders also expressed their deepest concern over the war raging in Ukraine including its terrible and tragic humanitarian consequences. They reiterated the need for a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace in line with international law, consistent with the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, including respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity. The joint statement further said that the two sides reinforced their commitment to a free, open and rules-based Indo-Pacific following the international law of the sea as reflected in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and with full respect for the sovereignty, territorial integrity and freedom of navigation to the benefit of the maritime security and international peace and stability. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Modi on Thursday concluded his Poland visit and emplaned from Warsaw for the second leg of his visit in which he will travel to Ukraine. Notably, PM Modi's visit to Ukraine is the first by an Indian Prime Minister after the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1992. (ANI)
The list of nations includes 34 other nations besides India.

Some of the major names include the United States, the United Kingdom, China, Israel, New Zealand, Nepal, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Japan and Australia

Sri Lankan Foreign Minister, Ali Sabry appreciated the development and called it the first step towards a visa-free regime.

"First steps towards a visa-free regime!" Sri Lankan FM stated in a post on X.

In a subsequent post, Sabry shared data from Sri Lankan Tourism Authority showing rise in tourism in the country.

According to the data, pre-Covid tourism stood at 2,333,796 in 2018 and 1,913,702 in 2019 which slumped in the pandemic years. The recent data show that tourism in Sri Lanka has resurged to 1,487,303 in 2023 and 1,315,884 in 2024 so far.

Sri Lankan FM affirmed hope that the island nation will achieve the pre-Covid level in tourism.

"We are well on course to achieve the pre covid level. @Sri Lanka can - Sri Lanka will!" he stated.

Notably, Sri Lanka will go to the polls to elect a new president on September 21.

Wickremesinghe was sworn in as the eighth President of Sri Lanka in July 2022, when then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa resigned from the post.

He announced his candidature for the presidential polls in July.

However, ahead of the presidential polls, Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), the biggest party in the parliament, decided not to back President Ranil Wickremesinghe and instead put up its own candidate.

Notably, SLPP is the party associated with the Rajapaksa brothers, who held most of the major power positions in the government until a few years ago.(ANI)
Independent presidential candidate, Robert F Kennedy Jr is expected to suspend his campaign on Friday at an event in Arizona, CNN reported citing two sources familiar with the plans. Kennedy is also in talks with Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's team, for an independent candidate to endorse the former president and appear at Trump's Phoenix-area rally. Kennedy's campaign announced earlier Wednesday that he would make a speech in Phoenix, on Friday morning. The speech on Friday will be the Kennedy campaign's first public event since early July. This will come days after his running mate, Nicole Shanahan, said in a podcast interview that the campaign is considering whether to "join forces" with Trump to prevent the "risk" of Vice President Kamala Harris winning the election, CNN reported. The Republican nominee on Tuesday expressed openness to Kennedy playing a role in a future administration should he drop out and offer his endorsement. "He's a brilliant guy. He's a very smart guy. I've known him for a very long time," Trump told CNN. "I didn't know he was thinking about getting out, but if he is thinking about getting out, certainly I'd be open to it." Discussions between Trump allies and advisors and Kennedy's team began in the lead-up to the Republican National Convention in July, prior to a leaked phone call between the former president and Kennedy that same month, CNN reported citing a source familiar with the conversations. Notably, Kennedy and Trump have grown warmer towards each other in recent months after initial attacks earlier in the campaign. A prominent vaccine sceptic, Kennedy has frequently criticized Trump for his handling of the Covid-19 pandemic and his implementation of Operation Warp Speed, the program to accelerate the manufacturing of Covid vaccines. Trump previously labelled Kennedy a member of the "radical left" and attacked Kennedy for his environmental activism. But in July, Trump and Kennedy had a call, days after Trump was shot in an assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. The day after the call, Kennedy and Trump met in person in Milwaukee on the first day of the Republican National Convention. Kennedy has struggled to gain traction since Harris took over the top of the Democratic ticket. A Washington Post/ABC News/Ipsos poll conducted earlier this month found Harris at 47 per cent support, Trump at 44 per cent and Kennedy at 5 per cent. The campaign is also quickly burning through funds as it seeks to gain ballot access across the country. Campaign finance reports from July show Kennedy's campaign held just USD 3.9 million on hand while reporting nearly USD 3.5 million in outstanding debts. The independent campaign has led to concerns among both Democrats and Republicans about Kennedy's potential impact on the presidential race, where narrow margins in a handful of battleground states could determine the winner. Though it remains unclear whether Kennedy has attracted more support from voters who backed President Joe Biden or Trump in 2020, the Kennedy campaign has said in recent days they believe they draw more support from voters who have previously backed Trump. (ANI)
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  About 80 Oregon delegates are in Chicago for the Democratic National Convention, including 18-year-old Jeffrey Teh from Portland.

Teh, the youngest delegate from Oregon this year, told KOIN 6 News he funded the trip himself.

I kind of ran a miniature campaign, with a website, with photos, and eventually by March or April, I was elected, he said.

Salem man accused of starting fire at truck stop

Teh represents the whole state. But voters elected him in the First Congressional District, covering parts of Portland to Hillsboro and stretches all the way to the coast.

Its a pretty big district, Teh said.

Teh is now engaging with top leaders, despite just graduating from high school a few months back.

Jeffrey Teh (left) poses with Oregon Governor Tina Kotek. (courtesy Jeffrey Teh).

Jeffrey Teh, Oregons youngest delegate, in a high school graduation photo. (courtesy Jeffrey Teh).

Its been a really, really great time. The Oregon delegation, all of the delegations, um, they all have really, really diverse set of individuals, Teh said. Ive been able to shake hands with the vice presidential candidate Tim Walz, so yeah its been really great.

Teh has been active in youth leadership and is passionate about issues like gun control and climate change. He hopes to inspire more young people to make their voices heard and show them its possible.

Gonzalez under investigation over Wikipedia spending

Just sitting there I could feel the energy of the crowd, Teh said. We cant be apathetic, we must really be engaged and get involved.

After graduating from Sunset High School, Teh said he may be interested in running for some kind of public office after he completes college. Hes set to start his freshman year at Middlebury College in Vermont in a few weeks.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KOIN.com.
Charles Wolfe grew pessimistic as the years went by that there would ever be an answer to who killed his sister on Jan. 9, 1980. Then, last week, he saw her face on TV, announcing there had been a break in the case.

"We were astonished, jubilant, of course, shocked and surprised to see my sister on the television screen for the first time in decades," said 60-year-old Wolfe of Leander.

Last Friday, the Austin Police Department said DNA evidence connected 78-year-old Deck Brewer Jr., who is currently serving time in a Massachusetts prison on an unrelated charge, to the abduction, rape and killing of Susan Leigh Wolfe in Austin.

After 44 years, detectives with the Austin Police Department's Cold Case Unit have filed murder charges against a man in connection to Susan Leigh Wolfe's killing.

An arrest warrant charging Brewer in Susan Wolfe's murder was filed in the Austin Municipal Court on Tuesday, police said. Details of when Brewer will be brought to Austin are still unclear, but the Austin Police Department said Massachusetts will not extradite him until his sentence ends Aug. 28.

The Travis County district attorney's office will work with Massachusetts to schedule the prisoner transport, which will be conducted by the Travis County sheriff's office.

The American-Statesman confirmed through the Massachusetts Department of Corrections that Brewer is locked up in the Massachusetts Treatment Center, a medium-security prison for male sex offenders and people who have been civilly committed because they're considered sexually dangerous.

When asked what Brewer is currently in prison for, a Massachusetts Department of Corrections spokesperson directed the Statesman to the Middlesex County district attorney's office. The Middlesex County district attorney's office did not respond to the Statesman's question about Brewer's criminal past.

The Austin Police Department declined to make the lead detective on the case available for an interview.

Austin police have filed an arrest warrant charging Deck Brewer Jr. in the Jan. 9, 1980, slaying of Susan Leigh Wolfe.

'Someone with great potential'

Near the end of her life, 25-year-old Susan Wolfe was getting ready for her first semester at the University of Texas, where she'd planned to study nursing. Prior to her enrollment, she had taken up work at the Austin State Hospital and had taken classes in preparation for attending UT.

Susan Wolfe graduated from Austin's Reagan High School, which is now called Northeast Early College High School.

Her brother said she was a caretaker, describing her as a "surrogate mom." However, he also said she had somewhat of a free spirit, calling her a "prototype hippie."

"Susan was bubbly," Charles Wolfe said. "She was not a materialistic person; she didn't even own a car. ... She loved to help people."

Without a car, Susan Wolfe would bike or walk around town. Charles Wolfe said he would speak to her about how dangerous that could be for a young woman.

According to the Statesman archives, her father also spoke in 1980 about how the family feared for her safety due to the nature of her work at the Austin State Hospital.

But overall, her father, Thomas Wolfe, spoke about the memories of his little girl catching her first flyball in a softball game, the first time she had her heart broken as a teenager and, just weeks before her death, when she took him to a sitar concert.

"They've taken the life of someone with great potential," Thomas Wolfe told the Statesman in 1980.

Many leads, but never any arrests

Susan Wolfe was hired Jan. 9, 1980, by UT's nursing school for a work-study program. That night, she was abducted near 200 Franklin Blvd. while walking to a friend's house just blocks away after her home had been fumigated.

A witness said he went outside to feed his dogs when he saw Susan Wolfe bending down as if she had dropped something.

At that time, a car pulled up next to her and the driver exited the vehicle, grabbed Susan Wolfe in a "bear hug" and threw her in the car. There was also a passenger, but it's unclear what the passenger was doing at the time of the kidnapping.

Police found Susan Wolfe's half-naked body the next morning in the 2000 block of East 17th Street with signs of strangulation, sexual assault and a single .22-caliber gunshot to her head.

Charles Wolfe said he took the next six months off from school, riding his bike around town and distributing flyers anywhere he could to ask for the public's help to identify the car or the killers of his sister.

Police later hypnotized the witness, who was an auto body repairman, and were able to get a better description of the vehicle: a maroon-reddish 1970 Dodge Polara with a beat-up white vinyl top and its passenger door smashed in, according to a Statesman article from 1980.

During this hypnosis session, the witness also told police Susan Wolfe might have bent down to hide from her attackers, meaning she could have known them.

Just days after the attack, the Statesman reported that Austin police received more than 75 tips, mostly from people saying that they'd seen that vehicle. Over the years, detectives interviewed multiple persons of interest in the case, some as far away as New York state, but none of them turned out to be Susan Wolfe's killers.

Austin police at one time even suspected famed Texas serial killer Henry Lee Lucas  who earned the nickname "The Confession Killer" after falsely admitting to killing nearly 600 people throughout the 1960s and 80s in various states  as being responsible for Susan Wolfe's death.

Five different lead investigators have been assigned to the case since 1980, with more than 30 investigators working on it in some capacity, according to the Police Department.

As time went by, Charles Wolfe said his hope waned, although he never lost faith that the case might be solved.

He is upset police didn't contact him directly, especially since he called them after his mother died in 2019 to be the point of contact on the case. But he's happy that at least one person will be brought to trial, although he still hopes the other person is identified.

"We have cautious optimism," Charles Wolfe said. "We just want to make sure she gets the justice she deserves."

Police said it is still an active investigation, as detectives are working to identify the passenger in the car. Anyone with information about Susan Wolfe's killing is asked to contact the cold case unit at 512-974-5250. Tips also can be submitted anonymously ataustincrimestoppers.org or by calling 512-472-8477.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Brother of Austin woman killed in 1980 speaks about hope for justice
Rep. Barbara Ann Fenton-Fung, center, is seen speaking outside Cranston City Hall on Aug. 22, 2024, about mailers sent out by her opponent in the upcoming Republican primary, incumbent Mayor Ken Hopkins. At Fenton-Fungs left is Ken Barrett, her campaigns attorney, and at right is her husband, Allan Fung, who served as the citys mayor from 2009 to 2021. (Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current)

With 19 days until the mayoral primary in Cranston, the citys two Republican candidates are ramping up their attacks.

That was clear at a Thursday morning press conference held outside Cranston City Hall by state Rep. Barbara Ann Fenton-Fung in response to a recent mailer from her opponent, sitting Mayor Ken Hopkins.

Layered over an image of people wading through water, one side of the mailer asks in an all-caps, red typeface: Should illegal immigrants get free college tuition? Barbara Fenton-Fung says yes.

The reverse side notes in-state tuition rates at the University of Rhode Island, the states largest public institution of higher education, and adds that $0 [is] what illegal immigrants can pay for college because of Barbara Fenton-Fung.

Fenton-Fung spoke to reporters Thursday to address her voting record on the bills.

This piece of trash mailer, they were so bad theyve already started to try to distance themselves from it, Fenton-Fung said. Its like a four ring circus over there in Hopkins land.

But Robert Murray, a spokesperson for the Hopkins campaign, told Rhode Island Current in a phone interview Thursday afternoon that it was not true that the mayors team denied sending the mailer.

No, absolutely not, Murray said. Its clear right on the mailers. We put Paid for by friends of Ken Hopkins. There should be no confusion as to the source of the mailer.

The mailer was referencing Fenton-Fungs affirmative vote in 2021 on the Rhode Island Student Success Act, which expanded in-state tuition prices to noncitizens under certain conditions, like signing an affidavit that theyd apply for legal citizenship. The bill made into law a residency policy the states postsecondary council had approved back in 2011.

Fenton-Fung also supported a 2021 extension of the Promise scholarship program, which provides free tuition at Community College of Rhode Island (but not URI, which is the tuition price cited by the mailer).

Fenton-Fung was the sole Republican to support the in-state tuition bill in the House, which then passed onto the Senate, where it was approved 37-0.

Every single Senate Republican  including staunch conservatives like Minority Leader Jessica de la Cruz, Sen. Elaine Morgan and Sen. Gordon Rogers  all voted for that bill, Fenton-Fung said. I know shes not a household name, but I really dont think that Sen. Elaine Morgan would ever vote for a bill thinking that shed be funding college tuition for people here illegally.

(Morgan did not vote for the Senate version of the bill, however. She only voted for the House version, which needs to pass both chambers in Rhode Islands legislative procedure.)

Both bills were signed into law by Gov. Dan McKee in July 2021.

Fenton-Fung is vacating her seat in the Rhode Island House of Representatives to pursue the mayoral post once held by her husband, Allan Fung. That means one less Republican in the partys already tiny numbers at the 113-seat State House, where in the last session there were only five Republicans in the Senate and nine in the House.

Murray said the mayors campaign feels very confident about the Sept. 10 primary, but he did confirm the mailer contains a typo about one of Fenton-Fungs votes, which took place on May 6, 2021 but is erroneously marked as having taken place on May 21, 2021.

Fenton-Fung characterized the error as a fake citation at the press conference. A press release Murray issued Wednesday night ahead of Fenton-Fungs press conference contains the correct date. The release also contained a statement from Hopkins and pointed out Fenton-Fungs support for the Rhode Island Promise scholarship and overdose prevention centers.

Now she is running away from her liberal voting record because she knows it is not what Cranston residents want from their mayor, the statement said.

I dont know where Ken Hopkins stands on most things, Fenton-Fung said at the press conference, who also said she had not seen the Wednesday evening statement.

Murray said the Hopkins campaign has done numerous mailers, including positive messaging and endorsements from Republican elected officials.

Now were gonna do contrast mailers, Murray said.

If anything, she knows that these mailers are effective. Republican voters do not support these issues. Shes on the wrong side of them, and thats why she went through this show this morning, because she knows these mailers are effective and theyre hurting her.

But any evidence of that hurt was not obvious at the press conference, as Fenton-Fung parried off concerns about her political identity.

Clearly, I think Im winning, she said. If youre sending out mailers like this, these are modes of massive desperation from a campaign.

Based on her door-to-door campaigning, people wanna return to the Fung times of Cranston, Fenton-Fung said.

During the press conference, she requested the mayor issue a formal apology for the mailers, via letter and social media, and noted that her attorney had sent a cease and desist to Hopkins and Murray.

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How deep is the Genesee River? Key facts about the river that runs through upstate NY

Fall foliage explodes with colors surround the Genesee River as it makes its way through Rochester.

The Genesee River flows into Lake Ontario. The Haudenosaunee named the river "Ge-ne-see," meaning "pleasant banks." Historically, the river was a boundary between the Seneca lands to the east and the Erie and Wenro territories to the west. In the 19th century, it powered the mills of the Rochester area and continued to generate hydroelectric power for downtown Rochester.

During the 16th century the river was a lifeline for the Iroquois people who lived in the Rochester region until the city became established on its high falls.

Here's what else you should know about this historic body of water.

More: Genesee River's iconic waterfalls finally named on U.S. geographic maps

How deep is the Genesee River?

The depth of the Genesee River varies significantly along its course:

Mouth : At the river's mouth, 157 miles downstream from its source in Ulysses, Pennsylvania, the Genesee River reaches a depth of 27 feet.

Rochester : Near Rochester, the river is 21 feet deep.

Letchworth State Park: In the 17-mile stretch through Letchworth State Park, the river flows through a gorge that can reach depths of up to 600 feet, earning this area the nickname "Grand Canyon of the East."

What states does the Genesee River pass through?

From a hill in Potter County, Pennsylvania, to Lake Ontario in New York, the Genesee River flows 160 miles north through various rural and urban communities in two states.

How fast is the water in the Genesee River?

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the river's current flow rate is 767 cubic feet per second.

How big is the Genesee River Basin?

The Genesee River basin has 2,373 square miles of land within New York state, according to the state Department of Environmental Conservation.

Can you swim in the Genesee River?

Yes, however, swimmers should check for designated swimming areas and the water conditions beforehand.

Is the Genesee River important to wildlife?

The Genesee River supports a variety of wildlife, including wild turkeys, white-tailed deer, black bears, wood ducks and more.

More: Sam Patch, Riverie prepare to cruise Rochester waterways once again

Genae Shields is the business & development impact reporter. Reach out at gshields@gannett.com or on Instagram: @genaebriphoto for questions, comments, or concerns. Thank you for your continued support!

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: How deep is the Genesee River in Rochester NY? What to know
For the past century, Delaware has been widely recognized as the incorporation capital of America, if not the world over. This reputation was largely gained owing to its swift, tempered and predictable administration of justice through the Chancery Court  a system that has attracted countless entrepreneurs and corporations seeking a favorable business environment for growth. Drawn by these perceived advantages, I too moved my companys corporate home to Delaware in 2007.

In theory, Delawares benefits should be shared equitably among all stakeholders, including owners, employees, directors and the broader business community. However, in recent years, reality has diverged significantly from this ideal. Delawares legal system has increasingly favored a wealthy, insular group of attorneys and firms, often referred to as the old boys club. My own experience underscores this shift. When the Chancery Court seized control of my company, I found myself powerless against the entrenched Delaware Way, which ultimately harmed my employees and disregarded broader principles of American fairness.

Todays Delaware is governed by an unelected and omnipotent Chancery Court that no longer serves the interests of the masses  entrepreneurs, employees nor marginalized communities. Instead, it benefits a small circle of judges, law firms and lawyers who make billion-dollar decisions with no accountability. This system is fundamentally flawed and needs urgent reform.

TransPerfect CEO Phil Shawe stands in the company's New York headquarters in July 2016.

To address these issues, I co-founded the political action committee Citizens for a New Delaware Way. Our goal is to advocate for new leadership and reforms that will restore Delawares business edge, rebuild public trust, and support both the middle class and less fortunate communities. The story of my business is just one example of how Delawares system is biased and ripe for abuse and corruption. Since 2015, my $1.2 billion company that I founded in my grad school dorm room in 1992 has been trapped in a protracted legal battle with the Chancery Court. We narrowly avoided disaster in 2016 when the court sought to force us into a merger with a major competitor, a move that enriched insiders, but jeopardized the jobs of thousands of American workers. This situation highlights the inherent dangers of Delawares current system and underscores the need for significant reforms.

One essential change necessary is the random assignment of cases. Currently, the chancellor personally assigns cases, which can lead to bias and self-interest, especially in a small state where the legal community is closely knit. Federal courts across the U.S. use random case assignment to avoid such issues and there is no legitimate reason Delaware should not follow suit. Additionally, Chancery Court proceedings lack transparency: there are no cameras or audio recordings, and obtaining transcripts is nearly impossible. Courts are meant to be public and transparent, yet Delawares system operates opaquely, with minimal oversight, making it ripe for abuse of power and potential corruption.

Delaware primary: Millions fueling Delaware governor's race make it one of most expensive in history

Reform is not limited to the judiciary; it also extends to the political realm. Recently, Bethany Hall-Long, a prominent political figure, was implicated in a scandal involving more than $200,000 in questionable payments from her campaign to her husband. An investigation revealed a note from Hall-Long instructing the creation of receipts for these payments. Such conduct is unacceptable for anyone managing a $6 billion state budget.

Citizens for a New Delaware Way has not yet endorsed any candidate for governor, but stands firmly against any campaign tainted by corruption and led by individuals who prioritize the political elite over the public. We are committed to exposing Hall-Longs financial misconduct and highlighting the detrimental impact her potential administration could have on Delaware.

The time for reform is now. Delaware needs a new era of leadership grounded in integrity and fairness. We must elect a governor who rejects the status quo, is accountable to all Delawareans, and is committed to rooting out corruption. Only through such leadership can we ensure that Delawares future is bright and prosperous for everyone  businesses and residents alike.

The best days for Delaware are ahead but achieving them requires significant change. By establishing a New Delaware Way, we can restore our states reputation, support a thriving business environment and build a fairer, more equitable society. The journey toward reform starts with integrity in leadership, and it is up to us to ensure that we make the right choices for Delawares future.

Phil Shawe is the CEO of TransPerfect.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: A New Delaware Way to support thriving business environment
CHICAGO - Democrats from the crucial Sun Belt battleground states of Arizona, Georgia and Nevada gathered at their national convention this week are rejoicing in the newfound enthusiasm and energy surrounding Kamala Harris, which has made their states far more competitive since she became the party's presidential nominee.

But with 11 weeks to go until Election Day, party leaders in those states told USA TODAY they will be leaving the Windy City with a commitment to transform that enthusiasm into beating Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and to help lift other Democrats along the way.

"We've been doing the work, and we're just kind of doubling down, tripling down and making sure that no voter goes untouched, untapped and unlistened to," said Daniele Monroe-Moreno, a Nevada state assemblywoman and chair for the state Democratic Party.

When Nevada Democrats received an influx of new volunteers after President Joe Biden ended his reelection bid and Harris became the nominee, the state party already had the operations in place to have them knock on doors, make phone calls and meet with voters, Monroe-Moreno said.

Democrats are working with the Harris campaign in a state Biden won in 2020 by about 33,600 votes and have so far opened 12 offices statewide and hired 100 full-time staffers.

Next door in Arizona, where Biden beat Trump four years ago by under 10,500 votes, the state party and the Harris campaign are running a coordinated campaign with 13 offices and 130 full-time staff.

Back east in Georgia, that number is double with 26 field offices and 200 full time staff, according to Matthew Wilson, first vice chair for the state Democratic Party. That should signal to Georgia voters in the coming weeks that they're serious about their chances to win in a state that Biden captured by about 11,800 votes in 2020, Wilson said.

"I've got to give it to Vice President Harris and Gov. Walz," Wilson said. "Their campaign has doubled down in Georgia and expanded the blueprint that the Biden-Harris campaign already had."

The Democrats' optimism stems from polls showing a tighter race or Harris taking the lead over Trump. The latest, a New York Times/Siena poll of likely voters, found Harris leading in Arizona and narrowing the gap in Georgia and Nevada. The Cook Political Report shifted these states earlier this month from "Lean R" to a "toss-up."

The polls point to enthusiasm among Democratic voters for the surge in support. But it's not limited to those three Sun Belt states.

In North Carolina, Harris is leading Trump by 2 percentage points, the Times/Siena poll found. Even in Florida, Trump's home state and once considered the premier battleground, a USA TODAY/Suffolk University/WSVN-TV survey released last week showed Harris within striking distance of the former GOP president in a state that hasn't swung the Democrats' way since Barack Obama's 2012 reelection.

The voter enthusiasm among Democrats opens up an electoral roadmap for Harris that did not appear possible for Biden. Putting the Sun Belt states in play gives Harris multiple paths to the 270 Electoral College votes. It also forces Trump to redirect resources in the final weeks of the campaign.

With Biden in the race, Trump focused heavily on the Midwest, picking Sen. JD Vance of Ohio as his running mate to shore up support among Midwest voters.

The week after Harris announced Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, Vance spent those days trailing them through battleground states, including a stopover at the Arizona border.

Trump has shifted his attention to the Sun Belt. He held a rally in Georgia two weeks ago. He's traveling to Arizona and Nevada this week.

His campaign issued a memo from its chief pollster earlier this week, discounting polls showing Harris with a "phony" lead in Sun Belt states.

But Democrats at the convention are feeling more optimistic about their chances.

"The new people that are joining that are saying they want to be a part of electing Kamala Harris, it's different," said Pamela Castellana, the chair for Florida Democrat's state campaign committee.

The focus is not on keeping Trump out of office, she said. "It's because they're fighting for something now, you know. We just feel hopeful and energized, for the first time in a long time."

Regina Romero, the mayor of Tucson, Arizona and a member of the Harris-Walz national advisory board, cautioned against relying on polls or believing the enthusiasm for Harris will carry over to Election Day.

"We want to make sure that we take all of the energy in that room and take it to our states and make sure that we do the work because we cannot take anything for granted," she said.

Coalition building key to battleground states

Democrats in these Sun Belt states agree that the key to securing victories in November lies in their diverse electorates and building winning coalitions.

In Georgia, Black voters account for 30 percent of the state's 7 million eligible voters. Latinos make up a quarter of the Arizona's 4.1 million voters and one in five eligible voters in Nevada.

In Arizona, that includes outreach to Republican voters turned off by Trump. The convention has featured Republicans supporting Harris this time around.

"The people in the political middle aren't homeless," said John Giles, the Mesa, Arizona, mayor who chairs the Republicans for Harris campaign in that state and addressed the convention Tuesday.

"The Republican Party of John McCain is gone. But, until we get something close to it back, it's OK to not vote for a Republican at the top of the ticket," he told USA TODAY.

In Georgia, the party will strengthen efforts to boost turnout among the state's sizeable Black electorate. Given the narrow margins from 2020, House Caucus Whip Sam Park said they will also target smaller but growing communities like Asian-American and Pacific Islander voters.

"It's an uphill battle, because of all the systemic efforts that Republicans are creating to make it more difficult, not just to undermine our freedom to vote, but to ensure that our vote counts," Park said.

Part of that outreach is providing resources in other languages to ensure voters understand how to cast their vote. Republicans in Georgia passed a series of changes to the state's election system after the 2020 election in the name of election integrity.

"One of the best ways of mitigating the harm is to turn out in a historic manner and ensure that Georgia votes are counted. Every single Georgia vote counts," he added.

One of the fastest-growing voting blocs in Georgia is Indian-American voters, according to Park. Harris's ascent to the top of the ticket has generated great enthusiasm within that community.

Dhruv Revva, a 20-year-old Arizona State student who is of Indian descent and is one of the youngest members of the Arizona delegation, said it was exciting to see someone who grew up in a similar background reach the highest office in U.S. politics, first as vice president and potentially as president.

"It's just so important that every single immigrant kid, every single little girl in America can look at this moment and, in the face of all the misogyny, the dog whistles, the racism, America can still choose the first South Asian, Black woman president," he said.

Joseph Garcia, the executive director for the Chicanos por la Causa Action Fund said they are preparing to scale up their nonpartisan Latino Loud initiative, which aims to register as many young voters as possible in Arizona and Nevada before Election Day.

While Nevada allows same-day registration, Garcia said in Arizona, they have until Oct. 7 to register people to vote. But with most voters tuned out until after Labor Day, that gives Latino Loud a narrow window to work with.

"That one month is when we'll be flooding everything we can, get as much conversation going. Really pushing it so people are registered," Garcia said.

Lifting down-ballot candidates in the process

Democratic leaders in the Sun Belt battleground states hope voter enthusiasm also lifts Democrats down ballot, from key Senate and House races all the way down to state legislatures and county races.

Democrats narrowly control the Senate, while Republicans control the House. Each party sees opportunities to flip the other chamber, and control could come down to key races in Sun Belt states.

Higher turnout in presidential years could also help deliver Democratic majorities in state legislatures and the governor's seat.

Since Biden stepped down and endorsed Harris, about 30,000 volunteers signed up online in Arizona alone. That's nearly three times Biden's 10,400-vote victory margin there.

"For the down-ballot races, we have this phrase 'flip two,'" said Joshua Polacheck, a delegate and candidate for the Arizona Corporation Commission, which regulates utility companies in the state.

"So we're going to flip two state House seats. We're going to flip two state Senate seats. We're going to flip two Corporation Commission seats. We're going to flip two US House seats," he added.

Park, a state representative up for reelection in Georgia, said their strategy centers on tested methods like knocking on doors to connect with voters and coordinating their message.

"We are not just talking to voters in our districts for our respective campaigns and handing out our materials, but also handing out materials for Kamala Harris," he said.

Monroe-Moreno, the chair for the Democratic Party in Nevada, said helping elect candidates locally benefits all Democrats.

"We need to be that blue team. And so yes, doing that work in Nevada, but helping my state party chairs throughout the country get those accomplishments in their states, as well," she said.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Democrats in Sun Belt battlegrounds seize on Harris voter enthusiasm
Former Kentucky fire chief admits theft of $76,000 in federal funds for his department

The former chief of an Eastern Kentucky volunteer fire department has admitted to stealing more than $76,000 that was supposed to be used for equipment for firefighters and other needs.

Christopher Chapman, 35, pleaded guilty Tuesday to a charge of theft of public funds.

Chapman was chief of the Blackberry Volunteer Fire Department in rural Pike County when he took the money.

The county fiscal court approved grants of $50,000 in the spring of 2022 to each fire department in the county to be used for turnout gear for firefighters and for other equipment and maintenance of their fire stations.

Chapman registered a company in West Virginia and told members of the board at the Blackberry department he could get safety equipment at cost from a company.

He didnt tell board members he owned the company, according to his plea agreement.

The department ultimately paid for $76,854 worth of equipment from the company Chapman had set up, but he took the money and didnt fill any of the equipment orders from the Blackberry department, according to his plea agreement.

Chapman was charged in federal court because the money the county gave fire departments came through the American Rescue Plan Act, which Congress approved to help local governments maintain services during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chapman is liable for repaying the $76,854 and faces up to 10 years in prison.

U.S. District Judge Karen K. Caldwell scheduled sentencing for Nov. 25.
KANSAS CITY, Mo.  The U.S. Department of Justice announced today that a Latvian man made his first appearance in federal court today in Kansas City, Kansas. Hes facing charges in a years-long scheme to send avionics equipment to Russian companies.

According to court documents, Oleg Christyakov, of Latvia, conspired to facilitate the repair, shipment and sale of U.S. avionics equipment with two Kansas men, Cyril Gregory Buyanovsky, 61, and Douglas Edward Robertson, 56. Court documents also say that the scheme included customers from Russia and other countries that operate Russian aircraft, including the Federal Security Service of Russia.

Buyanovsky and Robertson were both charged and arrested in March of 2023 and will be sentenced on November 14 and October 3 respectively.

Court documents say that Christyakov operated from Latvia and often through his Emirati company, RosAero FZC. He worked with Buyanovsky and Robertson through their U.S. company, KanRus Trading Company Inc. The three avoided U.S. export laws by purchasing equipment from U.S. companies for customers in Russia.

KCPD arrests juveniles linked to dozens of crimes in Waldo, Brookside

Christyakov apparently acted as a broker or a middleman for KanRus by providing quotes and negotiating prices and delivery. He and his conspirators tried to hide their activities by creating false invoices, transshipping items through third-party countries and exporting items to intermediary companies which then reexported them.

Documents claim that Christyakov is being charged with conspiracy, Export Control Reform Act violations and smuggling and money laundering violations. If convicted, he will face a max penalty of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine.

Many of those involved with Christyakovs scheme were added to the Commerce Departments Entity List last December. This creates license requirements on transactions made.

The FBI and the Commerce Departments Bureau of Industry and Security are investigating this case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Scott Rask and Ryan Huschka for the District of Kansas and Trial Attorney Adam Barry of the National Security Divisions Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting this case. The Justice Departments Office of International Affairs worked with Latvian authorities to secure the extradition of Chistyakov.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer has emerged as a trailblazer in police reform and good governance. His administration's commitment to law enforcement reform, ethics, and transparency reflects a dedication to fostering a fair and just community  one where misconduct is confronted directly, and systemic issues are addressed.

Moreover, Meyers leadership in police reform goes beyond addressing individual cases of misconduct; it aims to foster a culture of accountability and transparency within the entire department. His administration has introduced several critical reforms aimed at improving accountability and building trust between law enforcement and the community. One of the most notable initiatives is the establishment of a Police Accountability Board, a first in Delaware. This board, created under an ordinance approved by the County Council, serves as a critical mechanism for addressing systemic issues within the police force. Comprising members from various community organizations and law enforcement, the board reviews police policies, procedures, and misconduct complaints. It also makes recommendations for future reforms, ensuring that the police department remains transparent and accountable to the public.

New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer

Meyers leadership is characterized by a fearless commitment to reform, even in the face of significant challenges and criticism, including tackling harassment within the ranks of the county police. One of his most notable actions as county executive was his decisive response to allegations of harassment within the New Castle County Police Department. Accusations of sexual harassment against Lt. Col. Quinton Watson, the department's second-in-command, spanned over two decades. These deeply troubling allegations included inappropriate touching and explicit comments directed at female subordinates, contributing to a hostile work environment marked by fear and retaliation.

Despite the potential backlash, Meyer maintained his resolve. He did not shy away from addressing these issues, even when the statute of limitations for legal action had expired. Rather than allowing the matter to be ignored, Meyer approved a $3 million settlement to compensate the six courageous women police officers who came forward with their experiences. This decision highlighted his commitment to justice and his determination to amplify these officers' voices.

However, Meyers actions extended beyond the settlement. Recognizing that systemic issues within the police department required comprehensive solutions, he promptly removed the lieutenant colonel from duty and instituted new measures to ensure that future complaints could be made anonymously and without fear of retaliation. These measures include robust disciplinary procedures for officers and other police department employees accused of harassment or inappropriate behavior.

Furthermore, he transformed the Department by introducing specific measures to regulate officers' use of force. His administration has prohibited chokeholds, a contentious technique associated with several high-profile cases of police brutality nationwide. Additionally, Meyer has implemented a "duty to intervene" policy, which mandates that officers act if they witness a colleague using excessive force or engaging in misconduct. These reforms are part of a broader initiative aimed at ensuring the police force upholds the highest standards of integrity and respect for human rights.

Meyer is not only creating mechanisms for accountability but is also committed to supporting the county's police officers. Acknowledging the unique challenges faced by law enforcement, he has championed initiatives to address mental health within the force. In 2022, New Castle County launched an innovative wellness program for officers, funded by a federal grant. This comprehensive program aims to meet the mental health needs of officers, who often endure significant stress and trauma in their line of duty. It offers resources such as trauma-informed yoga sessions, access to personal trainers and financial advisors, designed to support officers from the start of their careers through retirement, enabling them to manage stress and maintain their wellbeing.

This emphasis on mental health also influences how officers interact with the public, particularly in situations involving individuals with mental illnesses. By equipping officers with the tools to manage their own mental health, the program enhances their capacity to respond compassionately and effectively to mental health crises within the community. This initiative embodies a forwardthinking approach to policing that recognizes the complex demands placed on officers and seeks to provide them with the necessary support to perform their duties with empathy andprofessionalism.

Meyers initiatives in New Castle County have established him as a leader in police reform, not only locally but also across the state. His readiness to confront challenging issues directly, combined with his innovative approach to governance, sets a powerful example for other leaders in Delaware and beyond. Meyer exemplifies that courageous leadership entails making difficult decisions, advocating for what is right and consistently striving to improve the systems that serve the community.

Looking forward, Meyer is committed to expanding reforms throughout the state, fully aware that enhancing law enforcement and governance is an ongoing endeavor. If elected governor, he pledges to implement additional measures that protect the rights and well-being of all Delawareans. Whether through further legislative action, enhanced training programs, or new community partnerships, Meyers vision for a just and accountable government is unwavering. His continued efforts are poised to reshape the future of policing and governance in Delaware, paving the way for a more equitable and transparent society.

Carmen Facciolo is a former Delaware, New York City and Maryland law enforcement executive. He is a national criminal justice policy expert, and served in both the U.S. Department of Justice and the administration of former President Barack Obama.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Matt Meyer will improve Delaware police reform
What was supposed to be a fun-filled day celebrating Mexican culture took a turn for the worst when two staff members showed up wearing insensitive T-shirts.

The incident occurred on July 31 during Royall Elementary School's "Royal Cantina" event. The school, located in Florence County, South Carolina, faced backlash on social media after posting pictures of two employees dressed in U.S. Border Patrol agent costumes.

The post has since been deleted due to the flood of angry comments it received from the Mexican-American community.

Here's what to know about the incident and the staff members' employment status.

What to know about the incident

According to a USA TODAY story, the event took place during the school's professional development day. Most of the employees at the event tried to match the Latin American bar theme through their outfits, with some wearing sombreros and bright-colored clothing. Two of the school's employees were photographed in gray shirts with the words "U.S. Border Patrol" printed on them as they stood in front of a makeshift red brick wall. The photo of the employees was then uploaded by the school to Facebook on July 31.

It did not take long for the photos to cause a stir on social media, where South Carolinians expressed their disapproval and shame.

"This is beyond disgusting. These so-called 'educators' should be fired immediately," commented one Facebook user.

Another comment read, "As a mom, I would hate to see a child hurt. These teachers need to be fired immediately. They are racist and have no place in our schools. How can they think this is funny? It's a shame they got placed on administrative leave and will be back to teach."

SHOCKING: Royall Elementary School in South Carolina posted photos to Facebook of teachers wearing shirts reading 'U.S. Border Patrol.' The teachers were participating in a display meant to represent Mexico.



The photos were removed after one mom called them 'insensitive.' pic.twitter.com/STG4EU1Von  Crisis in the Classroom (@CITClassroom) August 1, 2024

How did Royall Elementary School respond to the incident?

Royall Elementary School released a statement on Facebook referencing the incident. The post, which received 476 reactions, read:

"It is with regret that we acknowledge that a picture that was posted on our Facebook page yesterday showed an insensitive disregard for the current challenges our Hispanic population faces. At Royall, we take great pride in our long-standing tradition of embracing and supporting every student who walks through the doors of our building. Our staff is unanimously committed to celebrating the diversity of our families and ensuring that each and every student at Royall is successful, happy, and recognized for his or her unique culture and abilities. We apologize for our insensitivity but look forward to fostering relationships as we begin a new school year."

Due to backlash, the school limited the number of people who could comment on the post.

Are staff who wore border patrol shirts facing termination?

Florence One Schools Superintendent Richard O'Malley addressed the incident in a letter to parents, stating, "Several employees are no longer employed or have been placed on leave."

In the letter, he added, "I want to assure the Royall Community that the school will continue to provide an exceptional education for all students, with the high expectations and excellence in student achievement that have always been provided by our staff at Royall."

Nina Tran covers trending topics for The Greenville News. Reach her via email at ntran@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: SC school receives backlash for Border Patrol costume photo on social
Jacqueline Charles, a Pulitzer Prize finalist and Emmy Award-winning Haiti and Caribbean correspondent for the Miami Herald, has been awarded the 2024 Elijah Parish Lovejoy Award for Courage in Journalism from Colby College.

The award follows her honor Saturday at the 2024 Sunshine State Awards in Hollywood. The Society for Professional Journalism presented Charles with the National Association of Black Journalists South Florida Diversity Award for a collection of her recent work.

We are the first drafters of history, and today I am able to write part of Haitis modern-day history, in particular. Its nuanced, its complicated and its messy. But its also a story about promise, resistance and hope, Charles said of her role documenting Haiti.

Colby, a private liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine, founded in 1813, honored the veteran reporter for her extensive reporting on Haiti that has included covering the nations natural disasters, its political turmoil and healthcare crises. The school has presented the Lovejoy since 1952.

With courage and compassion, Jacqueline Charles ensures that the turmoil in Haiti and its effects on the people of that country remain visible to the world, said Colby President David Greene in a statement. Ms. Charles has spent her career revealing injustice and threats to humanity, just as Elijah Parish Lovejoy did.

READ MORE: Seeing Haitians as human beings. Heralds Jacqueline Charles shares her experiences

Who was Lovejoy?

Martin Kaiser, chairman of the Lovejoy Advisory Board, said that Charles journalism represented the best of the ideals of its namesake, the 1826 valedictorian at Colby and a crusading abolitionist editor. Lovejoy, 34, was murdered by a mob in 1837 for his anti-slavery editorials. John Quincy Adams, the second U.S. president, called Lovejoy Americas first martyr to freedom of the press.

When 54 Miles author Leonard Pitts Jr., the retired Miami Herald columnist, won the Lovejoy award from Colby in 2021, he was gratified. Elijah was a 19th Century bad-ass in terms of publishing. This guy would refuse to stop publishing anti-slavery editorials in the paper he had in Alton, Illinois, Pitts said at the time.

Of Charles, Kaiser said: Her courage and fearless commitment to the truth has produced unequaled coverage of Haiti and the Caribbean. The committee was impressed with her relentless ground-breaking reporting through the perils of political unrest, human rights battles and natural disasters. She is the journalistic authority in one of the most difficult places in the world to do reporting.

Covering Haitis earthquake

Jacqueline Charles, the Miami Heralds Haiti and Caribbean correspondent, is the 2024 Elijah Parish Lovejoy Award recipient from Colby College.

Charles was the first foreign reporter to land in Haiti after the earthquake on Jan. 12, 2010  she had Haitian President Rene Prevals cellphone number and got his permission for a plane from the U.S. to land on the devastated island.

She spent 18 months on the ground documenting the 7.0 magnitude quake in 2010 and its aftermath. She traced the painful recovery and the arduous reconstruction. She was named a 2011 Pulitzer Prize finalist and Journalist of the Year by the National Association of Black Journalists for that work.

READ MORE: Haitis 2010 Earthquake killed hundreds of thousands. The next one could be worse.

What sets Jacquie apart is her deep-rooted commitment to the truth and her relentless pursuit of stories that matter. She has covered Haiti through some of its most challenging times, from political upheavals and natural disasters to human rights issues. Her reporting is not only thorough and insightful but also profoundly empathetic, giving a human face to the struggles and triumphs of the Haitian people, said Alex Mena, executive editor for the Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald.

Owns the Caribbean beat

Dana Banker, the Miami Heralds senior managing editor praises Charles relentless, resourceful traits as a reporter and her indefatigable nature.

She owns the Caribbean beat like no other, and is consistently breaking news, forcing the pack to follow and holding global leaders accountable, Banker said. She cares deeply about our newsroom and good journalism, and despite her staggering work ethic, she finds time to mentor younger reporters, rarely declines a speaking engagement, and is quick to jump in whenever the team or the community needs her. It is ... nearly impossible to keep up with her.

In 2011, Charles earned her regional Emmy for co-producing the Miami Heralds feature-length documentary film Nou Bouke: Haitis Past, Present and Future for national broadcast on PBS. Nou Bouke offered a comprehensive look at Haiti after the earthquake.

Charles Miami Herald beginnings

Jacqueline Charles, Haiti/Caribbean Correspondent for the Miami Herald, right, speaks to the community during an interview with Jay Weaver, Miami Herald editor, about Haitis past and future during An Evening with Jacqueline Charles on May 30, 2024, at African Heritage Cultural Arts in Miami.

Charles, who moved with her Haitian mother and Cuban-American stepfather to Miamis Overtown neighborhood at age 7 from the Turks and Caicos, earned her first byline as an intern in the Herald for compiling the School Scene column in the Neighbors section in 1987. She was still a teenager studying at Miami Jackson High School.

Charles, who speaks English, Creole and Spanish, joined the Herald full time in 1994 after graduating with a bachelors in journalism and mass communication from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and initially covered Broward schools and government, and later the Florida Legislature, social services and immigration. She quickly came to the attention of local readers and world leaders.

Motivated by journalism

I am first and foremost a journalist, and I am still excited about this profession, Charles said. I am driven by what this requires: the research, documentation, exploration, reporting and writing. When I am confronted with a story, its like being handed a puzzle and I have to figure it out.

Charles and Miami Herald photojournalist Jose A. Iglesias published a four-part series in 2018, Cancer in Haiti, that chronicled the lack of cancer care on the island. The project won the June L. Biedler Prize for Cancer Journalism from the American Association of Cancer Research in 2019.

Haiti Prime Minister Garry Conille (center, white shirt) toured the site of the countrys largest public hospital on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, alongside Haiti National Police Chief Rameau Normil, left. The visit occurred a day after Normil announced police had taken back control of the site of the Hospital of the State University of Haiti, also known as the General Hospital, from armed gangs after months of attacks in the area. Normil made the announcement during the first joint press conference he held with the head of the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support mission, Godfrey Otunge.

This August alone Charles covered Haitis struggles to elect a new president following the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise to a string of jail breaks that included prisoners indicted for the Moise assassination.

KNOW MORE: Inmates escape from Haiti prison north of the capital in the third jail break in months

The Haiti National Police is increasingly being outmatched by rival armed gangs that have expanded their reach beyond Port-au-Prince, the capital.

This process still excites me: uncovering the facts, convincing someone who doesnt know me to not only talk to me but to trust me based solely on my word, following a lead and getting the story. I love being the first to break a story, everyone knows I love a good scoop, Charles said.

One of Charles first foreign-desk assignments as a full-time Herald reporter was covering the return of Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide at the urging of U.S. President Bill Clinton in 1994.

When youve tackled a difficult story, there is a sense of pride and accomplishment when you get to the finish line, Charles said. Either you are proud of the reporting that went into the article or the creative process of pulling it together in a compelling narrative that moves people  and at times, moves governments.

Like one particular head of government.

Charles and Bill Clinton

In this file photo from Jan. 18, 2010, Bill Clinton, the former U.S. president, speaks to the press during a tour of the general hospital in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, a week after the devastating 2010 earthquake.

Clinton, who is known to still ring Charles from his limo for a chat while tooling around South Florida on his visits, referred to Charles as Haitis ambassador to the world in a widely reported comment.

This description happened right after the 2010 earthquake Charles said. She still has a recording of it somewhere, she said.

President Clinton was in the courtyard of the State University Hospital or General Hospital, which had nearly completely collapsed and he was surrounded by reporters. I saw him, was pushing my way through the crowd to get closer to what he was saying, and he spotted me, stopped mid-way sentence and said, Theres Jacquie. Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce you to Haitis ambassador to the world.

He has always been an avid reader, and appreciates my work. While others have written all kinds of untruths, I was following and writing about his involvement in Haiti from day one. And he cares from the heart, Charles said.

When is the presentation?

Jacqueline Charles, Haiti and Caribbean correspondent for the Miami Herald, right, speaks to the community during an interview with Jay Weaver, Miami Herald editor, left, about Haitis past and future during An Evening with Jacqueline Charles on May 30, 2024, at African Heritage Cultural Arts in Miami.

The public presentation of the Lovejoy Award will include a discussion between Charles and New York Times Investigative Correspondent Matt Apuzzo, a member of the Lovejoy Selection Committee in the Gordon Center for Creative and Performing Arts on Colbys campus on Sept. 20.
The clinical psychology doctorate program at University of Rhode Island is ultra-competitive, accepting maybe 3% or 4% of the 200 to 300 applications it receives each year. The school's graduate program ing licensed mental health counseling aims to produce more mental health professionals through rigorous training that's less demanding than earning a Ph.D. (Getty Images)

The vast majority of the approximately 1,000 undergraduate University of Rhode Island (URI) students who major in psychology each year never become practicing clinicians. Nor do they want to.

Psychology is nicely paired with many other things, said Mark Robbins, chair of the psychology department at URI since 2016, in a phone interview Tuesday. I see a range of students who are psychology majors, but theyre not interested in becoming a licensed provider.

But for students who do want to enter clinical practice, a new advanced degree from URI could fill in the gap between the schools many psychology undergraduates and the elite few in the schools clinical psychology doctorate program.

Starting in January 2025, applications for URIs new Master of Science in Mental and Behavioral Health Counseling will open. The first cohort of approximately 10 students is anticipated to begin studies next summer and receive their degrees by summer 2027. The class will slowly increase in size each year until reaching about 40 when fully up and running.

The new degree offering received final approval at a June 28 meeting of the URI Board of Trustees, after having been approved by President Marc Parlange in May and the Faculty Senate in April.

The thing about psychology is, when you walk across the stage at the end of your undergraduate, you have a bachelors in psychology, but youre not a psychologist, Robbins said. Its different than if you walk across the stage in engineering, you get to say youre an engineerBut psychology, you have to have training to deliver service, you have to have a license, and that license requires, usually either very significant training plus courses or a masters degree.

The new masters program contrasts the existing clinical psychology P.hD. program in its focus and intensity. Robbins said the Ph.D. track students number maybe five a year and require extensive mentoring and research experience in addition to clinical responsibilities.

The Ph.D. students are training as a researcher, and that is not the thing you can do in large numbers, Robbins said. I typically have maybe four or five Ph.D. students who are working with me, and theyre all at different levels, from brand new to more senior.

The demand for research savvy isnt as intense for mental health counselors. Robbins said counselors should know how to consume research, but they probably wont be consulting the top 40 journal articles monthly or in the course of their daily practice. Clinical Ph.D.s may spend half a decade on their degrees, and a Psy.D., or Doctor of Psychology program, can take just as long to complete. Theres also postdoctoral training involved for any clinician.

Enrolled students will gain experience through URIs on-campus training clinic, the Psychological Consultation Center, and internship opportunities in settings like Rhode Island Hospital. Robbins said local hospitals and health care providers always seem to be looking for licensed mental health counselors (LMHC) or social workers; he often sees eight to 12 positions open at any given time. Students who enroll in the new masters program will be well on their way to achieving state certification for licensed mental health counseling, for which Rhode Island law requires 2,000 hours of direct clinical experience.

Similar programs for school psychologists have existed at URI in the past, but the licensed mental health counselor track is new, and its a thought Robbins said he has mulled for some time. The opportunity to develop the plan came when the university launched a strategic initiative to craft new degree programs.

It took some convincing. Everybodys always worried that their workload will change, I guess, Robbins said, adding that workforce development is another valid reason to offer the program. At full enrollment capacity, or approximately 40 students, the new program should generate around $450,000 in revenue for URI, according to the proposal.

Rhode Island has high need for mental health clinicians

Newport and Washington counties, as well as Providence with its concentration of low-income residents, are all considered high needs areas for mental health clinicians in Rhode Island, according to the federal Health Resources and Services Administration. The federal administration designates both geographic areas and specific facilities lacking enough health care professionals as health provider shortage areas.

Rhode Island has eight federally qualified health centers in the state with a subpar provider-to-patient ratio, and the Narragansett Indian Tribe Health & Human Services agency also scores as high need.

Still, a 2024 data table from KFF that used federal data shows Rhode Island, at 58.1%, ranking third nationwide in meeting its populations needs for mental health care. Thats more than double the national average of 26.8%. A 2023 article from the American Counseling Association pointed to reimbursement rates, lack of funding, high turnover, a greater need for services, and a counseling workforce approaching retirement as reasons for the nationwide shortage.

URI has yet to publicly advertise the program but will start within the next month, Robbins said. The program will also apply for American Psychological Association accreditation  the same accreditation received by the 50-year-old clinical psychology doctorate program  but that process takes a few years.

Psychology courses can be useful for aspiring med students and students interested in behavioral science and research, Robbins said. Still, he recalled being momentarily stumped when a philosophy department chair once asked him what made psychology so popular with so many students.

I think were a culture which is very interested in how we think, how we feel, how we understand ourselves, Robbins said. I think this is an area where lots of students [say], Yeah, this is both useful for me to learn about myself as much as it is about what I might do for my career.

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TOKYO, Aug 22 (News On Japan) - The Tokyo District Court has ruled against Nippon Paper Crecia, rejecting its claim of patent infringement by Daio Paper in a lawsuit over a specific type of toilet paper technology. Nippon Paper Crecia, known for its 'Scottie' brand, had filed the lawsuit against Daio Paper, the company behind the 'Elleair' brand, seeking to halt the production of certain products.

The dispute centered around Nippon Paper Crecia's patented technology that allows a single roll of toilet paper to be three times longer while maintaining softness. The company argued that Daio Paper's 3.2-ply rolls, which it sells, were a direct imitation of their product.

However, in its ruling on the 21st of this month, the Tokyo District Court dismissed the claims, stating that there was no infringement of Nippon Paper Crecia's patent rights.

Daio Paper's Head of Intellectual Property, Seiji Hamahata, commented, "Such product categories should not be monopolized by a single company; rather, all companies should work together to stimulate the market. Unfortunately, Nippon Paper Crecia seems to have a different perspective."

On the other hand, Nippon Paper Crecia expressed its dissatisfaction with the ruling, stating that it is "completely unacceptable" and intends to appeal the decision.

Source: ANN
KYOTO, Aug 22 (News On Japan) - A parrot that strayed onto the Tokaido Shinkansen during the summer travel rush was spotted perched neatly on the backrest of a seat.

Passengers wondered if it had escaped from one of their fellow travelers, but when a security officer on board searched for the owner, no one came forward.

Where did this parrot board the train? The answer to this mystery was witnessed by a passenger who captured the scene.

According to the observer, the parrot had landed on the shoulder of a foreign tourist at Kyoto Station. Unnoticed, it remained there as the tourist boarded the train bound for Tokyo.

The birds journey could have turned into an adventure across the nearly 500 kilometers from Kyoto to Tokyo, but it was quickly captured by two crew members shortly after boarding.

The parrot was later handed over to the police at Tokyo Station.

It turns out that the owner, a woman living in Kyoto, had posted on social media the day before, saying she was searching for her lost parrot.

Comparing the photos posted online with the bird spotted on the train, the resemblance was striking: a red face and green bodyunmistakably the same parrot.

Did the owner and the lost parrot manage to reunite safely?

The parrot's owner expressed her gratitude, saying, "Thanks to the help of so many people on X (formerly Twitter), a miracle happened. We were able to reunite, and it's all thanks to everyone's support."

Prompted by the call for information on social media, the 'miracle reunion' was successfully realized.

Currently, the parrot is in good health and lively, but the owner is now more cautious about allowing the bird to roam freely indoors, which had led to its escape.

Source: FNN
TOKYO, Aug 22 (News On Japan) - The Emperor and Empress recently arrived at their summer residence in Nasu, Tochigi Prefecture, marking their first private retreat in 23 years without Princess Aiko.

Their Majesties strolled through the estate, enjoying the natural beauty. The Emperor remarked on the various plants and the refreshing weather, expressing his hope to relax and appreciate the area's rich nature. When asked about the possibility of hiking, he replied that it wasn't in their plans for this visit.

This year's visit to the Nasu Imperial Villa is different from their usual summer retreats. Since Princess Aiko's birth in December 2001, the Imperial family has always spent their summer vacations together. However, this year, Princess Aiko, who joined the Japanese Red Cross Society in April as a first-year working adult, did not accompany her parents due to her work commitments.

The Emperor confirmed that this is their first private retreat since 2001, with the Empress adding that it feels like a long time since they've had such a break together.

Source: ANN
TOKYO, Aug 23 (News On Japan) - The person suspected of being involved in the vandalism of a stone pillar at Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine on August 19, left Japan for China on the day the graffiti was found.

The incident occurred before 4 a.m. when graffiti was discovered on six locations, including a stone pillar near the torii gate at Yasukuni Shrine in Chiyoda Ward. The graffiti, written with what appeared to be a black marker, included Chinese characters meaning 'toilet.'

According to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, security cameras at the shrine captured footage of a suspicious person climbing the base of the stone pillar around 10 p.m. on August 18th. Subsequent investigations revealed that this individual left Japan for China on August 19th. The person had reportedly been in Japan for a few days before the incident.

Additionally, after the incident, photos of the graffiti and selfies taken with Yasukuni Shrine in the background were posted on Chinese social media.

In a related case in May of this year, the same stone pillar at Yasukuni Shrine was also defaced. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department is conducting a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding these acts of vandalism, treating them as cases of property damage.

Related: Chinese Man Who Vandalized Yasukuni Shrine: 'No Intention to Turn Self In'

Source: TBS
TOKYO, Aug 23 (News On Japan) - In Okutama, Tokyo, a popular natural destination, disturbing behavior such as littering, noise, and unauthorized barbecues have escalated, particularly among foreign visitors, turning parts of the national park into a 'lawless zone.'

Located in western Tokyo, Okutama is a popular destination for those seeking to enjoy nature without leaving the city. On the final day of the Obon holiday, the gorge near the station was bustling with people enjoying barbecues in the great outdoors. However, a disturbing scene unfolded along the riverside.

One group was barbecuing directly on the ground, with smoke billowing up. Despite a ban on setting up tents, the area was filled with them.

This region is designated as a national park, and to preserve the landscape and environment, 'barbecuing directly on the ground' and 'setting up tents' are prohibited.

Yasunobu Yahagi, from the Okutama Tourism Association, who patrols the area as part of efforts to combat over-tourism, was stunned by the situation, saying, "I was at a loss for words. Its become a lawless zone."

He approached the barbecue attendees to inform them of their violations.

Yahagi: "This area prohibits barbecuing directly on the ground. Please use a grill."

Barbecue Attendee: "Yes, understood!"

Yahagi: "Tents are not allowed either. Next time, please use a campsite."

Barbecue Attendee: "Oh, thats bad. We shouldnt be doing this."

Many of those engaging in these violations are foreign nationals.

Yahagi: "We mostly see foreign visitors, many of whom live in Japan."

According to the town, information about 'free and open recreation' in Okutama has spread rapidly among foreign residents via social media.

A Japanese barbecue attendee shared their concerns:

Japanese Barbecue Attendee: "I hope people will protect the nature here in Okutama. If they come, they should follow the rules."

In one incident, a man in a tank top climbed a slope, snapping off branches and tossing them down below. He then collected over ten branches to use as firewood and even burned plastic alongside them.

When approached for comment:

Foreign Barbecue Attendee: "I knew barbecuing directly on the ground was prohibited. I saw it on TV!"

Despite knowing the rules, the foreign attendee expressed regret:

Foreign Barbecue Attendee: "Im sorry."

He later extinguished the fire and promised to take his trash with him.

Persistent Littering

Rule violations have led to serious incidents. A 25-year-old Indonesian man drowned after being swept away in a river where swimming is prohibited. Though a friend attempted to rescue him, he was found in cardiac arrest and later pronounced dead at the hospital.

Despite this tragedy, people were still seen swimming in the river.

When town officials warned a man about swimming in the river, he responded by floating on an inflatable tube, defying the prohibition.

There were also groups playing loud music and dancing, disturbing nearby residents.

Nearby Resident: "Its really bothersome. They play music in some language I dont understand, and its been going on since morning. Even while lying down, I can hear it clearly."

Moreover:

Nearby Resident: "The area near the bridge has turned into a trash heap. If we dont plant shrubs, trash is dumped there every morning."

Photos taken last July show piles of trash under a sign that reads "No Littering." The littering continues unabated.

Trash, including unconsumed roasted sweet potatoes, cardboard boxes filled with charcoal, gas cans, and tongs, was scattered near the river. Over 15 empty alcohol cans were also found near residential homes.

As the afternoon progressed, the number of barbecue attendees along the river increased even further.

Officer: "No tents allowed!"

Foreign Barbecue Attendee: "Yes"

With more rule violators than ever, the situation became unmanageable. The patrol team, initially composed of one person, increased to six, and they set out on another round of patrols.

Officer: "Are you packing up now?"

Foreign Barbecue Attendee: "Yes"

A few minutes later, the officer returned to the same spot.

Officer: "I warned you about direct barbecuing earlier. This is also prohibited."

Foreign Barbecue Attendee: "Is it okay if I put this on top?"

Officer: "No, its not okay! The act of barbecuing directly on the ground is prohibited."

Foreign Barbecue Attendee: "I bought a grill but forgot to bring it."

Officer: "If you forgot it, you might consider not barbecuing or just going home."

Foreign Barbecue Attendee: "Ill clean up after Im done."

Officer: "Please make sure to clean up properly!"

Despite the officers efforts, the barbecue attendees paid little attention. Furthermore:

Officer: "Its problematic when you leave things like this."

The remnants of a recent barbecue, including hot, charred stones and coals, were left unattended, with smoke still rising.

Officer: "You need to pour water on it and make sure the fire is completely out before you leave."

Some people were even seen washing their barbecue grills directly in the river.

As there are no penalties for such nuisance behavior at this site, the town is struggling to address the issue.

Okutama Town Official: "Although people seem to listen when we tell them the rules, they just come and go. It seems that enforcing rules isnt enough."

Regulations and Improvement Efforts

Meanwhile, other regions are moving to regulate nuisance barbecue activities through local ordinances.

In Tochigi Prefecture's Kanuma City, the emerald green waters of the Oashi River, known as the clearest stream in the Kanto region, draw many visitors. However, this area has also seen its share of nuisance behaviors.

In response, Kanuma City introduced regulations this year, banning barbecues in certain areas. Violators face fines of up to 50,000 yen per person.

Announcement: "Barbecuing, fireworks, and noise are prohibited."

During the busy summer vacation period, city officials patrol the area daily. On one such patrol:

Kanuma City Official: "May we check inside?"

Barbecue Attendee: "Its not open yet."

Kanuma City Official: "I see you haven't used it."

Barbecue Attendee: "Yes, last year it was allowed."

Kanuma City Official: "What will you do next?"

Barbecue Attendee: "Well head to a place where its permitted."

Thanks to these patrols, prohibited activities were prevented that day, and no violations were reported.

Local Resident: "Things seem to be improving, which is good news for us locals."

However:

Misako Kamiyama of Sesaragi Soba Shop in Kanuma: "People probably started fires over there. There are stones piled up."

Despite a ban on nighttime barbecues, Kamiyama, who works at a soba shop along the Oashi River, said:

Kamiyama: "Foreign visitors often have barbecues at night and play loud music. Although enforcement is generally effective, there are still spots where issues persist. They may find a new hidden spot to use next time."

Paid Zones and Safety for Children

In Okutama Towns Hikawa Gorge, there are currently no penalties for rule-breaking barbecue attendees.

An Okutama Town official said, "We are constantly reminding people of the rules, but we feel penalties should be introduced to ensure people understand them fully."

In contrast, Kanuma City in Tochigi Prefecture introduced an ordinance in April this year. The regulation imposes fines of up to 50,000 yen per person for prohibited activities like barbecuing in protected areas.

This move has led to positive changes, according to a city representative: "There is noticeably less trash this year compared to last year. The ordinance seems to be effective."

During the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020 to 2021, the number of violators surged. During Golden Week in 2021, the city received up to 100 reports a day.

In response, the city established a paid barbecue zone in 2022, charging 1,000 yen per adult. The official noted, "Weve seen a reduction in rule-breaking visitors, and its become a safer environment for children."

Source: YOMIURI
By Omeiza Ajayi, Abuja

The Federal Government has announced a hike in the cost of obtaining Nigerias international passport.

Spokesman of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), DCI Kenneth Udo, who disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday night in Abuja, said the move is part of efforts to maintain the quality and integrity of the Nigerian Standard Passport.

According to him, the new charges take effect from 1st September, 2024.

Based on the review, the 32-page passport booklet with a 5-year validity previously charged at Thirty-five Thousand Naira (N35,000.00) will now be Fifty Thousand Naira (N50,000.00) only, while the 64-page passport booklet with a 10-year validity, which was Seventy Thousand Naira (N70,000.00), will now be One Hundred Thousand Naira (N100,000.00) only.

However, the fees remain unchanged in Diaspora.

While the Nigeria Immigration Service regrets any inconvenience this increase might cause prospective applicants, it assures Nigerians of unwavering commitment to transparency and quality service delivery at all times, he added.

See full statement below:
Femi Falana (SAN)

No fewer than 2,111 protesters were arrested in connection with the 10-day #Endbadgovernance action across the country that was held from August 1st to 10th.

Also, 1,403 have been surreptitiously arraigned in various courts. However, the suspects were ordered to be remanded in prison custody due to a lack of legal representation, whereas the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, had publicly announced its intention to provide lawyers to defend them.

Femi Falana, SAN, human rights activist, and The Chair, Alliance on Surviving Covid-19 and Beyond, ASCAB, made the revelations in a fiery statement that also included an ultimatum for the government to charge them to court.

In the statement, entitled HALT THE CLAMPDOWN ON PROTESTERS, Falana also said: Seven Polish students, who were taking part in an exchange programme in Bayero University, Kano, were arrested for taking photographs during the protest.

They may be charged with espionage to give the impression that the protests were instigated by foreign interest groups.

On the arrested and detained protesters, Falana demanded that Whenever the suspects are going to be arraigned, they must be given adequate notice to be able to contact the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, and their family members to make arrangements for their defence.

Arrest across Nigeria

Falana also gave a breakdown of the distribution of protesters arrested across the states and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja.

1. Kano  873

2. Jigawa  403

3. Katsina120;

4. Gombe  111

5. Sokoto  110

6. Borno  99

7. Yobe  90

8. Bauchi-60

9. Plateau  51

10. Kaduna  50

11. FCT  50

12. Nasarawa  40

13. Niger  25

14. Zamfara  19

15. Cross Rivers  10

Suspected looters are treated better

According to the fiery activist, We have also confirmed that individual lawyers who had applied for the bail of the detained suspects in police stations were not informed that they were going to be arraigned in the courts.

We submit that the decision of the authorities to deny the suspects legal representation constitutes a violent breach of their fundamental right to fair hearing guaranteed by section 36 of the Constitution and article 7 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act.

This is highly discriminatory and illegal on the ground that politically exposed persons who are arrested for looting the treasury to the tune of several billions of Naira are usually informed in advance of the dates and of their arraignment in the courts.

Such highly placed suspected looters are always granted bail in liberal terms and even authorised by trial judges to travel abroad for medical treatment.

The offence allegedly committed by the 783 suspects arrested in Kano is that they displayed the Russian flag during the protest.

A tailor who was sowing the flag was also arrested by the police. It may be difficult to press charges against the suspects in a country where the flags of the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany and other European countries are hoisted by the majority of hotels in Nigeria while Churches hoist the flag of Israel based on the erroneous belief that it is a Christian country.
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The Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation 2024 has been awarded to Kenyan Esther Kimani for her innovative early detection system for crop pests and diseases. This breakthrough will help small-scale farmers improve yields and protect their crops.

Awarded by the Royal Academy of Engineering, the prestigious Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation recognizes innovative engineering solutions adapted to the challenges of the African continent.

Kenyan Esther Kimanis award-winning innovation is an advanced early detection system, designed to quickly identify crop pests and diseases. The technology could reduce crop losses by up to 30% and increase yields by 40%.

The device, aimed primarily at small-scale Kenyan farmers, who lose an average of 33% of their crops to pests and disease, represents a real revolution. This solution aims to transform the daily lives of small-scale farmers.

Powered by solar energy, the device uses sophisticated computer vision and machine learning algorithms to identify threats in real time. Once a threat has been detected, alerts are sent instantly by SMS, accompanied by appropriate intervention advice.

Esther Kimani received an award of 50,000, the highest amount ever awarded in the history of the prize, in celebration of its 10th anniversary.
U.S. Forbes magazine has lauded the decision of King Mohammed VI of Morocco to pardon 4,831 people convicted, prosecuted, or wanted in cases related to cannabis cultivation, saying the move is an important step toward strengthening Moroccos position in the global legal cannabis market.

The royal pardon was made on the occasion of the 71st anniversary of the Revolution of the King and the People celebrated Tuesday August 20 in Morocco.

In addition to its humanitarian aspects, the move reflects the countrys evolving cannabis policy as it will allow those pardoned to integrate into the newly adopted strategy expected to have a significant economic and social impact and contribute to the development of alternative crops and non-agricultural activities, said Forbes.

In 2021, Morocco passed a law legalizing the production and medical use of cannabis, as well as authorizing the cultivation of industrial hemp.

Following the legalization of medical cannabis and industrial hemp, the North African Kingdom has set up the National Agency for the Regulation of Cannabis Activities (ANRAC) to oversee the legal cultivation and export of cannabis for medical, pharmaceutical, and industrial purposes.

The agency has granted over 200 licenses related to cannabis processing, seed importation, and product export. In July, Morocco made its initial legal cannabis shipment to Switzerland, aiming to enter the European medical cannabis market.

According to press reports, Morocco exported, in the 2nd quarter of 2024, 100 kilograms of cannabis resin with a THC content below 1% to Switzerland. The resin was sold for between $1,551 and $1,994 per kilogram.

In 2023, Moroccos initial legal cannabis harvest reached 294 metric tons (294,000 kg) after the country approved its cultivation and export for medical and industrial use, according to the cannabis regulator ANRAC.
The Democratic Republic of Congo is grappling with a severe mpox outbreak, reporting over 1,000 new cases in just a week. This surge has prompted African health authorities to issue an urgent call for vaccines to combat the growing threat across the continent.

Congo bears the brunt of this crisis, accounting for a staggering 94% of Africas total cases this year. With limited testing capabilities, the true scale of the outbreak may be even larger than reported. The identification of a potentially more transmissible variant in eastern Congo has heightened concerns, leading to a global health emergency declaration.

Despite pledges of vaccine doses from various sources, the need far outstrips the supply. Congo alone estimates it requires 3 million doses to effectively contain the outbreak, which has already spilled into neighboring countries.

This situation has reignited frustrations over global health inequities. African leaders are calling for equitable access to mpox diagnostics and vaccines, drawing parallels to the challenges faced during the COVID-19 pandemic when the continent struggled to secure timely and affordable vaccine access.

As the international community weighs its response, African health officials are urging solidarity and support, rather than isolating measures like travel bans. The crisis underscores the critical need for a coordinated global effort to address emerging health threats, regardless of where they originate.
The Sudanese army ended its 6-month ban on aid convoys in Darfur, one of the worst hit regions by the countrys civil war.

The first trucks loaded with food stuff and vital goods left Chad to Kereneik in Darfur where 13,000 face the risk of famine, the UN food program WFP said in a statement.

WFP has food and nutrition supplies for around 500,000 people ready to move swiftly through the newly re-opened route, the WFP statement added.

More than six million people face food insecurity across Darfur, and more than 25 million, or about half the population, across the country.

More than 10 million people have fled their homes and at least 18,000 others have been killed since civil war broke out in April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
Head of the Kabylie independence movement MAK, Ferhat Mhenni, rejected the recent recycled accusation of terrorism used by the Algerian regime to crackdown on independence activists at home.

In an interview with le360, Mhenni- who is based in exile in Paris- highlighted the peaceful character of the Kabyle independence struggle as scores are being jailed in his homeland on bogus charges.

Accusing the MAK of terrorism amid an electoral campaign by president Tebboune is another distraction tactic to further stigmatize the breakaway Kabylie region and its people, he said.

The Algerian authorities recently claimed to have thwarted a MAK terrorist plot and seized weapons, which Mehenni vehemently denies, reaffirming MAKs commitment to non-violence.

The Algerian military regime has been scapegoating the Kabylie region accusing the MAK of complicity with Morocco, France and Israel, in order to deflect the attention of the Algerian people away from self-inflicted problems, he said.

Several human rights watchdogs have denounced the use by the Algerian authorities of fabricated terrorism charges to silence journalists, human rights defenders, political activists, and peaceful pro-democracy protesters.

In 2021, the authorities amended the definition of terrorism to allow the prosecution of peaceful activists and critical voices.

The same year, he Algerian High Security Council labelled MAK and another opposition movement Rachad as terrorist entities. Since then, dozens of individuals have been arrested and prosecuted under terrorism charges for their alleged ties to the two organizations.

Leaders of both movements are based in European countries, who have ignored the Algerian terrorism charges as unfounded.
Often described as the rising star in the French political scene, French-Moroccan Karim Bouamrane stands as a strong candidate for the position of Prime Minister in France.

Born in 1973 to Moroccan immigrant parents, Karim Bouamrane, the current socialist mayor of Saint-Ouen, had an exceptional journey that is leading him to the position of Prime Minister, garnering admiration in France, Europe, and even the United States.

Bouamrane, the youngest in a family led by a mason, initially made his mark in politics with the Communist Party before joining the Socialist Party. After working in cybersecurity in Silicon Valley, he returned to France to become the mayor of Saint-Ouen in 2020, the city where he grew up, while also launching his own business.

He gained significant recognition during the Paris Olympics, hosting Brazilian athletes in Saint-Ouen. Known for his leftist values, he also emphasizes authority, security, and patriotism.

With a masters degree in economics and European law, Bouamrane held a leadership role in a cybersecurity company at the dawn of the internet, which allowed him to travel extensively, including to the U.S. In 1995, he was elected to the Saint-Ouen municipal council and later became the Socialist Partys spokesperson.

Dubbed the Obama of the Seine by the German newspaper Die Welt, Bouamrane is praised for his political acumen and impeccable style. His potential as a future Prime Minister is recognized by both allies and opponents, including a close associate of President Emmanuel Macron.

His reputation has even reached the U.S., with The New York Times highlighting his inspiring story as the son of an illiterate Moroccan immigrant who worked on construction sites in Paris.

Supported by influential figures like former Minister Jean-Louis Borloo and banker Matthieu Pigasse, Bouamrane is seen as a transformative leader. His name is frequently mentioned in discussions about future Prime Ministers, reflecting his growing influence and the possibility of making history as a prominent political leader in France.
German Minister of State for Migration Bernd Kroeser expressed Germanys willingness to collaborate with Libya, both bilaterally and through the European Union Commission, to address illegal immigration.

The remarks were made during a meeting with Libyas acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, Taher Al-Baour, on Wednesday.

Talks focused on illegal immigration and the efforts by Libyan security services to combat the issue.

Kroeser highlighted the challenging security conditions in some countries, which have led to increased immigration flows into Europe.

Al-Baour emphasized the significance of the Trans-Mediterranean Migration Forum held in Libya last July and noted that Libya, as a transit country, cannot tackle illegal immigration and its associated challenges alone. He reiterated the Ministry of Foreign Affairs commitment to enhancing bilateral relations across various sectors and acknowledged Germanys pivotal role in supporting political solutions for Libya.

The two sides agreed to establish a joint committee with representatives from relevant sectors in both countries to address illegal immigration and other security concerns.
Its her big night. Photo: Mark Peterson/Redux for New York Magazine

As the Democratic National Convention got underway in Chicago, there were pretty clearly four overriding objectives that Kamala Harris and her team needed to accomplish: (1) Keep up the enthusiasm and momentum she had generated since she became the presumptive nominee; (2) execute a clean turn of the page from Joe Bidens leadership that left Harris as a credible candidate of safe change from the stale Biden-Trump contest of the past; (3) remind voters of the unsafe change represented by Trump and J.D. Vance; and (4) avoid distractions, whether it was from protesters or errors in executing the convention plan.

The first three days of the convention have addressed all four of these objectives to varying degrees. Certainly the convention has more than adequately kept up the vibe-and-memes feel that has characterized Harris 24 so far, from the dance-party roll call of the states to the semi-surprise of Oprahs appearance to the excited staging of Tim Walzs acceptance speech. The hand-off from Biden was handled smoothly on the first night, with the Obamas deftly turning the page, along with some reinforcement from Bill Clinton and Nancy Pelosi (among others) later on. At the same time, some progress was made in re-presenting Harris as a figure very much unlike the radical leftist the Trump campaign will incessantly call her (and Walz, for that matter). Without question, the convention has generated lots of meme-worthy new attacks on Trump and Vance that build on the contrast between a practical and relatable Democrat and a cranky and extremist GOP, particularly on the issue of reproductive rights, on which newly confident Democrats are now roaring. And for the most part the convention has deftly handled the threat of protests without being too heavy-handed. The main distraction has probably been a not-atypical struggle to keep the convention on time; the importance of keeping the big moment in a prime-time East Coast window has probably been exaggerated, but it would be a good sign for a party conveying self-discipline to make sure things are punctual on the last day.

To a considerable extent, Harris herself just needs to seal the deal on the work already done by her convention. And of the four big objectives, the one that definitely needs the most reinforcement tonight is the effort to explain exactly how much change and how much continuity she will offer as president. This doesnt just mean autobiographical flourishes about her values and experience in California and in Washington; it also means giving significantly more detail about her agenda, in part to inspire Democrats but more importantly to assure swing voters that shes neither Biden 2.0 nor any sort of radical leftist. Other speakers have helped reinforce her self-presentation as a tough-on-crime prosecutor, a patriot, and a deeply grounded, empathetic leader who listens to people well beyond the party base. But she needs to say more about how she intends to address the policy challenges on which Biden was so vulnerable and in which Republicans smell blood, namely the economy and the border. This doesnt mean the kind of bullet-pointed agenda that Bill Clinton was so famous for in his big speeches. But it does mean a lot more specificity than you get from vibe-and-memes messaging, and perhaps a few things that party activists wont want to hear. Their (mild) discomfort can be electoral gold with voters suspicious of both major parties.

Yes, it would be great if Harris delivers some signature phrases, deploys some fabulous zingers at Trump, and looks polished and poised. But basics matter more: This is her first big second look from an interested but potentially skeptical electorate, and it needs to be impressed. Only then will the next 75 days look like a sprint rather than a slog.
Photo: Charlotte Klein

Fox Newss White House correspondent Peter Doocy comes out of his trailer with a full face of makeup, coat and tie, sneakers on, and slicked-back hair. Hes on his way onto the floor of the United Center for his first TV hit of the night, on colleague Bret Baiers 6 p.m. show, and even he cant help to acknowledge the Democratic vibe shift in Chicago.

I do think people needed an outlet to just be excited about something, says Doocy, a towering six-foot-five, who has been a consistent thorn in Joe Bidens side for the past four years. This is the Fox News take on all this Dem joy: Roll their eyes and wait for the sugar high to abate. At some point they have to do more than just have fun music for every state and talk about who Kamala Harris and Doug are, and how much they miss the Clintons and the Obamas. Speaking of, what did he think of the Obamas last night? It was powerful, says Doocy, opening the door to the United Center. Im surprised that now that everybody in the world has a platform to put stuff out on social media, nobody can speak like that. For two people who are essentially retired from politics, they had such a command of this crowd.

We make our way onto the floor, pushing past the crowd, some of whom ask Doocy for a selfie  despite his being in a bubble other than the one hes usually a star in. But whatever his politics, they still know him. This particular crowd are probably, per capita, the highest consumers of White House briefings of anywhere I know in America.

Hes not immune to the DNC star power. Hes hoping Beyonce will show up. She was actually part of the first concert I ever went to, Doocy says. The Doocys all went to Jones Beach to see Christina Aguilera and the opener was Destinys Child. Eventually we make our way to the back of the floor where, as we wait for the camera crew, Doocy reflects on the state of the race. Does he think Harris was the right choice? Based on this week here, yes, but when I was here for the Biden walkthrough, and just the amount that I had gotten to know him over the last five years  when I saw him looking out at all of this, it definitely seemed like he was thinking, Am I doing the right thing? he says. He didnt look happy. Another big Fox News talking point: their supposed sympathy for the proud old man, kicked to the curb. People keep walking by Doocy, into the staff hallway, and he greets them with hey-how-are-yous. Im helping the DNC, he jokes. Bathrooms are to the right.

Doocys interactions with this administration have been sparky. One of his more memorable exchanges with the president came during the now-infamous press conference that Biden gave following former special counsel Robert Hurs report. How bad is your memory, and can you continue as president? Doocy asked Biden. My memory is so bad that I let you speak, Biden responded. I thought he had a quick-witted response to me, but ultimately that was the beginning of the end, Doocy told me. Will he miss him? Yes. I really will, Doocy says. I dont think it took long for them to know exactly what to expect from me. They knew I was always going to ask him something hard and he continued to engage for years after that and his team did, too, he continues, and so yes, I will miss him.

TV time. Doocy makes his way through the crowd yet again, passing by CNNs Kaitlan Collins, who is making her way to her own hit. A delegate from Delaware greets Doocy while noting the flack hes getting from his crew: The Delaware delegation is looking at me saying, dont talk to him! Doocy says, laughing, as he finds a spot for his shot.

Three, two. Doocy begins. As the DNC goes on, there is less and less talk about President Joe Biden 
just asking questions

Why Russia Is in More Trouble Than It Looks

Why Russia Is in More Trouble Than It Looks
Ezra Klein at the DNC August 20. Photo: Mark Peterson/Redux for New York Magazine

This article was featured in One Great Story, New Yorks reading recommendation newsletter. Sign up here to get it nightly.

It was Tuesday afternoon at the United Center in Chicago, a few hours before back-to-back Obamas issued their impassioned calls to arms, and the famously sensible explanatory journalist Ezra Klein, who characteristically keeps his passions in check, didnt have the right credentials to get into the arena. The Secret Service didnt recognize the New York Times star Opinion writer and podcaster, who has had a bit of a glow-up lately with a salt-and-pepper beard and David Beckhamesque haircut, but eventually after we met up he was able to figure out how to get in to where he belonged. This is, after all, as much his convention as any journalists this time around, since its high-energy optimism turned on the fact that President Joe Biden no longer was leading the ticket. And, starting early this year, Klein platformed that Establishment desire, leading the coup-drumbeat.

It worked so well that Klein, 40, who has been an influential journalist for over half his life, is ready to come out from behind his computer, emerge from his podcast studio, and step into the spotlight. He tells me this is actually the first convention hes attended since the Obama years. After spending his 20s writing lengthy blog posts on economics, hes now become a tattooed middle-aged Brooklyn dad in Bonobos and sand-colored Air Force 1s who goes to Burning Man, where hes headed next week.

The thing I got right this year wasnt that Joe Biden was too old to run for reelection. Everyone knew that, he told me in the back of a bar near his hotel in Downtown Chicago the night before. The thing I got right this year was that the Democratic Party was an institution that still had decision-making capacity. In February, Klein launched a series of podcasts and columns arguing that Biden should step aside. He also advocated for alternatives, like an open convention, and made the case for why Kamala Harris was underrated. Following his prediction about the campaign in February, as he later referred to it, Klein continued to take the pulse of the party. And while he didnt get the open convention he was looking for, he did get what he called a disorganized mini-primary in the veepstakes  and played a role in the unofficial auditioning process, too, having Gretchen Whitmer and then Tim Walz on his show in the days leading up to Harriss eventual pick. (He also invited Josh Shapiro on, but the Pennsylvania governor turned him down. And look what happened, Klein says, seemingly joking.) He says hes very uncomfortable with the amount of attention hes received, though he seems to be enjoying it just fine, even if Semafor was picking on him a bit for being too cozy with top-echelon Dems with a piece posted August 18 titled The New York Times Ezra Klein Problem.

There is a historical tension between the newsroom and Opinion side at the Times, one that Klein doesnt believe is all that useful. I think of my work as primarily reported, he says. My line for a very long time back when I was at the Washington Post, he says, was that the division between the news and opinion sides made it too hard for the news side to tell the truth and too easy for the opinion side to bullshit. He adds, I dont really think my shows lineage, so to speak, is actually inside that opinion-news divide.

Still, the Times works hard to maintain its journalistic propriety. Following the debate, but prior to Bidens dropping out, Klein wanted to have Times politics reporter and The Run-Up host Astead Herndon on his show to talk about Harris. But executive editor Joe Kahn shut it down. This was around the time the papers own editorial board had joined the chorus of calls for Biden to step aside, a moment when newsroom leaders felt the need to reinforce the division between the newsroom and Opinion side. Newsroom people get resentful as he veers more into newsmaking, one Times staffer noted. Said another, I think he only becomes more powerful over time, since Id argue the influence of the Times editorial board (and all ed boards, really) has waned over the course of the rise of the internet and social.

But in general, Kleins star status doesnt seem to be a problem at all for the Gray Lady, which runs full-page advertisements for The Ezra Klein Show in the paper and is building out a video dimension to the podcast. He recently interviewed Nancy Pelosi in a room in the middle of Times HQ, footage of which prompted speculation  among media folk, Brooklyn-mom group chats, etc.  about that glow-up. He dismisses speculation that he now has a stylist  hes a man who respects the experts, after all  though notes that hes been determined to spend some time this year upgrading my wardrobe and my style, but its a thing that has not happened in my mind yet.

Klein was not the first pundit to urge the president against running for reelection. Maureen Dowd said as much in the summer of 2022 (as did Mark Leibovich); David Ignatius, too, in September 2023. But what made Klein more influential is he is seen by many party elites as much more of a partisan figure, instead of just a columnist, Axios political correspondent Alex Thompson told me. It was someone pretty deeply steeped in the Democratic Party basically being the first one to break the taboo. That The Ezra Klein Show is dominating the charts or has a cult following is not new, but the sense that he is plugged into the inner workings of the Democratic Party has imbued the podcast with greater importance.

I mean, some things happened in public. It wasnt all just behind-the-scenes reporting, Klein says, between sips of a mezcal-soda at the hotel bar. But I try to pay attention to who people pay attention to, and whos earned that respect and credibility inside the caucus  or inside or among other donors, or among strategists. And you can feel those things.

Every election cycle at the Times has a face, and Klein, despite being an Opinion writer, is this years. I dont think anyone notables behavior would change because of his podcast, a Democratic strategist told me. But where he deserves credit, they said, is helping to initiate that conversation a while ago and keeping it in the media long after.

This was not a fun process, Klein says. This was a really wrenching thing the party had to go through. As for his role in it, heavy is the head. Look, I recognize that in the rare moments when people want to say youre right about something, you should agree and accept it, but it also feels like it always pins a target on your back, he says. Klein seems broken up, though unsurprised, about the bridges hes burned. When I did the February piece, I recognized it was going to fuck up a lot of my relationships in the Biden White House. Still, he was aghast when I told him Id heard that there was conspiratorial chatter among Biden officials after Kleins piece, wondering who  someone in Obamas camp?  had planted the idea with Klein. Im actually shocked to hear anybody would think that. Thats so dumb, he says. The only thing happening here was saying what everybody was seeing.

It was through reporting, he says, that he came to that conclusion. I talked to people and I understood that they could imagine that Joe Biden shouldnt run, but they couldnt imagine what would lead him to step aside and what to do if he did, he says, noting he was frustrated by the sense that this was going to be a stable situation  that people were not going to need alternatives. He also felt he owed it to his listeners. I dont think people pay a lot of attention to the mechanics of nominating processes, he says. I was just trying to make people aware that this wasnt done.

Klein tells me hes interested to see if this moment of collective action changes the Democratic Party going forward. Institutions have muscles, and the muscles atrophy when theyre not used, and they strengthen when they are used, and the Democratic Party did something collectively. Its really unusual, functionally unknown about American politics. The party proved itself beyond the ambitions of any one person, he says. Its not that I think the Democratic Party is going to start knocking its candidates off or something, but it just learned it can act in a way that I could tell you for a fact its members did not think they could.

Talking to Klein can feel, at times, like listening to his show. Hell casually go on a tangent about child-care policy or recall a cross-national study, and then hell become a normal person again, talking about the challenge of juggling his professional and personal life, married to Atlantic journalist Annie Lowrey, with two kids, living in Brooklyn.

I think Im an interesting person on my podcast. I often wonder why Im not more interesting at home, he says. Sometimes I think, Does my family get the best version of me? And the answer is often no. I ask him what he does for fun. A mix of very quiet and very loud, he says. I spend a lot of time quietly reading. I have very deep friendships. I go to a lot of shows. This will not be his first time going to Burning Man.

He has been covering politics since he was 18, cutting his teeth as a policy blogger. He moved the blog from Typepad to the American Prospect in 2007, when he was 23. Then he went to the Washington Post, where he ran the popular Wonkblog. After five years, he left to co-found Vox, the website that became the namesake of the multi-brand digital-media company that today owns New York Magazine, until departing for the Times in 2020. His popular interview podcast, The Ezra Klein Show, followed him there.

He considered going another route: selling his podcast to Spotify, starting a Substack. I sometimes feel like a dumbass whos left a ton of money on the table, he admits. But he likes being part of institutions and seems, in a vaguely messianic way, to see it as his duty to support them. Its true that I could make more money doing this independently, but if all the people who do what I do decide to go and capture all of their revenue themselves, then what happens to all the parts of the industry that are frankly more important than what I do, but are not self-sustaining in that way? he says, citing investigative and foreign reporting among the beats that havent quite figured out the newsletter format. It seems to be a mutually beneficial relationship: The Times is a unique power, he says. If I had done the same pieces from Substack, would it have mattered?

Going to the Times meant he didnt have to manage anymore  It feels almost decadent to only really have to worry about my own work, he says  and could focus on what he wanted to do, as opposed to the biggest stories that Vox needed its biggest voices to cover. That allows me to follow my own interests with a lot more authenticity than I would be able to bring otherwise, he says. What some people love about Klein and what some people hate about him is that he makes himself a mini-expert on everything, dipping in and out of topics, from AI to wellness to the Russia-Ukraine war. He has a Zadie Smith interview coming up and will soon welcome back Richard Powers to the show. Those are things that bring me a huge amount of joy, and it is really hard to imagine what else I could do that would allow me to explore my own interests broadly.

Hes an influential voice but also generationally unique, said Obama senior adviser Eric Schultz, citing traditional medias fight for attention and relevance in an ecosystem filled with tweets and clips and trolling. Klein has found a sweet spot that I dont think anyone else has been able to replicate. Its like what the Sunday shows used to be, said Schultz. Now theyre consumed by the blow-by-blow, and Ezra is having the thoughtful conversations.

Klein, who grew up in Orange County, California, moved from San Francisco to Park Slope, then Gowanus, a year ago to be closer to his wifes family. The redwoods are still close to his heart, literally, as he has a tattoo of them on his shoulder. He recently added a second tattoo, a typewriter-font Is That So? printed on his inner bicep. A reminder to not believe what you think, he says, when I ask him what it means to him. Sometimes people see it and they think of it as outwardly focused, but its inwardly focused, says Klein. The easiest person to convince of anything is yourself. And it connects to small Zen stories that I like. It took him a while, he says, to get over the belief that you cant be buried in a Jewish cemetery if you have tattoos, which he claims is a complete myth and tells me that I can read all about it in a Times article.

This post-glow-up Klein might seem like hes ready to mingle at the joy-filled late-night celeb-packed party-ready DNC. But he says hes not really planning on hitting the town (and I didnt see him out, either). His first night in town was spent at dinner with his editor and a member of Congress and then in his hotel room, where he watched the speeches. On Tuesday, he watched the speeches from the floor  where, according to his boss, Katie Kingsbury, with whom he was standing, an usher recognized him but not her  but didnt hit any afters after. I doubt Ill go to anything, he texted me, when I asked him his party plans for the rest of the convention. Going to watch from the floor each night then I record fairly early in the morning. So no real social calendar really, he said. Work, work, work.

Correction: A previous version of this story attributed a column by David Ignatius to Paul Krugman. Also, this story has been updated to reflect the correct date of a Semafor story.
The Republicans have been using left-wing demonstrations against Israel as a lever to frighten American Jews into voting Republican. The widely anticipated protests at the Democratic National Convention have mainly fizzled out, despite breathless attempts to hype them on the right. It is the backdrop of that frustration that likely inspired Donald Trump to lash out at Josh Shapiro.

In a tenuously hinged social-media post, Trump called Shapiro the highly overrated Jewish Governor of the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, complaining that Shapiro refused to acknowledge that I am the best friend that Israel, and the Jewish people, ever had, and that Shapiro has done nothing for Israel, and never will.

Let us briefly unpack.

Overrated is Trumps go-to insult when his target is so obviously popular that he cant get away with calling them unpopular. Jewish Governor is a strange description for an elected official whose job is simply governor. Nobody has ever described Trump as a former Gentile President.

Even stranger is Trumps decision to respond to Shapiros speech by complaining that Shapiro declined to thank him for being great for Israel. Shapiros speech was not about Israel. It did not mention Israel, the Middle East, foreign affairs, Judaism, or Jewish identity.

It would be perfectly fine for Shapiro to speak about those subjects. But he is the governor of Pennsylvania, not the Jewish Governor of Pennsylvania. He is allowed to discuss subjects other than his Jewish identity or Israel.

Trump genuinely seems to believe the role of American Jews is to be primarily loyal to Israel and secondarily loyal to himself. He is unable to understand how Jewish people can hold a range of viewpoints on the Middle East and combine those beliefs with interests in other subjects.

He has gotten so carried away with resentment at Shapiros ingratitude in this capacity that hes forgotten the Republican line is supposed to be that Shapiro is such a fantastically obvious choice for vice-president that his failure to be nominated can only be explained by antisemitism. Instead he now finds himself attacking Shapiro as an overrated failure who has done nothing for Israel, which Trump seems to believe is his job as Jewish Governor.
12 items in this article 5 items on sale! Photo-Illustration: The Strategist; Photos: Retailers, Joe McKendry

Welcome to How I Pick My Picks  a kind-of-regular newsletter series in which we check in with the Strategist staff on the stuff theyre using day-to-day, the products theyre testing for stories, and the things their friends and family wont stop asking them about. Consider it a peek into the always-whirring brain of a Strategist writer. Today, we talk to beauty and wellness writer Dominique Pariso.

Im about to celebrate my six-year Strategist anniversary, and Ive covered a lot of ground over the years. Ive written guides on everything from killing kitchen mice to the best acupuncturists in the city, and Ive talked to everyone from Real Housewives and college cheerleaders to professional mermaids, bartenders, and board-game enthusiasts. But Ive settled into mostly covering the beauty-slash-wellness space. I define wellness to very loosely include anything that makes you feel good, whether thats a new vibrator or skin-care routine or menstrual cup. The beauty world, in particular, is always changing, so theres constantly a mountain of boxes in my apartment filled with launches to test. Sometimes it can get a little exhausting (I never want to see another boring celebrity brand again, please). For the most part, I think there are a lot of not-so-great products out there, and scaling back and simplifying is the right move for most people. But then Ill stumble upon some gamechanger of a product that I cant wait to tell all my friends  and then all our readers  about that gets me excited all over again. What can I say? Its the thrill of the hunt.

Whats the product that friends and family always ask for your advice on?

Sex toys. This can be a little bit of a challenge since everyones bodies are so different and what works for one person might not work for another, so its extremely gratifying when a recommendation works out. After a little trial and error, I helped my friends mom find a vibrator she loved so much she recommended it to a group of her friends, who all bought one. Another time a friend of a friends boyfriend (who at that point I had never met) walked up to me at a party and shook my hand after I had sent her home with some new things to try out. All in a days work.

Do you have any strongly held opinions that have changed after testing?

Do not fall for the hype of a design-y air conditioner. I called one in to test back in 2022 and thought it was great until it broke on me in the middle of the night during a recent heat wave. Now I have an ugly Frigidaire that will get the job done for the next decade. Its also $100 cheaper for around the same BTUs.

Whats the least amount of money you should spend on, for example, a vibrator?

I will always recommend investing over buying a cheap brand that will die after a year of use. That being said, there is a sweet spot around the $75 to $100 mark that will get you something great from a trusted maker like Womanizer, Njoy, or We-Vibe. And you can never go wrong with the unimpeachable Magic Wand.

What are you currently testing and researching?

A lot of hair tools. So many brands have been releasing new tech these past few months  Dyson has an improved Supersonic out, T3 made an Airwrap dupe, GHD has a wet-to-dry blow dryer brush  and Ive been fooling around with some new categories like wavers and hot brushes. The funny part is that when Ive got somewhere to be first thing, I never have time in the morning to do my hair (Im more of an air dry-and-go kind of gal), but then Ill be sitting at my computer alone in my apartment with perfect beach waves.

Whats the last thing you bought?

I picked this balm up at a shop in Maine. Normally, Id never spend $18 on lip balm (I am a firm believer that nothing works that much better than Vaseline), but I needed to make at least one frivolous vacation purchase that wasnt lobsters and oysters. When I got to the counter, the shop assistant immediately complimented my Collina Strada x Baggu hurse (horse purse), which, coincidentally, was my last completely frivolous purchase, so I felt I was among friends and left feeling good about my tube of orange-blossom-infused lanolin.

Whats the most expensive product you own?

My Dyson vacuum. While I do love it, if I had to buy a vacuum tomorrow, Id take Jake Schlossbergs (and several of my colleagues) advice and go for a Miele.

If you had to spend $1,000 at Goop, what would you buy?

First, Id re-up on my favorite beauty products that I use every single day: Kate McLeods body stones, silk scrunchies, Sofie Pavitts gentle cleanser, Megababe thigh rescue, Crown Affairs hair towel, and some body wash. That leaves me with $793, so Id upgrade my original Ziip for the Ziip Halo. And then Id buy two new additions to my nightstand drawer that I havent tried yet. Im four dollars over, because I cant stick to a budget even when using imaginary money.

What are some open tabs on your computer right now? Whats on your list, but you cant bring yourself to buy it just yet?

I love collecting jewelry, so I keep a running list of vintage and contemporary pieces I have my eye on. Right now, that list includes this Olivve NYC sequin charm, this piece from Kimberly Doyle, and a second Yearly Co. bangle. I usually play the long game with fine jewelry, saving up for a few big splurges a year around Black Friday and my birthday. But with the price of gold hitting an all-time high of $2,500 an ounce this month, a lot of designers are probably planning a price hike, so I might bite the bullet on a few things before that happens.

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Oil prices have been on the backfoot in the current week, pulling back from gains in recent weeks thanks to easing geopolitical fears and seemingly never-ending demand concerns. On Monday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had accepted a cease-fire proposal to stop the war in Gaza, but on Thursday, sources close to the White House reported that such a deal is once again out of reach as Hamas is unlikely to accept the Israeli terms, which include the occupation of the Philadelphi corridor, which Israel claims has given Hamas a strategic lifeline

Crude oil futures fell significantly on Wednesday, with WTI crude falling to $72 per barrel and Brent crude falling briefly into the $75 dollar handle. Prospects of weak demand in China offset any gains from risks to supply, with government data showing that crude demand in the country fell 8% Y/Y in July.

Commodity analysts at Standard Chartered have been able to gauge crude demand on a global scale following the release of Joint Oil Data Initiative (JODI) data on 19 August.

According to StanChart, global oil demand in the month of June clocked in at a healthy 103.01 million barrels per day (mb/d), an all-time high. Following JODI revisions, StanChart estimates that May demand came in at 102.68 mb/d, the second-highest monthly average after June. The average demand growth for the second quarter was 1.521 mb/d y/y, close to StanCharts forecast for 2024 full-year growth (1.514 mb/d).

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The only bearish data point in that report is that demand growth has been slowing, with June demand growth clocking in at 788 thousand barrels per day (kb/d), a deceleration from 1.267 mb/d in May and 2.129 mb/d in April. StanChart has predicted that global demand will remain above 103 mb/d for the rest of 2024, before falling to 101.9 mb/d in January due to seasonality.

Meanwhile, global crude supply growth remains muted, with June supply increasing by 160 kb/d m/m to 102.097 mb/d, well below December 2023s all-time high of 103.162 mb/d.

Constrained global supply growth can largely be chalked up to weak non-OPEC growth, particularly by the U.S. Oil production in the United States is set to grow just 2.3% in the current year as shale producers stick to production discipline and goal to return capital to shareholders. Crude exports from U.S. ports have averaged 4.2 million barrels per day so far this year, up a mere 3.5% Y/Y compared to a robust 13.5% growth in 2023. This years growth clip is the lowest since 2015, when the country lifted a 40-year federal ban on the export of domestic crude.

U.S. shale producers are simply not willing to drill more. High decline rates for shale wells usually sets in soon after commissioning, meaning extra well completions are required to offset declines from existing wells if output is to be maintained. Earlier in the year, StanChart reported that the horizontal rig count started to decline sharply in early 2023 and is currently 20% below its post-pandemic peak after flatlining for the past six months. The analysts point out that whereas the completion of previously drilled wells and technical change provide an offset, a significant fall in activity, more often than not, leads to a lagged decline in growth.

Gas Rally Loses Momentum

The big rally in Europes natural gas prices that kicked off in July appears to have run out of steam thanks to high inventory levels and easing supply jitters. Dutch front-month futures, Europes gas benchmark, were quoted at 37.22 per megawatt-hour on Monday at 1315 hrs ET, largely unchanged over the past 10 days but considerably higher than the price a month ago at 30.10 per megawatt-hour. The gas price rally in the United States has been more subdued, with Henry Hub prices trading at $2.15/MMBtu from $2.01/MMBtu a month ago.

According to the latest Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE) data, EU gas inventories are on the verge of moving above the EU Commissions 90% of capacity target 10 weeks earlier than the 1 November deadline. Gas inventories stood at 104.23 billion cubic meters (bcm) on 18 August; good for a fill rate of 89.8%. German storage is already at 93.3% of capacity, well ahead of the countrys 1 September target of 65%.

Last month, the U.S. Energy Information Administration predicted that U.S. natural gas prices will rally strongly in the second half of the current year thanks to production cuts. According to the EIA, the Henry Hub natural gas spot price will average almost $2.90 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) in 2H24, up from $2.10/MMBtu in 1H24, good for a nearly 40% increase.



By Alex Kimani for Oilprice.com

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Turkmenistan could play a key role in helping Azerbaijan meet its EU gas export goals, but negotiations for a transit supply arrangement have been slow.

Azerbaijan is on track to increase its gas exports by over 10% this year, but faces challenges in meeting its commitment to double exports to the EU by 2027.

Azerbaijan is on pace to meet its natural gas export target this year. But Baku still has a long way to go before the country can meet its ambitious export commitments for 2027.

Touting Azerbaijan as a reliable supplier, President Ilham Aliyev announced at a political conference in the UK in July that the countrys annual export volume for this year was projected to increase by over 10 percent of 2022s total, reaching almost 13 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas.

Provided Azerbaijan hits that number, it will mark the first time the country sends more than half its gas exports to Europe.

Overall, gas production during the first seven months of 2024 reached 29.5 bcm, a 4.6 percent increase over the previous years production figure for the same period. Total exports for the period rose by 5.7 percent to 14.7 bcm, just over half of which (7.8 bcm) went to Europe.

While export growth is strong, total volume is still far below the level needed for Azerbaijan to fulfil a promise made to the European Union in July 2022 to double its Europe-bound gas exports to 20 bcm per year by the end of 2027. In other words, Baku needs to increase its export volume by over 50 percent in just over three years.

Aliyev has tried to tamp down speculation about Azerbaijans export capacity, but he has supplied few specifics. "We are trying to do everything in order to be able to implement our commitment to supply 20 bcm only to the EU by 2027. This is our target," he said during the UK conference.

Production from Azerbaijan's main Caspian Shah Deniz gas field is still increasing with field operator BP drilling new production wells. BP has also said that it hopes to start production from a new "deep gas field" beneath the ACG oil field later this year, or early in 2025.

Crucially, neither BP nor Baku have confirmed whether the increased production will be enough to meet Baku's commitments, not only to the EU, but also growing domestic consumption, as well as rising demand in neighboring Turkey and Georgia.

Turkmenistan might hold the key to solving Bakus export challenges. Both Azerbaijan and Turkey have shown interest in forging a transit supply arrangement with Ashgabat to potentially plug the looming supply gap to Europe. But Turkmenistan has proven difficult to pin down.

In late July, Turkish energy minister Alparslan Bayraktar visited Ashgabat to firm up a framework agreement signed with Turkmenistan in the spring providing for up to 2 bcm of gas delivered to Turkey annually for onward transit to Europe. This arrangement would include swaps involving Iran and Azerbaijan.

Despite two days of meetings with senior Turkmen officials, including Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov and Energy Minister Annageldi Saparov, Bayraktar made little progress towards finalizing an arrangement. He returned to Ankara with only an agreement to continue working on a possible gas swap deal, and a vaguer commitment to look at developing a pipeline capable of carrying 15 bcm annually of Turkmen gas across the Caspian Sea to Turkey and on to Europe.

Plans for such a pipeline have been under discussion on and off since the late 1990s; they have not progressed in large part because of the enormous cost.

Assuming Azerbaijan can boost gas production sufficiently to meet its export commitments, Baku will still have to increase the capacity of the pipelines carrying gas to Europe. Currently the three pipelines that comprise the Southern Gas Corridor can deliver a little over 10 bcm per year. The only planned expansion currently in the works would take that total to 11.2 bcm annually.

To date, there has been no commitments to boost the capacity of either the South Caucasus Gas Pipeline (SCP) running from Azerbaijan through Georgia to Turkey, in which Baku is a major partner, or the TANAP pipeline that carries Azeri gas across Turkey to Greece, in which Baku holds a majority stake.

A chicken-or-egg type of scenario is currently enveloping the issue of pipeline construction: Azerbaijani officials say that before huge investments are made to construct pipelines, they need commitments from European gas buyers to purchase Azerbaijani gas. But European buyers are reluctant to make such commitments before Baku proves that it has sufficient gas supplies to sell.

Some incremental agreements have been reached. On August 1, Azerbaijan's state oil company Socar began supplying gas to Slovenia's biggest gas importer Geoplin. That deal brings to six the number of countries in southeastern Europe importing Azerbaijani gas. Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Romania and Serbia are the other regional states on the receiving end.

Major EU markets for gas, including Germany, have yet to demonstrate a willingness to import Azerbaijani gas. With insufficient commitments to make the expansion of the southern gas corridor pay for itself, Azerbaijan and Turkey are pursuing workarounds.

Greek gas grid operator DESFA announced back in April that it was working to expand the capacity of its cross-border link with Turkey to 5.5.bcm per year. And in July, Turkish Energy Minister Bayraktar announced plans to expand the capacity the countrys cross-border link with Bulgaria to 7 Bcm/yr or even 10 Bcm/yr.

Such moves, coupled with existing unused capacity in Turkey's own gas grid, along with planned pipeline expansions within the Balkan states, could go a long way to meeting the pipeline capacity requirements to meet Azerbaijans 2027 EU export target.

By David OByrne via Eurasianet.org

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While Russia seeks to pivot its energy exports towards China amid strained relations with the West, China appears to be in a stronger bargaining position and is exploring alternative energy projects.

Stalled negotiations between Russia and China over pricing and supply levels, coupled with China's increasing focus on renewable energy and diversification of energy sources, have contributed to the pipeline's uncertain future.

Mongolia's government has excluded the Power of Siberia-2 natural gas pipeline from its spending plans for the next four years, signaling potential delays or even cancellation of the project.

Mongolia's government voted not to to include the Power of Siberia-2 natural gas pipeline that connects Russia to China through its territory in its spending plans for the next four years, a sign that the megaproject may be on hold.

Finding Perspective: Mongolia's new coalition government voted on August 16 for its action program for its four-year term and notably did not include the 2,594-kilometer pipeline, meaning they don't expect the ambitious project to begin construction during that span.

While the bulk of the energy project rests between Beijing and Moscow reaching an agreement, Mongolia would need to be involved in construction and transmission fee negotiations.

Power of Siberia-2, which is a joint project between the China National Petroleum Corporation and Gazprom, would take at least five years to build and would look to bring gas from the huge Yamal Peninsula reserves in western Siberia to China.

Much of these reserves were originally intended to be sold to the European Union, but Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine has left Moscow looking for a new market in China, the world's largest consumer of natural gas.

But Beijing currently has no particular incentive to agree to the new pipeline, and there have been ongoing disputes and tough negotiations between China and Russia over price and supply levels.

In June, the Financial Times newspaper, citing "people familiar with the matter," reported that talks are frozen over what Russia sees as China's unreasonable demands.

What's Next? The decision by Mongolia's government is seen by some analysts as the latest sign that the pipeline is facing setbacks.

"It's premature to declare the project over, but the omission signals significant challenges," Aleksei Chigadaev, a China expert and former visiting lecturer at the Higher School of Economics in Moscow, told me.

Moscow's bargaining power with its more economically powerful neighbor has weakened over the course of the war in Ukraine, and questions remain over Gazprom's ability to underwrite such a complicated venture.

The natural gas pipeline, which would bring gas to northern China, is also uncertain because it faces competition from China's growing shift toward renewable energy and Beijing's wider strategy to avoid being too dependent on any one exporter.

"North China's access to [global] liquefied natural gas (LNG) markets is expanding, and global LNG markets will likely remain oversupplied for the rest of the decade," Joseph Webster, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, told me.

"Additionally, north China can squeeze out incremental volumes from domestic production and the existing lines of the Central Asia-to-China [pipeline]."

Why It Matters: Approval for the pipeline would transform Gazprom's current fortunes by tying it further to a massive consumer market, but Beijing's tough stance also underscores how Russia's invasion of Ukraine has left President Vladimir Putin lacking leverage.

Concluding a deal on a project as expansive as Power of Siberia-2 is incredibly complex, but China clearly believes it is holding better cards.

Beijing also has alternatives to pursue. Xi has also offered support for the construction of the so-called Line D pipeline, which would be the fourth to bring Turkmen gas to China.

As Chigadaev explains, the Turkmen pipeline offers some clear advantages.

"The pipeline will be significantly shorter than the Russian one, and its construction will be entirely controlled by China, including investments, the construction process, and operations," he said. "Negotiating with Turkmenistan's political leadership is also easier -- it has an even higher level of authoritarianism than Russia and a simpler economy."

Still, as Webster notes, Power of Siberia-2 and Line-D feed different parts of China and don't necessarily cancel the other out, although "China's future and even current natural gas demand is a big analytical blind spot."

"Line D is believed to service southern China, which would place it in only indirect competition with Power of Siberia-2, which would deliver gas to customers in northern China," he said. "Line D is more likely to compete against American and Australian LNG. But the routes of Line D and Power of Siberia-2 aren't finalized yet. Things could change."

Three More Stories From Eurasia

Li Qiang In Russia and Belarus

Chinese Premier Li Qiang arrived on August 20 in Moscow on a three-day official visit where he is expected to hold talks with his Russian counterpart Mikhail Mishustin and Putin.

The Details: The visit will focus on bilateral ties and economic cooperation between China and Russia as part of a regular diplomatic track created for both countries' prime ministers.

Ahead of the visit, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said Li planned to "exchange in-depth views on practical cooperation in bilateral relations and issues of common concern" in talks with Mishustin.

Neither the Chinese or Russian side mentioned the war in Ukraine in their previews, but Li's trip is the first from a Chinese official since Ukraine's incursion into Russian territory.

Li will then depart Moscow for Belarus, where he'll meet with Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko and strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka.

Belarus relies heavily on Russia for political and financial support but has also looked to balance that dependence with closer ties with China.

In July, Belarus became the 10th member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and also hosted China for military exercises in the western part of the country, some 5 kilometers from the Polish border.

Kazakhstan's Nuclear Energy Bid

Kazakh officials held their 20th public discussion in the country about building a new nuclear power plant on August 20, my colleague Asemgul Mukhitkyzy from RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reports.

What You Need To Know: The most recent public forum was held in the capital, Astana, and came before a possible national referendum on this issue.

The discussion tour includes officials and nuclear energy experts and are partly held as part of an effort to raise public awareness, dispel myths and misinformation about nuclear power, and quell any safety or environmental concerns from having another plant in the country.

Kazakh officials have not yet said who will be building the plant, but the government is reportedly considering proposals from French, South Korean, Chinese, and Russian companies.

Diluting Tajikistan's China Debt

Tajik Deputy Finance Minister Yusuf Majidi says China's share of Tajikistan's external debt is decreasing each year, RFE/RL's Tajik Service reports.

What It Means: Speaking at a recent press conference, Majidi said Tajikistan's total debt owed to China is $1.5 billion and Dushanbe has paid back $610 million already.

He added this leaves Tajikistan's remaining debt owed at around $850-890 million and the government has been taking steps to limit its debt exposure.

"China's share in the structure of Tajikistan's external debt is decreasing. After 2018, we have only received grants from China," Majidi explained to reporters.

Tajikistan's growing financial dependence on China has been a major source of criticism for the Tajik government, with China owning half of the country's foreign debt and being its main source of external investment.

Added to those financial concerns, all of the terms of loan contracts agreed to with China have not been made public and have sparked fears that Tajikistan's inability to repay its loans could lead to offering land or other concessions in exchange for debt relief.

According to the Finance Ministry, the grace period for a number of loans owed to China's Export-Import Bank will stop at the end of 2025 and Dushanbe will need to pay off a percentage of its Chinese-owned debt.

Across The Supercontinent

Yuan Listed: In a move designed to boost cross-border trade with China, the National Bank of Kyrgyzstan announced it will begin publishing the official exchange rate of the yuan against the Kyrgyz som starting on September 1.

Wheat Woes: Kazakhstan has suspended wheat exports to China for an undetermined period following unilateral tariff changes by Beijing, the Kazakh Ministry of Agriculture said in an August 7 statement.

The Not 'For You Page': TikTok's algorithm promotes the Chinese government's narratives on hot-button issues such as Tibet, Taiwan, and the Uyghurs while suppressing content critical of Beijing, a new study has found.

A Dawn Raid And A Ruling: Legal claims brought by the Chinese firm Nuctech that European Commission raids in April to search for evidence of state subsidies were illegal have been thrown out by a court in Luxembourg.

Nuctech is a maker of body and baggage scanners for airports and ports and they sued the commission in June over the raids being unlawful. The ruling by the court could have a wider effect on Chinese businesses in Europe and the case is the most high-profile use of the European Commission using its foreign subsidies regulation.

One Thing To Watch

Azerbaijan officially applied to become a member of BRICS, the group of emerging-market nations led by China and Russia that also includes Brazil, India, and South Africa as founding members.

The country's Foreign Ministry made the announcement on August 20. Azerbaijan is the latest applicant to BRICS, which has consisted of just five members for years until it expanded with the inclusion of Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, and Egypt in January.

The development also comes after Azerbaijan signed a strategic partnership agreement with China on July 3 on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit.

By RFE/RL

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Experts are skeptical about the prospects for a lasting cease-fire, citing political motivations and the potential for renewed violence.

Key differences, including the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza and the release of prisoners, continue to hinder progress in negotiations.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's recent Middle East visit failed to secure a cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in the Middle East hoping to broker an elusive cease-fire deal aimed at ending Israels devastating war in the Gaza Strip.

But the top U.S. diplomat left the region on August 21 -- his ninth visit during the 10-month-old war -- without securing any major breakthroughs.

Experts say key differences remain between Israel and EU- and U.S.-designated Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, the two sides in the conflict.

This is still very much a work in progress, and I'm personally not optimistic, said Firas Maksad, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute in Washington.

'Sheen Of Optimism'

Ahead of Blinkens latest visit, U.S. officials expressed optimism that a cease-fire deal was closer than ever.

He traveled to Israel, Egypt, and Qatar in a bid to inject urgency to secure an agreement. During his stay in Tel Aviv, he warned that this was maybe the last opportunity to secure a deal.

But Blinken appeared to be downbeat in comments he made as he ended his tour of the region.

Confidence had grown after Blinken met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and announced that Israel had accepted a U.S. "bridging proposal" aimed at narrowing the gaps between the two sides in the war. He then urged Hamas to do the same.

But just a day later, Netanyahu was quoted by Israeli media as disagreeing on a key sticking point -- the full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza.

Hamas has not explicitly rejected the U.S. proposal, but said it went against previously agreed terms.

Washington has been keen to add urgency to the protracted cease-fire talks after Israels suspected assassinations of Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas, in Iran and a senior Hizballah commander in Lebanon last month. Tehran, which backs Hamas and Hizballah, has vowed revenge, sparking fears of a wider regional war.

Maksad said the United States is putting a sheen of optimism on the talks to pressure Israel and Hamas into accepting the proposed cease-fire deal and to assure Iran and Hizballah that progress is being made.

The goal, Maksad added, is to prevent an Iranian-led attack on Israel and avert an all-out war in the volatile region.

Iran has so far delayed its retaliation against Israel and has suggested that it does not want its actions to impact cease-fire talks.

'War May Not Actually End'

Experts say it is not even clear if the two men central to the negotiations want peace -- Netanyahu and Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, who has been blamed for masterminding the deadly October 7 attacks in Israel that triggered the war in Gaza.

Key members of Netanyahus right-wing coalition are opposed to a cease-fire deal.

[Netanyahu] knows his coalition in the Knesset would be at risk if he signs a deal that ends the war, said Michael Horowitz, head of intelligence at the Bahrain-based Le Beck International consultancy.

Meanwhile, Hamas may be waiting for an Iranian strike on Israel, which would escalate regional tensions and may give the group more leverage in the future, Horowitz added.

Maksad said that Sinwar from the onset of the war has wanted to very much draw in Iran and its various proxies in support of his cause.

What could potentially complicate matters further is the attempted suicide bombing in Tel Aviv on August 18, which Hamas claimed to have carried out in cooperation with the Palestinian Islamic Jihad extremist group.

Hamas renounced suicide attacks in 2006 before taking over in Gaza as it sought more legitimacy and international recognition. But the return of suicide operations could have consequences, according to experts.

It suggests the war may not actually end, but may only morph into something more terrifying, more destructive, and ultimately more threatening both to Israeli security and the future hopes of a Palestinian state, said Gregory Brew, a senior analyst at the U.S.-based Eurasia Group.

Deal's Sticking Points

Specific details of the U.S. cease-fire proposal have been kept under wraps, but analysts say it envisions a multiphase deal.

Horowitz said the first phase would include a gradual withdrawal of Israeli troops from most of Gaza and the release of some of the scores of Israeli hostages held by Hamas in return for Palestinian prisoners.

Negotiations would also be held to facilitate a permanent cease-fire during the second phase.

Hamas is concerned that, even if it signs the U.S. bridging proposal, talks for a permanent cease-fire between phase 1 and phase 2 will fail, and Israel will use this as an excuse to resume the war, he said.

Horowitz said that Netanyahu wants to retain the right to decide which Palestinian detainees are released in the prisoner exchange. Crucially, he added, Netanyahu also wants the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to maintain a presence along at least one of two strategic corridors in the Gaza Strip.

The Philadelphi corridor is a narrow strip of land running along the enclaves southern border with Egypt. The Netzarim corridor, which runs just south of Gaza City, divides the territory into southern and northern sections.

Hamas's main objective is to secure a permanent end to the war and the full withdrawal of all IDF troops -- to that end, accepting Israel's right to keep troops inside the territory is unacceptable, said Brew.

He added that without Israeli concessions on Philadelphi or Netzarim -- or, less likely, a full Hamas retreat from the issue -- a deal doesn't look likely.

By RFE/RL

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Russia's Novatek has once again hit a snag with its Arctic LNG 2 project, postponing the start of its third line from 2026 to 2028, according to RBC Media. This delay is a direct consequence of the Western sanctions imposed due to Russia's ongoing conflict with Ukraine. These sanctions have significantly restricted Novatek's access to vital equipment and ice-class tankers, which are critical for the project's operation in the frigid Arctic conditions.

Arctic LNG 2 was poised to be a game-changer for Russia's LNG ambitions, with plans to produce 19.8 million metric tons of LNG annually and 1.6 million tons of stable gas condensate. However, the challenges have mounted. Just last month, Novatek was forced to slash gas output, signaling deeper issues in maintaining production levels under the current sanctions regime.

These sanctions have not only impeded Novatek's ability to secure gas carriers but have also forced the company to reconsider the entire scale of the project. Earlier reports suggested that Novatek might shift its focus to the ice-free port of Murmansk, where the logistics are less daunting.

Despite these setbacks, Novatek insists on moving forward with the third line, albeit delayed. The Russian government's broader strategy to boost its share of the global LNG market to 20% by 2035 is increasingly at risk. Currently, Russia holds about 8% of the market, and any further delays could jeopardize its long-term goals.

In response to these challenges, Russia has been expanding its "dark fleet" of tankers to evade LNG sanctions, a clear indication of the lengths to which Moscow is willing to go to sustain its energy ambitions.

By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com

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Brazil's grid operator is capping the amount of electricity wind and solar producers can supply to the national grid, seriously threatening future renewable energy investments in the country. Industry executives and representatives have lamented that renewable energy investments are less viable under the National Electric System Operator's (ONS) current "curtailments" policy that temporarily caps how much power the operator accepts from wind and solar plants. The problem has been most acute in northeast Brazil, one of Brazil's top producers of renewable energy.

"Renewable energy for the country is going to waste," Eduardo Sattamini, chief executive officer of Engie Brasil Energia, has told Reuters.

ONS has been using curtailments on renewable energy since August 2023, when a power outage in the northeast spread over most of the country. The operator claims the curtailments are not excessive, and only 3% of electricity generated was lost to curtailments in July. However, figures released by wind and solar producers suggest that ONS could be greatly underestimating the losses suffered by these companies when generated power is rejected.

"This is not an environment for decision-making about new projects," Equatorial Energia's renewables unit Echoenergia said in a statement. Equatorial is amongst the wind companies hardest hit, with 58% of power generated between January and early August rejected by the grid.

Chinese generator SPIC's Banabuiu complex lost 50% of the electricity generated between January and early August. Voltalia, a major producer of renewable energy with nearly two-thirds of its capacity in Brazil, expects curtailments to shave 40 million euros ($44.48 million) from its EBITDA earnings, while CPFL Energia, a power company controlled by China's State Grid, expects to post losses of 21 million reais during the second quarter.

According to the Brazilian Wind Energy Association, last year, the sector lost 700 million reais ($128 million) in rejected power due to curtailments, while the Brazilian Solar Association, Absolar, estimates that the solar sector lost 50 million reais in the four months through July.

Relief might, however, be on the way, with Christiano Vieira, director of operations at ONS, saying that a new transmission line will start operating in September and might help lower the curtailments.

By Alex Kimani for Oilprice.com

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Chinas new coal capacity approvals this year have been significantly fewer than last years, according to a report by the Finland-based Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air. This signals the country's determination to bet more on wind and solar.

With new renewable energy build-outs now capable of meeting all incremental power demand in China, the need for new coal is waning, and there are signs the central government may be embracing this change, CREA said as quoted by Reuters.

A report by Greenpeace East Asia released earlier this week found that new coal capacity approvals had declined by close to 80% in the first half of the year from a year ago. The amount of new capacity approved during the period stood at 10.3 GW, the report said.

Wind and solar capacity, meanwhile, has had the biggest share of new additions, the Greenpeace report also found, noting that the total installed capacity of the two alternative generators topped the total installed capacity of coal in China, at 11.8 TW compared with 11.7 TW for coal.

This economic powerhouse has transformed clean energy from a climate policy component into a cornerstone of China's broader energy and economic strategies, the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air said.

Even so, the share of coal in Chinas energy mix is still the biggest one, at 71% as of 2023. This is a modest decline from 73% ten years ago, and this year there have been further declines, with the biggest so far booked in May, when coal only accounted for 53% before rebounding to 65% in July.

While CREA is quite certain that the decline in new coal capacity is a signal of a pivot to wind and solar, Greenpeace is not so sure.

Are Chinese provinces slowing down coal approvals because they've already approved so many coal projects during this five-year plan period? Or are these the last gasps of coal power in an energy transition that has seen coal become increasingly impractical? Only time can tell, Greenpeace East Asia project lead Gao Yuhe told Reuters.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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Europe is facing a tighter gas market as Norwegian field operators enter scheduled maintenance season.

Any unplanned extension of the maintenance period would cause an imbalance on gas markets on the continent and leas to price rises, Bloomberg reported.

Europe is already struggling, Florence Schmit, a European energy strategist at Rabobank, told the publication. Any deviation to the planned maintenance season can cause significant fluctuations in gas availability and in turn market prices, especially this year.

Norway supplies about 30% of Europes natural gas, becoming the biggest supplier after the halt of most Russian gas flows. Right now, there is a risk of a suspension in remaining flows passing through the Ukraine after the latters incursion into Russian territory, which would tighten supply even further.

Bloomberg points out that an extension to Norways gas field maintenance season would not be unusual due to the complexity of the work involved in those operations. The repairs involve careful balancing of pipeline pressure, while the complexity of the facilities and the North Seas harsh environment means its not unusual for additional work to be discovered, Bloomberg explained.

You will always see a shift from what was planned; something will take longer or less time and that has ripple effects across the rest of the work, a senior executive from Norways gas pipeline operator Gassco told Bloomberg.

Earlier this month, Saxo Banks head of commodity strategy, Ole Hansen, noted that the European Unions gas inventories were at 86.7% full and the expected slowdown in filling rates due to Norways maintenance season should not really affect final targets before heating season. The EU has a target of 90% full gas storage before winter begins.

However, any major disruption in the coming months would heighten the need for alternative supplies, primarily via LNG, driving up prices as Europe competes with Asia and South America, Hansen added at the time.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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Russia is pushing forward with oil product exports using vessels sanctioned by the European Union (EU), according to recent data from LSEG and market sources cited by Reuters. Despite being added to the EU's sanctions list in June as part of the bloc's 14th sanctions package against Russia, these vessels continue to operate, highlighting the challenges in enforcing such measures.

One of the sanctioned vessels, the Barbados-flagged Saga (previously known as NS Spirit), was loaded on August 8 at Russia's Baltic port of Vysotsk with 33,000 metric tons of dark oil products. The ship is now headed towards the Suez Canal, possibly en route to Asia, Reuters has suggested, reflecting Russia's strategic pivot towards non-Western markets.

Another tanker, the Kavia (formerly known as Hana), is currently loading diesel at the Baltic port of Primorsk. The final destination of this shipment remains unclear, but the use of such vessels underscores Russia's continued efforts to circumvent EU sanctions.

Interestingly, these sanctioned ships, which are barred from entering EU ports, remain active in international waters, where they are free to discharge their cargoes outside EU territories. This is particularly significant given the recent reports of Russian fuel oil being unloaded in Chinese ports by vessels on Iran-related sanctions lists.

Several other vessels sanctioned by the EU have also undergone renaming and reflagging, a common tactic to evade detection and continue operations. Ships like the Serenade, N Cerna, and Success have been spotted in the Sea of Marmara, suggesting that despite the sanctions, Russia's oil flows are still very much in motion.

These developments raise continued questions about the effectiveness of the current sanctions regime, especially as Russia finds alternative markets and routes to maintain its oil exports.

By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com

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LINCOLN  The decision to close the Office of Diversity and Inclusion at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln drew praise Wednesday from Gov. Jim Pillen.

But civil rights groups and other advocates said dissolving the office responsible for fostering an inclusive campus for all sent the wrong message to students of color and LGBTQ students.

On Tuesday, Chancellor Rodney Bennett announced his decision to shutter the Office of Diversity and Inclusion and eliminate the position of vice chancellor for diversity and inclusion, which was created in 2018.

In an email to faculty and staff, as well as in an interview with the Journal Star, Bennett said he believed the centralized approach to improving diversity and inclusion is no longer right for UNL.

The decision was made outside budget discussions, which saw the campus cut funding to the office last year as well as independent of influence from elected leaders, according to Bennett.

Legislative Bill 1330, introduced at the Legislature last year by State Sen. Dave Murman of Glenvil, the Education Committee chairman, would have forced UNL to close the Office of Diversity and Inclusion.

I like to be and I like this university, as the leader of higher education across the state, to be in charge of its own narrative, Bennett said of the decision, which comes as universities in several conservative-led states have made similar moves.

Instead of a centralized office, Bennett said it would fall to UNLs 6,000-plus employees, as well as the students and others, to build a welcoming environment for all members of our community.

A day after the announcement was made, Pillen said he was pleased with Bennetts decision.

Although that office should never have been established in the first place, it takes courage for a leader to recognize a mistake and chart a new direction, Pillen said.

The governor, who was elected to the NU Board of Regents in 2012 and served until he was elected governor in November 2022, was a member when Marco Barker was hired as vice chancellor for diversity and inclusion in 2018.

NU regents meeting records show Pillen made the motion to approve the consent agenda item that included Barkers appointment. He, along with seven other regents, later voted in favor of the hire. Only Omaha Regent Hal Daub abstained.

Pillen later led a crusade against critical race theory at NU, joining in a national movement pushed by conservatives in 2021 against the academic theory that views inequalities that stem from racial discrimination.

His resolution to ban the imposition of critical race theory failed to be adopted, however, following a lengthy meeting where most students, faculty and alumni spoke against it.

Pillen, along with Regents Paul Kenney of Amherst and Rob Schafer of Beatrice, later pledged to keep fighting against the academic field.

The work of eliminating (diversity, equity and inclusion) and critical race theory (CRT) from our public institutions is not complete with the elimination of one bureaucratic office, though, Pillen added on Wednesday. We must continue the work of keeping our university curriculum, programming and its mission free of discrimination or racial preferences in any form.

Two civil rights advocacy groups panned Bennetts decision in their own statements Wednesday as problematic.

Joy Kathurima, legal and policy counsel for the ACLU of Nebraska, said without a firm plan in place for how to continue efforts to make all students and employees welcome on campus, that they viewed Bennetts decision as deeply troubling.

We need higher education leaders to do more than talk about fostering a welcoming campus and supporting underrepresented students, Kathurima said in a statement. They need to walk the walk.

OutNebraska, which advocates for the LGBTQ community in the Cornhusker State, called the development disappointing.

This announcement comes only months after Nebraska senators introduced bills targeting diversity and inclusion efforts in public institutions, OutNebraska said. A clear pattern has emerged across our nations university systems, including in Nebraska.

Programs serving students of color and LGBTQ students are often the first cut when higher education funding dries up, often ending opportunities and spaces for those individuals, the organization said.

The need for a decentralized approach from Chancellor Bennett concerns us, said Abbi Swatsworth, OutNebraskas executive director. His suggestion that a welcoming environment will come about simply by instructing staff and faculty to welcome all students is unconvincing.

We know this work requires the same care and attention that keeps any university initiative running: staff, funding and institutional support, Swatsworth added.

Pillen, however, signaled he would push NU further to remove taxpayer dollars from programs designed to promote diversity and inclusion.

I will continue to fight to ensure taxpayer dollars are not used for these purposes, not only in state government, but throughout our university system, too, he said.

Our best Omaha staff photos & videos of August 2024
BLOOMINGTON  A Springfield man is being detained in the McLean County jail pending trial on accusations of criminal sexual assault of a minor from July 2023 to January 2024.

George E. Kirkwood, 46, appeared in court Tuesday afternoon after being arrested on a bill of indictment. His case was held over until Wednesday, when he was brought before Judge Amy McFarland.

He is charged with one count of criminal sexual assault, involving a teenager under the age of 18, a Class 1 felony.

Assistant State's Attorney Daniel Guido said in a probable cause statement, on Jan. 12, a girl between the age of 13 and 17 reported to a teacher in Bloomington school that she woke up to the defendant lying with her in her bed.

She told the teacher nothing inappropriate happened that night, but he had previously sexually assaulted her, Guido said.

On Jan. 17, the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services became involved, and three children participated in interviews at the Children's Advocacy Center. Guido said the girl who reported Kirkwood spoke of multiple incidents of sexual assault from Kirkwood. She said the assaults occurred both out of state and in Bloomington.

The two other children both told investigators they were aware of Kirkwood's abuse toward the teen girl, but they denied being assaulted themselves. One child said they witnessed Kirkwood assault the girl in Mississippi, the prosecutor said.

That child initially told police he was unaware of any abuse, but in the interview at the Children's Advocacy Center, he said he had lied, Guido said.

The teenage girl also told the investigators Kirkwood had threatened to "beat her up," if she ever told anyone, Guido said.

In the probable cause statement, Guido mentioned Kirkwood pleaded guilty in 2012 to sex crimes involving another minor in Mississippi who was also a teenager.

"His history speaks to his sexual violence," Guido stated to the court, arguing for Kirkwood to be detained.

The prosecutor said the close age range of the victims shows the defendant's likelihood of repeating these offenses with minor children, specifically the girl who reported him in January.

Guido argued Kirkwood be detained on the grounds of both dangerousness and willful flight. He said Kirkwood spent four years in the Mississippi Department of Corrections after he was convicted in 2016 for violating the terms of his probation. The prosecutor said Kirkwood's whereabouts were unknown and he failed to report to appropriate authorities.

Guido noted pretrial assessments flagged Kirkwood for violence and asked, if McFarland were to order he be released, that Kirkwood be placed on maximum conditions.

Assistant Public Defender Matthew Landry disagreed with the allegations and said if these offenses happened in a different state, this case would be outside of McLean County's jurisdiction.

"(Kirkwood) was in Mississippi at the time of this alleged offense," Landry said.

According to the defense, another individual confirmed Kirkwood was not in Illinois when the abuse allegedly began in July 2023.

However, Guido argued the abuse continued in Illinois as well as Mississippi.

"It is the same conduct in a different state," he said.

The defendant sat in the courtroom shaking his head as Guido spoke.

McFarland granted the state's petition to detain and noted the court gave weight to the fact the defendant had pleaded guilty to criminal sexual assault in the past.

Additionally, McFarland said the descriptions the children provided gave "some credence to the validity of the claims," and added that young children would not otherwise know of these sexual acts.

She said she found the defendant to be dangerous, noting Kirkwood had allegedly threatened the victim in attempts to keep her silent.

Kirkwood tried to speak to the judge during the hearing Wednesday and told her the children have full access to the internet, where they may learn of these sexual acts. The judge maintained her decision, and the defendant was promptly taken back into custody of the McLean County Sheriff's Office.

The judge ordered Kirkwood to have no contact with the three children who were interviewed as part of this investigation.

Kirkwood will be back in court for an arraignment on Aug. 30.
Standard Bank has mobilized sustainable finance of over $3 billion this year to advance green and renewable energy initiatives across Africa, thereby driving sustainable growth and energy independence throughout the continent. This was disclosed by Sydney Nii Ayitey Tetteh - Executive Vice President, Energy & Infrastructure, Client Coverage, Corporate and Investment Banking at Stanbic Bank Ghana, at the 13th Ghana Economic Forum held at the Movenpick Ambassador Hotel in Accra.



Speaking on a panel discussion on the topic, Sustainable Energy Financing and Distribution: Key to Driving Economic Activities and Growth, the Stanbic Bank Executive noted the critical role of sustainable energy financing in driving economic growth. He highlighted the increasing importance of green financing as Ghanas energy sector shifts towards sustainability.



He noted that, At Stanbic Bank, we are committed to supporting the energy transition through innovative financing. We do this because of our purpose as a bank, which is Africa is our home, we drive her growth and investing in sustainable energy is just one way we are making that happen. In 2023, Standard Bank, our parent company, mobilized $2.7 billion in renewable energy initiatives across Africa and this year, we are investing over $3 billion. Specific areas targeted included solar and wind project, energy efficiency, electricity distribution networks, green buildings, carbon finance and climate change adaptation.



Nii Ayitey Tetteh encouraged policymakers in the energy sector to sanitize the sector to attract more investment. He said Investors will always be reluctant to put money in a sector that seems unstable and saddled with huge legacy debts. Initiatives such as the cash waterfall mechanism that ensures that suppliers receive consistent payments and other good initiatives under the Energy Sector Recovery Program has helped to improve the sector, but there are still more things to be done to make the sector credit worthy.



While the potential for substantial investment in the sector exists, it is essential that the sectors underlying health is addressed as a foundational step. A strong, stable, and transparent sector is essential to attract external capital. Prematurely pursuing investment without first establishing a solid base is akin to building a house on shifting sands. Therefore, a comprehensive sanitization process must be undertaken to rectify any structural or operational deficiencies, Nii Ayitey Tetteh added.



The Ghana Economic Forum was started in 2012 to bring together captains of industry and thought leaders to discuss and debate key issues affecting the Ghanaian economy and offer solutions to enhance the countrys economic growth. The annual Ghana Economic Forum is a corporate event put together to engage corporate Ghana in a panel deliberation on issues affecting the Ghanaian economy and hopefully offer useful solutions and recommendations in favour of an accelerated economic growth of the economy.



The event is tailored and structured to offer in-depth analysis, discussions and debate on key issues affecting the Ghanaian economy and to suggest solutions to help overcome the challenges in order to enhance the achievement of the countrys economic development agenda. Furthermore, the event offers a platform for participants to make recommendations aimed at consolidating gains and driving attention to under-served economic imperatives.



The forum will also provide opportunities for participants to interact with business experts from the public and private sectors, as well as the countrys top bankers and financial service providers. The 13th edition was held under the theme, Unlocking Opportunities: Re-engineering Ghanas Economic Model for Sustainable Development.







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In a remarkable display of industry expertise, innovation and exceptional leadership, Dr. Daniel McKorley, the visionary founder and CEO of McDan Group, has been awarded the prestigious title of "Aviacargo Personality of the Year for West Africa 2023" at the esteemed CHINET 24 Aviation & Cargo Conference in Lagos, Nigeria.



This well-deserved recognition further solidifies Dr. McKorley's position as a driving force in the aviation and cargo sector, not just in Ghana but across the entire West African region.



Background of Dr. Daniel McKorley



Dr. Daniel McKorley's journey to becoming a prominent figure in the aviation and cargo industry began with his founding of the McDan Group in 1999.



Starting as a small freight forwarding company, the McDan Group has since grown into a conglomerate with diverse interests in logistics, shipping, aviation, and banking.



Dr. McKorley's unwavering dedication to excellence and his vision to transform the logistics landscape in West Africa have been instrumental in the company's success.



Aviacargo Personality of the Year for West Africa 2023



The Aviacargo Personality of the Year award is a highly respected accolade presented to individuals who have significantly impacted the aviation and cargo industry in West Africa.



The selection process involves rigorous evaluation by a panel of industry experts, who assess various aspects of the nominees' contributions, such as leadership, innovation, and overall impact on the sector.



Dr. Daniel McKorley's achievements in the aviation and cargo sector, particularly his strategic initiatives to expand and modernize the McDan Aviation division, made him a standout candidate for this prestigious award.



McDan Aviation



McDan Aviation is a subsidiary of the McDan Group that offers domestic and Regional passenger and cargo services. Under Dr. McKorley's leadership, McDan Aviation has undergone significant expansion and modernization efforts, enhancing its operational efficiency and service delivery.

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In a shocking turn of events, Lillian Kumah, the widow of John Kumah, a departed Deputy Minister of Finance, has fallen victim to a brazen burglary at her residence in Achimota-Mile 7, Accra.



The incident, which occurred on December 29, 2023, has left the community reeling and raised concerns about the safety and security of residents in the area.



Lillian Kumah, a respected member of the community, has been living at her current residence for several years.



Her late husband, John Kumah, served as a Deputy Minister of Finance under the current administration and was a well-known figure in Ghanaian politics.



After his passing, Lillian has continued to reside in the family home, surrounded by fond memories and personal belongings accumulated over the years.



The Burglary



On a fateful day, an unknown individual gained access to Lillians residence, making off with a haul of valuable items, including $50,000, GHC50,000, an iPhone 15 Pro Max mobile phone valued at GH15,000, an Apple iPad worth GH15,000, a Samsung Z fold phone valued at GHC12,000, a Microsoft laptop costing GH7,000, a black school bag valued at GHC400 and an Apple watch.



The thief also made off with other personal belongings, leaving Lillian shaken and distraught.



Investigation



The police were promptly notified, and an investigation was launched.



After reviewing Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) footage, the police identified two suspects, Adams Sanogo and Rabiu Falilu, who were subsequently arrested and charged with conspiracy and dishonestly receiving stolen goods.



Suspects



Adams Sanogo, a trader, and Rabiu Falilu, a Senior High School (SHS) leaver, have been granted bail of GH200,000 each, with various conditions.



However, the police are still searching for a third accomplice, Kwame Dunga, who is believed to be on the run.



Community Reaction



The incident has sent shockwaves through the community, with many expressing concern about the safety and security of residents, particularly the vulnerable, such as widows and elderly individuals.



Due to that, calls are being made for increased security measures, including improved policing and surveillance, to prevent such incidents from occurring in the future.

Source: dailyguidenetwork.com









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The Golden Bean Hotel recently celebrated its 10th anniversary by making a generous donation to two orphanage homes in Kumasi including the Remar Ghana and Perfect Peace.



The donation included sets of bed linens, towels, detergents, hot meals, and packs of water while the staff and management of the hotel personally delivered these items, bringing joy and smiles to the children at both orphanages.



The General Manager of Golden Bean Hotel, Randy Attuquaye Clottey in an interview with the media highlighted the importance of giving back to the community, especially to vulnerable groups like orphanages and also reflected on the hotels growth from its humble beginnings with just 8 rooms to its current 51-room capacity, with future expansion plans in the pipeline.



She also emphasized that the hotels commitment is to providing value and excellent hospitality remains at the core of its operations.



Sales and Marketing Manager, Maame Ama Asantewaa Adjem also spoke about the hotels dedication to corporate social responsibility. She expressed pride in the milestone and reiterated that the hotels focus extends beyond sales to creating memorable experiences for guests. Adjem highlighted various anniversary activities, including a celebratory float through Kumasi, a grand dinner for stakeholders, and a health screening and blood donation drive for local hospitals.



The Chief Executive officer for Perfect Peace Foundation, Madam Mary Bonsu and Mother of the Remar Ghana Orphanage Home, Irene Ammisah who received the items expressed their joy and sincere gratitude to the management of Golden Bean Hotel and called others to practice the same.





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The Director of Communications of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Richard Ahiagbah, has urged Ghanaians to vote for the flagbearer of the NPP, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia to become president to enable him to implement his policies.



Mr Ahiagbah says that Dr Bawumia has clearly articulated his commitment to enhancing the conditions of our healthcare workers in the NPPs 2024 manifesto.



Bawumia understands that healthcare professionals deserve a leader who recognizes their value and contributions to national development. A vote for Bawumia is a vote for the betterment of our healthcare system and the people who sustain it, he wrote on his X platform.



He stressed, Bawumia is the choice of healthcare workers and the choice for a healthier Ghana.



Below is the full post



I spent the past few weeks in a hospital bed at Komfo Anokye and am continuing treatment at home after a traumatic accident. During my time there, I witnessed firsthand the remarkable dedication and sacrifices made by our healthcare professionalsdoctors, nurses, and others to ensure the well-being of their patients, often under extremely challenging circumstances.



As we approach the 2024 elections, I recommend we elect a president who will prioritize the needs of our healthcare workers by improving their working conditions, investing in their professional development, and addressing the age-old exodus of health professionals from Ghana.



Health is our most valuable asset; everything else is secondary without it. We need a leader who will ensure that those who take care of our health are themselves well taken care of.



Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has clearly articulated his commitment to enhancing the conditions of our healthcare workers in the NPPs 2024 manifesto.



Bawumia understands that healthcare professionals deserve a leader who recognizes their value and contributions to national development.



A vote for Bawumia is a vote for the betterment of our healthcare system and the people who sustain it. Bawumia is the choice of healthcare workers and the choice for a healthier Ghana.





I spent the past few weeks in a hospital bed at Komfo Anokye and am continuing treatment at home after a traumatic accident. During my time there, I witnessed firsthand the remarkable dedication and sacrifices made by our healthcare professionalsdoctors, nurses, and others to pic.twitter.com/ZeMzV4mkSw  Richard Ahiagbah (@RAahiagbah) August 22, 2024

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The Chartered Institute of Realtors (CIR) and the Chamber of Real Estate (CRE) have recently concluded their joint lecture series on Land Law in Ghana.



The series, which took place in June, July and August at the Africa Trade House was massively attended and covered a range of topics related to land law, including property rights, land registration, zoning, and land transactions.



The lectures were delivered by several experts in the field of law, including Tsatsu Tsikata, a prominent Ghanaian law luminary, Lawyer Kwame Gyan, and Lawyer Kwame Oppong-Ntim to mention a few. Some legal professionals, government agency representatives, students, individuals, and players in the real estate industry were present throughout the course.



This series commenced with one of Ghanas finest legal experts, Lawyer Tsatsu Tsikata, opening with the lecture The Real Estate Industry in Ghana and National Development. Lawyer Tsikatas coverage of the subject matter was indeed an excellent ice breaker to the series in depth having touched on the key roles and responsibilities of the players and stakeholders in the real estate industry, the shortfalls within, the need for a standardised system check of the sector, the interconnection of real estate to other key industries and its overall contribution to our national development.



Day 2 saw the involvement of Mr Frank Oppong Yeboah and Mrs Evelyn Addo both of the Republic Bank speak to the participants about Real Estate financing and legal issues; a follow-up to unfinished discussions from Lawyer Tsikatas piece. Lawyer Kwakye-Serbeh was present with the team on the day to lecture on Introduction to Land Law, kickstarting an extensive three solid days of lectures on Land Use Planning and Zoning and Land Transactions.



Following up on the brilliant execution of the first two days of lectures, Lawyer Kwame Gyan, an astute legal tutor and practitioner with over 20 years of industry experience was at the helm of affairs to steer the participants through the issues surrounding property rights and ownership and also Land registration and documentation procedures. Lawyer Gyans practical experience and knowledge aided in answering the questions of attendees on both days.



The final day saw Lawyer Kwame Oppong-Ntim deliver professionally on the legal aspects of development projects with some assistance on the subject of disputes and resolutions by his able colleague Lawyer Eugene Danso Cobbold. The online community was not left out with several participants who couldnt be present in person for the lecture participating through the Zoom platform.



The CIR and CRE have said that they plan to hold another land law lecture series in the future. They hope that the series will continue to raise awareness about the importance of land law in Ghana and provide a forum for discussion and debate on the issues facing the real estate sector.









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The Founder and leader of Destiny Home Chapel International, El Prophet Nicholas Duncan Williams has accused politicians of being responsible for too many sins in the country.



According to him, the countrys political leaders are doing everything possible both spiritually and physically to secure power going into the December 7 general elections.



There is so much sin in this country, and theres a lot of incantations going on. The political leaders of this country are responsible for this. These politicians are in charge of the countrys destiny, and most of them have their hearts far away from God. You can know this from how they talk and they are doing everything for power. So who will they sacrifice? It is the youth.



You realize that this year -2024, lots of people have died because we are in an election year. Some people dont take election year serious. Election is power being transferred, the destinies of about 32million Ghanaians are going to be entrusted in the hands of a single person. Do you think it is easy, he quizzed in an interview with Akua Sonto on Accra FM mid-morning show.



Touching on prophecy, the man of God stated that every prophecy comes with a direction to be followed for the prophecy to come to pass, but it does not always require one to give an offering before it comes to pass.



Every prophecy comes with a direction. The other day Mary asked the Angel how the prophecy will come to pass. And the Angel said the direction is that youll be possessed by the Holy Spirit. So Angel Gabriel did not just give the prophecy to Mary, she asked a question on how it will come to pass.



The is always a direction to a prophecy. There were certain things that were missing in Marys conversation with the Angel. The time that the angel will come, where you should be for the angel to come. All of that was delivered to her. Indeed, the prophecy came to pass as was prophesied by Prophet Isaiah. Prophet Isaiah gave a direction to that prophecy. He said a virgin will give birth to the Messiah. So a lot of young girls gave birth but not to the messiah. That virgin was also to come from the family of David. So every prophecy comes with a direction for it to come to pass.

Source: kasapafmonline.com









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The Ghana Police Service has refuted allegations that a militia group is training in Bawku, in the Upper East Region.



The police indicated that its investigation into the allegation revealed that no such activity is taking place in the Bawku area.



The Ghana Police Service has noted with concern a publication alleging the training of some militiamen at Bawku in the Upper East Region.



We wish to state that our investigation has found no evidence of such training in the area or its environs, part of a post shared by the police.



The police urged the public to desist from making such false allegations and vowed to bring persons behind them to book.



This is the second of such false publications within a week by some unpatriotic individuals intended to create unnecessary alarm and panic among the public.



The Police are working to bring the perpetrators to book and the public should be assured that we will get them," the post concluded.



On Monday, August 19, 2024, the police denied reports alleging the training of some militiamen at Kwahu in the Eastern Region, for the 2024 general elections.



"We wish to state that our investigation has found no evidence of such training in the area."



It added that it had commenced an investigation to identify those behind the false publication to come and answer for their actions in line with the due process of the law



















Source: ghanaweb.com









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The Flagbearer of the NPP, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, has revealed that his government will significantly increase the daily allowance of prisoners.



Currently, prisoners are on a daily feeding allowance of GH 1.80 Cedis per day, and for some time now, the amount has remained unchanged.



But speaking in Oda, during his campaign tour, Dr. Bawumia expressed strong concern over the amount and revealed that the amount will be increased to GH 6 Cedis per day from next year, by his government.



Dr. Bawumia also expressed a strong commitment to improving prison infrastructure and the general welfare of prisoners, including medicare and rehabilitation.



"My government will improve prison infrastructure to enhance rehabilitation of prisoners and also enhance the rehabilitation of prisoners through more effective training," Dr. Bawumia said.



Dr. Bawumia has often shown personal support to the Ghana Prisons Service over the years, by coming to their aid in many areas.



Two years ago, Dr Bawumia personally sponsored the re-wiring of electrical cables of the Kumasi Central Prisons following a direct appeal to his office.



He also supported the Prisons Service through the construction of portable water systems in many prison facilities, to serve both inmates and officers.







Source: ghanaweb.com









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The National Peace Council has officially condemned the brutalities recorded during the December 2020 elections which led to the loss of lives of some eight persons.



According to the Peace Council, the tragedy that befell the families of the eight persons is nothing to write home about, therefore, calls on all political parties and stakeholders to make sure that none of the unpalatable incidents occur in the upcoming December 2024 elections.



The National Peace Council posits that these tragedies tarnished Ghanas reputation as far as peaceful electoral process is concerned, as against the general perception that the elections was peaceful.



During a Public Forum on Media, Peace, and Democratic Consolidation in Ghana, a stakeholder engagement held in Accra, a member of the Peace Council, Madam Joana Opare emphasised that the Peace Council is currently engaging with stakeholders to prevent such tragedies in the future, stressing that no election should ever result in the loss of precious lives and livelihoods.



She stated, One of them came especially from the stakeholder meeting by CODEO that especially highlighted, and I quote, the deaths that were recorded in the 2020 general elections had dented Ghanas image. Excellences, under no circumstances should elections lead to the death of any lives.



To move beyond this collective pain, we have had a lot of consultations with all stakeholders, the political parties, their leadership, the media and so on to ensure that we are all moving in the right direction to keep Ghana as a peaceful country, she stated.



Opposition's Skepticism



The reaction from the National Peace Council comes in the wake of a recent outburst by the National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah for which the latter had opposed any attempt to get the NDC to sign any Peace document.



Mr. Nketia expressed scepticism about the effectiveness of past Peace Pacts, highlighting that they had not achieved their intended outcomes, particularly referencing the 2020 elections, during which eight NDC members were allegedly killed by national security operatives without accountability.



NDC's Conditions



During an August 20 meeting with the National Peace Council at the NDC headquarters, Mr. Nketia detailed certain conditions for the NDCs participation in the Peace Pact.



The NDC is demanding that the recommendations from the investigation into the violence during the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election be fully implemented.



They also want those responsible for election-related violence in the last election to be prosecuted, stressing the importance of justice and prevention.



The opposition party further urges the President, Nana Akufo Addo to publicly commit to respecting the results of the 2024 elections.

Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.com









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Executive Director, of Alliance for Christian Advocacy Africa, Rev. Dr Kwabena Opuni-Frimpong, has appealed to Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, the National Chairman of the largest opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) to rescind on his decision not to partake in the signing of the Peace pact.



According to Dr. Opuni Frimpong, the NDCs National Chairmans commitment to the peace Ghana seeks ahead of the December 7 2024 elections is embedded in the signing of the Peace document, hence, the plea to have him rescind on his earlier decision of not appending his signature to the Peace document.



In an interview with Citi FM, Dr. Opuni Frimpong said, We plead with the Chairman of the NDC, our big father Asiedu Nketia that we need democrats to practice democracy. We as a country we are saying as part of our democratic culture we commit to acceptance of election results, and we commit to using legal and acceptable processes in making correction."



We will not mobilise people to the streets, that is the essence of the peace pact, and we must all commit to it.



The call from Dr. Opuni Frimpong comes on the wheel of demands made by the National Chairman, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, that the party insists must be met before considering signing the Peace Pact advocated by the National Peace Council in anticipation of the December 7 elections.



Mr. Asiedu Nketiah is skeptical about the effectiveness of past Peace Pacts, highlighting that they had not achieved their intended outcomes, particularly referencing the 2020 elections, during which eight NDC members were allegedly killed by National Security operatives without accountability.



During an August 20 meeting with the National Peace Council at the NDC headquarters, Mr. Asiedu Nketia detailed certain conditions for the NDCs participation in the Peace Pact, demanding among others that the recommendations from the investigation into the violence during the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election be fully implemented.

Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.com









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Actor Prince David Osei has called on young people, especially young men, to stay away from promiscuity and channel their energies into achieving their goals and aspirations.



According to the actor, many great futures, great men, and dreams have been ruined as a result of promiscuous lifestyles and the urge by most men to always engage in indiscriminate sexual intercourse.



Prince David Osei delivered his message to the youth via X, formerly known as Twitter.



He also shared a picture of himself with an official from the United States government and captioned it, The same vagina that can birth a man can kill a man. Dont die a foolish death, my guy! The vagina can never be defeated. Dont know who needs to hear this! Focus, boy. Good morning.



The post from the actor triggered varying reactions from internet users.



A significant number of them accepted his counsel, while a group of them saw it as a damage control tactic by the actor to divert the minds of his many followers away from his recent speech at the NPPs manifesto launch on August 18, 2024.



Prince David Osei recently came under intense backlash after he called on all electorates and Ghanaians to vote in favor of Dr. Bawumia in the upcoming December 7, 2024 general elections.



According to him, a vote for the vice president is a vote for a progressive Ghana and a brighter future for all Ghanaians.





The same Vagina that can birth a man, can kill a man. Dont die a foolish death my guy!! The Vagina can never ever be defeated Dont know who needs to hear this!! FOCUS BOY .. Good morning  pic.twitter.com/wUMpzRGQ61  H.E Prince David Osei (@PrinceDavidOsei) August 21, 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.

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Eugene Baah, better known by his stage name Choirmaster (Praye Honeho)proved once again why he remains one of Ghana's most dynamic performers.



As a former member of the iconic Praye music group, Choirmaster took the stage at the prestigious Ghana Music Awards USA (GMA USA) and delivered a standing performance that left fans in awe.



The event, held on Saturday, August 17, 2024, in New Jersey, marked the 5th anniversary of the annual award scheme, which celebrates excellence and hard work among musicians in the United States, Ghana, and beyond.



Choirmasters performance was nothing short of magical. As the only artist who truly stood out, he captivated the audience with his energetic renditions of Prayes hit songs, effortlessly blending nostalgia with his signature style.



His exclusive verses on these beloved tracks not only got the fans dancing but also reignited the spark that made Praye a household name.



The electrifying atmosphere he created on stage demonstrated that Choirmaster still possesses the remarkable talent and stage presence that originally brought him into the spotlight.



The GMA USA event, known for its high standards and celebration of musical achievement, provided the perfect platform for Choirmaster to showcase his enduring artistry.



His ability to command the stage and engage the audience with such fervor highlights his continuing relevance in the music industry.



This year's edition of the GMA USA, much like its predecessors, was a night to remember, with Choirmasters performance standing as one of the evening's most memorable moments.



As fans continue to celebrate his extraordinary talent, it's clear that Choirmaster remains a force to be reckoned with, in the world of music.



His unforgettable performance at the Ghana Music Awards USA is a proof to his lasting impact and the bright future that still lies ahead for this exceptional artist.



https://youtube.com/shorts/Qppxa9TczRU?si=RqFTcybPI4NeggKr

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Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Credit: CC0 Public Domain

An unusual pair of 10-billion-year-old stars, formed when the Milky Way was young, are visiting from the farthest reaches of the galaxy, researchers have discovered.

The international team of experts from the UK, Spain and China, including from the University of Hertfordshire, were examining stars close to Earth when they discovered the binary star systemtwo stars that are gravitationally bound. To their surprise, they found the pair had traveled from the Milky Way halo to our local stellar neighborhood.

The work was published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society as the 8th paper of a series titled "Primeval very low-mass stars and brown dwarfs."

The pair consists of a white dwarf and an ultracool subdwarf, with very large motions that indicate they spend most of their time far from the visible stars in our galaxy.

The team used the mass of the white dwarf (named VVV1256-62A) and how much it has cooled by to calculate its age. This particular star is roughly half the mass of our sun and is located near the bottom of the white dwarf cooling sequence, meaning it has taken billions of years to cool down.

A white dwarf is formed at the end of the evolution of a regular star and, while they are very hot at the start of their lives, they gradually cool off and redden without the active fusion that keeps other stars going.

Meanwhile, the other star, (named VVV1256-62B), is a low-metallicity subdwarf, meaning it does not contain many elements heavier than hydrogen and helium. While harder to age so directly, low metallicities are themselves an indication of great age, because there were very few heavier elements in the early stage of the Milky Way, when they were formed.

If a star lacks these heavier elements, it can give us hints of the very distant past of the Milky Way galaxy. This subdwarf is particularly interesting since it lies at the boundary between stellar and substellar objects. This makes it an age benchmark for studying metal-poor ultracool atmospheres.

This binary system is also interesting because it has a highly eccentric orbit, meaning that the distance between the two stars varies significantly. This is why the stars are usually in the Milky Way halo, but their orbit also takes them into the Milky Way plane, the central area of the galaxy where most of its mass lies.

The ultracool subdwarf component of this binary system was originally identified due to its large motion by University of Hertfordshire Ph.D. student Leigh Smith and confirmed as an ultracool subdwarf by ex-University of Hertfordshire Ph.D. student Zenghua Zhang.

Its white dwarf companion and binary nature were then discovered in parallel by Sayan Baig, a current Ph.D. student at the University of Hertfordshire, and Zenghua Zhang, who now has a faculty position at Nanjing University.

Telescopes across the world were used to confirm these discoveries, including the Gemini South telescope, one half of the International Gemini Observatory, supported in part by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NFS).

The Very Large Telescope of the European Southern Observatory and the Dark Energy Camera Plane Survey of the Blanco telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile were also involved.

Professor Hugh Jones, professor of astronomy at the University of Hertfordshire, said, "These fascinating discoveries open a window into the farthest reaches of our galaxy.

"Understanding the link between the halo and the plane of the Milky Way is a step towards understanding how the galaxy was formed. While the massive, eccentric orbit of these stars has yet to be explained, it could be related to the existence of an inner halo or to a past merger of the Milky Way with another galaxy.

"I'm immensely proud of the current and former University of Hertfordshire students who have been involved in this phenomenal discovery."
VIENNA, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Secretariat said Thursday that it received updated compensation plans from Iraq and Kazakhstan for their overproduced oil volumes in the first seven months of 2024.

OPEC said in a statement that Iraq overproduced 1.44 million barrels per day (bpd) from January to July, and Kazakhstan overproduced 699,000 bpd.

According to their updated plans, Iraq and Kazakhstan are set to begin compensating for their overproduced volumes this month.

The two countries will fully compensate for their overproduction by September 2025, with their respective compensation cuts varying from month to month.

In June, a meeting of oil ministers from OPEC and its allies, a group known as OPEC+, reiterated the importance of adhering to full conformity and the compensation mechanism. OPEC+ decided at the meeting to extend its existing output cuts at least into the third quarter of this year. 
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Gentoo penguin Sphen (R) and partner Magic (L) with their first chick Sphengic at the SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium.

A celebrated Australian penguin famous for raising chicks as part of an unlikely same-sex couple has died, a Sydney aquarium said on Thursday.

Male gentoo penguins Sphen and Magic caught the attention of zookeepers, and then the world, when they built a nest of pebbles together in 2018.

They were eventually given live eggs to incubate from other penguin couples, hatching chick Sphengic in 2018 and Clancy two years later.

Sealife Aquarium said Sphenthe older partner in the "same-sex" penguin "power couple"had died just shy of turning 12, considered a long life in captivity.

Sphen and Magic were adopted as gay icons in Australia and further abroad, inspiring a float at the Sydney Mardi Gras parade and featuring in the Netflix sitcom Atypical.

But they also had their critics, with some in conservative circles saying the penguins were unwittingly being used to push a political agenda.

Unlike many mammal species, male and female penguins take on the same parenting roles, and share parental duties 50-50.

Same-sex couples between both males and females are not unheard of, although they are often short-lived in the wild.

It was not the first time same-sex penguin couples had adopted eggs in captivity, with a handful of zoos worldwide reporting similar cases.

A photo by SEA LIFE Sydney shows gentoo penguin Sphen (L) at the SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium. One half of a famous same-sex penguin couple, Sphen, has died aged 11 at the aquarium.

In 2009, two male penguinsZ and Vielpunktsuccessfully hatched and reared a chick that was rejected by its heterosexual parents at a zoo in Berlin.

Before them came Roy and Silo, two male chinstrap penguins at a zoo in New York who were spotted frequently trying to mate with each other.

 2024 AFP
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Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

An international research team has unveiled the first comprehensive global evaluation of 1,500 climate policy measures from 41 countries across six continents.

Published in the journal Science, this study provides a detailed impact analysis of the wide range of climate policy measures implemented over the last two decades. The findings reveal a sobering reality: many policy measures have failed to achieve the necessary scale of emissions reductions.

Only 63 cases of successful climate policies, each leading to average emission reductions of 19%, were identified. The key characteristic of these successful cases is the inclusion of tax and price incentives in well-designed policy mixes.

Much of the debate about climate policy centers on which climate policy instruments work in reducing emissions, and which do not. Yet prior evaluations have focused on a limited range of headline policies, neglecting hundreds of other measures.

This new study, led by researchers at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change (MCC) in collaboration with experts from the University of Oxford, the University of Victoria, and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), aims to fill this gap.

An accompanying interactive website, the "Climate Policy Explorer," offers a comprehensive overview of the results, analysis and methods, and is available to the public.

"We systematically evaluated policy measures that have rarely been studied until now, providing new insights into well-designed combinations of complementary policy instruments. From this, we derive best practicesfor the building, electricity, industry and transport sectors, and in both industrialized countries and often neglected developing countries," explains lead author Nicolas Koch from PIK and MCC.

"Our findings demonstrate that more policies do not necessarily equate to better outcomes. Instead, the right mix of measures is crucial. For example, subsidies or regulations alone are insufficient; only in combination with price-based instruments, such as carbon and energy taxes, can they deliver substantial emission reductions."

The study highlights specific examples to illustrate this point. For instance, the researchers show that bans on coal-fired power plants or combustion engine cars do not result in major emissions reductions when implemented alone. Successful cases only arise in tandem with tax or price incentives, as shown in the UK for coal-fired power generation or in Norway for cars.

In-depth analysis of 1,500 policy measures and 63 success stories

The researchers evaluated 1,500 policy interventions implemented between 1998 and 2022, covering the entire spectrum of climate policy instruments, from energy-related building codes to purchase subsidies for climate-friendly products, and carbon taxes.

Using a new OECD database, which represents the most comprehensive inventory of climate policies worldwide to date, and an innovative approach combining machine learning methods with established statistical analyses, the team conducted a detailed impact evaluation of these policies, identifying those measures that achieved large-scale emissions reductions.

"While it remains challenging to precisely disentangle the effects of individual measures within a policy mix, our 63 success cases provide systematic insights into effective policy combinations, and show how well-designed policy mixes depend on sectors and the development level of countries," notes lead author Annika Stechemesser from PIK.

"This knowledge is vital for supporting policymakers and society in the transition to climate neutrality."

Climate policy explorer: A comprehensive resource

The interactive Climate Policy Explorer offers detailed insights into specific countries, sectors, and policy measures. In the industrial sector, for example, China's pilot emissions trading systems significantly reduced emissions after a few years, complemented by reduced fossil fuel subsidies and stronger financing incentives for energy efficiency.

In the electricity sector, the UK achieved major emissions reductions through a minimum carbon price, subsidies for renewable energy, and a coal phase-out plan.

The US is an example of significant emission reductions in the transportation sector, resulting from a mix of tax incentives and subsidies for low-emitting vehicles and CO 2 efficiency standards. Germany's eco-tax reform and truck toll introduction is another notable success story in the transport sector.

More information: Annika Stechemesser et al, Climate policies that achieved major emission reductions: Global evidence from two decades, Science (2024). DOI: 10.1126/science.adl6547. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adl6547 Journal information: Science
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EPFL scientists travel to the Arctic to measure the consequences of climate change. Credit: EPFL/SENSE- CC-BY-SA 4.0

Climate change is particularly intense in the Arctic. To assess its consequences and determine what role this region plays in global warming, two teams of scientists from EPFL have visited the area. One to gain a better understanding of the region's air composition, the other to quantify the greenhouse gases sequestered in Greenland fjords sourced by glacial water.

In the Arctica region where temperatures are rising three to four times faster than anywhere else on Earth. In parallel, the amount of "life" in the Arctic Ocean is increasing, which is affecting the production of biological aerosols and impacting cloud formation.

Julia Schmale, head of EPFL's Extreme Environments Research Laboratory (EERL), and her research group are working to quantify this critical process. An increase in clouds in the Arctic could either warm or cool the region, depending on the extent of sea ice.

"We know that Arctic clouds are generally made up of water droplets and ice crystals," says Schmale. "But a lot remains to be learned about their exact composition and how they're formed.

"For example, the seeds of water droplets and ice crystalsare they sea salt, organic particles, inorganic particles, or mineral dust? And most importantly, what percentage of these seeds comes from natural sources and what percentage from human activity?"

Beginning of an answer

Two studies led by Schmale's research group shed light on this complex and strategically important field of study. They looked specifically at the natural aerosol particles which act as cloud seeds, or the seeds that enable ice crystals in clouds to be formed.

The first study, published in Elem Sci Anth, quantifies for the first time the amount of fluorescent biological aerosols contained in Arctic air. These aerosols are mainly bacteria and amino-acid-containing particles that are produced in the ocean or on land.

They're very efficient at seeding ice crystals: ice begins to form at 9C, whereas with mineral dust, for example, ice begins to form at around 20C.

This study draws on data collected on an icebreaker over a full year (between 2019 and 2020) during the MOSAIC expedition. "We used a laser-based instrument to take second-by-second measurements of the fluorescence of air particles," says Schmale.

"Particles that fluoresce are generally of biological origin." These data enabled the scientists to estimate the concentration of natural biological aerosols in the air and form hypotheses about where they came from.

In the winter, for example, the scientists observed "bursts" of these aerosols, which was surprising given that the ocean is frozen over during that time and there isn't much biological activity. The scientists hypothesized that the aerosols had been carried over, such as within clouds, from distant areas.

In June, the concentration of biological aerosols started to rise dramaticallycoinciding with a peak in biological activity as measured by high chlorophyll levels in the water.

There was also a sharp increase in the quantity of ice nucleating particles at 9C. While no direct causation could be shown, this is a strong indication that locally sourced biological particles contribute to ice nucleating cloud seeds in the central Arctic. Parallel processes were observed over the course of the year.

"Interestingly, as chlorophyll production dropped in the fall and larger microbes in the ocean water were replaced by smaller ones, the size of fluorescent aerosols also decreased," says Schmale. "This reflects a seasonal marine microbial transition that also occurred in the air."

Machine learning analysis

The second study, published in npj Climate and Atmospheric Science, is based on a machine-learning analysis of aerosol measurements and weather data over the past decade.

It's the first to identify which meteorological factors are behind the production of methanesulfonic acid (MSA), an important marine aerosol created by phytoplankton blooms, and how this production will likely change over the next 50 years. MSA is a key component of cloud condensation nuclei, or the seeds for cloud droplets, and is therefore climate relevant.

Meanwhile, the Climate and Atmospheric Science study examined possible MSA trends in the Arctic. EERL scientists worked with the Swiss Data Science Center to combine field observations with analyses of weather data and air-mass back trajectories.

They developed a data-driven model in order to gain greater insight into the factors responsible for MSA production today. For example, the scientists found that solar radiation, cloud cover, and cloud water content are critical factors, pointing to specific atmospheric chemical processes.

The research team then calculated trends in these factors over the past decades and extrapolated them to outline scenarios for MSA seasonality in the Arctic going forward.

"Our key finding is that there will probably be less MSA in the spring and much more in the fall," says Schmale. "That's due to seasonal changes in precipitation in the spring and a marked retreat in sea ice in the fall." This suggests that climate change affects the aerosols influencing cloud formation, which in turn affects climate change.

Asking the right questions

Scientists are already planning another international expedition into the Arctic, and are preparing a research vesselthe Tara Polar Stationto collect central Arctic data over the next 20 years.

"The advances achieved by these two studies are fascinating in my opinion because they show how important natural sources of aerosol particles are for the Arctic climate system, and suggest these sources will change drastically in the coming decades," says Schmale.

"These initial results tell us that more research is urgently needed to predict what the Arctic will look like in 2050. They'll help us ask the right questions for future studies in this field."

Gases stored in Greenland fjords may contribute to global warming

In June 2024, another team of EPFL scientists traveled through two beautifully wild fjords of Greenland. In the depths of these inlets sourced by century-old glaciers, they map the amount of two greenhouse gases dissolved in water at depth.

They want to determine if these greenhouse gases could potentially amplify global warming via some unknown natural feedback mechanism. This project is part of the GreenFjord international expedition, scheduled to run from 2022 to 2026, financed by the Swiss Polar Institute and scientifically led by Julia Schmale.

"We bring our technological expertise to Greenland, engineering the right instruments to analyze dissolved greenhouse gases in aquatic environments and document their spatial variability. Our aim is to answer fundamental questions about Greenland's role in the future of global climate change," says Jerome Chappellaz who leads EPFL's Smart Environmental Sensing in Extreme Environments (SENSE) Laboratory.

In past interglacial periods when Greenland was partially melted, it is possible that the melted regions were covered with tundra and boreal forests, known to lead to soil rich in organic material. As these organically rich soils decompose, they emit carbon dioxide and methane, which is one of the reasons why scientists are so interested in Greenland's contribution to global emissions.

Note that the glaciers in Greenland are different from the ones in Switzerland.

"It's highly unlikely that we'd encounter the same phenomenon in Swiss glaciers since they were formed at very high altitudes where vegetation is almost inexistent," explains Chappellaz.

Impacts on microbiology

Fjords are a long, narrow and deep inlet of the sea between high cliffs, typically formed by submergence of a glaciated valley.

Chappellaz and his team benefit from an interdisciplinary project called GreenFjord, coordinated by Julia Schmale, who leads the Extreme Environments Research Laboratory (EERL) of EPFL. They have engineered advanced instruments specifically to measure dissolved methane (CH 4 ) and nitrous oxide (N 2 O) at various depths of water in the two fjords in southwest Greenland, down to 700 m of depth.

The fjord fed by a marine-terminating glacier consists in fact of a continuum of fjords, Ikersuaq, Brederfjord and Sermilik, where glacier water arrives from below the floating glacier into the fjord and then to the Labrador sea, progressively forming a layer of glacial water floating atop of seawater.

In contrast, fjord Tunulliarfik, inhabited by the settlement Igaliku founded in 1783, is sourced by a glacier that ends on land and where glacial meltwater invades the surface of fjord waters from the onset of the fjord itself.

"The distinct features of the two settings generate large differences in the physical structure of the water column as well as in the input of nutriments, both affecting the microbiology in the two fjords and then the fate of these two greenhouse gases. This is what we want to compare and quantify. In a situation of a disintegrating Greenland ice cap, it's an open question if such mechanisms could add another unexpected source of greenhouse emissions on top of human being sourced ones," explains Chappellaz.

An unexpected source of greenhouse gases?

Chappellaz and his team visited both the marine- and land-terminating fjords aboard the oceanographic vessel Sanna. Aboard the Swiss sailboat, the Forel, they focused on the marine-terminating one. Scientists were able to get close enough to the glacier front in the marine-terminating glacier fjord, to measure and hopefully characterize how much methane gets into the fjord through the subglacial water system.

In a 1995 publication, Chappellaz shows that greenhouse gas production in Greenland soil is strong and that large concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) and methane are currently trapped in basal ice, located at the heart of the Greenland ice cap.

"The natural question is then how much of these greenhouse gases are released when the glacier water melts? How much is getting to the coast and possibly contributing to significant fluxes released into the atmosphere? In a situation of a disintegrating Greenland ice cap, it's an open question if such mechanisms could add another unexpected source of greenhouse emissions on top of human being sourced ones," says Chappellaz.

Future climate change is about two major contributions: emissions due to human activity and amplifications from natural sources in a warmer world. In other words, how much will human societies add in terms of greenhouse gas emissions and at what pace; and how much amplification in a warmer world would appear from natural feedback.

"Our work in Greenland explores possible natural feedback mechanisms, giving us urgent insight into fundamental science questions about the future of our climate in a context where there are still many uncertainties and unknown processes," says Chappellaz.

More information: Ivo Beck et al, Characteristics and sources of fluorescent aerosols in the central Arctic Ocean, Elem Sci Anth (2024). DOI: 10.1525/elementa.2023.00125 Jakob Boyd Pernov et al, Pan-Arctic methanesulfonic acid aerosol: source regions, atmospheric drivers, and future projections, npj Climate and Atmospheric Science (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41612-024-00712-3 Journal information: npj Climate and Atmospheric Science
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A colony of choanoflagellates stained to show its features. Cyan indicates DNAthe doughnut-shaped DNA of the choanoflagellate cells and a cloud of bacterial DNA inside the colonywhile flagella are white and microscopic hairs (villi) on each cell are red. Credit: Kayley Hake, Nicole King lab, UC Berkeley

Mono Lake in the Eastern Sierra Nevada is known for its towering tufa formations, abundant brine shrimp and black clouds of alkali flies uniquely adapted to the salty, arsenic- and cyanide-laced water.

University of California, Berkeley researchers have now found another unusual creature lurking in the lake's briny shallowsone that could tell scientists about the origin of animals more than 650 million years ago.

The organism is a choanoflagellate, a microscopic, single-celled form of life that can divide and develop into multicellular colonies in a way that's similar to how animal embryos form. It's not a type of animal, however, but a member of a sister group to all animals. And as animals' closest living relative, the choanoflagellate is a crucial model for the leap from one-celled to multicellular life.

Surprisingly, it harbors its own microbiome, making it the first choanoflagellate known to establish a stable physical relationship with bacteria, instead of solely eating them. As such, it's one of the simplest organisms known to have a microbiome.

"Very little is known about choanoflagellates, and there are interesting biological phenomena that we can only gain insight into if we understand their ecology," said Nicole King, a UC Berkeley professor of molecular and cell biology and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) investigator who studies choanoflagellates as a model for what early life was like in ancient oceans.

Typically visible only through a microscope, choanoflagellates are often ignored by aquatic biologists, who instead focus on macroscopic animals, photosynthetic algae or bacteria. But their biology and lifestyle can give insight into creatures that existed in the oceans before animals evolved and that eventually gave rise to animals. This species in particular could shed light on the origin of interactions between animals and bacteria that led to the human microbiome.

The newly named species Barroeca monosierra discovered in Mono Lake. Colonies of these organisms consist of numerous identical cells (cyan), each with flagella (green) that allow them to propel themselves through the water. This choanoflagellate colony hosts its own microbiome (red), something never before seen in these organisms. The extracellular matrix with which the bacteria interact is shown in white. Credit: Davis Laundon and Pawel Burkhardt, Sars Centre, Norway; Kent McDonald and Nicole King, UC Berkeley

"Animals evolved in oceans that were filled with bacteria," King said. "If you think about the tree of life, all organisms that are alive now are related to each other through evolutionary time. So if we study organisms that are alive today, then we can reconstruct what happened in the past."

King and her UC Berkeley colleagues described the organismwhich they named Barroeca monosierra, after the lakein a paper published Aug. 14 in the journal mBio.

A beautiful colony

Nearly 10 years ago, then-UC Berkeley graduate student Daniel Richter came back from a climbing trip in the Eastern Sierra Nevada with a vial of Mono Lake water he'd casually collected along the way. Under the microscope, it was alive with choanoflagellates. Aside from brine shrimp, alkali flies and various species of nematode, few other forms of life have been reported to live in the inhospitable waters of the lake.

"It was just packed full of these big, beautiful colonies of choanoflagellates," King said. "I mean, they were the biggest ones we'd ever seen."

The colonies of what seemed to be close to 100 identical choanoflagellate cells formed a hollow sphere that twirled and spun as each individual cell kicked its flagella.

Globular colonies of the choanoflagellate B. monosierra seen under a microscope. As indicated by the 50-micron scale bar, these colonies are at the limit of what's visible to the naked eye. Credit: Alain Garcia De Las Bayonas, Nicole King lab

"One of the things that's interesting about them is that these colonies have a shape similar to the blastulaa hollow ball of cells that forms early in animal development," King said. "We wanted to learn more about it."

At the time, however, King was occupied with other species of choanos, as she calls them, so the Mono Lake choanos languished in the freezer until some students revived and stained them to look at their unusual, doughnut-shaped chromosomes. Surprisingly, there was also DNA inside the hollow colony where there should have been no cells. After further investigation, graduate student Kayley Hake determined that they were bacteria.

"The bacteria were a huge surprise. That was just fascinating," King said.

Hake also detected connective structures, called extracellular matrix, inside the spherical colony that were secreted by the choanos.

Only then did it occur to Hake and King that these might not be the remains of bacteria the choanos ate, but bacteria living and grazing on stuff secreted by the colony.

"No one had ever described a choanoflagellate with a stable physical interaction with bacteria," she said. "In our prior studies, we found that choanos responded to small bacterial molecules that were floating through the water, or [that] the choanos were eating the bacteria, but there was no case where they were doing anything that could potentially be a symbiosis. Or in this case, a microbiome."

A 3D reconstruction of a spherical colony of 70 choanoflagellates from the newly-named species Barroeca monosierra discovered in Mono Lake. Colonies of these organisms consist of numerous identical cells (cyan), each with flagella (orange) that allow them to propel themselves through the water. This choanoflagellate colony hosts its own microbiome, something never before seen in these organisms. Credit: Davis Laundon and Pawel Burkhardt, Sars Centre, Norway; Kent McDonald and Nicole King, UC Berkeley

King teamed up with Jill Banfield, a pioneer in metagenomics and a UC Berkeley professor of environmental science, policy and management and of Earth and planetary science, to determine which bacterial species were in the water and inside the choanos. Metagenomics involves sequencing all the DNA in an environmental sample to reconstruct the genomes of the organisms living there.

After Banfield's lab identified the microbes in Mono Lake water, Hake created DNA probes to determine which ones were also inside the choanos. The bacterial populations were not identical, King said, so evidently some bacteria survive better than others inside the oxygen-starved lumen of the choanoflagellate colony. Hake determined that they were not there accidentally; they were growing and dividing. Perhaps they were escaping the toxic environment of the lake, King mused, or maybe the choanos were farming the bacteria to eat them.

Much of this is speculation, she admits. Future experiments should uncover how the bacteria interact with the choanoflagellates. Past work in her lab has already shown that bacteria act like an aphrodisiac to stimulate mating in choanoflagellates, and that bacteria can stimulate single-celled choanos to aggregate into colonies.

For her, the Mono Lake choanoflagellate will become another model system in which to study evolution, just like the choanos that live in splash pools on the island of Curacao in the Caribbeanher main focus at the momentand the choanos in pools at the North and South Poles. It might be a challenge to get more samples from Mono Lake, however. On a recent visit, only six of 100 samples contained these energetic microorganisms.

"I think there's a great deal more that needs to be done on the microbial life of Mono Lake, because it really underpins everything else about the ecosystem," King said. "I'm excited about B. monosierra as a new model for studying interactions between eukaryotes and bacteria. And I hope it tells us something about evolution. But even if it doesn't, I think it's a fascinating phenomenon."

In addition to King, Banfield, Hake and Richter, UC Berkeley co-authors of the paper include former doctoral student Patrick West, electron microscopist Kent McDonald and postdoctoral fellows Josean Reyes-Rivera and Alain Garcia De Las Bayonas.

More information: K. H. Hake et al, A large colonial choanoflagellate from Mono Lake harbors live bacteria, mBio (2024). DOI: 10.1128/mbio.01623-24 Journal information: mBio
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Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Communities across California, from Los Angeles to the San Joaquin Valley, have fought for more than a decade to stop oil companies from drilling in their neighborhoods and spewing health-damaging pollution into the air.

The passage of a landmark state law in 2022 to ban new drilling within 3,200 feet of homes, schools, child care centers and hospitals and establish new health protections for existing wells seemed to be the victory they sought. They never imagined it might take nearly another decade for it to take full effect.

Yet that's exactly what Gov. Gavin Newsom's office has proposed in the closing days of this year's legislative session. The law was already delayed a year and a half when the oil industry filed a referendum against the law and then withdrew it from the November ballot. Now the administration wants to extend various oil industry compliance deadlines in the law.

As written, the law gives operators of wells near homes and schools until the end of this year to submit leak detection and response plans to state regulators, and until the end of 2026 to implement them. Newsom's proposal would extend those deadlines until July 1, 2029, and July 1, 2031, respectively, among other delays.

Forcing communities that have already faced one obstacle after another to wait years longer for oil companies to fully comply with requirements designed to protect the public from their pollution is unreasonable and wrong.

No more delays. Legislators should reject the Newsom administration's last-minute proposal. The more than 2 million Californians who live within 3,200 feet of oil wells and are at increased risk of cancer and other health problems deserve relief now.

For years, the oil industry used its lobbying power in Sacramento to beat back lawmakers' efforts to ban new oil wells and protect Californians from the health impacts of existing drilling operations.

In 2021, Gov. Newsom announced that his administration would act without the Legislature to impose drilling restrictions, but the rulemaking went so slowly that it took a new law to finally make it happen.

The law's ban on new drilling near homes and schools went back into effect immediately after the referendum was pulled in June. But under Newsom's proposal, oil companies would get more than four additional years to meet the law's requirements to monitor and repair leaks from existing wells.

"Leaks" is an understatement: Drilling operations are spewing cancer-causing benzene and other dangerous pollutants into the lungs of kids and adults who live, work or attend school nearby, and that needs to stop.

An 18-month delay would at least be understandable. That's about how long the law was suspended due to the oil industry-backed referendum, and should be enough for state agencies tasked with implementing the law to get back on track. But they don't need four-plus years.

"It does seem like a benefit to the industry and it seems like a detriment to the public," Assemblymember Rick Chavez Zbur (D-Los Angeles) said at a committee hearing last week. "This is delaying by many years without any kind of policy oversight."

Though oil companies will be the primary beneficiaries of these delays, Newsom administration officials have insisted it is necessary to give state agencies more time to hire staff and prepare for implementing the law properly. The governor's office said it did not cut any deal with the oil industry in exchange for abandoning the referendum.

We hope that the delay attempt doesn't signal a broader retreat from tough and urgent climate action by the governor. His office said he is not backing away from his commitment to transition the state off fossil fuels, but it isn't the only example.

The governor on Monday delivered a head-scratching veto of a bill to improve the monitoring, reporting and public notification about oil refinery air pollution, saying that local air quality management districts, which supported the legislation, were already doing enough to protect communities.

The administration has also sought a two-year delay for compliance with two important environmental laws Newsom signed last year that require big companies doing business in California to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and climate-related risk.

Assembly and Senate lawmakers should reject anything but minimal delays to such important climate and public health protections. Postponing compliance deadlines is not harmless.

Living near oil and gas wells is linked to asthma, preterm births and reductions in lung function on par with living near a freeway or with secondhand smoke. The public suffers ongoing health effects with each delay the fossil fuel industry is granted.

2024 Los Angeles Times. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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More than 100 firefighters are battling the blaze on two main fronts on the island.

The European Union said Thursday that two water bomber planes were headed for the Atlantic island of Madeira to bolster firefighting efforts following an emergency request from the Portuguese government.

A European Commission spokesman told reporters a request for help under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism was received Wednesday evening, and that in response two firefighting aircraft were being deployed from Spain from the EU's strategic reserve.

"These aircraft are on their way already, and they are to reach Madeira in the next few hours," said the spokesman, Balazs Ujvari. "They will contribute to the ongoing efforts pursued by the local authorities in a very challenging terrain."

He noted that the EU had last week activated its Copernicus satellite system at Portugal's request, to help monitor the blaze which has raged for a week and threatens a UNESCO-listed forest.

"The commission will of course, continue to observe the situation on the ground, and we are ready to mobilise additional assistance if needed," Ujvari said.

The fire had burned an area of 4,937 hectares (12,199 acres) of land by Wednesday midday, the Copernicus observatory said on X. It said 545 hectares had burned in the previous 24 hours.

Around 150 firefighters have been battling the blaze on two main fronts on the island of Madeira, which is traditionally packed with summer tourists at this time.

The fire started in the Ribeira Brava district and spread to the nearby Camara de Lobos and Ponta do Sol districts in the southern part of the island.

Thousands of hectares of vegetation were lost in a wildfire last year on Madeira and at least three people were killed in a 2016 wildfire near the main city of Funchal.

 2024 AFP
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Third European Service Module readied for shipment. Credit: ESA-P. Sebirot

The European Service Module that will power the Orion spacecraft during the Artemis III mission to the moon will soon be on its way to the United States.

The service module has left the integration halls of Airbus Space in Bremen, Germany and will now sail to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in the United States.

Built in Italy, assembled in Germany, and with contributions from all over Europe, the module's journey across the Atlantic Ocean will take 12 days on board the Canopee, the same ship that transported Ariane 6 to Europe's spaceport in French Guiana ahead of its inaugural flight.

ESA's European Service Module

The European Service Module propels NASA's Orion crew vehicle in space during Artemis missions and provides astronauts with essential resources including electricity, water, temperature control and air.

ESA has already provided two European Service Modules for NASA: The first was used during the successful Artemis I uncrewed mission, and the second is currently at NASA's Kennedy Space Center for testing in the lead up to the Artemis II mission scheduled next year.

Now, the third European Service Module is on its way to join the second ahead of its own mission.

Timelapse video of the third European Service Module (ESM-3) as it left the assembly halls of Airbus Space in Bremen, Germany, in a custom-built container on 16 August 2024. Credit: ESA  P. Sebirot

The road so far

The third European Service Module began its journey in the manufacturing halls of Thales Alenia Space in Turin, Italy, where engineers built its chassis-like structure.

This backbone supports all components of the module including: 11 km of wiring, 33 engines, four tanks with 2,000 liters of propellant each, tanks with enough water and air for the crew during their mission and four 7-meter solar arrays providing enough electricity for two households.

From October 2020, the module and its components arrived to Airbus Space in Bremen, Germany, for assembly. The parts came from more than 20 companies across more than 10 European countries, a testament to the cooperative effort behind this project.

Earlier this year, teams installed the third European Service Module's main engine. This engine already has nine missions under its belt, powering the Space Shuttle orbiters Challenger, Columbia and Endeavour.

The module will soon leave Europe on its way to the United States.

Once the European Service Module arrives at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, engineers will connect it to the Crew Module Adapter and later to the Crew Module itself, with plenty of testing before, in between and after to get the spacecraft ready ahead of the Artemis III mission.
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Repeated phantom recoveries reported by scientific advisors have prevented necessary rebuilding action for the North Sea sole. Credit: Rainer Froese 12.08.2024, based on data in ICES 2023 https://ices-library.figshare.com/ndownloader/files/42582397

Many fish stocks around the world are either threatened by overfishing or have already collapsed. One of the main reasons for this devastating trend is that policymakers have often ignored the catch limits calculated by scientists, which were intended to be strict thresholds to protect stocks. But it has now become clear that even these scientific recommendations were often too high.

In the European Union (EU), for example, fisheries are primarily managed through allowable catch limits, known as quotas, which are set by the European Council of Agriculture Ministers on the basis of scientific advice and recommendations from the European Commission. A new study by Australian scientists shows that already the scientific advice has been recommending catch limits that were too high.

The journal Science, where the study is published today, asked two of the world's most cited fisheries experts, Dr. Rainer Froese from the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel and Dr. Daniel Pauly from the University of British Columbia, to interpret the findings. In their perspective paper, they advocate for simpler, yet more realistic models based on ecological principles, and call for more conservative stock assessments and management when uncertainties arise.

For the study, Edgar and team analyzed data from 230 fish stocks worldwide and found that stock assessments have often been overly optimistic. They overestimated the abundance of fish and how quickly stocks could recover. Particularly affected are stocks that have already shrunk due to overfishing. The overestimates led to so-called phantom recoveries, where stocks were classified as recovered while, in reality, they continued to decline.

"This resulted in insufficient reductions in catch limits when they were most urgently needed," explains Dr. Froese. "Unfortunately, this is not just a problem of the past. Known overestimates of stock sizes in recent years are still not used to corrected this error in current stock assessments."

The research by Edgar and team also shows that almost a third of stocks classified by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) as "maximally sustainably fished" have instead crossed the threshold into the "overfished" category. Moreover, the number of collapsed stocks (those with less than 10% of their original biomass) within the overfished category is likely to be 85% higher than previously estimated.

But what causes these distortions in stock assessments? Standard stock assessments use models that can include more than 40 different parameters, such as fish life history, catch details, and fishing effort. This large number of parameters makes the assessments unnecessarily complex, write Froese and Pauly. The results can only be reproduced by a few experts with access to the original models, data and settings.

Moreover, many of the required input parameters are unknown or difficult to estimate, leading modelers to use less reliable values that have worked in the past. Froese notes, "Such practices can skew the results towards the modelers' expectations."

The authors therefore call for a revision of current stock assessment models. They advocate simpler, more realistic models based on ecological principles. They also call for greater use of the precautionary principle: when in doubt, conservative estimates should be used to protect stocks.

"In essence, sustainable fishing is simple," says Dr. Froese. "Less fish biomass should be taken than is regrown."

Fish must be allowed to reproduce before they are caught, environmentally friendly fishing gear must be used and protected zones must be established. The functioning of important food chains must be preserved by reducing catches of forage fish such as anchovies, sardines, krill or herringthese are the principles of ecosystem-based sustainable fishing.

Froese adds, "Four of these five principles can be implemented even without knowledge of stock sizes."

More information: Graham J. Edgar et al, Stock assessment models overstate sustainability of the world's fisheries, Science (2024). DOI: 10.1126/science.adl6282. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adl6282 Rainer Froese et al, Taking stock of global fisheries, Science (2024). DOI: 10.1126/science.adr5487. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adr5487 Journal information: Science
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Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

It's not just about right and wrong: Time and culture also influence our moral compass, Cornell-led psychology research finds.

In interviews with nearly 350 American and Chinese children, researchers found that 8- and 9-year-olds in the U.S. felt they deserved more praise for good deeds anticipated in the future than those already completed. Their Chinese counterparts, in contrast, considered past good deeds more praiseworthy, and were more concerned about how past behavior might affect their reputations.

"When people think about moral judgment and reasoning, oftentimes they don't think time matters, because morality is something right or wrong," said Qi Wang, the Joan K. and Irwin M. Jacobs Professor of Human Development in the Department of Psychology and College of Human Ecology, and director of the Culture & Cognition Lab. "But morality isn't black and white: You need to take time and cultural differences into consideration in terms of how much weight people put on the past versus the future."

That understanding may have real-life implications, Wang said, potentially shaping attitudes toward conflicteven wardepending on whether more meaning is ascribed to past or future experiences.

Wang is the lead author of a paper titled "Do Future Actions Matter More Than Past Deeds? Temporal Moral Attribution in U.S. and Chinese School-Age Children," published in Developmental Psychology. Co-authors are Tong Suo; Lingjie Mei, M.A.; Li Guan, Ph.D.; Yubo Hou, professor at Peking University; and Yuwan Dai, assistant professor at Renmin University of China.

Previous research has shown that Western adults attribute greater moral significance to future actions than past ones, offering more praise for good acts and harsher punishment for transgressions that hadn't happened yet. That may be because while one can't change the past, the future is malleable, so a bias toward it might help guide behavior that is still consequential, scholars reasoned.

Wang wondered if Asian cultures with a more cyclic view of time would exhibit the same moral orientation toward the future, and if differences could be seen in children. A memory expert, Wang has shown in prior research that Asian cultures place a stronger emphasis on the past ("To define the future, one must study the past," goes one Confucian saying), and the cultural narrative of learning from the past is reflected both in memories and values imparted to children.

In the study, interviewers presented children ages 6 to 9 with hypothetical moral or immoral behavior, randomly assigned to have occurred either last week or next week. For example, in one moral scenario, "A friend forgot to bring lunch. You brought your favorite sandwich. Even though you wanted to eat it all, you gave half of it to your friend." In an immoral scenario, "You got mad at a friend. You said really mean things to him (her) and made him (her) cry."

By 8 and 9 years old, the attitudes of Western children matched those of previously studied adults: They considered future good acts more deserving of reward and praise than those performed "last week." The opposite was true among Chinese children. Trends among the younger children, who were still developing the capacity for "mental time travel," were similar but not statistically significant. Furthermore, Chinese children's moral reasoning emphasized morality and deference to authority, whereas U.S. children attributed their evaluations more to personal attributes and choices.

The study shows not only that moral cognition is not timeless, but that culture also plays a central role in shaping it, the authors conclude. In addition to informing theories about how people reason right from wrong, they argue, those dynamics may influence interpretations of complex current eventsfrom interpersonal disputes to national conflicts"with causes originated in the past and consequences to occur in the future."

"Time is so important to consider, because people's reactions to a conflict may not just reflect their current state of mind but also their past experiences and future anticipations, both for themselves and their country," Wang said. "That can help us understand how a decision was made, and to consider more complex factors than simply right and wrong."

More information: Qi Wang et al, Do future actions matter more than past deeds? Temporal moral attribution in U.S. and Chinese school-age children., Developmental Psychology (2024). DOI: 10.1037/dev0001825 Journal information: Developmental Psychology
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Graphical abstract. Credit: Journal of Hazardous Materials (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.135306

Mercury (Hg), a highly toxic contaminant that persists globally, can be stored in the cryosphere and released into aquatic ecosystems as glaciers melt, posing potential risks to human health.

A research team led by Prof. Kang Shichang from the Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources of the Chinese Academy of Sciences conducted daily scale observation for a year in the Mingyong catchment of Meili Snow Mountain to reveal the temporal variation and controlling factors of total Hg concentration in glacial runoff.

The study, titled "Mercury export from a glacier-fed river of Mt. Meili, southeastern Tibetan Plateau," is published in the Journal of Hazardous Materials.

Researchers quantified the input flux of Hg and assessed the output flux of total Hg concentration in the glacial runoff of the Mingyong catchment and the entire Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

Correlation analyses indicated that the controlling factors for Hg concentrations in glacierized rivers are influenced by various environmental and hydrological processes, making them complex and multifaceted.

The study found that total Hg concentration in glacial runoff during the monsoon period is higher than in the non-monsoon period.

The Mingyong catchment showed an Hg input flux of 343.8 g/year, with meltwater, precipitation, and groundwater contributing 2.4%, 76.9%, and 20.7% respectively.

Glaciers in the catchment can affect the temporal pattern of Hg concentrations in glacier runoff in two ways. One is releasing historically stored Hg during the ablation period of Mingyong Glacier and the other is through rock-water interactions beneath the glacier, which serves as a significant source of Hg.

The result showed that Hg export flux in the Mingyong River is 211.0 g/year, indicating that the basin acts as a mercury sink.

Additionally, the researchers estimated that the annual export of Hg through glacier runoff in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is 947.7 kg/year.

This study confirms that the impact of glacier melting on the Hg cycle within aquatic ecosystems in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau cannot be ignored.

More information: Tao Pu et al, Mercury export from a glacier-fed river of Mt. Meili, southeastern Tibetan Plateau, Journal of Hazardous Materials (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.135306 Journal information: Journal of Hazardous Materials
China's banking sector assets growing steadily: regulator

Xinhua) 08:35, August 22, 2024

BEIJING, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- China's banks have seen steady asset expansion since the start of the year, an official with the country's financial regulator said on Wednesday.

The assets of financial institutions in China's banking sector grew 7 percent year on year to 423.8 trillion yuan (about 59.43 trillion U.S. dollars) at the end of July, Xiao Yuanqi, deputy head of the National Financial Regulatory Administration, told a press conference.

Xiao said the sector's non-performing loan ratio stood at 1.61 percent at the end of July, down 0.08 percentage points compared to the same period last year.

The sector's capital adequacy ratio stood at 15.53 percent at the end of June, indicating that the sector has sufficient "ammunition" to withstand risks, Xiao said.

Looking to the future, the administration will continue to help banks optimize asset-liability structure and cultivate new sources of profit growth to enhance profitability, he added.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
In the sandy streets of Khartoum, new graffiti scrawled messages of freedom, peace, and liberty, an echo of the dreams of the Sudanese youth in 2019. Back then, amidst the arid landscape of this bustling capital, hope blossomed in the desert. A peoples revolt backed by the military ousted President Omar Hassan al-Bashir who had been in power for three decades.

But a breakdown of a fragile transitional civilian-military government and cracks within the armed forces threw Sudan into a full blown war in April 2023. The conflict pits the Sudanese Army, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), commanded by former al-Burhan deputy, General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo. Both factions are locked in a fierce struggle for power and control over the countrys resources, including its gold and oil.

The human cost has been staggering. Tens of thousands of Sudanese have lost their lives, and according to the United Nations, nearly 11 million people have been displaced. More than two million have fled the country. The war has left Sudanese civilians without essential food, healthcare, or any semblance of peace.

Peace talks organized by the United States that began on 16 August 2024 in Geneva, Switzerland kicked off with mixed results. While RSF representatives attended the talks, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) boycotted the peace initiative.

A joint statement from envoys representing the UN, the African Union, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, the United States and Switzerland commended RSF for attending the talks and urged the paramilitary force to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure such as hospitals and churches.

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Among the priority issues raised at yesterdays meeting was the need to allow safe and unhindered passage of humanitarian aid and workers in and through all areas of RSF control, read the statement.

The Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs however said the peace talks would be futile if RSF is allowed to get away with crimes against humanity for the sake of peace. SAF also accused RSF of bombing residential areas in Kordofan and Khartoum, and two schools in Al-Obeid city as well as a hospital in Al-Thawra, Karrari, just days to the talks. The Geneva delegation, however, committed to meet SAF as soon as they arrive or contact them in any way they choose.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, an evangelical pastor in Sudan told Christian Daily International that the situation is getting worse by the day. He said that there are displaced people walking for up to 600 kilometers to escape volatile areas and to find food and shelter only to end up in the middle of nowhere.

People are suffering because there are new attacks (both from SAF and RSF) in new places. We are losing many more because of lack of food and medication, said the pastor. While the warring parties continue pulling in different directions, time is running out for what is left of Sudans crumbling civilian infrastructure.

Christian Daily International talked to Christians who lived in Khartoum for many years. One of them, Youssef (name changed for security reasons), led a now closed clinic in the city.

We cant talk about health organizations, because there are none, Youssef laments. Many doctors, pharmacists and highly educated people, including himself, have fled the country.

Before the war, there were three doctors for every 10,000 people, that was already disastrous. Now, there is almost no doctor left in town, he adds.

The war has not only destroyed critical healthcare facilities, it also made it very complicated for Christians to meet in their churches in Kharthoum. Some of the churches have been bombed and the danger of new attacks is vivid. In mid-August 2024, the citys Christian community attempted to gather in small congregations, Rani tells. However, this too proved difficult.

One church managed to organize a meeting, cleaned the church and collected the people from their homes with a bus to avoid the danger of the streets, Youssef recounts. The first meeting was a success, but on the second attempt, the bus was halted by the Sudanese Army.

They sent the people home, saying it was too dangerous to hold a congregation, Youssef explains. He adds that the incident is an example of how efforts to rebuild life are swiftly undone and brief moments of normality are quickly crushed.

Despite the dire situation, Youssef doesnt let hope be shattered. His greatest worry is the suffering of people already on the brink of starvation. The United Nations' World Food Program warns that approximately 8.5 million people are facing extreme food shortages, with the risk of famine looming if the conflict escalates further. The war has claimed nearly 16,000 lives, displaced millions, and triggered a catastrophic humanitarian crisis.

Youssef continues to pay his clinic staff's salaries and remains in touch with those still in Khartoum. He observes that the prices for basic goods have skyrocketed alongside the destruction wrought by the RSF. Fruits are now a luxury, he says, noting that sugar is a rare commodity for many. The infrastructure, painstakingly built over decades, lies in ruins, and with scant support for reconstruction, recovery will be a long and arduous process.

What troubles Youssef most, however, is the deafening silence surrounding this devastation. A joint report by 21 Christian humanitarian organizations listed Sudan as one of the six crisis-hit African countries that have been neglected by the international community.

What really kills me is that despite all this suffering, nobody talks about it, wonders Youssef. He believes that the conflict has spiraled beyond human control. It really needs Gods hand, Gods mercy. Prayer is the only thing that will change this, he asserts. He places his faith in divine intervention over NGO projects or peace talks, hoping for a resolution that seems increasingly distant.
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Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

The International Criminal Court must reform to better bring the masterminds of mass atrocities to justice, experts have said.

International tribunals and national courts have been able to use joint criminal enterprise (JCE) to hold those responsible for the planning and organization of hideous crimes to justice, but it is not used by the International Criminal Court.

A new study warns that if this trend continues, there is a risk joint criminal enterprisecrucial for helping nations get retributive, restorative, and social justicewill fall into disuse for international crimes prosecuted before the ICC. The work is published in the journal Contemporary Justice Review.

The research says ensuring the ICC uses JCE will help victims get accountability and act as a deterrent to stop future mass atrocities.

Mass atrocity crimes are made possible by criminal networks of masterminds. The proposed change could help the ICC find the involved high ranking military officers and politicians guilty of collective criminal responsibility.

Experts say this is particularly important for those nations that don't have stable legal systems.

The study, by Kevin Aquilina from the University of Malta, and Klejda Mulaj from the University of Exeter, proposes that the ICC's Rome Statute should be amended so joint criminal enterprise is incorporated into Article 25(3)(a) to include criminal acts through another person via JCE, and adding provisions to define its elements to guide the Court's interpretation. This will enable the ICC to apply JCE like the international ad hoc tribunals for the Former Yugoslavia and Rwanda have done in the past.

Dr. Mulaj said, "Victims of mass atrocities need restorative justiceas well as crimes being punished through criminal processesso that they can get recognition and start to move on from their ordeal. This can only happen if those responsibleboth directly and indirectlywho have been involved in planning, organization and enablement of mass atrocities, are punished.

"Joint criminal enterprise is a useful weapon for prosecutors as it helps them establish facts and events, and it is important, also, for victims. Now we need ICC member states to support its use. Societies cannot heal if the truth of their ordeal is not ascertained, impunity is not challenged, and a modicum of accountability is not achieved. Criminal justice has the potential to offer an important service to this end."

Researchers hope their proposals will be considered by an ICC Review Conference to be convened by the Assembly of States Parties to the ICC Statute.

Dr. Mulaj said, "The current situation means that JCE is in peril. There is a danger that while it has been--and continues to be--a success story in national law and before international ad hoc tribunals, once the latter are definitively wound up, JCE may meet its untimely death in international criminal law. The ICC has made a deliberate decision not to apply it, and instead, rejected it and substituted [...] indirect perpetration based on joint control of the crime, thereby risking the end of JCE within the realm of ICL."

The ICC has adopted a different mode of group criminal responsibilitythat of indirect perpetration based on joint control over the crime.

Prof Aquilina said, "JCE should not fall into disuse and that it should not remain the product of case law which is not universally accepted as binding on all international criminal courts and tribunals, and customary international law which--at times--is unclear as to the exact rules that regulate this mode of criminal responsibility once it is unwritten in treaty law and thus difficult to discern the attendant uncertainties and lack of detail. If criminal responsibility continues to be undefined in ICL, it will remain within the subjective interpretation of individual courts and tribunals."

The change would hold to account all co-perpetrators involved in the planning of that group crime, because they are all responsible for each other's behavior within that group.

An accused co-perpetrator must have participated in the joint criminal enterprise, played a specific role in that enterprise, and had the intent to participate. Prosecutors would have to prove that there was in existence among all co-perpetrators a common design.

The study proposes a way that JCE can be further improved to be used in the international society's arsenal to convict mass atrocity perpetrators where indirect perpetration based on joint control over the crime fails.

More information: Kevin Aquilina et al, The International Criminal Court and responsibility for mass atrocities: Can JCE enhance capacity to hold masterminds accountable?, Contemporary Justice Review (2024). DOI: 10.1080/10282580.2024.2364034
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As companies develop satellite constellations as shown in this illustration, theyll need to repair satellites in orbit. Credit: NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/P. Marenfeld, CC BY-ND

Most space mission systems historically have used one spacecraft designed to complete an entire mission independently. Whether it was a weather satellite or a human-crewed module like Apollo, nearly every spacecraft was deployed and performed its one-off mission completely on its own.

But today, space industry organizations are exploring missions with many satellites working together. For example, SpaceX's Starlink constellations include thousands of satellites. And new spacecraft could soon have the capability to link up or engage with other satellites in orbit for repairs or refueling.

Some of these spacecraft are already operating and serving customers, such as Northrop Grumman's mission extension vehicle. This orbiting craft has extended the lives of multiple communications satellites.

Northrup Grummans mission extension vehicle is one example of a craft designed to service other satellites and spacecraft while in orbit.

These new design options and in-orbit capabilities make space missions look more like large logistics operations on Earth.

We're researchers who have studied the space industry for years. We've studied how the space sector could learn lessons from companies like Amazon or FedEx about managing complex fleets and coordinating operations.

Lessons from the ground transportation network

Space mission designers plan their routes in order to deliver their payloads to the moon or Mars, or orbit efficiently within a set of cost, timeline and capacity constraints. But when they need to coordinate multiple space vehicles working together, route planning can get complicated.

Logistics companies on the ground solve similar problems every day and transport goods and commodities across the globe. So, researchers can study how these companies manage their logistics to help space companies and agencies figure out how to successfully plan their mission operations.

One NASA-funded study in the early 2000s had an idea for simulating space logistics operations. These researchers viewed orbits or planets as cities and the trajectories connecting them as routes. They also viewed the payload, consumables, fuel and other items to transport as commodities.

This approach helped them reframe the space mission problem as a commodity flow problema type of question that ground logistics companies work on all the time.

Lessons from ground logistics infrastructure

New capabilities for refueling and repairing spacecraft in orbit create new opportunities as well as challenges.

Namely, space operators don't usually know which satellite will be the next one to fail or when that will happen. For these new technologies to be useful, space mission designers would need to come up with an infrastructure system. That could look like a fleet of service vehicles and depots in space that quickly respond to any unpredictable events.

Fortunately, space mission designers can learn from operations on the ground. City planners and emergency response organizations think through these types of challenges while determining where to locate hospitals or fire departments. They also consider these facilities' capacities to respond to unpredictable calls.

We can draw an analogy between a ground logistics system design and an in-space servicing system design. This way, researchers can leverage theories developed for ground logistics to improve the space mission design practice.

One study published in November 2020 developed a framework for servicing spacecraft on orbit using what logistics experts call spatial queuing theory. Researchers most commonly use this modeling theory to analyze the performance of a ground logistics system.

Lessons from ground warehouse management

In the past, individual spacecraft carried out their missions independently, so if a satellite failed, its mission engineers had to develop and send a replacement.

Now, for missions with multiple satellites, such as the Iridium satellite constellation, operators often maintain one or more spares on orbit.

This becomes complicated for constellations made up of hundreds or thousands of spacecraft. Mission designers want to ensure they have enough spare satellites in orbit so they don't have to interrupt the mission if one breaks. But sending too many spare satellites gets expensive.

When dealing with these types of large constellations, mission designers can learn from the methods Amazon and other ground companies use to manage their warehouses. Amazon puts these warehouses in specific places and stocks them with certain items to make sure the deliveries are handled efficiently.

Inventory management theories on the ground can help inform how space companies tackle these challenges.

A study published in November 2019 developed an approach that space companies could use to manage their spare strategies. This approach can help them decide where in orbit to allocate their spare satellites to meet their needs while minimizing any service interruptions.

International dimensions

Spacecraft operate in a complex and rapidly changing environment. Operators need to know where other missions are operating and what rules they should follow when refueling or repairing in space. In space, however, nobody has defined these rules yet.

Ships, aircraft and ground vehicles all have clear rules of the road to follow when interacting with other vehicles. For example, civilian ships and aircraft have to share their location with other vehicles and officials to help manage traffic.

Some researchers are examining what similar rules could look like for space. One study examined how developing rules based on a spacecraft's size, age or other attributes might help future space operations run more smoothly. For example, one rule might be that the spacecraft that launched most recently should take responsibility for maneuvering when there's another craft in its path.

With more satellites and spacecraft launching now than ever, companies and government agencies will need new technologies and policies to coordinate them. As space activity becomes more complex, researchers can continue to apply what they've learned on the ground to new missions in space.

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A new report from Australia's National Research Organisation for Women's Safety (ANROWS) sheds light on the intersection of sexual harassment, exploitative work conditions and racial discrimination experienced by migrant and refugee women in workplaces across the country.

This is the first comprehensive global study to examine these intersecting problems and highlights the challenges women face in maintaining safety and dignity at work.

Led by Professor Marie Segrave, from the University of Melbourne, in partnership with Harmony Alliance, the report gathers quantitative and qualitative insights from more than 850 migrant and refugee women in Australia. The data expands on earlier findings showing 46% of these women reported experiencing workplace sexual harassment within the past five years.

The study revealed migrant and refugee women consistently reported experiences of sexual harassment alongside racial discrimination and exploitation, including unequal pay and unsafe work environmentsboth physically and psychologically. Many reported their experiences were not recognized, as systems addressed these instances of abuse separately, rather than as interconnected problems.

One participant said, "Eight years ago I arrived here on a student visa, my first workplace was in  a fast food Mexican restaurant in Melbourne. This manager would say hi or goodbye to you and give you this hug where you could just feel like he was feeling you all over, and you know, at some point it got normalized. Whenever he felt like [it], he would give you a slap in the bottom and making sexual jokes in the work environment all the time. I look back now, and I just felt so tiny."

Dr. Tessa Boyd-Caine, CEO of ANROWS said, "It is a fundamental right to feel safe at work. Yet many migrant and refugee women in Australia are deprived of this basic security.

"The evidence shows that addressing sexual harassment, racism, and exploitative conditions in isolation is inadequate. We must understand that these issues are interconnected if we are to improve conditions and safety of migrant and refugee women in Australian workplaces."

Migrant and refugee women also lacked confidence that reporting abuse would benefit them. Many participants expressed concern that speaking out would lead to negative professional, financial, cultural or social consequences, with little hope of a positive outcome.

Professor Marie Segrave, University of Melbourne, said, "A critical finding of this research is that structural inequalitiessuch as racism, visa status, and employment conditionsintensify the impact of workplace sexual harassment and other forms of abuse and exploitation.

"Our research is based on the generosity of migrant and refugee women across Australia who have shared their stories and experiences. This research lays the ground for rethinking siloed response systems and how best to prioritize women's safety in the workplace holistically."

Nyadol Nyuon OAM, Chair Harmony Alliance, said, "By highlighting the voices of over 850 migrant and refugee women, this report sheds light on the urgent need to rethink how we address workplace safety. It's not just about identifying harassment but ensuring meaningful, systemic change."

This report is part of the 20212024 ANROWS Sexual Harassment Research Program and calls for immediate action to ensure that all women, regardless of their background, can work in environments free from harassment, discrimination, and exploitation.

More information: Migrant and refugee women: A national study of experiences of, understandings of and responses to sexual harassment in the workplace. www.anrows.org.au/publication/  ment-workplace/read/
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Michelle Tyhuis, Healing Her Beautiful Mind, 2023. Credit: Health Expectations (2024). DOI: 10.1111/hex.14125

(Please be advised this article contains details of family violence.)

Domestic violence causes disability for women through lasting impacts on their brains.

Traumatic brain injury refers to damage to, or alteration of, brain function due to a blow or force to the head. This leads to bruising, bleeding and tearing of brain tissue.

Such injury can have short-term (acute) effects or cumulative effects (over months or years).

A 2008 study by researchers in Adelaide found Aboriginal women experience head injuryincluding traumatic brain injurydue to assault at 69 times the rate of non-Indigenous women.

We spoke to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and communities in regional and remote Australia about their experiences of traumatic brain injuries from violence and their decision-making about health care access.

We also spoke to family members about what they observed in other women who were important to them and had experienced traumatic brain injury.

Here's what we foundand how it can inform the development of better health care and support services.

Not feeling like the person I used to be

Violence-related traumatic brain injuries are not isolated experiences. The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women we spoke to reported repetitive, violence-related head injuries over prolonged periods. Most women reported dozens of head injuries or had lost count of the number of injuries suffered.

The violence experienced was usually from Indigenous and non-Indigenous current or former male partners.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women reported living with and managing many common changes from traumatic brain injuries, including:

memory troubles

dizziness and headaches

difficulty with concentration and organization

trouble with taking in information and thinking (sometimes described as "mixed up thinking")

finding it hard to start a yarn or keep conversations going with family and friends (described as "losing the words or having the words disappear" or feeling like "my brain went blank")

mood swings and impulsivity.

Coral shared: "Black out, now suffering from memory loss, like finding it hard to be telling a yarn. These are stories that have happened to me. But I can't remember it."

Kirra said about her own experience: "I put something somewhere, like, book, keys, phone. If I can't see it, I forget where I put it. I have troubles keeping focused on one thing."

The women we interviewed also frequently mentioned being strangled. Non-fatal strangulation is also harmful to the brain because it reduces blood flow to the head and deprives the brain from getting oxygen.

When and why women access health care

Women felt accessing health care and support services after violence-related traumatic brain injury was not always an option for them. This was primarily because they were experiencing coercive control or were worried they would be reported to child protection authorities.

The characteristics of the injury also influenced their decisions about accessing health care. If there was no visible bruising, lacerations or marks, blood or recalled loss of consciousness (or blacking out) many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women did not go to hospital and managed their own symptoms.

As Cathy explains: "Then one night he hit me. There was no hospital, no blood, bleeding, no one would have thought there was domestic violence that happened to me. Didn't think it was serious enough to go."

How women manage symptoms of traumatic brain injury

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women practiced a range of activities to help improve their memory and manage anxiety after their traumatic brain injury. This included:

painting and weaving

listening to meditation music

completing puzzles and other tactile activities.

Family and friends helped Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women with daily activities like shopping at the supermarket, paying bills and attending appointments. As Pat shares:

"Someone from the family talks to me on the phone when I'm at the shop so I don't forget. Sometimes my daughter or grandchildren will take a photo and send to me."

However, homelessness, isolation and ongoing violence undermined many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women's capacity to seek medical care for traumatic brain injury and to use these strategies.

The need for regional and remote investment

We need to strengthen access to health care and other support services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women with violence-related traumatic brain injuries. Our research shows this should include:

developing standardized coordinated care pathway within emergency departments and remote community clinics

developing a specialized workforce with training in traumatic brain injury and violence (such as Aboriginal social workers and Aboriginal allied health workers) who can support women in the health-care setting and in the community

the inclusion of traumatic brain injury pre-screening questions in primary health and family violence screening tools, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health checks and state/territory family violence risk assessments

educational resources that raise awareness and knowledge of traumatic brain injury and non-fatal strangulation among women, families and communities. This must include information that lasting harm to the brain can occur even when the person doesn't lose consciousness or there is no visible injury

needs-based funding for crisis accommodation services in regional towns and remote communities to ensure services can respond effectively to local need

investment in the development of concussion clinics in regional and remote Australia.

Any recommendations implemented must include local partnerships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to ensure these practical measures are community-led, culturally appropriate and are beneficial overall, without doing further harm.

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More than 100 firefighters are battling the blaze on two main fronts on the island.

Portugal on Wednesday appealed to EU partners for assistance in fighting a wildfire on the Atlantic island of Madeira that has raged for a week and threatened a UNESCO-listed forest.

The country will shortly trigger the EU Civil Protection Mechanism to bolster firefighting efforts with two Canadair water bomber planes, a government source told the Lusa news agency.

The head of the regional government, Miguel Albuquerque, said 60 extra firefighters and first aid specialists had arrived from the Portuguese mainland on top of 76 already sent since the wildfire started on Wednesday last week.

The fire had burned 4,392 hectares (10,850 acres) of land up to Tuesday, the European Union's Copernicus observatory said on the X social media platform. It added that more than 950 hectares had burned in the previous 24 hours.

Regional civil protection chief Antonio Nunes told RTP public television that the flames had touched a part of the Laurissilva forest, the largest surviving laurel forest, that is on UNESCO's World Heritage List. He said the damage was not significant.

More than 100 firefighters battled the blaze on two main fronts on the island which is traditionally packed with summer tourists at this time, the civil protection service said in a statement.

Fierce winds that have fuelled the flames have also disrupted operations at the island's main airport at Funchal. But its management said the site was working normally this week.

The fire started in the Ribeira Brava district and spread to the nearby Camara de Lobos and Ponta do Sol districts in the southern part of the island.

About 200 people were evacuated from their homes to avoid smoke inhalation, but most have since returned.

Authorities said no house had been destroyed, nor any injury reported, but some firefighters had symptoms of exhaustion.

Thousands of hectares of vegetation were lost in a wildfire last year and at least three people were killed in a 2016 wildfire near the main city of Funchal.

 2024 AFP
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Credit: CC0 Public Domain

New research reveals a concerning shift in Antarctic Treaty decision-making in the face of rising environmental and governance issues in the region.

Doctoral candidate Natasha Gardiner is lead author of a new paper that assesses the performance of Antarctic Treaty decision-making in a changing geopolitical and environmental climate.

Gardiner is an early-career social scientist in the School of Earth and Environment at Te Whare Wananga o Waitaha | University of Canterbury (UC). A chapter of her Ph.D. thesis, titled "Measuring the performance of Antarctic Treaty Decision-making," published in the journal Conservation Biology, identifies a growing mismatch between the urgent environmental issues facing Antarctica and the nature of decision-making under the Antarctic Treaty.

Historically, the Antarctic Treaty has been viewed as an exemplar of international cooperation and diplomacy, with effective governance mechanisms underpinning core goals of peace, environmental protection, and the advancement of science.

However, Gardiner and her co-authors, Dr. Neil Gilbert and Associate Professor Daniela Liggett from UC's Gateway Antarctica and Professor Michael Bode from QUT, warn that this admirable record is no guarantee of future success.

Key among their concerns is a shift away from the legally binding agreements that characterized earlier decades of Antarctic decision-making. Instead, the researchers highlight a recent preference for soft lawsvoluntary agreements that can reduce accountability and undermine the capacity for agreements to be monitored and enforced.

"In the decades following the signing of the Antarctic Treaty in 1959, the Parties were proactive in adopting legally binding agreements in response to emerging problems," says Gardiner.

"Now, the system appears to be softening in its legal approach, and this is particularly concerning at a time when Antarctica is experiencing multiple environmental pressures from human activities both within and outside the region."

In seeking to understand the causes of this trend, Gardiner and her collaborators note the rise in Parties to the Treaty. Where only 12 countriesincluding New Zealandwere initial signatories, there are now 29 Parties tasked with Antarctic decision-making.

Under these conditions, the potential for diplomatic stalemates to arise has increased.

"With more Parties at the decision-making table there are more interests at play and in a consensus-based decision-making model where a single Party has the power to veto, reaching agreement has become more challenging across a number of important conservation issues," she says.

Global geopolitical tensions can play out in the Antarctic governance context and these political dynamics have recently seen ambitious superpowers like China wield the power of veto to block initiatives supported by a majority of Treaty Parties, according to the researchers. An example is when China withheld its support to have the Emperor penguin designated as an Antarctic specially protected species.

In other areas, there is cautious cause for optimism, according to the paper. The Treaty Parties have agreed that a growing tourism industrywhich saw visitors to the ice top 100,000 for the first time in 2023will require legally binding regulations in order to limit further stress on Antarctic ecosystems and prevent irreversible damage.

Underpinning efforts towards consensus decision-making is the need for scientific evidence. In fact, science has been called "the currency of Antarctica," as countries wishing to gain decision-making rights under the Treaty are required to demonstrate that they are undertaking substantial science on the ice.

"What is really important is that Antarctic science is being used to inform Antarctic decision-making," Gardiner says.

"However, our research shows that while the science community is calling for more responsive environmental policy action, decision-makers are showing a preference for soft laws to address Antarctic environmental issues. And we see this as misaligned with their obligationsand symptomatic of an overall decline in decision-making performance."

According to Gardiner, options to improve decision-making have been suggested in the past and could be revisited in the future.

"It's so important to investigate ways to invigorate Antarctic Treaty decision-making because a failure to safeguard Antarctic ecosystems will have consequences for societies across the globe. What happens in Antarctica affects us all."

More information: Natasha Blaize Gardiner et al, Measuring the performance of Antarctic Treaty decisionmaking, Conservation Biology (2024). DOI: 10.1111/cobi.14349 Journal information: Conservation Biology
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Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Tim Walz speaks Mandarin. But don't expect to hear Kamala Harris' running mate deploying his Chinese language skills on the US election campaign trail.

While languages are inextricably interlinked with identity, they are also becoming a political hot potato. In February, Donald Trump warned supporters that migrants "have languages that nobody in this country has ever heard of. It's a very horrible thing."

And J.D. Vance, now Trump's own vice-presidential pick, last year proposed an "English Language Unity Act" to make English the official language of the United States.

Despite the potential electoral advantages of campaigning in multiple languages, the risks of alienating sections of the voting public mean candidates are wary of going too far.

Monolingual politics

English-speaking countries are now home to enormous linguistic diversity, driven by decades of immigration. Around one in five Americans speak a language other than English at home. This proportion has more than doubled since 1980, according to US census data.

The percentages are similar in Australia and New Zealand, while in Canada, 23% of people have a mother tongue other than the official languages of English and French. In the United Kingdom, the share of non-English native speakers is smallerroughly 10%but the upward trend is the same.

Despite these demographic shifts, however, election campaigns remain largely monolingual affairs. For example, there is little obvious sign of non-English messages in campaign leaflets uploaded to the Open Elections crowdsourcing website for the recent British election.

Exceptions largely prove the rule. For instance, in July, Republican Senator Ted Cruz launched a US$4.4 million Spanish-language campaign targeted at Hispanic votersbut only in Texas.

In New Zealand, the Labor Party translated its 2023 campaign slogan "In it for you" into the Maori language: "Mau, Ma Tatou." But in practice the Maori version was used only sparingly, such as in the annual Maori language week that fell during the campaign period.

Majority rules

The reluctance to engage in multilingual campaigning might seem surprising. After all, modern political parties frequently resemble businesses, competing for votes in the election marketplace.

In theory, they would have much to gain by speaking to voterstheir customersin their preferred tongues. As former German Chancellor Willy Brandt reportedly said: "If I am selling to you, I speak your language. If I am buying, dann mussen Sie Deutsch sprechen."

The reluctance of parties to mount multilingual campaigns is probably driven by one major factor: they believe it would cost them votes overall. Indeed, research suggests multilingual campaigning runs the risk of turning off majority language voters.

For instance, a 2022 Canadian study found over 90% of French speakers in Quebec were annoyed by English-only campaign signs. A 2018 US study came to similar conclusions, with monolingual English speakers becoming more hostile to candidates who ran campaign ads in Spanish.

Still, such attitudes are not necessarily set in stone. After all, legislatures themselves have undergone rapid shifts as parties reflect more diverse societies in their candidate selection.

Some 14% of MPs in the British House of Commons now come from ethnic minorities, up from just 2% in 2005. And in Washington, 25% of members of Congress now identify as non-white, double the share of 20 years ago.

The picture is similar in Australia, while ethnic minoritiesincluding Maorinow make up over 40% of New Zealand's parliament.

AI translation

Of course, change is not always easy. As things stand, few major parties in the Anglosphere even make their main websites available in a language other than English. And Pew Research Center data released in June showed just 68% of all US voters were comfortable with people speaking a language other than English in public.

But the risks must be set against the potential rewards. Many of the key swing states in the 2024 US campaign are becoming more and more diverse. Around 30% of people in Arizona and Nevada, and 10% in Georgia, are Hispanic. Battleground state Michigan is home to 13% of all Arabic speakers in the US, with 190,000 living in the Detroit metro area alone.

It is true that multilingualism can be complex and costly. AI solutions and algorithm-driven micro-targeting could be partial solutionsif used wisely.

Lessons might be drawn from India's recent election campaign, where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) used AI to rapidly translate Prime Minister Narendra Modi's campaign messages from Hindi into the country's many other languages.

Ultimately, the chief potential benefit of genuine, two-way multilingual communication lies in its ability to help political parties understand and address the needs of more diverse populations.

Today, multilingual campaigning in English-speaking countries remains rare. But in a tight campaign, it could provide a crucial edge.

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Storm-centered composites of (a) short track and (b) long track GLR cyclones. MSLP is contoured every 4 hPa with black solid lines. The average minimum MSLP is given near the center of the storm. 2 m temperature is contoured every 2 with dashed lines and is colored based on temperature value. Rain and snow are contoured with green and blue colors, respectively. The number of cyclones used to compose each composite, or n, is given in the top right of each subplot. Credit: Geophysical Research Letters (2024). DOI: 10.1029/2024GL109890

Anyone who's spent their winter months around the Great Lakes has probably had the uncanny experience of living through three seasons in a single weekend. According to new research from the University of Michigan, these wild weather swings are poised to become even more common in the future.

Behind this forecast is an analysis spanning decades of data about large storm systems known as midlatitude cyclones or extratropical cyclones.

These are important drivers of winter weather in the Great Lakes region, but the extent of their connection to the region's mercurial climate patterns has been underexplored, said U-M researcher Ayumi Fujisaki-Manome.

"We've been noticing a lot of changes in wintertime climate. Sometimes there's warming, other times you have extreme cold," said Fujisaki-Manome, an associate research scientist in the Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research, or CIGLR.

"Extratropical cyclones are the predominant weather feature during that time," she continued. "Asking about their effect on the changes and fluctuations we see in the Great Lakes region is a natural question that nobody has really looked into."

The research is published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters titled "Historical Trends in Cold-Season Mid-Latitude Cyclones in the Great Lakes Region."

On one hand, the new analysis of historical weather data underscored what researchers knew about the cyclones. The storms, like the day-to-day weather of the Great Lakes region, are highly variable. But within that inconsistency, the researchers resolved a significant trend.

On average, the air masses carried by these storms are warming at a faster clip than the background climate warming level in the Great Lakes region. The storms are also carrying more moisture, which can fall as rain especially in the southern parts of the region.

"The year-to-year variabilitythe strength of the storms, their location, their frequencyis wild. It's all over the place," said Abby Hutson, the corresponding author of the new report and assistant research scientist at CIGLR, which is housed in the School for Environment and Sustainability.

"But according to historical data sets, the midlatitude storms rolling through the area are getting warmer and wetter, and their tracks are shifting northward."

This combination has a couple implications, Hutson said. For one, storm centers with high winds and a wintry mix of snow and rain will become more likely for the northern part of our region, creating treacherous conditions for travel and shipping.

It also heightens the likelihood that winters will be characterized by more liquid water from rain, reduced freezing and melting snow and ice. That could, in turn, lead to more flooding, especially in coastal areas.

For this study, the researchers tracked the average characteristics of winter cyclones that traveled through a region that includes Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York and Ontario between 1959 and 2021.

This allowed the team to discover the trends in the cyclones. But Hutson and Fujisaki-Manome stressed that more work is needed to understand how what's happening on average is influencing individual events.

For instance, although the storms are carrying more moisture over time, the team did not find an increase in average precipitation like either rain or snow.

"On average, we're not seeing that," Hutson said. "But our potential for extreme precipitation is certainly going up."

Ryan Glassman also contributed to this project as an undergraduate research fellow from Valparaiso University.

More information: Abby Hutson et al, Historical Trends in ColdSeason MidLatitude Cyclones in the Great Lakes Region, Geophysical Research Letters (2024). DOI: 10.1029/2024GL109890 Journal information: Geophysical Research Letters
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There have been calls for a joint approach to tackling climate change and biodiversity loss for years, but to date, co-ordinated global policy is still lacking. Credit: Pixabay/Pat Josse

The world is facing unparalleled changes in climatic conditions and drastic loss of biological diversity, putting humanity at risk. The breakdown of the Earth's climate and the rapid loss of wildlife are intertwined, yet response by governments to these crises currently fails to recognize the deep connections between them.

There have been calls for a joint approach to tackling climate change and biodiversity loss for years, but to date, co-ordinated global policy is still lacking.

In our recent paper published in the Journal of Applied Ecology, we argue that a joint work program between the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) is the best approach.

Our paper also provides a concept of how this joint program could be set up, ideas on the type of issues it should tackle, and recommendations for successful implementation.

Nature-based solutions

Nature-based solutions (NbS) are defined as "actions to protect, sustainably manage, and restore natural or modified ecosystems, that address societal challenges effectively and adaptively, simultaneously providing human well-being and biodiversity benefits." They have been hailed as a pathway for promoting synergies between the climate change and biodiversity agendas.

NbS have been gaining significant attention, with many governments integrating them into their climate plans. For instance, the Canadian government has implemented a Nature-based Climate Solutions program, showcasing its commitment to these strategies.

However, the deployment of NbS is not without risks: there are uncertainties and difficulties associated with the implementation of NbS, while the evidence regarding their benefits for biodiversity and people remains limited.

For example, rapid afforestation and reforestation practices, a type of NbS, can enhance carbon sequestration but can also harm wildlife and ecosystem resilience. It can also fail to respect the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities. Despite this, neither the CBD nor the UNFCCC have so far adequately addressed the critical risks NbS may pose to nature and people.

The need for a co-ordinated global policy

The UNFCCC and CBD are pivotal platforms for providing evidence and guiding necessary changes. But they cannot continue to work separately. Higher levels of integration between biodiversity and climate change agendas are essential to close current implementation gaps, identify and address the risks associated with various actions, and co-ordinate policies around the world that benefit climate, nature and people.

For the moment, there is indeed no platform dedicated to advancing an environmental agenda that equally supports biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation and adaptation. There is also no nominated scientific platform dedicated to assessing the evidence and issues around approaches such as NbS and their implementation. This disjointed approach is unlikely to deliver on biodiversity or provide cost-effective solutions to the climate change crisis.

Both Conventions recognize that their agreements are interdependent and have begun collaborating. At COP28 in Dubai in November 2023, a statement of co-operation was issued. However, a concrete policy framework is needed to move from merely voluntary actions to co-ordinated implementation.

Bridging the implementation gap

A joint program between the UNFCCC and the CBD should cover key topics of interest to the Global Biodiversity Framework and the Paris Agreement, and serve multiple functions for aligning global climate and biodiversity goals. Specifically, it should:

Oversee the alignment of National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans and Nationally Determined Contributions to achieve shared objectives Organize technical expert dialogues Identify climate actions that are harmful to biodiversity and put in place coherent safeguards that can operate between the two conventions Form a platform for visibility and recognition of efforts undertaken by countries, local governments, non-state actors, and Indigenous Peoples and local communities, to advance the program priorities Be a hub for developing methods to monitor progress on the shared objectives of the GBF and Paris Agreement

To be effective, such a joint work program will need to develop a SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) plan for addressing the financial, technical and capacity needs associated with the delivery of its work. Its outcome could, among other things, inform the critical and fast-developing realm of voluntary actions on biodiversity and climate, by, for example, facilitating harmonization of the UNFCCC and CBD action agendas. Additionally, it could provide guidance to global funding entities to help countries meet their objectives under the two conventions.

A policy window not to be missed

Later this year, world leaders will convene for two global conventions to tackle climate change and biodiversity loss separately. In October, the CBD will meet in Cali, Colombia, for COP16. A week later, in November, the UNFCCC will meet in Baku, Azerbaijan, for COP29.

These upcoming conferences of the parties present an opportunity to establish a joint work program to fill the current governance gap, address implementation issues, and foster innovation and synergies in climate and biodiversity actions. The window for action on climate and biodiversity is closing fast. This opportunity must not be missed.

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Dead fish in Marlieria, Minas Gerais, Brazil, about 200 km downstream from the Fundao tailings dam. Credit: Elvira Nascimento. Nature Conservation (2024). DOI: 10.3897/natureconservation.56.133441

Eight years since the collapse of the Fundao tailings dam in Mariana, Minas Gerais, Brazil, researchers have highlighted ongoing environmental and social devastation caused by the disaster.

A paper published in Nature Conservation underscores the persistent and growing impacts of the collapse, which ranks as one of the world's most significant environmental tragedies.

Caused by the Samarco mining company, the 2015 collapse released approximately 50 million cubic meters of toxic mud, burying the village of Bento Rodrigues and severely contaminating over 600 kilometers of river channels and coastal habitats. More than 1 million people across 35 cities were affected, leading to 19 deaths, widespread health issues, and the displacement of hundreds of residents.

Researchers reveal that the environmental damage has only intensified over the years. High levels of heavy metals continue to threaten human and wildlife health, with significant bioaccumulation observed in endangered species like the Franciscana dolphin. Additionally, the introduction of invasive species has further destabilized the ecosystem.

The paper, led by Dr. Cassio Cardoso Pereira and Fernando Goulart of Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, criticizes the slow and controversial response by the Renova Foundation, an entity created by the responsible companies to address the disaster's aftermath. While some compensation and restoration efforts have been made, the researchers argue that these actions are insufficient and often inadequate.

One of the most concerning findings is the ongoing risk posed by similar structures across Brazil, where hundreds of dams remain in poor condition. The study advocates for the replacement of these dangerous dams with safer alternatives like dry mining, which significantly reduces the risk of future collapses.

"Urgent, science-based public policies are needed that prioritize the restoration of the Rio Doce basin, in addition to comprehensive compensation for affected communities. To achieve this, we need collaborations involving local and government oversight and independent scientific expertise to prevent further ecological and human disasters," says Dr. Cassio Cardoso Pereira.

As the region continues to face the compounded effects of climate change, with increasing cyclones and heavy rains worsening the spread of pollutants, the paper reminds us that the legacy of the Fundao disaster is far from over.

More information: Cassio Cardoso Pereira et al, Eight years after the Fundao tailings dam collapse: chaos on the muddy banks, Nature Conservation (2024). DOI: 10.3897/natureconservation.56.133441 Journal information: Nature Conservation
In light of stubbornly high poverty levels in Northern Ireland that also affect nearly a quarter of children, a leading evangelical body highlighted the significant contributions churches make to addressing poverty in the communities but called on political leaders to prioritize the issue and take action to address root causes.

A Department for Communities report entitled The Northern Ireland Poverty and Income Inequality Report 2022-23 published on March 27 (2024) estimated the percentage and number of people of all ages living in poverty in the principality from April 2022 to March 2023.

The report found a four percent increase in people living in relative poverty, with a total of 349,000 people (18%) in 2022 to 2023 compared to 271,000 (14%) the year before. At the same time, a significant increase in children for the province has seen 24 percent living in relative poverty in 2022 to 2023, compared to 18 percent the previous year. Youngsters in absolute poverty rose from 15 per cent to 19 percent during the same period.

Before the recent British General Election, the Evangelical Alliance (EA) in Northern Ireland publicly called on political leaders to address the poverty issue in terms of policies and implementation.

Following up post-election, Christian Daily International approached the evangelical body to ask about the financial difficulties many people living in Northern Ireland are facing, and what could be done to address the pressing needs.

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Danielle McElhinney, the EA's public policy officer, said the causes of poverty in the country, as with the rest of the UK, were complex and affected by politics, culture and history in this place.

She explained that the political focus has been on societal peace and reconciliation since the Good Friday Agreement. Unfortunately, however, this came at the expense of addressing poverty.

This journey has been wrought with frustration and a stop/start approach to local government, McElhinney said. All other political priorities have had to take somewhat of a back seat to the pressing issue of opposing parties struggling to govern together in a cross-party Executive.

This means that the poverty strategy we were promised 25-plus years ago has still not been delivered.

Policy makers in the Executive must adhere to a statutory obligation under Section 28E of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 to adopt a strategy setting out how it proposes to tackle poverty, social exclusion and patterns of deprivation based on objective need.

McElhinney referred to a Joseph Rowntree Foundation report for 2024, which said that poverty levels generally across all of the UK are unacceptably high. The report asserted that it has been 20 years and six prime ministers since the last prolonged period of falling poverty.

The overall level of poverty has barely moved since Conservative-led governments took power in 2010, stated the report, referring to the overall situation across the UK.

McElhinney wants political leaders to create a coherent plan with creative policies to end poverty in the UK, as the Joseph Rowntree Foundation report says. She is the EA representative at the Coalition of Christian Voices Against Poverty, launched in January this year. The coalition has called upon provincial political leaders to work with Westminster on creating a plan to stop poverty and give funding to implement poverty reduction strategies for Northern Ireland.

It will require a long term, cross departmental approach with policies that tackle issues like housing, mental health, the welfare system, training and jobs, said McElhinney. A great starting place would be the delivery of the poverty strategy that we have been waiting so long for.

Churches and faith-based organizations were already doing incredible work in Northern Ireland, according to McElhinney. She said churches faithfully served local communities and filled gaps that the welfare system is not meeting.

These efforts include the provision of foodbanks, with 19 out of 23 within the Trussell Trust network based in churches. There are also social supermarkets, warm spaces and connection points for lonely people to receive support, alongside emotional wellbeing services.

McElhinney said that many churches were stretched to capacity and beyond with resources, finances, volunteers and space needed to facilitate community services.

So, it feels unfair to ask churches to help more. Instead, I would encourage churches to become advocates for the people in their communities, to become engaged in public conversations about poverty and call on the local government to make tackling poverty a political priority, she said.

Meanwhile, she encourages evangelicals to pray about the pressing poverty needs in Northern Ireland. Families and lone individuals experiencing financial woes need such prayer support.

Let us remember that behind every statistic is a story of real people struggling to put food on the table, to heat their homes or to put petrol in the tank of the car, McElhinney reminded. Pray for practical help to reach their door that will give them hope for the future.

McElhinney also asked for prayer for churches serving communities. For God to give them strength and resources to continue and a deepening compassion for neighbors in need. Prayers are also needed for politicians to prioritize tackling poverty in the next programme for government and deliver the long-awaited poverty strategy.
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Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

A new report from the Children's Commissioner for England has found that 457 strip searches of children by police took place between July 2022 and June 2023. The report shows that Black children were four times more likely, when compared to national population figures, to be strip-searched.

The Children's Commissioner's reports on this topic began following the terrible case of Child Q, a 15-year-old Black girl who was strip-searched at her school. The Children's Commissioner's research shows that before Child Q's case came to light, Black children were six times more likely to be strip-searched. So there has been some improvement, though Black children remain disproportionately affected.

But my academic work as a criminologist and lecturer in youth justice continues to demonstrate that young Black people are over-represented throughout the whole justice system, from their interactions with the police to their presence in prisons.

For instance, in 2022, Black children made up 31% of children on remandin custody before the start of a trial. But they comprise only around 5% of the school-age population. Research has found that in 2018, Black children received longer custodial sentences than their white peers.

Treated as older

There are themes that continuously emerge from how young Black people are treated by the justice system, as well as in other areas of society, such as education and health care. One is adultification, when Black children are perceived as being older and more mature, and so also less vulnerable and innocent, than other children. This affects how they are treated by adults.

Adultification was clearly at play in the case of Child Q, who was strip-searched while menstruating, without an appropriate adult present and without the consent of her parents, on the incorrect assumption that she possessed cannabis. She received punitive and disciplinary treatment from adults, both teachers and the police, who should have been there to protect and support her.

The safeguarding practice review that followed this incident found there to be a high level of probability that the adults involved in the case were influenced by adultification bias in this regard. The disproportionate decision to strip-search Child Q is unlikely to have been disconnected from her ethnicity or her background as a child growing up on a Hackney estate.

Another theme which stands out in how young Black people are treated by the justice system is that they are more likely to be seen as a threat and as potentially violentespecially Black boys and young men.

Viewed as a threat

This can be seen in the use of police stop and search powers against Black people. In the year ending March 2023, there were 24.5 stop and searches for every 1,000 Black people, compared to 5.9 for every 1,000 white people.

It is also arguably evident in the case of the justice system's treatment of drill music, a form of rap and a predominantly Black genre. Many see it as controversial for its perceived celebration of violence and gang life. On the other hand, drill is an art form, and chronicles experiences that other young people growing up in difficult circumstances can relate to. Its storytelling requires imagination and creativity.

Drill is also perceived as a threatand in some cases, the police have exercised powers to censor prominent drill artists on the grounds that they incite crime. In 2018, members of drill group 1011 were banned from mentioning death or injury in their lyrics, and had to notify police when releasing music videos.

One of the group, Digga D, was sentenced to a year in prison in 2018, aged 18, for conspiracy to commit violent disorder. During the trial, music videos were used as evidence.

Society provides narrow niches of acceptance to young people of color. There are areas where aspects of Blackness are celebrated, copied, seen as coolincluding music, dress, sport, hairstyles or language.

But the line between what is seen as acceptable forms of self-expression and unacceptable, such as with drill, is very fine. In 2023, Digga D performed at the Royal Albert Hallwhile still under a criminal behavior order with restrictions, including restrictions on what he could cover in his lyrics.

Research from the Black British Voices Project and The University of Cambridge surveyed over 10,000 Black British people in a project beginning in 2020. The survey findings show that 87% of the participants had little to no trust in Britain's criminal justice system. For young Black people in the UK, awareness of social injustice is just part of everyday life.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Five hundred young sturgeon were released at four locations into the Saginaw River system last week as part of an ongoing effort by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Michigan State University to rebuild the giant fish's population.

The sturgeons came from the Black Lake Stream Side Rearing Facility in Onaway, a facility opened by the DNR and MSU that supplies hatcheries all over the state. Each August, sturgeons are also released into the Black River, Mullett Lake in Cheboygan County, and the Boardman River in Grand Traverse County, the DNR and MSU said in a news release Wednesday.

Researchers, graduate students and undergraduates catch newly hatched surgeons in the spring and raise them until August, the news release said. Over the three months, the sturgeons grow from less than 1 inch to 7 inches in length. They are then tagged with passive integrated transponders similar to pet microchips and released into rivers around the state.

Illegal harvesting of sturgeons has contributed to significant population loss and brought the giant fish to the brink of extinction in the Great Lakes. Industrialization and dams also contributed to habitat loss and blocked sturgeon from reaching their spawning grounds.

Now all harvested lake surgeons must be reported to the DNR and anglers are limited to one lake sturgeon harvest per year, according to the 2024 Michigan Fishing Regulations. Lake sturgeon fishing also is limited to certain bodies of water, and various size requirements for catch and release.

In Black Lake harvest season is only five days, starting on the first Saturday in February, the news release said. Licensed anglers are allowed to harvest six sturgeon each and tribal nations are also allowed six.

Rearing sturgeons in the Black Lake facility gives the fish a better chance of surviving when released, MSU Professor Emeritus Kim Scribner said. Due to their small size, newly hatched sturgeons in the wild often become meals for other predators and few survive to adulthood.

"A lot of things eat sturgeon eggs and sturgeon babies all the way through that first year of life," Scribner said. "The mortality rate is extremely high."

The population of adult sturgeons in Black Lake has doubled thanks to the hatchery and stocking efforts, the news release said. The end goal is for the lake sturgeon population to be self-sufficient even if they are fished recreationally every year, Ed Baker, manager for the DNR Marquette Fisheries Research Station, said in the news release. Research on sturgeons and their care has helped improve the rearing and stocking program over time, the news release said.

"The hatchery is providing a more healthy, robust crop of sturgeons that are able to survive with higher probabilities," Scribner said. "That all came about through research at the facility."

On average, surgeons live between 50 and 100 years and can grow between 4 and 6 feet long. Some have lived for up to 150 years, reaching 8 feet in length, and weighing 300 pounds, according to Michigan Sea Grant, a research, education, and outreach program with the University of Michigan, MSU, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Other Michigan sturgeon populations, like those in the Detroit and St. Clair Rivers are holding strong at roughly 30,000 fish, despite a history of industrialization, the Detroit News previously reported. The rivers are home to the largest lake sturgeon population in the Great Lakes.

2024 The Detroit News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
We need trained theologians to help us think through ideological and ethical questions in light of Gods Word and world.

Illustration by Elizabeth Kaye / Source Images: Pexels / Unsplash / Wikimedia Commons

Its no secret that theological education is in a state of crisis today. In recent years, faculty layoffs and the downsizing of evangelical seminaries and Christian colleges in the make it hard to overstate the grimness of the prognosis.

Yet as a theologian myself, I find this troubling trend to be a symptom of a larger problem: Theres a growing sense, at least in some circles, that academic theologyalong with its students and scholarsis practically irrelevant. While biblical illiteracy and anti-intellectualism are impacting the local church at every level, recent personal interactions have led me to wonder if some pastors take the formal study of theology all that seriously anymore.

One pastor I spoke with voiced a not-too-uncommon sentiment when he downplayed theology as impractical and out of touch with his congregations needs. I dont read much academic theology anymore, he confessed, as it comes out in my preaching in a way that fails to connect with the laity. This sentiment has been echoed by other pastor friends of mine at various times, with one pastors wife suggesting such scholarly pursuits might benefit from a more accessible approach.

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Such comments reveal a skepticism of rigorous theological inquiry in certain circles that is often paired with a preference for more easily digestible forms of spiritual discourse, untethered from academic institutions. Its hard to compete with the volumein both sensesof the spiritual sound bites by Christian celebrities and megachurch preachers churned out to broad audiences. And while some of this public theology at the popular level is good, much of it lacks the depth and nuance that results from careful theological study.

In short, academic theology is not a waste, nor is it obsolete or irrelevant. As one of my mentors, Stephen Priest, says, Philosophical questions demand theological answers. And everyone ponders philosophical questions. Yet I propose we take this claim a step further: Questions in every field of human inquiry demand theological answersand such answers require careful intellectual study. Not only is theology the most relevant of all disciplines, but it may also be the most meaningful. As R. C. Sproul once said:

Everything we learneconomics, philosophy, biology, mathematicsmust be understood in light of the overarching reality of the character of God. That is why, in the Middle Ages, theology was called the queen of the sciences and philosophy her handmaiden. Today the queen has been deposed from her throne and, in many cases, driven into exile.

A negative or even ambivalent posture toward theology fails to realize the valuable contributions of its scholars and ultimately cultivates superficiality within the church and ignorance in our broader culture. But if theology is to play the same vital role it once didboth in the pulpit and the public squarewe must first identify what factors led to its decline, and then how we must respond.

In 2020, Wesleyan theologian Roger E. Olson posed a stark question: Does theology even matter anymore? It seems this had been a point of discussion with his friend, the late Baptist theologian Stanley J. Grenz, who coauthored Who Needs Theology? An Invitation to the Study of God (1996).

Toward the end of his life, in the early 2000s, Grenz had privately shared his concern that Christianity was entering a post-theological phasea new era that would see the end of theology altogether. In many ways, these concerns echoed the warning that Mark A. Noll issued in his famous work, The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind, published only a few years before.

Though Olson protested the prognosis at the time, he has since come to agree, based on anecdotal observations from his forty years of experience as a theologian. Olson recounts situations when he discussed theological topics, which he felt were rich in cultural relevance, only for them to be dismissed as mere academic exercises, what he notes is often a codeword for irrelevant.

Beyond obvious problems with todays American folk religionthe democratization of a populist ChristianityOlson offers several reasons for why theology has lost its influence in our nation. First, he notes a growing perception that theologians only care to speak to each other, rather than to a broader audience, and that they no longer seek a unified voice. And if theologians cant seem to agree on much, how can people trust that what any one of them has to say is true?

Olson also points to shifts in academic theology in the 60s, when religious studies departments succumbed to the perception that no one knows or can say anything about God. Theologians moved from discussing God to discussing discussions about God, leading to a lack of consensus among theologians and an uncertainty about the role and relevance of theology in society. As one Time article put it, theology turned from reflection on Godthe proper object of theology to the human religious consciousness. Or as Sproul stated, We have replaced theology with religion.

Amid these shifts, the authority of theology as a discipline waned in the eyes of the public. For instance, Olson observes, ever since its famous God Is Dead issue ran in 1966, no theologian has graced the covers of Time magazineas the likes of Karl Barth, Reinhold Niebuhr, and Paul Tillich (among others) had once done. This leads Olson to wonder whether the watching world concluded that since theologians declared God dead, theology itself must have also died.

At the same time, legal precedents further contributed to this perception. In a 1975 CT article, Is Theology Dying? evangelical legal scholar John Warwick Montgomery explained that the rise of independent theological seminaries was partially the result of the Supreme Courts 1963 Abington School District v. Schempp decision to restrict the study of religion in secular educational institutions to literary and historical analysiseffectively distancing theology from mainstream intellectual discourse. (Contrast this with the European context, where Wolfhart Pannenberg successfully championed academic theology as a science suitable to be housed in secular universities, for which we have no parallel in our US context.)

Montgomerys comments on the perception of theology in the US deserve repeating: Theology today is superficial and faddish, he wrote. The important question is why, and the answer lies much deeper than the separation of theology from religion or the theological seminary from the university. Indeed, the central source of the problem, he says, is that theology is no longer sure of its data: Scriptural study had been deconstructed to the point where the Bible no longer held enough authority to ground theology.

Taken together, the assertions of Olson and Montgomery offer two vital points for us to consider. To revive the study of theology, we must reclaim both its subject and its source.

First, the primary subject matter of theology is God. British theologian John Webster said, The ontological principle of theology is God himselfnot some proposed entity but the Lord who out of the unfathomable plenitude of his triune being lovingly extends towards creatures in Word and Spirit. He also called for a revival of theology as it had been done in the past, where God is not summoned into the presence of reason; reason is summoned before the presence of God.

As C. S. Lewis once famously stated, I believe in Christianity just as I believe the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else. If all of life, including all educational disciplines, can only properly and fully be seen in light of Gods truth, then theology (especially as an academic, rigorous, and careful discipline) is pertinent to all aspects of life. In other words, if God exists and has created the universe, then theology matters universally.

Second, the source of theologys data is none other than the Bible, which God ordained for his self-revelation. Webster urged for a return to theological theology by engaging with classic Christian texts and grounding claims with sound biblical exegesis. Scripture is the place to which theology is directed to find its subject matter and the norm by which its representations are evaluated, he said. And as Montgomery warned, Either Scripture speaks univocally of God, or the death of theology is a dead certainty.

Reclaiming these two elementsthe subject and the source of theologymust remain top of mind if we are to see theology restored to the place it has historically held in our world. And, thankfully, I believe the winds might finally be shifting in this direction, as theologians today are bringing the truth of God to bear on contemporary concerns and using that lens to engage with many fields.

There have been recent developments in analytic theology and science-engaged theology, for example, which have received wide attention and spurred on a host of publications, conferences, events, and productive discussions. These expanding fields shore up the scientific nature of theologyboth its language and conceptual contentso that it is better equipped to engage in dialogue with other academic disciplines. This movement, arguably, allows theology to shed light in sociological and scientific fields, providing confirmation on some issues or clarification on others.

One specific area in evangelical theologys resourcing is on the doctrine of creation. Consider the Creation Project at the Carl F. H. Henry Center and the numerous volumes published in recent years demonstrating how the creation doctrine matters to all areas of scientific concern. Issues like the age of the earth, Adam and Eve, and evolution are still live discussions among theologians for good reason. In the words of theologian John Polkinghorne, Science cannot tell theology how to construct a doctrine of creation, but you cant construct a doctrine of creation without taking account of the age of the universe and the evolutionary character of cosmic history.

Speaking of cosmologythe study of the universe and our place in itsome theologians are making a modern comeback for Christian intelligent design in their defense of theism. This sheds light on adjacent fields at the intersection of science and religion, like biology, physics, chemistry, creation care, and consciousness studies. Some theologians even have something to say about potential extraterrestrial life and its implications for the existence of God and theology at large.

There has also been a revival of theological exploration on the afterlifea topic that many people, religious or otherwise, often wonder aboutas evidenced by a slew of recently released books on heaven, hell, and the intermediate state. Christian theologians are showing they have something vital to say on near-death experiences, and they are also deepening our understanding of neglected doctrines like deification, transfiguration, as well as Christs resurrection and ascension.

Another area of revitalized investment is the doctrine of humanity and how it overlaps with almost every contemporary concern. As a previous piece for CT explains, Evangelical theologians are taking topics that we tend to think of as being more sociological  and showing they are, in fact, deeply theological. Notable recent works bear out the importance of anthropology for other disciplines from theological and Christological perspectives.

For instance, advances in science, medicine, and technology have sparked a renewed interest in fields like psychology, disability, dementia, neuroscience, and the life ethics of reproductive and palliative health care. Likewise, the advent of artificial intelligence and transhumanism, or techno-humanismwhich prioritizes technologically advanced human organisms over mere humanityhave prompted age-old inquiries into what defines human nature and what separates our consciousness from other creatures or technological entities.

The more a society becomes technological, said theologian Gabriel Vahanian, the more it worries about spiritual questions.

Such developments pose significant opportunities for theologians to assert an authoritative voice on todays pressing existential and ethical questionsin everything from politics to public health. And thankfully, we are seeing signs that theological scholarship is indeed descending the ivory tower of academia to engage in vital discussions that impact every facet of our contemporary life.

Theologys transcendence as an informing discipline for all others is what will continue to draw the minds and hearts of the youngas it once drew mine. Growing up, I longed to understand the mystery of the gospel and the richness of Gods creation, knowing that to truly understand the world, one must approach it in light of its creator and redeemer. As the psalmist states in Psalm 19, The heavens declare the glory of God, and Paul tells us that Gods attributes and his character are revealed in his creation (Rom. 1:20). All of creation is constantly pointing back to its creator.

As I studied in college and seminary, I realized theology is not merely a rich methodological approach to questions of vital importance; it is also a culture unto itself and, ultimately, a spiritually formative practice that can bring Christian community into godly maturity. Theology is the gradual process of allowing the word of Christ to dwell in us richly (Col. 3:16).

Because God has spoken and continues to speak, theology not only still mattersit is necessary. Without Gods voice, our understanding of the world is limited. While some secularists may suggest that the natural sciences can give us all that we need, they can never give us a coherent perspective on the world and our place in it, let alone tell us what is important and meaningful.

Today, we have good reason to be hopeful that theology may someday reclaim its rightful place as queen of the disciplines and be restored in its vital role of maintaining the health of our local churches. Theology, when done right, should propel the global church into cultivating a deeper community of faith, along with a public face that calls the world to a higher, better life.

Every time we engage in the work of theology, we echo the words of Francis Schaeffer, who proclaimed just six years after Time announced Gods death, God is there and he is not silent.

Joshua R. Farris is in the research faculty at Ruhr Universitat Bochum in Germany and is the founder of Soul Science Ministries and Spiritually Driven Leadership. His most recent books are The Creation of Self, The Banquet of Souls: A Mirror to the Universe, and Humanizing AI Business.
With the Family : Made Market QC: A Retro Summer

Starting at 5 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. Saturday, the Made Market QC: A Retro Summer will be at The Bend XPO Center at 922 Mississippi Pkwy, East Moline. The cost for this event is $5 online and $7 at the door.

Made market QC is an upscale market featuring handmade items, original art, vintage finds, boutique clothing and jewelry. You can also find baked goods, ready to eat goodies, home decor and clothing. The venue will also be featuring live music.

In Real Time : Farms Days in the Village

Head down to the Village of East Davenport, 2302 E. 11th St., for Farm Days in the Village this weekend. Farm Days is offering a petting zoo, rope making, pedal tractors, wagon rides, working farm displays. Attendees also can learn to milk a cow.

This is a free event for all ages.

The event starts at 10 a.m. Saturday and Sunday. Sign-up for the Kids Tractor Pull starts at 12:30 each day and pulling at 1 p.m. Sign-up is in front of Lagomarcino's. The tractor parade begins at 3 p.m. each day.

Dine & Drink : Sip and Paint

Jennie's Boxcar is not only offering up tasty Mexican food and cocktails this Sunday, but they are also hosting a monthly sip and paint. The event is located at 545 12th Ave., East Moline, and starts at 1 p.m. The fun begins with the menu: tortas, nachos and a variety of tacos. While mimosas are the typical Sunday funday beverage, Jennie's is offering drink specials all day.

The cost of this event is $45 per person and you must pre-register online.

On a Date : Sunday crepes at Mississippi River Distilling Co.

Mississippi River Distilling Co., located at 303 N. Cody Rd, LeClaire, is partnering with The Full Nelson Catering Co. for Sunday Crepes with Full Nelson. From 2 - 5 p.m. this Sunday, enjoy some of Full Nelson's famous crepes from their food truck right in front of the distillery.

Sit back with a refreshing cocktail and a delicious crepe while relaxing on the distillery patio and listening to live music with Donovan Gustofson. While there, enjoy a free tour, buy a bottle or just relax on the Mississippi with your date.

Just for Fun : Cask and Barrel Beer Festival

Head to Wake Brewing, 2529 5th Ave., Rock Island, this Saturday from 1 - 4 p.m. for their inaugural Cask and Barrel Beer Festival. The event will showcase both barrel-aged and cask-conditioned beer. Over 20 breweries and brews will be represented at the festival.

This event is limited to 250 tickets.

General admission tickets are $45 which includes admission into the event and a custom tasting glass. VIP tickets are priced at $60 and includes admission at noon, a custom tasting glass and an event t-shirt.
Rachel Zegler and Kit Connor are gearing up for their Broadway debut, taking on exciting new roles together.

Zegler, known for her upcoming movie "Snow White," and Connor, famous for his role in Netflix's "Heartstopper," will star in a new take on Shakespeare's timeless classic, "Romeo + Juliet."

On August 12, the duo assembled alongside the entire ensemble, directors, and crew to commence their initial rehearsal day in New York City.

Images capturing this significant gathering were unveiled by the production team on Wednesday, August 21, as seen by Variety.

The 23-year-old actress and the 20-year-old actor looked happy in the pictures, displaying beaming smiles, alongside their colleagues.

According to Playbill, "Romeo + Juliet" shows are set to kick off on September 26 at the Circle in the Square Theatre. The official opening night is scheduled for October 24. The show has a limited 16-week run.

Rehearsal photos from the Broadway production of "Romeo + Juliet," starring Rachel Zegler and Kit Connor. https://t.co/j3sWGFHwo9 pic.twitter.com/bikBY28vUc  Variety (@Variety) August 21, 2024

A Timeless Tragedy: The Story of Romeo and Juliet

Shakespeare's classic tale from 1597 is about the tragic romance of two young lovers caught in the midst of their families' bitter feud. This powerful story also inspired the beloved musical "West Side Story," created by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim, which was adapted into a film in 2021 by Steven Spielberg, which also featured Zegler.

According to the production's logline, "The youth are f****d." "Left to their own devices in their parents' world of violent ends, an impulsive pair of star-crossed lovers hurtle towards their inescapable fate. The intoxicating high of passion quickly descends into a brutal chaos that can only end one way."

Rachel Zegler and Kit Connor: Bringing New Life to Classic Characters

Kit Connor and Rachel Zegler photographed by Thurstan Redding for Vogue pic.twitter.com/J9R4rA1BF0  Film Updates (@FilmUpdates) August 19, 2024

Vogue also spoke with the stars discussing their feelings about taking on their new roles.

The British actor confessed to feeling "bloody nervous" about the opportunity yet expressed enthusiasm for the exciting challenge ahead.

Zegler confessed, "I'm so thrilled to get to go back to my roots and the thing that I love so much. I can't believe this is my life."

Connor and Zegler found themselves drawn to "Romeo + Juliet" from distinct motivations.

Connor's appetite for Shakespeare led him to sign on, while Zegler eagerly seized the opportunity to work with Gold.

Before being cast, the two actors were unfamiliar with each other but quickly formed a strong bond.
Hidden beneath towering pine trees and the rocky outcroppings of the Black Hills, scientists the world over are in hot pursuit of an elusive particle that could help unlock the secrets of our universe.

Scientists, dignitaries and local officials gathered nearly a mile below ground Aug. 15 to celebrate the completion of the excavation of caverns for the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment, hosted at the Long Baseline Neutrino Facility at the Sanford Underground Research Facility in Lead.

"I thank you all for your contribution  theres a lot of time, sweat and tears," said South Dakota businessman and philanthropist T. Denny Sanford.

South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds and Rep. Dusty Johnson were also in attendance. During his time as governor in the mid-2000s, Rounds was instrumental in the establishment of the Sanford facility after the 2001 closure of the Homestake Mine. Having the facility in South Dakota will bring millions into the economy and an influx of new jobs, Rounds said, but also serves as an educational conduit for the state's children.

"This is about the next generation and about what they're going to learn about science in a very, very special way," Rounds said.

Neutrinos  particles so small no one has ever measured their mass  are the most abundant particles in the universe, but they rarely interact with each other. Scientists from more than 200 institutions in 35 countries are using the skeleton of the old Homestake Mine in Lead to house world-class experiments designed to measure their mass, how they interact, and whether neutrinos are their own antiparticle.

"When I start talking about quantum mechanical superpositions within a neutrino, that's what I mean when I say they're the strangest particle you've ever seen," said Jarret Heise, science director, Sanford Underground Research Facility. "So most particles, when you start off with an electron, you get an electron the next time you look at it. That's not true with a neutrino. That property allows us to tease out properties of nature, how the universe evolved, that we can't get otherwise."

The Long Baseline Neutrino Facility inside the old mine will house the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment in collaboration with the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Batavia, Illinois. Once constructed, scientists in Illinois will fire a beam of neutrinos 800 miles through the earth to a target inside the caverns at LBNF, where massive neutrino detectors will provide scientists the opportunity to study their interactions.

Josh Willheit, Far Site Conventional Facilities Project Manager, said it's been a long time coming.

"It's pretty amazing to be standing inside of these caverns that we've envisioned for so long, and actually see that the science is coming," Willheit said. "This is a reality. This is going to happen. It's a very good feeling."

Construction of those caverns took three years and required the removal of 800,000 tons of rock from nearly a mile below the earth's surface  an "engineering marvel," according to FermiLab Director Lia Merminga. The seven-story caverns will house detectors filled with 17,000 tons of liquid argon  which will take nine months to fill. All of the equipment  everything coming in and out of the facility  comes through the elevator shaft, even if that means it's entirely disassembled and then reassembled at depth.

Getting the rest of the equipment in for the detectors, Willheit estimated, will take 60 loads a day, six days a week for the next five years.
The United States Justice Department and Bennett County, South Dakota officials are working to resolve barriers facing rural Native American voters.

A Justice Department investigation found that Native voters in the county lacked equal access to the in-person registration and absentee voting available under state law.

Bennett County lies within the exterior boundaries of the Pine Ridge Reservation in southern South Dakota and is considered by the Department of the Interior to be reservation land. However, state agencies such as the South Dakota Department of Transportation list Bennett County as separate from the reservation.

Many Native people living on tribal lands cannot travel to Martin, the seat of Bennett County, for in-person voting services. Under a new agreement, the county will operate a satellite voting office in Allen to provide in-person registration and absentee voting services during regular business hours.

These services will be provided for the full state-mandated 46-day absentee voting period prior to federal, state and county elections.

With this agreement, we will ensure that Native American voters will have the same access to registration and early voting as do other voters," Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Departments Civil Rights Division said in a press release. "The Justice Department will continue to challenge discriminatory election-related laws and policies and will vigorously enforce federal law to move us ever closer to a fully enfranchised Native electorate.
FORT SHAW  Standing before a crowd on a hot August morning, state Sen. Susan Webber, D-Browning, spoke of her great-grandparents, Cecilia Russell Bullshoe and Charlie Reevis.

Both attended the Fort Shaw Indian School, a boarding school just west of Great Falls run by the federal government from 1892 to 1910. The trauma associated with that school was passed down to Webber.

Growing up, she said discipline in her family home was swift and brutal.

My mother, if you got out of line, she would take a strap to you with anything on hand, she told audience members. She was raised that way. My grandmother before her was raised the same way. Before that, we were free-roaming, we had different child-rearing. But that (discipline) is what was learned here.

Webber argues that remembering boarding school history, in its fullness, is a necessary first step on the path to healing. The event at Fort Shaw comes from her Senate Joint Resolution 6 in the 2023 legislative session, which calls for a Day of Remembrance to honor and recognize the children who attended Indian boarding schools. It was important to Webber to hold the event at the site of the old school, where our people walked. Not everyone in attendance felt the same.

From the 1800s to the 1970s, Native children nationwide were taken from their homes and forced to attend government-funded Christian boarding schools, where they were forbidden from speaking their languages or practicing their culture. Children were emotionally, physically and sexually abused at these schools, which operated under the explicit mission of cultural genocide. Some children died at these schools and were buried in unmarked graves.

U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland has led a similar remembrance effort nationally. The Federal Boarding School Initiative aims to investigate what happened at government-run Indian boarding schools and examine long-term consequences.

Webber has seen how the abuse from boarding schools affected generations of her family members. So, when Webber and her husband had children, she was adamant that she not be the one to discipline them.

I knew at that time that if I did the disciplining, I would hurt them, she said. So we broke that cycle.

History disputed

Members of Montanas American Indian Caucus have long advocated for the true history of Indigenous people to be told.

While Montana has a constitutional mandate to teach children about Native culture and history in schools, Indigenous leaders say schools arent doing nearly enough. A law passed last session sought to firm up that mandate. Members of the caucus also proposed additional bills that would help lawmakers learn about Indigenous issues and that would change Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day, but those initiatives were met with opposition and ultimately failed.

A similar tension surfaced in Fort Shaw last week when Burnette Batista, president of the Sun River Valley Historical Society, addressed the audience.

This Indian industrial school was not the same as Carlisle, she said, referring to Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania. We have only heard good things about the Fort Shaw Indian School, and were rather proud of that.

Batista later said she disagreed with some of what was shared at the event.

Those stories were coming from all boarding schools  not us here, she said. I hope they realize that this Indian industrial school was not like the others.  It was a good place. It was one of the better places.  Children were brought here to learn how to be in a White mans world so they could have a place in this world.

Iva Croff, who wrote her masters thesis on life at the Fort Shaw Indian School, said information on the school is surprisingly limited.

Its hard to tell what happened here because we havent had people come forward to talk about their experiences here, Croff said.

Croffs great-grandfather attended Fort Shaw when he was 16 years old. She estimates hundreds of Blackfeet children attended the school and said records show several Blackfeet children tried to run away. One child, she said, fell through the frozen Sun River and died trying to escape. Children who died at the school, Croff said, were often buried before their parents were notified.

Croff later said she believes the abuse at Fort Shaw was limited due to the schools close proximity to the Blackfeet Reservation. Blackfeet parents, she said, would ride to the school on horseback to check on their children.

The fact that the reservation was nearby is also probably why people ran away, she said.

Blackfeet historian Rosalyn LaPier was also at the event last week. She takes issue with the idea that some boarding schools were better than others.

Ive heard this before, she said. This sliding scale of atrocities. You cannot use a sliding scale when the overarching policy of the federal government was cultural genocide. And you cannot have that sliding scale when whats happening to the children there is they arent allowed to practice their religion, culture or speak their languages. They are being separated from their families and communities intentionally.

While Batista said Indigenous parents chose to bring their children to Fort Shaw, LaPier said one has to examine historical context to understand whether the parents actually had agency.

While Blackfeet territory once spanned most of what is now Montana, from 1855 to 1888 the U.S. government began acquiring that land  legally and illegally. The Blackfeet, LaPier said, were continually pushed north and west until they arrived at where the reservation is today. Now, the Blackfeet live on 10% of their original territory.

LaPier said the federal government used coercion to get Indigenous people to comply with federal policy. Indian agents, she said, could refuse to speak with tribal members if they were not dressed in citizens wear. Agents could withhold rations from people who did not dress a certain way or cut their hair.

Coercion affected everyday actions and behaviors including the removal of children from their families, she explained.

Webber knows it can be hard for some to acknowledge ugly parts of U.S. history.

Some people want to rewrite it, she said. Whitewash it. Us? We want to remember it  warts and all.
Authorities report that two people were stabbed at a Pulse bus stop on West Broad Street on Virginia Commonwealth Universitys campus.

VCU and Richmond police responded to the GRTC Pulse station in the 1000 block of West Broad at 3:19 p.m. for reports of a fight in progress.

A witness reported that a victim had been stabbed during the altercation but left the area. The two victims were found with stab wounds and were provided medical assistance, according to VCU Alerts.

The suspect is described as a black-haired male in his early 20s wearing a black shirt, black pants and black and white shoes.

Richmond police are leading the investigation. They report increased patrols in the area.

A 4:30 p.m. update from VCU said the situation had been resolved.
A set of over 200 heritage objects returned to Mexico

Mexico City, Mexico  A set of more than 200 elements including bone remains, pieces made of jade and ceramics have been returned to Mexico. The heritage objects were returned from Germany, Argentina, Canada, Spain and the United Kingdom, as well as by various consulates in the United States

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE), through its Legal Advisory Office, handed over the pieces to the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH). A total of 279 cultural assets recovered by the Mexican embassies in Germany, Argentina, Canada, Spain and the United Kingdom were returned.

The returned pieces also included consulates in the cities of Boston, Las Vegas, Miami, Nogales, Oxnard, Seattle and Tucson, in the United States. All the returned pieces were once in the possession of private individuals and were returned either through the action of local authorities, seizures, stopping auctions, or through negotiations with academic institutions and museums that, following the approach of the Government of Mexico, have agreed to return objects that were part of their collections.

Among the lots of restored pieces, the most notable are the bone remains of an infant dating from between 800 and 500 BC (Montreal), a tripod mortar dating from between 2500 BC and 1521 AD (Germany), a carved jade mask made in the Classic period of Mesoamerica (Los Angeles); and a clay pot created in the cultural area of Western Mesoamerica between 200 and 800 AD (Las Vegas),

Also, a bifacial knife from the Central Plateau of Mexico (Tucson) and 19 archaeological pieces made in various periods and areas of the current national territory, dating from the period between 1200 and 1521 AD (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland).

According to the opinions of INAH specialists, it was determined that the pieces belong to the cultural heritage of the Mexican nation, protected by the Federal Law on Archaeological, Artistic and Historical Monuments and Zones and adds to the restitution of more than 14,000 other cultural objects.
American woman detained at Cancun International after luggage search

Cancun, Q.R.  An American traveler was detained inside the Cancun International Airport Tuesday for possession of unclaimed money. The unnamed woman, who had arrived to Cancun at Terminal 3, was found carrying $55,000 USD.

National Guard were carrying out prevention and surveillance inspections at Terminal 3 of the Cancun International Airport when they received a report from Customs. The report detailed the arrival of a U.S. passenger with cheques in excess of the allowed amount to enter the country without declaring.

National Guard personnel searched the womans luggage, finding two cheques. One was for $45,000 USD and another for $10,000, the equivalent to approximately 1 million pesos.

Cheques must be declared the same as cash. Photo: Guardia Nacional August 20, 2024.

In compliance with the federal governments National Public Security and Zero Impunity strategies, members of the National Guard, with support from the National Customs Agency of Mexico, detained a person from the United States for not having declared the money to the corresponding authority, National Guard explained in a statement Wednesday.

She was read the Rights for Persons in Detention and registered in the National Registry of Detentions. Along with the cheques, she was made available to the Federal Public Prosecutors Office (FGR) in Cancun for the corresponding investigation.
Convenience store owner Arpit Soni said his new Circle K store at 1021 Orange Ave. will be the areas largest at 5,600 square feet when it opens this month.

We wanted to have the services that will appeal to everyone, everything from fresh breaded chicken, which requires a lot of infrastructure, to the made-to-order stuff, like pizzas and sandwiches, he said. Both food and non-food groceries will be for sale. Thirty employees have been hired. There are 12 nozzles for pumping gas, he said.

Soni confirmed last spring he was undertaking a full renovation of the former RaceWay store, but did not release what brand of store he planned. He declined to state the amount of money he spent, but said it was between $3 million and $5 millon.

Circkle K Stores Inc., the operator of the chain, belongs to Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., a Canadian corporation that operates convenience stores with fuel.

Another Sheetz planned in Roanoke

Crews using heavy equipment are clearing away the former home of Genes Trading Post at Williamson and Plantation roads for a new Sheetz, officials said.

This areas first Sheetz opened at Peters Creek and Cove roads Northwest in 2000. The company lists five stores in the Roanoke Valley and three in the New River Valley today.
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What if data is a really bad idea? ~ Alan Kay on Hacker News (June 21, 2016)

Several years ago, esteemed computer scientist Alan Kay participated in an Ask Me Anything on Hacker News. Kay always sparks interesting conversation and I was happy to see Rich Hickey, a practitioner held in equally high regard, join the thread. The dialogue was kicked off by Kays provocative musing on the legitimacy of data; not just some data, but the idea of data itself. Kay has made a career out of challenging conventional wisdom. Perhaps this is best embodied by one of his most famous quotes, A shift in perspective is worth 80 IQ points. Alan Kay by Jean Baptiste



It was a bit like a physicist asking, What if gravity is a bad idea?

Kay and Hickey largely talked past each other and never really got to engage the question. But I think its one worth exploring. Not only in the technical dimensions of data, but also in the inescapable political dimensions of its automation.

Data Is an Objectifying Force

Data is inherently objectifying. This property is an asset when describing inert phenomenon such as the composition of soil or the properties of various metals. Data enables the applied work of engineers and there are no direct ethical considerations. There are plenty of systemic ethical considerations when using these resources. But thats beyond the scope of this article.





The problems become apparent when we start talking about people. Data cannot express a meaningful distinction between intelligent actors and the things they act upon; a database that tracks widget production can also store information about the people who buy those widgets. Databases then turn intelligent actors - who are often human beings - into things to be acted upon. This is where data can quickly become a bad idea.

Kay was likely gesturing to a different reason data might be a bad idea. Ill address that in a moment. But encoding human identity in a database can lead to real-world tensions and consequences, such as the March 27, 1943 bombing of the Amsterdam Population Registry. Orchestrated by Dutch resistance members, including Willem Arondeus, Gerrit van der Veen, and Dr. Frieda Belinfante, their goal was to inhibit the Nazis ability to track and deport Jews and other targets of terror. The operation managed to destroy over 15% of the records. Many of the participants were later captured and executed by the Nazis. Noted privacy advocate and lawyer Lau Mazirel was also a member of the Dutch resistance. Lau Mazirel (1907-1974) Collectie Van Gennep / IISG



So its something we can examine to gain a better understanding about why this issue matters so much.

Amsterdam public registry (March 28, 1943) Amsterdam City Archives

Data Is a Centrifugal Force

Data processing is the lifeblood of large bureaucracies. As previously discussed in the article Personal Privacy, efforts to mitigate the reach of data collection in democratic nations goes back decades. Consent is the latest fashion. Its the idea that drives those cookie popups on websites; a person is granted agency every time they make a choice about which cookies are placed on their machine.

Most people find these popups annoying. We dont want to negotiate every time we encounter a new website. Were used to social structures where consent is provided implicitly. A look of the eye and unspoken social contracts are the norm. But data is too brittle to capture this kind of nuance.

Alan Kay took note of how everything from simple organisms to complex societies negotiate in novel situations. It lead him to propose an abstract concept of ambassadors Alan Kay was originally thinking about objects interacting on a network. Currently, all network interactions follow explicit protocols. Objects of the future, Kay believes, must be able to negotiate the exchange of data even if they come from completely unknown sources. As Kay noted in the conversation with Hickey, For important negotiations we dont send telegrams, we send ambassadors.



in computer science. Ambassadors might like to follow a protocol, but it isnt required. They act on behalf of a larger autonomous entity. And when two ambassadors meet, both entities they represent retain their autonomy.

How could data be this flexible? How could data bring the requisite context along for the ride? Usually data relies on the medium to provide context. The medium is the protocol. For example, I could send you data through a perfect medium with perfect fidelity and you may still receive it as noise unless you know how to interpret it.



This is probably what Kay was thinking about with his Hacker News prompt.

Efforts to implement ambassadors havent gotten very far. Data still seems to work best in aggregate. It continues to be sucked into the private warehouses of powerful organizations, further entrenching their power. This centrifugal force is political in nature. As a political arrangement it can be countered by a variety of approaches - from law (new regulations, license enforcement, etc) to systemic changes and technological obsolescence.

Rather than chase after this hazy idea of an ambassador, Ill spend the rest of this post exploring concrete ways to expand our notion of data. Ill specifically work with the idea of using data to represent human identity. I will focus on data delivery over the ubiquitous HTTP protocol using the client/server model. Lots of interesting work is happening on peer-to-peer protocols, but Ive found much of the last ~10 years of venture-backed, market-centric crypto solutions to be misguided. Most so-called Web3 efforts attempt to graft a marketplace on top of data to decentralize this power structure. But none respond to tendency of marketplaces themselves to consolidate power. Combined with the political dimension of raw data and the proven power of network effects, this can only lead to an incredible consolidation of power. Thus for those who are not in power, data will seem like a bad idea.



This is an examination of what it would take to build a more human-centric arrangement by going back to the fundamentals of data - where it lives, how it moves, and what it means.

Data and Identity

Identity is a natural place to start when talking about people. The following discussion is based on two observations: 1) data naturally reduces complex conceptions of identity into coarse representations and 2) data about identity is generally held in systems far away from the people they identify. Im also going to avoid discussing self-sovereign identity directly even though I invoke several technologies associated with the effort.





The second point is a result of the centrifugal force of data. We can resist this inertia by changing the physical characteristics of data - from far (in your warehouse) to near (in my hand) and from dead (jealously hoarded on private property) to living (flowing through the commons). Such data could exhibit different political dimensions and become more expressive.

Philip Agre enumerated five characteristics of data that will help us achieve this repositioning. Agre argued that living data must be able to express 1. a sense of ownership, 2. error bars, 3. sensitivity, 4. dependency, and 5. semantics. Although he originally wrote this in the early 1990s, Phil Agre. Living Data. Wired, November 1, 1994.



it took some time for technology and policy to catch up. Im going to break down each point using more contemporary context and terminology:

Provenance and Agency: what is the origin of the data and what can I do with it (ownership)? Accuracy: has the data been validated? If not, what is the confidence of its correctness (error bars)? Data Flow: how is data discovered, updated, and shared (sensitivity to changes)? Auditability: what data and processes were used to generate this data (dependencies)? Semantics: what does this data represent?

Each one of these could constitute its own blog post. Their viability today is due to a confluence of cultural priorities, technologies, and policy. Ill mostly gesture towards the specific technologies. Follow the hyperlinks if you want to know more.

1. Provenance and Agency

Where did this data come from? Philip Agre

Initiatives such as Verifiable Credentials (VC) and the Content Authenticity Initiative (CAI) both provide certain guarantees about the veracity of data. VCs are data that can be verified by the original issuer. CAI is supported by companies like Adobe Adobes existing Digital Rights Management (DRM) is used to treat customers who buy books like criminals. Furthermore, when the company purchased Flash (via Macromedia), they inherited an ecosystem that sustained countless digital cultural artifacts. When they discontinued the technology, the only responsible step would have been to subsequently open-source the entire project so these artifacts could be maintained. Adobe has failed to demonstrate vision or leadership when dealing with cultural issues so Im skeptical of CAI.



because theyre looking to provide provenance and attribution for rich media.

Verifiability and ownership can undoubtedly be useful. But ownership is a slippery slope. Many futurists, especially those in Web3, want to apply property rights to aspects of our identity. Any attempts to commodify self-hood is an egregious misapplication of technology. Not only is it ethically dubious, its technologically incoherent. As health technologist Adrian Gropper points out, control doesnt scale. Individuals simply do not have the time or expertise to manage a portfolio of online personas or a single persona that discloses only essential information to a portfolio of clients.

For example, we have ownership over the organs in our body, but we thankfully dont have conscious control over their management. If we did, we would need to outsource the burden of personal organ management to an outside entity to get anything else done.

What are we allowed to do with it? Philip Agre

Permissions are a time-tested way to express property rights. In computing, they have been around as long as multi-user operating systems. Cloud filesystems like Dropbox and Google Docs have made these coarse permissions an everyday affair. The ubiquitous Google Sheets permissions error:





A websites non-negotiable Terms of Service is also a set of permissions. They dictate what a website is allowed to do with a persons data and they also dictate what a person is allowed to do with the data once its in the system. This power imbalance stems from the fact that 1. the website holds both the means of computation and the data to compute and 2. a person using a website often has neither.

But technologists are attempting to build infrastructure that separates these two concerns: application (the means of computation) and data. Adoption of either Solid or local-first software principles would change the power dynamic between large software vendors and individual people. Solid even offers a specific open standard for application interoperability Solid supports RDF, which offers an open way to link data. The web-wide aspirations for linked data have fallen short, but RDF is used successfully in many important projects.



while a persons data remains on their personal filestore. Solid organizes personal information using a hierarchical filesystem. RDF can be used to structure information within files, enabling direct manipulation of data while also supporting data validation and complex queries. Its a bit of a mixed metaphor that needs more work. But I suppose there is a precedence of file-based databases going back to the 1980s, like dBase III.





These options do not address Groppers axiom that control doesnt scale. Its likely that any practical solution will require a separation between the computation service, the data store, and the user interface. This third column would allow expert administration of certain personal data. Expert administration could also be a personal AI that lives on a persons local device. Or it could be a data collective that provides sophisticated management.





2. Accuracy

How reliable is this data? Philip Agre

There are a myriad of private Know Your Customer (KYC) solutions that help ensure that identity information is accurate. Im going to eschew these closed-sourced solutions that exist to silo data in hopes to extract rent or transaction fees in the future.

Ill instead circle back to Verifiable Credentials because they provide a triangle of trust to ensure accuracy over open protocols. Do I really trust that he earned a degree at that university? Dont take his word for it, check the claim with the university.

The trust relationship makes VCs an elegant solution without data lock-in. Any accredited claim can be checked. But remember, behind each claim is a bureaucracy to administer it. Herein lies the practical danger of VCs. Making credential checks easy ensures that we will have more of them. Which means more bureaucrats. Its a road we must build cautiously. Corey Pein would argue that this is the logical outcome of Computer Science as a discipline. It is a fake science that is created by and for bureaucrats. From Baffler #38: No, the plodding, characteristic precepts of software design mainly serve to ratify the status quo drudgery of bureaucratic servitudeand indeed to elevate it into a theory of crudely incentivized mass deference. Strip away the nomenclature of cybernetic systems theory and software design, and you have something very close to the plot prospectus for a Philip K. Dick novel.





3. Data Flow

How fast does the final answer change as you start modifying the input by plausible amounts? Philip Agre

Think of the familiar spreadsheet where data flows through a set of cells to calculate an answer. For this to work, the data must have meaningful semantics. 3 more than 29 is 32. But 3 more days from January 29 is February 1. The semantics make two cells or two computers interoperable. Anything short of these clear semantics would require one of Alan Kays hypothetical ambassadors.

All data in the flow must also have a name so it can be found. And resilient software would need a contingency plan in the event that data changes its name or goes missing. These requirements are difficult to deliver on a networked system.

VCs support updates because the state of the credential is subject to change. But they are named using the same Domain Name System (DNS) as the Web; we have all experienced link rot and know that there is a lot left to be desired.

There is also a way to discover the name of a VC even if you dont know it through the .well-known convention. Solid doesnt offer the same benefits, but changes to linked data can theoretically propagate. And Solid folks are working on a Webhook (v 0.2.0) standard to serve updates to linked data over REST.

There are many efforts to chip away at this issue: Decentralized identifiers (DIDs) to resolve the naming issue, conflict-free replicated data types (CRDTs) to resolve file changes, content address storage on IPFS as a way to ensure data integrity by making it immutable. These are just a few of the promising technologies, but nothing has emerged as a comprehensive solution to this problem.

4. Errors: Integrity and Reproducibility

Errors propagate a lot faster than they can be repaired. [] If something is screwy, can we trace the calculation back and figure out which input it depends on? Philip Agre

This problem is related to Data Flow. At first glance, it may make sense to combine the two sections. But focusing exclusively on errors foregrounds another way to handle data: immutability.

Immutability simply means that data can never change. The most famous implementation of an immutable database in the last twenty years is the blockchain. Both errors and fraud can be audited for correctness because an entire immutable history exists.

This tamper-evident property is shared by VCs. And a fraudulent University degree can be revoked just as easily as an expired certificate.

Solid does not work with immutable data, but folks are working on similar guarantees through a Solid non-repudiation service.

Popular tech offerings like Dropbox and Google Docs store a record of changes to a shared text file. But this form of version control wasnt really designed for an automated audit.

There are many ways to approach this problem. While blockchain technologies owned the hype cycle a few years ago, leveraging their benefits can be challenging and their slow transaction speeds cause their own problems. So just like Data Flow, the best solution has yet to surface.

5. Semantics

Its very common for two databases to contain columns of data named by the same word - such as price or name or approved - even though that word means subtly different things to the people who created the databases. Philip Agre

This issue is the culmination of all the others. Information has to be meaningful if it going to be shared and processed. File system metaphors like Dropbox and Web Native File System use file extensions and MIME types to understand what they are working with. Solids RDF support provides even more semantic detail than files. Narrowly defined protocols like OpenID Connect make it possible (and common) to share basic identity information using scopes.

Semantics have a major drawback: they have to be widely agreed upon. Widely-adopted semantic vocabularies are usually refined by a small group of experts until a rough consensus is reached. This approach can be seen in contra-distinction to tags. Tags also provide meaning to data, but they are formed organically by a large group of people generating a large number of tags; tagging trends then emerge over time and provide context for information.

These tags can lose their meaning in different cultural contexts or on different platforms - the #meta tag might imply something different on Flicker versus its use on Facebook. But machine learning has flattened these differences. Algorithms can now identify similar data across the internet with or without tags or vocabularies. The black box nature of machine learning is particularly insidious here. Every solution has implicit biases, but machine learning offers none of the transparency afforded to other methods for structuring and describing information.





Control Does Not Scale

Its not possible nor desirable to provide each person a simulacrum of their identity online. People dont want to manage their own data any more than they want to run their own servers. But large data centers are political artifacts Conventional wisdom posits technology as a neutral force that can be wielded for evil or for good. But as Langdon Winner has pointed out, technologies can fundamentally embody explicit political arrangements. ~ How the Consumer Computer is Consuming Computing.



that necessitate both political and technological responses. This response depends on how we situate identity data in our lives. Data is ideally close to home, separate from the processes that compute it. But it is often far away and embedded in the software we use.

Resituating data is easier said than done. Data must have some sense of authenticity to be useful, it must have some contextual meaning to be shared, and it must leave room for error if it is to be alive. Agres principles are clear but the road to implementation is not. There are many solutions not described in this article. Philip Agre mentions an ill-fated intelligent agent solution from the 1990s called Telescript. Indeed, there are folks who are working on agent solutions today. Their focus on intention rather than data may even be closer to Kays ambassadors.





Any real political response will require more than introducing new tech. For example, consider all the institutional support needed to manage a currency in your country. And then remember that a persons identity is infinitely more complex than any financial abstraction.

It may seem insurmountable, but the alternative is a single dominate political vision where only one form of data management exists: large data centers filled with coarse data points and countless assumptions about what that data says about who we are. This is indeed a bad idea.
FLORENCE  Downtown Florences Steven F. Gately Gallery pulled a two-for on Aug. 13 when it played host to an artist reception for Mar Martinez and celebrated the winners of the Florence Regional Arts Alliances Small Works competition.

So, yeah, Im actually sharing this gallery with the small works exhibition, which I had the pleasure of currying, and I think Im worth theyre gonna be announcing the winners later tonight, Martinez said as she stood and talked with attendees about her exhibit  Warring Factions.

I view them as chapters of a part of a larger book, and I feel like theyre all tied together through this thread of tension, Martinez said.

So theres a tension thats happening between these animals that are encircling each other, and theres some of them are more obviously engaged in conflict, but there are others, like the deer, where you cant tell if theyre fighting or nestling, she said. So I think its very interesting to play with that body language, and I feel like it carried over into some of these paintings of the rug. There are these textiles kind of under tension with like looseness as well. So they all have their own individual body language, even though theyre not necessarily human.

Martinezs works were paintings on wood, cut out and then set to stand out from the walls upon which they hung. Some of the work displayed obvious conflict, others less obvious conflict.

All display her skill with both paint and brush and a jigsaw.

So I think that, like by removing something from its confines, like theres something interesting about how power can be given and taken away. So by physically ripping something away from its context. Im like rendering it like naked in the outside world, Martinez said. In context, it could mean one thing; out of context, it means something entirely different.

Martinezs works featured dogs chasing in a circle, antlered deer locked antler to antler, a couple of ruffled rugs on the floor and some human images.

The conflict on display extends beyond what the works represent to the works themselves.

Thats why its always interesting, and a little nerve wracking, to put a new show together, because the pieces, even though some of them are the same, and Ive had some for a couple years. Others are completely brand new, like these two over here in their fresh sauce, might use them the way they come together, Martinez said.

Where the works are displayed can also change the context, she said.

Then there is the medium  half-inch plywood.

Its a jigsaw and two sawhorses and a prayer, she said.

So this is not an easy thing. Its an easy thing to cut shape, but its not an easy thing to cut detail.

It is not, but I have all my fingers, so I think Im doing a good job, Martinez said. I do spend a lot of time in the wood shop sweating away, and then its sweating when its up on the easel in a different way, because theres like, a lot of refined detail that I think contrasts the immediacy of the cut.

Martinez said the decision to taker her art off the wall came to her in school when the canvas became claustrophobic.

I think I was at a point in school where I was feeling a bit frustrated by the confines of the canvas, and I wanted to think of another way of presenting, I dont know, a figure with singularity. I think sometimes in the past, people represent the figure on this like negated background, like a dark, flat color, or just leaving it white, Martinez said. And I was like, why dont I just remove it and bring it out into the world and see what that looks like? So and I was, I think, flirting a little bit with sculpture at the time, so it was an easy way to marry those two desires to paint and then also at some capacity.

Some of the pieces too, like Ive built out, theyre not in this exhibition, but some they come off the wall in an extreme way. So theyre like, physically entering the viewers space as well. So then theres a less of a delineation between like audience member and canvas, so it kind of exists in this half space. So like these pieces, they are obviously rugs, or resembling, like textiles on the floor. And I figured, Why not just put them on the floor? she said of two of her rug paintings on the floor, blocked off by a stainless steel barrier.

A child of a Syrian and Cuban couple, Martinez said she has an interest in textiles, especially Syrian weaving  an interest she will soon explore further.

So my interest has recently been weaving, and Ive actually received a Fulbright, so Im going to be going for the Fulbright and painting to go to Istanbul to study the weaving process, Martinez said. I was spending a lot of time indoors during the pandemic, and surrounded in our house by these like gorgeous rugs that they brought over from the Middle East. And I was thinking about how its so interesting how, like a singular thread can be wound endlessly upon itself to create something thats withstanding.

Traditional clothing from around the Turkish and Syrian border tends to be bright and colorful.

Its, its like wearable art, in a way, yeah, so Im very excited to get close to that and learn more about it, she said.

Turkish weavers use a similar process to the Syrians  and live in a politically stable country, she said.

So Im gonna be going over there to basically research that and create a body of work about it, she said.

An Orlando resident and New Mexico native, Martinez will be abroad for nine months as part of her Fulbright experience.

Martinez, in addition to putting her works on display, also judged the 2024 Small Works Juried Exhibition.

Julie Mixon, of Florence, took home first-place honors for her work, Two Fold Flood.

Brittany Gilbert of Florence took home second-place honors for her work, Lichen Day/Night I.

Doug Gray of Florence won third place for his work, An Echo Of Belonging.

Aldo Muzzarelli of Mauldin won an honorable mention for his work, Prejudices.

Both exhibits will be on display at the gallery at 142 North Dargan Street through Oct. 3.
CHICAGO  South Carolinians descended on the Windy City Monday, looking forward to adding their voices to a robust convention eager to anoint Kamala Harris as the Democrats' presidential standard-bearer.

Im happy to be part of history, said Anthony Hallmon, chairman of the Orangeburg County Democratic Party. Were here to tell our story to the American people of what the Democratic Party has accomplished."

For many, this is an opportunity to unite under the banner of being Democratic in a "red" state. In a state that has voted Republican in the past 11 elections, the convention is a way to meet with like-minded individuals and share ideas for the future of the party.

Election 2024 DNC Delegates cheer for Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., as he speaks during the first day of the Democratic National Convention.

Well, the thing is, voting and representation are important, said Mayra Rivera, a delegate from Beaufort County. Even though it's a red state, every vote counts. Every voice should be heard. So, as a Democrat, that's the fight we are doing every day to provide representation and all the voices being heard because we are living in a democracy.

The DNC gives South Carolina Democrats a chance to meet with people from other red states and see what works for them. One of note is Georgia, which went blue in the 2020 election between Democratic President Joe Biden and former Republican President Donald Trump.

I was having a drink with a couple people from Georgia and like talking about what they've done is empowering for us so that we can go back home and, and really put those into action, said Brady Quirk-Garvan, a delegate from Charleston. It's a great combo of sort of old home week the ability to network.

The DNC roll call was set to a soundtrack. Heres how each song fits each state The traditional roll call at the Democratic National Convention became a boisterous dance party, with each states delegation announcing their votes for Kamala Harris to a song befitting their state.

At the convention, swing states are a huge topic of conversation, and though South Carolina isnt leaning toward becoming a battleground, the delegates are taking the opportunity to learn from states that have become bluer over the years, while also taking the chance to meet with fellow members of the minority party and share what works in their parts of the state.

I think it's invigorating for us, Quirk-Garvan said. It sort of feels like a family gathering, and I think what's great is that is how our state operates. We are one big family and it's great to see people from across the state that we're on the phone and on Zoom and emails, but that's not the same and be able to hug folks and be with people matters a lot.

As U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn spoke, the South Carolina delegation rose and started cheering, holding personalized Jim Clyburn signs. With some on their feet the whole time, it was a warm welcome for the states lone Democratic member of Congress.

During his speech, Clyburn focused on committing the message to the delegations of ensuring the election of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, looking back on the record under Trump.

Our great democracy has been tested, Clyburn said. Allow us all to remain a great country, with freedom and justice for all will not falter. We will continue our march towards a progressive union, united in our common purpose.
CHICAGO  Its the same every year: The youth vote is considered important but young people dont show up to vote.

But for many young delegates at this years Democratic National Convention, it is the first year that the youth vote can truly make or break who wins the election, they say.

Something we say at High School Dems a lot is just because you can't vote yet doesn't mean you don't have a voice," said Annika Krovi, a 17-year-old delegate from Greenville who is chair of the High School Democrats of America.

We really try to emphasize that to students, that just because you aren't able to vote in this election, they still have a voice, they're still turning out people to the polls. When you're able to magnify your impact to a community beyond you, that's when you're really making a difference.

Democratic convention youth Democratic delegates at the Chicago convention range from 17 to mid-80s, and that wide range allows for multiple types of conversations. But m

In a year that has been filled with talk of politicians' ages -- from the former president to the current one to members of Congress -- age has become a main platform for candidates to attack each other.

The reason is a push from younger generations to elect younger politicians so they can more easily relate to the people they are representing.

Democratic delegates at the Chicago convention range from 17 to mid-80s, and that wide range allows for multiple types of conversations. But many young delegates say its refreshing to hear from so many other people their age, especially on the national stage.

Youth council is always one of the most attended councils because there's so many young delegates here who are really excited about being here, Krovi said.

As it should be, but it means a lot because I think it's a reflection of what it will look like in November when hopefully young voters across the country turn out and turn this energy from convention into turning out voters in the polls.

For the groups that make up the future of American politics, it is important to send a message to other young people who might not be as involved.

I think that a lot of people like us are really excited about politics but don't necessarily have the means or, like, know how to get involved, said 18-year-old Neil Sachdeva, the High School Democrats' national development chair.

Democratic National Convention 2024 Chicago's United Centers is the venue for the 2024 Democratic National Convention.

But we have this built in community through the youth council and so everyone is so excited to be in this area and hear from all these amazing people.

Justin Pearson, 29, a state representative from Tennessee, was one of those amazing people at the youth council meeting Tuesday afternoon.

With a loud booming voice, he sounded strong and proud, much like he did after he was expelled from the Tennessee state legislature in April of last year. He has since been reinstated.

Krovi acknowledged that younger politicians are getting attacked more frequently than in previous years.

I think it is something to be fearful of and I think we see a lot of that tending to happen more and more," Krovi said.

I think it's something to be mindful of and it is something to cause alarm. But I also think we're gonna have to counteract that by continuing to elect young folks."

A surprise appearance at the youth council gathernig was made by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who officially accepted his vice presidential nomination Wednesday night.

While speaking to the young audience, he emphasized that while young people have a lot of work to do, it is also up to the older generations of Millennials and Generation X to continue to set Gen Z up for success as they enter the legal voting age.

Chances like this, meeting and getting to hear personally from a potential vice president, are something about political conventions that is unbeatable for young delegates and political advocates: a chance to meet their personal heroes.

My favorite politician of all time is Congressman Pramila Jayapal; she's also the chair of the Progressive Caucus, Sachdeva said. So actually today, me and [Krovi] were just inside the McCormick Place and she was just walking right next to us. And I literally froze; I was starstruck.

Both Krovi and Sachdeva agree that young people are ready to meet the moment when it comes to voting in the upcoming election, just a few short months away.

One thing that we know for sure is that young voters are excited and ready to turn out, but I think what we need to do is make an investment in that, Krovi said.

I think the Democrats are doing that in a lot of ways. What's really important to us is that we're going to continue that energy so that this is a self-fulfilling prophecy, and every single generation feels welcome and a part of the party.
SIOUX CITY  For those who spend a lot of time driving on Siouxland highways, the following will come as little surprise: there fewer deer around nowadays.

A few years back, a drive at dusk was likely to include spotting one or more deer standing on the shoulder or dashing across the road. Deer killed by collisions with vehicles were a common sight along the highways.

Those days are long gone.

"We know the population is a fraction of what it was in the mid 2000s," said Jace Elliott, a state deer biologist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

The decline is especially severe in western Iowa, where the deer harvest in recent hunting seasons has dropped to half of what it was in the mid 2000s, Elliott said.

"We know that hunters in western Iowa are really frustrated with the quality of hunting there," he said. "We expect populations to fluctuate over time, but what we've seen in western Iowa is not meeting our management objective."

The low population should be of interest to everyone, not just hunters, Elliott said. The white-tailed deer is the only mammal of its kind in Iowa and is important to the state both economically and culturally.

"You don't have to be a deer hunter to appreciate having deer," he said.

Urban deer A deer drinks out of a bird bath in the backyard of an Okoboji, Iowa, home in June. Such sightings are becoming rarer in some parts of western

Communities across the state get an economic boost each year from deer hunters, who spend money on gas, food and lodging. The animals also are a pretty sight when spotted in nature or, as some Sioux City residents can attest, when observed visiting urban backyards.

In the early 2000s the deer population had swelled, leading to rising numbers of deer/vehicle collisions and nuisance calls involving deer. In 2003, the DNR began to take measures to reduce the population by allowing hunters to bag an increased number of does, cutting into the reproductive capacity of deer herds.

It worked, much too well.

"In hindsight, we let the doe harvest go on too long," Elliott said.

When the DNR began increasing doe harvest restrictions as the population began to bounce back in 2012-13, an outbreak of hemorrhagic disease further prevented a rebound in the population, especially in western Iowa. Loss of habitat due to development also has impacted deer population, and the growth in deer numbers has stalled.

"It's fair to say we're well below our management objective," Elliott said.

Flooding in northwest and western Iowa this summer won't help. Some herds were probably displaced from river bottoms and fawns could have drowned as area rivers flooded.

"It is safe to say there were local populations of deer that were affected," Elliott said. "Any sort of climate disaster is going to impact any wild species."

How can the DNR help the deer population bounce back? Likely further limits on the number of does hunters can harvest. Those limits have helped deer populations recover in other parts of the state to the point that restrictions were lifted, Elliott said.

During a series of public meetings in western Iowa the DNR hosted in July, 78% of the more than 250 people who attended said they're unsatisfied with the deer density in this region and 88% support further hunting restrictions, Elliott said. Further reduction in the number of doe hunting tags available is likely, and it's possible some counties could see deer harvest restricted to bucks only.

"The way to recover population is to limit the doe harvest," Elliott said. "We have every reason to believe that everything we've done will be enough to restore the population."

A population is probably never truly balanced, he said, but the goal is to have enough deer so hunters can harvest all they want, but not too many that they harm farmers' crops and cause a rash of vehicle crashes. Deer help keep nature in balance by eating invasive plants and undergrowth.

"It's an important species to keep in the right place, that's for sure," Elliott said.
SIOUX CITY -- Authorities are seeking the public's help in locating a South Sioux City man wanted in connection with the June shooting of two people at a Sioux City bar.

According to a statement from the Sioux City Police Department, an arrest warrant has been issued for Tristian Alejandro Reyes, 28, for attempted murder.

At around 1:38 a.m. on June 23, Sioux City police officers were dispatched to the Key Club, 1008 Fourth St. On arrival, officers found two victims suffering gunshot wounds.

The victims were hospitalized with what a police spokesman described as critical injuries. A third victim arrived at a hospital later in the morning suffering from a non-life-threatening injury sustained during the incident.

Anyone who knows Reyes' whereabouts is asked to contact the police department at 712-279-6440 or Crime Stoppers at 712-258-TIPS.

Reyes is described as a Hispanic male who is approximately five feet six inches to five feet seven inches tall. He weighs 160 pounds.
Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk unveils the Tesla Semi in 2017. Federal safety investigators said Thursday theyre investigating after a crash and fire involving one of the trucks in California. Agence France-Presse file photo

A crash and large fire along a California freeway involving an electric Tesla Semi has drawn the attention of federal safety investigators.

The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said Thursday its sending a team of investigators from the Office of Highway Safety mainly to look into fire risks posed by lithium-ion batteries.

The team will work with the California Highway Patrol to examine the wreckage and gather details about the events leading up to the collision and the subsequent fire response, the agency said in a statement.

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The Los Angeles Times reported the Tesla rig was traveling east on Interstate 80 around 3:15 a.m. Monday near Emigrant Gap, about 70 miles northeast of Sacramento, when it went off the road and collided with trees near the right shoulder.

The battery caught fire, spewing toxic fumes and reaching a temperature of 1,000 degrees, forcing firefighters to wait for it to burn out, the Highway Patrol told the Times. The Tesla driver walked away from the crash and was taken to a hospital, and the freeway was temporarily closed.

The battery burned into the late afternoon while firefighters tried to cool it down for cleanup, and the freeway didnt reopen until 7:20 p.m., authorities said.

A message was left Thursday seeking comment on the crash and fire from Texas-based Tesla Inc.

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After an investigation that ended in 2021, the NTSB determined that high-voltage electric vehicle battery fires pose risks to first responders and that guidelines from manufacturers about how to deal with them were inadequate.

The agency, which has no enforcement powers and can only make recommendations, called for manufacturers to write vehicle-specific response guides for fighting battery fires and limiting chemical thermal runaway and reignition. The guidelines also should include information on how to safely store vehicles with damaged lithium-ion batteries, the agency said.
SIOUX RAPIDS, Iowa  The Sioux Central Community School District will now have $7,000 in grant funding to put toward students and families facing homelessness.

The Iowa Department of Education announced Wednesday the district, which includes Linn Grove, Peterson, Rembrandt, Sioux Rapids, and Webb, would be one of 25 districts receiving a "Resource Hub Grant" to "create or sustain school resource hubs located in school buildings so students experiencing homelessness can access basic necessities to fully engage in school."

Funds can be used on personal hygiene supplies, clothing, food, emergency supplies, access to washers and dryers, portable shower units and "materials needed to create sustainable food pantries and clothing closets," according a release from the Iowa Department of Education.

Meanwhile, the Sioux Center Community School District was awarded $30,000 to help with the cost of transportation for students experiencing homelessness.

"Fund uses include public and private transportation services, gas cards and, in certain cases, vehicle purchases," per the release.

The money for the "Resource Hub and Transportation Grants came through the Iowa Department of Education by way of funds set aside by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
Pay Dirt is Slates money advice column. Have a question? Send it to Athena, Kristin, and Ilyce here. (Its anonymous!)

Dear Pay Dirt,

I had saved around $10,000 for my daughters education when I was slammed by an illness that nearly killed me. The medical bills wiped out all of our savings and we nearly lost the house. We were lucky that my wifes late husband had a trust set up for their two children so they didnt have to worry about college loans.

My daughter is 16. She is academically brilliant but lazy. Unless my wife or I kept on her, she wouldnt study or do her homework. Her mother would rather be her friend than a parent. My daughter moved in with her full time and her grades tanked. She barely passed her sophomore year. She doesnt care and to make matters worse, her mother has promised her that she has this money saved for her.

My ex has a gambling problem and it was the leading reason why we divorced. She lives off her own mother so their lifestyle isnt really affected. I keep pushing my daughter to buckle down and look into the options her school offerswork study, dual credit, etc. It goes in one ear and out the other. I dont want my daughter to tank her future. I have colleagues who are still paying off their college loans over a decade later. My wife says when she turns 18 she will be in for a rude awakening and that there is nothing we can do about it. I love my daughter and dont know what to do here.

Cost of College

Dear Cost of College,

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I know youre worried about the cost of college for your daughter but it seems that higher education might not even be something she wants. As heartbreaking as a realization that might be for a parent who wants their child to go to college, it isnt for everyone. And not attending college wont necessarily tank your future either. There are different paths to success: trade schools, internships, apprenticeships, and joining the workforce are a few. While your definition of success may be getting a four-year degree, maybe to her its becoming a nomad who volunteers at animal rescue organizations. Or becoming a first responder. The point is, you should strive to be open-minded and ask her what it is she wants, rather than imposing your own plan for her.

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So how do you do that? Take your daughter out to lunch in a neutral place and ask her what she wants to do after high school. Not what she plans to do, what she wants to do. You could try, I love you so much and want the best for you always. If you could do anything in the world after high school, what would you do? You might be pleasantly surprised to learn that she has ambitions shes just not shared yet because she might be worried about how youd react.

If she tells you shes in fact interested in college, then this is the time to explain to her how paying for college works and the realities of how much (if any) money is saved for her studies between yourself and her mother. Offer to help her figure out a financial plan when the time comes. Options like community college or scholarships could be ways for her to stay out of major debt. Shes entering the college application process now, in her junior year, so presumably, there is still some time for her to figure out whether thats the path she wants to go down.

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For questions on the money issues in your life try submitting to Pay Dirt!

Dear Pay Dirt,

My parents are getting up there in age. My dad is entering his 70s this year and my mom is following right behind him. They have several properties, a business, and different investment accounts that Im aware of. And yet they havent made any plans for their will! They keep saying they need to and never get around to it. I dont care who they leave what to (I have two other siblings) I just want them to be prepared. How can I convince them that theres a sense of urgency here? Not because Im worried for their health at alland hopefully, we wont need to worry about this for many, many yearsbut because they need to be prepared for emergencies. It feels like such a hard and slightly awkward conversation to have with your parents.

Putting It Off

Dear Putting It Off,

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Talking to your parents about their estate plans can definitely be uncomfortable for everyone. There is no easy way to ask, Hey, what are we supposed to do when you die? Even I as a financial columnist dont have the magic words unfortunately (Im typing this while I stare across the room at my dad). My point is, that its a hard topic for most people and I would venture to guess that most people dread bringing it up.

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Ive had partial success by making the conversation not about me but instead, about what each parent might do if the other passed away (this method will likely only work if your parents are still together). If your parents feel like they need to make sure their spouse is protected when they die, they might be more proactive.

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Explain to your parents that you want to make sure that they at least have a plan for each other should one of them go. You can then elaborate by saying that you want them both to be prepared so that when the time comes, they can grieve instead of scrambling to pay the bills. This might make them think twice before brushing you off. If that wont work, you might check out some additional guides for having The Talk. If its a matter of not wanting to handle the logistics, you can offer to help them find a lawyer, set up an appointment, get their documents in order, etc.

I also highly recommend reading Mom and Dad, We Need to Talk by Cameron Huddleston. This book has helped me to better understand where my parents are coming from when money issues come up.

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Dear Pay Dirt,

I need help stopping a bad cycle Ive gotten stuck in. I work in management in retail and make decent, if OK, money. Its enough for my basic living expenses like rent but leaves me strapped for most everything else. Every time I get paid, Im excited to have a paycheck again that I find I blow a lot of it in the first few days I get it. I spend big on meals, I go out with friends, drinks on me. And then by the end of week two, Im struggling to have enough for groceries. Ive amassed a good deal of credit card debt that I pay a minimum amount on every month. And every time I say itll be different but one thing leads to another and when the next paycheck arrives, its the same cycle all over again. How do I break the pattern?

Stuck

Dear Stuck,

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Getting out of a paycheck-to-paycheck cycle can be hard if you arent sure whats driving it. Is not always bad money management. For instance, in your case, it sounds like your spending might be a bit emotional. You mentioned that you make OK money that covers your basic living expenses but doesnt leave room for much else. Living with barely enough to cover your expenses is stressful and while you would think a person would hoard every dollar as a result, many people also do the opposite. If you dont feel like you have control over your finances or situation, blowing through your funds can be a way people cope.

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Going forward, be realistic when it comes to your spending habits. You need a budget immediately. My fellow columnists and I have talked through the budgeting process in a few different columnsso start there. Youre not going to break out of this paycheck-to-paycheck cycle without knowing where all of your money is going first.

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But once youve set a budget, give yourself some leeway. Dont write off going out with your friends at all or buying an occasional slice of pizza. Instead, plan to spend some of your money on the fun stuff. Dont spend all of your extra cash in one sitting like youre doing now. But give yourself a budget for enjoying yourself that you dont feel guilty about. Striking some of that balance between getting serious about your finances and some small indulgences will help keep you motivated as you start paying down debt and building your savings account. And by being realistic, you can hopefully combat some of that shame you feel about your paycheck-to-paycheck cycle.

Athena

Classic Prudie

My partner inherited a five-bedroom house, and we plan to renovate it with grand dreams. A music room, a library, a quilting studio, a room for our foster cat programanything more than the one-bedroom condo we have been stuck in. Only my sister refuses to be happy for us.
Slate Plus members get more Care and Feeding every week. Have a question about kids, parenting, or family life? Submit it here!

Dear Care and Feeding,

I love my mother dearly. Shes not perfect, and it has taken a while for us to get to a good place. I realized I can love her for the person she is or resent her for not being the person I need her to be, and I chose the former. However, there is one thing I cannot reconcile about her, and thats her new obsession.

Its with Korean dramas. They are all she does, all she talks about, all she thinks about. For as long as I can remember, my mother has been obsessed with somethingThe X-Files, solitaire, Minesweeper, hearts, spades, my brothers academic success, etc. But for the past six years, K-dramas have been it. And not just K-dramasthere are also Japanese dramas, Taiwanese dramas, and Chinese dramas. Thanks to the ubiquity of cell service and her iPad and iPhone, wherever she goes, they go. We were just at a funeral, and she couldnt last 30 minutes without stepping out of the reception to watch an episode. (Dont get me started on her lack of headphone use, either.) If I have a personal question for my mom, her wealth of lived experience is cast aside for whatever the two star-crossed lovers in her latest series are going through. Before I met my most recent partner, when I was happily single, she informed me she now understood that being happy alone is possiblenot because her daughter was actively living it, but because that was the outcome in another drama.

I feel like Ive lost a big part of my mom, who I love so much. I know its loneliness and idleness that fuels thisshe was a career homemaker, and my brother is engaged and living across the country, while I live three hours away by train. I think shutting herself away and living in a 24/7 fantasy land has had an effect on her social energy. She used to be the life of the partynow she doesnt feel well if she goes an extended period of time with no screens. My dad has his own hobbies to keep him entertained, and my mom isnt interested in them. It works for their marriage to have separate lives in retirement. But that also means my dad has no motivation to check her on her screen time.

I have managed to get my mom to stop talking about K-dramas on our phone calls, but it was a long, hard-fought battle with a lot of sulking on both sides. Is there any way to get her to cut down her drama addiction without another blowout? Since I dont live with her and it only affects me when I visit her or try to get her to socialize with my partners family, should I just let it go? Is this something I shouldnt feel so embarrassed about? Do I have an obligation to try to get her to see how this is affecting her ability to engage in the world around her? (Talk therapy is not an option.) I just dont know what to do!

Too Much Drama

Dear Too Much Drama,

I get why youre worried. Whatever is going on with your mother and her laser-focus on her dramaswhether its an actual addiction, a product of boredom, exacerbated by depression or anxiety or some unknown combination of factorsshes not really engaging with her own life right now. Shes isolating herself and avoiding social engagements and leaving funerals early. And she is letting this affect her relationships with the people she loves.

If she were to cut down her drama intake, she would first have to decide to do sowhich is not something you can do for her. But you can let her know how this is affecting you and your relationship with her. Have you told her that youre actually worried for her? That you feel shes missing out on opportunities to experience other things and spend time with people she cares about? Maybe shes picked up on your annoyance or embarrassment, but hasnt fully grasped just how concerned you are.

You cant help how you feel about this, of course. And obviously you will continue to care and be concerned about your mom. But you may be well served by trying to think or focus less on her drama addiction, if that is at all possible for you. Do what you can to protect your peace and emotionally divest from this obsession of hersyou can disapprove and even express your worry to her without continually torturing yourself over something you cant change.

Getting your mother to stop talking to you about her dramas may not feel like a victory, but that might be as good as it gets right now. When you visit, you can also tell her that you dont want to hear about dramas in person. Keep to other conversation topics as much as possible. Ask who shes been seeing and what shes been doing. If she does show any interest whatsoever in activities or social outlets that dont involve television, do everything you can to encourage and support those interests.

If you dont see any change in her behavior, or if this gets worse, you can think about contacting her primary care doctor. They wont be able to share anything about your mothers health with you without her permission, but you can share your concerns with them. Its legit to be worried about her obsessiveness and increasing isolation; how anxious she is when she leaves the house or is expected to focus on something else. Maybe her doctor will find a way to inquire about her hobbies and discuss the excessive TV-watching with her at her next appointment.



Nicole

More Advice From Slate

My mother-in-law and I dont have a warm and fuzzy relationship, though I promise you that I am very accommodating and pleasant with her. My husband would describe her as a pretty difficult person who doesnt have much ability to think of the world outside herself. My husband and I have been together for eight years and married for almost five. Despite having four bedrooms, being recently separated, and having only one of her children living at home, my mother-in-law does not have a guest bedroom.
Bennifer? Bennifinished. And me? While Im not exactly in the Benni-fetal position, its fair to say Im still processing the news. When it broke in April that Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopezs marriage was in trouble, I held out hope that it was just a run of bad press from the same brand of naysayers who could never stop themselves from pointing out the grumpy expressions on Afflecks mug. Its called resting bitch face, and its just the way he looks, OK? But as the months wore on, it became increasingly clear that the dissolution of their fairy-tale marriage wasnt a matter of if but when. It felt endless, the wait for official word. It seemed unusual too that a divorce announcement that was all but certain would take this long to materialize, but maybe thats only because Im not usually paying quite so much attention.

I was paying an obscene amount of attention because Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez rekindling their romance was, to put it plainly, simply one of my favorite things to ever happen. Yup, ever. Please dont press me on this by asking something like Was it better than Joe Biden beating Trump? because Im telling you now that you may not like my answer. After the darkest part of the pandemic, Bennifer 2.0 arrived in the summer of 2021, just when we needed them most. These people whom Id come of age reading about had somehow found each other again, two decades later, and rather than all the tabloid mockery of their first go-round, everyone seemed to be rooting for them, and for love itself. I worried at the time that it was too good to be true, but then it lasted the whole summer. Then came an engagement, and a wedding. I eventually let my guard down. Before long, I guess I just accepted that my every happiness was tied to their union and that Id be in shambles if they ever broke up.

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Well, greetings from shambles. Im actually not doing so badly, Im pleased to report. Ive been bracing myself for this for a while now, and I think its going to be OK. In particular, I want to thank Lopez for filing for divorce on Tuesday, the night that Michelle and Barack Obama were scheduled to speak at the Democratic National Convention. Though she probably did this to minimize publicityheadlines about the DNC would crowd out headlines about BenniferI choose to see it as her recognizing that America, or at least the portion of America that cares about Bennifer, was in an OK place. We are, momentarily at least, feeling good about the election, about Kamala, and maybe about the future; we dont need our emotional support celebrity relationship to do all the heavy lifting its sometimes had to do. This was a kindness on Lopezs part, and thats something I want to hold on to because, despite it all, I still feel invested in the idea that this relationship was based on something true.

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Certain other details that have come out in reporting on the divorce bear out my belief, and my wish that whatever Affleck and Lopez too briefly rediscovered with each other, it was something they both strongly believed in. As rich as they are, Lopez filed for divorce without a lawyer (very unusual), and the two didnt get a prenup, TMZ has reported. Whatever happened, they were all in on this relationship when they got married. Though Ive continued to notice a tendency toward blaming Lopez in the breakup theories, one thing Im manifesting is the idea that maybe this was no ones fault. Maybe they tried and it just didnt work out. In celebrity breakups like the ones Bennifer has heavily been compared to, like Brangelina or TomKat, theres usually a clear villain, but I would love to come out of this not hating Lopez or Affleck, and maybe instead respecting them for trying and failing? Bennifer was too beautiful to last, you guys, but that doesnt mean Bennifer wasnt real. Is this just me in the bargaining stage of grief? Possibly. Someone stop me before I start quoting Camelot.
It feels like Im in an alternate world, Rima Mohammad, an uncommitted delegate from Michigan, told me of her experience at the Democratic National Convention. She described entering the United Center in Chicago for the convention and encountering giddy attendees after she attended a forum where Dr. Tanya Haj-Hassan, an American pediatric intensive care doctor, recounted harrowing details from her medical mission in Gaza. I was literally bawling at the panel, and then going into the convention where people are excited and celebratingit was the weirdest feeling, Mohammad said.

Mohammad is wearing a black-and-white kaffiyeh imprinted with Democrats for Palestinian Rights every day that she attends the convention. While almost all other attendees are in full Harris gear, celebrating with We heart Joe signs, the uncommitted delegatesaround 30 in total, representing some 700,000 votersclearly stand out among other convention-goers, some of whom have seem wary or guarded around them. Mohammad described a brief encounter with Michigans Gov. Gretchen Whitmer as mostly a photo op. She said the governor was sympathetic but didnt have much to say.

Mohammad is the grandchild of Palestinian Nakba survivors who remain refugees, she said; she is also an outspoken Democrat. She is on the public school board in Ann Arbor, and recently ran for Michigan state representative. Shes been stunned by the partys response to the war in Gaza so far, and was feeling intense whiplash at the DNC. Its disappointing that its taking the uncommitted delegates to advocate for something so simple and humane, she said. The bar is really low. People just want to feel like theyre being taken seriously. This isnt just about a Muslim or Arab vote; its about decency.

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Mohammad said her kaffiyeh had earned several positive comments, but also that she has felt the gaze on her in Chicago. At a breakfast organized by the Michigan Democratic Party and attended by politicians including Nancy Pelosi, Mohammad said that she and Abbas Alawieh, another Palestinian American uncommitted delegate, sensed the tension. Some might think Im a potential disruptor, she said. I feel like I have more eyes on me.

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Ive talked to roughly half of the uncommitted delegates here, some of whom represent states where the vote in November is expected to be close. They all told me similar stories of the dissonance between a jubilant convention and the cause that defines this election for them. They say theyve had a series of nods and murmurs of support from the party. They kept watching and waiting for signs that the manifest change in the Democrats mood and moment will include them. But the support remains quiet, if not silent.

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Alawieh is also from Michigan. Before he helped found the uncommitted voter movement, he worked as a congressional staffer and organized to get Democrats elected in Dearborn. He also survived an Israeli bombardment that used U.S.made weapons in southern Lebanon, and said that he draws from that experience when advocating for a cease-fire. In the crowded and bustling halls of the United Center while the convention was underway, he organized a press briefing to speak directly to reporters about the goals of the uncommitted delegates in attendance at the convention, as well as make a direct appeal to the Kamala Harris campaign. He held up his phone and declared, Im waiting for the call from the DNC.

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As reporters huddled around him, Alawieh explained that his movements intended goal is to unite the Democrats by calling for an immediate cease-fire and the release of all Israeli and Palestinian hostages. The people are with us on this, he said, citing a YouGov poll showing more than 80 percent of Democratic voters support a cease-fire. Weve built trust with voters we need to mobilize ahead of November if we want the best chance to beat Donald Trump, he said.

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In the halls of the arena, Palestinian kaffiyehs are easy to spot, including many on delegates who are committed to Harris. Some wear them along with Jewish yarmulkes. One delegate from Hawaii accessorized his kaffiyeh with colorful floral leis. Arshia Papari, a Harris delegate from Texas, wore a kaffiyeh and a cowboy hat as he distributed cease-fire delegate fact sheets, trying to recruit more Harris delegates who are sympathetic to the plight of Palestinian civilians. Papari, who is of Iranian heritage, said hes been asked for pictures and selfies numerous times. It gives people who feel voiceless some representation, especially since this issue has been pushed to the side at the DNC, he said.

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Papari was excited when he first learned about the cease-fire delegation, which has grown exponentially here. Right now, there are 300 cease-fire Harris delegates who have signed on. Papari is now the national youth delegation lead for the group. He said he hopes that number will expand as more of the 4,000 DNC delegates learn about their position and its popularity among voters.

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Its clear not everyone is ready to sign on. Some people find this topic difficult because of political and financial pressures, Papari said. He keeps seeing it himself.

After the press conference, Alawieh and other uncommitted delegates rushed to their seats to participate in the ceremonial roll call. Uncommitted delegates from Minnesota and Hawaii who are refusing to vote for Harris instead wrote in the names of people killed by U.S.supplied weapons in Gaza. During the roll call in the United Center, they intended to hold up printouts with those names to represent their vote.

Their protest was immediately challenged by other delegates in their own state parties. Someone from the Minnesota state party stood on her chair with a Harris sign to block my sign, said Asma Mohammed, an uncommitted delegate who had held up a sign saying Reem Ali Badwan, the name of a 3-year-old who was killed by an Israeli airstrike. It made me really sad. I know the majority of Democrats support a cease-fire and an arms embargo and dont want to see people killed. It felt like they were trying to silence the voices of reason and humanity, she said.

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Mohammed persisted in her protest by standing on her chair, trying to cut through the jubilation. Were not here to party. Were here to speak out for the tens of thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands, who have been massacred using our tax dollars. I wont celebrate until I can call my friend in Khan Younis and tell him that his family is safe, she said, referring to the Palestinian city in Gaza.

Mohammed told me that at this point, a shift in Democrats policy is not only a moral imperative but just good political sense. When Senator [Bernie] Sanders talked about a cease-fire, he got the most applause, she said. Like others, she was clear-eyed about her demands. I dont want Donald Trump to win, she said, but I know communities wont show up to vote unless they see an arms embargo and a cease-fire on the ballot.

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I later caught up with Dawn Martin, a delegate from Wisconsin who was present during one of these protests and participated in trying to drown them out. This is not the right time, nor is it the right place, she said, adding that she is certain that President Joe Biden and Vice President Harris are already committed to ending the war. If you dont want Donald Trump to win and want some hope for peace in the region, we all have to come together, she said.

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On Wednesday, when it was announced that the parents of Israeli American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin would be speaking from the main stage of the convention, Alawieh held another press conference to express his enthusiastic support for it. We know that our partys platform includes specific language that says Israeli lives and Palestinian lives are valued the same. Since that is true, we have made a request that a Palestinian American doctor who had done a medical mission to Gaza speak from this stage, he said, adding that since before the convention began, he has personally been making direct appeals to Harris closest advisers and to leaders at the Democratic National Convention and in Congress. Some told Alawieh the door seemed open. The latest I heard is that someone from the DNC said its not a no, but its not a yes, either. Were just asking that a Palestinian American speak from this stage. Its a very simple request, he said.

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However, later that evening, around 8:30 p.m., Alawieh did finally get his answer: Abbas, the answer is no. They offered a private meeting instead.

Alawieh seemed devastated. Were talking about children! Babies! he shouted. You can try to suppress us. Were not going anywhere, he said, announcing a sit-in on the grounds outside of the United Center, where he promised to remain until Harris team reconsidered.

To punctuate his point, in front of a crowd of other delegates, supporters and reporters, he withdrew his phone from his pocket and called his contact inside the DNC. Roger, he began, We tried everything we can. Were just asking to be heard. Roger. Im not going anywhere. Tell the vice president that Im sitting outside.

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I noticed Roger Lau, senior adviser for the Harris Victory Fund and deputy executive director of the DNC, nearby making repeated calls on his phone. He declined to comment.

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As attendees exited the arena, most ignored the protest outside. Two different attendees raised their fists and shouted Am Yisrael Chai! One woman who identified herself only as a Chicagoan engaged the delegates-turned-protesters and accused them of antisemitism. Every Palestinian protest in this city has been extremely violent. All these encampments have been spewing hate, she said. Someone responded by saying he supported the release of the hostages and the family that addressed the DNC, and was not personally responsible for what other protesters around the country have said. She backed off.

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There was also Ruby Chen, a delegate from New York and an Israeli American who lost his son in the Oct. 7 attack. He said he was listening as Alawieh made his appeal, and he wanted to connect with him. He presented a printed portrait of the son he lost to Alawieh, who expressed his sympathy, and they exchanged numbers.

I asked him what he saw when he noticed the sit-in. I see a lot of pain. Theres no competition in pain, Chen said. We, together, need to work on that to free the Palestinian people in Gaza as much as these hostages. Its a humanitarian issue. Were all people of God, he added.

On Thursday, the sit-in was ongoing.
Across the United States, cities are spending a larger share of the money at their disposal buying and deploying surveillance technology. From cameras to A.I.enhanced microphones, and from automated license plate readers to drones and robots, cities are responding to cries for more safety with security theater. This might lead to a few extra arrests, but it does little to create sustainable safety. Forcing residents in neighborhoods with higher crime rates to live under constant, all-seeing digital scrutiny will neither make people safer from the systematic harms they face, including police violence, nor patch up their rocky relationship with the police who are sworn to protect and serve them.

From at least the advent of fingerprint analysis, police work has trended to rely more on technology and less on community involvementa shift that has signaled a decreasing reliance on witnesses and people who know community residents well. That problem has only been exacerbated with the increasing prevalence of CCTV cameras in the past 50 years; detectives have had less incentive to collaborate with people in a community to identify a suspect when any doorbell camera can do it for them. Similarly, why would police encourage the arduous task of organically organizing a community around violence prevention when they can send off a warrant to a tech company and get the geolocation of every single cellphone on the block?

Yes, people who live in communities that are affected by crime and constant policing may be reluctant to give their time and emotional energy to testifying or cooperating with policebut there are several reasons for that. In an era when a Black woman can be shot dead in her own home by the officers she called because she was afraid, is there really any surprise that police have a hard time getting community cooperation? Especially when there is no guarantee that the officer asking for a statement isnt someone who has been fired from a dozen other police departments for excessive force. That is not a problem that can, or should, be fixed merely by adding more cameras.

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This divide between the community and those sworn to protect it creates a feedback loop in which police departments find it much easier to put up a ton of cameras and license plate readers rather than invest in building trust and cooperation. And they can afford tothey have a tremendous amount of money to spend on tech from private donors, police foundations, the federal government, and an increasingly large share of city budgets.

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People want safety; they dont necessarily want more policing and surveillance. Surveillance is just the only solution politicians often give when citizens demand more safety, so people take what they can get.

And there is not much evidence that this mass of entwined surveillance infrastructure actually lowers crime rates or creates more feelings of safetyin part because so many statistics out there about the effectiveness of this technology are created by companies who sell cameras. They might secure one-off convictionsbut drop crime rates across a community or town? Unlikely.

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One could point to cities across the world with lower violent crime rates than the United States, like London, where CCTV camera surveillance is ubiquitous. But lets be honest: London has many more differences from American cities than just cameras. For one thing, its pretty hard to buy a gun in the U.K. For another, England has a social safety net, free health care, and comparatively more-robust public housing programsthe lack of which the U.S. government has identified as among the root causes of crime, urban inequality, and civic unrest since the 1960s.

Simply put: There are other things we should spend money on as a society if we want to sustainably increase safety for all.

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The harm of surveillance should not be waved away as a mere trade-off, as if privacy and safety are mutually exclusive. There are many factors that contribute to feeling safe in a neighborhoodlighting, pedestrians, open bars and restaurantsthat have nothing to do with surveillance. And yet we are frequently asked to write off constant surveillance as a necessary inconvenience. Its more than that. U.S. history is filled with the harms that surveillance has wroughtfrom the FBIs illegal surveillance, disruption, and blackmail of the Civil Rights Movement under J. Edgar Hoover, to the surveillance of Muslims after 9/11, to our current crisis of omnipresent surveillance in the criminalization of abortion. All these moments were enabled by the bipartisan buildup of surveillance capabilities at the local, state, and federal levels.

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Expanded surveillance gives police greater opportunities to abuse their power and exploit people in poor neighborhoods. Under constant surveillance, every tiny infraction or misdemeanor becomes actionable. And when only some neighborhoods are surveilled, the vulnerability to police intervention is not evenly dispersed; people can jaywalk or litter carefree in one area while those in another cant for fear of ubiquitous police. Lets not forget one of the lessons of Ferguson: Cities too often use mass ticketing as a way to solve municipal budget shortfalls. If a city needs ticket revenue, and only some neighborhoods have mass amounts of surveillance, its safe to assume we know which neighborhood has historically borne the brunt of those citations and will continue to do so.

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Can we really trust police to use this power exclusively to track down suspects related to the most violent offenses? After all, so many surveillance devicesfrom drones to cell-site simulatorshave been introduced as necessary tools in extreme circumstances, only to slowly seep into everyday procedure. Its for this reason that you see the New York City Police Department counterterrorism division monitoring turnstile-hoppers on the subway system.

In short: We advocate weariness against police surveillance because were worried not just about a new COINTELPRO. Were also worried about a digital version of broken-windows policing: a high-tech world where law enforcement can maximize penalties for minor offenses without ultimately making communities significantly safer.

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Cities have already been adding layers upon layers of surveillance to hyperpoliced communities for years, yet gun violence tends to ebb and flow for other reasons: the accessibility of firearms, the underfunding of public programs, a lack of economic opportunity, and other environmental and social factors.

No one wants to live in a community terrorized by gun violence, and the government needs to do more to address it. At some point, we have to ask ourselves: When can we try another solution to this problem that is not policing and surveillance? When 5060 percent of a citys budget goes to policing and there are enough cameras to survey every street, what will the surveillance proponents advocate for next when gun violence still exists?

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There are so many other, more innovative ways that cities can attempt to curb violence in communitiesmethods that have not already been tried over and over again. Increased funding is yielding exciting results for programs focusing on community-based violence-interruption programs. Using a public health approach, these strategies proactively engage with those believed to be most at risk of gun violencerather than wait to retroactively penalize them with surveillance-camera footage.

This new model of safety doesnt involve constant surveillance and the exaggerated digital omnipresence of police. Equating surveillance with safety considers only a fraction of what safety for everyone looks like. You cannot protect people from harm if part of what you offer them is a different kind of harm.
This week, Donald Trump gave his clearest answer to date about whether he would enforce the Comstock Act, a 19th-century obscenity law, as an abortion ban. In truth, Trumps answer was anything but clear: He suggested that specifics remained to be determined, but that he generally wouldnt enforce the Comstock Act against abortion pills, whatever that means. This was played up in mainstream media as Trump rejecting the use of Comstock Act as a de facto national abortion ban. They should not have gone so far.

Trumps statement wasnt actually all that new: Trump has spent the election season giving muddy answers in the hope of keeping anti-abortion voters close without alienating everyone else. But Trumps latest interview has infuriated key anti-abortion supporters, in the process revealing a major mistake made by conservatives in the aftermath of Dobbs. Abortion opponents were so sure of their chances of continuing to win before a conservative Supreme Court that they unveiled a disastrously unpopular Comstock strategy before an election year. As reaction to the CBS interview suggests, conservatives overconfidence might have created a trap that Trump will have trouble getting out of.

The idea for Comstock revival came from Jonathan Mitchell, the former Texas solicitor general, and pastor Mark Lee Dickson, the team behind Texass S.B. 8 bounty law, which allows anyone to sue an abortion provider or someone aiding them for at least $10,000. Mitchell and Dicksons objective was to find a way to bring about an abortion ban that could succeed before the Supreme Courts conservative supermajority, not to win an election.

Thats where the Comstock Act came in. It was clear that Americans didnt want a sweeping national ban on abortion. It seemed improbable that Congress would have a large enough Republican majority to pass one in the near term, or that Republicans would prioritize such a move given how unpopular such bans had become.

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Mitchell and Dickson argued that there was no need for new legislation because the Comstock Act already was a national ban. The two pointed to language in the statute referring to items or information related to items designed, intended, or adapted for abortion, arguing that the Comstock Act made it a crime to mail or receive abortion drugs or paraphernalia. They contended that the law operated as a de facto ban on all abortions because no procedure in the United States takes place without items shipped across state lines by drug or medical supply companies.

Related From Slate Why Kamala Harris Is Succeeding as a Presidential Candidate in a Way Hillary Clinton Never Could Read More

From the beginning, this strategy didnt seem likely to be a political winner. Americans have become more supportive of abortion rights since Dobbs, with support at near-record highs. And as conservatives interpreted Comstock, it was even more extreme than state bans: lacking exceptions for rape, incest, or even the life of the patient, and applying to women and other abortion seekers. Nevertheless, prominent anti-abortion groups embraced it. So did J.D. Vance and a whos who of congressional conservatives. Comstock became a cornerstone of Project 2025. A Comstock claim even figured centrally in the Supreme Courts recent mifepristone case, Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine.

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All of that speaks to the overconfidence of abortion opponents in the wake of Dobbs. The movement recognized that its best path to victory was to rely on the federal courts and the executive branch because voters seemed irrevocably opposed to anti-abortion leaders priorities. And with Trump long leading Joe Biden in the polls, anti-abortion leaders were convinced their candidate would come out ahead. But publicly embracing Comstock because it didnt require voter support might have been a step too far, especially now that Kamala Harris has replaced the unpopular Biden at the top of the Democratic ticket.

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Trumps campaign was well aware that it wouldnt do him any favors to embrace Comstock. At the same time, clearly rejecting a Comstock strategy seemed likely to alienate anti-abortion voters already unsure of Trumps commitment to their cause. Trump tried to thread the needle by avoiding the subject. He went months without saying anything, then promised Time magazine a policy statement on Comstock that never appeared. Most recently, in speaking to CBS, Trump tried the same tactic again. He answered the question but hardly offered any clarity. What does it mean to generally avoid Comstock enforcement? That only some doctors or drug companies or patients would be prosecuted? Which specifics remain to be worked out?

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With Biden at the top of the ticket, Trumps efforts to confuse the electorate seemed to benefit him. But now, it looks like Trump might end up with the worst of all possible outcomes. His latest comments were roundly criticized by anti-abortion leadersincluding some who had defended Trump in the past.

It would be one thing if Trump were winning over swing voters, especially women, by angering anti-abortion conservatives, but its not clear thats whats happening. The gender gapthe difference in the stated voting intentions of male and female votersseems to be at an all-time high. Whatever Trumps potential appeal to swing voters, its likely not his honesty. Given his close ties to the authors of Project 2025, voters may simply not believe his faint-hearted denials about Comstock. At the same time, anti-abortion leaders have grown fed up with what they feel is Trumps cowardice.

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For the moment, abortion opponents overconfidence seems to be helping Kamala Harris. But in the longer term, the effects of Trumps possible backpedaling on Comstock wont be as straightforward. Jonathan Mitchell famously told Lisa Lerer and Elizabeth Dias of the New York Times that he hoped that anti-abortion groups would keep their mouths shut as much as possible until after the election. In some ways, that was the opposite of what happened.

If Trump doesnt winor even if he prevails and doesnt enforce Comstock as strictly as abortion opponents hopethe lesson may well be that Mitchell was right. Publicly detailing plans for Comstock enforcement, like making Project 2025 broadly available, has created an opening for public exposure and criticism.

Since Dobbs, abortion opponents have looked for ways to win without the support of voters. Now, they may be incentivized to hide their plans altogether until well after the election ends.
It could soon negotiate on your behalf.

The Cequence company won first place in the Trend Private category at the 10th annual Fair Sourcing Awards (FSA) during the prestigious eBF2023 conference. (Source: Courtesy of Cequence)

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When Cequence, a Slovak startup from eastern Slovakia, presented its software solution to manage contracts using artificial intelligence some years ago, nobody believed it. The company itself got the feeling that its product was premature. ChatGPT changed this. Not only did the Presov-based startup improve the functionalities of its own software by integrating ChatGPT, the virtual assistants arrival also changed the mindset of potential clients.

People straightaway got the power of artificial intelligence, Martin Ragan, co-founder and Chief Revenue Officer of Cequence, told The Slovak Spectator. We, in turn, quickly realised that these large language models would be a huge asset to the world of contract management.

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Related article Martina Slabejova: Companies will need to adjust to the advent of AI Read more

Now Cequences AI-powered software solution helps companies manage their contracts more efficiently. It streamlines workflows and eliminates human error by automating manual tasks in contract management, as well as taking over the project management part of the agenda. The companys vision is to go further, creating a negotiation assistant.

The future in contract management will be two bots negotiating a contract between two parties. Humans wont actually have to enter this process, only supervise it to ensure that everything is correct, said Ragan.

To achieve their vision, they clinched a strategic partnership with the Numenta company from Silicon Valley, focusing on AI neurocomputing.

When three schoolmates
Set out on a hike to Zochova chata with foreigners or attend the Quasars Ensemble concert in Old Town Hall.

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Music | Nature | Theatre

Music

Quasars Ensemble will perform in the Old Market Hall on August 30, 2024. (Source: Slovenska filharmonia)

Quasars Ensemble concert

Friday, August 30, at 19:00 in Old Market Hall.

Quasars Ensemble is one of the unique professional musical ensembles of its kind in Slovakia. In addition to contemporary classical music, it also devotes itself equally to the music of older eras, and gains international respect for its boldly constructed dramaturgical concepts.

It is unique in the breadth of its repertoire, which consists of contemporary classical music, but also music of the past.

https://sk.frame.mapy.cz/s/lajupepucu

Nature

Illustrative stock photo (Source: Sme)

Saturday hike to Zochova chata

Meeting point: Saturday, August 24, at 8:20 downstairs in Nivy bus station.

This weekend join the hikers for their trip to Zochova chata. They will meet at 8:20 downstairs in Nivy bus station for the 8:33 bus to Kuchyna where they will arrive at 9:33.

They will head west to Zochova chata, taking in several peaks and viewpoints along the way, on a mixture of marked and unmarked trails.

The route is about 12km long with several high points of elevation. Do not forget to bring plenty of water as there will be nowhere to buy any til you get to Zochova chata.

If you would like to go on a hike by yourself, use this map.

https://sk.frame.mapy.cz/s/ranazumufu

Theatre

Theatre Houze

Sunday, August 25, 20:00-21:00 in Sad Janka Krala.

Enjoy theatre evenings in Janko Kral Park! The cycle of events is part of the city-wide festival Bratislava Cultural Summer.

This Sunday you can watch the story of the life journey of folk healer and enlightener Juraj Fandly. Houze Theatre is an independent puppet theatre for children and adults. Suitable for ages 15 and up.

https://sk.frame.mapy.cz/s/bojadomuba

If you have tips for free events in Bratislava or you would like to share your hiking or cycling trip ideas with readers, let me know at kseniia.husieva@spectator.sk.
Rhyma Castillo is a trending reporter for the Express-News and a member of its Digital Go Team. She can be reached at rhyma.castillo@express-news.net.

A native of San Antonio and a Texas A&M University graduate, she is a journalist with nearly a decade of experience. She has reported on politics, immigration, climate change, gun violence, and workers rights. Additionally, she excels in lifestyle and entertainment writing, covering music, television, video games, technology, and relationships.

In her free time, she enjoys painting, drawing, cooking, hiking, climbing, gardening, playing video games, cuddling with her cats, and making music with her band.
Slovak artist gives old hot air balloons a new function.

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In the heart of Bratislava, the historic Old Market Hall (Stara trznica) is once again engaging in a conversation with contemporary art. The latest exhibit features an innovative installation by Slovak photographer and multimedia artist Lousy Auber. Visitors are invited to explore the interior of three interconnected hot air balloons.

The work was created as part of the fourth edition of the Art in the Market Hall event organised in cooperation with the White Night festival.

Bubbles Sun-Fri, until August 30

14:00 - 21:00

Free entrance

It creates an intimate, yet monumental space, said Zuzana Pacakova, exhibition curator and festival organiser. It's an imaginary temple that connects the interior and the exterior.

Auber is known, in addition to his photographic work, for his monumental creations in public space. He often works with recyclable material and looks for ways to use it his creations.

Events Sunday, August 25, 16:00 Bodygame (telohra) for families with children  a dance workshop for adults and children Tuesday, August 27, 17:00 Yoga in Bubbles - pina yoga / ROCKET YOGA with Zuzka. It is necessary to brings yogamat Wednesday, August 28, 19:30 Concert by Dominik Prok (52 hertz whale), who has recently published his album There is no rescue mission, we are safe Friday, August 30, 19:00 Concert by Quasars Ensemble (contemporary classical music)

It came about by using a balloon during a photo shoot or a spin on set, he said in an interview with the Refresher website. We were all excited about the inside of it, so I had the idea to make an installation out of it. The first installation was at White Night with one balloon, there are three in the Old Market Hall. But from the beginning I had even bigger ambitions. The original plan was to hang 10 balloons and make it a kind of balloon town.

Pacakova sees bubbles as symbols of connection, fragility, cooperation and diversity.

This whole installation is about not being afraid to connect our bubbles, said Pacakova. Also, just because were different, it doesnt mean we cant exist together.

The visitors can enter the balloons and examine their interior, even attend events organised inside them, becoming an active part of this art.

Inside Bubbles with a yoga class in the background. (Source: Bubbles/FB)

The feeling of contemplation, harmony and freedom is underscored by the original music composed for this immersive installation by Jonatan Pastircak.

https://en.frame.mapy.cz/s/mojebojuju

Throughout the summer the unconventional environment of the Bubbles creates space for a diverse programme ranging from community initiates, via music and dance performances, workshops, author readings, exhibitions and concerts, to yoga classes.
A failure to effectively enforce penalties is the root of the problem.

A lorry with a tank trailer crashed on Route I/65 in the Turcianske Teplice district on June 14, 2024. (Source: Zilina Regional Police)

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Despite stiff penalties for driving without mandatory car insurance in Slovakia, roughly 9 percent of the countrys vehiclesabout 320,000still roam the roads uninsured. This figure, revealed by the Supreme Audit Office (NKU), dwarfs neighbouring countries like the Czech Republic and Poland, where only 1.6 percent and 1 percent of cars, respectively, are uninsured.

The reason, according to insurance companies, lies in Slovakias lax enforcement of penalties, writes Index magazine. While fines ranging from 16.60 to 3,320 are theoretically in place, many drivers see little consequence for failing to comply. Initiatives to address this problem, driven by the National Bank of Slovakia and the Slovak Insurers Bureau (SKP), have repeatedly stalled due to a lack of political backing.

The Interior Ministry acknowledges the flaws in the system and says reform efforts are underway.

We are closely working with the Finance Ministry and consulting models from other countries, such as the Czech Republic, a ministry spokesperson said.

Learning from the Czechs

The Czech Republics approach has been lauded as an effective deterrent.

There, uninsured drivers face a daily fine based on the engine size of their vehicle. For instance, an uninsured Skoda Fabia owner would incur a fine of 35 Czech korunas (about 1.40) a day, which accumulates to 507 over a year. Meanwhile, the average annual insurance premium for the same car in the Czech Republic is only 135, creating a financial incentive to comply with the law.

These fines are funnelled into a guarantee fund used to compensate victims of accidents caused by uninsured vehicles.

If a driver ignores repeated fines, the Czech Insurers Bureau escalates the matter to court, leading to additional costs and ensuring compliance.

Legislative roadblocks

Efforts to replicate the Czech model in Slovakia hit a wall during the last parliamentary term. Legislators from the OLaNO party proposed a bill inspired by the Czech system, which included a grace period allowing uninsured drivers to either purchase insurance, or deregister their vehicle without penalty after six months.

The bill also sought to channel fines into Slovakias guarantee fund. The guarantee fund is currently financed by the countrys insurance companies. In 2023, insurers contributed 10 million to the fund. However, this model is unsustainable in the long term, according to the Slovak Insurers Bureau, which cites the growing cost of damage compensation each year.

Yet, the proposed reforms were sidelined in a crowded legislative agenda just before the 2023 parliamentary elections. As a result, Slovakia continues to struggle with weak enforcement, while uninsured vehicles remain a persistent problem.

Gaps in enforcement

The sheer volume of uninsured vehicles reported to district officesover 300,000 each yearfar outstrips the number of penalties issued. Only about 5,000 to 6,000 fines are imposed annually, with the average fine coming out to a modest 110. Of the 3.8 million in fines handed out over the last five years, less than half has been collected.

Compounding the issue is the outdated method used to track uninsured vehicles. Incredibly, the Slovak Insurers Bureau still delivers lists of uninsured cars to district offices on CDs due to the country lacking an online information system.

The mandatory car insurance system has stalled in time and it's so absurd that it can demotivate responsible, paying drivers, the NKU commented in a recent report.

The problems are exacerbated by under-resourced district offices. In Bratislava, for instance, a single official was tasked with processing more than 300,000 cases over six years, while in smaller districts like Nove Mesto nad Vahom, western Slovakia, the caseload amounted to just 42,000 in the same period. According to the Supreme Audit Office, more than 20 district offices in Slovakia do not address fines for uninsured drivers at all due to a lack of personnel.

It's up to the decision of the official which case will be processed and what financial penalty will be imposed on the offender, the NKU also notes in the report.

Reform in sight?

The Interior Ministry says it is working on a plan to digitise and automate the process, but details are scant.

We are committed to modernising the system, the ministry has assured, though no timeline has been given for when improvements might be implemented.

Adding to the complexity is the lack of a standardised fine structure. This allows for wide variations in penalties, with some officials imposing fines as low as 32.76 in Kosice, while in Presov, fines often exceed 221.

The cost of inaction is steep. The NKU, which reviewed 28 district offices, estimates that if the government had pursued all reported cases of uninsured drivers, the state could have collected an additional 100 million in revenue over the past six years.
Chmelar attributes his dismissal to his criticism of ultra-conservative figures within Ficos government.

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Eduard Chmelar, a former critic of Slovak Prime Minister and Smer party leader Robert Fico, was abruptly dismissed from his role as Ficos political adviser on Wednesday evening.

I was prepared for this outcome, Chmelar, a combative intellectual with pro-Russian views who identifies himself as a socialist, wrote in a statement on social media.

The reason for his dismissal, Chmelar claims, stems from his outspoken criticism of Stefan Kuffa, Slovakias ultra-conservative deputy environment minister, who gained his position through the far-right Slovak National Party (SNS). Chmelar recently called Kuffa an aggressive religious fanatic after the deputy minister disrupted a theatre performance in eastern Slovakia, likening his image to that of Freddy Krueger, a horror film character. Kuffa, known for his vocal opposition to the LGBT+ community, has also called for Jesus to be recognised as the king of Slovakia.

Chmelar framed his dismissal by the prime minister as follows, Its a choice between religious fanatics and political extremists dictating government policy, or standing with the ideological heirs of the Slovak National Uprising, he remarked, referencing the anti-Nazi resistance movement. Theyve made their choice.

Some observers suggest that the firing of Chmelar indicates Ficos willingness to make significant sacrifices to maintain his fragile parliamentary majority and appease his smallest coalition partner, SNS, at any cost.

Chmelars criticism

Chmelars firing followed a public spat on Facebook with Tomas Taraba, Slovakias ultra-conservative environment minister, who also ascended to power under the Slovak National Party. Chmelar had denounced Taraba as a liar and a fascist, a response to Taraba labelling him a failed frustrated politician and progressive liberal. Taraba, who defended Kuffa under Chmelars critical Facebook post, and Kuffa, previously ran on the ticket of the far-right LSNS party in the 2020 parliamentary elections.

In a twist of irony, Chmelar had just a year earlier defended Taraba when he was considered for a ministerial post in the Culture Ministry, though Chmelar had acknowledged their disagreements. Now, he describes his dismissal as having been handled without respect. He claims that Fico did not inform him directly, leaving it instead to an intermediary, Smer MEP and Ficos chief adviser Erik Kalinak, to deliver the news.

Chmelar also pointed to growing pressure from the Slovak National Party, which he says began pushing for his ousting late last yearthough the party denies any involvement.

Eduard Chmelar is of no interest to us, the party said in a statement on Thursday.

Chmelar countered that if the party continues to lie about him, he will reveal the truth about the partys inner workings.

Chmelars influence on social media

Though no longer working as Ficos adviser, Chmelars influence on social media remains significant. With nearly 90,000 followers on Facebook and regular posts that gain substantial traction, he retains a platform that could cause headaches for the coalition. Tomas Krissak, an analyst at Gerulata, noted that Chmelars Facebook page consistently ranks among the top 20 most influential political accounts in Slovakia. Last year alone, Chmelars posts attracted 1.8 million interactions.

Yet his digital footprint remains smaller than that of Fico or Taraba. Earlier this year, the Facebook page Dezinformacie Hoaxy Propaganda reminded the public of Chmelars earlier critiques of Fico. In 2019, Chmelar even filed a criminal complaint against Fico after he defended Milan Mazurek, a far-right lawmaker convicted of anti-Roma statements. At the time, Fico himself faced accusations related to the case.

Despite his past hostility toward Fico, Chmelar transitioned into an advisory role last year, first counselling Smer MP Juraj Blanar, todays foreign minister, before moving into Ficos inner circle. Chmelar explained that his motivations for assisting Fico were rooted in a desire to ensure Slovakia remained a peaceful state.

I convinced and influenced many people who would never have voted for Smer under normal circumstances, Chmelar said, describing his decision to join Ficos orbit. Peace is my most sacred value, and no one else was willing to cultivate it.

Disillusioned Chmelar

But Chmelar grew disillusioned. He was particularly angered by Slovakias continued commercial arms shipments to Ukraine, despite Ficos pre-election promises to halt military aid. According to Chmelar, Fico dismissed his proposal for a Ukraine peace summit in Bratislava as futile.

I wont engage in battles that are lost before they even begin, Fico allegedly told him.

As he departs from Ficos administration, Chmelar offered a final assessment of the man he once criticised. Though many compare Fico to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Chmelar argues that the similarities are superficial.

Fico talks like Orban, but doesnt act like him, Chmelar said.
Max Verstappen says he's closer to the end of his F1 career than the start

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands arrives for a press conference prior to the Formula One Dutch Grand Prix auto race, at the Zandvoort racetrack, Netherlands, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

ZANDVOORT, Netherlands (AP)  Heading into his 200th career Formula 1 race, Max Verstappen is clear he doesn't want to stick around for No. 400.

At the age of 26, Verstappen is the youngest F1 driver to reach the 200-race milestone, and he's doing it in front of his home crowd at the Dutch Grand Prix on Sunday.

No, Verstappen said bluntly, when asked Thursday if he could imagine another 200 F1 races  equivalent to just over eight more seasons  in his future.

So we passed halfway for sure, but its been already of course an incredible ride, he added. It doesnt feel like 200, but of course were doing a lot of races now in a year, so you add them quite quickly.

No driver has yet reached 400 races in F1, though Aston Martin's 43-year-old Fernando Alonso is set to mark his 395th race weekend at the Dutch Grand Prix.

Three-time defending champion Verstappen has a contract with Red Bull through 2028 and isn't about to retire any time soon, but he seems unwilling to follow the example of Lewis Hamilton, who will turn 40 next year as he switches from Mercedes to Ferrari and is heading into his 347th race on Sunday.

One factor for Verstappen that could sway an eventual decision is the detail of the new F1 regulations being introduced for 2026.

"Of course, 28 is still very far away, he said. Im not thinking about a new contract at the moment. I just want to see how it goes, also see the new regulations first, you know, if its fun or not. And then even in 26, 27, theres a lot of time to decide what happens. So I just keep everything open. But yeah, Im quite easygoing about it.

Verstappen has been in F1 since making his debut at the record age of just 17 in 2015 with Red Bull's junior team Toro Rosso. A keen online racer, Verstappen said he'd be interested in trying other real-life race series, as long as they're less demanding than F1's record 24-race schedule

Once I stop in Formula 1, I would like to do other stuff a bit more, he said. "Relaxed, less races in general, but with relaxed I mean that you have also a bit more (time at) home, because I know that once I compete in something, of course I want to be good. I want to win. But lets see what opportunities will come by."

___

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240821/americans-tied-to-russian-state-news-could-face-criminal-charges-more-searches---reports-1119867873.html

Americans Tied to Russian State News Could Face Criminal Charges, More Searches - Reports

Americans Tied to Russian State News Could Face Criminal Charges, More Searches - Reports

Sputnik International

The US Justice Department could conduct more searches and even bring criminal charges against Americans who have worked with Russian state television networks, The New York Times reported.

2024-08-21T23:02+0000

2024-08-21T23:02+0000

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Earlier this month, FBI agents conducted searches at the homes of former UN weapons inspector Scott Ritter and journalist Dimitri Simes. However, prosecutors have not revealed any criminal charges against the two men. Investigators are expected to conduct more searches soon and prosecutors could also bring criminal charges, the report said. The Biden administration has alleged that Russian state news organizations are working with the countrys intelligence agencies to influence elections worldwide. The investigations have focused on possible violations of the sanctions regime imposed on Russia and a law mandating the disclosure of foreign government lobbying efforts, the report said. Ritter said that he believes the search of his home was an "act of intimidation" triggered by his cooperation with Russian news organizations like Sputnik and RT. Ritter said that he has not committed any crimes and denied accusations that he is acting as a foreign agent. Ritter told Sputnik that his passport was likely confiscated by authorities in connection with the FBI investigation. Simes told Sputnik that he was not notified in advance of the search of his property and that he has not been in the United States since October 2022. Consequently, there is nothing at the property related to his current life and activities, he said. Simes also said that the US government is possibly attempting to dissuade him from coming back to the United States and block any attempt to have a Russian-American dialogue.The New York Times, however, acknowledged that such an investigation targeting US citizens could "bump up against the First Amendments protection of rights to free speech."The Department of Justice refused to comment on the reports about the investigation.We will decline to comment, the Department said.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240816/scott-ritter-biden-administration-declaring-war-on-journalism-1119794435.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240816/dimitri-k-simes-they-wanted-to-block-any-attempt-to-have-a-russian-american-dialogue-1119796256.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240821/chicago-police-fbi-probe-possible-intentional-maggot-contamination-at-dnc-breakfast---reports-1119868405.html

Chicago Police, FBI Probe Possible Intentional Maggot Contamination At DNC Breakfast - Reports

Chicago Police, FBI Probe Possible Intentional Maggot Contamination At DNC Breakfast - Reports

Sputnik International

The Chicago Police and FBI are investigating if maggots were intentionally placed in the food served to delegates at the Democratic National Convention breakfast.

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According to the report on Wednesday, unknown female offenders entered the building, placed unidentified objects onto tables with food, and then left the scene. Furthermore, multiple law enforcement sources indicated that maggots were allegedly brought into the hotel by activists aiming to send a message, the report read. The report added that it remains unclear whether the contamination was identified before any delegates consumed the food. The US Democratic Party is holding its national convention from August 19-22 in Chicago to rally support behind their 2024 ticket of US Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240821/protesters-must-confront-the-empire---including-in-ukraine--china---to-free-palestine-1119868041.html

Protesters Must Confront the Empire - Including in Ukraine & China - to Free Palestine

Protesters Must Confront the Empire - Including in Ukraine & China - to Free Palestine

Sputnik International

In order to achieve a truly free Palestine, protesters will need to confront the American Empire in all of its theaters, including Ukraine and China.

2024-08-21T23:15+0000

2024-08-21T23:15+0000

2024-08-21T23:15+0000

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The anti-genocide protests that are disrupting the Democratic Convention in Chicago, have occupied college campuses, and continue to attract large crowds in the United States biggest cities have been, understandably, focused on the ongoing genocide and not on the other wars and provocations that the United States is involved in.That seemingly makes tactical sense from the protesters perspective. The genocide in Gaza is significantly less popular than the NATO proxy war in Ukraine. And Taiwan, despite the ever-increasing tensions in the area, is not a significant concern for most people at all, because there isnt any active fighting going on. So it would make sense to focus on the conflict that is the most unifying and has the most attention.But this is a mistake. Morally, the proxy war in Ukraine should horrify any anti-war activist. Men young and old are being forcibly grabbed off the street to die in a conflict that the United States knows is already lost.The dead dont include nearly as many women and children, but these are human lives being snuffed out and in numbers even higher than in Gaza.The war is continuing only to prevent Washington from admitting defeat before they're ready and to kill as many Russians as possible. If Gaza is the most immoral action the American Empire is engaged in, then Ukraine is undoubtedly the second.Like Gaza, Ukraine also has the possibility of escalating into World War III, but the NATO proxy war is a direct confrontation with the worlds largest nuclear power. Gaza is among the most dangerous things the empire is doing, but Ukraine is undoubtedly the first. Taiwan, likewise, has the potential to end civilization as we know it, all for an island less than a hundred miles off the coast of mainland China.The US has been arming Taiwan to the teeth and building up [its] military base network, including in the Pacific Islands, for a potential war with China, and that would be a devastating war, Kuzmarov continued. Theyre threatening three major [wars] at a time when theres huge problems domestically, where theres armies of homeless in American cities, where the education system is in crisis.In March, US President Joe Biden approved a new strategic plan that includes preparations for a simultaneous nuclear war with Russia, China and North Korea. This is where the war in Ukraine and the United States provocations of China has led us.I think it's a recognition of how much the aggressive US policy of primacy and hegemony and poking all of these countries in their own backyards has led to them acting enough together in strategic military partnerships that the US feels it would be necessary, if a nuclear war breaks out, to engage with all three of them, international relations and security analyst Mark Sleboda told the Sputniks The Critical Hour. That is something I believe that the US has very much provoked.Even if the protests are successful in obtaining a ceasefire or even an arms embargo on Israel, without confronting the empire, those victories will be temporary even if we ignore that a nuclear war will make everything else a moot point. If the goal is to end US support of Israel indefinitely, establish a Palestinian state and prevent the US from funding genocide again, then confronting the empire the entirety of the empire is critical.This is the same military apparatus that gave Saddam Hussein, Osama Bin Laden and Ngo inh Diem weapons and later killed them. It is the same military apparatus that funded a 34-year genocide in Guatemala and supported apartheid in South Africa until the very end. If a ceasefire is achieved, who doubts that the United States government will continue to support Israel for as long as it exists? Who doubts that the United States will be first in line to assist the Israelis in their relocation efforts of the Palestinian people?There are a lot of young people on the streets in support of Gaza. More than that, there are a lot of people who are realizing for the first time what their government is truly capable of. Many seem to still be operating under the belief that Gaza is a black mark on American history and not what it is: a continuation of what the empire has always done. There are also a lot of old heads out there. Those who became aware of what America really is when they saw Vietnam, South Africa, Grenada, Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Iraq, or a litany of other countries. They should know better and should start talking about it before this protest movement dissipates like the Vietnam protests did: before getting any real reforms other than an end to one particular conflict among many.The protesters have to put all this together. And we need a vast social movement for a change in the US government away from warfare and toward a government that works for its people," Kuzmarov concluded.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240820/calls-for-end-to-israel-aid--peace-in-gaza-as-protests-grip-chicago-dnc-venue-1119839375.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240822/biden-harris-have-no-strategy-for-ukraine-trump-does---congressman-1119869779.html

Biden, Harris Have No Strategy for Ukraine, Trump Does - Congressman

Biden, Harris Have No Strategy for Ukraine, Trump Does - Congressman

Sputnik International

The administration of US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris do not have strategy for Ukraine, but Republican nominee Donald Trump does, said US Congressman Michael Waltz on Wednesday.

2024-08-22T02:50+0000

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2024-08-22T03:44+0000

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"We have yet, and I have asked publicly, privately and even in classified settings to really get a strategy out of this administration. And I think its been a real shortcoming," Waltz said, speaking about the current administration's lack of a strategy for Ukraine.In contrast, US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump does have a strategy to urge Russia and Ukraine to sit down to the negotiating table to end the Ukrainian conflict.It is rare for a Republican congressman to attend the Democratic National Convention. On his Instagram* page, Waltz joked that "Green Berets go behind enemy lines." Waltz is a Retired colonel in the US National Guard and served in combat as a member of the US Army Special Forces, colloquially known as the "Green Berets."The Kyiv Independent, citing a source close to Volodymyr Zelensky, reported Wednesday that the Ukrainian authorities want to prepare the ground this fall for potential peace talks with Russia.Russia has been conducting a special military operation in Ukraine since February 24, 2022. President Vladimir Putin has said the operation aims to "protect people subjected to genocide by the Kiev regime for eight years." According to the president, the ultimate goal of the operation is to liberate Donbas and create conditions that guarantee Russia's security.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240821/protesters-must-confront-the-empire---including-in-ukraine--china---to-free-palestine-1119868041.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240819/russian-foreign-ministry-tells-turkish-ambassador-talks-with-kiev-impossible-now-1119834304.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240822/israel-envoy-to-un-insults-palestine-representative-calling-him-terrorist-in-a-suit-1119875699.html

Israel Envoy to UN Insults Palestine Representative, Calling Him Terrorist in a Suit

Israel Envoy to UN Insults Palestine Representative, Calling Him Terrorist in a Suit

Sputnik International

Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon on Thursday insulted Permanent Observer Mission of Palestine to the United Nations envoy Riyad Mansour, calling him "a terrorist in a suit."

2024-08-22T17:41+0000

2024-08-22T17:41+0000

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"I want to clarify an important point and demand an answer with Mansour: 'Who do you represent here today?,' Danon said during a meeting of the UN Security Council. "Mr. Mansour, if you cannot condemn them [the Palestinian movement Hamas], you are one of them. You do not represent the Palestinian people. Mr. Mansour, you are a terrorist in a suit." Danon also said that he demands that Mansour condemn Hamas. On October 7, 2023, Hamas attacked Israel fro the Gaza Strip, killing more than 1,100 Israeli military and civilians. Israel's IDF launched Operation Iron Swords in Gaza and announced a complete blockade of the Palestinian enclave. The enclave's health ministry says that the Palestinian death toll from Israel's military operations since October 7 has exceeded 40,000.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240815/death-toll-from-israeli-strikes-on-gaza-strip-exceeds-40000---gaza-health-ministry-1119778667.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240822/israel-strikes-another-school-in-gaza-killing-four-injuring-children-1119869389.html

Israel Strikes Another School in Gaza, Killing Four, Injuring Children

Israel Strikes Another School in Gaza, Killing Four, Injuring Children

Sputnik International

The Israeli air force conducted an airstrike on a school building in Gaza, with the Israel Defense Forces claiming Hamas was operating inside.

2024-08-22T01:49+0000

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"The IAF conducted a precise strike on Hamas terrorists who were operating inside a command and control center. The command and control center was located inside a compound that previously served as the Salah al-Din School in Gaza City. Hamas operatives used the compound as a hideout and a base to plan and execute attacks against IDF troops and the State of Israel," the IDF said on Telegram on Wednesday. The Gaza Civil Defence agency said that at least four people were killed and another 18 were wounded. Spokesman Mahmud Bassal told the AFP news agency that 10 children were among the injured. The Israeli military claimed that it took the necessary measures to reduce risks to the civilian population. Israel has targeted more than 500 schools since it started its offensive in Gaza in October. It has repeatedly alleged that Hamas is using the schools as command centers but has provided scant evidence to back their claims. Hamas has denied that it operates inside of schools.Video posted on social media appears to show civilians, including women and children, fleeing the school after it was targeted. On Tuesday, the Palestinian Civil Defense said that at least 12 people were killed as a result of Israels airstrike on a school building in the western part of Gaza city. On Wednesday, Belgium condemned the recent attacks on schools inside Gaza.On October 7, 2023, Israel was subjected to an unprecedented rocket attack from the Gaza Strip. In addition, Hamas fighters infiltrated the border areas, opened fire on the military and civilians and took hostages. Israeli authorities say that about 1,200 people were killed during the raid. The IDF launched Operation Iron Swords in the Gaza Strip and announced a complete blockade of the enclave. The enclave's health ministry says that the death toll from Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip since October 7 has exceeded 40,000. In July, The Lancet Medical Journal estimated that the true death toll is likely exceeded 186,000.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240810/at-least-100-killed-dozens-injured-in-israeli-strike-on-gaza-city-school---reports-1119702578.html

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Lower spring flow in Comal Springs was one of the factors leading the Edwards Aquifer Authority to declare Stage 4 water use restrictions on Thursday. William Luther/Staff photographer

Amid worsening drought conditions, the Edwards Aquifer Authority said Thursday that it is again tightening restrictions on pumping water from the Edwards Aquifer.

Pointing to declining aquifer conditions that include lower water levels and slower spring flows, the authority said it is moving from Stage 3 to Stage 4 restrictions.

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The move to Stage 4 means permit holders have to cut back on the amount of water they can take from the aquifer. Under Stage 4 conditions, permit holders must cut their pumping to 60% of their normal allocations. The return to Stage 4 restrictions comes less than a month after the authority eased restrictions to Stage 3 on July 26, following a series of rain showers that improved local drought conditions.

The aquifer authority manages how much water is pumped from the Edwards Aquifer, a limestone cavern system that spans more than 3,000 miles and provides water for more than 2 million people. It is the source of about half the water supply for the San Antonio Water System.

The authority said Thursday that the heightened restrictions were prompted by water flow levels at Comal Springs in New Braunfels and the water level in one of the aquifers key index wells.

Stage 4 restrictions are triggered when the 10-day rolling average at Comal Springs falls below 100 cubic feet per second. That has dropped to 99 cfs, the authority said Thursday. The water level at the J-17 index well in Bexar County has a 10-day rolling average of 629.7 feet, the authority said. The Stage 4 trigger is a 10-day average of below 630 feet.

The pumping restrictions apply only to permitted users of the aquifer, such as cities, water utilities and farmers with their own aquifer wells. That means the restrictions are separate from any regulations by utilities and other water providers, which set their own rules to comply with the authoritys limits.

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For San Antonio Water System customers, the aquifer authoritys move to Stage 4 wont lead to any immediate changes. SAWS is already in Stage 3 restrictions, and a move to Stage 4 would have to be declared by the city manager. That could happen if the total supply of water from the Edwards Aquifer and other sources is insufficient to meet customer demand, even while complying with lesser restriction stages, according to the SAWS website.
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240822/netanyahu-rejects-reports-israel-is-allegedly-ready-to-leave-gaza-egypt-border-1119870166.html

Netanyahu Rejects Reports Israel Is Allegedly Ready to Leave Gaza-Egypt Border

Netanyahu Rejects Reports Israel Is Allegedly Ready to Leave Gaza-Egypt Border

Sputnik International

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office denied reports in Israeli media that the Israel Defense Forces would be prepared to leave the Philadelphi Corridor in the next stages of ceasefire talks with Hamas.

2024-08-22T03:42+0000

2024-08-22T03:42+0000

2024-08-22T03:42+0000

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benjamin netanyahu

americans

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israel

hamas

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On Wednesday, Kan reported that Israel was willing to withdraw its Armed Forces from the Philadelphi Corridor in the second stage of a potential ceasefire deal in Gaza in exchange for the release of hostages. Mediators from the United States, Qatar and Egypt are actively trying to bring the conflicting parties to an agreement. "The report by Kan 11, according to which Prime Minister Netanyahu agreed that Israel will leave the Philadelphia axis, is untrue. Israel will insist on achieving all the war goals defined by the cabinet, including the goal that the Gaza Strip will no longer pose a threat to Israel's security. And this, in turn, dictates the need to close the southern border," the report says.Hamas has said it will not accept an occupation of the Philadelphi Corridor or the Netzarim Corridor, which splits the southern and northern areas of Gaza. Egypt, which is both a mediator and an affected party because of its shared border with Gaza, said the proposal is unacceptable to them as well."The Americans are offering promises, not guarantees," he said.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240819/blinken-says-netanyahu-accepted-bridging-proposal-on-gaza-ceasefire-1119831693.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240822/new-russian-residency-law-helps-westerners-escape-posthuman-globalist-madness-1119870875.html

New Russian Residency Law Helps Westerners Escape Posthuman Globalist Madness

New Russian Residency Law Helps Westerners Escape Posthuman Globalist Madness

Sputnik International

Russia has rejected globalism and now serves as a safe haven for Westerners who are feeling oppressed by neoliberal destructive ideas in their homeland, US journalist Timothy Kirby told Sputnik.

2024-08-22T10:24+0000

2024-08-22T10:24+0000

2024-08-22T10:24+0000

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President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on August 19 providing foreigners who share Russia's spiritual and moral values, and who seek to escape the West's destructive neoliberal ideals, with a temporary residence permit in Russia.Under the new law, the temporary residence permit would be granted outside the quota approved by the Russian government, and without the need for confirmation of the applicants' knowledge of the Russian language, Russian history, and basic laws. However, they would have to submit a written statement, stating reasons for moving, to their local Russian diplomatic mission or consular office.In addition, Putin has instructed the Russian Foreign Ministry to draw up a list of states imposing destructive neoliberal values.Another Western theory says that patriarchy is designed to "repress women for some reason, even though women aren't particularly repressed," he continued.Kirby emigrated from the US to Russia in 2006 and calls himself "an advocate for life in Russia" for those who oppose a "satanic new wave" of ideas which are "very popular among the Western elite, but absolutely disgusting to the rest of humanity."Conservative Westerners have been relocating to Russia for quite a while. Speaking to Sputnik last year, Father Joseph Gleason, an American-born Orthodox priest, had expressed hopes that moving to Russia could be simplified for family-oriented, hard-working Christian immigrants. Gleason moved to Russia with his wife and eight children in 2017 to escape the Western aggressive neoliberal agenda. Since then, he has been assisting other conservatives to settle in the country.Earlier this month, Irina Volk, the official representative of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, announced that another American Christian family is seeking shelter in Russia. Leo and Chantelle Hare and their three children decided to move to Russia as traditional, moral and family values are increasingly under attack in the US.In the future, the Hares plan to obtain Russian citizenship. The couple understands that the level of education and security is higher in Russia, and that the state protects traditional values and provides support to large families, stated Volk while speaking to the press.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240222/land-of-churches-and-vast-grasslands-why-are-westerners-moving-to-russia-1116922240.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20211022/why-putins-conservatism-of-optimists-approach-resonating-with-traditionalists-in-us-and-eu-1090128178.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20170511/russia-orthodox-christians-europe-poll-1053520863.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240822/people-in-east-germany-wants-to-see-changes-in-berlins-foreign-policy---politician-1119871099.html

People in East Germany Want to See Changes in Berlin's Foreign Policy - Politician

People in East Germany Want to See Changes in Berlin's Foreign Policy - Politician

Sputnik International

People in the east of Germany want a change in the country's foreign policy, as they are scared of being drawn into a major European conflict, prominent left-wing politician Sahra Wagenknecht said on Thursday.

2024-08-22T07:14+0000

2024-08-22T07:14+0000

2024-08-22T12:51+0000

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Wagenknecht opposes supplies of weapons to Ukraine and sanctions against Russia. "People in the east [of Germany] want a change in foreign policy  they are scared of being dragged into a major European war," the politician told the Financial Times in an interview, adding that she reflects voters wishes. A recent Forsa Institute poll showed that around two thirds of respondents from East Germany are opposed to the deployment of missiles in Eastern Europe. At the national level, almost half of the population also opposes this idea.

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people in the east of germany want a change in the country's foreign policy, as they are scared of being drawn into a major european conflict, prominent left-wing politician sahra wagenknecht said on thursday.
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240822/photos-russias-pacific-fleet-conducts-sea-and-shore-drills-1119873759.html

Photos: Russia's Pacific Fleet Conducts Sea and Shore Drills

Photos: Russia's Pacific Fleet Conducts Sea and Shore Drills

Sputnik International

On August 20-22, Russias Pacific Fleet held comprehensive drills demonstrating special exercises, covering different types of Navy support, including logistics, engineering, search and rescue efforts, as well as psychological support.

2024-08-22T15:45+0000

2024-08-22T15:45+0000

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multimedia

photo

russia

russian navy

russian pacific fleet

naval exercises

naval drills

primorsky territory

primorsky region

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Key drills were held simultaneously in the waters of several bays in Russias Primorsky region, which hosts a number of Pacific Fleet facilities. The highlight of the naval exercises was the simulated repulsion of an attack by an "enemy" uncrewed boat, during which one of the Russian ships reportedly sustained damage, as per the drill's scenario. The Russian hospital ship Irtysh was deployed to the site to address the consequences of the impact and to evacuate the wounded. Check out Sputnik's exclusive gallery for more details!

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240822/switzerlands-udc-party-accuses-government-of-undermining-countrys-neutrality-1119869903.html

Switzerland's UDC Party Accuses Government of Undermining Country's Neutrality

Switzerland's UDC Party Accuses Government of Undermining Country's Neutrality

Sputnik International

The Democratic Union of the Centre (UDC), the largest party in the Swiss parliament, accused President Viola Amherd of undermining the country's neutrality and sovereignty by joining the EU's Military Mobility project.

2024-08-22T03:08+0000

2024-08-22T03:08+0000

2024-08-22T03:08+0000

ukraine

switzerland

europe

georgia

european union (eu)

nato

eu permanent structured cooperation (pesco)

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On Wednesday, the Swiss government said that it intends to join the EU's Military Mobility project, which aims to facilitate the movement of troops and military equipment across European territory. The UDC also accused the European Union of pursuing an expansionist policy in Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova. "The goals of Switzerland as a neutral and sovereign state do not coincide at all with the goals of the EU. Especially since the EU considers itself a geopolitical player and pursues an obvious expansionist policy towards Ukraine, Georgia and the Republic of Moldova," the party added.Switzerland is not a member of the European Union or NATO. However, the Swiss Foreign Ministry's 2022 foreign policy report announced the country's intention to strengthen security cooperation with the alliance. In 2024 the Swiss military are expected to take part in 20 military drills beyond the country's territory and in four drills within its soil, all of which involve NATO states.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240411/switzerlands-largest-party-calls-for-return-to-neutrality-in-all-conflicts---statement-1117873337.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240822/top-qatari-diplomat-will-visit-iran-to-discuss-bilateral-ties-regional-issues---reports-1119875860.html

Top Qatari Diplomat Will Visit Iran to Discuss Bilateral Ties, Regional Issues - Reports

Top Qatari Diplomat Will Visit Iran to Discuss Bilateral Ties, Regional Issues - Reports

Sputnik International

Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani will visit Tehran in the upcoming days to conduct a series of negotiations with senior Iranian officials, Iranian news agency Tasnim reported on Thursday.

2024-08-22T17:52+0000

2024-08-22T17:52+0000

2024-08-22T17:52+0000

world

sheikh mohammed bin abdulrahman bin jassim al-thani

middle east

abbas araghchi

joe biden

iran

tehran

doha

un security council (unsc)

hamas

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In the course of the visit, Al-Thani is expected to hold talks with Iran's newly-appointed foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, the agency said. The parties will reportedly discuss the relations between Doha and Tehran, also touching upon key regional issues. Last week, Doha hosted Gaza ceasefire talks involving Qatar, Egypt, the United States and Israel. Palestinian movement Hamas refused to attend, citing the lack of specifics on the terms of the truce. After the talks, the US, Egypt and Qatar said in a joint statement that their mediators had presented to both parties a bridging proposal on a ceasefire and the release of hostages based on the relevant UN Security Council resolution and the principles laid out by US President Joe Biden in May.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240821/iran-shuts-down-german-soft-power-tool-institute-in-tehran-in-apparent-tit-for-tat-move-1119864110.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240822/trump-says-us-would-turn-into-big-version-of-unlivable-san-francisco-if-harris-wins-1119873913.html

Trump Says US Would Turn Into Big Version of Unlivable San Francisco if Harris Wins

Trump Says US Would Turn Into Big Version of Unlivable San Francisco if Harris Wins

Sputnik International

Former President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States will turn into a "big version of San Francisco," which he called an "unlivable" and crime-ridden city, if Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris wins the November election this year.

2024-08-22T13:02+0000

2024-08-22T13:02+0000

2024-08-22T13:02+0000

americas

us

donald trump

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"Everything she touched turned bad. California turned bad, San Francisco  you cant walk in San Francisco, you barely can go to California anymore. People say in state that it is in terrible terrible crime trouble  and drugs all over the place, you cannot walk down the streets," Trump told Fox News. Trump pinned the blame on Governor Gavin Newsom but "more" on Harris, who served as District Attorney of San Francisco, Attorney General of California and then senator for the state. If Harris becomes the president, "this country would turn into a big version of San Francisco, a big version of California itself," Trump stated.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240822/biden-harris-have-no-strategy-for-ukraine-trump-does---congressman-1119869779.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240822/us-air-force-pays-northrop-100mln-extra-to-complete-2-polar-satellites---pentagon-1119869206.html

US Air Force Pays Northrop $100Mln Extra to Complete 2 Polar Satellites - Pentagon

US Air Force Pays Northrop $100Mln Extra to Complete 2 Polar Satellites - Pentagon

Sputnik International

The United States Air Force has extended the contract with Northrop Grumman to build two High Earth Orbit polar reconnaissance satellites by almost $100 million, bringing the total cost to over $2.3 billion.

2024-08-22T00:51+0000

2024-08-22T00:51+0000

2024-08-22T00:51+0000

military

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"Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation, Space Systems Division [in] Redondo Beach, California, was awarded a $97,348,304 contract modification ...for Next Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared Polar Space Vehicles 1 and 2," the release stated on Wednesday. The contract extension will provide the additional scope to complete the design, building, integration, and testing of the two satellites, the Defense Department explained. "The modification brings the total cumulative face value of the contract to $2,301,726,852," the release said. According to Northrop Grumman's website, the satellites operate in "highly elliptical orbits" and represent the next generation of missile warning systems. The website notes that the northern polar region "is the shortest route for a missile to travel towards the United States" and is difficult to monitor from space. Northrop Grumman also toutes their "new resiliency features to stay in the fight in contested scenarios." Work on the satellites will be performed in Redondo Beach, and Azusa, California over the next two years and is expected to be completed by July 25, 2026, the Defense Department said.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240819/strengthening-russias-northern-fleet-capabilities-is-priority-in-arctic---kremlin-aide-1119828683.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240822/us-mercenary-commander-points-to-lack-of-discipline-among-ukrainian-army-1119869564.html

US Mercenary Commander Points to Lack of Discipline Among Ukrainian Army

US Mercenary Commander Points to Lack of Discipline Among Ukrainian Army

Sputnik International

The commander of a foreign mercenary group operating in Ukraine took to social media to complain about the lack of discipline among the Ukrainian army.

2024-08-22T02:28+0000

2024-08-22T02:28+0000

2024-08-22T02:28+0000

russia's special operation in ukraine

russia

donetsk

ukraine

mercenaries

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"I've been fighting here in Ukraine for over two years now, and the only thing that's stayed consistent is the failure at command on multiple levels when it comes to defense in depth, troop organization in regards to building defenses, and discipline on work to get it done," Ryan O'Leary, who is the commander of the Chosen Company, a foreign mercenary group fighting in the conflict zone, wrote in a recent post on X. According to the group's official website, the Chosen Company was raised and organized in collaboration with the Ukrainian armed forces. It is the unit of foreigners attached to the 59th Brigade of the Ukrainian army. The group said it had people of 31 different nationalities. O'Learys team came under heavy scrutiny after a story from The New York Times in July alleged that members of the Chosen Company executed Russian soldiers who had already surrendered. O'Leary denied the accusations in an interview published on YouTube, in response to The New York Times story. Nevertheless, the commander of the foreign mercenary group went on to detail his frustrations over what he witnessed among the Ukrainian soldiers in a series of subsequent posts on X. As the Chosen Company was deployed to fight in the Donetsk People's Republic, where trench warfare became an important feature on the battlefield, O'Leary complained about the lack of repairs to the trenches by Ukrainian soldiers. "There's also an issue of constant repairs. Trenches need repaired throughout combat. This is literally never done by most units though," he continued in his X thread.O'Leary compared the efforts from his team with the lack of discipline among the Ukrainian soldiers. "There were countless times we would go out with the 59th to take over a position. We would bring supplies to reinforce trenches (sand bags, angle iron, etc) to build out bunkers, firing positions etc. we would get rotated out and another brigade would take over," he wrote. O'Leary sounded very disappointed of the efforts from the Ukrainian military, in a subsequent post. Similar to other foreign mercenary groups operating in the Ukraine conflict zone, the Chosen Company appeared to be one of the most active groups among the foreign mercenary unit known as the International Legion for the Defense of Ukraine. The group shared a two-part video of its members engaging in an intense battle around the village of Pervomayskoye (also known as Pervomaiske), located just 10 kilometers (over 6 miles) away from the city of Donetsk in the Donetsk People's Republic, on YouTube this week. "This operation, nicknamed Pervo-2, would become their hardest and bloodiest battle," the group wrote in a caption under the video. Two members of the Chosen Company, Lance Lawrence and Andrew Webber, were apparently killed during this operation in 2023. The Russian army took control of Pervomayskoye in April.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240821/us-mercenary-group-seen-in-kursk-region-say-ordered-by-kiev-not-to-comment-1119853021.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240822/western-globalist-vultures-set-to-prey-on-ukraines-orthodox-treasures-1119876329.html

Western Globalist Vultures Set to Prey On Ukraine's Orthodox Treasures

Western Globalist Vultures Set to Prey On Ukraine's Orthodox Treasures

Sputnik International

As the Kiev regime has de facto banned the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP), Western globalist elites are seeking to get their hands on Ukraine's cultural treasures.

2024-08-22T19:07+0000

2024-08-22T19:07+0000

2024-08-22T19:21+0000

world

george soros

kiev

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unesco

turkiye

orthodox church

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Last year, an agreement was reached between the Kiev regime and UNESCO regarding the removal of Christian valuables from the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, one of the most sacred sites of the UOC-MP, amid ongoing acts of repression against Orthodox priests in Ukraine.According to SVR, the Orthodox valuables, including holy relics, from the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra would be transferred to museums in Italy, France, Germany and the Vatican under the pretext of "saving them from Russian missile strikes."In January 2024, the Wall Street Journal revealed that 16 of the rarest Orthodox Christian icons from the Khanenko National Museum of Arts in Kiev had been secretly transferred to France via Poland and Germany in May 2023. Some of them were put on display at the Louvre Museum.According to the SVR, the secret transferral of priceless icons was arranged by the International Alliance for the Protection of Cultural Heritage in Conflict Zones (ALIPH), chaired at the time by Thomas S. Kaplan, an American business leader and art collector. Kaplan is ALIPH's private donor, who presently sits on the foundation's board.Kaplan is not only a prominent Rembrandt collector and businessman, but appears to be heavily into politics. He is also known for launching the Recanati-Kaplan Intelligence Fellows program at Harvard's Belfer Center together with David Petraeus, a retired US Army general and ex-CIA director, and Professor Graham Allison, former assistant secretary of defense under the Clinton administration.Thomas Kaplan Unmasked: Controversial Soros-Linked Investor, Art-Collector in Cahoots With Globalist CabalKaplan rose to prominence as a natural resources investor being backed at the time by none other than US globalist George Soros, who provided Kaplan with $10 million of "seed money" to found Apex Silver Mines in the 1990s.In 2010, Soros and another American billionaire, John Paulson, invested a combined $175 million in NovaGold Resources, a mining company with almost zero revenues, "following the lead of Thomas Kaplan," as per Forbes.In 2018, Kaplan, alongside fellow globalist and French "philosopher" Bernard-Henri Levyknown for his support of the notorious Euromaidan, and his role as an ideologue of the "color revolutions," in addition to his backing of the bombings of Yugoslavia and Libyaco-founded the nonprofit organization Justice for Kurds (JFK).Kaplan is also a top donor to United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), a US-based neoconservative entity founded in 2008 that pushes for tough sanctions against Iran. Kaplan contributed $843,000 to UANI in 2013 alone, according to the investigative site, LobeLog.In what observers called an unprecedented move, the US Justice Department quashed a civil lawsuit against Kaplan and UANI in 2013, claiming it could jeopardize US national security. Tehran announced in 2019 it would designate UANI as a terrorist group.Kaplan is linked to the dark-money Turkish Democracy Project, aimed at "shedding light on Turkiyes move toward authoritarianism" and pressing it to adopt "more democratic policies," as per an investigative report by The Intercept.The project brags of having close ties with prominent former US public officials and diplomats, including Jeb Bush, John Bolton, and Robert Richer.According to Responsible Statecraft, a DC-based think tank, "efforts to examine the finances behind the web of Kaplan-linked foreign policy pressure groups have found an unusual obstacle: the US government."

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Hammered down to 1-5, Always Gonna B You looked every bit the heavy favourite, brooking no challenges once on top and winning her second straight in the Wednesday, Aug. 21 co-feature, a $15,753 conditioned pace for fillies and mares, at Hollywood Casino at The Meadows.

Always Gonna B You had to work a bit to wrest the early lead from Infinite Symbol, but the five-year-old daughter of Always A Virgin-Passing Fancy held Infinite Symbol at bay in the lane, defeating her by two lengths for Aaron Merriman in 1:51.1. Yippie Hanover was a ground-saving third.

Bill Bercury trains Always Gonna B You, who now boasts a lifetime bankroll of $516,562, for Renee Bercury.

In Wednesdays companion feature, a $15,753 conditioned trot, Troycen reasserted in the lane and triumphed in 1:55.3 for Hunter Myers, trainer Brandon Presto and owner Larry Parlin. The five-year-old Cantab Hall-Love My Muscles gelding lifted his career earnings to $178,064.

Jack Killeen and trainer Brian Rodriguez teamed for a pair of wins, as did Ronnie Wrenn Jr. and trainer Ron Burke, while Jeremy Indof, Merriman, Mike Wilder and trainer Dirk Simpson also joined the double parade.

Live harness racing at The Meadows continues on Thursday, Aug. 22, with first post at 12:45 p.m.

(Meadows Standardbred Owners Association)
Continuing her perfect season, Sugar Instead reasserted her dominance in the Ohio Sires Stakes (OHSS) division for sophomore trotting fillies on Wednesday evening, Aug. 21 at MGM Northfield Park.

Leaving from the fifth post position in the $136,986 fourth leg of the Sires Stakes, Sugar Instead and Brett Miller quickly settled into the pocket behind Jurassic Hattie (Kurt Sugg). Fractions to the half went in an easy :28.1 and :58.2. Miller confidently urged 1-5 bettors' choice Sugar Instead first-up at the 1:27 third quarter pole. The daughter of Volstead took control at the top of the stretch, cruising to a 4-3/4-length win in 1:55.2. Jurassic Hattie held on for second while Roxanna (Aaron Merriman) finished third.

Trained by Virgil Morgan Jr. and owned by Joyce McClelland and Larry Wills, Sugar Instead is now eight-for-eight in her three-year-old season. After missing the first round of the OHSS, the bay filly has earned victories in three subsequent legs. The win was her 15th lifetime, lifting her bankroll to $693,185 through 19 trips behind the gate.

OHSS continues on Saturday, Aug. 24 at Northfield with the fourth leg for three-year-old colt pacers. First race post is 6 p.m.

(With files from Ohio Harness Horsemen's Association)
McCusker capitalized off the hot early pace to earn his first career win in the $328,767 New Jersey Sire Stakes (NJSS) final for two-year-old pacing colts contested as a non-wagering race after the Thursday morning, Aug. 22 qualifying session at The Meadowlands.

The race was originally scheduled for the Friday, Aug. 2 card that was cut short due to intense thunderstorms and a power outage.

The field of 10 freshmen returned to the Big M for their Sire Stakes showdown under sunny skies before noon on Thursday and they were ready to rumble. Tom Horn (David Miller) fired first from the midfield and worked his way to the top over insider Smooth Dream (Joe Bongiorno) through the first turn with Manolete (Todd McCarthy) progessing alongside as they hit the quarter in 27 seconds. Power Code (Dexter Dunn) was hot on his heels and took over once Manolete cleared only to face immediate pressure from Twin Fury (Andrew McCarthy), who remained parked out as the new leader sprinted by the half in :53.4 and turned back that rival to three-quarters in 1:22.

Meanwhile, McCusker had watched the action from seventh early on and driver Scott Zeron tipped him off the rail down the backstretch moving into second-over position. McCusker rallied three-wide at the third quarter mark with Manolete emerging from the pocket off the turn and those two blew by a tiring Power Code in a stretch duel while Tom Horn surged late outside to make it a three-way finish. At the wire, McCusker prevailed by a head over Manolete in 1:51.3 with Tom Horn a half-length back in third.

George Ducharme trains McCusker, a five-time starter whose best showing prior to this race was a third-place finish in the July 12 NJSS leg behind the same top two rivals he beat here.

Owned and bred by Winers Racing Stable of Foxboro, Massachusetts, the son of Cattlewash is the first foal out of the Dragon Again mare, Robocall Hanover, a half sister to world champion Ruthless Hanover.

(Standardbred Canada)
The Ontario Sires Stakes 50th Anniversary celebration tour will be making a stop at Hanover Raceway on Saturday, Aug. 24, when an 11-race card will feature the final of the Balanced Image Stakes and a pair of Grassroots Series races.

Taking place in Races 2 and 4, the $20,000 Grassroots Series events will be for three-year-old pacing fillies, while the Balanced Image, Race 10, is for two-year-old Ontario-sired trotters, with a purse of $45,000 up for grabs.

The two Grassroots events are highlighted by favourites Greatest Pleasure (sired by Bettors Delight) in Race 2 and Betterwithglasses (sired by Betterthancheddar) in Race 4. Both horses were racing in the Gold Series recently with mixed results and have been given 6-5 (Greatest Pleasure) and 2-1 (Betterwithglasses) morning line odds ahead of Saturday.

Looking locally, Race 4 will also feature Stilton Gold, another Betterthancheddar daughter who is also a homebred of local Hanover trainer Harry Martin.

Shes actually kind of a 'green' driving horse. Shes just learning, said Martin of Stilton Gold, who has morning line odds of 6-1 and will be driven by Jason Ryan when she starts from post three in the five-horse field on Saturday. She doesnt have that many lifetime starts... and shes still just kind of learning as the drivers find out. But she seems to be a filly that likes to go with them. Shes not one to be in the back of the pack and she wants to be involved in the race and she gets into it. Shell do her best.

Stilton Gold had only six starts as a two-year-old and has primarily raced at the Prospect level this year, but Martin wants to see what she might show in a step up in class.

Were going to give her a shot, said Martin. This may be a bit of a higher level than shes ready for, but were going to try it.

In advance of Saturdays celebrations, noted Canadian harness racing writer and historian Robert Smith wrote a brief history of Hanover Raceway that can be read by clicking here.

When the Sires Stakes started and it first came [to Hanover], it was quite a thing, said Martin. We used to buy two or three yearlings every year and would race in the Sires Stakes. Back then it was 14 races spread out all over the province and we had a lot of fun travelling around.

In addition to the Ontario Sires Stakes anniversary, Hanover Raceway is also celebrating its 60th anniversary this year.

Post time for Saturday at Hanover goes at 1:30 p.m. Live streaming of the races are available on the Hanover Raceway Youtube channel and HPIbet. Visit the track's website at hanoverraceway.com for a free program.

To view Saturday's harness racing entries, click the following link: Saturday Entries - Hanover Raceway.

(Ontario Racing)
Former Standardbred Canada member Linda Ruth Arthur (Beamish) passed away on Monday, Aug. 19, 2024 at the West Parry Sound Health Centre, with family by her side, after an extended illness with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy. She was in her 73rd year.

Linda was survived by her loving husband, Douglas Arthur. Loving mother of Christine (Philip) and Ellen (Andrew). She loved her grandsons Dylan, Bruce and Finn so much. Dear sister to Robin (Barb). She will be remembered by many nieces, nephews, extended family and friends.

Predeceased by her son, Stuart, and her parents, King and Dorothy Beamish.

After growing up in Toronto, she moved to Norwich, Ont. with her husband Doug where they raised their family at Oxford Meadows, a Standardbred training and breeding facility. Linda went on to become Chairman of K.J. Beamish Construction for many years.

Lindas virtue was her personality. She loved oldies music and a good card game with a competitive spirit. Her greatest joy was her family, her husband, kids and grandsons who miss her so deeply. Linda truly was one of a kind.

Family will be having a private family service at the Bookton Cemetery. A celebration of life for Linda will be held on Sunday, Oct. 6 from 1:30-4:30 p.m. at Braestone Farm, Horseshoe Valley, 3288 Line 9 North, Oro-Medonte, Ont.

In lieu of flowers please, donations in memory of Linda, may be made to the West Parry Sound Health Centre.

Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the family and friends of Linda Arthur.
Rappahannock County High School junior Lotus Gillespie knew she wanted to be an educator last year when she was given the opportunity to be a teaching assistant for a kindergarten class at the local elementary school.

She went on to work at a daycare and as a summer camp counselor.

I spent time with kids of all different ages and really got to know them.

A school guidance counselor told Gillespie about the new Future Educators Academy, and she said she jumped at the chance.

The program, announced Monday by Gov. Glenn Youngkin at Germanna Community College in Culpeper, will train the areas next generation of teachers starting in high school  and then bring them back to area schools.

Its a partnership, two years in the works, of Germannas Daniel Technology Center, Laurel Ridge Community College, James Madison University and school divisions in in Culpeper, Orange, Madison and Rappahannock.

The program will be expanded next year to rising juniors in Clarke, Fauquier, Frederick, Page, Shenandoah, Warren and Winchester.

Old Dominion University is another partner.

There is one shared goal: provide high-quality, accelerated teacher education to produce exceptional teachers for the region. Students in the Future Educators Academy will complete an associate degree while concurrently completing the requirements to earn an advanced studies diploma.

Gillespie, part of the inaugural class of 17, wants to be like the middle school teacher who made a difference in her life.

My parents went through a divorce and my English teacher really helped get (me) through the year and through everything I was feeling, she said in remarks at Mondays program. Growing up, we go through so much, especially now since everything is always changing, but one thing never changes  the teachers that we have. They stick with us forever.

The Future Educators Academy is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, said Culpeper County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Tony Brads, lauding Youngkin for his financial support of a lab school initiative.

Brads was among the early group of public schools administrators who took hold and ran with the idea while struggling to recruit teachers each year.

This was new and different, and they were looking for innovation, he said. They had the idea of a grow-your-own program, by which you will earn an associates degree in education, transferrable to four-year partners.

Participants sign on to come back to their home counties to work as teachers after receiving their degrees, addressing the teacher shortage, Brads added.

We have a program with rigorous instruction, mentorship opportunities and high quality work-based learning experiences, he said.

It checked all the boxes for our partners at VCCS and prepares students for the workforce pipeline, so yes, selfishly, the teacher pipeline for us. We need it. Youre going to be first in a long line of educators that are trained this way in the commonwealth of Virginia.

Brads said the program could be modeled statewide.

It is workforce development and we can do this without offending our four-year partners, he said. No offense to them, (but four-year colleges) are not producing enough graduates coming into education.

Youngkin, in remarks, said, It is the beginning of extraordinary expectations and thats what Virginia is all about. We are seeing the future with extraordinary young men and women who are going to take care of our the most important assets Virginia has  our young people.

The Future Educators Academy is the integration of education into an educational career path, the governor said. It supports the needs of specific communities, like rural counties where teacher shortages are greater, he added.

Lab schools are coming to life one at a time, he said, in which students will study to fill jobs in the most in-demand careers across Virginia, which also includes health care.

Is there any career that is more noble that impacts the future of Virginians more than being a teacher? Teachers change lives.

Four-year colleges across Virginia will be competing for the students once they finish the program, Youngkin said.

Then you will come back and teach right here in your home.

Once fully realized, the program is expected to produce 100 teachers a year.

What a moment for us to fill such a necessary pipeline that will feed the next 100 and the next 100 for decades to come, Youngkin said.

We have unbridled opportunity that has been unleashed.

David Dore, Chancellor of Virginia Community Colleges, said Future Educators Academy is the systems first lab school.

Were blurring the lines between K-12 and community colleges and four-year institutions, he said.

Students are on a pathway to be teachers in rural schools, will do practicums at their home school division and then return to fulfill that critical need, Dore continued.

They will complete their associates degrees at no cost, he said to applause from the audience. Their computers, textbooks, certification fees are all going to be covered. This is an accessible program that is open to all students.  The next generation of great teachers in Virginia.
China's SAIC Motor opposes "artificially setting up trade barriers"

Xinhua) 08:39, August 22, 2024

BEIJING, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- SAIC Motor, a major Chinese carmaker, said it will take further legal action to defend its rights and interests if necessary as the European Commission will make the final ruling regarding tariffs on Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers before Oct. 30.

Last month, the European Commission imposed provisional tariffs of up to 37.6 percent on Chinese EV makers, following the launch of an anti-subsidy probe into Chinese EVs in October 2023.

On Tuesday, the commission released a draft plan proposing to make the tariffs definitive, with slightly revised rates pending approval by EU member states. Under the revised plan, SAIC Motor would face a 36.3 percent tariff.

In response, SAIC Motor said in a statement issued Wednesday that the European Commission's decision violates market economy principles and international trade rules, severely harming the interests of all parties involved.

The automaker voiced its opposition to "artificially setting up trade barriers" and called for safeguarding a level playing field.

SAIC Motor said that external pressures from Europe and the United States, among other factors, have caused short-term fluctuations in its overall sales this year, adding that the company is committed to overcoming these setbacks and aims to achieve consecutive month-on-month sales growth.

On Tuesday, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce stated that China opposes the European Commission's plan to impose import duties of up to 36.3 percent on Chinese EVs and will take all necessary measures to defend the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises.

The commission's anti-subsidy investigation process on Chinese EVs did not comply with the World Trade Organization rules and was an act of "unfair competition" under the guise of "fair competition," according to the spokesperson.

Some foreign car manufacturers and parts suppliers have also voiced their opposition.

Countervailing duties are generally not suitable for strengthening the competitiveness of the European automotive industry in the long term and "we reject them," Volkswagen Group noted in a statement.

The timing of the European Commission's decision is detrimental to the current weak demand for battery vehicles in Germany and Europe, and the negative effects of this decision outweigh any potential benefits for the European and especially the German automotive industry, the statement read.

Speaking to Xinhua about the recent EU tariffs on China-made EVs, Philipp Schramm, CEO and CFO of Brose Group, an automotive parts manufacturing company in Germany, said that increasing trade tariffs and barriers undoubtedly violates global free trade norms.

Tariffs are not supporting technological advances because they are not fostering the ingenuity of individuals or teams working together globally, Schramm added.

"The decision is going a total wrong direction from my point of view," said Sven O. Otten, general manager of Tunkers (Jiangsu) Automation Technology Co., Ltd.

Meanwhile, Chinese experts have highlighted the long-term fallout of the tariffs.

European domestic manufacturers may gain a short-term advantage, but in the long run, rising prices and reduced options in the market could lead to a decline in overall demand, which would be detrimental to the healthy development of the entire EV industry, said Zhang Bin, professor at School of Business, Soochow University.

Ding Chun, director of the European affairs research center at Shanghai-based Fudan University, explored the motivations behind the EU's imposition of tariffs, attributing it to Europe's "anxiety" over Chinese EVs. He noted that China's EV industry has a clear comparative advantage over Europe's, and the fuel vehicle industry in Europe which involves a significant number of employees and voters, though declining, still holds sway.

With approximately 12 to 13 million people in Europe employed in the automotive industry, the EU appears willing to sacrifice environmental interests to repeatedly obstruct Chinese EVs, Ding said.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Rene Guzman writes about all things San Antonio, from past and present to pop culture and puro cultura. He can be reached at rguzman@express-news.net.

Before joining the Express-News in 1998, the San Antonio native co-owned a college humor magazine called Bitter, for which he wrote, designed and edited, as well as distributed at various campuses and businesses citywide. His features writing has appeared in the Houston Chronicle, San Francisco Chronicle, Seattle Post-Intelligencer and Times-Union.
The Cowlitz County Board of Health has completed interviews for three open nonelected positions, and many questions centered around what candidates learned from the pandemic.

The board will make recommendations about which candidates to select at its Tuesday meeting, while the Cowlitz County Board of Commissioners will make the final appointment based on those recommendations.

New members will be sworn in at the board of health's September meeting.

The board of health received 17 applications from 15 candidates, and interviewed three candidates Aug. 12 and 10 Tuesday. Two candidates, Dian Cooper and Robert Buchman, each submitted applications for two different positions.

Buchman and another candidate, Claire Pang, dropped out before being interviewed, county commissioner and board of health member Dennis Weber said.

The applicants include current Chairman Kelly Lane, board member Mary Jane Melink and Lorna Stuart. Lane, Stuart and Bill Youngren's appointments during the last round of applications in June were voided by the county prosecutor's office because the recruitment process didnt follow state law, including not holding public interviews of candidates.

Youngren reapplied but withdrew his application during his interview Tuesday and put his support behind Lane.

Also applying are a number of current and former healthcare professionals, educators and leaders of local health-related organizations.

"It's a great batch of folks that were interested," Melink said.

The interview process

Each candidate participated in individual 20-minute public interviews with the board of health where board members could come up with questions on the spot.

Topics covered included the definition of public health and what public health issues are most pressing in the county, but the board's main focus was frequently on the COVID-19 pandemic: what lessons could be learned from it, how much government regulations should be followed and whether candidates agree with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's vaccine guidance.

Two years after mask mandates ended in the state and societal operations largely returned to pre-pandemic normal, COVID-19 remains a central issue for several members of the board, especially Lane and County Commissioner Arne Mortensen.

Both supported the medical freedom resolution the board passed in December, which states the county will not force people to accept medical intervention or "put something 'onto' or 'into' (their) body without informed consent."

Board of health member Lindy Campbell  whose term has expired and is not seeking reappointment  and County Commissioner Rick Dahl also supported the resolution, while Melink, Weber and Cowlitz Tribe Representative Alyssa Fine, who recently resigned due to a job transfer, opposed it.

During his candidate interview, Lane said he opposes government mandates for measures like vaccines and masks, but that intervention is necessary in some rare cases, such as when a Washington woman was detained in 2023 for refusing treatment after being diagnosed with tuberculosis.

"If theres an outbreak of something very contagious to a small, one person, for example, if that person doesnt seek treatment and continues to spread it, that would be a public health crisis," Lane said.

Candidates were also asked what issues the board of health should prioritize, and many answers focused on substance use, homelessness and mental health as well as the intersection between those issues.

Theodore Grammount, a community stakeholder candidate who has experienced homelessness and now runs a feeding program based out of Victoria Freeman Park in Longview, said homelessness should be considered a public health issue because many people who are homeless struggle with a combination of substance use and physical and mental health problems they can't access treatment for.

The board of health will discuss the interviews and vote on which candidates to recommend for each position at their Tuesday meeting. During this meeting, members of the public will also be able to provide input. The board of commissioners, whose members also serve on the health board, will make the final decision based on the recommendations.

Weber, a member of both boards, said he plans to abstain from the board of health vote because he feels it doesn't make sense to be able to vote on the same issue twice and wanted to prioritize the opinions of the nonelected members.

"It's one of those areas of the law that's just really murky," he said.

The open positions

The board is working to select representatives for public health consumers, public health providers and other community stakeholders. Today, Lane represents public health consumers. Campbell, a former nurse, represents public health providers and Melink, director of the Longview-based grant provider The Health Care Foundation, represents community stakeholders.

Lane, Melink and Campbell's terms expired in June.

Fine, the Cowlitz Tribe representative, is another nonelected member whose term was set to expire in 2025, but she resigned this month because she was transferred by the U.S. Public Health Service, of which she is a member. Fine could not be reached for comment before publication.

That position is also open, but the board of health is not responsible for filling it through interviews. Instead, the American Indian Health Commission will appoint a new representative, Weber said.
Third Congressional District Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Skamania, has proposed a bipartisan constitutional amendment that would require Congress and the president to adopt balanced budgets.

The proposal comes after the national debt surpassed $35 trillion for the first time in U.S. history and amid a reelection campaign where the national debt and spending are likely to take center stage.

Gluesenkamp Perez was joined by Rep. Don Bacon, R-Nebraska, in introducing the amendment, which would require appropriations that add to the national debt to pass with a three-fifths majority vote from both chambers of Congress. The amendment would also require the president to propose a balanced budget.

As our national debt surpasses $35 trillion and folks across Southwest Washington face the impacts of high costs, our federal government needs to reign in our deficit, balance our budgets, and be responsible stewards of taxpayer dollars. We havent had a balanced budget in more than 20 years, and its time for Congress to end this reckless cycle, Gluesenkamp Perez said. Our bipartisan balanced budget amendment will make it harder for the federal government to spend more than it brings in while protecting vital programs our communities depend on. Its how we get back on track to cut government waste, reduce our deficit, and avoid passing more debt onto our children.

In May, Gluesenkamp Perez was named a 2024 Fiscal Hero by Fix the Debt, a project of the nonpartisan, non-profit Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

The award, given to a bipartisan collection of lawmakers, celebrates policymakers who have improved the nations fiscal trajectory.

The amendment, however, is unlikely to pass through a system the White House describes as quite onerous. According to an explanation on whitehouse.gov, the founding fathers intentionally made the process to pass a constitutional amendment challenging to prevent arbitrary changes.

According to the explainer, an amendment can be proposed by a two-thirds vote of both houses of Congress, by two-thirds of the states or through a convention.

If proposed, an amendment must be ratified by three-fourths of state legislatures or three-fourths of conventions.

While on the campaign trail, Republican congressional candidate Joe Kent has repeatedly criticized Democratic spending.

And the government continues to be undisciplined, and wants to spend billions and billions of dollars that we simply dont have, that compounds into trillions and trillions of dollars that we dont have, Kent said during a May 28 event in Centralia.

Kent has called for Congress to return to individual spending bills to appropriate funds, rather than a larger package typically known as an omnibus.

Marie (Gluesenkamp) Perez has signed off on all of this. Shes signed off on all of the Bidenomics, Kent said. So fiscal discipline is really essential.
As of Tuesday evening, a margin of 51 votes separated two of the leading candidates in the closest statewide race Washington state has seen in 20 years.

Three candidates for state lands commissioner are fighting neck and neck for two spots on the November general election ballot.

Two weeks after the Aug. 6 primary, the close election results have triggered an automatic statewide hand recount.

Since the Aug. 6 primary, the gap between Democrat Dave Upthegrove and Republican Sue Kuehl Pederson has narrowed significantly, and elections officials say a statewide ballot recount will almost certainly happen.

As of 6 p.m. Tuesday, King County Councilmember Upthegrove held a 51-vote lead  thats 0.0064% of the total vote  over Kuehl Pederson, a former power analyst and natural resource officer.

Upthegrove and Kuehl Pederson are competing to secure the second-place title in the race and join Republican Jaime Herrera Beutler on Novembers general election ballot.

Tuesday evenings ballot tallies showed Herrera Beutler, a former U.S. representative who represented Vancouver, maintained her slim first-place lead in the race with 22.03% of the total statewide votes counted. Upthegrove and Kuehl Pederson Pederson trailed close behind, practically tied for second place with 20.82% of the vote each.

With such a close race, its likely that every county in the state will have to recount its Aug. 6 primary ballots by hand, Washington state Director of Elections Stuart Holmes said. As of Tuesday, the secretary of states office had not formally called for a recount, but officials expect the announcement to show up later in the week.

Right now, its statistically unlikely that we wouldnt be doing a manual recount, Holmes said in a phone interview Friday afternoon. For simplicitys sake, its essentially a hand count of the entire contest.

Washington law mandates that elections with final vote margins smaller than a quarter of a percent will be automatically recounted by hand. The Secretary of States Office is expected to certify the results on Thursday morning and direct all counties to begin a manual recount shortly after.

This is a historically close race, whether youre looking at primaries or general elections, Holmes said.

The statewide recount process is expected to take one week once it begins, Holmes said. What will happen is each countys elections office will retrieve all of its Aug. 6 primary ballots from storage and separate them into precinct piles.

Elections workers in teams of two will begin tallying, by hand, the results for the commissioner of public lands race. If the first hand count doesnt match up with the originally reported count, elections workers will recount the pile by hand. If the second hand count does not match the first hand count, the election workers at hand will be excused and the pile of ballots will be counted by a separate team.

Its been 20 years since a statewide Washington race was close enough to require a recount. In 2004, Democrat Christine Gregoire barely clinched the race for governor by 133 votes over Dino Rossi after two recounts.

Regardless of party, the two candidates who come out on top after the recount in the primary race will advance to the Nov. 5 ballot.

Spokane County Auditor Vicky Dalton said hand recounts are a pretty standard practice in her office.

Considering how many of them weve done over the years, its going to look pretty similar to what weve done over the years, Dalton said.

Were very skilled at hand recounts.

The Spokane County Canvassing Board is scheduled to meet later in the week to begin planning for the recount. On Monday, elections workers will begin pulling boxes of ballots off of the storage shelves, Dalton said. There will be between eight and 10 teams of two counting at a time until they get through all the voting precincts.

When the latest state vote count was released Tuesday, Upthegrove sent out a campaign statement celebrating his 51-vote victory.

I am incredibly thankful for the hundreds of volunteers who worked with our campaign this past week to help voters fix issues with their ballots so that their votes would count, Upthegrove wrote.

In a phone interview later that evening, Upthegrove said his campaign manager pulled two all-nighters compiling lists of Democratic voters with ballots that werent counted due to signature mismatches or other errors. His campaign sent the addresses of said voters to some 350 volunteers who went knocking door-to-door and encouraged voters to take steps with their local elections office to ensure their votes were counted.

Moving forward, Upthegrove said his campaign will closely monitor the recount.

Ive hired an elections attorney mostly to guide me through it, make sure our interests are represented and that we understand what is happening, Upthegrove said.

Kuehl Pederson did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday afternoon.

Ballots for the Nov. 5 general election will be mailed to Washington voters in two months. Besides the race for lands commissioner, voters will select candidates for president, U.S. senate, governor and attorney general, U.S. House seats, state House and Senate positions, county commission and other offices. They also will consider state initiatives.

The state Commissioner of Public Lands serves a four-year term and oversees Washingtons massive Department of Natural Resources  an agency in charge of nearly 6 million acres of forests, beaches and other public lands.

The commissioner also runs all firefighting efforts on state-managed lands.
In a significant move aimed at fostering stronger, sustained, and long-term business engagements between the Malaysian digital ecosystem and the Indian tech industry, nasscom has announced the signing of two pivotal Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) with the National Tech Association of Malaysia (PIKOM) and Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC). The MoU signing coincided with the state visit of Prime Minister of Malaysia, H.E. Dato Seri Anwar bin Ibrahim.

The MoU signing ceremony was honored by the presence of H.E. Gobind Singh Deo, Hon Minister for Digital, Malaysia whose leadership plays a pivotal role in advancing this bilateral cooperation. Alongside him were key industry figures, including Mr. Rajesh Nambiar, President Designate of nasscom, Mr. YB Tuan Syed Ibrahim Chairman of MDEC, and Mr. Ong Chin Seong Chairman of PIKOM, all marking a significant milestone in the partnership between our two nations.

These strategic MoUs are set to enhance awareness of the Malaysian technology landscape among Indian companies, facilitate bilateral trade and investment opportunities, and provide essential market access support. Key initiatives include business matching platforms, networking sessions, and dialogues aimed at creating significant market opportunities for both nations.

As part of the MoU with MDEC, the collaboration will focus on:

Joint promotional activities for the purpose of awareness building on Malaysian tech eco-system and promotion of its digital eco-system.

Help Malaysian Tech companies in comprehending the India market opportunity via knowledge sharing, research reports and networking with Indian Tech companies to explore partnership and Joint go-to-market activities/collaborations.

Facilitating engagements on talent development for exchange of ideas and best practices and building greater familiarity of each others talent ecosystem.

To invite nasscom to join any of MDEC sectorial committees/ network with the aim to promote technology trade between India and Malaysia.

Provide market access to Indian tech companies in Malaysia by assisting in work visa applications (MTEP & DE Rantau), support nasscom and its member companies for high skilled worker mobility and other policy bottleneck and ensure ease of doing business for promoting Malaysia as a strong investment destination in the larger Asia-Pacific (APAC) region.

The MoU with PIKOM reflects a mutual desire to establish a collaborative relationship that will nurture the growth of trade in technology between India and Malaysia. The key areas of focus include:

Facilitating mutual exchange of information on Indian and Malaysian Tech industry landscape, recent shifts, challenges and potential for growth.

Organizing and supporting events, both virtual and in-person, to promote greater collaboration between the Malaysian and Indian technology companies.

Inviting subject matter experts from industry, but not limited to the technology industry, for sharing case studies and advisory on growth strategies, dos and donts etc.

Organizing and supporting networking opportunities between Indian and Malaysian IT companies for the purpose of collaboration, R&D, and joint go to market.

Creating Special Interest Group to channelize joint industry positioning for the Malaysian market with the purpose of enabling Ease of Doing Business.

Speaking on the occasion, Rajesh Nambiar, President Designate at nasscom, stated, These MoUs signify a new chapter in the relationship between the Indian and Malaysian tech industries. We are committed to deepening this collaboration, which will not only enhance market opportunities for both nations but also drive innovation and growth in the region.

We are thrilled to strengthen our cooperation with nasscom through this MoU. Just as the relationship between Malaysia and India has evolved over the years, we aspire to grow this to a stronger comprehensive strategic partnership. Through knowledge sharing and joint initiatives, we aim to create a more vibrant and interconnected ecosystem, added Ong Chin Seong during the signing ceremony.

The MoUs are expected to catalyze significant advancements in technology trade between India and Malaysia, paving the way for a stronger digital economy partnership in the years to come.
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The dome is photographed at the California State Capitol on Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, in Sacramento, Calif. Credit: AP Photo/Juliana Yamada, File

California will be the first U.S. state to direct millions of dollars from taxpayer money and tech companies to help pay for journalism and AI research under a new deal announced Wednesday.

Under the first-in-the-nation agreement, the state and tech companies would collectively pay roughly $250 million over five years to support California-based news organization and create an AI research program. The initiatives are set to kick in in 2025 with $100 million the first year, and the majority of the money would go to news organizations, said Democratic Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, who brokered the deal.

"This agreement represents a major breakthrough in ensuring the survival of newsrooms and bolstering local journalism across Californialeveraging substantial tech industry resources without imposing new taxes on Californians," Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement. "The deal not only provides funding to support hundreds of new journalists but helps rebuild a robust and dynamic California press corps for years to come, reinforcing the vital role of journalism in our democracy."

Wicks' office didn't immediately answer questions about specifics on how much funding would come from the state, which news organizations would be eligible and how much money would go to the AI research program.

The deal effectively marks the end of a yearlong fight between tech giants and lawmakers over Wicks' proposal to require companies like Google, Facebook and Microsoft to pay a certain percentage of advertising revenue to media companies for linking to their content.

The bill, modelled after a legislation in Canada aiming at providing financial help to local news organizations, faced intense backlash from the tech industry, which launched ads over the summer to attack the bill. Google also tried to pressure lawmakers to drop the bill by temporarily removing news websites from some people's search results in April.

Assemblywoman Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, smiles after measure that would force Big Tech companies to pay media outlets for using their news content was approved by the Assembly at the Capitol in Sacramento, Calif., Thursday, June 1, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File

"This partnership represents a cross-sector commitment to supporting a free and vibrant press, empowering local news outlets up and down the state to continue in their essential work," Wicks said in a statement. "This is just the beginning."

California has tried different ways to stop the loss of journalism jobs, which have been disappearing rapidly as legacy media companies have struggled to profit in the digital age. More than 2,500 newspapers have closed in the U.S. since 2005, according to Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. California has lost more than 100 news organizations in the past decade, according to Wicks' office.

The Wednesday agreement is supported by California News Publishers Association, which represents more than 700 news organizations, Google's corporate parent Alphabet and OpenAI. But journalists, including those in Media Guild of the West, slammed the deal and said it would hurt California news organizations.

State Sen. Steve Glazer, who authored a bill to provide news organizations a tax credit for hiring full-time journalists, said the agreement "seriously undercuts our work toward a long term solution to rescue independent journalism."

State Senate President Pro Tempore Mike McGuire also said the deal doesn't go far enough to address the dire situation in California.

"Newsrooms have been hollowed out across this state while tech platforms have seen multi-billion dollar profits," he said in a statement. "We have concerns that this proposal lacks sufficient funding for newspapers and local media, and doesn't fully address the inequities facing the industry."

 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai addresses Sheriff Javier Salazar at the dais during a meeting of the Bexar County Commissioners Court on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, in San Antonio, Texas. Josie Norris/San Antonio Express-News

Bexar County Commissioners Court said no thanks this week to a proposed 5% pay raise, opting instead for the 3% increase that county employees are expected to receive.

But the five members of the court will remain among the highest paid at the Bexar County Courthouse.

A 3% raise for the new fiscal year, which starts Oct. 1, would raise the four commissioners' pay to $161,762 and boost County Judge Peter Sakais salary from $198,920 to $204,888.

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Commissioners also receive a separate annual $9,000 vehicle allowance.

The proposed 5% raise for elected officials came from the court-appointed Citizens Advisory Committee on Elected Officials Salaries two-year salary proposal.

Commissioners court created the pay advisory panel more than 25 years ago, giving it the authority to propose raises for elected county officials.

Commissioners Justin Rodriguez and Grant Moody on Tuesday balked at the 5-member committee's recommended raise.

"Just speaking for myself, I don't feel comfortable," said Rodriguez, who represents Precinct 2, which covers West Bexar County and part of San Antonio's downtown. "I just dont think its right and fair that elected (officials) get more than what the rank-and-file get."

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The pay hikes will be included in the county's $2.8 billion budget for 2025, which commissioners court will adopt next month.

In addition to approving the county's annual budget, the court also sets the property tax rate for the county and University Health, and it oversees the building and maintenance of county roads, drainage projects, parks and county facilities.

The court voted 4-0 Tuesday to make elected officials' pay increases  theirs and all other elected officials at the county  match the proposed cost-of-living raise for county staff. Rodriguez, who was absent from the dais, missed the vote.

Precinct 4 Commissioner Tommy Calvert said the 3% raise should apply only to commissioners court, but his recommendation gained no traction among the other court members.

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Last year, the advisory committee recommended a 10% raise to be spread over two years for the four commissioners, Sakai, District Attorney Joe Gonzales, Sheriff Javier Salazar and other county elected officials.
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

In the competitive arena of global technology, China's ambitions in artificial intelligence stand outnot just for their scale but for their distinct strategic approach.

In 2017, the Chinese Communist Party declared its intent to surpass the United States to become the world leader in AI by 2030. This plan, however, is less about pioneering novel technologies and more about strategically adapting existing ones to serve state economic, political and social objectives.

While both China and the United States are actively pursuing AI technologies, their approaches differ significantly. The U.S. has traditionally led in fundamental AI research and innovation, with institutions such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford and tech giants such as Google and Microsoft driving breakthroughs in machine learning. This innovation-first approach contrasts with China's focus on adaptation and application of existing technologies for specific state objectives.

The United States' AI development is primarily driven by a decentralized network of academic institutions, private companies and government agencies, often with competing interests and a focus on commercial applications. In contrast, China's AI strategy is more centralized and state directed, with a clear focus on supporting government initiatives such as social control and economic planning.

AI for ideological control

At the heart of China's AI strategy lies its effort to embed the technology in the machinery of the government's ideological control. A prime example is the Xue Xi chatbot developed by researchers at China's top-ranked university, Tsinghua University. Unlike Western AI models designed to foster open-ended dialogue, Xue Xi was trained in part on "Xi Jinping Thought" to indoctrinate userslikely initially to be party members in governmentwith Communist Party ideology.

Chinas large language model chatbots are a step ahead of the likes of ChatGPT in one respect: political censorship.

This isn't just a singular initiative but part of a broader trend. AI-driven surveillance systems, like the facial recognition technology deployed across the Xinjiang region of China, enable the government to maintain tight control over the area's minority Muslim Uyghur population.

These technologies are not groundbreaking. They build on existing innovations but are finely tuned to serve the Communist Party's efforts to maintain social order and prevent dissent. China's AI prowess comes not by creating the newest technology but by mastering and deploying AI in ways that align with its ideological imperatives.

AI for economic control

China's AI strategy is also deeply intertwined with its economic ambitions. Faced with slowing growth, the Communist Party views technology as the essential tool for pulling the country out of its economic slowdown. This is particularly evident in sectors such as manufacturing and logistics, where AI is used to drive efficiencies and maintain China's competitive edge in global supply chains. For example, companies such as online retail giant Alibaba have developed AI-driven logistics platforms that optimize delivery routes and manage warehouse operations, ensuring that China remains the factory of the world.

Additionally, China's social credit system, which rates citizens on their civic and financial behavior, represents a significant strategic initiative where AI plays an increasingly crucial role. China's system is designed to monitor and influence citizen behavior on a massive scale. Although AI is not yet fully implemented across the entire social credit system, it is being integrated to track and analyze vast amounts of data, such as financial transactions, online interactions and social relationships in real time.

This data is then used to assign scores that can affect various aspects of life, from loan approvals to travel permissions. As AI becomes increasingly embedded in the system, it is likely, I believe, to further reinforce state control and ensure societal compliance, prioritizing government oversight over personal autonomy.

Strategic exports

On the international stage, China is exporting its AI technologies to expand its influence, particularly in developing nations. Through the Belt and Road Initiative, Chinese tech giants such as Huawei and ZTE are providing AI-driven surveillance systems to governments in Africa, Southeast Asia and Latin America. These systems, often framed as tools for improving public safety, are part of a larger strategy to export China's governance model.

For instance, in Zimbabwe, Chinese firms have helped implement a nationwide facial recognition system under the guise of combating crime. Political activists in Zimbabwe fear that technology is being used to monitor political opponents and activists, mirroring its use in China. By exporting AI technologies that are tightly integrated with state control, China is not only expanding its market share but also promoting its authoritarian model as a viable alternative to Western democracy.

AI for strategic military advantage

China's military ambitions are also tightly linked to its AI strategy. The People's Liberation Army, China's military, is investing heavily in AI-driven autonomous systems, including drones and robotic platforms. These technologies are not necessarily the most advanced in the world, but China is adapting them to fit its strategic needs.

China is developing AI systems to support its naval operations in the South China Sea, a region of significant geopolitical tension. China is deploying autonomous submarines and surveillance drones to monitor and potentially disrupt foreign military activities in the region. This strategic use of AI in military applications highlights China's focus on using existing technologies to achieve specific geopolitical objectives, rather than seeking innovation for its own sake.

China and the U.S. are racing to develop  and deploy  AI-powered military drones.

Calculated strategy

China's approach to AI is a calculated strategy of adaptation and application, rather than raw innovation. By mastering the use of existing technologies and aligning them with state objectives, China is not only bolstering its domestic control but also reshaping global power dynamics.

Whether through ideological indoctrination, economic control, strategic exports or military advancements, China's AI playbook is a powerful reminder that in the realm of technology, how tools are used can be just as transformative as the tools themselves.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Credit: University of Surrey

Your early morning run could soon help harvest enough electricity to power your wearable devices, thanks to a new nanotechnology developed at the University of Surrey.

Surrey's Advanced Technology Institute (ATI) has developed highly energy-efficient, flexible nanogenerators, which demonstrate a 140-fold increase in power density when compared to conventional nanogenerators. ATI researchers believe that this development could pave the way for nano-devices that are as efficient as today's solar cells.

The findings are published in the journal Nano Energy.

Surrey's devices can convert small amounts of everyday mechanical energy, like motion, into a significantly higher amount of electrical power, similar to how an amplifier boosts sound in an electronic system. For instance, if a traditional nanogenerator produces 10 milliwatts of power, this new technology could increase that output to over 1,000 milliwatts, making it suitable for energy harvesting in various everyday applications.

ATI's nanogenerator works like a relay teaminstead of one electrode (the runner) passing energy (charge) by itself. Each runner collects a baton (charge), adds more and then passes all batons to the next runner, boosting the overall energy that is collected in a process called the charge regeneration effect.

Lead author of the study from the University of Surrey, Md Delowar Hussain, said, "The dream of nanogenerators is to capture and use energy from everyday movements, like your morning run, mechanical vibrations, ocean waves or opening a door.

"The key innovation with our nanogenerator is that we've fine-tuned the technology with 34 tiny energy collectors using a laser technique that can be scaled up for manufacture to increase energy efficiency further.

"What's really exciting is that our little device with high energy harvesting density could one day rival the power of solar panels and could be used to run anything from self-powered sensors to smart home systems that run without ever needing a battery change."

The device is a triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG)a device that can capture and turn the energy from simple, everyday movements into electricity. They work by using materials that become electrically charged when they come into contact and then separatesimilar to when you rub a balloon on your hair, and it sticks due to static electricity.

Dr. Bhaskar Dudem, co-author of the study from the University of Surrey, said, "We are soon going to launch a company focused on self-powered, non-invasive health care sensors using triboelectric technology. Innovations like these will enable us to drive new spin-out activities in sustainable health tech, improve sensitivity, and emphasize industrial scalability."

Professor Ravi Silva, co-author of the study and Director of the Advanced Technology Institute at the University of Surrey, said, "With the ever-increasing technology around us, it is predicted that we will have over 50 billion Internet of Things (IoT) devices in the next few years that will need energy to be powered.

"Local green energy solutions are needed, and this could be a convenient wireless technology that harnesses energy from any mechanical movements to power small devices. It offers an opportunity for the scientific and engineering community to find innovative and sustainable solutions to global challenges."

"We are incredibly excited about the potential of these nanogenerators to transform how we think about energy. You could also imagine these devices being used in IoT-based self-powered smart systems like autonomous wireless operations, security monitoring, and smart home systems, or even for supporting dementia patients, an area in which the University of Surrey has great expertise."

More information: Md Delowar Hussain et al, Exploring charge regeneration effect in interdigitated array electrodes-based TENGs for a more than 100-fold enhanced power density, Nano Energy (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.nanoen.2024.110112 Journal information: Nano Energy
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This photo provided by the Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings shows what they call a "Telesco-style" extendable pipe robot on July 10, 2024. Credit: TEPCO via AP

An attempt to use an extendable robot to remove a fragment of melted fuel from a wrecked reactor at Japan's tsunami-hit Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant was suspended Thursday due to a technical issue.

The collection of a tiny sample of the debris inside the Unit 2 reactor's primary containment vessel would start the fuel debris removal phase, the most challenging part of the decades-long decommissioning of the plant where three reactors were destroyed in the March 11, 2011, magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami disaster.

The work was stopped when workers noticed that five 1.5-meter (5-foot) pipes used to maneuver the robot were placed in the wrong order and could not be corrected within the time limit for their radiation exposure, the plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings said.

The pipes were to be used to push the robot inside and pull it back out when it finished. Once inside the vessel, the robot is operated remotely from a safer location.

The robot can extend up to about 22 meters (72 feet) to reach its target area to collect a fragment from the surface of the melted fuel mound using a device equipped with tongs that hang from the tip of the robot.

The mission to obtain the fragment and return with it is to last two weeks. TEPCO said a new start date is undecided.

A device to remove debris from a reactor at the damaged Fukushima Nuclear power plant demonstrates to pinch a stone, as revealed in Kobe, western Japan, May 28, 2024. Credit: Kyodo News via AP

A device to remove debris from a reactor at the damaged Fukushima Nuclear power plant is revealed in Kobe, western Japan, May 28, 2024. Credit: Kyodo News via AP

This aerial photo shows the damaged Fukushima Nuclear power plant, sitting in coastal towns of Okuma and Futaba, northeastern Japan, Feb. 11, 2024. Credit: Kyodo News via AP

"It seems to me a basic mistake," TEPCO spokesperson Kenichi Takahara said of the pipe setup problem. He said officials are investigating and the retrieval mission will resume only after they find the cause and have preventive measures "so a problem like this should never be repeated."

TEPCO President Tomoaki Kobayakawa said the priority was safety rather than rushing the process.

The goal of the operation was to bring back less than 3 grams (0.1 ounce) of an estimated 880 tons of fatally radioactive molten fuel. The small sample will provide key data to develop future decommissioning methods and necessary technology and robots, experts say.

Better understanding of the melted fuel debris is key to decommissioning the three wrecked reactors and the entire plant.

The government and TEPCO are sticking to a 30 to 40-year cleanup target set soon after the meltdown, despite criticism it is unrealistic. No specific plans for the full removal of the melted fuel debris or its storage have been decided.

 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of ING Groep (NYSE:ING  Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 2,900 shares of the financial services providers stock, valued at approximately $50,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Gallacher Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of ING Groep by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC now owns 21,892 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $361,000 after purchasing an additional 604 shares during the period. Financial Management Professionals Inc. increased its position in ING Groep by 67.8% in the first quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 1,639 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 662 shares during the period. Claro Advisors LLC lifted its stake in ING Groep by 5.5% in the first quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 13,438 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $222,000 after buying an additional 696 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of ING Groep by 6.0% during the second quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. now owns 13,167 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $226,000 after acquiring an additional 740 shares during the period. Finally, Checchi Capital Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of ING Groep by 4.9% during the first quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 16,863 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $278,000 after acquiring an additional 781 shares during the last quarter. 4.49% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Barclays raised ING Groep from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a report on Friday, June 7th.

ING Groep Price Performance

Shares of ING stock traded up $0.11 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $17.62. 1,302,910 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,532,388. The companys 50 day moving average price is $17.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $16.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.12. The company has a market cap of $61.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.79 and a beta of 1.54. ING Groep has a 12 month low of $12.44 and a 12 month high of $18.66.

ING Groep (NYSE:ING  Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The financial services provider reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $6.15 billion during the quarter. ING Groep had a return on equity of 12.71% and a net margin of 30.60%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.65 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that ING Groep will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current year.

ING Groep Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 19th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 8th were issued a dividend of $0.8143 per share. This is a positive change from ING Groeps previous semi-annual dividend of $0.70. This represents a yield of 5.9%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 8th. ING Groeps payout ratio is presently 28.32%.

ING Groep Company Profile

(Free Report)

ING Groep N.V. provides various banking products and services in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, rest of Europe, and internationally. It operates through five segments: Retail Netherlands, Retail Belgium, Retail Germany, Retail Other, and Wholesale Banking. The company accepts current and savings accounts.

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Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ING? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for ING Groep (NYSE:ING  Free Report).

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Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Boston Scientific Co. (NYSE:BSX  Free Report) by 20.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,886 shares of the medical equipment providers stock after buying an additional 1,183 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLCs holdings in Boston Scientific were worth $530,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in shares of Boston Scientific by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 216,941 shares of the medical equipment providers stock worth $16,707,000 after purchasing an additional 7,859 shares during the last quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI raised its holdings in Boston Scientific by 5.0% during the second quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 8,480 shares of the medical equipment providers stock valued at $654,000 after buying an additional 403 shares in the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. lifted its position in shares of Boston Scientific by 12.9% in the second quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 16,086 shares of the medical equipment providers stock worth $1,245,000 after buying an additional 1,837 shares during the last quarter. Dakota Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Boston Scientific by 14.2% during the 2nd quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 50,340 shares of the medical equipment providers stock worth $3,877,000 after acquiring an additional 6,244 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. increased its holdings in shares of Boston Scientific by 20.3% during the 2nd quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 10,451 shares of the medical equipment providers stock valued at $805,000 after acquiring an additional 1,767 shares during the last quarter. 89.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Boston Scientific Price Performance

NYSE:BSX traded up $0.32 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $78.80. The companys stock had a trading volume of 3,232,596 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,175,513. The company has a market capitalization of $115.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 65.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Boston Scientific Co. has a fifty-two week low of $48.35 and a fifty-two week high of $79.43. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $76.46 and a 200-day moving average of $72.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Boston Scientific

Boston Scientific ( NYSE:BSX Get Free Report ) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The medical equipment provider reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $4.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $4.02 billion. Boston Scientific had a return on equity of 16.80% and a net margin of 12.00%. Boston Scientifics quarterly revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.53 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Boston Scientific Co. will post 2.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

In other Boston Scientific news, EVP Wendy Carruthers sold 6,983 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.33, for a total transaction of $526,029.39. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 45,628 shares of the companys stock, valued at $3,437,157.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Boston Scientific news, EVP Arthur C. Butcher sold 14,011 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.34, for a total transaction of $1,055,588.74. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 20,197 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,521,641.98. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Wendy Carruthers sold 6,983 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.33, for a total transaction of $526,029.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 45,628 shares of the companys stock, valued at $3,437,157.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 34,960 shares of company stock valued at $2,638,984. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on BSX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Boston Scientific from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Argus upped their price objective on shares of Boston Scientific from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of Boston Scientific from $85.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a strong-buy rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Boston Scientific from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Boston Scientific from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Boston Scientific currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $84.76.

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Boston Scientific Company Profile

(Free Report)

Boston Scientific Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets medical devices for use in various interventional medical specialties worldwide. It operates through two segments, MedSurg and Cardiovascular. The company offers devices to diagnose and treat gastrointestinal and pulmonary conditions, such as resolution clips, biliary stent systems, stents and electrocautery enhanced delivery systems, direct visualization systems, digital catheters, and single-use duodenoscopes; devices to treat urological conditions, including ureteral stents, catheters, baskets, guidewires, sheaths, balloons, single-use digital flexible ureteroscopes, holmium laser systems, artificial urinary sphincter, laser system, fiber, and hydrogel systems; and devices to treat neurological movement disorders and manage chronic pain, such as spinal cord stimulator system, proprietary programming software, radiofrequency generator, indirect decompression systems, practice optimization tools, and deep brain stimulation system.

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Alcoa Co. (NYSE:AA  Get Free Report)s stock price shot up 5.1% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $33.78 and last traded at $33.77. 2,337,969 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 62% from the average session volume of 6,102,729 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.12.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on AA shares. UBS Group upgraded shares of Alcoa from a sell rating to a buy rating and increased their price target for the stock from $32.00 to $38.00 in a report on Monday, August 12th. B. Riley increased their price objective on shares of Alcoa from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Alcoa from an underperform rating to a peer perform rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Alcoa from $46.00 to $43.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Alcoa from $32.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $39.40.

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Alcoa Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $35.98 and a 200 day moving average of $34.95. The stock has a market cap of $5.98 billion, a PE ratio of -8.85 and a beta of 2.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA  Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The industrial products company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $2.84 billion. Alcoa had a negative net margin of 5.14% and a negative return on equity of 7.29%. Alcoas revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.35) earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Alcoa Co. will post 0.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alcoa Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 12th. Alcoas dividend payout ratio is presently -10.64%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alcoa

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AA. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC boosted its holdings in Alcoa by 12.9% during the 1st quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 1,351,720 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $45,675,000 after acquiring an additional 154,403 shares during the period. ARGA Investment Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Alcoa by 202.2% in the first quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 1,491,544 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $50,399,000 after purchasing an additional 997,912 shares in the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in Alcoa during the 1st quarter worth approximately $593,000. Cloverfields Capital Group LP acquired a new stake in Alcoa during the 4th quarter worth approximately $865,000. Finally, U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Alcoa in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $706,000. 82.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Alcoa

(Get Free Report)

Alcoa Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, produces and sells bauxite, alumina, and aluminum products in the United States, Spain, Australia, Iceland, Norway, Brazil, Canada, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Alumina and Aluminum. It engages in bauxite mining operations; and processes bauxite into alumina and sells it to customers who process it into industrial chemical products, as well as aluminum smelting and casting businesses.

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Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. lifted its position in Invesco S&P MidCap Quality ETF (NYSEARCA:XMHQ  Free Report) by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 121,539 shares of the companys stock after buying an additional 6,232 shares during the period. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. owned about 0.27% of Invesco S&P MidCap Quality ETF worth $11,793,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. MONECO Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Invesco S&P MidCap Quality ETF by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. MONECO Advisors LLC now owns 3,951 shares of the companys stock valued at $350,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. &PARTNERS bought a new stake in Invesco S&P MidCap Quality ETF in the 1st quarter worth about $599,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Invesco S&P MidCap Quality ETF in the 4th quarter worth about $9,516,000. Advisory Services Network LLC raised its position in Invesco S&P MidCap Quality ETF by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 31,699 shares of the companys stock worth $2,812,000 after buying an additional 1,668 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Enzi Wealth lifted its stake in Invesco S&P MidCap Quality ETF by 140.1% during the 4th quarter. Enzi Wealth now owns 81,850 shares of the companys stock valued at $7,874,000 after acquiring an additional 47,765 shares during the period.

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Invesco S&P MidCap Quality ETF Stock Performance

Shares of XMHQ stock traded up $1.84 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $100.55. The company had a trading volume of 214,508 shares, compared to its average volume of 403,570. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $98.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $102.62. Invesco S&P MidCap Quality ETF has a one year low of $75.29 and a one year high of $110.61. The firm has a market cap of $4.50 billion, a PE ratio of 16.29 and a beta of 1.15.

Invesco S&P MidCap Quality ETF Company Profile

The Invesco S&P MidCap Quality ETF (XMHQ) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the S&P MidCap 400 Quality index. The fund tracks the S&P mid-cap 400 Quality Index, which screens stocks based on fundamental factors and weights them using a multi-factor approach. XMHQ was launched on Dec 1, 2006 and is managed by Invesco.

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China Merchants Port Holdings Company Limited (OTCMKTS:CMHHY  Get Free Report)s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $14.76 and last traded at $14.76, with a volume of 0 shares. The stock had previously closed at $14.76.

China Merchants Port Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $14.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $13.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

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China Merchants Port Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 25th were given a dividend of $0.5644 per share. This is a positive change from China Merchants Ports previous dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 25th.

About China Merchants Port

China Merchants Port Holdings Company Limited, an investment holding company, operates as a port operator in Mainland China, Brazil, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and internationally. The company operates through Ports Operation, Bonded Logistics Operation, and Other Operations segments. It engages in the container, and bulk and general cargo terminal operation; logistic park operation, ports transportation, and airport cargo handling; and property development, holding, and investment activities.

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Fifth Third Bancorp reduced its position in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA  Free Report) by 7.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 288,174 shares of the banks stock after selling 21,683 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorps holdings in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria were worth $2,890,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Summit Global Investments grew its stake in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 273.0% in the second quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 206,745 shares of the banks stock worth $2,074,000 after purchasing an additional 151,320 shares during the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 99,817 shares of the banks stock valued at $1,001,000 after buying an additional 1,376 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates increased its stake in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 266.0% in the second quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 406,418 shares of the banks stock valued at $4,076,000 after buying an additional 295,378 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 390.4% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 22,994 shares of the banks stock worth $231,000 after acquiring an additional 18,305 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Portside Wealth Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 61.5% in the second quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 24,982 shares of the banks stock worth $251,000 after acquiring an additional 9,511 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 2.96% of the companys stock.

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Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of BBVA traded up $0.07 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $10.47. 1,019,391 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,534,080. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. has a 52 week low of $7.41 and a 52 week high of $12.20. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $10.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $10.58. The company has a market cap of $61.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.12, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.32.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria ( NYSE:BBVA Get Free Report ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The bank reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.03. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria had a return on equity of 22.05% and a net margin of 27.55%. The business had revenue of $9.93 billion for the quarter. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.36 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. will post 1.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

A number of brokerages have weighed in on BBVA. BNP Paribas downgraded Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a neutral rating to an underperform rating in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Citigroup raised Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria to a strong-buy rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria to a moderate buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy.

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About Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria

(Free Report)

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, SA provides retail banking, wholesale banking, and asset management services in the United States, Spain, Mexico, Turkey, South America, and internationally. The company offers savings account, demand deposits, and time deposits; and loan products, such as residential mortgages, other households, credit card loans, loans to enterprises and public sector, as well as consumer finance.

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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.
Fortis Inc. (NYSE:FTS  Get Free Report) saw an uptick in trading volume on Monday . 1,547,723 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 109% from the previous sessions volume of 738,923 shares.The stock last traded at $44.12 and had previously closed at $43.77.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Fortis from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report on Sunday, August 4th.

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Fortis Stock Up 0.0 %

Fortis Cuts Dividend

The businesss 50 day simple moving average is $40.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The company has a market capitalization of $21.60 billion, a PE ratio of 18.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.45.

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.431 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.95%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 20th. Fortiss dividend payout ratio is presently 73.28%.

Institutional Trading of Fortis

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FTS. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Fortis by 123.5% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 666 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 368 shares in the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new position in Fortis in the second quarter valued at $32,000. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Fortis by 53.6% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 992 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 346 shares during the last quarter. Rational Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fortis during the first quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Fortis in the 1st quarter valued at about $60,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.77% of the companys stock.

About Fortis

(Get Free Report)

Fortis Inc operates as an electric and gas utility company in Canada, the United States, and the Caribbean countries. It generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to approximately 447,000 retail customers in southeastern Arizona; and 103,000 retail customers in Arizona's Mohave and Santa Cruz counties with an aggregate capacity of 3,408 megawatts (MW), including 68 MW of solar capacity and 250 MV of wind capacity.

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Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA  Get Free Report)s share price fell 0.1% during trading on Monday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $467.69 and last traded at $468.28. 338,301 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 2,475,761 shares. The stock had previously closed at $468.88.

Specifically, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total value of $55,746,740.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 92,033,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,113,923,465.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MA. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Mastercard from $480.00 to $478.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Bank of America lowered shares of Mastercard from a buy rating to a neutral rating and cut their price target for the company from $505.00 to $480.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Mastercard from $536.00 to $524.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Mastercard to a strong-buy rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of Buy and an average target price of $512.09.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.3 %

The company has a market cap of $434.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.04, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.14. The businesss 50 day moving average price is $449.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $458.33.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 9th were paid a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 9th. Mastercards dividend payout ratio is 20.99%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mastercard

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MA. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 6,885 shares of the credit services providers stock worth $2,937,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth about $451,000. Cetera Trust Company N.A bought a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth about $144,000. RWA Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Mastercard by 230.4% during the 4th quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC now owns 10,719 shares of the credit services providers stock worth $4,572,000 after acquiring an additional 7,475 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marks Group Wealth Management Inc grew its holdings in Mastercard by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc now owns 2,252 shares of the credit services providers stock worth $960,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the companys stock.

Mastercard Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Mastercard Incorporated, a technology company, provides transaction processing and other payment-related products and services in the United States and internationally. The company offers integrated products and value-added services for account holders, merchants, financial institutions, digital partners, businesses, governments, and other organizations, such as programs that enable issuers to provide consumers with credits to defer payments; payment products and solutions that allow its customers to access funds in deposit and other accounts; prepaid programs services; and commercial credit, debit, and prepaid payment products and solutions.

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Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX  Get Free Report) SVP Richard S. Kinney sold 1,615 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.62, for a total transaction of $215,796.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,973 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,065,352.26. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Matson Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE:MATX traded up $2.82 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $133.73. The company had a trading volume of 234,418 shares, compared to its average volume of 268,979. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $128.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $118.41. The company has a market capitalization of $4.67 billion, a PE ratio of 15.77 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.97. Matson, Inc. has a one year low of $82.68 and a one year high of $137.29.

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Matson Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 1st will be paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.02%. This is a positive change from Matsons previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Matsons payout ratio is currently 16.04%.

Institutional Trading of Matson

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MATX. Forest Avenue Capital Management LP grew its position in Matson by 30.6% in the 4th quarter. Forest Avenue Capital Management LP now owns 64,000 shares of the shipping companys stock valued at $7,014,000 after purchasing an additional 15,000 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in Matson by 35.8% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 19,322 shares of the shipping companys stock valued at $2,172,000 after purchasing an additional 5,095 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management grew its position in Matson by 18.1% in the 1st quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 282,763 shares of the shipping companys stock valued at $31,783,000 after purchasing an additional 43,324 shares during the period. PAX Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Matson in the 1st quarter valued at $605,000. Finally, Seven Eight Capital LP grew its position in Matson by 579.8% in the 4th quarter. Seven Eight Capital LP now owns 16,819 shares of the shipping companys stock valued at $1,843,000 after purchasing an additional 14,345 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.76% of the companys stock.

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Stephens raised their price target on shares of Matson from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Matson from $109.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Matson from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report on Wednesday.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on MATX

About Matson

(Get Free Report)

Matson, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of ocean transportation and logistics services. It operates through two segments, Ocean Transportation and Logistics. The Ocean Transportation segment offers ocean freight transportation services to the domestic non-contiguous economies of Hawaii, Japan, Alaska, and Guam, as well as to other island economies in Micronesia.

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MicroSectors FANG & Innovation -3x Inverse Leveraged ETN (NYSEARCA:BERZ  Get Free Report) shares saw an uptick in trading volume on Monday . 86,503 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 15% from the previous sessions volume of 101,633 shares.The stock last traded at $20.12 and had previously closed at $20.32.

MicroSectors FANG & Innovation -3x Inverse Leveraged ETN Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $13.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.87 and a beta of -4.76. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $20.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $25.10.

About MicroSectors FANG & Innovation -3x Inverse Leveraged ETN

(Get Free Report)

The MicroSectors Solactive FANG & Innovation -3X Inverse Leveraged ETN (BERZ) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the Solactive FANG Innovation index. The fund tracks -3x the daily price movements of an equal-weighted index of US-listed technology companies. BERZ was launched on Aug 20, 2021 and is issued by REX Microsectors.

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Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE  Free Report) by 41.2% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 11,698 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock after buying an additional 3,411 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLCs holdings in Pfizer were worth $327,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Ironvine Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Pfizer by 2.1% during the first quarter. Ironvine Capital Partners LLC now owns 16,953 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock worth $470,000 after acquiring an additional 353 shares during the period. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of Pfizer by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 42,162 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock worth $1,180,000 after purchasing an additional 355 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of Pfizer by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 25,185 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock worth $705,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the period. Advisor OS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Pfizer by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 35,202 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $1,013,000 after purchasing an additional 365 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lantz Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Pfizer by 1.3% in the first quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 30,582 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $849,000 after purchasing an additional 381 shares during the period. 68.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Daiwa Capital Markets raised shares of Pfizer from a neutral rating to an outperform rating and increased their target price for the company from $28.00 to $34.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an overweight rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Pfizer in a research note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Pfizer from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group raised their price target on Pfizer from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Pfizer from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $34.54.

Pfizer Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE PFE traded up $0.12 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $29.02. 16,719,696 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 39,231,648. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $28.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.93. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company has a market capitalization of $164.42 billion, a P/E ratio of -483.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.69. Pfizer Inc. has a 52-week low of $25.20 and a 52-week high of $37.15.

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE  Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.14. Pfizer had a negative net margin of 4.66% and a positive return on equity of 8.42%. The firm had revenue of $13.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $12.96 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.67 EPS. Pfizers revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Pfizer Inc. will post 2.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pfizer Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 26th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.79%. Pfizers payout ratio is currently -2,800.00%.

Pfizer Company Profile

(Free Report)

Pfizer Inc discovers, develops, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells biopharmaceutical products in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company offers medicines and vaccines in various therapeutic areas, including cardiovascular metabolic, migraine, and women's health under the Eliquis, Nurtec ODT/Vydura, Zavzpret, and the Premarin family brands; infectious diseases with unmet medical needs under the Prevnar family, Abrysvo, Nimenrix, FSME/IMMUN-TicoVac, and Trumenba brands; and COVID-19 prevention and treatment, and potential future mRNA and antiviral products under the Comirnaty and Paxlovid brands.

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SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF (NYSEARCA:XAR  Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $152.33 and last traded at $152.22, with a volume of 42609 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $151.77.

SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF Trading Up 0.6 %

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $144.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $140.41. The firm has a market cap of $2.28 billion, a PE ratio of 30.33 and a beta of 0.85.

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Institutional Investors Weigh In On SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of XAR. WASHINGTON TRUST Co bought a new position in shares of SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD bought a new position in shares of SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Solstein Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF in the 1st quarter worth approximately $46,000. Mather Group LLC. bought a new position in shares of SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF in the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,000.

SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF Company Profile

The SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF (XAR) is an exchange-traded fund that mostly invests in industrials equity. The fund tracks an equal-weighted index of US aerospace & defense companies. XAR was launched on Sep 28, 2011 and is managed by State Street.

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Shares of Various Eateries PLC (LON:VARE  Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as GBX 17 ($0.22) and last traded at GBX 17 ($0.22), with a volume of 110 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 17.02 ($0.22).

Various Eateries Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 119.25, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market cap of 29.76 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -340.00 and a beta of 0.11. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of GBX 18.30 and a 200 day moving average price of GBX 21.20.

Various Eateries Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Various Eateries PLC, together with its subsidiaries, owns, develops, and operates restaurant and hotel sites in the United Kingdom. It operates in two segments, Restaurant and Hotel. The company operates two brands across 15 locations, which include Coppa Club, a multi-use, all-day concept that combines restaurant, terrace, cafe, lounge, bar, and workspaces; and Tavolino, a restaurant for Italian food.

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XML Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB  Free Report) by 4.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,130 shares of the companys stock after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. XML Financial LLCs holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $571,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rise Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 926.3% in the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 195 shares of the companys stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the period. Accordant Advisory Group Inc bought a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 333.3% in the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 325 shares of the companys stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.29% of the companys stock.

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Insider Transactions at Kimberly-Clark

In other news, insider Gonzalo Uribe sold 1,780 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.84, for a total value of $250,695.20. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,377 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,038,976.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Gonzalo Uribe sold 1,780 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.84, for a total value of $250,695.20. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,377 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,038,976.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Jeffrey P. Melucci sold 37,699 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.42, for a total transaction of $5,331,392.58. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,935 shares in the company, valued at $2,819,207.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.62% of the companys stock.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Up 0.2 %

KMB traded up $0.34 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $144.58. 1,447,251 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,168,313. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.59. The businesss 50 day moving average is $140.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $132.46. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a fifty-two week low of $116.32 and a fifty-two week high of $145.68. The stock has a market cap of $48.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.58, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.37.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB  Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $5.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.10 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 11.28% and a return on equity of 223.55%. The businesss revenue was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.65 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be issued a $1.22 dividend. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. Kimberly-Clarks payout ratio is 89.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on KMB shares. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $135.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. HSBC raised their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $146.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Monday, June 24th. They issued a neutral rating and a $146.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $111.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a sell rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from an underperform rating to a buy rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $115.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $145.67.

Get Our Latest Stock Report on Kimberly-Clark

Kimberly-Clark Company Profile

(Free Report)

Kimberly-Clark Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets personal care and consumer tissue products in the United States. It operates through three segments: Personal Care, Consumer Tissue, and K-C Professional. The company's Personal Care segment offers disposable diapers, training and youth pants, swimpants, baby wipes, feminine and incontinence care products, reusable underwear, and other related products under the Huggies, Pull-Ups, Little Swimmers, GoodNites, DryNites, Sweety, Kotex, U by Kotex, Intimus, Thinx, Poise, Depend, Plenitud, Softex, and other brand names.

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XML Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW  Free Report) by 3.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,571 shares of the industrial products companys stock after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the period. XML Financial LLCs holdings in Illinois Tool Works were worth $846,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Steele Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter. Steele Capital Management Inc. now owns 863 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $206,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Summit Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 2,601 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $685,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management raised its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 958 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $257,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,390 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $1,178,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Catalyst Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Illinois Tool Works by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,767 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $463,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.77% of the companys stock.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Illinois Tool Works

In other news, Director David Byron Smith, Jr. acquired 775 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $238.82 per share, for a total transaction of $185,085.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 121,506 shares in the company, valued at $29,018,062.92. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.88% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Illinois Tool Works Stock Up 1.3 %

ITW traded up $3.25 on Wednesday, reaching $246.63. The companys stock had a trading volume of 668,555 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,146,081. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $241.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $249.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17. The company has a market capitalization of $73.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.32, a P/E/G ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 1.10. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $217.50 and a fifty-two week high of $271.15.

Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW  Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $2.45 by $0.09. Illinois Tool Works had a return on equity of 99.74% and a net margin of 19.15%. The company had revenue of $4.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $4.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.41 earnings per share. The firms revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Illinois Tool Works Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.43%. This is a boost from Illinois Tool Workss previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Illinois Tool Workss payout ratio is currently 59.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on ITW. Barclays reduced their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $217.00 to $215.00 and set an underweight rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Illinois Tool Works from $267.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $268.00 to $260.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $275.00 to $240.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Illinois Tool Works from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $250.22.

Check Out Our Latest Report on Illinois Tool Works

About Illinois Tool Works

(Free Report)

Illinois Tool Works Inc manufactures and sells industrial products and equipment in the United States and internationally. It operates through seven segments: Automotive OEM; Food Equipment; Test & Measurement and Electronics; Welding; Polymers & Fluids; Construction Products; and Specialty Products.

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DENMARK -- Dr. Angela Peters, Voorhees University Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs, has been named to the South Carolina Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (SC EPSCoR) State Committee. Peters previously served on the State Committee for several years and is returning to the panel, which seeks to advance research and education across the state.

SC EPSCoR is a federal-state-university partnership that seeks to enhance research support in states that have historically received lower levels of federal research and development funding. The program is instrumental in building research infrastructure, integrating research into education, and fostering collaboration among diverse groups within South Carolinas science and technology sectors.

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Peters expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to rejoin the SC EPSCoR State Committee, stating, "I am deeply honored to be appointed once again to the SC EPSCoR State Committee. This program plays a vital role in strengthening our state's research capabilities and ensuring that our institutions can compete at the highest levels. I look forward to working with my colleagues to advance our shared goals of fostering innovation, collaboration, and educational excellence across South Carolina."

Rural SC HBCU registers to regulate charter schools as legislative crackdown looms A third private South Carolina college, Voorhees University, joins Erskine and Limestone in authorizing charter schools amid legislation considerations for accountability.

Voorhees University President, Dr. Ronnie Hopkins, also shared his enthusiasm for her appointment. "Dr. Peters has demonstrated her dedication to advancing academic excellence and research at Voorhees University. Her return to the SC EPSCoR State Committee is a testament to her leadership and the significant impact she has made in the field of higher education. We are excited to see the contributions she will continue to make at the state level."

NPS grant to pay for Voorhees repairs Voorhees University in Denmark received a $750,000 National Park Service grant for renovations to its historic St. James Academic Building.

SC EPSCoR encourages collaborative and complementary research efforts among the states Comprehensive Research Universities (CRU) and Predominantly Undergraduate Institutions (PUI), making Peters' role crucial in bridging the gap between these institutions and enhancing the overall research landscape in South Carolina.
Emergency personnel survey the scene where possibly as many as 42 people have died in a trailer near Quintana Road at Cassin San Antonio on Monday, June 27, 2022. Billy Calzada/Staff photographer Rigoberto Roman Miranda Orozco, the ringleader of various Guatemalans accused of having smuggled 53 migrants from Mexico and Central America who died of asphyxiation in 2022 in Texas, sits in a cell at a courtroom in Guatemala City, Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo) Moises Castillo/Associated Press People gather on Wednesday, July 27, 2022, on Quintana Road in San Antonio on the spot where 53 migrants died in the summer heat on June 27. The migrants were from Honduras, Mexico and Guatemala. Billy Calzada/Staff photographer Flags flutter in the breeze on a shrine to 53 migrants who died in the summer heat of a trailer one year ago on this site on Quintana Road on June 27, 2022. Billy Calzada/Staff photographer

Guatemalan authorities have arrested seven Guatemalans in connection with the 2022 deaths of 53 migrants who were abandoned by smugglers in a scorching-hot tractor-trailer on San Antonios Southwest Side.

They were the latest arrests after more than two years of investigation into the deadliest human-smuggling incident in the U.S. Six people already face charges in federal court in San Antonio.

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Guatemalas Interior Minister Francisco Jimenez said in a press statement Wednesday that Rigoberto Roman Miranda Orozco, the alleged ringleader of the smuggling gang, was one of those arrested. The United States has requested his extradition.

Orozco, also known as Rigo, is charged in San Antonio with counts related to conspiracy to smuggle migrants resulting in death or serious bodily injury, according to court records reviewed by the San Antonio Express-News. The other six may be prosecuted in Guatemala, unless investigators directly tie them to criminal acts in the United States.

Guatemalan police also seized vehicles and cash, and rescued other migrants during the operations, officials said.

This is a collaborative effort between the Guatemalan police and Homeland Security, in addition to other national agencies, to dismantle the structures of human trafficking, one of the strategic objectives of the government President Bernardo Arevalo in order to take on the phenomenon of irregular migration, Jimenez said in a statement posted on X.

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Some of the six people already facing charges in San Antonio, as well as victims' relatives, provided information that helped U.S. and Guatemalan authorities in the investigation, according to court records and interviews.

Court proceedings of some of those defendants have been delayed as a result of the investigation in Guatemala, the Express-News confirmed.

U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza of San Antonio said Orozco was indicted on six charges relating to migrant smuggling resulting in death or serious bodily injury.

Esparza said the six defendants already charged in the U.S. worked with human smuggling operations in Guatemala, including Orozcos, and in Honduras and Mexico. The groups shared routes, guides, stash houses, trucks and trailers, some of which were stored at a private parking lot in San Antonio, he added.

Migrants paid the organizations as much as $15,000 each to be taken across the U.S. border. The fee covered up to three attempts to get into the country, according to U.S. and Guatemalan officials.

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Their operation even included cloning at least one semi-truck  making it look on paper like one that was already registered and operating in South Texas, records show.

Orozco was arrested near Guatemalas border with Mexico. The other arrests occurred elsewhere in Guatemala.

National police and the interior minister identified the gang as Los Orozcos because several of those arrested are family members with that surname. The alleged ringleader has been referred to as Don Rigo by victims' relatives, whom Orozcos alleged minions contacted for payment.

Said organization illegally housed and transferred hundreds of migrants of different nationalities to the United States, collecting millions of quetzales (the national currency) through several years of operation, Guatemalan officials said in a news release.

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During one of those smuggling operations, on June 27, 2022, members of the ring abandoned a tractor-trailer on a desolate San Antonio road after finding that many of the 66 migrants being transported had died or were dying in the trailers suffocating heat. The air conditioning unit had malfunctioned.

When the trailer was opened on Quintana Road, 48 migrants were already dead. Another 16 were taken to hospitals, where five more died. The dead included 27 people from Mexico, 14 from Honduras, seven from Guatemala and two from El Salvador, Esparza has said. Eight were children.

Investigators later learned a smuggler picked up the migrants in the border city of Laredo, and that the truck made it through a Border Patrol checkpoint without being stopped.

East Texas residents Homero Zamorano Jr., who allegedly drove the truck, and middleman Christian Martinez were arrested shortly after the migrants were found.

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Martinez pleaded guilty last September to conspiracy to transport undocumented immigrants resulting in death and causing serious bodily injury and placing lives in jeopardy.

Zamorano pleaded not guilty to similar charges and is awaiting trial. Four Mexican nationals were also arrested in 2023.

Sources told the Express-News that Zamorano was on drugs when he abandoned the load of migrants, and tried to blend in as one of them when San Antonio police and Homeland Security investigators arrived at the scene.

Authorities have said members of the ring knew the trailers air-conditioning unit was malfunctioning during the sweltering, two-hour ride from Laredo to San Antonio. But Zamorano has denied knowing about the AC breakdown.

MORE COVERAGE: Another defendant pleads guilty over smuggling incident that killed 53 migrants

Luis Alberto Cowboy Rivera-Leal, 38, a Mexican national living in the Houston area, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to transport undocumented immigrants, placing lives in jeopardy.

Rivera-Leal would meet tractor-trailers that had transported migrants to San Antonio and drive small groups of them to Houston in his personal vehicle.
Orangeburg native Jaime Harrison, chair of the Democratic National Committee, helped kick off the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

The gathering opened Monday with remarks by Minyon Moore, chair of the convention committee. Moore called President Joe Biden, the evenings main speaker, a true patriot, according to The Associated Press.

Harrison noted to applause the historical moment in that he and Moore are both Black, as is the partys nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris.

Harrison has recounted watching the Democratic National Convention on television in 1988, when he was 12. It was a revelation to see that a fellow native of South Carolina, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, was seeking the partys nomination for president.

He shared the stage with Jackson on Monday night.

The opening of the Democratic convention recognized Jackson, the civil rights activist and Democratic presidential candidate in 1984 and 1988.

Jackson, 82, entered the stage in a wheelchair, holding up both thumbs up in triumph to a cheering crowd. The ordained Baptist pastor did not speak to the convention.

This convention marks the homestretch for Jaime Harrisons term as chair of the Democratic National Committee, according to a story by Joseph Bustos in The State.

A screening was held on Monday of the short documentary In the Bubble with Jaime, which covered his 2020 campaign for U.S. Senate in South Carolina. It was directed by Orangeburg native Emily Harrold.

Harrison will be honored at a reception Thursday afternoon.

Harrison spoke to The State about the convention on Saturday.

Walking into this building and seeing the stage lit up and podiums and all, I got goosebumps, Harrison said. Never in my life that I ever really imagined this moment would happen that I would be up on that stage gaveling in.

Harrison will leave the chairmanship early next year.

But before his departure, he will oversee the partys efforts to turn out Democratic voters in Novembers elections.

During his time as chairman, the Democratic Party avoided a red wave during the midterm elections as the party in the White House traditionally has heavy losses. Democrats gained a seat in the Senate and only ended up ceding a nine-seat majority to Republicans in House.

Im proud of what weve been able to do for the last 3-1/2 years, Harrison said. Part of what weve been able to do has been rebuild the infrastructure of the Democratic Party not only in our battleground states but across the country.

When the Democratic Partys nomination process started, South Carolina kicked off the primaries. The change from Iowa and New Hampshire put the Palmetto State in the spotlight.

Harrison said he wants to fight for South Carolina to have the first primary in the nation for the next presidential cycle.

It demonstrated in this first time being first in the nation, how successful that was. It has demonstrated year after presidential year that what happens in South Carolina dictates what happens nationally for who becomes the Democratic nominee, Harrison said.

After his term ends, Harrison said he plans to take some time away and spend time with his family.

Im going to take a little sabbatical. Its time for me to rest a little bit, to spend some time with my boys, take my wife (Marie Boyd) on a lot of dates and just relax a little bit, Harrison said.

Harrison was selected to be DNC chairman almost immediately after his failed 2020 Senate run against Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham.

My wife is a saint. Its been a tremendous sacrifice for her and the boys, Harrison said. I need to take a break ... As Tim Walz said, you sleep when youre dead.
(TBTCO) - Moi ay, OpenAI a uoc inh gia o muc 157 ty USD, muc cao nhat trong lich su thung lung Silicon. Tuy nhien, cong ty van chi xep thu 3 trong bang xep hang cac ky lan co gia tri nhat the gioi Duoi ay la bang xep hang Top 10 ky lan co gia tri nhat tren the gioi tinh en thang 9 nam 2024, theo Carbon Finance, CB Insights va Bloomberg.
Bahrains first Business Angels Company Tenmou, invested in two innovative ventures -- Tajweed, a digital platform for teaching the Holy Quran and Arabic language, and Travilege, an online B2B2C ERP software designed for travel agencies.

Nawaf Al-Kooheji, CEO of Tenmou, commented: Tenmou is committed to expanding its investment portfolio, which has now surpassed 35 Bahraini startups. Our mission is to advance venture investment in technology within the kingdom and showcase the promising potential of local startups in Bahrains entrepreneurial ecosystem. Since its inception, Tenmou has successfully invested in companies that have achieved significant growth, expanding into regional and global markets beyond Bahrain.

Al-Kooheji said Tenmous investment in Tajweed and Travilege was motivated by the companys belief in their growth potential and noted that Tenmous investment in these startups contributes to enabling them to secure additional funding from local and regional investors. This, in turn, leads to the creation of more job opportunities in the market and stimulates entrepreneurship.

Angel investing in technology

Tenmous investment helps to spread the culture of angel investing in technology startups that have the potential for rapid expansion and are led by enthusiastic founders capable of implementing the companys strategy and improving its financial performance.

Tenmou has demonstrated exceptional success in exiting its investments in Bahraini startups. We have achieved returns of over three times its initial investment in an average timeframe of less than four years, surpassing industry benchmarks. These achievements highlight the significant role Tenmou plays in providing crucial funding opportunities to Bahraini entrepreneurs.

Al-Kooheji further noted that Tenmous impressive track record of successful exits underscores its strategic expertise in identifying high-potential startup opportunities and its forward-thinking approach to accurately assessing the market value of innovative projects.--TradeArabia News Service
AP Moller  Maersk (Maersk), a global shipping major headquartered in Denmark, has announced that it has joined hands with Saudi General Ports Authority of Saudi Arabia (Mawani) for the opening of its largest logistics park in the Middle East at Jeddah Islamic Port.

The 225,000 sq m facility, which is the largest single-site logistics & services facility in the region, was built at an investment of $250 million, said Maersk in a statement.

The new logistics park will contribute to service and development in supporting economic activity in the kingdom and providing highly efficient logistics services to support the movement of trade and export to foreign markets and enhance the work of supply chains and logistics, it stated.

An eco-friendly complex, it will draw up to 70% of the electricity from 32,000 solar panels installed over 64,000 sq m. on the rooftop.

The Maersk Logistics Park will use electric equipment and electric trucks within the facility, have low electricity-consumption LED lighting optimised with light sensors, etc.

The inauguration ceremony was held in the presence of Engineer Saleh bin Nasser Al-Jasser, the Minister of Transport and Logistics Services, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the General Ports Authority; Omar bin Talal Hariri, the Chairman of the Authority, Vincent Clerc, the CEO of AP Moller  Maersk, Richard Morgan, the Managing Director of Maersk Indian Subcontinent, Middle East and Africa; Mohammad Shihab, the Managing Director at Maersk Saudi Arabia; Ahmed Kudous, the Head of Supply Chain Personal Care Middle East and Turkey and Head of Customer Operations GCC, Unilever.

The Saudi ports sector is witnessing major and unprecedented leaps, in terms of high operational performance efficiency, achieving records in international indicators, growing maritime navigation lines and increasing maritime connectivity with the countries of the world, said Al Jasser.

Hariri lauded the role of the Logistics Park in supporting the growth of the logistics industry and economic and development activity through the logistical solutions it provides.

"These solutions work to connect and facilitate the supply chains, which contributes to achieving qualitative leaps in the operational performance of the ports and enhances the capabilities of the logistics sector and global trade movement," he noted.

Clerc pointed out that this new logistics park represented a significant milestone for Maersk.

"It is a testament to our commitment to be an enabler of global trade in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which sits strategically at the crossroads of three continents. I am proud to see that our Logistics Park in Jeddah has become a living example of our integrated logistics strategy, supporting our customers with resilient logistics while implementing the right initiatives to take our decarbonisation journey forward," he noted.

Maersk said safety was of paramount importance for the Danish group.

Built on the foundation of Safety by Design, the facility boasts world-class firefighting systems, segregated paths for pedestrians and equipment, and comprehensive surveillance camera systems, among other safety measures.

The most modern and state-of-the-art implementations promote the safety of people as well as the customers cargo, it stated.

Maersk Logistics Park has been built at the Jeddah Islamic Port, which has an advanced infrastructure with berths capable of accommodating new generations of giant ships and modern, automated, environmentally friendly equipment that contributes to raising the efficiency of its operations and competitiveness and increasing its capacity, it added.-TradeArabia News Service
Taraf, the real estate division of UAE-based investment group Yas Holding, has signed up TMF Euro Foundation as the enabling works contractor for Cello Residences, a set of premium residences located in the heart of Jumeirah Village Circle (JVC).

A key project, Cello will usher in a new era of refined living to one of Dubais most vibrant and well-established areas. The residences will feature distinctive architecture and serene interiors, offering a seamless integration of work, living, and leisure.

From open studios to spacious one-to-three-bedroom apartments and four-bedroom penthouses, CELLO will epitomize contemporary living. Taraf's signature attention to detail and comfort will ensure each property strikes a perfect balance between functionality and ambiance, with sizes ranging from 430 to 5,000+ sq. ft.

On its selection, Yas Holding Group CEO Low Ping said: "We are confident that TMFs extensive expertise and commitment to excellence and innovation will be pivotal in delivering the project."

TMF Euro Foundation is a leading ground engineering solutions company established in Egypt in 1981. The company expanded its operations across the UAE in 2003, and further to Oman and KSA to meet the growing demands of the construction industry.

It is an ISO certified organization (ISO certified 9001  2015 QMS, 14001 - 2015 EMS and 45001 - 2018 HSMS), and specializes in piling, shoring, soil improvement, excavation, and dewatering works. It is also approved by Dubai Municipality (DM), Dubai Development Authority (DDA), Road Transport Authority (RTA), and Trakhees.

"As we continue the journey to bring Cello to fruition, we are committed to working alongside the finest in the industry; together, we will redefine the essence of luxury living, setting new benchmarks for Work, Live and Play residential developments," he added.

Tarafs fourth project, Cello is strategically situated close to Halfa Park & Community Park, Circle Mall, JSS International School, and Five Jumeirah Village, offering an abundance of retail stores, restaurants, bars and cafes, with nearby Al Khail Road and Hessa Street providing onward access to the rest of the city for business or leisure.-TradeArabia News Service
South San ISD board member Shirley Ibarra, left, chats with then-trustee Mandy Martinez before the start of a meeting in 2019. Tom Reel /Staff photographer

The South San Antonio Independent School District board is demanding the resignation of one of its members, Shirley Ibarra, and formally censured her this week for missing three-fourths of the boards meetings in the past year.

The board is under a state conservator and at risk of an outright takeover by the Texas Education Agency for a host of reasons, including repeated trustee absenteeism that prevented it from meeting for months in 2022.

At Wednesdays meeting, it directed its lawyer to ask the Texas Attorney Generals Office and the Bexar County District Attorneys Office for help in removing Ibarra.

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Ibarra, who wasnt at the meeting, said in an interview Thursday she was surprised that the agenda included a possible vote to accept her resignation. She said she had submitted her resignation as board secretary but had only mentioned to the boards vice president, Cyndi Ramirez, that she was thinking about resigning as trustee.

Im not going to resign, Ibarra said. I will be going to the meetings, but Im basically not going to let them scare me to resign my position. Im going to wait for my term to end.

Texas Education Agency monitor Abelardo Abe Saavedra addresses a South San ISD board meeting via video conference as trustee Shirley Ibarra, left, and Superintendent Henry Yzaguirre listen in 2023. Billy Calzada/Staff photographer

She said her mental health had caused her to miss meetings, having lost two close family members in 2021 and 2022 and experiencing other stressors. Ibarra said she has notified Ramirez before every anticipated absence and given the reason for it.

Ibarra is in her second term representing South San ISDs District 4. Wednesdays resolution to censure her called her incompetent, grossly ignorant, grossly careless, and unfit for office. It directed the boards legal counsel, Mark Sanchez, to file written complaints with the AG and DA offices. In an interview, Sanchez said he will do so by the end of the week.

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With the states heightened oversight of the board since last fall, it has to submit updates on finance, academic outcomes, governance and more, Sanchez said.

We consistently receive a negative score on those progress reports because of attendance issues, Sanchez said. Were at a point now where the board cant forcibly remove her. Theres no vote they can take to kick her off.

Ibarra said she feels targeted because other board members have also missed meetings and training.

One of them, Homer Flores Jr., has missed a significant number of meetings, which he said was due to medical reasons. During Wednesdays censure discussion, he said the tide has changed and Ibarras constituents are welcome to reach out to him and the board.

District 4, you have board members here tonight that are looking out for you the best we can, Flores said. But its not fair that you have no one here to speak for you.

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Ibarra was first elected in 2018, when she and Flores became part of a board majority that demanded the fast reopening of closed schools and got in trouble with the TEA for their treatment of a superintendent who tried to argue for a more careful process. The move failed to reverse years of declining enrollment, which forced a new round of school closures in 2023 and this year.

If the trustees are successful in removing Ibarra, theyll have to agree on an appointment process or order a special election to find her replacement. The District 4 seat is not one of the four up for election in November.

The November election has drawn no contested races, so it might be canceled if nobody writes in a candidacy by the end of the week, a district spokesperson said.

Three incumbents are running unopposed, including Flores, 52, a sales representative. The District 3 trustee was impacted last fall by other trustees new zero-tolerance attitude toward infighting that once was the norm at South San board meetings, censured for what they described as deplorable behavior.

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Ernesto Arrellano Jr., 61, an Air Force veteran and business analyst for USAA, is seeking another term in District 2. He ran unsuccessfully in a Democratic primary race for Precinct 1 Bexar County Commissioner this year.

District 7 trustee Joe Araiza, 56, who was appointed in July 2023 after former board member Stacey Alderete resigned for medical reasons, is seeking election to a full term.

Abel Chillidogg Martinez, who had expressed defiance at the TEA-appointed conservator Abelardo Saavedra and was supported one evening by protestors dressed as clowns who included Alderete, is not seeking reelection.

I could put my name down and I can win again, and again, and again, but its pointless because its me against the world, Martinez, 44, said Thursday. Its frustrating because I want the best for these kids, and I feel like their best interest is not being represented.

Martinez had been entangled in a criminal case filed by district police last November, when what began as a misdemeanor complaint for disrupting a meeting ended with Martinez being booked on a felony charge of evading arrest with a vehicle.

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A judge dismissed the case, and a lesser charge of disorderly conduct, earlier this month for insufficient evidence, according to court records.

Theres never a time that I walk onto a South San property or go to a board meeting that Im not thinking, Are they going to throw me in jail again? he said.
King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Centre (KFSHRC) will focus on leveraging knowledge to guide clinical practice and develop new knowledge that benefits learners, patients and the community.

At the Association for Medical Education in Europe AMEE 2024 conference, being held in Basel, Switzerland, from August 26 to 28, KFSHRC will showcase its experience in employing the latest technologies in medical education, such as virtual simulation and interactive learning tools that enhance trainees' abilities to make clinical decisions.

This integrated approach has yielded tangible results, including improving the quality of clinical training and graduating highly qualified medical professionals capable of meeting the demands of the healthcare sector locally and internationally.

Strategic goal

Dr Essam Al-Banyan, the General Director of Education and Training at KFSHRC, explained that participation in the AMEE 2024 conference aligns with the hospital's strategic goals to strengthen its position as a global center of excellence in medical education.

He noted that the aim of attending this global scientific event is to build new knowledge partnerships and exchange expertise with leading international institutions, contributing to the development of medical competencies capable of addressing future challenges and achieving the hospital's vision of providing advanced healthcare.

Dr Ali Al-Shahri, Deputy Executive Director for Academic Affairs and Training at KFSHRC, discussed the details of the participation, noting that the hospital will present advanced programs focused on integrating technology into medical education, such as simulation techniques and innovation in clinical training. The participation will also include a showcase of successful experiences in developing academic curricula, adopting innovative teaching methods, and discussing the challenges facing medical education and how to address them in accordance with global best practices.

The efforts of the Education and Training Department at KFSHRC include developing training curricula, employing simulation technology to train healthcare practitioners, adopting innovative training methods, enhancing trainee participation in decision-making, and launching initiatives to train healthcare practitioners in clinical research, which has contributed to the publication of numerous scientific research papers.

Enhancing medical education

KFSHRC's participation in the conference reaffirms its commitment to enhancing medical education and improving healthcare outcomes by integrating advanced technologies and contributing to enriching medical education in collaboration with its counterparts in international institutions.

KFSHRC has been ranked first in the Middle East and Africa and 20th globally, for the second consecutive year, in the list of the top 250 academic healthcare institutions worldwide, and the highest-valued healthcare brand in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East, according to Brand Finance 2024. It was also ranked among the top 250 hospitals in the world by Newsweek magazine in the same year.--TradeArabia News Service
The seventh edition of the Bahrain Dermatology, Laser and Aesthetics Conference (BDLA7 2024), from September 5 to 7, will attract an elite group of dermatologists and plastic surgeons from both local and international levels.

Dr Hussain Juma, General Secretary of the Executive Committee of BDLA7 said the event will also feature prominent speakers, delegates, and specialists in dermatology and cosmetic medicine from various countries around the world.

"The conference plays a crucial role in establishing Bahrain as a leading regional hub in dermatology and cosmetology, serving as a platform for the exchange of expertise in dermatology and related medical specialties, Dr Juma said.

Global developments

We are focusing on global developments and challenges in diagnosing and treating various skin and immune diseases for both adults and children, as well as advancements in aesthetic medicine, laser treatments, and skin cancers. This conference is built on a clear vision and a strong foundation, aimed at fostering scientific and cultural exchange while showcasing the latest innovations and breakthroughs in this vital field."

Dr Juma said the vision for the seventh edition of the conference is to cultivate an environment where doctors and researchers can exchange advanced scientific knowledge. This will elevate the awareness of healthcare professionals in the field of skin disease prevention and enable the regional and international medical community to stay informed about the latest scientifically proven medical practices.

Additionally, it will provide insights into the most recent research in dermatology and cosmetology. He expressed confidence that this milestone event will significantly enhance the quality of healthcare provided to skin patients in Bahrain and the region.

Dr Wesam Al-Arraydah, Head of the Aesthetics Dermatology Scientific Committee, commented: "The conference agenda's unique richness and diversity will set a pioneering standard with its broad and multidisciplinary content. We will highlight the latest developments in treating skin diseases, from common to rare, as well as advancements in laser technologies, pharmaceutical innovations, and the ethics of aesthetic medicine. Additionally, doctors will have the opportunity to present studies on challenging cases and review the latest published global research."

Distinguished participation

The conference will include contributions from a distinguished group of strategic partners, both local and international. Among the participants are the National Health Regulatory Authority, the Bahrain Dermatologists Association, the Bahrain Medical Society, and ISAPS  Members Meeting Bahrain. Esteemed organisations joining from abroad include the Saudi Society of Dermatology and Dermatologic Surgery, Dubai Derma, the Abu Dhabi International Conference in Dermatology and Aesthetics, the Emirates Dermatology Society, the Regional Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, the Oman Dermatology Society, the Jordanian Society of Dermatology and Venereologists, and the Kuwait Society of Dermatologists.--TradeArabia News Service
Leading UAE telecom companies - du, from Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (EITC), and etisalat by e&, - have announced a strategic collaboration with leading Dubai developer Nakheel to provide fixed telecom services and enhance the ICT infrastructure in new developments.

As part of the Taawun infrastructure deployment initiative, the agreement will cover the provision of essential telecommunications infrastructure in Nakheels major projects.

Nakheel, a member of Dubai Holding, said through this partnership, du and Etisalat will serve the growing range of destinations and facilities, benefiting Dubai's citizens, residents and tourists.

Fahad Al Hassawi, CEO of du said: "We look forward to delivering state-of-the-art telecom services for Nakheel's projects. This agreement solidifies our commitment to enhancing the digital experience for Nakheel and its valued customers."

"By offering an array of services tailored to bring convenience and empowerment to residents, communities, and the entire nation, we aim to be an essential catalyst in driving the UAE's economic, social, and digital transformation," he stated.

Abdulla Al Mana, General Manager, etisalat by e& said: "At etisalat by e&, we are focused on advancing societies and driving innovation through industry-leading telecom solutions. Our partnership represents a collaboration of expertise, resources and unparalleled commitment to enhancing the UAE's telecom sector. Through this collaboration, we will continue to deliver the best-in-class services, driving digital transformation, improving lives and empowering societies across our operating markets."

Khalid Al Malik, Managing Director, Dubai Holding said: "We believe in enhancing the lifestyle of our residents and visitors by providing them with world-class developments, infrastructure and amenities. The strategic partnership with du and Etisalat reinforces our commitment to offering unparalleled services to our residents, and we are confident this telecom service will empower our communities to connect and engage with each other and the wider world around them with ease and efficiency."

The Taawun initiative not only provides consumer and enterprise customers with increased flexibility but also aligns with the UAE government's long-term vision of developing smart infrastructure and fostering a strong telecom sector, he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Organised by Bahrains MenaMoney Froums (formerly Fintech Robos), the 8th Arab Pension & Social Insurance Conference (Apsic) 2025 will be held from June 3-5, 2025, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Tunisian capital, Tunis.

Launched under the slogan The Reforms Journey Towards Retirement Security, the conference will be held under the patronage of Head of Government, Dr Kamel Maddouri.

APSIC has been a key annual regional platform for national pension organisations, private pension providers, asset managers, insurance companies, actuaries and the pension and insurance regulators across the Arab world.

The conference will be hosted in partnership with the Tunisian Ministry of Social Affairs, and the Tunisian National Fund for Pension & Social Insurance, National Fund for Social Security, and the National Fund for Health Insurance.

Ebrahim K Ebrahim, CEO of MenaMoney, said: It is heartening to see APSIC, the specialist pension conference for the entire MENA region, grow year after year, and to be hosted this time in the Tunisian capital, which was the cradle of the great Carthage civilisation.

The esteemed government patronage of this conference and high-level attendance underscore the significance of social protection and pension on regional government agendas.

The event, which is attended by finance and social affairs ministers, governors of public pension funds and social insurance organisations, will this year focus on the need to address the sustainability of benefits by public pension structures and a showcase of current reform journeys being undertaken by public pension organisations across the Arab world.

As always, the conference will also look into major 21st century challenges and megatrends being faced by pension and social insurance systems, such as demographic changes, investment landscape, new patterns of employment and digitalisation that are globally impacting social protection systems, added Ebrahim.

The conference has been attracting a great line-up of speakers from ministers, global think-tanks, government pension funds, regional financial institutions, actuaries, asset managers, insurers, regulators, and HR leaders every year.

The objective is to spread awareness on pension dynamics, structures and issues that affect the resilience, adequacy and sustainability of both public and private pension systems and their infrastructure.

Ebrahim said that what really makes this event important among global pension conferences is the participation of all key actors in the sector, including pension funds, international economic institutions, asset managers, actuary and audit firms and the financial industry.

It also links pensions with HR management in terms of employee benefits, employee engagement, and related technologies.

Registration for the conference is now open.

MenaMoney produces a wide range of niche and much-needed financial conferences and training courses for the financial, economic and social protection sectors in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).  TradeArabia News Service
Haitham Al Ghais, Opec Secretary General, said the international organisation does not believe that energy sources are locked in a zero-sum game, reported WAM.

Reality tells us that oil does not operate in isolation, cut off from other sectors and industries. Rather, such is the versatility of petroleum and petroleum-derived products that they play an indispensable role in a host of other sectors and industries, OPC Chief said in an article published on the organisation's website.

He dismissed as myth the belief that electrification is often presented as oils great rival. If we are to believe some of the myths perpetuated about the energy industry, electrification and oil operate in silos, sealed off from one another, as they engage in an existential struggle. There can be only one winner, myth-makers tell us, with replacement inevitable in the unstoppable momentum towards electrifying everything'.

He highlighted the array of petroleum and petroleum-derived products used in the electricity sector itself. "I have written before about the importance of such products in power generation: oil products used in wind turbines and solar panels, as well as the many end-use electrical appliances that contain petroleum-derived material.

It is important to also consider the multitude of petroleum products in the transmission of electricity, which are utilized in manufacturing, maintaining and installing cables, overhead lines, pylons, transformers, substations, and control systems, indeed, in all the components and technologies that make up this vital infrastructure.

He cited a very clear example on this score related to the insulation materials required to ensure the safety of underground and subsea cables. These are particularly important in connecting offshore wind farms to the grid. Underground electric cables need insulation sheaths, which often make up around 40% of the weight of the cable. Typical materials used for this purpose include petroleum derived products such as cross-linked polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride, and cross-linked ethylene-propylene polymer.

Further examples abound, he added: A vital device in electricity transmission is the transformer. The path of electrical energy from generation, through transmission to end-use can only be completed safely if there is the correct voltage level at each stage of the process. Transformers are crucial, as they transfer electrical energy from one electrical circuit to another circuit or multiple circuits, either stepping up or stepping down voltage levels.

He noted the importance of considering the quantity of the materials required under ambitious targets, given that electrification is a cornerstone of most net zero plans. The world currently generates between 27,000 and 30,000 Terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity. "

He cited a research by the Energy Transitions Commission, in a report entitled, Making Clean Electrification Possible: 30 Years to Electrify the Global Economy. This would need to increase to between 90,000 and 130,000 TWh to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. That is a 3.5 to 5-fold increase in electricity generation in a less than 30-year timeframe.

He concluded by saying that Opec Member Countries have clear national electrification plans, which is part of a shared belief that all sources of energy will be necessary to meet future demand growth, reduce emissions, tackle energy poverty and ensure energy security: We believe oil will continue to be a vital component of future energy pathways and this is exemplified by the fact petroleum products are essential for the functioning of other sectors, such as electricity.
The prevalence of bullying in our school system has become a critical issue that demands immediate attention.

Too many students face harassment and intimidation from their peers, which can have severe emotional and psychological impacts.

This toxic environment not only affects the victims but also creates an atmosphere of fear that hinders the overall learning experience for all students.
Hyatt farse and outta place. The audacity of them. Saying that in this country they are not 
On a clear, late-summer afternoon in her home southeast of Tucson, Anne Hillerman can gaze north through her living room windows, over Saguaro National Park, and see the Catalina Mountains glowing beyond.

By closing her eyes, she can see even farther.

Just last week, she was describing the Elephant Feet buttes on the Navajo Nation in northeastern Arizona, 400 miles away.

The buttes are the visual touchstones for Hillermans latest novel, Lost Birds, and her ability to see them so clearly is just one of the reasons it became a New York Times bestseller last spring.

If Im going to take readers to a place they havent been, I need to tell them what it looks like, she explained, simply. My dad was great at that. Im no Tony Hillerman, so I try to find places he never wrote about and talk about them.

Annes father, of course, was one of American fictions brightest stars in the 1990s and early 2000s, best-known for his series featuring Navajo Tribal Police detectives Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee.

The Hillerman franchise is now in the capable hands of Anne, who divides her time between Tucson and Santa Fe. She has written nine novels since her father died in 2008. All nine have spent time on the bestseller list.

What is more, she now consults on a TV series that has been adapted from the Hillermans books. Season 3 of "Dark Winds," starring Jessica Matten, will air in March on AMC.

A half-time Tucsonan since 2021, Hillerman feels very much at home here.

I have to say, I love Tucson, she said. Its such a diverse and interesting place. I was invited to the book festival when my first novel came out. After that, every time I came it just started feeling more and more like the place I was meant to be.

It helped, of course, that she has a new grandson just a few miles down the road.

The only drawback, she laughed, is that I like to write in the morning, and for a lot of the year mornings are the best time to be outside.

Particularly now that she is a bestselling author herself, it is interesting to learn how Anne Hillermans career has traced that of her father.

A journalist by trade, he became the editor of the Santa Fe New Mexican and  later  the head of the journalism department at the University of New Mexico.

Anne, too, chose journalism, and was a student in two of his classes at UNM.

Like her dad, she became a writer, but never for a moment did she think of herself as a novelist.

We never, ever talked about that, she said. By the time he got to be well-known, I was already into my career as a reporter. Books were his thing. I was happy doing what I was doing in Santa Fe.

When her father died, Anne assumed that Leaphorn and Chee would find other lines of work. But then 

My late husband and I had published a book of Southwestern landscapes, places my dad had described in his books, Anne recalled. It came out the year after dad died, and we went out on a little book tour to places like libraries and Rotary clubs to talk about it. Over and over, people would come up and say how much they loved those books. How much they missed those characters. A lot of them asked if anyone would be continuing the series.

After a while, I realized I missed those books, too. I didnt want them to end, either, and if anybody could continue dads series it had to be me.

She had, after all, read all of her fathers books at least twice.

We used to talk about them over dinner, Anne said. It was like Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee were part of our family.

Slowly, she began getting her head around the prospect of continuing the series herself.

She spoke with her mother, Marie. She called her fathers editor, Carolyn Marino at HarperCollins.

They both thought I should try, Anne said, so one day I sat down and started writing a book. You know, its kinda hard learning how to write a novel while youre writing a novel.

Luckily, Hillerman had already made two key decisions that proved pivotal in her success.

First, she decided to promote one of her dads minor characters  the intrepid and thoroughly modern Bernadette Manuelito  into a central role as a crime-solver. Second, she wanted something dramatic to take place in the first 50 pages.

I thought if I was going to continue the series  and not be Tony Hillerman, who I could never be  I had to think of ways to make my books different," she said. I had always liked Bernie in his books, so she became my thread. I could develop a womans perspective through her.

As for the early drama, Anne was pragmatic. I thought Dads readers might be willing to try me for a chapter or two, but I wouldnt have long to get their attention.

On Page 3 of that first book, Spider Womans Daughter, Leaphorn is shot in the head outside a local restaurant. Bernadette witnesses the crime. Check. Check.

Released in 2013, Spider Womans Daughter quickly hit the bestseller list, and Hillerman was on her way.

Over the course of the last 10 years, Anne has introduced a variety of new characters to the mix. She has updated elements of police science that have emerged.

Im also kinder to the FBI than he was, she said, but none of this in any way diminishes my dads great talent in creating the series. I remain in awe of his creativity.

Annes 10th book, Shadow of the Solstice, is well into the editing stage and scheduled for release in April.

Beyond that? Anne Hillerman will just close her eyes and see what comes into view.

FOOTNOTES

Lost Birds is a Navajo term for children adopted by non-Navajo families. In Hillermans latest book, a Lost Bird is searching for her natural parents. The only clue is a photo of her as a baby, with the Elephant Feet buttes in the background.

The paperback edition of Lost Birds will be released Jan. 28.

Hillerman readily credits her father for her development as a writer. When she was young, she showed him a sentence in her homework that read: Janey and her brother sat under a tree. Dad suggested I make it a poplar tree. Then he wondered what the bark looked like. What did the leaves sound like? That was the blessing of having a dad who was a writer.
A Tucson police K-9 was wounded during a call Tuesday evening that started with a woman telling police she and her child were being chased by a man with a knife, authorities say.

About 5:30 p.m., officers rushed to Rudy Garcia Park at South Nogales Highway and East Irvington Road after a woman reported the incident, Tucson police said in a news release.

While talking to the woman, officers spotted the possible attacker nearby at the Laos Transit Center.

He ran off and at some point a police dog was deployed to help detain him, but it returned to its handler after being wounded, the release said.

Police would not say how the dog was wounded, but KGUN News cited a witnesses who said the man stabbed the dog.

The injuries to the police dog were not life-threatening, police said, and it was being treated Tuesday night at an animal hospital.

While the man was being apprehended an officer's gun discharged, with a round striking the ground, the release said.

The unidentified man was not struck, but he was being treated Tuesday night for minor injuries, police said.

The multi-agency Pima Regional Critical Incident Team, which investigates local police shootings, is handling the investigation of the incident. Findings from the investigation will be sent to the Pima County Attorney's Office for possible charges, which is standard procedure.

A separate internal probe will be conducted by the Tucson Police Department.
Experts say you should never leave a child alone in a vehicle, even for a short period of time. Image taken by Mayte Torres/Getty Images

In just two days, a baby and a toddler in South Texas died after being left alone in hot cars.

At 1:29 p.m. Tuesday, officers with the Corpus Christi Police Department responded to Tom Browne Middle School for a report of an infant inside a vehicle, the department said in a release. Police and fire crews arrived to find the school nurse giving a 22-month-old CPR.

ALSO READ: These are the 2 most common reasons Texas children die in hot cars

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The toddler was taken to a nearby hospital and later pronounced dead, according to Corpus Christi police. Temperatures hit a high of 101 at Corpus Christi International Airport on Tuesday, according to Weather Underground.

Detectives arrested the mother of the child, 33-year-old Hilda Ann Adame. She was charged with injury to a child causing serious bodily injury and abandonment/endangerment of a child resulting in imminent bodily injury.

It is unknown how long the child was left in the vehicle and the investigation is ongoing, police said.

At 8:30 the next morning, a woman in Beeville left her 9-month-old grandchild in the back seat of her car, according to the Beeville Police Department. The woman returned to her car at about 4 p.m. and found the baby unresponsive.

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The child was declared dead and authorities believe it was temperature-related. Temperatures in Beeville on Wednesday hit a high of 101 degrees, according to Weather Underground data.

With assistance from the Texas Rangers, Beeville police said they are investigating the incident as a criminal homicide. Charges have not been filed but are expected.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration urges drivers to "Look Before You Lock." Placing a bag or other important item in the back seat may serve as a reminder to check for additional passengers. Other methods include placing a stuffed animal in the front seat as a reminder or setting an alarm on your phone.

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Meet the Tulsa mayor candidates: Why they are running and opinions on city's biggest issues

Next Tuesday, Tulsans will go to vote on the next mayor and who will be the city councilor in each district.

If a runoff election is needed, it will be Nov. 5. The deadlines to register to vote or request an absentee ballot has already passed.

Mailed absentee ballots must be received by 7 p.m. on election day. Hand-delivered absentee ballots must be received by 5 p.m. the day before the election.

Early in-person voting will be held Aug. 22 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Aug. 24 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Tulsa County Election Board, 555 N. Denver Ave.

Read why the mayor candidates are running in the election and see their answers to the Tulsa World's mayor questionnaire.
During a candidate forum Aug. 1, five of those campaigning to succeed Mayor G.T. Bynum answered questions from the Tulsa World.

These answers, edited only for clarification, are provided in the order they were offered during the forum.

What will you do in your first 90 days as mayor?

John Jolley: I would try to get to know all the people ... we'll be working with because you're only as good as the people that work with you. And you know, I know the city of Tulsa has got some fine people. I'd also be open to meet with the nonprofits that work with the city of Tulsa, that're trying to do good.

One of my big things is the misplaced. And so I would love to what we could do about those misplaced individuals because the nonprofits are on top of it. I think the mayor that we currently have has been chipping on it; it's a big issue. But I would look at the big issues for me, and what we could do and get to know everybody works with me.

Karen Keith: So day one, I'm going to work to rebuild our permitting and inspections department, and you say "Why is that a No. 1 priority?" Because you cannot build affordable housing and get it out of the ground when you have these lengthy processes at our city hall. I want to make it easier for developers to do the work; we have many who will not do building within the city limits.

So it's a domino effect, and it definitely impacts the homeless. I will be working with philanthropy in our community, as well as our firefighters, our law enforcement, because they are boots on the ground with our mental health professionals. So those are just some of the top things that I will be working on. And I'll be leaning on some very talented folks to help me bring all of this work to fruition.

Monroe Nichols: I started the campaign talking about four ... issues: ending homelessness as we know it by 2030, improving student outcomes, expanding our economy by strengthening our workforce and making us the safest big city in the country. So on day one, in the first 90 days, it'll be about making sure I appoint the person who's going to lead the citywide effort to end homelessness as we know it by 2030.

That first 90 days we'll establish the Office of Children, Youth and Families in our working relationship with schools and youth-serving organizations to make sure we're putting kids on the pathway to success in this community. Create the expedited teams so we end the backlog on development projects in a 14-day process that can accelerate those projects. And then begin to evaluate city services and make sure that the culture issues that we need to address at the city and our partnership, our relationship with our partners, that we're starting to lean into it and change city hall into an outcomes-focused, accountable organization that delivers on behalf of the people in this community. The other thing is making sure that I get the first director of travel policy and partnerships appointed in the first 90 days.

Brent VanNorman: Well, one of my top priorities for Tulsa is to help the city become much more business-friendly. And so the first goal in that is ... we had to change some mindsets. And so there's an assessment process that we go through in the first 90 days, in which you look at every department, every agency, and you determine just how are how customer-service focused are they  and you're the customer.

And so our, my goal is to assess and to know who are the people that have the ability to treat you like a customer, and so that we can eliminate a lot of the red tape  we can roll out red carpet to you instead of red tape. And in doing that, ... the permitting process that Karen talked about will be under a microscope. And we will become much more business-friendly and much more efficient with business. So you don't have to feel you're doing the city a favor when you call on us. We're doing you a favor by serving you.

Casey Bradford: We took a 30-60-90-day approach. ... Anytime we change commands, the first 30 days you enter into that seat, that new seat  sergeant, commander, whatever it might be  you listen. You start asking the questions of why the systems that are in place are in place. Because you might come up with the greatest ideas in the world, but somebody might have tried that eight years ago and you just didn't know about it.

So we're talking about permitting. I've had those conversations already. And a lot of the things that I assumed would fix the systems, they said it absolutely will not. And then they referenced eight, 10, 12, 14, 16 years ago. The next 60 days, we actually work alongside all the employees that are currently there to start taking the necessary steps to make those changes. In the following 30 days, we implement across the board all of those changes from the top down.

Video from Aug. 1 candidate forum
A few months ago, the owner of Bartlesvilles iconic Price Tower attempted to sell off some of the furnishings and decorations that renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright had designed for his only existing skyscraper.

On Thursday, the building itself  all 19 stories of cantilevered concrete and patinaed copper  will be available to the highest bidder.

That is when the property will go live on the website for Ten-X Commercial, an Irvine, California-based company that bills itself as the leading platform for trading commercial real estate.

The actual auction, when potential buyers will be able to bid on the unique building, will take place Oct. 7-9.

In a statement sent to the media Wednesday, Cynthia Blanchard, CEO of current owner Copper Tree, said, After careful consideration, we have decided to list Price Tower on the Ten X Commercial Real Estate Auction platform.

This move allows us to reach a broader audience of potential buyers who can appreciate the propertys unique architectural significance, the statement continues. Our goal is to ensure Price Towers legacy is preserved by finding the right steward to continue its care and vision. We appreciate the communitys support during this transition.

In a previous email, sent Tuesday, it was stated that the auction will include the Price Tower property itself, excluding the art collection. The art collection will be addressed in Phase 2 of the new ownership transition.

This phased approach aims to ensure a smooth and successful transition, preserving the rich legacy of Price Tower while opening up new avenues for growth and development under new ownership, the email says.

Exactly what the art collection will include was not specified, nor was a timeline given for when Phase 2 would take place.

In an interview with the Tulsa World in July, Blanchard said: I have been approached by potential buyers, but she added that if that ever happened, I would want (the Price Tower) to be handed over to someone that would care about it as much as I do.

But at the same time, Blanchard said, there is a lot of potential here for some other ideas about how the tower could be used, and I have to at least be open to hearing those ideas.

One of those potential buyers appears to have been the Snyder family that bought and revitalized Tulsas landmark Mayo Hotel. They established a limited liability company called Price Tower Hotel and Residences in June, according to records from the Oklahoma Secretary of States Office.

Macy Snyder-Amatucci, vice president of Brickhugger LLC, who is listed as the registered agent for Price Tower Hotel and Residences LLC, did not respond to repeated requests to comment on whether the family is continuing to pursue purchasing the Price Tower.

The Price Tower has been mired in controversy for much of the year, ever since it was learned that in April Blanchard had tried to sell off a number of items from the Price Tower through a Dallas firm, 20c Design, that specializes in Mid-Century Modern furnishings and design.

That effort caught the attention of the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy, which holds a preservation easement on the Price Tower and its contents that forbids the sale of items without the conservancys permission.

In an interview with the Tulsa World in July, Blanchard said the decision to sell the items was in response to a financing challenge that kind of came to a head at the end of April. I cant go into details about it, but I had to make a tough decision.

Coincidentally, according to a story published April 26 in the Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise, Blanchards husband, Anthem Blanchard, stated in court documents that his cyber-security and crypto-currency businesses, HeraSoft and Anthem Vault, were financially insolvent and unable to fulfill any monetary claims, including significant back pay owed to former employees.

Earlier this month, the conservancy filed Uniform Commercial Code statements against the Price Tower owners to put potential buyers on notice that covered items from the collection cannot be sold without the Conservancys consent.

The day after the statements were filed, Blanchard announced that the Price Tower was to be closed to the public, that the businesses with offices in the building would be evicted by the end of the month, that most of the towers employees were laid off, and that all reservations for the boutique hotel, The Inn at Price Tower, were canceled immediately.

In a statement released Wednesday, conservancy officials said they were aware that the owners of the Price Tower have announced that it will be sold via auction. Successful auction sales of Wright-designed properties have occurred in the past, and we hope that a purchaser will emerge with the resources and vision necessary to care for this remarkable landmark into the future.

The terms of our easement on Price Tower require that we have the opportunity to inform potential purchasers about the terms of the easement, and to work with them to ensure that it continues to be upheld even after the property changes ownership, the statement says. We are fully engaged in ensuring that the easement protections are enforced through the auction process, for both the building and associated collections.

The Ten-X website lists 13 other properties that will be auctioned on the same days as the Price Tower, including two in Oklahoma: the Sand Sage Assisted Living Centers in Oklahoma City and Mustang.

Opening bids for the 13 properties already listed for the Oct. 7-9 auction range from $1 for an office complex in Pittsburgh to $3 million for a Crowne Plaza hotel in Columbus, Ohio.

What the opening bid for the Price Tower will be wont be revealed until Thursday, but estimates range from $1.4 million to $2 million. Washington County records show that the Price Tower property was most recently assessed at a value of more than $4 million.
Melissa Jacques Tulsa World Capitol Bureau Staff Writer Follow Melissa Jacques Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today

OKLAHOMA CITY  Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond released an opinion one day before the State Board of Education meets confirming lawmakers right to attend executive sessions of every state agency, board and commission.

Public officials are required to act in accordance with an attorney general's opinion unless it is overruled by a court.

It strains credibility and common sense that any legislator would be barred from the executive session of a state agency they oversee, Drummond said in a press release announcing the opinion. The law is clear: legislators have broad oversight authority whether an agency or board likes it or not.

Drummond previously gave informal guidance on this issue to State Board of Education board members and attorney Cara Nicklas. In the informal guidance, Drummond said lawmakers should be allowed to sit in on executive sessions.

The advice was ignored, as three lawmakers were denied access to an executive session at the last State Board of Education meeting. Drummond says in the release that this opinion leaves no room for argument and removes any excuse for noncompliance.

The opinion was requested by state Rep. Mike Osburn, R-Edmond, after he was denied the opportunity to attend an executive session at the last Oklahoma State Board of Education meeting. Other lawmakers, including Sen. Mary Boren, D-Norman, also have been denied access to the board's executive sessions.

I will not tolerate willful violation of the law, Drummond said in the release. State Board of Education members have a duty to follow the law and they are on notice that the formal opinion I have issued today is binding upon them.

In the release, Drummond clarifies that the opinion is specific to the State Board of Education, as no other agencies, boards or commissions have prevented lawmakers from observing executive sessions.

There are only two instances where lawmakers may be denied the right to observe an executive session: if purchase or appraisal of real property is being discussed or if the lawmaker or Legislature is involved in litigation with the state body.

The Tulsa World is where your story lives
Catch up on the news in Vietnam today:

Politics

-- The Politburo picked Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang and Mai Van Chinh, deputy head of the Central Organization Commission, as heads of the Central Economic Commission and the Central Mass Mobilization Commission, respectively, heard a ceremony presided over by Party General Secretary and State President To Lam in Hanoi on Wednesday.

-- President of the Australian Senate Sue Lines will pay an official visit to Vietnam from August 24 to 30 at the invitation of National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man, the Vietnam News Agency reported.

Society

-- Ho Chi Minh City will set off fireworks at the Saigon River Tunnel in Thu Duc City and Dam Sen Cultural Park in District 11 to celebrate Vietnams National Day on September 2. These shows will last from 9:00 pm to 9:15 pm on the day.

-- Downpours are forecast to continue sweeping many localities in northern Vietnam on Thursday and Friday, while the central region might experience scorching heat on Thursday, with the highest temperature reaching 37 degrees Celsius. Residents in the southern and Central Highlands regions are told to brace for showers late in the afternoon, according to the national weather center.

-- A 40-year-old woman was injured when a tree fell onto a street in Thanh Khe District, Da Nang City during a rainstorm on Wednesday afternoon.

-- Police in Hanoi said on Wednesday that a gang of young men had been caught for stopping motorcyclists, beating them, and cutting their motorbikes license plates in some outlying districts.

Lifestyle

-- The Namaste Vietnam 2024 Festival will take place in Ho Chi Minh City, Khanh Hoa Province, and Lam Dong Province from August 25 to 31, bringing 20 Indian artists and many Indian firms to Vietnam, Madan Mohan Sethi, Consul General of India in Ho Chi Minh City, told a press briefing in the southern metropolis on Wednesday.

-- The world-renowned culinary website Taste Atlas has revealed its list of the 100 best rice dishes globally, including three Vietnamese dishes: com tam (broken rice), banh beo (Vietnamese steamed savory rice cake), and banh tet (sticky rice cake with mung beans or pork).

World News

-- At least 15 people were killed in an explosion on Wednesday at a pharmaceuticals manufacturing plant in southern India's Andhra Pradesh state, reported Reuters, citing a district government official.

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The European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam (EuroCham) has recommended that Vietnam speed up the development of legal frameworks, begin mobilizing financial resources for its green transition, and leverage international experience to avoid development derailment and resource waste.

Jean Jacques Bouflet, vice-chairman of EuroCham, offered the recommendations at a forum on promoting the Vietnam-EU partnership and sustainable development held by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) in Ho Chi Minh City on Wednesday with the goal of boosting cooperation between Vietnamese businesses and the EU market.

Bouflet acknowledged Vietnams recent efforts to build a policy framework for green economic development and reaffirm its commitments to sustainable growth.

Specifically, the country has developed a national green growth strategy which aims for net-zero emissions by 2050, along with other national strategies on forestry, environmental protection, and sustainable development, Bouflet elaborated.

However, he noted that Vietnam still lacks the precise legal frameworks essential for driving a green transition across its various sectors, as well as clear guidelines for securing the financial support necessary for sustainable development.

In light of this, the EuroCham official recommended that Vietnam prioritize the creation of detailed frameworks and specific regulations for green development.

He urged the country to draw on international expertise to ensure the transition remains on track and resources are effectively utilized.

Bouflet told the forum that the European Union is committed to assisting Vietnam in advancing its green transformation, particularly in renewable energy, green transportation, and sustainable finance.

EuroCham is ready to coordinate and share experience with Vietnamese industries to develop a sustainable green economy, he added.

At the forum, many other delegates discussed market trends and new opportunities in the EU market, green finance, smart agriculture, and potential business prospects in emerging fields.

Bui Hoang Yen, deputy director of the Trade Promotion Agency's Ho Chi Minh City office, highlighted a concerning statistic: despite the numerous incentives provided by the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), Vietnamese exports currently make up just 1.8 percent of the EU's total imports.

Yen attributed this modest figure to the EU's rigorous market demands, which not only require exports to meet stringent technical standards but also increasingly emphasize sustainability and environmental responsibility.

Since 2020, the EU has been enforcing the European Green Deal (EGD), a comprehensive policy initiative designed to guide the bloc toward a green transition, with the ambitious target of achieving climate neutrality by 2050.

The EGD imposes 35 sustainability requirements aimed at ensuring minimal environmental impact, and these regulations apply to all trading partners, including Vietnam.

Given these challenges, Vietnamese exporters face significant hurdles in meeting the EU's stringent demands.

Ensuring product origin traceability and establishing well-defined material sourcing areas are particularly pressing issues for goods from Vietnam.

Vo Tan Thanh, vice-president of VCCI, emphasized the crucial role of the EU market for Vietnam, noting that the EVFTA has significantly opened doors for Vietnamese goods and services, offering greater incentives than those available to other countries in the region.

In order to make the most of this opportunity, Vietnamese businesses must build a sustainable, green production model, thereby improving the competitiveness of their EU-bound, Thanh said.

Currently, the EU currently stands as Vietnams largest development partner, fifth-largest trading partner, and sixth-largest foreign investor, while Vietnam ranks as the EUs largest trading partner within ASEAN and 14th globally, according to VnEconomy newspaper.

In the first half of 2024, trade between Vietnam and the EU reached approximately $32.39 billion, marking a 13.5-percent increase year on year.

During this period, Vietnam's exports to the EU totaled $24.69 billion, reflecting a 15.4-percent rise.

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Crew members rapidly responded and successfully handled a technical error, while being able to ensure the safety of passengers on board a plane flying from Khanh Hoa Province, south-central Vietnam to Hanoi on Tuesday.

Some 30 minutes after the aircraft took off, it returned and touched down at Cam Ranh International Airport in Khanh Hoa Province.

Several clips of the shaking plane and panicked passengers went viral on Vietnamese social media on Wednesday.

Oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling just a few minutes after the shaking began and passengers were asked to wear the masks and fasten their seat belts.

Flight attendants also reassured passengers that everything would be OK.

A representative of Cam Ranh International Airport told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Tuesday that flight VJ776 departed from the airport at 9:45 am for Hanoi.

About 30 minutes later, while flying over Quy Nhon City in Binh Dinh Province, the crew reported a technical problem and asked for permission to return to the airport.

No passengers sustained injury.

The representative said a faulty pressure regulator affected the balance of oxygen levels in the plane.

The crew intended to land at Da Nang International Airport in Da Nang City. However, they decided to return to Cam Ranh as the plane was still near its embarkation point.

After making an emergency landing, the plane was checked and all passengers were evacuated to another aircraft to continue their flight.

Most of the passengers agreed to fly on aircraft VNA685 at 1:30 pm on the same day.

Others asked to have their ticket refunded or to be able to keep their ticket for a later date.

A representative of the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam confirmed to Tuoi Tre that the plane destined for Hanoi from Cam Ranh faced a technical error.

The pressure regulator does not affect the planes safety system.

Its functions are providing oxygen in a plane and balancing pressure.

When the pressure regulator functions improperly, oxygen masks drop for passengers.

Low-cost air carrier Vietjet reported the incident to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam, which then set up a team to assess the cause of the mishap.

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San Antonio has experienced triple-digit temperatures for 11 days in a row, and the streak is likely to reach 12 days on Thursday. Josie Norris/San Antonio Express-News

After a relatively cool July, it was only a matter of time before Mother Nature cranked up the heat here in South Texas. On Tuesday, San Antonio reached 105 degrees for the first time this year, only to be outdone Wednesday as highs rose to a record 108 degrees. It was the hottest day San Antonio had seen in over 11 years.

Dating back to Aug. 11, the Alamo City has now recorded a high temp of at least 100 degrees for 11 consecutive days. The streak is expected to reach 12 days on Thursday, which would put it in a tie with several others for the seventh-longest 100-degree streak in San Antonios history. The longest such streak was 23 consecutive days, which occurred last year from July 30 to Aug. 21.

Will our current streak challenge the all-time record? Thankfully, that appears unlikely, but heres a look at when highs could drop back into the 90s.

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Thursdays forecast

Itll be a very warm start to the day as lows likely will hover around 80 degrees between 6 and 7:30 a.m. After that, bright sunshine will take over, sending temps to 90 degrees by 10 a.m.

Thanks to high pressure shifting farther west  away from San Antonio  afternoon temperatures are expected to decrease slightly from where they were on Wednesday. That being said, its still going to be dangerously hot. The San Antonio metro area likely will hit 100 degrees before 1 p.m., on its way to a high of 105 degrees during the late afternoon. High humidity values will result in heat index values near 110 degrees.

Shown are expected high temperatures in South Texas on Thursday. nws austin/san antonio

High temps will likely set a new daily record for San Antonio. The current record for Aug. 22 is 103 degrees, which was set in 1948.

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There also will be a chance of a few isolated showers and storms developing during the late afternoon and evening, mainly between 5 and 9 p.m. The best chance of storms will be north and west of San Antonio, in cities like Hondo, Boerne and Blanco. Overall storm coverage will be only about 20%, so many areas will stay dry.

When will the streak end?

High pressure likely will weaken over South Texas on Friday and into the weekend, which will help temps move closer to average for late August. However, highs still are expected to be near 100 degrees Friday, which would extend the triple-digit streak to 13 days.

The streak is likely to end sometime over the weekend. High temperatures are expected to top out at 98 to 99 degrees Saturday and Sunday. While a big cooldown is not expected over the weekend, at least we wont be dealing with the extreme heat that weve had for much of the week.

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Next week

A weak low pressure system is expected to move into Texas from the Gulf of Mexico by Monday of next week. This system could bring temperatures down by another degree or two, but highs are likely to remain in the mid- to upper 90s through the first half of the week.
Authorities in Vietnam's Thanh Hoa province plan to select an investor through a bidding process by October to develop a $2.5 billion LNG-fired power plant, a provincial official said on Wednesday.

The Nghi Son LNG Power Plant in the province's Nghi Son Economic Zone would have a designed capacity of 1.5 gigawatts and would start commercial operations by 2030.

"The bids will be opened on September 30 and the name of the investor will be announced mid or late in October," said Nguyen Anh Tuan, deputy director of the zone.

The project would also include an LNG terminal and storage, and regasification facilities, Tuan added.

State media reported in March that five consortiums have been chosen as potential investors, including Korea Southern Power, Korea Gas Corp, opens new tab, Daewoo Engineering & Construction, opens new tab, Gulf Energy Development, opens new tab, SK E&S, and some Vietnamese companies.

Electricity-hungry Vietnam wants to have 13 LNG power plants with combined capacity of 22.4 GW by 2030, but is unlikely to meet that target as power producers and foreign investors balk at the country's strategy for making the super-chilled fuel affordable.
A 40-year-old woman was injured when an uprooted tree fell onto a busy road in Thanh Khe District, Da Nang City, central Vietnam during a rainstorm on Wednesday afternoon.

The victim, identified as V., makes her living as a soft drink street vendor.

The incident occurred around 4:30 p.m. as she was packing up her cart to head home amid heavy rain and strong winds.

The uprooted tree fell onto the street vendor and her cart, causing injuries to her arm, an eyewitness recounted.

Several residents joined hands to lift the tree up and rushed her to a nearby hospital for emergency care.

The uprooted tree blocked a section of Ong Ich Khiem Street and brought traffic to a halt, local police confirmed the same day.

Authorities dispatched two vehicles and 13 rescuers to the scene, who managed to clear the road and restore traffic within about 15 minutes.

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The Namaste Vietnam 2024 Festival will take place in Ho Chi Minh City, Khanh Hoa Province, and Lam Dong Province from August 25 to 31, bringing 20 Indian artists and many Indian firms to Vietnam, Madan Mohan Sethi, Consul General of India in Ho Chi Minh City, told a press briefing in the southern metropolis on Wednesday.

Tourism activities will be among highlights of the fest.

As many as 30 tour operators from India will come to Vietnam to join the fest in the hope of seeking cooperation opportunities in the Southern Asian nation.

Last night, I received a proposal from an Indian firm saying that it desires to buy or partner with a hotel in Vietnam to bring groups of tourists to Vietnam," Sethi stated.

Moreover, 10 minutes ago, I received an official document from the enterprise."

In 2019, some 100,000 Indian tourists traveled to Vietnam, while the figure soared to 500,000 last year, according to Sethi.

This year, the number of Indian tourist arrivals in Vietnam is expected to reach from 600,000 to one million.

The hike demonstrated that there are no gaps for travel between Vietnam and India.

In addition, many non-stop flights are operating between the two nations, he said.

Madan Mohan Sethi, Consul General of India in Ho Chi Minh City, speaks at a press briefing in the southern metropolis on August 21, 2024. Photo: Hoang Le / Tuoi Tre

Over the past six months, the Indian Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City has received a series of proposals from Indian companies asking for support to seek Vietnamese partners active in tourism.

The festival is one of our efforts to cement our role as a bridge between Indian and Vietnamese firms, he said.

Besides, the festival will focus on such fields as trade, railways, cinema, and education.

Among the 20 Indian artists scheduled to participate are Avika Gor, the star of the popular TV series Balika Vadhu; veteran actor Anupam Kher; actress Helly Shah; actress Yuvika Choudhary; and film producer Rahul Mittra.

The opening ceremony of the fest is scheduled to kick off at Rex Hotel Saigon in Ho Chi Minh City at 5:30 pm on Sunday.

Residents can register to join the ceremony with the Consulate General of India on Facebook.

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Comedian Michelle Brasier was once told by a doctor that given her family history she had a 97 per cent chance of getting cancer.

Her response  to laugh in the face of death.

She shares her experience in Mondays Australian Story.

Shes toured the world with her acclaimed stage show Average Bear, an intimate and comical insight into her life, which leaves audiences howling with laughter one minute and drying tears the next, as she jokes about keeping her brothers ashes under the sink in a zip lock sandwich bag and getting sick of eating all the home baked lasagnas given to her family after her dads death.

Comedy is good friend to grief. Physiologically laughing, crying and singing are all really close, and so Im always on the edge of one of them and I like it, I like that Brasier says.

But off-stage Michelles grappling with the serious side of living with a fear of dying young from cancer.

As she contemplates her future, she discovers that genetic testing may not give her all the answers she needs.

So, shes learning to embrace uncertainty.

They say that Im young, I have a head start. And so, my body is a temple and I go to yoga and they say that I will die young. And so, I party and I do this for a job and I havent consolidated my super. And maybe everyone should live like me. Yoga in the morning, whisky in the evening.

Producers: Kirstin Murray & Vanessa Gorman.

8pm Monday on ABC.
Dawn French is headed back to the sitcom genre, to star in Can You Keep a Secret? written and created by Simon Mayhew-Archer (This Country, Josh) and directed by Simon Hynd (Ghosts, Motherland).

The six part BBC comedy is a show about the tough decisions in life. And death.

French plays widow Debbie Fenton  granny, lawn bowler, tinpot dictator  who will stop at nothing to make sure her familys protected. Unfortunately, most of the time the person they really need protecting from is her. When her hermit-like husband William (Mark Heap) unexpectedly dies, she makes an outlandish decision that will put the family under more pressure than ever before.

Because Debbie isnt actually a widower and William didnt really die  he was just mistakenly declared dead and the two retirees found themselves staring down the barrel of an opportunity too good to pass up. Just a few months hiding out in the loft waiting for the life insurance to pay out and then they can live out their golden years in peace.

This all proves a bit much for their easily frazzled son Harry who  despite his emotional shortcomings  has managed to acquire a family of his own and a potentially life changing insurance payout from his fathers death. Reunited with a dad hes just buried and the reality that his parents have turned into a pensioner version of Bonnie and Clyde, Harry suddenly has a lot more to juggle. Sandwiched between two generations of toddlers, Harry finds himself navigating a very common stage of life  only this time, its criminal.

Can Debbie Fenton and her family keep their secret? Or will one of them spill the beans?

At lasta sitcom where I can keep my top onmostly, says French.

Kenton Allen, Executive Producer and CEO Big Talk Studios, says: Working with Dawn French has been a career-long ambition and to have her inimitable comedic brilliance join forces with the extraordinary Mark Heap and the Simons  Simon Mayhew-Archer and Simon Hynd  is every producers dream. Were delighted to welcome such talented creative minds into the Big Talk family and cant wait for viewers to see this highly original family comedy in all its glory.

Simon Mayhew-Archer, Writer and Executive Producer, says: Having the chance to make this show is the greatest joy of my career, and Im enormously grateful to Dawn, Jon and Tanya for the opportunity.

Jon Petrie, Director of BBC Comedy, says: Can You Keep a Secret? hilariously delves into a rarely portrayed stage of the family life cycle, blending classic sitcom elements with an exhilarating farcical crime twist. With Dawn French and Mark Heap leading the cast, this is an irresistible new comedy and I cant wait for BBC viewers to see it.

An Australian braodcaster is yet to be announced.
Filming has commenced in Greece on a new Australian co-production The Assassin, starring Keeley Hawes (Bodyguard, Scoop) and Freddie Highmore (The Good Doctor, Bates Motel).

The Assassin is a Two Brothers Pictures production for Prime Video, in association with All3Media International, ZDF and Stan in Australia. The 660 drama has been created by Harry and Jack Williams (The Tourist, Boat Story, The Missing).

The cast also features Shalom Brune-Franklin (The Tourist, Baby Reindeer), Gina Gershon (Riverdale, New Amsterdam), Jack Davenport (The Morning Show, Pirates of the Caribbean), Alan Dale (Dynasty, Lost) Gerald Kyd (The Swarm, The Split), Devon Terrell (Totally Completely Fine, Cursed), Richard Dormer (Blue Lights, Game of Thrones) and David Dencik (The Ipcress File, No Time To Die).

Further cast to be announced.

Stan Chief Content Officer Cailah Scobie said: After the enormous success of The Tourist, Stan is delighted to welcome back the genre brilliance of Harry and Jack Williams with The Assassin. With an incredible ensemble cast led by Keely Hawes and Freddie Highmore, we cant wait to bring this nail-biting family thriller to Australian audiences.

Secluded on a remote Greek island, retired assassin Julie (Hawes) has a somewhat thorny reunion with her estranged son, Edward (Highmore), visiting from England. Armed with questions around new information on his paternity, Edward battles to find the right time to speak to his frustratingly distant mother. But, when the moment finally presents itself, things take a deadly turn as Julies dangerous past catches up with her and they are forced to flee the island and go on the run together.

Edwards quest for truth clashes with Julies secrecy whilst they are forced to work together in a fight for survival, testing their dysfunctional relationship to its limits. Amid uncovering a dark conspiracy they believe to be their only threat, a greater danger emerges that will destroy their relationship entirely. In a race against time, Julie fights to save Edward and salvage their relationship as past and present collide in a showdown across the globe

The 660 drama has been written and created by Harry and Jack Williams (The Tourist, Boat Story, The Missing) with Krissie Ducker (Killing Eve, Sweetpea), Hamish Wright (Significant Other)  who serve as executive producers  and Selina Lim (Sex Education) also writing.

Sarah Hammond (The Tourist, Boat Story) and Daisy Mount (Wilderness, The Rig) serve as executive producers for Two Brothers Pictures, and Keeley Hawes and Freddie Highmore also serve as executive producers.

Nige Watson (One Day) is producer with Lisa Mulcahy (The Tourist) directing episodes 1-3 and Daniel Nettheim (Stan Original Series Critical Incident, The Tourist) directing episodes 4-6. Kelly Valentine Hendry (Bridgerton) and Jessica Mescall (Mary & George) serve as casting directors. Faliro House Productions is the Greek service company.
More people have been coming forward following Four Corners expose on Seven according to Joshua Bornstein, principal lawyer at Maurice Blackburn.

But Bornstein believes the issues are industry-wide, including Nine and 10.

Here are excerpts from an interview with Mumbrella.

What about since Four Corners aired, have you had other people reach out to you?

Yes. Other people whove either experienced the sorts of behaviour that was highlighted, or have information, have witnessed that sort of behaviour.

Theres been queries about whether were contemplating running a class action from some individuals as well. So yeah, a range of different responses, but certainly more people coming forward.

And are you contemplating a class action?

No. Class actions in the area of bullying or sexual harassment are not really a current feature of the legal landscape for all sorts of reasons, technical reasons and other reasons  technical legal complications. So, at the moment were just representing each individual with their own case.

You mentioned in the Four Corners report that you think this is the worst that youve seen in, I think you said, 25 years?

Heres why I say that. I mean, I see some very bad situations, but this is just uniquely bad because the women are often employed when theyre very young. Theyre often similar. They present in a similar way. Theyre often blonde and attractive, inexperienced, relying heavily on promises and sponsorship, quote unquote, of powerful men.

They work extremely long hours  I would argue illegal hours of work in breach of the Fair Work Act. They are often sent to sites of terrible trauma, you know, car accidents, disasters, shootings, decapitations. Its where theres a high risk of vicarious trauma. The bullying is vicious and unapologetic and overt. And then the sexual harassment and discrimination is just overt and very nasty. And it produces this cocktail thats just incredibly harmful to mental health. And eating disorders are common. And women ending up suicidal is common. I just havent seen that combination in such a graphic, powerful way in other workplaces.

Ive seen terrible stuff. But this is so many poisonous components combining together to produce something thats very unusual, in my view. Vicious. The women fear if they stick their head up, theyll never work again  and I think theres a lot of substance to their fear.

Because these people are vicious. They will go out of their way to try and and stop you working in the industry again.

You can read more here.
Musheera Ashraf, TwoCircles.net

This incident has left us all shaken. I knew the victim as a colleague and friend; we shared long working hours and struggles. The incident has created a sense of fear and uncertainty, said a resident doctor from Kolkatas R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital. This reflection of collective anguish underscores the profound impact of a recent brutal rape and murder of a junior doctor there.

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The state-run institution, which was once a place of solace, has become a site of heightened anxiety. The brutal assault has transformed the hospital from a beacon of care into a landscape fraught with apprehension. Doctors, who once embodied resilience and dedication, now move through their daily routines with a deep, unsettling caution.

The shadow of fear extends beyond the hospitals walls, permeating the personal lives of these young doctors. Conversations that once centered on medical cases and academic goals have shifted to discussions about personal safety and security. The bonds among these professionals have deepened as they face the grim reality of their vulnerability together.

Across India, doctors have long endured physical and verbal abuse, but the incident has underscored the dire lack of adequate security measures. A resident from Midnapore Medical College expressed a growing sense of helplessness: We are in such a situation that nobody can think beyond it. Even the patients and their family members are upset. With such mental health, how can we treat others?

The psychological toll on medical professionals is severe. A senior resident from Maharashtra recounted an incident where a patients family became hostile after being informed of a bleak prognosis, illustrating the volatile and dangerous environment in which doctors operate.

Another doctor from Diamond Harbour, Kolkata, revealed she was locked inside her room for days, overwhelmed by insomnia and crying spells. It will take a long time to heal. Patient care will be hampered because I wont be able to involve myself with the same dedication as before, she said.

Despite the public outcry, security measures remain inadequate, leaving doctors to question how an institution meant to protect and heal could become a source of such profound distress. The incident at R.G. Kar Medical College has ignited widespread public outrage and intense media scrutiny, raising urgent concerns about safety, accountability and the need for systemic reforms.

There are no guards outside the labor room; anyone can just enter the hospital, especially in medical colleges, a senior resident from Jaipur lamented.

The medical community is calling for a zero-tolerance policy towards harassment and violence within institutions, emphasising that the safety and well-being of all members should be a top priority.

The publics response has been marked by anger and frustration, with protests and demands for justice echoing across the state. The relentless media focus on the case has kept it in the spotlight, but concerns about a potential trial by the media and the victims privacy are growing.

This tragic incident has not only exposed vulnerabilities within the medical community but has also sparked broader debates on sexual violence, institutional responsibility and the urgent need for comprehensive reforms to protect women and ensure justice.

As the doctors at R.G. Kar Medical College continue to navigate their work amidst this atmosphere of fear and uncertainty, the pressing question remains: will the authorities take the necessary steps to safeguard those who dedicate their lives to caring for others?
Utsa Sarmin, TwoCircles.net

Kolkata: The brutal rape and murder of a 31-year-old postgraduate trainee doctor at Kolkatas R.G. Kar Medical College on August 9 has sent shockwaves across the nation. The case, now under the scrutiny of the Supreme Court, has unfolded through a series of disturbing and contradictory events.

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August 9

9:30-10:00 a.m.: The victims body is discovered by a fellow postgraduate student in the hospitals seminar room.

10:15-10:45 a.m.: Kolkata police, stationed outside the hospital, arrive at the crime scene. Initially, hospital authorities inform the victims parents that she is sick, later shifting to a claim of suicide.

Morning: Postgraduate trainees demand a magistrates inquest and video recording of the autopsy, which is initially denied by hospital authorities.

1:00 p.m.: Under mounting pressure, hospital authorities agree to the autopsy.

4:00 p.m.: A magistrate from Sealdah court arrives to oversee the autopsy, seven hours after the body was found. Five female residents and the victims family are present.

7:30 p.m.: Despite the wishes of the family and doctors, the hospital and police proceed with the cremation of the victims body, raising suspicions of a hasty cover-up.

Subsequent Events

August 10: Widespread protests erupt among the medical community. A forum called the West Bengal Junior Doctors Front is formed, demanding justice for the victim and accountability from the hospital administration. The police arrest a Kolkata Police civic volunteer, 33-year-old Sanjay Roy, in connection with the case, following the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) just six hours earlier.

August 11: Former Principal Sandip Ghosh resigns from his post and is immediately appointed as the principal of the Calcutta National Medical College. This swift transfer incites outrage and protests, with many accusing the government of attempting to shield Ghosh from accountability.

August 13: The Calcutta High Court transfers the investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) due to a lack of progress in the Kolkata Police investigation.

August 14: Violent clashes erupt at R.G. Kar as a mob of approximately 7,000 people vandalises the protest site after midnight. Security forces are deployed to disperse the crowd. To maintain law and order, the Kolkata Police imposes Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (formerly Section 144 of the CrPC), restricting gatherings around R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital for seven days, effective from August 18.

August 16: The post-mortem report, accessed by media organizations, reveals horrific details of the crime, including multiple injuries consistent with rape, strangulation and smothering. On the same day, the CBI begins questioning former Principal Ghosh, who has undergone over 30 hours of interrogation in the past four days. The agency is scrutinising his phone records for potential conspiracies related to the crime and investigating the three-hour delay in informing the victims family about her death.

August 18: The Supreme Court takes suo motu cognizance of the case, emphasising the gravity of the situation. The CBI conducts a 3D laser mapping of the emergency ward at R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital.

August 19: The CBI requests a polygraph test for the accused, who has made contradictory statements during interrogation. Additionally, the federal probing agency considers a psychological autopsy of the victim to understand her state of mind leading up to the crime. Permission for the polygraph test is granted.

August 20: The CBI presents its case at the Supreme Court. A bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, hearing the suo motu case, slammed the West Bengal government and the police over the handling of the case.

Additional Information

A major controversy erupted when it was revealed that renovation work had begun near the seminar room at R.G. Kar where the doctors body was discovered. This sparked allegations that authorities were attempting to destroy evidence. The demolition included the removal of a room and a nearby toilet, both situated just a few feet from the crime scene.

Hospital authorities justified the action as a response to students demand for a rest area in the chest medicine department.

However, the renovation raised serious questions about the investigations integrity and led to intense public outcry. The Calcutta High Court intervened, expressing concerns about the urgency of the renovation work and directing the state government to file an affidavit with photographic evidence by August 20 to confirm that the crime scene remained intact.

The investigation has since expanded to include allegations of financial irregularities at the hospital. The West Bengal government has formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe these allegations dating back to January 2021.
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MP: Chhatarpur Cong leaders bungalow razed after bulldozer action

Local body authorities Thursday August 22, 2024 razed to ground a huge lavish bungalow of former President and Ex-Congress District Vice President Haji Shahzad Ali after protest over blasphemous remarks by a Hindu saint turned violent.

Thursday August 22, 2024 10:13 PM , ummid.com News Network

Chhatarpur (Madhya Pradesh): Local body authorities Thursday August 22, 2024 razed to ground a huge lavish bungalow of former President and Ex-Congress District Vice President Haji Shahzad Ali after protest over blasphemous remarks by a Hindu saint turned violent.

A delegation of Muslims had on Wednesday August 21, 2024 visited the Chhatarpur Police Station to submit a memorandum demanding action against Hindu saint Ramgiri Maharaj.

Ramgiri Maharaj had reportedly made blasphemous comments in Maharashtra last week. Videos of him purportedly making the objectionable remarks were widely shared on different social media platform.

Enraged Muslims filed FIR against him at a number of places, including in Mumbai and Pune. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde however defended the controversial Hindu saint.

Maharashtra is the land of saints, and we will not take any action against them. And if anyone even touches a hair of theirs, we will deal with him with force, Shinde said while the controversial "saint" was sitting on stage.

Following Shindes refusal to take action against Ramgiri Maharaj, protests against him intensified and reached to the neighbouring states.

According to the local media reports, Haji Shehzad Ali led a delegation of Muslims to Chhatarpur Police Station and submitted a memorandum seeking action against the mahant. Suddenly, stone pelting started, injuring few police officials.

Tension prevailed in the city whole of Wednesday. Top cop Agam Jain led a march of police personnel in the evening and no untoward incident took place, media reports said.

Later, following the instructions of Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, a case against Shehzad Ali and 150 others were filed for the incident involving pelting of stones at Chhatarpur Police Station.

On Thursday Aug 22, 2024, local civic body officials in the presence of district officials started bulldozer action against Shehzad Ali and other accused.

https://t.co/DrhYJaqvcB

In Chhattarpur in Madhya Pradesh, house of Muslims were demolished after their protest against the blasphemous remark against the prophet. The investigation is still ongoing, the one who made the blasphemous remark is still out but Muslim houses were pic.twitter.com/8nf2D9D9hX  Aasif Mujtaba (@MujtabaAasif) August 22, 2024

Video footage from the site shows bulldozer razing to the ground the lavish bungalow of the Congress leader.

In probably the first since bulldozer action started in 2017, three cars parked outside the bungalow were also crushed.

The officials said part of the bungalow of Shehzad Ali was demolished because it was built illegally and without taking the necessary permissions.

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Signs of The Times

Whats changed after the gruesome murder and rape of the 31 year old doctor in Kolkata? Rapes and sexual assaults are continuing one after another.

Thursday August 22, 2024 3:08 PM , Humra Quraishi, ummid.com

[The featured image used here for representation is generated by DALL-E3 AI.]

Whats changed after the gruesome murder and rape of the 31 year old doctor in Kolkata ? Rapes and sexual assaults are continuing one after another. In the last one week, news reports of rape and sexual assault cases have come in from Uttarakhand , Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra  Mind you, these are the reported cases. What about the hundreds of cases or incidents which go unreported!

Tell me, where are we heading in this state of complete perversion and utter anarchy, where no woman or child or teenager feels safe and secure. Theres fear in every sense of the term. Lets not overlook a connected fact: Hundreds and thousands of women and girls go missing in the country. A total of 10,61,648 women went missing from 2019 to 2021 across the country. Simultaneously, 2,51,430 girls disappeared during the same period.

Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra are the two states from where the maximum number of girls and women disappeared from 2019 to 2021. From Madhya Pradesh, 52,119 women in 2019, 52,357 in 2020 and 55,704 in 2021 went missing. In Maharashtra, 63,167 women in 2019, 58,735 in 2020 and 56,498 in 2021 went missing. A total of 90,113 girls (those who are below 18 years of age) disappeared in 2021 with the highest from West Bengal at 13,278.

Last summer, 26 July 2023, Minister of State for Home Affairs, Ajay Kumar Mishra had told the Rajya Sabha: 10,61,648 women above 18 years and 2,51,430 girls below 18 years went missing between 2019 and 2021 across the country.

In 2019, the number of girls and women who went missing was 82,084 and 3,42,168 respectively, while in 2020, 79, 233 girls and 3,44,422 women went missing, the minister said.

According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), 82,619 girls went missing in 2019 and 49,436 were recovered. In the same year, 3,29,504 women went missing, and 1,68,793 were recovered. In 2020, 79,233 girls and 3,44,422 women went missing. Of these, 2,24,043 women were recovered while the number of girls recovered in 2019 was not given.

In 2021, 90,113 girls went missing and 58,980 were recovered. 3,75,058 women went missing and 2,02,298 were recovered, he said in Indian Parliaments Upper House.

Where we heading?

Have we bothered to ponder on the dismal aspect that if this level of abuse and disappearance and sexual assaults are taking place in the public domain then what must be happening in the so called heavily guarded places where inmates survive within those guarded gates and high walls all around. What could be taking place in there!

Not to overlook the blatant violence unleashed on women and children during rioting and pogroms and forced shifts cum displacements. Easy targets, they are forced to keep shut about any of the sexual assaults otherwise the political goons coupled with the mafia could tear them to pieces. Several victims of sexual violence during rioting had told me they had no choice but to keep quiet for the sake of their survival and that of their families and clans.

Today, safety and security of women seems to be at the very lowest rung, with the political mafia calling the shots. Not really surprising; with all round degeneration, the vulnerable are not just targeted but ruined for times to come. Look how very helpless were the likes of National and International level champs - Sakshi Malik and Vinesh Phogat and several others. Their careers ruined, because the tainted men had to be protected under the various political guises!

And with the latest trend of bulldozing of homes, women and their entire families forced to sit or squat or stand outside their demolished dwellings. One is provoked to question: where are all those who harp on the safety of girls and women? Dont they realize that with homes and abodes demolished, entire families are forced to survive without a roof over their heads. Vulnerable they are! Yes, their vulnerability at the peak, when they are forced to sit by the road side.

And just where are the day and night shelters where the human forms can survive? Absolutely hitting the dismal situation for those whose homes are bulldozed or where the bulldozers are parked right in front of their lanes and by-lanes. Homeless- jobless- penniless, is perhaps the worst combination to survival in these harsh times but thousands are facing exactly this reality. Compounded by the fact that the all too powerful land and the political mafia keeps an eye on them. As though the hawks are just awaiting to pounce on the property of any of the hapless vulnerable!

In this atmosphere of political pollution, havoc continues. Instead of addressing the core issue with all its dimensions, politics takes over. Its getting nauseating to see the perverse levels we have reached, where even rapists could get some level of advantage, get going along the political slants. The stark case was that of the three rapist men accused of raping a student of IIT Varanasi. They were formally arrested only after 60 days! Why the delay when their whereabouts were well splashed? The accused men were said to be close to the top brass of the BJP! Ample photographic evidence of this had emerged, where they are seen posing with the rulers of the day! Mind you, this isnt or wasnt one of those rare cases.

Wheres our collective outcry! Where are we heading in this atmosphere where the rulers of the day are playing games whilst our bodies and souls are ruptured  hundreds amongst us getting assaulted and ruined and deadened!

And for Gods sake lets get over and done with the speeches rendered by the political lot on Womens Day and on the Human Rights Day! Hollow words mean nothing at all when ground realities are worsening by the way.

(The writer, Humra Quraishi, is Gurgaon based Journalist and Author.)



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Total Arab Silence Against Gaza Genocide, Why?

The ongoing genocide on Gaza over the past 11 months have failed to move the Arab street even one iota

Thursday August 22, 2024 6:43 PM , Dr Marwan Asmar

[Activists in Norway protest against the lsraeli massacres committed in Gaza Strip on August 21, 2024.]

The ongoing genocide on Gaza over the past 11 months have failed to move the Arab street even one iota. This is an Israeli genocide but the Arab world continues to look on - helplessly and hopelessly, unable to fathom of what to do to stop it.

Despite the intensity of Israels war on the whole of the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023, and the consequent daily massacres perpetrated by the Zionist army, literally committed nonstop, the popular streets across the Arab world has largely been dormant, lethargic and ineffective, spectators to a deadly bloody match with vastly unequal partners.

Gone are the days...

People have been glued to their television sets, especially on Al Jazeera, stunned at the annihilation of Gaza by the Israeli bombardment and missiles. But they have not been able to do anything except wonder in amazement at the scale of destruction of the Palestinian territory with men, women, children, toddlers, babies and infants standing alone to face the Israeli enemy only to be blown up to pieces.

Gone are the days when popular protest gripped the Arab world to-the-teeth and were a sense of nationalism, dignity, values and pride once held sway. This of course was not always this way.

The pan-Arab streets have always been ripe with anger and frustrations, and political awareness of right and wrong expressed in almost daily demonstrations right from at least 1956 when Israeli, Britain and France carried their tripartite attack on Egypt at the nationalization of the Suez Canal.

Then countries like Kuwait, Jordan and others took part in the protests against the three-country attack crying foul of neocolonialism and subjugation. But then was the period of the pan-Arab nationalist movement that grew up in Beirut and spread to other Arab cities in the wake of the fall of Palestine in 1948 and the creation of the state of Israel.

No new Dawn!

Despite statist policies and autocratic governments, popular protests continued across the Arab world sporadically, whether in the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 1990s with the central question being Palestine.

This culminated in the Arab Spring of 2011 when there was a new popular push forward and the promise of a new dawn across the regions. With the economic squeeze increasing against the Arab masses, Palestine was joined by calls for regime change and economic modernization to increase employment and lower the stinging rates of poverty.

Despite the fact that governments were brought down, here and there, starting with Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen and Libya, the Arab Spring  the great popular deluge of protests that was unprecedented in many ways  succumbed to the strong and powerful Arab state, together with its institutions, leaderships, bureaucracy and security apparatuses and military forces.

Whilst Arab governments were at first taken by surprise, they quickly recuperated, gained their power back and dominated the will of the majority and stomped the popular uprisings movement in their tracks; halting regime change there and then.

The popular Arab streets may have erupted again in 2019 in particular in Lebanon, Sudan and Algeria but it once again failed in its demands to change the political status quo and reflected the dichotomies of awkward change. There was regime change in Sudan for instance, but the country degenerated into a civil war up till now with its power elites fighting each other over the seats of government.

Cold Shoulder

The present Gaza situation, and the Israeli onslaught on its people and resistance, must be understood within this context. The ebbs and flows of the popular street and its failure to change states, regimes and governments  starting from the radicals to the most conservatives  may explain why the present pan-Arab street is reacting in coolly to the present attacks on Gaza which has very quickly turned into a criminal genocide - in deed and practice.

People feel even if they continue to rally, like the protests against the mass bombing of Gaza in countries like Morocco which has established a normalization deal with Israel, they will not be able to stop Israel from its daily war crimes in Gaza, mainly because popular movements have limits. And that it is finally up to states to make decision and pressure the United States and Israel to stop the genocide on Gaza.

Its a strange situation with emotions dampened and cushioned despite the horrific images of babies cut to pieces, children dying in hospitals, women and men crying at loved ones that have jam-locked the social media. Growing daily statistics of the dead, buildings bombed, homes ripped apart have become just numbers regurgitated daily by televisions anchors or skimped through in newspapers and websites.

In this onslaught on Gaza, the apathy of the Arab street has reached a very low point  to the nadir, because people are in a whirlpool of helplessness. They tried before and they failed, and now these people have long become divided between poor and rich states in the Middle East region where consumerism and the high life has taken the better of them, and where ideologies and nationalism are reduced to second place and where religion is interpreted differently.

This time around, the popular world erupted for Gaza, in Europe, across America, including in US university campuses and elsewhere like Japan, demonstrating time and again, against the genocide, but sadly this has not been the case in the Arab world.

Later on sociologists, anthropologists and political scientists would need to explain what happened this time around  almost total Arab silence against the Gaza genocide, Why?

[The writer, Dr Marwan Asmar, is a Jordanian writer based in Amman and covers Middle East affairs.]

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HA NOI  It is forecast that there will be many difficulties for the cement industry, due to weak demand and fierce competition both domestically and internationally.

According to the Viet Nam Cement Association, only 44,600 tonnes of cement and clinker were exported to the Chinese market in the first six months of this year, bringing in less than US$1.57 million in foreign currency, compared to more than $24 million the first half of last year.

China, a key export market for the cement industry, reduced imports by 90 per cent last year, due to weak demand stemming from difficulties in the country's real estate sector.

In addition, China's increased cement exports to Viet Nam's key markets have intensified price competition in those import markets.

Statistics on the export situation in the first half of this year show that the country exported 15.9 million tonnes of cement and clinker, earning nearly $612 million, up 0.1 per cent in volume but down 11 per cent in value year-on-year.

Even before facing challenges from current fluctuations in the Chinese market, the cement industry was already grappling with competitiveness issues.

Recently, the Trade Remedies Authority of Viet Nam under the Ministry of Industry and Trade received information that Taiwan (China) had officially initiated an anti-dumping investigation on cement and clinker originated from or imported from Viet Nam.

The authority said that the plaintiff named seven Vietnamese enterprises, in addition to other enterprises that also exported the investigated products to Taiwan.

The first half of the year painted a bleak picture for domestic cement companies, marked by weak demand, intense competition both domestically and internationally, and widely disparate profit margins.

Many enterprises were forced to halt kiln operations due to sluggish consumption or depressed product prices. Others adjusted kiln capacity and worker hours, even accepting reduced profits to minimize waste and ensure production efficiency.

Industry experts expressed skepticism about a robust recovery in the real estate market. Slow-moving projects faced delays or postponements due to challenges in securing capital and insufficient disbursement of public investment funds.

Furthermore, the scarcity and rising prices of construction materials, particularly sand, stone, and gravel, hampered construction progress in many areas, especially in the central and southwest regions, leading to a sharp decline in domestic cement demand.

Fuel supply and price are unstable at many times, affecting production and business results.

The use of alternative fuels and raw materials remains challenging, with no clear guidelines for utilising industrial waste as a substitute for traditional raw materials in production. The sharp decline in cement consumption has forced factories to adjust selling prices for certain product lines and specific projects, aligning them with fluctuating production costs to maintain operations.

The Government will develop a carbon emission market, putting even greater pressure on the cement industry.

Investors and consumers are increasingly demanding greener production practices, including the use of alternative fuels, waste heat recovery, and waste treatment. This trend is driving a shift towards increased reliance on alternative fuels over coal.

The Kinh te & o thi (Economic and Urban Affairs) newspaper was told by a representative of the Viet Nam Cement Association, that the price of carbon credits in Europe is quite high, up to more than US$90 per tonne of CO2, so if taxed, this would be a very heavy burden for businesses.

Therefore, businesses need to take rapid green transformation solutions and be ready to cope with the tax, he said.

Green transformation in cement production involves reducing clinker content, minimising emissions during the clinker-burning process, or lowering electricity consumption throughout production.

However, reducing clinker content poses a significant challenge, as customers generally prefer cement with a higher clinker content. Therefore, the expert advises businesses to prioritise reducing emissions during the burning process or minimising electricity consumption during production.  VNS
HA NOI  After a recent sale, Tael Two Partners Ltd, a Singapore-based fund, has initiated the registration to sell an additional one million Vinasun shares (VNS).

The Singaporean shareholder is expected to reduce their ownership stake to just over 10.18 per cent, or over 6.9 million shares, from 11.65 per cent.

In less than a year, Tael Two Partners has withdrawn capital from the taxi business, Vinasun, a total of eight times.

In a recent announcement, the foreign fund said that the sale is to adjust its investment portfolio. The transaction is scheduled to occur between August 21 and September 19 through negotiated deals and/or matched orders.

Earlier, Tael Two Partners sold 9,100 VNS shares between July 18 and August 16, out of a total of two million shares earmarked for sale.

The decision to not sell the entire batch, as planned, was due to market conditions falling short of expectations.

The fund has been consistently divesting from the taxi company since last October when the fund held 18.3 per cent of the charter capital.

However, Tael Two Partners still remains the largest foreign shareholder of Vinasun.

In the current shareholder structure, ang Phuoc Thanh, former chairman of the Board of Directors, is Vinasun's largest shareholder with a 24.92 per cent ownership stake. It is followed by his wife, Ngo Thi Thuy Van, who holds 10.56 per cent.

Taurus Consulting Co., Ltd. is the third-largest shareholder with 12.67 per cent and Tael Two Partners holds the fourth-largest position in Vinasun.

In the second quarter, Vinasun reported a revenue drop of 16.3 per cent year-on-year to VN253.22 billion and a 57.8 per cent decrease in profit after tax to VN16.93 billion, marking a two-year low.

The company cited reduced revenue and ongoing support for drivers as key reasons for the decline in profit.

For the first half of the year, the companys revenue fell 15.4 per cent from last year to VN531.84 billion, with profit after tax dropping by 58.2 per cent to VN38.94 billion.  VNS
HA NOI  The oil and gas industry should look at developing renewable and new energies to ensure sustainability, in line with green transition and digital transformation, Chairman of the Central Economic Commission and Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang has said.

Speaking at a conference on Wednesday about the implementation of the Politburos orientations for the development of the oil and gas industry by 2025, with a vision to 2035, Quang said that in the current context, the industry is facing many difficulties and challenges from changing global landscapes. There are opportunities however, provided the industry can bring into play strengths in experience, infrastructure and human resources.

As energy transition becomes critical, Quang urged the industry to focus on developing renewable and new energies, stressing that this is the path to breakthrough developments and ensuring sustainable growth.

The industry should also encourage investments from non-state economic sectors and international financial institutions as well as pay attention to developing high-quality human resources, together with policies for talents to meet international requirements in the context of rapid and intensive international integration, he said.

Deputy Head of the Central Economic Commission Nguyen uc Hien said that it is necessary to improve the institutions and legal framework to create conditions for the oil and gas industry to develop in the new era.

In the context of energy transition and the fourth industrial revolution, attention should be paid to developing the technical infrastructure, Hien said.

Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien said that state-owned oil and gas corporations should hasten restructuring and develop new strategies towards ensuring energy security. The National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) will become the national industry and energy corporation, while the Vietnam National Petroleum Group will become the leading corporation in green, clean, quality and environmentally-friendly energies.  VNS
BINH INH  Binh inh and Korean Air should work together to launch a direct air route from the central Vietnamese province to the Republic of Korea (RoK) by the end of this year, an official said on August 21.

At a working session with a Korean Air delegation in HCM City, Chairman of the Binh inh Peoples Committee Pham Anh Tuan requested that the provincial Peoples Committee Office, the Department of Tourism, the Department of External Affairs, and relevant agencies establish a working group and accomplish procedures to open the air route by the end of the year.

Realising the importance of partnering with the aviation industry to draw tourists and contribute to tourism development, Binh inh has implemented many activities to call for investment, open charter flights, and organise many cultural, sports, and tourism events.

From 2020 to July 2024, the province attracted 465 investment projects in various fields with registered capital totalling over VN184.3 trillion (nearly US$7.4 billion), including 22 tourism projects capitalised with VN22.38 trillion. This result indicates that domestic and international investors have a very high demand for travelling to/from Binh inh by air to survey and explore investment opportunities, he said.

Over 6.68 million tourists visited Binh inh in the first seven months of 2024, an increase of 97.9 per cent over the same period last year. The province also recorded almost VN18.1 trillion in tourism revenue, surging 68.7 per cent year on year.

Tuan suggested that Korean Air promote cooperation with Vietnamese and international travel agencies to organise charter flights to bring Korean tourists to Binh inh and vice versa in the coming time. He also called on the carrier to introduce local tourism to travel companies in the RoK and popularise images of Binh inh on its flights and media channels.

Agreeing with Binh inh's proposal, a leader of Korean Air committed to collaborating with the Vietnamese province to soon operate charter flights by the end of this year.

Kim Kye Yong, Chief Representative of Korean Air in HCM City, said the airline is looking forward to working with the province to launch flights from the RoK to Quy Nhon City of Binh inh in the future. It hopes to receive support from the local administration and relevant agencies in this regard.

Binh inh is home to Phu Cat Airport, about 30km northwest of Quy Nhon City. This airport serves the routes linking Quy Nhon with HCM City and Ha Noi operated by Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet Air, Jetstar Pacific, and Bamboo Airways.

In 2023, it handled 10,350 flights with over 1.9 million passengers. The respective figures stood at 2,505 and over 450,000 during the first seven months of 2024.  VNS
BRI cooperation boosts "Made in Africa"

Xinhua) 08:42, August 22, 2024

Ahmed Soliman, deputy general manager of Jushi Egypt Fiberglass Co., Ltd., checks on the fiberglass production line of Jushi Egypt at the China-Egypt TEDA Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone in Suez province, Egypt, Aug. 10, 2023. (Xinhua/Sui Xiankai)

Among industrial zones of various types in African countries, many were built and operated by Chinese enterprises. Through these zones, African countries can participate more effectively in the global production chain and promote the internationalization of local brands.

NAIROBI, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- From Uganda to Egypt, and from Senegal to Nigeria, Chinese-operated industrial parks and zones are thriving across Africa, helping the continent better integrate into the global production chain and promote new African brands.

Driven by the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China's involvement in African industry is also fostering the ecological and sustainable development of local manufacturing, thereby enhancing its competitiveness in the global market. As this fruitful cooperation continues, "Made in Africa" sees promising prospects.

"MADE IN AFRICA" BOOMING

Hellen Mugala, 27, joins hundreds of her colleagues each morning to commute to the Sino-Uganda Mbale Industrial Park in the eastern district of Mbale, Uganda. "This industrial park has helped many local people. I've gained skills and earned a living," she said.

The park, invested in and operated by the private Chinese company Tian Tang Group, has attracted more than 40 companies since its establishment in March 2018, creating over 5,000 local jobs.

One notable company in the park is Pearlight Technology Co., Ltd, which manufactures lighting products, contributing to reducing Uganda's dependence on imported LED lamps by producing them affordably and facilitating repairs.

People work at Pearlight Technology Co., Ltd. at the Sino-Uganda Mbale Industrial Park in Mbale, Uganda, on April 5, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Yahui)

"Previously, Uganda's LED lamps were mainly imported, expensive, and difficult to repair. Chinese companies have changed this situation. Now, our company produces about 3 million LED bulbs and tubes annually, sold across Uganda," said local technician Joseph Otim.

Spanning thousands of hectares, the park encompasses a wide range of sectors, including household appliances, daily beauty products, home fabrics, building materials, medicines, smartphones, televisions and automobiles. It reflects the achievements of Sino-African cooperation under the BRI and serves as a model for promoting local industrialization and modernization through incubating local brands.

Among industrial zones of various types in African countries, many were built and operated by Chinese enterprises, such as the Diamniadio International Industrial Platform in Senegal, the Lekki Free Trade Zone in Nigeria, and the China-Egypt TEDA Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone in Egypt. Through these zones, African countries can participate more effectively in the global production chain and promote the internationalization of local brands.

ECO-FRIENDLY MANUFACTURING

The BRI encourages ecological and sustainable development, supports African countries in adopting green technologies and clean energy in manufacturing. This not only helps protect Africa's natural environment but also gives African manufacturing a "green manufacturing" label, enhancing its appeal in the global market.

Based in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, Gogo Electric, one of the country's top three electric motorcycle manufacturers, imports lithium-ion batteries from China and assembles electric motorcycles for the local market.

Janos Bisasso, its chief operating officer, said that customers can always bring their used batteries to a battery exchange station, where they can get a fully charged battery at a lower price. Over time, customers may realize that exchanging batteries is less expensive than refueling, encouraging them to choose electric motorcycles.

This photo taken on June 3, 2023 shows an electric bus operating in Nairobi, Kenya. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen)

In Kenya, the BasiGo project in Nairobi highlights the importance of cooperation in the eco-friendly transportation sector. Faced with local currency devaluation and rising energy import costs, the Kenyan government has expanded support for the electric vehicle sector, which relies on the country's renewable energy resources.

BasiGo, a Kenyan startup, launched its electric bus service in March 2022, locally assembled from parts supplied by Chinese automotive company BYD.

Mutoro Sifuna, BasiGo's marketing director, emphasized the significant energy cost savings of electric buses compared with diesel ones. They plan to introduce and operate 1,000 electric buses by 2025.

BETTER FUTURE FOR "MADE IN AFRICA"

Sino-African cooperation in the electric transportation sector has become a tangible example of the positive outcomes of the BRI. Chinese companies bring quality products and technologies that meet the needs of local businesses and contribute to the transition towards a more sustainable future.

Africa has enormous potential in natural resources and labor. Through cooperation with China, Africa has begun to update its own production capabilities, while eco-friendly manufacturing and innovative technologies allow African brands to gain positions in the global market.

Through further enhancing cooperation, China and Africa are shaping a promising future for "Made in Africa." African countries can develop more advanced technologies, get skilled professionals, and create larger markets.

The BRI has already laid a solid foundation. With the determination of both parties and the support of the international community, "Made in Africa" is entering an era of prosperity and sustainable development, contributing to the global economy and improving the lives of African people.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
HA NOI  Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh attended a ceremony in Ha Noi on August 22 to mark the 55th anniversary of the chemical industrys traditional day (August 19, 1969 2024).

The commemorative speech highlighted that the Vietnamese chemical industry was founded with the establishment of the general department of chemicals on August 19, 1969, aiming to serve national defence, agriculture, and civilian needs during the countrys intense struggle for independence. In 2009, the Viet Nam National Chemical Group (Vinachem) was established. In 2023, the groups revenue exceeded VN57 trillion (US$2.28 billion), with profits reaching nearly $3.3 trillion.

In his remarks, the PM extended his warm congratulations and commended the achievements and efforts of the industry over the past 55 years, recognising its significant contributions to Viet Nam's overall success in national construction and defence.

PM Chinh also took note of several challenges facing the sector, which include a limited range of high-tech chemical products and high-value-added goods, the reliance on imported raw materials and chemical inputs, inadequate attention to scientific research, technological innovation, and competitiveness, and environmental pollution issues.

He stressed that the Party and State acknowledge and prioritise the important role of the chemical industry, and urged Vinachem to reinforce its role as a pillar to coordinate and harness collective strength of the sector to implement key tasks and solutions to achieve rapid and sustainable development in the coming period.

The PM requested the industry to review and effectively implement the resolutions and conclusions of the Party, National Assembly, Government, while continuing to strengthen its organisational structure, building a lean and high-quality workforce, modernising management toward smart governance, accelerating digital transformation, and resolving existing issues.

The leader also tasked Vinachem with leading research and investment in new, selected fields aligned with global trends, and developing emerging industries such as semiconductors and energy storage.

He went on emphasising the importance of improving the material and spiritual well-being of workers and of restructuring input products to reduce costs by increasing the use of domestic products and self-production. It is also necessary for the group to coordinate with relevant ministries, localities, and state-owned and private companies to actively participate in both domestic and global supply chains, the PM noted.  VNS
While the influx of imported goods has presented challenges, with signs of dumping and subsidisation impacting domestic industries, Viet Nam has effectively countered these threats. By implementing reasonable trade defense measures, aligned with international commitments, the country has not only shielded domestic industries from unfair competition but also fostered their development and enhanced economic value.

Vietnam News Agency spoke with Trinh Anh Tuan, director of the Department of Trade Defence under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, to discuss the trade strategies being used to safeguard domestic production.

Viet Nam has implemented trade defence measures effectively, protecting the interests of various domestic manufacturing industries and markets. So, how effective are they?

To date, Viet Nam has conducted 29 trade defence investigations, including 20 anti-dumping cases, one anti-subsidy case, two anti-circumvention cases and six defence cases.

These measures have been vital in safeguarding domestic manufacturing industries, which contribute about 9.7 per cent of Viet Nam's GDP (based on 2023 estimates) and protecting the jobs of hundreds of thousands of workers. By implementing well-considered trade measures in accordance with international commitments, the country fosters a more favourable environment for domestic industries, shielding them from unfair competition and promoting growth, job creation, and economic value.

From a consumer standpoint, these long-term measures reduce the economy's reliance on imports, enhancing stability and resilience against external shocks. Additionally, effective trade defence strengthens Viet Nam's ability to leverage free trade agreements (FTAs) while mitigating the risk of anti-circumvention investigations by foreign countries, as Viet Nam proactively protects its domestic raw material sources.

What long-term strategies do you think State management agencies and manufacturing industries should adopt to boost trade defence capacity and support domestic goods?

The Ministry of Industry and Trade continuously monitors and implements trade defence measures based on the needs of domestic industries. This helps prevent unfair competition from imported goods in line with legal and international commitments.

For instance, the ministry is executing Decision No. 1659/Q-TTg, dated October 2, 2021, from the Prime Minister, which approves the project Enhancing trade defence capacity in the context of new-generation free trade agreements. This project focuses on providing information and improving knowledge about trade defence for domestic industries.

The ministry also collaborates with relevant associations and units to monitor production and import situations closely. This allows for timely action to protect the legitimate interests of domestic manufacturers.

Regarding investigations, the MoIT will continue to conduct them transparently and in accordance with the law, ensuring that all stakeholders' views are considered and that conclusions accurately reflect the situation. This is crucial to prevent unfair competition from imported goods.

Beyond the Government and MoIT's efforts, to minimise the negative impacts of trade defence measures, manufacturers and exporters should focus on market diversification. This approach avoids overreliance on a single market, promotes competition based on quality rather than price and reduces the risk of trade investigations.

Businesses should also consider the risks related to trade defence measures applied by foreign markets when developing production and export strategies. It is essential to understand trade defence laws and prepare resources to handle potential lawsuits. Monitoring warnings from the MoIT during the export process is also crucial.

Finally, businesses must strictly adhere to regulations on certificates of origin, avoid participating in origin fraud, and fully co-operate with investigation agencies. Close co-ordination with the MoIT is essential to effectively address trade cases.

What measures is the Ministry of Industry and Trade taking to support businesses and industries in expanding production while also safeguarding domestic industries?

The Ministry of Industry and Trade actively directs and collaborates with associations and localities to enhance the trade capabilities of the business community, aiming to mitigate negative impacts. This includes working with industry groups and local authorities to share information on trade defence, guide businesses on participating in trade defence cases and responding to requests from investigation agencies.

Additionally, the ministry is developing an early warning system to identify potential targets for trade defence investigations. This system provides warnings of risks so that businesses can prepare accordingly and it supports businesses during investigations involving Vietnamese exports.

If businesses require assistance, the ministry is ready to offer guidance and closely monitor the activities of foreign investigation agencies.

For investigations on imported goods, the ministry ensures a fair and transparent process that adheres to legal provisions and Viet Nams international trade commitments. The ministry will continue to consider the perspectives of all relevant parties and base conclusions on accurate data and evidence.

This approach aims to make objective and fair decisions that protect domestic industries while also considering the broader socio-economic impacts and effects on other manufacturing sectors.  VNS
HOA BINH  A total of 18,000 trees of native species will be planted in Hang Kia-Pa Co Nature Reserve and its extended area as part of a project to restore 50 hectares of forest connecting Hoa Binh and Son La provinces.

This is the initial stage of a forest restoration campaign Vi Mot Viet Nam Xanh va Phat trien Ben Vung (For a Green and Sustainably Developing Viet Nam) initiated by the national carrier Vietnam Airlines and e-wallet service MoMo, in collaboration with the not-for-profit PanNature and Hang Kia-Pa Co Nature Reserve.

Three months after the initiative was launched on World Environment Day (June 5) this year, the project achieved its goal of planting 25 of the total 50 hectares planned.

Customers buying Vietnam Airlines flight tickets on the MoMo app, or completing their seat purchase via the MoMo payment service, can contribute to the forest restoration campaign.

A relatively small nature reserve, Hang Kia-Pa Co used to be a highlight on National Route 6 leading to the northwestern region.

However, due to excessive agricultural activities, most of its forest area now only remains on the mountaintops, while those in the lower lands and slopes were replaced with rice paddies.

Nguyen Thanh Luong, head of Hang Kia-Pa Co Nature Reserves management board said: Restoring the local forest ecosystem has been a great challenge for the nature reserve.

Our management board, local authorities and communities are continuing our efforts and determination to restore the forest, preserve its biodiversity and promote ecotourism and experiential tourism values of this area.

Director Trinh Le Nguyen said: PanNature recognised the practical and meaningful participation of Vietnam Airlines and MoMo in the efforts to restore the forest ecosystems in the northwestern region.

We hope for the continuing and sustainable engagement of Vietnamese businesses to join hands with us as well as the local authorities and communities to restore and preserve biodiversity and natural values.

In the long run, this initiative by Vietnam Airlines and MoMo contributes to Rung Xanh Len (Regreening Forest), a decade-long forest restoration programme carried out by PanNature across 500 hectares of forest land connecting Hoa Binh and Son La provinces since 2022.

In this programme, native tree species will be planted based on the forest canopy structure and growth rates to achieve the fastest possible coverage.

Locals will participate in the process of planting, nurturing, monitoring and, if necessary, additional planting in the future to ensure a completed forest restoration.

This process is expected to not only improve the local communities livelihoods but also protect water resources, enhance air quality and carbon absorption and help achieve the Net Zero goal by 2050.  VNS
HA NOI -- The 'Sounds of Brotherhood' project of the World Youth Orchestra Foundation, which took place this year in Viet Nam thanks to the support of the CDP Foundation, LCA Studio Legale and Temix, is about to end.

The initiative also counted on the collaboration with the Italian Embassy in Ha Noi, with the Consulate General of Italy in Ho Chi Minh City and on the work of the project partners Vicas (Vietnamese Institute for Culture and Arts) and SKDA (Ha Noi Academy of Theatre and Cinema).

Music, theatre, and art as instruments of dialogue and peace between peoples were at the centre of the project, which succeeded in developing strong artistic-cultural cooperations between Italy and Viet Nam, contributing to the training of many young Vietnamese artists, promoting the production of local artists and at the same time, offering concrete support to orphaned and abandoned children in Viet Nam.

The Brotherhood project was the latest of the numerous successful initiatives developed since 2001 by the World Youth Orchestra Foundation.

The WYO goes to Viet Nam to bring its musical message once again through its mosaic of musicians from all over the world, who play with passion and love to underline three fundamental words in the lives of all of us: friendship, brotherhood, peace, said Adolfo Vannucci, President of the World Youth Orchestra Foundation.

The first final event of 'Sounds of Brotherhood' will be on August 29 at Hanoi University, with a reading of four cantos of the Divine Comedy by Valeria Almerighi, Federico Brugnone and Carolina Leporatti, dedicated to the students of the Department of Italian Studies of the university.

On the afternoon of August 31, in Ho Chi Minh City, the final event of the WYO4CHILDREN project - aimed at children who are orphaned, abandoned or in difficult family situations, between the ages of five and seventeen - will take place at the Home of Mother's Love in Binh Duong.

The children will tackle a repertoire of Vietnamese and Italian music. The programme includes a painting show by the performer Francesca Chiala, who, thanks to the children's contribution, will paint a 20-metre-long canvas with the colours of the Italian and Vietnamese flags set to the rhythm of music.

Then back in Ha Noi on September 5, at the Vicas Arts Studio, there will be an awards ceremony of the 'Call for Projects' dedicated to Vietnamese artists for the categories of visual arts, music and theatre, in the presence of the Italian Ambassador to Viet Nam, Marco della Seta.

Finally, in a show that closes the project, there will be a 'Sound Dialogues' theatre workshop scheduled for September 7 at the Theatre of the Hanoi Academy of Theatre and Cinema, in the presence of the Italian embassy, the diplomatic corps and the university students and professors.

The CDP Foundation has always supported youth talent and promoted art and culture, characteristics that are embodied by the Sounds of Brotherhood project, which we have decided to support and through which we have extended our commitment at an international level, said Francesca Sofia, General Director of the CDP Foundation. We are convinced that the initiative will continue to encourage cooperation between the two countries, thanks to the power of cultural diplomacy, a fundamental tool for promoting inclusive development and social integration.

Ambassador Marco della Seta said: "This initiative has already proven capable of creating fruitful synergies and establishing links between Italian institutional, cultural and academic realities and Vietnamese ones. I am sure that the new events planned will prove equally effective in further consolidating the already excellent cultural relations between our two countries.

The 'Sounds of Brotherhood' project ran from January this year.

After 23 years of activity, WYO is represented in 75 countries, has 300 international partner universities, 3,500 talents involved and has held 350 events, with over ten million people attending its concerts around the world.

It has been recognised by numerous institutional bodies, including the UN, UNICEF, the European Commission and the President of the Italian Republic.

The project, conceived by the WYO Artistic Director and founder Damiano Giuranna, intends to demonstrate that music should not be limited to being a cultural necessity of an elite, but can represent a powerful tool for communicating values and ideas, a tool of cultural diplomacy capable of stimulating best practices in the artistic, social and political fields. VNS
By Le Huong *

Pho is a quintessential Vietnamese dish and so it is easy to find a pho shop in any corner of Ha Noi.

But even for that simple dish, not anyone can afford to eat every day.

A small pho shop in the capitals downtown has recently offered free bowls of pho to needy people, whose income cannot pay for such a delicate dish.

Every day, the shop owner invites people in need to enjoy 30 free bowls, paid for by customers who can order and pay more for them.

Customers can pre-order and pay for a bowl of pho for someone in need.

The number of bowls left from the previous day can be added to the next days number.

'Suspended Beef Noodle' is the name the owner chose for her project, inspired by the Italian suspended coffee model.

The idea is simple I want to support needy people, Nguyen Thi Cat Le, owner of the shop told Viet Nam News. Not only me but also my whole family and my charity group are very happy to share the burden of needy people. We do what we can. Its not much.

Any street vendors or disadvantaged people are invited to sit down and take a bowl, with warm smiles.

Street vendor Phan Thi Lien could not have dreamed of such a tasty breakfast before.

Born in the northern province of Hung Yen, she travels around Ha Noi streets with her little son to sell childrens toys.

Lien said she rarely made ends meet, let alone being able to afford such a special treat like pho.

But she was invited to a free bowl of pho here today.

Im very happy, she said while slurping the hot broth. I have never eaten such a tasty charity beef noodle like this before.

Lien said when she was invited for a bowl of pho, she was both thrilled with happiness and shy at the same time because it was free.

I highly appreciate the idea so that such a poor person like me can have a chance to eat pho, she said.

Rubbish collector Nguyen Thi Hoat has enjoyed her breakfast here every day over the past week.

Pho here is so delicious and of high quality, she said. Eating this bowl of pho free of charge will save me some money. I highly appreciate the kind-hearted people paying for such bowls of pho for needy people like me.

Being rather bashful, scrap dealer Nguyen Thi Nga parked her bike on the opposite pavement and asked for a bowl of pho to take home.

With my income, I can just afford rice for three meals per day, she said. I dont have enough money for pho. I hope to receive more meals like rice, and noodles. I want to say thanks to the kind-hearted people offering us delicious meals.

Bui Vinh Binh, who works as a motorbike washer near Long Bien market, returned to the shop for the second time. He still looked shy with his plastic bag.

Before that, he came to receive a free meal. His wife works at a textile company, but is currently sick. He alone has to work and take care of her.

"Can I have a portion of pho for my wife, she's been sick these past few days," he said to the seller softly.

When Le, the seller, asked him to take another bowl for himself at the restaurant, Binh insisted on refusing because he was shy.

Then, with the enthusiastic persuasion of the owner, he sat down to eat.

Binh is also one of nearly 30 disadvantaged people who benefited from a rice charity programme initiated by Le and her group. He receives a 10kg bag of rice on the first day of every month.

Le revealed that the bowls for the needy are bigger and contain more noodles and beef.

She has run the charity group for many years.

Her family also gives out free meals to patients at hospitals a few times every week.

Le was born into a poor family and understands and sympathises with the plight of workers, disabled people, street vendors and homeless children.

Her initiatives have been supported by many generous customers.

Truong Huu Thao, an office worker, was impressed by the sign with the word 'suspended pho' outside the door.

Having a bowl of pho here as breakfast almost everyday, he has participated in a number of charity donation programmes, but this was the first time he knew about this pay it forward idea.

Thao then decided to pay for two bowls of pho for the needy.

Many foreigners have made contributions, too.

Johanne Sorrels from the Netherlands made his contribution during his first time trying a bowl of pho here.

"I know that Vietnamese people have a tradition of helping one another, I can do something as well. Though I cannot help all, I can invite some poor people here for some bowls of pho," he said as he enthusiastically changed the number of free bowls on the wooden board. VNS

(with an additional interview by Quynh Anh)
NEW DELHI Viet Nam's culture has been brought closer to the Sri Lankan people through various programmes held by monks at the Truc Lam Zen Monastery in Kandy City.

Around 30 Sri Lankan children and their parents have attended a Vietnamese language class organised at the pagoda, the first Vietnamese one in the country. Most of them can introduce themselves fluently, and sing popular Vietnamese songs.

Along with the traditional Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday, the mid-autumn festival and Vu Lan (hungry ghost) festival, the monks have introduced Vietnamese dishes such as vegetarian spring roll and bun bo Hue (Hue noodle soup), and candied coconut, contributing to spreading the love for the Vietnamese language and culture among local people.

The monks have also provided rice support and scholarships for disadvantaged children.

Vietnamese Ambassador to Sri Lanka Trinh Thi Tam, in a visit to the pagoda, spoke highly of the monks work, and expressed her hope that they will continue their devotion to popularise the Vietnamese culture in the host nation.

The pagoda was built in 2020 by master Phap Quang, who has lived in Sri Lanka for years. VNA/VNS
HCM CITY  The annual Namaste Viet Nam (Hello Viet Nam) Festival will be back from August 25 in three southern cities to consolidate the bilateral relationship between India and Viet Nam, promote cultural exchange, and foster multifaceted growth, the organiser told a press conference yesterday.

It is scheduled to run in HCM City from August 25-27 and from August 27-30 in a Lat City of Lam ong Province and Nha Trang City of Khanh Hoa Province.

The event offers exciting festivities introducing the rich heritage and vibrant culture of both countries, as well as providing development opportunities for businesses.

It will introduce the first-ever co-production between the two countries, Love in Viet Nam to promote Vietnamese tourism and heritage. It is expected to be broadcast in the two countries next year.

There will also be five meetings for experts and businesses of both countries to discuss strategies in developing tourism, business, education, railway transportation, and the film industry.

Several investment projects will be introduced in the meetings, Consul General of India Madan Mohan Sethi told Viet Nam News.

Around 20 Vietnamese and Indian artists, experts, and filmmakers, 40 Indian travel companies, 34 Indian universities, and 30 Indian businesses will join the event.

Madan Mohan Sethi said Viet Nam welcomed 500,000 Indian tourists last year, which is five times more than in 2019.

Such an impressive number is thanks to the increasing number of direct flights and joint efforts in promoting intercultural exchange and tourism, Sethi said.

The consul general hoped that the event would also be a channel connecting businesses of both countries, thereby facilitating investment and increasing trade and economic growth.

The opening ceremony will be held at 5:30 pm on August 25 at HCM Citys Rex Hotel Saigon.

Visitors can join by filling out a form on the fan page of India in Vietnam (Consulate General of India in HCM City) or on the website of the HCM City Union of Friendship Organisations (HUFO).

Namaste Viet Nam Festival, organised by the Consulate General of India in HCM City and HUFO, is an effort to strengthen the bond between the two countries.

Last year, the event attracted over 2,000 visitors, and it hopes to attract more young people this time around.  VNS
HA NOI Thanks to the close cooperation between Vietnamese and Chinese travel firms and harmonised tourism promotion policies of the two countries, the number of Vietnamese and Chinese tourists travelling to the other country has completely recovered with strong growth potential.

According to the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism (VNAT), in the first seven months of this year, 2.1 million Chinese visitors arrived in Viet Nam, a surge of about 200 per cent year on year, making China the second largest tourist market of Viet Nam after the Republic of Korea.

VNAT Vice Director Ha Van Sieu affirmed that after the COVID-19 pandemic, tourism cooperation between Viet Nam and China has expanded considerably.

He attributed the result to the sound friendship and cooperation between the two countries and effective tourism promotion implemented by the two countries.

The official revealed that the VNAT will send two tourism promotion delegations to China to join the China International Travel Mart (CITM) and the China-ASEAN Tourism Expo.

At the same time, China has continuously issued attractive entry-exit policies, while improving tourism service quality, diversifying payment methods and continuously organising events to introduce its popular tourist attractions such as Zhangjiajie, which lured 42,200 Vietnamese visitors in the first half of this year.

At a conference to introduce tourist destinations of Chinas Nanning province, participants noted that in the first six months of this year, the Chinese locality welcomed 300 Vietnamese tourist groups with more than 19,000 visitors.

Over the years, China has been one of the leading tourist markets of Vietnam, making up about 30 per cent of the total international visitors to the country.

So far this year, tourism routes between Viet Nam and China have been bustling. In June, a route for charter flights from Hai Phong City of Viet Nam to Lijiang in China was launched, followed by the launching of the Ha Noi-Haikou, and Ha Noi-Chongqing air routes. These new routes have helped travel firms of the two sides further exploit sources of tourists from each others countries.

The booming in the number of visitors between Viet Nam and Chinese is also thanks to the close coordination among travel firms of the two countries, especially in exploiting destinations that can be reached by road or short flights.

Pham Tien Dung, Vice Chairman of the UNESCO Hanoi Travel Club (HUTC), held that the recovery of tourist source from China will bring about chances for Vietnamese tourism to take off this year. However, he stressed the need for Vietnamese destinations to target a higher segment of visitors with more spending.

Agreeing with Dung, Nguyen Tien at, CEO of AZA Travel, said that sea and island tours in Viet Nam have always been attractive to Chinese tourists, especially safe places with reasonable costs.

He held that the tourism sector should focus on luring tourists from large cities such as Beijing and Shanghai who often spend a large amount of money for their trips.

It is forecast that the number of elderly travelers in China will exceed 100 million in 2025, opening up a market of 139.3 billion USD per year. In 2040, the elderly will make up 50 per cent of the countrys total tourism market in 2040, according to China National Committee on Ageing. This fact prompts Viet Nam to design policies to lure this group of visitors, said experts.

They asserted that in order to reposition Viet Nam as a luxurious destination instead of a low-cost destination, it is necessary to create unique products to encourage tourists to stay longer and spend more, and improve the infrastructure quality to meet their demands. VNA/VNS
In an interview with The World and Viet Nam Report ahead of the Fourth World Conference of Overseas Vietnamese, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Chairwoman of the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs (SCOV) Le Thi Thu Hang gives her insights into the deep-seated desire and aspirations of the overseas community to contribute to the nations development goals.

What is the significance of this year's theme for the World Conference of Overseas Vietnamese?

The contributions of the overseas Vietnamese community have consistently left a lasting and profound impact on the nation throughout its history. Each time, the World Conference of Overseas Vietnamese is convened, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs carefully selects a theme that aligns with the nations current development priorities. This approach fosters a deep sense of connection among overseas Vietnamese and the national community, recognising them as "inseparable part", and encouraging their active participation and support in the country's development at every stage.

The 4th World Conference of Overseas Vietnamese is taking place at a crucial juncture, as the entire nation is intensifying efforts to implement the tasks outlined in the 13th National Party Congress's Resolution, with the aim of realising the country's development goals for 2030 and 2045. My interactions with overseas Vietnamese during my work abroad have clearly revealed their strong desire to contribute to these national aspirations.

Thus, with the theme 'Overseas Vietnamese Joining Hands to Realise the Nation's Development Aspirations', our goal is to create a platform where overseas Vietnamese, particularly intellectuals and entrepreneurs, can offer their ideas and suggestions for the nations development in the current context. This forum will also serve to strengthen national unity, foster connections between overseas Vietnamese intellectuals and entrepreneurs with domestic stakeholders  especially local authorities, businesses and research and technology transfer institutions  and to encourage overseas Vietnamese investment while enhancing the integration into innovation networks, both within and beyond our borders.

After 20 years of implementing the Politburo's Resolution 36-NQ/TW on Overseas Vietnamese Affairs, what challenges and requirements remain for this work?

Over the past two decades, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in collaboration with various central and local agencies, as well as political and social organisations, has actively worked to develop and implement a range of policies and initiatives. These efforts have been aimed at supporting our compatriots abroad in stabilising and advancing their lives while also encouraging them to contribute to the homeland's construction and development, in line with the spirit of Resolution 36, which asserts that: "Overseas Vietnamese are an inseparable part and an important resource of the Vietnamese national community."

However, despite these concerted efforts, several challenges and requirements persist, driven by both objective and subjective factors.

Firstly, while there have been positive strides in areas such as citizenship, land ownership, investment and entry-exit procedures, there is still a lack of synchronisation in the development and implementation of certain mechanisms, policies, and legal regulations related to overseas Vietnamese. These inconsistencies mean that existing policies do not yet fully meet the evolving needs of the situation.

Secondly, despite significant breakthroughs in engaging the overseas Vietnamese community, the results have not fully met expectations. A small portion of the overseas community remains hesitant to fully embrace and contribute to these efforts, often held back by lingering preconceived notions.

While efforts to mobilise the economic resources of overseas Vietnamese have yielded encouraging outcomes, these initiatives have not yet fully tapped into the vast potential of the community, particularly its intellectual resources. Despite having a diaspora of 600,000 intellectuals, including many leading scientists and experts, there has been insufficient focus on leveraging their expertise and influence to promote the nations image and foster international relations between Viet Nam and other countries and organisations.

The support provided to overseas Vietnamese in stabilising their lives and integrating into host societies has sometimes been inadequate. Some compatriots continue to face significant challenges in certain locations, where their legal status is not yet secure. Additionally, incidents involving legal violations by Vietnamese nationals in some areas have tarnished the country's image, highlighting the need for more robust support systems.

Lastly, efforts to preserve and promote the national cultural identity have been prioritised and funded, but these initiatives have not always been effectively tailored to meet the specific needs and conditions of each location. Furthermore, the dissemination of information has not adequately reached all target groups, particularly young people. As a result, a segment of the community remains disconnected from official information about the country. It lacks a full, timely and accurate understanding of the Party and State's guidelines and policies.

How has the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs (SCOV) coordinated with and received support from relevant agencies and the overseas community?

After 20 years of implementing Resolution 36, the work of Overseas Vietnamese Affairs has evolved into a collective responsibility shared by the entire political system and every citizen, including the overseas Vietnamese community. Given the multi-sectoral and multifaceted nature of Overseas Vietnamese Affairs, it is evident that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs alone cannot undertake this task without the coordination and support of central and local agencies, as well as the unity and cooperation of domestic citizens and the overseas Vietnamese community.

For instance, relevant ministries and agencies have worked in close coordination on the development and implementation of policies related to overseas Vietnamese. As a result, numerous policies have been issued in areas of significant interest to the overseas community, such as citizenship, housing, land ownership and residency. These policies have increasingly facilitated the return of overseas Vietnamese for work, investment and business, thereby strengthening their connection with the homeland.

In terms of fostering national solidarity and mobilising overseas Vietnamese to contribute to the homeland, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has regularly collaborated with relevant agencies. Notable examples include activities such as the summer camp which has seen active participation from many localities, and the Vietnamese language programme coordinated with the Ministry of Education and Training. Additionally, the visit of overseas Vietnamese to Truong Sa and the DK-I rigs, organised in coordination with the Ministry of National Defence, stands out as a significant effort.

In the realm of caring for and supporting the overseas Vietnamese community, the role of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and domestic agencies is complemented by the proactive involvement of overseas Vietnamese themselves and their associations.

Embodying the spirit of 'mutual assistance and compassion', our compatriots have taken the initiative in supporting those facing hardships due to natural disasters, epidemics, fires and conflicts. A clear example of this solidarity is the support provided during the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Without the tireless efforts of overseas Vietnamese associations, it would have been extremely challenging for Vietnamese diplomatic missions in Ukraine and neighbouring countries to manage the large volume of citizen protection and community support work in such a short time.

Efforts to mobilise the resources of overseas Vietnamese have been marked by successful coordination between domestic and overseas agencies. These efforts have included organising numerous seminars, conferences and business forums, establishing networks that link overseas Vietnamese intellectuals and entrepreneurs, creating mechanisms that allow overseas Vietnamese to contribute their ideas on major national issues and providing support to resolve challenges faced by overseas Vietnamese when investing, doing business, or cooperating in scientific research in Viet Nam. Additionally, there have been significant efforts to engage overseas Vietnamese in introducing and distributing Vietnamese products abroad.

In the important work of preserving the Vietnamese language and promoting cultural identity, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has coordinated with both domestic and overseas agencies to provide textbooks and teaching materials for Vietnamese language instruction, conduct training courses for overseas Vietnamese teachers and persuade host governments to include Vietnamese in the curricula of schools and universities. The proposal for the Day of Honouring the Vietnamese Language, approved by the Prime Minister in 2022, has laid a solid foundation for a series of activities aimed at promoting and honouring Vietnamese culture and language among overseas compatriots.

With this year's conference featuring various forums and practical activities on Overseas Vietnamese Affairs, what are your expectations?

We hope that this year's conference, with its innovative organisation and focus on the Overseas Vietnamese Intellectuals and Experts Forum, will serve as a 'Dien Hong' conference  a gathering that harnesses collective wisdom, strengthens national solidarity and fully leverages the resources, potential and strengths of the overseas community for the countrys development. Our particular focus is on key areas and issues related to sustainable development. It is our aspiration that compatriots, both at home and abroad, will unite in realising the nations vision for a prosperous and thriving future.

Following the conference, we envisage the Overseas Vietnamese Intellectuals and Experts Forum becoming an annual event, held both domestically and internationally, with each iteration delving deeply into themes crucial to the country's strategic development.  VNS
BERLIN  The Vietnamese Embassy in Germany held a seminar on Wednesday to explore measures driving cooperation in workforce recruitment and vocational training amid labour shortages there, with a particular focus on Mecklenburg-West Pomerania state.

Ambassador Vu Quang Minh underscored the urgent need for skilled workers in Germany, a crisis compounded by demographic shifts such as an aging population.

To strengthen collaboration, Minh proposed expanding vocational training courses that offer qualifications recognised by both Vietnam and Germany. He urged Germany to collaborate with Vietnamese associations in Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, particularly in Rostock city, to support newly arriving workers.

Thanh Long, founder and CEO of GEDU International GmbH, confirmed his companys commitment to recruiting more workers for critical sectors with labour shortages in Germany, namely healthcare and medical services, hospitality and retail, and technology and craftsmanship - ranging from IT services and master electricians to microchip technology engineers. all within dual vocational training courses.

GEDU plans to invest in a training facility in Viet Nam to accommodate up to 300 trainees annually, which will provide language training, cultural orientation, and candidate assessment before their vocational training in Germany begins, he said.

Parliamentary State Secretary of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania Patrick Dahlemann expressed his willingness to assist with paperwork and provide initial services for newly arriving workers.

Jochen Schulte, State Secretary at the Ministry of Economic Affairs of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania state, announced a new policy in collaboration with the state's Chamber of Industry and Commerce to establish a dedicated service centre for supporting immigrant workers.

Representatives from various companies also echoed the need for support from both Governments regarding visa issuance, immigration laws, and mutual recognition of qualifications.  VNA/VNS
HA NOI  Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son on Wednesday lauded contributions made by overseas Vietnamese (OVs) to the country, and highlighted policies for them, an integral part of the nation.

Speaking at a gala dinner for more than 400 Vietnamese expats who returned home to attend the 4th World Conference of Overseas Vietnamese and the 2024 forum of OV intellectuals and experts, Minister Son expressed his delight at the growing OV community that has been appreciated by local authorities for their good characteristics and contributions to host societies.

The minister affirmed that the Party and the State, particularly the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, always take care of the community, citing the issuance of policies for them, along with a range of programmes and activities that bring them back to their roots.

Son also commended the performance of the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which hosted the gala dinner, saying it has served as a bridge between Vietnamese abroad and their homeland, contributing to strengthening the great national solidarity bloc.

The minister noted his hope that OVs will make more contributions to host countries as well as national construction and defence at home, maintain their solidarity, and preserve traditional traits and the Vietnamese language.

On this occasion, Son and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang Hang, chairwoman of the committee, witnessed the signing of 10 Memoranda of Understanding and cooperation agreements within the framework of the conference and the forum.  VNS
HA NOI  Chairman of the Viet Nam Peace Committee (VPC) Uong Chu Luu held talks with Lao National Assembly Vice Chairman & Chairman of the Lao Committee for Peace and Solidarity Sommad Pholsena on Thursday in Ha Noi, focusing on orientations for cooperation between the two agencies in the future.

Luu spoke highly of the efficiency of cooperation between the two committees over recent times and noted that the two sides have established a mechanism for boosting annual delegation exchanges, regularly exchanging information, sharing experiences, and closely coordinating activities to promote friendship and cooperation between the two countries people.

The working visit by the VPCs delegation to Vientiane in 2022 is one of the most successful activities in the delegation exchanges between the two committees, he said, adding that the two sides have organised a seminar on people-to-people diplomacy, thus promoting and enhancing awareness of people-to-people diplomacy between the two countries and the two committees.

The Vietnamese official suggested the two sides continue to uphold achievements in promoting the special friendship and solidarity between Viet Nam and Laos, while proactively innovating and diversifying the forms of cooperation activities between the two committees.

The two sides agreed to further strengthen cooperation through such activities as maintaining delegation exchanges; organising seminars and workshops to discuss issues of peace, solidarity and cooperation, as well as those of mutual concern; strengthening coordination and mutual support in people-to-people diplomacy activities at multilateral forums; and maintaining a mechanism for regular information exchange on issues related to the situation of the two countries, the region and the world, as well as the activities of each side to promptly support each other's activities.

The committees will also support training, improve professional qualifications for staff working in people's diplomacy, and consider jointly organising traditional education activities for people, especially young people, on preserving and safeguarding peace.

Pholsena emphasised the importance of people-to-people exchange and the need to strengthen traditional education and peace education for the young generation of the two countries through various forms, to foster and further deepen the great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between Viet Nam and Laos.  VNA/VNS
NEW YORK  Viet Nam always attaches importance to preventing and settling challenges threatening peace early and from afar, Ambassador ang Hoang Giang, Permanent Representative of Viet Nam to the United Nations (UN), said at an open debate held by the UN Security Council (UNSC) on Wednesday (local time).

The debate on A New Agenda for Peace  Addressing Global, Regional and National Aspects of Conflict Prevention under the Peacebuilding and sustaining peace agenda item was chaired by Sierra Leones Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Timothy Musa Kabba.

It is one of the signature events of Sierra Leones August Council presidency, attracting the participation of representatives of over 73 countries and relevant international organisations.

At the event, delegates expressed their concerns about major challenges threatening global peace and stability, especially risks from escalating geopolitical competition, armed conflicts, poverty, underdevelopment, and climate change.

In that context, countries highly appreciated the New Agenda for Peace launched by the UN Secretary-General in July 2023, emphasising the need to increase the effectiveness of multilateral institutions and strengthen efforts at the global, regional and national levels to prevent conflicts, and build and maintain sustainable peace.

Speaking at the event, Giang said that in the context that the world is experiencing complicated developments, intertwined challenges and impacts of geopolitical, socio-economic and climate factors, the UN needs to have comprehensive and synchronous approaches to prevent conflicts, find the connections among three pillars of peace, development, and humanity, and promote the role of relevant mechanisms, especially the Security Council and the Peacebuilding Commission.

The UNSC needs to effectively utilise available tools such as preventive diplomacy, trust building, and mediation on the basis of respecting international law and the UN Charter as well as the sovereignty and specific circumstances of each country involved, he suggested.

Giang stressed that peacebuilding and maintaining efforts should put people at the centre, prioritise addressing the root causes of conflicts, invest more in education and job creation, and encourage the participation of women and youths to ensure inclusiveness, comprehensiveness and sustainability of solutions.

The UN and countries also need to focus on building and strengthening early warning capacity to promptly prevent risks before they escalate into crises, the diplomat said.

Giang affirmed that Viet Nam always attaches importance to preventing and early settling challenges that threaten peace by boosting socio-economic development, promoting national solidarity and unity, strengthening international cooperation, and strongly supporting bilateral and multilateral efforts to maintain peace and prevent conflicts.

A New Agenda for Peace initiated by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in July 2023 sets out a vision for multilateral cooperation to maintain global peace and security in the new context on the basis of international law and fundamental principles such as trust, solidarity, preventive diplomacy, the central role of the UN Charter and national actions.

The initiative proposes 12 ambitious and comprehensive solutions in different fields and aspects to respond to multi-faceted and intertwined challenges to global peace and security.  VNA/VNS
HA NOI  Viet Nam says it finds the French appeal court's dismissal of landmark Agent Orange case today "very regrettable."

Spokesperson for the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pham Thu Hang made the remarks on Thursday in the press briefing in Ha Noi.

She was speaking in response to the latest update in the case filed by French-Vietnamese activist Tran To Nga, seeking justice for victims of the herbicides manufactured by 14 agrochemical companies for use by the US army during the devastating war in Viet Nam in the 1960-70s.

The Paris Court of Appeal on Thursday rejected Nga's appeal, with similar arguments as an earlier rejection from another French court - the Evry Crown Court.

In May 2021, the Evry court, in a Paris suburb, said it did not have jurisdiction over the case, since these sued firms enjoy legal immunity from prosecution as they worked at the order of a sovereign government (US Government, specifically), which prompted Nga to file an appeal to the Paris court, which started deliberating the case from May this year.

"We find the ruling of the Paris appeal court very regrettable, and we have made our position clear on multiple instances," spokeswoman Hang said.

"While the war in Viet Nam has long ended, its tremendous implications continue to linger on the country and people Viet Nam, including the long-term severe consequences of Agent Orange/dioxin.

"We strongly support the efforts of Agent Orange victims, to urge chemical companies in charge of producing and supplying Agent Orange or dioxin to the US in this war against Viet Nam, which has caused millions of Vietnamese people to become victims, to take responsibility, and address their relevant consequences."

Nga's lawyer said she will take the case to France's top appeals court for a final ruling.

Nga, a former reporter for Liberation News Agency (now Vietnam News Agency) in the most heavily dioxin-affected areas in the south, expressed her disappointment with the ruling, but added she was not surprised as this can already be predicted.

Nga, now 82-year-old, suffered from diabetes type 2 and rare insulin allergy, which she said was the result of exposure to the toxins.

The Viet Nam Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin (VAVA) without success, submitted petitions to courts in the US regarding the US military's spray of toxic chemicals including AO/dioxin in Vietnamese territory, which has resulted in serious damages and long-lasting consequences. The Viet Nam-based organisation, representing all victims in the country, says it would continue the sue against 37 US chemical companies involved in the production of the toxins.

Between 1961 and 1971, the US military conducted 19,905 missions, dropping over 80 million litres of toxic chemicals, 61 per cent of which was Agent Orange containing 366kg of dioxin, on nearly 26,000 hamlets and villages that covered 3.06 million ha, equivalent to almost one-fourth of the area of southern Viet Nam, in an attempt to get rid of the forest coverage for the Vietnamese resistance forces out of the forests.

Up to 86 per cent of the area was subject to more than two sprayings, and 11 per cent over 10 times.

Agent Orange has caused strong and enduring impacts on the environment and human health. About 4.8 million people in Viet Nam were exposed to AO/dioxin, statistics showed.  VNS
HA NOI  Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh expressed his appreciation for the contributions made by Overseas Vietnamese intellectuals and business leaders, highlighting the crucial role they play in national development.

PM Chinh made the remarks at the Forum for Vietnamese Intellectuals and Experts Abroad, part of the 4th World Conference of Overseas Vietnamese, which was held in Ha Noi yesterday.

The opening session gathered over 600 delegates, including 400 overseas Vietnamese (OVs) from more than 40 countries and territories, with a focus on the theme: 'Overseas Intellectuals and Experts Offering Ideas for the Nation's Green and Sustainable Development'.

During the event, PM Chinh, who is also a Politburo member, delivered three key messages, directions, and priorities to the overseas Vietnamese community.

He praised their commitment to Viet Nam, noting the presence of both seasoned leaders and dynamic young participants at the forum.

The Prime Minister emphasised that the event underscored the Party and State's recognition of the vital role played by the OVs community. He pointed out the deep connection between the homeland and its people abroad, underscoring the ongoing care and concern for overseas compatriots.

Acknowledging the sincere, responsible, and practical contributions of the delegates, PM Chinh directed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs, and relevant agencies to thoroughly gather and incorporate the feedback and to proactively devise appropriate solutions within their functions, duties, and authority.

He also urged them to create more favourable conditions for OVs and to promptly report to higher authorities on issues beyond their remit.

Providing insights into the global and regional situation, the PM noted that despite prevailing peace, local conflicts and tensions persist.

In the global context, the Asia-Pacific-Indian Ocean region and ASEAN are increasingly asserting their roles as dynamic development engines, continuing to lead the world in the 21st century. He acknowledged that while Viet Nam faces both opportunities and challenges, the latter are more significant.

In this context, Viet Nam remains committed to its three foundational elements and six key policies, which have driven historic achievements over nearly 40 years of oi moi (Renewal). These accomplishments, the PM said, have bolstered the trust of both domestic and overseas compatriots in the Communist Party and the country's future.

Key messages, directions and priorities

PM Chinh outlined three core messages: the inseparable bond between the OVs community and the nation, the Party and States enduring commitment to supporting this community, and the expectation that overseas Vietnamese will play a significant role in national construction and defence.

He also laid out three directions, emphasising the importance of national unity, harnessing the resources and patriotism of OVs for the national benefit and ensuring the comprehensive and effective engagement of all citizens and political entities in supporting this community.

Finally, the PM set three priorities: helping OVs stabilise and thrive in their host societies, fostering stronger connections with the homeland, and continuously innovating to encourage contributions from the overseas community to Viet Nam's development.

He also reaffirmed the Party and State's commitment to protecting the legitimate rights of OVs and called on ministries and local authorities to create favourable conditions for their investment and business activities in Viet Nam.

The PM urged the OVs community to remain united and proactive, continuing to contribute to national development, particularly in the fields of science, technology and innovation. He expressed hope that OVs will continue to serve as ambassadors of Viet Nam, promoting the nation's culture and values globally.

At the event's opening, Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son said that past conferences in 2009, 2012 and 2016 have provided a platform for OVs and their domestic peers to discuss national development and defence.

He highlighted that policy recommendations from OVs have been incorporated into national policies, resulting in new laws that facilitate their return to work, investment and business in Viet Nam.

He said various initiatives like the 'Homeland Spring' programme and other cultural activities have connected OVs with their roots.

Son emphasised the growing influence of the OV community, noting that in the past 30 years, they have sent over US$200 billion in remittances and invested in numerous projects, while their intellectual contributions are invaluable.

The FM said that the current conference is crucial as Viet Nam strives to meet its 2030 and 2045 development goals.

He also highlighted the significance of the 2024 forum of OV intellectuals and experts, the first of its kind under PM Chinh's directive, which focuses on sustainable growth and innovation.

For the first time, OV associations have collaborated with domestic agencies to lead discussions on high-tech fields like semiconductors and AI.

Speaking at the conference, Hoang inh Thang, President of the Union of Vietnamese People Associations in Europe, expressed gratitude for the Party and State's support for overseas Vietnamese and voiced his pride in Viet Nam's progress.

He called for policies to facilitate dual citizenship, allow overseas Vietnamese to vote and run for office and for their organisations to join domestic political bodies.

Thang also urged diplomatic efforts to recognise overseas Vietnamese as ethnic minorities where applicable and to enhance labour agreements and training. He stressed the need for streamlined feedback mechanisms, administrative reforms and the preservation of Vietnamese culture abroad.

An overseas Vietnamese from the Philippines and chairman of Imex Pan Pacific Group, Johnathan Hanh Nguyen, commended the government's policies in education and technology, which have improved the investment climate and attracted overseas talent.

He proposed that the government develop strategies to attract young overseas Vietnamese for internships and start-ups in Viet Nam, suggesting a sandbox for testing new technologies, and called for a one-stop service for investment-related support. He also recommended special incentives for innovation centres and policies to encourage participation in tourism and retail investment.

A Google AI researcher, Dr. Le Viet Quoc, emphasised AI's role in future revolutions and saw it as a major opportunity for Viet Nam. He recommended investing in AI education, creating a strong start-up ecosystem and setting ambitious national goals for AI applications.

He also proposed establishing a high-level advisory council for AI and semiconductor technologies to guide the nations efforts in these areas.  VNS
HA NOI  National Assembly (NA) Chairman Tran Thanh Man received visiting Lao NA Vice Chairman and Chairman of the Lao Committee for Peace and Solidarity Sommad Pholsena in Ha Noi on Thursday.

Stressing that Viet Nam consistently values its strategic relationship and comprehensive cooperation with Laos, including its Party, State, and people, Man said the recent state visit to Laos by To Lam, shortly after being elected President by the Vietnamese NA, exemplifies Viet Nam's unwavering policy of prioritising the strengthening and nurturing of the two nations great friendship, special solidarity, and comprehensive cooperation.

Viet Nam supports Laos' international role this year, including its chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) and 45th AIPA General Assembly, the NA leader said, adding that the Vietnamese NA is ready to exchange experiences with its Lao counterpart.

Alongside the Party and State channels, people-to-people exchanges are crucial, providing a solid foundation for the development of both countries, he noted. Man also hailed the successful talks between the Vietnam Peace Committee, the Viet Nam Union of Friendship Organisations, and the Lao Committee for Peace and Solidarity, where the sides agreed on six key areas to further enhance cooperation.

Looking ahead, the top legislator proposed increasing exchanges of delegations at all levels, as well as historical and cultural education for the youth of both nations to deepen their understanding of the countries great friendship.

He also urged closer coordination and mutual support in multilateral people-to-people forums and mechanisms in the region and the world, and encouraged the sharing of experiences, especially with regard to the establishment of the Lao Union of Friendship Organisations.

For his part, the Lao official said Viet Nams regional and global role and stature have been elevated, guided by the countrys bamboo diplomacy.

He affirmed that the Lao NA would continue to work closely with the Vietnamese counterpart to implement cooperation agreements signed between the two countries and expressed his wish for the latters further cooperation and support for Laos ASEAN/AIPA Chair in 2024. VNS
HA NOI  The Party Charter Sub-committee for the 14th National Party Congress convened its second meeting in Hanoi on August 22 under the chair of its head Le Minh Hung.

Addressing the event, Nguyen Quang Duong, deputy head of the Party Central Committee (PCC)s Commission for Organisation (the standing body of the Sub-committee), presented a report on some key contents in the draft Report of the 13th Party Central Committee summarising the work of Party building and implementation of the Party Charter at the 14th National Party Congress.

The subcommittees members highly valued the PCCs Commission for Organisation, the working and editorial teams for proactively and effectively implementing the preparation, development, and finalisation work of the draft Report. They highlighted thothrough preparations, with closely following the outline and comments of the Sub-committees members and Party committees, Party organisations, agencies, and units.

The Sub-committees members also contributed opinions and added some important contents, which are meaningful in both theory and practice to deepen assessments, guiding viewpoints, tasks, and solutions in the draft Report, contributing to making the best preparation for the 14th National Party Congress.

Hung, who is also a Politburo member, Secretary of the PCC and head of the PCCs Commission for Organisation, commended the Sub-committee members enthusiastic and responsible opinions, saying that at the PCCs upcoming 10th meeting, the sub-committees will submit draft documents of the 14th National Party Congress to the PCC for discussion and initial approval, including the draft Report of the Party Charter Sub-committee, so that these drafts will then be discussed at Party congresses at all levels in 2025.

He suggested the Sub-committee's members continue to spend time, attention, and keep close contact with the Sub-committee's standing body. This will promote a sense of responsibility as well as experience from previous terms to contribute to the development and completion of the draft Report.

The Subcommittee's standing body, working and editorial teams need to remain highly focused, work actively, and continue to gather and incorporate feedback from organisations and individuals to finalise the draft Report, ensuring both quality and the set timeline. VNS
HA NOI  Party General Secretary and President To Lam affirmed the Party and States special attention to the Vietnamese business community while meeting with a delegation of the Vietnam Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (VINASME) in Ha Noi on Thursday.

Accounting for over 98 per cent of total businesses nationwide, SMEs form an important force in the economy, contributing to about 50 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) and 35 per cent of the annual state budget revenue. They also provide jobs for more than 50 per cent of the workforce.

VINASME has expanded its network to the district level, even to communes and craft villages in some localities. It has actively helped to disseminate the Party and States policies, engaged in institutional and policy building, given advice, and assisted member businesses to access capital, apply technology, and approach markets. The association has also encouraged its members to participate in the campaigns launched by the Party, State, and Vietnam Fatherland Front, thereby helping strengthen the great national solidarity.

Lauding VINASMEs achievements and contributions to national development, General Secretary and President Lam emphasised that the Party and State always give special attention to and create the best possible conditions for Vietnamese enterprises to operate and grow.

He also expressed sympathy for the business community, including SMEs, over the difficulties and challenges facing them, especially the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the global economic recession.

In that context, he noted, VINASME needs to keep improving the quality of its activities, fulfilling its role as the representative of enterprises voice and aspirations, enhancing solidarity among the business community, and fully bringing into play the spirit of self-reliance, confidence, resilience, and national pride to deserve its status as the one that gathers and nurtures Vietnamese SMEs during the countrys cause of industrialisation, modernisation, and integration into the world.

The top leader stressed that enterprises should proactively and continuously reform and restructure themselves, strongly promote digital transformation, improve competitiveness, build brands, and capitalise on opportunities generated by the Fourth Industrial Revolution as well as free trade agreements.

In addition, VINASME needs to set orientations for its member companies who must adhere to the law, adopt progressive business practices, ensure all the rights and interests of employees, protect the environment, and maintain the national brand and prestige, Lam went on.

As the combat against corruption and negative phenomena will continue to be promoted unceasingly, without limits or exceptions, the business community and entrepreneurs should support and contribute to this task, helping build the Party and State truly clean, strong, efficient, and effective for the sake of rich people and a strong, democratic, equitable, and civilised nation.

They also need to join hands with the Party and State to create more jobs, emphasise quality of life for workers, and actively take part in social activities to affirm the superiority of Vietnamese enterprises, he added. VNS
HA NOI  Spokeswoman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pham Thu Hang on Thursday provided the assessment of the main outcomes of the recent state visit to China by Party General Secretary and State President To Lam.

At the foreign ministrys regular press meeting, Hang said the visit by General Secretary and President Lam, his spouse, and the high-ranking delegation of the Vietnamese Party and State was successful in all aspects, greatly contributing to the building of a Viet Nam - China community of shared future that carries strategic significance, as well as peace, stability, and development in the region and the world.

The two sides issued a joint statement on the further enhancement of the Viet Nam - China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership to promote the building of a community of shared future.

Elaborating on key outcomes of the visit, the spokeswoman said first, the top leaders of the two Parties and the two countries affirmed that both sides attach importance to bilateral relations, view the prioritisation of developing ties between the two Parties and the two countries as a strategic choice, and support each other to successfully realise national development goals.

They agreed to continue effectively implementing the common perceptions reached between leaders of the two Parties and countries during recent visits, further strengthening the Viet Nam - China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership, and step up the building of a community of shared future in line with the six elevations, namely higher political trust, more substantive security and defence cooperation, more practical and deeper cooperation, more solid social foundation, closer multilateral coordination, and better management and settlement of differences, thus helping bilateral ties obtain more substantive achievements, bringing about practical benefits to the two peoples, and contributing to regional and global peace, cooperation, and development.

Second, Hang noted, the two sides discussed cooperation orientations in various fields, agreeing to foster connections in strategic areas such as diplomacy, national defence and security, and expand collaboration to connect the Belt and Road initiative with the Two Corridors, One Belt framework.

They concurred in facilitating trade and boosting the export of Viet Nam's agricultural and aquatic products to China. They also encouraged and voiced support for capable and prestigious businesses with advanced technology to invest in each others countries, and expand ties to new areas like digital economy, circular economy, green development, clean energy, and renewable energy.

Third, the leaders agreed to designate 2025 as the year of Viet Nam - China humanistic exchanges, and jointly organise celebrations of the 75th anniversary of the bilateral diplomatic relationship.

Fourth, they said their countries will increase the coordination of multilateral cooperation and reinforce cooperation within such mechanisms as the United Nations and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).

Fifth, the two sides exchanged sincere and straightforward opinions about sea-related issues. They emphasised the need to better manage and actively resolve differences on the basis of the high-level common perception, the agreement on the basic principles guiding the settlement of sea-related issues between Viet Nam and China, along with international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) so as to together maintain peace and stability in the East Sea (known internationally as the South China Sea) and the region.

They also agreed to keep coordination in effectively implementing the legal documents on land border and related agreements while enhancing ties in land border areas between the two countries, according to the spokeswoman.

On this occasion, she added, Vietnamese and Chinese ministries, sectors, and localities signed 16 cooperation documents in such fields as connectivity, industry, customs examination and quarantine, health care, journalism - communications, as well as partnerships between localities and in peoples welfare.  VNS
A NANG  A group of students from the College of Science and Education under the University of a Nang have developed a multi-purpose cleaning solution made from organic waste, aiming to transform what households throw away into something useful.

The cleaning solution, can effectively clean grease, dirt and grime from ceramic, glass, plastic items, tiles and even remove long-standing residues in drains.

Besides ensuring consumer health, this solution significantly reduces the amount of chemicals and organic waste released into the environment.

The students are promoting the product by teaching people how to make it at home.

Sharing the inspiration behind the idea, Tran Thi Quynh Nhu, a chemistry student at the college, explained that in her community, most households use chemical cleaners for daily tasks such as house cleaning, dishwashing and laundry. These chemicals not only affect health, but also pollute water and soil.

Additionally, each household generates a significant amount of organic waste daily, such as vegetable scraps and fruit peels, which often produce unpleasant odours.

With the desire to create a cleaning solution from organic waste, in April 2024, Nhu, along with four other students, including Nguyen Thi Thao, Le Vo Nhu Thuy, Tran Thi Kim Oanh and Nguyen Thanh Toan, came up with the project of producing a multi-purpose enzyme-cleaning solution from plant by-products.

Explaining the production process, Thao said that through research, the group discovered that the fermentation process could use green vegetables and sugar and cellulose-rich fruits.

Therefore, they selected organic waste materials such as green vegetables, fruit peels and molasses for fermentation, using soapnuts as a natural foaming and cleaning agent. Lemon and grapefruit peels, along with mint and cinnamon essential oils, were used for fragrance and corn starch was added to achieve the desired thickness and consistency.

The production process involves several steps, including collecting, processing materials, fermenting and filtering the product and then mixing up the final solution.

According to Thao, the product can be used for dishwashing, floor cleaning, sanitising bathrooms and unclogging drains.

Additionally, it can improve soil quality and repel insects, meeting daily household needs while ensuring user safety and environmental protection.

In particular, the multi-purpose enzyme cleaning solution has no expiration date and becomes more effective over time.

Spreading eco-friendly products

With the trust and support of their professors at the College of Science and Education, in July 2024, during the Green Summer programme, the students used their homemade multi-purpose enzyme cleaning solution to donate to residents of ien Phong Commune, ien Ban Town in Quang Nam Province.

The students also organised a workshop to show residents how to create the cleaning solution themselves using their daily organic waste.

Mai Thi Tinh, resident in ien Phong Commune, ien Ban Town, expressed her enthusiasm after receiving the product and learning how to make it.

"Im very happy to learn that everyday organic waste can be turned into such a useful product. After using it, I found the products quality to be excellent. It can replace commercial cleaners like dishwashing liquid and floor cleaner. This method not only protects my familys health but also reduces daily living costs and helps maintain environmental cleanliness," she said.

Phan Phuoc uoc, secretary of the ien Phong Commune Youth Union, noted that the programme received positive feedback from the community. The product contributes to environmental protection by repurposing organic waste into useful items, helping residents save money on cleaning products.

Nguyen Thi Kim Anh, deputy secretary of the University of a Nang's Youth Union, commended the students' scientific research efforts, highlighting that their product, born from an environmental protection idea, has already yielded practical benefits.

It helps raise environmental awareness among the community and reflects the students' spirit of creativity, responsibility and commitment to contributing to the community.

The project of producing multi-purpose enzyme cleaning solution from plant by-products won third prize in the start-up projects for rural youth competition organised by the a Nang Youth Union and advanced to the semifinals of the 2024 rural youth start-up project competition held by the Central Youth Union.  VNS
A prison worker was killed by drug-laced mail at the U.S. Penitentiary in Atwater, California.

Three people are under arrest in connection wth the incident.

Jamar Jones, 35, an inmate at USP Atwater; Stephanie Ferreira, 35, of Evansville, Indiana; and Jermen Rudd III, 37, of Wentzville, Missouri, are accused of conspiring to introduce narcotics into the prison for Jones to sell, according to the DEA.

Between July 15 and August 9, Jones and Ferreira allegedly orchestrated a plan in which Rudd would mail a letter laced with narcotics to Jones that was fraudulently labeled as legal mail.

On August 9, a correctional officer at USP Atwater opened that letter and, minutes later, began to feel ill.

Following an initial evaluation by medical staff, the officer was taken to a hospital, where he later died.

Another correctional officer came into contact with the narcotics-laced letter but recovered.

The trio has been charged with a criminal complaint for conspiring to distribute controlled substances and introducing narcotic drugs to an inmate.

If convicted of conspiracy to distribute and distribution of a controlled substance, Jones and Rudd face a maximum of 30 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

If Ferreira is convicted of providing or attempting to provide an inmate with a narcotic drug, she faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison as well as a fine of up to $250,000.
QUANG NGAI  USNS City of Bismarck and US Air Force personnel are participating in the Pacific Partnership 2024-2 (PP24-2) and Pacific Angel 2024-3 (PA 24-3) in the central province of Quang Ngai, marking the beginning of the Viet Nam mission for strengthening disaster response preparedness and international cooperation.

The PP24-2 and PA 24-3 programmes have involved approximately 200 participants, including personnel from the Australian Defense Force, the British Armed Forces, Chile, Japan and members of the American armed forces from August 19-31.

During this years Pacific Partnership and Pacific Angel mission, we highlight the enduring friendship that drives the US-Viet Nam relationship forward in disaster response, medicine and education. This progress is even more meaningful when we consider how our two countries have overcome our shared past to build a brighter future for the next generation, said US Consul General Susan Burns.

The Pacific Partnership and Pacific Angel humanitarian mission includes a range of activities aimed at enhancing disaster response capabilities, providing humanitarian assistance and fostering mutual understanding between partnering nations. Medical professionals will conduct exchanges and training sessions at various hospitals and medical centres in Quang Ngai, covering topics such as mass casualty incidents, surgeries, public health and control of infectious diseases.

In addition, US and Vietnamese officials will hold discussions on forest fire prevention, coastal erosion and natural disaster management, accompanied by a site survey of the Nghia An anti-erosion embankment.

Our leaders understand the importance of collaboration, with experts both inside and outside of government, to strengthen and enhance the resilience of vulnerable communities, particularly through disaster preparedness initiatives, said US Navy Captain Daniel Keeler, PP24-2 Mission Commander.

We aim to strengthen coordination on regional and global issues of shared concern and interest, contributing to collective efforts to uphold peace, stability, co-operation and development both in the region and worldwide.

Construction efforts will also play a significant role in the mission, with repairs and renovations planned at several local facilities, including Tinh Minh Kindergarten, Nghia Lo Medical Station, Tinh Khe Elementary School and Tinh Khe Medical Station. These projects are designed to improve the infrastructure and resilience of local community sites.

The mission will also emphasise community engagement through a series of English language and music exchanges with students at local schools, fostering cultural interactions and mutual understanding.

We are dedicated to working with each host nation and our sister branch to enhance capacity, interoperability, combined readiness and partnership in the Indo-Pacific, said Major Bradley Emmett, PA 24-3 Mission Commander.

The relationships built and sustained with our partners through these exercises, civil-military operations and military exchanges help preserve peace and stability in the region. We look forward to working with them in the upcoming week.

The PP24-2 and PA 24-3 mission represents a milestone in foreign affairs engagement with Quang Ngai province, reinforcing the US-Viet Nam bilateral relationship nearly a year after the two countries upgraded their relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. The programme underscores the provinces commitment to global partnerships and disaster preparedness.  VNS
HA NOI  The Ministry of Health launched a campaign to provide measles vaccines for children nationwide at a hybrid conference on Thursday, to mark World Immunisation Week 2024.

Speaking at the event, Health Minister ao Hong Lan called on parents and caregivers to get children vaccinated fully and on schedule, for the health of the children through regular vaccinations and vaccination campaigns.

Vaccination is one of the most important measures to prevent dangerous infectious diseases. Thanks to vaccination, many dangerous infectious diseases are eliminated or controlled. It is estimated that the global Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI) prevents two to three million deaths each year, said Lan.

With the risk of a measles outbreak in the world, including Viet Nam, the health ministry has coordinated with WHO and UNICEF to develop and issue a campaign to provide a vaccine against measles in 2024 with 1,134,200 doses of vaccine funded by the Australian Government.

The campaign will be deployed at educational units and medical facilities in districts at risk of measles outbreaks. Vaccines are provided free of charge for children aged one to ten, along with medical staff at risk at medical examination and treatment facilities and those who have not had the required number of vaccinations as prescribed.

According to Health Minister Lan, the vaccination programme will still face many difficulties and challenges due to the unpredictable situation of infectious diseases and the low vaccination rate following the COVID-19 pandemic. Environmental pollution, climate change, natural disasters, floods and urbanisation created favourable conditions for infectious diseases to reappear, spread and break out.

Lan suggested the People's Committees of provinces and cities promote the implementation of regular vaccination for children under the EPI to ensure safety and effectiveness and encourage families to get their children vaccinated fully and on schedule.

WHO Representative in Viet Nam Angela Pratt remarked that hundreds of thousands of children in Viet Nam have missed out on vaccinations since 2021 due to pandemic-related disruptions and the recent lack of vaccine stock, leading to the largest sustained decline in rates of childhood immunisation in Viet Nam in over 20 years.

As a result, we are already seeing more cases and clusters of vaccine-preventable diseases  including diphtheria and pertussis and we are worried that we currently face the very real risk of a large-scale measles outbreak, said Pratt.

The WHO representative also praised the Prime Ministers office, the National Assembly and the Minister of Health for the leadership and immense efforts last year to unlock the supply of vaccines.

I know we can now count on the same leadership and commitment to respond to the measles outbreaks we are currently seeing in several provinces, the threat of outbreaks elsewhere and in doing so avoid large-scale transmission.

Pratt also said that the WHO has finalised the procurement of an emergency supply of more than one million doses of measles-rubella vaccines, to be used for outbreak response and supplementary immunisation activities in the highest-risk areas.

In Viet Nam, there are currently 11 types of vaccines to prevent infectious diseases, including tuberculosis, diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, measles, polio, hepatitis B, Japanese B encephalitis, rubella and rota, all deployed in the national EPI.

In the future, the health ministry will implement a plan to add new vaccines to the EPI, including vaccines to prevent diarrhoea caused by the rota virus, a vaccine to prevent pneumococcal disease and the vaccine to prevent cervical cancer caused by the HPV virus.

Over the past 40 years, hundreds of millions of vaccine doses have been given to Vietnamese children and women for free. The EPI has made an important contribution to achieving polio eradication in 2000 and eliminating neonatal tetanus in 2005.  VNS
LAM ONG  The a Lat City Police have launched an investigation after videos showing the abuse of an Alaskan dog went viral on social media.

The dog's owner, L.S.L., who resides on Le Van Tam Road in Ward 10, confirmed to the police that he had purchased five Alaskan dogs for VN300 million (US$12,000) around May this year. He intended to use the dogs for an illegal photography service at Lam Vien Square, renting them out to tourists for photo opportunities.

L. rented a pigsty in Cau uc Alley, Ward 10, a Lat City, to house the dogs.

Last month, L. bought an additional reddish-brown Alaskan dog named Bon for VN25 million (US$1,000). P.T.T.T, a 39-year-old woman from Ward 9, contributed VN10 million (US$400) to partner with L. in the business.

T. tasked her 13-year-old son, T.T.Q., a student, with managing the dog for tourists during his summer vacation.

On July 20, while Q. was holding Bon for tourists at Lam Vien Square, the dog bit him on the hand. In response, Q. kicked the dog and later confined it to a cage in Cau uc Alley, where he repeatedly struck it with a plastic pipe, 27mm in diameter and about 80cm long.

At the beginning of this month, L. took over managing the dog after returning T.'s US$400, as Q. could no longer handle the animal. L. stated that due to the dog's aggressive behaviour, he was retraining it and had paused the business.

L. also informed the police that he was unaware of the incident involving Q. being bitten, which reportedly occurred between July 20 and 23, until the videos surfaced online.

The police are continuing their investigation into the case.  VNS
PARIS  The Paris Court of Appeal's rejection of the lawsuit filed by Tran To Nga against US manufacturers of Agent Orange (AO)/dioxin is not a surprise for the French-Vietnamese woman, who said she will not give up but continue to pursue this lawsuit.

On August 22, the Paris Court of Appeal rejected the lawsuit filed by Nga against the US chemical corporations that supplied AO/dioxin for the US army to use during the war in Viet Nam.

Talking to the Vietnam News Agency (VNA), Nga, who is also an AO/dioxin victim herself, said she is not surprised at this ruling, and that she will not give up but keep pursuing this lawsuit.

As Ngas representatives, William Bourdon and Bertrand Repolt from the Bourdon law office expressed their determination to stay on their clients side.

The fight by their client does not end with this ruling, and they will take the case to the highest appeals court, the lawyers said, noting that judges of the Paris Court of Appeal held a conservative attitude that runs counter to the modernity of law, as well as international law and European law.

The highest appeals court will make the decision, they added.

Nga's pursuit of the lawsuit over the past 15 years showed her extraordinary will and the firm support of peace-loving people for her.

Born in 1942 in the southern province of Soc Trang, Nga used to work as a war correspondent of the Liberation News Agency (now Vietnam News Agency) and became contaminated with dioxin during wartime. Medical examination results show that the dioxin level in her blood is higher than the regulated level that leads to serious health impacts. She suffered from five out of the 17 diseases, disorders, deformities, and malformations associated with dioxin exposure recognised by the US.

Not only Nga herself but her children also suffered from heart and bone defects. Her first child died of heart defects at 17 months of age.

In 2009, Nga appeared as a witness at the Court of Public Opinion in Paris against the US chemical companies to support AO/dioxin victims in Viet Nam. After that, with support from some French lawyers and social activists, she decided to sue the US chemical companies.

She is one of the few persons able to pursue AO/dioxin-related lawsuits since she has all the three necessary conditions of being a French-Vietnamese citizen; residing in France, where lawyers are permitted to file international lawsuits in defence of French citizens against another country harming them; and being a victim of AO/dioxin.

In May 2013, the Crown Court of Evry city, where Nga resides, accepted her petition against the chemical companies that supplied herbicide for the US army to use in the battlefield in Viet Nam. However, after 19 procedural sessions, in its ruling issued on May 10, 2021, this court accepted the arguments of the defendants, saying they had acted under the order of and for the State of the US and thus, they were entitled to the right to immunity.

Lawyers of Nga objected to this ruling and said those companies had submitted a tender, which meant they had not been forced to act. The lawyers perceived that the Evry Crown Court applied out-of-date principles running counter to the modern principles of international law and France.

Not disappointed by that loss, shortly after the Evry Crown Court had ruled that it did not have sufficient competence to handle the case related to the US Governments acts during wartime, Nga, with support from lawyers and the associations supporting Vietnamese AO victims, filed an appeal to the Paris Court of Appeal.

At a hearing held on May 7 this year, Ngas lawyers pointed out that there is sufficient evidence proving those companies had voluntarily joined in the bidding and had the right to determine the production as well as content of dioxin in the herbicide supplied for the US army in Viet Nam during 1961-1971. These actions caused catastrophic consequences which still linger until today for people and the environment in Viet Nam.

Nga herself is a dioxin victim and has suffered from very serious consequences, the lawyers said, noting that their client lost her first child, her other children had to endure health problems while she also became cancerous.

They added the right to a trial is a fundamental right of Nga, and they hoped to regain justice for the victim.

For their part, the lawyers defending the 14 US chemical companies denied their clients responsibility, arguing that the firms had acted at the request of the US army. Given this, they cited the state immunity that allows a sovereign state not to be prosecuted at a court of another sovereign state so as to deny the companies responsibility for the consequences caused by their products in the Vietnamese battlefield.

On one occasion, Nga told VNA correspondents in France that when she began the lawsuit, there were already more than 3 million AO victims in Viet Nam. This figure hurt her heart and prompted her to file the lawsuit. After 12 years of pursuing justice, the figure kept increasing, to over 4 million victims and AO effects have reached the fourth generation.

She stressed that her struggle aims to not only fight against the use of AO but also serve as a basis for other combats for the environment. "I fight not only for myself but also all dioxin victims in Viet Nam and other countries," Nga said, affirming that she will fight to the bitter end.

During her 15-year journey to seek justice, Nga has received support from not only Vietnamese people in the homeland but also Vietnamese expatriates in France and around the world, as well as French and international friends, including lawyers William Bourdon and Bertrand Repolt, the Viet Nam Association for Victims of AO/dioxin, the International Association of Democratic Lawyers, the Vietnamese People Association in France, the France  Viet Nam Friendship Association, the committee for support for Tran To Ngas lawsuit, and Collectif Vietnam Dioxine.

A large number of marches and meetings have also been organised to show solidarity with Nga and Vietnamese AO victims. Ngas letter to appeal for support for the legal struggle received thousands of signatures, including those of many important figures, politicians, diplomats, researchers, scholars, doctors, and artists.

From 1961 to 1971, the US military conducted 19,905 missions spraying more than 80 million litres of toxic chemicals, 61 per cent of which was AO containing 366kg of dioxin, on nearly 26,000 hamlets and villages that covered 3.06 million hectares, equivalent to almost one-fourth of the area of South Viet Nam.

AO has caused strong and enduring impacts on the environment and human health. About 4.8 million people in Viet Nam were exposed to AO/dioxin, statistics showed.  VNS
IFRS is already applied in more than 120 markets around the world, Photo: Shutterstock

To prepare for the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), expected to be made compulsory after 2025, a number of businesses have started to study the standards to update knowledge for tenants.

The three subjects that have to apply IFRS are listed companies, parent companies which have to build consolidated financial statement reports with their subsidiaries overseas, and parent companies linked to state-owned corporations.

Tuong Quynh Huong, deputy general director of Dai An JSC - investor of Lai Cach Industrial Park (IP) and Dai An IP in the northern province of Hai Duong, said, The mandatory requirement to adopt IFRS will help foreign-invested enterprises in Vietnam and tenants in our IPs to ensure their transparency, prestige, professionalism and opportunities to compete in the global market.

Besides that, it also helps to decrease the foreign investors expenditure for the conversation from the current Vietnam Accounting Standards to IFRS to consolidate with their parent companies overseas, Huong said.

Around 90 per cent of tenants in Dai An IP are foreign-invested enterprises, so enhancing their knowledge of IFRS is important. We will organise training programmes with the participation of experts in finance and tax to provide updated information and regulations for our tenants in terms of tax, accounting, customs, finance, and marketing, among others, Huong said.

In early August, Dai An cooperated with the Vietnam IP Finance Association to organise a training programme on IFRS and tax inspection trends with the participation of nearly 100 representatives of manufacturing facilities in Dai An IP.

Meanwhile Nguyen Thi Thuy, training director at the AudiCare Vietnam Training Centre, said a business applying IFRS will be more transparent about its liabilities and assets, thereby helping investors accurately assess risks and profit potential.

When liabilities and assets are presented clearly and in detail according to international standards, investors will have a comprehensive and honest view of the financial situation of the business. Investors can easily compare these financial indicators with other businesses in the same industry or region, thereby making smarter and more effective decisions, Thuy said.

Thuy added that reports meeting IFRS should allow comparisons between different entities and accounting periods, and should clearly disclose information that is material to the economic decisions of users. The information in the report should be verified to ensure its accuracy and to accurately reflect economic phenomena.

IFRS is widely applied in more than 120 countries and territories around the world, and Vietnam approved a roadmap to implement the system in 2023. The roadmap is divided into the preparation phase (2020-2021), the voluntary adoption phase (2022-2025), and the mandatory adoption phase from 2025 onward.

At present, the adoption still remains unpopular with enterprises in Vietnam because few firms have a thorough understanding of the system, while there are still gaps in compliance with financial reporting standards.

The statistics published by the Finance and Accounting Department under the State Bank of Vietnam show that in the credit sector in particular, the number of credit institutions that have developed it accounts for just over half (55.2 per cent), with 36.8 per cent having a methodology for some categories and 18.4 per cent having a methodology for all categories.

However, 45 per cent of credit institutions have not developed a method for assessing the fair value of financial instruments.

In addition, according to the same department, around one-third of credit institutions agreed that they had identified, assessed, and were ready for important changes when applying IFRS. However, the number of credit institutions that were hesitant or disagreed accounted 47.1 per cent and 19.5 per cent respectively.

Thuy from Audicare said applying IFRS can be complicated and costly in terms of training and changes in the system and constant compliance.

In addition, adjusting to this system to ensure appropriateness to existing legal frameworks is not an easy job. The current system has 26 standards, while IFRS has 41. It might take enterprises at least three or four years of training to prepare data for their first IFRS report, Thuy added.

Banks prepare for IFRS 9 standards PwC Vietnam and SAS Malaysia last week held workshops in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to support Vietnamese banks in preparing for the implementation of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) 9.

Gathering momentum in IFRS adoption Following Marchs promulgation of Decision No.345/QD-BTC by the Ministry of Finance approving the scheme for applying International Financial Reporting Standards in Vietnam, a new survey has revealed that more than 50 per cent of respondents have applied or are preparing to convert to the system.

Training and cooperation at heart of IFRS compliance Preparation for the conversion to and adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) by Vietnam-based companies is one of the most important steps towards propelling economic development with greater transparency. However, various challenges still colour the landscape.
Kien Giang New City covers 963,000 square metres within the capital city of Thai Binh province. The project boasts residential and commercial zones, apartment complexes and social housing areas. The project will be developed in the next decade from 2025 to 2035 with an investment of approximately $390 million.

As reported by Business Korea, Daewoo E&C has joined forces with Vietnamese company Green Eye Park and mid-sized Korean company Zenith to bid for the Kien Giang New City development project. The Korean builder will lead the project with a 51 per cent stake in the project.

By forming a consortium with a mid-sized Korean company and a Vietnamese company, we are creating a win-win model between large and small companies and also Korean and Vietnamese companies, said Daewoo E&C. "Based on our experience in building Star Lake City in Hanoi, we will take the lead in mapping out a development plan for this new city to create a balanced new city that integrates residential and commercial areas, educational, green space and culture.

The Korean construction company has been participating in new urban development projects in various regions, including Star Lake City in Hanoi, Kien Giang New City in Thai Binh, and Dong Nai province.

Daewoo E&C to invest $388 million in Star Lake City in Hanoi Daewoo Engineering and Construction (Daewoo E&C) is planning to co-operate with Korean financial institutions to invest $388 million in the Star Lake City project in Hanoi.

Daewoo E&C expresses intentions to expand operations in Vietnam Daewoo Engineering & Construction (Daewoo E&C) signed an MoU with the International Cooperation Bureau under the Ministry of Planning and Investment on December 15 to support Vietnams urban development and industrial development.
Indonesia to lower drug prices (Photo: thesun.my)

Jakarta  Indonesian President Joko Widodo wants to lower drug prices in his country to a level comparable to that of its neighbours, the countrys Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) has said.

According to president of BPOM Tarruna Ikrar, the leader has instructed the agency to adjust drug prices so that they at least match the prices of generic drugs or those in neighboring countries such as Malaysia, the Philippines, or Singapore. He said that the agency will work with the ministries of Health and Commerce to address the issue.

The official said that medicine prices in Indonesia are up to 400% higher than those abroad as pharmaceutical companies have to pay high promotion and advertising.

Besides, high cost of raw materials, with 80-90% of finished product ingredients being imported, is a significant factor driving up the price of medicines.

Another factor contributing to higher drug prices is the lack of alternative drugs with the same active ingredients for certain original medications.

To solve the challenges, Tarruna Ikrar suggested that the government regulate drug prices by implementing a more balanced price ceiling, ensuring prices that consumers can afford while also ensuring fairness for the pharmaceutical industry.

Earlier, Indonesias Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin acknowledged that drug prices in the country are 3-5 times higher than in neighboring countries. One of the reasons for this is the inefficient distribution channels and lack of transparency in management.

Indonesia encourages RoK to develop EV ecosystem with ASEAN Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Masurdi encouraged the Republic of Korea (RoK) to cooperate with ASEAN in the development of electric vehicles (EVs) at the recent ASEAN Post Ministerial Conference (PMC) with the RoK in Vientiane, Laos.

Indonesia pilots flying taxis in new capital Nusanta The Nusantara Capital City Authority (OIKN) has tested the flying taxi prototype at Aji Pangeran Tumenggung Airport in Samarinda, East Kalimantan.
At the Waterpoint integrated township in Long An province, in addition to implementing housing subdivisions, Nam Long is promoting plans to develop urban amenities for healthcare, education, and commerce areas.

Mizuki Park in Ho Chi Minh City

At Mizuki Park in Ho Chi Minh City, after handing over a series of component projects in accordance with commitments and completing many important utility items, this urban area is now a vibrant residential lively centre, welcoming more than 3,600 families.

Other urban area projects, such as Izumi City in Dong Nai province and Nam Long Central Lake in Can Tho city, are all on schedule, according to the company.

One of the key projects in the second half of the year, Akari City, also has a strong focus on constructing internal utilities and apartment interiors. The project will hand over 1,700 units across four towers in Q4.

Light Square - Akari City's highlight utility project, is gradually nearing completion. Nam Long also recently handed over land use and housing rights certificates to Akari City residents of phase 1.

More than 1,700 apartment in Akari City phase 2 will be delivered by the end of this year

At an August awards ceremony for the Top 50 Corporate Sustainability Awards held by Nhip Cau Dau Tu, Nam Long Group was the only real estate company to be honoured by the judging panel in the category of Leadership in Corporate Governance.

The firm's leadership recognises that sustainable development is a long-term goal and has never been more necessary to reaffirm Nam Long's reputation and brand value with home buyers, investors, and stakeholders.

Led by a board comprising Vietnamese members with 30 years of real estate market experience, and independent foreign members who have been senior leaders at major groups such as Keppel Land, Mekong Capital, Sunway City, Grant Thornton, and more, Nam Long Group has a solid development direction with a governance system adhering to international standards.

Lucas Loh, CEO of the group, who previously led CapitaLand in the Chinese market for 20 years said, "Nam Long operates based on developing products with a real societal need, building townships through in-depth research to support population dispersal, transforming urban landscapes, and improving quality of life."

"The group maintains a healthy financial structure and is a reliable local partner for many major foreign investors. I believe my experience in a major market will help Nam Long continue to strengthen this foundation and develop according to Vietnam's sustainable development direction," he added.

Under the implementation of related laws that came into effect earlier this month, businesses with financial potential and the ability to ensure project implementation are considered to have many advantages, according to experts.

One of the important changes in the Land Law is that the land price for compensation will be calculated to the markets price. This will make all the cost of site clearance, land recovery compensation, and taxes increase. This also means that only investors who have strong financial potential be able to cover all expenses to clear the site according to market mechanisms.

According to Loh, "The Law on Real Estate Business strictly regulates the disclosure of project information, forcing investors to standardise their process, from providing clear and complete information to the payment process through the banking system."

According to analysts, the new regulations will become a 'filter' to classify investor capacity. "Developers that possess solid financial resources and guaranteed project implementation capacity will have many advantages in this new playing field, promoting the market to develop transparently and sustainably," added Loh.

Nam Long Group targets $395 million pre-sales At its AGM in Ho Chi Minh City on April 20, Nam Long Group announced targets of VND9.5 trillion ($395 million) in sales and $277 million in net turnover for 2024.

Nishi Nippon Railroad buys 25 per cent stake in HCMC urban area project Nam Long Investment JSC transferred a 25 per cent stake in the Nam Long Dai Phuoc urban area project to its Japanese strategic partner Nishi Nippon Railroad on June 17.
At the Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC) Leaders Meeting held in Indonesia across August 20-21, four entities handed over an MoU on decarbonisation through energy management, aiming to make North Hanoi Smart City the first carbon-neutral urban area in Vietnam.

Madame Nguyen Thi Nga, chairwoman of BRG Group with representatives from participating parties at the MoU signing ceremony with the witness of Ken Saito, Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan (centre)

The four entities were BRG Group, Sumitomo Corporation, North Hanoi Smart City Development Investment, and Thang Long Industrial Park (IP).

The goal of the MoU is to achieve decarbonisation in the integrated area of North Hanoi Smart City and Thang Long IP through energy management measures and to create a model for future IPs and smart cities in Vietnam, contributing to the Vietnamese government's carbon neutrality policy by 2050.

During the signing ceremony, Nguyen Thi Nga, chair of BRG Group, stated, With a mission to contribute the best to the community, we hope to make the North Hanoi Smart City project, a key economic cooperation project between the Vietnamese and Japanese governments, the world's first carbon-neutral urban area. This will serve as a model for Hanoi and Vietnam in developing a more sustainable environment.

North Hanoi Smart City will cost $4.2 billion and be located in Dong Anh district, Hanoi

Takashi Yanai, corporate officer and general manager of the Industrial Park and Sustainable City Business Unit under Sumitomo Corporation, shared, Sumitomo Corporation group aims to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, and would like to contribute to Vietnam's commitment to cut emissions to net zero by 2050. This will be achieved through developing technologies including renewable power generation and energy saving solutions and business models to create a sustainable energy cycle.

The AZEC conference was held in Jakarta, with participation of Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and government agencies from ASEAN countries.

At the previous conference chaired by Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in December 2023 in Japan, with the participation of Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, Kishida emphasised the importance of achieving the common goal of "net-zero emissions through various means" and a three-step breakthrough to achieve decarbonisation, economic growth, and energy security.

Kishida mentioned Japan's efforts to develop and introduce next-generation green technologies and expressed willingness to share Japan's technology and experience through the AZEC platform. This would facilitate coordinating policies through the "Asia Zero Emission Centre", establishing green supply chains through collaborative efforts including developing zero-emission IPs, and cooperation among businesses.

According to information released at this conference, Vietnam is the first partner that Japan has supported as part of the AZEC initiative.

The AZEC platform shares common principles among member countries, aiming to address the challenges of climate change while ensuring energy security and economic growth. At the same time, it also pursues the goal of carbon neutrality/net-zero emissions, depending on the specific conditions of each country.

The North Hanoi Smart City project is being developed by BRG Group in collaboration with Sumitomo Corporation. Construction is slated to begin in 2025 with residents allowed to gradually move in from 2026.

As reported by Nikkei Asia, Sumitomo aims to decarbonise all of the electricity consumed at its sites by 2030 by combining direct purchases from renewable energy power plants and the use of carbon credits. The Japanese company will make the smart city partially self-sufficient, tapping solar and biomass power generation facilities in a nearby IP with a capacity exceeding 200 MW to cover 30 per cent to 40 per cent of the city and IP's electricity demand. Investments are expected to total about 50 billion yen ($338 million).

Sumitomo Corporation pursues carbon neutrality at Vietnam project under AZEC platform The Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC) platform shares common principles among member countries in addressing climate change as a global challenge while ensuring energy security, economic growth, and pursuing carbon neutrality through various pathways according to each countrys circumstances.

Sumitomo-BRG consortium announce plans for North Hanoi Smart City On November 11 in Dong Anh district, Hanoi, the North Hanoi Smart City Development Investment (NHSC) company, a consortium between Vietnam's BRG Group and Japan's Sumitomo Corporation, announced the official implementation of the North Hanoi Smart City, a symbolic project to celebrate 50 years of Vietnam-Japan diplomatic ties (19732023).
President of the Australian Senate Sue Lines (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi - President of the Australian Senate Sue Lines will pay an official visit to Vietnam from August 24  30.

The visit will be made at the invitation of National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man, according to an announcement of the NAs Committee for Foreign Affairs.

Vietnamese embassies in Indonesia, RoK, Australia open condolence books for late Party chief The Vietnamese Embassy in Indonesia held a respect-paying service and opened a book of condolence for General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong on July 25 and 26.

Vietnam and Australia share a strategic vision With the partnership reaching a significant milestone with the elevation to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership back in March, trade and investment ties between Vietnam and Australia are expected to be further strengthened. Vaibhav Saxena, foreign counsel, and Quang Anh Nguyen, associate at VILAF write about cooperation potential ahead.

Vietnam and Australia bodies forge stock market partnership Vietnam's State Securities Commission (SSC) on August 2 signed an MoU with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) in Sydney, marking a significant milestone in the collaborative efforts between the two regulatory bodies.

HCM City top searched destination for Australian tourists Ho Chi Minh City is among the top destinations in Vietnam that tourists from Australia want to visit.

Vietnam, Australia boost securities industry partnership The State Securities Commission of Vietnam (SSC) and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) officially signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for cooperation in Sydney, Australia on August 2.
Signage is displayed outside a Halliburton Co. location in Port Fourchon, Louisiana, U.S., on Thursday, Feb. 8, 2018. U.S. oil explorers added rigs this week as crude prices recovered from their worst weekly decline in two years. Photographer: Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg News Service

Halliburton, one of the largest oil field service companies in the world, was targeted in a cyberattack Wednesday, according to Reuters.

Reuters reported that the attack impacted Halliburtons North Houston campus and had impaired global operations. An employee at the North Houston campus could not confirm the alleged attack, but said the location was currently suffering from a network outage.

In a statement to Reuters, the company, which maintains a headquarters in Dubai and Houston, said it was working with leading external experts to solve the issue.

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The alleged attack came just days after the FBI released a statement warning the public of Iranian hackers efforts to undermine the upcoming presidential election. The FBI accused Tehran of attempting to shape the outcome of the election through various phishing attacks and other methods.

This year, the World Governments Summit warned of a general increase in cyberattacks on energy companies located in the U.S. and Canada. Between 2021 and 2022, attempts to undermine the security of these companies increased by 71%, according to a report from the organization.

Costs associated with cyberattacks are projected to balloon in the coming years. The WGS expects costs associated with security and damages caused by cyberattacks to multiply by more than 10 times in the coming years.

The number of cyber threat actors has expanded, particularly to the Global South to more parts of Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa, the report stated. Therefore, the corresponding impacts  financial, loss of life, regulatory and reputational  are mounting. The ransomware costs globally are expected to reach US $265 billion by 2031, up from US $20 billion in 2021.

Chris Bronk, a cybersecurity expert and associate professor at the University of Houston Hobby School of Public Affairs, said in the current landscape of digital expansion, attacks like the one on Halliburton are like a circular cat-and-mouse game. Security experts patch vulnerabilities and hackers adapt to them.

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Fortunately, Bronk said, this has made companies relatively resilient when it comes to responding to attacks on their digital infrastructure. Organizations, depending on how much they have invested in security, are usually capable of sequestering threats within a short time span.

If you have a major disruption, you may be back up and running in hours or days. If youre not prepared for an attack, you may not be up running again for a week or more, Bronk said. Every hack is a bit different than the last one, so it really depends on the details of this particular incident.

Bronk said its difficult to predict the full scale of the damage Halliburton incurred. The company provides services and equipment to other companies in the oil sector, he said, and theres a potential for more problems to crop up across the globe as a result of the attack.

Determining the source of the attack is also difficult, Bronk said. While similar attacks have been conducted by hostile foreign governments, in Halliburtons case, its just too early to tell.

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A seller livestreams at Tua Chua night market in Dien Bien province. The General Department of Taxation has asked local tax authorities to review and make lists of retailers selling through livestreaming to carry out risk-based inspections. (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi - The General Department of Taxation has asked local tax authorities to review and make lists of retailers selling through livestreaming on platforms such as YouTube, Facebook and Tiktok to carry out risk-based inspections.

They also have requested that tax management on individuals and organisations with high revenues from livestreaming selling must be enhanced as better scrutiny of e-commerce is needed to prevent tax losses.

Data from market research company NielsenIQ showed that 95% of online shoppers make purchases via livestreaming sessions.

There are 2.5 million livestreaming sessions on average each month, with the participation of more than 50,000 sellers, according to the Vietnam E-commerce Association.

The department worked with nearly 43,000 enterprises and individuals in tax declaration and payments in the first six months of this year to collect nearly 9.98 trillion VND in taxes, up 3.48 trillion VND over the same period last year. More than 4,560 violations were handled with total fines of nearly 300 billion VND.

Under the established regulations, online sellers must pay value added tax (VAT) and individual income tax if they have revenues of 100 million VND per year or higher.

Authorities ramp up tax inspections of livestreams Individuals and organisations involved in livestream sales and affiliate marketing on e-commerce platforms are facing the most stringent inspections ever related to tax declaration and payment.

Retailers advocate for green habits Vietnamese retailers are leading efforts to promote eco-friendly shopping habits, with major companies implementing initiatives to reduce plastic waste and encourage sustainable consumption.

Livestreaming rise presents disruption to commerce Livestreaming is no longer just hype in Vietnam, with brands prompted to keep up with rapid changes.

Retailers pressured to adapt their tactics New trends emerging in the retail sector and changes in customer shopping preferences are directly impacting the business strategies of many retailers.
Thailand detects mpox infection in tourist, source: youtube.com

Hanoi  Thailand has detected a mpox case in a tourist who is suspiciously the first case of Clade 1b infection in the Southeast Asian country, local authorities said on August 21.

According to Thongchai Keeratihattayakorn, General Director of Thailands Department of Disease Control, the patient is a European visitor who arrived in Thailand from an African country. The patient has taken quarantine in hospital.

Experts are currently conducting tests to confirm the strain of virus the patient has contracted. Although the official results will not be available in two days, the medical community believes that the case is a Clade 1 variant.

Cases and deaths from mpox are on the rise in Africa, with outbreaks reported in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda since July.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) recently declared a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC), the organisations highest alert level for an epidemic after the number of infections of Clade 1b (which is more contagious and potentially deadly) surged in the Democratic Republic of Congo and spread beyond its borders.

Mpox can be transmitted from person to person through physical contact. It usually causes flu-like symptoms and pus-filled sores. It is usually mild, but can be fatal or lead to serious complications in many cases, especially in children, pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems, such as those with HIV.

Sweden was the first country outside of Africa to detect Clade 1b. According to WHO data, Clade 1b is currently fatal in about 3.6% of all mpox cases.

WHO warns more mpox to come in Europe after case in Sweden The WHO on Thursday warned further imported cases of the new, more dangerous mpox strain in Europe were likely, after Sweden announced the first such infection outside Africa in an outbreak that has killed hundreds in the DR Congo.

Mpox vaccine maker ready to produce 10 million doses Danish drugmaker Bavarian Nordic said Thursday it was ready to produce up to 10 million doses of its vaccine targeting mpox by 2025 after the World Health Organization declared a surge in the virus in Africa a global public health emergency.
Thailand launches anti-dumping probe on Chinese extruded aluminium, Illustrative photo (Photo: The Nation)

Bangkok  Thailands Department of Foreign Trade has launched an anti-dumping investigation on extruded aluminium from China after Thai manufacturers complained of damage from imports.

Acting Thai Prime Minister and Commerce Minister Phumtham Wechayachai took the action as a response to public concern over cheap foreign goods flooding Thailand and unfair competition.

The Commerce Ministry has taken measures including anti-dumping duties and caps on certain imports. The duties mainly target steel products from China, Taiwan (China), Japan, the EU, and the Republic of Korea.

The Anti-Dumping and Subsidy Committee of Thailand has launched a nine-month investigation of Chinese extruded aluminium at the request of Thai producers. Extra duties will be imposed for five years if dumping is confirmed. If damage persists, the measure may be extended for another five years.

Thailand - bright spot in global gold market Demand for gold in Thailand is on the rise despite the global trends of record high prices, according to the latest report released by the World Gold Council (WGC) on August 13.

Thai King endorses new Prime Minister Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn endorsed Paetongtarn Shinawatra as Prime Minister of the country on August 18, two days after her election by the House of Representatives.
Party General Secretary and State President To Lam (L) shakes hands with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi - The state visit by Party General Secretary and State President To Lam and his spouse to China from August 18-20 was a great success, marking a new milestone and ushering in a new phase of development in the friendly neighborliness and comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries.

This is a particularly important diplomatic event between Vietnam and China in 2024, with a significant impact on the long-term development trend of the relationship between the two Parties and countries.

The visit, Lam's first foreign trip since his election as the General Secretary of the 13th CPV Central Committee, included 18 key activities.

During the talks with Chinese Party General Secretary and President Xi Jinping, Lam emphasised his desire to work with his Chinese counterpart and other Chinese high-ranking leaders to inherit and uphold the long-standing tradition of friendship between the two Parties and countries, guiding the Vietnam-China relationship into a new phase of increasingly stable and sustainable development.

Xi strongly affirmed that China maintains its persistent policy of friendship with Vietnam, and always takes Vietnam as a priority and strategic choice in its neighbourhood diplomacy.

A highlight of the visit was a tour of Guangzhou in Guangdong province marking the 100th anniversary of President Ho Chi Minhs arrival in Guangzhou as an international advisor to the Communist International. From 1924 to 1927, President Ho Chi Minh and Chinese revolutionaries established a close friendship that was later described as comrades-cum-brothers friendship.

This activity provided an opportunity for both sides to reminisce about the traditional friendship, solidarity, and mutual support between the two Parties, countries, and their peoples, laying a stronger social foundation for the bilateral relationship, according to Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee and head of its Commission for External Relations Le Hoai Trung.

Looking ahead to 2025 when the two countries will celebrate the 75th anniversary of diplomatic ties, the leaders decided to designate 2025 as the "Year of Vietnam-China Humanistic Exchange" to raise public awareness of the traditional bilateral friendship.

Speaking to the Vietnam News Agency in Beijing, Director of the Institute for Vietnam Studies at the Zhengzhou University Prof. Yu Xiangdong said that Lams visit is a strategic choice based on the stable development of the bilateral relations, demonstrating Vietnam's consistent stance and "bamboo diplomacy" policy, benefiting the noble cause of modernisation that the CPV is constantly promoting and in conformity with the fundamental interests of the two countries and their peoples, and being useful to maintaining and protecting peace, stability, development, and prosperity of the region and the world over.

He stressed that the visit has symbolic significance, demonstrating the desire to continue the political legacy left by late Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong - who laid the foundation for the strategic and especially important relationship between Vietnam and China.

More than 30 years after the normalisation, especially more than 15 years since the establishment of the Comprehensive Strategic Cooperative Partnership framework in 2008, Vietnam-China relations have witnessed rapid strides and comprehensive progress in all fields.

Following the historic official visit to China by General Secretary Trong in October 2022 and the third state visit to Vietnam by General Secretary and President Xi in December last year, the two sides agreed to further deepen and elevate the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership, and build a Vietnam  China community with a shared future that carries strategic significance, thus opening a new chapter in the bilateral relations.

So far this year, the relationship between the two countries has maintained a positive development trend, with a strong atmosphere of cooperation spreading across levels, sectors, and among the general public. The bilateral relationship is said to be at its most profound, comprehensive, and substantive level ever, with increasing growth in economic, trade, and investment cooperation.

On the occasion of the Vietnamese top leaders visit, the two countries issued a joint statement on further strengthening the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership and building a Vietnam-China community with a shared future.

High-ranking leaders of the two Parties and countries devoted much attention and time to discussing cooperation orientations in various fields, agreeing to strengthen cooperation in strategic areas such as diplomacy, defence, and public security; expand cooperation connecting the "Two Corridors, One Belt" Framework with the "Belt and Road" Initiative; accelerate "hard connectivity" in terms of railways, expressways and border gate infrastructure; and upgrade "soft connectivity" in smart customs.

China agreed to provide non-refundable assistance for Vietnam to develop the planning of northern railway routes connecting Vietnam with China, hasten the pilot construction of smart border gates, implement the pilot construction of cross-border economic cooperation zones, jointly build safe and stable production and supply chains, and support Chinese enterprises with capacity, reputation, and advanced technology to invest in Vietnam.

Ministries, sectors, and localities of the two countries signed documents on cooperation in Party school, connectivity, industry, finance, customs plant quarantine, health care, press and broadcasting, and locality cooperation. The signed documents vividly reflect the two sides' determination to promote deeper substantive cooperation.

The visit is an important activity implementing Vietnam's foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, multilateralism, and diversification, which includes a policy of considering relations with China a top priority.

The high-level agreements and specific results achieved during the visit will continue to contribute to consolidating the favourable foreign situation, creating a peaceful and stable environment, offering more favourable conditions for pushing socio-economic development, elevating the country's position and prestige, and successfully implementing the targets set by the 13th National Party Congress.

China speeds up investment in Vietnam An upward trend has been recorded in Chinese recent investments in Vietnam, which is hoped to help fuel the industries the country has demand for such as high technology, renewables, supporting industries, electronics, and green finance.

China leads number of newly-registered projects in Vietnam While Singapore is the leader in terms of foreign investment value, China is ahead in terms of number of new projects in Vietnam.

Vietnam will deepen bonds with China and WEF, says PM Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh delivered a speech at the Opening Plenary of the Annual Meeting of the New Champions at the World Economic Forum in Dalian, China's Liaoning province, on June 25, in which he spoke of Vietnam's success over the past nearly four decades.

Vietnam benefits from China+1 policy shift Chinese and Taiwanese groups continue to seek strategic investment opportunities in Vietnam as the country emerges as one of the top gainers from the China+1 strategy.
This joint venture is poised to take significant strides in the Vietnamese healthtech sector, bolstered by investment from venture capital fund TNB Aura Scout.

Unprecedented deal

Amid a dynamic landscape of mergers and acquisitions within Vietnam's healthcare industry, TrueDoc has successfully executed two consecutive merger and fundraising deals. This unprecedented brace of deals sets a new benchmark in the healthtech sector.

TrueDoc is creating and sustaining its momentum within the healthcare field

Since its inception, TrueDoc has consistently been on the lookout for opportunities to enhance its service offerings and elevate the quality of healthcare.

The integration of AiHealth, with its advanced technological capabilities and experienced development team, aligns perfectly with TrueDoc's vision, enabling the enhancement of its service platform and the overall customer experience.

Following the merger, TrueDoc has secured pre-seed funding from TNB Aura, a Singapore-based venture capital firm, as part of their Scout Initiative, which focuses on early-stage investment opportunities in the region.

This funding will be directed towards optimising TrueDoc's technology platform, expanding service offerings, and broadening its operational network to increase user engagement.

The partnership between TNB Aura Scout and TrueDoc is anticipated to yield significant advancements in the latter half (H2) of 2024.

Reflecting on this milestone, Le Ngoc Hai, CEO of TrueDoc, stated, We extend our gratitude to our partners who share our vision for enhancing healthcare for the Vietnamese population. This partnership equips TrueDoc with the capabilities and resources necessary to construct a comprehensive healthcare ecosystem that prioritises quality. We remain committed to our principles of convenience and quality, continually innovating to establish a trustworthy healthcare destination for our users.

Le Ngoc Hai, CEO of TrueDoc

Expectation for a healthtech unicorn

The healthtech sector has consistently attracted investment, even amid the ongoing funding winter in Vietnam. This trend underscores the sector's immense potential. However, Vietnam is still a largely untapped market, with a unicorn yet to emerge in the sector.

In this context, TrueDoc's partnership with TNB Aura Scout is noteworthy and is expected to position the company as a leading player within the healthtech landscape.

Joe Zhang from TNB Aura remarked, We recognise the potential in Vietnam's digital healthcare ecosystem, which remains largely underserved. Although several companies have attempted to accelerate its development with various business models, there is still a pressing need for players like TrueDoc to strengthen the TeleHealth infrastructure in Vietnam. Given the team's experience and expertise, we are confident that they can establish strong business fundamentals, and with our research-driven approach, we can help unlock even greater potential.

Over the past five years, TrueDoc has refined its one-stop healthcare ecosystem model, delivering a comprehensive suite of services that encompass remote consultations, home-based healthcare, corporate health screenings, and international patient transfers.

Each service is enhanced by the seamless integration of online and offline methodologies, fostering a user-friendly experience and promoting the adoption of technology in medical consultations and treatments.

To support this vision, TrueDoc has established a wide distribution healthcare network comprising 1,000 highly skilled doctors and over 300 reputable hospitals and clinics, both domestically and internationally.

As a result, TrueDoc has successfully engaged hundreds of thousands of users, achieving a stable annual growth rate and earning the trust of numerous businesses that rely on its healthcare services for their customers and employees.

TNB Aura Scout is an initiative of TNB Aura, which is considered a dedicated investment vehicle aimed at tapping into pre-seed and seed opportunities, particularly in Vietnam and the Philippines.

This initiative allows TNB Aura to engage with emerging companies at an earlier stage than its typical Series A investments, facilitating the growth of transformative businesses in the region.

Advantech Vietnam secures a $314,000 loan from JBIC Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) has signed a loan agreement with Tokyo-headquartered Advantech Co. Ltd., the parent company of Advantech Vietnam.

Phuc Sinh secures $25 million loan from Dutch fund Phuc Sinh, Vietnam's largest spices exporter, will obtain a loan worth over $25 million from SAIL Investments Netherlands-based &Green Fund.
US enterprises follow through on semiconductor pledges, Source: freepik.com

In mid-July, US-based chip manufacturer Qorvo teamed up with the National Innovation Centre (NIC) to launch an analogue design course to enhance the workforce in the semiconductor sector.

Qorvo plans to build its workforce and presence in Vietnam, where the company has a well-established integrated circuit (IC) research and development team. Qorvo already has more than 100 hardware and software engineers in Vietnam who are focused on meeting the growing demand for power management ICs, battery management systems, and intelligent motor control solutions.

Bob Bruggeworth, CEO of Qorvo, told VIR, We believe Vietnam is a great place to expand. The key is to strengthen Vietnams technical workforce by investing in training and education to foster the next generation of engineers and IC designers, transforming Vietnam into a stronger semiconductor technology hub.

Creating a strong partnership between universities and the semiconductor industry through the NIC will be key to developing a strong and capable workforce, Bruggeworth added.

We believe that innovation begins with education. That is why Qorvo is committed to providing IC design lecturers, specialists and US-standard training curriculum to the NIC, he said.

Similarly, electronics and system design company Cadence has partnered with the NIC, FPT Semiconductor, TreSemi, Qorvo, and Sun Education to launch digital and analogue IC design courses in Vietnam. The initiatives reflect the US companys strong support to empower Vietnam to become a reliable partner and an important hub in the global semiconductor value chain.

Michael Shih, corporate vice president of sales for Asia-Pacific and Japan at Cadence, said that as semiconductor industry continues to pursue cutting-edge technologies, training highly skilled, experienced chip engineers will contribute to the development of talents and businesses in the design and product development of semiconductor in Vietnam.

Through our continuous collaboration with the NIC and Saigon High-tech Park, Cadence is now providing Vietnamese universities, training centres, and startup companies with the technology and education required for learning IC design software tools for the fast-growing, local semiconductor and electronics ecosystem, Shih said.

In a move aimed at training 50,000 semiconductor engineers by 2030, education trailblazers play a valuable role in shaping the future of technology by cultivating the next generation of engineers. By continuously providing access to IC design software tools along with training programmes to academic institutes, those students and trainers will get an opportunity to gain real-world experience creating innovative IC designs.

We believe that equipped with knowledge about essential skills and practical experience, we could contribute to a valuable talent pool for the growing IC design industry in this region. For example, Cadences partnership with the NIC to support over 30 universities in IC design training, including many of the top-tier universities with specialised IC design programmes, is unmatched in Vietnam, benefiting many students in the workforce development programme, Shih said.

In May, American semiconductor giant Marvell Technology also announced that it has accelerated the growth of its workforce and presence in Vietnam in the past year since the company announced plans to expand research, engineering, and design activities across the country.

Marvell committed to 50 per cent growth of its workforce in Vietnam in three years, a target shared by the company during last years US-Vietnam Innovation and Investment Summit. Today, Marvell is ahead of its plans, achieving around one-third of growth in just eight months.

We are excited about the momentum weve gained since we announced our design centre plans last year, including our progress in adding top engineering talent to our team and expanding our number of sites, said Marvell chairman and CEO Matt Murphy. Vietnam is rapidly becoming a centre of semiconductor innovation, and we are committed to being part of that.

Elsewhere, US chip software firm Synopsys is also committed to advancing IC design talent and chip development in Vietnam. Last year, the company signed three MoUs with the NIC, Danang Peoples Committee, and the Authority of Information and Communication Technologies to fulfill these commitments.

The US is collaborating closely with Vietnam in its CHIPS Act outreach programme to help Vietnam expand its worldwide semiconductor ecosystem, including production and distribution outposts. Vietnam ranks third in semiconductor exports to the US, and the US-Vietnam Comprehensive Strategic Partnership included $2 million in funding from the US to help Vietnam develop its semiconductor workforce.

Shih from Cadence added that the Vietnamese semiconductor industry has the potential to fully participate in all stages of the value chain, with more investment from US companies that are actively considering opportunities for growth and expansion in the country.

Talented students and professors are key to keeping the chip industry competitive. The training provided to the local universities via collaboration between Vietnam and US companies can ensure practical skills and real-world experience creating innovative IC designs, especially given the rapid pace of technological change, and at the same time can enable our customers to achieve future design success, he said.

Malaysia unveils large-scale Semiconductor IC Design Park Malaysia needs to focus on developing its own semiconductor design capabilities, lessening dependence on imported chips moving forward, said Malaysian Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli at the launch ceremony of the countrys Semiconductor IC Design Park in Puchong on August 6.

South Korea's Signetics to develop $100 million semiconductor facility in Vinh Phuc Signetics Corporation, a South Korean semiconductor assembly and testing company, is planning to a $100 million investment in the northern province of Vinh Phuc.

National steering committee on semiconductor industry development established Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh signed a decision on August 8 to establish a national steering committee for the semiconductor industry's development.

Seminar promotes domestic role in developing semiconductor workforce The National Innovation Centre (NIC) in collaboration with Cadence Corporation, FPT, and Tresemi held a seminar on August 9 on promoting the role of Vietnamese enterprises in developing the semiconductor industry's human resources.
At a seminar on building and developing Vietnams semiconductor ecosystem, organised by the Vietnam National Innovation Centre (NIC) and Meta in collaboration with Hanoi University of Science and Technology (HUST) on July 30, experts provided an overview of the semiconductor industry in Vietnam and identified workforce training directions through opinions and proposals from representatives of government, businesses, and academic institutions.

If Vietnam only focuses on training a workforce to meet the needs of foreign companies, it will not be able to build its own semiconductor industry strength, said Nguyen Duc Hoa, vice dean of the School of Materials Science and Engineering under the HUST. Vietnam cannot compete in manufacturing because foreign companies are already strong. Instead, it should observe and train the workforce to participate in industrial sectors to create its own semiconductor ecosystem and join the global semiconductor supply chain.

Currently, Vietnam has several labs working on semiconductors. Hoa suggested linking these labs to create an effective network or investing in building a large central laboratory, along with legal frameworks and financial mechanisms.

For instance, if the NIC builds a lab in the Hoa Lac High-Tech Park, researchers can register for joint exploration. Clear rights and responsibilities are needed to fully tap into the potential of the workforce.

Vietnam could also incorporate foreign training experiences into its programmes and enhance cooperation with foreign semiconductor training centres in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan.

As Vietnam is surrounded by semiconductor powerhouses, the country should send staff for training abroad or invite experts to train domestically. Policies should be established to leverage these opportunities for collaboration and integrate international expertise into Vietnams semiconductor ecosystem, added Hoa.

Vietnam is being encouraged to move forward steadily in order to train the semiconductor workforce.

Vietnam needs to pay close attention to materials science, focusing on training current and future teachers and engineers in semiconductor materials and chip manufacturing, said Nguyen Ngoc Binh, chief advisor at PVA Tech and former rector of VNU University of Technology. Do not just focus on integrated circuit design as it seems easy and is supported by foreign enterprises and corporations. Fabrication of electronic components is also critical because with a population of 100 million, importing all components is a huge waste.

Moreover, he continued, there should be a review into universities that train in electronic components, like HUST, to ensure training in assembly and future fabrication before involving all 140 universities in semiconductor training, which would be inefficient. Inconsistent training may result in waiting for jobs that no country offers, risking the loss of high-quality human resources.

Teachers need to be trained correctly, and international certification is necessary to ensure workforce quality, Binh said.

The semiconductor workforce development plan towards 2030, with orientation to 2045, was completed at the end of April and has been presented to the government. Representatives at the semina stated that Vietnam currently has 160 specialised technical and technology training institutions and 134,000 new students each year. It is expected that in the coming years, about 1,400 students will graduate in semiconductor majors annually.

Vietnam has the conditions and capacity to train about 50,000 semiconductor engineers by 2030, including about 15,000 circuit design engineers and 35,000 engineers in packaging, manufacturing, testing, and other fields.

There should be at least 5,000 engineers with deep expertise in AI for the semiconductor industry and 1,300 lecturers teaching at research institutes, universities, training centres, and companies.

However, there is still a significant gap between supply and demand in terms of quality. Vu Viet Hung, representative of Tektronix Company in the US, suggested training directions for developing workforce skills in testing for the semiconductor industry.

After packaging comes testing, depending on the needs of each unit. When my company delivered equipment and provided instructions, most Vietnamese workers and engineers found it relatively new, with only a few understanding the testing process, Hung said.

Vietnam has advantages in related fields such as telecoms, automation, and physics, which can be transitioned and utilised. The challenge is that testing equipment is relatively new, and universities in Vietnam lack the necessary equipment. Therefore, in this strongest wave of semiconductor development, I hope that government agencies like the NIC can develop shared laboratories for testing, design, and material fields, added Hung.

Seminar promotes domestic role in developing semiconductor workforce The National Innovation Centre (NIC) in collaboration with Cadence Corporation, FPT, and Tresemi held a seminar on August 9 on promoting the role of Vietnamese enterprises in developing the semiconductor industry's human resources.

Strengthening Vietnam-Japan cooperation in ICT and semiconductor sectors Vietnam and Japan are strengthening cooperation in ICT and semiconductors to tap into the two countries' potential, and to boost bilateral ties.
Vietnamese labourers working at the "Hanoi" garment factory , which is near conflict zones in Russia's Kursk oblast, are still working hard to ensure timely delivery of products to customers. (Photo: VNA)

Moscow - Around 100 Vietnamese labourers working at the "Hanoi" garment factory - the largest group of Vietnamese working near conflict zones in Russia's Kursk oblast, have been still working hard to ensure timely delivery of products to customers, despite the ongoing conflict in border areas between Russia and Ukraine.

Located near Zheleznogorsk city, about 120 km from the centre of Kursk province and about 140 km from the conflict zone, the road leading to the factory shows almost no signs of the nearby conflict.

Inside the garment factory, three production lines are still operating as usual. Workers are busy sewing and processing winter clothing items to meet the market demand.

Nong Minh Duc, who has been working at the factory for two years, said the situation has largely remained unchanged since the news of the conflict.

Nguyen Thanh Bao, manager of the factory, said the situation there is still stable, adding that everyone is focused on their work, and the company has not been negatively affected.

The Vietnamese Embassy in Russia is maintaining daily contacts with representatives of the Vietnamese community in Kursk to keep updated on information related to overseas Vietnamese there.
Cities like Danang are working with major corporations to lay foundations for semiconductor training, Photo Le Toan

At a seminar on promoting the role of Vietnamese enterprises in developing a workforce for the semiconductor industry, held at the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) headquarters over a week ago, Truong Gia Binh, chairman of FPT Corporation, emphasised the unprecedented level of involvement from these three stakeholders in training personnel for the semiconductor sector.

The collective effort from the state, enterprises, and universities to train high-quality professionals for this critical technology sector is stronger than ever, Binh said. At times, state agencies have been even more proactive in supporting the semiconductor industry than the businesses themselves.

By 2030, FPT aims to train 50,000 semiconductor engineers, with a target of 10,000 in 2025. The company is currently implementing robust training programmes at various levels, from short courses to university degrees, in collaboration with partners from the US, Japan, and Taiwan.

Students trained in this globally sought-after field will have numerous job opportunities, Binh added. When I met with Japanese companies, they expressed interest in providing us with many job opportunities if we have the necessary human resources. Therefore, our employees must continuously upgrade their skills.

Similarly, Viettel, a local player in chip design, has made significant strides. Nguyen Trung Kien, deputy head of the groups Semiconductor Technology Department, noted that Viettel began researching and designing chips in 2019, and has since developed digital front-end chips for 5G base stations and high-frequency transceiver chips for 5G and other communication systems.

This lays the foundation for Viettel to manufacture chips for various applications in the future, Kien said. To master the most complex chip lines within the 5G ecosystem, Viettel has collaborated with both domestic and international enterprises, as well as Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology. Our success relies on these collaborations and leveraging the resources of all involved parties. We will continue to expand these partnerships to advance chip production.

In the central city of Danang, efforts are underway to create a supportive environment for enterprises involved in semiconductor human resource development. This is not just a trend but a long-standing commitment. We view the high-tech sector as a key driver for the citys development, said Nguyen Van Quang, Secretary of Danang Party Committee.

In January, the Centre for Research and Training on Microchip Design and AI officially began operations in the central city. It is the first unit in the country dedicated to investment support, research, training, and international cooperation in microchips and AI.

Immediately after its establishment, the centre signed two strategic cooperation agreements with Synopsys and Intel to advance training and human resource development in microchips, semiconductors, and AI, Quang noted.

Danang is focusing on also developing attractive policies to draw strategic investors, including tax incentives and infrastructure leasing without auction.

The city is exploring cooperation with Viettel, Synopsys, Intel, and Sovico to entice businesses to invest in, operate, and utilise major infrastructures. This will lay the groundwork for training and practical simulations with modern equipment, Quang said.

As investment in electronics, chips, and semiconductors grows in Vietnam, experts view Hoa Lac High-Tech Park in the north as an ideal location for investors due to its ecosystem of universities, research institutes, and large technology enterprises, along with preferential investment mechanisms and streamlined administrative procedures.

Tran Dac Trung, deputy head of the Hoa Lac High-Tech Park Management Board, stated, One of the parks successes is the connection between universities, research institutes, and enterprises. The park is working with various stakeholders to prepare a skilled workforce for research purposes and meeting the needs of large businesses.

Trung added that they are creating a strong network through careful preparation and attractive incentive policies. We believe the park will become a prime destination for technology leaders to establish their presence, he said.

To support and enhance training courses, technology transfer, and the updating of tools and techniques in universities and colleges, the National Innovation Centre (NIC) is collaborating with domestic and international enterprises. This includes granting training scholarships, providing free software licences for integrated circuit and semiconductor design, and signing cooperation agreements with international universities.

Vo Xuan Hoai, deputy director of the NIC under the MPI, highlighted that the draft scheme on human resources development for the semiconductor industry by 2030, with a vision to 2050, identifies human resources as a key strength for Vietnam.

The strategic cooperation between the state, universities, and businesses is a focal point of this draft scheme, Hoai said.

However, some opinions suggest that the scheme should include policies to directly support learners and orient cooperation with foreign partners in the process of training for the semiconductor industry.

On August 5, a national steering committee on semiconductor development was established, with the MPI appointed as the standing agency for the committee. These proactive measures aim to build a robust ecosystem for the semiconductor industry.

A significant milestone is the NICs collaboration with domestic and international partners to create training programmes in microchip design. This initiative is crucial for Vietnams mastery of semiconductor technology and also aligns with the breakthrough human capital goals outlined in the countrys 2021-2030 socioeconomic development strategy.

Vu Hai Quan, chairman Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City At the heart of our efforts is a strong collaboration with industry leaders in the semiconductor field. We recognise that the rapid advancement of technology requires a workforce that is not only highly skilled but also deeply aligned with industry needs. This is why we are committed to updating and innovating our curriculum in close partnership with these enterprises. By working together, we ensure that our students are equipped with the latest knowledge and skills that are directly applicable to the semiconductor industry. Our cooperation extends beyond the classroom. We are actively facilitating internships for our students, allowing them to gain hands-on experience and understand the practical challenges of the industry. Moreover, we have established joint supervision programmes where industry experts co-mentor our students, ensuring their academic projects are grounded in real-world applications. Research is another cornerstone of our collaboration. By partnering with industry, we can pursue cutting-edge research addressing the most pressing semiconductor sector challenges. We are also working on providing scholarships to support our students, further encouraging the pursuit of excellence in this field.

US enterprises follow through on semiconductor pledges More US companies are expanding their semiconductor workforce in Vietnam in a bid to contribute to the development of the countrys chip engineers.
Performing Arts Houston hosts the 5th annual Mariachi Festival. Courtesy of Performing Arts Houston

Houston has a range of events this weekend, offering something for everyone. Highlights include the Mariachi Festival, the musical 'Funny Girl' and the National Battle of the Bands.

'Funny Girl'

Melissa Manchester and Katerina McCrimmon and Stephen Mark Lukas in the 'Funny Girl' national tour. Matthew Murphy for MurphyMade

The musical follows Fanny Brice, a girl from New York's Lower East Side who aspired to be an actress. Despite being told she would never make it, she defied the odds and became a Broadway star.

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When: Through Aug. 25

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Where: Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, 800 Bagby

Best of the 2023 Ottawa International Animation Festival

The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston hosts the Best of the 2023 Ottawa International Animation Festival. Courtesy photo

The annual Ottawa International Animation Festival's Best of Ottawa Program features a selection of short films showcasing cutting-edge achievements in animation. The lineup includes "OIAF 2023 Signal Film," "A Crab in the Pool," "Families Albums," "Herzogs Chicken," "Box Cutters," "14th Anibar Animation Festival Trailer Love," "Cyclepaths," "Eeva," "Miserable Miracle" and "Living the Dream."

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When: Aug. 23-24: 7 p.m.

Where: The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; 1001 Bissonnet

5th Annual Mariachi Festival

Performing Arts Houston hosts the 5th annual Mariachi Festival. Courtesy of Performing Arts Houston

Performing Arts Houston's 5th annual Mariachi Festival starts on Friday, Aug. 23, with Oscar De La Rosa and Mariachi 7 Leguas. It continues on Saturday with Mariachi Mariposas and ends on Sunday with Mariachi Imperial de America, celebrating Mariachi music and Hispanic culture throughout the weekend.

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When: Aug. 23-24: 7 p.m., Aug. 25: 3 p.m.

Where: Wortham Theater Center, 501 Texas

MORE FROM ANA KHAN: Oracle Red Bull Racing brings Formula 1 action to downtown Houston

Miller Outdoor Theatre

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Phat Cat Swinger perform at Miller Outdoor Theatre. Courtesy photo

Miller Outdoor Theatre offers two performances this weekend. On Friday, Phat Cat Swinger will perform a 90-minute show with original arrangements of Disney music, featuring swing, cha-cha, mambo and more. On Saturday, Apollo Chamber Players will present "Mekong: Soul," sharing stories of life on Southeast Asia's Mekong River through music, dance, spoken word and visuals, focusing on Vietnamese, Khmer, Thai, Lao and Burmese communities.

When: Aug. 23: 8:30 p.m., Aug. 24: 8 p.m.

Where: Miller Outdoor Theatre, 6000 Hermann Park Drive

National Battle of the Bands

Drum majors of the Texas Southern University Ocean of Soul marching band file into the venue from the loading dock before the start during the 2023 National Battle of the Bands, a showcase for HBCU marching bands, held at NRG Stadium Saturday, Aug. 26, 2023, in Houston. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke) Michael Wyke/Associated Press

This annual competition starts the fall marching band season, with TSUs Ocean of Soul and seven other HBCU bands competing on the field at NRG Stadium.

When: Aug. 25: 3:30 p.m.

Where: NRG Stadium, 8825 Kirby
Casey, a three-month-old blue heeler/Australian shepherd mix, was dropped off at the Conroe Animal Shelter July 7 with a badly injured right front leg. Due to lack of care at the shelter, he chewed the leg off before being rescued and taken to a local veterinary hospital. Photo courtesy of Joy Southhard

Conroe's city council on Wednesday terminated its animal shelter contract with Care Corporation, which a city investigation found has failed to provide emergency care for animals and had no veterinarian on staff.

During a workshop meeting, Interim Police Chief Lee Tipton recommended the council terminate the contract with a 30-day notice and allow staff to explore other options for operating the facility.

Tipton said his department has received an outpouring of support from residents and nonprofit organizations willing to help with the shelter situation. He said he currently has an employee assigned to oversee shelter operations.

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However, during the councils regular meeting Thursday, Mayor Duke Coon said he wanted to terminate the contract immediately and operate the shelter with staff until the city can receive proposals from groups that can take over the management of the facility.

Thirty days is an extraordinary about of time, Coon said. Candidly, I believe we need to terminate this contract today.

The council agreed to terminate as soon as possible, within 30 days.

Earlier this month, city leaders heard the results of the investigation by the Conroe Police Department that showed a lack of emergency medical care, lack of medications, no veterinarian on staff and soaring euthanasia rates at the shelter, operated by Care Corporation, during a workshop meeting.

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Council members also learned that after the citys five-year contract with the city of Huntsville for shelter services was ended, the firm's owner, Sharon Hopkins, continued to allow animals to be transported from Huntsville to Conroe, where most were euthanized.

Since Jan. 1, the shelter has euthanized 651 dogs and 61 cats.

Hopkins said during an Aug. 8 council meeting that she was unaware of the shelter's issues. She has not responded to Chronicle requests for comment.

Concerns about the treatment of animals at the shelter came to light after Casey, a three-month-old male blue heeler mix, was brought to the shelter July 7 with a badly injured leg and provided an anti-inflammatory pill for pain but no other veterinary care. By July 9, Casey had chewed the leg off.

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Coon launched the investigation into the puppys treatment and the shelter operations July 23.
HINTON, Iowa -- A 60-year-old man was killed when a lawn mower rolled on top of him Monday in rural southwest Plymouth County.

The Plymouth County Sheriff's Office identified the victim in a statement as Steven Saulsbury.

According to the statement, the sheriff's office was informed of the accident at 12:30 p.m. Monday. Deputies and first responders from the Hinton Fire Department and EMS went to a residence in the 21,000 block of 320th St., which is southeast of Hinton.

"The operator had been mowing along the driveway of his property. It appears the mower went slightly off the edge of the driveway, which caused the mower to roll down an embankment," the statement said.

The mower came to rest on top of Saulsbury, who suffered fatal injuries as a result.
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As I see it, there has existed a certain danger of late, however theoretical, of a negotiations trap that our country might have fallen into, under a certain set of circumstances. I am talking, of course, about the premature and unnecessary peace talks suggested by the international community and then forced on the Kiev regime. Talks that had vague prospects and no tangible outcomes.

Now that the neo-Nazis have carried out their terrorist attack in the Kursk region, everything falls back into place. The casual chit-chat of self-proclaimed intermediaries on the virtuous subject of peace has ceased. Even if they cannot say it out loud, everyone recognises the reality of the situation. They understand that there will be NO NEGOTIATIONS UNTIL THE ENEMY IS COMPLETELY AND UTTERLY DESTROYED!

As to the ugly-faced scumbag with a messed-up white mop of a hairdo from the country that helped prepare the terrorist attack: he shouldnt be too eager to celebrate it. His country has made things much worse for the parts of former Ukraine still under their charge, and now there will be much more pointless spending, a lot more destroyed armour and a radically higher number of caskets. And the miserable Ukrainian serfs will keep kissing the bloodied hands of their Anglo-Saxon masters, overcome by gratitude to these necrophiliacs that take joy in abusing their subjects.

Medvedev

WtR
The Mineral County Sheriff's Office says a traffic stop Wednesday morning resulted in the arrest of a man transporting almost 21 pounds of drugs.

They say the suspect, Daniel Chase of Nevada City, California, was pulled over on US 95 at mile marker 50 in Mineral County in a black-colored Audi sedan.

Deputies say they became suspicious of the driver's driving behavior made a traffic stop, and requested a K9 unit.

The dog alerted deputies and they found one pound of psychedelic mushrooms, almost 11.5 pounds of hashish, and eight pounds of marijuana concealed in two duffel bags. (pictured above). According to deputies, the approximate street value is $60,000 dollars.

Chase was booked into the Mineral County Detention Center for:
Deputies have arrested a woman after she led officers on a pursuit in Lyon County in an alleged stolen car on Tuesday.

Lyon County deputies say they were contacted by Sparks Police about the stolen Audi SUV, driven by Michelle Martian. When they checked on a home on Fort Sutter Blvd., someone immediately shut the garage door - where a dark colored car was parked inside.

After 2:15 p.m., authorities say they saw the stolen car heading west on Newlands Drive. When the officer tried to make a traffic stop, the car sped off into the parking lot of Silverado Casino and Super 8 motel and then stopped.

Eventually the driver, Alyssa Holmes was taken into custody.

Officers say they found 2.6 grams of methamphetamines, packaging materials, and drug paraphernalia inside the car.

Holmes was later transported to the Lyon County Jail, where deputies found an additional 26.7 grams of meth and a hidden meth pipe on her body.

The original suspect, Michelle Martian, remains on the loose.

Holmes was booked on the following charges:

* possession of a stolen vehicle

* eluding

* possession of methamphetamine

* introduction of narcotics to a jail facility

* possession of methamphetamine for sales

* possession of narcotic paraphernalia X2

* driving on revoked drivers license

Her bail is set at $53,420.
Attorney Ben Crump, who is representing the family of Jalen Randle, speaks during a press conference regarding to Randles case Thursday, June 2, 2022, at Harris County Civil Courthouse in Houston. Randle was fatally shot in the back of his neck by Houston police officer Shane Privette, accused years prior of on-duty misconduct, last month before he had a chance to put his hands up. Yi-Chin Lee / Staff photographer

National civil rights attorney Ben Crump announced the filing of two new lawsuits against Harris County related to the death of eight inmates. The lawsuits come on the heels of the release of a video showing a brawl between inmate D'Alessandro Chavez-Sandoval and detention officers.

These lawsuits allege that the inmates were deprived of their constitutional rights and mistreated while being detained, Crump said. The lawsuit also details Harris Countys persistent culture of maltreatment and lack of concern for the lives of the detainees awaiting pre-trial, which ultimately led to the alleged constitutional violations.

In addition to Chavez-Sandoval, Crump names Daevion Young, Victoria Simon, Alan Kerber, Kyle Ryker, Eric Russell, Robert Terry and Michael Walker as the victims in the lawsuit. During a news conference, Crump noted the Texas Commission on Jail Standards found nothing wrong with the condition of housed inmates.

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ASKING FOR HELP: Ben Crump, families call for DOJ investigation into Harris County Jail as FBI launches probe

The Texas Commission on Jail Standards gave Harris County a passing grade in of all of these families losing loved ones (and) having their loved ones who were not guilty of a crime  they were innocent until proven guilty. But, 16 of their loved ones had to face the death sentence because they were in a jail that was substandard by everyones definition.

This isn't the first time Crumps sued Harris County on behalf of families who have lost families in the correctional system in Harris County or Houston. Last year, the Chronicle reported Crump called on the Department of Justice to investigate an uptick in jail deaths in 2022.

In 2022, 27 inmates died in the Harris County jail marking the most deaths in 20 years per the Texas Justice Initiative. Reports show 19 inmates died in 2023. So far in 2024, Harris County had reported at least six inmate deaths, as of Aug. 22.

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God help you if your loved ones (are) arrested and having to be housed in the Harris County Jail, Crump said. It was astonishing to many of us that they were averaging two and a half deaths per month. Were not talking about a third-world country, were talking about Houston, Texas in the United States of America.

UPTICK IN DEATHS: Lawyer Ben Crump, families of victims call for investigation into rising Harris County jail deaths

The Harris County Sheriffs Office declined to comment on pending litigation cases. To date, Crump and his team have at least 35 claims, less than half of which are wrongful death civil rights lawsuits.

I look forward to learning the FBIs findings, because we must all know the full truth if we are to improve our operation and make the jail as safe as possible for everyone entrusted into our care," Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said at the time of investigation inquiry.

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Crump alleges Terry, one of the men named in the lawsuit, died after getting dragged into a cell and beaten by officers. Although Crump noted Terry received some healthcare after the beating, he insisted Terry did not get evaluated for head trauma or internal hemorrhaging leading him to throwing up, coughing up and defecating blood and ultimately passing out and hitting his head on the toilet. It's those events that Crump says led to his untimely death.
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Franklin Pena, one of the two men accused of killing 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray, is led out of the courtroom after bail was set for $10 million, Monday, June 24, 2024, in Houston. Pena and another man, Johan Jose Rangel-Martinez, are charged with capital murder over the girl's death. Brett Coomer/Associated Press Kim Ogg greets Senator Ted Cruz as he took the stage during a law enforcement and public safety rally with law enforcement leaders at King's Bierhaus on Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024, in Houston. Karen Warren/Staff photographer Alexis Nungaray, the mother of Jocelyn Nungaray, hugs mourners during Jocelyn Nungarays end of life celebration, Thursday, June 27, 2024 in Houston. Ishika Samant/Staff photographer

One of the men accused of killing 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray wants to limit what District Attorney Kim Ogg and others can say about his case after she highlighted the prosecution as an example of alleged crimes carried out by those in the country illegally during her endorsement of Sen. Ted Cruz.

The lawyers for Franklin Pena, 26, have asked a judge to sign off on a formal order  effectively a gag order  aimed at preventing the outgoing district attorney, her office and other law enforcement agencies from making extrajudicial remarks about the pending capital murder case or divulging information outside of the public record. The judge did not make a decision Wednesday in court but earlier admonished officials on Aug. 14 from making such disclosures.

Pena and his roommate, Johan Martinez-Rangel, both Venezuelan nationals, are charged in the girls June 17 death.

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A passerby found Nungarays half-naked body in a north Houston creek, a discovery that propelled the investigation and later arrests into political discourse surrounding immigration. Cruz, the Republican senator seeking a third term, used the case to propose the Justice for Jocelyn Act to make it harder for asylum-seekers to be released into the U.S. after being processed at the border. The case garnered additional attention as former President Donald Trump invoked the case during a June debate to criticize President Joe Biden and claim that migrants were behind a surge in killings.Studies show that immigrants are less likely to commit crimes than U.S. citizens.

A criminal defense attorney for Pena, Lisa Andrews, characterized Oggs own use of the case in her endorsement of the lawmaker and his proposed legislation as extrajudicial. Her motion does not outright reference Ogg's endorsement of Cruz but features a screenshot from a Fox News broadcast of Ogg standing alongside the senator at a campaign event.

She is using this case that her office is currently prosecuting as some political ploy or stunt  as a poster child for legislation, Andrews said in court.

More from the Houston Chronicle: Jocelyn Nungaray remembered by family and friends as a 'goofball' with a 'big beautiful smile'

Jessica Caird, division chief for Oggs appellate division, objected to the gag order and argued that Oggs remarks were protected despite being disagreeable to some. The order, if granted, would needlessly suppress the speech of thousands as its too early to know who would be asked to testify at trial, she said.

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Caird went on to argue that most high-profile cases in Harris County, many that involve the death penalty, have not required a gag order to prevent tainting a jury pool.

We are such a populous county  many of them dont read the newspaper or watch the news, Caird said.

Andrews countered Cairds opposition to the gag order as an outlier, explaining that a handful of recent high-profile cases have faced restrictions that the prosecution never voiced an objection to until now. She pointed to the third Antonio Armstrong Jr. trial, which nearly moved to another county following two mistrials, and the pending cases against former Houston police officer Gerald Goines as examples of cases with gag orders where prosecutors never filed an objection.

Both cases involving Armstrong and Goines led to individual voir dire, a month-long process of interviewing jurors one-on-one to weed out those with opinions about a case. Andrews anticipates a similar process to take place in Penas case, she said.

The proposed order in Penas case is nearly identical to the restrictions prompted by a judge earlier this month in Goines case. In that order, lawyers are not prohibited from discussing scheduling, the legal process or describing what happens in the public record.

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Judge Josh Hill declined to immediately make a decision to issue a gag order but he had questions.

Is there information that the state wishes to make public through the media rather than through court filings, Hill asked.

None of the prosecutors in court had anything to offer but could not speak for the elected district attorney.

Im not in Kim Oggs head, Caird said.

He asked whether an indictment is likely that could bring the death penalty to the table. As of right now, Pena and the co-defendant are charged in the death of a child between the age of 10 and 15  a charge that precludes the death penalty by state law.

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Another prosecutor, Megan Long, said discussions for that decision have not happened but they have until mid-September to bring the case to a grand jury. Andrews interrupted to say that Ogg has made public statements that prosecutors could bring different capital murder charges that allow the death penalty against both men if evidence is uncovered that the men sexually assaulted her.

The decision to seek death, Caird noted, will fall to Oggs replacement come January  either Democratic candidate Sean Teare or his Republican opponent Dan Simons.

The judge also asked how the results of a DNA test showing that Jocelyn had been sexually assaulted were divulged to news media and how the results came back sooner than other murder cases.

Long said she did not know how the information was leaked after speaking with detectives on the case.

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Houston Community College Spring Branch, 1010 W. Sam Houston Pkwy. N., is shown Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022 in Houston. Melissa Phillip, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer The Houston Community College HCC Main building in midtown, shown in this file photo. Mark Mulligan, Staff / Houston Chronicle

Houston Community College may consider changing its name as the institution expands its offerings to include bachelor's degree programs, administrators said at a Wednesday board meeting.

The possibility is already a hotly debated topic among the board's trustees, with early discussions yielding split opinions on the necessity and prudence of such an undertaking. Several members agreed that the words "community college" on a baccalaureate diploma might be a tough sell for employers with a plethora of college graduate candidates. Other trustees called a change a distraction, especially with the institution in the hot seat to improve its graduation and retention numbers for better funding from the Legislature.

Im taken aback about why we are even talking about this when we have a whole lot of work to do, District III Trustee Adriana Tamez said.

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HIGHER ED: UH System regents consider new freshman housing at main campus

Before you came on board, with all due respect, chancellor, according to my colleagues, the sky was falling here at HCC," she said later, referencing Chancellor Margaret Ford Fisher's hiring this year.

A name change would most likely drop "community" from the institution's brand, mirroring actions taken at Dallas College in 2020 and other community colleges before that. Lone Star College, for example, evolved from North Harris Montgomery Community College District, and South Texas College was known as South Texas Community College McAllen.

Ford Fisher argued that the board couldn't undo what it did with the approval of its two new bachelor's degree programs, which begin classes this fall. Community colleges are increasingly widening their offerings amid changing workforce needs, and four-year universities are exploring the same with certificate programs, she said.

In June, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges approved the colleges request to offer baccalaureate degrees in artificial intelligence and robotics as well as health care management. The name change would help differentiate the school and represent its offerings in both associate and bachelor's degrees, the president said.

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"Given the national momentum now and the need to have employees in these emerging fields, I think thats where the perception will make the difference," Ford Fisher said.

College officials will begin gathering input from internal and external stakeholders before presenting their findings and giving name recommendations to the board by Nov. 20.

District IX Trustee Pretta VanDible Stallworth said she felt the community input would be telling in how people perceive HCC. Board Chair Cynthia Lenton-Gary, who said she leaned in favor of the change, agreed that it wouldn't hurt to assess the issue.

Theres something about the perception of a name, VanDible Stallworth said, also pointing to enrollment increases tied to other colleges' name changes. "Dallas College looks really, really good right now."

The meeting came with some tension, as Tamez balked at the notion that anyone might devalue the worth of a degree because it is from HCC. Lenton-Gary clarified to say she wasn't disparaging the college but only thought a change would better reflect the reality that employers do consider where students receive their education. And a name change might help draw students, as community colleges are already competing with each other to enroll a retracting group of students as is, Ford Fisher said.

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Houston Community College Central Campus. Yi-Chin Lee / Staff photographer

Some trustees warned that a name change wouldn't be so easy, however. District II Trustee Charlene Ward Johnson said she's in support of the effort but urged caution surrounding lawsuits and trademark issues. The University of Houston successfully sued South Texas College of Law in 2016 after it chose a name that UH felt was too similar to the name of its law school.

District I Trustee Monica Flores Richart said she feared a name change might also signify to UH and the University of Houston-Downtown that HCC was attempting to compete  something it was intentional not to do in creating the two four-year degrees. And the cost of a name change is a concern, she said.

"An ultimate name change is going to be a substantial outlay of money," Flores Richart said. "We just changed all of our signs. Were going to have to do all of our logos, all of our stationery, everything."

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District VI Trustee Dave Wilson lamented that the change might be necessary because of the shifting mission of community colleges. But he agreed with Ford Fisher that it might be too late.
Picture this: A classroom where each lesson feels tailor-made for every student, where teachers are empowered by intelligent tools to elevate their craft, and where learning transcends the confines of traditional methods. This isnt a distant future  its the promise of Artificial Intelligence in education. As AI begins to weave its way into the fabric of teaching, it is set to transform how knowledge is delivered and absorbed, revolutionizing the role of educators and redefining the student experience.

In this series, Adgully dives into the AI-driven evolution of education, exploring how this technology will not just enhance, but fundamentally reimagine, the way we teach and learn. From personalized learning pathways to interactive, data-driven classrooms, discover how AI is poised to unlock new potentials and challenges in the world of education.

In this series, Adgully brings together compelling insights from leading educators, faculty members, and ed-tech innovators, offering a comprehensive look at the future of education.

Shrinidhi RS, Founder and CEO, Cherrilearn, reckons that AI can revolutionize the education field.

In terms of impact on teaching methods, imagine a classroom where AI tutors analyse student performance data and create customized learning plans. This is no longer science fiction in todays world; adaptive learning platforms powered by AI adjust the difficulty, pace, and format of learning materials (text, video, games) to suit each student's strengths and weaknesses. A 2023 study by Pearson (Source: Pearson survey on AI in education 2023) found that 78% of educators believe that AI can personalize learning, leading to a significant increase in student engagement. Today, AI can analyse student work, identifying areas needing improvement and offering suggestions for revision. This real-time feedback loop allows students to adapt their learning strategies on the fly, leading to better understanding and retention. Grading essays, multiple-choice questions, and administrative tasks can be tedious and time-consuming for teachers. AI can also automate these tasks, freeing up valuable time for teachers to focus on what they do best  providing personalized instruction, facilitating discussions, and fostering a positive learning environment, he adds.

AI can tailor tough content appealing to students.

A struggling math student might benefit from interactive games that make practising skills fun, while an advanced science student could delve deeper into complex topics with AI-curated resources. This variety caters to different learning styles and keeps students motivated. AI tutors and chatbots provide 24/7 support, offering constant access to learning resources and allowing students to get help with homework concepts or clarify doubts outside of class hours, thus extending learning beyond the classroom walls. Additionally, AI-powered simulations and virtual reality create realistic learning environments for practising skills in various fields, from science experiments to public speaking, enabling students to gain practical experience without real-world risks, such as practising surgery in a safe, virtual environment before operating on a real patient, explains Shrinidhi.

Traditional education, often characterized by a "one-size-fits-all" approach, is undergoing a significant transformation thanks to AI, opines Rohit Agarwal, Chief Delivery Officer, TalentSprint. This shift, he adds, promises a more effective and engaging learning experience for all students, while simultaneously empowering teachers with valuable tools.

As a global deeptech company powered by AI, this is where we are seeing a completely different approach we can take to learning, with AI. The rigid structure of traditional classrooms is giving way to a dynamic, student-centric environment fueled by AI. Imagine a system that analyzes a students strengths, weaknesses, and learning style. This data can then be used to create personalized learning plans, where students receive targeted practice for areas they struggle with, while those who grasp concepts quickly can move on to advanced materials. This ensures focused and efficient learning, eliminating the need to slog through irrelevant information. The power of AI lies not in replacing teachers, but in augmenting their capabilities. AI tools can handle repetitive tasks like grading and basic instruction, freeing up valuable teacher time. This allows educators to focus on what they do best: providing individualized attention, fostering critical thinking, and nurturing a love of learning, he adds.

AI is helping professors in curating new courses, helping them with content, presentations, says Prof (Dr) Sangeeta Shah Bharadwaj, Professor Information Management, Management Development Institute, Gurugram.

AI is significantly enhancing faculty capabilities by assisting in the creation of multiple-choice quizzes (using platforms like Quizlet and ScribeSense), generating question papers, and curating cases, role plays, and immersive learning experiences (such as those offered by zSpace and Google Expeditions). These tools help make classes more engaging for students. AI-based platforms can also evaluate case discussions, group discussions, and assignments using well-defined rubrics. This means that classrooms, faculty, and their teaching methods will have digital twins, with AI tools supporting student responses and engagement. While it's easy to imagine these scenarios, the actual implementation will depend on how innovatively faculty members use AI tools in various teaching activities. By integrating AI services, faculty will enhance student learning through increased engagement in both teaching and evaluation processes, says Bharadwaj.

Ravi Bhushan, Founder and CEO, BrightCHAMPS, points out that AI can make education affordable to all sections of society. One of the biggest challenges within education has been the problem of access to high-quality learning at price points affordable by the masses, he adds.

With AI, it is now possible to create high-quality content affordably and at scale, deliver it in multiple languages, and tailor it to a childs specific interests and learning needs. For instance, if Child A enjoys history while Child B prefers science, AI can integrate coding projects and exercises on the same topic but use history as the storyline for Child A and science for Child B. Additionally, if Child A learns best through video and Child B through simulation, AI can cater to these preferences as well. Sophisticated AI learning platforms like BrightEDGE continuously learn from the latest student data, customizing the learning experience accordingly. This technology will impact teaching by reducing reliance on human resources  a key factor in affordability  allowing teachers to focus on their core skill of teaching. AI will handle the heavy lifting of analyzing and assessing students objectively, providing teachers with insights on each students current learning stage and needs, Bhushan says.

AIs transformative impact on education lies in its ability to personalize learning experiences, enhance teaching methods, automate administrative tasks, and support continuous improvement in educational practices, says Jimmy Ahuja, VP Academics - STEM, Orchids The International School.

Personalized Learning and Support for specialized education: AI algorithms like those used in Gradescope can analyze a vast variety of student data to help educators tailor educational content and pace according to every individuals learning needs and preferences. This adaptive learning approach can be adopted to help learners with special needs helping them to participate more fully in educational activities and achieve academic success.

Adaptive Learning Systems: AI-powered adaptive learning systems can provide real-time feedback and adaptive pathways based on student responses and performance by adjusting the difficulty level of tasks and enabling learning activities dynamically, while ensuring that students are offered practice and are appropriately challenged and supported throughout their learning journey.

Interactive Learning Tools: AI enables the development of interactive and immersive learning tools such as Virtual Reality (VR) simulations, Augmented Reality (AR) applications, and educational games. These tools are exciting and enhance students engagement by making learning more experiential, and enjoyable, thereby improving retention and understanding of complex concepts.

Enhanced Teaching Methods: AI provides educators with insights from data analytics that can inform instructional strategies and curriculum development. By identifying patterns in student performance and learning behaviours, AI helps educators tailor their teaching methods to better meet the needs of diverse learners, leading to more effective teaching practices.

AI has the power to transform education by personalising learning experiences and improving teaching methods, says Saily Prasad Lad, Founder and Director, Volksara Techno Solutions.

In the Odisha Smart Classrooms project that we worked on in partnership with the Government of Odisha, AI is integrated into traditional teaching. It creates a more interactive and personalised learning environment. By analysing data, AI can understand how each student learns best, identifying their strengths and weaknesses. This allows teachers to tailor their teaching methods and content delivery to better suit each student's needs, which enhances engagement and boosts learning outcomes. AI-powered tools also provide instant feedback to both students and teachers, helping to adjust teaching strategies real-time. Virtual tutors and adaptive learning platforms further support classroom instruction by offering tailored assistance based on each students learning pace and comprehension level, she adds.

AI can greatly impact the entire spectrum of education right from engaging learners to enabling educators with content & curriculum to streamlining administrative tasks for institutions, points out Adarsh Sudhindra, VP - Growth and Strategy at Excelsoft Technologies. For learners, it lends itself to creating immersive experiences and enhancing learner participation in regulated real-world situations. AI can greatly expand access to educational resources for all types of learners. Educators, on the other hand, can save time and costs with AI automating difficult tasks and facilitating customized instructions. Institutions can strengthen their backend systems and improve the ease of performing administrative tasks. In essence, AI can exponentially improve the overall efficiency of delivering learning & education.

The history of AI spans several decades, evolving through various phases marked by significant technological advancements, says Prof Fr (Dr) K S Casimir, Director XLRI-Delhi NCR. However, he adds, in recent times, AI has gained much attention due to the emergence of generative AI and large language models (LLMs) such as OpenAIs language model ChatGPT. Like other industries, the education industry has also not remained untouched by AI, where AI offers transformative changes in both learning experience and teaching methodologies.

AI has transformed the traditional education system by providing more dynamic, interactive, and accessible services. AI has allowed educators to address individual students' needs by providing personalized learning platforms and intelligent tutoring systems. AI has also helped to improve the overall outcome by providing automated grading and administrative services. With the help of predictive analytics, AI can analyze the student performance data and identify the areas of improvement, enabling early intervention by the instructor, he adds.

AR/VR technologies are already changing the way students learn, says Nandan Gijare, Managing Director of I2CAN. With AI coming in the mix, the situation is getting even more interesting. AI will have a significant impact on the way content gets delivered to the students in the classroom. According to Gijare, AI can help with:

Creating dynamic content which can adapt to individual student needs and difficulty levels

Creating automated assessments and grading based on student profile

Real-time feedback to students and dynamic changes in course content accordingly

Perform analytics and provide feedback to teachers on difficult areas in the curriculum so that they can develop better methods for teaching those topics.

(To be continued)
The much-anticipated film 'Girls Will Be Girls,' produced by powerhouse duo Ali Fazal and Richa Chadha, is set to close the 15th annual Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM) 2024 on August 25th. IFFM is the largest celebration of Indian cinema outside of India now celebrating its milestone 15th year with grand celebrations slated between 15-25 August.

This film, which has already garnered critical acclaim on numerous international platforms, continues its winning spree by securing this prestigious slot at IFFM and will be making its Australian premiere at the festival. Preeti Panigrahi will attend the closing ceremony, adding to the excitement and glamour of the event. The film has captivated audiences worldwide, with its compelling narrative and stellar performances.

We are incredibly honored that 'Girls Will Be Girls' has been chosen to close such a prestigious film festival. The journey of this film has been remarkable, and we are thrilled to share it with the Australian audience.

We are certain the film will find much love the way it has so far internationally, said Ali Fazal.

"We are beyond thrilled that 'Girls Will Be Girls' will close the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne 2024. This film has been a labor of love, and it's incredibly rewarding to see it resonate with audiences worldwide. Thank you for the immense support and we are grateful to IFFM to choose our film to close their 15th edition of the festival, Says Richa Chadha.

Festival director, Mitu Bhowmick Lange AM, expressed, Its our absolute honour to have Girls Will Be Girls at our festival and as our closing night film. The section was specifically made as the film truly speaks of the current times and is an absolute true to the coming of age genre. The film has made such an incredible journey across internationally and we are proud to present the film in Australia with its official Australian premiere at IFFM.

'Girls Will Be Girls' has already made a significant impact on the international film festival circuit. The film had its world premiere at the Sundance International Film Festival, where it received rave reviews for its bold storytelling and exceptional performances and won two top honors. The film has since its world premiere in January been making a splash across having showcased at Cannes, Sundance London and even won the grand jury prizes at Transylvania International Film Festival in Romania, the Biarritz Film Festival in France and IFFLA in LA.

Girls will be girls has been jointly produced by Pushing Button Studios, Crawling Angel Films, Dolce Vita Films, Blink Digital and Cinema Inutile.
Indias largest Science-based Ayurveda major Dabur India Limited today joined hands with the Border Security Force (BSF) for a transformative plantation project intended at promoting ecological restoration and biodiversity conservation. Under this initiative, around 1.2 lakh medicinal plants and herbs would be planted in nine BSF campuses across the seven states of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, and West Bengal.

The initiative was flagged off at the 36th Battalion, BSF Headquarters, Knowledge Park-V, Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh, by Commandant Mr Des Raj and Dabur India Limiteds Global Head of Operations & Chief Sustainability Officer Mr. Rahul Awasthi.

Speaking on the occasion, Dabur India Ltd Chief Sustainability Officer Rahul Awasthi said: As the country's leading manufacturer of Ayurveda-based products, Dabur has put in place several initiatives to protect and conserve the countrys vast herbal wealth. We have a proud tradition of innovation, not just in product development but also in Environmental Sustainability. Through this initiative, we aim to not only contribute towards enhancing the green cover of our nation but also foster a culture of environmental stewardship within our communities. Every tree planted today symbolizes our collective responsibility towards Mother Earth and our commitment to a healthier, more sustainable future.

BSF Commandant Des Raj expressed his commitment to protecting and nurturing these tree species across various campuses. We welcome Dabur for this association and look forward to expanding the plantation efforts to additional campuses, Mr Des Raj said.

Dabur India Limited BioResources Development Head Dr. Pankaj Prasad Raturi said: Daburs committed towards promoting plantation drives across India has brought over 10,000 acres of land across the country under cultivation of medicinal herbs. Taking this forward, we have now joined BSF in furthering this cause by planting over 100,000 medicinal species this year. This initiative will significantly increase green cover, improve air quality, and support local biodiversity. Dabur will supply the seedlings and saplings of selected native plant species, provide technical support, training, plantation technologies, and silviculture practices.

The plantation drive will involve local communities and environmental organizations, fostering broad participation and raising awareness about environmental conservation. This collaboration aims to set a new standard for corporate and security forces working together on environmental initiatives contributing to climate action and enhancing ecological balance, Awasthi added. This initiative will positively influence border areas by introducing multi-purpose tree species that have both environmental and economic value.
HGS Interactive, a Mumbai-based digital marketing agency and part of tech-led CX company Hinduja Global Solutions, has secured the ecommerce launch mandate for Streax Craft, an upcoming sub brand for Streax India.

Streax Craft is poised to revolutionize the home-based professional hair care market with its Repair and Strength range, designed specifically for damaged and treated hair. HGS Interactive will spearhead the creation of all ecommerce launch content, including A+ content, banners, and strategic launch communications, ensuring the brands value proposition is effectively communicated to its target audience.

Sachin Karweer, Business Head at HGS Interactive said, We are thrilled to work with Streax for the launch of Streax Craft. Our focus on creative innovation and strategic insight aims to establish Streax Craft as a leading name in the Indian hair care market, offering a professional hair care regime for home use.

Dheeraj Arora, Managing Director & CEO, Hygienic Research Institute Pvt Ltd, said, "As part of our commitment to continuous product development, we are excited to introduce Streax Craft under our Streax brand. This e-commerce exclusive brand is tailored to meet specific hair care needs with vibrant packaging and exceptional product quality. We anticipate it will make a significant impact in the personal care space on e-commerce platforms. We are eager to collaborate with HGS Interactive to bring this project to life.
HostBooks, an integrated business solutions, has announced the launch of HB F&B 360 , a cutting-edge solution designed to revolutionize restaurant and food service management. Unlike traditional software, HB F&B 360 offers an all-inclusive platform, empowering businesses to optimize operations, control costs, augmenting customer experiences across several locations.

The global food and beverage (F&B) industry is on the brink of a major transformation, driven by digital innovation and shifting consumer expectations. A report by Market Research Future (MRFR) highlights that the HoReCa (Hotel, Restaurant, and Catering) market, valued at $3,394.6 billion in 2023 and projected to reach $3,574.5 billion in 2024, is set to expand significantly, reaching $6,449.35 billion by 2032. This represents a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.70% over the forecast period (2024-2032). This remarkable growth is being propelled by the adoption of advanced management solutions, such as HB F&B 360, which empower businesses to enhance efficiency and exert greater control over their operations.

HB F&B 360 is packed with innovative features that ensure stability, expansion, and strategic alignment for restaurant chains. The platform allows centralized control over operations across various locations, streamlining processes and ensuring consistency. With robust multi-store and warehouse management, businesses can monitor stock levels, transfer inventory, and maintain a seamless supply chain.

One of the key features of HB F&B 360 is its Kitchen Order Display System (KODS) , which improves communication between kitchen and front-of-house staff by providing real-time order information. This feature, combined with efficient sales and transaction processing through a multi-outlet POS system, accelerates checkout processes and enhances financial management. The platform also supports various payment methods, including UPI, mobile wallets, and online payments, ensuring a smooth transaction experience for customers.

HB F&B 360 also simplifies accounting and compliance with centralized invoicing, financial reporting, GST compliance, and staff compensation management. The platforms advanced menu and inventory management capabilities allow restaurants to optimize resources, reduce waste, and maintain consistency in their offerings. Through Central Menu Management , businesses can control menus, daily specials, pricing, and dish availability across all locations.
Adgully has been turning the spotlight on the entrepreneurs who fought against all odds to bring their dreams to fruition in our special series  START-UP STARS. We at Adgully wholeheartedly support the Vocal for Local movement and have been featuring numerous local/ homegrown businesses, brands, and Apps in the country launched in the last few years.

In conversation with Adgully, Deepak Bhardwaj, Co-Founder and Director of IoTech World Avigation, speaks about the origins of IoTechWorld Avigation, challenges that he faced while launching IoTechWorld, funding and investment for startups in India, and more.

Could you elaborate on the vision and mission of IoTechWorld Avigation? How do you plan to revolutionize the agriculture sector with your drone technology?

At IoTechWorld, our mission is to make advanced drone technology accessible and beneficial to small and marginal farmers, transforming traditional farming practices. This involves not only manufacturing drones, but also ensuring their effective integration into agricultural operations across diverse and remote regions.

We are committed to revolutionizing the agriculture sector by focusing on accessibility and affordability. Our innovative drone designs, which can be transported via bike or backpack ensure that even farmers in isolated areas can utilize these technologies without incurring high transportation costs. This accessibility is crucial for enhancing the profitability and efficiency of farming operations. Moreover, our drones are equipped with advanced sensors and cameras that facilitate precision agriculture, allowing farmers to conduct detailed crop monitoring, assess soil health, and manage irrigation more effectively. This leads to optimized resource use and increased crop yields.

Safety and efficiency are at the core of our approach.

Our drones feature obstacle detection, collision avoidance, and geo-fencing capabilities, ensuring safe and precise operations. These features are particularly important for tasks such as pesticide spraying, which not only improve operational efficiency but also protect farmers from exposure to harmful chemicals. In addition to this, we are dedicated to supporting the adoption of drone technology through training programs for remote pilots. By empowering local entrepreneurs and creating a robust support network, we are building a skilled workforce capable of operating and maintaining drone technology in agriculture.

What were some of the biggest challenges that you faced while launching IoTechWorld, and how did you overcome them?

Launching our company came with its fair share of challenges, which we tackled with determination and strategic planning. One of the primary hurdles we faced was the lack of infrastructure for drone manufacturing in India when we started in 2017. At that time, there was limited support for homegrown drone production, which meant we had to import components from countries like China and Japan and assemble them in India. This process was not only costly but also complicated by supply chain dependencies.

To overcome this, we focused on building our manufacturing capabilities. We started by producing a significant portion of our hardware components in-house at our Gurugram facility. Our goal is to achieve 100% indigenous production within the next few years by expanding our manufacturing operations, including setting up a new unit in Hyderabad. This shift towards local manufacturing not only reduces our reliance on imports but also aligns with the government's push for self-reliance in the drone sector.

How does your R&D team in India contribute to the development of your drone technology? Are there any recent breakthroughs or advancements youd like to highlight?

Our R&D team is a cornerstone of innovation, constantly pushing the boundaries to develop cutting-edge solutions that meet the unique challenges of the agricultural sector. The R&D efforts are focused on enhancing the functionality, efficiency, and safety of our drones, ensuring they are well-suited for diverse applications in agriculture.

One of the significant breakthroughs our R&D team has achieved recently is the development of drones equipped with advanced sensors and AI capabilities. These innovations allow for precise crop monitoring and management, which is crucial for optimizing resource use and increasing crop yields. Our drones can now perform tasks such as soil health assessment, irrigation management, and pesticide spraying with remarkable accuracy, reducing waste and improving productivity for farmers.

Could you discuss the level of access to funding and investment for startups in India, and how IoTechWorld navigated this aspect during its growth?

The startup ecosystem in India is vibrant and full of potential, but accessing funding can be complex due to various factors. Initially, when we launched IoTechWorld, we faced the common challenge of limited access to formal funding channels. Like many startups, we began by bootstrapping, relying on our savings to get the business off the ground. We also focused on building a strong business model and demonstrating clear paths to profitability. This approach allowed us to maintain control over our operations and make strategic decisions without external pressures.

Over time, the funding environment in India has evolved significantly. While there was a period of cautious investment, recent trends indicate a resurgence in investor interest, as seen in the increased deal volumes and funding amounts in 2024. This environment has been beneficial for us as we expanded our operations and scaled our manufacturing capabilities. As the ecosystem continues to mature, we are optimistic about the potential for further investment and growth in the sector.

What are the government initiatives that you have benefited from or your sector benefited overall?

Government initiatives have had a significant impact on our growth and that of the drone sector as a whole. One of the most pivotal initiatives has been the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, which aims to boost domestic manufacturing of drones and their components. This scheme aligns with the vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat and provides financial incentives that have been instrumental in helping us scale our operations and reduce reliance on imports, thereby fostering self-reliance in the industry.

The Drone Rules, 2021, have also been a game-changer for us. These regulations have simplified the operational landscape by reducing the number of permits required and streamlining processes through the Digital Sky platform. This regulatory support has made it easier for us to manufacture, buy, and operate drones, significantly reducing bureaucratic hurdles and encouraging innovation.

What advice would you like to give young entrepreneurs in your sector?

To young entrepreneurs venturing into the drone sector, I say this  immerse yourself in both the technical and business sides of your enterprise. It is essential to grasp the intricacies of drone technology while also sharpening your skills in areas like market analysis and financial planning. When it comes to funding, focus on crafting a clear and sustainable business plan that can attract investors. Also, stay informed and compliant with industry rules, because regulatory compliance is crucial.

Above all, keep your customers at the heart of your business. Understand their needs and tailor your solutions to meet them effectively. By focusing on continuous innovation and customer satisfaction, you will be well-positioned to make a meaningful impact in this exciting and evolving industry.

How do you project the growth of the agricultural drone market in India compared to the global market? What are the key trends and drivers influencing this growth?

The agricultural drone market in India is experiencing remarkable growth, potentially surpassing the global market. India's market is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 38.5% by 2030, driven by the increasing need for precision agriculture. Drones offer real-time data on soil health and crop conditions, optimizing resource use and boosting yields, which is crucial for India's agriculture-dependent economy.

Globally, the agricultural drone market is also expanding, with a projected CAGR of 31.5%, reaching $17.9 billion by 2028. However, India's growth is uniquely supported by government initiatives like the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) program and subsidies for drone adoption in agriculture. These policies encourage domestic manufacturing and widespread use among farmers.

Key trends driving this growth include the integration of AI and machine learning in drones for enhanced capabilities and a shift towards sustainable farming practices. The government's vision to make India a global drone hub by 2030 further highlights the sector's potential.

Could you share more details about your plans to expand operations? What are the strategic goals for this expansion, and how do you plan to achieve them?

Our expansion into southern India is a strategic move aimed at enhancing our presence and service capabilities in this agriculturally rich region. The launch of our Agribot MX drone at the CODISSIA Agri Intex in Coimbatore marks a significant step in this direction. This drone is specifically designed to meet the advanced spraying needs of progressive farmers in the southern states, incorporating technologies like Radar-based ADAS and real-time data transmission.

IoTechWorld offers comprehensive sales and services across Pan India, ensuring nationwide accessibility and support. With this expansion, we intend to establish a robust distribution network and service infrastructure to support local farmers effectively. We are actively seeking channel partners in the region to facilitate this, ensuring that our advanced agricultural solutions are accessible to a wider audience. Also, we are planning to set up remote pilot training organizations (RPTOs) to build a skilled workforce capable of operating and maintaining our drones efficiently. By aligning with the Make in India initiative, IoTechWorld remains committed to manufacturing drone components domestically, which not only supports local economies but also enhances the quality and innovation of our products.

Also Read: We always wanted to give a different kind of texture to our talk shows:Deepak Rajadhyaksha
Pantaloons, one of the leading fashion retail brands in India, has announced an exciting collaboration with Disney for marking the 90 years of Donald Duck. This womens collection encapsulates the joy and nostalgia of one of Disneys most beloved characters, blending his iconic personality with whimsical graphics and contemporary fashion.

The collection showcases a vibrant array of apparel and accessories that embody Donald Duck's playful spirit reimagined through the creative lens of Mumbai-based illustrator collective, Doodle Mapuls. Known for their avant-garde designs, the talented trio  Yash Shetty, Amal Nair, and Kirthi Pillai have infused their signature artistic flair into the 25-piece collection, making each print a distinct interpretation of Donalds feisty and fun-loving character.

Sangeeta Tanwani, CEO of Pantaloons, Style Up and Marigold Lane, remarked that, This Disney-inspired collection in collaboration with Doodle Mapuls marks a significant milestone for us in celebrating the 90-year legacy of Donald Duck. By blending Disneys timeless appeal with Doodle Mapuls' avant-garde artistry, were offering our customers more than just apparelwere presenting a vibrant narrative of Donald Duck and a chance to sport a unique interpretation of the fandom.

Key Highlights of the Collection:

Bold Apparel: Featuring trendy silhouettes like crop tees, co-ord sets, spliced shirts, and jorts, each piece is enlivened with Doodle Mapuls unique take on Donald Duck.

Featuring trendy silhouettes like crop tees, co-ord sets, spliced shirts, and jorts, each piece is enlivened with Doodle Mapuls unique take on Donald Duck. Chic Accessories: Complete the look with a vibrant range of bags, shoes, and hats that perfectly complement the collection.

Complete the look with a vibrant range of bags, shoes, and hats that perfectly complement the collection. Special Edition: With just 25 exclusive styles available, this collection is a must-have for fashion-forward fans.

As Pantaloons continues to elevate fashion, this Disney-inspired collection with Doodle Mapuls is testament to the brands commitment to offering cutting-edge styles that resonate with contemporary trends while honouring timeless classics.

This unique collection starting at INR 599 will be exclusively available at 54 Pantaloons stores across the country as well as on the Pantaloons website and app. Get ready to quack up your wardrobe and say Aw, phooey! with this exciting new collection.
Audiences can't seem to get enough of the pulp thriller 'Phir Aayi Hasseen Dillruba', a Colour Yellow Productions venture, which is continuing to rule the OTT space even in its second week of release. The film, which garnered 3.7 million views in its first week (9th August to 11th August), minted 4.1 million views in the second week (12th August to 18th August), proving that this pulpy romance thriller has become audiences' favourite. Not only has the film surpassed in viewership, but it has also maintained a global rank of #3 making it into the top 10 in 13 countries with Malaysia and Saudi Arabia being the latest additions.

The prequel, 'Haseen Dillruba', marked Colour Yellow Productions' first venture into the pulp thriller genre. It became one of 2021s highest viewed films on OTT. And now, the sequel, starring Taapsee Pannu, Vikrant Massey, Sunny Kaushal and Jimmy Sheirgill, is just repeating the success as it has managed to keep the audiences glued to their screens, intrigued by the major plot twists and the depth of the characters.

Currently, Aanand L Rai is gearing up for his upcoming production venture 'Nakhrewaalii' among others. The film introduces Ansh Duggal and Pragati Srivastava, and promises to carry forward Colour Yellow Productions' legacy of bringing small-town stories from the Hindi heartland to the forefront. The film is set to release on Valentines Day 2025. Rai will also be helming his third project with Dhanush, titled Tere Ishk Mein from the world of Raanjhanaa.

Also Read: Phir Aayi Haseen Dillruba Review: A Confusing, Croc-Infested Sequel
Republic Digital is set to host the inaugural Republic Digital Roundtable in Bengaluru, the epicentre of India's vibrant startup ecosystem. The theme of the first edition is Decoding The Budget Blueprint for Startups 2024. This exclusive, invite-only event will gather visionary founders and industry leaders for an in-depth discussion on the future of India's startup space in light of the recently announced Union Budget.

Bengaluru, often hailed as the "Silicon Valley of India," is home to over 7,000 startups and a thriving entrepreneurial community, making it the ideal location for this high-impact gathering. The roundtable will feature dynamic panel discussions focused on key sectors driving the economy: Technology & AI, Fintech, Consumer Goods & Retail, and Automotive & Mobility. These discussions will delve into the urgent themes and challenges faced by startups in these landscapes, offering actionable insights and fostering strategic collaborations.

Republic Digital has partnered with two category leaders to bring this event to life. The Roundtable is powered by Ultraviolette, a front-runner in high-performing electronic vehicles, and supported by India Zona, an associate partner known for its unique e-commerce platform that showcases a range of Made in India productstruly embodying the spirit of Bharatki Apni Dukaan.

Arnab Goswami, Editor-in-Chief and Founder of the Republic Media Network expressed his excitement about the event, stating, A new epoch in entrepreneurship lies ahead for India, and the Republic Digital Roundtable is set to be a pivotal moment in that journey. Our goal is simple: to decode the Union Budget and its implications for startups, empowering the next generation of innovators. There is no better place to do this than Bengaluruground zero of Indias startup revolution.

This roundtable is a platform designed for meaningful connections and collaborations. It aims to facilitate an environment where groundbreaking ideas can flourish, and where out-of-the-box visions for Indias startup ecosystem can be realized.

Tapan Sharma, Chief Operating Officer of Republic Digital, announced, We are elated to organize this marquee roundtable in Bengaluru, known as the start-up capital of India. We are committed to providing an in-depth assessment of how these budgetary changes will impact the strategies and growth trajectory of startups.

In addition to engaging panel discussions and expert viewpoints, the roundtable will offer unparalleled networking opportunities, equipping startups with the tools they need to navigate the current landscape and capitalize on emerging opportunities.

Also Read: Republic Bangla surges past 5 Million YouTube followers in just 17 days
Israel declares victory over Hamas' Rafah division, signaling shift in focus to northern front

Xinhua) 08:48, August 22, 2024

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant (Front) is seen during a tour of the Philadelphi Corridor, an area that runs along the Gaza-Egypt border, on Aug. 21, 2024. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Wednesday that Hamas' Rafah Division in Gaza has been "defeated" and signaled that the military was shifting its focus to the fighting against Hezbollah along the Israel-Lebanon border. (Ariel Hermoni-GPO/Handout via Xinhua)

JERUSALEM, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Wednesday that Hamas' Rafah Division in Gaza has been "defeated" and signaled that the military was shifting its focus to the fighting against Hezbollah along the Israel-Lebanon border.

Gallant made the remarks during a tour of the Philadelphi Corridor, an area that runs along the Gaza-Egypt border and which Israel seeks to maintain control even after a potential ceasefire. The Israeli Defense Ministry released a photo of Gallant, clad in a bulletproof vest and surrounded by commanders, in a Palestinian building that Israeli troops had seized and converted into a headquarters.

He said that Division 162 of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had "defeated" Hamas' Rafah Division. During the assault on Gaza's southernmost city, the IDF destroyed 150 tunnels, according to figures revealed by Gallant. He added that "a small number" of tunnels remained intact and he had "given an immediate order" to destroy them.

In May, the IDF launched a large ground offensive in Rafah, a city in southern Gaza that had been designated as a "safe zone" and was sheltering over one million displaced Palestinians.

Israeli security officials have recently claimed that most potential military targets in Gaza have been exhausted. Gallant indicated that the military was now shifting its focus.

"The most important thing, in my view, in terms of strategy, is to achieve all the war's goals regarding Hamas and the hostages, and now to look northward," he said, referring to northern Israel, where ongoing conflict with Hezbollah has intensified since Oct. 7, 2023.

The cross-border tensions have heightened in recent weeks following the Israeli assassination of a senior Hezbollah official in Beirut at the end of July.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant (Front) is seen during a tour of the Philadelphi Corridor, an area that runs along the Gaza-Egypt border, on Aug. 21, 2024. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Wednesday that Hamas' Rafah Division in Gaza has been "defeated" and signaled that the military was shifting its focus to the fighting against Hezbollah along the Israel-Lebanon border. (Ariel Hermoni-GPO/Handout via Xinhua)

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant (C) is seen during a tour of the Philadelphi Corridor, an area that runs along the Gaza-Egypt border, on Aug. 21, 2024. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Wednesday that Hamas' Rafah Division in Gaza has been "defeated" and signaled that the military was shifting its focus to the fighting against Hezbollah along the Israel-Lebanon border. (Ariel Hermoni-GPO/Handout via Xinhua)

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant (R, Front) is seen during a tour of the Philadelphi Corridor, an area that runs along the Gaza-Egypt border, on Aug. 21, 2024. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Wednesday that Hamas' Rafah Division in Gaza has been "defeated" and signaled that the military was shifting its focus to the fighting against Hezbollah along the Israel-Lebanon border. (Ariel Hermoni-GPO/Handout via Xinhua)

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Monique Moody, principal, talks about a closed restroom at Revere Middle School, 10502 Briar Forest Dr., Tuesday, June 25, 2024, in Houston. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer

More than 75% of surveyed Houston ISD residents say they would support a bond that did not raise property taxes, according to an August poll by the Kinder Institute for Urban Research.

The institute surveyed a group of about 7,500 Harris County residents, known as the Greater Houston Community Panel, in January and February to determine support for a school bond. It conducted another poll in July and August to determine if support had changed before the HISD Board of Managers voted Aug. 8 to place a $4.4 billion school bond proposal on the November ballot.

HISDs proposed school bond  which would be the largest in Texas history if it receives approval from voters  outlines spending billions to rebuild and renovate schools with poor facilities and learning conditions, expand pre-K and career and technical education in the district, and make safety and security upgrades.

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The January survey found that 78% of respondents said they would support a school bond that resulted in tax increases of $1 or less, with the percentage decreasing slightly to 76% in the summer poll. The questions were different in both polls, and neither asked respondents directly if they would vote for HISDs specific bond proposal, which would not raise taxes if passed.

In January, the organization asked Would you vote to approve an education bond for your local school district if it increased homeowners property taxes by ... and in the summer, it asked If your local school district puts an education bond on the ballot in November that could increase the average homeowners property taxes, what is the largest increase to property taxes you would be willing to support?"

About 5,400 people responded to the first poll, including nearly 2,594 respondents living in HISD boundaries, while 3,565 people responded to the second survey, including 1,902 HISD residents. The respondents living in HISD boundaries were similar demographically to all adults living within HISD, according to the institute.

HISDs bond proposal has seen open pushback at several public meetings from teachers unions, civil rights organizations and other community members, who cite a lack of trust in the districts leaders after the Texas Education Agency replaced the elected board members and superintendent with appointees, including Superintendent Mike Miles, in June 2023.

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Between the two surveys fielded in January and August, HISD announced a ($528 million) budget deficit and widespread staffing cuts, including the removal of popular principals and teachers, the institute wrote in its survey findings. Despite these challenges, the survey found support for a school bond remained high.

The January survey found significant support for more public education funding in general, with HISD residents more likely to support additional funding than the remaining respondents. About three-fourths of HISD residents said public schools need significantly more money to provide a quality education, compared to 66% of other Houston-area residents.

Support was high regardless of whether HISD residents own a home, have school-aged children, or are registered to vote, the survey found.

The poll also asked respondents about the priorities they would like to see HISD spend their bond funds on, with more than half of HISD residents surveyed in January saying the districts top priorities should be creating career and technical education facilities and installing updated safety and security measures in schools.

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HISDs bond, if passed, would spend $375 million to build three CTE centers in the south, west and central divisions of the district, and $50 million for renovations at Barbara Jordan Career Center, which is the only established CTE center in HISD. It would also allocate $384 million for security upgrades at 263 campuses and about $2.2 million for police upgrades.

According to the survey findings, HISD residents living in west Houston favored prioritizing funding for additional CTE facilities, while those living in the northeast  near the Barbara Jordan Career Center  prioritized greater support for updated campus safety and security.

In addition to those priorities, at least 30% of respondents said in January that the district should prioritize improving infrastructure, upgrading school buildings with new technology and renovating existing buildings. Less than 5% of HISD residents said they supported prioritizing building new elementary, middle or high schools.

The districts school bond will be split into two propositions on the November ballot that residents can vote on separately. Proposition A would allocate $3.96 billion for school building renovations and expansions, including safety and security infrastructure, while Proposition B would allocate $440 million for technology equipment, systems and infrastructure.

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Swiss Beauty, one of the Indias leading cosmetics brand, announced the appointment of Vidushi Goyal as its Chief Marketing Officer(CMO). She will lead the overall marketing strategy for all Swiss Beauty brands, including Swiss Beauty Craze and Swiss Beauty Select, along with its emerging categories and sub-brands.

Vidushi brings a wealth of experience in digital-first marketing and brand building to Swiss Beauty. She will spearhead the brand's growth by establishing a unique identity and building differentiation in the fast-paced beauty & personal care segment. Her focus will be on staying ahead of trends and implementing new-age marketing strategies within the company.

Before joining Swiss Beauty, Vidushi served as Vice President of Marketing at Mamaearth (Honasa), where she led the marketing efforts for the personal care and babycare portfolio. During her tenure, she played a pivotal role in scaling Mamaearth from a 100 Cr ARR brand to over 1000 Cr in just three years. Vidushi also contributed to positioning Mamaearth as a purpose-led brand with the brand tagline "Goodness Inside" in 2019 onwards. She has also held key positions at ShopClues, d.light Energy, and FCB+Ulka, where she led multiple award-winning brand campaigns.

Vidushi Goyal, CMO, Swiss Beauty, said, "I am thrilled to join Swiss Beauty at such an exciting time. My focus will be on building on what has worked for the brand while evolving and differentiating in this cluttered market space. We will keep the consumer and market segment at the core of everything we do. By leveraging new-age marketing principles, we will continue to build a brand that is loved and a business that is built on strong principles.

Welcoming Vidushi, Mohit Goyal Co-Founder & Director, Swiss Beauty, said, "We are delighted to welcome Vidushi Goyal to the Swiss Beauty family. With her proven track record of data-driven decision-making and innovative approach, we are confident she will take our brand to new heights. Her leadership will be instrumental in redefining beauty standards and connecting more deeply with our consumers."

Vidushi holds an MBA from Symbiosis Institute of Media & Communication, Pune, and completed her undergraduate studies at Hindu College, Delhi University.

Also Read: Swiss Beauty onboards Taapsee Pannu as brand ambassador
Earlier this month, Unilever elevated Anuradha Razdan to the role of CHRO for the beauty and wellbeing category. She has also been appointed as the Global Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Officer for Unilever. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) is increasingly becoming important for businesses, not just as a CSR goal, but also as a business imperative.

Exploring the holistic impact of diversity on communities, workforces, and the environment, McKinsey, in its report titled, Diversity Matters Even More, states, The business case for gender diversity on executive teams has more than doubled over the past decade. McKinsey adds, Companies with representation of women exceeding 30 per cent (and thus in the top quartile) are significantly more likely to financially outperform those with 30 per cent or fewer.

In the context of fortifying DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) strategies to align with business goals and reflect clients brand values, Junes Pride Month underscored the need for sustained support for the LGBTQ+ community. The true measure of progress lies in whether this support extends beyond symbolic gestures.

However, are brands and society genuinely committed to integrating LGBTQ+ individuals as valued consumers and members, or is this heightened awareness merely a temporary engagement tactic? To explore this, Adgully reached out to various brands to understand their strategies for sustaining inclusivity. This article delves into how brands position their communications to ensure diversity and inclusivity, the best practices they employ to create content that resonates with a broad and diverse audience, and how these practices enhance their clients brand value.

Additionally, it highlights case examples of successful integration and the future-facing impact of these strategies.

Brand communication to ensure inclusivity and diverse representation, both in internal communications and marketing efforts

Sonal Choithani, Chief Brand & Communication Officer at Hindustan Zinc, emphasized the companys dedication to these principles. She said, Within our organization, we take pride in our diverse workforce, which includes over 600 women employees, more than 200 of whom are engineers in key roles. Our executive ranks feature nearly 22% women, reflecting our commitment to gender diversity and equality. Additionally, we support nineteen individuals with disabilities, aligning with our core belief in equal opportunity and the value of every employee.

Hindustan Zincs approach to communication encompasses both internal and external strategies. Internally, the company prioritizes transparent and accessible communication, providing translated materials to overcome language barriers and ensure that every employee feels informed and included. We are dedicated to fostering an environment where all employees are empowered to actively participate in company affairs, Choithani said.

Externally, Hindustan Zincs marketing efforts go beyond traditional diversity initiatives by highlighting the personal stories and achievements of their diverse workforce. These narratives not only celebrate the unique perspectives and talents of employees, but also reinforce the companys commitment to equal professional opportunities and growth. Our external communication focuses on showcasing the enriching job content and world-class amenities we offer, aimed at attracting future employees and supporting their personal and professional development, she added.

Papri Dev, VP - Communications, APAC at Tinder, underscored the companys commitment to inclusivity and representation. With women making up 75% of Tinders leadership team and a third of its employees being Gen Z, Tinder reflects a broad spectrum of backgrounds. The product team is also 50% women, and over a third of the global Tinder team is Gen Z.

Tinders mission to keep the magic of human connection alive is supported by building an app that accommodates diverse identities. During Pride Month, Tinder launched new profile stickers designed by LGBTQIA+ staff, including options like Came Out Online and My First Pride. These stickers allow users to express their identities and connect authentically. Tinders ongoing campaigns and community initiatives, developed in collaboration with experts and organizations, aim to create inclusive spaces for exploring dating and relationships.

Best practices companies follow to create inclusive content that resonates with a diverse audience

Mou Chakravorty, Director - Marketing Communications, Deloitte, shared insights on best practices for creating inclusive content that resonates with a diverse audience. She noted, While DEI was a buzzword post-pandemic, we are seeing substantial action in 2023-24 across India Inc., including within our firm. Businesses now understand the true value and business merit of diversity and inclusion. Its not just the right thing to do, but also a good business strategy.

Deloitte follows several practices to ensure effective brand communication around diversity and inclusion:

Creating safe spaces or communities for women, differently-abled individuals, and LGBTQ+ employees to foster authenticity and self-expression.

Implementing Candid Conversations to provide a platform for women employees to share feedback and raise concerns without fear of retaliation.

Ensuring transparent and equitable policies for hiring, promotion, and sponsorship of women and other communities.

Incorporating inclusive and unbiased language into soft skills training and grooming.

Promoting genuine camaraderie through initiatives like Sareenama, a WhatsApp group that celebrates saree-wearing and fosters a supportive community within Deloitte.

Hindustan Zincs Choithani outlined the companys commitment to inclusivity through its communication practices. Hindustan Zinc adheres to the 5Ws and 6Cs in its communication strategy, ensuring that its messaging is inclusive and resonates with diverse audiences. The company emphasizes on:
Tyrenda Williams waves to the crowd after being announced as America's Junior Miss in June 1997. (Courtesy of Distinguished Young Women)Courtesy of Distinguished Young Women

Tyrenda Williams-Reed, who represented Alabama in the America Junior Miss program in 1997 and became the first Black woman to win the competition, has died, according to the Distinguished Young Woman program and other sources.

Americas Junior Miss, a scholarship competition based in Mobile, became Distinguished Young Women in 2010. The organization posted news of Williams-Reeds death on Wednesday.

The Distinguished Young Women Family is saddened to learn of the untimely passing of Tyrenda Williams-Reed, our national representative for 1997, the organization said in a Facebook post. Our thoughts and prayers go out to her family during this time. Tyrenda was more than just a titleholder; she was a beacon of grace, intelligence, and compassion who touched the lives of many. Tyrendas warmth and infectious spirit left an indelible mark on our hearts. As we reflect on her remarkable journey, let us celebrate the profound impact Tyrenda made and the legacy she leaves behind. Though her time with us was all too brief, her memory will continue to inspire and guide us.

Tyrenda Williams, who was named America's Junior Miss in 1997, is shown in a 2000 photo.Beverly Taylor/Birmingham News

The Distinguished Young Women of Alabama State Committee said in a post on Thursday that Tyrendas dedication, passion, and positive spirit left an indelible mark on our hearts and on the hearts of everyone with whom she came into contact. As we mourn her passing, we celebrate the legacy she leaves behind  one of commitment, kindness, and excellence. Our thoughts are with her family and loved ones during this difficult time. She will be greatly missed but never forgotten.

A Florida funeral home said that Williams-Reed had died on Monday. Details about the circumstances were not available. As of early Thursday afternoon, arrangements had not been published.

According to archival Press-Register and Birmingham News stories, Tyrenda Williams was a recent graduate of Vestavia Hills High School when she was named Americas Junior Miss at the 40th AJM finals in June 1997. At Vestavia Hills she had been secretary of the National Honor Society and the debate team, a student government representative and homecoming queen. Her father, Tyrone Williams, was identified as a middle school principal and her mother, Jerona Williams, as a high school teacher. During the competition, she performed ballet to George Gershwins Rhapsody in Blue.

Her win was significant for the program. For a time in the early 90s three Black members of the Mobile City Council blocked funding to Americas Junior Miss because they said it lacked diversity.

After her win, she said she didnt want to be viewed as a Black Junior Miss, but rather as someone who represented the ideals of the program.

I feel its significant in that it will serve to motivate some people who look to a role model who has things in common with them, she said. But what I think is more important is not that Im necessarily a black American who won this title, but I was myself. And thats what Junior Miss teaches us, to be your best self.

Williams also was the second Alabama competitor to be named Americas Junior Miss, after Stephanie Ashmore in 1983.

According to archival stories and professional biographies, she earned a bachelors degree from Birmingham-Southern College, where she was a member of the Alpha Omicron Pi sorority, and a masters in journalism and Latin American & Caribbean Studies from New York University. She was among the Birmingham Business Journals 2016 Women to Watch and in 2001 served as a guest professor of English and American Culture at a college in Hungary.

She stayed involved in the world of pageants and scholarship competitions: As recently as 2021 she served as a judge for the Miss Alabama competition.

She felt strongly about her Birmingham-Southern connection. In a LinkedIn post about the schools closure earlier this year, she described grieving over the closure. Fortunately, one of the many things I learned at BSC is that my faith does not require my understanding, she wrote. I count it a blessing to know how the Easter story ends and have that same assurance that the divine purpose of BSC has just begun. Soon we will come to know a Church with no walls and now we begin to understand the legacy of BSC as a community and college with no walls. The list is too long of friends, Presidents, professors, lunchroom ladies, mailroom clerks, Alumni office staff that would need to be thanked for how these modern-day disciples changed and saved my life.

Williams-Reed had worked in human resources and communications for organizations including Cobbs Allen, Americas Thrift Stores and the A.G. Gaston Boys & Girls Club. In recent years she also had worked as a Realtor specializing in the Birmingham and Naples, Fla., areas. She also was active with the Public Relations Society of Americas Alabama chapter.

Another tribute to Williams-Reed came from John Laskow, a veteran AJM judge.

I had the honor of serving on the Judging Panel when she competed in a preliminary for the title of Miss Alabama, Laskow posted on Facebook. In his 40-plus years as a judge, he said, Tyrenda had the BEST INTERVIEW that Ive ever conducted! What an incredible young woman!
CHICAGOBeginning at around 7 p.m. on Tuesday at the Democratic National Convention ceremonial roll call, each delegation pledged support for Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Tim Walz.

Alabamas delegation went second, led by U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell, who is running for re-election this November. Following the roll call, Harris called in from her rally in Milwaukee, although she will officially accept the nomination on Thursday, the final day of the convention.

Kamala Harris will protect the legacy and the progress we have made by our fore-fathers and our fore-mothers and she will advance it, Sewell said before announcing Alabamas support for Harris. She will safeguard our freedom to vote by passing the John Robert Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act .

Emphasizing the critical issues of freedom and democracy that she said are on the ballot in November, Sewell opened her roll call speech by referencing Alabamas civil rights movement and Martin Luther King Jrs Letter From Birmingham Jail.

Alabama is known to be the birthplace of civil rights and voting rights, and so our legacy is the legacy of foot soldiers who dared to make this country live up to its highest ideals of equality and justice, Sewell said. Those are going to be the issues [in November].

Sewell, the chair of the Alabama delegation, described the opportunity to announce the groups vote as an honor. She explained that Alabama is more than a red state, the day after Republicans, Donald Trump voters and former Trump administration officials spoke at the convention.

I think oftentimes, because were a red state, were forgotten, Sewell said. I just want to make sure that we are truly represented. We are a diverse state, and I think that you see the diversity in our Alabama delegation.

One speaker on Tuesday at the DNC was, Kyle Sweetser, a former Donald Trump voter from Alabama. Sweetser cited the effects of the former presidents tariff policy and efforts to line his own pockets as the reasons hell vote for Harris, who he said will make us proud to be American again.

Before the United Center opens for its evening programming each day, the delegations attend various council and caucus meetings held at McCormick Place, seven miles away. Alabama delegation members said they have attended the Womens Caucus and Youth Council, among others.

Tuesday night ended with a speech from former President Barack Obama. Throughout the first four weeks of the Harris-Walz campaign, comparisons have been made with Obamas first bid for office.

This is my sixth convention, [its] absolutely electrifying, Merika Coleman, a state senator and chair of the Alabama Legislative Black Caucus, told AL.com. The last time this energy was at this level was in 2008 with Barack Obama. So this convention looks like America  thats what Im excited about.

After two days of speeches, including from President Joe Biden and former First Lady Michelle Obama, delegates spoke of their excitement toward witnessing the historic final night of the convention on Thursday.

Were all looking forward to the grand finale here when Kamala Harris formally accepts the nomination and those balloons fall from the sky, Shomari Figures told AL.com after the delegations breakfast Wednesday. Being in the room for that moment is something that were looking forward to.

Figures, an at-large delegate running to represent Alabamas second Congressional district, is set to address the DNC tomorrow night . On Monday, delegate Jamie Lowe described Figures race as energizing, and said he hopes the DNC will bring momentum to his campaign.

Were also very excited about our role tomorrow and being able to speak to the nation, Figures said. Show them that Alabama has a stake in this  we have something to say about whats happening here in November as well.

Sofia Abdullina, a Syracuse University senior from Boston studying magazine, news and digital journalism and international relations, and Griffin Uribe Brown, a junior from Chicago studying magazine, news and digital journalism and policy studies, are reporting for AL.com during the Democratic National Convention. They are covering the DNC as part of a program with Syracuse Universitys S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.
CHICAGO - The Democratic National Convention heard from an unlikely speaker this week: a lifelong Alabama Republican.

Kyle Sweetser, a former President Donald Trump voter from Mobile told the convention Tuesday night he will be voting for Vice President Kamala Harris in November, despite voting for Trump in 2016 and 2020.

In 2016, I was excited to vote for Trump, Sweetser told AL.com a day after his convention speech. People in Mobile, people down in Alabama, were kind of forgotten  [Trump] seemed like a change of pace.

Throughout the first Trump term Sweetser noticed increasingly weird behavior from the president. In 2018, Trumps tariffs hurt construction workers like him by increasing costs, he said.

Regardless, Sweetser held his nose in 2020. He donated to and voted for the former president in the election. He said he thought that the fallout of the election, unfounded voter fraud claims and the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol meant that Trump would not run again in 2024.

As Sweetser began taking issue with the behavior of the former president, he paid more attention to his Make America Great Again base. He noticed similarities between Russian disinformation amid the invasion of Ukraine and the messaging of MAGA influencers, he said.

I decided from that point, If this guy runs again, Im going to vote Democrat for the first time in my life, Sweetser said. So thats when I started speaking out against Trump.

In his view, Trumps record on fiscal responsibility, his insistence on expanding tariffs and his isolationist approach to international politics are not conservative. The former president is not a law and order president, especially not compared to the Biden-Harris administration.

Sweetser, who told AL.com that he is still Republican and supported former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley since the early stages of the Republican Primary, said he believes Trump is bad for the Republican Party.

After it became clear that Haley would not receive the nomination, Sweetser was prepared to vote for President Joe Biden. He knew there was a possibility that Harris could replace Biden, as it was a possibility that Haley spoke about frequently.

Sweetser began volunteering with groups including Republican Voters Against Trump , Republicans for Harris and Haley Voters for Harris. He supported the groups efforts to unify by getting rid of the extremism of Trump.

As I was doing this, I learned about how MAGA operates, how they harass and intimidate and try to silence other Republicans to speak out against their record in a coordinated effort, Sweetser said. I found it weird that they spend more effort going after other Republicans than they do after Democrats.

While speaking out against Trump, Sweetser said he and his family were subject to online abuse, a doxing incident and death threats from Trump-aligned trolls and accounts.

Its insane when you speak out against Trump as a Republican, he said. What comes after you is mind-boggling.

Seeing Trump-endorsed Republican candidates up and down the ballot lose critical elections proved to Sweetser that the former president was making his party lose power. In 2024, the Democratic platform is more conservative than the Republican on issues including the economy and crime, he said.

As far as living a conservative lifestyle, Im one of the most conservative people you could know, Sweetser said. Our kids are homeschooled  I have more guns than family members, and Im still backing Kamala Harris out of principle.

Echoing his DNC remarks, Sweetser emphasized his support for Harris presidential campaign in efforts to return to the American values he holds. He hopes that the GOP can be reformed into a party without MAGA sentiment.

Trump brings out the worst in people, he stirs people up, Sweetser said.

Griffin Uribe Brown, a junior from Chicago studying magazine, news and digital journalism and policy studies, is reporting for AL.com during the Democratic National Convention. He is covering the DNC as part of a program with Syracuse Universitys S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.
There was an eerie quiet at Birminghams Monarch Ridge Apartments Wednesday, just 14 hours after a shootout turned the parking lot into a war zone and left a young mother dead.

Many residents were inside their homes today, and some kept their children home from school.

Others huddled in small groups, talking about the deadly shooting and the fear and anxiety left in its wake.

I was so scared. I was shocked, said resident Shannin Ross, who was outside in the parking lot when the gunfire erupted and witnessed the entire ordeal.

I almost lost my mind.

Violence is not new to the complex, formerly known as Valley Brook Apartments.

It has been a hotspot for shootings and homicides off and on for years and was the subject of previous legal action by the city of Birmingham.

Sometimes things get better, but violence always ramps back up, residents said.

It has gotten worse, said former resident Angela Allen who often visits friends and family at the property.

Ive seen people get shot, and Ive seen people make up, but this is the worst Ive ever seen it.

Efforts to reach the property owners were not immediately successful.

Asia Alyce Poole, 21, was killed Tuesday night in a barrage of gunfire that also wounded one of her close friends.

Poole, a Monarch Ridge resident, left behind a daughter who started pre-kindergarten this week. The childs 21-year-old father died on July 26.

Pooles acquaintances said there was an ongoing dispute between her and another woman.

It culminated Tuesday night when the two women got into a physical fight in the parking lot, which escalated into a brawl and then a shootout.

The fight and subsequent shooting were captured on Facebook live videos.

The initial calls were of shots fired, and then officers were updated that someone had been shot, said Sgt. LaQuitta Wade.

When officers arrived, they found Poole unresponsive near in the breezeway of her own apartment building. Birmingham firefighters pronounced her dead on the scene at 10:31 p.m.

Poole had posted her own live video from the parking lot shortly before the fight.

After the shooting, the heartbreaking cries of Pooles brother and sister could be heard on the videos.

A man who was close friends with Poole was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Someone  believed to include the woman with whom Poole was fighting  fled in Pooles Ford sedan.

The stolen car was found abandoned in the parking lot of J Wings on Center Point Parkway a short time later.

Police still have not officially released the number of shots fired, but said it could be in excess of 150.

Its likely police werent able to recover all of the shell casings. On Wednesday, a spent bullet was seen outside of the breezeway where Poole died.

Residents and witnesses said described the shooting as something out of a movie and said it appeared to be premeditated.

There were multiple shooters, they said, some wearing masks and armed with assault-type rifles and guns with Glock switches.

They came for this, said one resident, who asked that her name not be used for fear of retaliation. They were so organized. They had everything blocked off, everyone corralled in.

Ross said there were at least three people initially shooting directly toward the breezeway where Poole was ultimately killed.

Poole and her friend hit the ground, and then her friend picked her up and they were able to make it to the breezeway.

After the initial shots were fired, witnesses said, somebody came from another breezeway and opened fire.

Then, residents said, shots came from every direction.

Police said it appeared once the shooting started, multiple people not included in the original fight began firing weapons as well.

Police and witnesses said Poole was struck at least twice.

A couple of nurses, Ross said, checked for her pulse and found none.

She was gone Ross said.

That shit is stuck in my head, she said. This little girl is gone because of a fight.

The spray of bullets hit multiple cars and several apartments.

One resident, who also asked not to be identified, showed the bullet holes that entered her apartment, one of which shattered a glass table.

All the children up here didnt go to school today. All the kids are in the house, Allen said. Theyre scared to come out because they dont know if there will be retaliation, if its over with.

They dont want them at the bus stop in case somebody comes back shooting, she said.

Residents and city officials are searching for remedies.

The city of Birmingham in June 2021 filed a lawsuit against Steele Valley Brook LLC, arguing Monarch Ridge was a public nuisance. The suit came a month after a 29-year-old father was killed at the complex.

When the city sued, it said police officers had responded to at least two homicides and four other gun-related incidents since February 7, 2021.

The suit was settled two months later when the owner agreed to pay $15,000 to the citys neighborhood revitalization fund, keep using a license plate reader and sharing data with Birmingham police and make the complexs surveillance system accessible to the police departments crime center.

At the time, the agreement called for the owner to employ a gate guard from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. daily, keep using off-duty Jefferson County sheriffs deputies for security patrols and cooperate with the city on a 90-day study of whether more security measures were needed.

The city agreed to dismiss the lawsuit with the court enforcing the settlement for one year.

Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin and City Attorney Nicole King said they are investigating the next steps to take against the owners of the complex.

The shooters have two options: They can immediately turn themselves in to Birmingham police or be hunted down by BPD and U.S. marshals, Woodfin posted on social media.

Residents are pleading for help.

My biggest worry is that Im going to get killed by somebody shooting at somebody else, said Ross, who said she sent her children to live with their father to keep them safe. I cant even go to work and come home without worrying about getting shot at.

I have to live here, she said. Everything else in Birmingham is high as hell, she said of area rental prices.

The firepower, residents said, is out of control and that officers weapons are no match for the those used by criminals.

They need to upgrade the police guns and body armor, Ross said. It would stop it if they know (police officers) got the same guns they got and would use it against them.

The police are even in danger, she said. They need to be able fight fire with fire.

Anyone with information on the deadly shooting is asked to call Birmingham detectives at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.
Divers searching the wreck of a superyacht that sank off Sicily found the bodies of five passengers Wednesday, leaving one still missing as questions intensified about why the vessel sank so quickly when a nearby sailboat remained largely unscathed.

Rescue crews brought four body bags ashore at Porticello. Salvatore Cocina, head of the Sicily civil protection agency, said a fifth body had been located. Divers on-scene said they would try to recover it on Thursday while continuing the search for the sixth.

The discovery made clear the operation to search the hull on the seabed 50 meters (164 feet) underwater had quickly turned into a recovery one, not a rescue, given the amount of time that had passed and with no signs of life over three days of searching.

The Bayesian, a 56-meter (184-foot) British-flagged yacht, went down in a storm early Monday as it was moored about a kilometer (a half-mile) offshore. Civil protection officials said they believed the ship was struck by a tornado over the water, known as a waterspout.

Fifteen people escaped in a lifeboat and were rescued by a nearby sailboat. The body of the ships chef, Recaldo Thomas of Antigua, was recovered Monday.

Thomas was born in Canada, according to his cousin David Isaac, but would visit his parents homeland of Antigua as a child, moving permanently to the tiny eastern Caribbean island in his early 20s. Italian officials previously listed Antigua and Canada as the nationality of people on board.

The fate of six missing passengers had driven the search effort, including British tech magnate Mike Lynch, his 18-year-old daughter and associates who had successfully defended him in a recent U.S. federal fraud trial.

Lynchs spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Termini Imerese Public Prosecutors Office investigators were acquiring evidence for their criminal investigation, which they opened immediately after the tragedy despite no formal suspects having been publicly identified.

Questions have abounded about what caused the superyacht, built in 2008 by Italian shipyard Perini Navi, to rapidly sink, when the nearby Sir Robert Baden Powell sailboat was largely spared and managed to rescue the survivors.

Giovanni Costantino, head of The Italian Sea Group, which owns the shipmaker, blamed human error for the disaster, which he said took 16 minutes. The ship sank because it took on water. From where, the investigators will say, he told RAI state television after he met with prosecutors.

Costantino cited AIS ship tracking data which he said showed the Bayesian had taken on water for four minutes when a sudden gust of wind flipped it and it continued taking on water. The ship straightened up slightly and then went down, he said.

But was it merely the case of a freak waterspout that knocked the ship to its side and allowed water to pour in through open hatches? What was the position of the keel, which on a large sailboat like the Bayesian might have been retractable, to allow it to enter shallower ports?

Theres a lot of uncertainty as to whether it had a lifting keel and whether it might have been up, said Jean-Baptiste Souppez, a fellow of the Royal Institute of Naval Architects and the editor of the Journal of Sailing Technology. But if it had, then that would reduce the amount of stability that the vessel had, and therefore made it easier for it to roll over on its side, he said in an interview.

The captain of the sailboat that rescued survivors said his craft sustained minimal damage  the frame of a sun awning broke  even with winds that he estimated reached 12 on the Beaufort wind scale, which is the highest hurricane-strength force on the scale.

He said he had remained anchored with his engines running to try to maintain the ships position as the forecasted storm rolled in.

Another possibility is to heave anchor before the storm and to run downwind at open sea, Karsten Bornersaid in a text message. But he said that might not have been possible for the Bayesian, given its trademark 75-meter (246-foot) tall mast.

If there was a stability problem, caused by the extremely tall mast, it would not have been better at open sea, he said.

Yachts like the Bayesian are required to have watertight, sub-compartments that are specifically designed to prevent a rapid, catastrophic sinking even when some parts fill with water.

The underwater search continued in dangerous and time-consuming conditions. Because of the wrecks depth, which requires special precautions, divers working in pairs could only spend about 12 minutes at a time searching, though reinforcements outfitted with special equipment to enable longer dives were on the wreck Wednesday.

In all, some 27 divers took rotations, including four who helped with recovery after the 2012 Costa Concordia disaster off Tuscany. They called the Porticello wreck a little Concordia, fire crews said in a statement.

The limited dive time was aimed in part at avoiding decompression sickness, also known as the bends, which can occur when divers stay underwater for long periods and ascend too quickly, allowing nitrogen gas dissolved in the blood to form bubbles.

The longer you stay, the slower your ascent has to be, said Simon Rogerson, the editor of SCUBA magazine. He said the tight turnaround time suggested the operations managers were trying to limit the risks and recovery time after each dive.

It sounds like theyre operating essentially on no decompression or very tight decompression, or theyre being extremely conservative, he said.

Divers were also working with debris floating around them, limited visibility and air tanks on their backs.

We are trying to advance in tight spaces, but any single thing slows us down, said Luca Cari, spokesman for the fire rescue service. An electric panel could set us back for five hours. These arent normal conditions. Were at the limit of possibility.
An examination of the human skull found earlier this week in east Birmingham showed the victim had been shot, police announced Thursday.

The discovery was made just after 2 p.m. Tuesday in the 1300 block of Fifth Place N.W.

Jefferson County Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Yates said the skull was discovered by a homeowner on the shoulder of the roadway next to his residence.

It is believed the skull was moved to where it was found by the homeowners dog, but the original location of the skull is unknown.

Yates said a search of the area around the residence found no other human remains.

Officer Truman Fitzgerald said the medical examination of the skull showed the victim had been shot.

The victim has not been identified.

The coroners ruling marks the citys 105th homicide this year. Of those, eight have been ruled justifiable and therefore arent deemed criminal.

In all of Jefferson County, there have been 132 homicides including the 105 in Birmingham.

Anyone with information is asked to call detectives at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.
Felons disqualified from voting under a new Alabama law will be able to cast ballots in the upcoming election, a Montgomery judge ordered Wednesday, clearing up confusion that prompted two men affected by the law to file a lawsuit.

HB100 was introduced this year by state Rep. Adline Clark, D-Mobile and was intended to prevent people convicted of crimes against election workers and other election officials from voting in future elections.

But in order to gain Republican support to pass Clarks bill, four categories of felonies for inchoate crimes, such as attempted crimes and conspiracies, were added to the legislation.

Two men convicted of attempted murder -- Robert Crowley, a U.S. Army veteran, and volunteer with the Paralyzed Veterans of America and Mid-South chapter representative, and JaiGregory Clarke, a community organizer in Jefferson County -- filed a lawsuit last month asking that the new law not be enforced until after the Nov. 5 election.

Voters in 2022 overwhelmingly adopted a constitutional amendment that says laws affecting elections cannot change within six months of an election. But HB100 included an implementation date of Oct. 1, which is less than 35 days before the Nov. 5 election.

The Campaign Legal Center, which along with Montgomery attorney J. Mitch McGuire represented Crowley and Clarke, said the pairs lawsuit applied pressure on Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, who indicated in court filings Friday that the new law would not be enforced until Nov. 6.

In light of Marshalls filing, Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge James H. Anderson on Wednesday dismissed the lawsuit since Crowley, Clarke and all other similarly situated Alabamians are not disqualified from registering or voting by virtue of the challenged law and have the right to register to vote through the Nov. 5, 2024 general election.

Our democracy is by the people and for the people, so every persons voice must be heard. Today, democracy prevailed, said Ellen Boettcher, legal counsel for CLC, in a statement. The state must now ensure that Alabama officials heed the judges order to avoid unnecessary confusion at the ballot box and ensure that all eligible Alabamians can exercise their freedom to vote this November.

While Crowley and Clarkes lawsuit was centered around the timing of the implementation of the new law, the merits of HB100 have not been decided.

It was not immediately clear whether Crowley and Clarke or other felons affected by the legislation will be challenging its constitutionality.

Right now, were laser focused on making sure voters can participate in the 2024 election, said Boettcher. This order means Alabamians will be able to make their voice heard in November without fear or confusion and we consider that a huge victory.

Alabama has a long history of disenfranchising voters for crimes of moral turpitude, going back to the Alabama Constitution of 1901, which was intended to keep Black people and poor whites from voting. The law applied to both misdemeanors and felonies. There was no definition for moral turpitude. That gave county boards of registrars, political appointees, discretion over which people convicted of crimes could be disqualified from voting.

In 1985, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Alabamas disenfranchisement of voters for misdemeanors. Alabama voters approved a new constitutional amendment in 1996 disqualifying voters who committed felonies involving moral turpitude, but still without a definition for the term.

In 2017, after a federal lawsuit known as Thompson v. Alabama, the Legislature finally defined crimes of moral turpitude by passing the Felony Voter Disqualification Act. It listed more than 40 crimes, including murder, robbery, rape, assault, sexual abuse, and other violent crimes, as well as some nonviolent crimes such as burglary and forgery.

Many felons who lose their voting rights and who have completed their sentences, paid all fines, court costs, and restitution, and who do not have a pending felony charge, can apply for a Certificate of Eligibility to Register to Vote, or CERV. Those convicted of about 15 crimes, including murder, rape, sexual abuse, and treason, are not eligible to receive a CERV.
Alexis Payton, father of Marshall Middle School student Landon Payton, is comforted by Alexis Paytons mother, Polly William Payton, and his fiance, Octavia Robinson, after he and his family watched school footage surrounding the time of his sons death at the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center on Wednesday in Houston. Landon Payton, 14, was engaged in free play in the schools gym when he suffered a medical emergency, Wednesday, Aug. 14, according to Houston ISD. Jason Fochtman/Staff photographer Polly Williams Payton, grandmother of late Marshall Middle School student Landon Payton, cries on a bench outside the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center while taking a break from watching school footage with her family surrounding the time of her grandsons death, Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, in Houston. Landon Payton, 14, was engaged in free play in Marshall Middle School gym when he suffered a medical emergency, Wednesday, Aug. 14, according to Houston ISD. Jason Fochtman/Staff photographer Attorney Chris Tritico, right, speaks to the media after Alexis Payton, father of Marshall Middle School student Landon Payton, (second from left) and his family watched school footage surrounding the time of his sons death at the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center, Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, in Houston. Landon Payton, 14, was engaged in free play in the schools gym when he suffered a medical emergency, Wednesday, Aug. 14, according to Houston ISD. Jason Fochtman/Staff photographer Family members and community leaders release balloons during a vigil for Landon Payton on Monday, Aug. 19, 2024, in Houston. Payton died suddenly last week at Marshall Middle School on the third day of school. Annie Mulligan/Contributor A young person hangs his head as he listens to a song during a vigil for Landon Payton on Monday, Aug. 19, 2024, in Houston. Annie Mulligan/Contributor Alexis Payton listens to speakers during a vigil for his son, Landon, at Marshall Middle School on Monday in Houston. Annie Mulligan/Contributor Community leader Monique Howard speaks with Jalen Payton during a vigil for his brother, Landon Payton, on Monday in Houston. Annie Mulligan/Contributor Signs greet Marshall Middle School students for their first day of school on Monday, Aug. 12, 2024 in Houston. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer A photo of Landon Payton during a vigil at Marshall Middle School on Monday in Houston. Annie Mulligan/Contributor A Marshall Middle School student makes their way to the building for the first day of school on Monday, Aug. 12, 2024 in Houston. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer Alexis Payton speaks to the media at the Hattie Mae White Educational building on Friday, August 16, 2024, about the death of his son, Landon at Marshall Middle school yesterday. Karen Warren/Staff photographer

Polly Williams Payton wept and prayed aloud outside of Houston ISD's central office Wednesday after watching footage of the last moments of her grandson's life.

Landon Payton died suddenly after a medical emergency in the Marshall Middle School gym a week prior. Payton's family watched video surveillance footage on Wednesday of the 14-year-old student walking the halls minutes before the emergency, as they await his autopsy report.

Houston ISD has insufficient footage within the gym, where the district said Payton suffered the emergency that led to his death of undetermined causes while engaged in free play. But footage of the school's hallways and cafeteria depicts a "perfectly normal" day at school for Payton, lawyer Christopher Tritico said.

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"That's why it's so painful that this happened, and that's why we need to know what his cause of death was," Tritico said. "It didn't give the closure, I think, that the family was looking for. Unfortunately, it leaves a lot of unanswered questions about what happened that day and leaves a lot left to be investigated."

The Houston Federation of Teachers reported Friday that Marshall Middle School staff told them the gym's automated external defibrillator, or AED, was not functioning at the time of his death. Tritico said the family would wait to see Landon's cause of death to determine whether an AED was needed in the emergency before filing a lawsuit against the district.

"I know the AED didn't work," Tritico said. "Would it have saved his life if it had been working? That's what we don't know."

After watching police body camera footage at the time of his death, Payton's father, Alexis Payton, reported that the school nurse could be heard saying she did not know CPR or how to use an AED. Payton also reported that the school gym's air conditioning appeared to be not working correctly during the emergency.

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While Tritico and the district said every school nurse is CPR and AED certified, he said there may have been an issue with the gym's air conditioning. The district said the gym's temperature was 72 degrees immediately after Payton's death.

Since Payton's death, Houston ISD reported that 170 of its 1,038 AEDs were not functioning as of Aug. 1. On Monday, the district announced that it had ordered replacement parts for all nonworking AEDs and amended its AED maintenance policy. Each school has a functioning AED, with an average of three AEDs per campus.

While Tritico commended the district for allowing the family to view video footage and ordering replacement parts, he said it was too little, too late for the Payton family.

Texas law requires at least one functional AED per school campus and requires that AEDs are inspected monthly.

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"Don't come out and say we're going to fix them now. There's a dead child," Tritico said. "Every parent probably didn't know that these AED devices can fail. We just send our children to school and see these things in hallways everywhere and you just expect that they work."

The Harris County Medical Examiner has not yet listed a cause of death for Payton. Tritico said the family would wait for Payton's autopsy report before filing a lawsuit and that they had no timeline as to when the autopsy would come out.

"We're going to get the answers that we need, and if we can file suit, we're going to do it as soon as we can," Tritico said.

The Near Northside and Houston ISD communities have rallied behind the Payton family since their son's death, demanding answers while hosting prayer vigils and raising money for Payton's funeral.

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On Friday, Alexis Payton said he hoped his son's death could spur on change within Houston ISD and other schools.
The Alabama Supreme Courts controversial ruling earlier this year determining frozen embryos have the same rights as children -- and the ensuing backlash the decision caused -- thrust reproductive freedom into the national spotlight.

During the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday, in his first major speech introducing himself to the country, Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz shared his familys experience with fertility treatments that led to the birth of his two children.

This is a big part of what this election is about: freedom, said Walz, the governor of Minnesota, contrasting how both parties view the concept.

When Republicans use the word freedom, they mean the government should be free to invade your doctors office ... and banks free to take advantage of customers, he said. But when we Democrats talk about freedom, we mean freedom to make a better life for yourself and the people you love...

Talking about his record as Minnesota governor, Walz said the state under his leadership protected reproductive freedom, because in Minnesota we respect our neighbors and the personal choices they make.

We got a golden rule: mind your own damn business, he said to applause. And that includes IVF and fertility treatment.

Walz wife, Gwen, underwent fertility treatments that led to the births of the couples two children.

When our daughter was born [in 2001], we named her Hope, Walz said, as the camera panned to his daughter, who smiled and made the heart gesture with her hands.

Five years later, Gwen Walz gave birth to a son.

Hope and Gus, you are our entire world and we love you, Tim Walz said.

Its not the first time the governor shared his personal story with fertility treatments in wake of the Alabama ruling.

Gwen and I have two beautiful children because of reproductive health care like IVF. This issue is deeply personal to our family and so many others, Walz posted on Facebook in February, shortly after the ruling.

Dont let these guys get away with this by telling you they support IVF when their handpicked judges oppose it.

Actions speak louder than words, and their actions are clear. Theyre bringing anti-science government into your exam room, bedroom, and classroom.

The Alabama Supreme Court ruled that under state law embryos are human beings from the moment of fertilization, whether in the womb or generated in the laboratory via IVF.

Couples had sued an IVF clinic and a Mobile hospital after their embryos were destroyed.

Mobile County Circuit Court Judge Jill Parrish Phillips threw out the case in 2022, claiming that embryos are not children, but her decision was overruled by the state supreme court in February.

Walz told the Minneapolis Star Tribune extra clarity was needed in Minnesotas laws after the Alabama ruling.

For folks who said theres redundancy in them, OK, but I want to build redundancy in them, Walz said. Im going to build up the battlements around protection as much as I can.

Walz told the newspaper he and Gwen had tried to start a family by going through fertility treatments at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester for seven years. Repeated treatments hadnt worked, Walz said.

Then one day, he said, Gwen called him crying, the Star Tribune reported in March.

I said, not again, Walz asked his wife when he picked up the phone. She said, No, Im pregnant. Its not by chance that we named our daughter Hope.

In July, the Harris campaign wished a happy IVF Day to everyone except for Trumps now-running mate, Sen. JD Vance. In response, Gov. Walz shared their story.

Even if youve never gone through the hell of infertility, someone you know has. When Gwen and I were having trouble getting pregnant, the anxiety and frustration blotted out the sun. JD Vance opposing the miracle of IVF is a direct attack on my family and so many others, Walz tweeted.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday, Vance attacked Walz, claiming the governor lied about having a family via IVF.

Today it came out that Tim Walz had lied about having a family via IVF. Who lies about something like that? https://t.co/gKwUwgxHCD  JD Vance (@JDVance) August 20, 2024

In introducing himself to voters as Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris ' running mate, Walz has made his familys struggle with fertility a central part of his narrative, a tangible way to connect with voters alarmed at the erosion of reproductive rights in the U.S. But Gwen Walz on Tuesday issued a statement that detailed the experience more comprehensively and disclosed that they relied on a different process known as intrauterine insemination, or IUI.

IUI is often attempted before IVF but doesnt face the same level of political controversy because it doesnt risk destroying unused embryos that anti-abortion advocates say equate to unborn children.

A Harris campaign spokeswoman told the Associated Press that Walz wasnt being misleading, and chalked the discrepancy to Walz folksy style of speaking.

Gov. Walz talks how normal people talk, said Mia Ehrenberg,. He was using commonly understood shorthand for fertility treatments.
An impromptu sit in organized by the Uncommitted Movement Wednesday night drew delegates, advocates, and press outside one of the biggest political events of the year to focus on the call for the pro-Palestinian members to be heard.

Their demand was simple  representation at the DNC.

Under ChicagosUnited Center lights, which illuminated the faces of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz faces above him, Michigan delegate and Uncommitted organizer Abbas Alawieh informed the crowd that the Harris administration denied their request for a Palestinian speaker to talk, even though Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, the parents of an Israeli hostage, spoke on stage Wednesday night.

We made the ask every which way. Ive been in touch with top DNC staffers, Ive been in touch with advisors to vice president Harris. I know she knows about this ask, Alawieh said. This level of suppression is unacceptable.

One by one he and 5 other delegates took a seat on the sidewalk besides each other in protest.

The uncommitted movement, which began with the Listen to Michigan campaign in February, has grown into a national protest, with voters across the country casting enough uncommitted ballots to send delegates from states like Hawaii, Washington, and Minnesota to the convention. These delegates are using their presence to demand an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and an arms embargo against Israel.

We will always make our voices heard , thats what makes the party what it is. Not holding out voices said June Rose, an Uncommitted delegate from Rhode Island. Is that not what the Democratic Party is? Do we not stand up for the most vulnerable? Who is more vulnerable at this moment than Palestinian families and children who are living under bombardment?

As word spread about the sit in, thought leaders and party affiliates tweeted their support.

When a majority of voters are demanding a ceasefire & an end to the genocide, it is completely out of touch & disgraceful for the DNC to deny Palestinian Americans a voice at the convention.



Michelle Obama implored us all to do something. Im imploring our party to do better. https://t.co/v463vjgHSN  Cori Bush (@CoriBush) August 22, 2024

Uncommitted delegates stage a sit in at #DNC. They risk arrest. They have been silenced, gaslit, & maligned by the party theyre supposed 2 be a part of. Now they may be subject 2 police force.All their counterparts got time on the stage. This is the stage they made 4 themselves. pic.twitter.com/yYFJydambz  Noura Erakat (@4noura) August 22, 2024

If the DNC chooses to not have a Palestinian American speak to the pain of the Palestinian community, it will be just another instance of Palestinian erasure. Shameful. https://t.co/KgVS0GUj5w  Nina Turner (@ninaturner) August 22, 2024

A speaking slot at the convention is such a small thing to ask for. It's not a disruptive demonstration, it's not some big policy demand, it's not antagonistic. It's just "Can a Palestinian go on TV to express the idea that Palestinian lives matter." And the answer was no.  Jack Mirkinson (@jackmirkinson) August 22, 2024

Muslim Women for Harris-Walz announced they are disbanding on account of the news.

We cannot in good conscience continue Muslim Women for Harris-Walz in light of this new information from the Uncommitted movement that VP Harris team declined their request to have a Palestinian American speaker take the stage at the DNC, the group said in an Instagram post. This is a terrible message to send to Democrats.

The group added that the family of an Israeli hostage has shown more empathy towards Palestinian Americans and Palestinians, than our candidate or the DNC has, highlighting the growing tension within the party over the Gaza issue.

As the minutes turned into hours, more people left the DNC to join the group, who sat firm in their spots after the event inside was over.

Alawieh was in communication with a Harris staffer, taking calls and reading messages to the crowd. According to Chicago Tribune reporter Jake Sheridan, who remained at the scene, the DNC made a counter-offer, refusing a speech but allowing the group to have a meeting with four staffers.

We reiterate: No is not an acceptable response, said Alaweih. They need to reconsider.

Its unclear how long the delegates remained outside, though posts on the Uncommitted social media accounts stopped after 1 p.m. Uncommitted is hosting a press conference this morning at 9:30 a.m. CST.

The uncommitted delegates argue that without a meaningful change in policy, large parts of the party base  including young voters, Arabs, Muslims, and progressives  will not be energized to elect Harris in November. Their presence at the convention, marked by keffiyehs and lapel pins calling for an end to weapon transfers to Israel, underscores the growing divide within the Democratic Party over the war in Gaza.
As U.S. wildfire seasons escalate in length and intensity , firefighters and residents in western states face mounting threats to their long-term health due to prolonged exposure to smoke.

The problem is that we dont know much about what it does to human bodies, raising concerns for vulnerable people, like children, older people, and those with respiratory and cardiovascular problems.



Wildland firefighters are also exposed to extremely high levels of smoke for months at a time.



In our modern, high-tech world , Americans have access to troves of live data showing air quality levels in just about any location in the country and the associated risk factors. People in cities and rural environments can look at that data to make an informed choice about going outside.

But theres a major problem with this approach. The Air Quality Index , a tool created by the Environmental Protection Agency , was created using decades of research into the health effects of urban air pollution, not wildfire smoke.



While urban air pollution has improved drastically since before the 1970s, owing to the passing of the Clean Air Act in 1963 and major additions in subsequent decades, wildfire smoke is different. It raises important questions about how wildfires affect our health and what shortand long-term  damage they could do.

Urban air pollution , mainly from vehicles and industry, contains nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and fossil-fuel particulate matter like black carbon. Wildfire smoke , however, is rich in organic particulate matter and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) like acrolein and formaldehyde, with lower levels of NOx and SO2.

According to EPA studies , emerging research suggests that wildfire smoke may lead to different short-term health outcomes than urban pollution. However, researching the differences over long periods is not easy.

Reckon spoke with Prof. Matthew Strickland, chair of the Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Environmental Health at the University of Nevada, Reno, to learn more.

Reckon:

What do we know about the health effects of urban air pollution on humans compared to wildfire smoke?

Prof. Strickland:



There are concerns and questions about wildfire smoke being very different from urban air pollution. The chemistry, epidemiology, and some of the toxicology studies that have come out show that its different and has different health outcomes.

The research supporting the Air Quality Index is not really specific to wildfire smoke.



Multiple studies have provided at least preliminary evidence that wildfire smoke might be more harmful to respiratory conditions like asthma and COPD than typical urban air pollution mixes and perhaps less consequential for cardiovascular disease. Those are open research questions.

Heart attacks seem less strongly associated with wildfire smoke than urban air pollution.



Its just different.

We know urban air pollution harms children and can send them on a different health trajectory into adulthood. What are the long-term effects of wildfire smoke on them?

Thats a tricky question because its challenging to study children who live in neighborhoods with relatively high air pollution and children who live in parts of the country where theres a lot of wildfire smoke during a sensitive period of their development.



We know these examples exist. Questions about what it means for their lives when theyre 30 or 40 years old are fascinating and not impossible to answer. However, theyre challenging because of the long follow-up times and obtaining health information over decades. I think its an important question, but one that is really pushing the limits of what we can do. I think its aspirational at some level.



Kids are physically smaller, so their airways are not as large. If you have inflammation or something caused by air pollution, it blocks more of the airway. That means kids could end up with more immediate problems from wildfire smoke. But in the long term, its not easy to know.

Why are we not doing these studies?

I cant apply for a National Institute of Health grant for a 30-year study right now. Thats just not how it works. The institute typically grants studies in five-year periods. There may be exceptions for some, but its not normal.



If you do a good job, gather interesting data, write compelling grant proposals, and convince them to give you money to follow the people for another five years, thats great. We see examples of that in the literature, but there are no guarantees and scientific priorities eventually shift, making it harder to get the grant repeatedly over long periods.



The research community also shifts. And then there are the challenges of tracking people into adulthood as they disperse all over the country and get tired of us asking them questions every couple of years.



That reminds me of the 75-year Harvard study on happiness. Are there other ways to find firm scientific answers in a country dealing with more wildfire and smoke?

In European countries with socialized medicine and a national healthcare system, it becomes easier to examine a persons history over a long period. If someone lives in Stockholm, Sweden, their whole lives and every medical encounter theyve ever had are easier to access. Based on that, you can create longer studies. Theyre always a bit crude because they may not involve asking questions or looking at biomarker measurements, but at least you can see when the person went to the doctor, their health concerns, and what kind of restrictions they had. We can see if they had a chronic disease and the age at which they got it. There are lots of interesting things you can do with that.

However, when it comes to wildfire smoke, the research is overwhelmingly focused on short-term health effects.



In other words, its smoky today; it was smoky yesterday. What does that mean for people going to urgent care today? Its that short-term. Thats a majority of the research thats been published.



As our society comes to terms with this idea of living with fire and that fire and smoke are just in the cards for us moving forward, I think those questions are going to become more interesting and more important to address

What about wildland firefighters who spend up to nine months going from fire to fire without breathing apparatus? They have anecdotally high rates of cancer and mental health issues.

They have very high exposure.



Its different from fighting a house fire, where firefighters have substantial protective equipment. In the wildland fire setting, a scarf over your mouth is pretty much what youre looking at.



There have been many studies done to quantify their exposure. People go out to the field with them, and they measure the particulate matter concentrations in smoke, biomarker concentrations, and urine.



Based on our biological understanding of what smoke and particulate matter do to people, were not surprised if cancer rates and other bad outcomes go up. As we adapt to this reality of living with fire, its important to recognize that these wildland firefighters are not people you call up just occasionally when a fire breaks out.



They work the majority of the year fighting fires, which is very significant exposure for that group compared to the same people in the 1980s and 90s. The exposure is extreme, and we need to take care of those people.

What about socioeconomic disparities when it comes to wildfire smoke? Are there any differences in resilience and vulnerability?

Some published papers show differences in socioeconomics due to exposure to wildfire smoke, with neighborhoods of lower socioeconomic status tending to be more likely to be impacted by smoke.



In my opinion, its just a little different from some of the other environmental justice issues that we think about when we think about pollution.



If you buy a home next to a bustling road, as opposed to back in the neighborhood, the house near the busy road will cost less, all things being equal. Consistent, obvious socioeconomic disparities in urban air pollution are related to property values and other factors.



If theres a wildfire in California and the smoke blows into Reno 200 miles away, we all get it. And if we dont get it, its either too high up in the air, or the wind just pushed it somewhere else.

Wildfire smoke is not quite the same thing as thinking about traffic pollution in our inner city or urban environments.

But arent these communities growing toward our forests and other wild places?

There is this issue of the wildland-urban interface, which is the boundary between the forest and where people live. And a lot of times, its nicer homes out there.



If you think about Lake Tahoe, people like to live out in the forest. Ideally, its up on a hill so you can see the lake. Many of those houses are very expensive and vulnerable to fires because theyre being built in the forest.



As we approach that interface, it becomes tricky for firefighters to create lines or barriers to prevent the fire from reaching the peoples homes because they live right out in the forest. So thats a little bit different, too.

There are so many technological innovations that help deal with urban pollution and wildfire smoke, which we can access from our phones. Are there any unconventional or innovative approaches to mitigate health problems related to wildfire smoke?

For a couple of hundred dollars, you can buy fans with high-quality filters. You can put them in your bedroom, decreasing the concentration of particulate matter. They are rated for different square footage. But in my family my wife, myself, and our two kids we have three.



We need to put them in our bedrooms at night if theres smoke, or if Im working from home, I carry it downstairs and put it next to my desk. They really do help.



The filters are kind of expensive to replace, but they work well in terms of adapting to living with more fire smoke. HVAC systems also have that capability, and just changing the filters on your HVAC generally helps.

This is the reality in the western United States now. Its impacting other parts of the US as well, such as Canadian fires.










English News China's largest electronics commercial area Huaqiangbei propels entrepreneurship

Alwihda Info | Par People's Daily - 19 Aout 2024



Seizing new opportunities, Huaqiangbei is brimming with new vitality. Planning to build itself into a global electronic component trading hub, a global hardware innovation and entrepreneurship center, and an international consumer center for trendy electronics, it is growing into an internationalized district for innovation and entrepreneurship.

By Han Xin, Cheng Yuanzhou, People's Daily At 9:00 a.m., electronic markets at Huaqiangbei commercial area in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong province, were already bustling with activities. Known as the largest commercial area for electronics markets in China, Huaqiangbei was crowded with people running errands, making purchases and enquiring about prices.



Lu Dongli, in his forties, walked through the crowds and made his way into the Black Ark, a hardware innovation center in the Electronic Technology Building of Huaqiangbei.



Lu came to Huaqiangbei in 2006 for semiconductor trade. Five years later, he founded his company ChipReal in a small cubicle within the SEG Science and Technology Park of Huaqiangbei. Such a tiny cubicle measuring one meter in width was also referred to as a "one-meter counter."



There are countless one-meter counters in Huaqiangbei, each representing a business venture and the aspiration of entrepreneurship.



"Thanks to the complete industrial chain and aggregation effect in Huaqiangbei, our company has experienced steady growth in recent years," said Lu.



In October 2022, Lu moved his office to an office building in the central area of Huaqiangbei, turning his one-meter counter into a business start-up that covers over 300 square meters.



There are millions of entrepreneurs like Lu in Huaqiangbei. Before China began the reform and opening up process in 1978, Huaqiangbei was only a large paddy field. After Shenzhen was established as a special economic zone, major enterprises started building factories in the region, laying the foundation for the electronics industry in Huaqiangbei, which later emerged as one of the most vibrant business hubs in Shenzhen.



Just one month ago, Lu's company received an unexpected call from a customer, who placed an order for 40,000 power supply chips annually. Lu immediately contacted his suppliers, only to be told that market prices had risen and their previously agreed price was no longer valid.



Lu made a quick decision to replace the supplier. "I don't want to make a poor deal and couldn't risk losing a potential client as well," said Lu.



"There's nothing you can't buy in Huaqiangbei," Lu said.



As a business area covering 1.45 square kilometers, Huaqiangbei is home to around 110,000 businesses, each of which has business relations with factories across China. This has made Huaqiangbei the world's largest distribution center of electronic parts and components.



After spending nearly two hours making phone calls, Lu eventually found a supplier whose office was right in the building next to his.



Lu received the samples at 2:00 p.m., checked the necessary details, and then sent them to a third-party organization for examination. Subsequently, he received the approval certificate, which marked the success of his new deal.



Technical services are also essentially for a seller of electronic parts and components. Since 2018, ChipReal has expanded its business into product distribution, providing clients with technical assistance throughout the entire production process, from solution design to mass production.



Behind this expansion was a change in its business strategy. "Trading a single product can lead to quick profits, but it also comes with high risks. By expanding our range of services, our business has become more stable and sustainable," said Lu.



Thanks to the expanded technical services, ChipReal has seen an annual revenue growth of 15 percent and gained nearly 900 new clients in China's Yangtze River Delta, the Pearl River Delta and northeast China.



In the first half of this year, the company's sales volume rose by over 10 percent year on year, with technical services contributing nearly 40 percent to the increase.



The Huaqiangbei Electronics Market, which gave birth to numerous "one-meter counters," is undergoing a profound transformation. Last year, 100,000 square meters of business areas were newly built in the market, and over 80 percent of the space of newly renovated electronics markets has been rented. This year, 14 business incubators began serving more than 400 innovative companies, and daily foot traffic in business areas has exceeded 1 million people.



Seizing new opportunities, Huaqiangbei is brimming with new vitality. Planning to build itself into a global electronic component trading hub, a global hardware innovation and entrepreneurship center, and an international consumer center for trendy electronics, it is growing into an internationalized district for innovation and entrepreneurship.



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English News China's Shanghai upgrades entry, exit services

Alwihda Info | Par People's Daily - 21 Aout 2024



In recent years, with the implementation of policies like the 144-hour visa-free transit and continuous innovation in related services, it has become increasingly convenient for foreigners to visit China. In the first half of this year, over 20,000 individuals took advantage of the 144-hour visa-free transit policy to enter Shanghai ports in the first six months of this year.

By Zhang Tianpei, People's Daily The Exit-Entry Administration of the Shanghai Public Security Bureau and the Shanghai General Station of Immigration Inspection have been enhancing visa services and entry-exit processes to welcome foreign friends.



These efforts include issuing China's first e-visa, improving the process for visa-free entry of foreign tourist groups aboard cruise ships, and enhancing customs clearance support for the 144-hour visa-free transit policy.



According to an official with the Shanghai General Station of Immigration Inspection, from January to July this year, Shanghai ports saw an influx of nearly 2.36 million foreign nationals, which is almost 2.6 times higher than that during the same period last year.



On July 11, when the Adora Magic City, China's first domestically-built large cruise ship, arrived at Shanghai Wusongkou International Cruise Terminal, all immigration inspection channels were opened at the same time. It took less than a minute for a Philippine passenger to clear customs.



It is reported that the Shanghai General Station of Immigration Inspection has continuously improved its inspection process: foreign cruise passengers are no longer required to leave fingerprint biometric information; passengers entering and exiting China by cruise ship on the same voyage are exempted from stamping entry and exit clearance stamps or filling in foreign entry papers. These measures have greatly enhanced the convenience and comfort of cruise travel for passengers.



This year, Shanghai has served as the home port for six large cruise ships traveling abroad.



Since Shanghai piloted the 15-day visa-free entry policy for international cruise tour groups in October 2016, it has attracted several internationally renowned cruise companies, with an annual average growth of 10 percent in the number of cruise passengers it received.



According to an official with the Pujiang Station of Immigration Inspection, Shanghai General Station of Immigration Inspection, as of July 31, more than 230 international cruise ships had been inspected at Shanghai's cruise ports this year, with nearly 50,000 inbound and outbound foreign tourists.



To further advance the digital transformation of ordinary visas and streamline the application process for port visas, China has launched a port e-visa service in Shanghai for foreigners invited by enterprises at China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone Lin-gang Special Area from July 12. This initiative aims to provide greater convenience for foreigners coming into China and improve border inspection efficiency.



Over 1,300 eligible enterprises at Lin-gang Special Area have completed registration procedures. They can now submit applications on an e-government platform on behalf of applicants, and the whole process can be completed online.



"Thanks to the strong support of Shanghai's port visa authorities, we were able to bring important international clients to China for a conference," read a thank-you letter recently received by the Exit-Entry Administration of the Shanghai Public Security Bureau from a company in Xuzhou, east China's Jiangsu province.



In May this year, the company invited over 1,200 clients from 62 countries worldwide to gather in Xuzhou for a conference. However, due to time constraints, some of the clients were unable to complete the visa application process at Chinese embassies or consulates abroad, making it difficult for them to join the conference.



Upon learning the situation, the Exit-Entry Administration of the Shanghai Public Security Bureau immediately coordinated with their counterparts in Xuzhou to remotely verify the company's relevant documents. They also set up a "green channel" at Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport, giving port visas to 23 clients of the company.



In recent years, with the implementation of policies like the 144-hour visa-free transit and continuous innovation in related services, it has become increasingly convenient for foreigners to visit China. In the first half of this year, over 20,000 individuals took advantage of the 144-hour visa-free transit policy to enter Shanghai ports in the first six months of this year.



Recently, a one-stop comprehensive service center for foreigners was set up at Terminal 2 of Shanghai Pudong International Airport.



"Can you help me set up Alipay?" Smith, a traveler from the United States, asked a staff member at the service center.



Shortly after, Zhu Lin, who was on duty that day, helped Smith link his bank card to the online payment platform and explained to him how to use ride-hailing apps and local SIM cards.



"When foreign travelers, especially short-term visitors, come to China, their most urgent needs are making phone calls, accessing the internet, and mobile payments. These can all be addressed here in one stop," said Ma Hualin, operation manager of Shanghai Foreign Service Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Donghao Lansheng Group. As of July 29, the service center had served 14,854 foreigners, Ma added.



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English News Chinese platform facilitates technological innovation of enterprises

Alwihda Info | Par People's Daily - 19 Aout 2024



An annual special fund of 200 million yuan ($27.85 million) has been set up to support the phased transformation and commercialization of sci-tech achievements. It also supports collaborative research among enterprises, universities, and research institutions, with the government providing enterprises with one-third of the actual investment. The maximum financial support for a single project is 1 million yuan.

By Yu Weiliang, Fan Haotian, People's Daily High-quality development of enterprises relies heavily on technology and talent. In Wuhan, capital of central China's Hubei province, a dedicated platform has been established to bridge the gap between enterprises and technological expertise.



In a laboratory of the School of Automation, China University of Geosciences, associate professor Zhang Jingjing was working with Yan Wenlin, head of R&D with Wuhan AI Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd., to test a newly developed temperature and humidity sensor prototype. Connecting circuit boards to oscilloscopes and multimeters, they examined waveforms, and measured voltage and current.



Just three months ago, Zhang and Yan, whose offices are only two kilometers apart, had never met each other. What brought them together was the Hubei Sci-tech Innovation Supply Chain Platform (hereafter referred to as "the Platform").



The Platform was launched in 2023, with companies proposing research topics and universities and research institutes offering responses, creating an industrial innovation ecosystem that is demand-oriented and enterprise-centered.



It provides services for users across the province, such as contract signing and supply-demand matchmaking of technology, human resources, and financing.



Zhang, engaged in computer vision research, had long entertained the idea of empowering agriculture with artificial intelligence, but had not found the proper approach yet.



Wuhan AI Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd. is a business startup committed to developing affordable sensors that can be used by aquaculture farmers. Before meeting Zhang, Yan had sought technological support from multiple agricultural universities and research institutions, only to be met with disappointment.



Yan attributed it to two reasons. "First, researchers' focuses don't always align with the needs of companies; second, they don't have enough trust for small enterprises like us."



Thanks to the Platform, enterprises can now easily find technological support just like they would shop online. "The intelligent matching model on the Platform enables 'one-click matchmaking,' which can ensure quick and easy connections between supply and demand. Behind every piece of effective information is a technology manager who provides comprehensive services to both enterprises and research institutions. This allows for rapid communication and problem-solving," said Li Tianpei, general manager of Hubei Sci-tech Innovation Supply Chain Co., Ltd.



Learning about the Platform, Yan registered on it through a quick QR code scan and posted a request for creating a micro temperature and humidity sensor. Soon, Yan was recommended with multiple eligible technology suppliers.



Finally, Yan selected Zhang's team under the recommendation of a technology manager. In just a week, Zhang devised a detailed development plan for developing the sensor, rapidly completing the prototype design and moving on to the testing phase.



How can sci-tech achievements be turned into commercial products after aligning supply and demand?



Hubei has rolled out new policies to improve the incentive mechanism by taking Wuhan East Lake High-Tech Development Zone (EDZ) as a pilot, in an effort to boost collaborations on the Platform.



An annual special fund of 200 million yuan ($27.85 million) has been set up to support the phased transformation and commercialization of sci-tech achievements. It also supports collaborative research among enterprises, universities, and research institutions, with the government providing enterprises with one-third of the actual investment. The maximum financial support for a single project is 1 million yuan.



In February this year, Wuhan Ganwei Technology Co., Ltd. posted on the Platform a demand for a highly integrated industrial-grade infrared optical gas sensor. Experts from the Optics Valley Laboratory (Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics) located in EDZ, also known as Optics Valley of China, soon took up the task. "Initially, our projected budget was 1 million yuan, but the cost proposed by the experts was slightly higher," said Zhang Junlong, the company's general manager.



Thanks to a project it joined under the encouragement of EDZ, the company became eligible for a 1-million-yuan incentive fund, which allowed Zhang Junlong to focus on the collaboration with the laboratory.



As of now, the Platform has attracted over 34,000 active companies, which have released more than 16,000 demands. Over 4,500 collaborations have been facilitated.



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English News Highway-railway bridge in China's Jiangxi boosts regional development

Alwihda Info | Par People's Daily - 19 Aout 2024



The Beijing-Hong Kong high-speed railway, along which the Nanchang-Jiujiang high-speed railway is located, is an important vertical line of China's high-speed rail network that centers around eight main vertical lines linking the north and south and eight horizontal lines connecting the east and west. It connects major city clusters such as Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, and the Pearl River Delta.

By Li Xinping, People's Daily In the first six months of this year, fixed-asset investment in China's railway sector reached a record high. The investment has fully leveraged the advantages of the railway industry's long supply chain, wide-ranging impact, and strong driving effects.



A railway project under construction today well explains the "multiplier effect" of this investment.



Standing on top of the 141-meter-high main tower G32 of the main bridge that spans the west tributary of the Ganjiang River, a part of the Yangzizhou Ganjiang Highway-Railway Bridge, one can overlook the sparkling Ganjiang River with cargo ships shuttling back and forth.



Factories, high-rise buildings, and vast fields in the distance are all within sight. Up close, construction workers on the bridge are busy, many of whom come from counties and townships nearby.



The Yangzizhou Ganjiang Highway-Railway Bridge is the controlling project of the entire route of the Nanchang-Jiujiang high-speed railway, while the latter remains an important part of the Beijing-Hong Kong high-speed railway, connecting the north and south, and integrating the east and west.



Upon completion, the Nanchang-Jiujiang high-speed railway, will be crucial for the high-quality development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt and the social and economic development along the rail.



The driving force of the bridge has already become evident as the project commenced.



Let's first look at the investment stimulation. The Nanchang-Jiujiang high-speed railway, connecting Nanchang and Jiujiang in east China's Jiangxi province, has drawn a total investment of 32.41 billion yuan ($4.51 billion). The investment in the main bridge that spans the west tributary of the Ganjiang River alone was nearly 1.08 billion yuan. Since the construction began, the purchases of local materials have added up to 13.99 million yuan, effectively driving procurement demand.



Xia Xiaoren, head of the Yangzizhou Ganjiang Highway-Railway Bridge with Nanchang-Jiujiang Intercity Railway Co. Ltd., said that apart from purchasing local materials such as stone, sand, steel bars, and cement, the company also leased machinery and vehicles from local providers. The project has created job opportunities for local people and cultivated a group of skilled personnel in project management, Xia added.



According to Xia, the construction of the Nanchang-Jiujiang high-speed railway, has provided jobs to over 5,100 people, whose everyday needs have boosted the businesses of convenience stores and restaurants in local villages.



"The project has effectively increased the income of local residents and propelled economic development," Xia noted.



Upon completion, the Yangzizhou Ganjiang Highway-Railway Bridge will set a number of world records: it will become a highway-railway hybrid bridge with the most road lanes and largest capacity in the world, the world's largest-span highway-railway bridge, and the world's first harp-shaped cable-stayed bridge designed for trains running at 350 km/h.



New records mean new challenges. To address the difficulties, new technologies are indispensable. "Before the construction began, we virtually simulated the entire building process, identified the engineering difficulties, improved design parameters, and streamlined the construction process," said Zhong Lianggen, deputy head of the Yangzizhou Ganjiang Highway-Railway Bridge with Nanchang-Jiujiang Intercity Railway Co. Ltd. "The three-dimensional visualization of the simulation was equivalent to an online rehearsal."



The construction site of the main tower G32 resembled a sophisticated intelligent factory, with 31 monitoring points in each cofferdam foundation pit. Real-time monitoring was carried out through different methods such as radar water level gauges, strain gauges, and video surveillance.



"Sensors provide real-time monitoring, and intelligent algorithms can automatically alert and correct any deviations, achieving precise construction," said Zhong.



When the bridge is completed, its virtual version will also be delivered simultaneously for future maintenance. The virtual bridge contains all the information during construction processes, including design, material, plan, quality and examination, and will serve as the digital archive of the physical bridge.



The Beijing-Hong Kong high-speed railway, along which the Nanchang-Jiujiang high-speed railway is located, is an important vertical line of China's high-speed rail network that centers around eight main vertical lines linking the north and south and eight horizontal lines connecting the east and west. It connects major city clusters such as Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, and the Pearl River Delta.



"The Beijing-Hong Kong high-speed railway will become another important route connecting the north and south of China. It will not only facilitate travel and transportation, but provide more capacity resources for railway freight transportation," said Xia.



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I sometimes practice my debate skills with AI. I like to stay abreast of the arguments liberals make, and asking questions of ChatGPT allows me to understand the prevailing thought on issues and prepare thoughtful responses. I dont know if ChatGPT is fully leftist because of algorithmic training or just a robust absorption of mainstream media, but it is. I usually come away with more questions than answers about the premises the Left builds its arguments on.

Yesterday, though, I got a win from my AI debate -- and some validation that we, as conservatives, are not the party violating so-called democratic norms.

I started our very respectful debate with a basic premise, asking the AI program, Is Kamala Harris a communist? I got a predictable answer: No, Vice President Kamala Harris is not a Communist. She is a member of the Democratic Party, which is a centrist political party in the United States.

I pressed on, asking about the current VPs desire for equity rather than equality -- something that is central to Communist beliefs. I was introduced by ChatGPT to historically marginalized or disadvantaged groups. We talked about my poor grandparents coming to this country from Ireland and I asked if they would be considered historically marginalized and got a very respectful lecture about not confusing individual prejudices with systemic inequities.

We went on, debating whether Donald Trump would be a dictator and whether he had violated democratic norms. (The answer, as you might expect, considered Trumps authoritarian rhetoric and behavior and disregard for established norms and gave a qualified yes, concluding with, Ultimately, the legacy of Trump's impact on democratic norms will likely be debated for years to come.

I followed up with this question:

Could it be said that the Democratic National Committee, in installing VP Harris to take over the position of presidential candidate without any kind of primary or voter approval, is also a violation of "democratic norms?

The answer, from ChatGPT, was eye-opening. I am including the entire response below.

The scenario you're describing -- where the Democratic National Committee (DNC) would "install" Vice President Kamala Harris as the presidential candidate without a primary or voter approval -- would indeed raise questions about democratic norms if it were to happen in the way you suggest. Democratic Norms and the Role of Primaries: Primaries as a Democratic Process: Primaries are a key part of the democratic process in the U.S. political system, allowing party members and voters to choose their preferred candidate for the general election. Skipping this process could be seen as bypassing the will of the voters, which would challenge the democratic norms of candidate selection. Party Leadership's Role: While political parties do have some control over their nomination processes and can influence outcomes (such as endorsing candidates or setting debate rules), an outright replacement of a candidate without any input from voters or party members would be highly unusual and controversial. Past Precedents and Context: Party Influence: Historically, party leadership has had significant influence over the nomination process, especially before the primary system became as widespread as it is today. However, in the modern era, the expectation is that candidates emerge through a competitive primary process, reflecting the choices of the party's base. Exceptional Circumstances: There have been situations where a party has had to replace a candidate due to illness, death, or other extraordinary circumstances, but even in those cases, the process typically involves some level of consultation with party members or delegates, rather than an imposition from the top. Conclusion: If the DNC were to bypass the primary process entirely to install a candidate like Kamala Harris without voter input, it could certainly be viewed as a violation of democratic norms. Such an action would likely provoke significant backlash from both within the party and from the broader electorate, as it would undermine the principle of voter participation in the selection of candidates. However, it's important to note that this is a hypothetical scenario, and the actual processes and decisions made by the DNC would depend on the specific circumstances and party rules in place at the time.

Since AI is several weeks to months behind real-time due to its need to train on existing information that is available to form its thinking, I got the truth (a win for sure) -- that removing a sitting president and installing another candidate would absolutely violate democratic norms. Even in its exceptional circumstances section, AI acknowledges that the process typically involves some level of consultation with party members or delegates, rather than an imposition from the top. That, to me, is the ultimate violation of democratic norms!

If you are suffering through the Democratic National Convention in Chicago (or any onslaught of bogus allegations, accusations and fake facts from leftists) and feeling like youre witnessing the destruction of democracy in America, ask AI a few questions -- you might be shocked at how close you are to the truth!

Image: Jeremy Barande
The Democrat party has routinely accused Donald Trump of referring to white supremacists in Charlottesville (2017), one of whom ran over and killed a demonstrator, very fine people, but Trump said accurately that there were very fine people on both sides of the issue as to whether a statue of Robert E. Lee should be removed, though the white supremacists were not among them. Im not talking about the neo-Nazis and the white nationalists, because they should be condemned totally. He added that there were fine people in the other group (such as Heather Heyer) but also troublemakers in black outfits, which also was accurate. Now lets take a look at Joe Bidens own set of very fine people among the pro-Palestinian demonstrators at the Democratic National Convention.

He begins, of course, by falsely accusing Trump of supporting the white supremacists, even though Trump is clearly on record as condemning them. To this he adds, Those, those protesters out in the street, they have a point. A lot of innocent people are being killed on both sides. Even when both parties to a war follow the Hague and Geneva Conventions by wearing uniforms and directing hostilities only against military personnel and assets, the vast majority of those killed and wounded are not vicious degenerates; they just have the misfortune to be in the wrong color uniform, and in the wrong place at the wrong time. The ordinary sailors on the Bismarck were just as innocent as those on HMS Hood, but that did not prevent most of them from going down with their respective ships. The German commander, Gunther Lutjens, was a very decent human being who reportedly did not agree with Nazi policies; along with two other navy commanders, he had publicly protested against the brutality of anti-Semitic crimes during Kristallnacht. He was one of the few officers who refused to give the Nazi salute when Hitler visited Bismarck before her first and final mission, deliberately using instead the traditional naval salute. This did not save him from going down with the Bismarck, although Germany later named a destroyer for him.

It is not however customary to express sympathy for the enemy during time of war. Here is what General Patton said of Germans, both committed Nazis and the reluctant but dutiful men. War is a bloody business, a killing business. The Nazis are the enemy. Wade into them, spill their blood or they will spill yours. Shoot them in the guts. Rip open their belly. When shells are hitting all around you and you wipe the dirt from your face and you realize that its not dirt, its the blood and guts of what was once your best friend, youll know what to do. To this Admiral John Fisher, the architect of the Dreadnought program, added, The essence of war is violence. Moderation in war is imbecility. (What, by the way, does that make Biden, Harris, and others who are calling for restraint by Israel, and/or a cease-fire with Hamas?)

Hamas terrorists disguise themselves as civilians, hide among civilians, and murder and rape civilians. Terrorists deserve to be killed and their advocates do not have any point that should be acknowledged by a civilized society. Collateral damage to genuinely innocent Arab civilians is entirely on Hamas because Hamas uses them as human shields. No such sympathy was expressed for Al Qaeda after 9/11, nor were there calls for a cease-fire or negotiation. Our policy was simply to hunt down and kill the terrorists. The men who caught Osama bin Laden might well have been able to take him alive but did not bother to do so, which was fine with me. If Yahya Sinwar suffers the same fate when the Israelis catch him, that is fine with me as well.

To this Biden added:

Were working around the clock. My Secretary of State, to prevent a wider war and reunite hostages to their families and surge humanitarian, health and food assistance into Gaza. Now. To end the civilian suffering of the Palestinian people and finally, finally, finally deliver a cease-fire and end this war.

Lets explain matters in terms even Biden, Harris, and Blinken can understand. Hamas committed an act of war against the United States when it murdered American citizens and took others hostage. Israel is our ally but not our country, so what happens to the Israeli hostages is between Hamas and the IDF, Mossad, and Shin Bet. That is not working out well for Hamas whose leaders are dying like flies. However, what happens to the American hostages should be between Hamas and our carrier battle groups, amphibious assault groups, and any strategic bombers that happen to be in the area. I am sure a B-52 Stratofortress could make Hamas wish Israel were dropping only 2,000 pound bombs on them as opposed to the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb.

It is to be noted that Biden and Harris have had more than ten months to secure the release of the American hostages and have failed to so much as threaten Hamas with the armed might of the United States to achieve this. In contrast, Donald Trump said, To the entire world, I tell you this: We want our hostages back, and they better be back before I assume office, or you will be paying a very big price. I am sure that even the primitive Dark Age brains of the Hamas savages are capable of understanding this but, if they are not, a carrier battle group can explain it to them. It is too bad the Iowa-class battleships are no longer available because all of Gaza is within reach of their main batteries, and even the most depraved terrorist can understand sixteen-inch shell.

Here, meanwhile, is what the protesters support: victory for Palestine and an end to U.S. aid for Israel. They do not have a point any more than the German-American Bund had a point after Nazi Germany declared war on the United States in 1941. If Harris and Walz need the kind of vote these Palestine supporters can deliver, and especially in the swing state of Michigan, they do not need your vote or mine.

Civis Americanus is the pen name of an American Thinker contributor who remembers the lessons of history, and wants to ensure that our country never needs to learn those lessons again the hard way.

Image: YouTube video screen grab.
Out-of-pocket expenses for prescription drugs exceeded $91 billion in 2023, as reported in late July by the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability. This is a staggering but sadly unsurprising sum. The financial, physical, and emotional damage caused by a broken prescription drug market warrants the full use of the Federal Trade Commissions extensive investigative authority and substantial expertise. However, the FTCs recently released interim report on Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs), the groups hired by employers and insurers to secure drug rebates and bulk pricing discounts, fell short of that standard.

The good news is that the FTC is aware of this problematic status quo. The bad news is that the FTC may have rushed its work by publishing an interim report in place of conducting a more thorough, expert-led report, as is its common practice.

Historically, FTC reports on various markets, as described by FTC commissioner Andrew Ferguson, have provided Congress and the public with evidence-based, objective, and economically sound information that can shape the national debate on a wide range of important issues that affect consumers and competition. So long as reports are compiled and shared in a manner that realizes that high bar, there is little reason to question the Commissions investigatory efforts. In fact, the provision of reliable, thorough information is emblematic of the purpose of the FTC itself. As one senator summarized during legislative debate over the FTC Act: [W]e [the Senate] want trained experts; we want precedents; we want a body of administrative law built up.

Yet, a brief review of the FTCs recently released report on PBMs exposes how this singular provision of the FTC Act can be a tool to expand the FTCs political ends more so than a robust means of investigation.



The first sign of regulatory mischief is the timing of the report. Rather than wait to release a report at the culmination of the FTCs exhaustive analysis of PBMs, the commission opted to publish an interim report. This is not only rare but also appears to have hindered the quality of the underlying report.

Both commissioners Melissa Holyoak and Ferguson questioned if this hasty decision to share the FTCs findings came at the cost of quality. Ferguson correctly observed that interim reports are rare and for good reason -- analysis of something as complex and societally important at PBMs Holyoak rightly pointed out that the commission has a "duty as a competition thought leader to generate reports that are rigorous and objective in tone." The Commission cannot meet that duty if it is rushing to release information based on political considerations.

The FTCs reliance on the subjective input of lay people rather than expert guidance marks the second sign of regulatory mischief. Public comments made up a meaningful part of the report. This might not pose a problem if those comments came from identifiable and reliable sources. Yet, as noted by Ferguson, many of them were submitted anonymously -- preventing both the FTC and interested persons from evaluating the biases and backgrounds of those individuals. The inclusion of so many public comments also begs the question of whether this interim report was meant as a partisan policy document -- attempting to elicit popular attention more so than to facilitate legislative debate.

The final sign of regulatory mischief comes from the tone of the report itself. Here, again, Holyoak's analysis is on point. The commissioner flags the reports excessive reliance on "ideologically loaded buzzwords such as 'control' and 'power. She then warns that while such language may stir emotions and make for entertaining social media posts and television interviews," it is "no substitute for rational, evidence-based research." Whats more, such language adds fuel to arguments that the FTC is no longer operating under trained experts, but rather is beholden to expert ideologues.

One interim report may not seem worthy of such regulatory concern. I would caution against such nonchalance. The FTC has been down the path of nearly unchecked expansion before -- it took Congress pulling the commissions funding before the FTC rediscovered its important but limited mandate. Given the significance of the FTC amid a burgeoning tech sector and heightened concerns about consumer protection it is essential that the FTC stick to the script -- taking the time to produce expert analysis and resisting the temptation to provide fuel to partisan fires.

The investigatory authority of the FTC is too foundational to its mission and too fundamental to the well-being of the American public to be used in an ad hoc and political fashion. Congress and the American people need as much reliable, expert information as possible to ensure that critical markets are defined by fair play rather than turning consumers into fair prey.

Kevin Frazier is Assistant Professor of Law at St. Thomas University Benjamin L. Crump College of Law

Image: Federal Trade Commission
Olivia Julianna speaks during a campaign event for Houston mayoral candidate U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee on Friday, Oct. 27, 2023 in Houston. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer

Houston native and TikTok influencer Olivia Julianna was the latest in a line-up of Texans whose Democratic National Convention appearances have garnered nationwide attention.

Other Texans have also come to speak while encouraging the U.S. residents to vote for V.P. Kamala Harris in the upcoming presidential election. Some did not hold back at slamming the Republican party, including their party nominee former President Donald Trump.

Here's what some of the speakers, so far, have said during the convention.

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U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett: 'So, let's compare their resumes shall we?'

Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, speaks during the Democratic National Convention Monday, Aug. 19, 2024, in Chicago. Paul Sancya/Associated Press

U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, did not hold back during her speech at the Democratic National Convention.

"So let's compare their resumes shall we?" she began.

DNC COVERAGE: Houston activist Olivia Julianna will use her speech to highlight young Texans' struggles

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Crockett said Harris became a career prosecutor while Trump became a career criminal, referring to the former president being found guilty of 34 felony charges this year.

The former Texas public defender recalled facing attacks from some Republicans on the U.S. House of Representatives floor, Harris turned to her and asked, "What's wrong?" Crocket was seen getting emotional as she continued her story, saying that Harris could see that she was in distress. Harris told her the Texas district chose Crockett because they believed in her and she does too, according to Crockett.

"And the most powerful woman in the world wiped my tears and listened," she said.

Kate Cox: 'I love being a mom'

Kate Cox, a 31-year-old mother of two from Dallas-Fort Worth, sued the state of Texas in order to get an abortion. Kate Cox via AP

Kate Cox spoke at the DNC during Texas' roll call appearance with former Planned Parenthood leader Cecile Richards and actress Eva Longoria where she announced she was pregnant again, with a due date in January.

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Cox has two children, "loves being a mom" and was hoping for a third in 2023, but was told by her doctor that the fetus was diagnosed with a typically fatal condition. Cox left the state after the Texas Supreme Court denied her access to an abortion and filed a lawsuit against the state after the Supreme Court struck down the lower court's ruling that would've allowed her to get an abortion.

"Because of his abortion bans, I had to flee my home," she said. "There's nothing pro-family about abortion bans, there's nothing pro-life about letting women suffer and even die."

COLUMNIST STORY: Lina Hidalgo has emerged as the style maverick of the DNC

Josh Zurawski with Amanda Zurawski: 'Packing for the hospital should be a joyful moment; for us, it was different'

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - AUGUST 19: Josh Zurawski and Amanda Zurawski speak onstage during the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 19, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. Delegates, politicians, and Democratic party supporters are in Chicago for the convention, concluding with current Vice President Kamala Harris accepting her party's presidential nomination. The DNC takes place from August 19-22. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Texas couple Amanda and Josh Zurawski spoke to the crowd at the DNC, relaying their story about being denied an abortion. Amanda Zurawski was pregnant with her first child, named Willow, but went into premature labor at 18 weeks. She also sued to challenge the abortion ban in the state.

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"When you're expecting a baby, packing for the hospital should be a joyful moment, for us, it was different," he said.

Amanda Zurawski said doctors and nurses couldn't deliver Willow safely and her husband feared he might lose his wife.

"I was lucky, I lived. So, I'll continue to share our story standing with women and families across the country," she said. Amanda Zurawski also emphasized that people needed to vote because "their lives depend on it."

Harris Judge Lina Hidalgo: "Kamala Harris always calls"

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - AUGUST 19: Lina Hidalgo (R), Harris County, Texas judge, speaks onstage during the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 19, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. Delegates, politicians, and Democratic party supporters are in Chicago for the convention, concluding with current Vice President Kamala Harris accepting her party's presidential nomination. The DNC takes place from August 19-22. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Harris Judge Lina Hidalgo praised Harris' communication with Harris County when the region faced issues following Hurricane Beryl and other extreme weather events. Harris called her during Texas' blackouts to check if they needed anything from a federal level and visited Houston.

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"Over the years, I've learned that Kamala Harris always calls, and not only does she call, she delivers," Hidalgo said.

She continued by stating how Harris helped, during her campaign, by having the administration push for individual federal disaster relief for those in the Houston region.

San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg: 'Keep your clown out of our White House'

Mayor Ron Nirenberg gives his annual state of the city address inside the new Tech Port Center + Arena in San Antonio, Texas, Tuesday, April 26, 2022. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News

San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg spoke at the DNC's Monday breakfast in a hotel ballroom, saying, "We are not going back." Nirenburg posted a clip on X from part of the speech where he cheers to "a little more normalcy, a lot more joy and electing the first woman president of the United States."

He touted Harris' credentials for the presidency, praised President Joe Biden for getting the American Recovery Act passed during the COVID-19 pandemic and announced his endorsement for Democrat Colin Allred for the U.S. Senate seat against Gov. Ted Cruz. Nirenberg joked about how during historic and tragic floods in Kentucky, Gov. Andy Beshear "didn't jump on a flight to Cancun," a jab at Cruz who left Texas during the 2021 deadly winter storm that left millions without power.

In a video posted by San Antonio Express-News, Nirenberg said to the crowd, "Our message to Republicans is clear. Stay out of our bedrooms. Keep your politics out of our exam rooms. Keep your weirdness out of classrooms. And importantly, keep your clown out of our White House."

Olivia Julianna: 'We won't let them get away with it'

Content creator Olivia Julianna introduces Musician Stevie Wonder during the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 21, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. Delegates, politicians, and Democratic Party supporters are in Chicago for the convention, concluding with current Vice President Kamala Harris accepting her party's presidential nomination. The DNC takes place from August 19-22. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Houston native and TikTok influencer Olivia Julianna called for Gen Z voters to mobilize ahead of the upcoming election. She said she believed some Trump supporters were making it harder for people to vote.

"We won't let them get away with it, and Kamala Harris won't let them get away with it, either," Julianna said. "She's fought for our freedoms. She's fought for our voice, but we will only be heard if we vote."

She added, "As the saying goes, 'If you're not at the table you're on the menu.' So Gen Z, let's take our seat in our democracy and cast our ballots this November for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz."

Carlos Eduardo Espina: 'To be pro-immigrant is to be pro-America'

Content creator and veteran Carlos Eduardo Espina speaks on stage during the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 21, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. Delegates, politicians, and Democratic Party supporters are in Chicago for the convention, concluding with current Vice President Kamala Harris accepting her party's presidential nomination. The DNC takes place from August 19-22. Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Carlos Eduardo Espina, a TikTok influencer from College Station who advocates for immigration reform, criticized the former president's take on immigration.

Daily, I interact with people who, like my parents, came to America to fulfill the dreams and ambitions that in their home country were impossible, Espina said. The same people that Donald Trump wants you to believe are poisoning the blood of our country. This is dangerous, and it is outright anti-American.

He also quoted former president Ronald Regan, "We lead the world because, unique among nations, we draw our people  our strength  from every country and every corner of the world." He touted that Regan saw that immigration wasn't "a Republican or Democratic value, it was an American value."

"To be pro-immigrant is to be pro-America," he said.
Hunter Biden is tangled up in a criminal tax lawsuit, set to go to trial next month, and there are accusations of attempted influence peddling against an alleged former associate of Hunters while the Big Guy was VP. And what is the advice offered to Republicans by The Wall Street Journals editorial board? Shut up about it, because Joe is no longer the presidential candidateits merely water under the bridge.

I have never seen such intentionally bad advice to a political party and its voters.

The editorial is titled Hunter Biden and the Romanian Deal from August 8th and the statement from WSJ is:

Hunter Biden is old political news, and there is no benefit in Republicans making him a campaign issue. But the filing does confirm that the President's son was trading on his fathers status and getting rich from it. This would be an issue if the father was [sic] still running.

The issue has never been about Hunter. It has always been about Joe and corruption. Everyone who participated in hiding the corruption from the public should be called out, including Kamala.

For four years, the media and other Democrats lied to the public about how great and how sharp Biden is.

When Robert Hur listed Bidens crimes, including illegally taking, mishandling, and retaining classified documents, the prosecutor said the president wouldnt be charged because he was an incompetent, sympathetic old man with a bad memory. The media and other Democrats took that report and lied, claiming it exonerated Biden of all wrongdoing, saying that he was innocent and sharp as a tack. The Justice Department and Biden conspired to obstruct justice, ensuring that Congress and the public could never see the tape of the interview.

When the WSJ did an excellently-sourced report about how the White House conspired to hide Bidens incompetence from the public, most of the media, KJP, cabinet members, and other Democrats essentially told the public that the WSJ was wrong. Kamala has participated in covering up the incompetence.

This cover-up continued until the debate, when the public saw that Biden couldnt hold or state a coherent thought. Then the cabal of the media, Hollywood, and Democrats set out to remove him from the ballot. And after Biden finally dropped out from their pressure and strong-arming, the media and other Democrats acted like it was a voluntary and benevolent act instead of a coup. Then, these people who claim they care about democracy anointed Kamala, against the wishes of their own voters, and started gaslighting the public about how great and qualified she is.

For four years, the media and other Democrats have said, no matter how much evidence they have been shown about Biden family corruption and kickbacks, there is no evidence that Joe Biden was involved and that there was no evidence of criminality. The media and other Democrats have known about the corruption since when Biden was VP and didnt care. They overwhelmingly hid the laptop information from the public in 2020 as they campaigned for Joe.

How many times did Jamie Raskin and other Democrats go on TV and say that Republicans have found nothing? Kentuckys James Comer has pointed out truthfully that Joe Biden is the most corrupt president ever, yet that fact is intentionally hidden from voters.

Obama must have known that Joe and Hillary were engaging in pay-for-play schemes, enriching their families by selling access, yet he and his Justice Department did or said nothing. They were above the law. To this day, Obama and the media act like the Obama-Biden administration was corruption-free.

Now we are having a love fest in Chicago, after Biden was chased out of the race, where the media and other Democrats have been saying how great Biden was as president. No mention of his utter incompetence or shocking corruption.

And now, Joe Biden, who is clearly incompetent, corrupt, and a congenital liar, has five more months in office. How much additional damage can be done if Biden is allowed to remain as president? He should be impeached and removed.

But most of the media will continue to hide the Biden family corruption, and the WSJ is advising Republicans to shut up about it. That is garbage. They should shout from the rafters about how the media and other Democrats have conspired to hide the truth from the public as they constantly interfere in elections.

It is no wonder there is so much corruption in D.C. when most of the media spends so much time covering it up while also spreading lies about Trump and other Republicans!

Image by Monica Showalter.
Its that time of year again when you hear about back-to-school drives and stores replete with school supplies for the millions of American children returning to school. We also hear about teachers and students fleeing government schools in record numbers, saving themselves by abandoning a sinking ship.

USA Today reported there are 55,000 vacant teaching positions in America and fewer than one in five people would recommend a young person enter the teaching profession.

What should school districts do to cope? United States Parents Involved in Education (USPIE) recommends they manage the decline gracefully. They could attempt to remove woke ideology, but passionately woke teachers will not give up easily, already demonstrating a willingness to break laws . They could attempt to return to tried-and-true teaching methods like explicit phonics and traditional mathematics, but this would require significant investment in professional development. They could reduce spending and return unused funds to the taxpayers, trimming expenses as enrollment declines, but this would require an admission of failure.

Shamefully, as government school enrollment decreases spending continues to increase . There are one million fewer students enrolled in government schools, but where is the reduction in spending? Increasing spending for a failed system hurts all taxpayers but is especially a slap in the face to parents who choose to fund their own childrens education via independent and home schools. Legislators must strictly align funding on a per-pupil basis in line with some benchmarks like average tuition rates for local private pay schools, reducing spending commensurate with enrollment and lowering taxes as a result. States should require a funding mechanism that funds students, not systems. Lower enrollment should mean lower school district budgets. Taxpayers should demand it.

Moreover, students are not learning to read, write, do math, or even think. Teachers are not prepared well to teach and are suffering from fatigue, frustration, and a staffing structure that advantages administrators over the classroom. Both students and teachers are falling into a depression caused by woke ideology .

Non-woke teachers should seek out new opportunities in non-woke private and home schools. Due to the high demand for government school alternatives, teachers can choose to be employed by many emerging education systems like micro-schools, one-room school houses, virtual schools, enrichment programs, studio teachers and the list goes on. These alternative education systems can thrive and grow to the benefit of children, teachers and our country.

Because government schools have become toxic, USPIE continues to advise parents to pull their kids out.

In a recent conversation with a parent of a new five-year-old student, a dad was explaining how he plans to have conversations with his son every day to make sure hes learning the right stuff.

The conundrum is, what do you do when your son tells you the teacher said he could be a girl if he wants? If you answer truthfully and tell your son that is a lie, well, now your son thinks the teacher is a liar. What else might the teacher lie about?

If you suggest the teacher has a different opinion than you do, you are reinforcing the idea that a childs sex is an opinion!

If you say nothing, the next event may be when your son comes home and says he wants to become a girl and tells you, The teacher said you have to let me, or they will let me go live with someone else.

Or worse yet, the teacher tells your son to keep it a secret from the family and describes how to transition at school.

Parents first and most important responsibility is to protect their children. Government schools have become dangerous places. Obviously, loving parents should not send their children to a dangerous place.

Our countrys freedom also hangs in the balance as children in government schools are taught Cultural Marxism, anti-American propaganda, and to hate themselves, one another, and their country. America is likely the only country in the world that doesnt teach their children to love their country. On the contrary, they are taught that America is systemically racist, and people groups are pitted against one another blaming white, heterosexual, Christian males for the oppression of people who are Black and Brown, LGBTQ+, and of minority religions. If we dont stop the indoctrination of children in government schools, we could lose what is left of our countrys freedoms.

USPIE celebrates the decline in students and teachers participating in a failing system. Until government schools improve dramatically, it is our mission to open more eyes and help parents and teachers see they have choices.

Sheri Few is the Founder and President of United States Parents Involved in Education (USPIE) whose mission is to end the US Department of Education and all federal education mandates. USPIE has established 20 state chapters and is growing rapidly amid the national outcry from parents who want to regain control of their childrens education. Few is a nationally recognized leader on education policy and is often quoted in conservative media. Few has written extensively about critical race theory and served as Executive Producer for the documentary film titled  Truth & Lies in American Education .

Image: Defense Visual Information Distribution Service
When retail politics takes center stage in mass public attention, as the political party conventions do, nearly everything but the facts tends to be laid out clearly for voters. These conventions are surely American in how they are corporate marketing events, and they are meant to entertain and generate feelings rather than thinking. Much marketing and many theories of mass psychology are brought to bear. In that way, they underscore how professional politicians view their constituents: with general low regard, as mere consumers.

But here are a few vital facts that need to be kept in mind as November approaches, if your view of the Republic is more enlightened or at least more aspirational.

The DNC established more than election irregularity in 2020. It created an off balance sheet voting system by three primary means:

First, by lifting the discipline and oversight function of the voting event itself by subjecting it to an open-ended periodicity  that is, rather than an organized and controlled method, it is now an unorganized and uncontrolled season that can stretch for many days, weeks, or longer, and thereby escape statistical quality control, numerical verification, and qualification standards.

Second, the definition of eligibility has been so expanded to unqualified, unidentified, unknown, or uncertain persons as to citizenship, residency, or registration that voting no longer captures voters, but merely bodies, or even virtual ones.

Third, over the last four years, up to 25 million (perhaps more) unknown illegal invaders have established a presence on U.S. soil and have been strategically transported by private charter aircraft, bus, and rail to key state locations and converted into voting bodies. As the previous election showed, all it takes to assert a victory in vote-counting is at most a few hundred thousand extra ballots. Twenty to thirty million illegal but voting aliens, spread out over just a dozen swing states, means that each such state, like Arizona, or Wisconsin, or previously stable red states like Texas and Florida, may have up to two million new strategic voters, established with identity documents, to be counted by any means of voting assertions, including of course absentee, mail-in, delayed counting, drop-off, and more.

Moreover, the Fourth Estate, or the media (in reality the Fifth Column) provides the digital voting results in major media outlets, and this too is subject to enormous irregular opportunism.

J.D. Vance was right when he recently stated that the DNC is running a fraudulent campaign  that is, its entire platform is itself a deception layered on top of a voting deception. This started over four years ago in technical means and, at the beginning of the first Obama administration, in ideological terms.

This is why Trump is more than a GOP candidate: his platform stands out even more, if you focus on facts and policy, as a fundamental conviction on national security in terms of maintaining a sovereign country defined in Western culture.

The DNC has, by contrast, been so radicalized that it is not an actual American party; it is a global network of international interests that seeks to effectively acquire the United States in terms of natural resources, manufacturing, education, defense, banking, agriculture, media, and even general population control and demographics.

And the DNC is willing to sell it, or even give it away, as Trump vitally called to everyones attention years ago. This continues to be the great dividing line between Trump and the radical left: a U.S. president acting as a U.S. chief executive and U.S. civilian commander of a sovereign American nation, or a foreign proxy deception that has contempt for American history, American independence, and especially the American people.

The DNC itself is a foreign invader.

Matthew G. Andersson is a former CEO, and has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, the New York Times, the Washington Post, Time Magazine, the Guardian, the National Academy of Sciences, and the 2001 Pulitzer Prize report by the Chicago Tribune. He received the Silver Anvil Award from the Public Relations Society of America and has testified before the U.S. Senate. He was educated at the Watkinson School, and attended the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, and the University of Texas at Austin, where he worked with economist and White House national security adviser W.W. Rostow at the LBJ School of Public Affairs. He is the author of the upcoming book, Legally Blind, concerning law and policy.

Image: cagdesign via Pixabay, Pixabay License.
Every time Ive ever applied for a new drivers license while also being involved in the voting process (Arizona, Tennessee, and now Alabama), Ive registered to vote while I was in the DMV getting my picture taken. Now apparently that process is true for Texas toowhich makes this story all the more odd, unsettling, and condemning. From a report out yesterday by Natalia Mittelstadt at Just the News:

Texas AG Ken Paxton launches probe of groups allegedly registering non-citizens to vote The AGs Election Integrity Unit found that multiple nonprofit organizations have opened booths outside Texas Department of Public Safety Driver License offices to assist with voter registration. U.S. citizens have the opportunity to register to vote at the offices when they are being issued or renewing their drivers license or identification card.

First of all, if my experience is any indicator of what the paperwork is like in Texas too, registering to vote is basically as simple as checking a yes or no boxeven a first-grader could figure it outand as long as you speak and read English at even the most basic levels, its not a confusing process. Even more so when you consider that theres someone right across the counter from you who could answer any questions if they arose. But, if youre an American and you cant figure out how to properly fill-out a government form thats about as straightforward as it gets, maybe youre not exactly competent enough to have a say in public policy and representation.

So, it strikes me as very strange indeed that nonprofit voter registration groups would wait outside the DMV, helping people register to vote. Seems a bit redundant, right? I mean, only if youre not registering illegals though, because all those legals would have just had the opportunity to register while in the Texas DMV.

But if your target demographic isnt the American citizen? Then it makes perfect sense.

Looking at Texass eligibility requirements for a drivers license, its obviously more rigid than handing them out like candy from a pedophiles van, like they do in Democrat-run states, but its hardly difficult for illegals to obtain one; refugees and asylees can procure one with one single document a work permit, also known as Employment Authorization Document, or EAD. Yes, thats the only documentation needed, while I need a birth certificate, my previous drivers license, utility bills in my name, three letters of recommendation, and my kindergarten grades (slight exaggeration). And yes, the same work permit that Joe Biden handed out by the millions; in record numbers in fact. Heres this, from Chicago Business:

The Resurrection Project and other nonprofits are helping migrants apply for work permits in Chicago. Migrants are eligible for a permit if they have temporary protective status, parole status or have been in the country 150 days after filing a petition for asylum.

While Mittelstadts report didnt identify the names of the nonprofits assisting with voter registration outside the Texas DMVs, I have to wonder if any of them are affiliated with The Resurrection Project.

And, as of March of this year, refugees dont even have to apply for a work permit, instead being automatically enrolled for one the moment they break into our nation and cross our borders illegallyits streamlined as they say. From the Utah Supreme Courts immigration legal services publication:

Refugees to Receive Work Permits in Just 30 Days Under New USCIS Process U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a new streamlined work authorization process for refugees in the U.S. Refugees will now have to wait only 30 days to receive their Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) after being admitted to the country. This significantly reduces wait time for work authorization (down from several months), so refugees can begin working in the U.S. soon after arriving. Under the new system, as soon as a refugee enters the U.S., USCIS will digitally generate Form I-765 (Application for Employment Authorization) for them. Once approved, refugees will typically receive their EAD within one to two weeks by mail. Additionally, USCIS will now electronically provide the Social Security Administration with the necessary information to assign Social Security numbers and send Social Security cards to refugees so they can begin working.

With a Texas drivers license, an illegal is not permitted to register to vote in the office at least. What happens when they get that license and exit the building, only to be greeted by a friendly nonprofit worker that speaks Spanish, telling them all about the wonder of the Democrat party, or the free stuff theyre set to receive if they just vote blue, no matter who, or how evil anti-immigrant Donald Trump is?

Any guesses as to who might be funding these nonprofits?

Image: YouTube video screen grab.
According to polls, the networks will call Kentucky fairly quickly on election night. So what do you do if you are the Democrat governor of Kentucky with not much of a local future in politics?

First, you can go out of your way to get on the national ticket. It didn't work because parties usually like candidates who can deliver their home states. Not Andy of Kentucky. He aint delivering a thing.

Second, you can make a national name for yourself beating up VP candidate J.D. Vance and hoping that a Harris administration will put you on the cabinet. Maybe.

Last, but not least, you can make a fool out of yourself by attacking Sen. Vance over abortion. This is what I mean:

Kentucky Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear suggested Tuesday morning that Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance could gain more empathy for those who advocate for abortion access amid tragic circumstances if he went through a similar ordeal. The comments sparked an outcry from Vance, his campaign and other Republicans. Faced with that criticism hours later, Beshear said he wasnt trying to suggest anyone should be harmed and called the criticism a deflection from Republicans away from their stance on abortion.

Deflection, governor? It was the governor of Kentucky who took the cheap shot. I heard him say it.

Governor Beshear should apologize to the Vance family He has time to get himself out of this hole and put the issue behind him. Otherwise, we will file Andy as another Democrat whose common sense has been aborted.

By the way, Pres. Trump and Sen. Vance support exceptions to abortion. On the other hand, it's Kentucky that has strict abortion requirements.

P.S. Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos.

Image: Charity Hedges
Were at a point where pretty much every major AI company has been hit with a lawsuit from creators. Anthropic AI is no exception, as the company was under legal fire for allegedly stealing copyrighted song lyrics. Well, Anthropic is fighting yet another lawsuit and this one is from writers.

Were sure that everyone, including the companies being sued, saw this coming since the start of the AI boom. AI companies across the internet have been scraping lifetimes worth of data in order to train their AI models. These models will then go on to power AI tools that will replace the people whose content the companies stole. Obviously, the people who own the stolen content and the companies that profit from it have been raising the flags of war against these companies.

Right now, were still waiting for sort of definitive answer as to whether the practices of these AI companies are legal. Were still waiting for the verdict of the massive lawsuit from The New York Times against OpenAI and Microsoft. There are also other lawsuits in the air that could steer the AI industry in either direction.

Anthropic was hit with another lawsuit

The bigger they are, the harder it is for them to avoid lawsuits. The Google and Amazon-backed AI startup Anthropic is the creator of the powerful Claude model. This company is now under fire from several writers. These writers include Andrea Bartz, Charles Graeber, and Kirk Wallace Johnson. The lawsuit alleges that Anthropic pirated versions of their copyrighted works to train its Claude model.

Right now, the act of using copyrighted material to train chatbots is still in a legal gray area. So, if the company did use copyrighted materials, it might not be an open-and-shut case.

On Tuesday, an Anthropic spokesperson mentioned that the company knows about the lawsuit. However, they did not comment further. Also, neither lawyer involved in the case delivered a comment. So, were going to have to wait for more information as this case unfolds.
Google has quietly rolled out a new useful feature for the Chrome browser on Android devices. The new Chrome functionality now allows Android users to color-code their Tab Groups. Earlier, the app only allowed you to assign a name to the Tab Group. Now, the latest update for Chrome on Android devices brings desktop-level customization options.

Chrome for Android is getting a server-side update with the feature to color-code Tab Groups

According to a report by 9to5Google, the Chrome apps version 127 for Android has received a new update. The latest upgrade brings the ability to color-code Tab Groups on Chrome for Android. Once you get the update, Chrome will now automatically assign a color to the Tab Groups. It is similar to what you have on the desktop counterpart, which has offered various customization options since the start.

Now, when you have multiple Tab Groups on Chrome, you can go to the tab switcher and change their color code. The app now lets you assign as many as 9 different colors to your Tab Groups.

Furthermore, Google is also working on a new feature to let Android users access their Tab Groups from the desktop browser. Google hasnt yet widely rolled out this functionality. However, once it rolls out, you will be able to go to Settings > Tabs and turn on/off Automatically open tab groups from other devices.

Also, you can manually enable it in the Chrome beta version 128 for Android. To switch it on, you have to turn on two flags  chrome://flags/#tab-group-sync-android and chrome://flags/#tab-group-pane-android. Simply copy and paste these flags in the address bar to manually switch on the new feature to access Tab Groups from other devices.

Chrome for Android and desktop will soon simplify signing in with Google Accounts

Notably, the Chrome browser on Android and desktop devices will let you access saved passwords and more with a new simplified signing-in process. The new much simpler sign-in option will replace the Chrome Sync feature. Soon, you will be able to sign into your Google Account to access Chrome data across devices. The new functionality will be released to all Android and desktop users in the coming weeks. The company originally introduced this feature for iOS in November last year.
Google has made it easier to batch-import open tabs on Chrome between different devices. The company has added a new functionality in the beta version of the Chrome app for Android devices. The new feature makes it easier to batch-import open tabs on Chrome to a new device. The latest functionality comes in handy when you are switching to a new phone and want access to the open tabs from your previous device.

Chrome now allows users to batch import tabs that are open on other devices to a new device

Chrome has reportedly added the ability to batch import open tabs to new devices in the beta version for mobiles. After a user signs in to their Google account in Chrome on a new phone, they are greeted with a pop-up. It reads Get tabs from other devices. The pop-up lets you select the device you want to batch import tabs from.

Notably, the feature lets you select all open tabs or any particular tabs you want to import using the Review all tabs option. Then all the tabs that you were using on your previous device will open on your new phone. Previously, after signing in to Chrome on a new device, youd just see empty tabs.

Its worth mentioning that Chromes new batch import tabs feature also works if you reset the app on the same device. So, if Chrome isnt working properly on your device, you can easily reset it without worrying about re-opening the previous tabs. Once you reset and sign in again in the same Google Account, you will get a pop-up to import the previous tabs.

Chromes new feature isnt live in the stable version, but you can turn it on manually

Furthermore, the source suggests that Chromes new batch import tabs feature isnt live on the stable channel. It is only available in the Chrome beta and Dev channels at the moment. However, you can manually turn it on by tinkering a bit with the settings of the Chrome app on your mobile.

To get the new feature, first sign in to Chrome with your Google account. Then, type chrome://flags (without quotes) in the address bar and hit the enter button. From the list of available options, look for the Tab Resumption Module. Then, tap the drop-down menu and set it to Enabled. Once done, restart the browser and you should get the import tabs pop-up.
Samsung has announced the next evolution of its Odyssey gaming monitor lineup by adding glasses-free 3D technology. The Samsung Odyssey 3D as its so aptly named, does just what it says by adding a layer of 3D flair to jazz up your gaming visuals and bring them to life a little more. Samsung announced the monitor this week at Gamescom. While monitors like the Odyssey G9 and Odyssey Ark enhance immersion with their ultrawide and large-screen panels, the Odyssey 3D was designed to make scenes jump out you, as 3D is meant to do.

Have you ever been to a 3D movie at the theater? If you have, then you probably remember what it was like having intense action scenes play as things come flying in your direction. Its a surreal experience unlike any other. And Samsung wants to bring that feeling to gaming. Now, Samsung isnt the first company to introduce a glasses-free 3D gaming monitor. Or a glasses-free 3D monitor in general. Acer announced a glasses-free 3D gaming monitor all the way back in 2022.

Then at CES this year, it announced further expansion into this segment by adding that technology to its mainline Predator gaming monitors. Aside from Acer though, not many companies have dabbled in glasses-free 3D for gaming. And if anyone were going to join Acer in this endeavor, it might as well be Samsung, considering the sheer popularity of its Odyssey gaming monitor line. Technically, Samsung had this technology at CES as well. At the time, however, it was only a concept. Now, Samsung has turned it into a full-fledged monitor it will sell.

The Samsung Odyssey 3D uses special LFD tech and eye-tracking

Glasses-free 3D is hardly new, but that doesnt change the fact that its not something you see every day in displays. So you might wonder how it all works. Samsungs Odyssey 3D monitor uses a special Light Field Display technology combined with eye-tracking and view mapping to make images pop off the screen and come to life. Sans 3D glasses. Users dont have to stick with 3D either. The monitor can seamlessly switch between 2D and 3D modes, Samsung says.

And thats likely to be a huge boon because you probably dont want to be staring at 3D content all the time. The Odyssey 3D also has 4K resolution alongside a 165Hz refresh rate. In addition to one DisplayPort 1.4 and two HDMI 2.1 ports. Those will make the monitor ready for gaming on both beefy gaming PCs and the latest consoles like the Xbox Series X and PS5. The Odyssey 3D will also be offered in 27-inch and 37-inch sizes.

Samsung doesnt mention a price or a release date. Furthermore, it has said nothing about regional availability either. However, if youre at Gamescom you can check the monitor out at Samsungs booth. Its even pairing the Odyssey 3D up with a game called inZOI, a life sim game from KRAFTON that features realistic graphics.

Current Odyssey gaming monitors have been refreshed for 2024

You might not be able to get the Odyssey 3D anytime soon, but Samsung has other options available. Its crop of current monitors are getting refreshed models for 2024, all of which were also announced during Gamescom. This includes new models of the Odyssey OLED G9, specifically the G95SD and the G93SD. Theres also a new model of the Odyssey OLED G8, the G85SD.

While quite a few things on these new models are the same as the old ones, Samsung has made several adjustments. For example, the Odyssey OLED G8 (G85SD) is now an Ultrawide monitor with a 34-inch curved display. The G80SD is a flat panel with a 32-inch display. Resolution and aspect ratios are different too. The G85SD features a resolution of 3440 x 1440 while the older G80SD has a resolution of 3840 x 2160 since its 4K. Naturally, the G85SDs ultrawide design also means it now has a 21:9 aspect ratio instead of the 16:9 aspect ratio on the G80SD.

That being said, Samsung is still going to sell both models. This way consumers will have the choice to go with something flat or something curved if they want that extra immersion factor. With all of these refreshed models, Samsung is aiming to deliver the perfect gaming monitor for every preference.
Kim Rubio, of Uvalde, Texas, speaks during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson) Brynn Anderson/Associated Press CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - AUGUST 22: Kim Rubio (C) of Uvalde, Texas speaks on stage during the final day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 22, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. Delegates, politicians, and Democratic Party supporters are gathering in Chicago, as current Vice President Kamala Harris is named her party's presidential nominee. The DNC takes place from August 19-22. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Joe Raedle/Getty Images Rep. Lucy McBath, D-Ga., stands onstage and is joined by Abbey Clements of Newton, Conn., Kim Rubio of Uvalde, Texas, Melody McFadden of Charleston, S.C.,, and Edgar Vilchez of Chicago, during the final day of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (Mike Segar/Pool via AP) Mike Segar/Associated Press CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - AUGUST 22: Kim Rubio (C) of Uvalde, Texas speaks on stage during the final day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 22, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. Delegates, politicians, and Democratic Party supporters are gathering in Chicago, as current Vice President Kamala Harris is named her party's presidential nominee. The DNC takes place from August 19-22. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Kimberly Mata-Rubio, whose daughter Alexandria was killed in the Robb Elementary School mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas in 2022, speaks on the fourth and last day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago. MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images

I reach out for the daughter I will never hold again, Kimberly Mata-Rubio told convention-goers Thursday night during a segment highlighting gun violence.

Mata-Rubio, whose daughter was killed in the 2022 Uvalde school shooting, was part of a group of survivors of gun violence and victims' family members who gave emotional speeches at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

Mata-Rubio recalled how ordinarily the day began. It was 10:30 a.m. on May 24, 2022, and 10-year-old Lexi, a fourth grader at Robb Elementary School, was honored at an end-of-term awards ceremony.

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She receives a good citizen award, and we pose for photos. She wears a St. Marys sweatshirt and a smile that lights up the room, Mata-Rubio said, her voice breaking. Thirty minutes later, a gunman murders her, 18 classmates and 2 teachers. We are taken to a private room where police tell us she isnt coming home. Uvalde is national news.

Parents everywhere reach for their children. I reach out for the daughter I will never hold again.

Kimberly Mata-Rubio shares memory of her daughter with DNC crowd. Associated Press

Mata-Rubio stood on the stage alongside four others who spoke about how gun violence had robbed them of their loved ones, including Georgia Rep. Lucy McBath, who became an activist against gun violence after her 17-year-old son was shot in 2012 by a white man who was angry over the loud music the Black teenager and his friends were playing.

The family members were followed by Gabrielle Giffords, the former Democratic representative who was wounded in a 2011 shooting in her Arizona district.

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Giffords, who was shot in the head while out greeting constituents, spoke about her long road to recovery.

I learned to walk again, one step at a time. I learned to talk again, one word at a time, said Giffords, who appeared with her husband, Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly.

I almost died, but I fought for life and I survived, Giffords said, thrusting her arm into the air and drawing cheers from the crowd.

She praised Vice President Kamala Harris and endorsed her.

Kamala can beat the gun lobby and can beat gun trafficking, said Giffords, who opened the Giffords Law Center to track and analyze firearm legislation in all 50 states.

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MORE FROM THE DNC: Kamala Harris' campaign is leaning on Texas voices to help her with Latino voters

The Democratic presidential nominee has been telling supporters she will push harder for tougher gun safety laws if she is elected in November.

During a campaign stop in Houston last month, Harris told supporters if she is elected she will push to finally pass universal background checks and red flag laws and an assault weapons ban.

Mata-Rubio was among a big contingent of Texans who have spoken at the convention this week. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas, Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar, College Station immigrant rights advocate Carlos Eduardo Espina and abortion rights activist Olivia Julianna also spoke during the first three days of the convention.

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French conductor Christophe Rousset is to make his conducting debut with the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestras (MCO) for their Christmas programme.

He will lead their performances in December at the ensembles home at St Martin-in-the-Fields in London, as well as concerts at the La Scala in Milan

Speaking about the tour, Rousset said: I felt very honoured to receive the invitation to conduct a Christmas programme with the MCO.

We are very excited to announce that Christophe Rousset will be joining us for our Baroque Christmas tour of Bach and Charpentier, with concerts at La Scala, Milan and MCO's home at St Martin-in-the-Fields, London. Read more: https://t.co/i3c0RmsikK pic.twitter.com/Kt1sWTugz2  MonteverdiChoir&Orch (@mco_london) August 22, 2024

From an early age, I have been a great fan of this ensemble and its founder.

Having the chance to work with this wonderful instrument at my fingertips is a great privilege.

Roussets work is focused on Baroque, Classical and early Romantic repertoires, platforming composers from Francesco Cavalli to Antonio Salieri as well as the complete operatic works of Jean-Baptiste Lully.

He is the founder and conductor of the ensemble Les Talens Lyriques and also has an active career as a harpsichordist.

Rousset will lead the MCO in performing Baroque Christmas music by Bach and Charpentier including the piece Messe de Minuit.

The ensemble will be joined by four soloists  Hilary Cronin, Bethany Horak-Hallett, Florian Sievers and Florian Stortz.

General director at the MCO, Dr Rosa Solinas, added: We are very excited Christophe will be joining us for our Baroque Christmas tour, a musician and conductor of exceptional pedigree and creative flair.

We look forward to announcing our autumn season next week which will build on our critically-acclaimed performances earlier this year: Dinis Sousa for our Beethoven Symphonies in London and Paris, Peter Whelan for Handels Israel in Egypt and Jonathan Sells with our performances of the Bach Motets.

The MCO is made up of three ensembles  the Monteverdi Choir, English Baroque Soloists and Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique.

Last month, the board of MCO said it had decided its founder Sir John Eliot Gardiner would not be returning to the organisation following an allegation he hit a musician.

Sir John announced in a statement he was stepping down as leader and artistic director of the MCO, having previously withdrawn from leading engagements with the group including a BBC Prom.

It came after he was alleged to have hit bass musician William Thomas after he went the wrong way off stage after a performance of Berliozs Les Troyens with the Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique and Monteverdi Choir at La Cote-Saint-Andre in France last year.

He said last month that he had apologised repeatedly and unreservedly for losing control in such an inappropriate fashion and previously said he was seeking specialist help.
Fall in key GCSE pass rate as grading returns to pre-Covid level across nations

Fewer GCSE entries scored a decent pass this year following efforts to return results to pre-Covid levels.

More than two in three (67.6%) of UK entries were awarded at least a 4 or a C grade  which is considered a standard pass, down by 0.6 percentage points on last year when 68.2% achieved these grades.

In 2019  the last year that summer exams were taken before the pandemic  67.3% of entries were awarded at least a 4 or a C grade, according to the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) figures.

The figures have sparked fresh concerns that thousands more teenagers in England could be consigned to a remorseless treadmill of English and maths resits after failing to achieve a grade 4 or above.

Social mobility experts and education leaders have warned that this summers GCSE results show that stubborn regional disparities and attainment gaps between rich and poor youngsters remain.

Nihal Shah receiving his GCSE results at Ark Pioneer in Barnet (Jordan Pettitt/PA)

Hundreds of thousands of pupils in England, Wales and Northern Ireland received their GCSE exam results on Thursday in a year when grading was expected to return to 2019 levels in all three nations.

Many of the pupils who received their GCSE results on Thursday were in Year 7 when schools closed because of Covid-19.

Leaders in the education sector have warned that the cohort has had to overcome a series of challenges in their secondary school education  including the pandemic and cost-of-living crisis.

The proportion of GCSE entries in England, Wales and Northern Ireland awarded top grades has also fallen this year, the latest JCQ figures show.

More than a fifth (21.8%) of UK GCSE entries were awarded the top grades  at least a 7 or an A grade  this year, down 0.2 percentage points on last year when 22.0% of entries achieved the top grades.

But this is higher than the equivalent figure for 2019  before the pandemic  of 20.8%.

The overall rate for grades 1/G or above is 97.9%, down from 98.0% in 2023 and 98.3% in 2019.

(PA Graphics)

In England, many students who do not secure at least a grade 4 in English and/or maths at GCSE are required to retake the subjects during post-16 education.

A PA news agency analysis of Ofqual figures suggests 176,270 16-year-olds in England did not achieve a grade 4 or above in maths this year  8,290 more than last year.

In English language, it is likely that 181,645 16-year-olds did not secure a grade 4 or above, 8,945 more than in 2023.

Figures, published by Ofqual, also showed that the gap in GCSE results between private and state schools in England has widened at the top grades.

Almost half of entries from private schools scored at least a grade 7 this year, compared to around a fifth of those from both comprehensive schools and academies.

In London, 28.5% of entries were awarded a grade 7 or higher this year, while for North East England the figure was 17.8%.

Schools minister Catherine McKinnell said: I am deeply concerned about the inequalities in our education system with where you live and what type of school you attend still being too big an influence on your opportunities.

In England, exams regulator Ofqual said it expected this years national results to be broadly similar to last summer, when grades were brought back in line with pre-pandemic levels.

In Wales and Northern Ireland, exam regulators aimed to return to pre-pandemic grading this summer  a year later than in England.

It comes after Covid-19 led to an increase in top GCSE and A-level grades in 2020 and 2021, with results based on teacher assessments instead of exams.

Sir Ian Bauckham, chief regulator of Ofqual, said the figures showed that we have settled back into a pattern of dependable and trustworthy results.

(PA Graphics)

Speaking to the PA news agency, Sir Ian said: The grading standard, the quality of work, is the same as it was last year and indistinguishable from the grading standard used before the pandemic.

In England, pupils were given formulae and equation sheets in GCSE mathematics, physics, and combined science exams this summer to recognise pandemic disruption to their schooling.

On the exam aids  which have been offered since 2022  Sir Ian told PA: They do provide support for students and give them that extra little bit of confidence when doing the exam, but in terms of actual grades, marks and grades, they dont make a discernible difference.

The previous Government said it did not expect to offer exam aids in 2025.

According to figures from Ofqual, the number of 16-year-old students in England who received a 9  the highest grade under the numerical grading system  in all their subjects has risen on last year.

Some 1,270 16-year-olds in England taking at least seven GCSEs achieved a grade 9 in all their subjects, compared with 1,160 last year and 837 in 2019.

But the overall number of GCSE entries has increased this year by 4.8% to more than 6.1 million.

While traditional A*-G grades are used in Northern Ireland and Wales, in England these have been replaced with a 9-1 system, where 9 is the highest.

A 4 is broadly equivalent to a C grade, and a 7 is broadly equivalent to an A.

Nearly 373,000 vocational and technical qualification (VTQ) results have also been awarded to pupils.

Margaret Farragher, chief executive of the JCQ, said: These achievements are hard-earned and students should feel justly proud to have reached this important milestone in their educational journey.

In Scotland, results for National 5 qualifications earlier this month showed the pass rate was 77.2%, down from 78.8% last year and 78.2% in 2019.
The largest Scottish freshwater pearl found in living memory will be staying in Scotland after selling for almost 94,000 at auction, said to be a world record.

The Abernethy Pearl was discovered in 1967 and was named after its finder, William (Bill) Abernethy, known as Scotlands last pearl fisherman.

The pearl was bought by a Scottish buyer when it went under the hammer in Edinburgh at Lyon & Turnbull on Wednesday.

It sold for 93,951 which the auctioneers said was a world record for this type of pearl and was well beyond the estimate of between 40,000-60,000.

It is thought the pearl could have been growing for 80 years before it was found (Lyon & Turnbull/Stewart Attwood/PA)

The piece, which went to a Scottish buyer, formed the highlight of The Cairncross Collection auction in which every single item was bought, an occurrence known in the industry as a white glove sale.

Ruth Davis, head of jewellery at Lyon & Turnbull, said: Cairncrosss championing of Scottish pearls made them a world-famous destination.

It is wonderful that the world record price for The Abernethy Pearl, and the white glove result for The Cairncross Collection as a whole, will cement this legacy.

We are pleased to be able to say that The Abernethy pearl has found a good home with its new buyer, and will be staying in Scotland.

It has been a real pleasure to present this collection and see the admiration given to Cairncross from across the UK and beyond.

The collection featured pieces from renowned Scottish jewellers, Cairncross of Perth, which was established in 1869 by brothers Alexander and George Cairncross and finally closed its doors 154 years later in 2023.

It is believed the Abernethy Pearl could have been quietly growing in its mussel for more than 80 years before Mr Abernethy found it, meaning it was created during the reign of Queen Victoria.

He died in 2021 aged 96 and never disclosed where he made the discovery.

Pearl fishing was banned completely in Scotland in 1998.

It is thought that only one in every 5,000 mussels found in Scottish rivers contains a pearl, and generally they are smaller than those found in saltwater.

Other auction highlights included a Scottish freshwater pearl necklace, which fetched 17,640 and a pair of diamond stud earrings, which sold for 13,860.

Prices include buyers premium.
Lewis Hamilton said Formula One cannot continue to ignore Africa as he increased pressure on the sports bosses to end its three-decade absence from the continent.

The F1 calendar has expanded to a record-breaking 24 rounds this season, but Africa last staged a race in 1993.

Rwanda has emerged as the regions leading contender, with F1 boss Stefano Domenicali describing their plans as serious.

He is due to stage talks with representatives next month. However, it is understood that a race there is far from certain.

But Hamilton, who spent F1s summer break in Morocco, Senegal, Benin, Mozambique and Madagascar, said: The time is 100 per cent right (to stage a race in Africa).

We cant be adding races in other locations and continue to ignore Africa, which the rest of the world just takes from. No one gives anything to Africa.

Theres a huge amount of work that needs to be done there. But a lot of the world, that havent been, dont realise how beautiful the place is and having a Grand Prix there will really be able to highlight that and bring in tourism.

Why are we not on that continent? The current excuse is that maybe theres not a track thats ready, but there is at least one track (Kyalami) thats ready.

In the short term, we should just have that as part of the calendar and then work on building something. That will be a conversation Ill have with Stefano.

Rwanda is one of my favourite places Ive been to. Ive been doing a lot of work in the background on it.

Ive spoken to people in Rwanda, Ive spoken to people in South Africa. Rwanda is a longer project, but its amazing that theyre so keen to get a part of it.

Hamiltons season came alive at Silverstone last month where he claimed his first win in two-and-a-half years before team-mate George Russells exclusion from the last round in Belgium handed him a second triumph from three appearances.

Hamilton is entering the final 10 races of his career with Mercedes ahead of his blockbuster move to Ferrari, but it was confirmed ahead of this weekends Dutch Grand Prix that he would not be joined at the Italian team by his long-serving race engineer, Peter Bonnington.

Instead, Bonnington, known as Bono, has landed a promotion as head of race engineering.

Two weeks of @F1 summer shutdown  10 races to go. Let's do this, Team. pic.twitter.com/9CYUinq6U0  Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) August 22, 2024

I would have loved to continue with Bono, admitted Hamilton. We have a great relationship. Hes like a brother.

It is just about people doing whats best for them and packing up and leaving (England for Italy), I can only imagine would not have been good for him and his partner.

I knew it would be an unlikely scenario that he would go with me, because it would have been such a drastic change to his life.
Households in Britain are set to face higher energy bills this winter with the regulator expected to increase the price cap after lowering it twice this year.

Experts predict Ofgem will announce on Friday that the average household energy bill will rise by about 9% in October when the latest change takes effect.

Energy consultants Cornwall Insight said it expects the typical households energy bill to rise to 1,714 a year, up from 1,568 currently, on October 1.

The regulator sets the price limit based on several factors including wholesale energy prices  the amount energy firms pay for gas and electricity before supplying it to households. It is updated every three months.

It means households could be going into the colder months facing higher bills than they have had from April this year, when the price cap was lowered.

Nevertheless, average bills remain considerably lower than during the peak of the energy crisis, which was fuelled by Russias invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, driving up costs in an already-turbulent energy market.

The expected 1,714 a year would be 120 less than the price cap in October last year, when it was 1,834.

(PA Graphics)

Cornwall Insight also said there is likely to be a further modest increase in January 2025, with more rises possible early in the new year due to escalating tensions in the Russia-Ukraine war.

The price cap sets a maximum price that energy suppliers can charge consumers in England, Scotland and Wales for each kilowatt hour (kWh) of energy they use.

It means it does not limit a householdss total bills, because people still pay for the total amount of energy that they use.

The figures provided by Ofgem indicate what a household using gas and electricity, and paying by direct debit, can expect to pay if their energy use is typical.

Earlier this week, Craig Lowrey, principal consultant at Cornwall Insight, said the announcement will not be the news households want to hear when moving into the colder months.

Following two consecutive falls in the cap, Im sure many hoped we were on a steady path back to pre-crisis prices, he said.

However, the lingering impact of the energy crisis has left us with a market thats still highly volatile and quick to react to any bad news on the supply front.

Jess Ralston, head of the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, said bills in winter will be about 50% higher than they were pre-crisis on average.

A lack of progress on energy efficiency and heat pumps means that our reliance on gas hasnt fallen much in recent years, despite the volatility in the international markets forcing bills to skyrocket, she said.

With the removal of the winter fuel payment for some pensioners at the same time as bills going up, its likely that some will struggle and it remains to be seen if the Government will bring in measures to support those worst hit by the removal of winter fuel payment.

The new Government decided to stop winter fuel payments for those who are not in receipt of pension credits or other means tested benefits.

Previously, the payments of up to 300 had been available to everyone above state pension age.

The Treasury said the changes would see the number of pensioners receiving the payments fall from 11.4 million to 1.5 million  so just under 10 million would miss out.
British actor Idris Elba said talent is talent  black, white or indifferent as he praised the relatability of romantic stage play Shifters after its debut on the West End.

The play, which transferred from Londons Bush Theatre with Heather Agyepong and Tosin Cole reprising their roles, will run for nine weeks until October 12 at the Duke of Yorks Theatre in London.

Playwright Benedict Lombe became the third black British woman to have a production in the West End after the opening night on Wednesday.

The Luther actor is co-producing the play, alongside Love Island host Maya Jama and Mercury Prize and Brit-winning rapper Little Simz.

Elba told the PA news agency: Talent is talent  black, white or indifferent, and its really good to just get people into the theatre and see new writing works like this in a way that actually can be relatable.

Idris Elba, Benedict Lombe and Lynette Linton arriving for the West End premiere of Shifters at the Duke of Yorks Theatre in London (Ian West?PA)

All love stories are sort of subjective, but with this one, I think theres an attempt to make it as welcoming to different types of people.

Elba said his hope is that young people come to the theatre as it marked an amazing experience for him.

You cant look at your phone. Youve got to pay attention, and youre going to see some beautiful writing and see some beautiful acting, he said.

I just love theatre. My career started in theatre. I think its important that young audiences get to the theatre.

Idris Elba signs an autograph for a fan at the West End premiere of Shifters at the Duke of Yorks Theatre in London (Ian West/PA)

But this play, I connected to the writing, the writings incredible.

I love Heather and I love Tosin, theyre amazing actors. Lynette (Linton) is a great director.

Elba added that he felt really proud to be a part of the play.

The production is billed as an epic and universal love story about the enduring power of memory and first love between characters Des and Dre.

Heather Agyepong and Tosin Cole at the Shifters West End premiere (Ian West/PA)

It follows the young, gifted, black characters who, after years apart, come crashing back into each others lives, carrying new secrets and old scars.

Writer Ms Lombe told PA it was director Lynette Linton who had called her and wouldnt let me not write it.

We were talking about the lack of black British love stories and how it felt like there was a real gap in theatre and I think it speaks to Lynette Lintons vision in terms of being a real visionary in the theatre landscape and being able to see what people werent getting, and being able to trust writers to create that, and allowing us to dream and make the play whatever we wanted to make, she said.

Benedict Lombe and Little Simz arriving for the West End premiere of Shifters at the Duke of Yorks Theatre in London (Ian West/PA)

Ms Linton said she hoped the buzz around black storytelling is sustained.

People talk about pivotal moments, people talk about a renaissance, she said.

It needs to continue, so that when you ask us in five years time, were not still going, oh theres only one story, or theres only two stories.

So what I hope, and what I hope the British legacy is as well, is that were changing the canon of British theatre.

So when we think about British theatre, were thinking about Shifters instead of just thinking about things like Shakespeare.
Lecanemab  a drug shown to slow the progression of Alzheimers disease  has been approved for use, but will not be available on the NHS.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) said the benefits of lecanemab are too small to justify the significant cost to the NHS, while the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has said it is efficient at slowing Alzheimers disease.

 What is lecanemab?

Lecanemab is an antibody drug that has been shown to slow down the early stages of Alzheimers.

It works by binding to a protein known as amyloid, which builds up in the brains of people living with the disease.

The drug has been developed by Eisai, a Japanese pharmaceutical company, and is sold under the brand name Leqembi.

 How effective is the drug?

Lecanemab been shown to successfully remove amyloid build-up from the brains of people living with early Alzheimers disease.

For people taking the drug, 18 month-long trials showed the decline in thinking and memory skills slowed down by 27%.

It also slowed down the decline in quality of life by up to 56%.

These trial results were hailed by experts as a milestone as it was a first time a drug had shown the underlying mechanism of the disease could be slowed.

 What has the MHRA said?

The MHRA said lecanemab is the first treatment for Alzheimers licensed for use in UK that shows some evidence of efficacy in slowing progression of the disease.

Our committee is unable to recommend lecanemab for treating mild cognitive impairment or mild dementia caused by Alzheimers disease. Benefits of slowing disease progression, by 4-6 months on average, can not justify the high cost to the NHS. Learn more: https://t.co/nSjcKGChsp pic.twitter.com/6CAZteBjOX  NICE (@NICEComms) August 22, 2024

Julian Beach, MHRA interim executive director, Healthcare Quality and Access, said the appropriate regulatory standards for this medicine have been met.

 What has Nice said?

In a draft guidance published on Thursday, Nice has said the benefits of lecanemab are too small to justify costs.

The drug is already licensed in the US, where it costs about 20,000 per patient per year.

Dr Samantha Roberts, chief executive of Nice, said that while lecanemab has a small but meaningful effect (four to six months) on delaying decline when added to existing treatment, there is a lack of evidence on its long-term effects.

Nices committee estimates the NHS administration costs of lecanemab, including the cost of giving the infusion, monitoring scans and outpatient reviews and diagnostic tests is 19,000 per patient per year.

But the purchasing price of the drug currently remains confidential.

 How is the drug given?

Lecanemab is given every two weeks through an intravenous (IV) drip.

 Are there any side-effects?

During clinical trials, some people taking lecanemab experienced reactions to having the drug infused, fever, rash, chills and body aches, while some others were found to have swelling or microbleeds in the brain in response to the drug.

There have also been three deaths related taking lecaneamb in the trial, but this is less than 0.2% of patients taking part.

The majority of people who experienced brain bleeding or swelling had no symptoms and these changes were only detected using brain scans.

 Are other countries using the drug?

Lecanemab has already been approved in the US, Japan and China.

Breaking news on the Alzheimers disease treatment lecanemab! The MHRA have approved lecanemab for some people with early-stage Alzheimers disease. However NICE does not recommend use on the NHS for any patients. pic.twitter.com/uXT3lOjB8x  Alzheimer's Society (@alzheimerssoc) August 22, 2024

But the European Medicines Agency (EMA) rejected lecanemab in late July, saying the benefits were small and did not counterbalance the risk of serious side effects, such as bleeding and swelling in the brain.

 What do the experts think?

Dr Sebastian Walsh, NIHR Doctoral Fellow, University of Cambridge, said while it may seem confusing that the MHRA has granted a licence but Nice has rejected lecanemab, it is consistent with their roles in the system.

He said: The MHRA are the regulator, they look at evidence on whether the drug works and whether it is safe.

He said the trials showed lecanemab to be good at clearing the amyloid protein and that the MHRA weighed this evidence against the side effects, and decided it was sufficient to grant a license for certain groups of patients.

Dr Walsh said: Nice have a different job.

They consider whether the drug offers good value for money for the NHS.

Bittersweet news as Alzheimer's drug #lecanemab has been licensed for use in Britain but won't be available on the #NHS. It's a remarkable achievement that we now have a drug that can slow Alzheimer's, but it's clear the NHS is not ready to deliver it. pic.twitter.com/gfsqfiJz2j  Alzheimer's Research UK (@AlzResearchUK) August 22, 2024

This is because any money and resources, for example, brain scans and staff time spent on this drug are not available to be used for other things, meaning other NHS patients miss out.

He also said working out who is and is not eligible requires a lot of testing, including genetic testing and brain scans.

Dr Walsh said: The majority of people with Alzheimers wouldnt be eligible for these treatments.

So it is unsurprising that Nice does not consider these drugs cost-effective and recommend against use in the NHS.

 Can patients still access the treatment?

Around 70,000 adults in England would have been eligible for treatment with lecanemab had it been approved for use on the NHS.

But a UK licence means lecanemab can be prescribed privately, with companies such as Re:Cognition Health saying it will roll out treatments.

 What have the charities said?

Fiona Carragher, chief policy and research officer at Alzheimers Society, said while the MHRA approval was a defining moment for people with early-stage Alzheimers, the Nice decision not to recommend the drug for NHS use was disappointing.

Hilary Evans-Newton, chief executive at Alzheimers Research UK, described the news as a bittersweet moment, but added further negotiations between Nice, Eisai and the NHS may offer a way forward.

 Are their other drugs available?

Donanemab  another drug that has been shown in clinical trials to slow Alzheimers  is approved for use in the US and is currently being assessed by the MHRA.

It is among other 130 potential treatments for Alzheimers disease being tested in trials.

Meanwhile, Nice has said there are 27 medicines currently in late stage clinical assessment that could potentially reach the market.
Kirstie Allsopp has sparked a parenting debate after allowing her 15-year-old son to travel on his own. (Getty Images) (Jeff Spicer via Getty Images)

TV star Kirstie Allsopp has sparked a debate about the age children should holiday alone after sharing that her 15-year-old son took an inter-railing trip through Europe this summer with his 16-year-old friend.

Earlier this week she revealed on X that her son had recently returned from his travels. "My little boy has returned from 3 weeks inter-railing, hell be 16 on Wednesday so he went with a mate whos already 16 due to hostel/travel restrictions.

"They organised the whole thing; Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, Berlin, Munich, Marseille, Toulouse, Barcelona & Madrid," she wrote.

"For obvious budget reasons inter-railing isnt on the cards for everyone, but in this increasingly risk averse world its vital that we find any ways we can to give our children the confidence that only comes from trusting them.

"Of course I missed spending the summer with our son, but Im so proud of him & my loss is nothing compared to his gain & the encyclopaedic knowledge he now has of the differences between one McDonalds & another. If were afraid our children will also be afraid, if we let go, they will fly."

The Location, Location, Location presenter also appeared on BBC Radio 4's Today programme discussing her decision to let him go.

"Hes a very sensible young man," she said. "Hes never been in trouble at school, so when he said he wanted to do this I thought: Right, OK, good on you."

While some raised concerns about Allsopp's son being old enough for such an adventure without adult supervision, others praised the TV presenter for nurturing her teenager's independence.

Parents find it difficult to know when to allow their children to travel alone. (Getty Images) (Getty)

So how do parents know when is the right time to let children travel alone?

"Determining the right moment to allow your child to venture on a holiday alone is a nuanced decision that requires a deep understanding of their psychological and emotional development," says psychologist and relationship adviser, Barbara Santini.

"It's a significant parental challenge to balance the natural protective instincts with the need to foster independence in your child."

Santini says the key to navigating this complex decision-making process is focusing on maturity markers and individual readiness rather than fixed age milestones.

"One of the fundamental aspects to assess is the child's ability to handle unexpected situations," she says.

"Unlike adults, children and adolescents may not fully possess the cognitive skills to manage emergencies or complex social interactions independently. Therefore, the readiness for a solo holiday significantly hinges on their problem-solving skills, experience navigating unfamiliar environments, and ability to adhere to safety guidelines without direct supervision."

Additionally, emotional maturity plays a crucial role.

"A child who can regulate their emotions effectively, communicate needs clearly, and maintain self-discipline in various settings may be more prepared for independent travel," Santini continues.

"Parents can gauge these traits through everyday observations and by providing gradually increasing responsibilities that simulate the demands of solo travel."

Experts recommend testing children's readiness before granting permission to travel alone. (Getty Images) (Getty)

How to tell if your child is ready to holiday alone

Santini has put together some guidelines and tips for parents considering this step.

Start with structured settings

Before allowing a full solo holiday, test their readiness through supervised trips, such as school excursions or short stays with family members in different cities. "These experiences can serve as a safe trial run," Santini explains.

Assess decision-making skills

Engage your child in planning family activities or managing certain aspects of home life to observe their decision-making prowess. "This approach provides practical insights into their ability to handle larger responsibilities," Santini adds.

Implement a safety and communication strategy

Discuss and rehearse what to do in various scenarios, from losing a wallet to handling health issues. "Make sure your child is comfortable with communication tools and set clear guidelines on how often and through what means they should check in," Santini says.

Cultural and legal considerations

If the holiday involves travelling to another country, it's crucial to educate them about cultural norms and legal expectations there, which can differ significantly from home.

"By addressing these areas, you can better determine when your child might be ready to take the step towards holidaying alone, ensuring they do so safely and confidently," Santini adds.

How young is too young for children to travel alone? (Getty Images) (Getty)

Children travelling alone: the facts

If your child is travelling abroad the laws are different depending on which country they are visiting. For example, according to Gov.UK children aged 17 and under travelling to Portugal alone must either: be met at the airport or point of entry by their parent or guardian. carry a letter of authorisation to travel from their parent or guardian.

Other countries, such as Spain and Greece, are more lenient but it is advisable to check with the countrys embassy before booking.

If your child plans to fly it is worth checking with the airline as they all have different rules when it comes to under-18s travelling without their parents.

Parenting: read more
Luxury superyacht disaster: What we know

The body of British technology tycoon Mike Lynch has been recovered from the wreckage of a luxury yacht that sank during a storm off the coast of Sicily.

Tributes have been paid to the British Bill Gates who has been described, as a genius and a giant of a man.

Mr Lynchs 18-year-old daughter, Hannah, reportedly remains missing.

The Italian Coastguard confirmed to the PA news agency that the sixth and final person yet to be found was a woman.

The body of the fifth missing person in the yachts wreckage was returned in a blue body bag to the port of Porticello on Thursday morning.

Mr Lynch, his daughter, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer; his wife, Judy Bloomer; Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo; and his wife, Neda Morvillo, were lost when the Bayesian sank at around 5am on Monday.

On Thursday afternoon, the family of Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy confirmed the couples death.

In a statement, they said: Our parents were incredible people and an inspiration to many, but first and foremost they were focused on and loved their family and spending time with their new grandchildren.

Together for five decades, our only comfort is that they are still together now.

The luxury vessel was moored half-a-mile off the coast of Porticello when it sank around 5am local time on Monday.

The cruise was reportedly a celebration of Mr Lynchs recent acquittal of fraud charges in the United States.

 Who is involved and why were they there?

Authorities have so far discovered five missing bodies, with one person, believed to be Hannah Lynch, still unaccounted for.

Hannah had recently finished her A-Levels and was bound for Oxford University in September.

Also confirmed dead are Jonathan Bloomer, chairman of Morgan Stanley and insurance company Hiscox, and his wife, Judy, a respected psychotherapist.

Chris Morvillo, a lawyer from Clifford Chance and part of the legal team representing Mr Lynch had been unaccounted for, along with his wife, Neda, who reportedly runs a luxury jewellery line.

The body of a man was recovered near the yacht on Monday, believed to be that of chef Recaldo Thomas, a Canadian-Antiguan man working onboard.

Fifteen of the 22 people onboard  including Mr Lynchs wife, Angela Bacares  were rescued after escaping onto a lifeboat.

British technology tycoon Mike Lynch is missing after the luxury yacht, Bayesian sank in bad weather off the coast of Sicily (PA Media)

The Telegraph reported Mr Lynch had guests from the legal firm that represented him and his own company to join him on the voyage.

Among others rescued were Charlotte Golunkski and her one-year-old daughter Sophie. The brave mother kept her daughter alive by holding her over her head while she was in the water.

 How did the boat sink?

Italian authorities have reported bad stormy conditions that caused the yacht to sink, but investigations into the exact circumstances of the tragedy remain ongoing.

It is believed the luxury vessel may have been hit by a water spout, a rotating column of wind that forms over a body of water and is often likened to a tornado.

According to the US National Ocean Service, tornadic weather spouts have the same characteristics as a land tornado and are often accompanied by severe thunderstorms, high winds and seas, large hail, and frequent dangerous lightning.

(PA Graphics)

 What search and rescue efforts are underway?

Rescue divers re-entered the sunken vessel on Thursday in an attempt to find the final body.

Fire crews from Italys fire service Vigili del Fuoco said they had been accessing the vessel through natural entrances, without making openings.

Remote underwater vehicles are being used, with naval units and cave divers also taking part in the search.

Italian emergency services headed out to sea towards the area off the Sicilian coast, where the search continues for six missing tourists. (PA Media)

If you manage to get inside, you understand there is a world of objects. So, getting inside and descending into the compartment below from the stairs that are narrow and going into all of the cabins is a really hard and difficult job, fire department diver Marco Tilotta said per Reuters news agency, according to the BBC.

Morgan Stanley International Bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer is one of six people missing (Morgan Stanley International Bank/PA)

 What will authorities investigate?

Authorities will now attempt to piece together the circumstances surrounding the ships sinking.

According to The Guardian, an investigation will be carried out under the supervision of public prosecutor of Termini Imeresi.

The local port authority has opened a separate investigation to determine whether the crew took safety measures.

A team of four British inspectors from the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) also arrived in Porticello to look at the site of the sinking.

The MAIB is looking into what happened because the yacht Bayesian was flying a British flag, it is understood.

The ships captain, James Cutfield, was reportedly quizzed by authorities for two hours as they began questioning all crew members.

Speaking to New Zealand media, Mr Cutfields brother Mark said his sibling was a very good sailor with eight years of experience working abroad on luxury yachts.

 Who is Mike Lynch?

Mike Lynch, the British billionaire and tech entrepreneur, owes his fame and fortune to software firm Autonomy, which he sold to Hewlett-Packard for billions in 2011.

Hailing from Suffolk, he graduated with a PhD from the University of Cambridge. Mr Lynch is married to Angela Bacares, with whom he shares two daughters.

The father-of-two has a reported net worth valued at around 852 million, according to the Independent.

His business ventures led him to once be dubbed Britains Bill Gates but also landed him in legal trouble.

Autonomys sale was wrapped in fraud claims, and he faced civil action in the UK before being extradited to the United States to face criminal charges.

In June, he was cleared of 15 fraud charges after allegations he inflated Autonomys worth.

 What do we know about the Bayesian?

The 56-metre sailing boat was launched by Italian shipbuilder Perini Navi in 2008, according to the company website.

It was once called the Salute, but was later renamed after Lynchs PhD thesis on statistical theory by mathematician Thomas Bayes.

Media reports suggest the yachts owner is listed as Revtom Limited, a company owned by Mr Lynchs wife.

 Who was Stephen Chamberlain and how is he connected to the situation?

Stephen Chamberlain was an associate of Mike Lynch and stood trial for fraud alongside him after Autonomys controversial sale.

Days before the yacht disaster, Mr Chamberlain died after being hit by a car while out jogging.

Stephen Chamberlain was killed whilst out running on Saturday in the village of Stretham in Cambridgeshire. (Cambridgeshire Police)

Mr Chamberlain, Autonomys former VP of Finance, was cleared of all charges by a San Francisco court in June.

Relatives of Mr Chamberlain said in a tribute released through police that he was a much-loved husband, father, son, brother and friend.

He was an amazing individual whose only goal in life was to help others in any way possible, his family said.
Olivia Julianna speaks during a campaign event for Houston mayoral candidate U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee in 2023. On Wednesday, Julianna called on Gen Z voters to mobilize ahead of the upcoming election during a speech at the Democratic National Convention. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer

Houston native and TikTok influencer Olivia Julianna took the spotlight at the Democratic National Convention Wednesday night in a bid to improve the partys reach among young voters.

Juliannna called on Gen Z voters to mobilize ahead of the upcoming election and warned of the potential dangers posed by another Trump administration.

The fact is our right to vote is under attack, Julianna said. Donald Trumps Republicans are making it harder for us to vote. But we wont let them get away with it, and Kamala Harris wont let them get away with it either.

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DNC DAY 3: Tim Walz and Bill Clinton headline the Democrats' third day

The 21-year-old, who has close to 700,000 followers on TikTok, is an established activist and political strategist. She previously worked as the director of Gen-Z For Change, a non-profit advocacy organization dedicated to using social media to advance civic engagement and political discourse.

In 2022, Julianna was named as one of the most influential political figures in the Bloomberg 50, an annual list published by Bloomberg Businessweek that recognizes individuals who have helped shape the global business landscape.

Juliannas speech followed remarks from U.S. Representative Andy Kim, who represents New Jersey's third congressional district. After her speech, renowned musician Stevie Wonder gave a short performance.

As the saying goes, if youre not on the table, youre on the menu, Julianna said. So Gen Z, lets take our seat in our democracy and cast our ballots this November for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz.

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Julianna was not the only Texas-based influencer to speak at the convention. Carlos Eduardo Espina, another TikTok influencer from College Station, also spoke Wednesday night. Espina boasts 10 million followers on TikTok and is best known for content advocating for immigration reform.
The UKs medicines regulator is set to approve a drug that has been shown to slow the progression of Alzheimers disease.

Lecanemab, developed by pharmaceutical company Eisai, is a targeted antibody treatment that binds to amyloid, a protein which builds up in the brains of people living with Alzheimers disease.

It is designed to help clear the build-up and slow down cognitive decline in people with the condition and is given to patients via an intravenous drip fortnightly.

The decision from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is set to be announced shortly, but it is understood to have approved the treatment.

It will also need the green light from health service spending watchdog the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) before it is rolled out on the NHS in England.

Lecanemab is already licensed in the US, where it costs about 20,000 per patient per year, although it was rejected by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in late July.

The EMA said the benefits of lecanemab did not counterbalance the risk of people suffering serious side-effects such as bleeding and swelling in the brain.

It also said the effects of the drug on delaying cognitive decline were small.

A similar drug called donanemab, which is developed by Eli Lilly, is also being assessed for approval in the UK by medicine regulators.

NHS England estimates between 50,000 and 280,000 patients might be eligible for the new treatments.

Prior to being given the drugs, they will need to have a baseline MRI scan and then either a Pet-CT scan or lumbar puncture to confirm Alzheimers.
Mike Lynch among dead in yacht disaster as his daughter remains missing

The body of technology tycoon Mike Lynch has been recovered after a luxury yacht sank off the coast of Sicily, as his 18-year-old daughter reportedly remains missing.

The Italian Coastguard confirmed to the PA news agency that the sixth and final person yet to be found is a woman.

Mr Lynch, his daughter Hannah, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo, and his wife Neda Morvillo were lost when the Bayesian sank at around 5am on Monday.

Searches are continuing for businessman Mike Lynchs daughter Hannah (Jonathan Brady/PA)

The search was called off at around 8pm in Sicily on Thursday with divers expected to begin again at 6.30am on Friday.

In a statement confirming their parents deaths, the Bloomer family described the couple as incredible people and an inspiration to many.

They said: We are grieving for our loved ones and all of those affected by the tragedy.

Our parents were incredible people and an inspiration to many, but first and foremost they were focused on and loved their family and spending time with their new grandchildren.

Together for five decades, our only comfort is that they are still together now.

This is an unimaginable grief to shoulder.

The chief executive of legal AI company Luminance, which was founded by Mr Lynch, paid tribute to the technology tycoon, saying he was a visionary unlike any other.

Eleanor Lightbody said in a statement: I am devastated to hear the news about our founding investor, Mike Lynch, and all of those involved in this tragic accident.

Mike was a visionary unlike any other. He had a unique ability to spot the next technological revolution and solve tomorrows challenges before others even knew they were coming.

Above all, Mike was a kind man who had an impact on many and will be sorely missed. I feel honoured to have known him, worked with him and learnt from him over the years.

The UK has lost someone with the means, authority, knowledge and drive to propel the UK into technological leadership, but his legacy will live on in all of the extraordinary businesses he built and mentored, as well as his family who are in my thoughts.

The body of the fifth person recovered from the yachts wreckage was returned in a blue body bag to the port of Porticello on Thursday morning.

Of the 22 passengers and crew on board, 15  including Mr Lynchs wife, Angela Bacares  were rescued after escaping on to a lifeboat.

The body of Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, who was working as a chef on the superyacht Bayesian, was recovered at the scene of the sinking on Monday.

The boat trip was a celebration of Mr Lynchs acquittal in a fraud case in the US.

The businessman, who founded software giant Autonomy in 1996, was cleared in June of carrying out a massive fraud relating to its 11 billion US dollar (8.64 billion) sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

A decision on whether to raise the sunken yacht from the seabed is not on the agenda, but will be in the future, a spokesman from the Italian Coastguard has said.

Vincenzo Zagarola told PA: This is not a topic on the agenda. It will be, but not now.

He also said that the Italian Coastguards working theory is still that the missing woman is inside the boat.

The luxury yachts captain, James Cutfield, was reportedly questioned by authorities for two hours as they began speaking to all crew members.

The body of Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer was also recovered from the wreckage (Hiscox/PA)

A helicopter was previously drafted in to help the search effort, and divers from the local fire service have been seen entering the water with torches attached to their headgear.

Fire crews from the Vigili del Fuoco said they had been accessing the vessel through natural entrances, without making openings.

Remotely controlled underwater vehicles have been used, with naval units and cave divers also taking part in the search, the Italian Coastguard has said.

Bayesian was moored around half a mile off the coast of Porticello when it sank at about 5am local time on Monday as the area was hit by a storm.

The wreckage of the Bayesian is resting on the seabed off the coast at a depth of 50 metres (164ft).

(PA Graphics)

Fire crews described the operation as complex, with divers limited to 12-minute underwater shifts.

Survivors have been recuperating at a hotel complex in Porticello, where authorities are gathering witness statements.

An Italian doctor at the hospital where British tourist Charlotte Emsley and her one-year-old daughter were taken said the mother held her baby above the waves after the yacht sank.

Dr Domenico Cipolla, of Di Cristina Childrens Hospital in Palermo, told PA: Obviously the mother and the husband were so shaken by what has happened, it was a tragedy for them.

She told me that two minutes after falling asleep with her baby they were in the water, she did not understand how this happened, it went dark.

She held the child high in her arms above the waves, for a few seconds the baby was in the water, but she saved her.

She sometimes cried for her friends in the hospital.
Students are showing an increased interest in taking GCSEs in modern foreign languages and music, exam results show.

Spanish, German and French all saw a rise in entries this year, which one expert said was a hopeful sign for the future of language education.

Meanwhile, entries for music GCSE were up 8.7% to 35,861 compared with 32,980 in 2023.

This is still lower than in 2019, when there were 38,511 entries.

Sir Ian Bauckham, Ofquals chief regulator, welcomed the rise in music entries.

He said: The only thing I will say from an entirely personal point of view is that I think learning music is a great thing to do, and if 9% more people have reached the GCSE standard in music this year, I think we should be rejoicing about that because music is a wonderful gift.

There have been concerns in recent years that humanities and arts-based subjects were declining in popularity as students instead picked science-based and maths subjects to study.

(PA Graphics)

But the latest results show that within these areas, some GCSEs are bucking the trend.

As well as music, entries for art and design subjects were up 5.4%, following a decline in recent years.

In modern foreign languages, Spanish continued its march of popularity, with entries up 6.2%.

It means the language is closing the gap on French, which remains the most popular language at GCSE by a narrow margin.

There were 134,651 entries for French this year, up 2.9% on 2023 when there were 130,901 entries.

Entries for the subject had stalled in recent years, with 130,831 entries in 2019.

And there is new enthusiasm for German, reversing a recent decline in popularity.

There were 35,913 entries for German GCSE this year, up 3.5% from 34,707. This is still down on 2019 when entry numbers stood at 42,791.

Vicky Gough, British Council schools adviser, said the increases were encouraging, noting there had been a concerted effort to raise the standard of language education through the National Consortium for Language Educations (NCLE) Language Hubs programme.

She added: Spanish, meanwhile, continues its remarkable rise in popularity, largely due to its perceived usefulness  its spoken in many countries, has a strong presence in pop culture and media, and Spain remains a favourite destination for British tourists.

(PA Graphics)

We are genuinely optimistic about todays results, which offer a hopeful sign that the tides may be turning for language education.

The Joint Council for Qualifications figures, which cover England, Wales and Northern Ireland, also show that Polish has replaced Chinese as the most popular language GCSE after French, German and Spanish.

Ms Gough said: The increase in Polish entries may be attributed to the growing support for pupils who speak a language other than English at home, often referred to as home, heritage, and community languages (HHCL).

According to our latest Language Trends report, 79% of state secondary schools in England are now helping students take examinations in these languages.

Earlier this year, Englands exams regulator Ofqual ruled there should be adjustments to grading standards for French, German and computer science GCSEs, which it said would have a small impact on results.

Exam boards were required to award French and German GCSEs more generously to better align them with other subjects.

The move came amid concerns that the popularity of French and German at GCSE has dropped over the past 14 years.

An analysis of GCSE results also shows that entries for business studies increased by 9.7% this year, making it the 12th most popular subject overall, up from 14th last year.

(PA Graphics)

Professor Julia Black, president of the British Academy said: Its encouraging to see that SHAPE (social sciences, humanities and the arts for people and the economy) subjects such as music, economics and several modern languages are increasingly popular this year  long may that continue.

The British Academys research shows that social sciences and humanities subjects furnish students with an understanding of people, societies and cultures  which are needed to problem-solve in an increasingly challenging and volatile world.

The Department for Education said arts were a vital part of a broad and balanced curriculum and that their planned Curriculum and Assessment Review would bring together education experts, leaders and staff to ensure all children had access to a broad curriculum and that arts and music were not the preserve of a privileged few.
Kachkaniraqkun! Somos aun! We are, still!, 2018. Photograph: Courtesy of the artist and Grimm gallery

In 2022, while doing research in a Latin American archive in Texas, the Peruvian artist Claudia Martinez Garay came across a curious musical score. Titled Hanaqpachap kusikuynin, it was a Catholic hymn, thought to be the oldest polyphonic work in Quechua (the group of indigenous languages spoken across the Andes). It was first published in 1631 in a monumental ecclesiastical tome compiled by a Franciscan clergyman. Martinez Garay set about learning to play it on the synthesiser.



The anonymous priests who wrote it had opted for Quechua so, as Martinez Garay puts it, they could speak to the people. She noted the way the lyrics adapt Catholicism into Andean cosmovision, a foundational body of myths, rituals, cultural expressions and perspectives on life that differs fundamentally from western worldviews. For example, in the Quechuan lyrics, the Virgin Mary becomes a mountain. Religion was, of course, a horrible colonial process, she says, but it is also a very important part of celebrations within Andean cultures now.

Mixedness and simultaneity  the necessity of holding multiple points of view at once  are central to Martinez Garays work. That reworked hymn features prominently in the soundscape she composed for an animation titled Ayataki (song for the dead), one of the works on show at the artists solo exhibition at Dundee Contemporary Arts (DCA).

Martinez Garay makes the kind of variegated, detailed art you want to explore like you would a map. Her mediums (sculpture, tufting, collage, printmaking, animation, installation and sound) are as wide-ranging as her references (Moche craftsmanship, El Nino, Nazca trepanation, Covid devastation, colonial chronicles, contemporary warfare). She also has a distinct knack for a weird shape (a pair of chicken feet appended to an upright U; aimless worm-like tubes on sticks) or the unexpected (a loo roll).

She takes the shows title, Every Seed Is Awakened, from an address the erstwhile Sioux leader Tatanka Yotanka, AKA Sitting Bull, gave in 1877 to a Powder River council of elders. The warriors sentiments, as he enjoined his listeners to herald the advent of spring and fight for their rights, chime with her thoughts about the land. Different people were colonising, she says, but the experiences are very shared.



Martinez Garay was born in 1983, in Ayacucho, a mountain city to the south-east of Lima. Her Quechuan grandparents came from Ancash, farther to the north. When the war broke out in 1980 between the Marxist Shining Path guerrilla group and Peruvian armed forces, Indigenous communities were caught in the fray and severely targeted. Mass graves are still being discovered.

There are many things I dont know about myself. Its like when youre seeing a picture and youre trying to figure out who these people are and who is missing

Between the ages of one and two (she isnt sure exactly) Martinez Garay was adopted and brought up thereafter in Lima  speaking Spanish. In recent years, she has been relearning her native tongue, which her grandmothers had not passed on to their children for fear they would not succeed in urban life: There are many things I dont know about myself. Its like when youre seeing a picture and youre trying to figure out who these people are and who is missing.

Today, talking about the war is still taboo for many people. It wasnt until Martinez Garay moved to the Netherlands in 2016, to do a residency at Amsterdams Rijksakademie art school, that she felt free to speak about where she comes from. Constant references made to Dutch old masters, meanwhile, left her wondering who their Peruvian counterparts might have been.

Martinez Garay often opts for rhizomes or mind maps as compositional tools. She cleaves to the Andean concept of chawpi: this notion of the hidden relation between two things that are meant to be opposite. That thing that you dont show, or you dont say, is what is holding or making the bridge between the opposites. It speaks to the duality I feel within myself, the elements of white cultural upbringing and the brown Andean traditions that my family was able to keep.

Four more pieces from the exhibition

Ayataki, 2022

This animation operates as a lament for the Andean landscape and those who did not survive the war. Burning structures and disassembled dwellings are shrouded in mist or lit with a mysterious glow. In the accompanying soundscape, voices talk of streets turning into graves, interwoven with fragments of folk music, radio propaganda, documentary recording and Martinez Garays reworking of a Quechuan hymn.

Chunka Iskayniyuq Pacha, 2022

This ongoing series of 2.5m tuftings references historical engravings and imagery from colonial chronicles to explore the Quechuan concept of pacha, the indivisible unity of time and space. Here, a body is exhumed by looters and a vicuna is to be sacrificed under a diagram of the phases of the moon.

Chunka Tawayuq Pacha, 2022

The Andean carnival tradition of yunza sees people place all manner of cheap objects in a very thin tree then dance around it before chopping it down with an axe. Martinez Garays yunza features a cantuta flower (an embattled national emblem), a well-known brand of toilet paper (symbolising the panic of Covid lockdowns) and the cinchona plant (exploited by colonial powers for its antimalarial properties).

Untitled work in progress, 2024 (detail)

This newly commissioned 7.5m-long mural centres on the figure of a naked woman hanging from her feet. It references a colonial chronicle describing how women who misbehaved were punished. Ive been reading a lot of scholarship, from people like Argentinian anthropologist Rita Laura Segato, on what a more equitable future for women could be, says Martinez Garay.

Kachkaniraqkun! Somos aun! We are, still!, 2018 (main image)

In building this early work, reconfigured at DCA against a diluted red-clay background on a slightly raised plinth, Martinez Garay was thinking about all the cultures, ideologies and mindsets that have been imposed on Peruvian lands: I wanted them to all be floating together, these layers of different temporalities.

Claudia Martinez Garay: Every Seed Is Awakened is at Dundee Contemporary Arts to 17 November.
All of Australias poverty research, reports and strategies are created using different methods, working against different benchmarks and coming to significantly different conclusions. Photograph: Dan Peled/AAP

In a cost-of-living crisis and a housing crisis, coming off the back of a global pandemic and amid an escalating climate catastrophe, understanding poverty and inequality is paramount.

But Australia does not have an agreed national measurement for poverty or disadvantage. All the research, reports and strategies by governments and social services are created using different methods, working against different benchmarks and coming to significantly different conclusions about how many people are deprived and by how much.

But there are globally recognised, flexible and effective ways of measuring the complex nature of poverty which have allowed governments around the world to accurately work out the level of deprivation experienced by their citizens and to change it.

So how can Australia do better?

Isnt that Henderson guy looking at this?

You may have heard of the Henderson poverty line. It was designed in the 1960s by a Cambridge academic at the University of Melbourne, Prof Ronald Henderson, who published a groundbreaking study into poverty in Melbourne. He was asked by the federal government to expand that work to examine poverty levels Australia-wide.

The resulting report set a benchmark for what was considered poor: in 1973, that was less than the disposable income required to support the basic needs of a two-adult, two-child household, determined to be $62.70 a week, indexed over time.

Related: How much of a fair go do Australians really have to escape poverty?

Half a century later, the Henderson poverty line is still commonly used as a way of benchmarking income poverty. But it has limits.

Its not an agreed-upon method. It doesnt take into account changes in standard of living or purchasing power of an income. And theres the fact that poverty is not just a matter of differences in income (how much money you earn) or wealth (the total value of the assets you own). A host of other factors contribute to it too.

Why isnt measuring income enough?

Prof Sabina Alkire describes it as the necessity of seeing poverty with two eyes rather than one. Shes an Oxford academic who was one of the creators of a system used by nearly 40 countries, as well as the United Nations Development Programme, to measure the overlapping, intersecting elements of poverty.

Prof Alkire was in Australia this week, on a trip organised by the Brotherhood of St Laurence, to make the case for Australia deciding on an official measure of income poverty and setting up a multidimensional poverty index, or MPI  a national method of quantifying poverty in all its complexities.

A multi-dimensional poverty measure says, OK, these are big social problems. They affect peoples lives. You are working on them. Lets make a measure that both shows what the deprivations are and then, when theres success in reducing them, gives credit and celebrates, Prof Alkire says.

She poses a hypothetical: say Australia managed to solve its housing crisis, significantly reduced domestic violence, and made early childhood education more accessible. Would the results of that  which would undoubtedly have an impact on the intensity and experience of poverty  show up in income figures for that year? Probably not, and if it did, it would provide only a limited, partial picture of success  yet peoples lives would have improved in multiple ways.

An MPI, however, takes into account those different elements and makes progress on them visible and quantifiable  and shows us where we need to do more.

What counts as deprivation?

Thats up to us. The UNs global MPI, used to measure poverty in more than 100 developing countries, factors in nutrition, child mortality, years of schooling and attendance, cooking fuel, sanitation, drinking water, electricity, housing and material assets to determine levels of poverty. Experience a critical mass of these things at once and someone is considered poor.

The method can be adapted for higher-income countries too. Some European countries focus on housing quality, health and disability, education, employment, political engagement, social connections, the environment and the experience of violence as the building blocks of their indexes.

In 2019, the United States Census Bureau launched a multidimensional deprivation index which took into account the official income measure as well as education, health, housing quality, neighbourhood quality and economic security. It found the income poverty rate for 2017 was 13.4% but the rate of deprivation was 15.4%. And they werent all the same people  the new tool had exposed entirely new cohorts of people in need, including those who were not income poor but were significantly deprived in other ways  in total, 18% of the population.

It also showed improvements  for example, the effect of Obamacare on health  that werent captured by the income measurements.

Wont this be a lot of work?

In many ways weve already started. Once weve agreed on what goes in, data that already exists, such as that from the annual Household, Income and Labour Dynamics report, can be used to analyse whats already happened. And it could also highlight opportunities for efficiency, where overlapping issues for particular groups of people could be targeted together and reduce duplication of resources.

And the consensus is clear that change is needed. In submissions to the federal Senate inquiry on the nature and extent of poverty in Australia last year, multiple organisations including the Australian Council of Social Service, thinktank Per Capita, Anglicare and the Antipoverty Centre all advocated for a new, modern and consistent approach to poverty measurement.

Whatever benchmarks we decide to set, whatever solutions we look to, however, these should be determined in consultation with the experts in poverty, Prof Alkire says: the men, women and children who experience it.
Sir Brian May with Glyn Hewinson, a professor at Aberystwyth and bovine TB authority - CBTB/BBC/Athena Films

The BBC has been accused of spreading misinformation in a documentary about badger culling fronted by Sir Brian May.

The programme, which airs on Friday evening, shows the Queen guitarist arguing that badgers are not responsible for the spread of TB among cattle.

Some 40,000 cattle are culled every year as a result of bovine TB infection, causing devastation to farmers and costing taxpayers around 150 million.

Meanwhile, 230,000 badgers have been killed since 2013 as part of licensed culls across England because they are believed to have a role in spreading the disease.

Sir Brians high-profile campaign to stop this cull for more than a decade has turned him into a villain in some farming communities, and his role in the documentary has prompted accusations of bias by the BBC.

The rock star has appeared at numerous protests and in 2013 released a song Save the Badger, Badger, Badger, featuring vocals from Brian Blessed.

In the documentary, Sir Brian says he would support a ban on culling even if proven that badgers were the main cause of the spread.

Cattle being checked for bovine TB in the documentary fronted by Sir Brian May - CBTB/BBC/Athena Films

The cull is defended by figures in the farming industry as a necessary evil to stop the spread of bovine TB, which has left some farmers forced to cull their entire herds.

The documentary features Gatcombe Farm in Devon, declared TB-free after efforts by the farmer and vet Dick Sibley to improve hygiene measures among the cattle.

However, a preview of the show shared with journalists did not include the fact that reinfection had been found on three subsequent occasions, the latest in September 2023.

The BBC said it would be added to the programme before it airs on Friday, prompting accusations it had undergone a hasty rewrite after pressure from the farming industry.

That it seems the BBC had planned to air this documentary without including this vital piece of information is deeply concerning, particularly as it appears theyve only conducted this hasty rewrite as a result of external pressure, said Mo Metcalf Fisher from the Countryside Alliance. Failing to do so would have left them open to the accusation of a cover-up.

Anti-badger cull campaigner Sir Brian May takes his message to the streets - GETTY IMAGES EUROPE

Farming organisations have also accused the BBC of failing to reflect the scientific debate around the role of badgers in spreading bovine TB.

In the documentary, Sir Brian asserts that TB among cattle was never the badgers fault.

We now think it unlikely that they have been passing it back to the cows, he says. Its a tragedy, beyond belief.

The Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board, a leading industry body, and the British Cattle Veterinary Association said they had not been approached for their views.

The AHDB said the show leans heavily on opinions, often sidelining established science and evidence.

Dismissing expert input and rigorous research processes not only undermines scientific efforts but also spreads misinformation, it said.

Vet Dick Sibley, who pioneered extra testing and new biosecurity measures at Gatcombe Farm, told the Telegraph that he could not be sure if cattle there had become reinfected by badgers, but the animals had not been seen on extensive CCTV around the farm.

Sir Brian May and animal activist Anne Brummer in the woodland next to Save Me Trust HQ in Windlesham, Surrey - JAMIE LORRIMAN/JAMIE LORRIMAN

But he said he believed the most likely cause was a latent infection in older cattle among the herd, which was not picked up by the standard of testing used by the environment department.

He added that he and farmer Robert Reed had been quite open about the return of TB on the farm and still believed the new measures had largely prevented the spread of the disease. Weve got nothing to hide, he said.

The efficacy of culling badgers to stop the spread of TB among cows has been the subject of impassioned debate for many years. A landmark review in 2011 that found it had limited effect has been followed up by several others, including a study this year that found a 56 per cent reduction in rates in cattle in areas where culling took place.

The Labour Government has vowed to end the badger cull after existing licences end in 2026, and it is already banned in Wales.

In a statement, the BBC said: While this is a first-person piece authored by Sir Brian May, the documentary, which broadcasts on Friday, hears from numerous voices in the debate on badger culling, including farmers and academics.

It follows Sir Brian on his journey over a decade to understand the crisis caused by bovine tuberculosis and his opposition to the controversial badger cull. The BBC adheres to strict editorial guidelines on impartiality on this matter.
Gen Patrick Sanders says if stockpiles remain low we risk making war with Russia an 'inevitability' - Eddie Mulholland

War with Russia is inevitable unless the UK stockpiles lethal weapons, the former head of the British Army has warned.

Gen Sir Patrick Sanders, who stood down as Chief of the General Staff (CGS) in June, said that if the UK fails to regrow its stockpiles in light of all it has gifted to Ukraine it will be at war in five years.

Sir Patrick said: If we dont regrow what are very, very, empty stockpiles at the moment and recapitalise then we risk making conflict an inevitability.

It comes after Gen Sir Roland Walker, who succeeded Sir Patrick as CGS, last month warned that the UK needed to be able to fight a major war within three years because Russia would seek revenge on the West for aiding Ukraine.

Last year, Sir Patrick said the UKs donation of 14 Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine had left the Army temporarily weaker as the donation had left a gap in our armoury.

Gen Sir Roland Walker has said that Britain must be ready to fight a war in three years - Max Mumby/Indigo

Since Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the UK has pledged 7.6 billion in military assistance, of which 3 billion is military assistance in 2024 and 2025. As well as tanks, the gifted weaponry includes air defence systems and long-range precision strike missiles.

However, Sir Patrick, who during his time as Army chief was openly critical about the cuts to troop numbers, also warned that the UK had been left vulnerable with fewer soldiers and lethal equipment in the store cupboard.

He told the Money Maze podcast: We need to ensure we can operate at scale. That means regrowing our stockpiles, but it also means that the army, which is historically very small at the moment  in an era where we are returning to great power conflict  is capable of being grown rapidly.

All of that will take us between five and ten years.

He added: The initial investments need to go into the sort of things that will make us capable of deterring Russia during this decade.

There is a risk of an alignment, that ending the war in Ukraine, Russian recapitalisation and China saying the PLA (Peoples Liberation Army) needs to be ready to invade Taiwan by 2027 creates a point of acute danger in around 2028 or so.

The best way to avoid that is by ensuring we are ready to fight, able to deter and prevent these conflicts from happening in this decade.

Sir Patrick recently urged Britain to rearm its missile stockpiles.

He cautioned that the UKs ability to defend itself in the unlikely event of a missile attack was weak.
Lockouts have begun at Canadian National Rail and Canadian Pacific Kansas City, which say their offers to workers are competitive. Photograph: Carlos Osorio/Reuters

Both of Canadas major rail freight companies have shut down their rail networks in the country and locked out nearly 10,000 workers after unsuccessful negotiations with a major union.

The decision, confirmed by the Teamsters union, sets the stage for an unprecedented rail stoppage that could badly damage the Canadian economy and have a significant effect on cross-border trade with the US.

Canada is the worlds second-largest country by area and relies heavily on rail transport. The stoppage is expected to cripple shipments of grain, potash and coal while also slowing the transport of petroleum products, chemicals and vehicles.

Industry groups had urged Justin Trudeaus Liberal government to prevent a stoppage, noting Canadas railways transport about C$380bn (214bn) worth of goods annually.

Canadian National Rail (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) began lockouts on Thursday morning after tense negotiations following complaints from workers over worsening job conditions failed to produce a deal.

CN confirmed it had moved ahead with the lockout, saying the union did not respond to another offer by CN in a final attempt to avoid a labour disruption. It said: Without an agreement or binding arbitration, CN had no choice but to finalise a safe and orderly shutdown and proceed with a lockout.

The union said: Despite months of good faith negotiations on the part of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, parties remain far apart, and both CN and CPKC have began their lockout of 00:01 today  Despite the lockout, the Teamsters remain at the bargaining table with both companies.

In its announcement, CPKC said: The TCRC [union] leadership continues to make unrealistic demands that would fundamentally impair the railways ability to serve our customers with a reliable and cost-competitive transportation service.

A pause to freight traffic will have cascading effects on Canada and the US. According to the Railway Association of Canada, affected rail carries more than C$1bn worth of goods each day. Nearly half the aviation fuel used at Torontos Pearson airport, Canadas busiest air terminal, arrives by rail. More than 32,000 commuters in Montreal, Vancouver and Toronto rely on the rail network. A strike would also hit the mining, agriculture and retail industries.

The federal labour minister, Steven MacKinnon, said on Wednesday night that he had completed meetings with the companies and the Teamsters union. He called for urgency at the negotiating table and for a deal to be done.

In recent days, the Calgary-based CPKC and Montreal-based CN had started winding down operations. In Canada, both companies, valued at roughly C$100bn each, own virtually all of the rail track in the country and control most of the freight shipment. The country has never experienced a labour stoppage involving both companies simultaneously.

Related: Former Tory rail minister says he understands Labour deal with unions

As the possibility of a strike loomed, industry groups issued a joint statement calling on the government to intervene, saying it has a responsibility to protect the Canadian public and maintain national security, and it is time to act decisively to fulfil that obligation.

MacKinnon last week declined a request from CN and CPKC to move negotiations to binding arbitration. These collective bargaining negotiations belong to CN Rail, CPKC and [Teamsters] workers alone  but their effects will be borne by all Canadians, he said.

On Wednesday, Trudeau said the countrys two main rail companies and the Teamsters union had to settle their differences at the negotiating table, but stopped short of suggesting his government might get involved.

My message is very straightforward. It is in the best interest of both sides to continue doing the hard work at the table to find a negotiated resolution, the prime minister said. Millions of Canadians, of workers, of farmers, of businesses right across the country are counting on both sides to do the work and get to a resolution.

The deputy prime minister, Chrystia Freeland, said: We know that the best deals are reached at the bargaining table, and I am calling with extreme seriousness on the employers and on the union to roll up their sleeves to get a deal done.

The union representing workers at CPKC said the company wanted to gut the collective agreement of all safety-critical fatigue provisions while those with CN said the rail operator wanted work days to be extended in western provinces, potentially creating a fatigue-related safety risk. The unions have cited fatigue management, rest periods and scheduling as key sticking points.

Both companies said offers on the table were competitive and did not compromise safety.

Reuters contributed to this report
An aerial view of Ashaninka territory in Peru. Photograph: Cool Earth

At the beginning, there was a lot of fear and disbelief, said Ketty Marcelo. There was a perception from the communities that this was another scam, that it was only looking to steal information or our integrity.

Indigenous communities in the Amazon have grown weary of people coming in from outside with plans that could mean them losing their land or way of life. When a team from Cool Earth, a climate action NGO, came to the Amazon communities of central Peru in October 2022, local people were hesitant. These fears caused some families not to participate, Marcelo said. And we, as an organisation, were afraid this would be another project that would seek to impose activities without respecting the autonomy of the communities.

But what developed instead was a collaboration between Cool Earth and two all-female Indigenous-led organisations  the National Organisation of Andean and Amazonian Indigenous Women of Peru (Onamiap), of which Marcelo is president, and the Organisation for Indigenous Women of the Central Selva of Peru (Omiaasec).

Together, they created a groundbreaking basic income pilot project to give 2 a day  with no strings attached  to 188 people across three Ashaninka and Yanesha communities in the Avireri-Vraem reserve.

Its the worlds first basic income pilot for Indigenous peoples who live in rainforests with a link to protect the forest and fight the climate crisis, said Isabel Felandro, the global head of programmes for Cool Earth, who leads the organisations work in Peru. There are other basic income initiatives around the world but most are focused on humanitarian or social issues. In the communities we work with, their activities are very linked to the protection of the forest.

She continued: Poverty is the biggest driver of deforestation in these areas. These communities in very remote areas not only face a lack of access to basic needs  healthcare, food, education  but on top of that they face the climate crisis. There are more fires in the forest and more droughts. There are also a lot of illegal economies going into these places: illegal logging, illegal mining and drug cartels. Growing drugs is one of the main drivers of deforestation in the areas of the Amazon where we work.

When people are in urgent need and want to take their children for medical care or to school, sometimes these cycles of poverty lead them to take on roles in those illegal activities, or to sell their land or allow their trees to be cut down. Giving them financial support gives them a choice to have a more sustainable way of living.

The first cash transfer was made in November 2023. A total of 188 people each receive the equivalent of about 2 a day, or about 55 a month. Cool Earth worked with a tech company, AidKit, to facilitate the process, and the pilot will last for two years, with an equivalent of about 245,000 given in total, though the organisation plans to continue the support on an ongoing basis.

Marcelo said: Our organisation has always been critical of how climate funds are allocated. Often the money gets stuck in bureaucratic processes and ends up in the hands of large consulting firms rather than reaching the communities most affected by climate change. But were now seeing a positive shift. Funds are being distributed directly to communities, enabling families to rebuild their livelihoods and protect their land.

Three communities were selected because they were known to have an interest in conservation and reforestation. But each individual who receives the money is free to spend it however they choose. Giving money direct to individuals is seen as faster and more cost-effective than setting up long-term community projects, such as in agriculture.

Felandro said: Cacao or coffee projects create a lot of work and bureaucracy for us. You can skip all [the complication of an agriculture project], give people the income and trust them to make choices to support themselves and their territories. We dont want to create intermediaries or mass bureaucracy. We really give autonomy to people to spend the money how they want. There are no strings attached at all.

Prior to the pilot, nine out of 10 people in the communities reported struggling with a lack of food, and early monitoring shows that has improved. Families have also been able to invest money and dedicate more time to growing crops (cacao, cassava, coffee) for food or to sell.

Were seeing very positive spending, Felandro said. Its mostly to cover basic needs like food, healthcare or sending their kids to school. Some people are already buying seeds and investing in reforestation  they worry about droughts, so theyre reforesting around the spring to maintain their water supply  a communal activity. Fewer families are facing financial stress. With poverty, they had to prioritise other things. But now they can do more conservation activities and rainforest restoration.

Marcelo said: Weve noticed positive changes. Before the pilot, sometimes youre worried about how youll survive tomorrow, what youll eat, or if theres no work. People no longer have to go to work for others, as day labourers, as often. They can devote more time to working on their own plots and spend more time at home with their children. Both the father and mother receive the transfers, allowing them to create small savings, which gives a greater sense of stability and wellbeing.

Anahis, a 20-year-old Ashaninka woman, is using her basic income funds to complete her computer science studies while also cultivating coffee on a small plot. I used the first transfer to help my mum to make some purchases: mattresses, utensils, gas, she said. I also pay my monthly tuition fees. The pilots been very good. Trees are no longer being cut down, people are preserving the trees.

The combined territory of the three communities spans 738 hectares (1,823 acres). Of that, 513 hectares are covered by forest. Tree numbers and deforestation levels will be evaluated at the pilots one-year and two-year points.

Dr Johan Oldekop, a reader in environment and development at Manchester University, who is not involved with the NGO or the pilot, said: Cool Earth are right to focus on supporting Indigenous communities who are at the forefront of forest conservation and some of the most disadvantaged groups of people in the world. However, we have little and mixed evidence on the environmental effects of cash transfers around the world, with some data showing that it can lead to deforestation, as rural families invest cash transfers to expand agricultural production.

Cool Earths pilot is potentially promising but it needs to be carefully evaluated to determine exactly if and how cash transfers can best help both rural communities and the environment in Peru.

Cool Earth hopes the pilot will inspire others to replicate the model and establish basic income programmes for rainforest communities around the world. It is exploring potential collaborations in Papua New Guinea and in the Congo basin in Africa.

Were very confident direct cash projects are the way to go, Felandro said. This idea could apply to Indigenous communities in the whole Amazon and to rainforest communities in other regions of the world.

Scaling up would require significantly more money. Wed love to see a global fund for basic income, Felandro said. We call Indigenous communities the guardians of the rainforest. But theyre often not provided the agency to support the forest. This basic income pilot is about giving them that. The ideal goal is for governments to get involved. We have the Green Climate Fund, with governments and big companies putting money in, but only 0.01% of the money is really reaching Indigenous communities. With a basic income cash transfer, that money could go direct to communities.
Afghan women have been ordered not to speak loudly inside their homes to prevent their voices from being heard outside - Wakil Kohsar/AFP via Getty Images

Afghanistans Taliban has banned women from looking at men and speaking loudly in public and inside their homes.

In a 114-page document of new orders seen by The Telegraph, the regime announced strict measures governing everyday life for Afghan citizens.

It is forbidden for adult women to look at strange men, according to one of the new rules.

Women have also been ordered to cover their faces to avoid temptation and tempting others and refrain from speaking in the presence of unfamiliar men - who are not, for example, husbands or relatives.

The Taliban have ordered women not to speak in the presence of men who are not husbands or relatives - Sanaullah Seiam/AFP

Afghan women have also been ordered not to speak loudly inside their homes to prevent their voices from being heard outside.

The international communitys engagement with the Taliban has emboldened them to further suppress women, Zainab, a former civil servant, told The Telegraph from the capital Kabul.

These are radical individuals in power who refuse to acknowledge our existence, she added.

The new rules, which have mostly targeted female behaviour, make it mandatory for a woman to cover her body at all times in public.

Click here to view this content.

If it is necessary for women to leave their homes, they must cover their faces and voices from men, according to the new rules, approved by the Talibans supreme leader.

In addition, women have been banned from singing or reading the Koran in public and their clothing must not be thin, tight or short.

Arrested and sent to prison

Taxi drivers have been instructed not to transport women without a hijab or those without an adult male guardian.

Playing music in vehicles and allowing the mixing of women with men is explicitly listed among the prohibited actions.

Women who defy the new rules will be arrested and sent to prison, the Taliban said.

'If it is necessary for women to leave their homes, they must cover their faces and voices from men,' say the new rules, approved by the Taliban's supreme leader - Samiullah Popal/Shutterstock

Men are also banned from looking at womens faces in public and wearing tight or short clothing while they are in public or exercising sports. They are also barred from trimming and shaving their beards.

The new rules have sparked an outrage among Afghan women who have already been banned from working with aid agencies, entering parks, restricted travel without a male guardian and numerous other freedoms.

Girls over the age of 12 have also been excluded from education since the Talibans return to power.

A massive cage called Afghanistan

Zainab, who was one of many women who lost their jobs after the Taliban resumed control of the country in 2021, said: Theyve essentially created a massive cage for us called Afghanistan. Im very concerned about what lies ahead.

She added: Theyve threatened to prosecute women without hijabs but they havent clarified what type of hijab they consider acceptable.

Theyre arresting women on the streets and pulling them out of taxis if theyre not accompanied by a male guardian.

Afghan girls over the age of 12 have been excluded from education since the Taliban's return to power - Ebrahim Noroozi/AP

The Taliban set up its ministry for the propagation of virtue and the prevention of vice in the premises of the former womens affairs department in 2021.

In July 2024, a UN report said the ministry was contributing to a climate of fear and intimidation among Afghans through edicts and the methods used to enforce them.

Dragging us back to the stone age

It said the ministrys role was expanding into other areas of public life, including media monitoring and eradicating drug addiction.

Theyre dragging us back to the stone age, said Zainab. Society is no longer normal.
U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, gestures toward the crowd during an award presentation at the North Dallas Chamber on Oct. 4, 2022, in Dallas. Shafkat Anowar/TNS

U.S. Rep. Colin Allred is hitting prime time at the Democratic National Convention.

The Dallas Democrat, looking to knock out U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz in November, confirmed he is on the lineup to speak on the final day of the convention before Vice President Kamala Harris officially accepts the nomination.

Allred spoke earlier on Thursday to Texas delegates at their morning meeting before heading to the United Center in Chicago. The congressman has endorsed Harris but largely avoided talking about her campaign during his events, including on Thursday morning. Allred didnt mention Harris in his short speech to Democrats, and, when asked about the Harris campaign in an interview, quickly shifted the conversation away from the presidential race.

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READ MORE: These are the key Texas Democrats to watch at the DNC in Chicago

The thing I want Texans to know is: Im always talking about Texas and this race because this is the one Im running in, Allred said. But also because that is how I will be in the Senate. I will be putting Texans first.

Cruz blasted Allred on Thursday, saying he has been a rubber stamp for the Biden administration on their border policies. The administration saw a record number of border crossings in Texas over the last two years, though crossings have fallen drastically in Texas and other southern border states this year.

The Biden administration has been nothing short of a full-blown disaster for our southern border, and no one has suffered more than Texas, Cruz said.

While no Democrat has won a U.S. Senate race in Texas since Lloyd Bentsen in 1988, Cruz has been warning supporters hes in a close race. In 2018, Democrat Beto ORourke came within 3 percentage points of defeating Cruz, and the Houston Republican has said Senate Democrats have him as one of their top targets this year.

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Allred wont be the only Texan on the Democratic National Convention lineup on Thursday.

Kimberly Mata-Rubio, whose daughter was killed in the Uvalde school shooting, is expected to speak along with gun violence survivors and gun safety advocates.

Mata-Rubios 10-year-old daughter, Lexi, was one of the 19 children and two teachers killed at Robb Elementary School in May 2022.

U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso, will also be prominently featured throughout the night. Escobar is one of four co-chairs of the Democratic Convention and is expected to emcee segments.

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The Liberal Democrats want to award Taylor Swift the honorary freedom of the City of London - Scott A Garfitt /Invision

The honorary Freedom of the City of London  or Freedom Honoris Causa  is a recognition of the lifetime achievement or high international standing of a figure of global significance. William Pitt the Elder, the sterling orator and standout leader of the Seven Years War, is thought to have been the first notable so rewarded.

More recently, Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela have both found themselves honoured with the right to trade outside the jurisdiction of a feudal lord (alongside the obligatory banquet at the Guildhall or Mansion House). Now the Liberal Democrats  proving their value as a font of good ideas  are suggesting a new name to add to that noble list: Taylor Swift.

The party suggests the pop uber-star deserves Londons thanks for making Wembley home to eight nights of her record-breaking global tour. Her impact on the capitals economy has been estimated at a cool 300 million. Alongside bringing joy to thousands, Sarah Olney, their Treasury bod, suggests Swift has been patching the blank space that the Tories left in Britains economy.

In fairness, Olney also suggests that Swift deserves credit for endless philanthropy  she has donated to food banks whilst on tour  and using her platform to bring reforms to the music industry. Whether those are achievements on a par with smashing the French or ending apartheid, I leave to the reader. But she has certainly sold more concert tickets than those three managed.

Of course, whatever the individual merits of Swifts charitable efforts, GDP impact, or various musical laments over her ex-boyfriends, that the Lib Dems are suggesting this is for a reason much more simple. Just as they have done over waste in rivers and resentment over Brexit from the liberal middle-classes, they are jumping on a bandwagon.

However many times Ed Davey falls into Lake Windermere, he will never match Swifts popularity. But by offering her the Freedom of the City of London, he can hope, for a single news cycle, to paw at the coattails of her fame. Never mind that Swifts legions of teenage fans probably dont vote or care what the Freedom of the City of London is. Lib Dems and Swift in the same sentence is a boon.

But why bother? The Lib Dems have just had an election result beyond their wildest dreams. They surely cant think there is bad blood between them and the electorate if they have just increased their number of MPs by sixfold. Whatever lingering resentment remains, the Coalition years, tuition fees, and Tim Farrons views on marital relations have long since been shaken off.

Yet even with legions of new MPs behind him, Davey confronts a problem he knows all too well. His partys policy prospects is a blank space. The heirs of William Gladstone and David Lloyd George have long since given up being authentic voices for British liberalism. Todays Lib Dems are far more familiar with the National Planning Policy Framework than they are with On Liberty.

This is a problem for Lib Dems. They like to think they are the high-minded alternative to the other two parties: a home for the sensible and principled, unsullied by the horrors of government. But that usually leaves them as an irrelevance. However noble they consider themselves, in practice, they take whichever crowd-pleasing position is required to grub a vote or headline from the big two.

Hence the calls for Swift to be honoured by the Lord Mayor. There might be one or two other individuals in the City who contribute a little more to the UKs economy than a popstar. But they dont attract half as much attention. And when you are as desperate for it as the Liberal Democrats, that is the all that really matters in politics.
Palestinians wait to fill their bottles with clean water in Deir al-Balah, Gaza, on 15 August 2024. Photograph: Abed Rahim Khatib/Anadolu via Getty Images

Israeli attacks on Palestinian water supplies in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip accounted for a quarter of all water-related violence in 2023, as armed conflicts over dwindling resources surged globally, according to new research.

Almost 350 water conflicts were documented worldwide in 2023, a 50% rise on 2022, which was also a record year, according to the Pacific Institute, a California-based non partisan thinktank tracking water violence. The violence included attacks on dams, pipelines, wells, treatment plants and workers, as well as public unrest and disputes over access to water, and the use of water as a weapon of war.

Overall, water-related violence has been rising steadily since 2000 but has surged in recent years as the climate crisis and growing scarcity exacerbate old conflicts over land, ideology and religion, economics and sovereignty, and new ones erupt, according to the Water Conflict Chronology. In 2000, just 20 water conflicts were documented by the tracker.

Regions with major jumps in water violence include Latin America and the Caribbean, a region hit by drought and unequal access to water resources, where year-on-year the number of incidents rose more than threefold to 48 in 2023. In Bolivar, Colombia, police fired guns and teargas to disperse residents protesting a 10-day water outage, injuring four.

Meanwhile in India, severe drought and community disputes over access to irrigation water for farmland drove a 150% increase in water conflicts last year, with 25 incidents including clashes between communities in the neighboring southern states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka over the Cauvery River.

All these cases highlight different aspects of the growing water crisis: the failure to enforce and respect international law; the failure to provide safe water and sanitation for all; and the growing threat of climate change and severe drought, said Peter Gleick, co-founder of the Pacific Institute, an independent research and policy organization which created the conflict tracker in 1985.

There was a massive uptick in violence over water in 2023, widely around the world, but especially in the Middle East.

Water conflicts in the Middle East accounted for 38% of last years total, driven in large part by attacks on Palestinian water supplies and infrastructure in the occupied territories, according to the tracker, which monitors news reports, eyewitness accounts, UN reports and other conflict databases.

Israeli settlers and/or armed forces contaminated and destroyed water wells, pumps and irrigation systems on 90 occasions during 2023  the equivalent of more than seven water-related acts of violence every month.

In Gaza, the water situation was already dire before Israel launched its war in retaliation for the deadly attack by Hamas on 7 October, after which much of the water and wastewater infrastructure in Gaza has been destroyed, damaged or left unusable.

In November, Israeli airstrikes partially destroyed solar panels and other infrastructure providing energy for the EU-supported Gaza Central wastewater treatment plant, which served 1 million people. In another attack, the Israeli military began pumping seawater into Hamass tunnel complex in an effort to destroy the clandestine transport and communications system, an action that risked ruining the basic conditions for life in Gaza  an element of the crime of genocide, a senior hydrologist told the Guardian in December.

In the West Bank, much of the water violence appeared to be linked to the annexation and settlements by Israelis that were ruled unlawful by the international court of justice in a landmark advisory opinion.

In one documented case from September, Israeli settlers from Shaarei Tikva reportedly pumped wastewater on to Palestinian agricultural lands east of Qalqilya, causing damage to olive trees and crops. In another from November, Israeli settlers reportedly demolished homes, a schools water tanks and a water pipeline, and uprooted dozens of young olive trees in the occupied city of Hebron.

Related: Russia and Israel lead global surge in attacks on civilian water supplies

The Israeli foreign ministry has rejected the ICJ ruling as fundamentally wrong and one-sided. The government has been approached for comment.

Meanwhile, the number of water-related attacks in the war between Russia and Ukraine dropped by 26% compared with 2022 but remained high, with 32 reported incidents. This included Russian forces blowing up a dam on the Mokri Yaly River in mid-June 2023, causing flooding on both banks, reportedly to slow down a Ukrainian counteroffensive. In September, power lines and a water main were damaged by Ukrainian forces shelling in Gordeevka, Kursk.

The large increase in these events signals that too little is being done to ensure equitable access to safe and sufficient water and highlights the devastation that war and violence wreak on civilian populations and essential water infrastructure, said Morgan Shimabuku, senior researcher with the Pacific Institute.

The new analysis exposes the increasing risk that climate change adds to already fragile political situations by making access to clean water less reliable in areas of conflict around the world.
Jonathan and Judy Bloomer - Courtesy of family

Jonathan Bloomer, who has died aged 70, was chairman of Morgan Stanley International, former chief executive of the Prudential insurance group  and a defence witness in the US trial in which the tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch was acquitted of fraud.

A well-respected City professional, Bloomer had a reputation for straightforwardness, decency and attention to detail. Colleagues described a gentle, understated man, perhaps more suited to chair and committee roles than to the limelight he attracted during a rollercoaster tenure at Prudential, where he was finance director from 1995 and chief executive from 2000 to 2005.

In the finance role, Bloomer was credited as the analytical brain behind chief executive Sir Peter Daviss strategy of shifting the Pru from traditional insurance towards a broader financial-services profile. Bloomer was praised for his work in takeovers of Scottish Amicable and M&G Investments, the UKs largest unit trust business, and the launch in 1998 of Egg, an internet banking venture.

But after succeeding Davis as chief executive, Bloomer came under fire as the Prus fortunes wobbled. He showed mettle by slashing the companys direct salesforce  reported as the demise of the Man from the Pru  and ambition in an 18 billion bid for the American General insurance firm; but the deal collapsed after an unfavourable stock-market reaction and a higher offer from the US giant AIG.

Amid weak profits and a falling share price, a dividend cut in 2003 proved deeply unpopular with investors, and a rights issue the following year even more so. Bloomer stood accused of flip-flopping between plans to expand in Asia or the UK, while his failure to find a buyer for Egg  which was consuming too much capital  also counted against him. In 2004 he was denied a performance-related bonus and in March 2005 he was abruptly ousted, a day after he had presented a new strategy to investors and analysts.

Bloomer in 2002, during his tenure at the Prudential: he was eventually ousted in 2005 - John Li/Getty Images

Jonathan William Bloomer was born in West Bromwich on March 23 1954, with his twin brother Jeremy, to Derick Bloomer and his wife Audrey, nee Hill.

Educated at Halesowen School, he went on to study physics at Imperial College London, and to qualify as a chartered accountant with Arthur Andersen, joining the partnership in 1987 and rising to be senior partner of its European insurance practice.

After leaving Prudential, Bloomer was a partner in Cerberus, a US private equity firm on whose behalf he launched Lucida, a venture which aimed to take over corporate pension funds and offer annuities to fund members; but it closed for new business in 2012 and its remaining portfolio was sold.

Bloomer was also chairman of Scottish Re in the reinsurance market, senior independent director of the stockbroker and wealth manager Hargreaves Lansdown, and a board member of Railtrack. He was appointed chairman of Morgan Stanley International, the London arm of the Wall Street investment banking giant, in 2018, and of the Hiscox insurance group in 2023.

From September 2010 until its sale to Hewlett-Packard in October 2011, Bloomer was a non-executive director and chairman of the audit committee of the software company Autonomy, where he became a friend of the founding chief executive Mike Lynch. Evidence given by Bloomer in the San Francisco fraud trial was reportedly crucial to Lynchs successful defence.

In the regulatory field, Bloomer chaired the practitioner panel of the Financial Services Authority and was a member of the Panel on Takeovers and Mergers. He was also the treasurer of the NSPCC, and chair of trustees of Caterham School.

Jonathan Bloomer was appointed MBE in 2017.

He married, in 1977, Judy May, who also lost her life in the sinking of the Bayesian in which he died; they are survived by their son James and daughters Helena and Elizabeth.

Jonathan Bloomer, born March 23 1954, death announced August 22 2024

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As of 31 July, 25 Israelis and eight Palestinians held E-class bridging visas in subclass 50 and none in subclass 51, but more people on visitor visas are expected to be transferred to bridging visas while their eligibility for other visa types is assessed. Photograph: James Ross/AAP

The federal government has extended work rights and Medicare access to some visa-holders from Gaza and Israel as it prepares to shift those who arrived on visitor visas since the 7 October attacks on to bridging visas.

Without public announcement, the government issued a regulation on 5 August extending Medicare access to people holding two subclasses of bridging visa E who had already been granted work rights, and also to immediate family members who are also visa-holders.

The measure took effect a week later, on 12 August. The regulation specifies it applies specifically to people from Israel and people from the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

Issued by a departmental delegate of the health minister, the legislative instrument affects subclasses 50 and 51. The first subclass is issued while people either finalise their immigration status or make preparations to leave. The second allows those who have applied for a protection visa to stay while their application is processed.

The measure is part of the Australian Governments response to provide additional assistance to those from significantly affected areas of Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories impacted by the Hamas-Israel conflict (and their immediate family members on a Bridging Visa E), the written instrument says.

The bridging visa E subclasses do not automatically come with work or Medicare entitlements but the minister is able to direct that they be added. Work rights had already been added for the two subclasses, as indicated in the new health instrument, and Guardian Australia understands that access to interpreter services has also, separately, been added.

A spokesperson for the home affairs minister, Tony Burke, declined to comment on the addition of entitlements to the bridging visa conditions.

The government has confirmed that between 7 October last year and 12 August, 2,922 visas were issued to people from the Palestinian territories. Of those, only 1,300 people have been able to reach Australia to date. Another 7,111 applications were rejected. While no reasons have been given publicly, rejection can be on security grounds but may also be due to a lack of demonstrated connection to Australia or an assessed high risk of overstaying.

Between 7 October 2023 and 31 July 2024, the Department of Home Affairs cancelled 43 of the Palestinian visitor visas it had issued to people from Gaza who were still offshore. Subsequently, 20 had their cancellations revoked.

In the same period, 8,746 visas were granted to Israeli citizens, most being visitor visas, with 235 applications refused. Nine issued visas were cancelled and none reinstated.

In parliament on Thursday, the deputy opposition leader, Sussan Ley, asked if there had been any ministerial intervention in support of reinstating any of the 20 restored Palestinian visas.

All decisions were made by the department, Burke responded.

The accepted Palestinian applicants were issued visitor visas, which are available to people with established and provable family ties in Australia. These are different to tourist visas, for which family ties are not required.

Figures obtained by Guardian Australia indicate that as of 31 July, only 25 Israelis and eight Palestinians held E-class bridging visas in subclass 50 and there were none holding subclass 51.

Related: Abul Rizvi accuses Coalition of misusing his words on Gaza visas and calls national security claims rubbish

However, as visitor visas are issued for a limited time and cannot be rolled over, and none of the visa-holders from Gaza can currently return, many more of those currently on visitor visas are expected to be transferred to bridging visas while their eligibility for other types of visas is assessed. Bridging visas can be extended.

The former immigration deputy secretary Abul Rizvi has queried why the government chose not to create a special category of humanitarian visa for people arriving from Gaza after Israel launched retaliatory attacks on the Hamas-run territory following the terrorist attacks.

When people were accepted from Afghanistan after coalition forces withdrew and the Taliban regained control in 2021, the government created a special class 449 visa for those with connections to Australia, either through family or employment with Australian military forces or in other government-contracted positions. However 449 visas must be personally granted by the minister, while visitor visas are issued through the department.

It is unclear why the Albanese government chose not to take that step initially, although government sources have suggested it is still considering that option.
There are ordinary humans behind those riot shields. Photograph: Peter Powell/AFP/Getty Images

As a retired police officer, I wait with interest to find out where Keir Starmer is going to find the officers to guard prisoners held in police cells because jails are full (Report, 18 August). Those being dragged out on their rest days to ensure there are no more riots were the ones at the bottom of the magic policing barrel, I believe. Policing is challenging at the best of times; there are ordinary humans behind those riot shields, and they cant go on cementing the holes in society indefinitely.

Amanda Hurd

Halifax, West Yorkshire

 Ukip was not the first political party to hold a conference in Skegness (Five British seaside towns with hidden histories, 20 August). For at least 30 years, the Labour party held its East Midlands regional conference there every February, and I can attest to the resorts slogan Skegness is so bracing. We always received a warm welcome, and it is well worth a visit by your readers.

Roy Kennedy

Chief whip, House of Lords

 Oh lord. Youve done it now. Youve told everyone that Donald Trump is not the tallest US president in history (Trivia corner, G2, 22 August). Given his obsession with size, hell be livid.

Sue Ball

Brighton, East Sussex

 You say you incorrectly misspelled Nicholas Le Prevosts surname (Corrections and clarifications, 18 August). How would you correctly misspell it?

Jeanne Warren

Garsington, Oxfordshire

 2B (Archaeologists uncover Shakespeare doorway in Norfolk theatre, 20 August)?

Jude Carr

London

 Do you have a photograph youd like to share with Guardian readers? If so, please click here to upload it. A selection will be published in our Readers best photographs galleries and in the print edition on Saturdays.
Melbourne lord mayor Nicholas Reece says that if re-elected he will introduce incentives for developers to turn empty office buildings into flats. Photograph: ymgerman/Getty Images/iStockphoto

Victorias planning minister says she is open to speaking to councils that want to convert offices into apartments after Melbournes lord mayor touted the idea as a way to boost housing supply.

Nicholas Reece told the Age on Thursday that if voted in at Octobers council elections he would introduce incentives to encourageturning office buildings into apartments.

The idea was included in the Victorian governments housing statement last year but industry experts have that warned retrofitting offices is a costly and difficult undertaking.

It comes as the Victorian government on Thursday unveiled a plan to fast-track planning approvals for housing developments up to 20-storeys high in 10 hubs across metropolitan Melbourne, close to transport, shops and schools.

Reece said if re-elected as lord mayor he would refund planning permits and building permit application fees where 100 apartments were created in office buildings. He said reduced council rates and a 30% increase in building height for the development would be other incentives.

Reece told Guardian Australia reducing the embodied carbon  emitted during the construction of a building  was a key advantage of repurposing offices.

Asked about the lord mayors proposal, the Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, said transforming office buildings into homes was more complex than what first meets the eye.

Related: Victorias premier unveils new housing targets for construction of 2.5m new homes by 2051

The planning minister, Sonya Kilkenny, said it was possible some office buildings could be knocked down instead of retrofitted but this was a matter for developers.

Im not ruling anything in or out of whats on the table, she said. If other local councils want to look at and investigate options and opportunities for this, Im very willing to chat to them about how it can happen.

The proposal came after the Property Council last year identified 86 buildings in Melbournes central business district suitable for conversion. The housing statement, released in September, estimated that the conversion of old and under-used office buildings could result in 10,000 to 12,000 apartments and mixed-used properties.

Jago Dodson, a professor of urban policy at RMIT, said office buildings were typically not designed with conversion to residential-use in mind.

That includes depth of buildings, height and utilities within the building such as elevators, electrical, sewerage, he said.

But Dodson said the

idea was certainly worthwhile investigating if it could boost Melbournes housing supply.

Brendan Coates, the housing and economic security program director at the Grattan Institute, said it was a good idea in principle but remained unproven.

Allan said a working group, which included the City of Melbourne, was considering how under-utilised offices could be turned into apartments.

Under the pilot program to fast-track planning approvals in 10 priority areas, the wait time will drop from up to five years to 12 months. Developments of townhouses and apartments up to six storeys high will be encouraged.

Allan said the height rules would vary to suit the local character and needs of different communities.

The ranges vary from six storeys near Camberwell Junction to 20 storeys in Ringwood.

The 10 hubs, as previously announced, are: Broadmeadows, Camberwell Junction, Chadstone, Epping, Frankston, Moorabbin, Niddrie (Keilor Road), North Essendon, Preston (High Street) and Ringwood. The plans aim to create an extra 60,000 homes across the areas by 2051.

Kilkenny said the plans would help the community understand what the activity areas would look like over the next 20 to 30 years.

Whats important is getting homes in the right places and the right types of homes in those places as well, she said. This is all about making sure that we can get more Victorians living in these wonderful, connected local neighbourhoods where there is such terrific access to public transport, to jobs and to services.

The plans will be open for community feedback until 29 September.

In June the Allan government announced proposed housing targets for local government areas, which it said could lead to the construction of 2.5m new homes by 2051.

The housing statement included the plan to build 800,000 homes over the next decade. The then premier, Daniel Andrews, described it as the most comprehensive shake-up of one of the most important policy areas in decades.

Critics said the proposed policies would make it easier for developers to bypass opposition from local government and community groups.
Lynch (2019): he wore his intelligence lightly and enjoyed playing jazz saxophone - Yui Mok/PA Wire

Mike Lynch, who has died aged 59, was one of the UKs most successful digital entrepreneurs, as a co-founder of Autonomy, a Cambridge-based software business which he sold for $11 billion to Hewlett-Packard of the US  only to find himself accused of criminal fraud in relation to the terms of the sale. Extradited to face trial in California, he was eventually, and most unusually in the US justice system, acquitted of all charges.

Lynch was sometimes referred to as the British Bill Gates. Autonomy, founded in 1996 by Lynch and two partners, was a forerunner of the big data revolution as a pioneer of search technologies in unstructured data sources such as emails, voicemails and videos. A flagship of Silicon Fen, the cluster of innovative, science-based businesses that grew up on the outskirts of Cambridge, it floated on the London Stock Exchange in 2000 with Lynch as its chief executive and a valuation of 4 billion.

The 2011 takeover of Autonomy by the US IT giant Hewlett Packard (HP) for $11 billion  a premium of some 80 per cent to its then stock-market value  reaped a fortune of more than half a billion pounds for Lynch but drew him into a legal entanglement that would consume 12 years of his life. Following senior management changes, HP claimed it had been sold a fraudulent package, wrote off $9 billion of Autonomys value and initiated proceedings against Lynch and other Autonomy executives.

Lynch with a sculpture made from dice in 2000 - Justin Sutcliffe

Lynchs initial stance was that, as he was a British citizen running a London-listed UK company any charge against him should be heard in a British court.

The UK Serious Fraud Office examined the file, and dropped it on grounds of insufficient evidence, but US prosecutors pressed their case under the 2003 UK-US extradition treaty (conceived in the Blair-Bush era as an anti-terror measure) in which it was sufficient for the US merely to assert allegations rather than provide prima facie evidence when seeking an extradition from the UK.

Once the then Home Secretary, Priti Patel, had finally approved the extradition in January 2022, many observers believed Lynch was destined for a long stay in an American prison cell.

Only one in eight US fraud prosecutions ends in acquittal  most defendants resorting to plea-bargaining in the face of insuperable legal costs  and the same judge in the same courtroom had already convicted Autonomys finance director of parallel charges.

Lynchs defence was, first, that he himself had never been closely involved in the detail of the deal  and most importantly that HP executives had themselves destroyed Autonomys value by mishandling an acquisition they did not properly understand.

But a civil fraud case brought by HP in the High Court in London (which remains to be settled) had already found against him, and after further appeals failed, Lynch was flown to San Francisco in May 2023 and held under house arrest, at his own expense, until his trial began in March this year.

Lynch in 2001, the year after Autonomy floated on the London Stock Exchange - Marina Imperi

As it proceeded, Lynch was sufficiently self-confident (an attribute he had never lacked) to face his accusers from the witness box. But his fate looked sealed as the prosecution called witness after witness to present complex accounting details while the judge excluded key evidence of disagreement within HP as to the real reasons for the Autonomy write-down.

At one stage, Lynchs lawyers petitioned for a mistrial after the prosecutor asked what they claimed were highly improper questions intended to prejudice the jury against Lynch by highlighting his personal wealth.

Nevertheless, Lynch himself said later that he began to sense the mood of the court shifting his way. In the end, the jury threw out all 15 charges against him and Lynchs lawyers spoke of a resounding rejection of the [US] governments profound overreach.

Michael Richard Lynch was born in Ilford, Essex, on June 16 1965 to Irish parents; his father Michael was a firefighter while his mother Dolores was a nurse. Educated on a scholarship to Bancrofts School in Woodford, he went on to study natural sciences at Christs College, Cambridge, and completed a PhD in the field of neural networks, with a thesis entitled Adaptive techniques in signal processing and connectionist models.

While still a doctoral student, Lynch created a first business designing audio products for the music industry. In 1991 he founded Cambridge Neurodynamics, which specialised in computer-based fingerprint recognition and from which Autonomy was one of several spin-offs.

Lynch in 2011, when Autonomy was bought by Hewlett Packard - Simon Dawson/Bloomberg

After the sale of Autonomy, Lynch used part of the proceeds to establish a venture capital partnership, Invoke Capital, through which he backed other innovative start-ups. Among these was Darktrace, a cyber security company founded in 2013 and listed on the London stock exchange in 2021. A recent takeover offer from a US private equity group valued the stake held by Lynch and his wife in Darktrace at almost 300 million.

Lynch returned to England after his acquittal exhausted by the experience but to meet something of a heros welcome: one columnist called him a hostage released from the ruthless clutch of US justice. He was under no illusion that he had only been able to prove his innocence because, unlike other British defendants lifted across the Atlantic under the controversial treaty, he had a fortune which enabled him to afford limitless legal costs.

The reason Im sitting here, lets be honest, he told the BBC on his return, is not only because I was innocent... but because I had enough money not to be swept away by a process thats set up to sweep you away.

He was a non-executive director of the BBC from 2007 to 2012, a board member of the British Library and the Crick Institute, a trustee of Nesta, a foundation which supports innovation for social good, and a Fellow of the Royal Society. He was appointed OBE in 2006.

In private life Lynch was a devoted family man and a popular figure in Suffolk, where he was a deputy lieutenant of the county, a generous supporter of charities and a keeper of rare-breed cattle on his estate near Woodbridge. He wore his intelligence lightly and was at ease among neighbours who remained strongly supportive throughout his legal ordeal. He also enjoyed playing jazz saxophone.

Lynch died after his yacht Bayesian sank in a freak tornado off the coast of Sicily; his 18-year-old daughter Hannah also died. His wife Angela Bacares, whom he married in 2001, survived the disaster; their elder daughter Esme, who was not reported to have been on board, also survives him.

Mike Lynch, born June 16 1965, death reported August 22 2024

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A false-colour image of monkeypox particles (red) found within an infected cell - National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a global health emergency over a new strain of mpox that is spreading rapidly in Africa.

Thousands of cases of the disease  formerly known as monkeypox  and hundreds of deaths have already been reported in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) this year.

In recent weeks, infections have begun to spread to other neighbouring countries across East and Central Africa. Scientists are particularly concerned by how fast the new variant of the disease is spreading, and by its high fatality rate.

Heres everything you need to know about the virus that has set alarm bells ringing.

What is mpox?

Mpox is a viral infection that spreads through close contact. It was first identified at the Statens Serum Institut in Copenhagen in 1958, when scientists noticed outbreaks of a pox-like disease in monkeys being kept for research.

The first human case was not confirmed until 1970, when a nine-year-old boy living in the DRC developed a nasty rash that reminded doctors of smallpox.

Scientists have identified two major strains  or clades  of mpox in Africa.

Clade 1 is endemic to Central Africa and is the most deadly strain of the disease. Clade 2, responsible for the 2022 outbreak that spread globally, is endemic to West Africa. It is milder and less infectious and 99.9 per cent of people infected survive.

The strain driving the current outbreak is known as clade 1b, which has a higher mortality rate than the strain which prompted the first emergency in 2022  thought to be as high as five per cent in adults and 10 per cent in children.

Clade 1b emerged in September last year, with the first cases found in sex workers in the DRC mining town of Kamituga, around 170 miles from the border with Rwanda.

The WHO renamed monkeypox in 2022 to restrain what it called racist and stigmatising language surrounding the infection.

Skin lesions on the arms and torso of a person infected with mpox - CDC/BRIAN W.J. MAHY/REUTERS

What are the symptoms?

Children and adolescents have been most affected in the outbreak thats now spreading in Africa, where more than 60 per cent of known fatal cases are under the age of five. In the 2022 global outbreak, the first symptoms of mpox included a high temperature or fever, headaches, muscle aches, swollen glands and exhaustion.

Between one to five days after the first symptoms, a rash usually appears on the face before spreading to other parts of the body including the genitals and anus. The rash begins as raised spots, which grow into lesions filled with fluid. The lesions can be excruciatingly painful, until the healing phase, when they begin to crust and cause intense itching.

The infection typically lasts two to four weeks, according to the WHO, and patients remain infectious until the symptoms start to heal. Some people with mpox have experienced blood in their stools and pain in the rectum. In severe cases, a person can die after developing pneumonia or a bacterial infection of the lesions, leading to sepsis.

The severity of disease is often determined by the variant. Mortality is higher among children and young adults and people with weak immune systems, particularly those with HIV, are especially vulnerable to severe disease. Infection during pregnancy puts the mother at severe risk, along with the threat of congenital infection and pregnancy loss.

Rare complications include inflammation of the heart muscle and brain, as well as seizures. Lesions can cause blindness if they develop on the eyelids.

Mpox spread: Where have infections been confirmed?

Check this map to see which countries have confirmed cases of the more dangerous strain.

Mpox transmission

The current variant, clade 1, is reported to be spreading rapidly through sexual contact, similar to the milder strain known as clade 2b that blew over in 2022. It was reported in June that 29 per cent of confirmed cases of the new strain were among sex workers.

However, mpox isnt considered a sexually transmitted disease, because it also spreads via other forms of close contact, such as skin-to-skin contact or sharing towels, clothing or bedding with someone who has the virus. This can put healthcare workers in particular at risk. The virus can also spread during pregnancy to the foetus, during or after birth through skin-skin contact.

The pathogen enters the body through broken skin, the respiratory tract or the mucous membranes in the eyes, nose, mouth, rectum and anus. There have been some reports that mpox can be spread through coughing and sneezing, although experts stress there is not yet enough evidence to show that the virus is able to spread via respiratory routes.

A health worker collects a sample from a child suspected of being infected with mpox - Arlette Bashizi/REUTERS

It is also still unclear if the virus can spread through bodily fluids during sex, experts have said. During the first major outbreak in 2022, the virus mostly spread among communities of gay men. The new variant appears to be more transmissible, and is reportedly infecting many people without sexual contact.

The emergence of a new mutant strain, or clade, is concerning as it indicates the virus is adapting and getting better at spreading from person to person. In parts of Africa, people who come into physical contact with an animal that carries the virus can develop mpox.

The main animal source of the disease hasnt been identified, but infected rodents are suspected of playing a key part in transmission. The virus can also be caught through eating contaminated bushmeat which is not cooked thoroughly.

What is a global health emergency and why was one declared?

A public health emergency of international concern or PHEIC is the WHOs highest form of alert.

They are declared when diseases are spreading in new or unusual ways, and are aimed at galvanising international co-operation and funding to tackle an outbreak.

The WHOs declaration follows a similar label from the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention earlier this week.

Speaking after the emergency was declared, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the potential for further spread within Africa and beyond is very worrying.

A coordinated international response is essential to stop this outbreak and save lives, he said.

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When was the last global mpox outbreak?

Mpox was last declared a PHEIC in May 2022, when it triggered outbreaks in more than 100 countries across the world that had never reported mpox before.

It marked a significant departure from the diseases typical pattern of spread in central and western Africa, where people are mainly infected by wild rodents and primates and outbreaks have not spilled across borders.

Around 100,000 cases of the virus were recorded by August this year, with over 200 deaths.

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Can it be treated?

Most cases of mpox usually mean only mild illness and many people recover within a few weeks. Treatments are mainly aimed at relieving symptoms.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says smallpox vaccine, antivirals and vaccinia immune globulin can be used to treat mpox as well as control it.

Is there an mpox vaccine yet?

There are three vaccines which protect against mpox  MVA-BN (made by Bavarian Nordic), LC16 (made by KM Biologics) and OrthopoxVac (which is licensed in Russia).

All of these shots originated as vaccines protecting against smallpox. The two viruses are very closely linked, and some experts have hypothesised that mpox has flourished because of falling immunity to smallpox - which was wiped out in 1980, following a global vaccination campaign.

The two most commonly used shots currently are MVA-BN and LC16; during the global outbreak of clade 2 mpox, it was the former that was deployed in Britain, under the brand name Imvanex.

The DRC, where the more dangerous strain dubbed clade 1 is spreading, it was only in May that MVA-BN and LC16 were finally approved for general use. Only LC16 has been approved in children, who have been badly hit by the current outbreak.

Vials of mpox vaccine. All three of the main vaccines for the virus originated as shots against smallpox - PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP

When will the DRC get more vaccines?

Health authorities in the DRC have said they will need around 3.5 million doses to protect its population, though supplies in the vast country remain extremely limited.

Several countries, including the US, Japan, and France, have said they will donate doses from their own stockpiles, and it is expected the jabs will reach the DRC as soon as next week.

The global vaccine group Gavi has also said it had up to $500 million to spend on getting shots to countries affected by the escalating outbreak.

The African Union has approved $10.4 million of emergency funding for the African Centre for Disease Controls efforts to curb mpox, which said it aimed to secure three million doses of vaccine this year.

Yet sources involved in planning the countrys rollout told Reuters that just 65,000 doses were likely to be available in the short term, with vaccination campaigns unlikely to begin until at least October.

Other elements need to be hashed out too: who will get the vaccine? How will it be distributed? Can it be used as a prophylaxis  meaning it could be given in a targeted way to the contacts of mpox patients.

Do the vaccines work against all clades?

Yes  tentatively. According to the European Centre for Disease Control, data on clade-specific vaccine effectiveness is currently limited  much of the evidence links to clade two after it lapped the globe.

But public health experts say that, because the two strains are 90 per cent similar, they expect the vaccine to work against clade one.

And in a recent podcast for the Infectious Disease Society of America Dr Agam Rao, an mpox expert at the CDC said one small study from the agency suggested that the shots do produce a good immune response and appeared to protect health care workers in an area highly endemic for clade one.

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Former first minister Nicola Sturgeon

There is no more pitiful a monument to the SNPs utter inability to govern than the tragic statistic that maintains Scotlands position at the top of the European league table when it comes to drug deaths.

The figure rose by 12 per cent in a year  up to 1172 deaths in 2023 compared with 1054 the year before. Thats the equivalent of more than three deaths every single day of the year.

Its a dismal and dreadful statistic, which is why the nationalists response to their own failure has been two-pronged. Their first, inevitable and predictable knee-jerk reaction, when these figures continued to rise while the SNP held the levers of power over police and health services in Scotland, was to blame the UK government. That alone was an indication that the SNP is far from being a serious party.

What mindset can possibly prevail among ministers at Holyrood if they imagine that trotting out the same old excuse that is deployed in every other area of policy failure can be used to excuse the unnecessary deaths of more than a thousand Scots each year?

Yet they persist in this awful, cynical attempt at avoiding the responsibility they campaigned so hard to achieve in successive elections. The UK framework on drugs  an area that remains reserved to Westminster and should, we must all hope, remain there  was to blame for the Scottish Governments inability to reduce the death toll.

Yet this excuse was even easier to dismantle than in any other area where the SNP have blamed the UK for their failure: if drug legislation was to blame, why were we not seeing similar levels of drug deaths in every other part of the UK where the same laws applied?

To this, the SNP had no answer. Claims that Scotlands health service and local government support networks were underfunded because of Westminster austerity could be as easily dismissed, given the generous settlement bestowed on Scotland by the Barnett Formula, in comparison with English regions of the UK.

With no one buying their excuses, the SNP were forced to try to use the power bestowed on them by the electorate to actually change things. On January 21, 2021, then first minister Nicola Sturgeon brought to bear all of the rhetorical flourish and emoting for which she was known: Every single one [of those who had died from drug misuse in 2019]  1264 in total  was a human being with dreams and aspirations, talent and potential. They were all someones mother, father, daughter, son, brother, sister. Each of them left a hole in the lives of those who loved them.

They mattered. And while we cant help them now, we must do much more to make sure others dont suffer the same fate.

Responsibility, Sturgeon told the Scottish Parliament, rests  first and foremost  with government. Note: not with the government, nor with the Scottish Government, but simply with government, safely allowing blame for the scandal to be spread further afield than Edinburgh.

We can and we will find the ways to stop this happening. Doing so requires a national mission to end what is currently a national disgrace.

Sturgeon is now safely out of government and for the last 18 months has divided her time between Holyroods back benches, various book festivals and police interrogation rooms. So she need no longer fear that she will have to take the blame for the failures of the administration she once ran with an obsessive degree of control.

Her party has already learned the political lesson from its failure in this area: drug deaths and misuse have a devastating impact on families and communities, but this continuing scandal  and it is a scandal  has virtually no resonance when it comes to the ballot box. The SNP sailed to more than one convincing victory at the devolved elections even as outraged opinion excoriated ministers for the needless loss of life to addiction. The truth that is rarely repeated in polite circles is that the kind of people who fall victim to illegal drug misuse, and the families from which they come, rarely even bother voting. So while sympathetic rhetoric is not nearly enough to address the problem, it is usually enough to get a party through to the other side of polling day.

This is the central failure, not only of the SNP but the entire devolution project. A party with only one priority  independence  finds itself without direction and purpose when dealing with any other issue. And a parliament that was intended to provide Scottish solutions to Scottish problems is reduced to providing Scottish excuses instead, even as the bodies pile up.

Politics is about choices. The SNP made their choice  one that was repeatedly endorsed by the Scottish electorate  that it would serve in government only in order to advance the independence cause. Those efforts came to a conclusion with the referendum of 2014, and everything since then has been little more than performative outrage at the SNPs own failures.

But failure in its mission to rewrite the UK constitution is one thing. Failure in the delivery of services and policies that will prevent the needless deaths of more than a thousand Scots a year is unforgivable. Sturgeons national mission to end the disgrace of Scotlands drug death toll has, like so many of her other much-lauded missions, failed.

And the cost is far greater than any of us can afford to pay.
A Ukrainian serviceman patrols in the town of Sudzha, part of the occupied area of Kursk - Yan Dobronosov/REUTERS

Vladimir Putins regime has launched a propaganda campaign describing the presence of Ukrainian troops on Russian soil as the new normal.

The Kremlins messaging is directed at the local Russian population and suggests that Moscow expects the surprise occupation of its territory to last for months.

As Ukraine expands its military gains in the Kursk region, the Russian government has been trying to downplay the significance of the incursion, which began more than two weeks ago.

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The new propaganda effort is designed to paint the occupation as the new normal to settle the public mood, the independent Russian outlet Meduza reported, citing government sources.

The use of the word normal is reassuring, even if it is expected to be temporary, the Meduza report argued.

Moscow has also been trying to justify its continued military focus on eastern Ukraine, where Russia is still advancing, over the expulsion of Ukrainian troops in Kursk.

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It comes as tracking via satellite imagery shows new fortifications, such as anti-vehicle ditches and trenches, being installed on the Russia side of the border.

Russia has also begun installing concrete shelters in Kursk city, 75 miles from the occupied town of Sudzha, with more planned for other cities in the region.

According to Ukraine, its forces are still advancing in Kursk, having now reached as far as 22 miles into the region and controlling 93 settlements.

As Ukraine expands its military gains in the Kursk region, Vladimir Putin has been trying to downplay the significance of the incursion - Gavriil Grigorov/REUTERS

Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, has stated that the goal is to create a buffer zone inside Russia.

The digging of bunkers is a good indication that Russia is expecting Ukraines occupation to continue for some time, Konrad Muzyka, an independent defence analyst and the director of Rochan Consulting, told the Telegraph.

Ukrainian forces are yet to set up defensive lines, a US official told ABC News on Wednesday.

A recent Russian opinion poll found that public anxiety had spiked since the Kursk operation, with 45 per cent of respondents reporting anxious moods in society.

A destroyed border checkpoint, with a damaged sign directing to Russia and Ukraine - Libkos/Getty Images Europe

However, Jade McGlynn, a research fellow at Kings College London and the author of Russias War, said that it was still at manageable levels and mainly contained to the border regions.

The Kremlin strongly believes that it can get the public to accept almost anything, she said, because there is widespread apathy and depoliticisation in Russia.

Most Russians are not happy about whats happening, but they also are not that invested if it is a long way from where they are, Ms McGlynn said.

The message is: There is nothing for you to see here, just get on with your life, she added.

Russians shelter in a basement in the town of Sudzha - AP Photo

In contrast to the reaction to Russias invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, when Ukrainians quickly mobilised for the war effort, there have been no patriotic surge from locals in Kursk.

Putin has not been humiliated, yet there is also not enough anger at the Ukrainian operation to persuade people to join the fight, Ms McGlynn said.

If you listen to people in Kursk, they blame Nato, Ukraine or international powers. This is a reflection of how successful Russian propaganda is at painting the war as an extension of an East-West struggle, said Muzyka.

Many already believe that it is not Ukraine under attack, but Russia, that this is a defensive war. The Kursk operation feeds into that.

A damaged Lenin monument in Sudzha - AP Photo

Domestic propaganda has attempted to paint it as a Western operation run by mercenaries and to redirect their fears towards humanitarian support for Kursk residents.

Meanwhile, the messaging has focused on Russian successes in Donbas, where its forces continue to advance.

Alexei Smirnov, the acting governor of Kursk, said that 133,190 people had left or been evacuated from the region.

Putin has said that Moscow will deliver a worthy response to the Kursk incursion, which he has described as a major provocation.

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Cynthia Lee Fontaine, aka Carlos Diaz Hernandez, of RuPauls Drag Race fame, performs during a Equality Advocacy Day rally at the State Capitol, Monday, March 20, 2023. Jerry Lara/San Antonio Express-News

The Texas Department of Public Safety will no longer allow Texans to change the sex on their drivers license  even if they have a court order.

Texas now joins a number of conservative states that have set new policies that aim to block or make it more difficult for transgender people to adjust their driver's licenses to reflect their gender identity, including Florida, Kansas and Missouri. Some of those have drawn legal challenges.

In a statement Wednesday, the department said that as of the previous day, the agency will no longer comply with court orders mandating the change to driver's licenses after Attorney General Ken Paxton's office raised concerns about their validity.

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The department said that was because "neither DPS nor other government agencies are parties to the proceedings" and because officials have questions about the legal basis for courts to issue the orders. The department and attorney general's office plan to initiate a "comprehensive legal review," the statement said.

A spokesperson for Paxton's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Sheri Gipson, the chief of the driver's license division at the DPS, first confirmed the move to the Texas Newsroom.

The DPS website previously stated that anyone seeking to change their gender could bring an original certified court order or an amended birth certificate verifying the change, according to an archived version of the site. That language could no longer be found on the site as of Wednesday.

Brad Pritchett, interim CEO of the LGBTQ advocacy group Equality Texas, said the new policy denies trans people the minimum respect of having a state ID that reflects their identity and will hurt more than 92,000 transgender adults in Texas.

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We use our IDs to navigate all areas of life  driving, voting, employment. Having an ID that reflects who you are is a basic form of dignity that many take for granted, Pritchett said. Every Texan deserves privacy, respect, and safety.

The policy change comes after Paxton in 2022 asked for data from DPS on transgender Texans who requested changes on their licenses, according to the Washington Post. The agency at the time said it advised Paxtons office that the requested data did not exist or could not be accurately produced and that therefore it did not provide any.
Nigel Farage currently owns 53 per cent of shares in Reform UK - Hollie Adams/REUTERS

Reform UK members will soon have the ability to remove Nigel Farage as leader if they wish to do so, the partys chairman has said.

Zia Yusuf confirmed Reform is working on a formal constitution which will democratise and professionalise the party.

Reform was registered with Companies House in 2018 and Mr Farage owns 53 per cent of shares in the company, with Richard Tice, his deputy, owning 33 per cent.

Asked about its current structure, Mr Yusuf told GB News: We will change that. And let me be clear, Nigel Farage and Richard Tice have been on the record multiple times before the election and after the election saying yes, of course, that will change.

The history here if you know the history for example for Ukip, that unfortunately turned into an ungovernable circus, to put it kindly. So we can only do one thing at a time.

We, of course, understand that members need to be given a democratic set of rights in our constitution

That constitution is an incredibly important document. We are chartering a course to be a party of government in 2029.

So that document must be fit for purpose today, for the next year, but also for when were in government, so we have to get that document right.

Zia Yusuf, who who became Reform UK's chairman last month - Hollie Adams/REUTERS

Pressed on whether the constitution will allow members to remove their party leader if they wished to do so, Mr Yusuf replied: Of course it will.

He added: We have some of the finest legal minds in the country working day and night, round the clock like most of our team, to draft the document.

Nigel and Richard have been really clear that thats going to be a priority for us after the election, and thats what were working on.

Mr Farage has previously vowed Reform will democratise over time. Parties are usually formed as unincorporated associations, with memberships, rather than corporate entities.

In practice, the MP for Clacton is unlikely to face any form of mutiny from his members.

A YouGov poll conducted in June after his return to the political fray found 94 per cent of Reform supporters have a favourable view of Mr Farage.

A survey earlier this month found 25 per cent of the public is favourable towards Mr Farage, while 67 per cent hold an unfavourable view of him.

No longer a pressure group

Earlier this week, Ben Habib, a former co-deputy leader of Reform, said that he was worried about the future of the party and warned it must be properly democratic.

He argued it was not healthy for Mr Farage to have absolute control as a majority shareholder, telling Times Radio: I fear for the future of Reform UK, if it isnt properly democratised.

You cant stand for a democratic entity, that is the United Kingdom, [and] celebrate and champion that democracy, if the party through which you wish to do it isnt itself democratic.

Mr Yusuf, who became Reforms chairman last month, said that the party was no longer a pressure group and instead a serious force after winning more than four million votes at the general election.

We are going to be a formidable force in British politics, he added. We are going to be durable and we are going to be here to stay.

We are going to be using modern technology and most importantly we are going to be hoping to manifest and convert all that energy and support into victory at the ballot box.
One in 10 of the 1,451 calls mentioning physical punishment to the NSPCC helpline in the year to March 2024 were from children. Photograph: MBI/Alamy

Concerns raised to the NSPCC helpline about children being physically punished have more than tripled in a year, the charity has said.

Helpline staff heard about children being hit, slapped and shaken, with 45% of the concerns raised requiring a referral to social services, the police or other agencies.

The number of calls and emails to the helpline where physical punishment was mentioned jumped from 447 in the year to March 2023 to 1,451 in the subsequent 12 months.

More than half the total contacts to the helpline were from members of the public concerned about a parents behaviour, while one in 10 were from children themselves.

Professionals who work with children directly also reached out for support from the helpline, the NSPCC added.

Sir Peter Wanless, chief executive at the NSPCC, described the rise as hugely concerning, and renewed calls for the government to change the law.

Wales made any type of corporal punishment  including smacking, hitting, slapping and shaking  illegal in March 2022, while Scotland introduced a similar ban in November 2020.

Earlier this year, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health called for a UK-wide ban on smacking, saying the current law in England and Northern Ireland had created grey areas, which meant there was sometimes a defence to physical punishment.

Wanless said: The new UK government have an opportunity to show they are committed to child protection and remove this legal anomaly which would end the use of physical punishment across the UK once and for all.

In 2022, the then opposition leader, Keir Starmer, called on other areas of the UK to follow Wales in banning the smacking of children.

Speaking at the time, he said: What it [the ban] does is give children the protection that adults already have, and that is the right thing.

One adult who called the NSPCC helpline said: I just left after visiting my friend and their three-year-old boy. Their son was messing around a bit and when he wouldnt stop the dad pulled him over his knee and smacked him twice. I must have looked shocked because his dad said its OK because he never leaves bruises, but the little one was crying and hid for the rest of the visit. It didnt feel OK.

The NSPCC said there could be various reasons for the increase in concerns raised about physical punishment, including greater public awareness of its campaigns on the issue and a lack of understanding about what is deemed acceptable when it comes to punishing a child.

Earlier this year, researchers at University College London said that more than one in five 10-year-olds in the UK experienced physical punishment in 2020 and 2021.

Campaigners opposed to a change have previously said the current law prohibits violence against children but also protects parents from prosecution for innocent and harmless parenting decisions.

The Department for Education has been contacted for comment.
The Shanghai all-female Yue Opera

You may not be able to afford a ticket to Glyndebourne or the Royal Opera  but your hard-earned taxes paid for citizens of prosperous Shanghai to see traditional Chinese opera performed by an all-female cast. I bet that makes you feel better!

Thanks to an IEA report, Robin Hood in Reverse, we know that Britains foreign aid budget is still being spent on projects like this in regions of middle-income countries which enjoy average incomes higher than the least well-off parts of the UK.

It confirms the fears of the father of development economics  Peter Bauer  that all too often Foreign aid transfers money from the pockets of poor people in rich countries to those of rich people in poor countries.

But why do our aid bureaucrats continue to send money to increasingly prosperous countries now classified as middle income like China and India? And why do they spend it on projects with no conceivable impact on poverty? Over a decade ago the Indian Finance Minister said We do not require [British] aid. It is a peanut in our total development expenditures.

The Foreign Minister had proposed not to avail [of] any further DFID [British] assistance because of the negative publicity of Indian poverty promoted by DFID. But British officials successfully pleaded that ending the aid program would cause great political embarrassment to British ministers who had spent political capital justifying the aid to their electorate. So we have subsequently spent over 2 billion in India, among other things on a cosmetic surgery clinic and a website featuring abuse of women and children.

To most of us the fact that billions of people have been lifted out of extreme poverty over recent decades is a source of rejoicing. It means aid can now be focused on humanitarian needs and promoting economic growth in the remaining poorest regions and countries.

But declining poverty is the spectre that haunts aid bureaucrats. No bureaucrat can tolerate the erosion of their departments role. Even in the nineteenth century, the ability of a bureaucracy to remain in existence regardless of need was ridiculed by Dickens whose Sir Tite Barnacle of the Circumlocution Office died at his post with his drawn salary in his hand, defending it nobly to the last extremity.

The response of todays Tite Barnacles in our aid bureaucracy, threatened by the prospect of fewer poor people, has been to shift the purpose of aid away from poverty (their statutory aim) to projects devoted to tackling climate change, promoting biodiversity, nature friendly projects, sustainability, equality, gender etc. They plead that this also gives Britain soft power.

The alliance with the Green lobby has given them a new lease of life. But it is the most pernicious. Nothing appalls eco-fanatics more than the prospect of poor people becoming as rich as us. They advocate de-growth and romanticise the difficult life of subsistence agriculture to which they would consign billions of people. They too had nineteenth century counterparts, ridiculed this time by Trollope, whose characters found Poverty, to be truly picturesque, should be rural.

I certainly dont oppose all foreign aid  having spent a decade before entering Parliament working on UK development projects in Africa and Asia. When David Cameron became Tory leader, aided by Bob Geldof and then unknown future stars like Chris Whitty and Kemi Badenoch, we produced a report advising on Aid, Trade and Development policy.

We urged that aid to soon-to-be middle-income countries like India be focused on its poorest regions while being phased out in the longer term. Then aid to the poorest countries should focus on reducing poverty by trade, growth promoting infrastructure, and raising productivity in agriculture where most hardship persists.

But government aid websites suggest climate and gender have displaced these priorities while giving few concrete details on how 8 billion is being spent. Without the IEA report we would not know that: one initiative recommended a temporary cycle lane in Mexico City be made permanent; another, created an app to help Kuala Lumpur residents plan their journeys via public transport. These projects are hidden beneath opaque jargon. Maybe the Circumlocution Office survived Sir Tite Barnacles heroic defence and has transmogrified into our aid agencies.
Murdo Fraser has called on Liam Kerr and Meghan Gallacher to stand aside and let him become new leader of the Scottish Conservatives - PA/Andrew Milligan

A frontrunner in the Scottish Tory leadership contest has urged the other candidates to stand aside so he can be crowned the victor.

Murdo Fraser used his campaign launch in Perth on Thursday, to announce that Liam Kerr and Jamie Greene, who were prospective candidates, had dropped their leadership bids and endorsed him instead.

Then, warning that the partys survival was at stake, he argued that his remaining two opponents, Russell Findlay and Meghan Gallacher, should follow suit for the sake of party unity, following weeks of damaging infighting.

Mr Fraser said they should bring this sorry chapter to a close rather than having the candidates spend another five weeks shouting at each other.

Asked directly if he was urging the pair to drop out to allow a coronation to take place, he said: Yes.

Mr Findlay and Ms Gallacher, however, rejected his call.

Mr Fraser claims he is the man to unite the Scottish Conservatives - PA/Andrew Milligan

Mr Findlay, who is the bookmakers favourite in the contest, said members deserved a fair and positive contest rather than have the party leader decided by any small group of people at Holyrood.

The Scottish Conservatives later confirmed that the trio had secured the required 100 nominations they needed from members to enter the race.

We need to be a serious force again

The contest will be formed of eight hustings across the country and an STV debate on September 2. Members will rank them in order of preference on their ballot papers and the victor will be announced on September 27.

It had been expected that at least one of Mr Kerr and Mr Greene would also stand but instead they made a surprise appearance at Mr Frasers launch.

They vehemently denied claims they had stood as paper candidates to give their endorsement extra weight. Brian Whittle, another potential candidate, also stood aside and backed Mr Fraser earlier this week.

Instead they said they had decided to put the party above personal ambition because they considered Mr Fraser to be the only candidate who could unite it and deliver real change. The deal with him was only reached in the previous 24 hours, they said.

Welcoming the endorsement of two more of his opponents, and other MSPs, Mr Fraser said: Its a good start. But there is space in this team for more. For everyone with the talent we need to be a serious force again.

We as a party can spend another five weeks shouting at each other. We can spend the next five weeks under a cloud of suspicion and impropriety. Or we can end it. We can end it now and, as a team of MSPs working on behalf of our members, take back control of our party.

He added: And so today I say to both Meghan Gallacher and Russell Findlay, lets bring this sorry chapter to a close. Come and join this team. Show our members and the country that we understand their frustration. That we have responded to their deep concerns.

Party in chaos

Mr Fraser had earlier noted that the party had suffered an immensely difficult few weeks, with its vote share in the general election halving to only 12.7 per cent.

In addition, The Telegraph last week disclosed claims that in July 2023, Douglas Ross, the outgoing party leader, tried to persuade Kathleen Robertson to let him take her place as the partys general election candidate for Moray West, Nairn and Strathspey.

It was alleged that he told Ms Robertson, the leader of Moray Council, that he would quit immediately as party leader and he wanted Mr Findlay to replace him. However, she was said to have rejected his proposal.

Ms Robertson told The Telegraph the account of the meeting was accurate, but Mr Ross insisted he had only invited her to his home to discuss whether she wanted to remain the candidate.

But Mr Fraser, Mr Greene, Mr Kerr and Mr Whittle issued a joint statement calling for the contest to be suspended while the allegations were investigated. Ms Gallacher resigned as deputy leader over her concerns.

Former deputy leader Meghan Gallacher is one of the three candidates to replace Douglas Ross - Getty Images/Ken Jack

Mr Fraser told supporters at this launch event the leadership contest had been fractious, with persistent anonymous briefings against candidates and concerning claims being raised about the conduct of the Scottish leader.

Our activists are angry. Our members are angry. Our MSPs are angry. And I am angry. When we should be turning our fire on our political opponents, the SNP and Labour, we are turning it on each other, he said.

The last few weeks have proven that real change is an absolute necessity. It is a matter of survival for our party. For too long we have had too much power concentrated in too few hands, and we have all seen the effects of that. That has to change now.

The shadow business secretary said it was deeply dispiriting for activists to knock doors and deliver leaflets only to have the ground cut from under them because of the behaviour of a few at the top of the party who frankly should know better.

Mr Findlay is viewed as the preferred candidate of the party establishment. Although Mr Fraser promised not to criticise his opponents, he appeared to target Mr Findlay by arguing that continuity wont cut it.

He also dismissed criticism of his plan for a commission to examine loosening ties between the UK and Scottish parties, saying that any recommendation would have to be approved by two-thirds of members to be implemented.

Russell Findlay is viewed as the 'establishment' candidate and is the bookmaker's favourite - James Chapelard

Ive always been opposed to a coronation

It is the second time that Mr Fraser, who is the Scottish Tories longest-serving MSP, has stood for the leadership. He lost out to Ruth Davidson in 2011 after proposing setting up a new Right-wing party.

He has recently argued the Tories should continue fighting Westminster elections but the commission could examine a new party for Holyrood contests.

Mr Greene, a west Scotland MSP, told the event that he and Mr Fraser sit on monumentally different ends of the Conservative spectrum. But he said that he had withdrawn from the race as only Mr Fraser had the experience, appeal and gumption to rebuild the party.

Mr Kerr, the shadow education secretary, said he had racked up 120 nominations but had decided to back Mr Fraser instead as he was the one remaining candidate who could deliver party unity.

Mr Findlay, who launched his campaign earlier this week, said: Ive always been opposed to a coronation, of myself or anyone else. Im standing to give our members the fair and positive contest they deserve because our party must change.

He added: Our members should decide the next leader. Not any small group of people at Holyrood.

Ms Gallacher said: It wont come as any shock that I intend to stand and win by restoring trust, giving members a voice, and focusing on bringing in the next generation of Scottish Conservatives.

This is why we need a contest. We must reset, rebuild and restore the party from the grassroots to the top. Thats exactly what Im focused on achieving.
Andrew Tate speaks outside the court in Bucharest after he was placed under house arrest - Alexandru Dobre/AP

Andrew Tate has been placed under house arrest by a Romanian court as prosecutors investigate new allegations of sex trafficking of minors.

The influencer, 37, will not be allowed to leave home for 30 days as the countrys organised crime agency looks into allegations of human trafficking, including the trafficking of minors.

Investigators are also looking into claims of sexual intercourse with a 15-year-old girl, forming an organised criminal group and money laundering.

The alleged crimes date from between 2014 and 2024.

Mr Tate, who rose to fame as a YouTube star who describes himself as the king of toxic masculinity, was among six people  including his brother Tristan  detained on Wednesday by masked police.

A spokesman for the brothers said they firmly deny all of the allegations against them and remain steadfast in proving their innocence.

DIICOT, the Romanian crime agency, said that the defendants used the coercive loverboy method to exploit 34 vulnerable victims, who were forced to produce pornographic materials for a fee online.

They said more than $2.8 million (2.14 million) generated was kept by the defendants.

This is a set-up

During the police raids on Wednesday, which also involved scouring the Tate brothers large property near Bucharest, authorities seized 16 luxury vehicles, a motorbike, laptops, thousands of dollars in cash, luxury watches, and data storage drives.

Outside the court, Mr Tate told reporters that many of the alleged victims in the new case have made statements in his defence, and pointed to the judges decision not to remand him and his brother in custody, as prosecutors had requested.

This is a set-up, its absolutely disgusting, he said. Fair play to that judge who saw through the bulls--- and let us free.

Mr Tate has 9.9 million followers on X and is known for expressing misogynistic views online. He has repeatedly claimed that prosecutors have no evidence against him and that there is a political conspiracy to silence him.

He was previously banned from various social media platforms for misogynistic views and hate speech.

The brothers are already facing separate criminal allegations in Romania, and a request by British authorities to extradite them to the UK to face charges of sexual aggression dating back to 2012.

The extradition request was granted but the two men will remain in Romania until after legal proceedings against them there.
Primary school pupils

A Year 6 teacher was sacked for her racist description of pupils as chattering monkeys, a tribunal heard.

Charlotte Moore, who was a teacher at Trinity St Marys Primary School in Chelmsford, Essex, was investigated by police after parents complained her remark was very racist and constituted a hate crime.

Mrs Moore, whose class was described as racially diverse in an employment tribunal hearing, also jokingly threatened to shoot one of the pupils if they continued being disruptive, the panel heard.

The school launched a disciplinary investigation and Mrs Moore was later sacked for gross misconduct.

She tried to sue the school for unfair dismissal at the East London Employment Tribunal, but her case was dismissed.

The hearing was told Mrs Moore had taught at the school from April 12 2021 until her dismissal on July 27 2023.

In March last year, the school received a complaint from a pupils parent, alleging that Mrs Moore told the class they were acting like a bunch of monkeys.

The parent also complained that Mrs Moore told the class that they are getting on her nerves so much she wants to shoot herself or them.

A day later police commenced a hate crime investigation and visited Mrs Moore at school.

Overly dramatic statements

However, the police quickly closed their investigation as they were satisfied she used the phrase chattering monkeys to the entire class and that this had been taken out of context and would not be considered a racial slur or hate crime.

Further allegations had also been raised about Mrs Moores behaviour, the panel heard, including that she hurt a child by grabbing the back of their neck, and shook another pupil while holding their collar.

One pupil said Mrs Moore made the class feel scared and anxious, alleging: When we kept asking her questions she told us the next person who asks a question she is going to shoot them or herself.

Nearly half of the 30 children in her class were interviewed and the concerns were repeated by a number of them, the tribunal heard.

In an interview, Mrs Moore accepted using the words you are like a bunch of chattering monkeys, quieten down and get on with your work, but denied all the allegations.

She denied physical assaults and making threats, saying she often made overly dramatic statements to children in a joking way.

The school found using the word monkey was inappropriate as it could be perceived as a slur.

Employment judge Suzanne Palmer said of the monkeys comment: The [schools] conclusion on this issue was effectively that the matter was serious because of the racial diversity in the class and the pupil and parent perception was that the statement was racist.
GCSE exams

The day before my 16-year-old son was due to sit his English Literature GCSE I playfully asked who had written The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. He confidently replied, JB Priestley, author of another set text, An Inspector Calls. When I asked if hed actually read the book he said, Durr, we read it in class! Meaning over a year previously. There seemed little point giving him a tough time.

Hes part of a generation who had barely arrived at secondary school (in his case a big state academy in Cambridge) before the Covid pandemic sent them home to twiddle their thumbs. Yes, eventually there were around two hours of Zoom classes most days, but my sporty, low attention-span son finds it hard to focus at the best of times. Without a beady-eyed teacher taking him to task, he muddled through the Covid years and never really caught up afterwards. The biggest casualty for him was maths, something that requires constant practice and oversight from someone equipped to give it  that is, not his parents.

No wonder one of the UKs foremost experts on emergency planning and disaster recovery, Professor Lucy Easthope, tweeted this message to all the teens picking up results today: Your entry to senior school was massively disrupted and you have lived inside chronic disaster ever since. To even get to this day is a massive achievement. Thats pretty much the attitude Ive taken with my son. Back in summer of 2020, I felt the best solution for his happiness was to quietly open the back door and suggest he take himself off to nearby fields with a friend for as long as he felt like it. Against the rules, but essential for his survival.

Even before lockdown it was clear this generation was suffering from a surfeit of anxiety, linked to constant school testing and Sats, as well as being told that climate change was dooming our planet to an extinction event. Theres also the fact my son and his cohort are the first fully-immersed smart phone generation  guinea-pigs for the TikTok and Snapchat world, a global experiment viewed so dimly that governments are now thinking of banning smart phones for under 16s.

I noted he and two of his closest friends from primary school (both girls) all suffered from on-off stomach pains that proved so severe they all ended up in A&E multiple times  yet nothing showed up on scans. Google sleuthing led me to believe my boy was having stress-linked stomach migraines (our GP agreed), which also made him lose a significant period of schooling when classes resumed. But mostly these pains seemed a symptom of our strange, fretful times.

Of course, this wont have affected every childs grades. Most private schools managed to maintain registration and full curriculum teaching online, aware parents would complain if grades sagged. And when you live in Cambridge, where half the parents are academics or tech whizzes, pretty much everyones children seem to get at least 12 grade 9s (todays equivalent of A*s) and thats the first thing they tell you.

Social media is also stuffed with boasters. I had my usual morning scroll down twitter, only to see some friends broadcasting their sons amazing grades. One BBC broadcaster pal told how his boy got all 9s, apart from an 8 for English Literature, which had made him downcast. Mine got no 9s or 8s whatsoever and  whisper it  failed politics, despite his parents obsession with the topic.

And yet Ive embraced my boys average grades with equanimity. Why? Well, firstly I was that girl in 1984, the girlie swot with a clean sweep of O-Level A grades and such angst I cried when I didnt come top. Then hormones and lust for life kicked in and I embraced a broader way of thinking about intelligence and achievement. My finest lesson over that period came from competing in the English Speaking Unions public speaking competition, where I won a cup for best speaker in the South of England.

My inspiration was a group of boys from Skinners Grammar School in Tunbridge Wells, who appeared unrehearsed but were gloriously funny on space travel, winning the public vote by miles. I later recognised their studiedly informal, mop-haired style, in Boris Johnsons public addresses and made my own delivery far less priggish and more boyish. At university, I only just scraped a third-class degree, while friends who bombed academically at 16, ended up with firsts. My husband walked out of his degree and still managed to end up running a publishers military history list, editing top historians.

Hard experience told me that this life and death attitude to exams is nonsense. If theres one thing Ive come to realise over 20 years of parenting, its that your child will apply themselves when they want to  and not before. This is particularly true of boys.

My older boy didnt go to school at all for the best part of two years and got no GCSEs when his classmates took them in 2020. But when he went back into education aged 17 he worked like fury and has aced exams ever since, notching up firsts for essays at the end of his first year and being praised for his original approach. I put this down to the fact his enthusiasm hasnt been tainted by working to the exam, with no space for proper curiosity.

As for my younger boy, despite his laidback attitude hes scraped the grades he needs for Cambridges Long Road sixth-form college. Best of all, he hasnt had a nervous breakdown in the process.
Supporters of a mobility deal say it would help address the worker shortage in UK sectors such as hospitality. Photograph: Charles Stirling/Alamy

Ministers have reiterated their opposition to any deal with Brussels allowing young people to live and work in EU countries, after a report said some elements of this could be agreed as part of a wider set of negotiations.

The Times on Wednesday cited unnamed government sources as saying UK ministers accepted they would have to give ground over parts of a proposed mutual youth mobility system if they were to get agreement in other areas, such as a reduction in checks on UK food entering the EU.

If we are serious about resetting relations with the EU then we need to be prepared to give them some of the things that they want, the source told the paper.

But a government spokesperson said this was not being looked at. We are not considering it, there are no plans for this, or any work being done on it, they said.

Asked whether the issue might come up in future talks with the EU, they said: Our negotiating team has very clear red lines, and none of the preparatory work involves this.

While Labour has been adamant it will never oversee a return to the free movement of people, the idea of a youth mobility scheme  which would allow EU citizens under 30 to work and study for a fixed period in the UK, and vice-versa  would be more similar to deals the UK has with countries such as Australia.

In April, the EU made a formal offer to negotiate a bloc-wide youth mobility programme, but this was immediately rejected by both Labour and Rishi Sunak, who was the Conservative prime minister at the time.

According to sources, the offer, which came out of the blue, was an attempt by the European Commission to quash a bid by the UK to do unilateral deals with six countries, including France, Spain and Germany.

The French, in particular, were adamant that the UK should not be allowed to cherry pick EU access post-Brexit.

Another apparent obstacle to the EU proposal is the element that would allow UK and EU students to have home-fee status again at each others universities for four years.

This would mean EU students at UK universities paying notably lower fees. Representatives of UK universities have said they would not be able to shoulder the extra cost and could not see how Labour would subsidise them. Sources say a three-year version of that would do nothing to solve the financial burden.

The Liberal Democrats called on Thursday for the government to agree a mutual youth-based system. Layla Moran, the partys foreign affairs spokesperson, said this would rebuild ties with the EU and give our young people fantastic opportunities to live and work across Europe, while also providing a much-needed boost to the UK economy  especially our hospitality sector.

Outlining the Brussels proposal in April, the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, said the scheme would be an area in which there could be closer collaboration.

The topic of youth mobility is in both our interests, because the more we have youth mobility being on both sides of the Channel, the more we increase the probability we will be on good terms because the next generation knows each other very well, she said.
Ukraines special forces have released footage that they claim shows pontoon bridges being destroyed with US-made missiles in Kursk.

The shows a range of attacks in Russias border region, including Himars missiles hitting the bridges, which Kyiv said were destroyed along with crucial Russian equipment.

It also shows Ukrainian forces destroying Russian field ammunition, fuel depots, a radio-electronic warfare complex and a 152-mm D-20 gun, a Ukrainian military officer told the Kyiv Post.

While Washington has not commented on the strike, Kyiv acknowledged for the first time on Wednesday that US-made weapons had been used in its Kursk incursion.

Where are the Russian pontoons disappearing [to] in the Kursk region? Special operations forces operators, together with units of the defence forces of Ukraine, are effectively destroying them, Ukraines special operations forces said.

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Another military officer said the purpose of the attacks was to cut off Russian supply lines, which he claimed had been used to coordinate attacks against Ukraine.

Its clear that as the enemy retreats, they havent ensured the proper function of all military systems, while the Ukrainian armed forces are effectively utilising resources to cut off the Russians logistical routes, he said.

The officer added that another purpose behind the destruction of Russias pontoon bridges was to demotivate Moscows army, given Ukraines advances in Kursk.

Russia scrambled to build the pontoons after Ukraine destroyed three crucial bridges along the River Seym last weekend near the settlements of Glushkovo, Zvan, and Karyzh.

The destruction of the final bridge near Karyzh on Sunday left Moscow with few options to bring supplies across the water.

Analysts have said the destruction of the bridges could help Kyiv consolidate control of the territory it has gained since launching the daring invasion of the Russian border region nearly two weeks ago.

Drone footage shows smoke rising after strikes on pontoon crossings over the River Seym - Reuters

The week, Kyivs top general said Ukrainian forces had advanced 28-35km (17-22 miles) into the Kursk border region, capturing more than 90 settlements.

The destruction of bridges inside Russia by Ukraine has formed part of a wider counter-offensive by Kyiv, which has included a series of drone strikes against key Russian targets.

On Wednesday, Moscow was targeted with what the citys mayor said was one of the largest drone strikes launched against Russia since the war started in February 2022.

Meanwhile, a military base in southern Russia was hit in a Ukrainian drone strike overnight on Thursday.

The Marinovka military airfield, believed to host fuel and glide bombs, was hit as part of a campaign on Russian airfields used by warplanes to carry out attacks in Ukraine, a source told Reuters.

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Relatives weep after Palestinians were killed in an Israeli attack on a school sheltering displaced people in Gaza on Wednesday. Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images

US officials have expressed optimism that a ceasefire deal in the war in Gaza is in sight, despite growing indications from Israel and Hamas that a breakthrough is not imminent and as renewed fighting rages in parts of the Palestinian territory.

Washington has put pressure on both parties to accept a bridging proposal suggested during internationally mediated talks in Qatar last week, dispatching the secretary of state, Antony Blinken, on his ninth visit to the region since the conflict broke out 10 months ago. The latest round of negotiations, in which Hamas is not directly participating, were scheduled to restart in Cairo by Thursday but appear to have been postponed.

Hamas has said the latest proposal veers too closely to Israels demands, but characterised comments by the US president, Joe Biden, on Tuesday that it was backing away from an agreement as misleading.

Israels prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has reportedly refused to countenance an Israeli withdrawal from the Netzarim corridor that now bisects the Gaza Strip, or the Egypt-Gaza border  a red line for Hamas and for Cairo.

Israels Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper quoted officials knowledgable about the negotiations as saying the chances for a deal are slim but attempts were being made to hold talks in Cairo on Friday and Saturday.

It said, quoting the same source, that Netanyahu insisted on an Israeli army presence along the Philadelphi corridor on the Gaza Strips border with Egypt and that the US demanded a significant withdrawal of troops in two stages.

The paper said the Americans understood the mistake made by Blinken when he announced during his visit to Israel that Netanyahu had accepted a US proposal to bring the two sides closer together and that the ball was now in Hamass court.

Yet Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador to the UN, told the security council on Thursday that an agreement was now is in sight, after a phone call late on Wednesday in which Biden pressed Netanyahu on agreeing to a deal.

In the call between the leaders, in which the vice-president and presumptive Democratic nominee, Kamala Harris, also took part, the US leader stressed to his Israeli counterpart the urgency of bringing the ceasefire and hostage release deal to closure and discussed upcoming talks in Cairo to remove any remaining obstacles, a White House statement said.

The renewed push for talks is seen as more vital than ever after the 31 July back-to-back assassinations of a top Hezbollah commander and Ismail Haniyeh, Hamass political chief. The killings in Beirut and Tehran, which the Lebanese group and Iran have blamed on Israel, threaten to transform the war in Gaza into a region-wide conflict.

It is hoped a ceasefire in Gaza would lower the temperature in the Middle East and dissuade Iran and Hezbollah from retaliatory action. Israel and the powerful Lebanese militia have traded intense rocket fire over the past two days and tensions on the blue line that separates Israel and Lebanon have steadily escalated since Hezbollah began firing on Israel in solidarity with Hamas a day after the 7 October attack that triggered the war.

On the ground, Gazas civil defence agency said at least three people were killed and 10 children wounded in an Israeli strike on Wednesday on a school turned shelter in Gaza City, and 22 people were killed in the past 24 hours. The Israeli military said the school contained a weapons storage facility.

Israeli troops and tanks are also pressing deeper into areas of the central and southern Gaza Strip as they battle Hamas fighters who have regrouped.

Approximately 170,000 displaced people have been forced to flee once again due to the new Israeli operations, including from areas previously designated as humanitarian safe zones.

Aid agencies say the remaining humanitarian zones, which comprise just 11% of the strips total area, are already too full to accommodate new arrivals.

Violence has escalated in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where the health ministry said three people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a house in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the early hours of Thursday. The Israeli army said the strike was a counter-terrorism operation.
Guard slips outside Buckingham Palace

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A Buckingham Palace guard has been spotted losing his footing while on duty.

The Kings Guardsman was caught on camera slipping and landing on his backside outside the royal residence on Sunday. He then rose to his feet and carried on with his duties.

Anthony Smith, 45, was visiting Buckingham Palace during a weekend in London and happened to be filming when the guard took a tumble.

Mr Smith, a radiographer from Liverpool, said: I had to watch the video back to believe it. People watching were shocked - everyone was saying: Did that just happen?

The guard jumped back up quickly and recomposed himself, then he was straight back into action.
New Zealands kaki (black stilt) is part of a trial to vaccinate native birds against the H5N1 avian flu strain. Photograph: Carla Smit

Many of them cannot fly, some of them like to get drunk, and others are fond of stealing. They are unique and idiosyncratic, both beloved and annoying, with many endangered as well, but New Zealands native birds are now under threat from a new enemy: a highly evolved strain of deadly bird flu.

The country is in the second phase of vaccination trials on native birds, with early results suggesting it could be an effective line of defence against the highly pathogenic H5N1 avian flu strain. The virus has decimated bird populations in other countries, with New Zealand experts fearing it could wipe out entire species.

Birds occupy a special place in the hearts of New Zealanders. An island nation with far more native birds than mammals, birds can dominate popular culture: a bird of the year competition is hotly contested, while a 2015 competition to reimagine the national flag saw a design featuring a Kiwi shooting lasers from its eyes become a tongue-in-cheek favourite.

A small group of birds from five critically endangered species  the takahe, kakapo, tuturuatu (shore plover), kaki (black stilt) and one type of kakariki  were given two doses of the vaccine a month apart, starting in late January, with six-month efficacy tests about to start.

New Zealand has not had a reported case of H5N1 but government agencies are deploying a biosecurity response that includes targeting vulnerable species and ramping up the surveillance of wild seabird flocks with a focus on New Zealands subantarctic islands, now considered the most likely path for the disease to reach the country.

New Zealand has a greater diversity of seabirds than anywhere in the world, and dozens of endemic species. About 80% of its native birds are endangered, including several species of seabirds such as the black-billed and red-billed gull, according to the Department of Conservation (DOC). More than a dozen are on the brink of extinction, including the tara iti, or fairy tern.

Biosecurity minister Andrew Hoggard said protecting vulnerable native birds was a priority as the flu could have a severe impact on already depleted species.

We dont want to vaccinate everything now, but we do need to make sure we have a supply ready. Its a case of when, not if.

Authorities believe California condors are the only other wild bird population which has had a vaccination programme outside zoos, initiated by the US last year.

Millions of birds worldwide have been killed by the mutated version of the H5N1 virus, once mostly found in poultry. It reached Antarctica in February and has sent Australian authorities scrambling. In some areas, it has reduced bird populations by 75%. Signs of disease include weakness and seizures, head twisting, and breathing distress.

Brett Gartrell, professor of wildlife health at Massey Universitys Wildbase hospital, said the disease would spread quickly once it reached New Zealand.

In the past we used to think it would come in from the north from migratory birds, but this strain of it has developed an affinity for making seabirds really sick so its been able to leapfrog from South America to the Antarctic, said Gartrell. Seabirds regularly fly vast distances across the Southern Ocean.

Many of our native species are already embattled, and the results would be tragic, he said.

DOC veterinarian Kate McInnes is leading the vaccination trial.

Its pretty rare to be preparing at this level prior to something arriving, but we are conscious we need to get this right. The alternative is devastating, said McInnes.

Not all wild birds can be vaccinated as they have to be caught three times  for two doses of the vaccine one month apart, and again for blood testing. The 50 birds that have been vaccinated are part of DOCs breeding populations and have been immunised in captivity.

Were working on a response thats looking at which species would go extinct if there was an outbreak and for these species we can intervene, said McInnes.

The vaccine does not contain a live virus and cannot cause infection, she said. Antibodies have been detected in all birds, a sign the protein-based vaccine is working, and there have been no adverse reactions. Ongoing testing will aim to find out how long protection lasts.

Gartrells team are preparing an isolation unit for sick birds at Wildbase hospital in Palmerston North. Any seagull brought in would be killed, but guidelines were still being developed around the treatment of critically endangered species, with a risk of infection in humans. Crossover to humans is rare.

We just have to minimise impact, Gartrell said.

Government agencies were also working with poultry meat and egg farmers to develop biosecurity plans, including to limit interaction between wild birds and poultry.

Scientists in Scott Base and the subantarctic islands have been trained on how to sample and report dead birds as part of an early warning system, the governments chief veterinary officer Mary van Andel said.

In Wellington, McInnes recently returned from a walk around the citys shoreline.

I dont think I saw a bird in my walk where I didnt think I wonder whats going to happen to them? We are struggling with this level of uncertainty  when it arrives, what species will it affect, and how badly will it affect them?
The search continues for the final person missing from the wreck of a yacht that sank off the coast of Sicily.

The body of technology tycoon Mike Lynch was recovered from the luxury yacht Bayesian on Thursday, but his 18-year-old daughter reportedly remains missing.

The Italian Coastguard confirmed to the PA news agency that the sixth and final person yet to be found is a woman.

Mr Lynch, his daughter Hannah, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo, and his wife Neda Morvillo were lost when the Bayesian sank at around 5am on Monday.

The search was called off at around 8pm in Sicily on Thursday with divers expected to begin again at 6.30am on Friday.

Five bodies have now been brought to shore in the small fishing village of Porticello, around 11 miles from the Sicilian capital of Palermo.

In a statement confirming their parents deaths, the Bloomer family described the couple as incredible people and an inspiration to many.

They said: We are grieving for our loved ones and all of those affected by the tragedy.

Our parents were incredible people and an inspiration to many, but first and foremost they were focused on and loved their family and spending time with their new grandchildren.

Together for five decades, our only comfort is that they are still together now.

This is an unimaginable grief to shoulder.

Italian emergency services heading out to sea (Jonathan Brady/PA)

The chief executive of legal AI company Luminance, which was founded by Mr Lynch, paid tribute to the technology tycoon, saying he was a visionary unlike any other.

Eleanor Lightbody said in a statement: I am devastated to hear the news about our founding investor, Mike Lynch, and all of those involved in this tragic accident.

Mike was a visionary unlike any other. He had a unique ability to spot the next technological revolution and solve tomorrows challenges before others even knew they were coming.

Above all, Mike was a kind man who had an impact on many and will be sorely missed. I feel honoured to have known him, worked with him and learnt from him over the years.

The UK has lost someone with the means, authority, knowledge and drive to propel the UK into technological leadership, but his legacy will live on in all of the extraordinary businesses he built and mentored, as well as his family who are in my thoughts.

The body of the fifth person recovered from the yachts wreckage was returned in a blue body bag to the port of Porticello on Thursday morning.

Of the 22 passengers and crew on board, 15  including Mr Lynchs wife, Angela Bacares  were rescued after escaping on to a lifeboat.

The body of Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, who was working as a chef on the superyacht Bayesian, was recovered at the scene of the sinking on Monday.

The boat trip was a celebration of Mr Lynchs acquittal in a fraud case in the US.

The businessman, who founded software giant Autonomy in 1996, was cleared in June of carrying out a massive fraud relating to its 11 billion US dollar (8.64 billion) sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

A decision on whether to raise the sunken yacht from the seabed is not on the agenda, but will be in the future, a spokesman from the Italian Coastguard has said.

Vincenzo Zagarola told PA: This is not a topic on the agenda. It will be, but not now.

He also said that the Italian Coastguards working theory is still that the missing woman is inside the boat.

The luxury yachts captain, James Cutfield, was reportedly questioned by authorities for two hours as they began speaking to all crew members.

Giovanni Costantino, chief executive of the firm that built the yacht, told The Sun the ship was virtually unsinkable.

He instead wondered if doors and hatches had remained open.

The disturbance was completely readable on all the weather maps, he said. Fishermen did not go out precisely because of the adverse weather conditions. It was therefore expected that the ship would take precautions.

A helicopter was previously drafted in to help the search effort, and divers from the local fire service have been seen entering the water with torches attached to their headgear.

Fire crews from the Vigili del Fuoco said they had been accessing the vessel through natural entrances, without making openings.

Remotely controlled underwater vehicles have been used, with naval units and cave divers also taking part in the search, the Italian Coastguard has said.

Bayesian was moored around half a mile off the coast of Porticello when it sank at about 5am local time on Monday as the area was hit by a storm.

The wreckage of the Bayesian is resting on the seabed off the coast at a depth of 50 metres (164ft).
The search will resume for the remaining person missing after a luxury yacht sank in a storm off the coast of Sicily following the discovery of five bodies inside the wreck.

Six people, including technology tycoon Mike Lynch, were unaccounted for after the vessel  named Bayesian  sank at around 5am on Monday.

Salvatore Cocina, the head of Sicilys civil protection agency, confirmed that of the five bodies found on Wednesday, only four had been recovered, and the whereabouts of the missing sixth person remain unknown.

Identities of the recovered bodies have not been confirmed by authorities, despite local and international media reporting some had been identified.

Body bags were seen being taken to the port of Porticello on Wednesday afternoon, with the process of bringing the fifth body to shore being described by Mr Cocina as ongoing.

He said searches will resume on Thursday morning, and that there will be an investigation in due course, but the priority is finding the missing.

As the body bags were taken back to the port, dozens of emergency services staff were waiting, and one bag was seen being put in the back of an ambulance.

Among those also named as missing were Mr Lynchs 18-year-old daughter Hannah; Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer; his wife, Judy Bloomer; Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo; and his wife, Neda Morvillo.

The body of Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, who was working as a chef on the Bayesian superyacht, was recovered at the scene of the sinking on Monday.

Of the 22 passengers and crew on board, 15  including Mr Lynchs wife, Angela Bacares  were rescued after escaping onto a lifeboat.

The captain of a yacht, the Sir Robert BP, who helped to rescue them, described how those aboard his vessel spotted the distress flare set off from a life raft.

Karsten Borner said his crew noticed the Bayesian had disappeared before a passenger spotted the flare.

He told Sky News: We couldnt see them any more and they disappeared from the radar, we were busy keeping our own ship sailing.

We couldnt see the ship again so we were aware something was very wrong.

He said it was only when the tender set out that they found the life raft.

Mr Borner continued: It turned out to be the life raft, a 12-person life raft with 15 people inside including one baby.

They stepped over to our tender and we brought them back to our ship. There we took good care of them, gave them dry clothes, towels, blankets, tea and coffee and so on and took care of them.

Members of the public and media watch as a body bag is brought ashore at the harbour in Porticello by rescue workers (Jonathan Brady/PA)

One of the survivors, British tourist Charlotte Emsley, held her one-year-old daughter, Sofia, above the waves to stop her from drowning.

Dr Domenico Cipolla, of Di Cristina Childrens Hospital in Palermo where the mother and child were taken, told the PA news agency: The child and the mother went to the hotel near Porticello on Tuesday, they are both in a good condition.

Obviously the mother and the husband were so shaken by what has happened, it was a tragedy for them.

She told me that two minutes after falling asleep with her baby they were in the water, she did not understand how this happened, it went dark.

Her partner was not with her, he was in another room.

She held the child high in her arms above the waves, for a few seconds the baby was in the water but she saved her.

She sometimes cried for her friends in the hospital.

Inspections of the yachts internal hull took place on Wednesday morning.

A team of four British inspectors from the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) also arrived in Porticello to look at the site of the sinking.

The MAIB is looking into what happened because the yacht Bayesian was flying a British flag, it is understood.

The Italian Coastguard said the MAIB is not involved in the search for the missing people, and that it has not been requested to assist.

(PA Graphics)

The ships captain, James Cutfield, was reportedly questioned by authorities for two hours as they began speaking to all crew members.

Speaking to New Zealand media, Mr Cutfields brother Mark said his sibling was a very good sailor with eight years of experience working abroad on luxury yachts.

A helicopter was drafted in to help the search effort, as divers from the local fire service were seen entering the water with torches attached to their headgear.

A police boat and divers were also seen entering the water on Wednesday afternoon.

Fire crews from the Vigili del Fuoco said they have been accessing the vessel through natural entrances, without making openings.

Remotely controlled underwater vehicles are being used, with naval units and cave divers also taking part in the search, the Italian Coastguard has said.

Bayesian was moored around half a mile off the coast of Porticello when it sank at about 5am local time on Monday as the area was hit by a storm.

Vincenzo Zagarola, of the Italian Coastguard, previously said the missing tourists were feared dead.

The Bayesian sank at about 5am local time on Monday (Jonathan Brady/PA)

The wreckage of the Bayesian is resting on the seabed off the coast at a depth of 50 metres (164ft).

Fire crews described the operation as complex, with divers limited to 12-minute underwater shifts.

Survivors have been recuperating at a hotel complex in Porticello, where authorities were gathering witness statements.

The boat trip was a celebration of Mr Lynchs acquittal in a fraud case in the US.

The businessman, who founded software giant Autonomy in 1996, was cleared in June of carrying out a massive fraud relating to its 11 billion US dollar (8.64 billion) sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

The Financial Times reported that Mr Bloomer appeared at trial as a defence witness for Mr Lynch, while media reports suggest the pair are close friends.

In a separate incident, Mr Lynchs co-defendant in his US fraud trial, Stephen Chamberlain, died after being hit by a car while out running in Cambridgeshire on Saturday.
A ban on international care workers bringing dependants to the UK has been branded brutal and blamed for cutting a lifeline of overseas staff after new data showed a sharp drop in health and care visas in the months after the measure came in.

Health and care worker visas granted to main applicants in the 12 months to June fell by more than a quarter (26%) on the previous year, to 89,095.

There was a steep drop of 81% for the year-on-year period of April to June alone  coinciding with the Conservative governments ban on foreign care workers bringing loved ones to the UK on their visas.

The number of grants for health and care worker main applicants stood at 6,564 for that period, down from 35,470 for the same three-month spell the previous year.

The Home Office data published on Thursday also showed that the number of visas issued to foreign workers, overseas students and people joining family in the UK has dropped by 14%  something the University of Oxfords Migration Observatory said that, when combined with rising emigration should mean a decline in net migration over the coming year.

A total of 1.23 million visas (1,234,817) were issued in the year to June 2024 to people arriving in the country for those reasons or through one of the Governments settlement schemes. This is down from 1,435,372 in the previous 12-month period.

Some 546,774 work visas were granted, up slightly from 538,222 in the year to June 2023, along with 530,496 study visas (down from 656,589) and 84,403 family visas (up from 75,131), plus 4,007 visas for dependants joining or accompanying others (down from 5,167).

In addition, 28,419 were issued under the Ukraine visa schemes (down from 89,226), 22,306 were granted to British National (Overseas) status holders from Hong Kong (down from 37,160), 14,363 were under the EU Settlement Scheme (down from 28,899), and 4,049 were under other settlement schemes (down from 4,978).

James Cleverly claimed the figures are proof that measures put in place when he was in office are taking effect (Lucy North/PA)

Shadow home secretary James Cleverly, who is running to be the leader of the Conservative Party, claimed the figures are proof that measures put in place when he was in office are taking effect.

When I said I was going to cut migration, I meant it, he said, adding: The actions I took as home secretary are working. I reformed visas and cut net migration  thats the inheritance I left Labour.

But, while agreeing the measures are working, a care provider described them as brutal and said they had cut a lifeline of overseas staff to help staff homecare and care and nursing homes.

The social care sector has long struggled with staff shortages and care leaders said they had been blindsided by the changes when they were announced last December.

Figures published by Skills for Care earlier this year showed there were 131,000 vacancies on any given day, with a rate of 8.3% for the social care sector, around three times the average for other sectors.

That report also showed that domestic recruitment remains a problem, with the number of posts filled by people with a British nationality having fallen by 30,000  a drop of 70,000 over the last two years.

Mike Padgham, chairman of the Independent Care Group representing adult social care providers in York and North Yorkshire, said: A fall in the number of overseas staff is the last thing social care needs at the moment, as we are struggling to fill shifts as it is.

The last governments brutal measures are working and the lifeline of overseas staff to help staff homecare and care and nursing homes has been cut.

He said serious measures must be put in place to replace the overseas workers no longer coming to the UK, adding: We desperately need to see the new Governments promised care workforce strategy and with it some funding measures that will help us to properly reward care workers and enable us to recruit at home, otherwise we will be in dire straits.

Care England chief executive Professor Martin Green said that without the proper measures in place to draw in domestic recruits, the gap left by international recruits will reach an untenable level and warned the new Government must take ownership of their inherited situation.

As well as the ban on overseas care workers bringing family dependants, which came in from April, other restrictions gradually introduced by the previous government amid pressure to cut the record number of people legally arriving included a drastically increased salary threshold for skilled workers to 29,000 from April and 38,700 by next year.

The previous government aimed to slash the number of people arriving in Britain by 300,000 a year with the measures.

Other reforms meant overseas students were stopped from bringing their families with them to the UK and made it harder for Britons earning under the national average to bring over foreign spouses.

The Home Office previously said it will be necessary to await the peak in student applications for the next academic year, which usually comes between July and September before it will be possible to see the full effect of recent policy changes and any other impacts.

Migrant charity the Work Rights Centre called for the new Labour Government to scrap the ban on dependents, saying it isolates workers from their families.

Its chief executive, Dr Dora-Olivia Vicol, said: The ban on migrant care workers bringing dependent family members may have acted as a deterrent to people seeking a career in care in the UK.

This has come at the cost of isolating skilled workers from their families. We urge the new Labour Government to reverse this cruel policy decision.

The charity also called for more protections for migrant workers amid a welcome crackdown on unscrupulous employers.

Dr Vicol said the current system, which ties a persons immigration status to their employer and can see them lose their visa if an employer has action taken against them, is grossly unfair.

The latest figures showed 1,023 skilled worker visa sponsors had their certificates of sponsorship revoked or suspended in the three months to June this year.

This is the highest figure for any quarter since records began in 2012.

Dr Vicol said there should be greater visa flexibility to enable a migrant worker to find a new employer before their visa expires.

She added: Work visas should give migrant workers the freedom to change employers and the ability to report exploitation and access remedy, on the same terms as their British colleagues.

A report written by former independent chief inspector of borders and immigration David Neal and published in March criticised the inappropriateness of (the) sponsor licensing regime for low-skilled roles and said it had created a system that invited large numbers of low-skilled workers to this country who are at risk from exploitation.

He said an inspection of the immigration system relating to the social care sector had found that 275 certificates of sponsorship were granted to a care home that did not exist.

The Home Office said the fall in care worker visa applications and grants towards the end of 2023 is likely due to more scrutiny applied by the Home Office to employers in the health and social care sector, and compliance activity taken against employers of migrant workers.

Dr Ben Brindle, a researcher at the Oxford Migration Observatory, said: Visa numbers dropped in the last few months of the Conservative government and emigration has also been rising. In theory, this should mean a decline in net migration over the coming year.

But the precise scale of it is hard to predict: we dont yet know how many of the recent student arrivals will remain in the UK long term, and any bounce-back in health and care visas would also slow the decline.

Nonetheless, the strong indication is that Labour will be able to meet its commitment to reduce net migration from the unusually high levels the UK has recently seen, primarily due to trends that were already in train well before they were elected.
Historian David Olusoga has warned that the television industry deludes young working-class people if it doesnt tell them that having money and parents who live in London will help them succeed in it.

Speaking as part of an Edinburgh TV Festival panel on class in the television industry, the writer and broadcaster said despite having seen itself as a progressive industry, television was actually the worst sector for inclusion and diversity.

Chairwoman Sam McAlister kicked off the discussion by talking about how few people from working-class backgrounds currently worked in the television industry.

She pointed to a recent stat showing that working class people now make up just 8% of people working in television, which, she said, was the lowest its been for 10 years now.

Professor Olusoga, who fronted the programmes A House Through Time and Our NHS during his more than 20 years in the industry, said that deep down, weve normalised things which are abnormal when compared with wider society.

He continued: Weve created a culture that has normalised people from a small cohort of the population. That is what a TV producer, executive, or researcher looks like and sounds like; it has a stereotype.

He said the industrys silence around the issue risked deluding young working-class people who are looking to work in it.

I do think we need to be honest, because at the moment, when were asked what attributes people need to succeed in this industry, we talk about personal character: you need to be resilient, you need to be creative, you need to be able to work in teams, he said.

We never say its good if your parents live in London, or its great if youve got some money from a trust fund in the bank.

And those things are just as true as the character attributes that we like to do.

And the real danger is that we delude working-class young people into thinking that those attributes matter and everything else doesnt. And I think a lot of young people get trapped.

Other panellists commented on the barriers faced by working-class people trying to get into the industry, with comedian Lucy Beaumont triggering laughter when she asked: Why arent TV jobs advertised on TV? Why is it so secretive?

Professor Olusoga also pointed out the dangers of having a TV industry that wasnt representative of the country it was broadcasting to.

I think the industry is dangerously susceptible to stereotypes because of the lack of integration and socioeconomic diversity in the industry, he said.

He gave the example of the way working-class people were stereotyped as intolerant, or as having particular views on immigration and Brexit.

Fellow panellist Tom McDonald of National Geographic echoed this, describing being in meetings during his career where people talked about working-class people as though they were sort of aliens from outer space.

He said: I did sit in meetings at the BBC where we talked about the C2D audience, which is the working class audience.

And often I heard people talking about that audience as though they were sort of aliens from outer space. It was literally what do CTD people watch?

And as somebody, obviously, was originally from the north, I would also hear funny conversations where people would go what do northern people do?'

Mr McDonald also pointed out that a number of television professionals he had worked with took pride in the fact they didnt actually own a television, which he said was deranged.

Professor Olusoga concluded that the problem stemmed from bias, whether conscious or unconscious, on the part of people in positions of power in the industry, and said this had to be challenged.

I think the fundamental problem is there were a great many people in positions of power in this industry who, subconsciously or consciously, dont believe that people who arent like them can actually make progress, he said.

And when they talk about a safe pair of hands, when they use the phrase a London producer, what they really are expressing, even without knowing it, is a belief that its only people like them that can do it.
A van driver accused of smuggling migrants in a hidden compartment has denied knowing they were in the vehicle and was shocked and completely numb at the discovery, a court has heard.

Seven people were rescued from the space the width of a human chest as they travelled on board a ferry to the UK after crew heard them banging and screaming for help.

Anas Al Mustafa, 43, is on trial accused of smuggling them into the UK inside a specially adapted van between Dieppe, in France, and Newhaven, in East Sussex, on February 16.

Jurors had heard how the crew on the Seven Sisters ship heard pleas from inside a van on deck and used an axe to break down the fake partition inside hiding the people to get them out.

The father-of-two told Lewes Crown Court on Thursday it was the most difficult day of his life.

The ferry Seven Sisters at Newhaven ferry port (Gareth Fuller/PA)

Speaking through an Arabic interpreter, he said: I was in a situation where the shock was too massive I was almost out of consciousness.

I remember only certain scenes of what was going on, I saw a person throwing up, I saw them when they were getting the people inside to outside, it was a shock to me.

I didnt know what to do, I cant even feel my limbs.

The court previously had heard how Al Mustafa, who is originally from Syria but moved to the UK in 2011, was introduced to a man called Badr last time he was in Syria in January who said he needed him to do a job for him driving a van.

The prosecution previously said in a police interview with no interpreter Al Mustafa said he was paid 500 on a previous occasion to drive the van to get an MoT in Liverpool but for the February job he was being paid 5,000 to drive the van to the UK.

Jurors heard that Al Mustafa told police he did not know there were people in the van but because he was being paid 5,000 he thought maybe this time there is people inside.

Asked about the interview on Thursday, Al Mustafa told jurors the 5,000 sum was incorrect and he meant 500.

He also said did not remember telling police he thought maybe people were in the van and did not know why he said that.

He was offered an interpreter for the police interview but because he was told there was not one available now he said he would try in English.

My problem is not what we spoke in there (interview) I didnt understand, when it was being read here I noticed there are things I cant remember I said and what I said is not correct even, he explained.

Asked in court if he knew there were illegal immigrants in the van, the self-employed builder said: No, only after it was discovered.

I dont need to do that kind of job.

I have my business, I have my company, I have my accounts, and I have proof of accounts for 13 years, why would I do something that is illegal?

Al Mustafa said that he flew to Amsterdam for a holiday after laser eye surgery and met Badr at the airport.

He added when he was looking to book his ticket back to the UK he said Badr suggested he drive the same van he previously drove for the MoT to take it back to the garage as there was a fault with the gearbox.

He told the court: I asked him how much would you pay me, I say it like a joke, he said just like the last time whatever expenditure you spend Ill pay you.

Al Mustafa, of Swansea, denies assisting unlawful immigration to the UK.
People embarking on August bank holiday getaways in England and Wales are being warned over congestion on major roads and rail disruption because of engineering work.

Transport analytics company Inrix warned the worst times for traffic jams are likely to be between 10am and 6pm on Friday, and between 10am and 1pm on Saturday.

Network Rail will carry out a number of major engineering projects, which will affect three intercity lines serving London.

Airports will see one of their busiest weekends of the year, with the industry hoping for no repeat of the outage by air traffic control company Nats, which grounded flights on last years August bank holiday Monday.

The RAC estimated that 19.2 million leisure trips by car will be made across the UK between Friday and Monday.

The figure, based on a survey of 2,128 UK adults, is the highest since the motoring services company began recording data for the summer bank holiday in 2015.

Friday is likely to be the busiest day on the roads, the AA said, due to the combination of getaway journeys and regular commutes.

National Highways, which manages motorways and major A roads in England, said it will lift more than 500 miles of roadworks by 6am on Friday until Tuesday to keep people moving.

It issued an alert for the M56 and M6 in north-west England as up to 70,000 dance music fans head to the four-day Creamfields festival in Cheshire, which started on Thursday.

Thousands of drivers were stuck for several hours in queues during the event last year.

Motorists are being urged to follow dedicated signs to the site and not rely on sat navs, which could put vehicles on unsuitable, narrow roads, National Highways said.

Extra police and traffic officers will be deployed around junction 11 of the M56 at Daresbury to deter festival-goers from walking on the motorway, which has happened during previous years, particularly following the end of the event.

Roads in Kent will also be busy as many people head to Europe via the ports.

The Port of Dover expects to be used by more than 20,000 cars over the bank holiday period.

Engineering works on the East Coast Main Line will mean disruption for passengers travelling to or from London Kings Cross (Owen Humphreys/PA)

Network Rail engineering work means no long-distance services on the East Coast Main Line will run to or from London Kings Cross from early evening on Saturday until early morning on Monday.

This will affect people travelling south returning from the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

A reduced timetable will be in place between London Euston and Milton Keynes on Saturday and Sunday due to track renewals at Primrose Hill.

Journeys between London Paddington and south Wales will be diverted  taking longer than normal  as engineering work will close the line between Bristol Parkway and Severn Tunnel Junction.

Services will also be disrupted in the Stoke area from Saturday until Tuesday.

Travel trade organisation Abta estimated more than two million people will head overseas between Friday and Monday, with Friday expected to be the busiest day for departures.

Popular destinations include beach resorts in Spain, Portugal, Greece and Turkey, with many people heading on city breaks to Dublin, Amsterdam, Paris, Barcelona and Milan.

Regulator the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) will issue new videos on its social media channels outlining passengers rights when flights are delayed or cancelled.

This includes food and drink, overnight accommodation, refunds and rebooking options.

CAA data shows 160,000 flights were delayed and 8,000 were cancelled across UK airports in July and August last year.
PORTICELLO, Italy  Survivors of a storm that sank a superyacht off the coast of Sicily recounted their ordeal to one of the doctors who rushed to their aid, with some saying it took mere minutes for the 180-foot ship to go down.

Dr. Fabio Genco, head of the Palermo Emergency Medical Services, told NBC News on the phone Thursday that he arrived in the seaside village of Porticello before dawn Monday, about an hour after the $40 million Bayesian sank in the violent and sudden storm.

Of the 22 people onboard, 15 survived despite storm conditions and darkness, climbing onto a lifeboat before being rescued by a nearby sailboat. The crew members have made no public statements so far, though some have been interviewed by investigators.

They told me that it was all dark, that the yacht hoisted itself up and then went down, Genco said, recounting what the survivors told him. All the objects were falling on them. Thats why I immediately made sure, by asking them questions, if they had any internal injuries, he said.

It appears they had just minutes to abandon the sinking ship, Genco said.

Rescuers recovered five bodies from the sunken yacht Thursday, including that of tech tycoon Mike Lynch.

They told me that suddenly they found themselves catapulted into the water without even understanding how they had got there, he said, And that the whole thing seems to have lasted from 3 to 5 minutes.

Giovanni Costantino, CEO of The Italian Sea Group, which owns Perini Navi that built the Bayesian, told Sky News that there were no flaws with the design or construction of the yacht. He said their structure and keel made boats like that unsinkable bodies.

In an interview with the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, he disavowed responsibility, blaming instead the actions of the crew. Mistakes were made, he said.

Genco said one of his colleagues who arrived at the scene before him initially thought that only three people survived, but the coast guard reported there were other survivors and more emergency services were called in.

When Genco arrived, he found scenes of panic and despair.

Unfortunately, we are used to such panic scenes because we are used to the shipwrecks that happen on Lampedusa, Genco said, referring to the island southwest of Sicily, where the wreckage of boats carrying migrants on the sea journey from North Africa to Italy are often found.

Six of the passengers were declared missing Monday, and by Thursday, the bodies of five had been recovered from the wreck, some 160 feet underwater.

Among those who survived is Angela Bacares, wife of the British tech mogul Mike Lynch, whose body was recovered Thursday.

Dive teams bring a recovered body to the port of Porticello, in southern Italy Thursday.

Another survivor has been identified as Charlotte Emsley, 35. She told the Italian news agency ANSA that she had momentarily lost hold of her year-old daughter, Sofia, in the water but managed to retrieve her and hold her over the waves until a lifeboat inflated and they were pulled into safety.

Dr. Domenico Cipolla at the Di Cristina Childrens Hospital in Palermo is also part of a team of medical professionals treating the shipwreck survivors. He told the BBC on Wednesday that Emsley and her daughter, as well as the father of the child, who Cipolla said also survived, are continuing to receive psychological help.

Psychological support was constant and is constant even today, because basically it is the wounds of the soul that are the most in need of healing in these cases, Cipolla said.

Genco also told NBC News that he was especially concerned about the child. She did not understand anything. She was soaking wet and cold, he said.

Karsten Borner, the Dutch captain of the Sir Robert Baden Powell, a yacht that was anchored near the Bayesian, said by phone Wednesday that he saw a thunderstorm come in at around 4 a.m. local time (10 p.m. ET) Monday, followed by what looked like a waterspout, a type of tornado that forms over water.

The International Centre for Waterspout Research noted on X that there was a waterspout outbreak off the coasts of Italy on Monday, the day the Bayesian sank.

Some of the survivors are receiving psychological support. It is the wounds of the soul that are the most in need of healing in these cases, one doctor said.

I turned on the engine and made maneuvers so that we wouldnt collide with the Bayesian, which was anchored about 100 meters from us, Borner said. Then all of a sudden it disappeared. Then the wind calmed down, we looked around, and saw a red flare.

Borner said he got into his boats tender and saw a life raft with 15 people on it. Members of the crew were administering first aid.

I dont know why it sank so quickly, but it may have something to do with the mast which was incredibly long, he said. Questions have been raised about whether the mast was to blame for the accident as tall masts, even with the sails down, have more surface area exposed to the wind, which can contribute to tipping a vessel in a storm.

The CCTV footage that emerged Tuesday showed the yachts 250-foot mast, believed to be one of the tallest aluminum sailing masts in the world, lashed by the storm as it appears to tilt to one side before disappearing.




Trading options can be appealing for many reasons. Options can serve as a hedge against falling stock prices and give traders the magnifying power of leverage, making them useful and lucrative in the right situations.

But traders can also misuse options and may make common mistakes that derail their portfolio. Trading options is generally more complicated than trading stocks, so you must know a few key things before diving in. If you want to trade options, be sure to avoid these common mistakes.

7 mistakes to avoid when trading options

1. Not having a trading strategy

Trading options has its benefits, but diving in without any sort of trading strategy is not a recipe for success. For example, how will you identify potential trading opportunities? What criteria will you use to determine whether a potential trade is worth pursuing? How much are you willing to lose on a trade that doesnt go according to plan? These are important questions to answer.

If you dont have a clearly defined options trading plan, you might end up making random decisions based on emotion or what you heard in the news. When you have a trading plan, your decisions are based simply on whether an opportunity fits within the framework you have created.

In addition, inexperienced traders sometimes dont have an exit strategy, which can be a problem. Options can make big moves in either direction. You should know not only how large of a move should trigger action on your part, but also how long youll wait before taking action.

The best options brokers offer tools that can help you determine the best options strategy based on how you think a stock will perform.

2. Lack of diversification

One of the most common problems when trading options is a lack of diversification. When buying equities, diversification usually means purchasing stock in many different companies and industries. When thinking about options, it means something a little different.

With options, you have more possibilities than buying promising stocks and selling the losers. Youll have both calls and puts, and many trading strategies and tactics to use them, such as covered calls, married puts and bear put spreads. So you can match the options strategy with a variety of situations.

Using multiple options strategies can also help you succeed even if one particular strategy is unsuccessful, and this diversification can be especially helpful since options can be an all-or-nothing wager. If you put all your cash into one options position and it doesnt work out, you dont have any more cash to trade with.

3. Lack of discipline

Options trading requires an acute sense of discipline and self-control. While it can provide wins more quickly than investing in index funds, that isnt to say it will always produce immediate results. If you want to do well, you must be willing to stick to your strategy.

For example, options traders can be too quick to sell a winner while holding onto a loser for too long. Or perhaps they wait too long to buy back short options. Options require you to be smart with how you trade if you want to be successful in the long run, and they require active trading and vigilance.

If youre more of a buy-and-hold type of investor, it could make much more sense to purchase the best long-term investments and then add to them over time.

4. Using margin to buy options

Using a margin loan can be tempting when trading options since it might allow you to make a nice profit without putting up much capital. The problem is that while a margin loan can amplify the wins, it does the same with losses. Buying on margin is risky, whether or not you use it to trade options. Margin calls are also a concern when trading with leverage.

Its important that you dont trade with money you cant afford to lose, but trading options increase the likelihood of that happening. Because of the heavy risk associated with buying on margin, its like youre doubling your risk when you use margin to buy options.

5. Focusing on illiquid options

Liquidity is the ease with which something can be converted into cash. Shares of stock are often quite liquid since they can easily be sold for cash whenever the market is open. But trading options isnt as simple as selling shares at a given market price.

Options traders are at the mercy of the bid-ask spread, which is the difference between what sellers are asking for an asset and what buyers are willing to pay (bid). If there is a big difference between those two prices, you have an illiquid option. That means you might have trouble finding a buyer for your option when needed, which can be a problem given the sometimes rapid price swings with options.

6. Failing to understand technical indicators

When trading options, traders must understand the dynamics of option pricing and how they work. For instance, indicators such as the delta, gamma, vega and theta of an option should be second nature to you. If you arent familiar with the Greeks of options trading, its best to understand them before getting started.

For example, delta represents how much the option price is likely to move based on a $1 change in the underlying security. In other words, it tells you the price sensitivity of the option. Similarly, theta explains the effect of time on the option and how much an options price will decay with the passage of time.

An effective options trading strategy requires that you understand these various indicators so that you know how options prices will move in response to time, the price movement of the underlying stock and the overall markets volatility, among other factors.

7. Not accounting for volatility

As noted earlier, the options market can be volatile. However, savvy options traders can use this to their advantage. The expected volatility of a stock influences the options premium, or the price the options trader pays for the contract. So understanding volatility will help you determine whether an option is cheap.

Your trading strategy should account for volatility so you know whether a contract is worth buying. And if it isnt worth buying, then maybe its worth selling instead. Options can help you play the situation either way.

Bottom line

Options allow traders to magnify their gains, but they can be risky if you dont have the necessary knowledge beforehand. Like most things, options trading requires learning by doing. But keeping these common mistakes in mind can help make your learning experience a less costly one.

 Bankrates James Royal contributed to an update.

Editorial Disclaimer: All investors are advised to conduct their own independent research into investment strategies before making an investment decision. In addition, investors are advised that past investment product performance is no guarantee of future price appreciation.
An 80-year-old grandmother in Washington state died during a carjacking this week as she struggled to protect dogs, and a 48-year-old suspect is in custody for what police are calling a senseless killing.

The Seattle Police Department identified the victim as Ruth Dalton, a local dog walker. One dog in the car with her at the time belonged to Dalton and was later found fatally stabbed, police Deputy Chief Eric Barden said during a press conference Wednesday.

The suspect was arrested later that night by a SWAT team, Barden said, and when captured, he was carrying a bloody knife and the keys to Daltons Subaru.

Ruth Dalton, 80, of Grandma's Critter Care, was killed during a carjacking on Aug. 20, 2024. Two dogs were in her vehicle, one Seattle police said belonged to her. It was found fatally stabbed in a nearby park.

This is a tragic and horrific incident, Barden said. (Dalton was) participating vibrantly in her community... that was snatched from her and from her family and her friends and the community by virtue of this senseless violence.

Police identified the homicide suspect to USA TODAY as Jahmed K. Haynes, of Seattle.

A motive in the killings was not immediately known, but police told USA TODAY Haynes has eight prior criminal convictions including a vehicular homicide in 1993, and Barden said the suspect has a history of mental health issues.

Mike Lynch found dead: Body of tech tycoon recovered from sunken superyacht, reports say

Seattle Police Department Deputy Chief Eric Barden speaks during a press conference announcing an arrest after an 80-year-old dog walker in died during a carjacking Aug. 21, 2024, while she struggled to protect dogs.

Ruth Dalton run over by her own vehicle

Just before 10 a.m. Tuesday, officers responded to a carjacking in the city's Madison Valley neighborhood, about three miles east of downtown.

Arriving officers, Barden said, found bystanders performing aide to Dalton in the road.

Seattle firefighters responded and attempted to save Dalton, but she died at the scene.

Ruth Dalton, 80, of Grandma's Critter Care, at left, was killed during a carjacking on Aug. 20, 2024. Two dogs were in her vehicle, one Seattle police said belonged to her. It was found fatally stabbed in a nearby park. Her granddaughter, Melanie Roberts is pictured at right.

'She had a fire in her'

Dalton's granddaughter, Melanie Roberts, remembered her grandmother as a kind, loving, and generous soul.

"But she had a fire in her! She defended those she loved fiercely," Roberts told USA TODAY Thursday. "I have no doubt in my mind that she fought that man to save those fur babies. She wouldn't have cared about the car... her only thought would have been her clients' babies."

Roberts, 40, of Lake Stevens in Snohomish County, about an hour drive north of Seattle, said her grandmother started her business, Grandma's Critter Care, when she was five.

"(It was) to pay for private Christian school," Roberts, said. "That was her only goal. But she fell in love with the job and the people and was in business for 35 years. The love she had for every one of those animals and their humans was amazing."

Fingerprints on Dalton's cell phone led police to suspect

A preliminary investigation revealed Dalton was in the drivers seat when the suspect jumped into her car.

Dalton fought back, police said, as the man tried to push her out.

Six dogs were in the car, one that belonged to Dalton and five others, including two dogs named Cowboy and Mister owned by Allison Enell.

Also in the car, Enell said: a terrier named Stewie, a King Charles Cavalier named Maisie who was injured and taken to a vet for emergency surgery, a Corgi named Bentley, and Dalton's dog, Prince Eric, who was killed.

Witnesses tried to help the woman, including one man who approached the car, but backed up when the suspect brandished a knife, Barden said. The same man returned with a bat, police said, but the suspect drove away, running over Dalton and striking several cars.

Dalton was dragged by the vehicle and fatally wounded.

He did not need to back up, witness Laura Dynan told The Seattle Times. This woman was fighting for other peoples dogs and her own dog in this car. Like it wasnt about the car. It was about the dogs.

Not far from the scene, officers found Daltons car and obtained fingerprints from her cellphone, Barden said.

The Seattle Police Department released this image of the suspect in the slaying of 80-year-old Ruth Dalton on Aug. 20, 2022.

'She's a hero'

The five surviving dogs were found within a mile of the site by good Samaritans, Enell said, "scared and skittish, but all OK outside of Maisie."

"Ruth saved our dogs," Enell told USA TODAY. "She did it at the cost of her own life. I have no doubt the perpetrator would have murdered our dogs had she not fought to get the door open. She could have handed over the car and stepped back, but she fought and fought. Shes a hero. We are gutted."

Do you know this suspect? Man caught on video stealing lemonade-stand money from Virginia 10-year-old siblings

Dalton's dog found fatally stabbed at park

Later in the day witnesses reported someone hurting a dog in Brighton Playfield in the Columbia City neighborhood, about 5 miles from the carjacking scene, Barden said.

When animal control officers responded to the scene, Barden said, they found a dog stabbed to death and noticed the dog's collar had a tag with Daltons name on it.

Man accused of killing dog walker, dog, faces first-degree murder, animal cruelty charges

King County online jail records show Haynes was booked into the jail just before 8 p.m. Wednesday and faces charges of first-degree murder and first-degree animal cruelty.

As of Thursday he remained jailed with no bond, a jail spokesperson reported.

It was not immediately known when he was due to appear in court or whether he had obtained an attorney.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call police at (206) 233-5000 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS

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: Dog walker Ruth Dalton, 80, killed during Seattle carjacking
The body of British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch was recovered Thursday from his family's superyacht that sank off the coast of Italy after it encountered a sudden and powerful storm, authorities said.

After four bodies were recovered from the wreck Wednesday, Lynch's 18-year-old daughter, Hannah, remains the only person unaccounted for, Massimo Mariani, of Italy's interior ministry, told Reuters. Her body may have been swept out to sea, Mariani said.

It could take divers more time to find her body because of the difficulties of accessing the sunken ship more than 160 feet down, said Luca Cari, a fire brigade spokesperson. Rescuers faced a challenging task in scouring extremely deep and narrow spaces around the boat.

Giovanni Costantino, the CEO of Italian ship manufacturer Perini, which made the ship in 2008, told Reuters on Thursday, "The boat suffered a series of indescribable, unreasonable errors."

He said the crew made an "incredible mistake" in not preparing for the storm, even though it was announced in a shipping forecast earlier. "This is the mistake that cries out for vengeance," he said.

Lynch, 59, was best known as the co-founder of Britains largest enterprise software, Autonomy, which was sold to Hewlett-Packard in 2011. He had invited his friends on the yacht to celebrate his acquittal in June of fraud charges related to the sale of Autonomy.

The Bayesian, a 184-feet-long British-registered sailboat, went down just before sunrise Monday off the coast of Porticello, near Palermo, where it was anchored when a strong storm swept across the area. Of the 22 passengers and crew members on board, 15, including Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares, were pulled from the water Monday, and several were hospitalized. Divers then recovered the body of Ricardo Thomas, the yacht's chef, near the ship.

Rescue personnel work in the area where a luxury yacht sank off the coast of Porticello near the Sicilian city of Palermo, Italy, on Aug. 20, 2024.

Who were among the missing?

An exhaustive search ensued for six missing people: Lynch and his daughter; Judy and Jonathan Bloomer, a non-executive chair of Morgan Stanley International; and Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife, Neda Morvillo.

Jonathan Bloomer was a character witness at Lynchs fraud trial, and Chris Morvillo, an American citizen, was part of the team that represented Lynch.

Hannah, the younger of Lynch's two daughters, was preparing to study English literature at Oxford University, according to the Sunday Times.

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Investigation opened into the tragedy

Local prosecutors have opened an investigation into the disaster and will hold a press conference on Saturday.

Costantino said there were no errors in the ship's construction or design. "It went down because it took on water. From where, the investigators will tell," he said.

The ship, owned by Lynch's wife, Bacares, was constructed in accordance with international maritime standards and commercially certified by the U.K.'s Maritime and Coastguard Agency, according to Matthew Schanck, chairman of the Maritime Search and Rescue Council. It was refitted for the second time in 2020.

Experts have pointed to a waterspout, a tornado over the water that can travel up to 120 mph, that formed during the storm, as well as the weight of the ship's mast, one of the largest in the world, as possible factors in its sinking.

Contributing: Jeanine Santucci, USA TODAY; Reuters

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Body of Mike Lynch found, recovered from sunken yacht wreckage
A treasured no-kill shelter in Brooklyn, New York is asking for help. AMA Animal Rescue is hoping that animal lovers everywhere will see their story and help them keep their doors open. The shelter has recently admitted that they are in dire straights financially and will have to close unless someone steps up and give them help.

The animal rescue does so much good work. It would be tragic for them to close their doors this way.

Speaking with CBS News, co-founder at AMA Animal Rescue, Anna Khazanova, shared that things have taken a sharp turn for the worst.

Related: Animal Sanctuary Shows Perception vs. Reality of Working With Rescued Animals

"We wanted to be a beacon of hope for them, and this year has been a rude awakening for us," Khazanova explained, speaking of the many animals they treat every year.

AMA specializes in rescuing animals who were mistreated due to some of the worst cases of animal neglect. They've been taking in animals for a decade. But sadly AMA is now $90,000 in debt after several veterinary emergencies this year.

"It's very emotional. It's very heartbreaking," Khazanova's partner Mariya Vlasova told PIX 11 NY. The two women came to the United States from Russia and Ukraine. They established the no-kill shelter in 2014 and have been fighting the good fight ever since.

"All of our cases are coming from situations of abuse and neglect," Vlasova explained. "Some of them are coming from a kill-shelter as well, but most of them are coming from situations when somebody's alerted us about a horrible situation that's been happening and nobody else can help them."

CBS News reports that things have gotten so bad that AMA has decided to stop taking in new animals.

"We've never been in this situation, so we were always were confident that we could handle it. Right now, we don't feel this way," Vlasova told the news outlet. Another major source of money woes are donations, which are down to a trickle.

Between their facility and foster families, Vlasova and Khazanova say there are 63 cats and dogs currently in their care. The two women don't know what they'll do if they can't raise more money. "We do our best and it's still not enough," Vlasova told PIX 11 NY.

"My biggest fear is to not be able to provide safety and the medical care of animals in dire need," Khazanova added to CBS News.

They are asking that people donate to their rescue. "We cannot give up on not one dog or cat that comes under our care," Vlasova added.

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Canadas federal Conservative Party has removed a promotional video that was released over the weekend showing its leader speaking patriotically while Russian fighter jets fly in the sky, according to CNN affiliate CBC.

The video purports to show classic down-home Canadian scenes and landscapes but has been widely criticized online for including footage from other countries.

The video was removed  mistakes happen, Sarah Fischer, director of communications for the Conservative Party of Canada said Monday, according to CBC.

In the video, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre speaks about Canadian fighter jets conducting a training mission to defend our home and native land  but as his narration continues, the video shows what Canadas defense minister identifies as Russian-made warplanes.

Shockingly, Mr. Poilievres dream for Canada includes Russian fighter jets (an Su-17 and what appears to be an Su-27) flying over our glorious prairies on a training mission. This comes as Russia continues its illegal, unprovoked war of choice against Ukraine and the international rules that keep us all safe, said a press release from Blairs office Monday, according to CBC.

Users recorded the video, which continues to circulate on social media. Canadian New Democratic Party (NDP) MP Charlie Angus reshared it, pointing out that the video also contained stock footage from other countries. CNN also found that several of the videos were indeed stock footage shot in other countries.

Poilievres fake Canada protected by Russian jets, for Serbian families with a Venezuelan sunset is drawing international attention, Angus wrote on X.

Poilievre also narrates the story of a father dropping off his child at school and then driving along, hearing the sounds of hammers using Canadian wood to build, seeing farmers working in the field, and looking up at the sky to see fighter jets.

The same plane is soon seen from a university campus where kids are hustling off to classknowing that when they get to class they will have the chance to debate freely and fearlessly without worry of being censored, he says.

Users have pointed out that the video of the student looking at the jets was actually from a Ukrainian university. CNN has also verified the stock footage to be from Ukraine.

He talks about Canadian families of the student, that welder, kids, moms and dads coming together at the end of the day to celebrate how one of them has been sober for 10 years.

However, users comically point out that the footage edited over his narration shows the family drinking wine to mark the occasion.

I honestly thought this was a parody. This is Pierres imagined Canada where people kill food for dinner, drink wine to celebrate sobriety, rely on Russian jets for protection, mistake Ukrainian universities for Canada, Angus wrote.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Canadas two major freight railroads have shut their operations, according to management of the two companies, locking out 9,000 members of the Teamsters union who operate the trains and dealing a potential blow to both the Canadian and US economies.

Nearly a third of the freight handled by the two railroads  Canadian National (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City Southern (CPKC)  crosses the US-Canadian border, and the shutdown could disrupt operations in a number of US industries, including agriculture, autos, home building and energy, depending upon how long the shutdown lasts.

CPKC is acting to protect Canadas supply chains, and all stakeholders, from further uncertainty and the more widespread disruption that would be created should this dispute drag out further resulting in a potential work stoppage occurring during the fall peak shipping period, the company said in a Thursday statement shortly after the start of the lockout at 12:01 am ET. Delaying resolution to this labor dispute will only make things worse.

The shutdown would drive home how closely linked the two nations economies are, with many industries depending on the free movement of goods across the border for their efficient operations.

For example, some US auto plants could temporarily shut down if theyre unable to get engines, transmissions or stampings done at Canadian plants. US farmers might find shortages of fertilizer and US water treatment plants near the Canadian border could run of out chlorine they use to purify water.

This is the first time that both major Canadian railroads have shut down at the same time due to a labor dispute. The most recent work stoppage in the industry was a 60-hour strike at Canadian Pacific in 2022. Before that, there was a nine-day strike at Canadian National in 2019.

Thursdays action is different from a strike, in which union members refuse to report for work. In this case, management is the one telling the nearly 9,000 Teamsters that they cant work.

The CN North rail yard is shown on Thursday in Vaughan, Canada. - Ian Willms/Getty Images

Up against it

CPKC spokesperson Patrick Waldron said it was better to stop operations now and reach a conclusion, rather than having the union go on strike later this fall.

Were right up against the fall peak shipping season. You have a new Canadian grain crop coming in, the first not impacted by drought in two years, Waldron told CNN ahead of the lockout. You have Christmas presents in containers arriving at ports. If this pushes further into fall shipping period, the consequences are going to be worse.

The Teamsters union says it has been seeking a contract that both sides can live with, but that demands by the railroads would reduce the amount of rest and increase safety risks.

Throughout this process, CN and CPKC have shown themselves willing to compromise rail safety and tear families apart to earn an extra buck. The railroads dont care about farmers, small businesses, supply chains, or their own employees. Their sole focus is boosting their bottom line, even if it means jeopardizing the entire economy, Paul Boucher, president of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, said in a statement early Thursday.

But the railroads deny that the changes they are seeking would increase safety risks, saying all proposals provide greater safety protections than required by recently strengthened Canadian regulations.

The companies said it is the unions fault that there could not be an agreement reached before the deadline. They both called on the government to step in and refer the dispute to binding arbitration, which it has thus far refused to do.

The chambers of commerce in both the United States and Canada issued a joint statement Tuesday calling on the Canadian government to take action to keep the railroads working.

A stoppage of rail service will be devastating to Canadian businesses and families and impose significant impacts on the US economy, they said. Significant two-way trade and deeply integrated supply chains between Canada and the United States mean that any significant rail disruption will jeopardize the livelihoods of workers across multiple industries on both sides of the border.

Teamsters union members hold picket signs at the entrance of CN Rail Lynn Creek Yard in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada on Wednesday. - Andrew Chin/Getty Images

Potential economic losses

Economists say there isnt nearly enough capacity on trucks available to handle the freight normally carried by the Canadian railroads.

A Tuesday report from Anderson Economic Group, a Michigan research firm that has expertise estimating the economic impact of work stoppages, said a three-day strike would cause $300 million (407 million Canadian dollars) of economic damage, while a seven-day strike would bring losses to more than $1 billion (1.4 billion Canadian dollars).

A shutdown of only a few days would limit the economic impact but still cause problems, said Kristin Dziczek, policy advisor in the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicagos research, policy, and public engagement division.

It will take weeks to unwind the problems caused by a shutdown of even a few days because things will end up not where theyre supposed to be, she said.

And because of the risk of a work stoppage, both railroads stopped taking shipments of various hazardous materials last week so that those items would not be stuck on trains unable to be delivered. That is already causing some disruptions, according to John Drake, the US Chambers vice president of transportation, infrastructure, and supply chain policy.

Were already hearing from businesses not seeing their shipments move, he said.

Spokespeople for the railroads said management needed to move ahead with the lockdown plans because they couldnt wait for the union to spring a strike on them with only the 72 hours of notice that is required by Canadian law.

We cant shut down a rail network by just flipping a switch, Jonathan Abecassis, spokesperson for Canadian National, told CNN Wednesday ahead of the lockout. We needed to start a safe and secure shutdown.

Canada does not have the same railroad labor law as the United States that would allow Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to block a strike or lockout while a panel weighs the demands of the two sides and makes recommendations. Thats what happened in 2022 when President Joe Biden and Congress each took action to prevent a strike by 13 rail unions spread across the four major US railroads.

Canadian Labor Minister Steve MacKinnon met with the union and management negotiators in recent days in an unsuccessful effort to reach a deal. He has the power to refer the matter to binding arbitration, a solution sought by the railroads and opposed by the unions. But so far, the Trudeau administration has rejected that option.

Were hoping he reconsiders his position, said CNs Abecassis.

At a press briefing Thursday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau would not commit to that action, though. He did say that MacKinnon remains engaged directly with trying to find a way to end the shutdown.

We are we are not taking this lightly, obviously because Canadians across the country are worried about it, Trudeau said. We will have more to say shortly on what were doing to make sure that the right solution is found quickly for the economy.

 CNNs Paula Newton contributed to this report.

This story has been updated with additional context and reporting.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
CHICAGO - Democrats from the crucial Sun Belt battleground states of Arizona, Georgia and Nevada gathered at their national convention this week are rejoicing in the newfound enthusiasm and energy surrounding Kamala Harris, which has made their states far more competitive since she became the party's presidential nominee.

But with 11 weeks to go until Election Day, party leaders in those states told USA TODAY they will be leaving the Windy City with a commitment to transform that enthusiasm into beating Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, and to help lift other Democrats along the way.

"We've been doing the work, and we're just kind of doubling down, tripling down and making sure that no voter goes untouched, untapped and unlistened to," said Daniele Monroe-Moreno, a Nevada state assemblywoman and chair for the state Democratic Party.

When Nevada Democrats received an influx of new volunteers after President Joe Biden ended his reelection bid and Harris became the nominee, the state party already had the operations in place to have them knock on doors, make phone calls and meet with voters, Monroe-Moreno said.

US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris waves as she boards Air Force Two at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport on August 10, 2024. Harris and Walz travel to Las Vegas, Nevada, for a campaign rally.

Democrats are working with the Harris campaign in a state Biden won in 2020 by about 33,600 votes and have so far opened 12 offices statewide and hired 100 full time staffers.

Next door in Arizona, where Biden beat Trump four years ago by under 10,500 votes, the state party and the Harris campaign are running a coordinated campaign with 13 offices and 130 full time staff.

Back east in Georgia, that number is double with 26 field offices and 200 full time staff, according to Matthew Wilson, first vice chair for the state Democratic Party. That should signal to Georgia voters in the coming weeks that they're serious about their chances to win in a state that Biden captured by about 11,800 votes in 2020, Wilson said.

"I've got to give it to Vice President Harris and Gov. Walz," Wilson said. "Their campaign has doubled down in Georgia and expanded the blueprint that the Biden-Harris campaign already had."

The Democrats' optimism stems from polls showing a tighter race or Harris taking the lead over Trump. The latest, a New York Times/Siena poll of likely voters, found Harris leading in Arizona and narrowing the gap in Georgia and Nevada. The Cook Political Report shifted these states earlier this month from "Lean R" to a "toss up."

The polls point to enthusiasm among Democratic voters for the surge in support. But it's not limited to those three Sun Belt states.

In North Carolina, Harris is leading Trump by 2 percentage points, the Times/Siena poll found. Even in Florida, Trump's home state and once considered the premier battleground, a USA TODAY/Suffolk University/WSVN-TV survey released last week showed Harris within striking distance of the former GOP president in a state that hasn't swung the Democrats way since Barack Obama's 2012 reelection.

The voter enthusiasm among Democrats opens up an electoral roadmap for Harris that did not appear possible for Biden. Putting the Sun Belt states in play gives Harris multiple paths to the 270 Electoral College votes. It also forces Trump to redirect resources in the final weeks of the campaign.

With Biden in the race, Trump focused heavily on the Midwest, picking Sen. JD Vance of Ohio as his running mate to shore up support among Midwest voters.

The week after Harris announced Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, Vance spent those days trailing them through battleground states, including a stopover at the Arizona border.

Republican vice presidential nominee U.S. Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) delivers remarks alongside rancher John Ladd as Vance tours the U.S. border wall on Aug. 1, 2024, in Montezuma Pass, Arizona. Vance is visiting the border on the final stop of his first visit to the Southwest as a vice presidential candidate.

Trump has shifted his attention to the Sun Belt. He held a rally in Georgia two weeks ago. He's traveling to Arizona and Nevada this week.

His campaign issued a memo from its chief pollster earlier this week, discounting polls showing Harris with a "phony" lead in Sun Belt states.

But Democrats at the convention are feeling more optimistic about their chances.

"The new people that are joining that are saying they want to be a part of electing Kamala Harris, it's different," said Pamela Castellana, the chair for Florida Democrat's state campaign committee.

The focus is not on keeping Trump out of office, she said. "It's because they're fighting for something now, you know. We just feel hopeful and energized, for the first time in a long time."

Regina Romero, the mayor of Tucson, Arizona and a member of the Harris-Walz national advisory board, cautioned against relying on polls or believing the enthusiasm for Harris will carry over to Election Day.

"We want to make sure that we take all of the energy in that room, and take it to our states and make sure that we do the work, because we cannot take anything for granted," she said.

Coalition building key to battleground states

Democrats in these Sun Belt states agree that the key to securing victories in November lies in their diverse electorates and building winning coalitions.

In Georgia, Black voters account for 30 percent of the state's 7 million eligible voters. Latinos make up a quarter of the Arizona's 4.1 million voters and one in five eligible voters in Nevada.

In Arizona, that includes outreach to Republican voters turned off by Trump. The convention has featured Republicans supporting Harris this time around.

"The people in the political middle aren't homeless," said John Giles, the Mesa, Arizona, mayor who chairs the Republicans for Harris campaign in that state and addressed the convention Tuesday.

Mesa Mayor John Giles speaks on stage during the second day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on Aug. 20, 2024, in Chicago.

"The Republican Party of John McCain is gone. But, until we get something close to it back, it's OK to not vote for a Republican at the top of the ticket," he told USA TODAY.

In Georgia, the party will strengthen efforts to boost turnout among the state's sizeable Black electorate. Given the narrow margins from 2020, House Caucus Whip Sam Park said they will also target smaller but growing communities like Asian-American and Pacific Islander voters.

"It's an uphill battle, because of all the systemic efforts that Republicans are creating to make it more difficult, not just to undermine our freedom to vote, but to ensure that our vote counts," Park said.

Part of that outreach is providing resources in other languages to ensure voters understand how to cast their vote. Republicans in Georgia passed a series of changes to the state's election system after the 2020 election in the name of election integrity.

"One of the best ways of mitigating the harm is to turn out in a historic manner and ensure that Georgia votes are counted. Every single Georgia vote counts," he added.

One of the fastest-growing voting blocs in Georgia are Indian-American voters, according to Park. Harris ascent to the top of the ticket has generated great enthusiasm within that community.

Dhruv Revva, 20-year-old Arizona State student who is of Indian descent and is one of the youngest members of the Arizona delegation, said it was exciting to see someone who grew up in a similar background reach the highest office in U.S. politics, first as vice president and potentially as president.

"It's just so important that every single immigrant kid, every single little girl in America can look at this moment and, in the face of all the misogyny, the dog whistles, the racism, America can still chose the first South Asian, Black woman president," he said.

Joseph Garcia, the executive director for the Chicanos por la Causa Action Fund said they are preparing to scale up their nonpartisan Latino Loud initiative, which aims to register as many young voters as possible in Arizona and Nevada before Election Day.

A delegate during the national anthem during the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center.

While Nevada allows same-day registration, Garcia said in Arizona they have until Oct. 7 to register people to vote. But with most voters tuned out until after Labor Day, that gives Latino Loud a narrow window to work with.

"That one month is when we'll be flooding everything we can, get as much conversation going. Really pushing it so people are registered," Garcia said.

Lifting down ballot candidates in the process

Democratic leaders in the Sun Belt battleground states hope voter enthusiasm also lifts Democrats down ballot, from key Senate and House races all the way down to state legislatures and county races.

Democrats narrowly control the Senate, while Republicans control the House. Each party sees opportunities to flip the other chamber, and control could come down to key races in Sun Belt states.

U.S. Rep. Ruben Gallego takes the stage on Aug. 9, 2024, at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale.

Higher turnout in presidential years could also help deliver Democratic majorities in state legislatures and the governor's seat.

Since Biden stepped down and endorsed Harris, about 30,000 volunteers singed up online in Arizona alone. That's nearly three times Biden's 10,400-vote victory margin there.

"For the down-ballot races, we have this phrase 'flip two,'" said Joshua Polacheck, a delegate and candidate for the Arizona Corporation Commission, which regulates utility companies in the state.

"So we're going to flip two state House seats. We're going to flip two state Senate seats. We're going to flip two Corporation Commission seats. We're going to flip two US House seats," he added.

Park, a state representative up for reelection in Georgia, said their strategy centers on tested methods like knocking on doors to connect with voters and coordinating their message.

"We are not just talking to voters in our districts for our respective campaigns and handing out our materials, but also handing out materials for Kamala Harris," he said.

Monroe-Moreno, the chair for the Democratic Party in Nevada, said helping elect candidates locally benefits all Democrats.

"We need to be that blue team. And so yes, doing that work in Nevada, but helping my state party chairs throughout the country get those accomplishments in their states, as well," she said.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Democrats in Sun Belt battlegrounds seize on Harris voter enthusiasm
A magnitude 4.7 earthquake struck the Big Island of Hawaii on Thursday as officials tracked two rapidly developing storms in the Pacific.

The temblor was reported nine miles south of Fern Forest, a community of about 1,100 people on the southern end of the Big Island of Hawaii, at 12:52 a.m. local time, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said more than 300 people reported feeling the earthquake all across the Big Island in the first hour and several reports were received from nearby islands. There were no immediate reports of significant damage and the earthquake did not raise the threat of tsunamis, according to the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.

Additionally, the earthquake did not have any apparent impact on either Mauna Loa or Kilauea volcanoes, the U.S. Geological Survey said. In recent days, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory has issued warnings about increased activity at Kilauea volcano. The volcano's last eruption occurred on July 3 and lasted a few days.

The seismic activity comes as officials watch a developing storm system and a Category 3 hurricane in the Pacific, both of which are heading in Hawaii's direction.

About 1,000 miles east-southeast of Hilo, Hawaii, a system of thunderstorms has merged and begun organizing, according to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center. Forecasters say the system, which is forecast to develop over the coming days, will pass near the islands of Hawaii late this weekend or early next week.

"Interests in Hawaii should closely monitor this disturbance, though it remains too early to determine the exact location and magnitude of potential impacts," the Central Pacific Hurricane Center said.

About 1,000 miles to the east of the storm system is Hurricane Gilma, a powerful storm that will keep its strength at least through the end of the week as it churns through open waters.

"Should this system hold together, it would not be until around the end of the month before it would become a concern for Hawaii," said Alex DaSilva, AccuWeather's hurricane expert.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Earthquake strikes Hawaii's Big Island as storms loom
Millions of updated COVID-19 vaccines will soon be ready for patients following Food and Drug Administration approval announced on Thursday.

The updated vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna for people ages 6 months and older come amid a summer surge in COVID-19 cases across the U.S. Walgreens and CVS, two of the largest chains, previously told USA TODAY shipments of the vaccines could arrive a few days after FDA approval.

The new vaccines are designed to target the most dominant recent variants of the virus and protect against serious illness. Getting the shot now will offer protection when the anticipated winter surge comes and other respiratory illnesses become more prevalent, as people congregate indoors.

Vaccination continues to be the cornerstone of COVID-19 prevention, said Peter Marks, director of the FDAs Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, in a statement.

In June, a federal advisory panel said new vaccines against COVID-19 should target the JN.1 lineage, and the FDA recommended manufacturers also target the JN.1 subvariant KP.2.

Pfizer, Moderna and Novavax previously told federal regulators their vaccines would be available in August pending the FDA's approval. Pfizer and Moderna's vaccines will target the subvariant KP.2 using an updated messenger RNA technology.

Novavax, whose vaccine hasn't yet been approved this year, uses a traditional protein-based vaccine against the JN.1 lineage, which should provide an immune response against circulating subvariants.

In a statement, Novavax said it expected its pre-filled syringes would be available in time for peak vaccination season.

People in higher risk groups  including people 65 and up and those with chronic health conditions, organ transplants or cancer  should get their shots as soon as possible, said Dr. James Cutrell, an associate professor of medicine and an infectious disease specialist at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, in Dallas. These groups tend to be at greater risk of serious illness or death from COVID-19. They are eligible for vaccination every four months.

Even if people got last year's shot, COVID-19 vaccine protection wanes over time. Also, experts say it's important to get the updated shot because it targets the latest circulating variants.

"Each time you get a vaccine, it's kind of reminding your immune system of, 'Hey, this is still around,'" Cutrell told USA TODAY. "If we see it, we need to be ready to kind of fight against it."

The KP.3.1.1 subvariant appears to dominate the latest estimates of virus circulating in the U.S. SARS-CoV-2, like any virus, is constantly changing in its genetic makeup to survive. KP.3.1.1 is part of a JN.1 subvariant, so updated vaccines should protect against the circulating variant. Similar to JN.1 and its subvariants, KP.3.1.1 descends from the omicron variant that surged cases and deaths in late 2021.

Last year, updated vaccines targeted XBB.1.5, another offshoot of omicron. Despite continued cases and deaths from COVID-19, the number of people who've gotten vaccinated in the U.S. has fallen dramatically. Just 14% of children ages 6 months to 17 years old were up-to-date with the latest vaccine as of May, a federal panel said. The percentage of adults who got their shots was 22.5%.

COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths are nowhere near the levels they reached early in the pandemic. However, an infection still presents serious risks to many. Last season, more than 916,300 people were hospitalized with COVID-19, and 75,500 died from the disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Dr. David Margolius, director of public health for Cleveland, said questions remain about vaccine supply and recommendations for priority groups. After the public health emergency expired in 2023, there were challenges with the rollout of last years updated vaccines due to vaccine supply and insurance coverage. Getting vaccines this year likely wont be as easy as earlier in the pandemic, he said.

We tried to learn from mistakes last year about setting expectations, about how quickly things will roll out, he told USA TODAY. Theres still going to be a learning curve.

As the updated vaccines become available, critical routes for people to get free shots may be limited. The $1.1 billion Bridge Access Program, launched last September, allowed uninsured and underinsured people in the U.S. to get free COVID-19 vaccines. The program provided 1.5 million people with shots, but it ends Aug. 31, months earlier than expected.

Instead, the CDC will distribute $62 million of "unused vaccine contract money" to local and state health departments to provide updated vaccines to people who are uninsured and underinsured, an agency spokesperson said.

Until a replacement program can be found, the Galveston County Health District, in Texas, noted in a news release Thursday that "access to free vaccines for adults without insurance will be extremely limited."

Constance Almendarez, manager of immunizations for Galveston County, told USA TODAY this will likely make vaccine access difficult as there is still virus circulating and mutating.

The concern is that we may have some bumpy roads here for those (who) are uninsured and underinsured," she said.

Contributing: Ken Alltucker, Adrianna Rodriguez

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: FDA approves updated COVID vaccines for fall
Foremniakowski

Even if you've become proficient in every DIY swimsuit line hair removal technique out there (yup, we've tried the at-home wax and every swimsuit trimmer in existence, too), sometimes it's better to leave things up to the pros. Whether youre considering a wax for the first time, or youre interested in trying out some new ~styles~, it can be hard to know exactly which type of swimsuit wax to request.

Meet the experts: Shay Sadrolashrafi is a lead esthetician for wakse ; Kiana Doe is the salon development manager at Lunchbox Wax, Jeanette Haylock, the education manager for GoToBrazils Waxing Center .

Sure, most salons have menus, but the instructions may not be as detailed as youd like. Plus, asking for more details can feel uncomfortable if you're a newbie. But just know that you shouldnt feel awkward asking questions. The person doing your wax has seen it all before (literally), and they probably appreciate the questions.



That said, if youre looking to walk into your local salon with confidence, WH has you covered. We spoke with top experts to provide you with the nine most common types of swimsuit waxes you can get for the next time you're thinking about going bare.

1. Classic swimsuit Wax

If youre interested in targeting exclusively the areas that are visible from a bathing suit, the classic swimsuit wax is your best bet. This removes hair up to a four finger width from the swimsuit line, as well as the width of two fingers on top of the swimsuit area, says Shay Sadrolashrafi, a lead esthetician for wakse . She calls this a great option for first-timers.



2. Mini Brazilian

A mini Brazilian involves completely removing the hair from the front, leaving it totally bare, says Jeanette Haylock, education manager for GoToBrazils Waxing Center. When getting a mini Brazilian, you can expect to lay on your back with your legs bent, feet together, as if youre in butterfly. From there, its all steady breathing and anticipating wax strips until the job is complete.

3. Full Brazilian

If youre pretty familiar with the term thats probably because, according to Sadrolashrafi, this is definitely the most commonly requested option. It covers everything in the front, including the swimsuit line and labia, all the way to the butt strip, explains Sadrolashrafi. Waxing is one way to do it, but you can also Brazilian laser hair removal is also an option, too.

4. Sphinx Wax or Hollywood Wax

With all of these terms popping up, it can be hard to keep up, but dont worry. Basically, these terms both mean the same thing. A Sphinx Wax or Hollywood wax is also known as the Brazilian or swimsuit wax, which is the complete hair removal of both the front and backside of the swimsuit area, Sadrolashrafi explains.

5. French Wax

Kiana Doe, salon development manager at Lunchbox Wax says this is also sometimes referred to as a French swimsuit, and its a great option for the person that doesn't want a peek-a-boo situation with their pubic hair.

This wax leaves some hair on top and on the labia, Doe says. "This is not your standard swimsuit wax, and goes slightly inside where your swimsuit would cover," she adds. This wax can also include the butt strip if you so choose, says Sadrolashrafi.

6. Brazilian South

Full Brazilian? Check. And, while youre at it, might as well throw in your legs, too. Yup, you can officially get a one-and-done treatment so that, not only will you not have to risk razor bumps on your bits, but you can skip out on nicking your shins in the shower, too.

7. Butt Strip

Such a lovely name, I know, but, in all actuality, its exactly what it sounds likea wax strip or two targeted at hair growth around your butt area, and that's about it.

8. Full Buttocks

Hair happens. And if you're not feeling the stuff that pops up on your cheeks, simply request a full buttocks for a completely hairless situation.

9. Brazilian Total Body

Instead of stopping with a lower-half wax, this option lets you extend the hairless love all the way up to your neck. Arms, chest, back, stomach, bits, butt, legs, feetit all will go.

And, there you have itway more swimsuit waxes than you probably ever knew existed. Only question now is: Which will you choose?

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Fall may be weeks away, but pumpkin spice season has begun, with fans of the pumpkin spice latte looking forward to ordering the drink earlier and earlier each year.

Pumpkin pie has a lengthy history in the U.S. and the spice mix associated with the dessert treat has become inextricably linked with fall. While the flavor and scent have become American obsessions in the years since Starbucks first debuted the pumpkin spice latte, pumpkins and pumpkin pie go back much farther in American history.

Early pumpkin pies

Pumpkins were used in pies during the colonial era of the United States, according to the Library of Congress. An early landowner in 1655 wrote that English colonists "like pumpkins very much and use them also in pies, and know how to make a beverage from them."

Pumpkin pies were being made in England at the time, but they usually consisted of layers of sliced  sometimes fried  pumpkin, according to the Library of Congress. But by 1796, pumpkin pie had evolved to resemble the version more commonly eaten today, as evidenced by a recipe in "American Cookery," the first cookbook written by an American and published in America.

The book featured two recipes for "pompkin" pudding, which was baked in a pie crust. Instead of sliced pumpkin, the filling was made with stewed and strained pumpkin, eggs, sugar and cream or milk. The pies were flavored with ginger, mace, nutmeg and allspice.

Pumpkin spice

It wasn't until the 1930s that pumpkin spice was introduced as a blend. McCormick & Company introduced its pumpkin pie spice in 1934, just a few years after canned pumpkin first appeared on shelves. The company viewed the spice blend as a more convenient way for consumers to make a perfectly seasoned pie.

"It was also more economically friendly than buying individual jars of each spice needed to capture that perfect seasonal essence," a spokesperson for McCormick said.

McCormick's pumpkin pie spice in 1934 and today / Credit: McCormick

The company does not have data on the original cost of the spice mix. The flavor of the 1934 pumpkin pie spice is believed to be similar to today's flavor and there has been no change to the company's formula since June 2002.

Today, 80% of the company's pumpkin pie spice sales are from the holiday season, according to McCormick. Interest increases in August and peaks in November.

Introducing the pumpkin spice latte

Starbucks, which brought the pumpkin spice latte back and debuted its fall menu on Thursday, first introduced the drink in 2003. The coffee giant was looking for a menu item to match the success of the peppermint mocha. Peter Dukes, who headed up the Starbucks espresso team at the time, gathered workers for a brainstorming session.

A customer survey had Starbucks considering drinks featuring chocolate and caramel, "but there was something special about pumpkin," according to Starbucks. "It scored high on 'uniqueness.'"

In the sping of 2003, workers sat down in Starbucks' "Liquid Lab" with pumpkin pie and espresso so they could sample them together. They spent three months working on the recipe featuring espresso, pumpkin spice sauce and steamed milk with a topping of whipped cream and more pumpkin spice.

"We brought in pumpkin pies into our R&D lab and actually just poured shots of espresso on 'em, and ate 'em," Dukes told "CBS Saturday Morning" in 2021.

After a final taste test, Starbucks picked the drink over the chocolate and caramel alternatives.

Even though the pie-inspired drink won the taste test, the beverage as coffee fans know it nearly didn't hit stores. Starbucks initially considered naming the drink the fall harvest latte.

"We ultimately ended up landing on Pumpkin Spice Latte because the spices play a really important role in bringing out the flavors of pumpkin, while also highlighting the espresso in the cup," Dukes said in a Starbucks post.

Many know the drink as a PSL, with the nickname derived from the three-letter beverage code originally written on cups by baristas.

The drink rolled out in 100 Starbucks locations in the fall of 2003, then appeared on menus across the U.S. and Canada the following fall. Since 2015, Starbucks' PSL has included pumpkin puree.

Starbucks does not track beverage sales by individual drinks, but the company can say that hundreds of millions of PSLs have been sold. The drink is the chain's most popular seasonal beverage of all time.

Pumpkin spice everything

Pumpkin spice isn't just for pies or coffee anymore. It's in bread, toaster pastries, cookies, yogurt, coffee creamer, beer, cereal and cream cheese. The flavor has even made its way into Spam and hummus. It's also not just a flavor. The craze for everything pumpkin spice has provided fuel for popular scents for candles and soaps.

A search for "pumpkin spice" on the Target website brings up 2,365 results.

A decade ago, sales of pumpkin spice products topped $361 million. Sales of pumpkin spice-related products topped $800 million in the 12-month period ending in July 2023, according to market research firm NielsenIQ.

Pumpkin spice even made it into the dictionary in 2022.

The increasing popularity also comes with a price tag. According to personal finance site MagnifyMoney, food manufacturers commonly include a "pumpkin spice tax" in the price of their products. In 2022, the site reported that pumpkin spice products cost 14% more compared to the traditional varieties of the same products.

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DETROIT  A Michigan doctor is facing charges that he recorded nude images of women and children but authorities suspect there could be many more victims as investigators review thousands of videos found at his home.

Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said the investigation into Dr. Oumair Aejaz, 40, is "in its infancy," alleging the doctor used hidden cameras in places like hospital rooms, changing rooms, bathrooms, and bedrooms to record women and children and recorded himself sexually assaulting unconscious hospital patients. Bouchard said there could be potentially hundreds of victims and investigators are working to identify people who may have been victimized.

Aejaz has worked at Ascension Genesys Hospital in Grand Blanc Township and Henry Ford Hospital Macomb in Clinton Township, Bouchard said. The sheriff's office said he had privileges at those hospitals but was not on staff.

"This individual potentially is one of the worst I've ever seen because there's no particular category," Bouchard said at a news conference on Tuesday. "It's not just children. It's not just women. It's not just men. It goes from a 2-year-old to a grown woman. And so, the victimization is so broad and the perversion so great, that we're just beginning to wrap our arms around it."

Aejaz's attorney, Mariell Lehman, did not immediately respond for comment on Tuesday.

Aejaz was charged Aug. 13 with one count of child sexually abusive activity, four counts of capturing an image of an unclothed person, and five counts of using a computer to commit a crime and is being held in the Oakland County Jail on a $2 million bond, Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald said at the news conference.

'Take a community mindset': How to protect children from sexual abuse: The predator is usually someone you know

'So much the tip of the iceberg'

The charges stem from incidents at Goldfish Swim School in Rochester, Michigan, where Aejaz is alleged to have filmed two women and two children, ages 2 and 4, in a changing area, McDonald said. She said the child sexually abusive activity charge involves an unidentified minor and is not related to the swim school incidents.

McDonald said Aejaz's wife produced materials earlier this month that were concerning and the sheriff's office immediately executed a search warrant and confiscated more devices. She said investigators have "sifted through really jarring, alarming images" and continue to do so.

McDonald said Aejaz also preyed on well-respected institutions and hospitals, which she said have been cooperative.

"We fully expect and actually know that there are thousands and thousands of images and videos that we will have to work, law enforcement in partnership with others, to identify who those victims are and those are all being investigated," McDonald said.

Bouchard said investigators have seized six computers, four cellphones, and 15 external hard drives  noting that just one had 13,000 videos on it that need to be reviewed. He said it could take up to six months to review what they have already confiscated.

Bouchard said investigators believe the alleged criminal activity goes back at least six years. "This is, and I can't stress this enough, so much the tip of the iceberg," he said.

Bouchard said Aejaz is an Indian citizen who has worked in the United States on a visa, coming here around 2011. Aejaz completed his residency at DMC Sinai-Grace Hospital and spent time in Alabama, according to the sheriff's office. In addition to the hospitals in Grand Blanc and Clinton Township, Bouchard said investigators are still trying to determine other locations where Aejaz, who specializes in internal medicine, may have worked.

"Due to the lengthy time that he's been involved in this activity and the large amounts of storage that we have in our possession, we believe there's obviously a lot more to be uncovered," Bouchard said.

A spokesperson for the Sheriff's Office said Wednesday that they had already received 125 tips via the email. Anyone who believes they were a victim is asked to contact the sheriff's office at OCSOSIU@oakgov.com

If you are a survivor of sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800.656.HOPE (4673) or visit hotline.rainn.org/online and receive confidential support.

Contact Gina Kaufman: gkaufman@freepress.com

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan doctor charged for filming women, children in changing area
The body of Mike Lynch, the 59-year-old British tech investor, has been recovered from the sunken Bayesian superyacht, Italian interior ministry office Massimo Mariani told Reuters on Thursday.

Early Monday morning, a luxury yacht he was on was hit by a tornado and sunk off the coast of Sicily, Italy.

Lynch garnered much of his wealth from cofounding Autonomy, a tech company purchased by Hewlett-Packard, or HP, for $11 billion in 2011. An attorney for Lynch recently revealed that the entrepreneurs total worth is around $450 million.

The Autonomy sale was one of the biggest British tech deals at the time but quickly went sour, with HP writing down Autonomys value by $8.8 billion within a year. The Autonomy acquisition was meant to fuel HPs software business. Instead, the blockbuster sale has been bogged down by legal problems that recently culminated with a fraud trial.

Prosecutors accused Lynch and former Autonomy finance executive Stephen Chamberlain of scheming to inflate Autonomys revenue before selling to HP. In June, Lynch was acquitted on 15 charges  one count of conspiracy and 14 counts of wire fraud  in a San Francisco court.

The verdict came as a surprise to Lynch. When you hear that answer, you jump universes. If this had gone the wrong way, it would have been the end of life as I have known it in any sense, he told the Times, a UK newspaper.

Lynch, his lawyer and four other people are among those missing after their luxury superyacht sank during a freak storm off Sicily. - Alberto Lo Bianco/LaPresse/AP

Autonomy, founded in 1996, became Britains biggest software company and a member of the blue-chip FTSE 100 index. Lynch was lauded at the time by academics and scientists and was asked to advise the British government on technology and innovation.

The vessel Lynch was on, the Bayesian, is linked to his wife, Angela Bacares, who was among those rescued. Ownership records held by maritime information service Equasis show that the 56-meter yacht is owned by the Isle of Man-registered Revtom Limited, a company owned by his wife.

Lynchs 18-year-old daughter Hannah is still missing, Mariani said, and divers are still searching the area where the vessel sank.

Earlier Thursday, a fifth body was brought to shore from the wreck of the boat, which sank earlier in the week. A CNN team on the ground saw Italian authorities move the body from a rescue boat to ambulances at the Sicilian port of Porticello.

Reuters and CNNs Barbie Latza Nadeau contributed to this report.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
The group Muslim Women for Harris-Walz announced it is disbanding after the campaign refused a request from the uncommitted movement to give a Palestinian American a speaking slot at the Democratic National Convention.

We cannot in good conscience continue Muslim Women for Harris-Walz, in light of this new information from the uncommitted movement, that VP Harris team declined their request to have a Palestinian American speaker take the stage at the DNC, the group said in a statement following Wednesday night's convention program.

The uncommitted movement has for months pushed Democratic leaders to implement an arms embargo to Israel and work toward a permanent cease-fire in Gaza. The group formed during the Democratic primaries earlier this year urging progressives to vote uncommitted to deny then-Democratic candidate President Joe Biden their support.

The mounting pressure from protesters and renewed tensions among party officials come as the Democratic Party has for days sought to convey a message of unity and hope at its conventions. And they could serve as a warning for the Harris campaign about what's to come if it does not appease the party's left flank.

Delegates from movement on Wednesday night organized a sit-in outside of the convention in Chicago, saying that they would stay put until Harris' campaign allowed a Palestinian speaker on stage. There are approximately 30 uncommitted delegates attending the convention this week. The protest was one of many pro-Palestine gatherings organized on the streets of Chicago, where the convention is taking place, this week to urge for an end to the war.

Waleed Shahid, one of the movement's founders, said during a news conference on Thursday that the Democratic Party had made several offers to the group, including meetings with senior campaign officials, but not a speaking slot. He told reporters that the Harris campaign had said the group could not "define the biggest moment of the vice president's political life."

"What happened at the DNC last night (when the Harris campaign said no to a speaker) was one of the most humiliating experiences of my life," Shahid said.

The convention on Wednesday night featured speeches by Jonathan Dekel-Chen, whose son Sagui is a hostage in Gaza, and the parents of the Israeli American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin. In their speech, Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg echoed the sentiment of the protesters outside the walls of the arena, calling for a cease-fire deal and an end to the suffering of the innocent people in Gaza.

The family of the Israeli Hostage that was on the stage tonight, has shown more empathy towards Palestinian Americans and Palestinians, than our candidate or the DNC, the group Muslim Women for Harris-Walz said in its statement.

We pray that the DNC and VP Harris team makes the right decision before this convention is over. For the sake of each of us.

Democrats divided over support for Palestinian speaker

Democratic leaders appeared divided Thursday over whether a Palestinian speaker should be allowed on stage at the convention.

Among those in support: the United Auto Workers Union and members of the progressive group of House lawmakers known as the Squad."

"If we want the war in Gaza to end, we cant put our heads in the sand or ignore the voices of the Palestinian Americans in the Democratic Party," the UAW said in a statement. "If we want to win this election, the Democratic Party must allow a Palestinian American speaker to be heard from the DNC stage tonight.

U.S. Reps. Ayanna Pressley, D-Massachusetts. and Rashida Tlaib, D-Michigan, who have long supported the uncommitted movement, also pushed back against the Harris' campaign's decision.

"We shouldn't have to beg our own party  to be heard," Tlaib told reporters, joining Thursday's news conference from the sit-in outside the convention.

Other Democrats have urged the Harris campaign against allowing members of the uncommitted movement a chance to speak at the convention. Brianna Wu, executive director of the progressive Rebellion political action committee, which is focused on correcting wealth inequality, argued that the group wanted "disrupt this event."

"Not giving them a platform to hijack our convention is so obviously the correct play," Wu said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. "Welcome to politics. We do what we have to do to win."

The Harris-Walz campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Contributing: Tamia Fowlkes

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Muslim Women for Harris disbands after DNC speaking slot denial
Oprah Winfrey, making a surprise appearance, called on Americans to choose "joy" and "common sense over nonsense" during a rousing speech at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday night.

"What we're going to do is elect Kamala Harris as the next president of the United States," she said after taking the stage to one of the loudest receptions of the night.

PHOTO: Oprah Winfrey speaks on stage during on Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention on Aug. 21, 2024 in Chicago. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Winfrey laid out the 2024 election as a series of choices voters have to make, and singled out independents and undecided voters -- while noting that she herself is a registered independent.

"More than anything, you know, this is true, that decency and respect are on the ballot in 2024, and just plain common sense," she said. "Common sense tells you that Kamala Harris and Tim Walz can give us decency and respect."

She urged voters to further choose "optimism over cynicism," "common sense over nonsense" and "the sweet promise of tomorrow over the bitter return to yesterday."

"We won't go back. We wont be set back, pushed back, bullied back, kicked back. Were not going back!" she said, as the crowd chanted, "We're not going back!"

Toward the end of her fired-up remarks, Winfrey told the crowd, "Let us choose truth, let us choose honor and let us choose joy!" -- emphasizing the word joy, a common theme for Harris and the convention.

"Because that's the best of America. But more than anything else, let us choose freedom. Why? Because that's the best of America. We're all Americans. And together, let's all choose Kamala Harris," she said, saying the name "Kamala Harris" in her signature bellow.

MORE: DNC 2024 Day 3 live updates

The first time Winfrey put her legacy brand behind a political candidate was with Barack Obama in 2008.

"That was some epic fire," she said of the Obamas speeches last night, taking inspiration from Michelle Obama's call on the crowd to "do something!"

PHOTO: Oprah Winfrey speaks on stage during on Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention on Aug. 21, 2024 in Chicago. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Oprah did not mention Donald Trump by name but appeared to reference the former president and his running mate JD Vance.

"America is an ongoing project," she said. "It requires commitment. It requires being open to the hard work and the hard work of democracy, and every now and then, it requires standing up to life's bullies."

She then brought up Vance's "childless cat lady" comments to cheers.

"Despite what some would have you think we are not so different from our neighbors," she said. "When a house is on fire, we don't ask about a homeowner's race or religion. We don't wonder who their partner is or how they voted. No, we just try to do the best we can to save them. And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady, well, we try to get that cat out too."

MORE: At DNC, parents of Israeli-American hostage make emotional plea for cease-fire deal

Winfrey gave tribute to Tessie Prevost Williams, who died earlier this year. Williams was one of four Black girls who helped integrate New Orleans public schools in 1960.

She then tied Williams to Harris, saying Williams "paved the way for another young girl who, nine years later, became part of the second class to integrate the public schools in Berkeley, California."

Harris famously reflected on her experience as a child being bused to school each day. During a spar with President Joe Biden on the debate stage on busing, Harris told him: "That little girl was me."

Oprah Winfrey surprise speaker at DNC: 'Decency and respect are on the ballot' originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
An Arizona man who was being sought for allegedly making threats against former President Donald Trump has been arrested, according to law enforcement.

Ronald Syvrud, who is accused of threatening to kill Trump in multiple social media posts over the past couple of weeks, was taken into custody Thursday afternoon in Cochise County, according to county public information officer Carol Capas. Trump was in the county Thursday delivering remarks at the United States-Mexico border.

The Cochise County Sheriffs Office said they were made aware of a threatening social media message directed at Trump on Tuesday. This message contained language that indicated bodily harm to the candidate, the sheriffs office said on Facebook.

A second social media post with threats against Trump was found Wednesday, according to authorities. Capas previously declined to name which platform the threats were made on.

The sheriffs office said locating this subject was a priority due to Trumps visit to the area. Intelligence developed led to a possible location in the St. David area and multiple units deployed to the location, the sheriffs office said.

Syvrud was taken into custody without incident and booked on suspicion of two counts of threatening related to the social media posts, and a felony warrant from a neighboring county for failing to register as a sex offender, the sheriffs office said.

The former presidents team was briefed by law enforcement about the search for the man before he arrived at the border, a source familiar with the matter told CNN.

US Secret Service spokesperson Alexandria Worley told CNN the agency is investigating the man. The U.S. Secret Service investigates all threats against our protectees. As this is an ongoing investigation, we cannot comment further at this time, Worley said.

The 66-year-old was wanted on several outstanding warrants stemming from DUI charges, felony hit and run, and failing to register as a sex offender, the sheriffs office said in the Facebook news release. Syvrud is a resident of Benson, Arizona, the release said, a city about 50 miles southeast of Tucson.

In addition to supporting state and federal law enforcement in securing the area for Trumps border visit, the sheriffs office had added extra investigative resources to search for Syvrud.

When asked about the man who allegedly made threats against him during his speech at the border, Trump said he was unaware the Secret Service was investigating the man but was not that surprised.

Ive heard its dangerous, but I also have a job to do I havent heard about that. They probably want to keep it from me, Trump said. I have heard it was very unsafe to make this trip, there were some people that really didnt want me to make it.

The Secret Service started bolstering Trumps security detail and planned to surround the former president with bulletproof glass at campaign rallies after an assassination attempt on Trump at his rally last month in Butler, Pennsylvania, a senior official told CNN last week.

Syvrud is in custody pending further court adjudication, the sheriffs office said. CNN could not immediately identify an attorney for Syvrud.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

CNNs Holmes Lybrand, Kate Sullivan and Kristen Holmes contributed to this report.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
The nation's highest court partially granted an emergency stay Thursday that limits Arizonans' ability to sign up to cast ballots without providing proof of citizenship. The pivotal decision could have major ramifications for the presidential race and voter registration laws in other states.

The news comes after state and national Republicans sought to enforce provisions of a recent state law tightening voter requirements. The case went to the U.S. Supreme Court for consideration after a federal judge blocked certain provisions of the law last year, sparking a series of appeals that so far have been unsuccessful. It is part of a larger legal battle raging in Arizona over voter registration laws during a key period before the November election.

Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan, who oversees applications to the court from Arizona and other states within the Ninth Circuit, referred the application to the full court.

It was ultimately divided on the issue. The order notes that Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch, some of the court's most conservative members, would have granted the application in full. Kagan, alongside Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Amy Coney Barrett and Ketanji Brown Jackson would have denied it in full.

The decision means voters who attempt to register without proof of citizenship using Arizona's voter registration form will be rejected going forward, pending appeals in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and any petitions for review. Voters who attempt to sign up to cast ballots using the federal form without providing proof of citizenship will still be registered. Previously, such voters could use both documents.

But the ruling rejected other aspects of the GOP application, including requests to block so-called "federal-only" voters from casting ballots in the presidential race, and to block those voters from casting ballots by mail. These voters will continue to cast ballots for presidential and congressional contests, but not state and local ones.

Several other cases regarding voter registration laws remain active in lower courts in Arizona.

Nationwide, registration forms generally require voters to attest that they are American citizens. Voters do so under the penalty of perjury, meaning they can be held criminally liable if they are found to have provided false information. Arizona is the only state in the country that also requires voters to provide a birth certificate, a passport or one of a handful of other documents proving their citizenship.

About 42,000 Arizonans haven't provided that proof, creating a unique, two-track system. Federal courts have repeatedly ruled that state lawmakers can block voters who have not shown citizenship documents from participating in state and local races but must allow federal-only voters to cast ballots in federal contests, including the upcoming presidential race, U.S. Senate contest, and congressional matchups.

Studies have repeatedly shown that voter fraud is extremely rare. Noncitizens who attempt to vote risk fines, prison time, deportation and impeding their naturalization process. A recent Votebeat analysis found federal-only voters are disproportionately young people on college campuses who are without access to their citizenship documents.

These voters only represent about 1% of the state's total registered voters. Still, every vote could be key to the outcome of the high-stakes presidential election. In 2020, the contest was decided by under 11,000 votes.

Issue attracts widespread attention from political groups, other states

Several political organizations and two dozen state attorney generals filed briefs in the case before Kagan's decision came down.

Some conservative groups, like the Arizona Free Enterprise Club, are local to Phoenix. Others, such as the Honest Elections Project and Immigration Reform Law Institute, are headquartered in other parts of the country. They framed the case as a test of state's rights and expressed concerns that noncitizen voting could sway the results of races in Arizona.

"Allowing the decision below to remain in effect would create massive uncertainty nationwide and threaten the integrity of Arizonas elections," attorneys for the Honest Elections Project wrote in a brief.

However, Arizona officials said altering the state's voter registration procedures so close to a major election could "create chaos and confusion, and in turn undermine the credibility of our elections."

"Applicants offer no compelling interest to deprive federal-only voters of their fundamental constitutional right to vote for president of the United States or access to early voting," attorneys for Secretary of State Adrian Fontes wrote in a response to the request for an emergency stay. "Nor could there be."

U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar echoed those concerns in her own brief and argued the National Voting Registration Act preempts state law regarding elections for federal office. She wrote the statute aims to "simplify voter registration" in federal contests and responds to prior "discriminatory and unfair registration laws" that disproportionately impacted certain groups, including non-white voters.

Prior to 2013, Arizona was one of nine states that were required to submit changes to election laws and electoral district maps to the federal government for review before implementing them. Some localities in a handful of other states were required to undergo the same process, known as "preclearance." The Voting Rights Act mandated it for jurisdictions with an extensive history of discriminatory voting practices but was later struck down by the Supreme Court.

"The NVRA embodies Congresss judgment that facilitating voter registration is a laudable objective to be pursued, not a source of harm to be avoided," Prelogar wrote in a brief. "Increased voter participation thus does not qualify as irreparable harm."

Meanwhile, Republican officials in other states that could seek to enact similar legislation urged the court to grant an emergency stay.

The brief was authored by attorney generals in Kansas and West Virginia. Officials in Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and Virginia also signed the document.

That list includes all but two states  Georgia and Mississippi  previously covered in whole by preclearance requirements.

"What happens in Arizona does not stay in Arizona," the brief reads, arguing that "illegal voting" is a threat to states across the country and officials should have the ability to pursue "commonsense election security measures."

More: Arizona requires proof of citizenship to register to vote: how it could sway the election

How Arizona's voter rolls get checked

Federal-only voters don't provide proof of citizenship with their registration forms  but they still go through checks.

State law mandates that county recorders "use all available resources to verify the citizenship status" of those registering to vote. This includes checking the citizenship status of federal-only voters against an immigration status verification service provided by the Department of Homeland Security when practicable. That system requires specific identification numbers that county officials don't have for every federal-only voter.

Voter rolls are also routinely checked with information from the U.S. Social Security Administration, the U.S. Postal Service, the Arizona Department of Health Services, the Arizona Department of Transportation and the Maricopa County Jury Commissioners Office.

If another government agency tells election officials that a person registered to vote is a noncitizen, the person is removed from the voter list.

Sasha Hupka covers county government and election administration for The Arizona Republic. Reach her at sasha.hupka@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on X: @SashaHupka. Follow her on Instagram or Threads: @sashahupkasnaps. Sign up for her weekly election newsletter, Republic Recount.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: SCOTUS limits Arizona voter registrations without proof of citizenship
By Panarat Thepgumpanat

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand on Thursday confirmed an mpox case reported this week was the clade 1b strain of the virus, the second confirmed case of the variant outside of Africa.

The case is a 66-year-old European man who had arrived in Thailand last week from an unspecified African country where the disease was spreading.

"The test results confirm that he is infected with the Clade 1b strain of monkeypox, which is the first case diagnosed in Thailand, but this man is likely infected from an endemic country," Thongchai Keeratihattayakorn, director-general of the Department of Disease Control, told Reuters.

He said no other local infections had been detected through contact tracing.

Clade 1b has triggered global concern due to the ease with which it spreads though routine close contact.

A case of the variant was confirmed last week in Sweden and linked to a growing outbreak in Africa, the first sign of its spread outside the continent.

The World Health Organization declared the recent outbreak of the disease a public health emergency of international concern after the new variant was identified.

Thailand on Wednesday said the man confirmed as having mpox had transited in a Middle Eastern country, which he also did not name, before flying on to Thailand.

Thailand has detected 800 cases of mpox Clade 2 since 2022, but so far not detected a case of the Clade 1 or Clade 1b variants.

(Reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat; Writing by Martin Petty; Editing by Bernadette Baum and Chizu Nomiyama)
A tropical depression strengthened into Tropical Storm Hone on Thursday, further raising alarms across the islands of Hawaii as officials prepare for possible impacts and also track a major hurricane in the eastern Pacific.

Hone, the first named storm of the 2024 central Pacific hurricane season, formed after thunderstorms in the eastern Pacific merged and rapidly organized in recent days. The storm was churning west-northwest at 14 mph, according to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center's 8 p.m. HST advisory. It was located 980 miles from Honolulu with maximum sustained winds of 40 mph.

Meanwhile, in the eastern Pacific, Hurricane Gilma developed into a Category 3 storm as meteorologists also said a group of thunderstorms well off the coast of Mexico had the potential to intensify. Neither the hurricane nor the developing storms triggered coastal warnings or advisories, although some warned that Gilma could bring a barrage of treacherous weather conditions to Hawaii by the end of the month.

Across Hawaii, officials and residents kept a close watch on Hone as it rotated toward the state just over a year after a faraway hurricane contributed to the deadliest wildfire in the U.S. in over a century.

Federal forecasters said Hone is expected to continue developing as it approaches and passes near Hawaii through the end of the weekend or early next week. "Interests in Hawaii should closely monitor this disturbance, though it remains too early to determine the exact location and magnitude of potential impacts," the hurricane center said.

The forecast cone of Tropical Storm Hone shows it sliding south of the Hawaiian islands over the next few days.

Tropical storm raises multiple concerns as track remains uncertain

AccuWeather meteorologists said the potential impacts of Tropical Storm Hone will greatly depend on how close the system comes to the islands of Hawaii.

On its current track, the storm threatens to dump as much as 1 to 2 inches of rain on the islands while rainfall totals on the eastern side of Big Island and Maui could reach 2 to 4 inches, AccuWeather hurricane experts predicted. The rain will likely be welcomed by some as the Hawaiian Islands have been experiencing drought conditions this summer, which has led to "abnormally dry soil and brush," AccuWeather forecasters said.

"Flooding rainfall could be a big issue if the system holds together and remains fairly strong," said Alex DaSilva, AccuWeather's lead hurricane expert.

But, if the storm brings little rain and unleashes powerful wind gusts, an all-too-familiar threat emerges: fast-spreading wildfires.

Just one year ago, strong winds from distant Hurricane Dora were a factor in fanning catastrophic wildfires on Maui, killing more than 100 people and destroying homes, cultural sites and businesses.

'You lost the community': Lahaina residents look for hope a year after the fires

Hone, the first named storm of the 2024 central Pacific hurricane season

Federal forecasters project somewhere between one to four tropical cyclones will form during the 2024 central Pacific hurricane season, below the average of four or five tropical cyclones, which include tropical depressions, tropical storms and hurricanes.

In a statement, Matthew Rosencrans, the lead seasonal hurricane forecaster at NOAAs Climate Prediction Center, said, A key factor influencing our forecast is the predicted arrival of La Nina this summer, which typically contributes to less tropical cyclone activity across the central Pacific Ocean basin.

The central Pacific hurricane season begins June 1 and runs through November 30, according to NOAA.

Gilma, a major hurricane, moves west through Pacific

Hurricane Gilma intensified into a Category 3 storm this week, leading some forecasters to warn of potential impacts across Hawaii if the storm remains intact and tracks toward the state.

Hurricane Gilma posed no immediate threat to land as it churned west-northwest across the open Pacific. And while the hurricane center's high seas forecast warned of increased wave height across the northeast Pacific, there were no coastal watches or warnings in effect.

On Thursday evening, the storm was located 1,060 miles west-southwest of the southern tip of Baja California and 1,980 miles east of Hilo, Hawaii, according to the hurricane center. Gilma had maximum sustained winds of 125 mph and was moving west-northwest at 7 mph.

The storm is forecast to maintain its strength through the weekend before possibly weakening as it enters cooler waters, DaSilva said. Even in a weakened state, however, Gilma could unleash thunderstorms, strong winds and rough seas across the Hawaiian Islands, AccuWeather said.

Forecasters track another system in the eastern Pacific

While experts are tracking the developments of Tropical Storm Hone and Hurricane Gilma, they are also monitoring another system in the Pacific.

Several hundred miles from the southwestern coast of Mexico, disorganized showers and thunderstorms could develop into a tropical depression late this week or over the weekend, according to the hurricane center. The storm is forecast to move northwestward into the central portion of the East Pacific, well offshore of Mexico.

As of Thursday evening, hurricane center forecasters said the storm had a 50% chance of forming in the next 48 hours and an 80% chance of forming over the next week.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tropical Storm Hone heads toward Hawaii, intensifies in Pacific


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Myanmar highly values relations with China: SAC chairman

Xinhua) 08:52, August 22, 2024

Chairman of Myanmar's State Administration Council (SAC) Senior General Min Aung Hlaing (L) receives the credentials presented by the new Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar Ma Jia, in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar, Aug. 21, 2024. Min Aung Hlaing said on Wednesday that Myanmar highly values its relations with China and is committed to developing bilateral cooperation in various fields, strengthening the traditional paukphaw (fraternal) friendship and benefiting both peoples. (State Administration Council of Myanmar/Handout via Xinhua)

YANGON, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Chairman of Myanmar's State Administration Council (SAC) Senior General Min Aung Hlaing said on Wednesday that Myanmar highly values its relations with China and is committed to developing bilateral cooperation in various fields, strengthening the traditional paukphaw (fraternal) friendship and benefiting both peoples.

Min Aung Hlaing, while receiving in Nay Pyi Taw the credentials presented by the new Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar Ma Jia, noted that Myanmar and China are the first initiators of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence and have consistently carried out friendly cooperation in accordance with the principles.

Myanmar will make every effort to safeguard the safety of Chinese personnel and projects in Myanmar, effectively safeguard the security and stability of the Myanmar-China border, and will never allow any behavior that undermines China's security and interests, Min Aung Hlaing added.

For her part, Ma said China will steadfastly promote its friendly policy toward Myanmar, and welcome Myanmar to strengthen engagement with China and jointly build a China-Myanmar community with a shared future. It is hoped that Myanmar will effectively safeguard the safety of Chinese personnel and projects in Myanmar and create a safe environment for exchanges and cooperation, Ma added.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Datacoms Datascape local government software play appears to be succeeding with 21 customers now using one or more core modules and 81 using one or more apps from the broader suite.

In July, Wattle Range in South Australia added the Datascape CRM system and Moorabool Shire in Victoria added the suites property and rating system, making both now fully live on the Datascape core ERP modules, Datacom told Reseller News.

Datascape was also selected by the only two councils in New Zealand who came to market for full ERP, with Waimakariri going live on the CRM module in July and Kapiti Coasts implementation underway.
The tools and frameworks will focus on identifying and fixing vulnerabilities in open-source software components that have become an increasingly important part of digital transformation for Australias critical infrastructure.

Under the partnership, the CSIRO will also work with Googles open source security team and Google Cloud to develop AI-powered tools for automated vulnerability scanners and data protocols.

The tools will tap into existing resources, including Googles OSV database for intelligence on vulnerabilities.

CSIRO and Google will also collaborate on designing a secure framework that gives Australian CI operators clear guidance on how to meet current requirements and providing a baseline for future ones.

The framework will adapt and extend the Supply Chain Levels for Software Artifacts (SLSA) framework created by Google, with insight from CSIROs industry practices, to define levels of software supply chain maturity and steps to achieve them.

Google Cloud will provide secure and scalable infrastructure and solutions, including machine learning and Big Data capabilities and domain-specific large language models, to accelerate the partnerships research and translate it into tools or as-a-service offerings for CI operators.

Google Cloud Australia and New Zealand (A/NZ) security practice lead Stefan Avgoustakis said software supply chain vulnerabilities are a global issue and Australia has taken legislative measures to control and combat them.

The tools and frameworks were developing will give Australias CI operators a clear and consistent roadmap towards software supply chain maturity, based on the in-depth industry knowledge that CSIRO has built up over years of research, he said.

All project findings will be publicly available, allowing critical infrastructure sectors free and easy access.

CSIRO project ;ead Ejaz Ahmed said software developed, procured, commissioned and maintained within Australia will also better align with local regulations, promoting greater compliance and trustworthiness.

This partnership builds upon a successful track record of AI-powered innovation, demonstrating the transformative power of Google and CSIROs expertise, he added.

The partnership is part of Googles Digital Future Initiative and CSIROs Critical Infrastructure Protection and Resilience developing mission.
by Vladimir Rozanskij

Former Foreign Minister Kamilov analyzes Uzbekistan's role in the region from a stability and development perspective. From the closed borders of the recent past to the process of rebooting relations, resulting in increased trade and investment. A return to the days of the Great Silk Road.

Moscow (AsiaNews) - Tashkent's former foreign minister, 76-year-old Abdulaziz Kamilov, President Savkat Mirziyoyev's special representative for foreign policy issues for the past two years, has published an influential article in the Jangi Uzbekiston (New Uzbekistan) newspaper.

Focusing on the theme New Central Asia in Uzbekistan's Foreign Policy, in the piece he states that the deepening global crisis of confidence, and the escalation of armed conflicts are endangering the stability and sustainable development of the entire region.

The author of the article takes his cue from the recent consultation meeting among Central Asian leaders in Astana, recalling the difficulties of integrating these countries with each other in recent years.

Only seven years ago, our borders were practically closed in all directions, Kamilov writes, we had to overcome conflicts and minefields at the borders, transport blockades and insurmountable barriers to trade, endless discussions on the use of water resources, and every trespass of flocks to some reservoir for watering threatened to turn into direct clashes.

According to the former minister, in recent years a process of rebooting relations has begun as never before, and internal trade between the Central Asian countries has grown 4.4 times, five times more are joint ventures, and investment volumes have doubled.

He therefore believes that in the new geopolitical conditions, Central Asia is recovering the role it played in the days of the Great Silk Road, as a bridge between East and West, North and South, a crossroads of economic interests of different types and directions.

All analysts agree in observing that every country that wants to have a significant weight in world geopolitics nowadays tries to put pressure in various ways on those in Central Asia, which is now becoming a real geopolitical competition zone. Kamilov insists, moreover, that the region has now become in good substance an autonomous player in the various games in the world arena, strengthening its identity as a collective subject.

There are already 10 international meetings in the 5+1 format, involving 40 countries and two supranational bodies.

In this growing interest, of course, purely economic factors come into play above all, as Central Asia constitutes a market of more than 80 million consumers, where 7 percent of the world's oil and gas resources, large deposits of critical materials and rare minerals, between 5.2 percent and 38.6 percent of those essential for digital and ecological transitions are concentrated.

Kamilov emphasizes President Mirziyoyev's great role in resolving tensions and divisions with neighbors, emphatically calling him the great architect of Central Asia, who has set as a goal of his foreign policy doctrine the achievement of the zero problems with sister countries quota.

Tashkent's efforts at the politico-diplomatic, economic, cultural and humanitarian levels are not only radically improving relations with his neighbors, but are helping to truly create a collective new format, recalling, for example, the full legal definition of borders with Kazakhstan, and the many advances in demarcation with Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Border uncertainty is a Soviet legacy, from when Moscow kept issues in abeyance so that it could always have the last word in the face of any claim or tension. In conclusion, Kamilov enumerates the challenges that await the further progress of regional cooperation, at the political and economic level, in the development of transportation and communication potential and in the energy and climate sphere, to cultural relations on the basis of the prevailing Turkic identity, but without forgetting the other specificities of the five Central Asian countries.
by Nirmala Carvalho

On Feast of the Assumption, a group of Catholics who fled more than a year ago from the ethnic violence that devastated India's northeastern state had the joy of being able to return to celebrate the Eucharist in the new settlement where the Archdiocese of Imphal is building homes for those who have lost everything. Fr. Aimeng's testimony, A spiritual balm among so much suffering.

Imphal (AsiaNews) - The altar in the place where bricks are made to build new houses. To try even so to overcome the trauma of the violence suffered in the Indian state of Manipur.

They are from my village: I have been a priest for 41 years and this was the first Mass in the settlement of the displaced people," Fr. Mark Aimeng, a priest from Manipur shares with AsiaNews.

On the Solemnity of the Assumption, together with Deacon Patrick Lal he had the joy of being able to experience the Eucharist again together with the community of displaced people who have found a home in Munpi, one of the villages after these people who lost everything due to the ethnic clashes that began in May 2023 between Meitei and Kuki are trying to get back on their feet.

Celebrating the first Mass for the displaced people in the village of Munpi was a moment of great joy for me, as well as for the 180 displaced people who attended in the brick shed, Fr. Aimeng tells AsiaNews.

They longed for it, and finally the day came. They are all Catholics, coming from Singtom village in Chandel district. Twenty families have settled here in the new village built and blessed by the Archdiocese of Imphal thanks to benefactors who came forward to help them. More families will still come to settle in the coming months.

They fled on May 29, 2023 from Singngat village. They had heard that a fearsome group of insurgents from the valley, the Arambai Tengol, was coming closer and closer: there were too many of them to think of resisting, the priest recalls.

After six days of exile, they received news that their village had been burned without the army doing anything. Out of 72 houses, 45 were reduced to ashes; and other buildings, including the church, were also severely devastated.

Although the Archdiocese of Imphal is mobilized to provide children's education, food and other essentials in addition to houses, it will take a long time to restore their misery and pain.

But the presence of priests is an immense spiritual comfort, Fr. Aimeng concluded. Since the day they arrived in the village, I have had many opportunities to visit them and offer them at least this spiritual balm.
22 August 2024 08:30 (UTC+04:00)

Nazrin Abdul Read more

As the world faces escalating climate challenges, the spotlight is increasingly turning toward nations that are leading the charge in the transition to sustainable energy. Among them, Azerbaijan is emerging as a significant player on the global stage. As the energy sector contributes to nearly three-quarters of human-caused greenhouse gas emissions, transitioning to clean, renewable energy sources is essential for addressing the climate crisis. This shift not only mitigates climate change but also offers significant economic opportunities, potentially generating millions of jobs and fostering universal energy access. Such advancements are crucial for achieving a range of Sustainable Development Goals, including health, inequality reduction, and economic growth.

We stand on the brink of an energy revolution, with governments worldwide assessing how to harness these opportunities effectively. Central to this transformation is facilitating large-scale investments in clean energy, which are essential for a just transition.

What is renewable energy?

Renewable energy comes from natural sources that replenish themselves over a short period relative to a human lifetime, ensuring they are not depleted by our use. Unlike finite resources, these renewable sourcessuch as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, waves, biomass, and geothermal heat from the Earth's crustare abundant and consistently available across the globe.

Not only are renewable energy sources inexhaustible, but they also produce significantly fewer greenhouse gases and have a lower environmental impact compared to traditional fossil fuels. Additionally, renewable energy can be converted into various other energy carriers, such as hydrogen, further expanding its utility.

In contrast, fossil fuelsoil, coal, and natural gasare consumed faster than they can naturally replenish. Their extraction and use contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and environmental pollution, which pose serious threats to both the planet and human health.

Global momentum for climate action

Encouragingly, energy has become a top priority in many countries' climate action plans, with substantial momentum for further action. Approximately 95% of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) from Climate Promise countries now feature dedicated sections on energy targets or policies, with 34% incorporating gender considerations. These nations are focusing not only on energy transition but also on enhancing energy access and resilience as part of their climate strategies.

UNDP is intensifying its efforts to support these countries in achieving their clean energy goals. The organization has committed to mobilizing the UN system, governments, businesses, civil society, and financial institutions to provide clean, affordable, and reliable energy to 500 million people by 2025. This collective effort is crucial for advancing the global energy transition and achieving sustainable development.

Azerbaijan's role and commitment

Azerbaijan is increasingly gaining international recognition for its proactive stance on climate change. The country has prioritized this critical issue and demonstrated a strong commitment to its environmental obligations through significant actions and initiatives.

In November of this year, Azerbaijan will host one of the United Nations' most prominent eventsthe 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29). The declaration of 2024 as the "Year of Solidarity for the Green World" further underscores Azerbaijan's determination to combat global climate change.

A testament to Azerbaijans dedication to the green agenda is its ambitious plan to operationalize nine solar and wind power plants by the end of 2027, with a combined capacity of 2 gigawatts. Additionally, by 2030, the country aims to develop another 10 wind and solar power plants, potentially adding up to 5 gigawatts to its renewable energy portfolio. These efforts highlight Azerbaijan's commitment to sustainable energy solutions and its active role in addressing climate challenges on a global scale.

The significance of climate finance

In an interview with Turkiye's Anadolu Agency on August 21, Elnur Sultanov, Deputy Minister of Energy of Azerbaijan and Secretary General of COP29, emphasized the critical importance of COP29, highlighting that it will address national, regional, and global issues, with a primary focus on climate finance.

Sultanov stressed that a key agenda item for COP29 will be securing increased financial support from developed nations for developing countries. He noted, "Africa, despite contributing only about 4 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, is the most severely impacted by climate change. It is crucial that financial aid is directed toward these developing nations to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate the effects of climate change. Currently, climate financing stands at approximately $100 billion, and there are serious discussions underway to increase this amount. We hope to reach a resolution on this issue at COP29."

Azerbaijan's commitment to peace and cooperation

Sultanov also highlighted Azerbaijan's commitment to fostering peace and cooperation in the context of climate change. He revealed that Azerbaijan has extended an invitation to Armenia to participate in COP29, reflecting the country's broader diplomatic approach.

With preparations underway to welcome around 80,000 international guests, including over 50 heads of state and government, Azerbaijan is poised to host a significant global event. The number of participants is expected to grow, showcasing Azerbaijan's role as a key player in global climate dialogue.

The decision to hold COP29 in Azerbaijan was made during the COP28 plenary session in Dubai on December 11 of last year. As Baku prepares to become the epicenter of climate discussions for two weeks, it is anticipated to host between 70,000 and 80,000 international attendees, underscoring its prominent role in the global climate agenda.

As the world grapples with the urgent need to address climate change, Azerbaijan is positioning itself as a leader in the global effort to transition to renewable energy and combat environmental challenges. By hosting COP29 and demonstrating a strong commitment to sustainable development and climate finance, Azerbaijan is not only fulfilling its environmental responsibilities but also contributing significantly to global climate solutions. The upcoming COP29 promises to be a pivotal moment in advancing climate action, with Azerbaijan playing a central role in shaping the future of global climate policy.

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22 August 2024 13:12 (UTC+04:00)

By Zara Araz, AZERNEWS

In a notable shift in global oil trade dynamics, Thailand is poised to import 376.88 thousand tons, or approximately 2.87 million barrels, of crude oil from Azerbaijan during the first seven months of 2024. This represents a substantial increase from previous years, reflecting both a burgeoning partnership and significant economic implications for both countries.

Economic benefits for Thailand

Diversification of Supply Sources: By increasing its imports of Azerbaijani crude oil, Thailand is diversifying its sources of energy supply. This move reduces the country's reliance on its traditional suppliersnamely, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and the United Statesmitigating risks associated with geopolitical tensions or supply disruptions from these regions.

Strategic Stockpiling: The considerable increase in oil volume enables Thailand to build up strategic reserves, which can be crucial for managing price volatility and ensuring energy security. The nearly eightfold increase in import volume from last year provides Thailand with a more robust supply cushion.

Cost Efficiency: Despite the overall increase in oil pricesrising from $536 per ton in 2022 to $621 per ton in 2024Thailand benefits from the competitive pricing relative to its other suppliers. This can help stabilize domestic fuel prices and potentially provide a buffer against higher costs from its primary suppliers.

Economic benefits for Azerbaijan

Increased Revenue: The surge in exports to Thailand has significantly boosted Azerbaijan's crude oil revenues. The value of these exports has risen to $234.24 million, a striking increase from $26.1 million in the same period last year. This enhanced revenue stream is vital for Azerbaijan's economy, which heavily relies on oil exports.

Market Expansion: By surpassing traditional buyers like Turkey and gaining a leading position in the Asian market, Azerbaijan has expanded its market footprint. This strategic positioning enhances its influence in the global oil market and opens opportunities for further trade agreements and partnerships.

Economic Stability: The substantial increase in export volume contributes to economic stability for Azerbaijan. With its oil industry playing a pivotal role in its economy, securing a major buyer like Thailand helps balance trade deficits and support national fiscal policies.

Mutual gains

Enhanced Bilateral Relations: The increased trade in crude oil fosters stronger bilateral ties between Thailand and Azerbaijan. Such partnerships can extend beyond oil trade to include other sectors such as infrastructure, technology, and investment, offering broader economic benefits.

Balanced Trade Dynamics: For Thailand, importing from Azerbaijan balances its trade dynamics, while Azerbaijan benefits from a diversified customer base. This reciprocal arrangement reduces the impact of fluctuations in global oil prices and strengthens economic resilience for both nations.

Strategic Energy Cooperation: The enhanced trade relationship underscores the strategic importance of energy cooperation between nations. Both Thailand and Azerbaijan are leveraging their respective strengthsThailand's growing energy needs and Azerbaijan's oil production capacityto achieve mutual economic goals.

In conclusion, Thailands increased imports of Azerbaijani crude oil reflect a mutually beneficial relationship that supports economic growth and stability for both nations. As global energy markets evolve, such strategic partnerships will likely play a crucial role in shaping the future of international trade and economic cooperation.

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22 August 2024 19:06 (UTC+04:00)

Elnur Enveroglu Read more

The development of relations with Central Asian countries, including Uzbekistan, holds a special place among Azerbaijan's foreign policy priorities. The two countries have strategic partnership relations built on the foundations of strong friendship and brotherhood. Azerbaijani and Uzbek peoples are closely united by common religion, language, tradition, culture and historical closeness. Until now, relations between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan have developed on an upward line in all fields, and our countries have always supported each other in the most important issues.

The state visit of Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev to Uzbekistan together with his spouse, First Vice President Mehriban Aliyeva, and daughter Leyla Aliyeva stems from the brotherly and strong friendship relations that have existed between Baku and Tashkent for a long time.

Undoubtedly, National Leader Heydar Aliyev played an exceptional role in establishing the strategy for the development of relations between the two fraternal states. His official visit to Uzbekistan on June 18-19, 1997, further contributed to determining the future development prospects of cooperation. During the visit, a number of important documents that form the basis of bilateral relations were signed.

After Uzbekistan became a member of the Organisation of Turkic States (OTS) in October 2019, fraternal relations began to strengthen. In 2020, Uzbekistan once again expressed its sincere attitude by providing political support to Azerbaijan during the Patriotic War and through its contribution to building a large school in Fuzuli in the liberated Garabagh.

With the political will and special attention of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, relations with Uzbekistan have reached a high level of development, and comprehensive cooperation relations have been formed in all fields. During President Ilham Aliyev's first state visit to Uzbekistan on March 23-24, 2004, the Declaration "On further strengthening of strategic partnership between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Republic of Uzbekistan" was signed, and with this document, the foundation of strategic partnership relations between the two countries was laid.

It should be recalled that starting in 2020, the period of conflict and post-conflict was remembered as an important dynamic year in the development of relations between the Turkic States. In this month of 2022, the Tashkent declaration was signed at the ministerial level meeting. The document signed after the meeting held in the dialogue format between the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan, Turkiye and Uzbekistan emphasised the post-conflict contribution to Azerbaijan.

It should be noted that the fact that the Azerbaijani President has high-level personal relations based on mutual trust and confidence with the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, gives an important impetus to the dynamics of the development of these relations and plays a special role in the expansion of cooperation.

It is no coincidence that in the last 3 years, President Ilham Aliyev has made 1 state visit and 3 business visits to Uzbekistan. President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has also paid 1 state visit and 3 business visits to our country during that period. During the next state visit of President Ilham Aliyev to Uzbekistan on June 21-22, 2022, the Declaration "On deepening strategic partnership and expanding comprehensive cooperation between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Republic of Uzbekistan" was signed. During the state visit of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Azerbaijan on August 22-23, 2023, the Agreement "On the establishment of the Supreme Interstate Council of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Republic of Uzbekistan" was signed. These visits and signed documents further strengthened Azerbaijan-Uzbekistan relations and made an important contribution to the development of mutual cooperation in various fields. Currently, Azerbaijan-Uzbekistan relations are intensively and successfully developed both on bilateral and multilateral platforms, as well as within the framework of the OTS.

The strategic partnership relations established between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan are becoming stronger and richer in content day by day. Besides, the current visit of President Ilham Aliyev to Uzbekistan aims to further strengthen the strategic partnership relations between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan to a higher level - the level of alliance. This visit is also expected to be of historical significance in terms of the comprehensive expansion of cooperation in all fields.

Azerbaijan attaches special importance to the deepening of its exceptional relations with Central Asian countries, including Uzbekistan, both bilaterally and multilaterally. Azerbaijan has been invited and participated as an honoured guest in the Consultative Meeting of the Central Asian Heads of State, which contributes to the realisation of the existing cooperation potential of the region and the creation of new partnership opportunities for the second year in a row. Certainly, this respect and trust is highly appreciated in Azerbaijan.

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22 August 2024 12:18 (UTC+04:00)

Nazrin Abdul Read more

The amount of imported crude oil by Thailand, a Southeast Asian country, in the first seven months of 2024 from Azerbaijan has been disclosed. Azernews reports that this has been noted as a significant increase compared to the previous year.

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22 August 2024 11:19 (UTC+04:00)

Nazrin Abdul Read more

Azerbaijani entrepreneurs are keen on expanding their export activities to Uzbekistan, as highlighted by Yusif Abdullayev, Executive Director of the Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO), during the Uzbekistan-Azerbaijan Business Forum in Tashkent, Azernews reports.

Abdullayev noted that 67 Azerbaijani companies, including representatives from approximately 10 state institutions, are participating in the forum. The event features an exhibition titled "Main Directions of the Economy," showcasing Azerbaijani products.

The two-day business forum, which began on August 22 in Tashkent, aims to strengthen economic ties between the two nations, foster cooperation, attract investment, and initiate joint projects. The forum will provide a platform for discussing strategies to enhance trade volume, share expertise, and forge new business partnerships.

Currently, there are 236 enterprises with Azerbaijani investment in Uzbekistan, comprising 62 joint ventures and 174 wholly foreign-owned companies. Additionally, 70 Uzbek companies operate in Azerbaijan.

For the period of January to July 2024, trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan has surpassed $118.2 million.

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22 August 2024 15:46 (UTC+04:00)

Ulviyya Shahin Read more

"In the last five years, trade turnover between Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan has increased threefold."

Azernews reports that this was announced by Uzbekistan's Minister of Investment, Industry, and Trade, Laziz Kudratov, at the Uzbekistan-Azerbaijan business forum held in Tashkent.

"Since the beginning of this year, the volume of mutual trade has risen by 20%. Although the absolute figures are still modest, we aim to increase this indicator to 1 billion US dollars within the next two years," he stated.

Azerbaijan is poised to invest over 500 million US dollars in Uzbekistan's construction sector, as reported by Kanan Jalilov, Honorary Consul of Uzbekistan in Azerbaijan, at the same forum.

Azerbaijan's Minister of Economy, Mikayil Jabbarov, noted that cargo transportation between the two countries has increased by approximately 25-30%.

"Established transport-logistics connections are yielding the expected results. We observe that cargo transportation in the region has grown by 25-30% in both directions," the minister remarked.

Jabbarov also mentioned that a textile production enterprise will soon be established in the city of Khankendi as an investment project by an Uzbekistani company.

The forum also discussed the opening of trade houses and showrooms in Baku, Shusha, Tashkent, and Samarkand.

According to Laziz Kudratov, Uzbekistan is ready to process minerals in Azerbaijan, produce construction materials, and participate in reconstruction efforts in the liberated territories of Karabakh.

Additionally, Kudratov extended an invitation to Azerbaijani companies to engage in the development and production of non-ferrous metal deposits in Uzbekistan.

"We invite Azerbaijani companies to participate in the development and production of non-ferrous metals, including copper deposits. Cooperation in the fields of energy and oil and gas is advancing well," the Uzbek minister concluded.

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22 August 2024 17:31 (UTC+04:00)

At the initiative of Azerbaijan's "AEM Elektron" LLC, production of intercoms and barriers under the "Voltam" brand has commenced in China, Azernews reports.

The price of intercoms starts at 130 manats.

According to the company's corporate sales manager, Azer Rzayev, in addition to intercoms and barriers, plans include assembling network cables, connectors, power sockets, and surveillance cameras in China.

"These products are manufactured in the factories of our partner companies in China and are exclusively sent to the Azerbaijani market. We plan to organize the production of these products in our country in the future. Intercoms are our new product, and they have been introduced to the market in limited quantities for testing purposes. In the future, we will expand the production of intercoms and other products under the 'Voltam' brand," Rzayev stated.

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22 August 2024 16:20 (UTC+04:00)

Nazrin Abdul Read more

A significant rise in airfares from Azerbaijan to both CIS countries and other international destinations has been observed recently, Azernews reports citing the State Statistics Committee.

The most notable price hike has been for flights to CIS countries. In January 2024, the average cost of a flight was 520 manats, but by July, it had surged to over 1,022 manats, marking a 137-manat increase in just one month.

International flight prices have also seen a substantial increase. Tickets to non-CIS countries, which cost 567 manats in January, now exceed 910 manats in July.

This sharp rise in airfares is largely attributed to the summer tourist season, which typically sees a spike in travel demand. With Azerbaijans land borders closed for the past four and a half years, travelers have had no choice but to rely on air travel, further driving up prices.

It is expected that airfare prices will remain high through August due to continued high demand. However, a decline in prices is anticipated starting in September as the volume of foreign tourist trips decreases.

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22 August 2024 15:55 (UTC+04:00)

Nazrin Abdul Read more

Supported by the Ministry of Economy and organized by the Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO), an exhibition titled "Economic Horizons: A Path to Shared Prosperity" was held at the Uz Expo Center in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Azernews reports citing the Ministry.

Azerbaijani and Uzbek delegations, led by Azerbaijan's Minister Mikayil Jabbarov and Uzbekistan's Minister of Investments, Industry, and Trade Laziz Kudratov, attended the exhibition.

The showcase, featuring four stunning pavilions that highlight Azerbaijan's rich architectural heritage, is organized into thematic sections. It presents Azerbaijans economic achievements, industrial and agricultural products, advancements in digital development, and opportunities in transport-logistics, energy, tourism, and innovative projects. Additionally, it includes content on the COP29 event and multimedia presentations on Azerbaijan-Uzbekistan economic relations.

Visitors have the chance to explore ongoing restoration projects in Azerbaijans liberated territories, new settlement construction, and infrastructure development. The exhibition also features a variety of "Made in Azerbaijan" products, including beverages, canned goods, agricultural and confectionery items, construction materials, and more.

A notable segment of the exhibition is dedicated to traditional Azerbaijani textiles, showcasing exquisite carpets from different weaving schools and providing insights into the traditional art of carpet weaving.

The exhibition is set to conclude tomorrow.

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22 August 2024 22:19 (UTC+04:00)

By Alimat Aliyeva

Deputies of the Jogorku Kenesh (Parliament) of Kyrgyzstan Gulsharkan Kultayeva and Daniyar Tolonov today held a meeting with a delegation of the Korea Wheel company, headed by CEO Jin Soo Park, Azernews reports.

According to the information, during the meeting, the possibilities of strengthening trade and economic ties between Kyrgyzstan and South Korea were discussed, including an exchange of views on the prospects for cooperation in the field of agriculture and processing of agricultural products.

Jin Soo Park, CEO of Korea Wheel, presented the company's activities, especially emphasizing the advantages of using smart farms based on advanced technologies in agriculture.

Deputies Gulsharkan Kultayeva and Daniyar Tolonov noted that Korea is widely known for its innovative solutions in production, and expressed Kyrgyzstan's interest in their experience and investment projects in the agricultural sector.

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22 August 2024 17:12 (UTC+04:00)

Laman Ismayilova Read more

As part of the initiative to establish geoparks in Azerbaijan and join the UNESCO Global Geoparks Network in collaboration with UNESCO, a boat tour has been organized to explore the mud volcanoes set to be included in the planned geopark, Azernews reports.

The event was attended by representatives of state institutions, non-governmental organizations and groups of specialists.

Tour participants visited the volcanic islands of Khare, Zira, Karasu, Sangi-Mugan, and Zanbil, located in the Baku archipelago of the Caspian Sea, and evaluated the ecotourism potential of these areas.

Protected areas with geopark status from specially protected natural areas will open new opportunities for geotourism, a branch of tourism, in the near future.

UNESCO Global Geoparks

UNESCO Global Geoparks are single, unified geographical areas where sites and landscapes of international geological significance are managed with a holistic concept of protection, education and sustainable development.

A UNESCO Global Geopark uses its geological heritage, in connection with all other aspects of the area's natural and cultural heritage, to enhance awareness and understanding of key issues facing society, such as using Earth's resources sustainably, mitigating the effects of climate change and reducing natural hazard-related risks.

The UNESCO support program for the creation of geoparks has been operating since 2002.

Currently, UNESCO's Global Geoparks Network includes 213 parks from 48 countries.

Mud volcanoes in Azerbaijan

The creation of a geopark network at the base of mud volcanoes in Azerbaijan is in the final stage.

Currently, UNESCO's Global Geoparks Network includes 213 parks from 48 countries.

Mud volcanoes are undoubtedly one of the country's most-visited natural attractions, encouraging people to travel to far-flung destinations just to catch a glimpse of this natural miracle.

In total, there are about 700 mud volcanoes in the world, and 350 of them are located in Azerbaijan.

NASA geologists studying Mars concluded that the mud volcanoes of Azerbaijan are similar to the uplands of the planet in their structure.

Toragay is the largest mud volcano in the world and is located in the south of Gobustan.

The height of the volcano is 400 metres, and the volcanic crater is 150 metres in diameter. The mud volcano erupted 6 times, from 1841 to 1950.

In 2004, the Toragay Mud Volcano was added to the Guinness Book of World Records.

Boyuk Kanizadag is another mud volcano that thrills everyone who sees it.

It is known as the largest mud volcano in the territory of Gobustan. This mud volcano erupted on October 10, 2001, shooting out flames 300 metres in the air.

Located in the suburb of Baku, the Otman Bozdag mud volcano erupted in 2017.

The Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences (ANAS) announced that two eruptions were recorded in the territory of the Sangachal settlement, Garadagh district. This was the ninth eruption of the mud volcano.

Studies have revealed the presence of rare types of minerals, non-specific sulphates, oxides, natural iron, and many other elements in the mud volcanic breccia.

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Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @lmntypewriterrr

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22 August 2024 02:19 (UTC+04:00)

The process of preparing ballot papers for the extraordinary parliamentary elections has been completed.

This was reflected in the Central Election Commission's "Calendar Plan of the main actions and measures for the preparation and holding of early elections to the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan", Azernews reports.

According to the legislation, the process of preparation of ballot papers should be completed at least 10 days before the voting day.

In the Calendar Plan, the process is expected to be completed by August 22.

It should be recalled that on June 28, President Ilham Aliyev signed the Decree on the dissolution of the sixth convocation of the Milli Majlis and the appointment of early elections to the Milli Majlis. According to the decree, the sixth convocation of the Milli Majlis was released and early elections were scheduled for September 1.

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22 August 2024 10:41 (UTC+04:00)

Fatima Latifova Read more

An international conference dedicated to the island of Bonaire, which is under Dutch colonial rule, is being held in Baku, Azernews reports.

The conference is organized jointly by the Baku Initiative Group (BIG) and the Movement for Human Rights and Change in Bonaire.

Representatives of the Bonaire people, who are fighting against colonialism and striving for independence, as well as officials and representatives from Belize, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Saint Lucia, the UK, Mexico, the Netherlands, the UN, and other international and regional organizations, human rights defenders, NGO leaders, decolonization experts, and researchers are participating in the conference titled Bonaire Islands Path to Self-Determination through the UN General Assembly via Baku.

High-level participants include the special representative of the Government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the permanent representative of Belize to the UN (New York), the UNICEF advocate for youth engagement, the ambassador for youth engagement of the international organization Association of Caribbean States, and the chair of the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent.

It is noted that the event is taking place at a very significant moment for the future history of the people of Bonaire. A few weeks after the event, it is planned that several states will submit a draft resolution to the UN General Assembly for the re-inclusion of Bonaire Island in the list of territories to be decolonized by the UN. One of the main objectives of the current conference is to gain international support for this resolution.

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22 August 2024 12:03 (UTC+04:00)

Fatima Latifova Read more

Significant projects are being implemented for the restoration of religious and historical monuments in the territories liberated from occupation, Azernews reports, citing Ramin Mammadov, the Chairman of the State Committee on Religious Associations, as he said at the G20 Interfaith Forum (IF20) held in Brazil.

During the forum, R. Mammadov provided detailed information about Azerbaijan's model of multiculturalism, which is based on interfaith and intercultural harmony, as well as the state policies aimed at preserving this exemplary environment.

The committee chairman emphasized that for centuries, representatives of various religious denominations in Azerbaijan have lived in peace and mutual understanding. Religious freedom and traditions of tolerance have become integral elements of Azerbaijani identity and evidence of the nations unwavering commitment to pluralism. The coexistence of mosques, churches, and synagogues side by side in Baku is a testament to the harmonious living of different religious communities:

"The comprehensive legislative framework established by the Azerbaijani state to preserve this rich historical, material, and spiritual heritage ensures equal rights and freedoms for everyone, regardless of race, nationality, religion, language, or gender.

As expressed by the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, our country has always been recognized as a model of tolerance and inclusivity. The chairman noted that the restoration, reconstruction, and preservation of historical and religious monuments, sacred sites, and pilgrimage centers reflect the states deep respect for religion and national-spiritual values. Azerbaijans activities in preserving cultural heritage extend beyond its borders. For instance, Azerbaijan has contributed to the restoration of the catacombs of Saints Marcellinus, Peter, and Sebastian in the Vatican and has allocated funds for the repair of the Notre-Dame Cathedral in France."

R. Mammadov highlighted that the Azerbaijani people have suffered from the most brutal forms of religious discrimination throughout various periods in history. He noted that 65 out of 67 mosques in the territories that were under occupation for 30 years were destroyed:

"Despite the brutal attacks on our religious heritage in Garabagh and in the areas of present-day Armenia where Azerbaijanis had lived for centuries, our people remain focused on the future, continuing to uphold religious and ethnic tolerance as a fundamental pillar of national identity. They are striving to open a new chapter in the region's history, based on peace and cooperation, by undertaking significant projects for the restoration of religious and historical monuments in the liberated territories."

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22 August 2024 14:53 (UTC+04:00)

Fatima Latifova Read more

An August 22 meeting was held with the Press Group of the Central Election Commission (CEC) in connection with the early parliamentary elections scheduled for September 1, 2024, Azernews reports.

The meeting, which included representatives of the international observation mission, was attended by CEC members and media representatives who are part of the Press Group.

The meeting began with a discussion on the functions, powers, and responsibilities of the Press Group, emphasizing that the Group oversees compliance with the rules for election campaigning in the media. The Press Group, which consists mainly of experts in journalism, operates under the Election Code and the relevant regulations adopted by the CEC. In its activities, the Press Group ensures adherence to the norms and requirements set by legislation, takes measures to ensure compliance with the rules and methods of pre-election campaigning in the media, and, if necessary, submits its recommendations to the CEC for discussion.

The meeting also addressed the role and responsibilities of the media in elections, noting that media representatives participate freely in elections and play a significant role in informing the public about the progress of the processes. It was emphasized that legislation provides media representatives with broad rights as well as duties and responsibilities, both during the elections and in the pre-election campaigning phase and on the voting day. Therefore, strict and precise adherence to the requirements of the Election Code and relevant legislation during the pre-election campaign is crucial.

The meeting also discussed preparations for the parliamentary elections, informing that large-scale projects aimed at informing voters and educating election participants with different statuses are being implemented by the CEC. Attention was drawn to the fact that, to ensure that the pre-election campaign, a significant phase of the elections, meets civil and modern standards, all campaigning entities have been provided with extensive opportunities and equal conditions. The campaign, which started on August 9, continues successfully with high activity from the candidates. According to the requirements of the Election Code, candidates registered for the parliamentary elections, their authorized representatives and proxies, as well as registered political parties, their authorized representatives and proxies, have the right to conduct pre-election campaigning.

The Press Group of the CEC reiterated the importance of strict adherence to legislative requirements during pre-election campaigning and reminded that non-compliance with these requirements could result in legal liability. They expressed confidence that media representatives would fulfill their responsibilities appropriately.

The Press Group also mentioned that, if necessary or upon relevant requests, they will hold further meetings related to the pre-election campaign.

After extensive discussions on various issues related to pre-election campaigning and clarifying participants' questions, the meeting concluded.

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22 August 2024 16:08 (UTC+04:00)

Fatima Latifova Read more

A delegation led by Elchin Amirbeyov, the Special Representative of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, is on a business trip in Southeast Asia to expand cooperation with international organisations specialised in mine risk management and exchange experiences, Azernews reports.

During the visit, the Azerbaijani delegation held a meeting with General-Lieutenant Nattavut Sabyeroop, the Director General of the Thailand Mine Action Centre.

The purpose of the meeting was to exchange knowledge and experience in humanitarian mine action, discuss joint training programs, innovative approaches and methods in demining operations, as well as potential capacity building and technical assistance.

Elchin Amirbeyov provided information about the scale of the mine problem facing Azerbaijan and emphasised the importance of increasing international attention and support to address this issue. He noted that the meeting would make a significant contribution to the development of cooperation in this field.

Vugar Suleymanov, Chairman of ANAMA's Board, highlighted the need for close and direct inter-agency communication, considering the long-standing experience of both organisations in humanitarian mine action. V. Suleymanov invited representatives of the Thailand Mine Action Centre (TMAC) to an upcoming international conference on mine risk management planned to be held in Azerbaijan.

The meeting included discussions on the activities of both ANAMA and the Thailand Mine Action Centre in the field of mine risk management, as well as achievements in this direction. The exchange of experiences and potential future cooperation regarding the establishment of the ANAMA-UNDP International Centre for Advanced Mine Action Practices and Training were also discussed.

Rotna But, Executive Director of the ASEAN Regional Mine Action Center (ARMAC), expressed the importance of expanding cooperation between mine action organizations of ARMAC member countries and ANAMA.

The Director General of the Thailand Mine Action Center also expressed their readiness for experience and training exchanges with Azerbaijan.

The meeting at the Thailand Mine Action Center was organized by ARMAC, the regional organization for mine risk management among ASEAN member countries.

During the visit, meetings continue to focus on learning international best practices in mine risk management, exchanging experiences, and raising international awareness about Azerbaijan's existing mine problem.

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22 August 2024 16:38 (UTC+04:00)

Fatima Latifova Read more

One of the main principles of our foreign policy is ensuring fundamental human rights and respecting the territorial integrity of countries, Azernews reports, citing Carlos Fuller, Belize's Permanent Representative to the UN, as he stated this at the conference titled "The Path of Self-Determination of the Island of Boneyra at the UN General Assembly through Baku," organised jointly by the Baku Initiative Group (BIG) and the Boneyra Movement for Human Rights and Change.

According to him, the protection of human rights is a top priority for Belize: "After decades of struggle, we have achieved representation at the UN. Supporting the cultures of peoples, their progress in political, economic, social, and educational fields, combating abuses, developing self-governance, and assisting the progressive development of free political institutions are the main expectations and desires of countries that have suffered from colonialism. The people of Boneyra need their concerns to be heard. They are holding meetings with UN officials in New York and are actively fighting. I would like to thank the Azerbaijani government and the Baku Initiative Group for providing this platform and bringing us together to hear the voices of various people in Boneyra."

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Adil Iskandarov is a prominent figure in the Azerbaijani cinema and theater, recognized as both a distinguished film director and a talented stage and film actor. His contributions to cinema and theater have left a deep mark on Azerbaijan.

The Azerbaijan State Film Fund has expanded its collection with unique photographs of the People's Artist of the USSR Adil Iskandarov

The photographs from Adil Iskandarov's from his personal archive illustrate the filming process of the movie "The Investigation Continues" (1966).

On the eve of the 115th anniversary of the outstanding theater and film figure's birth, his photographs were published on the official website and in the Gosfilmofond's social media accounts.

The photographs showcase Adil Iskandarov playing the role of Kamilov in the movie "In the Name of the Law" (1968).

The photographs were included in the personal archive of film director Mukhtar Dadashev, stored in the film fund.

Iskandarov's artistic journey began at a young age. He joined an amateur pioneers association when he was only ten years old, marking the start of his lifelong dedication to the performing arts.

When he was 13, he played a role as Karam in "Gachag Karam" play. After gaining fame in Ganja, he was brought to Baku.

Isgandarov got his first education in director-actor field in Baku Technical School of Theater. After completing his studies, he traveled to Moscow to gain additional professional experience.

He got professional experience in Moscow from 1932 to 1936 and graduated from Lunacharsky State Institute for Theater Arts in 1936.

Upon returning to Baku, he worked at Azerbaijan State Academic National Drama Theater as director, then chief director from 1936 to 1960.

Beyond his work in theater, Adil Iskandarov contributed significantly to the education of aspiring artists.

From 1937 to 1956, he worked at Azerbaijan State University of Culture and Arts named after Mirzaagha Aliyev.

Isgandarov served as the director of AzerbaijanFilm between 1966 and 1974.

His work continues to be remembered and appreciated, highlighting the significance of his contributions to the national culture.

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Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @lmntypewriterrr

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22 August 2024 16:57 (UTC+04:00)

Fatima Latifova Read more

The Uzbekistan-Azerbaijan business forum is a useful platform for diversifying our cooperation, Azernews reports, citing Minister of Economy Mikayil Jabbarov.

"During the state visit of the President of Azerbaijan to Uzbekistan, we participated in the Uzbekistan-Azerbaijan business forum in Tashkent. Together with my colleague, Laziz Kudratov, Uzbekistan's Minister of Investment, Industry, and Trade, we discussed our joint activities in sectors such as agriculture, tourism, construction, pharmaceuticals, and the automotive industry within the framework of the Roadmap for expanding trade-economic and investment cooperation between the two countries for 2024-2025.

At the business forum, there was also an exchange of signed documents on cooperation in the fields of energy, education, logistics, and construction, as well as on expanding cooperation between Baku and Tashkent and establishing sister city relations between Quba and Jizzakh, and Beylagan and Shakhrisabz. These documents are of great importance in expanding cooperation and strengthening multifaceted partnerships between our countries," the minister noted.

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22 August 2024 16:27 (UTC+04:00)

On August 22, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva, and their daughter Leyla Aliyeva visited the Independence Monument in Tashkent, Azernews reports.

A guard of honour was lined up for the President of Azerbaijan here.

President Ilham Aliyev laid a wreath at the monument.

The monument, erected in honour of the 30th anniversary of Uzbekistan's independence, reflects the three-thousand-year history of the Uzbek people.

The 60-meter-high monument is located at the centre of the "Yangi Uzbekiston" ("New Uzbekistan") complex, which is dedicated to the anniversary of the country's independence and is situated near the capital. It reflects the era marked by the lives and activities of prominent figures.

Then, President Ilham Aliyev, First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva, and their daughter Leyla Aliyeva posed for photographs.

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22 August 2024 18:06 (UTC+04:00)

A meeting with Finnish guests was held at the State Committee for Refugees and IDPs of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Azernews reports, citing Azertag, that the Chairman of the State Committee, Rovshan Rzayev, told the guests about the state policy implemented in the field of working with refugees and internally displaced persons in our country, the difficulties faced by our compatriots who were displaced from their native lands as a result of the Armenian occupation, the measures taken by the Azerbaijani government to solve their problems, as well as the issues that arose after the Patriotic War. informed about the situation, the progress, and the prospects of the return to the territories freed from occupation.

During the meeting, it was emphasised that President Ilham Aliyev took great care of former refugees and IDPs, took large-scale measures to improve their living conditions and strengthen their social protection, that major reconstruction works are currently being carried out in the liberated territories under the leadership of our head of state, and that IDPs are living voluntarily, safely, and with dignity. It was reported that the return to their native land has begun. Besides, First Vice President Mehriban Aliyeva treats all issues related to former refugees and internally displaced persons with special care and always supports the solution of their problems.

The guests were also informed about the successful implementation of the First State Program on the Great Return, the resettlement of 8,000 people in the newly built and restored settlements in the territories freed from occupation. It was also brought to attention that the danger of mines and unexploded military ammunition planted by Armenians in those areas is a serious obstacle to their return.

Then Jan Eric Enestam, a professor of the University of Helsinki, pointed out that he was a guest in our country for the second time, that he encountered fundamental changes compared to the first time he came - in the 1980s, and that the development and progress in our country surprised the delegation as a whole. The Finnish guest noted that forced displacement was also experienced in the history of his country, Azerbaijan's experience is more difficult and responsible, and the volume of work carried out in the territories freed from occupation is commendable.

At the meeting, opinions were also exchanged on issues of mutual interest.

It should be noted that the delegation that visited our country at the invitation of the State Committee for Work with the Diaspora of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the organisation and support of the Finland-Azerbaijan Friendship Society included Finnish parliament member Mikko Polvinen, director of the Finnish, Russian, and Eastern European Research Centre at the Alexander Institute Markku Kansgapuro, "Hymy" magazine's deputy editor Antero Eerola, chairman of the management board of "JE Enestam AB" consulting company Jan Erik Enestam, former deputy head of the Finnish delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Western European Union Jaako Laakso were represented. Chairman of Finland-Azerbaijan Friendship Society Tarana Nazarova, also participated in the meeting.

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22 August 2024 20:19 (UTC+04:00)

Minister of Trade Omer Bolat, attending the opening ceremony of a pickling factory in Zonguldak's Eregli district, discussed Turkiye's progress in global trade.

"Our share of world goods exports was 0.55 percent 21 years ago. We increased this to 1.08 percent by the end of last year. God willing, our goal for 2028 is to reach 1.30 percent. Our share in global services exports was around 0.80 percent, and we are currently at approximately 1.30 percent. Increasing these figures will enhance our share in world trade. The medium-term program is progressing successfully."

Bolat, accompanied by local officials and business leaders, emphasized that Turkiye is making strides in employment and exports by supporting technological investments and productivity. "Our distinguished cities play a crucial role in reaching our economic goals, and each province's contribution to exports is vital."

He highlighted the growth in national income and exports. "Our national income increased from $230 billion to $1.158 trillion in the last 21 years, with per capita income rising from $3,600 to $13,110. We hope to reach $14,000 per capita by the end of this year. Goods exports have grown from $3 billion in 1980 to $261.5 billion, and services exports from $14 billion to $110 billion."

Minister noted that political stability, effective economic management, and contributions from various sectors are driving this progress. "As natural gas transportation increases, Turkiyes energy costs will decrease, giving our industry a significant boost."

Bolat stressed the importance of metal, engineering, automotive, and information technologies. "Developed countries, particularly G7 nations, excel in these sectors. Thanks to the AK Party and the People's Alliance, we have made significant progress in the economy over the past 22 years."

He outlined Turkiye's achievements in the steel sector and technology. "Turkiye ranks 8th globally and 1st or 2nd in Europe in metal and steel exports. Our steel exports are approaching $30 billion, with a nearly 10 percent increase in production and exports. We exported $3.3 billion in software, and the number of tech parks and industrial zones has grown significantly."

Minister concluded by reaffirming Turkiye 's goals for 2028 and the nation's strong position despite regional tensions and natural disasters. "We aim to increase our share of world goods exports to 1.30 percent. Turkiye shines as a reliable and high-quality supplier in the global economy, attracting foreign investments with our ports and free zones."

Minister Bolat highlighted Turkiye's strong performance in global contracting, stating, "Turkish contractors are ranked 2nd in the world, having completed $510 billion worth of projects in 137 countries. Of this, $50 billion was completed before 2002, and $460 billion since then. The significant increase reflects the dedicated service and work of the AK Party cadres under the leadership of our esteemed President, coupled with the effective management and unity of the People's Alliance and the support of our great nation. We are optimistic about achieving even greater success and prosperity in the future."

He continued, "The medium-term program is progressing successfully. Over the past 20 years, Turkiye has grown by 5.4 percent annually, surpassing the world average of 3.4 percent and the EU's lower growth rate. In the first quarter of this year, Turkiye's growth was 5.7 percent, while Europe grew by only 0.8 percent and the US by 2 percent."

Minister Bolat urged industrialists to focus on green economy compliance, emphasizing the 'Green Steel for the Future' initiative. He said, "We are working in coordination with the business world. Two weeks ago, our General Directorate of Exports launched a new incentive program, the 'Responsible' program. This initiative provides consultancy services to enhance our companies' competitiveness in the European market and promote the export of sustainable products. We will offer a 10 million TL grant for consultancy expenses per company."

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22 August 2024 19:18 (UTC+04:00)

By Alimat Aliyeva

In 2024, Apple took the first place in the ranking of the most expensive brands of technology companies, Azernews reports.

According to his data, the value of the Apple brand has increased by 74% since 2023, reaching $516.6 billion. Microsoft Corporation took the second place in the list, the value of its brand was $340.4 billion (an increase of 78%). Google, whose brand value is estimated at $333.4 billion, remained in third place (no data on growth are provided). Amazon is in fourth place, with the value of its brand amounting to $308.9 billion (an increase of 3.2%).

At the same time, Nvidia demonstrated the fastest growth (by 163%), rising by 19 positions since the last rating was compiled and taking 10th place with a value of $44.5 billion.

Brand Finance is a leading international brand valuation consulting company with offices in 20 countries. According to the Brand Finance methodology, "brand strength" is calculated using a balanced scorecard that includes an assessment of investments in marketing, equity and business performance.

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Kaiser Permanente has made several moves in recent months, whether that be expansions, policy adjustments or technology implementations, and shows no signs of slowing down.

Here are seven recent moves by the Oakland, Calif.-based health system, as reported by Becker's since June 24:

1. Daniel Yang, MD, vice president of artificial intelligence and emerging technologies at Kaiser Permanente, told The Wall Street Journal he is concerned about a growing divide in AI adoption, where some health systems can afford the technology while others cannot.

2. Kaiser Permanente made a generative AI-powered clinical documentation tool available to providers across its 40 hospitals and over 600 medical offices through a contract with AI startup Abridge.

3. Kaiser reported an operating income of $908 million in the second quarter, up from $741 million in the same period last year. Its operating margin grew from 2.9% in the second quarter of 2023 to 3.1% in the second quarter of this year.

4. The health system expanded its home health agency on Hawaii Island that is geared toward members who rely on assistive devices such as walkers, canes or wheelchairs, and those with health conditions that limit their ability to leave home and necessitate care from skilled nurses or therapists.

5. Kaiser's medical school in Pasadena, Calif., extended its tuition waiver policy for one year, allowing a sixth cohort to attend tuition-free.

6. The system laid off 51 employees from IT positions in Pleasanton, Calif.

7. Kaiser's nonprofit entity Risant Health signed a definitive agreement to acquire Greensboro, N.C.-based Cone Health.
Here are three states that are primed for or experiencing ASC booms:

Tennessee

In May, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee signed legislation that modifies the state's certificate-of-need requirements. Beginning Dec. 31, 2027, ASCs will no longer be required to obtain a certificate, with additional regulatory requirements.

Sam Sarbacker, vice president of development at real estate developer Oman Gibson, told Becker's that ASC development will soar in Tennessee when the requirement is eliminated.

South Carolina

South Carolina is another state primed for an ASC boom. In October, South Carolina repealed the state's certificate of need law, which has been on the books since the 1970s .South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster said that patients would benefit from the repeal "when the proven power of the free market is unleashed in our state."

The state is also seeing the highest population growth  the population grew the equivalent of 1.15% per year between 2008 and 2023, according to data from Pew.

Earlier this year, Bon Secours Mercy Health and Compass Surgical Partners' joint venture surgery center opened in April in Greenville.

North Carolina

North Carolina, another state seeing high population growth, was named one of the best places to start a business in 2024 by CNBC.

In 2023, the state signed legislation exempting "qualified urban ambulatory surgical facilities from CON review, among other changes. Additionally, the North Carolina Senate proposed its budget for the next two fiscal years that would drop CON requirements in urban areas on the condition that those ASCs meet the Medicaid and self-pay threshold.

Mr. Sarbacker told Becker's North Carolina is also on the radar as primed for an ASC boom as the CON law is in flux.
Here are eight cardiologists that have made headlines in the last two weeks, as reported by Becker's since Aug. 6:

1. AdventHealth Medical Group Cardiology in Dalton, Ga., added Steve Rohn, MD.

2. John deGraft-Johnson, MD, successfully performed a robotically assisted, minimally invasive direct vision coronary artery bypass graft surgery at Modesto, Calif.-based Doctors Medical Center, one of the first of its kind in the region.

3. Asad Torabi, MD, joined Mishawaka, Ind.-based Franciscan Physician Network.

4. Edison, N.J.-based Hackensack Meridian Health cardiologists Pranaychandra Vaidya, MD, Gregory Simonian, MD, and Haroon Faraz, MD, performed the system's first Symplicity blood pressure procedure July 30, making it the second hospital in New Jersey to offer the treatment.

5. Roman DeSanctis, MD, a cardiologist who practiced at Boston-based Massachusetts General Hospital, died at 93. When he retired at the age of 83, he was Mass General's oldest practicing physician in recent memory.

6. West Orange, N.J.-based RWJBarnabas Health Medical Group will welcome Michael Benz, MD, as a new member of the medical group in September.
Irvine, Calif.-based City of Hope Orange County has tapped Alessio Pigazzi, MD, PhD, as clinical professor of surgery, executive medical director of colorectal surgery and vice chair of clinical network affairs for the Department of Surgery, according to an Aug. 22 report from the Los Angeles Times.

Two decades ago, Dr. Pigazzi performed the worlds first robot-assisted tumor removal for rectal cancer at City of Hope in Duarte, Calif.

In his role, Dr. Pigazzi will lead a team of surgeons specializing in complex colon, rectal and anal cancers, advance research in early-onset colorectal cancer and minimally invasive techniques to improve recovery after surgery and oversee optimal access and utilization of surgical services.

Dr. Pigazzi specializes in laparoscopic, robot-assisted and open surgical techniques. His research includes neoadjuvant therapies for colon and rectal cancer.
Here are 10 numbers scaring ASCs right now:

55%: The percentage that facility fees for colonoscopy procedures covered by private health insurance are at hospitals compared to those at ASCs as of May 2023, according to a Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health study published in JAMA Health Forum.

43%. The percentage of ASCs with an operating budget of $3 million or more in 2023, compared with 32% the previous year, according to a survey from OR Manager.

47%. The percentage of respondents that reported their operating budget had increased in the last year; only 12% reported a decrease.

70%: The percentage by which Medicare hospital pay increased from 2001 to 2023. By contrast, Medicare physician payment has only increased by 9% in the same period, according to a report by the American Medical Association.

6.8 percentage points. The increase in use of hospital outpatient departments instead of ASCs for colonoscopies following vertical integration, according to a study published July 25 in Science Direct.

52. The number of ASCs that went from independent to under partnership by a national operator from 2021 to 2022, according to a report from VMG Health. This trend will likely continue as costs soar and it becomes increasingly difficult for independent ASCs to access economies of scale.

2,872. The number of anesthesiologists that left the workforce from 2021 to 2022, according to a report from Definitive Healthcare.

82%. The percentage that medical and surgical supply costs faced by practices per full-time physician increased by from 2022 to 2023, according to a report released from the Medical Group Management Association.

More than 108,700. The number of physicians who left private practice for employment opportunities from 2019 to 2021, according to a report from Avalere.

47,724. The number of nurse practitioners and physician assistance that left the workforce between 2021 and 2022, according to Definitive Healthcare's "Addressing the Healthcare Staffing Shortage" report.
HCA Houston Healthcare North Cypress is embarking on a $100 million expansion that will increase its total licensed bed count to 216, up from its current 163 beds.

The hospital shared plans for a new patient tower in an Aug. 22 news release, according to Community Impact. The expansion is slated to be complete in spring 2026 and will feature a 31-bed medical-surgical unit, an expanded central sterile processing department and a 22-bed acute rehabilitation unit.

The hospital is part of HCA Houston Healthcare, which operates 13 hospitals in the Houston area. Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare acquired North Cypress Medical Center in 2018.

Several other health systems have also recently invested in major facility expansions in Cypress, Texas. In July Houston-based Memorial Hermann Health System shared plans for a nearly $280 million expansion at Memorial Hermann Cypress Hospital. Meanwhile, Houston Methodist is building a 400-bed smart hospital in the city, slated to open in the first quarter of 2025.
In an era where healthcare operations are becoming increasingly digitized, the risks associated with cybersecurity are evolving at a rapid pace.

Traditionally, technology was seen merely as a tool to enhance the efficiency of healthcare operations. However, Christian Dameff, MD, an emergency physician and the medical director of cybersecurity at UC San Diego Health told Becker's that this view is outdated and overlooks the consolidation of critical health information into centralized digital systems, making them vulnerable to attacks.

"We used to think of healthcare IT as just another tool in the toolbox, but what we've done is built a brand new toolbox filled with digital tools," Dr. Dameff said. "Now, when someone steals our toolbox, we can't get the job done anymore."

He emphasized that the risk is no longer limited to breaches of protected health information, but extends to the very ability of healthcare providers to deliver care. Ransomware attacks, in particular, have demonstrated how cyberattacks can directly impact patient care by disrupting critical healthcare services.

Over the past decade, ransomware has emerged as a significant threat to healthcare systems across the country. According to Dr. Dameff, the frequency of these attacks has escalated to the point where it's now common to hear about a healthcare institution falling victim to ransomware on a weekly basis. The consequences are severe, often impairing the ability of healthcare providers to treat patients effectively and efficiently.

"No one today can honestly look at ransomware and say this is an issue that's entirely focused on protecting health information," Dr. Dameff said. "These attacks are impairing the ability of nurses and doctors to treat patients to the standard of care we're accustomed to."

Dr. Dameff acknowledged that most hospitals are ill-equipped to deal with ransomware attacks effectively. He pointed out that many healthcare organizations lack the necessary protocols, procedures and IT infrastructure to respond quickly to such incidents.

"The vast majority of hospitals do not have the necessary planning, drills or procedures in place to address the ransomware threat," he said. "This is a significant issue, given the impact these attacks can have on patient care."

Dr. Dameff suggested that there needs to be a greater emphasis on training frontline workers to handle cyber incidents, as well as a national-level response to support hospitals during these crises. He proposed that ransomware attacks should be treated similarly to natural disasters, with external response teams ready to assist healthcare organizations when their resources are overwhelmed.

Despite the challenges, Dr. Dameff remains optimistic about the future of healthcare cybersecurity. The FDA now assesses the cybersecurity of medical devices and will not approve those that do not meet certain standards, which Dr. Dameff sees as a crucial step forward.

"The success story of the FDA is one of the things that really brings me hope," he said. "If the FDA can do it, I have faith that other federal agencies and organizations can follow suit."

Dr. Dameff also noted the increasing attention that ransomware attacks are receiving from both the healthcare community and researchers. More studies are being conducted to understand the impact of these attacks on patient care, and Dr. Dameff believes that this growing body of evidence will lead to better strategies for preventing and responding to cyberattacks.
Roughly 7,000 of Epic's customers, many of them from health systems, visited the EHR vendor's sprawling headquarters in Verona, Wis., from Aug. 19-22 for the company's annual Users Group Meeting. Here are six highlights from the conference.

1. Artificial intelligence was the talk of Verona. As Epic founder and CEO Judy Faulkner reminded the audience during her executive address, all computers are effectively AI. But the technology has come a long way in the decades since Epic's founding, particularly in the last couple of years with the advent of generative AI.

Epic has been riding that tech wave as well, with more than 100 generative AI applications either having been released or in development.

"You are going to hear a lot about AI today. I mean, a lot," Epic senior vice president Sumit Rana said Aug. 20. "Our mission is to maximize use of AI across all areas, from clinical to administrative, while, of course, complying with evolving regulatory requirements."

One of the coolest features in the works is a conversational voice assistant in MyChart that patients can ask health-related questions in real time (think Alexa or Siri for healthcare).

Seth Hain, a research and development executive at Epic, demonstrated how it worked, talking with the AI about a fictional wrist injury. After the chatbot asked him to send a live picture of his wrist in MyChart, she responded that his recovery appeared to be progressing so well that he could cancel his upcoming virtual visit with a human physician (who Mr. Hain would still see in person in a few weeks).

Mr. Hain was asked when this type of platform might be live. Three years? Ten?

"Three years seems like a long time," he said. "This is moving really, really quickly."

As some actors illustrated in a Dr. Seuss-themed skit, patients can now schedule appointments on MyChart with the help of a text-based AI chatbot, have their appointment documented on Epic with ambient AI, then have AI find a similar patient elsewhere in the world whose provider their physician can consult with via the Look-Alikes platform.

2. Epic has gone international. The company hosted healthcare leaders from 17 countries at the event, and Epic's biggest-ever go-live recently took place at London-based Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, with 45,000 new users of the EHR.

And U.S. health systems are getting in on the action. Charlotte, N.C.-based Advocate Health, for instance, supported the Epic implementation at the NHS as well as one at Insel Gruppe AG, a university hospital in Bern, Switzerland.

"Unlike other consulting organizations, we do patient care every day in all of our hospitals and clinics, so we have a really clear understanding most days of how best to leverage the technology," said Russ Hinz, vice president of strategic partnerships for Advocate Health, which now has an international EHR consulting business.

Also, an Epic Users Group Meeting for the Asia-Pacific region is in the works.

3. New health system customers abound. Epic welcomed 19 new U.S. health system clients at the event, including several that hadn't been reported previously, such as Minneapolis-based Children's Minnesota, Children's Mercy Kansas City (Mo.) and Lubbock, Texas-based UMC Health System.

The company's stranglehold on the EHR market  Epic was at 39.1% of U.S. hospitals, covering more than half of all hospital beds, in 2023  appears to be tightening.

4. The Cosmos clinical informatics platform is growing. Epic's Cosmos research platform now includes deidentified data from 270 million patient records. A Cosmos-based program called Best Care Choices that gives treatment recommendations to providers is in testing. "This is huge and a game-changer for medicine," said Mark Mabus, MD, chief medical informatics officer and EHR vice president at Fort Wayne, Ind.-based Parkview Health, one of the testing sites.

"A lot of organizations struggle with having a common data repository," said Sargon Yacoub, senior director of academic research and computing for Chicago-based Rush University System for Health. "So being able to have a repository like Cosmos, with deidentified data, with  self-service functionality, is a huge win for us."

5. MyChart is expanding. As Epic leaders noted at the event, many people now have a MyChart account from birth, including 40% of newborns and 580,000 babies under the age of 1.

But users can better protect their data with multifactor authentication, which is not activated on 10 million active MyChart accounts, said Stirling Martin, a senior vice president at Epic.

MyChart is the No. 1 healthcare app with 190 million users, Ms. Faulkner noted during her executive address. She recommended that health systems keep the MyChart brand name for their patient portals as patients often search for it when they move to a new city.

6. Epic is moving beyond hospitals. The EHR vendor touted its payer platform, which connects health systems with payers directly on the Health Grid, as well as its Aura precision medicine program that loops in specialty diagnostic labs.

What is tying all these programs back together? AI, of course.

Truly realizing the potential of AI will require everyone from providers to payers to Epic to work together, Mr. Rana said. "We're headed for a battle of AI versus AI, unless we change course," he said, pointing to a meeting on prior authorizations and denials between St. Louis-based Mercy and payer Elevance Health as a step in the right direction.

"We've woven Cosmos, MyChart and the Health Grid into all of our software, and as they continue to grow in scale, so does the potential for meaningful impact," he added. "And they're getting turbocharged with AI."
The American Hospital Association is once again in conflict with Arnold Ventures LLC, a billionaire-backed organization that the AHA accuses of spreading misinformation about hospitals.

Arnold Ventures LLC, formerly known as the Laura and John Arnold Foundation, was founded by billionaires John D. Arnold and Laura Arnold in 2010. Mr. Arnold is an ex-energy trader and became the youngest billionaire in the U.S. in 2007 at age 33. The couple transitioned their philanthropic organization to an LLC in 2019.

Over the past 12 years, Arnold Ventures has awarded more than $358 million to research and initiatives focused on healthcare, including grants to study hospital consolidation and fund litigation against health systems. The LLC helped fund Fairmark Partners, a group pursuing antitrust lawsuits against hospital operators in Wisconsin, Connecticut and North Carolina.

Most recently, Third Way, a self-described "national think tank that champions modern center-left ideas," published a report on Aug. 15. The report argues that "hospitals persistently spread the myth that they are losing money on Medicare to justify large markups to patients with private coverage."

The report contrasts Duke Regional Hospital in Durham, N.C., with Mercy Hospital Southeast in Cape Girardeau, Mo., claiming the former is efficient and profitable on Medicare while providing better patient outcomes, while the latter struggles with cost control and delivers worse care at higher prices.

Although the name Arnold Ventures LLC is not directly mentioned in the report, it does cite sources like the Lown Institute and the National Academy for State Health Policy, both of which have received funding from Arnold Ventures.

On Aug. 16, the AHA issued a response condemning the LLC and the Arnolds, arguing that it was no surprise the Third Way report reached its conclusions due to the "highly flawed data and methodologies developed through other Arnold-funded work."

"Unfortunately, instead of using their immense wealth to truly understand the issues driving health care costs and the broad impacts on American society, the Arnolds have recklessly bought into and are working to advance an inaccurate narrative of hospitals," the AHA said.

"Part of this strategy includes pumping more than $100 million into think tanks, academics, public speaking sponsorships, political activities and the like, as well as encouraging these advocates to drive a wedge between different hospitals to advance their policy agenda at the state and national levels."

The AHA also pushed back against the Third Way report's assertion that break-even margins indicate healthy financial management for hospitals, a concept it has challenged in recent years. "No organization in any field can operate by simply breaking even," it said.

Becker's reached out to Arnold Ventures LLC for comment:

"Americans deserve affordable, high-quality care, and we at Arnold Ventures are committed to research for solutions that deliver for them. We hold no preconceptions, rather we follow rigorous standards for research and data to support policies that have the greatest potential to work for affordability, quality, and access," Mark E. Miller, executive vice president health care at Arnold Ventures, said in a statement.

"Of course, hospitals are essential  and some are doing well and others are not," Mr. Miller said. "We stand against bad actors who abuse the system to enhance their own profits and in so doing make it harder to engage in a constructive discussion of solutions that would help all hospitals."

Last summer, a study backed by the LLC and published in Health Affairs found the cash reserves of nonprofit hospitals grew 68% from 2012 to 2019 while charity care spending dropped. The AHA disputed these findings, arguing that the study's methodology failed to capture the full cost of providing care and overlooked the broader community benefits offered by hospitals.

Read the AHA's response in full here.

Find the Third Way report in full here.
Lawmakers are continuing to press for tougher regulations on MultiPlan, the New York Times reported Aug. 21.

The calls come after the Times published an investigation in April alleging MultiPlan helped insurers collect millions in fees.

In a letter published Aug. 20, Reps. Bobby Scott and Mark DeSaulnier asked Lisa Gomez, assistant secretary of the Employee Benefits Security Administration, to provide information on efforts the department has made to address "troubling practices" by MultiPlan and insurers.

MultiPlan helps health plans handle out-of-network claims, advising insurers what to pay providers. In its investigation, the Times alleged plans often pay much less than providers bill  and charge self-funded employers a percentage of the savings as a processing fee. The formula incentivizes insurers to pay providers less so they can charge employers higher fees. Some patients have paid out-of-pocket for the remaining costs, the Times reports.

A spokesperson for Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden told Politico in July the committee is investigating whether Multiplan acts as a "middleman" driving up prices.

In May, Sen. Amy Klobuchar asked the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission to investigate potentially anticompetitive conduct by MultiPlan.

The FTC and DOJ have not contacted MultiPlan, CEO Travis Dalton told Politico.

In addition to Congressional scrutiny, MultiPlan is facing lawsuits from multiple health systems. Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems, Altamonte Springs, Fla.-based AdventHealth and Shreveport, La.-based Allegiance Health Management have all filed lawsuits alleging MultiPlan is withholding dollars from providers.

The three lawsuits, and lawsuits from three other providers, have been centralized in an Illinois federal court.

A MultiPlan spokesperson told the Times the outlet has "repeatedly misinformed the public about how MultiPlan works."

"MultiPlan's services do not raise patients' overall health care costs, they lower them  including by minimizing or eliminating balance bills for tens of millions of patients  and to state or imply the contrary is false and misleading," the spokesperson said.

Read more here.
New York City-based Apollo Global Management, an alternative investment manager, has rejected the $4.5 million proposal from Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey's administration to take over Dallas-based Steward Health Care's Boston-based St. Elizabeth's Medical Center.

In a Aug. 20 letter, obtained by Becker's, an Apollo lawyer detailed that the offer from the state "significantly undervalues the real property underlying St. Elizabeth's" and argued that the offer price was below the property's fair market value, which is worth more than $200 million in tax-assessed value and sits on 14 acres of land next to Boston's "most prestigious educational institutes," the letter reported.

The letter also shared that the amount offered by the state for the hospital is less than its annual taxes paid, at $5.14 million over the last 12 months.

"There are a number of highly valuable changed uses to the property that would be similarly valuable for the community and for which a developer or educational institution would likely obtain permits," the letter stated.

On Aug. 16, Ms. Healey's administration shared that it had deals "in principle" for four Steward hospitals in Massachusetts, and that the state also planned to take St. Elizabeth's through eminent domain and then hopefully transition the hospital to Boston Medical Center.

Should the deals move forward, Providence, R.I.-based Lifespan would take on Taunton, Mass.-based Morton Hospital; Fall River, Mass.-based St. Anne's Hospital, Boston Medical Center would operate Brockton, Mass.-based Good Samaritan; and Lawrence (Mass.) General Hospital would run Holy Family Hospital in Methuen (Mass.) and Holy Family Hospital in Haverhill (Mass.).

"Steward and Apollo need to stop playing games with people's healthcare," a spokesperson for Ms. Healey said in an Aug. 21 statement shared with Becker's. "We are moving forward with plans to take St. Elizabeths by eminent domain."

Steward, which sought Chapter 11 protection May 6, also filed a lawsuit against its landlord Medical Properties Trust on Aug. 19, claiming that the company had disrupted the efforts to sell its remaining hospitals to new operations.

Ms. Healey's office is working to complete the legal work necessary to take over the hospital and to transition ownership quickly, the statement said.

Apollo and Steward did not have a comment for Becker's.

Editor's note: This story has been updated as of Aug. 22 at 8:50 a.m. CT.
Dallas-based Steward Health Care plans to close Trumbull Regional Medical Center and Hillside Rehabilitation Hospital, both in Warren, Ohio, on or around Sept. 20 after the facilities failed to attract qualified buyers, the health system said in an Aug. 21 statement shared with Becker's.

Steward, which sought Chapter 11 protection May 6, shared that the "regrettable but unavoidable situation" has occurred due to its "significant cash constraints."

It will also be closing six "satellite facilities" in Ohio; Steward Health Center, Austintown (Ohio) Imaging; Cortland-based Steward Health Center, Center for Radiology; Cortland-based Trumbull Regional Medical Center for Surgery; Warren-based Trumbull Regional Medical Center Sleep Lab; Youngstown-based Austintown Rehabilitation Services; and Cortland-based Elm Road Rehabilitation services, according to Aug. 21 bankrtupcy court documents filed by Steward and obtained by Becker's.

"We remain hopeful we can find an alternative solution that would keep the hospitals open and preserve the jobs of our dedicated team members," the statement said. "We want to help save this hospital and will continue to work with qualified bidders during this process."

The for-profit health system said it plans to work with patients to ensure a smooth transition of care and will provide support to the employees affected by the closures.

"The closure of Hillside is a tragic result of greed-driven hospital executives, backed by private equity, who prioritize their yachts and private jets over patient care," Rick Lucas, RN, president and executive director of the Ohio Nurses Association, said in an Aug. 21 news release shared with Becker's. "This decision leaves our community without crucial rehabilitation services and forces our dedicated team of nurses and health professionals into unemployment due to Steward's unchecked greed."

The Ohio Nurses Association represents 23 nurses at Hillside and around 8,000 nurses, surgical techs and respiratory therapists across the state.

The closures mark four Steward hospitals that are set to shutter. On July 31, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez approved the closure of Steward's Boston-based Carney Hospital and Ayer-based Nashoba Valley Medical Center, by Aug. 31.

"This is a challenging and unfortunate situation, but we will continue to keep patient safety and care at the forefront of everything we do," Steward statement said.

Meanwhile, Steward's Aug. 22 hearing for its hospitals in Arkansas, Louisiana and Massachusetts has been pushed back to Aug. 27, according to Aug. 21 court documents obtained by Becker's.

Editor's note: This story was updated as of Aug. 22 at 9:30 a.m. CT.








According to an Aug. 22 survey from the Center for Connected Medicine at Pittsburgh-based UPMC, patient access emerged as the top challenge where technology could make the most significant impact in healthcare.

Conducted in collaboration with KLAS, the "Top of Mind for Top Health Systems" report gathered insights in March 2024 from representatives of 55 U.S. hospitals and health systems. More than 90% of respondents were senior executives, including C-suite leaders, with a focus on information technology, operations and administration.

The survey found that healthcare organizations remain focused on using technology to address challenges in patient care, patient access and provider burnout. These issues were also identified as the top concerns in the center's 2024 survey.
Wright Lassiter III, CEO of Chicago-based CommonSpirit Health, recently joined Morehouse School of Medicine's "Danforth Dialogues" podcast to discuss topics ranging from CommonSpirit's partnership with the Morehouse School of Medicine to effective leadership.

Mr. Lassiter became CEO of CommonSpirit in August 2022, two years after CommonSpirit and MSM, a historically Black medical school in Atlanta, announced their More in Common Alliance partnership. The 10-year, $100 million partnership aims to increase cultural competency and diversify the clinician workforce to improve healthcare access and quality.

In November 2021, the institutions announced the development of three undergraduate and four graduate medical education sites, marking the first phase of the More in Common Alliance.

Mr. Lassiter told MSM President and CEO Valerie Montgomery Rice, MD, on the August edition of the podcast that the partnership has "tremendous potential to impact the communities CommonSpirit serves by increasing the pipeline for a more diverse healthcare workforce focused to meet the unique needs of many of its patients."

"Hospitals are very important to communities, but hospitals in and of themselves don't make communities healthier," Mr. Lassiter said. "The partnership is one significant manifestation for us to get out of the four walls of a hospital and actually have impact. That's different than just simply responding to what walks in the door. It allows us to change the fundamental characteristics of communities by creating tool sets of human beings that are equipped with skills to address the challenging, disturbing and unacceptable health inequities that exist in too many communities across the country."

When Mr. Lassiter became CEO of CommonSpirit, he succeeded Lloyd Dean, who retired after a more than two-decade tenure at the top of the nonprofit, Catholic health system. He joined CommonSpirit from Detroit-based Henry Ford Health, where he served as president and CEO.

CommonSpirit is a system of more than 2,200 care sites in 24 states.

But Mr. Lassiter told Dr. Montgomery Rice that the health system focused more on impact than size.

"What I say to our team is, 'At the end of every year, we need to look in the mirror and ask ourselves one simple question: Are the communities we serve better at the end of the year than the beginning of the year because of our presence?' If the answer is 'yes,' then we should keep doing what were doing and try to do more of it. If the answer is 'no,' then we need to ask ourselves, 'Why?' and 'How do we change that?'" Mr. Lassiter said.

He also noted the importance of courage as a leadership trait.

"No effective leader always gets it right and certainly doesn't cross the finish line every time," he told Dr. Montgomery Rice. "They take off from a starting line. And so you have to be willing to fight for what you hope to accomplish and fight on behalf of the people that you're doing your work for."

Listen to the August edition of the podcast here.
Since its 2023 bankruptcy restructuring, Envision Healthcare has rebuilt its leadership team while continuing clinical operations. The company maintains its vision is to become "America's leading medical group."

Here are 12 things to know about Envision's operations, financial history and leadership:



Operations

Envision Healthcare is a medical group based in Nashville, Tenn.





The company manages physicians and clinicians working in health systems across the U.S. through its Envision Physician Services network.





Envision manages physicians and clinicians who practice across multiple specialties: anesthesiology, critical care medicine, emergency medicine, hospital medicine, radiology and women's and children's medicine.





The company does not publicly disclose the states in which it operates, but it currently is hiring healthcare professionals in Texas, Florida, Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, Missouri, Illinois, WIsconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, Virginia, New Jersey, New York and New Hampshire, according Envision's website.





In July, Envision told Becker's that although it had ceased operating in California, a settlement with the American Academy of Emergency Medicine, which had sued the company over its business model, was not a contributing factor in the company's decision. Envision said it had been decreasing its footprint in the state for several years.





According to the company's "2023 Clinical Report," published June 27, Envision manages 16,000 clinicians at 800 locations.





Envision reported 19 million patient encounters, including 8 million emergency department encounters, in its "2023 Clinical Report."



Finance

In May 2023, Envision announced it had filed for bankruptcy. The company's ambulatory surgery division, AmSurg, was split from Envision Physician Services as part of restructuring. AmSurg now operates under new ownership.





UnitedHealthcare was ordered to pay Envision $91 million in May 2023 after an underpayment dispute went through arbitration.



Leadership

Envision formed a new board of directors in January. Its members are Steve Nelson, Fredrik Eliasson, Mark Stolper, Loretta Cecil, Harold Paz, MD, and Debbie Osteen.





Envision named Jason Owen president and CEO in April; he previously had served as president and CEO of BlueSpring.





Envision appointed Dominic Andreano as the company's general counsel in June; he previously had served as executive vice president, general counsel and secretary at Pediatrix.



Editor's note: This article was updated Aug. 26 at 1:50 p.m. CT.
Rural and community hospitals and smaller health systems are struggling to push their operating margins back into the black, with many continuing to seek strategic partners or acquisitions to ensure access to care. Academic health systems are stepping up.

Financial pressures have forced many community hospitals to shut down departments, lay off employees or close services, which forces patients to travel further distances to regional centers  often academic centers  which have become overcrowded. Many of these hospitals also also need to undergo infrastructure improvements and digital transformation, both of which are expensive.

In addition to maintaining access to care in local communities, acquiring community hospitals offers various other benefits to academic health systems, including:

Reducing the academic medical center's total cost of care by treating lower-acuity patients in a lower-cost community hospital setting.





Enhanced reimbursement opportunities if the acquired facilities are designated as a critical access hospital or rural emergency hospital.





Improving access to the academic medical center's services, expanding its clinicians and branding into new markets and boosting capacity at the main campus for higher-acuity care.





Advancing the quality and scope of care at community hospitals by implementing care design protocols and other best practices to community hospital partners.





Providing a talent pipeline for physician recruitment and residency programs in community hospital settings.

Here are 11 academic health systems in eight states that recently acquired or plan to add more hospitals:

Note: This is not a comprehensive list.

1. Morgantown.-based West Virginia University Health System, which operates under the brand name WVU Medicine, has expanded its community hospital through several recent acquisitions in the state, including:

Weirton Medical Center

Grant Memorial Hospital (Petersburg)

Thomas Health (Charleston)

Welch Community Hospital

2. The University of Michigan Health acquired Lansing, Mich.-based Sparrow Health System in April 2023, $7 billion health system. In August, Midland-based MyMichigan Health, a nonprofit system affiliated with the University of Michigan Health System, purchased three Michigan hospitals from St. Louis-based Ascension in August. MyMichigan also acquired the Ascension Medical Group care sites and physician practices associated with the hospitals, which include:

Ascension St. Mary's (Saginaw)

Ascension St. Mary's (Standish)

Ascension St. Joseph (Tawas City)

3. UCSF Health acquired two hospitals  San Francisco-based Saint Francis Memorial Hospital and St. Mary's Medical Center  from Dignity Health in August for $100 million. UCSF will invest $100 million to support the integration of the hospitals, which have shed their religious affiliation and are now known as UCSF Health Saint Francis and UCSF Health St. Mary's.

4. Orange, Calif.-based UCI Health added 858 inpatient beds this year after acquiring four hospitals for $975 million from Tenet Healthcare's Pacific Coast Network. UC Irvine Chancellor Howard Gillman said the acquisition "will bridge gaps in regional care and advance the University of Californias mission to serve our communities." The hospitals:

Fountain Valley Regional Hospital

Lakewood Regional Medical Center

Los Alamitos Medical Center

Placentia-Linda Hospital

5. Washington (Pa.) Health, a two-hospital system, joined Pittsburgh-based UPMC in June. UPMC will invest at least $300 million over the next 10 years to improve services at the two hospitals, which have been rebranded as UPMC Washington and UPMC Greene hospitals.

6. The University of Alabama System aims to acquire Ascension St. Vincent's Health System, which includes five hospitals, for $450 million. Birmingham-based UAB Health expects the transaction to close in the fall, pending approval from federal regulators and the Catholic Church.

7. In July, Lexington-based UK HealthCare, part of the University of Kentucky, acquired St. Claire HealthCare in Morehead, Ky. The transaction follows UK HealthCare' December 2022 acquisition of King's Ashland, Ky.-based Daughters Health, a 465-bed system.

8. Dartmouth Health acquired Valley Regional Hospital, a 25-bed facility in Claremont, N.H., effective July 31. Lebanon, N.H.-based Dartmouth previously collaborated with Valley Regional for many services, including cardiology, oncology, pathology and radiology.

9. Philadelphia-based University of Pennsylvania Health System and Doylestown (Pa.) Health in August signed a definitive agreement for Doylestown to become part of Penn Medicine, a six-hospital system. The proposed transaction would lay the foundation for the development of new clinical programs and expanded services across the greater Philadelphia region and build upon existing clinical integration in cancer care between the two systems.

10. Emory Healthcare, an 11-hospital academic health system in Atlanta, in August signed a letter of intent for Houston Healthcare to join Emory. The proposed deal would add Houston Healthcare's two hospital campuses  totaling 282 beds  along with five outpatient facilities and nine physician practices to Emory's portfolio.

11. Detroit-based Henry Ford Health and Ascension Michigan on Sept. 30 launched a joint venture that essentially folded Ascension's sites of care in the southeastern region of the state under the Henry Ford Health brand. Bob Riney, president and CEO of Henry Ford Health, will lead the JV, which comprises about 50,000 employees atnd more than 550 care sites across Michigan under Henry Ford Health. The following 10 Ascension Michigan hospitals are covered by the JV:
Five states have passed healthcare noncompete bans, and seven states have introduced similar bills.

The Federal Trade Commission attempted to institute a nationwide noncompete ban that would have invalided tens of millions of agreements and banned hospitals and other employers from entering into or enforcing any new noncompete. But on Aug. 20, a federal court struck down the sweeping noncompete ban, claiming it was "unreasonably overbroad" and that the FTC lacks authority to implement nationwide rules defining unfair methods of competition. The rule would have taken effect Sept. 4.

The FTC told Becker's it is considering an appeal of the ruling, which has received mixed reactions from hospital and physician groups.

The American Academy of Family Physicians, which has more than 130,000 members, said it is disappointed by the decision to block the rule nationwide.

"Noncompetes harm family physicians and their patients by jeopardizing long-term patient-physician relationships and creating an uneven playing field for physicians," AAFP President Steven Furr, MD, said in a statement. "The AAFP will continue to support the FTC's mission to eliminate noncompetes in healthcare that prioritize the interests of organizations over those of patients and their physicians."

However, organizations such as the Federation of American Hospitals and the American Hospital Association told Becker's they stand by the federal court's decision.

Despite the FTC's attempt to create a national ban, several states have introduced or passed noncompete ban bills. All of them were introduced in the first half of 2024. Here are the five states where bills were passed:

Illinois: Starting Jan. 1, noncompetes for licensed professionals who provide mental health services to veterans and first responders are unenforceable.

Iowa: Healthcare technology platforms may not restrict the employment opportunities via a noncompete clause for independent nursing professionals.

Louisiana: Starting Jan. 1, noncompetes restricting primary care physicians from practicing medicine will expire three years from the effective date of the agreement and new agreements or renewals cannot include a noncompete. If employment is terminated within three years, the scope of the noncompete must be limited to two years in duration and up to two contiguous parishes where the practice is located.

Pennsylvania: Starting Jan. 1, noncompetes between healthcare practitioners and employers are limited to one year in duration and are unenforceable if the employee is dismissed by the employer. Healthcare practitioners include physicians, nurse anesthetists, nurse practitioners and physician assistants.

Rhode Island: Noncompetes for advanced practice registered nurses are void and unenforceable.

Bills have also been introduced in Arizona, Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri, New York, Rhode Island and Tennessee. Colorado, Mississippi and Nebraska introduced noncompete bans that failed.
A patient's family is bringing a lawsuit against Sacramento, Calif.-based Mercy San Juan Medical Center after a 31-year-old woman died and her body was put into cold storage without the family's knowledge, The Sacramento Bee reported Aug. 20.

The family of Jessie Peterson filed the lawsuit Aug. 7. According to the lawsuit, Ms. Peterson was readmitted to Mercy San Juan on April 6, 2023. Her medical records show she was discharged two days later against her physician's medical advice, but she was actually pronounced dead at 4:37 p.m. on April 8 by hospital staff. On April 9, Ms. Peterson's body was transferred to a cold storage facility.

Ms. Peterson's mother said she spoke to her daughter two hours before she was pronounced dead, and her daughter had asked to be picked up because she wanted to leave the hospital. After that phone call, the family said they did not hear from Ms. Peterson or the hospital and when the mother called three days later, she was told that the daughter had left against medical advice, according to the lawsuit.

The family alleges that the hospital never informed them of Ms. Peterson's death, despite the mother being listed as next of kin. California law requires attending physicians to issue a certificate of death within 15 hours of a person's passing.

In the months that followed, the family filed a missing person's report and arranged for Ms. Peterson's information to be posted on the California Department of Justice website for missing persons.

They learned of Ms. Peterson's passing on April 12  more than a year after her death  when detectives called to inform them that her body had been found at an off-site storage facility. Ms. Peterson's body was so decomposed that her fingerprints were no longer visible and an autopsy was "rendered impossible," according to the report. Ms. Peterson's death certificate was filled out by a Mercy San Juan physician on April 4, 2024, about a week before the family learned of her whereabouts, and listed the cause of death as cardiopulmonary arrest.

The family is seeking roughly $15 million in statutory and punitive damages for negligence.

"We extend our deepest sympathies to the family during this difficult time. We are unable to comment on pending litigation," Dignity Health told Becker's.

Mercy San Juan is operated by Dignity Health and owned by Chicago-based CommonSpirit Health.
A federal court on Aug. 20 struck down the Federal Trade Commission's sweeping noncompete ban, claiming that it was "unreasonably overbroad" and that the FTC lacks authority to implement nationwide rules defining unfair methods of competition.

The rule, which was initially set to take effect Sept. 4, would have invalidated tens of millions of existing noncompete agreements and banned hospitals and other employers from entering into or attempting to enforce any new noncompetes.

The FTC told Becker's it is considering a potential appeal of the federal court's ruling, which has received mixed reactions from hospital and physician groups.

Chip Kahn, president and CEO of the Federation of American Hospitals, stands by the federal court's decision to prevent the noncompete rule from taking effect.

"We have been clear from the start that this rule would threaten patient access to care by making it more difficult for hospitals to recruit and retain physicians and invest in training and technology," Mr. Khan said in a statement shared with Becker's. "In addition, this rule would create an unlevel playing field for tax-paying hospitals, an outcome completely at odds with FTC's mission to promote competition. Especially at a time of workforce shortages and other challenges, this was the right decision."

Some physician groups take the opposite view, arguing that noncompete agreements create an unlevel playing field for providers and hurt their ability to provide long-term, high quality care for their patients.

The American Academy of Family Physicians, which has more than 130,000 members, said it is disappointed by the decision to block the rule nationwide.

"Noncompetes harm family physicians and their patients by jeopardizing long-term patient-physician relationships and creating an uneven playing field for physicians," AAFP President Steven Furr, MD, said in a statement, "The AAFP will continue to support the FTC's mission to eliminate noncompetes in healthcare that prioritize the interests of organizations over those of patients and their physicians."

Noncompete agreements can be more nuanced for other providers, such as anesthesiologists, who often employ other anesthesiologists.

Most of the American Society of Anesthesiologists' members supported bans on noncompete agreements, but small and mid-sized groups said they would be disadvantaged by a general ban on noncompetes, a spokesperson for the ASA told Becker's. Those same anesthesia groups also expressed that the noncompete structure should be addressed in a more targeted way to rid such clauses of unreasonable and sometimes egregious practices.

The American Hospital Association, which filed an amicus brief in July urging the federal court to vacate the noncompete rule, said the FTC decision was an overreach of the agency's power and argued that it did not attempt to understand the disruptive effect the ban would have on hospital, health systems and their patients.

"We are pleased that Judge Brown vindicated what the AHA predicted when this unlawful regulation was first released  the 'only saving grace is that this rule will likely be short-lived, with courts almost certain to stop it before it can do damage to hospitals' ability to care for their patients and communities,'" Mr. Golder said in a statement.

Becker's has also reached out to the American Medical Association, America's Essential Hospitals and the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons for comment.
An Oregon man faces multiple charges after allegedly targeting Jewish hospitals in New York with hoax bomb threats, according to the Justice Department.

Domagoj Patkovic, 31, and others allegedly made anonymous phone calls in which they made violent threats, including bomb threats, to Jewish hospitals and care centers in New York City and on Long Island, among other targets.

The calls began in May 2021, with Mr. Patkovic himself making threats in at least six calls to hospitals and once during a call with local law enforcement responding to a 911 alert from one of the facilities, according to an Aug. 20 Justice Department news release.

Prosecutors said Mr. Patkovic livestreamed the calls to others online.

Several times, police conducted bomb sweeps in response to the calls, and in one instance, the call resulted in a partial evacuation and lockdown of a Long Island facility, they said. No bombs were ever found.

Mr. Patkovic was charged Aug. 20 with conspiring to make and making threats concerning explosives, conspiring to transmit and transmitting threatening communications, and conveying false information concerning explosives.

If convicted, he faces up to 155 years in prison, according to the Justice Department.
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston was awarded nine grants from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, totaling more than $21.4 million.

MD Anderson will use the funding to build two new facilities as well as for recruitment and research, according to an Aug. 21 news release from the center.



$5.9 million will go toward the launch of two new core facilities at MD Anderson: the Advanced Spatial Genomics Core facility ($2,999,993) and the Texas Decision Science Core facility ($2,995,778).



The Advanced Spatial Genomics Core facility will work to connect pathology, cell biology and genomics to improve cancer diagnosis and treatment.



The Texas Decision Science Core facility will be a collaborative facility for MD Anderson's Decision Support Lab and institutions in the UTHealth Houston Clinical Translation Hub.



Since its inception, the CPRIT has awarded $645 million to MD Anderson, amounting to 18% of the nearly $3.6 billion the institute has awarded in total.
Sacramento, Calif.-based UC Davis Health expanded its same-day, in-home urgent care program to patients of UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center.

The program, which initially launched for primary care patients last year, is designed to improve access to care, better patient experience and lessen hospital readmissions and emergency department visits, according to an Aug. 21 system news release. Care is provided by a nurse practitioner or physician assistant, as well as a trained medical technician, with support from ED physicians. Patients have access to urgent medical care from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day of the year.

"We are pleased to offer this human-centered care to our patients undergoing treatments for cancer," David Cooke, interim physician-in-chief of UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, said in the release. "We are essentially going back to the future by providing house calls to our patients, making it less stressful, more convenient and faster to get relief from their symptoms  all while leveraging the latest technology to ensure they are getting the best possible outcome, and avoiding the emergency department."

The program is run in partnership with DispatchHealth.
A well-known Belfast city centre cafe has officially opened its first US location in Texas, next door to the Austin location of The Dead Rabbit  the famed Irish bar in New York founded by NI natives Sean Muldoon and Jack McGarry.

Neighbourhood Cafe  which is located in the Cathedral Quarter  opened the doors on the new venture this week.

The cafe  which has been described by the Sunday Times as within a whisper of the perfect cafe  was founded in 2021 by Oisin McEvoy and Ryan Crown.

Neighbourhood started life in Belfast's Old Cathedral Building but, following a devastating fire on the site, relocated to a spot in Hill Street formerly occupied by restaurant Hadskis, before eventually settling at their spot on Donegall Street.

Oisin McEvoy and Ryan Crown

Neighbourhood Cafes Austin location will serve up some of their signature drinks such as the Piccolo Split and Iced Tiramisu and popular brunch dishes such as Eggs Benny, Burrata Toast and Neighbourhoods house-made granola.

Everything in the cafe will have a taste of home, including the single-origin coffee from Andytown Coffee Roasters in San Francisco, founded by Belfast native Michael McCrory and Lauren Crabbe.

Partnering with their neighbour The Dead Rabbit, the cafe will work on collaborations with the bar, developing a range of coffee-based cocktails for both establishments.

Neighbourhood will also tap into The Dead Rabbit's cocktail expertise to create a range of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks available throughout the day in the cafe.

Their location in Austin Credit: Levi Travieso/Neighbourhood Cafe

Oisin McEvoy, co-owner at Neighbourhood Cafe, said: We are so happy to finally open the doors of our new cafe in Austin. The opening of a second location anywhere is great cause for celebration, but to do so in a city experiencing such an exciting period of growth and in partnership with our friends in The Dead Rabbit makes this opening all the more special.

The initial reception to the cafe has been so encouraging and we are looking forward to fully bedding into our new home, becoming a staple of the Austin hospitality scene, and bringing a little bit of Belfast to the people of Texas.

Ryan Crown, co-owner, added: The opening of a second Neighbourhood location was something we couldnt have dreamed of when we opened our first Belfast cafe on Donegall Street in 2021. The opening of our second cafe in Austin is the result of three years of hard work, high standards, and prioritising the all-round experience of hospitality, from speciality drinks to top-class produce served in a warm, welcoming environment.

To have been able to open our Austin location in partnership with our friends at The Dead Rabbit and to have them next door makes this milestone all the sweeter. We hope that the opening of Neighbourhood Austin is just the beginning of us following the example set by The Dead Rabbit in bringing Belfast to the rest of the world.
Architect's drawing what the extension to Kingfisher Country Estate would look like, along with a drawing of the style of shepherd's hut proposed for the site

Glamping pods are to be added to Kingfisher Country Estate in Templepatrick after an expansion won planning permission

Architect's drawing what the extension to Kingfisher Country Estate would look like

14m expansion of Kingfisher Country Estate in Templepatrick has won planning permission

A 14m investment in accommodation including glamping pods at a country estate in Co Antrim has won planning permission.

Kingfisher Country Estate in Templepatrick has been given the green light by Antrim and Newtownabbey planning committee for an expansion tipped to bring up to 150 new jobs.

The location, the setting of hotel Doubletree by Hilton Templepatrick, was acquired by Loughview Leisure Group in 2021.

Loughview Leisure Group wants to add 68 bedroom-suites, a ground floor function room and conservatory, along with shepherd huts, glamping pods, log cabins and a hotel managers lodge.

According to the council, its estimated that 30 to 50 construction jobs would be created during the building process, with another 70 to 100 jobs upon completion.

Architect's drawing what the extension to Kingfisher Country Estate would look like

The four-storey extension is proposed for the southern part of the hotel, with 20-bedroom suites on the first, second and third floors respectively with the remaining eight on the fourth floor.

A glazed corridor will connect to the proposed sunroom and the existing hotel building.

In addition, eight glamping cabins, 10 shepherd huts and three larger log cabins, all with self-catering facilities, will be added.

The approved plans will also provide an additional 304 parking spaces

DUP councillor Jeanie Archibald-Brown, chairperson of Antrim and Newtownabbey planning committee, said: I am delighted these plans have been approved for the extension of the Kingfisher Country Estate.

"The additional accommodation options will appeal to a wider clientele attracting more visitors to the hotel and the borough, which also underpins the demand for hotel accommodation in the area.

Neil Kelly, Alliance Party mayor of Antrim and Newtownabbey, added: This significant investment by the Kingfisher Country Estate is a great boost for the local tourism sector.

"The alternative accommodation options are an exciting addition to this well-established hotel and will complement the existing tourism offering.

Loughview Leisure Group also owns Belfasts Ten Square Hotel.
New dramas, documentaries, comedies and lifestyle shows will be at the centre of BBC NIs autumn television schedule.

They include The Catfish Killer, a documentary telling the story of how a young Newry man, Alexander McCartney, became one of the worlds most prolific online predators.

Told from multiple perspectives, the series includes exclusive access to the international investigating teams, led by the PSNI, along with revealing interviews with some of those who were exploited and abused by McCartney, and whose brave actions brought about his dramatic downfall.

The Grand Hotel in Brighton, after a bomb attack by the IRA, October 12 1984. British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and many other politicians were staying at the hotel during the Conservative Party conference, but most were unharmed (Photo by John Downing/Getty Images)

The Brighton Bomb, another new documentary from the makers of Once Upon A Time In Northern Ireland, will be released soon to mark the 40th anniversary of one of the IRAs most significant attacks on mainland Britain.

It will feature testimony from people whose lives were deeply affected by the events, many of whom have never spoken before, as well as an in-depth interview with former IRA bomber Patrick Magee.

Magee planted the bomb three weeks before the Conservative Party Conference, and it lay set to explode, hidden behind a bathtub in the Grand Hotel in Brighton before killing five people and injuring over 30, in October 1984.

Ciaran Bartlett on stage

Moving on to local drama  Hope Street, set in the fictional town of Port Devine on the Northern Ireland coast, is back for series four and the police department is moving to new headquarters. Derry Girls star Tara Lynne ONeill is among the new names joining the cast of this series alongside Marcus Onilude from worldwide phenomenon show, Ted Lasso.

In comedy, culchie craic show Funboys will have a four-part series following the successful launch as a comedy short film in 2023. The programme is about three emotionally-unassembled young men in small-town Northern Ireland looking for love, playing video games and navigating through the hardships of life. Think The Young Offenders, meets This Country, meets Hugo Duncan.

Shane Todd

Chancers will see two of Northern Irelands most recognisable comedians, Shane Todd and Ciaran Bartlett, reunite.

Bartlett makes another appearance, this time behind the scenes, as the writer of The B Team; a fast-paced contemporary comedy one-off set in the loving, chaotic, warm and neurotic world of a tight-knit Belfast family, the Buchanans.

There will also be Irish-language shows in connection to BBC Gaeilge, including six-part drama series Cra (meaning torment or anguish) and Iarsmai (Remnants), a documentary exploring decolonisation through the issue of stolen skulls in Trinity College Dublin.

House Of The Year

House Of The Year is coming to BBC NI and will be presented by design expert and television personality Laurence Llewelyn Bowen, and Paula McIntyres Hamely Kitchen USA returns for a six-part series, where Paula will travel to the United States to look at the influence of the Scots-Irish on American cuisine, including a culinary session with none other than singing legend Dolly Partons sister.

Eddie Doyle, BBC Northern Irelands head of Content Commissioning said: Working with local creative talent both in the independent production sector and our in-house production teams, at the heart of everything we do is the desire to create programmes that are authentic and informative, not just for audiences here but across the UK.
Scores of arts organisations have called on the Scottish Government to reinstate funding to Creative Scotland (Jane Barlow/PA)

Holyrood ministers are being urged to restore funding to the arts body Creative Scotland  with more than 130 figures from across the sector telling John Swinney that a failure to act risks sending the message that Scottish arts is closed for business.

The letter, from scores of arts organisation in Scotland, has been sent to the First Minister, Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes and Culture Secretary Angus Robertson after the closure of a vital funding programme.

Creative Scotland chief executive Iain Munro said closing the fund to new individual applicants from the end of this month is unavoidable as the Scottish Government has been unable to confirm if 6.6 million of funding would be released to the arts body.

It comes after Creative Scotland was forced to use 6.6 million of its reserve cash to make up a budget shortfall  with Mr Robertson giving MSPs a gold-plated commitment last October that the money would be returned.

The letter describes the open fund as being the cornerstone of independent artistic creation in Scotland.

Adding that it supports the livelihoods of countless artists, the signatories  including Lyndsey Jackson, deputy chief executive of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society  said without it, many artists are left without the means to continue their work.

Commenting on the funds closure, they said: This risks sending a stark message out to the world: Scottish arts is closed for business.

The letter, signed by representatives from organisations including the Centre for Contemporary Arts in Glasgow, the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh, Aberdeen Arts Centre, the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra, Youth Theatre Arts Scotland, Dundee Contemporary Arts and the Dumfries and Galloway Arts Festival, adds that in the same month as the global spotlight is on Scotland during the Edinburgh festival, the cessation of support for local artists is particularly devastating.

It added: The resilience of Scotlands cultural sector is not infinite. Artists cannot continue to bear the burden of delayed and inadequate support.

Calling on the Scottish Government to recognise the severity of this situation, the signatories said ministers should take immediate action to release the necessary funds to Creative Scotland, allowing the open fund for individuals to be reinstated.

While they said this is a necessary first step towards securing the future of the arts in Scotland, they added that on its own restoring the 6.6 million to Creative Scotland is not enough to reverse decades of shrinking support.

The letter was sent to First Minister John Swinney, as well as his deputy Kate Forbes and Culture Secretary Angus Robertson (Jane Barlow/PA)

With the Scottish Government having already pledged an additional 100 million, the signatories demanded urgent clarification on when this will be received.

It is now more vital than ever that the Scottish Government follows through on its promises to more than double investment in arts and culture, the letter said.

We seek urgent clarification on the timeline and mechanisms for delivering the pledged 100 million increase in funding by 2028-29.

They made the plea as they said the sudden closure of Creative Scotlands open fund could leave artists without crucial financial support, putting their wellbeing and livelihoods at serious risk.

The letter went on to warn that the emotional and financial strain could see artists choosing to live and work elsewhere to sustain their practices  insisting this would be highly detrimental to Scotland.

The letter went on to state: The arts are a significant contributor to Scotlands economy and cultural identity. Without funding, the production of new work will slow to a trickle, leading to fewer performances, exhibitions and community programmes.

It also warned that without the creation of new work, Scottish artists will no longer be invited on to the international stage, claiming this would impact the reputation of Scotlands culture around the globe.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: The Scottish Government already provides significant funding to Creative Scotland each year and will continue to do so.

The Culture Secretary is in regular contact with the sector to discuss the issues it currently faces and how to address those challenges. We will continue to do everything within our powers and resources to protect our world class arts and culture sector.

We have increased arts culture funding this year, as the first step to achieving our commitment to invest at least 100 million more annually in culture and the arts by 2028-29.

The Scottish Budget continues to face significant challenges. We are considering the implications of the actions announced by the Chancellor on July 29 for our public finances, and the next steps required by the Scottish Government.
Idris Elba arriving for the West End premiere of Shifters at the Duke Of Yorks Theatre in London (Ian West/PA)

British actor Idris Elba said talent is talent  black, white or indifferent as he praised the relatability of romantic stage play Shifters after its debut on the West End.

The play, which transferred from Londons Bush Theatre with Heather Agyepong and Tosin Cole reprising their roles, will run for nine weeks until October 12 at the Duke of Yorks Theatre in London.

Playwright Benedict Lombe became the third black British woman to have a production in the West End after the opening night on Wednesday.

The Luther actor is co-producing the play, alongside Love Island host Maya Jama and Mercury Prize and Brit-winning rapper Little Simz.

Elba told the PA news agency: Talent is talent  black, white or indifferent, and its really good to just get people into the theatre and see new writing works like this in a way that actually can be relatable.

Idris Elba, Benedict Lombe and Lynette Linton arriving for the West End premiere of Shifters at the Duke of Yorks Theatre in London (Ian West?PA)

All love stories are sort of subjective, but with this one, I think theres an attempt to make it as welcoming to different types of people.

Elba said his hope is that young people come to the theatre as it marked an amazing experience for him.

You cant look at your phone. Youve got to pay attention, and youre going to see some beautiful writing and see some beautiful acting, he said.

I just love theatre. My career started in theatre. I think its important that young audiences get to the theatre.

Idris Elba signs an autograph for a fan at the West End premiere of Shifters at the Duke of Yorks Theatre in London (Ian West/PA)

But this play, I connected to the writing, the writings incredible.

I love Heather and I love Tosin, theyre amazing actors. Lynette (Linton) is a great director.

Elba added that he felt really proud to be a part of the play.

The production is billed as an epic and universal love story about the enduring power of memory and first love between characters Des and Dre.

Heather Agyepong and Tosin Cole at the Shifters West End premiere (Ian West/PA)

It follows the young, gifted, black characters who, after years apart, come crashing back into each others lives, carrying new secrets and old scars.

Writer Ms Lombe told PA it was director Lynette Linton who had called her and wouldnt let me not write it.

We were talking about the lack of black British love stories and how it felt like there was a real gap in theatre and I think it speaks to Lynette Lintons vision in terms of being a real visionary in the theatre landscape and being able to see what people werent getting, and being able to trust writers to create that, and allowing us to dream and make the play whatever we wanted to make, she said.

Benedict Lombe and Little Simz arriving for the West End premiere of Shifters at the Duke of Yorks Theatre in London (Ian West/PA)

Ms Linton said she hoped the buzz around black storytelling is sustained.

People talk about pivotal moments, people talk about a renaissance, she said.

It needs to continue, so that when you ask us in five years time, were not still going, oh theres only one story, or theres only two stories.

So what I hope, and what I hope the British legacy is as well, is that were changing the canon of British theatre.

So when we think about British theatre, were thinking about Shifters instead of just thinking about things like Shakespeare.
NI-born Jurassic Park actor Sam Neill was left in tears when he was asked about his parents during a heartbreaking interview.

The 76-year-old, who now lives in New Zealand and is currently suffering from stage-three blood cancer, was asked the question while taking part in ABC documentary series The Assembly - later sharing the "best lesson" he learned from his parents.

Mr Neill struggled to contain himself when asked about his mother Priscilla.

I think they were... [chokes up] I don't know why that question has moved me so much, but it has, the actor said.

"My parents were of the generation that went through a lot of things. They went through the [Great] Depression. My mother lost her father in the first [world] war.

"She grew up without her father. They went through a lot of stuff, but they were very stoic people."

Mr Neill described a tough year he had in university when he did "bugger all" because he was too busy acting in plays and "trying to find a girlfriend".

He said he became "very anxious" as final exams came up and confided in his mother about what to do.

"I said, 'Oh, I think I'm having a breakdown and I've got exams in a couple weeks and I don't know how I'm going to go'," he said.

"She just looked at me and she said, 'Well, you're just going to have to pull yourself together aren't ya?'

"I think that was the best lesson I learned from her is sometimes you just have to pull yourself together. It's a tough lesson, but it's a good one," he said.

Mr Neill was born in Northern Ireland to Priscilla Beatrice (nee Ingham) and Dermot Neill. His father, an army officer, was stationed there for work.

During the interview, the actor also said losing his hair during "brutal" chemotherapy had an impact on him.

"I'm on a different one now, so at least I don't look like somebody's bald thumb," he joked.

"That's what I looked like for quite a while - it was embarrassing, and I lost my beard and everything, and my dignity went with it."
Sir David Attenborough has been awarded a medal for his support of The Wildlife Trusts charities (Broni Lloyd-Edwards/Wildlife Trusts)

Sir David Attenborough has received a medal in recognition of his support for The Wildlife Trusts federation of charities over the last 60 years.

The naturalist and broadcaster was awarded the organisations Rothschild medal at a small celebration at the London Wildlifes Crane Park Island Nature Reserve on Thursday.

The 98-year-old, who is known for BBC documentaries like the Planet Earth series and is The Wildlife Trusts president emeritus, described the award as a huge honour.

The medal, created in the name of pioneering conservationists the Honourable Charles Rothchild and Dame Miriam Rothschild, was presented to Sir David by the latters daughter Charlotte Lane.

Charlotte Lane presents Sir David Attenborough with the medal (Broni Lloyd-Edwards/Wildlife Trusts)

Mr Rothschild founded the Society for the Promotion of Nature Reserves, which would later become The Wildlife Trusts while Dame Miriam, his daughter, was a scientist who dedicated her life to the natural world.

In footage from the event, Sir David could be seen smiling as he embraced Ms Lane and mingled with those present, which included The Wildlife Trusts president Liz Bonnin, its chairman Duncan Ingram, his daughter Susan Attenborough, and Bobbi Benjamin-Wand, youth programmes delivery officer at London Wildlife Trust.

Later, Sir David cut the cake, received a book thanking him for his support and scattered some wildflower seeds at the reserve.

In a statement, he said: The name Rothschild is famous in many contexts. High finance, of course, is one. But nowhere does it bring greater respect than in the world of natural history.

Craig Bennett, Charlotte Lane and Sir David Attenborough react to the wildlife-themed cake (Broni Lloyd-Edwards/Wildlife Trusts/PA)

Charles Rothschild was effectively the founder of the county Wildlife Trusts and his daughter Miriam was a great biologist.

I knew her only slightly, but everyone interested in natural history is also indebted to her  whether it is because of her work on fleas and the diseases they carry, or the ecological importance of the verges on motorways.

So it is a huge honour to be given a medal carrying the Rothschild name and I shall treasure it greatly.

Sir David has credited Leicestershire & Rutland Wildlife Trusts Tilton Cutting Nature Reserve with giving him his love of the natural world.

He has spoken of exploring the area and searching for fossils there as a young boy.

Sir David Attenborough in Nower Wood, Surrey Wildlife Trust in 1985 (Wildlife Trusts/PA)

Since then, the naturalist has visited and championed The Wildlife Trusts work across the UK for six decades.

This includes taking on the role of president and later president emeritus of the organisation.

Sir David played a leading role in its British Wildlife Appeal, starting in 1985, helping to raise millions for the charities, with support from the likes of the future King Charles and Monty Python star Michael Palin.

From opening Woodberry Wetlands in London to Thameside Nature Discovery Park in Essex, he marked some major moments in The Wildlife Trusts history.

Ms Bonnin said: Sir David is beloved by millions for his knowledge and passion when presenting us with the majesty of nature from all around the world.

Sir David Attenborough at Woodberry Wetlands launch in London in 2016 (Penny Dixie/Wildlife Trusts/PA)

Whats perhaps less well known is his extraordinary breadth of work here in the British Isles to protect wildlife and support those who strive to recover nature.

Todays award shines a light on his remarkable dedication to The Wildlife Trusts federation over the years  we are all deeply grateful for his enduring and tireless commitment to the cause.
NI estate agents group opposed to PropertyPal website merger

Another new online portal is entering the market

A group of estate agents say the merger between PropertyPal and Propertynews is bad for consumers

James McNaney Thu 22 Aug 2024 at 21:00

A group representing some Northern Irish estate agents has said they are opposed to the merger of websites PropertyPal and Propertynews.
Belfast man accused of threatening to slice babys throat and mocking Omagh bomb during bare-chested outburst refused bail

Haughey is also accused of shouting pro-IRA chants

File photo

Alan Erwin Thu 22 Aug 2024 at 17:00







A man accused of mocking the Omagh bomb atrocity and threatening to slice a babys throat during a bare-chested outburst in south Belfast must remain in custody, a High Court judge ruled today.
Exclusive | PM was urged not to intervene in case of innocent man convicted of murder: Would it do NI any good?

Whitehall feared overturning of innocent mans conviction could add fuel to fire of the Troubles

Iain Hay Gordon (left) had been the victim of a travesty of justice in 1953 when he was found to have stabbed Queens University student Patricia Curran to death.

Stephen Gordon and Sam McBride Thu 22 Aug 2024 at 07:00

Civil servants warned against the Prime Minister intervening over the conviction of a young man ultimately cleared of murdering a judges daughter because it might shake public faith in the justice system.
The aftermath of east Belfast earlier this month. Picture By: Arthur Allison/Pacemaker Press.

A student allegedly spotted throwing a petrol bomb at police during rioting in east Belfast only went to have a look because of Snapchat notifications, the High Court heard today.
Ava Donnelly (left) and Dulcie Maguire, receiving their GCSE results at Assumption Grammar School in Ballynahinch, County Down. Picture: Liam McBurney/PA Wire

The Education Minister has praised pupils receiving their GCSEs as he revealed his daughters own anxious wait for results.

The minister was himself among the ranks of parents of around 32,000 GCSE students discovering their grades on Thursday morning.

He said his family were delighted with his eldest daughter's results.

"I, like all parents, went to bed last night slightly nervous, up this morning, into school while she went in to get her results," he said.

"Personally delighted but also relieved, and that's an emotion that many parents will be feeling today as I looked on and watched people with their young people.

"Ultimately we just want our young people to do well. We want them to be happy and we want to provide them a place in Northern Ireland where they can succeed, and we have an education system that is doing that."

There was been a drop in the number of pupils receiving top GCSE grades in Northern Ireland this year.

A drop in the proportion of top grades awarded was expected as results for examinations overall return to the levels prior to the Covid-19 outbreak.

In the years following the pandemic, pupils sitting exams received advance information on exam topics and other assistance.

Figures show about 31% of students achieved grade A and above, compared to the pre-pandemic levels of 30.5% in 2019.

Meanwhile, grades A* and A were awarded to about 34.5% of GCSE entries in 2023.

Entries for those seeking GCSE qualifications have also increased by 4.4% from 168,118 in 2023 to 175,555 this year.

The Joint Council for Qualifications said that 82.7% of students received grades of C and above, similar to the 82.2% awarded in 2019.

Some 86% of GCSE entries in Northern Ireland were awarded grade C or above in 2023 and 90% in 2022.

Ava Donnelly (left) and Dulcie Maguire, receiving their GCSE results at Assumption Grammar School in Ballynahinch, County Down. Picture: Liam McBurney/PA Wire

Praising students on their achievements, Mr Givan said: Congratulations to all the young people who received their GCSE results today. They have all worked incredibly hard and this has been reflected in the grades they have deservedly achieved.

Pupils in Northern Ireland have once again performed impressively and have continued to outperform their counterparts in England and Wales. This is testament to their own efforts and the hard work, dedication and commitment of teachers throughout Northern Ireland. I commend all our pupils as they move on to their next stage of education, employment or training.

The Minister added: Today marks the first step in their future journey. There are many pathways open to students who may be feeling unsure of their next steps. I encourage anyone who wants help to seek advice on the full range of options available to them and take time to consider the many choices on offer.

Northern Ireland's examination board CCEA Chief Executive, Gerry Campbell, said: Warmest congratulations to all students receiving their GCSE results today.

"These achievements reflect the hard work and commitment of students over the last two years and throughout their studies. Todays results also mark an important step as students progress to their next stage, be it education, training or into employment.

"A special thank you to all the school leaders, teachers and lecturers for their continued support, guidance and dedication to their students. I would also like to thank our examiners and support, guidance and dedication to their students.

"I would also like to thank our examiners and moderators for their essential contributions throughout the summer examinations series.

"I wish all GCSE students the very best on the next stage of their journey."

There has been a call for employers to help young people pursue apprenticeships as they take the next step after receiving GCSEs.

Richard Kirk, the CEO of Workplus told the BBCs Good Morning Ulster programme that the "snobbery around apprenticeships is definitely diminishing but we need more employers to get involved."

Workplus is an organisation that links employers with potential apprentices.
Public records: Sectarian fears so deep that some mothers wouldnt cross Belfast divide for pregnancy checkups

Senior official observed that even after the Good Friday Agreement, the polarisation within these communities is often surprisingly extreme

Some women wouldn't cross sectarian lines in Belfast, even if it meant missing out on a pregnancy checkup

Sam McBride Thu 22 Aug 2024 at 07:00







Sectarian fears were so engrained that some pregnant women would not cross into a different religious area, a civil servant told colleagues in 2001.
A BBC NI radio presenter has said treatment for a chronic skin condition has changed his life, opening up about the emotional impact of living with psoriasis for nearly two decades.

Steven Rainey is from Dundonald and currently presents Sunday with Steven Rainey. He discovered he had psoriasis in his twenties and tried for many years to deal with the condition with few results.

The presenter said he didnt feel he could roll up his sleeves or wear certain clothes because of his psoriasis.

Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory condition that results in the rapid build-up of skin cells, leading to scaling on the skins surface. Inflammation and redness around the scales are fairly common. Psoriasis can affect not just the skin, but also joints and it has a significant impact on the quality of life. It affects millions worldwide, including celebrities such as Kim Kardashian and Cara Delevingne.

"I first discovered I had Psoriasis in my early 20s. It all started when I got into the shower one morning and looked at my body, I felt something wasn't quite right. I contacted my GP, who provided me with creams and lotions, but these did not seem to make a difference, he said.

Despite trying numerous treatments, Mr Rainey endured years of flare-ups, hoping the condition would eventually subside.

"I just silently endured it, thinking it would go away on its own. However, as the years passed, the condition worsened. About seven years ago, it just got too much. I could not cope with the irritation and anxiety anymore, so my GP referred me to the Dermatology Team at the Ulster Hospital for further treatment. I tried steroids, tablets, sprays and light therapy, but there was no real improvement, he said.

Mr Rainey eventually underwent biological therapy at the Ulster Hospital as part of his Psoriasis treatment that significantly transformed his life. He is now serving as an ambassador to raise awareness of the condition.

"I am so aware it is not a one-size-fits-all solution, everyone is different! I commenced on the biological treatment, which, for me, really made a difference. Almost immediately, I could see a massive improvement in my skin. I was managing my expectations of the treatment, but it exceeded everything I was anticipating. With biologics, the reaction was incredible, to see my skin improving each day in a way that I could never have imagined was transformative. I was a different person."

The staff were incredible throughout the treatment process and providing support. With Psoriasis, there is an emotional element that affects your self-confidence and increases anxiety levels. The team really helped me on this journey, especially during some dark points, they made a difference, he said.

The impact of the treatment was life-changing. Living with Psoriasis for so long, then seeing it disappear, knowing that I was able to roll my sleeves up again, wear clothes I hadnt been able to for a long time. I will never forget the impact that had on me emotionally.

Ulster Hospital Specialty Doctor in Dermatology, Dr Claire Hunter, said:, "Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory condition caused by over-activity of the immune system. This explains why, broadly speaking, medications to treat moderate to severe psoriasis work by suppressing the immune system. There are many factors that contribute to psoriasis such as genetic, environmental and immunological. The condition can have a significant impact on physical and emotional well-being.

Psoriasis often appears as well-defined red, scaly plaques around the elbows, knees, buttocks but can be widespread over the body. Treatment can range from topical steroid creams, to tablets, light therapy and biological therapy.

It is very important that Psoriasis patients do not treat themselves through the use of sunbeds. The light therapy used in the hospital environment is different. Sunbeds increase the risk of skin cancer and ageing.

Mr Rainey is urging others who are struggling with the condition to seek help. "For those going through a similar journey, reach out, get advice, speak to your GP. For years, I suffered in silence, so when I managed to speak out and discuss the issues and the treatments on offer, it made me realise I didn't have to carry this burden around on my own all day, every day, for the rest of my life. You are not on your own, there is help out there."

If you require advice or support on Psoriasis, contact your GP or for further information, visit www.bad.org.uk
The new arrival with her family Credit: Belfast Zoo

Belfast Zoo has welcomed its latest arrival with a new baby Rothchild's Giraffe  the third of the animal born this year in Northern Ireland.

The zoo said the new bundle of joy was born on August 13 to Neja, an experienced mother.

Pictures from the zoo show the cute animal in her enclosure alongside older siblings Ballycarrie and Ballyarchie, with the zoo saying the trio have already formed a strong bond.

Zoo manager Alyn Cairns expressed his excitement about the new calf, adding: In 1988, we introduced Rothschilds giraffes and have since rejoiced in the arrival of 39 baby giraffes.

"We are honoured to be involved in a European breeding initiative and cooperate with zoos globally. Our success in breeding plays a role in guaranteeing the existence of a secure population of this threatened subspecies.

The new arrival with her family Credit: Belfast Zoo

As is tradition at the zoo, the public will get the chance to name the new baby, with any giraffe calves born named after towns and villages that begin with Bally.

In this case the options the public can vote for include: Ballycassidy, Ballyshannon and Ballylinney.

The public can comment on the zoo's Facebook post to vote for their favourite name out of the options, with voting closing on Friday 30 August at 4pm.

News Catch Up - Wednesday 21st August
Left: The attack on the Railway Bar and Steam Dining restaurant on the Ballyclare Road in Glengormley. Right: The NIFRS extinguishing the blaze.

Abjan Acharya, the owner of The Railway Bar and Steam Dining (centre) alongside general manager Kiran Kandel (centre left) alongside kitchen staff

Abjan Acharya, the owner of The Railway Bar and Steam Dining which was targeted in a race hate attack

Abjan Acharya, the owner of The Railway Bar and Steam Dining which was targeted in a race hate attack

The Railway Bar and Steam Dining in Newtownabbey which was attacked in a racist hate crime. (Inset) Abjan Acharya

The owner of a Newtownabbey restaurant and bar has said he is devastated at the loss of his business following a fire which is being treated as a racist hate crime.

Abjan Acharya, who was born in Baglung, Nepal, has lived in Northern Ireland for nearly 20 years.

He took over The Railway Bar and Steam Dining on the Ballyclare Road five months ago, rebranding it as an Indian and Nepalese dining spot after investing over 80,000 in the location.

In the early hours of yesterday morning, he said he received a phone call informing him his business was ablaze, something he described as an awful moment.

I typically turn my phone off around 11pm at night, so it wasnt until the morning when I got a call to say the restaurant and bar was on fire, it was the lowest moment of my life, he told the Belfast Telegraph.

I initially thought it was maybe an electrical issue which caused it, but then I was told about the fire and the writing on the wall.

Watch: Firefighters battle arson attack at Co Antrim Indian and Nepalese restaurant

Yesterday, the PSNI said it was investigating the blaze as a racist hate crime after graffiti was spray-painted on the licensed premises stating Muslim Out.

Abjan Acharya, the owner of The Railway Bar and Steam Dining which was targeted in a race hate attack

Abjan, who is not Muslim and comes from a Hindu background  as do all his kitchen staff  said it was a terrible experience.

"I have never felt anything like it in my 17 years here in Belfast," he said.

The Muslim Out graffiti doesn't make sense to me (as a Hindu) but the entire message is wrong, it doesnt matter what it says, its an attack on people from the ethnic minority community, he added.

These people just see one thing now, they see one group of brown-skinned people, it doesnt matter if it's the Muslim community and the Hindu community, they just see brown skin. These people clearly didnt know Im a Hindu.

Abjan Acharya, the owner of The Railway Bar and Steam Dining (centre) alongside general manager Kiran Kandel (centre left) alongside kitchen staff

This is a hate crime just against ethnic minorities.

The graffiti isnt the first time Abjan has faced racism  he explained he experienced a racist situation in 2008, but nothing since.

Maybe its just the current situation, he added, referencing the previous disorder across Northern Ireland which saw riots and disorder break out following anti-immigration rallies in Belfast.

People seemed to like what we did with the place, the atmosphere we built after we took over, the restaurant owner added.

The community was welcoming to us, we dont know what was maybe said behind our backs, but all our customers were supportive  but sadly someone clearly had a plan to destroy it.

Left: The attack on the Railway Bar and Steam Dining restaurant on the Ballyclare Road in Glengormley. Right: The NIFRS extinguishing the blaze.

Yesterday afternoon, The Railway Bar and Steam Dining said it will close permanently.

I am not even allowed into the bar, I can't even pick up a glass, I have invested my time and energy into this place for the past five months and for this to happen as it was just beginning to flourish, said Abjan.

We were expecting big things from September, the Christmas period, even next week we had a party of 40 people booked in and that is now all gone. It was my only restaurant and my entire livelihood.

I still have to pay suppliers and my staff are also now left out of a job."
UK

Natural England boss to call for new approach to nature as economic asset
The man was arrested at Belfast City Airport (PA)

A man has been arrested at a Belfast airport by police investigating disorder linked to anti-immigration protests in the city.

The 53-year-old was arrested on suspicion of publishing or distributing material which stirs up hatred or arouses fear.

The man was arrested by the Police Service of Northern Irelands Paramilitary Crime Task Force at Belfast City Airport on Thursday.

Police said he remains in police custody as inquiries continue.

There have now been 43 people arrested and 33 people charged.
General view of the Sandy Row and Donegall Road where police came under attack during disorder in south Belfast. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye.

A man has been arrested at Belfast City Airport today in relation to public disorder and racist riots that occurred in the city earlier this month.

Officers from the Police Service of Northern Irelands Paramilitary Crime Task Force arrested a 53-year-old man on suspicion of publishing or distributing material which stirs up hatred or arouses fear.

A PSNI spokesperson said: He remains in police custody at this time as enquiries continue.

There have now been 43 people arrested and 33 people charged.

PSNI given special powers while Belfast businesses to close early as city gears up for potential disorder

Earlier this week, eight more images of people being sought by the PSNI over their investigation into disorder and attacks on police officers were released to the public.

Three of the images were subsequently withdrawn after the individuals were identified.

Chief Constable Jon Boutcher issued a warning to all those who had been involved in what he branded despicable scenes of violence and which resulted in 20 police officers injured.

Bricks, petrol bombs and other missiles were thrown at officers as anti-immigration protests brought wider unrest to areas further afield, such as Londonderry.

Mr Boutcher vowed to continue to release images of anyone being sought in connection to riots as he delivered a message to the minority who think they can get away with violent hatred of any kind.

"You cant, you wont and we are coming after you, he warned.

The top policeman also appealed to everyone across all communities here to continue to publicly and loudly condemn this behaviour.

"Stand with us in saying, this is not ok and it must stop, he pleaded.

"These people should not be louder than us.

"We will not allow hatred and mindless violence win.

A policewoman who sustained severe facial injuries and a policeman who suffered a broken leg are among the officers who have been wounded.
Police confirm file submitted to PPS as community still reels over tragedy

Major developments are expected soon in relation to the police investigation into the tragic deaths of 37-year-old twins in Belfast.

Eighteen months ago, Stephen and Clare ONeill died side by side after consuming the deadly narcotic crystal meth at a drugs and drinks party.

It is believed a man will appear in court in the near future to answer charges arising out of the heartbreaking incident.

A close friend of the deceased twins told us: It seems this matter is finally drawing to a close. It has left this poor family completely devastated.

Residents in the close-knit Annadale area near the River Lagan were left stunned in early February 2023 when the shocking news broke that the popular pair had passed away.

At the time, it was revealed it was suspected locally that the siblings had died after consuming crystal meth  and we were given a picture of the deadly batch sitting on the twins microwave.

Residents in the area told how in the early hours of the morning, the narrow street was filled with ambulances and fire service vehicles as the emergency services tried desperately to save the lives of the ONeill twins.

Firefighters donned breathing apparatus before entering the ground-floor property.

Two men found unconscious in the living room were rushed to hospital while paramedics fought in vain to revive the twins.

A man with alleged connections to the UDA  who had also been present in the flat  was arrested soon afterwards and his car was seized by police for forensic examination.

The deadly batch of crystal meth that was pictured in their kitchen

The suspect was later released on police bail and it is understood he was advised by his friends to leave Northern Ireland for his own safety.

A toxicology report later confirmed a form of homemade crystal meth had caused the double deaths.

And it can be revealed a file was recently passed to Crown Prosecutors which could result in criminal charges.

In answer to a direct question relating to the sudden deaths of the twins, a spokesperson for the Police Service of Northern Ireland told us: A file in relation to drugs supply and possession has been submitted to the Public Prosecution Service.

Inquiries at the time revealed that prior to her death, Clare  a mother of three who had been struggling with addiction problems  invited friends and relations into the home she shared with her partner and five-year-old son at Annadale Crescent.

Her twin brother Stephen, a father-of-one to whom she was extremely close, was also present at the Friday night gathering in Clares ground-floor flat.

Stephen and Clare O'Neill

As the evening wore on, the suspected UDA member arrived at the gathering.

CCTV footage shows him leaving the property and returning around 20 minutes later. And today for the first time we can reveal that he allegedly visited another property in the Annadale district, where he collected a box containing a large amount of crystal meth.

Despite being aware Clare ONeill was still in the process of battling her addiction problems, he brought the highly addictive drug back into her home.

It has been claimed he placed the box containing meth on top of a microwave oven before inviting those present to try the drug.

The first indication something was wrong was when Stephen collapsed without warning at the entrance to the kitchen.

Minutes later, his sister Clare began salivating.

It has been alleged that the alleged UDA member then grabbed the box of crystal meth and raced from the property. It is believed he may have disposed of the drug before returning to Clares flat.

It is understood the police inquiry has largely focused on the length of time which expired before the police and emergency services were contacted.

But extensive inquiries have also revealed the deadly drugs batch suspected of causing the deaths of the ONeill twins arrived in Annadale as a result of an earlier sting involving drug dealers based in Lurgan, Co Armagh.

Drug dealers with connections to the UDA in Belfast stole several kilos of the deadly drug and it was secretly stored at various locations around south Belfast, including a hide in a small domestic property in Annadale.

The funeral of tragic twins Stephen and Clare ONeill

But the Belfast drugs dealers soon discovered that crystal meth brought about more trouble than it was worth.

They found there was little or no demand for the drugs in south Belfast, save for a handful of people dotted around the Ormeau Road.

As a result, the drugs consignment remained stored and largely untouched in the Annadale hide, until the night the suspected UDA man brought it into Clare ONeills home with a devastating result.

News Catch Up - Wednesday 21st August
Paedophile who breached sex order is accused of attack on photographer

Convicted child pervert Gareth Kitchener, who fled his home after an arson attack, allegedly assaulted a press photographer and then did a runner, a court was told this week.

The 38-year-old  dubbed the pizza pervert after he got a job delivering takeaways  has been in and out of prison and various courts recently and he was jailed last week for three months for breaching a sex order that limits his contact with children.
Long backs civil servants criticism of Chief Constables plea to PM for funds

Justice Minister defends letter which said Boutcher had undermined her

Permanent Secretary of the Department of Justice Hugh Widdis (left) and PSNI chief constable Jon Boutcher (right)

Jessica Rice Thu 22 Aug 2024 at 17:00







A top civil servants letter criticising the Chief Constables plea for extra funding was entirely appropriate, the Justice Minister has said.
Gardai were called to a location in Greenhills at around 9pm on Wednesday (Niall Carson/PA)

An investigation has been launched into the discovery of a mans body in Drogheda, Co Louth.

Gardai were called to a location in Greenhills at around 9pm on Wednesday, where the body of a man  aged in his 30s  was found.

He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The area has been preserved pending an examination by local Scenes of Crime Unit. Both the State Pathologist and local Coroner have been notified.

The results of the post-mortem examination will guide the direction of the investigation, gardai said.
A 61-year-old man has appeared in court in relation to the murder of three Northern Ireland policemen in an IRA bomb attack in 1982.

Martin John McCauley, with an address at Esmondale, Naas, Co Kildare, appeared before the High Court in Dublin after being arrested on foot of an extradition warrant.

Detective Sergeant Adrian Murray told the court that he arrested McCauley in Naas at 6.41pm on Wednesday after asking him several questions to establish his identity.

Royal Ulster Constabulary Sergeant Sean Quinn and constables Allan McCloy and Paul Hamilton (Family handouts/PA)

Mr Murray also said he showed him a copy of the EU-UK Trade and Co-operation Agreement in the English language.

He identified McCauley to the court on Thursday as the man at the back of the room in an orange top.

He said the warrant related to the PSNI investigation into the murder of Royal Ulster Constabulary Sergeant Sean Quinn and constables Allan McCloy and Paul Hamilton.

The three RUC officers were killed in an IRA blast at Kinnego Embankment in Co Armagh on October 27 1982.

Mr Murray told the court that a bomb was placed on a culvert and detonated remotely from a vantage point overlooking the road.

He said the detonation site was on a raised embankment and a plastic sheeting was placed on the embankment.

He added that it is believed the car bomb was detonated by two members of the IRA and described the attack as carefully planned.

The detective also referred to forensic evidence in the case against McCauley.

The court heard that McCauleys role in the incident has not yet been determined, but he will be charged with the murder of the three RUC officers on 27 October 1982.

The detective said when he asked McCauley if he knew what the charges were about, he answered no.

Mr Murray objected to bail due to the serious nature of the incident.

Andrew Moriarty, representing McCauley in court, said they would be applying for bail and that McCauley was entirely anchored to this jurisdiction.

He also told the court that McCauley has indicated his preparedness to be interviewed by PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boutcher.

Ms Justice Miriam ORegan said she was satisfied that the man in court was the man named in the warrant, Martin John McCauley.

Im satisfied that the correct person is before the court, she said.

She adjourned the matter until next Wednesday when it will appear before the Criminal Courts of Justice and remanded McCauley in custody.

In a statement released after Thursdays court appearance, a solicitor acting for McCauley said that he denies the charges and will contest the extradition proceedings.

In a statement, a spokesman for Madden and Finucane solicitors said: Our client Martin McCauley was arrested yesterday (Wednesday) by An Garda Siochana and appeared in Dublin High Court this morning.

Mr McCauley denies the charges and will contest the extradition proceedings at any future hearing.

Sir Iain Livingstone, the head of Operation Kenova said: The Public Prosecution Service has decided to prosecute Martin McCauley with the murders of the three officers and he has now been arrested pending extradition to Northern Ireland.

The decision to prosecute more than 40 years after the incident show the rigour and application Kenova has applied to this investigation and that evidence will now be tested by a court.

Our thoughts remain with the three officers families who have continued to act with courage and great dignity over the past four decades.

The Public Prosecution Service (PPS) said the decision to prosecute was taken in April, before controversial new legacy laws came into effect, which prevent new cases being mounted.

A PPS spokesperson said: Following careful consideration of all the available evidence in a file submitted by Operation Kenova, the PPS took a decision to prosecute one individual in relation to the 1982 murders of Sergeant Sean Quinn and Constables Allan McCloy and Paul Hamilton.

As proceedings are live it would not be appropriate to comment further.
China helps empower Afghan scholars in cultural heritage preservation

Xinhua) 08:55, August 22, 2024

Participants of a training program for Afghan professionals in archaeology and cultural preservation visit the Mogao Grottoes, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, in Dunhuang, northwest China's Gansu Province, Aug. 21, 2024. (Xinhua/Zhang Rui)

LANZHOU, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Sitting at a cave temple conservation forum in northwest China's Gansu Province, Afghan archaeologist Azizuddin Wafa was intensely focused, taking swift notes with one hand and capturing photos of each slide with the other, as a Chinese scholar delivered a presentation on desalination techniques.

The ongoing forum, taking place from Aug. 18 to 22 in Dunhuang -- home to the UNESCO World Heritage Site Mogao Grottoes -- has brought together hundreds of experts and scholars from 16 countries to exchange knowledge on cave temple conservation.

Wafa's participation is part of a broader training program in China for Afghan professionals in archaeology and cultural preservation.

"We've gained a lot of experience, and China's use of science and technology to preserve cultural relics has been especially helpful," he said, adding that over the years, China has been making continuous efforts to support Afghan talent development.

Since 2022, around 70 Afghan government officials and scholars have attended three training sessions organized by China's Ministry of Commerce and hosted by the Central Academy of Culture and Tourism Administration.

The current training session Wafa is attending began in Beijing on Aug. 14 and includes 23 participants. Over 16 days, they will study Chinese laws and regulations on cultural preservation, archaeological science and digital techniques. The program also includes visits to cultural landmarks such as the Temple of Heaven, the Great Wall and the Mogao Grottoes, as well as institutions like the National Museum of China.

"China and Afghanistan both lie along the ancient Silk Road, and share deep historical ties and a long tradition of cultural exchanges," said Miao Bin, deputy director of the international exchange department at the Central Academy of Culture and Tourism Administration.

In 2018, a team from the Dunhuang Academy became one of the first Chinese academic groups to conduct research in Afghanistan. An exhibition featuring treasures from the National Museum of Afghanistan has also toured Chinese cities, including Dunhuang and Beijing, garnering widespread acclaim.

Mayel Aqa Karimy, director of the ancient coin gallery at the National Museum of Afghanistan, has been involved in cultural relic preservation for nearly two decades. This is his second time attending a training program in China.

"Afghanistan and China share many similarities in culture and art. The conservation techniques I've learned here can be applied at sites in Afghanistan," Karimy said.

During his previous training, Karimy visited Beijing, Xi'an and Dunhuang, and was impressed by the sustainable preservation efforts in Chinese cities. This time, he is focusing on China's digital technology and hopes to make use of these advanced techniques in his country to better protect their cultural heritage.

Karimy also highlighted China's ongoing assistance in preserving Afghanistan's historical sites and its commitment to training Afghan professionals.

Su Bomin, dean of Dunhuang Academy and a keynote speaker at the forum, also participated in last year's training program. Su emphasized that China is willing to share its experience in cave temple preservation with the world.

According to Miao, China's overseas training programs are fostering deeper cooperation with Afghanistan in cultural preservation.

After the Dunhuang forum, the Afghan participants will return to Beijing for further academic discussions, and Chinese archaeologists are also scheduled to travel to Afghanistan to conduct joint research at the ancient Buddhist heritage site Mes Aynak.

This year, China has expanded similar training programs to other countries, including Cambodia and Iran, to enhance professional resource exchanges.

Afghan professionals in archaeology and cultural preservation attend lectures during a cave temple conservation forum in Dunhuang, northwest China's Gansu Province, Aug. 20, 2024. (Xinhua/Zhang Rui)

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Sinn Fein has called for the 2009 review into the actions of former surgeon Michael Shine to be published amid calls for a public inquiry.

Its health spokesperson David Cullinane said the Government did not need much more time to consider the matter.

Taoiseach Simon Harris has said the government would reflect on calls for a public inquiry into alleged sexual abuses by Shine, aged 93, who was convicted of assaulting nine boys at two trials in 2017 and 2019.

He had worked as a senior registrar at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda, Co Louth from 1964 to 1995.

A number of men who were allegedly sexually assaulted by Shine have told the Journal.ie that they want a public inquiry into the cases.

Many of the survivors claim that the Medical Missionaries of Mary religious order, which was in charge of the hospital, was aware of the alleged abuse for years.

More than 200 victims have settled civil actions against the Medical Missionaries of Mary.

Belfast firm Phoenix Law has formally written to the Minister of Justice Helen McEntee seeking a commission of investigation to be opened into Shine.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Mr Cullinane backed the calls for a public inquiry, and said there needed to be a victim-led approach.

The Waterford TD said he had spoken to a victim of Shine on Thursday morning who had contributed to the 2009 review and is very angry that it has not been published.

Mr Cullinane said it was wrong that this victim had not seen the review he contributed to.

The Taoiseach in the last couple of days, as I understand it, has said that he wants to meet with the families, but hes made a lot of promises to meet people.

He needs to do it. He needs to meet with the victims.

He needs to listen to what they want.

If a commission of investigation is what the victims need, absolutely it should be put in place.

I dont see at this point any reason why the report in 2009 (shouldnt) be published.

If you have victims who in good faith gave evidence and contributed to the report, and yet they themselves havent seen it  aside from the fact that the public hasnt seen the report, that they as victims havent seen it  I think is wrong.

There has to be transparency in relation to all of this.

It has to be victim led, whatever is done.

It cant be passing the buck either between the Minister for Health or the Taoiseach.

The government has to make a decision.

I think what angered a lot of the victims is the Taoiseach saying he has to stocktake.

How much longer does the Taoiseach have to stocktake on all of these issues?
The fire service dive team leaves port heading for the dive site for the Bayesian off the coast of Porticello, Sicily (Jonathan Brady/PA)

The bodies of those found in the search for six people missing after the sinking of a luxury yacht during a storm off the coast of Sicily are being recovered from the wreckage.

Five bodies have now been brought to shore in the small fishing village of Porticello, around 11 miles from the Sicilian capital of Palermo.

On Thursday, the Italian Coastguard confirmed to the PA news agency that the sixth and final person yet to be found is a woman.

Technology tycoon Mike Lynch, his daughter Hannah, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo were lost when the Bayesian was hit by a storm and sank at around 5am on Monday.

Mike Lynch was on board the Bayesian celebrating his acquittal in a fraud case (Yui Mok/ PA)

The bodies of the missing men onboard the luxury yacht, as well as the boats chef, have now been recovered.

The family of Jonathan and Judy Bloomer have also confirmed the couple have died.

These are the details of each of the victims on board.

 Mike Lynch

British technology tycoon Mr Lynch founded software giant Autonomy in 1996, and made his name as one of Britains most influential entrepreneurs.

In June, the 59-year-old was cleared of conducting a massive fraud relating to an 11 billion dollar (8.64 billion) sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

The boat trip was a celebration of his acquittal.

Of the 22 passengers and crew on board, 15  including Mr Lynchs wife, Angela Bacares  were rescued after escaping onto a lifeboat.

Mr Lynch was born in Ilford, east London, brought up in Essex and was the son of a nurse from Co Tipperary and a fireman from Co Cork who enjoyed childhood summers in Carrick-On-Shannon and Tipperary where he had family.

He went to Cambridge University and started his first business while studying for a PhD in signal processing and communications research.

He was made an OBE for services to enterprise in 2006. That same year, he was appointed to the board of the BBC, and was later elected to then-prime minister David Camerons council for science and technology in 2011.

David Tabizel, Mr Lynchs Autonomy co-founder, said: The world has lost a genius. His family have lost a giant of a man.

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Mr Lynch was a member of the Create The Change fundraising board, set up by Cancer Research UK, which helped fund the building of the Francis Crick Institute.

Chairman Lord John Browne, who described him as a human being of great ability, said: Mike Lynch should be remembered as the person who catalysed a breed of deep tech entrepreneurs in the UK.

His ideas and his personal vision were a powerful contribution to science and technology in both Britain and globally.

He became a fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2008, which paid tribute for his active role as a mentor, donor and former council member. He was an inaugural member of the enterprise committee.

On Thursday, the technology industry group TechUK also described him as a hugely significant and pioneering figure in the UK technology sector.

Jonathan Bloomer has had an extensive career in financial services (Hiscox/PA)

 Jonathan Bloomer

The Morgan Stanley International bank chairman is a prominent businessman who holds a number of boardroom roles after an extensive career in financial services.

He was the chief executive of global finance group Prudential between 2000 and 2005, and is chairman of Morgan Stanley International as well as Hiscox and property business SDL.

Mr Bloomer was among those to give evidence as a defence witness for Mr Lynch, and media reports suggest the pair are close friends.

 Judy Bloomer

Mr Bloomers wife Judy worked as a psychotherapist for nearly 30 years, specialising in anxiety and stress.

In a statement confirming their parents deaths, the Bloomer family described the couple as incredible people and an inspiration to many.

They said: We are grieving for our loved ones and all of those affected by the tragedy.

Our parents were incredible people and an inspiration to many, but first and foremost they were focused on and loved their family and spending time with their new grandchildren.

Together for five decades, our only comfort is that they are still together now.

This is an unimaginable grief to shoulder.

Ms Bloomer was a trustee and long-time supporter of gynaecological cancer research charity the Eve Appeal.

She studied English language and literature at Homerton College, Cambridge, and previously worked as a teacher.

 Chris Morvillo

Mr Morvillo, 59, a partner at law firm Clifford Chance, represented Mr Lynch during the long-running criminal fraud trial where he was eventually cleared of all charges.

His long career included representing corporate and individual clients in white-collar government investigations, related regulatory and civil proceedings, and internal investigations.

Mr Morvillo had previously been a federal prosecutor, working on cases related to the 9/11 attacks and securing the conviction of lawyer Lynne Stewart for assisting terrorism during his time as assistant US attorney for the Southern District of New York between 1999 and 2005.

A Clifford Chance spokesperson said: We are heartbroken at the tragic passing of our partner, Christopher Morvillo and his wife, Neda.

We are deeply saddened and still coming to terms with this terrible loss. Our utmost priority is to continue to support Chriss family at this very distressing time. Our thoughts extend to the families and loved ones of all those affected.

We wish to express our deepest condolences and our love and support to Chriss family and friends at this incredibly difficult time. We also want to thank the Italian authorities and rescue teams for everything they have done.

 Recaldo Thomas

The first body recovered at the scene of the sinking on Monday was that of Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, who was working as a chef on the Bayesian superyacht, the Italian coastguard told Sky News.

In a tribute shared on Tuesday, Gareth Williams, a friend of Mr Thomas, told the BBC: I can talk for everyone that knew him when I say he was a well-loved, kind human being with a calm spirit.

Mr Thomas grew up in Antigua and spent his time there during the off-season, Mr Williams said.

Another friend, Eli Fuller, told the outlet Mr Thomas was friends with everybody, always positive and sought after in his profession.
The general assembly is being held in Dublin (Adam OCeallaigh/YFEG/PA)

The role of nuclear power during a transition to clean energy is among the topics to be debated by more than 100 young political activists gathering in Dublin this week.

The general assembly of the Federation of Young European Greens (FYEG) is being hosted across three days in the capital.

The event brings together the youth wings of all European Green Parties and Green Youth Organisations to debate the group FYEGs core policy positions and elect the Executive Committee for the year ahead.

Members of the FYEG span from Ireland to Azerbaijan and Cyprus to Norway.

Among other key items on the policy agenda over the course of the weekend are resolutions clamping down on greenwashing, support for Ukraine and its EU ascension, and an immediate ceasefire and two-state solution in the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict.

Irish Green Party leader Roderic OGorman, who was a founding member of the partys youth wing Oige Ghlas, said: Its incredibly rewarding to see the organisation growing from strength to strength and building strong ties with its European counterparts.

Hosting the FYEG general assembly is a significant milestone, deepening ties with our European partners.

The FYEG is the official youth wing of the European Green Party, which forms part of the European Parliaments Greens-European Free Alliance group.

The youth activists credit themselves with championing progressive pieces of legislation and policy positions, particularly on LGBTQIA+ rights, migration and social inequality.

Bennedetta Scuderi MEP, an outgoing co-spokesperson of FYEG, said the hosting of the general assembly was evidence of the European groups support for the Greens in Ireland, with the upcoming European Green Party Congress also being in held in Dublin in December.

Ben Ryan, an officer of Oige Ghlas, said the FYEG general assembly played an important role in Green collaboration across Europe.

Mr Ryan, who is a candidate for the Executive Committee of the FYEG, added: All of the young people here are concerned about the future of our planet and are actively playing their part in trying to solve the global crisis of climate change.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has been urged by a charity to step in after it was announced that a drug shown to slow the progression of Alzheimers disease may not be rolled out on the NHS in England (Jeff Moore/PA)

A charity has written to Health Secretary Wes Streeting, urging him to step in after it was announced that a drug shown to slow the progression of Alzheimers disease may not be rolled out on the NHS in England.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) deemed lecanemab  developed by Eisai and sold under the brand name Leqembi  efficient at slowing Alzheimers disease down.

However, draft guidance issued by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) said the benefits are just too small to justify the significant cost to the NHS.

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Reacting to the announcements, the chief executive of Alzheimers Research UK, Hilary Evans-Newton, said the charity has urged Mr Streeting to act.

She said: Further negotiations between Nice, Eisai and the NHS may offer a way forward. But the heartbreaking reality is that those who could benefit from drugs like lecanemab dont have time to wait.

Weve written to the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, urging him to act, and to find a solution so that people with dementia in the UK dont continue to miss out on innovative treatments.

As well as considering how to make drugs like lecanemab available, there also needs to be a real focus on improving the way dementia is diagnosed within the NHS.

The shocking reality is that one in three people in England with dementia never get a formal diagnosis, leaving them unable to access the care and support they need.

Ms Evans-Newton said it is deeply disappointing that people in the early stages of the disease will be denied access to lecanemab through the NHS, and it will only be available to those who can pay privately.

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She also hailed lecanemab as a sea change.

Lecanemab represents the beginning of a sea change in how diseases like Alzheimers will be treated in future, she said.

There are now more than 160 trials under way, testing over 125 experimental treatments for Alzheimers across the globe, including 30 in late-stage trials. Despite todays frustrating news, it really is a matter of when, not if, new treatments become available.

What people living with Alzheimers disease  and other forms of dementia  desperately need are new medicines that improve their lives, and Alzheimers Research UK will work tirelessly on behalf of people affected by dementia to ensure they get them.

Fiona Carragher, chief policy and research officer at Alzheimers Society, said the charity respects the regulatory decisions, but added that Nices recommendation reflects the urgent challenges in how dementia is diagnosed and treated.

Todays MHRA approval of the first safe and effective Alzheimers disease treatment, shown to slow progression, is a defining moment for people with early-stage Alzheimers disease in the UK and a significant step towards a more hopeful future, she said.

While we welcome the MHRA approval, it is disappointing that Nice has not recommended approving lecanemab for use on the NHS at this stage. The news that lecanemab will be restricted to certain groups of patients will also lead to uncertainty for many people with Alzheimers disease and their loved ones.

We respect the decisions regulators have made; however, we know these announcements will bring a mix of emotions for those who have been waiting a long time since the promising trial results were first announced.

The Nice recommendation reflects the urgent challenges which must be addressed regarding how we diagnose and treat people with dementia.

A third of people affected by dementia have not received a diagnosis, and, for those who have been diagnosed, its often not early or accurate enough for a person to be eligible for new treatments.

A dementia diagnosis not only opens up the potential for treatment, it is also the single most effective route to the care, support and information we know is so important for everyone living with dementia and their loved ones.
A body bag is brought ashore at the harbour in Porticello by rescue workers searching for the six tourists missing after the luxury yacht Bayesian sank in a storm (PA)

The body of British technology tycoon Mike Lynch has been recovered from the wreckage of a luxury yacht that sank during a storm off the coast of Sicily.

Tributes have been paid to the British Bill Gates who has been described, as a genius and a giant of a man.

Mr Lynchs 18-year-old daughter, Hannah, reportedly remains missing.

The Italian Coastguard confirmed to the PA news agency that the sixth and final person yet to be found was a woman.

The body of the fifth missing person in the yachts wreckage was returned in a blue body bag to the port of Porticello on Thursday morning.

Mr Lynch, his daughter, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer; his wife, Judy Bloomer; Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo; and his wife, Neda Morvillo, were lost when the Bayesian sank at around 5am on Monday.

On Thursday afternoon, the family of Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy confirmed the couples death.

In a statement, they said: Our parents were incredible people and an inspiration to many, but first and foremost they were focused on and loved their family and spending time with their new grandchildren.

Together for five decades, our only comfort is that they are still together now.

The luxury vessel was moored half-a-mile off the coast of Porticello when it sank around 5am local time on Monday.

The cruise was reportedly a celebration of Mr Lynchs recent acquittal of fraud charges in the United States.

 Who is involved and why were they there?

Authorities have so far discovered five missing bodies, with one person, believed to be Hannah Lynch, still unaccounted for.

Hannah had recently finished her A-Levels and was bound for Oxford University in September.

Also confirmed dead are Jonathan Bloomer, chairman of Morgan Stanley and insurance company Hiscox, and his wife, Judy, a respected psychotherapist.

Chris Morvillo, a lawyer from Clifford Chance and part of the legal team representing Mr Lynch had been unaccounted for, along with his wife, Neda, who reportedly runs a luxury jewellery line.

The body of a man was recovered near the yacht on Monday, believed to be that of chef Recaldo Thomas, a Canadian-Antiguan man working onboard.

Fifteen of the 22 people onboard  including Mr Lynchs wife, Angela Bacares  were rescued after escaping onto a lifeboat.

British technology tycoon Mike Lynch is missing after the luxury yacht, Bayesian sank in bad weather off the coast of Sicily (PA Media)

The Telegraph reported Mr Lynch had guests from the legal firm that represented him and his own company to join him on the voyage.

Among others rescued were Charlotte Golunkski and her one-year-old daughter Sophie. The brave mother kept her daughter alive by holding her over her head while she was in the water.

 How did the boat sink?

Italian authorities have reported bad stormy conditions that caused the yacht to sink, but investigations into the exact circumstances of the tragedy remain ongoing.

It is believed the luxury vessel may have been hit by a water spout, a rotating column of wind that forms over a body of water and is often likened to a tornado.

According to the US National Ocean Service, tornadic weather spouts have the same characteristics as a land tornado and are often accompanied by severe thunderstorms, high winds and seas, large hail, and frequent dangerous lightning.

(PA Graphics)

 What search and rescue efforts are underway?

Rescue divers re-entered the sunken vessel on Thursday in an attempt to find the final body.

Fire crews from Italys fire service Vigili del Fuoco said they had been accessing the vessel through natural entrances, without making openings.

Remote underwater vehicles are being used, with naval units and cave divers also taking part in the search.

Italian emergency services headed out to sea towards the area off the Sicilian coast, where the search continues for six missing tourists. (PA Media)

If you manage to get inside, you understand there is a world of objects. So, getting inside and descending into the compartment below from the stairs that are narrow and going into all of the cabins is a really hard and difficult job, fire department diver Marco Tilotta said per Reuters news agency, according to the BBC.

Morgan Stanley International Bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer is one of six people missing (Morgan Stanley International Bank/PA)

 What will authorities investigate?

Authorities will now attempt to piece together the circumstances surrounding the ships sinking.

According to The Guardian, an investigation will be carried out under the supervision of public prosecutor of Termini Imeresi.

The local port authority has opened a separate investigation to determine whether the crew took safety measures.

A team of four British inspectors from the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) also arrived in Porticello to look at the site of the sinking.

The MAIB is looking into what happened because the yacht Bayesian was flying a British flag, it is understood.

The ships captain, James Cutfield, was reportedly quizzed by authorities for two hours as they began questioning all crew members.

Speaking to New Zealand media, Mr Cutfields brother Mark said his sibling was a very good sailor with eight years of experience working abroad on luxury yachts.

 Who is Mike Lynch?

Mike Lynch, the British billionaire and tech entrepreneur, owes his fame and fortune to software firm Autonomy, which he sold to Hewlett-Packard for billions in 2011.

Hailing from Suffolk, he graduated with a PhD from the University of Cambridge. Mr Lynch is married to Angela Bacares, with whom he shares two daughters.

The father-of-two has a reported net worth valued at around 852 million, according to the Independent.

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His business ventures led him to once be dubbed Britains Bill Gates but also landed him in legal trouble.

Autonomys sale was wrapped in fraud claims, and he faced civil action in the UK before being extradited to the United States to face criminal charges.

In June, he was cleared of 15 fraud charges after allegations he inflated Autonomys worth.

 What do we know about the Bayesian?

The 56-metre sailing boat was launched by Italian shipbuilder Perini Navi in 2008, according to the company website.

It was once called the Salute, but was later renamed after Lynchs PhD thesis on statistical theory by mathematician Thomas Bayes.

Media reports suggest the yachts owner is listed as Revtom Limited, a company owned by Mr Lynchs wife.

 Who was Stephen Chamberlain and how is he connected to the situation?

Stephen Chamberlain was an associate of Mike Lynch and stood trial for fraud alongside him after Autonomys controversial sale.

Days before the yacht disaster, Mr Chamberlain died after being hit by a car while out jogging.

Stephen Chamberlain was killed whilst out running on Saturday in the village of Stretham in Cambridgeshire. (Cambridgeshire Police)

Mr Chamberlain, Autonomys former VP of Finance, was cleared of all charges by a San Francisco court in June.

Relatives of Mr Chamberlain said in a tribute released through police that he was a much-loved husband, father, son, brother and friend.

He was an amazing individual whose only goal in life was to help others in any way possible, his family said.
The discovery of five bodies in the search for six people missing after a superyacht sank off the Sicilian coast dominates Thursdays front pages.

The sinking of the Bayesian leads the front pages of the Daily Express and Daily Mail. The luxury vessel disappeared after getting caught in bad weather on Monday.

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The Times says rescuers pried open doors with a hydraulic jack to find five of the bodies, but a sixth person remains missing. It is believed four bodies have been brought to shore.

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In political news, the Financial Times spells out plans from the public sector union to pressure the Government to make up for a decade of real-term salary cuts.

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Clean water campaigner Fergeal Sharkey says Labour has no real plan to fix the UK sewage crisis, according to the i.

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The Daily Mirror leads on a police probe following the deaths of a mother and her three children in an alleged arson attack.

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The Guardian reports foreign cybercriminals could be extradited as part of a crackdown on the number of young people being blackmailed for sextortion.

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In international news, The Independent says Ukraine launched its largest drone attack on Moscow in its latest attempt to bring the war to Russia.

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The Daily Telegraph says a breakthrough Alzheimers drug, hailed the beginning of the end of the disease, is being given the green light in the UK.

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An MP backs a bid for Taylor Swift to be awarded the Freedom of London after boosting the countrys finances during her tour, the Metro reports.

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Lastly, the Daily Star splashes on claims a man was bitten by a 12ft python while sitting on the toilet in Thailand.
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at the Fiserv Forum during a campaign rally in Milwaukee (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)

The Democratic National Convention will kick off its fourth and final night on Thursday.

After a week of the Democrats most prominent figures rallying the party faithful, US vice president Kamala Harris will accept her partys nomination for president during a speech in which she is widely expected to offer her vision and policy agenda to the American people.

The theme of the final night is For Our Future, according to convention organisers.

Democratic presidential nominee vice president Kamala Harris and running mate Tim Walz appear at the Fiserv Forum during a campaign rally in Milwaukee (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)

Wednesday nights convention theme was Freedom. Backed by Beyonces song of the same name, which the musician has authorised the Harris campaign to use, the word flashed on the video screen and in speech after speech at the United Centre.

The Democrats firmly tied it to the fight over reproductive rights that went into overdrive after the fall of Roe v Wade.

But the party also used the freedom argument to slam Republicans on other social issues, from gay rights to the spread of book bans in schools.

Also on Wednesday, more than 1,000 pro-Palestinian protesters marched past a park where pro-Israel demonstrators had gathered near the United Centre.

The demonstration, which stayed largely peaceful, came a day after violent clashes between police and protesters led to 56 arrests.

As marchers passed under a new elevated train station near the centre that was completed just before the DNC, officers were seen bringing a person to the ground on the platform above.

A woman wears a Kamala Harris hat during the Democratic National Convention (Charles Rex Arbogast/AP)

In response, hundreds of protesters pushed against the edge of the station, banging on the glass with their hands and flag poles as they called on police to free the person.

The person left through the stations emergency exit moments later, accompanied by officers but not in handcuffs, prompting cheers from the crowd.

Meanwhile, former president Donald Trump is taking issue with continued efforts by the Democrats to tie him to the conservative Heritage Foundations Project 2025 at this weeks DNC.

Calling into Fox and Friends on Thursday ahead of the conventions final night, Mr Trump called the efforts disgraceful.

They know I have nothing to do with it. I had no idea what it was, he said, despite the fact that the plan  which Mr Trump and his campaign have repeatedly disavowed  was written by many long-time former staffers. I have no idea what Project 2025 is.

Mr Trump also lashed out at Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, Harris running mate, who spoke at the convention on Wednesday night, calling him a total lightweight.

Democratic presidential nominee vice president Kamala Harris is seen on a video monitor after the roll call during the Democratic National Convention (Paul Sancya/AP)

He also said Democrats were spending more time at DNC talking about him than issues.

Its like theyre having a party, he said. They dont mention the border. All they do is make up lies about me.

Mr Trump is set to visit the southern border in Cochise County, Arizona, on Thursday as he continues to criticise the Biden administrations border policies.

He has been spending the week campaigning across battleground states.

Democrats on Wednesday night argued that theyre offering leadership on the US-Mexico border, working toward policy solutions rather than simply demonising immigrants and trying to use the issue as a political motivator for their base.

Texas representative Veronica Escobar, from the border city of El Paso, said, Forget what you hear on the news, Im from there.

When it comes to the border, hear me when I say, you know nothing, Donald Trump.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has toured the Ukrainian region of Sumy in his first visit to the border since his forces entered Russian territory more than two weeks ago.

After a meeting with Ukraines military commander, Mr Zelensky said Ukrainian forces have claimed control of another settlement in the Russian region of Kursk and taken more Russian prisoners of war whom he hopes to exchange for captured Ukrainians. He referred to that as Ukraines exchange fund.

Another settlement in the Kursk region is now under Ukrainian control, and we have replenished the exchange fund, Mr Zelensky wrote on the social media platform X after hearing a report from the military commander, Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi.

While he travelled close to the area of the Ukrainian incursion into Russia, he did not go into Russia itself  a move that would have been regarded by Moscow as a provocation. He has previously said that Ukraine has no plan to occupy the area long-term but wants to create a buffer zone to prevent further attacks from that area into Ukraine.

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After his meeting with local military authorities, Mr Zelensky said the Kursk operation launched on August 6 has led to a decrease in Russian shelling and a reduction in civilian casualties in Ukraines northern Sumy region.

The daring Ukrainian foray into the Kursk region has rattled the Kremlin, showing Russias vulnerability and shattered President Vladimir Putins efforts to pretend that the country has been largely unaffected by the two-and-a-half-year war.

Authorities in Kursk began to put up concrete shelters at bus stops and other locations around the city to protect it from shelling and plan similar work in Zheleznogorsk and Kurchatov, where the Kursk nuclear power plant is located, the regions acting governor Alexei Smirnov said on his Telegram channel.

Mr Putin said in a video call with officials that he has ordered the creation of self-defence units in Russian regions bordering Ukraine.

Mr Smirnov reported to Mr Putin that more than 133,000 people have left areas affected by the fighting in the Kursk region, while more than 19,000 have stayed.

The governor of Bryansk, another Russian region bordering Ukraine, said authorities in the region have conducted training for emergency evacuation from border areas in case it is needed.

Separately, Russias Defence Ministry reported repelling Ukrainian attacks near the villages of Komarovka, Malaya Loknya, Korenevka and several other settlements in the Kursk region.

A Russian serviceman aims an anti-drone gun in an undisclosed location (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)

Ukraines capture of Russian territory comes as the country continues to lose ground in eastern Ukraine. The Russian Defence Ministry said on Thursday that its military has claimed control of the village of Mezhove in Donetsk, part of the industrial Donbas region which Moscow seeks to take entirely.

Ukraines push into Russia marks the first capture of Russian territory since the Second World War.

It comes as both sides in the war use drones to attack far within enemy lines.

Ukraine attacked Russia overnight with 28 drones, Russias Ministry of Defence said. Thirteen were shot down over the Volgograd region, seven over the Rostov region, four over the Belgorod region, two over the Voronezh region, and one each over the Bryansk and Kursk regions, the ministry said.

Andrei Bocharov, governor of the Volgograd region, said on Thursday that a defence ministry facility was on fire after being attacked by drones in the area of Marinovka, in a sign that Ukraine is not letting up on its attacks. He did not specify what was damaged.

Videos shared on Russian social media showed an explosion in the night sky, reportedly near the base. Marinovka is about 185 miles east of the Ukrainian border.

Ukraine claimed responsibility for the attack.

Ukraines Security Service and the Special Operation Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine conducted the drone attack on Wednesday night striking the Marinovka airfield in Russia, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press.

The Baza Telegram channel, which is close to Russian law enforcement, said one drone was taken down several miles from the airfield and that wreckage from another fell on a trailer near the air base, causing it to catch fire.

This satellite photo from Planet Labs PBC shows a fire at an oil depot earlier hit by a drone attack near Proletarsk, Russia, on Monday (Planet Labs PBC via AP)

Data from Nasa fire satellites, which monitor Earth for forest blazes, showed fires breaking out around the air bases apron, where fighter jets have previously been seen parked.

Another fire burned on Thursday in Russias Rostov region, where firefighters struggled for the fifth day to put out a fire at an oil depot in the town of Proletarsk. State news agency Tass said 47 firefighters have been injured while putting out the blaze.

Satellite photos from Planet Labs PBC analysed on Thursday by The Associated Press showed the fire at the oil depot still intensely burning as of Wednesday. Storage tanks at the facility appeared engulfed in flames. Visible flames could be seen in the images, with a thick black smoke cloud drifting west over the city of Proletarsk.
Whats happened to one former NI Secretary may surprise many of us on this side of the Irish Sea

Its refreshing to see a Secretary of State take us seriously

Former NI Secretary Dame Karen Bradley isn't fondly remembered here

John Laverty Thu 22 Aug 2024 at 18:59

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland might look good on a CV but has little else to recommend it. It hasnt been the political stepping stone many aspirants had hoped for, especially during the recent Tory era.
A judges daughter, Patricia Curran, was discovered just 40 yards from her home in Whiteabbey, Co Antrim at 2am on November 13 1952. She had been stabbed to death

This is the second part of a special series by The BelTel podcast

Patricia Currans mutilated body was discovered just 40 yards from her home in Whiteabbey, Co Antrim, at 2am on November 13 1952.

She was a judges daughter, savagely stabbed to death, and the pressure was on to find her killer.

An innocent man, Iain Hay Gordon, was blackmailed into signing a confession and sent to a psychiatric hospital  only to be quietly released and packed off home to Scotland in 1960. His murder conviction was eventually quashed in 2000.

In this episode of the BelTel, journalist Stephen Gordon (no relation) tells us about meeting Patricias brother Desmond, who spent his life as a Catholic Priest in South Africa.

And we ask the biggest question of all: If Iain Hay Gordon didnt kill Patricia, then who did?

This podcast was originally published in October 2022.
Frederic Legrand - COMEO / Shutterstock.com

Elon Musk is publicly offering his own interpretation of Jesus teachings with an Old Testament twist.

Christianity has become toothless, the billionaire posted recently on his X social-media platform. Unless there is more bravery to stand up for what is fair and right, Christianity will perish.

As Musk tweeted about Christianity, a friend of his, Jason Calacanis, replied jokingly: If youre going into your born again era were so here for it.

Responded Musk: I believe in the principles of Christianity like love thy neighbor as thyself (have empathy for all) and turn the other cheek (end the cycle of retribution).

For all of his pursuits, Musk isnt generally thought of as theologian.

With the Tesla and SpaceX chief executives recent political transformation, however, we are increasingly seeing Musk invoke religion as he discusses his worldviews on topics ranging from parenthood to freedom of speech.

He has talked about his core beliefs several times this summer, including this past week when describing how he defines empathy and its place in governing.

Raised Anglican in South Africa, young Musk got an early taste of differing religious views attending a Jewish preschool. I was just singing Hava Nagila one day and `Jesus I Love You the next, he jokes.

As he grew older, Musk has said, he turned to the great religious booksthe Bible, Quran, Torah, some Hindu textsto deal with an existential crisis of meaning. And he looked to philosophers such as Arthur Schopenhauer and Friedrich Nietzsche.

But not until the boy discovered science fiction, he says, did he begin to find what he was looking for. In particular, he says, it was the lesson he took away from the The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy that the purpose of life wasnt so much about finding the big answers but asking the right questions.

The answer is the easy part, Musk said during a public event this year. The question is the hard part.

If we can expand the scope and scale of consciousness then we are better able to figure out what questions to ask about the answer that is the universe andmaybe we can find out the meaning of life or even whatthe right question is, Musk said last year during a conference.

Physics has long been almost a religion for Musk, with the First Principles approach to problem solving infusing his businesses and guiding his approach to entrepreneurship.

In 2022, a spiritual side began to emerge publicly as he acquired Twitter-turned-X. He turned more political, airing worries about liberal policies becoming too extreme.

A new philosophy of the future is needed, Musk tweeted that summer. I believe it should be curiosity about the Universeexpand humanity to become a multiplanet, then interstellar, species to see whats out there.

A couple of minutes later, he followed up: This is compatible with existing religionssurely God would want us to see Creation?

After taking over Twitter a few months later, Musk turned to invoking Jesus as he dealt with the artist formerly known as Kanye West, who appeared to be testing just how far the new owner was willing to go with pledges of defending free speech.

That December, the rapper, known as Ye, gave a rambling interview that included praising Adolf Hitler and during which he tweeted: I love the first amendment! Long live Ye! I pray to Jesus that Elon is for real He followed that up with a tweet that included a photo of that original message and a new one that read: Jesus is King.

To which Musk responded uncharacteristically: Jesus taught love, kindness and forgiveness, he posted. I used to think that turning the other cheek was weak & foolish, but I was the fool for not appreciating its profound wisdom.

In a sign, perhaps, of how out of character it was for Musk, a Tesla fan club quickly replied: Do you believe in God.

Musk didnt respond.

Last month, author Jordan Peterson got the chance to ask Musk directly about religion during an interview streamed on X.

While Im not a particularly religious person, Musk said, I do believe that the teachings of Jesus are good and wise.

In particular, Musk again pointed to the New Testament teachings of forgiveness, but with a caveat from a man who has described being bullied as a kid that strength is sometimes needed in a way that sounded very much like the Old Testaments eye-for-an-eye.

With respect to bullies at school, I think you shouldnt turn the other cheekpunch them in the nose, Musk said. They need to stop bullying you and a punch in the nose will stop that. And then thereafter, you know, make peace.

Describing himself as cultural Christian, Musk indicated his guiding belief goes back to that of seeking greater understanding. That is my religion, for the lack of a better way to describe it, its really a religion of curiosity, he said. The religion of greater enlightenment.

And then applying his First Principles mindset, Musk extrapolated that what follows from that goal is to have consciousness expand in scale and scope by increasing population and allowing differing perspectives. Or put differently, more babies and free speech.

There is the argument that when a culture loses its religion, that it starts to become anti-natalist and decline in numbers and potentially disappear, Musk said.

The topic of faith came up again this past week when Musk on X interviewed Donald Trump, whom he endorsed last month for a second term in the White House shortly after a would-be assassin opened fire on the former president at one his rallies.

During their livestreaming event together, the two men discussed how Trump narrowly averted death by turning his head just at the right moment to look at a chart related to immigration. For those people who dont believe in God, I think we got to all start thinking about that, Trump said. Im a believer, now Im more of a believer.

Musk, who shares concerns about illegal immigration, replied: Maybe its a sign.

They both laughed.

As they talked more, Musk returned to his ideal of empathy, suggesting liberals have misplaced feelings when it comes to dealing firmly with criminalswhat he called shallow empathy.

Theres a lack of empathy for the victims of the criminals and too much empathy for the criminals, Musk said. Thats why you want to have deep empathy for society as a whole, not shallow empathy for criminals.

The Musk Theology: An eye for an eye, then peace.

This article originally appeared in The Wall Street Journal. Tim Higgins is a columnist for The Wall Street Journal.Tims weekly column is mostlybut not entirelyabout Elon Musk, his companies and his rivals. More broadly, Tim writes about the worlds of autos, media and tech. He became a columnist in 2023 after working for more than two decades as an award-winning reporter, covering everything from the bankruptcy of General Motors to the 2016 presidential campaigns. A CNBC on-air contributor, Tim is also the author of Power Play, a book about Tesla. Tim graduated from the Missouri School of Journalism and earned an M.B.A from Michigan State University. He lives in San Francisco.
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My first real pet was an auburn tabby named Lauren with a pinched face and a puffy tail. I picked her up in Silver Spring, Md., in September 2021, and by the time we got to my house in D.C. 30 minutes later, I was completely in love.

The immediacy  and intensity  of how I felt about her was surprising and unfamiliar. And so was the emptiness that came with losing her only seven months later. (She was barely 1 year old and had developed FIP, a deadly strain of feline coronavirus that typically affects young cats.)

When you lose anybody, pet or human, that youre really close to, it can feel like the world is ending, says Jennifer Golbeck, a computer science professor at the University of Maryland and researcher of human-animal bonds. Most people think of their pets as family members.  Sometimes, they consider their relationships with their dogs closer than their relationships with most of their family members. Its actually a really profound relationship, and when we lose them, our psychological needs are to grieve them in the same way we would grieve any relationship that is that profound.

When we adopt pets, we know were entering a relationship that will, most likely, end in loss. But for many people, pet grief can nonetheless be surprisingly devastating when it happens. Research shows that grief following the loss of a pet can be comparable to losing a person and, in some cases, even more complicated. Often, this pain is amplified by guilt (I shouldve taken him in sooner) and feelings of being misunderstood (Its just an animal), all the more reason that pet owners, researchers and counselors are exploring ways to comfort owners through loss and keep their pets memories alive.

A Unique Loss

Golbeck, who also runs a rescue for golden retrievers, says that compared with our human relationships, the ones we form with our animals are purely good. Our close relationships with other people, even the most loving, are fraught; they ask us to examine our faults and shortcomings. We misunderstand each other, we hurt each other, we give and take. With pets, there is a simplicity to what they provide us  and what we give them  that cant be replicated with humans. This can make losing their companionship all the more complex.

[Dogs] kind of enter your life with a preexisting, unconditional excitement for who you are, says David Freifeld, a Brooklyn resident who grew up with dogs. He and his wife, Elena, said goodbye to their 4-year-old bernedoodle, Ramy, earlier this year, after he was diagnosed with a dangerous neurological condition. From the moment [Ramy] came home, he just was like, What do you want to do today? I love you!

Ramys death was not Freifelds first experience with premature loss  when he was in college, his dad died  but he says it was uniquely painful. Before Freifelds father died, he had a chance to communicate with him about his death, discussing what his father wanted and making decisions as a family. Obviously, he couldnt do the same with Ramy, a creature who looked to Freifeld with complete trust.

Its a special relationship or a special responsibility that we take on, as the people responsible to keep them safe and healthy and alive  to then have to make the decision for them to die, it goes against everything, says Michelle Crossley, an associate professor of clinical mental health counseling at Rhode Island College and vice president of the Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement. Thats super challenging for folks to wrap their heads around; people end up experiencing some guilt.

For the Freifelds, those last five days at home before Ramy was euthanized felt like a sort of one-sided hospice. They knew what was coming, but Ramy looked at them exactly the same.

Because theres this profound sense of loyalty, I think most people almost feel like they dont deserve it, when they have a pet. You feel so responsible for something that is so committed to you, Freifeld says. I didnt want him to feel like we had abandoned him.

For others, losing a pet means mourning the constant shadow of comfort thats accompanied them through various phases of life. While we love our parents or friends or relatives, often its our pets that are physically there as we traverse milestones such as moving out, getting married or having children. For 22-year-old Jackie Llanos, her schnauzer, Nacho, stuck by her side through a move to an entirely new country. She, her mom, her three sisters and 4-year-old Nacho emigrated from Bogota, Colombia, to Stafford, Va., in 2013.

I think I really clinged to him when I was upset, experiencing all of these changes and not being able to communicate with the other kids, she says. He was just always a constant.

Llanos is now a reporter in Florida, which means her mother had become Nachos primary caretaker in recent years. She called Llanos this past May to let her know that Nacho wasnt eating and that it was probably time to say goodbye. A few hours before the vet appointment that Llanos scheduled for him, the 15-year-old dog passed away at home.

It feels like the end of childhood in a way, she says. It just feels like one less connection back to my childhood in Colombia.

Mourning Alone

Losing a beloved pet can also feel especially lonely. Not only is the home literally emptier, but other (non-pet-owning) humans might have difficulty empathizing.

People will grieve in isolation because they dont want to be invalidated in how distraught they are, Crossley says. One of the comments people will say is just, Its a pet; get another one.

Golbeck began researching pet loss while in a masters psychology course; the class was studying disenfranchised grief, or the concept that some deaths are not societally legitimized or publicly mourned. Though they were focused on example such as AIDS deaths in the 1980s and deaths by suicide and overdose, she realized that pet loss may fall into this category, too.

The tools that we would normally use for grief, and the kind of support that we get for grief and the loss of people, we dont get that with [pets], Golbeck says.

After the death of her cat Rupert, Virginia resident Page Shewey says some people didnt understand why she was having such a hard time. As a result, she began to question whether the intensity of her grief meant something was wrong with her, or if it somehow meant she hadnt properly grieved the human loved ones shed lost.

You dont know what to feel, Shewey says. Youre like, Should I not be this upset? Is there something wrong with me for feeling this upset after the loss of a pet?'

Golbeck says a way to legitimize your grief is to find people who will take it seriously  even if that requires venturing beyond your usual circle. Demand for spots in pet grief support groups has ballooned, especially since the pandemic, and online forums exist for various kinds of pet loss. At the Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement, Crossley opens old-school chatrooms daily for folks to talk through what theyre experiencing.

When Lauren passed, I spent hours online, trawling Q&A forums about pet loss and Facebook groups for owners whose cats were diagnosed with FIP. In the months after she died, just reading the comment section of a TikTok about losing a cat could make me feel a little less perplexed by my emotional response.

Memorializing and Moving On

Even if its not recognized by anyone but you, Crossley says, creating some type of memorial or ritual to honor your pet can help with processing the loss, whether thats creating a planter with their food bowl or saving their collar. If its painful to encounter constant reminders of your pet  and you cant bring yourself to pack up their things on your own  you may want to enlist a friend or family member to remove and donate the items. (The Freifelds donated Ramys bed and got teary when the new owner sent a picture of their dog sniffing the fabric, presumably detecting Ramys scent.)

Crossley has also encouraged people struggling with guilt to write a letter to their pet, expressing everything they wished their pet could know. Then, write a response from the pets point of view, focusing on the ways in which the person created happy, healthy memories for them both. The what could I have done differently feelings wont dissipate immediately, but Crossley says forgiving yourself is key to getting better.

We used to call it closure, but then closure feels so permanent, as if I will never think about this ever again, she says. Instead, she recommends people view resolution as a goal in the grieving process. With resolution, the thing that I ask folks to respond to is: When was your pet happiest? Was it when you were mad and angry and crying, or were they happy when you were happy? To honor our pets, we can remember them in these happy moments and to not be in so much pain.

After Lauren died, I left her things as they were for a few days; her food bowl next to my bedroom door, the syringe Id been using to force-feed her water on my dresser, toys strewn around the floor. In bed, Id cautiously adjust my legs, scanning my comforter for the dark lump that was supposed to be at my feet. But eventually, it got easier. By the following week, I gathered her belongings and moved them to the attic, just in case I got another cat.

Less than a year later, I met Mouse, a tabby kitten whom Ive grown to love as much as Lauren  just differently. I know losing him will be equally devastating. But as Golbeck says: In exchange for a lifetime of love and good memories, the price that we pay is the one worst day of our lives.

Its worth it.

This article originally appeared on MSN.
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PITTSFIELD  Last school year, it took 10 disciplinary log entries for a Pittsfield students cellphone to get confiscated and sent to the main office.

This year, itll take only two.

At a special meeting Wednesday night, the Pittsfield School Committee unanimously approved new guidance for cellphone use, cracking down after the district logged 6,358 infractions for improper use of mobile devices last year.

The revised policy, effective immediately, abandons the three-tier system that was established by the former guidance enacted in August 2023 and expedites disciplinary action for improper use of mobile devices.

Superintendent Joseph Curtis said that a communication announcing the policy would be sent out to families on Thursday, hoping to inform them before classes begin on Aug. 29.

Interim Deputy Superintendent Matt Bishop said the policy cuts down on the multiple pathways and write-ups and warnings that had been part of last school years policy.

We really simplified this to basically just four infractions, if you will, Bishop said.

Under the previous policy from August 2023, students were issued lockable cellphone pouches after five infractions. Phones werent sent to the main office until a student reached 10 infractions. Former Deputy Superintendent Marisa Mendonsa described the 2023-24 policy as a progressive response.

Curtis said Wednesday that the previous policy was simply too much to manage because of the number of warnings a student could receive, and proved "unwieldy" for families and staff.

The new policy allows students in middle and high school to keep their phones during the school day, but they must remain turned off and cannot be used in the classroom or during any school-sponsored program or activity.

Students still will be allowed to use their cellphones during passing periods and lunch.

Under the new policy, a student will receive a verbal warning on their first infraction  a teacher will ask the student to place their phone in a classroom holster until the class period has ended, then document the incident and contact a students parent or guardian by phone or email.

On the second infraction, the teacher will request administrative assistance, and the students phone will be confiscated by the administrator and taken to the main office. A parent or guardian again will be notified, and the students will be able to retrieve their phone at the end of the day.

On the third infraction, the phone will go to the main office again, and the student will receive a half day of restorative in-school education, or RISE, and get their phone at the end of the day.

On the fourth, a student gets assigned a full day of RISE, the phone gets confiscated and a parent or guardian has to come get it from the main office. On all subsequent infractions, the process repeats, with the possibility of a student getting either RISE or out-of-school suspensions as a consequence.

Bishop said the infractions will be tracked, and they will remain with a student throughout the school year.

Going forward, Bishop will provide updates on the number of infractions among students at each School Committee meeting. Administrators will monitor the data, he said, and will look into other options if the rate of disciplinary actions do not improve.

Namely, Bishop said the logical next step would be purchasing Yondr cases  or magnetic, lockable cases that restrict access to phones  and collecting devices at the beginning of the school day and returning them after classes. Bishop last month outlined a similar policy in place at Chicopee Comprehensive High School to the School Committee.

Some committee members have already weighed in with their concerns about that plan, including the potential pricetag attached to it.

Despite voting unanimously to approve the revised policy, many School Committee members weighed in with disappointment that the new guidance did not go further in enforcement. Chair William Cameron was the first to ask administrators if it would be possible to make parents retrieve confiscated phones earlier in the process.

I dont want to seem draconian, Cameron said. But why are we allowing the student to be the one thats allowed to pick up the phone up until the fourth infraction?

Making parents come in to retrieve the phone earlier, Cameron said, could inconvenience them enough to get intervention at the family level more promptly. Member William Garrity agreed.

Bishop noted that the policy takes families who may have more logistical difficulty getting to school into account, noting that administrators were trying to compromise with the material reality of the district.

Were not trying to make this convenient, necessarily, Bishop said. But I think we were trying to take in all the factors in our community, knowing that we might be putting an undue burden on some of our parents.

Committee member Sara Hathaway, who convened two community meetings on the negative mental health effects of cellphones on youth in the last week, noted that she would still like to see further tightening in the future.

I dont think this is strong enough, Hathaway said. I will vote for it, because its moving in the right direction, but I think were setting ourselves up for a year of frustration.

Conversely, some members recognized the policy as a good place to start.

Committee member Dominick Sacco called it as close to a zero-tolerance policy as you can possibly get.
Ethan Zuckerman, a Lanesborough resident and public policy professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, has asked a federal court to preemptively declare that a little-used part of Section 230 allows him to release software that lets users automatically unfollow everyone on Facebook.
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Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed, came trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed. Then he said to her, Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace (Luke 8:47-48).

A woman who had suffered from an issue of blood for twelve years needed help. She had spent all she had trying to find a solution through doctors, but nothing had relieved her illness (Luke 8:43). But she had heard of Jesus and believed that if only she could touch a part of his garment, she would be healed.

Scripture tells us that she came from behind and touched the border of His garment. And immediately her flow of blood stopped (Luke 8:44). She was healed of a disease that had caused years of suffering and pain.

Even though she had only touched the edge of his garment, Jesus knew that power had gone out from Him. The Lord did not ignore the woman or dismiss her as merely another face in the crowd. He sought her, and she fell before Him in fear to confess what had happened (Luke 8:47). Jesus did not rebuke her or declare her unclean, though others would have since her bleeding problem made her unclean according to Jewish law (Leviticus 15:25-30). Instead, He spoke tenderly to her, saying that her faith had healed her. He called her daughter and told her to go in peace (Luke 8:48).

In times of sickness or when we are struggling with a chronic disease, we can also long to touch the Lord and receive instant relief. Even if we do not receive healing until heaven, we can still find comfort in knowing that our Lord sees and loves us, just as He did the woman who suffered from the illness of blood.

He looks beyond the uncomfortable symptoms and sees us in our brokenness. He offers us His healing love and treats us with gentleness.

Photo credit: Getty Images/gorodenkoff
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A teaser clip for a drama about the bombshell Newsnight interview with Britain's Prince Andrew has been released.

A Very Royal Scandal will dramatise journalist Emily Maitliss scrutiny of Andrew over his relationship with the convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

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The three-episode Prime Video series sees former BBC journalist Maitlis played by Mrs Wilson actress Ruth Wilson, and Good Omens actor Michael Sheen as the duke.

In a teaser shown at the Edinburgh TV Festival on Thursday, Sheens character asks Maitlis (Ruth Wilson) to question him on his defence to accusations from Virginia Giuffre that they had sex.

Ruth Wilson as Emily Maitlis. Photo: Prime Video/PA.

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It begins with the duke being thanked for the interview, before The Thick Of It star Joanna Scanlan, as Andrews ex-private secretary Amanda Thirsk, runs over to prompt him that there needs to be a discussion about the alibis.

Scanlan says: Sir, the alibis, you didnt mention those.

Sheen then tells Wilson: You didnt ask me about my alibis as discussed the sweating, and Pizza Express.

Wilson says that they will absolutely do it now, before they resume the interview.

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The cameras and recordings are checked before filming is resumed, and the clip ends.

The disastrous Newsnight grilling in 2019 saw Andrew responding to Ms Giuffre claiming one alleged encounter began with the duke sweating heavily as they danced at London nightclub Tramp.

The interview that rocked the world. A Very Royal Scandal premieres September 19th. pic.twitter.com/fRU2ul6iM8 Advertisement  Amazon MGM Studios (@AmazonMGMStudio) August 13, 2024

But Andrew told Maitlis he had a medical condition at the time which meant he did not sweat, and that he had no recollection of ever meeting Ms Giuffre.

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He also insisted he spent the day taking one of his daughters to the Pizza Express in Woking for a party.

Andrew has strongly denied the allegations about him, and settled his US sexual assault case out of court with no admission of guilt.

Maitlis, who left Newsnight to host The News Agents podcast with fellow former BBC journalists Jon Sopel and Lewis Goodall, is an executive producer on the Prime Video show.

Netflix released a film called Scoop, with the work of Newsnight producer Sam McAlister, earlier this year about the same interview.

It starred Doctor Who actress Billie Piper as McAlister, Rufus Sewell as Andrew and Gillian Anderson as Maitlis.

A Very Royal Scandal will premiere on September 19 exclusively on Prime Video in the UK, US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
A BBC boss says the corporation is not complacent about its workplace culture following allegations about Huw Edwards by his colleagues.

The broadcasters chief content officer Charlotte Moore was questioned about whether the BBC had taken complaints about Edwards, who later admitted making child sexual abuse images, seriously.

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The corporation knew in November, before he resigned in April, that he had been arrested for the serious offences.

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In a separate case, Edwards has also been accused of bombarding BBC staff with inappropriate messages, former and current employees at the corporation have reportedly claimed.

The first public allegation was made by the family of a young person, who last year made a complaint in which they claimed Edwards paid their teenager for sexual images.

The BBC later apologised to the family about the handling of the complaint. Edwards remained suspended until he resigned on the advice of doctors.

Ms Moore told the Edinburgh TV Festival on Thursday that Edwards was clearly the villain in the piece, and everyone was absolutely shocked by his behaviour.

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She added: Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but I think the BBC did everything youd be able to have (done), at that time.

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Looking at questions of a broader review of workplace culture at the corporation, she said that organisations that had hierarchy and an imbalance of power needed to pay attention to issues of negative behaviour.

All of the people (need to) think really, really carefully about have we got our workplace culture at the place it needs to be, she said.

Ms Moore added that the broadcaster had really robust processes in place that dealt with harassment and misconduct, and was always up for looking at that again and thinking, how can we improve that and make that more fit for purpose.

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Former BBC broadcaster Huw Edwards resigned in April. Photo: Jonathan Brady/PA.

She also said: We know were the most trusted media brand in the UK, and its incredibly important that we dont take that trust for granted, that were not complacent about the workplace culture.

We have to make sure that people feel really able, (if) there is anything that they have concerns about, that they feel able to come forward.

And I think thats something weve seen change in recent years, across the whole industry, that people know there are places and ways to go and make your voice heard.

It has to be dealt with confidentially, has to be a fair process, and that the whole investigations team, that we look into those complaints, and protect peoples anonymity if theyre very nervous about coming forward, and I understand that, but we will not tolerate (any bad behaviour) and I know everybody that I work with in this audience can agree with that.

Were not going to tolerate bad behaviour, racism, intolerance, prejudice, bullying, harassment, that is not the industry any of us want to work in.

Ms Moore also outlined that dancers and production teams at Strictly Come Dancing, which is facing controversy following accusations from celebrity contestants, had been given extra training,

She said: For 20 years, this is a show that has brought so much joy to the nation, to both people taking part in it, frankly, as well as audiences.

So its an incredibly important show to us. And I want to make sure that its a positive experience for everybody that takes part, and for everybody from the crew to the makeup artist to the costume (department), everybody from the celebrities to the dancers, right?

It needs to be a really positive experience. So look, obviously, I cant talk about the individual cases. Its very important, but I think everybody deserves a fair and confidential process.

But of course, its incredibly important, and this year, because of the recent concerns that people have had, weve made sure that (theres) a welfare producer, not just across the whole show, but theres one for celebrities, and theres one for the dancers  they will be checking in throughout the process.

Actress Amanda Abbington claimed she was subject to a toxic environment while she danced on Strictly Come Dancing alongside professional Giovanni Pernice. Photo: Ray Burniston/BBC.

Weve made sure that theres extra training for production teams, dancers, and weve also made sure that people feel there really is a way for them to talk and to come out at any concern.

She added that there were  for the 2024 series  going to be people in the production team inside the training room when contestants were practising.

Actress Amanda Abbington was the first to allege inappropriate behaviour and claimed she was subject to a toxic environment while she danced on the show alongside professional Giovanni Pernice.

Pernice left the show, and has denied all allegations.
Coldplay have performed a Taylor Swift song during their show in Vienna.

Swift had been scheduled to play at the Austrian capitals Ernst Happel Stadium in early August, but the three sold-out shows were cancelled after police uncovered an alleged plot by suspected terrorists.

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The British bands frontman Chris Martin joined forces with opening act Maggie Rogers to perform Swifts 2008 hit Love Story, according to videos circulating on social media.

Taylor Swift performing at her first London concert at Wembley Stadium, during the Eras Tour (Ian West/PA)

The Coldplay cover, during their Music Of The Spheres wold tour, appeared to be a nod to Swift fans who had missed the opportunity to see the pop superstar perform live.

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The alleged foiled terrorist attack came days after an attack in Southport in which three young girls were killed in a mass stabbing at a holiday club Swift-themed event.

Grammy award winner Swift paid tribute to the victims, saying she was completely in shock after the horrendous trauma.

The cancelled Vienna dates formed part of the European leg of her Eras Tour, which concluded on Tuesday.

Swift made Wembley Stadium history as the first solo artist to perform eight times in a single tour.

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The billion-dollar tour took fans through her back catalogue, including hits from albums 1989, Red, Midnights and her latest chart-topping 11th studio album  The Tortured Poets Department.
Minister for Sport Thomas Byrne has rejected any criticism from Green backbenchers about Fianna Fails record in Government on housing.

Mr Byrne was responding to Green Party criticism of reported plans by the Minister for Finance Jack Chambers to defer for a further year the Residential Zoned Land Tax.

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I don't think anybody disagrees with the concept that a farmer who doesn't want houses on their land, is not interested in zoning their land should have to pay a tax on that land which they are working on as farmland, or in some cases that I'm familiar with, literally their farm yard. That's not something that anybody wants, he told RTE radios Morning Ireland.

I think the bottom line is that everybody is in agreement with Minister Chambers, that a farmer who was farming land, who was not interested in putting houses on the land or maximising the value of the land, shouldn't have to pay a tax on it.

There's political agreement there that no farmer who is farming their land should have to pay this tax. I don't think anybody would disagree.

Mr Byrne said that the three coalition parties in government worked really well together although there were occasional issues.

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People are going to have disagreements. But I think you see overall in this coalition that we've worked really, really well together, of course, there would be issues between three different parties of government.

"But I think we are focused and certainly in Fianna Fail we are focused and have shown we have been focused on the provision of housing in the last two years. It's been our number one priority and the results are there and we want to see more of those results. And that's what we'll be putting forward in terms of the next general election.
Walkers and swimmers in Co Donegal have been warned to take extra care following an influx of mauve stinger jellyfish.

At least one person has been badly stung and had to receive treatment.

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Following this week's high tides, a number of the jellyfish have been washed up around Maghery Beach.

Dog owners are also being warned to take care when out exercising their pets.

The operator of the local community centre, Ionad An Mhachaire, have issued a warning about the creatures which they say can cause a nasty sting.

Beachgoers have also been warned that the stingers are hard to spot, so walkers have been warned to take extra care.

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A spokesperson for the centre said "It has been brought to our attention that the heavy seas yesterday has brought a lot of mauve stinger jellyfish onto Maghery Beach.

"These jellyfish can produce a very painful sting (there has been at least one person stung so far).

"Please exercise caution if visiting the beach, and they could provide a hazard to dogs as well.

"They are quite small and difficult to see."

The mauve stinger is a small jellyfish, but it certainly packs a powerful punch, with long tentacles and warty structures on its bell full of stinging cells.

This species is common to Irish and UK waters and usually appears a bluey purple (mauve) colour with a globe-shaped umbrella covered in orangey brown warts with long, thin tentacles hanging down from around the bell, reaching a maximum of 3 metres.
The death of author, journalist and feminist activist Nell McCafferty, opposition parties preparing for a November general election, and a plan to ban phones in schools all feature on Thursday's front pages.

The Irish Times reports opposition parties are preparing for a November general election.

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Nell McCafferty's death and the plan to ban phones in schools feature on the Irish Examiner front page.

The Irish Independent leads with the death of Nell McCafferty.

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Over 20,000 people in Cork need social housing help, The Echo reports.

The sunk superyacht off the Sicilian coast is the front page story in the Irish Sun.

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Today's front page of The Irish Sun pic.twitter.com/edZdZVQ5k1  The Irish Sun (@IrishSunOnline) August 22, 2024

The Irish Daily Mail leads with the VHI price hike.

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Read all this and lots more in Thursday's Irish Daily Mail. pic.twitter.com/UoCT6GFG2n  The Irish Daily Mail (@irishdailymail) August 22, 2024

The Herald leads with the Keane Mulready-Woods murder case.

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In the North, the Belfast Telegraph leads with infighting in the UUP following leader Doug Beattie's decision to step down as party leader.

The Irish News leads with a man whose restaurant was burnt following violent disorder in Belfast.

Today's #frontpage



Father's restaurant dream in ruins after 'racist' arson pic.twitter.com/1XjPjv8zDK  The Irish News (@irish_news) August 22, 2024

The discovery of five bodies in the search for six people missing after a superyacht sank off the Sicilian coast dominates Thursdays UK front pages.

The sinking of the Bayesian leads the front pages of the Daily Express and Daily Mail. The luxury vessel disappeared after getting caught in bad weather on Monday.

EXPRESS: Divers find bodies of tycoon and his daughter #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/DYB7RuwUx0  Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) August 21, 2024

The Times says rescuers pried open doors with a hydraulic jack to find five of the bodies, but a sixth person remains missing. It is believed four bodies have been brought to shore.

TIMES: Divers find five bodies in wreck of superyacht #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/Y8TW6EubXc  Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) August 21, 2024

In political news, the Financial Times spells out plans from the public sector union to pressure the UK government to make up for a decade of real-term salary cuts.

Just published: front page of the Financial Times, UK edition, Thursday 22 August https://t.co/rEpS8AYM26 pic.twitter.com/EQr1cIUjP4  Financial Times (@FT) August 21, 2024

Clean water campaigner Fergeal Sharkey says Labour has no real plan to fix the UK sewage crisis, according to the i.

Thursday's front page: Labour has no real plan to fix UK sewage crisis, Sharkey warns #TomorrowsPapersToday



Latest from @luciemheath: https://t.co/WzjL9umXw9 pic.twitter.com/CR04CINgRC  The i paper (@theipaper) August 21, 2024

The Daily Mirror leads on a police probe following the deaths of a mother and her three children in an alleged arson attack.

Thursday's front page: Mum and 3 kids killed in house blaze horror#TomorrowsPapersTodayhttps://t.co/QDDaE1H4oN pic.twitter.com/wtyPgN9VtQ  The Mirror (@DailyMirror) August 21, 2024

The Guardian reports foreign cybercriminals could be extradited as part of a crackdown on the number of young people being blackmailed for sextortion.

GUARDIAN: UK police threaten extradition to tackle sextortion criminals #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/SohziaXeql  Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) August 21, 2024

In international news, The Independent says Ukraine launched its largest drone attack on Moscow in its latest attempt to bring the war to Russia.

The Daily Telegraph says a breakthrough Alzheimers drug, hailed the beginning of the end of the disease, is being given the green light in the UK.

The front page of tomorrow's Daily Telegraph:



'Alzheimer's wonder drug is given the go-ahead'#TomorrowsPapersToday



Sign up for the Front Page newsletterhttps://t.co/x8AV4Oomry pic.twitter.com/oHQ5OKmMQT  The Telegraph (@Telegraph) August 21, 2024

An MP backs a bid for Taylor Swift to be awarded the Freedom of London after boosting the countrys finances during her tour, the Metro reports.

Lastly, the Daily Star splashes on claims a man was bitten by a 12ft python while sitting on the toilet in Thailand.

STAR: Python bit my goolies while I was on the bog #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/lZnVv7ZAt2  Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) August 21, 2024

The New York Times leads with a story on an investigation into Americans who have worked for Russian media outlets. A story on Tim Walz's nomination as Democratic vice presidential candidate also makes the front page.
An explosion triggered a fire in a pharmaceutical plant in southern India, killing at least 18 workers, police said on Thursday.

The death toll rose from 15 as three of the 40 injured in the fire on Wednesday in the chemical reactor of the plant in Andhra Pradesh state died in hospital on Thursday, police said.

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The Press Trust of India news agency reported distressing scenes with the skin of several workers peeling off.

Officials suspect the cause was related to the electricity at the plant. State authorities have ordered an investigation.

The explosion occurred at the Escientia Company in Anakapalle district, nearly 260 miles east of Hyderabad, the Telangana state capital.



Relatives of the victims killed in the fire sitting outside the factory (AP Photo)

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The five-year-old company manufactures intermediate chemicals and active pharmaceutical ingredients.

As the news of the blast spread, hundreds of workers family members and relatives rushed to the plant to learn what happened to their loved ones.

Around 380 employees work two shifts at the plant. Many workers escaped because they were on lunch break when the explosion started the fire.

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The plant is in the states special economic zone at Atchutapuram village, which was established in 2009 with more than 200 companies.

Anakapalli is adjacent to the port city of Vishakhapatnam, a highly industrialised area with many mishaps, including hazardous chemical leakages.

In the most extensive industrial mishap in the region, 22 people were killed when a blast occurred in the refinery of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation in Visakhapatnam in 1997.

Fires are common in India, where builders and residents often flout building laws and safety norms. Some do not even install firefighting equipment.

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In 2019, a fire caused by an electrical short circuit in a New Delhi factory producing handbags and other items killed 43 people.
President Joe Biden has spoken with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as the United States presses Israel and Hamas to agree to a bridging proposal that could lead to a ceasefire in the war in Gaza.

Hamas and Israel have signalled that challenges remain amid significant differences over the presence of Israeli troops in two strategic corridors in Gaza and other issues, dimming Mr Bidens hopes that a deal can soon be reached.

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Vice President Kamala Harris, who is in Chicago this week to accept her partys nomination at the Democratic National Convention, also joined the call on Wednesday.



Israeli soldiers move on the top of a tank near the Israeli-Gaza border, as seen from southern Israel. (Leo Correa/AP)

The call came on the day Israeli tank and drone strikes in Khan Younis and Deir al-Balah killed at least 17 people, according to hospital staff.

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Mr Biden stressed the urgency of bringing the ceasefire and hostage release deal to closure, the White House said in a statement.

The two leaders also discussed using high-level talks in Cairo this week between mediators from the US, Israel, Egypt and Qatar to work through remaining obstacles to an agreement.

But hope that a deal can be completed, at least in the near term, appears to be diminishing.

On Friday, Mr Biden said he was optimistic that an agreement could be reached after he spoke by phone with Qatars emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al Thani and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi.

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But by Tuesday, the president was notably more muted about the prospects of the two sides coming to an agreement soon, telling reporters after delivering an address at the Democratic convention that Hamas was now backing off, but that the US is going to keep pushing to land a ceasefire deal.





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The White House said Mr Biden and Mr Netanyahu discussed escalating tensions between Israel, Iran and militant groups  Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis  backed by Tehran.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met this week with officials in Israel, Egypt and Qatar ahead of the new round of talks in Cairo.

This is a decisive moment, probably the best, maybe the last opportunity to get the hostages home, to get a ceasefire, and to put everyone on a better path to enduring peace and security, Mr Blinken said after meeting with Mr Netanyahu and Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Tel Aviv on Monday.

Officials in Egypt told The Associated Press on Wednesday that Hamas will not agree to the bridging proposal for a number of reasons  in addition to the long-held wariness over whether a deal would truly remove Israeli forces from Gaza and end the war.

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One Egyptian official, who requested anonymity, said the bridging proposal requires the implementation of the deals first phase, which has Hamas releasing the most vulnerable civilian hostages captured in its October 7 attack on Israel that sparked the war.

Parties during the first phase would negotiate the second and third phases with no guarantees to Hamas from Israel or mediators.



A man works next to a destroyed home after rockets struck in Katzrin, in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights. (Ariel Schalit/AP)

The official said the proposal does not clearly say Israel will withdraw its forces from two strategic corridors in Gaza, the Philadelphi corridor alongside Gazas border with Egypt and the Netzarim east-west corridor across the territory.

Israel is offering to downsize its forces in the Philadelphi corridor with promises to withdraw from the area, the official said.

Hamas is seeking a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, including the Philadelphi Corridor, a narrow nine-mile long stretch of land along the coastal enclaves southern border with Egypt.

Mr Netanyahu met earlier this week with right-wing groups of families of fallen soldiers and hostages in Gaza.

The groups, which oppose a ceasefire deal, said he told them Israel will not abandon the two strategic corridors in Gaza. The prime ministers office did not comment on the groups accounts.

After his visit to Egypt and Qatar, Mr Blinken said the bridging proposal is very clear on the schedule and the locations of (Israeli military) withdrawals from Gaza, but no details on either have emerged.
Former US president Bill Clinton returned to the Democratic National Convention stage to denounce Donald Trump as selfish and praise Kamala Harris.

Giving another of his emblematic, off-the-cuff addresses ahead of a speech by vice presidential nominee Tim Walz in Chicago, Mr Clinton delivered homespun lines about the election and urged Democrats to back Ms Harris.

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What does her opponent do with his voice? He mostly talks about himself, he said. So the next time you hear him, dont count the lies, count the Is.

Hes like one of those tenors opening up before he walks out on stage trying to get his lungs open by saying: me, me, me, me. When Kamala Harris is president, every day will begin with you, you, you.

In 2024, we have a clear choice: We The People versus Me, Myself and I.

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Bill Clinton gestures during his speech (J Scott Applewhite/AP)

Mr Clinton, who left office more than 23 years ago, cracked jokes about former president Donald Trumps age  and his own.

I actually turned 78 two days ago, Mr Clinton said. The only personal vanity I want to assert is that Im still younger than Donald Trump.

He said president Joe Biden has, like George Washington, enhanced his legacy by deciding to leave office, saying he healed our sick and put the rest of us back to work.

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Organisers dubbed Wednesday night a fight for our freedoms with the focus on abortion access and other rights key to their campaign against the Republican nominee.

Speaker after speaker argued their party wants to defend freedoms  especially abortion access and voting rights  while Republicans want to take them away.

House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said Mr Biden would go down as one of the most consequential presidents of all time while describing Ms Harris as a courageous leader, a compassionate leader and common-sense leader.

He said former president Trump is like an old boyfriend who you broke up with, but he just wont go away.

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He has spent the last four years spinning around the block, trying to get back into a relationship with the American people, the New York Democrat said. Bro, we broke up with you for a reason.

Stevie Wonder performs during the Democratic National Convention (J Scott Applewhite/AP)

Stevie Wonder implored the crowd to choose courage over complacency and vote before performing Higher Ground, while other celebrities on stage included comedian Kenen Thompson and actress Mindy Kaling.

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Representative Pete Aguilar, the highest-ranking Latino in Congress, labelled Mr Trump a threat to the values his immigrant family grew up with in Southern California.

Only Kamala Harris and Tim Walls will protect the American dream so that every family can earn a living, own a home, and reach their full potential, Mr Aguilar said.

This is a vision for America that Donald Trump will never understand. All he knows is chaos and division.

Mr Trump bashed the convention on Wednesday as a charade and noted the fact that he has been a frequent topic of conversation.

He singled out his predecessor Barack Obama for a highly critical speech on Tuesday night, saying he had been nasty.

While much of the focus was on the presidential race, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairwoman representative Suzan DelBene told the party faithful it was not enough to win the White House.

A Democratic Congress is how we turn promises into progress, she said.

Democrats only need to pick up a handful of seats to retake the majority in the House from Republicans.
A French destroyer has rescued 29 mariners from an oil tanker that came under repeated attack in the Red Sea, officials said on Thursday.

Yemens Houthi rebels are suspected to have carried out the assault on the Sounion. The attack, the most serious in the Red Sea in weeks, comes during a months-long campaign by Houthis targeting ships over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip that has disrupted trade routes.

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The Sounion is now at anchor in the Red Sea and no longer drifting, the European Unions Operation Aspides said. The vessel had been staffed by a crew of 25 Filipinos and Russians, as well as four private security personnel, who have been taken to nearby Djibouti, the EU mission in the Red Sea said.

Carrying 150,000 tonnes of crude oil, the MV Sounion now represents a navigational and environmental hazard, the mission warned. It is essential that everyone in the area exercises caution and refrains from any actions that could lead to a deterioration of the current situation.

Military officials did not name the French destroyer involved in the rescue.

The French military separately released an image of the Sounion, showing the blaze on board had been extinguished. It also published an image of its fire targeting the drone boat as well.

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In the attack on Wednesday, men on small boats first opened fire with small arms about 90 miles west of the rebel-held Yemeni port city of Hodeida, the British militarys United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre said.



Houthi rebels are suspected to have carried out the assault on the Sounion (David Mackinnon via AP)

Four projectiles also hit the ship, it added.

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The Houthis did not immediately claim responsibility for the attacks, though it can take them hours or even days before they acknowledge their assaults. However, they did acknowledge US air strikes in Hodeida that the American militarys Central Command said destroyed a Houthi surface-to-air missile and radar system.

The Houthis have targeted more than 80 vessels with missiles and drones since the war in Gaza started in October. They seized one vessel and sank two in the campaign that also killed four sailors.

Other missiles and drones have either been intercepted by a US-led coalition in the Red Sea or failed to reach their targets.

The rebels maintain that they target ships linked to Israel, the United States or the UK to force an end to Israels war against Hamas in Gaza. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the conflict, including some bound for Iran.

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As Iran threatens to retaliate against Israel over the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, the US military told the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group to sail more quickly to the area. Early on Thursday, the US militarys Central Command said the Lincoln had reached the Middle Easts waters, without elaborating.

America has also ordered the USS Georgia-guided missile submarine into the Middle East, while the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier strike group was in the Gulf of Oman.

Additional F-22 fighter jets have flown into the region and the USS Wasp, a large amphibious assault ship carrying F-35 fighter jets, is in the Mediterranean Sea.
The body of technology tycoon Mike Lynch has been recovered after a luxury yacht sank off the coast of Sicily, as his 18-year-old daughter reportedly remains missing.

The Italian Coastguard confirmed to the PA news agency that the sixth and final person yet to be found is a woman.

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Mr Lynch, his daughter Hannah, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo, and his wife Neda Morvillo were lost when the Bayesian sank at around 5am on Monday.

Searches are continuing for businessman Mike Lynchs daughter Hannah (Jonathan Brady/PA)

The body of the fifth person recovered from the yachts wreckage was returned in a blue body bag to the port of Porticello on Thursday morning.

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Of the 22 passengers and crew on board, 15  including Mr Lynchs wife, Angela Bacares  were rescued after escaping on to a lifeboat.

The body of Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, who was working as a chef on the superyacht, was recovered at the scene of the sinking on Monday.

The boat trip was a celebration of Mr Lynchs acquittal in a fraud case in the US.

The businessman, who founded software giant Autonomy in 1996, was cleared in June of carrying out a massive fraud relating to its $11 billion sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

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Mr Lynch had family roots in Ireland, his father was from Co Cork and his mother was from Co Tipperary.
An orphan chimpanzee has been rescued from the illegal bushmeat trade in the Republic of Congo and delivered to her new home at a UK animal sanctuary by courier.

Chocolat spent 20 years in Kenya, being looked after by her original rescuer, after her family were hunted and killed when she was an infant.

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Now DHL Express has delivered her to Monkey World in Dorset in a tailor-made VIP crate.

Chocolat has arrived at Monkey World!

Well be posting updates on this epic rescue throughout today, but you can read the full story and watch Alisons explanation of the whole rescue on our website!



 https://t.co/dYIlJDNINp pic.twitter.com/sqisNG8RJJ  Monkey World Dorset (@MWApeRescue) August 22, 2024 Advertisement

The journey, which was planned to reduce the amount of time Chocolat spent in transit, began at Nairobi airport on August 15th and involved a brief stop in Bahrain before arriving at East Midlands Airport the following day, with the chimp then being transported to Monkey World by road.

A DHL spokeswoman said: Throughout the journey, DHL Express provided Chocolat with VIP service, transporting her in a custom-built crate supported by a team of specialist keepers, aircraft engineers, cargo handlers, security personnel, and pilots.

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Throughout the trip, Chocolat snacked on fresh fruit, nuts and sweet potato.

Orphan chimpanzee Chocolat on board the DHL aircraft in a tailor-made VIP crate (DHL Express/Monkey World/PA)

At Monkey World, keepers have upgraded Chocolats enclosure, including lower platforms, new nesting areas, and cargo nets, which have been designed to make it as accessible as possible.

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Monkey World director Dr Alison Cronin said Were so happy to welcome Chocolat.

The reason we exist is to offer a nurturing environment for chimpanzees and other primates and to give them back a fraction of what has been taken from them by humans, providing them with a family again.

Monicah cared for Chocolat in Kenyar for more than 20 years (G Cotman/Monkey World/PA)

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Companionship of their own kind is vital to chimpanzees wellbeing, as they are social, intelligent animals.

Living in family groups in as natural an environment as possible is the best kind of rehabilitation we can provide to chimpanzees like Chocolat.

Her integration will be gradual, but her journey has been very smooth, thanks to the support of DHL and so far, she is settling in well.

Cain Moodie, of DHL Express in Europe, said: It has been an honour to help Chocolat the chimp relocate to her new home at Monkey World.

The logistics of transporting her were quite challenging, but our team of experts, in collaboration with Monkey World and her carers in Kenya, took every possible measure to ensure her journey was safe and comfortable.

Its a real pleasure for everyone at DHL when we can use our skills and network to contribute to projects such as this.
A court in Pakistan has allowed investigators to question a man in their custody for four more days about his role in spreading misinformation that sparked rioting in the UK.

The courts decision came a day after authorities charged the suspect Farhan Asif, 32, with cyber terrorism following his arrest from his home in Lahore, the capital of eastern Punjab province.

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Asif, who is a freelance web developer, was produced before the court amid tight security. He was not allowed to talk to the media.

Kiran Muqeem, a prosecutor for the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), told the court that Asif did not co-operate with officers after the same court the previous day allowed them to question him for a day. They demanded his custody for two weeks but the court said it would only allow it for four more days.



Plainclothes police officers escort Farhan Asif, centre, after his court appearance, in Lahore, Pakistan (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

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Mr Muqeem later told reporters that Asif disseminated fake news and caused riots in parts of the UK.

Asif was handcuffed and wearing blue shalwar kameez garments when brought to the court.

His lawyer Rana Rizwan told reporters that the court remanded his client into the custody of the federal agency in a hurry and without hearing him.

We were informed by the court that the case of Asif would be taken up after lunch break. But the court took up the matter before the lunch break, and allowed the FIA to keep him in their custody, Mr Rizwan said.

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Asif is accused of spreading misinformation from YouTube and Facebook about the British teenage suspect in a stabbing attack that killed three girls and injured 10 other people on July 29 at a dance class in Southport.

The false information claimed that the suspect was a recently arrived asylum-seeker and had a name that suggested he was Muslim. After the misinformation led to a violent mob attacking a mosque near the site of the stabbing the next day, police took the unusual step of clarifying that the suspect was born in the UK.

British media has widely reported that his parents are from Rwanda and are said to have Christian beliefs. Channel3 Now, an account on the X social media platform that purports to be a news channel, was one of the first outlets to report the false name, Ali Al-Shakati.

A Facebook account for the channel said it is managed by people in Pakistan and the US. But, officials say Asif was solely running Channel3 Now, and he spread misinformation to gain more viewers.
A Ukrainian drone attack has caused a fire at a military facility in southern Russia.

The attack comes as Kyiv continues its offensive in the Kursk region where it has taken territory and prisoners, and struck key infrastructure including bridges, airfields and oil depots.

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Andrei Bocharov, governor of the Volgograd region, said on Thursday that a defence ministry facility was on fire after being attacked by drones in the area of Marinovka, in a sign that Ukraine is not letting up on its attacks. He did not specify what was damaged.

Ukraine attacked Russia overnight with 28 drones, Russias Ministry of Defence said. Thirteen were shot down over the Volgograd region, seven over the Rostov region, four over the Belgorod region, two over the Voronezh region, and one each over the Bryansk and Kursk regions, the ministry said.

Russian Telegram channels said drones attempted to attack a military air base near Marinovka in the village of Oktyabrsky. Videos shared on Russian social media showed an explosion in the night sky, reportedly near the base. Marinovka is about 185 miles east of the Ukrainian border and about the same distance west from the border with Kazakhstan.

Ukraine did not acknowledge the attacks but it comes as Kyiv continues a ground offensive in Russias Kursk region that has rattled the Kremlin. The daring operation is the largest attack on Russia since the Second World War and could involve as many as 10,000 Ukrainian troops backed by armour and artillery, military analysts say.

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This satellite photo from Planet Labs PBC shows a fire at an oil depot earlier hit by a drone attack near Proletarsk, Russia, on Monday (Planet Labs PBC via AP)

The Baza Telegram channel, which is close to Russian law enforcement, said one drone was taken down several miles from the airfield and that wreckage from another fell on a trailer near the air base, causing it to catch fire.

Data from Nasa fire satellites, which monitor Earth for forest blazes, showed fires breaking out around the air bases apron, where fighter jets have previously been seen parked.

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Another fire burned on Thursday in Russias Rostov region, where firefighters struggled for the fifth day to put out a fire at an oil depot in the town of Proletarsk caused by a Ukrainian drone attack on Sunday.

Russian state television channels have largely avoided covering the attack. Russian Orthodox priests visited Proletarsk to pray for injured firefighters.

Independent Russian Telegram channels said another powerful explosion was heard on Wednesday evening and shared videos of a fireball burning in the night sky. State news agency Tass said 47 people were injured while putting out the blaze, but firefighters succeeded in stopping fires in six fuel tanks.

Satellite photos from Planet Labs PBC analysed on Thursday by The Associated Press showed the fire at the oil depot still intensely burning as of Wednesday. Storage tanks at the facility appeared engulfed in flames. Visible flames could be seen in the images, with a thick black smoke cloud drifting west over the city of Proletarsk.

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This satellite photo from Planet Labs PBC shows a fire at an oil depot earlier hit by a Ukrainian drone attack near Proletarsk (Planet Labs PBC via AP)

In Russias Kursk region where Ukraine is still trying to push forward, the Kursk acting governor Alexei Smirnov said that authorities began putting up concrete shelters at bus stops and other locations around the city on Thursday to protect from shelling.

He said similar work will be done in Zheleznogorsk and Kurchatov, where the Kursk nuclear power plant is located.
The Biden administration will send around 125 million dollars in new military aid to Ukraine, US officials have said.

It comes as Washington works to get a better understanding of Kyivs incursion into Russia and how it advances the broader battlefield goals more than two years into the war.

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US officials said the latest package of aid includes air defence missiles, munitions for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), Javelins and an array of other anti-armour missiles, counter-drone and counter-electronic warfare systems and equipment, 155mm and 105mm artillery ammunition, vehicles and other equipment.



Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, centre and Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrsky, right, look at a map during their visit to Sumy, Ukraine (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office/AP)

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the aid has not been publicly announced.

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The formal announcement could come as soon as Friday, which is the eve of Ukraines Independence Day.

The weapons are being provided through presidential drawdown authority, which means they are taken from Pentagon stockpiles and can be delivered more quickly.

The aid comes as Ukrainian forces continue to broaden their surprise offensive into Russia, where officials say they have taken about 100 square kilometres (62 square miles) of territory around Kursk.

Russian troops, meanwhile, are making gains in the east, around the Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, a critical logistics hub.

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Pentagon officials have said repeatedly that the US has been talking with Ukrainian leaders to get a better assessment of their longer-term goals for the Kursk operation, particularly as they see Russia advancing near Pokrovsk.

If Pokrovsk falls, the defeat would imperil Ukraines defences and bring Russia closer to its stated aim of capturing the Donetsk region.

Russian soldiers are now just 10 kilometres (6.2 miles) away.

Asked about the Kursk operation, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said on Thursday that we are still working with Ukraine on how that fits into their strategic objectives on the battlefield itself.

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The US, she said, understands that Ukraine wants to build a buffer zone along the border, but the administration still has more questions about how it furthers Ukraines broader war effort.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made his first visit to the border area, where his forces launched the offensive on August 6, on Thursday.

He said Kyivs military had taken control of another Russian village and captured more prisoners of war.

The latest package of aid brings the total amount of US security assistance to Ukraine to more than 55.7 billion dollars since Russias invasion in February 2022.
Venezuelas Supreme Court has backed President Nicolas Maduros claims that he won last months presidential election and said voting tallies published online showing he lost by a landslide were forged.

The ruling is the latest attempt by Mr Maduro to blunt protests and international criticism that erupted after the contested July 28 vote in which the self-proclaimed socialist leader was seeking a third six-year term.

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The high court is packed with Maduro loyalists and has almost never ruled against the government.



Supreme Court President Caryslia Rodriguez speaks at the court which is performing an audit of the disputed results of the presidential election in Caracas, Venezuela (Ariana Cubillos/AP)

Its ruling, read Thursday in an event attended by senior officials and foreign diplomats, came in response a request by Mr Maduro to review vote totals that he claimed  without evidence  was marred by a foreign cyberattack staged by hackers from North Macedonia.

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The main opposition coalition has accused Mr Maduro of trying to steal the vote.

Thanks to a superb ground game on election day, opposition volunteers managed to collect copies of voting tallies from 80% of the 30,000 polling booths nationwide and which show opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez won by a more than 2-to-1 margin.

The official tally sheets printed by each voting machine carry a QR code that make it easy for anyone to verify the results and are almost impossible to replicate.

The high courts ruling certifying the results contradicts the findings of experts from the United Nations and the Carter Centre who were invited to observe the election and which both determined the results announced by authorities lacked credibility.

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Specifically, the outside experts noted that authorities did not release a breakdown of results by each of the 30,000 voting booths nationwide, as they have in almost every previous election.

Mr Gonzalez was the only one of 10 candidates who did not participate in the Supreme Courts audit, a fact noted by the justices, who in their ruling accused him of trying to spread panic.

Numerous foreign governments, including the US as well as several leftist allies of Mr Maduro, have called on authorities to release the full breakdown of results.

Gabriel Boric, the leftist president of Chile and one of the main critics of Mr Maduros election gambit, lambasted the high courts certification.

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Today, Venezuelas TSJ has finally consolidated the fraud, he said on his X account, referring to the initials of the high court.

The Maduro regime obviously welcomes with enthusiasm its ruling there is no doubt that we are facing a dictatorship that falsifies elections.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has toured the Ukrainian region of Sumy in his first visit to the border since his forces entered Russian territory more than two weeks ago.

After a meeting with Ukraines military commander, Mr Zelensky said Ukrainian forces have claimed control of another settlement in the Russian region of Kursk and taken more Russian prisoners of war whom he hopes to exchange for captured Ukrainians. He referred to that as Ukraines exchange fund.

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Another settlement in the Kursk region is now under Ukrainian control, and we have replenished the exchange fund, Mr Zelensky wrote on the social media platform X after hearing a report from the military commander, Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi.

While he travelled close to the area of the Ukrainian incursion into Russia, he did not go into Russia itself  a move that would have been regarded by Moscow as a provocation. He has previously said that Ukraine has no plan to occupy the area long-term but wants to create a buffer zone to prevent further attacks from that area into Ukraine.





I visited the border area of the Sumy region and held a meeting with Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi and the Head of the Sumy Regional Military Administration.



The Commander-in-Chief reported on the operational situation across all active combat zones, with a particular focus on the pic.twitter.com/GvaCEAUBBj Advertisement  Volodymyr Zelenskyy /   (@ZelenskyyUa) August 22, 2024

After his meeting with local military authorities, Mr Zelensky said the Kursk operation launched on August 6 has led to a decrease in Russian shelling and a reduction in civilian casualties in Ukraines northern Sumy region.

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The daring Ukrainian foray into the Kursk region has rattled the Kremlin, showing Russias vulnerability and shattered President Vladimir Putins efforts to pretend that the country has been largely unaffected by the two-and-a-half-year war.

Authorities in Kursk began to put up concrete shelters at bus stops and other locations around the city to protect it from shelling and plan similar work in Zheleznogorsk and Kurchatov, where the Kursk nuclear power plant is located, the regions acting governor Alexei Smirnov said on his Telegram channel.

Mr Putin said in a video call with officials that he has ordered the creation of self-defence units in Russian regions bordering Ukraine.

Mr Smirnov reported to Mr Putin that more than 133,000 people have left areas affected by the fighting in the Kursk region, while more than 19,000 have stayed.

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The governor of Bryansk, another Russian region bordering Ukraine, said authorities in the region have conducted training for emergency evacuation from border areas in case it is needed.

Separately, Russias Defence Ministry reported repelling Ukrainian attacks near the villages of Komarovka, Malaya Loknya, Korenevka and several other settlements in the Kursk region.



A Russian serviceman aims an anti-drone gun in an undisclosed location (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)

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Ukraines capture of Russian territory comes as the country continues to lose ground in eastern Ukraine. The Russian Defence Ministry said on Thursday that its military has claimed control of the village of Mezhove in Donetsk, part of the industrial Donbas region which Moscow seeks to take entirely.

Ukraines push into Russia marks the first capture of Russian territory since the Second World War.

It comes as both sides in the war use drones to attack far within enemy lines.

Ukraine attacked Russia overnight with 28 drones, Russias Ministry of Defence said. Thirteen were shot down over the Volgograd region, seven over the Rostov region, four over the Belgorod region, two over the Voronezh region, and one each over the Bryansk and Kursk regions, the ministry said.

Andrei Bocharov, governor of the Volgograd region, said on Thursday that a defence ministry facility was on fire after being attacked by drones in the area of Marinovka, in a sign that Ukraine is not letting up on its attacks. He did not specify what was damaged.

Videos shared on Russian social media showed an explosion in the night sky, reportedly near the base. Marinovka is about 185 miles east of the Ukrainian border.

Ukraine claimed responsibility for the attack.

Ukraines Security Service and the Special Operation Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine conducted the drone attack on Wednesday night striking the Marinovka airfield in Russia, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press.

The Baza Telegram channel, which is close to Russian law enforcement, said one drone was taken down several miles from the airfield and that wreckage from another fell on a trailer near the air base, causing it to catch fire.



This satellite photo from Planet Labs PBC shows a fire at an oil depot earlier hit by a drone attack near Proletarsk, Russia, on Monday (Planet Labs PBC via AP)

Data from Nasa fire satellites, which monitor Earth for forest blazes, showed fires breaking out around the air bases apron, where fighter jets have previously been seen parked.

Another fire burned on Thursday in Russias Rostov region, where firefighters struggled for the fifth day to put out a fire at an oil depot in the town of Proletarsk. State news agency Tass said 47 firefighters have been injured while putting out the blaze.

Satellite photos from Planet Labs PBC analysed on Thursday by The Associated Press showed the fire at the oil depot still intensely burning as of Wednesday. Storage tanks at the facility appeared engulfed in flames. Visible flames could be seen in the images, with a thick black smoke cloud drifting west over the city of Proletarsk.
Tamela Mann - "Live Breathe Fight" | TKO Publicity

[DALLAS August 21, 2024]  Renowned gospel artist Tamela Mann is set to release her highly anticipated new album, "Live Breathe Fight," on Friday, October 11. This album marks an exhilarating new chapter in the Grammy winners illustrious career, showcasing not only her extraordinary vocal talent but also her significant growth as a songwriter. Mann is coming off the heels of appearances this month at the prestigious Stellar Awards, where she performed her new single Working For Me from the album; and the National Urban League Conference, where she and her husband David Mann received the President's Award, the National Urban Leagues highest honor.

I want the Lord to be proud of the work Im doing and the ways Im using the gift that Hes given me. Live like heaven is your destiny, breathe every breath with purpose, and fight until you get the victory, Mann says, encapsulating the spirit of her new album.

"Live Breathe Fight" heralds Tamelas message of surrendering to Gods will and fighting for a life of purpose and fulfillment. The albums first single, Working for Me (currently #11 and rapidly climbing the Gospel charts), is a heartfelt anthem reflecting Manns personal journey and belief that despite lifes challenges, God is always working for our good. Tamela Mann takes listeners on an emotional and spiritual journey with tracks like Power, which speaks to the strength found in Jesus, and Lord I Trust You, emphasizing the importance of casting our burdens on the Lord.

LIVE BREATHE FIGHT - TRACK LISTING:

Working For Me All Things Live Breathe Fight Carry On Hand On Me Forever Lord I Trust You Deserve To Win Power Live Big Facts

Manns latest project is not only lyrically profound but also sonically diverse. With a mix of upbeat tracks, soulful ballads, and a hint of country influence  a nod to her Texas roots, "Live Breathe Fight" stands out as one of her most adventurous and confident works to date. Collaborating with producers Jevon Hill and Phillip Bryant, Mann has meticulously crafted an album that resonates with heartfelt worship and raw emotion.

Dont miss the release of "Live Breathe Fight" on October 11, as Tamela Mann continues to inspire and uplift with her powerful music.

For the latest updates on Tamela Mann:

Website: www.tillymannmusic.com

Facebook: @DavidTamelaMann

Instagram: @DavidandTamela

X: @DavidandTamela

TikTok Tamela Mann: @TheRealTamelaMann
Beyond the Dream: Unstoppable, Curtis McGrath 

Monday, 8.45pm, Nine

The late disability activist Stella Young was outspoken on the scourge of inspiration porn  the tendency of the media to tell disabled peoples stories in a way that celebrated them as special simply for doing the same things that able-bodied people did. There are times when the coverage of disability can be othering and patronising to its subjects, and times when the purpose of telling those stories seems to be more about making the rest of us feel good about ourselves, our kindness and compassion, rather than truly illuminating the lives of disabled people and the challenges they face.

Any documentary about disabled people runs the risk of descending to inspiration porn, and Beyond The Dream: Unstoppable, the story of Olympic paracanoeist Curtis McGrath, is not immune to the pitfalls. Some of the uplifting soundtrack choices are a little on the nose, and there is the odd condescending moment. But there is a massive strength in this doco, and it is the fact that its subject is truly extraordinary. This is a celebration of a man doing the remarkable, not just of doing the everyday while disabled.

Curtis McGrath training in gym.

Unlike some of the docos in the Beyond the Dream series, it also does what outstanding documentary should: shine a light on the lesser-known or rarely told stories. As marvellous as our Matildas and Olympic swimming teams are, theyre familiar. Many people, conversely, will be unfamiliar with Curtis McGrath, and his story will be as fresh as it is amazing.
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Exclusive Eating outMelbourne icon We want to replicate that spirit: Fitzroys legendary Punters Club reopens after 22 years  and it still rocks The Brunswick Street icon relaunches today with a menu that plays on pub classics, affordable drinks and a cracking line-up of free gigs from musicians old and new. Tomas Telegramma August 22, 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 September 2024 hit list. See all stories .

From the late 80s to the early noughties, the Punters Club  on Fitzroys Brunswick Street  was a linchpin of Melbournes live music scene. The grit and grunge were as bona fide as the carpets were beer-soaked, and gigs ran the genre gamut, making it a launchpad for such bands as Something for Kate, Spiderbait, Magic Dirt and You Am I. 1 / 9 The Punters Club is back where it belongs in Brunswick Street. Justin McManus 2 / 9 The beers are ready to be poured at Punters Club. Justin McManus 3 / 9 The stairway to rock heaven at Punters Club. Justin McManus 4 / 9 The new main bar at Punters Club. Justin McManus 5 / 9 The horseshoe bar will be serving classic pub drinks. Justin McManus 6 / 9 Inside the new Punters Club. Justin McManus 7 / 9 The booths are sure to be prime spots for punters. Justin McManus 8 / 9 The tuna tartare in a bag of Smiths chips. Justin McManus 9 / 9 Kangaroo schnitzel with mash and pepper sauce at Punters Club. Justin McManus Previous Slide Next Slide It left a gaping hole when it closed in 2002. Fast-forward 22 years and a framed photo of the Punters final night hangs on the wall of a new incarnation of the pub, which reopens today with a new team but the same name. The anticipation has been mounting since they announced the news a few months ago. You cant replicate something thats 22 years gone, co-owner Nathan Farrell tells Good Food. We want to replicate that spirit ... And hopefully be open for another 20 years.

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The booths are sure to be prime spots for punters. Justin McManus Leading the charge is Jason Cameron, owner of Near & Fear Bar across the road, whos recruited a multi-talented team: drinks whiz Matthew Francis and chef Dylan Marshall (both Marquis of Lorne) and branding expert Britt King. Spearheading the music side of things is Mark Wilson, bassist in enduring Melbourne band Jet, as well as Farrell and Adam Booth, founders of music-management agency Calibre. I dont think this pub should be called anything else. Its a love letter. Matthew Francis, co-owner For most of the years since the Punters closure, the site traded as good-times bar Bimbo Deluxe before transitioning to Kewpie, under Australian Venue Co, in 2021.

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Its been completely stripped back, with a frontage that convincingly replicates the original Punters, timber panelling throughout the interior and a nostalgic poolroom. I dont think this pub should be called anything else, says Francis. Its a love letter. What made the Punters was the music. So, reimagining the programming approach  with a 2024 audience in mind  was a delicate process for the team. Its about understanding and respecting the legacy, trying to enhance it, but moving forward [with] contemporary acts and really diverse Melbourne-leaning stuff, says Farrell. The easy-drinking house Punters Draught made by The Mill Brewery in Collingwood. Justin McManus

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Both free and unticketed, the inaugural line-up kicks off tonight with the funk-forward Harvey Sutherland, but also features homecoming gigs of sorts for the likes of indie-pop duo Frente! and Aussie music royalty Dave Graney, who played the Punters in its heyday. Meanwhile, the kitchen that once churned out Bimbos famous $5 pizzas now does pub grub with a bit of extra panache. Yes, theres a classic chicken (or eggplant) parma. But also a fancified Filet-o-Fish, South Melbourne Market dim sims with Lao Gan Ma chilli oil, and a minute steak served British-style  with brown sauce, chips and a fried egg. Tuna tartare in a bag of Smiths crisps is on the menu at Punters Club. Justin McManus And as an ode to the Scenic, the Adelaide Hills pub where chef Marshall made his mark, there are spins on two signatures: tuna tartare in a slashed-open packet of Smiths salt-and-vinegar chips, and a kangaroo schnitzel with mash and pepper sauce. Booze is accessible and affordable, with the easy-drinking house Punters Draught made by The Mill Brewery in Collingwood, and a handful of tap wines  by small local producers like the Yarra Valleys Fin and SAs Alpha Box & Dice  from $12 a glass. And with late-night fun part of the play, itll trade until 3am on Friday and Saturday nights.

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Kangaroo schnitzel with mash and pepper sauce at Punters Club. Justin McManus Once downstairs is running smoothly, the focus will shift to phase two: opening upstairs. The centrepiece of the darts room will be a jukebox full of CDs of artists from the original Punters era, while the old rooftop will get a refresh before reopening in spring. But most exciting will be the 100-person ticketed band room, clad in timber so you feel like youre in a recording studio, says Farrell. Downstairs [programming] needs to be curated really well because whoevers on stage commands the pub. Up here, we can have a bit more fun ... with up-and-coming [artists] and more genre-diverse bills. Punters Club reopens Thursday, August 22, at 4pm. Open Tue-Thu 4pm-late; Fri-Sat noon-3am; Sun noon-late 376 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy, puntersclubfitzroy.com
A brave 11-year-old Australian girl has spoken about her terrifying ordeal after she was grabbed in a headlock and stabbed eight times in Londons busy Leicester Square.

Laila Johnson was on a trip with her mother, Samantha, exploring London after travelling to see the Matildas play in the Olympic Games in Paris, when the pair were allegedly confronted by homeless man Ioan Pintaru.

Laila Johnson survived a stabbing attack in London. Credit: Facebook

Pintaru allegedly attacked Laila with a steak knife as her mother tried to shield her daughter.

Im still so scared, it was awful. I couldnt sleep, Laila told Ben Fordham on 2GB.
The state government will tip $17 million into expanding its Housing Diversity Pipeline program to allow developers to propose sites for the delivery of new homes on government owned lazy land.

Under the expanded program, the state government would consider any developer-led proposals for new housing on underutilised land, provided it is not already earmarked for future roads, schools or other amenity, or subject to a first mover advantage situation.

The reforms, aimed at increasing housing supply as the state grapples with an acute housing shortage, would allow the construction of 1700 new apartments.

Planning Minister John Carey. Credit: Hamish Hastie

A new rapid expression of interest process opened on Thursday. The EOI will be open for eight weeks, and will include a fast-fail approach to determine whether the land is required for future government use.
Australia will begin producing long-range strike missiles within three years as part of an $850 million plan to make the nation less dependent on importing military equipment from overseas.

Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy announced on Thursday that the federal government will partner with Norwegian defence giant Kongsberg to manufacture modern naval strike missiles and joint strike missiles with a range over 275 kilometres near Newcastle in the NSW Hunter Valley.

Australia will begin making its own naval strike missiles after signing a deal with Norwegian defence firm Kongsberg. Credit: Kongsberg

The munitions factory at the Newcastle airport precinct  which is scheduled to open in 2026 and begin manufacturing missiles in 2027  will be the first of its kind outside Norway.

The project is expected to create 500 jobs in the Hunter Valley and open up opportunities for Australian-made missiles to be exported overseas once the nation has built up a domestic stockpile.
NSW Liberal leader Mark Speakman has spared senior frontbencher Alister Henskens from the sack after hours of crisis talks over claims the shadow attorney-general had branded the under-pressure opposition leader a liar.

In a statement late on Thursday night, Henskens denied conveying that Speakman had been dishonest in text messages divulged on Ray Hadleys mid-morning 2GB program, and said moving forward it was incumbent on Liberal shadow ministers to hold the government to account.

Alister Henskens and Mark Speakman. Credit: James Brickwood; Kate Geraghty.

In a text message which was read out on radio this morning, I did not convey, nor did I intend to convey that Mark Speakman was dishonest. Rather I disagreed with Marks honestly held opinion of responsibility for the local government failure by head office, he said.

It is incumbent on all Liberal MPs to concentrate on holding the Minns Labor government to account, which requires teamwork and loyalty. This requires that, going forward, every member of shadow cabinet refrain from speaking or backgrounding against decisions or actions of the leader, the shadow cabinet, the Liberal Party Room, or the Coalition joint party room.
Travel quiz: Which airline was named the worlds best for 2024?

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Instead, you can now more-or-less book a flight, pack your passport and go, providing you stay fewer than 15 days and travel for tourism, businesses or family reunion purposes. This visa-free scheme, which runs until December 31, 2025, was announced during Chinese Premier Li Qiangs visit to Australia earlier this year  part of the same soft diplomacy, back in the good books package that secured Adelaide Zoo two new pandas. So, has there been an explosion of Australian tourism in China? Visitors gather to see the Forbidden City during sunset at Jingshan Park in Beijing. Credit: Bloomberg Its difficult to say, but there are several indications to suggest China is a long way off becoming the jewel of Asia for Australians. And youll have to pry many a Bintang from cold dead hands to knock Bali off the top of the travel list. This years annual Lowy Institute survey, which measures Australians attitudes towards the world, revealed people continue to harbour low levels (17 per cent) of trust towards China, while 71 per cent think China will become a military threat to Australia in the next 20 years.

This overall negative sentiment was also reflected in polling published by American think-tank Pew Research Center in July. It found 85 per cent of Australians had an unfavourable view of China, with just 14 per cent holding a positive view. Loading Almost two months into the visa-free scheme, there is little hard data available to gauge interest levels. The most recent immigration figures published by the Department of Home Affairs are from the end of May, when just over 12,000 Australians had returned home from a holiday in China. But the department cautions this data may be incomplete, and relies on self-reporting. Nonetheless, its an extremely low starting base  in the same month more than 66,000 Australians holidayed in Japan. At the Chinese end, the government publishes immigration statistics, which state that 17.2 million foreigners visited the country in the first six months of this year, but doesnt break it down by country. My queries to the Chinese embassy on the uptake of the visa-free travel went unanswered.

More anecdotally, tour company Intrepid Travel says it has seen a boom in demand for their China tours. It was an immediate uptick. Our sales [of China tours] went up 133 per cent just in that week alone, says Yvette Thompson, Intrepids general manager of sales and marketing for Australia and New Zealand. China had been off the travel radar for some time. We go to over 100 countries, but now its ranking at number 13, and thats the highest weve ever seen it. But it is a pretty safe conclusion that the volatile Australia-China relationship, and extensive media coverage of the ever-tightening authoritarian grip of the Chinese state over its citizens under President Xi Jinping has dampened a few appetites. Not to mention the suspended death sentence that hangs over Chinese-Australian democracy writer Yang Hengjun who is languishing in a Beijing jail. Or the hefty sentence likely awaiting Australian citizen Gordon Ng who is jailed in Hong Kong for his role in a democracy protest that was snuffed out by Beijings national security laws. And the treatment of Australian journalist Cheng Lei, who endured three-years in a Beijing jail on vague national security charges before being freed last year after extensive lobbying by Australian officials.

The visa-free travel announcement has given Chinese state media renewed opportunity to paint the Western reporting of China as one-eyed. The sense of contrast is the most intuitive feeling of many foreign tourists after enjoying Chinas great rivers and mountains and breathing the air of Chinese culture. Some foreign travel bloggers even said that they have been cheated by Western media, the state-run Xinhua news agency said in a recent report. Far from being part of a conspiracy, Australian journalists remain largely confined to reporting the China story through the lens of geopolitics, due to the Chinese governments decision to deny them entry  bar a few tightly controlled occasions  to report from within the country. The story of Chinas rise, its competition with the United States, and its territorial ambitions, is reshaping global politics. It may well be the biggest story of the 21st century, but its not the only one. China is a country of a more than a billion people, its vastness and depth of history and culture are difficult to comprehend from afar. Id be on a plane tomorrow if I could. In the meantime, please enjoy this magnificent photo taken by colleague Sanghee Liu in early August of the Perseid meteor shower lighting up the night sky over the Amne Machin mountain range, a sacred Tibetan Buddhist site, in north-west Chinas Qinghai Province.
Porticello, Sicily: The body of British tech magnate Mike Lynch has been retrieved from the wreck of his family yacht that sank this week off the coast of Sicily during a violent storm, a senior Italian official said.

Lynchs 18-year-old daughter Hannah was still unaccounted for, Interior Ministry official Massimo Mariani told Reuters on Friday (AEST) after being briefed by the emergency services.

Rescue divers deliver a fifth body bag to the shore after recovery from the luxury yacht Bayesian, which sank off the coast of Porticello, Sicily. Credit: Bloomberg

The British-flagged Bayesian, a 56-metre-long super yacht carrying 22 passengers and crew, was anchored off the port of Porticello, near Palermo, when it disappeared beneath the waves in minutes after bad weather struck early on Monday.

Lynch, 59, was one of the UKs best-known tech entrepreneurs and had invited friends to join him on the yacht to celebrate his acquittal in June in a UK fraud trial.
Kyiv: Vladimir Putins regime has launched a propaganda campaign describing the presence of Ukrainian troops on Russian soil as the new normal.

The Kremlins messaging is directed at the local Russian population and suggests that Moscow expects the surprise occupation of its territory to last for months.

Ukrainian soldiers are seen outside a shop in Sudzha, Russia. Early this month, Ukrainian forces made a surprise incursion into Russias Kursk region from where Russia has been forced to evacuate more than 130,000 people. Credit: Getty Images

As Ukraine expands its military gains in the Kursk region, the Russian government has been trying to downplay the significance of the incursion, which began more than two weeks ago.

The new propaganda effort is designed to paint the occupation as the new normal to settle the public mood, the independent Russian outlet Meduza reported, citing government sources.
Hyde said that investors within the top investment areas had benefited from the depreciation benefits every year that were worth thousands of dollars. He noted that over the top 10 locations, the annual taxation benefits could range from $2,500 to more than $7,000. The number depended on the propertys type as well as its location.
Hindalco Industries ongoing expansion plans entail an investment of $10 billion, said KM Birla, the companys chairman. In addition to ongoing expansion at Novelis, this investment also entails plans for aluminium and copper smelter expansions.

Birla, while speaking at the companys annual general meeting (AGM) on Thursday, said, Our expansions across the India business and Novelis, will entail investments of $10 billion for ongoing projects as well as the ones envisioned in the near-term. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp

He added, This includes the aluminium and copper smelter expansions, the Aditya FRP plant, the new alumina refinery in Rayagada, and the Bay Minnette expansion in Novelis.

Elaborating on each, he noted, Hindalco also has plans to expand its copper smelting capacity and is exploring setting up a brownfield facility in Gujarat to meet the growing needs of the country for this critical metal.

Commenting on the rationale to expand on aluminium and copper, he said, Hindalco is committed to pioneering the green transition in India while enabling Indias growth aspirations. This would mean taking big, bold steps across our operations -- from upstream to downstream.

Birla noted, Hindalco is setting up a greenfield alumina refinery in Rayagada, Odisha.

The first phase of 850,000 tonnes is expected to be commissioned in FY27. He also highlighted Hindalco is also evaluating a nearly 200,000 tonne-brownfield expansion at its Aditya Aluminium smelter in Odisha.

For the Bay Minnette project he added, We have already secured long-term contracts for all the new beverage packaging capacity at this plant, which is expected to begin commissioning in the second half of calendar year 2026.

Birla expects Indias aluminium consumption -- which was at 5 million tonnes in FY24 -- to double to approximately 10 million tonnes over the next decade.

He added, We expect copper consumption to grow by 10% over the next few years.

On the companys capital allocation strategy, Birla said, Hindalco continues to execute its well-structured capital allocation plan, directing free cash flow towards organic growth and dividend distribution. Despite repaying Rs 5,195 crore of debt in the Hindalco India business during the year, Hindalco maintained a strong balance sheet and solid liquidity. This positions us well to drive our future organic growth plans through prudent capital allocation.
China ready to join Russia for stronger all-round practical cooperation -- Chinese premier

Xinhua) 09:01, August 22, 2024

MOSCOW, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang said here Wednesday that China is ready to work with Russia to strengthen all-round practical cooperation between the two countries, and push the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era to a new level.

Li made the remarks when co-chairing the 29th regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.

In recent years, under the strategic guidance of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin, China-Russia relations have achieved high-quality development at a high level, and bilateral cooperation in various fields has continued to show strong resilience and steadily moved forward, he said.

China, Li said, is ready to work with Russia to follow the strategic guidance of the two heads of state and take the opportunity of the 75th anniversary of diplomatic ties to uphold mutual respect, mutual trust, everlasting friendship and mutual benefit.

For his part, Mishustin said Russia is ready to work with China to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, continue to deepen mutual trust, expand cooperation in investment, energy, economy and trade, culture and sub-national areas, and ensure the success of the Russia-China Years of Culture.

He also pledged that Russia will join China in strengthening communication and coordination in international affairs, better safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of the two sides, and pushing forward the bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
The minister also issued a Letter of Intent (LoI) to the concessionaires for its special economic zone (SEZ).

Union Minister for Ports, Shipping, and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal on Thursday said that the container handling facility at Jawaharlal Nehru Port is being scaled up to 10 million TEUs. Speaking with reporters after reviewing various infrastructure and development projects at the port, the minister also said that the upcoming Vadhvan Port in the Palghar district of Maharashtra would generate 10 lakh jobs in the region. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp To be built as an all-weather port, the greenfield deep draft mega port will come up at an investment of Rs 76,200 crore. The minister said JNPA soon will have a container handling capacity of around 10 million TEUs.

A senior JNPA official said that the container handling capacity currently stands at 7.4 million TEUs, which will go up to 10.4 million TEUs by April next year.

Sonowal said that Jawaharlal Nehru Port has become the first 100 per cent landlord port in the country, adding that, "accordingly we are aiming for bigger and bigger ships at this facility."



He also said that the port has developed quality infrastructure an is going to become an eco-friendly Port.

A landlord port acts as a landlord and regulatory body while private companies handle port operations.

JNPA also announced the signing of two MoUs -- one between the JNPA, Vadhvan Port, and REC for the disbursement of loans to support various infrastructure projects.

While the other one is between JNPA and Gateway Terminals India (GTI) for the implementation of shore power supply for vessels. Both the MoUs were inked in the presence of the Minister.

The minister also issued a Letter of Intent (LoI) to the concessionaires for its special economic zone (SEZ).

Significantly, the port operator has allotted plots for its SEZ in seven phases.

The recent e-auction of phase seven for 57 acres of land, JNPA said, received a remarkable response, with 21 bidders submitting bids for six unit plots and three co-developer plots.

Moreover, there was an overall 95.23 per cent increase in quoted value for these plots attracted an overall 95.23 per cent higher price above the reserve price, resulting in a revenue increase of 63 per cent above the reserve price for the port, it said.

In FY24, according to the port operator, its SEZ was able to generate EXIM trade worth Rs 15,000 crore.

As part of the strategic engagements, JNPA also declared August 22, 2024 as the date of award of concession to the concessionaire of two additional liquid berth 3 and 4, which on completion will take the ports liquid cargo capacity to 11MM tons per annum from 6.5 MMTPA at present with two existing liquid cargo berths.

These two additional berths will be equipped, operated, maintained, and eventually transferred through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model.

For this expansion, JNPA had awarded a Letter of Intent was JSW Infrastructure Limited on February 19, 2024, and the Concession Agreement with the company was signed on April 8.

The minister also launched a Whatsapp chatbot for the Vadhvan skilling programme developed by INPAT to empower the local community and enhance workforce development. This tool is designed to facilitate access to skilling programs, provide information about Vadhvan Port among others.

Sonowal also said that the government has completed 230 projects under the Sagarmala Project so far while another 220 projects are under different stages of implementation. "So this is how we are progressing," he added.

Later the minister also undertook a review meeting with the Palghar District officials on the Vadhvan Port, the foundation stone for which will be laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 30, as per the JNPA official.
It was in August 2022 that Ford Motor Company exited India by winding up its manufacturing units. Even two years after the global automotive giant shut down its unit in Chennai, the same city, through Ford Business Solutions (FBS), is turning out to be the brain behind key design and development aspects of all the globally successful models by the US major in the past two years.

According to FBS, the companys top-selling models globally  including the F-Series, Explorer, Transit, Ranger, and others  are getting a touch of India in them through the design and development of specific components.

Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp

FBS oversees the global capabilities of the company through its 12,000 employees at its Global Technology & Business Center in Chennai.



The FBS team is assisting the global Ford team in computer-aided design, computer-aided engineering, and software development, an executive said in response to questions from Business Standard.



Interestingly, FBS is in the process of hiring around 3,000 more people in Chennai over a period of three years to increase its employee strength to 15,000.



We participate in the design/development of components and systems for electric vehicles, internal combustion engines, and hybrid vehicles in FBS, he said.



Among the above-mentioned models, the F-Series is one of Fords biggest moneymakers. During the first half of this year, it was the highest-selling passenger vehicle in the US and also Americas best-selling pickup truck for the 48th consecutive year. It reportedly sold over 750,000 trucks in 2023 and has already moved 352,406 in the first six months of this year.



Ford was again the no. 1 selling pickup manufacturer in the world in the second quarter of this year. The F-Series truck lineup remains Americas best-selling truck. Transit, Americas best-selling van, posted a new first-half sales record. Ford set an all-time record for sport utility vehicle (SUV) sales in the US during the first half of 2024, topping the previous record set in 2017, the executive said.

Not just in America, brands like Ford Ranger are the best-selling midsize pickup trucks in many markets, including Australia, New Zealand, and Europe.

We also support the development of the Ranger, which is one of Fords best-selling vehicles globally, he added.

Ford creates wonderful and valuable products and experiences that inspire passion and loyalty in every customer. Team members at FBS work closely with their counterparts in other markets and engineering centres to design and develop specific components, systems, and features (not the entire vehicle), he said.

Several of the products where the FBS team participated in development and design were recognised for their appeal amongst global consumers.

For example, the 2024 Ford F-Series Super Duty (part of the Ford Pro offering for commercial customers) is the most appealing large heavy-duty pickup in the JD Power 2024 US Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study.

In addition to this, Ford-brand SUVs had a record first half of 2024 on sales of 406,467  up 3 per cent, led by Explorer, Americas best-selling three-row SUV, with sales totalling 104,803. Ford India closed its manufacturing unit at Maraimalai Nagar in 2022.

Ford India announced the phasing out of its unit on September 9, 2021, and stopped production in August 2022.

FBS is the groups global talent office that supports all functions in the company. It has centres in Chennai, Mexico City, and Hungary, which support not only technology but also enterprise technology, global data insights and analytics, finance, and human resources, among others.
India overtook China as the world's biggest importer of Russian oil in July as Chinese refiners bought less because of lower profit margins from producing fuels, a comparison of import data showed.

Russian crude made up a record 44 per cent of India's overall imports last month, rising to a record 2.07 million barrels per day (bpd), 4.2 per cent higher than in June and 12 per cent more than a year ago, data on Indian shipments from trade and industry sources showed.

That surpassed China's July oil imports from Russia of 1.76 million bpd via pipelines and shipments, based on Chinese customs data.

Indian refiners have been gorging on Russian oil sold at discounts after Western nations imposed sanctions against Moscow and curtailed their energy purchases in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"India's requirement for Russian oil is going to go up as long as there are no further tightening of sanctions," an Indian refining source said.

India's trade with Russia has increased since Russia began its war against Ukraine in February 2022 mainly because of oil and fertiliser imports, a move helping to keep a lid on global prices and controlling inflation.

India's rising purchases are changing the flow of Russian ESPO Blend crude from traditional Chinese buyers to South Asia. ESPO imports to India jumped in July to 188,000 bpd as larger Suezmax vessels were used, according to the data.

Refiners in northeast China are typically the biggest ESPO buyers because of their close proximity, but their demand has fallen because of tepid fuel demand.

Iraq continued to be the second-largest oil supplier to India last month, followed by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

India's crude purchases from the Middle East rose 4 per cent in July, pushing up the region's share in India's overall mix to 40 per cent from 38 per cent in June, the data showed.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Baroda BNP Paribas Mutual Fund has launched a new scheme called Baroda BNP Paribas Dividend Yield Fund. The open-ended equity scheme will focus on dividend-yielding stocks, aiming to create wealth through both capital appreciation and dividend income. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp The fund will invest in companies that offer dividends and demonstrate consistent growth, said the company in a press statement. It will target businesses with predictable and stable cash flows, managed by teams that prioritise regular shareholder rewards. The investment approach involves a "rigorous" five-stage selection process to construct a market cap agnostic portfolio of reasonably priced companies, while actively avoiding potential dividend traps.

Dividend-paying companies tend to have a higher average return on equity than non-dividend-paying ones. In FY 2024, these dividend-paying companies had an average ROE [return on equity] of 20.5 per cent versus 13.4 per cent for non-dividend-paying companies, said Suresh Soni, chief executive officer of Baroda BNP Paribas AMC.

The fund's features include a focus on companies with higher free cash flow, which often correlates with positive share price performance. It also looks for promoter alignment with minority shareholders, as evidenced by consistent dividend payments.

Here are the details about the BNP Paribas Dividend Yield Fund:

Scheme name: BNP Paribas Dividend Yield Fund. The new fund offer is scheduled to open from August 22 to September 5, 2024.

Investment objective: The scheme aims to invest in companies with predictable and stable cash flows, led by managements that prioritise rewarding shareholders with regular dividends. The approach is to invest in growth companies that are also rewarding investors through regular dividends and buybacks.

Type of scheme: An open-ended equity scheme

Fund manager: Shiv Chanani will manage this new fund.

Benchmark: The scheme will be benchmarked against Nifty 500 - TRI.

Minimum application amount: The minimum investment amount is Rs 1,000 and in multiples of Re 1 thereafter. The minimum investment amount for daily, weekly, monthly SIP is Rs 500 and in multiples of Re 1 thereafter.

Load structure: The exit load applicable will be nil, if units of the scheme are redeemed or switched out up to 10 per cent of the units within one year from the date of allotment. An exit load of 1 per cent will be applicable if units of the scheme are redeemed or switched out in excess of the limit within one year from the date of allotment. If units of scheme are redeemed or switched out after one year from the date of allotment, the exit load applicable will be nil.
No more job hunting during your trip to Dubai or any other cities in UAE. The government has tightened its regulations to combat illegal employment practices, particularly targeting companies that hire workers on visit visas.

What happens if employers break the rules? Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp

Under the new labour law, companies that hire individuals without proper work permits now face steep fines. These fines range from AED 100,000 to AED 1 million (approximately Rs 23 lakh to Rs 2.3 crore). This is a massive increase from the previous fines, that were between AED 50,000 and AED 200,000.

Employers are strictly prohibited from:

* Hiring workers without providing guaranteed employment.

* Misusing work permits.

* Closing businesses without settling worker entitlements.

What UAE govt rule say on working on visit visas?

The UAE Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE) has made it clear: working on a visit or tourist visa is illegal. If youre planning to work in the UAE, you must have a valid employment visa issued by MOHRE.

Penalties for violating the labour law?

The penalties are severe for those who violate the new labour law. Here are the key points:

Fines: Companies face fines from AED 100,000 to AED 1 million for hiring workers without proper work permits, not providing jobs after bringing workers to the country, or closing businesses without settling worker rights.

Penalty multiplication: The fine increases with the number of workers involved in such violations.

Dispute resolution: Any disputes arising from these issues should be referred to the Court of First Instance if theres disagreement with MOHRE's decisions.

How can you work in the UAE legally?

To work in the UAE, you need a proper work visa. Heres a breakdown of the types of work visas available, particularly for Indian citizens:

Employment visa: Sponsored by a UAE-based company, this is the most common type of work visa. You need a job offer from a company, which will then sponsor your visa.

Investor visa: For those looking to start a business or invest in a company in UAE. Specific investment requirements must be met.

Freelancer visa: Ideal for those who want to work independently with multiple clients. Applicants need to demonstrate their skills through a portfolio or testimonials.

Mission visa: Issued to individuals employed by foreign missions, such as embassies or consulates, and is valid for the duration of their employment.

Domestic helper visa: For household workers, usually sponsored by the employer. Regulations and requirements for this visa may vary.

What do you need to apply for UAE work visa?

Valid passport: At least six months validity beyond your intended stay, with two blank pages.

Job offer: A confirmed offer from a UAE-based employer.

Educational qualifications: Depending on the job, you might need specific qualifications.

Experience and skillset: Ensure you meet the required experience criteria for your job.

Medical fitness certificate: A health check-up, including tests for infectious diseases, is mandatory.

Good conduct certificate: A police clearance certificate from your home country or any country youve lived in over the past five years.

Visa application form: Complete and accurate, with all supporting documents.

Passport-sized photos: As per the specifications provided by UAE authorities.

Financial documents: Proof of sufficient funds to support yourself during your stay.

Sponsorship: Most work visas require a sponsor, usually your employer, who will assist in the visa application process.

Heres a step-by-step guide to apply:

1. Determine the visa type: Choose the appropriate visa based on your employment status.

2. Find a sponsor: Your employer or company in UAE will serve as your sponsor.

3. Sign an employment contract: Outline the terms of your employment, including salary, benefits, and duration.

4. Medical fitness test: Undergo a health check-up at an authorised centre in India.

5. Collect required documents: Ensure you have a valid passport, photos, signed employment contract, attested educational and experience certificates, and a medical fitness certificate.

6. Online application: Visit the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) website and complete the application.

7. Pay the fees: Submit the visa processing fee online.

8. Submit your passport: You may need to submit your passport and supporting documents to a visa processing centre.

9. Application processing: Wait for your visa to be processed, which can take a few weeks.

10. Travel to UAE: Once approved, you can make travel arrangements and ensure all documents are in order for immigration clearance.

What are the costs involved?

Fees for a UAE work visa for Indian citizens:

Application fee: AED 300 (non-refundable)

Visa processing fee: AED 750

Medical examination fee: AED 250

Emirates ID fee: AED 370

Refundable deposit: AED 2,000 (paid by the employer)

Insurance coverage fee: Fluctuates

Translation and typing fee: Fluctuates

Courier charges: Fluctuates
Auto and taxi driver unions in Delhi-NCR have announced a strike beginning Thursday to protest against Ola and Uber, two app-based cab services. As a result, the Capital city is likely to face major transportation issues for the next two days. Over 15 unions from Delhi-NCR are reportedly organising the auto and taxi driver strike on August 22 and 23.

Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp Auto-taxi unions announced the strike to protest the adverse impact that app-based taxi services have had on their livelihoods, as these services have significantly reduced their earnings. The unions claimed that despite concerns being expressed, neither the central nor the state governments have addressed the problem.

Delhi: Kishan Verma, President, Delhi Auto Taxi Transport Congress Union says, "For several years, we have been writing to governments and departments about companies like Ola and Uber, but no one listens. These companies present their side, and the government presents its side, pic.twitter.com/7N0piuuFIH August 21, 2024

What is the reason behind the Auto-taxi drivers strike in Delhi-NCR on Aug 22 and 23?

President of Delhi Auto Taxi Transport Congress Union Kishan Verma has said to news agency IANS, For several years, we have been writing to governments and departments about companies like Ola and Uber, but no one listens. These companies present their side, and the government presents its side, but these businesses operate as a game of donations, with the government also involved. We demand an end to this game".

Employment for auto and taxi drivers, which is being affected or taken away, must be addressed. Private Ola and Uber taxis are involved in smuggling, and there is also trade in alcohol and drugs. To address these issues, we are going on strike. The organisation has decided that on August 22 and 23, all auto and taxi services in Delhi NCR will be suspended, he further added.

He also said, We are not getting anything. E-rickshaw and bikes with private number plates are plying on roads. Where will auto and taxi drivers go? We expect a ban on these companies and an app should be launched by the government". In addition, the president of the Delhi Auto Taxi Transport Congress Union stated that ride-hailing service providers receive 45% commission.

During the strike, no automobiles, kaali-peeli taxis, economic radio taxis, or taxis with an all-India tourist permit will be seen on Delhi's streets, he said.

Which associations declared a strike?

More than 15 major taxi and auto driver unions in Delhi-NCR, including the Taxi Driver Army Union, Delhi Auto Tricycle Driver Union, and Rajdhani Tourist Driver Union, have declared a two-day collective strike, according to media reports. Along with 400,000 taxis, more than 100,000 cabs and automobiles will be taken off the road.
Mumbai: Shivsena (UBT) activists protest against the alleged sexual assault of two school children at Badlapur, in Mumbai, Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo: PTI)

The Bombay High Court has initiated suo motu proceedings into the alleged sexual assault of two four-year-old girls at a school in Badlapur, a town in Maharashtra's Thane district. The incident, which involved a male attendant accused of assaulting the kindergarten students, has sparked significant unrest in the community, leading to widespread protests.

The Division Bench comprising Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Prithviraj Chavan is set to hear the case on Thursday, following the court's decision to take up the matter independently. This development comes in the wake of escalating tensions in Badlapur, where the assault allegedly took place. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp

Unrest in Maharashtra - 72 arrested

On Tuesday, the incident led to a large-scale protest in the town, prompting local authorities to suspend internet services. In response to the unrest, police have arrested 72 individuals linked to the violence during the demonstrations.

The male attendant, who was detained on August 17, is accused of carrying out the assault in the school's toilet. His police custody has been extended by a local court until August 26.

SIT to investigate Badlapur sexual assault case

In light of the severity of the case, the Maharashtra government has established a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to delve deeper into the allegations. This team, led by senior IPS officer Arti Singh, has been tasked with ensuring a thorough and impartial investigation into the assault.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has vowed that swift action will be taken against those responsible, assuring the public that the case will be expedited through the legal system. He emphasised that the guilty will not be spared. Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis also reiterated the government's commitment to justice, confirming the formation of the SIT under Arti Singh's leadership.

School management suspends principal, class teacher

In light of the incident, the school's management has suspended the principal, a class teacher, and a female attendant associated with the incident. The state government has also taken action against law enforcement personnel, suspending three police officials, including a senior inspector, for their alleged failure to properly address the parents' complaints.

Opposition parties have highlighted the distressing delays faced by the victims' families, who reportedly waited for 11 hours at the Badlapur police station before their complaints were acknowledged.

Maharashtra bandh on August 24

Meanwhile, the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition has called for a Maharashtra-wide bandh on August 24 in protest against the incident. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut said the strike was a response to the growing public anger and the government's handling of the case.

"We had come here to discuss seat sharing but then we thought that we would not discuss seat sharing and instead discuss the law and order in the state after the Badlapur incident. The people of Maharashtra are agitated and FIRs have been registered against those who protested. We have decided that on August 24, MVA will call for Maharashtra Bandh over the Badlapur incident," Raut said.

(With agency inputs)
Kolkata: Doctors raise slogans during a protest rally over the recent alleged rape and murder of a trainee doctor at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, in Kolkata, Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2024. (Photo: PTI)

Healthcare services remained affected at state-run hospitals in West Bengal on Thursday, as junior doctors continued their ceasework for the 14th consecutive day to protest against the alleged rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee at the Kar Medical College and Hospital (RGKMCH). The agitating doctors continued their stir even though the state government transferred three officials of the KMCH and cancelled the posting of the Hospital's former principal Sandip Ghosh to the Calcutta Medical College and Hospital (CNMC). Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp ALSO READ: Delhi docs' indefinite protest continues for 11th day with no end in sight "Our agitation will continue as only part of our demands have been met. We have the main demand for the justice of our sister yet to be fulfilled. We will wait and see today's development at the Supreme Court and decide after that," one of the agitating doctors told PTI.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which took over the investigation into the alleged rape and murder of the woman doctor atKMCH, will be submitting its status report on the probe to the Supreme Court.

The West Bengal government on Wednesday night removed three senior officials of the Kar Medical College and Hospital, bowing to the demand of junior doctors who have been protesting against the alleged rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor in the state-run health facility.

As per their demand, Kar Medical College and Hospital's former principal doctor Sandip Ghosh, who was shifted to Calcutta National Medical College and Hospital as its principal, was also removed from that position, Health Secretary NS Nigam said.

Three senior officials of the Kar Medical College and Hospital (RGKMCH) were transferred to various state-run health facilities, he said.

"We will hold a meeting after seeing the development today at the Supreme Court and then decide on the ceasework issue," one of the agitating doctors said..

Police recovered the body of a woman postgraduate trainee doctor lying inside a seminar hall of theKMCH on August 9 morning.

A civic volunteer was arrested the next day for his alleged involvement in the crime.
The Nifty futures added another 0.4 per cent in trades on Wednesday as they settled at 24,798 levels. The August month futures premium shot up to 28 points from 12 points the day before. Trading volumes were below average, with around 1.19 lakh contracts traded on Wednesday as against the last 7-day average volume of around 2.31 lakh contracts.

The overall open interest (OI) in Nifty August futures declined by 0.5 per cent (2,175 contracts); while it rose by 12.3 per cent (8,368 contracts) in the September series compared to the previous trading session. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp

Meanwhile, the Bank Nifty futures ended 0.2 per cent lower yesterday, while the OI dipped by 1.9 per cent (3,503 contracts) in the August series. At the same time, OI rose by as much as 18.6 per cent in the September series, suggesting possible buildup of short positions there.

Overall, in the last four trading sessions, the Nifty and Bank Nifty have gained 2.6 per cent and 1.7 per cent, respectively, alongside a 7 per cent and 19.7 per cent drop in the OI, partly as we near the August-month expiry.





Axis Securities in their weekly Nifty options strategy, recommends buying Nifty 25,000 Call in the price range of Rs 140 - 150, and simultaneously selling 25,100 Call in the range of Rs 40 - 50. Today, will be the weekly Nifty options expiry.

The break-even point for this strategy would be Rs 24,90o; with a risk of Rs 2,500 and reward of Rs 5,000 per Lot.

The Nifty options data signals a bullish sentiment, with more Put writing than Calls as the index maintains its strong bullish structure. Significant open interest is observed at the 25,000 Call (1.2 crore contracts) and the 24,500 Put (80.33 lakh contracts), with notable activity around the 24,600-24,700 Puts and 24,800-24,900 Calls.

The Nifty Put-Call Ratio (PCR) has slightly decreased from 1.13 on Tuesday to 1.10, still indicating positive sentiment as it remains above 1. The Max Pain Point, where the most open options contracts are, is at 24,700, serving as a key level influencing the Nifty's movement, says Dhupesh Dhameja, Technical Analyst, SAMCO Securities in a note.

On the Bank Nifty, there is notable open interest at the 50,700 Call (1.09 crore contracts) and the 50,600 Put (67.43 lakh contracts), with significant activity around the 50,800-50,900 Calls and 50,500-50,400 Puts.

The Bank Nifty PCR has declined from 1.03 on Tuesday to 0.78, suggesting a slightly sideways sentiment as the index struggles to sustain above its trading range. The Max Pain Point, where the highest concentration of open options contracts is found, is at 50,700, Dhupesh added.

On the contrary, Aditya Agarwal, Head of Derivatives & Technical at Sanctum Wealth believes that the Nifty PCR is moving towards an overbought territory and is indicating some cautiousness in near future.

Options data for August expiry indicates a range of 24,500-25,000 for the next few sessions as the overall short-term structure for Nifty remains bullish. However, on the lower side a close below 24,500 can negatively impact the sentiment, and the Nifty could gradually correct towards 24,360 / 24,140 levels.

Nifty Bank is continuously witnessing profit booking pressure at higher levels and has underperformed broader indices in last few weeks. On higher side, Nifty bank has stiff resistance between 50,800-51,200 and only a close above 51,200 will change short term outlook on the Index, Aditya said in a note. However, a close above 51,200 will trigger a sharp short covering move and in that scenario Nifty Bank can move towards 52,000/52,600 levels, he added.

FII, DII trading activity in F&O - Here's all you need to know about who bought and who sold on August 21?

As per data from the NSE, FIIs net sold 8,466 contracts of index futures on August 21 for a consideration of Rs 727.93 crore yesterday. FIIs were net buyers of 3,774 contracts of Nifty futures, while sold 14,564 contracts of Bank Nifty futures.

Pursuant to which, FIIs long-short ratio in index futures eased a wee bit to 1.07:1  this ratio implies that foreign investors still hold more than 1 long position in index futures for every single bet on the short side of trade. The FIIs longs in index futures now stand at 51.63 per cent.

Data shows that FIIs added some fresh short positions in Bank Nifty futures, while remain in neutral mode on the Nifty futures.

Meanwhile, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) continue to hold near about 2 short positions for every long open position in index futures. DIIs index futures long-short ratio stands at 0.55:1; with net longs at 35.41 per cent.

Retail traders long-short ratio remained steady around 1.1:1, with additions seen both on the long and short side of trade. Retail traders net long in index futures stand at 52.89 per cent.

Bullish & Bearish stocks

On Wednesday, IPCA Labs saw fresh long buildup with the stock future rising by 1.6 per cent, and OI seeing 14.5 per cent addition in the August series. Similarly, HPCL (up 2.8 per cent), Divis Lab (up 3.9 per cent), SBI Life (up 2.2 per cent) and Chambal Fertilisers (up 3.6 per cent) saw additions of new long positions.

On the other hand, Dr Lal PathLabs and UltraTech Cement saw some amount short buildup. The former was down 1.3 per cent on addition of 7.9 per cent new positions, while the latter dipped 1.2 per cent alongside 3 per cent OI buildup.



chart

What is long and short buildup?

In general, a rise in stock price alongside an increase in open position is considered as buildup of long positions. Whereas, on the other hand, a decline in stock price with a rise in OI is considered as buildup of short positions.

Stocks in F&O ban period

A total of 12 stocks out of the 181 in the futures & options segment are placed in the F&O ban period on Thursday.

Aarti Industries, Aditya Birla Fashion Retail, Balrampur Chini, Birlasoft, GNFC, Granules India, Hindustan Copper, India Cement, LIC Housing Finance, National Aluminium, Piramal Enterprises and Sun TV are the 12 stocks in F&O ban today.

Traders are not allowed to take new positions in stocks placed under the F&O ban. Traders are permitted to only exit existing open positions. In case, any new position is opened during the ban period, exchange levies a penalty on every such trade.

As and when the open interest in the stock falls below 80 per cent of the market wide limit, the stock shall be removed from the ban period.
The country is facing heightened threats from many corners at a time when law enforcement agencies are struggling, FBI Director Christopher Wray said in an exclusive interview, adding that he is hard pressed to think of a time in my career where so many different kinds of threats are all elevated at once. Wray spoke Wednesday with The Associated Press while visiting the Minneapolis field office to talk about partnerships between law enforcement agencies and also with other entities. His remarks come as the FBI confronts heightened concerns over terrorism, both domestic and international, as well as Chinese espionage and intellectual property theft and foreign election interference. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp

I worry about the combination of that many threats being elevated at once, with the challenges facing the men and women in law enforcement more generally, Wray said at the office in the suburb of Brooklyn Center. And the one thing that I think helps bridge those two challenges is partnerships. That's how we get through. It is by all working together.

Wray's assessment of an elevated threat landscape is consistent with alarm bells he has sounded for months. Soon after the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas in Israel, Wray began warning that the rampage could serve as an inspiration to militants, the likes of which we haven't seen since ISIS launched its so-called caliphate years ago.

The FBI has also scrambled to deal with security concerns related to the United States' southern border, with officials revealing in June that eight people from Tajikistan with suspected ties to the Islamic State group were arrested and were being held on immigration violations.

Officials are also dealing with the specter of foreign election interference. The FBI and other federal agencies announced Monday that Iran was responsible for a hack targeting the Trump campaign and for an attempted breach of the Biden-Harris campaign, part of what officials portrayed as a brazen and aggressive effort to interfere in American politics.

Wray declined to talk about any specific investigation or threat but said investigations into cyberattacks, including against election infrastructure, candidates or campaigns, require help from the private sector.

One of the things that we have been doubling down on with every passing day is, is on partnerships, because ultimately you're talking about the ability to connect the dots, whether it's against some kind of election influence threat or some other kind of threat, Wray said. You need to have partners sharing information with each other to put the two pieces together to see the bigger picture.

Law enforcement officers are being killed in the line of duty at a rate of about one every five days, Wray said, noting that four first responders have died in Minnesota alone in 2024. They include a Minneapolis officer killed in May while trying to help someone, and two officers and a paramedic who died in Burnsville in February when a heavily armed man opened fire.

Such violence breaks my heart every single time, the director said.

The FBI has not been spared such attacks: Days after agents searched Donald Trump's Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, to recover classified documents, a gunman who called on social media for federal agents to be killed on sight died in a shootout after trying to get inside the FBI's Cincinnati office.

Wray said the FBI has been working to beef up traditional partnerships with state and local law enforcement, while also creating other ones with business and academia to help counter threats against cybersecurity or intellectual property. In Minneapolis and other offices, he said, authorities are cooperating with the likes of school resource officers and mental health professionals to help at-risk teenagers in hopes of heading off future threats.

Working with industry is important for protecting innovation and artificial intelligence from foreign threats, Wray added.

AI is in many ways the most effective tool against the bad guys' use of AI, he said. So we need to work closely with industry to try to help make sure that American AI can be used to help protect American people from AI-enabled threats coming the other way.
The financing, structured as privately-placed bonds linked to revenue, is secured by the sale of future airline tickets from AirAsias key routes, the people said | Credit: Bloomberg

Budget carrier AirAsia Bhd has secured a $443 million dual-tranche private financing to use partly for refurbishing planes grounded during the pandemic, according to people familiar with the matter.

Private credit funds Ares Management Corp. and Indies Capital Partners Pte. Ltd. provided a $200 million tranche for the refurbishment of the aircraft to get them back in the air, said the people who asked not to be identified discussing private matters. Aircraft lessors provided the other $243 million portion to refinance lease liabilities. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp

AirAsias structured deal is another instance of the growing popularity of private credit in Asia that is fast becoming a serious rival to mainstream lending by offering higher, floating rates of return.

The financing, structured as privately-placed bonds linked to revenue, is secured by the sale of future airline tickets from AirAsias key routes, the people said.

Evercore Inc. is AirAsias financial advisor, while A&O Shearman is its international counsel. Milbank LLP is representing the lenders.

Ares declined to comment. A&O Shearman, Evercore, Indies and Milbank did not immediately respond to requests for comment. AirAsia confirmed the deal is taking place.

The private credit tranche of AirAsias latest securitized deal pays a coupon of 11 per cent per annum and has a four-year tenor, the people said. The lessor piece offers 7 per cent per year and carries a two-year maturity. The deal has been signed but not yet funded.

The terms of the transaction have changed from the initial stage, which circulated in the second half of last year, following negotiations, according to the people.

AirAsia is no stranger to the private credit space. The carriers engineering and maintenance affiliate Asia Digital Engineering Sdn. Bhd. in April 2023 had raised $100 million from investment firm OCP Asia Ltd., according to a statement at the time.
The board and the Bronfman-led investor group would decide how to allocate those funds. Photo: Bloomberg

Veteran media executive Edgar Bronfman sweetened his bid to take over Paramount Global , offering $6 billion for its controlling shareholder National Amusements and a minority stake in Paramount, according to a person familiar with the matter.

He had previously offered $4.3 billion, according to Reuters sources. Shares of Paramount rose more than 2.4 per cent after the market closed.

Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp Paramount said on Wednesday it had received an acquisition proposal from Bronfman on behalf of a consortium of investors, but it did not disclose the terms.

The competing offer for the home of Paramount Pictures, the CBS broadcast network and cable networks such as MTV threatens to undo a planned acquisition by tech scion David Ellison and his firm Skydance Media.



Bronfman's new bid includes $3.2 billion in funds that can be used to pay down Paramount's debt or to purchase non-voting Paramount shares held by investors other than the Redstone family for $16 cash, the person said on condition of anonymity because the information was not public.



The board and the Bronfman-led investor group would decide how to allocate those funds, the person added.



That compares to Skydance's $8.4 billion deal to take over Paramount through a complex, two-step transaction that involves Paramount acquiring Ellison's smaller independent media company in an all-stock transaction.



Ellison and deal partner Redbird Capital Partners committed $4.3 billion to buy Paramount's Class B shares for $15 cash each. The partners also pledged to provide a minimum of $1.5 billion to the company's balance sheet.



Bronfman offered $2.4 billion in debt and equity for National Amusements, matching the terms of Skydance's purchase agreement, according to an acquisition proposal submitted on Monday to Paramount special committee Chairman Charles Phillips that was seen by Reuters.



National Amusements holds the Redstone family's controlling interest in Paramount.



Bronfman argued in the letter that his offer is superior because it would eliminate the risks and costs associated with combining Paramount and Skydance.



His bid, if successful, would cover a $400 million break fee owed to Skydance, the person said.



"We believe multiple board members support a bid that excludes the dilution from Skydance," Rich Greenfield, analyst at LightShed Partners said in a note published on Tuesday.



On Wednesday, Skydance declined to comment and Bronfman did not respond to a request for comment.



Bronfman's investor group includes Fortress Investment Group and Jeff Ubben, founder and managing partner of Inclusive Capital Partners, according to an Aug. 19 letter seen by Reuters.



Cryptocurrency entrepreneur Brock Pierce and Kazakhstan investor Nurali Aliyev, previously part of the Bronfman group, were no longer listed among the investors in revised documents provided to Paramount's board, an Aug. 20 letter seen by Reuters showed. That document also included 65 names of other parties Bronfman approached to discuss joining his investor group.



Skydance and Paramount had agreed to a 45-day "go-shop" period, to allow the publicly traded media company to solicit and consider other offers.



A special board committee has extended Wednesday's deadline until Sept. 5 for Bronfman's consortium, Paramount said.

The Ellison-led group will have the opportunity to submit a counter-offer, the person said.



The Wall Street Journal was the first to report Bronfman's improved offer.



(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
This advancement will enable Artemis III crew members to capture real-time video and communicate with mission controllers. | Image: Bloomberg

Nokia has joined hands with Axiom Space to integrate advanced 4G/LTE communication capabilities into the next-generation spacesuits that will be used for the Artemis III mission, NASA's ambitious plans to land humans at the south pole of the moon. The Artemis-III mission is likely to be launched in 2026 and Nokia plans to build the first cellular network on the moon, which would be in-built in the space suits used by astronauts. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp Nokia and Axiom Space will incorporate high-speed cellular-network capabilities in the Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AxEMU), supporting HD video, telemetry data and voice transmission over multiple kilometers on the Moon, a company statement said.

"Adding high-speed 4G/LTE network capability on the Moon will serve as a vital bridge linking astronauts to Earth, facilitating crucial data exchange, and enabling high-definition video communication over long distances," Russell Ralston, Axiom Space executive vice president of extravehicular activity, said in a statement.

This advancement will enable Artemis III crew members to capture real-time video and communicate with mission controllers on Earth while they explore the lunar surface, it said.

An Indian astronaut, trained for ISRO's Gaganyaan project, is scheduled to fly to the International Space Station next year as part of a NASA Axiom Space Ax-4.

Nokia plans to deploy the cellular network on the Moon as part of Intuitive Machines' IM-2 mission, which is scheduled to be delivered to the launch site later this year.

During that mission, Nokia aims to demonstrate that cellular connectivity can facilitate crucial communications during future lunar or Mars missions.

The Lunar Surface Communications System (LSCS), pioneered by Nokia Bell Labs' research and innovation, will be deployed during IM-2 and will be further adapted for use in the AxEMU spacesuit.

"We are taking advantage of the same standards-based technologies that connect billions of devices on Earth every day, while bringing new innovation and technologies to bear on the specific challenges encountered in space," Thierry E Klein, President of Bell Labs Solutions Research at Nokia, said.
In his first outdoor rally since last month's assassination attempt, Donald Trump appeared on stage in North Carolina to talk about national security as part of his weeklong trip across the country to draw attention away from Democrats and their national convention. Seventy-six days from now, we're going to win this state and we're going to win the White House, Trump said at the North Carolina Aviation Museum & Hall of Fame from behind a podium surrounded by panes of bulletproof glass that formed a protective wall across the stage. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp Storage containers were stacked around the perimeter to create additional walls and block sight lines. Snipers were positioned on roofs at the venue, where old aircraft were sitting behind the podium and a large American flag was suspended from cranes.

The event, billed as being focused on national security issues, is part of Trump's weeklong series of counterprogramming to the Democratic National Convention, which is underway in Chicago. Allies have been urging him to focus on policy instead of personal attacks as he struggles to adjust to running against Vice President Kamala Harris after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race.

On Tuesday night, the convention showcased a double dose of Obama firepower, as the former president and former first lady assailed Trump, calling him out repeatedly by name.

His limited and narrow view of the world made him feel threatened by the existence of two hardworking, highly educated, successful people who happen to be Black, Michelle Obama said of Trump in a rousing speech.

She also referenced a comment he made in a June debate, asking: Who's going to tell him that the job he's currently seeking might just be one of those Black jobs'?



Barack Obama mocked Trump's obsession with his crowd sizes and called Trump a 78-year-old billionaire who hasn't stopped whining about his problems since he rode down his golden escalator nine years ago.

It's been a constant stream of gripes and grievances that's actually gotten worse now that he's afraid of losing to Kamala, the former president said.

Trump was joined Wednesday by his running mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, who cast Harris as a candidate selected by power brokers instead of voters and lambasted her vice presidential pick, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, before Trump took the stage.

That included continuing to hammer Walz for, at times, mischaracterizing his service record as an Army National Guard member, as well as Walz's retirement from service before his unit's deployment to Iraq.

What won't Stolen Valor Tim Walz lie about? Vance, who served four years as a Marine, asked the crowd.

Trump has spent the week visiting battleground states in his busiest week of campaigning since the Republican primaries.

Reflecting the importance of North Carolina in this year's election, the trip is Trump's second to the state in just the past week. Last Wednesday, he appeared in Asheville, North Carolina, for a speech on the economy.

Trump won North Carolina by a comfortable margin in 2016. The state delivered the former president his closest statewide margin of victory four years ago and is once again considered a key battleground in 2024.

Before Trump arrived, his plane did a flyover of the rally site. The crowd erupted into cheers.

Edna Ryan, a 68-year-old retired flight attendant and private pilot, said she was bullish on the Republican's chances, but said: We need to be strong because otherwise we're going to be very sorry.

Lisa Watts, a retired business owner from Hickory, North Carolina, who was attending her fifth Trump rally, said she's feeling very positive about the race against Harris.

A month ago they never spoke her name and now she's like, quote quote the saviour for the country,' Watts said. I don't think that her record proves that she is ready to run this country."



Watts said she doesn't think Trump's chances of winning are much different now from when Biden was the Democratic nominee.

I think the Democrats are going to try to do everything they can to keep her up on that pedestal, she said, predicting the hype around Harris will fade.
China, Russia agree to enhance cooperation in traditional, emerging areas

Xinhua) 09:03, August 22, 2024

MOSCOW, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin agreed here Wednesday that China and Russia have complementary advantages and huge potential for practical cooperation, and the two sides should advance cooperation in both traditional and emerging areas.

They made the remarks at the 29th regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government, saying that China and Russia should steadily advance cooperation in traditional areas such as economy and trade, investment, agriculture and energy, and expand cooperation in emerging areas including digital economy, biomedicine and green development.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Kinaxis Inc. (TSX: KXS), a global leader in end-to-end supply chain orchestration, today announced that Brother, a Japanese multinational electronics and electrical equipment company, has selected Kinaxis to increase visibility and collaboration within its global supply chain, improve demand forecasting and create more accurate and agile scenario planning.

Brother operates manufacturing, development and sales facilities in more than 40 countries across the globe and exceeds 80 billion in worldwide sales with its wide range of products and services including printers, labeling systems, industrial and home sewing machines, garment printers, digital printing equipment, and more. The company required a supply chain management solution that could account for its expansive range of products and multitude of industry-specific challenges, provide complete end-to-end visibility and match its innovative approach to problem-solving.

From the beginning, Kinaxis demonstrated a clear understanding of our business and all its complexities. From there we formed a partnership based on trust and a passion for innovative solutions, like their unique approach to supply chain orchestration, which made the decision to go forward with this transformation easy, said Kosaku Sakai, production strategy planning department manager at Brother Industries, LTD. We are excited for our supply chain to be more efficient and more adaptable to change as we continue to grow. Our number one priority is our customers, and we are eager to provide more value for them with Kinaxis.

In an industry with so many moving pieces, not having the right software in place makes it easy for things to get missed and for disruption in one area of the supply chain to drastically impact another. The only way to manage it is with complete visibility, said Toshiya Kaneko, president at Kinaxis Japan. We are thrilled to be working with Brother to confidently orchestrate their entire supply chain  allowing them to continue to expand and deliver more value to their customers.

With more than 40,000 users in 100+ countries, Kinaxis works with some of the worlds biggest brands in sectors such as CPG, automotive, high tech, life sciences, and more. Its AI-powered technology and patented concurrency technique allows companies to orchestrate their supply chain network end to end from strategic planning to last-mile delivery. Kinaxis technology helps companies that supply the agricultural industry with 40% of the worlds tractors, that keep more than 110 billion teeth clean each year, and that ensures more than 35 million pets are fed nutritious meals each year.

About Kinaxis

Kinaxis is a global leader in modern supply chain orchestration, powering complex global supply chains and supporting the people who manage them, in service of humanity. Our powerful, AI-infused supply chain orchestration platform, Maestro , combines proprietary technologies and techniques that provide full transparency and agility across the entire supply chain  from multi-year strategic planning to last-mile delivery. We are trusted by renowned global brands to provide the agility and predictability needed to navigate todays volatility and disruption. For more news and information, please visit kinaxis.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

About Brother International Corporation

Brother International Corporation has earned its reputation as a premier provider of home office and business products, products for the sewing and crafting enthusiast as well as industrial solutions that revolutionize the way we live and work. Brother International Corporation is a wholly owned subsidiary of Brother Industries Ltd. With worldwide sales exceeding $6 billion, this global manufacturer was started more than 100 years ago. Bridgewater, New Jersey is the corporate headquarters for Brother in the Americas. It has fully integrated sales, marketing services, manufacturing, research, and development capabilities located in the U.S. In addition to its headquarters, Brother has facilities in California, Illinois, and Tennessee, as well as subsidiaries in Canada, Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Peru, and Mexico. For more information, visit www.brother.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240822056955/en/
New contract builds on 20-year relationship with engineering and R&D firm, L&T Technology Services Limited (LTTS)

Strategic collaboration will see LTTS use the Thales Sentinel platform to help customers monetize their software with flexible licensing



Thales, a leading global technology and security provider, has announced a new contract with engineering and R&D firm L&T Technology Services Limited (LTTS). This partnership will bring Thaless software monetization platform, Thales Sentinel, to LTTS customer base, especially in the Hi-tech, Sustainability and Mobility segments.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240821145825/en/

 L&T Technology Services Limited

With over two decades of experience in deploying intelligent digital solutions, LTTS leads in optimizing enterprise operations and pioneering platforms in AI, Mobility, Sustainability, and Hi-Tech. LTTS advanced AI offerings in next-gen mobility and smart networks are pivotal in building robust digital infrastructures, enhancing safety, efficiency, and sustainability. Now with the Thales Sentinel software licensing and entitlement platform, LTTS will enable its customers to monetize its software solutions by harnessing recurring revenue business models including agile subscriptions and flexible usage-based pricing models.

Damien Bullot, Vice President, Software Monetization Solutions at Thales: This partnership builds on Thaless long standing relationship with LTTS, helping their customers unlock the true value and potential of their software products through flexible pricing and subscription models, better compliance, and automated delivery and activation. We look forward to our continued collaboration to ensure their industry-leading AI offers are properly protected and monetized for maximum ROI.

Under the new contract, LTTS will resell the Thales Sentinel platform to its customer base and group affiliates globally across diverse sectors, including transportation, medical, hi-tech, telecom, and financial services.

Alind Saxena, Executive Director & President, Mobility & Tech at L&T Technology Services: Our partnership with Thales underscores our commitment to drive innovation and superior solutions across mobility, sustainability, and hi-tech, leveraging their Sentinel platform. Our proficiency in creating cutting-edge digital solutions and our deep understanding of AI will form the backbone of a robust digital infrastructure. We anticipate contributing to a cohesive digital thread throughout the value chain, accelerating market entry, reducing cycle time along with product development costs, and aiding our customers in their journey towards sustainability through improved software monetization potential."

About Thales



Thales (Euronext Paris: HO) is a global leader in advanced technologies specialized in three business domains: Defence & Security, Aeronautics & Space, and Cybersecurity & Digital identity.



It develops products and solutions that help make the world safer, greener and more inclusive.



The Group invests close to 4 billion a year in Research & Development, particularly in key innovation areas such as AI, cybersecurity, quantum technologies, cloud technologies and 6G.



Thales has close to 81,000 employees in 68 countries. In 2023, the Group generated sales of 18.4 billion.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240821145825/en/
For some reader remembrances, emails from Tanta and more, see Remembering Tanta



Here is piece from reader sdtfs: She will always be Tanta to me, just as Mark Twain and George Orwell are real, and not merely pseudonyms of Samuel Clemens and Eric Blair. She thought she was just another anonymous pen on the internet, but no one with her talent at writing and complete honesty could be a shallow pale ghost; she was as alive to me as my other literary heroes.
ONE of Co Carlows most famed and historical figures will be the subject of a fascinating lecture.

Deb Goodrich, historian in residence at the Fort Wallace Museum, Kansas, USA, will present a lecture on Captain Myles Keogh, Leighlinbridge, Commander of Fort Wallace, Kansas, USA, 1866-1867 on Thursday 22 August in Leighlin Paish Centre.

Myles from Leighlinbridge had a most interesting military career, which ended in tragedy in 1876 at one of the most infamous battles of the 19th century. He is believed to have spent some time with the French army corps in Algeria before joining the Battalion of St Patrick in Italy.

The battalion was formed to help protect the papal state form Giuseppe Garibaldis revolutionary plans to unify Italy. He was honoured for gallantry by Pope Pius IX. In 1862, he travelled to America and joined the US Army, where he fought in approximately 80 battles.

Later he was posted to the infamous 7th US Cavalry under the command of General George Custer. In June 1876, he fought with Custer in the famous Battle of Little Bighorn, also known as Custers Last Stand.

The battle in the state of Montana was between the 7th US Cavalry and the native American tribes, including the Sioux and Cheyenne. More than 200 of Custers troops were killed and apparently the only survivor on the American side was Keoghs brave horse Commanche, who had been injured during the battle.

Prior to these tragic events, in 1866 Keogh took command of Fort Wallace, Kansas. It was the farthest west of the Kansas frontier forts and was established to protect traffic on the Smoky Hill Trail leading from the Missouri river to the gold and silver mines of Denver. Keogh as commander and Frederick Beecher as adjutant were responsible for turning the ramshackle structures into a real fort. Keogh established the first library and school in Wallace County on the post. The Fort Wallace Museum honours Captain Keogh each March with the Captain Keoghs Emerald Banquet.

Deb Goodrich, historian in residence at the Fort Wallace Museum, will speak on Captain Keoghs time at the post and other adventures in Kansas, including forts Harker, Dodge and Leavenworth, his relationships with other officers and interactions with the native tribes. She will also touch on his Civil War career, part of which included the area where she grew up in Virginia and North Carolina.

The lecture, presented for Heritage Week by Carlow County Museum, will take place on Thursday 22 August at 7pm in Leighlin Parish Centre and admission is free.
By Cillian Sherlock, PA

The role of nuclear power during a transition to clean energy is amongst the topics to be debated by more than 100 young political activists gathering in Dublin this week.

The general assembly of the Federation of Young European Greens (FYEG) is being hosted over three days in the capital.

The event brings together the youth wings of all European Green Parties and Green Youth Organisations to debate the group FYEGs core policy positions and elect the Executive Committee for the year ahead.

Members of the FYEG span from Ireland to Azerbaijan and Cyprus to Norway.

Amongst other key items on the policy agenda over the course of the weekend are resolutions clamping down on greenwashing, support for Ukraine and its EU ascension, and an immediate ceasefire and two-state solution to the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict.

Irish Green Party leader Roderic OGorman, who was a founding member of the partys youth wing Oige Ghlas, said: Its incredibly rewarding to see the organisation growing from strength to strength and building strong ties with its European counterparts.

Hosting the FYEG general assembly is a significant milestone, deepening ties with our European partners.

The FYEG is the official youth wing of the European Green Party, which forms part of the European Parliaments Greens-European Free Alliance group.

The youth activists credit themselves with championing progressive pieces of legislation and policy positions, particularly on LGBTQIA+ rights, migration and social inequality.

Bennedetta Scuderi MEP, an outgoing co-spokesperson of FYEG, said the hosting of the general assembly was evidence of the European groups support for the Greens in Ireland, with the upcoming European Green Party Congress also being held in Dublin in December.

Ben Ryan, an officer of Oige Ghlas, said the FYEG general assembly played an important role in Green collaboration across Europe.

Mr Ryan, who is a candidate for the Executive Committee of the FYEG, added: All of the young people here are concerned about the future of our planet and are actively playing their part in trying to solve the global crisis of climate change.
The project mobilized 28 volunteer observers, who were present during all critical stages of the election  from the testing of election equipment before the vote until the county certification of results afterward.

ATLANTA (Aug. 22, 2024)  The Carter Centers nonpartisan election observation partner in Montana, the Montana Election Observation Initiative, released a final statement on Aug. 14 of findings from its pilot project to monitor Missoula Countys June 4 primary election process.

When observers were present, they found that Missoula County conducted a commendable election process that was well-organized, peaceful, and demonstrated consistent adherence to state election laws and guidelines. The countys volunteer election workers  particularly those who supported a 20-hour tabulation process  exhibited professionalism and a willingness to work long hours to deliver a lawful and credible election for voters.

This statement builds on a June 10 release from the Montana Election Observation Initiative about the conduct of in-person voting.

The initiative is a nonpartisan network designed to increase trust and transparency in elections. The Carter Center provided funding and technical assistance to the network for its June 4 primary pilot.

The Carter Center will partner with the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Center at the University of Montana to support the Montana Election Observation Initiatives plans to expand its efforts across the state for the Nov. 5 general election.

###

Contact: In Atlanta, Maria Cartaya, maria.cartaya@cartercenter.org

The Carter Center

Waging Peace. Fighting Disease. Building Hope.

A not-for-profit, nongovernmental organization, The Carter Center has helped to improve life for people in over 80 countries by resolving conflicts; advancing democracy, human rights, and economic opportunity; preventing diseases; and improving mental health care. The Carter Center was founded in 1982 by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, in partnership with Emory University, to advance peace and health worldwide.
On Sunday, Procreate, the company behind popular illustration and animation apps for iOS, pledged to not introduce any generative AI features into its software programs, saying that the technology is built on a foundation of theft.

The announcement has been widely celebrated within the creative community, and stands in contrast to other makers of creative software which have been rushing to incorporate AI features into their programs.

Procreate published a statement on its site explaining its decision to support creativity that is made, not generated. The statement reads:

Generative AI is ripping the humanity out of things. Built on a foundation of theft, the technology is steering us toward a barren future. We think machine learning is a compelling technology with a lot of merit, but the path generative AI is on is wrong for us. Were here for the humans. Were not chasing a technology that is a moral threat to our greatest jewel: human creativity. In this technological rush, this might make us an exception or seem at risk of being left behind. But we see this road less travelled as the more exciting and fruitful one for our community.

In an accompanying video on social media, Procreate CEO James Cuda made the point even more bluntly, telling users: I really fucking hate generative AI. I dont like whats happening in the industry and I dont like what its doing to artists. Watch his comments below:

Last year, Procreate introduced Procreate Dreams, a new animation app that complements its flagship illustration app, Procreate. The company is currently developing a desktop version of its Procreate app.
Signal Centers has hired Lesa Witt, a native Chattanoogan and lifelong resident, as the new director of the Imagination Library program. In her role, Ms. Witt will reach out locally to ensure all families know about the program that inspires a love of reading by gifting books free of charge to children from birth to age five, officials said.

Statewide, she will work with the Tennessee Child Care Resource & Referral Network to ensure families in the Tennessee Department of Human Services' Child Care Certificate Program are enrolled.

Officials said, "Research shows that early access to age-appropriate books sets children up for success in school and life. Nationally, the Imagination Library boasts 90 percent of parents that receive Imagination Library books for their children report an increase in their childs vocabulary. Meanwhile, a household with 25 age-appropriate books will see their children complete two more years of education than a household with zero books."

Here at Signal Centers, we want to see kids succeed and grow into the best they can be, and the statistics tell us that process starts at an early age, said Donna McConnico, Signal Centers CEO. Thats why it was crucial for us to hire a strong director for our program, and we are pleased to have found that in Lesa Witt.

Ms. Witt recently served as the program manager for Read20, where she enjoyed helping children reach their full potential by guiding them on their literacy journeys. She has worked in the nonprofit and educational sectors for more than 20 years, including with Chattanooga Room in the Inn, Hickory Valley Christian School, Siskin Childrens Institute, and McCallie School. Currently, she serves on the Soddy Daisy Library Read20 Advisory Board and Duoloyi Ministries Board.

Through local program partner, Signal Centers, DPIL serves 13,000+ Hamilton County children each month. To ensure the program has staying power, Read20 recently gifted the Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga with their endowment fund designating as the Dolly Parton Imagination Library Endowment Fund. Gifts to the fund can be made by visiting the Foundations website. Additionally, the Governors Early Literacy Foundation matches every dollar donated. Meaning that with a gift of only $25, donors can purchase a years worth of books for a local child.

Signal Centers, Inc., a nonprofit 501(c)(3) known for its statewide literacy efforts, has been a cornerstone of the Chattanooga community since 1957. The organizations comprehensive services include high-quality early childhood education, developmental therapies, independent living and employment support for adults, technology assistance, parental support, and professional training in the education field, all aimed at fostering lifelong learning and independence.

The major funding partners who help make Dolly Partons Imagination Library possible locally include Robert Finley Stone Foundation, city of Chattanooga, Hamilton County government, Women of Distinction, and Governors Early Literacy Foundation.
Marietta Song, a May 2024 University of Tennessee at Chattanooga graduate with a bachelors degree in studio art, has been awarded the highly competitive Stevens Initiative Alumni Fellowship. She is the first UTC alum to receive this fellowship, which is supported by the U.S. Department of States Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.The Stevens Initiative Alumni Fellowship provides alums from virtual exchange programs in the U.S., the Middle East and North Africa with a unique opportunity to enhance global understanding, advance professional skills and explore leadership development.The yearlong fellowship, which began earlier this month, includes virtual learning sessions, an in-person workshop in Morocco in December and a culminating summit event in Washington, D.C., next August.The fellowship will allow me to collaborate on projects with alumni from other universities who have participated in global IREX (International Research and Exchanges Board) programs.The projects will build up our leadership skills and multicultural communication styles and freshen up what we just learned at schooland maybe even go even deeper into it, said Song, a Chattanooga native and 2019 graduate of Hixson High School.During her UTC days, Song participated in the IREX Global Solutions virtual exchange programan initiative that supports workforce development in the U.S., Iraq and Jordan.Her campus activities also included participation in The Roosta filmmaking club for UTC studentsand working for GEAR UP, a program that prepares students for college.As part of her artistic journey, multiple pieces of her artwork recently went on display in the offices of the UTC Division of Access and Engagement thanks to the Access and Engagement Art Fellowshipa rotating artist series created to highlight the work of UTC art students.One thing Song wasnt able to do as a student, though, was study abroad. Thanks to the Stevens Initiative Alumni Fellowship, she will soon get that opportunity.Even though Ive always been very interested in meeting new people and learning different cultures, I never got that chance to travel, she said. But that will change when I go to Morocco.
Love Without Reason celebrates crossing the 1,000th free cleft surgery mark. A reception open to the public will take place at the Oak Coffee House, at 2916 Silverdale Road, at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday. Co-founders Santhosh and Susan Mathews will welcome donors, and friends of the ministry, and have a short presentation on their journey to providing 1,000 smiles.

It is our mission to carry out our son Philips dream to work Until the World is Cleft Free! and no one is sold,. said Mr. Mathews, chief executive officer and president of Love Without Reason. "Our needs to continue to be craniofacial surgeries and Human Trafficking Awareness Ministry here in the United States, in India, Kenya, Uganda, Zimbabwe, and allow us to expand into Tanzania."

Below are some of the numbers to show the work of the past 17 years.

Over 1,000 free cleft and craniofacial surgeries provided in four countries and counting

Over 200,000 people were educated on the link between human trafficking and facial differences in three continents

Over 300 women and children rescued from sex trafficking

Over 1,000 Set Fee Pads distributed for free to women in vulnerable circumstances in four countries

6,000 women in red-light areas are reached with the message of hope

For more information on this event or Love Without Reason visit LoveWithoutReason.org.


Chattanooga Police have made an arrest in a case in which police said a woman was murdered on Crestway Drive, then her body was found in Georgia.





Police responded on Tuesday at 9:48 a.m., to a request for police assistance in relation to a possible missing person in the 300 block of Crestway Drive. The witness provided information that led them to believe a murder occurred at the residence on Crestway Drive. Due to the information provided to the responding officer, they requested the assistance of the Homicide Unit.





CPD's Homicide Unit responded to conduct an investigation.





The witness said the victim, Brooke Killings, 33, was last seen at the Diamond Billiards on Saturday.The witness also said the suspect told them that he killed his girlfriend, Ms. Killings.





The detectives were able to obtain video evidence showing the victim and her boyfriend, Demarcus Napier, at Diamond Billiards and leaving together in a Volkswagen Atlas. The detectives also obtained cell phone data showing the victim's phone traveled from Diamond Billiards to the residence on Crestway Drive.







Ms. Killings' family told the detectives that Napier had a history of domestic violence against Ms. Killings.



CPD's Crime Scene Unit responded to process the crime scene.







The Homicide Unit was able to obtain a search warrant of the residence and they found an apparent crime scene. They found blood in several locations throughout the crime scene. The Crime Scene Unit used BlueStar Forensic Blood Reagent to check for blood evidence at the crime scene and they found several areas that indicated the presence of blood. During the processing of the crime scene, it was determined the victim suffered a non-survivable wound and the suspect used his vehicle to move the victim from the crime scene to an unknown location.





On Tuesday, the Homicide Unit obtained arrest warrants charging Napier, 29, with criminal homicide. He was arrested and transported to Hamilton County Jail and Detention Center.





On Wednesday, the Homicide Unit used investigative techniques to locate the victim's remains just off Interstate 75 in Catoosa County. CPD appreciates the assistance of the Catoosa County Sheriff's Office during this investigation.




A petition with some 120 names of residents in the Landfill Road area where the Rhea County Commission is considering approval for a drug rehabilitation house has been presented to the Rhea County Commission.

Wendy Yates, who spoke to the Commission last Tuesday, returned with the petition and several more people from the neighborhood.

Tim Pogue asked if the county had checked on the regulations for a halfway house. He presented a document to the commissioners from the Tennessee Department of Corrections for guidelines of halfway and rehab centers.

TDOC requires it to be certified that the house have 60 square foot per person for living space in the house and at least one lavatory for every three people in a restroom, said Mr. Pogue.

Jim Downs from RockHouse Ministries & Programs of Spring City told the commission that only a TDOC certified center can do drug rehabilitation or be a halfway house for people who are on probation out of courts or jails.

Putting these people next to a landfill makes them think that youre putting trash by trash. Its not the place for them to be in. For anyone coming out of a jail or prison they can only go to a TDOC accredited location, said Mr. Downs.

Mr. Downs has been coming to the commission since the announcement of the Opioid Abatement being given to the county from the settlement. RockHouse Ministries and Programs is a life recovery ministry for men and women where, according to their brochure, they can meet Jesus, engage in lifegiving community and experience true healing from the life controlling issues of this World.

Mr. Downs and his wife Marisol began Rockhouse Ministries in 2019 starting with a womens faith-based recovery program called Rise Up Womens Recovery Program and then a year later the Brotherhood Mens Recovery Program.

Mr. Downs also went on to tell the Commission that he has to spend $20,000 a year just for his insurance for his program. He currently is to capacity in both the mens and womens houses and has a long list of those waiting to get in. He said many have applied and are in the process of being screened.

The Commission also listened to Kathleen Wenke who said the Our Fathers House was a good idea, but then asked if there were any plans of creating a soup kitchen type place where people could go just to be able to get one meal a day.

Also at the meeting, the item came up of approving $5,000 for Soul Savage Ministries, and in particular of Jennifer Moore who has been coming to the commission meetings requesting the county to give them part of the monies allocated in the Opioid settlement. Commission Chairman Jim Reed asked for a motion on the matter which was made by Commissioner Billy Thedford. However, there was no second.

County Executive Jim Vincent said, She (Ms. Moore) has been coming to the Commission meetings for months asking for funds from the Opioid settlement. She should be considered for the money. In the past year she has helped 150 people in Rhea County get into some of the various programs she works with. This is a serious problem. From 2022 statistics we had 415 non-fatal overdoses in the county, and 73 fatalities.

Im not trying to push anything on you all. I have looked at all the information thats related to this matter. And with Our Fathers House I want to take time to analyze all the data on this program to make sure it is working. This problem is only going to get worse.

County Executive Vincent went on to say that he was not sold on how to use her. She sits through all the meetings and people are impressed with her knowledge. She may be the one to eventually run the womens house for us.

Chairman Reed then asked what the commission wanted to do on this matter. Commissioner Billy Thedford again made a motion to approve the request and, after a few minutes time waiting, a second was made by Commissioner Sandy Francisco. Mrs. Francisco said, Shes been to a lot of the meetings, and I would hate to lose her. She could be valuable to us.

Commissioner Mark Cashman asked if this motion could be postponed and put it in the September workshop and have Ms. Moore attend the meeting. I have many questions that I would like to ask.

Chairman Reed then called for the vote on the question. Commissioners Cashman, Dunn, Fisher, Stephens and Welch all voted no on the matter with Chairman Reed, Commissioners Tommy Ballard, Mrs. Francisco, and Commissioner Thedford voting for the item.

For the first time in two years, this is the first time that the commission has not agreed on something together. This is what this money we have been given is for, said Chairman Reed. He then said that the commissioners who voted no did a disservice to the ones who voted yes.

Commissioner Welch said that the commission really needs to vet these places out very well. Some of these programs work and some of them dont. We just need to check them out really well before we commit.

In a matter of bringing the county up to date, the commission voted to create a single county wide fire department.

Chairman Reed said, We've had a county wide fire department since the 80s, but this cleans up paperwork with the state of Tennessee. Before we had community fire departments with captains. Now this brings everyone under one heading with a clear definition of structure.

Chairman Reed also serves as chairman of the Rhea County Fire Authority Board.

The Commission approved a request from Sheriff Mike Neal to apply for a $525,000 grant for School Resource Officers for the county. This will provide an officer for every school in the county. The money is part of Governor Bill Lees school safety plan.

Governor Lee worked with the General Assembly to enhance his legislation and increase funding in the Fiscal Year 23-24 budget to place an armed School Resource Officer (SRO) at every Tennessee public school, boost physical school security at public and private schools, and provide additional mental health resources for Tennesseans. This carried over into this year as well.
GNTCs Catoosa County Campus is at 120 College Park Dr. in Ringgold GNTCs Floyd County Campus is at One Maurice Culberson Dr. in Rome GNTCs Gordon County Campus is at 1151 Ga. 53 Spur in Calhoun GNTCs Polk County Campus is at 466 Brock Road in Rockmart GNTCs Walker County Campus is at 265 Bicentennial Trail in Rock Spring GNTCs Whitfield Murray Campus is at 2310 Maddox Chapel Road in Dalton Previous Next

Georgia Northwestern Technical College saw a 10 percent increase in enrollment according to the 2024 Academic Year report issued by the Technical College System of Georgia.GNTC officials attribute the growth in enrollment to increased numbers in Dual Enrollment programs, more effective class scheduling, targeted advertising campaigns and Student Success efforts.Enrollment was 8,836 students for Academic Year 2024, up from 8,031 students in the previous academic year, according to the report.The Academic Year 2024 ran from the fall 2023 semester through the spring and summer 2024 semesters.Driven by a strong focus on student success and our mission of workforce development, GNTC experienced significant growth over the past academic year. This growth is a direct result of the dedication of our staff and faculty, who work tirelessly to ensure each student reaches their full potential by providing quality student support services and technical education programs, said Dr. Heidi Popham, president of GNTC. The efforts of our student success team and faculty ensure students are equipped with the relevant knowledge and skills necessary to thrive in successful careers.Georgias Dual Enrollment program allows qualified high school students in GNTCs nine-county service area to maximize their education and career training by taking college-level courses that earn college and high school credit at the same time. Identified degree-level core classes will transfer to any institution in the University System of Georgia or the Technical College System of Georgia. College credits also count toward high school rigor and HOPE Scholarship rigor requirements.Increased participation in GNTCs Dual Enrollment program made a significant impact in the colleges overall growth. Students enrolled in Dual Enrollment grew approximately 20 percent, up from 2,596 in Academic Year 2023 to 3,115 in Academic Year 2024.Kristi Hart, director of High School Initiatives at GNTC, attributes the growth to several factors, including the support that the Dual Enrollment program and its students receive throughout GNTC, from administrators, faculty and staff.Our local area high schools have been quick to capitalize on the State of Georgias Dual Enrollment program free 30 semester credit hours, Ms. Hart said. I have also heard consistently that GNTC is easy to work with and we have great partnerships with our participating high schools.The majority of GNTCs Dual Enrollment students take general education subjects, with English composition and rhetoric being the most common, Ms. Hart said. Excluding general education, the programs with highest Dual Enrollment participation are welding, cosmetology and criminal justice, respectively.Many Dual Enrollment students are also interested in mechatronics and industrial systems, she said.We have consistently had a higher participation rate in these programs among female students, Ms. Hart said.GNTC partners with eight College and Career academies: Calhoun College and Career Academy, Catoosa County From HERE to CAREER! College and Career Academy, Floyd County Schools College and Career Academy, Gordon County College and Career Academy, Northwest Georgia College and Career Academy, Rome City Schools College and Career Academy, Polk County College and Career Academy and Walker LAUNCH.The majority of Dual Enrollment students attend classes at their high school, rather than at a GNTC campus; however, the majority who attend a GNTC campus do so at the Floyd County Campus or Walker County Campus, where the Walker LAUNCH career academy is located, Ms. Hart said.Walker County Schools recently received more than $3 million from the Technical College System of Georgia for the Walker LAUNCH career academy, Ms. Hart said. LAUNCH has participated in Dual Enrollment since 2018.Building 500 on GNTCs Walker County Campus in Rock Spring is being renovated to house the new, state-of-the-art college and career academy, which will serve Walker and Dade County students. The funds will allow Walker LAUNCH to open a teacher preparation pathway, as well as labs for mechatronics, culinary and healthcare.GNTC partnered with Ad Astra, a software platform that helps higher education institutions with academic scheduling, to revamp manual scheduling processes across its six campuses. Over the last year, GNTC worked closely with Ad Astra to lay the groundwork necessary to build a strong scheduling foundation, including conducting an inventory of available seating and rooms and identifying scheduling bottlenecks, according to Jennifer Loudermilk, associate vice president of Academic Affairs at GNTC.These efforts also included solidifying program pathways, or eMaps, and tapping into telepresence technology that allows GNTC to offer live classes simultaneously so that students can attend classes in a face-to-face setting, stay closer to their home campus and complete core classes in a timely manner, Ms. Loudermilk said.We want to help students stay at their home campus as much as possible, Ms. Loudermilk said. We also did a lot of outreach to students, including implementing a new orientation and advisement process, which allowed students to register earlier in the semester.Ad Astras analysis showed where GNTC had too many sections with too few students, as well as additional classes students could take during the same day. Based on the findings, GNTC added some Friday classes and some evening options for core courses to its traditional schedule of Monday through Thursday classes.Roll-forward scheduling wasnt efficient for our faculty or our students, Ms. Loudermilk said. Ad Astra helped us improve efficiency and increase the enrollment ratio for each class section.GNTC has always put a strong emphasis on marketing the college, not only in our nine-county service area, but also in counties in our neighboring states, said Amber Jordan, director of Marketing and Public Relations at GNTC. Advertising campaigns are a large part of our marketing plan. We rely heavily on campaigns to increase enrollment in our academic programs and also promote general awareness about GNTC and everything we offer.Current advertising campaigns emphasize GNTCs convenience and affordability, she said. GNTC has six campuses in northwest Georgia and offers day, evening and online classes. GNTC is also affordable with many financial aid options including HOPE Grant and Scholarship, Pell Grant, HOPE Career Grant, Foundation scholarships and student loans. There are many resources at GNTC to help students afford a college education.Our current campaign, High Demand Careers Begin Here, promotes our high demand career program areas, Ms. Jordan said. These are career fields identified by the State of Georgia as having more open positions in the workforce than there are skilled workers to fill them.Over the past few years, GNTCs advertising strategy has transitioned to mostly digital platforms, including social media, video streaming, websites, search engine optimization, lead generation and content marketing, Jordan explained. Utilizing the many digital marketing options available, GNTC expands it reach significantly, plans a cost-effective campaign and targets specific audiences.One of the biggest benefits of digital advertising is real-time reporting, Ms. Jordan said, adding that GNTC is able to evaluate what is successful and what needs to be modified for better results.We have so many great programs of study, and we want to showcase our outstanding students and faculty through our advertising campaigns, Ms. Jordan said. We put a lot of focus on our graduate and student success stories; these stories allow our students to talk about their experiences at GNTC and explain in their own words how attending GNTC changed their lives for the better.TargetX, a new customer relationship management system that enhances student engagement, enables GNTC to provide better assistance to students through the admissions process, communicates with them in a variety of ways and improves advising efforts to increase student success across GNTCs six campuses.TargetX is a one-stop shop for staff to provide better customer service and support to our students, Legare Price, dean of Student Success at GNTC, said.TargetXs updated application and enrollment portal provides students with a mobile-friendly way to enroll, Price said. Improved communication tools allow GNTC to inform students better and keep them up to date on their progress. TargetX also provides key data that allows GNTC to make informed decisions that best help students and improve the colleges effectiveness.TargetX allows us to track student progress from the time a student first inquiries about GNTC until the student graduates, Dean Price said. Through campaign tracking, we can better communicate to students who request information via email and text. Our CRM will track the progress of applicants, communicate with them automatically (via email and text) regarding next steps or missing documentation, and allow our staff to reach out to assist students who may need more help.TargetX has helped to automate several processes that were previously done manually, Dean Price said. For example, GNTC staff previously sent thousands of emails to update students on their admission status, as well as acceptance letters. Most of this process has now been automated through TargetX, freeing up staff to communicate one-on-one with students and assist them with more urgent problems.We are now able to text message students updates and requests, which has been far more useful to students who are on the go and may not view their email often, Dean Price said. We can now allow students to access more information on their progress than ever before using the Enrollment Portal, which has live information about their status and next steps.The program has also supported GNTCs recruitment efforts by freeing up Jason Gamel, director of Recruitment, to focus more on his engagement with the schools within GNTCs service area, provide information and support to future students there, and build relationships along the way, Dean Price said.GNTCs Academic Advising department has worked diligently with Academic Affairs and faculty to improve first-semester advising by utilizing our new eMap academic pathways to assist students to complete their academic programs, which has already shown great improvement in students reaching graduation, Dean Price said.GNTCs program pathways can be used as advising guides or maps to help determine which courses students need to take and when to take them. By following the course of study outlined in a specific degree, diploma or certificate pathway, GNTC students will know the prerequisite courses they need to continue in the chosen program of study.GNTC provides each individual student seeking advisement and coaching help with a program pathway specifically designed to help guide them through their program of choice, said Ivey Stang, GNTCs Student Success coordinator.The program pathway is tailored to suggest unique class pairings for the students as they work through their goals to graduation, Ms. Stang said.Student Success Coaches provide academic preparation services, answers to general inquiries, developmental advising resources and time management services; they coach first generation students and make learning support and tutoring referrals.The coaches can provide early intervention services for students facing challenges to their academic success. The coaches can partner to provide internal and external resources for student support.Student Success coaches help guide the student throughout their time at GNTC starting at class registration, Ms. Stang said.A Student Success coach is located at the Floyd County Campus in Rome, Gordon County Campus in Calhoun, Walker County Campus in Rock Spring and Whitfield Murray Campus in Dalton. Student Success coaches are available to meet with students at other campuses upon request.GNTC constantly looks for new ways to support students, officials said.We now have a fully on-demand New Student Orientation platform that enables students to be more prepared for their first day of college, Dean Price said. We have partnered with YouScience to provide career guidance to students looking to determine the next steps for their future, as well as Handshake, which connects graduating students with employers in our area to fulfill our community workforce needs.GNTCs Veterans Affairs office works to meet the needs of students who are service members. GNTC recently earned the 2024-25 Military Friendly School Gold designation; the gold designation means GNTC is rated within 10 percent of the 10th-ranked organization for the category of small community college.Institutions earning the Military Friendly School designation were evaluated using both public data sources and responses from a proprietary survey, with more than 1,800 schools participating in the 2024-25 survey, according to www.militaryfriendly.com. Final ratings were determined by combining the institutions survey scores with the assessment of the institutions ability to meet thresholds for graduation, job placement, loan default, loan repayment, persistence (degree advancement or transfer) and student retention rates for all students and, specifically, for student veterans.
Ever since actor Ronald Reagan became president, neoliberalism has flourished in the US.

Reagan was certainly not a neoliberal but was the tool for the neoliberals intending to undermine labor and the federal government. After all Reagan was the head of the Screen Actors Guild a Union fighting for better wages and contracts for workers and who twice led striking workers

The Neolibs have since effectively dismantled the EPA, FTC and the FCC, to name a few. Their belief that big business is capable of monitoring itself has led to billionaires who are so entwined in our government that they are now capable of lording over large sectors of our economy. This has also led to ever widening income equality as taxes paid by average earners has risen while taxes on millionaires, billionaires and corporations have dropped precipitously.

The Neoliberal movement is now ready to enact their final solution on our society by turning it away from a Democracy and into an Autocracy where all government will be transacted by billionaires and managed by their corporations.

So go ahead and vote for GOP candidates but understand that you are voting for the overlords minions that do not have your best interests at heart, but they will be more than happy to use you as their tool just like they did with Ronald Reagan.

John Mathna

* * *

Mr. Mathna's commentary comes right out of the far-left Democrat playbook. Tell big lies about what the Republicans are going to do if back in the White House, but never providing any substantive proof of their wild claims. Using fear to gaslight the populace is downright evil in my book.

Donald Trump was President for four years and somehow the Republic survived. In fact, it thrived with all Americans enjoying a strong economy and a higher standard of living. Mr. Mathna seems to put all his chips on bigger government which, in my way of thinking, is not, in the long term, in the citizens best interest. Remember, whatever Big (Brother) government can give you, it can also take away.

We have seen what the Biden-Harris administration has brought us in the last four years. An open southern border with millions of illegal aliens pouring through, sky high inflation, a weakened military, lawfare prosecution of political enemies, and a more dangerous world because of feckless leaders and weak foreign policies.

You can dislike Mr. Trump for his bombastic personality, but he get things done for average Americans versus the empty suit the Democrats are running for President whose resume as Vice President is an empty sheet of paper.

James Nelson

* * *

Yes Mr. Nelson; Trump was president for four years and we survived. Barely. I for one do not want to give him another opportunity to destroy our democracy (how America is actually categorized).

However, I understand why certain U.S. citizens want to eliminate that categorization. So let's be more accurate when categorizing the U.S. as a republic. What we have is a "constitutional republic." This means that the people elect their president and representatives according to the rules established in the supreme law of this land - the Constitution. No citizen is disenfranchised and denied the right to vote. That seems to be where the MAGA republicans and the democrats differ significantly. Trump doesn't understand the Constitution or the rule of law. He doesn't even understand how the government works. And he doesn't understand economic principles. He acts and thinks like a "mob boss."



Let's be real. Under Trump the economy was not great for everyone and and favored the rich and large corporations. What he did by giving that tax cut to the rich was simply deplorable. He has even said out of his own mouth during this campaign that he would give them even more perks if they gave him money to help him get elected again. Then where do you think the burden falls.



I don't want someone who couldn't even keep his company afloat running this country. Everything he touches he destroys. He even wants to be a dictator (he loves to give praise to the worse dictators in the world); he wants to destroy the affordable healthcare system needed by so many Americans; and even do away with Social Security - the only income some people have. He wants to do away with this constitutional republic. He's a nightmare for America and does nothing for the average American. People that worked with him before aren't supporting him this time. Pence can probably give you an ear-full.



All I've heard is his supporters spouting the same lies Trump throws out as his "make believe successes." Does he send supporters a script or has he lied so much that supporters can repeat it word-for-word. MAGA does not care that he lies all the time and did the same thing when he was president. He takes the average American for stupid because so many have fallen for his lies. Anyone that supports him is supporting an incompetent, ignorant, lying, narcissistic, racist, convicted criminal, rapist, insurrectionist candidate. Heaven help us if he's elected again. So again, give me; no, give the nation, a break.



Renee Smith
Chattanooga State Community College students, alumni, faculty, and staff gathered Wednesday alongside local and statewide dignitaries on the College's Chattanooga campus to celebrate the groundbreaking of the colleges newest Tennessee College of Applied Technologies (TCAT) Building.



The $15 million TCAT building will comprise two stories across approximately 25,000 square feet and will be located on the College's Chattanooga campus at 4501 Amnicola Highway. It is slated to open in January, 2026. The $15 million TCAT building will comprise two stories across approximately 25,000 square feet and will be located on the College's Chattanooga campus at 4501 Amnicola Highway. It is slated to open in January, 2026.



The building will house the colleges Massage Therapy, Barbering, Cosmetology, and Aesthetics programs and will replace TCAT 1, which will be demolished to create an additional campus green space for student use.



ChattState President Dr. Rebecca Ashford said the building is a testament to the impact of technical education on individuals, families, and communities.



This facility represents our ongoing commitment to workforce training and career excellence, said Dr. Ashford. All of our future students who pursue these vital, service-oriented professions are poised for bright and impactful futures.



Tennessee Board of Regents Chancellor Dr. Flora W. Tydings said the construction of the new training facility represents both the states commitment to accessible technical education and the direct impact that job skills can have on individuals.



Having buildings that represent the importance of whats happening at a technical college is crucial, Dr. Tydings said. What were doing here is changing lives. When we change a students life, we change a familys life.



Tennessee State Senator Bo Watson said the impact of the new building will be felt by more than just students who learn in it, bolstering entire communities and regions with career opportunities that offer family-sustaining wages.



Chattanooga States newest TCAT building will play a vital role in educating and training generations of students for in-demand careers, strengthening the future of our city, our county, our region, and the entire state of Tennessee, Senator Watson said. Investing in technical education creates a multiplier effect, leading to higher earning potential, job creation, and healthier communities.



TCAT at ChattState Vice President Bo Drake said Tennessees statewide vision of enhanced technical education mirrors that of the College: to ensure students have the best facilities and tools available to prepare them to thrive in the workforce.



The state of Tennessee has made a historical investment in technical colleges across the state of Tennessee, Mr. Drake said. This new building is going to replace an aging facility and provide our students with access to modern equipment in a state-of-the-art setting, allowing us to best prepare our students for the future.
Roger Hoyt Kirby, 81, went to his heavenly home on August 21, 2024.

He was a very dedicated and loving husband to his wife, Carole Gentry Kirby, of 60 years and a loving father to his children. He is survived by a son, Brent G. Kirby (Jaycee), a daughter, Julie Kirby Jones; granddaughters, Alexa Kirby Carini (P.J.), Kirby Jones Allmond (Sport) and great grandson, Gentry Carini.



Roger was a graduate of Rossville High School and Middle Tennessee State University. He was a fan of the university and revisited the campus frequently over the years following his graduation. Roger attained the honor of being a member of the Golden Raiders Society (recognition as a 50-year alum).



Roger began his career at Combustion Engineering. Later, he worked for Mueller Company, both located in Chattanooga. The last 20 years of his work career were spent in management with Synthetic Industries. He was responsible for overseeing procurement departments at the Chickamauga, Ringgold, Gainesville, Ga. plants; Gaffney, S.C. and Chattanooga plants.



Roger was a loving father and often shared his knowledge of history with his children by taking his family to local historical landmarks, parks and museums. Roger never missed an opportunity to attend any events in which his children participated. While living on the lake, he and his family enjoyed canoeing, boating and fishing together. Roger enjoyed spending time with his children, grandchildren and his great grandchildren. In retirement, he and the love of his life, Carole, enjoyed some domestic and international travel. To save later, they spent some of their retirement years in Rock Island, Tn., where they enjoyed exploring the areas historical sites and area attractions. They enjoyed Laurel Creek Baptist Church while there and the friends they made. Roger has been blessed by members of his church here, Burning Bush Baptist. The love shown to him has helped him feel supported and needed even in his latter stages of dementia.



The loving, caring and supportive staff at Rosewood deserves recognition and our sincere thanks and appreciation for helping Roger and our family feel supported and loved.



Funeral services will be held at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 25, in the funeral home chapel. Graveside service will be at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 26, at Tennessee-Georgia Memorial Park.



Visit www.heritagebattlefield.com to share condolences with the family and view memorial tribute.



The family will receive friends from 1-3 p.m. on Sunday at Heritage Funeral Home & Crematory, Battlefield Parkway.






Find out why the Duchess of Sussex's fans are calling out Prince Harry after a video went viral of something he did during a performance while sitting next to Meghan.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle recently wrapped up their four-day visit to Colombia where they traveled to promote mental health for young people and raise awareness about cyberbullying.

But following their trip, questions have been raised about whos going to foot the nearly $2 million bill the Sussexes passed onto the country for their massive security detail of police, military troops, and Black Hawk Helicopters to protect them during their visit. Will it be the Colombian government, the residents, or both?

On top of that, Meghans fans have some questions for Prince Harry about his behavior with an interpreter while sitting right next to his wife.

Meghans fans sounded off about what Prince Harry did after arriving in Colombia

Not long after touching down in the South American nation, Harry and Meghan were treated to a tribe dance show at the Zapata National Centre for the Arts in Bogota. A few times during the performance the prince was seen speaking with the director of the National Center for the Arts, Xiomara Suescun, who was seated next to him.

Prince Harry speaks with the director of the National Center for the Arts, Xiomara Suescun, during visit to Bogota, Colombia | RAUL ARBOLEDA/AFP via Getty Images

At one point, cameras captured Harry leaning back and resting his arm on Suescuns chair and the Duchess of Sussexs fans did not appreciate that one bit. Many took to X (formerly Twitter) to sound off about it.

One person wrote: Harry tries to be slick by placing his arm around the back of the translatorits creepy, absolutely inappropriate & forward & places this woman in an uncomfortable position. His body language is gross.

Sitting very close to the translator & with his arm around her chair!!!!! Oh dear, Harry will be in for it when he gets home!!!!! another said.

A third chimed in: Im sure Harry got the wrath of Meghan about this!

And a fourth added: The duchess is trying to maintain her composure and keep cool but you can tell she is burning mad.

Commenters did not fault Suescun for anything though, noting: The translator is not doing anything wrong and appears to be acting with professionalism and decorum and Their interpreters demeanor seemed very professional and friendly.

Expert says Harry wanted to connect with his wife on a deeper level

However, a body language expert analyzed other parts of the Sussexes trip and how the couple acted with each other pointing out that there was an undeniable passion between them.

Darren Stanton is a body language and behavioral expert with a degree in psychology. He previously worked as a police officer and used his expertise to uncover the truth when interviewing hundreds of suspects. He later moved into media and TV as a consultant and has been dubbed the Human Lie Detector.

He noticed that when the duke and duchess shared a dance, Harry showed that he wanted to connect on a deeper level with his bride.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry dancing at the Unidad Recreativa El Vallado in Cali, Colombia | Eric Charbonneau/Archewell Foundation via Getty Images

Speaking on behalf of Betfair Roulette, Stanton explained: Harry and Meghan shared a dance as they visited the Caribbean coast. This intimate exchange was filled with undeniable passion  they couldnt keep their eyes off each other. Harry took the lead by initiating the dance. He wanted to connect with his wife on a deeper level.

We see this demonstrated through Harry taking Meghans hand and pulling her closer towards him. When they were letting their hair down and having a dance, Meghan and Harry gazed into each others eyes and both had their arms wrapped around each other. Their bodies were completely in sync. Towards the end, Meghan took control as she leaned towards Harry, placed her hands on his cheeks and pulled him in for a kiss. This proves Meghan liked that Harry took the lead  but she isnt afraid to go for what she wants.

Showbiz Cheat Sheet acknowledges conditions and cultures can impact body language and is sensitive to all backgrounds.
Northvolt announced the decision to shift development of its next-generation lithium-metal battery technology from California to its R&D campus, Northvolt Labs, in Vasteras, Sweden. The transfer reflects a strategic move to consolidate the R&D and industrialization of Northvolts cell product portfolio  featuring lithium-ion, sodium-ion and lithium-metal  into one location, where future development of the technologies benefits from a platform of expertise and capabilities that is unmatched in the Western world.

At Northvolt Labs, the development of lithium-metal battery technology will be supported by access to a world-class team of material engineers, cell designers and manufacturing experts, working alongside cathode active material and cell manufacturing capabilities, as well as global supply chain development resources. Importantly, the move also brings lithium-metal into the fold of Northvolts customer-facing business units and experience in launching new technologies into the companys production system.

Determining that the support and infrastructure of Northvolt Labs maximizes opportunities for success, whilst also enabling the most cost-efficient pathway for industrialization of lithium-metal technology, follows a detailed assessment of the technology and its market applications undertaken by the Cuberg leadership team in close collaboration with Northvolt.
High school students are invited to attend to learn about more than 40 colleges that will be represented.
As early as 2026, NASA plans to send astronauts to the moon to build a permanent base under its Artemis program.

In preparation for the future lunar construction work, astronauts at the International Space Station (ISS) are conducting an experiment to determine how microgravity affects cement in space.

The task of building infrastructure on the moon is a complicated one. So, thats why astronauts are testing cement-mixing techniques on board the space station before actually landing on the moon. The goal is to construct a permanent base using lunar soil.

NASA and its international partners are studying ways to make it economical to construct satellites in space, as well as build crew habitats on the moon, wrote the agency.

Mixing lunar soil with other materials to make cement can reduce the cost of sending supplies from Earth to the moon. NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick combined a simulated lunar soil with other materials and a liquid solution in two bags. A third bag filled with hot water was placed in between them.

Then, he put the bags in the space stations experiment-conditioning refrigerator overnight. The mixture will be kept in the refrigerator for a few weeks to allow it to settle at ambient temperatures. Afterward, it will be sent to Earth on a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft for analysis.

The process of mixing concrete can release a lot of carbon dioxide. When prepared incorrectly, the gas can cause the material to become brittle and develop unwanted air bubbles. It is hoped that conducting this experiment in space will provide some insight into how microgravity affects the situation.

The experiment is part of the Material Science on the Solidification of Concrete Hardening Investigation. It uses different combinations of water, sand, cement, simulated lunar soil and other additives to identify the one that works best for lunar building purposes.

Not only will the project help with building sustainable structures on the moon, but it will also aid in the search for cement alternatives on Earth.

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In 1912, a Polish book dealer named Wilfrid Voynich purchased a manuscript dating back to the early 15th century.

It consisted of roughly 240 pages filled with strange, handwritten text in an unknown language and various illustrations of people, imaginary plants, symbols, and other bizarre images. The book has been dubbed the Voynich Manuscript, and to this day, experts cant seem to figure out what its about.

So, who was Voynich, and how did he get his hands on the manuscript in the first place? Voynich was born on November 12, 1865, in a town called Telsiai, which is now a part of Lithuania. He studied at the universities of Warsaw, St. Petersburg, and Moscow, earning a degree in chemistry from the latter.

The Russian police arrested him in 1885 for trying to free members of a revolutionary movement. Voynich was then sent to a work camp in Siberia, but he escaped in 1890. By the end of the year, he was living in London.

He continued to support anti-czarist organizations until the death of a fellow revolutionary in 1895. Thats when he shifted his focus to selling rare and antique books. In 1898, he opened his first bookstore in Londons Soho Square.

He got married and became a citizen of Britain in 1904. Then, in 1912, a religious group from Ghislieri College in Italy held an auction of books from their library. Voynich secured several volumes, including the manuscript.

Two years later, he opened a second bookstore in New York. For years, he tried to decode the text in the manuscript, but he died in 1930, leaving it unsolved. After his death, the manuscript was passed to his wife, who gave it to a close friend, Anne Nill, upon her death in 1960.

The following year, Nill sold the book to Hans P. Kraus, an antique book dealer. Kraus eventually donated the book to Yale University in 1969, where it has been housed in the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library ever since.

Since its rediscovery in 1912, many scholars have attempted to decipher the manuscript, but they were all unsuccessful. The thick manuscript contains some pages that fold out into complicated diagrams.

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At an Ohio zoo, an endearing moment between a gorilla and a newborn baby was captured on camera. The video has gone viral on TikTok, amassing more than four million views.

In the 22-second clip, Hannah (@hanessssssssss) held her two-month-old baby Noah up to the glass of the gorilla exhibit at the Columbus Zoo in Ohio.

The gorilla can be seen looking closely at Noah while the baby lies in Hannahs arms. Then, the animal started making kissing gestures toward Noah as if it recognized how cute and sweet the child was.

Hannah and the rest of the visitors who witnessed the scene were wonderstruck. In the background of the video, cries of amazement could be heard from onlookers nearby.

We have previously seen people interact with gorillas, kids specifically, said Hannah. So, we decided to sit next to the glass with our two-month-old to see the gorillas reaction.

Many TikTok users shared their reactions to the adorable interaction. Some comments mentioned the kindness and intelligence of gorillas, while others pointed out that the creatures are more like people than we think.

The gorilla was identified as Moana, a Western Lowland gorilla at Columbus Zoo. According to the World Wildlife Fund, the Western Lowland gorilla is the most numerous of all subspecies of gorilla. They can be found in Cameroon, Gabon, Central African Republic, and other countries in the Congo Basin.

Its unclear exactly how many of these gorillas exist in the wild because they like to inhabit some of the most remote regions of Africa. Western Lowland gorillas have coats that are brownish in color. You can tell them apart from other gorilla subspecies due to their smaller size.

They are quiet animals that communicate with each other using odors and auditory and visual signals. They are also known for being affectionate with their young.

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In just a few weeks, this 33-year-old woman and her 39-year-old husband will be celebrating their 13th anniversary.

They tied the knot back in 2011 and have two girls together, who are 6 and 9-years-old. She always believed that she and her husband had a strong bond and an unshakable marriage.

Her husband works in the military, and two years ago, he received a promotion that required them to rapidly relocate to Hawaii.

She remained in Connecticut with their daughters and pets while her husband went ahead alone so that she could wrap up selling their home and organizing the move.

It wasnt easy for her to take this all on, in addition to keeping their house spotless to show prospective buyers and running the girls between school, dentist, and doctor appointments.

As I was stressing about all of that, I was then getting berated for getting help, like landscaping and house cleaners, because it cost too much money, according to him, she explained.

I felt like I was failing him, and I was hurting so bad. I havent been great with money, I wont deny that, but these were things I truly couldnt have done on my own. I already power washed the house myself to save money, I fixed things we should have hired a handyman for, etc.

Then, when they reunited in Hawaii, her husband was terse and cold with her. She thought it had to do with his upcoming deployment since her husband needed to go away for 7 months.

Instead of getting irritated, she did everything in her power to make her husbands life easier, but her patience with him wore thin, and she quit making an effort.

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Officials have confirmed the presence of a debilitating virus in Europe for the first time. In June and July, a total of 19 cases of Oropouche virus disease, also called sloth virus, were detected in Europe, affecting people in Italy, Germany, and Spain.

It is similar to the Zika virus, which is spread by mosquitoes and was first identified in Uganda. Investigations into whether the germ can cause poor pregnancy outcomes, like the Zika virus, are being conducted.

According to the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), the Oropouche virus was found among travelers returning to Europe from Cuba or Brazil. Overall, five cases were reported in Italy, two in Germany, and 12 in Spain.

The illness is referred to as the sloth virus because it is thought to have originated in pale-throated sloths (Bradypus tridactylus). Other possible animal hosts for the virus are wild birds and a few non-human primates.

There is currently no vaccine to treat the virus. Rates of recovery from the disease are high, and fatalities are extremely rare. Most people recover after several days to a month. However, it is still a cause for concern.

Oropouche virus can cause symptoms that are similar to the Zika virus, including muscle aches, sudden fever, eye pain, sensitivity to light, rash, and vomiting.

In about four percent of cases, it has been found to infect the nervous system, causing inflammation around the spinal cord and brain.

In addition, Brazil has recently reported a handful of cases of the virus that may have been passed from mother to fetus during pregnancy.

The infections were associated with poor outcomes, such as loss of pregnancy and the babys head being smaller than average. Researchers have not yet confirmed the link.

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Home News Gateway Church Executive Pastor Kemtal Glasgow fired for moral issue elders wont disclose

Kemtal Glasgow, Gateway Churchs executive pastor who provided leadership and oversight to all of the megachurchs campuses and gathering locations, has been fired due to a moral issue, the Southlake, Texas-based church announced Wednesday.

Tra Willbanks, a longtime Gateway Church elder, made the announcement in a video posted on YouTube.

As of Monday this week, Kemtal Glasgow is no longer employed at Gateway. We were informed last week of a moral issue which we believe, as elders, disqualifies him from serving in the role that he had at Gateway, Willbanks said.

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We love his family. We love his wife and his kids, and we want to come alongside them during this difficult time and help them find restoration and healing that they need as a family, he added. We would ask that you, as a church, would pray for them as well.

Adana Wilson, the campus pastor of Gateway Church Frisco, will take over Glasgows role, Willbanks said.

When asked to clarify Glasgows moral issue, Lawrence Swicegood, Gateway Churchs executive director, was quick to point out that it has nothing to do with the departure of Robert Morris nor related to those circumstances.

At Gateway, its our deepest desire for every staff member to lead a life of integrity, both in their personal and professional lives. It recently came to light that Kemtal Glasgow had a moral failure, so weve asked him to step down as a pastor at Gateway and devote time to his marriage and family, Swicegood told The Christian Post on Thursday.

Although his employment is ending, we are devoted to still caring for Kemtal and his family. To be clear, this decision regarding Kemtal had nothing to with the departure of Robert Morris nor related to those circumstances, he added. We are praying for Gods grace and love to be with Kemtal and his family during this time.

Morris who is the founder of Gateway Church, resigned as the churchs senior pastor on June 18, after 54-year-old Cindy Clemishire reported that the megachurch pastor began sexually abusing her on Dec. 25, 1982, when she was just 12, and continued with the abuse for four-and-a-half years after that.

Since Morris resignation, Gateway Church has undertaken an independent investigation into the allegations made against him and several key leaders of the church have followed him out the door.

These include founding elder Steve Dulin, who is alleged to have been fired due to financial abuse and bullying. Morris son, James Morris, who had taken the reigns of the megachurch after his fathers resignation, also stepped down last month after spending just weeks in the role. Both James Morris and his wife, Bridgette, left the church.

Gateway elders said they sought the "advice of many well-respected pastors and ministry leaders" about the decision to cut ties with the Morrises, while noting they are confident they will serve as senior leaders of a church in the future.

"We as elders affirm and believe that God has placed a desire in both Pastors James and Bridgette's hearts to serve as senior pastors of a church at some point in the future," the elders said in their statement. "We love Pastors James and Bridgette and their children. We deeply care about them and sincerely thank them for investing their lives here at Gateway Church. They have faithfully and honorably served our congregation and this community through all the years that they have been part of Gateway Church."
Home News Hamas Rafah brigade defeated; Israel destroyed over 150 tunnels in area, Gallant says

The Hamas terror group's Rafah brigade has been defeated, and over 150 tunnels have been destroyed in the region, stated Israels Defense Minister Yoav Gallant during a visit to Israeli troops operating on the Philadelphi Corridor along the Egypt-Gaza border on Wednesday.

Gallant met with soldiers of the IDFs 162nd Division and was briefed on the operations. He instructed the troops to focus on completing the destruction of the remaining tunnels.

Out of the 150 tunnels that were destroyed, around 100 tunnels are in fact trenches dug using engineering tools above ground, and then covered with a meter or two of dirt, Gallant said.

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It is critical to remember the goals of the war and to achieve them  regarding Hamas, regarding the hostages [held by Hamas], and we also understand why we are looking toward the north, he added.

Clearing the Rafah area and choking off what has been described as Hamas lifeline  namely, the tunnels running under the Philadelphi Corridor to Egypt  is currently one of the main Israeli goals during the fighting in Gaza.

The IDF's presence at the corridor is also among the main sticking points in the current hostage deal negotiations, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists on an Israeli presence to rule out the return of Hamas smugglers to the area.

The role of the IDF is to produce security alternatives for the political echelon, to be creative and determined in this matter, IDF Spokesman Brig.-Gen. Daniel Hagari said when asked about the IDFs opinion on the matter.

We also need to allow the government the scope for a decision. We will know how to implement any decision that the political echelon makes, he said during the press briefing.

According to recent IDF updates, the 162nd Division troops eliminated about 100 terrorists in Rafah over the last several days, 50 of them in the past 24 hours alone. The IDF also destroyed Hamas infrastructure in the Tel al-Sultan area and found explosives, grenades, Kalashnikov-type rifles and other weapons.

Around Khan Younis, just north of Rafah, Israels 98th Division is currently involved in heavy fighting against Hamas terrorists. During the past day, the troops deepened their activities, in the Khan Yunis region and the outskirts of Deir al-Balah following accurate intelligence on the presence of terrorist infrastructures and Hamas terrorists in the region, the IDF stated.

The northern outskirts of Khan Younis border in the area of Gazas central camps, which includes several towns the IDF hasnt entered yet during the past 10 months of fighting.

The IDF further stated that around 30 airstrikes were carried out by the Israeli Air Force (IAF) during the past day. According to Palestinian sources, a strike on a house in the town of Deir al-Balah reportedly killed nearly 30 people.

The reports of Israeli operations in this area, together with Palestinian reports of Israeli tanks in the coastal town of Al-Karara, northwest of Khan Younis, have led some commentators to speculate the IDF might be preparing to create another corridor that would cut across the Gaza Strip, similar to the Netzarim Corridor in northern Gaza.

In Gaza City, IAF jets struck Hamas terrorists who were conducting operations in a command and control complex located in a former school, in a targeted manner and under intelligence guidance, the IDF said.

From this compound, Hamas terrorists planned and carried out terrorist acts.  Many measures were taken to reduce the chance of harming civilians, including the use of precision weaponry, and aerial intelligence.

The IDF added: The terrorist organization Hamas systematically violates international law, brutally exploiting civilian institutions and the population as human shields for terrorist acts.

This article was originally published by All Israel News.
Home News Investigation launched into over $100K stolen from Indiana church

An investigation has been launched into a reported theft of at least $100,000 siphoned from an Indiana congregation since 2021.

Heartland Community Church of Lafayette filed a police report Tuesday, alleging that an unknown party has been embezzling funds since December 2021, taking an undisclosed six-figure sum in the process.

Authorities with the Tippecanoe County Sheriff's Office said Heartland Community's bank first alerted the congregation to a few discrepancies in the church's accounts, The Lafayette Journal & Courier reports.

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Authorities did not give an exact amount missing; they just said that it was in the six-digit range. Investigators believe that a former employee of the church might be responsible.

Heartland Community traces its origins to Dutch Reformed immigrants coming to the area in the 19th century. The congregation was originally known as First Reformed Church. The current name and campus were adopted in 2008.

"Those with deep roots in the Dutch Reformed tradition have been made one in Christ Jesus with those from all different backgrounds. We don't all agree on everything (imagine that!), but we do believe that God has moved into the neighborhood in the person of Jesus Christ," stated the church's website.

"So we make it our aim to follow Jesus together. And we love each other. And we trust in God, who has been faithful to this congregation since its start in 1888. This is a river always eager to welcome in new streams. Because in the heart of Heartland is a passion to see Jesus' mission of love spread throughout Greater Lafayette."

A 2017 study by Lifeway Research reported that almost one out of 10 Protestant pastors had said their church witnessed someone embezzle funds. Churches that have 250 or more members were slightly more likely than smaller churches to respond in the affirmative.

"Churches run on trust  but they also know people are imperfect and can be tempted," said Lifeway Executive Director Scott McConnell, as quoted in the 2017 report. "That's why safeguarding a church's finances is an important part of ministry."
Home News 13-year-old boy dies in crash on drive home from Dollywood church trip

A teenager who lost his life in a car accident on the way back from a trip to an amusement park with his church group is being remembered as a vibrant soul who left a lasting impact on all who knew him.

Aidan Linville, 13, died Sunday from injuries in a car crash on the way back from a visit to the Dollywood Amusement Park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. According to a GoFundMe fundraiser set up to support his grieving family, Linville spent an epic day at Dollywood on Saturday where he lived life to the fullest and earned some blisters on his feet.

Describing the accident as serious, the fundraiser noted that first responders initially viewed his condition as stable, only to discover that his injuries were far more serious. He was transported to the University of Tennessee Medical Center where he succumbed to his injuries.

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Aidan was a vibrant soul who cherished his family, his church family, his Boy Scout friends and his school friends. He touched so many lives with his kindness, laughter, and adventurous spirit. His sudden passing has left his family heartbroken and facing many unexpected and difficult decisions, the fundraiser explained.

The fundraiser seeks to help cover the costs of medical expenses, funeral arrangements, and other unforeseen expenses for Linvilles family. As of Thursday afternoon, the fundraiser has raised more than $11,500 out of a $20,000 goal. In addition to GoFundMe, those hoping to support Linvilles family can donate to the Aidan Linville Memorial Fund at Tennessee First National Bank in Sparta.

According to local news station WVLT-TV, Linville traveled to Dollywood from Sparta with a group from his church, the Doyle Church of the Nazarene, WKRN-TV reported.

He just had a blast, a lot of fun, and just enjoyed the rides and being with his friends, Tyler Brandes, a family friend, told WVLT-TV.

His dad is a single father; his dad is an amputee who lost his arm in an industrial accident, actually, so he was always helping his dad with things, he added.

In a statement issued to WVLT-TV, Linvilles family described the boy as a bright light in our lives  full of unending energy, kindness, and a spirit that touched everyone he met. He loved his family deeply, cherished his church community, and formed lasting friendships through his involvement in Boy Scouts and school.

According to WKRN-TV, the accident occurred in Crossville after the driver of another car ran a red light and crashed into the van carrying Linville and his friends. Other passengers suffered minor injuries while the driver of the car was not hurt.

Family friend Ken Hatfield told WKRN-TV that Linville was a very loving child and a very innocent child who would just brighten up the room by walking in. Hatfield stressed that he had a big, big heart for all of his friends, he was always looking out for them as well.

The accident occurred just before Linville was slated to begin eighth grade at White County Middle School, where grief counselors were on hand to help students deal with the unexpected and tragic loss. Details about a memorial service are forthcoming.
Home News Ukraine has right to crackdown on weaponized churches, religious freedom expert says

Ukraine's strategy to crack down on what it perceives as "weaponized" religious institutions aligned with Russian aggression, including the Russian Orthodox Church and its Ukrainian affiliates, might be extreme but justified, a human rights expert argues.

In an op-ed published in National Review, Nina Shea, a human rights lawyer and director of the Center for Religious Freedom at the conservative Washington-based think tank Hudson Institute, stresses that Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church is not a passive observer but an active participant in Russia's war efforts. She believes that Ukraine has every right to "defend itself from Russia's aggression, and that should include defending itself from a weaponized church."

Her piece comes as the Ukrainian government has escalated its actions against Ukrainian Orthodox Churches and leaders, including the arrest of 68 priests and Metropolitan Pavel. Ukraine has also added Orthodox Patriarch Kirill of Moscow to its "most wanted" list in December.

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Kirill has blessed Russia's invasion of Ukraine that began in February 2022 and has portrayed it as a holy war, intertwining religion with the Kremlin's political ambitions, Shea wrote. She added that the Russian Orthodox Church has historically aligned itself with Soviet authorities and continues to support President Putin's regime.

"Religion was not Putin's primary reason for invading Ukraine, but Kirill has been his stalwart partner in the fight," wrote Shea, a former member of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom.

"In 1927, after Stalin slaughtered or imprisoned over 50,000 Orthodox religious, and even greater numbers of laity, the Russian Orthodox leadership capitulated with a 'Declaration of Loyalty to the Soviets.' Today, the Moscow Patriarchate continues as an active and loyal Putin ally."

A delegation from the Ukrainian National Council of Churches and Religious Organizations, representing several different churches excluding the UOC, defended Kyiv's actions during an October meeting with the Hudson Institute.

They detailed instances of UOC clergy acting as Russian military collaborators and propagators of Moscow's disinformation.

"They told of UOC clergy serving as Russian military collaborators, spotters for snipers, spies, conveyors of strategic information, and propagators of Moscow's disinformation," she wrote.

The Kremlin, Shea added, leverages the Moscow Patriarchate to morally justify its aggression, with Kirill persuading the Russian Orthodox populace of the war's righteousness.

In contrast, Bob Amsterdam, an attorney representing the UOC, criticized the Ukrainian government's actions in an interview with Tucker Carlson late last year.

Amsterdam argued that the UOC, having declared independence from Moscow in May 2022, is unjustly targeted. He accused the Ukrainian government of political motivations, aiming to suppress the UOC in favor of the newly established Orthodox Church of Ukraine, recognized by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.

The lawyer accused the Orthodox Church of Ukraine of engaging in an "unlimited campaign to steal property, harass, intimidate and jail clerics, force conscription on believers, act in a manner that is almost unbelievable in a civilized society.

Theyll use the excuse that this church, which, by the way, completely separated from Moscow in May of last year, is somehow connected to the Russian [Federal Security Service], Amsterdam said. But based on the testimonies Ive reviewed, there seems to be little substance to this allegation.

Last December, Ukraine passed a law to ban religious organizations linked to Russian influence, citing national security concerns.

Some experts argue that the law while safeguarding Ukraine's "spiritual independence," has raised questions about religious freedom. The domestic security agency's counterintelligence operation against the UOC has led to investigations of over dozens of priests and raids on religious sites.

The situation is complex, with the UOC's historical significance and its recent formal disassociation from the Moscow Patriarchate. The UOC's split in May 2022 was seen by many as insufficient in distancing itself from Russian influence. The Orthodox Church of Ukraine, now the majority church in Ukraine, represents a shift in religious dynamics, further complicating the government's stance on the UOC.

Internationally, the U.S. has provided substantial aid to Ukraine, raising concerns about the implications of supporting actions that could be perceived as infringing on religious freedoms. Comparisons have been drawn to U.S. policies in other regions, questioning the consistency of America's stance on religious liberty.

As Shea and other experts note, the Ukraine conflict has a significant religious dimension that cannot be ignored. The politicization of the Moscow Patriarchate and its role in the war adds layers to the ongoing crisis.

Ukraine's efforts to restrict the Moscow Patriarchate and its Ukrainian loyalists are seen by some, like Shea, as necessary for national security, while others view them as a troubling infringement on religious freedom.
Home News 7 pro-life activists convicted for abortion clinic blockade, face 10 years in prison

Seven pro-life activists have been convicted of violating federal civil rights law and the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act in connection with a 2020 abortion clinic blockade in Sterling Heights, Michigan.

The U.S. Department of Justice announced the convictions Tuesday against Calvin Zastrow, Eva Zastrow, Eva Edl, Chester Gallagher, Heather Idoni, Joel Curry and Justin Phillips.

The FACE Act subjects anyone who "by force or threat of force or by physical obstruction, intentionally injures, intimidates or interferes with or attempts to injure, intimidate or interfere with any person because that person is or has been" providing "reproductive health services" to federal charges.

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In addition to FACE Act charges, each defendant faces a "felony conspiracy against rights" charge. Edl and Idoni face additional charges in connection with an April 2021 abortion clinic blockade in Saginaw, Michigan.

"These defendants orchestrated an unlawful clinic blockade and physically obstructed patients seeking access to their doctors, without regard to the serious medical needs of the women they blocked from accessing reproductive health care," said DOJ Civil Rights Division Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke.

"These defendants intentionally broke the law. One woman's fetus experienced fetal abnormalities and the defendants' coordinated campaign of physical obstruction posed a grave and real threat to her health and fertility."

The Thomas More Society, a legal group representing Gallagher, seeks to have the "conspiracy against rights" charges against its client thrown out Tuesday.

"Yet again, the Biden-Harris Department of Justice has decided to characterize the actions of peaceful pro-lifers as a felony 'Conspiracy Against Rights,' punishable by over a decade in federal prison," Thomas More Society Senior Counsel Steve Crampton said in a statement.

"We are optimistic that our Motion to Dismiss the felony conspiracy charges will receive full and fair consideration by the Court," Crampton added. "We also believe that the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Fischer v. United States confirms that the Department of Justice's novel strategy to inflict [maximum] pain upon peaceful pro-lifers by adding a charge of felony Conspiracy Against Rights cannot be squared with the law and we stand ready to make that case."

As explained in a motion to dismiss filed on Gallagher's behalf on July 22, the June 28 Fischer decision determined that "the Sarbanes Oxley Act's prohibition on obstructing official proceedings  must be narrowly interpreted to apply only to the impairment of the availability or integrity of documents, etc., for use in official proceedings  rather than to any obstruction of an official proceeding in any manner."

The motion also highlighted the Supreme Court's warning that a broad reading of the Sarbanes Oxley Act would effectively "criminalize a broad swath of prosaic conduct, exposing activists and lobbyists alike to decades in prison" and that a peaceful protestor could conceivably be charged under the law and "face a 20-year sentence."

"The federal' conspiracy against rights' statute  was enacted in 1870 primarily to stop the Ku Klux Klan's rampant violations of African Americans' civil rights," the legal document declared.

The motion to dismiss noted that the statute prohibits "two or more persons" from "conspir[ing] to injure, oppress, threaten, or intimidate any person  in the free exercise or enjoyment of any right or privilege secured to him by the Constitution or laws of the United States."

The Thomas More Society maintains that a DOJ trial attorney was misguided in suggesting that the "conspiracy against rights" statute should be applied to FACE Act violations because they "are often planned and coordinated offenses that involve more than one subject."

Prosecuting FACE Act violations under the "conspiracy against rights" statute elevates all violations committed from felonies to misdemeanors. The motion to dismiss characterized this use of the statute as running afoul of the penalties clearly laid out by the U.S. Congress in the law, which made perfectly clear that first-time nonviolent offenders would face misdemeanor charges as opposed to felony charges.

If convicted under the "conspiracy against rights" statute, Gallagher and other defendants could face up to 10 years in prison and/or a fine. The defendants' "sentencing will take place at a later date."
Home News Episcopal bishop accused of not enforcing 'safe church' measures against pastor

An Episcopal Church bishop based in California has been accused of not properly enforcing disciplinary action against a pastor who allegedly failed to properly vet a sex offender.

Earlier this week, The Christian Post was directed to an Anglican Watch story from July 30 accusing Bishop Lucinda Ashby of the Episcopal Diocese of El Camino Real of mishandling a Title IV disciplinary complaint.

At issue, according to Anglican Watch, was an incident in which the Rev. Ruth Casipit-Paguio of Holy Family Episcopal Church of San Jose, failed to enforce Safe Church requirements.

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Casipit-Paguio reportedly didnt bother to run background checks on church staff and volunteers during that time, a violation of diocesan policy. Possibly as a result, a known pedophile listed on a state sex offender registry attempted to become involved with the parish. That individual obtained keys to the church, claimed Anglican Watch.

When the matter came to Casipit-Paguios attention, the parish removed the offender from leadership. Still, Casipit-Paguio allegedly declined to report the matter to the police, as required by law. Moreover, neither parishioners nor other parishes were alerted to the issue, thereby placing children and others at risk.

An unnamed individual filed a Title IV complaint against Casipit-Paguio, with Anglican Watch claiming that the complaint was brushed off by the reference panel, with the site stating that the bishop is one of the members of the intake panel.

The Christian Post reached out to the Episcopal Diocese of Camino Real on Wednesday for a response, with a spokesperson explaining that, because of the sensitivity of the issue, we are unable to provide comments on Title IV or pastoral concerns.

The Episcopal Church has garnered internal criticism in recent months over its Title IV disciplinary process, which some believe does not properly handle credible abuse allegations.

Last year, Episcopal House of Deputies President Julia Ayala Harris publicly accused a retired bishop of having "physically overpowered" her and made "inappropriate verbal statements."

"Going through the Title IV process this past year was not something I would want anyone to have to endure," wrote Ayala Harris, as quoted by ENS. "Yet, living through that experience has given me an important perspective that I can apply in my leadership role, and it has renewed my long-lasting commitment to increased safety in our communities."

Last December, the ex-wife and two adult sons of former Bishop Prince Singh filed a complaint against Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Michael Curry and Episcopal Bishop Todd Ousley over their alleged mishandling of abuse accusations against Singh.

The family members argued that Curry and Ousley, the latter of whom had served as an intake officer for complaints against bishops, failed to properly follow the Title IV process.

In February, the Episcopal Church Office of Public Affairs announced the launching of a new "three-part protocol" to better explain and promote the disciplinary process for bishops.

The three aspects included a newly created webpage for reporting alleged misconduct, a separate webpage that gives updates for ongoing disciplinary cases and "an annual statistical report on complaints involving bishops and their outcomes."
Home News Egyptian man allowed to list Christian faith on ID card a decade after clerical error

After over a decade of persistent denial of his religious identity, an Egyptian Christian man has successfully corrected the religious affiliation on his identification documents, marking a significant victory for religious freedom in Egypt.

Referred to only as Elias for security reasons, the resident of Cairo faced a clerical error by the Egyptian authorities that incorrectly listed him as Muslim on all official identification.

This error significantly affected his and his family's daily life, restricting their participation in Christian activities and barring his children from attending Christian schools, according to the legal advocacy group ADF International, which supported Elias.

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Despite repeated attempts to rectify this on his ID card, Elias's requests were continuously ignored, leaving him to face widespread discrimination and curtailing his family's religious education and practices.

ADF International says a resolution was reached through its network of allied attorneys, leading to a government directive to amend Elias's documents to reflect his Christian faith accurately.

Elias' case is just one of numerous cases where religious minorities are harassed or discriminated against when they request to change their religion on their identification documents, according to ADF International Director of Global Religious Freedom Kelsey Zorzi.

"Despite years of legal challenges and attempts to change the law to reflect religious freedom standards, the situation has remained largely unchanged," she added. "We are delighted that Elias' request was finally allowed, and we will continue to support other individuals who face issues with their identity cards."

Egypt's Ministry of Interior mandates all citizens' ID cards state their religious affiliation. Errors or misstatements on such documents can lead to severe violations of religious freedom and discrimination.

Incidents of Christian persecution in Egypt vary from women being harassed while walking in the street to Christian communities being driven out of their homes by extremist mobs. Christians are typically treated as second-class citizens.

Egypt's government speaks positively about the Egyptian Christian community. Still, the lack of serious law enforcement and the unwillingness of local authorities to protect Christians leave them vulnerable to all kinds of attacks.

Churches and Christian nongovernmental organizations face restrictions on building new churches or running social services.

In Egypt, ADF International is also involved in legal battles for Nour Girgis and Abdulbaqi Saeed Abdo, two Christian men held in pre-trial detention since 2021. Their arrest stemmed from their association with a Facebook page supporting those who have converted from Islam to Christianity, a charge Egyptian authorities have controversially linked with terrorism.

The advocacy group has called for their urgent release and is pursuing international legal avenues to secure it. In a recent development, Abdo announced he would commence a hunger strike to protest the injustice he has endured.
Home News Father charged after 2-year-old left in car almost died as he attended funeral at church

A father who left his three children, including a newborn and two toddlers, inside his car alone as he attended a funeral at a Baptist church in Charlotte, North Carolina, has been charged with child abuse causing serious injuries and two other misdemeanors after one of the children passed out while he was away.

The father, Jonathan Redfern, told WSOC-TV he left his 2-year-old son John, another 1-year-old and a 5-week-old inside his car earlier this month with the air conditioning on for a few minutes while he attended the funeral service of a late friend at the church in the Belmont neighborhood.

When he left the church to return to his car, he said a bystander informed him, "Your son is stuck in the window."

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"Then it hit me  'oh snap.' So I got in panic mode and ran to the car," he recalled.

Redfern realized that John rolled the car window up on his neck and cut off his airway. The boy was eventually freed but stopped breathing. John was rushed to a local hospital, where he was revived.

Though Redfern claims he was only away from his car for a few minutes and asked someone to watch the children for him, court records indicate that he was recorded on surveillance cameras going into the church for the funeral and leaving some 15 minutes later.

He insists that he never meant any harm to his children.

"They mean everything," he said, noting how lucky his son is to still be alive.

"Man, I'm grateful, brother, grateful," Redfern added. "I never, never neglect my children or abuse my children."

Redfern acknowledged that he should have left his child in a car seat, but statistics from NoHeatStroke.org show that about 1,000 children have died in hot cars since 1998.

More than half of these children were left behind unknowingly by their caregivers.

David Diamond, a professor of psychology at the University of South Florida in Tampa, told Consumer Reports that stresses parents face daily can cause memory lapses that cause them to forget their children are in the car.

"The most common response is that only bad or negligent parents forget kids in cars," Diamond said. "It's a matter of circumstances. It can happen to everyone."

Janette Fennell, founder and president of KidsAndCars.org, which tracks such incidents, remarked to Consumer Reports that the "worst thing any parent or caregiver can ever do is to think that something like this could never happen to them or someone in their family."

"We have to accept the fact that our brain multitasks. And as a part of that multitasking, the awareness of a child can be lost," Diamond added. "We have to accept that the human memory is flawed. That includes when loving, attentive parents lose awareness of their children when they are in a car."
Home News 'Hidden' abuses against Christian women spotlighted on Int'l Day for Victims of Religious Violence

From tear-gas attacks on churches to girls being forced into Islamic marriage, the "hidden" abuses women face and the increasing trend of persecution against Christians are receiving a global spotlight Thursday.

As the United Nations observes its sixth International Day Commemorating the Victims of Acts of Violence Based on Religion or Belief, the Permanent Mission of Poland to the U.N. in New York is holding a side event focusing specifically on discrimination women face because of their religion or belief and how those women can be empowered.

The Aug. 22 annual day of observance resolution was enacted by the U.N. General Assembly in 2019 to highlight "continuing violence and acts of terrorism targeting individuals, including persons belonging to religious minorities" based on their religion.

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"We are grateful to the United Nations for its efforts to draw attention to the topic of religiously motivated violence and discrimination," Ryan Brown, the CEO of the persecution watchdog group Open Doors US, who will be participating in the virtual side discussion, told The Christian Post.

"We in the West can be far too unaware of all that Christians around the world endure for their decision to follow Jesus, and they need our prayers and support."

According to a 2024 Open Doors US "Gender Report," the top five pressure points in 2024 for women and girls are forced marriage, sexual violence, physical violence, psychological violence and abduction.

Forced marriage is a risk for women and girls in 84% of 50 countries on the group's annual World Watch List of countries where Christians are most persecuted and 82% for sexual violence. Women and girls are also at risk of facing physical violence in 72% of these countries, and 62% of girls are at risk of abduction and psychological violence.

Various factors contribute to women's persecution, including social class, marital status and the culture's view on the role of women. A statement announcing Thursday's event states that "women's suffering remains hidden from the public eye and the distinctiveness of their situation falls outside the international community's attention."

Females are vulnerable to sexual discrimination and abuse due to cultural ideas about honor, and the persecution typically happens behind closed doors. Those within the woman's community are usually the perpetrators.

"The average number of Pressure points per country for women and girls in 2024 was 8.4, in comparison to 6.6 Pressure points per country for men and boys," the report noted. "This does not speak to the severity of persecution, but does suggest that women and girls especially face a multiplicity of types of pressure and violence."

Women in certain parts of the world who have, for example, converted to Christianity and renounced Islam may be coerced into a marriage with a non-Christian man. Christian women and girls in places like Pakistan or Nigeria may be abducted and forced into a marriage with a soldier or forced to marry a much older Muslim man.

"FORB-related violence and discrimination against women and girls often take place in the private sphere and is underreported due to lack of available and effective recourses, but also shame and stigma," the announcement states.

"It is so because for women and girls such violence takes form of a forced marriage, including to exert a forced conversion, sexual violence, abduction, FGM, and exclusion from a community."

Marking the Aug. 22 observance, the Vienna-based Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination is urging people not to lose sight of the rising Christian intolerance it is chronicling in Europe. In its latest annual report released last November, Christians in Europe reported a 44% increase in anti-Christian hate crimes.

"In the West, we tend to think of violence against religious believers as primarily a problem of countries in Africa and Asia," Anja Hoffmann, executive director of OIDAC Europe, said in a statement shared with CP. "While it is important to highlight these dramatic examples of persecution, we must also pay close attention to what is happening in Europe."

"Most anti-Christian attacks in Europe are directed against churches and cemeteries, but we sadly also continue to see violent attacks against Christian individuals," Hoffmann added.

The French Ministry of the Interior recorded almost 1,000 anti-Christian hate crimes in 2023. According to the observatory, 90% of these incidents were directed against churches and cemeteries in addition to 84 "personal attacks with an anti-religious motive against Christians."

Since the beginning of 2024, the observatory has documented 25 cases of physical violence, threats or attempted murder against Christians in the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria, Poland and Serbia. One example is a French Seventh-Day Adventist church that was attacked with tear gas during a service in June. Nine people were injured.

Open Doors' annual report released earlier this year found an increase in violence against Christians and places of worship worldwide. At least 14,766 churches and Christian properties were attacked globally, and nearly 5,000 Christians were killed for their faith.

Brown says the day of observance is a great opportunity to remind governments worldwide that the "international community is aware of the human rights violations that are taking place within their borders and does not sanction these abuses."

"We call upon those nations which claim to recognize religious freedom that they would indeed uphold such laws, and we join our voices with those fighting for human rights around the globe in applying pressure to totalitarian and radical regimes to lift their restrictions on religious freedom," Brown stressed.
Home News Ukraine passes law banning Orthodox denomination with historic ties to Russia

Ukrainian lawmakers passed a law banning churches and religious groups with ties to Moscow as the war between Russia and Ukraine continues.

The Verkhovna Rada passed the bill on Tuesday, banning groups associated with the Russian Orthodox Church and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which has historic ties to the Moscow patriarch but severed those ties in May 2022 in opposition to the war.

Ukrainian leaders have maintained that the UOC is working as an arm of the Russian Orthodox Church, led by a patriarch who has called the invasion of Ukraine beginning in February 2022 a "holy" endeavor to bring the region under Russian control.

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The ban would not apply to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, officially recognized by most global Orthodox Church leadership in 2019 and independent of Russian influence.

Ukraine accuses the UOC of supporting the Russian invasion of Ukraine by spreading pro-Russian propaganda and has arrested clergy on what advocates have called false allegations of espionage.

"This is a historic vote. Parliament approved a legislation which bans a branch of the aggressor country in Ukraine," stated Ukrainian lawmaker Iryna Herashchenko, according to Reuters.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy supported the bill, labeling it a step toward "spiritual independence."

The Ukrainian Council of Churches, which represents a majority of Ukrainian religious bodies, praised the law's passage.

"We support the legislative initiative of the President of Ukraine to make it impossible for such organizations to operate in our country, which also has broad political and public support," the council said in a statement.

"The main threat to religious freedom in Ukraine is the Russian aggression, as a result of which dozens of clergymen were killed by the occupiers and hundreds of churches and houses of worship were destroyed. The Moscow Patriarchate justifies pogroms and restrictions on religious freedom, torture and murders of priests and pastors, and cynically tramples on God's instructions and basic norms of universal morality."

Individual parishes will have at least nine months to decide whether to leave the UOC, notes Reuters.

Wesley J. Smith, chair of the Discovery Institute's Center on Human Exceptionalism, is among the critics of the new law, arguing that the measure violates the religious freedom of those who wish to remain with the UOC.

"The dispute about whether the Ukrainian Orthodox Church or the Orthodox Church of Ukraine legitimately represents Ukrainian Orthodoxy is a matter for the Orthodox Church to work out," wrote Smith for National Review.

"But the government of Ukraine should not decide which church is 'legitimate' and which is not, which can operate openly and which should be suppressed."

In May 2022, a few months after Russian forces invaded Ukraine, the UOC announced it was cutting ties with Moscow over the Russian Orthodox Church's support of the war.

"The council has approved the corresponding additions and changes to the Statute on the Management of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, indicating the full autonomy and independence of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church," stated UOC leadership at the time.

Multiple allegations have surfaced of UOC-affiliated clergy and sites reportedly helping spread pro-Russian literature and sympathy for the invasion.

Ukraine had been considering legislation to ban the UOC and other Russian Orthodox-linked entities last October, with proponents arguing that it is a matter of protecting national security.

Russian Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill, who has supported the invasion of Ukraine, denounced last year's vote as being done by "radical politicians."

"They do not hide the fact that the bill is directed against the largest religious community of Ukraine and is aimed at the liquidation of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church as a centralized structure with each of all its dioceses, parishes and monasteries and convents," Kirill said in a statement.
Home Opinion Elon Musk v. the ad giants: A bid to end social media censorship

In the latest episode of Elon Musk vs. The World, our favorite rogue tech mogul has decided to take on the advertising behemoths. Musks social media platform, X (formerly known as Twitter), has filed a lawsuit against several major advertisers and the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA).



The lawsuit alleges that these entities coordinated an illegal boycott against X, causing significant financial harm to the company. Musk claims that this boycott was designed to punish the platform for its stance on free speech and its deviation from traditional brand safety standards after his acquisition of Twitter in late 2022.

While some will view these events as overly sensitive or paranoid, its much more important. The lawsuit shines a spotlight on the bigger issue of the ongoing censorship of political conservatives and Christians by leftist social media platforms and advertisers.

The Musk chronicles: A battle for free speech

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Elon Musk, the man who brought us electric cars, reusable rockets, and the occasional Twitter meltdown, is now waging war against the advertising industry. The lawsuit names the World Federation of Advertisers and several of its member companies, including Unilever, Mars, CVS Health and rsted.

X accuses these companies and the WFA of organizing a systematic boycott to withhold billions of dollars in advertising revenue from the platform. The reason? Concerns over brand safety and the platforms content moderation policies following Musks takeover.

According to the lawsuit, evidence uncovered by the U.S. House Judiciary Committee suggests that the boycott was a coordinated effort to harm X financially. Musk has declared war on the advertisers, stating that the lawsuit is a fight for free speech and against what he perceives as anticompetitive collusion. The boycott has reportedly led to a significant decline in Xs advertising revenue, putting the platforms future at risk.

Now, whether you see Musk as a champion of free speech or just a billionaire with too much time on his hands, theres no denying that this lawsuit raises important questions about the power of advertisers and their influence over social media platforms. But this isnt just about Musk. This is about a much larger issue that has been brewing for years: the censorship of political conservatives and Christians.

The censorship chronicles: A tale of suppression

Political conservatives and Christians have long claimed censorship and cloaking by social media platforms and advertisers. These groups argue that their content is often suppressed or removed and that they face unfair treatment compared to other viewpoints. Unfortunately, there are plenty of examples to back up their claims.

Musk called out one of these advertising giants on this exact topic at the DealBook gathering in 2023. Onstage and on camera, Elon made a private drama public when he called out Disney and its CEO Bob Iger for their attempted coercion.

After Musks tirade, where he famously lashed out at Iger by flouting all the rules of public communication and CEO decorum, interestingly Iger had to explain himself to the media where he expressed great admiration for Musk but confirmed the censorship because it was all due to brand fit!

There are a ton of cases of Christians who have been fined or censored for expressing socially conservative views. In Canada, Christian pastors have faced fines and censorship for speaking out against issues like same-sex marriage and abortion. Meanwhile, in the United States, the U.S. Supreme Court has vacated rulings on state laws that aimed to hold social media platforms accountable for censoring conservative opinions. This indicates ongoing legal battles over the issue.

Social media platforms like Facebook, YouTube and Twitter have been accused of censoring conservative content, often under the guise of enforcing community standards. Specific examples include the removal of conservative content from social media platforms and the demonetization of channels that promote conservative or Christian viewpoints.

The liberal media and social media platforms: A double standard

Social media and the liberal news media have been playing the censorship game by holding conservative pundits or sites to a different standard regarding what is truthful or correct. This typically comes down to political affiliation and viewpoint.

Instances of Censorship

Pew Research Center: The highly respected Pew Research Center on Social Media Censorship found that a whopping 73% of U.S. adult respondents said that social media platforms censor political viewpoints they find objectionable.



The New York Times: Journalist Timothy P. Carney, writing for The New York Times, said that most journalists and editors are leftist and that this led to a lack of understanding of conservative viewpoints. BizPac Reviewargues that censorship of conservative voices on platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Google is rampant. The Babylon Bee: The satirical site The Babylon Bee has faced repeated suspensions and demonetizations on platforms like Twitter and Facebook for content that was deemed offensive or misleading. Despite being a satire site, its conservative-leaning jokes often attract scrutiny that similar liberal-leaning satire sites do not face. Joy Villa: Musician Joy Villa, known for her pro-Trump messages, had her Make America Great Again music video taken down by YouTube shortly after its release. YouTube cited a privacy complaint, but Villa and her supporters saw it as part of a broader pattern of anti-conservative bias. Shadow Banning: Numerous conservative figures have reported being shadow-banned on platforms like Twitter, where their content is not outright removed but is made less visible to other users. This practice has been widely criticized as a subtle form of censorship. Project Veritas: The conservative investigative journalism organization Project Veritas, known for its undercover operations that exposed liberal institutions, has faced multiple suspensions and bans on platforms like Twitter and YouTube. Critics argue that these actions are politically motivated.

The bigger picture: A battle for free speech

So, what does all of this mean? Well, for starters, it means that the battle for free speech is far from over. Whether its Elon Musk taking on the advertising giants or political conservatives and Christians fighting against censorship, the fight for free speech is a battle that is being waged on multiple fronts.

Musks lawsuit against the advertising giants is just one example of how powerful entities can use their influence to suppress viewpoints they dont agree with. And while Musk may be fighting for his platforms survival, political conservatives and Christians are fighting for their right to express their beliefs without fear of censorship.

The fight continues

In the end, this isnt just about Musk or the advertising giants. Its about the fundamental right to free speech and the ongoing battle to protect that right.

Free speech is the cornerstone of any healthy democracy, allowing for the exchange of diverse ideas and viewpoints. Whether you applaud or despise Musk, the issue at hand is vital to our political health. The right to free speech is something that we should all be fighting for.
Home Opinion How important is speaking in tongues?

In my early Christian life, I was told that the only visible evidence of the presence of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer is that he or she must speak in tongues. Many of us who were newly born again struggled to speak in tongues to prove the Holy Spirit dwelled in us.

I remember I had a friend who could not speak in tongues despite all his efforts. He attended Holy Ghost services, which were meetings arranged by the church for those who desired to have the Holy Spirits gifts. My friend would walk out discouraged every time he attended one of these meetings. On one occasion, he complained that he didnt know why God had refused to give him the Holy Spirit. According to him, he felt like his sins were not forgiven and that the Holy Spirit decided to abandon him.

My friend was not alone in feeling this way. On another occasion, a woman walked up to me after church to complain about not receiving the gift of tongues. Unfortunately, I couldnt help either my friend or this woman because of my own personal confusion on the matter.

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Does the Bible mention anywhere that speaking in tongues is actually required for salvation? I do believe that speaking in tongues is the first visible evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit that took place in the upper room on the day of Pentecost. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance (Acts 2:4).

On many occasions I have heard mature Christians asking new believers if they speak in tongues. I have not heard anyone ask, Do you love Jesus?

Speaking in tongues is one of the nine gifts of the Spirit mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12:8-11. The Scripture also made it clear that the Spirit Himself gives gifts to the believers as He determines. What this means is that He can release to believers 1. Gift of speaking in tongues 2. Gift of interpretation of tongues 3. Gift of prophecy 4. Gift of word of wisdom 5. Gift of word of knowledge 6. Gift of discerning of spirits 7. Gifts of healing 8. Gift of working miracles and 9. Gift of faith.

Any of these nine gifts can attest to the presence of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer even though it is possible to operate in more than one or even all the gifts (Ephesians 1:3). Why is this singular emphasis on speaking in tongues? What happened to the other gifts? For example, I believe that it is possible for a believer to have the gift of prophecy and not speak in tongues. The same applies to other gifts which have been relegated to obscurity.

How I wish I knew this when my friend was going through his crisis of faith. The gift of speaking in tongues should not be prioritized over other gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Home Opinion Why I could not possibly vote for Kamala Harris

In past articles and on many Line of Fire broadcasts, I have expressed my strong reservations about Donald Trump and the current direction of the GOP (most recently here), so my potential vote for him/them would be with caveats and concerns. But under no circumstances could I possibly countenance a vote for Kamala Harris.

Writing in October 2020, conservative author David Kupelian took issue with Pastor John Piper, who encouraged Christians not to vote for either Trump or Biden.

Kupelian asked, Does the good pastor not realize that when you vote for a president, you are not choosing only one leader and his policy agenda, but a multitude of leaders and policies in every area of life, and therefore a whole future for the country, as Franklin Graham put it? Most prominently, you are choosing a vice president who may well become president (as has happened 14 times in U.S. history). You are also choosing Cabinet and department heads. And you are choosing federal judges, including Supreme Court justices with lifetime tenure who will decide issues of stupendous importance that affect every American. And you are choosing thousands of other people  about 4,000 federal government appointees in all  who will profoundly shape the nation in which your children and grandchildren will live for a long, long time  whether for good or for ill.

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The implications of our votes are massive indeed, potentially outliving those of us who are older.

This time around, in 2024, the Democratic Party has put forward an even more radical pro-abortion, pro-LGBT activism candidate. In fact, Planned Parenthood is offering free vasectomies and abortions during the DNC in Chicago this week. Talk about sending a message.

As for specific policies, the official Democratic platform has this to say about abortion (under the heading of Reproductive Freedom: President Biden, Vice President Harris, and Democrats are committed to restoring the reproductive rights Trump ripped away. With a Democratic Congress, we will pass national legislation to make Roe the law of the land again. We will strengthen access to contraception so every woman who needs it is able to get and afford it. We will protect a womans right to access IVF. We will repeal the Hyde Amendment. And in his second term, President Biden will continue to support access to FDA-approved medication abortion, appoint leaders at the FDA who respect science, and appoint judges who uphold fundamental freedoms.

Simply stated, if you vote for Harris, you are voting for the reinstating of Roe as the law of the land again, which would mean overturning all the pro-life laws that have now been passed in state after state. The blood of the unborn would certainly be on your hands. Your vote helped make this happen.

As for LGBT issues, the acronym LGBTQ+ is found 37 times in the platform, including promises like this: ... Democrats will pass the Equality Act to codify protections for LGBTQI+ Americans and their families.

In short, this means that transgender identity would be placed on the same footing as race and ethnicity. Consequently, just as you could not refuse to hire a Black or Hispanic person to teach little children in your nursery school because of their race or ethnicity, you could not refuse to hire a bearded man who identified as a woman to teach the little children.

This is what youre voting for if you vote for Vice President Harris.

An LGBT website also notes that Harris Officiated gay weddings in 2004, began supporting them more vocally in 2008 and worked with President Biden to pass the 2022 Respect for Marriage Act, ensuring government recognition of same-sex marriages.

The website also praises the Biden-Harris administration for advocating for the surgical mutilation and chemical castration of minors who identify as trans (not in those words, of course, but thats the reality).

We are also told that As Californias Attorney General in 2016, [Harris] filed amicus briefs supporting trans peoples rights to use bathrooms matching their gender identity. She has since said that anti-trans bathrooms bans deny trans peoples right to exist.

So, if you vote for Harris, youre voting for boys who identify as girls to share bathrooms and locker rooms with your daughters (or sisters), not to mention voting for men who identify as women to share bathrooms and changing rooms with your wives (or mothers or sisters or daughters). Is that what you want?

Perhaps worse still, we are told that Harris  supports a national ban on so-called conversion therapy, which means outlawing all professional counseling for anyone with unwanted same-sex attractions or gender-identity confusion. Outlawed!

So, the 16-year-old girl who was raped repeatedly by her uncle and now feels repulsion towards men would not be allowed to receive professional counsel to help her deal with her trauma and recover her opposite-sex attractions, even with her parents consent based on her expressly stated desires. Illegal!

And, the 10-year-old boy who is struggling with gender confusion would not be allowed to receive counsel to help him feel at home in his own body. However, if he and his parents wanted to put him on irreversible hormone therapy to block the onset of puberty, preparing for sex-change surgery at the earliest possible age, that would be legal. This is madness, but its exactly what you would be voting for if you voted for Kamala Harris.

Ironically, the hyperlink for this national ban goes to a September 12, 2019 post on X featuring the now-disgraced Sam Brinton, the gender-fluid, sometimes-drag queen who served as deputy assistant secretary of Spent Fuel and Waste Disposition in the Office of Nuclear Energy. Brinton, who often dressed as a lipstick-wearing woman, even at official government functions, was released from his job after being convicted of stealing womens luggage at several different airports. Yet the post on X remains up for the world to see.

And need I point out that there is solidarity for Hamas and extreme antipathy towards Israel in the Democratic Party, not the GOP?

Thats why, regardless of my views on Trump and the GOP, I could not possibly vote for Kamala Harris. To do so, for me, would be to participate in evil.
Historic churches once lost to the Black Death re-open together after 650 years

Two ancient churches in Kent, closed for over 650 years after the outbreak of the Black Death plague decimated their congregations, have finally re-opened to the public in a celebratory event. The sister churches, Dode and St Benedict's at Paddlesworth, located just 1.5 miles apart, welcomed visitors on Sunday 18 August 2024, in a historic event marking their simultaneous re-opening.

Both churches, which date back to the early 1100s, were once thriving Christian community centres until the Black Death struck in 1349. The plague wiped out the population of Dode entirely, leaving only the church standing. The parish priest was subsequently moved to Paddlesworth, and Dode remained unused for centuries.

Douglas Chapman, the current keeper of Dode church, purchased the site around 35 years ago and has since spent decades restoring it. The Norman stonework, foundations, and roof design are of particular interest to those studying sites of Christian worship in the United Kingdom.

Mr Chapman described the restoration as a "labour of love" and recounted the extensive work required to bring the church back to its original condition. "It had been locked up for 600-odd years," he explained, adding that, although the roof had been replaced in the early 1900s, the building had fallen into severe disrepair.

When Mr Chapman first acquired the church, it was in a dire state, having been partly desecrated and sometimes used as a rural "drugs den". Over the following decade, he painstakingly cleared out the site, restored its original features, and installed basic utilities like electricity and water. "The place essentially hadn't been touched, or at least hadn't been used, since 1367, when the priest was sent to Paddlesworth because everybody in Dode was either dead or had left," he said, according to the Metro newspaper, reflecting on the long journey of restoration that finally culminated in the church's reopening.

Visitors were invited to walk the scenic trail between the two churches, offering a glimpse into the rich history of the North Downs. Mr Chapman noted, "The churches were both always full but not overcrowded, and people walked between the two in the North Downs. It's the first time the two churches have ever done anything like that."

He also added, "The churches are very similar. They are very near and were built in an almost identical way around 1100, at the end of William the Conqueror's reign."

Though there is supposedly a mass grave underneath or near Dode church, Mr Chapman has refused to let archaeologists excavate.

Visitors can expect to see a photo exhibition, old maps, and historic documents - including one dating back to 1367, when the parishes of Dode and Paddlesworth were combined.

Mr Chapman also shared the intriguing local belief that Gundulf - also known as Gundulph - a Christian bishop serving in Rochester who built Dode church, inspired the character of Gandalf in J.R.R. Tolkien's 'The Lord of the Rings'. He remarked, "Tolkien was a professor of Medieval history and would have known all about Gundulf. The theory is that Gundulf became Gandalf ... It's a shame Tolkien isn't around to confirm it."

Dode Church will be available for wedding services and naming ceremonies and will continue to open to the public once every six weeks. Visitors can also request a visit to St Benedict's Anglican Church at any time.

With justifiable pride in the restoration, Mr Chapman said, "People will get to visit two ancient churches, and hopefully, they will appreciate the history and the work that has gone into them."
Ukraine's ban targeting Russian-linked faith groups raises religious freedom concerns

On Tuesday, the Ukrainian Parliament passed a long-anticipated bill that will ban the activities of churches deemed to be affiliated with the Russian Orthodox Church or supporting the Russian invasion.

The legislation, expected to be signed into law soon by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, explicitly bans religious institutions subordinate to leaders based in Russia and is seen even by some supporters of Ukraine as an overstep in the name of national security, a violation of religious freedom and a potential risk to continued foreign military aid.

The clear target of the law is the Ukrainian Orthodox Church with its historical ties to Moscow. The church declared itself independent of the Moscow Patriarchate three months after the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022 but many still suspect at least some of the church leadership has loyalties to Russia.

"The government in Kyiv wants to see the conduits of Russian influence in Ukrainian society totally minimized," said Andreja Bogdanovski, an author, scholar and analyst of Orthodox Christianity.

Ahead of the vote, Zelenskyy said the law would "guarantee that there will be no manipulation of the Ukrainian Church from Moscow."

"This draft law must work and must add to Ukraine the unity of the cathedral, our real spiritual unity," he added.

Historically, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church has been the largest faith group in Ukraine, but the country's Orthodox Christians found themselves split in 2019, when a newer religious body, the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, was recognized as canonical and fully independent of Moscow under the blessing of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.

The OCU, which now represents the majority of Orthodox Christians in Ukraine, formed in part from parishes resisting Russian control during Ukraine's independence movements at the beginning and end of the 20th century. In the wake of Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea and support of separatist militias in the Donbas region, the OCU was bolstered by Ukrainian clergymen who felt that Ukrainian Orthodox Christians needed a religious body divorced from Moscow's Patriarch Kirill, who has long been a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin and has justified Russia's aggression in spiritual terms.

The law, once signed, would equip the Ukrainian government to set up a commission to investigate religious institutions across the country. The commission would then have nine months to provide a list of those deemed subordinate to Russian institutions.

Ukraine's largest organization of religious bodies, the Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations, which represents Christian, Jewish and Muslim groups, endorsed the draft law in an Aug. 17 statement, praising the effort "to make it impossible for such organizations to operate in our country."

Those that sever their ties to Russia during that period will be allowed to continue to function. What constitutes a tie and an appropriate level of separation have not yet been specified. These details are what in part delayed the legislation's approval for more than a year and a half after Zelenskyy first endorsed its draft.

Iryna Herashchenko, the first deputy chairwoman of the Ukrainian Parliament, hailed the bill's passing as a "historic vote."

Parliament "has passed a bill banning the aggressor country's branch in Ukraine. 265 MPs voted FOR! This is a matter of national security, not religion," she announced on X.

Despite the broad support inside Ukraine, the bill has been strongly criticized by some Orthodox leaders, including those from populaces that support Ukraine against Russian aggression.

Bulgaria's newly elected Patriarch Daniil sent a letter of support to Metropolitan Onufriy, the primate of the UOC. The Bulgarian church does not recognize the OCU as canonical, but the church and government have expressed support for Ukraine in the war.

"You have resisted and continue, with God's help, to resist all attempts to create disunity, preserving the unity, integrity, and canonicity of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church," Patriarch Daniill wrote.

Onufriy also received letters of support from the heads of the Antiochian and Georgian Orthodox churches. Both jurisdictions have issued statements shy of condemning Patriarch Kirill's role in Russian aggression.

But the bill has also been blasted on religious freedom grounds by many observers and is expected to be challenged as Ukraine moves closer to joining the European Union.

"It's very hard diplomatically to reconcile this law with Ukraine's European ambitions," said Samuel Noble, a scholar of Orthodox Christianity at Aga Khan University in London. "This is the kind of thing that will wind up being brought to Strasbourg, that is, the European Court of Human Rights.

"It's not normally the kind of thing that one does in a country aspiring to join the European Union. On the other hand, Ukraine is not in a normal situation," he added.

Smilen Markov, a Bulgarian scholar of Orthodox Christianity, put it more bluntly: "The Ukrainian state is violating religious freedom. It declares a religious community pro-Russian, which is legally problematic, divisive and ruinous."

Regina Elsner, the chair of Eastern churches and ecumenism at the University of Muenster's Ecumenical Institute, posted on Twitter that the legislation's approval is "deeply disturbing."

"This law opens a door to serious violations of religious freedom and new fragmentation within Ukraine," she said. "The amendments of the last months did not improve anything. Hate and violence against UOC believers get public approval. Sad."

Since the outbreak of full-scale war, Ukraine has jailed more than 100 UOC priests over charges of espionage and anti-Ukrainian speech, including posting opinions on social media and speaking from the pulpit.

The Russian Orthodox Church in particular has sought to use such religious freedom concerns to garner sympathy for the UOC and cast doubt on Western aid to Ukraine, which has been crucial for the Ukrainian defense.

"The Ukrainian Orthodox Church is being subjected to reprisals for its refusal to join the organization of schismatics and self-ordained peoples, created as a political project aimed at destroying the common spiritual heritage of Russian and Ukrainian peoples," said Vladimir Lagoida, a spokesman for the Russian Orthodox Church, on Telegram. "There is no doubt that the persecution of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church will sooner or later receive a fair assessment, just as the godless regimes of the past received it, destroying the human right to faith and to belong to their Church."

The UOC has ceased to commemorate Patriarch Kirill in prayers and has said it is not bound by the decisions of the Holy Synod of the Moscow Patriarchate.

"In Orthodox Church logic, that's effectively a declaration of independence," Noble said. "Even from the Russians' perspective, officially on paper, the UOC is autonomous in all things, except for Onufriy's seat on the Synod of the Moscow Patriarchate, which he has more or less disowned."

Still, many Ukrainians remain deeply suspicious of the UOC. In 2021, 18% of religious Ukrainians identified as members of the UOC, but months after Russia's full-scale invasion, that dropped to just 4%, according to the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology. The same poll found OCU membership increased from 34% to 54%. In addition, hundreds of Orthodox congregations have switched allegiance from the UOC to the OCU, according to church records, but few monks, traditionally seen as sources of authority in the church, have followed.

"Of course, it is true that the hierarchy of the UOC is partly pro-Russian," Markov noted. "The allegations about ties with Moscow are often factually correct.

"However, these perpetrations are personal and they should be proved case by case," he added. "They cannot be blamed on a religious community of millions of Ukrainians."

 Religion News Service
Worship numbers drop as churches close, poll finds

Some people may never return to church if their own church closes its doors, a new poll has found.

The survey of 2,667 UK Christians by National Churches Trust found that in-person church attendance may fall by over a quarter (29%) when a local church closes.

Over a fifth (22%) of churchgoers currently attending in-person services said they would be unwilling or unable to attend a different church if their church were to close. This rose to nearly a third among churchgoers in the North East (30%) and North West (31%) of England.

Another 7% said they would worship online only if their church closed, while the same proportion said that they would attend a different church but less often than currently.

Older people aged 65 and over were most likely to drift away, with only a fifth of this age group (19%) saying they would find a new church to attend as often as they do currently. Even among 18 to 24 year olds, only a quarter (28%) said they would find a new church.

Eddie Tulasiewicz, Head of Policy and Public Affairs at the National Churches Trust said: "The dramatic impact of church closures is made clear in our opinion poll; it cuts the number of people going to church by a third. Older people, many of whom live alone and for whom attending church helps combats loneliness, are the most likely to be negatively affected by the closure or their local church.

"Keeping local churches open allows local people to worship in a building they know and love. It also keeps local heritage alive for future generations and means that local people can continue to benefit from support services, such as foodbanks, warm spaces and youth clubs and access cultural activities such as concerts and exhibitions.

"Last year, the National Churches Trust was able to help over 250 urgent church building and repair projects with funding of almost 2 million, in the process keeping churches open and safeguarding over 72,000 years of history. Church repairs help create jobs and develop specialist skills of value to the wider construction and heritage sectors."

The Rev Alisdair Laird is Area Dean and vicar to the twenty rural parishes of South Holderness deanery in East Yorkshire.

He said: "Once a church building is closed, especially in villages and county towns, in many ways the thing that represents the historic heart of that place has been abandoned, for everyone, not just those who share a Christian faith."

He is all too familiar with the impact of church closures. Last year, All Saints Church in Burstwick, a Grade 1 listed church in his area, had to close and many worshippers "felt a deep sadness at the loss of their local historic church".

"When the pub, the shop, the school, and finally the church are all gone what is actually left? What does it say about ourselves as human beings, our values and our willingness to be responsible members of a lively society?" he said.

"Traditionally people, not surprisingly, tend to be very focussed on 'their church', especially in villages, and are reluctant to be involved beyond that. The good news is that we are finding that people here are making more effort to 'go down the road' to a neighbouring church, even more so where people provide lifts for those who don't drive.

"Helping people to worship at a new church does of course mean that they need to feel welcomed by clergy and other worshippers, but it does represent an opportunity for community and growth.

"Our parish churches are a huge and glorious treasury of shared history, celebrations, creativity and hopes. Regardless of faith and beliefs we have a shared responsibility to our ancestors, our descendants, and to each other to recognise that treasure and to play our part in caring for it and helping as many churches as possible stay open."

The UK has seen a dramatic decline in the number of active churches, with over 3,500 shuttering for good in the last decade.

North of the border, the Church of Scotland is selling off around 40 per cent of its churches due to declining membership and financial pressures.

The National Churches Trust said that the pace of church closures across the UK was accelerating, and that many church buildings are under threat because of the increasing cost of repairs and maintenance.

In England, over 900 churches are on the Historic England Heritage At Risk Register, and in Wales around a quarter of historic churches and chapels have closed in recent years, with a similar number at risk.

The National Churches Trust is appealing to the government to help struggling at-risk churches by extending the Listed Places of Worship Grants Scheme beyond March 2025, when it is due to end. The scheme allows churches to claim back VAT on repairs, significantly reducing costs.

Claire Walker, chief executive of the National Churches Trust, said: "Many church closures take place as the money cannot be found to carry out urgent repairs. Fixing a roof can cost over half a million pounds.

"The backlog of repairs for the Church of England's churches alone is at least 1 billion, and the annual need is estimated to be 150 million a year.

"Some churches are currently helped by the Listed Places of Worship Grants Scheme, which allows historic churches to claim back the VAT on repairs. But this scheme is due to expire in March 2025.

"We therefore urge the new Government to extend this scheme, first introduced by Gordon Brown in 2002, in the forthcoming Budget. This will allow those running churches to plan for the future safe in the knowledge that they will be able to claim back 20% of their costs."
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The UK is no longer among the most generous 20 countries in the world, according to the Charities Aid Foundations World Giving Index 2024.

CAFs index now places the UK at number 22, its joint lowest ranking, having fallen to the same level it was in 2020 when charitable activity was limited by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The index, based on data from the Gallup World Poll, asks whether people have helped a stranger, given money or volunteered for a good cause over the past month and calculates an average score for each of the 142 countries.

The UKs ranking peaked in 2014 when it was considered the sixth most generous country in the world with an overall score of 57%, but this fell to 49% this year.

According to the latest report, 67% of people in the UK now donate money (compared to 75% in 2014), 55% help strangers (declining from 63% in 2014) and 26% volunteer their time (compared to 32% in 2014).

These figures compare to 71% who said they donated in last years report , 51% who helped strangers and 26% who volunteered.

In a new separate poll of over 1,000 Brits, 25% said the UK has become more generous over the last 100 years, while 41% said the countrys generosity has declined or was never high in the first place.

Other countries move up rankings

Indonesia topped the list for the seventh year running, followed by Kenya and Singapore.

Greece had the largest year-on-year increase in the world for helping a stranger and Singapore recorded the biggest global increase for volunteering.

Meanwhile, Morocco saw the worlds largest year-on-year increase in donating money.

China has seen the largest overall improvement over the past decade, moving up the rankings by 49 places with its index score is three times higher than it was 10 years ago.

The country has recorded a 388% increase in the proportion of people who donated money and a 441% increase in volunteering time.

Oceania was the top performing region and records among the highest life-satisfaction ratings in the world.

Call for philanthropy and charitable giving strategy

Neil Heslop, chief executive of CAF, said: The long-term decline in the UKs overall generosity shows we seem to have increasingly fallen out of the habit of giving - both our time and our money. Building a giving society is crucial to connect us to one another in communities and strengthen our social fabric.

While we can still be a generous country even when times are so tough, more needs to be done to prevent this downward trend from continuing.

We can learn from other countries that have taken proactive steps to harness charitable giving such as Singapore and Australia.

That is why we are calling on the government to lead a national strategy for philanthropy and charitable giving that renews our British culture of giving.

The Chartered Institute of Fundraising (CIoF) supported CAFs call for the government to lead a national strategy for philanthropy and charitable giving.

The past year has been tough for charities and the public alike, said Claire Stanley, director of policy and communications.

Although donations hit a record 13.9bn in 2023, as indicated in the recent CAF UK Giving Report , this increase was due to donors giving larger amounts of money, rather than more individuals giving to charity, and it really highlights that the financial pressures people are facing are a real barrier to giving. The cost-of-living crisis has hit charities hard  and its hit the people who support them.

On the flip side of this, were also seeing a rise in demand for services  with more people needing charitable organisations; highlighting why charitable giving has never been more important, not only to respond to short-term needs, but to enable longer-term funding so the sector is ready to adapt to future challenges.

Charities can take several steps to boost regular giving, depending on their long- and short-term goals.

Many of our members have pivoted to lottery products or are exploring value-exchange products that give donors a chance to win a prize or receive something in return. Others, particularly those that are community based, or part of a tight-knit community, have concentrated on showcasing the relevance of their causes to donors, and the tangible impact of their support.

At the heart of it is understanding what will resonate best with donors and being able to adapt to their needs.

Achieving this will require a long-term sector-wide shift towards insight-driven fundraising, where any fundraiser has the skills and tools to analyse donor data and make informed decisions. We support CAFs call for the government to lead a national strategy for philanthropy and charitable giving.

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,
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In 2016, while an editor at Time magazines student edition, Time for Kids, I took a thirteen-year-old to the Republican National Convention, in Cleveland: Maple Buescher, a local middle schooler with braces and braids. She produced daily reports on the coronation of Donald Trump, interviewed delegates, and filed colorful asides about area attractions, including an ice cream shop serving an election-themed passion fruit sorbet called Youre Fired. Days later, I went to Philadelphia to meet Olivia Branan, a twelve-year-old from San Diego picked to cover the Democratic National Convention. She reported on Hillary Clinton becoming the first woman to receive a major-party nomination; Kelly ODonnell, of NBC News, gave an on-camera interview.

The kid reporters are now college journalists. Buescher, twenty-one, is a politics major starting her senior year at Bates College, in Lewiston, Maine, where shes been the editor in chief of the Bates Student. (Shes also a columnist for Clevelands Plain Dealer.) Branan is twenty, a senior at the University of California, Berkeley, double-majoring in media and global studies, and a reporter for Berkeleys student-run newspaper, the Daily Californian. They are among the estimated forty-one million members of Gen Z eligible to vote this yearand in November, both will vote for president for the first time. The other day, we logged on for a virtual catch-up.

Ive been fairly impressed by the amount of news and news analysis that has been produced in such an incredibly fast and challenging environment, Buescher said. And Ive been impressed by the amount of just simple fact-checking thats going on. Theres a lot of attention to detail and a lot of rigorous work being done. They both read copiously. Apple News is my biggest thing, Branan told me, because it has all of the big onesNew York Times, Wall Street Journaleverything on one page. She doesnt watch the news on TV, she said, but I do get a lot of political TikToks, and on X Im seeing a lot of political conversations. I wouldnt consider that news, but I am taking in a lot of political information and different voices on social media.

Buescher, too. Just being on those apps, I absorb a lot of political information and political opinions and political newscouched with the opinions of whoever is presenting it. She also follows the Times, reads the AP, and listens to NPR. For local news, she checks the Plain Dealer and the Lewiston Sun Journal.

While on social media, they keep an eye out for falsehoods. One of the things I saw recently was Trump saying Kamala Harriss crowds were AI-generated, Branan said. The claim was debunked. But the whole plotline felt like a diversion. Whats been interesting to me is that a lot of the coverage Ive seen hasnt necessarily been about the policies or the platforms of the candidates. Its just been, like, Is this controversial thing true?

Theres so much political conversation happening that the mainstream media seems to not even have the language to discuss, Buescher observed. Try to explain brat summer, she said, and it sounds like nonsense to the majority of normal Americans who dont spend as much time on TikTok as I do. Part of what makes the memes popular is the absurdity, so trying to square the circle of the absurdity with the more serious political conversation is strange.

They both agreedits cringeworthy. What they want is serious political conversation: sit-downs with the presidential candidates, questions about their records and what they plan to do, if elected. Plus, Id love to see more coverage of the fact that this is also a congressional election, Buescher said. There are issues on the ballot besides whether you want to vote for Trump or Harris.

What would they like to see less of? Im sick of seeing the headlines about what Trump has said about his opponent, Branan said. Its become redundant. It should still be covered. I just think that right now, in this election, in order to find substantial information about the candidates and what they stand for, you have to dig through all this surface-level clickbait.

I think the speed of the news cycle is actually, potentially, fairly dangerous, Buescher chimed in. Because when you have an infinite amount of differing and conflicting news analyses at your fingertip, it can be difficult to slow down and get the facts and digest them at a pace that seems sustainable. Shed been thinking about what that means for her life after graduation and about journalisms imperative to adapt to a changing world. At a certain level, I dont necessarily want it to, she said. There is so much value in traditional, reliable media organizations. In this election, it seems theyve been fighting to keep up with the tide of social media.

Whether they could win that fight, we werent sure. Buescher and Branan maintain skepticism about the political content that pops up on their social feedsand still, they keep on scrolling. Im just very curious to see where trust in the media goes following this election, Branan said.

Jaime Joyce is a writer and editor based in New York.
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At various moments last year, the question of how to regulate artificial intelligence took center stage. In March, more than a thousand technology leaders, researchers, and othersincluding Elon Musk, the billionaire who owns SpaceX and Teslasigned an open letter calling for a moratorium on the development of AI because of the potential dangers it poses; the same month, dozens of scientists signed an agreement aimed at ensuring the technology cant be used to create dangerous new bioweapons by recombining DNA. In July, seven of the leading AI companiesincluding Meta, Google, Microsoft, and OpenAImet with President Biden and agreed to voluntary safeguards on the technologys development. In November, the White House published an executive order to ensure the safe, secure, and trustworthy development of AI, and the British government held a two-day summit on AI safety at Bletchley Park, the site where code-breakers deciphered German messages during World War II.

In spite of all this, the US still doesnt have a federal law aimed at regulating either the development or use of artificial intelligence technology. (Surprise!) But a wide range of state laws that apply to AI have either been proposed or passed. According to the Cato Institute, as of this month, thirty-one states have passed some form of AI legislation: regulating the use of deepfake imagery for sexual harassment or political messaging, for example, or requiring corporations to disclose the use of AI in their products and services, or that they are collecting data for training AI models. More than a dozen states have passed laws that prevent law enforcement agencies from using facial-recognition technology or other AI-assisted algorithms in the course of their work. Colorado recently passed a law that prevents companies from using the technology to decide who should receive a loan, insurance, or educational opportunities.

While these laws aim to regulate various uses of AI, only one piece of state-level legislation has so far grappled with the technology and its risks more broadly: Californias SB-1047. The bill was introduced in February by Scott Wiener, a Democratic state senator who represents a district in San Francisco; last week, it was approved by the California Senates Appropriations Committee. According to the New York Times, Wiener conceived of the bill after attending a series of salons in San Francisco last year, at which researchers, entrepreneurs, and philosophers discussed the future of AI; he says that he wrote the bill with input from the Center for AI Safety, a think tank that has ties to a movement known as effective altruism, which is concerned about AI threats. The billwhose full name is the Safe and Secure Innovation for Frontier Artificial Intelligence Models Acthas now gone to the full senate for approval. It could be signed into law by Gavin Newsom, the governor of California, within a matter of weeks.

Wiener has said that the California bill is an attempt to codify the sort of protections and safeguards that industry leaders have themselves advocated in various open letters and hearings. As TechCrunch has described it, the proposed law aims to prevent large AI models from being used to cause critical harms to humanity, such as a bad actor using an AI model to create a bioweapon that causes mass casualties, or to orchestrate a cyberattack. Among other things, the bill requires that developers of AI models of a certain size and power implement a fail-safe system, or kill switch, that can shut an engine down in the event of danger. The bill would also allow the California attorney general to seek an injunction against companies that release models that they consider unsafe (though its not clear how such a threshold might be met).

Californias proposed law has a number of supporters, including among technologists. One of them is Geoffrey Hinton, a professor at the University of Toronto who is widely viewed as one of the forefathers of modern AI and who quit working at Google last year because he was concerned about the risks inherent in AI models. But the legislation also has a number of criticsincluding, unsurprisingly, among technologists. Large technology companies such as Meta are among them, as are various leaders in AI technology, including Yann LeCunwho is Metas chief AI scientistand Fei-Fei Li, known as the godmother of AI. LeCun has said that the bill would put an end to AI innovation, and that it is based on a completely hypothetical science fiction scenario. (Ive written about the ongoing debate over the potential harms of AI, in which LeCun is a leading voice.) The CEO of Hugging Face, a leader in promoting open-source AI technology, has likewise called the bill a huge blow to both California and US innovation.

Jeremy Howard, an entrepreneur who helped to create the technology underpinning most leading AI engines, said that the bill would consolidate power in the hands of a few large corporations since only they can afford to abide by its regulationsa situation, Howard said, that would be a recipe for disaster. (Howard has written a blog post in which he goes into more detail about his concerns.) Sebastian Thrun, an AI researcher who founded the self-driving car project at Google, told the Times that AI is like a kitchen knife, which can be used for good things, like cutting an onion, and bad things, like stabbing a person. Governments shouldnt try to put an off-switch on the kitchen knife, he added. We should try to prevent people from misusing it. Anjney Midha, a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz, a leading Silicon Valley venture capital firm, said the idea that AI models are going to autonomously go rogue to produce weapons of mass destruction or become Skynet from The Terminator is highly unlikely.

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Nor is the opposition to the bill coming only from big companies and technologistssome politicians oppose it, too, including in California. Last week, eight Democratic members of Congress from the stateled by Zoe Lofgren, the ranking member of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technologywrote a letter to Newsom urging him to veto the bill, arguing that while they support AI regulation, the California bill goes too far. Not only is it unreasonable to expect developers to completely control what end users do with their products, the letter said, but it is difficult if not impossible to certify certain outcomes without undermining the rights of end users, including privacy. Nancy Pelosi, the former Speaker of the House, wrote that the legislation is well-intentioned but ill-informed, adding that while lawmakers want to protect consumers and society from the dangers of AI, the California bill is more harmful than helpful in that pursuit.

One criticism of the bill is that it would make the companies that develop AI engines liable for any harms that result from the technology, even though the nature of those harms is still poorly understood. The bill prohibits a developer from making an AI model of a certain size and power commercially or publicly available if there is an unreasonable risk that the model can cause or enable a critical harm. Critical harm is defined here as including the creation or use of a chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear weapon in a manner that results in mass casualties; cyberattacks that cause at least five hundred million dollars in damage; or any acts that result in death, great bodily injury, property damage, or property loss, and would, if committed by a human, constitute a crime specified in the Penal Code that requires intent. But what constitutes an unreasonable risk is not defined.

The bill has been amended since its introduction, in response to industry criticism. It would no longer enable the attorney general to sue companies for negligent safety practices even before a dangerous event occurs, while the agency that monitors compliance would now be a unit of Californias Government Operations Agency, not a separate state entity. The law also no longer requires AI companies to certify their safety testing under penalty of perjury. Wiener told TechCrunch that he accepted a number of very reasonable amendments that were proposed by critics of the law, and that he believes the amended version has addressed the core concerns. But not everyone agrees: Martin Casado, a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz, said that the changes are window dressing, and that they ultimately dont address the real issues or criticisms.

The central question raised by the bill, as Casey Newton put it in a recent edition of the Platformer newsletter, is this: If an AI causes harm, should we blame the AIor the person who used the AI? Kelsey Piper, of Vox, wrote that car manufacturers are liable if their products are faulty and cause harm to the public, but that the makers of technologies such as search engines are not. Is an AI assistant more like a car or a search engine? Jeremy Nixon, the CEO of Omniscience, an AI startup, told TechCrunch that bad actors should be punished for causing critical harm, not the AI labs that openly develop and distribute the technology. There is a deep confusion at the center of the bill, that LLMs can somehow differ in their levels of hazardous capability, Nixon said. Its more than likely, in my mind, that all models have hazardous capabilities as defined by the bill.

Most of the critics of the California legislation argue that it goes too far. But a few believe that it doesnt go far enough. Gabriel Weil, a law professor at Touro University in New York, argues that the creators of AI engines should be liable for any harm that their technology creates, even if that harm wasnt foreseeable when they developed the AI. And, if California is the first state to attempt to regulate AI holistically, the future of the technology is still at stake in other bills coming out of the stateincluding one that seems to be seeking to accelerate AI development, rather than rein it in.

As the AI bill has moved forward, different legislationan attempt to get tech platforms to pay for journalismhas evolved to take on an AI flavor: Politico reported earlier this week that Buffy Wicks, a state legislator who has pushed the legislation (and who spoke with CJR about it earlier this year), was working on a deal that, as well as funding news, would see a public-private partnership involving the state, Google, and news publishers funnel cash into an AI Innovation Accelerator program, managed by a yet-to-be-created nonprofit entity. Yesterday, more details of the deal came to light. As with the wider world, though, the dangers of AI for journalism and the media industry, in particular, remain to be seen.



Other notable stories:

ICYMI: Can Legislation Save Journalism in California?

Mathew Ingram was CJRs longtime chief digital writer. Previously, he was a senior writer with Fortune magazine. He has written about the intersection between media and technology since the earliest days of the commercial internet. His writing has been published in the Washington Post and the Financial Times as well as by Reuters and Bloomberg.
The flood insurance landscape in the U.S. is facing a significant challenge, with the number of policies in force steadily declining.

Despite the increased frequency and severity of storms driven by climate change, fewer properties are being covered by flood insurance. Data from the National Flood Insurance Program and Neptune Flood highlight this troubling trend, showing a 2.4% decrease in coverage nationwide from July 2023 to July 2024. This equates to a loss of 87,159 policies, leaving only 2.7% of the 133.8 million buildings in the U.S. insured against flooding.

The National Picture

As of July, only 3.6 million properties were insured under the NFIP, down from 3.7 million the previous year.

This decline is particularly alarming considering the nations growing population and the increasing number of homes built in flood-prone areas. Millions of properties remain vulnerable to the devastating impacts of flooding, potentially leading to catastrophic financial losses for homeowners and businesses.

Florida: A Unique Case

Florida, one of the states most at risk for flooding, presents a mixed picture. While the number of flood insurance policies in the state increased by 1.2% from June 2023 to June of this year, the overall coverage remains woefully inadequate. As of June, only 12% of the 9 million properties in Florida had flood insurance. This means that despite the slight uptick in coverage, most Floridians are still exposed to flood risks without any financial protection.

Related: Bridging the Flood Insurance Gap  A Call to Action

Floridas legislature took the positive step of mandating a separate flood insurance policy for all participating homeowners in its insurance company of last resort, Citizens. Other states may want to follow Floridas lead in increasing flood coverage and help manage the risk of insurance companies that rely on the states balance sheet.

The Growing Flood Insurance Gap

The data paints a clear picture: the flood insurance gap is widening across the nation. As the population increases and development continues in flood-prone areas, the number of uninsured properties grows. This gap poses a significant risk to homeowners, businesses, and the broader economy. When floods occur, those without insurance may face financial ruin, leading to a ripple effect that can impact entire communities.

Related: CSU Research Team Increases Atlantic Hurricane Forecast

Considering these challenges, it is imperative that the insurance industry takes proactive measures to reverse this trend. The following are three strategies that could help address the growing flood insurance gap:

Insurance Agent Driven Awareness Campaigns

Many homeowners and business owners are unaware of the risks they face from flooding, particularly in areas not traditionally considered high-risk. More importantly, they dont understand that their building policy does not cover the risk of flooding and that they must buy a separate policy from the NFIP or a private flood insurer. The insurance industry needs to take the time to talk to every policyholder about the importance of flood insurance. These campaigns should highlight the increasing frequency and severity of storms due to climate change and the potential financial devastation that can occur without proper coverage. By raising awareness, the industry can encourage more property owners to consider purchasing flood insurance, even if they are not in designated flood zones.

Improve Accessibility and Affordability of Flood Insurance

One of the barriers to flood insurance uptake is the cost. For many homeowners, particularly those in lower-income areas, the premiums for flood insurance can be prohibitively expensive. Private flood insurance companies have made some progress by offering lower prices and better coverage to hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses.

Related: Just a Category 1 Hurricane? Dont Be Fooled by A Number

By diversifying the market and increasing competition, private flood insurance can help close the insurance gap, providing more property owners with access to the coverage they need. This, in turn, will help protect more homes and businesses from the financial devastation caused by floods, ensuring that fewer people are left vulnerable when disaster strikes. As the private flood insurance market grows, it can serve as a vital complement to the NFIP, especially post-risk rating 2.0 (and the phase-out of government subsidization), which will help reverse the decline in flood insurance coverage nationwide.

Update and Modernize FEMA Flood Maps

One of the critical tools used to assess flood risk in the U.S. is the Federal Emergency Management Agency flood maps. However, many of these maps are outdated, failing to reflect the current realities of climate change, urban development, and changes in land use. These outdated maps can give property owners a false sense of security, leading them to forgo purchasing flood insurance because they believe they are not at significant risk. Just ask any of the hundreds of thousands of home and business owners who suffered through Hurricane Harvey in Texas  they were all told by FEMA that they were not in a high-risk zone and, therefore, were not required to buy flood insurance.

The insurance industry should advocate for and invest in the modernization of FEMA flood maps in collaboration with government agencies and private sector partners. This includes incorporating the latest data on weather patterns, sea-level rise, and the impact of new developments. By ensuring flood maps accurately reflect todays risk landscape, property owners can make more informed decisions about flood insurance. Additionally, updated maps can help identify previously unrecognized high-risk areas, encouraging more widespread adoption of flood insurance in those regions.

The decline in flood insurance coverage in the U.S. is a concerning trend that demands immediate attention from the insurance industry. As the population grows and climate change continues to drive more severe weather events, the gap between insured and uninsured properties widens. Floridas slight increase in coverage is a positive sign, but it is not enough to counteract the overall national decline.

The industry can take meaningful steps to reverse this trend by expanding public awareness, improving the affordability and accessibility of flood insurance, and improving FEMAs flood mapping. It is not just about protecting individual property owners but about safeguarding entire communities and the economy from the devastating impacts of floods. Lets not wait for the next Katrina, Harvey or Ian to take action.

Burgess is president and CEO of Neptune Flood. He is also chairman of TRB Development, a residential real estate development and consulting company.
In 2003, as Paris sweltered through a heat wave that would go on to kill an estimated 15,000 people across France, one oasis of cooler air remained off limits: the citys roughly 400 public parks. They were temporarily closed due to the danger of falling tree limbs.

That basically deprived people of the one small sliver of green space that they might have had in order to find a slightly cooler atmosphere, says Richard C. Keller a professor of the history of medicine at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and author of Fatal Isolation: The Devastating Paris Heat Wave of 2003.

Trees losing their limbs is typically associated with severe weather such as tornadoes, hurricanes and thunderstorms. But a little known risk outside of arborist circles is that mature and seemingly healthy trees can suddenly lose branches in summer weather. Its a phenomenon known as sudden limb failure, sudden limb drop or summer branch drop.

While reports of injuries from sudden limb failure are scarce, last month a woman was killed by a falling tree branch in a Washington D.C. park. The incident prompted at least one local tree maintenance service to send an email warning people of the risk.

Why trees that seem healthy suddenly lose their limbs is a bit of a mystery. Theres no scientific consensus on why this is occurring, says Spencer Campbell, plant clinic manager at the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois. Its difficult to predict.

But at least one theory draws a connection between summer branch drop and extreme heat  especially if a hot summer is preceded by a wet spring. Wet springs allow for ample tree growth, which can lead to water stress when hotter summer temperatures arrive. Trees could be dropping limbs as a form of self-pruning.

Another idea holds that extreme winter weather  from cold temperatures to the pressure snow puts on branches  leads to internal weakening in trees, such that the pressure of new limb growth in spring tips them over the edge.

Summer branch drop was historically considered a hot-climate phenomenon, observed in places like Australia, South Africa and the southwestern US that typically receive little snow. But since at least the 1970s arborists have also reported it in places with a wider range of climates, including Illinois, New York and the UK.

Trees that experience sudden limb drop could also be unhealthy, even if not visibly so. (The tree in Washington had been inspected, pruned and found healthy in 2022, according to news reports.) Professional arborists are trained to identify trunk decay, cankers, [and other] physical symptoms, Spencer says, adding that it is more difficult to diagnose if its an internal crack or a weak point.

The most likely takeaway is that sudden limb drop stems from a confluence of circumstances: trees teetering on the edge of unhealthy, alongside conditions like extreme heat that push those trees to a breaking point.

That was the conclusion of a 2023 case study that looked at sudden limb drop across four cities in Portugal. Researchers determined that incidents of summer branch drop were linked to trees internal degradation, but noted that the degradation itself could also be linked to environmental conditions.

I think for a lot of the trees in our landscape, its not just one thing; its many stress events, Campbell says. Possible culprits range from unusually warm evenings to cold snaps, fungal disease and insect damage made worse by rising temperatures

Whatever the cause, Campbell says its not worth worrying too much about standing under trees, even in summer. This event is exceptionally rare, he says. It does occur, but more often than not it occurs without someone noticing it.

Top Photo: Visitors sit in the shade at Barcelonas Poblenou Park during a heat wave in July 2023. (Angel Garcia/Bloomberg)

Copyright 2024 Bloomberg.
A federal judge in California on Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit accusing social media platform X of forcing out workers with disabilities after Elon Musk took over the company and barred employees from working remotely.

U.S. District Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin in San Francisco said the plaintiff in the 2022 proposed class action, Dmitry Borodaenko, failed to show how Musks mandate to return to the office specifically impacted employees with disabilities. The judge gave him four weeks to file an amended lawsuit including more detailed claims.

Borodaenko, a former engineering manager and cancer survivor, claims he was fired shortly after Musk acquired X, then called Twitter, for refusing to report to the office during the COVID-19 pandemic. The lawsuit claims X violated a federal law requiring employers to accommodate workers disabilities.

Musk said in a memo to the companys staff in November 2022 that employees should be prepared to work long hours at high intensity or quit, and later tweeted that it was morally wrong to work from home.

Martinez-Olguin on Wednesday said the ban on remote work did not amount to disability discrimination.

Borodaenkos theory improperly relies on the assumption that all employees with disabilities necessarily required remote work as a reasonable accommodation, Martinez-Olguin wrote.

Related: Musks X Sues Group Over Ad Boycott That Cost Billions

A lawyer for Borodaenko did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

X responded to multiple requests for comment with emails stating busy now, please check back later.

The lawsuit is one of several that former employees filed in the months following Musks $44 billion acquisition of the company and the ensuing layoffs of about 75% of its workforce.

Other cases accuse Twitter of not giving employees and contractors advance notice of layoffs, failing to pay billions of dollars in promised severance, and disproportionately targeting women and older workers for job cuts. X has denied wrongdoing.

Some of those cases have been dismissed, prompting appeals from the plaintiffs that are pending.

(Reporting by Daniel Wiessner in Albany, New York, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and David Gregorio)
CHICAGODuring this weeks Democratic National Convention, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trumps campaign has been issuing criticisms of Democrats candidates, their policies...and Josh Hickmans dancing.

When the live band at the DNC broke into an instrumental version of the 1974 funk hit Tell Me Something Good on Tuesday evening, the livestream cut to shots of various delegates dancing along.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A new sleep disorder clinic launched recently in Cleveland Clinics Lutheran Hospital, aimed at providing relief for the local Hispanic community.

More than half of people in the national Hispanic community get less than seven hours of sleep each night, the Clinic said in its announcement.

Good sleep health is important to overall health as it can prevent chronic conditions like hypertension, diabetes and heart disease, which are prevalent in Hispanic patients, the Clinic said.

The new clinic is being directed by the Cleveland Clinics sleep disorder departments Dr. Cinthya Pena Orbea.

Pena Orbea said that people who are Hispanic are particularly at risk of sleep apnea, which is widely underdiagnosed though it is one of the most common sleep disorders.

This will be a unique sleep clinic that will offer patient-centered care that is bilingual as well as bicultural to best meet the Hispanic community, she said in a statement.

About 44% of Hispanic patients report that communication problems from language or cultural differences are a major factor contributing to worse health outcomes than seen in other adults in the United States.

Another barrier to treatment has been getting equipment and supplies to sleep apnea patients that need continuous positive airway pressure therapy, the release said.

Pena Orbea, who joined Cleveland Clinic in 2019 just under 10 years after moving to the United States from Ecuador, hopes to learn from her patients.

I would like to learn from our Hispanic patients more about the barriers that prevent them from getting the care they need so that we can design culturally tailored interventions to address these barriers and promote health equity in this growing population, she said.

The sleep disorder clinic will be offered on Wednesdays. More days will be added as needed based on demand.

Patients can make appointments on weekdays, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for Cleveland Clinic services, including the new sleep clinic, at 216-444-2538, option 7. Spanish is an option in making appointments
307 telecom fraud suspects handed over to China from Myanmar

Xinhua) 09:05, August 22, 2024

BEIJING, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- China's Ministry of Public Security (MPS) on Wednesday said that 307 Chinese nationals suspected of cross-border telecom and internet fraud have been transferred to China after their capture in a recent joint crackdown operation in Myanmar.

Relevant evidence items were also transferred to Chinese authorities, the MPS said in a statement.

Police in China have also arrested nine suspects involved in the same case.

The ministry said that since last year, it has been deepening international law enforcement cooperation with its counterpart in Myanmar, carrying out a series of joint operations to combat relevant crime, with a total of over 50,000 Chinese suspects handed over to Chinese authorities.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton speaks on stage during the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 21, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois.

Former President Bill Clinton told the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday, "In 2024, we have a clear choice: 'We The People' versus 'Me, Myself, and I.' "

"I know which one I like better for our country," Clinton said.

Vice President "Kamala Harris will work to solve problems, seize opportunities, ease our fears, and make sure that every single American, however they vote, has a chance to chase their dreams," said the former president, who served two terms in the White House until January 2001.

"Kamala Harris is the only candidate in this race with the vision, the experience, the temperament, the will, and yes  the sheer joy  to do that on good and bad days. To be our voice," he said of the Democratic presidential nominee.

Clinton's wife, Hillary Clinton, lost the 2016 election to former President Donald Trump, the current Republican presidential nominee.
Two Republicans speaking at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday  a former Trump White House advisor and the former lieutenant governor of Georgia  urged GOP voters to support Democratic nominee Kamala Harris.

Olivia Troye served in former president's administration as a counterterrorism advisor to then-Vice President Mike Pence. Geoff Duncan was the second highest elected official in Georgia. Both framed the choice between Harris and Donald Trump as a test of patriotism.

"I'm going to focus my attention on the millions of Republicans and independents that are at home that are sick and tired of making excuses for Donald Trump," said Duncan.

"Our party is not civil or conservative. It's chaotic and crazy. And the only thing left to do is dump Trump," Duncan said.

"Look, you don't have to agree with ever policy position of Kamala Harris. I don't," he said.
Talk show and media icon Oprah Winfrey on Wednesday endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president.

"What we're going to do is elect Kamala Harris as the next President of the United States," Winfrey said in a speech that drew a thunderous response from the Democratic National Convention crowd.

Winfrey also delivered a number of jabs at Republican nominee Donald Trump and his running mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio.

"We are beyond ridiculous tweets and lies and foolery," Winfrey said at one point.

Elsewhere in the speech, she referenced Vance's controversial remarks denigrating "childless cat ladies."

"When a house is on fire, we don't ask about the homeowner's race or religion. We don't wonder who their partner is, or how they voted. No, we just try to do the best we can to save them," she said.

"And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady, well, we try to get that cat out too."

Winfrey's speech night boiled the choice between Harris and Trump down to which candidate represents "the best of America."

"Very soon, we're going to be teaching our daughters and sons" about how Harris, the child of immigrants, "grew up to become the 47th president of the United States," Winfrey said. "That is the best of America."

"Let us choose the sweet promise of tomorrow, over the bitter return to yesterday," she said. "We won't go back. We won't be set back, pushed back, bullied back, kicked back. We're not going back."

"But more than anything else, let us choose freedom," she said. "Why? Because that's the best of America. We're all Americans, and together, let's all choose Kamala Harris!"

The appearance, which was reported by several news outlets earlier Wednesday but kept under wraps by the DNC, is notable not just for Winfrey's star power.

The influential media trailblazer has largely stayed above the political fray throughout her career, and "hadn't intended to be involved" in Harris' campaign, according to CBS host Gayle King, one of Winfrey's close friends.

Winfrey's first-ever endorsement of a political candidate went to then-Sen. Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential cycle. One study estimated that Winfrey's backing drove roughly 1 million votes into Obama's column in the Democratic primary.

She also supported former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election and President Joe Biden in the 2020 cycle.

This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.
(This is CNBC Pro's live coverage of Thursday's analyst calls and Wall Street chatter. Please refresh every 20-30 minutes to view the latest posts.) A chipmaker and a beauty stock were among the stocks being talked about by analysts on the Street. KeyBanc put out a bullish earnings preview on Nvidia, noting the Blackwell chip delay would not impact results. Meanwhile, Piper Sandler upgraded Estee Lauder to overweight, citing noting the bear thesis on the stock has likely run its course. Check out the latest calls and chatter below. All times ET. 7:38 a.m.: Williams upgrades Crocs to buy A new sponsorship deal for the HeyDude clothing brand could give parent company Crocs a boost, according to Williams Trading. Analyst Sam Poser said in a note to clients that the brand's announcement that actress Sydney Sweeney is now a spokesperson could help reverse negative sales trends at HeyDude. "We are confident that CROX' history of having its long term brand marketing drive shorter term positive results will begin to be manifested at HEYDUDE," the note said. The marketing boost should coincide with a better product lineup to juice sales, according to Williams. "It's clear, based on the review spring '25 product we saw in Atlanta that offerings for both brands are becoming more focused," the note said. Poser also hiked his price target on the stock to $163 per share from $133. The new target is about 16% above where the stock closed Wednesday.  Jesse Pound 6:52 a.m.: Bernstein calls TJX a 'hiding place' in retail Investors looking to play retail defense may want to keep an eye on shares of TJX . "TJX has become the defensive 'hiding place' in consumer, amidst a struggling retail sector and slowing sportswear and luxury," wrote analyst Aneesha Sherman. "We believe TJX can hold onto a premium multiple thanks to its defensiveness in an uncertain macro and slowing consumer environment." Sherman lifted her price target on the off-price retailer to $127 from $120 a share, reflecting about 6% upside from Wednesday's close. The target change comes after the discounter posted strong fiscal-second quarter earnings before the bell Wednesday and boosted its full-year guidance. Sherman expects the company to continue gaining share within its Marmaxx and Home Goods businesses even as the retail environment struggles. She also believes that the company can "bend the curve" and accelerate earnings per share from 10% to 14%. Shares have surged more than 28% in 2024.  Samantha Subin 6:28 a.m.: Morgan Stanley names Flutter Entertainment a top gambling pick It's time for investors to make a bet on Flutter Entertainment , according to Morgan Stanley. Analyst Ed Young initiated coverage of the sports betting company with an overweight rating, naming it a top pick in the gambling sector. "Flutter has a compelling global long-term growth story," he wrote in a Thursday note to clients. "It is the scale leader in online gambling, ~3x larger than its nearest peers by revenue. It has established leading positions in the U.S., U.K. and other global markets." The FanDuel parent company's listing on the New York Stock Exchange earlier this year is also improving liquidity and should offer "technical tailwinds," he added. "The steep inflection of U.S. profitability is transforming the financial profile of the business," Young wrote.He placed a $247 price target on shares, implying about 18% upside from Wednesday's close. The stock has rallied more than 17% since the start of the year.  Samantha Subin 6:03 a.m.: Wells Fargo upgrades SentinelOne SentinelOne is benefitting from the missteps of CrowdStrike, according to Wells Fargo. The bank upgraded the cybersecurity stock to overweight from equal weight. It also raised its price target to $29 from $19 a share, reflecting 18% upside from Wednesday's close. "We believe SentinelOne is gaining share, recently at the expense of CrowdStrike, which should translate into stronger revenue growth," wrote analyst Andrew Nowinski. "Moreover, the pipeline looks very strong, which should enable share gains to continue going forward." The upgrade from Wells Fargo comes about a month after CrowdStrike fueled a global IT outage that shuttered businesses and led to flight cancellations. Underpinning the analyst's thesis is also a bet that SentinelOne is within two quarters of attaining operating profit break-even, which should benefit its valuation. "Given the improvement in SentinelOne's overall results and the strong pipeline, we believe they are having a positive impact," Nowinski wrote. The stock added more than 3% before the bell, with shares down more than 10% year to date.  Samantha Subin 5:43 a.m.: Piper Sandler upgrades Estee Lauder Piper Sandler is turning more bullish on shares of Estee Lauder on the heels of its latest earnings report. Analyst Korinne Wolfmeyer upgraded shares to overweight from neutral, citing confidence in the company's current valuation. "Mixed with a management change that should be viewed in positive light and valuation that suggests limited downside, we see little reason to suggest the bear thesis could play out much further here," she wrote. Estee Lauder shares are down nearly 4% this week after the company offered a disappointing outlook due to weakness in China. The company also said its CEO will leave the company in 2025. According to Wolfmeyer, China estimates appear "reasonable" although uncertainties linger. She also highlighted stride in Estee Lauder's efforts to regain share in Western markets, adding that investors should view the CEO transition as a positive. "Now, we do acknowledge shares could stay largely unchanged until we receive that new CEO announcement and get more visibility into 2H, but with our 12-month view, the downside looks limited, and the risk/reward looks increasingly favorable," she added. Wolfmeyer upped her price target to $114 from $95 a share, reflecting about 25% upside from Wednesday's close. Shares rose 2% before the bell but have slumped more than 37% this year. EL YTD mountain EL year to date  Samantha Subin 5:43 a.m.: KeyBanc bullish on Nvidia ahead of earnings KeyBanc isn't worried about a delay to Nvidia's Blackwell chips ahead of earnings. "Supply chain feedback is indicating performance issues, and a resulting chip respin with the Blackwell tile is resulting in a one-quarter delay but is not expected to have any impact to near-term results and guidance," analyst John Vinh wrote. "We believe modest expectations for Blackwell shipments in FQ3 have been backfilled with higher Hopper bookings. We expect NVDA to report beat/raise results, in which upside will be driven by strong demand for Hopper GPUs," he added. Vinh reiterated his overweight rating on Nvidia and a price target of $180, which implies upside of 40% from Wednesday's close. Nvidia is set to report earnings Aug. 28. Shares are up nearly 160% in 2024. NVDA YTD mountain NVDA year to date  Fred Imbert
LONDON  The body of British technology entrepreneur Mike Lynch, 59, has been retrieved from the wreckage of a yacht that sank off the coast of Sicily, a source familiar with the matter told CNBC on Thursday, confirming earlier reporting by Sky News.

Lynch's daughter, Hannah, remains unaccounted for, according to the source, who asked not to be identified due to the sensitive nature of the situation. Sky News earlier reported that five bodies pulled from the wreck had been identified by the Italian coast guard, and that Lynch was among the dead.

Later on Thursday, it emerged that Morgan Stanley International Chair Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy were also found dead in the yacht wreckage. Bloomer is also the chair of insurance firm Hiscox.

"We are deeply shocked and saddened by Jonathan and Judy's tragic deaths. Our deepest sympathies go out to their family and friends at this devastating time," Aki Hussain, Hiscox CEO, said in a statement.

"It was a privilege to have known Jonathan and to have benefitted from his generosity and wisdom over the last year in his role as Chair of Hiscox."

"His deep experience across our industry and in the broader business arena, combined with his personal values, made him both an excellent Chair and a person I was proud to know and work with. His advice and support were immensely valuable to me, and he will be dearly missed," Hussain added.
Alex Cooper, longtime host of the popular "Call Her Daddy" podcast, signed a $125 million, three-year deal with SiriusXM, according to the Hollywood Reporter. The deal will take her show, along with the others in her Unwell audio network, to SiriusXM's podcast network. The deal doubles Cooper's previous $60 million, three-year deal with Spotify, announced in 2021. "Call Her Daddy," a bawdy podcast in which Cooper and her then-cohost Sofia Franklyn discussed all things sex and relationships, launched in 2018 and was quickly acquired by Barstool Sports. In 2020, the two had a disagreement regarding contracts with Barstool president Dave Portnoy, Variety reported. Cooper parted ways with Franklyn the same year and the show moved to Spotify in 2021. In 2023, "Call Her Daddy" was the second most popular podcast on Spotify worldwide. In August 2023, Cooper, who was featured in 2024's CNBC Changemakers list, launched The Unwell Network, a series of podcasts including her own show and others hosted by creators like Alix Earle and Madeline Argy. While not everyone can replicate the meteoric success Cooper has worked for and enjoyed, there are lessons to be learned from how she's grown her career. "By highlighting the value 'Call Her Daddy' brings to SiriusXM and positioning herself as a leading figure in the podcasting industry, Alex Cooper was able to confidently negotiate a deal that reflects her talent and the impact of her work," says Natalie Boren, senior vice president at recruiting firm Career Group Companies. "She's not just selling her time," says Boren. "She's selling a proven track record and the potential for even greater success." If you're looking to negotiate your own salary, whether during a job interview or even in your current role, Boren recommends focusing on the following lessons highlighted by Cooper's deal.

'Quantify your value'

To begin with, find numerical ways to prove your success. "Demonstrate the tangible results you've achieved, such as increased revenue, improved efficiency, or enhanced customer satisfaction," says Boren. "For example, Alex Cooper could have emphasized 'Call Her Daddy's' growth in listenership and social media followers during her negotiations." Beyond the success of her podcast, Cooper has 3.2 million followers on Instagram. "Quantify your value," she says.

'Highlight your unique skills'

Think about what you bring to your company that sets you apart. "Identify the specific skills and expertise that make you valuable to your organization," says Boren. Then "emphasize how these qualities contribute to the company's success." Do you come with a specific set of contacts that's helped your division grow? Do you have vast experience in the kind of tech your team could use to hike productivity? "Cooper's ability to create engaging, authentic content sets her apart as a podcast host," she says, adding, "highlight your unique skills."

'Research industry standards'

To make sure you come in with a number you know is relevant to your field and position, "research industry standards," says Boren. In Cooper's industry, for example, the kinds of numbers she commands can equal massive paychecks. Spotify's No. 1 most listened to podcast for years has been "The Joe Rogan Experience." Rogan recently signed a multi-year deal with Spotify reported to be worth as much as $250 million, according to The Wall Street Journal. For those with more modest salaries, "use online resources and industry surveys to compare your salary to others in similar roles and with comparable experience," she says. Use tools like LinkedIn or Levels.fyi to compare salaries or ask friends, family or colleagues in your industry if they feel comfortable sharing what they make. "Stay informed about salary trends in your field to gauge the current market value for your skills" as well, says Boren.

'Be willing to explore other opportunities'
Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te has cautioned that China's "growing authoritarianism" will not stop with the island, and that it poses a challenge at the "global level."

Lai was speaking at the annual Ketagalan Forum, a dialogue focusing on security issues in the Indo-Pacific. It was attended by representatives from several countries including the U.S., India, Japan, Australia and Canada.

"We are all fully aware that China's growing authoritarianism will not stop with Taiwan, nor is Taiwan the only target of China's economic pressures," Lai said, adding that this authoritarianism is becoming "more aggressive."

"It's now a challenge at the global level," Lai emphasized, calling for countries to cooperate and curtail China's efforts.

His comments come as China has been ramping up military activity in the South China Sea.

"China intends to change the rules-based international order. That is why democratic countries must come together and take concrete action," the Taiwanese president said.

Last weekend, China's Ministry of Transport said it carried out a maritime patrol and law enforcement operation in the Taiwan Straits aimed at "enhancing traffic management and emergency rescue capabilities."

In May, after Lai was sworn in, China's military conducted two days of drills around Taiwan as an act of "punishment" to the island's "separatist acts."

Tensions between China and the Philippines have also been escalating in the Spratly Islands for months. Recently, vessels from the two countries collided near the disputed Sabina Shoal in the South China Sea.

Following the vessel collision, Beijing's actions drew condemnation from Philippine allies, with the U.S. reaffirming its mutual defense pact with the Philippines.

"Such actions are intended to intimidate China's neighbors and undermine regional peace and stability," said Lai.

China had dismissed the outcome of Taiwan's elections in January that brought Lai to power, saying the ruling Democratic Progressive Party did not represent the mainstream public.

Beijing maintains that the democratically governed island of Taiwan is part of its territory.

China's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment.

Taiwan's defense spending is reportedly set to climb 7.7%, outpacing the island's GDP growth.
The next innovation in cryptocurrencies will not come from the introduction of a Solana exchange-traded fund . Asset managers say they are more focused on other ways investors can diversify their portfolios with crypto. The launch of the highly anticipated bitcoin ETFs in January was a success, but many are wondering what is next for the industry. Some crypto enthusiasts are speculating about which coin will next be put into an ETF wrapper  with many speculating it could be Solana  but asset managers at the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium in Jackson Hole say the search is about more than that alone. "As we think about how to educate investors about this broader ecosystem, it's not individual token by token, but rather  how do we think about portfolio construction and from there, how do we create exposures representing different sectors within this growing ecosystem," said Cynthia Lo Bessette, head of digital asset management at Fidelity Investments. "There's an opportunity for us to be able to add value beyond just individual access to just some of the largest crypto tokens." Actively managed products Steve Kurz, global head of asset management at Galaxy, pointed to his firm's recent partnership with custody giant State Street to develop active trading products. "That is not about the next coin, it's about the 75 securities that are now linked to crypto  the fact that there are futures, options, crypto ETFs, all kinds of exchange traded vehicles globally," he said. "The accordion has expanded so much in just one year that you can start to have active strategies." "While that's not what I think the average crypto asset manager would say the path would have been, that is a path that brings crypto awareness and crypto education through a different set of tools," he added. Outside the U.S., investors can buy the CoinShares Physical Staked Solana ETP, for example. ETFs tracking the price of spot bitcoin were available in Canada in 2021, long before they were approved in the U.S. Diversifying portfolios Diversifying crypto exposure beyond focusing on single coin products could be key for some asset managers. There are 11 bitcoin ETFs now available in the U.S. that, aside from their fee structures, look more or less the same for most investors. "If you're looking at the profitability of the asset management business in a platform sense, over the next three or four years, it's about moving into [alternative] products," Kurz said. "Hedge funds, liquid token funds, venture funds  those are all models that are being tested. Investors and wealth managers who are comfortable in bitcoin generally recommend a small allocation  between 1% and 5%  to add risk to a portfolio without subjecting it to too much of the cryptocurrency's notorious volatility. Having different crypto-linked securities coming to market, however, could give asset managers an opportunity to shake up that standard and lift client expectations. "Active management becomes part of the conversation, and your differentiation isn't on fees or total cost of ownership, it's now on what strategies are you creating, what alpha are you generating  and that's when we know we've actually achieved something in terms of it becoming an asset class," Kurz said. "You really haven't had a true asset management industry in crypto, it's been a cottage industry until the bitcoin ETF happened," he added.

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A logo stands on display above the headquarters of Deutsche Bank AG at the Aurora Business Park in Moscow, Russia.

Deutsche Bank has reached settlements with nearly 60% of plaintiffs in a long-running case alleging the German lender underpaid for its acquisition of Postbank more than a decade ago.

In a Wednesday statement, Deutsche Bank said it had reached agreements with more than 80 plaintiffs for a settlement of 31 euros ($34.53) per share, as proposed by the bank. This will allow Germany's largest lender to release the funds and boost Deutsche Bank's anticipated third-quarter pretax profit by 430 million euros, it said.

Deutsche Bank shares were up 3.95% at 4:25 p.m. in London, around their highest level for a month.

The stock dropped sharply following the bank's second-quarter results released July 24, in which it reported its first net loss in four years, largely due to a 1.3 billion euro provision for Postbank cases.

That includes the largest individual plaintiff representing around a third of claims, the bank said Wednesday.

Suits were brought against Deutsche Bank by a range of institutional and private investors claiming that it underpaid in its multistage acquisition of Postbank, a German retail bank with millions of clients. The institutions merged in 2018.
A Greek-flagged oil tanker was left abandoned, adrift and ablaze in the Red Sea following strikes off the Yemeni coast.

The U.K. Maritime Trade Operations agency on Wednesday reported that a fire had erupted aboard a tanker, which lost engine power and was no longer "under command." It came after a gunfire attack from two small boats roughly 77 nautical miles west of Yemeni port Hodeidah, which is under the control of the Houthi militant group. The UKMTO did not name the vessels or the perpetrators of the incident.

Greece's shipping minister Christos Stylianides later named the vessel as oil tanker Sounion and condemned the attack as a "flagrant violation of the rules of international law and a serious threat to the safety of international navigation," according to a Google-translated statement.

All 25 crew members of the vessels are safe, the minister added.

The vessel is part of the fleet of Greek operator Delta Tankers, which confirmed the Sounion suffered "minor damage" after being involved in a "hostile incident" in the Red Sea in an emailed statement.

The company later issued a statement that the master and crew aboard the Sounion have evacuated the vessel and received naval support. Reuters separately reported that the crew was rescued by the EU's naval mission Aspides, which confirmed the retrieval in a social media post.

"While approaching the area, the EUNAVFOR ASPIDES ship destroyed an Unmanned Surface Vessel (USV) that posed an imminent threat to the ship and the crew. All on board the MV SOUNION were subsequently rescued and are being transported to Djibouti, the nearest safe port of call," the Aspides mission said.

"Plans are in place to move the vessel to a safer destination where a full assessment (checks and any repairs) can be undertaken," Delta Tankers said.

The Sounion had last called at Iraq's crude-loading Basrah terminal, according to MarineTraffic data. The Aspides mission said that Sounion was carrying 150,000 tonnes of crude oil and now represents a "navigational and environmental hazard," likely in the event of an oil spill.

"It is essential that everyone in the area exercises caution and refrains from any actions that could lead to a deterioration of the current situation," it said.

No group has claimed responsibility for Wednesday's attack so far, although the Houthi faction has carried out swathes of similar strikes against commercial ships, citing solidarity with the Palestinian cause amid Israel's ongoing military campaign in the Gaza Strip.

The Yemeni group previously claimed only to be directly targeting ships owned by, or linked to, Israel, the U.S. or the U.K., but has repeatedly attacked vessels that were not connected to these nations.

The Houthi offensives  which have so far caused at least two ships to sink  have disrupted a critical trade route linking Europe and Asia-Pacific, with several vessels opting for a lengthier Cape Horn route that can add up to 14 sailing days to the journey.

The disruptions have not led to the suspension of westbound shipments from the oil-rich Middle Eastern region, nor caused a long-lasting premium on oil futures prices.
Sridhar Ramaswamy, CEO of Snowflake and formerly co-founder and CEO of startup Neeva, speaks at the Collision conference in Toronto on June 21, 2022.

Shares of Snowflake closed down more than 14% on Thursday after the data cloud analytics company released fiscal second-quarter 2025 earnings that beat Wall Street's estimates but showed decelerating product revenue growth compared to past quarters.

Snowflake reported $869 million in revenue, above the $851 million expected by analysts polled by LSEG. The company reported $829.3 million in product revenue, which accounts for most of Snowflake's sales, up 30% year over year. But that marked a slowdown from the 34% year-over-year bump reported during the fiscal first quarter.

The company's net loss widened to $317 million, or a 95 cent loss per share, from $227 million, or a loss of 69 cents per share, during the same period a year earlier.

Morgan Stanley analysts said Snowflake's results were good, "but perhaps not enough." They said the company's smaller product revenue beat and deceleration in growth will not inspire weary investors.

The analysts think Snowflake's new generative artificial intelligence portfolio will eventually contribute to topline outperformance. In the meantime, it will have to rely on its core data warehousing business.

"A 2% product revenue beat in Q2, down from 5% in Q1, with product revenue growth dipping further to 29.5% YoY," likely sows "enough doubt in the investor conversation to keep shares under pressure in the near-term," the analysts wrote in a note Thursday.

Analysts at Barclays said Snowflake's second-quarter results should "not be a major catalyst either way" for the company's investment case. They maintained their equal weight rating on the stock.

The analysts said investors were watching closely to see whether the company's product revenue took a material hit because of fallout from a cyberattack and the CrowdStrike outage that occurred during the quarter. They felt these potential large headwinds did not play out, which is a positive for the company.

"True, 30% y/y product growth is slower than the 33-34% level we saw the past 2 quarters. However, against all the fear going into these results we see the 30% level and raised guide as very respectable, especially given the lower valuation," the analysts wrote in a note Wednesday.

 CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading: Crocs  Shares of the footwear company gained 1% following an upgrade to buy at Williams Trading. The investment firm said Crocs' addition of actress Sydney Sweeney as a spokesperson for its Heydude brand could reverse previously negative sales trends. Nordson  The adhesives stock added 3% after posting a fiscal third-quarter earnings beat. Nordson reported per-share adjusted earnings of $2.41, while analysts polled by FactSet had only expected $2.33. The company's $661.6 million in revenue was also higher than the $656.5 million consensus estimate. Deutsche Bank  The bank's U.S.-listed shares advanced more than 3% after Deutsche Bank announced it had reached settlements with nearly 60% of plaintiffs in a case tied to its acquisition of Postbank more than a decade ago. Wolfspeed  The semiconductor stock tumbled 5% after posting a fourth-quarter loss of 89 cents per share, which was 4 cents per share wider than analysts polled by LSEG had expected. Wolfspeed's revenue of $201 million came in line with expectations. Snowflake  The software company plummeted 15%. Analysts pointed to a deceleration in growth as a potential reason for the stock's decline despite posting an earnings and revenue beat for its most-recent quarter. Urban Outfitters  The stock sank 10% after the clothing retailer reported that second-quarter sales in locations open for at least a year fell 9.3% from a year ago. That was more than the 8.3% decline analysts were expecting, per LSEG. However, the company beat on earnings and revenue. Peloton  Shares rallied 35% after the connected fitness company posted a rise in sales for the first time in nine quarters as it implements its turnaround plan. Peloton posted a smaller-than-expected loss of 8 cents per share. Advance Auto Parts  The automotive parts retailer fell 17% after reporting second-quarter earnings of 75 cents per share, while analysts polled by FactSet had anticipated earnings per share of 93 cents. The company also lowered its full-year guidance. Paramount Global  The media stock rose nearly 1% after the company's special committee announced that it was extending the "go shop" period of its merger agreement with Skydance. The Paramount committee also confirmed that it has received a competing offer from Edgar Bronfman Jr. Estee Lauder  The beauty company ended the day flat, after earlier rising following an upgrade to overweight from neutral at Piper Sandler. Analyst Korinne Wolfmeyer cited a management change as one reason for her renewed optimism. Stryker  The medical stock added 1.6% on news that it would acquire Vertos Medical, a company focused on treating chronic lower back pain. Williams-Sonoma  The kitchenware retailer plunged 9% after posting second-quarter revenue of $1.79 billion, lower than the $1.81 billion expected by analysts, according to LSEG. However, the company's earnings per share of $1.74 was higher than the $1.60 consensus estimate. Zoom Video  The telecommunications stock climbed 13% following a second-quarter earnings and revenue beat. Zoom also guided for third-quarter and full-year earnings and revenue above analysts' estimates.  CNBC's Michelle Fox, Jesse Pound and Samantha Subin contributed reporting.
Here are Thursday's biggest calls on Wall Street: KeyBanc reiterates Nvidia as overweight KeyBanc said it is bullish heading into earnings next week. "We see favorable risk/reward into earnings with NVDA trading at 25x our FY26 EPS. Reiterate OW." Goldman Sachs reiterates Snowflake as buy Goldman Sachs said it is sticking by Snowflake following earnings on Wednesday. "Solid Print, Guidance Raise Fall Short of High Expectations; Constructive on Stabilizing Trends, Emerging AI Product Cycle." Bank of America reiterates Dell as buy Bank of America lowered its price target on Dell to $150 per share from $180, but said investors should buy the dip. "We continue to believe that the fundamentals of the stock are strong and that the stock pull back offers a particularly attractive opportunity for investors." Citi downgrades TJX to neutral from buy Citi said it sees a more balanced risk/reward following earnings. "We are downgrading TJX from Buy to Neutral, though raising our TP from $110 to $128 (7% upside)." Morgan Stanley initiates Flutter as a top pick Morgan Stanley said the overweight-rated gambling company is a new top idea at the firm. " Flutter has a compelling global long-term growth story. It is the scale leader in online gambling, ~3x larger than its nearest peers by revenue." Wells Fargo upgrades SentinelOne to overweight from equal weight Wells Fargo said the cybersecurity company is a beneficiary of rival CrowdStrike's recent issues. "We believe SentinelOne is gaining share, recently at the expense of CrowdStrike, which should translate into stronger revenue growth." Bank of America upgrades Unilever to buy from underperform Bank of America said it sees burgeoning growth for the home goods goliath. "We double-upgrade Unilever (ULVR) to Buy from Underperform as we believe that organic growth will reach a CAGR of 4.6% in 2024-27E on the back of stronger underlying growth (more favourable sub-category exposure post portfolio measures) and market share improvement" Morgan Stanley reiterates Microsoft and Meta as overweight Morgan Stanley said its checks of large-cap institutional ownership show that Microsoft is under-owned while Meta is over-owned. "MSFT remains the most under-owned mega cap tech stock we track, while META remains the most over-owned." Wells Fargo initiates Disc Medicine as overweight Wells Fargo said it is bullish on the biopharma company. " Disc Medicine, Inc. (IRON) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing therapies to treat hematologic diseases." Citi opens a positive catalyst watch on JD.com Citi said shares could rise quickly as the China e-commerce company steps up buybacks. "Over the past 6-12 months, internet companies have been increasingly accelerating their buyback activities . JD is among the notable ones that have stepped up their buyback pace aggressively." Piper Sandler upgrades Estee Lauder to overweight from neutral Piper Sandler said it sees a compelling entry point following earnings earlier this week. "We're upgrading shares of EL to Overweight from Neutral and raising our price target to $114 from $95." Telsey downgrades Urban Outfitters to market perform from outperform Telsey downgraded the stock following earnings. "While URBN delivered a second consecutive quarter of better-than-expected sales, gross margin, and expense control, the comp miss disappointed, with underperformance at all three brands relative to market expectations." Williams Trading upgrades Crocs to buy from hold Williams Trading said it is bullish on Crocs after it added actress Sydney Sweeney as a brand ambassador. "The announcement yesterday that actress & producer, Sidney Sweeney was engaged as HEYDUDE's Dude and brand ambassador and global spokesperson. We believe that the counterintuitive addition of Ms. Sweeney will successfully attract young consumers and bring needed attention to the HEYDUDE brand." Loop reiterates Apple as buy Loop said its survey checks on Apple show September "iPhone shipments are tracking stronger than anticipated." "Reiterating our Buy and $300 PT after the work of Loop Capital Supply Chain Analyst John Donovan suggests that Sep Q iPhone shipments are tracking stronger than anticipated."
Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks from a bulletproof glass housing during a campaign rally, at the North Carolina Aviation Museum & Hall of Fame in Asheboro, North Carolina, U.S. August 21, 2024.

A convicted New York drug dealer and predatory lender who walked free from a 10-year federal prison sentence after it was commuted in 2021 by then-President Donald Trump has been arrested for allegedly assaulting his wife and her father, court records show.

Jonathan Braun, 41, is charged in Nassau County, Long Island, court with assaulting his 75-year-old father-in-law on Tuesday by punching him twice in the face with a closed fist as he was trying to protect his daughter from Braun, who is her husband.

Separately, Braun was also accused of assaulting that woman on July 17 by throwing her off a bed, "causing her substantial pain and bruising to her legs," a criminal complaint in Nassau County District Court says.

Braun also is accused of punching her in the head multiple times on Aug. 12 after throwing her to the floor, the complaint says.

He was also accused in Nassau County District Court of petit larceny, which the Times reported is related to allegations he failed to pay $160 in bridge tolls while driving a Lamborghini and Ferrari, both of which lack license plates, over about 40 different crossings of the bridge.

Braun pleaded not guilty during his arraignment Wednesday to one count of second-degree assault on a person 65 years or older, and two counts of third-degree assault, as well as on the larceny charge.

He was released on those charges without bail after the Nassau County District Attorney's office requested that bond be set at $35,000. A judge did issue orders of protection against him for the victims in the case.

Braun's arrest was first reported Wednesday night by The New York Times and Bloomberg.

Braun was fined $20 million in February by Manhattan federal court Judge Jed Rakoff in a civil case where the Federal Trade Commission had sued Braun for predatory lending practices.

"The evidence ... shows that Mr. Braun not only personally participated in this illegal conduct, but did so gleefully, with little remorse," Rakoff wrote in a ruling, which cited emails Braun had sent about the loans.

Braun's lawyer, Marc Fernich, in an email to CNBC said, "Mr. Braun was arrested in Nassau County in connection with an alleged domestic disturbance."

"He was released on his own recognizance after pleading not guilty and will address the allegations judicially," Fernich said.
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro speaks on Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center, in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 21, 2024.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro on Thursday accused Donald Trump of peddling antisemitism after the Republican presidential nominee called him a "highly overrated Jewish Governor."

"I think it's clear over the last few years, Donald Trump is obsessed with me and obsessed with continuing to spew hate and division in our politics," Shapiro told reporters in response to a broadside Trump posted on Truth Social overnight.

"He's someone who has routinely peddled antisemitic tropes like this," said Shapiro, a Democrat who leads what is arguably the most competitive swing state in the presidential contest.

Trump's post, sent after midnight Thursday, attacked the governor for supporting Vice President Kamala Harris' White House bid even though, Trump claims, she "hates Israel."

"The highly overrated Jewish Governor of the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro, made a really bad and poorly delivered speech [at the Democratic National Convention] talking about freedom and fighting for Comrade Kamala Harris for President," he said.

Trump falsely accused Harris of hoping that Israel "will fail" and claimed he is "the best friend that Israel, and the Jewish people, ever had."

"Shapiro has done nothing for Israel, and never will," Trump added.
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The Delhi High Court has referred the ongoing legal dispute between BharatPe and its former Managing Director, Ashneer Grover, to arbitration. The court, led by a single judge bench of Justice C Hari Shankar, has appointed a sole arbitrator to handle the case, specifying that the arbitration will proceed under the rules of the Delhi International Arbitration Centre (DIAC).The case stems from an employment agreement signed in August 2021, which BharatPe claims was breached by Grover when he allegedly disclosed confidential company information on social media platforms. BharatPe sought arbitration through the Delhi High Court, arguing that Grover's actions violated the terms of his contract.Grover, in response, had requested that the matter be referred to ongoing arbitration in Singapore. However, the court dismissed this plea, opting instead for arbitration under DIAC.During the proceedings, it was noted that Grover had since deleted the social media posts in question and had issued an apology. Despite these actions, the court upheld BharatPe's request for arbitration to address the dispute formally.The appointment of the sole arbitrator marks a critical step in resolving the conflict between BharatPe and its former executive, with the outcome likely to have significant implications for both parties.
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If youre looking for complex philosophical concepts explained obscenely briefly by a philosophy minor, youve come to the right place.

14 What the Tortoise Said to Achilles Lewis Caroll wrote this little sketch for the philosophical journal Mind in 1895, demonstrating a bizarre thought experiment described by Aristotle: In a race, the quickest runner can never overtake the slowest, since the pursuer must first reach the point whence the pursued started, so that the slower must always hold a lead. Basically, Carolls dialogue shows the tortoise beating Achilles in a footrace by confusing the fuck out of him.

13 When a White Horse Is Not a Horse Chinese philosopher Gongsun Long wrote a little two-person sketch in the third century BC that modern philosophers are still discussing like its an early SNL banger. One guy argues that its impossible to assert that a white horse is a horse. After much semantic gymnastics, he concludes that yellow and black horses are the same, one can respond that there are horses, but one cannot respond that there are white horses. Thus, it is evident that white horses are not horses. So, there ya go.

12 Wooden Iron

From the people that brought you schadenfreude comes: wooden iron. This is a German proverbial oxymoron, illustrating how applying the wrong adjective can completely nullify the intention of the noun: a wooden iron, boiling snow, freezing fire, squared circle.

11 The Beetle in a Box Famous anti-philosopher Wittgenstein thought a lot about the concept of pain. Pain isnt observable to an outsider, you pretty much have to take a persons word for it  whether it exists, and what it actually is. Wittgensteins analogy was: imagine everyone on the planet carried around a box with a beetle inside. But no one can look inside of anyone elses box to see what a beetle looks like, or if theres even one there at all. Everyone is referring to a beetle, but its impossible to know if they actually agree on what a beetle is. Advertisement Advertisement

10 Blind Brain Hypothesis Canadian fantasy author R. Scott Bakker made a compelling comparison between consciousness and the more basic senses like color detection and field of vision. Just as the eyes usefulness is limited by its own field of vision, the brain is only conscious of a very limited number of its own functions. Similarly, the brains concept of Now is a result of its temporal blindspots  we cant actively experience the past and the present, so we think that Now is all there is.

9 Buridans Ass This thought experiment goes: a donkey is both starving and thirsty, and finds itself halfway between a water source and a bale of hay. Instead of choosing one or the other, he freezes completely and dies of hunger and thirst. The whole thing is a dunk of 14th-century philosopher Jean Buridan, who argued that everything is inevitable and predetermined, including human choice. Other philosophers argued that nope, free will causes people (and asses) to do the most pointless, counterintuitive stuff. Advertisement Advertisement

8 Evil God Challenge This sounds like a trend on Vine, but its actually a weapon in the arsenal of obnoxious atheists around the world. The challenge they pose is: explain to me why its more likely that a benevolent god exists than that an evil god exists. Presumably, the tiny theist mind is unable to meet this challenge, and is forced to admit that the most likely case is that no god exists at all.

7 Fake Barns Philosopher Alvin Goldman tells the thrilling story of a man driving through the countryside, looking at barns. In one moment, he foolishly relishes in the knowledge that he is looking at a real barn. Unbeknownst to him, hes driving through a town that loves setting up fake barn facades, like the set of an old western movie. Now, the barn he was looking at happened to be real! But given the existence of fake barns is his knowledge that hes looking at a real barn truly valid? Advertisement Advertisement

6 The Pyromaniac American philosopher Brian Skyrms laid out a similar dismantling of the validity of true knowledge: an accomplished pyromaniac has done his homework and knows the chemical and physical forces that make a match light  or so he thinks. In reality, there could be some completely unknown and unknowable force, which Skyrms calls Q Radiation, thats actually responsible for every lit match in the pyromaniacs career. You may be asking yourself, So the fuck what? And to that I say: welcome to philosophy.

5 Floating Man This is sort of the prequel to I think, therefore I am  ancient Persian philosopher Ibn Sina argued that no person could logically deny their own consciousness. A guy falling perpetually down a bottomless pit, experiencing zero external input to his body, could still reach the conclusion that he exists, by dint of his internal perception. Sinas conclusion is that the soul is paradoxically immaterial and substantial  it doesnt take up physical space, but its like, way important. Advertisement Advertisement

4 Kavkas Toxin Puzzle Moral and political philosopher Gregory S. Kavka wanted to understand the impact of intention, not actual action, on the real world. So he made up this batshit scenario: an eccentric billionaire has offered you one million dollars if you intend, at midnight tonight, to drink a poisonous toxin tomorrow afternoon. Youll get paid if you change your mind before drinking it, but at midnight, you must plan on doing it. Is that even possible?

3 Rudolf Lingens German logician Gottlob Frege recognized that using the term I and me in philosophical discussion tends to subconsciously bias the speaker in one direction or another. He needed to come up with a neutral third party, so he whipped up an imaginary character that other philosophers still use to this day: Rudolf Lingens. Advertisement Advertisement

2 Russells Teapot Bertrand Russell says if youre going to make outlandish claims about your religion, the burden of proof lies on you the claimer, not me the unwilling listener. Specifically, if youre gonna tell me that theres a tiny little teapot out in space, orbiting the sun somewhere between Earth and Mars sure, thats hard to disprove, but that aint my problem.
Come with me, and youll be, in a world of possible eviction.

In May 2020, Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk announced his intention to detach himself from his material possessions, including from the roofs over his head. I am selling almost all physical possessions. Will own no house, Musk wrote in a tweet, noting that he was closing on the last of seven home sales that would relieve him of his real estate entanglements. However, Musk added the caveat, Just one stipulation on sale: I own Gene Wilders old house. It cannot be torn down or lose any its soul.

Instead of selling the Bel-Air home that belonged to Wilder until 2007 on Zillow, which, hilariously, is how Musk unloaded his other personal properties, Musk sold what was once the Wilder estate to the Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory stars nephew, Jordan Walker-Pearlman a film director and writer, who spent much of his childhood at the home. In the agreement, Musk also generously loaned Walker-Pearlman and his wife Elizabeth Hunter most of the cash required to cover the $7 million sale. But now, barely four years later, Musk is calling in that debt and beginning the process to repossess the property from Wilder's surviving loved ones.

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Considering Musks legendary sensitivity, dont be surprised if we learn that he informed the current tenants about the foreclosure by DMing them this video:

To clarify, Wilder didnt sell the property directly to the future head of Twitter in 2007. In 2013, Musk purchased the estate, which was conveniently located across the street from his primary domicile, from the intermediary owners for a reported $6.75 million. Its unclear what, exactly, Musk did with Wilders former Bel-Air home in the intervening years, but when the billionaire began his mansion fire sale in 2020, he stuck to his word about preserving the soul of the estate  at least for the time being.

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Instead of fetching the highest possible price for the property, Musk reached an agreement with Walker-Pearlman and Hunter wherein he would lend them $7 million to buy the house from him and allow them to live in the estate that created so many cherished memories for Walker-Pearlman. He could have sold it for so much more, Walker-Pearlman, told The Wall Street Journal in 2022. His sensitivity to me cant be overstated.

Then, in July, an entity linked to Musk filed a notice of default on the property, the first step in the foreclosure process. Walker-Pearlman and Hunter have, apparently, fallen behind on payments for the massive loan, and Musk is ready to retake the Wilder estate for himself. However, the couple holds no ill will toward Musk for the decision, and they, themselves, have put the property up for sale for $12.95 million.

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Walker-Pearlman insists that Musk isnt being adversarial or mean in the dealings, saying of the four years and millions of dollars he spent in his uncles old home, Theres no tragedy here, adding, Elon gave us a magical opportunity. I have no complaints. As for Hunter, Walker-Pearlman reported, She did not want to continue morally owing Elon anymore. We already owe him such a spiritual debt.

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Clearly, Wilders surviving family has nothing but gratitude for the brief time Musk allowed them to enjoy the Hollywood legends old home, but at the same time, this news is a little rich considering that Musk himself still has about $13 billion in unpaid loans to seven different banks over his 2022 acquisition of Twitter that arent likely to be paid off anytime soon, if ever.

Musk might not have the cash to pay off his debtors, but he may have another incredible investment opportunity that could recoup the billions lost. Morgan Stanley, you ever seen a show on Broadway?
Believe it or not, Fight Milk wasnt the first not-exactly-milky drink that Ronald Mac Donald ever endorsed.

Before Rob McElhenney came up with the idea of shooting a shoestring-budget pilot for a sitcom about the biggest a-holes in Pennsylvania, he was a struggling actor in L.A. waiting tables in between acting gigs. The slightly embarrassing before-they-were-famous careers of McElhenneys co-stars are already an integral part of the Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia lore  Glenn Howerton starred in the hated failure of a sitcom That 80s Show before becoming Dennis Reynolds, and Charlie Day passed on an almost-as-bad show to work as an illiterate janitor. But McElhenneys list of credits pre-2005 is, comparatively, not quite as notable or mockable as those of his collaborators.

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However, there is one particularly fascinating and thankfully surviving clip from McElhenneys acting career pre-Sunny that even includes cameos from a couple of his future co-stars. In 1998, McElhenney appeared in a commercial for the chocolate drink (not chocolate milk) brand Yoo-hoo, which featured Jordan Reid, his real-life now-ex-girlfriend and the original actress for the role of Sweet Dee, and Brian Unger, better known as The Lawyer, worse referred to as The Jew Lawyer by Frank Reynolds.

At the time of the above commercials airing, Unger, who was a correspondent on the original The Daily Show under fellow comedian Craig Kilborn, was an official spokesperson for Yoo-hoo and appeared in many commercials promoting the uncomfortably watery chocolate milk substitute. But only one such commercial starring Unger featured his future boss in a secret love triangle with his real-life girlfriend that ends on a slightly homoerotic note that could be considered foreshadowing for McElhenneys future characters proclivities.

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As for Reid, the original actress for Dee explained her involvement with the early stages of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia in a since-deleted Instagram post, noting that, though she began the process of creating the show with McElhenney and his buds as a both a romantic and creative partner, after she decided to end her romantic relationship with McElhenney, the star and creator ended her professional relationship with It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia and replaced her with his future wife Kaitlin Olson.

I guess that's still better than if Reid cheated on McElhenney with his best friend and kept it a secret just because he drank sugar water with chocolate flavoring. Its also better than not getting to be involved with It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia at all  poor Billy.
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It always happens: just after I've finished writing a book, and it is about to be published, I hear something new that I should have included.

My latest book  A Voyage Around the Queen  comes out next week.

It covers a wide variety of aspects of Queen Elizabeth II: the dreams people had about her, her love of corgis, horses and jigsaws, her strange capacity to prompt those she met to spout gibberish, and her meetings with everyone from Putin and Trump to Phil Collins and Daphne du Maurier.

A chapter on Prince Philip focuses on a particular question: when he made a blunt remark to strangers was he being boorish or friendly?

Was he trying to jump-start a conversation by saying something punchy, in the hope of getting something punchy in return, as his supporters claim, or was he just being rude?

The late Queen pictured at Balmoral Castle with one of her corgis

A chapter in Brown's new book A Voyage Around the Queen focuses on Prince Philip (pictured) and one particular question: when he made a blunt remark to strangers was he being boorish or friendly?

Paddington Bear was created by Michael Bond

For example, on a visit to Paris in 1957, as he and the Queen were welcomed by cheering crowds, he turned to the French minister of the interior and said, 'Wasn't it too bad you sent your royal family to the guillotine?'

In his memoir, Tony Blair recalls Prince Philip going up to a Labour MP at a Buckingham Palace reception in 1997.

Hello,' he said, 'where do you represent?' 'Stoke,' she said. 'Ghastly place, isn't it?' he replied.

Such remarks were usually called 'gaffes' by the Press.

But many of his friends maintain he was simply trying to break the ice, so the person he was talking to might feel free to reply with something equally jaunty.

In his excellent joint biography of the Queen and Prince Philip, Gyles Brandreth maintains that while the Queen was often awkward at small talk, Philip could always be relied upon to keep the party going.

'His reputation for curmudgeonliness comes about because... he is deliberately challenging.

He questions, he argues, he plays devil's advocate... He does it to show an interest and... to maintain his own interest.'

By chance, last week I bought a delightful new book, the Collected Poems of Roger McGough, a treasure chest of the 85-year- old's work from 1959 to the present.

Prince Phillip (left) and Queen Elizabeth (right) celebrate their Silver wedding anniversary at Balmoral Castle in 1972

The Duke of Edinburgh (left) and Queen Elizabeth II go for a stroll at Broadlands in 2007

It's full of wonderful poems, many moving, many comical, most of them both. McGough is a particular master of the short verse, for instance:

'When you're

depressed

deep rest

is best.'

Or this, called Ice while it lasted:

'Snowman in a field

listening to the raindrops

wishing him farewell.'

One or two poems chronicle encounters with the famous, such as Bob Dylan at the Blue Angel club in Liverpool in 1965, or the Gallagher brothers, who collared him outside a pub and wanted to talk about the Beatles, or Jimi Hendrix, 'a shy, modest young man' who, it turns out, played guitar on McGough's first album in 1968.

He includes a handful of previously unpublished poems, one of which has the alluring title, Reciting Poetry to Prince Philip.

In it, he recalls the Queen's 80th birthday party at Buckingham Palace in 2006.

McGough is first introduced to the Queen, who just says, 'Very good' before moving along the line to chat with Michael Bond, creator of Paddington.

Prince Philip comes next, hands behind his back, and asks McGough, 'What are you working on at the moment?'

McGough replies that he has just written verse for a TV documentary about the foetus in the womb.

Padding author Michael Bond with his daughter Karen Jankel

Queen Elizabeth pictured on her 80th birthday in April 2006

The late Queen and her husband Prince Phillip greet well-wishers on her birthday in Windsor in 2006. That evening the Prince of Wales hosted a private party for the Queen and other members of the royal family at Kew Palace

He tells Philip that he can remember one of them, called The Foetus Dreams. He then closes his eyes and recites this beautiful poem:

'What do I dream of? I dream my mother's dreams

I dream of being held as I breathe her breath

Of holding her as I dance to her heartbeat

I dream about our future what it might bring

I hear my mother crying I hear her sing.'

As he finishes reciting, McGough opens his eyes, only to see 'His Royal Highness...looking at me as if I were deranged.

'"Sorry I bloody asked," he grunted, before moving quickly along the line.'
Ashley Madison launched in 2002 for people who were looking to have an affair

It's been over three months since explosive documentary Ashley Madison: Sex, Lies & Scandal landed on Netflix, yet the divisive app is still very much a hot topic of conversation as the controversial dating service continues to thrive.

The three-part series soared straight into the top 10 most watched programs shortly after dropping on May 15, as viewers were gripped by the subject of infidelity, the 2015 hacking scandal, and the revelation that Ashley Madison employees had catfished men who were looking to cheat on their spouses by creating fake profiles.

Now, the chief strategy officer for Ashley Madison has shared his honest thoughts on Netflix's retelling of the drama, which resulted in a slew of famous faces being exposed when the dating service was hacked by a group who referred to themselves as The Impact Team.

When asked if he'd rather the series hadn't been made at all, Paul Keable exclusively told DailyMail.com: 'No, anytime someone wants to talk about our business, so long as they're being honest... misrepresentations would bother any organization, but I don't think there was any full misrepresentations.

'I would quibble with some of the things, but nothing over the top. The only thing was seeing some of my former colleagues talk about their viewpoints as though it was an official viewpoint.'

Ashley Madison: Sex, Lies & Scandal is a three-part documentary which landed on Netflix on May 15

The docuseries features interviews with ex Ashley Madison employees, including former vice president of sales Evan Back (left), and former creative director Marc Morgenstern (right)

Keable continued: '[It] was comical because certain individuals have delusions of grandeur in terms of their importance in our history, and so be it. But yeah, it was an interesting company and I think people who are no longer with the organization miss the excitement of working for a company that is a cultural icon.'

The series features interviews with ex Ashley Madison employees, including the company's former vice president of sales Evan Back, and former creative director Marc Morgenstern.

It also features various first person accounts with individuals who have used the app in the past, including Christian YouTube star Sam Rader, who cheated on his wife Nia and was exposed thanks to the 2015 scandal.

When asked what he really thought about the documentary, Keable referred to the hack and said: 'You have to accept criticisms that come and I'm always welcome to have that conversation, but I think that the Netflix series was a bookend to that period of time.

'It doesn't mean it's never going to be talked about again, but I think it did a very good job of summing up how people viewed it, what happened, the outcomes from it to a certain degree.'

He added: 'I'm wildly biased because I worked for the company, but the one piece that was missing is that they didn't really talk as much about how everyone assumed that was the end of our business, and yet here we are eight plus years, standing and thriving.'

Netflix stated that Ruby Life, the owners of Ashley Madison, had declined to comment on the claims made in the docuseries - and Keable was keen to explain why they had done so.

'They did not want us to discuss how we've evolved and where we were growing, they only wanted to discuss our past and I said, "you don't need any comment from us to discuss what happened,"' he said.

Ashley Madison's chief strategy officer Paul Keable spoke exclusively to DailyMail.com about the Netflix series

The dating service launched in 2002 and was marketed to people who are married (or people in relationships) who are looking for affairs

'That was the interesting part, they were looking back and retelling a story that's already been told so there was nothing new. And again, that's not a criticism, but we don't need to add anything to our past because we lived it, we've been through it.

'Again, I'm biased, but I think it's hard to talk about 2015 without having some cognitive recognition that not only did we survive, we thrived, and we are a sought out expert on the subject matter of adultery, infidelity and monogamy,' he claimed.

Keable, who has worked for the brand since October 2013, also commented on the fact that the Netflix series explored Ashley Madison's use of AI and the fake female profiles that were created in order to entice male subscribers.

'So, all I'll say to that is it was already out there, there's nothing new about that, all [of] that story was told,' Keable stressed, before adding: 'Clearly we made mistakes in our past, but what wasn't discussed is that that program was already being shut down prior to 2015.

'It had been turned off in the States and in Canada and Australia, so we were decommissioning that because it was not right, it didn't belong there,' he continued.

'All aspects of that program are gone, no longer on the platform, and it will never exist in any form ever again because that was part of our commitment to being authentic and true to who we are.

'But yeah, it was a mistake, we learned from that, but we'd already learned from it because we were shutting it down and the interesting thing is, we'd shut it down - I believe it was in 2014 in the States - and our business still continued to grow.

'So that's the thing, we didn't need it and anyone who thinks we're doing that now is ludicrous. It's part of our story, we're not going to deny that that happened, it's out there, it was a mistake, we learned from it but it wasn't what drove the business, and that's the part people want to believe.

Married couple Nia and Sam Rader also feature in the documentary after he was exposed as an Ashley Madison user thanks to the 2015 hack

Keable claimed Ashley Madison is 'thriving' and currently has over 85 million members

'People want to believe that because, again, they don't believe women have agency over their sex life. They don't want to believe that women come to Ashley Madison looking for sex because it just hurts that their wife could possibly seek sexual satisfaction elsewhere,' Keable added.

Despite currently having over 85 million members, Ashley Madison still faces constant criticism and backlash for what it promotes and Keable claims people are 'hating on the idea' because they've been 'trained that way.'

'We can shut down our business tomorrow and not a single affair is gonna stop,' he insisted. 'In fact - and I believe this fundamentally - we save more marriages than we end because people find what was missing and they do it in a discreet way versus going to the office or going to the bar or some horrific way to do and then getting caught.

'And people are like, "oh, that's horrible," and I'm like, "but is it? Because otherwise they're going to get divorced anyways," so we've created a scenario where both partners are happy. Yes, it's based on a falsehood, but at least they're still happy.'
Is Yale the new college for nepo babies? A slew of celebrity kids are heading off to the elite college this fall - from Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner's daughter Violet to Gwyneth Paltrow's stepson Brody.

The Goop founder, 51, was spotted helping her husband, Brad Falchuck, 53, drop son Brody, 17, off at the prestigious New Haven, Connecticut, school on Monday.

Photographers caught the couple carrying cardboard boxes out of the trunk of an SUV and into a nearby dorm room.

Brad shares Brody - as well as daughter Isabella, 19 - with his first wife and fellow TV producer Suzanne Bukinik, whom he was married to from 2002 to 2013.

The couple narrowly missed running into Ben and Jennifer, both 52, who reunited to bring their daughter Violet, 18, to Yale just a few days prior.

A slew of celebrity kids are heading off to Yale this fall - from Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner's daughter Violet to Gwyneth Paltrow's stepson Brody (seen)

The former couple were spotted grabbing dinner with Violet and their other child Fin, 15, in the college town on Saturday.

A source told People recently that Ben 'has been very focused on getting Violet ready for move-in.'

'It's, of course, a huge deal for the whole family, and they've all been so excited the last few weeks,' the insider added.

It's also been said that talk show host Conan O'Brien's son Beckett, 18, whom he shares with wife Liza Powel O'Brien, is attending Yale this year.

While it's rumored that Beckett has enrolled at the school, he is extremely private so he hasn't confirmed the news publicly.

Conan's daughter, Neve O'Brien, 20, is currently studying history at the college, and is set to graduate in 2026.

Someone on X, formerly Twitter, named Katie noticed how many celebrity offspring are joining Yale this fall, and posed the question: 'Is Yale the new NYU for nepo babies?'

Her post quickly went viral, gaining more than 86,000 views in a matter of hours.

The Goop founder, 51, was spotted helping her husband, Brad Falchuck, 53, drop his son Brody, 17, off at the prestigious school on Monday (left). The couple narrowly missed running into Ben and Jennifer, both 52, who reunited to bring their daughter Violet, 18, to Yale days prior (right)

A source told People recently that Ben 'has been very focused on getting Violet ready for move-in.' Violet is seen with mom Jennifer in 2022

It's also been said that talk show host Conan O'Brien's son Beckett, 18, whom he shares with wife Liza Powel O'Brien, is attending Yale this year. The family is seen in 2016

Someone on X named Katie noticed how many celebrity offspring are joining Yale this fall, and posed the question: 'Is Yale the new NYU for nepo babies?' - and her post went viral

Other users were quick to point out in the replies that on top of the famous kids who are joining this year, tons of celebrity children already attend the school

One former Yale student claimed that in 2009, he shared a class with Denzel Washington's daughter Katia and lived next door to acclaimed director Steven Spielberg's son Theo

Other users were quick to point out in the replies that on top of the famous kids who are joining this year, tons of celebrity children already attend the school.

Stephen Colbert and wife Evelyn McGee-Colbert's daughter Madeleine graduated from Yale in 2018, while their son John is set to earn his degree from the college next year.

In addition, business mogul Rupert Murdoch's daughter Grace Murdoch and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' son George are currently students at Yale.

One former Yale student claimed on X that in 2009, he shared a class with actor Denzel Washington's daughter Katia, lived next door to acclaimed director Steven Spielberg's son Theo, and was part of a theater group with famous reporters Brian Williams' daughter Allison and Stone Phillips' son Streeter.

In addition, Yale has a slew of alumni who went on to become big stars, including Angela Bassett, Claire Danes, Jodie Foster, Jennifer Connelly, Meryl Streep, George W. Bush, Anderson Cooper, James Franco, Bill Clinton, Liev Schreiber, and Edward Norton.

While the Connecticut Ivy League school seems to be a popular choice for the stars' kids, some are heading off to different colleges this fall.

Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes' daughter Suri Cruise is set to start at Carnegie Mellon later this month, while Gwyneth's son Moses Martin, who she shares with ex Chris Martin, is attending Brown University.
Maggie's blue eyes filled with tears as she looked at me, her gaze intense. 'You're such an amazing boss,' she said. 'You could probably be a therapist if you didn't work in TV.'

I blushed with pride, instinctively giving her hand a comforting squeeze.

An executive producer in a successful TV drama department, I'd given up a rare day off to hotfoot it to a coffee shop to listen to her 'dilemma'.

Maggie was my new creative assistant, a bright 20-something graduate who'd won my devotion by sprinkling compliments like confetti.

I was a 'mentor', a 'role model', even, jokily, 'her heroine'.

An executive producer in a successful TV drama department, I'd given up a rare day off to hotfoot it to a coffee shop to listen to my assistant's 'dilemma', Kate Ruby writes

And now, a few months in, she'd been offered a chance to continue her studies at a US Ivy League university, and couldn't decide whether to accept or keep working for me. While I started off with platitudes about 'following her heart', I soon found myself flattering and almost cajoling her to stay. Something I would come to bitterly regret.

Little did I know, as I handed her a napkin to wipe away her tears, that our relationship would crash and burn in spectacular fashion. That the fuzzy glow I felt would convert to a sense of hurt and betrayal I never expected to feel at work.

Looking back now, I still feel the sting of humiliation at how blindly trusting I was. After all, I was a high-powered boss in a fast-paced, cut-throat industry  how was I so easily gulled?

Senior women are often encouraged to be more nurturing than our male counterparts. But, as I was to discover, it's an expectation than can come with jeopardy. Particularly now Gen Z are coming of age in the workplace.

More aware of their 'boundaries' than millennials or Gen X ever were, they are ultra-conscious of their due in the workplace, and primed to push back on anything they see as 'over-reach'.

Maggie had moved from outside London, and was struggling to cover rent on an entry-level salary. My first misstep came as I looked at a bag of clothes under my desk that I'd planned to flog on eBay.

I suddenly had the brilliant idea of offering them to Maggie  after all, she was constantly telling me how stylish I was. Soon she was coming to work in my discarded jumpers and shirts, looking more pulled together and professional than she'd ever been before.

I have to confess, I did feel a little flutter of pride at 'helping' her.

As a bookish only child with parents who could be disengaged, I had always longed for a little sister. It's hard to admit, but maybe I began to view Maggie as a younger sibling. Perhaps I enjoyed passing on my expertise a little too much?

But my pride was short lived when she told me she'd got rid of one of my skirts because it was 'too big', offloading it on to her flatmate. Shouldn't she have given it back, I grumbled internally? Looking back, I'd already crossed a line.

But then, Maggie's seduction routine was finely tuned  and I wasn't the only one in her sights. When Luke joined our team a year after Maggie  junior to me and senior to her  it was his attentions that she started to crave. Initially, I was pleased to see how welcoming my protegee was being (another gold star for my management skills).

But as time went on, I noticed Luke seemed timid around me. There wasn't any of the easy camaraderie you need in a creative job.

Meanwhile, Maggie was increasingly aloof. She snapped when I asked her to complete a task, and her timekeeping got worse and worse. One morning I chanced upon her kissing her boyfriend on the street, 15 minutes after she was due at her desk, only to find myself travelling up in the lift with her with no sniff of an apology.

Wanting to stay the 'cool boss', I stupidly didn't pull her up on all this. Instead I kidded myself that the sly contempt she now seemed to have for a lot of our projects  her obvious resentment of more menial tasks  were nothing to worry about.

Maggie was growing professionally, of course she wanted to spread her wings. Her increasingly bad attitude was  natural?

Then, at a professional check in, Luke reluctantly admitted that Maggie had warned him to 'beware' of me. I could turn on people, apparently, and would try to get too close to him.

I was almost too shocked to speak. Perhaps I was frightened that whatever I said  liable to be an explosion of anger and hurt  might confirm her damning assessment.

As Luke confessed more about the poison Maggie had been dripping in his ear, I suddenly realised all the ways I had left myself exposed. She'd said I'd behaved inappropriately by taking her out for a drink.

I'd intended this to be a quick glass of wine to toast a job well done. It was true that it had ended up being a couple of drinks, but I could've sworn it was her who had signalled for a second round.

I could have also sworn it was her who started telling me about her disasters on Hinge prior to meeting her boyfriend, but the way she told it, I'd been prying.

That the fuzzy glow I felt would convert to a sense of hurt and betrayal I never expected to feel at work, Kate Ruby writes

I could see now too how she'd been using her access to my diary  with its clues about my fledgling relationship  to try to draw out more personal information from me.

The weekends away to romantic destinations, the travel bookings she'd needed to block out in my diary, had given her a window into my life I'd never intended.

Now I could only hope I was remembering right, and had resisted her sly encouragement to spill more details. It felt in retrospect like she'd been trying to make me compromise myself, so she could later accuse me of overstepping the mark.

It was hard to confront Maggie about what she'd said to Luke, not least because he begged me not to escalate it. I didn't want to break his trust. And I couldn't help thinking, what if Maggie repeated her lies about me to HR? Could I really defend myself when I had in fact blurred the boundaries with my inappropriate gifts and gossip with a glass of pinot grigio in hand?

I was also deeply hurt by my protegee's volte face. Our mutual care and respect had felt real to me, but I had got it very wrong.

It turns out I'm far from the only female boss with a toxic assistant.

Sharing my own experience, I was inundated with horror stories from female friends.

There was the male assistant at an actors' agency who had systematically seduced all the other assistants  causing tears and recriminations  before trying his luck with a high-profile client at an event.

Or the intern at a media recruitment company who didn't get a permanent job  because there were none to be had  and went on recruitment site Glassdoor to vengefully claim that the company was the worst place to work in London.

As Maggie's performance and attitude worsened, my fear she would twist the narrative and I would end up in the firing line, continued to deter me from involving HR.

A job I'd once loved became a strange kind of endurance test. In my darker moments, I even wondered if I should be the one to resign.

The day Maggie handed in her notice, her face was flushed as she delivered the petty parting shot that she'd got something 'much better'.

But her triumph was matched by my relief. I confess that I happily gave her a glowing reference, thrilled to have her off my hands, and presented her with a leaving gift in front of the whole office, a fixed grin plastered across my face.

She still occasionally comes up as a suggested connection on LinkedIn, her ascent through the industry impressive to behold. It's hard not to worry that Maggie is destined to become a boss of the future.

No more manipulating Maggies for me, though. I've learned to keep things strictly professional with my junior colleagues  and no matter how much you want to be supportive, every successful woman should do the same.

Maggie's name and some identifying details have been changed
Last week, my daughter Bethesda received her A-level results. It is a fraught time for any devoted parent but afterwards I cried for an hour straight.

Bethesda had been offered a place at Oxford University to study biology. Eleven years of dogged determination, creative thinking and innumerable sacrifices had paid off. She had worked very hard, but I'm also referring to my own inexhaustible efforts.

You see, at her request, I had home-schooled her from age seven, all while juggling work, divorce proceedings and being a single parent.

And yes, she really did achieve her five top-grade A-levels being taught by me at home. She has never had any other tutor.

To think I was depicted as a naive, dangerous crank for removing her from school  ironically, by people whose own expensively educated children have achieved far less.

Antonella Gambotto-Burke and her teenage daughter Bethesda, who she home-schooled

Historically, home education has been presented as academically inferior, an example of a mother mollycoddling her child or attempting to live her life through them.

But home-schooling rates are soaring, with 92,000 children being home-schooled in the UK this year, an increase of 10,000 from the previous year  mostly due to mental health concerns.

When in 2013 I announced I was taking Bethesda out of school, friends and family were scathing. What did I, a 'creative', know about maths and 'the hard sciences'?

I was told Bethesda would be intellectually and socially stunted. That it was critically important for her to learn to be 'independent' and to 'socialise' eight hours a day.

Others shrugged that I was 'lucky' I could work from home, but luck played no part in it. When Bethesda was born I swapped my journalistic career  travelling the world, appearing on television and mixing with famous authors  for life as a stay-at-home mother, earning far less as a freelance writer.

Rather than resenting the change, staying home with my daughter was the closest thing to ecstasy I've ever known. My former life seemed so trite in comparison.

From birth, I read to Bethesda for at least an hour a day. We didn't own a TV until she was six, and it was only used to watch documentaries and films.

Within six months, I had transformed Bethesda's lacklustre school performance into a triumph. She began to love learning with a passion that has rarely flagged

By the age of four, she could read and count backwards from 100. I assumed she would fly at school.

By seven, however, she was being physically and verbally bullied almost every day. When, after many complaints, the teacher still did nothing about it, I complained to the headmaster. He said he would inform the Department of Education. A month later, I rang them only to find he had never done so.

Meanwhile Bethesda became so stressed that on Sunday nights, she had acute stomach pains. She no longer wanted to go to school.

The final straw was seeing her workbooks. Six months of education, and they were empty. She hadn't even been taught times tables.

But it wasn't an easy decision. How on earth could I home-school? My marriage fell apart around then so it would all be down to me, as Bethesda has no contact with her father.

People assume I must have hated my time at comprehensive school too much to even consider it. But I did well  although bored at times.

The childhood I wanted for Bethesda was based on words attributed to Albert Einstein: 'There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is.'

Even the best schools make this impossible.

The teacher/student ratio means children never have the individual attention they need. Frequent changes in educators mean the connections between pupils and teachers are shallow, which lessens teachers' desire to go the extra mile.

And then there's the bullying experienced by more than 1.5 million ten to 15-year-olds in Britain.

The charity Bullying UK found 40 per cent of bullied children consider suicide. Yet still we insist that our most sensitive, intelligent, hurt, creative, and gifted children endure the 'one-size-fits-all' education system.

Why are we letting them down?

This question is particularly pertinent at a time when many parents with children at private school are being forced to consider inferior schools because of VAT being added to school fees from January. It is more pertinent still for parents who, like me, could never afford to send their child to a superior school.

So I bought a bookcase and began stuffing it with second-hand reference books. I spent hours researching  my old computer is stuffed full of lesson plans  and thinking of engaging activities. I discovered everything any child needs to know for school is in textbooks, online libraries, and on YouTube.

I shortened the school day to four hours, starting at ten with a one-hour lunch break.

No homework; I would earn money as a writer outside these hours, while Bethesda played with the cat and her dolls or lay on the floor, drawing and reading.

I drew up a daily timetable and organised extra-curricular activities where she'd mix with other children  she's done everything from acting, craft and film-making classes to Girl Guides and Scouts and swimming lessons. We also managed bike rides, museum and theatre visits, talks, concerts and outings with friends, all within our tiny budget.

If Bethesda is disciplined, it's because she witnessed me work night and day to educate and care for her

Within six months, I had transformed Bethesda's lacklustre school performance into a triumph. She began to love learning with a passion that has rarely flagged.

I found her French and Italian penpals to help with languages. Sowing the seeds for her passion for biology, I took her for long walks in the woods or to the seaside, where she would collect specimens for her science books  discarded snakeskins, ferns, flowers and shells.

Afternoons were spent sculpting or painting. She made shadow puppets and devised board games. Age eight, she wrote a 35,000-word novel. While I worked from the national curriculum and was strict about exams  Bethesda's were always supervised by teachers on school premises  I also filled her days with affection, adventure, and colour.

And I never did anything that I found dull. That was the home-schooling litmus test. After enduring the Smurfs movie, for example, I rebelled. 'There is only so much I am willing to do for you,' I joked.

Meanwhile, if Bethesda found a task difficult, we'd focus on it until she'd mastered it. When she had difficulty with long division, aged nine, we spent the day doing long divisions of increasing complexity until she was doing 15-figure divisions with ease.

Bethesda was eight before I gave her her first computer, and 14 when she got a smartphone.

Was I worried we spent too much time together? Not at all. Independence in a child has been shown to evolve from a deep connection with the mother rather than from premature separation, which just creates abandonment issues.

Which brings me to the core of my teaching philosophy.

When I explain that intimacy is the key to my daughter's achievements, people snort, as if I were spouting politically correct nonsense, but it's the simple truth.

At the heart of Bethesda's academic success is love  mine for her, an unending interest in her, and teaching her to love not only learning, but the world itself.

When she sat the 11-plus exam for grammar school  feeling pressured by friends, the prospect of teaching secondary school temporarily unnerved me  she scored 100 per cent in the English entrance exam, and close to full marks in other subjects.

But when I asked a council inspector if Bethesda should take up an offer from one of the UK's best grammar schools, she shook her head  the standard would be far lower! We had smashed it.

Having taught Bethesda how to research, aged ten, I expected her to start steering her own path.

When I asked a council inspector if Bethesda should take up an offer from one of the UK's best grammar schools, she shook her head  the standard would be far lower! We had smashed it

An English project, for example, involved her interviewing an MP, a neurosurgeon, and the CEO of a record label. I supplied contact numbers, explained basic telephone courtesy and interviewing skills, and left the rest to her. The results were superb.

She became so self-motivated that, in her final years of schooling, she was self-educated. Again this elicits criticism: people argue that the 'average' child could never summon the discipline to school themselves, but discipline is a matter of conditioning.

Parents who lounge about gobbling biscuits as they watch TV or who drink, take drugs, or keep a slovenly house rarely produce disciplined children. If Bethesda is disciplined, it's because she saw me work night and day to educate and care for her.

Yes, I nurtured in Bethesda the skills required to teach herself five A-Levels, in mathematics, biology, sociology, philosophy, and psychology, from her textbooks and YouTube. But I also made her feel that she deserved success, which was key.

That's not to say it was plain sailing. In her later teenage years, she regularly pummelled me verbally, blaming me for everything on the planet. Despite this, I was always available to her.

There were good days and very bad days. The final three years of home-schooling were the worst. Imagine all the fevers of a hormonal adolescent, added to exam terrors, with no escape. There were plenty of terrible scenes.

But we persevered. And in the end the decision to apply to Oxford was a no-brainer. Her potential had always been clear.

Alongside A-level study, she had taken part in summer schools at Oxford and Cambridge Universities, as well as the Model Law Commission at the Houses of Parliament. She'd won a place on the prestigious John Locke Institute PPE course, during which she addressed the Oxford Union aged 16. Unable to afford the 3,500 fee for this, I gave a lecture in lieu of payment.

The most astonishing thing was that Bethesda only switched to Biology halfway through her A-level study, cramming two years of work into eight months. Law had been her first choice.

This terrified me. I pretended to be thrilled about her second choice  Durham  but knew in my heart she belonged with the world's best at Oxford. But I had no option but to trust her, over her education, as I always had.

So how did we do it?

Focus, patience, and an ability to survive on very little sleep and a tiny income. My top tip is to be led by textbooks and go from there, ensuring, of course, that your child has adequate interaction with peers. Play with them. Love them madly. And forgive yourself for never being quite as focused, patient, playful, and loving as you'd like.

Which is not to suggest that home-schooling suits every family. Or to deny the infinite sacrifices that a parent must make.

The things I missed most? Dressing up in platform heels, and going to gigs. I didn't have a life outside the house for most of Bethesda's home-schooling.

Yet I regret none of it. My beloved child's future is, at long last, assured. And as for my critics, they can go stuff their faces with more biscuits.

Antonella Gambotto-Burke is the author of Mama: Love, Motherhood and Revolution. Follow her on Instagram: @gambottoburke
If only it was as simple as smashing the glass ceiling

From sexual harassment in the formative career years to ageism just before retirement, working women have to contend with several different challenges that dont apply to their male counterparts throughout their working lives.

As a result, a popular trend has emerged on social media which sets out the four stages of a womans career based on age range, and the main challenges experienced by each group.

It stipulates that in your twenties, sexual harassment is the biggest issue women in the workplace face; the thirties are dominated by the discrimination new mothers face; the forties are overshadowed by unequal pay; and women in their fifties are subjected to ageism.

While this trend is anecdotal, the reality is that its also right  with the exception of ageism, which is experienced by women and men.

20s = sexual harassment

According to a recent poll conducted by TUC, two in three women aged 25 to 34 have experienced sexual harassment, bullying or verbal abuse at work, however most victims dont formally report it for fear of not being believed or hurting their long-term career prospects.

Additionally, half of women (52 per cent) aged 18 to 34 say they have experienced harassment from a third party at work, for example, from a customer or clients.

And while the majority (71 per cent) of sexual harassment, bullying or verbal abuse incidents happen on a work premises, 12 per cent have occurred over phone or text message and 8 per cent have taken place online via email social media or during a virtual meeting.

According to a recent poll conducted by TUC , two in three women aged 25 to 34 have experienced sexual harassment

30s = the motherhood penalty

With 29.6 being the average age a woman in the UK has her first child, the thirties is also the decade the motherhood penalty starts to kick in.

Not only are mothers earning less than fathersa 2024 study commissioned by Pregnant Then Screwed found that mothers are earning 43 per cent less than fathers in their weekly earnings which equates to 4.44 per hourmaternity leave can leave mothers struggling financially.

From the interest accrued on student loans during maternity leave (loan repayments are paused but the interest isnt) to crippling childcare costs (a full-time nursery place for a two-year-old child is 290.77 a week which equates to 15,120.04 a year), it can often be cheaper for women to opt of of full-time work and either return to work in a part time capacity, or not at all.

40s = pay gap

While the motherhood penalty pertains to mothers specifically, women who choose not to have children arent exempt from the gender pay gap.

According to the ONS, for women aged 40 to 49 years and older, the gender pay gap sits at 10.3 per cent, compared to 4.7 per cent for women aged 30 to 39 years. And if youre a woman working in a higher-paid profession, the pay gap is even more pronounced with managers and directors experiencing a 30 per cent pay gap.

According to the ONS , for women aged 40 to 49 years and older, the gender pay gap sits at 10.3 per cent, compared to 4.7 per cent for women aged 30 to 39 years

50s = ageism

While a lot of workplace generational divide discourse has honed in on Gen Z in recent years, ageismwhereby an older worker is discriminated againstis an increasingly prevalent problem.

Despite a third of all workers being over the age of 50 , one in three people over the age of 50 believe theyve been turned down for a job because of their age. Older workers are also less likely to be offered training.

Speaking about these findings, Dr Carole Easton, chief executive at the Centre for Ageing Better, said: Ageism is the prejudice thats hidden in plain sight. We see and hear casual ageism every day, its embedded in our society and even accepted as normal by many of us who are older.

Ageism scars lives. It is often dismissed as being harmless, but if you look at the research, or speak to people whose lives have been affected by ageism, you will soon realise ageist ideas or beliefs can be incredibly damaging for us as individuals and for wider society.

While the stats speak for themselves, one way working women can navigate these different life stages with optimal support is by looking for a company that has gender parity enshrined in its core values.

And if you do find yourself looking for a new opportunity, head to the Mail Jobs Board where you find thousands of companies actively hiring.

Whatever stage youre at in your career, browse thousands of open roles on the Mail Jobs Board today
A Buckingham Palace guard was spotted slipping and landing on his backside while on duty - before promptly getting up onto his feet again and acting as if nothing had happened.

The amusing moment was accidentally captured on camera by tourist Anthony Smith, from Liverpool, who was visiting the famous landmark in the City of Westminster in London.

Buckingham Palace's guards have a reputation for keeping a professional and somewhat stern demeanour.

However, the guards have been known to display a more humorous side from time to time, playing popular tunes to mark special occasions such as the 2024 Euros and pulling funny faces at tourists.

The man who captured the blunder on camera was visiting Buckingham Palace as part of a weekend away in London.

A Buckingham Palace guard was spotted slipping and landing on his backside while on duty

The hilarious moment was accidentally captured on camera by a tourist visiting the famous landmark in the City of Westminster in London

The guard unexpectedly fell to the floor during his march outside the palace

He happened to be filming a visit to the palace last Sunday when the unexpected scene unfolded.

The video shows the guard mid-march and then the moment when his foot slips and he lands on the floor on his backside.

Anthony, 45. a radiographer, caught the incident on camera by accident as he was filming the entrance to the palace 'randomly'.

'I was just filming randomly, and he just slipped right over,' Anthony explained.

'I had to watch the video back to believe it.

'People watching were shocked - everyone was saying 'did that just happen?'.

He then continued: 'The guard jumped back up quickly and recomposed himself, then he was straight back into action.'

The guards are usually highly-trained soldiers who are also skilled in martial arts.

After falling, the guard quickly got up onto his feet again and acting as if nothing had happened

The royal guard quickly adjusted his hat before carrying on as normal

Candidates also have to pass a special test to serve as a royal guard.

As the guards are part of a military organisation, any prospective candidates have to pass the BARB; the British Army Recruit Battery test.

They typically receive around 25,000 a year as a Guardsman - a figure that rises to around 35,000 once promoted to a Lance Corporal, according to reporting from LadBible (via TikTok account @howmuchthough).

The royal guards also receive additional benefits such as subsidised meals, free health and dental care, and low-cost accommodation.
Two of Britain's biggest celebrity chefs have been embroiled in a 'feud' for 15 years - with moments marked by playful banter and hurtful comments alike.

However, this week seems to have signalled a new turn for Jamie Oliver and Gordon Ramsay's relationship.

Ramsay admitted that his wife Tana uses Jamie Oliver cookbooks to whip up lasagne and shepherd's pie when she's having guests over, and also posted a TikTok clip of himself with one of his rival's recipe books.

It may have created the sneaking suspicion that their public spats were nothing more than a 'fake feud' to harmlessly drum up a bit of extra publicity, but in the past their animosity has taken a more serious turn.

In one instance, Gordon refused to speak with Jamie after his rival made a seemingly innocent remark about the amount of children both men had - soon after his wife Tana had suffered a miscarriage.

That same year, the Scottish chef also launched a verbal attack on Jamie, calling him a 'fat f**k' among other insults on a talk show.

Two of Britain's biggest celebrity chefs have been embroiled in a 'feud' for 15 years - with moments marked by playful banter and hurtful comments alike. Both pictured in 2006

However, it appears all has thawed in recent years, as this week - in a rare admission of his rival's culinary skills - Gordon revealed his wife Tana is a fan of Jamie's and uses his recipe book to cook their food.

Elsewhere, the Kitchen Nightmares star said he 'loves Jamie' in a TikTok, calling their fallout 'old news'.

Here, FEMAIL looks at the history behind the pair's beef - outside the kitchen...

2009: POT BEGINS TO BOIL

The chefs' feud began in 2009 when Jamie, 49, criticised Ramsay for comparing Australian journalist Tracey Grimshaw to a pig.

As reported by The Mirror, he told The Sun: 'Aussies aren't forgiving. Once you're gone, you're gone... It's never good to criticise a woman, especially when they're loved by their country and you do it on national television.'

Gordon apologised to Ms Grimshaw but said the Naked Chef was a 'one pot wonder'.

He said: 'Everything kind of gets mixed in - hands in. It's a very different style to me. He sticks it in the oven, comes back three hours later and it's done.

'We cook differently. I use basic ingredients taken up with a lot more excitement.

'But competition is healthy. It's good to have that kind of rivalry.'

He was also asked when he had last complained about a meal and answered: 'Last time I had dinner at Jamie Oliver's restaurant.'

Elsewhere, the Kitchen Nightmares star said he 'loves Jamie' in a TikTok , calling their fallout 'old news'

Gordon married Tana, 49, in 1996 and the pair share six children together. A family snap from 2018

Jamie has five children with his wife of 25 years Jools, 49. The young family pictured together in 2016

In 2010, while on a promotional tour of Canada, Gordon also said Jamie was 'just a cook' while he proclaimed himself to be 'a chef'.

In return, Jamie mocked his rival for 'having botox', adding: 'If I was to choose between Gordon Ramsay's cookbook or Tana Ramsay's, it would be Tana's every time.

'In my opinion, her books are a damn sight better than his.'

Gordon married Tana, 49, in 1996 and the pair share six children together, while Jamie has five children with his wife of 25 years Jools, 49.

2014: RIVALRY HEATS UP

In 2014, both Gordon and Jamie had restaurants opening in Hong Kong within the same year.

However, while Jamie wasn't in attendance at his Italian eatery, Gordo showed face at Bread Street Kitchen.

'Two British chefs, Jamie Oliver and Gordon Ramsay, rubbing shoulders together in Hong Kong. At least I'm here, I came to my opening, right?' he quipped in a CNBC interview.

'If you're going to open a restaurant in Hong Kong at least turn up.'

In 2014, both Gordon and Jamie had restaurants opening in Hong Kong within the same year. Gordon pictured in 2013

However, Jamie had earlier claimed in the South China Post that he didn't show up because he didn't want to divert attention from the local team and the food.

And the following year, it was his turn to strike.

In an interview with the Mirror, Jamie slammed Gordon as being 'deeply jealous'.

'Gordon will do anything to try and take the p**s out of me because he is deeply jealous and can't quite work out why I do what I do and why he can't do that,' he claimed.

'He is too busy shouting and screaming and making our industry look like a bunch of shouters and screamers.

'Book sales are about having a deep trusted relationship with the public. I really write my books. I don't just turn up for the front cover. I write every word, every letter and I oversee every bit of design.

'You can sell a few books by luck or a moment... but not 15 years and 37million books. That's not luck.'

2017: 'MORTIFYING' COMMENTS AND BURNING JABS

Years later, in a stint with his own talk show (which ultimately didn't make it past one season), Gordon unleashed a verbal attack on Jamie, The Sun has reported.

He called his rival a 'fat f**k', claimed Jamie was trying to sort the UK's obesity problem by hogging all the food himself and quipped that the loser during a game gets 'a table at Jamie's Italian'.

According to the Irish Independent, he had during a show episode also decided to address the situation in a mock apology.

'Dear Jamie, I just want to say that I'm sorry,' he said. 'I have been hard on you this week, Jamie.

'What I said was hurtful, Jamie. I don't want to make you cry. The last thing I want to do is look at your cute face and think blubber, blubber, blubber.'

The duo became embroiled in an extraordinary row over comments made by Jamie (pictured in 2020) months after Gordon's wife's miscarriage

As Britain's top chefs, Gordon Ramsay and Jamie Oliver had been locked in a feud. But in a rare admission of his rival's culinary skills, Ramsay revealed his wife Tana is a fan of Oliver

However, the playful character of the feud took a turn when later that year, Gordon vowed never to speak to Jamie following a bitter exchange of words over the size of their respective families.

The duo became embroiled in an extraordinary row over comments made by Jamie months after Gordon's wife's miscarriage.

Gordon accused Jamie of 'judging' him for having four children at the time (he now has six), compared with the Naked Chef star's five, and insisted he must apologise to Tana before they can make peace.

When Jamie was asked about Gordon's Nightly Show remarks by The Sun in August, he said: 'I was doing TV years before him, so maybe five years ago it would have bothered me and I may have responded.

'But he's got four kids and I've got five kids, and I don't want to be slagging off some kids' dad on telly. It's not nice.'

Gordon, whose wife Tana suffered a miscarriage at five months in June the year prior, said he interpreted the comments as a dig after what was 'a s*** year'.

He told Radio Times that their long-term 'feud' was 'fun' until Jamie made the comment.

He said: 'Jamie turned round and said, 'I've got five kids, he's got four kids.' To judge someone else's family on the amount of kids you have.'

Gordon then said said he would not talk to Jamie again until he apologises to Tana.

He said: 'Boys will always fight and butt heads but Tana was mortified, I mean really mortified.'

Representatives for Jamie and Gordon declined to comment when approached by MailOnline at the time.

Jamie and Gordon's feud: Is it real or fake? Experts have even suggested that while there may have undoubtedly been real pain caused, the duo's rivalry was likely 'mostly for show'. Speaking to FEMAIL, Kara Buffrey - a Senior Account Director at W Communications - said: 'I think everyone in the industry knows they're pals and have holidayed together, and even provided sweet compliments on each other's cooking over the years. 'Chefs have big characters, specifically Gordon Ramsey whose iconic moment in the kitchen was naming one of his chefs, an idiot sandwich. Looking into cultural shifts of how chef-life is represented on key TV shows such as The Bear, it generates mass consumer interest to see chef's beef. Many people even find it sexy! 'We can't forget Ramsay being awarded the Sexiest Male TV Host in the UK accolade. Overall, the shade between Jamie and Gordon has always been for show and headlines, in reality they're good friends and it's just a bit of kitchen banter.' However, Hayley Knight - co-founder and Communications Director at PR company BE YELLOW - said that it's more likely a mix of both staged and real. 'The feud between Jamie Oliver and Gordon Ramsay has been one of the most high profile rivalries in the culinary world,' she explained. 'Both Jamie and Gordon are household names, and have distinctive personalities that often clash in public. Gordon is known for his fiery temper and low tolerance, whilst Jamie is more approachable, with a cheeky, relaxed demeanour. Both have criticised each other's approaches, business ventures and cooking. 'There are valid reasons why some people may think that their feud is just for publicity, and I'm sure it's hyped up for the media and public to some degree and on some occasions, but I believe that it stemmed from genuine competition and difference in personalities, and two men who were, and are trying to be the best in the industry at the same time. Both chefs have media empires, cookbooks and TV shows and there is market share, viewer ratings and sales to compete over.' She added: 'Over the years, Ramsay's comments have often been quite personal, and Oliver in turn has sometimes retaliated, though in a more subdued cheeky manner. Their feud has always been on brand, suggesting there may be an element of PR involved, but there clearly is a genuine rivalry. 'However, the public nature of their spats have boosted their public profile, and gets people talking. Both men will understand how PR works, and use the feud to their advantage, in a world where media presence is crucial, and important for both parties.' Advertisement

2019: COOLING DOWN

When Jamie's restaurant chain collapsed in 2019, Gordon revealed he called his fellow TV chef 'right away' and said: 'Bottom line is, he's a great guy and a great chef and it was sad to see him disappear overnight but we had a drink and it was a tough time.'

As reported by The Mirror, he told the Jonathan Ross Show: 'That was devastating, I don't think anyone likes to revel in that kind of failure.

'Yes [we are friends] absolutely. No one wants to see anyone fail like that because at the heart of it, he is a super talented guy so its a great shame.'

The chef added the families even barbecued together while on holiday together in Cornwall in 2018.

It would seem that all has been relative smooth sailing since, with Gordon even telling his followers that he 'loves' Jamie in a TikTok this month.

The chef added the families even barbecued together while on holiday together in Cornwall in 2018. Pictured in 2005 when they were young

Elsewhere recently, the Michelin-winning chef addressed his partner's habit of making Oliver's meals on the Dish podcast, hosted by fellow cook Angela Harnett, who is also a close friend of his wife.

Angela, 55, said: 'If you see Tana when I've been round for supper, she's so relaxed. But why should she switch?

'She's got five kids and she's got him (Gordon) hanging around trying to interfere and she's just out and she just cooks something everyone wants to eat, like a great lasagne or a brilliant shepherd's pie. She's amazing.'

Gordon then cuts in: 'Yeah and they're all Jamie Oliver recipes. Do you have any idea how hard that is for me?'
Li, Mishustin chair meeting between Chinese, Russian heads of gov't, calling for stronger all-round practical cooperation

Xinhua) 09:08, August 22, 2024

Chinese Premier Li Qiang co-chairs the 29th regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin in Moscow, Russia, Aug. 21, 2024. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)

MOSCOW, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang said here Wednesday that China is ready to work with Russia to strengthen all-round practical cooperation between the two countries, and push the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era to a new level.

Li made the remarks when co-chairing the 29th regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.

In recent years, under the strategic guidance of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin, China-Russia relations have achieved high-quality development at a high level, and bilateral cooperation in various fields has continued to show strong resilience and steadily moved forward, he said.

China, Li said, is ready to work with Russia to follow the strategic guidance of the two heads of state and take the opportunity of the 75th anniversary of diplomatic ties to uphold mutual respect, mutual trust, everlasting friendship and mutual benefit.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang co-chairs the 29th regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin in Moscow, Russia, Aug. 21, 2024. (Xinhua/Ding Lin)

For his part, Mishustin said Russia is ready to work with China to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, continue to deepen mutual trust, expand cooperation in investment, energy, economy and trade, culture and sub-national areas, and ensure the success of the Russia-China Years of Culture.

He also pledged that Russia will join China in strengthening communication and coordination in international affairs, better safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of the two sides, and pushing forward the bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era.

Li and Mishustin listened to the work reports from the two sides' representatives of the China-Russia investment cooperation committee, the China-Russia energy cooperation committee, the committee for the regular meetings between Chinese and Russian heads of government, the intergovernmental commission for cooperation of Northeast China and the Far East of Russia, and the China-Russia committee on humanities cooperation.

They fully affirmed the work of the various committees of the two sides over the past year, and agreed that China and Russia have complementary advantages and huge potential for practical cooperation, calling on the two sides to further optimize the cooperation structure, steadily advance cooperation in traditional areas such as economy and trade, investment, agriculture and energy, and expand cooperation in emerging areas including digital economy, biomedicine and green development.

They agreed that the two countries should take the China-Russia Years of Culture as an opportunity to deepen people-to-people exchanges, consolidate popular support for friendship, constantly strengthen the internal driving force of bilateral cooperation, and improve the quality and efficiency of cooperation.

After the meeting, the two leaders signed a joint communique of the 29th regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government and a new version of the outline of the China-Russia investment cooperation plan. They also witnessed the signing of the minutes of meetings of relevant cooperation committees as well as cooperation documents in areas such as education, science and technology, chemical industry, green construction, maritime search and rescue, cross-border cargo transport and facilitation of citizen exchanges.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Meghan Markle is said to be 'encouraging Prince Harry to leave the past behind and move on', according to a royal expert.

Former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond has praised the Montecito-based Duchess of Sussex, 43, for urging her husband to look towards the future.

'If Meghan is encouraging Harry to leave the past behind and move on, then I think it is a healthy move. They have made their decision, left the working royal family and left the UK,' the royal expert told OK! magazine.

She continued: 'Brooding on the perceived injustices of the past and re-living old quarrels is a waste of a life, and I think Meghan sees that.'

The couple moved to California back in 2020 with their son Prince Archie, as they stepped back as working royals. Princess Lilibet was born a year later in 2021.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle on August 17, 2024, during their tour of Colombia

'This is what Meghan and Harry have always wanted - to create their own life,' a royal insider told PEOPLE at the time. 'It's got to feel like an immense relief to get out of the UK and go down their own path.'

However, in his tell-all memoir, Prince Harry hinted that he misses some of his old family life, as Bond explained.

She said: 'In his book Spare he writes about his fond memories of some of those family gatherings, and it's only natural that he now misses that connection and perhaps is still considering ways of repairing the damage done in recent years.'

But the royal expert suggested that Meghan likely believes that their time within the Royal Family is now 'firmly' in the past.

Harry's friends in the UK have also spoken out about the Duke's reported dissatisfaction, saying things haven't turned out 'how he wanted'.

According to The Times, one of Harry's 'oldest friends' who gets 'the odd WhatsApp from him', said: 'He's an angry boy. Things haven't turned out how he wanted. I think he misses being over here [in Britain] desperately and wants to be admired more.'

In their six-part Netflix series in December 2022, Harry said of his and Meghan's move to California, 'We are exactly where we're supposed to be.' But then the Duke added: 'I miss the UK.'

With Harry's hints at a desire to rebuild relationships with family back in the UK, could there be a reconciliation on the cards?

Prince Harry pictured with Prince William, Kate, his father, King Charles, Queen Camilla and the late Queen Elizabeth II in June 2012 in London

Kate (far left) Princess Charlotte, (left) Prince George, (right) Prince Harry, (centre) Prince William (far right) stand on the balcony during the Trooping the Colour in 2016

After the news of King Charles' cancer diagnosis earlier this year, Harry quickly returned to the UK to be by his father's side, though their meeting was reported to last less than 45 minutes.

'The fact that I was able to get on a plane and go to see him, and spend any time with him, I'm grateful for that,' he said on ABC's Good Morning America a few days after the visit. 'Any illness, any sickness, brings families together.'

But it may be a long road to reconciliation ahead of Harry, with the Duke's previous revelations in his memoir and during his Netflix show causing potentially irreversible damage.

A source close to Charles explained to The Times: 'The problem for the King and other members of the family is the worry that if they have a chat with Harry, it will appear in volume two.

'How do you regain the trust? I don't think Harry ever can. But from the conversations I've had with the King, I would never say their relationship is irreparable. The King's capacity to forgive his son is undimmed.'
They met 24 years ago at the Sydney Olympics - and their relationship was quickly dubbed a 'real-life' fairytale.

Yet for the past year, Australia-born Queen Mary and King Frederik of Denmark's marriage has been plagued by speculation that it's on the rocks.

Following rumours that the father-of-four had an affair, which has been strenuously denied, the royal couple put on a series of frosty appearances - even on holidays and at glittering receptions at Christiansborg Palace.

But now, the displays of 'awkwardness and disengagement' are a thing of the past, if Mary and Frederik's outings during their annual summer cruise are anything to go by, where the pair have been looking more loved-up than ever.

So, is it the Olympics that royal fans should once again thank for bring the duo together - with the pair's more loving appearances seemingly starting during their joint attendance at this year's Paris games.

Speaking to FEMAIL, body language expert Judi James said there has been a 'very visible de-frost of this royal couples body language in the wake of the displays of awkwardness and disengagement that has plagued them since the affair rumours.'

Look of love! King Frederik X and Queen Mary on August 21, 2024 in Assens

She claimed: 'The normally-tactile, relaxed and playful-looking couple became distant and cold together in public.

'Frederik often looked as though he held a willingness to try to look attached but many of Marys behaviours and poses made her look either uncomfortable or keen to ignore him.

'Her professionalism was undeniable as she stepped up into the role of Queen but the PDAs either vanished or looked performed rather than natural.'

However, for Judi, the couple are now back on form, with recent outings showing them looking 'more relaxed together', with 'displays of happiness'.

The body language expert said: 'The joy seems to have returned, at least in part here, as they spend their summer together.'

She noted five telling body language signs to suggest some 'behind-the-scenes thawing' has occurred.

Judi said the first sign was the lack of 'over-kill rituals', adding: 'When a high-profile couple want to deny rumours of an affair or some sort of a split they often get in front of the cameras to perform a denial dance, kissing, cuddling, hugging or performing unconvincing grins to prove to the world that all is well when it clearly isnt.

'Frederick and Mary have no overkill poses here though. The closing of the distanced gap between them looks gradual and natural.

The royal couple arrive at Elysee Palace prior to the Olympics opening ceremony on July 26, 2024 in Paris

Mary and Frederik arrive to greet the diplomatic corps on the occasion of the New Year at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen on January 3, 2024

There appeared to be frosty body language between the couple in November 2023 (pictured)

'When they stand together its their torsos that are close rather than any intertwining of arms or hands and this torso proximity looks like a sign of like-mindedness again.

She continued: 'Their mirroring has increased. They used to, like our own royals William and Kate, show very strong bouts of mirrored body language but that went out of kilter thanks to the rumours.

'Now they look synchronised again, often moving and posing in a near-identical way here, suggesting strengthening bonds of liking and agreement.'

'They look playful again. Appearing and standing together they seem happy to have some fun with the cameras, laughing in their photos and acting in a more youthful way again.

'They always used to seem to share a capacity for playful fun and humour but that had appeared covered in a layer of frost recently.

'Frederik seems to be throwing several fond glances here too, suggesting a lack of anxiety as he tunes into his wife with this silent communication.'

Finally, Judi noted 'their authentic, congruent smiles',' saying: 'Their facial muscles appear to have relaxed again, putting congruent, natural and unforced-looking smiles back on the menu.

'Marys royal smile never disappeared but this joyful one did. Their poses are beginning to look romantic again as a result.'

Members of the Danish Royal Family have been touring the country on the Royal Yacht Dannebrog every summer for the past 100 years.

King Frederik X and Queen Mary attend the opening of the Danish pavilion on Champs-Elysees during the Olympics 2024

Mary and Frederik attend the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at the Trocadero on July 26

This is the first time Frederik and Mary are participating in a summer tour as reigning monarchs - following the King's ascension to the throne in January.

Last year, it was Frederik's mother, Queen Margarethe, 84, who completed the boat tour.

In December 2023, Queen Margrethe shocked the nation and many royal watchers around the world when she used her annual New Year's Eve speech to announce live on television that she was stepping down as Queen after 52 years.

This made Margrethe the first monarch to abdicate the Danish throne in 900 years and lead to speculation that the royal had made this decision to keep her daughter-in-law, who is extremely popular with the public, on side.

The announcement came just weeks after Frederik hit the headlines when he was pictured on a night out in Madrid with a Mexican socialite, sparking rumours of an alleged 'affair'.

The former monarch signed her historic abdication papers with her son and grandson Prince Christian, 18, present in Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen.

The Queen's last words before leaving the Council of State were: 'God save the King.'

Australian-born Mary and Frederik's 23-year romance was often dubbed a 'real-life fairytale' after they met in a Sydney pub.

But pictures emerged of the monarch having an evening out with Mexican socialite Genoveva Casanova - the former daughter-in-law of the billionaire Duchess of Alba - in November last year.

The pair were seen walking through Madrid before heading to her apartment building, changing clothes and heading out again for the evening.

King Frederik X and Queen Mary on a city walk in the city of Assens on August 21

The Danish King and Queen visit Assens Municipality during their summer cruise

Speaking to FEMAIL, body language expert Judi James said there has been a 'very visible de-frost of this royal couples body language in the wake of the displays of awkwardness and disengagement that has plagued them since the affair rumours.'

For Judi, the couple are now back on form, with recent outings showing them looking 'more relaxed together', with 'displays of happiness'

The Danish Palace refused to comment on rumours of an affair between Frederik and Genoveva, however the socialite strenuously denied any suggestion of a romantic relationship.

The Royal Yacht Dannebrog has served as the Danish Royal Family's cruise ship since May 1932 and has travelled over 800,000 miles.

The luxury yacht hosts the Royal Family on both their private holidays and during official overseas engagements.

The yacht's royal compartment still contains furniture and fittings dating back to 1879 that that was on board the family's previous yacht.

On Wednesday, Queen Mary looked typically stylish as she stepped out in Assens alongside King Frederick today.

The royal couple visited the Danish city as part of their summer tour on the Royal Yacht Dannebrog.

For her outing, the Australian-born Queen, 52, looked the epitome of elegance in a orange and cream midi dress, which billowed in the wind as she walked alongside her husband.

She teamed the eye-catching garment with a sophisticated cream blazer, which featured statement overlapping lapels, long sleeves and a cinched waist.

Finishing off her stylish ensemble, the royal mother-of-four donned blush heels and a matching headpiece.

Judi noted five telling body language signs to suggest some 'behind-the-scenes thawing' has occurred. Pictured, the royal couple earlier this month on their tour

They put on an warm display as they made the first stop on their summer tour to Bornholm

Adding a touch of glitz to her outfit, Queen Mary wore three gold necklaces and a pair of diamond earrings.

Frederik, 56, meanwhile, looked as equally smart as his wife, sporting military uniform for the outing before changing into a sophisticated suit and tie.

During their visit, the couple toured a reforestation project, an energy-efficient wastewater treatment plant, as well as one of Denmark's leading companies in rainwater cleaning products.

Yesterday, the pair put on a bright and summery display as they visited the Baltic Sea island of r.

They looked to be enjoying the weather on r, as Mary wore a smart sunhat and Frederick looked cool in a pair of shades.

After arriving to the island via boat at lunchtime, the royals took to Instagram to thank the locals for the 'great welcome' they'd received.

Mary and Frederick looked cheery as they waved to crowds on their arrival, before shaking hands with local residents on the island in southern Denmark.

The Queen, who looked impeccably stylish in a pleated maxi skirt and white blouse, was also gifted a bouquet of flowers after stepping ashore.

She added baby blue kitten heels from Jimmy Choo, which had a fishnet design and featured the designer's initials.

Divorcee Genoveva Casanova - the former daughter-in-law of the billionaire Duchess of Alba - was pictured by a Spanish gossip magazine enjoying a day out with Frederik in Madrid

Meanwhile her husband Frederick looked smart in a grey suit and red tie as he grinned alongside his wife in what made for a very positive display.

The day before they put on an warm display as they made the first stop on their summer tour to Bornholm.

The pair were pictured tasting local produce and speaking with small business-owners during their tour of the small island 105 miles southeast of Copenhagen

During the engagement, Frederik and Mary were pictured laughing and smiling together and later wrote on Instagram how Bornholm had lived up to its nickname of 'sunshine island'.

Queen Mary looked effortlessly elegant in a white shirt, rust-coloured trousers and chunky trainers.

The mother-of-four styled her brown hair in her signature brown waves and completed her low-key ensemble with minimal jewellery and tortoiseshell sunglasses.

Meanwhile, King Frederik was dapper in a slim-fitting blue shirt, brown trousers and boots.
Although many film buffs may recognize actor Sean Astin from his role as Samwise Gamgee in The Lord of the Rings franchise, fans were left in disarray after noticing a small detail in his introduction at the Democratic National Convention.

The DNC kicked off in Chicago on Monday, and has featured a star-studded lineup.

One of the familiar faces who came to show their support for Kamala Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz, was the 53-year-old actor who added delegate to his resume after the Vice President became the Democratic nominee following Joe Biden's departure from the Presidential race.

And while Sean is often lauded for his role in the the Lord of the Rings films, when he took the stage at the DNC, he was instead credited for his part in Netflix's hit sci-fi series Stranger Things.

Sean was announced as the star of Stranger Things while he standing with the delegates of Indiana, leaving fans baffled at the dismissal of his iconic role.

Many film buffs may recognize actor Sean Astin from his role in The Lord of the Rings franchise

The Democratic National Convention kicked off in Chicago on Monday, and featured a star-studded lineup such as Sean, who spoke on Wednesday night

During day three of the DNC, Indiana's commitment to Kamala was kicked off by Sean, who was welcomed to the mic as the star of the Netflix show.

The actor referenced his many Indiana-based roles in his speech.

He said: 'Indiana welcomed me into its heart as soon as I married Christine Harrell from Rolling Prairie; and that's before I lived in Hawkins or played the littlest player with the biggest heart at the University of Notre Dame  Rudy.

'I want what's best for Indiana. That means electing Kamala Harris, the first woman president of the United States of America.'

Sean rose to stardom after appearing in a number of hit films such as The Lord of the Rings franchise, Rudy, Goonies, 50 First Dates, Click and more.

However, fans weren't quite ready to let go of his role as Sam and took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to express their disappointment in how he was announced.

One person said: 'Sean Astin should have also ran over to Oregon during the roll call and been like "Hey, it's me, Mike."'

Another user added: 'Samwise the brave did not go with Frodo into the very fires of mount doom to be referred to as "Bob from Stranger Things."'

And while the star is often lauded for his role in the The Lord of the Rings franchise (seen), when he took the stage at the DNC, he was praised for his part in Netflix's Stranger Things

Sean rose to stardom after appearing in a number of hit films. Seen in Stranger Things as Bob

Fans took issue over the fact he was announced as a Stranger Things star instead of his role as Samwise Gamgee

Someone else wrote: 'Sean actually referenced both living in Hawkins and playing for Notre Dame. But if he had a few more seconds, he probably should have mentioned fighting the ultimate evil.'

'Please put some respect on Samwise y'all,' one user commented.

Just before the DNC, Sean took to social media to reveal he was hitting the road to support the Vice President on her road to the Oval Office.

He said: 'I just decided that I needed to get out and start campaigning for Kamala Harris for President. I got back from overseas yesterday, and I was gonna head home and be with my beautiful wife and my gorgeous children.

'And then I remembered that I fashion myself some sort of a leader; at least in my own mind. And the only kind of leadership that means anything anymore is leadership by example.'

At the end of the post, he said '#Astin4Harris.'

An assortment of other celebrities traveled to Chicago to support Vice President Kamala Harris at the Democratic National Convention.

Just before the DNC, Sean took to social media to reveal he was hitting the road to support the Vice President on her road to the Oval Office

Pictured are Kamala and Tim at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, during the DNC

Just before the DNC began, convention planners announced that they plan to roll out a 'blue carpet' for notable attendees, with events being headlined by John Legend, Octavia Spencer, Kerry Washington, Mindy Kaling, Tony Goldwyn and Ana Navarro tapped as official hosts of the DNC.

The Creative Coalition, an arts advocacy group that has sent a delegation of actors and actresses to every political convention since 1996, is sending its biggest group yet to Chicago.

Harris' ascendance to the Democratic nomination has 'absolutely' increased interest in this year's convention.

Creative Coalition CEO Robin Bronk told DailyMail.com: 'Where we had a smaller delegation, it's grown to our biggest delegation in history.'

On Wednesday, Ben Affleck even got a special shoutout from Mindy Kaling that referenced his divorce from Jennifer Lopez.
Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden looked carefree today as she embraced the great outdoors during a visit to Sattra farm.

The heir to the Swedish throne, 47, opted for a low-key look in a light blue linen shirt for her outing at the farm in Upplands Vasby.

Putting a pause on statement glamour on Thursday, she ditched heels and dresses for a more relaxed outfit, complete with weather resistant trousers.

During the visit, she hopped in and out of the large glossy tractor, where she took a ride around the field on the vast farm.

Victoria wore her thick brunette locks swept into a bun and opted for a natural makeup free look on the farm.

Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden looked carefree today as she embraced the great outdoors during a visit to Sattra farm

Dressing for the elements, she wore sensible brown walking boots and rolled up her shirt sleeves to enjoy the bright sunshine.

The mother-of-two met up with those from Race for the Baltic, an independent non-profit organisation who focus on building solutions to provide a healthy Baltic Sea for future generations by 2030.

Victoria embraced the gorgeous sunshine, beaming as she gracefully hopped in and out of a tractor.

At one point, the mother-of-two was pictured relaxing while enjoying a cup of something refreshing. She held a hand to cover her eyes from the blazing sun.

The visit occurred on Baltic Sea Day, an annual celebration which aims to inspire people to embrace the unique Baltic sea, encouraging individuals to take action and make an effort to protect it.

The celebration also aims to provide information on the sea's diverse nature, culture and history.

It comes after the Swedish royal embarked on a day of special officer army training early this weak, temporarily swapping her tiara for khaki trousers.

Victoria looked in high spirits as she arrived at Karolinska University Hospital on the first day of her special officer training with the Swedish Armed Forces.

The heir to the Swedish throne, 47, opted for a low-key look in a light blue linen shirt for her outing at the farm in Upplands Vasby

The princess pictured holding two flasks of liquid while at the farm. She was pictured looking graceful in casual farm attire during the visit

The mother-of-two pictured enjoying a cup of something refreshing as she held a hand to cover her eyes from the blazing sun

Putting a pause on statement glamour on Thursday, she ditched heels and dresses for a more relaxed outfit, complete with weather resistant trousers

Victoria wore her thick brunette locks swept into a bun and opted for a natural makeup free look on the farm

During the visit, she hopped in and out of the large glossy tractor, where she took a ride around the field on the vast farm

The princess looked as though she meant business, sporting the green camouflage-print Swedish Armed Forces uniform.

She proudly donned the practical cargo trousers and an oversized shirt with the Swedish flag on it and chose to roll the sleeves up.

She matched her ensemble with a pair of black polished lace-up combat boots and opted to wear minimal jewellery - just a simple silver chain bracelet and her engagement ring.

The future Queen swept her brunette tresses into a practical low-bun as she sat down with other students in a lecture theatre.

She opted for natural makeup, keeping her look minimal with a touch of eyeliner, mascara and foundation.

It is thought that Princess Victoria wanted to deepen her training and understanding of the military by taking this course.

The training is part of preparations for her future role as head of state, the Royal Court said in a statement in April.

'The Crown Princess will during autumn 2024 begin special officer training to acquire a deeper understanding of tactics, military science and military strategy,' it said.

The course involves both theoretical and practical learning. Sweden joined NATO in March, after Russia's invasion of Ukraine forced it to rethink its national security policy.

At one stage, she smiled and posed with Emma Bjornehed, the lecturer and Anders Widen, director of the primary education program.
In the final documentary fronted by the late Dr Michael Mosley, the health guru was filmed putting on a joyful display as he enjoyed a cold water swimming session.

Filmed last year, the three-part Channel 5 programme sees the former Mail columnist decode the marvels of the human body - and discover everything from why bones break as we age, to pioneering cancer treatments.

Dr Mosley, who died from heat exhaustion aged 67 while on holiday in Greece, put his own body under the microscope for the documentary.

In the first episode, which was at 8pm on Thursday, the doctor bravely signed up to face the elements while taking a cold water swim.

Dr Mosley explained how he was attempting a very fresh dip in the water for its benefits in supporting bone health.

In the final documentary fronted by the late Dr Michael Mosley, the health guru was filmed putting on a joyful display as he enjoyed a cold water swimming session

'Weight bearing exercises are a great way to keep your bones strong but other forms of exercise, like having a swim, come with benefits,' he explained.

Dr Mosley then headed to the Ayrshire coast to meet some cold water devotees during the programme.

'When you first get in you think, what on earth am I doing, it's freezing,' confessed one Scottish woman who was seen together with a group of ladies doing some warms up before facing the temperatures in the sea.

While tricky at first, the cold water swimmer described the teeth chattering ritual as 'absolutely liberating,' while another called it 'magic'.

The brave group of cold water swimmers were seen gliding through the freezing water with brave faces, grinning and splashing around as they took the chilly hit.

Using a thermal camera, swimmers were able to check their internal temperatures before taking the plunge.

Dr Mosley explained the change. 'Their skin started off at around 22 degrees but after just 15 minutes... our thermal camera reveals their skin temperature has dropped to 10 degrees, almost as low as the sea.'

'We hear a lot about cold water swimming, but what actually happens to your body when you go in cold water? What are the health benefits and what are the risks?' he asked.

Dr Mosley, who died from heat exhaustion aged 67 while on holiday in Greece , put his own body under the microscope for the documentary

Heading back to London, Dr Mosley went to try the chilling technique himself, arriving at a cold bath in the capital fully kitted out in a wetsuit

Dr Mosley revealed that when you swim in cold water, your arteries narrow - making your heart work harder to pump blood, strengthening its muscles.

The plunge also releases hormones that are said to increase the body's metabolic rate and boost your mood.

Some regular swimmers even claim it helps with immune function as well - stopping them, ironically, from catching common colds.

Heading back to London, Dr Mosley went to try the chilling technique himself, arriving at a cold bath in the capital fully kitted out in a wetsuit.

'I feel a bit of a fraud I must admit because I've got all this on at the moment,' he confessed before the physiologist onsite assured him it would still work through the layer.

Dr Mosley asked how he needed to approach the plunge before being told to embrace the cold slowly to avoid overworking and stressing the heart.

'You're a tropical animal, you want to be in 28 degree air and you're taking that body and plunging it into 12 degree water, it's a stress!' explained the expert.

As he dipped a toe in the pool, Dr Mosley couldn't help but yelp, 'that is cold!' before moving in slowly to gather his breathing.

Dr Mosley, who died from heat exhaustion aged 67 while on holiday in Greece , puts his own body under the microscope, undergoing experiments to test his heart health, saliva production and how his body copes with a dip in freezing waters

Amid pained giggles, Dr Mosley went as far as his thigh and clasped his arms round his shoulders.

After he acclimatised to the chill, Dr Mosley confidentially took off in a breast stroke, breezing across the pool despite the cold temperature on his skin.

Elsewhere in the documentary, Dr Mosley headed to Fife to meet Thomas, who suffered a common neurological condition, and was about to undergo pioneering brain surgery.

The 71-year-old suffered essential tremor, which affects roughly a million Brits and causes involuntary shaking or trembling.

But for Thomas, symptoms began in his forties, when he first noticed his right hand shaking.

By his mid-fifties, both hands, as well as his head, were shaking - and it just continued to worsen.

Michael Mosley, who died this summer while on holiday in Greece , puts his own body to the test in the three-part series, testing his heart health, his saliva production and even taking a freezing dip himself

To test out a new heart disease predictor, the former Mail columnist steps forward for the procedure - which sees him have dye injected into his bloodstream so that his blood vessels show up on the CT scan.

In the documentary, Thomas was off to Dundee to receive a potentially life-changing surgery.

The innovative procedure uses a beam of ultrasound waves to zap a tiny cluster of cells in a part of his brain called the thalamus, which is involved with movement.

Doctors hope this will create a circuit breaker that will stop Thomas's brain from sending out too many confusing messages that cause his uncontrollable tremor.

Fitted with a head brace to help keep him still, Thomas was kept awake throughout the surgery to ensure the beam doesn't impact the parts of his brain that control his speech.

If it strays even a fraction, he could be left unable to speak - or paralysed.

To test his brain function after each round of the ultrasound, Thomas' doctors drew him a spiral on a piece of paper.

The three-part series sets out to decode the marvel of design and engineering that is the human body, inviting viewers to see our bodies in new ways and understand how they work and how the body changes as we age

At first, he was barely able to make a mark on the page. But after seven rounds, his hand stopped shaking enough that he is able to make a full spiral.

'I'm so grateful,' Thomas said - 'I noticed a change right away. I've improved way more than I thought I would. It'll make a life-changing difference.'

Later in the episode, Dr Mosley met 76-year-old Allen, who was about to learn if his experimental cancer treatment has been a success.

Allen was diagnosed with stage 4 lymphoma - a type of blood cancer - a few years prior.

'They said that there wasn't really much they could do to cure me,' he explained.

Prior to his diagnosis, Allen was a policeman in London, and spent nine years as Princess Diana's personal protection officer.

He started noticing symptoms of his cancer once he'd retired to Dorset, around the same time a family of Ukrainian refugees came to live with him.

After his diagnosis, they decided to stay and help care for their host.

'I'd already planned and paid for my funeral,' Allen said. 'I didn't think I'd be around much longer.'

But then, Allen was thrown a lifeline by his medical team in Southampton; a treatment known as CAR T-cell therapy.

Throughout the episodes, the doctor continued to track down answers to burning questions such as why do we get creaky joints? What happens when we catch the flu? Can we help our brains stay fit as we age? How do doctors replace a hip?

The revolutionary new cancer treatment works by boosting the body's immune system, helping it to spot and fight cancer.

T-cells - the body's fighter cells - are removed, modified in the lab and re-injected into the bloodstream.

These genetically edited cells now have a turbo-charged ability to track down and eradicate cancer cells.

The approach doesn't work for everyone, but Allen luckily received brilliant news at his check-up; he was in complete remission.

Previously littered with cancerous tumours, his scans are now showing up clean.

Thanks to breakthrough treatments like this, Dr Mosley explained, we're now six times more likely to survive cancer than we were 40 years ago - although one in two of us will be diagnosed with it in our lifetimes.

Similarly astonishing technologies have emerged in recent years that tackle another major health concern for Brits - heart disease.

Almost a quarter of all deaths in the UK are due to cardiovascular problems.

But a new test developed by researchers at the University of Oxford claims to be able to detect heart problems long before you have any symptoms.

By looking at the fat that surrounds the heart vessels, scientists are able to spot early signs of inflammation in the arteries, which could indicate a heart attack later down the line.

To test it out, Dr Mosley stepped forward for the procedure - which saw him have dye injected into his bloodstream so that his arteries showed up on the CT scan.

Finally, Dr Mosley examined why our bones become more brittle as we age.

To investigate bone health, he travelled back to the University of Oxford - this time to meet with Professor Sue Black.

She explained that bones - while they may look solid from the outside - are actually very much alive and moving on the inside.

As we age, the hormones such as estrogen that feed these bone cells begin to lessen.

After menopause, however, estrogen levels drop - causing the bones to become rapidly weaker.

Microfractures begin to form, which often fail to heal themselves. The condition - known as osteoporosis - is incredibly common: affecting one in five women and one in 20 men.

To protect our bones as we age, we need to consume plenty of calcium and vitamin C - as well as continuing to do weight-bearing exercises like running and dancing.

The episode concludes with Dr Mosley agreeing to have a camera inserted through his nose to look at his voicebox - and revealing the shocking fact that humans produce enough saliva each month to fill an entire bathtub.

In the next installment of the docuseries, he'll look at hip replacements, stress and three things you can do at home to reduce blood pressure without joining a gym.
Alice McCall and fast-fashion brand Shein have joined forced for a second time

Alice McCall has launched a second collection with Chinese fast-fashion brand Shein and commented on the limited sizing.

The once high-end Australian designer caused a stir last year after announcing the partnership with the global fashion brand.

Despite the backlash, stock sold out and the latest Spring/Summer 2024 collection is expected to do the same.

The limited-edition range features 65 garments of various patterns, florals and bold colours in sizes six to a 'combined' size 12/14.

The limited range had larger customers fuming, and others claiming her 12/14 'runs very small'.

Founder Alice McCall told FEMAIL expanding the size range is always a possibility and she's 'open to catering' to bigger sizes.

'Watch this space. I think it's important to cater to every woman, it's something that's important to me,' Ms McCall said.

The collaboration also offers shoppers a selection of affordable pieces - Ms McCall confirmed on August 22 in Sydney while wearing vintage Gucci shoes to showcase the budget collection.

Australian designer Alice McCall (pictured) has partnered with Shein to launch a second collection

The limited-edition range features 65 garments of various patterns, florals and bold colours in sizes six to 12/14

Founder Alice McCall told FEMAIL expanding the size range is always a possibility and she's open to catering to larger sizes (sizes pictured)

'Watch this space. I think it's important to cater to every woman, it's something that's important to me,' Ms McCall told FEMAIL (pictured at Shein pop-up in Sydney)

The Alice McCall brand was founded in 2004 but struggled during the Covid-19 pandemic before going into liquidation in February owing $1million to creditors.

The pieces were regularly featured on red carpets and in high fashion editorials for Vogue, Harper's Bazaar and Elle and the brand was beloved for what many described as its 'playful sensibility'.

The second collection is part of Shein X - the program under Shein to support independent brands, artists and designers.

Shein is also set to open a pop-up showroom in Sydney from August 23 to 26 to give customers an exclusive look at the latest collection.

Visitors will be able to shop items on display via QR code and enjoy free daily giveaways.

'Following the success of my first collection with Shein that was available across the Australia and New Zealand region and the United States, I am excited for my latest global collection and newest designs to be included in the SS24 showroom event in Sydney,' Alice said.

Speaking of the inspiration behind the latest collection, she added: 'The concept of dopamine dressing, which is all about finding happiness in our sartorial choices, was a significant influence.

The second collection is part of Shein X - the program under Shein to support independent brands, artists and designers

Shein has also launched five other collections ranging from vacation essentials, sassy looks, limitless styles, and eclectic looks

Shein has also launched five other collections ranging from vacation essentials, sassy looks, limitless styles, and eclectic looks.

Last year, fans on X dubbed the partnership as 'embarrassing' and 'devastating'.

'Alice McCall x Shein is so embarrassing.. why would you tank your own brand like that?' one wrote.

'Designer who went bust decides to collaborate with a sweat shop factory,' another said.

'Absolutely devastating to see what's become of Alice McCall,' a third added on X.

On Instagram, a commenter wrote: 'The Alice McCall brand makes one of the most disappointing moves in a desperate attempt to make money. Having to turn off the comments on the Instagram post just an hour after posting is the cherry on top.'

Another said they were 'shocked and enraged' by the decision.
A Sydney bakery has claimed the coveted title of 'Best Finger Bun in Australia' for their viral pink-iced buns.

Humble Bakery in Surry Hills beat out the rest of the country in Wotif's 2024 Uniquely Australian Awards for their fruit laced buns with the iconic squiggly pink icing and a thick slab of butter tucked inside ($7.50).

The pastry destination regularly sells out of the 'divine' buns and after news of their sweet win - this weekend should be no exception.

From the team behind dining hot-spots Porteno and Bastardo, Humble Bakery made their name with the retro-treat that is an elevated version of the childhood bake-house classic.

Co-owner Ben Milgate spoke to FEMAIL about how the best finger bun in Australia was designed to be a fresh take on the 'nostalgic joy' evoked by the dessert.

'But the taste is what keeps people coming back, its the combination of our soft, sweet milk dough and that generous slab of butter that makes them irresistible.'

The wildly popular treats were an instant hit with Sydneysiders - and the largest single order ever placed was for 1,000 of the Insta-famous bright pink buns.

Mr Milgate said the quality of the ingredients - which have no preservatives whatsoever - makes Humble's finger buns a cut above the rest.

The viral finger bun ($7.50) from Humble Bakery is a fruit studded sticky bun topped with 'perfect' pink icing and a thick slab of butter inside

Ben Milgate, co-owner of the popular Surry Hills bakery, said that their sticky buns were an 'instant hit' with Sydneysiders who love the nostalgia they evoke - but come back for the taste

Humble Bakery also makes a famous carrot cake, assorted pastries and 'intense' Italian sandwiches that locals can't get enough of

'Our frosting is made with cream cheese, unlike most finger buns that use Boston icing. And of course, theyre made fresh daily.'

The head baker recalls one customer who bought six finger buns for his staff but couldn't resist eating them all himself before making it back to the office.

The buns are available in individual serves and as a 'fun' finger bun cake that serves nine people for $85.

Those racing to Surry Hills to sample the best bun in Australia might want to try Ben's hack: 'Flip the top of the bun over so the frosting is on the inside with the butter. Why? Because it keeps the frosting from getting on your face.'

Fans of the 'perfect' buns weren't surprised to hear that Humble Bakery had beat out the rest of Australia.

The Best Finger Bun in Australia comes with a fruit-studded soft bun, 'perfect' pink icing and a thick slab of butter inside

The other six Australian finalists in Wotif's Uniquely Australian Best Finger Bun category were Routley's Bakery (VIC), Bushman's Bakery (QLD), Parap Bakery (NT), Tas's Bakery (WA), Cakery Bakery (ACT), Dulwich Bakery (SA) and Cripps Bakery (TAS

'Very well deserved, theyre top notch!' one said.

'Nostalgic, delicious and not too sweet. Simply divine,' another agreed.

'You can never really just have one,' a third chimed in.

The other six finalists in Wotif's Uniquely Australian awards Best Finger Bun category were Routley's Bakery (VIC), Bushman's Bakery (QLD), Parap Bakery (NT), Tas's Bakery (WA), Cakery Bakery (ACT), Dulwich Bakery (SA) and Cripps Bakery (TAS).

Thousands of Aussies voted in the popular annual awards which are in their seventh year.

The awards took place across six categories: Best Sausage Roll, Best Hotel Bar, Best Surf Club, Best Lookout Point and Best Finger Bun.

Rebecca Hurley, Wotif's travel expert, said that the awards are designed to celebrate and spotlight the country's 'unique gems' ahead of the summer travel season.
Crown Queen Mary of Denmark proved she has a huge love for animals after she took a quick break from her royal duties to show her affection towards two friendly dogs.

The Australian-born monarch stepped out in Assens alongside her husband King Frederik X to celebrate the Danish market town's 500th anniversary on Wednesday as part of the couple's summer tour on the Royal Yacht Dannebrog.

Queen Mary was given a tour of the town, greeted fans and helped some children plant a tree before turning her attention to two tail-wagging Collies.

The mother-of-four spoke to the dogs' owner before crouching on the ground to let them sniff her, giving them a friendly stroke and even allowing one of them jump up to lick her face.

Later in the day when Mary had taken off her Harris Wharf coat and switched her Gianvito Rossi heels for some more comfortable ballet flats, she met the dogs again and couldn't resist going in for another pat.

Crown Queen Mary of Denmark's love for dogs was on full display during a royal visit on Wednesday when she welcomed the affections of two Collies

The Aussie-born monarch stepped out in Assens alongside her husband King Frederik on Wednesday as part of the couple's summer tour on the Royal Yacht Dannebrog

Queen Mary was given a tour of the town, greeted fans and helped some children plant a tree before turning her attention to two tail-wagging Collies

The 52-year-old looked ever-so-chic in a strapless Zimmerman dress which billowed in the wind as she walked alongside her husband.

She teamed the eye-catching frock with a Ralph Lauren cream blazer, which she cinched at the waist with an Etro rope belt.

But the designer garb didn't stop the Queen from getting up and close to the adorable pooches' muddy paws.

Mary has made her love for dogs and animals no secret.

The mother is often the photographer behind her children's birthday portraits and she likes to feature the family's pets in the snaps.

The mum-of-four spoke to the dogs' owner before crouching on the ground to let them sniff her, giving them a friendly stroke and even allowing one of them jump up to lick her face

The 52-year-old looked ever-so-chic in a strapless Zimmerman dress but the designer garb didn't stop her from getting up and close to the adorable pooches' muddy paws

Mary has made her love for dogs and animals no secret. The mum is often the photographer behind her children's birthday portraits and she likes to feature the family's pets in the snaps

For the 17th birthday photo released in April, Mary's eldest daughter, Princess Isabella was pictured alongside their Border Collie.

'To mark her birthday, Her Majesty The Queen has taken new pictures of the Princess together with one of the Royal Family's dogs Coco,' the Danish Royal Family announced in an Instagram post.

It isn't the first time Border Collie Coco has made an appearance in the royal family's birthday portraits.

For Princess Josephine and Prince Vincent's 11th birthday, the twins posed with Coco and her litter mate when they were just puppies.

Mary and Frederik's eldest child Prince Christian, 18, hugged one of the family's other Collies Grace in his 14th birthday portrait.

For the 17th birthday photo released in April, Mary's eldest daughter, Princess Isabella was snapped alongside their Border Collie Coco

For Princess Josephine and Prince Vincent's 11th birthday, the twins posed with Coco and her litter mate when they were just puppies

Their horses, Queen Margarethe's Dachshund and even a koala have also made appearances in photos of the royal children.

So the Danish monarch's affection towards her four-legged fans during her recently tour comes as no surprise.

During their Assens visit, the couple toured a reforestation project, an energy-efficient wastewater treatment plant, as well as one of Denmark's leading companies in rainwater cleaning products.

On Monday, he pair put on a bright and summery display as they visited the Baltic Sea island of r.

After arriving to the island via boat at lunchtime, the royals took to Instagram to thank the locals for the 'great welcome' they'd received.

Mary and Frederick looked cheery as they waved to crowds on their arrival, before shaking hands with local residents on the island in southern Denmark.

The Danish monarch's affection towards her four-legged fans during her recently tour comes as no surprise

Mary and Frederick looked cheery as they waved to crowds on their arrival, before shaking hands with local residents on the island in southern Denmark

They then put on an warm display as they made the first stop on their summer tour to Bornholm.

The pair were pictured tasting local produce and speaking with small business-owners during their tour of the small island 105 miles southeast of Copenhagen

During the engagement, Frederik and Mary were pictured laughing and smiling together and later wrote on Instagram how Bornholm had lived up to its nickname of 'sunshine island'.

Members of the Danish Royal Family have been touring the country on the Royal Yacht Dannebrog every summer for the past 100 years.

This is the first time Frederik and Mary are participating in a summer tour as reigning monarchs - following the King's ascension to the throne in January.

Last year, it was Frederik's mother, Queen Margarethe, 84, who completed the boat tour.
Rising temperatures in the UK could see 8,000 Brits killed by extreme heat every year by 2100, a new major report has warned.

This is a six-fold surge from the current figure of just over 1,000, the analysis published in the prestigious Lancet journal has found.

Researchers say if that if current global climate change policies don't change, spiralling numbers of Brits will die from conditions such as heat exhaustion and heart failure related to over-heating.

The new analysis warns that Southern Europe, which includes countries like Spain, Italy, Greece and parts of France is expected to be hit hardest by rising temperatures.

Currently the continent sees 44,000 health related deaths per year, but this could triple to almost 130,000 by start of the next century.

Firefighters try to extinguish a wildfire burning in Dionysos, Greece, August 12

Holly Mason and Hattie Chadwick, both 21, enjoy a day at Bournemouth beach in Dorset earlier this month

The authors said deaths in Europe and the UK were being exacerbated by an ageing population, which is increasingly vulnerable to the impact of high temperatures.

For the UK, a rise of 3C (37.4F) in global temperatures due to global warming  which the authors described an upper estimate  would see health related deaths rise to almost 8,000 per year.

It come after a series of sweltering summers in Europe and the UK, with 2023 the hottest year globally on record.

However, cold related-deaths were still predicted by the experts to be a far bigger killer in Britain.

Currently an estimated 65,000 Brits die each year from cold-related illnesses, such as respiratory infections and hypothermia, a figure that will remain relatively stable even if global temperatures rise by a 3C rise.

For Europe, the experts predicted a rise of 3C would marginally bring down cold-related fatalities overall to some 330,000 per year by 2100, compared to the 365,000 per year currently.

But if global temperature reaches 4C (39.2F), Britain could, on paper, benefit.

Under the modelling, a 4C increase would see cold-related deaths in the UK fall to just some 58,000, while heat related deaths would only go up 12,000, totalling 70,000 temperature-related deaths per year.

This compares to some 73,000 per year deaths under the 3C model.

However, European related temperature deaths would soar to 200,000 per year under such a 4C increase.

This only represents direct temperature related fatalities and doesn't account for some of the other predicted impacts of such dramatic global temperature increases.

These include disruption to food and water supplies, increased flooding and wildfires, and subsequent humanitarian crises.

In the latest analysis researchers from across Europe, including those from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, examined data from over 1,000 regions across the continent.

They looked at health and population data from 854 European cities with populations over 50,000 to model the mortality risk from cold and heat among adults aged 20 to 85.

Publishing the data in the journal The Lancet Public Health, experts then used this data to predict how many temperature related deaths would occur in under four different temperature increases 1.5C (34.7F), 2C (35.6F), 3C and 4C.

Commuters in London did not look as though they were loving the heat in the capital earlier this month - as they were forced to cool themselves down with fans on their muggy journey home on the tube

Pictured visitors to the Essex seaside town of Walton on the Naze during the mini heatwave that crossed the UK earlier this month

June marks the 13th consecutive month of record-breaking global temperatures. Here, a woman cools off in a fountain in Moscow, Russia, June 30, 2024

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Dr David Garcia-Leon, of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre and author of the study, said the overall results showed an increasing aged population more vulnerable to extreme temperatures, especially heat.

'We find that deaths in Europe from hot and cold temperatures will rise substantially as many more heat-related deaths are expected to occur as the climate warms and populations age, while deaths from cold decline only slightly in comparison,' he said.

'Our study also identifies hotspots where the risk of death from high temperatures is set to drastically increase over the next decade.

He added the results demonstrated a 'critical need' for policy makers to implement measure to protect both the worst hit areas and the most vulnerable people.

Dr Matteo Pinna Pintor, of the Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research who was not involved in the study, added: 'These results reinforce previously expressed scepticism about large, unconditional reductions in cold-related mortality as temperate regions become warmer.'

Commenting on the study, Dr Leslie Mabon, lecturer in environmental systems at The Open University, who was not involved, said the results echo previous research showing extreme temperatures hit some groups harder than others,

'What is especially striking is that the authors find clear differences in risk across country boundaries and also regional clusters of mortality risk,' she said.

'Temperature gradients do not respect borders, so, as the authors point out, this shows how demographic and socio-economic factors influence the risk we face from temperature extremes.'

However, she added there were policies governments could enact to help protect those most at risk.

Smoke rises over Parthenon temple during a wildfire near Athens, Greece, on August 12

Long periods of hot, dry weather and a lack of rain make wildfires more likely. Pictured, a firefighting helicopter drops water as a wildfire burns in Stamata, near Athens, Greece, June 30, 2024

'There are counter-measures we can take, which may be particularly effective if they are targeted towards the most vulnerable people and places,' she said.

'For example, the study points to investment in health infrastructure, the presence of heat and cold preparedness plans, and the quality of the buildings we live and work in as factors that could reduce mortality under a changing climate.'

The study did have some limitations which the authors acknowledged. This included the data being based in urban populations where temperatures are higher, meaning the estimates may be overstated compared to rural areas.

Secondly the data didn't account for anyone under 20. This means infants and another young groups vulnerable to temperature extremes weren't included.

Although most countries have pledged to curb emissions to slow down global warming, a United Nations analysis published last year suggests the world is still on track to warm by nearly 3C by the end of the century.

Hottest months on record June 2024 - 61.98F (16.66C)

- 61.98F (16.66C) May 2024 - 60.6F (15.91C)

- 60.6F (15.91C) April 2024 - 59.05F (15.03C)

- 59.05F (15.03C) March 2024 - 57.4F (14.14C)

- 57.4F (14.14C) February 2024 - 56.3F (13.54C)

- 56.3F (13.54C) January 2024 - 55.6F (13.14C) (Figures refer to global average air temperature for the month) Advertisement

The new analysis comes off the back of another that calculated that 47,000 people died in Europe due to scorching temperatures in 2023.

By the Barcelona Institute for Global Health, it found that, adjusted for population, Greece, Bulgaria, Italy and Spain were the countries with the highest mortality rates related to heat.

While Britain didn't rank in the top 10 for heat-related highest mortality rates it came seventh in overall death toll with over 1,800 fatalities.

Italy recorded the highest number of deaths, with over 12,000, followed by Spain and Germany.

Heat has been dubbed by medics as a 'silent killer' due to the way it exacerbates existing health conditions, like those of the heart, meaning it kills far more people than would first appear.

Earlier this month Britain experienced its hottest summer day in two years with the mercury hit 34.8C (94.64F) in Cambridge.

While sunseekers were seen basking in the mini-heatwave, commuters were struggling with the temperatures in London.

The hottest temperature ever recorded in the UK was in 2022 when Coningsby in Lincolnshire made it to 40.3C (104.5F) on July 19.

This year's heat has caused emergencies on the continent triggered wildfires forcing the evacuation of thousands of people.

Earlier this month British tourists in Greece were among those needing to be rushed to safety with wildfires raging as high as 80ft around the Parthenon temple in Athens.
Psilocybin  the active ingredient in magic mushrooms  could be just as effective as current antidepressants, but only when given in high doses, scientists say.

Experts came to this conclusion after reviewing evidence collected from 15 medical trials involving some 3,000 patients.

Writing in the prestigious journal, the BMJ, they said their review of psychedelics, a class of drugs that alter a person's perception of reality, found while they were better than a placebo most don't work better than current antidepressants.

Psychedelics examined included MDMA (also known as ecstasy), LSD, psilocybin, and ayahuasca, two of which Prince Harry controversially endorsed taking last year much to the criticism of medics.

But only psilocybin, and even then only in high doses, was shown to be as effective as a currently approved selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) a type of antidepressant.

Psilocybin  the active ingredient in magic mushrooms  could be just as effective as current antidepressants, but only when given in high doses, scientists say (stock image)

The authors concluded while psychedelics in general appeared to have been over-hyped high dose psilocybin 'appeared to have the potential to treat depressive symptoms'.

Numerous studies have previously touted psychedelics, which are generally class A controlled drugs in the UK, as a potential mental health treatment including for depression.

However, the Taiwanese and British experts behind the new analysis said these were often flawed.

They said many trials failed to compare the effect of psychedelics to currently available medications and had often combined using them with therapy which made it impossible to unpick how effective the drugs actually were alone.

In an attempt to address this, researchers limited their analysis to clinical trials involving psychedelics and an antidepressant called escitalopram.

To be eligible, trials had to be using either type of drug alone on patients with acute depressive symptoms or via a head-to-head trial.

At the end only high-dose psilocybin was found to have the same effect as escitalopram.

However, the researchers noted that the effects of high-dose psilocybin may have been 'overestimated' due to the particular structure of that clinical trial which compared the drug head-to-head with escitalopram.

Nevertheless, they concluded: 'Serotonergic psychedelics, especially high dose psilocybin, appeared to have the potential to treat depressive symptoms.

'Our analysis suggested that the mean difference of high dose psilocybin was similar to that of current antidepressant drugs, showing a small effect size.'

Additionally, they said none of the trials they examined found a higher rate of serious adverse reactions, such as death, hospital admission or suicide attempt.

They did note several limitations however, including that they only compared the drugs in terms of how effective they were at treating depression not in other aspects that are also important to medication usage, such as adverse side effects.

Another limitation was small number of trials examined though the researchers said this was unavoidable given the limited number of eligible studies.

Another aspect to consider is that while the authors compared psychedelics to an antidepressant escitalopram, this drug and SSRIs in general, aren't only one type of these drugs available.

SSRIs are the most widely prescribed type of antidepressant in the UK due to their safety and the fact most people can take them, but several alternatives can be provided.

Some British experts have previously supported the idea of using psilocybin as potential treatment for depression but have also called for further research, particularity on longer term outcomes.

Speaking on a separate evidence review published earlier this year Dr Paul Keedwell, consultant psychiatrist and fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists said: 'In general, the results are impressive, with rapid improvement in most, and large effect sizes.'

But he added: 'There are some concerns about expectation effects, because the majority of patients knew when they were getting the active condition, or the higher dose of the same drug.'

'Longer follow ups would be welcome, and there is more work to be done on optimal dosing.

'The main disadvantage is that some patients find the psychedelic effects unpleasant, and care must be taken to ensure a calm environment for the treatment. Psychological preparation and debriefing, before and after dosing, respectively, are crucial.'

Last year Australia became the first country to approve the use of psilocybin for depression.

However, some experts are concerned that the therapy is going too far too fast.

Swinburne University Professor Susan Rossell, who leads Australia's biggest trial on the effects of psilocybin on depression, said at the time more research needed to be done.

'These treatments are not well established at all for a sufficient level of broad-scale implementation,' she said.

'We've got no data on long-term outcomes at all, so that worries me a lot, which is one of the reasons why I'm doing my very large study.'

Psilocybin impacts the part of the brain called the hippocampus which is responsible for reflecting on thoughts and experiences and helps individuals define their sense of self.

This is similar to how antidepressants target the brain to interrupt the negative thoughts associated with depression.

However, while psilocybin has shown some promise in combating issues like anxiety and depression, some individuals can experience persistent and distressing visions.

These reactions, which can occur as frequently as in one in 10 people who take the drug, amount to 'significant psychological distress' such as paranoia, intense fear and even vivid hallucinations.

Last year Prince Harry admitted to using psilocybin and ayahuasca a plant-based psychedelic from the leaves of a shrub

He said he took the drugs in an attempt to help him heal the 'grief' and 'trauma' he felt after the death of his mother. Pictured, Harry with Princess Diana in 1987

Supporters of psychedelic therapy, however, argue that bad trips are rare, and even when they do occur they often provide challenging personal insights that fuel healthy psychological growth.

The use of psychedelics for use of mental health conditions in general is controversial.

Some experts are worried about a current lack of good-quality evidence on their effectiveness as well as potential long-term outcomes.

The push for psychedelics has also come under a cloud after horrific claims of sexual assault from some patients who underwent clinical trials with the drugs.

Experts have also previously warned apparent celebrity endorsements of the positives of psychedelics, like Prince Harry, could encourage others to try the substances, with potentially dangerous consequences.

The Duke of Sussex has said he wouldn't recommended taking ayahuasca recreationally but did tout its positives.

'Doing it with the right people if you are suffering from a huge amount of loss, grief or trauma, then these things have a way of working as a medicine,' he said.

His comments at the time were criticised by medics as well as the families of those who had died by suicide or intoxication shortly after taking the drug.

One of those was Dr Max Pemberton, an NHS psychiatrist in London and columnist for The Daily Mail, who said the comments were 'highly irresponsible and 'promoting yet another quack therapy'.

'Harry plainly has no understanding of the serious damage these substances can wreak on users  damage that I see on mental health hospital wards with upsetting frequency,' he said.

Calls for psychedelics to be made available to patients in the UK have been made before.

In February 2022, David Nutt, a professor of neuropsychopharmacology at Imperial College London, co-authored a review of research, in the Journal of Psychopharmacology.

It claimed psychedelic drugs have an unwarrantedly bad reputation and argued 'many  albeit not all  of the persistent negative perceptions of psychological risks are unsupported by the currently available scientific evidence'.

Professor Nutt was fired as chair of the independent Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) in 2009 by Labour Home Secretary Alan Johnson after producing a paper for the Home Office which claimed Class A drug ecstasy is safer than equestrian sports.

He also recommended that cannabis, ecstasy and LSD should be considered less harmful than alcohol and cigarettes.
NHS patients battling Alzheimer's will miss out on a 'miracle' drug proven to tackle the devastating and deadly disease, health chiefs today announced.

Lecanemab was hailed as 'the beginning of the end' of dementia last year, after studies showed it slowed the memory-robbing illness in its early stages.

And today it was approved by medicines regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

But draft guidance by the NHS spending watchdog ruled the benefits of the drug 'are too small' to justify the estimated to be up to 1bn a year roll-out cost.

It means lecanemab will only be available to Brits who could pay around 20,000 privately every year.

Lecanemab (pictured) has been proven to slow the progress of the memory-robbing illness in its early stages. It was today approved by medicines regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)

Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia. The disease can cause anxiety, confusion and short-term memory loss

Campaigners and charities today labelled the decision 'deeply disappointing'. However, experts also pointed to a 'lack of evidence' over its long-term side effects.

It is estimated around 70,000 adults in England would have been eligible for treatment with lecanemab if approved for use on the health service.

The drug has been proven to slow progression of the disease by as much as 27 per cent in trials by helping to remove the build up of the harmful protein amyloid in the brains of people with early-stage Alzheimer's.

Known as an amyloid immunotherapy, it is thought that these proteins interfere with messages sent between different parts of the brain, resulting in the memory and independence robbing symptoms.

Experts agree it could herald a new era of dementia treatment by tackling the cause rather than just alleviating symptoms.

The drug has already been given the green light in the US, China, Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea and Israel.

No price for lecanemab has been publicly announced in the UK, but in the US it costs 20,000 a year.

But it was rejected by EU medicines regulator the European Medicines Authority last month, due to concerns over side effects such as 'swelling' and 'potential bleedings in the brain'.

It is now the first medicine to be licensed in the UK that has been shown to slow down progression of the disease.

Previously, the only available drugs for Alzheimer's in the UK were to treat symptoms.

However, National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) chief medical officer Professor Jonathan Benger said in addition to the cost of the drug, the NHS faced a 500 bill for each patient visit to get an infusion.

Patients received the drug every two weeks for 18 months in clinical trials, and experts have said additional monitoring for side effects including brain scans mean additional costs could spiral.

A public consultation on NICE's draft guidance will close on 20 September.

Dr Samantha Roberts, chief executive of NICE, said: 'This is a new and emerging field of medicine which will no doubt develop rapidly.

Around 900,000 Brits are currently thought to have the memory-robbing disorder. But University College London scientists estimate this will rise to 1.7million within two decades as people live longer. It marks a 40 per cent uptick on the previous forecast in 2017

'However, the reality is that the benefits this first treatment provides are just too small to justify the significant cost to the NHS.

'Our independent committee has rigorously evaluated the available evidence, including the benefit for carers but NICE must only recommend treatments that offer good value to the taxpayer.'

Meanwhile, Tara Spires-Jones, professor of the UK Dementia Research Institute at the University of Edinburgh, said the arrival of the drug marked 'a turning point' but warned of 'dangerous side-effects'.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4s Today programme, she said: 'It's the first time we've actually been able to slow disease progression at all. So from that standpoint, it's amazing.

'However, the treatments not perfect. It only slows disease progression moderately, and it comes with dangerous side-effects so patients need to be monitored very carefully, and only certain people will be able to use the drug.

'So together, its great news, but we have to temper our enthusiasm.'

She added: 'Some people who take this drug have brain swelling and bleeding and a few people have died from those side-effects.'

Despite these words of caution, charities and campaigners today urged the Government to 'find a solution' to prevent Brits with dementia from missing out on the drug.

Hilary Evans-Newton, chief executive at Alzheimer's Research UK, said: 'Today's news is bittersweet for people affected by Alzheimer's disease.

'It's a remarkable achievement that science is now delivering licensed treatments that can slow down the devastating effects of Alzheimer's, rather than just alleviating its symptoms.

'However, it's clear our health system isn't ready to embrace this new wave of Alzheimer's drugs.

'It means that, as things stand, people in the early stages of the disease will be denied access to lecanemab through the NHS, and it will only be available to those who can pay privately. This is deeply disappointing.'

She added: 'Of course, like first-generation treatments for other diseases, lecanemab has modest benefits and side effects that need careful monitoring.

'It's not a cure, but it is a real step forward  the first new dementia medicine to be licensed in more than 20 years.

'Further negotiations between NICE, Eisai and the NHS may offer a way forward.

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'But the heartbreaking reality is that those who could benefit from drugs like lecanemab don't have time to wait.

'We've written to the Health Secretary Wes Streeting urging him to act, and to find a solution so that people with dementia in the UK don't continue to miss out on innovative treatments.

'There are now more than 160 trials underway testing over 125 experimental treatments for Alzheimer's across the globe, including 30 in late-stage trials.

'Despite today's frustrating news, it really is a matter of when, not if, [they] become available.'

Meanwhile, Fiona Carragher, chief policy and research officer at the Alzheimers Society, said: 'While we welcome the MHRA approval, it is disappointing that NICE has not recommended approving lecanemab for use on the NHS at this stage.

'The news that lecanemab will be restricted to certain groups of patients will also lead to uncertainty for many people with Alzheimer's disease and their loved ones.'

Former Prime Minister and ex-president of Alzheimer's Research UK, David Cameron, also labelled the MHRA's decision a 'hugely positive moment' bur cautioned 'there is still lots more to be done'.

He said: 'Today's news that the drug will be licensed by the MHRA is another hugely positive moment.

No price for the drug has been publicly announced in the UK. In the US the treatment costs 20,000 a year. But it was rejected by EU medicines regulator the European Medicines Authority last month, due to concerns over side effects such as 'swelling' and 'potential bleedings in the brain'

'There is still lots more to be done, but nothing breeds success like success, so I hope today's news will trigger more research, more breakthroughs and get us closer to the point where we have what I call a "statin for the brain"  a simple pill that those at risk can take, that radically reduces the likelihood of this dreadful disease.'

Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS England national medical director, also said health service staff were 'looking ahead to 27 other drugs which are currently in advanced clinical trials that could be potentially approved by 2030'.

It comes as, it was revealed in April that around 5,000 Brits could get cheap blood tests to spot Alzheimer's in efforts to revolutionise 'shocking' NHS diagnostic rates.

Under two landmark trials, researchers from Oxford and University College London are set to use tests to detect proteins in the blood linked to the disease.

At the time, researchers said they hoped the 'groundbreaking' blood test, which costs around 100, could speed up the process, allowing patients to get treated earlier.

The trials, which are expected to cost about 10million, are set to take place across the UK and will be carried out with people who have reported symptoms to their GP and who may be in the early stages of dementia.

A report published earlier this year by NHS England said 'timely diagnosis of dementia is vital', adding new blood tests could soon replace lumbar punctures in diagnosing the disease.

Recent analysis by the Alzheimers Society estimates the overall annual cost of the disease is 42billion a year, with families bearing the brunt.

But the growing, ageing population means the charity estimates these costs  which include lost earnings of unpaid carers  are set to soar to 90billion in the next 15 years.

Around 944,000 in the UK are thought to be living with dementia, while the figure is thought to be around 7million in the US.

Alzheimer's affects around six in 10 people with dementia.

It is thought to be caused by a build-up of amyloid and tau in the brain, which clump together and from plaques and tangles that make it harder for the brain to work properly.

Eventually, the brain struggles to cope with this damage and dementia symptoms develop.

Memory problems, thinking and reasoning difficulties and language problems are common early symptoms of the condition, which then worsen over time.

Dementia are expected to sky-rocket in the coming years, making a cheap screening tool vital to get to grips with the challenge.

Alzheimer's Research UK analysis found 74,261 people died from dementia in 2022 compared with 69,178 a year earlier, making it the country's biggest killer.
British scientists may have paved the way for a jab that protects againt drug-resistant gonorrhoea.

Experts are on the hunt for a vaccine for the sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacteria Neisseria gonorrhoeae, which is becoming increasingly difficult to treat.

Strains of the bug have adapted so that the antibiotics medics use to routinely treat them are less effective, effectively becoming untreatable, with potentially life-changing consequences.

While no gonorrhoea jabs have yet been developed, experts have had some success with vaccines for a related bacteria called Neisseria meningitidis, which previous trials showed help people fend off the infection.

In the new study, carried out by Oxford and Manchester universities, experts worked with 50 sex workers in Kenya, due to their high gonorrhoea risk, to examine their immune response to the Nm vaccine.

Experts are on the hunt for a vaccine for the sexually transmitted disease (STD), caused by the bacteria Neisseria gonorrhoeae (Ng) as drug resistant forms of the bacteria continue to spread, including in the UK. Pictured: A graphical representation of the Ng bacteria

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The aim was to unpick which antigens  the body's fighter proteins  generated by the Nm vaccine work against gonorrhoea.

Analysis from blood samples taken from the sex workers revealed that antigens specifically targetted tiny structures on the surface of gonorrhoea cells.

While the Nm vaccine currently has limited effectiveness against gonorrhoea, the experts say further refining it could lead to the development of a more effective jab.

Project lead Professor Chris Tang, an expert of pathology at Oxford, described his work as, 'an important step along the road to developing gonorrhoea vaccines'.

Professor Jeremy Derrick, and expert of biological sciences at Manchester, added they hoped the method could also be used for other infections that are also becoming increasingly resistant to routine medications.

'We hope that the application of these technologies will enable progress towards vaccines against other pathogens.'

Their study comes after health chiefs warned cases of gonorrhoea have hit a record high in England, amid growing fears of a drug-resistant strain.

Over 85,000 gonorrhoea diagnoses were reported in England last year, the highest number since records began in 1918.

A type that poses a 'particular threat is ceftriaxone-resistant gonorrhoea, the UKHSA said.

Ceftriaxone is the first line antibiotic used to treat gonorrhoea in England and so resistance to the drug can make treatment difficult.

Between June 2022 and May 2024, 15 ceftriaxone-resistant gonorrhoea cases were detected in England, including five that were extensively drug-resistant, meaning resistant to both first- and second-line treatment options and to other antibiotics.

Until 2022, only nine cases had been detected in England in total.

In the new study, carried out by Oxford and Manchester universities, experts worked with 50 sex workers in Kenya, due to their high gonorrhoea risk, to examine their immune response to the Neisseria meningitidis vaccine

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To date, all detected cases have been among heterosexuals, mostly in their 20s, and most acquired the infection abroad.

There has been limited transmission within England, but the UK Health Security Agency said the increasing number of cases in recent years is 'concerning as it raises the chance of wider spread and treatment challenges.

Experts are now urging Brits who have condomless sex with new or casual partners to get tested.

Gonorrhoea is usually spread through contact with infected sexual fluids. The bacteria can infect the cervix, urethra, rectum, throat or eyes.

It is typically passed through unprotected vaginal, oral or anal sex, as well as the sharing of sex toys similarly used without a condom.

Symptoms of gonorrhoea usually develop within two weeks of infections and include unusual discharge from the genitals and a burning sensation when urinating.

But experts warn one in 10 men and half of women will not experience any obvious symptoms, meaning they can be silent spreaders of the STI.

Left untreated it can cause infertility and, although rare, life-threatening sepsis.
A Gwynedd toddler was fobbed off by doctors who told her a giant tumour on her foot was a 'wart' for two years.

Nansi Alys visited the GP in May 2021 when she was just three-years-old, after a small lump on her toe was spotted by her mother.

Despite the growth continuing to expand, a series of doctors told the girl's mother, Leila Evans, that the mass was 'nothing to worry about ' dismissing it as a wart, and then a cyst.

It wasn't until the summer of 2023, when Nansi underwent surgery to remove the lump, that surgeons realised the true threat to the little girl's health.

Nansi Alys was taken to the doctor when she was just three-years-old after her mum Leila Evans noticed a small lump on her toe, in May 2021

Doctors told Ms Evans that the lump was a wart, but in the months following, the lump continued to grow

After tests were carried out, Nansi was diagnosed with a rare type of tumour that affects around five in a million people.

Ms Evans said: 'We went back and forth [to the doctors] and they said they thought it was a wart and there was nothing to worry about.

'In June 2022, we were seen by another doctor who said that it looked like a benign cyst.

'He transferred us to a specialist at Bangor Hospital, and he said it looked like a benign cyst and there was nothing to worry about.

'He said they could take it out or leave it and keep an eye on it.

'I said that I'd prefer for it all to be taken out and tested. I had no idea what it was it was just growing and growing.'

Ms Evans, from Criccieth in Gwynedd, Wales, persisted until in 2022, when a different GP saw the lump and believed it to be a tumour

Following surgery in 2023 to remove the lump, she was diagnosed with a rare-type of tumour that only affects about five in a million people

In 2023, Nansi, underwent a surgery to remove the tumour, and after a six week wait, the family received answers.

She was diagnosed with a desmoid-type fibromatosis (DF)  a rare type of intermediate soft tissue tumour, which sits somewhere between non-cancerous and cancerous.

DF itself is not specifically a cancer, but comes under the umbrella of sarcoma  a group of rare cancers that originate in the bones or soft tissue.

These types of tumours have the capacity to come back at or near the original tumour, but they do not spread, according to Sarcoma UK.

These types of tumours are usually found on the arms, legs or abdomen and can also develop in the head or neck area.

She was diagnosed with a desmoid-type fibromatosis (DF)  a rare type of intermediate soft tissue tumour, which sits somewhere between non-cancerous and cancerous

It's extremely rare and in every million people, around five to six could be expected to develop DF.

However, it's difficult to predict how DF will develop. Sometimes they can be slow growing and they have also been known to get smaller without any treatment, Sarcoma UK says.

'Everything was going around in my mind - what if my daughter has cancer?,' Ms Evans said.

'I wish the doctors would have listened to me.

'It was scary for the whole family  she's my baby and she was only six years old at the time.'

After receiving the shocking diagnosis, the family looked to charity Sarcoma UK for information and support.

After receiving the shocking diagnosis, the family, pictured Leila and Mark Evans on Mount Snowdon, looked to charity Sarcoma UK for information and support

On Saturday, inspired by Nansi's story, the family climbed Mount Snowdon, raising over 1,300 for Sarcoma UK in their five hour climb

'When we found out, the doctor told us that if we're going to Google it, make sure we use the Sarcoma UK website, so that's what I did,' Ms Evans said.

'Within a week of Nansi's diagnosis, Sarcoma UK had posted us a lot of information about what it was and what the next steps were.

'They helped us track our appointments, and told us about what we could do as a family to help her  they've been really good.'

On Saturday, inspired by Nansi's story, the family climbed Mount Snowdon, raising over 1,300 for Sarcoma UK in their five hour climb.

'I've never gone up Snowdon before, so if I was going to do it, it had to be for a good cause - and what could be better than raising money for Sarcoma UK?,' Ms Evans said.

'It was a beautiful day. To begin with, I did struggle, but it was amazing. All I had in my head was "I'm doing it for Nansi."

'I'm over the moon that we've been able to raise this much. My target to begin with was 500, and that was hit in the first few days. I'm extremely happy.'
They key to stopping Alzheimer's disease before it begins could lie in a drug that doctors already use to treat another disease, a landmark new paper suggests.

Researchers from Penn State and Stanford used a type of cancer drug to repair one of the early systems that breaks down in dementia - how the brain uses energy.

The drugs, which worked to restore levels of sugar delivered to nerve cells, reinvigorated the brains of the mice treated with the therapy, protecting their memory and potentially reversing dementia.

This is the first treatment of its kind that promises to treat the causes behind Alzheimer's, not just managing the symptoms of the disease, the study authors said.

The researchers from Penn State (pictured) focused on an entirely new theory as to how Alzheimer's may begin - moving from treating symptoms of the disease to treating the cause

Early on in Alzheimer's disease, cells which deliver energy to neurons stop doing so as efficiently as they would in a normal brain. The researchers targeted this break down

This has potential implications for the nearly 7 million American's currently living with Alzheimer's disease.

By 2050, the Alzheimer's Association predicts that number will reach 13 million - and will cost Americans nearly $1trillion per year.

Dr Melanie McReynolds, a co-author of the paper and a Dorothy Foehr Huck and J. Lloyd Huck Early Career Chair in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Penn State, said: 'In the broader context of aging, neurological decline is one of the biggest co-factors of being unable to age healthier.'

The benefits of understanding and treating metabolic decline in neurological disorders will impact not just those who are diagnosed, but our families, our society, our entire economy.'

Right now, the drugs that exist to treat the disease focus on removing proteins in the brain, called beta-amyloid plaques.

But an increasing amount of neuroscientists suspect these plaques aren't causing dementia and are instead a symptom of the disease.

So treating these plaques is like giving Advil to someone with a cold. It might take away some of their discomfort, but it won't get the bug out of their system.

Instead, this treatment is trying to stop Alzheimer's before the symptoms - including memory loss, confusion and language loss- ever begin.

One of the many things that happen on a molecular level early on in Alzheimer's disease is that neurons stop getting as much sugar, or energy, as they need.

This makes them weaker and sicker, Dr Paras Minhas a resident at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center said.

The researchers looked to this energy-loss as a potential cause of Alzheimer's disease. In their paper, published in published in the journal Science, they targeted an enzyme called indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase (IDO1), which they thought could be behind this break down.

They used a type of drug, called IDO1 inhibitors, which stop the enzyme from working as well and getting in the way of sugar being delivered to neurons.

This is the same kind of drug that is being developed to treat skin, breast and blood cancers. There aren't many of these drugs currently in use.

One, called Verzenio, which is used for breast cancer, runs about $15,000 per month without insurance. It's taken in pill form.

The researchers applied this kind of therapy to mice and to cells they grew in the lab that had signs of Alzheimer's. In both cases, the cancer drugs helped keep cells in the brain that feed neurons healthy - so that they could keep pumping out energy for neurons to use.

This stopped the telltale signs of disease, the beta-amyloid plaques, from forming, Praveena Prasad, a doctoral student at Penn State who contributed to the research, said.

The researchers tested this therapy in mice and in cells they had grown in the lab. Next steps will require testing the theory in more animals, and eventually, in humans

'Were demonstrating that by targeting the brains metabolism, we can not only slow, but reverse the progression of this disease,' she said.

Part of the reason that dementia research is so difficult is because scientists have yet to determine what causes it.

The researchers don't claim that this loss of energy to brain cells is the sole cause behind Alzheimer's, but it is a new theory that could help them untangle the whole mystery.

And this lies in a drug we already have developed, Dr Katrin Andreasson, the lead author from the Stanford University School of Medicine, said.

Dr Andreasson said: 'Inhibiting this enzyme, particularly with compounds that have been previously investigated in human clinical trials for cancer, could be a big step forward in finding ways to protect our brains from the damage caused by aging and neurodegeneration.'

Still, they'll need to test it in more complex animal models, and eventually in humans before it proves widely useful. The drugs could still fail at any point in that process

And even if it succeeds the next rounds of testing, it will still be years before this becomes a widely available treatment for dementia.

Some studies have said that it takes on average 7.5 years for a drug to get through clinical trials in the US. Though because some kinds of IPO1 drugs have already been deemed safe in humans, it likely won't be that long.
This is the moment a father-of-three suffers from a sudden brain bleed that kills up to 50 percent of patients.

Thomas Gallagher, from Michigan, was drinking water in the kitchen after a day out when he suddenly felt a 'barbaric' pain shooting through his head and the back of his neck.

After collapsing on his child's bed and crying out in pain, he was rushed to hospital and then airlifted to a nearby unit  where he was diagnosed with a subarachnoid hemorrhage, or a bleed between the brain and brain lining.

His wife Grace said she feared that when her husband was airlifted to hospital she would never see him again.

Thomas Gallagher, from Michigan, had been on a family day out with four-year-old son Auggie hours before the sudden brain bleed

She wrote on Instagram: 'When they closed the helicopter doors, I thought it might be the last time I would see him.

'Basically, all I was reading was that Tom was about to die.'

Subarachnoid hemorrhages are so deadly because they can cause other blood vessels to tighten  reducing blood flow to the organ and leading to a stroke.

They can also put pressure on the brain, raising the risk of blood vessels inside the organ bursting.

The bleeding is often caused by a weakened blood vessel bursting and bleeding into the space between the brain and its protective membrane.

The main symptom this causes is a sudden and severe headache, which can be mistaken for other conditions and take hours to diagnose.

Treatment normally involves surgery, with a neurosurgeon clipping the ruptured blood vessel closed to halt the bleeding.

Thomas Gallagher is pictured above after suffering from the brain bleed, experiencing the symptom of a sudden and severe headache

Mr Gallagher is pictured above in hospital with his wife Grace as he recovers from his medical episode

Interview: Emilia Clarke, 33, has revealed she now considered the life-threatening brain haemorrhage she had at 24 to be 'a good thing'

The American Heart Association's journal has published a study warning the fatality rate for the condition is between 22 and 50 percent.

In many cases, survivors suffer from long-term complications including paralysis and troubles with their memory and concentration.

About 28,000 people suffer from the strokes every year, typically aged 40 to 60 years old  with a quarter of patients are under the age of 45 years.

The most common cause of the condition in younger age groups is motor vehicle crashes, according to the Cleveland Clinic. High blood pressure, smoking and a family history of the condition may also raise someone's risk of suffering from it.

Previously, Game of Thrones star Emilia Clarke  who plays Daenerys Targaryen  has also suffered from this brain bleed, which started just after she had finished filming for the first series.

She had an emergency three-hour surgery and afterward experienced excruciating pain, vision problems and aphasia  where damage to the brain affects a person's ability to speak and write. At one point, she couldn't remember her own name.

Mrs Gallagher revealed that the family had been on a fishing trip with their eldest Auggie, four, in the hours before the sudden stroke.

Security cameras at home caught the moment the stroke began and the family's prompt reaction.

Mr Gallagher spent ten days in ICU receiving treatment but has now been discharged and sent home for recovery.

His wife says he has 'a lot of limitations' now, including to his strength, stamina and coordination.

The children  including Murphy, two, and Lottie, one  are said to be being very patient with their father and helping with his recovery.

He is not expected to be able to return to running the family's small business, which they say they will now close permanently.

Revealing their battle online, the family is now appealing for donations to help cover medical costs via GoFundMe.

They have so far raised $4,200 out of the $5,500 target.

Mr Gallagher had previously suffered from regular migraines but had never suffered from a severe brain bleed.
In July, my mother-in-law who is in her 80s was shopping in Aldi in Milnrow, Rochdale, when someone stole her purse. Aldi has it on CCTV, the police attended and she has a crime number.

Her debit card was in the purse, so she reported it to Halifax and cancelled the card while still in the store.

She doesn't use internet banking, so it was only when her next statement arrived a month later that she realised the thieves had taken out 750 in cash at an ATM.

This happened almost immediately after they stole the card, over three transactions in the space of six minutes. They also spent a small amount at a mini market.

Halifax didn't mention these transactions when my mother-in-law called to report the missing card, even though they had already happened by that point.

Target: J.C's mother-in-law had her debit card stolen while shopping in Aldi (stock image)

The bank has refused to reimburse her as her Pin was used at the cash machine. It says she must have enabled the thieves to get it, and this was 'gross negligence'.

I believe she has been followed, perhaps while shopping at Aldi - or a different occasion.

She goes there at the same time every week, and it would have been easy for a thief to follow her at the checkout and note down her Pin, before returning the next week for her card.

I think Halifax has acted unfairly and should pay my mother-in-law back, as this wasn't her fault. She was saving for a holiday and now can't go. J.C, Rochdale

Helen Crane, This is Money's consumer champion, replies: I was sad to hear that your elderly mother-in-law was targeted in this way, and hope she isn't too shaken up by the experience.

She said that the staff in Aldi, particularly the security guard, were supportive and helped her contact the police, which I was glad to hear.

Unfortunately, stalking older people at checkouts to find out their Pin number before snatching their card seems to be the latest in a long line of cruel tactics employed by thieves.

CRANE ON THE CASE Our weekly column sees This is Money consumer expert Helen Crane tackle reader problems and shine the light on companies doing both good and bad. Want her to investigate a problem, or do you want to praise a firm for going that extra mile? Get in touch: helen.crane@thisismoney.co.uk

I wrote about a similar case a few months ago, where an older gentleman had his debit card stolen and criminals were able to spend more than 5,500 on jewellery.

As in your mother-in-law's case, he didn't use a banking app or website, so it was only when he received his monthly bank statement that he realised what had happened.

Like her - and countless older people - he also had a regimented routine, and could be spotted at the same shops at the same time each week.

This would have made it easy for a nefarious character to track him, spy his Pin over his shoulder and return on a separate occasion to take the card.

When money is spent that the account holder didn't authorise, Financial Conduct Authority rules state that banks should refund it. However, there are exceptions.

A bank can refuse to give you the money back if it can prove you 'deliberately, or with "gross negligence", failed to protect the details of your card, Pin or password in a way that allowed the payment.'

It's down to the bank to interpret what that means, but common examples might include giving someone your card and Pin, who then went on to steal from you; or having your Pin written on a piece of paper in your wallet.

When your mother-in-law contacted Halifax, it claimed she had acted with gross negligence. But I don't think that is true.

Cross: J.C is upset that Halifax would not pay back his mother-in-law after her card was taken

This was a highly targeted attempt to steal her details, possibly over several weeks. It is quite different to simply being careless with your Pin.

I contacted Halifax to ask if it would reconsider.

I argued that taking out 750 in cash in six minutes was suspicious behaviour, but it said that it was not as you regularly withdrew cash.

However, I am pleased to report that it has paid her back the 752.19, as well as a 75 gesture of goodwill and 4 in lost interest on the money.

You told me she is 'over the moon' and is now booking the holiday she was saving up for.

A Halifax spokesman said: 'We have a great deal of sympathy for [your mother-in-law as the victim of a crime.

'We've spoken with her to let her know we've refunded all of the money that was taken.'

Bun fight: A.M isn't pleased that he received a parking charge notice while visiting McDonalds, as the signs in the car park which showed the time limits were obscured

More McDonalds parking drama...

In February, I finished a night shift at work and headed to McDonalds on a retail park for breakfast at 4am. I ate my food, then napped in my car before driving home. I was parked for just over two hours.

A short time later I received a parking charge notice for 60 from the firm that runs the car park, UK CPM, saying I overstayed the time limit.

However, the signs at the car park in question all have white stickers covering the time limit, making it unreadable. I therefore assumed there was no limit.

I appealed, but this was turned down. UK CPM sent me images of the signs in the car park, but these must have been taken before the stickers were put on.

It's now been sent on to debt collectors. A.M, Essex

Helen Crane replies: This is not the first time I have dealt with a reader complaint about an unfair parking charge received while tucking into an Egg McMuffin.

Obscured: This is what the signs looked like at the time of A.M's visit

Perhaps it's the ubiquity of McDonalds, or its location on retail estates with strictly enforced parking rules, but the fast food chain seems to be something of a magnet for this kind of issue.

You say these signs are catching out customers, and I agree that having the times blanked out would suggest that no limits are in place.

The incident left you with a chip on your shoulder, so I contacted UK CPM.

It explained that you received the charge because you were recorded on the car park's cameras as having stayed for more than the permitted two hours.

It said there were 29 signs explaining this around the retail park in question.

However, it did admit that its car park signs at this location had been vandalised over a period of time, with the length of stay limits often being obscured.

It said it didn't have any recent evidence of the signs being obscured at the time your parking charge notice was issued.

That is despite you sending images of the signs covered in tape to UK CPM when you appealed.

But having revisited the issue, it now accepts that they were vandalised when you received the charge. It has promised to write off your 60 bill.
This is Money has spoken to a number of experts across the field of vehicle security to create a list of 13 tips all car owners should follow to best protect their motors.

We've enlisted the help of Thatcham Research, AA President Edmund King and vehicle crime consultant Dr Ken German - previously head of technology at the Met stolen car squad with a PhD in International Vehicle Crime - to compile the ultimate list of car security tips:

1. Make sure your car is locked in the first place

This may seem obvious, but a large proportion of thefts are a result of the vehicle being left unlocked or criminals using signal jammers that block your key fob from communicating with the car's locks.

Drivers should always check the vehicle is locked and the windows are up after using a key fob. Listen for the locking noise and watch for the lights to flash and - if your car has them - automatic wing mirrors to fold.

2. Don't leave your car engine running to defrost windows

Freezing temperatures can tempt drivers into starting the car's engine to deice or defrost the windows, then returning to the warmth indoors until the windscreen is clear.

It might sound obvious but by leaving a vehicle unattended is a huge security risk, even if it's on your own private driveway. In fact, it is illegal to do this, and your insurer is unlikely pay out for any loss if your car is stolen as a result of this.

Thieves will be checking for stationary cars emitting exhaust smoke or that have wing mirrors that normally are folded in when locked but are clearly not.

3. Keep valuables out of sight

'Out of sight, out of mind'. Remove all valuables from your vehicle to make it less of a target to opportunistic thieves.

4. Do you have an alarm and immobiliser?

Ensure your vehicle has a Thatcham-certified alarm, immobiliser and tracking system fitted. Some insurance policies require the fitment of a tracking device, so it's important any associated subscriptions to monitoring services are maintained.

5. Mechanical security systems - like a steering lock - might seem 'old hat' but are a great deterrent

Steering wheel locks, gear clamps, wheel clamps and other traditional security systems can act as a strong visual deterrent against thieves.

6. Install a doorbell camera or CCTV at your home

Doorbell cameras and CCTV systems are becoming increasingly popular as both a deterrent for car crime and to catch thieves.

Make sure you invest in one that has a night vision mode and crisp HD resolution.

Motion-sensing driveway lighting can also be a strong deterrent.

7. If you have a garage, use it!

If you have a garage, try to make sure there is enough room for your car to fit into it, rather than using it for storage for all types of household clutter.

If you have multiple vehicles, almost prioritise the garage for the one of highest value - and park another car in front of the garage door as an extra precaution.

And if you have electric garage doors, do not keep the transponder inside the vehicle, such as in the glovebox. Victims have subsequently found this to be the reason for their property being burgled.

8. Think about where and how you park overnight

Most car thefts take place under the cloak of darkness, so this is the most important time to consider how secure your vehicle is.

If you don't have a garage but do have a driveway, always park tactically.

For instance, if you have a big driveway, park the car sideways to so any thief will need to manoeuvre it. If your driveway is smaller, park facing your house to increase the chances of you being alerted to the lights coming on. And park with the wheels turned on full lock to extend the time it takes for criminals to make a getaway. Even consider parking another less desirable car in front (or behind) your vehicle to prevent easy removal.

Those with driveways can also purchase lockable barriers to restrict access - and experts advise that a car cover is often a deterrent due to the time it takes to remove one and will look suspicious to neighbours and passersby.

If you do not have off-street parking, try to leave your car in a well-lit area - ideally with CCTV monitoring - and in a position that makes it difficult for a thief to move quickly.

Ken German tells us that some motorists are being extra inventive in their bid to protect their cars. Some previous victims are leaving mannequins in the drivers seat to dissuade unwanted visitors.

9. Check repair centre and bodyshop accreditation to avoid key cloning

If you need to leave your key with a garage or bodyshop, you should check that they are a member of an accredited code of practice/professional standard such as The Motor Ombudsman or The British Parking Association's Park Mark scheme.

This should reduce your chances of falling victim of key cloning.

Also, if you have purchased your vehicle second-hand with only one working key, visit an approved repair centre to have the missing key(s) deleted and add a spare as soon as possible.

10. Consider a dashcam or a car with theft alerts

Dashcams have grown in popularity in recent years, with motorists primarily using them to prove they were not at fault in a crash.

They also act as a great theft deterrent. This is because many of these devices will also record suspicious activity around your car is parked up and you're not in it.

However, make sure you buy one that uploads videos to cloud storage rather than saving it only a memory stick in the dash cam - because you will also lose this if your car is stolen.

Some modern vehicles now offer 'parking mode', which also can also detect and record movement when parked. This can be used as supporting evidence by your insurer and the police.

Many of these alerts will be powered via a smartphone app, so ensure you've activated the feature and turned on notifications.

11. Always wipe stored info from a car before you sell it

Some vehicle apps and connected systems can provide the previous owner with access.

If permissions remain active, ensure that all permissions and data linked to the previous owner are wiped.

12. 'Locust' thieves might strike twice

A new wave of 'locust thieves' exist today who strip cars whilst they're parked at the side of the road and even outside owners' homes.

Many people have woken up to find wheels, bonnets and grills and even doors missing from their cars rendering them undriveable. This is because these parts are becoming more valuable since the pandemic with factory closures and slowdowns meaning some components are not as readily available from manufacturers as pre-Covid.

For instance, a Porsche headlight can be worth up to 1,000 today, which has driven a rise in these parts being stolen. Wing mirrors for top of the range vehicles are also easy-to-steal high-value components.

Ken German warns that falling victim to locust thieves might not be the end of the story. He says owners who have had parts pinched from their car should check around and under the vehicle to ensure thieves have not fitted a tracking device so they can track when the motor is not being used and return at a later date to attempt to steal it.

13. Be aware of scam crash tactics deployed to steal cars

While carjacking still exists today, it is not as prevalent in the UK as it is in some other countries, such as South Africa.

That said, if you are in a high value vehicle you would be wise to drive with the doors locked in traffic.

Also drive defensively when in a queue leaving enough space in front for you to get out of a tight spot should you need to.

If your vehicle is bumped from behind, wait to pull over and find somewhere safe where there are people. If you're suspicious don't unlock the door and call the police.
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See the full GCSE results day 2024 statistics with MailOnline's collection of tables, charts and maps.

Readers can view detailed results across England by subject, from 2008 to 2024, results by gender, a map of results by county and a table showing results by school and subject for last year.

GCSE pass rate (9-4) by county and subject: 2024

This map shows the percentage of pupils who earned a passing grade (9-4) at GCSE in every county in England. You can chose a county by hovering over it or using the search bar.

The map's default view is for all subjects, but it can be filtered by individual subject.

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GCSE results by subject: 2008-24

This graph below shows the the percentage of pupils who got each grade in England from 2008 to 2024.

You can filter the results by subject, such as maths and English, to see how well students did.

The grading system changed from A*-G to 9-1 from 2017, depending on the subject. A 1 is equivalent to a G, a 4 is equivalent to a C, a 7 is equivalent to an A. Both systems have U for ungraded.

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GCSE results by gender: 2008-24

The below line graph shows what percentage of pupils of each gender earned an A/7 or above or a C/4 or above from 2008 to 2024.

The dashed lines represent male GCSE students and the solid line is female pupils.

The graph can be filtered by subject.

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GCSE C/7 rate by school type and subject in England, 2018-2024

The below line graph shows what percentage of pupils earned a passing grade (9-4) at each type of school, such as independent schools, selective schools and academies  and how it has changed in the last few years.

You can click on the different school types in the legend to filter them in and out of the chart.

The graphic can also be filtered by subject.

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GCSE subject popularity, 2008-2024

The graph below shows how many entries there have been into each GCSE subject from 2008 to 2024.

You can select up to five subjects at once to compare which ones are the most popular and how they have changed over time.

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GCSE results by school, 2023

The following table shows GCSE results by school last year. This year's data will not be available until the autumn.

You can search by school or subject using the search bar at the top of the graphic.

The bar chart on the right shows you which proportion of pupils received what grades a subject at a certain school.

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Other GCSE results 2024 graphics

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Patients will be able to order off the 'menu for mob'

A major hospital has defended its introduction of an Aboriginal lounge and a 'menu for mob,' following accusations it is 'separating people by race.'

Canberra Hospital is building an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander lounge as part of a major expansion due to be completed next year.

The lounge, which will feature a yarning circle, is intended to make it more 'culturally safe' for Indigenous patients and their families, a hospital spokesperson has said.

Patients who identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander can also select from the 'Menu for Mob,' featuring options like kangaroo stew.

A Canberra Health Services spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia that the 'menu for mob' had been developed 'to improve cultural safety for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander consumers during their stay, and help them feel supported' while away from their community.

The hospital will next year feature an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Lounge (pictured)

Kangaroo stew, curried sausages and savoury mince are available on the 'menu for mob'

'We have worked closely with our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Consumer Reference Group, to design this welcoming and culturally safe space,' the spokesperson said.

Poll Do you think Canberra Hospital's Aboriginal lounge is the 'right thing to do?' Yes, it makes Indigenous patients feel more safe and supported No, it's 'separating people by race' Do you think Canberra Hospital's Aboriginal lounge is the 'right thing to do?' Yes, it makes Indigenous patients feel more safe and supported 167 votes

No, it's 'separating people by race' 1755 votes Now share your opinion





'The Lounge acknowledges the importance of connection to country, fostering a sense of belonging and enabling Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to access health care in a culturally supportive environment.'

The hospital's expansion was developed in collaboration with representatives of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community.

It includes design features 'that further support connection to country' such as views of the surrounding mountain range and Aboriginal art.

But Sky News host Andrew Bolt accused the hospital of offering an 'apartheid menu'.

'Why are we separating people by race like this? In a public hospital for all Australians of all races, paid for by Australians of all races,' he fumed.

'How on earth does the ACT Labor government and the Albanese Labor government justify funding this apartheid, this kind of state racism, to divide us by race, to care for us by race, even to feed us by race?'

Mr Bolt added: 'If you're concerned about racism, be concerned about this.'
Florida Democatic Rep. Jared Moskowitz goaded Oversight Chairman James Comer to call for a vote on impeaching Joe Biden after Republicans new impeachment report.

House Republicans released a sprawling new report Monday that they claim proves President Joe Biden, 81, committed 'impeachable offenses.'

Comer has finally finished his book report. He's worked really hard on it. He gets a little green star in his star chart, Moskowitz, an Oversight Committee member, told DailyMail.com in an interview at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago.

There's been no evidence on Joe Biden. Joe Biden didn't commit anything wrong. But if they're so insistent, right? Moskowitz went on.

Well, then call for the vote. I called for it. He refused to second it. What are we waiting for? Tick-tock, James.

Florida Democatic Rep. Jared Moskowitz goaded Oversight Chairman James Comer to call for a vote on impeaching Joe Biden after Republicans new impeachment report

Moskowitz has long been a Comer antagonist on the committee, with the Kentucky Republican once calling him a smurf.

Republicans spent nearly a year probing for impeachable offenses for a president who ultimately decided not to run for reelection. Now, Moskowitz predicted, they want to put away their probes into the Biden family and set their sights on Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Vice President Kamala Harris running mate.

They wanted to close this so they can now open up more fake votes. Investigations now into Tim Walz, someone that they weren't even talking about until he became vice president.

The nearly 300-page report compiled Republican findings over the last two years about the Biden family allegedly profiting off Hunter and James Biden's shady business deals by over $27 million through 'influence peddling.'

It also details claims that the Justice Department slow-walked federal probes into Hunter for gun and tax crimes.

Impeachment leaders are presenting the report to the full House, and GOP leadership will have to decide whether or not to put an impeachment vote on the House floor.

Speaker Mike Johnson praised the report - while not revealing whether he'd put impeachment up for a vote.

Moskowitz, an outspoken and pro-Israel Democrat, also shrugged off any concern that a Harris administration would be less of a friend to Israel than Joe Biden.

'You know, people are trying to put that out there, but there has been no shift in policy, none. In fact, if you go look at the platform, it's almost the identical platform as it's been in the past, the DNC platform.'

'It's one of the most pro Israel platforms that we've had. And so I don't expect any shift from the Vice President on Israel policies.'

Comer has finally finished his book report. He's worked really hard on it. He gets a little green star in his star chart, Moskowitz, an Oversight Committee member, told DailyMail.com in an interview at the DNC in Chicago

On Friday Comer launched a probe in to Walz over his ties to China.

In a letter sent to FBI Director Christopher Wray Friday, Comer, R-Ky., expressed his concern over Walz being 'susceptible' to the Chinese Communist Party's influence to the 'detriment' of Americans.

He describes a cozy relationship between the Minnesota governor and the hostile nation, highlighting that the former school teacher has taken an estimated 30 trips to the country - including many field trips he and his wife organized.

Comer is demanding the FBI turn over documents it may have on Walz's communications with Chinese entities and officials to investigate how deeply the ties between the potential vice president and the communist-run country are.

Writing to Wray, Comer said: 'It has come to the Committees attention that Governor Walz has longstanding connections to CCP-connected entities and officials that make him susceptible to the Partys strategy of elite capture, which seeks to co-opt influential figures in elite political, cultural, and academic circles to influence the United States to the benefit of the communist regime and the detriment of Americans.'

In the letter, the Kentucky Republican notes how when the governor was a school teacher he founded a company called 'Educational Travel Adventures, Inc.,' to bring students to China.

The group was run by Walz and his wife Gwen and facilitated trips from 1994 until it was dissolved in 2007, Comer notes.

In addition to the field trips, the Walzs even had their honeymoon in China, just five years after the Tiananmen Square Massacre.

The Democrat has called his experiences visiting the country dozens of times 'amazing.'
Chicago voters are disclosing how they really feel about Vice President Kamala Harris in the presidential contest against Donald Trump as their city grapples with crime.

Most are still backing Harris, but some admit to DailyMail.com that they felt better off under former President Donald Trump and how he handled the economy, a top concern.

Chicago crime stats show the city hit a decade high for murders in 2023, seeing 617 deaths just last year, the most in the nation for a major city. And crime has infiltrated the DNC after a Democratic delegate was robbed at gunpoint by men in ski masks early Wednesday morning.

Speaking to local residents of the windy city during the Democratic National Convention this week, DailyMail.com found many actually have doubts about the Democrat frontrunner who will be making her pitch to voters on the final night of the DNC later today.

'I think Kamala has been doing a lot of the heavy lifting for this administration,' Phil said. But he went on: 'The jury's still out to see what she's going to be offering, specifically minorities, black people, people like the city of Chicago.'

U.S. Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign rally in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S., August 20, 2024. Voters in Chicago expressed admiration and skepticism towards Harris, partially devoted due to party lines, but many were unsure of her political stances

'I'm glad the DNC is here so she can see how the city works and operates,' he continued, disclosing, 'I'm still on the fence as to who I would vote for.'

'Nine times out of 10, it would be that Democratic Party elect, which is Kamala, but the jury's still out.'

'I really don't know what she stands for right now,' Phil told DailyMail.com. 'She's given one interview since she's put herself in the race, so I just want to hear more from her.'

He was not the only one that was unsure of the vice president's ability.

'I don't really have nothing nice to say. I've heard her speak a few times, and I just, I don't know she's just not a really great candidate,' Chicago resident Maritza said.

'I would say same thing with Donald Trump,' she added. 'I'm not really for either one what they support, or where they're trying to put this country.'

However, Maritza did say she was more drawn to Donald Trump because of his economic policies.

'Our economy is really in the dumps right now, and it just really needs to be in a better place. U.S. dollars being [beat] by so many countries, so it's kind of really frightening.'

Maritza told DailyMail.com she is unsure who she will vote for, but is leaning toward Donald Trump if she had to choose between the two

Matt said he is backing Harris because Trump has 'done some stuff that I don't really find too acceptable'

Matt, a Chicago resident in his twenties, told DailyMail.com he is planning on voting for the vice president.

'Probably Kamala just because, I mean, Trump's kind of done some stuff that I don't really find too acceptable, so I'd rather choose the lesser evil.'

He added that her background in law 'brings a lot to the table' while Trump 'was just born with money.'

The crime in Chicago is his top priority in this upcoming election, something that has been increasingly a problem he admits.

Pierre, an immigrant from Haiti, also said he will be backing Harris in November.

'She'll be the first female president,' he told DailyMail.com, adding he likes her immigration policy and hopes to see her implement it from the Oval Office.

Pierre said he is excited to back a racially mixed woman for president

But on the issues he finds most important - crime and the economy - Pierre said Harris still could show improvement, calling her ability on those fronts 'questionable.'

'But I'm quite sure she would learn, you know, how to solve some of those problems.'

Trump, 'has a track record that's not that great,' Pierre added, noting his past bankruptcies.

'I think she'll be a positive role [model] to our whole country, and somebody who probably will unite us, I hope,' Jeannette said of Kamala.

The older Chicago resident who was out running errands did share she does not know much about the vice president's policy record, however.

Some Chicago voters were unsure of Harris's economic policies

Jeannette admitted she does not know many of Harris's policies but likes her nonetheless

'She's done quite a bit of things,' she claimed adamantly before conceding she has 'not kept track of what she's did.'

Ken told DailyMail.com: 'I would definitely support the Democratic ticket. So I would have voted for Joe Biden, and I'm going to vote for Kamala Harris.'

When pressed on what he likes about Harris's record he quickly responded: 'I think that she's in favor of democracy, as opposed to being a fascist dictatorship.'

Joe, a 'lifelong Democrat' was exuberant about the possibility of a Harris presidency.

'I think it would make history that we have our first mixed racial black woman as president of our country.'

'I think it's breaking the glass ceiling, and I'm all for that.'
It's the must-attend event for thousands of teenagers for a post-GCSE all-out celebration - with potentially deadly consequences.

Reading Festival and its sister event in Leeds attract 200,000 music fans every year, including thousands of 16 and 17-year-olds who can attend without adult supervision.

But with a record of deaths, drugs, sexual violence and straight up debauchery, parents are resorting to increasingly desperate measures to keep their children safe, with some even paying their offspring not to go.

Reading and Leeds have both earned unsavoury reputations in recent years following a spate of deaths, spiking incidents and rioting. The final night at Reading has even been nicknamed 'The Purge', in reference to the US film, with violence often breaking out among attendees.

As teenagers across the UK head to pick up their GCSE results this week, parents will be bracing themselves for a weekend of worry while their children pack their bags and head off to the unknown.

It comes as police release new warnings to festival attendees, telling them to be wary of thieves and pickpockets with tips to stay safe - as many teenagers enjoy a taste of unsupervised freedom for the first time.

Reading Festival, and its sister event in Leeds, attract 200,000 music fans every year, including thousands of under 18s

Large fires and violence at Reading and Leeds in 2022 led many music fans to flee the festivals early

David Celino, 16, from Worsley in Greater Manchester, died at Leeds Festival in 2022 after taking ecstasy, or MDMA

In 2022, thousands left early after tents were looted and torched, fights broke out and missiles thrown at rival music fans.

Armed police had to be called to the scene on the Sunday night amid widespread unrest.

Around 50 attendees were forcibly evicted by police officers, who also arrested a man in connection with a needle spiking incident - with witnesses reporting medical tents filled with teenagers who suspected they had been spiked.

Two 17-year-old girls were taken to hospital after being spiked by injection, with one of the victims suffering from severe seizures on her way home.

On August 27, the first victim felt a sharp, throbbing pain in her thigh while in the packed crowd waiting for an act.

She says she turned to see a man withdraw a syringe and disappear into the masses of people.

Soon after, the woman began to feel dizzy and she was taken to the medical tent by her friends. She claims she was told to 'sleep it off' so called her mum to pick her up.

But on the way home, she started having a seizure and her mother took her to hospital.

Anya Buckley, 17, died at Leeds in 2019 and was found to have a cocktail of drugs in her system

In total between 2017 and 2023, it is thought 32 people died at festivals in drug-related incidents (Pictured: Fans at Leeds Festival 2023)

Thousands of young people attend the popular events as a post-GCSE rite every year

Previous years have seen as many as 200,000 festivalgoers across the two events

Parents of youngsters on their way to Reading and Leeds have said they will not sleep for worry

Meanwhile at sister festival Leeds 16-year-old David Celino died after taking an MDMA pill.

The teenager suffered a bad reaction after taking the drug with friends. The group were so worried about getting into trouble for taking the illegal drug, that by the time they sought medical attention it was too late, an inquest heard.

But the coroner ruled that banning under 18s from festivals would be disproportionate after experts argued it would cause a rise in illegal events, which are more unsafe due to a lack of medical or security staff.

Last year enhanced bag checks were in place after the 2022 chaos, which saw festivalgoers waiting in line for hours before they could access the sites.

Police also reported a large rise in the number of arrests for drug-related offences, with 56 detained at Leeds, a rise from 29 in 2022.

David's death followed that of 17-year-old Anya Buckley at Leeds in 2019, with an inquest hearing she had a cocktail of drugs in her system.

Anya suffered a cardiac arrest at Barnham Park and was found to have MDMA, ketamine and cocaine in her body.

In total between 2017 and 2023, it is thought 32 people died at festivals in drug-related incidents, a study for the University of Liverpool found.

It added 18 of those deaths had been confirmed to be drug related, including three cases involving children under 18.

Fans arrive early in the sunshine for early bird camping at Reading prior to the start of the festival on Friday

Groups of music fans headed to Reading as police issued new safety warnings to ravers

Leeds and Reading have earned reputations with worried parents in recent years due to drugs and debauchery

Deaths of young people aged 20 or under linked to drugs have also been reported at festivals including FOMO, Creamfields and Mutiny since 2018.

Professor Fiona Measham, chair in criminology at the University of Liverpool and co-author of the study, found that while just a third of young people have tried illegal drugs, among festivalgoers the figure is 87 percent.

When her research was published last year, Professor Measham said: 'People are more likely to take drugs at festivals than elsewhere and drug markets are especially unpredictable at the moment, with risk of overdose or poisoning from synthetics.'

She added: 'Our research has shown that there is a small but significant number of drug-related deaths at UK music festivals each year.

'It is clear that more needs to be done to reduce drug-related harm, to ensure that everyone can enjoy festivals safely and to prevent any other parents hearing the heart-breaking news that their child won't be coming home.

'While our research has shed light on the issue, currently we're in a situation where we don't know the definite number of drug-related deaths at festivals.

'This makes it extremely difficult for everyone to understand whether the situation is getting better or worse and whether festival health initiatives such as drug checking services, amnesty bins and medical services are effective.'

Parents have described how they will be up all night worrying about their children attending the festivals this year amid safety concerns for young people.

One mother, Caroline Cole, said: 'When did he get old enough to be off to Leeds Festival? I'll not sleep until Monday.'

Another parent, Sarah Davies, added: 'That's this one packed and on his way to Reading festival, hope you have the best time and please stay safe.

'Your mother on the other hand is a bag of nerves.'

What started out as small campfires in 2022 soon became infernos, with reports of tents being set alight while people were sleeping inside

Reading 2022: Many said they left the campsite after feeling the atmosphere turn sour as things became more dangerous

Much of the campsite was set on fire on the festival's final day, with some still burning on Monday morning

And one parent told the Times this week they even resorted to paying their son not to go to the festival, instead of spending the same money on a ticket.

It comes as new figures revealed festivalgoers who have reported serious sexual assaults and rape at Leeds and Reading have seen abysmal charge rates.

Figures unveiled last weekend in The Observer show just four out of 100 reported offences at Leeds and Reading since 2018 have resulted in a prosecution.

Sixteen women reported being raped at Leeds, but not a single one has resulted in prosecution.

Of the four crimes to see a charge brought, three were at Reading and just one at Leeds.

And young people also face the threat of other forms of violence. Just last month, 16-year-old Lee Paton was left in a coma after attending his first festival, TRNSMT, with his girlfriend.

His family said the pair were at the festival when Lee was suddenly attacked by two men in a brutal assault which saw his head stamped on, leaving him with serious injuries including a fractured eye socket.

Police arrested a total of more than 40 people for offences including sexual assault, drug possession and breach of the peace at the festival.

Just weeks later at Boardmasters festival in Cornwall on August 10, a crowd surge resulted in scenes of carnage as terrified teenagers desperately tried to escape during DJ Sammy Virij's set.

Seven people had to be taken to hospital with some suffering broken bones. Several young people were seen desperately trying to rescue their unconscious friend from the crush, while another young woman was pictured covered in blood.

Earlier this summer a set at Boardmasters (pictured) had to be cancelled after a crowd crush

Crowds were seen surging at the Boardmaster music festival in Newquay and seven people were rushed to hospital

A violent brawl broke out at Parklife festival in Manchester this year to the shock of music fans

One man appeared to duck between two other men in the left of the frame to dodge punches and then fell to the ground

This week alone police have appealed for information in two cases after a teenager was sexually assaulted at Y Not Festival and another woman was violently assaulted at a Plymouth music festival earlier this month.

The victim had a drink thrown in her face, chunks of her hair ripped out, and was punched in the jaw by another woman, police said.

And earlier this year a huge brawl broke out at Parklife in Manchester as 52 people were arrested, including for possessing drugs and weapons.

Police forces in West Yorkshire and the Thames Valley are now bracing for a busy bank holiday weekend as Leeds and Reading are set to get underway.

West Yorkshire Police has issued new warnings to attendees, telling them not to take drugs and to keep their belongings safe.

The force said in a statement: 'Drug taking of any kind will not be tolerated at the festival.

'Security checks on your way into the site will be stringent and staff are adept at finding drug stashes. The law at Leeds Festival has to be enforced, just as it would be any other part of the country.

'No drugs are safe to use; often drugs are sold as one type of drug but are in fact another. You cannot guarantee what you are buying.'

Other advice tells ravers to limit valuables, split up cards and cash and avoid carrying backpacks.

Police also advise not to bury valuables or leave them in a tent, and to store them at the bottom of sleeping bags while sleeping.

Parents will be hoping the enhanced bag checks from 2023 will mean a largely safe trip for their offspring this weekend - but police will be taking no chances.
Katie Piper has been told that she will have to wait until November to hear the parole appeal for the stalker who ordered a devastating acid attack on the model.

Daniel Lynch, a former boyfriend of Piper, has been allocated a private two-day parole appearance on November 17th and 18th after having a hearing in July adjourned before it started.

It is not known why the original hearing was delayed, but the nature of the crime and its high profile means the panel will seek detailed reports from all interested parties, including prison officers and psychiatrists.

Katie, 40, is believed to have provided a detailed Victim Impact Statement for the July appeal which will now be used in November, unless she asks to change any of it. The hearing delay is reported to have caused her huge anxiety.

The Loose Women star previously said Lynch's release was on her mind. She said: 'I'm 40 this year. Am I going to die in the next ten years? I don't actually know. The people that attacked me will be released. Are they going to kill me? I'm not sure.'

A spokesperson for the Parole Board said: 'An oral hearing has been listed for the parole review of Daniel Lynch and is scheduled to take place in November 2024.

Katie Piper (pictured in 2023) was just 24 in March 2008 when the harrowing acid attack happened. She needed 400 operations after being left with severe burns

Daniel Lynch (pictured) had hoped to be released after spending 15 years in jail

'Parole Board decisions are solely focused on what risk a prisoner could represent to the public if released and whether that risk is manageable in the community.

'A panel will carefully examine a huge range of evidence, including details of the original crime, and any evidence of behaviour change, as well as explore the harm done and impact the crime has had on the victims.

'Members read and digest hundreds of pages of evidence and reports in the lead up to an oral hearing.

'Evidence from witnesses including probation officers, psychiatrists and psychologists, officials supervising the offender in prison as well as victim personal statements are then given at the hearing.

'The prisoner and witnesses are then questioned at length during the hearing which often lasts a full day or more.

'Parole reviews are undertaken thoroughly and with extreme care. Protecting the public is our number one priority.'

Lynch, now 47, wants to be freed from jail, but if the panel rejects this move, he is asking to be sent to an open prison and a precursor to eventual release.

The three person parole board can also reject the appeal, which will mean Lynch will stay in prison for a further two-years until he is eligible for another hearing.

Lynch was jailed for life with a minimum term of 16 years in May 2009 at London's Wood Green crown court for the rape of Piper and for telling Stefan Sylvestre to throw acid on her.

Sylvestre, then 19, who threw the acid, was given a life sentence, with a minimum term of six years, in 2009 and released on licence in 2018.

Katie pictured in October 2009 after she was attacked with sulphuric acid

After Katie ended their relationship, Lynch bombarded her with phone calls. He was on the phone to her as she walked down a street in Golders Green, north London, when Sylvestre threw sulphuric acid in her face

Since the attack Katie has rebuilt her life and was awarded an OBE for charity and burns services in the New Year Honours 2022

In 2022, he was recalled to prison for breaching his licence conditions, with police issuing an arrest warrant after it was thought he had left the UK.

Katie was just 24 in March 2008 when the harrowing attack happened. She needed 400 operations after being left with severe burns.

Lynch, who had a previous conviction for pouring boiling water over a man, was said to have become obsessively jealous after briefly dating Piper before the attack.

After she ended their relationship, Lynch bombarded her with phone calls. He was on the phone to her as she walked down a street in Golders Green, north London, when Sylvestre threw sulphuric acid in her face.

In March, former Met detective Peter Bleksley described Lynch's bid for freedom and Sylvestre being on the run as 'utterly abhorrent'.

'The victim in this case has been through an utterly horrific ordeal. With one defendant having fled the country and the other out potentially in weeks, I imagine she feels the system has badly let her down.

'I can fully understand why she would think like that. It's appalling. It is utterly abhorrent.'

In June last year, the Loose Women star said Lynch's release was on her mind. She said: 'I'm 40 this year. Am I going to die in the next ten years? I don't actually know.

'The people that attacked me will be released. Are they going to kill me? I'm not sure.'
Vice President Kamala Harris once promoted the idea where police officers were no longer needed as first responders in American communities, in a surprisingly naive assessment of law enforcement considering her background.

In June 2019, then-Senator Kamala Harris appeared at the Poor Peoples Campaign Forum as a presidential candidate in the Democratic primary where she was asked about demilitarizing police departments across the country.

But Harris appeared interested in taking police departments out of the business of responding to public calls for help such as 911 first response.

[W]e really need to get to a point where communities frankly dont need, dont need a law enforcement response to whats happening in their communities because they are safe communities, Harris said.

'Defund the police' advocates argue that a better response to 911 calls would be publicly funded unarmed mental health professionals, to prevent violent clashes with suspected criminals.

Kamala Harris promoted the idea of defunding the police during her first failed presidential campaign

Harris comments about removing law enforcement took place prior to the death of George Floyd while in custody of the Minneapolis Police Department, which inflamed racial tensions with black Americans and the law enforcement community.

Her remarks were directly opposed with the message she sent as a District Attorney in San Francisco and Attorney General of California, where she praised the idea of adding more police officers to communities.

[I]f we take a show of hands of those who would like to see more police officers on the street, mine would shoot up, she wrote in her 2009 book Smart on Crime where she proposed ways to improve the safety of communities.

California Attorney General Kamala Harris briefs the media with law enforcement officials

As San Francisco District Attorney, Kamala Harris backed the idea of putting more police officers into local communities

A more visible and strategic police presence is a deterrent to crime and it has a positive impact on a community, she continued.

After Floyds death, Harris fully embraced the Black Lives Matter as a movement in June 2020, shifting her position on the use of police force.

For far too long the status quo thinking has been to believe that by putting more police on the street youre going to have more safety. And thats just wrong, thats not how it works, Harris said.

In an interview with Power 106 Los Angeles host Nick Cannon, Harris indicated she supported idea of completely reimagining the duties of a police officer.

California State Attorney General Kamala Harris speaks to California Democrats, May 16, 2015, in Anaheim, Calif.

Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., appears for a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing on Capitol Hill

We have to reimagine public safety in America, Harris said. Its been upside down, for too long, people have confused achieving public safety with putting more cops on the street.

Harris also praised Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti for his decision to reduce police funding by $150 million.

I applaud Mayor Garcetti for doing what hes done, she said during an interview with ABC's Good Morning America.

She called for governments to reevaluate their funding for police departments, suggesting it was a poor use of public funds.

Weve got to reexamine what were doing with American taxpayer dollars and ask the question, are we getting the right return on our investment? Are we actually creating healthy and safe communities? Harris asked.
Donald Trump said Wednesday he would not be getting intelligence briefings as the Republican nominee for president for fear of being accused of leaking classified information.

U.S. spy agencies offer briefings to presidential candidates once they have secured their party's nomination to prepare them for life as commander in chief.

But after the F.B.I. recovered government documents including classified papers at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida, critics questioned whether Trump could be trusted with sensitive information.

In an exclusive interview with DailyMail.com, the former president said he could now get the briefings if he wanted them but sensed a trap.

'I don't want them, because, number one, I know what's happening. It's very easy to see what's happening,' he said before attacking President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, his newly installed election opponent.

As the Republican Party's official nominee for president, Donald Trump is entitled to intelligence briefings. He told DailyMail.com that he doesn't want them

'We have an incompetent leader, and we have two incompetent leaders.

'We have a Marxist that's going to try and be president, and this country is not ready for a Marxist or a communist president, and that's what she is.

'She destroyed San Francisco, she destroyed California, and this country is not ready for it.

'So I don't want that, because as soon as I get that, they'll say that I leaked it.

'So the best way to handle that situation is, I don't need that briefing. They come in, they give you a briefing, and then two days later, they leak it, and then they say You leaked it.

'So the only way to solve that problem is not to take it I don't want it understood. I'll have plenty of them when I get in.'

Trump made his comments after a major set-piece speech in Asheboro, North Carolina, where he laid out his national security priorities, including demanding the resignations of officials involved in the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Intelligence briefings have been given to presidential nominees ever since President Harry Truman introduced them in the early 1950s.

They are designed to prepare candidates for office and ensure a smooth transition of power.

The briefings are conducted by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Trump spoke to DailyMail.com at the North Carolina Aviation Museum on Wednesday

On Monday Trump addressed the economy, on Tuesday it was law and order, and on Wednesday he set out his national security message of 'peace through strength'

And unlike the president's daily brief, when the commander in chief is caught up on threats to the nation and other developments every morning, these tend to be one-off sessions as matters dictate.

Former presidents are also generally offered the courtesy of briefings to keep them abreast of national security developments.

However, in 2021 Biden said he had barred his successor from briefings because of his 'erratic behavior.'

'I just think that there is no need for him to have the intelligence briefings,' he said, weeks after taking power.

It set off a storm of allegations that Trump was subject to double standards, when Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Jimmy Carter were all then getting briefings.

Two years later, Trump was charged with mishandling government documents after an FBI search of his home. The charges were dismissed by a Florida court last month,

By then the allegations had already led to fresh questions about whether Trump should be afforded briefings as the Republican nominee.

Thousands of people waited for hours to hear Trump speak on Wednesday as he criss-crosses battleground states while Democrats hold their convention in Chicago, Illinois

Trump faced 40 felony counts accusing him of willfully retaining documents after leaving office. But the case was dropped last month although prosecutors have appealed that decision

And the issue took on added urgency earlier this year when Trump romped to victories in his party's primaries. Intelligence officials were quick to say that he would be offered briefings after the party conventions as usual, whether or not he was convicted of mishandling documents.

The aim is more complicated than preparing the candidates for office, according to Mike Morrell, former CIA deputy director and who delivered the daily intelligence briefing to President George W. Bush.

'The objective is to protect national security during the campaign by giving the candidates a deep sense of the national security landscape,' he told the Cipher Brief.

'Let me explain: both our adversaries and our allies and partners will be listening closely, extremely closely, to what the candidates say about the issues during the campaign, and saying the wrong thing could damage our national security.

'The briefings are meant to help prevent that.'
Hilarious footage captured the moment a man bleeding from the head refused demands to leave an American Airlines flight from Miami while his wife complained about pains from her 'breast lift.'

Eugenio Ernesto Hernandez-Garnier, 27, was bleeding profusely from hair transplant wounds when he boarded a flight at Miami International Airport alongside his wife Yusleydis Blanca Loyola, 32.

The couple had flown from Las Vegas for a hair transplant and liposuction.

But on the way home, passengers on the flight alerted attendants to concerns of Hernandez-Garnier's bleeding head, which caused a fracas onboard the flight

The pair repeatedly refused to disembark the flight, causing officers to move in and apprehend them.

Eugenio Ernesto Hernandez-Garnier, 27, had flown from Las Vegas to Miami alongside his wife Yusleydis Blanca Loyola, 32, for a hair transplant

As chaos ensued onboard, Loyola went live on TikTok as thousands watched police officers question her husband over the wounds.

According to NBC Miami, she tells viewers: 'You guys know Ive got [a] breast lift, arm lipo. I cant even walk. Call 911 we are being discriminated against and abused.'

Hernandez-Garnier's mugshot shows him with his bandages taken away and blood pouring from his scalp after his hair transplant

An officer can be heard telling Hernandez-Garnier: 'If you don't get off, they're going to grab you and they're going and they're going to pull you off'.

Loyola can be seen standing in the aisle while Hernandez-Garnier adds: 'If they take me off, they're going to hurt me.'

Two officers then stand Hernandez up and place his arms around his back, causing him to scream out in pain.

His wife can be heard shouting: 'Look, he's recently operated on, he's just been operated on!'

One officer apparently makes a grab for her phone, to which she responds: 'Do not put my phone down! He's just been operated on and they're hitting him.'

As she is apprehended and ushered away she can be heard screaming and crying out: 'My breasts!'

An officer can be heard telling Hernandez-Garnier: 'If you don't get off, they're going to grab you and they're going and they're going to pull you off'

Two officers then stand Hernandez up and place his arms around his back, causing him to scream out in pain

Speaking with the outlet after the pair were released from custody, Hernandez-Garnier said he had been provided with documentation proving they could fly.

After showing this to a flight attendant, Hernandez-Garnier said they told him that they didn't care.

He said: 'She tells me you either go out, or Im gonna call the police. I said, call the police, because thats injustice.

'I paid my flight. I dont have nothing illegal in my packet. Everything is fine.'

After being arrested, the couple were taken to a medical facility to have the bleeding checked before being taken to Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.

Hernandez-Garnier's mugshot shows him with his bandages taken away and blood pouring from his scalp after his hair transplant.

After being arrested, the couple were taken to a medical facility to have the bleeding checked before taken to Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.

Speaking with the outlet after the pair were released from custody, Hernandez-Garnier said he had been provided with documentation proving they could fly

According to police, all other passengers were forced to leave the plane as well, causing the flight to be delayed.

Miami-Dade County police spokesperson Argemis Colome said; ' This could have all been avoided if they would have just followed the commands or the request of the officers to vacate the aircraft.'

In a statement, American Airlines said: 'During boarding of American Airlines flight 1858 on Aug. 19 with service from Miami (MIA) to Las Vegas (LAS), two customers became disruptive and were non-compliant with crew member instructions.

'Law enforcement responded and removed both customers from the aircraft. We thank our crewmembers for their professionalism and apologize to our customers for the inconvenience.'
An Australian tradesman is being evacuated from Bali today after a moped crash left him in a coma, producing massive medical bills due to not taking out travel insurance.

Shane Ramsey, 30, had been visiting Bali for a close friend's wedding and was riding a moped in Seminyak on Sunday when he crashed into a roadside pole.

The 30-year-old was rushed to hospital where he underwent brain surgery and has been in a coma since.

He was not wearing a helmet and does not have travel insurance, which would have only cost about $50 a week.

His family have already paid $70,000 for him to undergo emergency neurosurgery, while hospital bills cost $9,000 a day.

Mr Ramsey will leave the hospital in Kuta on Thursday to head home on a medical evacuation flight to Perth, which will cost around $150,000.

He and his family will leave the Indonesian island about 11.30am and land in Western Australia shortly before 5pm.

Shane Ramsey is in a coma in a hospital in Bali following a moped crash. His mother Catherine is by his side

An ambulance will meet them on the tarmac and Mr Ramsay will be transported to the intensive care unit at Perth Royal Hospital.

His mother, Catherine Ramsey, flew from Perth to be by her son's side immediately after the crash.

She told Daily Mail Australia Mr Ramsey has suffered three bleeds on the brain - necessitating the surgery - and a fractured skull.

'He is stable at the moment but the actual extent of the damage to his brain is unknown at this stage,' she said.

'He's still in a coma and we won't know for a few days yet what the end result will be.

'All I know is it's extensive damage and we don't know if he will come out of the coma or if he will have lasting issues.

'We're holding on, we just feel numb at the moment.'

Mr Ramsey was on his way to watch a UFC fight with friends when the accident happened.

His mother earlier told Nine News she would sell their family home to pay for his medical bills if she had to.

'I just want to get him home, we're in a strange country,' she said.

The family of Perth carpenter, Shane Ramsey (pictured), have revealed the horrifying extent of his injuries after crashing his moped while on holiday in Bali

The young tradie has been in hospital since Sunday and his family say they don't know the full extent of his injuries

Doctors remain unsure of the extent of the damage caused to his brain.

Mr Ramsey had plans to buy a property when he returned home.

A GoFundMe was launched on Monday to help pay for Mr Ramsey's medical bills and the potential medical evacuation home.

More than $105,000 has been raised at time of publication.

Mr Ramsey had just completed a three year apprenticeship and was looking forward to the future ahead.

The carpenter's former boss also took to Facebook on Monday to raise awareness about the fundraiser.

He recalled bumping into his former apprentice a few weeks ago.

'You forget how f***ing fragile life can be (and) how quick everything can change,' he wrote.
Donald Trump said Wednesday he was giving up being nice to the Obamas, after they used their speeches at the Democratic convention to mock his record, his crowd sizes and even his manhood.

He called former first lady Michelle 'nasty' and said they had been the ones calling for more policy, less poison before launching their own personal attacks.

A day earlier he had even said he had respect for the couple.

'I'm trying to be nice to these people,' he told DailyMail.com after coming offstage at a rally in Asheboro, North Carolina, his first outdoor appearance since being shot.

'They were lousy presidents, and you know this one coming. It's the worst.'

Former President Donald Trump spoke exclusively to DailyMail.com at the North Carolina Aviation Museum after finishing his first outdoor rally since being shot last month

He pivoted to attack Kamala Harris, his new opponent since Joe Biden dropped out of the race last month.

'She makes Obama look like ... I mean, forget it ... She's a radical Marxist person that ruined everything in her path.'

Trump used his rally and interview to underline his case that Harris is a danger to the nation, as he tries to define the Democratic candidate in the eyes of voters.

But the Obamas' appearance a day earlier revived an old rivalry.

Trump and Obama have long had a prickly relationship, with the 44th president still furious about the way 45th president questioned his nationality with the 'birther' claim that Obama was not born in the U.S.

Michelle Obama has become a particular target for some Trump supporters, who share memes suggesting she is transgender.

'I don't know who would do that. I certainly wouldn't say that,' said Trump.

'No, no. But she is very nasty to me. I mean, look, they say, Oh, don't be personal. Talk about policy. I want to talk about policy.... But people say, don't get personal, but then they get personal.'

The Obamas were the big draws at their party's convention on Tuesday.

He accused Michelle Obama and her husband of saying they wanted to less poison in politics, only to attack him. 'She is very nasty to me,' he said

The Obamas were the headline act of the Democratic convention in Chicago on Tuesday

The former president appeared to make a joke disparaging Trump's manhood

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And they used their prime time moment to attack Trump.

'His limited, narrow view of the world made him feel threatened by the existence of two hard-working, highly educated, successful people who happen to be black, Michelle Obama said.

'I want to knowI want to knowwho's going to tell him, who's going to tell him, that the job he is currently seeking might just be one of those "Black jobs"?'

Her husband described Trump as a 78-year-old billionaire with a long list of grievances, that had got longer since he became 'afraid of losing to Kamala.'

'Theres the childish nicknames, the crazy conspiracy theories, this weird obsession with crowd sizes,' he said, making a hand gesture as if to suggest he was mocking Trump's manhood.

Earlier Tuesday Trump stunned critics when he was asked about their appearance.

Trump and Obama have long had a frosty relationship. They are seen here at the White House during the transition period after Trump won the 2016 election and before Obama left office

'I think he's a nice gentleman, but he was very weak on trade' he told CNN.

'I happen to like him. I respect him and I respect his wife.'

That was all forgotten by the time he took the stage at the North Carolina Aviation Museum, where he appeared behind bulletproof glass.

It was billed as an event on national security. But as ever Trump used the excitable crowd, some of whom had slept in their cars to secure good seats, to attack his enemies and make his audience laugh.

Starting with the Obamas.

'You know, they always say, "Sir, please stick to policy, dont get personal,'" Trump said.

'And yet they're getting personal all night long, these people. Do I still have to stick to policy?'
Former President Donald Trump took aim on Wednesday at claims in a new biography of Queen Elizabeth II that she found him 'very rude' as the work of a 'sleazebag' with a book to sell.

Speaking exclusively to DailyMail.com, he said they had spent hours together and had warmed to each other during their meetings.

'I heard I was her favorite president,' he said.

The sensational claims are made in an upcoming biography, 'A Voyage Around the Queen,' by Craig Brown.

He writes how the late queen confided in another guest that she had 'particularly disliked' the way he looked over her shoulder as if in search of someone more interesting.

Donald Trump took aim on Wednesday at claims in a new biography of Queen Elizabeth II that she found him 'very rude' as the work of a 'sleazebag' with a book to sell

'She also believed President Trump "must have some sort of arrangement" with his wife Melania, or else why would she have remained married to him?' he writes in excerpts published by the Daily Mail.

Trump, 78, said there was simply no truth in the account.

'It was totally false. I have no idea who the writer is, but it was really just the opposite,' Trump told DailyMail.com after a campaign rally in Asheboro, North Carolina.

'I had a great relationship with the queen. She liked me and I liked her.'

Trump is currently running to regain the White House, but has slipped in the polls ever since President Joe Biden dropped out to be replaced by his vice president, Kamala Harris.

And he has spoken repeatedly of his adoration for the British Royal Family, saying he inherited his fondness from his Scottish mother.

One of his earliest memories is watching the coronation by her side.

He met her in 2018, after becoming president during a visit marred by protests in London. They met informally for tea during a trip that was pared down to avoid even bigger protests.

Cheers to you: Trump and Elizabeth II clinked glasses after delivering remarks. The president ordinarily drinks white grape juice at such functions whereas the Queen drank water

Queen Elizabeth II sits with Donald Trump at an event to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings, in Portsmouth, on June 5, during the then president's state visit

Queen Elizabeth and Donald Trump are pictured inspecting the Guard of Honor at Windsor Castle in July 2018. The former president said meeting the late monarch was one of the highlights of his time in office

A year later he got to enjoy all the pomp of a state visit, which included a full state banquet.

Although he avoided any major gaffes, he broke royal protocol by placing his hand on her back while toasting her as a 'great, great woman' at the dinner.

Trump said he had been smeared by a writer trying to promote a book.

'I spoke to her often, and I spoke to her in particular when I was there,' he said.

'We spent hours together at a state dinner. She was a fantastic woman. I think it's a shame that a sleazebag can write an article that's totally false.'

Trump held his first outdoor rally since being shot in Asheboro, North Carolina. Extra security measures included a panel of bulletproof glass in front of him, and three behind

Thousands of supporters turned out to hear him speak on Wednesday afternoon

Buckingham Palace has stayed out of the controversial and generally avoids any comment on books or biographies.

Trump, however, insisted his trips had been a resounding success.

'She said it to friends of mine that "President Trump was my favorite president,'" he said

'And then you have this guy looking for some publicity for a book that probably is phony, and a lot of other ways too.

'Now I know nothing about him. I have no idea who he is.

'We had an unbelievable relationship. She was an amazing woman.'

Trump discussed national security, Afghanistan, and his race against Kamala Harris in a wideranging interview on Wednesday after holding his first outdoor rally since being shot.
Up to 100 cargo, domestic and international flights could be disrupted at Sydney Airport on Friday as more than 50 airport workers walk off the job.

Sydney Airport refuellers will hold 12 hours of strikes over a pay dispute with transport fuels giant Ampol Aviation.

Ampol Aviation services 16 airlines including Qantas, Virgin, Jetstar, Air New Zealand, Delta and British Airways.

Refuellers have only seen a 3.5 per cent pay rise over the past three years, according to the Transport Workers Union, however, the cost of living has risen by more than 15 per cent.

Workers are also demanding secure employment as only 24 out of 68 employees hold full-time positions.

TWU NSW and Queensland state secretary Richard Olsen said workers have no choice but to strike.

'These workers are dedicated professionals who deserve better. Ampol's refusal to address their reasonable requests has left them with no choice but to take action,' he said.

'In an industry where profits are soaring, it's unacceptable that those who keep it running are treated so poorly.'

Up to 100 cargo, domestic and international flights could be disrupted at Sydney Airport on Friday as more than 50 airport workers walk off the job.

The strikes are set to span multiple shifts on Friday, including the night shift (1am-5am), day shift (7am-11am), and the afternoon shift (6pm-10pm).

It follows the Fair Work Commission last week rejecting Ampol Aviation's claim the TWU hadn't bargained in good faith.

Long domestic routes, including flights to Perth and Darwin, are most likely to be affected by the action, as well as long-haul international flights and east coast flights to Melbourne and Brisbane.

A Sydney Airport spokesperson urged travellers to stay alert for messages from airlines on Friday.

'We are ready to support our airline partners in mitigating the impact on their operations,' the spokesperson said.

'Passengers who are travelling on Friday are encouraged to stay alert for messages from their airline regarding the status of their flight.'

A statement from Ampol Aviation expressed disappointment over the strike action.

'Ampol is disappointed that the Transport Workers' Union has again made threats of industrial action. Ampol has offered a 25.6 per cent remuneration and other benefit uplift over the life of the agreement and continues to work with its employees and bargaining representatives on resolving the matter,' the statement read.

'Should any employees participate in the TWU's proposed action, we have contingencies in place to minimise operational disruptions for customers.

'We will continue to negotiate in good faith to arrive at a mutually beneficial resolution.'
Elias Jimenez and Maria Martinez were charged with attempted murder and other charges for an Aug. 6, shooting on Interstate 880 that resulted in a crash and fire. Mark Wineman/Getty Images

A man and a woman were charged this week with attempted murder in a road rage-fueled shooting that caused the victim to crash on Interstate 880 in San Leandro.

Elias Jimenez, 22, and Maria Martinez, 43, were arrested last week and remained in jail as of Wednesday afternoon. Martinez pleaded not guilty Tuesday to the charges. It was not immediately clear if Jimenez entered a plea.

The victims were a 33-year-old woman and her 13-year-old son. They were headed north on I-880 in a gray Chevrolet Impala around 7:40 p.m. on Aug. 6, according to court records.

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The woman told authorities a driver in a sedan cut her off, then stayed in her path intentionally moments before the front-seat passenger in the car pointed a gun at her. She said she heard gunshots before the two vehicles crashed. The woman then lost control of the Impala, which crashed into the center divider near Washington Avenue and caught fire.

The woman and her son were taken to a hospital, though authorities did not say whether either was shot. The Impala sustained a bullet hole on the passenger side, according to court records.

License-plate reader cameras in the city of San Leandro helped the California Highway Patrol track down the suspects car.

In addition to attempted murder, Jimenez and Martinez were charged with assault with a firearm, shooting at an occupied car and other charges. Jimenez also faces special gun-related allegations.

Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price called the shooting beyond dangerous and said the charges and allegations reflect the seriousness of the alleged crimes, as well as her commitment to hold individuals accountable for gun violence.

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A man who was on Centrelink for five years before he was allegedly busted with a Lamborghini, a Harley Davidson and two Rolex watches has been identified.

Mahmoud Bargshoon, 39, was charged on August 16 with dishonestly possessing and tampering with a unique identifier.

Unique identifiers are a series of numbers that are assigned to a person by an organisation.

They can include things such as a drivers licence number, a passport number or student ID.

Police had launched an investigation in May into the unexplained wealth of individuals with alleged links to organised crime networks.

Their investigation led them to a unit in Parramatta, in Sydney's west, in July, where they found and seized a Lamborghini Huracan, a Harley Davidson V-Rod and two Rolex watches.

The seized items have a combined value over $500,000.

Footage from Bargshoon's arrest also showed a shoe rack stacked with a range of Nike kicks - a premium brand of footwear - and a large flat-screen TV mounted on the wall in the loungeroom.

Mahmoud Bargshoon, 39, was charged on August 16 with dishonestly possessing and tampering with a unique identifier

Bargshoon was on Centrelink for five years before he was allegedly busted with a Lamborghini, a Harley Davidson and two Rolex watches

The 39-year-old has been on the dole since 2019 and was dragged out of the unit by heavily armed police in just his underwear.

Bargshoon earlier found himself in media reports over a dispute between his wife Fatima Hage and his ex-girlfriend Rose over a Rolex.

Rose had accused him of stealing her luxury watch before allegedly gifting it to Ms Hage, a glamorous hairdresser.

Ms Hage firmly denied the allegations on her husband's behalf to Daily Mail Australia, and claimed that she wore a different watch.

The $12,500 two-toned diamond time-piece was the subject of a months-long feud between the two women.

Before the relationship ended, Rose had her suspicions, and confronted Bargshoon, who denied he had the timepiece.

Daily Mail Australia is not suggesting Bargshoon stole the watch.

Ms Hage's former lover Kemel Junior 'Blackie' Barakat was gunned down by masked men as she lay beside him in bed in a unit in Mortlake, in the city's south, about 2.30am on March 10, 2017.

Sydney hairdresser Fatima Hage, 30, is married to Bargshoon

During the search, detectives located and seized a Lamborghini Huracan, a Harley Davidson V-Rod and two Rolex watches

Following Bargshoon's arrest, his Lamborghini Huracan and Harley were taken away by authorities.

Bargshoon earlier had another $400,000 Lamborghini Huracan he'd been renting torched on a street in Olympic Park, in western Sydney, in May last year.

Police had been searching for two people who were seen carrying jerry cans moments before the blaze broke out but no charges have been laid.

Bargshoon has meanwhile been issued a Court Attendance Notice to appear before Parramatta Local Court on Friday 4 October 2024.
A California Innocence Project lawyer is accused of offering a convicted murderer millions of dollars in exchange for testimony that freed another killer.

Paige Kaneb, the legal director of the Northern California Innocence Project, allegedly conspired with civil attorney Terry Gross to convince Marritte Funches to testify and incriminate himself as they worked to overturn the murder conviction of Maurice Caldwell.

Kaneb and Gross even promised Funches half of any funds Caldwell won in a 2021 civil lawsuit against the city of San Francisco if he claimed he killed Judy Acosta in 1990 - and Caldwell was innocent, according to a complaint obtained by The San Francisco Standard.

The alleged deal was then discussed in taped conversations between Caldwell and Funches in 2023, as Funches had sexual relations with Kaneb.

He now claims that even though Gross had reached an $8million settlement with the city for fabrication of evidence, he never received any funds - and filed a complaint against the two lawyers instead.

Paige Kaneb, the legal director of the Northern California Innocence Project, is accused of conspiring with civil attorney Terry Gross to convince Marritte Funches to testify and incriminate himself

He alleges in the complaint filed with the State Bar of California that Gross and Kaneb visited him at the Sterling, Colorado prison - where he was serving a life imprisonment for a 1990 murder in Las Vegas - in 2015.

The lawyers then asked him to testify to his guilt in Acosta's death - and to deny his relationship with Kaneb, Funches claims.

According to his complaint, Funches initially balked at the request, but Kaneb told him if he did not help them, she could lose her law license as the city was 'accusing her of inappropriate behavior' with him.

Funches said he then agreed to cooperate - only if he received half of the money Caldwell won and receives his own legal help.

The lawyers apparently agreed, according to the complaint.

Text messages obtained by The Standard show Caldwell also agreed to the terms.

Funches claims in a complaint to the State Bar of California the two attorneys promised him half of any funds Maurice Caldwell won in a 2021 civil lawsuit against the city of San Francisco if he claimed he killed Judy Acosta in 1990 - and Caldwell was innocent

He first told Funches that he never offered him anything in exchange for his testimony.

'My lawyers... never said nothing,' about a deal, Caldwell wrote in one text.

But when Funches hit back, writing, 'We made a f***ing deal,' Caldwell replied that his attorneys made the promise without his knowledge and he was informed after the fact.

'Terry and them did some snake s***and involved Paige in that s***,' he wrote.

By February 2024, Caldwell also seemed to have agreed to pay for Funches' attorney.

'I will provide the full $ funds for full legal representation,' he told Funches, adding that he would leave it up to Kaneb to handle the details.

In another text, Caldwell said he spoke with Gross 'and he was willing to legally support in assisting us.'

He said he also spoke to the civil attorney 'as well about me handling the full legal financial representation of your case.'

Caldwell never wound up providing Funches with money or legal aid, however, and maintains his innocence in the Acosta murder.

Gross had secured an $8million settlement with the city for fabrication of evidence in Caldwell's case, but Funches says he was never paid

Caldwell claims he had no knowledge of the deal, and that his attorneys made it behind his back

The two attorneys have also denied any wrongdoing, with Gross telling The Standard in June that Funches' claims are 'patently unbelievable, are plainly false and which I categorically deny.'

He argued that no one would have any reason to pay for Funches' cooperation because he repeatedly declared his guilt in the Acosta murder - and Caldwell's innocence.

Kaneb has also proclaimed her innocence - instead accusing Funches of trying to extort $2 million from her by threatening to go to the press about their relationship.

'I recorded every phone call, kept every text. And copies of every video. You can try to clean it up. But you'll never practice law again. Your career is done,' he reportedly wrote in an email to Kaneb obtained by the San Francisco Chronicle.

He would later make good on his threat and released what he said was their correspondence to the Standard.

Funches said at the time that he helped Kaneb find new witnesses for Caldwell's 2010 retrial, but that he broke off their relationship when she broke a promise not to reveal their names publicly.

The two then got back in touch in March of last year and the pair allegedly exchanged nearly 9,000 messages over the course of a year.

In one Kaneb recalled her first meeting with the killer when she visited his Nevada jail alongside NCIP founder Linda Starr.

'I still remember in that first visit you were looking at Linda the whole time and I took my hair out,' she texted.

'I wanted you to look at me  I've never admitted that before.

'I remember when she left for a few minutes. It was like my chest would explode. And we began talking.'

Funches was in a sexual relationship with Kaneb in 2023 and 2024

'I'm sorry things fell apart and that it had such a negative effect on you. I never wanted that,' she wrote in July last year.

'I love you. I always have. Never stopped. Always will,' he told her in one text.

'I love you too,' she wrote in response. 'Always have, always will.'

She also sent him a series of risque selfies including two of her dressed in a sarong in front of a mirror.

Kaneb has since admitted she had a romantic relationship with Funches in 2023 and 2024, which a spokesperson notes was long after Caldwell's release had been secured.

But Funches claims the relationship was all a ruse to get him to testify in the civil trial.

'She pretended to take a personal interest in me. We began a romantic relationship,' he told the Standard. 'It was the art of seduction at its finest. All to get me to finally help Mr. Caldwell.'

Caldwell maintains his innocence in the murder of Judy Acosta in 1990

The State Bar is now investigating Funches' claims.

The Northern California Innocence Project, based at Santa Clara University, is also investigating Kaneb's actions.

'As with any unit of the university, when we receive any allegations of inappropriate conduct by an employee, we refer the matter to the university for investigation,' executive director Todd Fries said in a statement.

A spokeswoman for San Francisco's city attorney added: 'We take this information seriously, and will be looking into the matter.'
A California toddler had to be rushed to hospital after a restaurant mistakenly served her alcohol.

Noemi Valencia had been dining at Fujiyama Japanese Restaurant in Salinas with her young daughter when the child was given cooking wine instead of apple juice.

It wasn't until her daughter started showing signs that she was drunk did she realize the juice cup she had been drinking from was actually filled with booze.

Speaking with KSBW, Valencia said: 'She was swaying, she was falling over, she was leaning on walls, she couldnt hold her head up, she was slurring her words.'

Due to the incident, Valencia had to rush her daughter to the emergency room where she ended up spending the night.

Due to the incident, Valencia had to rush her daughter to the emergency room where she ended up spending the night

Noemi Valencia had been dining at Fujiyama Japanese Restaurant in Salinas with her young daughter when the tot was given cooking wine instead of apple juice

According to Valencia the wine had been served in a regular child's sipping cup, with a blood test later revealing she had an alcohol level of 0.12 percent in her system.

The parents spent the night at Salinas Valley ER. They said a blood test revealed an alcohol level of 0.12% in their daughters system.

KSBW spoke to the manager of the restaurant who said the cooking wine had been mislabeled inside a large container as 'apple juice' causing the mistake.

Salinas police also said that a police report had been filed on August 17 and that they're looking into the matter.

The young girl has since made a full recovery, with Valencia adding: 'Take proper precautions and how you store things or label things properly so that this doesn't happen to anybody else.'

She added: 'Parents: taste what's served to your kids.'

In a statement, the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control said: 'The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control is aware of the reports and is working with local authorities to investigate.'

KSBW spoke to the manager of the restaurant who said the cooking wine had been mislabelled inside a large container as 'apple juice' causing the mistake

In March of this year, a 12-year-old in Michigan got drunk after being served a virgin drink at an Outback Steakhouse.

Mekyle Cureton and his grandmother, Yolanda Collins, are regulars at the Outback in Livonia, Michigan, visiting a couple of times a month.

He told Fox 2 that his go-to order is a virgin strawberry daiquiri. But during a recent rip, something was off.

'It didn't taste like how when I had it the other times,' Cureton said. 'It didn't taste normal.'

After taking a few sips of the drink, Cureton said he started to feel unwell.

'My head started hurting when I was leaving and my heart started beating as I was drinking it,' Mekyle added.

The child was taken to the hospital, where doctors helped him eliminate the alcohol in the system. However, it left Mekyle with a nasty hangover, his first, at 12 years old.
Grieving families handed over 2.8billion in inheritance tax in the first four months of the tax year with growing numbers being dragged into the net.

The Treasury raked in an extra 9 per cent  or 230million  between April and July compared with the same period last year, official figures have revealed.

The dreaded 40 per cent death duty raised 749million in July  the second highest month on record.

Thousands of middle-class households who have lost their loved ones have been forced to pay inheritance tax as the threshold at which you must begin to pay it has been frozen until at least April 2028.

This means that, as property prices and asset values increase, more families are being dragged into paying the duty in a process known as fiscal drag.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves gives a speech at the Treasury in London on July 8

The Treasury raked in an extra 9 per cent  or 230million  between April and July compared with the same period last year, official figures have revealed

The first 325,000 of inheritances are tax free, but above this they are taxed at 40 per cent.

This threshold has not increased since 2009. There is an additional allowance of 175,000 when the family home is left to 'direct descendants' such as children or grandchildren.

This has also been pegged until 2028.

Across all taxes, HMRC collected a total of 82.5billion last month  the highest receipts ever for the month of July, according to Joe Neal of tax firm Blick Rothenberg.

But the increase in inheritance receipts has reignited rumours that Britian's most hated tax could be hiked as Chancellor Rachel Reeves tries to plug a claimed 22billion 'black hole' in public finances.

Stephen Lowe, of retirement specialist Just Group, said: 'With the Autumn Statement in two months' time, it seems inevitable that the Chancellor will at the very least run her slide rule over inheritance tax to see if it's a way to raise more revenue.

'We will have to wait and see if Rachel Reeves decides that inheritance tax can work even harder for the Treasury.'
A burst of warm weather has hit Australia and the pleasant conditions are expected to last into the weekend.

A slow-moving high-pressure system is currently in the centre of the country, causing temperatures to heat up.

Weatherzone meteorologist Michael Phillips said the next few days will 'definitely be well above normal temperatures,' describing the rising temperatures as a 'winter heatwave'.

'Looking how hot it's going to become, especially in the Northern Territory into northern parts of South Australia, it gets well above normal,' he said.

'It could last into Sunday for some regions, like Northern Territory and far northern parts of southern Australia.

'While it's still a heatwave, it doesn't have quite the same intensity as a summer one.'

Aussies along the east coast look set for a balmy Saturday, with Sydney predicted to reach a peak of 25C, Melbourne 22C, Brisbane 27C, Canberra 21C and Hobart 19C.

But places closer to central NSW will be even higher, with Darwin set to be 35C and Coober Pedy in northern South Australia predicted to reach 34C.

The only place not expected to experience the heatwave is southern Western Australia, with Perth expecting cooler weather and some showers this week, with temperatures set to peak at 21C.

There is a chance that temperatures will rise again in the middle of next week before a stronger cold front moves in, bringing them back down.

'It will cool off a little bit early next week, then it'll heat back up towards mid next week, then the biggest cold front where really things cool down - at least for several days - will be towards the end of the month.'

Forecast maximum temperatures for Saturday, August 24

Sydney

Friday: Mostly sunny. Light winds becoming northeasterly 15 to 20 km/h in the late afternoon then becoming light in the evening. Min 10. Max 22.

Saturday: Partly cloudy. High chance of showers, most likely in the morning. Light winds becoming northerly 15 to 20 km/h during the morning then becoming light during the evening. Min 12. Max 25.

Sunday: Cloudy. Slight chance of a shower. Light winds. Min 16. Max 26.

Melbourne

Friday: Partly cloudy. Very high chance of showers, most likely in the late afternoon and evening. Winds northerly 25 to 40 km/h. Min 9. Max 19.

Saturday: Medium chance of showers, most likely in the morning. Mostly sunny afternoon. Winds northerly 35 to 50 km/h. Min 14. Max 22.

Sunday: Partly cloudy. Medium chance of showers, most likely in the afternoon and evening. The chance of a thunderstorm about the Dandenongs. Winds northerly 15 to 25 km/h increasing to 25 to 35 km/h during the morning then tending northwesterly during the evening. Min 12. Max 22.

Brisbane

Friday: Partly cloudy. The chance of fog in the morning, mainly in the west. Slight chance of a shower in the late morning and afternoon. Light winds becoming east to southeasterly 15 to 20 km/h in the early afternoon then becoming light in the evening. Min 16. Max 26.

Saturday: Sunny. Light winds. Min 14. Max 26.

Sunday: Sunny. Light winds becoming northeasterly 15 to 20 km/h during the afternoon then becoming light during the evening. Min 14. Max 28.

Perth

Friday: Cloudy. Very high chance of showers. The chance of a thunderstorm in the southwest. Winds westerly 15 to 25 km/h turning northwesterly 25 to 35 km/h before dawn. Min 14. Max 21.

Saturday: Cloudy. Very high chance of showers, most likely in the morning and afternoon. The chance of a thunderstorm. Heavy falls possible about the hills. Winds northwesterly 25 to 40 km/h tending westerly 30 to 45 km/h during the morning. Min 13. Max 19.

Sunday: Partly cloudy. Medium chance of showers, most likely in the morning. Winds westerly 25 to 35 km/h decreasing to 20 to 30 km/h during the morning then becoming west to northwesterly and light during the evening. Min 12. Max 20.

Adelaide

Friday: Cloudy. High chance of showers. Winds northeasterly 15 to 25 km/h increasing to 25 to 35 km/h in the morning then turning northwesterly 15 to 25 km/h in the evening. Min 12. Max 24.

Saturday: Mostly sunny. Slight chance of a shower. Winds northwesterly 15 to 25 km/h becoming light during the afternoon then becoming northerly 15 to 20 km/h during the evening. Min 12. Max 22.

Sunday: Partly cloudy. Medium chance of showers. Winds northerly 15 to 25 km/h turning west to northwesterly 25 to 35 km/h during the afternoon. Min 14. Max 21.

Hobart

Friday: Partly cloudy. Medium chance of showers, most likely in the early morning. Winds west to northwesterly 25 to 35 km/h becoming westerly 15 to 25 km/h in the morning then turning north to northwesterly and becoming light in the evening. Min 10. Max 16.

Saturday: Cloudy. Very high chance of showers, most likely in the morning. Light winds becoming northerly 15 to 25 km/h during the morning then tending northwesterly 15 to 20 km/h during the afternoon. Min 8. Max 17.

Sunday: Partly cloudy. High chance of showers, most likely in the afternoon and evening. Winds northwesterly 15 to 25 km/h turning northerly 15 to 20 km/h during the evening. Min 11. Max 19.

Canberra

Friday: Partly cloudy. Patches of frost and the chance of fog in the morning. Slight chance of a shower at night. Light winds becoming northwesterly 15 to 20 km/h in the early afternoon then becoming light in the evening. Min 1. Max 18.

Saturday: Medium chance of showers, most likely in the morning. Mostly sunny afternoon. Light winds becoming northwesterly 20 to 30 km/h during the morning then becoming light during the evening. Min 4. Max 21.

Sunday: Cloudy. Medium chance of showers, most likely in the evening. Light winds becoming northwesterly 15 to 25 km/h during the day. Min 8. Max 21.

Aussies along the east coast look set for a balmy Saturday, with Sydney predicted to reach a peak of 25C, Melbourne 22C, Brisbane 27C, Canberra 21C and Hobart 19C

Darwin

Friday: Sunny. Winds east to southeasterly 15 to 25 km/h tending northwest to northeasterly in the early afternoon then becoming light in the evening. Min 23. Max 35.

Saturday: Partly cloudy. Slight chance of a shower about the city, near zero chance elsewhere. Light winds becoming easterly 15 to 25 km/h during the day then tending northwest to northeasterly during the afternoon. Min 23. Max 34.

Sunday: Sunny. Light winds becoming east to northeasterly 15 to 25 km/h during the day then tending northwest to northeasterly during the afternoon. Min 24. Max 35.
He called them and asked for his money back

A Qantas customer lost $600 to scammers - before the money was returned to him when he politely called them and asked for it back.

Paul Stewart last week received a text message informing him that his Qantas flight from Los Angeles to Sydney on Wednesday had been cancelled.

Mr Stewart was desperate to book a flight home as soon as possible and phoned the 1800 number that had been provided in the text message.

'I assumed they were Qantas so I gave them my booking reference and my name, and that's all anyone needs to access anyone else's booking details,' he said.

'They said I can either pay a fee and the flight will be changed to the next day, or wait in LA for a few days and have it done for free.'

Mr Stewart, who wanted to get back home as soon as possible, gave the scammer his bank details and transferred $600.

'They were saying the right things. They seemed to know details about my booking,' he said.

But Mr Stewart then began to get a sinking feeling the transaction might not have been legitimate and decided to double check.

Paul Stewart (pictured) had his money swiped by the hacker after his Qantas flight from Los Angeles to Sydney was cancelled last Wednesday

He contacted Qantas through a different phone number and discovered he had been swindled when the operator told him he shouldn't have been charged a booking fee.

The staff member also told him Qantas didn't have a record of his phone call with its customer service team in the US.

The 1800 number was a spoof of Qantas's US number. But the number was registered in the United States - meaning anyone with a US sim would be directed to the airline, if they called.

But Mr Stewart was using an Australian sim, and his call should not have connected, as he had not put in the US region code of +1.

In a remarkable twist, Mr Stewart got his money back from the scammers after he spoke to them last week and politely explained he should not have been charged the fee.

'I suspect they just wanted me to go away and not make any further complaints,' Mr Stewart said.

'A good outcome for me!'

Mr Stewart used his Australian sim card to dial the number after he received a text message claiming that the airline was going to send him new flight details (pictured)

Mr Stewart urge Aussie tourists to be aware of the scam and said he got his money back after he contacted the scammer and explained he should not have been charged the fee (stock image)

Daily Mail Australia understands the fraudulent number has been deactivated and Qantas has reported the issue to the Australian Communications and Media Authority.

The scam has also been reported to the ACCC and the airline is providing support to those affected.

Customers are advised not to download files sent from scammers impersonating Qantas.

The airline sends customers their booking details through PDF files that allows travellers to download the document directly.

Anyone who believes their identity and personal information has been compromised has been urged to contact IDCARE.

Scams can also be reported to Scamwatch.
This is the moment police officers caught a brazen phone thief in Soho, central London.

Plain clothes officers PC Josh Lowther and PC Stephen Rogers where on patrol on Friday July 5 when they caught snatcher Kadi Nasser in the act.

Footage shows Nasser, dressed in white, crossing a busy street before grabbing a phone from the back pocket of an unsuspecting victim.

The thief was spotted by the two officers who retrieved the stolen mobile and returned it to its owner.

Nasser, 25, pleaded guilty to theft at Westminster Magistrates Court, where he was sentenced to 30 weeks in prison on July 8.

Video footage showed the moment plain clothes officers caught brazen phone thief Kadi Nasser as he snatched a phone from a unsuspecting victim in Soho, central London

Detective Superintendent Sargent Hussain, who is in charge of phone robbery at the Metropolitan Police, said: 'Robbery and theft are invasive and often violent crimes. I want to therefore applaud the quick-thinking actions of these two officers for returning the victim's phone, putting a street thief behind bars, and helping to make London safer.

'Met officers are targeting resources to hotspot areas, such as Westminster and Croydon, with increased patrols and plain clothes officers. These deter criminals and make officers more visibly available to members of the community.

'We encourage people to report as soon as they can whenever they have been a victim of robbery or theft, so officers can attend the scene and investigate swiftly.'

It comes as Met Police officers have used innovative tactics to halve robberies in some areas of the capital, including sting operations involving plain clothes officers posing as victims wearing luxury items to catch thieves in the act.

One operation in January showed back-up officers pounce on hooded thugs as they stole watches from their undercover colleagues.

A total of 293 arrests were made across London for personal robbery in the four weeks up to June 30, Met Police confirmed.

Nasser, 25, was handed a 30-week prison sentence after pleading guilty to theft at Westminster Magistrates Court

The force said it had recorded a 23.8% drop in robbery cases in central London since April.

Officers are also using intelligence to identify repeat offenders. Criminals sentenced to over three months in jail given tags that can be used by officers to identify them if they reoffend.

The data is also used to locate stolen phones, with over 750 devices recovered this year so far.

Met Police said it was also working with tech companies to prevent phones being re-registered with iCloud by a second person.
Napa Valley's exquisite wine country welcomes more than 3 million people every year, and visitors are splashing out loads of cash for their experience.

On average tourists are spending $281 per day in the popular California wine region, just north of San Francisco, according to a new report.

Visit Napa Valley - the region's tourism marketing group - released a 2023 economic impact study on Wednesday which concluded that visitors spend a total average of $7 million per day.

The report, which compiled approximately 1,700 surveys, found that 3.7 million people visited the luxurious wine region last year, which brought in more than $2.5 billion.

Wine country's new study comes just one month after its tourism chief, Linsey Gallagher, was accused of fostering a 'pervasive culture of fear' and mismanaging funds.

On average, tourists spend $281 per day in Napa Valley, just north of San Francisco, according to a new report. (pictured: A vineyard in Pope Valley - a region of Napa Valley)

The latest report also found that the average age of wine connoisseurs that come to Napa is 40. In 2018, the average visitor age was 46 (stock image)

This is the first economic report released by the organization since 2018, as research was halted during the pandemic. Typically, Visit Napa Valley posts one every two years.

The latest report also found that the average age of wine connoisseurs that come to Napa were 40. In 2018, the average visitor age was 46.

Of the 3.7million visitors that visited in 2023, 38 percent were overnight guests. 62 percent of people decided to pack the wine-filled experience into a day trip.

On average, day trippers reportedly spend $213 a day in Napa Valley, while those who stay overnight pay about $474, the study found.

About 1,000 people stayed in Napa Valley motels or hotels, while 199,000 crashed in private homes in the area, the study found.

The study found that about 79 percent of Napa Valley visitors spent their money on wine, 73 percent on dining, 61 percent on shopping and 11 percent on bars and nightlife.

On average, day trippers reportedly spend $213 a day in Napa Valley, while those who stay overnight pay about $474, the study found (stock image)

The organization also broke down exactly why people flock to Napa Valley, with 47 percent of people coming to enjoy a nice weekend getaway, while 22 percent to take a vacation (stock image)

75 percent of people were 'inspired' to visit wine country after friends and family gave them the recommendation, and 95 percent of tourists plan to come back, according to the data.

The organization also broke down exactly why people flock to Napa Valley, with 47 percent of visitors coming to enjoy a nice weekend getaway, while 22 percent to take a vacation.

Meanwhile, 10 percent of people host their weddings at the impressive vineyards, five percent visit for business, two percent come for corporate meetings and events, and 14 percent go for other reasons.

Besides the endless amount of people visiting the famed vineyards, the industry out there has produced an estimated 16,000 jobs, according to the report.

Local businesses raked in $107.5million in tax revenue last year - a 26 percent increase from 2018.

Besides the endless amount of people visiting the famed vineyards, the industry out there has produced an estimated 16,000 jobs. (pictured: Caymus Vineyards in Napa Valley)

The tourism part of Napa Valley 'remains the second largest employer' in the county - after the wine industry itself.

In July, Gallagher, Napa Valley's tourism chief was accused of making 'disparaging and demeaning remarks' to employees and misallocated public funds at Visit Napa Valley. Earlier this year she was cleared after a 'neutral' investigation.

She reportedly used phrases such as: 'I'm the only reason you have this job in the first place,' and 'it's not like you were groped or sexually assaulted.'

At the time, 10 anonymous staffers penned an anonymous letter seen by the SF Chronicle, claiming that the investigation was 'gravely mishandled' and that Gallagher singled them out for retribution after she was cleared.

Gallagher was appointed president and CEO of the tourist bureau in 2019, overseeing a $2.2 billion industry that brings nearly four million people a year to the Californian county.

In a 2022 interview she advised young women in her industry to 'work hard, be nice, have courage to walk through the doors that open for you, find role models along the way.'

Wine country's new study comes just one month after its tourism chief, Linsey Gallagher (pictured), was accused of fostering a 'pervasive culture of fear' and mismanaging funds.

'I have reached the phase in my career where nurturing, mentoring, developing and supporting others is the priority,' she said.

But the organization's executive board launched a probe in May after five current and two former employees accused her of being drunk on power.

Three other staffers added their names to the complaint and chairwoman Emma Swain insisted the board 'took the claims seriously' before commissioning a 'neutral third party' to investigate.

It found 'no evidence that in any way supports the workplace bullying or financial impropriety allegation,' but the staffers claim the probe was botched and that their complaints were 'inadequately addressed.'
The number of heat-related deaths in the UK is predicted to increase more than six-fold by the end of the century if the world warms by 3C, a study shows.

But deaths related to cold  currently much higher than from heat  are predicted to rise only slightly, reaching nearly 70,000 per year by 2100, according to analysis published in the journal Lancet Global Health.

Modelling data from 30 European countries also suggests heat-related deaths could triple in the continent by the end of the century under current climate policies, increasing from 43,729 to 128,809 per year.

In the same scenario, deaths attributed to cold would remain high, with a slight decrease from 363,809 to 333,703 by 2100, scientists said.

Heat-related deaths per year in the UK are predicted to rise six-fold, from 1,258 to 7,931 per year (stock photo)

Modelling data from 30 European countries also suggests heat-related deaths could triple in the continent (stock photo)

Dr Juan-Carlos Ciscar, of the Joint Research Centre at the European Commission, said: 'Our analysis reveals that the ratio of cold-heat deaths will shift dramatically over the course of this century, with those attributed to heat increasing in all parts of Europe and surging in some areas.

'At the same time, cold-related deaths will decline slightly overall.

'Our study looks at more than 1,000 regions across 30 countries, enabling the identification of hotspots where people will be worst affected in the future.'

Heat-related deaths per year in the UK are predicted to rise six-fold, from 1,258 to 7,931 per year, while cold-related deaths are estimated to increase slightly from the current 64,195 to 64,952 per year by the end of the century.

Heat-related deaths have the lowest rates in the UK and Scandinavian countries (Revellers on Brighton Beach)

The results of the analysis are broadly in line with what existing research has shown in multiple contexts around the globe (Pictured, sunbathers on Weymouth Beach)

In Ireland, cold-related deaths are predicted to jump from 3,974 to 7,696 per year by the end of the century, while deaths attributed to heat are estimated to rise from 30 to 563 per year.

Deaths from cold are highest in Eastern Europe and the Baltic states and lowest in Central and parts of Southern Europe, while heat-related deaths have the lowest rates in the UK and Scandinavian countries and are highest in Croatia and the southernmost parts of the continent, analysis shows.

Although most countries have pledged to curb emissions to slow down global warming, a United Nations analysis published last year suggests the world is still on track to warm by nearly 3C by the end of the century.

Most countries have pledged to curb emissions to slow down global warming but a United Nations analysis suggests the world is still on track to warm by nearly 3C (stock photo)

Heat-related deaths are highest in Croatia and the southernmost parts of the continent, analysis shows (Fire and smoke rises from Kizilcahamam district of Ankara Turkey after wildfires)

Dr David Garcia-Leon, also of the Joint Research Centre at the European Commission, said: 'There is a critical need for the development of more targeted policies to protect these areas and members of society most at risk from temperature extremes.'

Commenting on the study, Dr Leslie Mabon, lecturer in environmental systems at The Open University, who was not involved, said: 'The results are broadly in line with what existing research has shown in multiple contexts around the globe  namely, that temperature extremes do not affect everyone equally, with the elderly and the least well-off being most at risk.

'What is especially striking is that the authors find clear differences in risk across country boundaries and also regional clusters of mortality risk.

'Temperature gradients do not respect borders, so, as the authors point out, this shows how demographic and socio-economic factors influence the risk we face from temperature extremes.

'There are counter-measures we can take, which may be particularly effective if they are targeted towards the most vulnerable people and places.

'For example, the study points to investment in health infrastructure, the presence of heat and cold preparedness plans, and the quality of the buildings we live and work in as factors that could reduce mortality under a changing climate.'
The ceasefire deal to bring an end to the fighting in Gaza is teetering on the edge of collapse, with a US official warning that an 'full blown confrontation' could follow.

US, Israeli, Egyptian and Qatari negotiators, who are expected to meet in Cairo this weekend, have for months struggled to bridge differences between Israel and Hamas.

US President Joe Biden stressed to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu 'the urgency of bringing the ceasefire and hostage release deal to closure and discussed upcoming talks in Cairo to remove any remaining obstacles,' a White House statement said.

But Israel and Hamas held to their demands, with Politico quoting a US official warning that 'if we don't get the deal there's a chance that Iean attacks and this escalates into a full-blown confrontation'.

A man carries a child injured in an Israeli strike on Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on November 20, 2023

A picture taken from the southern Israeli city of Sderot on October 25, 2023

The mother, and immediate family of Valentin (Eli) Ghnassia, 23, who was killed in a battle with Hamas militants at Kibbutz Be'eeri near the Israeli border with the Gaza Strip, grieve during his funeral on October 12, 2023

Children wait for food being distributed at a camp for internally displaced people where they live due to the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, in Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip on June 11, 2024

An Israeli army M109 155mm self-propelled howitzer fires rounds near the border with Gaza in southern Israel on October 11, 2023

'Israel will insist on the achievement of all of its objectives for the war, as they have been defined by the Security Cabinet, including that Gaza never again constitutes a security threat to Israel,' Netanyahu's office said in a statement.

It also said Israel had not agreed to drop its demand to maintain troops in the Philadelphi Corridor, the border strip between Gaza and Egypt, an issue that has been a major sticking point.

A Hamas statement said its officials, meeting with the head of Palestinian Islamic Jihad about progress in the talks, reiterated key Hamas demands.

These include an end to Israel's Gaza operation, a full Israeli pullout and a deal to exchange Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

The call between Biden and Netanyahu yesterday followed a whirlwind trip to the region by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken that ended on Tuesday without producing a breakthrough in the 10-month-old war.

In Gaza itself, the Israeli military said jets hit around 30 targets throughout the enclave including tunnels, launch sites and an observation post.

It said troops killed dozens of armed fighters and seized weapons including explosives, grenades and automatic rifles.

The Israeli military struck a school and a nearby house in Gaza City, killing at least four people and wounding 15, including several children, Gaza's Civil Emergency Service said.

The Israeli military said in a statement that it hit Hamas militants operating at a command centre inside a compound that previously served as a school.

It accused Hamas of continuing to operate from civilian facilities and areas, an allegation Gaza's dominant Islamist militant group denies.

Commenting on Israel's attack on the UN-run school, the head of the UN's Palestinian refugee agency, Philippe Lazzarini, wrote on X that 'children reported killed and injured. Some were burnt to death.'

'Gaza is no place for children anymore. They are the first casualty of this merciless war,' he wrote. 'A ceasefire is beyond overdue.'

Israeli military vehicles manoeuvre, near the Israel-Gaza border, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, August 21, 2024

Displaced Palestinians travel on a cart after fleeing the western part of Khan Younis, following an evacuation order by the Israeli army, amid Israel- Hamas conflict, in the central part of Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, August 21, 2024

Smoke rises over the buildings as the Israeli airstrikes continue in Al-Rimal Neighbourhood of Gaza City, Gaza on October 9, 2023

Displaced Palestinians make their way after fleeing the western part of Khan Younis, following an evacuation order by the Israeli army, amid Israel- Hamas conflict, in the central part of Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, August 21, 2024

In the town of Bani Suhaila near Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, an Israeli airstrike killed seven Palestinians at a tent encampment for displaced people, medics said.

The Israeli military issued new evacuation orders in the heavily overcrowded area of Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians displaced by the fighting have sought shelter.

The orders, which the military said were needed to clear civilians from what had become 'a dangerous combat zone', were soon followed by tank fire with at least one person killed and several wounded by machine gun fire, medics and residents said.

The Hamas-run Palestinian health authority said that 40,000 people were killed by the fighting in Gaza since October.

The war began on October 7 when Hamas gunmen stormed Nova festival as well as several Israeli communities and military bases, killing around 1,200 people and abducting about 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
Cruises robotaxis will be returning to paid ride-hailing service  with the help of a former competitor. Danielle Echeverria

General Motors Cruise hasnt given up on its effort to deploy autonomous vehicles for paid ride-hailing and is now teaming up with a former competitor to reach that goal.

Cruise announced on Thursday that its partnering with Uber to bring the companys robotaxis to the ride-hailing giants platform. The companies announcement characterized the alliance as a multiyear strategic partnership, though it included few details about where and at what scale Cruises robotaxis would be used for Uber ride-hails.

A Cruise spokesperson said that the companys focus remains on relaunching our own driverless app and service, the launch of this partnership will follow that. Cruise will share more details on where the partnership will happen, the spokesperson said, but you can expect it to be in one of the cities Cruise is currently conducting supervised testing in: Phoenix, Dallas or Houston.

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The announcement comes nearly a year after California regulators indefinitely suspended Cruise after one of the companys robotaxis struck and dragged a jaywalking pedestrian in downtown San Francisco in a severe crash initiated by a human hit-and-run driver.

Cruise remains suspended from operating paid driverless ride-hailing in California. It remains unclear when or whether its robotaxis will return to San Francisco, where the company got permission from state regulators last year to commercially operate its driverless robotaxis without restrictions.

The company was only weeks into its paid driverless ride-hailing operations in the city before the October 2023 crash. The California Public Utilities Commission and Department of Motor Vehicles both alleged that the company withheld that its robotaxi dragged the pedestrian about 20 feet after its initial stop, which the company denied.

According to the DMV, Cruise has started, but not completed, the process for reinstating the driverless deployment permit necessary to get permission from the CPUC to charge for driverless rides.

The incident set back the companys ambitious goals for widespread robotaxi deployment and led to the ouster of its founder and CEO, as well as several other Cruise executives.

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Cruises partnership with Uber signifies a reentry of sorts into the burgeoning robotaxi market for the latter company.
Rescue efforts to save six missing people from Mike Lynch's sunken superyacht turned into a recovery operation yesterday as four bodies were retrieved from the water.

A fifth body was found inside the wreckage of the Bayesian but has not yet been recovered, while a sixth passenger is still unaccounted for.

It is believed two of the four bodies recovered were British tech billionaire Mr Lynch and his eighteen-year-old daughter Hannah, who was due to start studying English at Oxford University this year.

Those still unaccounted for are Morgan Stanley boss Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy and US citizens Chris Morvillo and his jewellery designer wife Neda Morvillo. The body of one crew member, chef Recaldo Thomas, was found on Monday.

Search teams made the tragic discoveries yesterday while scouring through the ruins of the luxury sailboat, which sank off the coast of Sicily after being hit by a waterspout on Monday morning.

Four bodies were found on the lower deck of the yacht and brought into port at Porticello, where a bell rang out each time.

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch with his wife Angela Bacares, who survived the disaster

Rescue crew had hoped the six passengers could still be alive through air pockets, although it was accepted the chances of any survivors was unlikely.

Efforts to retrieve a fifth body had to be called off last night, while a sixth passenger remains missing. Formal identification will take place in the coming days.

Under Italian law, a body must be identified by a family member or someone close to the victim.

However, there was confusion last night after local Italian media claimed that the bodies recovered were not those of the Lynch's - although these reports are unverified.

Yesterday's heart-breaking discovery was made by divers who have been scouring the wreckage since the 30million yacht sank.

The search teams were yesterday joined by a remote-controlled submersible robot and divers who worked on the 2012 Costa Concordia disaster.

Investigators have questioned the survivors, including captain James Cutfield, 51, who was interrogated for two hours.

A friend of Mr Lynch said the disaster after the tycoon's acquittal on US fraud charges was a 'Shakespearean sort of tragedy'.

Yesterday's development came as Mr Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares, who was among 15 rescued from the sinking, had been anxiously waiting for news of her husband and daughter.

Hannah, who had just secured a place to read English literature at Oxford, had joined her parents on the Bayesian to celebrate her father's acquittal on the fraud charges.

Chairman of Morgan Stanley International, Jonathan Bloomer (pictured), and his wife are also missing

Mr Lynch's attorney Christopher Morvillo (pictured) and his wife Neda are also missing after the yacht sank

Neda and Christopher Movillo (pictured together) had joined Mr Lynch on the trip to the Mediterranean

Judy Bloomer, who is missing, is a supporter and former board member of the Eve Appeal, a charity that raises awareness and funds research into gynaecological cancer

The tech tycoon, once dubbed the 'British Bill Gates', made his fortune after setting up his software company Autonomy in 1996.

The father-of-two had recently returned to his Loudham Hall estate near Woodbridge, Suffolk, after spending almost a year on house arrest in the US, accused of artificially inflating the price of his firm when selling it to Hewlett-Packard for nearly 9billion in 2011. He was acquitted by a jury in June.

But the celebrations were hit by tragedy when the 183ft yacht sank within minutes after being swamped by a freak tornado  known as a waterspout  half a mile off Porticello at 5am on Monday.

In sombre scenes yesterday, search teams returned to the port several times to bring the dead to shore. Each time, the emergency services formed a guard of honour, shielding the bodies from public view as they were placed in ambulances.

The first bodies were those of a 'heavily built man' and a woman, sources said.

Hundreds of residents and tourists gathered to pay their respects, with some bowing their heads as church bells were heard ringing out over the village near Palermo.

Divers were said to have made the grim discovery after spotting bodies inside the yacht's luxury cabins on its hard-to-reach lower deck, with one lodged behind two mattresses. The complex operation to retrieve the dead had to be carried out in stages, with the divers stopping at a depth of 65ft to decompress before resurfacing, according to local media.

The Bayesian (pictured) overturned during a severe thunderstorm on Monday morning

Confirming the recovery of four bodies, Sicily civil protection director-general Salvo Cocina told the Daily Telegraph: 'On behalf of myself and my colleagues, I would like to express my deepest sympathy to the families of the victims.'

He later said that efforts to bring a fifth body to shore and to locate the last missing passenger would restart today.

The development takes the official death toll to six after the body of the yacht's Canadian chef, Recaldo Thomas, was discovered close to the wreck on Monday.

The Italian coastguard had refused to rule out the possibility that those missing may still be alive, with experts speculating air pockets could have formed as the yacht sank.

But rescue efforts were said to have been hindered because the massive vessel was still intact, filled with debris, and lay on the sea bed at a depth of more than 150ft. A breakthrough came when the 20 expert divers who had already spent two days tirelessly searching were joined by the team who worked on the 2012 Costa Concordia disaster.

Their arrival meant the searchers were able to extend the dive period up to 20 minutes at a time, thanks to special mixtures contained in their tanks.

Previously, the depth of the wreck meant trained divers could stay underwater for only a maximum of 12 minutes, two of which are needed to go up and down. The divers, in groups of three, had been searching the hull yesterday after tearing out a one-inch-thick window, on the side opposite the six luxury guest cabins.

The superyacht (pictured) was docked off the coast of Porticello, near Palermo, when it was hit by an over-sea tornado, known as a waterspout

The search was also assisted by a remote-controlled vehicle capable of operating on the seabed up to a depth of 1,000ft. The robot can record videos and take detailed images that will be examined by investigators.

Among those celebrating with Dr Lynch was Mr Morvillo, who represented the tycoon in his trial, and business veteran Mr Bloomer, who was a defence witness.

Italian media last night reported that the bodies of both men were among those brought to shore.

Dr Lynch's close friend Brent Hoberman, the former chief executive of lastminute.com, described the disaster as a 'Shakespearean sort of tragedy'.

'Somebody who spent 12 years defending their name, they just clear their name, they are going on a trip with the team who helped them do that to celebrate and then a sort of one-in-a-million disaster hits their boat,' he said.

Former Cabinet minister Lord Deben, a Conservative peer and longtime friend of Dr Lynch, told Times Radio that the tycoon came back to the UK to 'start again' after winning his fraud case. 'Gratitude is a typical word to use of him... the people he brought on board are clearly the people who made his triumph possible,' he added.

Also among those celebrating on board was a senior partner in his firm Involve Capital, Charlotte Golunski, who saved her one-year-old daughter, Sofia, by clinging to her in the raging waves.

The 35-year-old Briton and her baby were discharged after being treated in hospital, as was Sofia's father, James Emslie.

Dr Lynch's Mediterranean party was said to have attracted so many guests and well-wishers that they had to take turns staying on the Bayesian. Video taken from other boats showed the celebrations taking place in the days before tragedy struck. An investigation has been launched by the authorities, with one expert revealing that an early focus would be whether the yacht's crew had closed access hatches on the boat before the storm.

Prosecutors are already questioning witnesses and survivors, including the captain, Mr Cutfield, 51, from New Zealand.

CCTV footage of the tragedy unfolding shows the stunning boat with its 246ft mast  one of the tallest in the world  disappear within seconds as a violent storm clouds the view.

In a separate incident, Mr Lynch's co-defendant in his fraud trial, Stephen Chamberlain, died after being hit by a car while running in Cambridgeshire on Saturday.
A wonder drug that can slow down Alzheimer's disease is set to be approved for use in Britain.

Lecanemab is the first treatment that has been found to curb the condition  slowing cognitive decline by 27 per cent.

Experts have hailed it as 'the beginning of the end' for the disease, which affects up to 900,000 Britons.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is set to approve the drug for private prescription in the UK.

The National Institute of Health and Care Excellence will then decide whether to roll out the treatment on the NHS.

Alzheimer's disease affects up to 900,000 Britons (Stock Image)

Lecanemab, sold under the brand name Leqembi, is a monoclonal antibody medication used for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia. The disease can cause anxiety, confusion and short-term memory loss

The drug, which is given every two weeks through an IV drop, was authorised in the US last year.

However last month the European Medicine Agency refused to license the drug due to concerns over side effects such as 'swelling' and 'potential bleedings in the brain'.

Professor John Hardy, from the UCL Institute of Neurology, described the drug as 'the biggest breakthrough in Alzheimer's for decades'.

He has previously praised the 'game-changing' treatment as the 'beginning of the end' for Alzheimer's.

However Dr Max Pemberton noted in his Daily Mail column last week that lecanemab  as well as another Alzheimer's drug donanemab  is 'likely to result in only a small improvement in symptoms'.

The drug was found to slightly improve cognition but could have significant side-effects, a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found (Stock Image)

A scientist picks up a sample used for research into Alzheimer's disease

A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine last year found the drug slightly improved cognition but could have significant side-effects.

A spokesman for the MHRA told The Daily Telegraph: 'We are currently completing a rigorous assessment of the evidence supporting lecanemab in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.'

They added that further information will be 'communicated in due course'.
Four building and development companies have collapsed, putting 25 projects in jeopardy, as the construction industry continues to be ravaged by soaring costs of materials and labour.

The NSW companies - Adroit Constructions Pty Ltd, Maximus Builders Pty Ltd, Maxim Builders Pty Ltd and Maxus Builders Pty Ltd - all fell into liquidation on Tuesday.

Bruce Gleeson of Jones Partners has been called in as liquidator and told news.com.au that 25 projects across the four companies have now been halted.

The companies are all listed back to an address in Ryde, in Sydney's north, and are understood to be linked.

The firms were not trading at the time they entered liquidation.

'Across the four companies, there were approximately 25 contracts at various stages of completion,' Mr Gleeson told the publication.

'We are currently in the process of communicating with the clients on this score and the impact of the companies being placed into voluntary liquidation.'

Total assets and debts owed are not yet known.

The NSW Government issued a Stop Work Order to Maxim Builders Pty Ltd over the build of a house in Tanilba Bay, in Port Stephens, on March 1 this year.

Four building and development companies believed to be linked together have collapsed, with 25 projects now up in the air (stock image of construction workers)

Inspectors had gone to the build in February and found 'non-compliant structural timber framing, which impacts the structural integrity of the building' and 'non-compliant perimeter termite barriers, which impacts the structural integrity of the building'.

'I am of the opinion the building work is, or is likely to be, carried out in a manner that could result in significant harm or loss to the public or to occupiers or potential occupiers of the building to which the work relates or significant damage to property,' the work order from the Building Commission NSW read.

Mr Gleeson is a high-profile liquidator and oversaw the liquidation of fraudster Melissa Caddick's business.
It might not be the obvious choice when it comes to making a morning cuppa. But using soy milk instead of standard cow's milk could lead to improved blood pressure and lower levels of inflammation, a study suggests.

Soy milk  made from soybeans  became popular in the 1990s as an alternative to drinking traditional dairy milk.

However, sales have declined in recent times after it was classed as an 'ultra-processed food', due to the frequent addition of sugar. Dairy alternatives such as almond or oat milk have also proved to be generally more popular.

Researchers at the University of Toronto investigated the health effects of substituting cow's milk with soy milk by conducting a large analysis of 17 previous trials involving more than 500 people.

The average duration of each trial was four weeks and participants drank an average of 500ml of milk  either dairy or soy  a day.

Soy milk  made from soybeans  became popular in the 1990s as an alternative to drinking traditional dairy milk (file image)

Researchers discovered that across all studies, substituting cow's milk with soy milk was linked to reductions in cholesterol levels, as well as lowered blood pressure and lower markers of inflammation (file image)

The team discovered that across all studies, substituting cow's milk with soy milk was linked to reductions in cholesterol levels, as well as lowered blood pressure and lower markers of inflammation.

As a result, the authors recommend that policy makers consider exempting fortified soy milk from being classed as an ultra-processed food as this ranking 'may be misleading'.

They added that on average, across the studies, the total sugar content of soy milk was around 60 per cent less than that of cow's.

Writing in the journal BMC Medicine, the Canadian team said: 'Current evidence provides a good indication that replacing cow's milk with soy milk may result in advantages for blood lipids [fats], blood pressure and inflammation in adults.'

Previous studies have suggested that pea milk is the only vegan option that provides anything close to as many nutrients as cow's milk.

Scientists looked at the amount of vital nutrients in cow's milk, as well as 85 samples of pea, soy, almond, cashew, coconut, hemp, oat and rice milk.

Pea milk had the highest levels of phosphorus, zinc and selenium, while soy had the most magnesium. All the plant milks were inferior to cow's milk.

Plant milks are produced when a crop is ground down and soaked in water with emulsifiers and stabilisers.
Fundraiser is launched to give teen the 'send off he deserves'

Teen is being remembered as a 'kind and gentle soul'

Malakai Revill, 17, had been cutting trees with his dad

A teenage boy who was killed by a falling tree branch while collecting firewood with his dad is being remembered as a 'kind and gentle soul'.

Malakai Revill, 17, had been felling trees in Dover, in Tasmania's far south, when he was struck by the tree branch just after 4pm on Sunday.

Despite the efforts of police and paramedics, Malakai died at the scene.

His father was treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

A GoFundMe campaign organised by Joanne Denehey-Shreeve has raised over $5,000 to give Malakai the 'send-off he deserves'.

She said the Revill family is going through an 'extremely hard time right now'.

'To everyone who has participated and donated or shared my post I would like to thank you on behalf of the Revill, Beattie and Shreeve families,' she said.

'Most of all for honouring a beautiful young man Malakai Revill, a truly gentle kind soul and best friend you could wish for your child to have.

Tasmanian teen Malakai Revill, 17, had been felling trees in Dover, in Tasmania 's Far South, when he was struck by the tree branch just after 4pm on Sunday

'I set this page up thinking it wouldn't reach many people, I'm overwhelmed by everyone's generosity and compassion for Malakai and his family.

'I feel thanking you all isn't enough for making this happen. I'm so proud to live in a place that we support each other when we need it.'

Tasmania Police told Daily Mail Australia the investigation was ongoing.

'It is anticipated to take some time to finalise,' a spokeswoman said.

A report will be prepared for the coroner.
Thomas Matthew Crooks may not have been acting alone when he tried to assassinate Donald Trump, one of the members of Congress investigating the shooting told Dailymail.com.

Republican Rep. Mike Waltz said the gunman's motivation is still unknown and he is worried a foreign entity or other third-party could have been involved in the attack.

Waltz queried how federal law enforcement can confidently say Crooks was a lone wolf if they can't answer other questions like why he had multiple foreign encrypted messaging accounts.

His comments came after it was revealed that Iran was also plotting an attempt on the former president's life around the same time that Crooks carried out his plan.

'The more we get into it, the more questions I have,' Waltz said. 'It's really what's coming out around it that is so disturbing.

'And for me, the thing that's most disturbing is that we have ongoing plots from Iran to take out a former president, leading candidate, and that a Pakistani national was just arrested after making a down payment for hitmen, and it's barely even being covered in the news.'

Rep. Mike Waltz is on the House Task Force on the Attempted Assassination of Donald J. Trump and told DailyMail.com on Wednesday that he isn't convinced shooter Matthew Thomas Crooks was acting alone

Thomas Matthew Crooks pictured at the Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13 before he opened fire on the crowd and former president

Crooks, 20, was able to create multiple explosives with remote detonators, another thing that raised Waltz's eyebrows and makes him wonder whether he had help.

As the FBI, U.S. Secret Service (USSS) and Department of Homeland Security conduct their investigations into the massive security failure, Waltz and 12 other lawmakers on a House task force are also looking into the attempted assassination.

'I don't understand, and I don't have any answers yet to help me understand how the [Secret] Service and DHS came out so quickly and said  and I think the FBI as well, but I'll have to check that  and said, he operated alone,' Waltz said when speaking with DailyMail.com at Trump Tower in Chicago on Wednesday. 'How do you know that mere days into your investigation?'

The Florida congressman added: 'You can't tell us his motive, but you could tell us he operated alone? You can't get into these encrypted overseas accounts, but you can tell us he acted alone? So, I don't buy that yet.'

Crooks was shot and killed by the Secret Service after he launched an attack at Trump's rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13.

A bullet fired from his AR-style weapon, bought legally by his father, grazed the former president's right ear.

Crooks killed one rally-goer and critically injured two others before he was taken out.

The FBI also found explosives in Crooks' car, which was parked near the rally site. And upon raiding his parents' house, where he lived, they found more bombs.

'I don't know of many 19-year-old kids who could make multiple IEDs with a remote detonator on their own,' Waltz told DailyMail.com. 'Why didn't that get picked up if he's searching that online or buying literature on how to do that?'

Crooks, 20, was shot dead on site by U.S. Secret Service after he killed a rally goer, critical injured two other supporters and was able to barely graze the side of Trump's ear at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13

Trump took a bullet to his ear during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13. With blood streaked across his face, Secret Service agents corralled the former president off the stage

He also said that he was joining later on Wednesday a briefing by the FBI, where he was hoping more questions would be answered  but he didn't seem optimistic.

Rep. Waltz says while federal agencies and congressional committees are scrutinizing the USSS over the attempted assassination, there are more concerning details emerging that make the attack even more ominous.

That includes the revelation of the Iranian plot to assassinate Trump around the same time as the Crooks attempt.

Crooks had encrypted messaging accounts on platforms based in Germany, Belgium, and New Zealand.

Waltz said: 'We still havent learned a lot, we havent learned that much about those overseas accounts.

'Why does a 19-year-old kid who is a healthcare aide need encrypted platforms not even based in the United States, but based abroad where most terrorist organizations know it is harder for our law enforcement to get into? Thats a question Ive had since day one.'

He added: 'They need to be releasing information as they come across it because this wasnt an isolated incident. The threats are continually Irans threats.'
A Florida mom was busted after arriving at her daughter's bus stop to join in on a brawl that her child arranged with another teen.

Kathryn Stephanopoulos, 34, could be seen in the footage wearing hotpants as she puts the teen in a headlock, allowing her daughter to pummel the high school nemesis with repeated blows.

During the fracas, one spectator described the pugilist mom as 'beautiful.'

Stephanopoulos is now facing charges of aggravated child abuse after officers with Flagler County's Sheriff's Office arrested her on Monday.

According to the department, the woman's daughter agreed to fight another student as soon as they exited the school bus.

The two are said to have got into an argument after falling out over the summer, with Stephanopoulos waiting at the bus stop after being told about the arranged bout

Another person, seen here on the left, intervenes in the fight to pull Stephanopoulos out of the fray, but she tightens her grip on the teenager instead

The two teens got into an argument after falling out over the summer, with the mom waiting at the bus stop after being told about the arrangement.

Footage taken from the school bus shows Stephanopoulos put the juvenile in a headlock and, according to authorities, restrict her breathing.

The daughter of Stephanopoulos can be seen wearing a brown shirt while the other student is seen in a white, Stephanopoulos wears hotpants and a green top.

After the two start brawling a spectator can be heard describing Stephanopoulos as 'being beautiful'.

Kathryn Stephanopoulos, 34, was arrested by officers with Flagler County's Sheriff's Office on Monday after the incident last Thursday

Eventually, the mom moves in between the two and grabs the girl in the white shirt while her daughter throws wild punches at her.

Another person intervenes in the fight to pull Stephanopoulos out of the fray, but she tightens her grip on the teenager instead.

The fights then break off into separate incidents, with her daughter then fighting the person that tried to intervene.

As school kids shout from the bus windows Stephanopoulos can be seen continuing to grapple with the teenager on the ground.

The fight eventually is split up by an unknown person. One person can be heard shouting from the bus: 'Your mom is going to prison'.

The two groups continue to argue as they back away from each other, with police saying that one of the teens struck Stephanopoulos with a metal cup.

One juvenile was also arrested for aggravated battery, while misdemeanor charges for another juvenile were forwarded to the State Attorney's Office.

As school kids shout from the bus windows Stephanopoulos can be seen continuing to grapple with the teenager on the ground

Sheriff Rick Staly said: 'Instead of deescalating the situation, we have a mother who joined in the fray, setting a bad example for her child and those at the bus stop.

'She certainly wont receive mother of the year with her actions. Parents need to set the example and not be part of the problem.

'Luckily, no one was seriously injured, but now a mother is facing serious charges for losing control of her temper.'

Stephanopoulos was taken to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility. She has since been released after posting $1,000 bond, online jail records show.

According to an arrest affidavit seen by Fox 35, it said: 'It should be noted that Kathryn expressed her regret and embarrassment about the entire incident'.
Two Labour Party staffers have been given Civil Service jobs in Downing Street, prompting yet more allegations of cronyism.

Mitchell Burns-Jackson, who previously worked for both Sir Keir Starmer and his Chief of Staff Sue Gray, has been given a key role inside No 10 as Ms Gray's executive assistant.

Annie-Rose Peterman, who worked for Sir Keir and Emily Thornberry in opposition, has also reportedly replaced a civil servant as the Prime Minister's diary manager.

It comes just a day after it emerged that Labour think-tank director Jess Sargeant has been made a Cabinet Office adviser on constitutional reform which is responsible for 'ensuring the highest standards of propriety and ethics across all government departments'.

The Labour party led by Sir Keir Starmer (pictured) has been accused of cronyism

Labour Party staffers Mitchell Burns-Jackson (left) and Annie-Rose Peterman (right) have been given Civil Service jobs in Downing Street , prompting yet more allegations of cronyism

Sources insisted Ms Sargeant, who previously worked for the Institute for Government, had been hired on a fixed-term contract because of her expertise in constitutional reform.

Jess Sargeant has spent the past year as Director of Constitutional Change at Labour Together, which has close links to Sir Keir Starmer and his allies

It is said she would not be involved in any work on ethics or ministerial investigations in the unit, which is where Ms Gray once worked.

Two business people with links to Labour donations have also been given senior roles in Government departments in recent weeks.

Former banker Ian Corfield, who gave 20,000 to MPs over the past decade, was made Director of Investment in HM Treasury.

While Emily Middleton was made a Director General in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology under Peter Kyle after her firm Public Digital gave him more than 65,000 in opposition.

Last night shadow paymaster general John Glen said: 'The sheer number of Labour apparatchiks being parachuted into full civil service roles... threatens the civil service's integrity.'

Sources insisted Jess Sargeant, who previously worked for the Institute for Government, had been hired on a fixed-term contract because of her expertise in constitutional reform (Stock Image)

Emily Middleton (pictured) was made a Director General in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology under Peter Kyle

Reform UK said the 'leapfrogging' of Labour figures to Whitehall has 'blown apart' the civil service's impartiality.

A Cabinet Office spokesman refused to comment on 'individual staffing appointments'.

But Labour sources said that previous Tory governments also gave short-term contracts to former party staffers.
It was a quirky meme about the Democrats' vice presidential hopeful, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, that turned into the convention's most viral moment thus far.

Walz fans online had changed a lyric to rapper Lil Jon's classic tune, Get Low, from 'To the window, to the wall,' to 'To the window, to the Walz.'

That put an idea in Ashley Spillane's head.

'When the memes started about "From the window to the Walz," I reached out immediately,' Spillane told DailyMail.com

Spillane was the head of Rock the Vote a decade ago and had partnered with the Georgia-born rapper then.

Ashley Spillane (left), the former head of Rock the Vote, had the idea for Lil Jon's (center) viral moment Tuesday when he performed for Georgia during the Democrats' roll call vote. And Lil Jon's publicist Tamar Juda (right) helped make it happen

They had switched up the lyrics to Lil Jon's 'Turn Down For What' to 'Turn Out For What,' and filmed a music video alongside actress and activist Sophia Bush - who's at the convention in Chicago this week - and other politically active celebs.

'Jon is such a special artist,' said Spillane, who now runs a social impact consulting firm. 'He's really open to creative ideas, he's willing to do things like change the lyrics.'

With very little time to plan, Spillane was able to touch base with Lil Jon's publicist Tamar Juda to see if he was open to performing at the upcoming Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

She also had to make sure a Lil Jon performance would be wanted.

The answer was yes.

'It was a network of women who just get s*** done behind the scenes,' Spillane said.

'Colleen Loper at the White House loved the idea and connected us with Carla Frank on the campaign,' she continued. 'And they made it happen, we made it happen.'

Lil Jon wowed attendees at the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday when he showed up amid the party's roll call vote and started performing Turn Down For What and Get Low

Ashley Spillane (center) and Lil Jon (right) working on the Rock the Vote 'Turn Out For What' music video in 2014

The small group of women kept the plan quiet so that it would be a true surprise.

'He didn't go to soundcheck the other day,' Spillane explained.

A number of DNC artists' performances were tipped off because they came into the convention hall for a dress rehearsal earlier in the day.

It was initially clear where Lil Jon would fit into the program, but then the Democrats decided to do a musical roll call vote.

The rapper would represent his home state of Georgia.

'We didn't know what part we were gonna end up doing so having it be Georgia roll call was very special,' she said.

Spillane walked ahead of Lil Jon on the United Center floor.

'Immediately when people saw him on TV, I had like 57 messages immediately saying, "This is you isn't it?"' she said.

Lil Jon performed both Turn Down For What - and again changed the lyrics to 'Turn Out for What.'

As for Get Low - he gave Democratic nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, some love too.

He replaced, 'To the windows - the walls' with 'VP Harris - Governor Walz!'
Traveller pupils are to be referred to as 'mobile children' under new government guidance.

New pupil absence advice issued by the Department for Education uses the term to refer to students 'of no fixed abode' who miss school while their parents are 'travelling during the course of their trade or business'.

The law allows children to be away from the classroom while their parents are travelling for occupational reasons.

Such as absence is commonly marked with a 'T' by teachers in what is called the 'T code'.

Previous T Code guidance issued in May 2022 made specific reference to several traveller groups including Roma, English and Welsh gypsies, Irish and Scottish travellers, showmen (fairground workers), bargees and new travellers.

Traveller pupils are to be referred to as 'mobile children', according to new government guidance (file photo)

But the new guidance simply refers to the T code being used for absences when 'a parent is travelling for occupational purposes', the Telegraph reported.

It also says that schools should not 'unnecessarily ask' for evidence that the parent is travelling for occupational purposes and only when there is 'reasonable doubt' that the request is not genuine.

Over 79,000 T code absences were granted in the 2023/24 autumn term, DfE figures show.

Roma pupils accounted for around 55% of the total, with 43% of absence requests from those of white heritage.

Baroness Smith of Malvern, the Minister of State for Skills, said the change was made to highlight that mobility rather than ethnicity qualifies for authorised absence

Irish traveller pupils were absent the most often, missing 22.9 per cent of lessons last year, with 72 per cent missing 10 per cent of classes or more, followed by Gypsy or Roma pupils with an absence rate of 18.2 per cent.

Minister of State for Skills Baroness Smith of Malvern said that the change had been made to clarify that a child's 'mobility' rather than ethnicity qualifies them for authorised absence.

But the purpose of the move has been questioned by advocacy groups.

The Advisory Council for the Education of Romany and other Travellers (ACERT) said it was unclear what purpose the altered wording served given that the corresponding legislation remains the same.
A billboard stating misleading crime statistics is seen Wednesday after it was reerected in San Franciscos Richmond District. Minh Connors/The Chronicle A billboard stating misleading crime statistics is seen Wednesday after it was reerected in San Franciscos Richmond District. Minh Connors/The Chronicle

After a brief hiatus, two mysterious billboards touting alarming  and misleading  statistics about crime in San Franciscos Richmond neighborhood are back, with a slight edit.

The new signs now claim to have been paid for by a group connected to www.SaferSanFrancisco.net, a bare-bones, single-page website with messaging identical to its billboards. A search of its URL suggests its buyer wishes to remain anonymous: The site was registered on Aug. 13 by an organization called Domain Protection Services Inc.

The signage, which first appeared last week, states that there have been 20,000 robberies, burglaries and thefts in the Richmond since 2021; and that almost 2,000 of those crimes have been recorded in the Richmond during this year alone.

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But those tallies lumped in far more acreage than just the Richmond District, including nearby neighborhoods that are also covered by San Francisco polices Richmond Station, as well as those overseen by the departments Park Station.

While the messaging read to locals as a political statement, in an area where progressive incumbent Supervisor Connie Chan faces a stiff reelection campaign against centrist Marjan Philhour, it was unclear what its author hoped viewers would do with it.

Shortly after the billboards emerged, a Chronicle article fact-checked their claims and reported that representatives from groups cited as funding the ads, Safer SF and stopcrimesf.com, denied involvement.

The signs disappeared overnight, only to be reerected this week with the modified URL. But the amendment offered few clues to the source behind the ad.

The moniker Safer SF has been used on several occasions in recent years as a partial name for several groups that have supported tougher-on-crime causes and moderate politicians. Representatives from the recent ballot measure committee Yes on Prop. E for a Safer SF and the group Safer San Francisco for Mark Farrell for Mayor 2024 told the Chronicle they didnt pay for the ads.

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Safer SF was also shorthand for a group that led the successful campaign to recall former progressive District Attorney Chesa Boudin in 2022. The group, which was led by Mary Jung, used an orange silhouette of the citys skyline as their logo  a design thats strikingly similar to the art on the new Safer San Francisco website.

But despite these commonalities, the Chronicle was unable to find evidence linking the new site to the preexisting group. Representatives from the billboard company, Outfront Media, did not respond to requests for comment.

A review of recent financial disclosures does not show the committee spending money on advertising. Another well-funded group that donated heavily to the recall campaign, Neighbors for a Better San Francisco, also did not report any recent spending with Outfront Media.

Both Jung and Jay Cheng, who heads Neighbors, on Wednesday told the Chronicle that their groups didnt purchase the ad space.

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Politicians are hypocrites, but you probably already knew that. Its the nature of the profession.

They either claim to have higher standards than they in fact do, or politicians impose higher standards on everyone else than they ever would on themselves.

Examples of the above are in abundance, and they arent restricted to either side of the major party divide.

We also know some crossbenchers arent much better, such as Teal MP Zali Steggall, who this week complained about low parliamentary standards ... shortly after being forced to withdraw an unparliamentary remark in the chamber.

The latest example of hypocrisy by the current Labor government pertains to the rules surrounding its new legislation aimed at improving parliamentary standards of MPs and Senators, compared to the way it is going about imposing new standards on tax professionals.

This comparison neatly highlights the hypocrisy of the government: Happy to demand from others what it wont require of themselves.

The new parliamentary standards laws wont require any MP or Senator under investigation to disclose that fact.

The independent body undertaking investigations of alleged misconduct wont be allowed to name the parliamentarians under suspicion ahead of any findings being made.

On the one hand, Anthony Albanese has introduced new parliamentary standards, where investigations of alleged misconduct won't be able to name MPs. On the other, his government has introduced rules that could see accountants have to declare their own - alleged - misconduct to clients

I for one think that this is a good thing. The sort of tarring and feathering that can occur publicly when someone is outed as being merely 'under investigation' is career limiting at best, career destroying at worst. And we see allegations increasingly weaponised in public debates.

Of course it is no surprise that when it comes to how they treat themselves, politicians put such concerns front and centre. They did the exact same thing when designing the federal corruption watchdog that has already been legislated.

Only corruption findings are made public, not ongoing investigations. But what about for the rest of us?

Is the government consistent in protecting other professions from the damage potentially false allegations being disclosed might cause?

The answer is no, at least so far as new laws affecting tax professionals go.

And this should concern other professionals too, because the Labor governments unwillingness to rectify the legal abomination it is imposing on accountants is a sure sign that other professionals could soon be subjected to the same tarring and feathering based on allegations (not findings). Which politicians have excluded themselves from. It reeks of hypocrisy by Labor.

Expecting accountants under new laws to disclose to clients when they are under investigation - at the same time that politicians protect themselves from a similar fate - is a clear double standard. No wonder the accounting profession are up in arms about the treatment they are receiving.

All 13 bodies representing 500,000 tax professionals (who knew there were so many! 74,000 of whom are practicing tax agents) from right across the country are united on wanting this law amended. But the government is ignoring their concerns, having already changed the law despite objections raised.

Meanwhile, let me give readers an insight into the gag inducing offal that goes into how the sausages are made when it comes to policy-making and media relations in Canberra.

To confirm whether or not the new parliamentary standards legislation would allow disclosure of MPs and Senators under investigation I was directed to the media team of the finance minister Katy Gallagher who is overseeing these new laws.

When I spoke to her press secretary and the policy adviser with expertise of the new rules, they very professionally explained to me why investigations wouldnt be made public. Highlighting the unfairness of that happening. They made the point that findings, of course, would be made public.

Having established that was the case I went to the minister responsible for the new laws for accountants - the assistant treasurer Stephen Jones, asking him why whats good for the accountants isnt ok for MPs and Senators?

His new rules for accountants specifically say that if they are under investigation they might need to disclose this to their entire client base.

Assistant treasurer Stephen Jones's silence was deafening when the contradiction was pointed out

To be clear, this isnt a contested interpretation of the rules. It is spelled out in the explanatory note attached to the new laws.

After such a professional experience dealing with Gallaghers team I was looking forward to how Jones would navigate what appeared to be a clear contradiction in principles between the treatment of accountants and politicians.

His response? Nothing. Ive known the minister for years, shared drinks and a meal in Canberra even. He very generously got back to me the other week on a matter he did have an answer to.

On this matter, however - where there really isnt any excuse for the hypocrisy - let's be realistic, the silence was deafening.

So I went to the Prime Ministers media team, who didnt give me an answer either. It wasnt complete silence this time, just confusion and a misunderstanding that led to being ignored.

They thought because Gallaghers office had spoken to me it was case closed. Eventually, after much protesting back and forth, I got as meaningless a formal response as there can be: These are two completely separate issues.

No kidding! I appreciated that otherwise hard to realise clarification.

But what about the principle that applies to both examples: why allegations in one case need to be disclosed publicly but not in the other? The sound of silence returned.

Media units in political offices can be a gigantic waste of taxpayers money, yet they are growing in size and scope. Their job is often to find a way to justify what's already been announced, no matter how unjustifiable, hypocritical or inconsistent the policy might be. Propaganda is their stock and trade.

In the meantime, the government just continues to inconsistently apply principles most voters would prefer were consistently applied.

No wonder the wider public thinks modern politicians are out of touch, more concerned about themselves than doing the right thing.

The wisdom of the commons is dead right about that.
David Sharaz's 'biggest fear' was that Australians would think he was the mastermind behind the media storm surrounding Brittany Higgins' rape allegations, according to hundreds of texts released by a court.

The messages between Mr Sharaz and News Corp Australia journalist Samantha Maiden were released by the WA Supreme Court on Wednesday as part of Senator Linda Reynolds' defamation case against Ms Higgins.

Ms Maiden was called to give evidence because she broke the story about Ms Higgins' rape, and was in regular contact with Mr Sharaz around the time it was published on February 15, 2021.

Ms Higgins alleged her former colleague Bruce Lehrmann raped her inside Senator Reynolds' ministerial suite in Parliament House in 2019. She also alleged the senator tried to cover up the assault, which Ms Reynolds denies.

In the texts, Mr Sharaz outlined a number of concerns - including an apparent conspiracy that the former Liberal government bought bots to spout negativity about him on X, formerly Twitter, by likening his appearance to Lehrmann's.

He said: 'I've gotten it the whole way through, same with me being called the rapist, and that I look like him.'

At one point, he vowed to 'refrain from any tweets slamming the government'. He is now being sued by Ms Reynolds over tweets written the following year, in 2022.

At another point, he told Ms Maiden 'I feel like [your] producer haha' because he was giving her so much information.

However, Mr Sharaz appeared to be primarily concerned that Ms Higgins' story would drop off the public radar the day after Ms Maiden published her story and the government would 'get away with' allegedly covering up a rape.

Pictured: David Sharaz with Brittany Higgins after they moved to France last year

Samantha Maiden (pictured) originally broke the story about Brittany Higgins' rape claims

About two weeks before the story broke, Mr Sharaz said to Ms Maiden: 'Journalistically, do you think this will make a splash or will it be one story and no follow up. Is it worth her doing this?'

'Ultimately, she just wants [her rape] not to happen again. It's quite a pure motive.'

Ms Maiden replied: 'Yes it's worth her doing it. Yes it will get followed up.'

A week after the story broke, he told Ms Maiden: 'Britt and I are now regretting all of this. But oh well.'

Ms Maiden asked: 'Really?'

Mr Sharaz replied: 'Because the government seems to have gotten away with it all, and we're both unemployed.'

Ms Higgins and Mr Sharaz quit their jobs in the lead-up to the allegations being made public. She was working as a Liberal staffer for Senator Michaelia Cash at the time, and he was working for the government.

Ms Maiden pointed out that the Coalition was grilled over Ms Higgins' rape claims during Question Time in Parliament House - to the point where Ms Reynolds was hospitalised.

'If you want to deliver change to parliament, all these inquiries, that's not nothing,' she told him.

Mr Sharaz fired back 'I can just tell' that the government had gotten away with it and said then Prime Minister Scott Morrison was 'backing Linda'.

Twitter users likened David Sharaz's appearance to Bruce Lehrmann's (both pictured)

David Sharaz told Samantha Maiden that he and Brittany Higgins regretted going public with her story (a mock up of the text is pictured)

David Sharaz told Samantha Maiden his 'biggest fear' was people thinking he put Ms Higgins up to speaking publicly about her rape

Three months later, in May, he explained to Ms Maiden why he had posted a tweet criticising the government.

He told Ms Maiden that he knew it 'wasn't a wise decision' to write the tweet but 'I think I'd have regretted not fighting back on my death bed'.

'Hopefully this is the last time I'm in the media and I'll be refraining from any tweets slamming the government moving forward,' he added.

'My biggest fear is the narrative that I put her up to it. We all know Britt. She can't be told to do anything.

'I'm not the evil genius the Prime Minister's Office seem to believe I am. I actually don't think they believe it. I do feel they hate me though.'

'And being hated is a relatively new concept to live with.'

In April this year, a Federal Court judge found Mr Sharaz was responsible for the publicity surrounding Ms Higgins' rape claims, and for the allegations Ms Reynolds and the Liberal government tried to cover up her assault.

In June 2021 - after Lehrmann had been charged with rape - Mr Sharaz again said that he and Ms Higgins thought the government 'got away with' mishandling the assault.

Ms Maiden said: 'We've had this discussion before but they didn't get away with anything.

'They got named in parliament! ... The idea they got away with it is the depression talking. It's a bizarre interpretation of what happened, I think.'

In July, he sent Ms Maiden a screenshot of a social media post that painted him in a negative light.

David Sharaz was frustrated that Twitter users said he looked like Bruce Lehrmann

David Sharaz said he knew for a 'fact' that the government sourced bots to spout negativity. Samantha Maiden asked where that information came from, but he didn't reply

He said: 'I've gotten it the whole way through, same with me being called the rapist, and that I look like him.'

'Is it just bored people or the government. It's so weird.'

Ms Maiden said: 'Nutters on Twitter - it's good when they identify themselves block with vigour.'

She then shot down his suggestion that the government paid for bots to discredit him on Twitter.

'Of course it's not the government! Come on!' she said.

Mr Sharaz replied: 'I know for a fact they outsourced bots. Maybe they're not doing it anymore but they did at the start of all this.'

Ms Maiden asked, 'What does outsourced bots mean? And what's the "facts" from?'

He didn't reply.

In August, Mr Sharaz spoke about an investigative report that followed an independent review into whether the former Liberal government tried to cover up Ms Higgins' rape claims, known as the Gaetjens report.

Ms Maiden said the report had likely been completed but was unlikely to be released because Lehrmann's criminal trial was due to begin in two months.

Mr Sharaz said: 'Good point, and I'm glad they won't!'

Ms Maiden asked: 'Why are you glad they won't?'

Mr Sharaz said he believed it could impact the criminal case, but he also didn't believe the government would want to 'admit' knowledge of Ms Higgins' assault and the way it as handled.

'The government will never admit to any knowledge of what's happened. They've already backed themselves in that regard. I know you give them the benefit of the doubt but I don't think that review is a truly independent process,' he wrote.

Ms Maiden said the government would likely have formed the opinion that the report could not be released before the criminal trial.

Linda Reynolds is pictured, left, outside the WA Supreme Court earlier in August

He replied: 'You are far more trusting than I am haha. Oh well!'

She said: 'It's not about trust. It's about common sense. They would be very cautious about doing anything that could impact the trial.'

Mr Sharaz said: 'I just don't think that's true. I don't think they care or want justice for Britt. It's messy for them.'

Ms Maiden strongly disagreed, telling him the decision not to release it was based on legal advice rather than emotion.

'It's got zero to do with silencing anyone - it's actually trying to protect Brittany's right to a trial that doesn't collapse,' she said.

Mr Sharaz replied: 'I just think we have different views on the government. I don't want to sound like a crazy conspiracy theorist but given all they have done to keep it quiet for two years, I don't think they're morally sound.'

Lehrmann was tried for rape in the ACT Supreme Court in October 2022, but the case collapsed due to misconduct by a juror. The Director of Public Prosecutions then dropped the charge citing fears for Ms Higgins' mental health.

In April, a Federal Court judge found on a balance of probabilities that Lehrmann did rape Ms Higgins in Parliament House in 2019. He has launched an appeal.

Ms Reynolds is now suing Ms Higgins and Mr Sharaz for continually alleging on social media that she tried to cover up the rape, and that she pressured the former staffer not to go to the police about her assault.

Mr Sharaz conceded defeat earlier this year but the matter has not settled.
The United States has secretly amended its nuclear defence strategy to recognise it faces a triple-threat from Russia, China and North Korea.

For the first time, these countries are feared to be considering a coordinated nuclear attack on the US and its allies, including Britain.

Previously, the threat posed by Russia was uppermost in US and NATO nuclear policy. But the rapid rise in Chinas nuclear stockpile in particular has forced a rethink.

Over the next decade Chinas arsenal is expected to rival that of the US and Britain, while North Korea, which with Russian assistance is seeking to enhance its nuclear capability, is also considered a threat.

Already North Korea is considered a nuclear power on the level of Pakistan or Israel, but it is on a trajectory to surpass the capabilities of these states, according to US officials.

The strategy change is understood to have been approved by President Joe Biden (pictured) in March

Over the next decade Chinas arsenal is expected to rival that of the US and Britain (pictured: Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a news conference in May)

Already North Korea is considered a nuclear power on the level of Pakistan or Israel , but it is on a trajectory to surpass the capabilities of these states, according to US officials (pictured: North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un delivering a statement in Pyongyang)

Previously, the threat posed by Russia was uppermost in US and NATO nuclear policy (pictured: Russian President Vladimir Putin gives an interview in March)

The strategy change is understood to have been approved by President Joe Biden in March.

The classified document reflecting this change is apparently so secret that no electronic copies exist. Hard copies are shared between officials with the highest security clearance.

This is the first time the US has recognised that the country and its allies, such as the UK, face multiple nuclear-armed adversaries who would be prepared to confront the West as an alliance.

Former nuclear strategist Vipin Narang said the West needs to deter Russia, China and North Korea simultaneously with a combination of nuclear and non-nuclear weapons.

The move also follows an uptick in joint Russian-Chinese military exercises, and closer Russian relations with North Korea.

Chinas nuclear arsenal is considered the fastest growing in the world.
The CEO of Australia's peak body for suicide prevention has written to Anthony Albanese's government expressing concerns about new laws requiring tax professionals to reveal mental health issues to their clients, stating that 'steps need to be taken to ensure this does not happen'.

So far the government is refusing to budge on the issue which could create the bizarre scenario where taxpayers getting their returns done with an accountant could be placed in the situation where they outline their mental health history.

Suicide Prevention Australia has more than 350 members representing 140,000 workers across Australia. It provides a voice for service providers, practitioners, researchers and people who have experience of the traumatic impact suicide can have on families and communities.

In the letter, obtained by Daily Mail Australia, CEO Nieves Murray expressed concerns about the new laws 'which may discourage help seeking among tax professionals', noting that Suicide Prevention Australia 'strongly believe that it is important to reduce wherever possible any barriers to seeking support'.

Earlier this month the Labor Party tabled new laws requiring tax professionals to advise their clients of 'any matter' that could 'significantly influence' a client's decision to retain their services.

Peter de Cure, the Chair of the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) - the body responsible for enforcing the new laws - has said that mental health 'could possibly be relevant' as a matter for disclosure to clients.

But the minister responsible for the new laws, assistant treasurer Stephen Jones, dismissed de Cure's interpretation as 'silly stuff'.

An initial Q&A by the TPB answering potential concerns arising from the new laws also cited mental health as something that tax practitioners might now need to disclose.

Anthony Albanese's government introduced new rules that may inadvertently lead to tax practitioners outlining their mental health history to their clients

However, after the government rejected the TPB's interpretation that reference was removed from its website - which now says mental health won't need to be disclosed.

But this week, Daily Mail Australia heard a different story when this masthead telephoned the TPB helpline set up to assist tax practitioners with the rules governing their profession.

Asked if mental health needed to be disclosed under the new laws we were told: 'It falls into the typical grey area of the TPB's wording. If [mental health] is affecting operations or working for the client it probably should be disclosed...It would be advised and it's recommended'.

The confusion is a major concern for tax practitioners who might be affected by the new laws, as the 13 bodies representing 500,000 tax professionals seek to have them amended or overturned.

The Coalition and a number of crossbenchers have said that they will support overturning the new law - but it is unclear if they have the numbers in the Senate to challenge it.

Peter de Cure, the Chair of the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) - the body responsible for enforcing the new laws - has said that mental health 'could possibly be relevant' as a matter for disclosure to clients. Above, stock image of a woman doing her taxes

Suicide Prevention Australia, in its letter to Stephen Jones, echoed the concerns already raised by former Australian of the Year and mental health expert Professor Patrick McGorry, who has called on the government to amend its concerning laws.

So far Labor is refusing to do so.

In its letter, Suicide Prevention Australia agrees with concerns raised by the bodies representing tax professionals that mental health disclosures might be required when it shouldn't be.

'We agree that this is a possibility and that steps need to be taken to ensure this does not happen'.

The letter ends with an offer by Australia's peak suicide prevention body to work with the Labor government to rectify the problem and 'ensure that access to supports is facilitated'.

At the time of writing, Jones' office has not taken up that offer.

Call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636
A council has finally removed a roadside tree after fed-up locals complained for two years, claiming it had caused countless accidents.

The tree, which was planted in the roadway at the corner of Arden Street and Coogee Bay Road in Coogee, Sydney's east, was removed on Wednesday.

A Randwick City Council spokesman said the decision to remove it was made because the tree in the box had been vandalised several times.

'The coastal location and condition of the pit has also made establishing the tree in this location challenging,' he told Daily Mail Australia.

'Given these ongoing issues, council is removing the tree and the tree surround.'

The spokesman said the council had been forced to remove the tree previously up to six times after it had been repeatedly damaged.

Photos showed staff patching up the asphalt where it used to be housed.

The planter box, which was built close to the middle of the road, on the corner of Arden Street and Coogee Bay Road, in Sydney's east, was removed on Wednesday (pictured)

Motorists have been complaining for years, saying vehicles would repeatedly mount the concrete base surrounding the structure, not expecting a tree to be planted within a road lane.

Furious locals branded it as 'useless' and said it was needlessly taking up space on the left lane at the busy intersection.

Last month, a local cafe worker reported three cars crashed into the barriers in one week.

Residents took to social media to express their relief after the box was removed.

'Well done, stupid idea to put it there in the first place, one person wrote.

'Omg! it's finally happened. I don't know why Randwick Council love planting trees where it will block the view oncoming cars [and] pedestrians... especially at intersections. Super strange,' another person wrote.

The council previously justified the flora feature, saying it was an important environmental initiative that contributed to the vibrancy of the area.

Council also claimed the concrete blocks act as a wheel stop for a nearby parking spot.

The council previously claimed the installation of the planter box (pictured left) was an important environmental initiative that contributed to the vibrancy of the area

Concrete planter boxes are often used in suburban areas to revitalise the architecture of public spaces.

The structures also provide environmental benefits by increasing air quality and serve as a habitat for wildlife.

The boxes are also a cost effective way to redesign public spaces because they require minimal maintenance and don't need to be replaced often.
Oprah Winfrey sang Vice President Kamala Harris' name and took a 'childless cat lady' swipe at J.D. Vance during a Wednesday night appearance at the Democratic National Convention.

Winfrey was a late add to the schedule, but with her Chicago ties and previous endorsements of Democratic presidential candidates of color, her attendance should have been anticipated.

The longtime talk show host entered the United Center announcing: 'Who said you can't go home again!'

She said she remained a political 'independent' but asked independents and undecided voters to back Harris.

'We are beyond ridiculous tweets and lies and foolery,' she said, comments clearly aimed at Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump. 'These are complicated times, and they require adult conversations.'

In response, the Trump War Room X account posted a doting letter Winfrey had penned to Trump in the year 2000.

Oprah Winfrey sang Vice President Kamala Harris' name and took a 'childless cat lady' swipe at J.D. Vance during a Wednesday night appearance at the Democratic National Convention

In response, the Trump War Room X account posted a doting letter Winfrey had penned to Trump in the year 2000.

Donald Trump (left) and Oprah Winfrey (right) are photographed together in 1988

'Donald,' the 24-year-old note said. 'I received the book excerpt. I have to tell you, your comments made me a little weepy.'

'It's one thing to try and live a life of integrity - still another to have people like yourself notice,' Winfrey said. 'Too bad we're not running for office, what a team!'

While Trump had long talked about at some point jumping into politics, Winfrey stayed sidelined until the 2008 cycle when she endorsed then Sen. Barack Obama's presidential run against a number of more seasoned Democrats, including then Sen. Hillary Clinton.

Two economists at the time estimated that Winfrey's endorsement potentially boosted Obama's performance in the hard-fought primary against Clinton by 1 million votes.

Meanwhile Trump, eying a potential 2012 run, pushed the so-called 'birther' theory - that Obama wasn't born in Hawaii, but abroad. Obama was eventually forced to release his long-form birth certificate.

Winfrey later endorsed Clinton when she was up against Trump in 2016, but didn't hit the campaign trail.

This year, the talk show great was hesitant to join the political fray, her best friend CBS' Gayle King said, but decided to get off the bench.

Oprah Winfrey was reportedly hesitant to reenter the political fray, but that reluctance was not apparent during her Wednesday night Democratic National Convention speech

Oprah Winfrey raises her hands to the crowd as she addresses the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, where her long-running daytime television show was based

Oprah Winfrey sang Democratic nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris' name at the end of the Democratic National Convention speech in trademark Oprah fashion

That reluctance wasn't apparent during her remarks.

'After watching the Obamas last night, that was some epic fire,' she said. 'We're now so fired up you can't wait to leave here and do something.'

'And what we're going to do is elect Kamala Harris as the next president of the United States,' Winfrey offered.

She said there are 'few' who view the country as 'us versus them' and believe 'books are dangerous and assault rifles are safe.'

'That there's a right way to worship and a wrong way to love,' she continued.

'People that seem first to divide and then to conquer,' Winfrey added. 'But, here's the thing, when we stand together, it is impossible to conquer us.'

She quoted the late civil rights leader, Democratic Rep. John Lewis.

'He said no matter what ship our ancestors arrived on, we are all on the same boat now,' Winfrey said.

Winfrey talked about all the states she had lived in during her career in TV.

'I have actually traveled this country from the redwood forest , love those redwood forest, to the gulf stream waters,' she said.

'I've seen racism and sexism and income inequality and division, I've not only seen it, at times, I've been on the receiving end of it,' she continued. 'But more often than not, what I have witnessed and experienced, are human beings, both conservative and liberal, who may not agree with each other, but who would still help you in a heartbeat if you were in trouble.'

She pointed out that 'we are not so different from our neighbors.

'When a house is on fire, we don't ask about the homeowner's race or religion, we don't wonder who their partner is or how they voted, no, we just try to do the best we can to save them,' she said.

'And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady,' Winfrey continued. 'Well, we try and get that cat out too,' she said to laughs and applause.

Despite her partisan slaps, Winfrey told the crowd that she still identified as an 'independent.'

'Now there's a certain candidate that says if we just go to the polls this one time we'll never have to do it again,' she said. 'You're looking at a registered independent who is proud to vote again and again because I'm an American and that's what Americans do.'

'Voting is the best of America,' she said. 'And I have always, since I was eligible to vote, I've always voted my values. So that is what is needed in this election now more than ever.'

'So I'm calling on all you independents and all you undecideds,' Winfrey added.

She encouraged them to vote for the Democratic ticket because it stood for 'decency and respect.'

'But more than anything else, let us choose freedom. Why? Because that's the best of America,' Winfrey said. 'We're all Americans and together let's all choose Kamala Harrisssss,' she said, sing-songing the Democratic nominee's name.
A hardworking, lonely widow survived the deadly Lahaina wildfires last year - only to die in a freak accident as she tried to piece her life back together.

Edralina Diezon's death on April 3 marked the end of a difficult and tumultuous few years while she worked tirelessly to provide for her family back in the Philippines.

She toiled 80 hours a week as a janitor, and struggled for months to get to work after she was relocated to a beachfront resort that was turned into a shelter for displaced Maui residents, the New York Times reports.

Still Diezon, 69, showed up every day to the job that paid just $15 an hour, and had to face red tape as she tried to get disaster relief.

Edralina Diezon, 69, survived the deadly Lahaina wildfires last year, but died in a freak accident on April 3 while trying to piece her life back together

Diezon's hardships began when her husband - who had long been the family breadwinner - died of colon cancer in 2014.

She received her green card and moved from Manila to Maui to join her brother, who drove a taxi and owned a now-destroyed seven-bed house where he rented out rooms to tenants, including his sister.

Diezon soon got a job at a cleaning service and recycled aluminum cans on the side.

Eventually, she raised enough money to send $500 to $1,000 every two weeks to her four children and six grandchildren in the Philippines - which went to upgrades to her family home and her grandchildren's schooling.

She would also send care packages every three months filled with clothes, cologne, handbags and food.

Diezon's hardships began when her husband - who had long been the family breadwinner - died of colon cancer in 2014

But her life turned upside down when the deadly wildfires ripped through Lahaina.

She spent August 8, 2023 hiding in a storage room, surrounded by mops, buckets and brooms as the fire continued to spread.

Diezon would go on to spend two days and two nights in the storage room, and when she finally emerged - starving and disoriented - the neighborhood where she lived was gone.

She wandered the charred streets for hours before she finally encountered a police officer who brought her to a hotel that had been converted into a shelter.

Eventually, Diezon would move into the beachfront Royal Lahaina Resort and Bungalow - along with more than 1,000 other displaced residents.

But the resort was a good four miles away from her job, and to get there, Diezon would have to walk along the fast-moving and dangerous Honoapiilani Highway.

After a while, Diezon resorted to hitchhiking.

She ultimately had Portia Marcelo, 43, spend a few days shuttling her to appointments to have her glasses replaced, to the motor vehicle division to get an official state identification card and to a supermarket so she could wire money to her family.

Diezon hid in a storage room for two days and two nights as the wildfires ripped through Maui

Diezon also told volunteers helping to rebuild Maui that she needed transportation.

The volunteers then asked her more questions about rebuilding, housing and her mental health, then waved her to the next station.

Diezon would go on to hand over her ID and bank routing number to get money from the People's Fund of Maui - which was bolstered by donations from Oprah Winfrey and actor Dwayne Johnson.

Finally, she went to another hotel to inquire about disaster relief from Maui United Way - which was distributing direct cash payments of $1,000 to nearly 8,000 individuals.

But when she arrived, Diezon was directed to another location that she couldn't go to because she had to get to her job.

She also could not get money from Venmo donations, as she did not have an account - forcing her to continue to toil for money.

When she emerged, Diezon found her neighborhood ruined

She wandered the charred streets for hours before she finally encountered a police officer who brought her to a hotel that had been converted into a shelter

It took months for the buses to return, but when they finally did, the last one back to her hotel stopped running at the same time Diezon's shift ended.

If she missed it, Diezon would again be left scrambling to find a ride in the dark.

By the spring, Diezon's family and friends said she started to become despondent as she and other evacuees were told they would have to move out of the Royal Lahaina by the summer.

Some decided to move off of the island, but doing so would mean Diezon would have to find a new job - after spending seven month doing everything she could to keep her job.

Diezon would make a final wire transfer to her daughter, Eden Diezon Balobo, on April 1 - just two days before she died in a horrific crash.

She left work on April 3 after dark, and was not wearing the white-flower printed Hawaiian shirt uniform that the other cleaners wore.

Instead, Diezon decided to wear black that night.

Diezon was killed while trying to cross the busy Honoapiilani Highway on April 3

In the dark, she had to cross the busy Honoapiilani Highway.

She also decided not to use a crosswalk at Keawe Street - which would overshoot the bus stop - and opted instead to cross through the parking lot of the Lahaina Cannery Mall, where the bus driver picked up passengers.

But as Diezon tried to catch the bus back to the hotel, she was struck by a 2017 Nissan Rogue, and she died - just three days before her 70th birthday.

In the aftermath, Diezon's family back in the Philippines fought to bring her remains back home.

They set up an online fundraiser to raise enough money to transport her remains from the United States.

'Edralina moved to Maui nine years ago, driven by the dream of providing a better life for her family back home,' it said.

'She worked tirelessly, sacrificing her own comfort to support her children and give them opportunities she never had.'

But the fundraiser only earned $475, and the family was left struggling to figure out how they could bring the matriarch home.

Fortunately, Diezon's brother learned in May that his sister had a savings account.

It contained $19,000 - enough to ship her remains to Manila and pay for her funeral.

At her funeral on June 17, Diezon's coffin was shrouded in white daisies, and a framed photo of Diezon sat alongside her body and a statue of Jesus.
A woman at the DNC was in the wrong place at the wrong time when Oprah Winfrey mentioned 'childless cat ladies' during her speech Wednesday night.

Winfrey was endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris when she referenced J.D. Vance's resurfaced criticism that the US was being run by 'a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives'.

'When a house is on fire we don't ask about the homeowners race or religion... We just try to do the best we can to save them,' Winfrey began. 'And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady. Well we try to get that cat out too.'

The broadcast awkwardly cut to a nonplussed woman in a blue dress directly after Winfrey delivered the cat line. The woman quickly turned as if to evade the unfortunate timing.

'I'm screaming at the DNC cutting to this random woman when Oprah made a 'childless cat lady' comment,' wrote Buzzfeed's Spencer Althouse. 'taking a page from Wendy Williams' cameraman lol.'

A woman in the crowd at the DNC was an unfortunate victim of the cameras after Oprah Winfrey brought up 'childless cat ladies' in her speech Wednesday night

However, social media noticed one of the broadcasts cutting to a woman by herself in the United Center seating bowl directly after Winfrey brought them up

Dale Tegman added: 'Representation matters: justice for childless cat ladies. WE SEE YOU GRRL.'

'Shes like I know you aint looking at me,' wrote one other user on X at the woman's attempt to turn away from the camera.

Another posted: 'Omg I was thinking the same thing. And even the way the poor girl turns around'.

The woman later self-identified and managed to see the humor in the situation.

Maryland Delegate Teresa S. Woorman posted that it was her in the footage and made it clear she found the whole thing funny.

'Damn right this childless cat lady is 100% disgusted by J.D. Vance in general and 100% behind @KamalaHarris and @GovTimWalz! Also I may be childless but I do hope thats not a permanent condition, thanks!' she wrote.

Woorman responded to Althouse's post of the clip, writing: 'Im having a great time at the DNC.'

Vance's 2021 comment that blasted Harris and others 'childless cat ladies' went viral on social media after he was chosen as former President Trump running mate in the 2024 presidential election.

He told former Fox News host Tucker Carlson the US was run by 'a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they've made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable too.'

Maryland Delegate Teresa S. Woorman is in fact a dog owner. She laughed off the gaffe on social media

'Look at Kamala Harris, Pete Buttigieg, AOC - the entire future of the Democrats is controlled by people without children,' Donald Trump's newly-announced running mate continued.

'How does it make any sense we've turned our country over to people who don't really have a direct stake in it?'

Vance pushed back on critics of his comments after they made headlines, claiming those putting him on blast lied about what he said, and even doubled down on what he meant.

'If you look at what the left has done, they have radically taken this out of context and, in fact, aggressively lied about what Ive said,' Vance told Fox News in late July.

'What I do think is true, and this goes to the heart of what I was talking about three years ago in those comments, but its going to be something I continue to talk about, is that the left has increasingly become explicitly anti-child and anti-family,' he continued.

Host Trey Gowdy pointed out to Vance that there have been many leaders without biological children from George Washington to former Republican Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

'So I think you will agree with me that direct offspring are not necessary to be fully invested in the future of this country,' Gowdy said.

'Of course not, Trey. I do think that being a parent actually has a profound effect on somebodys perspective and we should honor and respect that,' Vance said.

JD Vance 's old comment on 'childless cat ladies' like Kamala Harris has gone viral again as the pair come under the microscope during the 2024 presidential race

'But there are a whole host of people who dont have children for a whole host of reasons. And they certainly are great people who can participate fully in the life of this country.'

The legendary talk show host and philanthropist Winfrey made the comments a big part of her surprise appearance at the DNC.

Winfrey was a late add to the schedule, but with her Chicago ties and previous endorsements of Democratic presidential candidates of color, her attendance should have been anticipated.

The longtime talk show host entered the United Center announcing: 'Who said you can't go home again!'

She said she remained a political 'independent' but asked independents and undecided voters to back Harris.

'We are beyond ridiculous tweets and lies and foolery,' she said, comments clearly aimed at Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump. 'These are complicated times, and they require adult conversations.'

When she made the reference to Vance, she was pointing out that 'we are not so different from our neighbors.

Oprah Winfrey sang Vice President Kamala Harris' name and took a 'childless cat lady' swipe at J.D. Vance during a Wednesday night appearance at the Democratic National Convention

Donald Trump (left) and Oprah Winfrey (right) are photographed together in 1988

Despite her partisan slaps, Winfrey told the crowd that she still identified as an 'independent.'

'Now there's a certain candidate that says if we just go to the polls this one time we'll never have to do it again,' she said. 'You're looking at a registered independent who is proud to vote again and again because I'm an American and that's what Americans do.'

'Voting is the best of America,' she said. 'And I have always, since I was eligible to vote, I've always voted my values. So that is what is needed in this election now more than ever.'

'So I'm calling on all you independents and all you undecideds,' Winfrey added.

She encouraged them to vote for the Democratic ticket because it stood for 'decency and respect.'

'But more than anything else, let us choose freedom. Why? Because that's the best of America,' Winfrey said. 'We're all Americans and together let's all choose Kamala Harrisssss,' she said in a sing-song voice.
The Michigan Attorney General issued a startling challenge to Supreme Court Justices who might consider relitigating same-sex marriage protections.

Speaking at the Democratic National Convention, Dana Nessel borrowed the words of gun-loving actor Charlton Heston to warn anyone attempting to deny her right to marriage: 'You can pry this wedding band from my cold, dead, gay hand.'

Nessel, who is a lesbian, also touted Kamala Harris' action as California's attorney general in refusing to defend in court the state's ban on same-sex marriage.

She told the audience: 'She refused to argue that some families should have fewer rights than other families. It meant a lot. She was fighting for families like mine.'

According to The Detroit News, Nessel brought a civil case overturning Michigan's gay marriage ban and is the state's first openly gay attorney general.

Speaking at the Democratic National Convention, Dana Nessel said anyone doing so would need to pry her wedding band 'from my cold, dead, gay hand'

Nessel compared the California same-sex marriage ban to the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision that stripped away womens constitutional protections for abortions.

She said: 'After Roe v. Wade was overturned, Michigans archaic abortion ban was resurrected, but Vice President Harris had my back.

'She reminded me that protecting peoples lives and defending their rights is our job.

'And, just as the same-sex marriage ban was overturned in California, so too was the abortion ban in Michigan.'

Nessel and her wife, Alanna Maguire, have twin sons. They married in 2015 after Michigan's same-sex marriage ban was overturned, according to the outlet.

The Supreme Court is currently made up of a majority of more conservative leaning justices, some of which were picked by former president Donald Trump.

The former president nominated Justices Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett, ensuring a 6-3 conservative majority.

At least one conservative in the Supreme Court, Justice Clarence Thomas has written about revisiting and overriding the same-sex marriage decision.

Nessel and her wife, Alanna Maguire, have twin sons. They married in 2015 after Michigan's same-sex marriage ban was overturned

Nessel, right, hugs her wife, Alanna Maguire, at the Michigan Democrats' election night party in Detroit on Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2018

In 2022, after Thomas made his thoughts clear, President Biden ruled his analysis as paving an 'extreme and dangerous path that the court is now taking us on'.

The prospective law changes, released in a concurring opinion of the decision penned by Thomas, would see limits put on gay marriage, same-sex sexual activity, and citizens' access to birth control.

At the time his opinion was released, Sarah Kate Ellis, head of the LGBTQ advocacy group GLAAD, called it 'a blaring red alert for the LGBTQ community'.

According to the Detroit Free Press, Nessel took a swipe at Republican nominee Donald Trump during her speech.

Actor and 2nd Amendment activist Charlton Heston, the former president of the NRA, famously told Democrats they'd have to pry his rifle from his 'cold, dead hands' at the 2000 NRA convention

The outlet reported that she said: 'We know when [Kamala] takes an oath to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution, she's actually read it.

'Kamala knows you go from the court house to the White House, not the other way around', referring to Trump's ongoing legal battles and his hush money conviction.

Heston, the former president of the NRA, famously told Democrats that they would have to pry his rifle from his 'cold, dead hands'.

His remarks were at the 2000 NRA Convention, a year after the Columbine mass shooting that triggered widespread calls for gun reform across America.
The cause of a mysterious series of 'booms' that rocked Perth has been revealed to be Republic of Singapore Air Force fighter jets on exercise off the Western Australia coast.

Residents feared the deafening sounds may have been an earthquake or explosions when the city was rocked by terrifying tremors on Wednesday.

But aviation expert Geoff Thomas has explained it was actually caused by the two Singapore Air Force F-15 jets were training roughly 55km offshore.

'By going supersonic, they've broken the sound barrier and it gives a loud, sharp crack,' he told 9News.

Perth locals claimed to have felt tremors and heard a loud noise shortly after 11am AWST.

Perth Weather Live received almost 1,000 worried reports about the incident but Geoscience Australia was quick to assure locals there'd been no earthquake.

'Geoscience Australia received multiple felt reports from Perth, WA, at around 11:20am, however no seismic event was observed,' a spokesman said.

However, the finding only left residents more confused.

A series of 'booms' over Perth on Wednesday were caused by a pair of Singaporean fighter jets

'We felt it here in Hamilton Hill, sounded like something massive dropped on our roof and a split second tremor was felt,' one woman said.

Another person said: 'I'm in Port Kennedy my whole house was shaking and heard bangs.'

One south Perth woman reported hearing a loud 'boom' off the coast.

'We saw other neighbours going out onto balcony to look for smoke or something ... People felt it and heard it,' she said

'Where I was, I was quite high up and you can see all the way down the coast to Rockingham, the Port and Kwinana.

'It sounded like it was coming from the water and from the coastline, it sounded like it could have come from Rottnest Island.

'It was so weird. It was a boom, it lasted like a second. It vibrated as well. It didn't feel like an earthquake, it felt like something had exploded, but there was no smoke.'

Matt Woods from the Perth observatory even theorised it could have been a meteorite landing in the ocean off the coast of Western Australia.

Curtin University's lead scientist for the Desert Fireball Network Hadrien Devillepoix argued a fireball in the sky would've been visible if that had been the case.

'People would have seen a flash in the sky and if it made that large of a boom people would have seen a very bright shooting star that would have lasted a few seconds,' he told The West Australian.

'If it's not a meteor, it's got to be some sort of explosion or sonic boom.'

He offered one possible explanation as to why no fireball was spotted in the sky.

Perth residents, frightened by the 'boom' sounds, feared there'd been an earthquake or explosion

'If was a couple hundred kilometres away that fireball could have been missed,' he said.

'But if it was a far away, energetic event, more people around Perth would have heard it.'

The Bureau of Meteorology was also unable to provide further clarity on the cause of the tremor before the cause was later revealed.

'The Bureau is aware of these reports but has no further information on the source,' a spokeswoman said.
Galileo Academy of Science and Technology in San Francisco. The school was placed on lockdown Wednesday after a shooting was reported nearby. Google Street View

A student at San Franciscos Galileo Academy of Science and Technology was shot in the middle of a school day near Ghirardelli Square on Wednesday afternoon, police said.

The shooting occurred at North Point and Polk streets during lunchtime at the public high school just a few blocks away, school employees said when reached by phone. Galileo has an open campus policy and it is common for students to spend time off campus during lunch.

The incident prompted a lockdown at the school as a precaution, then a full lockout, they said.

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During a lockdown, students are locked in their classrooms, while during a lockout, exterior doors are barricaded and locked from the inside, according to a Galileo employee, who added that this was the first time the school had experienced such incidents.

Police said they arrived on scene at approximately 12:38 p.m. and found a young man suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. He was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

A security guard at nearby Ghirardelli Square said he was called to patrol the scene shortly after the shooting. Police had taped off the area and were encouraging high schoolers to leave, he said.

The guard said his systems security cameras caught footage of the shooter running from the scene down North Point Street. He looked to be wearing a gray hoodie, sweatpants, and a black ski mask and was carrying an orange-red backpack, the guard said.

The guard did not see the shooting occur, but said he heard some kind of clap. He also said that though an incident this serious is rare, smaller incidents during the nearby high schools lunch break are common in the area, like petty theft of stores in Ghirardelli Square.

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Police searched the area but had not made any arrests by Wednesday at 4 p.m., officials said. Police declined to say whether the suspect was a fellow student.

The lockdowns at Galileo were lifted after an hour, said Laura Dudnick, a spokesperson for San Francisco Unified School District.

We are very glad that the student is expected to be OK, Dudnick said. We understand that students may be feeling a variety of emotions in response to this incident, and we have wellness staff available to speak with students as needed.

Jill Tucker contributed to this report.
A group of men have been charged over their alleged roles in a 'freelance gang' that committed a string of violent crimes, including multiple shootings and kidnappings.

NSW Police launched a strike force in July to investigate organised criminal acts allegedly carried out by a group hired by organised crime networks in south western Sydney.

Shootings, home invasions, kidnappings and drug supply crimes were allegedly carried out by the group on demand.

Detectives refused to say how much the gang were allegedly paid for the crimes for fear of encouraging other criminals.

Police have seized ketamine, electronic devices, knives, weapons, cash, and stolen items in a search warrant blitz across Fairfield West, Sadlier, Lakemba, Mt Druitt and St Clair about 6am on Wednesday.

Two 20-year-old men from Fairfield West and Mt Druitt and an 18-year-old man from Lakemba were arrested on Wednesday.

NSW Commander of Criminal Groups Squad Detective Superintendent Jason Box said alleged offences include a public place shooting in Austral on July 25 and a kidnapping in relation to a home invasion at Edmondson Park on August 14.

'We believe there's several more (incidents) that they've been involved in, that they've been hired or utilised to conduct acts,' Superintendent Box said.

A group of men have been charged over their alleged roles in a 'freelance gang' that committed a string of violent crimes, including multiple shootings and kidnappings

Shootings, home invasions, kidnappings and drug supply crimes were allegedly carried out by the group on demand

'I'm not in a position to elaborate on those at this stage.

'Our interaction yesterday with these offenders definitely prevented further serious offences being committed.'

He added the acts were 'quite violent' with a 'total disregard for public safety'.

'The incident out at Austral was at least nine shots fired... There was total disregard for public safety,' he said.

'They were quite happy to act on the instructions of others to commit these serious offences, so I think it has taken a very dangerous criminal element off the streets.

The Fairfield West man is the alleged leader of the gang, with detectives alleging he accepted tasks from organised crime networks.

He was charged with special aggravated break and enter with intent to commit serious indictable offence armed with a dangerous weapon, kidnap in company with intent to commit serious indictable offence occasion actual bodily harm, and knowingly direct activities of a criminal group and participate criminal group contribute criminal activity.

The Lakemba man was also charged with participate criminal group contribute criminal activity, conceal serious indictable offence, deal with property proceeds of crime less than $100,000, supply prohibited drug and possess prohibited drug, while the Mt Druitt man was charged with conceal serious indictable offence and participate criminal group contribute criminal activity.

Police have seized ketamine, electronic devices, knives, weapons, cash, and stolen items in a search warrant blitz

The drugs were found in the raids at addresses across Fairfield West, Sadlier, Lakemba, Mt Druitt and St Clair about 6am on Wednesday

The three men were refused bail on Wednesday and appeared at the Fairfield Local Court, Bankstown Local Court, and Mt Druitt Local Court.

Superintendent Box said the dismantling of the group is a 'major blow to organised crime' and a 'relief for the people of south west Sydney'.

'No one should think they can commit these serious offences, such as shooting and kidnapping and avoid any consequences for their actions,' he said.

'We will continue to target these gangs, syndicates and groups and hold them accountable for these dangerous violent acts.'

Investigations remain ongoing, with police urging anyone with information to come forward.
They were once parliamentary allies but finance minister Katy Gallagher today fired shots at Labor defector Fatima Payman for asking basic questions about housing affordability in Australia.

Senator Payman left the ALP and became an independent senator for Western Australia in July, citing irreconcilable tensions with her former Labor colleagues over the Israel-Hamas conflict.

During Senate Question Time on Thursday, Ms Payman asked Senator Gallagher whether Labor was going to get rid of tax breaks, such as negative gearing, to bring prices down for wannabe home-buyers.

She also asked if Labor was going to curb foreign investment - which has historically driven house prices well above affordable levels for the average Australian income-earner - and criticised the government's help-to-buy scheme.

That scheme allows first home buyers to purchase property with a deposit of less than the standard 20 per cent, which lowers the barrier to entry.

Ms Gallagher said she would have expected that question from a member of Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party - rather than Ms Payman.

Independent Senator Fatima Payman is pictured in the Senate on Tuesday

'She's changed her position on help-to-buy since crossing the chamber,' Ms Gallagher told the Senate.

Poll Should Australia abolish negative gearing to improve housing affordability? Yes, we need more affordable homes No, it would punish success Should Australia abolish negative gearing to improve housing affordability? Yes, we need more affordable homes 587 votes

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One Nation has previously called for reforms to Australias foreign investment rules to make essential services - such as power, water, telecommunications, roadways, ports, and housing - off-limits for non-citizens.

Ms Gallagher continued: 'It was part of a suite of policies we took to the election, and when we go to the election with policies, we intend to go through with them.'

She said the government would not tinker with negative gearing, and said Labor planned to address the issue by building more than 1.2 million houses.

Ms Payman said her constituents felt the housing market was 'rigged' against them and had asked if the government would cap negative gearing, or stop foreign investors from buying property and driving up prices.

Ms Gallagher replied, saying the question about foreign ownership was 'very similar' to a recent question from One Nation Senator Malcolm Roberts.

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher fired shots at Fatima Payman on Thursday in the Senate

'It is a very very small amount - I can't remember the figure I gave to Senator Roberts - but it's absolutely minuscule in terms of housing,' she said.

The minister said there were strict conditions on foreign ownership, such as a rule stating owners had to live in the property rather than renting it out, and insisted the shortage was not about foreign investment.

'I am much more used to those questions coming from One Nation,' she said.

'It's a very small part and it's often thrown out there as a housing pressure and it's simply not the case. We need to build more housing.'

Negative gearing refers to where an investment property owner's expenses are greater than the income they earn from their home. Australia's tax system then allows workers who are negatively geared to deduct that loss against their other income, such as their salary.

Former Labor leader Bill Shorten took a policy of abolishing negative gearing to the 2019 election however, Anthony Albanese ditched the policy in the wake of Labor's defeat that year.
The pair are feared to have been swept off rocks

A desperate search to find a father and son feared lost at sea after vanishing on a fishing trip has been suspended as all hope of finding the pair alive fades.

Nelson Chan, 47, and his son Joshua, 17, went missing while fishing for squid at Storm Bay, at the southern end of Kiama Blowhole, on Monday.

They left their Liverpool home, in Sydney's west, at 3pm and were supposed to arrive home by midnight.

But when they failed to return, Clarissa Chan became worried about her husband and son and called triple 0.

She has spent the past three days on the cliffside watching rescuers searching for her loved ones.

'We've been married 19 years,' Ms Chan told The Mercury on Thursday, as tears streamed down her face.

Missing Josh (left) and Nelson Chan are pictured

The father and son vanished while fishing at Stormy Bay at Kiama (pictured)

A rescue boat is pictured on Tuesday amid the search for the father and son

Ms Chan said the pair, who regularly fish in the area, arrived in Kiama at 5pm and they last made contact with family at 5.20pm.

They were last seen by a passer-by at 5.30pm, and authorities fear they were swept off the rocks by a freak wave some time soon after.

A massive search operation has spanned more than 16km of coastline as lifesavers on jet skis, police divers, and rescue boats scoured the waters.

Meanwhile, SES volunteers have been combing the headland while helicopters have assisted from the air. The only items so far recovered by police were a fishing rod nestled in the rocks and a mobile phone.

Police said the duo are strong swimmers but they were not wearing life jackets.

'We are very concerned,' NSW Police Superintendent Craig Ireland said yesterday.

'It does appear in all likelihood they have been swept off the rocks. There was a large swell last night and a high tide at the time they were fishing.

'We feel for the family, and we will do our best to locate them.'

On Thursday after, NSW Police confirmed the search operation has been suspended after failing to find any further traces of the men over the past three days.

'Following an extensive search, the operation was suspended today about 1.30pm,' NSW Police said.

'Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.'
The last of the Covid generation are waking up to their GCSE results this morning in a year when grading is expected to be restored to pre-pandemic levels in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Hundreds of thousands of pupils are receiving grades to help them progress on to sixth form, college or training - with warnings that one in three will fail Maths or English.

Many of the pupils who are receiving their GCSE results were in Year 7 when schools closed due to the pandemic. The cohort faced disruption to their schooling in the first years of their secondary education.

Teenagers could face more competition for sixth form and college places this year due a rising number of 16-year-olds in the population, leaders in the education sector have suggested.

Capacity issues in some areas of the country amid rising demand could mean some colleges will not have space to take on students, the chief executive of the Association of Colleges (AoC) has warned.

Hundreds of thousands of pupils are receiving grades to help them progress on to sixth form, college or training (Pictured: Students opening A-Level results last week)

Many of the pupils who are receiving their GCSE results were in Year 7 when schools closed due to the pandemic

It comes after A-Level results last week revealed significant regional disparities and a widening gap between state and private schools.

Last year, more than one in five (22 percent) UK GCSE entries was awarded a top grade, compared with 26.3 percent in 2022.

But it was higher than in 2019 - the last year that summer exams were taken before Covid-19 - when 20.8 percent UK GCSE entries in England, Wales and Northern Ireland were awarded a 7/A or above.

In England, exams regulator Ofqual has said it expects this year's national results to be 'broadly similar' to last summer, when grades were brought back in line with pre-pandemic levels.

In Wales and Northern Ireland, exam regulators are aiming to return to pre-pandemic grading this summer - a year later than in England.

The move comes after Covid-19 led to an increase in top GCSE and A-level grades in 2020 and 2021, with results based on teacher assessments instead of exams.

But last week, the proportion of A-level entries awarded top grades surpassed pre-pandemic highs.

Lee Elliot Major, professor of social mobility at the University of Exeter, told the PA news agency: 'GCSE grades in 2024 will be marked by familiar divides in results between under-resourced pupils and their more privileged peers, manifested in both national and regional inequalities.

'It is likely that competition for sixth-form places will be even more intense this year given the rising number of 16-year-olds taking GCSEs.

'The concern is that pupils face a lottery in the chances of securing places at sixth forms and colleges across the country.'

This year's students sat regular GCSE exams after several years of cancellations

Teenagers could face more competition for sixth form and college places this year

Amina Bana (right) gets ready to open the letter containing her grades in 2022

Students celebrate receiving their GCSE results at Roedean School in 2022

Bill Watkin, chief executive of the Sixth Form Colleges Association (SFCA), told PA: 'It's likely that there'll be more competition to get a sixth form place.'

He said: 'There is still going to be pressure on places because the number of new places created is less than the number of additional young people working their way through the system at the moment.'

Youngsters across the country will also be awarded their level 2 vocational and technical qualification (VTQ) exam results on Thursday.

When asked whether there could be more competition for places, David Hughes, chief executive of the Association of Colleges said capacity issues were 'acute' in a few areas - including Leeds.

He said: 'It's not just the overall cohort of 16-year-olds has gone up, but more of them are looking to do technical and vocational qualifications because they want stuff that really works in the labour market.'

The AoC is calling on the Government to give colleges in-year funding to ensure they can recruit more students to start courses in September.

Mr Hughes added: 'We are worried that we're getting to a point where in some places they simply won't have the capacity, they won't have the space, to take on students.'

Leaders in the education sector have warned that the cohort of young people receiving their GCSE results have had to overcome a series of challenges in their secondary schooling following the pandemic.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: 'These pupils have shown remarkable resilience and determination, defying unprecedented disruption throughout the pandemic, Raac and strike action.

From left to right: James Smith, Elias Stisted, Katherine Edwards and Emily Farrar look at their GCSE results at Portsmouth Grammar School in 2023

A disheartened student looks at his GCSE results on August 21, 2019 in Ashtead

Students in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are bracing for outcomes which could determine whether they go on to study A-levels, BTEC's or apprenticeships

'From A-levels and T-levels to apprenticeships, they now have an exciting range of options available to them.

'We know this week's results are likely to show the same unacceptable, entrenched regional disparities we have seen time and time again.

'That is why we are committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity - including by delivering a broader, richer curriculum - and ensuring that young people in all corners of our country can reach their potential.'

School standards minister Catherine McKinnell has hailed GCSE results day a 'day of celebration' as she revealed the 2024 marks are expected to be in line with 2023.

Ms McKinnell told GB News: 'We're expecting the results this year to be in line with last year.

'And I think we do need to remember that this is a cohort of young people that have overcome incredible challenges in their time in secondary education.

'They were the generation of children that have gone through Covid and they've experienced huge amounts of - they should be incredibly proud today of their achievements.

'And I think it is incredibly exciting, it's also incredibly nerve-racking for these young people, so I know they're waiting for their results, and it's a very exciting day.

'I think it's a day of celebration of these young people and also the teachers, who have worked incredibly hard to get them to this point today.'

She told Sky News she wants to ensure opportunities 'are spread far and wide', highlighting a gap in university admissions between London and the North after A-level results last week.

Catherine McKinnell, who is also the MP for Newcastle upon Tyne North, said: 'I think for young people there are a whole range of options, and I think that's a really important message to give today as well that, you know, some young people will get the results they're expecting; some will do better; some may not get what they hoped for.

'But actually, there are opportunities available, whether that's in vocational training, whether that's in sixth form, whether that's in a college, whether it's an apprenticeship, or whether it's going into the workplace, and I just think it's really important as a Government that we make sure that those opportunities are available and that we keep building those opportunities as well.

'And that's one of the big priorities for this Government, it's to make sure that those opportunities are spread far and wide because, as you say, young people need to make their choices but we know that across the country it's not always evenly spread how those decisions can be made.'

But Sarah Hannafin, head of policy at the NAHT school leaders' union, said: 'The students who are getting their results have had a rough ride.

'Year 7 is always a big year for young people making that transition from primary to secondary and obviously their first couple of years in secondary school were really disrupted with lockdowns and remote learning and all the things that came with it.

'They went through Covid and we've then had the cost-of-living crisis and all of the problems that have come with that. They've had some real challenges in their secondary school career.'

More students have been applying to sit their exams in smaller rooms away from the main exam hall since Covid-19 due to anxiety, it has been reported.

Pepe Di'Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: 'The levels of anxiety exhibited by students in the run-in to these exams - in what was the end of Year 11 for them - was heightened much more than we have ever seen before.'

In Wales High School in Rotherham - where Mr Di'Iasio used to be headteacher - more students sat their GCSEs outside the main exam hall than in the exam hall for the first time this year.

He said: 'This is post-pandemic. It's certainly growing, it's certainly a trend that I am seeing across lots of schools.'
A light plane with two people on board has crashed near a suburban primary school shortly after take-off.

The aircraft crashed into the trees near Terone Park on Garnet Street, at Bossley Park, in Sydney's south-west, about 2.30pm on Thursday.

It had been in the air for just six minutes before the mayday call was made after the plane's engine failed.

The emergency unfolded metres away from homes and the primary school, where students were playing on a nearby sports oval.

Paramedics rushed to the scene, where the male pilot, 37 and and his female passenger, 34, escaped with only minor injuries.

A NSW Ambulance spokesman told Daily Mail Australia the pair refused to be taken to hospital.

The light plane crashed crashed into trees at a park in Sydney's south-west just minutes after taking off from Bankstown Airport

The aircraft (pictured) crashed into the trees near Terone Park on Garnet Street at Bossley Park, in western Sydney , around 2.30pm on Thursday

Paramedics rushed to the scene (pictured) to treat the people travelling on board the aircraft, who did not suffer and major injuries

The park is located near the Mary Immaculate Catholic Primary School.

The plane is understood to have taken off from Bankstown Airport at 2.23pm before it crashed around six minutes later according to Flight Aware.

Six fire crews, including HAZMAT and Rescue specialists attended the scene.

'It appears the plane suffered engine failure in flight,' a NSW Fire and Rescue spokesman said.

The crash sparked a major response from emergency services

'The young pilot shut down a series of onboard systems and made the emergency landing.'

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau has launched an investigation.
A worker has died at a mine just weeks after another fatality at the same site.

Emergency crews were called to the Byerwen mine site near Glenden in Queensland's Bowen Basin on Thursday after the worker was killed in a vehicle collision.

Two vehicles, including a haul truck, are believed to have collided with the smaller vehicle going underneath the larger one, the Courier-Mail reported.

Queensland Ambulance Service paramedics were called to the mine just after 1pm.

A QAS spokeswoman said paramedics assessed a patient with life threatening injuries at a worksite on Wollombi Rd.

In the Queensland parliament, Resources and Critical Minerals Minster Scott Stewart said, 'I'm aware of reports of a fatality and QCoal's Byerwen Coal mine... I understand emergency services are on scene right now.'

'There will be a full investigation into this fatality,' Mr Stewart said.

'My thoughts and prayers are will the family and friends of those involved.'

Queensland Ambulance Service paramedics were called to QCoal's Byerwen Coal mine in the Bowen Basin just after 1pm on Thursday

Resources Health and Safety Queensland will conduct an investigation at the site.

Police and the Forensic Crash unit also attended the scene.

On Saturday, August 3, father-of-five Chris Schloss, 48, died at the same site when he was struck by a crane.

'Although it is too early to identify a cause of the incident, initial reports indicate it involved a pick and carry crane,' Resources Safety and Health Queensland said at the time of the tragedy.

'The QCoal family has suffered a devastating loss with the death of Chris Schloss in an incident at the Byerwen Mine on Saturday,' QCoal group executive James Black said in a statement.

'Chris has been part of the QCoal family for many years and has been integral in developing Byerwen since its launch.

'Our thoughts are with Chris' wife Amanda, his children and all their family at this terrible time.

'The death of such a long-serving, senior and well-loved member of the QCoal team has obviously left us shocked.

'His family is coming to terms with the worst news you can possibly hear, and we are helping them through this tragedy.'
A female Sydney teacher has been charged with having sex with a 17-year-old student, the second such case in recent weeks.

Monique Nguyen, 28, a teacher from the citys north-west, was arrested by detectives in late May.

Police allege she had sex with a male student, aged 17, in mid-April, in Baulkham Hills, the suburb where she lives, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.

Monique Nguyen (pictured), 28, a teacher from the citys north-west, was arrested by detectives in late May

Police allege she had sex with a male student, aged 17, in mid-April, at Baulkham Hills, the suburb where she lives

Nguyen was released on bail after her arrest and was not required to appear before a magistrate when her case was mentioned in court on Thursday.

Her case will return for a mention at Parramatta Local Court next month.

It marks the second time in recent weeks a female teacher has been accused of having sex with male pupils.

PE teacher Tayla Brailey, 30, was recently charged with sexually abusing two male students - aged between 16 and 17 - that she met while working at a school in Sydney's south west.

Police will allege the sexual assaults occurred multiple times in July - including at her marital home in West Wollongong.

She was arrested over her first alleged victim on August 6 and charged with sexual touching, sexual intercourse with a person under care, and aggravated sexual assault.

She faced Liverpool Local Court the next day, where she was granted bail under strict conditions - which have seen her move out of the apartment she shared with her husband and in with her parents in another suburb of Wollongong.

Tayla Brailey, 30, who is pictured with her husband on her wedding day, was recently charged with sexually abusing two male students - aged between 16 and 17 - that she met while working at a school in Sydney 's south west.

Just over a week later, police went to her parents' home at 7am on Friday 16 August and arrested her over allegations relating to a second male student.

She was taken to Wollongong Police Station and hit with six fresh charges, including having sexual intercourse with a teen under her care, sexually touching a teen under her care, and inciting a teen under her care to sexually touch her.

She was also charged with soliciting, accessing and possessing or controlling child abuse material.

Brailey was granted bail again under strict conditons, including only leaving home if accompanied by one of her parents, abiding by a 9pm to 7am curfew, and reporting to police three times a week.

She is also barred from accessing social media, contacting her alleged victims or any prosecution witnesses, being on any educational facility, or being in the presence of a minor unless the child is in the company of a parent or guardian.
EXCLUSIVE

A man accused of encouraging three friends to gang rape a woman he met on Tinder has told a jury the alleged victim agreed to having group sex.

Adam Kabbout stepped into the witness box at Sydney's Downing Centre District Court on Thursday to give his version of what happened on the night the woman says she was raped.

The 26-year-old is standing trial with Omar El-Sayed, 25, Rami Katlan, 26, and Mohammed Ali, 21, all of whom have pleaded not guilty to a string of offences.

Kabbout is charged with six counts of aggravated sexual assault in company over what took place in the woman's flat at Belmore in Sydney's south-west in the early hours of April 16, 2022.

El-Sayed, Katlan and Ali are charged with two counts of sexual intercourse without consent and two counts of aggravated sexual assault in company.

Kabbout did not have sex with the alleged victim, but the Crown says he encouraged the other three men to repeatedly rape her as part of a joint criminal enterprise.

El-Sayed, Katlin and Ali - none of whom had met the 23-year-old woman before they went to her apartment - insist any sex they had with her was consensual.

Kabbout, who works for a kitchen installation company, said on Thursday he had matched with the woman on Tinder and they had communicated over Snapchat for about eight months.

A man accused of encouraging three friends to gang rape a woman he met on Tinder has told a jury the alleged victim agreed to having group sex. Adam Kabbout is pictured outside court on Thursday

'She seemed to be a very outgoing girl,' he said.

'She seemed very friendly, very fun, very direct with her sexual stuff that she was into. Very bubbly, easygoing person, very chill.'

Kabbout said the woman sent him explicit pictures and videos of herself, which he found arousing, and he sent her images of his genitalia.

She expressed an interest in 'fetishes' including group sex, 'rough sex' and BDSM (bondage/domination/submission/masochism).

'She was very detailed about the stuff she was into,' he said. 'I'm just into normal stuff.

'She told me that she was interested in group sex and that she wanted to experience it one day in the future.'

The night of the alleged rapes, Kabbout, El-Sayed, Katlan and Katlan's brother Yazan - who is not accused of any wrongdoing - watched Souths beat the Bulldogs in a Good Friday NRL game at Olympic Park.

They were later joined by Ali and were driving around Sydney's south-west when Kabbout began exchanging Snapchat messages with the woman.

Omar El-Sayed (above), Rami Katlan and Mohammed Ali have pleaded not guilty to two two counts of sexual intercourse without consent and two counts of aggravated sexual assault in company

Kabbout said when one of the group asked who he was messaging he said it was a girl with whom he planned to 'hook up'.

'I think the conversation led to a point where I said she might be interested in group sex as well,' he said.

'One of them said, "Ask her if she's keen" and I proceeded to ask her.'

A series of Snapchat messages that Kabbout says immediately followed that conversation with his friends has been tendered in court.

'That's what they are into,' Kabbout wrote.

When the woman responded, 'Actually?!!?!' he replied, 'Yeah.'

Woman: 'Eep. Maybe not tbh [to be honest].'

Kabbout: 'It's only 3 guys.'

Woman: 'Idk [I don't know] them sorry HAHA.'

Kabbout: 'They look like me lol.'

Woman: 'Hahahaha erm tempting but maybe not hm.'

Referring to the line 'that's what they are into', Kabbout told the jury it had followed him suggesting to the woman she might like to have sex with his friends.

'Before that sentence we actually had a discussion about what my mates were down for,' he said.

'And I told her they might be down for group sex, to hook up with her.'

In the hours leading up to the alleged rapes Kabbout and the woman sent each other messages on Snapchat which the Crown says included a suggestion she have group sex with his friends. (Above is reproduction of their messages based on a court exhibit)

Kabbout said he had told his friends the woman had not taken up the invitation for group sex but he still thought it was a possibility.

'I told them that I would go there myself and I would ask her again if she was interested,' he told the jury.

Kabbout said shortly after he arrived at the woman's apartment they had a brief conversation before she led him into her bedroom.

'She went straight to my belt,' he said. 'I wasn't expecting that. There was not talk of sexual stuff.

'I told her "I'm not feeling it tonight". She said, "Bring the boys up".'

Kabbout said El-Sayed came alone and while he was in the woman's bedroom the other three men entered the apartment.

When El-Sayed finished, Ali was next into the room, followed by Rami Katlan.

Kabbout said when his friends expressed a desire to leave he told them he wanted to speak one last time to the woman.

'I said to her, "We're going now, are you OK?",' he told the jury.

'She told me to f*** off and gave me a dirty [look]. She looked a bit angry. I just said, "OK then". I was really confused when she said that.'

Omar El-Sayed, Rami Katlan (above), and Mohammed Ali - none of whom had met the 23-year-old woman before they went to her flat - insist any sex they had with her was consensual

Asked if he had arranged for his friends to have sex with the woman without her consent, Kabbout said: 'No, it was consented. It was consented from the beginning.'

The woman has previously denied ever discussing having sex with multiple men with Kabbout or wanting 'to try a gang bang'.

She gave evidence earlier this month that when Kabbout arrived at her home they both went straight to her bedroom.

After taking a shower the woman said she found Kabbout and four other men outside her bedroom.

'I went back into my room and kind of closed the door,' she said. 'Adam came inside and I said, "Who are they? What are they doing here" and "I don't want them in here".'

The woman said Kabbout left her bedroom and she heard the men outside have a conversation in a language she did not understand.

The night of the alleged rapes, Kabbout, El-Sayed, Katlan and Katlan's brother Yazan - who is not accused of any wrongdoing - watched Souths beat the Bulldogs in a Good Friday NRL game at Olympic Park. They were joined later by Ali (above)

Kabbout then came back into the bedroom with one of the group, she told the jury.

'He goes, like, "Suck him off",' she said.

'I moved closer to them and I said that I didn't want to and I didn't want to do anything but I was scared and he told me to just do it so I did.'

The woman said after Kabbout left the room she had intercourse with the man.

'I just remember I kept saying that I didn't want this, I didn't want to do this,' she said.

The woman said when she told Kabbout she wanted he men to leave he replied: 'Not yet.'

She told the jury a second man came into the room and raped her in a similar way to the first and that he was then followed by a third.

The woman said she was in tears while being allegedly raped by the second and third men and continued to protest about what was being done to her.

The trial before Judge Leonie Flannery continues.
British tech tycoon Mike Lynch is among the five bodies recovered from the wreck of the 30 million superyacht that sank in a storm off the coast of Sicily.

Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judith, Mr Lynch's lawyer Christopher Morvillo, and his wife Neda have also been identified.

Mr Lynch's 18-year-old daughter Hannah is still missing, Italian government official Massimo Mariani confirmed this afternoon.

Sicily's Chief of Civil Protection Salvo Cocina said yesterday he believed the Oxford bound teen was among the bodies recovered.

The Italian Coastguard is working on the theory she is still on the vessel, although Mr Mariani said there is a possibility she could have been thrown into the sea as the boat sank.

The fire rescue service said it would 'need a crystal ball' to know when they would find 'the next body' as dive teams can take up to 24 hours just to move one metre due to the difficulty of moving around inside the wreckage.

A source close to the operation said 59-year-old Mr Lynch's body was brought ashore this morning.

A fire service boat with flashing blue lights returned this morning with a blue body bag to Porticello at just after 8.45am local time.

It brings the total number of confirmed deaths to six after the body of Recaldo Thomas was discovered on the day of the sinking.

It comes as:

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, 59, is among the five bodies recovered from the wreck of the 30 million superyacht that sank in a storm off the coast of Sicily

Christopher Morvillo and his wife Neda (top image), Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer (bottom left), and his wife Judith (bottom right) have also been identified

It brings the total number of confirmed deaths to six after the body of Recaldo Thomas (pictured) was discovered on the day of the sinking

Rescue personnel work at the scene today where luxury yacht Bayesian sank off the coast of Porticello, near the Sicilian city of Palermo

Divers found five bodies in the wreck yesterday (Pictured: A rescue boat with rescue personnel on board resume search operations this morning)

People embrace at the scene where a luxury yacht sank, as divers continue to search for 18-year-old Hannah Lynch

Brent Hoberman, a friend of Mr Lynch's for 28 years, says his death is 'unbelievably tragic' and his friends and family had been 'hoping for a miracle'.

He told Sky News: 'We knew it was unlikely but you still hold out hope.

'It's just so unbelievably tragic for him to go through what he went through over the last 12 years, defending his name and not really living a full life, to now for his death to be confirmed is obviously incredibly sad.'

He said he hoped close friends were rallying around My Lynch's 57-year-old wife Angela Bacares - who survived the tragedy - to give her 'courage and strength'.

In a further twist of fate, it emerged this afternoon Mr Lynch had put the doomed vessel up for sale in March but withdrew it from the market after he was acquitted in one of the biggest ever fraud cases, according to industry sources.

The Telegraph reported he was going to review the decision to sell in the autumn after his summer trip to the Mediterranean.

A decision on whether to raise the luxury yacht to the surface is currently 'not on the agenda' but Italian Coastguard spokesman Vincenzo Zagarola said: 'It will be, but not now.'

But a salvage chief has argued the only way of finding out why the Bayesian sank is to lift it to the surface.

Nick Barke, head of salvage operations at Boats.co.uk, said that the 'only real way of knowing' why the yacht sank will be to lift it to the surface, but that would be 'expensive and complicated process', likely to involve a crane barge.

He said divers would attach straps to the boat before it is lifted upright and then hauled out of the water.

He predicted this would be 'time-consuming' as 'they have to do it in such a way that they don't damage anything too badly.'

Search teams made the tragic discoveries of the other four bodies yesterday while scouring through the ruins of luxury sailboat Bayesian, which is resting on the seabed at a depth of 164ft.

The fifth body was discovered late last night, but dive teams were unable to bring it to shore before night fell.

Luca Cari, spokesperson for the fire rescue service, told the Associated Press 'we would need a crystal ball to know when we'll be able to find the next body'.

'It's very difficult to move inside the wreckage. Moving just one meter can take up to 24 hours,' Cari said.

The Royal Academy of Engineering paid tribute to its 'mentor, donor and former council member' Mr Lynch following his death, while technology industry group TechUK called him a 'hugely significant and pioneering figure'.

Mr Lynch was also a member of the Create The Change fundraising board, set up by Cancer Research UK and which helped fund the building of the Francis Crick Institute.

Mr Lynch's 18-year-old daughter Hannah is still missing, Italian government official Massimo Mariani (left) confirmed this afternoon

Royal submarine captain Ryan Ramsey says those taking part in the recovery operation would be under 'huge amounts of psychological stress' (Rescue personnel pictured this morning)

A police car escorts an ambulance carrying the fifth body recovered from Porticello Harbour on the fourth day of the search

TODAY: Salvatore Cocina, the head of Sicily's civil protection agency, said searches are resuming this morning, and there will be an investigation in due course

Dive teams continue to search the waters off the Sicilian coast for a fourth day this morning

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch with his wife Angela Bacares, who survived the disaster

Mr Lynch's attorney Christopher Morvillo (pictured) and his wife Neda are also among those who have died

An ambulance carries the fifth body recovered from the waters this morning off the coast of Porticello

A boat carrying a dive team heads out to the site of the Bayesian on the fourth day of the search this morning

Its chairman Lord John Browne said: 'Mike Lynch should be remembered as the person who catalysed a breed of deep tech entrepreneurs in the UK.

'His ideas and his personal vision were a powerful contribution to science and technology in both Britain and globally.

'I send my condolences to those close to him. We have lost a human being of great ability.'

Mr Bloomer was previously an honorary treasurer at NSPCC.

Today, the children's charity's chairman Neil Berkett paid tribute to the 70-year-old and his wife Judy.

'We remember Jonathan from his time with us as a very kind individual with a great sense of humour and Judy as formidable and passionate,' he said.

'We are so grateful for everything they did for children and the NSPCC and our thoughts are with their family, friends and colleagues at this desperately sad time.'

Royal submarine captain Ryan Ramsey says those taking part in the recovery operation would be under 'huge amounts of psychological stress'.

'It's been exceptionally stressful for them both mentally and physically,' he told Sky News.

'If you take into account the pressures that they're operating under, those are considerable.

'It's dark. It's a platform that they've never been inside before, and they're having to recover bodies. That's huge amounts of psychological stress for those for those divers.'

The Bayesian sank after being hit by a 'black swan' waterspout on Monday at 5am.

Body bags were seen being taken to the port of Porticello on Wednesday afternoon, with the process of bringing the fifth body to shore being described by Mr Cocina as 'ongoing'.

As the body bags were taken back to the port, dozens of emergency services staff were waiting, and one bag was seen being put in the back of an ambulance.

The body of Canadian-Antiguan national Mr Thomas, who was working as a chef on the Bayesian superyacht, was recovered at the scene of the sinking on Monday.

The Bayesian (pictured in an undated handout photo) overturned during a severe thunderstorm on Monday morning

Rescue workers look at the plans of the the Bayesian as they organise a search operation

Of the 22 passengers and crew on board, 15 - including Mr Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares - were rescued after escaping onto a lifeboat.

The head of Palermo Emergency Medical Services, Dr Fabio Genco, told the BBC that there had been 'apocalyptic' scenes in the aftermath of the sinking.

He said: 'The word that the mother and all the injured kept repeating was the 'darkness' during the shipwreck.

'They spoke of about five minutes, from three to five minutes, from the moment the boat was lifted, raised by the waves of the sea until it sank.

'There were truly apocalyptic scenes where everyone was searching and hoping to find the people who at that moment were not present, just missing.'

He added: 'Unfortunately in the face of death and the face of life there is no difference between rich and poor, between nobles and commoners.'

Italian prosecutors have opened an investigation into why the superyacht sank - described as 'unsinkable' by a CEO of a boat manufacturing.

Giovanni Costantino, founder and CEO of The italian Sea Group, which owns the Perini Navi that built the Bayesian, blamed human error for the disaster.

He told Corriere della Sera: 'The passengers reported something absurd, that the storm came unexpectedly, suddenly. That is not true. Everything was predictable.'

The Italian Sea Group has also dismissed speculation the enormous 264ft mast was to blame and says only a massive entry of water could have caused it to sink.

'The controversies about the mast are sterile controversies because the mast, according to those who have seen it, is intact,' they said.

'The retractable keel stabilises the ship, but even without the keel completely out the ship is stable and only a massive entry of water could have caused the sinking which did not happen in a minute as someone wrote.'

The ship's captain, James Cutfield, was reportedly quizzed by authorities for two hours as they began questioning all crew members.

Speaking to New Zealand media, Mr Cutfield's brother Mark said his sibling was a 'very good sailor' with eight years of experience working abroad on luxury yachts

The captain of a yacht, the Sir Robert BP, who helped to rescue them, described how those aboard his vessel spotted the distress flare set off from a life raft.

The ship's captain, James Cutfield, 51, was reportedly quizzed by authorities for two hours as they began questioning all crew members

The Bayesian sank after being hit by a 'black swan' waterspout on Monday at 5am (Pictured: A large waterspout on sea in Campina, Italy, on August 19)

The superyacht (pictured) was docked off the coast of Porticello, near Palermo, when it was hit by an over-sea tornado, known as a waterspout

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Karsten Borner said his crew noticed the Bayesian had disappeared before a passenger spotted the flare.

He told Sky News: 'We couldn't see them any more and they disappeared from the radar, we were busy keeping our own ship sailing.

'We couldn't see the ship again so we were aware something was very wrong.'

He said it was only when the tender set out that they found the life raft.

Mr Borner continued: 'It turned out to be the life raft, a 12-person life raft with 15 people inside including one baby.

'They stepped over to our tender and we brought them back to our ship. There we took good care of them, gave them dry clothes, towels, blankets, tea and coffee and so on and took care of them.'

Inspections of the yacht's internal hull took place on Wednesday morning.

A team of four British inspectors from the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) also arrived in Porticello to look at the site of the sinking.

The MAIB is looking into what happened because the yacht Bayesian was flying a British flag, it is understood.

The Italian Coastguard said the MAIB is not involved in the search for the missing people, and that it has not been requested to assist.

A helicopter was drafted in to help the search effort, as divers from the local fire service were seen entering the water with torches attached to their headgear.

A police boat and divers were also seen entering the water on Wednesday afternoon.

Fire crews from the Vigili del Fuoco said they have been accessing the vessel through natural entrances, without making openings.

Remotely controlled underwater vehicles are being used, with naval units and cave divers also taking part in the search, the Italian Coastguard has said.

Bayesian was moored around half a mile off the coast of Porticello when it sank at about 5am local time on Monday as the area was hit by a storm.

Vincenzo Zagarola, of the Italian Coastguard, previously said the missing tourists were feared dead.

The wreckage of the Bayesian is resting on the seabed off the coast at a depth of 50 metres (164ft).

Fire crews described the operation as 'complex', with divers limited to 12-minute underwater shifts.

Survivors have been recuperating at a hotel complex in Porticello, where authorities were gathering witness statements.

The boat trip was a celebration of Mr Lynch's acquittal in a fraud case in the US.

The businessman, who founded software giant Autonomy in 1996, was cleared in June of carrying out a massive fraud relating to its 11 billion US dollar (8.64 billion) sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

The Financial Times reported that Mr Bloomer appeared at trial as a defence witness for Mr Lynch, while media reports suggest the pair are close friends.

In a separate incident, Mr Lynch's co-defendant in his US fraud trial, Stephen Chamberlain, died after being hit by a car while out running in Cambridgeshire on Saturday.
Bomb threats have been made to multiple health facilities in Queensland as police investigated a suspicious package found at a major hospital.

Police attended the Royal Brisbane and Womens Hospital at about 12.30pm on Thursday after the suspicious package was reported.

Officers were able to quickly declare it was a false alarm, with the package only containing food.

Despite the threats being reportedly made to multiple hospitals, none have been evacuated.

A police spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia that it was aware 'of threats that have been made to multiple health and medical facilities across the state this morning'.

'Specialist officers are currently liaising with partner agencies to ascertain how many facilities have received this threat, and its validity,' the spokesperson said.

'Inquiries are ongoing.'

A suspicious package was found at the Royal Brisbane and Womens Hospital and police attended about 12.30pm and were able to give the all clear shortly afterwards

The threats appear to be copying a trend seen in India and Canada where multiple random targets have been threatened but no explosives have been found.

In the Indian city of Dehli at least 100 hospitals and shopping malls across received emailed bomb threats, which caused police to investigate.

The threats have been declared a hoax.

Police said the suspicious packaged found at the e Royal Brisbane and Womens Hospital contained food (stock image of police bomb squad robot pictured)

In Canada dozens of Jewish received similar emails saying bombs would be detonated but none were found to be genuine.

It is thought the emails are attempting to create chaos in cities worldwide.
Bay Area pizza maven A16 has expanded to Wine Country  sort of.

The Apero Wine & Spritz Bar debuted Thursday in Napa with Italian-inspired wines and snacks from A16 founder Shelley Lindgren, plus refreshing, low-ABV cocktails from the popular aperitivo brand Mommenpop.

The Apero (920 Franklin St.) showcases three women-owned wine brands  Mommenpop, Poe and Tansy  that complement one another in style: Theyre fresh, light and lower in alcohol than most Napa wines.

Aperos opening closely follows the River Club Napa, another partnership between small, unconventional brands. In the increasingly expensive Napa, this could be the start of a trend. Having a tasting room in Napa can be really challenging, said Mommenpop founder Samantha Sheehan. We tag team everything. Its nice to share the operating costs.

Left: Co-owners Shelley Lindgren, from left, Samantha Sheehan and Kitty Oestlien. Right: The exterior of Apero Wine & Spritz Bar, formerly the Outland tasting room. Photos by Jessica Christian/The Chronicle Above: Co-owners Shelley Lindgren, from left, Samantha Sheehan and Kitty Oestlien. Below: The exterior of Apero Wine & Spritz Bar, formerly the Outland tasting room. Photos by Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

Sheehan, whose brightly packaged vermouths have helped fuel the growing U.S. aperitif trend, also started Poe, specializing in sparkling and cooler-climate wines from Sonoma and Mendocino. Tansy is a partnership between Lindgren, who won a James Beard Award for Outstanding Wine Program and wrote a book called Italian Wine, and her friend and Napa local Kitty Oestlien. Tansys focus is Italian grapes, including lesser-known varieties like Fiano and Falanghina, and the wines are made by Megan Glaab, co-founder of Cal-Ital wine darling Ryme Cellars.

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The root of apero means to open, said Oestlien. A lot of these wines are less typical for Napa and Sonoma, and its fun to try something new.

Lindgren, who opened a new panini and pizza kiosk in San Franciscos Ferry Building earlier this year, has created a dreamy, aperitivo hour-inspired menu to accompany the wines. Featuring many A16 offerings, its finger foods like marinated olives ($9); Pinzimonio, Italys take on crudites ($18), and a charcuterie board ($18). The star of the menu is the pesto bar ($12 each or three for $28), featuring crackers, focaccia and a selection of five inventive pesto dips: sun-dried tomato, fennel, pistachio, artichoke and red pepper-heavy Calabrese. I thought it would be a fun way to snack and taste and have fresh, nourishing flavors, Lindgren said of the pesto bar. While the menu is not meant to be a full meal, she said it could be if you keep hanging out.

Popular Italian restaurant A16 provides the snacks at Apero, including several pestos, crudites, salumi and cheese boards and olives. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

The tasting room  which the three partners, who are all mothers, said is family-friendly  is two doors down from Cadet wine bar and on the edge of a burgeoning alleyway in downtown Napa. Other newcomers to the corridor include Moulin Bakery and Outer Space, a wine shop directly across from Apero. The glass-walled corner unit with a funky pitched roof previously housed Outland, another tasting room collective that included Sheehans Poe, but it closed last spring when her partners moved away. Sheehan was using it as an office space until a few months ago when a conversation with Oestlien sparked the idea to reopen.

The space has maintained Outlands wall of windows and a massive map of California with a raised and textured topography. But the formerly uber-modern and minimalistic setting feels warmer and more welcoming now thanks to wood furnishings, a floor-to-ceiling wool tapestry, a tiled bar and a pink hallway that leads to the bathroom. A handful of bistro tables offers additional seating outdoors, but the first thing visitors will see when they walk inside, or peek in the windows, is a faded 1957 Vespa.

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Its the only one you can find in the U.S. Its original condition, said Oestlien, who was on a mission to find a Vespa after a recent trip to Italy. People are going to want to sit on this thing and take photos.

Left: Samantha Sheehan makes a spritz using her Mommenpop vermouth. Right: Aperitifs from Mommenpop above wines from Tansy and Poe. Photos by Jessica Christian/The Chronicle Above: Samantha Sheehan makes a spritz using her Mommenpop vermouth. Below: Aperitifs from Mommenpop above wines from Tansy and Poe. Photos by Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

The three brands wines and spritzes are available by the glass ($10-$20) or bottle, and visitors can choose from four tasting flights, priced affordably  by Napa standards  at $30 and $40. For the Mommenpop flight, Sheehan said customers can enjoy it however they want, either neat, on the rocks or as a spritz. The aperitif category may be booming in the U.S., but its also widely misunderstood, and people dont always know how to sip them. Thats why Sheehan also views the new tasting room as a test kitchen or a case study for how she can best market her product going forward.

Its a great refresh downtown if youve been Cabernet tasting, Sheehan said of Apero. I think a lot of people will come here before dinner.

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Hundreds of thousands of students across the nation are bracing themselves for one of the most significant moments of their academic journey today.

Year 10 and 11 pupils in England, Wales and Northern Ireland will receive their GCSE results, with emotions running high as they anticipate the outcome of years of hard work.

At the weekend, experts said officials may be in favour of 'feel good results' this year, which means there could be a rise in top grades.

Alan Smithers, professor of education at Buckingham University, acknowledged we could also see a repeat of last week's surprise bumper A-level results, which were a record high for non-Covid times.

Social media is aflame with words of wisdom from those who have already sat and passed their exams - some many years go.

For those curious about how they might fare in a GCSE exam today, MailOnline has compiled a selection of questions.

These questions offer a glimpse into the rigorous assessments students across the UK have tackled.

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It comes as the proportion of GCSE entries awarded top grades has fallen for the third year in a row but is higher than before the pandemic, national figures show, as the final cohort of the Covid generation receive their results.

Hundreds of thousands of teenagers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland opened their GCSE exam results on Thursday in a year when grades were due to be restored to 2019 levels in all three nations.

More than a fifth (21.8 percent) of UK GCSE entries were awarded the top grades - at least a 7 or an A grade - this year, down 0.2 percentage points on last year.

This is higher than the equivalent figure for 2019 - before the pandemic disrupted schooling - of 20.8 percent. Most of the students receiving results today were in year 7 at the start of the pandemic.

This summer's exams saw a record number of GCSE grades awarded, an increase on 2023 of 4.8 percent, or more than 6.1 million - compared with a 4.6 percent increase in the number of 16-year-olds.

Pupils at Brighton College react while receiving their GCSE results early on Thursday

Emily Prior (left) and Lucy Mackay receiving their GCSE results at Brighton College today

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More than 372,000 Vocational Technical Qualifications, or VTQs, were also awarded, taking the overall number of results to more than 6.5 million.

The rise was partly driven by an increase in the number of students aged 17 or older taking exams, particularly in Maths and English Language.

The figures, published by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ), cover GCSE entries from students in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The proportion of entries getting at least a 4 or a C grade - considered a 'standard pass' - has fallen from 68.2 percent in 2023 to 67.6 percent this year - a drop of 0.6 percentage points, but higher than 67.3 percent in 2019.

The overall rate for grades 1/G or above is 97.9 percent, down from 98.0 percent in 2023 and 98.3 percent in 2019.

In England, exams regulator Ofqual said it expected this year's national results to be 'broadly similar' to last summer, when grades were brought back in line with pre-pandemic levels.

In Wales and Northern Ireland, exam regulators aimed to return to pre-pandemic grading this summer - a year later than in England.

It comes after Covid-19 led to an increase in top GCSE and A-level grades in 2020 and 2021, with results based on teacher assessments instead of exams.

But last week, the proportion of A-level entries awarded top grades rose on last year and surpassed pre-pandemic highs.
Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan have been detained for 24 hours but could spend up to 30 days in prison amid new allegations of 'sex with a minor' and 'trafficking'.

Video shows the moment a furious Tate insists 'there is no evidence' as he was led into the back of a prison van by elite Romanian cops last night.

One of the world's best-known influencers, Tate has been accused of having formed an organised criminal network in early 2021 in Romania and Britain, along with his brother Tristan.

Romanian authorities launched a fresh raid on Tate's home near Bucharest in the early hours of Wednesday morning, and last night detained the brothers again for the fresh allegations.

They will initially be held for 24 hours, but once that is up Romanian prosecutors are expected to ask a judge to sign off on a preventative arrest, meaning they could stay behind bars for 30 days.

The brothers could remain locked up for even longer than 30 days if the courts reject any bid for freedom

Andrew Tate is led into the back of a prison van by elite Romanian cops

Tate can be heard saying: 'This file is even more stupid than the first one'

Tate talks to the media before being led into the back of police van

Tate has been accused of having formed an organised criminal network in early 2021 in Romania and Britain

The brothers could remain locked up for even longer if the courts reject any bid for freedom, The Sun reports, as investigations continue.

They have long denied any wrongdoing over the ongoing investigations, and in footage of the handcuffed pair being led to a prison van, Andrew Tate can be heard saying: 'This file is even more stupid than the first one.

'They say I'm a lover boy, to the mother of my children - and we've tricked them into having kids. Unbelievable.'

Earlier footage published by Romanian media outlet Observator showed masked policemen making their way into the Tate residence with metal ladders.

One clip showed a masked cop on the compound's roof shining a light through an upstairs window.

Tate was later seen being walked out of his building, with Tristan behind him.

The office for organised crime (DIICOT), said that four search warrants were executed, in connection with 'the crimes of forming an organised criminal group, trafficking in minors', 'sexual relations with a minor' and 'money laundering'.

Prosecutors allege that 37-year-old Tate, his 36-year-old brother and two women set up a criminal organisation and sexually exploited several victims.

They have denied those charges, and a trial date has not yet been set.

Prosecutors 'conducted a raid this morning, on August 21, 2024, at the residence of the Tate brothers as part of a search related to a new investigation', an official said.

Andrew Tate has been posting about the raid since it took place this morning.

He said: 'I don't have phone because it was taken by the police.

'But when I speak loud my words are heard by someone from a computer far far away by magic.'

This is the moment elite Romanian troops stormed controversial manosphere influencer Andrew Tate's 'fortified' compound

Andrew Tate (pictured) was later seen being walked out of his building

His brother Tristan (pictured) was led out by cops shortly after

Andrew Tate talks to media as he is being led for questioning after a police search raid on his residence

A masked gendarme patrols the courtyard of the residence of internet influencer Andrew Tate during an early morning police search raid, on the outskirts of Bucharest, Romania

Andrew Tate flanked by masked gendarmes is led for questioning after a police search raid on his residence

The brothers were detained in 2022 in Bucharest and spent three months in detention before being released under judicial supervision to await trial.

The brothers also face rape and assault allegations in separate cases in Britain, where they have also been accused of tax evasion.

Today's raid comes a month after the Tate brothers were banned from leaving Romania.

The Court of Appeals in Bucharest said in July it had overturned a previous ruling which allowed the controversial internet personality free movement within the European Union while awaiting trial on charges of human trafficking.

That ruling came after the brothers just two weeks earlier had celebrated being given permission to leave the country for the first time in two years.

When the brothers received initial news that they were able to leave Romania, a spokesperson for the pair 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.'

'It reflects the significant progress the legal team have made in challenging the allegations brought against them.

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.

Gendarmes wearing balaclavas walk outside the residence of internet influencer Andrew Tate during an early morning police search raid, on the outskirts of Bucharest, Romania, Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024

Gendarmes wearing balaclavas hold a battering ram used to break down a door outside the residence of internet influencer Andrew Tate

Police officers outside the Tate brothers residence in Pipera, Ilfov, near Bucharest, Romania, August 21, 2024

Police squad cars outside the Tate brothers residence in Pipera, Ilfov, near Bucharest, Romania, August 21, 2024

One of the world's best-known influencers known for misogynist and sometimes violent maxims, Andrew Tate has been accused of having formed an organised criminal network in early 2021 in Romania and Britain

'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.

'They are now able to travel freely throughout the EU to pursue professional opportunities without restriction.'

This 'relief' was short-lived, however, and the ruling was overturned just a fortnight later.

Tate and Tristan were initially arrested in December 2022 along with two Romanian women - model Georgiana Naghel and former cop Luana Radu - but were formerly indicted in June last year.

The two female suspects - dubbed 'Tate's Angels' - also face extradition to the UK once their court proceedings in Romania come to an end.

The brothers have been accused of 10 allegations of rape and sexual assault from three alleged victims in the UK.

Andrew Tate (C) and his brother Tristan Tate (L) return to Bucharest Court after a snack break. Andrew and Tristan Tate, Bucharest Court, Bucharest, Romania - 04 Jul 2024

Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan were banned from leaving Romania last month

Tate strikes a pose at the Court of Appeals in Bucharest before it overturned a July 5 ruling allowing him and his brother to leave Romanian territory providing he remains within the European Union, as he awaits trial on charges of human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women

Andrew Tate grimaces upon arriving at the court

The pair faced complaints from victims who claimed they were drugged and subjected to sexual acts between 2012 and 2015.

Romanian law states the trafficking of adults carries a lengthy prison sentence of up to a decade, as does rape.

The Tate brothers were held in police custody during the criminal investigation from late December 2022 until April 2023, to prevent them from fleeing the country or tampering with evidence.

They were then under house arrest until August, when courts placed them under judicial control, a lighter preventative measure that enabled them to move around freely but not leave the country.

Just two weeks ago, the brothers celebrated as they were given the news they were allowed to leave Romania and had free movement within the European Union

Tate took to X on July 5 to share a message in celebration of being given the right to leave Romania for the first time in two years. This celebration was, however, short-lived

Pictured: A police officer escorts Andrew Tate, centre, handcuffed, from the Court of Appeal in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, March 12, 2024

Romanian prosecutors have said the Tate brothers recruited their victims by seducing them via social media and falsely claiming to want a relationship or marriage - ultimately pretending to fall in love with them before getting them to work for their business after luring them to their villa on the outskirts of Bucharest.

The victims were then taken to properties outside the capital Bucharest, and through physical violence and mental intimidation were sexually exploited by being forced to produce pornographic content for social media sites that generated large financial gain, prosecutors said.

Tate, who has amassed 9.7 million followers on X has repeatedly claimed that prosecutors in Romania have no evidence against him and that there is a political conspiracy to silence him.

In 2016, Tate appeared on the 'Big Brother' reality television show in Britain but was removed after a video emerged showing him attacking a woman.

He then turned to social media platforms to promote his divisive views.

Giving tips on how to be successful, along with misogynistic and sometimes violent maxims, his videos have made him one of the world's best-known influencers.
Italian prosecutors will analyse the keel of the capsized 30million superyacht and speak to its designers as an investigation gets underway.

This morning five bodies recovered from the wreck of the doomed vessel were identified, including the ship's owner British tech tycoon Mike Lynch.

The underwater search is continuing for one person still missing, believed to be 18-year-old student Hannah Lynch.

Twenty two people, comprising 12 guests and 10 crew members, were on the luxury boat when it was ravaged by a 'black swan' waterspout and sank off the coast of Italy just before 5am on Monday.

Fifteen of the 22 people who were on board managed to escape and make it onto a life raft.

However six people, Mr Lynch, his daughter Hannah, Morgan Stanley International chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy and Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda remained unaccounted for.

The body of the boat's chef Recaldo Thomas, was found shortly after the boat sank on Monday.

Italian prosecutors will now look to explain why the Bayesian sank when other nearby boats managed to stay afloat during the freak storm.

Part of that investigation will centre on the ship's keel, which was partially elevated at the time of the storm.

The keel, which extends like a giant fin underneath the boat and acts as a counterweight to the tall mast, was not fully down despite poor weather being forecast hours earlier.

It comes as an unearthed video from 2019 shot in Auckland, New Zealand, showed what should happen when a ship like the Bayesian overturns in stormy weather.

Earlier today, the Mail's Robert Hardman revealed CCTV footage of a tornado pushing a large superyacht with a similar mast style to the Bayesian onto its side.

But rather than capsizing, the mast quickly flips straight back up to its upright position.

As the search operation continues on Thursday, other developments are:

The Bayesian (pictured) overturned during a severe thunderstorm on Monday morning

The CCTV footage shows a tornado pushing a large superyacht with a similar mast style to the Bayesian onto its side

But rather than capsizing, the mast quickly flips straight back up to its upright position

Experts told the Mail that it is fairly standard for the keel not to be fully lowered while a ship is at anchor, but with storms forecast and portholes reportedly left open, it raises questions over the cause of the tragedy.

Prosecutors are seeking to speak with the ships' designers, after captain James Cutfield was questioned for two hours on Wednesday.

The company which manufactured the boat has now claimed human error was to blame.

Amid increasing questions as to how such a robust ship, which had previously sailed in Antarctica and was described as 'bulletbroof', could have sank Giovanni Costantino, CEO of Italian Sea Group, has spoken out on the tragedy.

ISG bought the Bayesian's constructors Perini Navi two years ago. Mr Costantino said: 'This was human error, the yacht sank because it took on water. From where exactly the investigators will tell us. The dynamic of the sinking is seen and read from AIS (Automatic Identification System) data and lasted sixteen minutes.

'We have given this data to the prosecutors at Termini Immerse. From the images it looks as if the yacht had been taking on water for four minutes.

'All it took was another gust of wind to turn her over, that meant more water coming in. She then straightened very briefly before going down.'

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch with his wife Angela Bacares, who survived the disaster

The superyacht (pictured left) was docked off the coast of Porticello, near Palermo, when it was hit by an over-sea tornado, known as a waterspout

Search efforts are back underway this morning to find Hannah Lynch, after five bodies were recovered from the wreckage

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Earlier a spokesman for the company told MailOnline 'procedures were not followed' on the luxury vessel and the sinking was down to 'portholes being left open despite bad weather being forecast hours earlier'.

A spokesperson said: 'The Bayesian was built to a very high standards and it would not have sunk if proper procedures had been followed by the crew.

'A storm had been forecast earlier, no fishing boats went out and yet the portholes were not shut, the yacht sank because it was engulfed by a massive amount of water through open portholes.'

The spokesperson added: 'The Bayesian would have remained afloat in any weather, even if it was being swung from left to right in gale force winds but it could never have remained in the water with open port holes.

'The design made the yacht extremely sturdy, but it couldn't stay up because there had been a huge intake of water though open portholes.

'The yacht was built to withstand whatever the conditions were. The mast has nothing to do with what happened, it was built that way when it was launched and it had a refit in 2020 in Spain, the yacht sank because procedures in bad weather were not followed.'

The Bayesian was 56m long, had a 74m mast and was built in 2008 with David Hutchinson, captain of its sister ship Rosehearty, telling Boat International 'she was bulletproof'.

He told the specialist publication: 'We've been to Antarctica and Chile, and we've had her in 70knots of wind ' but they had never been put in a situation that he felt was unmanageable.

The Bayesian went down in a matter of minutes after being struck by the tornado while anchored off the coast at Porticello, near Palermo Sicily on Monday.

Bayesian's captain James Cutfield, 51, survived and is currently in hospital.

Prosecutors are looking into the theory that the yacht's portholes and hatches were not closed in time ahead of the storm, despite bad weather being forecast, and if any of the crew are liable.

Italian Sea Group completed the buyout of Perini Navi for 80 million Euros in 2022 and a press release at the time said they were 'extremely satisfied' with the purchase complementing its 'expertise in the sailing yacht sector'.
The former head of the British Army says that Ukraine needs to pose an 'unacceptable threat' to Russia, and that the West needs to provide 'decisive' weapons to help Ukraine achieve this.

General Sir Patrick Sanders, who only stepped down from his pivotal role in June, called upon Ukraine's allies to step up and provide better weaponry, as he dismissed fears that Vladimir Putin would use tactical nuclear weapons.

'We should at the moment be making sure Ukraine can win,' the 58-year-old told the Money Maze podcast.

'That is not simply about surviving on the battlefield  which is arguably all we have been doing at the moment. It is about posing unacceptable threats to Russia which causes Russia and Putin to reconsider.'

While the West has been heavily backing Ukraine, it has been slow to allow Volodymyr Zelensky's nation to unlock further capabilities, with many nations placing heavy restrictions on how their weapons can be used until recently.

General Sir Patrick Sanders (pictured), who only stepped down from his pivotal role in June, called upon Ukraine's allies to step up and provide better weaponry

Ukraine has been under siege since February 2022

Britain has provided long-range Storm Shadow missiles (pictured)

Ukrainian serviceman of 148th separate artillery brigade of the Air Assault Forces prepare his M777 howitzer before firing towards Russian positions at the frontline in Donetsk region

Zelensky this week accused Britain of 'slowing down' support for Ukraine as he demanded the removal of 'barriers' in his country's fight against Russia.

The Ukrainian President stepped up his campaign for the easing of restrictions on using the UK's powerful Storm Shadow missiles, which have a range of about 155 miles.

Mr Zelensky has this month overseen a Ukrainian incursion into Russia's Kursk region, which he said is aimed at creating a buffer zone to prevent further cross-border attacks by Moscow.

Britain has given the green light for UK-donated weapons to be used on Russian soil as part of Ukraine's self-defence.

The only exception is Storm Shadow missiles, which remain off limits beyond Ukraine's borders, but Mr Zelensky said 'long-range capabilities' were 'vital'.

His team has claimed Britain loosening restrictions on the use of the weapons could 'turn the tide of the war'.

While the West has been heavily backing Ukraine, it has been slow to allow Volodymyr Zelensky's nation to unlock further capabilities

Ukrainian servicemen of 148th separate artillery brigade of the Air Assault Forces fire towards Russian positions by a M777 howitzer at the frontline in Donetsk region, Ukraine

Ukrainian serviceman Oleh of 148th separate artillery brigade of the Air Assault Forces prepares 155mm artillery shells before firing towards Russian positions at the frontline in Donetsk region

Much of the reticence among Ukraine's Western allies to loosen restrictions on weaponry comes from fears of escalating tensions with Russia, one of the few nuclear-capable countries.

But Sanders said: 'We have overestimated how Russia will respond to our support to Ukraine.

'In some respects we have been deterring ourselves, because we have allowed the Russians to gain what you might call "escalation dominance" where we've held back from the sort of decisive levels of support that we could have given Ukraine early on, for fear of what the Russians will do.

'Yet rather like a boiling frog, each time a threshold has reached where the Russians have said they will respond, they haven't.'

Sanders said it was imperative that Ukraine gets the upper hand in the brutal conflict.

'Its very difficult to see where you can strike a deal. Because any kind of deal is likely only to be a temporary pause. Or you deliver Putin what he wants, which is essentially surrender.

'The consequences of surrendering are not just terrible for Ukraine, they will fundamentally undermine western security, the security of the Euro-Atlantic area, and of course it will give succour and encourage autocrats and dictators around the world who dont hold to our values system.'
The German dynasty behind the Leibniz biscuit empire has admitted to its Nazi past after historians revealed the company's widespread use of forced labour and financial support of Hitler's regime during the Second World War.

The Bahlsen family has led the brand behind the iconic biscuits since it was founded by Hermann Bahlsen in 1891, and has now said that it had never posed 'the obvious question of how our company was able to survive throughout WWII.'

The biscuit manufacturer came under increasing pressure to address its dark past in 2019, when Verena Bahlsen, daughter of owner Werner M Bahlsen, sparked outrage by suggesting the firm 'did nothing wrong' and treated forced labourers 'well'.

Critics hit out at the wealthy heiress, who went on to apologise, with the family pledging to look into the company's history around the world wars.

It commissioned historians Manfred Grieger and Hartmut Berghoff from the University of Gottingen, and their report has now revealed that the use of forced labour was more extensive than previously thought.

Verena Bahlsen (left) is one of four children of company owner Werner Bahlsen (right)

Most of the forced labourers at Hanover-based Bahlsen were women, many from Nazi-occupied Poland and Ukraine. Pictured: The Bahlsen production line in 1930s Germany

The Bahlsen family has led the company behind the iconic Leibniz biscuits for more than 130 years

They found that the company employed some 800 foreign workers between 1940 and 1945 - more than previous estimates of around 200.

Most of the forced labourers at Hanover-based Bahlsen were women, many from Nazi-occupied Poland and Ukraine.

This was common at factories in Germany during the war, with an estimated 13 million people from occupied territories forced to work to to mitigate the drain on the labour force.

The foreign workers were subjected to racial discrimination and harsh treatment, the report found.

They received lower wages, limited food rations and poorer medical care compared to other workers.

Polish women had to wear a purple and yellow P badge to mark out their nationality, and social contact with Germans was forbidden.

They were housed in barracks away from locals and Polish men who were found to have had sexual contact with German women were threatened with execution.

The family business also benefitted by taking over a biscuit factory in occupied Ukraine.

Three sons of founder Hermann Bahlsen, who sat on the board, were also members of the Nazi party and even supported the SS financially.

Verena Bahlsen previously said the firm, which employed some forced labourers during World War Two, 'did nothing wrong' then. Pictured: Workers at Bahlsen's Hanover factory in 1929

After the war, their involvement was hardly questioned, not even by the Allies.

Mr Berghoff told The Times that Bahlsen took National Socialism 'off like [an] old garment and within a few weeks excellent relations were established with the British Army, which, like the Wehrmacht, bought Bahlsen products in large numbers and frequented the factory'.

In a statement about the findings, the family said: 'The research results show that our predecessors and protagonists of the time took advantage of the system during the Nazi era.

'Their main motivation seemed to be to continue the company under the Nazi regime, with dire consequences.

'People were harmed, in particular the over 800 forced labourers from 1940 until 1945. That is inexcusable.

The company has Verena Bahlsen's great grandfather at the end of the 19th century, the biscuit company employed around 200 forced labourers, mostly women, between 1943 and 1945. The firm now has annual sales exceeding 500 million euros (435million)

Three sons of founder Hermann Bahlsen (pictured) were members of the Nazi party

'The truth about these events of the past is painful and uncomfortable. We deeply regret the injustice done to these people at Bahlsen. We also regret that we did not face up to this difficult truth earlier.'

Verena Bahlsen, who has since stepped back from the company, first attracted controversy with her unashamed claim of being a capitalist who 'wants to make money and buy yachts with my dividends'.

As critics reminded her that her company profited from forced labourers, Ms Bahlsen, who is set to inherit a quarter of the family business, hit back.

'That was before my time and we paid the forced labourers as much as the Germans and treated them well,' she told German newspaper Bild, adding that the company had nothing to feel guilty about.

Werner Bahlsen has four children, with his sons Johannes and Andreas Bahlsen still members of the company's board.

The family has now vowed to use the historians' findings to help work towards a better future and as a mission to prevent a repeat of Nazi crimes by promoting a 'culture of commemoration'.

Verena Bahlsen, the great grandaughter of the company's founder, apologised after she sparked outrage for claiming her firm treated forced workers 'well' during World War II

Werner M Bahlsen is pictured in 2016. His company's annual sales currently sit in the region of 450 million

However, it appears to have stopped short of offering further financial compensation to the victims of forced labour and their descendants.

A spokesperson told The Times that Bahlsen gave 1.5 million Deutschmarks to the German governments official forced labour compensation fund in the early 2000s.

Bahlsen's annual sales currently sit in the region of 450 million.

Germany has paid a total of 4.4 billion to more than 1.66 million people in almost 100 countries as compensation for forced labour, and concluded the payments in 2007.

According to the Nazi Forced Labour Documentation Centre, based in south-east Berlin, 26 million people including prisoners of war, concentration camp internees, Jews, Roma and Sinti worked against their will for the Nazi regime.
The woman who became the unwitting focus of Oprah Winfrey's rant at J.D. Vance has responded to the gaffe, saying she is 'disgusted' by the Republican vice presidential nominee's jibe at 'childless cat ladies'.

Winfrey was endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris at the DNC last night when she referenced Vance's resurfaced criticism that the US was being run by 'a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives'.

The broadcast awkwardly cut to a nonplussed woman - now identified as Maryland Delegate Teresa S. Woorman - directly after Winfrey delivered the cat line.

Woorman has since acknowledged the gaffe, making it clear she is 'having a great time at the DNC' and found the whole encounter humorous. She also suggested she's proud to be a 'childless cat lady' and took the opportunity to hit out at the Republican vice presidential nominee.

'D**n right this childless cat lady is 100% disgusted by J.D. Vance in general and 100% behind @KamalaHarris and @GovTimWalz! Also I may be childless but I do hope that's not a permanent condition, thanks!' she wrote.

Maryland Delegate Teresa S. Woorman, pictured at the DNC, has embraced becoming the unwitting focus of Oprah Winfrey's rant at J.D. Vance

Winfrey was endorsing Kamala Harris at the DNC last night (left) when she referenced Vance's resurfaced criticism that the US was being run by 'a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives'. The broadcast awkwardly cut to a nonplussed woman (right) - now identified as Woorman - directly after Winfrey delivered the cat line. The delegate quickly turned as if to evade the unfortunate timing

Woorman, who has cats and a dog, suggested in a post on X that she's proud to be a 'childless cat lady'. She is pictured with her pets

Winfrey, who long hosted her signature talk show from Chicago, last night picked up on one of Democrats' favorite themes of late, scoffing at how Vance once derided 'childless cat ladies' as he argued that Americans should be having more children.

'When a house is on fire we don't ask about the homeowners race or religion... We just try to do the best we can to save them,' she began. 'And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady. Well we try to get that cat out too.'

The camera then panned to the crowd, landing on Woorman, who coincidentally identifies as a 'childless cat lady'.

'Funny enough I recently got appointed to a legislative seat,' Woorman tweeted after the incident. 'And I got sworn in to the Maryland House of Delegates last week and I referred to myself as a childless cat lady during my remarks.'

Tagging both Winfrey and popstar Taylor Swift in her post, she added: 'I'm in good company'.

Swift, who is expected to throw her support behind the Harris-Walz campaign, is known to be a proud cat mother to three felines called Meredith Grey, Olivia Benson and Benjamin Button.

Despite Woorman seemingly embracing the attention, social media erupted into a wave of support for 'childless cat ladies' after the delegate was received the unexpected attention at the conference.

'I'm screaming at the DNC cutting to this random woman when Oprah made a 'childless cat lady' comment,' wrote Buzzfeed's Spencer Althouse. 'taking a page from Wendy Williams' cameraman lol.'

Dale Tegman added: 'Representation matters: justice for childless cat ladies. WE SEE YOU GRRL.'

'She's like 'I know you ain't looking at me',' wrote one other user on X at the woman's attempt to turn away from the camera.

Another posted: 'Omg I was thinking the same thing. And even the way the poor girl turns around'.

Woorman has since acknowledged the gaffe, making it clear she is 'having a great time at the DNC' and found the whole encounter humorous

Tagging popstar Taylor Swift in her post, Woorman admitted she is a 'cat lady' and said 'I'm in good company'. Swift, who is expected to throw her support behind the Harris-Walz campaign, is known to be a proud cat mother to three felines

Social media erupted into a wave of support for 'childless cat ladies' after the delegate was received the unexpected attention at the conference

Vance's 2021 comment that blasted Harris and others 'childless cat ladies' went viral on social media after he was chosen as former President Donald Trump's running mate in the 2024 presidential election.

He told former Fox News host Tucker Carlson the US was run by 'a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they've made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable too.'

'Look at Kamala Harris, Pete Buttigieg, AOC - the entire future of the Democrats is controlled by people without children,' Trump's newly-announced running mate continued.

'How does it make any sense we've turned our country over to people who don't really have a direct stake in it?'

Vance pushed back on critics of his comments after they made headlines, claiming those putting him on blast lied about what he said, and even doubled down on what he meant.

'If you look at what the left has done, they have radically taken this out of context and, in fact, aggressively lied about what I've said,' Vance told Fox News in late July.

'What I do think is true, and this goes to the heart of what I was talking about three years ago in those comments, but it's going to be something I continue to talk about, is that the left has increasingly become explicitly anti-child and anti-family,' he continued.

Host Trey Gowdy pointed out to Vance that there have been many leaders without biological children from George Washington to former Republican Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

'So I think you will agree with me that direct offspring are not necessary to be fully invested in the future of this country,' Gowdy said.

'Of course not, Trey. I do think that being a parent actually has a profound effect on somebody's perspective and we should honor and respect that,' Vance said.

JD Vance 's old comment on 'childless cat ladies' like Kamala Harris has gone viral again as the pair come under the microscope during the 2024 presidential race

'But there are a whole host of people who don't have children for a whole host of reasons. And they certainly are great people who can participate fully in the life of this country.'

The legendary talk show host and philanthropist Winfrey made the comments a big part of her surprise appearance at the DNC.

Winfrey was a late add to the schedule, but with her Chicago ties and previous endorsements of Democratic presidential candidates of color, her attendance should have been anticipated.

The longtime talk show host entered the United Center announcing: 'Who said you can't go home again!'

She said she remained a political 'independent' but asked independents and undecided voters to back Harris.

'We are beyond ridiculous tweets and lies and foolery,' she said, comments clearly aimed at Trump. 'These are complicated times, and they require adult conversations.'

When she made the reference to Vance, she was pointing out that 'we are not so different from our neighbors.

Despite her partisan slaps, Winfrey told the crowd that she still identified as an 'independent.'

'Now there's a certain candidate that says if we just go to the polls this one time we'll never have to do it again,' she said. 'You're looking at a registered independent who is proud to vote again and again because I'm an American and that's what Americans do.'

Oprah Winfrey sang Vice President Kamala Harris' name and took a 'childless cat lady' swipe at J.D. Vance during a Wednesday night appearance at the Democratic National Convention

Donald Trump (left) and Oprah Winfrey (right) are photographed together in 1988

'Voting is the best of America,' she said. 'And I have always, since I was eligible to vote, I've always voted my values. So that is what is needed in this election now more than ever.'

'So I'm calling on all you independents and all you undecideds,' Winfrey added.

She encouraged them to vote for the Democratic ticket because it stood for 'decency and respect.'

'But more than anything else, let us choose freedom. Why? Because that's the best of America,' Winfrey said. 'We're all Americans and together let's all choose Kamala Harrisssss,' she said in a sing-song voice.
The proportion of GCSE entries awarded top grades has fallen for the third year in a row but is higher than before the pandemic, national figures show, as the final cohort of the Covid generation receive their results.

Hundreds of thousands of teenagers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland opened their GCSE exam results on Thursday in a year when grades were due to be restored to 2019 levels in all three nations.

More than a fifth (21.8 percent) of UK GCSE entries were awarded the top grades - at least a 7 or an A grade - this year, down 0.2 percentage points on last year.

This is higher than the equivalent figure for 2019 - before the pandemic disrupted schooling - of 20.8 percent. Most of the students receiving results today were in year 7 at the start of the pandemic.

This summer's exams saw a record number of GCSE grades awarded, an increase on 2023 of 4.8 percent, or more than 6.1 million - compared with a 4.6 percent increase in the number of 16-year-olds.

Pupils at Brighton College react while receiving their GCSE results early on Thursday

Emily Prior (left) and Lucy Mackay receiving their GCSE results at Brighton College this morning

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More than 372,000 Vocational Technical Qualifications, or VTQs, were also awarded, taking the overall number of results to more than 6.5 million.

The rise was partly driven by an increase in the number of students aged 17 or older taking exams, particularly in Maths and English Language.

The figures, published by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ), cover GCSE entries from students in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The proportion of entries getting at least a 4 or a C grade - considered a 'standard pass' - has fallen from 68.2 percent in 2023 to 67.6 percent this year - a drop of 0.6 percentage points, but higher than 67.3 percent in 2019.

The overall rate for grades 1/G or above is 97.9 percent, down from 98.0 percent in 2023 and 98.3 percent in 2019.

In England, exams regulator Ofqual said it expected this year's national results to be 'broadly similar' to last summer, when grades were brought back in line with pre-pandemic levels.

In Wales and Northern Ireland, exam regulators aimed to return to pre-pandemic grading this summer - a year later than in England.

It comes after Covid-19 led to an increase in top GCSE and A-level grades in 2020 and 2021, with results based on teacher assessments instead of exams.

But last week, the proportion of A-level entries awarded top grades rose on last year and surpassed pre-pandemic highs.

Pupils at Brighton College celebrate their GCSE results today in a record breaking year

A pupil shares good news of her results over the phone at Brighton College on Thursday

Students at Nottingham High School receive their GCSE results early this morning

Nihal Shah is supported by family and friends as he receives his GCSE grades at Ark Pioneer Academy in London

Many of the pupils who are receiving their GCSE results were in Year 7 when schools closed due to the pandemic

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According to figures from Ofqual, the number of 16-year-old students in England who received a 9 - the highest grade under the numerical grading system - in all their subjects has risen on last year.

Some 1,270 16-year-olds in England taking at least seven GCSEs achieved a grade 9 in all their subjects, compared with 1,160 last year and 837 in 2019.

While traditional A*-G grades are used in Northern Ireland and Wales, in England these have been replaced with a 9-1 system, where 9 is the highest. A 4 is broadly equivalent to a C grade, and a 7 is broadly equivalent to an A.

The latest Ofqual figures show the attainment gap in GCSE results between private and state schools in England has widened at the top grades this year.

This summer, nearly half (48.4 percent) of private school entries scored a grade 7 and above compared to 19.4 percent of those at comprehensive schools - a gap of 29 percentage points. Last year this gap was 28.2 percentage points.

But the gap between private and comprehensive schools has narrowed compared to 2019 - when it was 29.3 percentage points.

Figures from JCQ show that London and the South East remain ahead in top grades compared to other regions of England, with more than a quarter of entries scoring at least a grade 7 in London, or 28.5 percent.

At the other end of the table, the North East has the lowest proportion, with 17.8 percent of entries scoring at least a grade 7.

The gulf between London and the North East has closed marginally - this year the gap was 10.7 percentage points while in 2023 it was 10.8 percentage points.

Leaders in the education sector have warned that this year's cohort had to overcome a series of challenges in their secondary schooling in recent years.

Pepe Di'Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said the results show 'significant differences' in regional outcomes for GCSEs in England.

A pupil at Brighton College was emotional after she received her results, and is supported by her parents

Stormont Education Minister Paul Givan at Dromore High School in Co Down with students who have received their GCSE results

A student reacts after opening their GCSE results at the City of London Academy in Southwark

Students receiving their exam results today now face a scramble to secure college and sixth form places

A pupil at the City of London Academy in Southwark reacts as he sees his results for the first time

Two pupils embrace at Brighton College as they celebrate receiving their GCSE results

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He said: 'This suggests that relative levels of prosperity and socioeconomic disadvantage continue to play a huge part in educational outcomes, and addressing these gaps must be a key priority for the new government working alongside the education sector.

'We have to do more to support our schools and colleges. Funding and teacher shortages, combined with post-pandemic issues around mental health, behaviour and attendance, have made circumstances particularly challenging.'

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: 'These pupils have shown remarkable resilience and determination, defying unprecedented disruption throughout the pandemic, Raac and strike action.'

She added that the Government was 'committed' to breaking down barriers to opportunity by addressing 'entrenched' regional disparities and thanked teachers and staff who helped students achieve their GCSE results.

Ms Phillipson wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter: 'Congratulations to all students getting results today, and a huge thank you to the incredible teachers and staff who've supported you along the way.

'You've shown amazing resilience, overcoming challenges, and you should be proud of all you've achieved. Well done.'

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer told GCSE pupils they have done 'an incredible job'.

The Prime Minister said: 'Congratulations to those receiving their GCSE results today - you've done an incredible job.

'I know the power of education and opportunity. My Government will make sure everyone's path is determined by their talent, skills and ambition, not where you come from.'

Welsh Secretary of State Jo Stevens has sent 'llongyfarchiadau' (congratulations) to pupils receiving their GCSE grades in Wales.

She posted on X: 'The wait is over! Llongyfarchiadau to everyone in Wales receiving their GCSE results this morning. Wishing you all the best as you embark on your next chapter.'

Wales First Minister Baroness Eluned Morgan earlier wrote in Welsh on the social media website: 'Pob lwc i bawb ledled Cymru sy'n derbyn canlyniadau TGAU heddiw.'

Her message translates as: 'Good luck to all throughout Wales who are receiving their GCSE results today.'

She added: 'Diolch (thank you) to all the teachers and parents too.'

Nearly 373,000 vocational and technical qualification (VTQ) results have also been awarded to pupils.

Sir Ian Bauckham, chief regulator of Ofqual, said: 'Consistent, rigorous standards of grading are producing consistent results. It is evidence that we have settled back into a pattern of dependable and trustworthy results.'

Margaret Farragher, chief executive of the JCQ, said: 'These achievements are hard-earned and students should feel justly proud to have reached this important milestone in their educational journey.'

Jill Duffy, chairwoman of JCQ board of directors and chief executive of OCR exam board, said: 'We're seeing a record number of results issued today, and every one of them represents a student's hard work, as well as that of their teachers, parents, and support staff.'

In Scotland, results for National 5 qualifications earlier this month showed the pass rate was 77.2 percent, down from 78.8 percent last year and 78.2 percent in 2019.
With the sinking of Mike Lynch's 30million superyacht declared 'unprecedented' by maritime experts, the task of working out what happened will be long and complex.

The Bayesian capsized and sank after being struck by an over-sea tornado known as a waterspout on Monday morning, but with the vessel declared 'unsinkable' questions remain over its inability to withstand the freak event.

This morning five bodies recovered from the wreck of the doomed vessel were identified, including Mr Lynch. Searches continue for one person who is still missing, believed to be his 18-year-old daughter, Hannah.

Twenty two people, comprising 12 guests and 10 crew members, were on the luxury boat when disaster struck just before 5am. Fifteen of the 22 people who were on board managed to escape and make it onto a life raft.

Matthew Shank, chairman of the Maritime Search and Rescue Council, called the disaster 'unprecedented', arguing that under any other circumstances, a boat of the Bayesian's quality should have been able to withstand the weather.

Below, MailOnline looks at how the investigation will proceed, and some of the key issues it will consider.

The luxury sailboat, the Bayesian (pictured), was docked off the coast of Porticello, near Palermo, when a vicious storm hit the area just before 5am

An Italian fire service dive team returns to harbour from the dive site of the Bayesian this morning

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Who will be investigating the disaster?

Prosecutors in the nearby Sicilian town of Termini Imerese have opened an investigation into the tragedy.

They will seek to establish what caused the boat to sink and if any of the crew are criminally liable.

The Bayesian is flagged in the Isle of Man, meaning the UK's Marine Accident Investigation Branch is carrying out a separate probe.

A team of four British inspectors arrived in Sicily today, although their report will not seek to attribute blame.

Who will the investigators speak to?

The yacht's captain, New Zealand-born James Cutfield, has already undergone extensive questioning by the authorities.

The surviving crew members and passengers will also be quizzed by the authorities as part of a detailed investigation into the events leading up to the disaster.

Officials may also contact Ron Holland, a naval architect who designed the Bayesian, along with executives at The Italian Sea Group, which owns Perini Navi - the firm that built the yacht at its shipyard in Viareggio in 2008.

What will they be focusing on?

The main issue prosecutors will examine is whether safety protocols were followed and the crew behaved appropriately.

The yacht's capacity of 12 passengers is relevant here, as if it was allowed to carry more it would have been classified as a passenger vessel - meaning stricter rules similar to those followed by cruise ships.

Given the Bayesian's status as a pleasure boat, there would be no requirement for an evacuation drill when passengers boarded, although it's likely they would have conducted an emergency drill with life jackets.

Safety at sea is governed by SOLAS, the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, which specifies minimum standards for the construction, equipment and operation of ships.

The yacht's captain, New Zealand-born James Cutfield, has already undergone extensive questioning by the authorities

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What concerns have been raised about the yacht's portholes and hatches?

'We didn't see it coming,' the Bayesian's captain, James Catfield, said of the freak weather event that sank the vessel.

Prosecutors are looking into the theory that the yacht's portholes and hatches were not closed in time ahead of the storm, despite bad weather being forecast, and if any of the crew are liable.

A spokesman for The Italian Sea Group previously told MailOnline 'procedures were not followed' on the luxury vessel and the sinking was down to 'portholes being left open despite bad weather being forecast hours earlier'.

They added: 'A storm had been forecast earlier, no fishing boats went out and yet the portholes were not shut, the yacht sank because it was engulfed by a massive amount of water through open portholes.

'The Bayesian would have remained afloat in any weather, even if it was being swung from left to right in gale force winds but it could never have remained in the water with open port holes.

It has also been reported that the lower deck space housing the boat's tender (the motor launch for ferrying passengers and crew ashore) was not fully closed when the ship went down.

Plans for the ship suggest this compartment rests beneath the starboard bow, and some have suggested that sealing it would have helped prevent water flowing into the yacht's hull when the wind blew it over.

However, a senior maritime expert said that leaving this hatch partially open was not exceptional for a yacht at anchor, as Bayesian was.

'You might well not stow the tender or close all your hatches when at anchor - you close them when you go to sea,' the source told the Mail's Robert Hardman.

A spokesman for The Italian Sea Group previously told MailOnline 'procedures were not followed' on the luxury vessel (seen in a file photo)

Tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch was on board the Bayesian (pictured at his renovated mill at his Suffolk farm in 2021)

Why are questions being asked about the ship's keel?

The keel, which extends like a giant fin underneath the boat and acts as a counterweight to the tall mast, was not fully down despite poor weather being forecast hours before.

Experts told the Mail that it is fairly standard for the keel not to be fully lowered while a ship is at anchor, but with storms forecast and portholes reportedly left open, it raises questions over the cause of the tragedy.

According to state broadcaster, RAI, the keel  which gives a yacht its stability and its capacity to steer in a straight line  was lowered to a depth of 4 metres instead of the full 7.5.

Had the keel been fully extended, the yacht would have had a better chance of righting itself.

But once again, the senior maritime expert consulted by Robert Hardman said the approach taken by the Bayesian's crew was not unusual.

'You might well not have a lifting keel right down when anchored close to the shore as you don't want to hit the bottom,' they said.

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Should the passengers have been warned?

All but one of the ship's crew survived the disaster, which suggests they may have been on deck when the storm hit while the passengers remained in their cabins, a senior lawyer told MailOnline yesterday.

This raises the question of whether the passengers should have been woken up by the crew and given life jackets in light of the poor weather.

However, experts have insisted that the nature of the weather forecast meant there would have been little reason to do this, The Times reports.

CCTV from a house on the shore showed how rapidly conditions deteriorated when the waterspout struck, while the fact other ships remain upright suggests it was incredibly localised.

Reports suggest the yacht sank within a minute, pointing to a sudden, catastrophic event that may have been difficult to foresee.

However, Giovanni Costantino, chief executive of The Italian Sea Group, insisted there should have been enough time to alert the passengers.

He said it took 16 minutes from the moment the boat was caught by the wind and began dragging its anchor before it finally sank.

'The torture lasted 16 minutes. It went down, not in one minute as some scientists have said. It went down in 16 minutes,' he told the FT. 'You can see it from the charts, from the AIS [Automatic Identification System] tracking chart.'

MailOnline has confirmed that the AIS data shows the boat moving for 16 minutes.

What should have happened when the Bayesian rolled onto its side?

The ship's builders have insisted the yacht was built to withstand any weather conditions and should have been able to right itself.

An unearthed video from Auckland, New Zealand, showed what should happen if a ship such as the Bayesian overturns in stormy weather.

The CCTV footage, from 2019, shows a tornado pushing a large superyacht with a similar mast style to the Bayesian onto its side.

But rather than capsizing, the mast quickly flips straight back up to its upright position.

An unearthed video from Auckland, New Zealand , showed what should happen if a ship such as the Bayesian overturns in stormy weather. The CCTV footage shows a tornado pushing a large superyacht with a similar mast style to the Bayesian onto its side

But rather than capsizing, the mast quickly flips straight back up to its upright position

Why is the ship's huge mast a subject of interest?

The yacht had the world's tallest aluminium mast at almost 250ft, and some experts have suggested this could have been a factor in the sinking.

Karsten Borner, the captain of another yacht anchored nearby during the storm, told Italian media there was a 'very strong hurricane gust' that caused the mast to 'bend and snap'.

Gino Ciriaci, technical consultant and nautical expert, said the weight of the broken mast took the hull beyond the 'down-flooding angle'.

He said a mast that tall would have exerted a pressure of 'tens of tons' due to the wind and said it is 'normal' that the boat could sink based on its technical characteristics.

But in an update on the rescue mission on Tuesday, Marco Tilotta, from the Palermo fire service divers' unit, said the ship was lying on its side in one piece.

And the Bayesian's builders said: 'The mast has nothing to do with what happened, it was built that way when it was launched and it had a refit in 2020 in Spain, the yacht sank because procedures in bad weather were not followed.'

Could the ship be raised?

The Bayesian remains intact, lying on its starboard side 165ft underwater off the coast of Sicily.

Nick Barke, head of salvage operations at Boats.co.uk, said the 'only real way of knowing' why the boat will be to lift it to the surface.

But questioned if plans were in place to salvage the vessel, coastguard spokesman Vicenzo Zagarola said: 'No, this is not a topic on the agenda. It will be, but not now.'

The Costa Concordia cruise liner, which sunk off the coast of Tuscany in January 2012 - killing 32 people - was finally raised two years later in the largest and most expensive maritime salvage operation in history.

It was then towed to the port of Genoa for scrapping, with the whole massive operation costing an estimated 700m.

The ship was recovered for a range of reasons, including to enable a further search for bodies and to prevent it breaking up and releasing pollution.
An increasingly paranoid Vladimir Putin has banned Russians living near the Ukrainian border from using dating apps, amid fears that Ukrainian spies will use them to gather intelligence.

Ukraine currently occupies a swathe of Russian territory after an audacious thrust into Putin's fiefdom.

The Kremlin dictator's Department for Combating Illegal Use of Information Technology issued the app ban to people living in three Russian regions, Kursk, Belgorod and Bryansk, all of which border Ukraine.

Servicemen in these regions were also warned of the threat of being snared by seemingly desirable women on matchmaking sites, including popular Russian dating site Mamba, the largest in the country.

'The use of online dating services is strongly discouraged,' Putin's government warned.

Servicemen were warned of the threat of being snared by seemingly desirable women on matchmaking sites, including popular Russian dating site Mamba (Pictured)

The Kremlin dictator's Department for Combating Illegal Use of Information Technology issued the app ban to people living in three Russian regions, Kursk, Belgorod and Bryansk

Russian soldiers were told not to go on dating apps

An increasingly paranoid Vladimir Putin (pictured) has banned Russians living near the Ukrainian border from using dating apps

'The enemy actively uses such resources for.information gathering.'

Russians in border regions are told not to publish videos from dash-cam recorders in their cars.

These could be used by the Ukrainian army 'to calculate the movements of equipment and personnel'.

Putin's security agents and military personnel were told to disable certain functions on popular messenger Telegram and not to 'open links from strangers'.

They were also ordered to delete all photos and videos that might indicate a friend or relative was an FSB security service officer or in the armed forces.

Ukrainian servicemen ride atop a tank after returning from Russia near the Russian-Ukrainian border in Sumy region, Ukraine, on Saturday, Aug. 17, 2024

A man rides bicycle past the debris of a multi-storey building, destroyed few days earlier following a strike in the town of Myrnohrad, on August 21, 2024

'Never open any links (hyperlinks) received from strangers in messengers or SMS messages,' they are told.

It comes just days after Ukraine launched what is believed to be the largest ever drone strike against Moscow since Vladimir Putin's invasion began in February 2022.

Russian officials said they shot down 11 drones flying to Moscow, and were forced to fend off a further 23 over the border region of Bryansk, six over the Belgorod region, three over the Kaluga region and two over the Kursk region.

Moscow forced the temporary closure of three airports  but no casualties or significant damage to buildings was reported, according to the citys mayor Sergei Sobyanin.
The Met Office has named the twelfth storm of the season - with Storm Lilian set to batter Britain with 80mph winds and heavy rain.

Howling 60mph winds are widely forecast across northern parts of the country overnight and into Friday morning, with some areas possibly seeing 80 mph gusts.

It comes as as millions of campers, walkers and festivalgoers prepare getaways for the August Bank Holiday weekend.

The Met Office has issued two new yellow weather warnings for rain in south-west Scotland and the Aberdeenshire coast from 9pm on Thursday to 9am Friday.

A yellow wind warning has also been issued for northern England and north Wales from 5am to 11am on Friday, with the storm widely expected to bring gusts up to 60mph.

Two yellow winds warnings covering northern Wales and northern England were already in place on Thursday morning.

Lilian is the twelfth named storm of this storm naming season, which runs from September through to the following September.

This is the furthest through the list the Western European storm naming group has got since storm naming was introduced in 2015.

Storm Lilian has been named by the Met Office and is forecast to bring strong winds and heavy rain to parts of the UK

Two elderly women battle high winds as wet and windy weather hits the beach in Bournemouth, Dorset, ahead of Storm Lilian

A blown out Bournemouth beach, in Dorset, as Storm Lilian begins to hit the UK, bringing strong winds and heavy rain

Gloomy stormclouds hover above beachgoers in Cullercoats, North Tyneside this morning as the remnants of Hurricane Ernesto hit the UK, with a further weather warning in place for tomorrow in the North East

Lilian will move northeast early on Friday morning, bringing strong winds for northern England and Wales, as well as parts of southern Scotland.

People have also been warned of potential travel disruptions, with the possibility of power cuts and dangerous conditions near coasts.

Lilian will move into the North Sea on Friday morning, with reducing winds and scattered showers following. Further rain is likely in southern England by the end of the day, the Met Office said.

Met Office chief meteorologist Jason Kelly said: 'Storm Lilian will bring some potentially damaging gusts during Friday morning, with gusts widely in the 50-60mph range, with the possibility of some gusts in excess of 75mph in a few places.

'Theres associated rainfall with Lilian that has also resulted in a Met Office warning for parts of Scotland.

'Much of this is falling on saturated ground so increases the chance of some surface water flooding.'

Storms are named when they have the potential to cause disruption or damage which could result in an amber or red warning, the Met Office said.

The RAC estimated that 19.2 million leisure trips by car will be made over the weekend, with 3.2 million on Friday alone.

This is highest since the motoring services company began recording data for the summer bank holiday in 2015.

Meanwhile London and the south east is set for a mini heatwave with temperatures set to hit 26C next week.

However the Bank Holiday weekend is looking typically unsettled for many, with campers and festivalgoers told to expect rain and cooler temperatures before the outlook improves on Sunday.

The capital will see sunny spells and average temperatures of between 24C and 26C from Wednesday to Friday next week, according to BBC Weather.

The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for rain in Scotland, as well as in parts of the north west

Windy weather is set to accompany up to 150mm of rainfall within 24 hours in some areas

Brits have been told to expect downpours and wild winds to batter the country today. Pictured: People battle against winds and rain on the Garth Pier in Bangor, on August 15

London and the south east is set for a mini heatwave with temperatures set to hit 26C next week. (Pictured: Holidaymakers and sunbathers enjoying the scorching hot afternoon sunshine at the seaside resort of Lyme Regis)

Keen revellers have arrived early for the Reading festival with tens of thousands of teenagers expected for a celebratory post-exams weekend over the Bank Holiday

The rest of the country will see unsettled weather going into the weekend, with the outlook set to improve as it draws on. Pictured: An overcast day in Bournemouth, Dorset on August 19

London is set to get the best of the weather next week with average temperatures of between 24C and 26C. Pictured: people keep cool at Brockwell Lido in South London in 33C heat on August 12

It comes as the Met Office issued yellow weather warnings for rain and high winds in other regions of the UK today.

Up to six inches of rain and strong winds could batter some parts of the country over a 24-hour period, with flooding, dangerous coastal conditions and power cuts possible, the Met Office said.

The yellow warning for rain covers the western half of Scotland, south-west Scotland and Strathclyde, while a separate warnings for wind covers north Wales and northern England.

The Met Office said remnants of Hurricane Ernesto will play a role in the downpours and windy weather as humid summer air mixes with the hurricanes remains.

Hurricane Ernesto ripped through the North Atlantic last week, but has now weakened to a tropical storm after leaving hundreds of thousands of people in Puerto Rico and Bermuda without power.

Met Office spokesman Stephen Dixon said: What's happening is [the hurricane] is getting swept up into other systems and it's bringing some extra moisture and pepping up some of those rainfall totals, and we've obviously got some gusty winds as well, but as an individual feature it is largely broken down.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency has issued 21 flood alerts, meaning flooding is expected, across the Orkney and the Western Isles, and coastal areas in Moray and Dumfries and Galloway.

The Environment Agency has also issued two flood warnings - for Hornsea in the East Riding of Yorkshire and the Wye Estuary in Monmouthshire, near the historic Tintern Abbey.

Lighter rain is also expected in Northern Ireland, while largely dry conditions will cover southern and central areas of England with spells of hazy sunshine, the Met Office said.

Meanwhile there is a 'mixed picture' for the weather this Bank Holiday weekend, the Met Office said.

In southern and eastern areas, Saturday will see rainfall which should clear by the afternoon, while fairly settled conditions will develop beyond Saturday.

Met Office deputy chief Meteorologist Nick Silkstone said: 'Early Saturday will likely see heavy rainfall across southern and southeastern parts of England, but his should clear by mid-afternoon, with just a few showers following.

'Thereafter through to Monday, many southern and eastern areas will remain dry and fine, but temperatures will be at or even a touch below average.'

It will be a different story for areas in the north west however, which will see a continuation of the recent unsettled and wet weather.

Mr Silkstone added: 'Following a wet August so-far for the area, the northwest of the UK will continue to see periods of frequent showers, rain and strong winds.'

The Met Office said that, following the Bank Holiday weekend for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, there are signs of more settled conditions developing into the middle part of next week.

There is even the chance of conditions turning hot for a time in the south and southeast, the forecaster said.
Guests enjoy lunch at the Gentleman Farmer bungalow, where the owners will cook a multi-course meal to enjoy alongside their wines. Courtesy Kent Luetzen

Esther Mobley is off this week. Heres wine reporter Jess Lander.

Earlier this week, I wrote about a new report that said the average visitor to Napa Valley spent $281 per day in 2023. Even day-trippers, who were the majority of Bay Area visitors, spent an average of $213.

This is a large chunk of change, but these figures immediately struck me as low. Ive lived in Napa Valley for over a decade and have witnessed firsthand the dramatic rise in pricing over the past few years. (Ive also reported on it extensively.) I know its difficult to find a wine tasting under $50 these days  Napas cost $75 on average  and that meals can quickly add up, especially if youre drinking wine.

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A deeper dive into the data from Visit Napa Valley, the tourism organization that published the report, confirmed my suspicions. The $281 number included tourists that didnt go wine tasting; those that did spent an average of $128 per day on wine tasting fees alone.

So while most Napa Valley day-trippers planning to hit up a few wineries will likely spend more than $213, I took this statistic as a challenge. I wanted to prove that this was more than enough money to have a fun-filled day in Napa Valley. Ive curated two Napa Valley day-trip itineraries that maximize a budget of $200 each, carefully choosing spots and activities that are on the more affordable side, or provide a ton of value for the cost. There is a caveat: These itineraries dont account for taxes, service charges, transportation or alcohol at meals.

Napa newcomers

This itinerary focuses on some of the most exciting new developments in downtown Napa, and as a bonus, its fully walkable once youre there. Start with the Wine and Breakfast offering at the charming Gentleman Farmer bungalow ($125, reservations required). Here, vintners Jeff Durham and Joey Woosz, an endearing married couple, will cook you a three-course breakfast to pair with their wines. This two-hour experience is unlike any other food and wine pairing in Napa as it feels like youre having a cozy meal at the owners real home.

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Walk off breakfast downtown, forcing yourself to window shop only at the areas art galleries, antique shops, clothing boutiques like Boho Lifestyle, and luxury chains. You can also venture along the Napa River and over the First Street bridge to the buzzing Oxbow District; peruse the Oxbow Public Market at your own risk if you want to stick to the budget. Tip: Next door, the CIA at Copia has a free culinary museum.

Back downtown, locate the Apero Wine & Spritz Bar, Napas new, Italian-inspired tasting room, where you can sip a flight of wines from three brands, including Mommenpop spritzes, for $40. Then grab an early dinner at Stateline Road Smokehouse, a Kansas City barbecue joint from a Michelin-trained chef thats located inside a former auto shop. Statelines signature burnt ends ($12), fancy macaroni and cheese ($8) and unconventional potato salad ($8) should be enough to satisfy your appetite.

Total: $193

Adventures upvalley

Focused on the northern parts of Napa Valley  St. Helena and Calistoga  this itinerary takes you into nature and includes some recreation to balance out the wine. Start in downtown St. Helena with a quick and early lunch at the Station. A fast-casual cafe from the owners of Gotts Roadside, its set in a vintage gas station convenience store. The menu features sandwiches, salads and pizza by the slice, but Id recommend the BLT ($14) while tomatoes are still in season.

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Walk across the street and rent a hybrid bike from St. Helena Cyclery ($50) and then hit the newly opened section of the Napa Valley Vine Trail for a stunningly scenic 8-mile ride to Calistoga. (Go soon during harvest season to pedal amid the sweet smell of fermenting grapes that permeates the air.) When you reach downtown Calistoga, stop in for a tasting on the lush patio at Lola ($35, reservations required), known for fresh, light and unpretentious wines.

Back in St. Helena after another 8 miles, dismount at Newfound Wines, located one block off St. Helenas Main Street and inside a small Victorian home. Newfound specializes in elegant, high-altitude bottlings of Grenache, a grape you wont find much of in Napa Valley. Intimate tastings ($50, reservations required) might also include other less common wines, like Semillon, Mourvedre and Chenin Blanc.

Return your bike and head back across the street to Goose & Gander for dinner. As youre likely starving from your 16-mile bike ride, order up both of the restaurants locally famous dishes: the Martini House mushroom soup ($14) and the thick, juicy G&G Burger ($26).

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It is one of the most iconic movie theme tunes of all time, usually associated with the arrival of Darth Vader.

But instead of a scene played out a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, Star Wars came to the shores of the Thames this week as a German warship blasted out John Williams' instantly recognisable Imperial March.

The bizarre moment was captured by passers-by who filmed the corvette FGS Braunschweig F260 being towed backwards past Tower Bridge on its way out of London on Monday.

The onboard crew clearly saw the funny side as they lined up on deck next to a fluttering German flag as their vessel sailed out of the capital.

German corvette Braunschweig on the Thames  pic.twitter.com/osD9ehzPSE  Hampshire Prints (@Hantsprints) August 20, 2024

While sailing past Tower Bridge, the onboard crew clearly saw the funny side of the optics of a German vessel sailing through the heart of London and decided to blast out the musical score

Passerbys took videos of the ship with the crew lined up standing to attention on the deck in uniform. With the German flag fluttering in the wind, the vessel cut an imposing figure as it glided along the Thames

Dozens of Londoners stopped on the banks of the Thames to watch the warship pass by as it was tugged along by a smaller ship. The German vessel was moored by London's famous HMS Belfast while stopped in the capital for a training and supply stop

The awesomely sinister theme is often used to announce the entrance of Star Wars' infamous villain Darth Vader

The Braunschweig F260 is part of the German navys newest Class K130 corvette fleet, where it is also the lead ship alongside four other vessels

Video footage of the ship was shared to social media with the caption: 'Germany navy ship blasts Imperial March out in the Thames. Just saw this and couldn't stop laughing.'

The German vessel was moored by London's famous HMS Belfast while stopped in the capital for a training and supply stop.

It then continued its journey to Plymouth yesterday where it was moored.

The Braunschweig F260 is part of the German navys newest Class K130 corvette fleet, where it is also the lead ship alongside four other vessels.

This particular ship came into service in 2008. The fleet are designed for shallow water and has an RBS15 missile as well as a close-range air defence RAM.

The ships weigh over 1,000 tonnes and are 89m long and 13m wide.

A navy spokesman later told The Times: 'The commander can choose the music freely. The choice of music has no deeper message.'
A man, 28, has been charged with attempted murder after a nine-year-old girl was stabbed in block of flats in Dorset.

The girl was knifed in Gilder Close, Christchurch, at 5.45pm on Tuesday and remains in hospital receiving treatment.

The man, from Christchurch, was arrested and has been charged with attempted murder and possession of an offensive weapon.

He has been remanded in custody and he is due to appear at Poole Magistrates' Court today.

A woman, aged in her 50s, who was arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender has been released without charge.

The incident happened on Glider Close, Christchurch, Dorset

Detective Chief Inspector Aimee Schock, of BCP CID, said: 'After enquiries carried out by detectives, we liaised with the Crown Prosecution Service who authorised the charges.

'There will continue to be an increased policing presence in the coming days and we would urge anyone to approach an officer with information or concerns.

'I would like to thank the community for their ongoing support.'
The Democrats are wooing Gen Z by inviting hundreds of social media influencers to the Democratic National Convention.

200 content creators had a blue carpet rolled out for them at the event inside Chicago's cavernous United Center and were invited to film TikTok videos in a cordoned off 'creators lounge' stocked up with refreshments including Kamala Harris cookies.

For the first time influencers were invited to the event to document their experience for their millions of followers, with some even taking to the new 'creator platform' stage to give talks.

It is a move that highlights the significance of the Gen Z vote to the Harris Walsz campaign and how utilizing the reach that influencers have is seen as equally important as traditional news coverage.

In fact, journalists found themselves fighting with influencers for seats at the convention with just 46 press stand seats provided, compared to 360 at the Republican National Convention last month.

Model and influencer, Deja Foxx, who worked on Harris's presidential primary campaign in 2019, was also in attendance

A picture from Deja Foxx's social media page shows her at the convention

Heather Garner, a political content creator with almost 400,000 TikTok followers, attended the convention

Heather Garner, a political content creator with almost 400,000 TikTok followers, attended the convention and believes influencers are the future of political communication.

She said: 'There are millions of Gen Z voters who are voting for the very first time,' she says.

'And they are not getting their information from the New York Times. They are not getting their information from CNN Cable News or traditional news outlets. It's on social media.'

Model and influencer, Deja Foxx, who worked on Harris's presidential primary campaign in 2019, was also in attendance.

The 24-year-old spoke on stage about reproductive rights being 'the issue of this election'.

She said: 'Particularly in some swing states like Arizona. It isn't just about winning the electoral battle. When we see a combination of race and gender-based attacks, it's about winning the narrative battle because little girls are listening to see what is possible.

A picture from Deja Foxx's Instagram shows the influencer with a friend announcing that they are throwing a party

Brandy, commonly known by her social media handle @thegenzpublicist, is a 24-year-old influencer from Atlanta who was invited to the convention

A video posted to Brandy's Instagram account shows her and other influencers at the convention

'So content creators, like the ones you see here, have the opportunity to shape a generation's political understanding in this election cycle.'

Brandy, commonly known by her social media handle @thegenzpublicist, is a 24-year-old influencer from Atlanta who was invited to the convention.

She said: 'I think we're all on the same level when it comes to policy,' says Brandy, a 24-year-old influencer from Atlanta.

'It's been like three weeks to a month now [since Harris became the nominee], like give my sis a break. She has time, right?

'But at the same time, I feel like the DNC stage is going to be the perfect opportunity to start laying things out. We saw the economic policy come through.

'I look forward to seeing more and more, particularly what she's going to do when it comes to healthcare.'
A pensioner has slammed telecoms workers after they left him trapped inside his own home for 96 hours.

Engineers from Openreach arrived at Alex Donald's house in Renfrew Scotland on Friday last week promising the work would only take a couple of hours.

However, after the 69-year-old's driveway was blocked off by barriers while they dug up cables on his street, the workers then left the job uncompleted over the weekend.

This meant the grandfather was unable to leave his property as normal because he was unable to use his car due to the two metre by one metre hole.

Mr Donald said he left his car where it was in the drive because the workers promised the job would be finished quickly.

Engineers from Openreach arrived at Alex Donald's (pictured) house in Renfrew Scotland on Friday last week promising the work would only take a couple of hours

Mr Donald's driveway was blocked off by barriers but the workers then left the job uncompleted over the weekend. This meant the grandfather was unable to leave his property as normal because he was unable to use his car due to the two metre by one metre hole

Mr Donald said: 'I worked for Glasgow City Council for 20 years and East Dunbartonshire Council for seven years and something like this would never happen with them'

But the retired council worker said they left barriers in place to protect the hole, rather than placing a cover over it, and the barriers prevented him from being able to leave his driveway.

He said: 'I worked for Glasgow City Council for 20 years and East Dunbartonshire Council for seven years and something like this would never happen with them.

'Four full days it took to do this, and when they came back it only took them 30 minutes to pour the tar in and do the job, so my driveway was blocked for four days because of 30 minutes work. It's a joke.

'They said I could come and go from my neighbour's drive, and I could if it was clear, but that's only because we don't have a fence or a wall between us.

'He works shifts, so it's not fair for me to keep going in and asking him to move his car when he's trying to sleep after a 12-hour shift. It's a joke. I just could not believe they wouldn't put a steel plate over it to allow me access.

Mr Donald said he left his car where it was in the drive because the workers promised the job would be finished quickly. Instead for 96 hours he was unable to access his car

Mr Donald's driveway was blocked off by barriers but the workers then left the job uncompleted over the weekend. This meant the grandfather was unable to leave his property as normal because he was unable to use his car due to the two metre by one metre hole

'The guy just told me they were part of a different team and had been called to come as an emergency, but it took them four days. If it takes them four days to answer an emergency call, just as well it wasn't 999.

'It also wasn't safe to let the grandkids out to play in the street when they were here because of the hole, because it was plastic barriers round it and nothing covering it.'

Openreach Limited runs the UK's digital network and is owned by the BT Group.

An Openreach spokesperson told MailOnline: 'Roadworks were needed in Merlinford Drive to replace a frame and cover on an underground chamber.

This kind of repair usually needs done quickly to protect local people and drivers, and the work was set to be completed between Friday and Monday.

We're sorry for the impact the works had on the resident affected, and we're reviewing what went wrong with the contractor who carried it out on our behalf.'
Autocrat Vladimir Putin has been mocked for wearing his ear protectors upside down during a visit to a Chechen shooting range 'to avoid ruffling his thinning hair'.

The dictator was seen alongside Chechen warlord Ramzan Kadyrov, a close political and military ally, at a shooting range during a surprise visit to the region which many believed was aimed at bolstering support amid Ukraine's incursion on Russian soil.

But unlike Kadyrov, who wore his ear protectors over his head, the Russian leader was seen wearing them over his chin.

Major Russian blogger Rustem Adagamov posted: '[Putin's] hairdresser has to style the sparse hairs so that it is not visible that the Russian president is already completely bald.

'And headphones will ruin all the beauty.'

Autocrat Vladimir Putin (pictured, left) has been mocked for wearing his ear protectors upside down during a visit to a Chechen shooting range

He was accused of doing this to avoid ruffling his thinning hair

A man rides bicycle past the debris of a multi-storey building, destroyed few days earlier following a strike in the town of Myrnohrad, on August 21, 2024

Putin has been bolstering his military support in recent days, as Ukraine launched a second front in Russia.

Russian forces prevented a Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance team from piercing the border in the western Bryansk region, about 240 km (150 miles) from the site of Ukraine's incursion into the neighbouring Kursk region, a Russian official said.

Russia said on Wednesday that its forces had advanced in eastern Ukraine and had begun to push back Ukrainian forces in the Kursk region, though a senior commander cautioned that Ukrainian forces were regrouping for another possible attack

Bryansk Governor Alexander Bogomaz said that Federal Security Service border guards and Russian military units repelled an attack by a Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance team on Wednesday.

He said the attempted incursion took place in the Klimovo district which borders Ukraine's Chernihiv region. The Bryansk region lies northwest of the Kursk region where a Ukrainian incursion has been underway since early August.

Putin was in Chechnya to bolster military support

He visited a shooting range with Chechen warlord Ramzan Kadyrov (pictured, right)

Putin's visit came amid increased Ukrainian attacks on Russian soil

Ukraine smashed through the Russian border in the Kursk region on August 6 in an attempt to force Moscow to divert troops from the rest of the front, though Russian forces have continued to advance in eastern Ukraine in recent days.

Russia's defence ministry said it had shot down 28 drones over Russian territory, including 13 in the Volgograd region, seven in Rostov, four in Belgorod, two in Voronezh and one each in Bryansk and Kursk regions.

A fire broke out at a military facility in Russia's southern Volgograd region after a Ukrainian drone crashed into it on Thursday, regional governor Andrei Bocharov said on the Telegram messaging app.

Bocharov said there were no casualties and did not specify what facility had been attacked, but said the attack focused on the area of the Marinovka village, where a military airbase is located.

Aviation watchdog Rosaviatsia said temporary restrictions were imposed on Thursday on the Volgograd airport, which was not accepting or sending aircraft.
A man who impersonated a teenage YouTube star to sexually extort and abuse 286 girls worldwide has been described by authorities as one of Australian's most prolific online underage sex predators as he awaits his fate.

Muhammad Zain Ul Abideen Rasheed, 29, is already behind bars, having previously been jailed for luring a 14-year-old girl to a carpark and sexually assaulting her in 2019.

Disturbing details of other crimes in the months before and after that assault, where the petroleum engineer trawled the internet for underage victims and pretended to befriend them before extorting them for sexual images was laid bare by prosecutors in Perth's District Court on Thursday.

The former private school student accrued so many victims that his sentencing hearing will run for two days to catalogue the crimes, The West Australian reported.

The victims were from all across Australia and 20 countries worldwide, including the US, Canada and New Zealand.

Rasheed posed as a YouTube personality to befriend girls online and used a questionnaire to extort them into sending sexually explicit material.

The questionnaire Rasheed sent was modelled on 20 Questions and asked his victims 'What is your darkest secret?'

Once that was completed Rasheed would send the girl a written sexual fantasy in two parts asking them whether they would like that with the only replies being 'Yes or no.'

Muhammad Zain Ul Abideen Rasheed, 25, is facing sentencing over blackmailing sexually explicit material from hundreds of underage victims

It the reply was 'yes', Rasheed would ask for intimate pictures of the girl in her underwear or naked.

If that was refused he would threaten to send the answer about the fantasy to her Instagram follower base.

If photos were sent, he would also threaten to release those unless the victim kept following his demands.

'The offender always pretended to (be an) internationally popular YouTube star teen aged 15. This YouTube star was known for having a large following among young teenage girls,' prosecutor Andrew Sprague told the court.

'The offender created 17 Instagram and Snapchat accounts ... variously to commit offences against children and young adult victims online.'

Authorities seized Rasheed's computer equipment in 2019 when they raided his Perth home after a tip-off from US authorities and Interpol

Prosecutors told the court that Rasheed would insist on live Instagram chats but would record them.

This also involved group chats with other men, which has led to an arrest of another participant in California.

The court heard horrific details of girls begging Rasheed to leave them alone only for him to post a countdown of minutes for them to comply or he release their intimate details.

Some girls threatened to commit self-harm but Rasheed kept blackmailing them.

In one very disturbing case an 11 year-girl from Canada was instructed to violate herself, and then involve her family pet and her brother while Rasheed and other men watched and commented.

Australian authorities were tipped off by United States Homeland Security investigators and Interpol to Rasheed's activities in 2019.

After later swooping on his Perth home, investigators initially identified 112 alleged victims of Rasheed after before further examination of his electronic devices allegedly revealed hundreds more victims.

Rasheed sat silent in the dock and showed no emotion as his heinous crimes were laid bare in court on Thursday.

His lawyer told the court she may ask for another report to be compiled on the 29 year-old before sentencing.
Criminal gangs are cramming migrants on to dangerous boats for the perilous Channel crossing in increasing numbers, new figures reveal today.

The average number of people found on each barely seaworthy vessel rose to more than 50 for the first time in the year to the end of June, the Home Office has revealed.

That is a five-fold increase from the average of 10 people per boat in 2019.

The new figures released today also showed that Vietnamese and Afghans were the nationalities most found on the small boats.

The average number of people found on each barely seaworthy vessel rose to more than 50 for the first time in the year to the end of June, the Home Office has revealed.

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Nearly all (99 per cent) of people arriving in the UK in the year to June 2024 after crossing the English Channel on small boats claimed asylum or were recorded as a dependent on an asylum application, the Home Office said.

Overall, just under a third (31 per cent) of the total number of people claiming asylum in the UK in the year to June had arrived on a small boat.

A total of 67,978 people were granted refugee status or other leave to remain in the UK in the year to June 2024, more than three times the 21,436 in the previous 12 months.

Just under three-fifths (58 per cent) of the initial decisions in the year ending June 2024 were grants of refugee status, humanitarian protection or alternative forms of leave.

Nearly all (99 per cent) of people arriving in the UK in the year to June 2024 after crossing the English Channel on small boats claimed asylum or were recorded as a dependent on an asylum application, the Home Office said.

This is lower than the previous 12 months (71 per cent), but higher than in the years immediately before the Covid-19 pandemic.

There were 75,658 asylum applications in the UK in the year to June 2024, relating to 97,107 people.

This is down year-on-year from 82,275 applications relating to 102,371 people in the previous 12 months.

The number of applications and people peaked in the 12 months to March 2023, at 83,045 and 102,878 respectively, which were the highest levels since 2002.
A urgent manhunt is underway for a group of up to seven youths after a boy was stabbed outside a high school.

Emergency services were called to City Vista Court in Fraser Rise, in Melbourne's north-west about 3.10pm on Thursday following reports a teen had been stabbed while waiting at the bus stop.

The 16-year-old was rushed to Western Hospital suffering a wound to his arm.

The boy's condition is unknown.

Police believe the boy was set upon at a bus stop by a group of up to seven males armed with machetes in what is understood to be a targeted attack.

A manhunt is underway for a group of males wielding machetes (pictured) who stabbed a boy waiting at a bus stop in Fraser Rise

Disturbing footage obtained by Nine News shows a group of males dressed in black wearing hoodies and face coverings armed with what appear to be machetes.

It's believed the group fled the scene in a black Honda sedan following the stabbing.

Police cordoned off the street on Thursday afternoon as forensic officers scoured the scene for evidence.

The incident shocked residents in the street, who were ordered by police to stay indoors.

The street was cordoned off as forensic officers examined the scene

'I have a young family so this was quite a concern,' Steve told Nine News.

'It looked pretty serious. Police were everywhere and whole neighbourhood was in lockdown.'

Anyone with information has been urged to contact police or Crime Stoppers.
Students receiving their GCSE results are facing a 'lottery' over college and sixth form places due to rising numbers of 16-year-olds, it's been claimed today.

Experts say some areas of the country such as Leeds are seeing 'acute' shortages of places, including for technical and vocational qualifications.

This year saw a record number of grades handed out with more than 6.5 million GCSE results and vocational or technical awards.

The overall number of grades rose by 4.8 percent, while the largest cohort ever meant a 4.6 percent increase in the number of 16-year-olds in the population.

Now teenagers could face more competition for sixth form and college places this year due a rising number of 16-year-olds in the population, leaders in the education sector have suggested.

Pupils at Brighton College react while receiving their GCSE results early on Thursday

Student Maelys Kante (right) cries tears of joy after receiving her GCSE results with teacher Nickola Lewis-Nelson, at the E-ACT City Heights Academy in Tulse Hill, London

Schools Minister Catherine McKinnell congratulates a pupil at Saint Thomas Language College in London

Students celebrate their GCSE results at the E-ACT City Heights Academy in Tulse Hill, south west London

Emily Prior (left) and Lucy Mackay receiving their GCSE results at Brighton College this morning

The proportion of GCSE entries awarded top grades fell for the third year in a row but is higher than before the pandemic, national figures show, as the final cohort of the Covid generation receive their results.

Hundreds of thousands of teenagers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland opened their GCSE exam results on Thursday in a year when grades were due to be restored to 2019 levels in all three nations.

More than a fifth (21.8 percent) of UK GCSE entries were awarded the top grades - at least a 7 or an A grade - this year, down 0.2 percentage points on last year.

This is higher than the equivalent figure for 2019 - before the pandemic disrupted schooling - of 20.8 percent. Most of the students receiving results today were in year 7 at the start of the pandemic.

This summer's exams saw a record number of GCSE grades awarded, an increase on 2023 of 4.8 percent, or more than 6.1 million - compared with a 4.6 percent increase in the number of 16-year-olds.

The Association of Colleges (AoC) is calling on the Government to give colleges in-year funding to ensure they can recruit more students to start courses in September.

When asked whether there could be more competition for places, David Hughes, chief executive of the AoC, said capacity issues were 'acute' in a few areas - including Leeds.

He said: 'It's not just the overall cohort of 16-year-olds has gone up, but more of them are looking to do technical and vocational qualifications because they want stuff that really works in the labour market.'

Mr Hughes added: 'We are worried that we're getting to a point where in some places they simply won't have the capacity, they won't have the space, to take on students.'

Lee Elliot Major, professor of social mobility at the University of Exeter, told the PA news agency: 'GCSE grades in 2024 will be marked by familiar divides in results between under-resourced pupils and their more privileged peers, manifested in both national and regional inequalities.

'It is likely that competition for sixth-form places will be even more intense this year given the rising number of 16-year-olds taking GCSEs.

'The concern is that pupils face a lottery in the chances of securing places at sixth forms and colleges across the country.'

Twins Matilda and Hermione Johnson, 15, from Stowupland High School in Suffolk, both passed all of their GCSEs achieving top marks

Leona, who received 5A* and 5A's in her GCSEs, poses with her mother Denise Braniff at Assumption Grammar School in Ballynahinch, County Down

Hundreds of thousands of pupils in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are receiving grades to help them progress to sixth form, college or training

Ukrainian teenager Oles Kuzomko with his sister Yaryna and mother Mila, after they escaped their war-torn home to live in the UK, as he receives his GCSE results

Pupils at Ark Pioneer in Barnet, north London, receiving their GCSE results this morning

A GCSE student celebrates achieving top grades in her exams by posing with a balloon

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More than 372,000 Vocational Technical Qualifications, or VTQs, were also awarded, taking the overall number of results to more than 6.5 million.

The rise was partly driven by an increase in the number of students aged 17 or older taking exams, particularly in Maths and English Language.

The figures, published by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ), cover GCSE entries from students in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The proportion of entries getting at least a 4 or a C grade - considered a 'standard pass' - has fallen from 68.2 percent in 2023 to 67.6 percent this year - a drop of 0.6 percentage points, but higher than 67.3 percent in 2019.

The overall rate for grades 1/G or above is 97.9 percent, down from 98.0 percent in 2023 and 98.3 percent in 2019.

In England, exams regulator Ofqual said it expected this year's national results to be 'broadly similar' to last summer, when grades were brought back in line with pre-pandemic levels.

In Wales and Northern Ireland, exam regulators aimed to return to pre-pandemic grading this summer - a year later than in England.

It comes after Covid-19 led to an increase in top GCSE and A-level grades in 2020 and 2021, with results based on teacher assessments instead of exams.

But last week, the proportion of A-level entries awarded top grades rose on last year and surpassed pre-pandemic highs.

Students pose in front of balloons while celebrating their GCSE results in London

Jayden Dashi receiving his GCSE results at Ark Pioneer in Barnet

Pupils at Brighton College celebrate their GCSE results today in a record breaking year

A pupil shares good news of her results over the phone at Brighton College on Thursday

Students at Nottingham High School receive their GCSE results early this morning

Nihal Shah is supported by family and friends as he receives his GCSE grades at Ark Pioneer Academy in London

Many of the pupils who are receiving their GCSE results were in Year 7 when schools closed due to the pandemic

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According to figures from Ofqual, the number of 16-year-old students in England who received a 9 - the highest grade under the numerical grading system - in all their subjects has risen on last year.

Some 1,270 16-year-olds in England taking at least seven GCSEs achieved a grade 9 in all their subjects, compared with 1,160 last year and 837 in 2019.

While traditional A*-G grades are used in Northern Ireland and Wales, in England these have been replaced with a 9-1 system, where 9 is the highest. A 4 is broadly equivalent to a C grade, and a 7 is broadly equivalent to an A.

The latest Ofqual figures show the attainment gap in GCSE results between private and state schools in England has widened at the top grades this year.

This summer, nearly half (48.4 percent) of private school entries scored a grade 7 and above compared to 19.4 percent of those at comprehensive schools - a gap of 29 percentage points. Last year this gap was 28.2 percentage points.

But the gap between private and comprehensive schools has narrowed compared to 2019 - when it was 29.3 percentage points.

Figures from JCQ show that London and the South East remain ahead in top grades compared to other regions of England, with more than a quarter of entries scoring at least a grade 7 in London, or 28.5 percent.

At the other end of the table, the North East has the lowest proportion, with 17.8 percent of entries scoring at least a grade 7.

The gulf between London and the North East has closed marginally - this year the gap was 10.7 percentage points while in 2023 it was 10.8 percentage points.

Leaders in the education sector have warned that this year's cohort had to overcome a series of challenges in their secondary schooling in recent years.

Pepe Di'Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said the results show 'significant differences' in regional outcomes for GCSEs in England.

A pupil at Brighton College was emotional after she received her results, and is supported by her parents

Stormont Education Minister Paul Givan at Dromore High School in Co Down with students who have received their GCSE results

A student reacts after opening their GCSE results at the City of London Academy in Southwark

Students receiving their exam results today now face a scramble to secure college and sixth form places

A pupil at the City of London Academy in Southwark reacts as he sees his results for the first time

Two pupils embrace at Brighton College as they celebrate receiving their GCSE results

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He said: 'This suggests that relative levels of prosperity and socioeconomic disadvantage continue to play a huge part in educational outcomes, and addressing these gaps must be a key priority for the new government working alongside the education sector.

'We have to do more to support our schools and colleges. Funding and teacher shortages, combined with post-pandemic issues around mental health, behaviour and attendance, have made circumstances particularly challenging.'

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: 'These pupils have shown remarkable resilience and determination, defying unprecedented disruption throughout the pandemic, Raac and strike action.'

She added that the Government was 'committed' to breaking down barriers to opportunity by addressing 'entrenched' regional disparities and thanked teachers and staff who helped students achieve their GCSE results.

Ms Phillipson wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter: 'Congratulations to all students getting results today, and a huge thank you to the incredible teachers and staff who've supported you along the way.

'You've shown amazing resilience, overcoming challenges, and you should be proud of all you've achieved. Well done.'

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer told GCSE pupils they have done 'an incredible job'.

The Prime Minister said: 'Congratulations to those receiving their GCSE results today - you've done an incredible job.

'I know the power of education and opportunity. My Government will make sure everyone's path is determined by their talent, skills and ambition, not where you come from.'

Welsh Secretary of State Jo Stevens has sent 'llongyfarchiadau' (congratulations) to pupils receiving their GCSE grades in Wales.

She posted on X: 'The wait is over! Llongyfarchiadau to everyone in Wales receiving their GCSE results this morning. Wishing you all the best as you embark on your next chapter.'

Wales First Minister Baroness Eluned Morgan earlier wrote in Welsh on the social media website: 'Pob lwc i bawb ledled Cymru sy'n derbyn canlyniadau TGAU heddiw.'

Her message translates as: 'Good luck to all throughout Wales who are receiving their GCSE results today.'

She added: 'Diolch (thank you) to all the teachers and parents too.'

Nearly 373,000 vocational and technical qualification (VTQ) results have also been awarded to pupils.

Sir Ian Bauckham, chief regulator of Ofqual, said: 'Consistent, rigorous standards of grading are producing consistent results. It is evidence that we have settled back into a pattern of dependable and trustworthy results.'

Margaret Farragher, chief executive of the JCQ, said: 'These achievements are hard-earned and students should feel justly proud to have reached this important milestone in their educational journey.'

Jill Duffy, chairwoman of JCQ board of directors and chief executive of OCR exam board, said: 'We're seeing a record number of results issued today, and every one of them represents a student's hard work, as well as that of their teachers, parents, and support staff.'

In Scotland, results for National 5 qualifications earlier this month showed the pass rate was 77.2 percent, down from 78.8 percent last year and 78.2 percent in 2019.
A Russian tourist who was gored while allegedly trying to rape a cow after he was dumped by his girlfriend now faces being conscripted to fight for Putin against Ukraine.

Evgenii Kuvshinov, 26, is said to have stripped off and sidled over to a male bull before turning his attention to a female tied to a wooden fence in a field in Thailand last week.

He allegedly tried to mount the cow only for her to react violently - pinning him to the ground and goring him.

Kuvshinov, who was arrested and taken to hospital by police, now faces being returned to Russia in disgrace.

However, new details have emerged about lovesick Kuvshinov - a beauty industry marketing specialist - following the shocking incident last week.

Evgenii Kuvshinov, 26, is said to have stripped off and sidled over to a male bull before turning his attention to a female tied to a wooden fence

Evgenii Kuvshinov allegedly tried to rape the cow after he broke up with his girlfriend

Police and paramedics arrived at the scene and carried the Russian away on a stretcher

He has reportedly lived outside of Russia for all but a few weeks since Putin launched his war against Ukraine - in an apparent attempt to avoid being conscripted for war.

Apparently well-off from his own business projects, Kuvshinov left Russia for Antalya, Turkey in 2022, and then lived and worked in Dubai before rebasing to Thailand in May this year.

But he was blocked by his ex-girlfriend on social media earlier this year and tried to enlist the help of Putin and Donald Trump to get her back.

Kuvshinov had been dating a Casablanca-born flight attendant from a major international airline - and was distraught over losing her.

In a message to the Russian dictator, he appeared to say he was prepared to go into the army if he could be with her again.

'Tell Putin that I'm ready for any task. I need [her],' he posted.

He now faces a real prospect of being drafted into Putin's war machine after he is returned to Russia.

Kuvshinov, from the Saratov region, also posted a bizarre message seeking the help of Donald Trump, saying the flight attendant was now based in the US.

'Mr Trump, please get me back my girlfriend,' he said.

Kuvshinov had been dating a Casablanca-born flight attendant from a major international airline - and was distraught over losing her

He is carried away on a stretcher after being detained by police in Thailand

Kuvshinov posted pictures of himself on social media next to fast cars and motorbikes

Police and paramedics detain the Russian tourist in a field in Thailand

Kuvshinov appeared in one post next to a Thai general, and is often seen in expensive cars and stunning villas.

He was also seen with popular Russian blogger and journalist Ilya Varlamov.

Concerned locals alerted police when they saw Kuvshinov prowling around naked and apparently up to no good.

They also heard his cries for help while being attacked and stood next to him as they waited for officers to arrive.

Shocking footage shows Kuvshinov lying on the ground without any clothes on as the brown cow attacks him.

Police and paramedics arrived at the scene and carried the Russian away on a stretcher.

He was taken to the Bannaderm Hospital to be treated for wounds on his bottom and abrasions all over his body.

A paramedic from the Ban Na Doem Foundation who treated Kuvshinov said they suspected he had been trying to have sex with the cow.

Kuvshinov left Russia for Antalya, Turkey in 2022, and then lived and worked in Dubai before rebasing to Thailand in May this year

Kuvshinov had been dating a Casablanca-born flight attendant from a major international airline - and was distraught over losing her

They said: 'We found cannabis in his car so maybe he was high. The way we found him, his actions suggest that he was trying to do something dirty with the cow, that he was trying to have sex with her.'

Police Lieutenant Thongchai Chaikit of Ban Na Doem Police Station Kuvshinov said they received reports of a foreign man in an 'altercation' with a cow on August 15 at 5.40pm.

The officer said the cow charged at the suspect when he was trying to restrain it by holding its head and he was 'lucky that the rescue team arrived to save him'.

Police Lieutenant Thongchai added: 'When we arrived at the scene, the suspect was being attacked by the cow. Witnesses said he had first went to a male cow then over to the female and tried to climb on top of her.

'It's possible he was trying to make love to the cow but we can't say for sure. There was no semen on her.

'He kept walking and speaking Russian without any meaning. He had no smell of alcohol. In his car, there were marijuana and his passport torn apart.

'We sent him to hospital because he was injured on his bottom, but he went crazy at the hospital and the doctors would not admit him, so now he is detained at our police station.

'Now we are waiting for the tourist police and the immigration police to work on it, then we can conduct investigation.'
The Food and Drug Administration granted approval Thursday for updated fall COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna that are designed to combat newer variants of the coronavirus. Doses should reach Bay Area pharmacies in September. Melissa Phillip/Associated Press

The Food and Drug Administration granted approval on Thursday for updated fall COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna that are designed to combat newer variants of the coronavirus.

We anticipate the updated vaccines will be better at fighting currently circulating variants, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated in June.

Distribution of these vaccines is expected to commence within days, and doses should reach Bay Area pharmacies in September. Approval for a third vaccine from Novavax using different technology and targeting a slightly different variant is pending.

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The timely authorization of these vaccines  coming a bit earlier than last years rollout  coincides with an unrelenting summer swell in COVID-19 cases across the Bay Area and the U.S. According to the CDC, positive COVID-19 tests, emergency room visits and hospitalizations have steadily increased since mid-May.

More on the coronavirus: How to manage COVID safety during the Bay Areas summer spike.

California remains among nearly two dozen states where coronavirus levels in wastewater remain very high, according to the CDC. The states test positivity rate reached 14.7% on Friday, up from 4.1% at the start of June, based on the latest California Department of Public Health data.

The new Pfizer and Moderna shots target the KP.2 strain. The Novavax vaccine will target JN.1. Both are descendants of the omicron strain that gained dominance starting in 2021. They have since been taken over by the highly transmissible KP.3.1.1 and KP.3, but since virtually all circulating strains are offshoots of omicron descendents, the new vaccines should still be effective.

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Vaccination continues to be the cornerstone of COVID-19 prevention, said Peter Marks, director of the FDAs center for biologics evaluation and research, in a statement.

Given the recent uptick in cases, authorities hope uptake of the new shots surpasses last years figures. As of May only 22.5% of adults received the previous formula, according to data from the CDC. The vaccination rate was even lower among children aged 6 months to 17 years, 14.4%.

Here is what to know about the fall COVID-19 vaccines:

Who should receive the updated 2024-25 COVID-19 vaccine?

The CDC recommends that everyone aged 6 months and older receive the updated 2024-25 COVID-19 vaccine to protect against potentially serious outcomes, regardless of previous vaccination history.

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Adults 65 and older, immunocompromised individuals of any age, and those who live in nursing homes should be especially vigilant.

Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants, Marks said.

When will the new vaccines be available?

Updated COVID-19 vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer are expected to become available within weeks at Bay Area health providers. Walgreens said it will start administering the new vaccine on Sept. 6, while Sutter Health and Kaiser Permanente said they expect to offer shots starting in mid-September.

Novavax vaccines will become available at a later date.

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Where can people get the new shots?

Most Bay Area residents will be able to schedule appointments through their primary health care provider once the updated shots are available.

Walgreens will offer appointment bookings via its website or by calling 1-800-WALGREENS, while CVS will offer online scheduling through its website or app, with select locations accommodating walk-in appointments.

In the Bay Area, counties are offering the vaccine at no cost to low-income individuals through community clinics and health centers. California residents can schedule appointments at myturn.ca.gov.

Why is it important to get the updated COVID-19 vaccine?

The virus causing COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, continuously evolves. Over time, the vaccines developed to combat COVID decline in effectiveness, making it crucial to receive the updated 2024-25 vaccine to enhance protection against the latest virus variants responsible for most infections and hospitalizations.

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Additionally, vaccination reduces the risk of long COVID, which can cause prolonged symptoms following an acute infection.

When is the ideal time to get the fall vaccine?

Health authorities confirm that it is safe to get both COVID-19 and flu vaccinations simultaneously. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious disease expert at UCSF, said the best time to get the shots is late September through October, right before the flu season typically escalates with colder weather.

You dont want to get it too early, he said.

Getting an updated shot right before Halloween, is optimal  or perhaps sooner if you plan to travel during the fall.

Who should wait longer?
A Nando's waitress was viciously attacked by a male customer who smacked her across the face with a plate while she tried to serve him.

The 'savage' and 'unprovoked' assault took place in March at a branch in Stratford, London, with footage of the incident going viral overnight after it was shared on X.

In it, the female waitress is seen approaching a table where a bearded man, wearing a black beanie and dark hoody, is sitting with a woman and baby.

As the Nando's server places a plate of food on his table, CCTV captures the moment the male thug lashes out and slaps her across the face with a dinner plate.

The force of the brutal blow sends the stunned waitress flying backwards, leaving her holding her face, as horrified diners nearby turn around to watch the drama.

A shocking video has emerged showing the moment a Nando's waitress was hit in the face with a plate by a disgruntled customer

The male suspect, pictured, was filmed hitting the woman across the face before then leaving the restaurant in Stratford, London. Police are now looking for him

The battered worker then leaves the scene as her attacker gets up and walks away from the table with the woman and child, leaving a full plate of food behind.

It's not known what triggered man's violent outburst, with footage of the assault uploaded on Wednesday evening,

One woman, who claimed to have been the assaulted waitress, shared the clip on X - with the video notching up more than 20million views since last night.

'No way I've come onto this app and seen myself get assaulted,' she wrote.

The incident was reported to the Metropolitan Police - but the woman who shared the video was critical of the force's response.

She wrote: 'The police were present at the time, I reported it to them and they let him go without taking his details or checking the CCTV. I filed a complaint against the officers and their supervisor got back to me and essentially said theyre humans and made a mistake.'

The Met Police said it was 'aware' of the video footage and said it was investigating why the incident was 'not progressed promptly' by officers.

A spokesman told MailOnline: 'A report of assault was made to police at the time of the incident, however, it appears this was not progressed promptly by officers. We are working to establish why this happened and accept this is not the level of service Londoners should rightfully expect from the Met.

The video footage shows the waitress putting a plate of food on the table seconds before she was attacked by the man

After being hit with the plate, the female waitress appears to stagger back away from the table while other customers turn around and watch the drama

The male attacker and a woman and baby he was sitting with, are then seen leaving the venue

'We have since made contact with the victim and a statement has been taken  we will endeavour to keep her updated with the progress of this investigation.

'There has been no arrest and enquiries are ongoing to locate the man involved.

'Anyone who can provide information about this incident should call 101 ref CAD 1872/21 Aug.'

Viewers on social media said they were appalled by the attack, branding the man's actions as 'disgusting', 'criminal' and 'savage'.

'This man is unhinged! Seriously, why do that? Is he sick? What a savage,' wrote one person.

Another user added: 'Assaulting someone over food? Thats a one-way ticket to jail. Seems like even working at a restaurant doesnt guarantee safety anymore. Pathetic.

A third person wrote: 'Assaulting someone over food? Thats a one-way ticket to jail. Seems like even working at a restaurant doesnt guarantee safety anymore. Pathetic.'

In a statement, a Nando's spokeswoman said: 'This was a shocking and unprovoked attack earlier this year. We reported it to the police immediately and have supported our colleague since.

'We will not tolerate this kind of behaviour, the safety of our colleagues and customers is our priority.'
Senator Reynolds has hit Brittany Higgins with fresh legal action over the trust that holds part of the proceeds of her multi-million dollar compensation payment from the Commonwealth.

The Brittany Higgins Protect Trust was created the day after Ms Higgins entered into a Deed of Settlement with the Commonwealth.

Ms Higgins was set to receive a $2.4m compensation payment as part of the settlement after she was allegedly raped by a colleague at Parliament House.

The payment was made in relation to future lost earnings, medical bills, legal bills and the distress she endured.

The writ shows Ms Higgins retired as trustee of the Brittany Higgins Protective Trust on February 23, 2023, and the trust was handed over to Power Blazers Pty Ltd, a company owned by Ms Higgins, her father and friend Emma Webster.

The writ claims the transfer was made by Ms Higgins with the intention of defeating or delaying creditors.

The writ is seeking order to return the settlement funds to Ms Higgins.

This would allow Senator Reynolds, a potential creditor, to claim against the trust should she be successful in her defamation case against Ms Higgins.

Senator Linda Reynolds has launched fresh legal action against Brittany Higgins

Brittany multi-million dollar compensation payment from the Commonwealth.

Outside of court on Thursday, Senator Reynolds' lawyer Martin Bennett told reporters that the writ was filed to start proceedings to set aside the capitalisation of the trust.

'We seek to have what remains of the $2.4m returned into the estate of Ms Higgins in the event that Senator Reynolds is successful in this action,' he said.

'It would be available under the Civil Judgements and Enforcement Act to recover in this instance.'

Senator Reynolds is suing Ms Higgins and her husband David Sharaz over a number of social media posts the pair made in 2022 and 2023.

Senator Linda Reynolds' lawyer Martin Bennett told reporters the writ was filed to seek what remains of Brittany Higgins compensation payment returned to her trust. Picture: NewsWire / Sharon Smith

The posts were critical of Senator Reynolds' handling of Ms Higgins' allegation she was raped in Parliament House in 2019 by her then-colleague Mr Lehrmann.

He was charged with rape and faced trial in 2022, but the trial was aborted due to juror misconduct.

The charge was dropped and Mr Lehrmann continues to maintain his innocence.

Mr Lehrmann lost a subsequent civil defamation case in April this year when the Federal Court determined, on the balance of probabilities, that Mr Lehrmann had raped Ms Higgins at Parliament House.
A Pakistani web designer accused of spreading disinformation about the Southport knifeman which triggered the UK riots was hauled into court today in a hood and handcuffs.

Farhan Asif, whose identity was concealed until after his court appearance, was pictured for the first time as he was led away from court in handcuffs after he was yesterday charged with cyber terrorism.

He is reported to have worked for news aggregation website Channel3Now - which a Daily Mail investigation revealed started out as an obscure Russian YouTube channel ten years ago and spread the misinformation to millions online.

It was falsely claimed that the knifeman - whose identity could not be published at the time due to his age - was a migrant who arrived in the UK via boat and was on an MI6 watchlist.

Police in Pakistan have charged Asif with cyber terrorism, in relation to the disinformation thought to have fuelled the widespread rioting.

Farhan Asif, whose identity was concealed until after his court appearance, was pictured for the first time as he was led away from court in handcuffs

He was charged with cyber terrorism, after his news site Channel3Now allegedly spread mass misinformation about the Southport stabbing

A burnt out police van near a mosque in Southport as shocking riots broke out

Bebe King, six, was killed in the horror attack in Southport last month

Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, was another victim of the knife attack at the Taylor Swift-themed dance class

Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, died in the early hours of July 30 after being rushed to hospital following the attack

He has been charged under Section 9 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) 2016, which outlaws creating a sense of fear or insecurity in society.

Federal investigators in Pakistan were given a day to question Asif by a court on Wednesday, and he is due to appear in court on Thursday when investigators are expected to seek more time to interrogate him.

An unnamed police officer told the Pakistani newspaper Dawn: The allegations should not be taken lightly as they can have a far-reaching impact on the Pakistani community in the UK in particular and Muslims in general.

According to the New York Times, he admitted during a police interrogation to sharing false information.

But he claimed that he had only reported the story from another source without verifying the information.

Bebe King, six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, were tragically killed in the July 29 attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class, which sparked the riots after online misinformation wrongly said it had been committed by a Muslim migrant.

Channel3Now reported that the suspect was a '17-year-old asylum-seeker' called Ali al-Shakati, who allegedly arrived in the UK by boat in 2023 and it claimed he was on an MI6 watch list.

But the actual suspect was Axel Rudakubana, now 18, from Banks, Lancashire, who will stand trial next year after being charged with three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder and possession of a bladed article in a public place.

Channel3Now was one of the first accounts on X to share incorrect details about the Southport suspect. The first mention of the name came from the account of Bernie Spofforth, an anti-lockdown activist and Cheshire businesswoman.

He has been charged under Section 9 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca) 2016, which outlaws creating a sense of fear or insecurity in society

According to The New York Times, he admitted during a police interrogation to sharing false information

He claimed that he had only reported the story from another source without verifying the information

Farhan Asif allegedly worked for news aggregation website Channel3Now, which published false articles about the identity of the Southport stabber

More than 50 police officers were injured as up to 1,000 people gathered outside a Southport mosque after the fake news over the identity of the suspect in the killings was shared online.

Asif was uncovered as a significant figure in the Channel3News website in an ITV News investigation, which found that he ran the website - which has since been shut down - from his luxurious housing estate in Lahore.

'I don't know how such a small article or a minor Twitter account could cause widespread confusion,' he told ITV News after being confronted about the fake news the website spread.

'Channel3Now mentioned that [the suspect was] a Muslim and an immigrant, but this has no connection to the chaos, which is being caused by people in his own country.

King Charles is pictured in the background of a floral display for the Southport victims, which also includes a number of balloons and cuddly toys

The huge display has been left in the wake of the tragic killings of three girls who were stabbed during a Taylor Swift-themed summer party in the town last month

'If there was misinformation, it could have been addressed calmly. Why was there such an uproar?'

A senior official in the local Pakistani police force told The Telegraph Asif had been detained over allegedly spreading fake news that resulted in violent riots.

He has since been handed over to the Federal Investigation Agency.

Asif denied writing the article about the Southport knifeman and told ITV News that he understands that the article was deleted a day after it was posted and that an apology was issued.

He claims that four people from the information search team were fired over the fake news article.

A police van set alight on July 31 as trouble flares during a protest in Southport, after three children died and eight were injured in a 'ferocious' knife attack during a Taylor Swift event

Dawn said their own investigation into the fake news showed that Asif was not the source of the information and had simply copy and pasted it from a social media post.

Ten others seriously injured during the attack on the dance class at the Hart Space Community Centre in Southport a the end of July.

A 17-year-old male, who the police said was born in Britain, was charged with three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder and one of possession of a bladed article.

The UK's worst unrest in more than a decade led to some 1,100 arrests.

The government pledged that rioters who hurled bricks at police, looted shops and attacked mosques and hotels used to house asylum-seekers would feel 'the full force of the law.'
A Netflix boss has defended Baby Reindeer by claiming the hit series is a 'drama, not a documentary' after the streaming service was hit with legal action from a woman who claims to be the real stalker Martha.

Baby Reindeer was created by Scottish comedian Richard Gadd who also starred in the series alongside Jessica Gunning, who played his stalker Martha Scott.

The series was a hit and became one of Netflix's most watched shows ever.

But the dark comedy thriller has came under fire from those who claimed to have been depicted by the series.

Fiona Harvey came forward claiming to be the inspiration behind Martha, alleging the story was inaccurate, and filed a lawsuit against Netflix.

At the beginning of the first episode, text appears on the screen which says: 'This is a true story.'

When asked about the controversy surrounding Baby Reindeer, vice president of UK content at Netflix Anne Mensah told the Edinburgh TV Festival what is 'amazing is that it really touched' people, citing an increase in men ringing hotlines to see help.

Fiona Harvey (pictured) came forward claiming to be the inspiration behind stalker Martha, alleging the story is inaccurate, and filed a lawsuit against Netflix

When asked about the controversy surrounding Baby Reindeer, vice president of UK content at Netflix Anne Mensah (pictured) said: 'It's drama, not a documentary'

Baby Reindeer was created by Scottish comedian Richard Gadd who also starred in the series. The series was a hit and since become one of Netflix's most watched shows ever

She adds: 'It was important for those reasons, and if you feel it detracted from that I would be absolutely disappointed, but I absolutely stand by all the show.

'It's drama, not a documentary.'

When asked about safeguarding on the show, she said Netflix takes it 'absolutely seriously'.

In the drama, said to be inspired by the real-life experiences of Gadd, his character Donny Dunn is hounded by Martha after he serves her a free cup of tea in the pub where he works.

In the TV series, Martha receives a nine-month prison sentence and a five-year restraining order, which Ms Harvey has disputed.

MailOnline reported in July that Ms Harvey was demanding 135million from the streaming giant, claiming they spread 'brutal lies' because 'it was a better story than the truth'.

Ms Harvey said: 'The problem for Richard Gadd and now for Netflix is that Baby Reindeer is not a true story at all.

'I am not a convicted stalker'.

Jessica Gunning starred as Richard Gadd's stalker Martha Scott in the series who Ms Harvey claims to be the inspiration behind

When asked about safeguarding on the show, Ms Mensah said Netflix takes it 'absolutely seriously'

Ms Harvey has since demanded 135million from Netlflix. She said: The problem for Richard Gadd and now for Netflix is that Baby Reindeer is not a true story at all. I am not a convicted stalker'

Ms Harvey's US legal representative Richard Roth said she has a 'very, very strong case' and he expects Ms Harvey, Gadd and Netflix executives to testify in court in California.

In a candid interview with Piers Morgan in June, Mr Roth said the fallout from the Baby Reindeer case 'could be a watershed moment for streaming TV'.

Speaking about why he had taken the case, Mr Roth said: '[It] is really just reprehensible when someone says something's 'a true story' [...]. And if Netflix is going to say this is a true story, then it better well be true. And to do that is irresponsible of them.'

Speaking at Edinburgh TV Festival, Ms Mensah said publicity is 'the antithesis of what I believe in', when asked if the headlines about the show were good for Netflix.

She added: 'I really believe the UK is this amazing place for content creators and the writers and the directors... and it's 100 per cent about finding ways to take this space.

'It's not about trying to manipulate anybody (with) an algorithm. The truth is way simpler, which is the audience is incredibly clever and incredibly diverse, and they spot good and not boring.'
As many as seven tourists and two pilots are feared dead after a private plane crashed into a swamp in Thailand, local media reports.

The passengers had been flying from Bangkok airport to a southwestern coastal region known for its beaches.

The group had been travelling in a Cessna 208B Grand-Caravan and were heading to the Trat province some 170 miles away when the aircraft hurtled to the ground.

It burst into flames in a mangrove forest in Chachoengsao province shortly before 3.30pm local time, with locals saying they heard an explosion.

Authorities are currently searching for the missing pilot and passengers. Pictures from the scene show pieces of plane wreckage and clothes and belongings strewn across the ground.

Pictures from the scene show pieces of plane wreckage in a swampy area of the forest

Clothes and belongings are seen strewn across the ground after the plane crash

Resident Ang Trasawat, 69, said he heard a loud explosion before running to the crash site, where they found scattered pieces of the plane.

He said: 'There were explosions in the air. Before the plane fell, the sound was loud, then the plane fell to the ground. After that, I ran to see the scene. Pieces of the plane had been scattered around, including near a house.'

Preecha Boontham, 56, added: 'I heard the plane accelerating very loudly. There was no smoke coming out. Then the plane descended towards the fields and landed in the mangrove forest. It was a small white plane with two wings. After the crash, there was a loud explosion.'

The aircraft HS-SKR was last registered to Siam General Aviation before being used by Thai Flying Service Co Ltd. It was reportedly being used for a private charter flight when the crash happened.

Records show it departed from Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok at 2.46pm on August 22, bound for Koh Mai Si Airport in Trat, with flight , before losing signal at 2.57pm.

Resident Ang Trasawat, 69, said he heard a loud explosion before running to the crash site, where they found scattered pieces of the plane.

He said: 'There were explosions in the air. Before the plane fell, the sound was loud, then the plane fell to the ground. After that, I ran to see the scene. Pieces of the plane had been scattered around, including near a house.'

Parts of the wreckage are seen in swampy waters in the forest in Chachoengsao province

Preecha Boontham, 56, added: 'I heard the plane accelerating very loudly. There was no smoke coming out. Then the plane descended towards the fields and landed in the mangrove forest. It was a small white plane with two wings. After the crash, there was a loud explosion.'

The aircraft HS-SKR was last registered to Siam General Aviation before being used by Thai Flying Service Co Ltd. It was reportedly being used for a private charter flight when the crash happened.

Records show it departed from Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok at 2.46pm on August 22, bound for Koh Mai Si Airport in Trat, with flight TFT209, before losing signal at 2.57pm.

Police said they have closed the area while they search for survivors of the crash.

Police Lieutenant Warayut Chanwichumet, Deputy Chief of Investigation from the Bangpakong district station said they received a report of the crash and sent police and paramedics to the scene.

Rescue workers and volunteers are scouring the area in the hope of finding survivors

At the site, they found the wreckage of the plane scattered in the mud across an area of approximately 328 feet (100 metres).

They were unable to locate any pilot or passengers but discovered baggage from those onboard.

The police officer added: 'We have blocked off the area to prevent further accidents due to an oil leak from the plane.

'We have inspected the wreckage and have not yet found any pilot or passengers. We will expand the search radius and dig the ground beneath the wreckage to locate the pilot and passengers.

'We will also inspect the flight information to determine the plane's owner and the number of passengers.'

Police said they have closed the area while they search for survivors of the crash.

File image shows a Cessna 208B Grand-Caravan, the type of plane which the group are reported to have been travelling in

Police Lieutenant Warayut Chanwichumet, Deputy Chief of Investigation from the Bangpakong district station said they received a report of the crash and sent police and paramedics to the scene.

At the site, they found the wreckage of the plane scattered in the mud across an area of approximately 328 feet (100 metres).

They were unable to locate any pilot or passengers but discovered baggage from those onboard.

The police officer added: 'We have blocked off the area to prevent further accidents due to an oil leak from the plane.

'We have inspected the wreckage and have not yet found any pilot or passengers. We will expand the search radius and dig the ground beneath the wreckage to locate the pilot and passengers.

'We will also inspect the flight information to determine the plane's owner and the number of passengers.'
A Japanese woman who climbed a mountain without a walking stick when she turned 100 has been named the new world's oldest person at the age of 116.

Tomiko Itooka, has succeeded 117-year-old Spanish pensioner Maria Branyas Morera who died this week, the Guinness World Records has said.

Her favourite food is bananas and she has been climbing mountains for decades, including the legendary peak Mount Ontake that stands at over 10,000ft tall.

Tomiko's greatest physical achievement is said to be her scaling the notoriously difficult Ashiya Shrine after she turned 100 - with no stick.

Her family believe it is active lifestyle that has led her to live such an incredibly long life.

Tomiko Itooka celebrating her 116th birthday in May this year

Tomiko's greatest physical achievement is said to be her scaling the notoriously difficult Ashiya Shrine after she turned 100 - with no stick

Tomiko with her cake, flowers and balloons on her 116th birthday this year

Tomiko is currently living in a nursing home in the Japanese city of Ashiya, in the Hyogo Prefecture.

She was born in Osaka on May 23, 1908 and was a volleyball player in high school.

She married at 20, and had two daughters and two sons, according to the Guinness World Records.

Tomiko managed the office of her husband's textile factory during World War II whilst taking care of the four children at home.

She lived alone in Nara after her husband died in 1979, before entering the nursing home.

When told about her becoming the oldest person, she replied, 'Thank you,' a phrase she also relays often to the caretakers at her home.

Itooka celebrated her birthday three months ago, receiving flowers, a cake and a card from the mayor.

Every morning, she has a popular yogurt-flavored drink called Calpis.

Tomiko is currently living in a nursing home in the Japanese city of Ashiya, in the Hyogo Prefecture

Tomiko celebrating her 111th birthday five years ago

Tomiko's was passed on the title of the world's oldest living person by Spanish pensioner Maria Branyas Morera, who was born in the United States and survived a plague epidemic and two world wars.

'Maria Branyas has left us. She died as she wished: in her sleep, peacefully and without pain,' her family wrote on her account on X on Tuesday. 'We will always remember her for her advice and her kindness,' they said.

Branyas lived her last two decades in the Santa Maria del Tura nursing home in the town of Olot in northeastern Spain, and celebrated her 117th birthday there back in March.

Experts had marveled at her mental and physical health, but in a heartbreaking final message to her social media followers on Tuesday, she warned that she felt 'weak'.

'The time is near. Don't cry, I don't like tears. And above all, don't suffer for me,' she said on the account, which is run by her family. 'Wherever I go, I will be happy.'

Guinness World Records had officially acknowledged Branyas's status as the world's oldest person in January 2023 following the death of French nun Lucile Randon aged 118.

The title of the oldest person to have ever lived belongs to Jeanne Louise Calment whose life spanned 122 years and 164 days, according to the Guinness Book of World Records.

Maria Branyas Morera, who was the oldest person in the world, celebrating her 117th birthday in March

Branyas was born in San Francisco in 1907. Pictured: Branyas in 1925 when she was just 18

Branyas became the world's oldest person following the death of French nun Lucile Randon in January 2023
Russia is suspected of flying several drones, including military UAVs, over a nuclear power plant in Germany, state security officers said.

Germany is one of the most vocal critics of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and has provided or committed a total of 28billion (23.77bn) in financing or direct delivery of weaponry.

Now Russia appears to be scouting Germany as a potential target for sabotage, intelligence officers told Bild.

Sources told the newspaper that a flying object was detected flying over the industrial area in Brunsbutte, on the northern coast of Germany, last night.

Drones have been flying over the area, home to a nuclear power plant, an Liquefied Natural Gas terminal and several chemical plants, since at least August 8, and have been attributed to Russian agents who are likely launching them from civilian ships in the North Sea.

Russia is suspected of flying several drones, including military UAVs, over a nuclear power plant in Germany, state security officers said

A flying object was detected flying over the industrial area in Brunsbutte, on the northern coast of Germany, (pictured) last night

State security officers from the Schleswig-Holstein State Office of Criminal Investigation told the newspaper that they believe the drones they haven't yet caught are unmanned Orlan-10 drones (pictured)

Germany is one of the most vocal critics of Vladimir Putin's (pictured) invasion of Ukraine

State security officers from the Schleswig-Holstein State Office of Criminal Investigation told the newspaper that they believe the drones they haven't yet caught are unmanned Orlan-10 drones, which can travel at speeds of over 90mph for a total of 370miles in one go.

The drones have been used across the world, most notable in Syria during the country's civil war, where they were used for reconnaissance, aerial imagery and 3-D mapping to support humanitarian convoys, as well as search and rescue operations.

Police officers in Lower Saxony and Hamburg are now on alert for future drone activity.

It comes at Putin today held a meeting with senior officials about the situation in Russian regions bordering Ukraine after Ukrainian troops launched a surprise incursion into the Kursk region on August 6.

Ukraine's lightning incursion into Kursk, the biggest into Russia by a foreign power since World War Two, saw thousands of Ukrainian troops punch through Russia's western border, apparently catching Moscow by surprise.

 Slide me  View of smoke rising from buildings that were purportedly struck by Ukrainian forces, amid their ongoing incursion, in Glushkovo, Kursk region, Russia

A destroyed Russian tank sits on a roadside near the town of Sudzha, Russia, in the Kursk region, on Aug. 16, 2024

A Ukrainian serviceman patrols an area in the controlled by Ukrainian army town of Sudzha, Kursk region, Russia

Fierce fighting since then has raged as Russian troops battle to dislodge the Ukrainian soldiers who have sought to consolidate and expand the territory they control.

'I have gathered you in order to discuss the situation that is developing at the moment in the border regions of Russia,' Putin said at the opening of the meeting.

First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov said that Russia was assessing the damage to agriculture and industry in the border regions.

Acting Kursk Governor Alexei Smirnov said that 133,190 people had left or been evacuated from his region. Putin asked Smirnov if cooperation with law enforcement and military agencies was working. Smirnov said it was.

Bryansk Governor Alexander Bogomaz told Putin that border forces had repelled an attempt by a Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance team from entering the region.
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Crew members 'are to blame' for the sinking of a 30 million superyacht that is thought to have left at least seven people dead, says the firm that built the ship.

In his first public comments since the disaster, Giovanni Costantino, CEO of Italian Sea Group bought the Bayesian's constructors Perini Navi two years ago, said: 'This was human error, the yacht sank because it took on water.

'From where exactly the investigators will tell us. The dynamic of the sinking is seen and read from AIS (Automatic Identification System) data and lasted sixteen minutes.

'We have given this data to the prosecutors at Termini Immerse. From the images it looks as if the yacht had been taking on water for four minutes.

'All it took was another gust of wind to turn her over, that meant more water coming in. She then straightened very briefly before going down.'

It comes as:

Giovanni Costantino, CEO of Italian Sea Group bought the Bayesian's constructors Perini Navi two years ago, has blamed 'human error' for the superyacht tragedy

The Bayesian (pictured in an undated handout photo) went down in a matter of minutes after being struck by the tornado while anchored off the coast at Porticello, near Palermo Sicily

Mr Constantino told Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera there were a long list of errors; the stern hatch was 'clearly' open; the ship's keel should have been lowered; people shouldn't have been in their cabins' and the crew should have known about the storm.

He said the tragedy was avoidable and said: 'Ask yourself - why were no fishermen from Porticello out that night? A fisherman reads the weather conditions and a ship doesn't?

'The storm was in all the weather charts. It couldn't have been ignored.'

Vincenzo Zagarola, of the Italian Coastguard, said raising the superyacht is not a 'topic on the agenda', but added: 'It will be, but not now.'

But a salvage chief has argued the only way of finding out why the Bayesian sank is to lift it to the surface.

Nick Barke, head of salvage operations at Boats.co.uk, said that the 'only real way of knowing' why the yacht sank will be to lift it to the surface, but that would be 'expensive and complicated process', likely to involve a crane barge.

He said divers would attach straps to the boat before it is lifted upright and then hauled out of the water.

He predicted this would be 'time-consuming' as 'they have to do it in such a way that they don't damage anything too badly.'

Earlier a spokesman for the company told MailOnline 'procedures were not followed' on the luxury vessel and the sinking was down to 'portholes being left open despite bad weather being forecast hours earlier'.

A spokesperson said: 'The Bayesian was built to a very high standards and it would not have sunk if proper procedures had been followed by the crew.

'A storm had been forecast earlier, no fishing boats went out and yet the portholes were not shut, the yacht sank because it was engulfed by a massive amount of water through open portholes.'

The spokesperson added: 'The Bayesian would have remained afloat in any weather, even if it was being swung from left to right in gale force winds but it could never have remained in the water with open port holes.

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The Bayesian was 56m long, had a 74m mast and was built in 2008 with David Hutchinson, captain of its sister ship Rosehearty, telling Boat International 'she was bulletproof

'The design made the yacht extremely sturdy, but it couldn't stay up because there had been a huge intake of water though open portholes.

'The yacht was built to withstand whatever the conditions were. The mast has nothing to do with what happened, it was built that way when it was launched and it had a refit in 2020 in Spain, the yacht sank because procedures in bad weather were not followed.'

The Bayesian was 56m long, had a 74m mast and was built in 2008 with David Hutchinson, captain of its sister ship Rosehearty, telling Boat International 'she was bulletproof'.

He told the specialist publication 'we've been to Antarctica and Chile, and we've had her in 70knots of wind' but they had never been put in a situation that he felt was unmanageable.

It is known that Italian authorities are looking into the possibility that portholes were left open and the comments from Italian Sea Group would appear to strongly support the theory.

The Bayesian went down in a matter of minutes after being struck by the tornado while anchored off the coast at Porticello, near Palermo Sicily on Monday.

Fifteen people were rescued in the aftermath. Five bodies, including British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, have been recovered.

The ship's captain, James Cutfield, 51, was reportedly quizzed by authorities for two hours as they began questioning all crew members

The Bayesian sank after being hit by a 'black swan' waterspout on Monday at 5am (Pictured: A large waterspout on sea in Campina, Italy, on August 19)

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, 59, is among the five bodies recovered from the wreck of the 30 million superyacht

Christopher Morvillo and his wife Neda (top image), Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer (bottom left), and his wife Judith (bottom right) have also been identified

It brings the total number of confirmed deaths to six after the body of Recaldo Thomas (pictured) was discovered on the day of the sinking

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Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judith, Mr Lynch's lawyer Christopher Morvillo, and his wife Neda have also been identified.

Mr Lynch's 18-year-old daughter Hannah is still missing.

The body of the yacht's chef Recaldo Thomas was found shortly after the tragedy.

Bayesian's captain James Cutfield, 51, survived and is currently in hospital. He has reportedly quizzed by authorities for two hours as they began questioning all crew members.

Prosecutors are looking into the theory that the yacht's portholes and hatches were not closed in time ahead of the storm, despite bad weather being forecast, and if any of the crew are liable.

Italian Sea Group completed the buyout of Perini Navi for 80 million Euros in 2022 and a press release at the time said they were 'extremely satisfied' with the purchase complementing its 'expertise in the sailing yacht sector'.
Donald Trump comforted an elderly supporter and told her to 'drink plenty of water' after she fainted at his North Carolina rally.

The former president, 78, stopped his speech on Wednesday and left his bulletproof glass protection to approach the woman after she collapsed.

As a medic helped her and handed her a bottle of water, Trump said: 'Hi darling, are you okay? Drink plenty of water.'

She appeared stunned that she came face-to-face with Trump, as she could be heard responding: 'Oh my gosh, I'm fine.

'I'm just an old woman and I had to come see you,' she added.

Donald Trump embraced a struggling supporter after she fainted at his rally in North Carolina on Wednesday, as he told her: 'Hi darling, are you okay? Drink plenty of water'

The moment spread rapidly across social media as viewers noted that Trump abandoned his bulletproof glass protection - a new precaution as it was his first outside rally since the attempt on his life in Butler, Pennsylvania last month.

When his supporter collapsed, Trump was speaking about how he sponsored athletes during his business days, but stopped as people in the crowd could be heard shouting 'medic!'

Trump added from the podium: 'A doctor, please...'

It is not clear what medical emergency the supporter was suffering, however she appeared to be okay and told Trump she was 'fine.'

The former president speculated that high temperatures were the cause, as he said before wading into the crowd that 'it is very hot here, I notice.'

'It is very hot. A lot of the people waited for days to get here. I understand it. Take your time, doctor, take your time, thank you,' he continued.

Trump watched the unfolding drama for a few more moments and then left the lectern, walked to the side of the stage, descended the stairs, and headed over to the crowd, accompanied by Secret Service agents.

Trump abandoned his bulletproof glass protection and waded into the crowd after realizing the medical emergency was unfolding

The former president then embraced the woman during the rally in Asheboro, North Carolina

She told the former president: 'I'm just an old woman and I had to come see you'

After embracing the struggling supporter, Trump returned to the stage and praised his fans for camping out for a long time to catch a glimpse of him at his events.

'You know, they come two, three days early and it's a lot of stress, we lose them,' he said.

'The only ones we don't lose are the front row Joes, I don't know what they have going, they have something going here.'

He added: 'Thank you very much. thanks doctor.'

The decision to speak behind bulletproof glass came after the assassination attempt last month, where Trump was shot in the ear as he narrowly avoided death.

For his first outside speech since the July 13 shooting, at the North Carolina Aviation Museum & Hall of Fame, storage containers were also stacked around the perimeter to create additional walls and block sight lines.

Snipers were positioned on roofs at the venue, where old aircraft were sitting behind the podium and a large American flag was suspended from cranes.

Security forces members keep watch on the day of a campaign rally held by former U.S. President Donald Trump at Asheboro Regional Airport in Asheboro, North Carolina, U.S. August 21, 2024

The event, billed as being focused on national security issues, is part of Trump's weeklong series of counterprogramming to the Democratic National Convention, which is underway in Chicago.

Allies have been urging Trump to focus on policy instead of personal attacks as he struggles to adjust to running against Harris after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race.

During his speech Trump railed against Vice President Kamala Harris' approach to national security.

He told a raucous crowd: 'The world is on fire, and Kamala and Biden have marched us to the brink of World War III.

Trump blamed the current White House for the deadly Afghanistan withdrawal, and wars between Russia and Ukraine, and Israel and Hamas.
An elderly woman has been branded a 'Karen' after she blocked a motorist from taking the last empty parking spot in a full carpark.

The astonishing incident was captured on dashcam as the driver turned into a parking lot in the Newcastle suburb of Jesmond north of Sydney on Thursday.

With all the other spots occupied, the driver spots a single empty angled bay.

As the car started to nose its way into the spot, a woman standing near the markings appearing to reserve the bay moved in front of the car to stop the driver from taking it

She pointed and waved her hand to indicate to the driver that they couldn't park there.

Eventually the driver moved on and later shared the footage online of the 'Karen'- a slang term for a person perceived as entitled or excessively demanding.

'Just a Karen trying to reserve the spot for her husband,' they captured the video.

Dashcam captured the woman blocking an empty car spot on Thursday

Many viewers agreed that the woman was in the wrong.

'It's a massive fail, please tell me you did not let her get away with it! Just start driving in, she'll move,' one viewer commented.

Another added: 'What a Karen, I hope you drove in.

A third wrote 'I can't believe anyone thinks this is okay. Although I have a couple of older family members who would do this.

Others believe the woman should have copped a $78 fine applicable for the offence in NSW.

The woman moved gestured to the driver to find somewhere else to park

While there are no specific rules about 'reserving parking spaces', the Australian Road Rules, which are the basis for NSW legislation state 'pedestrians 'must not cause a traffic hazard by moving into the path of a driver'.

The rules also state pedestrians 'must not unreasonably obstruct the path of any driver'.
Fishing man rescued after drifting for 10 hours after falling overboard

Global Times) 09:41, August 22, 2024

A man clings desperately to the foam float. (Photo: Guangming Daily)

A man in south China's Hainan Province who recently had been drifting for 10 hours after falling into the water while fishing was spotted by a ferry captain, who successfully rescued him in just 11 minutes.

At 11:40 am on August 15, a ferry, carrying 500 passengers and 38 crew members, departed from the New Haigang Port in Haikou city, Hainan, heading to Xuweng Port in Zhanjiang, South China's Guangdong Province. Captain Huang Wanli, who has been a seafarer for 10 years, was in charge of the ferry, Hainan local media reported.

Around noon, Huang suddenly noticed a large foam floating object on the sea surface, with a faint black shadow next to it. However, by the time he went to grab his binoculars, the ship had already passed, missing the best observation angle.

"I felt like I should go back and confirm if that black shadow was a person," Huang said. However, with 500 passengers on board, turning back would disrupt the journey. Under immense pressure, Huang contacted the maritime authorities, requested to turn back for confirmation, and coordinated nearby vessels to give way.

As the ship approached, they discovered it was indeed a person! The man was clinging desperately to the foam float, in a critical condition.

Captain Huang immediately notified the crew, initiated the rescue procedure, prepared to rescue the man, and arranged the passenger department to maintain order among the passengers. "My voice was trembling when I reported to the maritime authorities," Huang said, "It's a matter of life and death!"

With the collective efforts of the crew, the man was successfully rescued from the water. It took only 11 minutes from spotting the suspected drowning person to rescuing him.

The man was totally exhausted when rescued, trembling with purple lips. The crew provided their clothes, blankets, hot water, and food, covering him with a blanket to prevent hypothermia.

The rescued man, a resident of Lingao, Hainan, had gone fishing alone on a homemade foam float board on the night of August 14.

After a check-up, the rescued man's vital signs were normal. He expressed heartfelt gratitude to Huang and the crew.

Due to the delay caused by the rescue, a rescue vessel sent by the maritime department took the rescued man away. Despite the 2-hour delay, passengers praised Captain Huang and the vessel's entire crew.

(Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun)
Santa Clara County has reached a tentative agreement to buy Regional Medical Center, an East San Jose hospital that was slated for major cutbacks in its trauma care, for $175 million. Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle

The Bay Areas largest county announced plans Wednesday to buy a private hospital that had been slated for major cutbacks  a move that county officials say will preserve critical medical care for the low-income community it serves.

Santa Clara County has reached a tentative agreement with the owner of Regional Medical Center, a 250-bed hospital in East San Jose, to acquire the facility for $175 million. The move follows months of uncertainty and discord about the future of the facility, which treats about a quarter of the countys trauma patients.

County and hospital leaders anticipate the transaction will be completed by the first quarter of 2025.

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Regional Medical Center, which is currently owned by the national for-profit health care provider Hospital Corporation of America, had initially planned to close its trauma center this month. After outcry from hospital staff, elected officials and patient advocates, it later reversed course and said it would keep the trauma center open but downgrade it from Level II to Level III, which would have meant reducing cardiac surgical services.

It also planned to scale back a program that treats the most severe heart attacks and to provide less specialized care for stroke patients. HCA cited decreased utilization over the past several years but did not specify how many fewer trauma patients it was seeing or why.

If the tentative deal is finalized, the hospital will restore these services. The county also plans to later bring back obstetrics, labor and delivery and newborn care services, which were discontinued in 2020. Much of the money for the acquisition will come from one-time Federal Emergency Management Agency funding that the county expects to receive as reimbursement for providing COVID-19 services during the pandemic, said county executive James Williams.

There is some precedent for the county absorbing a struggling hospital into its public hospital system, already the one of the largest of its kind in the state. In 2019, the county bought OConnor Hospital in San Jose and St. Louise Regional Hospital in Gilroy for $235 million. The hospitals were on the brink of closure after their previous owner, Verity Health System, filed for bankruptcy. They joined the 730-bed Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, the flagship and largest county hospital, to become part of the broader public provider system Santa Clara Valley Healthcare. The system also includes 16 clinics.

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Were very pleased with this potential acquisition of Regional Medical Center, said Jackie Van Blaricum, president of HCAs Far West Division. We have served this community for over 25 years, and we believe this is the best path forward for our organization.

Regional Medical Center serves about 2,400 patients each year and is one of three trauma centers in the county. The plans to shut down and later curtail services alarmed local officials, patient advocates and some of the hospitals own doctors, who worried they would leave the community without critical medical services, as patients and ambulances would have to travel farther for care. Because the hospital serves low-income residents in East San Jose, the changes would have had a disproportionate impact on communities of color, they said.

The next closest trauma units are Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, about 8 miles to the southwest, and Stanford Hospital in Palo Alto, about 27 miles northwest.

Incorporating Regional Medical Center is in line with the countys mission to provide safety net resources for our entire community, said Dr. Manuel Gonzales, a pediatrician at Santa Clara Valley Medical Centers East Valley clinic.
A California hospital that treated a woman last April led her family to believe that she was missing for over a year - when in actuality, she died only days after being admitted, a new lawsuit claims.

The mother and two sisters of Jessie Peterson, who had Type 1 diabetes, said they were told by hospital staff that she left 'against medical advice' after getting treatment for a diabetic episode.

Peterson, 31, regularly went to Mercy San Juan Medical Center in Carmichael for diabetes-related complications, according to her family.

Two days after being admitted on April 6, 2023, Peterson called her mother Ginger Congi to come pick her up, according to the lawsuit.

But a death certificate obtained by SFGate revealed she died from cardiac arrest while experiencing diabetic ketoacidosis less than two hours after calling her mother.

The lawsuit, which is seeking a $15 million judgment against hospital operators Dignity Health, also makes the bombshell claim that Peterson's body was 'forgotten' in the morgue for over a year.

Jessie Peterson, pictured, died in a hospital in April 2023 after getting treated for her Type 1 diabetes. For over a year, her family believed she was missing and spared no effort in searching for her

Peterson was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes as a child. Later in life, she struggled with drug addiction, her mother said. But that didn't stop her from ever maintaining contact with her family

'Jessie's family was not notified of Jessie's passing, despite extensive previous contact between the hospital and Jessie's family,' the suit said. 'Jessie was placed on Shelf Number Red 22 A and forgotten.'

Since the family was under the impression Peterson had simply vanished, they spent months doing everything they could to locate her.

They talked to friends, neighbors, passed out flyers and filed a missing person's report with the county and California's Department of Justice.

Peterson's sister, Angie Rubino, even talked to homeless people in the area around the hospital to see if they could shed any light on their search, The Independent reported.

Everything changed on April 12, 2024, more than a year after Peterson's supposed disappearance.

That's when a representative from the Sacramento County Sheriff's office allegedly called Congi and informed her that her daughter was found dead in the cold storage area of the hospital.

'We're still very sad, and we still don't have any answers,' Congi told The New York Times. 'It's hard not to be angry.'

Ginger Congi, pictured, decided to file the lawsuit against the hospital after it refused to give her answers

Peterson, center, is pictured with her two sisters, who also helped search for her in the months after her disappearance

The hospital where Peterson died, pictured, allegedly hasn't offered an apology to the family

Congi still doesn't know whether her daughter had been discharged when she died or if she was still being treated.

The family's lawyer, Marc Greenberg, also provided the Times a copy of Peterson's death certificate, which was signed on April 4, 2024. It said she died on April 8, 2023.

It's still unclear why it took the hospital almost a year to sign off on her death certificate, which are required to be issued within 15 hours under California law.

Peterson's body was handed over to her family a few days after the gruesome discovery was made, but her remains were 'so decomposed that an open casket funeral was not feasible,' according to the lawsuit.

The advanced decomposition of her body also made it impossible for an autopsy to be performed, rendering a possible medical malpractice claim impossible to substantiate.

'While a patient that doesn't survive may be just another lifeless body to Mercy San Juan hospital, Jessie was a family member, daughter, and sister, all of whom deserved the dignity and respect Mercy San Juan grossly failed to provide.'

'Even to this day, the hospital has not apologized to Jessie's family members,' the lawsuit claimed.

Peterson's family filed a negligence lawsuit against hospital operators Dignity Health, after hospital staff allegedly told them Peterson walked out on her own. This is what led to their belief she was still out there

DailyMail.com reached out to the hospital operators, which have told other outlets that they extend their 'deepest sympathies to the family during this difficult time.'

Congi said Peterson was an avid athlete as a child, doing dance, gymnastics and water polo. She had to scale back on these activities when she was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 10.

As an adult, Peterson had taken a liking to traveling around California but was also struggling with drug addiction.

'She would go for a year where she was doing really, really good,' Congi said. 'And then she would take that step backwards.'

But even when she was struggling, Peterson was always in contact with her mother.

Congi said she decided to file the lawsuit, which seeks $5 million in actual damages and $10 million in punitive damages, when the hospital stonewalled all of her questions about how Peterson died.

But she admitted that her biggest question will likely never be answered.

'Id really like to know what happened to Jessie when she was breathing her last moments,' she said.
Police are searching for the body of a missing Florida wife who vanished in Madrid during a bitter divorce the day her estranged husband was filmed buying duct tape.

Ana Maria Henao, originally from Colombia, was declared missing in February of this year after she failed to meet a friend to travel from Madrid to Barcelona for a conference.

The 40-year-old was last seen walking into her apartment where her husband of 13 years, David Knezevic, then showed up and left with a suitcase later that night. She has not been seen since.

The cities of Vicenza, in Italy, Madrid and Miami are today being scoured by police with sniffer dogs and the FBI in a desperate bid to find the missing woman's body.

Ana Maria Henao (pictured), who is originally from Colombia, was declared missing in February of this year during a bitter divorce

David Knezevic seen in CCTV footage at a Madrid hardware store back in February purchasing duct tape and spray tape

The couple got married in 2011 and moved to the south Florida city of Fort Lauderdale

Under an order from the local mayor, a dirt road surrounded by thick woods was closed along the old Costo road that connects the plain to the Asiago plateau in Vicenza yesterday.

Along with a bulldozer, investigators are searching the area which is thick with vegetation inch by inch, reportedly to try and find her burial site, La Stampa reports.

Ana reportedly moved to Madrid at the end of 2023 partly to get away from her husband, and her family said the couple were going through a difficult separation.

Footage showed Serbian-American IT specialist Knezevic, 35, at a hardware store buying duct tape and spray paint the day she went missing.

Hours later, he was caught spray-painting the surveillance camera at his estranged wife's building.

He was taken into custody as he returned from his home country of Serbia, where he had been for months and was charged with kidnapping.

He was arrested by the FBI and officials from the Spanish National Police in May.

Knezevic is seen in surveillance footage the day his wife disappeared

Chilling footage of the husband buying duct tape and spraying paint in Madrid

Ana, a 40-year-old Florida resident originally from Colombia, was declared missing on February 5 after she failed to meet a friend to travel from Madrid to Barcelona

People magazine reported that the couple were going through a 'nasty divorce' and there is a substantial amount of money on the line'.

Local media suggested that the division of assets is the likely motive behind Ana's disappearance. Ana and her husband had yet to formally file for divorce at the time of her disappearance.

The family became concerned about Ana after they started receiving text messages in Spanish from her phone that did not sound like they were written by the Colombia native.

'That message in Spanish, it is like it's translated from Google . It's not her. She doesn't say those things. Like nobody in Spanish will say it like that,' her brother said.

Ana's friend, Sanna Rameau, told DailyMail.com she last exchanged messages with her on February 2.

The last message from Ana's WhatsApp account, sent the following day, said she had 'met someone wonderful.'

'He has a summer house about 2h from Madrid. We are going there now and I will spend a few days there. Signal is Spotty. I'll call you when I get back,' it read.

David Knezevich was taken into custody in May as he returned from his home country of Serbia, where he had been for months

Ana disappeared amid an ongoing separation from husband David, 35, a businessman

Another message detailed the circumstances of their first encounter, claiming they met on the street. 'Amazing connection. Like I never had before,' it read.

Ana's friend said she wanted to start a non-profit 'helping women that have been abused or been in a bad situation'.

She told People: 'She wanted the divorce to go through, and she said that's what she wanted to do after splitting up everything.'

Investigators earlier recovered surveillance footage of a man in a motorcycle helmet hanging around Ana's Madrid apartment on February 2, the day before friends lost contact with her.

He was spotted waiting for people to exit the building before slipping inside at around 9:30pm.

The same man is believed to have spray-painted the lens of two security cameras of the apartment building in Madrid's upscale Salamanca neighbourhood.

A March 12 report from Spanish publication El Cierre Digital cited 'sources close to the case' who claimed the Scientific Police found biological remains in the missing woman's living accommodations.

But her brother, Felipe Henao, recently appeared on NewsNation's 'Cuomo' with a desperate plea to the public and denied the report about the remains, saying the family is still desperate for answers.

Sanna Rameau told DailyMail.com she last messaged her friend on February 2

Messages from Ana's phone claimed she met someone who had a house two hours from Madrid and she was going there with him for a few days but her family is sceptical

The cities of Vicenza, Madrid and Miami are today being scoured by police with sniffer dogs and the FBI in a desperate bid to find the missing woman's body

The Florida realtor was officially declared missing on February 5

'We want to know the truth. We want to know where my sister is,' Henao said. 'If anybody has any information, any tips please reach out to the FBI or the Spanish authorities.'

When asked about the supposed discovery of biological remains in her apartment, Henao said he asked the FBI if the report was true and 'they told me it isn't.'

There was no further details on the specifics of the remains found.

Investigators 'don't want to share any information, because it could jeopardize the case. I understand. Justice moves slow,' Henao added.

He said her case was being treated as matter of domestic violence as it moved through the court system, and a case of forced disappearance rather than voluntary.

The couple ran a successful computer support and repair business from their home in Fort Lauderdale. Ana and Sanna had travelled extensively on holidays together and were in daily communication as Ana hunted for a new apartment in the Spanish capital.

Speaking to DailyMail.com previously, Henao said his mother was 'devastated' over her daughter's disappearance.

'I wish I had something new, I wish Ana was back already,' Hernao said. 'I just hope someone with information comes forward to tell us what they know.'
Girls are continuing their long-held lead over boys for GCSE results, achieving almost 170,000 more top grades than their male counterparts.

Figures published by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) show that boys are narrowing the gap with their female classmates in terms of top grades, but there is still a significant gap in almost all subjects.

Overall outcomes at GCSE remained higher for girls than boys, with 758,000 7/A grades or above for girls and 590,000 for boys - a difference of 168,000.

Education experts have blamed boys for being 'less hardworking' and 'much less mature' than girls of the same age.

The data, which covers England, Wales and Northern Ireland shows that nearly one in four (24.7 percent) of girls' GCSE entries were awarded at least a grade 7/A compared to almost a fifth of boys' entries (19.0 percent) - a 5.7 percentage point gap.

This is the narrowest lead enjoyed by girls since 2009, when it was also 5.7 points.

Marie, 14, received a grade 9 in French after taking her exam two years early at Portsmouth Grammar School

Girls at Ark Pioneer Academy in Barnet, north London, celebrate their GCSE results on Thursday

Overall outcomes at GCSE remained higher for girls than boys, with 758,000 7/A grades or above for girls and 590,000 for boys - a difference of 168,000

Emily Prior (left) and Lucy Mackay receiving their GCSE results at Brighton College this morning

Although girls outperformed boys in almost all subjects, male pupils narrowly exceed their female counterparts in economics, with 32.6 percent of pupils achieving at least a 7/A, compared to 30.6 percent for girls.

Maths was another strong subject for boys, with 18 percent achieving the top grades compared to just 15.8 percent for girls.

This trend continued for numeracy, but for Additional Maths, sometimes also called Further Maths, girls outperformed boys by 61.9 percent receiving a 7/A or above to 54.9 percent.

Boys also received better results in Physics and Statistics.

Professor Barnaby Lenon, dean of the faculty of education at the University of Buckingham, said: 'Boys do significantly worse than girls in most subjects.

'This is because boys are less hardworking, less motivated by wanting to please their teachers, and much less mature than girls of the same age.'

One girl who wowed teachers was Marie, 14, who achieved a grade 9 in French two years early.

Marie, from Southsea, who has a French mother and attends Portsmouth Grammar School, said that she had to work hard on the writing element of the test.

Sawsene Belaiche, 16, from Portsmouth, achieved 10 grade 9s and an A in additional maths and hopes eventually to go to Cambridge University

Anna Heseltine, 16, with brother Finn receiving her GCSE results at Portsmouth Grammar School

Students receiving their exam results today now face a scramble to secure college and sixth form places

A pupil at Brighton College was emotional after she received her results, and is supported by her parents

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She said: 'I'm really happy, I'm proud of my result because I put a lot of work into it. I put a lot of effort into the writing as the reading and speaking came more naturally to me.'

Sawsene Belaiche, 16, from Portsmouth, achieved 10 grade 9s and an A in additional maths and hopes eventually to go to Cambridge University to study chemical engineering after her A-levels.

She said: 'I'm really happy, I worked really hard for it and it paid off, I couldn't be happier.'

She added: 'I always strive to do the best I can.'

Anna Heseltine, who achieved 10 grade 9s and one grade 7, said: 'I feel good as I have worked hard for it.'

The 16-year-old said that she would go on to study English literature, maths and German at A-level.

This year saw a record number of grades handed out with more than 6.5 million GCSE results and vocational or technical awards.

The overall number of grades rose by 4.8 percent, while the largest cohort ever meant a 4.6 percent increase in the number of 16-year-olds in the population.

Overall, more than a fifth (21.8 percent) of UK GCSE entries were awarded the top grades - at least a 7 or an A grade - this year, down 0.2 percentage points on last year.

Students at Nottingham High School receive their GCSE results early this morning

Twins Matilda and Hermione Johnson, 15, from Stowupland High School in Suffolk, both passed all of their GCSEs achieving top marks

Stormont Education Minister Paul Givan at Dromore High School in Co Down with students who have received their GCSE results

Ukrainian teenager Oles Kuzomko with his sister Yaryna and mother Mila, after they escaped their war-torn home to live in the UK, as he receives his GCSE results

Pupils at Ark Pioneer in Barnet, north London, receiving their GCSE results this morning

A GCSE student celebrates achieving top grades in her exams by posing with a balloon

A student reacts after opening their GCSE results at the City of London Academy in Southwark, London

Hundreds of thousands of pupils in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are receiving grades to help them progress to sixth form, college or training

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Elsewhere, it was revealed that the gap in GCSE results between private and state schools has widened at the highest grades.

Almost half of entries from private schools scored at least a grade 7 this year, compared to around a fifth of those from both comprehensive schools and academies.

The figures, published by England's exams regulator Ofqual, have sparked fresh concerns among social mobility experts about inequalities in the education system and widening attainment gaps between rich and poor youngsters.

The data, which covers England only, shows that 48.4 percent of private school entries scored at least a 7 compared to 19.4 percent of those from comprehensive schools - a gap of 29 percentage points.

Last year, this gap was 28.2 points - an increase of 0.8 percentage points.

The gap at A/7 grades between private and academies - state schools which are free from local authority control - now stands at 27.2 percentage points compared to 26.5 points in 2023, an increase of 0.7 percentage points.

The figures do show that the gap between private and state schools has narrowed compared to 2019, before the pandemic.

Lee Elliot Major, professor of social mobility at the University of Exeter, said: 'The persistently stark gap in top GCSE grades between private and state school pupils is sadly a consistent story repeated every academic year.

'Despite all the talk of equalising opportunities, private school pupils remain twice as likely to be awarded the highest grades compared with their peers in comprehensive state schools - a gap that has widened compared with last year.

'These statistics are a stark reminder of the huge challenges that face a government committed to improving opportunities - what is clear is that we need a new approach: challenging schools to be genuinely inclusive and equitable for all our children, but also addressing the inequalities outside the school gates that have such a profound impact on children's readiness to learn.'

Sir Peter Lampl, founder of the Sutton Trust charity and founder of the Education Endowment Foundation, said: 'It is concerning that the gap in attainment between private and state schools has widened this year.

'This reflects a broader pattern of widening gaps between the most and least well-off young people since the pandemic and cost of living crisis.'
A decision on whether to raise the doomed 30 million Bayesian to the surface is currently 'not on the agenda', the Italian Coastguard has said.

The superyacht is 'virtually intact' on its side 164ft below on the seabed after it sank on Monday morning off the coast of Sicily during a 'black swan' waterspout.

Vincenzo Zagarola, of the Italian Coastguard, said raising the superyacht is not a 'topic on the agenda', but added: 'It will be, but not now.'

But a salvage chief has argued the only way of finding out why the Bayesian sank is to lift it to the surface.

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch is among the five bodies that have so far been recovered from the wreck.

His 18-year-old daughter Hannah is still missing with the coastguard working on the theory she is still inside the vessel.

Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judith, Mr Lynch's lawyer Christopher Morvillo, and his wife Neda have also been identified.

It brings the total number of confirmed deaths to six after the body of Recaldo Thomas was discovered on the day of the sinking.

It comes as:

A decision on whether to raise the doomed 30 million Bayesian to the surface is currently 'not on the agenda', the Italian Coastguard has said

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, 59, is among the five bodies recovered from the wreck of the 30 million superyacht that sank in a storm off the coast of Sicily

Christopher Morvillo and his wife Neda (top image), Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer (bottom left), and his wife Judith (bottom right) have also been identified

It brings the total number of confirmed deaths to six after the body of Recaldo Thomas (pictured) was discovered on the day of the sinking

Fire service and Coastguard dive teams return to port on the fourth day of the search and recovery operation

Rescue personnel work at the scene today where luxury yacht Bayesian sank off the coast of Porticello, near the Sicilian city of Palermo

Nick Barke, head of salvage operations at Boats.co.uk, said that the 'only real way of knowing' why the yacht sank will be to lift it to the surface, but that would be 'expensive and complicated process', likely to involve a crane barge.

He said divers would attach straps to the boat before it is lifted upright and then hauled out of the water.

He predicted this would be 'time-consuming' as 'they have to do it in such a way that they don't damage anything too badly.'

Italian prosecutors have opened an investigation into why the superyacht sank - described as 'unsinkable' by a CEO of a boat manufacturing.

Giovanni Costantino, founder and CEO of The Italian Sea Group, which owns the Perini Navi that built the Bayesian, blamed human error for the disaster.

He told Corriere della Sera: 'The passengers reported something absurd, that the storm came unexpectedly, suddenly. That is not true. Everything was predictable.'

The Italian Sea Group has also dismissed speculation the enormous 264ft mast was to blame and says only a massive entry of water could have caused it to sink.

'The controversies about the mast are sterile controversies because the mast, according to those who have seen it, is intact,' they said.

'The retractable keel stabilises the ship, but even without the keel completely out the ship is stable and only a massive entry of water could have caused the sinking which did not happen in a minute as someone wrote.'

This morning the Italian Coastguard confirmed the final person yet to be found was a woman.

The fire rescue service said it would 'need a crystal ball' to know when they would find 'the next body' as dive teams can take up to 24 hours just to move one meter due to the difficulty of moving around inside the wreckage.

A source close to the operation said 59-year-old Mr Lynch's body was brought to shore this morning.

A fire service boat with flashing blue lights returned this morning with a blue body bag to Porticello at just after 8.45am local time.

Brent Hoberman, a friend of Mr Lynch's for 28 years, says his death is 'unbelievably tragic' and his friends and family had been 'hoping for a miracle'.

He told Sky News: 'We knew it was unlikely but you still hold out hope.

'It's just so unbelievably tragic for him to go through what he went through over the last 12 years, defending his name and not really living a full life, to now for his death to be confirmed is obviously incredibly sad.'

Royal submarine captain Ryan Ramsey says those taking part in the recovery operation would be under 'huge amounts of psychological stress' (Rescue personnel pictured this morning)

People embrace at the scene where a luxury yacht sank, as divers continue to search for 18-year-old Hannah Lynch

A police car escorts an ambulance carrying the fifth body recovered from Porticello Harbour on the fourth day of the search

Divers found five bodies in the wreck yesterday (Pictured: A rescue boat with rescue personnel on board resume search operations this morning)

TODAY: Salvatore Cocina, the head of Sicily's civil protection agency, said searches are resuming this morning, and there will be an investigation in due course

Dive teams continue to search the waters off the Sicilian coast for a fourth day this morning

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch with his wife Angela Bacares, who survived the disaster

Mr Lynch's attorney Christopher Morvillo (pictured) and his wife Neda are also among those who have died

An ambulance carries the fifth body recovered from the waters this morning off the coast of Porticello

A boat carrying a dive team heads out to the site of the Bayesian on the fourth day of the search this morning

He said he hoped close friends were rallying around My Lynch's wife Angela Bacares - who survived the tragedy - to give her 'courage and strength'.

Search teams made the tragic discoveries of the other four bodies yesterday while scouring through the ruins of luxury sailboat Bayesian, which is resting on the seabed at a depth of 164ft.

The fifth body was discovered late last night, but dive teams were unable to bring it to shore before night fell.

Luca Cari, spokesperson for the fire rescue service, told the Associated Press 'we would need a crystal ball to know when we'll be able to find the next body'.

'It's very difficult to move inside the wreckage. Moving just one meter can take up to 24 hours,' Cari said.

The Royal Academy of Engineering paid tribute to its 'mentor, donor and former council member' Mr Lynch following his death, while technology industry group TechUK called him a 'hugely significant and pioneering figure'.

Mr Lynch was also a member of the Create The Change fundraising board, set up by Cancer Research UK and which helped fund the building of the Francis Crick Institute.

Its chairman Lord John Browne said: 'Mike Lynch should be remembered as the person who catalysed a breed of deep tech entrepreneurs in the UK.

'His ideas and his personal vision were a powerful contribution to science and technology in both Britain and globally.

'I send my condolences to those close to him. We have lost a human being of great ability.'

Mr Bloomer was previously an honorary treasurer at NSPCC.

Today, the children's charity's chairman Neil Berkett paid tribute to the 70-year-old and his wife Judy.

'We remember Jonathan from his time with us as a very kind individual with a great sense of humour and Judy as formidable and passionate,' he said.

'We are so grateful for everything they did for children and the NSPCC and our thoughts are with their family, friends and colleagues at this desperately sad time.'

The Bayesian (pictured in an undated handout photo) overturned during a severe thunderstorm on Monday morning

Rescue workers look at the plans of the the Bayesian as they organise a search operation

Royal submarine captain Ryan Ramsey says those taking part in the recovery operation would be under 'huge amounts of psychological stress'.

'It's been exceptionally stressful for them both mentally and physically,' he told Sky News.

'If you take into account the pressures that they're operating under, those are considerable.

'It's dark. It's a platform that they've never been inside before, and they're having to recover bodies. That's huge amounts of psychological stress for those for those divers.'

The Bayesian sank after being hit by a 'black swan' waterspout on Monday at 5am.

Body bags were seen being taken to the port of Porticello on Wednesday afternoon, with the process of bringing the fifth body to shore being described by Mr Cocina as 'ongoing'.

As the body bags were taken back to the port, dozens of emergency services staff were waiting, and one bag was seen being put in the back of an ambulance.

The body of Canadian-Antiguan national Mr Thomas, who was working as a chef on the Bayesian superyacht, was recovered at the scene of the sinking on Monday.

Of the 22 passengers and crew on board, 15 - including Mr Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares - were rescued after escaping onto a lifeboat.

The head of Palermo Emergency Medical Services, Dr Fabio Genco, told the BBC that there had been 'apocalyptic' scenes in the aftermath of the sinking.

He said: 'The word that the mother and all the injured kept repeating was the 'darkness' during the shipwreck.

'They spoke of about five minutes, from three to five minutes, from the moment the boat was lifted, raised by the waves of the sea until it sank.

'There were truly apocalyptic scenes where everyone was searching and hoping to find the people who at that moment were not present, just missing.'

The ship's captain, James Cutfield, 51, was reportedly quizzed by authorities for two hours as they began questioning all crew members

The Bayesian sank after being hit by a 'black swan' waterspout on Monday at 5am (Pictured: A large waterspout on sea in Campina, Italy, on August 19)

The superyacht (pictured) was docked off the coast of Porticello, near Palermo, when it was hit by an over-sea tornado, known as a waterspout

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He added: 'Unfortunately in the face of death and the face of life there is no difference between rich and poor, between nobles and commoners.'

The ship's captain, James Cutfield, was reportedly quizzed by authorities for two hours as they began questioning all crew members.

Speaking to New Zealand media, Mr Cutfield's brother Mark said his sibling was a 'very good sailor' with eight years of experience working abroad on luxury yachts

The captain of a yacht, the Sir Robert BP, who helped to rescue them, described how those aboard his vessel spotted the distress flare set off from a life raft.

Karsten Borner said his crew noticed the Bayesian had disappeared before a passenger spotted the flare.

He told Sky News: 'We couldn't see them any more and they disappeared from the radar, we were busy keeping our own ship sailing.

'We couldn't see the ship again so we were aware something was very wrong.'

He said it was only when the tender set out that they found the life raft.

Mr Borner continued: 'It turned out to be the life raft, a 12-person life raft with 15 people inside including one baby.

'They stepped over to our tender and we brought them back to our ship. There we took good care of them, gave them dry clothes, towels, blankets, tea and coffee and so on and took care of them.'

Inspections of the yacht's internal hull took place on Wednesday morning.

A team of four British inspectors from the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) also arrived in Porticello to look at the site of the sinking.

The MAIB is looking into what happened because the yacht Bayesian was flying a British flag, it is understood.

The Italian Coastguard said the MAIB is not involved in the search for the missing people, and that it has not been requested to assist.

A helicopter was drafted in to help the search effort, as divers from the local fire service were seen entering the water with torches attached to their headgear.

A police boat and divers were also seen entering the water on Wednesday afternoon.

Fire crews from the Vigili del Fuoco said they have been accessing the vessel through natural entrances, without making openings.

Remotely controlled underwater vehicles are being used, with naval units and cave divers also taking part in the search, the Italian Coastguard has said.

Bayesian was moored around half a mile off the coast of Porticello when it sank at about 5am local time on Monday as the area was hit by a storm.

Mr Zagarola previously said the missing tourists were feared dead.

The wreckage of the Bayesian is resting on the seabed off the coast at a depth of 50 metres (164ft).

Fire crews described the operation as 'complex', with divers limited to 12-minute underwater shifts.

Survivors have been recuperating at a hotel complex in Porticello, where authorities were gathering witness statements.

The boat trip was a celebration of Mr Lynch's acquittal in a fraud case in the US.

The businessman, who founded software giant Autonomy in 1996, was cleared in June of carrying out a massive fraud relating to its 11 billion US dollar (8.64 billion) sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

The Financial Times reported that Mr Bloomer appeared at trial as a defence witness for Mr Lynch, while media reports suggest the pair are close friends.

In a separate incident, Mr Lynch's co-defendant in his US fraud trial, Stephen Chamberlain, died after being hit by a car while out running in Cambridgeshire on Saturday.
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Kamala Harris has accepted the Democratic nomination for president with a speech full of blistering attacks on Donald Trump.

The vice president started by paying tribute to the former president and then turned the air blue with some fiery remarks.

Trump responded to her speech in real time with a series of blistering posts on Truth Social.

Follow all the developments at DailyMail.com's U.S. politics blog.
A convicted child rapist escaped jail because of the overcrowding crisis in Britain's prisons, it emerged today - with a judge admitting that time behind bars would have been 'virtually inevitable' otherwise.

Rees Newman, 33, was handed a suspended sentence last December for the historic rape of a girl under the age of 14, in 2005.

Under the terms of his sentence he was ordered to sign the sex offenders' register and notify police if he went on holiday - but in May he jetted off to Egypt without telling officers.

Newman was hauled back before a judge at Newport Crown Court this week but  despite admitting breaching the terms of his sentence - he avoided prison a second time.

Judge Tracey Lloyd-Clarke, the Recorder of Cardiff, jailed Newman for two months but suspended his imprisonment for 18 months.

Rees Newman, 33, was handed a suspended sentence for the historic rape of a girl under the age of 14 - he is pictured here leaving his home in Newport

Ministers this week activated 'Operation Early Dawn' emergency measures to avoid prison overcrowding as more rioters are sentenced - pictured is HMP Berwyn in Wrexham

She told Newman: 'If we had been in different times then it would have been virtually inevitable that you would have gone into custody.

'The only reason you have escaped immediate custody today is because of the prison overcrowding crisis.'

The Government activated emergency measures, known as Operation Early Dawn, earlier this week in a bid to ease pressure on UK prisons which are almost at capacity.

The long-standing plan, described as a 'one in one out' policy, was implemented in the north of England following an influx of inmates sentenced in connection with recent rioting.

It allows defendants to be held in police cells and not summoned to magistrates' court until a space in prison is available.

Next month prisoners will also be released after serving 40 per cent of their sentence, instead of half way through, as is usual.

The temporary move  which does not apply to those convicted of sex offences, terrorism, domestic abuse or some violent offences  is expected to result in 5,500 offenders being released in September and October.

Newman,from Newport, was convicted of raping a child under the age of 14 at Croydon Crown Court last December.

He was jailed for two years for the historic offence, which dated back to 2005 when he himself was 14 - but a judge agreed to suspend that sentence for two years, meaning he walked free.

Rees Newman was hauled back before a judge at Newport Crown Court (pictured) this week but  despite admitting breaching the terms of his sentence - he avoided prison a second time

Since the outbreak of riots after the Southport stabbing attack on 29 July, hundreds of people have appeared in magistrates' courts in relation to the chaos

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Newman was also ordered to sign the sex offenders register and, under the terms of the register, required to notify police at least seven days before any travel abroad.

The court heard he told his probation officer he intended to travel to Egypt on holiday, but ignored his advice to also inform police and jetted off to the tourist hotspot on May 25.

Newman, of Santon Court, pleaded guilty to failing to comply with notification requirements at Newport Magistrates' Court in June.

Charles Archer, defending, said Newman, who works at a car dealership, was 'terrified of the prospect of custody'.

He asked the court to consider the current situation regarding prison overcrowding and the fact his client would only serve a short custodial sentence if sent immediately to jail.

Mr Archer said: 'He doesn't minimise the offence and understands that he has to comply.

'There was no malice and he wasn't trying to deceive anyone  it was a stupid mistake. It was a genuine misunderstanding.'

Mr Archer said Newman was unlikely to breach the order again.

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'There are significant stabilising factors in his life which suggests that he wouldn't reoffend or breach this order again,' he added.

'The defendant is in work. He has a full-time job and he works hard.

'Indeed, he has always worked since leaving school and he makes a good living doing that. He lives with his partner of 13 years and is scared of not being able to provide for his partner as he is the main breadwinner.'

Judge Lloyd-Clarke fined Newman 2,000, plus 420 costs, and ordered him to carry out 50 hours of unpaid work.

A spokesman for the Ministry of Justice said: The new Government inherited a justice system in crisis and has been forced to take action to get a grip of the situation across the prison estate, so we can lock up dangerous offenders, protect the public and make prisons safer for hard-working staff.
A video filmed secretly at an RSPCA-certified abattoir has shown staff hitting pigs with paddles in 'terror-filled final moments' before they are slaughtered for meat.

The footage was recorded by campaigners from the Animal Justice Project (AJP) last year inside C&K Meats in Suffolk - which has the capacity to kill between 1,200 to 1,400 pigs a day in gas chambers.

Other allegations laid against the slaughterhouse include poor hygiene practices and evidence of severe stress indicators, such as frothing at the mouth and heavy panting.

One worker in the footage is heard telling the undercover AJP investigator: 'Nothing we do for these pigs is for their benefit.

'Everything, from the minute they get here, is towards them dying.'

A video filmed secretly at an RSPCA-certified abattoir has shown staff hitting pigs with paddles in 'terror-filled final moments' before they are slaughtered for meat

The company is RSPCA assured. This means it has been assessed and confirmed to have met higher farm animal welfare standards. And pork from the abattoir appears on shelves in major supermarkets across the UK

C&K Meats has insisted it is 'committed to ensuring high levels of animal welfare and take the subject matter very seriously'.

The company is RSPCA assured. This means it has been assessed and confirmed to have met higher farm animal welfare standards. And pork from the abattoir appears on shelves in major supermarkets across the UK.

An RSPCA Assured spokesperson said an investigation was launched in light of the footage.

AJP's clandestine footage - filmed over several days - shows animals arriving at the facility.

The animal rights charity makes a number of allegations about the way pigs are treated in the film.

A narrator alleges: 'C&K gases and kills up to 7,000 pigs a week under the guise of humane slaughter.

'Our filming took place during an annual audit, when the abattoir would have been on its best behaviour.

'From the moment the pigs arrived until they were gassed, they experienced nothing but terror.'

Other allegations laid against the slaughterhouse include poor hygiene practices and evidence of severe stress indicators, such as frothing at the mouth and heavy panting

AJP's video shows a pig being killed with a bolt gun, pigs in 'crowded and filthy' pens and pigs being 'forced' to walk past a bleeding corps

The footage was recorded by campaigners from the Animal Justice Project (AJP) last year inside C&K Meats in Suffolk - which has the capacity to kill between 1,200 to 1,400 pigs a day in gas chambers

AJP's video shows a pig being killed with a bolt gun, pigs in 'crowded and filthy' pens and pigs being 'forced' to walk past a bleeding corpse.

Distressed sounds can be heard throughout, with pigs also appearing panicked as they are herded through the abattoir towards their death.

Abattoir workers can also be heard throughout the footage, shouting at the pigs as they are hit.

One worker is recorded saying while he laughs: 'They do wind you up at times; anyone would think they didn't want to die'.

Ayesha Smart, a barrister, viewed the footage and claimed that AJP's findings indicate 'recurrent breaches directly related to physical abuse, undue distress and neglect of the pigs' welfare.'

And Dr Alick Simmons, a former deputy chief veterinary officer for the UK government, said of the footage: 'There were several instances in the footage where the use of the paddle for short periods verged on the excessive.'

Distressed sounds can be heard throughout, with pigs also appearing panicked as they are herded through the abattoir towards their death. Abattoir workers can also be heard throughout the footage, shouting at the pigs as they are hit

Ayesha Smart, a barrister, viewed the footage and claimed that AJP's findings indicate 'recurrent breaches directly related to physical abuse, undue distress and neglect of the pigs' welfare'

AJP also alleges that dirty, overcrowded conditions at the C&K Meats abattoir and poor transportation conditions of the pigs could violate parts of the Welfare of Animals (Transport) (England) Order 2006, which mandates humane handling and the prevention of the unnecessary suffering of animals.

Both AJP and Advocates for Animals - a law firm - are now calling for the immediate shutdown of C&K Meats, which was established over 40 years ago

AJP director Claire Palmer said: 'When laws are passed by Parliament, the public expects them to be enforced.

'Yet again, we're exposing blatant lawbreaking in a slaughterhouse.

'We are calling on Trading Standards to take decisive action against C&K Meats, demonstrating that animal welfare laws must be upheld.

'We also urge consumers to reconsider their support for the meat industry and choose plant-based foods instead.'

A spokesperson for C&K Meats told MailOnline: 'We are committed to ensuring high levels of animal welfare and take the subject matter very seriously.

'Independent Official Veterinarians employed by the Government oversee our activities on a daily basis to ensure we continually meet animal welfare standards.

'Strict policies are in place and our compliance with those aforementioned standards and policies is also regularly audited by internal and external bodies, both announced and unannounced.'

An RSPCA Assured spokesperson said: 'Animal welfare is our absolute priority and we always investigate any allegations of poor welfare.

AJP also alleges that dirty, overcrowded conditions at the C&K Meats abattoir and poor transportation conditions of the pigs could violate parts of the Welfare of Animals (Transport) (England) Order 2006, which mandates the prevention of the unnecessary suffering of animals

A spokesperson for C&K Meats told MailOnline: 'We are committed to ensuring high levels of animal welfare and take the subject matter very seriously. Independent Official Veterinarians employed by the Government oversee our activities on a daily basis to ensure we continually meet animal welfare standards'

'As soon as we were made aware of the footage, which was taken more than a year ago, we launched an immediate and urgent investigation.

'As an investigation is ongoing, we are unable to comment further at this time.

'We take complaints of poor animal welfare very seriously and would always urge anyone with any concerns to contact us straight away, without delay.

'This is so that we can immediately investigate, visit the premises and address any welfare issues as a priority.'

Andrew Opie, director of food and sustainability at the BRC, said: 'Our members know how important animal welfare is to their customers and take their responsibilities to animal welfare very seriously with regular audits being carried out to ensure that expected standards are being met.

'This is being investigated and action will be taken if any breaches to the high animal welfare standards our members uphold are confirmed.'

A previous investigation by AJP uncovered that egg farms across the UK which claimed to be free-range were not let outside for multiple day at a time.

Instead secretly filmed footage revealed that the tens of thousands of birds were living in dark and cramped sheds and were surrounded by the bodies and skeletons of dead hens.

Once the shocking findings were made public in March, the RSPCA stripped the suppliers of their RSPCA assured status.
The color drained from the face of Tennessee killer Sean Finnegan as he was sentenced to death for his sickening murder and torture of a homeless woman.

Finnegan had been found guilty of the 2019 murder of Jennifer Paxton when he stood to learn his punishment in the courtroom yesterday.

As the judge announced his sentence - death by lethal injection - Finnegan said nothing.

His wide eyes fixated on the judge, he began jostling in his seat before fussing with his long, greasy hair.

Paxton's body was kept in a freezer in Finnegan's bedroom for approximately eight months after he killed her. He viewed her corpse for sexual pleasure.

Sean Finnegan became physically distraught as he learned his fate for his sickening crime

Anderson County jury reached a verdict Wednesday and sentenced Finnegan to death by lethal injection for the 2019 murder of Jennifer Paxton

Finnegan moved the body to a hiding place under his bed before police arrived to search for it in early August 2020.

Paxton was the ideal victim for Finnegan, prosecutor Kevin Allen told jurors Friday.

She was a homeless drug addict who sold her body to make money.

Investigators believe Paxton was strangled to death in December 2019. Finnegan's partner, 26-year-old Rebecca Dishman, told officers that Finnegan killed Paxton, strangling her with a string over an extended period of time, taking breaks, and pausing to smoke.

Dishman has already pleaded guilty to murder.

The judge announced the sentence, stating that Finnegan would be transferred to the state penitentiary in Nashville for execution by lethal injection.

Following the verdict, Paxton's family was seen crying and embracing each other in the courtroom. Finnegan shook his attorney's hands, thanking them for their work on the case, after everyone had been dismissed.

Finnegan's partner, 26-year-old Rebecca Dishman, told officers that Finnegan killed 36-year-old Jennifer Paxton (pictured), strangling her with a string over an extended period of time, taking breaks, and pausing to smoke. He then kept her body in a freezer for 8 months and viewed it for sexual pleasure.

'Sean Finnegan will never be free again,' defense attorney Forrest Wallace told Anderson County jurors on August 20 at the start of his sentencing hearing. He noted that the minimum sentence for first-degree murder was 51 years, and Finnegan was already 56. 'Do the math,' he said.

Prosecutor Kevin Allen countered, advocating for the death penalty. 'Sean Finnegan must be given the same amount of mercy they (he and Rebecca Dishman) gave Jennifer Paxton,' he said.

Finnegan remained emotionless throughout the case until the verdict was announced, local ABC affiliate WATE reported.

The only other time he did show emotion was when his brother's ex-wife, Roxanne Mundy, testified on behalf of Finnegan, detailing his abusive childhood, where he was a victim of physical and sexual violence.

Ahead of Finnegan's sentencing, Tennessee had 45 individuals on Death Row.

However, in June 2022, Governor Bill Lee instituted a moratorium on executions, pending the completion of an independent investigation into the state's lethal injection methods.
London and north-east England continue to have the highest and lowest proportion of GCSE entries awarded grade 7/A or above in England, as MPs warn it could take at least a decade to close the gap.

The difference between regions narrowed slightly for the first time in nearly ten years, but the north-south divide remains, with some experts blaming disruption during the pandemic.

Educators have pointed out that different regions suffered different levels of disruption during the pandemic, with many northern areas such as Manchester and Lancashire being placed into lockdown for longer periods than areas in the south.

South Yorkshire, Cheshire, Nottinghamshire and Liverpool also saw harsher restrictions in place than many southern areas during late 2020 and early 2021.

Now politicians have warned it could take up to ten years to close the gap between different regions.

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Hundreds of thousands of pupils in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are receiving grades to help them progress to sixth form, college or training

Pupils at Ark Pioneer in Barnet, north London, receiving their GCSE results this morning

Ukrainian teenager Oles Kuzomko with his sister Yaryna and mother Mila, after they escaped their war-torn home to live in the UK, as he receives his GCSE results

In London, 28.5 percent of entries were awarded 7/A or higher this year, up slightly from 28.4 percent in 2023, while for north-east England the figure was 17.8 percent, up from 17.6 percent.

The gap between these two regions this year stood at 10.7 percentage points, down from 10.8 points in 2023.

It is the first time this gap has narrowed year-on-year since 2016, when it fell from 7.7 points to 7.5 points.

Since 2016, it had got larger in every year, peaking at 10.8 points in 2023, before narrowing slightly in 2024.

The gap this year at grade 7/A between south-east England (24.7 percent) and north-east England (17.8 percent) is 6.9 points, up slightly from 6.8 points in 2023 but lower than 7.1 points in the pre-pandemic year of 2019.

Nearly all regions of England saw a higher proportion of entries getting the top grades this year compared with the pre-pandemic year of 2019, with two exceptions: the East Midlands and north-west England, where the figures were unchanged.

Elsewhere, Northern Ireland continues to record the best GCSE performance of any nation or region, with 31.0 percent of entries this year awarded A/7 or above, down from 34.5 percent in 2023.

A GCSE student celebrates achieving top grades in her exams by posing with a balloon

A student reacts after opening their GCSE results at the City of London Academy in Southwark, London

After weeks of waiting for their long-anticipated grades, many students were relieved to finally open their envelopes

Students receiving their exam results today now face a scramble to secure college and sixth form places

Overall outcomes at GCSE remained higher for girls than boys, with 758,000 7/A grades or above for girls and 590,000 for boys - a difference of 168,000

Girls at Ark Pioneer Academy in Barnet, north London, celebrate their GCSE results on Thursday

Stormont Education Minister Paul Givan at Dromore High School in Co Down with students who have received their GCSE results

In Wales, the proportion is down from 21.7 percent in 2023 to 19.2 percent this year.

Meanwhile the gap in GCSE results between private and state schools has widened at the highest grades.

Almost half of entries from private schools scored at least a grade 7 this year, compared to around a fifth of those from both comprehensive schools and academies.

The figures, published by England's exams regulator Ofqual, have sparked fresh concerns among social mobility experts about inequalities in the education system and widening attainment gaps between rich and poor youngsters.

The data, which covers England only, shows that 48.4 percent of private school entries scored at least a 7 compared to 19.4 percent of those from comprehensive schools - a gap of 29 percentage points.

Last year, this gap was 28.2 points - an increase of 0.8 percentage points.

Pupils at Brighton College react while receiving their GCSE results early on Thursday

Students celebrate their GCSE results at the E-ACT City Heights Academy in Tulse Hill, south west London

Schools Minister Catherine McKinnell congratulates a pupil at Saint Thomas Language College in London

Emily Prior (left) and Lucy Mackay receiving their GCSE results at Brighton College this morning

Students at Nottingham High School receive their GCSE results early this morning

The gap at A/7 grades between private and academies - state schools which are free from local authority control - now stands at 27.2 percentage points compared to 26.5 points in 2023, an increase of 0.7 percentage points.

The figures do show that the gap between private and state schools has narrowed compared to 2019, before the pandemic.

That year, the gap between private and comprehensive schools was 29.3 percentage points, while for private schools and academies it was 27.5 points.

An analysis of Ofqual's data does show that state schools are closing the gap slightly on their fee-paying counterparts when it comes to entries scoring at least a grade 4.

The gulf between private schools and comprehensives this year at grade 4 and above was 22.4 percentage points, while in 2023 it was 22.5 percentage points.

For private schools and academies, the gap was 21.5 percentage points this year and 21.8 percentage points last year.

These differences are also slightly smaller than they were in 2019.
A yacht chef who died alongside 'British Bill Gates' Mike Lynch and others after the 30million Bayesian superyacht sank had been working to pay for renovating his late parents' home, it has been revealed.

Recaldo Thomas, a Canadian citizen working in Antigua, was the first confirmed victim of Monday's disaster off the coast of Sicily.

Tributes have been pouring in for him, with a friend hailing him as a 'very special person' who 'had so much to give' - while he has also now been described a 'lover of all things Italian' and 'one of the worlds best humans'.

Others shared photos of the chef on his travels around the world, during which he would regularly post on social media about his stunning culinary creations.

It today emerged that he hoped to work for just two more seasons on the vessel so he could finance a makeover of the property which belonged to his late parents.

Recaldo Thomas, a Canadian citizen working in Antigua, was the first confirmed victim of Monday's disaster off the coast of Sicily - tributes have been pouring in for him

British technology tycoon Mike Lynch, pictured a CEO summit at London's Savoy Hotel in June 2011, is among the victims of the Bayesian superyacht sinking in Monday this week

The luxury vessel owned by Mr Lynch sank off the coast of Sicily on August 19 (file picture)

Gareth Williams, who grew up with Thomas in Antigua, told the BBC: 'I can talk for everyone that knew him when I say he was a well-loved, kind human being with a calm spirit.

'He told me just the other day that he needed to work two more seasons to fix up his late parents house - he loved yachting, but he was tired.'

Meanwhile, fellow yacht chef Molly McMullin posted on Facebook that Mr Thomas was 'truly one of the worlds best humans'.

She also said of the man known to friends a Ricky was an animal lover and keen reader - adding how he was 'a lover of all things Italian, a man with such style and panache, wit and humour'.

Tributes have also been paid to 59-year-old Mr Lynch, as searches continued for his missing 18-year-old daughter Hannah who is feared to also be dead.

This afternoon she remained lost at sea as Italian authorities named five people whose bodies were recovered from inside the Bayesian superyacht

Mr Lynch, Morgan Stanley International chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judith and US nationals Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda have all been formally identified by coastguard officials.

The six passengers had been missing since Monday when the Bayesian yacht, with four bodies pulled from the water yesterday while a fifth was recovered earlier today.

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, 59, is among the five bodies recovered from the wreck of the 30 million superyacht that sank in a storm off the coast of Sicily

Christopher Morvillo and his wife Neda (top image), Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer (bottom left), and his wife Judith (bottom right) have also been identified

Mr Lynch's attorney Christopher Morvillo (pictured) and his wife Neda are also among those who have died

Brent Hoberman, a friend of Mr Lynch's for 28 years, described his death as 'unbelievably tragic' and his friends and family had been 'hoping for a miracle'.

He told Sky News: 'We knew it was unlikely but you still hold out hope.

'It's just so unbelievably tragic for him to go through what he went through over the last 12 years, defending his name and not really living a full life, to now for his death to be confirmed is obviously incredibly sad.'

He said he hoped close friends were rallying around My Lynch's 57-year-old wife Angela Bacares - who survived the tragedy - to give her 'courage and strength'.

The Bayesian sank after being hit by a 'black swan' waterspout on Monday at 5am.

The Royal Academy of Engineering has paid tribute to its 'mentor, donor and former council member' Mr Lynch following his death, while technology industry group TechUK called him a 'hugely significant and pioneering figure'.

Mr Lynch was also a member of the Create The Change fundraising board, set up by Cancer Research UK and which helped fund the building of the Francis Crick Institute.

Its chairman Lord John Browne said: 'Mike Lynch should be remembered as the person who catalysed a breed of deep tech entrepreneurs in the UK.

Rescue personnel work at the scene today where luxury yacht Bayesian sank off the coast of Porticello, near the Sicilian city of Palermo

Divers found five bodies in the wreck yesterday (Pictured: A rescue boat with rescue personnel on board resume search operations this morning)

The Bayesian (pictured in an undated handout photo) overturned during a severe thunderstorm on Monday morning

Rescue workers look at the plans of the the Bayesian as they organise a search operation

'His ideas and his personal vision were a powerful contribution to science and technology in both Britain and globally.

'I send my condolences to those close to him. We have lost a human being of great ability.'

Mr Bloomer was previously an honorary treasurer at NSPCC.

Today, the children's charity's chairman Neil Berkett paid tribute to the 70-year-old and his wife Judy.

'We remember Jonathan from his time with us as a very kind individual with a great sense of humour and Judy as formidable and passionate,' he said.

'We are so grateful for everything they did for children and the NSPCC and our thoughts are with their family, friends and colleagues at this desperately sad time.'

In a further twist of fate, it emerged this afternoon Mr Lynch had put the doomed vessel up for sale in March but withdrew it from the market after he was acquitted in one of the biggest ever fraud cases, according to industry sources.

The Telegraph reported he was going to review the decision to sell in the autumn after his summer trip to the Mediterranean.

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch with his wife Angela Bacares, who survived the disaster

Mr Lynch's 18-year-old daughter Hannah is still missing, Italian government official Massimo Mariani (left) confirmed this afternoon

Salvatore Cocina, the head of Sicily's civil protection agency, said searches are resuming this morning, and there will be an investigation in due course

The Bayesian sank after being hit by a 'black swan' waterspout on Monday at 5am (Pictured: A large waterspout on sea in Campina, Italy, on August 19)

A decision on whether to raise the luxury yacht to the surface is currently 'not on the agenda' but Italian Coastguard spokesman Vincenzo Zagarola said: 'It will be, but not now.'

But a salvage chief has argued the only way of finding out why the Bayesian sank is to lift it to the surface.

Nick Barke, head of salvage operations at Boats.co.uk, said that the 'only real way of knowing' why the yacht sank will be to lift it to the surface, but that would be 'expensive and complicated process', likely to involve a crane barge.

He said divers would attach straps to the boat before it is lifted upright and then hauled out of the water.

He predicted this would be 'time-consuming' as 'they have to do it in such a way that they don't damage anything too badly.'

Royal submarine captain Ryan Ramsey says those taking part in the recovery operation would be under 'huge amounts of psychological stress'.

'It's been exceptionally stressful for them both mentally and physically,' he told Sky News.

'If you take into account the pressures that they're operating under, those are considerable.

The superyacht (pictured) was docked off the coast of Porticello, near Palermo, when it was hit by an over-sea tornado, known as a waterspout

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'It's dark. It's a platform that they've never been inside before, and they're having to recover bodies. That's huge amounts of psychological stress for those for those divers.'

Italian prosecutors have opened an investigation into why the superyacht sank - described as 'unsinkable' by a CEO of a boat manufacturing.

Giovanni Costantino, founder and CEO of The italian Sea Group, which owns the Perini Navi that built the Bayesian, blamed human error for the disaster.

He told Corriere della Sera: 'The passengers reported something absurd, that the storm came unexpectedly, suddenly. That is not true. Everything was predictable.'

The Italian Sea Group has also dismissed speculation the enormous 264ft mast was to blame and says only a massive entry of water could have caused it to sink.

'The controversies about the mast are sterile controversies because the mast, according to those who have seen it, is intact,' they said.

'The retractable keel stabilises the ship, but even without the keel completely out the ship is stable and only a massive entry of water could have caused the sinking which did not happen in a minute as someone wrote.'

The ship's captain, James Cutfield, was reportedly quizzed by authorities for two hours as they began questioning all crew members.

The ship's captain, James Cutfield, 51, was reportedly quizzed by authorities for two hours as they began questioning all crew members

Mike Lynch was one of the UK's richest men, worth an estimated 852million

A frantic search got underway at the site of the shipwreck after the Bayesian sank

Speaking to New Zealand media, Mr Cutfield's brother Mark said his sibling was a 'very good sailor' with eight years of experience working abroad on luxury yachts

The captain of a yacht, the Sir Robert BP, who helped to rescue them, described how those aboard his vessel spotted the distress flare set off from a life raft.

Karsten Borner said his crew noticed the Bayesian had disappeared before a passenger spotted the flare.

He told Sky News: 'We couldn't see them any more and they disappeared from the radar, we were busy keeping our own ship sailing.

'We couldn't see the ship again so we were aware something was very wrong.'

He said it was only when the tender set out that they found the life raft.

Mr Borner continued: 'It turned out to be the life raft, a 12-person life raft with 15 people inside including one baby.

'They stepped over to our tender and we brought them back to our ship. There we took good care of them, gave them dry clothes, towels, blankets, tea and coffee and so on and took care of them.'

Tech tycoon and married father-of-two Mike Lynch is pictured here with his wife Angela

Mike Lynch (second left) is seen in the early days of his techology firm Autonomy in Cambridge

Mike Lynch, a married father of two daughters, was awarded an OBE in 2006 for services to enterprise

The boat trip was a celebration of Mr Lynch's acquittal in a fraud case in the US.

The businessman, who founded software giant Autonomy in 1996, was cleared in June of carrying out a massive fraud relating to its 11 billion US dollar (8.64 billion) sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

The Financial Times reported that Mr Bloomer appeared at trial as a defence witness for Mr Lynch, while media reports suggest the pair are close friends.

In a separate incident, Mr Lynch's co-defendant in his US fraud trial, Stephen Chamberlain, died after being hit by a car while out running in Cambridgeshire on Saturday.
Hillcrest Elementary could be one of the schools that could close due to the budget cuts in the San Francisco Unified School District. The next Board of Education will be responsible for resolving the fiscal crisis. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

Back-to-school season is upon us, and San Franciscos teachers are now welcoming back our citys 50,000 public school students to their classrooms. This year, back-to-school jitters are taking on a different form than usual, with heightened anxieties about school closures  perhaps a dozen or more of them  coming to the city.

As this unfortunate reality unfolds, many eyes will be on the Board of Education to see if it can steer the San Francisco Unified School District through this crisis with responsibility and care. The stakes have never been higher, and the boards actions will define the future of education in the city.

Since the 2022 recall election, the board has welcomed a new era of effective governance. Then-board President Jenny Lam stewarded training and financial management lessons for members. She also overhauled the boards meeting style. Long-winded, eye-roll-worthy speeches by commissioners gave way to shorter, focused discussions centered on the well-being of our students.

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As the board got back to work under Lam, who is now a commissioner, it adopted a five-year vision for the district and set ambitious goals for our students in literacy, math and career and college readiness. The board brought aboard a new superintendent, Matt Wayne. And maybe most importantly, it replaced an outdated early literacy program with one backed by research, brought advanced math back to middle school and approved a pilot that would get more students ready for accelerated middle school and high school math.

Despite these improvements, however, the district is still inching closer toward a budget crisis. The district failed to fully plan for the end of COVID relief dollars from the state and federal government, it continued budgeting based on overly optimistic enrollment and revenue projections and it avoided establishing a rainy-day reserve. Not surprisingly, the state Department of Education shifted the districts certification level from qualified to negative in June. It is now one level away from a state takeover.

A full state takeover would be a disaster for our kids and teachers. It would remove local control of our schools and shift decisions from one inefficient bureaucracy to another, potentially paralyzing the district for decades. Improvement processes that already feel too slow and broken would add even more layers of red tape.

How can the school board reverse this fate?

It starts with voters.

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In November, San Franciscans will have a chance to finish what the 2022 recall started by electing responsible, student-centered leaders. Those leaders will need to focus on just two things:

Approving only balanced budgets from this point forward: It sounds simple. The school board is responsible for approving a balanced budget each school year, including identifying sources of revenue for all increases in expenses. Yet it has not done that in recent years. By using outdated enrollment projections (schools receive funds from the state based on enrollment: more kids, more money) and adding new expenses without identified funding, the district has dug itself deeper into this hole, with a $400 million budget deficit to fix and no remaining one-time funding sources to help plug it.

If the school board does not demand a plan for achieving a balanced budget based on realistic expectations from the superintendent this school year, the state will take over San Franciscos public schools.

Demand progress reports toward student outcome goals at every meeting: The districts five-year vision, approved in 2022 by the post-recall school board, was bold, significant and celebrated by parents and teachers alike. It announced that by 2027, the district would increase third-grade literacy proficiency from 52% to 70%, eighth-grade math proficiency from 42% to 65%, and college and career readiness rates from 57.5% to 70%.

The problem, however, is that we still have no clear, tangible plan for making progress toward these goals.

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Our school boards job is not just to set a bold vision, but also to hold our superintendent accountable for making meaningful progress toward achieving that vision. Our school board must demand a compelling plan and meaningful progress from district leadership.

Four seats on the school board are up for a vote in November, only one incumbent is running, and the field of candidates is large.

Whoever wins in November just might have the most difficult job for a San Francisco Board of Education commissioner in modern history. They will receive a constant stream of emotional emails from families, educators, students and community members who are holding out hope for their school, their program and their job to remain open. Theyll be charged with holding leadership accountable for hard budget cuts, such as eliminating staffing positions and closing schools. They will be responsible for keeping the state Department of Education at bay. And they will have to make these hard budget decisions while still making progress toward our educational goals.

About Opinion Guest opinions in Open Forum and Insight are produced by writers with expertise, personal experience or original insights on a subject of interest to our readers. Their views do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Chronicle editorial board, which is committed to providing a diversity of ideas to our readership. Read more about our transparency and ethics policies

These challenges demand that the school board members we elect this November have one thing at their core: a focus on our citys kids, not politics. As the election nears, we ask city voters to pay attention to which candidates are focused on student outcomes and are taking the budget crisis seriously.

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A tourist has infuriated locals in Barcelona by thanking them for their 'very warm welcome'  while posing next to 'tourists go home' signs.

The young woman took pictures of herself standing by the graffiti which has been scrawled across the Spanish city this week.

It comes amid continued anti-tourism protests in Barcelona this summer with holidaymakers even sprayed with water guns by angry locals.

The woman, who has not shared her name, joked in a video on social media: 'Thanks Barcelona for very warm welcoming.'

The post went viral, garnering over 400,000 likes  but locals weren't happy, as has been reported by Luxury Travel Daily.

A tourist has infuriated locals in Barcelona by thanking them for their 'very warm welcome'  while posing next to 'tourists go home' signs

The young woman took pictures of herself standing by the graffiti which has been scrawled across the Spanish city this week

The woman, who has not shared her name, joked in a video on social media: 'Thanks Barcelona for very warm welcoming'

'As it should be,' said one viewer.

Another critic commented on the video made by the yoga teacher and tattoo artist from Ukraine: 'Go home.'

'It's not funny, because of disrespectful tourism we locals can no longer stay in our cities,' said another local.

One critic added: 'Prices of everything increase because of mass tourism, it's not hard to understand. Only Airbnb and restaurants are happy with mass tourism.'

'Bro, we can't live in our city because of the tourists,' said someone else.

Another viewer wrote: 'Not something to laugh at tbf. Touristy places are pretty much unlivable for locals.'

Someone else quipped: 'Laughing at gentrification and the fact that local people can no longer live in their care, how cute.'

'Correct we are overwhelmed by tourism,' another user insisted.

Someone else said: 'Go home.'

The woman took pictures of herself standing next to anti-tourism graffiti

Locals have become enraged after she captioned the video 'Thank you for the very warm welcoming'

However, other people defended the traveller.

One person pointed out: 'This is very rude. Spanish travel anywhere and stay at Airbnbs also. If there is a housing problem it's the job of the government to fix it and not of tourists.'

'Barcelona is funny, lives on tourism but hates tourists,' said another user.

Someone else commented: 'Good campaign, one less place to visit.'

Mass tourism protesters squirted water at tourists in the city earlier this summer during a large-scale demonstration.

And the mayor of Barcelona has pledged to eliminate short-term tourist lets in the city within five years due to the reported issues.

However, the anti-tourism movement now appears to have moved to Costa Blanca, with a 'Tourists go home' banner seen for the first time in a resort popular with Brits.

Locals in Majorca have also started a movement to 'reclaim the beaches' from tourists with demonstrations taking place during weekends.

Demonstrators march shouting slogans against the Formula 1 Barcelona Fan Festival in downtown Barcelona, last week

A banner reading 'No tourist flats' hangs from a balcony to protest against holiday rental apartments for tourists in Barcelona's neighborhood of Barceloneta

A family walk past anti-tourism graffiti in Barcelona
This is the moment Ukrainian troops destroyed a pontoon bridge in the Kursk region with a HIMARS strike, which could leave thousands of Russian troops stranded.

The pontoon crossing in the border region was built by Putin's army after Ukrainian forces destroyed at least three permanent bridges over western Russia's Seim River in recent attacks.

Video footage showed drones chasing down trucks and blowing them up. Drones can also be seen crashing into stationary military vehicles, while aerial footage showed the pontoon bridge being decimated.

The footage came as Vladimir Putin accused Ukraine of trying to strike a nuclear power plant in Kursk, where it is carrying out the first foreign invasion of Russia since the Second World War.

Ukraine has not yet commented on the claims of the alleged strike, which Putin did not provide evidence for when relaying them to senior Kremlin officials today.

Alexei Smirnov, acting governor of the Kursk region, told Putin at the same meeting that the situation at the Kursk nuclear power station was stable.

Dramatic footage showed Ukrainian troops striking a pontoon bridge in the Kursk region

Vladimir Putin (pictured) accused Ukrainian troops of targeting a nuclear power plant

Putin said Ukraine tried to strike Kursk Nuclear Power plant (pictured)

The Kursk plant is one of Russia's top nuclear power stations. It supplies about half of the electricity used in the Black Earth region of southern Russia.

The plant has four Soviet graphite-moderated RBMK-1000 reactors - the same design as those at the Chernobyl nuclear plant which in 1986, when part of the Soviet Union, became the scene of the world's worst nuclear disaster.

There are an estimated 2-3,000 Russian troops in the region who are slowly being surrounded by Ukraine.

The daring Ukrainian foray into the Kursk region has rattled the Kremlin, showing Russia's vulnerability and shattered President Vladimir Putin's efforts to pretend that the country has been largely unaffected by the invasion.

Authorities in Kursk began to put up concrete shelters at bus stops and other locations around the city to protect it from shelling and plan similar work in Zheleznogorsk and Kurchatov, where the Kursk nuclear power plant is located, the region's acting Gov. Alexei Smirnov said on his Telegram channel.

Putin said in a video call with officials that he has ordered the creation of self-defense units in Russian regions bordering Ukraine.

Footage showed the bridge being blown up by strikes

Drones were seen smashing into military vehicles

There are reported 2-3,000 troops in the area that was attacked

It is believed Ukraine used a HIMARS missile to strike the pontoon bridge

Smirnov reported to Putin that over 133,000 people have left areas affected by the fighting in the Kursk region, while more than 19,000 have stayed.

The governor of Bryansk, another Russian region bordering Ukraine, said authorities in the region have conducted training for emergency evacuation from border areas in case it is needed.

But Ukraine's capture of Russian territory comes as Ukraine continues to lose ground in eastern Ukraine.

The Russian Defense Ministry said Thursday that its military has claimed control of the village of Mezhove in Donetsk, part of the industrial Donbas region which Moscow seeks to take entirely.

Ukraine's push into Russia marks the first capture of Russian territory since World War II.
Jack Daniel's has become the latest all-American brand to scrap its diversity efforts in the face of angry conservative customers and a potential damaging boycott.

The whiskey maker, Brown-Forman, wrote to employees on Wednesday saying it was reversing course on its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) schemes.

The Kentucky-based firm said it would stop linking executive pay to DEI progress and exit an annual ranking of LGBTQ-friendly firms.

It also vowed to cut its diversity rules for suppliers and end woke corporate training sessions.

That's according to a copy of the letter shared on X by anti-DEI activist Robby Starbuck and confirmed by Brown-Forman.

Jack Daniel's, part of Brown-Forman, says the landscape for DEI efforts has changed

Jack Daniel's was just the latest target of Nashville-based conservative influencer Robby Starbuck

Jack Daniel's spokeswoman Elizabeth Conway told The Mail that the company had decided to 'evolve our diversity and inclusion strategy.'

As of Thursday, the $6.5 billion firm's webpage on 'Diversity & Inclusion' appeared to have been taken down.

The decision follows similar moves in recent weeks from Harley-Davidson, Tractor Supply, and John Deere, which were all targeted by Starbuck.

Corporate America rolled out DEI schemes to help reverse historic injustices amid the Black Lives Matter protests of 2020, but they've increasingly stirred divisions and fallen out of favor.

Advocates of DEI say it helps get more women and minorities into jobs and colleges, but critics say it too often denies opportunities to straight, white men, even when they're better candidates.

Though polls show broad public support for DEI, voters also object to firms getting too involved in politics.

Conway acknowledged that the landscape had changed since her company launched DEI efforts in 2019.

'The world has evolved, our business has changed, and the legal and external landscape has shifted dramatically, particularly within the United States,' she told The Mail.

'With these new dynamics at play, Brown-Forman must adjust its work to ensure it continues to drive our business results while appropriately recognizing the current environment in which we find ourselves.'

According to the letter, bourbon executives will no longer get bonuses linked to progress on DEI.

The firm's latest annual report shows that, while most executive pay was tied to sales growth, 10 percent of short-term pay was linked to accomplishing progress on diversity.

Starbuck, 35, a Cuban-American filmmaker who was also a 2022 Republican House candidate for Tennessee, celebrated the reversal on social media.

He said he was 'winning' and bringing 'sanity back to corporate America.'

Unlike his previous campaigns, Brown-Forman appeared to know that Starbuck was going to launch a social media assault on the whiskey maker, and took preemptive action.

Employees labels bottles of Woodford Reserve bourbon whiskey at a distillery in Versailles, Kentucky, a Brown-Forman site.

Starbuck posted victoriously about getting another major company to change course on DEI

Starbuck included pages from the whiskey maker's letter to staff about the DEI reversal

The celebrated Jack Daniel's Distillery in Lynchburg, Tennessee, in 2021

'They must have been tipped off by us going through employee LinkedIn pages,' Starbuck posted.

'We're now forcing multi-billion dollar organizations to change their policies without even posting, just from fear they have of being the next company that we expose.'

He gave the distiller 'credit for not waiting for their brand to be destroyed' and urged other companies to follow suit.

'Save me time and make these changes now before we get to you,' he warned.

Among his future targets, Starbuck is eyeing the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), an advocacy group that ranks firms based on benefits for LGBTQ staff.

His earlier targets have already changed course after his anti-DEI campaigns.

Motorcycle-maker Harley-Davidson on Monday said that it no longer has minority-owned supplier spending goals.

It will also drop socially-motivated training for employees and make other changes to back away from diversity programs.

The company stopped operating a corporate DEI function in April, it said in a statement posted to social media platform X. Harley will also drop out of the HRC program.

Tractor maker John Deere and farming retailer Tractor Supply scrapped their DEI programs after being blacklisted by Starbuck earlier this year.

Deere last month said it will no longer participate in 'cultural awareness parades' and its business resource groups will focus 'exclusively' on professional development, networking, mentoring and supporting talent recruitment.

Advocates of DEI schemes say they bring more black, brown, female, and queer talent into offices and colleges and raise morale across the board.

But critics say they're a 'woke' virtue-signaling exercise that fosters backlash discrimination against straight, white men.
Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan are being investigated amid claims a 17-year-old girl was trafficked to Britain and forced to 'perform sexual acts in order to produce pornographic material'.

Romanian prosecutors are calling for the controversial influencer and his brother to be remanded in custody as they investigate the fresh allegations.

The former kickboxers were detained last night after a raid on Tate's home in the early hours of Wednesday morning in which prosecutors seized 16 of the pair's luxury cars and stacks of cash.

The new investigation involves a total of 35 alleged victims, including a woman who was just 15 at the time. The alleged victims were all said to have been in an 'obvious state of vulnerability'.

Romania 's agency against organised crime, DIICOT, said in a statement that six people had been detained in total, including both Romanians and foreigners.

The brothers were detained last night, and this afternoon two men appeared in court in Bucharest

Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan are escorted outside the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT), in Bucharest, Romania

In raids on Tate's property yesterday, DIICOT carried out 'insurance seizures' of 16 luxury cars and a motorbike

Tate posted on X this morning after being detained by Romanian police last night

Police allege one of the defendants, who they said was a foreign citizen but did not name, had 'sexual relations' with a 15-year-old from December 2020.

The same defendant is also accused of forcing a 17-year-old to perform sexual acts, before pornographic material was sent out on various websites.

The man is alleged to have kept all the $1.5 million (1.1m) profit from the videos.

The alleged victim is said to have been 'misled' and housed in several locations across both Romania and the UK.

According to DIICOT, two of the accused used the 'loverboy' method, which involves convincing victims that they are in a romantic relationship, to force 34 victims into making pornography which they then sold online for proceeds of over $2.8 million and 887,000 tokens.

Two of the defendants are accused of buying luxury cars 'in the names of close people' to conceal that they were profiting from human trafficking, prosecutors allege.

'The Tate brothers have been issued a proposal for 30 days preventative arrest by the Romanian DIICOT,' Tate's representative said in a statement, adding that a hearing to decide on the detention is being held today.

The representative did not address the fresh allegations against Tate in the statement and did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Tate brothers are currently awaiting trial on separate charges, for human trafficking and rape in Andrew Tate's case, which they strongly deny.

A post on Tate's account on social media platform X this morning read: 'All they try to do is damage my name with complete bullshit', without specifying who was being referred to.

Andrew Tate talks to media as he is led away for questioning after a police raid on his residence yesterday

His brother Tristan (pictured) was led out of the residence, which is on the outskirts of Bucharest, by cops shortly after

A self-described misogynist, social media influencer Tate has gained millions of fans by promoting an ultra-masculine lifestyle that critics say denigrates women.

The brothers were detained in 2022 in Bucharest and spent three months in detention before being released under judicial supervision to await trial.

They also face rape and assault allegations in separate cases in Britain, where they have also been accused of tax evasion.

Announcing the latest charges, DIICOT said in a statement that it had ordered the detention of six people for crimes including forming an organised criminal group, human trafficking, trafficking of minors, sexual intercourse with a minor and money laundering.

Romanian police said that a motorbike had been seized from Tate's property near Bucharest

DIICOT said it carried out 'insurance seizures' of 16 luxury cars and a motorbike

It said that it had requested that three of the detained defendants remain in custody while another one be put under house arrest.

In raids on Tate's property yesterday, DIICOT carried out 'insurance seizures' of 16 luxury cars and a motorbike.

It added that sums of approximately 26,000 euros, 81,000 lei, 5,800 and $6,400, two luxury watches, laptops, data storage units, documents and other evidence were also identified and seized.
The husband of a 28-year-old Virginia mother missing for nearly three weeks was handcuffed and taken away by police late Thursday morning just days after pleading for her safe return.

Mamta Kafle Bhatt, a pediatric nurse, was last seen on August 31.

The young mother has not been seen since - missing her daughter's first birthday, and sending shockwaves through the community.

In a televised appeal for her safe return days ago, her husband Naresh Bhatt begged her to come home.

But today, he was walked out of the family's idyllic suburban home in handcuffs in a shocking twist.

Now, DailyMail.com can reveal Bhatt had been appealing to other local mothers on social media.

She complained that he was not helping her care for their daughter.

Mamta Kafle Bhatt, a young mother from Virginia, has been missing for three weeks

Mamta's husband, Naresh Bhatt was named a person of interest in the case, and had not been cooperating with the investigation, police said. Today, he was marched out of their home in handcuffs

After Bhatt's arrest, one of the officers carried the child out of the home.

In February, Mamta posted in the Facebook group 'Separated, Divorced, Single Moms of Virginia, Maryland and DC' that she has a 6-month-old baby and in the process of a separation.

'I work 2 days a week and my husband is not helping to take care of baby. He is saying, that if I leave baby with him he will send child to custody. Is it possible? I need help for child care, she said,

'I need help from social worker and need some advice.'

Robin Kuppusamy, the missing mom's friend, shared in a post on August 12 expressing her concerns for her friend.

'Multiple women and myself have been talking to her on our separation divorce group on Facebook to find her help since she was leaving her spouse until she dropped off the radar,' Kuppusamy wrote.

Bhatt's shock arrest comes days after he made an emotional TV appeal for his wife's safe return

She added, 'she would have never left her daughter behind.'

Mamta also shared that her and her husband were still living together but that she no longer has any money. She wrote, in part, 'I don't have money now too he withdraw all money from joint account'

Mamta, a pediatric nurse did not show up to work on August 2, a co-worker alerted police to conduct a welfare check.

At the time, Bhatt told police his wife was not missing but on August 5 - six days after her disappearance - he filed a missing person's report.

He told police he did not do it sooner as he was following their instructions.

The couple in front of their Virginia home when Mamta was expecting

Officers are seen searching the contents of the home and are in the back of he house

Social media posts reveal Mamta had pleaded for help from other mothers in the area

She asked one of the women in the post that she doesn't have money as he withdrew it all from a joint account

The City of Manassas Park Chief of Police Mario Lugo said at a press conference on Wednesday they have a few people of interest in the case including, Bhatt. He added that he is 'not cooperating with them in their investigation.'

Earlier in the day, a search warrant was executed at the family home. During the presser, Lugo confirmed that Mamta's husband was not cooperating with the investigation,' local Fox5 DC reported.

Matma, who is of Napalese descent, has no family living in the United States, friends said.

Since she went missing, the police chief said he and his team have been actively searching for the young mother, and following up on every lead.

So, far he said there have been more than 100 leads, and they have executed more than 10 search warrants. Forensics is involved as well.

He explained that detectives have also been in touch with the Nepalese community.

On August 14, Bhatt was present during an unplanned press conference with community leaders and concerned neighbors held outside of the police department.

At the time, he expressed gratitude to the community for their help. He said, 'I need your help in a positive way. Thank you for doing what you are doing, keep doing what you are doing during this difficult time.

He also told the news outlet that his wife's disappearance has taken a toll on him and his 11-month-old daughter.

'I'm really tired. Tired, exhausted  physically, mentally, economically. I'm suffering,' he told the news outlet. 'I'm suffering a lot.'

That same day, nearly a dozen volunteers searched the Blooms Park Trail, where Matma often went to with her baby daughter.

Her husband was reported to have not have participated.

Sammy Choudhary, a friend and neighbor of the missing woman, who helped organize the search grew emotional while speaking to Fox5 DC.

'If anything happened to her. I want her to get justice. I dont think anybody should go through this. There is a person missing.'
Horrifying footage shows the moment flames engulfed a dancer at a busy restaurant near Bogota, Colombia, sending the panicked woman running for help.

The victim, Laura Villamil, was with several dancers carrying lit torches at the packed Andres Carnes de Res restaurant Saturday in Chia, Cundinamarca, six miles north of Bogota.

That's when the 28-year-old's skirt suddenly caught fire, surrounding the frantic performer in flames as shocked witnesses looked on.

Laura ran to another part of the restaurant, where an employee used an outfit and a blanket to smother the flames.

She suffered burns to 80 percent of her body and is in critical condition, her brother, Santiago Villamil, told Noticias Caracol.

Laura Villamil suffered burns to 80 percent of her body after her skirt caught fire while she was performing at a restaurant near Bogota, Colombia

The 28-year-old's skirt suddenly caught fire, surrounding her in flames as shocked witnesses look on

Laura was rushed to a local medical facility and then transferred to the Santa Fe Foundation clinic in Bogota, where she is fighting for her life, her brother said.

'She has a tracheostomy and is on mechanical ventilation. Doctors have treated her wounds and done everything necessary,' Santiago Villamil said.

'The prognosis is guarded and any improvement is very minimal. We are waiting to see how she evolves after the procedures.'

On Monday, Laura's condition worsened to the point where the family thought she was going to die.

'It's a miracle that she's alive. We had an episode three days ago where her vital signs dropped and she was practically dead,' her brother said.

She suffered burns to 80 percent of her body and is in critical condition, her brother said

Laura Villamil suffered first and second degree burns, according to her brother. Most of her burns were to her genitals and back

Villamil, who is also an actress, has reportedly been working for the restaurant for five years.

In a statement, Andres Carnes de Res expressed support for Laura and her family while addressing the restaurant's response to the incident.

'From the first moment this unfortunate event occurred, all established safety and care protocols were immediately and effectively activated, which allowed her to be transferred to a first-class medical center as quickly as possible,' the restaurant said.

'The company's management has been present at the hospital, accompanying the employee's family, monitoring her medical progress, and reiterating its commitment to support.'

Villamil has worked at the restaurant for five years

The mayor of the Colombian city of Chia said an initial report found that the fire was the result of 'an occupational risk'

Andres Carnes de Res said that its fire show had been suspended while the restaurant reviews the safety conditions.

Chia Mayor Leonardo Donoso said in a statement that results of an initial inspection indicate that the accident was the result of 'an occupational risk' and that the worker's compensation board 'will be responsible for indicating what omissions were made.'

'Just as it was an artist, which should not have happened, it could have happened with the kitchen staff, in the parking lot,' Donoso said. 'The question is whether this type of activity with fire, like the one that triggered the event, should have been performed.

'Risk management personnel and a multidisciplinary team carried out the respective checks, reviewing fire extinguishers, emergency exits, emergency plans, evacuation lines and everything complies with this, even their care brigade and a contract with a group that provides care in the event of a medical emergency,' the mayor said.
Elon Musk's electric vehicle company Tesla felled an estimated half a million trees while developing a gigafactory near Berlin, new satellite analysis has revealed.

Analysis from environmental intelligence firm Kayrros suggests that 329 hectares (813 acres) of dense woodland from the site southeast of Berlin were felled between March 2020 and May 2023. This is the equivalent to around 500,000 trees.

The amount of CO2 that trees absorb varies from species to species, but a mature tree will, on average, absorb around 48lbs (22kg) of carbon every year, meaning the lost trees were equivalent to 13,000 tonnes of CO2, according to Kayrros chief analyst Antoine Halff.

Halff said: 'The Tesla factory in Germany has led to quite a bit of cutting down of trees. Of course, it has to be put in perspective, against the benefit of replacing internal combustion engine cars with electric vehicles.'

Tesla boasts of its green credentials on its website, claiming that all the electricity used at the Berlin Gigafactory, which opened in 2022 after starting work in 2020, was 'matched with renewables in 2023.'

Elon Musk's (pictured) electric vehicle company Tesla felled an estimated half a million trees while developing a gigafactory near Berlin

Protesters have been trying to break into the Gigafactory for months (pictured)

The Gigafactory is Tesla's only European manufacturing hub

 Slide me  Around half a million trees are estimated to have been chopped down

The Berlin Gigafactory has been the site of regular protests since May, following the news that an expansion to the already-controversial manufacturing plant was being planned.

Environmental activists have been occupying tree houses in a nearby camp, and have tried on several occasions to storm the site.

One particularly fired-up group managed to shut down production for several days in March after setting fire to an electricity pylon.

Musk himself has criticised local police for not doing enough to combat the actions of 'leftwing protesters.'

Musk himself has criticised local police for not doing enough to combat the actions of 'leftwing protesters'

Tesla boasts its green credentials on its website

A protester is seen bleeding as police officers restrain environmental activists during a protest against Tesla's plans to extend its Gigafactory plant, in Gruenheide, near Berlin, Germany, 10 May 2024

Environmental activists carry a banner as they gather during a protest against Tesla's plans to extend its Gigafactory plant, in Gruenheide, near Berlin, Germany, 10 May 2024

Halff said that the amount of CO2 lost by cutting down the trees, the annual amount emitted by 2,800 internal combustion cars, was negligible compared to the carbon dioxide saved by Tesla cars.

'That's a fraction of the number of the electric cars that Tesla produces and sells every quarter,' he said. 'You always have trade-offs, so you need to be aware of what the terms of the trade-off are.'

But the Berlin Gigafactory, Tesla's only manufacturing hub in Europe, has come under fire for being the alleged source of many other environmental problems.

Earlier this year, German media reported that local water officials sternly warned the Gigafactory's bosses that the wastewater the company releases into the nearby river Spree had phosphorus and nitrogen levels six times higher than permitted.

Tesla has fought back against the allegations, with the listed company's VP of public policy and business development, Rohan Patel, claiming that Tesla recycles 'up to 100%' of its industrial water, and that Tesla Gigafactories use 33% less water per vehicle than the industry average.
The boss of the firm that built the Bayesian has claimed the crew had 16 minutes to warn passengers as the superyacht 'dragged its anchor' before sinking - as a live tracker showed a nearby boat following a similar course.

Giovanni Costantino has also said it was virtually unsinkable and questioned why it was not safely inside the harbour during the violent storm.

The superyacht capsized and sank after being struck by an over-sea tornado known as a waterspout off Sicily at around 3am GMT on Monday. Six bodies have been recovered, with Mr Lynch's 18-year-old daughter, Hannah, still missing.

A witness said they saw the vessel go down in 60 seconds, pointing to a sudden, catastrophic event that may have been difficult for the crew to foresee or respond to.

But Mr Costantino, CEO of Italian Sea Group - which owns the company that built the ship - insisted it took 16 minutes from the moment the boat was caught by the wind and began dragging its anchor before it finally sank, which should have given the crew enough time to warn passengers.

He told the FT: 'The torture lasted 16 minutes. It went down, not in one minute as some scientists have said. It went down in 16 minutes. You can see it from the charts, from the AIS [Automatic Identification System] tracking chart.'

AIS data from the website Marine Traffic analysed by MailOnline verifies Mr Costantino's timings, although it is not currently possible to confirm his account of what happened during this period.

The chart also shows a second boat, Sir Robert Baden Powell, following a similar course to the Bayesian at the same time. The vessel remained afloat during the storm and went on to help rescue survivors.

Its captain, a Dutch sailor called Karst Borner, told an Italian broadcaster: 'The weather forecast included thunderstorms and that can sometimes be strange in the Mediterranean. We were somewhat prepared for it.'

He said the waterspout was 'very strong and intense', and added: 'We had a hard time keeping the ship in place with the engine and anchor. The yacht was behind us. We looked every now and then to see where they were. At one point, it disappeared.'

It comes as:

AIS data from the website Marine Traffic shows the course taken by the Bayesian and a second vessel, the Sir Robert Baden Powell at 3.50am

The Sir Robert Baden Powell remained afloat during the storm and went on to help rescue survivors as seen at 4.06am

Giovanni Costantino, CEO of Italian Sea Group bought the Bayesian's constructors Perini Navi two years ago, has blamed 'human error' for the superyacht tragedy

The Bayesian (pictured in an undated handout photo) went down in a matter of minutes after being struck by the tornado while anchored off the coast at Porticello, near Palermo Sicily

Mr Constantino told Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera there were a long list of human errors leading up to the tragedy, including hatches being left open and the ship's keel not being fully lowered.

He claimed the disaster was avoidable, and said that the Bayesian was one of the safest boats in the world and virtually unsinkable.

'Ask yourself - why were no fishermen from Porticello out that night? A fisherman reads the weather conditions and a ship doesn't?', he added.

'The storm was in all the weather charts. It couldn't have been ignored.'

Mr Costantino said strong winds had pushed the boat for four minutes in what he called drifting. He claimed the boat then rotated and had begun taking on water before it sank.

From video images that have been published, he said it was clear the boat had a blackout which had been caused by a surge of water inside the yacht, caused, by the aft hatch being left open.

It tilted 90 degrees for only one reason: because the water kept coming in, he said.

From the time it started coming into the time it went down was sixteen minutes. Those who say it disappeared in a few seconds are speaking rubbish, Mr Constantino said.

He said that the crew should have been on a state of alert and closed all the doors and portholes and gathered all guests on deck in preparation for an emergency evacuation.

One of Sicilys top ship surveyors Rino Casilli added that for the superyacht to have sunk so quickly, there must have been a series of major mistakes.

For that amount of water to have flooded in, it couldnt have been one single error it must have been many. Perhaps a large compartment was left open for a long time, Mr Casilli told the BBC.

We had a weather warning beforehand, so there should have been two crew taking turns on overnight watch, and it should have been moored in the harbour. The surveyor, who has been navigating the waters where the Bayesian went down for more than 30 years, said that the vessel should not have been taken down by the freak tornado.

Ive been in a waterspout myself while in a much smaller, older wooden boat, and we got through it fine.

And I saw other boats next to me at the time whose masts werent damaged by it. You need to be on alert but it passes quickly. I just dont understand.

A fisherman in Porticello has also said we all knew a storm was coming and that during that night it was better the keep the boats inside the port.

Earlier a spokesman for the company told MailOnline 'procedures were not followed' on the luxury vessel and the sinking was down to 'portholes being left open despite bad weather being forecast hours earlier'.

A spokesperson said: 'The Bayesian was built to a very high standards and it would not have sunk if proper procedures had been followed by the crew.

'A storm had been forecast earlier, no fishing boats went out and yet the portholes were not shut, the yacht sank because it was engulfed by a massive amount of water through open portholes.

'The yacht was built to withstand whatever the conditions were. The mast has nothing to do with what happened, it was built that way when it was launched and it had a refit in 2020 in Spain, the yacht sank because procedures in bad weather were not followed.'

The Bayesian was 56m long, had a 74m mast and was built in 2008 with David Hutchinson, captain of its sister ship Rosehearty, telling Boat International 'she was bulletproof'.

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The Bayesian was 56m long, had a 74m mast and was built in 2008 with David Hutchinson, captain of its sister ship Rosehearty, telling Boat International 'she was bulletproof

The ship's captain, James Cutfield, 51, was reportedly quizzed by authorities for two hours as they began questioning all crew members

Mike Lynch is among the five bodies that have so far been recovered from the wreck.

His 18-year-old daughter Hannah is still missing with the coastguard working on the theory she is still inside the vessel.

Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judith, Mr Lynch's lawyer Christopher Morvillo, and his wife Neda have also been identified.

It brings the total number of confirmed deaths to six after the body of chef Recaldo Thomas was discovered on the day of the sinking.

Nick Barke, head of salvage operations at Boats.co.uk, today said that the 'only real way of knowing' why the yacht sank will be to lift it to the surface, but that would be 'expensive and complicated process', likely to involve a crane barge.

He said divers would attach straps to the boat before it is lifted upright and then hauled out of the water.

He predicted this would be 'time-consuming' as 'they have to do it in such a way that they don't damage anything too badly.'

But Vincenzo Zagarola, of the Italian Coastguard, said raising the superyacht is not a 'topic on the agenda', but added: 'It will be, but not now.'

This morning the Italian Coastguard confirmed the final person yet to be found was a woman.

The fire rescue service said it would 'need a crystal ball' to know when they would find 'the next body' as dive teams can take up to 24 hours just to move one meter due to the difficulty of moving around inside the wreckage.

A source close to the operation said 59-year-old Mr Lynch's body was brought to shore this morning.

A fire service boat with flashing blue lights returned this morning with a blue body bag to Porticello at just after 8.45am local time.

The Bayesian sank after being hit by a 'black swan' waterspout on Monday at 5am (Pictured: A large waterspout on sea in Campina, Italy, on August 19)

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, 59, is said to be among the five bodies recovered from the wreck of the 30 million superyacht

Brent Hoberman, a friend of Mr Lynch's for 28 years, says his death is 'unbelievably tragic' and his friends and family had been 'hoping for a miracle'.

He told Sky News: 'We knew it was unlikely but you still hold out hope.

'It's just so unbelievably tragic for him to go through what he went through over the last 12 years, defending his name and not really living a full life, to now for his death to be confirmed is obviously incredibly sad.'

He said he hoped close friends were rallying around My Lynch's wife Angela Bacares - who survived the tragedy - to give her 'courage and strength'.

Search teams made the tragic discoveries of the other four bodies yesterday while scouring through the ruins of luxury sailboat Bayesian, which is resting on the seabed at a depth of 164ft.

The fifth body was discovered late last night, but dive teams were unable to bring it to shore before night fell.

Luca Cari, spokesperson for the fire rescue service, told the Associated Press 'we would need a crystal ball to know when we'll be able to find the next body'.

'It's very difficult to move inside the wreckage. Moving just one meter can take up to 24 hours,' Cari said.

The Royal Academy of Engineering paid tribute to its 'mentor, donor and former council member' Mr Lynch following his death, while technology industry group TechUK called him a 'hugely significant and pioneering figure'.

Christopher Morvillo and his wife Neda (top image), Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer (bottom left), and his wife Judith (bottom right) have also been identified

It brings the total number of confirmed deaths to six after the body of Recaldo Thomas (pictured) was discovered on the day of the sinking

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Mr Lynch was also a member of the Create The Change fundraising board, set up by Cancer Research UK and which helped fund the building of the Francis Crick Institute.

Its chairman Lord John Browne said: 'Mike Lynch should be remembered as the person who catalysed a breed of deep tech entrepreneurs in the UK.

'His ideas and his personal vision were a powerful contribution to science and technology in both Britain and globally.

'I send my condolences to those close to him. We have lost a human being of great ability.'

Mr Bloomer was previously an honorary treasurer at NSPCC.

Today, the children's charity's chairman Neil Berkett paid tribute to the 70-year-old and his wife Judy.

'We remember Jonathan from his time with us as a very kind individual with a great sense of humour and Judy as formidable and passionate,' he said.

'We are so grateful for everything they did for children and the NSPCC and our thoughts are with their family, friends and colleagues at this desperately sad time.'
A pair of identical twins today discovered they had yet another thing in common after they got exactly the same average grades in their GCSE results. as scores fell for the third year in a row as pandemic exam measures ended in all regions of the UK.

Marveille Cuanico and Armaine Cuanico, both 16, today celebrated as they found out the scored exactly the same average grades.

'We're still twinning, even in GCSEs!' Armaine said.

The twins, who attended St Anne's Catholic School in Southampton, Hampshire, both scored an average grade of eight in their GCSEs.

And their 'twinning' is set to continue as their impressive grades means they will both head to prestigious college Peter Symonds in Winchester, where the likes of Ben Ainslie and Alexa Chung studied.

'I'm so happy, I thought I did so badly,' said Marveille, who didn't think she was going to get the Maths grade she needed to get into the college.

Marveille Cuanico (right) and Armaine Cuanico (left), both 16, today celebrated as they found out the scored exactly the same average grades

Hundreds of thousands of pupils in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are receiving grades to help them progress to sixth form, college or training

Pupils at Ark Pioneer in Barnet, north London, receiving their GCSE results this morning

The twins, who attended St Anne's Catholic School in Southampton, Hampshire, both scored an average grade of eight in their GCSEs

It came as hundreds of thousands of teenagers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland opened their GCSE exam results in a year when grades were due to be restored to 2019 levels in all three nations.

More than a fifth (21.8 percent) of UK GCSE entries were awarded the top grades - at least a 7 or an A grade - this year, down 0.2 percentage points on last year.

This is higher than the equivalent figure for 2019 - before the pandemic disrupted schooling - of 20.8 percent. Most of the students receiving results today were in year 7 at the start of the pandemic.

This summer's exams saw a record number of GCSE grades awarded, an increase on 2023 of 4.8 percent, or more than 6.1 million - compared with a 4.6 percent increase in the number of 16-year-olds.

Results fell over all for the third time in three years, an expected trend following the assistance given to GCSE students during the pandemic.

On what it was like to do the exams in the same year as each other, Marveille said: 'When we're revising we get really stressed at each other, but at the same time we encourage each other to do well and to motivate each other.'

Armaine added: 'At the same time it was a bit competitive.'

'After every mock, we would always compare,' Marveille agreed.

A-LEVELS: Nicola (left) and Victoria Tsang, 17, both achieved A* grades in Economics and A grades in Maths and Physics

GCSES: Two years ago Nicola and Victoria, then 15, achieved the same GCSE results too

A GCSE student celebrates achieving top grades in her exams by posing with a balloon

Ukrainian teenager Oles Kuzomko with his sister Yaryna and mother Mila, after they escaped their war-torn home to live in the UK, as he receives his GCSE results

A student reacts after opening their GCSE results at the City of London Academy in Southwark, London

After weeks of waiting for their long-anticipated grades, many students were relieved to finally open their envelopes

The twins got different grades in their subjects, but the average was the same so neither twin did better or worse than the other.

Armaine said: 'We got good grades, so I'm happy.'

Armaine got a nine in religious studies and sevens in geography and maths. She got eights in media studies, physical education, English language and English literature. She got 88 in combined science.

Marveille got eights in history, physical education, English language, English literature and religious studies. She got a seven in maths and 98 in combined science. She also got D2 in health and social care.

At Peter Symonds College, Hampshire, Armaine will study film, biology and sociology at A Level, and Marveille is going to do chemistry, psychology, law and biology.

Marveille intends to study medicine at university, while Armaine isn't sure of her future plans yet.

St Anne's head teacher Julian Waterfield said: 'We are absolutely delighted to see so many smiling faces.

Girls at Ark Pioneer Academy in Barnet, north London, celebrate their GCSE results on Thursday

Stormont Education Minister Paul Givan at Dromore High School in Co Down with students who have received their GCSE results

A pupil at Brighton College was emotional after she received her results, and is supported by her parents

Students at Nottingham High School receive their GCSE results early this morning

'It's a testament to five years of amazing hard work by our young people and the brilliant supportive families - 42 percent of our single GCSE grades were at grade seven or above and we look forward to seeing as many of those young people as possible who want to carry on their journey with us in our sixth form tomorrow from 10am.'

The twins are not the first to complete the remarkable feat - last week on A-Level results day, another set of identical sisters found out they had received the exact same A-Level grades, after doing the same at GCSEs in 2022.

Nicola and Victoria Tsang, 17, both achieved A* grades in Economics and A grades in Maths and Physics, while they both also earned an A* in the EPQ - a research project similar to a mini dissertation.

It comes two summers after the pair, who attend Benenden School in Kent, recorded the same grades in the same subjects at GCSE.

Victoria, the older sibling by one minute, said: 'I was saying yesterday what happens if we get the same results again and we both said that won't happen!

'We've had different grades in our mocks in the run-up to the exams so I can't believe it's happened again.'

All eyes will be on Marveille and Armaine in 2026 to see if they can replicate the same remarkable feat.
A great-grandfather has today achieved a GCSE in English - 59 years after he left school.

Danny Davey, 73, of Ipswich in Suffolk, left school at the age of 14 and had never written until he joined Suffolk New College last September.

The former roofer swotted up achieving a grade six that left the pensioner feeling 'emotional'.

The father-of-four, who also has 10 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren, said: 'I came to Suffolk New College to learn the rules of writing.

'On seeing my GCSE result, I generally felt emotional. I'm amazed.'

Danny Davey, 73, of Ipswich in Suffolk, has achieved a GCSE in English - 59 years after he left school

Suffolk New College principal Alan Pease congratulates the great-grandfather who admitted feeling 'emotional' when he saw his exam result

Earlier this year the pensioner won a writing competition organised by the further education institution.

'I never wrote until I started here in September last year,' said Mr Davey.

'It's 59 years since I went to school.

'Growing up, I went to about 15 different schools, left school at 14, got a holiday job and never went back (to school).

'I've always wanted to learn and improve myself. You should never stop learning - personal development is everyone's responsibility.'

He said his message to other people considering returning to education in retirement is that 'everyone needs a purpose - and there is nothing better than going back to learning'.

He added: 'If I could give my 14-year-old self some advice it would be go back to school.'

Mr Davey previously sat GCSE maths at the college, achieving a C grade in 2016.

Mr Davey with his wife Cheryll at Suffolk New College. The former roofer said he had never written before until he joined the college

In 2002 sprightly Derek Skipper, from Orwell, Cambridge, became the oldest person in Britain to sit a GCSE exam at the age of 92.

The former RAF radar engineer achieved a grade five in Maths having prepared for the exam by learning over Zoom and YouTube tutorials.

'Other people try crosswords and that doesn't turn me on very much,' he said.

'So I thought I'd try to have a go and improve my mind. People did tell me I was a bit daft.'
Bob Egelko has been a reporter since June 1970. He spent 30 years with the Associated Press, covering news, politics and occasionally sports in Los Angeles, San Diego and Sacramento, and legal affairs in San Francisco from 1984 onward. He worked for the San Francisco Examiner for five months in 2000, then joined The Chronicle in November 2000.

His beat includes state and federal courts in California, the Supreme Court and the State Bar. He has a law degree from McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento and is a member of the bar. Coverage has included the passage of Proposition 13 in 1978, the appointment of Rose Bird to the state Supreme Court and her removal by the voters, the death penalty in California and the battles over gay rights and same-sex marriage.
The North American economy could suffer significant economic harm after Canada's two largest freight railways have come to a full stop over an employment dispute with their workers.

Canadian National Railway (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) locked out more than 9,000 employees Thursday after the companies and union leaders failed to reach a contract agreement, triggering an unprecedented rail stoppage that could cause billions of dollars worth of damage to the supply chain.

All rail traffic in Canada and all shipments crossing the US border have stopped, although CPKC and CN's trains will continue to operate in the US and Mexico.

Billions of dollars of goods are transported between Canada and the US via rail each month. Experts warn a prolonged strike could disrupt a wide range of goods across multiple sectors, including agriculture, construction and the auto industry.

Business groups had urged the Canadian government to intervene, but Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has declined to force both sides into arbitration yet.

Canadian National Railway (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) locked out more than 9,000 employees Thursday after the companies and union leaders failed to reach a contract agreement. Pictured: CPKC workers on the picket line today in Vaughan yard, Toronto

All rail traffic in Canada and all shipments crossing the US border have stopped, although CPKC and CN's trains will continue to operate in the US and Mexico. Pictured: Rail workers picket in front of CN headquarters in Montreal today

Industry leaders and business groups have sounded alarm over the stoppage, which they say will raise costs and lead to 'devastating consequences'.

Ratings agency Moody's has warned that the stoppage could cost over $251million ($341million CAD) per day.

The stoppage is set to cripple shipments of grain, potash and coal while also slowing the transport of petroleum products, chemicals and autos.

Businesses in the US are set to be impacted as well, as the two economies are highly integrated. Companies across all industries rely on railroads to deliver their raw materials and finished products, so without regular rail service they may have to cut back or even close.

Rail transport accounted for 14 per cent of total bilateral trade of $382.4billion in the first half of the year, according to the US Department of Transportation.

Kate Yates, Director Digital Marketing, Communications and Public Relations at Crane Worldwide Logistics in Houston, told DailyMail.com in a statement that industry experts 'expect supply chain operations to be heavily disrupted with the lack of rail freight services'.

'Whilst trucking services and transloading capabilities can support in the short term, rail distribution is a vital component of the Canadian economy. The impact of the disruption will be dependent upon the time it takes for all parties to come to a resolution,' Yates warned.

Tens of thousands of people who depend on certain commuter rail lines into the cities of Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal, have also been impacted by the lockouts, as all train movement on these CPKC-owned lines has been halted.

'The rail shutdown at CN and CPKC is already costing workers, transit users and businesses across the country, and we cannot afford to let things get worse,' Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Thursday in a post on social media platform X.

Locked out CPKC workers are seen stopping trucks for five minutes today before letting them enter the CPKC Vaughan yard, near Toronto

Containers stacked at the CPKC Vaughan yard, near Toronto, today after Canadian National Railway (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) locked out workers following unsuccessful negotiation attempts

Both CN and CPKC locked out their employees after the 12.01am deadline passed on Thursday morning after failing to reach new agreements with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) that represents some 10,000 engineers, conductors and dispatchers.

The companies and the Teamsters union blamed each other for the work stoppage after multiple rounds of talks failed to yield a new agreement.

'Throughout this process, CN and CPKC have shown themselves willing to compromise rail safety and tear families apart to earn an extra buck,' TCRC president Paul Boucher said.

The union, in a statement Thursday, added: 'Despite the lockout, the Teamsters remain at the bargaining table with both companies.'

The two railroads said they had bargained in good faith and had made multiple offers with better pay and working conditions.

CN said it was waiting for a response on one final offer made late Wednesday when it locked the workers out.

'Despite our best efforts, it is clear that a negotiated outcome with the TCRC is not within reach,' CPKC said. Spokesperson Patrick Waldron also said the union rejected its last offer that CEO Keith Creel made at the table in person.

Both railroads have stated that they would end the lockout if the union agreed to binding arbitration.

Locked out railway workers outside of the CN Rail Brampton yard on August 22, 2024 in Brampton, Ontario

The Canadian government has so far asked the railroads and the union to work together and reach an agreement, choosing not to use its power to refer the dispute to binding arbitration.

Trudeau has been reluctant to force arbitration because he doesn't want to offend the TCRC and other unions, but ahead of the shutdown had urged both sides to reach a deal, warning of the tremendous economic damage that could follow.

'It is in the best interest of both sides to continue doing the hard work at the table,' Trudeau said to reporters in Gatineau, Quebec on Wednesday. 'Millions of Canadians, workers, farmers, businesses, right across the country, are counting on both sides to do the work and get to a resolution.'

Numerous business groups have been urging Trudeau to act.

Trudeau said Labor Minister Steven MacKinnon met with both sides in the CN talks in Montreal on Tuesday and would be on hand for the CPKC talks in Calgary, Alberta. MacKinnon later said he wrapped up his meetings with the rail companies and the Teamsters.

Francois Laporte, president of Teamsters Canada, told reporters outside CN's Montreal headquarters that he did not expect the government would force workers into arbitration.

'We believe that this thing has to be settled at (the) bargaining table,' Laporte said Thursday in front of picketing CN workers. 'We don't believe in letting a third party decide what's going to be the working conditions of these people.'

A CN employee hammers a sign into place at the CN MacMillan Yard in Vaughan, near Toronto, after Canadian National Railway (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) locked out workers today

Rail workers picket in front of CN headquarters on the first day of a nationwide rail shutdown

CN had been negotiating with the Teamsters for nine months while CPKC had been trying to reach an agreement for a year, the unions said.

The work strike that has thousands of workers off the job across Canada is largely rooted in scheduling, availability of labor, and demands for better work-life balance, according to the union and company statements.

The negotiations are stuck on issues related to the way rail workers are scheduled and concerns about rules designed to prevent fatigue and provide adequate rest to train crews.

Both railroads had proposed shifting away from the existing system, which pays workers based on the miles in a trip, to an hourly system they said would make it easier to provide predictable time off.

CN locomotive engineers on the picket line said they are concerned about longer work shifts and an effort by the companies to cut a current rest period of 24 hours after returning home roughly in half.

They said most younger workers at CN work on call and have to jump to assignments, packing days worth of food for the road, on two hours' notice.

'What we want are working conditions that will make sure that the train operator, whether it is an engineer or conductor ... gets their proper rest,' Laporte said.

The railroads said their contract offers have included raises consistent with recent deals in the industry. Engineers make about $150,000 a year on Canadian National while conductors earn $120,000, and CPKC says its wages are comparable.

The Canadian government introduced new duty and rest period rules in 2023.

Locked out CPKC workers are seen on the picket line today in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada following unsuccessful contract negotiations

Both CN and CPKC had been gradually shutting down since last week ahead of the contract deadline. Shipments of hazardous chemicals and perishable goods were the first to stop, so they wouldn't be stranded somewhere on the tracks.

As the Canadian contract talks were coming down to the wire, one of the biggest US railroads, CSX, broke with the US freight rail industry's longstanding practice of negotiating jointly for years with the unions.

CSX reached a deal with several of its 13 unions that cover 25 per cent of its workers ahead of the start of national bargaining later this year.

The new five-year contracts will provide 17.5 per cent raises, better benefits and vacation time if they are ratified.

The unions that have signed deals with CSX include part of the SMART-TD union representing conductors in one region, the Transportation Communications Union (TCU), the Brotherhood of Railway Carmen and the Transport Workers Union.

TCU President Artie Maratea said he's proud that his union reached a deal 'without years of unnecessary delay and stall tactics.'
The number of channel boat arrivals being granted asylum rose four-fold in the past year as the former Tory government tried to cut a massive backlog of cases and empty expensive hotel rooms.

New Home Office figures released today show that more than 25,000 people were granted asylum in the year to June, up from 6,600 in the same period last year.

Afghans accounted for almost a fifth (18 per cent) of small boat arrivals during that period. Some 5,370 Afghans arrived by this route in the 12 months to June, although the Government said this number was down by 41 per cent on the previous year.

It came during a period when the former Rishi Sunak administration was under pressure to clear a massive backlog of cases and a hotel accommodation bill that hit 15million a day earlier this year.

Across all areas of immigration and asylum, the Home Office's overspend will hit 5.9 billion in the 2023-24 financial year, official papers showed.

While the UK's asylum backlog dropped by almost a third in a year it started to creep up again in the spring.

Separate Home Office figures showed that the number of foreign criminals living in the community while they await deportation rose to more than 17,000, up more than 6,000 in two years.

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The average number of people found on each barely seaworthy vessel rose to more than 50 for the first time in the year to the end of June, the Home Office has revealed.

Nearly all (99 per cent) of people arriving in the UK in the year to June 2024 after crossing the English Channel on small boats claimed asylum or were recorded as a dependent on an asylum application, the Home Office said.

Overall, just under a third (31 per cent) of the total number of people claiming asylum in the UK in the year to June had arrived on a small boat.

A total of 67,978 people were granted refugee status or other leave to remain in the UK in the year to June 2024, more than three times the 21,436 in the previous 12 months.

Just under three-fifths (58 per cent) of the initial decisions in the year ending June 2024 were grants of refugee status, humanitarian protection or alternative forms of leave.

This is lower than the previous 12 months (71 per cent), but higher than in the years immediately before the Covid-19 pandemic.

There were 75,658 asylum applications in the UK in the year to June 2024, relating to 97,107 people.

This is down year-on-year from 82,275 applications relating to 102,371 people in the previous 12 months.

The number of applications and people peaked in the 12 months to March 2023, at 83,045 and 102,878 respectively, which were the highest levels since 2002.

Home Office figures show a total of 118,882 people were waiting for an initial decision on an asylum application in the UK at the end of June 2024, down by 32 per cent from 175,457 at the end of June 2023, which was the highest figure since current records began in 2010.

But the latest total is up slightly from the 118,329 waiting to be dealt with at the end of March this year, indicating a rise in the last three months of the 12-month period.

The number of asylum seekers waiting more than six months for an initial decision stood at 76,268 at the end of June, down 46% from the record 139,961 at the end of June 2023.

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Nearly all (99 per cent) of people arriving in the UK in the year to June 2024 after crossing the English Channel on small boats claimed asylum or were recorded as a dependent on an asylum application, the Home Office said.

The figures also revealed criminal gangs are cramming migrants on to dangerous boats for the perilous Channel crossing in increasing numbers.

The average number of people found on each barely seaworthy vessel rose to more than 50 for the first time in the year to the end of June. That is a five-fold increase from the average of 10 people per boat in 2019.

The new figures released today also showed that Vietnamese and Afghans were the nationalities most found on the small boats.
An aunt and her teenage nephew plunged to their deaths down a waterfall after she slipped while taking a selfie.

Debora Mothe, 43, lost her footing and Romulo Cordeiro died trying to save her at the waterfall in Campos dos Goytacazes, Brazil on Sunday.

Their grieving family told local media that Ms Mothe slipped when she went to take a photo.

A frantic search was launched and it took rescuers 30 hours to find their bodies at the site.

Ms Mothe worked as a PE teacher and Romulo was a student enrolled on a building technician course.

His school declared a day of official mourning and suspended academic classes on Monday.

Debora Mothe, 43, who died after slipping down a waterfall in Brazil on Sunday

Teenager Romulo Cordeiro died trying to save his aunt at the waterfall in Campos dos Goytacazes, Brazil

Rescue teams work to remove the bodies in Campos dos Goytacazes, Brazil

The bodies of Ms Mothe and her nephew were released back to the family on Tuesday and buried the same day in the city of Sao Francisco de Itabapoana.

The case was registered at the local police station who have launched an investigation into their deaths.

Romulo's school said in a statement: 'With deep regret, we inform you of the death of the student, Romulo Lopes Cordeiro, from the Integrated Building Technician course at IFF Campus Campos Centro.

'The campus decrees official mourning and academic and administrative activities will be suspended from 2.20pm, today (August 19).

'Our community stands in solidarity with the family and friends at this time of grief.

'We count on everyone's understanding.'

Ms Mothe worked as a PE teacher and Romulo was a student enrolled on a building technician course

Ms Mothe and her nephew were found dead after a 30-hour search
A West End theatre producer's 4million 'fortress home' that has been compared to a budget hotel is being reduced in size following a long-running planning row.

Builders were this week seen removing the top storey of Adam Speigel's modernist home in the coastal village of Cley, Norfolk.

Mr Spiegel, who has produced London West End shows The Mousetrap and Hairspray, has battled for nearly five years to be able to keep the house.

Mr Spiegel and his wife Charlotte were originally ordered to tear down the three-storey house after breaching planning rules.

However, Mr Spiegel agreed to demolish the top floor of the home to reduce the property in size in April - in an attempt to keep the house standing.

The home in Cley, Norfolk, has been compared to a Travelodge by neighbours

Builders were this week seen removing the top storey of Adam Speigel's modernist home

The house has been compared to a budget hotel by some angry neighbours

The house is seen from a slight distance surrounded by greenery

Theatre company producer Adam Spiegel and his wife, Charlotte (pictured together) have been locked in a long-running battle with town planners over their controversial property in Norfolk

Mr Spiegel's home in North Norfolk. The extraordinary planning row saw the theatre producer ordered take off the whole of the top floor of his 2 million mansion

The property viewed from above. Building work started in 2016 the following year builders were told to stop work after it was discovered that the property was not being built to the approved plans

Its towering top storey is set to be replaced by a pitched roof more in keeping with the quaint countryside and coastal properties around it.

The home is named Arcady which means 'rustic paradise', but locals in the village have likened it to a 'dystopian fortress'.

Neighbouring residents previously said the modern property 'doesn't fit in' with the village, which is mainly made up of quaint flint cottages.

A resident, who wished to remain anonymous, previously said: 'I don't like it, it's too big it just looks out of character with the rest of the village.

'We call it the Travelodge hotel because it is so big and at night it's all lit up it seems like every window is lit up.'

Villager David Villings said last December: 'It is a real mystery how they got permission in the first place. It just doesn't fit in with the village and its surroundings.

'This is a traditional Norfolk village and the house sticks out like a sore thumb. Every other property in the village is either original or made to look traditional.

'But this place is just an eyesore - it looks as if it designed by a five-year-old with a box of Lego bricks.'

Work begins to remove the top floor of the property in Norfolk

The huge box-shaped modernist home, named Arcady which means 'rustic paradise' in Greek, has provoked controversy among locals who claimed the house 'stood out like a sore thumb'

The Arcady house viewed from the village. In the past residents have compared the design to a Travelodge and another local called it a 'dystopian fortress'

The Arcady property has caused anger among locals in the coastal community with complaints it was 'lit up like a Christmas tree' at night while others criticised its modern design as 'dystopian'

Mr Spiegel came under siege from North Norfolk District Council (NNDC) soon after work began in 2016, with officials claiming the property was larger than originally planned.

Mr Spiegel lodged a new application with NNDC in January, with the council proposing the demolition of the top floor of the property for it to then be rebuilt.

His agent, Ian Scholfield, said the redesign had been drawn up after a public consultation event in the village.

Despite the revisions, the new pitched roof will be higher than its predecessor at the apex.

Although there were 19 objections to the planning application, from villagers who thought it was still too overbearing, councillors agreed the plans.

Mr Spiegel has declined to comment throughout the saga, which began when he applied to demolish the bungalow which previously stood on the site and build a new house in 2012.
A 12-year-old schoolboy has been missing for two days as police admit they are 'concerned.'

Austin Flinn was last seen on Queens Park South Drive in Bournemouth, Dorset, at around 7.50am on Tuesday August 24.

Dorset Police said Austin is five feet tall and of thin build with dark brown hair. He was last seen wearing a turquoise T-shirt with a black pattern on the front and black jeans.

Austin Flinn (pictured) was last seen on Queens Park South Drive in Bournemouth, Dorset, at around 7.50am on Tuesday August 24

Police Constable Ben McSorley, of Dorset Police's Missing Person Support Team, said: 'We are concerned for Austin's welfare and we are keen to find him and make sure he is safe and well.

'I am appealing to anyone with information regarding his whereabouts to please contact us.

'I would also like to appeal directly to Austin to please make contact with us or your family and let us know where you are. We just want to check that you are OK.'

Anyone with information or knowledge as to Austins whereabouts is asked to contact Dorset Police at www.dorset.police.uk or by calling 101, quoting occurrence number 55240127926.
Mike Lynch considered selling his doomed 30million superyacht but changed his mind after being cleared in his US fraud trial, it was claimed today.

The tech tycoon, known as 'Britain's Bill Gates', reportedly put the Bayesian up for sale in March before taking it off the market in July following his acquittal by a jury in San Francisco.

Mr Lynch, 59, was in the midst of a 'victory trip' with family and friends when the vessel was hit by a storm and sank early on Monday morning. Six bodies have been recovered, with his 18-year-old daughter, Hannah, still missing.

The entrepreneur planned to spend the summer onboard the yacht before considering whether to sell it again in the autumn, industry sources told the Telegraph.

Mr Lynch had been spending time on his Suffolk farm before leaving for the Mediterranean.

And in an interview with the BBC, he revealed his plan to return to the tech world by examining how AI could be used in the legal industry and to help people struggling with hearing loss.

'I want to get back to what I love doing, which is innovating', he said.

Mike Lynch, known as 'Britain's Bill Gates ', reportedly put the Bayesian up for sale in March before taking it off the market in July following his acquittal by a jury in San Francisco

Mr Lynch, 59, was in the midst of a 'victory trip' with family and friends when the vessel was hit by a storm and sank early on Monday morning

The family of a bank boss and his wife who died in the Sicily superyacht disaster paid a heartfelt tribute to them today, saying: 'Our only comfort is that they are still together now.'

Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy were on Mike Lynch's yacht the Bayesian when it sank after being struck by an over-sea tornado known as a waterspout off Sicily at around 3am GMT on Monday.

They were among six people left missing following the disaster, alongside Mr Lynch and his daughter, Hannah, Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo, and his wife Neda Morvillo.

In a statement confirming their parents' deaths, the Bloomer family described the couple as 'incredible people and an inspiration to many'.

They said: 'We are grieving for our loved ones and all of those affected by the tragedy. Our parents were incredible people and an inspiration to many, but first and foremost they were focused on and loved their family and spending time with their new grandchildren.

'Together for five decades, our only comfort is that they are still together now. This is an unimaginable grief to shoulder.'

Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judith, who died in the superyacht disaster

Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo were also aboard the ship

The body of chef Recaldo Thomas (pictured) was discovered on the day of the sinking

The body of the fifth person recovered from the yacht's wreckage was returned in a blue body bag to the port of Porticello this morning.

Of the 22 passengers and crew on board, 15 - including Mr Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares - were rescued after escaping on to a lifeboat.

The body of Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, who was working as a chef on the superyacht Bayesian, was recovered at the scene of the sinking on Monday.

The boat trip was a celebration of Mr Lynch's acquittal in a fraud case in the US.

The businessman, who founded software giant Autonomy in 1996, was cleared in June of carrying out a massive fraud relating to its 8.64 billion sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

The Bloomers were among the guests invited on the 'victory trip' by Mr Lynch.

Mr Bloomer, 70, who served as a non-executive on Autonomy's board, told the court in May that Mr Lynch 'wasn't particularly interested in the finance side' and preferred to focus on strategy and products.

The following day, Mr Lynch took the stand himself and he was acquitted in June.

Mr Bloomer was best known as boss of FTSE 100 insurer Prudential, and joined Autonomy in 2010.

A decision on whether to raise the sunken yacht from the seabed is 'not on the agenda', but will be in the future, a spokesman from the Italian Coastguard said today.

Vincenzo Zagarola said: 'This is not a topic on the agenda. It will be, but not now.'

Fire service and Coastguard dive teams return to port on the fourth day of the search and recovery operation

Rescue personnel work at the scene today where luxury yacht Bayesian sank off the coast of Porticello, near the Sicilian city of Palermo

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He also said that the Italian Coastguard's working theory is still that the missing woman is inside the boat.

The luxury yacht's captain, James Cutfield, was reportedly questioned by authorities for two hours as they began speaking to all crew members.

A helicopter was previously drafted in to help the search effort, and divers from the local fire service have been seen entering the water with torches attached to their headgear.

Fire crews from the Vigili del Fuoco said they had been accessing the vessel through natural entrances, without making openings.

Remotely controlled underwater vehicles have been used, with naval units and cave divers also taking part in the search, the Italian Coastguard has said.

Bayesian was moored around half a mile off the coast of Porticello when it sank at about 5am local time on Monday as the area was hit by a storm.

The wreckage of the Bayesian is resting on the seabed off the coast at a depth of 50 metres (164ft).

Fire crews described the operation as 'complex', with divers limited to 12-minute underwater shifts.

Survivors have been recuperating at a hotel complex in Porticello, where authorities are gathering witness statements.

An Italian doctor at the hospital where British tourist Charlotte Emsley and her one-year-old daughter were taken said the mother held her baby above the waves after the yacht sank.

The ship's captain, James Cutfield, 51, was reportedly quizzed by authorities for two hours as they began questioning all crew members

The Bayesian (pictured in an undated handout photo) overturned during a severe thunderstorm on Monday morning

Dr Domenico Cipolla, of Di Cristina Children's Hospital in Palermo, said: 'Obviously the mother and the husband were so shaken by what has happened, it was a tragedy for them.

'She told me that two minutes after falling asleep with her baby they were in the water, she did not understand how this happened, it went dark.

'She held the child high in her arms above the waves, for a few seconds the baby was in the water, but she saved her. She sometimes cried for her friends in the hospital.'

Giovanni Costantino, founder and CEO of The Italian Sea Group, which owns the firm Perini Navi which built the Bayesian, has blamed human error for the disaster.

He told Corriere della Sera: 'The passengers reported something absurd, that the storm came unexpectedly, suddenly. That is not true. Everything was predictable.'

The Italian Sea Group has also dismissed speculation the enormous 264ft mast was to blame and says only a massive entry of water could have caused it to sink.

'The controversies about the mast are sterile controversies because the mast, according to those who have seen it, is intact,' they said.

'The retractable keel stabilises the ship, but even without the keel completely out the ship is stable and only a massive entry of water could have caused the sinking which did not happen in a minute as someone wrote.'
Police shot and killed a man in his 50s at a high school in El Paso, Texas.

Officials said an officer from the El Paso Independent School District shot the man outside the campus of Franklin High School in West El Paso.

The incident took place before classes had started prior to 6am, and no students were injured.

Some students participating in a cross-country race who were near the site at the time were taken to a secure area.

School principal Amanda Bowser issued a statement on Thursday morning confirming classes were canceled due to an 'overnight incident.'

Police officials say an officer from the El Paso Independent School District shot someone at Franklin High School on the West El Paso campus

The surrounding area will remain closed while the investigation is ongoing

'Law enforcement is investigating, please stay clear of the area,' she said in an alert posted to the school website.

'The safety of our students and staff is our top priority, and we are working closely with authorities to address the situation.'

El Paso ISD issued a statement confirming no students were involved.

'There is no danger to the community, students, or staff. One person died as a result of this incident. Outside agencies are assisting El Paso ISD with the investigation.'

The El Paso ISD services 95 schools and more than 60,000 students in West Texas, making it the largest school police department in the region.

Chief of Police Manuel Chavira said his team received an initial report of an incident taking place on campus Thursday morning.

He reassured the community that no students, faculty or staff were impacted.

The surrounding area will remain closed while the investigation is ongoing.

The incident took place before classes had started, and no students were injured

School principal Amanda Bowser issued a statement on Thursday morning confirming classes were canceled due to an 'overnight incident'

Nearby Coronado High School issued a statement on Thursday morning confirming it would be a 'normal school day' despite the incident.

'We will have extra police monitoring the area,' the school said.
Three police officers have been assaulted at Manchester Airport after they were set upon while investigating an abandoned car.

Greater Manchester Police were inspecting the car, which is uninsured, after it was left in an unauthorised space at the airport's Terminal Two on Wednesday morning.

The officer were then attacked, injuring one female and two male police officers, before one of the alleged assailants was tasered.

Three suspects, a man and two women, were then arrested.

In a statement, Greater Manchester Police told the Manchester Evening News: 'At around 7.15am, patrolling officers inspected an abandoned vehicle in an unauthorised space at Manchester Airport.

Greater Manchester Police were inspecting the car, which was uninsured, after it was left in an unauthorised space at Manchester Airport's Terminal Two (pictured)

'While conducting enquiries - which found the vehicle was uninsured - officers were confronted by a man during which three of our unarmed officers were assaulted and left with injuries.

'A Taser was deployed, before three people - a man and two women - were taken to custody on suspicion of police assault. They have all been bailed pending further investigations. Enquiries are underway, including a review of body-worn video, CCTV, and other available footage.

'Assaults on officers are unacceptable and we will not hesitate to take action should any criminal offences be found.'

The alleged assault occurred in the same terminal where shocking footage emerged last month which appeared to show an officer kicking and stamping on a man's head as he lay on the ground.

Another video taken during the initial altercation which preceded the officer kicking the man appears to show the three police officers approaching one of the young men as he used a ticket machine inside a carpark at the busy airport.

A brawl then erupts - with another man grabbing one of the officers and two fights breaking out with punches flying from both sides.

A woman who tries to hold one of the men back can be seen hitting the airport floor, while the two female officers are sent flying after both sustaining blows to their heads and faces.

The force has since launched an investigation into the incident and files have been passed onto the Crown Prosecution Service.
The family of a young yoga enthusiast say they are heartbroken after she was paralyzed following a horrifying accident.

Abby Weiss, 32, has been left unable to live on her own after she fell and injured her spinal cord while attempting an ambitious acroyoga move in San Diego.

Her loved ones said Weiss was an exercise fanatic who loved acroyoga, a combination of yoga and acrobatics, as footage shows her often performing handstands over people's heads with ease.

But her accident means the 32-year-old will require round-the-clock care for the rest of her life, which her father said is devastating given her love of being active outdoors.

'She said the other day it feels like shes in a straight jacket. She cant move. Everythings got to be done for her,' he told WISTV.

Weiss' loved ones said her injury is devastating as she is an exercise enthusiast who is passionate about acroyoga, a combination of yoga and acrobatics

Abby Weiss, 32, was left paralyzed from the neck down after injuring her spine while performing an acroyoga maneuver

Weiss' life-altering injury came two months ago, leaving her almost entirely unable to move as she was paralyzed from the neck down.

Before her accident, Weiss was a pediatric speech therapist and business owner, according to a GoFundMe set up to help her family deal with mounting healthcare costs.

The fundraiser adds that alongside her love of acroyoga, Weiss is also passionate about Zouk dancing, hiking, yoga, learning Spanish, and world travel.

Her family said she moved from Chicago to San Diego eight years ago to live by the ocean and 'never looked back', as her aunt tearfully said she enjoyed 'wonderful years' on the West Coast.

'The San Diego community: thank you for giving her the wonderful years that she had here,' her aunt Judy Washer said.

Weiss' family said alongside her love of acroyoga, she was also passionate about Zouk dancing, hiking, yoga, learning Spanish, and world travel before her injury

Weiss' father said if he knew the dangerous moves she was performing, he 'would have told her not to do it... But I don't think she would have listened'

Washer spoke as she and Weiss' loved ones packed up her San Diego apartment, which she will no longer be able to live out of as Weiss has now started her recovery back home in Chicago.

'It's just awful to have to pack her stuff up. Its just awful and it didnt have to be like this,' Washer added.

Weiss' father said he was not aware of what acroyoga was before his daughter's accident, and said that if he 'had known the type of maneuvers she was doing I would have told her not to do it.'

'But I dont think she wouldve listened,' he added.

Weiss is now undergoing treatment at a medical facility in Chicago where her parents live.

Weiss' family said she is showing small signs of improvement, such as breathing by herself again, but doctors are not offering an guarantees of recovery

Her family said there is a small amount of hope that once her inflammation reduces, she may regain some movement - but doctors are not offering any guarantees that she will ever recover.

In the most recent update to her GoFundMe on July 27, Weiss' friend Renee Smith said she showed positive signs after a 'therapist capped her trach tube, allowing her to breathe using her own upper airway, inhaling and exhaling through her nose.'

'Abby went on to breathe on her own for an entire hour!!' the fundraiser added. 'While this may seem small, this is a step forward and we need to celebrate.'
Two people have been injured after a stabbing at the Chessington World of Adventures theme park near London.

One of the victims was rushed to a major trauma centre due to their injuries, London Ambulance Service said.

A third man has been arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm [GBH], the Metropolitan Police said.

Police confirmed that a stabbing took place at the packed theme park this afternoon and said officers were called to attend just after 2.30pm.

A Met spokesman said: 'Police were called at 2:36pm on Thursday, 22 August to reports of two injured people at an adventure park in Chessington.

'Officers and London Ambulance Service [LAS] attended. A man was found on a nearby road with minor injuries. A second man was found in a carpark with knife wounds.

'A third male was arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm [GBH]. At this stage we believe that all of the men are known to each other and that nobody else was involved.

'The injured parties were taken to hospital. We await an update on the condition of the man with knife injuries.'

Chessington World of Adventures is one of the UKs most popular theme parks and attracts thousands of visitors each day (stock image)

A photograph shows an emergency services helicopter attending the tourist attraction in the borough of Kingston upon Thames, London, this afternoon.

Visitors to the park described seeing a heavy police presence with some areas cordoned off as officers investigate.

A London Ambulance Service spokesman said: 'We were called at 2.43pm on Thursday 22 August to reports of a stabbing on Leatherhead Road, Chessington.

'We sent resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew, an advanced paramedic and an incident response officer. We also dispatched Londons Air Ambulance.

'We treated two people at the scene and took one patient to a major trauma centre.'

Chessington World of Adventures, located about 12 miles south east of central London, is one of the UKs most popular theme parks, attracting thousands of visitors each day.

The park is likely to have been packed with families enjoying the rides during the school summer holidays.

A Chessington World of Adventures spokeswoman said: 'An isolated incident involving two guests occurred in the car park this afternoon.

'The emergency services were immediately alerted and the resorts fully trained first aid team administered care until ambulance teams arrived.

'We are fully supporting the Metropolitan Police with their investigation.'

Anyone who witnessed the incident or has footage should call police on 101 or X @MetCC quoting 3961/22AUG.
Lawmakers said instead of advancing a bill to force tech platforms to pay newsrooms for their content, the state will create a $250 million public-private partnership to support news organizations and advance AI. Dreamstime/TNS

Google has succeeded in killing a bill that would have forced it and other tech companies to pay news companies for their content.

Lawmakers announced Wednesday that they had reached a deal that will mean shelving the bill in favor of creating a new partnership to support California newsrooms.

Assembly Member Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, said that the nearly $250 million investment of public and private funds included in the deal would fund newsrooms and an artificial intelligence accelerator project over the next five years.

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The California Journalism Preservation Act laid out fees that would be calculated as a percentage of ad revenue and would be set based on an arbitration agreement between digital news publishers and large digital platforms. Facebook, Google and Microsoft were the bills primary targets. It has now failed for the second straight year.

Wicks office said in a release that the majority of the funds in the deal would be used on newsrooms, and that $100 million would be spent in the first year to kick-start the efforts.

Gov. Gavin Newsom, who said little publicly about the bill as it was being debated, praised the deal.

This agreement represents a major breakthrough in ensuring the survival of newsrooms and bolstering local journalism across California  leveraging substantial tech industry resources without imposing new taxes on Californians, Newsom said in a statement. The deal not only provides funding to support hundreds of new journalists but helps rebuild a robust and dynamic California press corps for years to come, reinforcing the vital role of journalism in our democracy.

But Matt Pearce, the president of the Media Guild of the West, a union representing journalists in California and other western states, said the deal is nothing to journalists.

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Im worried that this deal actually causes harm to journalists, instead of helping us in any way, he said in a news conference Wednesday.

Pearces union had been pushing for the bill, but was not involved in the deal negotiations. The former Los Angeles Times reporter had urged guild members to call lawmakers offices to push back against the deal, which he said allows Google to avoid regulation, when the deal was first being considered.

Pearce and other journalism union representatives also expressed concern with the inclusion of funding for artificial intelligence, a technology many consider a threat to human journalists.

Lee Hepner, senior legal counsel for the American Economic Liberties Project, criticized the lack of regulation over tech companies and echoed journalists concern with the AI funding.

This is the wrong way to make artificial intelligence policy. You do not make AI policy in shady, backroom deals that are shielded from public oversight that are announced in a manner that doesnt give any transparency to the details of what this is, he said.

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Pearce noted that the deal also creates a public-private partnership with Google that allows the companys contributions to be tax deductible. He also criticized that taxpayer funds were involved in the deal, with Californians footing a larger share of the bill for supporting local news.

Pearce also said Newsom effectively sided with Google by not signaling enough support to get the bill passed.

The News Transformation Fund, as the money for California news publishers is being called, will be administered at the UC Berkeley School of Journalism, according to the release announcing the deal.

The University of California is proud to partner with Governor Newsom and legislative leaders to bolster the critical work of local news organizations and journalists in California, University of California President Michael Drake said in a statement. Californians depend on robust local and diverse news organizations to stay informed about their communities, and the University and specifically the UC Berkeley School of Journalism stand ready to support this endeavor.

California News Publishers Association CEO Chuck Champion and board chair Julie Makinen said they would make the most of this initiative.

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The San Francisco Chronicle is among the news organizations that supported the bill, along with the California Broadcasters Association, the California News Publishers Association, many other trade and labor organizations representing journalists and individual news organizations.

Bill Nagel, publisher of the Chronicle, said the deal was a first step in the right direction, but did not go far enough.

This is a start, but clearly the platforms arent participating enough in supporting the journalism that helped build their businesses, Nagel said. We will try again in the future and hope to achieve the support achieved in Canada and Australia. Those seem like fairer deals. I do appreciate the efforts of Assembly Member Wicks.

Canada passed a similar law to the journalism bill under consideration by California lawmakers that was touted as a benchmark for funding for local newsrooms by tech companies for many journalism advocates.

Top Democrats within the Legislature knocked the deal, highlighting an intraparty rift over the agreement. California Senate Pro Tem Mike McGuire, D-Geyserville, said that while newsrooms have been hallowed out, tech companies have profited immensely. State Sen. Steve Glazer, D-Orinda, was among those who criticized the deal for falling massively short of matching the $100 million spent by annually Google in the Canadian settlement.

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Despite the good intentions of the parties involved, this proposal does not provide sufficient resources to bring independent news gathering in California out of its death spiral, Glazer said.

McGuire said that lawmakers, including Glazer, were working on bills that hold Big Tech accountable. He expressed concerns that the deal lacks sufficient funding for newspapers and local media, and doesn't fully address the inequities facing the industry.

Interest in passing the bill was renewed this year after mass layoffs were announced at the Los Angeles Times and other newsrooms faced cuts. Erin Ivie, a spokesperson for Wicks, said in January that the bill was a top priority for Wicks this year.

The legislation had just passed out of the Senate Appropriations Committee last week.

Tech companies have aggressively attacked the bill for more than a year. Facebooks parent company, Meta, threatened to pull news from its platforms if the bill passed. A tech-financed group began a campaign last year to kill the bill by pointing out that it would help fund Fox News, a bitter pill in the Democrat-dominated California Legislature.

In April, Google News said it was removing links to California news websites in response to the bill, a move McGuire called an abuse of power at the time. On Wednesday, Kent Walker, president of global affairs and chief legal officer for Googles parent company Alphabet, said the deal would build on the companys long history of working with journalism and the local news ecosystem in our home state, while developing a national center of excellence on AI policy.

Supporters of the bill said that social media companies benefit financially from content produced by journalists posted on their sites, which help them attract and retain visitors. The platforms are not paying the journalists who produce the content, however, effectively starving news organizations of advertising revenue generated by their own work.

California lawmakers have previously approved other legislation intended to support journalism, including $25 million for local reporting grants administered through the School of Journalism at UC Berkeley. The five-year program, signed into law in 2022, pays for two-year fellowships for journalists in newsrooms across the states. The first cohort included 40 early career journalists paid entirely by the grant money, either $60,000 or $65,000 per year, depending on education and experience levels, project director Christa Scharfenberg said.
A wannabe drill rapper wept before a court hearing today over the death of his mother-in-law after she was mauled by two XL Bully dogs.

Ashley Warren was seen crying in a side room as he waited to appear before magistrates accused with a number of serious offences.

He is the first person to be charged since new laws concerning the ownership and registration of XL Bullies came into force on February 1.

Esther Martin, 68, died at Warren's home in Jaywick, Essex, on February 3 after the attack by the pets, named in court papers as Bear and Beauty, which were shot dead by police.

The bald-headed 40-year-old, who has tattoos on his face, neck and hands, arrived at Colchester Magistrates' Court with a female companion who swore at reporters.

Ashley Warren (pictured) attended Colchester Magistrates' Court and entered no plea for two charges of owning or being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control causing injury resulting in death, two counts of possession or having custody of a fighting dog, and two allegations under the Animal Welfare Act

Esther Martin (pictured) was mauled to death by two XL bully dogs on February 3

He was wearing a grey patterned sweatshirt, black jeans, white trainers and a gold chain around his neck.

During the short hearing, Warren entered no plea for two charges of owning or being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control causing injury resulting in death, two counts of possession or having custody of a fighting dog, and two allegations under the Animal Welfare Act.

He admitted one charge of possessing cannabis, for which he was fined 80, plus 85 costs and a 32 victim surcharge.

His lawyer, Ian Clift, said this was a 'small amount of cannabis for personal use'.

Referring to the charges about the dog attack, presiding magistrate Beverly Davies told the defendant: 'These are in the most serious category and will have to be heard in the crown court.'

Warren pleaded not guilty to a further offence of carrying a bladed article in a public place when he was arrested at Clacton railway station. The case will also be heard at the higher court.

A plea and directions hearing was set for September 19 at Chelmsford Crown Court, which the defendant must attend.

He left the court hand in hand with his female friend, who made hand gestures at journalists.

His bail conditions included avoiding any contact with Mrs Martin's son, Paul, who also attended court today but didn't go into the hearing. Mr Martin declined to comment afterwards.

Mrs Martin is understood to have been visiting Warren's house in Jaywick, Essex when she was set upon by the dogs.

Neighbours claimed she tried to fight them off with a broom while a man tried to smash a window with a brick to help her.

Warren left the court with a female friend who swore at the journalists

Paul Martin, the son of Esther Martin, leaves Colchester Magistrates' Court after the hearing - which he did not attend

Warren's bail conditions included avoiding any contact with Mrs Martin's son, Paul (pictured). Mr Martin declined to comment afterwards

The hearing took place at Colchester Magistrates' Court (pictured). Due to the severity of the charges, a plea and directions hearing was set for September 19 at Chelmsford Crown Court

Police stand outside Warren's home in Jaywick, Essex, on February 3 after the attack by the pets, named in court papers as Bear and Beauty, which were shot dead by police

Armed police arrived within minutes and shot the dogs, which were reportedly caring for six puppies after Beauty gave birth.

Emergency services and neighbours battled to save Mrs Martin's life but she was pronounced dead at the scene.

An inquest hearing previously heard she was found unresponsive inside the property and had sustained 'unsurvivable' dog bite wounds to the upper right limb.
A former Brit flick actor whose face once made him a star of the silver screen, has been jailed for 18 months after attacking his ex-girlfriend in the street.

Jason Hoganson had a leading role in the 1988 Hollywood movie Empire State, alongside Irish actor Ray McAnally, Jamie Foreman and US star Martin Landau.

Playing an enigmatic Geordie drifter living among mobsters in London, Hoganson had been talent-scouted by producers who contacted his drama teacher looking for a youth to play the part in the 1987 movie.

The 53-year-old, originally from Wallsend, was a striking-looking teenager when he was pictured in 1987 in stonewashed denim jacket and with bleached blond hair.

But as his movie career started to take off, Hoganson struggled with being in the spotlight and fell into a life of drink, drugs and crime. His face is now crisscrossed with angry scars and his head is covered in large, distinctive tattoos.

Newcastle Crown Court heard Hoganson, who now has 109 convictions on his record, was caught on doorbell video camera when he attacked his former partner in Newcastle on December 11 last year.

Prosecutor Amy Levitt said Hoganson already had a restraining order to keep him away from the woman when he attacked her.

Miss Levitt told the court: 'Footage shows the defendant assaulting the complainant. He slaps her to the face and she walks away. He walks after her.

Jason Hoganson (pictured now) has been jailed for 18 months at Newcastle Crown Court

Jason Hoganson pictured at the time of his appearance in 1987 movie Empire State

'There are further hits and a push, where she falls to the floor.

'The assault continues while she's lying on the floor.

'She describes him, having pushed her, hit her, kicked her and put his body weight on her.

'The assault lasted around three minutes.'

Miss Levitt said Hoganson had been given a restraining order to keep him away from the victim after he was convicted of offences of battery and criminal damage in May last year.

Hoganson, of no fixed address, admitted assault by beating and breach of a restraining order.

Hoganson struggled with his early success after starring in Empire State, and his life descended into crime and addictions

After auditioning more than 100 teenage hopefuls, producers offered Hoganson the part of Geordie drifter Pete, and he starred alongside Irish actor Ray McAnally, Jamie Foreman and US star Martin Landau. Pictured is a scene from the film

Ian Crook, defending, told the court: 'He was an accomplished actor. He actually secured a role, quite a leading role, in a film, a crime thriller.

'At that point the future was bright.'

Mr Crook said Hoganson already had personal struggles at that point and added: 'Being thrown into the spotlight wasn't easy for him to cope with. He turned to drink and drugs and that led to a downward spiral.'

Mr Crook said Hoganson has a complex mental health history but has been a mentor for others while in prison on remand.

Judge Tim Gittins sentenced Hoganson to 18 months behind bars, most of which he has already served on remand.

It was in 1987 the producers of a low-budget film contacted Hoganson's drama teacher to say they were looking for Geordie actors.

After auditioning more than 100 teenage hopefuls, he was offered a part in Empire State, a gritty drama set in 1980s London.

He played the role of Geordie drifter Pete, in the movie directed by Ron Peck.
A member of the Texas Democratic Delegation was robbed at gunpoint during the party's national convention, according to a report.

The victim, 25, was walking in downtown Chicago at 2 a.m. CT on Wednesday morning during the DNC when a dark blue Land Rover Discovery pulled up alongside and armed men in ski masks got out.

The attackers also took the delegate's room keys, then crossed the street to rob someone else.

The men were armed with handguns and threatened to kill the victims as they handed over their cell phones and wallets, according to Chicago police.

The suspects are believed to have been involved in a string of robberies across the city, DailyMail.com has confirmed.

Chicago Police at the scene of a mass shooting on Saturday evening in Chicago, Illinois, in the area of West 52nd Street. Eight people were shot, including five adults and three children

The aftermath of a shooting in Chicago

Chicago police described the assailants as two black males dressed in black standing at 57 to 59 tall.

U.S. Secret Service had warned DNC attendees as they exited the United Center Wednesday night to remove their badges as there have been multiple robbery attempts since the convention kicked off.

Chicago crime stats show the city hit a decade high for murders in 2023, seeing 617 deaths just last year, the most in the nation for a major city.

Donald Trump has been hugely critical of the crime in Chicago and has compared it to Afghanistan.

He has also hammered Kamala Harris by saying she will deliver 'crime, chaos, destruction and death' if she is elected.

A member of the Texas Democratic Delegation was robbed at gunpoint during the party's national convention, according to a report. The crowd inside the United Center is pictured

Emergency vehicles respond to a shooting in Chicago

On Day 3 of the convention there were nine shootings in Chicago, according to the city's police department.

There were 10 victims and one died on Wednesday.

On Tuesday there were five shootings with 12 victims, including one death.

Police address the media after a shooting in Chicago

Chicago's progressive mayor Brandon Johnson tried to blame Richard Nixon for a bloody July 4 weekend of gun violence

Another eight shootings, which led to four fatalities, took place on Monday.

The weekend before the convention saw 26 shootings with 30 total victims, including five deaths.

On Monday, Chicago Police Department Superintendent Larry Snelling said: 'Our officers are out there, they're out there, they're highly visible.

'And we have officers not only along the corridors downtown, in and around the venues of the Democratic National Convention, but also in our neighborhoods to continue to protect our people who are living in areas that are the most vulnerable.

'Our officers are protecting the entire city.'
Donald Trump was not told about a desperate manhunt for a person who was threatening to kill him during his trip to the southern border in Arizona on Thursday.

Rather than the Secret Service or any other law enforcement it fell to Dailymail.com to inform Trump that the widely publicized manhunt was going on.

The Republican nominee delivered a speech on immigration in the desert next to the border and then took questions.

DailyMail.com's correspondent asked him whether he felt he was in danger.

Trump admitted he 'hadn't heard' about the threat and said law enforcement probably 'wanted to keep it' from him.

With a chuckle he said: 'Thank you for telling me. Let's get out of here right now!'

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump tours the southern border with Mexico, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Sierra Vista, Arizona

Ronald Lee Syvrud, 66, is being sought by Arizona authorities in connection with an alleged assassination plot on Donald Trump

The local sheriff had ramped up security in the area around the section of border wall Trump was visiting as the the search went on for Ronald Lee Syvrud, 66, who is wanted in connection with an alleged assassination plot

It comes six weeks after an attempt on Trump's life saw a bullet hit the former president's ear during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Dailymail.com's correspondent asked: 'There's a manhunt going on in this county, somebody made death threats to you. Did you hear about that before coming?

'What are your thoughts coming down here? Some people told me it's dangerous for you to be here.'

Trump responded: 'I heard its dangerous, but I also have a job to do. I heard it's very dangerous. I haven't heard about that. They probably want to keep it from me.

'Thank you for telling me, let's get out of here right now...no, thank you very much for saying, but no.'

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump talks with Paul Perez, president of the National Border Patrol Council, as he tours the southern border with Mexico, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Sierra Vista, Arizona

Patty Moring, the mother of Rachel Morin, described the immense pain she endures in the wake of her daughter's murder

The ex-president said he would like to see the death penalty for illegal migrants that commit sex trafficking crimes related to women and children

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump puts pin on with a photo of Jocelyn Nungaray, given to him by her mother, Alexis, center right, as he tours the southern border with Mexico, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Sierra Vista, Arizona

He added: 'And I have great respect for Secret Service, the job they do, including a month and a half ago, when they were jumping on top of me with bullets flying right at 'em.

'So, mistakes were made, and they're going to learn from the mistakes. But I have great respect. But, no, I haven't heard that, but I'm not that surprised.

'And the reason is because I want to do things that are very bad for the bad guys. So, I have heard, it's very unsafe to make this trip. There were some people that really didn't want me to make it.'

Victims of migrant-related crime, local law enforcement and former border patrol agents also spoke at the border address

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump tours the southern border with Mexico

Trump thanked Dailymail.com for telling him about the manhunt

Police said Syvrud has several other warrants out for his arrest on separate charges, including for a DUI and failure to appear in court in Wisconsin, and for failure to register as a sex offender and felony hit and run in Arizona.

Ahead of Trump's speech at the border, Cochise County Sheriff Mark Dannels told DailyMail.com authorities have ramped up security 'based on the threats made', as he pointed out that the event is 'in an open venue.'

Syvrud is described as six-feet-tall, 220 pounds, and wearing glasses. His last known address is listed as Benson, Arizona.

Records show that he was a registered Democrat in the past, and owns a long rap sheet dating back to 1990 - including a conviction in 2000 for second degree sexual assault of a child, where he pleaded no contest.

The exact nature of the threats is unclear, however Sheriff Dannels told DailyMail.com they were received 'off social media.'

'We have zero tolerance for any kind of threats or intents of violence, so we'll find him. He'll go to jail,' Dannels said.

'He's a registered sex offender here in Cochise County, and we were looking for him. He's out of compliance as part of his violations. So we're looking for him on that.

'We're going to arrest him on that. But also the fact his pulse was obviously directed toward this event. So we want to talk to him about that.'

As Dannels added that security was being ramped up ahead of the speech, Secret Service snipers could be seen perched on a crane surveying the area.

It comes six weeks after an assassination attempt on Trump's life saw a bullet graze the former president's ear during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania

Secret Service snipers are seen perched on a crane to survey the area where Trump is set to speak in Cochise County, Arizona

Officials said security is heightened amid the alleged assassination plot

The planned attempt on Trump's life was allegedly intended for his trip to the border in Sierra Vista, in a spot where his campaign has already traveled to.

Trump's running mate JD Vance toured Sierra Vista three weeks ago, where he highlighted security concerns in the mountainous region and branded it a 'smuggler's paradise.'

Arizona officials said they believe Syvrud is at large in the border region, and are urgently attempting to locate him ahead of Trump's visit.

Ahead of his trip to the area, Trump said on Truth Social on Wednesday that he would be addressing 'the plague of migrant crime that so-called Border Czar, comrade Kamala Harris has unleashed on America.'

DailyMail.com has contacted the Trump campaign for comment.

The alleged plot was set to take place at Sierra Vista, Arizona, where Trump's running mate JD Vance toured just three weeks ago (pictured on the trip)

On the trip to the border, Vance highlighted security concerns around the area where the alleged plot on Trump's life was said to have been planned, branding the region a 'smuggler's paradise'

Secret Service agents raced to the stage and bundled Trump to the floor on July 13

When Vance toured Sierra Vista three weeks ago, he tore into Vice President Kamala Harris as a 'failed Border Czar' and blamed her for the migrant crisis.

The Ohio senator also highlighted security concerns at the 'smuggler's paradise', around the area where the alleged plot on Trump's life was said to have been planned.

The area poses a number of security concerns, as it is largely mountainous and has treacherous terrain, allowing vantage points for smugglers and cartel traffickers to avoid detection.

'Its unbelievable what were letting happen at the southern border, and its because Kamala Harris refuses to do her job,' Vance said at the time.
A 22-year-old man with special needs tragically died after being left unattended in a hot car for several hours by his caretaker.

The caretaker, identified as Rogers Lee Inge Jr., had allegedly snuck off to work a second job in North Carolina while the victim, Dontarious Batts, was still in the vehicle.

According to the Johnston County Sheriffs Office, Inge, an employee of Universal Health Care, was supposed to be supervising Batts. Instead, he brought Batts, who was autistic and nonverbal, along to his other job as a janitor at Cleveland High School in Clayton.

Inge arrived at the school for his 8:00 a.m. shift and left Batts inside his car with the windows rolled up and the engine off. Temperatures in the area reached 81 degrees on the day of the incident.

When Inge checked on Batts two hours later, he claimed the 22-year-old was fine.

22-year-old Dontarious Batts, who was autistic and nonverbal, tragically died after being left unattended in a hot car for several hours by his caretaker

The caretaker, identified as Rogers Lee Inge Jr., had allegedly snuck off to work a second job in North Carolina while the victim, Dontarious Batts, was still in the vehicle.

Inge left Batts in the car for more than six hours before, returning to find him unresponsive at 4:17 pm, reported local NBC affiliate WRAL.

The caretaker then drove to a nearby fire station in Clinton with Batts' body still in the car and called 911.

WRAL obtained the 911 call between Inge and the dispatcher.

'It's my fault,' Inge told the 911 operator through tears. 'I didnt think it was that hot today. I didnt check on him. I forgot. I was working.'

Authorities met Inge at the fire station and pronounced Batts dead. Inge was taken into custody and charged with involuntary manslaughter.

An autopsy will be conducted, but investigators believe Batts died due to the extreme heat inside the car.

According to the Johnston County Sheriffs Office, Inge, an employee of Universal Health Care, was supposed to be supervising Batts. Instead, he brought Batts, who was autistic and nonverbal, along to his other job as a janitor at Cleveland High School in Clayton.

Inge arrived at the school for his 8:00 a.m. shift and left Batts inside his car with the windows rolled up and the engine off. Temperatures in the area reached 81 degrees on the day of the incident.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns that temperatures inside a car can rise rapidly on hot days. In just 20 minutes, temperatures can reach 109 degrees Fahrenheit, and within an hour, they can exceed 123 degrees.

Inge was taken to the Johnston County jail and held under a $35,000 bond.

He was also fired from his job at Johnston County Public Schools, WRAL reported.

Batts' family started a GoFundMe to cover his funeral expenses.
A 54-year-old doctor from Detroit has been caught in a sickening sex act at the home of an elderly woman he met online.

Stephen Bruce Mason drove the 76-year-old woman home from a hair appointment on August 1. When she invited him inside - that is when things went awry.

Mason tried to make sexual advances towards his online amour, but when she rejected him he allegedly masturbated in front of her.

Mason was charged with assault, a 93-day misdemeanor, and aggravated indecent exposure, a two-year high-court misdemeanor, according to a release from the Macomb County Prosecutor's Office.

He was arraigned in Sterling Heights District Court and slapped with a $1,000 bond. On Thursday, he was scheduled for a probable cause conference.

When DailyMail.com contacted Dr. Mason, he said his attorney, Norbert Leonard, can speak on his behalf.

Stephen Bruce Mason allegedly masturbated in front of a woman, 76, he met online after she rejected his advances

Mason's office building located in Royal Oak, a suburb in Detroit, roughly 14 miles from downtown Detroit

However, Leonard was not available when DailyMail.com called him for comment.

Macomb County Prosecutor Peter J. Lucido said 'Our legal system does not discriminate based on profession or social standing.

'Whether you are a doctor or any other member of the community, the law applies equally to everyone,' he added.

'We are dedicated to pursuing justice impartially, ensuring that all individuals are held accountable for their actions.'

Mason's history shows a disturbing allegations of fraud, alcohol, and sexual misconduct, ClickonDetroit reported.

Mason was practicing family medicine in his home state of Indiana in 2005 when he was first being investigated by the state's medical licensing board.

The physician admitted to drinking alcohol in-between seeing patients, and his former staff claimed he solicited them for sex while inappropriately touching them.

He also had sexual contact with a patient, state officials reported, per the news outlet.

The physician was also accused of writing prescriptions for controlled substances in exchange for cash.

His license to practice medicine in Indiana was eventually revoked with the Indiana medical licensing board calling his behavior, part, 'lewd or immoral conduct.'

In 2011, he moved to Michigan, and started working with Lake MI Mobile Doctors USA, and making mobile visits to patients.

All was grand, until he and two other doctors got caught in a sweeping $1.7 million fraud scheme during an investigation by the FBI and Michigan Department of Health and Human Services

He and two doctors were billing Medicare for home visits that were not necessary or never took place.

Mason pleaded guilty to felony conspiracy to commit health care fraud. He was sentenced in 2017 to 18 months in prison and fined $50,000 by the state medical board.

Mason pictured at his new business Expert Opinion, LLC that he set up after serving time behind bars

After serving time behind bars, he launched Expert Opinion, LLC, located in Royal Oak, a suburb of Detroit, approximately 14 miles from the downtown ara.

On the website, he identifies himself as a 'family doctor,' dispensing medical advice.

A clerk at the Sterling Heights District Court told DalyMail.com, Mason's conference was adjourned until September 26 at 1pm.
Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan have been placed under house arrest in Romania for 30 days amid an investigation into claims of 'sex with a girl aged 15 and trafficking of a 17-year-old girl' to Britain who was then forced to 'perform sexual acts in order to produce pornographic material'.

The new investigation involves a total of 35 alleged victims, including a woman who was just 15 at the time. The alleged victims were all said to have been in an 'obvious state of vulnerability'.

The Tate brothers appeared in court on Thursday afternoon and prosecutors have now asked for them to be remanded in custody for 30 days while the investigation continues.

Andrew Tate, the divisive internet personality, made a furious statement to the press outside the court house, slamming the case as a 'stitch-up'.

He said: 'This is a set-up. It is absolutely disgusting. Thirty of those girls say we have done nothing wrong. Two are the mothers of our children.'

A spokesman for Andrew Tate confirmed that the pair had been placed under house arrest today and that the brothers 'salute the decision' but 'firmly deny all allegations leveled against them'.

Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan are escorted outside the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT), in Bucharest, Romania

Andrew Tate speaks to media outside Bucharest Tribunal after being placed under house arrest in Bucharest, Romania

It comes after the Tate brothers were among six people taken into custody in an investigation into human trafficking and sexual exploitation.

Romania's agency against organised crime, DIICOT, said in a statement that six people had been detained in total, including both Romanians and foreigners.

Police allege one of the defendants, who they said was a foreign citizen but did not name, had 'sexual relations' with a 15-year-old from December 2020.

The same defendant is also accused of forcing a 17-year-old to perform sexual acts, before pornographic material was sent out on various websites.

The man is alleged to have kept all the $1.5 million (1.1m) profit from the videos.

The alleged victim is said to have been 'misled' and housed in several locations across both Romania and the UK.

According to DIICOT, two of the accused used the 'loverboy' method, which involves convincing victims that they are in a romantic relationship, to force 34 victims into making pornography which they then sold online for proceeds of over $2.8 million and 887,000 tokens.

Two of the defendants are accused of buying luxury cars 'in the names of close people' to conceal that they were profiting from human trafficking, prosecutors allege.

It is not clear which of the charges apply to which of the six suspects.

Tate tweeted that the case against him is a mainstream 'conspiracy' to silence him.

A post on Tate's account on social media platform X this morning read: 'All they try to do is damage my name with complete bullshit', without specifying who was being referred to.

The brothers were detained last night, and this afternoon two men appeared in court in Bucharest

Tate posted on X this morning after being detained by Romanian police last night

In raids on Tate's property yesterday, DIICOT carried out 'insurance seizures' of 16 luxury cars and a motorbike

Romanian police said that a motorbike had been seized from Tate's property near Bucharest

DIICOT said it carried out 'insurance seizures' of 16 luxury cars and a motorbike

A spokesman for Andrew Tate said: 'Andrew Tate has been placed under house arrest and his brother, Tristan, under judiciary control in a decision issued by the judge at the Tribunal of Bucharest, today August 22nd, at 19.30.

'DIICOT had placed a request for 30 days preventative arrest for both brothers, but the judge has denied the request given the brothers' exemplary behaviour while previously under preventative measures.

'The Tates salute the decision and firmly deny all allegations leveled against them, emphasising that the accusations are baseless and unsupported by substantial evidence.

'They will continue to comply with the due course of justice and remain steadfast in proving their innocence.'
The White House issued a blistering statement Thursday following President Donald Trump's bizarre late night broadside calling Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro a 'highly overrated Jewish Governor.'

'It is Antisemitic, dangerous, and hurtful to attack a fellow American by calling out their Jewish faith in a derogatory way, or perpetuating the centuries-old smear of dual loyalty, said White House Principal Deputy Communications Director Herbie Ziskend in a statement issued to reporters.

'President Biden and Vice President Harris believe we must come together as Americans to condemn and combat Antisemitism  and hate and bigotry of all kind,' he said, in a comment that did not mention Trump specifically or explicitly identify the posting that prompted it.

It came after Trump tore into Shapiro for his speech at the Democratic National Convention, while identifying him by his religion and criticizing Harris and claiming she 'hates' Israel.

'The highly overrated Jewish Governor of the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro, made a really bad and poorly delivered speech talking about freedom and fighting for Comrade Kamala Harris for President, yet she hates Israel and will do nothing but make its journey through the complexities of survival as difficult as possible, hoping in the end that it will fail. Judge only by her actions! '

The White House blasted former President Donald Trump for labeling Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro a 'highly overrated Jewish Governor'

'Yet Shapiro, for strictly political reasons, refused to acknowledge that I am the best friend that Israel, and the Jewish people, ever had. I have done more for Israel than any President, and frankly, I have done more for Israel than any person, and its not even close. Shapiro has done nothing for Israel, and never will. Comrade Kamala Harris, the Radical Left Marxist who stole the nomination from Crooked Joe, will do even less. Israel is in BIG trouble!'

Trump's statement tried to stir the pot on a complex and controversial issue after Shapiro did not get into Middle East politics during his convention speech. Instead, he tried to link Harris' gauzy 'freedom' agenda to the nation's early principles and patriots.

'E Pluribus Unum You recognize this phrase from U.S. coins and the nations seal  out of many, one  its not merely a motto from the past, its our direction for the future. You see, you all give me hope and you all have the power,' said Shapiro.

The charismatic governor who got passed over for Tim Walz after being on Harris' vice presidential short list, declared in Philadelphia when Harris announced Tim Walz as her running mate, 'I am proud of my faith.'

Trump blasted out the statement on Truth Social at 12:09 AM, while Democrats were wrapping up Day Three of a convention featuring testimonials by Oprah Winfrey and Bill Clinton. It has more than 4,000 reposts and 15,000 likes.

The White House tore into the post, calling it antiSemitic and connecting it to the 'centuries-old smear of dual loyalty'

Trump called Shapiro an 'overrated Jewish Governor' in a late night post that the White House called antisemitic

Asked why Trump identified Shapiro by his faith, Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said 'Kamala Harris talks out of both sides of her mouth to appease Hamas sympathizers while Democrats have emboldened antisemitic protests on college campuses. In contrast, President Trump has stood firmly with Israel, our greatest ally in the Middle East, reaching many historic achievements like the Abraham Accords, moving the United States Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, eliminating Qasem Soleimani, ending the horrific Iran Nuclear Deal, as well as combatting anti-Semitism in America and abroad.'

Trump's comments came at a convention that has seen clashes and protests on the periphery, but not the major disruptions that organizers have feared. Protesters tried to unfurl a banner on the first day of the convention, and on Tuesday pro-Palestinian protesters clashed with police. The National Lawyers Guild said 72 people were arrested.

The convention featured emotional testimony by parents of 23-year old American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was kidnapped by Hamas terrorists from Israel.

And 'uncommitted' delegates complained Wednesday that their request for a Palestinian convention speaker had been denied.
An orange grove just outside Los Angeles that's been around for 100 years will likely be wiped out in favor of multi-million dollar single family homes.

Now just 14 acres, the Bothwell Ranch is than less one-thousandth the size it once was, before San Fernando Valley was populated with houses and commercial buildings. It is the last commercial orange grove in the valley.

The ranch itself, named for famed agriculturalist Lindley Bothwell who bought the farmland in 1926, is already surrounded on all sides by houses and all the normal trappings of suburbia.

Loren Borstein of Borstein Enterprises is the man behind the plan to rip up the majority of the orange grove and build 21 two-story homes.

And following a public hearing on Wednesday to collect comments from critics, Henry Chu, the city zoning administrator for the project, signaled that he's inclined to approve the proposed development within a few weeks, The Los Angeles Times reported.

Pictured: The Bothwell Ranch, which used to be 100 acres, is now down to 14 acres after the family that owned it for decades gradually sold off pieces of the farmland

Based on the current development plan, 215 existing citrus trees will remain

The fate of the Bothwell Ranch has been in limbo since 2019, when the Bothwell heirs listed the property for sale for $15 million.

There was a years-long community effort to preserve the ranch, culminating in an unsuccessful petition.

One local wrote on the desperate bid: 'Don't destroy the last of the historic orange groves that were dominate before civilization took over and destroyed everything.

'SAVE THE ORANGE GROVE!!'

Another said: 'It's important to preserve these small enclaves of nature,' while a third added: 'I work across at the school across the street from the grove and it makes me smile every day.

'I can smell the orange blossoms and know its giving life to every one of my students and colleagues, my daughter, and myself. We need trees, and Im so tired of whole forests, groves, and rainforests just being mowed down for profit.'

A fourth angry local said: 'Save the orchards, we need the trees stop the greed to build more condos.'

Loren Borstein applied to redevelop the Bothwell Ranch after Borstein Enterprises bought the land

Los Angeles City Councilman Bob Blumenfield also sprung into action, and initiated a bid to designate the roughly 2,000 trees on the property as a city historical monument.

The Bothwell trustees then threatened that if the city made the ranch a monument without advancing an adequate purchase offer, they'd kill all the orange trees by purposely cutting off the water supply, The Real Deal reported.

Blumenfield said he tried to work with his fellow legislator to scrape together enough money to buy the ranch, but they weren't even able to come up with sufficient funds to buy a portion of the land.

Another blow was dealt to the movement to save this land when the LA City Council ruled the site didn't legally qualify as a monument on June 28, 2022.

Once Borstein Enterprises bought the ranch, Blumenfield announced he'd reached a deal with the new owners and the the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority to preserve a third of it.

An overhead view of what's remaining of the Bothwell Ranch. It is surrounded by single family homes, and if the Borstein development plan is approved, 21 more homes will uproot many of the orange trees

Pictured: A row of orange trees on the Bothwell Ranch

Based on the current plan, 215 existing citrus trees will remain. The MCRA will manage the site for educational purposes.

'While I wish there was a way to save the entire Bothwell Ranch, with this partnership we can save a large amount of it to be run by one of the best land preservation organizations in the country,' Blumenfield said.

When the citrus orchard was bought by the Bothwell patriarch in 1926, it was 100 acres in size. Bit by bit, the family sold off pieces of the lands but maintained a farming operation until Ann Bothwell died in 2016.

If LA City Planning approves the plan, what was once countless rows of orange trees will be replaced by a new, hip suburban community called Oakdale Estates.

The residences will have 'cool' roofs to reduce heat reflection into the atmosphere and new street infrastructure to recycle rainwater to irrigate landscaping and the remaining orange trees.

One critic at the Wednesday public hearing argued that more than a third of the Bothwell Ranch should be preserved

Young orange trees are pictured in 1902 where the Arlington Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles is today. Over 75,000 people live in Arlington Heights as of 2022

Designs for the homes suggest they'll resemble modern farmhouses and will feature Spanish architecture.

Jeff Bornstein, a longtime San Fernando Valley resident, attended Wednesday's public meeting and criticized the development.

'We have very little that marks our heritage of the past in the west San Fernando Valley,' he said. 'We need to save a lot more of these trees.'

The late Ann Bothwell, the last person to manage the land as a farm, had an inkling back in 1998 that residential development may eventually overwhelm her little orange grove.

'We're overrun,' she told a reporter at the time. 'But you can't stand in the middle of Ventura Boulevard and say, "Stop!"'
Nearly 10,000 members have abandoned the SNP in the last year as the mass exodus from the party gathers pace.

The latest SNP accounts published yesterday show the party had 64,525 members at the start of June this year, which is down compared to 73,938 last June.

It is a far cry from the peak from five years ago when it had 125,000 paid-up members.

The decline is a major blow for the party, which says it is hugely dependent on the activities of the members.

The cash-strapped party returned to surplus after taking more money from its local branches.

SNP membership peaked at 125,000 during Nicola Sturgeon's reign as leader

It managed to return to surplus in 2023, when it raised 681,568 more than it spent, compared to a 804,278 deficit the previous year.

But it was hugely dependent on withholding 670,084 of payments which would normally be paid to local branches but were instead retained by the central party.

It also ran up a 167,505 bill on legal fees, only slightly down on 178,789 in 2022, and still owes 60,000 to former chief executive Peter Murrell, who was charged in connection to the embezzlement of funds from the party. The accounts state that the loan was used for working capital purposes and is repayable on demand with no interest charged.

Scottish Conservative chairman Craig Hoy said: These latest set of accounts continue to raise serious questions for the SNP.

They are astonishingly still in debt to the tune of 60,000 to their disgraced former chief executive Peter Murrell. It is now three years since they made any repayment on that loan. The SNP must explain why they have not severed all ties with him and when they are going to do the right thing and pay this money back.

Auditors also again raised concerns over the partys bookkeeping in relation to how they documented income that was received through membership and fundraisers, which is highly irregular and meant they could only provide a qualified audit.

The SNP must be fully transparent over their finances as a matter of urgency, rather than typically keeping the public in the dark.

The accounts state that the party had net assets of 441,939 at the end of last year, compared to net liabilities of 219,929 the previous year.

Accounting for the decline in membership, SNP national treasurer Stuart McDonald said: The SNP remains a party whose most significant source of income is our members and supporters - and this is always reflected in our accounts.

We are grateful for every member and supporter for their contributions without which the party could not make the case for Scottish independence.

The SNP still owes 60,000 to former chief executive Peter Murrell, who was charged in connection to the embezzlement of funds from the party

The number of members as of 1st June 2024 was 64,525. Our membership has fallen from recent historic highs.

'This impacts not only on membership income, but on donations and fundraising income too.

Total income from legacies left to the party in 2023 was 274,408.

However, the accounts state that this income has not actually been received and that there remain significant outstanding sums from legacies notified in previous years, making up the large majority of the 557,137 accrued income showing as current assets.

Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie said: Its clear for all to see that the SNP is deep in financial chaos.

As outstanding bills are left unpaid, the SNP is facing an exodus of party members and dwindling numbers of donors.

The simple fact is that the people of Scotland no longer view the tired, scandal-ridden and incompetent SNP as a serious party of government.

Only Scottish Labour is ready to replace the SNP, clean up our politics and deliver the change Scotland needs.
Vice President Kamala Harris makes a surprise appearance on the first evening of the DNC at the United Center in Chicago on Aug. 19, 2024. Yalonda M. James/The Chronicle

CHICAGO  A short biographical video played between speakers at the Democratic National Convention this week. It showed the house where Kamala Harris grew up, the street she lived on and photos of her as a child.

But it didnt mention two words integral to Harris life: Oakland, where she was born, or Berkeley, where she grew up. Instead, it said she grew up in the generic-sounding East Bay.

As Harris prepares to introduce herself to many Americans Thursday as she officially accepts the Democratic nomination for president, the omission raises the question of whether national Democrats fear that Berkeley and Oakland are a little too California for the few hundred thousand swing voters in seven battleground states likely to decide the election between Harris and Donald Trump. No California Democrat has ever been elected president, while two Republicans  Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon  have.

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Its a fear rooted in the belief that Berkeley conjuries up dusty images of 1960s demonstrators at the same time that former President Donald Trump is trying to brand Harris as a communist and a radical.

It also reflects concerns that mentioning Oakland could enable Republicans to link Harris to its high crime rate and thousands of homeless people who are living on the streets, giving them the chance to paint her as weak on crime.

For decades, Harris has introduced herself as a proud daughter of California who was born in Kaiser hospital in Oakland and gives shout-outs to teachers at Thousand Oaks Elementary School in Berkeley. She launched her ill-fated 2000 presidential campaign at a rally near Oakland City Hall before more than 20,000 supporters.

Then-Sen. Kamala Harris launches her 2020 presidential campaign at a rally at Frank Ogawa Plaza in Oakland on Jan. 27, 2019. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle

Yet Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, who is always laser-focused on the raw politics of what it takes to win races, hinted at the concerns that some battleground state voters may harbor when she urged Harris to govern from the center.

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She knows governance has to be from the center in our country, and when shes putting forth her priorities, they have to be in a way that is unified, Pelosi told the California delegation at a breakfast meeting earlier this week.

Pelosi also encouraged Harris to embrace a message that is bold, progressive and not menacing. Her hope is that the mix unites all of the partys factions.

Asked what a menacing message might be, Pelosi recalled campaigning recently in Michigan. What works in Michigan works in San Francisco. What works in San Francisco might not work in Michigan, Pelosi said.

Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi speaks on the third night of the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Aug. 21, 2024. Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle

San Jose Rep. Zoe Lofgren, who chairs the California congressional delegation, said that because we're so successful, sometimes people resent us. But, I don't think that will happen to her. She is very down to earth, and I think that just comes across to people, she said.

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Harris is expected to embrace her background Thursday as a quintessential American  and California  story about the child of two immigrant parents rising from middle-class beginnings to the doorstep of the nations highest office, according to sources familiar with her plans who asked not to be identified so that they can speak freely.

The California Democratic Party has zero qualms about embracing its hometown candidate. The delegations late-night party Wednesday at the House of Blues was filled with Harris image over the words daughter of California on everything from massive posters to buttons.

Top California Democrats urged Harris to embrace her ties to the state.

Rep. Barbara Lee, who has represented Oakland and the East Bay for more than two decades, said that Harris wants to end childhood poverty. She wants to grow the middle class. She wants to make sure that housing is affordable. Is that radical? That seems to be what every American deserves.

Lee said she understands why Republicans love to bash California, but I know the public is smarter than that, and they know that they're just desperate.

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Member of Congress and senatorial candidate Barbara Lee at Prescott Elementary School in Oakland, CA wearing a necklace with a photo of her mother and her I Voted sticker after casting her vote on March 1st, 2024. Adahlia Cole/Special to The Chronicle

San Francisco Mayor London Breed said Harris should embrace every part of her background and California experience as district attorney and attorney general. Like the Back on Track program that Harris started as San Franciscos top prosecutor that connected ex-offenders with education and services to reduce recidivism.

She basically changed the conversation around criminal justice reform with the work that she did with Back on Track, Breed said, and that has become a model for how to provide second chances to people.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said California isnt as toxic as some Democrats who live in other parts of the country may fear.

I think we need to kind of get over that. California's California, Bass said. I don't think we should ever run from who we are and where we were raised.

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Civil rights activist Dolores Huerta, second from left, and California attorney general Rob Bonta cheer with other delegates on the third night of the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday August 21, 2024. Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle

Labor leader Dolores Huerta had no qualms about playing into concerns about Californias liberal policies.

Hey California, what is our job? Our job is to go out there and take our blue  from our blue state of California  and take it to all of the other states, she told the states delegates Monday.
Controversial plans to hit tourists visiting Scotlands capital with a new tax have taken a significant step forward despite warnings it would be deeply damaging for the economy.

City councillors in Edinburgh yesterday agreed key details of the draft scheme which will force visitors staying in Edinburgh to pay a transient visitor levy.

It is hoped the charge - a five per cent fee on hotels, self-catering accommodation and rooms and properties through websites like AirBnB - will eventually raise 50million a year for the cash strapped council.

Edinburgh is on track to be the first local authority in Scotland to charge the tax, and will see it join the ranks of other major destinations like New York and Amsterdam to impose a fee on visitors.

But there have been warnings about the unintended consequences of the scheme.

Edinburgh could be the first city in Scotland to impose a tourist tax

The city has become a battleground for short-term accommodation

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Leon Thompson, executive director of UK Hospitality Scotland, warned it would increase costs for both visitors and businesses in Edinburgh and urged the tax to be kept at a reasonable minimum.

And Miles Briggs, of the Scottish Conservatives, said it would be a bitter blow for businesses who are already facing a huge tax burden.

The Lothian MSP said: This new levy could well put off visitors coming to Edinburgh - which would be deeply damaging for our economy - and the Scottish Conservatives continue to oppose it.

But Labour council leader Cammy Day insisted it presented an innovative way of sustaining the sector and the city.

The vote in favour of the draft proposals happened at a meeting of the policy and sustainability committee yesterday.

A 12-week consultation period is set to be launched, with the final scheme expected to be agreed in January next year.

From then an 18-month implementation period will begin, with the current timetable set out by the council expecting the charge to be in place by the 2026 festival season.

Council accountants have estimated a five per cent levy will rake in as much as 130 million for the local authority over its first three years of operation.

By the 2028-29 financial year, they estimated, it would bring in as much as 50m for the cash strapped local authority.

But councillors were warned of potential financial risks, with a report highlighting: Changes in visitor behaviours (such as a decline in the number of visitors staying in Edinburgh and the number of nights they stay) may impact levy revenue.

And it is estimated it will cost 650,000 to implement a visitor levy in the capital, and then up to 970,000 a year to run.

The levy will see a flat five per cent charge per night, with the fee capped at seven consecutive nights.

The City of Edinburgh Council said the money raised would be put into improvements in the capital, including affordable housing and marketing and support for major events.

Mr Briggs branded it a harmful tourist tax and said: Only last month did the owner of the capitals Balmoral Hotel warn it would be bad for jobs and bad for economic growth, but they have failed to heed his stark warnings.

Critics say the levy will come as a bitter blow for businesses who are already facing a huge tax burden

At a time when tourism businesses are already facing a huge tax burden, this is another bitter blow for them.

During the council meeting yesterday Green members pushed for an eight per cent rate, but this failed.

However, the five per cent rate can be changed ahead of its introduction.

Mr Thompson, executive director of UK Hospitality Scotland, said: Its concerning that an even higher levy had been proposed than the five per cent in the draft scheme.

I would urge extreme caution against setting the levy at a level which could tip the balance towards this scheme having a detrimental impact to Edinburghs reputation as a leading destination.

Other organisations, including the Edinburgh Hotels Associations, welcomed the introduction of the charge.

Mr Day said last night: It will significantly increase our ability to invest in the visitor experience and the tourism pressures we face, from keeping the city clean to responding to our housing emergency, so that everyone can continue to enjoy all that the city has to offer.

This is a once in a generation opportunity for Edinburgh and I look forward to the many benefits a visitor levy will bring, allowing us to reinvest tens of millions of pounds in sustaining and improving the things that make our city so special - for our visitors and residents who live here all year round.
Kamala Harris' acceptance speech on Thursday night will be the biggest moment of her political career.

Her speech will cap off a week of high-profile remarks, particularly from black women. Michelle Obama spoke on Tuesday and Oprah Winfrey on Wednesday. Both gave memorial speeches that are still be talked about.

Will Harris be able to top them?

Harris is feeling the pressures. She has held rehearsals complete with teleprompters in three different time zones, the New York Times reported.

Kamala Harris accepts the Democratic nomination for president on Thursday evening

Her aides have made it clear to convention staff that they don't want any of the timing issues that have pushed the night's top speaker out of prime time, Politico reported.

President Joe Biden started nearly an hour after prime time ended on the East Coast. Tim Walz started 20 minutes after prime time.

And mistakes will not be tolerated.

'They better not even think about cutting her damn video like they did President Biden's,' one of her aides told the outlet.

Harris, on July 21st, had to quickly pivot from being the running mate to being at the top of the ticket after Joe Biden exited the presidential race.

Biden endorsed her and, within a week, she had wrapped up the delegates votes to secure the nomination.

She took on most of Biden's campaign staff and organization, bringing in a few of her own people and some Barack Obama alum.

When she speaks on Thursday evening, it will be her 10th anniversary with her husband Doug Emhoff. And it will mark 75 days until the November election.

For many Americans, this will be the first time seeing Harris giving a long speech. She is not know for her soaring rhetoric but gained national attention when she used her prosecutor skills to question Donald Trump's judicial nominees. Many clips of her questions went viral on social media.

While she has perfected a stump speech to Democratic supporters  with well-received lines like how she knows men like Donald Trump  she hasn't made a general speech to the nation.

Her remarks focus on three key objectives as she makes her pitch to become the next president of the United States.

She will share her personal story; contrast her vision for the future with Trump's; and talk about her optimism for the future, the campaign said.

Her remarks will include talking about her childhood, including being raised by a working mother in a middle-class neighborhood.

Her attacks on Trump will focus on the Project 2025 agenda, which Democrats are using as a boogeyman against the former president.

Michelle Obama addressed the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday

Oprah Winfrey surprised delegates with her appearance on Wednesday

Ultimately, Harris ill pitch herself as a president for all Americans.

Harris has focused her campaign message on one of joy, a theme that carried over to the Democratic convention, which has featured uplifting speeches and musical performances.

The joy will continue on Thursday when The Chicks sing the National Anthem.

'Sometimes, when you are a sitting office holder, you don't always have the opportunity to be out there and tell people the elements of your life as you're making decisions day in and day out,' Harris campaign chair Jen O'Mally Dillon said Wednesday at the CNN-Politico Grill.

'This opportunity we have right now is to not just say who she is and who she's been fighting for, but how those values and her life's work has led to this point and led her to be the partner she's been to the president, and to be the kind of individual leader she's going to be moving forward.'

Harris did not attend the convention on Wednesday night. Instead she watched the speeches from her hotel room, practiced her own remarks and rested her voice.
A doctor facing child abuse allegations examined children without a chaperone - despite health chiefs knowing he was not allowed on his own with them.

Dr Carey Girling was banned from contact with anyone under 18 without a colleague being present while police investigated claims he had made indecent images of children.

But a tribunal found the locum doctor was able to examine children unsupervised on several occasions while employed at Belford Hospital in Fort William.

He was later convicted of making indecent photographs of children.

NHS Highland yesterday said it was Girling who was responsible for ensuring he followed the conditions placed on him.

Dr Carey Girling examined young patients without a chaperone despite being banned from unsupervised contact with anyone under 18

His failure to abide by the restrictions only came to light when a nurse raised concerns that Girling had held consultations with young patients unsupervised.

The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) yesterday found that Girling flouted the restrictions between March 20 and 27, 2022 while working in the hospitals emergency department.

The restrictions - put in place after Girling was arrested in November 2020 - required him to keep an adequate log detailing his consultations and have the chaperone sign this.

However, when asked to provide evidence to show he had stuck to the rules, Girling lied and claimed fellow health workers had been present during the examination of seven children.

When the staff he listed were asked about this they said the details were false.

He also said parents and/or guardians had been present but the MPTS said it received no evidence confirming this.

The tribunal heard that an email from a senior charge nurse at the hospital to the General Medical Council (GMC) stated no one in the Emergency Department was aware that he required a chaperone or required to have a log completed.

The medical hearing comes after Girling was convicted at Cambridge Crown Court on June 23 last year of making indecent photographs of children.

Of the images found in his possession, 28 fell under the most serious category.

He initially pleaded not guilty in January 2023 before admitting his guilt that June.

He was ordered to attend rehabilitation, carry out 200 hours of unpaid work and register with the police.

He also has to comply with a sexual prevention order until August 3, 2028.

The MPTS has now ruled the paedophiles fitness to practise is impaired by reason of his misconduct and his criminal conviction. His sanction has yet to be decided.

NHS Highland said Girling had clear guidance to follow to maintain compliance with the conditions and that he was responsible for following them.

A spokesman added: When a concern was raised to the leadership team, immediate action was taken to suspend any further locum shifts and we communicated to the GMC that he was in breach of his conditions.

It is the action taken by NHS Highland that has resulted in this further tribunal being undertaken.
An escaped prisoner was placed back behind bars today after he was caught plotting to blow up a seaside branch of the HSBC because he watched a Netflix 'expose' about the banking giant from his hideout that 'enraged' him.

Convicted armed robber Alan Murphy, 62, had been living in secrecy in a caravan off the coast of Blackpool for eight months after disappearing during day release from HMP Sudbury.

But he blew his cover when he logged onto Netflix and watched the series 'Dirty Money' which detailed how HSBC laundered millions of dollars for Mexican and Columbian drug lords as well as terrorist groups.

He was said to be so angry at the revelations of the episode 'Cartel Bank' that he made a pipebomb which he threatened to detonate at his local HSBC in Blackpool.

Police caught Murphy by chance in a routine check whilst he was at a soup kitchen where he confessed to having a a gun and an improvised explosive device (IED) in his bag.

Convicted armed robber Alan Murphy, 62, was placed back behind bars today

The prisoner escaped during day release from HMP Sudbury in March 2020

Everyone within 300-feet of the area was evacuated while a specialist team from Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service conducted tests on the contents of the bag.

It included a modified BB pistol, an improvised shotgun made from a 12-inch wooden handle and two metal tubes plus cigarette lighters, a firework, air rifle pellets and a kitchen knife.

Officers seized the contents along with a prewritten note for the bank which outlined his demands for bank cards and a threat that he would detonate the IED if they did not comply.

He later said he only intended to damage property and cars that belonged to bank employees but did not want to hurt anyone.

He said he had been enraged by the Netflix programme which told how HSBC paid a $1.9 billion fine in 2012 to avoid prosecution for allowing at least $881 million in proceeds from the sale of illegal drugs.

The 2018 documentary said in addition to facilitating money laundering by drug cartels, evidence was found that HSBC moved money for Saudi banks tied to terrorist groups.

Even though federal investigators found evidence 'that senior bank officials were complicit in the illegal activity,' no HSBC executives faced charges for their actions.

At Preston Crown Court, Murphy formerly of Bolton was jailed for 15 years after he admitted possession of an explosive substance, possession of an imitation firearm and having a knife.

He was cleared of possession of an explosive substance with intent to endanger life.

Murphy was planning to blow up a seaside branch of the HSBC (pictured) in Blackpool using an improvised explosive device

Tom Snape, Senior Crown Prosecutor for CPS North West, said today: 'Alan Murphy is a dangerous man who planned to carry out a terrifying bomb attack on a bank and its staff.

'It is fortunate officers attended that day and then acted swiftly to prevent Murphy carrying out his plan, which could have had devastating consequences.

'I hope this conviction and sentence provides some reassurance that this man has now been brought to justice.

'We will continue to work closely with the police to do all we can to ensure the safety of our communities.'

Murphy has been locked up since 2008 for an indeterminate period for firearms offences.

He had previously been jailed in 2002 for six years following armed robberies at three shops.

Murphy has escaped prison before in 2013 from HMP Kirkham.

He went on to carry out two attempted armed raids in Bolton just weeks later using an imitation shotgun, using the weapon to threaten staff at Betfred and A&K Grocers in Halliwell in June 2013.

Betfred staff fled to a back room and people working at the corner shop 'bundled' him out of the premises.

He was arrested three days later when he tried to steal a pack of lager from a Morrisons store and in September that year he was sentenced to a further eight years behind bars.

But in March 2020 Murphy escaped from HMP Sudbury after he disappeared whilst on day release.

The bomb plot was exposed the following November when he was traced to the soup kitchen.

Prosecutors said he initially gave a false name but his real identity was confirmed following a fingerprint scan.

Murphy attempted to blow up the a branch of the HSBC after watching the Netflix documentary Dirty Money

It is not known why it took almost four years for the case to come to court.

Murphy is expected to serve a minimum two thirds of his sentence but will be on licence until 2044 under the terms of an extended sentence.

Dirty Money was said to be among the most highly rated documentaries in Netflix's history and the series has a 100 per cent rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
The United States Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that Arizona must enforce part of its voting measures requiring proof of citizenship documentation to register to vote just months before the November election.

The decision is victory for Republicans after the state party and Republican National Committee took its request to the country's highest court.

The justices ruled 5-4 to reinstate a provision of the state's voting laws after a federal judge blocked it in response to a challenge by the Biden administration and advocacy groups.

It comes as voters head to the polls on November 5 to cast ballots in the presidential election between Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump, who continues to falsely claim he won Arizona in 2020. Biden won the state by less than 12,000 votes.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Arizona must enforce part of its voting laws requiring proof of citizenship which could impact thousands of would-be-voters

Chief Justice John Roberts joined fellow conservative Justices Brett Kavanaugh, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch to grant part of the Republicans' request. Thomas, Alito and Gorsuch signaled they would have granted the entire request.

Conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett joined liberal Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson. They would have denied the full request.

The decision could have a major impact on thousands of would-be-voters in a state that is considered one of the biggest battlegrounds in the country.

In 2022, Arizona's Republican-controlled legislature adopted new restrictions on voter registrations as GOP legislatures across the country made changes to voting laws following the 2020 election.

The law requires applicants to submit a federal registration form to provide evidence of U.S. citizenship to vote in the presidential election or vote by mail in all federal elections. Those who use a separate state-created form have even more restrictions.

Without proof of citizenship, applications are rejected, and officials who do not reject them could face a felony charge.

The Supreme Court ruled part of the law related to the state voter registration form must be enforced.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled the state must enforce the part of the law requiring proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote using the state form. The court kept provisions preventing people from voting in the presidential election or by mail without proof if they used a separate federal form to register blocked

The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 to reinstate a provision of the state's voting laws with five conservative justices in the majority. Justice Amy Coney Barrett joined liberal justices in the dissent

But the court kept on hold other provisions preventing people from voting in the presidential election or by mail without proof of citizenship if they used a separate federal form to register.

The RNC had requested the court reinstate the ban on registered voters casting ballots in the presidential election or by mail if they didn't provide proof of citizenship even if they used the federal form to register which does not require it.

State officials, including Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, had declined to enforce the law.

He has said many of the 40,000 people registered to vote only in federal elections were students, service members and Native Americans who didn't have birth certificates on hand when registering.
Murdo Frasers doomed bid to become Tory leader without a contest ended in humiliation yesterday.

Mr Fraser was accused of a stitch-up after plotting with fellow candidates to back him for the top job in a coronation.

But his ambitions lay in tatters last night after his extraordinary call for other candidates to drop out so he could become leader unopposed was roundly rejected.

The attempted power grab was described as utter nonsense and baffling by a major Tory party donor.

And opposition parties mocked the bungled takeover bid, insisting Mr Fraser was a serial election loser who had even managed to lose a coronation.

Murdo Fraser (centre), flanked by backers Liam Kerr (left) and Jamie Greene at the launch of his leadership bid in Perth

Frontrunner Russell Findlay immediately rebuffed the request to stand down yesterday by insisting grassroots activists deserved a fair and positive contest.

He said: Ive always been opposed to a coronation, of myself or anyone else. Our members should decide the next leader. Not any small group of people at Holyrood.

Fellow candidate and former Tory deputy leader Meghan Gallacher declared: We need a contest.

Mr Fraser launched his official campaign in Perth yesterday with a bombshell appeal to succeed Douglas Ross without a fight.

He said members had endured too much power concentrated in too few hands and vowed to give them a bigger say in party affairs.

But he then urged Mr Russell and Ms Gallacher to drop out and gift him the leadership unopposed, denying the membership a vote.

Asked if was proposing that he be coronated as party leader, he replied: Yes.

It led to scathing criticism from fellow Conservatives left furious at the attempt to commandeer the party leadership process.

Scots care home millionaire Dr Robert Kilgour, who has donated more than 400,000 to the Tories and backed Mr Fraser for leader in 2011, said: It is really quite bizarre to angrily demand a coronation.

Im not sure what Murdo was thinking with this piece of utter nonsense.

Its a baffling move that seems to have instantly backfired. Members want a say, they dont want to be shut out of the process and denied a voice.

A genuine contest about the issues and new ideas is what I want to see and I believe most members feel the same way.

The Mail revealed yesterday that Mr Fraser and three other MSP candidates had been dubbed the Gang of Four as they appeared to be working together to get him elected.

On Tuesday, one of the group, Brian Whittle, dropped out and instantly backed Mr Fraser.

Two others, Liam Kerr and Jamie Greene, then appeared at Mr Frasers launch to endorse him, claiming they only made the decision in the closing 24 hours.

Mr Fraser tried to use the endorsements to paint a picture of unstoppable momentum.

Urging his rivals to prioritise unity after recent infighting, he said: There is space in this team for more. We as a party can spend another five weeks shouting at each other.

Or we can end it. We can end it now and, as a team of MSPs working on behalf of our members, take back control of our party.

And so today I say to both Meghan Gallacher and Russell Findlay, lets bring this sorry chapter to a close. Come and join this team. Show our members and the country that we understand their frustration. That we have responded to their deep concerns.

But, like his plan for a breakaway Scottish party that saw him lose the leadership to Ruth Davidson 13 years ago, the scheme rapidly backfired.

Dr Kilgour said: This plotting by the so-called Gang of Four to try and stitch up the contest has failed. A coronation is not at all what party members, including myself, want.

I supported Murdos leadership bid back in 2011. But today I firmly believe that Russell Findlay is the man for the job.

Former Tory MP and MSP Ross Thomson added: No candidate is entitled to the party leadership, regardless of what they might think.

The leadership of our party should be earned and our hardworking grassroots members have the right to be heard, to have their say and make their choice.

Former Scots Tory MP Paul Masterton said it was a bold choice for a candidate to argue party members should have more of a say except in this leadership contest, where I should be appointed without them expressing any views whatsoever.

Russell Findlay has refused to step aside to allow Mr Fraser to take the leadership uncontested

Ms Gallacher said: I intend to stand and win by restoring trust, giving members a voice, and focusing on bringing in the next generation of Scottish Conservatives.

Veteran SNP MP Pete Wishart joked that Mr Fraser, who he defeated in the 2001 general election, was a serial electoral flop who could even lose a coronation.

In his campaign pitch, Mr Fraser said change was a matter of survival for the Scottish Tories given its general election reverses and the feuding seen in the leadership race.

The former deputy leader said he had been in the party longer than the other candidates combined, and so had the experience to unite it before the 2026 Holyrood election.

Asked how long he had been working with other candidates to tee up endorsements, Mr Fraser said: These are all friends and weve all been having conversations. But it was only in the last 24 hours that it all came together.

Mr Kerr and Mr Greene denied being paper candidates.

Asked if it was hypocritical and arrogant to seek a coronation while advocating more influence for party members, Mr Fraser said: No, its not. I dont think what weve seen over the last few weeks has painted our party in a particularly great light. And I think we should be turning our fire on our real opponents in the SNP and Labour are not on each other.

And asked about his plan for a Commission to review party structure - seen by critics as a Trojan Horse to revive his breakaway outfit idea - he said members werent ready for a split at the moment and it would be for them to approve any change by a two-thirds majority.
Construction workers carried out deliberate sabotage of Scotlands superhospital by blocking drainpipes, causing sewage to leak into wards, an inquiry heard yesterday.

The dramatic claim came from a former NHS estates manager who said his team faced continual firefighting at the new Queen Elizabeth University Hospital campus after it opened in 2015.

Former NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Estates manager Ian Powrie was giving evidence to the Scottish Hospitals Inquiry.

The probe, chaired by Lord Brodie KC, is examining whether infections in patients at the 840million hospital campus in Glasgow, are linked to problems in its construction, ventilation and water supply.

Speaking about the pressures he faced after the handover of the building from construction firm Multiplex to the NHS, Mr Powrie said: I did raise concerns on several occasions during one-to-one meetings with my line manager regarding my inability to effectively perform my job function and that of my team due the high pressure of continual firefighting of critical issues on a daily basis.

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Estates manager Ian Powrie claimed construction workers deliberately sabotaged the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital

He said this included sewage coming into the hospital because of blockages in the water system.

Some of this was coming from building debris in the main underground drains, which was flooding into the ground floor adults and childrens departments including A&E.

But he also said that there were blockages in the system serving other areas that had been caused deliberately and led to sewage coming into the wards, onto the floors and up through sinks.

He said: The blockages were not evident until the system was challenged by routine activity.

The cause of these blockages was found to be deliberate sabotage by Multiplex contractor staff who had their contracts terminated.

We found bags full of rags pushed in to the stacks with lengths of screwed rods as well as plastic bottles, tools and other obstacles.

He said this was one of a number of issues facing the estates team as they settled into the new building. Others were problems with the window blinds, with patients unable to use them properly, and they had to be replaced. Shower wet rooms were not draining properly.

He added: I was concerned about the workload placed on such a small team with respect to the high volume of contract defects and systemic system issues.

Mr Powrie also said he had been concerned about the length of time between the hospitals water system being filled and the campus being handed over from the contractors to the health board, which was nine months.

He continued: I was concerned over the risk of water stagnation especially in a system of this size and complexity.

I recall suggesting chemical treatment, but was advised guidance states new well engineered systems should not need chemical treatment.

On hot days, a problem emerged with the ventilation system which meant high humidity caused condensation in the system and drops of water fell from the ceiling onto the floors of wards. This meant patients in Ward 2A, the childrens cancer ward, had to be relocated to avoid the risk of infection until the system could be rectified.

The Inquiry was also told concerns were raised about flow regulators in taps following an outbreak of illness among young babies in Northern Ireland, some of whom died, and guidance recommended they should be removed.

The site had around 2,500 Horne taps, which deliver water at a safe temperature to reduce the risk of scalding.

Lord Brodie, said: In 2015 there was a question as to whether Horne taps should be used because of the experience in the Belfast hospital.

Blockages caused deliberately in the hospital's system led to sewage coming into the wards, onto the floors and up through sinks

The issue was that this particular tap design was associated with accumulation of infection.

This was recognised in Glasgow in 2015.

Between 2015 and 2018 the problem simply was not addressed.

Families of those whose deaths are linked to potential construction and maintenance issues at the QEUH which began admitting patients in April 2015 are hoping to get some answers from the inquiry.

There were infections linked to sink, drains and showers in paediatric cancer wards between 2015 and 2018.

Among the fatalities is leukaemia patient Milly Main, 10, who died after suffering toxic shock in 2017 when a line to administer drugs intravenously became contaminated with bacteria typically found in water, plants or soil.

A spokesperson for Multiplex said yesterday: Mr Powries evidence in the public inquiry will be responded to in the fullness of time.

'It would not be appropriate for Multiplex to comment further at this stage. The Inquiry continues.
The DNC has denied pro-Gaza activists their request for a Palestinian-American to get a chance to spread their message on the main stage.

That has invited in a sea of outcry from progressives including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.

'Just as we must honor the humanity of hostages, so too must we center the humanity of the 40,000 Palestinians killed under Israeli bombardment. To deny that story is to participate in the dehumanization of Palestinians,' said AOC.

'The [DNC] must change course and affirm our shared humanity,' the progressive New Yorker wrote on X.

But during her primetime address on Tuesday, Ocasio-Cortez had told the crowd of Vice President Kamala Harris: 'She is working tirelessly to secure a ceasefire in Gaza and bringing the hostages home.'

The DNC has denied pro-Gaza activists their request for a Palestinian-American to get a chance to spread their message on the main stage - and invited in a sea of outcry from progressives up to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez , D-N.Y.

The demands for a Palestinian voice reached a fever pitch on Thursday ahead of Harris' headline address.

Progressives had wanted Palestinian Georgia state lawmaker Ruwa Romman to represent their cause in front of the cameras.

The DNC on Tuesday heard from Rachel Goldberg-Polin and Jon Polin, parents of American-Israeli hostage Hersh Polin, and they paid lip service to the Palestinian cause as they begged for a hostage deal in a heart-wrenching call for action.

'At this moment, 109 treasured human beings are being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza,' Goldberg said.

'They are Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists. They are from 23 different countries. The youngest hostage is a 1-year-old red-headed baby boy and the oldest is an 86-year-old mustachioed grandpa. Among the hostages are eight American citizens. One of those Americans is our only son. His name is Hersh.'

'In our Jewish tradition, we say every person is an entire universe,' said Polin.

'We must save all these universes. In an inflamed Middle East, we now the one thing that can most immediately release pressure and bring hope to the entire region, a deal that brings this diverse group of 109 hostages home and ends the suffering of the innocent civilians in Gaza. The time is now.'

Demonstrators rally in protest over the war in Gaza near the United Center where the Democratic National Convention (DNC) is taking place on August 21, 2024

Demonstrators march as the DNC takes place in Chicago

Palestinian advocates have been demanding one of their own take the main stage

'Rachel and Jon deserved every second on that stage. I also believe a Palestinian American voice deserves to be heard on that stage. I'd love to hear from [Romman] and I hope the DNC will give her the chance to be heard,' said Israeli-American Alana Zeitchik, who had six family members taken hostage on October 7, said on X.

'Rep. Ruwa is a Democratic leader who has been working to keep Georgia blue and elect VP Harris. She would be a unifying speaker for peace,' said Rep. Maxwell Frost, 27-year-old Democrat from Florida who will make his main stage debut on Thursday evening.

'Ive had some pretty crushing days, but to be honest today took the cake. I do not understand how theres room for an anti choice Republican but not me in our party. I need someone to explain to me what to do now,' Romman posted on X after she confirmed she would not be speaking at the DNC, with a reference to Georgia's pro-life ex-Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, who spoke on stage.

The Chicago metro area is home to the largest Palestinian-American community in the country. Throughout the week, some DNC attendees have been holding up signs with names of those who have died in Gaza.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson replied 'yes, of course' when asked if a Palestinian-American should be given speaking time at the DNC.

'We're talking about thousands of babies, elderly being brutalized by an act of war.'

The Palestinian cause has been mentioned, though no one has directly blamed the Biden-Harris administration for the 10-month-long conflict. Doing so would likely mean going rogue and ignoring the teleprompter: no speech that would portray the top of the Democratic ticket in an unfavorable light would get approved by the DNC.

But some have noted that the vocal calls for a Palestinian-American to be included in the schedule have only picked up after the convention began, and the tentative schedule has long been set.

The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry posits that some 40,000 have died in the region since the outbreak of war after the October 7 attack.

'The vast majority of Americans want to see an end to the bombing, the hostages returned, and long-term peace. Palestinian Americans deserve to share their stories on the #DNC stage. And we should listen and take action for human rights. #Notanotherbomb,' Rep. Greg Casar, progressive caucus whip and Texas Democrat, wrote on X.

'When a majority of voters are demanding a ceasefire & an end to the genocide, it is completely out of touch & disgraceful for the DNC to deny Palestinian Americans a voice at the convention,' said Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., who recently lost a primary to a challenger more friendly to Israel.

She also took a shot at Michelle Obama's call for leftist critics of the Democratic ticket to quiet down.

'Michelle Obama implored us all to do something. I'm imploring our party to do better,' said Bush.

'The minute something goes wrong, the minute a lie takes hold, folks, we cannot start wringing our hands,' Michelle Obama had said. 'We cannot get a Goldilocks complex about whether everything is just right.'

'So folks, we cannot be our own worst enemies,' she concluded.

Ive had some pretty crushing days, but to be honest today took the cake. I do not understand how theres room for an anti choice Republican but not me in our party. I need someone to explain to me what to do now.  Rep. Ruwa Romman (@Ruwa4Georgia) August 22, 2024

Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., a Palestinian-American congresswoman, said that all of the talk of 'hope' and 'joy' around Harris at the top of the ticket should be 'shattered' by the plight of the Palestinians.

'To hear what we've done to generations of families shatters the false narrative of hope and joy,' she said.

During a news conference of the pro-Palestinian Uncommitted National Movement outside the DNC perimeters, Tlaib cried out through FaceTime, 'we shouldn't have to beg.'

'A Palestinian-American sharing his or her story, calling for cease fire and release of all hostages, and calling everyone to support the ticket against facism would be powerful,' Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, who also got a slot on the main stage, wrote on X.

Even the United Auto Workers union weighed in on X:

'If we want the war in Gaza to end, we can't put our heads in the sand or ignore the voices of the Palestinian Americans in the Democratic Party. If we want peace, if we want real democracy, and if we want to win this election, the Democratic Party must allow a Palestinian American speaker to be heard from the DNC stage tonight.'

'The Palestinian right to self determination was erased by the British with the Balfour declaration which mentioned civil & religious but not political rights. The Dem party is making a tragic mistake in 2024 perpetuating this erasure of the Palestinian story & voice,' added Rep. Ro Khanna, a Democrat from California.

'Seeing Rachel and Jon Goldberg Polin on stage last night was powerful and heartbreaking. It was important because it was not about politics, it was about empathy and humanity. I cried as they shared their story and their grief with the world,' said Haddar Susskind, an Israeli-American and former IDF soldier, on X.

'But grief and humanity are not limited to Israelis, and neither should empathy be so. I stand with my Palestinian friends in their call to have their voices and their humanity recognized and valued in the same way ... I hope that the DNC will reconsider and put a Palestinian-American on the stage tonight.'

The Uncommitted group has been hosting regular press conferences outside of the convention, they were granted one DNC-sanctioned panel on Palestinian human rights. The panel included the group's co-founders and doctors who had worked in Gaza.

The group saw it as a win to be included in the DNC after working against the Biden-Harris ticket in states where they encouraged Democrats to vote 'uncommitted' in protest of Biden's relationship with Israel.

'This is a historic moment that the DNC has called a panel to discuss the human rights of Palestinians but I also recognize it's not enough  a policy shift is the only thing that will accomplish a cease-fire,' said Uncommitted co-founder Layla Elabed.

Advocates have begun to wonder whether Harris will eschew Biden's approach to the Middle East conflict, though she's shown no daylight policy-wise between the current administration.

Still, co-founder Abbas Alawieh struck a hopeful note: 'Vice President Harris is engaging with us on this issue.'

'We do view that as a step in the right direction,' he told the press.
Countess Spencer has announced her next moves after splitting from Princess Diana's brother, and she will be taking the 'orphaned' lambs with her.

Karen Gordon became Charles Spencer's third wife in 2011 and gave birth to his seventh child, Lady Charlotte, the following year.

They married within the grounds of Althorp, where the Earl's older sister Princess Diana is buried. The couple had met the previous year on a blind date at a restaurant in Los Angeles.

It is understood their marriage broke down amid the strain of Earl Spencer writing his harrowing memoir detailing the physical and sexual abuse he suffered at boarding school.

The couple announced their pending divorce to staff at Althorp, the Spencer family estate in Northamptonshire, in April.

Following the split, the Countess said she is 'looking forward to reconnecting' with followers on social media.

'I'm currently still at Althorp,' said the Countess, 52. 'I look forward to closing this chapter out with you all and launching the next.

Earl and Countess Spencer on their wedding day at Althrop in Northamptonshire in June 2011

An Instagram picture from Countess Spencer's account of 'orphaned' lambs Lucky and Minty

'I will be sharing an update on my projects and reflecting on all the wonderful things I have learned during my time here on this beautiful estate.'

The Canadian-born Countess who, as Karen Villeneuve, was first married to Hollywood producer Mark Gordon whose credits include Saving Private Ryan and Death On The Nile, and with whom she had two daughters, promises what she calls 'a deeper dive' for 'those of you who enjoy more detail'.

But she added: 'I don't have access to my newsletter mailing list at present, so if you would like to receive my updates, I am going to need you to sign up again on my new site.

'So sorry! The site will be launching this fall. Stay tuned.'

She also said that 'orphaned lambs' Lucky and Minty will 'be coming with me'.

The Countess also said that 'orphaned lambs' Lucky and Minty (pictured) will 'be coming with me'

Earl Spencer and Karen Gordon, a Canadian philanthropist, arrive at the wedding of Prince Harry to Ms Meghan Markle at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle on May 19, 2018

Addressing the ongoing Roman villa excavation at Althorp, she added: 'Many of you have been asking what we found when we did the excavation.

'You won't believe it!' she concludes. 'Can't wait to share.'

Earl Spencer, 60, who earlier this year dramatically disclosed that he'd been subjected to sexual abuse while at his prep school, Maidwell Hall, is now going out with Norwegian archaeologist Cat Jarman, co-presenter of his history podcast.

Dr Jarman, 42, who is separated from her husband, is also helping Lord Spencer with the excavation.

She has appeared on BBC Two's Digging for Britain and was last month awarded 'Nordic Person of the Year' by the Confederation of Scandinavian Societies.

The couple announced their pending divorce to staff at Althorp, the Spencer family estate in Northamptonshire, in April (both pictured in 2017 in California)

Karen's first husband was millionaire Hollywood producer Mark Gordon, known for his work on Saving Private Ryan and The Day After Tomorrow, who she met while working on the front desk of the Four Seasons in Toronto in 1994.

The couple married three years later but split in 2003 and Karen reportedly received a $1.3 million settlement. She was later linked to billionaire George Soros.

Lord Spencer told the MoS that the five years of work on his memoir has deeply affected him and led to him undergoing residential treatment for trauma late last year.

He is understood to have been particularly traumatised by his discovery of his 1976 schoolboy diary, in which the assistant matron, who he alleges sexually abused him, had written a long-forgotten message.

The diary was discovered on the high shelf of a room at Althorp that was being refurbished after he completed the main body of his book.

Charles Spencer pictured with fellow podcast host Cat Jarman during a date to the theatre

Earl Spencer wrote he was 'rocked' by the discovery and described how the woman, who The Mail on Sunday identified as 67-year-old grandmother Sally Jane Carr, has simply written 'Me' along with her address and telephone number.

The Earl's memoir also revealed the trauma of his mother leaving him and Diana when he was three-years-old and how being brought up by a succession of nannies also impacted him.
A group of New Jersey beach police are under fire after placing a surfer in a chokehold for not displaying his beach badge on his wetsuit - but it was reportedly on his beach bag the entire time.

The disturbing incident took place on Tuesday at Belmar Beach as surfer Liam Mahoney, 28, of Junction City, California was restrained by two officers while he desperately tried to tell them he has a beach badge.

Video footage shows the two officers placing Mahoney in a violent chokehold and throwing him down on the sand, in front of a group of horrified beachgoers and children who were heard screaming 'let him go.'

On Thursday, The Daily Sneed posted the video on X that went viral garnering more than 4.4K views. Many expressed outrage by how the incident was handled.

Mahoney was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, obstruction of justice. He was issued a borough ordinance for Beach Badge Required, as per Belmar Chief of Police Tina Scott, 11News reported.

Video footage shows two officers restraining the surfer before placing him in a violent chokehold on the sand

The bikini clad woman showed the beach patrol her friends beach badge and was furious for the way they were treating him

During the video, a bikini clad woman tells officers, 'He has his pass right here.'

The officers did not respond as she continued, 'What are you gonna get f****** 10 more cop cars. His pass is right here.'

Another tattooed beachgoer who witnessed the chaotic scene said aloud about the officers, 'they are d****!.'

Moments later, two of the patrolmen grab Mahoney and throw his face down onto the sand as their arms are locked around his neck.

'Stop! Stop!,' said the girl screaming in hysteria. 'Don't f****** touch me,' she told another officer who was walking towards her.

The girl's cries grew louder: 'Stop! Stop f****** choking him,' she yelled.

She continued: 'What the f*** is this? Stop. What the fu*** is wrong with you guys? He has a f****** pass.'

'He has the pass right here dumb a**,' she said.

As the surfer's face was face down in the sand, he is heard saying to the cops, 'I have a badge. Trust me, bro.'

The officers are seen violently grabbing hold of the surfer

An older woman wearing a white two-piece short set walked over to the officers and scolded them.

'Get off of him!,' she said and told the officer. 'This is what happens on the news.'

'Get off of him,' she repeated.

'You are scaring every child you stupid idiots.'

The woman is horrified and speaking to an officer as two police officers are holding down the surfer while bystanders are watching the chaotic scene

Surfer Austin Downs also posted the video on his Facebook.

'A local surfer was arrested at Belmar Beach on 19th Avenue for not displaying a beach badge on his wetsuit, despite having the badge attached to his beach bag,' he wrote.

'During the arrest, officers placed him in a chokehold and threw him to the ground.'

He asked those to 'please share.'

Many who viewed the video were furious.

One person wrote: 'This is unbelievable.'

'Completely unnecessary use of force,' said another. 'This is outrageous.'

Liam Mahoney, 28, of Junction City, California was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, obstruction of justice. He was also issued a borough ordinance for Beach Badge Required, according Belmar Chief of Police Tina M. Scott

'What a disgrace,' another said, 'I hope he sues the s*** out of them. And theyll get fired.'

According to The Belmar Beautiful Sea Beach website badges are required to enter the beach seven days a week beginning Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day.

Violators will be issued a summons and escorted from the beach, and may not return until they have obtained a badge.

Anyone who is caught walking on a dune will be subject to an additional fine of not less than $500.

But, the website does not state if a beachgoer must always wear the badge while on the beach, as per the news outlet.

The Belmar Police Chief said an investigation into the circumstances of the arrest will take place.
Then-Sen. Kamala Harris, center, holds hands with San Francisco Mayor London Breed at the Curran Theatre in San Francisco in January 2019. Harris spoke onstage about her memoir. Yalonda M James/The Chronicle 2019

CHICAGO  When Kamala Harris accepts the Democratic presidential nomination Thursday night, her speech will serve as an introduction to many Americans who dont know much about the 59-year-old Oakland-born, Berkeley-raised former San Francisco district attorney.

But many California leaders, particularly those who grew up with her politically in the Bay Area, know Harris well. She calls them to let them know when they messed up. Or counsels them privately when theyre in compromising situations. Or hugs them and lets them cry on their shoulder.

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Harris keeps up with the news  and her longtime friends  in California, even as her attention is focused on matters around the globe, several close friends told the Chronicle. She urges friends to text her anytime about anything. She still gives her hometown pals gifts, like when she brought San Francisco Mayor London Breed a candle for her 50th birthday this month when Harris swung through San Francisco for a $12 million fundraiser.

Those images of a thoughtful and devoted friend who also isnt afraid to give tough, real talk are at odds with someone who Republicans caricature as a communist or a San Francisco radical.

Some of Californias top elected leaders who know Harris well described the encounters with the vice president that made a lasting impression.

Harris reached out to Breed shortly after the mayor was elected to the Board of Supervisors in 2013. Breed had gotten into some public spats with Twitter critics who were saying a lot of things that werent very nice. And so I responded as if I was still London Breed from the neighborhood.

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Breed said Harris told her to remember that I no longer am a party of one where I only represent myself. I represent a whole constituency of people now as an elected leader, so my actions have a different kind of weight to them. (Harris said) this is a distraction from the work that Im in office to do.

Breed recalled that it took a minute for the message to sink in, as her initial instinct was to swing back hard to people talking mess about her.

But Breed had known Harris since was a prosecutor in Alameda County. She trusted her.

Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, then a U.S. senator from California, raises arms with Mayor London Breed as they celebrate the Sun-Reporters 75th anniversary gala at the Hyatt Regency in San Francisco in May 2019. Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle 2019

Ultimately, she was right, Breed said. Did I want to be taken seriously and focused on the work, or did I want to mess around with people on Twitter that no one else knows? Thats not helping me accomplish the goals that I came into office to do. It was more so of her being Momala and giving me the advice I needed to hear because she wanted me to be better.

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Breed said Harris still tells her to call anytime.

Im like, Madame VP. I am not going to bother you unless its important. And she says, I just want to check on you. I just want to make sure youre OK.

California Controller Malia Cohen called Harris during her first campaign for the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. She was about to attend one of her first endorsement meetings, when one of the men on the interview committee asked her out for a pre-endorsement interview drink, Cohen said.

California State Controller Malia Cohen, left, chats with Yvette Lewis, former chairperson of the Maryland Democratic Party, during the California delegate breakfast at the Hyatt Regency Chicago at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Yalonda M. James/The Chronicle

Once they got there, he started hitting on her.

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I was so new. In hindsight   Cohen said, shaking her head. But at least I had the foresight to call her and ask, How do you stop (these men) from coming on to you?

Harris didnt mince words, Cohen recalled.

She said, You dont meet at a bar. Youre not going drinking. Hes not your friend. This is business. Always keep business in the forefront of your mind. Always keep business on the table. When a personal question is asked, you steer back to why this endorsement is important to you, Cohen recalled. And she also said, Bring someone with you.

Harris advice was very helpful to me at that point, Cohen said.

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She recalled Harris always holding a place at her table for aspiring younger Black legislators like herself, Breed and East Bay House candidate Lateefah Simon at fundraisers and events she was attending. Harris inspired Cohen, 46, to run for office.

She looked like how I wanted to look. She talked like how I want to talk. Shes dressed how I want to look. And she was successful. Shes beating the odds, proving that it can be done. So it did convince me that I could run, that I could win, she said.

Oakland Rep. Barbara Lee was backstage preparing to introduce Harris at a campaign event during Harris 2016 Senate run. But 10 minutes before she was to go on stage, Lees head was elsewhere. Her mother had just died.

Rep. Barbara Lee speaks during the opening of Sen. Kamala Harris presidential campaign headquarters in Oakland in September 2019. Brittany Hosea-Small/Special to the Chronicle 2019

She knew my mother had passed, and she came up and she hugged me and offered her condolences, and I started crying like you would not believe, Lee recalled.

Harris recalled how she had felt when her mother had died in 2009, and she apologized, Lee said. And she said, Oh, I shouldnt have done that. I know thats still raw. And then she started crying, and she hugged me and we talked, and that helped me a lot.

San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins didnt know Harris before Breed appointed the 43-year-old to replace the recalled Chesa Boudin in July 2022. But in December, Jenkins found herself standing face to face with Harris in the vice presidents office.

District Attorney Brooke Jenkins walks in Franciscos annual Pride Parade in June 2023. Juliana Yamada/Special to the Chronicle 2023

One of the first things she did was look me in the eyes, and hold my hands and say, How are you doing? No, really. How are you doing? Because she didnt want a surface answer.

Jenkins said Harris told her,  I know what its like. Ive done it before. Tell me, how are you feeling? How are you handling things? She really has reminded me to take care of myself and my health and prioritize that. She really just stepped outside of politics to ask me about myself as a person.

Jenkins told Harris that she was taking care of herself and reminded her, Youve given me very big shoes to fill. Part of the pressure is that.

Harris responded with her typical kind of smile and laugh and says, Youre doing great, just keep it up.

Its really mind-blowing for me, Jenkins said. She is a trailblazer. She was the first woman to do the job. She was the first person of color, a woman of color, to do the job. And I feel just so much responsibility to make sure that I uphold this position and the reputation of who has it. I cant even describe or put into words what it means when she says Im doing a great job.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass was a finalist, along with Harris, to be Bidens running mate. Though they were rivals for the role, Harris campaigned for Bass groundbreaking run to be Los Angeles mayor.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass speaks onstage during the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Shortly after Bass took office in December 2022, Harris invited Bass to her Washington office and spent a long time just giving me a tremendous amount of encouragement and talking about how the administration was going to do everything they can to support me, Bass said.

Harris encouraged Bass to hang in there when things went up and down.

But whats most important, Bass recalled Harris saying, especially when things are down, is to know that people are there and to call them. And she was encouraging me not to just think, because shes in the position that shes in, that I cant reach out to her, Bass said.

Every time Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove of Los Angeles has won an election, her phone has rung shortly thereafter. First it was from the U.S. Senate, then from the White House.

Vice President Kamala Harris greets Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, D-Los Angeles, as she arrives to board Air Force Two at Andrews Air Force Base in July. Brendan Smialowski/Associated Press

It was Harris, calling to congratulate her and talk about issues to work on and ways to succeed.

She would just say, Im so proud of you. Keep doing what youre doing, Kamlager-Dove said.

After Kamlager-Dove won her race for the California state Senate, Harris wanted to talk about what issues she wanted to work on.

I talked to her about my work with criminal justice reform and she said, Based on the stories that youre sharing (and) these families that youve seen go through the system, why dont you continue to lean into the womens space by doing more on and for incarcerated women? Kamlager-Dove recalled. And it was really that conversation that led me to form the Select Committee on Incarcerated Women.

It means something from someone that you respect, that you admire, whos been a mentor, to feel like she is checking in on you and wanting you to be successful, Kamlager-Dove said. There is a real authenticity to her that you dont see in many politicians.

San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu, who has known Harris for 26 years since he worked alongside her as a prosecutor in San Francisco, said they bonded over their Asian immigrant parents. He said Harris mom, Shyamala, was a force of nature who exemplified the best traits of Asian immigrant moms.

David Chiu addresses the crowd after being sworn in as San Francisco city attorney in November 2021. Nick Otto/Special to the Chronicle 2021

He recalled her mother being omnipresent during her campaigns, often cooking for him and others who worked closely with Harris at the time.

She was very special, he said.

When he began his first week as a prosecutor, he said, his boss told him to go watch Harris give closing arguments as a model for how they should be done.

She was the standard of excellence in our office, he said. She was brilliant, mesmerizing, charismatic, able to connect with jurors in a really profound way, but able to also exude compassion.

California Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis said she met Harris when they both were in their 30s and they bonded over the challenges of being young women with big careers and feeling like there was a glass ceiling preventing them from reaching the top of their professions. Harris told Kounalakis not to let other people make her feel small.

California Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis speaks at a San Francisco-Marin Food Bank event honoring 9/11 victims and first responders in September 2021 in San Francisco. LiPo Ching/Special to the Chronicle 2021

Kounalakis said shes relied on that advice in her career, including in her decision to run for governor of California in 2026. If she were to win, she would be the first female governor in California history.

I decided that I would actually step into this arena and try to bring down the highest, hardest glass ceiling in California politics, she said.

In that quest, she draws inspiration from Harris.

She is the best role model now as she goes for the highest, hardest glass ceiling, or marble ceiling, in U.S. history, Kounalakis said.

Simon, an Oakland congressional candidate, has known Harris since the early 2000s. Simon led the creation of Harris Back on Track program that connected ex-offenders with education and services to reduce recidivism.

Lateefah Simon speaks during a watch party in Oakland in March as Simon competes for the House seat being vacated by Rep. Barbara Lee. Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle

Harris introduced Simon to her husband, journalist Kevin Weston, and officiated their wedding.

When Weston was diagnosed with terminal cancer in August 2012, one of Simons first calls was to Harris.

Harris had lost her mother a few years earlier, and Simon expected her to say things would be OK.

Instead, Harris said, Every second can be a lifetime of memories, Simon recalled. She had just buried the most important person in her whole life and she was so clear to me in that moment. Get off the phone, be with him. Cherish the memories.
The so-called 'Ketamine Queen' who was charged over the overdose death of Matthew Perry allegedly routinely referred to the actor as 'Chandler.'

The nickname given by alleged drug dealer Jasveen Sangha was revealed as part of a plea agreement signed by Perry's friend Erik Fleming.

Fleming pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death, as he was charged along with Sangha and three others related to Perry's October 2023 death.

Sangha's nickname for Perry was first reported by Page Six, which shared documents from prosecutors claiming she 'used a name of a well-known character that (Perry) portrayed in a television series.'

One of the defendants charged in relation to the death of actor Matthew Perry may have routinely referred to him as 'Chandler', newly released documents reveal

Jasveen Sangha was named as one of five people charged over the actor's overdose death, and was allegedly nicknamed the 'Ketamine Queen'

Sangha has not entered a plea in her charges, and the documents do not specifically state which sitcom character she allegedly referred to Perry as.

Others charged in relation to the actor's death include his personal assistant Kenneth Iwamasa, who has already pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute the ketamine that killed Perry.

Iwamasa also admitted to injecting Perry with ketamine on the day he overdosed.

Two doctors have also been charged, with medic Mark Chavez pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute, while Salvador Plascencia, 42, has not yet cut a plea.

According to prosecutors, Sangha was not the only one to refer to Perry in communications, as the two doctors are accused of mocking the actor in text messages.

They allegedly questioned 'how much this moron will pay' for ketamine, adding: 'Let's find out.'

Sangha captured headlines following her arrest earlier this month, particularly over her alleged nickname 'Ketamine Queen' and use of social media

Those charged in relation to Perry's death allegedly texted each other about 'how much this moron will pay' for the ketamine that ultimately led to his death

Sangha captured headlines following her arrest earlier this month, particularly over her alleged nickname 'Ketamine Queen' and use of social media.

She was allegedly known throughout North Hollywood as a dealer to celebrities, and often shared her lavish lifestyle, allegedly funded by her narcotics dealing, all over Instagram - where she posted snaps from her vacations to Mexico and Japan.

She is charged with conspiracy to distribute ketamine, maintaining a drug-involved premises, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute ketamine, and five counts of distribution of ketamine.

Just hours before she was arrested by police in Los Angeles on August 15, Jasveen Sangha was boasting about her new haircut and color on her social media.

The alleged dealer to the rich and famous would often post images of her wearing Van Cleef & Arpels jewelry and Louis Vuitton sneakers and Chanel clothes - as well as snaps of her indulging in caviar at private jet lounges at LAX.

The 41-year-old dealing 'queen,' who has dual US and British citizenship, also hosted ritzy parties for her friends in Hollywood, and exclaimed that 'family is everything.'

Just hours before she was arrested by police in Los Angeles on August 15, Jasveen Sangha was boasting about her new haircut and color on her social media

Sangha was allegedly known throughout North Hollywood as a dealer to celebrities, and often shared her lavish lifestyle, allegedly funded by her narcotics dealing, all over Instagram

In February 2024, four months after Perry's death, Sangha posted smirking selfies while sunning herself on a trip to Playa del Carmen, Mexico, where she showed off her beachfront residence while drinking cocktails by the pool.

She also boasted about her health and wellness journey - using IV drips after late-night partying and being a proponent of 'sound healing,' which she called 'absolutely uplifting and cleansing for the heart and soul.'

Just two weeks after Perry's ketamine-overdose death, Sangha jetted off to Tokyo - where she indulged in lychee martinis at the Mandarin Oriental hotel, where suites cost $1,847 a night.
A federal inmate and two others were charged with conspiring to mail fentanyl and other drugs to a prison in California - a plot that ended up killing an innocent mailroom employee when he touched a letter laced with the narcotics.

US Penitentiary Atwater inmate Jamar Jones is said to have communicated with Stephanie Ferreira, of Evansville, Indiana, and Jermen Rudd III of Wentzville, Missouri, both of whom agreed to send him drugs that he could sell in prison.

Corrections officer Marc Fischer opened the letter fraudulently disguised as 'legal mail' in front of Jones on the morning of August 9 and found 'five pieces of 'wet' or 'waxy' paper,' according to an FBI affidavit.

Before realizing how dangerous of a situation he was in, Fischer handed the letter off to a female coworker. Within minutes, they both fell ill.

'I don't feel good, it's going up my arm, I need medical,' she recalled Fischer saying.

She would survive, but Fischer died at 2:14pm after being rushed to the hospital.

Loved ones told ABC 30 that Fischer was close to retirement.

Pictured: US Penitentiary Atwater, where Marc Fischer touched the envelope that ultimately killed him

Fentanyl pills seized by U.S. Custom and Border Protection officers at the Port of Mariposa in Nogales, Arizona (stock image)

Subsequent testing of the letter that Rudd mailed revealed it was laced with amphetamines, fentanyl and 'spice,' otherwise known as synthetic marijuana.

An autopsy performed on Fischer on August 14 didn't reveal an 'obvious cause of death from physical examination alone,' which means investigators will have to wait for the toxicology results for more certainty.

Rudd and Jones, who is already serving a sentence for narcotics distribution, face a maximum of 30 years in prison and a fine up to $250,000.

Ferreira faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine up to $250,000.

Fischer's death marks the latest serious incident in the Bureau of Prisons, which oversees 122 federal prisons, including US Penitentiary Atwater.

In an attempt to tamp down on narcotics smuggling, the BOP began photocopying inmates' letters at some prisons instead of delivering the actual packages, ABC reported.

Legislation was introduced by a bipartisan group of lawmakers in 2023 that would have required the BOP director to develop strategies to intercept fentanyl and other drugs before they could make it to correctional facilities.

The bill stalled in the House of Representatives.
Specialist divers have stopped today's search for the missing daughter of British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch - as the 18-year-old remains the only person unaccounted for after a superyacht sank off the coast of Sicily this week.

A total of six bodies have been recovered since the 30million Bayesian was struck by an over-sea tornado known as a waterspout off Sicily at around 3am GMT on Monday.

Mr Lynch, his daughter Hannah, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo, his wife Neda Morvillo and the boat's chef Recaldo Thomas were lost when the yacht sank.

The bodies of those missing have all been recovered, with the exception of Hannah who had joined her parents on the trip ahead of starting an English degree at the University of Oxford in September.

The search for Hannah was called off at around 8pm in Sicily on Thursday with divers expected to begin again at 6.30am on Friday.

Massimo Mariani, an interior ministry official, said Hannah may still be inside the ship or could have been thrown into the sea when it sank.

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, 59, is among the bodies recovered from the wreck of the 30 million superyacht that sank in a storm off the coast of Sicily

Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judith, also died in the superyacht disaster

Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo were also aboard the ship

The body of chef Recaldo Thomas (pictured) was discovered on the day of the sinking

The luxury Bayesian vessel (file image) capsized and sunk off the coast of Sicily, Italy, in bad weather on Monday whilst moored around half a mile off the coast of Porticello

Hannah had just completed her A-Levels at the prestigious Latymer Upper School in Hammersmith, west London, and was set to go to Oxford next month.

A spokesperson for the 25,000-a-year school said: 'We are all incredibly shocked by the news that Hannah and her father are among those missing in this tragic incident and our thoughts are with their family and everyone involved as we await further updates.'

It comes after the family of Mr Bloomer and his wife Judy paid a heartfelt tribute to them today.

In a statement confirming their parents' deaths, the Bloomer family described the couple as 'incredible people and an inspiration to many'.

They said: 'We are grieving for our loved ones and all of those affected by the tragedy.

'Our parents were incredible people and an inspiration to many, but first and foremost they were focused on and loved their family and spending time with their new grandchildren.

'Together for five decades, our only comfort is that they are still together now.

'This is an unimaginable grief to shoulder.'

The chief executive of legal AI company Luminance, which was founded by Mr Lynch, paid tribute to the technology tycoon, saying he was a 'visionary unlike any other'.

Fire service and Coastguard dive teams return to port on the fourth day of the search and recovery operation

Rescue personnel work at the scene today where luxury yacht Bayesian sank off the coast of Porticello, near the Sicilian city of Palermo

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Eleanor Lightbody said in a statement: 'I am devastated to hear the news about our founding investor, Mike Lynch, and all of those involved in this tragic accident.

'Mike was a visionary unlike any other. He had a unique ability to spot the next technological revolution and solve tomorrow's challenges before others even knew they were coming.

'Above all, Mike was a kind man who had an impact on many and will be sorely missed. I feel honoured to have known him, worked with him and learnt from him over the years.

'The UK has lost someone with the means, authority, knowledge and drive to propel the UK into technological leadership, but his legacy will live on in all of the extraordinary businesses he built and mentored, as well as his family who are in my thoughts.'

The body of the fifth person recovered from the yacht's wreckage was returned in a blue body bag to the port of Porticello on Thursday morning.

Of the 22 passengers and crew on board, 15 - including Mr Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares - were rescued after escaping on to a lifeboat.

The body of Canadian-Antiguan national Mr Thomas, who was working as a chef on the superyacht Bayesian, was recovered at the scene of the sinking on Monday.

The boat trip was a celebration of Mr Lynch's acquittal in a fraud case in the US.

The businessman, who founded software giant Autonomy in 1996, was cleared in June of carrying out a massive fraud relating to its 11 billion US dollar (8.64 billion) sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

A decision on whether to raise the sunken yacht from the seabed is 'not on the agenda', but will be in the future, a spokesman from the Italian Coastguard has said.

Vincenzo Zagarola told PA: 'This is not a topic on the agenda. It will be, but not now.'

The ship's captain, James Cutfield, 51, was reportedly quizzed by authorities for two hours as they began questioning all crew members

The Bayesian (pictured in an undated handout photo) overturned during a severe thunderstorm on Monday morning

He also said that the Italian Coastguard's working theory is still that the missing woman is inside the boat.

The luxury yacht's captain, James Cutfield, was reportedly questioned by authorities for two hours as they began speaking to all crew members.

A helicopter was previously drafted in to help the search effort, and divers from the local fire service have been seen entering the water with torches attached to their headgear.

Fire crews from the Vigili del Fuoco said they had been accessing the vessel through natural entrances, without making openings.

Remotely controlled underwater vehicles have been used, with naval units and cave divers also taking part in the search, the Italian Coastguard has said.

Bayesian was moored around half a mile off the coast of Porticello when it sank at about 5am local time on Monday as the area was hit by a storm.

The wreckage of the Bayesian is resting on the seabed off the coast at a depth of 50 metres (164ft).

Mike Lynch with his wife Angela Bacares, who survived the disaster

A boat carrying a dive team heads out to the site of the Bayesian on the fourth day of the search

Fire crews described the operation as 'complex', with divers limited to 12-minute underwater shifts.

Survivors have been recuperating at a hotel complex in Porticello, where authorities are gathering witness statements.

An Italian doctor at the hospital where British tourist Charlotte Emsley and her one-year-old daughter were taken said the mother held her baby above the waves after the yacht sank.

Dr Domenico Cipolla, of Di Cristina Children's Hospital in Palermo, told PA: 'Obviously the mother and the husband were so shaken by what has happened, it was a tragedy for them.

'She told me that two minutes after falling asleep with her baby they were in the water, she did not understand how this happened, it went dark.

'She held the child high in her arms above the waves, for a few seconds the baby was in the water, but she saved her.

'She sometimes cried for her friends in the hospital.'
A tradie has landed back on Australian soil after a moped crash left him in a coma, saddling his devastated family with exorbitant medical bills because he did not have insurance.

Shane Ramsey, 30, had been visiting Bali for a close friend's wedding and was riding a moped in Seminyak on Sunday when he crashed into a roadside pole.

The 30-year-old was rushed to hospital where he underwent brain surgery and has been in a coma since, wracking up huge hospital bills.

His family paid $70,000 for him to undergo emergency neurosurgery, while hospital bills were costing $9,000 a day.

But they secured a medical evacuation flight, believed to cost around $150,000, after kind-hearted Aussies donated over $112,000.

Despite this, Mr Ramsey's parents are still considering selling their home to pay for his treatment.

Mr Ramsey landed in Perth shortly after 5pm on Thursday and was taken by ambulance to Royal Perth Hospitals intensive care unit, 7News reported.

He was not wearing a helmet and does not have travel insurance, which would have only cost about $50 a week.

Shane Ramsey, 30, had been visiting Bali for a close friend's wedding and was riding a moped in Seminyak on Sunday when he crashed into a roadside pole

His family secured a medical evacuation flight, believed to cost around $150,000, after kind-hearted Aussies donated over $112,000

His mother, Catherine Ramsey, flew from Perth to be by her son's side immediately after the crash.

She told Daily Mail Australia Mr Ramsey has suffered three bleeds on the brain - necessitating the surgery - and a fractured skull.

'He is stable at the moment but the actual extent of the damage to his brain is unknown at this stage,' she said.

'He's still in a coma and we won't know for a few days yet what the end result will be.

'All I know is it's extensive damage and we don't know if he will come out of the coma or if he will have lasting issues.

'We're holding on, we just feel numb at the moment.'

Mr Ramsey was on his way to watch a UFC fight with friends when the accident happened.

His mother earlier told Nine News she would sell their family home to pay for his medical bills if she had to.

'I just want to get him home, we're in a strange country,' she said.

Doctors remain unsure of the extent of the damage caused to his brain.

Mr Ramsey had plans to buy a property when he returned home.

The family of Perth carpenter, Shane Ramsey (pictured), have revealed the horrifying extent of his injuries after crashing his moped while on holiday in Bali

The young tradie has been in hospital since Sunday and his family say they don't know the full extent of his injuries

A GoFundMe was launched on Monday to help pay for Mr Ramsey's medical bills and the potential medical evacuation home.

More than $112,000 has been raised at time of publication.

Mr Ramsey had just completed a three year apprenticeship and was looking forward to the future ahead.

The carpenter's former boss also took to Facebook on Monday to raise awareness about the fundraiser.

He recalled bumping into his former apprentice a few weeks ago.

'You forget how f***ing fragile life can be (and) how quick everything can change,' he wrote.
A Nashville mother charged with drowning her seven-year-old daughter 'because she wanted to be left alone' tried a bizarre way to kill herself in prison.

Brandi Elliott, 33, has been locked up in Sumner County Jail without bond while waiting to face first-degree murder charges for allegedly drowning her daughter, Piper, in Drakes Creek in Hendersonville last month.

But on Sunday, she was treated for banging her head against the wall in her cell, causing two black eyes, News Channel 5 reports.

Then on Monday, she reportedly dove head-first off her bunk and onto the concrete floor. Elliott was then rushed to a local hospital unable to breathe, but is now in stable condition.

Once she is released from the hospital, Elliott will be sent to a state facility that is better suited to deal with her self-destructive conduct while she awaits a grand jury indictment and trial.

Brandi Elliott, 33, reportedly tried to kill herself at the Sumner County Jail

She is facing first-degree murder charges for allegedly drowning her daughter, Piper, in Drakes Creek in Hendersonville last month

It is now expected that her defense attorneys will use her mental health issues to argue she has a diminished mental capacity in an effort to avoid criminal liability.

Elliott had already claimed at her first court hearing last month that she suffered from mental health issues.

'When my daughter was two, I kind of lost it like I did this time,' she said in court.

'I had postpartum depression and they gave me medicine for it. I was having a really bad time with sleeping.'

Yet both her attorney and state prosecutors said at the time that they did not want her mentally evaluated.

She has had no prior criminal history and worked at McDonald's.

Elliott allegedly decided to take Piper to a shallow area at Drake's Creek, and held her underwater until bubbles emerged

But on July 13, Elliott allegedly decided to take Piper to a shallow area at Drake's Creek, and held her underwater until bubbles emerged.

She is said to have told the child to be quiet as she held her under water 'like a largemouth bass,' WKRN reports.

When police later questioned her about her daughter's death, Elliott reportedly told officers she was having a bad day and Piper would not give her 'time alone.'

Still, the mother reportedly said she only realized what she had done after it was too late and first responders tried to revive Piper with CPR.

Police said family members are now witnesses in the probe, as prosecutors are considering the death penalty for Elliott if she is convicted of murder.

An online fundraiser has been set up for Piper's father, Jon Elliott

Meanwhile, a GoFundMe has been set up for Piper's father, Jon Elliott.

'Jon will be needing as many donations as possible for the funeral arrangements, and basic everyday needs, he only get a small disability check each month,' it says.

Jon, who served in Iraq, also posted a tribute to Piper online, writing: 'I will miss my baby girl forever.'
The stage was set in businesslike blue for Murdo Frasers leadership launch, which echoed the format of those TV singing contests, with one leadership contender after another taking to the mic to do his party piece.

In each case, it was an angry break-up number (My Party, She Done Me Wrong) followed by a soppy pop ballad (Hello, Is It Murdo Youre Looking For?). I dont think Tories Got Talent will be returning for another series.

I josh, but at one point Jamie Greene (West Scotland, beard, frosted tips) promised a song from Liam Kerr (North East, clean-shaven, not trying to look like a Backstreet Boy), though the spoilsport demurred, quipping lamely that everyone was now singing from the same hymn sheet.

Thats one way of putting it. First Greene and then Kerr regaled us with their journey from launching a leadership campaign to concluding that their pal Murdo was the right bloke for the job all along. And they did it at the same time.

On the same day. In almost the exact same terms.

Murdo Fraser launched his bid to become the Scottish Conservative leader in Perth

Its what people in the statistics business call a coincidence and what we in the journalism business call - well, a word we cant use in this newspaper and one best left for the farmyard.

Both men assured the assembled journalists that this was all unplanned and spontaneous. Ive seen productions of West Side Story that were less choreographed.

But for all the appeals to unity and moving forward and whatnot, speeches were punctuated by dark mutterings about the current leadership and words like decency and respect were laid on with a trowel.

If youre privy to goings on behind the scenes, some of this might make sense to you but Lord knows what the average member, let along the average voter, will have made of it.

The event was so thoroughly laced with bitterness, it should be have sponsored by Angostura.

The whole thing had the air of a David Mamet play, a corporate drama about the revenge of the lower-middle managers. Derek from accounts had been ignored for too long and was mounting a hostile takeover.

The man himself claimed the podium and heaped praise on his colleagues for their fine contributions to the party and the parliament.

He deserves the leadership just for keeping a straight face throughout that. He, on the other hand, thinks he deserves to win the leadership election so much that there shouldnt actually be a leadership election.

Instead, he called on opponents Russell Findlay and Meghan Gallacher to drop out and back him, agreeing with a reporter that he was calling for a coronation. Fraser appears to want a bloodless coup.

He gets the coup and his opponents are expected to be bloodless about it.

Secret meetings, paper candidates, democratic dubiety. If the Scottish Tories had oil reserves, the Americans would have invaded by now.

Mr Fraser's launch had the air of a corporate drama about the revenge of the lower-middle managers

Leadership contenders typically try to distance themselves from their opponents. Frasers campaign is innovative in that it involves distancing him from himself.

His long-term, passionate advocacy for scrapping the Scottish Conservatives has been put aside and he has undergone a damascene conversion to the cause of unity. He had come here not to bury the party but to praise it.

Yet no sooner had he suspended his campaign for Scottish Tory independence from Westminster than he was confirming there would be a commission to examine the relationship with the UK party.

It wasnt long before he was invoking Kate Forbes to declare that continuity wont cut it.

There would have to be change. Whatever could he mean by that?

Perhaps there was a hint in his answer to a question from a journalist.

Asked if, in the event of a hung parliament in 2026, it was not a given... that you would back Labour to get the SNP out, Fraser refused to make predictions.

Two decades of the SNP, and the potential next leader of the Scottish Tories wouldnt rule out keeping them in power for another five years. Say what you like, but that certainly sounds like change to me.
Right-wing commentator Ann Coulter has been blasted over an X post mocking Tim Walz's disabled son at the Democratic National Convention.

She shared an image of Gus, 17, overcome with emotion as his VP candidate father took to the stage in Chicago Wednesday and captioned it 'Talk about weird.'

But Coulter was quickly informed that Gus has a non-verbal learning disorder, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and an anxiety disorder.

She has since deleted the post.

Gus Walz, 17, teared up to see his dad on stage - a moment that broke hearts on social media

'Im sure someone having human emotions would be weird for you,' read one online critique.

'If youre attacking or making fun of Tim Walz neurodivergent son for his reaction and love for his father, you are a terrible human being,' stated another.

'Being moved to tears by pride in someone you love is the coolest and most normal thing there is. Also, he's 17 years old, you irredeemable monster. I'd tell you to go to hell, but you're already there,' someone wrote.

Gus has a non-verbal learning disorder, the Walzes told People magazine earlier this month.

'When our youngest Gus was growing up, it became increasingly clear that he was different from his classmates,' the couple told People. 'Gus preferred video games and spending more time by himself.'

'When he was becoming a teenager, we learned that Gus has a non-verbal learning disorder in addition to an anxiety disorder and ADHD, conditions that millions of Americans also have.'

Ann Coulter's now deleted X post about Tim Walz' son Gus

Tim Walz hugs his son, Gus Walz, during the third night of the Democratic National Convention

The internet drags Ann Coulter after she posted about Tim Walz' son calling him weird for his tearful reaction to his dad's acceptance speech

'I am neurodivergent. When I was 14, I was diagnosed with ADHD, OCD, and several learning disorders, including dyscalculia. Were not weird, were wonderful. And were your family, friends and fellow Americans, ' wrote activists and Moms Demand founder Shannon Watts on X.

'Of course MAGA is making fun of a special needs child showing love for his father. Theres no bottom,' wrote the X account 'Republicans against Trump' in response to Coulter and others mocking Gus on the internet.

'Who thinks Ann Coulter owes Gus Walz an apology?' another X user posted with the raised hand emoji.

Others called her post 'vile' and 'soulless.' It was eventually deleted.

Hope, Gus, Tim and Gwen Walz at the end of Night Three at the DNC

While the governor was giving his acceptance speech, video cut away to the Walz family sitting in the first row on the floor of the convention including Gus next to his mom Gwen and 23-year-old sister Hope.

During his speech when the Democratic vice presidential nominee spoke about his family, Hope made the heart symbol and mouthed 'love you.'

'That's my dad,' Gus, 17, shouted as he stood up and proudly pointed at his dad on the convention stage while the crowd cheered.

The emotional family moment went viral across social media.

After Walz wrapped his remarks, his family joined him on stage to celebrate. Gus could be seen giving his dad a bearhug while the crowd went wild in the arena.

Tim Walz and his son Gus share an embrace after his acceptance speech

Tim Walz hugging his daughter Hope on stage

Tim Walz and wife Gwen leave the stage together after his primetime address

Tim Walz and his wife Gwen share a hug on stage at the Democratic National Convention

Tim, 60, and Gwen Walz, 58, have been public about their struggle with fertility and how they used fertility treatments to conceive their two children.

Walz referenced that time in his remarks.

'This is personal for Gwen and I. If you have never experienced the hell that is infertility, I guarantee you you know somebody who has,'' he said.

'I remember praying each night for a phone call and the in your stomach when the phone would ring and the absolute agony when we heard treatments didn't work. It took us years but we had access to fertility treatments. When our daughter was born, we named her Hope.'

He added: 'Hope, Gus, and Gwen, you are my entire world, and I love you.'
Vice presidential candidate JD Vance made a toe-curlingly awkward appearance at a Georgia doughnut shop on Thursday.

Vance, 40, stepped into Holt's Sweet Shop in Valdosta to order some sweets for his campaign crew ahead of a planned speech in the battleground state.

But the apparently unplanned visit quickly became uncomfortable, as the woman working behind the counter asked not to be shown on camera.

The Ohio Senator then made a show of telling the press to cut her out of their videos, before introducing himself to the employee.

'I'm JD Vance, I'm running for vice president,' he said, with a grin on his face.

Vice Presidential candidate JD Vance, 40, made an awkward appearance at Holt's Sweet Shop in Valdosta, Georgia on Thursday

He introduced himself to an employee, who simply replied, 'OK'

The woman, in turn, simply replied, 'OK.'

Vance then proceeded to ask the woman and another employee who comes on screen some questions about the business, like how long they have worked there.

Both employees gave him just curt answers, as the woman tries to put together his order of a 'random assortment' of two dozen doughnuts.

'A lot of glazed here, some sprinkles, some cinnamon rolls,' Vance picks out.

Once he received several boxes of pastries, Vance and his entourage went on to meet deputies outside of the Lowndes County Sheriff's Office, where he was briefed on illegal drug and firearm issues in the community, WCTV reports.

From there, Vance traveled to his rally - where he hit out at Democrats on issues of illegal immigration and border security.

Vance wound up ordering a 'random assortment' of two dozen doughnuts

He was seen carrying the pastry boxes as he left the sweet shop on his way to a rally

He accused Vice President Kamala Harris of fueling drug issues in the country and having a laissez-faire approach to border control.

'Soon as Kamala Harris is booted out of office, we are not open for business to illegal aliens or to the Mexican drug cartels anymore,' Vance told the crowd.

'That is our solemn promise to the American people, and we are very serious about it.'

Vance's speech came as his running mate, former President Donald Trump, campaigned at the border in Arizona.

The two are crisscrossing the country making immigration issues a top priority of their campaign, as they place the blame for an influx in illegal immigration on Harris, who they have both called a 'failed border czar' who is lax on crime.

The Republicans are apparently hoping their message resonates with voters in the swing states of Arizona, Georgia, Nevada and North Carolina, where recent polling suggest Harris and her vice presidential nominee Tim Walz have closed in on Trump's lead.

Vance and former President Donald Trump are crisscrossing the country making immigration issues a top priority of their campaign

But their campaign efforts come amid a fervent Democratic National Convention, where Walz hit out at the his Republican opponents Wednesday night.

He spoke about growing up in a small town in Nebraska and joked that none of the 24 members of his class went to Yale - a clear dig at his opponent, Donald Trumps running mate J.D. Vance.

Ill tell you one thing, growing up in a small town like that, you learn how to take care of each other,' Walz said in his impassioned speech.

'That family down the road, they may not think like you do, they may not pray like you do, they may not love like you do but theyre neighbors.

He went on to say some folks just dont understand what it takes to be a good neighbor,' and said that, as a teacher, his students elected student body president could teach Donald Trump a hell of a lot.

Leaders dont stand all day insulting people and blaming others. Leaders do the work, Walz said. So I dont know about you, Im ready to turn the page on these guys, so go ahead, say it with me, were not going back.

He called their agenda weird, absolutely, but also warned its dangerous.

Vice President Kamala Harris is now expected to accept the Democratic nomination for president on Thursday night.
Video footage has captured the moment an enormous geyser opened up on the Reykjanes Peninsula, shooting molten ash and fire into the sky.

Local news reports said a powerful earthquake started at around 8.30pm today, followed by an eruption near the town of Grindavik at around 9.30pm.

The eruption has been expected for a few weeks due to the ongoing seismic activity in the area and due to pressure changes in boreholes.

Reports said rescue teams had been called up in Reykjanes and Olfus, as thousands of people in Grindavik and the Blue Lagoon have been evacuated.

Local authorities have asked residents to stay away from the area for their own safety and for the safety of emergency services.

A YouTube live stream of the eruption has been launched, which currently has over 1,000 watchers, as lava bursts into the atmosphere and smoke billows in the air.

Emergency services are still on the ground.

Lava spurts and flows after the eruption of a volcano in the Reykjanes Peninsula near Grindavik

Lava pours out of the new fissure on the Reykjanes Peninsula, near the town of Grindavik

Video footage has captured the moment an enormous geyser opened up on the Reykjanes Peninsula, shooting molten ash and fire into the sky

Lava fountains seen pouring out from the new eruptive fissure opened at Svartsengi volcanic system overnight

Local news reports said a powerful earthquake started at around 8.30pm today, followed by an eruption near the town of Grindavik at around 9.30pm

Aerial view of the lava flow shows it scorching the land and steam rising into the sky

A sign showing the direction to the famous blue lagoon with the new eruption in the background

The eruption can be seen in the distance from nearby Vogar in southwestern Iceland

Over several points in the past six months, thousands of Icelanders were evacuated from their homes in the town of Grindavik and the surrounding areas due to their proximity to the volcano on the Reykjanes peninsula

The British Ambassador to Iceland, Dr Bryony Mathew, posted a picture of the eruption on social media, with the caption: 'Here we go again! Volcanic eruption just started in Iceland. This is the view from the Residence in downtown Reykjavik.'

Angel Brownawell who is currently in Iceland on holiday said: 'We had no idea it would be today! We were eating dinner at the hotel bar when people started buzzing about breaking news.

'Im from the Washington DC area, so my immediate, almost instinctual reaction was that it was some political news.

'Im back in my hotel room. I saw the smoke from the hallway window. It was red hued and mostly covered by cloud when it got dark. My husband and I werent certain if it was the volcano or the setting sun but the sun was past setting at that time.'

MailOnline previously reported that Iceland had been rocked by eight volcanic eruptions since 2021 that have sent citizens fleeing from their homes.

An international team of scientists studied lava samples and seismic data from the last three years of eruptions.

They discovered that the peninsula is sat on an interconnected magma plumbing system that could keep volcanoes fed with molten rock for decades to come.

Lead author Valentin Troll, professor of petrology at Uppsala University, says: 'A comparison of these eruptions with historical events provides strong evidence that Iceland will have to prepare and be ready for this volcanic episode to continue for some time, possibly even years to decades.'

Tourists and visitors try to get a view of the eruption from a distance from the intersection between Reykjanesbraut and the road to Grindavik

Photographers and journalists were on location filming and reporting on the new fissure

Tourists and visitors try to get a view of the eruption from a distance

A picture from last night shows cars driving away from the area as the volcano erupts in the background

Here we go again! Volcanic #eruption just started in #Iceland. This is the view from the Residence in downtown #Reykjavik. #volcano pic.twitter.com/sayQyfeJfV  Dr Bryony Mathew (@BryonyMathew) August 22, 2024

Emergency services on the scene of the volcanic eruption in Iceland

The eruption took place near the evacuated town of Grindavik

A live stream on YouTube currently has over 1,000 viewers

Pictured: Iceland's popular Blue Lagoon geothermal spa, a popular tourist attraction, which has had to close and reopen several times due to eruptions

The Reykjanes Peninsula's volcanic eruptions: a timeline

Fagradalsfjall Fires (2021-20233) March 2021 : A 180m vent opens at Geldingadalir, the first eruption in 781 years

: A 180m vent opens at Geldingadalir, the first eruption in 781 years August 2022 : A Low-intensity eruption at the same site

: A Low-intensity eruption at the same site August 2023: The Litli-Hrutur eruption opens a 1km-long vent system Sundhnukur Fires (2023-Ongoing) November 2023 : Major tectonic event near the town of Grindavik leads to a complete evacuation

: Major tectonic event near the town of Grindavik leads to a complete evacuation December 2023 : A second eruption opens a 3.5km vent system

: A second eruption opens a 3.5km vent system January 2024 : A new vent system opens just 1km north of Gridavik, three homes are destroyed

: A new vent system opens just 1km north of Gridavik, three homes are destroyed March 2024 : An eruption covers an area of six square kilometres with lava

: An eruption covers an area of six square kilometres with lava June/July 2024 : Eruptions are ongoing Advertisement

Iceland is located directly above something called the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a boundary between the tectonic plates of Eurasia and North America.

As these plates drift apart, hot rock from Earth's mantle, the largest of the planet's layers, can squeeze its way up to the surface.

This makes volcanic eruptions a fairly common part of life, with one occurring about once every three to five years.

However, after remaining dormant for 800 years the islands Reykjanes Peninsula suddenly became active again in 2021 during the Fagradalsfjall Fires.

In late 2023 and early 2024 new volcanic fissures formed near the fishing town of Grindavik, pumping huge plumes of lava out onto the surface.

To understand why this area has suddenly been hit by such intense volcanic activity, scientists attempted to find out where the lava for these eruptions was coming from.

Just like every person has a unique fingerprint, every piece of magma has a unique combination of about 50 different trace elements and three different isotypes of oxygen.

Professor Ilya Bindeman, a volcanologist from the University of Oregon, explains: 'In the air we breathe, there's a mixture of these oxygen isotopes and we don't feel the difference.

'Their differences are usually not important for chemical reactions but are important to recognize as their relative abundances in magma can differentiate one magma source from another.'

By sampling the lava from different eruptions over the last three years, researchers realised that they all had an extremely similar chemical fingerprint.

Professor Troll told the MailOnline: 'Geochemical analysis of major and trace elements as well as stable isotopes imply that the magma erupting at Svartsengi since late 2023 is of the same type as the magmas that erupted at Fagradalsfjall between 2021 and 2023.

'Therefore the two eruption sites are fed from the same magmatic source at depth.'
A British woman says she is trapped in Turkey after suffering from serious complications from botched cosmetic procedures, including two bouts of sepsis.

28-year-old mother of one Cennet Lo flew to Bodrum in April to receive a tummy tuck, liposuction and Brazilian butt lift.

Four months later, however, she remains in Turkey in recovery after her cosmetic procedures went catastrophically wrong.

Speaking to ITV News, Lo recalled how she woke up mid-operation.

'I remember waking up and putting my head up and seeing liposuction being performed on my stomach'.

A British woman says she is trapped in Turkey after suffering from serious complications from botched cosmetic procedures, including two bouts of sepsis

Cennet Lo, 28, has recalled the trauma of her botched Turkey cosmetic operations

Lo flew to Bodrum in April to receive a tummy tuck, liposuction and Brazilian butt lift

Around two weeks after her surgery, Lo explained that her pain began to get worse.

She flew back to the UK and went to hospital twice, but ultimately had to fly back to Turkey on May 20 after she was told her surgeon should carry out corrective work.

'I was scared to go to sleep because i actually thought i was going to die,' she said.

Since she first went under the knife a few months ago, Lo has had to undergo four major surgeries to remove skin infections.

But even the corrective surgeries have caused Lo distress.

She claimed that after contracting sepsis for the second time, she went into surgery to close the open wound, but woke up to find out her surgeon had given her a whole new tummy tuck without her consent.

She also recalled how she had dead tissue removed from a wound without any anaesthetic.

'He started cutting at my stomach with no local anaesthetic, no pain relief, no nothing. They had to hold my legs down, I had a woman holding my shoulders down,' she told ITV News.

But the horrific experience has caused Lo more than just physical pain.

'There's been days I've been in so much pain I've not wanted to be here'.

This comes after a British mother died after having a Brazilian butt lift in Turkey that she hoped would change her life.

Lo has had to undergo four major surgeries to remove skin infections

The horrific experience has caused Lo more than just physical pain

'There's been days I've been in so much pain I've not wanted to be here', she told ITV

The number of complications from cosmetic surgeries abroad have been on the rise

Kaydell Brown, 38, of Sheffield, paid 5,400 for a 'mummy MOT' - a package deal involving a Brazilian butt lift, a tummy tuck and a boob job. The cost in Britain would have been around 15,000.

The hairdresser underwent the procedures at Clinic Expert in Istanbul on the morning of March 26, 2024, but never came out.

Her heartbroken sister Leanne, 40, who was due to have the same surgery, slammed the Turkish clinic, branding it a 'pop-up butcher shop that needs shutting down'.

Leanne claimed that after medics informed her of her sister's death she was handed an envelope of cash and was booked on the next flight home.

'It's like, ''Sorry she's dead, here's your plane ticket'',' she told ITV.

Kaydell had hoped the surgery would get her life 'back on track' after she put on weight due to injuring her ankle, according to her sister

The number of complications from cosmetic surgeries abroad have been on the rise.

According to the Foreign Office, 28 Brits have died after having cosmetic surgery in Turkey since 2019.

Meanwhile, the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS), those needing hospital treatment in the UK after cosmetic surgery abroad has shot up 94 per cent in three years  from 57 in 2020 to 111 in 2022, with 124 cases so far this year  with procedures carried out in Turkey accounting for more than three-quarters of those in the past six months alone.

The organisation started to 'join the dots', as BAAPS president Marc Pacifico puts it, two years ago, when colleagues shared stories of patients with complications arising from procedures abroad. 'It became apparent that these stories weren't one-offs,' he recalls. He started an online database where those affected could share their experiences.

'One of the fundamentals of plastic surgery best practice is whether you are doing the right operation on the right person at the right time,' he says.

'We were hearing things like tummy tucks on morbidly obese wheelchair-bound diabetics who should never be remotely considered for surgery. There were also many absolutely dreadful stories of aftercare  or lack of it.'
Then-Attorney General Kamala Harris speaks to California Democrats in Anaheim on May 16, 2015. Damian Dovarganes/Associated Press Kevin Cooper is shown at San Quentin State Prison in an undated photo. He said he forgives Kamala Harris, who as state attorney general opposed DNA testing that Cooper claimed would clear him, and warned against Republicans using his case to tarnish the Democratic presidential nominee. Photo courtesy of Kevin Cooper

Kevin Cooper, sentenced to death in one of Californias most hotly contested capital cases, is speaking out for Kamala Harris, who as state attorney general opposed DNA testing that Cooper claimed would clear him. Writing from state prison in Stockton, Cooper said he forgives Harris and warned against Republicans using his case to tarnish the Democratic presidential nominee.

They are trying to hurt Vice President Kamala Harriss chances to become the first woman  woman of color  president of the Divided States of America. I cannot allow the Republicans to misuse my case against her, Cooper, 66, wrote in a letter released by his supporters on Wednesday.

So therefore, I Kevin Cooper am forgiving Kamala Harris for once denying me DNA testing. If I can find it within my heart to forgive her, as I am still sentenced to death for murders that I did not commit, then how can the Republicans, who do not care about me, hold or use what she didnt do as attorney general against her now?

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In a recent post on X, formerly Twitter, William Shipley, a lawyer for some defendants in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by supporters of former President Donald Trump, said that a lawsplainer is in order about Harris efforts as AG to prevent an appeals court from considering DNA evidence that would have exonerated a man on death row.

In another post on X, Jacob Faber, identified as a Trump supporter, wrote, To all Kamala Harris supporters, just look up Kevin Cooper. Both posts were first reported in Newsweek.

Cooper was convicted of fatally stabbing Doug and Peggy Ryen, their 10-year-old daughter, Jessica Ryen, and their 11-year-old houseguest, Christopher Hughes, at the Ryens home in Chino Hills (San Bernardino County) in 1983. Cooper had escaped two days earlier from a nearby prison, where he was serving a sentence for burglary.

State and federal courts have upheld his convictions and death sentence, and he came within eight hours of execution in 2004 before a federal appeals court granted a stay. But his claims of innocence have drawn considerable support, including a 101-page dissenting opinion in 2009 by Judge William Fletcher and four colleagues on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, who said there was reason to believe officers had manipulated and planted evidence against Cooper.

His lawyers are filing a new appeal under Californias Racial Justice Act, which allows challenges to sentences or convictions that may have been affected by racial bias.

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As state attorney general in 2010, Harris opposed DNA testing of evidence sought by Coopers lawyers, who contended it would clear him. As Californias top law enforcement officer, she was required to defend the states position in criminal cases unless she decided it had no factual basis or violated her conscience.

Eight years later, as a U.S. senator, she urged Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom to order new DNA testing in the case. Newsom issued that order after taking office in 2019, declared a moratorium on executions in California and then ordered a San Francisco law firm to investigate Coopers case.

The firm issued a 104-page report in January 2023 declaring that the evidence of his guilt is conclusive, noting that Coopers DNA had been found at the murder site. Newsom endorsed the finding.

But Coopers lawyers said they had reason to believe the evidence had been planted. They said the report brushed aside evidence that Lee Furrow, a paroled murderer who had been in the area, had told construction workers that me and my boys, we butchered a whole family. Furrow, who was reportedly seen wearing a pair of bloodstained coveralls soon after the killings, has denied any involvement in the murders.

The law firms report also discounted the first response of the only survivor of the attacks, 8-year-old Josh Ryen, whose parents and sister were killed. Josh, whose throat was slashed, was questioned in the hospital by a social worker. Unable to speak, he signaled by touching letters and numbers on a page that the attackers had been three white men. Cooper is Black, and Furrow is white.

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Arizona cops have arrested a man accused of threatening to assassinate Donald Trump.

Ronald Syrvud, 66, was apprehended Thursday evening, around seven hours after Cochise County Sheriff's Office issued a wanted notice for him at about 2:30pm local time.

'This subject has been taken into custody without incident in Cochise County. We appreciate all of the information received and the incredible collaborative efforts with all of our public safety partners,' the sheriff's office said in a statement.

Police previously said Syvrud has several other warrants out for his arrest on separate charges, including for a DUI and failure to appear in court in Wisconsin, and for failure to register as a sex offender and felony hit and run in Arizona.

It comes six weeks after an attempt on Trump's life saw a bullet hit the former president's ear during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Ronald Lee Syvrud, 66, was arrested by Arizona authorities in connection with an alleged assassination plot on Donald Trump

Sheriff Mark Dannels had ramped up security in the area around the section of border wall Trump was visiting as the the search went on for Syvrud.

Records show that he was a registered Democrat in the past, and owns a long rap sheet dating back to 1990 - including a conviction in 2000 for second degree sexual assault of a child, where he pleaded no contest.

The exact nature of the threats is unclear, however Sheriff Dannels told DailyMail.com they were received 'off social media.'

'We have zero tolerance for any kind of threats or intents of violence, so we'll find him. He'll go to jail,' Dannels said.

'He's a registered sex offender here in Cochise County, and we were looking for him. He's out of compliance as part of his violations. So we're looking for him on that.

'We're going to arrest him on that. But also the fact his pulse was obviously directed toward this event. So we want to talk to him about that.'

As Dannels added that security was being ramped up ahead of the speech, Secret Service snipers could be seen perched on a crane surveying the area.

Records show that he was a registered Democrat in the past, and owns a long rap sheet dating back to 1990 - including a conviction in 2000 for second degree sexual assault of a child, where he pleaded no contest.

Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a visit at the frontier with Mexico in Hereford, Cochise County

It comes six weeks after an attempt on Trump's life saw a bullet hit the former president's ear during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania

The exact nature of the threats is unclear, however Sheriff Dannels told DailyMail.com they were received 'off social media.'

'We have zero tolerance for any kind of threats or intents of violence, so we'll find him. He'll go to jail,' Dannels said.

'He's a registered sex offender here in Cochise County, and we were looking for him. He's out of compliance as part of his violations. So we're looking for him on that.

'We're going to arrest him on that. But also the fact his pulse was obviously directed toward this event. So we want to talk to him about that.'

As Dannels added that security was being ramped up ahead of the speech, Secret Service snipers could be seen perched on a crane surveying the area.

The planned attempt on Trump's life was allegedly intended for his trip to the border in Sierra Vista, in a spot where his campaign has already traveled to.

Arizona officials said they believe Syvrud is at large in the border region, and are urgently attempting to locate him ahead of Trump's visit.

Ahead of his trip to the area, Trump said on Truth Social on Wednesday that he would be addressing 'the plague of migrant crime that so-called Border Czar, comrade Kamala Harris has unleashed on America.'

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump talks with Paul Perez, president of the National Border Patrol Council, as he tours the southern border with Mexico, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Sierra Vista, Arizona

Rather than the Secret Service or any other law enforcement it fell to Dailymail.com to inform Trump that the widely publicized manhunt was going on.

The Republican nominee delivered a speech on immigration in the desert next to the border and then took questions.

DailyMail.com's correspondent asked him whether he felt he was in danger.

Trump admitted he 'hadn't heard' about the threat and said law enforcement probably 'wanted to keep it' from him.

With a chuckle he said: 'Thank you for telling me. Let's get out of here right now!'

He added: 'And I have great respect for Secret Service, the job they do, including a month and a half ago, when they were jumping on top of me with bullets flying right at 'em.

'So, mistakes were made, and they're going to learn from the mistakes. But I have great respect. But, no, I haven't heard that, but I'm not that surprised.

'And the reason is because I want to do things that are very bad for the bad guys. So, I have heard, it's very unsafe to make this trip. There were some people that really didn't want me to make it.'

Secret Service snipers are seen perched on a crane to survey the area where Trump is set to speak in Cochise County, Arizona

Officials said security is heightened amid the alleged assassination plot

It comes nearly six weeks after Trump was nearly assassinated by a 20-year-old in Pennsylvania.

Trump turned his head at the vital moment and only ended up with a bloody ear. He was hustled off stage by his Secret Service detail, but not before giving his supporters a clenched fist salute.

Thomas Matthew Crooks, the 20-year-old would-be assassin who shot Donald Trump, opened fire at the former president with an AR-style rifle from a roof 130 yards from the rally stage in Butler, Pennsylvania.

A member of the crowd was killed in the deadly shooting, while two others who were wounded are in critical condition. All three are males, according to law enforcement officials.

Trump was left bloodied and hurt during the assassination attempt as he was seen to suddenly grab hold of his ear as loud bangs rang out and whizzed by before he ducked to the floor.

The Secret Service swarmed around the 45th US President as piercing screams were heard from the MAGA crowd.

He then got to his feet with blood pouring down his cheek and raised his fist in the air and defiantly shouted 'fight' while the audience shouted 'USA' as he was dragged off stage and bundled into a vehicle.

Secret Service agents could be heard shouting 'the shooter is down' in the ensuing chaos and the gunman was later confirmed dead.
A skydiving company has spoken out after a father of six tragically lost his life, confirming that his parachute opened correctly.

Roger Goltz, an IT technician from Jervis Bay, on NSW's south coast, died at the weekend, leaving behind his wife Kelly and their six children aged between 14 and 25 years old.

Mr Goltz was an experienced skydiver and had completed about 80 jumps before the accident on Saturday.

While his parachute opened perfectly, it's understood Mr Goltz turned too low and fast due to the wind, which put him on the wrong angle to land.

Mr Goltz suffered a catastrophic brain injury upon impact. He was put on a ventilator at the scene before being taken to hospital where he was later pronounced dead.

'Roger and my 18-year-old son Kai had gone skydiving like they always do. Kai saw his dad go down but didn't realise it was him until he saw his shoe,' Mrs Goltz told Daily Mail Australia.

Mrs Goltz, whose four out of six children live at home, is now worried she may not be able to keep her house as skydiving was not covered by their life insurance.

Skydive Oz in Moruya confirmed that Roger's parachute opened and worked as it should.

Roger Goltz, who lives in Jervis Bay, on NSW's South Coast, died over the weekend, leaving behind his wife and six kids

Mr Goltz is an experienced skydiver and had completed about 80 jumps, many with his teenage son, before the accident on Saturday

Chief instructor Paul Smith, who was at the drop zone when the incident occurred, said that safety is always his top priority.

'At Skydive Oz, we do everything we can to make it as safe as possible for all of our members, regardless of their level of experience, and the close-knit skydiving community here is devastated that this has occurred,' he said in a statement.

'We are incredibly grateful to the first responders and emergency services personnel who provided first aid care and arranged for his helicopter flight to Canberra.'

Australian Parachute Federation CEO Stephen Porter said it had launched an investigation into the incident.

'Our thoughts are with the man's family and everyone involved at this tragic time,' he said.

'A training officer arrived on site at Moruya Heads on Saturday night to begin a thorough investigation into the cause of the incident.'

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help support his family who say they have been left with an 'irreplaceable void in our hearts'.

'Roger was just always chasing the next adventure and just loved his kids, he was one of them I suppose,' Mrs Goltz said.

'The kids are devastated and wondering did he hurt or was he scared and what it means for the two girls and who's going to walk them down the aisle?

'They've just lost their best mate.

'All you had to do was imagine it and he'd make it happen.'

Mrs Goltz said a fellow skydiver with 40 years of experience said he'd seen similar turns go wrong in the air but never one that claimed a life.

A GoFundMe has been set up to help support his family who say they've been left with an 'irreplaceable void in our hearts'

He was extremely close with his six children

Mr Goltz (far right) had done several skydiving jumps with his teenage son Kai

She is now awaiting a coroner's report to try to understand what went wrong.

The family are being supported by Mr and Mrs Goltz's parents

'Roger just loved life and his family,' Mrs Goltz said.

A memorial service will be held for Mr Goltz next Thursday.
Taliban rulers have banned women's voices and faces in public under new laws to promote 'virtue' in Afghanistan, according to Associated Press.

The hardline Islamist group had set up a ministry for the 'prevention of vice' after seizing power following the withdrawal of US and coalition forces in 2021.

Officials published its 114-page vice and virtue rulebook on Wednesday that covers aspects of everyday life such as public transport, music, shaving and celebrations.

The laws, which have been approved by supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, say that it is compulsory for all women to cover their bodies in public and that face coverings are essential to 'avoid temptation and tempting others'.

Clothing should not be thin, tight or short, and failure to adhere could result in arrest.

The laws, which have been approved by supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, say that it is compulsory for all women to cover their bodies in public and that face coverings are essential to 'avoid temptation and tempting others' (pictured: Burqa-clad Afghan women walk on a road in Kandahar, Afghanistan)

The hardline Islamist group had set up a ministry for the 'prevention of vice' after seizing power following the withdrawal of US and coalition forces in 2021 (pictured: General Deputy Head of the Military Affairs Commission Mullah Yaqoob (R) attends a military parade to celebrate the third anniversary of the Taliban government takeover)

Clothing should not be thin, tight or short, and failure to adhere could result in arrest (pictured: Burqa-clad Afghan women walk on a road in Kandahar, Afghanistan)

Officials published its 114-page vice and virtue rulebook on Wednesday that covers aspects of everyday life such as public transport, music, shaving and celebrations (pictured: In a parade in southern Helmand province, men held yellow canisters to represent the type of explosives used in roadside bombings during the war)

A woman's voice is deemed intimate and so should not be heard singing, reciting poetry, or reading aloud in public

Meanwhile, a woman's voice is deemed intimate and so should not be heard singing, reciting poetry, or reading aloud in public.

It is forbidden for women to look at men they are not related to by blood or marriage and vice versa.

The law also bans music, women travelling alone, and men and women socialising together unless they are related to each other. Last month, a report by the United Nations said the ministry was contributing to a climate of fear among Afghans.

Fiona Frazer, head of the human rights service at the UN mission in Afghanistan, said: 'The position expressed by the de facto authorities that this oversight will be increasing and expanding gives cause for significant concern for all Afghans, especially women and girls.'
Lawyers representing the Post Office during the Horizon scandal have earned almost as much as the compensation paid to wronged sub-postmasters.

Fifteen law firms and two barristers' chambers were paid almost 257 million for advising the state-owned firm over ten years, while victims have received about 261 million so far.

The wrongful prosecution of more than 900 people was the biggest miscarriage of justice in British legal history.

The lawyer fees paid by the Post Office were revealed yesterday in a reply to a Freedom of Information request by The Lawyer website and related to payments for work between September 2014 and March this year.

It included work on the High Court group litigation brought against the Post Office by sub-postmasters, the establishment of compensation schemes and the Horizon IT independent inquiry, which started in 2022.

The wrongful prosecution of more than 900 people was the biggest miscarriage of justice in British legal history (pictured: Alan Bates, former sub-postmaster and founder of Justice for Subpostmasters Alliance leaving Portcullis House in London)

It included work on the High Court group litigation brought against the Post Office by sub-postmasters, the establishment of compensation schemes and the Horizon IT independent inquiry, which started in 2022 (pictured: Postmasters accused of theft by Post Office celebrate outside the High Court In London)

Former post office worker Wendy Buffrey (left), from Cheltenham, celebrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice, London, after having her conviction overturned by the Court of Appeal

One firm, Herbert Smith Freehills, received more than 163.5 million. It was involved in the High Court action brought against the Post Office by former postmaster Alan Bates.

It also advised the Post Office on its compensation scheme and in the early stages of the inquiry, although it was replaced last June by two firms, Burges Salmon and Fieldfisher.

HSF said its work has been 'complex and wide-ranging, involving hundreds of our staff. We have immense sympathy for the postmasters.'

Another firm involved in the group litigation, Womble Bond Dickinson, received about 24.7 million.

It told The Lawyer it had 'great sympathy for all those affected' and said its billing included 'third-party costs', such as barristers' fees paid via disbursements, rather than directly by the Post Office.

A third firm, Peters & Peters, received 43.3 million from the Post Office for advice on the sub-postmasters' appeals against their convictions and on the inquiry. It is thought the figure included money paid to barristers by the firm.

The Post Office said: 'We are truly sorry for the suffering caused by Post Office's past actions and the amount of money spent with legal firms reflects the huge scale of the scandal.'
After she and Prince Albert bought Balmoral for 32,000 (the equivalent of 5million today) in 1852, Queen Victoria described the Aberdeenshire estate as her dear paradise in the Highlands. The Scottish retreat was so close to the late Queen Elizabeths heart that she chose to spend her final days there.

Now, King Charles and Queen Camilla are at Balmoral for their summer holiday, with Prince Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah, Duchess of York among their first guests. But there is, I hear, trouble in paradise.

While the royals enjoy their grouse shooting, salmon fishing and picnics in what Princess Eugenie has called the most beautiful place on earth, her parents are likely to know there is one subject they must broach with the King, however awkward.

According to a Palace insider, thats his apparent campaign to force them out of Royal Lodge, which has been Andrew and Fergies family home in Windsor Great Park ever since they paid 1million for a 75-year lease in 2003.

Prince Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson currently live at the 31-bedroom Royal Lodge, in the grounds of Windsor Great Park

The mansion is not owned by the King but by the independent Crown Estate, and it could not be let to a private tenant instead of the Yorks

The latest move by the monarch, which was disclosed by a newspaper last weekend, is to lay off Royal Lodges ten-strong security team. King Charles is said to have told the detail they will no longer be needed from the autumn.

The King has been paying for private guards at the 31-room mansion, which was the Queen Mothers home until her death, since Andrews 3million-a-year armed protection officers were removed in 2022.

That was after Andrew stepped back from royal duties following his disastrous interview with the BBCs Newsnight programme over his friendship with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

A Palace insider was reported by The Sun on Sunday to have told the paper about the Kings plan to remove Andrews guards: Everyone is speculating this means the Duke will have to leave Royal Lodge because what other reason could there be to take his security away? They are all working the final weeks of their contract till the end of October. Its not thought anyone is being lined up to replace them. It isnt a secret that the King wants him out.

This week, friends of the Duke and Duchess of York declined to discuss the row, no doubt fearful of increasing tensions while they are spending time with the King and Queen.

I understand, however, that they have been left bemused by the attempts to evict them from what they always assumed would be their forever home  one they could pass on to their daughters Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, if they so wished.

They dont believe the King can be motivated by saving money. After all, not only did he receive 86.3million via the Sovereign Grant to fund the working royals last year, but he was also handed more than 27million from the Monarchs Duchy of Lancaster estate, to spend as he sees fit. And thats before he dips into his private fortune.

Royal Lodge is not owned by the King but by the independent Crown Estate and, despite claims to the contrary, could not be let to a private tenant instead of the Yorks.

A National Audit Office report in 2005 made clear this was because of the sensitive location of the property in the centre of the Windsor Great Park with its consequential management considerations, and because of security concerns surrounding the Royal Familys access to the Royal Chapel.

The King is reportedly laying-off the private guards that he has employed for Prince Andrew since 2022, when his 3million-a-year armed protection officers were removed

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have this week been on a faux-royal tour of Colombia

The Royal Chapel of All Saints  where Andrews daughter Princess Beatrice married Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi in 2020  sits in the grounds of Royal Lodge.

The Crown Estate, meanwhile, has taken the view that it would be appropriate for the property to remain under the occupancy of the Royal Family. As I reported in June, that position hasnt changed.

Intriguingly, more than one friend of the Yorks has suggested the same theory to me as to why this eviction campaign has begun: could it be that the King sees Royal Lodge as a potential future home for Queen Camilla, were she to outlive him?

Whatever the motivation, it seems bizarre to me that the King is stepping up pressure on his brother when he should be concentrating his attention on another former working royal: his younger son, Prince Harry.

For all his failings, Andrew can never be accused of disloyalty. Despite the myriad indignities he has suffered, neither the Duke nor the Duchess of York has ever whispered so much as a word of criticism against the Royal Family.

That stands in stark contrast to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who have made a career out of disloyalty.

Surely, the King doesnt want to risk his brother and Fergie following the example of Harry and Meghan and seeking to make a fortune out of criticising the monarchy?

Andrews worst sin has arguably been his poor judgment when it comes to friends and associates, such as Epstein. He has denied being a co-conspirator with Epstein and denied his accuser Virginia Roberts Giuffres claims he sexually abused her when she was 17  although he did reach a settlement with her thought to be worth 12million.

My advice to His Majesty is: stump up the security bill for Royal Lodge without complaint and let Andrew stay. Rather than get bogged down in this particular dispute, the King ought to turn his sights on Harry and Meghan before they set off on yet another trouble-making faux-royal tour.

That doesnt mean Andrew should go unpunished. Along with Harry, he should be stripped of his role as a Counsellor of State. He and Harry should also both be removed from the line of succession.

The prospect of either of them anywhere near the throne is enough to turn this ardent monarchist into a republican.

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The bridesmaid walked by, bringing up the rear behind the little ones. It was the youngest Spencer. What was her name, again?

The Queen Mother thought hard. She was sure Charles had mentioned her, briefly. Some Althorp shooting weekend.

As she passed, the girl turned her head. Just a sideways glance from under her lashes, but it made the old queen sit up. Now she remembered the name. Diana.

The 1978 wedding of her sister Jane was the moment Diana Spencer, then 17, was star-spotted by the Queen Mother. The Palace machine roared into action and the making of a princess began.

In my new novel, The Princess, quoted above, I suggest an account of this largely hidden process. I was interested in the part of Diana's story that few people really know. How did she end up marrying Charles in the first place? Who else was involved? Above all, why her?

The wedding of Lady Jane Spencer at which Diana, then 17, was a bridesmaid (pictured right). It was at this event that she was spotted by the Queen Mother

Researching her childhood, time at school and jolly Sloane days in her flat-share, I discovered that the roots of the marriage's failure were there all along. The Princess is a novel about a catastrophic clash; what the Royal Family wanted was entirely different from what Diana wanted. While the Windsors thought the marriage was a dynastic union to secure the future of the Crown, Diana thought it was love, the man of her dreams.

The Royal Family never imagined that a front-rank aristocrat brought up in a stately home might have zero knowledge of what being a princess would involve. They had no idea that Diana's parents' broken marriage had damaged and isolated her to the extent that her childhood was less house-parties and grand dinners than sitting alone reading Barbara Cartland.

For her part, Diana, fuelled on all this sugary romance, could not or would not see the essentially transactional nature of the union with Charles. The consequences could not have been more disastrous. It made a great novel, but more than that, it fitted a pattern.

Diana is one of three 'problem women' the Windsors faced during the 20th Century. I've written a trilogy of novels about them, of which The Princess is the last. The first, The Governess (2020) is about Marion 'Crawfie' Crawford. She taught the late Queen as a child and in 1950 published a notorious book about her royal experiences. 2021's The Duchess is about Wallis Simpson, for whom Edward VIII renounced the throne in 1936.

These three women came from wildly different backgrounds but what interested me was what they had in common. All were from outside the Royal Family and all were drawn into the Windsors' orbit by love, which they entered with good intentions.

When Dianawas star-spotted by the Queen Mother, and the Palace machine roared into action and the making of a princess began. Pictured together in 1992

They all tried to change things, all fell victim to a giant misunderstanding and all ended up with shattered reputations. The 21st Century, of course, has brought another, former TV actress Meghan Markle. Her story is still playing out, but she might well make my trilogy into a quartet.

The series began when I discovered The Little Princesses, Crawfie's autobiography, in a second-hand bookshop.

It was hard to see what the Windors had found so dreadful about it. The very first page has Crawfie telling us she trained as a teacher because she wanted to help children in the Edinburgh slums. I scented a story immediately.

How on earth had the urge to teach the poorest in society turned into a position teaching the most privileged  the future Elizabeth II and her sister, Princess Margaret?

Like Diana, Crawfie was recruited by the Queen Mother. A Scot herself, she was Duchess of York when, in 1933, she spotted the young teacher tutoring the children of an aristocratic friend. Crawfie did not want to leave Edinburgh, but the Duchess wore her down. She agreed, very reluctantly, to come south for six months.

'Crawfie expected, probably hoped, to dislike the pampered little Princess Elizabeth. Instead, she fell in love with the serious, blue-eyed five-year old.' Pictured: (left to right) Marion Crawford, then Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret

Crawfie expected, probably hoped, to dislike the pampered little Princess Elizabeth. Instead, she fell in love with the serious, blue-eyed five-year old who, with her baby sister, led such a strange, old-fashioned existence, sequestered in royal residences and seeing no one her own age.

Even so, Crawfie tried to leave royal service several times in the hope of having a family of her own. When, finally, she escaped in 1949, she was 40 and by the standards of the day, too old for children. She married hastily and disastrously  George Buthlay, a cad and a charlatan, manipulated her for money. Together with some unscrupulous American journalists, he persuaded her to write her notorious book which they assured her had royal approval.

This was a lie and the 1950 publication of The Little Princesses saw Crawfie ostracised by the Windsors. They accused her of profiteering and breaching royal privacy, but what the book mostly revealed was her love and admiration for the family she served.

Crawfie, as is well-known, tried to show the princesses some normal life. She took them on the Tube, to shops and cafes, swimming at public pools and even set up a Palace Brownie pack. It wasn't easy. The Tube trip, supposedly incognito, was ruined by the royal detective, who acted like Inspector Clouseau and drew unwelcome attention. At the cafe, Elizabeth was yelled at for not returning her tray.

While all this was great fun to dramatise in a novel, more thought-provoking was the child Elizabeth's bedtime routine. Lilibet was fanatically neat and could not sleep unless her clothes were in perfect order and her shoes placed together completely straight. These days, of course, we would have no trouble identifying OCD.

Nonetheless, Crawfie's 17 years of devoted service, including through the Abdication crisis and the whole of the Second World War, counted for nothing when The Little Princesses came out. 'Crawfie? She sneaked!' said Princess Margaret, and the compliant verdict of history has indeed been that the governess was a money-grubbing tell-tale.

Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret, holding the hand of Marion Crawford, after their first ride on the Tube

But Crawfie spent the rest of her life unable to believe that the family she had served so faithfully could cut her off so cruelly. She attempted suicide at least once. After her Eleanor Rigby-like funeral in 1988, she left her cache of personal letters from the princesses, which she could have profitably sold any time, to the Queen.

It was while writing The Governess, and uncovering the alternative version of the Crawfie legend, that I started to wonder about another woman who had tangled with the royals and lost.

Wallis Simpson appears in a scene at Balmoral, which she visited in 1936 on the insistence of her lover, Edward VIII.

She arrived by train in Aberdeen to the middle of a media storm. Edward was meant to be opening a new wing at the city hospital but had reneged on this to meet Wallis at the station. They were spotted and Wallis was excoriated in the Press, the evil temptress seducing the monarch from his duty.

In actual fact, she was having a terrible time with Edward. He had become frighteningly unstable, threatening to kill himself unless she came to Scotland. He had also forced her to divorce her husband Ernest, who was similarly reluctant until the King cornered him while Wallis was away in Paris.

Wallis Simpson is 'another woman who had tangled with the royals and lost'

In one of those set-pieces typical of the time, Simpson had to agree to be found 'cheating' with a woman called, of all things, Buttercup Kennedy, at the even more unlikely Hotel de Paris, Berkshire. The subsequent divorce hearing took place in Felixstowe  that the notorious American femme fatale spent a month beside the Suffolk seaside is one of the stranger aspects of the affair.

Wallis's ghastly first marriage as a teenager to a violent, drunken navy pilot is a lesser known backstory. In a strange foreshadowing of Diana's father, his name was actually Earl Spencer.

They lived for a time in the Far East, where he humiliated her by making her accompany him to brothels. This was the miserable origin of later stories about the 'Shanghai squeeze', or 'China clinch', and other stories about her sexual repertoire with which she supposedly ensnared Edward VIII.

The Duchess, my novel about Wallis, takes the line that, contrary to the popular view of her as a scheming social climber.

She was rather more victim rather than villain. She was a realist above all, and never thought her royal affair would last, hence her reluctance to divorce her husband. Still less did she expect the king to leave his throne and was utterly horrified when he did. She knew she would be blamed, as indeed she was.

It was Edward, I felt, who was the guilty party. That he had planned it all along was the only theory that fitted the facts. People always wonder what the world's most glamorous and eligible bachelor saw in someone so unsuitable to be queen as a plain, poor, middle-aged divorced foreigner probably incapable of bearing children. But if, as I suggest in The Duchess, Edward never wanted to be king in the first place, still less perpetuate the line, then Wallis was the ideal woman.

Wallis Simpson pictured with former king Edward after his abdication from the throne. She did not 'expect the king to leave his throne and was utterly horrified when he did, as he knew she would be blamed'

Diana, interestingly, was the reverse of this. The reason it had to be her in 1981 was that no-one else ticked all the boxes of being young, Protestant and 'without a past', which was royal-speak for virgin.

That she was also a ticking time-bomb was something the Windsors only discovered afterwards  and once they did, the other Palace machine roared into action: the one that deals with the reputations of its enemies.

Now, 27 years after that fatal accident in Paris, the spontaneous, joking, breath-of-fresh-air princess, who crouched to hug children and shook the hands of AIDS victims, is better known for her rocky romances, iffy judgement and tendency to manipulate. Recent film and TV versions of her life focus on bulimia and poor mental health.

You'd think, given what they'd gone through in the previous century, that the royal family would spot trouble in the 2000s a mile off. Meghan Markle had all the usual characteristics.

'The 21st Century, of course, has brought another, former actress Meghan Markle. Her story is still playing out, but she might well make my trilogy into a quartet'

As well as being wild about a Windsor, she was an outsider, an American. Moreover, an American encouraging her prince to make the royals more relatable.

Seventy years before, Wallis was the only one of Edward's friends who really believed his oft-aired intentions to bring the institution closer to the people. Perhaps because, like Meghan, she came from a republic.

Meghan has certainly attracted as much opprobrium as her countrywoman. From accusing, on global television, an unnamed royal of racism, to making Kate cry about bridesmaid dresses and being the reason Harry started the argument that led to William pushing him onto a dog bowl, there seems no outrage that can't be laid at her elegantly thin feet. But is this the whole story about her? As yet, we cannot know.

It's claimed that there is no way back, that the rift will never be healed, but this has all been said before, as we have seen. Were Meghan  and Harry  to be somehow brought back into the fold it would finally break what has been an ignominious pattern. And provide a happy alternative to the misery suffered by her 'difficult' predecessors.
Federal prosecutors announced the arrests of seven Guatemalans in connection to the deaths of 53 migrants who died the deadliest case of human smuggling in the US where migrants tried to claw their way out of the locked truck where temperatures soared to 140 degrees.

Prosecutors revealed Thursday that 48 migrants of the total 53 who died were already dead when they reached San Antonio on June 27, 2022.

They died on the way from the US-Mexico border to San Antonio, about a two hour trip where the big rig the migrants were trafficked in lack air conditioning, ventilation and exits.

'As the temperature inside the trailer rose, chaos ensued. Some aliens screamed and banged on the walls for help. Some passed out, unconscious,' the unsealed federal indictment reads.

'Others clawed at the sides of the trailer attempting to escape.'

Six children and a pregnant woman among the dead, prosecutors stated.

The atrocity in June 2022 was the deadliest case of human smuggling in the US

Another 11 were hospitalized, however, they survived.

The arrests of the Guatemalans were heralded as ground-breaking, as they happened in Guatemala with the cooperation of that country's government.

'If you profit of the misery of others and you think you're safe because you're outside the US, you're wrong,' Ian Hannah, Assistant US Attorney declared.

Six of the men will be tried in their home country, while the US is seeking the extradition of one of the men, Rigoberto Roman Miranda-Orozco to the Lone Star State for trial.

Prosecutors have pinned three of the deaths on him, and he faces life in prison.

'Mirando Orozco secured payments from migrants who were citizens of Guatemala and then worked with his co-conspirators to smuggle and transport the migrants from Guatemala,' Department of Justice prosecutors explained.

Shoes and clothes are seen in the area where an abounded truck was found with 46 dead migrants and 5 more died after hospitalized in San Antonio, Texas

Christian Martinez, 28, of Palestine, Texas was arrested and charged with conspiracy to transport illegal aliens resulting in death

Homero Zamorano, 45, was taken into custody in a nearby field after he allegedly abandoned the 18-wheeler with dozens of migrants stashed in the back in a desolate area in San Antonio on Monday. Prosecutors say he drove the truck from the US-Mexico border to San Antonio

A boy holds a picture of 13-year-old Pascual Melvin Guachiac who died in a tractor-trailer along with other migrants in San Antonio, Texas

Pictured: Fernando Jose Redondo and Adela Betulia Ramirez Quezada of Honduras were were among the 53 migrants who died

Seven others have already been arrested for their roles in this horrific smuggling case, including two US citizens and five Mexican nationals, the US Attorney Jaime Esparza explained during Thursday's press conference.

Four of them have pleaded guilty in the US to charges, while the three others will go to trial on Oct. 21.

Prosecutor said people who smuggle migrants to American are no longer out of their reach, and they've bee working with the governments of El Salvador, Guatemala, Hondura and Mexico to bring those criminals to American courts.

'Recently, were expanded our portfolio to include Colombia and Panama to focus on the Darien Gap,' Hannah added.

The Darien Gap, on the border of Colombia and Panama, has become a hot bed of human smuggling where migrants from around the world but mostly from South America, cross on foot in an attempt to make it to the US.
Episode Guide

Sarah Vine and Peter Hitchens discuss the governments near impossible goal of deporting 14,000 illegal migrants and foreign criminals by the end of the year, as over a thousand migrants alone crossed the channel in the last seven days, and ask does the UK even have a sustainable border anymore?

And as Channel 4 commissions a new documentary on the Lucy Letby case and David Davies MP plans on tabling a parliamentary debate over her conviction, Sarah and Peter ask if weve seen justice served.

Plus, did the Queen really think Donald Trump rude? And just what did happen when Prince Charles asked to meet Peter Hitchens?

Sarah Vine and Peter Hitchens bring their own insight, opinion and reaction (clue is in the title) to the biggest stories of the week.

Send your questions to:

Reaction@Dailymail.co.uk OR send us a voice note via Whatsapp on 07796657512 starting with the word 'Reaction'

Hosts: Sarah Vine and Andrew Pierce

To get in touch email Reaction@dailymail.co.uk, you can leave a comment on Spotify or even send us a voice note on WhatsApp - on 07796 657512 start your message with the word 'reaction'
Millions of Brits will be assembling what they believe is the perfect whopper today, in celebration of National Burger Day.

While meat and cheese are common choices, the addition of other ingredients can prove seriously controversial among households.

To settle the debate once and for all, scientists have revealed the formula for the perfect burger.

From the arrangement of the fillings and even how to eat it, a forensic approach to this beloved fast food can maximise enjoyment, they believe.

They say you should include one very unusual component  although this kitchen cupboard staple may send burger purists into a fury.

According to scientists, the perfect burger is 2.7 inches (7cm) tall with more aromatic elements placed at the top - and always eaten with the hands

The perfect burger: Always use your hands and never serve on a plate Always eat with your hands

Never serve on a plate with cutlery

Place aromatic elements nearer the top and umami-rich fillings near the bottom

Boost umami with the addition of ketchups and even soy sauce.

Include crunchy elements like iceberg lettuce and gherkins Advertisement

Charles Spence, professor of experimental psychology at the University of Oxford, said the aromatic elements of a burger  namely the meat  should be nearer the top.

That's because aromas are mostly registered in the nose, while the five tastes  including salty, sour and umami  are picked up by the tongue slightly below.

Meanwhile, the ingredients that pack an umami punch  the cheese, fresh tomato and ketchup  should be at the bottom.

'The burger is perhaps the most popular food on planet,' Professor Spence told MailOnline.

'Ideally you want the tasty stuff to hit taste buds on the tongue and aromatic elements on top.'

Charles Michel, a Franco-Colombian chef and flavour researcher, said the perfect burger should be 2.7 inches (7cm) tall, which is enough to fit numerous layers in the mouth at once.

He opts for ingredients that give the most luscious mouthfeel, including camembert cheese, wagyu beef and fried serrano ham for extra crispiness.

Wagyu, one of the most expensive meat cuts in the world, comes from Japan and has distinctive fat marbling, giving it superb tenderness.

It's one of the most popular food items in the word, but the addition of some ingredients over others can prove seriously controversial among households (file photo)

Both Chef Charles Michel (left) and Professor Charles Spence (right) believe burgers should be eaten with the hands to enhance enjoyment

What is umami? Umami is the Japanese word for the fifth basic sense of taste, after bitter, salty, sour and sweet. Despite being known in the East for more than 100 years, particularly Japan, it is a relatively new concept to the West where only the four primary tastes were recognised until 2009. Umami means deliciousness in Japanese, but translates best as 'savouriness' and provides the 'meaty' flavour in meat. It is formed from glutamates being detected by receptors on the tongue and is the reason why monosodium glutamate (MSG) is used as a flavour enhancer. It is also found naturally in meats, cheeses and mushrooms. Advertisement

But Chef Michel  currently chief innovation officer at To'ak Chocolate  recommends one extra element that may be contended.

A few dashes of soy sauce on the bottom bun will get soaked up along with any residual meat juices and supercharge the umami punch, the chef claims.

Another essential, yet heavily-disputed inclusion is the gherkin, according to Professor Spence  his favourite ingredient 'given how divisive it is'.

With its mix of sweet and sour, the acidity of the gherkin helps cut through the rich umami notes of the cheese and tomato, as well as the meat, he claims.

What's more, the gherkin and crisp iceberg lettuce give the burger an added 'sonic crunch' when bitten into, with greater noise linked to enhanced satisfaction.

Professor Spence admits that gherkins are a divisive food in burgers, suggesting it's the frog-like surface that 'pickle-haters find so repulsive'.

'There can be few people out there who have fallen in love with the sight of the dimpled skin of the gherkin,' the academic said.

'It is perhaps just as well that the nobbly pickles tend to be hidden away in the middle of the bun.'

While many burger lovers will opt for a square slice of cheddar, camembert is a good option to maximize the runniness of the cheese when it melts.

'The protein-in-motion shot with energy dense cheese moving is gastroporn gold,' Professor Spence added.

With its mix of sweet and sour, the acidity of the gherkin also helps cut through the rich umami notes of the cheese and tomato (file photo)

Overall, getting as wide a range of colours into a burger can 'make what we eat look more attractive', from the yellow of the cheese to the green of the pickle and the red of the tomato.

Lastly, a burger should be eaten with the hands, and not off a plate with a knife and fork.

Chef Michel says paper wrapping instead 'holds the structure and maintains moisture and heat until the last bite'.

And as Professor Spence puts it, 'the first taste is with the hand', as the food we feel in the hands influences our perception in the mouth.

By bringing the whole burger up to our mouth to bite into it  rather than slicing morsels of it with cutlery  we are smelling and appreciating the whole thing with each morsel.

Interestingly, research also suggests that men find it attractive when women get 'stuck in' to their food by using their hands on a dinner date.
A new analysis shows the 'worst case scenario' for Antarctica's melting glaciers is much less severe than the United Nation's current estimates.

The UN's prediction that the melting of Antarctica's so-called 'Doomsday' glaciers could alone raise global sea levels two feet before the year 2100 has shaped global climate policy since at least 2016, when the estimate was first introduced.

The model  which the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) does admit is 'low likelihood'  projects this melt could raise sea levels up 50-ft by 2300.

But three new, more sophisticated climate models, produced with the backing of the National Science Foundation, now call this UN glacier model 'extreme' and 'unlikely.'

More realistic new scenarios, revealed by these new 'ice melt' simulations, predict the glaciers are not likely to break apart in the feared, cascading chain-reaction.

Researchers (boat, bottom left) map geothermal heat flows off West Antarctica in August 2021. Ice losses from Thwaites Glacier in that region has been responsible for roughly four percent of the global sea-level rise - but new models suggest a worse case scenario is unlikely

Above, Thwaites Glacier (mapped, in red) is defined as the region between Ellsworth Land and Marie Byrd Land. It's one key vulnerable part of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet

'We're not reporting that the Antarctic is safe and that sea-level rise isn't going to continue,' study co-author and earth sciences professor Mathieu Morlighem said.

'All of our projections show a rapid retreat of the ice sheet,' he emphasized.

What Morlighem and his co-authors did do was focus their modeling on the polar continent's 'Doomsday Glacier,' the Thwaites Glacier: a 75-mile-wide, heavily monitored plateau of ice whose collapse could swell oceans catastrophically.

What they hoped to test is whether or not the disappearance of massive portions of this glacier's floating outermost edge, its ice shelf, could trigger a the sliding of Antarctica's land-locked ice into the ocean  where it would raise sea levels rapidly.

'High-end projections,' like IPCC's worst case scenario, Morlighem said, 'are important for coastal planning and we want them to be accurate in terms of physics.'

A dramatically high and unlikely scenario, in other words, could lead a city council in Miami to waste taxpayer money on sea walls that are much higher than needed.

'These projections are actually changing people's lives,' Morlighem noted.

Above a model of the processes impacting how this 'Doomsday Glacier' may behave as it melts

Above, an aerial photo of the Thwaites Glacier's ice shelf. Climate scientists have long worried that removal of this ice shelf, under certain conditions, could lead to massive amounts of ice from the polar continent spilling into the ocean - with drastic implications for global sea levels

This worst case scenario from UN's IPCC report is based on a scenario where humanity's population and its burning of coal both continue to dramatically increase alongside 'business as usual' for the rest of the globe's fossil fuel use.

Scientists have named this 'high emissions' future scenario RCP8.5.

Dr Detlef van Vuuren, a Dutch chemist and IPCC environmental scientist, has described RCP8.5 as 'a possible no-climate policy world.'

It presumes about 8.5 watts-per-meter-squared (W/m2) of radiated heat from greenhouses gases above pre-industrial levels.

'It is important to have a high-end baseline scenario to explore what "could" happen,' as Dr va Vurren told Carbon Brief.

'And really, forcing levels of around 8.5 W/m2 are not implausible,' the scientist said.

But in RCP8.5, the IPCC's most dramatic, eye-popping worst case outlook, nearly all of Florida would be submerged in a global deluge of rising ocean tides by 2300.

The entire peninsula of the Sunshine State, save for a strip of inland high ground from Gainesville to Lake Okeechobee, would be undersea sinking coastal cities. It is, by design, in other words, the most extreme scenario possible.

'Policymakers and planners rely on these models and they're frequently looking at the high-end risk,' according to Morlighem, who researches the physics of glacier ice at Dartmouth University.

Policy-makers often want to prepare for the absolute worst: 'They don't want to design solutions and then the threat turns out to be even worse than they thought.'

The new study simulated the rate at which the Doomsday Glacier thinned (top row) and the speed at which is would slide (bottom row), in response to losing a portion of its ice shelf 'calving' into the sea. It found a lost ice shelf would not lead to the feared worst case reaction

glacier melt (above) drips into icicles off floating winter sea ice, grounded on rocks in low tide

His team developed three ice melt models capable of simulating the Thwaites Glacier's retreat at a higher resolution than the IPCC's latest low resolution model.

The new study, published Wednesday in the journal Science Advances, employed a computer model created by Dartmouth in collaboration with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the University of California at Irvine.

The model, known as Ice-sheet and Sea-level System Model (ISSM), was capable of handling 75,000 individual elements within its simulation at a resolution of about one mile (1.5 kilometers).

Their two other simulations, were similarly complex.

One, named Ua started with initial conditions consisting of 90,000 elements, and a resolution of 0.62 miles (1 km) near the key points in need of modelling, including where the large pieces of the glacier shelf could 'calve' or break off into the sea.

The last model, called STREAMICE, also had a resolution of 0.62 miles (1 km).

All of these models predicted an instantaneous increase in flow speed of up to 3 km/year right after the initial ice shelf collapse, or a doubling of todays ice flow speed.

The new study also simulated the rate at which the Doomsday Glacier thinned and the speed at which is would 'calve' portions of the glacier and slide those new icebergs into the sea.

But, ultimately, it found that a lost ice shelf would not lead the remaining glacier to retreat inland, nor trigger a runaway breakdown.

'Ice front retreat requires that the calving rate due to cliff failure exceeds this ice speed,' the team wrote, 'which is rarely the case in our simulations.'

But while these findings undermined the projections of the UN IPCC's models, it did not paint a completely rosy picture of planet Earth's southern-most continent.

Glaciologist Dr Dan Goldberg at the University of Edinburgh, a co-author on the new paper who was once a visiting professor at Dartmouth, noted that the Doomsday Glacier is likely to keep retreating inland in unpredictable ways past this century.

Researchers published the results of a three-year study in 2023 that deployed a yellow, pencil-shaped robot 'Icefin' (above) that looked at the forces eating away under the Thwaites glacier

'Thwaites is likely to retreat unstably in the coming centuries, which underscores the need to better understand how the glacier will respond to ocean warming and ice-shelf collapse through ongoing modeling and observation,' Dr Goldberg said.

Goldberg and Morlighem worked with Dr Helene Seroussi, an associate professor of engineering at Dartmouth, as well as researchers from the University of Michigan, the University of Edinburgh, Northumbria University and more on this modelling.

Dr Seroussi took pains to emphasize that only one key component of the IPCC's modelling was off: how it predicted the behavior of the ice shelf of the glacier out over the open ocean, called the Marine Ice Cliff Instability (MICI) mechanism.

'We're not calling into question the standard, well-established projections that the IPCC's report is primarily based on,' Dr Seroussi said.

'We're only calling into question this high-impact, low-likelihood projection that includes this new MICI process that is poorly understood,' she emphasized.

'Other known instabilities in the polar ice sheets are still going to play a role in their loss in the coming decades and centuries,' she said.
Oakland congressional candidate Lateefah Simon speaks during the third day of the 2024 DNC in Chicago on Wednesday. Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle

CHICAGO  Hours before she addressed the Democratic National Convention, Lateefah Simon still wasnt sure if she would make it to the stage.

After getting moved around on the schedule  first she was slated to speak Thursday, then not at all, then Tuesday, then Wednesday, then potentially not, then at some undetermined time  she finally walked out just before 9 p.m. Central Time on Wednesday.

Chronicle Washington Correspondent Shira Stein on what to expect from Kamala Harris on the last night of the Democratic National Convention and Simon's relationship with Harris. Joy Jeong

It might not have been immediately clear to some why an Oakland transit board member, who has not yet won the seat in Congress shes seeking, was given such a coveted platform. But there was a simple explanation: Harris personally asked Simon to introduce her to the world.

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Simon has known Harris since the early 2000s, when she was a young single mother and Harris was a prosecutor in San Francisco.

Harris saw my potential, my commitment and the good work we could do together. And I saw her, Simon told the convention. I saw Kamala Harris holding the hands of sexual assault survivors. I saw scores of mothers who lost their babies to gun violence lining up day after day at the courthouse, waiting only to speak to Kamala because they knew  they knew that she would hear them. That she would truly see them.

The Chronicle spoke with Simon throughout the week, including several times on Wednesday as she prepared to address the convention and in the immediate aftermath.

Simon started the day overwhelmed by her emotions. She teared up as she talked about Harris and her excitement to tell the world about her mentor.

Im not necessarily nervous, Simon said Wednesday morning. A second later: Im petrified.

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When it wasnt clear whether she would speak, Simon said she wasnt too worried.

Worst-case scenario, I dont speak tonight. Best-case scenario, Im at the Democratic National Convention where Kamala Harris is our nominee, Simon said. Imma speak, whether its in the elevator, in my room or on that stage. But Im going to be telling the story about how Kamala transformed my life for the rest of my life.

In the midst of her chaotic schedule, Simon was doing her most important job: being a mom. After the loss of her late husband, journalist Kevin Weston, she has been a single parent to her younger daughter, 13-year-old Lelah Weston.

She doesnt have people who can help her in Oakland, so Simon is planning for Lelah to move to Washington, D.C., with her if she wins her election. In between speech prep sessions and interviews, Simon was calling D.C. public schools, filling out forms and sending in her daughters medical records.

Harris has also inspired Simons eldest daughter, 28-year-old Aminah Foster, who is now a prosecutor.

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I dont know if I would have been able to take a position as a prosecutor, given the very, very political and progressive background that I was raised in, if not for being able to see the work that Kamala did, Foster said.

When asked Wednesday morning how she would feel in 24 hours when the world knew her name, Simon said she wasnt thinking about it. Three brackets fell off of Lelahs braces yesterday, so I have to find an orthodontist tomorrow, she said with a laugh.

When she eventually made it on stage, Simons speech appeared disjointed at times on TV. But it received an enthusiastic reception inside the convention hall.

When she goes into that Oval Office  when she goes into that Oval Office, I guarantee she will take all of us with her, Simon said of Harris. The single mothers, the disabled veterans, the low-income folks who are dying to survive. The immigrants who are trying to work toward the promise of America. She will take us all.

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The agonizing crucifixion of Jesus from the Bible details how he endured severe beatings, punctures and nails driven into his hands and feet.

Christians believe those wounds were miraculously imprinted on the burial shroud after Jesus was resurrected from the dead, scorched into the fibers by a burst of energy when he came back to life.

Now, a new analysis of the Shroud of Turin - also known as the Holy Shroud - claims to have uncovered evidence that the crucifixion may be historically accurate.

An engineer from the University of Padua in Italy used modern technology to reanalyze samples taken from the cloth in the 1970s, finding tiny blood particles showing signs of organ failure, trauma, disease and radiation.

Materials that were typical in ancient Jerusalem were also said to be discovered, suggesting that the shroud may have originated in the region and not in Europe where many skeptics think it was created as a medieval forgery.

The new study analyzed blood samples taken from the shroud in 1978, which were collected using adhesive tape. This blood, according to the study, showed signs of disease, trauma and radiation

Independent experts dismissed the findings, however, saying blood could have contaminated the cloth at any point in the past 700 years.

The Shroud of Turin is a 14-foot-long piece of linen featuring a faint image of the front and back of a man who Christians believe to be Jesus.

The cloth was first presented to the public in the 1350s, when it was exhibited in small collegiate church in Lirey, a village in northern France. Some believe it to be a Medieval fake.

It was not until 1978 when the first physical samples were removed from the cloth, done using adhesive tape to carefully lift particles from the front fibers and a vacuum to collect dust from the back.

But, back then, the results were inconclusive about whether or not blood had been present in the samples.

Now, University of Padua professor Giulio Fanti has placed those samples under modern-day microscopes capable of highlighting details down to the size of individual particles.

His study was published in Archives of Hematology Case Reports and Reviews, which peer-reviewed his research.

The reanalyzed particles showed the presence of hemoglobin, which is a key component of blood, and also two different types of blood that Fanti labeled Type A and Type B.

Fanti says this suggests the cloth was used on someone with bloody injuries, rather than forged using ink, dye, paint or other techniques.

Traces of creatine were also identified in the shroud sample, which is released into the blood stream when a person undergoes muscle breakdown or some type of trauma.

Your body produces creatine from amino acids in your liver, kidneys, and pancreas. It is also present in foods.

The body releases the chemical into the bloodstream when cells in the brain, heart or skeletal muscles are damaged.

It was not until 1978 when the first physical samples were allowed to be taken from the cloth, which was done using adhesive tape to carefully remove particles off the front fibers. Dr. Max Frei, a Swiss criminologist, can be seen taking samples from the shroud

The Shroud of Turin features hundreds of reddish spots, varying in shapes and sizes, across the imprinted body image

The expert found another type of blood that was shed while Jesus was still alive. It also contained signs of radiation, which Christians believe was released when Jesus rose from the dead

'The high percentage of creatinine found in [the sticky tape samples], may be explained, especially during Jesus' last hour before dying on the cross, by a reduced blood flow to the kidneys also caused by hypovolemia and by severe dehydration,' the study reads.

Fanti claimed that his findings align with John 19:28 that states 'Jesus said, I thirst.'

The samples also featured signs the person whose blood allegedly stained the shroud had suffered from uremic syndrome which occurs when the kidneys are unable to eliminate waste products.

While the condition typically happens from kidney disease, it can also be brought on by blunt trauma to the organ, which Fanti believes may have occurred when Jesus was whipped.

John 12:1 reads, 'Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged.'

'I would refer to Type A blood as that which came out of the corpse and therefore postmortem blood; it consists of microcytes which indicate the respiratory suffering of Jesus on the cross,' Fanti, a Christian who has been studying the shroud for 25 years, told DailyMail.com.

While the testing cannot prove whose blood litters the cloth, a new recent study claimed to find evidence that the shroud dates back 2,000 years.

This new finding came in stark contrast to a 1988 study which found the shroud to be a fake, after researchers determined it had been produced between 1260 and 1390 AD.

The study analyzed samples taken from the 1970s. Researchers collected particles using adhesive tape. Pictured are the samples zoomed in 1,500 times

The 1970s research also collected samples from the back of the shroud using a vacuum. Pictured are dust particles with traces of blood attached

In his study, Fanti found the blood particles he labled 'Type B' to mostly have a darker color than the 'Type A' blood and sharper edges.

He claims this suggests Type B came from before Jesus had died, with the differences being due to clotting characteristics.

'Type B consists of coagulated blood crusts probably formed when Jesus was on the cross or ascended Calvary,' said Fanti.

Both types of blood also had traces of earth materials that Fanti said are typically found in Jerusalem, such as clay and limestone, suggesting that the shroud may have originated in the region.

Mark 15:46 explains how Joseph, one of Jesus' disciples, removed Christ from the cross and 'bought a linen shroud, and taking him down, wrapped him in the linen shroud and laid him in a tomb that had been cut out of the rock.'

Some believe that Jesus' body was not washed during that time, but quickly placed in the tomb, which means he was not cleaned of earthy materials before being wrapped.

'When I went to Jerusalem to analyze the earthy material taken from the Holy Shroud, geologist Amir Sandler of the Geological Survey Of Jerusalem recognized among other things, like smectite and illite, which are typical of the Jerusalem soil as well as other material coming from the Sahara winds,' Fanti explained.

The blood detected by Fanti was also said to have evidence of possible radiation in different forms.

The Type A blood contained Beta particles that are electrons of great kinetic energy emitted by some radioactive nuclei, such as Potassium-40 used in explosives and fireworks.

Photon radiation particles were identified in the Type B samples - these are also known as Gamma rays, which are typically formed by a nuclear reaction.

However, Dr Lawrence Kobilinsky, a forensic scientist who is a professor emeritus at John Jay College, told DailyMail.com that the 'blood' was likely a 'secondary thought.'

'Earlier work... found a pigment [coloring agent] constituted the image,' he said.

Indeed, American chemist Dr Walter McCrone, who analyzed the tape strips in 1978, found the image consisted of red ochre and a gelatin solution.

'The simplest explanation is that this shroud was placed over a statue covered with pigment in certain areas, which transferred to the cloth, and gave it this three-dimensional configuration when you do the right kind of photography,' Dr Kobilinsky said.

The shroud features a faint image of a man with long hair and a beard, which many believe is the face of Jesus

The burial cloth has captivated the imagination of historians, church chiefs, skeptics and Catholics since it was first presented to the public in the 1350s. It is housed in Turin, Italy inside this chapel

Both types of blood had earth materials that Fanti said are typically found in Jerusalem, such as clay and limestone, suggesting that the shroud may have originated in the region. The image shows elements captured from the surface of the fibers

A study in 2018 also determined the shroud to be a fake after a new forensic investigation showed that its bloodstains were left by someone who had been standing  rather than crucified.

Researchers concluded that the bloodstain patterns were also not consistent with a face-down corpse.

Dr Matteo Borrini, a forensic scientist at Liverpool John Moores University, worked with chemist Luigi Garlaschelli, of the University of Pavia in Italy, looking at the orientation of the shroud's stains.

They sought to answer whether the crucifixion shown on the shroud was T-shaped, Y-shaped, or revealed another type of ancient Roman execution.

What they found, however, was that the bloodstains were not consistent with any one pose in particular. This suggested that someone who had been standing was used to imprint the famous patterns at different angles for the hands, chest and back.

Christians have claimed the imprints were created by energy released from Christ's body at the moment of resurrection.
Congressmembers' wealth is directly linked to whether or not their ancestors were involved with slavery, a study reveals.

Researchers have found that congressional leaders who come from a line of slave owners had an average net worth of $1.28 million compared to the less than $100,000 of their counterparts whose heritages are not linked.

The findings have provided evidence that suggests there is a connection between people owning slaves and their descendants having more wealth and status even 150 years later, according to the researchers.

The number of slaves their ancestors owned also seemed to impact leaders' wealth, with those owning at least 16 slaves having a net worth of $3.93 million higher than those who didn't.

Congress members' wealth has been linked to ancestors who owned slaves more than 150 years ago, a new study revealed

Slavery was legal until 1865 and reports have revealed that leading up to the Civil War, between 20 and 50 percent of Americans living in Confederate states were slaveowners.

'Most Americans believe slavery continues to influence the position of Black people in society today,' researchers from the University of Pennsylvania and Case Western Reserve University wrote in the study.

'However, no studies have determined the impact of having a slaveholder versus non-slaveholder ancestor on current wealth at an individual level.'

Researchers used the genealogy data from a 2023 Reuters report that looked into political leaders' ties to slavery.

The study found that 100 out of 535 Congress members were descendants of slave owners which were made up of eight percent of Democrats and 28 percent of Republicans.

Among the legislators related to slaveholders are Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) and Republican Senator Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky).

Warren has an estimated net worth of $10.2 million and the study found that her direct ancestor John Crawford enslaved 14 people five generations earlier in about 1849.

'The legacy of slavery still casts a long shadow over every facet of American life, including Congress,' Warren previously told Reuters.

'While we cannot change the past, I am fighting in the Senate to address systemic injustices  through word, deed, law and policy.'

Likewise, McConnell's ancestor Joseph Farrington enslaved 12 people four generations before him in about 1860 and the senator now has an estimated net worth of roughly $48 million.

Others included Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-New Hampshire), whose ancestor Archibald Crawford enslaved 10, has a net worth of $2.87 million and Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina), whose ancestor Joseph Maddox enslaved eight, has an estimated net worth of $1.3 million.

The study, published in PLOS, looked at Congress members' ancestry dating back to the nation's founding in 1776 and linked many to slave owners from between four and eight generations before.

Researchers also took into account factors like age, sex, ethnicity and education but still found that despite the differences, those related to slave owners still showed a higher net worth.

The researchers found that those who were related to slave owners had an average net worth of $1.28 million

Past research has connected slavery to other intergenerational impacts like inequality, poverty, education and life expectancy, but this is the first time it's been linked to generational wealth.

The team gathered the financial details from members of Congress, who are required to file the information annually and make it available to the public, and estimated the individual's net worth based on the value of each legislator's assets and liabilities.

The average age of Congress members whose lineage was traced back to slave owners was nearly 60 years old and about three-quarters were white men, the study said.

The researchers noted that the link couldn't be extended to the general public because Congress members tend to be wealthier than the average person.

However, they reported that additional research on the subject could help them better understand the connection and address the social wealth disparities between people whose ancestors owned slaves and those who did not.

'Members of Congress hold significant power to shape policies and set national agendas,' the researchers said.

'Understanding the wealth disparities within this influential group can drive conversations about economic equity and motivate legislators to support policies addressing historical injustices.'
READ MORE: Is this proof the Turin Shroud really has an imprint of Christ's body?

Scientists in Italy hit the headlines this week, after claiming the famous Shroud of Turin dates from Jesus' lifetime around 2,000 years ago.

Now, AI has reimagined what the son of God might have actually looked like based on the treasured relic, which is said to feature an imprint of Jesus' face.

MailOnline asked the AI tool Merlin: 'Can you generate a realistic image of Jesus Christ based on the face in the Shroud of Turin?'

The AI-generated result suggests Christ was white with big blue eyes, a trim beard and thorn marks on his face.

So, can you see the similarities with the famous holy imprint?

MailOnline used AI to create a realistic image of Jesus Christ based on the imprint on the Shroud of Turin

The Shroud of Turin features the image of a man with sunken eyes, which experts have analyzed under different filters to study it (pictured)

Shroud of Turin: The burial cloth of Jesus Christ? The Shroud of Turin is a 14-foot-long linen cloth with a faint image of a crucified man. The image on the shroud is believed to reflect the story of Jesus' crucifixion, giving rise to the belief that the cloth is the burial shroud of Jesus himself. The authenticity of the shroud has been frequently brought into question over the years but there are also many studies claiming to validate its origin. It is considered to be one of the most intensely studied human artefacts in history. Since it first emerged in 1354 Vatican authorities have repeatedly gone back and forth on whether it should be considered the true burial shroud. The shroud is currently stored at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Turin but is only publicly displayed on special occasions. Advertisement

To some historians, the Turin Shroud  held at a chapel at the centre of the Italian city  is one of Christianity's most holy relics.

'The Shroud is claimed to be the burial shroud that wrapped the crucified Christ when he was placed in the tomb,' said Tim Andersen, research scientist at the Georgia Institute of Technology who was not involved with the new study.

'There is no plausible scientific explanation for how it could have been forged or even created by natural processes.'

When it was first exhibited in the 1350s, the Shroud of Turin was touted as the actual burial shroud used to wrap the mutilated body of Christ after his crucifixion.

Also known as the Holy Shroud, it bears a faint image of the front and back of a bearded man, which many believers is Jesus' body miraculously imprinted onto the fabric.

Research in the 1980s appeared to debunk the idea it was real after dating it to the Middle Ages, hundreds of years after Christ's death.

But Italian academics using a new technique involving x-rays to date the material have confirmed it was manufactured around the time of Jesus about 2,000 years ago.

The astonishing findings lend credence to the idea that the faint, bloodstained pattern of a man with his arms folded in front were left behind by Jesus' dead body.

The shroud first appeared in 1354 in France. After initially denouncing it as a fake the Catholic church has now embraced the shroud as genuine. Pictured, Pope Frances touches the Shroud of Turin during a visit in 2015

The Shroud of Turin (pictured) is believed by many to be the cloth in which the body of Jesus was wrapped after his death, but not all experts are convinced it is genuine.

The cloth appears to show faint, brownish images on the front and back, depicting a gaunt man with sunken eyes who was about 5ft 7 to 6ft tall.

Markings on the body also correspond with crucifixion wounds of Jesus mentioned in the Bible, including thorn marks on the head, lacerations on the back and bruises on the shoulders.

Historians have suggested that the cross he carried on his shoulders weighed around 300 pounds, which would have left bruises.

The Bible states Jesus was whipped by the Romans, aligning with the lacerations on the back, who also placed crown of thorns on his head before the crucifixion.

The new research contradicts findings in the 1980s that the shroud dates back nowhere near as far as the time of Jesus.

Some suggest that the blood stains on the shroud (shown in this negative image) are clear evidence that the cloth was used to wrap an injured person

The Bible states that, Joseph of Arimathea wrapped the body of Jesus in a linen shroud and placed it in a new tomb

A team of international researchers analysed a small piece of the shroud using carbon dating and determined the cloth seemed to have been manufactured sometime between 1260 and 1390  during the medieval period.

However, the authors of the new study claim carbon dating would not have been reliable because the fabric has been exposed to contamination through the ages that cannot be removed.

What's more, as Andersen points out, there is no way to explain how it could have been forged with medieval technology.

'While authenticity cannot be established, it should be fairly easy to determine if it is a medieval forgery,' said Andersen.

'Yet, despite decades of scientific testing and peer-reviewed articles on it, that conclusion has never been demonstrated.

'Rather, the evidence has continually pointed away from any known forging techniques.'
From the approachable Glaswegian dialect to the instantly recognisable Edinburgh lilt, Scotland is home to some of the most distinctive accents in the UK.

Now, Ring has revealed that it's so enamoured with Scottish accents, it's planning to use one in its Video Doorbells.

The tech giant has launched a search for its first-ever Scottish voice, which will be used across a series of custom audio messages, known as 'Quick Replies'.

Ring describes it as an 'exciting opportunity to represent Scotland and share the nation's beautiful accent with households across the country.'

So, do you think you have the voice for it? Here's how you can apply.

Ring has revealed that it's so enamoured with Scottish accents, it's planning to use one in its Video Doorbells

Ring describes Quick Replies as a 'much-loved feature' of its Video Doorbells.

'Many customers use them to instruct delivery drivers where to leave packages, or inform visitors they need more time to answer the door,' Dave Ward, Managing Director EU & International at Ring, explained.

'Given the importance of these messages, we wanted to ensure our Quick Replies featured familiar and local accents and celebrated regional dialects around the world.

'We're thrilled to begin in Scotland and can't wait to hear a Scot on Video Doorbells across the nation.'

Think you could be the voice of Ring? Here's how to apply To apply, you must be aged 18+, a permanent resident in Scotland, and 'clear, energetic and enthusiastic.' There are three ways to apply. 1. In-person Pop-up auditions will take place at: St James Quarter in Edinburgh on Saturday 31 August and Sunday 1 September from 10am - 6pm

Union Square in Aberdeen on Saturday 7 September and Sunday 8 September from 10am - 4pm

Glasgow's Silverburn Shopping Centre on Saturday 14 September and Sunday 15 September from 10am - 4pm At the audition, you'll be asked to say the phrase: 'We can't answer the door right now, but if you'd like to leave a message, you can do it now.' 2. Via social media If you can't make the in-person events, you can also post a video of you saying this phrase to TikTok or Instagram using the hashtag #ringvoiceofthenation. 3. Via your Ring device If you own a Ring device, you can apply by filming the greeting on the device, pressing 'Share' on the Ring app, and choosing 'Share with Ring' Advertisement

To apply, you must be aged 18+, a permanent resident in Scotland, and 'clear, energetic and enthusiastic.'

There are three ways to apply.

Firstly, if you're keen to apply in-person, pop-up auditions will take place at St James Quarter in Edinburgh on Saturday 31 August and Sunday 1 September from 10am - 6pm, in Union Square in Aberdeen on Saturday 7 September and Sunday 8 September from 10am - 4pm, and in Glasgow's Silverburn Shopping Centre on Saturday 14 September and Sunday 15 September from 10am - 4pm.

At the audition, you'll be asked to say the phrase: 'We can't answer the door right now, but if you'd like to leave a message, you can do it now.'

If you can't make any of the in-person events, you can also post a video of you saying this phrase to TikTok or Instagram, using the hashtag #ringvoiceofthenation.

Meanwhile, if you own a Ring device, you can apply by filming the greeting on the device, pressing 'Share' on the Ring app, and choosing 'Share with Ring'.

The winner will receive commensurate compensation for the recording time, although it remains unclear exactly how much this is.

They'll also be given a Ring Battery Video Doorbell Plus (worth 99.99), and will have their travel costs to the recording covered (up to the value of 150).

The search comes shortly after Amazon warned that millions of Ring owners are putting their device in the wrong place.

'One of the biggest mistakes people make is mounting their Ring Video Doorbell too high in the mistaken belief that they need to do this in order to catch people's faces,' Amazon explained.

The doorbells have an impressively wide field of view which allow them to catch faces both upwards and downwards.

'Viewing faces is not a problem if the Ring Video Doorbell is mounted at the correct height,' Amazon added.

Beyond the main camera, Ring doorbells feature a network of Passive Infrared (PIR) motion sensors - heat sensors that detect motion by monitoring for infrared heat.

'The motion sensors in your Ring Video Doorbell are designed to detect motion up to 180 degrees horizontally and from 1.5 to 5 metres outward from the fixture,' Amazon explained.

'They're also more sensitive to horizontal movement across the detection area than vertical.

'Mount the Ring Video Doorbell too high and you're more likely to catch the heat of passing cars than the heat of incoming visitors.'

Based on these factors, Amazon recommends that owners should mount their Ring doorbells 48 inches (1.2 metres) from the ground.
A former top Pentagon spy claims that the US has recovered 'aliens.'

Former US counterintelligence official and onetime Pentagon UFO investigator Luis Elizondo told reporters that he can confirm one of two 'vehicles of unknown origin' were recovered from the now legendary Roswell UFO crash of 1947.

More shocking still, Elizondo said, 'We, as a nation have, been interested in not only the vehicles themselves but the occupants,' which he called 'biological specimens.'

Elizondo helped release three of the most famous UFO videos in history after leaving his role in the US Department of Defense in late 2017. His new explosive allegations come amid the ex-spy's press tour for his new memoir. They'll be broadcast in NewsNation's Special Report: Confessions of a UFO Hunter at 9PM ET on Friday August 23.

'We're not alone,' former Pentagon official Luis Elizondo (pictured) told Australian investigative journalist Ross Coulthart in an advanced clip of TC channel NewsNation's upcoming special. 'It is a simple fact,' he added. 'The US government has been aware of that fact for decades'

Elizondo first rose to national prominence in 2017 in the pages of the New York Times, after he helped release three US Navy infra-red UFO videos - including the GOFAST video (above)

The book contains, among its many incredible revelations, details on a 2016 plan hatched by Elizondo and his military colleagues to catch a UFO in the ocean.

'The United States has been involved in the recovery of objects,' Elizondo told cable network NewsNation in the new interview, 'vehicles of unknown origin that are neither from our country or any other foreign country that we're aware of.'

'We're not alone,' the former Pentagon official told Australian investigative journalist Ross Coulthart in an advanced clip of the channel's upcoming special report.

'We are not alone in this universe and it is a simple fact,' Elizondo continued. 'The US government has been aware of that fact for decades.'

Elizondo first rose to national prominence in late 2017 in the pages of the New York Times  where he blew the whistle on the US military and intelligence community's pervasive mismanagement and excessive secrecy on the topic of UFOs.

His public resignation and opaque role within the Pentagon's UFO-hunting portfolio, known to its Senate backers as the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP), brought fame and a lead role in a History channel docu-series.

In April 2020, the Pentagon officially released three videos that Elizondo had helped leak in 2017, each taken by US Navy fighter pilots who had reportedly witnessed 'unexplained aerial phenomena' (UAP) as UFOs are now more technically known.

The videos depict, as Elizondo told CNN, 'things that don't have any obvious flight sufaces, any obvious forms of propulsion [...] maneuvering in ways that include extreme maneuverability beyond, I would submit, the healthy G-forces of a human or anything biological.'

Despite corroboration from his peers and the late Senate Majority leader who helped create AATIP, Nevada Democrat Harry Reid, the Department of Defense has maintained that Elizondo's military role had no official UFO-hunting duties.

Pentagon officials denied the existence of any 'credible evidence of extraterrestrial activity,' in a statement responding to NewsNation's forthcoming interview.

'As we have stated previously, Luis Elizondo had no assigned responsibilities for the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP) while assigned to the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security,' DoD spokesperson Sue Gough told NewsNation.

Critics of Gough have pointed to a 2003 research paper on psychological warfare that she wrote for the US Army War College, implying the Pentagon spokesperson might be part of a coordinated campaign to undermine Elizondo's credibility.

And, in May 2021, Elizondo filed a 64-page complaint to the DoD's Office of the Inspector General accusing high-ranking military officials of attempting to silence him by threatening his security clearances and obfuscating of his work with AATIP.

DailyMail.com obtained an advance copy of Elizondo's book, Imminent, in which he shockingly and unequivocally stated that a 'Legacy Program' is 'in possession of advanced technology made off-world by nonhuman intelligence'

Elizondo said he endured 'malicious activities, coordinated disinformation, professional misconduct, whistleblower reprisal and explicit threats perpetrated by certain senior-level Pentagon officials.'

These actions, he and his attorneys said, suggested 'a coordinated effort to obfuscate the truth from the American people, while impugning my reputation as a former intelligence officer at the Pentagon.'

His new memoir, Imminent, sees the former Pentagon official opening up about much more incredible personal accounts  including the story of his own family's disturbing experience with 'green orbs' floating through their house.

In the book, Elizondo also details he and another AATIP member's plan to catch UFOs on the high seas.

He told DailyMail.com that their investigations pointed to these craft having an apparent interest in military operations, nuclear power, and were often seen around bodies of water.

So they coordinated with the Navy and other branches to create 'Project Interloper': an attempt to lure the mysterious craft and record them with high-tech equipment.

Above, veteran Australian TV news broadcaster and investigative reporter Ross Coulthart - who conducted the first televised interview with government UFO whistleblower David Grusch last year - conducted the new interview with Elizondo, which airs in full on Friday

'You take a nuclear carrier strike group, a nuclear powered aircraft carrier, you have a nuclear powered submarine and other nuclear equities in the area, and you put it on the water,' he told DailyMail.com.

The idea was to gather warships in the ocean, focusing their radar, sonar, and cameras where they believed the UFOs would appear.

'There was an official plan that had support. It got briefed all the way to the Joint Staff,' Elizondo said. 'We had a lot of interest from the intelligence community. A lot of agencies were part of this. They were ready to put their effort and assets into it. And at the last minute it got denied.'

'That, for me, was one of the last straws,' he told DailyMail.com this past Saturday.

NewsNation's 'Confessions of a UFO Hunter' TV special airs this Friday at 9pm Eastern / 8pm Central.
Leith, Edinburghs idiosyncratic dockland quarter, has historically insalubrious associations.

A one-time stomping ground for sailors and ladies of the night, in the 1990s it infamously became the setting for Irvine Welshs heroin addicts in Trainspotting.

But dont let that put you off.

The past two decades have seen a steady gentrification, with the introduction of widened boulevards, a tram route, and a plethora of new bars, restaurants and interesting shops.

A perfect place to escape the busiest crowds as the Edinburgh International Festival gets into the swing of things this month (running until August 25), and just a short tram-ride from the Royal Miles fusty tartanry.

All lit up: Katie Tilbury explores Leith, Edinburghs 'idiosyncratic' dockland quarter (above)

'The past two decades have seen a steady gentrification [of Leith], with the introduction of widened boulevards, a tram route, and a plethora of new bars, restaurants and interesting shops,' writes Katie

Leith was once a separate entity from Edinburgh. Fiercely independent, Leithers rejected merging in a 1920 referendum. And while they were forced into amalgamating nevertheless, their civic pride and sense of identity is readily apparent.

Leith Theatre is a shining example. An art deco building that was closed in 1988 but, thanks to the Leith Theatre Trust, has now been brought back to life as a vibrant cultural space, holding concerts and art exhibitions.

The Leith Arches, which was once part of the Caledonian Railway, have been transformed into an atmospheric venue on several levels. Regular markets are held as well as theatre shows and yoga sessions.

The Port of Leith Distillery, seen here, is Scotland's first vertically arranged distillery - and tours are available to visitors

Royal Yacht Britannia (pictured), Leith's 'big attraction', was in action from 1954 to 1997, with Queen Elizabeth II taking numerous trips on the ship

This is an ideal spot for an early evening drink, with cocktails available and drafts from the local Campervan Brewery. Its only a five-minute amble from Leith Walk to Pilot Brewery, whose peach melba sour is beloved by locals.

For a spot of harder stuff, try the Port of Leith Distillery, where tours are offered. And dont forget the Royal Yacht Britannia, Leiths big attraction, which saw service from 1954 to 1997, with Queen Elizabeth II taking countless voyages, sometimes joined by US presidents including Dwight Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton.

All slightly more luxurious than scenes from Trainspotting... Leith has gone up in the world.

Where to stay: Fingal is a Northern Lighthouse Board (NLB) ship repurposed as a delightful five-star hotel with smart rooms and an award-winning restaurant.

Doubles from 300 (fingal.co.uk). More info: eif.co.uk, edfringe.com.
After spending eight years living in Iceland, Jewells Chambers says it is the place she now calls home - and she can't see herself living in the US ever again.

The 38-year-old, originally from Brooklyn, earns $73,000 per year in one of the world's most expensive countries, but is much happier living overseas and has no plans to move back to America.

Speaking with CNBC Make It, Jewells shared her journey to Iceland, explaining how she is now debt free and manages to save 10 per cent of her salary per month - despite the expensive cost of living.

Jewells initially moved to the Nordic country when she married an Icelander.

'When I moved to Iceland, it felt as if there was something magnetic that has been pulling me in this direction, and I still haven't been able to put my finger on it exactly, but I know it has something to do with the nature,' she shared.

Jewells Chambers says Iceland its the place she now calls home - and she can't see herself living in the US again

As well as moving for love, Jewells was also offered a job in the marketing department of a big travel company.

In 2018, she launched a social media brand called All things Iceland, which gives people the inside scoop on Icelandic nature, history, culture and travel through the eyes of someone who moved, through her podcast and YouTube channel.

While initially launched as a side hustle, the business expanded and in 2020 she was able to quit her full time job and focus on her social media career.

'[All Things Iceland] gives travel tips, advice and sharing fun anecdotes about the country, as well as interviews on my podcast,' Jewells explained.

'All Things Iceland for the last six months has made a little over $50,000, and for the rest of the year, the projection is revenue of $100,000 and the company pays me. In essence, I pay myself $6,000 a month before taxes and pension,' she explained.

Jewells' company makes money from ad sales, sponsorships, affiliate marketing and content production. She also sells maps, travel consultations and private tours.

Budget wise, Jewells has a long term partnership with a rental car company, meaning she only has to pay to refuel it. She added there is universal health insurance in Iceland that is heavily subsidized and she doesn't pay a monthly health insurance fee.

'Iceland is expensive,' the creator admits. 'Particularly when it comes to eating out.'

The 38-year-old, originally from Brooklyn, earns $73,000 per year in one of the world's most expensive countries, but is much happier living overseas and has no plans to move back to America

For Jewells, living in the Nordic Island nation has had an 'amazing' impact on her mental health

Jewells said she paid her U.S. credit card off a few years ago and has no student debt

Jewells added she had a 'wonderful' experience when she moved, and it felt like a weight had been lifted when she didn't feel like her skin color was the thing that was most part of her identity

In June 2024, Jewells spent $4,667 on living costs and dining out. She estimated a main course in a restaurant is between $20-$30, and a coffee is $7.50 to $8.

Jewells said she paid her U.S. credit card off a few years ago and has no student debt.

'It's amazing to say that I am debt free, and I'd like to keep it that way,' she quipped. '[Every month when I pay myself] I put away automatically 10 per cent into a savings account.'

While she loves Iceland, there are a few drawbacks in comparisons to the U.S. - including lack of fresh produce - although there are other perks.

'If you are wondering about the water in Iceland - it is pristine,' she declared. 'It's amazing. There's no reason to ever buy bottled water in Iceland, ever.'

Jewells lives in downtown Reykjavik, in the 101 area, in a one bedroom, one bathroom with an indoor parking space where she pays $1,900 per month.

Another shock for Jewells was the weather.

'I love Iceland, but it also can be really tough in the winter time when the daylight is so much less,' she admitted.

While she loves Iceland, there are a few drawbacks in comparisons to the U.S. - including lack of fresh produce

While initially launched as a side hustle, the business expanded and in 2020 she was able to quit her full time job and focus on her social media career

Jewells lives in downtown Reykjavik, in the 101 area, in a one bedroom, one bathroom with an indoor parking space where she pays $1,900 per month

'We have about four hours of daylight on our shortest day in the winter, but then we have 24 hour bright days during the summer.'

The weather differs from snowy, icy, rainy during the winter with wind any time of year, and rain during the summer.

'Mild temperatures though, which is nice, meaning it doesn't really go that much below freezing on average all during the winter time and in the summertime, we're getting temperatures of maybe a high of 60F, but more like 40 to 55 is far,' she explained.

Something Jewells finds frustrating is not being able to order things online at the same price they would be in the U.S.

'If I order something from Amazon or from Iherb, which I've done in the past, paying the customs fee can oftentimes be much more than what the item is worth,' she complained.

While her Icelandic is getting better, Jewells finds herself being a bit nervous speaking it.

'Only because I feel like I'm afraid to make really big mistakes, and that's something I'm working on. So my understanding is quite high,' she said.

For Jewells, living in the Nordic Island nation has had an 'amazing' impact on her mental health.

'The nature aspect has helped me in so many ways, shedding this idea that it always has to be about my skin color,' she admitted. 'Being a person of color has many different layers in Iceland and everyone's experience is different.'

Jewells is currently looking to buy an apartment with her boyfriend, who is Icelandic, and says Iceland is now her home for the 'foreseeable future'

'The number one thing I miss from the US is my family,', she reflected. 'I visit the US one to two times a year, and I have family members that also visit one or two times a year'

Jewells added she had a 'wonderful' experience when she moved, and it felt like a weight had been lifted when she didn't feel like her skin color was the thing that was most part of her identity.

'It felt like being from New York was what people were so interested in most of the time when we talked about, and I loved that,' she gushed. 'I loved being just Jules from New York.'

'[There was] definitely nowhere near the same type of weight that I felt in the United States regarding the systematic oppression and racism,' the creator said.

While adding that racism definitely exists in Iceland, she just hasn't experienced it in the same way.

Jewells is currently looking to buy an apartment with her boyfriend, who is Icelandic, and says Iceland is now her home for the 'foreseeable future.'

'The number one thing I miss from the US is my family,', she reflected. 'I visit the US one to two times a year, and I have family members that also visit one or two times a year.'

'I am an Icelandic citizen and I have been for some years now,' she continued. 'Iceland is my home - I've felt that ever since I moved.'
A local news bulletin was pulled off air on Wednesday morning after a fire alarm wreaked havoc in the BBC News studio.

Viewers in East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire were left scratching their heads after regular presenter Peter Levy was missing from BBC Look North in the morning.

As they waited for the broadcaster, 68, to read out the regional headlines, he was unexpectedly absent, with national host Anna Foster stepping in instead.

With no explanation for the sudden switch-up, fans rushed to social media to voice their confusion and speculate a technical fault could be to blame.

But Peter quickly stepped in to clear up the situation, explaining that a fire alarm had been to blame for the chaos.

A local news bulletin was pulled off air on Wednesday morning after a fire alarm wreaked havoc in the BBC News studio (pictured in 2022)

Viewers in East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire were left scratching their heads after regular presenter Peter Levy (pictured) was missing from BBC Look North in the morning

He responded to one concerned follower who tweeted him asking: 'Missed you for your lunchtime news Peter! Was there a technical problem?'

Peter reassured: 'Sorry.....we had a fire alarm. No fire. Normal service will be resumed at 6:30 as they say.'

Fans of the anchor - who has been presenting the BBC's regional news since 2002 - were quick to voice their relief at seeing him back on their screens that evening, writing: Glad you're [sic] safe after the fire alarm'.

It's not the first time that the BBC's regular schedule has been disrupted by a fire alarm, with BBC Breakfast suffering the same fate in November.

Viewers were left baffled the news programme vanished from televisions halfway through a report as the studio was forced to evacuate.

Presenters Charlie Stayt and Naga Munchetty were giving the latest updates before going to a reporter in Bristol for segment marking the 20 year anniversary of the final flight of the Concorde supersonic aeroplane.

As the correspondent showed viewers the aircraft and archive footage from its final flight, the report suddenly cut out and jumped to a BBC News report on Gaza.

The audience were baffled not to see Naga and Charlie back on their screens, with BBC One instead airing the same broadcast as the BBC News channel.

With no explanation for the sudden switch-up, fans rushed to social media to voice their confusion and speculate a technical fault could be to blame

But Peter quickly stepped in to clear up the situation, explaining that a fire alarm had been to blame for the chaos

Fans of the anchor - who has been presenting the BBC's regional news since 2002 - were quick to voice their relief at seeing him back on their screens that evening

It's not the first time that the BBC's regular schedule has been disrupted by a fire alarm, with BBC Breakfast suffering the same fate in November (pictured)

Presenters Charlie Stayt and Naga Munchetty were giving the latest updates before the report suddenly cut out and jumped to a BBC News report on Gaza

It was later explained that the team had to be evacuated from the studio after a fire alert and the broadcast returned to the red sofa around 15 minutes later, as Naga issued an apology

But it was later explained that the whole Breakfast team had to be evacuated from their studio after a fire alert.

The broadcast returned to the red sofa around 15 minutes later, as Naga issued an apology to viewers.

She said: 'You're returning to BBC Breakfast. Apologies, we had an evacuation in the building but we are back now with you to keep you up to date with the latest in the news.'

Worried fans took to social media to express concern, with one saying: 'Hope everyone in #BBCBreakfast studio is ok and it's just a technical glitch.'

A BBC spokesperson said: 'The programme was briefly off air this morning due to an evacuation at Quay House. BBC Breakfast switched to the BBC News Channel before resuming programming.'
BBC viewers have urged others to binge watch the first season of an acclaimed drama before its second season kicks off.

Must-watch thriller Sherwood is set in an 1980s Nottinghamshire community who are still dealing with the after-effects of the miners' strike.

Two shocking murders rock an already broken community - leading to one of the largest manhunts known to British history.

Inspired by real events, Sherwood was created by James Graham and stars David Morrissey, Lesley Manville and Robert Glenister.

The first series aired on BBC One in June 2022 and receiving universal praise by fans and critics alike, bagging a perfect score of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.

BBC viewers have urged others to binge watch the first season of Sherwood, before the acclaimed show returns to screens on Sunday

The must-watch thriller is set in an 1980s Nottinghamshire community who are still dealing with the after-effects of the miners' strike

Inspired by real events, Sherwood was created by James Graham and stars David Morrissey, Lesley Manville and Robert Glenister (pictured in show)

The drama will return with a second season on Sunday night, and fans have advised everyone catch up on the show on iPlayer in preparation.

They took to social media to praise the thriller, writing: 'You *should* watch the first series of Sherwood this weekend if you haven't already on BBC iPlayer. The second series starts with a double bill over the Bank Holiday.'

'Loved the first series; One of the best dramas of the past few years. S1 is on iplayer if you need a refresh or missed it the first time around.'

'Binge watched BBC #Sherwoodexcellent very compelling show. The cast is extraordinary. Loved every episode.'

'Sherwood on BBC coming back for second series on August 25th. Absolutely brilliant series, quality drama.'

'I'm only 5 episodes in to #Sherwood but can safely say it's the greatest advocate for BBC drama I've seen in years. @davemorrissey64 and the cast are stellar & writing off the scale.'

'Whoah Sherwood on BBC One is like the best show ive seen in years the pacing, the editing, the plot, the ACTING?? The acting!!! Lesley manville ate and left no crumbs whatsoever with that role'.

Series two has been highly anticipated after the first became a massive hit when it aired two years ago, with critics labelling it: 'Just about perfect'.

The drama will return with a second season on Sunday night, and fans have advised everyone catch up on the show on iPlayer in preparation

Series two has been highly anticipated after the first became a massive hit when it aired two years ago, with critics labelling it: 'Just about perfect'

The Guardian's Lucy Mangan gave it five stars, saying: 'Forty years of emotion and history have been transmuted, lovingly and painstakingly, into art. Its the cleverest, most compelling and most moving thing Ive seen in years.'

Also giving it top marks in the Evening Standard, Katie Rosseinsky wrote: 'Theres not a weak link in this ensemble, and even the briefer supporting roles somehow feel lived in, a wonderful synthesis of writing and performance.'

And the Telegraph's Anita Singh also handed out five out of five stars, saying: 'It is really, really good, a show that is ostensibly a police procedural about murders in a Nottinghamshire village but turns out to be so much more: a layered exploration of community, class and enmity.'

The new series is set to focus on further issues in the community, with David's character Ian St Clair leaving his job as Detective Chief Superintendent to head up the councils Violence Intervention Team, which connects community services.

Homeland's David Harewood and Mr Bates Vs The Post Office star Monica Dolan are also set to join the cast.

Monica plays Ann Branson, whose family run a drug operation in Ashfield, and David will play Dennis Bottomley, whose family is impacted by narcotics.

While Three Girls actress Ria Zmitrowicz is also joining as a 'young, queer and female' Sheriff of Nottingham.

Creator James said he hoped it will help modernise the idea of the position, which is a historical role that is currently held by a councillor to promote the city, has long been associated with the Robin Hood villain, the Sheriff of Nottingham.

The new series is set to focus on further issues in the community, with David's character Ian St Clair leaving his job as Detective Chief Superintendent to head up the councils Violence Intervention Team, which connects community services (pictured)

David Harewood and Monica Dolan (pictured) are also set to join the cast, with Monica playing Ann Branson, whose family run a drug operation in Ashfield, and David playing Dennis Bottomley, whose family is impacted by narcotics

While Ria Zmitrowicz (pictured) is also joining as a 'young, queer and female' Sheriff of Nottingham, which creator James said he hoped will help modernise the idea of the position

He said: 'Whenever I tell people we still have a Sheriff of Nottingham they don't believe it.

'I feel like mythology and folklore was a big part of the first series, the stories that we carry forward through generations or even just the associations that we make to certain titles are so important in general.

'Obviously the first series had outlaws hiding out in Sherwood Forest and people drew that line to Robin Hood, and the Sheriff is a character people mostly know from that.

'In our series we have a young, queer female Sheriff of Nottingham. I just thought that felt modern and important to include that representation, and to make that character and that title fully drawn.'

It will see the Sheriff fighting against a proposed new coal mine that is set to bring new jobs, but is an 'unwelcome' reminder of community issues.

This is a first returning series for James, who won an Olivier award for his play Dear England and wrote Channel 4 film Brexit: The Uncivil War and ITV drama Quiz.

He hopes that the 'curiosity about the people and communities inside the red wall' is extended in the next instalment of Sherwood.

He adds: 'I guess the first series gave the impression that some of these wounds were linked and tied to the past and are perhaps unique to these communities, but I think there are more universal and social themes to this series which shows what happens to any community that is neglected.

James hopes that the 'curiosity about the people and communities inside the red wall' is extended in the next instalment of Sherwood (pictured in April)

'I think it examines the trauma and the violence and the issues that can come from taking your eye off the ball and ignoring people.

'I think it's a broader and wider story that extends beyond Nottingham, and I would like people to see that.'

Speaking about the show, lead star David said: 'One of the issues that resonates a lot is around a breakdown of social services and the cracks that young people - particularly young men - can fall down. Particularly in regard to gang culture.

'I think a lot of the other themes explore the dissociation between talk and action for the rejuvenation and investment into local communities.

'Broken promises and superficial political rhetoric which have let down people and their communities for too long.'

Sherwood's second season will begin airing on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Sunday at 9pm.
The chances of a sequel to It Ends With Us are fading into the distance as the all-out war between its two principal characters shows no sign of abating, DailyMail.com can reveal.

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni have fueled rumors of a bitter feud after doing separate promotion work on the summer hit and are said not to be talking.

And now, sources say plans to get Colleen Hoover's popular follow-up novel It Starts With Us on to the big screen are in doubt as a result.

'It's hard to imagine Justin wanting to work with Blake - or vice versa - after all this bad blood. Whatever started this feud, there certainly has been no obvious rapprochement between the pair,' says one industry insider.

It Ends With Us has already taken in more than $180million worldwide, showing a massive profit for the movie that cost only $25million to make and so the ready-made sequel would normally follow.

But Hoover has sided with Lively  which is a problem because Baldoni's company has already bought the rights to It Starts With Us, insiders say.

Lively, 36, is facing a massive backlash  or Blakelash  after clips of interviews have shown her being rude to reporters.

Justin Baldoni reportedly felt 'hurt and sidelined' while starring and directing the film adaption of Colleen Hoover's best-selling novel, It Ends with Us, alongside co-star Blake Lively

Insiders tell DailyMail.com that plans to get author Colleen Hoover's follow-up novel It Starts With Us on to the big screen for the sequel are now in doubt as a result of the Baldoni and Lively's rumored feud

Clip after clip of hard to watch interviews in which Ryan Reynolds's wife skewers, dismisses or flat-out ignores questions have surfaced in recent days, and the version of Lively left standing is not so much glamorous gossip girl as bullying mean girl.

Last week the 'c' word  canceled  bubbled up.

Now Lively is said to be desperately upset and casting around for some publicity strategy to pull like a parachute on her reputational free-fall.

The drama began with rumors of onset tension between Lively and Baldoni, 40, who also directed the film adaptation of Hoover's best-seller.

Lively and Baldoni apparently clashed on-set with her accusing him of 'fat-shaming' her in an incident where he asked his personal trainer for guidance on how to protect his back during a scene in which he had to lift her.

That animosity has spilled messily into post-production and publicity to the extent that Lively has now been accused of effectively bullying Baldoni out of his first major movie.

It was Baldoni who bought the rights to Hoover's novel and directed the movie but, according to celebrity gossip podcast Deux Moi, Lively was unhappy with Baldoni's final cut, so she and Deadpool megastar Reynolds, 47, paid for their own editor to cut a different one.

Deux Moi reported that Baldoni's cut 'tested better' but the studio went with Lively's, after the actress, who is one of Taylor Swift's best friends, 'strongly suggested that if they didn't use her version, they wouldn't be able to use Taylor's song' in the movie.

The song in question was My Tears Ricochet from Folklore.

But while Lively casts around for someone else to blame for her mounting bad press, her time might be better spent reflecting on another one of her bestie's tracks and her words: 'It's me. Hi! I'm the problem it's me.'

Hoover has sided with Lively, despite having sold the film rights to both novels to Baldoni, according to inside sources

According to reports, Baldoni's cut of the film actually 'tested better' with audiences but the studio ultimately went with Lively's version after she allegedly threatened that they would not be able to use best friend Taylor's song in the movie if they didn't

Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively were seen on the set of 'It Ends with Us' during a scene shot in Jersey City, New Jersey on January 12, 2024

Much of the criticism leveled at Lively has centered squarely on her tone-deaf performance during her publicity tour  a tour she has conducted entirely separately from Baldoni.

Critics have pointed to her signal failure to address one of the central themes of the movie  domestic abuse  saying that this was an ideal opportunity for Lively to raise awareness, promote support services and encourage fans who may be experiencing such abuse to utilize them.

Instead, she has piggybacked on the movie's publicity to promote her own hair care range, Blake Brown, and urged viewers to 'grab your friends, wear your florals and head out to see it!' as if she were promoting a romantic comedy rather than a movie dealing with traumatic themes and toxic relationships.

In one promotional clip she giggles with her co-stars Isabella Ferrer, who plays the young version of Lively's character Lily Bloom, and Jenny Slate along with Hoover, talking about wearing her own clothes on set and zodiac signs before wrapping up their 'interview' without once touching on the movie's more serious heart.

She was slammed for her insensitive response when journalist Jake Hamilton sat down with her and co-star Brandon Sklenar and asked her about the movie's more sensitive themes.

Hamilton noted that there are people who would watch It Ends With Us and 'relate to the topics on a deeply personal level'.

He said: 'This movie is going to affect people and they're going to want to tell you about their life.

'So, if someone understands the themes of this movie and comes across you in public and they want to really talk to you what's the best way for them to be able to talk to you about this, how would you recommend they go about it?'

While her co-star visibly squirmed, Lively deliberately dodged the serious question and responded by making a joke saying: 'Like asking for like my address or my phone number or my location share or should I just location share you?'

The actress, 36, came under fire after she sat down alongside her costar, Brandon Sklenar - and brushed off one of the reporter's queries regarding the serious themes in the film

Lively has been criticized for piggybacking on the movie's publicity to promote her own hair care range, Blake Brown, the release of which coincided with the film

Amid the scandal, a clip of a 2016 interview has resurfaced and gone viral in which journalist Kjersti Flaa congratulated then-pregnant Lively on her 'little bump'  at which Lively shot back by congratulating the woman, who was not pregnant, on her own 'little bump'

The fans got the message loud and clear  Lively doesn't want to talk to you, and branded the response, 'crazy and heartless.'

She didn't appear to want to talk to Norwegian born journalist Kjersti Flaa either.

Flaa garnered attention earlier in the week when she posted a 'nightmare' interview with Lively and then co-star Parker Posey to YouTube.

The interview in which they were promoting the Woody Allen movie, 'Cafe Society,' took place in 2016 and Flaa titled the clip: 'The Blake Lively interview that made me want to quit my job.'

She went onto describe the interview as the 'most uncomfortableI have ever experienced.'

It's not hard to see why. It started badly and went downhill from there.

Flaa congratulated Lively, then pregnant with her second child, on her 'little bump.'

Lively responded: 'Congratulations on your little bump,' though Flaa was not pregnant  and has now revealed she cannot conceive.

'It hurts because I obviously wasn't pregnant and I could never get pregnant,' Flaa said. 'So to me, that comment was like a bullet.'

Lively and Posey then proceeded to speak to each other about 'lady lumps' and bumps for several excruciating minutes during which they ignored Flaa completely and shut her out of her own interview.

It's all a very bad look for the actress who is currently promoting her first movie in four years and as the clips keep surfacing it's only getting worse.

In fact, when it comes to Lively's once carefully curated 'girls' girl' reputation, it increasingly looks like it ends with this.
Shira Stein is the San Francisco Chronicle's Washington correspondent, covering California's role in national politics and policy from the nation's capital. She writes about issues that matter to California residents  like housing, abortion and LGBTQ rights  and California's influence on Congress and the White House. She was the primary chronicler of the last year of Sen. Dianne Feinstein's life, including her health, familial financial feud, and death.

Shira was born and raised in the Bay Area and now lives in Washington, D.C. She joined the Chronicle in 2022 after spending four years as an award-winning health care reporter for Bloomberg Law, where she was key in its coverage of the Covid-19, the fall of Roe v. Wade and health costs. She is a graduate of American University and interned at the Washington Post, Bloomberg Law and the Colorado-based Durango Herald.
Tommy Fury has been accused of 'messaging another woman after spotting her on a night out in Manchester' while engaged to Molly-Mae Hague.

The influencer, 25, and boxer, also 25, shocked fans last week when Molly-Mae announced on social media that they had split.

But now a woman called Kay Keogh has shared that while the pair were still together, Tommy direct messaged her after they met on a night out - and she says she has proof.

Kay took to TikTok to share a screenshot of a message from an account which was allegedly Tommy's, which read: 'Are you in Manchester?'

'I was thinking about whether I should make this video or not, but I am going to,' she said. 'So, me and my friends were out in Manchester and we actually met him [Tommy] one night.

Tommy Fury has been accused of 'messaging another woman after spotting her on a night out in Manchester' while engaged to Molly-Mae Hague

But now a woman called Kay Keogh has shared that while the pair were still together, Tommy direct messaged her after they met on a night out - and she says she has proof

'Basically, we were on a night out with a group of guys and I didn't really put two and two together of who he really was.

'One of the guys asked for my Instagram, which I gave to him. We were all together, but basically after looking at my phone and seeing his name pop up, that's when I realised who he was.

'Obviously, after I saw his name pop up I was thinking 'What the hell'. Then I obviously realised who he was, but I literally have DMs and I don't know whether I should put them out or not.'

In a second video, Kay added: 'So this is part two of the Tommy situation, my friend was there so she is going to explain what happened as well.'

Her friend then said: 'I am not from the UK so I did not recognise him until we looked at the DM and obviously we were on his page.'

Representatives for Tommy and Molly-Mae have been contacted for comment.

Meanwhile a Danish partygoer who Tommy reportedly kissed during a wild holiday before his split has spoken out.

Boxer Tommy, 25, jetted abroad for a holiday in Ohrid, North Macedonia earlier this year where he reportedly kissed a blonde woman in a nightclub, leading Molly-Mae to announce their split last week after five years together.

Kay took to TikTok to share a screenshot of a message from an account which was allegedly Tommy's, which read: 'Are you in Manchester?'

Danish partygoer Milla Corfixen who Tommy reportedly kissed during a wild holiday before his split from Molly-Mae has also spoken out

Onlookers have claimed the boxer 'didn't seem to care' who saw him brazenly kiss the blonde as he downed vodka and partied at a nightclub at 2am.

Jewellery assistant Milla Corfixen, 20, has now denied kissing the Love Island star and insisted: 'He was a proper gentleman.'

Speaking to The Sun Milla said she was shocked when she found out about Tommy and Molly-Mae's split and insisted she will try and talk to the Influencer to share her side of the story.

Milla has revealed she has a boyfriend, while Tommy has previously denied he has cheated on Molly.

'I am the girl but nothing happened. We just had fun,' she has explained. 'I dont know what hes been doing but someone else must have kissed him.'

Danish Milla spends her summers in Ohrid where she has family, and is said to be regular on the party scene in the region.

Boxer Tommy, 25, jetted abroad for a holiday in Ohrid, North Macedonia earlier this year where he reportedly kissed a blonde woman in a nightclub, leading Molly-Mae to announce their split last week after five years together (stock image)

She revealed that she partied with Tommy and his friends on three separate occasions during the boxer's holiday after meeting him through members of his security team, who she is friends with.

She recommended night spots and beach clubs for the group to party at and later saw them at Latin bar Cuba Libre.

'They invited us to his table and we had fun and that's it. We did not do anything. I would never have done anything with a married man, as he's basically married, with a little child.'

Jewellery assistant Milla Corfixen, 20, has now denied kissing the Love Island star and insisted: 'He was a proper gentleman'

Speaking to The Sun Milla said she was shocked when she found out about Tommy and Molly-Mae's split and insisted she will try and talk to the Influencer to share her side of the story (pictured with their daughter Bambi)

Tommy posed for snaps with fans during his lads holiday in North Macedonia, before it was claimed he cheated on his fiancee Molly-Mae Hague during a night out

She also saw Tommy on his last night of the trip at Omnia club, but she explained: 'We were at the same places but we were not together, although at Cuba Libre we were close. He didn't flirt with me, he was just being friendly.'

It comes after it was reported that devastated Molly-Mae is 'bracing herself' for more girls to come forward with claims that Tommy 'cheated on her' following their shock split.

Molly-Mae is convinced more women will speak up and claim 'Tommy cheated on her with them'.

'Molly-Mae isn't just worried about it, she's expecting it,' a source told The Sun.

'She thinks girls will come forward and claim Tommy cheated with them. She's devastated.'

MailOnline have contacted Molly-Mae and Tommy's representatives for a comment.

On Tuesday, the influencer broke her social media silence after announcing her shock split from Tommy last week.

Returning to Instagram on Tuesday Molly-Mae commented on elder sister Zoe's latest honeymoon snaps saying: 'Stunning pics'.

Tommy, who shares daughter Bambi, 20 months, with the former Love Island star, has denied any cheating claims and has said he is 'horrified' by the 'false allegations'.

Amid the drama, Molly-Mae has been supported by her friends and loved ones, who have been rallying around her at her 3.5million Cheshire mansion.

Molly-Mae was also said to have been growing tired of Tommy 'gallivanting around the world while she was looking after their child', it has been revealed.

In recent months Tommy has travelled to Germany, Hungary, Dubai and North Macedonia.

Friends of the couple say the split was a 'long time coming' as Molly-Mae grew tired of his lifestyle while she looked after Bambi, The Mirror revealed on Sunday.

A source said: 'Problems had been growing for a while. Increasingly, it seemed like they were living two very different lifestyles.'

On August 7, just seven days before their split, Molly-Mae posted a YouTube video in which she said she had been 'struggling' and 'solo parenting' Bambi.

In a candid video posted on social media the Love Island star said she had spent weeks looking after their daughter Bambi on her own while her fiance was working elsewhere.

In recent weeks friends have revealed the couple had gone through a rocky patch and have been leading increasingly separate lives with cracks showing in their normally tight-knit relationship on social media.

In the clip, Molly-Mae explained Tommy had been predominantly absent from their family home while he was recording his audiobook.

She said: 'Actually I've been solo parenting for like, two weeks now, basically because Tommy's just been so busy.

'When he's home from doing work and stuff, he's so incredible and so helpful. I can't say any different, like, he's such an incredible dad, but I have been this week, like, just really mum life has been mum lifing.'

Since the pair's split Molly has been pushing aside her feelings in order to prioritise daughter Bambi's wellbeing.

Molly-Mae's Instagram post in which she says she is 'extremely upset to announce that mine and Tommy's relationship has come to an end'

Tommy shared a separate post in which he asks his followers to 'respect our privacy as we navigate through this difficult time'

For his part, Tommy has denied the claims, saying he is 'horrified' by the 'false allegations'.

Yet MailOnline understands that the reality star is paying it no attention to all the drama and has been pushing her thoughts and feelings about Tommy aside to focus on her 20-month-old daughter.

Amid the drama, Molly-Mae has been supported by her friends and loved ones, who have been rallying around her at her 3.5million Cheshire mansion.

On Monday, the star was visited by fellow influencer Tay Blue, who kept a low-profile in all-black.

The pair then headed out for a drive wearing oversized sunglasses.

Delivery men were also seen dropping off giant boxes of flowers and extravagant bouquets, no doubt sent by sympathetic loved ones.

A source previously told the Mail: 'She's put on a brave face and everyone is telling her she will be a strong single mum.'

Meanwhile Tommy was seen returning to the pair's house on Saturday for a very brief 55 minutes.

Molly shielded her eyes behind huge shades when she left the property shortly after the boxer in her Mercedes-AMG G 63 Magno Edition.

A source previously told the Mail: 'She's put on a brave face and everyone is telling her she will be a strong single mum'

Tommy looked equally despondent as he pulled into the drive way of the house in his 180,000 Mercedes G Wagon at 2:25PM before leaving shortly after at 3:20PM.

Friends of Molly-Mae have since told The Mail her decision was not made in haste and that she is resolute.

No one was as shocked as Tommy himself  who his team insists is 'gutted and will fight to get them back'.

Fans were left bewildered after Molly-Mae announced her split from the boxer on Wednesday after five years together - saying in a statement that she 'never thought our story would end this way'.

She has been seen clearing out their home, with a skip pictured on the drive way this weekend. According to representatives it has been there 'a while.'

The Love Island star ordered boxer Tommy out of their lavish Cheshire pad after discovering he had cheated 'multiple times'.

Neighbours on the exclusive street revealed how Tommy was told to leave as distraught Molly-Mae called time on their five-year romance.

One neighbour told MailOnline: 'You don't see him very often, he comes and goes a lot. But I heard that Molly has thrown him out of the house in the last week or so and he's not living there anymore.'
Adam Sandler has opened up about how his two daughters Sadie and Sunny Sandler express their concern for his well-being.

On Tuesday, August 20, the 57-year-old actor told People that 18-year-old Sadie and 15-year-old Sunny want him to be conscious of his health.

The Big Daddy star shared: 'They always look out for me and my health just like I used to with my dad.'

He explained, 'You go, "Man, I want this guy around," so I used to scream at my dad to quit smoking, and my kids scream at me to just calm down and try to eat a little more like a normal person.'

Sandler shares the teenage girls with wife Jackie Sandler, 49, who he wed in 2003.

Adam Sandler has opened up about how his two daughters Sadie and Sunny Sandler express their concern for his well-being; pictured on February 21

On Tuesday, August 20, the 57-year-old actor told People that 18-year-old Sadie and 15-year-old Sunny want him to be conscious of his health; pictured on February 26

It comes after he previously revealed during an appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast that he struggles to exercise.

'I used to take working out so serious ... and now I can't f*****g do it,' he confessed.

The Hollywood vet explained, 'I play hoop and then I eat. Every time I'm eating I'm going, "What are you doing, man? You don't need to do this."

'I can't stop, just got a little bit of thickness all over.'

He also shared that Sadie proposed he work out with the trainer he used for 2008's You Don't Mess with the Zohan.

'Now it's f*****g rough,' he went on to say. 'My kids, one daughter, Sadie's always saying, "Dad, get the trainer from Zohan? Why would you ever give that up? Why did you stop?"'

The father-of-two said he told his daughter, 'It's a lot of work.'

He added, 'I just can't get back in there. She's right about everything. I don't promise her. I go, "Let me think about that; that's a good idea."'

Sandler shares the teenage girls with wife Jackie Sandler, who he wed in 2003; pictured August 20

The Hollywood vet explained on Joe Rogan's podcast this month, 'I play hoop and then I eat. Every time I'm eating I'm going, "What are you doing, man? You don't need to do this"'; pictured on August 5

The family-of-four pictured on July 13

Sandler recently confirmed in an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon that Travis Kelce will have a cameo in his forthcoming movie Happy Gilmore 2.

'Travis mentioned it so we have a nice something for Travis,' Sandler said. 'He's going to come by.'

He added, 'He's a very nice guy. You guys would love him in real life. What a big, handsome guy. Cool as hell. He's a stud and he's so funny.'

Kelce is a big fan of the original film and said earlier this year on his New Heights podcast that he would love to appear in the sequel.
Katie Holmes made heads turn on Wednesday.

The Dawson's Creek star, 45  who is frequently spotted out in the Big Apple  was seen cutting a casual figure while enjoying her day off in New York City.

The outing comes just days after the actress moved her daughter Suri Cruise, 18, into her dorm at the prestigious Carnegie Mellon University on Monday.

Enjoying the summer heat, the ex-wife of Tom Cruise modeled a white T-shirt and a midi-length red skirt.

She teamed the look with matching red sunglasses, a designer purse and flats.

Katie Holmes was seen cutting a casual figure while enjoying her day off in New York City on Wednesday

The ex-wife of Tom Cruise modeled a white T-shirt and a midi-length red skirt

Her brunette locks were let loose and cascaded over her shoulders as she tied the look together with flats.

Katie appeared to be in good spirits as she relearns to navigate life after moving her look-alike freshman daughter to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania earlier this week.

Meanwhile, her 62-year-old action man ex-husband has been busy working on Mission: Impossible 8 after taking part in the Olympic closing ceremony in Paris last week.

Tom and Katie were married from November of 2006 until calling it quits in August of 2012, citing 'irreconcilable differences'.

Suri's move-in day was on Sunday and she will begin classes on August 26, according to the school's website.

And the child of Hollywood movie stars will have accommodations that are very different than what she is used to in New York City, DailyMail.com can report, as Suri will be sharing a dorm room with another female student.

'Suri wants the full college experience so she is giving the dorm rooms a try and she will have a roommate,' an insider told DailyMail.com. 'She is excited for a new chapter in her life.'

Instead of mom Katie's three-bedroom high-rise luxury apartment, the teenager will be in a bare-bones dorm room.

It has been hinted by Katie that Suri may be studying acting and dance at Carnegie Mellon. Holmes told Town & Country magazine that after college, her daughter wants to enter showbiz.

The magazine claimed that Suri 'is said to be interested in pursuing a career in fashion or acting.' It does not sound off base as Suri starred in a high school production of The Addams Family.

The outing comes just days after the actress moved her daughter Suri into her dorm at the prestigious Carnegie Mellon University on Monday; Suri seen in 2024

'Suri wants the full college experience so she is giving the dorm rooms a try and she will have a roommate,' an insider told DailyMail.com

Tom Cruise has been busy working on Mission: Impossible 8 after taking part in the Olympic closing ceremony in Paris last week; seen in Katie, Tom and Suri seen in 2006

And Katie has already put Suri to work on two of her films.

Suri contributed vocals to songs in two of Holmes' films - the 2023 drama Rare Objects and 2022 romantic drama Alone Together.

'I'm proud of my daughter,' Holmes told Town & Country of her daughter.
The in-demand model Alex Consani celebrated a major milestone on Tuesday.

The 21-year-old catwalk star became the first out transgender woman to be nominated for one of the top honors ahead of the 2024 Fashion Awards ceremony.

Consani was nominated in the model of the Year category, alongside other rising stars and veterans, including Alva Claire, Amelia Gray Hamlin, Anok Yai, Liu Wen and Mona Tougaard.

The awards are presented by the British Fashion Council, which said in a release announcing that nominees that the Model of the Year category 'Recognizes the global impact of a model who, over the last 12 months, has dominated the industry, with an influence that transcends the catwalk.'

Although Consani is still early in her career, she has been modeling since 2015, and, at 13, she became the youngest transgender model to sign with a modeling agency, according to The Independent.

The in-demand model Alex Consani, 21, became the first out transgender woman to be nominated for one of the top honors ahead of the 2024 Fashion Awards ceremony; pictured in March at the Oscars in Hollywood

The British Fashion Council said in a release announcing that nominees that Model of the Year 'recognizes the global impact of a model who, over the last 12 months, has dominated the industry, with an influence that transcends the catwalk'; pictured in September 2023 in Paris

She later joined the high-profile IMG Models in 2019.

Although she noted that she had a positive upbringing in the Bay Area's Marin County in California, Consani told The Independent that it wasn't until a visit to New York City to check out colleges that she felt as if she had truly found a 'community' for trans people.

The blonde beauty went on to diversify her career in 2020 when she broke out as a TikTok star under the username 'captincroook.'

So far, her comically absurd videos have earned her an impressive three million followers on the social media platform.

Although Consani is the first woman nominated for model of the year who identifies as trans, she is technically the second transgender person overall.

In 2023, Kai-Isaiah Jamal, who came out as a trans man in 2014, was nominated for the honor.

Since then, they have rejected existing on the gender binary, according to the London Evening Standard.

Consani is also one of two openly LGBTQ+ models nominated in the category, as Mona Tougaard previously revealed that she was 'being in the LGBTQ+ community' during a 2023 interview with Vogue Scandinavia.

Consani has been modeling since 2015, and, at 13, she became the youngest transgender model to sign with a modeling agency, according to The Independent; seen in May 2023 in Cap d'Antibes, France

She's the second trans person to be nominated as Model of the Year, as Kai-Isaiah Jamal, who was nominated in 2023, came out as a trans man in 2014

Consani isn't just an in-demand model, but is also a TikTok star. She posts hilarious absurd videos under the username 'captincroook' and currently has three million followers

Consani's whirlwind career most recently included walking in around 20 shows for the fall/winter 2024 fashion season, according to Teen Vogue.

In that season, she was courted by some of the most high-profile fashion houses and haute couture brands today to walk their runways, including Marc Jacobs, Ferragamo, Mugler, Helmut Lang, Simone Rocha and Thom Browne, among others.

Other high-profile fashion houses she has walked for in the past include Alexander McQueen and Versace.

Then, in March of this year, she made her red carpet debut at the 2024 Academy Awards, cementing her expansion beyond the fashion industry.
A group shot from the Jana Duggar's August 15 wedding has spurred speculation from fans that Josh Duggar's wife Anna is being frozen out by some members of the controversial family.

Anna, who has stood by Josh despite allegations he molested four of his sisters - Jill, Jessa, Joy-Anna and Jinger, among others - did not appear in a large family photo snapped at Jana's nuptials.

A total of 18 Duggar children, all of their spouses and even the Duggar grandchildren are present in the image - excluding Anna and the seven children she shares with Josh; Mackynzie, Michael, Marcus, Meredith, Mason, Maryella, and Madyson.

Jana, 34, who is the oldest daughter in the reality TV family, exchanged vows Thursday with Stephen Wissmann, 31, at The Grand at Willow Springs, a wedding venue located in Washington County, Arkansas, with 500 people in attendance, People reported.

An August 17 article published by The U.S. Sun indicated that fans of the show recognized Anna had been pictured at a table during the nuptials.

The images, which fans believed Anna to be seen in, were initially posted by Alaythia Wissmann, sister of the groom in an Instagram Stories post that was captioned 'Mr & Mrs Wissmann.'

A group shot from the Jana Duggar's August 15 wedding has spurred speculation from fans that Josh Duggar's wife Anna is being frozen out by some members of the controversial family

Anna and Josh Duggar pictured at CPAC in National Harbor, Maryland in February of 2015, months before Josh's past actions were reported, leading to the cancelation of 19 Kids and Counting

Josh Duggar's problematic past & legal troubles

The Duggar family's TLC reality series 19 Kids and Counting was canceled in July of 2015 after Josh Duggar's past history of molestation surfaced.

A probe of Josh was conducted in 2006 after an associate of the family tipped them off, but officials cited the statute of limitations in deciding against pursuing charges at that time.

Josh Duggar is currently serving a 12 1/2-year prison sentence in connection with his 2021 conviction for downloading images of child sexual abuse.

Federal officials who probed Josh Duggar said that he'd downloaded the illegal images at an auto dealership he'd been working at in Arkansas.

Authorities who probed Josh Duggar's computer testified that in 2019, they located images 'depicting the sexual abuse of children, including toddlers,' according to the the AP.

In June, the Supreme Court rejected an appeal from Josh Duggar to his 2021 conviction. The U.S.'s highest court 'did not elaborate on the denial, as is typical,' according to the AP.

Previously, Josh Duggar's conviction had been upheld by the lower courts, who did not accept his case that his lawyers should have been permitted to inquire about an ex-employee at the car dealership who had a previous sex-offense conviction on their record; and had used the computer at the center of the case.

Attorneys for Josh Duggar did not question the ex-employee in testimony after the judge said they were prohibited from mentioning the ex-employee's sex-offense conviction, according to the AP.

Before his past had been revealed, Josh Duggar had been working as a lobbyist for the Family Research Council, a conservative organization. His current date of release from custody is slated for October 2, 2032, InTouch reported.

Josh Duggar is currently serving a 12 1/2-year prison sentence in connection with his 2021 conviction for downloading images of child sexual abuse. Pictured in a December 2021 mug shot

Anna wed Josh Duggar on September 26, 2008 in Florida. Pictured on NBC in 2009

Anna and Josh were pictured leaving a court in Arkansas in November of 2021 amid his trial

Details and controversies about Anna

Anna wed Josh Duggar - the oldest child of Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar - on September 26, 2008 in Florida, with the nuptials being documented on 19 Kids and Counting's second season special A Very Duggar Wedding.

The couple went on to welcome seven children - Mackynzie, Maryella, Marcus, Mason, Michael, Meredith and Madyson, according to InTouch.

Anna has remained residing with her children on the Duggar family's Tontitown, Arkansas compound, the outlet noted in May.

Anna at one point had thought about moving to Texas, as Josh remains in custody at Federal Correctional Institute in Seagoville, Texas, as a source told the outlet that Josh opposed the move.

'The problem is that Josh doesn't want Anna and their kids moving away from his family,' a source told InTouch in October 2022. 'He thinks it will create too much of a disconnection for her and his kids.'

Duggar family cousin Amy King told People in June of 2023 that she had told Anna that she had a place that she and her children could live while Josh was in custody.

Anna wanted 'nothing to do with it at all, and that's her decision,' according to King, who explained to the publication that she had 'tried' through multiple channels to reach Anna.

'I don't know if her phone's being monitored,' she said. 'I don't know if she's turned it off [and] she's gotten a new one. I've tried on Instagram, I've tried on Twitter.'

Anna pictured in 2021 in Fayetteville, Arkansas leaving court on her own after Josh had been taken into custody

Anna had debated a move to Texas to be closer to where Josh is serving his sentence

InTouch reported in May that 'Anna and Josh are still married as he continues his prison sentence,' but that Anna had been conflicted about how to move forward amid the difficult circumstances.

'She took her wedding vows seriously and she wants to stand by her man and all that, but the reality of her situation is very difficult,' a source told the outlet in January of 2023, adding that she 'wants Josh by her side, as a husband and as a father to their children.'

The insider noted that Anna's ambitions weren't 'physically possible for now, or the near future.'

Anna Duggar has kept a low profile on social media amid her family's well-publicized issues, as she deleted an Instagram account she had in 2022 following Josh's conviction, the outlet reported.

Anna has an account on X/Twitter that has more than 114,000 followers that she had been on sporadically. After staying off posting on the platform for two years, she has posted two tweets over the past three months, both in support of former President Donald Trump.

Fan reaction to Anna's attendance at the wedding event

Fans on a Reddit thread centered on The U.S. Sun report speculating about Anna's attendance at the event appeared to be on the same page that it made sense she would be there, regardless of the history surrounding her spouse.

'Id be surprised if she werent there,' one user said. 'Im curious why people think its surprising she was there.'

Another user said that Jana and Stephen's wedding 'had 500 guests' so 'of course Anna was there.'

One user said that Anna's presence was a matter of keeping up appearances, as she remains in her marriage to Josh.

'She has to be there she's the good servant she has to stay loyal to the family while her husband's in prison for being a nasty man and then she'll take him back when he gets out and they'll figure out on how to raise the kids that are left,' said the user.

Fans on a Reddit thread speculated about Anna's attendance at the event

A separate thread speculated on how Anna gets along with the rest of the family, titled, 'What do the Duggars think of Anna at the moment?'

One user said that the family harbored resentment toward Anna over Josh's actions that led to the cancelation of their lucrative reality show and subsequent bad publicity in regards to Josh.

The user said that the family cast 'unfair and unrealistic' expectations toward Anna in controlling Josh, and described her as 'a daily walking talking reminder' of Josh's wrongdoings.

The user noted that the family 'cant afford the hit theyd take' in terms of publicity if they shunned Anna and her children completely.

Another user agreed with the assessment, saying, 'This sounds right, and she obviously didnt fix him (the problem is HIM) and now the family has to support her and her gaggle of children!'

Said another user: 'Anna was not the one that caused the disgrace to the family.'

A user said they felt bad for the kids, noting that they probably 'do not understand why they cant be in the big family portrait' published in a magazine.

Fans were divided as to if Anna was taking the right tack in recent years, as one said she was 'to blame for staying' while another asked, 'Realistically though, what other option did she have?'
Jessica Rowe shocked radio stars Kyle Sandilands and Jackie 'O' Henderson on Thursday by revealing the outrageous request a former TV boss made of her.

The 54-year-old veteran journalist was discussing her career on KIIS FM's The Kyle and Jackie O Show when she made the bombshell reveal that a former employer took issue with her distinctive laugh.

'The snort is part of me! Do you know with the laughter, years ago when I was on TV a boss told me to quit that snorting laughter,' Jessica began.

'For a time I listened to him. That was my real mistake because it diminished who I was.'

Jessica added she was now much more confident and would never again change who she was for an employer.

'So now I embrace the snort and laughter and wherever I go I laugh. When people go low I go high!'

Host Jackie O Henderson responded: 'Good on you, we love you for it.'

The interview comes after Jessica recently opened up about her traumatic exit from Channel Nine in 2007 and how news leaked of her sacking on the eve of the Logie Awards.

Jessica Rowe (pictured) shocked radio stars Kyle Sandilands and Jackie 'O' Henderson on Thursday by revealing the outrageous request a former TV boss made of her

She was not invited to the red carpet that year, and she woke to find a media scrum on her doorstep.

'This was way before Instagram and TikTok and all that. It was all over the newspapers that I was going to be leaving the Today show,' she recalled on the Jess Rowe Big Talk Show earlier this month.

'And at the time, I was really shocked because it wasn't meant to be released until a few days later. So I wasn't prepared.'

Adding to Jess' woes was that her husband, Channel Nine star Peter Overton, ended up being confronted with questions on the Logie Awards red carpet about his wife's sacking.

The 54-year-old was discussing her career on KIIS FM's The Kyle and Jackie O Show when she made the bombshell reveal that a former employer took issue with her distinctive laugh. Pictured Jackie O Henderson

In 2006, Jessica was thrust into the spotlight when she moved from Channel 10 to the Nine Network to replace Tracy Grimshaw as co-host of the Today show.

But scandal struck when Nine's chief executive Eddie McGuire allegedly asked when he could 'bone' Jessica, with reports suggesting at the time he meant to 'sack' her.

He reportedly made the comments during a conversation with his then deputy Jeffrey Browne and Nine's head of news and current affairs, Mark Llewellyn.

Llewellyn then allegedly told McGuire the network might risk also losing Jessica's husband, Nine News reporter Peter Overton, if they sacked her.

McGuire is said to have replied, 'Maybe we have to take that risk,' before Browne added: 'She's a laughing stock and if we keep her on air we'll be the laughing stock.'

McGuire has since denied using the term 'bone' in the conversation, which was laid out by Llewellyn's sworn affidavit (made public after he left the network for rival station Seven).

'The snort is part of me! Do you know with the laughter, years ago when I was on TV a boss told me to quit that snorting laughter,' Jessica said

Jessica left the Today show in 2007 following her return from maternity leave. At the time, she cited payment issues as the reason for her departure.

She then joined Channel Seven as a presenter for Seven News in Sydney, before taking part in Dancing with the Stars.

Jessica moved to Weekend Sunrise in late 2010 and stayed there for three years.

In 2013, she signed with Network Ten and hosted morning show Studio 10 alongside Ita Buttrose, Joe Hildebrand, Sarah Harris and Denise Drysdale.

In March 2018, she announced she was resigning from the program to spend more time with her family.

Jess and her husband, Channel Nine news anchor Peter Overton, have been married since 2004 and share daughters Allegra, 17, and Giselle, 15.
Jono Castano appeared to be trying to win his ex girlfriend Simone Holtznagel back on Wednesday as he left her a supportive message on social media.

The celebrity trainer, 33, was first seen leaving flowers at a 'postpartum hotel' the model, 31, was staying at with their newborn Gia following their split earlier this year.

Now, he seems to be attempting to make amends as he left a sentimental comment beneath her promotional campaign for public breastfeeding on Instagram.

The blonde beauty shared a short clip to her socials which saw her wearing a very glamorous fur coat and purple bra as she breastfed her daughter Gia.

Simone shares the four-month-old with Jono, welcoming her to the world on Easter Sunday just weeks before the couple split.

The campaign video, created by the brand Nala, ended with the words 'Sorry To Offend You' as the clip promoted breastfeeding in public.

Simone's famous friends flocked to the comments with supportive messages and chief among them was ex partner Jono who referred to her with a private nickname.

'This is so good well done nuffle,' he wrote, seemingly using his pet name for her.

Jono Castano, 33, (right) appears to be trying to win ex Simone Holtznagel, 31, (left) back as he left her a supportive message on social media

Simone has been keeping a low profile since the bombshell news about her split from Jono emerged last month, and she has not yet commented on the separation.

She was spotted in public for the first time on Friday as she drove out of the $2,200-a-night 'postpartum hotel' in Double Bay she has been staying in with baby Gia.

On Thursday, Jono was seen visiting the hotel with a bouquet of flowers and a bottle of alcohol in hand as he appeared to be delivering gifts to Simone.

Jono appeared downcast as he headed to the exclusive hotel's check-in and dropped off the flowers and drink.

The blonde beauty shared a short clip to her socials which saw her wearing a very glamorous fur coat and purple bra as she promoted public breastfeeding with daughter Gia

The celebrity trainer attempted to make amends as he left a sentimental comment beneath the model's promotional campaign on Instagram

While his actions hinted at a possible reconciliation attempt with Simone, their relationship status remains unconfirmed amid ongoing speculation.

Jono recently confirmed that he and Simone decided to go their separate ways back in May - just nine weeks after they welcomed baby Gia on Easter Sunday.

And last week, a close friend of the couple revealed the writing was on the wall for the end of Simone and Jono's relationship for quite some time.

A source told The Daily Telegraph that several friends and family members warned Simone her model lifestyle was not compatible with Jono's fitness influencer career.

The first sign of trouble was when Jono posted pictures of himself on a luxurious holiday in Thailand days after Gia's birth on March 31 without Simone and their baby.

Jono recently confirmed that he and Simone decided to go their separate ways back in May - just nine weeks after they welcomed baby Gia on Easter Sunday

Although many of Jono's followers were quick to gush over the snaps, Simone neither liked or commented on them.

At the end of July, Jono then officially confirmed that he and Simone had gone their separate ways in a statement given to Daily Mail Australia.

'Who knows what the future holds, our idea is just to be the best parents for Gia at this stage,' he revealed at the time.

News of their split came just hours after Simone posted a cryptic quote about 'moving forward' and being 'patient' for a 'long time' on her Instagram Stories.
Coronation Street star Sean Wilson secretly split from his long-term girlfriend before his shock axing from the show.

The soap actor, 59, began dating actress Suzie Fenwick in 2016 but a source has revealed they secretly ended their relationship a few years ago.

The pair's romance began after his 16-year marriage to his wife Gaynor ended in 2013.

A source told The Sun: 'Sean and Susie's relationship ended a few years back.

'There was no bad blood and they had had a wonderful relationship during the many years they were together.'

Coronation Street star Sean Wilson secretly split from his long-term girlfriend before his shock axing from the show last week

Suzie has acted in the 1993 film Aspects Of Love, as well as performing for years on the West End

Suzie has acted in the 1993 film Aspects Of Love, as well as performing for years on the West End.

It comes after Sean suddenly departed the soap, forcing bosses to reportedly scrap Martin Platt's return storyline.

The actor was set to reprise his role as Martin Platt in October as part of his ex-wife Gail's exit, but according to sources, his entire story has now been ditched.

According to The Sun, Sean's exit came as a huge shock, with the cast unaware of the reason behind his departure.

A representative for the soap stated that the actor left 'for personal reasons,' and none of Sean's scenes will be aired, with Gail's entire exit storyline now being frantically rewritten by bosses.

Sean had returned to Corrie in July to film his first scenes, and had already recorded episodes with a large number of stars in the soap.

A source said: 'It has come as a complete and utter shock to everyone - and his sudden exit has rocked everyone involved with Corrie. Sean was loving his time on the show, and he was very popular on set.

'He had filmed scenes with loads of the cast, but then suddenly he was summoned to head office, and later it filtered out he wouldn't be returning or his scenes airing, but no explanation offered.

The soap actor, 59, began dating actress Suzie Fenwick in 2016 but a source has revealed they secretly ended their relationship a few years ago

'Clearly it's a major blow for bosses who must now find a new magical and happy ending for Helen - but they are confident they'll pull it out of the bag, and give viewers something wonderful.'

An ITV spokesperson told MailOnline: 'Sean Wilson has stepped down from filming for personal reasons.'

Sean's agent told the publication: 'Neither he nor I will be making any further comment or statement.'

In July, it was confirmed that Sean would be reprising his role as Martin Platt, as part of Gail's exit after 50 years on the cobbles.

As Sean picked up his first scripts to start shooting, he said: 'It was great to be invited back to Coronation Street again, to contribute to Helen's exit story.

'We'll have a few months to catch up with Martin and Gail again, following the ebbs and flows of the unfolding storyline.

The actor was set to reprise his role as Martin Platt in October as part of his ex-wife Gail's exit, but has now left the soap, with bosses citing 'personal reasons'

Sean had returned to Corrie in July to film his first scenes, and had already recorded episodes with a large number of stars in the soap

'Playing Martin has been a joy since day one and in a way, I'll be slipping back to where I left off, which no doubt will throw a spanner into the heart of the Platt family.

'It's just like slipping on an old and comfortable jumper from the back of the wardrobe I'm looking forward to reuniting with my TV family.'

Sean played Martin for 20 years from 1985 to 2005, before he and his family emigrated to New Zealand in 2018 and he paid one final visit to Weatherfield before his departure to make his peace with David, who was upset that his dad was leaving the country.

According to The Sun, Gail was all set to have a happy ending after all, rekindling her romance with Martin and sailing off into the sunset.

A source told The Sun: 'A number of options were considered for Gail's departure from the cobbles but bosses knew the moment needed to truly celebrate one of Corrie's most iconic characters as well as honour Helen's astonishing run on the soap.'

'It just didn't sit right to kill her off or have Gail suffer more tragedy after, let's face it, a pretty traumatic life.

In July, it was confirmed that Sean would be reprising his role as Martin Platt, as part of Gail's exit after 50 years on the cobbles

Sean previously left Corrie in 2005 to pursue a career in cheesemaking, and news of his return was met with huge fanfare

'Martin was always considered the one that got away and bosses are thrilled they've been able to tempt Sean back to wave Gail goodbye.'

The source also revealed viewers should expect to see 'many twists and turns' but the scriptwriters want Gail's story to end with a happy ending.

It comes after Helen quit her role on the cobbles after successfully playing the character for 50 years from 1974.

The news devastated fans across the UK and some took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to speculate how her character's storyline will end.

ITV confirmed that she will start filming her exit story next month and the 'emotional' scenes will be on screen at the end of the year.

Sharing the news of her exit, Helen said: 'This year felt like the perfect time to leave the show after celebrating 50 years in the most wonderful job on the most wonderful street in the world.'

Gail was all set to have a happy ending after all, rekindling her romance with Martin and sailing off into the sunset, but her exit storyline is now being hastily rewritten

'I made the decision at the start of the year and spoke to the producers who were very kind and understanding.'

'I have been truly blessed to have been given the most incredible scripts week in week out, and to have worked with fantastic actors, directors and a brilliant crew.'

'The past 50 years have flown by and I don't think the fact that I am leaving has quite sunk in yet.'

Thankfully, Helen hasn't had quite a dramatic life as her character, and once admitted she would 'be in a mental institution' if her life was like Gail's.

She added: 'I come home and see friends and go to the theatre. Luckily I find it quite easy to switch off  I'd be a nervous wreck if I didn't.'
Travis Scott has requested that his trespassing charge be dropped by a judge - two months after his arrest at a Miami marina following an altercation on a yacht.

The Sicko Mode rapper, 33 - who was recently 'released with no charges' after his Paris arrest following an argument with his bodyguard - claimed there weren't any 'No Trespassing' signs at the Miami Beach Marina, per TMZ.

On Tuesday, the music artist's lawyer, Bradford Cohen, filed a motion to toss out the case - after a second charge of disorderly intoxication was dropped earlier this month.

Scott has claimed that there were warning signs on private property nearby, but none that were visible at the marina.

His legal team stated the charge should also be dismissed due to the arrest taking place at a private parking lot, rather than the actual marina.

Travis Scott, 33, has requested that his trespassing charge be dropped by a judge - two months after his arrest at a Miami marina following an altercation on a yacht; seen in February in Las Vegas

Travis - whose real name is Jacques Bermon Webster - had been accused of cursing at people while on a yacht at the Miami Beach Marina and was taken into custody on June 20 around 1a.m.

The arrest took place after the rapper had been ordered by police to leave the premises, but returned to retrieve personal items that had been left on the boat.

Sources informed TMZ at the time that the music artist's 'decision to go back ultimately led' to his arrest.

But earlier this month, Scott's disorderly intoxication charge was dropped after a hearing, per TMZ. Travis was not in attendance at the most recent legal proceeding.

He is currently scheduled to go to trial for the misdemeanor trespassing charge on September 10.

Back in June, Travis was arrested overnight for disorderly intoxication and trespassing at the marina, according to the affidavit seen by DailyMail.com.

Scott was booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center for the two misdemeanors around 4.35a.m., per court records.

The Houston-born rapper - who has two young children, Stormi and Aire, with Kylie Jenner - was arrested by police at the Miami Beach Marina at 1:17 am.

His legal team stated the charge should also be dismissed due to the arrest taking place at a private parking lot, rather than the actual marina; Scott's mugshot after the arrest in June

Scott has claimed that there were warning signs on private property nearby, but none that were visible at the marina; seen earlier this month in NYC

He was involved in 'a disturbance on a yacht' which involved people 'fighting,' according to police. Scott's lawyer Bradford Cohen told DailyMail.com the fight was verbal in nature and 'there was absolutely no physical altercation involved.'

Ten officers approached the boat and found Scott 'standing by the dock and yelling at the vessel occupants,' according to the affidavit.

They tried to defuse the situation by asking Scott to sit down, but he repeatedly stood back up and disregarded their orders, per the record.

Police said Scott had 'a strong smell of alcohol' on his breath, and Sergeant Lemus warned him to leave the dock or face arrest.

'Throughout the long walk from the vessel to the boardwalk, the defendant walked backwards yelling obscenities to the occupants of the vessel,' the affidavit reads.

Scott eventually returned back to his vehicle, and ordered one of his security guards to get out of the SUV so that they couldn't leave the scene.

He then appeared to threaten his own security guard, telling officers 'if he gets in the vehicle he's gonna catch a fade,' meaning get into a fight.

The rapper eventually complied with officer's requests to leave. But just five minutes later he turned around and came back to cause more chaos.

Scott 'began yelling once again, becoming erratic, disturbing the peace of the occupants of the marina and nearby residential buildings causing a public disturbance' according to police.

Travis recently had another run-in with the law while in Paris after an alleged argument with his bodyguard at the Four Seasons Hotel George V on August 9; seen earlier this month in Paris

He was detained and taken to Miami-Dade corrections facility. When probed about whether he had been drinking alcohol, Scott said 'it's Miami' and admitted that he had.

Scott submitted a $650 bond - which includes $500 for the trespass charge, and $150 for disorderly intoxication.

Scott's lawyer Bradford Cohen told DailyMail.com the rapper was 'briefly detained due to a misunderstanding'.

'There was absolutely no physical altercation involved, and we thank the authorities for working with us towards a swift and amicable resolution,' Cohen said.

The Astroworld rapper appeared bleary-eyed and expressionless in his mugshot, which has been shared by Miami Dade Corrections facility.

Travis recently had another run-in with the law while in Paris after an alleged argument with his bodyguard at the Four Seasons Hotel George V on August 9.

The star - who was in France for the Olympics - was released the following day 'with no charges,' his representative confirmed to People.

Scott is also in the midst of his Circus Maximus Tour which is in support of his 2023 album, Utopia

A source also told the outlet that there are, 'no plans for him to be charged in the future, and there were no injuries to any other party, including,' the star's security team.

Scott is also in the midst of his Circus Maximus Tour which is in support of his 2023 album, Utopia.

Concerts are set to resume next month on September 7 in Santiago, Chile followed by other stops in countries such as Argentina, Brazil and Columbia.

In October, the rapper will also perform in Australia in cities including Melbourne and Sydney, as well as a stop in Auckland, New Zealand.
Kym Marsh has revealed she is open to a return to the Coronation Street cobbles as the soap's crisis continues.

The actress, 48, starred as Michelle Connor on the Manchester based soap from 2006 until 2019 when she departed the streets of Weatherfield.

And now the star has admitted she wouldn't rule out returning to the soap as producers left her character 'open' for her to come back.

Speaking to The Mirror Kym confessed: 'It was left open, very much so and if the chance and opportunity was to arrive then I could always return if that was what was wanted.

'So yeah, there is always that option for her to go back, unless they kill her off! But there is that opportunity and I mean, I just love that show, I will always love Coronation Street, it's such a major part of my life.'

Kym Marsh has teased her return to the cobbles after her character's exit was 'left open' as the Corrie crisis continues to deepen

The actress, 48, starred as Michelle Connor on the Manchester based soap from 2006 until 2019 when she departed the streets of Weatherfield (pictured in 2016 alongside Simon Gregson as Steve McDonald)

Since leaving the streets five years ago, Kym has gone on to secure a regular hosting position on Morning Live and is currently starring in a touring version of 101 Dalmatians The Musical.

Kym's revelation comes as the soap has been plunged into chaos after Sean Wilson suddenly departed the soap, forcing bosses to reportedly scrap Martin Platt's return storyline.

The actor was set to reprise his role as Martin Platt in October as part of his ex-wife Gail's exit, but according to sources, his entire story has now been ditched.

According to The Sun, Sean's exit came as a huge shock, with the cast unaware of the reason behind his departure.

A representative for the soap stated that the actor left 'for personal reasons,' and none of Sean's scenes will be aired, with Gail's entire exit storyline now being frantically rewritten by bosses.

Sean had returned to Corrie in July to film his first scenes, and had already recorded episodes with a large number of stars in the soap.

A source said: 'It has come as a complete and utter shock to everyone - and his sudden exit has rocked everyone involved with Corrie. Sean was loving his time on the show, and he was very popular on set.

'He had filmed scenes with loads of the cast, but then suddenly he was summoned to head office, and later it filtered out he wouldn't be returning or his scenes airing, but no explanation offered.

Kym confessed: ' It was left open, very much so and if the chance and opportunity was to arrive then I could always return if that was what was wanted' (pictured on the soap in 2019)

Since leaving the streets five years ago, Kym has gone on to secure a regular hosting position on Morning Live and is currently starring in a touring version of 101 Dalmatians The Musical

Kym's revelation comes as the soap has been plunged into chaos after Sean Wilson suddenly departed the soap, forcing bosses to reportedly scrap Martin Platt's return storyline

'Clearly it's a major blow for bosses who must now find a new magical and happy ending for Helen - but they are confident they'll pull it out of the bag, and give viewers something wonderful.'

An ITV spokesperson told MailOnline: 'Sean Wilson has stepped down from filming for personal reasons.'

Sean's agent told the publication: 'Neither he nor I will be making any further comment or statement.'

It has since been revealed Sean secretly split from his long-term girlfriend before his shock axing from the show.

The soap actor, 59, began dating actress Suzie Fenwick in 2016 but a source has revealed they secretly ended their relationship a few years ago.

The pair's romance began after his 16-year marriage to his wife Gaynor ended in 2013.

A source told The Sun: 'Sean and Susie's relationship ended a few years back.

'There was no bad blood and they had had a wonderful relationship during the many years they were together.'
A cable car travels past the building at 675 California St., near St. Marys Square in San Francisco. The empty building is among the citys small wounds of its post-pandemic economy. Benjamin Fanjoy/Special to the Chronicle The building at 675 California St. in 2010, before the small modernist jewel box on the edge of Chinatown was shuttered. John King/The Chronicle

Theres plenty to see at the corner of Grant Avenue and California Street, what with a cable car stop and focused bay views, the theatrical splendor of 1908s Sing Chong Building and Old St. Marys Church with its brick walls that date back to 1853.

No wonder its easy to skim past the three-story glass office building at 675 California St.

Which is a good thing these days.

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For all the attention that gets paid to the obvious signs of downtown San Franciscos post-pandemic struggles  everyone knows that Nordstrom closed and Macys is packing its bags  lingering scars like this one, in some ways, make me saddest of all. Four years after COVID derailed Union Square and the Financial District, its hard to walk by the battered buildings and vacant storefronts and imagine a scenario where things improve for the better, en masse, anytime soon.

The scene at 675 California is even more painful because, until 2020, the elegantly discreet rectangle was one of those unexpected delights that give this city luster and depth.

A building reflects from the glass at 675 California St. in San Francisco. Benjamin Fanjoy/Special to the Chronicle

It looks less like a building than an immaculately tailored suit, is how I described this clean jewel of steel and glass in 2010. Despite being just three stories and barely 4,000 square feet, the A.E. Waegeman design displayed all the crisp virtues of International Style modernism  from the lithe facade with its operable windows snapping out from a precise metal grid to the sexy framing of the corners spiral staircase on full display for the world to see.

As important as the look is the location.

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Our diminutive hero lines alley-thin Quincy Street directly across from grassy St. Marys Park, so you get the wide view while trudging up California Street to Chinatown (assuming, of course, that you arent staring intently at the sidewalk while panting for breath). Old St. Marys Church and its neo-Gothic clock tower stand across the street, with Chinatowns pagodas in the background. To the east, downhill, Financial District towers jut into the sky.

All this makes for the type of structural collage you can only find in cities with an incandescent history  which makes todays dark reality all the more bleak.

The ground floor on California is sealed off with plywood, painted black at the bolted entrance, obscured by eight posters advertising a club show sponsored by an Italian maker of liqueurs. The plywood continues around the corner, layered with grimy white paint hiding other posters from now-forgotten tours.

Pedestrians walk past 675 California St. in San Francisco. The former jewel box is now empty and plastered with posters, a sign of neglect for the empty structure. Benjamin Fanjoy/Special to the Chronicle

Theres also graffiti, ebullient if not elaborate. Some of it adorns plywood that covers windows broken by squatters or thieves who wanted to get inside.

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The architecture is so spectacular, such a little jewel box, and the juxtapositions with everything around it are so great, said Stacy Williams, who walks by on her way from North Beach to the American Institute of Architects local chapter, where shes executive director. Instead, its in such disrepair, it breaks my heart.

Thats also the case with Marcia Gagliardi, whose Tablehopper newsletter keeps tabs on the local foodie scene. When she did an Instagram post back in March on her beloved 675 California becoming a trash can, it drew more than 100 likes and 50 comments.

I could not believe the outpouring of passion I received, Gagliardi recalled this week. It was a random thing for me to post, but it clearly struck a chord with my followers.

The current blight is a bit less blatant, but thats hardly progress. Instead, the online records of San Franciscos Department of Building Inspection show three years of complaints and repairs, violation orders eventually resolved, and messages left on the answering machine of the owner. The latest update came this month  yet another notice of violation sent by certified letter because the owner hadnt registered the building as vacant.

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Coming out of the pandemic, we dont want to continue to see graffiti and plywood, Gagliardi said in explaining her dismay at a building that would bring a smile whenever she passed by. The life of our city is diminished.

A person walks the stairs at 675 California St. in 2010, when the building was still active. John King/The Chronicle

True, there arent a large number of abandoned structures in downtown San Francisco. But a building neednt be hollowed out to cast a pall.

You sense this on California Street, downhill from our tarnished jewel. Those historic banks and imposing towers still have gravitas. Then look close, and a dozen or so large spaces along the way display for lease signs. How many banks or ultra-luxe cocktail lounges, realistically, are looking for capacious columned halls in which to expand?

After stopping at 675 California I turned left on Grant, the heart of Chinatowns tourist zone. There were welcome signs of fresh life  pristine white interiors are an of-the-moment clue  but also no shortage of locked gates across storefronts. Or buildings where the tourist shops are open, but the upper floors look ghostly.

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The small 1964 glass building at 675 California St., which was fully leased until the pandemic, is now an abandoned structure and an example of downtown San Franciscos continued struggle to return to prosperity. John King/The Chronicle

As bleak as all this sounds, I honestly dont believe downtowns malaise will continue. The traditional core of Market Street north and Van Ness Avenue east has too much going for it, no matter how fervently the haters insist San Francisco is a hellscape. The flickers of recovery are real. So is the eternal interlaced magic of hills and water, blue sky and moist fog.

Seduction is a tenacious thing.

But the scars you see on a casual walk through Union Square or down Market Street are real, too. Everything wont be fixed by filling empty department stores. Or finding a developer willing to try and turn a big old tower into brand-new housing.

Scars mend slowly.
Larry Emdur made a huge gesture to his colleagues at The Morning Show after his landslide Gold Logie win.

The TV host, 59, took home the biggest award at Sunday's awards ceremony as well as the Bert Newton Award for Most Popular Presenter in a milestone feat.

He has been busy celebrating over the past few days and his hilarious email to Seven staff following his victory has now been revealed.

In the message, Larry announced that he would be throwing a huge pizza party at the network's Sydney office on Thursday to celebrate.

He confirmed he had enlisted Happy As Larry Pizza Truck to provide a catered lunch for up to 150 employees in a very kind all-expenses-paid gesture.

Larry also hilariously revealed the one question all his colleagues have been asking him - whether his backside has recovered after getting it tattooed live on air after his win.

'Hi everyone, Larry here, my arse is OK, thanks for asking in the lift, in the foyer, in the carpark, in the studio, in the coffee shop,' he penned in the email.

'I know this Logie belongs to you all, it's been a huge team effort and I know, willingly or unwillingly, most of you were roped into the Logies campaign.

Larry Emdur made a huge gesture to his colleagues at The Morning Show after his landslide Gold Logie win, ordering an all-expenses-paid pizza lunch for the 150-strong team

'I can only think of one way to thank you all, all at once. PIZZA!!!!! Please leave your lunch at home, I've organised a pizza truck.'

He ended the email by joking that even his colleagues who voted for Andy Lee would be welcome to grab themselves a slice of pizza in his usual good humour.

After winning the Gold Logie, Larry left viewers in stitches with his hilarious foul-mouthed victory speech, where he admitted he was shocked to have won.

The Morning Show host had the crowd roaring, making light of the number of times his programs have been axed over the years and his wide range of questionable hosting gigs.

He also referenced the bizarre promise he made the week before to get all the nominees' initials tattooed on his backside, in a vow he has amazingly kept.

'I just remembered I did say if I won this, I'd get all the nominees' initials tattooed on my a**e live tomorrow morning,' he began, drawing laughter from the audience.

'Sorry, Sylvie [his wife], I know we had some fancy hotel planned but looks like I'll be doing squats all night!'

The TV host, 59, took home the biggest award at Sunday's awards ceremony as well as the Bert Newton Award for Most Popular Presenter in a milestone feat

After the Logies, he was forced to make good on his wild promise to get the nominees' initials tattooed if he won, stripping off his pants on live TV on Monday to get the intimate inking

'I love this business so much. I love being in TV, and I've never wanted to do anything else,' he went on in his touching speech.

'Whether it's sitting on The Morning Show couch interviewing Lindy Klim, who has invented a new product - a face mask for vulvas; or a 150kg truck driver who has won on The Price Is Right dry humping me; or being the most axed man in television.'

On Monday morning, he was forced to make good on his wild promise, stripping off his pants on live breakfast TV to get the intimate permanent inking.

He also gushed over the support he had received from fans in a sweet Instagram video, admitting his hands hurt from messaging everyone back.

'Oh man, my feet are so sore. My fingers are sore from texting. I've got the worst headache. My a**e is sore from the tattoo,' he joked.

The TV star has been a recognisable face on Aussie screens since the age of 19, but has never before secured a win at the TV Week Logie Awards.
Good Things has dropped the line-up for this year's festival after successfully campaigning to welcome 16 and 17-year-olds to their Sydney shows.

Californian nu metal band Korn will headline the event, bringing hits including Freak On a Leash 30 years on from their debut self-titled album.

The band has earned two Grammy Awards and several platinum album certifications over the last three decades and previously performed at Download festival in 2018.

The festival will bring Canadian rockers Sum 41 to Aussie shores for the last time after the band announced last year they would disband following a world tour and the release of their album Heaven x Hell.

The band shot to fame with their 2001 album All Killer, No Filler, with hits Fat Lip and In Too Deep cementing themselves as pop-punk anthems.

Frontman Deryck Whibley said he's proud of what the band had achieved, but now it's time to 'call it quits'.

'It's the right time to walk away from it. I'm putting all of my energy into what's ahead. This is going to be the biggest tour of our lives, and I want to make it the best show we've ever done. That's it,' he said.

Violent Femmes will also take to the stage 41 years after their hit Blister In The Sun.

Good Things has dropped the lineup for this year's festival. Californian nu metal band Korn (pictured) will headline the event

The festival will also bring Canadian rockers Sum 41 (pictured) to Aussie shores for the last time after the band announced last year they would disband following a world tour

Melbourne rockers Jet will bring classics Are You Gonna Be My Girl and Rollover DJ from their album Get Born, which celebrated its 20th birthday last year.

The band was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame last November.

German metalcore band Electric Callboy will bring viral hits Hypa Hypa and We Got The Moves to the stage, while The Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan will perform supported by The Delta Riggs, flicking through his solo catalogue for the gig as well as iconic tracks from The Smashing Pumpkins.

Violent Femmes (pictured) will also take to the stage 41 years after their hit Blister In The Sun

Aussie punk band The Living End, hailed as one of Australia's greatest live bands, has also been added to the bill, bringing classic tracks Prisoner of Society and Second Solution for the band's only live performances of the year.

Dragon, known for classics April Sun In Cuba and Are You Old Enough, is tipped to perform, while Bowling For Soup is poised to bring alt-rock hits like 1985 as they celebrate 30 years since they formed in Texas.

Sleeping With Sirens, with tracks If You Can't Hang and If I'm James Dean, You're Audrey Hepburn, are also tipped to rock the event.

Melbourne rockers Jet (pictured) will bring classics Are You Gonna Be My Girl and Rollover DJ from their album Get Born, which celebrated its 20th birthday last year

The announcement follows the successful petition of Good Things to welcome 16 and 17-year-olds (with the supervision of a parent or guardian) to the Sydney event this year after facing pushback in NSW despite Melbourne and Brisbane hosting festivals open to those 15 and older.

The stacked line up is completed with Mastodon, Kerry King, The Gaslight Anthem, L7, Northlane, Alpha Wolf, The Butterfly Effect, 311, AViVA, Destroy Boys, Dragon, Frank Turner And The Sleeping Souls, From Ashes To New, Grandson, Highly Suspect, Imminence, Killing Heidi (Performing 'Reflector' In Full), Loathe, Reliqa and Taylor Acorn.

Aussie punk band The Living End, hailed as one of Australia's greatest live bands, has also been added to the bill

Festivalgoers will again be able to see a host of stunts, including knife-throwing, at STAGE 666.

Good Things promoter Chris O'Brien said he was 'so happy' the petition was successful and emphasised the importance of supporting the festivals that are still kicking, as 10 festivals, including Splendour In The Grass and Groovin The Moo, were cancelled this year.

'I can guarantee you we're like a duck on the water,' Mr O'Brien said.

'It might look OK on the surface, but underneath we're paddling pretty hard, and it feels like it's not a smooth lake.'
Insiders on The Block have revealed a big Sydney star almost walked away with the keys to House Two from the 2023 season after placing a big-money bid on it.

Daily Mail Australia can reveal that PR maven Roxy Jacenko was said to have been in talks with executive producer and co-creator Julian Cress about a property on Charming Street in Melbourne's Hampton East.

The socialite, 44, had her eyes on the renovation done by Queensland couple Leah and Ash Milton after their house was passed in at auction.

'Those phone calls started months after the show wrapped. With even the 2023 contestants unaware that those conversations were happening,' one source said.

While Roxy did not confirm why she wanted to purchase the property, some speculated she had plans to follow in the footsteps of Adrian 'Mr Lambo' Portelli.

Adrian, 34, who is now one of Australia's youngest billionaires, shot to fame on The Block in 2022 when he got into a bidding war with Block veteran Danny Wallis.

Since then, the LMCT+ founder bought three houses from the 2023 season and has used them as prizes in ticketed giveaways sold through his business.

At the time Roxy considered purchasing House Two, she was launching her online marketing course Roxy's Bootcamp, which debuted with a mansion giveaway.

Insiders on The Block have revealed a big Sydney star almost walked away with the keys to House Two from the 2023 season after placing a big-money bid on it. Pictured: host Scott Cam

'It is unconfirmed if Roxy did intend to follow Adrian Portelli and auction off the property but it seemed likely that was where the sale was going,' one source said.

'An offer is an offer and they [The Block producers] don't ask those questions.'

Leah and Ash went on to sell their property in Hampton East to a private buyer for $3,125,000, netting them a profit of $155,000.

Daily Mail Australia can reveal that PR maven Roxy Jacenko, 44, (pictured) was said to have been in talks with executive producer and co-creator Julian Cress

The socialite had her eyes on the renovation done by Queensland couple Leah and Ash Milton (both pictured) after their house was passed in at auction

While Roxy did not purchase a Block house last year, an insider revealed the PR queen is more than welcome to take another crack at the auction in October.

'[Celebrity] involvement ads to show excitement and these heavy hitters have been a huge part in the way the last few seasons have played out,' they said.

'This year's location is very appealing to all buyers looking for a holiday escape and these properties won't be just appealing to Melbournians.'

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Nine and Roxy for comment.
Nude artist Dina Broadhurst has posted one of her most jaw-dropping artworks yet.

The Sydney socialite, 46, stripped down to nothing to pose in front of a backdrop of beach umbrellas for a titillating polaroid shared to her Instagram on Thursday.

In the image, Dina stood outside at night on one foot with her bare arms stretched upwards.

One slender leg crossed over the other provided the only sliver of modesty in the photograph.

Dina posed in front of another printed artwork of a beach filled with red umbrellas, while her nipples were obscured.

It is called 'Under My Umbrellas' and will be just one of a larger polaroid series, according to the risque artist.

Broadhurst recently confirmed her relationship with multi-millionaire kitchen appliances heir John 'Winning' Herman, whose family is rumoured to be worth $700 million.

Dina is reported to have known the CEO of Winning Group for some time before the pair began dating.

'Nude artist' Dina Broadhurst has shared her most revealing art works yet. Pictured

She seemingly confirmed their relationship in early April as the couple attended a rave in Pioneertown, California

Winning is a DJ, sailor, and self-professed 'side hustler' who became CEO of his family's company at the early age of 22.

He promptly brought it into the 21st Century by establishing Appliances Online.

The Sydney-based company, which was founded in 1906, is now Australia's biggest digital retailer for appliances and whitegoods.

On Thursday, in addition to sharing her own saucy photographs, she posted a snap of her beau from the new Canberra's new Winning Appliances flagship store, in which he's standing among some furniture speaking into a microphone.

'So proud' Dina captioned it.

Dina proudly photographed her Winning CEO boyfriend rehearsing a speech and shared it to her social media as well

'Spring things' the eastern suburbs beauty captioned a carousel of recent photos from her life.

The first image is a mirror selfie, in which Dina wore a short halter dress that skims her thighs. It's followed by some shots of her interior designs, words of affirmation on various mediums, and of herself trying on designer clothes in a store.

Dina has been busy since returning to Sydney from her European holidays, back in her art studio, shopping, and spending time with her new partner

Dina made a name for herself in the Australian art world by leaving little to the imagination in her provocative Helmut-meets Kim-Kardashian-creations.

The mother-of-one takes a similar approach to her personal photography.

On a trip to the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) in Tasmania earlier this month, she went braless in a low-cut shirt while posing in front of a mirror.

She also shared some photos from her trip to MONA, including a picture of the controversial 'wall of vaginas' piece by Australian artist Greg Taylor.

Another photo included Tony Garifalakis' 2007 work called 'F**king Optimism', which featured an upside down crucifix in red with the words 'so much for my f**king optimism' emblazoned across it.

It comes after the art aficionado recently gave fans a glimpse inside her latest renovation design project.

Dina took to Instagram in April 2022 to announce her exciting new 'CASA' studio.

'Signed, sealed & ready to deliver! CASA is on the move and we can't wait to share this new project & journey,' she captioned the post at the time.

Dina's 'CASA' studios, meaning home studio, combines her passion for interior design, contemporary art, and mid-century furniture.

In June, Dina finally offered fans a sneak peek into the renovation journey.

The clip featured a modern arch doorway and an army of men helping transform the spacious property.

The stories also highlighted new floorboards and a custom-designed wine display unit.

In 2021, Dina and her former partner Max Shepherd spent two weeks transforming a historic Vaucluse property into a stunning 'CASA' studio.
Home and Away fans were left devastated last Monday night when fan-favourite character Felicity Newman, played by Jacqui Purvis, collapsed in shock scenes.

After leaving fans in tears following her character's death on the soap, the actress, 33, has now broken her silence on her heartbreaking final episodes.

The Aussie star, who is looking to make it big in Hollywood, posted to Instagram on Tuesday a touching tribute to her fans and the show which made her famous.

'What a life! Thank you to @homeandaway for an incredible three years. Had an absolute blast,' she wrote alongside a montage of her behind-the-scenes antics.

'This is just a snippet of the love I have for the cast and crew, a lot of people are missing.'

Jacqui went on to pay special thanks also to her co-star and on screen romantic interest Ethan Browne, who portrayed Felicity's ex-husband Tane Parata.

'Theres too many people to thank but most importantly to [Ethan] for helping create a beautiful love story,' Jacqui wrote.

'And to the fans for your undying support, thank you for allowing Flick into your homes. I hope she brought you as much joy as she did me.'

Home and Away fans were left devastated last Monday night when fan-favourite character Felicity Newman, played by Jacqui Purvis, 33, (pictured) collapsed in shock scenes

The Home and Away account commented beneath the emotional video and message, 'We will miss you,' alongside a series of red love hearts.

Ethan also responded, writing: 'What a journey indeed! You brought "Tanicity" to life, and injected a thunderous energy to the bay!

'Thank you for gracing us all with it. You are going to be sorely missed, my friend.'

Jacqui's final scenes aired on Monday when Felicity's brother Cash (Nicholas Cartwright) made the heartbreaking decision to switch off her life support.

Home and Away viewers were shocked last week when Jacqui's character Felicity, nicknamed Flick, suddenly collapsed in last Monday's episode.

In the clip which had fans in tears, Felicity suddenly fell to the ground when her vision went blurry during an emotional conversation with ex husband Tane.

Now, after leaving her fans in tears with the death of her character on the soap, the actress has broken her silence on her heartbreaking final episodes. Pictured with character Tane Parata played by co-star Ethan Browne

The Aussie star, who is looking to make it big in Hollywood, posted to Instagram on Tuesday a touching tribute to her fans and the show which made her famous

The character was then rushed to hospital in critical condition with the following episodes showing a rush to save her life as she suffered a brain aneurysm.

However, promos at the time confirmed Felicity would not survive her ensuing brain damage and actress Jacqui will move on from Summer Bay.

'One of the best actresses Home and Away has ever had,' one Instagram user said of Jacqui who has been on the Channel Seven soap drama for three years.

'She honestly deserves to be in blockbusters. So sad to see Flick go. What an incredible character!'

'This is so going to be gut wrenching to watch,' another viewer wrote, while someone else added: 'Haven't stopped crying, this show will be empty without Flick.'

Home and Away viewers were shocked last week when Jacqui's character Felicity, nicknamed Flick, suddenly collapsed in last Monday's episode

One said: 'Flick was awesome! Only wished her and Tane stayed together. Also thought her exit would be a bit more explosive.'

'Shouldn't have killed her off,' yet another fan said, while one cried: 'Nooo absolutely loved watching Flick, her energy & sparkle.'

'Jacqui is one very talented amazing actress she has always made you [feel like] part of the scene. We will miss her. All the best to her in the future,' a viewer wrote.

One user agreed, adding: 'Ah no a great character home [sic]. She has developed so much from day one.'

Australian actress Jacqui is known for her roles in Home and Away, Neighbours, A Lion Returns, and Undertow, but wishes to make it big in Hollywood.

In the clip which had fans in tears, Felicity suddenly fell to the ground when her vision went blurry during an emotional conversation with ex husband Tane

'One of the best actresses Home and Away has ever had,' one Instagram user said of Jacqui who has been on the Channel Seven soap drama for three years

The soap star told Yahoo Lifestyle on Tuesday: 'I've had an incredible time on the show. Some of the best years of my life.

'However, I knew I wanted an international career, so, I had to make the decision to leave and take the plunge.

'I owe so much to the show, [and] because of it, I feel confident and ready to take on the international stage.'

Jacqui intends to jet off to Hollywood soon in pursuit of worldwide fame, following in the footsteps of ex-soap stars Chris Hemsworth, Isla Fisher and Samara Weaving.
She instantly became a pop culture icon after bursting into the public eye as loudmouthed Page 3 girl, Jordan.

Having tried her hand at modelling, singing, presenting, campaigning and reality TV, the glamour model quickly became a household name in Britain.

Yet while Katie Price's moniker will ring a bell for both young and old, you would be forgiven for not recognising the star on sight alone, with Katie famously undergoing numerous cosmetic procedures over the years.

After two decades in the spotlight, Katie is almost unrecognisable from the naturally pretty teenager who burst on to the modelling scene at the age of 16, with her natural curls and fresh-faced beauty winning her an army of fans.

Katie, now 46, has undergone an array of procedures over the years, including rhinoplasty, a silhouette facelift, 3D, veneers, lip fillers and Botox, culminating in her first facelift in 2017.

Now, after two decades under the surgeon's scalpel, MailOnline takes a look at the many faces of Katie Price.

The many faces of Katie Price: MailOnline takes a look at the star's changing look after two decades of boob jobs, Botox and face lifts

1995 - Barefaced beauty

At the age of 17, Katie Price was a fresh-faced natural beauty looking to make it into the world of glamour modelling.

At a friend's suggestion, the teenager had professional photographs taken and was quickly snapped up by a modelling agency who landed her a Page 3 slot in The Sun newspaper the following year, sparking the creation of her glamour model alter ego, Jordan.

Speaking last year, Katie revealed she was glad that she wasn't exposed to social media at the time as she had 'no idea what Botox was or fillers', otherwise she may have started her tweaks and enhancements at an even earlier age.

1995: At the age of 17, Katie Price was a fresh-faced natural beauty looking to make it into the world of glamour modelling

1998 - First boob job

Having just turned 20, the rising glamour model experienced her first taste of cosmetic surgery, boosting her 32B cup breasts to a 32C.

The procedure cost 4,500 and it's thought her mum Amy and stepdad Paul helped pay for her to have the procedure.

Katie has since spoken out about her decision to go under the knife, admitting she was 'too young' and that she feels sorry for young girls growing up these days in a world of social media and filters.

1998: Having just turned 20, Katie experienced her first taste of cosmetic surgery, boosting her 32B cup breasts to a 32C

1999 - Second and third boob job

Despite having only just increased her breast size, Katie opted to have two more procedures the following year at the age of 21.

Katie boosted her bust from a C cup to a D cup and just a few months later went up again to a F cup.

Katie has previously claimed that she has only paid for two of her boob jobs over the course of her career - it is not known if these were the ones.

1999: Despite having only just increased her breast size, Katie opted to have two more procedures at the age of 21

2001 - Lip fillers

At the age of 21, Katie had her first cosmetic procedure on her face, opting for lip fillers.

While the glamour model did not confirm the rumours at the time, she was seen sporting a noticeably fuller pout while out enjoying the party scene.

Her overall look had also started drastically transforming, with the model sporting dramatic false lashes, bright lipstick and pale hair extensions.

2001: At the age of 21, Katie had her first cosmetic procedure on her face, opting for lip fillers

2004 - Botox

Aged 26, Katie began to experiment with Botox injections that relax the muscles in your face to smooth out lines and wrinkles.

She made no secret of her love of the procedure, announcing at the time: 'I get my forehead and around my eyes Botoxed every six months and I love it. You can't beat it. It just freezes all the wrinkles and that's what you want.'

At the time, Katie insisted she would never take things further and have a facelift, explaining: 'I'd never have a full facelift. I've seen what they can do to people and I don't want to go through that.'

2004: Aged 26, Katie began to experiment with Botox injections that relax the muscles in your face to smooth out lines

2006 - Fourth boob job

Katie went under the knife yet again to take her F cup breasts up to a G cup.

The glamour model also played around with her overall look and embraced her dark side with a new brunette hairstyle.

She also continued to dabble with fillers and Botox.

2006: Katie went under the knife yet again to take her F cup breasts up to a G cup

2007 - First nose job and veneers

At the age of 29, Katie took her love of surgery to the next level, undergoing rhinoplasty, a chemical peel and treating herself to a 25,000 set of new veneers.

'Oh my God, it burned like hell!' she said at the time. 'The next day I had this hideous red rash on my chin but two days later there wasn't a single spot left.'

Speaking about her nose job at the time, she admitted to liking her original nose, explaining: 'I liked my nose before and now. If I had a cupboard with both noses, I would alternate between them!'

2007:Katie took her love of surgery to the next level, undergoing rhinoplasty, a chemical peel and a 25,000 set of veneers

2008 - Fifth boob job

Despite gradually increasingly her bust size over the year, Katie fancied a change on her 30th and brought her bra size back down from an F cup to a C cup.

The procedure meant that Katie had returned to the size of her first boob job 10 years prior.

Katie's changing shape also coincided with the launch of her first clothing line - an equestrian range.

2008: Despite gradually increasingly her bust size, Katie fancied a change and brought her bra size back down to a C cup

2011 - Sixth boob job

Katie's smaller chest didn't last long, and at age 33 she went back under the knife again to boost her bust to an F cup.

Katie also underwent body-contouring treatment and cheek and lip fillers.

The Loose Women panelist admitted that she loved having her cheeks filled to give her a 'plumper, more youthful look'.

2011: Katie's smaller chest didn't last long, and at age 33 she went back under the knife again to boost her bust to an F cup

2015 - Seventh and eighth boob job

Just before appearing on Celebrity Big Brother, the reality star had a botched boob reduction that left her with a hole in her breast and an implant protruding from her flesh.

Katie told her shocked housemates: 'Ive got no tits anymore. Theyve gone. Theres not even anything there. If you saw what Im like underneath. The scars gone septic. My whole implant was hanging out on New Years Day.'

Shortly after leaving the Big Brother house she underwent corrective surgery and had her implants swapped for a D-cup.

2015: Just before Celebrity Big Brother, the star had a botched boob reduction that left her with a hole in her breast

2016 - Ninth boob job and tattooed makeup

Despite her surgery horror the year before, Katie was undeterred and flew to a Brussels clinic to go under the knife yet again, this time settling on a 32GG bust.

The reality star also had her eyebrows and lips tattooed, also known as 'permanent make-up', explaining that she prefers to go make-up free on a day-to-day basis.

Additionally the star has regular facial treatments, last year sharing a bloodied selfie after having a dermal roller micro-needling treatment, which sees a dermaroller with many tiny needles rolled across into the skin - designed to stimulate cells into regeneration.

2016: Despite her surgery horror the year before, Katie flew to a Brussels clinic to get another boob job, this time a 32GG cup

2017 - First face lift, new veneers and 10th boob job

Despite insisting she would never have a face lift and could rely on Botox, Katie went back on her word undergoing a 'Silhouette' face lift.

The procedure is designed to lift a sagging cheeks and blurred jawline, using 'sutures' implanted under the skin to sculpt features.

However, Katie was soon spotted with puffy features, revealing that she suffered an allergic reaction to anesthetic penicillin after having further work on her veneers. She also had her breast implants reduced from 1000ml implants to 795ml.

2017: Despite insisting she would never have a face lift and could rely on Botox, Katie went back on her word

2018 - Second face lift

Katie claimed her first face lift had been a botched job and went back under the knife the following year aged 40 to correct it.

She said at the time 'I need to get my face re-corrected after surgeon has totally f**ked my face up', admitting it had

He agent added: 'She had the thread and it really quite distorted her look. She got a lot of backlash, a lot of negative press, a lot of trolling, everyone saying shed taken it too far, when actually it was a job that had not gone to plan.'

2018: Katie claimed her first face lift had been a botched job and went back under the knife the following year aged 40

2019 - Third face lift, boob job first Brazilian bum lift and 11th boob job

Katie jetted to Turkey to overhaul her entire look with a full body transformation.

The reality star opted for a face, eye and eyelid lift, Brazilian bum lift along with a tummy tuck.

Just three months later she returned to the clinic and opted for another boob job, going back down to a D cup.

2019: Katie jetted to Turkey to overhaul her look with a face, eye and eyelid lift, Brazilian bum lift along with a tummy tuck

2020 - 12th boob job and another set of veneers

Katie returned to Turkey to have another set of veneers and revealed her real teeth had been reduced to stubs as she flashed a smile on her YouTube channel.

The mother-of-five then jetted to Belgium to correct botched surgery on her breasts, saying her surgeon was utterly shocked by the 'awful' previous procedure.

Katie said: 'They looked deformed, they were absolutely awful. That's the first time I've gone to a different surgeon. I had to go back to Frank with my head down, ashamed that I'd been to another clinic.'

2020: Katie returned to Turkey to have another set of veneers then jetted to Belgium to correct a botched boob job

2021 - Liposuction, eye and lid lifts and 13th boob job

Amid the Covid pandemic, Katie jetted off to then red-list Turkey for a complete cosmetic surgery overhaul, undergoing full body liposuction, eye and lip lifts, liposuction under her chin, and fat injected into her bum.

The reality star also visited Belgium to have her 13th boob job as well as full body liposuction with bum fat removal.

The plastic surgery - performed by Dr Frank Plovier - came just five days ahead of the glamour model's sentencing for her shocking drink-drive crash.

2021: Katie jetted to Turkey for a complete cosmetic surgery overhaul, undergoing full body liposuction, eye and lip lifts

2022 - Another brow and eye lift

Katie secretly jetted back to Belgium at the beginning of 2022 for an eye and brow lift and had been concealing her new look with her head in a bandage.

Dr Judy Todd, an aesthetic doctor at Clinica Medica in Glasgow, said: 'It appears like she's had a face lift, temporal brow lift, and possibly an upper blepharoplasty.'

It was reported last month that Katie plans to travel to Turkey imminently for yet more plastic surgery, amid claims she wanted to get some tweaks in after being unhappy with her latest work.

Sian Dellar, Brow Specialist and Founder of Sian Dellar Permanent Makeup Clinic, added: 'Katie's eyebrows, like the rest of her, have changed lots over the years!

'Back in the 90s she had a very thin over plucked brow which was the fashion at the time, and today she has an extremely thick and unnatural looking brow.

'Currently it seems the face or eye lift that shes had have pulled her brows outward which looks unnatural and makes the brows appear almost stretched.

'Of course, as with any enhancement, its personal preference but we recommend not going too many shades darker, and keeping the shape as natural looking as possible and work to create or enhance brows to frame the face.

'Katies choice to have them so thick and dark and in that unusual positioning means they dominate her face and are the first thing the eye is drawn to. I would love to see Katie take her brows back to 2015/2016 when the fuller brow became a big trend. She got it right then and they framed her face well.'

2022: Katie secretly jetted back to Belgium for an eye and brow lift and is planning to to travel to Turkey for more surgery

2023 - 16th and 'biggest ever' boob job

It's not clear if Katie lost track of the number of breast augmentations or opted to keep some of her surgery private but by 2023 it emerged she'd undergone her 16th boob job, two years after claiming to be on her 13th.

The star went under the knife in a bid to have the 'biggest in Britain' and was subsequently pictured being wheeled into surgery at the Be Clinic in Belgium.

She is said to have wanted even bigger breasts, opting for 2120 CC implants in a bid to boost her already large bust size.

Katie told OK! magazine of her boobs: 'I love them. They healed really quickly and they didn't hurt at all. That probably doesn't help. Because I heal quickly, it doesn't put me off and I have more.

'I would go bigger as well  and I will eventually. I just love having big boobs and a small body. I've always loved that look. In my eyes, if I'm having a boob job, I want them to look fake, I don't want them to look natural. I don't like the natural look.

'I just like that old-school American Playboy pin-up look. When I have surgery, that is what I'm striving for. If I could look like my airbrushed pictures, that would be amazing. But that's impossible to achieve.'

2023: It's not clear if Katie lost track of the number of breast augmentations or opted to keep some of her surgery private but by 2023 it emerged she'd undergone her 16th boob job, two years after claiming to be on her 13th

2024 - MORE facial surgery

In July 2024 Katie confirmed she is travelling to Turkey for facial surgery, to be filmed for a new documentary, after failing to attend a bankruptcy hearing.

The former glamour model was absent at a scheduled 760,000 bankruptcy court hearing having flown overseas for her latest cosmetic procedure.

A warrant was subsequently issued, with Katie admitting she's 'doing the best she can' to rectify her financial issues after receiving 'very clear warnings' that she needed to attend court.
Bella Hadid celebrated the release of her latest perfume in style as she threw a glamorous party for her friends.

The supermodel, 27, looked incredible at the bash as she slipped into a plunging white gown that showed off her toned figure and a Marina Moscone necklace.

In posts shared to her Instagram Stories on Wednesday, she documented the party, which was themed around an enchanted forest.

Guests were treated to astrology readings and sipped on cocktails and nibbled on fruit platters before trying out the new fragrance, Nightcap.

Bella also shared a snap from the day before in which she looked radiant in a low-cut black gown while catching up with her childhood friends.

Bella Hadid exuded glamour in a plunging gown and Marina Moscone necklace as she shared Instagram snaps on Wednesday celebrating the launch of her new perfume with pals

Bella also shared a snap from the day before in which she looked radiant in a low-cut black gown while catching up with her childhood friends

Bella launched Orebella in April, with the first perfume available the following month.

in April, Bella opened up to Harper's Bazaar about the brand, sharing: 'I never had a fragrance I was so obsessed with that made me feel unique and different.

'I started making my own and started making decks about it.'

'Then, all of a sudden, I had conversations with myself about my future and, like, what excited me, and it really was bringing something that was so personal to me to the world, and having the opportunity for people to see my heart and my brain.'

'Creating Orebella was the best form of therapy, especially just using my brain again and educating myself on different things and knowing the business behind all of this, but also being able to stay true to who I am.'

In regards to the fragrances, Bella later expressed: 'I want people to really know that for me, there is something really nostalgic about the first three scents that were launching now...

'Or the ones that I've already made that we'll be launching later this year, if all goes well. I want people's emotions to be triggered when they smell them.

'I want people to feel nostalgic of something from their childhood or, you know, have a sense of peace knowing all of our experiences are not singular...'

In posts shared to her Instagram Stories on Wednesday, she documented the party, which was themed around an enchanted forest and saw Bella lark around with chunks of ginger

Guests were treated to astrology readings before trying out the new fragrance, Nightcap

The group sipped on cocktails and nibbled on fruit platters at the whimsical launch party

Bella's party outing comes after she broke her silence on the controversial Adidas campaign she recently starred in.

The pro-Palestinian star penned a lengthy message to her followers and began with, 'For those of you who do not know my heart, I want to make sure you're hearing directly from me about my recent campaign with adidas.'

Bella expressed she 'would never knowingly engage with any art or work that is linked to a horrific tragedy of any kind.'

'In advance of the campaign's release, I had no knowledge of the historical connection to the atrocious events in 1972. I am shocked, I am upset, and I am disappointed in the lack of sensitivity that went into this campaign.'

Bella further explained, 'Had I been made aware, from the bottom of my heart, I would never have participated.'

'My team should have known, adidas should have known and I should have done more research so that I too would have known and understood, and spoken up.'

The model added that she 'will always speak up for what I believe to be wrong. While everyone's intentions were to make something positive, and bring people together through art, the collective lack of understanding from all parties undermined the process.'

'I do not believe in hate in any form, including antisemitism,' Bella continued, adding, 'That will never waiver, and I stand by that statement to the fullest extent.'

Bella proved to be her own best advert for the perfume as she modelled strings of diamonds

The media personality also shared that, 'Connecting the liberation of the Palestinian people to an attack so tragic, is something that hurts my heart.'

'Palestine is not synonymous with terrorism and this campaign unintentionally highlighted an event that does not present who we are.'

Bella stated that she is a 'proud Palestinian woman' and expressed 'there is much more to our culture than the things that have been equated over the past week.'

'I will forever stand by my people of Palestine while continuing to advocate for a world free of antisemitism. Antisemitism has no place in the liberation of the Palestinian people.'

In conclusion, Bella wrote, 'I will always stand for peace over violence, any day. Hate has no place here, and I will forever advocate for not only my people, but every person world wide.'

The supermodel starred in the campaign to promote the relaunch of the Adidas SL72 sneakers released in 1972 - with athletes sporting the shoes during the Olympic games in Munich of that same year.

However, the shoe company received backlash after the campaign released - which prompted Adidas to issue an apology for the 'completely unintentional' connection to the 'tragic historical events.'

A source recently told DailyMail.com that Bella hired lawyers after being dropped from the ad following backlash.

Bella's party outing comes after she broke her silence on the controversial Adidas campaign she recently starred in

Adidas released a statement apologizing for the 'unintentional mistake' and 'negative impact.'

'Connections continue to be made to the terrible tragedy that occurred at the Munich Olympics due to our recent SL72 campaign,' the sportswear brand began.

'These connections are not meant and we apologize for any upset or distress caused to communities around the world. We made an unintentional mistake.'

Adidas apologized 'to our partners, Bella Hadid A$AP Nast, Jules Kounde, and others, for any negative impact on them and we are revising the campaign.'
Zoe Kravitz shared a sweet moment with Austin Butler as the pair joined Channing Tatum at the Blink Twice after-party in New York City.

Austin looked deep in conversation with Channing's fiancee Zoe as the pair smiled warmly at one another outside the crowded venue on Wednesday.

The daughter of Lenny Kravitz, 35, looked chic in a nude body suit and black jacket, an outfit she wore earlier that day to promote her new film.

Austin and Channing matched in stylish all-black outfits as they headed out to the celebration in New York.

The pair were spotted laughing as they made their way into the party after Channing had walked the red carpet earlier with his fiancee.

Zoe Kravitz shared a sweet moment with Austin Butler as the pair joined Channing Tatum at the Blink Twice after-party in New York City on Wednesday

Austin, 33, and Channing, 44, matched in stylish all-black outfits as they headed into the bash

Austin, 33, cut a casual figure in a black jumper and tailored trousers and he finished off his look with a black cap and chunky boots.

Magic Mike actor Channing, 44, looked smart in a black suit which he paired with a black T-shirt and smart shoes.

Blink Twice marks Zoe's directorial debut and will hit cinemas on Friday, August 23.

The psychological thriller stars Channing as a charming tech billionaire named Slater King who owns a private island.

King invites two women to the remote destination, Frida, played by Naomi Ackie, and Jess, played by Alia Shawkat.

The Batman star co-wrote the screenplay with E.T. Feigenbaum and had initially her project P***y Island but later changed it.

Also starring in the film are Haley Joel Osment, Adria Arjona, Kyle MacLachlan, Simon Rex, Christian Slater and Liz Caribel.

Austin cut a casual figure in a black jumper, tailored trousers and a black cap and chunky boots as he was seen heading inside the venue to party the night away

Magic Mike actor Channing very smart in a black suit which he paired with a black T-shirt and smart black shoes as he laughed with the Elvis Star

Despite being together for the last two years, Zoe and Channing only recently made their red carpet debut together at the Los Angeles premiere of their latest project

Despite being together for the last two years, the loved-up couple only recently made their red carpet debut together at the Los Angeles premiere of their latest project.

The pair put on an affectionate display last week as they walked red carpet.

For the glamorous event the couple matched in sleek black looks with the High Fidelity actress flashing the sides of her midriff in a slinky Yves Saint Laurent gown with cutouts.

Channing opted for an elegant black suit with a crisp white shirt and matching pocket square.

The after party came follows the couple's romantic date night at Taylor Swift's London concert.

The pair were seen dancing and singing along to the pop star's hits and Channing took to Instagram to share his evening with fans.

He shared an adorable video of Zoe dancing away before the actor then flipped the camera and planted a kiss on his partner's cheek.

He captioned the sweet post: 'Date night with TSwift. The love is real and Taylor is an absolute force! Ha and got some guitar picks I'm gonna sell for charity from big daddy Swift himself. Legend he is. #swiftiesforever #tstheerastour'
An Australian author has taken to social media to reveal she received abusive phone calls after she slammed knitwear from Nadia Bartel's Henne brand.

Kate Forster, who is known for her witty critiques on TikTok, took to the social media platform to question why many influencers were pushing a cardigan that retails for $229.

'I don't understand why girls who say they are influencers are all wearing the same uniform,' Forster said in the post.

'It's a f****ing cardigan, why do yo want to wear the same thing as everyone else?' she went on.

'I don't give a s*** about what f***ing cardigan you wear,' she continued.

It wasn't long before Forster was inundated with backlash.

'I've received repeated phone calls to my house and to my mobile. I don't know where thy got my f***ing number,' she said in a separate post shared to TikTok.

'They have called me many times and made fun of me over the phone about this [Henne cardigan].

Australian author Kate Forster (pictured) has taken to social media to reveal she received abusive phone calls after she slammed knitwear from Nadia Bartel's Henne brand

Kate Forster, who is known for her witty critiques on TikTok, took to the social media platform to question why many influencers were pushing a cardigan that retails for $229 designed by Nadia Bartel (pictured)

'So if you you think you are standing for Henne you're actually putting a massive skid mark on it,' she continued.

'You have actually done this brand a disservice because you have made this brand look like mean girls.'

After hearing about the online debacle, Nadia reached out to Forster to make things right.

'Hi Kate I'm reaching out to you because of the Tik Tok's I have seen,' she began.

'I'm so sorry you have been receiving threatening calls to your home.'

'Neither I nor Henne support bullying of any form,' she continued.

Henne was founded in 2019 by Nadia Bartel, Michelle Ring and Laura Broque.

Nadia was in Sydney earlier this year to open the label's second boutique in Paddington

The Solene cardigan by Henne retails for $229

The opening night drew a glamorous crowd, all eager to celebrate the former WAG's latest fashion venture.

P.E Nation's Pip Edwards, radio queen Jackie 'O' Henderson and 'nude artist' Dina Broadhurst were just some of the guests on the night.

Bartel has quickly made a name for herself in the fashion industry with her label, known for its minimalist and stylish pieces.

The Sydney store marks an exciting expansion for the brand, which has garnered a loyal following since its inception.
Love Island's Jessy Potts arrived for a night out at Sheesh restaurant in Mayfair on Wednesday separately to her boyfriend Joey Essex.

The pair, who met on the most recent instalment of the ITV2 dating show, have been battling claims that their romance is fake despite insisting they were the 'real deal' after the series ended.

But they arrived to the group night out with their fellow Love Island alum separately, with Jessy, 25, turning heads in a plunging black lace cat suit.

The racy look flaunted her ample assets and the sheer fabric left little to the imagination.

She completed the outfit with a pair of strappy heels and wore a chic cropped blazer while styling her long blonde tresses into loose waves.

Love Island's Jessy Potts arrived for a night out at Sheesh restaurant in Mayfair on Wednesday separately to boyfriend Joey Essex

The pair, who met on the most recent instalment of the ITV2 dating show, have been battling claims that their romance is fake despite insisting they were the 'real deal' after the series ended

Meanwhile former TOWIE star Joey, 34, opted for a full leather look and donned dark shades.

It comes after Joey and Jessy have been accused of faking their romance following their stint in the Love Island villa, despite claiming the romance was the 'real deal'.

After missing out on a spot in the ITV2 final and voted 'least compatible' the pair returned to the UK and have busy attending numerous events separately.

While Joey has been raking in a reported 250K on a club tour, Jessy has been partying with pals and attending movie premieres.

The couple have appeared together for TV and magazine interviews, where Joey hinted at them starting a family, but have not made an appearance on each other's Instagram grids.

Tongues were sent wagging further when Joey revealed on This Morning recently that he was considering a move to the US in a bid to make a name for himself stateside.

Following the revelation fans fumed on Reddit, according to The Sun, with one writing: 'Not one time did he ever consider the fact that Jessy may or may not come with him to America - and quite frankly, I don't think he gives a damn if she does'.

While another said: 'How will Jessy even get to America? Is she going to America?'

But they arrived to the group night out with their fellow Love Island alum separately, with Jessy, 25, turning heads in a plunging black lace cat suit

Meanwhile former TOWIE star Joey, 34, opted for a full leather look and donned dark shades

After missing out on a spot in the ITV2 final and voted 'least compatible' the pair returned to the UK and have busy attending numerous events separately

Uma Jammeh and Wil Anderson from the latest series looked like they are still going strong as they arrived holding hands

She put on a leggy display in a pale yellow dress which she teamed with nude strappy heels and a small handbag

She wore her dark tresses in loose waves over her shoulders and opted for a glowing makeup look

Their fellow Love Island alum Ronnie Vint and Harriett Blackmore also appear to still be seeing each other

They arrived hand in hand and Harriett wore a leggy black and white dress as they entered the restaurant

MailOnline has contacted Jessy and Joey's reps for comment.

The former TOWIE star caused a stir when he entered the villa as the first celebrity contestant.

Despite being labelled as the 'pantomime villain' and well known for his bachelor antics, later claimed to have settled down with 'exclusive girlfriend' Jessy.

Joey claims the pair have already started thinking about their future despite not the 'L' word to each other yet.

Telling OK! Magazine: 'We've already spoken about kids.'

'We both want a big family. But we're having a bit of a tiff at the moment. She wants four, I want eight.

'Imagine how great that would be? I'm ready. I'd do it tomorrow. Maybe even tonight!'.

But a source recently said: 'There has been big interest in the US, and that was even before Love Island, so that's his next move once he's had some time off.

'Joey is keen to move his career Stateside and make a name for himself out there, where the reality market has some fresh and exciting options.

'They love a Brit but they've never come across anyone quite like Joey so there is every possibility he could well conquer America too.'

The source added: 'His team Neon Management have been inundated with magazine cover shoots and podcast interviews since Love Island, plus more meetings with Netflix so Joey has never been more in demand.'

Joey's popularity doesn't seem to have been affected by some of the negative headlines sparked by his stint on Love Island where he was accused of being unkind to his ex-girlfriend Grace Jackson and 'argumentative' in the villa.

But speaking after his exit, Joey said he deliberately caused a stir as show bosses encouraged him to lean on his reality TV experience and create as much drama as possible, admitting he was a show 'plant.'

He said during an appearance on This Morning: 'Everyone is encouraged to pot stir, the difference with me is that I don't hesitate I know what the producers want!

'Some didn't want to go out there and upset people and I respect that, but the difference with me and 13 years experience, I know what to do and that's what I did.'

Admitting he played the 'pantomime villain', Joey added: 'I have no regrets, you know what it's like, and I played the pantomime villain. I did what I had to do, I wanted to have fun and find love and I found Jessy.'

After being asked if they've said the 'love' word to each other yet. Jessy said, 'We don't want to rush things.'

Despite the criticism, Joey said he wanted people to focus on him and his new flame as a couple and ignore all the noise around them, insisting he was 'genuine' during his time in the villa.

He added neither of them had played any games and neither could see any red flags despite 'testing each other'.

Lucinda Strafford from a previous series of the show was also out for dinner at Sheesh in Mayfair

She wore a sparkly nude dress which she teamed with stylish black YSL heels and a leather bag

He said: 'We took our time, had fun and enjoyed each other's company. We weren't jumping to make decisions because the next bombshell was coming in, or because it was Casa Amor, we did things our way. We played it correctly. We weren't in it to win it. We just wanted to be together.'

Model and influencer Jessy told the magazine the she isn't phased by the scepticism around Joey's actions and is fully supported by her friends and family.

She revealed that her family trust her to see beyond the headlines and chose someone nice adding that they already really like the Essex-born reality star.

She added that she wasn't even phased by Joey's wandering eye and explained that he's a veteran celebrity and she trusts him completely not to fall victim to other girls' intentions.
China to increase IPv6 traffic in major cities

Xinhua) 10:05, August 22, 2024

BEIJING, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese authorities plan to launch a special operation to increase IPv6 traffic in major cities, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) said on Wednesday.

The operation will be launched in eight major cities -- Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Hefei, Wuxi and Yantai -- by the CAC and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the CAC said in a press release.

The yearlong operation is aimed at expanding the deployment of IPv6, which stands for Internet Protocol version 6.

IPv6 is the next-generation Internet Protocol standard. It will provide a vast quantity of address resources and serve as a fundamental support for the enhancement of network capabilities, technological innovation and industrial upgrading.

Measures will be taken to significantly increase IPv6 activation on home routers, and to visibly improve the actual adoption of IPv6 among the dedicated internet access services of key government departments and enterprises, the statement said.

Data centers will undertake technological upgrading and transformation to provide IPv6 services, and more cloud services products will support IPv6, it noted.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
A list of the investors who helped Elon Musk purchase Twitter, now X, has become public. Jordan Strauss/Associated Press

Elon Musk is the majority owner and public face of X, formerly Twitter, which he bought for $44 billion in 2022. Almost 100 investors helped finance the bid, and thanks to a newly unsealed court filing, a complete list has been revealed.

The list includes numerous entities with overlapping names, with mutual fund giant Fidelity affiliates accounting for more than two dozen businesses.

Disgraced rapper Sean Diddy Combs is one of the most prominent non-tech investors on the list. Combs was caught on camera attacking then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura in 2016, who later sued and settled a civil case with him.

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Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, head of Kingdom Holding Co., was confirmed as an investor, along with former Twitter CEO and co-founder Jack Dorsey.

X, which no longer has a media relations team, didnt respond to a request for comment.

The new X logo is seen on the top of the companys San Francisco headquarters in 2023. Musk recently announced hes moving the company headquarters to Austin, Texas. Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle

Top Silicon Valley investors Andreessen Horowitz and Sequoia Capital have ownership stakes, along with Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdales 8VC fund and the cryptocurrency giant Binance.

A federal judge in San Francisco unsealed the list on Tuesday following a lawsuit from nonprofit Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. The Washington Post first reported the list.

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Along with equity investors, Musk raised around $13 billion from banks including Morgan Stanley and Bank of America. The Wall Street Journal reported that banks have been unable to sell the loans in large part due to Xs struggling advertising business.

X is moving out of San Francisco after nearly two turbulent years under Musk, who conducted widespread layoffs and clashed with city officials over building permits, including a giant temporary X rooftop sign.

Musk said Xs headquarters is moving to Austin, Texas, where his company Tesla is also headquartered. But he has not revealed details around the exact location or time frame.

Heres a full list of the investors:

8VC Opportunities Fund II, L.P.

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ADREM X LLC

ADREM Y LLC

Afshar Partners, LP

Andrea Stroppa

Andreessen Horowitz LSV Fund III, L.P.

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Anthem Ventures, LLC

ARK Venture Private Holdings LLC

BAMCO, Inc.

Bandera Fund LLC

Baron Opportunity Fund

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Baron Partners Fund

Binance Capital Management Co., Ltd

Brookfield Project X L.P.

CCM 2020 Investments LLC

Cheng and Chen Family Trust

CNK Fund IV, L.P.

Danilo Kawasaki

Dayton Family Enterprises, LLC

Dayton Family Investments, LLC

DFJ GROWTH IV, L.P.

DFJ GROWTH IV PARALLEL FUND, LLC

DFJ GROWTH X-I, L.P.

Eden Relationship Capital L.P.

Elon Musk as Trustee of the Elon Musk Revocable Trust dated July 22, 2003

FIAM Target Date Blue Chip Growth Commingled Pool By: Fidelity InstitutionalAsset Management Trust Company as Trustee

Fidelity Blue Chip Growth Commingled Pool By: Fidelity Management TrustCompany, as Trustee

Fidelity Blue Chip Growth Institutional Trust By its manager Fidelity InvestmentsCanada ULC

Fidelity Canadian Growth Company Fund by its manager Fidelity InvestmentsCanada ULC

Fidelity Central Investment Portfolios LLC: Fidelity U.S. Equity Central Fund -Communication Services Sub

Fidelity Contrafund: Fidelity Advisor New Insights Fund  Sub A

Fidelity Contrafund: Fidelity Advisor New Insights Fund  Sub B

Fidelity Contrafund: Fidelity Contrafund

Fidelity Contrafund: Fidelity Contrafund K6

Fidelity Contrafund: Fidelity Series Opportunistic Insights Fund

Fidelity Contrafund Commingled Pool By: Fidelity Management Trust Company,as Trustee

Fidelity Destiny Portfolios: Fidelity Advisor Diversified Stock Fund

Fidelity Global Growth and Value Investment Trust  Sub A By its manager Fidelity Investments Canada

Fidelity Global Innovators Investment Trust by its manager Fidelity InvestmentsCanada ULC

Fidelity Growth Company Commingled Pool By: Fidelity Management TrustCompany, as Trustee

Fidelity Insights Investment Trust By its manager Fidelity Investments CanadaULC

Fidelity Mt. Vernon Street Trust: Fidelity Growth Company Fund

Fidelity Mt. Vernon Street Trust: Fidelity Growth Company K6 Fund

Fidelity Mt. Vernon Street Trust: Fidelity Series Growth Company Fund

Fidelity OTC Commingled Pool By: Fidelity Management Trust Company, as Trustee

Fidelity Puritan Trust: Fidelity Puritan Fund  Equity Sub B

Fidelity Puritan Trust: Puritan K6 Fund  Equity Subportfolio

Fidelity Securities Fund: Fidelity Blue Chip Growth Fund

Fidelity Securities Fund: Fidelity Blue Chip Growth K6 Fund

Fidelity Securities Fund: Fidelity OTC K6 Portfolio

Fidelity Securities Fund: Fidelity OTC Portfolio

Fidelity Select Portfolios: Select Communication Services PortfolioG64 Ventures LLC

Gerber Kawasaki Inc.

GFNCI LLC

Gigafund 0.21, LP

Glacier Ventures LLC

Go Mav, LLC

HRH Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud

IMG US, LLC

Jack Dorsey Remainder LLC

Jack Dorsey Tr Ua 12/08/2010 Jack Dorsey Revocable Trust

Kingdom Holding Company

Lawrence J. Ellison Revocable Trust

Linda Ye and Robin Ren Family Foundation

Litani Ventures

Luchi Fiduciaria SR POS. 365

Manhattan Venture Partners X LLC

Mirae Asset Innovation X ONE, LLC

Mirae Asset Project X Fund I, LPOlivier Janssens

Q Tetris Holding LLC

Ross Gerber

Santo Lira LLC

SC CDA1 LLC

SCGE Fund, L.P.

SCGGF III  U.S./India Management, L.P.

SCHF (M) PV, L.P.

Scott Nolan

SC US/E Expansion Fund I Management, L.P.

Sean Combs Capital, LLC

Sequent (Schweiz) AG as Trustee of the Debala Trust

Sequoia Capital Fund, L.P.

Series N Dis, a series of Atreides Special Circumstances Fund, LLC

Shahidi Tactic Group, LLC

Steve Davis

T. One Holdings LLC

The Pershing Square Foundation

TM33 Partner Holdings

Tresser Blvd 402 LLC

UnipolSai S.P.A.

Variable Insurance Products Fund II: VIP Contrafund Portfolio  Subportfolio A

VYC25 Limited
Caprice Bourret showed off her amazing figure in a bikini as she posed for stunning Instagram snaps during a luxury getaway in Ibiza on Wednesday.

The American star, 52, looked incredible as she soaked up the sun in a white two-piece while enjoying a boat day.

Leaving her long blonde tresses loose in beach waves, she shielded from the sun behind a pair of sunglasses and accessorised with a long gold chain necklace.

In a second snap, Caprice slipped into an eye catching black, white and pink patterned bikini as she relaxed by a swimming pool.

She showcased her toned figure in the two-piece which boasted a triangle top and tie side bottoms as she worked on her tan while lying on a sun lounger.

Caprice Bourret showed off her amazing figure in a bikini as she posed for stunning Instagram snaps during a luxury getaway in Ibiza on Wednesday

The American star, 52, looked incredible as she soaked up the sun in a black, white and pink patterned two-piece by a swimming pool

Caprice seemed in good spirits as she wore a pair of Dior sunglasses while sunbathing with a pal.

She wrote: '#ibiza hope everyone is having an awesome summer, sending so much love'.

It comes after Caprice said she thinks IVF may have caused her brain tumour.

The model said she was told by her surgeon in 2017 that her tumour started growing 'four years ago' - which was the exact time she started IVF.

The businesswoman questioned whether the synthetic hormones injected into her 'might have contributed' to her shock meningioma diagnosis.

Caprice told Platinum magazine: 'I don't know what caused my tumour but I sometimes wonder whether IVF contributed to it.

'When I was diagnosed, the surgeon said, "I think this growth started four years ago" and I thought "Gosh, that's when I was doing IVF".

'Lots of synthetic hormones were being injected into me. So, it might have contributed to it, but I don't know.'

The model looked incredible as she beamed for a selfie while styling her long blonde tresses in two neat braids

It comes after Caprice said she thinks IVF may have caused her brain tumour after recalling 'lots of synthetic hormones were injected into her' (pictured with sons Jett and Jax, 10)

Caprice received a diagnosis of meningioma - a tumour that grows on the membrane that covers the brain - in Spring 2017.

She underwent an operation which involved surgeons taking off part of her skull to remove the tumour.

In 2022, Caprice admitted she thought she was going to die when she was diagnosed with her brain tumour five years before.

That year, she shared a graphic image of her surgery scar, taken after her 2017 operation during which doctors removed part of her skull to take out the growth.

She shared the image to mark five years since she was given the all-clear after the surgery for her meningioma - a tumour that grows on the membrane that covers the brain.

Caprice welcomed her sons, Jett and Jax, in 2013 after three unsuccessful rounds of IVF.

One son was born via surrogate and one born by her but she has chosen not to disclose which son was born by which method.

The London-based TV personality also said: 'After my tumour I had to reassess my life. I knew I had to change things - I felt that instinctually.

In 2022, Caprice admitted she thought she was going to die when she was diagnosed with a brain tumour five years ago

'And I realised I wasn't giving anything back. I'm so blessed in life, but life is like a circle and you can't just keep taking, you must give back too.

'So, I started doing a lot of work with Brain Tumour Research, not only giving my own money but my time as well.'

She continued: 'I think a lot of people in the celebrity world give their time to things because of the publicity, but for me, I wanted to make a difference and for it to mean something.

'It's important for me to know I'm helping make a difference to others, but I don't normally shout about it.'

There is no proof that IVF can cause meningioma brain tumours but scientists suggest it may accelerate the growth of ones that already exist.

This is because female reproductive hormones women are given during fertility treatment to improve chances of success are known to help tumours to grow.
Ella Rae Wise looked loved up with her on-off boyfriend Dan Edgar as they filmed for scenes for The Only Way Is Essex.

The pair looked happier than ever as they shopped for BBQ equipment at a Home Bargains superstore.

Reports of Dan cheating on Ella surfaced in the early summer months, but after recently rekindling their romance, all seems to be forgotten.

Filming for series 34, Ella, 25, giggled while Dan, 34, pushed her around the shop in a trolley in the scenes.

She looked stylish in a blue and yellow knitted two-piece, consisting of a collared crop top and shorts.

Ella Rae Wise looked loved up with her on-off boyfriend Dan Edgar as they filmed for scenes for series 34 of The Only Way Is Essex

The pair looked happier than ever as they shopped for BBQ equipment at a Home Bargains superstore

Meanwhile, Dan opted for a casual plain grey T-shirt with a pair of black shorts and slip on trainers.

In May, Ella confirmed she and Dan had split after reports he cheated on her with his ex-girlfriend Hannah Rally.

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.'

Reports of Dan cheating on Ella surfaced in the early summer months, but after recently rekindling their romance, all seems to be forgotten

Filming for series 34, Ella, 25, giggled while Dan, 34, pushed her around the shop in a trolley in the scenes

She looked stylish in a blue and yellow knitted two-piece, consisting of a collared crop top and shorts

The TV personality topped off her outfit with a pair of clogs

Meanwhile, Dan opted for a casual plain grey T-shirt with a pair of black shorts and slip on trainers

They added: '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'.

However, it was revealed all had now been forgiven when Ella and Dan were pictured sharing a steamy kiss on the beach in Paphos.

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.

In May, Ella confirmed she and Dan had split after reports he cheated on her with his ex-girlfriend Hannah Rally

Ella and Dan had been seeing each other since February when they got close while filming series 32 in Bali

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

After returning to the UK, Ella was furious with Dan's transgression and even reportedly confronted Hannah and called her 'embarrassing'

The new series of TOWIE airs on Sunday August 25

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.'
Katie Holmes was the epitome of chic in a burgundy jumpsuit as she attended the Blink Twice film screening in the Lower East Side of New York on Thursday.

The Dawson's Creek star, 45, has been spotted on regular outings this week after dropping her daughter Suri Cruise, 18, into her dorm at the prestigious Carnegie Mellon University on Monday.

Katie looked incredible in the short-sleeved one-piece which featured a trendy white line design and appeared in high spirits as she headed to the screening.

Adding a touch of casualness to her ensemble, the actress paired her outfit with some shiny black ballet pumps.

Katie went big and bold with her accessories as she slung a huge brown bucket bag over her shoulder and shielded away behind a pair of rouge sunglasses.

Katie Holmes was the epitome of chic in a burgundy jumpsuit as she enjoyed a stroll around the Lower East Side in New York on Thursday

The Dawson's Creek star, 45, has been spotted on regular outings this week after dropping her daughter Suri Cruise , 18, into her dorm at the prestigious Carnegie Mellon University

Upping the glam, the brunette beauty finished her look with a string of pearls around her neck and a pair of simple gold hoops.

She attended the screening for Blink Twice, which is Zoe Kravit's directorial debut and stars her fiance Channing Tatum as a tech billionaire Slater King who meets cocktail waitress Frida (Naomi Ackie).

Katie is relearning how to navigate life after she moved her look-alike freshman daughter to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, earlier this week.

Meanwhile, her action man ex-husband Tom Cruise, 62, has been busy working on Mission: Impossible 8 after taking part in the Olympic closing ceremony in Paris last week.

Tom and Katie were married from November of 2006 until calling it quits in August of 2012, citing 'irreconcilable differences'.

Suri's move-in day was on Sunday and she will begin classes on August 26, according to the school's website.

And the child of Hollywood movie stars will have accommodations that are very different than what she is used to in New York City, DailyMail.com can report, as Suri will be sharing a dorm room with another female student.

'Suri wants the full college experience so she is giving the dorm rooms a try and she will have a roommate,' an insider told DailyMail.com. 'She is excited for a new chapter in her life.'

She appeared in top spirits during her walk, despite having seen her daughter Suri fly the nest

Katie went big and bold with her accessories as she slung a huge brown bucket bag over her shoulder and shielded away behind a pair of rouge sunglasses

The outing comes just days after the actress moved her daughter Suri (pictured) into her dorm at the prestigious Carnegie Mellon University on Monday

Katie's ex-husband Tom Cruise has been busy working on Mission: Impossible 8 after taking part in the Olympic closing ceremony in Paris last week; seen in 2006

In Blink Twice, Channing invites cocktail waitress Frida to join him and his friends for a hedonistic getaway on his private island but there's more to the adventure than meets the eye

Instead of Katie's three-bedroom high-rise luxury apartment, the teenager will be in a bare-bones dorm room.

It has been hinted by Katie that Suri may be studying acting and dance at Carnegie Mellon.

Katie told Town & Country magazine that after college, her daughter wants to enter showbiz.

The magazine claimed that Suri 'is said to be interested in pursuing a career in fashion or acting.'

It does not sound off base as Suri starred in a high school production of The Addams Family.

And Katie has already put Suri to work on two of her films.

Suri contributed vocals to songs in two of Holmes' films - the 2023 drama Rare Objects and 2022 romantic drama Alone Together.

'I'm proud of my daughter,' Holmes told Town & Country of her daughter.
Lionsgate recalled its new trailer for Francis Ford Coppola's Megalopolis on Wednesday amid revelations that critics' quotes were fabricated.

The trailer, released earlier Wednesday, included quotes from critics like Pauline Kael and Roger Ebert of earlier Coppola films that did not actually appear in their reviews.

'Lionsgate is immediately recalling our trailer for Megalopolis,' a Lionsgate spokesperson said in a statement to The Associated Press.

'We offer our sincere apologies to the critics involved and to Francis Ford Coppola and American Zoetrope for this inexcusable error in our vetting process. We screwed up. We are sorry.'

The trailer was released on Wednesday morning and aimed to position Coppola's latest film as a work of art that would withstand the test of time, much like his previous masterpieces The Godfather and Apocalypse Now.

Lionsgate recalled its new trailer for Francis Ford Coppola 's Megalopolis on Wednesday amid revelations that critics' quotes were fabricated

The trailer, released earlier Wednesday, included quotes from critics like Pauline Kael and Roger Ebert of earlier Coppola films that did not actually appear in their reviews (actor Adam Driver seen in the trailer)

'Lionsgate is immediately recalling our trailer for Megalopolis,' a Lionsgate spokesperson said in a statement to The Associated Press (Aubrey Plaza seen in the trailer)

The video started by going back in time to show negative quotes from established critics for such films with the caption saying: 'Genius is often misunderstood.'

The intent, it seems, was to highlight the critical divisiveness of now-classics like The Godfather and Apocalypse Now, leaning into some of the more negative reactions to Megalopolis, the self-financed $120 million epic opening in September.

But it was soon pointed out that many of the quotes were manufactured and could not be found in the original reviews

The trailer attributed a quote to Kael that The Godfather was 'diminished by its artsiness.'

But Kael loved The Godfather and this phrase was not used in her March 1972 review of the film for The New Yorker.

Ebert also did not write that Coppola's 'Bram Stoker's Dracula' was 'a triumph of style over substance.'

Quotes from Rex Reed and Vincent Canby, about Apocalypse Now did not appear in their reviews either.

Megalopolis has been decades in the making, and it received many mixed reviews upon its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year.

The trailer was released on Wednesday morning and aimed to position Coppola's latest film as a work of art that would withstand the test of time, much like his previous masterpieces The Godfather and Apocalypse Now

The video started by going back in time to show negative quotes from established critics for such films with the caption saying: 'Genius is often misunderstood'

The film is set to have its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival next month before hitting theaters on September 27.

The film was plunged into controversy in May when he was accused of hugging and kissing a female extra unannounced while filming a nightclub scene.

The full-length trailer showcased the movie's all-star cast including Adam Driver, Aubrey Plaza and Shia LaBeouf.

Viewers are plunged into the futuristic world of New Rome, a combination of high-octane technology and a look inspired by classical antiquity.

The plot is partly influenced by an infamous coup attempt in the Roman Republic, led by the warrior-statesman Catiline against ruling consuls Cicero and Hybrida.

They enter the mind of the main character Cesar Catilina (Adam Driver), an architect whose artistic genius and innovation puts him squarely at odds with the status quo.

New Rome has been devastated by an accident, which Catilina sees as an opportunity to revamp a formerly crumbling town into a gleaming, sci-fi utopia.

The trailer dropped three months after an extra whom Coppola allegedly kissed on the set of Megalopolis broke her silence on the scandal.

A week earlier, Variety published two short behind-the-scenes videos shot while Coppola and his crew were filming a club scene in Atlanta that appeared to show the director leaning in to multiple actresses who were dancing.

One of the women in the video - Lauren Pagone - who appeared in multiple scenes in Megalopolis as an extra, says she was dancing during a live take of the club scene when Coppola allegedly approached her, pulled her towards him and hugged and kissed her.

She told Variety: 'I was in shock. I didn't expect him to kiss and hug me like that. I was caught off-guard. And I can tell you he came around a couple times.'

Pagone said she decided to come forward when another extra seen in one of the two videos, Rayna Menz told Deadline the Oscar winner 'did nothing to make me or for that matter anyone on set feel uncomfortable.'

She said: 'I don't appreciate anybody speaking for me. I would never speak for that actress. I've kept my mouth shut. I've kept quiet.

'But it's frustrating that she's putting out there, 'Hey, it was great for everyone' when she doesn't know what other people were feeling. You can't speak for anyone but yourself. My experience was different.'

Menz did not respond to an email from Variety requesting additional comment.

Pagone - who has worked on shows including Paramount+'s Mayor of Kingstown and Apple TV+'s City on Fire said on every other project she had done, an intimacy coordinator was on hand during any scenes in which there was nudity.

According to a call sheet reviewed by the publication - several actresses were cleared to go topless for the nightclub sequence. Pagone was not nude and wore a top with a plunging neckline.

Megalopolis intimacy coordinator Samantha McDonald previously told Variety that neither she nor fellow intimacy coordinator Ashley Anderson were on set for the nightclub scene, filmed on Feb. 14, 2023, at Atlanta's Tabernacle concert hall.

Another member of the cast claimed to Variety in recent days that they had seen Coppola kissing 'multiple women' during a different scene involving a New Year's Eve celebration.

It was claimed before filming started Coppola told the extras that he 'wanted them to act as they would at a typical holiday party and kiss each other at the end of the countdown' and added that he might jump in and kiss a few people himself.'

It was alleged that after calling cut, Coppola 'got up, stopped multiple women as they passed him and kissed them on the cheek.'

The insider added: 'The women that I saw being kissed did not see him coming. He just basically grabbed them and planted the kiss on them without any kind of consent. They all kind of laughed it off for a moment and then I could tell that they were just surprised.'

The crew member that shot the video that Variety initially posted and who was on set during almost all of the shoot confirmed that Coppola kissed female extras during the New Year's Eve sequence - and added it was one of 'several instances' in which he had kissed extras.

The film was plunged into controversy in May when he was accused of hugging and kissing a female extra unannounced while filming a nightclub scene

One of the women in the video - Lauren Pagone - who appeared in multiple scenes in Megalopolis as an extra, says she was dancing during a live take of the club scene when Coppola allegedly approached her, pulled her towards him and hugged and kissed her

The cast member added their experience on set was 'super weird and uncomfortable' and probably their 'worst experience on a set ever'.

Sources told the publication because Coppola financed the $120 million epic himself, there was no-one to complain to about his alleged behavior.

The crew member also alleged that Coppola kept 'leaping up to hug and kiss several women, often inadvertently inserting himself into the shot and ruining it'.

They claimed that after multiple takes, Coppola got on a microphone and announced to everyone in the room: 'Sorry, if I come up to you and kiss you. Just know it's solely for my pleasure.'

Dailymail.com has contacted representatives for Francis Ford Coppola for comment.
Georgia Love dressed to impress when she stepped out at the 2024 Logie Awards in Sydney on Sunday.

Love, 24, attended the event as a member of the press, covering the red carpet for KIIS FM.

The former reality star wasn't about to let her head-turning look and full glam go to waste, reports The Daily Telegraph, even though she wasn't invited inside the ceremony.

The publication claims Love took full advantage of her invitation to TV's night of night, and spent the majority of the night 'peacocking' along the red carpet - albeit on the other side of the gold bollards where mere mortals stand.

A well placed source said she was even 'blowing kisses' at cameras, much to the amusement of onlookers in possession of the golden ticket.

'It was pretty awkward for a second,' they told the publication. 'She was most definitely out to be seen...'

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Georgia Love for comment.

Love was a vision in a custom gown from Eliya The Label that featured a cream-coloured corset and a beige satin skirt that was bunched to a high split.

Georgia Love dressed to impress when she stepped out at the 2024 Logie Awards in Sydney on Sunday. Pictured

Love, 24, attended the event as a member of the press, covering the red carpet for KIIS FM

The red carpet faux pas comes after Georgia was slammed online after she shared a video which appeared to be making fun of a man with facial palsy.

She shared the now-deleted clip to TikTok, which captured her performing a skit in which she was sent over a drink from a mystery man at a bar.

Georgia was all smiles in the video as she accepted the free glass of champagne, before the camera panned over to the mystery man at the bar who bought it for her.

Australian comedian Sammy Peterson, who has facial palsy, was shown smiling at her from across the bar.

Georgia captioned the clip with some telling words: 'POV: You're sent a drink from a guy at the bar... The guy at the bar.'

Many of Georgia's followers were left appalled by the footage, which appeared to be mocking people with disabilities, and quickly took to Facebook to complain.

'This is gross. She often gets it wrong, doesn't she? There's a different between imitating a creep and imitating someone who looks disabled,' one person sniped.

'Oh boy, Georgia once again missing the mark. When is she going to learn?' a second person asked.

It is not the first time that Georgia has found herself in hot water over a video she shared to social media.

In September 2021, she issued an apology after posting an 'offensive' clip to Instagram.

Love sparked backlash by uploading footage of a cat sitting in the window of an Asian restaurant in Melbourne.

She wrote across the footage: 'Shop attendant or lunch?! [shocked emoji, crying-laughing emoji].'

The reality TV personality, who later deleted the video, returned to Instagram with a heartfelt apology post.
Kate Ferdinand and Kerry Katona led the celebrity parents showing support for their kids on GCSE results day on Thursday.

Hundreds of thousands of teenagers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland opened their GCSE exam results in a year when grades were due to be restored to 2019 levels in all three nations.

And taking to Instagram, Kate shared a picture of 15-year-old step-son Tate's results' envelope and gushed that she's 'super proud' of him.

After wishing everyone 'good luck', she penned: 'Super proud today & everyday, well done for putting in that work. Always knew you could. Love you loads.'

Kate is step-mum to husband Rio Ferdinand's children Tate, Lorenz, 18, and Tia, 13, from his first wife Rebecca Ellison, who tragically passed away in 2015 after a short battle with breast cancer.

Kate Ferdinand and Kerry Katona led the celebrity parents showing support for their kids on GCSE results day on Thursday

Meanwhile, Kerry excitedly shared the moment that daughter Heidi learned of her very grades, declaring that she couldn't of been more proud of her girl

The couple also share son Cree, three, and daughter Shae, 13 months.

Meanwhile, Kerry excitedly shared the moment that daughter Heidi learned of her very grades, declaring that she couldn't of been more proud of her girl.

Sitting in her car alongside daughters Heidi, 17 - whom she shares with ex Mark Croft - and Molly, 22, from her marriage to Brian McFadden, Kerry told how they'd just come from the school after picking up Heidi's results.

Gushing over her daughter, she remarked that she 'couldn't be more prouder than what I am right now' before encouraging her daughter to read her grades to the camera.

Reading aloud, Heidi said she got grades '5,6,5,7,7,7,7', which is the equivalent of four As, one B and two Cs.

The grading system changed from A*-G to 9-1 from 2017, depending on the subject. A 1 is equivalent to a G, a 4 is equivalent to a C, a 7 is equivalent to an A. Both systems have U for ungraded.

Kerry and Molly then cheered and clapped, as the former Atomic Kitten singer shouted: 'All those 7s! Honest to God, I am so bloody proud!'

Sharing a supportive message for other teenagers on the day, Kerry continued: 'Each and every one of you people right now who are getting your results, don't be defined by that number! It doesn't really matter, that's my opinion!

Taking to Instagram, Kate shared a picture of 15-year-old step-son Tate's results' envelope and gushed that she's 'super proud' of him

Kate is step-mum to husband Rio Ferdinand 's children Tate [right], Lorenz, 18, and Tia, 13, from his first wife Rebecca Ellison, who tragically passed away in 2015 after a short battle with breast cancer

Sitting in her car alongside daughters Heidi, 17 - whom she shares with ex Mark Croft - and Molly, 22, from her marriage to Brian McFadden, Kerry told how they'd just come from the school after picking up Heidi's results

Reading aloud, Heidi said she got grades '5,6,5,7,7,7,7', which is the equivalent of four As, one B and two Cs

'But well done everybody, Heidi I'm so proud of you right now!'

The star then joked to a delighted Heidi that she will now buy her something 'very expensive', while Molly keen to get a treat too, Molly quipped that she'd taken her GSCE's before being reminded that she was almost 23.

Heidi's impressive results comes just months after mum Kerry revealed why she is refusing to pay for her to go to a private sixth form school.

The singer, who herself left school at 16 to tour Europe as a lap dancer before finding fame in Atomic Kitten, told how the then 16-year-old was now at a crossroads with her schooling with Kerry having to make some big choices.

She told how she was reluctant to fork out the cash for the expensive education as Heidi is 'not in school enough as it is' and also 'hates it'.

Elsewhere, Traitors winner Harry Clarke shared a snap of his younger sister holding up her results as he wished her a 'massive congratulations' on her big day.

It comes after Kirstie Allsopp and Jamie Oliver shared inspiring messages of hope and support for GCSE results day.

Kerry and Molly cheered and clapped, as the former Atomic Kitten singer shouted: 'All those 7s! Honest to God, I am so bloody proud!' [Kerry and Heidi pictured in June]

Heidi's impressive results comes just months after mum Kerry revealed why she is refusing to pay for her to go to a private sixth form school

The star then joked to a delighted Heidi that she will now buy her something 'very expensive', while Molly keen to get a treat too, Molly quipped that she'd taken her GSCE's before being reminded that she was almost 23

Taking to X, formerly known as Twitter, on the big day, Kirstie noted that the reaction of parents will make a huge difference to their children as she spoke of the importance on holding back their emotions.

The presenter, 59, tweeted: 'These are not our exam results they are theirs, so do wait for your childs reaction to their GCSE results before you jump up looking happy or sad, how we react will matter and could make a difference, but the rest of their life is not defined by these grades, this to shall pass.'

While Kirstie, who recently came under fire for allowing her 15-year-old interrail across Europe for three weeks, mostly garnered positive responses, there was one follower who hit out at her for 'preaching' to people.

They wrote: 'Please stop preaching what people should do. Youre an out of touch elitist trapped in a privileged bubble and know nothing about the real world. Sincerely, Everyone.'

The star was clearly not impressed by the criticism as she response: 'Do eff off.'

Meanwhile, Jamie Oliver shared an inspiring message about not letting results 'define you' as he opened up about his struggles with Dyslexia growing up.

Elsewhere, Traitors winner Harry Clarke shared a snap of his younger sister holding up her results as he wished her a 'massive congratulations' on her big day

It comes after Kirstie Allsopp [pictured] and Jamie Oliver shared inspiring messages of hope and support for GCSE results day

Jamie Oliver shared an inspiring message about not letting results 'define you' as he opened up about his struggles with Dyslexia growing up

The chef, 49, was himself diagnosed with dyslexia in primary school and has previously been candid about his experience with the condition.

Jamie penned: 'Huge luck to everyone receiving their GCSE results today....I hope you get the grades you want. And if you dont then please believe me when I say its not the end of the world and it doesnt need to define you either !!

'Ive learnt that first hand being dyslexic and its why my Billy childrens books hold such a special place in my heart. What it does mean is that you might need to find a different way to get where you want to be....and you know what its fun to be unconventional!!

'Intelligence comes in many forms and I (and Billy!) have every faith that the wider world will see your brilliance just like I do x x x.'

Dyslexia is a learning difficulty that primarily affects accurate and fluent word reading and spelling, which affects individuals of all intelligence levels and can result in poor or inconsistent spelling and writing.

Taking to X, formerly known as Twitter , on the big day, Kirstie noted that the reaction of parents will make a huge difference to their children as she spoke of the importance on holding back their emotions

The presenter, 59, tweeted: 'These are not our exam results they are theirs, so do wait for your childs reaction to their GCSE results before you jump up looking happy or sad'

While Kirstie, who recently came under fire for allowing her 15-year-old interrail across Europe for three weeks, mostly garnered positive responses, there was one follower who hit out at her for 'preaching' to people

Alongside his kind words, Jamie posted a picture of himself posing in a promotional shot for his books.

Elsewhere, Saira Khan shared her joy and pride as her son Zachariah, 16, picked up his results on Thursday.

The former Loose Women star shared a selection of photos of her boy holding up his results and cuddling up to loved ones on his big day.

Sharing a heartfelt message, she penned: 'So proud of my boy - all his own effort. Well done to everyone who got their results today.

'Please do celebrate your efforts - its not easy taking exams - but you did it.

'Next steps 6th Form to study Maths, Further Maths, Economics and Theology. A great milestone reached today. Time to celebrate.'

The proportion of GCSE entries awarded top grades has fallen for the third year in a row but is higher than before the pandemic, national figures show, as the final cohort of the Covid generation receive their results.

More than a fifth (21.8 percent) of UK GCSE entries were awarded the top grades - at least a 7 or an A grade - this year, down 0.2 percentage points on last year.

This is higher than the equivalent figure for 2019 - before the pandemic disrupted schooling - of 20.8 percent. Most of the students receiving results today were in year 7 at the start of the pandemic.

Jamie penned: 'Huge luck to everyone receiving their GCSE results today....I hope you get the grades you want. And if you dont then please believe me when I say its not the end of the world and it doesnt need to define you either!!'

The chef, 49, was himself diagnosed with dyslexia in primary school and has previously been candid about his experience with the condition

Elsewhere, Saira Khan shared her joy and pride as her son Zachariah, 16, picked up his results on Thursday

The former Loose Women star shared a selection of photos of her boy holding up his results and cuddling up to loved ones on his big day

Sharing a heartfelt message, she penned: 'So proud of my boy - all his own effort. Well done to everyone who got their results today

This summer's exams saw a record number of GCSE grades awarded, an increase on 2023 of 4.8 percent, or more than 6.1 million - compared with a 4.6 percent increase in the number of 16-year-olds.

More than 372,000 Vocational Technical Qualifications, or VTQs, were also awarded, taking the overall number of results to more than 6.5 million.

The rise was partly driven by an increase in the number of students aged 17 or older taking exams, particularly in Maths and English Language.

The figures, published by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ), cover GCSE entries from students in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The proportion of entries getting at least a 4 or a C grade - considered a 'standard pass' - has fallen from 68.2 percent in 2023 to 67.6 percent this year - a drop of 0.6 percentage points, but higher than 67.3 percent in 2019.

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This summer's exams saw a record number of GCSE grades awarded, an increase on 2023 of 4.8 percent, or more than 6.1 million - compared with a 4.6 percent increase in the number of 16-year-olds

The overall rate for grades 1/G or above is 97.9 percent, down from 98.0 percent in 2023 and 98.3 percent in 2019.

In England, exams regulator Ofqual said it expected this year's national results to be 'broadly similar' to last summer, when grades were brought back in line with pre-pandemic levels.

In Wales and Northern Ireland, exam regulators aimed to return to pre-pandemic grading this summer - a year later than in England.
Pip Edwards took to her social media on Thursday to show off some sun-filled snaps of her current overseas jaunt in Spain.

The 44-year-old P.E Nation founder flaunted her stunning beach body in a gallery of photos

The pictures, taken in Majorca, showed Pip enjoying downtime with friends.

In one snap the ultra-fit entrepreneur can be seen posing on a rock in a skimpy fleshed coloured two-piece that showed off her amazing figure.

The popular designer tied her hair back for her day in the sun and sea.

Pip added a touch of style to her look with a delicate necklace, gold earrings and a pair of bangles.

Another pictured showed Pip sporting designer shades while hitching her barely there bikini bottoms over her hips.

The mother-of-one also shared a snap that showed off her physical prowess.

Pip Edwards took to her social media on Thursday to show off some sun-filled snaps of her current overseas jaunt in Spain. Pictured

The 44-year-old P.E Nation founder flaunted her stunning beach body in a gallery of photos

In the photograph, the designer can be seen taking a perfectly formed dive into the water from a rocky outcrop.

'Another magical day in Mallorca,' she captioned the post.

Followers were quick to comment about Pip's winter time getaway.

'Ok were ready for you to come home now,' one friend joked on Pip's Instagram share.

'A perfect 10 on the dive!' commented another follower.

'Mami looking hotter & stunning as always,' added another fan.

Pip's holiday jaunt comes after her shock move to step down as the creative director for her athleisure company P.E Nation earlier this month.

The pictures, taken in Majorca, showed Pip enjoying downtime with friends

Pip also showed some impressive diving skills in the snaps

The designer revealed earlier this month that while she will remain a force at the brand, she will no longer hold the creative director position she took over following the departure of co-founder Claire Greaves in March.

'Following P.E. Nation's celebrated and successful re/brand at Sydney Fashion Week, I will be stepping back from the role of P.E. Nation's Creative Director, to pursue new creative challenges,' Pip wrote in a lengthy Instagram caption.

'My time leading the brand as Creative Director has been an incredible run, and while I am handing over that role, I am maintaining my P.E. Nation directorship and substantial shareholding/ I am forever grateful for and proud of what we have created, and P.E. Nation will always be in my heart and soul' she continued.

Pip concluded: 'I want to thank our loyal, committed and amazing P.E. Nation staff and community, both in Australia and abroad, for a phenomenal 10 years of birthing, living and breathing everything P.E. Nation, and for enabling us to collectively reach unforgettable heights.'

P.E. Nation was found by Pip and Claire in 2016.
Jett Kenny has taken to social media to share some loved-up snaps from his recent trip to Hawaii with girlfriend Lily Brown.

Jett, 30, took to Instagram on Thursday to share a series of happy snaps from the trip, captioning the images: ' Hawaii on film with the best,' referring to Lily, 26.

The model and TV personality was not afraid to flaunt his ripped form as he posed up a storm in front of gorgeous Hawaiian vistas.

Happy to be dwarfed by huge lush green mountains, Jett posed shirtless for Lily, with his hands in his pockets as his chiseled abs were given some sun.

There was also time for romance on the trip with Jett sharing a couple of loved-up snaps with Lily.

One photo showed Jett beaming broadly as he posed cheek to cheek with Lily in front of a glorious mountain backdrop.

Lilly, too looked equally chuffed to be in the arms of her beau.

A second romantic snap showed the lovebirds happily cuddling up at dusk, appearing to have just gone for a twilight swim.

Jett Kenny has taken to social media to share some loved up snaps from his recent trip to Hawaii with girlfriend Lily Brown. Both pictured

Jett seemingly called off a potential proposal to Lily during their Hawaiian holiday.

Popular Instagram account Influencer Updates shared some photos from Jett and Lily's holiday and revealed how an ill-fated trip up the Stairway to Heaven hiking trail ended in relationship disaster.

'A very hungover Lily Brown attempted to climb the Stairway To Heaven in Hawaii today,' the account wrote.

'She made it half way and turned back around. Jett then teased he was going to propose at the top but now can't.'

The comments included posts from Lily's Instagram Stories, with the influencer explaining she was a little under the weather for the romantic hiking trip.

One romantic snap showed the lovebirds happily cuddling up at dusk, appearing to have just gone for a twilight swim

The model and TV personality was not afraid to flaunt his ripped form as he posed up a storm in front of gorgeous Hawaiian vistas

'Update made it half way, started dry reaching, admitted defeat, walked back down, spewed in my mouth, cried because I quit,' Lily wrote.

Continuing, Lilly revealed her 'condition' may have scuttled the couple's chances at wedded bliss.

'Just to make things worse, Jett decided to throw in "what if I was going to propose at the top" to lighten the mood.'

'Continued to cry like an actual baby all the way back to the car as a hungover loser who gave up and I'm still ringless.'

The Stairway to Heaven or Haiku Stairs are located in Oahu and are 3,922 steps across the Ko'olau range that leads to some of the best views on the island.

Lily and Jett debuted their relationship in December 2022 after weeks of rumours.

The model and influencer both shared the same photo of them kissing to Instagram on New Year's Eve.

Jett captioned his romantic post, 'To the future,' alongside a pair of love heart emojis.

Lily meanwhile wrote alongside her own re-post of the photograph: 'You'd be a tough one to keep a secret.'

Lily and Jett will be seen together on Channel 10's Amazing Race Australia: Celebrity Edition from September 9.

Happy to be dwarfed by huge lush green mountains, Jett posed shirtless for Lily, with his hands in his pockets as his chiseled abs were given some sun
Ben Affleck dropped a major clue months ago that he was done with wife Jennifer Lopez, who filed for divorce on Tuesday.

The 51-year-old star was talking with Kevin Hart during an episode from season four of his show Hart To Heart which was filmed in the early months of 2024.

The Argo director was telling a story about how fans mobbed his spouse when they were his children Violet, Fin and Samuel in hyper busy Times Square in New York City.

At one point, Ben used the past tense when referring to his marriage.

Ben said his daughter - he did not say if he was referring to Violet or when Fin was Seraphina - has this thing where she is 'always throwing out titles to her autobiography.'

His daughter then turned to her dad Ben after the JLo frenzy began and said a title for her autobiography could be: J-Lo Was My Stepmother.

He does bring up why his daughter used the past tense 'was.' It may have been because the marriage was already over by then.

Ben then added: 'And I was like, alright that's a good title.'

Ben Affleck dropped a major clue months ago that he was done with wife Jennifer Lopez, who filed for divorce on Tuesday. Seen in 2021

Affleck and Lopez separated in April and she filed for divorce on Tuesday, which was their two year wedding anniversary.

The interview was filmed in early 2024 as Ben had a full beard; he shaved it off in March to film The Accountant 2.

It could be possible that they were already split when the interview took place before March, even though Jennifer has claimed they separated in April.

Also in the Hart interview, Ben went into great detail about how Lopez has crazy fame while he has sorta fame.

The Air star said fans went 'bananas' when they spotted the 55-year-old Bronx-born beauty with him in Times Square.

Turns out, it was his idea to walk through one of the busiest neighborhoods with a superstar on his arm.

'We went somewhere with [Jennifer]I can't remember because she's so famous, and she creates thispeople love her, and she really represents something important to people,' Affleck stated.

'[To me,] people are like, "Hey, I like your movie," and then they're like "AAAHHHH! J-LO!" he yelled. 'It's amazing, you know what I mean?'

Then he got more specific.

'I think it was when we rolled through Times Square,' he continued.

The 51-year-old star was talking with Kevin Hart for an episode from season four of his show Hart To Heart which was filmed in the early months of 2024

The Argo director was telling a story about how fans mobbed his spouse when they were his children Violet, Fin and Samuel when in Times Square in New York City

Jennifer, seen with Emme on June 8, seems to be OK with her fame

'We get out of the car, we were going to a play, and I was like, "F*** it, babe, we're going to be late, we gotta walk a block and a half." [Lopez] was like, "Alright," she didn't say s***.'

They were with all their children - he has Violet, Seraphina and Samuel with Jennifer Garner and Lopez has Max and Emme with Marc Anthony.

'We get out with her, all the kids, through Times Square, and the s*** was like f****n' bananas,' Affleck noted.

'I was like, "Oh my God." There was a lady, she was smoking weed, in a full purple skintight suitshe's a heavy ladyand she starts running backwards filming, going "-LO!!"

He added, 'Like a herald, that then gets everyone else, and then all the tourists come in.'

Affleck said the chaos was a lot to take in.

At one point, Ben used the past tense when referring to his marriage. Ben said his daughter - he did not say if he was referring to Violet or when Fin was Seraphina - has this thing where she is ' always throwing out titles to her autobiography'

His daughter then turned to her dad Ben after the JLo frenzy began and said a title for her autobiography could be: J-Lo Was My Stepmother. He does bring up why his daughter used the past tense 'was'

It may have been because the marriage was already over by then. Ben then added: 'And I was like, alright that's a good title'

The Massachusetts native also shed light on what it was like being wed to someone so famous. Seen in January 2024

The couple seemed happier 20 years ago, right, than they did last year, left

'Then we've got our five kids, it's me and Jen and what feels like hundreds of people, and they're all screaming.'

Affleck also addresses his resting grumpy face and his explanation is hard to believe as the actor - who has been in front of cameras for three decades - declared he is 'shy.'

Ben said: 'I'm also a little bit shy. I don't like a lot of attention.

'This is why people see me and they're like, "Why is this dude always mad?" Because someone had their camera sticking in my face, and I'm like, "OK, here we go."'

'You have resting b***h face,' Hart joked.

'B****h? Now,' Affleck responded as he pretended to be mad.

'I have resting hard face. People are projecting onto me something that I don't feel about myself at all.'

There seemed to be issues with Bennifer way back in February 2023 at the Grammy Awards

Here he was seen in May 2023; he appeared to be berating his wife

Hart loses points for not asking Ben why he continues to be in showbusiness if he doesn't like attention.

Ben, who also directs, has no plans to stop acting: his next film is The Accountant 2.

'My wife will tell you, I like to talk,' Ben also said earlier in the interview; it was worth noting that he did not say ex-wife, but the show could have been taped months ago.
Lady Gaga has welcomed a new puppy - three years after a shock incident in which her dogwalker Ryan Fischer was shot and two of her pets were kidnapped.

The 38-year-old songstress broke her happy news on TikTok this week, uploading a selfie video cuddling up to her new French bulldog.

Holding her pooch close, she mouthed along to the lyric: 'If the world was ending, I wanna be next to you,' from her new song Die With A Smile with Bruno Mars.

Gaga, whose Christian name is Stefani Germanotta, did not disclose the name or the sex of the new addition to her household.

She also owns three other French bulldogs - Koji and Gustav, who were abducted in 2021, and another called Miss Asia.

Lady Gaga has welcomed a new puppy - three years after a shock incident in which her dogwalker Ryan Fischer was shot and two of her pets were kidnapped

Ryan Fischer was walking all three dogs at night in February 2021 when he was shot four times by one of a gang of criminals who made off with Koji and Gustav.

The dogwalker, who was also friends with Gaga, nearly died of his injuries and spent weeks in the hospital before he was finally able to be discharged.

Gaga covered all of Ryan's medical expenses and offered $500,000 to whoever was able to bring Koji and Gustav back to her.

A judge ultimately ruled Gaga did not have to pay the reward because the woman who returned the dogs to her was an accessory to the crime.

According to the prosecution, the kidnappers knew the dogs were a rare and desirable breed but were unaware they belonged to Gaga.

Five suspects were charged in connection with the kidnapping that April, and the man who shot Ryan was sentenced to 21 years.

During the sentencing hearing, Ryan was able to face the culprit and say: 'You shot me and left me to die, and both of our lives have changed forever.'

In August 2021, Ryan resurfaced with a GoFundMe, asking the public to help bankroll his 'healing' road trip around America.

The 38-year-old songstress broke her happy news on TikTok this week, uploading a selfie video cuddling up to her new French bulldog

She also owns three other French bulldogs - Koji and Gustav, who were abducted in 2021, and another called Miss Asia; she is pictured with the three of them before the kidnapping

Ryan Fischer was walking all three dogs - with whom he is pictured - at night when he was shot four times as a group of criminals made off with Koji and Gustav

He took a sabbatical and traveled for two months before his van broke down, prompting him to set up a page on the crowdfunding site.

Ryan revealed that he had no apartment and was still suffering from 'emotional and mental health' problems in the aftermath of the shooting.

He shared that he was 'getting a van and exploring this country while seeking out communities that support the process of growing from trauma. For me, this includes retreat centers, trauma programs, queer healers, creatives and spiritual leaders.'

In a controversial statement, he said that he had felt 'abandoned and unsupported' by some of the people around him, prompting fans to believe he was taking aim at Gaga despite the fact she had paid his medical bills.

Ryan quickly clarified he did not mean to 'blame' anyone, telling Rolling Stone: 'It's what happens in trauma - all your loved ones, all your family, everyone: you feel alone,' and adding that his feelings were all part of his 'journey' to recovery.

This January, he revealed he had been suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and added that he had experienced difficulty retaining 'a lot of memories' between the night he got shot and 'a few months ago.'
Weather models predict an unseasonably cold system will swing across Northern California on Friday and bring temperatures much below normal. Baron/Lynx

Large temperature swings are forecast across Northern California in the coming days as a snow-producing weekend storm is quickly followed by a round of triple-digit heat.

Temperatures throughout Northern California were near to slightly below average on Wednesday, but a dramatic cool-down will begin in earnest Thursday. An unusually strong low-pressure system moving down from the Gulf of Alaska will promote a strong breeze off the Pacific Ocean toward the inland Bay Area and Central Valley.

Live storm map: See where rain is hitting California and Bay Area

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This cool, moist breeze will increase the chance of coastal drizzle and likely push clouds all the way to the Santa Clara and Livermore valleys on Thursday morning. Clouds will be slow to erode, possibly lingering until midday, keeping conditions cool. Livermore will only reach the low to mid-70s, about 15 degrees below average.

Marine clouds arent predicted to reach Sacramento, but the cool delta breeze may prevent the city from hitting 80 degrees for the first time in nearly a month.

On Friday, temperatures will slide even further as the low-pressure system stalls near Crescent City. The National Weather Service forecasts a high of 71 degrees in Redding on Friday, which would be the citys coolest August day since 1990. Highs will be 15 to 30 degrees below normal in the Sacramento Valley and northern Sierra.

The National Weather Service forecasts high temperatures to be as much as 25 degrees below normal in the Sierra Nevada on Friday. Weatherbell

After the sun sets Friday evening, temperatures will drop even further and high-elevation rain showers may transition to snow, possibly dropping a dusting at the highest Sierra ski resorts.

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While accumulating snow is not expected below 7,500 feet, widespread freezing temperatures are likely in the Sierra valleys. The weather service predicts a 90% chance of a freeze in South Lake Tahoe on Saturday morning.

The National Weather Service forecasts a high chance of freezing temperatures in Truckee and South Lake Tahoe on Saturday and Sunday mornings. National Weather Service Reno

In addition to the cooler-than-normal weather, winds are forecast to pick up Thursday and Friday. Gusts of 20 to 35 mph Thursday afternoon will blow out of the west in the Bay Area and the south in the Sacramento Valley. Atop the high Sierra, gusts are predicted to eclipse 50 mph Thursday night ahead of a Friday morning cold front.

Thunderstorm chances will increase behind the cold front Friday afternoon, particularly north of Interstate 80. The weather service issued a flash-flood watch around the Park Fire burn scar from Friday morning through Saturday morning. Moderate to heavy rain may result in flash flooding and debris flows.

Bay Area storm impacts

In the Bay Area, rain showers are expected to be isolated, with the best chance in the North Bay on Friday night.

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While the cold system will result in cooler than normal conditions inland, an inverse temperature trend is expected in San Francisco.

The temperature difference between the coast and Central Valley is typically a good indicator of the strength of the chilly afternoon sea breeze. As inland areas cool down, the sea breeze should weaken. As a result, highs in downtown San Francisco will likely be a few degrees above normal, in the upper 60s to mid-70s Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Late August warmup

The weather will quiet down quickly Saturday afternoon as the chilly system moves into Nevada. By Sunday high temperatures will return close to normal in the Sacramento Valley and inland Bay Area, to the upper 80s to low 90s.

In the wake of the departing low-pressure system, an area of high pressure is expected to quickly take its place, resulting in a significant warmup Monday. Highs will likely approach 100 degrees in Redding, Sacramento and Concord and 90s in San Jose and Santa Rosa. Downtown San Francisco may flirt with 80 degrees.

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Brad Pitt was spotted embarking on a motorcycle tour in Iceland.

TMZ obtained photos and video of Pitt, clad in protective gear and helmet, getting onto his vehicle.

The video begins with Pitt, 60, standing by his parked motorcycle before placing a black ski mask on, settling onto the bike, and maneuvering out of the parking lot.

He then hits the road, however his destination remains unknown.

The sighting comes several weeks after his son Pax, 20, crashed his e-bike in Los Angeles. He was released from the ICU earlier this month after being treated for crashing his electric bike into the back of a car stopped for a red light on Los Feliz Boulevard in Los Angeles on July 29.

Brad Pitt was spotted embarking on a motorcycle adventure in Iceland; pictured last month at Formula One in Belgium

Pax, who is estranged from Pitt, is now beginning the long road of recovery and physical therapy.

The latest outing comes after the daughter Brad shares with ex-wife Angelina Jolie, Shiloh, legally dropped her father's surname.

Shiloh, who hired and paid for her own lawyer when she filed to drop the Pitt name on her 18th birthday in May, filed to change her name from Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt to Shiloh Nouvel Jolie.

TMZ reports there was no formal hearing for the name change - with the petition granted on Monday, per official court documents.

Last month Shiloh took out a newspaper ad marking the name change - which is a standard step before the court would approve a name change.

The notice also stated anyone who had objections to the petition should show up in court.

A source close to the matter told Dailymail.com last month: Shiloh hired her own lawyer and paid for it herself, so Angie doesnt know and cant speak for it.

'But, if youre asking if this is connected to the abuse history or the violation of Shilohs victims rights, yes, thats part of it.

The revelation that Shiloh paid herself suggests that the ugly spat between former couple Pitt and Jolie, 48, may still rumble on in the form of legal action from the six children the couple once shared.

TMZ obtained photos and video of Pitt, clad in protective gear and helmet, getting onto his vehicle; pictured July 2024

There have been long custody battles which ended eventually in a victory for Pitt, who got 50-50 custody in 2021 only to have it overturned on appeal.

Hes had a judge intervene to tell Angelina she mustnt listen in on his mobile phone calls with the children. The judge has also ordered reunification therapy for Pitt and the kids.

The actor set up a skate park in his home for Shiloh, and more recently an art studio to reflect their common interest in art.

Hes sent cars and security to ferry the children from her home to his whenever there is an allotted custody visit. Sadly, none of it has brought them closer.

In fact son Pax said in an Instagram post in 2016 that all four of the youngest children  thats including Shiloh  tremble with fear in his presence. The two elder ones were at that point already declining point blank to see him.

Meanwhile, Pitt's son Pax, 20, recently got into a crash on his e-bike; pictured July 11

The current situation has seen the children - Maddox, 22, Pax, Zahara, 19, Shiloh, and Knox and Vivienne, 16 - form a tight gang of seven with his former wife.

A central issue seems to be a notorious private jet confrontation in 2016.

An FBI report on the incident, which was published in 2022, saw Jolie accuse Pitt of physical assault while flying to California in 2016. She claimed that he was intoxicated and that he grabbed her by the head and shook her, and later pushed her down, as part of a confrontation allegedly related to their children.

Jolie told the FBI that Pitt told the children that she was 'f***ing up this family,' and she said he punched the ceiling of the airplane four times.

She claimed that at one point he poured beer on her and a blanket she was under with multiple children.

Source close to Pitt later claimed that he never hit any of the children, though they admitted that he had been drinking.

This comes amid recent claims that Pitt and Jolie's divorce - which has now dragged on for eight years - is still ongoing as neither of the stars can 'let it go.

A source told People 'their disagreements took over' in the relationship, adding that things 'turned nasty and it was not a good situation for anyone.'

'All the bitterness is partly why the divorce has dragged on for so many years. Neither will let it go. Youd think they would be over it and just settle.'

A separate insider said: 'Both of them were having issues with each other. The differences added up over time. It's really sad for the children, but also the parents. Divorce, especially one so high-profile, can be challenging for the whole family.

'They both care. They both care about the children.'
Bella Hadid showcased her stunning figure on her latest outing.

The 27-year-old supermodel - who recently celebrated the release of her latest perfume - maintained her cowgirl era as she looked stunning in a western-inspired look while out in Los Angeles on Wednesday.

She showcased her taut tummy and model legs in a tiny, red tie-up top and Daisy Dukes.

Her tiny shorts were held up by a brown belt as she sported a pair of black cowboy boots.

Bella Hadid maintained her cowgirl era as she looked stunning in a western-inspired look while out in Los Angeles on Wednesday

She accessorized with a pair of aviator sunglasses, suede Coach bag and multiple bracelets and rings.

Her raven-colored tresses were worn down as she showcased her natural looks with minimal make-up on her face.

This came days after she celebrated the release of her latest perfume in style as she threw a glamorous party for her friends.

The supermodel looked incredible at the bash as she slipped into a plunging white gown that showed off her toned figure.

In posts shared to her Instagram Stories on Wednesday, she documented the party, which was themed around an enchanted forest.

Guests were treated to astrology readings and sipped on cocktails and nibbled on fruit platters before trying out the new fragrance, Nightcap.

Bella also shared a snap from the day before in which she looked radiant in a low-cut black gown while catching up with her childhood friends.

Bella launched Orebella in April, with the first perfume available the following month.

The 27-year-old supermodel showcased her taut tummy and model legs in a tiny, red tie-up top which she teamed with denim shorts, cowboy boots and a Coach suede handbag

This came days after she celebrated the release of her latest perfume in style as she threw a glamorous party for her friends

Bella also shared a snap from the day before in which she looked radiant in a low-cut black gown while catching up with her childhood friends

in April, Bella opened up to Harper's Bazaar about the brand, sharing: 'I never had a fragrance I was so obsessed with that made me feel unique and different.

'I started making my own and started making decks about it.'

'Then, all of a sudden, I had conversations with myself about my future and, like, what excited me, and it really was bringing something that was so personal to me to the world, and having the opportunity for people to see my heart and my brain.'

'Creating Orebella was the best form of therapy, especially just using my brain again and educating myself on different things and knowing the business behind all of this, but also being able to stay true to who I am.'

In regards to the fragrances, Bella later expressed: 'I want people to really know that for me, there is something really nostalgic about the first three scents that were launching now...

'Or the ones that I've already made that we'll be launching later this year, if all goes well. I want people's emotions to be triggered when they smell them.

'I want people to feel nostalgic of something from their childhood or, you know, have a sense of peace knowing all of our experiences are not singular...'

In posts shared to her Instagram Stories on Wednesday, she documented the party, which was themed around an enchanted forest and saw Bella lark around with chunks of ginger

Guests were treated to astrology readings before trying out the new fragrance, Nightcap

The group sipped on cocktails and nibbled on fruit platters at the whimsical launch party

Bella's party outing comes after she broke her silence on the controversial Adidas campaign she recently starred in.

The pro-Palestinian star penned a lengthy message to her followers and began with, 'For those of you who do not know my heart, I want to make sure you're hearing directly from me about my recent campaign with adidas.'

Bella expressed she 'would never knowingly engage with any art or work that is linked to a horrific tragedy of any kind.'

'In advance of the campaign's release, I had no knowledge of the historical connection to the atrocious events in 1972. I am shocked, I am upset, and I am disappointed in the lack of sensitivity that went into this campaign.'

Bella further explained, 'Had I been made aware, from the bottom of my heart, I would never have participated.'

'My team should have known, adidas should have known and I should have done more research so that I too would have known and understood, and spoken up.'

The model added that she 'will always speak up for what I believe to be wrong. While everyone's intentions were to make something positive, and bring people together through art, the collective lack of understanding from all parties undermined the process.'

'I do not believe in hate in any form, including antisemitism,' Bella continued, adding, 'That will never waiver, and I stand by that statement to the fullest extent.'

The media personality also shared that, 'Connecting the liberation of the Palestinian people to an attack so tragic, is something that hurts my heart.'

Bella proved to be her own best advert for the perfume as she modelled strings of diamonds

'Palestine is not synonymous with terrorism and this campaign unintentionally highlighted an event that does not present who we are.'

Bella stated that she is a 'proud Palestinian woman' and expressed 'there is much more to our culture than the things that have been equated over the past week.'

'I will forever stand by my people of Palestine while continuing to advocate for a world free of antisemitism. Antisemitism has no place in the liberation of the Palestinian people.'

In conclusion, Bella wrote, 'I will always stand for peace over violence, any day. Hate has no place here, and I will forever advocate for not only my people, but every person world wide.'

The supermodel starred in the campaign to promote the relaunch of the Adidas SL72 sneakers released in 1972 - with athletes sporting the shoes during the Olympic games in Munich of that same year.

However, the shoe company received backlash after the campaign released - which prompted Adidas to issue an apology for the 'completely unintentional' connection to the 'tragic historical events.'

A source recently told DailyMail.com that Bella hired lawyers after being dropped from the ad following backlash.

Bella's party outing comes after she broke her silence on the controversial Adidas campaign she recently starred in

Adidas released a statement apologizing for the 'unintentional mistake' and 'negative impact.'

'Connections continue to be made to the terrible tragedy that occurred at the Munich Olympics due to our recent SL72 campaign,' the sportswear brand began.

'These connections are not meant and we apologize for any upset or distress caused to communities around the world. We made an unintentional mistake.'

Adidas apologized 'to our partners, Bella Hadid A$AP Nast, Jules Kounde, and others, for any negative impact on them and we are revising the campaign.'
Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis slipped into swimwear as they continued filming Freaky Friday sequel, Freakier Friday this week.

The actress, 38  who recently posted a radiant selfie  was spotted filming with her on-screen mom, 65, as they took on the waves and soaked up the sun in Malibu.

The sighting comes just days after both stars confirmed this would be their last week of filming for the hotly anticipated sequel.

A cameras rolled, Lohan was styled in a green wetsuit with white floral print that displayed her endless legs.

Her strawberry blonde locks were swept up into a messy bun as she wore a light makeup look that showed off her radiant skin.

Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis slipped into swimwear as they continued filming Freaky Friday sequel, Freakier Friday this week

Curtis, 65, modeled a navy and teal full-body wetsuit as she read out her lines and clung to the New York native.

Her silver locks blew in the ocean breeze while her radiant skin glistened under the sun, teaming her look with designer sunglasses.

The duo frolicked barefoot in the sand as waves crashed into them, leading to Curtis taking a tumble in on scene.

On Monday, the Parent Trap star took to Instagram to share a heartfelt message, atop a selfie, letting fans know that this would be the final week of filming for Freakier Friday.

She penned: 'Happy Monday! Its our last Monday on the set of #freakierfriday and my heart is so full. Its been such a great time making this film. The wonderful cast, crew and everyone from @disneystudios have invested so much time and love into making this movie!

'Thank you to all of you! Im so grateful to have made this film, a story of family, mothers and their children and a film filled with love, laughter and a ton of heart! It has been a pleasure to work with my dear friend @jamieleecurtis who brings so much joy to our set everyday and she has made this all the more special!' she added.

Filming for the second installment of was announced in March and comes over two decades after the debut film was released.

When asked about the sequel, Lohan told People, 'I'm just excited to work with Jamie again and see how much further we can take it,' she noted after confirming she is reprising her role as Anna Coleman.

The Irish Wish star told the outlet that she thinks it will be a lot of 'fun.'

A cameras rolled, Lohan was styled in a green wetsuit with white floral print that displayed her endless legs

Curtis, 65, modeled a navy and teal full-body wetsuit as she read out her lines and clung to the New York native

The sighting comes just days after both stars confirmed this would be their last week of filming for the hotly anticipated sequel; Jaime Lee and Lindsay seen in 2024

Filming for the second installment of was announced in March and comes over two decades after the debut film was released; Lindsay and Jaime Lee seen in 2024

Curtis and Lohan portrayed a mother-teenage daughter duo who magically switch bodies in the 2003 adaptation of Mary Rodgers' 1972 Freaky Friday novel; seen in 2003

'Because we talk almost every other day in general, so I think we're going to have a lot of fun with this,' she added.

Curtis and Lohan portrayed a mother-teenage daughter duo who magically switch bodies in the 2003 adaptation of Mary Rodgers' 1972 Freaky Friday novel.

Fans can expect to see the sequel in theaters sometime in 2025.
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Kendall Jenner has gone topless in her new FWRD fashion campaign that was released on social media on Thursday.

In one of the images the 28-year-old model had no top as she covers her chest with a hand while wearing lace capri slacks and high heels as she crouched down in a photo studio.

The Keeping Up With The Kardashians star was also seen sitting in a chair while she lifted one toned leg straight up in the air.

Victoria Beckham made this poses popular in March 2016 when she shared a snap of herself with one leg effortlessly in the air as she wore a stiletto heel.

The Spice Girl later joked that her impressive posture was down to ballet.

Kendall Jenner has gone topless in her new FWRD fashion campaign that was released on social media on Thursday. In one of the images the 28-year-old model had no top as she covers her chest with a hand while wearing lace capri slacks and high heels as she crouched down in a photo studio

The Keeping Up With The Kardashians star was also seen sitting in a chair while she lifted one toned leg straight up in the air

Victoria Beckham made this poses popular in March 2016 when she shared a snap of herself with one leg effortlessly in the air as she wore a stiletto heel. She later joked that her impressive posture was down to ballet

In May she was seen posing with a model in a shower for a summer FWRD ad. The sister of Kylie Jenner also was by a swimming pool and in a garage near a car.

Jenner has been working hard this year.

On Monday morning it was announced that the supermodel is the face of the new Tory Burch campaign for the fragrance Sublime.

The TV vet flashed the flesh in nude lingerie under a golden netted dress for the photo shoot.

The commercial sees her on a set as she poses on her side in the flirty ensemble; she is also seen walking confidently on set.

'Confident, sensual and strong. My new favorite fragrance #ToryBurchSublime,' read the caption to the video.

Kendall's fans were ecstatic with the clip as they called her 'beautiful' and 'iconic.'

'Sublime is beautiful, it's sexy, it's confident,' Jenner said in a statement.

The cover girl also laid back in the black leather chair with one knee up and another foot on the ground

The star, who has been modeling since she was 16, let one arm fall off the wide chair as she worked her moves

In this shot, the star appeared a bit fatigued as she put one manicured hand up to her head while looking off

'I love what Tory does and what she stands for. I want to align with designers who feel genuinely right to me, and this felt natural and organic.'

And the designer talked about Kendall.

'Kendall has a quiet power,' Burch continued in the statement.

'She knows who she is and she's fearless. She is an entrepreneur and a role model for so many people, and that was important to me.'

The new fragrance called Sublime features rose, osmanthus flower, earthy vetiver and bright mandarin, according to a press release.

It will also be 'grounded by hints of ivy, patchouli and magnolia.'

A tight shiny black mini dress was also modeled by the Calabasas, California native. Her look resembled the models in Robert Palmer's Addicted To Love

This long dress seemed very practical and could be jazzed up with accessories

Jenner stars in a creative campaign photographed by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott. She is seen with an oversized sculpture version of the Sublime bottle.

Designed by Malin Ericson, the curvilinear vessel is an abstract take on Tory's signature Double T design, topped with a silver cap and playful off-center logo.

The campaign also includes a video with original music by London artist Bakar, covering Edwyn Collins's 1994 track A Girl Like You.

Burch has always been 'intrigued' by Jenner's 'quiet power.'

The 58-year-old fashion designer explained why she chose The Kardashians star to be the first face of her brand.

She told ELLE.com: 'I spent a lot of time thinking about working with Kendall Jenner. We've never had a face. There's something that I really love about her.

A lighter look was this ivory skintight dress wit a scoop neck

This halter dress came in at the waist and was very short as it had an overstitch seam down the front

'A long time ago, we were in a shoot together, and I've been intrigued with her. She has a quiet power, which I find interesting. She's fearless. She's an entrepreneur [with] great family values and a work ethic.'

Burch is set to launch refills next year because she believes the bottle is so appealing people will want to keep it on display.

She said of the design: 'The bottle is meant to last. I wanted something you would keep forever, and that's why it feels so heavy; I wanted it to be a beautiful, artistic element that you put on your vanity. [The design] was inspired by the Guggenheim, taking an abstraction of the Ts [in our logo].'

She also posed in a red dress with thin straps with several TVs behind her for an 80s feel

This look was inspired: a red dress with black accents over red panty hose and strappy heels

Burch continued: 'I worked with Malin Ericson, and we worked on many different iterations. There was a purity to this that I loved, and we put the logo [off-kilter] as a representation of things not being where they used to be and not being so straightforward. It's about reinvention, evolution, and innovation.'

The designer loves the scent so much she wears it herself.

Asked about her thought process for selecting a perfume to wear, she said: 'It's pretty last minute, and just as I'm walking out the door. But I do like wearing a fragrance. It's a ritual for me. There's one of our Middle East fragrances that's an oud that I love, but I also now love Sublime. I've given a couple bottles to my sons' girlfriends; they're obsessed with it, and they said it's addictive. I love that.'

Kendall is also the face of Tory Burch's new fragrance Sublime. 'Kendall has a quiet power,' Burch said in a statement. 'She knows who she is and she's fearless. She is an entrepreneur and a role model for so many people'

Jenner models all the time despite talking about the minuses of the industry last month.

The sister of Kylie Jenner said she thinks modelling can be a 'very lonely' existence.

The star is one of the world's best-known and best-paid models - but Kendall insists that her career has been more challenging than some people might imagine.

The brunette beauty said on Emma Chamberlain's Anything Goes podcast: 'I'm not gonna sit here and say that I've had the toughest journey. I think I've been extremely fortunate.

'But I also have had my own set of challenges, whether it's [being] overworked or not getting a job that I would've really loved to get.'

Kendall actually confessed to 'crying [herself] to sleep' at night amid her struggles.

The reality star shared: 'It is very lonely.

'I've had really dark nights where I've been in random cities and just hysterically crying myself to sleep because I haven't been home in three months and I've been pretty much alone the entire time.'

Despite her fame and success, Kendall has repeatedly questioned whether the sacrifices she's made have really been worthwhile.

She said: 'There's been a lot of definite moments where I'm like, What is going on, is this all worth it?'

Meanwhile, Kendall previously admitted that she's been dealing with anxiety issues since she was a child.

But the runway star also claimed that she now feels more 'stable' and 'hopeful' in her career.

Kendall - who launched her own drinks brand, 818 Tequila, in 2021 - explained to Vogue magazine: 'I don't see why I shouldn't be honest about it.

'In my career right now I feel really stable, really hopeful. But I've had a tough two months. I haven't been myself, and my friends see it. I'm more sad than usual. I'm way more anxious than usual.'

In May, Jenner shocked fans with her new FWRD summer campaign. In one of the images she was seen sitting on a marble counter of a modern-looking bathroom with a naked man in the shower

The same guy was also seen laying down next to her by a swimming pool as she wore a skimpy bikini. In this image, he had on swim trunks

Kendall modeled a sexy zebra print swimsuit and heels as she sat upon the hood of a Porsche, her eyes shielded behind a pair of sleek sunglasses

In November, Kendall insisted that she wants a traditional marriage and three kids, though she admitted she's not ready to settle in an episode of The Kardashians.

While her mother Kris Jenner kept not so subtly hinting that she wants Kendall to have a kid, the supermodel insisted that she has 'got this.'

Kris tells Kendall that she had a dream about her having a baby, as Kendall asks, With who?

It wasnt clear who it was with, it was just you had a baby, Kris says, asking if shell ever want to have a baby one day.

Of course. Three max. Im cool with two, though. I just want my kid to for sure have a sibling, I know that, Kendall says to Kris.

Kris adds in confession, I know were all different, but me personally, I would love to see Kendall have a baby, and shed be such a good mommy.
Yellowstone actress Dawn Olivieri is suing numerous people who she claims have made false statements including shock claims she had abused and killed horses.

The 43-year-old drama series star made a court filing last month as she alleges the claims have negatively impacted her livelihood according to TMZ on Thursday.

DailyMail.com has reached out to representatives for Olivieri and have yet to hear back.

In the lawsuit, the actress alleges that several individuals have made false statements about her in order to damage her partnerships with third-party organizations and businesses.

Olivieri claims that one of those potential partnerships was with workwear giant Dickies as she had set up a campaign with the company.

Yellowstone actress Dawn Olivieri (pictured in Hollywood in April 2023) is suing numerous people who she claims have made false statements including shock claims she had abused and killed horses

The 43-year-old actress claims that several horse-related influencers had made false claims about the horses at her sanctuary named Moon Mountain - among those claims included that she forced the animals to drink dirty water, was in support of starving the horses, and even killed newborn Arabian horses

However, she claims that when she had posted promotional images to social medial, users had engaged in a coordinated effort to kill her brand deals.

She claims that several horse-related influencers had made false claims about the horses at her sanctuary named Moon Mountain.

Olivieri says that among those claims included that she forced the animals to drink dirty water, was in support of starving the horses, and even killed newborn Arabian horses.

The actress insists in the lawsuit that her campaign with Dickies had fallen apart due to the accusations and it has also affected other potential brand partnerships.

Generally speaking, the horse influencers allege that Moon Mountain's methods have led to numerous dead horses as don insists those claims have no legitimacy.

According to TMZ, Olivieri claims that she had actually reached out to the defendants personally but they have refused to stop making the allegations.

As a result the actress has filed the lawsuit for damaging her reputation and hurting her brand deals as a result.

In addition Olivieri is suing for other allegations including cyberstalking and trespassing at the sanctuary.

In the lawsuit obtained by TMZ, the actress alleges that several individuals have made false statements about her in order to damage her partnerships with third-party organizations and businesses as Olivieri (seen November 2022) claims that one of those potential partnerships was with workwear giant Dickies as she had set up a campaign with the company

Olivieri plays two characters in the Yellowstone universe including Sarah Atwood on the flagship

Kevin Costner is seen on the hit series in 2020

Perhaps one of the more serious allegations from the actress that she had received 'terroristic threats' due to an incident where she said one of the defendants claimed she could be 'unalived.'

Olivieri plays two characters in the Yellowstone universe including Sarah Atwood on the flagship.

In addition she also portrays Claire Dutton on Paramount+ series 1883 which tells the origin story of the franchise.

She has had a career spanning two decades - which began in 2004 - as she has starred in TV series House Of Lies from 2012 to 2016 and been in films Bright (2017) and Den Of Thieves (2018).
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Bella Hadid posted a series of jealousy-inducing shots on Instagram proclaiming it a 'picklesecco summer.'

The 27-year-old supermodel was promoting her Kin Euphorics line of gut-healthy, postbiotic beverages from a beach house with the ocean in the background.

She captioned the post: 'Picklesecco summer. Meet our newest gut-healthy, postbiotic potion from @kineuphorics. limited-edition!'

In the snaps, she wore a brown beaded bikini top with a tube top pulled down below her breasts covering her stomach.

Bella's jeans were left undone and she wore her hair in a bun with face-framing tendrils and tucked a small daisy behind one of her ears.

Bella Hadid posted a series of envy-inducing shots on Instagram proclaiming it a 'picklesecco summer'

The 27-year-old supermodel was promoting her Kin Euphorics line of gut-healthy, postbiotic beverages from a beach house with the ocean in the background

Her caption went on to list the ingredients of the drink: 'apple cider vinegar (balances blood sugar & supports digestion), dry citrus hops (supports the nervous system), post biotic (supports the gut microbiome), and schisandra (conjures clarity & vision).'

Bella has been keeping busy with Kin and her fragrance line Orabella after taking a step back from her modeling career earlier this year.

'After 10 years of modeling, I realized I was putting so much energy and love and effort into something that, in the long run, wasn't necessarily giving it back to me,' she explained to Allure this spring.

The beauty left Los Angeles and moved to Texas to be closer to her boyfriend Adan Banuelos, 35. In the Lone Star state she's found friends and a new sense of normalcy.

'For the first time now, I'm not putting on a fake face. If I don't feel good, I won't go. If I don't feel good, I take time for myself,' she said.

'And I've never had the opportunity to do that or say that before. Now when anybody sees me in pictures and they say, I look happy, I genuinely am. I am feeling better; my bad days now were my old good days.'

Bella has faced controversy for her pro-Palestine views and activism  including participating in an Adidas campaign that highlighted the 1972 Olympics where 33 Israeli athletes were slaughtered by terrorists.

She captioned the post: 'picklesecco summer. meet our newest gut-healthy, postbiotic potion from @kineuphorics. limited-edition!'

She penned a lengthy message to her followers and began with, 'For those of you who do not know my heart, I want to make sure you're hearing directly from me about my recent campaign with adidas.'

Hadid expressed she 'would never knowingly engage with any art or work that is linked to a horrific tragedy of any kind.'

'In advance of the campaign's release, I had no knowledge of the historical connection to the atrocious events in 1972. I am shocked, I am upset, and I am disappointed in the lack of sensitivity that went into this campaign.'

Bella further explained, 'Had I been made aware, from the bottom of my heart, I would never have participated.'

'My team should have known, adidas should have known and I should have done more research so that I too would have known and understood, and spoken up.'

The model added that she 'will always speak up for what I believe to be wrong. While everyone's intentions were to make something positive, and bring people together through art, the collective lack of understanding from all parties undermined the process.'

'I do not believe in hate in any form, including antisemitism,' Hadid continued, adding, 'That will never waiver, and I stand by that statement to the fullest extent.'

Bella has been keeping busy with Kin and her fragrance line Orabella after taking a step back from her modeling career earlier this year

Her caption went on to list the ingredients of the drink: 'apple cider vinegar (balances blood sugar & supports digestion), dry citrus hops (supports the nervous system), post biotic (supports the gut microbiome), and schisandra (conjures clarity & vision)'

In the snaps, she wore a brown beaded bikini top with a tube top pulled down below her breasts covering her stomach

'After 10 years of modeling, I realized I was putting so much energy and love and effort into something that, in the long run, wasn't necessarily giving it back to me,' she explained to Allure this spring

The media personality also shared that, 'Connecting the liberation of the Palestinian people to an attack so tragic, is something that hurts my heart.'

'Palestine is not synonymous with terrorism and this campaign unintentionally highlighted an event that does not present who we are.'

Bella stated that she is a 'proud Palestinian woman' and expressed 'there is much more to our culture than the things that have been equated over the past week.'

'I will forever stand by my people of Palestine while continuing to advocate for a world free of antisemitism. Antisemitism has no place in the liberation of the Palestinian people.'
Psychological thriller Blink Twice has offered a trigger warning notifying viewers of the 'sexual violence' depicted in the film.

Directed by Zoe Kravitz, the film is about tech billionaire Slater King (Channing Tatum) who invites cocktail waitress Frida (Naomi Ackie) on a vacation on his private island. However, she begins questioning her reality following a series of strange events.

The warning was issued as Blake Lively faces criticism over her 'tone-deaf' approach to promoting her film It Ends With Us, a movie about domestic violence.

Both Blink Twice and their distributer, Amazon MGM Studios, shared the warning to their Instagram accounts ahead of the film's August 23 release.

'We are proud to finally share Blink Twice with audiences in theaters worldwide this week,' the message began.

Psychological thriller Blink Twice has offered a trigger warning notifying viewers of the 'sexual violence' depicted in the film

Directed by Zoe Kravitz , the film is about tech billionaire Slater King ( Channing Tatum ) who invites cocktail waitress Frida ( Naomi Ackie ) on a vacation on his private island. However, she begins questioning her reality following a series of strange events

'Blink Twice is a psychological thriller about the abuse of power. While this is a fictionalized movie, it contains mature themes and depictions of violence - including sexual violence.

'This may be upsetting or triggering for some viewers. For resources that offer support, visit BlinkTwiceResources.com'.

Lively and her new film It Ends With Us has faced intense criticism over the lack of upfront information about the movie's central focus and overall general marketing campaign.

Bridgette Stumpf, the founder and executive director of Network for Victim Recovery of DC, described the disappointment she felt over the film's immediate lack of resources in a Hollywood Reporter article.

'When watching the film in a packed theater with a colleague on opening night, our first reaction as the film ended was disappointment that no resources were immediately offered for survivors as soon as credits rolled. Later, there was an end credits message, though it came after many had left: If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, help is available. Visit www.nomore.org for more information and support,"' she wrote.

A message with information on resources was offered during the credits of It Ends With Us and a viewers' guide with resources and information about domestic violence was shared by the film's Instagram account.

Lively also addressed the issue on her Instagram Stories several days after the film debuted, posting stats about the subject matter and the domestic violence hotline.

Blink Twice is set to be released on August 23 and in an interview with People, Kravitz and Ackie opened up about the filmmaking process.

When it came time to shoot the more challenging moments in the film, Kravitz said, 'We had a lot of conversations.'

The film stars Zoe's fiance Channing Tatum and actress Naomi Ackie

'We had nights where we would all talk as a group, and people would share whatever they wanted to share. Their own fears, concerns, personal experiences,' she said.

'We had nights where just the men would talk, and they would have a safe space, and the women would talk. It's not just about the finished product, the destination  it's about how we get there. And so we all needed to work through what we needed to work through,' she said.

Ackie, who described the talks as 'beautiful', said: 'Some of the hardest scenes, where we came away feeling depleted, like we just had a big group hug.'

'It was really special,' she said. 'Those things I will never forget. The reason why I became an actor was for the community, now I realize. It's the people that you're with, and the fact that you can trust people enough to create a story rather, and know that people are going to not be laughing at you.'

Blink Twice is set to be released on August 23 and in an interview with People, Kravitz and Ackie opened up about the filmmaking process; Kravitz pictured on the set with Tatum

Blake Lively attends the 'It Ends With Us' New York Premiere at the start of August

Lively, meanwhile, has faced backlash for 'trivialising domestic violence' and promoting the film 'like a romantic comedy'.

The film is based on the book by Colleen Hoover and focuses on the story of Lily Bloom, played by Lively, who becomes embroiled in an abusive relationship with a man named Ryle Kincaid, portrayed by Justin Baldoni.

Lively, Jenny Slate and Isabela Ferrer sat down for a Q&A with the author to discuss it in early August. However, instead of speaking about the serious topic of abusive relationships, the quartet were accused of appearing 'light-hearted'.

Lively, Jenny Slate and Isabela Ferrer sat down for a Q&A with the author to discuss it in early August

Branded 'tone-deaf', Lively has faced intense scrutiny over the film's release, with interviews continuing to surface showing behaviour that has been branded 'mean' by some who've seen it.

There have also been swirling rumours of a feud between Lively and director Baldoni.

It was previously reported by TMZ that the mother-of-four was allegedly fat-shamed on-set by Baldoni in preparation for a scene in the film which saw Baldoni lift Lively into the air.

There have also been swirling rumours of a feud between Lively and director Baldoni (pictured)

The film is based on the book by Colleen Hoover and focuses on the story of Lily Bloom, played by Lively , who becomes embroiled in an abusive relationship with a man named Ryle Kincaid, portrayed by Justin Baldoni

Insiders told the outlet that Baldoni suffers from back problems and sought assistance from a trainer prior to the lifting scene.

Baldoni allegedly asked the trainer how much Lively weighed and asked for help preparing his back to avoid incurring an injury.

When Lively learned about Baldoni's comments, she allegedly felt fat-shamed by him.

Lively welcomed her fourth child with husband Ryan Reynolds in February 2023, and sources shared with TMZ that the remark really got to the actress.

TMZ sources also cited another alleged instance that bothered Lively on the set.

The duo were filming a kissing scene and sources claim Lively believed Baldoni 'lingered' longer than was necessary for the kiss.

MailOnline reached out to representatives for Baldoni and Lively for comment.
Channing Tatum has given a candid insight into what it was really like working with Hugh Jackman on the set of Deadpool and Wolverine.

The Blink Twice star, 44, said it was an 'existential experience' work with the Aussie hunk, 55, and see him in his superhero get-up on-set.

A self-proclaimed 'nerd', Channing told The Daily Telegraph he was 'losing his mind' being able to stand next to a comic book superhero he has admired for so long.

'This is not anything against Wesley [Snipes], because like he truly is the Godfather, but Hugh will always be Marvel daddy to me,' Channing said.

'There will never be another Wolverine for me. I had a full on, existential experience just looking over and Wolverine was standing next to me.'

He added: 'I was freaking out, I was losing my mind and the fact that he's just such a class act and is so good at what he does, and he still cares man.'

Channing went on to say that when Hugh decides to retire from the Wolverine costume for good after 25 years, 'there's no one that's going to beat it'.

The Magic Mike star isn't the only colleague of Hugh's to leave him a heartwarming tribute, as Deadpool actor Ryan Reynolds recently reduced the Aussie actor to tears.

Channing Tatum, 44, (right) revealed he went into full fan mode when he worked alongside Australia's own Hugh Jackman, 55, (left) on the set of Deadpool and Wolverine

Ryan, 47, took to Instagram on Monday to share a series of photos chronicling his relationship with Hugh along with an expansive post detailing how the pair first met.

He also revealed how their Deadpool & Wolverine collaboration came about.

'On August 14th, 2022, @thehughjackman stopped his car to call me,' Ryan began.

'He'd been having a crappy week he'd had the flu, two flat tires and some random idiot egged his house. But what happened next, happened fast. He told me he wanted to bring The Wolverine back.'

Ryan went on to reveal the excitement he felt the first time he saw Hugh in the Wolverine suit.

The Blink Twice star said it was an 'existential experience' to see the Aussie hunk in his superhero get-up, reported The Daily Telegraph on Thursday

'When Hugh stepped onto set in THAT SUIT everyone knew something special was happening. I remember thinking everything was gonna be okay,' he said.

Ryan went on to detail the pair's first meeting, kicking off what would become a 17-year friendship with Hugh, who Ryan called his 'friend and favorite actor'.

'I met him in Sydney around 2007,' Ryan continued.

'Back then he was already a movie star and I walked onto set a supporting actor. Showing up midway through production isn't too dissimilar to starting a new school. I was a nervous mess.'

Ryan added that Hugh made him and the rest of the crew feel at ease, something which he had never forgotten.

'Film sets can have a scary imbalance of power and I remember seeing how he treated every member of the crew with genuine respect and appreciation,' Ryan said.

'He made a case that the term "filmmaker" isn't just for people with their name on the poster.'

A self-proclaimed 'nerd', the Hollywood star said he was 'losing his mind' being able to stand next to a comic book superhero he has admired for so long

Ryan continued the expansive tribute, gushing over Hugh and referring to him as THE X-Man.

'I don't know anyone more thoughtful, and classy than Hugh. He'll do anything for someone he loves. He'll do anything for someone he just met,' he said.

'In Deadpool & Wolverine, Hugh didn't just make dreams come true for fans of Wolverine. He made MY dreams come true too. He is THE X-Man.'

The heartwarming tribute was not lost on Hugh, who jumped into the comments to reveal Ryan's words had made him tear up.

'And now I'm crying again,' Hugh wrote.
Joe Gorgas comedy set over the weekend featured multiple surprise jabs against his estranged sister Teresa Giudice and her husband Luis Louie Ruelas.

As Teresa, Luis, Jennifer Aydin and her husband Bill Aydin were enjoying their European vacation in Turkey, their castmates were mocking them on stage at Harrahs Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Joe , 50, was out to shock from the outset as he made a candid revelation that his sex life with wife Melissa Gorga isnt as spicy 20 years into their marriage, before taking aim at Teresa and Luis.

When he joked about a dream he had had about dying, he recalled the priest saying, Im going to call his only family, Teresa Giudice.

This prompted the crowd to erupt in a lot of boos and Joe to pause as he waited for the commotion to die down. He continued his joke, Teresa Giudice to give the eulogy.

Joe Gorgas comedy set over the weekend featured multiple surprise jabs against his estranged sister Teresa Giudice and her husband Luis Louie Ruelas

When he joked about a dream he had had about dying, he recalled the priest saying, Im going to call his only family, Teresa Giudice - - pictured with Luis

He then imitated her walking to the front of the memorial service, stood up on a stool that was set on stage and said, Mirror, mirror on the wall. Whos the best housewife of them all?

He continued, And she says, That b***h killed my brother. I shouldve known when she brought me sprinkle cookies instead of pignoli cookies,' referring to Melissa.

A few jokes later, Joe slammed Louies past comment about wearing his late fathers pajamas. Joe told the audience, I go into the other room and theyre like, You have to talk to Louie. Im like, Louie? Oh s**t. So I sit down and I had this talk with Louie, and he looks at me and he goes'I wear your fathers pajamas!'

Joes pals, Frank Catania, Joe Benigno, and John Fuda, then surprised the star on stage by walking out from behind him wearing casual T-shirts and pajama pants. Joe, Margaret's husband, said, Joey, we wanted you to feel a little better so we came out here wearing your dads pjs.

Joe, admiring the support, gushed to the audience, See my friends how much they care about me?

Joe and Teresa have been feuding for years - Joe and Melissa, cut off communication with Teresa after the explosive season 13 finale, which aired in 2023.

After Teresa and her husband Luis accused Melissa of cheating on Joe, Melissa firmly denied the allegations. The Gorgas then ended up skipping Teresa and Luis' August 2022 wedding.

Frank Catania, Dolores Catanias ex, opened An Evening of Comedy Starring Joe Gorga coming to his exs defense about Louies comments about Margaret Josephs son.

Joe , 50, was out to shock from the outset as he made a candid revelation that his sex life with wife Melissa Gorga isnt as spicy 20 years into their marriage, before taking aim at Teresa and Luis

Joe and Teresa have been feuding for years - Joe and Melissa, cut off communication with Teresa after the explosive season 13 finale, which aired in 2023 - seen in 2017

The last episode of RHONJ, deemed the non-traditional reunion, included two separate rooms of cast members watching the finale back and voicing their opinions.

When the ladies watched Louie saying he hopes Margaret's son suffers  a comment he has since apologized for  Dolores tells Teresa how it was wrong of him to say that while watching the episode at Rails Steakhouse.

Frank told the crowd, according to an eyewitness who spoke exclusively to DailyMail.com, I always try hard to not get team this, team that, but it just becomes more and more difficult. You guys see this all the time - you see Dolores tries to play Switzerland. But you saw the finale though, didn't you?

She spoke her mind when it came to Teresa and talking about somebody's children. But let's talk about this season for a second.

The father-of-two went on to joke about Jennifer Fessler and how he was surprised she didnt f**k John Fuda since he was acting like Tony Soprano this season (Fesser confessed to hooking up with the late Sopranos star James Gandolfini in the past).

Viewers watched as Fuda and Giudice had multiple arguments this season over Rachel Fudas husbands past and accusations of Louie contacting his ex for information.

Joes pals, Frank Catania, Joe Benigno, and John Fuda, surprised the star on stage by walking out from behind him to support him

A few jokes later, Joe slammed Louies past comment about wearing his late fathers pajamas

The comedy show ended with a Q&A portion with special guests including Rachel Fuda, Danielle Cabral and Nate Cabral

The comedy show ended with a Q&A portion with special guests Melissa Gorga, Rachel Fuda, Danielle Cabral, Nate Cabral and Brittany Mattessich, who joined Gorga, Catania, Benigno and Fuda on stage.

The host Michael Mortocci walked around to get questions from the crowd. At one point, he asked, Audience, what did you guys think of the finale? Whos a Jennifer [Aydin] fan here? Whos a Teresa fan here? The RHONJ fans booed for both Jen and Teresa.

He continued, Whos a Melissa Gorga fan here? Whos a Rachel Fuda fan here? before prompting the crowd to chant, Lets get a f**k Louie. F**k Louie, f**k Louie!

Rachel, who is pregnant with her third child, seemed disappointed in what was going on and quickly screamed in the mic, This is inappropriate, this is inappropriate! This is not what this is about.

However, Melissa was asked to show off the pose she gave Teresa during the finale. In the episode, she mocked the OGs pose with her hand on her hip and her head tilted to the side.

Melissa also took a swipe at Jennifer Aydin for getting into a fight with Danielle Cabral. That is a first-class jerk off, she said.

Danielle weighed in on her fight and told the audience, Let me tell you something - it's even better watching it back with all your friends. Imagine having a camera when you're out. I mean this shit should. happen when you're in your 20s, not when you're 38, but imagine watching stuff like that back.

Gorga recently rang in his 50th birthday with Melissa and their children

As the RHONJ stars continue to keep up appearances, they are patiently waiting to hear back about what's going to happen for season 15.

DailyMail.com previously reported that the show is 'on ice' and 'likely won't resume filming until 2025.'

Everybody is waiting to find out whats going to happen, a source spilled. The cast for the new season is not going to be decided anytime soon. Casting is not something Bravo is rushing into. Its not even going to start to take form until next year.

After producer Andy Cohen claimed the show can be 'rebooted,' a source revealed Bravo is 'actively seeking new housewives.'

'They're always looking for new talent to bring in higher ratings,' the source insisted.
This star looked unrecognisable in a brunette wig on Instagram on Thursday as she prepares to return to television next month. Can YOU guess who it is?

The athlete, 35, took a number of selfies in front of a mirror in the post shared to her almost one million followers.

A native Australian, she has been a key member of one of television's most popular reality competition programme since 2017.

She captioned the mind-boggling post: 'I joined the brunette club for a few hours ! With my brunette sisters @nancy_xuxi @michelle_tsiak'. So, can you guess who it is?

It's Strictly Come Dancing's Dianne Buswell!

This star, 35, looked unrecognisable in a brunette wig on Instagram on Thursday as she prepares to return to television next month. Can YOU guess who it is?

The athlete took a number of selfies in front of a mirror in the post shared to her almost one million followers

A native Australian, she has been a key member of one of television's most popular reality competition programme since 2017. So, can you guess who it is?

Fans will be forgiven for not recognising the beauty without her iconic bright red hair, but her Strictly co-stars were on hand to remove all doubt.

The temporary new look comes after Dianne's 2023 Strictly partner broke his silence on the Strictly scandal.

The beloved BBC series is currently embroiled in controversy over how the professional dancers teach the celebs, with multiple accusations emerging of bullying and abusive behaviour.

EastEnders star Bobby Brazier, who finished second to ex Ellie Leach, said his own experiences did not reflect the reports but 12-hour days of training did sometimes lead to 'bickering'.

The actor, 21, told MailOnline: 'My own experience was great and was everything I wanted it to be. I didnt expect it to be as great as it was.

'[Diane and I would] bicker here and there but we'd laugh. It was just a real balance.

'It was real, you spend so much time with someone doing something you've never done, that's really hard in a competition so it's never going to be completely one thing. I was so grateful it was everything to such an intense extent.'

He also shared advice for the latest batch of contestants, including EastEnders co-star Jamie Borthwick, 30, ahead of training.

Bobby said: 'Take your lunch breaks and when your professional doesn't want to stop and you do, take that nap.

'And request, humbly request, politely request that they wake you up nicely so you're in a good mood ready to dance instead of tired and angry.'

It's Dianne Buswell! (Pictured in the winners room with the Best Female Personality Award at the National Reality TV Awards 2024 held at the Porchester Hall in London in July)

Fans will be forgiven for not recognising the beauty without her iconic bright red hair, but her Strictly co-stars were on hand to remove all doubt

The temporary new look comes after Dianne's 2023 Strictly partner Bobby Brazier, 21, broke his silence on the Strictly scandal

Strictly returns with its twenty-second series in September, and this series will feature a major change.

This week, Rose Ayling-Ellis - who won Strictly with Giovanni in 2021 as Strictly's first deaf contestant - revealed that, for the first time in its history, Strictly will feature live signing.

This, alongside audio description and subtitling, means that more of the Strictly audience will be able to get involved and vote during its 20th anniversary series.

Kate Phillips, director of unscripted series, confirmed: 'Strictly Come Dancing has always been at the forefront of inclusivity and representation and Im delighted that our 20th-anniversary series will be the most accessible yet for our audience.'
This budget allocation of Rs 1.48 lakh crore for education and skilling along with digital learning will help build a robust, future-ready workforce

Union Minister for Education Dharmendra Pradhan hailed the 2024-25 budget as a pivotal milestone on Indias path to becoming a developed nation by 2047. Prioritising education, skilling, employment generation, research and innovation like never before, #Budget for Viksit Bharat paves the way for strengthening Bharats credentials ..

Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan posted on X. He noted that these are comprehensive and concrete measures taken up by Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman that will be a win-win for all stakeholdersstudents, academia, and industry.

The budget allocation for Education, employment, and skilling has been increased by 30% to Rs 1.48 lakh crore. India has the largest educational system with 265 million students in schools, 43 million in higher education and more than 10 million learners enrolled in skilling institutions. The Budget Allocation for 2024-25 of Rs 73,498 crores is the highest ever for the Department of School Education & Literacy. Autonomous bodies such as the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan and Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti have also received their highest-ever allocations. The Flagship Schemes like Samagra Shiksha, POSHAN and PM-SHRI have got Rs 3,250 crores. The budget includes strengthening the skilling and apprenticeship ecosystem, skill development and internship opportunities for one crore youth by Indias top companies, and providing employment-linked incentives to first-time employees across the sector. The government has introduced a revamped Model Skill Loans Scheme from 1.5 lahks to 7.5 lahks to 25000 students annually and education loans up to 10 lahks for pursuing education in higher domestic educational institutions to one lakh students every year with an annual interest subvention of 3%. The step will certainly promote enrolment in domestic institutions as well as reduce the financial burden on the students. In addition to this, the finance minister also outlined several initiatives for the Skill Development sector.

These include the upgrading of 1,000 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) in line with the skill requirements of the industry. The internship opportunities for one crore youth in 5 years by the government is a welcoming step, this will provide youths with an engagement and enhance employability and practical skills.

In the scheme National Apprenticeship Training Scheme (NATS), an allocation of Rs 600 crore has been made.There has been an overall increase of Rs. 3525.15 crore (7.99%) in the budget allocation of the Department of Higher Education in this budget.

Deemed Universities, IITs NITs, IISERs, and IISc have got hefty allocations, considerably high in comparison to the previous budget. In higher education, areas like Digital e-learning, Research and Innovation, teacher training, the Centre of Excellence in Artificial Intelligence and some specific institutions have received higher allocations. Under Digital e-learning, the government is looking forward to tapping the potential of virtual learning and aligning it with the Academic Bank of Credits with the view of increasing portability and flexible study options.

In the scheme National Mission in Education through ICT, an allocation of ?480 crore has been made in 2024-25 and this is ? 80 crore more than the allocation in 2023-24.The increased budget for Research and Innovation is to focus on academic and research collaborations in science, engineering and technical education. To improve the quality of education being imparted at the school level it requires a revamped pedagogical structure, so, the Teacher Training segment has got its due share. The scheme Establishment of 3 Centres of Excellence (CoEs) in Artificial Intelligence (AI) has got an allocation of ? 255 crore in the budget. The Major Schemes For Pradhan Mantri Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (PM-USHA) erstwhile known as Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA)], the budget has been kept at Rs1814.94 crore An allocation of Rs 1800 crore has been allocated for Institutions of Eminence. In the scheme Multi disciplinary Education and Research Improvement in Technical Education EAP (MERITE), an allocation of Rs 200 crore has been made and this is a 100% increase over the last year's budget.

The NEP 2020 says that the aim of the policy must be for India to have an education system by 2040 with equitable access to the highest-quality education for all learners regardless of social or economic background. Recognising the crucial role of education the government has designed an ambitious package for education for it to be growth-oriented, inclusive and progressive. However, the most important aspect is its implementation. The features of the budget meant for education will play a crucial role in guiding India towards becoming a Viksit Bharat by 2047 as stated by the Education Minister.

(The writer is an educationist and a freelance writer; views expressed are personal)
For the first time since the revocation of Article 370 and the bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir in 2019, the region is set to hold its Assembly elections

Jammu and Kashmir will have Assembly elections from September 18 to October 1 to elect 90 legislators, the first after the revocation of Article 370 and the state's bifurcation in August 2019. The delay in holding new elections has been a contention for years. However, a recent Supreme Court directive was crucial in setting the timeline. Now that the elections are announced, political parties of all shades welcomed it. Kashmir has been a significant source of conflict for long between India and Pakistan. Both countries claim Kashmir, although they only govern a part of it. Pakistan has even internationalised the issue, which has been brought to the United Nations. In 2019, mixed reactions followed Modi's decision to divide the state.

This decision led to Kashmir losing its flag, criminal code, and constitutional protections. Government job opportunities for Kashmiris decreased and are now open to non-residents. Despite challenges, the state has seen both positive and negative changes. The Prime Minister's initiatives have spurred development, and the growing interest of Gulf countries in investing in Jammu and Kashmir signals a promising future, bringing hope to the residents. The Ministry of Home Affairs reports decreased security force casualties from 80 in 2019 to 33 in 2023 and a drop in civilian deaths from 44 in 2019 to 12 in 2023. The last state elections were in 2014. The high voter turnout in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls has led to Assembly polls.

In Kashmir, there was a historic 58.46% voter turnout in the recent parliamentary elections, a 30-point increase from the 2019 general election. The government completed a delimitation exercise after the 2019 revocation of Article 370 and the bifurcation. The assembly seats in Jammu and Kashmir increased from 87 to 114 after the 2022 delimitation, including 24 seats for Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). This increase in seats could potentially shift the balance of power and influence the strategies of political parties in the upcoming elections. The BJP claimed that the scrapping of Article 370 and their subsequent policies in Kashmir had developed the region for the better. The recently concluded Lok Sabha elections in Jammu and Kashmir were a significant victory for Indian democracy. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the NC and PDP saw a resurgence.

The election allowed them to revitalise their membership and bring long-standing issues to the forefront. Although the Congress did not secure any seats, the NC won two out of three, presenting a strong challenge for the third seat.

Despite the region's history of terrorism and allegations of rigged elections, the polls were widely celebrated for the conduct of free and fair polls. The upcoming election will test the central government's efforts to integrate Jammu and Kashmir more fully into the Indian Union after revoking the region's special status under Article 370.

It is also a test for the Election Commission to conduct polls without any violent incidents, The political parties have started preparing for the upcoming assembly elections, including campaign strategy, alliances, and candidate selection. The People's Conference, Congress, Peoples Democratic Party, and National Conference met to plan for the elections. The political parties have started preparing for the upcoming assembly elections, including campaign strategy, alliances, and candidate selection.

The People's Conference, Congress, Peoples Democratic Party, and National Conference have all met at their party level to plan for the elections. If the assembly elections are held as scheduled, the Valley will see a contest between the NC and the PDP. Moreover, the polarisation and separatist narrative that gained traction during the Lok Sabha elections will only intensify and peak during the assembly elections.

The PDP leader and daughter of Mehboobha Mufti echoed the others. Other political parties, including the Congress, the BJP, the CPI(M) and the Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP), welcomed the EC's announcement.

In the 2014 Jammu and Kashmir elections, no party won a majority. Governor's Rule was imposed for 49 days until PDP's Mehbooba Mufti was appointed chief minister with BJP's support. 2018, the BJP withdrew from the ruling alliance, leading to the Governor's Ruleagain. The assembly was dissolved in November 2018, and President's Rule was imposed in December 2018 . Since then, the governor's Rule has been in the state.

The government needs to decide whether to intervene in the Kashmir Valley to address soft separatism or consider a reorganisation plan before the elections. During the parliamentary elections, Congress and the NC allied. The NC contested three seats in Kashmir, while Congress contested in Jammu and Udhampur. PDP, part of the INDIA Alliance, was not accommodated and fielded candidates on three seats in Kashmir against the National Conference. For the upcoming Assembly polls, the scene is not explicit. Congress and NC might go together. Omar mentioned that allying with the PDP would be difficult because they ran against each other in the parliament elections. If the regional parties want to improve, they must unite, and the INDIA Bloc must collaborate. The Kashmir elections are crucial, and the entire country will observe a popular government's rise after a decade.

(The writer is a popular columnist; views are personal)
PMs visit underscores India's evolving role on the world stage, where it seeks to navigate complex alliances and assert its national interests

Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Kyiv marks a significant moment in international diplomacy, reflecting India's strategic balancing act between Russia and the West amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. As the first leader from a nation that maintains strong relations with both Russia and Western countries, Modis visit sends a nuanced message to global powers, particularly Russia.

While some observers suggest that Modis visit is intended to placate Western disappointment following his two recent visits to Russia, the reality appears more complex. Modis trip to Ukraine serves primarily as a subtle signal to Moscow that India can engage with Ukraine as well. This visit comes at a critical time, coinciding with Ukraines recent military successes against Russian forces, adding weight to the message Modi intends to deliver.

India's historical relationship with Ukraine has been far from warm, yet the scale of suffering in Ukraine has stirred sympathy within India. This sentiment is reflected in Modis earlier statements, emphasizing that this is not an era of war and advocating for peaceful resolutions. Despite this, India has refrained from condemning Russia's actions, continuing to purchase oil from Moscow, which has been crucial for Russia during the conflict.

However, Russia's increasingly close ties with China have become a point of concern for India, particularly regarding China's aggressive behavior along the Indian border. The 2020 Galwan Valley clash and subsequent military tensions have strained India-China relations, making Russias perceived indifference to Indias security concerns troubling. The frequent meetings between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping have heightened these concerns, prompting India to reassess its foreign policy strategy.

Modi's visit to Ukraine can be seen as a diplomatic effort to subtly pressure Russia into reconsidering its relationship with China. By engaging with Ukraine, India signals to Moscow that its close ties with Beijing cannot be taken for granted without potential consequences. Historically, India has enjoyed a strong relationship with Russia, especially in defense, but the evolving geopolitical landscape requires India to prioritize its national interests.

Modis visit also underscores Indias independent foreign policy, a principle that has guided the country since the Cold War era. India has long prided itself on its non-aligned stance, making decisions based on strategic interests rather than aligning with any particular bloc. This approach remains relevant in the 21st century, as India navigates the complexities of global politics.

Indias refusal to outright condemn Russia at the United Nations has caused friction with Western capitals. However, Modis visit to Ukraine demonstrates that Indias neutrality does not imply inaction or tacit approval of Russian aggression. Instead, it reflects a nuanced approach, balancing relationships and interests while encouraging Russia to reconsider its military strategy.

As India seeks to strengthen its ties with Western nations, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region where China's assertiveness is a growing concern, Modis visit to Ukraine reaffirms Indias commitment to a multipolar world. India values its strategic autonomy, making decisions based on its national interestsa stance that has occasionally drawn criticism from its allies.

Another important aspect of Modis visit is India's interest in contributing to Ukraine's reconstruction efforts. The war has left Ukraine in ruins, and India sees an opportunity to play a role in its rebuilding process. This involvement would not only be a humanitarian gesture but also a strategic investment that could benefit the Indian economy. India has already provided humanitarian aid to Ukraine, and Modis visit could pave the way for more substantial support, including infrastructure projects and logistical assistance, which would also benefit related Indian industries.

Furthermore, Indias involvement in Ukraines reconstruction could serve as a counterbalance to Chinas Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). By offering an alternative model of development cooperation that respects the sovereignty of partner countries, India positions itself as a more favorable partner for nations in need. This approach aligns with Indias broader goal of positioning itself as a global leader and a moral force in international diplomacy.

As the world closely watches Modis visit to Ukraine, the potential outcomes could have far-reaching implications for global power dynamics. Should Modi's diplomacy contribute to a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, India could emerge as a significant peacemaker and problem solver on the world stage. This would enhance India's reputation as a nation capable of navigating complex geopolitical landscapes while maintaining its principles and strategic autonomy.

(The writer is a senior journalist who has been covering foreign affairs for many years; views are personal)
Raj Kapoor's relationship with the capital remains an enduring part of his legacy, etched in the memories of cinema halls and the city's cultural fabric

As fans gear up to celebrate the birth centenary of Bollywood's legendary showman Raj Kapoor on December 14th, it is essential to remember his deep-rooted connection with Delhia city that was almost like a second home to him. Kapoor's association with Delhi was profound, and this bond will be celebrated in a grand event in the capital on his birth anniversary.

Raj Kapoor's final days were also tied to Delhi, where he passed away on June 2, 1988. Just a month before his death, on May 2nd, 1988, he was honored with the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award by then President R. Venkataraman at the Siri Fort auditorium. Unfortunately, his health deteriorated shortly after the ceremony, leading to severe breathing difficulties. He was admitted to AIIMS, where doctors, led by Dr. J.N. Pandey, tried their best to save him, but his condition did not improve, and he passed away due to complications from asthma. Delhi, the city that played such a significant role in his life, also became the place of his final farewell.

Kapoor had a special affinity for Delhi's iconic cinema halls, particularly Regal and Moti, where he preferred his films to be premiered. Regal, one of New Delhi's first cinema halls, held a special place in his heart. It was here that some of his most celebrated films, including "Sangam," "Mera Naam Joker," "Satyam Shivam Sundaram," "Boot Polish," and "Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai," were released.

The RK Banner films consistently performed well in the capital, further cementing Kapoor's connection with the city. As Pandit J.P. Sharma 'Trikha,' a close family friend, recalls, even Kapoor's father, Prithviraj Kapoor, had acted in plays at Regal, which showcased both English and Hindi productions in its early days. Sadly, Regal closed its doors in 2017, with Moti following suit shortly after.

Shashi Kapoor, Raj Kapoor's younger brother, fondly remembered his visits to Regal with his elder brother. For Shashi, Regal was more than just a cinema hall; it was a place filled with memories of Raj Kapoor.

Raj Kapoor's connection with Delhi was not limited to cinema alone. His tryst with the city began in 1957 when he produced the film "Ab Dilli Door Nahin."

The film also marked one of the early appearances of a young Amjad Khan, who would later become famous as Gabbar Singh. "Ab Dilli Door Nahin" captured various iconic locations in Delhi, including the old iron bridge over the Yamuna, Daryaganj, and Connaught Place.

Kapoor's relationship with Delhi deepened further in 1970 when his eldest daughter, Ritu, married Rajan Nanda, son of H.P. Nanda, the founder chairman of the Escorts Group. Raj Kapoor would often visit his daughter's home in Jor Bagh whenever he was in town, strengthening his bond with Delhi.

The Kapoor family's connection with Delhi extended beyond Raj Kapoor. His younger brother, Shammi Kapoor, had a different association with the city's cinema culture. In the mid-1960s, Shammi Kapoor became a partner in Plaza Cinema in Connaught Place, along with film producer F.C. Mehra. While he later sold his stake, Shammi Kapoor remains the only member of the Kapoor clan to have held a stake in a cinema hall.

Raj Kapoor's fondness for his younger brother Shashi was evident, with the former often treating the latter as a son. Shashi Kapoor's early film "Householder," directed by James Ivory and produced by Ismail Merchant, was primarily shot in a large house near Times House in Daryaganj. "Householder," written by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, featured two of Delhi's iconic landmarks, Jantar Mantar and Jama Masjid. The Kapoor family's connection with Delhi is deeply rooted, with their memories continuing to be cherished in the city.

(The writer is a journalist and a columnist; views are personal)
To unlock the States true potential, there is an urgent need for structural reforms that prioritise smooth operations, accountability and stakeholder engagement

It's time for the complex web of multiple organisations of the Punjab government to take cues from the Indian Army's well-structured organisational hierarchy, which prioritises efficient command, control, and operational efficiency to maintain readiness. From a Havaldar leading a section, the smallest unit comprising ten soldiers, to the Chief of the Army Staff, the Army meticulously ensures cohesive functioning, distinct roles, and responsibilities, enabling the 14.55 lakh personnel to effectively fulfil defence and security roles. In contrast, the Punjab government's organisational structure (4.15 lakh personnel, including contractual and outsourced) requires an overhaul. In total, 50 parent departments and 163 affiliated organisations, each with its administrative head, aim for seamless result-oriented operations, which are below expectations.In the current government, the Chief Minister, who also oversees the industry sector, plays a pivotal role. However, the current structure, with around 20 administrative secretaries heading 17 departments, corporations, boards, and regulatory authorities, is not conducive to growth. By fostering a culture of collaboration, we can overcome these hurdles and drive efficiency and accountability towards a single goal of industrial growth, which has the potential to exceed the current stagnation of around 3% over the past 20 years in Punjab. Unfortunately, the complexity of multiple departments cannot achieve the single target of developing a fresh entrepreneurial class in the state. Rather, numerous channels breed corruption at various levels, and coercion can easily be gauged as the Punjab government scrapped 1498 mandatory compliances for industries three years ago. Therefore, it is high time to further ease the parent department as a single unique point, focusing on the singular target of developing a fresh entrepreneurial class in the state. It's impractical for any chief secretary to closely monitor 50 parent departments and their 163 affiliated organisations, which around 75 administrative secretaries head.

Assigning an Apex officer, preferably at an additional chief secretary (ACS) level, is crucial to overseeing and synchronising each key sector. This officer will provide guidance, ensure alignment of goals and strategies, and streamline human resources operations effectively.Industries and other key sectors, such as Education, Health, urban development, Rural Development, and Agriculture, also need help navigating the complex web of 15 parent departments and their 69 affiliated organisations, which hampers good governance in Punjab. However, these challenges also present an opportunity for policymakers to reassess and reform, driving efficient and accountable human resources and paving the way for a vibrant Punjab.Industries: In Punjab industries are overseen by over 20 administrative secretaries who manage 17 departments and affiliated organizations.

This large organizational structure, instead of collectively achieving the goal of growth, is currently engaged in assessing around 2000 compliances, posing a significant challenge for entrepreneurs. The need for an efficient and accountable administrative setup is urgent to create a conducive and thriving business environment.Initially, the Department of Punjab Industries and Commerce and its seven affiliated organisations oversaw the industrial sector.

However, three additional departments were later established - the Department of Investment Promotion, the Department of Employment Generation and Training, and the Department of Technical Education and Industrial Training - along with their ten organisations to fulfil the same objective.To fetch new investment, "Invest Punjab" was established under the Punjab Bureau of Investment Promotion (PBIP) as a single access point to streamline processes. It is claimed that this entity has been empowered to provide over 34 regulatory approvals, clearances, and compliances related to more than 30 organisations. This streamlined approach is crucial for existing industries, as they face challenges in directly dealing with 17 departments- the Punjab Industries & Commerce Department, Pollution Control Board, Chief Electrical Inspector, Labour Commissioner, Department of Factories, Department of Industries, Employment Generation and Training, Skill Development Mission, Punjab Bureau of Investment Promotion and Punjab State Industrial Development Corporation etc.

This complex web of multiple departments is directionless and unfocused; enormous human resources can be utilised in a single merged service provider entity. In 2012, the idea of merging The Punjab State Industrial Development Corporation (PSIDC) and Punjab Financial Corporation (PFC) into the Punjab Small Industries and Export Corporation (PSIEC) was also proposed but has yet to materialise.

Punjab, with 99.7 per cent of MSMEs, is a promising hub for growth. However, the most significant roadblock for these enterprises is dealing with multiple departments and keeping track of their compliance. Despite the implementation of ten policies since the first industrial policy was formulated in 1978, the need for actionable governance reforms is still pressing. It is necessary to explore various measures to significantly improve services and make Punjab an attractive destination. Policymakers must urgently re-imagine the state.Agriculture: In Punjab, agriculture is overseen by five distinct departments: the Department of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development and Fisheries, Department of Horticulture, and Department of Soil & Water Conservation.

Eighteen additional organisations support these departments. Despite the involvement of multiple organisations, the state's agricultural growth has consistently declined, resting at around three per cent from 1990 to 2000 and further declining to less than two per cent from 2010 onwards.Education: The government greatly emphasises education and considers it a top priority.

There is a critical need to revamp the administrative structure, as there are currently two separate departments, with six organisations and a school education board. The Department of Higher Education and Languages manages organisations in education and languages, while the Department of School Education oversees the six organisations. Despite these efforts, it is essential to address that Punjab's secondary school dropout rate was 17.2% in 2022, exceeding the national average of 12.6%.The Way Forward: The reforms have the potential to significantly improve the functioning of key sectors in Punjab, creating a more accessible, transparent, efficient, responsive and accountable system to achieve a single goal collectively. Therefore two steps may be taken: First, Empowering Apex Officials: To achieve seamless collaboration among departments, empower at least five to six apex officers who will oversee the overall administration of their respective departments and have to report to the chief secretary. Each apex officer should have the support of five to six officers as direct reports.

This approach aims to improve responsiveness, ensure transparency in decision-making processes, and hold apex officials accountable for their actions. Second, Stakeholder Engagement: The active participation of stakeholders is not just important, it's integral to the success of the proposed reforms. Encouraging stakeholder participation through feedback mechanisms and regular interactions to understand their needs and concerns is a key part of inclusive growth.

(The Author is Vice-Chairman of Sonalika ITL Group, Vice-Chairman(Cabinet minister rank) of the Punjab Economic Policy and Planning Board, Chairman of ASSOCHAM Northern Region Development Council and President of Tractor and Mechanization Association(TMA). Views expressed are personal)
The Maldives after a break is now trying to mend fences with India

Indias recent outreach to Maldives, with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar visiting the island nation, a couple of weeks back signifies a reset in the currently stressed bilateral relationship between the neighbours. After new President Mohmmed Muizzu took charge, there has been a spate of anti-India voices, which has derailed decades of carefully curated strategic defence partnerships. Mr Muizzus PNC- PPM coalition came to power last year, largely driven by India's campaign. Soon after Indian defence forces manning some critical equipment for the Maldives, were given marching orders and it seemed relations with Indias nearest maritime neighbour were on a downward spiral without any checks. However, things began to change somewhere towards the beginning of this year and President Muizzu was invited to PM Modis third swearing-in ceremony in June.

In his speech at the inauguration of the India-assisted projects to hand over water and sewerage projects across 28 islands of the Maldives President was all praise for the Indian PM. He said The Government and people of Maldives extend our deep gratitude to Prime Minister of India, His Excellency Narendra Modi, the Government, and the friendly people of India for their generous and continued assistance to the Maldives.and discuss strengthening our bilateral relations.

The speech highlighted a rethink regarding India relations and perhaps a silent acknowledgement that the Maldives needs India, to come out of financial stress. Maldives needs nearly millions of dollars in budgetary support for which the President has already reached out to China, Turkiye and some Middle Eastern nations. However, any bailout by the lending countries has stiff collaterals attached, which could have risky consequences in future. Meanwhile India despite getting a bloodied nose, has been committed to rolling over nearly $100 million in payments due from the Maldives, to ease off its financial burden. Maldives has also realised that beyond the India Out rhetoric, a recalibration of the bilateral in terms of economic and security ties would be a great midway for a stronger partnership with India. It was no coincidence that several critical India-assisted infrastructure projects inaugurated pre-President Muizzus tenure were an important peg during S Jaishankars visit to Male.

The press release issued by the ministry highlighted EAM visited the India-assisted Greater Male Connectivity Project (GMCP) site and jointly reviewed the progress of this flagship development project that will connect Male with the adjoining islands of Villingili, Gulhifalhu and Thilafushi...EAM also visited Addu city on 11 August 2024, during which he, along with Foreign Minister and Minister of Construction and Infrastructure, jointly inaugurated the Addu Reclamation and Shore Protection Project and Addu Detour Link Bridge Project. The visit highlights the importance of Maldives, Indias maritime neighbour, as a key partner in the Neighbourhood First' policy and Indias Vision SAGAR i.e. Security and Growth for All in the Region.

Maldives remains an important partner of India in maintaining peace, stability and prosperity in the Indian Ocean region. India and Maldives are dependent on each other for their respective economic, security and climate change-related issues. However, the resentment in the Maldives relationship is also a greater message to the new government in Bangladesh, which in the past has not been a great sympathiser with Indias concerns. While the interim government in Bangladesh has so far maintained a moderate line of continuity on India bilateral, the political parties in power may not be too kind in future. Like many of Indias neighbours, Bangladesh too is under severe economic crisis, and sooner or later the realisation would dawn that the best bet for the country is to have a good neighbour.

(The writer is a policy analyst; views are personal)
Former alliance partners Congress and National Conference on Thursday decided to unitedly contest the upcoming Assembly polls by forging a pre-poll alliance in Jammu and Kashmir.

By finally stitching the deal, the National Conference has also put to rest all the speculations about the possibility of the post-poll alliance by the Kashmir-based mainstream regional parties with the ruling dispensation in New Delhi.

The alliance partners have decided to contest all 90 seats as per the terms and conditions of the pre-poll alliance.

The deal was struck between the two parties at the residence of Dr Farooq Abdullah in Srinagar. Omar Abdullah also attended the crucial meeting.

Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge after addressing the workers meeting at a private hotel in Srinagar visited the Gupkar Road residence of Dr Abdullah where they held a closed-door meeting with the top brass of the National Conference discussing the contours of the pre-poll alliance.

Soon after the meeting, the National Conference president Dr Farooq formally announced that the pre-poll alliance with Congress is final, and will be approved by this evening.

The alliance is on track and it will go on well with Gods grace. It is final and will be approved by this evening.

The NC president said Congress, NC and CPI(M) are on the same page and will fight Assembly elections together. He hoped that with the collective efforts of the alliance, the Statehood of Jammu and Kashmir would be restored.

However, he maintained that doors are still open for everyone to join the alliance and give a befitting reply to those who damaged the countrys institutions and its secular fabric.

To a query, he replied that the meeting with Kharge and Rahul took place in a very cordial atmosphere. The leaders from both parties have been entrusted with the responsibility of deciding how many seats NC was willing to leave for Congress in the Valley and how many seats Congress was ready to concede for the National Conference across the Jammu region.

Meanwhile, addressing a workers meeting in Srinagar, Rahul said it is our priority in the Congress party and also in the INDIA Block to restore Statehood to Jammu and Kashmir as soon as possible.

He said Congress is expecting the region gets Statehood before Assembly polls but polls were announced which is a step forward. We hope to see democracy restored, he said and reiterated that it was for the first time since Independence that a State was reduced to a Union Territory.

I have heard and seen UTs being converted into states but J&K is an exception. We have made it clear in our election manifesto that it was our priority to restore the democratic rights of the people of J&K and Ladakh.

Speaking on the occasion, All India Congress Committee (AICC) chief, Mallikarjun Kharge said that efforts are on to forge an alliance based on feedback from our local leaders. We want to keep the entire opposition along, he said. Kharge said that Congress is committed to ensuring the return of statehood.

He said that BJP couldnt ensure elections in J&K. The party announced polls under pressure in the wake of Supreme Court directions, the AICC chief said.

I want to put it on record that BJP cant suppress the peoples voices anymore in J&K. Congress is committed to work for the welfare of the people of J&K.

About Jammu and Kashmir, Kharge said not a single promise made by the BJP to the people of the region before elections has been fulfilled.

Not a single promise made to the people of Jammu and Kashmir before polls have been kept. They are all jumla, Kharge said.

The saffron party downgraded the erstwhile state into a Union Territory and the people here were not given any rights, he said, adding that there is no legislative council, no panchayat or municipality. The people have been kept away from democracy, Kharge said.

The Congress leaders interacted with the party workers in Jammu and Srinagar to get feedback about the partys grassroots-level preparations for the Assembly polls.
Resident doctors at AIIMS, Delhi RML Hospital and Federation of All India Medical Association announced that they were withdrawing their 11-day -long strike following assurance from the Supreme Court on Thursday.

We are resuming duty following the SCs appeal and assurances and intervention in the RG Kar incident and the safety of doctors. We commend the courts action and call for adherence to its directives. Patient care remains our top priority, the Resident Doctors Association, AIIMS, New Delhi, said in a post on X.

The resident doctors association of RML Hospital said in a similar statement that they would resume duty from 8 am on Friday. The SC on Thursday directed doctors protesting over the Kolkata rape and murder incident, to resume work and assured them that no adverse action would be taken after they rejoin.

The court said judges and doctors cannot go on a strike since they deal with matters involving life and liberty.

Justice and medicine cannot afford to be stopped. Can we (judges) go and sit outside the Supreme Court now? the bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud asked.

The bench comprising Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, was hearing the matter of the progress of the investigations by the two separate agencies  Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Kolkata police in the the alleged rape and murder of a woman doctor at R G Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata.

Justice and medicine cannot afford to be stopped. Can we (judges) go and sit outside the Supreme Court now?. How can public health infrastructure run if doctors dont resume work? ... Justice and medicine cannot go on strike. Can we go and sit outside the Supreme Court now? CJI Chandrachud remarked.

The bench also ordered the West Bengal government not to penalise those peacefully demanding justice. The court, however, clarified that it has not injuncted the state government from exercising such lawful powers.When we say peaceful protesters will not be disturbed, we also mean proper protocol will be followed, the bench said.

this Court has taken measures to ensure the institutionalization of the concerns of the medical professionals in terms of the previous order dated 20 August 2024, it is only to be expected that doctors would now return to work, the bench said in its order.

An apprehension has been expressed on behalf of the doctors stating that they are being proceeded against for the protests which took place in the past. We are expecting compliance with the assurance which has been given to the Court that the doctors would join normal duties. In the meantime, ifany adverse action has been taken against any protesting doctor for protests which have been carried out prior to the date of this order, no coercive steps shall be taken against them.

During the course of the hearing, counsel representing several resident doctors associations have indicated to the Court that the doctors are willing to go back to work and their duties. However, it has been submitted that the State Governments may take a considered view on putting into place at least some safety measures to assuage the concerns of the doctors, the bench said in its order.

The bench expressed its worries over the inhuman working hours of resident doctors all over the country flagged the hectic work schedules to also be considered by the National Task Force (NTF) which is mandated to recommend uniform safety protocols for medical professionals. We are deeply concerned about the inhuman working hours of resident doctors across the country. Some doctors work 36-hour shifts. The committee appointed should look into streamlining the on-duty hours of all doctors. The 36 or 48 hour shifts are just inhuman, the CJI said. Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra were also on the bench.

The Court also directed that the NTF take into consideration the suggestions made by the resident doctors and all other representatives relating to the medical profession.

As the hearing commenced, a counsel representing the resident doctors of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Nagpur submitted that the protesting doctors are being marked absent and not allowed to sit in exams.The bench said, We cannot direct the administration to mark them present when they are absent. If they resume duty, we will order a lenient view.

The court requested the protesting doctors to immediately resume their duties so that patients from marginalised sections and other needy people do not suffer. An apprehension has been expressed by the doctors that some of them are being proceeded against with respect to protests that happened in the past. We are expecting that in compliance with the assurance given to the court, the doctors will join the duties. Let there be no coercive action against doctors after they come back to work after todays order for any protest that happened before the date of todays order, the bench, also comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, said. The Delhi Medical Association told the court that FIRs have been lodged against certain doctors from the AIIMS, who took part in protests.

The court expressed concern over the fact that doctors at the AIIMS have been protesting for 13 days and asked them to get back to work. It may be recalled that on the previous date of hearing on Tuesday, the Court had urged the protesters to return to their duties.

The top court also asked political parties not to politicise the case and said law will take its course. The bench told Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the CBI, and senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing West Bengal government, that across the political spectrum, parties have to realise that law will take its course.

Submitting that statements should not be made, Mehta said, A sitting minister of the State of West Bengal has made a statement that if anybody talks anything against our leader (Mamata Banerjee), his fingers will be chopped off. Retorting to his submission, Sibal said that leader of opposition Suvendu Adhikari has said bullets will be fired.

The bench said, Do not politicise the situation. Across the political spectrum, parties have to realise that law will take its course. We are ensuring that law does take its course after quick investigation. The top court said it is concerned with safety and welfare of doctors and will pass enforceable directions on the issue.

TMC minister Udayan Guha has sparked controversy by claiming that fingers of those blaming West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and demanding her resignation over the RG Kar hospital incident would be broken. While talking to a news channel, Adhikari had allegedly said, Resign by Monday or you (Mamata Banerjee) will be held responsible or bullets are fired on Tuesday.

The rape and murder of the junior doctor in a seminar hall of the state-run hospital has sparked nationwide protests.
The Delhi Polices Special Cell on Thursday claimed to have busted an Al Qaeda-inspired terror module after arresting 11 people and detaining three others from Jharkhand, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.

Six of the suspects were arrested from Bhiwadi in Rajasthan while they were undergoing training to handle weapons, according to a police officer. They have been identified as Hasan Ansari, Enamul Ansari, Altaf Ansari, Arshad Khan, Umar Farroq and Shahbaz Ansari, all natives of Jharkhand. They were staying in Rajasthan for the past few days, the officer said.

Five more people were arrested from Ranchi in Jharkhand. They have been identified as Dr Ishtiyaq Ahmed, Motiur, Rizwan, Mufti Rahmatullah and Faizan, he added.

A senior police official said the operation by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police was conducted, along with the police forces of the States after receiving intelligence inputs. In a coordinated, intelligence based operation, conducted by the Special Cell of Delhi Police in association with State Police forces of Jharkhand, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, an Al Qaeda (AQ) inspired module has been busted, a Delhi Police statement said. The terror module was aiming to declare khilafat in the country and was planning for carrying out terrorist activities across India.

The module, as per current state of operations, was being led by one Dr. Ishtiyaq of Ranchi (Jharkhand), and it was aspiring to declare khilafat and execute serious terrorist activities within the country, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Public Relations Office) Suman Nalwa stated.

Members of the Al Qaeda inspired terror module were indoctrinated by the extremist ideologies and were also being trained at various locations to execute terrorist activities. The members of the module have received indoctrination and weapons training at various locations. Six people were detained from Bhiwadi in Rajasthan while they were undergoing training to handle weapons, and eight from Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh for questioning, it said.

The members of the terror module were trained, including in handling weapons, at various locations, including in the jungles of the Aravalli Hills in Rajasthan, another officer said. He said a massive operation was launched in the hills jungles to nab the suspects. The Delhi Police said three more people were detained from Uttar Pradeshs Aligarh for questioning.

Interrogations are currently underway at various locations and additional arrests are anticipated in the matter as the operation is ongoing. Raids are being conducted in several locations to recover arms, ammunition and literature, the officials said. Moreover, so far 15 places in Ranchi, one in Rajasthan and one in Aligarh (Uttar Pradesh) have been raided, the statement said.

It is suspected that the module was planning to execute a terror incident in the northern part of India during the upcoming festive season, they said. A senior police officer, privy to the operations, said that the Al Qaeda module has been active for the past few months and its members connected through social media.

A case under section of 61 (criminal conspiracy) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita was registered by the Special Cell on July 15, and since then, the anti-terror unit was collecting details of the suspects, the sources said.
Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking stringent laws against rape. Her letter comes against the backdrop of ongoing agitation in demand of justice for a lady doctor who was found raped and murdered inside the seminar room of RG Kar Medical College Hospital in the early morning of August 9.

It is horrifying to see this trend. It shakes the confidence and conscience of society and the nation. It is our bounden duty to put an end to it so that women feel safe and secure. Such a serious and sensitive issue needs to be addressed comprehensively through stringent central legislation that prescribes exemplary punishment for those involved in these dastardly crimes, the Chief Minister wrote.

She added, To ensure quick justice, trials should preferably be completed within 15 days.

Setting up of fast-track special courts for speedy trials in such cases should also be considered in the proposed legislation to ensure quick justice. Trial in such cases should preferably be completed within 15 days, the letter read.

Part of the letter was read out to the media men by Advisor to the Chief Minister Alapan Bandopadhyay.

With her Government and police under attack from all sides for the shabby and insensitive handling of the investigation into the rape and murder of the junior doctor the Chief Ministers letter also tended to remind how 90 rapes occurred every day on an average in the country.

The Opposition is also accusing the Chief Minister for trying to shield some officials who are responsible for the law and order mess not only inside R GKMCH but also in the entire health department.

In what the experts called Banerjees age old tactic to play to the electoral gallery, she wrote, according to the available data it is horrifying to see that almost 90 cases of rape occur daily throughout the country this shakes the confidence and conscience of the society and the nation, adding how it was bounden duty of all of us to put an end to it so that the women can feel safe.

Meanwhile, the junior doctors protest against the alleged gang rape and murder of one of their colleagues turned political --- with the Opposition BJP on Thursday hitting the streets and fighting pitched battles with the police at various places in their bid to gherao the Swasthya Bhavan at Salt Lake which houses the State Health Department.

In the melee the police arrested Bengal Opposition Leader Suvendu Adhikari as there were commotions in various parts of Salt Lake, north east of Kolkata where the BJP men jostled with the police while trying to march to the Swasthya Bhawan.

Enough is enough  we want the departure of Mamata Banerjee  we want her to resign as the Chief Minister because she has failed to discharge her duties as the Health Minister and the Police Minister  he has been the worst Chief Minister of Bengal who has ruined the State and handed it over to the criminals, rapists, goons and felons, Adhikari said adding, now time has come when she should quit.

Several leaders including Dilip Ghosh, Sukanta Majumdar managed to reach within a few kms of the Swasthya Bhavan where they held a dharna demanding justice for the victim of the RG Kar Medical College victim. In the melee a number of BJP workers were arrested, sources said.




by John P. Ruehl





Spanish officials reassuringly heralded a new era for the country after May 2024 elections. Catalonian pro-independence parties had lost the parliamentary majority that had enabled them to govern their region since 2015, and for the first time in decades, had failed to secure a majority of seats in regional parliament. Spains ruling Socialists meanwhile managed to emerge as Catalonias largest party.





Pro-independence campaigners celebrating La Diada, Catalonia's national day, September 11, 2015. [Encyclopdia Britannica]





Madrids political focus on Catalonia has intensified since 2017. After holding what was deemed by Spanish authorities an illegal independence referendum, Catalonias president and other officials fled to Belgium, prompting a diplomatic crisis. Spain then imposed direct rule over the region, with the EU backing the decision and citing the need for constitutional approval for referendums. In the aftermath, local support for Catalonias independence declined, offering Madrid a way in.





Spains separatist and autonomous movements are among Europes most well-known, and its management of them is watched closely across the continent. Many other European nations, particularly in larger countries, have autonomous movements seeking devolution, self-government, or outright independence. The perceived failure of the EU, international diplomacy, and integration efforts to resolve these issues has led countries to maintain their own policies. Although few movements are considered serious threats, attempts to assert themselves often provoke direct interventions by national governmentswhen these governments have the capacity to do so.





Many of Europes once-distinct regional identities have only waned in recent times. The rise of nationalism in Europe in the 1800s led to unitary states that integrated peripheral regions with the capitals, a trend known as capital magnetism. Additionally, increasing urbanization in other large cities weakened traditional ties to local communities and support systems.





Integration and assimilation pressure was also exerted on regional identities to create more national identities. At the time of Italys unification in 1861, for example, less than 10 percent of Italians spoke the Tuscan dialect which began to be promoted as standard Italian. Steadily, its use in public and administrative life, mass media, and other methods led to a decline in the use of other regional dialects and languages. Similarly, French policies promoted the Parisian dialect as standard French, and the German Empire promoted High German.





Modern EU states face greater limitations on language suppression. The framework provided by the EUs post-sovereign system implores member states to uphold minority language protections and other rights. Nonetheless, national governments have modernized their approaches to establishing national uniformity. Proficiency in majority languages is often a prerequisite for education, media, and employment opportunities, while immigration favors majority language learners. As a result, dozens of minority European languages are on the brink of extinction.





Nonetheless, autonomous movements in Europe do wield political power. Political networks like the European Free Alliance, a group of pro-independence political parties, operate in the EU parliament and serve as political outlets for separatist movements, using democratic processes.





Italy is constantly attempting to more effectively tie to itself its autonomous regions of Sicily, Sardinia, and several northern regions. The transformation of the regional political party Lega Nord into a national one, Lega in 2018, demonstrated some success. The autonomy movements, however, are similarly adaptive. Other northern Italian parties recently rallied to vote to approve legislation approving them greater autonomy in June 2024. South Tyrol, Italys German-speaking region, brings the added challenge of receiving support from Austria. Austrian leaders have repeatedly proposed granting Austrian passports to German speakers, and, in January 2024, voiced support for further autonomy reforms, drawing a reflexive rebuke from Rome.





Hungarys disputes with its neighbors are even more notable. The 1920 breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire left significant Hungarian communities across Romania, Slovakia, and Ukraine. Today, the Hungarian government supports these communities by funding cultural institutions, providing financial aid, and fostering solidarity, which has sparked tensions with these countries. However, as a smaller nation, Hungary struggles to exert significant influence, especially in EU member states like Romania and Slovakia, and has also found limited success in Ukraine.





Nonetheless, EU countries generally tend to avoid interfering in others separatist movements. This has helped France to consolidate its rule over its mainland territory. However, it hasnt yet done so over the Mediterranean island of Corsica, purchased by the French in 1768. The rollback of the French Empire after World War II reignited historical tensions, further inflamed by the arrival of many French people and Europeans in Algeria to Corsica in the 1960s. Though violence largely subsided in Corsica after the 1970s, a ceasefire was not reached until 2014, and pro-separatist riots in 2022 show the situation remains tense.





Following the unrest, French President Macron raised the possibility of granting Corsica greater autonomy. Previously, in 2017, as tensions were building in neighboring Spain over Basque separatism, France raised the administrative autonomy of its own Basque territory by granting it single community status, unifying several local councils under one regional authority. Contrastingly, the merger of the region of Alsace in 2016 with two other French areas reduced its autonomy and integrated it more into the national apparatus. The different approaches demonstrate the diverse policies used by national governments to manage their regions.





Germany, the most populous country in the EU, administers several regions with aspirations for greater autonomy. However, its federal system, which grants states greater authority over areas such as education and language, has helped temper separatist sentiment and reduced the need for management from Berlin.





A federal system has not resolved the challenges faced by Belgium. The countrys Flemish-speaking and French-speaking regions have sought greater autonomy, with some advocating for unification with a greater Dutch or French-speaking state. While increasing regional autonomy has been part of the solution, the regions remain interconnected through the capital, Brussels, and its wider role as the capital of the EU.





That has not deterred breakup advocates from proposing a similar Velvet Divorce between Belgiums regions, like the peaceful split between the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1992. Polls indicated a victory in June 2024 for Vlaams Belang, a party whose leader ran on reaching an agreement to dissolve the country or declaring Flanderss independence. But their shock defeat ensured Belgiums continuity and thus the stability of the EU.





Outside the EU, Europes autonomy issues are also in flux. In the late 1990s, the UK granted greater autonomy to Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales. Scottish independence efforts were then disrupted after a failed 2014 referendum and the UKs subsequent EU departure two years later. The Scottish National Party established a Brussels office to maintain EU connections, as did the European Friends of Scotland Group, founded in 2020. The Scottish Independence Convention plans to hold a convention in Edinburgh in October 2024 featuring more than a dozen European groups to coordinate their independence initiatives, though the participation of separatist movements within EU countries may limit the extent of EU involvement.





Brexit also reignited secessionist sentiment across the UK, particularly in Northern Ireland, but also in Wales. Even in England, regional parties like CumbriaFirst, the East Devon Alliance, and Mebyon Kernow advocate for their own regions autonomy, and devolution within England has been increasingly discussed in recent years. While London has struggled to counter these movements since Brexit, it has succeeded in preventing a resurgence in paramilitary activity since it ended it in Northern Ireland in the 1990s.









Western Europes relative success in reducing armed conflicts over the last few decades contrasts with its resurgence in Eastern Europe. The regions fragile borders and the emergence of weak states in the wake of the collapse of Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union have seen separatist movements gain increasing power.





The EU and NATO played a pivotal role in the collapse of Yugoslavia and the emergence of new states, often at the expense of Serbia. In response, ethnic Serbian separatism has surged across Bosnia and Kosovo, with supporters citing the EUs and NATOs support for separatist movements in the 1990s as justification for their actions.





Russia has also inflamed separatism in parts of the former Yugoslavia and the former Soviet Union to counter EU and NATO expansion or to incorporate these regions into it. Beyond supporting Serbian interests in the Balkans, Russia has utilized, to varying degrees, separatist movements in Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan to advance its interests.





Russia has long performed outreach to separatist movements in the West, including inviting representatives to conferences like the Anti-Globalization Movement of Russia, though largely consisting of fringe groups. Russia itself has its own separatist and autonomy movements, however, including in Chechnya, Tatarstan, and elsewhere. These have found support from Western actors, including through the launch of the Free Nations of Post-Russia Forum. Turkey has also supported Russian separatist movements, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan meanwhile recently celebrated the 50-year anniversary of the Turkish invasion of EU member state Cyprus in 1974 in support of local Turkish separatists.





Most separatist movements in Europe lack the infrastructure to become independent states without external support, but persist in their pursuit of independence, nonetheless. And European countries with territories outside of Europe, such as France with New Caledonia or Denmark with Greenland, must manage their burgeoning independence movements. Access to the EU may be influential in convincing them to remain, but external factors, such as Azerbaijans recent support for New Caledonias independence, could potentially play a stronger role.









A new concern for national governments may emerge closer to home. In the Baltic States, the tension between Russian minorities and national governments remains evident, and the situation faces uncertainty amid the war in Ukraine. The rise of the Alternative fur Deutschland political party in East Germany has in turn highlighted the enduring divides within the country less than 40 years after reunification, and how new political entities can emerge to exploit such sentiments.





Yet the most pressing issue appears to be emerging in Western Europes major cities. French President Emmanuel Macron, aiming to address concerns over what French authorities describe as parallel societies of Muslim immigrants and their descendants, proposed a law in 2023 to disrupt the education, finances, and propaganda networks of radical Islam, often from foreign countries. Macron labeled this phenomenon as separatism. He was referring to marginalized communities on the outskirts of major French cities in the famed banlieues, which are increasingly beyond state control and driven by domestic grievances and dissatisfaction with French foreign policy. While Frances situation appears the most severe, such sentiment is common across Western Europe.





The EUs handling of autonomous and separatist movements has frequently faced criticism from nationalist governments, and balancing separatism with nationalism remains a sensitive challenge. However, major countries like Germany and smaller ones like Denmark demonstrate it is possible to manage these issues within national frameworks. Switzerland, a non-EU state, shows similar success in keeping itself together. Clearly, despite nationalist policies, centuries-old communities are resilient and difficult to absorb and erase, even without outside support. Managing these long-standing issues, as well as emerging movements, will require continual adaptation.





Source: Independent Media Institute





John P. Ruehl is an Australian-American journalist living in Washington, D.C. He is a contributing editor to Strategic Policy and a contributor to several other foreign affairs publications. He is currently finishing a book on Russia to be published in 2022.
Terming the delay by the Kolkata Polices in registering the unnatural death of the woman doctor raped and killed at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital as extremely disturbing, the Supreme Court on Thursday came down heavily on the West Bengal Government about the 14-hour delay in filing the First Information Report (FIR). The SC flagged discrepancies in police status report questioning the sequence and timing of legal formalities conducted by the police.

During the hearing, Justice JB Pardiwala, who is part of the three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Manoj Misra, said he has not come across the kind of procedure followed by the State Government of West Bengal in his 30 years of legal career life.

Expressing surprise that the post-mortem of the victim was conducted on August 9 between 6.10 pm and 7.10 pm before the registration of case as unnatural death, the top court pulled up the Kolkata police over unexplained delay of 14 hours in lodging of the FIR in the case.

How come the post-mortem was conducted at 6.10 pm on August 9 and yet the unnatural death information is sent to Tala police station at 11.30 pm on August 9 after post-mortem and the FIR is recorded at 11.45 pm. This is extremely disturbing, the bench, also comprising Justice JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, said. Questioning the sequence and timing of the legal formalities conducted by police, Justice Pardiwala said, The entire procedure followed by your State (West Bengal) is something which I have not come across in the 30 years of my professional life.

The first thing is, is it true that the UD (unnatural death) was recorded at 10.30 hours (10.30 am)? Second, who is this assistant superintendent non-medical (person), her conduct is also very doubtful. Why did she act in this manner?

It directed the Kolkata Police officer, who registered the first entry about the incident that has shocked the country, to appear in the next hearing and disclose the time of the entry. The Court also observed that there seemed to be an attempt to pass off the murder as a suicide.

Meanwhile, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) while sharing a status report on the matter claimed that the crime scene was altered and tempered with which has hindered the further probe in the case. The CBI also informed the court that the FIR was lodged after the cremation of the trainee doctor. Appearing in the court on behalf of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Solicitor General Tushar Mehta alleged that senior doctors at the Kolkata hospital as well as the victims colleagues had asked for videograph, which means even they felt that there was a cover-up to which West Bengal counsel replied: Everything is videographed not altered.

The (victims) father insists on the registration of an FIR. The hospital does not register the FIR. The father insisted and got the FIR registered. The FIR is lodged after the cremation. This is an attempt to cover up. We entered the probe on day five, everything was altered by then, Mehta said.He said the first FIR in the incident was filed only after the victims cremation at 11:45 pm. Initially, the authorities told the parents that it was suicide but later, it was classified as death, he added.

The bench also quizzed West Bengal government over the role of Dr Sandip Ghosh, former principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, who has come under the scanner in the aftermath of the ghastly crime. As the hearing commenced after lunch, the court asked what was the reason for a 14-hour delay in lodging the FIR in connection with the incident.Who was in touch with the principal of the RG Kar Medical College? Why did he delay the FIR? What was the purpose? the bench asked.

Procedure is a separate issue, but the point remains. What is the reason the FIR is lodged almost 14 hours after the discovery of the body. The most important thing is that the principal of the college should have come straightaway to the college and directed the filing of the FIR. Who was he in touch with? What was the purpose? the bench asked senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the West Bengal government. The moment the principal tenders the resignation, he is appointed as principal of another college, the bench noted.

During the hearing, after seeing the records, CJI DY Chandrachud posed to Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the State : Something is very disturbing. The GD entry in regard to unnatural death is recorded at 10.10 in the morning. So the Police Station is informed that there is an unnatural death. Notwithstanding all this, the securing of the crime scene, seizure etc. takes place at 11.30 at night? What was happening all by then? Sibal asserted that this was incorrect information and claimed that all proceedings were videographed. He requested the Court to see the chart prepared by the State showing the timeline of event.

At the outset, Mehta said the Central Bureau of Investigation(CBI) entered the probe on the fifth day after the crime.

We entered the probe on the fifth day. Before that, whatever was collected by the local police was given to us. The investigation itself was a challenge because the scene of offence was altered. The FIR was registered only after the (victims) cremation at 11:45 pm.

First, the parents of the victim were informed by the deputy superintendent (of the hospital) that she was not well. When they reached the hospital, they were told that she had committed suicide..... Fortunately, the colleagues of the deceased insisted for videography. This suggests that they were suspecting a cover-up, Mehta submitted. Sibal opposed Mehtas submissions, saying everything was videographed and claimed nothing was altered at the crime scene. He contended that the Kolkata Police followed the procedure scrupulously and the CBIs status report only attempts to muddy the waters.

The bench later issued a slew of directions on the safety of doctors, norms for protests, rights of protesters as well as the West Bengal government.The bench directed the secretary in the Union health ministry to engage with the chief secretaries and directors general of police to ensure that the states and Union territories put in place certain basic minimum requirements for safety measures for doctors.

It said the National Task Force (NTF) formed by the apex court will take note of the suggestions of all the stakeholders while formulating a national protocol for the safety of healthcare professionals, including the associations representing resident doctors.We direct the secretary of the Union Ministry of Health to engage with the chief secretaries of the states and directors general of police to ensure the safety of healthcare professionals, the bench said, while ordering that the exercise be completed in a week. The bench also directed Union Health Secretary to launch a web portal on the ministrys website on which the doctors associations and other stakeholders may submit their suggestions.
Ranchi police have arrested three militants from the squad of TPC commander Diwakar Ganjhu. The police team has taken this action on the basis of secret information received by SSP Chandan Sinha.

Regarding this, the Ranchi Rural SP, Sumit Kumar Aggarwal held a press conference on Wednesday and said that three TPC militants have been arrested, including Prakash Ganjhu, a resident of Barkagaon, Rahul Lahri, a resident of Hazaribagh and Monu Kumar Badaik, a resident of Ranchi. A country-made carbine magazine, 13 live bullets, a bike, a router of Jio company and four mobile phones have been recovered from the arrested militants, he added.

The SP said dozens of cases are registered against the arrested militants in different police stations.

The police had received information that on Tuesday night, TPC militants had gathered in village Chhapar located on the border of Barkagaon, Keredari and Budhmu police stations on the banks of the Damodar river. Who are planning to collect levy and carry out a major incident, said Aggarwal.

The SP said that based on the information, a raid team was formed under the leadership of Dy SP Khalari. After which the police team reached the spot and the extremists started running away. Police surrounded them and caught three extremists. Two other extremists managed to escape taking advantage of the darkness, he added.
Shortage of registration cards for new vehicles in the Regional Transport Office Bhopal, due to which about 6000 cards are pending, applicants are constantly visiting the RTO office regarding this, these applicants are worried about new vehicles and old renewal registration cards.

Due to the shortage of cards, applicants are constantly visiting the RTO. This situation has arisen in many districts of the state, while in Bhopal this number is about 6000.

If the officials of the Transport Department are to be believed, there was a shortage of it for a long time, but on the evening of August 20, cards and ink rebates have reached the RTO office, due to which this situation is likely to improve in the next two days, according to departmental officials, this pendency will be fixed in the next four days.

Upto 2000 cards are printed daily in the Regional Transport Office Bhopal.

According to transport officials, the shortage of chip cards has been going on for about a year, it is being said that due to the Russia Ukraine War, there is a problem in the transportation of chip cards. Due to this, cards are coming in very small quantities. Due to this, license applicants are facing problems. At the same time, since January 2024, the shortage of cards and ink ribbons has come to the fore about 3 to 4 times.

Anshu Vanshkar, a resident of Kolar, said that I had applied for the renewal registration card of my old car about a month ago, but I have not received my card yet, for many days I have been talking to the agent but he says that the cards have not come yet, when they come, he will get it immediately. She said that she has been having trouble with the vehicle registration card for a long time.

RTO Jitendra Sharma said that a large number of cards have arrived on Tuesday, the pendency will be cleared in the next two to three days. So that the applicants do not face any kind of problem.

The dispute between agents and officers in RTO also seems to be ending now, it is being said that for a long time the files of agents were not being taken by the RTO, after which the agents have protested in the RTO office many times, and also complained about it to the department.
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In a major operation, Jharkhands Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has arrested eight persons in a series of coordinated raids across the state. The raids took place at 16 different locations, including Lohardagas Kairo and Hazaribaghs Pelawal, as well as several other districts. The operation marks a significant success in the states ongoing efforts to curb terrorism.

The ATS also recovered a cache of weapons from one of the terrorists apprehended in Lohardaga. Sources said that the eight arrested persons have allegedly been linked to Al-Qaida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS).

The joint raids were carried out by Jharkhand ATS, Special Task Force (STF), Ranchi Police and Delhi Police across 16 locations in Ranchi, Hazaribag and Lohardaga, following a tip-off from central agencies, he said.

Eight suspects have so far been detained and they are being interrogated. In the operation, some illegal arms, laptops, several mobile phones and suspicious documents have been recovered. Raids are still going on," Jharkhand Police spokesperson and IG (Operations) Amol V Homkar told reporters.

He said after interrogation of the suspects and verification of documents, further action will be taken as per law.

"Once the ongoing operation ends, we will share further details," he said. According to the inputs received, the operation was carried out after receiving a tip-off about the presence of sleeper cell agents in the aforementioned areas. Multiple locations linked to the AIQS module in other states such as in Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan were also raided by the security agency.

Founded in 2014, AQIS aimed to establish an Islamic state in India along implementing Sharia law by radicalising youths and motivating them for take up arms for the cause of terror outfits. detained by the ATS team were also reported to be involved in furthering similar unlawful activities on behest of the group.

The terrorist group AQIS is reported to be working in close association with Ansar-ul-Bangla, a Bangladesh based terror outfit for crafting/establishing an Islamic state in the Indian Sub-continent. It must be noted that multiple districts of Jharkhand are suspected to have presence of sleeper cells associated with terror outfits a number of whom were also apprehended by the security agencies in the past few years.

The arrest of AQIS terrorists assumes importance as last year, a joint team of the Intelligence Bureau (IB), National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Delhi Police have arrested an Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorist Faizan Ansari from Jharkhands Lohardaga. NIA sources claimed that he was in contact with the ISIS network within and outside the country through the dark net.

Ansari was also said to be in contact with Pakistans intelligence agency. Later in the afternoon. A student of Aligarh Muslim University, Ansari was living with his family in Lohardaga for the last two months and was operating from there. He came in contact with the ISIS network while studying at Aligarh Muslim University.

NIA, along with other agencies, is said to have kept a tab on his activities for the last few weeks.
The nationwide Bharat Bandh called by various organisations on Wednesday in response to a recent Supreme Court ruling on reservations had a little impact on normal life in Uttar Pradesh in Uttar Pradesh even as Dalit groups and political parties held demonstrations and marches in parts of the state..

Several Dalit organisations took out processions, held rallies and staged protests in different parts of the state in support of reservations. However, despite the bandh call, most shops remained open, and business continued as usual.

In anticipation of potential disruptions due to the one-day bandh, security measures were heightened.

Political parties such as the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Samajwadi Party supported the Bharat Bandh call.

In Lucknow, political activists gathered on key roads in Hazratganj and nearby areas, causing some traffic disruptions. However, shops and markets in the city remained open, and daily activities proceeded normally.

In central Lucknow, a significant number of BSP workers and supporters assembled at Ambedkar Square as part of the nationwide strike.

In Prayagraj, Rapid Action Force personnel were deployed, while protests and marches were reported in Agra and Kanpur Nagar, where bus services continued without interruption.

Various districts, including Unnao, Aligarh, Muzaffarnagar, Sambhal, Jalaun, Etawah, Mathura, Hathras, and Gorakhpur, also witnessed processions and demonstrations in support of reservations.

In Prayagraj, a BSP worker stated, BSP workers are opposed to the abolition of reservations. We will submit a memorandum to the district magistrate on this issue.

In western Uttar Pradesh, activists from the Azad Samaj Party and Bhim Army held protest marches in Bijnor, Saharanpur and surrounding districts. Azad Samaj Party (Kanshiram) president and MP Chandrashekhar Azad posted on X, asserting that the days mass movement sends a clear message to both Central and state governments that the Bahujan society will not allow the divide and rule strategy to succeed.

In Bareilly, the Bharat Bandh call had little effect, but thousands of people took to the streets under the banner of the Reservation Save Struggle Committee. Various organisations, including Bhim Army and Azad Samaj Party, staged vigorous protests. At around 12:30 pm, hundreds of protesters gathered at Chowki Chauraha, raised slogans, and later marched to the Collectorate. After about 30 minutes of protest, they dispersed.

Similar demonstrations were reported in Shahjahanpur and Budaun, with rallies held in Lakhimpur Kheri as well. In Shahjahanpur, protests began at 10 am at the GIC ground in Khirni Bagh. Activists from various organisations marched through Anta Chauraha, Anjan Chowki, Ghantaghar, Bahadurganj, and Sadar Bazaar before returning to the starting point. Despite the demonstrations, the citys markets remained open and unaffected by the bandh.

Protesters demanded that the Supreme Courts ruling on sub-classification within SC and ST reservations be annulled by Parliament and that reservations be included in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution. The rally saw significant participation from SP and BSP leaders who supported the demands.

In Lakhimpur Kheri, the Bharat Bandh had no significant impact as the market remained open throughout the day. BSP and other organisations held rallies and protests, which culminated at the Collectorate. The police administration was on high alert during the bandh, with increased security measures in place.

In Etah, there were protests against the creamy layer reservation. Large groups of Dalit youth took to the streets with blue flags, chanting slogans and attempting to forcibly close shops. In Jalesar, similar protests led to clashes with shopkeepers as demonstrators tried to shut down businesses. The protesters claimed they were peacefully expressing their opposition, but tensions escalated, resulting in broken shop counters.

In Agra, supporters of the Bharat Bandh attempted to break through barriers, leading to the deployment of heavy police forces at Maharana Pratap Chauraha. The routes to and from Agra Chauraha were blocked, with supporters of BSP, Bhim Army, and other groups chanting slogans against the Supreme Courts decision. Protests continued with marches organised by Bhim Army, BSP, and other groups, which eventually reached the Tehsil office. There, they submitted a memorandum to Nayab Tehsildar Vanshika Singh and called for a market shutdown. The situation led to clashes with authorities, breaking of shop windows, and attempts to enforce a market closure from tehsil to Agra Chauraha.

Ahead of the bandh, the state police stepped up vigilance with Director General of Police Prashant Kumar monitoring the situation from the headquarters.

DGP Prashant Kumar inspected the control room set up at the police headquarters in view of the Bharat Bandh and gave necessary guidelines for maintaining law and order in the state during the strike, Uttar Pradesh Police said in a post on X in Hindi.

On August 1, the Supreme Court issued a historic ruling stating that states have the constitutional authority to sub-classify Scheduled Castes (SCs) to provide reservations for the most socially and educationally backward groups within them. The court clarified that sub-classification should be based on quantitative and performance-based data rather than political gain. In response to this decision, 21 organisations across the country gave the call for Bharat Bandh, arguing that the ruling undermines the fundamental principles of reservations.


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Union Minister Ravneet Singh Bittu made headlines on Wednesday as he accused several farmer leaders of receiving foreign funding and blackmailing over land acquisition for central projects. Speaking to the media after filing his nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha by-election from Rajasthan, Bittu expressed confidence in his victory while asserting his commitment to both Punjab and Rajasthan.



Criticizing the portrayal of BJPs relationship with farmers in Punjab, Bittu said that contrary to the narrative suggesting discontent among farmers, the reality is that most farmers in Punjab are supportive of the BJP. He claimed that a small group of farmer leaders, motivated by personal gain, are spreading misinformation and misleading farmersThese leaders are obstructing national projects by coercing farmers and creating obstacles to land acquisition for development.



Bittu emphasized that genuine farmers are focused on their work, while a few leaders are engaged in blackmail tactics. He highlighted that substantial investments are being made in Minimum Support Prices (MSP) for crops in Punjab and Haryana, with the Government spending approximately Rs one lakh crore annually on MSP alone, covering wheat, rice, sugarcane, and cotton. Despite this, he alleged that the farmer leaders are misleading the public and hindering development projects.



Also addressing the recent claims by farmer leaders about being denied access to Delhi, Bittu made it clear that no one was barred from entering Delhi while asserting that any individual carrying weapons or explosives would be stopped, but peaceful protestors and visitors were welcome. He urged the public not to be misled by false narratives.



Bittu further pledged that he would uphold the honour of both Rajasthan and Punjab, promising to address the needs of farmers and other constituents in his new role. He expressed his determination to ensure that the BJPs development projects and welfare schemes reach the rural areas of Rajasthan, enhancing crop branding and processing.



After filing his nominations, Bittu excuded confidence in winning the by-polls saying that his karmabhoomi will be Punjab and Rajasthan. I will be elected to the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan. This is also right that other parties had not fielded any candidate, so this is a very big victory for the BJP here. It is a matter of great happiness for Rajasthan because just a few days ago, our Chandigarh Administrator and our Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria, who has been an MLA for more than eight times, took chargeSo Rajasthan and Punjab, from where I come, both are always ready for the protection of the country, for the pride of the country, for the turban of the countryNow, my karmabhoomi will be Punjab and Rajasthan, he said.



Further asserting that in 2027 assembly polls, the BJP would form the government in Punjab. I can say with confidence that all the workers and leaders of Punjab are confident that they will bring a BJP Government in Punjab in 2027, he added.



Earlier today, Bittu filed his nomination in Jaipur, accompanied by Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma, Deputy CMs  Diya Kumari and Prem Chand Bairwa, and State Minister Jogaram Patel. After filing nomination, they attended a meeting held in the Legislative Assembly, in Jaipur along with other BJP MLAs and ministers of the state government.



Notably, Bittu lost the Lok Sabha polls from Ludhiana but is presently the Union Minister of State for Railways and Food Processing Industries. The by-elections to 12 Rajya Sabha seats are scheduled to be held on September 3.
Kiran Choudhry, who switched from Congress to BJP earlier this year, on Wednesday filed her nomination for the Rajya Sabha bypoll from Haryana and is set to elected unopposed as she is the lone candidate in the fray. No other party has put up their candidate for the bypoll for the seat which was necessitated after Congress' Deepender Singh Hooda was elected to Lok Sabha from Rohtak. His Rajya Sabha term was to end on April 9, 2026.

Some JJP rebel MLAs also extended support to her candidature as she filed her nomination on the last day. Only one candidate has filed nomination for the bypoll on the last day of filing of papers, officials said.

Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, state BJP president Mohan Lal Badoli, several party MLAs, the party's co-incharge for the state Biplab Kumar Deb and some JJP rebels were among those present when Choudhry submitted her nomination papers this morning before the Returning Officer for the bypoll at the Haryana Vidhan Sabha Secretariat.

The BJP named Choudhry as its nominee for the bypoll shortly after she resigned from the Assembly on Tuesday, nearly two months after she switched over from the Congress. She represented the Tosham seat in the Haryana Assembly.

Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda had earlier said his party would not field a candidate for the Rajya Sabha seat as it did not have the numbers. The scrutiny of nomination papers will take place on August 22 while candidates can withdraw their nominations until August 27.

Speaking to reporters after Choudhry filed her nomination, Chief Minister Saini said that apart from BJP MLAs, some legislators from other parties have also extended their support to her candidature. "(JJP rebels) Jogi Ram Sihag, Ram Niwas Surjakhera, Ram Kumar Gautam and Anoop Dhanak, (Independent MLA) Nayan Pal Rawat and (Haryana Lokhit Party chief) Gopal Kanda have given their support letter," he said. In response to a question, Saini said the party was unanimous over Choudhry's candidature for the Rajya Sabha bypoll in Haryana. She has a long experience in politics and has a vision for the state, the chief minister said.

A former Haryana minister, Choudhry (69) joined the BJP along with her daughter Shruti and their supporters in June. In response to a question, Choudhry said she may have spent 45 years in the Congress, but now she is with the BJP and will serve the party until her last breath. The BJP's Rajya Sabha candidate said that she belongs to the family of Chaudhary Bansi Lal, who ran a government in Haryana, in alliance with the BJP in the 1990s. "We have old relations with the BJP and I was impressed with their policies. The BJP works in the state's and nation's interest and it is my fortune to be associated with it," she said.


Ahead of the Assembly polls due early next year, the BJPs Delhi unit will launch a membership drive from September 2 aiming to add at least 200 members from each of the over 13,000 polling booths in the city.

A five member team headed by North West MP Yogender Chandolia has been formed to monitor the membership drive, party leaders said.

The senior leaders of Delhi BJP, including state president Virendra Sachdeva and general secretary (organisation) Pawan Rana, discussed the preparations for the campaign in a meeting held at the party office here on Wednesday.

The campaign will be launched officially across the country by BJP national president JP Nadda on September 1. It will be launched in Delhi by the local leadership later, said a senior Delhi BJP functionary.

Although no target is set for the membership drive, it has been decided that minimum 200 members are to be brought to the party fold from each of the over 13,000 polling booths spread across the 70 assembly constituencies... There will be time to time, resets and course directions through regular reviews of the campaign he added.

Another party leader said the five member team will play a supervisory role in ensuring the membership drive progressed smoothly and achieved the desired results. Headed by Chandolia, who is also a general secretary of Delhi BJP, the team will comprise senior party leaders, including Yogita Singh, Shikha Rai, Ashok Goel and Vinod Bacheti, he said.

Delhi BJP chief Sachdeva said in a post on X that a comprehensive strategy for expansion of membership of the party through extensive campaign at state, district, ward and sector level was discussed by the senior leaders. BJP national vice president and co-in charge of Uttarakhand Rekha Verma was also present in the meeting, he said. The Delhi BJP has roughly 27-28 lakh registered members at In the upcoming Delhi Assembly polls next year, the BJP is pitted against the strongly positioned AAP that registered back to back landslide victories in 2015 and 2020 polls.

The membership drive is expected to not only revitalise the party base but also charge up the organisational set up ahead of the polls, party leaders hoped.

The BJP has targeted to enroll more than 10 crore members in the nationwide membership drive, BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra said last week.

The members will be registered through four methods - calling a mobile number, scanning QR code, by NaMo app and through the BJPs website, he said.
In a significant political development, former Chief Minister Champai Soren is expected to launch a new political outfit soon after severing ties with the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)-led coalition government. Although the name of the new party is yet to be finalized, it is likely to include a reference to Birsa Munda, the iconic tribal leader, signaling that the platform will primarily cater to the tribal communities.

However, before making a final decision on establishing a new party, Sorens immediate focus is on joining the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Sources close to the former chief minister revealed that Sorens top priority is to align with the BJP, aiming for a prominent position, potentially as the partys chief ministerial candidate in the upcoming state assembly elections. Soren, who was in his hometown in Seraikela, said that he will remain active in politics.

Sorens aspirations will be tested during BJP National President JP Naddas visit to Ranchi on August 23, where he is scheduled to address a gathering of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM). Soren sees this event as a critical opportunity to impress Nadda and secure a position within the BJP. According to a close aide, Soren is eager to leverage this chance to showcase his influence and garner support from the BJPs top brass. Champai Sorens first priority is to join the BJP and emerge as the partys chief ministerial face in Jharkhand.

The August 23 event with JP Nadda in Ranchi is a pivotal moment for him to make a strong impression, said the aide, who requested anonymity.

In an effort to demonstrate his political clout, Soren is planning to lead a large contingent of his supporters to Ranchi on August 23. This show of strength is intended to affirm his popularity and compare his influence with other potential BJP candidates, such as Arjun Munda, Babulal Marandi, and Madhu Koda.

Until recently, Champai Soren was a dominant political figure in the Kolhan region, particularly in the twin districts of Singhbhum and Seraikela-Kharsawan. His departure from the JMM has left a noticeable void among his traditional support base in these areas, which he aims to fill by aligning with the BJP.

As Jharkhand prepares for its assembly elections, Sorens strategic move to join the BJP comes with the condition of being projected as the chief ministerial candidate. His supporters believe that his entry into the BJP would not only bolster the partys tribal vote bank but also position him as a formidable leader within the saffron brigade.

If Champai Soren fails to secure the chief ministerial face for the BJP, he will likely proceed with forming his new outfit, revealed one of his trusted lieutenants. This potential new party, if realized, would serve as a fallback option for Soren, providing him with a platform to continue his political journey outside the JMM.

As the political landscape in Jharkhand evolves, Champai Sorens next move will be closely watched. His actions on August 23 could shape the states political dynamics ahead of the upcoming elections, potentially altering the balance of power in the region.

 Champai Sorens decision to part ways with the JMM and his potential alignment with the BJP mark a significant shift in Jharkhands political scene. Whether he succeeds in joining the BJP as a chief ministerial candidate or establishes a new political outfit, Sorens influence remains a key factor in the states evolving political narrative. The upcoming events in Ranchi will likely determine the trajectory of his political career and its impact on Jharkhands future, said a political party leader.
Delhi Lieutenant Governor (LG)Vinai Kumar Saxena has expressed serious concern over the delays due to lack of inter-departmental communication in recruitment and vacancy position in the Health Department. He directed that the process be completed by December.

Giving details, Raj Niwas officials said on Wednesday Saxena recently reviewed the status of recruitments and vacancy position in the Health Department. The focus was on expediting the filling up of posts in the Medical, Paramedical and Nursing Wings of the Delhi Government Hospitals, which had been pending for the past 10 years.

He was informed that 23 Doctors in different categories like Neurosurgery, Cardiology, Plastic Surgery and Micro Biology, etc. in the Group A had already been appointed by UPSC and their dossiers have been sent to the Health Department since as early as July, 2023. Many dossiers were sent by UPSC in May, 2024.

However, their postings were yet to take place because the competent authority to post them - the NCCSA was not meeting due to the Chief Minister being in judicial custody. The LG directed the Chief Secretary and the Principal Secretary (Services) to immediately find the way out, especially in light of the severe shortage of Doctors that the Government Hospitals in Delhi are facing.

A detailed presentation was made before LG, where it was informed that in the Medical Branch, there were 1,364 sanctioned posts of General Duty Medical Officers, out of which 234 were vacant, and were in the advance stage of getting filled up. The UPSC, which is the recruiting agency, has informed that the entire process will be completed by September, 2024.

Regarding Non-Teaching Specialities sub Cadre, it was informed that 279 posts were lying vacant in 21 specialities. UPSC will be completing the recruitment process of 258 posts among these by December 2024.

The Health Department also informed that they have been pursuing with Central Health Services (CHS) of the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Govt. of India for a long time, for filling up 217 posts of Teaching Specialists at the earliest. The LG said that he will write to the Minister of Health, Govt. of India in this regard to expedite the process.

Regarding recruitments in the Nursing category that included 1507 Nursing Officers, 24 Nursing Officers in the Physically Handicapped capacity and 56 ANM workers, examination for selection has been scheduled by DSSSB in the months of August and September, 2024.

In the Paramedical Branch, 1,055 posts in different categories like Pharmacists, Lab Technicians, Speech Therapists, Technical Assistants, Lab Assistants, Supervisors and Refractionists, etc. were under the process of recruitment by DSSSB.

While examination for around half these positions had already been conducted in June, 2024, the entire process for final appointment by DSSSB will be completed by December, 2024, the LG was informed.

Meanwhile, the AAP stated that the LG office has finally accepted that he is responsible and answerable for recruitment of doctors, specialists, nurses, paramedics, OT technicians in government hospitals and dispensaries of Mohalla Clinics.
Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said that former Chief Minister Late Babulal Gaur's personality was versatile and he was friendly and respectful to all human beings. His popularity and the publics confidence in him was such that he won elections ten times from the same assembly constituency.

Gaur raised his voice with strength in adverse times but never lost humility. Chief Minister Yadav was addressing a program organized in Gaurs memory at Babulal Gaur Government College, BHEL on his 5th death anniversary. He paid floral tributes to the statue of Gaur.

Yadav appreciates the commitment to public service and development.

Yadav said that Late Gaurs special characteristics were his faith in humanity, hard work, love for nature, and a noble attitude towards colleagues and co-workers. The true tribute to him would be to follow these characteristics and discharge responsibilities the way he did and take inspiration from his commitment towards development and public welfare.

Yadav lauded the work being done by the Minister of State (Independent Charge) and Late Gaurs daughter-in-law Krishna Gaur in the same spirit for public service and development. Minister of State Krishna Gaur presented a replica of Gaumata, a copy of the Gita, and a picture of Radha Krishna to Chief Minister Yadav.

Revered Babuji was the messiah of the poor and the leader of workers

Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Backward Classes and Minority Welfare, Krishna Gaur said that revered Babulal Gaur ji was the messiah of the poor and a leader of the workers. His vision of development was amazing, he was an inspiring example of the politics of purity. She said that she will continue to discharge responsibilities of public service with dedication on principle of Karma of the Bhagwat Gita.
On the second day of the three-day Navarambh 2024-25 programme at the Uttar Pradesh State Institute of Forensic Sciences (UPSIFS), various subject matter experts shared knowledge with the new students.

UPSIFS founder director Dr GK Goswami, said the aim of the programme was to provide beneficial information and a conducive academic environment to the new students to help them achieve their goals successfully.

Dr SK Jain, Director of Forensic Science Department, Delhi, discussed the uniqueness of individual voices and the advancements in voice spectrography technology, which can identify individuals even if they alter their voices. He highlighted the role of forensic science in solving cases with minimal evidence.

Dr G Khan, Additional Director of the State Medical Legal Department, elaborated on the significance of jurisprudence, medicolegal, and general toxicology in forensic science. He underscored the importance of biological evidence collection in criminal investigations, including identifying bodies and determining causes of death.

Dr Shivpoojan, advisor at Biotech Park, Lucknow, spoke about the entrepreneurial opportunities in forensic science and the application of new technologies such as 3D bioprinting for developing organs and artificial skin for forensic analysis.

Dr Arun Mohan Sherry, Director of IIIT, Lucknow, addressed the use of technology in cyber security cases and simplified communication for students.

Dr Upendra Giri highlighted practical uses of technology in real-life situations, while Rohit Negi shared his experiences in cyber security.

Dr Amit Kumar, director of Bioaxis DNA Research Centre, Hyderabad, discussed how forensic DNA technology has revolutionised the Indian justice system by providing precision and speed in crime investigation. He stressed the need for regular standards and tests to ensure the accuracy and reliability of DNA technology.

IPS officer Dr Arvind Chaturvedi provided specialised information on wildlife and animal forensic science.

At the end of the session, Dr Goswami honoured all the guest speakers with mementos. The event was also attended by Additional Director Rajeev Malhotra and others.
Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) took to the streets on Wednesday demanding the registration of a case against a school in Madhya Pradeshs Ratlam for using Pakistani flags for a scene on partition in a play on Indias independence struggle. The workers of ABVP blocked the Mhow-Neemuch Road.

District collector Rajesh Batham said that they were looking into the matter even as Ratlams Child Welfare Committee (CWC) issued a notice to the district education officer seeking cancellation of a schools recognition. The notice said anti-national activities were organised in the school on August 15 by giving Pakistani flags to children aged between three and four. Who gave the flag of any other country, especially the flag of Pakistan, to small children? What is your intention behind this? it asked.

The notice said the school tried to influence the minds of children without caring for the countrys dignity and integrity. It added the children were being poisoned against the nation. This is what it seems at first glance. If such anti-national acts are being done by children openly on Independence Day, then it can be understood what kind of feelings are being filled in their minds towards the nation on the remaining days.

The notice said recognition of the school should be cancelled immediately and the children should be admitted to other schools. Strict action should be taken against the school owner, the notice said. Deepak Panth, the school director, said the play was based on the independence struggle. ?The flags were used to depict a scene of the partition of India and Pakistan. It had flags of both countries. Someone filmed one scene which went viral on social media.
The Yogi Adityanath government is making significant strides in enhancing connectivity across Uttar Pradesh, with plans to introduce new ring roads and bypasses in five more divisions of the state.

In a recent meeting, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath presented a proposal to Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari, seeking approval for this initiative. Currently, construction of ring roads is underway in 12 out of the states 18 divisions, with the Lucknow division already seeing its completion.

The state government has now proposed similar projects for five divisions. Once approved by the Central government, the construction of new ring roads will start, enhancing connectivity across all divisions of Uttar Pradesh.

Currently, significant progress is being made in Gorakhpur and Kanpur divisions, where the work on ring roads is actively underway. In divisions such as Agra, Chitrakoot, Meerut, Prayagraj and Varanasi, certain sections of the ring roads have already been completed, with new phases of construction now in progress. The Basti division has received approval for its ring road, and the Ayodhya divisions ring road has also got the cabinets nod.

Meanwhile, the detailed project report (DPR) for the Bareilly divisions ring road is finalised, and work on the northern parts of ring roads in Azamgarh and Moradabad divisions is ongoing. While the construction of ring roads is advancing rapidly across 12 divisions of the state, it has already been completed in Lucknow.

The Yogi government is preparing to extend this connectivity boost to five more divisions  Aligarh, Devipatan, Jhansi, Mirzapur, and Saharanpur. In addition to these plans, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has also approached the Union minister with a request to construct new bypasses in 14 districts across Uttar Pradesh.

Currently, 53 districts in the state are already equipped with bypass facilities, with ongoing construction in eight more districts. The process of establishing bypasses has gained momentum in the remaining 14 districts, including Farrukhabad, Auraiya, Bulandshahr, Mainpuri, Bahraich, Gonda, Baghpat, Chitrakoot, Mirzapur, Bhadohi, Sambhal, Kaushambi, Chandauli and Shravasti.

In 2017, the state had 48 national highways, a figure that has nearly doubled to 93 by 2024. Similarly, the length of these highways has expanded significantly, growing from approximately 8,000 kilometres in 2017 to nearly 13,000 kilometres in 2024.

The expansion of expressways has been equally impressive. From just one expressway in 2017, the state now boasts six expressways in 2024. The total length of these expressways has surged from 165 kilometres in 2017 to an impressive 1,225 kilometres by 2024. Additionally, the construction of several link expressways, including the Ganga Expressway, is progressing rapidly, further enhancing the state's infrastructure.
Top Haryana Congress leaders met in Delhi on Wednesday to firm up the party's assembly polls strategy with winnability and loyalty stressed upon for candidates' selection.

Former chief minister and Leader of Opposition in the Haryana Assembly Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee president Uday Bhan, Lok Sabha MP Kumari Selja, Rajya Sabha MP Randeep Surjewala and senior leader Birender Singh, among others, attended the meeting of the party's Pradesh Election Committee.

Leaders said the process of selection of candidates will begin within the next few days. Polls to the 90-member Haryana assembly will be held on October 1 and the results will be declared on October 4.

Shahbad JJP MLA Ramkaran Kala joins Congress

Ahead of the Haryana Assembly elections, Shahbad JJP MLA Ramkaran Kala joined Congress on Wednesday along with his supporters and dozens of local leaders. Kala took membership of Congress under the leadership of former Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Congress State President Choudhary Udaibhan. In addition to this, Kuldeep Kakran, who was BJP candidate from Kharkhoda in 2014 elections, and Jai Singh Bishnoi, former Information Commissioner, also left the party and joined Congress. Hooda and Chaudhary Udaibhan welcomed all the leaders and workers who joined the party and assured them of their former respect. Hooda said all the leaders have taken the right decision at the right time.

This decision will pay off in the upcoming elections and will prove helpful in forming the Congress government. It is clear from the continuous joining and the public support being received for the party's programs that there is a wave of Congress in Haryana. This time it is certain that Congress will form the government in Haryana, he stated.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, on Wednesday, said that Hinduism was not a caste, sect or religion, but rather the guarantee of Indias security, unity and cohesion.

Participating in the second edition of Hindu Gaurav Diwas programme, organised on the third death anniversary of late Kalyan Singh, Yogi said: Remember, as long as the Sanatan Hindu society of India remains strong, no force can undermine the unity and integrity of our nation. However, if this unity is fractured, foreign conspiracies aimed at dividing India will gain ground. We must ensure that these conspiracies do not succeed.

They who seek to divide you present themselves with different faces, behaviors, and characters. They will say one thing, show another, and act entirely differently. Whenever given the chance, they have incited riots in Uttar Pradesh and have disrespected Hindu heroes", he added.

Paying tribute to former Chief Minister late Kalyan Singh, fondly called 'Babuji', Yogi stated: Emulating Kalyan Singhji is no easy feat. It demands great struggle, the ability to face challenges, self-renunciation, and sacrifice. This is why Kalyan Singhji earned the profound trust of the public. He battled the forces of his time, persevered through difficult conditions, and remained steadfast in the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi movement.

Pointing out that the result of his struggle resonates across the world today giving every Sanatan believer a pleasant feeling, Yogi described the journey of late Kalyan Singh as one from zero to zenith.

Chief Minister Yogi said the zero-tolerance policy introduced by the revered Babuji in 1991 remains in effect today.

Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi this double-engine government will continue to uphold a zero-tolerance stance against crime, criminals, corruption and corrupt individuals, regardless of the cost. Not a single citizen will be harmed, he affirmed.

Yogi described the entire journey of late Kalyan Singh from that of a farmer, to a teacher to Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh volunteer, Bharatiya Janata Party worker, MLA and MP, a health minister in post-Emergency Janata Party government and chief minister when the BJP first secured a significant majority, fueled by the momentum from the Ram Janmabhoomi movement and then the governor of two states.

He remarked: The outcome of his contributions to the Ram Janmabhoomi movement is evident today. There are few workers and marginalised communities worldwide who have not witnessed the Pran Pratishtha ceremony of Ram Lalla in Ayodhya firsthand. In a time when humanity was suppressed, the construction of the Ram temple at Shri Ram Janmabhoomi stands as a beacon of hope. This hope began when Babuji declared that even if the government fell, we would not target Ram devotees. Babuji remained steadfast in his commitment to values and ideals.

Chief Minister Yogi said that his life was dedicated to the nationalism of India. He did not support casteism and kept a distance from the forces that divided the society.

Recalling Kalyan Singhs pivotal role in the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi movement, Chief Minister Yogi noted that on October 30 and November 2, 1990, the dark chapter in Indias history, when bullets were fired at Ram devotees in Ayodhya and the then government was attempting to divide the Hindu community, Kalyan Singh stood firm like an immovable rock, opposing those spreading the poison of casteism.

On December 6, 1992, under intense pressure from the Central government to fire on kar sevaks in Ayodhya, Babuji declared that if the Central government wished, it could dismiss his government, but he would not allow bullets to be fired at Ram devotees. He chose to resign from his post as chief minister rather than compromise on his principles, Chief Minister Yogi stated.

On this occasion, BJP state president Bhupendra Chaudhary, Deputy Chief Ministers Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak, Union Minister BL Verma, former Union minister and former BJP state president Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey, former deputy chief Minister and Rajya Sabha MP Dr Dinesh Sharma, Unnao MP Swami Sakshi Maharaj, state government minister and former BJP state president Surya Pratap Shahi, Swatantra Dev Singh, programme organiser former MP Rajveer Singh (Raju Bhaiya), state government minister Sandeep Singh and other dignitaries were present.

Yogi targets Akhilesh over PDA slogan

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday criticised Akhilesh Yadav over his PDA (Pichhde, Dalit, Alpsankhyak) slogan, accusing the Samajwadi Party president of showing disrespect towards Other Backward Classes leader and former chief minister Kalyan Singh.

Speaking at the Hindu Gaurav Divas, Yogi Adityanath targeted Akhilesh Yadav for not paying tributes to late Kalyan Singh, a major figure in the Ram Temple movement, instead mourning the death of gangster Mukhtar Ansari.

Leave alone paying tribute to revered Babuji, the Samajwadi Party chief did not utter a single word of condolence. Meanwhile, when a notorious local mafia passed away, he visited his village to offer Fateha. Is this what PDA stands for? Those who were responsible for the bloodshed of countless Hindus were mourning the mafias death as if they had lost a loved one. This reveals the true nature of the PDA, he said.

Continuing his scathing criticism, Chief Minister Yogi added that the incidents of Ayodhya, Kannauj and Lucknow had exposed the opposition parties completely.

He remarked further: Unless we unite in our fight against them, they will continue to deceive the people of the state. Today they are worried because their shops of hooliganism and anarchy have been shut down by the double-engine government. Each and every conspiracy of theirs has been thwarted at every turn.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, on Wednesday, said that investments in Uttar Pradesh were entirely secure and profitable for businesses, with the state government guaranteeing the safety of investors capital.

He added that the risks undertaken and reforms introduced by the government coupled with robust policies and effective implementation have resulted in Uttar Pradesh emerging as a leading state in terms of ease of doing business.

Chief Minister Yogi made this statement during the inauguration of a new cement plant in Prayagraj by prominent Kanpur headquartered industrial house JK Group.

This plants production capacity of 20 lakh tonnes is a testament to the improved investment climate in UP.

The chief minister also highlighted the return of JK Cement, a once prominent industrial group in Uttar Pradesh which had lost confidence in the state and shifted its investments elsewhere, as an important development in UPs history. JK Cements new plant in Prayagraj is the third of the company in Uttar Pradesh after Aligarh and Hamirpur.

The chief minister stated that after the formation of the double-engine government in UP in 2017, the JK Group initially spent three years assessing the governments credibility. Once the results of the government' actions became evident, the JK Group committed to establishing three plants in Uttar Pradesh, with total investments of Rs 1,200 crore in Aligarh in 2020, Hamirpur in 2022, and Prayagraj in 2024.

Chief Minister Yogi highlighted that Uttar Pradesh now boasts an extensive network of railways, expressways and highways, enabling easy distribution of locally produced goods to other states. He further emphasised that Uttar Pradesh has become a top investment destination in the country.

JK Cements investment is significant, as it reinforces the industrial growth of the state without any industrial group feeling compelled to relocate.

In the past seven years, Uttar Pradesh has cultivated an investment-friendly environment, propelling the state from 14th place in ease of doing business in 2016 to second place in the country today.

Chief Minister Yogi remarked that Uttar Pradesh demonstrated how to successfully host an investor summit through Global Investors Summit-2023, attracting investment proposals exceeding Rs 40 lakh crore.

In February this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the ground-breaking ceremony for projects worth over Rs 10 lakh crore. Many units have already commenced production, generating employment opportunities for thousands of youth.

The JK Cement Limiteds third Rs 400-crore cement manufacturing unit in Prayagraj will create at least 350 jobs.

UPs Industrial Development Minister Nand Kumar Gupta Nandi, Minister of State for Industrial Development Jaswant Singh Saini, Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar Singh, Principal Secretary (Industrial Development) Anil Sagar, JK Cement Vice President Nidhipati Singhania, Managing Director Raghavpati Singhania, Deputy Managing Director and CEO Madhav Krishna Singhania, Assistant Vice-President Arun Sharma, MLA from Prayagraj Vachaspati, Vinod Prajapati and Anuj Khandewal along with other dignitaries were present in the programme.
Today, on 22nd August 2024, a delegation of MLAs led by the Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Legislative Assembly, Vijender Gupta, met with the Head of the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), Madhur Verma, to formally submit a complaint demanding an immediate and thorough investigation into the widespread corruption within the Delhi Health Department. The delegation included prominent MLAs Abhay Verma, Ajay Mahawar, Anil Bajpai, O.P. Sharma, and Jitender Mahajan.

The complaint highlights the rampant financial misconduct and systemic corruption that has taken root under the current Health Minister, Saurabh Bhardwaj, and the former Health Minister, Satyendra Jain. The scale of the corruption is staggering, with numerous projects in the Health Department being delayed, budgets inflated, and public funds siphoned off in a deliberate and organized manner.

The complaint outlined a disturbing pattern of financial mismanagement, deliberate delays, and budget manipulations, all designed to facilitate the large-scale embezzlement of public funds meant for the welfare of Delhi's citizens.

Between 2018-19, the Delhi Health Department sanctioned 24 hospital projects, comprising 11 greenfield and 13 brownfield projects, with a total budget of Rs. 5,590 crore. Despite the substantial funds allocated, these projects have seen unexplained delays and exorbitant cost overruns.

Among these, the construction of 7 ICU hospitals with a combined bed capacity of 6,800, sanctioned at Rs. 1,125 crore, is particularly concerning. These hospitals, designed as pre-engineered structures for swift completion within 6 months from September 2021, remain only 50% complete after three years. Shockingly, over Rs. 800 crore of public money is at risk of being completely wasted due to poor planning and deliberate negligence.
As a part of the celebration of National Space Day, the Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM), Bhopal, under the aegis of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC), Government of India, inaugurated a two-day National Workshop on "Application of Space Technology in Forest and Wildlife Management."

AK Mohanty, ADG (FC), MoEF&CC, GoI, inaugurated the workshop and delivered the keynote address, setting the stage for the discussions. Dr. K. Ravichandran, Director, IIFM, shared insights from his experience using space technology to monitor marine animal movements and emphasized its crucial role in forest and wildlife management.

He further said that the workshop would delve into new developments and applications in this field.Dr. K. Srinivas, Deputy Director, NRSC, Hyderabad, presented a technical session on Earth Observation Applications and Emerging Opportunities for Forestry and Wildlife. He discussed the utility of AI/ML systems and highlighted key web portalsBhoonidhi, NDEM, Bhuvan, and MOSDACfor data collection and monitoring.

P Subramanyam, PCCF & HoFF, Govt. of Arunachal Pradesh, stressed the integration of Geo-Informatics Systems (GIS) with field inspections. He shared his experiences and asserted that combining on-ground inspections with advanced technology could revolutionize forest and wildlife management.

Rajesh S, IGF (FPD), MoEFCC, GoI, delivered the welcome address and outlined the workshops objectives. Over the next two days, delegates from 14 states and UTs, including representatives from State Forest Departments, national institutions specializing in natural resource management, National Remote Sensing Centre - ISRO, WII, ICFRE, INCOIS, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), MoEF&CC and other academic institutions, shall explore how space technology can address critical challenges in forest and wildlife management.
The Yogi Adityanath government is working tirelessly to make Uttar Pradesh a zero-poverty state by rapidly extending government facilities to all deprived and marginalised sections of society, including the nomadic communities who traverse across the state.

In line with this mission, the government has committed to providing essential services such as electricity, water and housing to nomadic families living in slums in Kalandar Kheda, Lucknow.

This initiative will enable them to benefit from critical schemes like the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, old age pension, destitute women pension and Mukhyamantri Samuhik Vivah.

Under this campaign, officials from various departments work together to ensure that the necessary certificates are provided to these communities, allowing them access to government support.

The nomadic community has expressed great satisfaction with the governments decision and hopes that its standard of living will significantly improve as a result.

Minister of State for Social Welfare (Independent Charge) Asim Arun inspected the Kalandar Kheda colony along with officials and assured the residents that the government will soon extend the benefits of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana to all, ensuring a better quality of life for every family and moving closer to the chief ministers vision of a zero-poverty state.

During a previous visit, Asim Arun, in a display of his unwavering commitment, had instructed officials to establish camps to facilitate access to government schemes for the families residing in the colony.

On this occasion, members of nomadic communities from various states gathered to meet the minister and urged for the creation of a nomadic commission for the communitys uplift.

Minister Arun highlighted that officials from several departments, including Social Welfare, have been conducting surveys over the past few days, setting up camps to identify citizens eligible for government schemes such as old age pension, family benefit schemes and Mukhyamantri Samuhik Vivah scheme.

During an inspection two weeks ago, residents informed Asim Arun that around 200 families have been living in huts in this area for nearly 90 years without access to clean drinking water or electricity.

The municipal corporation provides clean water to the residents via tankers, and efforts are underway to supply electricity. According to the Renke Commissions 2008 report, there are approximately 1,500 nomadic and semi-nomadic tribes and 198 free tribes in India, comprising around 150 million people. Many of these tribes continue to face social and economic challenges across the country.

However, since the establishment of the Yogi government in Uttar Pradesh, significant efforts have been made to integrate these communities into the mainstream. The government has been committed to protecting the human rights of these communities while ensuring their access to essential civic amenities.

On the occasion of the country's 78th Independence Day, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath announced the ambitious goal of transforming Uttar Pradesh into a zero-poverty state.

In his address, Chief Minister Yogi emphasised the Antyodaya se Sarvodaya policy as the foundation for achieving this vision. A comprehensive action plan is being developed to realise this commitment to a zero-poverty state, with the One Family, One ID initiative playing a crucial role in ensuring that every poor and deprived family receives the full benefits of government schemes.

Additionally, the Yogi government aims to lift 15 to 25 lakh of the states poorest families above the poverty line within a year, ultimately making Uttar Pradesh a completely poverty-free state. Over the past decade, the government has successfully lifted six crore people out of multidimensional poverty, providing them a dignified life.
The city bid a tearful farewell to one of its most revered social workers, Deva Prasad Ghosh, who passed away at the age of 90 at his residence in Baradwari. Known affectionately as "Debu Da" by his friends and admirers, Ghosh was a prominent figure in the city's social and cultural landscape, leaving behind a legacy that will be remembered for generations. Deva Prasad Ghosh's final rites were performed at the Subarnarekha Burning Ghat.

A founding member of the Jharkhand Bengali Samiti, Ghosh played a pivotal role in shaping the cultural identity of the Bengali community in Jamshedpur. His most notable contribution was the introduction of Vande Mataram Day in the late 1960s, marking the first celebration of its kind in the city. His dedication to preserving and promoting Bengali culture was further exemplified through his role as the editor of *Samiti Samachar*, the official mouthpiece of the Jharkhand Bengali Samiti.

Ghosh's influence extended beyond cultural initiatives. A man deeply inclined towards spirituality, he was the founder, publisher, and editor of *Saraswat Anandam*, the first spiritual magazine to be published from Jamshedpur. This magazine, registered with the Registrar of Newspapers for India (RNI), served as a beacon of spiritual thought and discourse in the region.

A brilliant student of Sakchi High School, Debu Da was not just a man of letters but also of action. He was a civil engineer by profession and used his expertise to address some of the city's most pressing infrastructural issues. One of his significant contributions was resolving the drinking water problem at Keenan Stadium by leading the installation of a comprehensive network of pipelines. His engineering firm also played a key role in laying the drinking water pipeline in the new building of Tata Main Hospital (TMH).

Debu Da was also known for his advocacy on behalf of senior citizens. In a noteworthy instance, he wrote to the then chairman of the State Bank of India, Arundhati Bhattacharya, highlighting the difficulties faced by elderly customers in accessing the bank's first-floor branch. His plea led to the relocation of the branch to the ground floor, making it more accessible to all.
Congress general secretary Sachin Pilot, on Wednesday, demanded a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the alleged multi-billion rupees scandal and resignation of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) chief.

Addressing a press conference at Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee headquarters here on Wednesday, former deputy chief minister of Rajasthan, Sachin Pilot, raised the recent issues surrounding the SEBI and its chairperson. He criticised the delay in the factual report by SEBI regarding alleged connections and scandals involving the Adani Group and SEBI chairperson.

Pilot demanded a JPC investigation into the alleged multi-billion rupee scandal, calling for the SEBI chairpersons resignation until the probe is completed.

Pilot noted that the Supreme Court had directed the Central government to investigate the matter, questioning the impartiality and quality of such an investigation given the chairpersons suspected involvement.

He emphasised the need for a JPC investigation to uncover the truth, as the Central government remains silent on the issue.

Pilot highlighted that the Supreme Court had specifically called for a factual investigation into the allegations against SEBI, which are widely discussed both nationally and internationally.

He criticised the Central government for failing to address transparency issues, focusing instead on targeting opposition parties and misusing agencies like the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Pilot accused the government of sidelining important issues like the management of national ports and airports, and targeting opposition figures while ignoring corruption and mismanagement.

Pilot also addressed the public sentiment expressed in the recent Lok Sabha elections, pointing out that the electorate is increasingly rejecting exploitative politics. He criticised the Central government for its policy reversals and the controversial agricultural laws that led to the deaths of farmers.

Regarding the Bharat Bandh called by various organisations, Pilot expressed support for the peaceful protest, emphasising that it should remain non-violent to effectively convey the grievances of Dalits, backward classes, and other marginalised groups.

Pilot concluded by criticising the Bharatiya Janata Party for its internal conflicts and poor performance in state elections. He predicted that the BJP would lose in the upcoming state elections, and that the Congress and the INDIA bloc would emerge victorious.

He also commented on the recent budget, labeling it as politically motivated due to disparities in allocations for different states.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has secured a series of high-profile investments for the state, following his strategic meetings with leading business magnates in Mumbai on Wednesday. The engagements saw enthusiastic responses from industry giants such as Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Limited, RPG Group, Sify Technologies, and JSW Group  all expressing strong interest in expanding their operations in Punjab. These commitments are poised to significantly boost the state's industrial landscape, driving economic growth and creating new opportunities for its residents.



During his meetings, CM Mann positioned Punjab as a prime destination for industrial investments, emphasizing the states conducive business environment, skilled workforce, and robust infrastructure. He highlighted the states communal harmony, peace, and amity as key factors contributing to its rapid emergence as a leading industrial hub in India. Mann assured the corporate leaders that the Punjab Government is dedicated to providing uninterrupted power supply across all sectors  residential, commercial, and agricultural  recognizing that power is the engine of growth.



Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Limited  a major player in the pharmaceutical sector, expressed keen interest in expanding its existing operations in Punjab. Damodharan Satagopan, CEO of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) Business at Sun Pharma, praised the states pro-industrial policies and favorable business climate. He highlighted Punjabs strategic advantages, including its infrastructure, professional bureaucracy, and skilled workforce, which make it an ideal location for pharmaceutical operations.



Satagopan revealed that Sun Pharma is exploring opportunities for business expansion through in-licensing, mergers and acquisitions, and strategic partnerships with world-renowned academic institutions. The company, with an annual turnover of Rs 48,496 crore, currently operates in Toansa, Balachaur (SBS Nagar), and Mohali (SAS Nagar) and sees Punjab as a key area for future growth.



The RPG Group, a diversified conglomerate with interests ranging from infrastructure to technology, also signaled its intent to invest significantly in Punjab. Groups vice chairman Anant Goenka commended the states single-window system, which streamlines the investment process by providing a single point of contact for addressing all challenges faced by industrialists.



Goenka emphasized that CEAT, a leading tire manufacturer under the RPG Group, is considering significant expansion in Punjab, viewing the state as a pivotal hub for its growth ambitions. The groups existing investments in South and West India have been successful, and Punjab is now seen as the next strategic location for growth.



Sify Technologies, a leader in IT and digital services, has announced plans to invest Rs 1,500 crore in Punjab by setting up a dedicated Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based horizontal data center in Mohali. Its president Daleep Kaul confirmed the companys commitment to establishing this cutting-edge facility, which will cater to the growing demand for digital infrastructure in the region. The investment is expected to bolster Punjabs position as a leading technology hub in North India, attracting further investments in the IT sector.



In another significant development, JSW Group, one of Indias largest conglomerates, has agreed to invest Rs 1,600 crore in expanding its operations in Punjab. The group plans to set up a new unit on 28 acres of land adjacent to its existing plant in Rajpura. Business Heads Amarjit Singh Dahiya and Ashwani Kumar Sharma of JSW Steel Coated Products Limited conveyed that this expansion will enhance the companys capacity to meet the growing demand for steel products in the region, further solidifying Punjabs role as a key industrial hub.





Investment Plans

 Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd: Expanding its existing Taunsa project

 RPG Group (CEAT): Planning significant investments, particularly in Jalandhar

 Sify Technologies: Investing Rs 1,500-cr in an AI-based data center in Mohali

 JSW Group: Setting up a new steel unit in Rajpura on 28 acres with an investment of Rs 1,600-cr


To make the state clean, waste-free, and to ensure an environment-friendly atmosphere, Punjab Chief Secretary Anurag Verma on Wednesday directed to start a special campaign in the cities and towns of the State. The directions were issued by the Chief Secretary during a meeting with Local Government officials, all Deputy Commissioners, Municipal Corporation Commissioners, Additional Deputy Commissioners (Urban Development) and EOs of Municipal Councils and Panchayats.

Verma said that the piles of garbage in the cities should be removed, and it should now be managed immediately in an effective manner by making a comprehensive plan in this regard. Under this special campaign, arrangements should be made to dispose of the legacy wastage by taking new initiatives. He also asked the Deputy Commissioners to keep a constant review of the cleanliness drive. Apart from this, if there is a need for a place to set up a sewage treatment plant, in this regard the Deputy Commissioners should do the needful. Similarly, where the work of setting up the plant is going on, it should be speeded up. The cleanliness of the surroundings is the responsibility of all of us and efforts should be accelerated to provide a clean environment to the residents of our city, he said.

Himachal's economy will stabilise in six months: CM Sukhu

Shimla: Himachal Pradesh's economy will stabilise in six months after which additional arrears and dearness allowances would be disbursed, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has said. "I will not allow the government treasury to be misused for political gains and emphasised that subsidies on electricity and water would be rationalised to ensure that only the needy gets desirable benefits," Sukhu said at an event in Solan. He was in Solan to unveil the new logo of the Jogindra Cooperative Bank to mark its 100 years. Giving insights into the state's financial management, CM Sukhu said that out of every Rs 100 spent by the present government in this fiscal year, Rs 25 is allocated to salaries, Rs 17 to pensions, Rs 11 to interest payments, Rs 9 to debt repayment, Rs 10 to grants for autonomous institutions and the remaining Rs 28 to capital expenditures and other activities. He said the state has witnessed a reduction in the revenue deficit grant, which has decreased from Rs 10,000 crore in 2021-22 to Rs 3,000 crore by 2025-26. Despite inheriting financial debt of RS 75,000 crore and outstanding liabilities of Rs 10,000 crore from the previous BJP government, the present Congress government provided a seven per cent dearness allowance (DA) to employees and plans to pay arrears to 28,000 pensioners over the age of 75 this year, the chief minister said. Sukhu reassured that it would take about six more months to stabilise the state's economy, after which additional arrears and dearness allowances would be disbursed.

Bharat Bandh against SCs reservation ruling fails to evoke response in Pb, Hry

Chandigarh: The pan-India shutdown on Wednesday to oppose the Supreme Court ruling on the sub-classification of Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) failed to evoke a response in Punjab and Haryana as life was not disrupted, except a few places in Punjab. Likewise, the situation was almost normal in Chandigarh. Banking services and operation of educational institutions and business establishments were normal, although heavy security was deployed in Punjabs SC-dominated Jalandhar and Hoshiarpur districts that were vulnerable to disruption. Traffic across Punjab and Haryana was plying normally and there was no report of activists of political parties squatting on national highways and rail tracks. There was no report of any untoward incident from anywhere in these two states. Emergency medical services were exempted from the blockade.

Photo identity card does not automatically grant right to vote; Name must be registered in Voter list: Hry CEO

Chandigarh: Haryana Chief Electoral Officer Pankaj Agarwal on Wednesday said that in a democratic system, every single vote carries great importance. Therefore, all voters should ensure their participation in the Assembly elections to be held on October 1. Voting is their right, and the opportunity to vote comes only after five years. Possessing a photo identity card does not automatically grant the right to vote; rather, one's name must be registered in the voter list, which is the key to participation in the voting process. He mentioned that voters whose names are registered in the voter list can cast their votes by showing any of the 12 types of ID documents, such as an Aadhaar card, driving license, passport, etc. Various apps have been developed to ensure that every voter can easily, quickly, and conveniently reach the polling station. Through these apps, voters, candidates, and other political parties will receive all types of information related to the election process, he added.

36 Pledging for Organ Donation & 35 Volunteering for Blood Donation

Chandigarh: ROTTO North (PGIMER), in collaboration with the University Institute of Applied Management Sciences (UIAMS), Panjab University, and the Rotary Club Chandigarh Midtown, organized an Organ Donation Pledging Camp as part of their ongoing student engagement project, Be the Change, Be an Organ Donor, at the Student Centre, Panjab University today. The awareness camp, held alongside a Voluntary Blood Donation Camp organized by the Department of Transfusion Medicine, PGIMER, witnessed enthusiastic participation. A total of 36 volunteers pledged their organs, while 35 volunteers donated blood, each contributing to the noble cause of saving lives, said PGIMER official in a statement.

Chandigarh BJP to start membership drive on Sep 1

Chandigarh: To strengthen its unit, the Chandigarh BJP will start its membership drive from September 1, coinciding with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's launch of the membership campaign. In a statement, Chandigarh BJP spokesperson said, The drive aims to strengthen the party at grassroots level and build on its status as the world's largest political party.
Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) House on Wednesday witnessed a ruckus as Opposition Councillors started protesting against Mayor Shelly Oberoi for arriving late and causing a delay in the proceedings following which Oberoi suspended four BJP Councillors.

Heavy sloganeering ensued in the House after Oberoi arrived, but the meeting was adjourned soon after for 15 minutes. BJP and Congress councillors stormed into the Well of the House, raising slogans against Oberoi and the AAP-led MCD and holding placards with Mayor sahiba jawab do! Jawab do! and Constitute a standing committee written on them. They also raised slogans like, Mayor Haye, Haye and Corrupt Mayor Shame On You, and demanded her resignation.

The House was adjourned for a second time for 30 minutes as the protest continued. Moreover, the mayor suspended BJP councillors Pankaj Luthra from Jhilmil ward, Gajendra Singh Dalal from Mundka and Amit Nagpal from Pitampura.

The meeting began more than 50 minutes late from its scheduled time at 2 pm and was adjourned at 2.55 pm for 15 minutes due to the protests. Before the commencement of the meeting, BJP councillors staged a protest outside the meeting hall. They raised slogans over issues, including the pending appointment of a Dalit mayor to the MCD, delay in clearing garbage, waterlogging and the standing committees formation.

Leader of Opposition and former Mayor of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi Raja Iqbal Singh launched a sharp attack on the AAP government in the corporation over the issue of severe waterlogging in Delhi. The government machinery of Delhi came into action only after the intervention of the Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena, otherwise Delhis PWD Minister Atishi had left no stone unturned to drown the city, Singh stated. There was heavy deployment of police personnel at the civic body office.

He added that the AAP government in the MCD has wreaked havoc in the city and after Minto Bridge underpass, there is waterlogging in Zakhira as well. PWD Minister Atishi only realised the need to write to the Railway Department to construct drains and culverts after the waterlogging occurred. Reacting after a crisis is a hallmark of AAPs way of functioning and due to their incompetence, the people of Delhi are suffering severely from waterlogging, the LoP said.
The Uttar Pradesh government led by Yogi Adityanath, on Thursday, demolished the shopping complex of Ayodhya rape accused Moeed Khan, who is a Samajwadi Party leader, days after demolishing his bakery.

Reports said that by Thursday night, half of the property of the accused will be demolished. Earlier, an investigation by the tehsil administration revealed that the bakery of the accused was situated on pond land, leading to the demolition of its manufacturing unit.

Ayodhya Development Authority Secretary Satyendra Singh stated that the building was constructed illegally by encroaching on pond land and chak road land. Despite multiple notices issued by the development authority, the property owners did not submit the required map or show any interest in complying with the notice. This illegal portion included the bank branch as well as other shops and establishments, which have been vacated following a notice.

Subsequently, the demolition order was issued in June, and the action has now been initiated. The sub-divisional magistrate is conducting further investigations, and any additional illegal properties discovered will also face action.

Ayodhya Circle Officer Ashutosh Mishra reported that comprehensive security measures were implemented. The surrounding area was evacuated and a substantial police force was present at the site. Traffic was diverted as needed to ensure smooth operations.

Security of the Ayodhya gang-rape victim has been increased. She has now been shifted to home in Bhadarsa town along with her family after undergoing medical termination of her pregnancy in King Georges Medical University in Lucknow. The incident took place in the Pura Kalandar police station area of Ayodhya, where Moeed Khan, a resident of the same area, allegedly raped the minor girl and made a video of the act. After making the video, Moeed blackmailed the girl and raped her multiple times. The case came to light when the minor girl became two-month pregnant. After discovering the pregnancy, the victims family filed a complaint with the police.
Delhi Universitys St. Stephens College has rejected the applications of 12 single girl child students seeking admission to its undergraduate programme.

The applications were submitted under a supernumerary quota created by the Delhi University (DU) as a special provision implemented this year. However, the college did not accept these applications, according to Dean of Academics Haneet Gandhi.

Calls and texts to St. Stephens principal, John Varghese, for comment did not elicit a response. Around 19 single girl child students applied for admission to the BA Programme course at St. Stephens. The college accepted the applications of seven students but rejected those of the remaining 12, Gandhi stated.

This year, we have instructed all colleges to admit extra students for optimal filling of seats. St. Stephens was asked to admit five per cent more students beyond its total seat capacity, but they refused to admit some single girl child applicants, she added.

Gandhi mentioned that she sent an email to the college principal and extended the deadline for the college to accept the admissions until midnight yesterday.

He responded by saying that we were asking them to admit students beyond their capacity. However, last year, St. Stephens admitted 20-30 percent more students, she said.
The delegates who returned to Bhopal after participating in the historic event of Vishwarang Mauritius, shared their creative experiences in the Vishwarang Varta organized at Hotel Palash on Wednesday and narrated many interesting and important incidents.

During this program, Vishwarang Director Santosh Chaubey, Co-Director Siddharth Chaturvedi and Aditi Chaturvedi Vats, Tagore Vishwa Kala Kendra President Mr. Vinay Upadhyay, Vishwarang Secretariat Coordinator Jawahar Karnavat were specially present. On this occasion, Mr. Santosh Chaubey, Director, Vishwa Rang and Chancellor, Rabindranath Tagore University (Bhopal, India) while sharing his experience said that Honorable Praveen Kumar Jagannath, Prime Minister, Republic of Mauritius increased the dignity of the festival by visiting Vishwarang Mauritius and said that the grand event of Vishwa Rang 2024 dedicated to the global promotion of Hindi and literature, art, culture has prepared the ground for the global expansion of Hindi in Mauritius. Vishwa Rang has also done an important job of strengthening the cultural-educational relations between India and Mauritius. We will together take meaningful steps in the direction of the ideas that have emerged from the ideological discussions held in various sessions of Vishwa Rang.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Rabindranath Tagore University (Bhopal, India) and Mahatma Gandhi Institute, Mauritius will provide opportunities for creative and innovative work for a long time with mutual coordination. Heartiest congratulations to Vishwa Rang Director and Chancellor of Rabindranath Tagore University (Bhopal, India) Shri Santosh Chaubey for the historic event of Vishwa Rang and the MOU.

Santosh Chaubey further said that the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Rabindranath Tagore University (Bhopal, India) and Mahatma Gandhi Institute, Mauritius will provide important opportunities to both the countries to promote creative work together in the direction of language, education, literature, art and culture.

Siddharth Chaturvedi said in his statement that the sixth phase of Asia's biggest festival 'Vishwarang', drenched in the rainbow colours of literature, art and culture, was organised with full grandeur in Mauritius, a beautiful country famous all over the world for its beaches and cultural heritage located in the Indian Ocean.
Ahead of his maiden visit to Ukraine, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that India was an advocate of permanent peace in the region, as he reaffirmed his view that "this is not an era of war" and any conflict should be resolved through diplomacy and dialogue.

Addressing an enthusiastic Indian diaspora in the Polish capital on Wednesday evening, Modi also said that for decades, India had a policy to maintain distance from all the countries. However, the policy of today's India is to remain close to all the countries, he added, amid chants of Modi-Modi.

"India is an advocate of permanent peace in this region. Our stand is very clear - this isn't an era of war. This is the time to come together against those challenges which threaten humanity. Therefore, India believes in diplomacy and dialogues...," Modi told the gathering.

His remarks come ahead of his trip to Kyiv - the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Ukraine since the country became independent in 1991.

Modi, who is visiting Ukraine at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has said that he will share with the Ukrainian leader perspectives on peaceful resolution of the ongoing conflict.

His visit to Kyiv comes nearly six weeks after his high-profile trip to Moscow and meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin which triggered criticism from the US and some of its Western allies.

At the meeting with the diaspora in Warsaw, Modi lauded their contribution to strengthening bilateral relations and commended their role in the success of Operation Ganga, an evacuation mission carried out by the Indian government to rescue its citizens stranded in neighbouring countries of Ukraine after Russia attacked it in 2022.

"Today's India wants to connect with all. Today's India talks about the development of all. Today's India is with all and thinks about the interests of all," Modi said.

Modi said that if any country faces a crisis, India is the first country to extend a helping hand. "Wherever in the world there is an earthquake or any disaster, India has only one mantra - Humanity first," he added.

Prime Minister Modi's visit to Poland is the first trip by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in the past 45 years.

In his address, Modi said he was eagerly looking forward to meeting President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Donald Tusk to strengthen India-Poland ties. He stated that India as the Mother of Democracy and its shared values with Poland bring the two countries closer.

He called upon the community to become a brand ambassador of tourism to India and be part of its growth story.

To further strengthen the special bond with Poland, the Prime Minister announced a new initiative called Jamsaheb Memorial Youth Exchange Program under which 20 Polish youth would be invited to India each year. He also recalled the help provided by Poland during the massive earthquake in Gujarat in 2001.

The prime minister spoke about the transformative progress India has achieved in the last 10 years.

He expressed confidence that India will become the third-largest economy in the next few years. He also spoke about his vision for the country to become a developed nation - Viksit Bharat - by 2047. He stated that Poland and India were enhancing their partnership in areas of new technology and clean energy and driving green growth.

Prime Minister dwelt on India's belief in "Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam  the world is one family  which inspires it to contribute to global well-being and to be the First Responder in humanitarian crises.
Resident doctors at AIIMS, Delhi, and RML Hospital announced on Thursday that they were withdrawing their 11-day strike, called to protest against the rape and murder of a medic in Kolkata, following an appeal from the Supreme Court.

The apex court earlier in the day asked the protesting doctors to resume work and assured them that no adverse action would be taken after they rejoin.

"We are resuming duties following the Supreme Court's appeal and assurances and intervention in the RG Kar incident and the safety for doctors. We commend the court's action and call for adherence to its directives. Patient care remains our top priority," the Resident Doctors' Association, AIIMS, New Delhi, said in a post on X.

The resident doctors' association of RML Hospital said in a statement that "given the Supreme Court's intervention and the progress made in addressing their demands", they would resume their duties from 8 am on Friday.

The strike is being suspended in response to the Supreme Court taking suo motu cognisance of the case and the transfer of the probe to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), it said.

The assault and murder of the junior doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital sparked nationwide protests. On August 12, resident doctors' associations started a nationwide protest, halting outpatient department (OPD) services. Emergency services continued as usual.

The junior doctor's body was found on August 9 with severe injury marks inside the seminar hall of the state-run hospital's chest department. A civic volunteer was arrested by the Kolkata Police in connection with the case the following day.

On August 13, Calcutta High Court ordered the transfer of the probe from the Kolkata Police to the CBI, which started its investigation on August 14.
August 21, 2024: Hungary is replacing its Cold War era force of 164 T-72 tanks with 38 Leopard 2 tanks. NATO has no guidelines for how many tanks each member must maintain but the total number of tanks maintained by all member nations is 4.600. Most of these are the 2,500 U.S. M1A1 tanks. The only other NATO nation to use M1A1s is Poland. The second most used tank is the 1,500 German Leopard 2A4. These are used by Germany and most other NATO members. There are also about 200 each of British Challenger 2s, French Leclercs and Italian Ariete tanks.

Hungary is the latest NATO member to adopt the Leopard 2 and is receiving a small number of them because other nation members already maintain large tank forces. The only potential foe is Russia and the Russians have lost over 7,000 tanks since invading Ukraine in early 2022. That number includes all their most modern models. Currently Russia is bringing 60 year old T-64 tanks out of storage to replace all the modern tanks lost. Russia can only produce 200 new T-90 tanks a year, while also delivering four times as many refurbished older tanks. These include T-80s, T-72s, T-64s, T-62s and T-55s.

Hungary has noted that none of these Russian tanks have lasted long in combat because the Ukrainians have developed, or received from NATO, a large number of modern anti-tank weapons. These systems, many operated by civilian volunteers in early 2022, destroyed or disabled thousands of Russian tanks. The Ukrainians captured some intact, repaired those with slight damage, and added several hundred additional tanks to their military. As a result of all these losses and constantly revolving Ukrainian anti-tank weapons, Russia rarely uses more than a few tanks in each attack and keeps the rest of their tanks hidden from Ukrainian drones that are seeking out Russian tanks and destroying or disabling any they find.

There is still a need for tanks but, as the small size of the Hungarian Leopard 2 tanks on order shows, tanks in combat are less common than in the past.
A tough talking Supreme Court on Thursday termed "extremely disturbing" the Kolkata Police's delay in registering the unnatural death of the woman doctor raped and killed at the RG Kar Hospital, and also asked protesting doctors to get back to work.

Justice and medicine cannot be stopped, the court said while hearing a suo-motu case on the Kolkata doctor's horrific end and directed the Centre and the states to take urgent steps to institutionalise the safety of medics across the country.

A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud issued a slew of directions on the safety of doctors, norms for protests, rights of protesters as well as the West Bengal government.

It said the National Task Force (NTF) formed by the apex court will take note of the suggestions of all the stakeholders while formulating a national protocol for the safety of healthcare professionals, including the associations representing resident doctors.

"We direct the secretary of the Union Ministry of Health to engage with the chief secretaries of the states and directors general of police to ensure the safety of healthcare professionals," the bench said, while ordering that the exercise be completed in a week.

Appearing in the court on behalf of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Solicitor General Tushar Mehta alleged that senior doctors at the Kolkata hospital as well as the victim's colleagues had asked for videograph, which means even they felt that there was a cover-up.

"The (victim's) father insists on the registration of an FIR. The hospital does not register the FIR. The father insisted and got the FIR registered. The FIR is lodged after the cremation. This is an attempt to cover up. We entered the probe on day five, everything was altered by then," Mehta said.

He said the first FIR in the incident was filed only after the victim's cremation at 11:45 pm.

"Initially, the authorities told the parents that it was suicide but later, it was classified as death," he added.

As the hearing commenced after lunch, the court asked what was the reason for a 14-hour delay in lodging the FIR in connection with the incident.

"Who was in touch with the principal of the RG Kar Medical College? Why did he delay the FIR? What was the purpose?" the bench asked.

Questioning the sequence and timing of the legal formalities conducted by police, the court said it is very surprising that the post-mortem was conducted between 6:10 pm and 7:10 pm on August 9, even before the case of unnatural death was registered.

"How was it that the post-mortem was conducted at 6:10 pm on August 9 and yet the unnatural death information is sent to the Tala police station at 11:30 pm on August 9? This is extremely disturbing," the bench, also comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, said.

It directed the Kolkata Police officer, who registered the first entry about the incident that has shocked the country, to appear in the next hearing and disclose the time of the entry.

Mehta told the court that the most shocking fact is that the FIR was registered at 11:45 pm, after the post-graduate medic was cremated.

"The state police told the parents it was suicide. Then they said it was murder. Victim's friends suspected a cover up and insisted on videography," Mehta told the bench.

The bench said peaceful protests over the Kolkata incident shall not be disturbed or disrupted by the West Bengal government. The court, however, clarified that it has not injuncted the state government from exercising such lawful powers.

"When we say peaceful protesters will not be disturbed, we also mean proper protocol will be followed," the top court said.

It said there shall be no coercive action against doctors for protesting.

The court also asked the parties in the case not to politicise the issue and said law will take its course after Mehta pointed to an objectionable statement of a West Bengal minister.

The bench directed the secretary in the Union health ministry to launch a portal where the stakeholders can submit suggestions to the NTF on the safety of doctors.

As the hearing commenced, the top court asked the protesting doctors to resume work and assured them that no adverse action will be taken against them after they rejoin duty.

The court was told by the counsel for the resident doctors of the AIIMS-Nagpur that they are being victimised for protesting over the Kolkata rape-murder case.

"Once they get back to duty, we will prevail upon authorities to not take adverse action. How will public health infrastructure run if the doctors do not work?" the bench asked.

"If there is difficulty after that, come to us.... But let them first report to work," it said.

The court said its heart goes out to all patients visiting public hospitals.

It assured the doctors' associations that the NTF will hear all the stakeholders.

The brutal assault and murder of the junior doctor has sparked nationwide protests. The victim's body was found with severe injury marks inside the seminar hall of the state-run hospital's chest department in the morning of on August 9. A civic volunteer was arrested by the Kolkata Police in connection with the case the following day.

On August 13, the Calcutta High Court ordered the transfer of the probe from the Kolkata Police to the CBI, which started its investigation on August 14.
Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF (NYSEARCA:IWR  Free Report) by 21.6% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,310 shares of the companys stock after selling 912 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLCs holdings in iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF were worth $268,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. LifeSteps Financial Inc. acquired a new position in iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Aspire Private Capital LLC acquired a new position in iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new position in iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its position in iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF by 120.9% during the 1st quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 380 shares of the companys stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the period.

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iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF Price Performance

NYSEARCA IWR traded up $0.88 on Wednesday, hitting $85.33. 1,067,808 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,284,921. The firms 50-day moving average price is $82.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $81.58. iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF has a fifty-two week low of $64.66 and a fifty-two week high of $85.86. The firm has a market cap of $35.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.27 and a beta of 1.02.

iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF Company Profile

iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF (the Fund), formerly iShares Russell Midcap Index Fund, is an exchange-traded fund (ETF). The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the Russell Midcap Index (the Index). The Index measures the performance of the mid-capitalization sector of the United States equity market.

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Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. trimmed its position in General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS  Free Report) by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 47,668 shares of the companys stock after selling 405 shares during the period. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc.s holdings in General Mills were worth $3,015,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of GIS. Cetera Trust Company N.A acquired a new position in shares of General Mills during the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. Optimist Retirement Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of General Mills during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,171,000. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of General Mills by 5.8% in the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 688,543 shares of the companys stock valued at $48,177,000 after purchasing an additional 38,021 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in General Mills by 16.1% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 696,170 shares of the companys stock worth $48,711,000 after buying an additional 96,712 shares during the period. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of General Mills by 122.7% in the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,675 shares of the companys stock worth $1,542,000 after buying an additional 13,043 shares during the period. 75.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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General Mills Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of GIS traded up $0.69 on Wednesday, hitting $70.65. 2,963,830 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,021,151. General Mills, Inc. has a one year low of $60.33 and a one year high of $74.45. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $66.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $67.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.65. The company has a market capitalization of $39.43 billion, a PE ratio of 16.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.09.

General Mills Increases Dividend

General Mills ( NYSE:GIS Get Free Report ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 26th. The company reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.85 billion. General Mills had a net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 26.56%. The firms revenue was down 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.12 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that General Mills, Inc. will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 10th. This is a positive change from General Millss previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. General Millss dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GIS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a sector perform rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of General Mills in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of General Mills from $70.00 to $62.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Barclays decreased their price target on General Mills from $72.00 to $67.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of General Mills from $70.00 to $63.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of General Mills from $70.00 to $67.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat, General Mills presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $69.71.

View Our Latest Report on GIS

About General Mills

(Free Report)

General Mills, Inc manufactures and markets branded consumer foods worldwide. The company operates through four segments: North America Retail; International; Pet; and North America Foodservice. It offers grain, ready-to-eat cereals, refrigerated yogurt, soup, meal kits, refrigerated and frozen dough products, dessert and baking mixes, bakery flour, frozen pizza and pizza snacks, snack bars, fruit and savory snacks, ice cream and frozen desserts, unbaked and fully baked frozen dough products, frozen hot snacks, ethnic meals, side dish mixes, frozen breakfast and entrees, nutrition bars, and frozen and shelf-stable vegetables.

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Ayalon Insurance Comp Ltd. lowered its position in iShares MSCI Global Metals & Mining Producers ETF (BATS:PICK  Free Report) by 3.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 31,595 shares of the companys stock after selling 1,070 shares during the quarter. Ayalon Insurance Comp Ltd. owned approximately 0.12% of iShares MSCI Global Metals & Mining Producers ETF worth $1,290,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PICK. OLD Mission Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of iShares MSCI Global Metals & Mining Producers ETF by 814.4% during the 1st quarter. OLD Mission Capital LLC now owns 500,139 shares of the companys stock worth $20,856,000 after buying an additional 445,441 shares during the last quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of iShares MSCI Global Metals & Mining Producers ETF during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,984,000. Heritage Wealth Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of iShares MSCI Global Metals & Mining Producers ETF during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,094,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of iShares MSCI Global Metals & Mining Producers ETF by 19.5% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 60,292 shares of the companys stock worth $2,597,000 after buying an additional 9,856 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd lifted its position in shares of iShares MSCI Global Metals & Mining Producers ETF by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd now owns 121,053 shares of the companys stock worth $5,207,000 after buying an additional 5,900 shares during the last quarter.

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iShares MSCI Global Metals & Mining Producers ETF Price Performance

Shares of BATS:PICK traded up $0.74 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $39.31. 237,811 shares of the company were exchanged. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.40 and a beta of 1.12. iShares MSCI Global Metals & Mining Producers ETF has a 12-month low of $25.02 and a 12-month high of $37.91. The firms 50 day moving average price is $40.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.28.

iShares MSCI Global Metals & Mining Producers ETF Profile

The iShares MSCI Global Metals & Mining Producers ETF (PICK) is an exchange-traded fund that mostly invests in materials equity. The fund tracks a market-cap-weighted index of global metals mining, extraction or production firms, excluding gold and silver mining firms. PICK was launched on Jan 31, 2012 and is managed by BlackRock.

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Canadian Life Companies Split Corp. (TSE:LFE  Get Free Report) shares rose 1.8% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as C$5.05 and last traded at C$5.05. Approximately 109,439 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 177% from the average daily volume of 39,543 shares. The stock had previously closed at C$4.96.

Canadian Life Companies Split Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 210.26. The stock has a market cap of C$51.71 million, a PE ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 2.92. The companys 50 day moving average is C$4.52 and its 200-day moving average is C$4.59.

Canadian Life Companies Split Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Canadian Life Companies Split Corp. is a closed-ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by Quadravest Capital Management Inc It invests in the public equity markets of Canada. The fund seeks to invest in stocks of companies operating in the life insurance sector. It primarily invests in stocks of four publicly traded life insurance companies namely Great-West Lifeco Inc, Industrial Alliance Insurance and Financial Services Inc, Manulife Financial Corporation, and Sun Life Financial Inc The fund employs fundamental analysis with a focus on such factors as a firm's earning history, relative price-earnings multiple, cash flow, dividend yield, market position, and growth prospects to create its portfolio.

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Eldorado Gold (OTCMKTS:ELDXF  Get Free Report) and Osisko Gold Royalties (NYSE:OR  Get Free Report) are both mining companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership, risk and earnings.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Eldorado Gold and Osisko Gold Royalties revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

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Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio Eldorado Gold N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A Osisko Gold Royalties $252.83 million 12.97 -$35.81 million ($0.21) -83.86

Eldorado Gold has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Osisko Gold Royalties.

Analyst Ratings

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Eldorado Gold 0 0 0 0 N/A Osisko Gold Royalties 0 1 1 1 3.00

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Eldorado Gold and Osisko Gold Royalties, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

Osisko Gold Royalties has a consensus target price of $20.50, indicating a potential upside of 16.41%.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

68.5% of Osisko Gold Royalties shares are held by institutional investors. 0.6% of Osisko Gold Royalties shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Eldorado Gold and Osisko Gold Royalties net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Eldorado Gold N/A N/A N/A Osisko Gold Royalties -36.71% 6.80% 5.72%

Summary

Osisko Gold Royalties beats Eldorado Gold on 7 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Eldorado Gold

(Get Free Report)

Eldorado Gold Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the mining, exploration, development, and sale of mineral products primarily in Turkey, Canada, Greece, and Romania. The company primarily produces gold, as well as silver, lead, and zinc. It holds a 100% interest in the Kisladag and Efemcukuru gold mines located in western Turkey; 100% interest in Lamaque gold mines located in Canada; and Olympias, Stratoni, Skouries, Perama Hill, and Sapes gold mines located in Greece, as well as the 80.5% interest in Certej development projects located in Romania. The company was formerly known as Eldorado Corporation Ltd. and changed its name to Eldorado Gold Corporation in April 1996. Eldorado Gold Corporation was incorporated in 1992 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

About Osisko Gold Royalties

(Get Free Report)

Osisko Gold Royalties Ltd acquires and manages precious metal and other royalties, streams, and other interests in Canada and internationally. It also owns options on offtake; royalty/stream financings; and exclusive rights to participate in future royalty/stream financings on various projects. The company's primary asset is a 3-5% net smelter return royalty on the Canadian Malartic complex located in Canada. In addition, it is involved in the exploration, evaluation, and development of mining projects. It primarily explores for precious metals, including gold, silver, diamond, and others. Osisko Gold Royalties Ltd was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in Montreal, Canada.

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Argus Investors Counsel Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY  Free Report) by 9.1% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 8,273 shares of the companys stock after acquiring an additional 692 shares during the period. Eli Lilly and Company comprises approximately 4.6% of Argus Investors Counsel Inc.s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Argus Investors Counsel Inc.s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $7,490,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Independent Advisor Alliance grew its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 32,269 shares of the companys stock valued at $18,810,000 after buying an additional 544 shares in the last quarter. Apexium Financial LP lifted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1,819.1% in the 4th quarter. Apexium Financial LP now owns 11,438 shares of the companys stock valued at $6,667,000 after acquiring an additional 10,842 shares during the last quarter. Terril Brothers Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 113.2% in the 4th quarter. Terril Brothers Inc. now owns 808 shares of the companys stock worth $471,000 after purchasing an additional 429 shares during the period. Capital Planning LLC bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $262,000. Finally, Hartline Investment Corp raised its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Hartline Investment Corp now owns 21,934 shares of the companys stock valued at $12,786,000 after buying an additional 248 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 82.53% of the companys stock.

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Eli Lilly and Company Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of LLY traded up $2.00 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $951.97. The companys stock had a trading volume of 2,496,047 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,101,510. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. The companys 50-day moving average is $883.39 and its 200-day moving average is $811.11. Eli Lilly and Company has a 52-week low of $516.57 and a 52-week high of $967.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $904.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 140.20, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.41.

Eli Lilly and Company Dividend Announcement

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. Eli Lilly and Companys dividend payout ratio is currently 76.58%.

A number of research firms have weighed in on LLY. Truist Financial reiterated a buy rating and set a $1,000.00 price objective (up previously from $892.00) on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an overweight rating and set a $885.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Monday. Berenberg Bank raised their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $875.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,001.00 to $1,101.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $956.88.

View Our Latest Stock Analysis on LLY

Insider Buying and Selling at Eli Lilly and Company

In other news, major shareholder Lilly Endowment Inc sold 92,563 shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock in a transaction on Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $809.21, for a total value of $74,902,905.23. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 98,556,247 shares in the company, valued at approximately $79,752,700,634.87. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, major shareholder Lilly Endowment Inc sold 92,563 shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $809.21, for a total value of $74,902,905.23. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 98,556,247 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $79,752,700,634.87. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Johna Norton sold 7,056 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $819.38, for a total transaction of $5,781,545.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 25,428 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $20,835,194.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,214,704 shares of company stock valued at $1,066,841,316. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Eli Lilly and Company Company Profile

(Free Report)

Eli Lilly and Company discovers, develops, and markets human pharmaceuticals worldwide. The company offers Basaglar, Humalog, Humalog Mix 75/25, Humalog U-100, Humalog U-200, Humalog Mix 50/50, insulin lispro, insulin lispro protamine, insulin lispro mix 75/25, Humulin, Humulin 70/30, Humulin N, Humulin R, and Humulin U-500 for diabetes; Jardiance, Mounjaro, and Trulicity for type 2 diabetes; and Zepbound for obesity.

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Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK  Free Report) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 7,213 shares of the utilities providers stock, valued at approximately $723,000.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its stake in Duke Energy by 69.6% in the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Finally, Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in Duke Energy during the first quarter worth $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the companys stock.

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Insider Activity at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.64, for a total transaction of $61,365.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19,884 shares of the companys stock, valued at $2,259,617.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK traded up $0.33 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $112.71. 2,798,633 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,945,309. The companys fifty day simple moving average is $106.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $100.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.78. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $83.06 and a 1-year high of $116.67. The company has a market cap of $86.98 billion, a PE ratio of 28.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.45.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK  Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $7.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $6.84 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.25% and a net margin of 10.78%. Duke Energys revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.91 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.71%. This is a boost from Duke Energys previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. Duke Energys dividend payout ratio is currently 105.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on DUK shares. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $99.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Duke Energy from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Duke Energy from $102.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $110.85.

Read Our Latest Analysis on DUK

Duke Energy Company Profile

(Free Report)

Duke Energy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy company in the United States. It operates through two segments: Electric Utilities and Infrastructure (EU&I), and Gas Utilities and Infrastructure (GU&I). The EU&I segment generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electricity in the Carolinas, Florida, and the Midwest.

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Shares of Goldman Sachs Physical Gold ETF (CBOE:AAAU  Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $24.83 and last traded at $24.79, with a volume of 1425147 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $24.81.

Goldman Sachs Physical Gold ETF Trading Down 0.1 %

The company has a fifty day moving average price of $23.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $22.68.

About Goldman Sachs Physical Gold ETF

(Get Free Report)

The Goldman Sachs Physical Gold ETF (AAAU) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the LBMA Gold Price index. The fund tracks the gold spot price, less expenses and liabilities, using gold bars held in a vault in Perth, Australia. Investors can redeem their shares for gold coins and small bars. AAAU was launched on Jul 26, 2018 and is managed by Goldman Sachs.

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iShares Russell 2500 ETF (BATS:SMMD  Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $65.69 and last traded at $65.57, with a volume of 90715 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $65.04.

iShares Russell 2500 ETF Stock Performance

The firms fifty day simple moving average is $63.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $63.31. The firm has a market cap of $1.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.31 and a beta of 1.15.

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Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SMMD. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of iShares Russell 2500 ETF during the 4th quarter valued at about $10,254,000. Cerity Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of iShares Russell 2500 ETF in the 4th quarter valued at about $231,000. New York State Common Retirement Fund bought a new position in shares of iShares Russell 2500 ETF in the 4th quarter valued at about $5,630,000. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of iShares Russell 2500 ETF by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 57,235 shares of the companys stock valued at $3,524,000 after acquiring an additional 2,356 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Truist Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of iShares Russell 2500 ETF by 40.2% in the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 344,208 shares of the companys stock valued at $21,193,000 after acquiring an additional 98,731 shares during the last quarter.

iShares Russell 2500 ETF Company Profile

The iShares Russell 2500 ETF (SMMD) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the Russell 2500 index, a market-cap-weighted index of US companies ranked 501-3,000 by market cap. SMMD was launched on Jul 6, 2017 and is managed by BlackRock.

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August 21, 2024: Europe, like all industrialized nations, is suffering from a population decline. Fewer children are being born because parents consider raising children a burden that can be avoided. This is not a problem for nations like the U.S. and France which accept and absorb migrants. Most nations refuse to do this and are now seeking other solutions. One includes using more automation and drones to do the work people used to perform. This is not a solution, but a bad idea described as a solution. Technology is a tool used by people, not a substitute for a declining population.

For major European nations like Germany that resist migrants or recruiting them as soldiers, the prospects are not good. Population and economic decline are the result of the refusal to face reality. There is also a growing popular aversion to military service. Nations that depend on volunteers to fill their ranks are no longer attracting enough men to maintain current military strength. Current events in Ukraine provide an alternative. Nearly three years of war have left Ukraine and Russia with troop shortages. The Ukrainian solution was more drones and continuous innovation in drone design. Hundreds of Ukrainian drone manufacturers, many working at home using commercial parts, turn out over 3,000 drones a day. Many of these drone builders have family or friends in the military and sending them more droves is appreciated.

Russia, as the invader, has no similar drone manufacturing and design system. Drones are a state monopoly in Russia and that means Russian drones are always behind the Ukrainians in terms of quantity and quality. This results in more casualties among Russian troops and demoralization from continuous Ukrainian innovation in creating new drones that kill Russian soldiers in unexpected ways. This has led to the Russian invasion stalling in late 2023 and the Ukrainian drones continuing to inflict losses on the Russian forces. Russian leaders have, so far, refused to accept defeat. Time is not on their side.

NATO nations have long supported and supplied Ukraine with weapons, munitions and commercial goods for Ukrainian civilians as well as refuge for Ukrainian refugees. With regular access to Ukrainian tactics and new military technology, NATO nations are developing new weapons and strategies. NATO nations are facing a shortage of volunteers, a refusal to reinstate conscription and the continuing need for effective armed forces to deal with a number of potential crises. Currently, the most popular solution is creating small groups of well-trained troops backed by large numbers of drones. The soldiers would develop ways to make best use of the drones in whatever kind of conflict they encountered. To a lesser extent drones are already being used by police for surveillance and pursuit. Police cannot use many armed drones because most police work is carried out among civilians and a few criminals.

In combat zones there are fewer rules and restrictions. Its a kill or be killed environment that favors the side with more drones and better ideas on how to use them. The war in Ukraine has fully established this. NATO nations noted an opportunity to learn from this and that intense learning process will continue until the war in Ukraine is over. At that point NATO nations will already be implementing solutions to their own military manpower problems using lessons from the Ukraine war.
Lecap Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG  Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 14,450 shares of the restaurant operators stock, valued at approximately $905,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Riverview Trust Co grew its position in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 4,900.0% in the 2nd quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 400 shares of the restaurant operators stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 392 shares during the last quarter. Steph & Co. acquired a new position in Chipotle Mexican Grill in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. M&R Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 4,900.0% during the 2nd quarter. M&R Capital Management Inc. now owns 500 shares of the restaurant operators stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill by 9,900.0% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 500 shares of the restaurant operators stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 495 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.31% of the companys stock.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on CMG. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $65.00 to $59.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $61.00 to $56.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a buy rating and set a $69.00 price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a buy rating and set a $67.00 price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $62.36.

Insider Buying and Selling at Chipotle Mexican Grill

In other news, insider Curtis E. Garner sold 17,394 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.68, for a total value of $951,103.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 358,300 shares of the companys stock, valued at $19,591,844. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Price Performance

CMG stock traded up $1.79 on Wednesday, hitting $53.73. 14,527,004 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,202,653. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.24. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. has a twelve month low of $35.37 and a twelve month high of $69.26. The businesss fifty day moving average is $121.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.57.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG  Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The restaurant operator reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.02. Chipotle Mexican Grill had a return on equity of 44.01% and a net margin of 13.23%. The business had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.94 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $12.65 EPS. The companys revenue was up 18.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Company Profile

(Free Report)

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, owns and operates Chipotle Mexican Grill restaurants. It sells food and beverages through offering burritos, burrito bowls, quesadillas, tacos, and salads. The company also provides delivery and related services its app and website. It has operations in the United States, Canada, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

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Lecap Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in Capital One Financial Co. (NYSE:COF) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 7,631 shares of the financial services providers stock, valued at approximately $1,057,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. bought a new position in shares of Capital One Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,299,000. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. lifted its position in Capital One Financial by 21.4% during the first quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 27,493 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $4,093,000 after purchasing an additional 4,840 shares during the last quarter. Twin Tree Management LP grew its stake in shares of Capital One Financial by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Twin Tree Management LP now owns 68,504 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $10,200,000 after buying an additional 3,609 shares in the last quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. raised its position in shares of Capital One Financial by 42,536.0% during the 4th quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 21,318 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $2,795,000 after buying an additional 21,268 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Capital One Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $511,000. 89.84% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on COF. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Capital One Financial from $148.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Capital One Financial from $158.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Capital One Financial from $155.00 to $154.00 and set an in-line rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a sector perform rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Capital One Financial in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, BTIG Research started coverage on Capital One Financial in a research report on Friday, June 7th. They set a neutral rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $145.89.

Insider Activity at Capital One Financial

In other news, insider Robert M. Alexander sold 30,742 shares of Capital One Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $4,611,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 73,734 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $11,060,100. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Capital One Financial news, CEO Kevin S. Borgmann sold 61,532 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.86, for a total value of $8,175,141.52. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 40,934 shares in the company, valued at $5,438,491.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Robert M. Alexander sold 30,742 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $4,611,300.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 73,734 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $11,060,100. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Capital One Financial Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of COF stock traded down $1.79 on Wednesday, hitting $139.72. 1,386,511 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,503,883. Capital One Financial Co. has a twelve month low of $88.23 and a twelve month high of $153.35. The firms 50-day moving average price is $139.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $139.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.12 billion, a PE ratio of 10.94, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Capital One Financial (NYSE:COF  Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $3.14 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.28 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $9.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $9.57 billion. Capital One Financial had a return on equity of 9.31% and a net margin of 9.01%. The companys quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.52 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Capital One Financial Co. will post 13.17 EPS for the current year.

Capital One Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 12th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.72%. Capital One Financials dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.79%.

About Capital One Financial

(Free Report)

Capital One Financial Corporation operates as the financial services holding company for the Capital One, National Association, which engages in the provision of various financial products and services in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. It operates through three segments: Credit Card, Consumer Banking, and Commercial Banking.

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MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Invesco Semiconductors ETF (NYSEARCA:PSI  Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 501 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $31,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Spire Wealth Management raised its stake in Invesco Semiconductors ETF by 41.0% during the 1st quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 1,702 shares of the companys stock valued at $96,000 after purchasing an additional 495 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank raised its stake in Invesco Semiconductors ETF by 237.0% during the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 1,914 shares of the companys stock valued at $108,000 after purchasing an additional 1,346 shares during the last quarter. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in Invesco Semiconductors ETF during the 1st quarter valued at $118,000. WASHINGTON TRUST Co acquired a new position in Invesco Semiconductors ETF during the 1st quarter valued at $139,000. Finally, Cetera Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Invesco Semiconductors ETF in the 1st quarter valued at $207,000.

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Invesco Semiconductors ETF Stock Performance

Shares of PSI stock traded up $1.29 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $58.72. The companys stock had a trading volume of 98,595 shares, compared to its average volume of 80,830. Invesco Semiconductors ETF has a 1-year low of $37.34 and a 1-year high of $67.33. The company has a market cap of $832.06 million, a P/E ratio of 7.37 and a beta of 1.77. The firms 50-day moving average is $59.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $56.99.

Invesco Semiconductors ETF Company Profile

PowerShares Dynamic Semiconductors Portfolio (the Fund) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield of the Dynamic Semiconductors Intellidex Index (the Index). The Index is designed to provide capital appreciation by evaluating companies based on a variety of investment merit criteria, including fundamental growth, stock valuation, investment timeliness and risk factors.

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Nuveen ESG Large-Cap Growth ETF (BATS:NULG  Get Free Report)s share price reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $81.31 and last traded at $81.31, with a volume of 36236 shares. The stock had previously closed at $80.18.

Nuveen ESG Large-Cap Growth ETF Stock Up 0.6 %

The stocks fifty day moving average price is $80.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $76.82. The company has a market capitalization of $1.46 billion, a PE ratio of 41.95 and a beta of 1.22.

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Institutional Trading of Nuveen ESG Large-Cap Growth ETF

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. TIAA Trust National Association boosted its holdings in shares of Nuveen ESG Large-Cap Growth ETF by 4.6% during the first quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 2,499,671 shares of the companys stock worth $190,675,000 after purchasing an additional 110,463 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC raised its stake in Nuveen ESG Large-Cap Growth ETF by 6.6% in the second quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 812,109 shares of the companys stock worth $65,911,000 after buying an additional 50,565 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its stake in Nuveen ESG Large-Cap Growth ETF by 16.2% in the second quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 460,171 shares of the companys stock worth $37,347,000 after buying an additional 64,061 shares in the last quarter. Refined Wealth Management raised its stake in Nuveen ESG Large-Cap Growth ETF by 0.3% in the first quarter. Refined Wealth Management now owns 235,139 shares of the companys stock worth $17,936,000 after buying an additional 689 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Nuveen ESG Large-Cap Growth ETF by 0.7% in the second quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 129,132 shares of the companys stock worth $10,480,000 after buying an additional 843 shares in the last quarter.

About Nuveen ESG Large-Cap Growth ETF

The Nuveen ESG Large-Cap Growth ETF (NULG) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the MSCI TIAA ESG USA Large Cap Growth index. The fund tracks an index composed of large-cap US companies with growth characteristics that also meet certain environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria. NULG was launched on Dec 13, 2016 and is managed by Nuveen.

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Osisko Gold Royalties (TSE:OR  Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by Scotiabank from C$25.00 to C$27.00 in a research note published on Monday morning, BayStreet.CA reports.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Raymond James increased their price target on Osisko Gold Royalties from C$26.00 to C$28.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. TD Securities upped their price target on shares of Osisko Gold Royalties from C$28.00 to C$29.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on Osisko Gold Royalties from C$30.00 to C$31.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. National Bankshares raised their target price on Osisko Gold Royalties from C$26.00 to C$28.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Osisko Gold Royalties from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of C$28.50.

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View Our Latest Analysis on OR

Osisko Gold Royalties Trading Up 0.8 %

Osisko Gold Royalties Dividend Announcement

Shares of Osisko Gold Royalties stock opened at C$23.94 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of C$4.46 billion, a PE ratio of -47.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.88. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of C$23.01 and a 200 day moving average price of C$22.00. Osisko Gold Royalties has a 1 year low of C$15.42 and a 1 year high of C$25.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.00, a current ratio of 4.92 and a quick ratio of 0.98.

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.065 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 27th. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.09%. Osisko Gold Royaltiess payout ratio is -52.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Osisko Gold Royalties news, Director Victor Bradley sold 5,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$23.19, for a total value of C$115,950.00. In other news, Director Victor Bradley sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$23.19, for a total value of C$115,950.00. Also, Director Everard Trenton Richards sold 15,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$22.19, for a total transaction of C$332,913.00. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 25,000 shares of company stock valued at $562,172. Insiders own 0.38% of the companys stock.

Osisko Gold Royalties Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Osisko Gold Royalties Ltd acquires and manages precious metal and other royalties, streams, and other interests in Canada and internationally. It also owns options on offtake; royalty/stream financings; and exclusive rights to participate in future royalty/stream financings on various projects. The company's primary asset is a 3-5% net smelter return royalty on the Canadian Malartic complex located in Canada.

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Tesco PLC (OTCMKTS:TSCDD  Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $13.57 and last traded at $13.57, with a volume of 65361 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $13.50.

Tesco Stock Performance

The companys 50 day simple moving average is $12.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.66.

About Tesco

(Get Free Report)

Tesco PLC, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a grocery retailer. The company operates through convenience and hypermarket store formats, as well as engages in the wholesale business. It also provides retail banking and insurance services. The company operates in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Malaysia, and Thailand.

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Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG  Free Report) by 28.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,876 shares of the companys stock after buying an additional 416 shares during the period. Procter & Gamble comprises 0.1% of Iron Horse Wealth Management LLCs investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLCs holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $309,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Advantage Trust Co acquired a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 64.7% in the 1st quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 196 shares of the companys stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. 65.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

Procter & Gamble stock traded down $0.25 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $170.16. 3,971,599 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,627,734. The firm has a market cap of $401.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.80, a PEG ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $167.17 and a 200 day moving average of $163.50. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 12 month low of $141.45 and a 12 month high of $171.89.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

Procter & Gamble ( NYSE:PG Get Free Report ) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.03. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.46% and a net margin of 17.71%. The firm had revenue of $20.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $20.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.37 earnings per share. The companys revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.97 earnings per share for the current year.

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 19th were given a $1.0065 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 19th. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.37%. Procter & Gambles dividend payout ratio is 65.69%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Jon R. Moeller sold 72,174 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.01, for a total value of $12,342,475.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 263,158 shares in the company, valued at $45,002,649.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Procter & Gamble news, CEO R. Alexandra Keith sold 3,373 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $573,410.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 21,513 shares in the company, valued at $3,657,210. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jon R. Moeller sold 72,174 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.01, for a total value of $12,342,475.74. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 263,158 shares of the companys stock, valued at $45,002,649.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 84,389 shares of company stock valued at $14,373,932. 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from a buy rating to a hold rating and dropped their target price for the company from $182.00 to $175.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $157.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Dbs Bank cut shares of Procter & Gamble from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $157.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $177.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $173.95.

View Our Latest Analysis on Procter & Gamble

About Procter & Gamble

(Free Report)

The Procter & Gamble Company provides branded consumer packaged goods worldwide. It operates through five segments: Beauty; Grooming; Health Care; Fabric & Home Care; and Baby, Feminine & Family Care. The Beauty segment offers conditioners, shampoos, styling aids, and treatments under the Head & Shoulders, Herbal Essences, Pantene, and Rejoice brands; and antiperspirants and deodorants, personal cleansing, and skin care products under the Olay, Old Spice, Safeguard, Secret, and SK-II brands.

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Toronto-Dominion Bank (TSE:TD  Free Report) (NYSE:TD) had its price target reduced by Scotiabank from C$87.00 to C$86.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning, BayStreet.CA reports.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on TD. CIBC raised Toronto-Dominion Bank from a neutral rating to an outperform rating and raised their price target for the company from C$83.50 to C$88.00 in a report on Friday, May 24th. UBS Group set a C$82.00 target price on Toronto-Dominion Bank and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Desjardins lowered their price target on shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank from C$93.00 to C$91.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Cibc World Mkts upgraded shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report on Friday, May 24th. Finally, National Bankshares decreased their price objective on shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank from C$75.00 to C$74.00 and set an underperform rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of C$86.90.

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View Our Latest Report on Toronto-Dominion Bank

Toronto-Dominion Bank Stock Performance

Shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank stock opened at C$81.29 on Monday. The company has a market cap of C$143.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.62, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.82. The firm has a fifty day moving average of C$77.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of C$78.71. Toronto-Dominion Bank has a one year low of C$73.67 and a one year high of C$86.89.

Toronto-Dominion Bank (TSE:TD  Get Free Report) (NYSE:TD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 23rd. The company reported C$2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of C$1.84 by C$0.20. Toronto-Dominion Bank had a net margin of 21.91% and a return on equity of 9.89%. The firm had revenue of C$13.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of C$13.38 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Toronto-Dominion Bank will post 8.3985432 earnings per share for the current year.

Toronto-Dominion Bank Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th were given a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.02%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 10th. Toronto-Dominion Banks payout ratio is 68.34%.

About Toronto-Dominion Bank

(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.

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XML Financial LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS  Free Report) by 4.4% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 9,248 shares of the companys stock after selling 427 shares during the quarter. XML Financial LLCs holdings in Novartis were worth $985,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NVS. Private Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Novartis during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Clearstead Trust LLC increased its holdings in Novartis by 73.5% in the 1st quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 269 shares of the companys stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new stake in Novartis in the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. 13.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Novartis Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NVS traded up $0.49 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $117.62. 711,792 shares of the companys stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,204,212. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Novartis AG has a 1 year low of $92.19 and a 1 year high of $117.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $240.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.87, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.57. The businesss 50-day moving average price is $109.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $103.03.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Novartis ( NYSE:NVS Get Free Report ) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The company reported $1.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.10. Novartis had a return on equity of 34.56% and a net margin of 33.76%. The firm had revenue of $12.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $12.24 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.83 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Novartis AG will post 7.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a hold rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Friday, July 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Novartis in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a buy rating and a $120.00 price target for the company. Barclays upgraded Novartis to a strong sell rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Novartis from $121.00 to $122.50 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Novartis from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $118.13.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on NVS

Novartis Company Profile

(Free Report)

Novartis AG engages in the research, development, manufacture, and marketing of healthcare products in Switzerland and internationally. The company offers prescription medicines for patients and physicians. It focuses on therapeutic areas, such as cardiovascular, renal and metabolic, immunology, neuroscience, and oncology, as well as ophthalmology and hematology.

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Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (TSE:CM  Get Free Report) (NYSE:CM) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as C$73.07 and last traded at C$73.00, with a volume of 1018035 shares. The stock had previously closed at C$72.70.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on CM. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce from C$70.00 to C$71.00 and gave the company an underweight rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. Cormark set a C$72.00 price target on Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and gave the stock a market perform rating in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group set a C$70.00 price target on shares of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce from C$73.00 to C$77.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce from C$74.00 to C$77.00 in a research note on Friday, May 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of C$71.79.

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Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Price Performance

The company has a market cap of C$68.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.10, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.12. The businesss 50-day simple moving average is C$68.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is C$66.58.

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (TSE:CM  Get Free Report) (NYSE:CM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The company reported C$1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of C$1.66 by C$0.09. The company had revenue of C$6.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of C$6.11 billion. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce had a return on equity of 11.92% and a net margin of 29.25%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce will post 7.301217 EPS for the current year.

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 29th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th were paid a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 28th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.93%. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerces payout ratio is currently 54.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce

In related news, Senior Officer John Hountalas sold 20,808 shares of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce stock in a transaction on Monday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$65.97, for a total value of C$1,372,672.55. In other Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce news, Senior Officer John Hountalas sold 20,808 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$65.97, for a total transaction of C$1,372,672.55. Also, Senior Officer Christina Charlotte Kramer sold 23,782 shares of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce stock in a transaction on Friday, June 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$67.50, for a total transaction of C$1,605,285.00. 0.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, a diversified financial institution, provides various financial products and services to personal, business, public sector, and institutional clients in Canada, the United States, and internationally. The company operates through Canadian Personal and Business Banking; Canadian Commercial Banking and Wealth Management; U.S.

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August 22, 2024: Russian officials are planning on military reforms after the war in Ukraine is over. The major problem is none of the Russian planners can agree on when the war will end. The Russians are unsure how to end the war. Russian leaders are willing to continue the war indefinitely and wait for NATO countries supporting Ukraine to tire of the expense and futility of their efforts. Russia believes that it cannot afford to end the war and Ukraine is certain that it cannot lose the war and disappear as a country. This is the old irresistible forces versus the immovable object problem. One thing is certain, low Russian production of tanks and sanctions related shortages of tanks, including older ones brought out of storage, means that by sometime in late 2025 the supply of tanks and replacement artillery barrels will be exhausted. Howitzers wear out their barrels after 2,000 to 2,500 shells are fired from them.

Russian plans to eventually win conflict with NATO plans to support Ukraine for as long as it takes to prevent a Russian victory. One thing both sides agree on is that the cost of continuing the war is high but both sides believe they can keep at it longer than their enemy. Russia is in a weaker position even though they have created a wartime economy. This has led to an increased poverty rate and problems for Russian businesses that long prospered because they could do business with NATO countries. That is gone and Russian leader Vladimir Putin punishes Russians who complain about economic problems caused by the Ukraine invasion. It is generally understood in Russia that once Putin is gone, either from power, the Ukraine War will end, or at last the Russians will withdraw their forces. There is still the problem of Russia still occupying about a quarter of Ukraine and not in a mood to give that up. Ukraine insists it will keep fighting to regain its territory.

Giving up the Ukrainian territory in return for peace and an end to sanctions would be a good deal for Russia, Ukraine and the NATO supporters of Ukraine. That is unlikely to happen, at least not as long as Vladimir Putin is still running Russia. Putin was behind Russian voting reforms that allowed him to remain in power, if the voters agree, until 2036. At that point Putin will be 83 years old. The current age limit for Russian presidents is 70, Putin can get that changed. The problem is that during the Soviet period Russian dictators served for life and often became unstable rulers as they got into their 70s.

Putin has been in office since 2000 and kept getting reelected because he took care of basic needs that are important to most Russians. This included pensions you can survive on and low unemployment rates. What Putin cant change is his age. He is currently 71 and in modern Russia history that makes him one of the oldest. Josef Stalin, the Soviet leader who was in power longest, died in 1953, at 75 from a stroke. His successor, Nikita Khrushchev, died in 1971, at 77, of a heart attack. He was followed by Leonid Brezhnev who died in 1892, at 76 from an undisclosed ailment. He was followed by Yuri Andropov who died at 70 from kidney failure. Then came Konstantin Chernenko who died in 1985, at 74 from pneumonia. Boris Yeltsin, who retired in 1999 and died in 2007 from heart failure at age 76, criticized his successor Vladimir Putin for changing the government from a democracy to Soviet style dictatorship with rigged elections.

When the war is over in Ukraine, Putin plans to ignore the current election laws and serve until he is 83 years old, unless the stress of running the war in Ukraine does not kill him sooner. Putins strategy for keeping the war going was to create a wartime economy. This included spending huge sums to entice Russian men to join the military. That fell out of favor as these newly affluent soldiers were killed or disabled and discovered that the high pay was not worth it if you are dead or disabled.

Paying for the war had ruined the economy in many ways. Putin soon discovered that no matter how much he improvised he could not match the combined economic power of the Americans and Europeans. With more resources the NATO nations supplied Ukraine with more numerous and powerful weapons. The economic sanctions imposed on Russia for invading Ukraine hampered Putins efforts to create a wartime economy. Putin has created a paradox he has a hard time getting out of. He has no one but himself to blame and thats an outcome most Ukrainians, Russians and anyone from Europe or the United States can agree with.
Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed their neutral rating on shares of CVS Health (NYSE:CVS  Free Report) in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $62.00 target price on the pharmacy operators stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on CVS. Truist Financial reiterated a buy rating and set a $66.00 target price (down previously from $90.00) on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Bank of America decreased their price objective on CVS Health from $95.00 to $77.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of CVS Health from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. SVB Leerink reissued a market perform rating and set a $60.00 price objective (down from $87.00) on shares of CVS Health in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group cut shares of CVS Health from a buy rating to a neutral rating and reduced their target price for the company from $85.00 to $60.00 in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $73.24.

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CVS Health Trading Down 1.0 %

NYSE:CVS opened at $58.31 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.81. CVS Health has a 1 year low of $52.77 and a 1 year high of $83.25. The stock has a market cap of $73.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.25, a P/E/G ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 0.52. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $58.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $65.29.

CVS Health (NYSE:CVS  Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $91.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $91.41 billion. CVS Health had a net margin of 2.03% and a return on equity of 13.53%. The firms revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.21 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that CVS Health will post 7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CVS Health Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 22nd were issued a $0.665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 22nd. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.56%. CVS Healths dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.75%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CVS Health

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in CVS Health by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 16,744 shares of the pharmacy operators stock valued at $1,322,000 after acquiring an additional 1,715 shares during the last quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new position in shares of CVS Health during the 4th quarter worth approximately $50,000. CWM LLC raised its position in shares of CVS Health by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 72,073 shares of the pharmacy operators stock worth $5,691,000 after purchasing an additional 1,168 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in CVS Health by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 557,756 shares of the pharmacy operators stock valued at $44,040,000 after buying an additional 69,594 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI acquired a new stake in CVS Health during the 4th quarter valued at $463,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.66% of the companys stock.

CVS Health Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

CVS Health Corporation provides health solutions in the United States. It operates through Health Care Benefits, Health Services, and Pharmacy & Consumer Wellness segments. The Health Care Benefits segment offers traditional, voluntary, and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services.

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Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL  Get Free Report) updated its first quarter 2025 earnings guidance on Monday. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 0.020-0.100 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 0.630. The company issued revenue guidance of $3.3 billion-$3.4 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $3.8 billion. Estee Lauder Companies also updated its FY 2025 guidance to 2.750-2.950 EPS.

Estee Lauder Companies Trading Up 0.6 %

Estee Lauder Companies stock opened at $91.55 on Thursday. The businesss 50-day simple moving average is $101.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $126.73. Estee Lauder Companies has a 52 week low of $86.05 and a 52 week high of $165.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.83 billion, a PE ratio of 51.43, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.58.

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Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL  Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 19th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $3.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.80 billion. Estee Lauder Companies had a net margin of 4.18% and a return on equity of 13.08%. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.07 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Estee Lauder Companies will post 2.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Estee Lauder Companies Announces Dividend

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.88%. Estee Lauder Companiess dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 148.31%.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada restated an outperform rating and set a $131.00 price objective on shares of Estee Lauder Companies in a research report on Tuesday. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $180.00 to $130.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $140.00 to $100.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $141.00 to $108.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Estee Lauder Companies from $130.00 to $117.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Estee Lauder Companies currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $124.13.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Estee Lauder Companies

Insider Buying and Selling at Estee Lauder Companies

In other Estee Lauder Companies news, EVP Jane Lauder sold 14,976 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.26, for a total transaction of $1,815,989.76. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 57,389 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,958,990.14. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 12.77% of the companys stock.

Estee Lauder Companies Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

The Estee Lauder Companies Inc manufactures, markets, and sells skin care, makeup, fragrance, and hair care products worldwide. It offers skin care products, including moisturizers, serums, cleansers, toners, body care, exfoliators, acne care and oil correctors, facial masks, and sun care products; and makeup products, such as lipsticks, lip glosses, mascaras, foundations, eyeshadows, nail polishes, and powders, as well as compacts, brushes, and other makeup tools.

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Griffin Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB  Free Report) by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 73,930 shares of the oil and gas companys stock after purchasing an additional 2,393 shares during the period. Griffin Asset Management Inc.s holdings in Schlumberger were worth $3,488,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Stableford Capital II LLC grew its position in Schlumberger by 11.9% during the second quarter. Stableford Capital II LLC now owns 20,034 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $980,000 after buying an additional 2,136 shares during the period. Rockland Trust Co. boosted its stake in shares of Schlumberger by 12.0% during the 2nd quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 289,219 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $13,645,000 after acquiring an additional 30,950 shares in the last quarter. Busey Bank grew its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Busey Bank now owns 196,030 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $9,249,000 after acquiring an additional 5,234 shares during the period. KG&L Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Schlumberger by 223.2% in the 2nd quarter. KG&L Capital Management LLC now owns 13,644 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $683,000 after purchasing an additional 9,422 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Schlumberger by 144.2% during the second quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 22,375 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $1,056,000 after purchasing an additional 13,214 shares during the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered Schlumberger from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating and lowered their target price for the company from $68.00 to $53.00 in a report on Monday, April 29th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Schlumberger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Schlumberger from $71.00 to $66.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 15th. Benchmark reaffirmed a buy rating and issued a $68.00 price target on shares of Schlumberger in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an outperform rating and issued a $69.00 price target on shares of Schlumberger in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $67.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Bejar Carmen Rando sold 4,980 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.43, for a total transaction of $216,281.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 22,518 shares in the company, valued at approximately $977,956.74. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Vijay Kasibhatla sold 10,000 shares of Schlumberger stock in a transaction on Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.29, for a total transaction of $492,900.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 62,354 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $3,073,428.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Bejar Carmen Rando sold 4,980 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.43, for a total transaction of $216,281.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,518 shares of the companys stock, valued at $977,956.74. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 185,696 shares of company stock worth $9,264,905 over the last three months. 0.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Schlumberger Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE:SLB traded down $0.08 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $44.12. The companys stock had a trading volume of 7,164,164 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,696,898. Schlumberger Limited has a twelve month low of $42.61 and a twelve month high of $62.12. The companys fifty day simple moving average is $46.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $48.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.49 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market cap of $62.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.68, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.55.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB  Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.02. Schlumberger had a net margin of 12.56% and a return on equity of 21.92%. The company had revenue of $9.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.72 earnings per share. Schlumbergers revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.49 EPS for the current year.

Schlumberger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 4th will be given a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 4th. Schlumbergers dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.54%.

About Schlumberger

(Free Report)

Schlumberger Limited engages in the provision of technology for the energy industry worldwide. The company operates through four divisions: Digital & Integration, Reservoir Performance, Well Construction, and Production Systems. The company provides field development and hydrocarbon production, carbon management, and integration of adjacent energy systems; reservoir interpretation and data processing services for exploration data; and well construction and production improvement services and products.

Further Reading

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Griffin Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD  Free Report) by 3.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,634 shares of the aerospace companys stock after buying an additional 249 shares during the quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc.s holdings in General Dynamics were worth $1,925,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at $728,284,000. Verity & Verity LLC acquired a new position in General Dynamics during the 1st quarter valued at $179,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in General Dynamics by 3,645.4% during the 4th quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 558,586 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $145,048,000 after purchasing an additional 543,672 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado raised its stake in General Dynamics by 879.9% during the 1st quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 340,359 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $96,148,000 after purchasing an additional 305,624 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Junto Capital Management LP acquired a new position in General Dynamics during the 4th quarter valued at $43,733,000. 86.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of General Dynamics from $330.00 to $334.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of General Dynamics from a hold rating to a buy rating and boosted their price target for the company from $305.00 to $335.00 in a report on Monday, April 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a hold rating on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Monday, July 29th. StockNews.com lowered shares of General Dynamics from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Argus upped their target price on shares of General Dynamics from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, General Dynamics presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $315.06.

General Dynamics Trading Down 0.2 %

General Dynamics stock traded down $0.62 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $293.45. 676,188 shares of the companys stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,056,925. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.33. General Dynamics Co. has a fifty-two week low of $214.53 and a fifty-two week high of $302.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.99, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.60. The firms 50 day moving average is $290.88 and its 200-day moving average is $286.78.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD  Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The aerospace company reported $3.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $3.30 by ($0.04). General Dynamics had a net margin of 7.89% and a return on equity of 16.74%. The business had revenue of $11.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.70 earnings per share. The businesss revenue for the quarter was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that General Dynamics Co. will post 14.5 earnings per share for the current year.

General Dynamics Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 11th will be given a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 11th. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. General Dynamicss dividend payout ratio is 46.33%.

General Dynamics Profile

(Free Report)

General Dynamics Corporation operates as an aerospace and defense company worldwide. It operates through four segments: Aerospace, Marine Systems, Combat Systems, and Technologies. The Aerospace segment produces and sells business jets; and offers aircraft maintenance and repair, management, aircraft-on-ground support and completion, charter, staffing, and fixed-base operator services.

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Shiseido (OTCMKTS:SSDOY  Get Free Report) and Integrated BioPharma (OTCMKTS:INBP  Get Free Report) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability, dividends, earnings and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Shiseido and Integrated BioPharmas net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

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Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Shiseido 1.03% 1.52% 0.77% Integrated BioPharma -0.23% -0.62% -0.44%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Shiseido and Integrated BioPharma, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Shiseido 0 0 0 0 N/A Integrated BioPharma 0 0 0 0 N/A

Insider and Institutional Ownership

0.0% of Shiseido shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 25.3% of Integrated BioPharma shares are owned by institutional investors. 45.6% of Integrated BioPharma shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Shiseido and Integrated BioPharmas top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

Gross Revenue Price/Sales Ratio Net Income Earnings Per Share Price/Earnings Ratio Shiseido $6.94 billion 1.32 $155.11 million $0.17 135.12 Integrated BioPharma $50.67 million 0.12 -$30,000.00 N/A N/A

Shiseido has higher revenue and earnings than Integrated BioPharma.

Risk and Volatility

Shiseido has a beta of 0.34, meaning that its share price is 66% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Integrated BioPharma has a beta of 0.72, meaning that its share price is 28% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Shiseido beats Integrated BioPharma on 6 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Shiseido

(Get Free Report)

Shiseido Company, Limited engages in the production and sale of cosmetics in Japan and internationally. The company offers fragrances; and skincare and makeup products. It also engages in the restaurant and food, and retail businesses; and operates beauty salons. In addition, the company operates and supports SABFA, a professional hair makeup training school. Further, it offers childcare facilities. The company sells its products through department, specialized cosmetic, drug, and general merchandise stores. Shiseido Company, Limited was founded in 1872 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

About Integrated BioPharma

(Get Free Report)

Integrated BioPharma, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, distributes, markets, and sells vitamins, nutritional supplements, and herbal products primarily in the United States and Luxembourg. It operates through Contract Manufacturing and Other Nutraceutical Businesses segments. The Contract Manufacturing segment manufactures vitamins and nutritional supplements for sale to distributors, multilevel marketers, and specialized health-care providers. The Other Nutraceutical Businesses segment distributes healthful nutritional products for sale through mass market, grocery, drug, and vitamin retailers under the Peaceful Sleep and Wheatgrass brands, as well as other branded proprietary nutraceutical products. This segment also sells private label vitamin and nutritional supplement products through the Internet; provides warehousing and fulfilment services; and distributes fine natural botanicals, including multi minerals, as well as raw materials. The company was formerly known as Integrated Health Technologies, Inc. Integrated BioPharma, Inc. was incorporated in 1980 and is based in Hillside, New Jersey.

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Glaukos Co. (NYSE:GKOS  Get Free Report) Director Marc Stapley sold 6,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.93, for a total value of $787,062.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 34,076 shares of the companys stock, valued at $4,291,190.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Glaukos Price Performance

GKOS stock opened at $130.00 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.55 billion, a P/E ratio of -45.14 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 4.68 and a current ratio of 5.48. Glaukos Co. has a 52-week low of $59.22 and a 52-week high of $130.13. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $119.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.79.

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Glaukos (NYSE:GKOS  Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The medical instruments supplier reported ($0.52) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts consensus estimates of ($0.52). The business had revenue of $95.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $88.86 million. Glaukos had a negative return on equity of 22.51% and a negative net margin of 47.39%. The companys quarterly revenue was up 19.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.55) EPS. Research analysts expect that Glaukos Co. will post -2.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Glaukos

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Glaukos by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,308,897 shares of the medical instruments suppliers stock worth $500,576,000 after buying an additional 72,159 shares in the last quarter. Brown Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Glaukos by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Brown Capital Management LLC now owns 2,697,794 shares of the medical instruments suppliers stock worth $214,448,000 after buying an additional 89,420 shares in the last quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Glaukos by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 1,278,723 shares of the medical instruments suppliers stock worth $151,337,000 after buying an additional 47,308 shares in the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA lifted its position in shares of Glaukos by 43.9% during the 2nd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 1,220,815 shares of the medical instruments suppliers stock worth $144,483,000 after buying an additional 372,180 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Glaukos by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 923,526 shares of the medical instruments suppliers stock worth $73,412,000 after buying an additional 31,213 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.04% of the companys stock.

GKOS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on Glaukos from $131.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Glaukos from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Truist Financial restated a buy rating and issued a $145.00 target price (up from $141.00) on shares of Glaukos in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Glaukos from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Glaukos from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Glaukos has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $127.73.

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About Glaukos

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Glaukos Corporation, an ophthalmic pharmaceutical and medical technology company, focuses on the development of novel therapies for the treatment of glaucoma, corneal disorders, and retinal diseases. It offers iStent and iStent inject W micro-bypass stents that enhance aqueous humor outflow inserted in cataract surgery to treat mild-to-moderate open-angle glaucoma.

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The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX  Get Free Report) in a report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm set a buy rating and a $20.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Groups price objective suggests a potential upside of 16.82% from the companys current price.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on MAX. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on MediaAlpha from $18.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. TD Cowen downgraded shares of MediaAlpha from a buy rating to a hold rating and dropped their target price for the company from $19.00 to $13.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on shares of MediaAlpha from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of MediaAlpha from $18.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an outperform rating and set a $26.00 price objective (up previously from $25.00) on shares of MediaAlpha in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $24.29.

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MediaAlpha Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of MAX opened at $17.12 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a PE ratio of -25.18 and a beta of 1.20. MediaAlpha has a 12 month low of $7.62 and a 12 month high of $25.78. The stocks 50-day moving average price is $14.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.46.

MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX  Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $0.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.02 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $178.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $151.40 million. The firms quarterly revenue was up 110.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.32) earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that MediaAlpha will post 0.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in MediaAlpha in the 2nd quarter valued at about $136,000. Algert Global LLC acquired a new position in MediaAlpha during the 2nd quarter valued at about $162,000. Clearline Capital LP boosted its stake in MediaAlpha by 1,255.3% during the 2nd quarter. Clearline Capital LP now owns 576,728 shares of the companys stock valued at $7,596,000 after purchasing an additional 534,176 shares during the last quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in MediaAlpha by 208.4% during the 2nd quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 1,436,615 shares of the companys stock valued at $18,920,000 after purchasing an additional 970,840 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in MediaAlpha during the 2nd quarter valued at about $4,002,000. 64.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About MediaAlpha

(Get Free Report)

MediaAlpha, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates an insurance customer acquisition platform in the United States. It optimizes customer acquisition in various verticals of property and casualty insurance, health insurance, and life insurance. The company was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.

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NU (NYSE:NU  Free Report) had its price target boosted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $14.50 to $15.00 in a research note published on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

NU has been the topic of several other research reports. UBS Group lowered NU from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $13.50 price target on the stock. in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of NU from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Susquehanna restated a positive rating and set a $16.00 target price on shares of NU in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on NU from $10.80 to $15.20 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on NU from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NU presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $13.43.

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NU Stock Down 0.3 %

NU opened at $14.41 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company has a market capitalization of $68.68 billion, a PE ratio of 55.42, a PEG ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 1.13. NU has a 1-year low of $6.63 and a 1-year high of $14.61. The firms 50 day simple moving average is $12.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $11.75.

NU (NYSE:NU  Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 13th. The company reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.10 by $0.02. NU had a return on equity of 22.94% and a net margin of 13.86%. The company had revenue of $2.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.05 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that NU will post 0.41 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NU

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in NU. Bleakley Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in NU during the 1st quarter valued at about $152,000. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its holdings in NU by 19.4% in the 4th quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 23,949,214 shares of the companys stock worth $199,497,000 after buying an additional 3,886,442 shares during the period. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in NU during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,958,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of NU by 499.9% in the 2nd quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 413,165 shares of the companys stock valued at $5,326,000 after acquiring an additional 344,295 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of NU in the first quarter worth $597,000. 80.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About NU

(Get Free Report)

Nu Holdings Ltd. provides digital banking platform and digital financial services in Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, and internationally. It offers Nu credit and debit cards; Ultraviolet credit and debit cards; and mobile payment solutions for NuAccount customers to make and receive transfers, pay bills, and make everyday purchases through their mobile phones.

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Trust Co. of Oklahoma trimmed its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT  Free Report) by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,256 shares of the healthcare product makers stock after selling 112 shares during the quarter. Trust Co. of Oklahomas holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $546,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 11.6% during the second quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,744 shares of the healthcare product makers stock valued at $597,000 after purchasing an additional 597 shares in the last quarter. Keeler Thomas Management LLC purchased a new position in Abbott Laboratories in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,919,000. Stableford Capital II LLC boosted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 155.9% in the 2nd quarter. Stableford Capital II LLC now owns 15,353 shares of the healthcare product makers stock worth $1,607,000 after buying an additional 9,353 shares during the last quarter. Courier Capital LLC increased its stake in Abbott Laboratories by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Courier Capital LLC now owns 22,548 shares of the healthcare product makers stock worth $2,343,000 after buying an additional 364 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rockland Trust Co. lifted its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 13.9% in the second quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 111,747 shares of the healthcare product makers stock valued at $11,612,000 after acquiring an additional 13,660 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.18% of the companys stock.

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Abbott Laboratories Trading Up 0.6 %

Abbott Laboratories stock traded up $0.71 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $112.10. 3,421,798 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,988,217. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market cap of $195.01 billion, a PE ratio of 34.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $105.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $108.72. Abbott Laboratories has a 12-month low of $89.67 and a 12-month high of $121.64.

Abbott Laboratories Dividend Announcement

Abbott Laboratories ( NYSE:ABT Get Free Report ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.04. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 13.65% and a return on equity of 20.18%. The business had revenue of $10.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.08 earnings per share. The businesss revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, July 15th were issued a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 15th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.96%. Abbott Laboratoriess dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Abbott Laboratories from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Raymond James reiterated a buy rating and issued a $124.00 target price on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an outperform rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. Edward Jones downgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Abbott Laboratories in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a buy rating and a $121.00 price target for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $121.80.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Abbott Laboratories

Abbott Laboratories Profile

(Free Report)

Abbott Laboratories, together with its subsidiaries, discovers, develops, manufactures, and sells health care products worldwide. It operates in four segments: Established Pharmaceutical Products, Diagnostic Products, Nutritional Products, and Medical Devices. The company provides generic pharmaceuticals for the treatment of pancreatic exocrine insufficiency, irritable bowel syndrome or biliary spasm, intrahepatic cholestasis or depressive symptoms, gynecological disorder, hormone replacement therapy, dyslipidemia, hypertension, hypothyroidism, Meniere's disease and vestibular vertigo, pain, fever, inflammation, and migraine, as well as provides anti-infective clarithromycin, influenza vaccine, and products to regulate physiological rhythm of the colon.

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Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ABT? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT  Free Report).

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Twilio Inc. (NYSE:TWLO  Get Free Report) CFO Aidan Viggiano sold 1,931 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.67, for a total transaction of $119,084.77. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 184,570 shares of the companys stock, valued at $11,382,431.90. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Aidan Viggiano also recently made the following trade(s):

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On Thursday, August 15th, Aidan Viggiano sold 1,961 shares of Twilio stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.69, for a total transaction of $119,013.09.

On Friday, July 5th, Aidan Viggiano sold 6,586 shares of Twilio stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.26, for a total transaction of $370,528.36.

On Monday, July 1st, Aidan Viggiano sold 6,797 shares of Twilio stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.33, for a total transaction of $382,875.01.

Twilio Price Performance

TWLO traded down $0.36 on Thursday, hitting $58.89. 1,928,419 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,845,884. Twilio Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $49.86 and a fifty-two week high of $78.16. The company has a current ratio of 5.57, a quick ratio of 5.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $57.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $59.75. The stock has a market cap of $10.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -14.78, a P/E/G ratio of 4.18 and a beta of 1.35.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Twilio ( NYSE:TWLO Get Free Report ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The technology company reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.17. Twilio had a negative net margin of 14.02% and a negative return on equity of 0.22%. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $1.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.23) EPS. The firms quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Twilio Inc. will post 0.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on TWLO shares. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an overweight rating and set a $83.00 target price (up from $77.00) on shares of Twilio in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Twilio from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Twilio from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Twilio from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating and cut their target price for the company from $70.00 to $60.00 in a report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Macquarie cut their target price on shares of Twilio from $69.00 to $63.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $69.95.

View Our Latest Report on Twilio

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Twilio by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 7,295 shares of the technology companys stock valued at $446,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its position in shares of Twilio by 14.2% during the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,339 shares of the technology companys stock valued at $102,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Twilio by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 10,209 shares of the technology companys stock valued at $775,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in shares of Twilio by 29.0% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 841 shares of the technology companys stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Twilio by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 5,806 shares of the technology companys stock valued at $355,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.27% of the companys stock.

Twilio Company Profile

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Twilio Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides customer engagement platform solutions in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Twilio Communications and Twilio Segment. The company provides various application programming interfaces and software solutions for communications between customers and end users, including messaging, voice, email, flex, marketing campaigns, and user identity and authentication.

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by Austin Bay August 21, 2024

August 2024 marks the third anniversary of the Biden-Harris administration's most consequential international policy action: the disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal.

Why Biden-Harris? Vice President Kamala Harris has said on several occasions she was "in the room" -- meaning in the decision loop -- when Joe Biden ordered a withdrawal based on the calendar and not on battlefield conditions. "Completely out by 9/11" is a sound bite, a political bumper sticker. It isn't clear-headed senior leader strategic guidance for a military withdrawal from a complex war zone.

The Trump administration planned to withdraw, but in order to support the pro-U.S. Afghan government, the U.S. would keep the huge Bagram airbase as a logistical hub and intelligence post. But Joe Biden nixed Bagram and decided to withdraw via Kabul's inadequate airport.

Why? Ineptitude? Dementia?

In late May, The Washington Post reported that retired Gen. Austin Scott Miller, the senior commanding general during the 2021 withdrawal, told the House Foreign Affairs Committee "he was so troubled by the administration's 'lack of understanding of the risk' that he privately warned a Marine Corps commander charged with planning for a possible evacuation to prepare for 'really adverse conditions.'"

As the Afghan debacle unfolded, the world's most vicious actors -- Russia, China, Iran and its proxies -- saw American senior leaders posture, flounder and then abandon its Afghan allies (and an undetermined number of U.S. citizens) to Taliban revenge.

Here's the telling Biden quote, one that bears repeating: Biden knew early on his bungled withdrawal had become a catastrophe. On Aug. 31, 2021, Reuters published the transcript of a July 23 telephone call between Biden and Afghanistan's then-President Ashraf Ghani. Biden told Ghani that "... the perception around the world and in parts of Afghanistan, I believe, is that things aren't going well in terms of the fight against the Taliban. And there's a need, whether it is true or not, there is a need to project a different picture."

"Whether it is true or not." That's jaw-dropping. The lives of U.S. citizens, U.S. soldiers and U.S. allies were at stake. But a good story for the press and public in the next news cycle guided White House decision-making.

Biden wanted to project a picture, not project American power. Ghani got the picture -- and he fled.

Around the globe, the thugs concluded the weak White House gave them a strategic opportunity. Their moment had arrived. The czars, commissars, ayatollahs and cartelistas concluded Biden-Harris America would talk but wouldn't fight -- and if pushed, preferred to run.

Yes, run. Remember Biden told Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy he should flee. The gutsy Zelenskyy told Biden he didn't need a ride, he needed ammo.

The buzz phrase is "loss of deterrence." Biden's 2021 Afghanistan debacle damaged U.S. credibility and encouraged adventurism and aggression by terrorists and authoritarian states.

The Biden-Harris Afghan bugout seeded two hot wars with nuclear warfare potential -- Russia's all-out invasion of Ukraine, and the Israel-Iran war involving four Iranian proxy armies. Russian and Islamist proxies are involved in several guerrilla conflicts in Africa. Venezuela's dictatorship, which has Iranian ties, has threatened to invade neighboring Guyana. China threatens to invade Taiwan while waging a slow but expanding war in the Philippines' maritime exclusive economic zone.

Here's a compounding factor: A large cadre of Free World elite academic, media and political personalities don't believe the vicious actors really mean what they say, even when the thugs back hard talk with paid mobs, assassination, guns and bombs.

Afghanistan in 2024: Al Qaeda and the Islamic State are using Taliban Afghanistan as a base to train and reconstitute their forces.

In April, retired Gen. Frank McKenzie (former CENTCOM commander) told ABC News the Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K) was operating "unabated" in Afghanistan and the U.S. had "almost no ability to strike" (the terrorists).

So, the U.S. can't project sufficient power. What a sorry picture.
Yiren Digital Ltd. (NYSE:YRD  Get Free Report) declared a Semi-Annual dividend on Tuesday, August 20th, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of 0.20 per share by the technology company on Tuesday, October 15th. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th.

Yiren Digital Price Performance

Shares of YRD opened at $4.62 on Thursday. Yiren Digital has a one year low of $2.16 and a one year high of $5.80. The company has a market cap of $401.64 million, a PE ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.72. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $4.68 and a 200-day moving average of $4.86.

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Yiren Digital (NYSE:YRD  Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 20th. The technology company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $205.93 million during the quarter. Yiren Digital had a return on equity of 27.42% and a net margin of 40.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Yiren Digital from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th.

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Yiren Digital Company Profile

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Yiren Digital Ltd. provides financial services through an AI-powered platform in China. Its platform provides a suite of financial and lifestyle services. The company offers financial services, which provides a portfolio of loan products to borrowers; insurance brokerage services; and consumption and lifestyle services, including non-financial products and services to meet various consumer needs.

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Lianjiang county in SE China's Fujian makes progress in enhancing marine product diversity, quality

People's Daily Online) 10:10, August 22, 2024

Photo shows kelp of the "Huangguan No. 1" variety cultivated by Guanwu Marine Products Development Co., Ltd. in Lianjiang county, Fuzhou city, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Photo/Zheng Chengle)

Photo shows an abalone of the "Fubao No. 1" species cultivated by Guanwu Marine Products Development Co., Ltd. in Lianjiang county, Fuzhou city, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Photo/Li Ningwei)

Kelp taller than a two-story building, abalone bigger than an adult male's handin Lianjiang county, Fuzhou city, southeast China's Fujian Province, innovative work is being done to produce such massive specimens.

In the seedling room of Guanwu Marine Products Development Co., Ltd., located in Lianjiang county, workers were carefully placing kelp seedlings, tied with white ropes, into the seedling pool.

According to Lin Zhelong, head of the kelp seedling base, it used to take around 90 days to cultivate the seedlings. However, thanks to new technology, they can now be ready for sea farming in just 45 days.

Workers take care of kelp seedlings at a seedling room of Guanwu Marine Products Development Co., Ltd. in Lianjiang county, Fuzhou city, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Photo/Li Ningwei)

This batch of kelp seedlings cultivated by the company includes the "Huangguan No. 1," the "Huangguan No. 2," and the "Gaopai No. 2." They are known for their early maturity, high temperature resistance, and high yield. With around 80,000 seedlings in total, they are primarily supplied to Dalian in northeast China's Liaoning Province and other regions, as well as exported to neighboring countries.

According to Lin, they grow different kelp varieties depending on the marine environment in different areas. This year, they plan to cultivate around 300,000 seedlings in total.

Photo shows abalone seedlings cultivated by Guanwu Marine Products Development Co., Ltd. in Lianjiang county, Fuzhou city, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Photo/Li Ningwei)

At the abalone breeding facility of the company, workers were feeding kelp to the abalone seedlings. A partnership between the company and Xiamen University has led to the creation of an abalone breed known as the "Fubao No. 1," nicknamed the "Green Giant."

In just a mere year and a half, the "Fubao No. 1" abalones can grow from the size of a fingernail to 0.25 kilograms, and within three years, they can reach a maximum weight of 0.75 kilograms.

The "Fubao No. 1" is known for its high temperature resistance, high survival rate, fast growth, short growth cycle, and large size. It also has a higher meat yield compared to traditional abalones, making it highly popular in the market.

In recent years, Lianjiang has implemented innovative projects for aquaculture seedling cultivation, providing strong support to companies like Guanwu Marine Products Development Co., Ltd to develop and cultivate high-quality seedling varieties. This enhances the competitiveness of the modern fishery industry and constructs a complete industrial chain from seedling cultivation to farming, processing, branding, sales, and consumption.

Photo shows a sea farm in Lianjiang county, Fuzhou city, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Photo courtesy of the media convergence center of Lianjiang county)

(Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun)
August 22, 2024: Civil war has returned to Sudan with intense combat between the army and the rebel Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The RSF was established in 2013 as a paramilitary force that fought alongside the army to suppress ongoing violence in the western Sudan region of Darfur. The disputes in Darfur were mainly about violence between Moslem Arab Sudanese and largely Christian black African Sudanese. Several hundred thousand died in this conflict that was based on ethnic and religious differences. This violence has continued since 2003 with no end in sight. The RSF continues to attack civilians as well as fighting the Sudanese army.

Because of more than a year of violence, about 11 million Sudanese have been driven from their homes. Combat is currently occurring in at least 80 percent of Sudan.

The RSF and government agreed to a peace deal in 2023 but dissident elements in the RSF felt they had been cheated and began attacking the army and the government in general. This is another example of how unstable any peace deals between the army and RSF are. This is the latest in many attempts to form a stable and effective elected government. For example, back in 2019 the military dominated SNC (Sovereign National Council or Sovereign Council) first officially convened. It was agreed that there would be a 39 month-long transition from military dictatorship to an elected civilian government. It didnt happen because of ongoing rebellions in some parts of the country and until these local disputes were settled, efforts to form an elected national government would not work. Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok has been in office from 2019 to early 2022, with a one month break in November 2021. Hamdok was pushed aside by military leaders in 2022 and that triggered another civil war.

The SNCs military officers continue to exercise considerable power, both overt and covert. The SNC generals all served under former dictator Omar al Bashir and at least one of them, Lieutenant General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo is implicated in Bashir-era corrupt business practices. He also commanded the Rapid Support Forces militia, which traces its roots to the Janjaweed militias which continue to wage genocidal warfare in Darfur. Dagalos career is marked by corruption and genocide. Prime Minister Hamdok deals with complicated problems and complicated people as well as threats of assassination. A 2020 attempt on Hamdoks life failed but it sent the message that Hamdok must rely on the security forces for his own protection. Meanwhile, Sudans economy continues its steep decline, remaining on the U.S. State Sponsor of Terrorism list, and currently has to deal with floods and famine. Floods have always been a problem but the recent ones this year were among the worst ever and arrived in the midst of a major famine.

Sudan still has problems tolerating its Christian citizens. Back in 2020 a transitional government announced it had abolished the Islamist committees created during the earlier Bashir dictatorship. The committees were used to persecute Christians and other non-Muslims. Persecution included confiscating Christian church properties and property belonging to Christians. By 2024 the violence against Sudanese Christians continued with the RSF doing most of the attacking. The war in Darfur ended in 2020, with over 300,000 dead, many of them Sudanese Christians. Darfur was once again declared to be an official region of Sudan. Since then the RSF has moved east into the heart of Sadan and even the capital Khartoum. This has forced the army to move its headquarters to the Red Sea coast. Fighting in and around Khartoum between the JSF and the army continues.
Three years after the ill-fated and poorly planned exit from Afghanistan, the Taliban have been very gracious to Joe Biden, whose poor planning left the Taliban with over $$7.12 billion worth of high-end military equipment. Not only that, the Taliban released thousands of prisoners jailed by the Americans, including many prominent Al-Qaeda and ISIS-K operatives.

The Taliban have been celebrating the anniversary of the United States and Allies leaving Afghanistan, and abandoning their bases as well as billions of dollars of military equipment, some sold to terrorist groups and anyone who has the money.

Remarkable to see all of this American military equipment being paraded by the Taliban. pic.twitter.com/0a8sFNC0SK  Trey Yingst (@TreyYingst) August 14, 2024

Although many of the aircraft were supposedly purposely damaged on the way out, the Taliban, who are friends with China, invited them in to fix, retro-engineer and maintain the aircraft. The Chinese also took over Bagram Air Base ($68 million build) as well as other key US bases. China is now also mining the massive lithium resources of the country and other resources worth trillions of dollars. No doubt some of the military hardware, including over 80 drones, and over 35 Blackhawk helicopters were useful to Chinese military scientists, although they probably know more about them anyway due to the ease of acquiring military secrets from the Americans and British.

Suffice to say, the disastrous exit from Afghanistan was one of the biggest shameful defeats orchestrated by Joe Biden, along with allowing Putin to invade Ukraine, and enabling Iran to continue enriching uranium to build nuclear weapons.

In the recent election debate Joe Biden claimed the Afghanistan exit went like clockwork and no US servicemen were killed or hurt during the evacuation. He forgot to mention the tragic deaths of 13 US servicemen and 170 Afghanis at the Abbey Gate bombing.

Kathy McCollum, the mother of slain U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Rylee McCollum calls into the Wilkow Report, blames Biden for her sons death. Calls Biden a feckless, dementia ridden piece of crap. pic.twitter.com/mRT2xxoV65  Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) August 28, 2021
A Derry YouTuber is to star in a new Hollywood movie set to be released next year.

Adam B, whose real name is Adam Beales, has travelled to New Zealand for filming.

He is known for creating entertaining content on YouTube, along with his brother Callum B, to a following of over four million subscribers.

The 24-year-old has remained tight-lipped about the specifics of his role in the production being shot in Auckland.

This may be Adams first foray into the film world, but he has plenty of experience shooting shows for TV.

The former St. Columbs College head boy had previously been a presenter for the CBBC show, Blue Peter between September 2020 and July 2022.

Adam and brother Callum are set to once again co-host the third series Bro's in Control for the BBC, along with Joe Tasker as they battle to be best in the funniest, gungiest and grossest games.

With his schedule being fully packed as he will be debuting his first production with RTE titled Whats Next.

The series for 10 to 12-year-olds that looks at innovation and challenges within the environmental sector.
Foyle Hospice is encouraging men of all ages to take part in the iconic men's Walk/Run fundraiser which has been running for over 20 years.

Once again, participants will be glad to know this years walk will feature the flat 5k course. This includes the Craigavon Bridge and the Peace Bridge, so walkers and runners of all ages will enjoy taking part.

The walk takes place on September 29 and will start at Sainsburys at 11.30am and it will end at the same location.

When you sign up for the Male Walk/Run you will receive a specially designed event t-shirt to keep as a souvenir of taking part in an iconic event for a worthy cause.

Foyle Hospice Community Fundraiser, Noel McMonagle said: We want men of all ages to join us for a worthy cause and make this even bigger and better than last year.

The Male Walk is a very special event and it is so important to us because every registration will make a difference to our services.

It will help towards the running costs of the Hospice and therefore allow us to continue to care for our patients and provide support to their families.

We are really looking forward to it but we need your help lads to make this happen! Grab everyone you know and lets make this Male Walk/Run one to remember."

Foyle Hospices Dr Damien McMullan added: Every day, I see the vital support provided by Foyle Hospice. The whole team works to do their best for patients and their families trying to cope with the devastating impact of life-limiting illness.

We are privileged to be able to help people live as fully as possible until the end of their lives and to support their loved ones. They inspire us to keep going.



He continued: Foyle Hospice grew from the community under the leadership and dedication of Dr McGinley and the team and we could not continue to do what we do without the amazing support of our wonderful community and fantastic volunteers. Brilliant events such as the Male Walk are a huge part of this.

If you are free on Sunday, September 29 for a few hours, please consider getting involved in the Male Walk. We will be uniting together, to walk or run for a great cause, all while having a bit of craic. Thank you for supporting it!

If you are interested in taking part in our Male Walk/Run this year, please register online at www.register.enthuse.com/ps/event/FoyleHospiceMenswalk or call into our fundraising centre on 61 Culmore Road.
Some pregnant women in Belfast were prepared to forgo antenatal care rather than travel to a medical clinic in an area dominated by another religion, a study into the cost of a polarised society found in 2001.

The draft report, among newly released Public Record Office files, said that three decades of civil unrest had created two distinct and separate communities in Northern Ireland.

The report, entitled Public Expenditure Impact of Polarised Society, is in an Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister (OFMDFM) file called Review of Community Relations Policy.

The file details the challenges attempting to measure the additional costs where many services were duplicated to serve Catholic and Protestant areas.

The draft report says: Northern Ireland is a deeply divided society.

The most obvious expression of this division is the violence and civil unrest which has blighted the province since 1969.

Three decades of political unrest have created two distinct and separate communities in Northern Ireland.

Each community has its own separate education system, bus routes, community centres and doctor surgeries.

The polarisation within these communities is often surprisingly extreme, a recent study in Belfast found that some mothers were prepared to forgo antitnatal (sic) care for their children in order to avoid attending a clinic located within an area populated by a different religious group.

The paper said it would attempt to identify and quantify the impact on public expenditure of providing services to a polarised and separate community.

It said public expenditure in Northern Ireland was higher per person than in other parts of the UK.

It added: Prolonged civil unrest has resulted in Northern Ireland requiring a much larger police force than would otherwise have been the case.

Rioting and bombings cause a great deal of damage to both public and private property.

As insurance companies rarely cover civil unrest and acts of terrorism, the Northern Ireland Office pays compensation for both personal injuries and property damages as a result of civil unrest.

The Department of the Environment (DoE) set aside 250,000 per year to repair damage caused to road surfaces during civil disturbances.

The paper added: Northern Ireland society has evolved into two very distinct communities.

In certain areas of Northern Ireland this polarisation has become particularly pronounced.

A recent study carried out by the University of Ulster found that 78% of Catholics and 76.6% of Protestants would not work in an area dominated by another religion.

This limited mobility has resulted in many services, which could otherwise have operated from a single location, being duplicated in each community.

It continues: Secondary care/Community Health centres would be more likely to suffer duplication given that they cover larger catchment areas which may not be containable within existing societal divides.

North and West Belfast is usually cited as a Trust area which has to incur this type of duplication.

A polarised society limits the mobility of its inhabitants.

Bus routes often must be mapped out to avoid passing through two areas of differing religious affiliation.
The UK Government made plans in 2002 to extend emergency legislation to Northern Ireland to allow women to have continued access to emergency contraception following a legal challenge to the sale of the morning after pill.

Then Stormont Health Minister Bairbre De Brun lobbied for the move by Westminster, but said it would potentially result in public debate with a great deal of emotive language coming from those on both sides.

Ms De Brun had signed an order in 2000 introducing the sale of the morning after pill over the counter at pharmacies without prescription in Northern Ireland for women over the age of 16, following a similar move at Westminster.

However, a High Court bid was launched in England to halt its sale with campaigners claiming the morning after pill was a form of abortion, and should be subject to legislation governing abortion.

A draft letter from Ms De Brun to then Northern Ireland Secretary John Reid on March 6 2002 is contained in newly released files at the Public Record Office in Belfast.

In the letter, Ms De Brun says: I understand that you have already been advised in some detail about the potential need to extend here the provisions of an Emergency Bill that may have to be introduced at Westminster in the very near future in the event that the Department of Health (DoH) loses a judicial review brought by the Society for the Protection of Unborn Child (SPUC).

The review was heard in London on 12, 13 and 14th February and I understand that the judgement is expected around Easter.

Following the hearing, DoH remains confident of winning the case but the implications are so serious that it has devoted considerable time and energy to preparing a robust contingency plan.

These implications, ie loss of access to emergency contraception, at least, will apply here should the case be lost.

I am committed to ensuring that women here have the same degree of access to emergency contraception, which they have enjoyed for many years.

I have, therefore, no option but to seek to ensure that similar contingency arrangements are put in place.

Ms De Brun added: The judicial review seeks to quash the Order laid in December 2000, and signed jointly by Yvette Cooper and me, which allowed emergency contraception to be sold over the counter in pharmacies, on certain conditions.

The case bought by SPUC is that emergency contraception is a method of abortion, and therefore anyone who administers or supplies it is committing a criminal offence under the Offences Against the Person (OAP) Act 1861.

She added: As part of its contingency plans DOH is proposing that an amendment would need to be made to the OAP Act to define a miscarriage as only taking place post-implantation.

This is to make clear that it will not be a criminal offence to supply or administer emergency or other contraception, which has the effect of preventing implantation.

This emergency legislation, if passed, would re-establish the position upheld by previous administrations in England and generally accepted here.

My purpose in writing is, therefore, to ask you to take the appropriate steps to ensure, if necessary, that the provisions of the Emergency Bill which may be brought forward by DOH extend here.

She added: The 1967 Abortion Act does not extend to this part of the world and any suggestion of tampering with the law governing abortion here ie the OAP Act, will result in public debate with a great deal of emotive language coming from those on both sides.

While the amendment being proposed will not actually change the law on abortion in any practical and meaningful way, you can expect that there will be those who will wish to muddy the waters.

There is really therefore no alternative to extending the Emergency Bill here, if indeed it becomes necessary for DOH to seek to have it passed at Westminster.

The following week Mr Reid wrote to Stormonts First Minister David Trimble and deputy First Minister Mark Durkan on the issue.

He said: Abortion and contraception are especially sensitive and delicate subjects in Northern Ireland.

In relation to abortion, my predecessors and I have made it clear that the Government would not impose any change in the law in Northern Ireland, and that any change to the law on abortion could only come about with the broad support from a cross-section of the people in Northern Ireland.

I do not, however, regard the emergency Bill as being about abortion, so much as contraception.

He added: Against all this background, I believe there is no practical alternative for Northern Ireland but to join in the planned Bill by having it extend to Northern Ireland.

A joint response from Trimble and Durkan to Mr Reid said they would support his proposed action.

On April 18 2002 a High Court judge rejected the SPUC legal challenge.
The sectoral nature of education in Northern Ireland made it difficult to remove surplus school places in Northern Ireland, ministers were advised in 2002.

A first day brief drawn up by the Department of Education said there 35,800 surplus places in schools in 2001.

The file is one of more than 700 which has been released by the Public Record Office in Belfast.

The document, The Education Service in Northern Ireland, runs to more than 80 pages.

It stated: During the 2000-2001 school year there were some 35,800 surplus places in schools in Northern Ireland  just over 23,600 places in the primary sector and 12,200 in the secondary sector.

The figure represents an increase from 1999-00 when the equivalent figure was 34,400 places.

The report said the bulk of the surplus places were in larger schools.

It adds: The sectoral nature of the Northern Ireland education system makes action to remove surplus places difficult as it is necessary to retain schools of different types in areas to ensure equity of access.

In addition, a significant proportion of the surplus places cannot sensibly be removed from the system  in most cases it is not practical to dispose of unused classrooms in an otherwise viable school.

It goes on to say there were 340 primary schools in Northern Ireland with less than 100 pupils and 23 post-primary schools (14%) with less than 300 pupils.

The report adds: The corresponding figures for GB are much lower, ie 18% of primary schools and 4% of post-primary schools.

The rural nature of Northern Ireland and the structure of education here means that there will always be a significant number of small schools.
The Ulster Orchestra raised concerns with the UK Government over the financial implications of a ban on tobacco advertising in 1997, newly released files have revealed.

Michael Henson, then the orchestras chief executive, wrote to Westminster ministers seeking clarification about the proposed ban and stating that any ensuing lost revenue could not be replaced by other commercial sponsorship.

Then-Health Secretary Frank Dobson announced that the Labour Government was to ban tobacco advertising shortly after coming to power.

While most attention focused on the sponsorship of sporting events, Mr Henson wrote to then-Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Chris Smith about the arts.

He said: The Ulster Orchestra has written to the Secretary of State for Health, the Rt Hon Frank Dobson MP in relation to the Governments recently stated intention to progress legislation to ban all advertising and sponsorship by tobacco companies.

The orchestra is also writing to you to make you aware that we have sent this letter and to seek clarification from your department on this matter as well.

As you may be aware, Gallaher Limited has substantially supported the Ulster Orchestra since 1980 and is in fact credited as one of our funding bodies, in partnership with the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, the BBC and Belfast City Council.

Gallaher was in fact a crucial financial partner in establishing the orchestras independence from the Arts Council in 1980.

The letter said the tobacco firm had contributed more than 1 million in sponsorship to the orchestra since 1980.

He added: Gallahers sponsorship represents 35% of our entire sponsorship budget.

This sponsorship allows strategic long-term planning of a whole series of innovative and creative projects.

The sponsorship from Gallaher plays a crucial part in the financing of the orchestra and various innovative projects, and we believe it would be impossible in the Northern Ireland context to replace this amount of money by other commercial sponsorship, if a ban on arts sponsorship from tobacco companies were implemented.

I would therefore be most grateful if you could clarify the position as to the Governments intention to ban all sponsorship.

The file includes a response to the letter from Tony Worthington, then-minister with responsibility for health and the arts in Northern Ireland.

He said: The Government is fully committed to a ban on tobacco advertising and will therefore have to examine all the areas where advertising takes place, including the arts.

The Government is, of course, sensitive to the concerns of the arts and the complex issues raised by the proposed ban.
Former Stormont speaker Lord John Alderdice wrote to Northern Ireland Secretary Peter Mandelson in 2000 seeking advice on whether he should attend St Patricks Day celebrations in the US at a time when the powersharing institutions had been suspended.

Declassified files at the Public Record Office in Belfast reveal administrative arrangements being made to deal with the suspension of the nine-week-old Executive.

In December 1999 Stormonts first generation of devolved ministers had taken up their posts as the new Executive met for the first time.

However, just weeks later, in February 2000, Lord Mandelson reimposed direct rule because of the lack of progress on IRA decommissioning.

During the period when the institutions were collapsed the files reveal concerns about morale among Assembly staff.

The file includes the letter sent from Lord Alderdice to Mr Mandelson on March 1, in which he said he had been invited to take part in the traditional St Patricks Day celebrations in Washington DC.

He wrote: My invitation to these events are all in my capacity as Speaker.

As you are now responsible for the Assembly during the period of suspension, I would be grateful if you would advise me as to your view on whether I should go ahead with the visit or simply tender my regrets.

On a related note, I have asked your private office to make an arrangement for us to meet in order that we can clarify my role during the period of suspension.

I hope that it might be possible to have this meeting at some point next week.

There is no reply from Mr Mandelson to the letter included in the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission file.

It does contain guidance on working arrangements for Stormont departments during the period of suspension. This includes a document with a number of proposed staffing scenarios relating to how quickly the devolved institutions could be revived.

It said that, in order to be able to restart the Assembly within one to two days of any announcement from the Secretary of State, current levels of staffing and service to members and public to be retained.

It said spare capacity among staff during suspension could be utilised through a number of measures including staff training and development and education and awareness seminars.

The document says: Retaining the current levels of staff will ensure minimum delay if urgent start-up of the Assembly was required.

Staff morale will be improved through measures to ensure staff are fully occupied, through for example attachments, training and development, engaged on departmental work, etc.

The file also contains a Civil Service memo sent from the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister to the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission ahead of a meeting between the Speaker and the Secretary of State during the suspension.

It says: If the meeting is to go ahead on 5 May we should brief the Secretary of State, Gerry Cosgrove should, in parallel, brief Lord Alderdice, on the basis of the current arrangements for the Assembly should remain in place pending future political developments, with a pragmatic approach being taken to dealing with Assembly staff who are unoccupied during suspension.

This could be done on the basis that those staff would remain in their posts in the Assembly, but might undertake work for their parent departments as appropriate.

This would require that the Assembly could return to full operation immediately in the event of restoration.

Devolution was restored in May 2000 after the IRA pledged to put its weapons beyond use.
TSMC's German fab set to offer job opportunities and promote wafer ecosystems in Europe

Dresden officially welcomed the construction of a new wafer fab by TSMC with a groundbreaking ceremony on August 20.

The ceremony was attended by high-profile leaders such as European Commission (EC) president Ursula von der Leyen, German chancellor Olaf Scholz, Saxony minister president Michael Kretschmer, and lord mayor of Dresden Dirk Hilbert. This underscores the importance of this investment, one of the largest single investments in the region's history.

The key investment project under the EU Chips Act

The fab will be built by the European Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (ESMC), a joint venture between TSMC, Bosch, Infineon, and NXP. Backed by German government subsidies, it's a crucial investment under the European Chips Act, representing a significant milestone in the EU's efforts to enhance its chip manufacturing autonomy.

TSMC's vital role in driving global economic growth and ensuring geopolitical stability has been further recognized through its new wafer fabs in the US, Japan, and the EU, with top leaders of the respective regions (US President Joe Biden, EC President von der Leyen, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida) all present for the groundbreaking ceremonies or site visits.

Germany welcomes employment and ecosystem growth

ESMC's Dresden plant is expected to start production in 2027. For Germany, the hope is that this project can strengthen its domestic semiconductor manufacturing capabilities and create thousands of job opportunities.

Frank Bosenberg, the managing director of Silicon Saxony, noted that the construction of the TSMC plant alone will create 6,000 new jobs in the coming years. "For every job at the chip manufacturer, there are three jobs for suppliers and service providers," he said. By 2030, the region's microelectronics and software industries are expected to generate around 100,000 jobs.

The choice of location is also no coincidence. Today, 33% to 50% of Europe's semiconductor supply comes from Saxony. The numerous research institutions and suppliers in Dresden have established a globally scaled chip ecosystem. This has been facilitated by decades of semiconductor production experience in Dresden, where the first semiconductor factory was established in 1961 during the East Germany period.

For Europeans, providing a certain level of subsidies for plant construction is essential. German media analysis suggests that the current subsidies in Europe partially compensate for regional disadvantages. To keep pace with the development of chip manufacturing in Asia, long-term conditions need to be improved, or subsidies must directly offset Europe's corresponding disadvantages.

From the German perspective, TSMC's Dresden plant brings value by creating job opportunities within the wafer fab ecosystem. ESMC president Christian Koitzsch pointed out that the European Chips Act aims to strengthen the entire system.

ESMC job openings have already been posted in Germany, and Koitzsch stated that dual training programs are planned for 2025. Koitzsch has established a team of 20 people, half of whom are from Taiwan.

ESG a major advantage for TSMC

TSMC's self-sufficient and efficient water resource utilization methods in Taiwan are also seen as a major investment advantage, as Germans are environmentally conscious. Koitzsch expects the TSMC Dresden plant to benefit from these standards. The plant will also operate using green energy, similar to the practices at TSMC's plants in Arizona, USA, and Kumamoto, Japan.

Koitzsch stated that the entire microelectronics value chain needs to be strengthened. Europe must catch up, not only in manufacturing but also in the upstream stages of the value chain. This is not just a task for Germany but for Europe as a whole. Additionally, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala expects neighboring Poland and the Czech Republic to benefit from this, helping to integrate Czech companies into the supply chain.
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Silicon Shield 2.0: diplomacy and de-risking supply chains in a new era of economic security

The 2024 Ketagalan Forum: Indo-Pacific Security Dialogue, held on August 21, convened scholars and former diplomats from North America, Europe, and Taiwan to explore strategies for strengthening economic resilience through the diplomatic lens of supply chain de-risking.

As global tensions rise, particularly between the US and China, supply chains, trade agreements, and renewable energy are increasingly seen as diplomatic assets. This evolving geopolitical landscape is driving nations to rethink their approaches to economic security.

The security event also saw Taiwan President Lai Ching-te, former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, former Slovakian Prime Minister Eduard Heger, and ex-US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley giving addresses regarding economic security and building trade partnerships.

Diplomatic strategies for economic security

Roland Paris, Director of the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Ottawa, highlighted the need for nations to develop policies that reduce vulnerabilities while fostering partnerships with like-minded countries. He emphasized the delicate balance between economic security and global cooperation, warning against protectionism that could undermine prosperity and peace.

Paris pointed to Canada's recent efforts to navigate these challenges, citing new regulations on foreign direct investment in sensitive sectors and a focus on critical minerals vital to allied supply chains.

He provided an example of a Taiwanese company's investment in a renewable-energy-powered British Columbia battery plant, where it can produce up to 135 million lithium-ion batteries annually, aligning economic security with climate and geopolitical strategies.

Paris jokingly noted that the province might even be a "great place to put a chip fab" due to its electricity being 100% green energy powered. He finished his remarks by urging vigilance in policymaking to ensure security measures do not dismantle the foundations of global trade and cooperation.

Han-Koo Yeo, Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics and former Korean government official with 30 years of experience in trade, investment, and industrial policy offered his perspective on economic security.

He outlined three key points for policymakers: the importance of diversification in response to disruptions, energy security in the face of the climate crisis, and the need for enhanced international cooperation.

Yeo stressed that countries like Taiwan and South Korea, which once thrived under hyper-globalization and free trade, are now undergoing a realignment of their supply chain where trade and investment relationships have been ever more diversified, particularly with regions like ASEAN and India.

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te stressed in his opening speech of the security forum that the Southbound Policy initiated by the Tsai Ing-wen administration resulted in Taiwan's exports to 18 southbound nations reaching US$50.2 billion in the first half of 2024. Beyond forging partnerships allied with their interests, nations have to adapt to new political realities as the geopolitical landscape shifts.

When the Russo-Ukraine war started, South Korea joined the US-led sweeping trade control measures and introduced investment screening against Russia. Both of these acts are a first for the country.

Even though the US is a security guarantor in the Indo-Pacific region, the fast economic growth of China for the last couple of decades has made the country the number one trading partner of many nations stuck in the middle between these two superpowers.

Yeo uses these as examples of the new issues policymakers are facing. Yeo believes the situation is a mixed picture as the change of geopolitics in the region has offered nations to develop their own industries, spaces previously occupied by China as the world's factory.

However with the US on the trajectory of America first driven by efforts to relocate manufacturing domestically for job creation regardless of the year-end election results, the rest of the world needs to plan accordingly for the next several years. Additionally, he also pointed out the challenges Asian countries face in developing sufficient clean energy sources due to geographic and climatic constraints, suggesting that regional collaboration could be key to overcoming these challenges.

Yeo concluded by praising the Taiwan-US agreement on 21st-century trade issues. However, he called for new frameworks to incorporate supply chain and clean energy considerationsareas where traditional free trade agreements have fallen short.

Supply chains as diplomatic leverage

Franz Jessen, Former EU Ambassador to the Philippines, questioned how Taiwanese industry would respond to shifting global trade dynamics and whether Europe could adapt similarly. He noted inconsistencies in international reactions, citing examples from South Korea and the US, where views on the impact of trade tensions with China vary widely.

Jessen highlighted that these differing perspectives make it difficult to understand the current situation, describing it as a "moving target." He identified US-China tensions as a defining feature of this decade, emphasizing that economic security must be considered in both traditional trade policy and the newer focus on national securitya concept relatively unfamiliar to the EU.

Jessen discussed the EU's strong support for international agreements and the challenges posed by US-China disputes, which he echos former ASML CEO Peter Wennink's view where he believes the fight between the two nations is ideological rather than fact-based and the chip wars will continue for the foreseeable future. He warned that this ideological conflict could lead to policies where economic losses are deemed acceptable if they harm the adversary more.

Reflecting on the limited effectiveness of economic sanctions throughout history, Jessen cited examples from ancient Greece to modern-day China, arguing that China's attempts to coerce the EU have generally failed, particularly when sanctions target sectors unrelated to the original disputes. He expressed uncertainty about the future, noting the high costs associated with adjusting supply chains and bolstering national defenses in Europe.

Artis Pabriks, President of Latvia's Northern Europe Policy Centre, echoed skepticism about the effectiveness of economic sanctions, noting that they are not a "silver or golden bullet." He emphasized that a strategic mix of political, military, and economic measures is essential, likening it to a "cocktail" approach in medicine.

Sillicon shield is more than just Taiwan

Jieh-Min Wu, a Research Fellow at Academia Sinica's Institute of Sociology, discussed the concept of the "silicon shield," arguing that it is not purely "Taiwan-centric." While Taiwan's chip manufacturing prowess could make it a targetcoveted by China or pressured by the US for diversificationWu argued that the true power of the silicon shield lies in the global consequences of any disruption to the chip supply chain resulting from conflict over Taiwan.

Wu noted the potential for "asymmetric damage," where disruptions could harm the US and its allies more than China, which has advanced its semiconductor industry. This potential must be considered in strategic calculations.

Wu also discussed US "friend-shoring" policies aimed at reducing reliance on Taiwan by rebuilding domestic chip-making capacity. However, he pointed out that these efforts are costly, time-consuming, and difficult to replicate given Taiwan's decades of investment in infrastructure and a specialized workforce. Until alternative supply chains are established, the world will continue to rely heavily on Taiwan.

Wu proposed the concept of "Silicon Shield 2.0," which aims to elevate Taiwan's role in global economic security by more fully integrating its semiconductor ecosystem into international production networks. He addressed concerns that diversification could weaken Taiwan's industry, arguing that TSMC's investments in the Global North should be viewed as an extension of Taiwan's influence and strategic alignment with the US and its allies.

"Taiwan's success is a linchpin of global stability, proving that in the interconnected world of semiconductors, security for one is security for all," Wu concluded.
From hundreds of entries, the shortlists of this years AIB Portrait Prize and AIB Young Portrait Prize have been announced by the National Gallery of Ireland, with one Louth artist among the finalists.

Louth artist Martin Maguire made the shortlisted along with 25 other artists from across the country, with his piece in oil on canvas, GameBoy.

The AIB Portrait Prize shortlist includes painting, drawing, sculpture, video and photography demonstrating the breadth of contemporary Irish art. The winner of the AIB Portrait Prize will receive a cash prize of 15,000 and will be commissioned to create a work for the national portrait collection, for which they will be awarded a further 5,000.

Two additional awards of 1,500 will be given to highly commended works. Judges for the AIB Portrait Prize are: Hughie ODonoghue, artist, painter and writer. Emer McGarry, Director of The Model, Sligo and Simon OConnor, Director of the Museum of Literature Ireland.

The AIB Young Portrait Prize returns for its sixth year in 2024 as a showcase for the artistic talent of young people from across the island of Ireland. Five winners (one from each respective age category and an overall winner) will be selected from a shortlist of hundreds of entries from young people aged three to eighteen. Winners will receive a bespoke art box and a cash prize.

The overall competition winner will be awarded a personalised wooden box of high-quality art materials and a cash prize of 500. All twenty shortlisted entrants will have their artwork professionally framed/prepared. This years AIB Young Portrait Prize judges are: Ashwin Chacko, author-illustrator and motivational speaker, Emmalene Blake, a visual street artist, renowned for their large-scale portraits and Sheena Barrett, Head of Research and Learning at the Irish Museum of Modern Art.

Exhibitions of the shortlisted works in both competitions run at the National Gallery of Ireland from 9 November 2024  9 March 2025. The winners of the Prizes will be announced at a ceremony held in the National Gallery of Ireland on 27 November 2024.
InterTradeIreland is offering businesses operating within the food, manufacturing, and engineering sectors the chance to boost their supply chain resilience with support from a sector-specific supply chain specialist. The Supply Chain and Sourcing Service is open to businesses in Louth.

Businesses from each sector will benefit from an independent review of their supply chain to identify opportunities to save money by sourcing across the island, which will also contribute to a reduced carbon footprint.

InterTradeIreland is working in partnership with Blue Sky Food Consulting and MOAT Consultants to deliver the programme. Blue Sky Food Consulting will work directly with food businesses, and MOAT Consultants will work with manufacturing and engineering businesses.

The specialists will work with each business to complete an on-site supply chain audit and mapping exercise. This will involve conducting a walk-through of business operations, identifying and documenting areas or opportunities for potential cross-border solutions. Businesses may also be eligible for follow-up mentoring support to help maximise the opportunities identified.

Colin McCabrey, Director of Trade at InterTradeIreland said: Im delighted to launch our first Supply Chain and Sourcing Service. This initiative presents a great opportunity for 60 business across the island to receive support from sector-specific supply chain specialists from both the food industry and the manufacturing and engineering industry.

"Under their guidance, businesses will gain invaluable insights to enhance their supply chain operations by identifying new sales and sourcing opportunities on the island.

Margaret Dineen, CEO & founder, Blue Sky Food Consulting, said: As a food supply chain consultant within the industry, I understand the value of a service like this, which can hugely benefit any company to further grow and scale. Im delighted to work in partnership with InterTradeIreland and directly with businesses to help them thrive in todays competitive market.

Aidan Farnan, Director at MOAT Consultants said: Were delighted to work in partnership with InterTradeIreland to deliver this new service to help SMEs identify and mitigate supply chain risks. If youre a business operating in the manufacturing or engineering sector and looking to build a stronger and more resilient future, dont miss out on this opportunity to strengthen your supply chain with expert support.

To be eligible for support, businesses must:

Be operating in the food or manufacturing/engineering sector

Have less than 250 employees

Have a turnover of more than 50,000 and less than 40m (or euro equivalent)

Be a business registered in Ireland or Northern Ireland

Have a minimum of 12 months trading history
Louth based Senator Erin McGreehan, today expressed strong support for a proposed initiative to ban mobile phones in secondary schools during the school day by her party colleague and Minister for Education Norma Foley.

Minister Foley's proposal aims to create a more focused and positive learning environment by reducing distractions, minimising the risk of cyberbullying, and encouraging traditional social interactions among students.

The Ministers plan follows a growing body of evidence, including a significant study by the United Nations last year, which highlighted the disruptive impact of mobile phones on learning in school settings. While many schools already have policies in place regarding mobile phone usage, the Minister is calling for a culture of non-acceptance of mobile phones during school hours.

Senator McGreehan voiced full support for the initiative, stating, "I firmly believe that this mobile phone ban is a crucial step forward in enhancing the educational experience of our students. Our schools should be places of learning, friendship, and community, free from the constant distractions that mobile phones present.

"The Ministers plan recognises that some students may have medical conditions requiring the use of mobile phones, such as those with diabetes who need continuous glucose monitoring, and allowances will be made in these cases.

"It is my priority and the priority of Fianna Fail in Government to continue to explore ways to improve supports and ensure that children and young people are not targeted and are not harmed by their interactions with the digital world. We must continue to make it easier for parents to limit the content their children are exposed to and social media companies undoubtedly have a vital role to play.''

Senator McGreehan added, "turning our schools into mobile phone-free zones during the forthcoming school year will undoubtedly enhance the learning and lived experience of students and staff. I applaud the Minister for her commitment to making this a reality."
As the start of the college academic year approaches and Leaving Certificate results are released, many Louth students will prioritise securing accommodation.

Those using a letting agent should ensure that the agent they engage is licensed by the Property Services Regulatory Authority (PSRA).

During the accommodation search, students may encounter bogus letting agents who attempt to exploit them by fraudulently extracting financial payments.

These bogus agents may operate online and falsely claim to hold a valid PSRA licence number, making it essential for students to thoroughly check the legitimacy of any agent they encounter.

All Property Services Providers (Letting Agents, Auctioneers, Estate Agents and Management Agents) operating in the Republic of Ireland must hold a PSRA licence to provide a property service.

Licensed Property Services Providers are regulated by the PSRA, ensuring that the consumer has access to the PSRAs complaints process and in the case of financial loss through the dishonesty of a licensed property service provider can make a claim on the PSRAs Compensation Fund.

To ensure that you are dealing with a legitimate letting agent, follow these steps to verify their credentials:

Request to See the Licence

When engaging with a Property Services Provider, always ask to see their licence. This is a credit card sized licence featuring the licensee's name, photograph, the licence categories, the expiry date and a unique PSRA licence number - a 6 or 12 digit code that always begins with double zero.

Check the Licence Number

Verify the licence number is valid by cross-referencing it with the PSRA Register of Licensed Property Services Providers, available at www.psr.ie. This step confirms that the provider's details are up-to-date and legitimate.

The CEO of the PSRA, Ms Maeve Hogan stated that:

Students, whether starting or returning to college, should be cautious of bogus letting agents when searching for accommodation.

To protect themselves from rental scams, its essential to verify that the letting agent is licensed by the PSRA. Using a licensed agent provides consumer protection, and if something does go wrong, a client may be entitled to compensation from the PSRA compensation fund.

Students should check the PSRA Register of Licensed Property Services Providers at www.psr.ie to confirm the agents details

If you have any doubts about whether a letting agent is licensed, contact the PSRA on Freephone: 1800-252712, Telephone: 046-9033800 or Email: info@psr.ie

Unlicensed Letting Agents, Auctioneers, Estate Agents and Management Agents are breaking the law and do not provide any PSRA consumer protection.

Anyone aware of unlicensed operators is urged to contact the PSRA at info@psr.ie
The bodies of those found in the search for six people missing after the sinking of a luxury yacht during a storm off the coast of Sicily are being recovered from the wreckage.

Five bodies have now been brought to shore in the small fishing village of Porticello, around 11 miles from the Sicilian capital of Palermo.

On Thursday, the Italian Coastguard confirmed to the PA news agency that the sixth and final person yet to be found is a woman.

Technology tycoon Mike Lynch, his daughter Hannah, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo were lost when the Bayesian was hit by a storm and sank at around 5am on Monday.

The bodies of the missing men onboard the luxury yacht, as well as the boats chef, have now been recovered.

The family of Jonathan and Judy Bloomer have also confirmed the couple have died.

These are the details of each of the victims on board.

 Mike Lynch

British technology tycoon Mr Lynch founded software giant Autonomy in 1996, and made his name as one of Britains most influential entrepreneurs.

In June, the 59-year-old was cleared of conducting a massive fraud relating to an 11 billion dollar (8.64 billion) sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

The boat trip was a celebration of his acquittal.

Of the 22 passengers and crew on board, 15  including Mr Lynchs wife, Angela Bacares  were rescued after escaping onto a lifeboat.

Mr Lynch was born in Ilford, east London, brought up in Essex and was the son of a nurse from Co Tipperary and a fireman from Co Cork who enjoyed childhood summers in Carrick-On-Shannon and Tipperary where he had family.

He went to Cambridge University and started his first business while studying for a PhD in signal processing and communications research.

He was made an OBE for services to enterprise in 2006. That same year, he was appointed to the board of the BBC, and was later elected to then-prime minister David Camerons council for science and technology in 2011.

David Tabizel, Mr Lynchs Autonomy co-founder, said: The world has lost a genius. His family have lost a giant of a man.

It looks like weve lost our dear Dr Mike Lynch. RIP. The world has lost a genius. His family have lost a giant of a man. #MikeLynch #Autonomy pic.twitter.com/eBesEwOe88  David Tabizel (@Tabizel) August 21, 2024

Mr Lynch was a member of the Create The Change fundraising board, set up by Cancer Research UK, which helped fund the building of the Francis Crick Institute.

Chairman Lord John Browne, who described him as a human being of great ability, said: Mike Lynch should be remembered as the person who catalysed a breed of deep tech entrepreneurs in the UK.

His ideas and his personal vision were a powerful contribution to science and technology in both Britain and globally.

He became a fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2008, which paid tribute for his active role as a mentor, donor and former council member. He was an inaugural member of the enterprise committee.

On Thursday, the technology industry group TechUK also described him as a hugely significant and pioneering figure in the UK technology sector.

 Jonathan Bloomer

The Morgan Stanley International bank chairman is a prominent businessman who holds a number of boardroom roles after an extensive career in financial services.

He was the chief executive of global finance group Prudential between 2000 and 2005, and is chairman of Morgan Stanley International as well as Hiscox and property business SDL.

Mr Bloomer was among those to give evidence as a defence witness for Mr Lynch, and media reports suggest the pair are close friends.

 Judy Bloomer

Mr Bloomers wife Judy worked as a psychotherapist for nearly 30 years, specialising in anxiety and stress.

In a statement confirming their parents deaths, the Bloomer family described the couple as incredible people and an inspiration to many.

They said: We are grieving for our loved ones and all of those affected by the tragedy.

Our parents were incredible people and an inspiration to many, but first and foremost they were focused on and loved their family and spending time with their new grandchildren.

Together for five decades, our only comfort is that they are still together now.

This is an unimaginable grief to shoulder.

Ms Bloomer was a trustee and long-time supporter of gynaecological cancer research charity the Eve Appeal.

She studied English language and literature at Homerton College, Cambridge, and previously worked as a teacher.

 Chris Morvillo

Mr Morvillo, 59, a partner at law firm Clifford Chance, represented Mr Lynch during the long-running criminal fraud trial where he was eventually cleared of all charges.

His long career included representing corporate and individual clients in white-collar government investigations, related regulatory and civil proceedings, and internal investigations.

Mr Morvillo had previously been a federal prosecutor, working on cases related to the 9/11 attacks and securing the conviction of lawyer Lynne Stewart for assisting terrorism during his time as assistant US attorney for the Southern District of New York between 1999 and 2005.

A Clifford Chance spokesperson said: We are heartbroken at the tragic passing of our partner, Christopher Morvillo and his wife, Neda.

We are deeply saddened and still coming to terms with this terrible loss. Our utmost priority is to continue to support Chriss family at this very distressing time. Our thoughts extend to the families and loved ones of all those affected.

We wish to express our deepest condolences and our love and support to Chriss family and friends at this incredibly difficult time. We also want to thank the Italian authorities and rescue teams for everything they have done.

 Recaldo Thomas

The first body recovered at the scene of the sinking on Monday was that of Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, who was working as a chef on the Bayesian superyacht, the Italian coastguard told Sky News.

In a tribute shared on Tuesday, Gareth Williams, a friend of Mr Thomas, told the BBC: I can talk for everyone that knew him when I say he was a well-loved, kind human being with a calm spirit.

Mr Thomas grew up in Antigua and spent his time there during the off-season, Mr Williams said.

Another friend, Eli Fuller, told the outlet Mr Thomas was friends with everybody, always positive and sought after in his profession.
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Guess what just landed this month? If youre as obsessed with travel and all things stylish as I am, then youre going to absolutely love this. Sunlight Air, our favorite local boutique airline, just celebrated its fifth anniversary in the most fabulous way possible at the Grand Travel Fest 2024. And trust me, they didnt just stop at cake and confetti. Nope, they went above and beyond by launching an ultra-chic, Sunlight Air-themed luggage line in collaboration with the oh-so-cool The 815 Co.!

Lets talk deets. This isnt just any luggage; its a Special Edition Collection that is all about that sleek, navy exterior. And the best part? Its available in three different sizes, so whether youre a light packer or someone who believes in packing half their wardrobe just in case, theres a size thats perfect for you.

But hold on, because it gets even better. Not only will you be strutting through the airport with luggage that looks like it came straight off a runway, but each piece in this collection comes with some seriously swoon-worthy perks. Were talking 1-2 kg of extra check-in or carry-on baggage allowance for all Sunlight Air flights. Yep, you heard that right. More space for all those extra shoes or souvenirs you simply cant leave behind. And if youre anything like me, you know that every little bit of extra baggage allowance counts!

Now, lets get into the real VIP treatment. When you roll up to the check-in counter or the boarding gate with your Special Edition luggage, youre not just any traveler. Oh no, youve got lifetime rights to priority lane access. This means you can say goodbye to those long, boring lines and hello to breezing through the airport like the travel queen you are.

Ryna Brito-Garcia, the fabulous CEO of Sunlight Air, summed it up perfectly: We wanted to commemorate our fifth year by introducing something new that will further elevate the travel experience of our passengers. And elevate it they did! By teaming up with The 815 Co., theyve created a collection thats not only functional but also super stylish. Its designed with us, the savvy, stylish traveler in mind. Because lets be real, traveling is so much more fun when youre doing it in style.

And speaking of style, lets talk about what makes this luggage a must-have. First off, its crafted from high-quality Polycarbonate PC material, so you know its going to withstand all the adventures you have planned. Plus, its got built-in TSA locks, so your belongings are secure, and you can travel with peace of mind. But thats not alleach luggage comes with a dust bag, a luggage belt, and even a sticker sheet so you can personalize your bag and really make it your own. Because who doesnt love a little customization?

One of my favorite features has to be the convenient top-opening zipper. Its such a small detail, but it makes packing and unpacking so much easier. Plus, it just looks cool. I mean, practical and stylish? Yes, please!

If youre already itching to get your hands on this collection (and who could blame you?), youve got a few options. You can snag your new favorite travel companion from The 815 Co.s online store, or check it out on Zalora, Shopee, and Lazada. But if youre more of a see it in person kind of gal, you can swing by The 815 Co.s stores at SM North EDSA, Monarc, and SM Megamall. And for all you Sunlight Air fans, you can also pick it up from their exclusive merchandise store, Sunlight Air SkyMerch.

So, whether youre planning your next getaway or just daydreaming about your future travels, this Special Edition Collection is definitely something youll want to add to your travel arsenal. Not only does it make a stylish statement, but it also offers practical perks that will make your travels smoother and more enjoyable. And who doesnt want that?

Ready to take your travel game to the next level? Head over to Sunlight Airs website to book your next flight and learn more about their routes. Happy travels, and dont forget to travel in style!

Sunlight Air is a boutique airline in the Philippines, offering top-notch service and seamless travel experiences. Operating from Clark and Cebu, the airline flies to stunning island destinations like Coron, Siargao, Boracay, Iloilo, Cagayan de Oro, and Manila. With a fleet of ATR 72-500 aircraft known for comfort and reliability, Sunlight Air ensures a smooth, stress-free journey. From booking to landing, they prioritize customer satisfaction with personalized service and a focus on safety, making your travel experience truly special.
Gardai have confirmed that a 12-year-old girl, who was the victim of a reprehensible assault in Cork on Monday night, is now in a stable condition following surgery.

The incident occurred at a house on the New Line in Charleville at approximately 11.30pm on Monday.

It is understood that a group of five men, who were wearing balaclavas, arrived at the residence and damaged a car outside before damaging the front door of the house.

A mother and young children were inside the home, and the 12-year-old girl suffered from a suspected fractured skull and a brain bleed as a result of the incident.

Armed

It is believed the incident may be linked to a feud involving families in Cork and Limerick, with the attackers suspected of having been armed with slash hooks.

The girl, who was treated at the scene, was rushed to Cork University Hospital, before she was later transferred to Childrens Health Ireland at Temple St, where she underwent surgery.

Garda Superintendent Gary McPolin, who is overseeing the investigation, said the girl was in a stable condition, adding: The operation was quite successful.

It looks like shell make a recovery, but time will tell.

Its heinous and reprehensible that this should happen to a young child inside the private environs of their home.

Investigations into the attack are continuing.

It is understood that the men fled the scene in a vehicle, and gardai are currently trying to establish the type and make of vehicle and the direction in which they travelled.

Gardai are continuing to appeal to anyone who may have witnessed this incident or who may have been in the vicinity on Monday between 10.30pm and 12am to come forward.
A new show about three of Irelands most important historical figures is taking place in Cork tonight.

Souls, Shadows, and Secrets is an original multimedia performance that brings Michael Collins, Countess Markievicz and Eamon de Valera to life, through the old Pathe newsreels from 1915 to 1927.

The production debuted at the Everyman in Cork this week, with another show this evening from 8pm, marking the 102nd anniversary of Collinss assassination. The tales of Collins, Markievicz, and de Valera are framed within the story of a young Irish woman, Kate Delaney, who reveals her own personal experiences.

Written and directed by Barry Monahan, from the School of Film, Music & Theatre at University College Cork, the performance is for audiences of all ages.

Tickets are available via the Everyman website for 29.
A West Cork farmer recently saw first-hand the work being done by an Irish charity in a drought-affected region of south-eastern Africa.

Roy Kingston, whose family farm is located outside Bandon, recently returned from Zimbabwe, where he met people struggling with extreme poverty and the impact of living on the frontline of the climate crisis.

Mr Kingston spent ten days in July visiting projects supported by Christian Aid Ireland in the drought-affected Mwenezi region.

The aid agency is helping farmers in the area to survive by planting sesame, a naturally drought-tolerant crop which puts down a three-metre root able to reach damp soil below the surface.

Christian Aids local partner Sustainable Agriculture Technology is helping almost 4,000 small-scale farmers in the region to survive drought and other climate shocks.

One of the farmers Mr Kingston met was Vhaina Mahweta.

Ms Mahweta received sesame seeds from the project and she said they proved to be life-savers.

We planted all our seeds as usual but the rains have been poor and some of the sesame received no rain at all after planting, she said.

All our other crops perished but the sesame germinated and produced seed for us to sell.

The sesame is helping us to survive the drought. I use the income to buy food and pay school fees for my children, Ms Mahweta said.

The Christian Aid-supported project also includes a processing plant to clean the seed and prepare valuable products such as sesame oil for sale, while a cooperative allows growers to reach new markets and fetch a higher price for their harvest.

It is estimated that across Zimbabwe around six million people are facing food shortages as a result of the drought currently affecting much of southern Africa.

The drought has been caused by the El Nino climate phenomenon, with poor rainfall leading to crop failure and livestock deaths.

Upon leaving Mwenezi, Mr Kingston travelled to the Chipinge region in the east of the country.

There he met a young family who recently received a new home thanks to funding from Christian Aid, after Cyclone Idai destroyed their previous home in 2019.

Christopher Mutisi and his wife and their two young children were among more than 150 families whose homes were repaired or rebuilt following Idai, one of the worst tropical cyclones ever to make landfall in the southern hemisphere.

Mr Mutisi said his familys new home was made from concrete and steel, and was strong enough to survive any further cyclones.

We feel safe now, he said. We are happy here.

Mr Kingston is a member of Bandon Methodist Church. He and his wife Jennifer have four adult children and two grandchildren.

He supports Christian Aid Irelands fundraising events, including its annual Sheeps Head Hike and coffee mornings at the Gateway Centre in Bandon.

He and the other supporters who travelled to Zimbabwe covered the cost of their trip.

Mr Kingston said it had been a privilege to visit Zimbabwe and to meet people coping with the impact of drought and cyclones.

I was pleased to see how the donations made to Christian Aid by ordinary people are helping farmers like Vhaina to make a living growing sesame and how Christopher is now safe in his new home, he said.

This years Sheeps Head Hike is on Saturday, September 7, with details available at caid.ie
ESB and the Land Development Agency (LDA) have reached an agreement on the transfer of a greenfield site in Wilton earmarked for the development of hundreds of new homes.

The land being transferred by ESB is located at the energy utilitys Sarsfield Road site in Wilton.

The LDA said it has already appointed a design team for the project and is expecting to make a planning application for about 350 new homes in Q1 of next year.

These proposed homes, the LDA said, will include a mix of affordable for sale houses and cost rental apartments.

Subject to planning approval, the agency said construction could start in early 2026, with the first homes being delivered in late 2028.

The land involved is a 2.7 hectare greenfield site located next to Wilton Shopping Centre and near existing residential neighbourhoods including Cardinal Court and Wilton Court.

The planned development of the site will add to the LDAs ongoing activity in Cork.

The agency is already in the process of delivering 267 homes at the former St Kevins Hospital site in Shanakiel and is developing 302 cost rental apartments at Horgans Quay in partnership with BAM and Clarendon Properties.

This is another positive development for the LDA as the agency continues to ramp up the delivery of affordable new homes, chief executive of the LDA, John Coleman, said.

We are already under construction at two locations in Cork and we look forward to work starting on this well-located site.

This planned development will have the potential to provide much-needed housing and new facilities in a desirable area alongside established communities and close to a range of existing amenities and services.

The LDA is actively working with state bodies to access state-owned land that has the potential to deliver thousands of homes.

I would like to thank the ESB for making this land available and working closely with us to conclude its transfer.

There is an opportunity for state bodies to create a lasting legacy by making land available and that is certainly true in this instance.

ESB chief executive, Paddy Hayes, said the site will make an important contribution to the development of much needed housing.

We would like to thank the LDA for working with us and we look forward to seeing construction get underway on what promises to be an excellent development, he added.

As part of the planning process for the land, the LDA said it intends to undertake extensive public consultation and will publish framework and vision documents to facilitate this process ahead of any planning application being made.
A father and son who are charged with the assault of two members of their immediate family have been further remanded in custody at a sitting of Clonakilty District Court in west Cork.

The two accused Jerry Brennan Senior, 77 and his son William, 31 both with an address at 2 Long Bridge, Dunmanway, Co Cork appeared before Judge Brendan OReilly.

The pair were charged on Monday with the assault causing harm of Mr Brennans two other sons, John Brennan and Jerry Brennan Junior during an incident on Saturday, August 17 where it is alleged that William Brennan also produced a knife.

The two injured parties were taken to Cork University Hospital (CUH) for emergency surgery. It was alleged at the previous hearing that the men were engaged in a long-running family feud regarding land.

Court presenter Sergeant Tom Mulcahy said that the State was seeking to have the two accused men further remanded in custody until September 3 to await instructions from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

Legal representatives for both men agreed to the further remand period.

Myra Dineen, solicitor for Jerry Brennan Snr said that her client who entered the court with the aid of a walking stick would be willing to appear by video link from prison at the next hearing while William Brennan told the court that he wished to appear in person.

The court heard that William Brennans solicitor Frank Buttimer was also making an application for legal aid.

Judge OReilly said that looking at the statement of means presented to the court William Brennan seemed to have a considerable weekly income and there were also assets that were not properly accounted for in the statement. He said that on that basis he would have to reserve judgement on the legal aid application.

Judge OReilly remanded both men in custody to appear again at Clonakilty District Court on September 3, William Brennan in person and Jerry Brennan Snr by video link.
Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) have warned Cork motorists of lengthy queues around the Jack Lynch tunnel in both directions.

The queue is on the N40 between J09 - Bloomfield and J11  Dunkettle and has been causing traffic standstills since around 4.30pm, TII have advised.

Queue on N40 between J09 - BLOOMFIELD and J11 - DUNKETTLE (Both) (22-Aug 16:55) https://t.co/7YdB52UGLt  TII Traffic (@TIITraffic) August 22, 2024

Motorists are being warned to expect delays on the N40 from both sides of the tunnel as well as on the N8, as there are also large queues around the Dunkettle interchange in all directions.

Both and Garda Siochana and Cork City Fire Brigade told The Echo that they are not aware of any collisions or other traffic incidents in the area.

Latest traffic information for the area is available at: https://traffic.tii.ie/
Absolutely no help at all, were just left on our own, my words might sound dramatic but, literally, our kids were left to rot!

Parent Dervla OConnor, whose son Paul attends St Killians Special School in Mayfield, was speaking during yesterdays protest by a crowd of well over 100 parents, children, teachers and supporters at the Northside school, a hub for children with special needs from all over Cork, with some travelling from as far away as Limerick.

Tracy Mekki and daughters Malika and Amira campaign for their seven-year-old brother Karim at the protest at St Killians School, Mayfield, Cork, yesterday. Picture: Larry Cummins

Ms OConnor, along with the other parents and children, was protesting following the omission of the school from a pilot scheme to restore therapists to special schools following their withdrawal back in 2019/2020 to make way for a new scheme, Progressing Disability Services. This scheme was supposed to assign therapists to children with special needs in their homes but is now acknowledged by many not to have succeeded.

Largest

St Killians Special School, which is the largest not alone in Cork but in Munster, was not listed among four Cork Special Schools announced last week to be included in a pilot scheme to return therapists to special schools despite being described by Disability Minister, Anne Rabbitte, as the catalyst for devising the scheme in the first place.

Cousins Paddy Breen, Aodha and Thade Swanwick and Eilis Gleeson at the protest at St Killian's School, Mayfield, Picture: Larry Cummins.

St Killians Parents Unite spokesperson Eibhlin Gleeson told the gathering that she and others from the school had met Ms Rabbitte last November about their proposal to get private therapists into the school.

We went with an open mind [to have] a very solution-focused meeting, where we were told if we found private therapists, the minister would fund them, she said.

We did the work, we sourced the therapists, we sourced the company, we bought the equipment. When we went to draw down the money, we got silence from the ministers department.

We heard that there was a pilot project on the way, we got a sense we were being considered for that, but, lo and behold, when the pilot was announced, we werent included.

Alternative

The alternative to this is that St Killians be granted the 150,000 per year that they were told was available to fund private therapy.

We have a provider ready to go, they said in an open letter to Ms Rabbitte and Tanaiste Micheal Martin.

Parents Nicola Rice and Eric Morrison with their daughter Lexie at the protest at St Killian's School, Mayfield. Picture: Picture: Larry Cummins.

Principal Sue Lenihan asked why a pilot scheme was even necessary, given that there had been therapists in the schools four years ago.

The difference for a child having therapeutic intervention in school to having none is significant, she said.

Its catastrophic to review the children who have received no therapeutic intervention over the past five years and the damage that is being done, day-on-day, week-on-week, month-on-month and, in some cases for our children, year-on-year.

They are not reaching their full potential, they are entitled to this, they deserve this, theyre vulnerable, theyre special, and theyre amazing.

Despite all the challenges that they face every day, they come to school, they smile, and they do their best.

We do our best, their parents do their best  we need the Government to do its best and deliver on its promises.

The protesters were also addressed by Solidarity/People Before Profit TD Mick Barry, who said that how St Killians was treated would be an issue at the forthcoming general election.

These children have additional needs, and the Government needs to step up to provide the additional funds, he said.

Sinn Feins Thomas Gould commended parents for taking time out of their busy lives to organise and attend this protest.

Forgotten

You can get money now for anything, from dog racing to cycle lanes, but if your child has a disability or your child has additional needs, theyre forgotten about, he said.

Fine Gael senator Tim Lombard travelled from West Cork to attend the protest. Im deeply disturbed that we dont have this issue solved running into the latter days of August and September just around the corner, he said.

Staff and supporters bring their messages to the protest at St Killian's School, Mayfield, Picture: Larry Cummins.

In response to a query from The Echo, a spokesperson for the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration, and Youth said that the names of a further 10 schools to be included in the pilot scheme would be announced in October, to commence in January.

The spokesperson said: A plan to fund the provision of private therapy at St Killians Special School via grant funding was discussed between the minister and the school.

However, due to concerns expressed by the HSE National Office relating to governance and supervision by the CDNT [childrens disability network team] of private providers and the resources required for same, the proposal was not advanced and instead evolved into this pilot scheme now getting under way.

Ms Gleeson said the group did not accept there were issues around governance, but if they existed, they were easily resolved.

These are not good enough reasons to keep our children from therapies that will change the course of their lives, she said.
One of Noel Cowards four great comedies of manners is coming to a Cork theatre next month for six nights.

Present Laughter will be performed at the Everyman Theatre from September 24 to 29.

Featuring an all-Cork cast, the plot depicts a few days in the life of the successful, and self-obsessed, light comedy actor Garry Essendine as he prepares to travel for a touring commitment in Africa.

First produced in Londons West End in 1942, the play presents an exaggerated picture not only of the playwright himself, but of his whole household, his court, his admirers, his lifestyle, and his era.

The production is directed by the renowned Mary Curtin.

It will feature well-known Cork actors Shirley McCarthy, Rebecca Allman, Ann Dorgan, Ian McGuirk, Vannessa Hyde, Marie ODonovan, Jim OMahoney, Kenneth Speight, and one of Corks rising young talents, Oskar Smith.

Producer Ian McGuirk set up his production company, Ian McGuirk productions, with the intention of producing as many classical and traditional theatre pieces as possible.

He has had a long association with the Everyman Theatre Company, most notably under the directorial stewardship of the late Michael Twomey.

Having performed extensively in many of their productions written by writers such as Oscar Wilde, JB Priestley, and John B Keane, he recognises that there is a huge demand amongst Cork audiences to be entertained by timeless pieces.

Present Laughter is considered one of the enduring successes of modern comedic theatre and is a prime example of the sophisticated comedies of Noel Coward, the famed English playwright.

Tickets for the production are on sale now via the Everyman Theatre website at https://everymancork.com from 27, with tickets for groups of 10 or more available from 24.
Founded in 2005 as an Ohio-based environmental newspaper, EcoWatch is a digital platform dedicated to publishing quality, science-based content on environmental issues, causes, and solutions.

A 4 million kW new solar project under construction in the coal mining subsidence area of Ordos, Inner Mongolia, China on Nov. 11, 2023. Costfoto / NurPhoto via Getty Images

The first half of 2024 saw new coal-fired power plant approvals fall significantly in China, a new report by Greenpeace East Asia said.

A series of permits in the past two years had raised concerns about how committed the countrys government was to limiting climate change, reported The Associated Press.

An analysis of project documents found that, from January to June, 14 new coal plants had been approved, with at least 10.34 gigawatts (GW) of total capacity. That reflects a 79.5 percent decrease from 50.4 GW during the same time period last year, a press release from Greenpeace East Asia said.

China has pumped the brakes on coal so far in 2024. Wind and solar expansion continues to be strong. Since 2022, we saw a troubling trend of coal approvals increasing despite renewable energy growth which should displace coal. We may now be seeing a turning point, said Yuhe Gao, project lead for Greenpeace East Asia, in the press release.

A renewable energy power base under construction in the Tengger Desert in Majiatan Town, Yinchuan, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region of China on May 6, 2024. Yuan Hongyan / VCG via Getty Images

Of the new coal plant approvals in 2024, 71.4 percent were facilities that have the capacity to generate more than 660 megawatts (MW) of power, a concerning trend that Greenpeace East Asia first pinpointed last year. And of last years new projects, 70.7 percent had a capacity of more than one GW.

These facilities are quite large. Coal facilities do not nimbly switch on and offline. And large facilities are particularly inefficient coming online in terms of time, money, or total emissions. This somewhat contradicts the stated purpose of using these facilities to support periods of peak energy demand. We are seeing a positive trend in decreasing new approvals. But the new approvals themselves are quite concerning, Gao said.

Most coal approvals in 2024 were from a few provinces  2 GW each in Jiangxi and Anhui and 1.32 GW in Xinjiang. For three years in a row, Anhui has made extensive new coal approvals, with 19.2 GW of approvals from January 2022 through June of this year.

Chinas total coal capacity  11.7 terawatts (TW)  for the first half of this year was exceeded by wind and solar for the first time. By the end of June, wind and solar made up 11.8 TW of total generation capacity.

By June of 2024, wind and solar capacity combined accounted for 38.4 percent of the countrys total power generation, with coal supplying 38.1 percent. During the first half of this year, 84 percent of all newly connected capacity came from wind and solar.

Amid powerful wind and solar growth, connecting these new energy sources to Chinas old, outdated grid remains a hurdle, Gao said in the press release. Any money spent building new coal power plants should really be spent improving renewable grid connectivity. It takes around 20 months for a coal plant to go online and thats if construction isnt delayed. Developing smart grid solutions to mitigate the burden of peak demand is not only a faster route to energy security, but it also paves the way for the energy transition.

The Xinghuo Water Surface Photovoltaic Demonstration Project of Daqing Oilfield in Daqing, northeast Chinas Heilongjiang Province on Aug. 8, 2024. Zhang Tao / Xinhua via Getty Images

China is capable of peaking its emissions well before the end of the decade, Greenpeace said, with every degree of warming avoided preventing compounding impacts of extreme weather on peoples lives, communities, wellbeing, and economies.

Supporting provincial governments in developing load resource guarantee systems and supply-side structures would address short-term energy demand spikes during peak seasons. They are also more effective overall and faster to implement than constructing coal plants, which not only pollute the environment and increase global heating, but add economic and financial burdens to Chinas energy transition.

One question remains here. Are Chinese provinces slowing down coal approvals because theyve already approved so many coal projects during this five-year plan period? Or are these the last gasps of coal power in an energy transition that has seen coal become increasingly impractical? Only time can tell. A rebound remains possible until there are firm measures put in place to directly prevent further coal expansion. And without more proactive support for wind and solar grid connectivity, a post-peak plateau remains a risk, Gao said in the press release.
Founded in 2005 as an Ohio-based environmental newspaper, EcoWatch is a digital platform dedicated to publishing quality, science-based content on environmental issues, causes, and solutions.

A NOAA Fisheries sea turtle pathologist for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill releases a rescued green turtle into the Gulf of Mexico in federal waters off of Louisiana on Oct. 21, 2010. Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

At the urging of Sierra Club, Friends of the Earth and other green groups, a United States federal judge has thrown out a National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) assessment governing how threatened and endangered marine species like whales and sea turtles ought to be protected from oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.

The Maryland district court struck down the assessment  known under the Endangered Species Act as a biological opinion  which was required to ensure that endangered and threatened species would not be jeopardized by exploration and drilling for fossil fuels in the Gulf, a press release from Sierra Club said.

The courts ruling affirms that the government cannot continue to turn a blind eye to the widespread, persistent harms that offshore oil and gas development inflicts on wildlife, said Chris Eaton, Earthjustices Oceans Program senior attorney, in the press release. This decision means the Fisheries Service must comply with the law to put in place meaningful safeguards for the Gulfs rarest marine species.

In 2020, NMFS filed the biological opinion and Earthjustice filed a lawsuit challenging it on behalf of the Center for Biological Diversity, Turtle Island Restoration Network, Friends of the Earth and Sierra Club. Plaintiffs argued the opinion failed to adequately evaluate the possibility of future Gulf of Mexico oil spills without requiring sufficient protections for imperiled sea turtles, whales and other threatened and endangered marine species from offshore drilling operations.

The court found multiple violations of the law in the biological opinion, including an erroneous assumption that a disastrous soil spill such as the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon would not happen, even though a NMFS analysis found that such a spill was to be expected. It also assumed wildlife populations in the Gulf were not affected by the spill, despite evidence to the contrary.

Biologists named this Kemps Ridley sea turtle Lucky after he was rescued from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, pictured on May 29, 2010. Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries

The assessment also failed to protect Rices whale  among the rarest whales on Earth  from extinction due to oil and gas activity.

Oil industry trade groups EnerGeo Alliance, the National Ocean Industries Association and the American Petroleum Institute, along with oil major Chevron, intervened to defend the opinion, reported Reuters.

Of particular interest in the case was the continued existence of Rices whale in the Gulf of Mexico, the press release said. With less than 100 individuals left, Rices whale is the only large species of whale that lives in North American waters year-round.

Oil and gas development is the main cause of the whales current dire circumstances. Approximately 20 percent of the Rices whale population in the Gulf of Mexico was lost due to the Deepwater Horizon disaster. Oil industry pressure to drill deeper and farther out increases the likelihood of a catastrophic oil spill.

Now the agency has a chance to get the biological opinion right and properly evaluate the devastating impact offshore drilling and exploration has on the Gulfs protected endangered and threatened marine species. These species, including the critically endangered Rices whale, need protection from the daily costs and catastrophic risks associated with offshore oil drilling, said Devorah Ancel, senior attorney with Sierra Club, in the press release.

Rices whales bask near the oceans surface and because of this are especially in danger of ship strikes. Fossil fuel explorations underwater blasting with seismic air guns interferes with their sonar, which the whales and other marine species use to find mates, communicate and care for their young.

Simply put, this biological opinion would have condemned the Gulf of Mexico Rices whales to extinction, said Joeanie Steinhaus, Turtle Island Restoration Networks ocean director, in the press release. The recovery of these whales and other species is possible as long as we improve the conditions, and the responsibility lies in our collective actions.
Founded in 2005 as an Ohio-based environmental newspaper, EcoWatch is a digital platform dedicated to publishing quality, science-based content on environmental issues, causes, and solutions.

Pieces of microplastic found on the banks of the Warnow River in Rostock, Germany. Bernd Wustneck / picture alliance via Getty Images

Its well-known that microplastics are pervasive, with scientists finding microplastics in testicular tissue, lungs and even blood. But now, researchers have discovered microplastic pieces in samples of the human brain at higher levels than expected.

In a new pre-printed study published early by the National Library of Medicine, scientists analyzed plastic content in the livers, kidneys and brains of autopsied human bodies. While the team found microplastics in all of the organs, the scientists were concerned that the average amount of microplastics in the 91 brain samples was between 7 and 30 times higher than the amount of microplastics in the liver and kidney samples.

Its pretty alarming, Matthew Campen, lead author of the study and professor of pharmaceutical sciences at the University of New Mexico, told The Guardian. Theres much more plastic in our brains than I ever would have imagined or been comfortable with.

In the study, the authors revealed that 24 of the brain samples that had been collected earlier this year were comprised of about 0.5% plastic. The amount of plastic found in the 2024 brain samples was also around 50% higher than the plastic amount in brain samples from 2016.

Of the detected microplastics, scientists found that polyethylene was the most prevalent. As reported by Britannica, polyethylene is the most widely used plastic polymer globally and is commonly used in packaging and plastic bags.

The study further revealed that microplastics are selectively accumulating in the brain, causing an increase in the concentration of plastic in the brain in the long-term. This could present links between microplastics and certain diseases, but more research is needed to determine the risks.

The parallels between the present data showing an increasing trend in MNP concentrations in the brain with exponentially rising environmental presence of microplastics and increasing global rates of age-corrected Alzheimers disease and related dementia, given the potential role of anionic nanoplastics in protein aggregation, add urgency to understanding the impacts of MNP on human health, the study concluded.

The study builds on previous research, also led by researchers at the University of New Mexico, which revealed that microplastics that are ingested could move from the gut to other organs, including the brain. As Reuters reported, humans ingest an average of 5 grams of microplastics per week, or around 20 kilograms in the average 79-year lifespan, further raising concerns over accumulation risks.

I dont know how much more plastic our brain can stuff in without it causing some problems, Campen told The Guardian.
Founded in 2005 as an Ohio-based environmental newspaper, EcoWatch is a digital platform dedicated to publishing quality, science-based content on environmental issues, causes, and solutions.

Deep in Canadas remote Brevoort Island, in the Nunavut territory, a radar technician was killed last week in a rare polar bear attack. Days earlier, a polar bear was spotted in Rankin Inlet, a remote, but fairly populated, Inuit settlement in the same territory. Experts warn that similar encounters with polar bears will likely become more common as climate change destroys their habitats and makes it more difficult to find food.

John Ussak, a resident of Rankin Inlet, said he was afraid the polar bear was stalking a popular summer fishing spot, and attempted to scare it with warning shots, according to The Guardian. It took 20 shots before it thought about leaving, he said. Ive never seen that before. Days later, he reported another polar bear sighting.

When I heard about what happened to that technician, I was shocked, Ussak said. We hardly used to see polar bears here in the past. But now weve had at least two in the last few weeks. It feels like theres more bears up in that area  and they dont seem afraid of people.

A polar bear with a GPS tracker forages along the Svalbard coast in Spitsbergen, Norway on Aug. 23, 2022. Sven-Erik Arndt / Arterra / Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Given the location and the fact that two bears were involved, Andrew Derocher, a professor of biology at the University of Alberta, told The Guardian that the attack on Brevoort Island was unusual.

The reality is, polar bears are unpredictable at the best of times, Derocher said. And with all of the environmental changes were seeing, theyre going to become more unpredictable.

According to a 2017 study published in the Wildlife Society Bulletin, polar bears are more likely to attack humans when theyre nutritionally stressed and are in below-average body condition.

Nasittuq Corporation, which employed the technician who was killed, said One of the animals was put down, according to the The New York Times. The company added, The safety and well-being of our employees is our highest priority, and we are deeply committed to ensuring a safe working environment. The attack happened on an outpost of Nasittuqs North Warning System, which protects North American airspace by detecting cruise missiles and aircraft, reported The New York Times.

According to Parks Canada, unlike other species, polar bears can see humans as a potential food source, making them extremely dangerous. In case of an encounter, its recommended to carry deterrents such as an air horn or bear spray, and playing dead is not effective. Instead, its recommended to back away slowly and prepare to stand your ground by making loud noises and prepare for a potential fight, aiming for the nose and head.

As climate change worsens, polar bear populations will decline as they need sea ice for habitation and for capturing seals, according to a 2020 research article published in the journal Nature Climate Change.

Back in the 1980s, polar bears would look like giant, fat sausages lying on the beach in the summer. But now, were seeing a population that is much leaner overall. And I suspect as food becomes more of a challenge theyll start entering [human] communities. Are those communities ready? Absolutely not. A handful have small polar bear patrol programs, but most have nothing Derocher said.
(Photo: Marcelo Schneider/WCC)

The World Council of Churches is urging faith communities to work alongside governments and wider civil society to overcome the mpox outbreak.

The call follows the World Health Organization's Aug. 14 declaration that mpox is an international public health emergency.

The call by the WCC follows on the work that churches and the faith community did in combatting HIV and AIDS and the stigma attached to it, especially in the latter part of the 20th century.

The current strain is transmitted through routine physical contact, even without intimate contact.

It said that for most people, the infection causes a relatively mild disease characterized by fever, headaches, rashes, and blisters on the skin.

But for people with weakened immune systems, the outcomes of the disease can be worse, causing severe illness with more serious skin lesions and other problems that can lead to death.

Four out of 100 people with mpox are estimated to manifest severe symptoms of this current strain.

WCC general secretary Rev. Pillay said that this public health emergency obliges the world to collaborate, collaborate closely, be committed, and invest in overcoming this emerging crisis.

"Vaccines are one component of the strategy," Pillay. said. "Countries in the global north have national stockpiles, possibly of millions of doses that can potentially be released to the needy."

The outbreak can only be curbed by the full spectrum of a good public health response, Pillay said.

He called on churches and faith communities to be "informed and to communicate reliable information regarding the outbreak and to work against misinformation," adding that churches can also educate "communities in the prevention of transmission" and "prevent the stigmatization of people affected."

Churches can also provide careincluding spiritual and psychosocial supportfor those affected by mpox, Pillay noted.

They can also advocate "for countries in the global north to release stockpiles of mpox vaccine for use in most affected regions," he said, and for "functioning health systems that provide universal healthcare."

Pillay noted that by calling for sharing the common burdens of the world, so that the challenges become bearable and surmountable.

"By upholding each other, we uphold humanity and all creation," he said.

WHO says on its website that of the confirmed cases in the WHO African region in 2024, 95% were reported in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which is experiencing an upsurge of mpox cases.

It has more than 15,000 clinically compatible cases and over 500 deaths reported, already exceeding the number of cases observed in the DRC in 2023.

Also, this year, cases of mpox, linked to one variant of mpox, have so far been reported in the Central African Republic and the Republic of Congo, and cases linked to another variant have been reported in Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Liberia, Nigeria, and South Africa.

On Aug. 15, Sweden became the first country outside the African continent to confirm the mpox clade 1b variant in an individual with a travel history to central Africa, according to the WHO
Chinese envoy interacts with Indian students winning universities scholarships

Xinhua) 10:22, August 22, 2024

NEW DELHI, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Ambassador to India Xu Feihong interacted with a group of Indian students, who won scholarships to pursue higher studies at various Chinese universities, at a function held at the embassy on Tuesday evening.

Speaking on the occasion, the Chinese envoy said that prior to COVID-19 pandemic, there were over 23,000 Indian students at Chinese universities, and hoped that the number would gradually increase.

He said that Chinese universities' doors were open for Indian students and that the opportunity to study in China would give Indian students a chance to know China better.

"Delighted to meet Chinese Government Scholarship winners from India. The door of China is open to you all. Hope you will indulge yourselves in Chinese language, culture and society and become friendship ambassadors between China and India," the Chinese ambassador later said on social media.

The Indian students who won scholarships told Xinhua that learning the Chinese language could bring a lot of employment opportunities.

Khushbooo Yadav, a female student from India's northern state of Uttar Pradesh, said she will join a three-year post-graduation program in Chinese literature at the Beijing-based Capital Normal University.

She added that after completing her higher studies in China, she could get various job opportunities in India as an interpreter. "There is a great demand for Chinese language interpreters in various Indian government departments or companies," she added.

Another student Priyanshu, who comes from the northern state of Uttarakhand, said that he will study at Tsinghua University in Beijing for a master's degree starting in September.

"In India, there are ample opportunities for those who know the Chinese language. One can easily get a job either in government departments or in the corporate world, drawing a decent salary," he said.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Google DeepMind workers have signed a letter calling on the company to drop contracts with military organizations, according to a report by Time. The document was drafted on May 16 of this year. Around 200 people signed the document, which amounts to five percent of the total headcount of DeepMind.

For the uninitiated, DeepMind is one of Googles AI divisions and the letter states that adopting military contracts runs afoul of the companys own AI rules. The letter was sent out as internal concerns began circulating within the AI lab that the tech was allegedly being sold to military organizations via cloud contracts.

According to Time, Googles contracts with the United States military and the Israeli military allow access to services via the cloud, and this reportedly includes AI technology developed by DeepMind. The letter doesnt linger on any specific military organization, with workers emphasizing that its not about the geopolitics of any particular conflict.

Reporting since 2021 has slowly revealed the scope of tech supplied by Google (and Amazon) to the Israeli government via a partnership known as Project Nimbus. This is far from the first instance of Google employees openly protesting their work being used to support politically fraught military aims  the company fired dozens of staffers who spoke out against Project Nimbus earlier this year.

Any involvement with military and weapon manufacturing impacts our position as leaders in ethical and responsible AI, and goes against our mission statement and stated AI principles, the DeepMind letter says. Its worth noting that Googles slogan used to be dont be evil.

The letter goes on to ask DeepMinds leaders to deny military users access to its AI technology and to set up a new in-house governance body to prevent the tech from being used by future militaries. According to four unnamed employees, Google has yet to offer a tangible response to the letter. We have received no meaningful response from leadership, one said, and we are growing increasingly frustrated.

Google did respond to Times reporting, saying that it complies with its AI principles. The company says that the contract with the Israeli government is not directed at highly sensitive, classified or military workloads relevant to weapons or intelligence services. However, its partnership with the Israeli government has fallen under plenty of scrutiny in recent months.

Google purchased DeepMind back in 2014, but under the promise that its AI technology would never be used for military or surveillance purposes. For many years, DeepMind was allowed to operate with a good amount of independence from its parent company, but the burgeoning AI race looks to have changed that. The lab's leaders spent years seeking greater autonomy from Google, but were rebuffed in 2021.

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Google has reached a deal with California lawmakers to fund local news in the state after previously protesting a proposed law that would have required it to pay media outlets. Under the terms of the deal, Google will commit tens of millions of dollars to a fund supporting local news as well as an AI accelerator program in the state.

The agreement ends a months-long dispute between lawmakers and Google over the California Journalism Preservation Act, a bill that would have required Google, Meta and other large platforms to pay California publishers in exchange for linking to their websites. Google strongly opposed the measure, which was similar to laws passed in Canada and Australia.

Earlier this year, Google began a  short-term test  in the state that removed links to local news for some users in California. The company also halted some of its own spending on local news in the state.

Now, under the new agreement, Google will direct at least $55 million to a nonprofit public charity housed at UC Berkeleys journalism school, Politico reports . The university will distribute the fund, which also includes at least $70 million from the state of California. Google will also commit $50 million over five years to unspecified existing journalism programs.

The agreement also includes funding for a National AI Innovation Accelerator. Details of that program are unclear, but Cal Matters reports that Google will dedicate at least $17.5 million to the effort, which will fund AI experiments for local businesses and other organizations, including newsrooms. That aspect of the deal, which is so far unique to Google's agreement in California, could end up being more controversial as it could exacerbate existing tensions between publishers and AI companies.
He was recently acquitted of 15 counts of fraud in the US.

UK tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch, 59, has been confirmed dead after multiple days of search and rescue efforts, multiple news agencies report. The 183-foot super-yacht, Bayesian, capsized off the coast of Sicily around 5 AM local time on Monday morning during a violent storm. Lynch was one of 22 individuals on board, including passengers and crew, with 15 individuals rescued and one body found immediately following the events. Five more bodies, including Lynch's, have since been recovered. At this time, his daughter is the only person still missing, Reuters reports, citing sources close to the rescue operation.

Lynch co-founded tech companies Autonomy and Darktrace and founded venture capital firm Invoke Capital. Following the $11 billion sale of Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard, Lynch has spent the past decade-plus engulfed in a legal battle over allegations of inflating sales and misleading HP. A San Francisco jury acquitted him in June of all 15 counts of fraud.

The yacht excursion was meant to celebrate Lynch's recent victory, with family, friends, and business associates joining him. Other members of the deceased include the yacht's chef, Neda and Chris Morvillo, a Clifford Chance lawyer who represented Lynch and Judy and Jonathan Bloomer, a non-executive chairman of Morgan Stanley International. Angela Bacares, Lynch's wife, escaped the wreckage and is safe.

Lynch's co-defendant, Stephen Chamberlain, 52, also faced tragedy this week. The BBC reports he was hit by a car on Saturday, August 17, while out running in Cambridgeshire, England, and died from his injuries.
Get ready, trainers: the original Pokemon anime will soon be getting a new home. The Pokemon Company has partnered with Canadian company WildBrain to be the distributor for a single-IP free ad-supported television channel that's all Pokemon, all the time. The deal covers the first 22 seasons of the animated tales of Ash Ketchum and his electrifying buddy Pikachu.

The FAST channel will arrive first in the US, followed by launches in Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. WildBrain has existing relationships with several TV platforms, including Samsung, LG, Roku, Tubi and Pluto, but it didn't share any specific dates or likely homes for the future Pokemon channel. The company specializes in children's programming. It operates FAST channels for game franchises Sonic and Super Mario as well as kid-focused titles such as Teletubbies, Strawberry Shortcake and Caillou.
On the first evening of the Democratic National Convention (DNC), Ashley Biden, the youngest of President Joe Biden's children, offered a touching portrayal of her father.

She recounted special moments from her childhood while reflecting on her father's journey in politics.

"Joe Biden is the OG girl dad," she remarked. "Dad always told me that I was no better than anybody else, and nobody was better than me. He taught me that everyone deserves a fair shot and that we shouldn't leave anyone behind. That's what you learn from a fighter who has been underestimated his entire life."

Her speech served as a moving introduction, causing the president to become emotional. On stage, he embraced her, wiping his tears with a tissue.

"That was my daughter!" he proudly announced. "I love you."

This emotional moment set the tone for the conclusion of the first night of the convention, which honored the president, who had recently ended his re-election bid. Vice President Kamala Harris secured the nomination instead.

Ashley Biden, 43, is the daughter of Joe and Jill Biden. She is the half-sister of Beau Biden, Hunter Biden, and Naomi Christina Biden, children from Joe Biden's first marriage to Neilia Hunter Biden. She is married to Dr. Howard Krein, an otolaryngologist.

Ashley, a social worker and advocate, has mostly stayed out of the spotlight. She holds a Bachelor's degree from Tulane University and a Master's of Social Work from the University of Pennsylvania. She previously worked with the Delaware Department of Services for Children, Youth, and Their Families and later served as the executive director at the Delaware Center for Justice, focusing on criminal justice reform.

In 2019, she left the Delaware Center for Justice to support her father's 2020 presidential campaign. She also spoke at the 2020 Democratic National Convention.

According to 'ELLE' magazine, in 2023, she was pursuing a doctorate in clinical social work at the University of Pennsylvania and consulting for organizations like the Boys & Girls Club of America.

Ashley, who was born on June 8, 1981, is also a fashion designer. She founded 'Livelihood,' a fashion company that helps raise money for community programs dedicated to eliminating income inequality alongside online retailer Gilt Groupe.

Her half-sibling, Beau, introduced her to Howard Krein in 2010. After a period of dating, Ashley and the plastic surgeon and otolaryngologist  often referred to as ear, nose and throat specialists or ENTs  tied the knot in a Catholic-Jewish ceremony in 2012.

Krein, who has worked at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, was an assistant professor of facial, plastic, and reconstructive surgery at Thomas Jefferson University, per 'ABC News.'
Candace Owens came under fire after a video of her making inflammatory remarks about Israel went viral over the weekend.

The far-right activist claimed that Zionists are not the original Jews but are demon worshipers, leading to massive backlash for her seemingly anti-semitic conspiracies.

The political commentator ranted against Israel and criticized fellow conservative commentators for what she deemed their "hypocrisy" by not supporting Israel and reportedly protecting abusers and child predators.

The 35-year-old responded to the backlash on Twitter, now known as X, in a repost.

No. That was always allowed and encouraged. https://t.co/iX9Uihpw7p  Candace Owens (@RealCandaceO) August 18, 2024

"No. That was always allowed and encouraged," she wrote, addressing how she was expected to criticize Black people as part of her role at 'The Daily Wire.' The right-wing media outlet, co-founded by Ben Shapiro, announced in March that it had severed ties with Owens who, according to 'CNN,' repeatedly embraced anti-semitic rhetoric. Shapiro  who is Jewish, called Owens' comments "disgraceful," blasting her "faux sophistication" on the topic in November.

Jeremy Boreing, chief executive of the publication, shared in an online statement that the "Daily Wire and Candace Owens have ended their relationship."

Owens confirmed the news online, writing, "The rumors are true  I am finally free."

In 2021, the author joined 'The Daily Wire' to host a political talk show titled 'Candace.' She was fired in March after a reported series of comments perceived as anti-semitic, which reportedly escalated tensions with Shapiro, 40, amid the Israel-Hamas war.

                



Candace Owens:        "    " .



                    pic.twitter.com/uaOFDhRbIN   (@agha_bakeri) August 21, 2024

"Do you think it's normal that basically, every person that speaks about Israel has to say a statement that 'you know I don't want to get killed'?" she said in the video. The New York native stated that after listeners told her to increase her security, she answered how "that's not f*****g normal. It's not normal that people have to think about their security."

Owens, who is married to George Farmer, father-in-law distanced himself from her comments about the Jewish community.

And of course, the plight of civilians in Gaza is also utterly appalling but I see Israel has little option but to fight its enemy where it chooses to hide itself  in tunnels under key infrastructure and behind innocent civilians.  Michael Farmer (@TheLordFarmer) August 19, 2024

"In view of public comments from a high-profile member of my family, I want to put my own views on antisemitism and Israel's current military campaign in Gaza on public record," Lord Michael Farmer wrote on X Monday. He also wrote a series of tweets on the war.

Israel is a rare example of a democracy in the Middle East, a liberal state governed by the rule of law. Of course, it has the right to defend its citizens when murderously attacked on its soil in one of the cruellest and most callous pogroms in history.  Michael Farmer (@TheLordFarmer) August 19, 2024

Owens, a mother of three, has also been a public supporter of former President Donald Trump.

"I truly believe that Donald Trump isn't just the leader of the free world, but the savior of it as well," she wrote in a social media post in 2018, per 'CNN.'

In March, she took a selfie with Trump, 78, at a Las Vegas' UFC event. "It's fight night," she captioned her post. "Fighters only."

She also spoke on Juneteenth, mocking the date becoming a new federal holiday, tweeting: "Juneteenth is still ghetto and made up. Hope everyone enjoys it!"
Michelle Obama gave a spicy rebuttal for Donald Trump's recent comment regarding "Black jobs" Tuesday night at the Democratic National Convention (DNC).

'MSNBC' deemed his comment "a lowlight in his fact-free debate" when he dropped the controversial statement during a highly-anticipated presidential debate against Democratic President Joe Biden in June.

The comment  which initially went viral, sweeping across social media  came as a response to a question involving Black voters feeling left behind regarding jobs in the economy. Some citizens felt the remark was a strategy to pit Black voters against the immigrant community.

Viewers were left asking, "What is a Black job?"

You want to make a play to Black folks, you cant even show up at a barber shop. @MichaelSteele has some strong words for Donald Trump following his Black jobs comment at the debate. pic.twitter.com/BJnovXfxDi  The Weekend on MSNBC (@TheWeekendMSNBC) June 29, 2024

Donald Trump claimed, "The fact is that his big kill on the Black people is the millions of people that he's allowed to come in through the border. They're taking Black jobs now  and it could be 18, it could be 19 and even 20 million people."

He added how "They're taking Black jobs, and they're taking Hispanic jobs, and you haven't seen it yet, but you're gonna see something that's going to be the worst in our history."

The former FLOTUS Michelle Obama didn't take the comment lightly, taking a moment to clap back during her speech at the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago  hinting at the irony that he himself could potentially be taking a "Black job" should presidential nominee Kamala Harris, 59, take office.

"Who's gonna tell him?" Obama, 60, asked the energized crowd below. "Who's gonna tell him that the job he's currently seeking might just be one of those Black jobs?"

The crowd was seen going wild, many holding phones, cameras, and cheering in agreement with the fiery clap back. It's no surprise the crowd gave the Chicago native that reaction.

In July, a study, published by 'IPSOS,' revealed that citizens across the nation amongst registered voters have unfavorable opinions of Trump, 78, and Biden. Obama received majority favorability among registered voters in hypothetical matchups.

The beloved 'New York Times' best-selling author's office released a public statement making it clear that running in the 2024 election is not an option.

"As former First Lady Michelle Obama has expressed several times over the years, she will not be running for president," Crystal Carson, her director of communications stated per 'NBC' in March. "Mrs. Obama supports President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris' re-election campaign."

The energetic Democratic Convention is set to continue in the windy city through August 22.

See more here.
Nearly twenty years after being sentenced for the murder of his pregnant wife, Scott Peterson is back in the spotlight with a new claim that he hopes will exonerate him.

In his first on-camera interview for Peacock's 'Face to Face with Scott Peterson,' Peterson, now 49, reaffirms his innocence regarding the deaths of his wife, Laci Peterson, and their unborn son, Connor. He suggests that a "burglary" in their Modesto, California, neighborhood could have led to his wife's disappearance.

"There was a burglary across the street from our home," Peterson said from Mule Creek State Prison. "And I believe that Laci went over there to see what was going on, and that's when she was taken." Laci disappeared on Christmas Eve in 2002, and her body was found in the San Francisco Bay months later.

Peterson accuses investigators of withholding evidence that could have potentially proven his innocence. "There are so many instances where there was evidence that didn't fit the detectives' theory that they ignored," he alleges. "People want the answer they believed in to be the answer."

The documentary reveals that witnesses reported a suspicious van in the area on December 24, 2002, and one claimed to have seen a pregnant woman being forced into a van. However, former Modesto detectives Jon Buehler and Al Brocchini dismissed these claims, stating no new evidence could exonerate Peterson.

Peterson expressed his regret for not testifying at his trial and hopes that revealing his side will alleviate some of his family's suffering. "If I have a chance to get the reality out there... maybe that takes a little bit of hurt off my family," he says.

His sister-in-law, Janey Peterson, asserts that she believes Scott is wrongfully convicted. The Los Angeles Innocence Project is currently investigating new evidence that could prove his innocence. The series also touches on Peterson's extramarital affair with Amber Frey, which he admits was "horrible" but not directly related to the murder charges.

Peterson, who was initially sentenced to death, is now seeking to appeal the investigation that led to his imprisonment.

'Face to Face with Scott Peterson' is available to stream now on Peacock.
Kamala Harris once admitted to smoking weed when she was in college -- years before medical marijuana was even legalized.

The vice president and presidential candidate made the admission during a February 2019 interview on "The Breakfast Club."

During the interview, which recently resurfaced on X (formerly Twitter) as Harris launched her presidential campaign, host Charlamagne Tha God asked the then-senator if she had ever smoked marijuana.

"I have, and I inhale. I did inhale. It was a long time ago," Harris said.

When Charlamagne asked if she did so during college, she nodded her head yes and responded, "Uh-huh."

Just casually remembering the time Kamala Harris claimed that she used to smoke weed and listen to Tupac and Snoop Dogg while in college even though she went to school in the 80s before they made music. pic.twitter.com/QS0WyWFV0u  Greg Price (@greg_price11) July 21, 2024

Later in the interview, co-host DJ Envy then asked Harris what music she liked.

At this point, Charlamagne interrupted by asking her what music she listened to while smoking cannabis in college.

Harris only responded with a laugh to Charlamagne's question before directly telling DJ Envy that she liked to listen to Snoop Dogg, Tupac Shakur and Cardi B songs, as seen in the video of the sit-down.

According to California's Department of Cannabis Control, medicinal marijuana use was not legalized in the state until 1996. It was legalized for recreational use in 2016.

Washington, D.C., legalized medical marijuana in 2011 and recreational marijuana in 2015.

Harris graduated from Howard University in Washington, D.C., with a degree in political science and economics in 1986. She received her juris doctor from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law -- now University of California College of the Law, San Francisco -- in 1989.

The "Breakfast Club" interview has been repeatedly used to discredit Harris after Fox News and some social media users spread false claims that Harris said she listened to Snoop and Tupac's music while smoking weed in college.

Tupac and Snoop's debut albums were released in 1991 and 1993, respectively.

However, as seen in the original video (minute 36:36), Harris did not say she listened to the two rappers' music during her college years.

Days after their interview with Harris aired, Charlamagne and DJ Envy came on MSNBC to defend the then-senator and set the record straight.

"I mean, we wanted to humanize [Harris], not just talk about politics, talk about what she likes, what she does, and I asked what she listens to and she said she listens to Snoop Dogg and Tupac," DJ Envy explained.

"At the same time, my co-host was still talking about the marijuana and it was just a funny exchange. But she was actually answering me, and people took that she was answering Charlamagne and said she was lying, which is not true," he added.

Harris' ex-spokesman, Ian Sams, also pointed this out in a tweet clarifying the confusion.

"The rightwing is so desperate to attack @KamalaHarris they're trying to make Reefergate happen," Sams wrote. "@djenvy asked what she listened to. @cthagod made a pot joke. Then she answered @djenvy's question. This really isn't that complicated. Just watch."
A 95-year-old man married his 90-year-old partner in a church ceremony over the weekend, more than 60 years after they first met.

Ibrahim Mbogo and Tabitha Wangui Mbogo walked down the aisle on Sunday, at the Tambaya PCEA Church in Mukurweini, Kenya, to celebrate their 64-year-long relationship. The couple first met in 1960 and fell in love, Citizen Digital reported.

Ibrahim and Tabitha, who are legally married under Kikuyu customary law, decided to also have a Christian wedding. They chose a white motif to symbolize their enduring love and commitment to each other.

"We met and fell in love in 1960, do you hear?" Ibrahim told Citizen Digital.

"We deliberated together and decided it would be great if we did a white wedding, we know in our Gikuyu custom that we are legally married, but since we are also Christians, we decided to do a church wedding."

In traditional Kikuyu wedding customs, a man must pay a dowry for her bride-to-be. This can include livestock, money, and other goods, explained DandC. The ceremony, known as "ruracio," symbolizes the groom's commitment and respect towards the bride and her family.

When asked about the secret to a long-lasting and loving relationship, Tabitha said it was respect and owning up to your mistakes.

"Don't do any wrong, and when you do, just apologize and seek forgiveness," she added.

Kenya parliament member John Kaguchia was in attendance at the wedding where he praised the couple and encouraged people to emulate their dedication to their union.

"I wish we can all emulate what this couple has shown us today, that it is beautiful to grow old together," Kaguchia added.

Despite their ages, Ibrahim and Tabitha aren't the oldest people to get hitched. In 2015, George Kirby (then 103 years old) and Doreen Kirby (then 91) wedded at the Langham Hotel in Eastbourne, East Sussex, UK. Their union gave them the record for the Oldest couple to marry  aggregate age in the Guinness Book of World Records.
MBABANE  The Miss and Mr Rural Zimbabwe brand, in collaboration with Esteemed Business Women Zimbabwe, have received a prestigious invitation from King Mswati III to exhibit at the Eswatini International Trade Fair.

The event will run from August 30 to September 8, 2024 at the Mavuso Trade Centre. This was reported and confirmed on Zimbabwe news, where the sequence of events was highlighted. This honour follows the Kings admiration for the artisans showcase at the recent Southern African Development Community (SADC) Summit in Harare. King Mswati III was particularly impressed by the innovative use of recycled materials, including a dress made from plastic and another from cupboard fabric, both incorporating the Zimbabwean national dress fabric. A display of used bottle caps spelling out the SADC abbreviation also captivated him.

Invite

The invite will see 10 Miss and Mr Rural models and three rural women from Esteemed Business Women Zimbabwes Insiza District participating in the fair. Organised by the Eswatini Investment Promotion Authority, the 2024 Eswatini International Trade Fair will be themed: Accelerating Business Growth through Digital Transformation. The event will adopt the tagline Connect, Create and Grow, which will complement the annual theme for the coming years. Esteemed Business Women Zimbabwes Insiza District member, Sifiso Moyo, aka NaZivimbo, expressed her excitement about the opportunity. When King Mswati III invited me to visit his kingdom, I was in awe. It is a blessing to represent the women of Zimbabwe, coming from Filabusi. Im grateful for the support from Sipho Mazibuko and Environment Minister Sithembiso Nyoni throughout this journey, said NaZivimbo.

Gratitude

Sipho Mazibuko, Founder of Esteemed Business Women Zimbabwe, expressed gratitude for the royal invitation and urged stakeholders to support the trip.Were honoured by the Kings invitation. When the King spoke to NaZivimbo, it felt like a dream. Now that we have confirmation, we are eager to make our country proud. We call upon individuals, corporates and government to support us in making this trip a success and promoting Zimbabwe internationally, Mazibuko added. Sourced from Zimbabwe Mthabisi Tshuma
Before Ohio had a dove season, I had the occasion to visit Mississippi where these hunts have a long tradition. It was, and remains, one of that states most popular and anticipated of all their hunting opportunities.

On this particular day, I was talking to a local game warden who was tossing a retrieving dummy to his bouncing Boykin spaniel. He was surprised that Ohio didnt share their enthusiasm for the bird.

As I told him about Ohios Division of Wildlifes efforts to establish the mourning dove as a game bird in the state, he just smiled and said with a drawl, You-all just keep sendin them down to me and Zeke.

The Magnolia States season was still a couple of weeks away and I wasnt able to join the hunt, but that didnt stop me from learning something about the sport. It wasnt long before we were in his pickup with Zeke riding shotgun, the dogs graying muzzle thrust out the open window as he breathed in the countryside.

Dove fields

We went on a bit of a tour down some dirt roads, kicking up a trail of dust in our wake. The warden want to show me some of the prime spots that would soon be hosting hunters from around the country.

Later that evening, as we shared one of those corn-derived beverages better left for removing paint and fueling supersonic aircraft, the conversation naturally returned to dove hunting.

So, what exactly is a dove field? I asked. Im not sure what I expected but whatever it was, its not what I got.

He gave it a moment and a couple of sips. He reached to where Zeke was sitting, quietly saying My good boy. To this day, I dont know if the warden was answering me, quoting from something hed read or explaining something profound to Zeke.

Never looking up, he scratched the little dogs floppy ears and said, Dove fields are where young hunters get their first shot  young pups make their first retrieve. Theyre where old hunters take their last shot  old dogs make their last retrieve.

His words came from someone remembering other times or maybe even looking into the future  not from someone attempting to answer my question. We sat silently for a few minutes, then his eyes lifted from his best friends and toward me. Yes sir, thats what it sure is.

Ohio doves

Since that time, Ohio has joined the nearly 40 other states which provide mourning dove seasons. During my time hunting and working around dove fields and with dove hunters, I now understand exactly what that warden was explaining. To this day, I cannot come up with a better description than what Zekes owner had offered that long ago day.

Numbering in the millions as they migrate through Ohio during the fall, mourning doves feed in recently harvested corn, soybean, wheat and other open fields. State wildlife areas are also popular places to hunt doves with several offering specially planted dove fields to improve your opportunities.

This year, Ohios dove and squirrel seasons will both open Sept. 1. The Division of Wildlife recommends hunters using public areas should do some preseason scouting before opening day. You can find a list of state wildlife areas at wildohio.gov by following the Hunting License and Resource tab. There youll find public hunting area maps, locations of specially planted dove fields, rules and regulations and hunting license purchasing information.

Here is a list of a few pointers that can help get your hunt started:

Before the hunt, you will want to scout using satellite imagery first, then do some exploring; obtain written permission for private property; purchase your hunting license and complete HIP certification; and, if possible, visit a trap, skeet or sporting clays range or join in with friends for some hand-tossed clay targets.

Some places to hunt include wildlife areas, especially those with managed dove fields; harvested crop fields and recently mowed areas with seed on the ground or near ponds with bare ground along edge where doves may be drinking. You could also try applying for controlled hunt opportunities.

A list of necessities for your hunt includes a shotgun with modified choke using 7 1/2- or 8-size shot, camo or earth toned clothes, a 5-gallon bucket or stool to sit on and some decoys are nice to have.

Last bit of advice

Here is some final advice from this old game warden. If your walking days are getting rougher or you have an old dog whose efforts to keep up are causing your eyes to water a bit, this might be exactly the kind of hunt for you.

If youre new to hunting, dove season is a perfect opportunity to acquire and test new skills. That young pup can learn some new tricks, too. Oh, and if you are new, take a look around before you go.

There might be an old hunter with an aging dog that might be encouraged to ride along. They both might teach you a thing or two. If you both choose to sit around after the hunt and talk about the days experiences, Id also suggest you try to avoid any corn-fired jet fuel and settle for something a little more refined.

There is one thing that Id bet my last dollar on  that one day some time ago, an old Boykin spaniel named Zeke spent a fine autumn day sitting next to his lifelong friend on the edge of a sunflower field. He was waiting for a chance to leave just one more memory and to hear those words my good boy once again before it was his time to go home.

He has taught me the meaning of devotion. With him, I know a secret comfort and a private peace. He has brought me understanding where before I was ignorant.

 Gene Hill
Aug. 12, 2024 | Sale Total: $66,744.20 | Total Lots: 67 lots

RABBITS: 5 LOTS

GRAND CHAMPION FRYERS: Hannah Eldridge | Bid: $250 |Weight: 14.5 lbs | Buyer: Cuyahoga County Farm Bureau; GRAND CHAMPION ROASTER: Cooper Kiser | Bid: $310 | Weight: 12.6 lbs | Buyer: Greystone Veterinary Hospital + Urgent Care, Lindsay Kostal, DVM; RESERVE CHAMPION ROASTER: Sodapop Kiser | Bid: $250 | Weight: 11.8 lbs | Buyer: Beth Durda

QUAIL: 5 LOTS

GRAND CHAMPION: Matthew Millard| Bid: $210 | Buyer: Hines Family; RESERVE CHAMPION: Kali Novicky | Bid: $190 | Buyer: Andrew Koranda

DUCKS: 2 LOTS

GRAND CHAMPION: Natalie Fitzgerald | Bid: $320 | Weight: 20.7 lbs | Buyer: Cuyahoga County Farm Bureau; RESERVE CHAMPION: Rillian Blondin | Bid: $170 |Weight: 18.7 lbs | Buyer: Jacob Durda

GEESE: 2 LOTS

GRAND CHAMPION: Sodapop Kiser | Bid: $170 |Weight: 16.3 lbs | Buyer: Chicken Coop Farms, Chris Mills; RESERVE CHAMPION: Stosh Skoczen | Bid: $340 | Weight: 20.6 lbs | Buyer: Creekside Engineering

CHICKENS: 14 LOTS

GRAND CHAMPION: Henry Pierce | Bid: $1,950 |Weight: 23.6 lbs | Buyer: Greystone Veterinary Hospital + Urgent Care, Lindsay Kostal, DVM; RESERVE CHAMPION: Natalie Fitzgerald | Bid: $500 | Weight: 23 lbs | Buyer: Greystone Veterinary Hospital + Urgent Care DVM, Brooke Wright

TURKEYS: 10 LOTS

GRAND CHAMPION: Sodapop Kiser | Bid: $510 | Weight: 53 lbs (pen of 2) | Buyer: Cuyahoga County Farm Bureau; RESERVE CHAMPION: Hannah Eldridge | Bid: $310 | Weight: 47 lbs (pen of 2) | Buyer: Greystone Veterinary Hospital + Urgent Care, Lindsay Kostal, DVM

GOAT: 1 LOT

GRAND CHAMPION: Sophie Eldridge | Bid: $3.10/lb |Weight: 62 lbs |Buyer: Jacob Durda

LAMB: 2 LOTS

GRAND CHAMPION: Owen Szpak | Bid: $5/lb | Weight: 112 lbs | Buyer: Jim and Annie Mikesina; RESERVE CHAMPION: Natalie Fitzgerald | Bid: $10/lb | Weight: 162 lbs | Buyer: Greystone Veterinary Hospital + Urgent Care, Lindsay Kostal, DVM

SWINE: 14 LOTS

GRAND CHAMPION: Anthony Fillipa |Bid: $3/lb | Weight: 250 lbs | Buyer: Pierce Family/Meadow Green Farm; RESERVE CHAMPION: Ben Hechko | Bid: $4.30/lb |Weight: 256 lbs | Buyer: Sullivan Orthodontics

STEER: 7 LOTS

GRAND CHAMPION: Stosh Skoczen | Bid: $5/lb | Weight: 1,400 lbs | Buyer: Creekside Engineering; RESERVE CHAMPION: Cooper Kiser | Bid: $5.90/lb | Weight: 775 lbs | Buyer: Greystone Veterinary Hospital + Urgent Care, Lindsay Kostal, DVM

Cuyahoga County Fair 1 of 20

Special project

Henry Pierce, president of the North Royalton Homesteaders 4-H Club was challenged by Greystone Veterinary Hospital + Urgent Care to find a creative way to grow local support for the Cuyahoga County Fairs 4-H Livestock Auction.

He launched a service project this summer to visit local businesses and government officials to explain the impact the 4-H program has not only on local youth, but also to the greater community.

New businesses or local government officials who attended the auction were eligible to receive the turkeys Pierce raised: two turkeys for their family and two more donated to the charity of their choice.

North Olmsted City Councilperson Chris Glassburn won the raffle, and donated all four turkeys to the Oxcart Pantry, which serves an area hit hard by recent tornadoes.
CANFIELD, Ohio  The Mahoning County Agricultural Society announced the inductees for the third class of the Mahoning County Agricultural Hall of Fame.

The 2024 inductees include: Harvey Firestone, Roger Greenawalt, Francis and Jane Less and Paul Myers

The induction ceremonies will take place Aug. 28 at 11 a.m. on the Concourse Stage located near the Grandstand. The public is welcome and encouraged to attend the induction ceremonies.

The purpose of the Mahoning County Agriculture Hall of Fame is to recognize those who have made a significant impact on agriculture. This is the third year the annual awards will be made to men or women, husband and wife teams or partnerships either as farmers or contributors through an agricultural-related field.

Harvey S. Firestone

Born in Mahoning County on Dec. 20, 1868, on his grandfathers farm, Firestone grew up working on the family farm whenever possible. Firestone, a fourth-generation farmer, was a brilliant inventor who invented and developed the pneumatic farm tire in 1932.

The ground grip tire, as it was known, offered a smoother ride and much better traction. Farm machinery could now travel faster and smoother to extend their reach to cover more acreage efficiently. While he now had a home in Akron and traveled the county extensively, Firestone returned often to the family farm to offer a helping hand and experience firsthand the performance of his tires in action.

He helped to develop the interstate highway systems and put American military vehicles on inflatable tires. Firestones love of farming and his passion for agricultural education led to his relationship with the FFA. He established a scholarship program that carries on still today.

Roger Greenawalt

Born Feb. 19, 1951, Greenawalt has been involved in many aspects of farming and agriculture throughout his life. He grew up on the family dairy farm in Beloit. His first independent endeavor was raising rabbits. The income from this project was used to buy his own farm toys.

Greenawalt graduated from the Ohio State University with a dual major in Agricultural Education and Agricultural Finance in 1972, and went on to earn his masters degree in 1976. Greenawalt taught vo-ag from 1972 to 1999 where he served as a cooperating teacher for student teachers. He initiated the annual Food for America field trip for district elementary students, served as the Young Farmers advisor, and developed an agricultural education model curriculum for the Ohio State University.

Greenawalt worked on a state level to develop the CAUV language for agricultural land use for farmers and testified to keep Public Utilities Commission of Ohio language from becoming burdensome to farmers and farm trucks. He was a local government leader and ran a successful land improvement business. Roger now farms 650 acres along with his farm drainage business.

Francis and Jane Less

Francis and Jane Less were married in October 1941. They began their farming journey on Washingtonville Road in Green Township.

The couple soon became well known for the production of fruits, vegetables and grains. They also had a successful egg production business.

As the couple worked hard on the farm, Francis concentrated on the sweet corn, apples and field corn. He received recognition for producing 200 bushels per acre for five consecutive years from 1969-1973.

In 1973, Ohio Gov. Richard Celeste appointed Francis to the Ohio Agricultural Finance Commission. Francis also served as a director of the Mahoning County Agricultural Society, the Farm Bureau co-op board where he was a past president, and the Salem Fruit Growers Association. The Lesses were the go-to people for other local growers. Francis and Jane were a team, each supporting the operation of the farm and the family. In 1992 the Canfield Fair honored the family as the Rural Family of the Year.

Paul E. Myers

Born Jan. 19, 1897, Myers grew up in Smith Township on a grain, dairy and livestock farm. He traveled throughout Mahoning and Columbiana counties purchasing cattle, hogs, turkeys and chickens. He would butcher these animals at his slaughterhouse and sell the meats to neighborhood markets in the greater Youngstown area. This served as a benefit to local farmers as there were no nearby outlets for their livestock and helped the markets as he offered fresh meats as refrigeration was limited.

As his business grew, Myers traveled to Parkersburg, West Virginia to secure additional animals to supply his markets. During this time he saw the need for a local auction barn and together with Curt Shreve they founded the Damascus Livestock Auction. To get this project underway, Myers brought livestock from Parkersburg to Damascus so there were enough animals to attract buyers, and high enough prices to attract farmers to bring their stock to the sale.

With all this hauling, Myers was always acquiring new cars and trucks. This led to his new venture of becoming a Reo Car and Truck dealer in Youngstown. As this business expanded, in 1937 Myers founded Myers Equipment Co. He continued to farm, milking Holstein cows and raising Black Angus beef cattle until his retirement in 1972.

Myers was a 50-year member of Smith Grange and Director Emeritus of the First National Bank of Salem.

In 1920, Paul and Verna hitched his horse to a buggy and traveled from Beloit to Canfield to enjoy a date at the Canfield Fair. They were married the following year on March 3. Pauls son David and grandson Craig have gone on to serve as Directors of the Canfield Fair.
CHILLICOTHE, Ohio  Members of Zane Trace FFA enjoyed success in junior fair activities as well as an opportunity to give back at the 80th Ross Country Fair from Aug. 3 to Aug. 10.

Additionally, visited by thousands of fairgoers throughout the week, the Zane Trace FFA fair booth featured a display of member projects and FFA involvement throughout the year and highlighted the chapters gold-rated program of activities.

Awards. Members of Zane Trace FFA were also honored n a variety of competitions. Isaac Detty won Best of Show in the FFA project competition with his collection of canned goods. Kendra Detillion placed third in the Apple Pie Bake Off, and her pie was auctioned off to raise funds for junior fair activities. In the outhouse race, a team of Detty, Brooklynn Fisher-Riffle, Savannah Jenkins, Keira DiBenedetto and Mariska Wax ran their outhouse on wheels to a second-place finish in their heat. In the premier event of the Junior Fair Night in the grandstand, Detty caught a calf in the 41st annual Calf Scramble. Detty will raise the calf for a year and show it as a steer in the 2025 Junior Fair Beef Show.

Giving back. In addition to participating in competitions, Zane Trace FFA volunteered as servers at the Ross County Cattlemens Booth. The cattlemen use funds raised during the fair to support beef education projects at the local level. The group sold over 200 sandwiches during their time in the booth.
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.  Behind every bicentennial and century farm owner is generations of family members whose blood, sweet and tears have made it possible for todays families to reap the benefits of farm fresh food.

For farmers like Tom Hall, the century farm designation is less about his work and more of a testament to those who came before him.

It really pays tribute to our great-grandparents, and her parents for what they went through, how they persevered, Hall said. A lot of folks talk about the sacrifice and it takes a lot of cooperation, a lot of understanding and friendly disagreements to make it all happen and make it to where we got to this point for the century award. Its just a testament to families bonding and sticking together.

Six families, including two in western Pennsylvania, received century farm or bicentennial farm designations from the state department of agriculture on Aug. 15. at Penn State Universitys annual Ag Progress Days.

The families given bicentennial farm status are Harry and Mary Hamills Farm in Ligonier and George and Barbara A. Hesss Farm in Shoemakersville.

The four families who received century farm designations include Sharon Smiths Family Farm in Waynesburg, Hall Family Farm in Port Matilda, Bonita and John F. Troxell Jr.s Farm in Northumberland and Richard and Ivonne Buchers Farm in Millerstown.

Hamill Family Bicentennial Farm

Harrys great-great-great-great-grandfather John Hamill received 439 acres in 1761 through a land grant. John emigrated from Ireland and worked as a farmer, attorney and Fairfield Townships constable. The original springhouse and home, built in 1892, still stand today, as well as a two-story log cabin.

Harry attended grade school at Hamill School, a one-room schoolhouse that was on the Hamills original property and was only a few feet away from his doorstep. While growing up, he worked at a fruit stand selling produce like sweet corn that was grown on the farm. He sold sweet corn for 90 cents a dozen.

Dad (didnt) give an allowance, you had to earn your own money. So thats what I did. I think I had the first sweet corn in the valley, Harry said.

Alongside sweet corn, Harrys family had roughly 40 bee hives in high school. Harry took over operations around 1961 after he married his wife Mary. Today, the family still raises beef cattle on 122 acres of the original farm.

Harry also served in the National Guard for four years; the longest he has been away from the farm was five weeks during basic training. His favorite part of farming is the peace and quiet it provides: I get up on a hill and I can talk to myself. Nobody pays their attention to me, youre on your own out there, Harry said.

He adds he couldnt have farmed for so long without the support of his brother-in-law and neighbors. Harry hopes to remain on the farm forever.

Whenever I die, theyre gonna cremate me and Im probably gonna be the last Hamill on that farm. Theyre gonna shake me out up there on the hill, Harry said.

The Hamills farm is located in Westmoreland County, where 11 bicentennial farms and 36 century farms are located.

Hess Family Bicentennial Farm

The Hess family farm was bought by Georges great-great-great-grandfather, Jacob Seidel, on March 30, 1805. At the time, Seidel bought 288 acres for 5.39 British pounds per acre, equivalent to roughly $167,892 in 2024. Today, 165 of the original acres are still farmed today.

Additionally, the original farmhouse and springhouse, built in 1856, are still being used. A portion of the Hesss farm was preserved through a conversation easement purchased in 2004. The farm resides in Berks County, which is home to 34 century and 13 bicentennial farms.

Sharon Smith Family Century Farm

Sharons grandparents James Monroe and Fannie Stewart purchased roughly 365 acres on Feb. 28, 1901. Sharon bought the farm from her grandparents in 1974. Today, they continue to raise Black Angus beef and grow produce on roughly 173 of the original acres. Some of the original buildings are still in use today.

The Smith Family Farm is located in Greene County, where 32 century and three bicentennial farms are located.

Bonita and John F. Troxell Jr. Century Farm

Henry Franklin Geise, Johns great-great-grandfather, bought the property in 1851. Geise served on the local school board, helped establish the townships first phone company and worked on the board of directors for Northumberland National Bank.

Additionally, the local grange met at the farm. Johns parents received a portion of the farm as a wedding gift, before John and Bontia took over ownership in 1989. The Troxells originally raised dairy cattle. Today, they grow corn, wheat, soybeans and alfalfa.

Northumberland County is home to 39 century farms and four bicentennial farms.

Richard and Ivonne Bucher Century Farm

The farm was purchased by Daniel Bucher in 1850, one of three brothers who emigrated from Germany to Philadelphia in 1715. The family continues to use a log cabin from the original homestead and another home built in 1790.

The original 120 acres are still farmed today where the family grows corn and soybeans. The farm is located in Perry County which is home to 37 century and five bicentennial farms.

Hall Family Century Farm

The Hall Family Farm was purchased in 1896 by siblings Thomas and William Hall and Janis Goodmans great-grandfather. The farm was originally a small dairy operation before Tom and his brother Bill Hall took over the farm in 1982 and transitioned to raising beef cattle.

Toms father worked on the railroad and as a dairy farmer, and his mother was also very active on the farm  his mother inherited the farm from her family. Tom, Bill and their sister all helped out and had show calves and pet cows. From a young age, however, Tom realized farming wasnt viable without an outside income. Therefore, he took up a position as a lecturer at Penn State in 1982. During his time at Penn State, he also worked as a compensation manager.

Around the same time he took over operations and began his position at Penn State, Tom built a house on the farm. Today, he is retired and his son Peter runs most operations. Peter works as a civil engineer by day, and he recently built a house on the farm where he lives with his wife.

The Hall Family Farm was recently approved as a preserved farmland by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Tom is grateful for the preservation as the farm is located in a growth corridor of State College where lots of farmland has been lost to development.

Its set aside for the rest of our lives, and whoever owns the farm lives, Tom said. At my point in my life, its been a dream. Its just been something that I always look(ed) forward to.

Despite the hard work, Tom remains grateful for his farm (It) truly is a labor of love  If I had to live my life over again, I couldnt write a better script, Tom said.

Centre County has 43 century and two bicentennial farms.

The ceremony

The six families were honored with signs distributed by Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding. During the ceremony, Redding highlighted the importance of multi-generational farms to Pennsylvanias heritage and future.

These families embody the best of Pennsylvania agriculture and our commonwealths heritage, Redding said. They have not only been tirelessly devoted to feeding our communities for generations, but they are also passing down their family legacy to feed Pennsylvanias future.

The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture created the Century Farm Program in 1977 and the Bicentennial Farm Program in 2004. More than 2,332 century and bicentennial farms have been recognized. The second tricentennial farm was recognized at the PA Farm Show in January.

To receive century or bicentennial farm status, the same family must own the same farm for at least 100 or 200 years and a family must live on the farm. The farm also needs to have at least 10 acres of the original holding or gross more than $1,000 annually from selling farm products.

(Liz Partsch can be reached at epartsch@farmanddairy.com or 330-337-3419.)
A significant arable farm is now able to sell carbon credits generated from sequestered carbon in its soil to a top Formula 1 team to offset their emissions.

Blaston Farm in Leicestershire, owned by Philipson Estates, has been at the forefront of regenerative farming for many years.

It has worked with experts at rural consultancy Fisher German to help turn the farm into one that sequesters and stores a surplus of carbon.

The farm has recently produced a detailed soil organic matter testing methodology and moved to a more regenerative style of farming.

If a farms captured carbon is more than its yearly emissions, it means the surplus can be sold on the open market to private buyers looking to offset their emissions in the form of carbon credits.

After analysis from Ecometric, credits were listed on the Regen Network platform.

Blaston Farm was able to sell credits to the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 team via carbon finance specialist Respira International.

Vicky Povey, agribusiness graduate at Fisher German, said creating carbon credits in this way "is relatively new, and the market is very much an emerging one".

But if a farm can demonstrate that it is sequestering carbon in its soils over time via detailed analysis from companies such as Ecometric, then it is looking more and more like a viable way of generating extra income," she said.

Blaston Farm and Philipson Estates are very much pioneers in this regard and have shown that for the right farm, carbon credits are valued by the market.

Blaston Farm is selling credits to the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 team

For a company such as the Mercedes AMG PETRONAS F1 team to be purchasing credits, it shows the blue-chip firms hold them in high regard when it comes to offsetting emissions."

However, this method isnt fool proof, as the number of credits generated can depend on the type of soil a farm has and weather conditions.

When assessing farm suitability for carbon sequestration, experts say it is worth assessing fields individually and bearing in mind the trade-offs associated with reduced cultivation.

In addition, the longevity of these practices is somewhat unknown. Ms Povey said: "We know the soil cannot store infinite amounts of carbon, so it is uncertain exactly how long we can continue to increase soil organic matter.

But farmers who are already trying regenerative farming methods ought to think about having their soil carbon levels measured against their emissions to generate credits.

"The market is only growing, and as companies are increasingly looking for ways to offset their emissions, it could be a great way to make extra money when farms are often under pressure."

She added: For farmers thinking about generating carbon credits, it is vital to get expert advice so they can be sure it is a viable option for them.

Blaston Farm has engaged with regenerative farming practices for several years, including the creation of wildlife habitats alongside arable land, the use of renewable energy such as solar panels and air-source heat pumps, and participation in SFI schemes.

Hylton Murray-Philipson, owner of Philipson Estates, believes that having exhausted the soil through years of continuous arable cropping, the heavy clay at Blaston has a 20-year journey of sequestration and recovery ahead.

He said: At Blaston Farm, we have worked to improve soil quality by diversifying our crops and focusing on a more natural way of farming, which has enabled the soil to take in more carbon.

We felt the creation of highly audited carbon credits would be valued by the market, and the fact that weve sold a number of them to Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 has proved us to be right.

Were looking forward to continuing to capture more carbon to generate more credits, which are currently listed on the Regen Network platform, and show that other farms  and of course, the environment - could benefit from this practice too.
ITS remarkable that we arent all sitting on the edge of our seats, biting our nails because theres plenty to be concerned about. The reality is that the human being is surprisingly well equipped to cope with and even adjust to unwelcome and even extreme circumstances. If it isnt the Second World War 1939-45, the Korean War of the 1950s, the 30-year Cold War with the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), and the Vietnam war of two decades, then its religious extremism from 1980 onwards, an ongoing HIV and AIDs pandemic, joined by the recent COVID-19, and hopefully not Mpox. When theres a sustained lull, and there hasnt been too many of those, its rarely enough to us to fully relax in our beautiful but imperfect world.

Unstable

These past two years we have seen the reemergence of serious warfare in highly unstable parts of the world. Now in August 2024, we are looking in particular at the Middle East, an area of numerous spells of warfare since the late 1960s; where Israelis are currently in combat with a terrorist group Hamas, but also  and not deliberately, we trust  killing thousands of innocent Palestinians. And slightly further afield, a vicious battle in and around Ukraine. Although the seriousness of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict is not to be underestimated its the Ukraine/Russia war that is the biggest threat to the rest of the world at the present time. And for one good reason  the risk of a nuclear war is being waved in front of Ukraine and, separately, the countries of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation)

One of the most chilling dimensions of that Ukraine/Russia conflict is the extent to which a few individuals can draw two perfectly decent nations, with no inbred sense of hatred for each other, into ferocious mortal combat. The motive for attack appears to come from an all-consuming need for the former USSR (the Soviet Union) to rebuild from its dissolution in 1991. The determination to achieve that and the resentment seeing those countries  especially Ukraine  reasserting their right to be classed as sovereign states, did not remotely justify Russias attack against Ukraine, that took place in February 2022.

Change

Russian President, Vladimir Putin, is simply spitting (or otherwise) into a headwind of change; one similar to the Wind of Change that precipitated the independence programme within the British Empire. And lets not forget that on 8 December 1991, an agreement was signed between the three Slav republics of Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus for the establishment of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS); with other states to follow suit later. It was clear from a statement by the leaders of that Commonwealth in 1991, that the USSR has ceased to exist as a geopolitical reality.

The USSR failed because of the failure of communism, its fundamental ideology. There was too much control by central government in those Soviet states, with little to no incentivise for the population to grow the respective economies. Its ironic that the USSR name contains the word socialist but did not capture its ideology. In fact, communism, which is alive today in only a few countries, mainly China, is simply an extreme form of socialism. Socialism aims to eliminate inequalities in society by creating a more equal distribution of resources. Communism takes it a big step further, requiring that all property and wealth are communally, rather than individually owned. But its a political ideology that doesnt work. Remember: All people are equal but some more than others?, and the communism of the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, while China drastically revised its economy to include some capitalism.

Support

To create the oligarchy to support his autocratic dictatorship now controlling Russia, Vladimir Putin has used the wealth he has amassed over his 24 years effectively in power. It could easily be that he has no interest in the revival of communism but simply detests the thought of former state members of the USSR, now being independent and turning their backs on the main player that was always Russia. Before the collapse of the Iron Curtain in 1989, Putin served as a KGB foreign intelligence officer protecting the USSR, his country. It was the largest sovereign state in the world, one that usually took the biggest number of gold medals at the Olympic Games; although a 1989 Australian study claimed that all USSR gold medal winners were on one drug or another.

The big multi-state family that Putin grew up in, no longer exists. His state, Russia, signed a peaceful agreement in 1991, making Ukraine a sovereign state. That fact should be respected and not violated. Will we see peace between Russia and Ukraine in the foreseeable future? It is quite possible. President Zelenskyy of Ukraine has seen his army crossing into Russia and taking territory. But he surely cannot be envisaging an attempt at a full invasion of a country that is vastly superior in every military category.

It is likely that Ukraine sees its advance as a destabilising measure and a useful bargaining chip in any peace talks. Both countries have suffered a huge loss of life, and with Ukraine now crossing the Russian border, Putin must surely be getting more than a little nervous. Now suddenly on the back foot, he may be feeling personally insecure; a mental state that can be dangerous. It is a danger that introduces the serious risk of nuclear warfare; because desperate people frequently pursue desperate measures.




Tributes have been paid to a boy, aged just six, who was killed in a quad bike accident on a farm in Northern Ireland.

The boy, named locally as Joseph Hegarty, died after the incident near Ballycastle, Co Antrim, on Friday 16 August.

A Health and Safety Executive spokesperson said it was aware of the incident and was liaising with the police.

The police added they were treating it as a sudden death.

Sean McBride, chairman of Carey Faughs Hurling Club, described Joseph, who was known as Joe, as a "lovely wee lad" who was "at the heart" of the club.

The club said "it wouldn't have been a Carey match if Joe wasn't there, cheering the boys on".

The incident is the fourth death on a Northern Irish farm in the last four weeks alone.

It comes after a man died earlier this month after an incident on a farm in Co Antrim, who was described as a 'much loved father of three'.

A father of eight daughters also died 'tragically' on his farm in Co Tyrone, on 20 July.

Before these incidents, a man was killed following an incident on a farm in Co Armagh, on 26 July.

During 2023/2024, there were seven farm-related workplace fatalities in Northern Ireland, according to figures published early last month.

Across the UK as a whole, there were 34 deaths on farms, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) said.
Campaigners are calling on Sir Keir Starmer to take action to end the 'poisoning' of rivers, including from raw sewage and agricultural waste.

A central London protest has been organised for 26 October by numerous environmental organisations to highlight the 'alarming' water pollution crisis.

The March for Clean Water, which is timed to mark the end of the first 100 days of the new government, will also involve well-known personalities, including river campaigner Feargal Sharkey.

They warn that pollutants - including from agriculture - have been allowed to leave most waterways "so filthy that they present major risks to human health and untold damage to nature."

Water companies have also been blamed by campaigners for "continuous illegal dumping of raw sewage".

River campaigner Feargal Sharkey said the government must order a review of the "failed" oversight and regulation of the water industry.

He said: "We call on the government to end the environmental devastation being inflicted upon our rivers, lakes and seas.

"It is now time to hold to account those industries that for too long now have been allowed to knowingly and wantonly pollute our waters driven by nothing more than profit and greed.

"We call on everyone in the country who is concerned or angry at the state of our waters to join us and march.

The March for Clean Water is coordinated by River Action and Feargal Sharkey in collaboration with numerous environmental organisations, including the Soil Association.

Founder of River Action, Charles Watson, said agricultural run-off was also an issue for the UK's waterways.

He said: "The initial noises coming out of our new government regarding cleaning up our filthy waterways, whilst encouraging, do not nearly go far enough to deal with the scale of the problem they have inherited.

"Nothing short of wholescale reform of our failed regulatory system and comprehensive strategies to address all major sources of pollution, including sewage discharges and agricultural run-off, will suffice.

"On 26 October the public will make this point very clear to Sir Keir Starmer in no uncertain terms.
A new record price of 4,500 guineas was set at the third Shrewsbury Highlight Sale of elite dairy cattle earlier this week.

The annual sale, held at Shrewsbury Livestock Centre, is designed to highlight the best bloodlines alongside the weekly sale of fresh dairy cattle.

The record breaking price was achieved by the Seaton family from Audlem, Cheshire, with a heifer, Styche Chief Hilgonda, that had recently claimed Interbreed Champion at Newport Show.

This VG87 heifer calved in January and is back in calf to Woodcrest Kingdoc for January 2025. She has been entered for UK Dairy Day in Telford on 11 September.

Panda Nutmeg Red, a stylish Blondin Willows Red sired in-calf heifer due in October to Progenesis Ambrose RC, sold for 2,500gns for Panda Holsteins from Chumleigh, Devon.

A really flashy August 2023 heifer for Millenheath Lambda Vray, she was backed by a great pedigree and was sold ready to flush or breed for 1,700 guineas.

A super run of heifer calves from D. A. & N. J. Wragg, Whitgreave sold to 1,000gns for a July 2024 born Bronlyn Mitchell Adeen backed by five straight EX dams.

Two further lots, Bronlyn Mitchell Rebecca and Bronlyn Rogue Vaakje, born in June and July 2024, both went for 500gns.

To finish the days trading, Styche Southern Comfort from Seaton Farms, a strong, well grown black bull born in April 2023 and ready for work, sold for 2,000gns.

We were delighted to have been supported by respected breeders from across Shropshire, the Midlands and as far as Cornwall, said Halls auctioneer Jonny Dymond, who is also the Shrewsbury Auction Centre manager.

This sale offers a platform where the pedigree and commercial buyers can reap the benefits of strong bloodlines and the very best of UK genetics.

He also praised the quality on offer in the dairy show and sale, which preceded the Highlights Sale. Yet again the vendors excelled themselves and the quality all through the fresh milkers was exceptional, he said.

Show judge Andrew Shakeshafts awarded the champions prize and Styche Armour Hilgonda Trophy to Phil and Sue Wynn from Ightfield for their second calver Brookroad Annette 56 VG86, which sold for 3,000. Having calved a month and giving 48kg of milk, she was an eye-catcher.

Birchan Lucifer Alma 304 from A. C. & D. Drinkall, Wettenhall, which had calved just a couple weeks and giving 40kg, made 2,880.

She was closely followed on 2,700 by Millenheath Topshot Darky, a quality second calver from the Hare family of Millenheath Farms, Prees, giving over 47kg having been calved not quite a month.
The NFU has called for the Environmental Land Management schemes (ELMs) to 'succeed in the hills' following concern over a possible drop in upland farmers' incomes.

NFU deputy president David Exwood met with the new Farming Minister Daniel Zeichner and the wider Defra team in the uplands to discuss the concern.

The union said the meeting, which took place on an upland farm in Lancashire, gave the government the opportunity to see "the realities of farming in the uplands".

They were also able to see the current barriers of the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) for upland farms, it added.

According to research by the NFU, upland farms will be unable to make up for the loss of income if post-Brexit support payments do not recognise the work they do for rural communities.

On average, the remodelling showed that upland farms lost 37% of their support payments under the current SFI and Countryside Stewardship options available to them.

Following the meeting, NFU deputy president David Exwood said it was 'a great opportunity' to have the minister and Defra team out on farm in Lancashire.

He said: They saw for themselves the vital role upland farmers play in producing food while also being stewards of some of the countrys most cherished landscapes.

For ELMs to be a success it has got to work for all farm businesses, including those in the uplands.

Mr Exwood said that while there were positive increases in the number of options available for upland farmers under SFI, there "still remains challenges" about how hill farms will be profitable while working to the income forgone model.

We need to give upland farmers confidence and certainty by seeing a clear strategy from Defra on its vision for the future of the uplands, he added.

The creation of an uplands working group is also key to ensuring upland businesses are part of the solution to Defras environmental ambitions.

What is the NFU asking for?

For ELMs to be a success in the uplands, the NFU is calling for:

 A new uplands working group to allow further discussions about how upland businesses are part of the solution to Defras environmental ambitions

 Defra to undertake and publish an impact assessment of the current ELMs offer and a transition for upland businesses from direct payments

 Clarification on heavy sheep on the hills and how this limits upland businesss ability to apply for SFI

 A clear strategy from Defra on its vision for the uplands and how businesses remain viable, profitable businesses

 Wider SFI options available to upland farmers to be detached from destocking and shepherding actions (UPL1-3 and UPL7-10)

 Defra to give allowances for supplementary feeding within moorland options (UPL1-3, UPL7-10)

 Moorland stocking actions (UPL1-3) to be based on an average stocking density rather than a maximum rate
Sir,



We need a strong private sector to develop and grow the economy. If government keeps expanding at a faster pace than the private sector, the more deadweight government will absorb and carry at the expense of taxpayers. That deadweight will keep demanding more cost of living adjustments while the economy continues to shrink.

Reason

A lopsided public sector is all the reason why government keeps increasing and sneaking in new types of taxes. Government jobs simply mean meeting about meetings, processing forms, approving or declining business and general public requests, being important, among many other useless routines that can be automated. The question is; who will be brave enough to trim all the deadweight, automate government processes and services, and leave a lean public sector that will perhaps cost government less to run? We need to cut useless spending and ensure that government officers and top officials are able to account for every second, minute and hour they spend on governments payroll. We are simply tired of people getting paid to do nothing so that at the end of the year they can demand more pay and benefits.

Whip

The whip must be cracked on performance targets within all ministries including within the inner circle of Cabinet itself. In the private sector when a person does not do the job, they get fired and this should be the case in the public sector. Enough with the transfers that keep rotating useless officers from one department to another. The country needs to cut the bloated ministries, parastatals and commissions. There is a lot of duplication of work within government yet it still takes ages to get anything done.

Another factor that must be considered is for government to cut tax and put money in peoples hands. We are exhausted by all the tax we have to pay. It costs money even to get out of the house now. The economy cannot get anywhere if people do not have money in their pockets, if the little bit of money they make, government finds ways to take it so it can pay for its out of control expenditures. EmaSwati have suffered and the taxman needs to cut us some slack.

The country is in ruins because of poor leadership and the people the system has kept over the years without allowing new and fresh minds to shake the way government does its business. We need to try new ways of growing the economy and take all the economic and social policies that have collected dust in the different ministries with a grain of salt.
Manuka honey could both treat and prevent breast cancer.

Manuka honey could treat and prevent breast cancer

Scientists have discovered that the fancy breakfast spread contains compounds that are capable of significantly reducing tumour growth in the most common forms of the deadly disease.

The honey also reduced how quickly cancer cells copied their DNA and divided and had no impact on the growth of normal cells, suggesting that it could target cancerous cells specifically.

The promising results could fulfil the "urgent need" for alternative treatments to chemotherapy in order to stop patients from relapsing and improve long-term breast cancer survival.

Dr. Diana Marquez-Garban, associate professor of medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles said: "The findings provide hope for development of a natural, less toxic alternative to traditional chemotherapy.

"Although more research is necessary to fully understand the benefits of natural compounds in cancer therapy, this study establishes a strong foundation for further exploration in this area."
Dennis Quaid felt "very strange" when he became older than his dad ever was.

Dennis Quaid always wished his dad had made it to his 70th birthday

The 70-year-old actor lost his father Buddy when he died at the age of 63 in 1987 and "always felt bad" that his father never reached the milestone birthday that he celebrated in April.

Speaking on 'Today', he said: "I turned 63 and I woke up in the middle of the night about six months after and it just hit me. So I counted the days from my dads birthday to the time he died, and from my birthday to when I woke up. It was the same number of days. In that night I was older than my dad had been. I still feel like hes here in my heart and stuff, like that, but its you become its hard to explain.

"Heres the thing: my dad passed when he was 69. I always felt bad that he didnt make 70. Its a very strange feeling to get past the point that your father did."

The Hollywood star - who is known for his roles in films such as 'The Day After Tomorrow' and 'The Parent Trap' - also admitted that he has "always enjoyed" fame but explained that the "dark side" of it had led him to struggles with addiction before he found religion.

He said: "Just, you know, 'Let this go and let that go,' because theres nothing to be done about it. I was so in the middle of it and on my way to somewhere, that it was really hard to appreciate. If anything I would tell myself back then, Hey, take it easy'. I did enjoy it, I've always had a bit of a sunny disposition about things but then there's a dark side to it too. I wound up in rehab!

"I grew up in the Baptist Church, and in my teens I become disillusioned [with it].

"Then I got into other things to fill that hole, achievements, drugs, relationships. Then, when I got out of rehab, the words of Jesus really struck me. That started my personal relationship with Him, that grew. It's a great source of strength for me."
Iggy Azalea has found the business world "can be pretty boring".

Iggy Azalea has voiced her frustrations

The 34-year-old rap star has investments in the tech and telecommunications sectors - but Iggy has admitted to being frustrated by the amount of meetings that she has to attend.

The 'Fancy' hitmaker - who has focused her attention on her business interests in recent times - wrote on X: "Business can be pretty boring tbh theres a lot of meetings and waiting that goes on behind the scenes

"We have sooo many things nearly ready to be announced but I have to wait for the legal green light lolll

"It is what it is [shrug emoji] (sic)"

Iggy recently revealed some of the keys to her business successes.

The chart-topping star also admitted that she's been force to overcome her own fears in order to succeed in business.

Iggy told Inc. magazine: "Growing as an artist and entrepreneur is always challenging and can be scary, but it's also such a necessary part of life."

Iggy believes it's ultimately important to view challenges as "opportunities".

Asked what advice she'd offer to aspiring entrepreneurs, Iggy replied: "Stay true to your vision, and don't be afraid to think outside the box. Embrace challenges and view them as opportunities."

What's more, Iggy believes she's always had an entrepreneurial approach to life.

The blonde beauty - who released her last album, 'The End of an Era', in 2021 - reflected: "I think I've always been an entrepreneur at heart - even in my music career.

"I've always taken charge of the business side as well as the creative. I see creativity and business as two sides of the same coin, and the goal is to let them inform each other.

"At its core, business innovation is another channel of creativity."
Jenna Ortega felt "terrified" when she joined the star-studded cast of 'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice'.

Jenna Ortega stars in the new movie

The 21-year-old actress stars in the much-anticipated new movie alongside the likes of Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder and Catherine O'Hara, and Jenna has admitted that she was initially a little anxious about working with the Hollywood stars.

Jenna - who plays the part of Astrid Deetz in 'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice' - said on 'The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon': "Never in my wildest dreams. I just never could have anticipated something like that happening.

"Lydia is the coolest character on the planet. Just everything about it, I was terrified."

Michael, 72, has reprised the role of Beetlejuice for the new film.

And Jenna recalled being surprised by her co-star while she was in the make-up room.

She shared: "He came up behind me. I was getting a hair and make-up test, and I got a tap on the shoulder and I turned around and it was a jump scare for sure. He was like, Oh hey Im Michael, and he had moulds peeling off his face.

"I played it cool and then it was cool until I met him for a second time out of hair and make-up because I introduced myself again because I forgot that I had already met him."

Despite her nerves, Jenna previously admitted that she had no hesitations about joining the cast.

The actress also relished the experience of reuniting with 'Wednesday' director Tim Burton, too.

Jenna - who plays Wednesday Addams on the hit Netflix series - told 'Extra': "[Tim] threw me off. It was in Malibu  we were talking about 'Wednesday', gives me the Beetlejuice script.

"I went, Oh, okay, right-right, cool. Thank you very much. Left. Got in my car, pulled over ten minutes into the drive on the side of Pacific Coast Highway  I just read the entire thing."
Michael Madsens lawyer has declared the actor is definitely not guilty of domestic violence.

Michael Madsens lawyer has declared the actor is definitely not guilty of domestic violence

The Reservoir Dogs star, 66, was taken into custody in Malibu, California, on 17 August and arrested on a charge of misdemeanour domestic battery after an incident with his 64-year-old estranged wife DeAnna.

His lawyer has now told The Hollywood Reporter Michael had confronted DeAnna and asked her to leave the house, saying the couple are facing an ongoing problem.

The attorney added: Michael has shown immense compassion and restraint during this period towards his estranged wife.

Hes definitely not guilty of domestic violence.

DeAnna also told The Hollywood Reporter: Michael is struggling with his own personal issues. Myself and our children have been supporting him to the best of our ability. We would request privacy at this time.

Arrest records show Michael was released on bail set at $20,000 and a representative for the actor said on 19 August the Kill Bill star had returned home.

The spokesperson added to People: It was a disagreement between Michael and his wife, which we hope resolves positively for them both.

The Los Angeles Sheriffs Department has said deputies responded to a call just after midnight on 17 August after they were warned a female adult had alleged her husband pushed her and locked her out of their residence.

They added in a statement: The investigation is ongoing and will be forwarded to the Van Nuys Superior Court House for filing.

Twice-divorced Michael has been married to DeAnna since 1996, and The Hollywood Reporter has stated the couple separated after their 26-year-old son Hudson took his life in January 2022.

The couple have another son, Luke, 18, who The Hollywood Reporter says lives with Michael  who also has kids Christian, Calvin and Max.
MANZINI  Manzini Principal Magistrate Florence Msibi, has laid criminal charges against three Nyakeni Inner Council (Bandlancane) members, who had brought a court order to her court.

The accused persons are; Mike Mango (78), Richard Mdluli (55) and Kwanele Tfwala (42). Mango and Mdluli are members of the Inner Council, while Tfwala is the Secretary of Nyakeni Royal Kraal. According to a source privy to what happened on July 11, 2024, the trio went to court with the intention to deliver a court order, which was issued by a Judge of the High Court of Eswatini, Zonke Magagula. He said the court order was in respect of Nyakeni Indvuna (Headman) Bhekithemba Magagula, who had been sentenced to seven days imprisonment, without the option of a fine, for purported perjury. The headman is a Crown witness in the case of a community member who was taken to court by his brother, for allegedly defying a ruling of the royal kraal, which the indvuna endorsed.

Refused

The indvuna was sent to prison for seven days on July 8, 2024, for allegedly being a hostile witness. This was after he purportedly refused to confirm the royal kraal ruling, as it had already been appealed and the royal kraal had not laid a charge against the accused. The source alleged that when the trio arrived in court, they were attended by a court clerk, who then notified the principal magistrate about their visit. He claimed that the principal magistrate instructed the court clerk to call them to her chamber. However, he purported that afterwards, the principal magistrate, through one of the court orderlies, called one of the senior police officers from Manzini Police Station. Upon the senior officers arrival at the principal magistrates chambers, the source alleged the judicial officer told him that there were people from Nyakeni and she wanted to hear what they wanted.

After that, he alleged that the trio was called into the chamber and after they had introduced themselves, the principal magistrate reportedly asked them why they were there. In response, he alleged that Mango told the principal magistrate that he was there to deliver documents, which he was given purportedly by the Registrar of the High Courts Office, to drop at the magistrates court, as the case (which the documents were about) was allegedly not supposed to be tried by the magistrate.

Position

Thereafter, the source claimed that the principal magistrate asked him who exactly gave him the documents, which supposedly had no meaning to her. Furthermore, the source claimed that the principal magistrate also asked him what his position was - to deliver such documents. He alleged that the principal magistrate asked these questions because there were procedures the High Court had to follow when talking about a matter which was ongoing at the magistrates court. She said even the attorney general also knows such, the source claimed.

He alleged that Mango purportedly could not be clear who had sent him. He claimed that the principal magistrate was irritated by Mangos actions and she informed the trio that such act were tantamount to defeating the ends of justice and that they were interfering with a case which was still ongoing in court. After that, he alleged that the principal magistrate called upon the prosecutor to prepare a charge for them. He said they were then taken to Manzini Police Station, where they were formally charged.

Obstructing

In count one, they were charged with the offence of defeating and obstructing the ends of justice, in that on July 11, 2024, while they were at Manzini Magistrates Court, they purportedly obstructed or defeated the proper functioning of the criminal justice system by obstructing the principal magistrate in the execution of her lawful duties and further tried to pervert the course of justice in a matter that she was currently ceased with.

On the other hand, they were charged with contempt of court. According to the charge sheet, on July 11, 2024, while they were at Manzini Magistrates Court, they purportedly attempted to interfere with the principal magistrate in the discharge of her duties, by attacking her in her chambers and thereby violated the dignity, repute and authority of the said court.

The trio are currently out on bail, which was fixed at E3 000 for each and the matter is still pending before court.
Taylor Swift feels a "tremendous amount of guilt" over the planned attack on her Vienna concert.

Taylor Swift has broken her silence on the planned Vienna attack her concert

The 34-year-old pop star was forced to cancel three dates on her 'Eras' tour in the Austrian capital earlier this month due to a planned attack at the Ernst Happel Stadium before officials arrested three teenagers, and Taylor took to social media on Wednesday (21.08.24) evening following the conclusion of the European leg of her tour to release a statement.

She wrote on Instagram: "We have officially wrapped the European leg of The Eras Tour. With it came the most passionate crowds Ive ever played for, new traditions in the show, and an entirely new era added in. It was a more hectic pace than wed done before, and Im so proud of my crew/fellow performers for being able to physically perform that show and build our massive stage, take it apart, and make magic with so few days in between for recovery and travel.

"Theyre the most impressive people I know and Im so lucky they gave The Eras Tour their time, their energy, and their expertise.

"Walking onstage in London was a rollercoaster of emotions.

"Having our Vienna shows cancelled was devastating. The reason for the cancellations filled me with a new sense of fear, and a tremendous amount of guilt because so many people had planned on coming to those shows. But I was also so grateful to the authorities because thanks to them, we were grieving concerts and not lives. I was heartened by the love and unity I saw in the fans who banded together."

The 'Anti-Hero' songstress therefore decided to put "all of [her] energy" into keeping all those who came to subsequent concerts as safe as possible and her efforts all resulted in receiving the "most giant bear hug" from all of her audiences at Wembley Stadium.

She said: "I decided that all of my energy had to go toward helping to protect the nearly half a million people I had coming to see the shows in London. My team and I worked hand in hand with stadium staff and British authorities every day in pursuit of that goal, and I want to thank them for everything they did for us. Let me be very clear: I am not going to speak about something publicly if I think doing so might provoke those who would want to harm the fans who come to my shows.

"In cases like this one, silence is actually showing restraint, and waiting to express yourself at a time when its right to.

"My priority was finishing our European tour safely, and it is with great relief that I can say we did that.

And then London felt like a beautiful dream sequence. All five crowds at Wembley Stadium were bursting with passion, joy, and exuberance. The energy in that stadium was like the most giant bear hug from 92,000 people each night, and it brought me back to a place of carefree calm up there."
In this new series, Iconic Eateries Revamped, we look at iconic eateries that have stood the test of time, and then worked to revamp themselves to appeal to a wider audience.

























If you liked what you read, theres more wed like to introduce you to. Stay tuned!

Since time immemorial, if you were to hear the word kulfi in Mumbai, you knew it was from Parsi Dairy Farm. Patrons who had delighted in its flavour once, would not have it from anywhere else. Even if that meant a ride to Marine Lines to get it. The tradition still continues after over 100 years! This writer still fondly remembers the treats her father used to get from the store, as a surprise, since his office was within short distance of it. The first bite of it was like a little piece of heaven cold, sweet, and opening up the palate for more. And the slice would be savoured for as long as it took our small hands to cut every piece and promptly put it in our mouths. No, not a sliver of it was shared. Each person needed to have their own slice!It is only befitting then, that the store looks at dishing out the same delicacies  all preservative free  to the next generation, the Gen Zs and Zen Alphas of the world to enjoy them with the same fervour.The store recently reinvented itself, modernising the look and feel with a lovely pop of colour, but retaining the ethos of the brand.Zeenia Patel, Brand Director, Parsi Dairy Farm shares, Our loyal customers have appreciated and embraced the changes weve implemented. We are now experiencing a new influx of patrons, and we believe this trend will continue in the years to come.Zeenia mentions that the 100-year-old store, now it is fourth generation, felt the need to expand the range for youngsters enjoy our famous products. After years of research and market study, we decided to adopt a new vibrant look, giving Parsi Dairy Farm a fresher and more modern feel to be more appealing to todays generations.And no, tradition and legacy are not lost, they are in fact honoured in the revamp. The store is revamped to create an inviting atmosphere where people can come and spend time with the family or friends.Besides the vibrant and youthful packaging across all products, spending time in the new store and exploring the extensive range of over 80 mouth-watering mithais to over 30 dairy products, is an experience in itself. Trust this writer when she says so, it is from personal experience. The suterfeni is among the best in the country and the kaju katli and pedas never fail to impress! Lets not even start on the malai sandwich, you will have to dig into one immediately. The best-selling products to this date remains the kulfi, and of course, the fresh ghee. The best part? The taste is the same as one can remember, there is always a certain nostalgia associated with it.In addition, every season, there are new flavours on offer, so theres always something fresh to experience!If this has not prompted you to get up and book your commute to Mumbais Marine Lines area yet, we suggest you plan a visit soon!
Sophia College's Kaleidoscope Festival isn't just another college eventit's an immersive experience. Located at the heart of South Mumbai, circle your calendars as this years fest is being held on August 24th and 25th. The festival is known for its vibrant atmosphere and creative flair.

This year's theme, Cinecity powered by Femina will transport participants and visitors into the enchanting world of cinema, celebrating the essence of your favourite onscreen iconic movie characters.

Femina, The official media partner for Kaleidoscope 2024 is set to empower Sophia

College as it enters its 39th edition of this yearly fiesta.

Leading up to the festival, students have been buzzing with excitement. Nandini Singhania, a senior member of the executive committee said, We cant wait for you guys to see what we have in store, weve had another year of successful events leading up to the festival but we have many exciting things planned for the main days. participating in a series of pre-event activities In line with the Cinecity theme, The festivities kicked off with an electrifying appearance by the cast of

Ishq Vishk Rebound. Rohit Saraf, Pashmina Roshan, Jibraan Khan, and Naila Grewal captivated the audience with performances and shared interesting behind-the-scenes insights into the filmmaking process. Apart from movie promotions, Team Public Relations and Team Pre-K hosted various film-related events, including engaging giveaways in collaboration with Universal Studios and dynamic flash mobs in Infiniti Mall, Mumbai respectively.

Students had the chance to win tickets to upcoming films through two exciting giveaways, Team Public Relations Representative Navya Pathak said, The participation was off the roof, our Instagram was flooded with direct messages, our social media team worked day and night to ensure a smooth flow.  For Despicable Me 4, attendees wore the yellow gentleminions attire to celebrate the latest instalment of the beloved franchise. A trivia quiz allowed them to win

exclusive minions merchandise given by Universal Studios themselves.











Additionally, a thrilling scavenger hunt in collaboration with PVR INOX challenged the students on this campus a chance to secure tickets to Borderlands.

The festival also featured a lively karaoke night named Hall of Fame, where the enthusiastic crowd sang and danced to their favourite tunes, Kanika Bahadur, a member of the senior executive committee also said, It is our last year as third years and were feeling the blues of leaving college after this, which is why we wanted to specifically do an event in the college itself.

The fun continued with Cinemania, a cinema-themed cosplay event hosted by team Pre-K had students dressed as their favourite characters, showcasing their creativity and style. Small businesses added to the festive spirit by setting up stalls with a variety of trinkets, desserts and more.





In an effort to spread the Cinecity energy beyond the college grounds, students performed flash mobs, with the highlight being a captivating reenactment of the classic film Sholay at Infiniti Mall, Malad as per yearly traditions. The performance was a hit, mesmerising both the audience and passers-by.

Adding a touch of social awareness to the celebrations, The Social Outreach event

hosted by Team Public Relations was conducted in collaboration with UNICEF, providing valuable education to the students about anaemia.







The opening ceremony set a joyful tone for the year. Laughter echoed through the college halls during Comic Kaun and Unhinged as comic Mitesh Manuja and influencer Erica Packard judged the events respectively, The first round of Comic Kaun is long over but the second round on the main days is sure to make your stomach hurt from laughter; while electrifying dance performances in Street

Dance and Zara Nachke Dikha captivated everyone.



The confirmed judges, including Gita Kapur, Terence Lewis, and Jay Bhanushali, will grace events such as Zara Nachke Dikha and MX.







Kscope, courtesy of Team Hospitality, has set the stage for Kaleidoscope 2024. Events like Electrocuted, Revamp the Vamp, and Scream are eagerly anticipated during the main days, alongside the Panel.







This years panel theme, Cultural Odyssey: Indian Cinemas Diverse

Narratives, is set to be a treat for cinephiles. The most awaited event of Kaleidoscope 2024, Just a Minute, with Hormuz Ragina as a frequent judge, is sure to blow the audiences minds
China will expand institutional opening up to Africa and deepen cooperation on industrial and supply chains to further advance economic cooperation and development linkage, the formers assistant minister of commerce Tang Wenhong recently said.

He was addressing a press conference detailing the progress and achievements under the nine cooperation programmes China announced during the 8th ministerial conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) held three years ago in Senegal.

These nine programmes cover poverty reduction, agricultural development, trade and investment promotion, digital innovation, green development and capacity building, among others.

China will expand institutional opening up to Africa and deepen cooperation on industrial and supply chains to further advance economic cooperation and development linkage, the former's assistant commerce minister Tang Wenhong recently said. Both sides will discuss cooperation plans during the FOCAC 2024 Summit, scheduled to be held in Beijing in September.

Tang said China and Africa will discuss cooperation plans during the FOCAC 2024 Summit, scheduled to be held in Beijing from September 4 to 6.

As of 2023 end, China's direct investment stock in Africa exceeded $40 billion, making it one of Africa's major sources of foreign investment, he said.

China-Africa trade reached $282.1 billion last year, up by nearly 11 per cent compared with 2021.

In the past three years, Chinese companies have created more than 1.1 million jobs in Africa in sectors like agriculture, processing and manufacturing and trade logistics, and helped increase the continents tax revenues and foreign exchange earnings from exports, state-controlled media outlets reported.

Chinese companies have also implemented a large number of clean energy projects in Africa.

Shen Xiang, director of the West Asia and Africa department under the ministry of commerce, said China has been actively exploring new models of financial cooperation with Africa and is committed to providing support for the sustainable economic development of African countries.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)
Valdis Dombrovskis, executive vice-president of the European Commission and commissioner for trade, and Manoa Kamikamica, deputy prime minister and minister for trade, cooperatives, micro, small and medium enterprises and communications of Fiji, have announced the further strengthening of bilateral trade relations between the European Union (EU) and Fiji through the full implementation of the interim Economic Partnership Agreement (IEPA) between the EU and the Pacific States.

The IEPA, a trade and development agreement, aims to liberalise bilateral trade to promote sustainable development and facilitate Fiji's integration into the global economy. While the EU had already eliminated customs duties and quotas on all imports from Fiji, the Fijian government has now committed to phasing out duties on a specified set of tariff lines for imports from EU Member States. These are referred to as the 'committed basket of tariff lines', the EU and Fiji said in a joint statement.

However, tariffs on selected imports from the EU will continue to apply in certain areas to support the development of domestic value chains. This protective measure is known as the 'exclusion basket of tariff lines.'

The effective implementation of the IEPA and its tariff liberalisation commitments is expected to create new trade opportunities for businesses and investors. The current tariff phase-out will also ensure that Fijian industries have access to cheaper inputs, thereby increasing the competitiveness of locally produced goods and supporting both local industrial development and integration into global value chains.

The IEPA also plays a crucial role in facilitating cooperation on trade and investment, particularly through the 'Global Sourcing' provision, a unique concession by the EU that supports the development of value chains. The EU's bilateral and regional trade-related development cooperation further assists Fiji in implementing the EPA, helping the country to better comply with EU market access standards, upgrade its productive sectors, improve the business environment, and understand EU regulations and trade rules.

The EU and Fiji initially signed the EPA in 2009. While the EU began provisional application immediately, Fiji chose to start applying the agreement in 2014. The final step of tariff liberalisation marks a critical milestone in developing and diversifying bilateral trade between Fiji and the EU.

Executive vice-president Dombrovskis and deputy prime minister Kamikamica have affirmed their shared interest in strengthening the longstanding bilateral trade and economic relationship between the EU and Fiji.

The European Union (EU) and Fiji have strengthened bilateral trade relations through the full implementation of the interim Economic Partnership Agreement (IEPA). The agreement, which promotes sustainable development and trade liberalisation, includes Fiji phasing out tariffs on certain EU imports while maintaining others for domestic protection.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP)
Foreign direct investment (FDI) firms in Vietnam posted a trade surplus of $24.56 billion between January 1 and July 15 this year, raking in $148.71 billion from exportsa year-on-year (YoY) rise of 13.7 per cent and making up 72 per cent of the countrys total export turnover, according to the customs department.

Meanwhile, the import turnover of such firms was $124.15 billiona YoY increase of 16.2 per cent and accounting for 63.5 per cent of the countrys total import turnover.

FDI firms in Vietnam posted a trade surplus of $24.56 billion between January 1 and July 15, raking in $148.71 billion from exportsa YoY rise of 13.7 per cent and making up 72 per cent of the total export turnover. The import turnover of such firms was $124.15 billiona YoY rise of 16.2 per cent and accounting for 63.5 per cent of the total import turnover.

Vietnamese FDI firms total import-export turnover surged by 14.8 per cent in that period to $272.87 billion, domestic media outlets reported.

The countrys manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) kept improving at 54.7 in both June and July compared to 50.3 in May, while 60 out of 63 localities saw their industrial production index up in July.

Many localities like Khanh Hoa, Bac Giang, Hai Phong and Quang Ninh witnessed double digit growth.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)
MBABANE  Prison is tough.

Former Public Works and Transport Minister Ntuthuko Dlamini made this remark yesterday when he was speaking to some of the people who had come to court to give him moral support. This was after the Supreme Court reserved its judgment in the appeal that was filed by the Crown against Ntuthukos sentence for the murder of three Luyengweni Inner Council members who were meeting to allocate land in the area to a resident. While Ntuthuko told his relatives and supporters that it was tough to be in prison, the Crown, on the other hand, wants him to be imprisoned for life.

On behalf of the Crown, Advocate Francois Roets said the sentence of 20 years that Ntuthuko is serving for the murder of three council members was strictly inadequate if you kill three people with an illegal firearm. The deceased are Sikhulu Shongwe, Simon Dlamini and Themba Tsabedze. They were shot on September 7, 2020 at Mhlabubovu. Yesterday, the Supreme Court heard arguments in the appeal against Ntuthukos sentence of 20 years for each of the three murders, which the High Court ordered to run concurrently with the sentence of five years or E5 000 fine for possession of an illegal firearm.

Serve

This meant that Ntuthuko would serve only 20 years in prison for the triple murder. The sentence was issued by Judge Maxine Langwenya. The DPPs grounds of appeal were that the High Court erred in law in finding that Ntuthuko had intention in the form of dolus eventualis instead of direct intention (dolus directus). Dolus eventualis is intent in which the perpetrator sees an outcome as a possibility and continues with it. Roets argued that Ntuthuko arrived at the inner council members meeting place, called the people he found there timfucuta (chuff) and subsequently shot them. He said when he analysed the judgment of the High Court, Ntuthuko called the Bhunya station commander and told him that there would be bloodshed if he did not come to the meeting area.

What followed was bloodshed. Dlamini (Simon) was shot in the arm and in the abdomen. His defence was brazen lies. There was no plausible excuse for his conduct, said the advocate.

He pointed out that the High Court found that the murder was committed with dolus eventualis. We do not cross roads with the findings of the court a quo (High Court), but the application of the law does not amount to dolus eventualis. The High Court applied the law wrongly. There is no elucidation why the judge found that he acted with dolus eventualis. The High Court found that before he left, he gloated. He shot and injured Dlamini (Simon) when he was lying on a rock, said Roets. He argued that, looking at the bulk of the evidence, it could not be said that Ntuthuko acted with dolus eventualis. He said this was a misapplication of the law by Judge Langwenya.

Judge Nkululeko Hlophe asked if the advocate contended that the sentence should have been more and he agreed emphatically. Judge Hlophe went on to ask how the context in which the incident happened affected the sentence. Would it matter if it was so polluted or the background was terrible, should it matter if it is dolus eventualis or direct intention? Should that background have a bearing on the sentence? You concluded that there was killing, but it comes from a terrible background, should the context matter? Judge Hlophe enquired.

The advocate said there were procedures in place for dissatisfied people and added that the context would have a bearing. Judge Hlophe further asked: Where do you fault mitigation in this particular context to get to the sentence of 20 years? Would you treat it like a case of a person who simply comes and shoots you? Roets said people contain themselves. He argued that Ntuthuko shot three people who were minding their own business. He called the police and said blood would flow. He continued with his diabolic conduct and killed three people. This country still imposes the death penalty in appropriate circumstances, Roets said.

He submitted that Ntuthukos conduct was not a spur of the moment. The advocate stated that Ntuthuko did not take the court into its confidence to say Im sorry. He elected to deliberately lie. He went on throughout the trial to say he acted in self-defence. I dont close my eyes to that there are land disputes in the country which may arouse peoples tempers. Why did he gloat? He should have realised that he killed three people and said Im sorry, but he gloated. It should reflect on the sentence, said the advocate. If it was not ordered that the sentences should run concurrently, would the Crown have felt the same, asked Judge Hlophe.

Roets said there would still be a mistake. He said this was a consequential offence. The judge further asked the advocate that if Ntuthukos three sentences of 20 years were ordered to run consecutively (one after the other), would the Crown have appealed the sentence? It is actuated by that he is serving 20 years. If it is the application of law, where do you fault it? the judge enquired from the advocate. Roets said if the sentence was much harsher, say 40 to 50 years, but I cant speak on behalf of the DPP, who took the decision to appeal. He said he believed that despite the alleged error made by the High Court, 20 years would have never reflected as an appropriate sentence. (If it was harsher), we would have never appealed, as even the country would be satisfied with the sentence, said Roets.

In the end, said Judge Hlophe, it is justice being done; manifestly being done. The advocate said appropriate sentences should be issued. Judge Hlophe went on to ask the advocate how he would have ameliorated it. The advocate said previous sentences provided guidance, and 20 years was not adequate in this case. The court reserved judgment in the matter.
The Red Coalition Inc., a lobby group dedicated to protecting the rights and freedoms of all individuals in Quebec and Canada, has officially filed a complaint with the Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse (CDPDJ) against the Quebec government. The complaint addresses the widespread discriminatory impact of Bill 96, also known as "An Act Respecting French, the Official and Common Language of Quebec."

Bill 96: A Catalyst for Discrimination

Since its enactment on June 1st, 2022, Bill 96 has sparked numerous conflicts within Quebec society, exacerbating tensions between the Francophone community, English-speaking residents, and those whose first language is neither French nor English. The law has led to an environment where discrimination is not only tolerated but effectively sanctioned, causing significant harm to individuals and communities across the province.

Widespread Harm, Social Division, and Economic Consequences

The Red Coalition's complaint highlights the profound psychological and social damage caused by Bill 96. The use of derogatory terms such as "Angryphones" or labeling individuals as "not Quebecois" based on their opposition to the law or their linguistic preferences has contributed to an atmosphere of hostility and division. French-speaking Quebecers, in particular, have been subjected to derogatory language that devalues their cultural identity, leading to increased anxiety, lowered self-esteem, and mental health challenges.

Additionally, the law has created barriers to essential services, particularly in healthcare, where individuals are required to provide proof of English-language eligibility to receive services in English. This discriminatory practice has put lives at risk, especially in emergency situations where clear communication is crucial.

Beyond the social and psychological damage, Bill 96 is also poised to have significant economic repercussions. The Quebec government's insistence on enforcing this divisive law is now threatening to sour Quebec's trade relationships with the United States. According to a report by CBC News, major business agreements are at risk due to the restrictive language policies that Bill 96 enforces. The potential loss of critical trade opportunities with the U.S., Canada's largest trading partner, underscores the reckless and shortsighted nature of this legislation. Not only is Bill 96 discriminatory, but it also jeopardizes Quebec's economic future.

Joel DeBellefeuille, Founder and Executive Director of the Red Coalition Inc., stated, "Bill 96 has fractured our society, deepening divides and legitimizing discrimination. This complaint is not just about holding the government accountable; it's about healing our community and reaffirming the principles of equality and respect that should define Quebec. Moreover, the economic risks that come with alienating our trade partners in the United States over this ill-conceived law are simply unacceptable. Quebec cannot afford to sacrifice its future for a policy that fosters division and intolerance."

Seeking Justice, Social Cohesion, and Economic Stability

The Red Coalition is calling on the CDPDJ to investigate the societal and economic impacts of Bill 96 thoroughly. The organization is seeking $1,000,000.00 in punitive damages, to be awarded to organizations and individuals advocating for the rights and freedoms of people in Quebec, including French, English, and non-English speaking communities. The complaint also demands that the Quebec government review and amend its policies to eliminate any form of discrimination based on language and take measures to restore social cohesion and unity in the province, while safeguarding Quebec's economic interests.

Media Relations

Red Coalition Inc.

Tel. 1.800.735.4086 Email. info@redcoalition.ca W. www.redcoalition.ca

SOURCE: Red Coalition Inc.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Wellington, New Zealand--(Newsfile Corp. - August 21, 2024) - New Zealand Energy Corp. (TSXV: NZ) ("NZEC" or the "Company") announced today an operational update regarding the Tariki-5 gas well.

The Tariki Joint Venture, comprised of the Company's wholly owned subsidiary, NZEC Tariki Limited (as to 50%) and L&M Energy Limited (as to 50%), has been informed by the drilling rig operator that the rig mobilization to the Tariki-5 drill site has been delayed due to mechanical problems with the well now being drilled for another party.

The current planning indicates well drilling operations may not commence at Tariki until 23 September 2024; with driling, completion & tie-in of the well likely completed by 11 November 2024. This is a delay of approximately two weeks.

All long lead items are expected to be available in a timely matter and permitting is all well in hand. Agreement for export and processing of the gas is nearly completed and well ahead of the commencement of production.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as such term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Information: This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are forward-looking information. In particular, this news release contains forward-looking information regarding: the business of the Company and the Tariki Joint Venture, including future plans and objectives, the gas sales agreement, and the Tariki-5 well. There can be no assurance that such forward-looking information will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking information. This forward-looking information reflects NZEC's current beliefs and is based on information currently available to NZEC and on assumptions NZEC believes are reasonable. These assumptions include, but are not limited to: NZEC's current and initial understanding and analysis of its projects and the development required for such projects; the costs of NZEC's projects; NZEC's general and administrative costs remaining constant; and the market acceptance of NZEC's business strategy. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of NZEC to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such risks and other factors may include, but are not limited to: general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; industry condition; volatility of commodity prices; imprecision of reserve estimates; environmental risks; operational risks in exploration and development; general capital market conditions and market prices for securities; delay or failure to receive board or regulatory approvals; the actual results of future operations; competition; changes in legislation, including environmental legislation, affecting NZEC; the timing and availability of external financing on acceptable terms; and lack of qualified, skilled labour or loss of key individuals. A description of additional risk factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from forward-looking information can be found in NZEC's disclosure documents on the SEDAR+ website at www.sedarplus.ca. Although NZEC has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. Readers are further cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which they are placed will occur. Forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking information contained in this news release represents the expectations of NZEC as of the date of this news release and, accordingly, is subject to change after such date. However, NZEC expressly 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 expressly required by applicable securities law.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220759

SOURCE: New Zealand Energy Corp.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - August 21, 2024) - York Harbour Metals Inc. (TSXV: YORK) (OTC Pink: YORKF) (FSE: 5DE) (the "Company" or "York"), has entered into debt settlement agreements with arm's length third parties and three directors of the Company (the "Creditors") pursuant to which the Company has agreed to issue an aggregate of 4,723,088 common shares (each, a "Share") at a deemed price of $0.07 per Share, to settle indebtedness of CAD$330,616.38 of which CAD$87,812.50 or 1,254,463 shares is owed to three directors of the Company (the "Transaction").

The Company determined to satisfy this outstanding indebtedness with Shares to preserve its cash for operations. The Transaction is subject to TSX Venture Exchange approval. All Shares issued pursuant to the Transaction will be subject to a four-month and one-day hold period.

About York Harbour Metals

York Harbour Metals Inc. (TSXV: YORK) (OTC Pink: YORKF) (FSE: 5DE) is an exploration and development company with two high-grade projects in Newfoundland, Canada. The York Harbour Copper-Zinc-Silver Project is located approximately 27 km from Corner Brook. Recently, the Company entered into an option agreement with Firetail Resources (an Australian-listed company) to earn a 75% interest by completing specific work and payment milestones. Further details on this agreement can be found on the Company's website.

The Bottom Brook Rare Earth Elements Project, covering 15,150 hectares, is located next to the Trans-Canada Highway and just 27 km from the deep-water port at Turf Point, Newfoundland.

For further details on York Harbour Metals, please contact us via email at info@yorkharbourmetals.com or call +1-778-302-2257. Visit the Company's website at www.yorkharbourmetals.com for past news releases, media interviews, and opinion-editorial pieces by management.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors,

"Blair Naughty"

CEO 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 news release.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This news release may contain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All information contained herein that is not historical in nature may constitute forward-looking information. Forward-looking statements herein include but are not limited to statements relating to the prospects for the development of the Company's mineral properties, and are necessarily based upon a number of assumptions that, while considered reasonable by management, are inherently subject to business, market and economic risks, uncertainties and contingencies that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, the Company disclaims any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220758

SOURCE: York Harbour Metals
Advancing Pharmaceutical Innovation: Brains Bioceutical's CEP Certification will Streamline Cannabinoid Drug Development, Inspired by Jazz Pharmaceuticals' CBD-Based Epilepsy Drug and 2024 $1.4 Billion Revenue Projection

SANDWICH, United Kingdom, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Brains Bioceutical Corp. (BBC) has achieved a groundbreaking milestone by submitting one of the world's first CEP (Certification of Suitability) application for its Cannabidiol (CBD) Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) to the European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines & Healthcare (EDQM). This landmark achievement demonstrates BBC's CBD as meeting the highest industry standard for pharmaceutical-grade cannabinoid products.

The CEP confirms that BBC's CBD meets European Pharmacopoeia (Ph. Eur.) standards, a crucial endorsement for pharmaceutical manufacturers in Europe, Canada, Australia, Japan, and the US. This certification streamlines regulatory processes, ensuring high quality, consistency, and safety for global markets.

Additional advantages of the CEP include:

Facilitating and simplifying interactions between regulators and industry, ensuring that substances used in pharmaceutical production meet European Pharmacopoeia standards and comply with relevant EU legislation.

Easing the management of investigational medicinal product for medicinal products.

Serving as a complement and bridge between European Pharmacopoeia monographs and the regulatory dossier requirements for medicinal products.

Acting as a link between health authorities and industry, enhancing communication and cooperation.

Ricky Brar, CEO and Chairman of Brains Bioceutical Corp., emphasized the importance of this certification in the company's long-term strategy. "Achieving a CEP for our Cannabidiol Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient is a pivotal step in our journey to lead the global cannabinoid market. It reinforces our commitment to quality and innovation, and it positions Brains Bio to set the standard for the industry. This is not just about meeting regulatory requirements-it's about exceeding them and setting a new benchmark for what pharmaceutical-grade cannabinoid products should be."

Dean Billington, Chief Operating Officer of Brains Bioceutical Corp., added, "Our submission to the EDQM is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our team. The CEP will provide a significant competitive advantage, ensuring that our Cannabidiol API is recognized as a top-tier ingredient for pharmaceutical use. We are proud to be at the forefront of this rapidly evolving industry, driving excellence in every aspect of our operations."

The global demand for cannabinoid-based pharmaceuticals remains robust, evidenced by Epidiolex, which Jazz Pharmaceuticals projects will generate approximately $1.4 billion in revenue in 2024 [1]. This reflects ongoing growth and demand for high-quality pharmaceutical cannabinoid products.

The EDQM's review process, initiated on August 8, 2024, will take approximately 115 working days. Successful granting of a CEP will confirm that Brains Bio's CBD meets, the stringent Ph. Eur. requirements.

This CEP application effort underscores Brains Bio's unwavering commitment to setting new standards for the cannabinoid industry. This builds on Brains Bio's EU GMP and controlled substances licenses. By aligning its CBD API with the rigorous criteria of the European Pharmacopoeia, Brains Bio is not only participating in the market but actively shaping its future.

As part of our strategic partnership, Brains Bioceutical and DSM-Firmenich have joined forces to leverage their combined expertise in cannabinoid research and development. Together with Brains Bioceutical - manufacturer of high-quality pharma-grade cannabinoids - DSM-Firmenich offers an end-to-end innovation platform designed to support early-stage cannabinoid drug development and realize the potential of CBD- based formulations. Its capabilities include leading-edge formulation expertise, a global network of regulatory specialists, and preclinical and clinical study proficiency. The company also has the capacity to provide customized solutions depending on the therapeutic area and drug delivery objective. To learn more about how DSM-Firmenich's cannabinoid innovation platform is helping to elevate patient health, visit: www.dsm.com/cannabinoid-actives .

AboutBrainsBioceuticalCorp.

BrainsBioceuticalistheleaderinevidence-basedandscience-ledpioneerofnaturalplant-basedhealthand wellness solutions.

Brains Bio is a leading manufacturer of the highest quality natural and pure active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), with a unique suite of licenses and registrations, Brains Bio is strategically positioned to take advantage of the complex regulatory environment, securing its first mover and product quality advantage.BrainsBioisdiversifiedacrossthepharmaceutical,medical,andnutraceuticalsectorswithinthe rapidly growing cannabinoid market, resulting in a strong and unique value proposition.

[1] https://investor.jazzpharma.com/investors

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b460b7ca-9a31-4a41-a012-23d26e61ef5d
Singapore, Singapore--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - Voyafly, an international eSIM provider, has launched its latest offering: unlimited travel data plans across 150+ countries. This innovative solution allows digital nomads, frequent travelers, and tourists to enjoy uninterrupted connectivity abroad without the fear of exorbitant roaming charges.

Voyafly eSIM Unveils Unlimited Travel Data Plans to Avoid Bill Shock While Traveling Overseas

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8814/220380_fdcb369bd4761b50_002full.jpg

Bryan Hanson, Head of Marketing at Voyafly, explains, "Our mission is to remove the financial burden of staying connected while abroad. Many international travelers and digital nomads have been scarred by hefty roaming charges while enjoying a great vacation or living that 'work from anywhere' lifestyle. With our new unlimited data plans, travelers can now explore the globe without worrying about unexpected phone bills. We are making global connectivity more accessible and affordable than ever."

The End of Data Roaming Fees

Roaming fees have been a persistent pain point for international travelers, often resulting in hefty bills that can ruin an otherwise perfect trip. Voyafly eSIM is here to change the narrative.

"With the increasing demand for reliable mobile data services among digital nomads and global travelers, Voyafly eSIM is putting an end to unexpected roaming charges," Hanson told the press in an interview.

What is Voyafly eSIM?

Voyafly eSIM is a virtual SIM card that supports a variety of devices, including iPhones, Samsung, and Android smartphones with eSIM capabilities. This digital solution eliminates the need for a physical SIM card, ensuring that users can remain connected anywhere in the world without the hassle of swapping SIMs.





Cannot view this video? Visit:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEmvDKTn-7U

"The beauty of Voyafly eSIM lies in its simplicity and convenience," Hanson adds. "Users can activate their eSIM instantly via a QR code, ensuring they are connected the moment they arrive in a new country. There's no need for lengthy registrations or subscriptions - just scan, connect, and go," Hanson added.

Recognized for its ease of use, Voyafly eSIM offers unlimited 4G and 5G data, enabling high-speed internet access across multiple devices. The eSIM can be activated instantly via a QR code, allowing users to connect to local networks.

A standout feature of Voyafly eSIM is its ability to retain an existing WhatsApp number, so there's no need to update contacts when traveling.

Voyafly eSIM is also praised for its flexibility, making it the top choice for travelers in Europe, Asia, and beyond. Users can easily switch between networks, ensuring consistent connectivity in multiple countries.

Share Unlimited Data with Multiple Devices

Moreover, Voyafly eSIM includes mobile hotspot functionality, allowing users to share their data connection with other devices such as laptops and tablets. This feature is particularly beneficial for digital nomads who need to stay connected while working remotely.

With these offerings, Hanson said Voyafly's eSIM is already positioned as a top travel eSIM for Europe and Asia. Whether traveling for business or leisure, Voyafly eSIM offers the much-needed flexibility to switch between different networks on a single device. This makes Voyafly a go-to choice for those traveling in multiple countries and navigating with different network providers.

The activation process for Voyafly eSIM is quick and straightforward, taking less than a minute. Users can choose when to activate their eSIM, ensuring that data usage only starts when they begin traveling. This flexibility is designed to meet the needs of modern travelers who require immediate and reliable access to data without the complications of physical SIM cards.

For more information, visit www.voyafly.com.

About Voyafly eSIM:

Voyafly is an international eSIM provider offering unlimited data roaming plans across 150+ countries. Focused on affordability, convenience, and reliability, Voyafly eSIM allows global travelers to stay connected by simply scanning a QR code to activate their data plan, eliminating the need for physical SIM cards. This service revolutionizes the way travelers experience mobile connectivity worldwide.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220380

SOURCE: Plentisoft
Siegfried AG / Key word(s): Half Year Results

Siegfried continues to grow and increases profitability



22-Aug-2024 / 06:30 CET/CEST

Release of an ad hoc announcement pursuant to Art. 53 LR

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.





In the first half of 2024, Siegfried (SIX: SFZN) continued its journey of profitable growth. Significant progress has been made in the implementation of the corporate strategy EVOLVE which is geared towards long-term profitable growth in core areas and beyond.

Net sales amounted to CHF 619.9 million, an increase of 3.5% in local currencies (2.1% in Swiss Francs). Core EBITDA amounted to CHF 132.1 million (prior period: CHF 125.7 million), resulting in an increased Core EBITDA margin of 21.3% (prior period: 20.7%). Core net profit amounted to CHF 71.7 million (prior period: CHF 58.8 million). Cash flow from operating activities increased to CHF 118.9 million (prior period: CHF 78.8 million).

Dr. Reto Suter, CEO ad interim and CFO of Siegfried: "Siegfried delivered a strong first half with further revenue growth at an increased margin. We kept our day-to-day operations well on track and at the same time continued to look ahead and execute important investments in the network as foundation for our future growth. With the acquisition of the early-phase CDMO in the US, we enhance our offering with early-stage development services for Drug Substances and become even more attractive to our customers."

Continued profitable growth

This positive result was driven by continued high demand for Siegfried's products and services, ongoing active portfolio optimization and a strong focus on operational excellence and efficiency at all manufacturing sites. Net sales in Drug Substances increased by 4.3% in local currencies (3.2% in Swiss Francs) to CHF 411.1 million, based on close customer relationships, Siegfried's scientific and technical excellence and the complementary expertise of its global network. In Drug Products net sales increased by 1.8% in local currencies (flat in Swiss Francs) to CHF 208.8 million with an increased momentum at the production sites in Barcelona. Based on its quality track record and extensive manufacturing experience, Siegfried continued to be the partner of choice for numerous new projects and products for both drug substances and drug products.

Significant investments in the global manufacturing network to support future growth

As part of its growth strategy, Siegfried continued to make significant investments into its global manufacturing network to further bolster its innovation and technological capabilities. In July 2024, Siegfried closed the acquisition of a CDMO specialized in early-phase development and manufacturing services in Grafton, Wisconsin (US). With this acquisition Siegfried strengthens its customer offering for Drug Substances in terms of capabilities and geography. Siegfried will further develop the site into its North American Siegfried Acceleration Hub for early-phase CDMO services, to generate attractive growth opportunities. Siegfried also continued the construction of a new global development center for Drug Substances in Evionnaz, set to open in Q4 2024, which will significantly increase Siegfried's R&D capacities to drive future growth. In addition, the construction of the new large-scale multi-purpose production plant for Drug Substances in Minden is well under way and the build out of DINAMIQS' GMP manufacturing facility for viral vectors is on track to go live in 2025. Beyond these landmark investments, Siegfried invested in additional capacities and capabilities across the entire network.

Outlook for 2024 confirmed

Outlook confirmed: For 2024 Siegfried expects a sales growth in the low single-digit percentage range in local currencies and a core EBITDA margin at or above the level of 2023.

Contact Financial Analysts: Media: Dr. Reto Suter Peter Stierli CEO ad interim and Chief Financial Officer Head Corporate Communications reto.suter@siegfried.ch peter.stierli@siegfried.ch Tel. +41 62 746 11 35 Tel. +41 62 746 15 51 Siegfried Holding AG Untere Bruehlstrasse 4 CH-4800 Zofingen

About Siegfried



The Siegfried Group is a global life sciences company with sites in Switzerland, Germany, Spain, France, Malta, the USA and China. In 2023, the company achieved sales of CHF 1.272 billion and employed on 31.12.2023 more than 3700 people at twelve sites on three continents. Siegfried Holding AG is publicly listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (SIX: SFZN).



Siegfried is active in manufacturing pharmaceutical APIs (and their intermediates) as well as drug products (tablets, capsules, sterile vials, ampoules, cartridges and ointments) for the pharmaceutical industry and provides development services.







Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward-Looking Statements



This media release includes statements concerning the future. They are based on assumptions and expectations that may prove to be wrong. They should be considered with due caution as, by definition, they contain known and unknown risks, insecurities and other factors which could result in a difference in the actual results, financial situation, developments or the success of Siegfried Holding AG or Siegfried Group from the explicit or implicit assumptions made in these statements.

expect more


Startup Genome's Commercialization Program Invites First Cohort Launching This October

SAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Startup Genome's Hypergrowth Karnataka initiative, a late-stage scaling program set to launch in October, is currently recruiting scaleups in the region. Hypergrowth Global is the premier scaling program designed to equip executives with the skills and global business networks necessary to achieve hypergrowth-aiming for multi-billion-dollar IPOs and exits. Through global commercialization, executive mentorship, and the support of over 25 venture capitalists, this program is tailored to address the unique growth needs of scaleups in Karnataka and is designed to transform them into global category leaders. This first cohort of the program is focused on Enterprise SaaS and Fintech scaleups.

Startup Genome Hypergrowth Karnataka Announcement

Hypergrowth is a program of Startup Genome, the world-leading innovation ecosystem development organization, having worked with more than 170 economic and innovation ministries and public/private agencies in over 60 countries. As a primary challenge for scaleups is their limited access to executives with scaling and global commercialization expertise, Hypergrowth provides local companies with go-to-market support, connections to potential new customers and investors, connections to global mentors, and expert scaling advice from leading executives.

The program is specifically designed for scaleups who have raised a Series A, have over $1 million in ARR and are looking to expand into the U.S. or other international markets. While the program is primarily invite-only, it is holding a few spots for inbound applications to ensure the broader community has a chance to participate. Additional details including information about upcoming interest sessions and the scaleup application can be found here.

Led by the team behind Microsoft for Startups (India), Tech Nation (U.K.) and Excelerate (U.S.), Hypergrowth executives will be traveling to Bengaluru the week of September 2 to meet with local scaleups and investors. In attendance will be Ravi Narayan, President of Hypergrowth India, who co-founded Microsoft for Startups, led its global expansion, and established T-Hub, the world's largest innovation campus. Gary Oliver, President of Hypergrowth Global, with over 30 years' experience building early-stage, mid-size, and global technology companies; and Mike Jackson, Chief Program Officer, an exited entrepreneur, prolific angel investor, and advisor to governments and ecosystems, will also be taking meetings with the most impressive local companies.

ABOUT HYPERGROWTH

Hypergrowth Global is the premier late-stage scaling program designed to unlock the potential of the fastest-growing scaleups. As an executive mentorship and global commercialization support program for scaleups, it equips executives with the skills and global business networks necessary to achieve hypergrowth, aiming for multi-billion-dollar IPOs and exits. By leveraging the experience, success, and extensive U.S. and global networks of its team and partners, Hypergrowth Global supports government efforts to drive economic growth, increased competitiveness, and the creation of sustainable jobs and societal well-being. Hypergrowth is an initiative of Startup Genome, the world-leading innovation ecosystem development organization, having worked with more than 170 economic and innovation ministries and public/private agencies in over 60 countries.

Contact Information

Franzis Walther

Manager, Operations & Communications, Startup Genome

franzis@startupgenome.com

SOURCE: Startup Genome

View the original press release on newswire.com.
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Press release - regulated information

Continued progress in regulatory review of its first candidate biofungicide EVOCA*

Dutch Authority CTGB approved large scale demonstration trials with EVOCA while allowing sale of harvest

Commenced field trials for second biofungicide to expand potential product line

Initiated an AI project with Google DeepMind and Devoteam using AlphaFold2

Cash and cash equivalents amounted to 14.7 million as of the end of June 2024

Management to host a conference call and live webcast at 15:00 CEST / 14:00 GMT / 09:00 AM ET today, details below

Ghent, BELGIUM, Aug. 22, 2024, an Agricultural Technologyon the Biotalys website.

Kevin Helash, Chief Executive Officer of Biotalys, noted: "The first half of 2024 heralded key milestones for Biotalys in our mission to transform crop protection, such as the partnership with Novonesis for EVOCA NG and the initiation of field trials for BioFun-6, our second biofungicide candidate. Further to the development of EVOCA, I am very pleased to announce we just received approval by the Dutch regulatory authority to do large scale demonstration trials with the product in the Netherlands. The authority has also allowed the sale of the harvested produce for human consumption."

Helash added: "As a result of the measures implemented at the end of last year to control costs, we have been able to considerably reduce our operating cash burn in the first half of this year. We will continue to concentrate our resources on applying the targeted approach to our research platform, as well as on progressing our various pipeline programs. We will consider additional financing such as through equity, newly awarded grants and partnerships to execute our strategy to transforming crop protection."

Regulatory update for EVOCA

Biotalys continues to work closely with the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) in the United States and the CTGB (College voor de Toelating van Gewasbeschermingsmiddelen en Biociden) in Europe on EVOCA's regulatory review. In the U.S. , the EPA's review is progressing and Biotalys has not received additional questions from the authority on the dossier in 2024. Meanwhile, Biotalys is preparing a regulatory dossier for its next generation of the product, EVOCA NG, for submission. As EVOCA NG has the same bioactive as EVOCA with an optimized production process and formulation which is expected to lower production costs, the company plans to apply for an amendment procedure, which is anticipated to have a shorter review time compared to a standard procedure. In Europe , the rapporteur Member State is The Netherlands where the CTGB (College voor de Toelating Gewasbeschermingsmiddelen en Biociden) is currently reviewing the regulatory dossier. CTGB recently requested additional information, which the company plans to submit next week allowing the authority to finalise its review and send its report to the European level for peer review by EFSA and the European Member States. For EVOCA NG, the company plans to apply at EU level for an equivalency procedure, with a significantly shorter review timeline. On 21 August 2024, the same CTGB granted Biotalys the approval to test EVOCA in large scale demonstration trials , allowing application of the product against powdery mildew in 40 hectares of tomatoes, 20 hectares of cucumbers and 10 hectares of strawberries. Importantly, it will also be allowed to sell the fruits and vegetables resulting from these trials for human consumption.** This is an exemption to standard practices requiring crop destruction when a product is used that has not yet received regulatory approval. This decision reinforces Biotalys' confidence that the product is safe to use.

regulatory review.

H1 2024 highlights

Biotalys has continued to take major steps forward on the path to commercialization of EVOCA's next generation version, EVOCA NG, which is expected to be the company's first margin-generating product . Thereto, Biotalys and Novonesis entered into a long-term collaboration agreement (https://biotalys.com/media/news/biotalys-and-novonesis-announce-manufacturing-and-commercialisation-partnership-evoca-ng), advancing EVOCA NG to the final stage of development.





which is expected to be the company's first margin-generating product Thereto, Biotalys and Novonesis entered into a long-term collaboration agreement (https://biotalys.com/media/news/biotalys-and-novonesis-announce-manufacturing-and-commercialisation-partnership-evoca-ng), advancing EVOCA NG to the final stage of development. Leveraging its advanced fermentation capabilities, Novonesis will serve as the global manufacturing partner for the production of EVOCA NG. Novonesis will have the rights to distribute and sell EVOCA NG in select crops outside of the United States, while Biobest will sell the product in select markets to help control the devastating fungal disease botrytis in fruits and vegetables. The companies are also discussing the potential of additional collaborations such as combining the Biotalys AGROBODY platform with Novonesis' biosolutions technology.





Novonesis will have the rights to distribute and sell EVOCA NG in select crops outside of the United States, while Biobest will sell the product in select markets to help control the devastating fungal disease botrytis in fruits and vegetables. The companies are also discussing the potential of additional collaborations such as combining the Biotalys AGROBODY platform with Novonesis' biosolutions technology. Field trials for BioFun-6 (https://biotalys.com/media/news/biotalys-starts-field-trials-second-biofungicide) , the company's second biofungicide program targeting botrytis, powdery mildew and anthracnose in high-value fruits and vegetables, are now also underway in both Europe and the United States. Initial results are expected later this year.





the company's second biofungicide program targeting botrytis, powdery mildew and anthracnose in high-value fruits and vegetables, are now also underway in both Europe and the United States. Initial results are expected later this year. Biotalys entered into additional academic collaborations with leading researchers in plant science (https://www.biotalys.com/media/news/biotalys-enters-academic-collaborations-key-scientific-leaders-europe-and-us) to advance its biocontrols pipeline. Building on its established relationships with top academics, Biotalys is now progressing its research for BioFun-4, targeting Phytophthora infestans, an Oomycete (water mould) that causes late blight/potato blight, with the University of Aberdeen, and furthering BioFun-7, its ongoing R&D program in partnership with the Gates Foundation targeting leafspot disease, with the University of California-Davis.

targeting Phytophthora infestans, an Oomycete (water mould) that causes late blight/potato blight, with the University of Aberdeen, its ongoing R&D program in partnership with the Gates Foundation targeting leafspot disease, with the University of California-Davis. Biotalys continued to advance its first bioinsecticide in collaboration with Syngenta Crop Protection , a top producer of insecticides, to target harmful insect pests.

, a top producer of insecticides, to target harmful insect pests. Embracing the opportunity to apply artificial intelligence (AI) technology to its AGROBODY 2.0 technology platform, Biotalys recently initiated a collaboration with Google DeepMind and Devoteam on AlphaFold2 (https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7205821861094404096), an AI platform, to predict the precise 3D shapes of proteins. As the AGROBODY platform applies a targeted approach requiring the detailed characterization of target proteins of the fungal diseases or pests, Biotalys is leveraging AlphaFold2 to speed the validation of AGROBODY bioactive discoveries and improve its R&D and go-to-market workflows.

technology platform, Biotalys recently initiated a collaboration with Google DeepMind and Devoteam on AlphaFold2 (https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7205821861094404096), an AI platform, to predict the precise 3D shapes of proteins. As the AGROBODY platform applies a targeted approach requiring the detailed characterization of target proteins of the fungal diseases or pests, Biotalys is leveraging AlphaFold2 to speed the validation of AGROBODY bioactive discoveries and improve its R&D and go-to-market workflows. Biotalys' scientific team also recently published a scientific paper exploring the biocontrol breakthroughs afforded by its AGROBODY platform, the promise of biocontrols in crop protection, and EVOCA specifically in the Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection: https://rdcu.be/dAEEh (https://rdcu.be/dAEEh).





exploring the biocontrol breakthroughs afforded by its AGROBODY platform, the promise of biocontrols in crop protection, and EVOCA specifically in the Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection: https://rdcu.be/dAEEh (https://rdcu.be/dAEEh). Early in 2024, Biotalys again earned Top 100 status in Forward Fooding's FoodTech 500 list, (https://forwardfooding.com/foodtech500/?edition=2023) climbing to #62. FoodTech 500 ranks global entrepreneurial talent at the intersection of food, technology and sustainability. And as announced yesterday, Biotalys was granted the 2024 AgTech Breakthrough Award (https://biotalys.com/media/news/biotalys-named-sustainable-crop-protection-company-year) for Sustainable Crop Protection Company of the Year.





FoodTech 500 list, (https://forwardfooding.com/foodtech500/?edition=2023) climbing to #62. FoodTech 500 ranks global entrepreneurial talent at the intersection of food, technology and sustainability. And as announced yesterday, Biotalys was granted the 2024 AgTech Breakthrough Award (https://biotalys.com/media/news/biotalys-named-sustainable-crop-protection-company-year) for Sustainable Crop Protection Company of the Year. In May, Biotalys announced (https://www.biotalys.com/media/news/biotalys-appoints-laura-j-meyer-board-directors) the appointment of Laura J. Meyer to its Board of Directors, effective 25 September 2024. Her career in agriculture spans more than 28 years in various financial roles. Until recently, she was Vice President, Investor Relations at Bayer, responsible for the Crop Science division. Laura Meyer will be a great asset to Biotalys in its commercialization and growth ambitions.





* EVOCA: Pending Registration. This product is not currently registered for sale or use in the United States, the European Union, or elsewhere and is not being offered for sale.

**Decisions of the CTGB are subject to appeal during a period of six weeks following the publication of the decision.

Select financial information

In  thousands June 30, 2024 June 30, 2023 Other operating income 1,452 1,318 Research and development expenses (5,135) (8,661) General and administrative expenses (2,777) (2,771) Marketing expenses (113) (741) Operating loss (6,574) (10,855) Loss of the period (6,489) (10,664) Net cash used in operations (6,527) (8,516) Net cash outflow of the period (6,890) (2,208) Cash and cash equivalents 14,680 31,886

Other operating income for the first half of 2024 amounted to 1.5 million, and mainly relates to amounts recognized for R&D tax incentives received and grants awarded to support ongoing R&D activities.

for the first half of 2024 amounted to 1.5 million, and mainly relates to amounts recognized for R&D tax incentives received and grants awarded to support ongoing R&D activities. Research and development expenses amounted to 5.1 million for the first half year, a decrease of 3.5 million compared to the same period of 2023. These decreases primarily relate to lower costs for external R&D and material costs (-2.3 million), partly due to lower spending in the EVOCA project while pending EPA approval. Other decreases include lower wages & benefits (-0.6 million) as the result of re-organization in the second half of 2023, and overall decrease in other miscellaneous operational R&D spendings.

amounted to 5.1 million for the first half year, a decrease of 3.5 million compared to the same period of 2023. These decreases primarily relate to lower costs for external R&D and material costs (-2.3 million), partly due to lower spending in the EVOCA project while pending EPA approval. Other decreases include lower wages & benefits (-0.6 million) as the result of re-organization in the second half of 2023, and overall decrease in other miscellaneous operational R&D spendings. General and administrative expenses remain at 2.8 million for the first half of 2024, compared to 2.8 million in the same period of 2023.

remain at 2.8 million for the first half of 2024, compared to 2.8 million in the same period of 2023. Net cash used in operating activities decreased by 2.0 million, to 6.5 million for the six months ended 30 June 2024. This decrease was primarily caused by decreases in spending on research and development expenses.

Outlook

Biotalys will continue to concentrate resources on obtaining registration for its first product candidate EVOCA as well as on advancing the targeted approach to our research platform.

as well as on advancing the targeted approach to our research platform. Pending the regulatory decision for EVOCA, the company will continue the development of its first margin-generating product EVOCA NG in collaboration with Novonesis.

of its first margin-generating product EVOCA NG in collaboration with Novonesis. Biotalys expects the results of initial field trials with BioFun-6 in grapes by the end of 2024.

in grapes by the end of 2024. The company will progress its pipeline programs and expects to initiate a new R&D biofungicide program for a new pathogen later this year.

and expects to initiate a new R&D biofungicide program for a new pathogen later this year. Together with the cash and cash equivalents balance of 14.7 million at the end of H1 2024, the company expects the current financial runway to extend into Q2 2025 without considering additional financing through equity, newly awarded grants, partnerships or other sources of financing.





Auditor statement

The condensed consolidated financial statements for the six-months' period ended 30 June 2024 have been prepared in accordance with IAS 34 'Interim Financial Reporting' as adopted by the European Union. They do not include all the information required for the full annual financial statements and should therefore be read in conjunction with the financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2023. The condensed consolidated financial statements are presented in thousands of Euros.

Upcoming IR events

Biotalys updated its investor presentationand published it on its website. For a list of upcoming events, please check https://biotalys.com/media/events.

Live webcast and conference call

Company management will host a live webcast to discuss its half-year 2024 results and recent business performance today, 22 August 2024 at 15:00 CEST / 14:00 BST / 09:00 AM EDT.

Webcast link: https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/igtczv4g

Dial-in details: To ask questions live to the management, please also register for the conference call via https://register.vevent.com/register/BI369eee1a131a4309b0a6aabb088c0f6a

About Biotalys

Biotalys is an Agricultural Technology.

For further information, please contact

Toon Musschoot, Head of IR & Communication

T: +32 (0)9 274 54 00

E: IR@biotalys.com

Important Notice

Biotalys, its business, prospects and financial position remain exposed and subject to risks and uncertainties. A description of and reference to these risks and uncertainties can be found in the 2023 annual reporton the consolidated annual accounts and the full half-year report.

This announcement contains statements which are "forward-looking statements" or could be considered as such. These forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, including the words 'aim', 'believe', 'estimate', 'anticipate', 'expect', 'intend', 'may', 'will', 'plan', 'continue', 'ongoing', 'possible', 'predict', 'plans', 'target', 'seek', 'would' or 'should', and contain statements made by the company regarding the intended results of its strategy. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and readers are warned that none of these forward-looking statements offers any guarantee of future performance. Biotalys' actual results may differ materially from those predicted by the forward-looking statements. Biotalys makes no undertaking whatsoever to publish updates or adjustments to these forward-looking statements, unless required to do so by law.

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION

ASSETS

(in thousands of euros)



Note



30 June

2024



31 December

2023



Non-current assets 11,023 11,671 Intangible assets 606 642 Property, plant and equipment 7.8 4,509 4,863 Right-of-use assets 7.8 3,148 3,571 Deferred tax assets 19 18 Other non-current assets 2,742 2,577 Current assets 18,459 24,910 Receivables 952 750 Other financial assets 2,110 2,100 Other current assets 7.9 717 490 Cash and cash equivalents 7.10 14,680 21,570 TOTAL ASSETS 29,482 36,582

EQUITY AND LIABILITIES

(in thousands of euros)



Note



30 June

2024



31 December

2023



Equity attributable to owners of the parent 19,576 25,569 Share capital 7.11 4,755 46,198 Share premium 7.11 15,588 15,488 Accumulated losses 7.11 (5,103) (40,200) Other reserves 4,336 4,082 Total equity 19,576 25,569 Non-current liabilities 5,151 5,467 Borrowings 7.12 4,521 4,841 Employee benefits obligations 26 23 Provisions 92 91 Other non-current liabilities 7.13 512 512 Current liabilities 4,755 5,546 Borrowings 7.12 964 1,232 Trade and other liabilities 1,895 2,591 Other current liabilities 7.13 1,896 1,723 Total liabilities 9,905 11,013 TOTAL EQUITY AND LIABILITIES 29,482 36,582

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements. Please see the full interim report available on www.biotalys.com.

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF PROFIT OR LOSS AND OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME FOR THE 6 MONTHS ENDED 30 JUNE

in  thousands Note 2024 2023 Other operating income 7.15 1,452 1,318 Research and development expenses 7.16 (5,135) (8,661) General and administrative expenses 7.16 (2,777) (2,771) Sales and marketing expenses 7.16 (113) (741) Operating loss (6,574) (10,855) Financial income 335 422 Financial expenses (161) (191) Loss before taxes (6,400) (10,624) Income taxes (89) (40) LOSS FOR THE PERIOD (6,489) (10,664) Other comprehensive income (OCI) Items of OCI that will be reclassified subsequently to profit or loss Exchange differences on translating foreign operations 7 (3) TOTAL COMPREHENSIVE LOSS OF THE PERIOD (6,482) (10,667) Basic and diluted loss per share (in ) 7.17 (0.20) (0.34) Loss for the period attributable to the owners of the Company (6,489) (10,664) Total comprehensive loss for the period attributable to the owners of the Company (6,482) (10,667)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements. Please see the full interim report available on www.biotalys.com.

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN EQUITY FOR THE 6 MONTHS ENDED 30 JUNE

(in  thousands)







Attributable to equity holders of the Company Other reserves Share capital Share premium Share-based payment reserve Currency translation reserve Accumulated losses Total Equity Balance at

31 December 2022 44,548 10,164 3,035 29 (19,662) 38,114 Share-based payments - - 723 - - 723 Exercise of ESOP Warrants 16 12 (12) - - 16 Issuance of shares 1,634 5,366 - - - 7,000 Total comprehensive loss - - - (3) (10,664) (10,667) Balance at

30 June 2023 46,198 15,542 3,746 26 (30,326) 35,187

(in  thousands)







Attributable to equity holders of the Company Other reserves Share capital Share premium Share-based payment reserve Currency translation reserve Accumulated losses Total Equity Balance at

31 December 2023 46,198 15,488 4,060 22 (40,200) 25,569 Share-based payments - - 347 - - 347 Exercise of ESOP Warrants 142 100 (100) - - 142 Reduction of capital by absorption of losses (41,585) - - - 41,585 0 Total comprehensive loss - - - 7 (6,489) (6,482) Balance at

30 June 2024 4,755 15,588 4,307 29 (5,103) 19,576

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements. Please see the full interim report available on www.biotalys.com.

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS FOR THE 6 MONTHS ENDED 30 JUNE

in  thousands Note 2024 2023 CASH FLOW FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES Operating result (6,574) (10,855) Adjustments for: Depreciation, amortization and impairments 918 888 Share-based payment expense 348 723 R&D tax credit (440) (355) Other 9 (41) Operating cash flows before movements in working capital (5,739) (9,640) Changes in working capital: Receivables 73 447 Other current assets (227) (106) Trade and other payables (718) (953) Other current and non-current liabilities 84 1,861 Cash used in operations (6,527) (8,392) Taxes paid 0 (124) Net cash used in operating activities (6,527) (8,516) CASH FLOW FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES Interest received 283 251 Purchases of property, plant and equipment 7.8 (93) (224) Proceeds from disposal of property, plant and equipment 41 - Investments in other financial assets (10) (8) Net cash provided by investing activities 221 20 CASH FLOW FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES Repayment of borrowings 7.12 (215) (211) Repayment of lease liabilities 7.12 (429) (438) Interests paid (82) (79) Proceeds from issue of equity instruments of the Company 7.11 142 7,016 Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities (584) 6,289 NET DECREASE IN CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS (6,890) (2,208) CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS at beginning of period 21,570 34,096 Effect of foreign exchange rates 0 (2) CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS at end of period 14,680 31,886

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements. Please see the full interim report available on www.biotalys.com.

Attachments
The Circus Group has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the German catering company FOOD.LOVE.CATERING (FLC Group) with an estimated cumulative revenue potential in the range of EUR 20 million over the next few years

The food robot "Circus Autonomy One" (CA-1) is expected to support existing food networks on the ground to supply refugee accommodations from 2025

The collaboration kicks off with a beta phase in 2025, with plans to expand deployment across multiple kitchen hubs in Germany

In line with the company's mission to fuel humanity with AI-Robotics, Circus is committed to helping ensure that refugee accommodations receive reliable, high-quality meal services at scale

Circus SE (Xetra: CA1), a leading AI robotics company specializing in autonomous kitchen systems, has signed a preliminary agreement with FLC Group, a leading provider of catering services for canteens and community facilities. The partnership aims to introduce Circus Group's food production robot, "Circus Autonomy One" (CA-1), to kitchen hubs across Germany in a two-phase approach starting in 2025. These hubs will support the catering needs of refugee accommodations, emergency shelters, retirement homes, and other community facilities.

The collaboration kicks off with a beta phase, during which one CA-1 unit will be deployed and tested in a catering kitchen in 2025. This initial phase aims to validate the technology's performance and integration within FLC Group's operations. Following a successful pilot, both parties plan to expand the deployment to up to 100 CA-1 robots across multiple kitchen hubs, enabling large-scale production of nutritious meals for diverse communities.

FLC Group, which currently serves over 150,000 meals monthly to refugee accommodations and shelters, will leverage Circus Group's advanced AI and robotics technology to scale its operations more effectively. Designed to produce up to 2,000 freshly prepared meals per day in a compact 7-square-meter space, the CA-1 units will improve efficiency, hygiene and consistency in food service delivery.

"We're very excited to partner with FLC Group in this impactful collaboration. This partnership allows us to demonstrate the power of our AI-robotics in high-demand environments while directly supporting communities in need. By bringing our Circus Autonomy One technology to refugee accommodations and essential facilities, we're taking meaningful steps toward equitable access to nutritious meals and making a real difference where it matters most," said Nikolas Bullwinkel, CEO of Circus Group.

With an estimated cumulative hardware revenue potential in the range of EUR 20 million over the next few years, this partnership represents a significant step toward setting a new benchmark for food service in socially critical settings. The phased rollout aims to integrate Circus Group's cutting-edge technology into FLC Group's established operations, ensuring a broad and sustainable impact.

The MoU is not legally binding and serves to define the key points of the future contractual agreement until the detailed and legally binding contracts are drawn up.

About Circus Group:

The Circus Group (XETRA: CA1) is the leading AI robotics company, specializing in the translation of the fine art of cooking into full autonomy. On its mission to fuel humanity, Circus provides global access to balanced nutrition, for everyone, anytime. The company developed the world's first commercially viable food production robot, Circus Autonomy One. Circus employs talents in AI, robotics engineering, and food service across four locations and is headquartered in Hamburg, Germany.

About FOOD.LOVE.CATERING/ FLC Group

With over 11 locations across the country, we offer an unparalleled culinary experience that will make your event an unforgettable success. At F.L.C we have a passion for excellent food and outstanding service. Our expertise spans a wide range of events, from exclusive corporate functions to glamorous weddings and luxurious gala dinners to providing emergency accommodations. Our dedicated team of experienced chefs, event planners and service staff ensure that every event is personalized and perfectly tailored to your needs we are at your service with our expertise and enthusiasm. We are at your side with our know-how and enthusiasm. Thanks to our ISO:9001 certification via DEKRA, we meet the highest quality management guidelines.

Language: English Company: Circus SE Hongkongstrasse 6 20457 Hamburg Germany E-mail: ir@circus-group.com Internet: https://www.circus-group.com/for-investors ISIN: DE000A2YN355 WKN: A2YN35 Listed: Regulated Unofficial Market in Frankfurt, Munich (m:access)

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240821540522/en/

Contacts:

Investor Relations:

Maximilian Hartweg

Head of Corporate Development

ir@circus-group.com



Circus Group Press Office:

Florian Anders

Head of Corporate Communications

press@circusgroup.com
Kupfer wird oft als das Gold der Energiewende bezeichnet, weil es aufgrund seiner hervorragenden elektrischen Leitfahigkeit eine zentrale Rolle in vielen Technologien spielt, die fur nachhaltige Energiesysteme entscheidend sind. Experten gehen aufgrund der Angebotsknappheit von einem Superzyklus aus.

Korrektur als Einstiegschance

Nach Hochststanden im Mai korrigierte das rote Metall stark. Die Abwartsspirale verstarkte sich in den vergangenen Tagen aufgrund schwacher Konjunkturdaten aus den USA und China. Langfristig konnte sich die aktuell laufende Korrektur als exzellente Einstiegsmoglichkeit herausstellen.

3 Kupferaktien mit hohem Potential

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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / (TSX:NANO)(OTC PINK:NNOMF)(Frankfurt:LBMB)

Highlights:

Accelerate path to revenue.

Streamline operations and increase focus on LFP production and licensing.

Validate product at existing facilities and plan for capacity expansion to meet demand.

Develop, market and license LFP CAM packages.

Leverage government support, strategic engagement and partnership channels.

Maximize non-dilutive sources of capital and minimize further equity dilution.

Nano One Materials Corp. ("Nano One" or the "Company") is a clean technology company with patented processes for the production of lithium-ion battery cathode active materials ("CAM") and is announcing the streamlining of its operations, allowing for increased focus on lithium iron phosphate ("LFP"), joint ventures, contracted projects, accelerated path to revenue generation, and growth through licensing.

Nano One's CEO, Dan Blondal, highlighted, "Our strategic plan has an increased focus on LFP with prioritization on third party product validation, future sales, and commercialization opportunities at our production facilities in Candiac, Quebec. Government support and other non-dilutive sources of capital also play a key role in enhancing value for our partners and stakeholders. In parallel, we continue to build on our strategic relationships, advance our technology, plan for capacity expansion, and accelerate for long-term growth through LFP CAM package development and licensing. To align with these elements of our plan, and to accelerate near-term growth opportunities, we have also taken the necessary steps to streamline our operations and right-size our spending."

As part of its broader strategic plan, the Company is committed to controlling costs and focusing on near-term commercialization targets. This includes streamlining operational and corporate costs, with a workforce reduction of approximately 20%.

Sharpened Focus on LFP and Commercial Operations in Candiac

Nano One prioritized LFP in Q4 2022 by acquiring a 10-year-old LFP production facility and integrating a team with a long LFP track record in Candiac, Quebec. The plant was repurposed to pilot and demonstrate the Company's One-Pot LFP process at a commercially valid scale. The waste handling systems at the facility were no longer needed and subsequently decommissioned, freeing up space for the installation and commissioning of the 200 tpa One-Pot reactors in Q4 2023 and for future capacity expansion.

The Candiac LFP pilot facility is the launch pad for Nano One's growth strategy and a clear path to first revenue and larger offtakes. It is now being used to facilitate demonstration, sampling and evaluation while also informing FEL design studies and LFP CAM packages. There are plans to further expand the capacity of the existing facility up to 2,000 tpa, as demand for LFP takes hold, leveraging existing full-scale equipment and the balance of plant with further automation. It is expected that production from Candiac could bring in working capital while also supporting customer validation and offtakes for high volume LFP production with potential licensees.

Nano One continues to work on its 25,000 tpa LFP development project and is considering various paths forward including the project becoming a separate stand-alone operating company. As such, Nano One would significantly reduce its capital needs and could earn a license fee for the use of its One-Pot technology. This would be in addition to a development fee for its efforts on the 25,000 tpa project which could be settled by either an equity interest in the operating company, cash, or a combination thereof. The FEL3 engineering work-to-date on the 25,000 tpa plant has shown even lower capital costs and operating expenses than its earlier FEL2 pre-feasibility study. This further enhances the One-Pot value proposition, aligns with collaborators and supports the strategy to develop and license process engineering design packages for LFP (LFP CAM package).

A Robust Pipeline

Nano One has over 20 potential LFP customers at various stages of maturity including evaluations for LFP with two automotive EV manufacturers and others in the pipeline, a number of energy and stationary storage cell manufacturing companies, and several US government supply chain cell and pack contractors. Nano One is also in preliminary discussions with parties interested in LFP CAM package licensing. The Company's piloting facility in Candiac provides a distinct advantage in North America as it is able to produce cathode materials at commercially relevant scale today with the capability of expanding capacity up to 2,000 tpa.

Protecting Shareholder Interests and Aligning with Shifting Markets

These initiatives are further complemented by recent injections of non-dilutive capital. This includes the recent agreement to sell the vacant lot on its land in Candiac for $5 million in gross proceeds, and last week's award of $2.8 million by Next Generation Manufacturing Canada (NGen) through its Electric Vehicle Manufacturing Program (EVMP). The Company has additional non-dilutive initiatives underway that could bring significant accretive capital to support the Company's business objectives.

The global market has seen a decisive shift towards LFP technology, which offers significant advantages in terms of cost, safety, security of supply, and environmental impact compared to traditional lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide ("NMC") cathode materials. LFP is suited to high-volume, heavy-duty applications in energy storage systems ("ESS") and electric vehicles ("EVs") and it has already reached 60-70% market share in China, leading other jurisdictions to prepare for similar levels of demand.

Nano One's patented One-Pot process for producing cathode active materials positions it favorably, with a more environmentally friendly and competitive production process, to meet the emerging demand for LFP in North America, Europe and the Indo-Pacific region. NMC remains important for applications in long range, energy dense batteries and Nano One will keep modest efforts on its One-Pot NMC program to support collaborators and stakeholders in developing sustainable process solutions for the future.

Going Global Through Licensing

Nano One has the goal of global technology adoption and licensing of its One-Pot LFP CAM packages. Licensing will be driven through business and technology development with EV manufacturers, battery producers and chemical companies for the EV and ESS markets. Shareholder value will be created with increased market penetration through the Company's partnership channels, with the low cost of capital from its licensees, and by diversifying revenue exposure to include engineering and equipment procurement, along with licensing fees and revenues from its plant in Candiac.

Mr. Blondal said, "Nano One has a track record of anticipating market trends and by intentionally refocussing on the most important initiatives, we believe we can do it better and faster, while also enhancing our financial resilience and value to shareholders. We are excited by the robustness of our sales pipeline, we are steadfast in supporting our team and partners, and we are deeply committed to the success of the company's business objectives."

###

About Nano One

Nano One Materials Corp. (Nano One) is a clean technology company with a patented, scalable and low carbon intensity industrial process for the low-cost production of high-performance lithium-ion battery cathode materials. With strategic collaborations and partnerships, including automotive OEMs and strategic industry supply chain companies like Sumitomo Metal Mining, BASF, Umicore and Rio Tinto. Nano One's technology is applicable to electric vehicles, energy storage, and consumer electronics, reducing costs and carbon intensity while improving environmental impact. The Company is piloting its technology as turn-key production solutions for license, joint venture, and independent production opportunities, leveraging Canadian talent and critical minerals for emerging markets in North America, Europe, and the Indo-Pacific region. Nano One has received funding from SDTC and the Governments of Canada and British Columbia.

For more information, please visit www.nanoone.ca

Company Contact:

Paul Guedes

info@nanoone.ca

(604) 420-2041

Cautionary Notes and Forward-looking Statements

Certain information contained herein may constitute "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking information in this news release includes but is not limited to: the success in the marketing and deployment of the LFP CAM package with customers; the project objectives for the receipt of the total NGEN grant monies; timely closing on the sale of the vacant Candiac lot and the successful conclusion thereof; the FEL3 study and the Company's ability to obtain funding and complete all the necessary steps to deliver on the study's objectives; the development of technology, supply chains, and plans for construction and operation of cathode production facilities; the Company's current and future business and strategies; estimated future working capital, potential revenues, funds available, and uses of funds, future capital expenditures and other expenses for commercial operations; industry demand; incurrence of costs; competitive conditions; general economic conditions; the intention to grow the business, operations and potential activities of the Company; the functions and intended benefits of Nano One's technology and products; the development and optimization of the Company's technology and products; prospective partnerships and the anticipated benefits of the Company's partnerships; the Company's licensing and the scalability of developed technology to meet expanded capacity; and the execution of the Company's stated plans - which are contingent on access to capital and grants. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of terminology such as 'believe', 'expect', 'anticipate', 'plan', 'intend', 'continue', 'estimate', 'may', 'will', 'should', 'ongoing', 'target', 'goal', 'potential' or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "will" occur. Forward-looking statements are based on the current opinions and estimates of management as of the date such statements are made are not, and cannot be, a guarantee of future results or events. Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or forward-looking information, including but not limited to: achievement of the project objectives for the receipt of the total NGEN grant monies; timely closing on the sale of the vacant Candiac lot and the successful conclusion thereof; results of the FEL3 study and the Company's ability to obtain funding and complete all the necessary steps to deliver on the study's objectives; general and global economic and regulatory changes; next steps and timely execution of the Company's business plans; the development of technology, supply chains, and plans for construction and operation of cathode production facilities; successful current or future collaborations that may happen with OEM's, miners or others; the execution of the Company's plans which are contingent on support and grants; the Company's ability to achieve its stated goals; the commercialization of the Company's technology and patents via license, joint venture and independent production; anticipated global demand and projected growth for LFP batteries; and other risk factors as identified in Nano One's MD&A and its Annual Information Form dated March 27, 2024, both for the year ended December 31, 2023, and in recent securities filings for the Company which are available at www.sedarplus.ca. Although management of the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements or forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements or forward-looking information that is incorporated by reference herein, except as required by applicable securities laws. Investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

SOURCE: Nano One Materials Corp.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
MADRID, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- AppGallery has been awarded 'Best App Store' at this year's Pocket Gamer Mobile Games Awards, held yesterday at an industry gala in Cologne. This award celebrates Huawei's app marketplace's commitment to excellence.

It is a recognition of AppGallery's significant contributions to gamers and game developers alike, which includes the incredible array of game releases in the past years, and exquisite in-game offers and initiatives that have made games more fun for players of all levels.

"Winning the 'Best App Store' for 2 consecutive years is a testament of the commitment of our team to relentlessly do our best, every day." says Jaime Gonzalo, VP Huawei Mobile Services Europe.

He added, "Huawei Mobile Services has indeed achieved some remarkable growth with AppGallery recently, considering the highly competitive App Stores market. We hope to continue helping developers all over the world to grow their business while delighting all users with the best campaigns and offers on high-quality Apps and Games."

Since it was first launched in 2018, AppGallery has grown into one of the world's top 3 app marketplaces. Serving over 580 million monthly active users, AppGallery continues to offer a wide range of popular global games and local apps. The platform has witnessed significant growth in the number and quality of apps available, as well as its burgeoning community of developers registered on the Huawei Mobile Services (HMS) platform.

Huawei is dedicated to work closely with its partners by elevating the support/experience for developers and users, emphasising on mutually beneficial partnerships. Additionally, to create more exciting incentives for mobile gamers, AppGallery regularly runs seasonal campaigns offering exclusive promotions including yearly Game Fest campaigns.

About HUAWEI Mobile Services (HMS)

HUAWEI Mobile Services aims to provide a complete mobile experience to users globally. Services include AppGallery, Mobile Cloud, Browser, Assistant, Petal Ads and more. HUAWEI Mobile Services covers 730 million users in over 170 countries, enabling smart living for every Huawei device user. HMS has solidified its position one of the top 3 mobile ecosystem in the world, with over 6 million registered developers. Dedicated to providing easy-to-use development and function components for app developers, HMS Core actively opens a cross-platform ecosystem, supporting multiple devices, including smartphones, smartwatches, tablets, and smart screens.

For more information, please visit https://consumer.huawei.com/uk/mobileservices/

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2487012/game_award.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/mobile-games-awards-2024-appgallery-crowned-best-app-store-302227830.html
WATERFORD, Ireland, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In a bid to double down on underage gambling, regulated online casinos globally will forfeit the winnings of those found to be under the legal age. As the gambling industry draws a firm line against illegal play, it is also adopting cutting-edge biometric facial age verification technology to help fortify its platforms.



Global casino information resource portal, Minimum Deposit Casinos (https://www.minimumdepositcasinos.org/) (MDC) - a division of the OneTwenty Group - said these initiatives underscored how seriously the industry viewed this. Already in the United States (https://finance.yahoo.com/news/jersey-casinos-track-forfeit-77k-202107681.html), five New Jersey casinos and a horse racing track have forfeited $77,000 won by minors.

"Online casinos are stepping up its game and this no-nonsense approach serves as a deterrent, reinforcing that underage gambling does not pay - literally. We are sending a strong warning to kids to stay off gambling sites. The forfeited winnings will be redirected to relevant government authorities, where it will support programs like the treatment of compulsive gambling," said Miranda Raaff, Head of iGaming Information at MDC.

"In addition, the adoption of age verification tools marks a significant leap forward in our ongoing mission. By integrating these advanced tools, the industry is not just keeping pace with the digital age, it's setting a new benchmark for player protection."

Governments like Germany and Argentina (https://www.biometricupdate.com/202406/idverse-age-verification-endorsed-by-regulator-as-underage-gambling-crackdown-spreads) are on board and have endorsed these verification tools for online sites. Australia (https://www.biometricupdate.com/202308/australia-launches-platform-with-identity-verification-for-betting-self-exclusion) is also hot on the heels of this, while the UK (https://www.biometricupdate.com/202309/gambling-operators-turn-to-biometrics-for-age-checks-regulatory-compliance) is considering it.

"As this trend gains momentum, it's expected that more online casinos and countries will follow suit. In a world where digital access is at every teenager's fingertips, the fight against underage gambling is more crucial than ever," said Raaff.

"The industry remains resolute in its mission to safeguard minors. Through collaboration and a shared commitment to responsible gambling, we are making significant strides and will continue to advocate for a safer gambling environment worldwide."

About MDC

Minimum Deposit Casinos - a division of the OneTwenty Group - is a leading global casino information resource portal that reviews and recommends only the most trusted and reliable regulated online casinos to players. It does this by vetting casinos through safety and security checks, confirming valid gaming licenses and responsible gambling tools, as well as fair gaming practices.

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The increase in need for rehabilitation solutions arises from aging underground infrastructure, such as sewer and water pipelines, prompting investments in trenchless pipe rehabilitation methods to address deteriorating infrastructure. In addition, stringent environmental regulations necessitate the use of trenchless pipe rehabilitation methods, which minimize disruption to ecosystems and reduce environmental impact compared to traditional excavation techniques, driving the market growth.

WILMINGTON, Del., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Allied Market Research published a report, titled, "Trenchless Pipe Rehabilitation Market by Pipe Size (Upto 18 Inch, 18-36 Inch and More Than 36 Inch), Method Type (CIPP, Pipe Bursting, Slip-Lining, SIPP and Others), and Application (Water Main Pipes, Wastewater Pipes and Others): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2024-2032". According to the report, the trenchless pipe rehabilitation market was valued at $4.4 billion in 2023, and is estimated to reach $7.3 billion by 2032, growing at a CAGR of 5.8% from 2024 to 2032.

Prime determinants of growth

The increase in need for rehabilitation solutions arises from aging underground infrastructure, such as sewer and water pipelines, prompting investments in trenchless pipe rehabilitation methods to address deteriorating infrastructure. In addition, stringent environmental regulations necessitate the use of trenchless pipe rehabilitation methods, which minimize disruption to ecosystems and reduce environmental impact compared to traditional excavation techniques, driving the market growth. However, high upfront cost of the machinery restrains the market. On the other hand, various workshops conducted by various associations drive the market growth.

Download Sample@ https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/request-sample/A53674

Report coverage & details:

Report Coverage Details Forecast Period 2024-2032 Base Year 2023 Market Size in 2022 $4.38 billion Market Size in 2032 $7.28 billion CAGR 5.8 % No. of Pages in Report 207 Segments Covered Pipe Size, Method Type, Application, and Region. Drivers Aging infrastructure demands rehabilitation

Stringent environmental regulations favor trenchless methods

Cost-effectiveness and efficiency drive adoption Opportunities Rapidly growing awareness regarding trenchless methods Restraint High initial cost of machinery

Segmental overview

Based on pipe size, the 18-36 inch segment held the highest market share in 2023. Pipes ranging between 18 and 36 inch are widely used in many applications ranging from industrial to residential buildings. Thus, demand for rehabilitation is higher for this segment. However, the upto 18 inch segment is anticipated to grow with a higher CAGR during the forecast period. The demand for rehabilitation of smaller sized pipes is increasing with the rise in awareness regarding trenchless methods.

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Based on method type, the CIPP segment held the highest market share in 2023. However, the spray-in-place lining (SIPL) is projected to attain the highest CAGR during the forecast period. The SIPL method is poised for faster growth in the market compared to CIPP due to its unique advantages. These include rapid application, versatility across various pipe materials, seamless installation, minimal disruption, and cost-effectiveness.

The main pipes segment held the highest market share in 2023 due to the critical role of main pipes in infrastructure systems, urbanization trends, the aging of existing infrastructure, and regulatory requirements driving demand for rehabilitation solutions. However, the wastewater pipes segment is projected to attain the highest CAGR during the forecast period. This can be attributed to the increase in infrastructure projects, associated with waste water management.

Based on region, Asia-Pacific held the highest market share in terms of revenue in 2023. The rapid urbanization in countries like China and India has led to the establishment and expansion of manufacturing facilities, buildings, utility lines, minerals, and others. These industries rely heavily on trenchless pipe rehabilitation equipment.

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Players

Aegion Corporation

Trelleborg Pipe Seals

Perma-Liner Industries, LLC

HammerHead Trenchless

TT Technologies, Inc.

SAK Construction, LLC

Granite Inliner

Layne Inliner, LLC

The report provides a detailed analysis of these key players in the global trenchless pipe rehabilitation equipment market. These players have adopted different strategies such as new product launches, collaborations, expansion, joint ventures, agreements, and others to increase their market share and maintain dominant shares in different regions. The report is valuable in highlighting business performance, operating segments, product portfolio, and strategic moves of market players to showcase the competitive scenario.

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Worldly, the leading supply chain sustainability data and insights platform for the consumer goods and apparel industries, today announced Pia Heidenmark Cook, renowned sustainability expert and former Chief Sustainability Officer at IKEA, as the keynote speaker at the upcoming Worldly Customer Forum. The inaugural customer forum will take place on September 12 at the Hilton Munich Park in Munich, Germany, immediately after the Annual Meeting hosted by Cascale (formerly the Sustainable Apparel Coalition), the global nonprofit alliance for the consumer goods industry.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240822584024/en/

Pia Heidenmark Cook will be the keynote speaker at the Worldly Customer Forum in Munich. (Graphic: Business Wire)

The Worldly Customer Forum promises a day of inspiring stories, practical insights, and meaningful connections, designed to bring together corporate sustainability leaders and practitioners to drive action towards a common goal ensuring a more sustainable future. The interactive agenda includes a mixture of keynotes and breakaway workshops focused on translating ideas into tangible actions. The event comes at a critical time for the industry as it seeks to decarbonize the supply chain to curb the impacts of climate change. Businesses are also preparing for new regulations like the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), which will require them to report their social and environmental impacts, starting in January.

Pia Heidenmark Cook's keynote address will set the tone for the Worldly Customer Forum, inspiring and motivating the 200+ representatives from the apparel and consumer goods sectors in attendance. Her speech will emphasize the critical value of their work, aligning with the forum's theme, "Impact in Action." Acknowledging the challenges of sustainability efforts, Pia will deliver a message focusing on tangible actions and progress as the industry focuses on decarbonization to reduce its environmental footprint in line with the Paris Agreement.

"Pia's sustainability leadership and extensive experience make her the perfect person to inspire and challenge our community and push the boundaries of what's possible in our collective journey towards a more sustainable future," said Scott Raskin, CEO of Worldly.

During her tenure as Chief Sustainability Officer at IKEA, Pia Heidenmark Cook played a pivotal role in integrating sustainability into the core business strategy. She led the execution of several impact initiatives including decoupling growth from climate footprint with 14% business growth and 14% footprint reduction in the same period, spearheading IKEA's commitment to becoming climate positive by 2030, significantly increasing the use of renewable and recycled materials, and promoting sustainable living among customers worldwide. Pia has been recognized as one of the most influential sustainability leaders globally and has received numerous awards for her contributions to the field.

"I am excited to join Worldly's Customer Forum and share my experiences and learnings with a community that is as passionate about sustainability as I am," said Pia Heidenmark Cook. "This opportunity to connect brands and manufacturers is crucial to drive meaningful sustainability initiatives. By fostering collaboration and understanding between these groups, we can create a powerful impact and accelerate our journey towards a sustainable future."

Other companies represented at the forum will include LVMH Group, Eileen Fisher, Walmart, Target, Dunelm, H&M, Marks Spencer, Komar Brands, Due Diligence Design, Elevate Textiles, Arvind Limited, the Social Labor Convergence Program, and more.

To register for the Worldly Customer Forum, please visit worldly.io/resources/worldly-customer-forum-2024.

About Worldly

Worldly is the planet's most comprehensive supply chain sustainability data and insights platform, trusted by 40,000+ major brands, retailers and manufacturers in fashion, outdoor, home goods, toys and more. Worldly uniquely collects high-resolution primary data specific to companies' value chains, operations and products, providing insight into true impacts across carbon, water, chemistry and labor. Featuring the most comprehensive source of ESG data for global manufacturers and the largest library of materials and product impacts, Worldly empowers businesses to scale responsibility into their global operations, faster and more accurately. Hosting, connecting with, and supporting the leading industry solutions and methodologies, including ZDHC, Bluesign and the Higg Index developed and owned by global nonprofit alliance Cascale Worldly delivers the insights businesses need to reduce their impact, comply with emerging regulatory and financial disclosure requirements and meet the expectations of a new generation of customers. www.worldly.io

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240822584024/en/

Contacts:

WorldlyMedia@finnpartners.com
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Miami, Florida--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - FirmPilot AI, the first AI law firm marketing company that analyzes competing law firms to automatically create better online marketing, has announced the appointment of legal technology industry expert Jay Greenberg, founder and former CEO of LexShares, to the company's Board of Directors.

AI Law Firm Marketing Company FirmPilot AI Announces Appointment of Legal Technology Industry Expert Jay Greenberg to Company's Board of Directors

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In a statement, Jake Soffer, FirmPilot AI CEO, said the appointment is a logical choice, given Mr. Greenberg's extensive experience in growth strategy execution and his reputation for building an industry-leading company.

"Jay brings a comprehensive skill set in marketing, sales, and operations. From our very first meeting, his value was evident. He quickly immersed himself in refining our go-to-market strategies within the legal vertical, offering deep insights into industry priorities, while also contributing his extensive experience in scaling businesses beyond the legal domain," remarked Mr. Soffer.

Mr. Greenberg said FirmPilot represents a "significant advancement" in legal technology, noting that the company has already made significant strides in SEO and Marketing for Law Firms.

"FirmPilot represents a significant advancement in legal technology, and I am excited to join the board. With robust early product-market fit, a talented team, and an innovative approach, FirmPilot is well positioned for significant growth," shared Mr. Greenberg.

Having extensive experience in the legal technology sector, Mr. Greenberg said he is "enthused by the company's turnkey solution for law firms, powered by artificial intelligence, to acquire new clients." He added: "I look forward to supporting their mission and continued achievements."

Mr. Greenberg co-founded and served for nearly a decade as the Chief Executive Officer of the commercial litigation finance firm LexShares, where he was responsible for firm strategy, business development, and management - growing the firm from inception into one of the most active litigation finance firms in the world.

At present, Mr. Greenberg serves as the co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of a law firm, where he oversees the firm's operational management. In addition to this role, he is actively involved in several entrepreneurial endeavors.

Mr. Greenberg started his career in Deutsche Bank's technology investment banking group where he focused on merger & acquisition advisory, debt and equity financings primarily for enterprise software, technology services, and financial technology companies.

Mr. Greenberg received a Bachelor of Science in Finance and Corporate Reporting & Analysis from Boston College, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude.

Mr. Greenberg holds a certificate in Business Excellence from Columbia Business School. He also holds Series 79, 63, 82 and 65 licenses. Mr. Greenberg has received numerous awards and recognition for his work and has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Financial Times, Bloomberg, and CNBC.

For more information about FirmPilot's SEO and Marketing for Law Firms, visit https://firmpilot.com/.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220775

SOURCE: Plentisoft
Babcock Wilcox (B&W) (NYSE: BW) announced today that its B&W Environmental business segment has been awarded a contract for more than $8 million to design and supply a cooling system for a U.K. renewable energy facility.

B&W Environmental will supply a SPIG air-cooled condenser (ACC) for the plant, which will generate low-carbon baseload electricity. The SPIG ACC utilizes an advanced, high-efficiency design which is ideal for renewable energy applications.

"We are glad to be a part of this important clean energy project," said Jimmy Morgan, B&W Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. "This project demonstrates B&W Environmental's key position as a trusted solutions provider for the U.K. renewable energy sector."

SPIG ACC systems are a highly effective dry cooling technology installed in power plants to condensate the turbine exhaust steam using only the ambient air without need for water. The benefits of ACC systems include high efficiency, low operating noise and high corrosion resistance.

About Babcock Wilcox

Headquartered in Akron, Ohio, Babcock Wilcox Enterprises, Inc. is a leader in energy and environmental products and services for power and industrial markets worldwide. Follow us on LinkedIn and learn more at babcock.com

Forward-Looking Statements

B&W cautions that this release contains forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements relating to a contract for the design and supply of a cooling system for a U.K. renewable energy facility. These forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. For a more complete discussion of these risk factors, see our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our most recent annual report on Form 10-K. If one or more of these risks or other risks materialize, actual results may vary materially from those expressed. We caution readers not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this release, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, except to the extent required by applicable law.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240822457101/en/

Contacts:

Investor Contact:

Investor Relations

Babcock Wilcox

704.625.4944

investors@babcock.com

Media Contact:

Ryan Cornell

Public Relations

Babcock Wilcox

330.860.1345

rscornell@babcock.com
Lead, South Dakota--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - Dakota Gold Corp. (NYSE American: DC) ("Dakota Gold" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that exploration drilling at the Maitland Gold Project ("Maitland") in South Dakota continues to deliver results, expanding the areas of continuous Tertiary epithermal gold mineralization at the Unionville Zone. To date, Dakota Gold's drill program has tested and confirmed the Unionville Zone target extension strike extends for at least 2,000 meters. In addition, with the inclusion of rock chip samples, the total strike length could extend to as much as 3,000 meters.

Significant Highlights (See Table 1):

Drill hole MA24C-053 intersected 2.85 grams/tonne gold (g/t Au) over 13.7 meters and 1.44 g/t Au over 23.0 meters, and MA24C-048 intersected multiple sections of gold mineralization including 4.34 g/t Au over 7.0 meters of Tertiary epithermal mineralization. Both drill holes were located within the central portion of the Unionville Zone at shallow depths.

Drill hole MA24C-047, the northern most drill hole completed to date, has intersected 4.73 g/t Au over 3.6 meters of deeper, higher-grade Tertiary epithermal mineralization more than 2 kilometers north of the main Unionville Zone discovery. MA24C-047 extends the mineralization approximately 200 meters past the previously announced step-out drill hole, MA24C-040.

Tertiary epithermal gold mineralization remains open in all directions at Maitland.

James Berry, Vice President Exploration of Dakota Gold, said, "These results continue to confirm our belief that the Tertiary epithermal system at Maitland is comprised of multiple structures across a broad area extending over several kilometers. As we continue to explore this area for deeper Homestake Mine-Style gold mineralization targets, we expect to encounter additional higher-grade Tertiary epithermal mineralization at the same time. With every test drill hole at Maitland, we have a high probability of encountering both types of gold mineralization, which provides excellent optionality and value in our exploration programs."

Table 1. Released Drill Results (Metric / Imperial)1,2

Hole # From To Depth Interval* Gold From To Depth Interval* Gold Mineral Type g x m m m m m g/t ft ft ft ft oz/ton MA24C-047 933.3 936.9 643.0 3.6 4.73 3061.9 3073.7 2110.0 11.8 0.138 Tert 17 MA24C-048 2.7 24.8 2 22.1 0.93 9.0 81.4 7.0 72.4 0.027 Tert 20

45.4 50.0 38 4.6 0.96 148.9 164.0 126.0 15.1 0.028 Tert 4

56.2 59.2 47 3.0 1.66 184.3 194.1 154.0 9.8 0.049 Tert 5

64.6 71.6 53 7.0 4.34 212.0 235.0 174.0 23.0 0.126 Tert 30

74.6 77.6 60 3.0 1.30 244.9 254.6 198.0 9.7 0.038 Tert 4

106.1 110.3 84 4.3 0.87 348.0 362.0 274.0 14.0 0.025 Tert 4

117.8 134.5 92 16.6 1.58 386.6 441.2 306.0 54.6 0.046 Tert 26

139.6 147.3 108 7.7 0.82 458.0 483.2 355.0 25.2 0.024 Tert 6

189.6 196.1 145 6.5 0.93 622.2 643.4 474.0 21.2 0.027 Tert 6 MA24C-053 0.0 8.6 0 8.6 1.03 0.0 28.1 0.0 28.1 0.030 Tert 9

28.8 51.8 24 23.0 1.44 94.6 170.0 78.0 75.4 0.042 Tert 33

58.0 71.7 51 13.7 2.85 190.4 235.3 166.0 44.9 0.083 Tert 39 MA24C-054 6.0 18.9 6 12.9 0.86 19.6 62.0 19.0 42.4 0.025 Tert 11

34.3 39.0 33 4.7 1.37 112.5 127.8 107.0 15.3 0.040 Tert 6

70.5 73.8 70 3.3 1.27 231.4 242.2 231.0 10.8 0.037 Tert 4



The table may contain rounding errors.

Abbreviations in the table include ounces per ton ("oz/ton"); grams per tonne ("g/t"); feet ("ft"); meter ("m"); Tertiary mineralization ("Tert"). True Thickness Unknown.



Figure 1. Plan view of Dakota Gold Corp. Maitland drill holes with highlighted drill holes containing Tertiary epithermal gold mineralization.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

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Figure 2. Long section view of Dakota Gold Corp. Maitland drill holes looking east with highlighted drill holes containing Tertiary epithermal gold mineralization.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

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The Company currently has four drills on site at its properties in the Homestake District of South Dakota. The Unionville Zone drilling is testing for Tertiary epithermal gold mineralization and is one of three ongoing programs being advanced by the Company - the other two being Homestake Mine-Style gold mineralization in the JB Gold Zone at Maitland and the infill and step-out drilling at the Richmond Hill Gold Project to update the S-K 1300 resource estimate. The Unionville Zone at Maitland is approximately 2,100 meters east of the Richmond Hill Gold Project, which also contains Tertiary mineralization.

About Dakota Gold Corp.

Dakota Gold (NYSE American: DC) is a South Dakota-based responsible gold exploration and development company with a specific focus on revitalizing the Homestake District in Lead, South Dakota. Dakota Gold has high-caliber gold mineral properties covering over 48 thousand acres surrounding the historic Homestake Mine.

The Dakota Gold team is focused on new gold discoveries and opportunities that build on the legacy of the Homestake District and its 145 years of gold mining history.

Subscribe to Dakota Gold's e-mail list at www.dakotagoldcorp.com to receive the latest news and other Company updates.

Shareholder and Investor Inquiries

Qualified Person and S-K 1300 Disclosure

James M. Berry, a Registered Member of SME and Vice President of Exploration of Dakota Gold Corp., is the Company's designated qualified person for this news release as defined in Subpart 1300 - Disclosure by Registrants Engaged in Mining Operations of Regulation S-K and has reviewed and approved its scientific and technical content.

The ranges of potential tonnage and grade (or quality) disclosed above in respect of the Maitland Gold Project are conceptual in nature and could change as the proposed exploration activities are completed. There has been insufficient exploration of the Maitland Gold Project to allow for an estimate of a mineral resource and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the estimation of a mineral resource. The disclosure above in respect of the Maitland Gold Project therefore does not represent, and should not be construed to be, an estimate of a mineral resource or mineral reserve.

Quality Assurance/Quality Control consists of regular insertion of certified reference materials, duplicate samples, and blanks into the sample stream. Samples are submitted to the ALS Geochemistry sample preparation facility in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Gold and multi-element analyses are performed at the ALS Geochemistry laboratory in Vancouver, British Columbia. ALS Minerals is an ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accredited lab. Check samples are submitted to Bureau Veritas, Vancouver B.C. as an umpire laboratory. Assay results are reviewed, and discrepancies are investigated prior to incorporation into the Company database.

Forward-Looking Statements

This communication contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. When used in this press release, the words "plan," "target," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "intend," "potential," "will" and "expect" and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Any express or implied statements contained in this announcement that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: our expectations regarding future drilling and our expectations regarding the development potential of Maitland. These forward-looking statements are based on assumptions and expectations that may not be realized and are inherently subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from these statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among others: the execution and timing of our planned exploration activities; our use and evaluation of historic data; our ability to achieve our strategic goals; the state of the economy and financial markets generally and the effect on our industry; and the market for our common stock. The foregoing list is not exhaustive. For additional information regarding factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in our forward-looking statements, we refer you to the risk factors included in Item 1A of the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, as updated by annual, quarterly and current reports that we file with the SEC, which are available at www.sec.gov. We caution investors not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements contained in this communication. These statements speak only as of the date of this communication, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise these statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by law. We do not give any assurance that we will achieve our expectations.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220740

SOURCE: Dakota Gold Corp.
CHICAGO, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Fungicides Market is estimated at USD 23.9 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach USD 32.3 billion by 2029, at a CAGR of 6.2% from 2024 to 2029 according to a report published by MarketsandMarkets. The fungicides market is showing rapid growth due to increasing demand from developing countries, easy availability of crop protection products, an increase in area under high-value cash crops, growing demand for food, and an increase in global population. Amendments in the regulations regarding environmental protection laws and changing government policies across various regions are the major factors challenging fungicide product manufacturers and service providers. Various chemicals and mechanical & biological measures were looked into to check the growing population of fungi in the world. Various chemical formulae get listed under US Environmental Protection Agency, US EPA for use in the commercial and agriculture fields. With concerns related to the chemical method increasing every year, the introduction of biological fungicide products has many advantages because of which they are favored over their chemical counterpart in North American and European regions.

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By mode of action, systemic fungicide holds the highest market share in the fungicides market.

Systemic fungicides have a stronger market share in the global fungicides market because of their brilliant mode of action in providing full protection against fungal diseases. The systemic fungicides are mostly absorbed by the plants and distributed in all tissues, thereby offering very effective control of pathogens that may be unexposed at the time of application. Systemic action guarantees long-lasting protection and controls a wide spectrum of fungal pathogens, hence high efficacy in managing persistent and difficult-to-treat diseases. That, coupled with the efficacy and the ability to reduce the frequency of application, makes them more attractive to farmers and continues to consolidate their leading position in the fungicides market.

In the mode of application segment, foliar spray holds the highest market share in the fungicides market.

Foliar spray holds the largest market share in the fungicides market due to the fact that they have a more direct and efficient way of application. Since foliar sprays target the outside of leaves, they provide immediate protection and control against fungal pathogens, ensuring delivery of the fungicide to the most vulnerable points. This method allows for application precision, which reduces the risk of diseases spreading but maximizes treatment efficiency. Besides, the foliar sprays are versatile and can be used in a wide range of crops and growth stages; this makes this segment very diffused and holds the maximum market share.

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The North America region holds a significant market share in the fungicides market

The fungicides market holds a significant share in North America because of the well-built infrastructure for agriculture and large adoption of modern technologies related to crop protection in this region. In this region, farming practices are extensive and varied, with the need for effective fungicide solutions against a wide range of fungal diseases and high yields. The Rio Grande Valley (citrus fruits) in Texas and Mexico, California's Central Valley (fruits and vegetables), the Gulf Coastal Plain (vegetables), and the Appalachian sandy valleys are all important agricultural areas in this zone (for cotton and tobacco). Moreover, this region also houses key manufacturers of fungicides and investment in continuous research and development that fuels innovation and product availability. Government regulatory support for agriculture productivity also aids the demand for fungicides, thereby cementing North America's dominant position within the global market.

Key players in this market include BASF SE (Germany), Bayer AG (Germany), Syngenta Group (Switzerland), UPL (India), Corteva (US), FMC Corporation (US), Nufarm (Australia), Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd. (Japan), NIPPON SODA CO, LTD. (Japan), Gowan Company (US), American Vanguard Corporation (US), Koppert (Netherlands), KUMIAI CHEMICAL INDUSTRY CO., LTD. (Japan), Albaugh LLC (US), and Sipcam Oxon Spa (Italy).

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Crop Protection Chemicals Market by Type (Herbicides, Insecticides, Fungicides & Bactericides), Origin (Synthetic & Biopesticides), Form, Mode of Application (Foliar, Seed Treatment, Soil Treatment), Crop Type and Region - Global Forecast to 2029

Biorational Pesticides Market by Source (Botanical, Microbial, Non-organic), Type (Biorational Insecticides, Biorational Fungicides, Biorational Nematicides, Biorational Herbicides), Mode of Application, Formulation and Region - Global Forecast to 2028

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Diamond drilling intersects new zones of copper at depth as the deep search EM survey identifies a 1,300m x 500m anomaly for drill testing

HIGHLIGHTS

100% hit rate continues for the deep diamond drilling with thick intervals of visual copper mineralization intersected at depth below the known near-surface copper deposits

The drilling confirms the large lateral extent of the Storm copper system at depth - now intersected over 10 square kilometres - and highlights the potential of Storm to host large-scale stratigraphic and structurally hosted high-grade copper deposits similar to those in the Central African Copperbelt

Drill hole ST24-01 has intersected a combined total of 21.3 metres ("m") of visual copper mineralization , which includes: 6.37m of visual copper sulfide from 293.7m downhole, and 2.43m of abundant visual copper sulfide from 302m downhole 12.5m of visual copper sulfide from 311m downhole, including 4.6m of abundant visual native copper and copper sulfides from 315.4m downhole

Drill hole ST24-02 has intersected a combined total of 99.2m of visual copper sulfide , which includes highlights: 1.1m of abundant visual copper sulfide from 195.5m downhole, and 1.3m of abundant visual copper sulfide from 204m downhole, and 17.1m of moderate to abundant visual copper sulfide from 404.3m downhole

The deep search phase of the Moving Loop Electromagnetic (MLEM) survey has defined a 1,300m x 500m anomaly at depth below the Cirrus Deposit and The Gap Prospect, with target drilling now underway

Visual estimates of mineral abundance should never be considered a proxy or substitute for laboratory analyses where concentrations or grades are the factor of principal economic interest. Laboratory assays are required to determine the presence and grade of any contained mineralization within the reported visual intersections of copper sulfides. Portable XRF is used as an aid in the determination of mineral type and abundance during the geological logging process.

TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Aston Bay Holdings Ltd. (TSXV:BAY)(OTCQB:ATBHF) ("Aston Bay" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update on drilling activities at the Storm Copper Project ("Storm" or the "Project") on Somerset Island, Nunavut. The exploration program is being conducted by American West Metals Limited ("American West"), who is the operator of the Project. Aston Bay and American West have formed a 20/80 unincorporated joint venture in respect of the Storm Project property, with Aston Bay maintaining a free carried interest until a decision to mine upon completion of a bankable feasibility study.

Thomas Ullrich, Chief Executive Officer of Aston Bay, commented :

"The first two deep diamond drill holes of this season have hit an impressive amount of visual copper mineralization of the same style as we see in the high-grade near-surface deposits. When added to the five deep holes drilled over the 2022 and 2023 seasons in a 10 square kilometre area, all of which hit copper and associated sulfide mineralization at depth, the "Storm Deeps" drilling is developing into a compelling exploration story.

"The two new holes were drilled on structural and stratigraphic targets before the completion of the new deep-looking geophysical surveys that have yielded large, strong anomalies at the same stratigraphic level as the copper intercepts in the deep holes. These electromagnetic surveys have proven very successful in targeting copper mineralization at Storm, and I expect the upcoming deep holes, including one currently underway, will benefit from improved targeting of potentially higher-grade and larger zones of copper mineralization. I am eager to see what the drill rig reveals in the coming weeks."

Figure 1: Drill core from ST24-01 from approximately 315.4 - 318m downhole. Dense veins and breccia of visible chalcocite (copper sulfide) can be seen as dark sooty grey, within light grey/tawny dolomite host rocks. This interval also contains blebs of native copper (metallic mineral, top right).

DEEP COPPER SYSTEM EXPANDING

Diamond drill holes ST24-01 and ST24-02 have been completed at the Storm Project with both drill holes building on the success of prior deep drilling programs by intersecting thick intervals of visual copper mineralization containing thinner subintervals of very abundant visual copper.

The drill holes were designed to test key geological targets at Storm and the potential for new zones of copper mineralization within the 'Deep Copper Horizon' that was discovered during 2023 (see September 26, 2023, Aston Bay News release). Drill hole ST23-02 contained abundant mineralization in a number of narrow bands with grades up to 2.7% Cu at 356.5m downhole, confirming the presence of high-grade copper sulfides at the deeper stratigraphic levels for the first time. This significant discovery pointed to the potential for this deeper stratigraphic horizon to host potentially economic copper mineralization. This concept is further strengthened by the intersection of copper at the same interpreted horizon in every subsequent deep drill hole.

The 2024 drill holes were completed within the Central Graben area, and to the south of the Southern Graben Fault, below the Thunder Prospect, and the Chinook and Corona Deposits.

Figure 2: Plan view of the Storm area showing the geological interpretation, known copper deposit outlines, major faults, and deep diamond drill hole locations.

The drill holes have intersected 21.3m and 99.2m of visual copper sulfides (respectively) within what is interpreted to be the equivalent of the same mineralized stratigraphic horizon as the prior deep drilling. The discovery of copper mineralization in these new locations highlights the potentially laterally extensive nature of the deep copper system, which now covers an area of over 10km 2 . The reader is reminded that the intervals are variably mineralized and that lateral continuity of the mineralization in these very widely-spaced drill holes has not yet been demonstrated.

The 400m x 400m loop MLEM survey has also now been completed in the Storm area. The survey has identified several high-priority anomalies including a large, late-time anomaly located beneath the Cirrus Deposit and The Gap Prospect. The anomaly has the known extents of 1,300m x 500m and is strongest along the Southern Graben Fault. The third 2024 deep diamond drill hole is currently drilling this MLEM target. The deep search EM is now surveying the Tornado and Blizzard Prospects.

DRILL HOLE ST24-01 DETAILS

ST24-01 was drilled to a downhole depth of 407m and intersected a single main zone of visual copper mineralization (Table 1). The drill hole was designed to test the geology and structure within the Central Graben and was located to the south of the Cyclone Deposit (Figure 2).

The mineralized zone encountered within ST24-01 was intersected between 293.7m and 323.5m downhole and contains a total of 21.3m of visual copper mineralization within three sub-intervals (Table 1).

The visual copper mineralization consists of veinlets and matrix breccias with copper sulfide fillings and cement (Figure 3). Large blebs of native copper are present within the visually strongest mineralized interval between 302m and 304.43m downhole.

The visual copper mineralization is hosted within a thick sequence of fractured dolomudstone of the Allen Bay Formation, the main host of the copper mineralization within the Storm area. The highly fractured and brecciated nature of the mineralized zone suggests that the drill hole may have intersected a mineralized portion of the interpreted Northern Graben Fault.

The mineralization and stratigraphy within ST24-01 are visually very similar to that encountered within previous deep exploration drill holes at Storm, highlighting the potentially laterally extensive nature of the prospective copper horizon. ST24-01 also confirms the prospectivity of the Central Graben where recent shallow Reverse Circulation (RC) drill hole SR24-09 intercepted 15.2m @ 1.4% Cu from 103.6m downhole, in what is interpreted to be a down-dropped zone of mineralization similar to the near-surface Cyclone Deposit (see August 15, 2024, Aston Bay news release).

Now confirmed to host both shallow and deeper mineralization, the large and relatively unexplored Central Graben will be a key target for follow-up drilling.

Visual estimates of mineral abundance should never be considered a proxy or substitute for laboratory analyses where concentrations or grades are the factor of principal economic interest. Laboratory assays are required to determine the presence and grade of any contained mineralization within the reported visual intersections of copper sulfides. Portable XRF is used as an aid in the determination of mineral type and abundance during the geological logging process.

Hole ID From (m) To (m) Min Description ST24-01 0.0 61 Douro Formation 61 293 Cape Storm Formation 293 293.7 Allen Bay Formation 293.7 300.07 ? Breccia matrix difficult to determine Cu type - 1% 300.07 302 Allen Bay Formation 302 304.43 cc Breccia and veinlets - 1% 304.43 311 Allen Bay Formation 311 315.4 cc Veinlets of cc - 1% 315.4 316.62 Cu, cc Native Cu blebs within dense breccia cc - 1-2% 316.62 320 Cu, cp, cc Cc veins and breccia grading down to cp - 0.5% 320 323.5 cc Scattered veinlets - 0.1% 323.5 407 Allen Bay Formation - Massive dolofloatstone

Table 1: Summary geological log for drill hole ST24-01. Mineralization key: cc = chalcocite, cp = chalcopyrite, br = bornite, py = pyrite, Cu = native copper, ct = cuprite, ml = malachite, sph = sphalerite, ga = galena. (5%) = visual estimation of sulfide content.

Figure 3: Chalcocite (dark grey) breccia and native copper (metallic) blebs within fractured dolomite in drill hole ST24-01 from approximately 315.87m downhole.

Figure 4: Schematic geological section at 464730E showing the Cyclone Deposit outline, mineralized intervals in existing drilling outside of the resource, and visual copper sulfide estimates for ST24-01.

DRILL HOLE ST24-02 DETAILS

Drill hole ST24-02 was drilled to a downhole depth of 455m and intersected a total of 99.1m of visual copper sulfide mineralization within two main stratigraphic horizons (Table 2). The drill hole was designed to test the stratigraphy and structure in the southern areas of Storm, south of the Southern Graben Fault.

The upper zone of visual copper mineralization is hosted within the Cape Storm Formation at approximately the same depth as the known near-surface copper deposits at Storm (Figure 6). The Cape Storm Formation is not typically mineralized, but here contains multiple sub-horizons from the surface that are weakly mineralized with intermittent and patchy veinlets of visible chalcocite and chalcopyrite to approximately 54m downhole.

Below this, and to the end of the hole, the drill hole intersected the Allen Bay Formation, the typical host of copper mineralization at Storm.

The entire Allen Bay Formation dolomite within ST24-02 is variably fractured and contains visual copper sulfides hosted within the more fractured layers. Twelve separate visibly mineralized zones have been logged, with the strongest visual copper sulfides located between 195.5m and 196.6m (Figure 5), and 204m and 205.3m downhole respectively.

Chalcocite is the dominant copper sulfide mineral, with minor chalcopyrite and bornite present in veinlets and patchy blebs locally filling vugs along with bitumen (Figure 5).

The large volume of visual mineralization within ST24-02 highlights the potential scale of the copper system at Storm. The proximity of drill hole ST24-02 to the Thunder Prospect, and Chinook and Corona deposits provides further evidence that the Allen Bay Formation within the Southern Graben may host high-grade, stratigraphic- and structurally-hosted copper deposits similar to those of the Central African Copperbelt.

Figure 5: Chalcocite (dark grey) fracture fill in drill hole ST24-02 from approximately 196m downhole.

Visual estimates of mineral abundance should never be considered a proxy or substitute for laboratory analyses where concentrations or grades are the factor of principal economic interest. Laboratory assays are required to determine the presence and grade of any contained mineralization within the reported visual intersections of copper sulfides. Portable XRF is used as an aid in the determination of mineral type and abundance during the geological logging process.

Table 2 below: Summary geological log for drill hole ST24-02. Mineralization key: cc = chalcocite, cp = chalcopyrite, br = bornite, py = pyrite, Cu = native copper, ct = cuprite, ml = malachite, sph = sphalerite, ga = galena. (5%) = visual estimation of sulfide content.

Hole ID From (m) To (m) Min Description ST24-02 0.0 28.9 Cape Storm Formation 28.9 29 ? Blueish mineral on fractures 29 53 Cape Storm Formation 53 54 cc, ma, cp Fracture fill sulfides - 0.3% 54 57.38 Cape Storm Formation 57.38 69 Allen Bay Formation 69 69.3 py Black silty bed, likely pyrite 69.3 74 Allen Bay Formation - dolomudstone 74 78 cp Veinlets and patches of cc - 0.1% 78 79 cp, cc Vugs filled with mineralization - 0.2% 79 86 Allen Bay Formation - Dolomudstone 86 86.5 cc, cp Veinlets of mineralization - 0.2% 86.5 114 Allen Bay Formation 114 115 bn Specks of bornite in vugs and fractures 115 170.4 Allen Bay Formation - mostly doloboundstone 170.4 171.1 cc Black sulfide in vug and fractures - 0.2% 171.1 175.5 Allen Bay Formation - mostly doloboundstone 175.5 176 cc Black sulfide in vug and fractures - 0.2% 176 195.5 Allen Bay Formation - mostly doloboundstone 195.5 196.6 cc Dense breccia - 2% 196.6 204 Allen Bay Formation - mostly doloboundstone 204 205.3 cc Breccia - 0.5 to 1% 205.3 292 Allen Bay Formation - mostly doloboundstone 292 324 cp, br Blebs of cp throughout with bitumen, br veins - 0.1% 324 329.6 Allen Bay Formation - mostly doloboundstone 329.6 339 cc Black sooty veins - 0.1% 339 348 Allen Bay Formation - mostly doloboundstone 348 355.5 cc Black sooty veins - 0.1% 355.5 367 Allen Bay Formation - mostly doloboundstone 367 389 cc Black sooty veins and breccias - 0.1% 389 404.3 Allen Bay Formation - mostly doloboundstone 404.3 421.4 py, cc Breccia, veinlets and fracture sulfide - up to 1% 421.4 422.2 Allen Bay Formation - mostly doloboundstone 422.2 424.4 py, cc Sulfide rich fault gouge - 0.8% 424.4 448 py Py in fault gouge - 0.1% 448 455 Allen Bay Formation - mostly doloboundstone

Figure 6: NE-SW orthographic geological section at approximately 465900E showing the Chinook and Corona deposit outlines, and visual copper sulfide estimates for Lightning Ridge and ST24-02. Note - drill hole ST24-02 is located within the Corona fault-bound sub-block and is approximately 300m off section to the west. The combined section is used to illustrate geological relationships.

DEEP MLEM SURVEY DEFINES DRILL TARGETS

Phase 1 of the high-powered Moving Loop EM (MLEM) survey was completed at Storm area during the spring exploration program and was optimized to screen the top 200m of the stratigraphy (see May 7, 2024, Aston Bay news release). Over 10 new high-priority shallow targets were defined and are currently being tested with RC drilling.

Phase 2 of the MLEM survey was planned to search deeper, below the known copper deposits, and has also now been completed in the immediate Storm area (Figure 7). The survey was designed with larger loop sizes (400m x 400m loops) and was optimized to screen between approximately 200- 500m vertical depth.

The survey has identified five strong EM anomalies located in favourable locations within the large graben-fault network. Two of these anomalies are related to known high-grade copper sulfides at the Cyclone Deposit and recently discovered Gap Prospect.

Two other new anomalies are located in untested areas to the south of the Southern Graben Fault, proximal to known high-grade copper occurrences.

The largest of the southern anomalies is interpreted to be approximately 1,300m x 500m, flat-lying, and located at depth below the Cirrus Deposit and Gap Prospect (Figure 7). A series of large, sub-vertical EM plates have been modelled where the northern edge of the anomaly is truncated at the Southern Graben Fault, which suggests that this could represent fault-hosted copper mineralization. This target is currently being tested with diamond drilling.

The ongoing MLEM surveys are currently underway in the Tornado and Blizzard areas, located approximately 10km along strike to the east of Storm. The geological setting is interpreted to be identical to that of Storm and contains numerous outcropping copper occurrences with coincident geophysical anomalies.

Figure 7: MLEM image (CH20BZ) overlaying drilling and the geological and structural interpretation of the Storm area. The MLEM anomalies discussed in this report are labelled A1- A5.

PLANNED PROGRAM

RC drilling continues in the Storm area with the track-mounted drill rig on delineation drilling and high-priority geophysical targets.

The fly RC drill rig is currently drilling at the Tempest Prospect.

Diamond drilling is in progress on the third deep exploration target in the Storm area.

The next round of assays for the summer drill program is expected within the next 1-2 weeks.

Deep-searching EM surveys are underway in the Tornado and Blizzard copper prospect areas.

Details of the delineation drilling and exploration drill holes for the 2024 program are available at https://astonbayholdings.com/news/2024-storm-drill-hole-details/ .

Qualified Person

Michael Dufresne, M.Sc., P.Geol., P.Geo., is a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information in this press release.

About the Storm Copper and Seal Zinc-Silver Projects, Nunavut

The Nunavut property consists of 173 contiguous mining claims covering an area of approximately 219,257 hectares on Somerset Island, Nunavut, Canada. The Storm Project comprises both the Storm Copper Project, a high-grade sediment-hosted copper discovery (intersections including 110m* @ 2.5% Cu from surface and 56.3* @ 3.1% Cu from 12.2m as well as the Seal Zinc Deposit (intersections including 14.4m* @ 10.6% Zn, 28.7g/t Ag from 51.8m and 22.3m* @ 23.0% Zn, 5.1g/t Ag from 101.5m). Additionally, there are numerous underexplored and undrilled targets within the 120-kilometre strike length of the mineralized trend, including the Tornado copper prospect where 10 grab samples yielded >1% Cu up to 32% Cu in gossans. The Nunavut property is now the subject of an 80/20 unincorporated joint venture with American West (see "Agreement with American West" below for more details).

Storm Discovery and Historical Work

High-grade copper mineralization was discovered at Storm in the mid-1990s by Cominco geologists conducting regional zinc exploration around their then-producing Polaris lead-zinc mine. A massive chalcocite boulder found in a tributary of the Aston River in 1996 was traced to impressive surface exposures of broken chalcocite mineralization for hundreds of metres of surface strike length at what became named the 2750N, 2200N, and 3500N zones. Subsequent seasons of prospecting, geophysics and over 9,000 m of drilling into the early 2000s confirmed a significant amount of copper mineralization below the surface exposures as well as making the blind discovery of the 4100N Zone, a large area of copper mineralization with no surface exposure.

Following the merger of Cominco with Teck in 2001 and the closure of the Polaris Mine, the Storm claims were allowed to lapse in 2007. Commander Resources staked the property in 2008 and flew a helicopter-borne VTEM survey in 2011 but conducted no additional drilling. Aston Bay subsequently entered into an earn-in agreement with Commander and consolidated 100% ownership in 2015. Commander retained a 0.875% Gross Overriding Royalty in the area of the original Storm claims which was purchased by Taurus Mining Royalty Fund L.P. in January 2024.

In 2016 Aston Bay entered into an earn-in agreement with BHP, who conducted a 2,000-station soil sampling program and drilled 1,951m of core in 12 diamond drill holes, yielding up to 16m* @ 3.1% Cu. BHP exited the agreement in 2017 and retains no residual interest in the project. Aston Bay conducted a property-wide airborne gravity gradiometry survey in 2017 and drilled 2,913m in nine core holes in the Storm area in 2018 yielding a best intercept of 1.5m* @ 4.4% Cu and 20.5m* @ 0.6% Cu.

Agreement with American West

On March 9, 2021, Aston Bay entered into an option agreement with American West Metals Limited (American West), and its wholly owned Canadian subsidiary Tornado Metals Ltd., pursuant to which American West was granted an option to earn an 80% undivided interest in the Project by spending a minimum of CAD$10 million on qualifying exploration expenditures. The parties amended and restated the Option Agreement as of February 27, 2023, to facilitate American West directly earning an interest in the Project alongside its Canadian subsidiary without any change to the overall commercial agreement between the parties. The expenditures were completed during 2023, and American West exercised the option. American West and Aston Bay have formed an 80/20 unincorporated joint venture.

Under the joint venture, Aston Bay shall have a free carried interest until American West has made a decision to mine upon completion of a bankable feasibility study, meaning American West will be solely responsible for funding the joint venture until such decision is made. After such decision is made, Aston Bay will be diluted in the event it does not elect to contribute its proportionate share and its interest in the Project will be converted into a 2% net smelter returns royalty if its interest is diluted to below 10%.

Recent Work

American West completed a fixed loop electromagnetic (FLEM) ground geophysical survey in 2021 that yielded several new subsurface conductive anomalies. A total of 1,534m were drilled in 10 diamond drill holes in the 2022 season, yielding several impressive near-surface intercepts including 41m* @ 4.1% Cu as well as 68m of sulfide mineralization associated with a deeper conductive anomaly.

In April 2022, results of beneficiation studies demonstrated that a mineralized intercept grading 4% Cu from the 4100N area could be upgraded to a 54% Cu direct ship product using standard sorting technology. Further beneficiation and metallurgical studies are ongoing.

In April 2023, American West embarked on a spring delineation drilling program using a helicopter-portable RC drill rig as well as conducting gravity and moving loop electromagnetic (MLEM) ground geophysical programs.

The summer 2023 program conducted further delineation drilling of the near-surface high-grade copper zones to advance them toward maiden resource estimates in 2024. Deep diamond drilling during 2023 discovered high-grade copper sulfides up to 2.7% Cu at approximately 300m vertical depth (ST23-02), suggesting the potential for discovery of large-scale copper targets at depth.

Diamond drilling of new high-priority deep MLEM targets, RC delineation drilling for resource development and additional geophysical surveys are now underway in the 2024 program. Metallurgical studies and environmental baseline studies are ongoing, with bulk sampling for prefeasibility-level processing planned for summer 2024.

*Stated drill hole intersections are all core length, and true width is expected to be 60% to 100% of core length.

About Aston Bay Holdings

Aston Bay is a publicly traded mineral exploration company exploring for high-grade critical and precious metal deposits in Nunavut, Canada and Virginia, USA.

The Company is currently exploring the Storm Copper Property and Cu-Ag-Zn-Co Epworth Property in Nunavut, and the high-grade Buckingham Gold Vein in central Virginia. The company is also in advanced stages of negotiation on other lands with high-grade critical metals potential in North America

The Company and its joint venture partners, American West Metals Limited and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Tornado Metals Ltd. (collectively, " American West ") have formed a 20/80 unincorporated joint venture in respect of the Storm Project property, which hosts the Storm Copper Project and the Seal Zinc Deposit. Under the unincorporated joint venture, Aston Bay shall have a free carried interest until American West has made a decision to mine upon completion of a bankable feasibility study, meaning American West will be solely responsible for funding the joint venture until such decision is made. After such decision is made, Aston Bay will be diluted in the event it does not elect to contribute its proportionate share and its interest in the Storm Project property will be converted into a 2% net smelter returns royalty if its interest is diluted to below 10%.

About American West Metals Limited

AMERICAN WEST METALS LIMITED (ASX: AW1) is an Australian clean energy mining company focused on growth through the discovery and development of major base metal mineral deposits in Tier 1 jurisdictions of North America. The company's strategy is focused on developing mines that have a low-footprint and support the global energy transformation. AW1's portfolio of copper and zinc projects in Utah and Canada include significant existing resource inventories and high-grade mineralization that can generate robust mining proposals. Core to AW1's approach is a commitment to the ethical extraction and processing of minerals and making a meaningful contribution to the communities where its projects are located.

Led by a highly experienced leadership team, AW1's strategic initiatives lay the foundation for a sustainable business which aims to deliver high-multiplier returns on shareholder investment and economic benefits to all stakeholders.

For further information on American West, visit: www.americanwestmetals.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Statements made in this news release, including those regarding entering into the joint venture and each party's interest in the Project pursuant to the agreement in respect of the joint venture, management objectives, forecasts, estimates, expectations, or predictions of the future may constitute "forward-looking statement", which can be identified by the use of conditional or future tenses or by the use of such verbs as "believe", "expect", "may", "will", "should", "estimate", "anticipate", "project", "plan", and words of similar import, including variations thereof and negative forms. This press release contains forward-looking statements that reflect, as of the date of this press release, Aston Bay's expectations, estimates and projections about its operations, the mining industry and the economic environment in which it operates. Statements in this press release that are not supported by historical fact are forward-looking statements, meaning they involve risk, uncertainty and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Although Aston Bay believes that the assumptions inherent in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on these statements, which apply only at the time of writing of this press release. Aston Bay disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent required by securities legislation.

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 news release.

For more information contact:

Thomas Ullrich, Chief Executive Officer

thomas.ullrich@astonbayholdings.com

(416) 456-3516

SOURCE: Aston Bay Holdings Ltd.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - Awale Resources Limited (TSXV: ARIC) ("Awale" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the strategic appointment of personnel, strengthening the Company's leadership team as it advances the Odienne Project in Cote d'Ivoire toward becoming an exceptional mining camp.

Andrew Chubb, CEO of Awale Resources, commented,

"I am delighted to welcome a group of skilled and seasoned professionals to the Awale team. Awale is moving into an exciting new chapter and the addition of their expertise will be instrumental in delivering our exploration efforts across our 100% owned properties, as well as advancing our existing discoveries at Odienne. We are all excited and committed to realizing the full potential of both the Odienne Project and delivering maximum value to our shareholders. These appointments also complement our efforts to strengthen our dedicated team in Cote d'Ivoire, where we are actively promoting and recruiting high quality people."

Andrew Smith - VP Exploration

Mr. Smith is an accomplished economic geologist with over 14 years of exploration and mining experience. Andrew has proven discovery success in both greenfield and near-mine gold exploration. He has well-developed skills in both technical and management roles for exploration and development projects across West Africa and Canada. More recently this has included roles as Director of Exploration Geology for Coeur Mining, Chief Geologist for Awale Resources, and Exploration Manager for Randgold Resources in Senegal. Andrew has an Honours Degree in Geology and Petroleum Geology from the University of Aberdeen in Scotland, is a Fellow of the Geological Society of London, and member of the Society of Exploration Geologists.

Ardem Keshishian - VP Corporate Development & Investor Relations

Mr. Keshishian brings over 15 years of progressive experience in corporate development, investor relations, finance, and capital markets, specializing in the mining sector. Most recently, Ardem served as VP of Corporate Development and Investor Relations at Moneta Gold, a Canadian gold developer with assets in the Timmins Gold Camp, Ontario, until its merger with Nighthawk Gold. Prior to Moneta Gold, He held roles at Royal Road Minerals, Pollitt & Co., Haywood Securities, and Van Berkom & Associates. He is a CFA charter holder and holds a Bachelor of Science from Concordia University and a Master of Business Administration from the John Molson School of Business. Ardem will be primarily responsible for the Company's business and corporate development initiatives, including managing Awale's day-to-day investor communications efforts and relationships with the analyst, broker, and investment communities. His role will be pivotal in driving the Company's growth and ensuring strong stakeholder engagement.

Kirmat Noormohamed - Exploration Manager

Ms. Noormohamed is an Exploration Geologist with technical and operational skills developed through more than 25 years in company and consulting roles within the mining and exploration industry across multiple countries in Africa. She has extensive experience from greenfield exploration to feasibility studies as part of diverse teams within multinational companies such as Anglo American, AngloGold Ashanti, Falconbridge, Redback Mining, Kinross Gold, and Teranga Gold where she has led and been part of teams discovering over 2.5 million ounces of gold. Kirmat holds a BSc from Abilene Christian University, United States of America and is currently completing her MBA at University of Illinois.

John Scott - Principal Geologist

Dr. Scott is a results-focused exploration geologist, with more than 27 years of experience within teams that have delivered numerous discoveries and significant business growth in both near-mine and greenfield settings internationally. John's career as a seasoned technical lead has spanned North America, Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Australasia. John specializes in practical mentorship to upskill field teams, target generation, identifying mineralization controls, and developing robust geologic models at deposit, district and country scales. John holds a Bachelor of Science with Honors (First Class) from the University of Adelaide, Australia as well as a PhD in Structural Geology from the University of Otago, New Zealand. John is also a Fellow of the Society of Economic Geologists and a Member of both the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, and the Society for Geology Applied to Mineral Deposits.

About Awale Resources

Awale is a diligent and systematic mineral exploration Company focused on discovering large high-grade gold and copper-gold deposits. The Company currently undertakes exploration activities in the underexplored parts of Cote d'Ivoire. Awale's exploration success to date has culminated in a fully funded earn-in Joint Venture with Newmont covering one permit and one application (the "Odienne Project JV") within the greater Odienne Copper-Gold Project in the Northwest of Cote d'Ivoire, where three (3) significant gold and gold-copper-silver-molybdenum discoveries have been made. The Sceptre East and Charger discoveries have significant scope for growth with future discovery and resource development drilling. The Project has multiple pipeline prospects with similar geochemical fingerprints to Iron Oxide Copper Gold ("IOCG") and intrusive related mineral systems. The 400km2 of granted tenure and 400km2 under application remain underexplored and offer significant upside potential. The Odienne Project JV forms a solid foundation for the Company to continue exploring in a pro-mining jurisdiction that provides significant potential for district-scale discoveries.

AWALE Resources Limited

On behalf of the Board of Directors

"Andrew Chubb"

Chief Executive Officer

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Andrew Chubb, CEO

(+356) 99139117

a.chubb@awaleresources.com

Ardem Keshishian, VP Corporate Development & Investor Relations

+1 (416) 471-5463

a.keshishian@awaleresources.com

The Company's public documents may be accessed at www.sedarplus.com. For further information on the Company, please visit our website at www.awaleresources.com.



Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws (collectively "forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipate, intend, estimate, plans, postulate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. All statements that are not statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements in this press release include but are not limited to statements regarding, the Company's presence in Cote d'Ivoire and ability to achieve results, creation of value for Company shareholders, achievements under the Newmont JV, works on other properties, planned drilling, commencement of operations. Although the Company believes any forward-looking statements in this press release are reasonable, it can give no assurance that the expectations and assumptions in such statements will prove to be correct. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking information include, but are not limited to, changes in the state of equity and debt markets, fluctuations in commodity prices, delays in obtaining required regulatory or governmental approvals, and other risks involved in the mineral exploration and development industry, including those risks set out in the Company's management's discussion and analysis as filed under the Company's profile at www.sedarplus.ca. Forward-looking information in this news release is based on the opinions and assumptions of management considered reasonable as of the date hereof, including that all necessary governmental and regulatory approvals will be received as and when expected. 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.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220716

SOURCE: Awale Resources Ltd.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - Atacama Copper Corporation (TSXV: ACOP) ("Atacama Copper" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has changed its name to "Fuerte Metals Corporation" (the "Name Change") and trading symbol to "FMT". The board of directors passed a resolution on August 16th, 2024, approving the Name Change in accordance with the Articles of the Company.

It is anticipated that the Company's common shares (the "Common Shares") will commence trading on the TSX Venture Exchange (the "TSXV") under the new name, "Fuerte Metals Corporation" effective as of the open of markets on August 26, 2024. The Common Shares will trade under the trading symbol "FMT" on the TSXV.

Tim Warman, CEO, commented: "Fuerte, Spanish for 'Strong', is a perfect description of this company. Strong management with a long history of discovery and value creation, strong backers with a record of supporting successful companies, and a strong vision for the company. In addition to our precious metals-rich Cristina project, the Company retains a significant focus on copper with Placeton/Caballo Muerto project in Chile which hosts several porphyry copper targets situated between the giant Relincho and El Morro/La Fortuna copper-gold deposits of the Teck/Newmont Nueva Union joint venture."

We anticipate increased news flow this fall. After a short break during the rainy season in Chihuahua, drilling will resume at Cristina in early September with a focus on resource expansion in new target areas and the higher-grade portions of the known deposit. Based on the near-vertical structure of the Cristina veins, and the numerous coherent higher-grade zones identified to date, the Company believes the deposit is both amenable and better suited to underground mining. Drilling will continue through early 2025 as we completed a fully funded 21,000 m program ahead of a resource update later next year.

The CUSIP number assigned to the Company's shares following the Name Change is 35958L101 (ISIN: CA35958L1013).

The Name Change does not affect the rights of the Company's shareholders. There is no consolidation or division of capital associated with the Name Change. Shareholders will not be required to take any action in connection with the Name Change. Issued certificates or direct registration statements representing Common Shares will not be affected by the Name Change and will not need to be exchanged. The Company encourages shareholders to contact their broker with any questions regarding the Name Change.

About Fuerte Metals Corporation

Fuerte Metals is a well-funded resource company adding value through the acquisition, exploration, and development of copper and precious metals projects in the Americas. The company is carrying out a 21,000 m drilling campaign at its Cristina precious metals project in Chihuahua Mexico, with the goal of significantly expanding the existing mineral resource estimate with a focus on underground mining. Drilling is also planned for the Yecora copper project in Sonora Mexico. In Chile, the Placeton/Caballo Muerto project hosts several untested porphyry copper targets situated between the large-scale Relincho and El Morro/La Fortuna copper-gold deposits of the Nueva Union joint venture between Teck and Newmont Mining.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively, "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of the applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements and are based on expectations, estimates and projections as at the date of this news release. Any statement that involves discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions, future events or performance (often but not always using phrases such as "expects", or "does not expect", "is expected", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", "plans", "budget", "scheduled", "forecasts", "estimates", "believes" or "intends" or variations of such words and phrases or stating that certain actions, events or results "may" or "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken to occur or be achieved) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking statements.

In this news release, forward-looking statements relate to, among other things, the anticipated timing from which the Common Shares will trade on the TSXV under the new name of the Company and management's objectives, strategies, beliefs and intentions and receipt of final approval from the TSX Venture Exchange. Various assumptions or factors are typically applied in drawing conclusions or making the forecasts or projections set out in forward-looking information. Those assumptions and factors are based on information currently available to the Company. The forward-looking information contained in this release is made as of the date hereof and the Company is not obligated to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. Due to the risks, uncertainties and assumptions contained herein, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The foregoing statements expressly qualify any forward-looking information contained herein.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220738

SOURCE: Atacama Copper Corporation
Der Goldpreis haussiert und schwingt sich von Hoch zu Hoch. Getrieben von geopolitischen Unsicherheiten sowie der Aussicht auf eine lockere Geldpolitik der FED gehen Experten aktuell von weiter steigenden Notierungen bis sogar in den Bereich von 3.000 US-Dollar je Unze Gold aus.



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DONGGUAN, China, June 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- QCY, a premier audio brand renowned for its expertise in wireless audio technology, announces the launch of MeloBuds Pro Adaptive ANC Wireless Earbuds . These wireless earbuds deliver Hi-Res Audio and stereo sound with powerful ANC while ensuring exceptional comfort for extended wear.

Zowerful Adaptive ANC

Equipped with Adaptive Active Noise Cancellation(ANC), MeloBuds Pro auto-adjusts noise cancellation to adapt to your ear accordingly by analyzing your ear canal structure and how you wear it. The ANC system contributes to a wide frequency range (20 Hz-2500 kHz), with maximum ANC depth as high as 46 dB. Featuring 6 microphones and a wind noise-minimizing design, AI-based voice pickup technology ensures crystal-clear calls by cancelling ambient noise while enhancing vocals.

High-Resolution Sound

MeloBuds Pro supports LDAC high-resolution codec and is certified by Hi-Res Audio Wireless, supporting fast transmission of up to 990 kbps, and transmitting pure high-fidelity sound that spares no detail. Its advanced spatial audio algorithm enhances the soundstage, offering a 360 Stereo Sound experience. Equipped with a 12mm dynamic driver unit, MeloBuds Pro also offers a rich cascade of sound, texture, and detail.

Transparency Mode

Adjusting from 6 levels of Transparency Mode, users can stay engaged with their surroundings while enjoying music with MeloBuds Pro. The earbuds can enhance vocal during face-to-face conversations, allowing clear interactions without removing the earbuds.

Other Features

Smart Wearing Detection: MeloBuds Pro's proximity sensor knows when they're worn, pausing audio when taken out and resuming playback when put back in.

MeloBuds Pro's proximity sensor knows when they're worn, pausing audio when taken out and resuming playback when put back in. Extended Battery Life: Enjoy up to 34 hours of playtime with the charging case and get up to 1 hour of use with just a 10-minute charge.

Enjoy up to 34 hours of playtime with the charging case and get up to 1 hour of use with just a 10-minute charge. Dual-Device Connectivity: You can connect MeloBuds Pro to two devices and seamlessly switch between them with simple touch controls.

You can connect MeloBuds Pro to two devices and seamlessly switch between them with simple touch controls. Ultra-Low Latency: With an 80ms latency, MeloBuds Pro ensures synchronized audio and video for an enhanced gaming and movie experience.

With an 80ms latency, MeloBuds Pro ensures synchronized audio and video for an enhanced gaming and movie experience. IPX5 Waterproof rating: Splashes and sweat won't stop MeloBuds Pro.

Availability and Prices

QCY officially announced MeloBuds Pro in late August. Available in Gold, Green, White, and Black, the MeloBuds Pro is priced at $47.99. For more details, please visit the QCY website.

About QCY

QCY is a premier audio brand, established in 2009. As a global leader in wireless audio technology, QCY boasts over 200 technology research and development engineers and operates a comprehensive ecosystem integrating production, research and development, sales, and an audio testing laboratory. The brand's distribution channels span across the globe. For more information about QCY and its brands and products, please visit qcy.com.

PR Contact

Tracy, Senior PR Manager, QCY

pr@qcyearphone.com

Rice, Marketing Director, QCY

Rice@qcyearphone.com

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2429459/QCY_MeloBuds_Pro_Adaptive_ANC_Wireless_Earbuds.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2415696/QCY_LOGO_Logo.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/qcy-launches-melobuds-pro-advanced-anc-wireless-earbuds-with-hi-res-audio-and-extended-comfort-302228540.html
Life & Health NBV jumps 11.0% YoY, demonstrating significant positive results in high-quality business development

HONG KONG and SHANGHAI, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. (hereafter "Ping An" or the "Group", HKEX: 2318; SSE: 601318) today announced its 2024 interim results for the six month period ended 30 June 2024.

In the first half of 2024, China's economy was generally stable despite a complex external environment. Facing opportunities and challenges, Ping An focused on its core financial businesses, strengthened its "integrated finance + health and senior care" strategy, and improved the business quality and efficiency by providing customers with "worry-free, time-saving, and money-saving" service experience. The overall operating results remained solid, demonstrating resilience. In the first half of 2024, Ping An delivered a 16.4% annualized operating ROE, with operating profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company reaching RMB78,482 million. Net profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company rose 6.8% year on year to RMB74,619 million. The Group's total assets grew to nearly RMB12.23 trillion as of June 30, 2024. Attaching importance to shareholder returns, Ping An will pay an interim dividend of RMB0.93 per share in cash, maintaining stable cash dividends.

Ping An delivered significant positive results in high-quality business development. Three core businesses, namely life and health insurance ("Life & Health"), property and casualty insurance ("Ping An P&C"), and banking, achieved growth and delivered RMB79,565 million in operating profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company, up 1.7% year on year. Life & Health's new business value ("NBV") grew 11.0% year on year to RMB22,320 million. Agent productivity continued to increase with NBV of the agent channel up 10.8% and NBV per agent up 36.0% year on year. Business quality improved steadily as Ping An Life recorded a material improvement in its persistency ratios with the 13-month persistency ratio rising 2.8 pps year on year. Ping An delivered excellent results in insurance funds investment, with the portfolio achieving an annualized comprehensive investment yield of 4.2% in the first half of 2024. Ping An continued to develop its "integrated finance + health and senior care" strategy. Retail customers increased to 236 million as of June 30, 2024; 24.9% of them held four or more contracts within the Group, with a retention rate of 97.8%. Over 87.92 million retail customers held multiple contracts with different subsidiaries. Customers entitled to service benefits in the health and senior care ecosystem accounted for over 68% of Ping An Life's NBV in the first half of 2024.

Top nine business highlights in 1H2024

1.Stable cash dividends amid steady business results. The Group delivered a 16.4% annualized operating ROE, with operating profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company reaching RMB78,482 million in the first half of 2024. Three core businesses, namely Life & Health, Ping An P&C, and banking, achieved growth and delivered RMB79,565 million in operating profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company, up 1.7% year on year. Attaching importance to shareholder returns, Ping An will pay an interim dividend of RMB0.93 per share in cash.

2.Life & Health grew continuously and achieved high-quality development in its agent channel. NBV amounted to RMB22,320 million in the first half of 2024, up 11.0% year on year. Agent productivity continued to increase with NBV of the agent channel up 10.8% and NBV per agent up 36.0% year on year. The number of Ping An Life's individual life insurance sales agents reached about 340,000 as of June 30, 2024.

3.Ping An P&C maintained good business quality with steady revenue growth. Ping An P&C's insurance revenue rose 3.9% year on year to RMB161,910 million in the first half of 2024. The company maintained a healthy overall combined ratio at 97.8% through enhanced business management and risk screening.

4.Ping An Bank maintained steady business performance as well as adequate capital and risk provisions. Net profit grew 1.9% year on year to RMB25,879 million in the first half of 2024. Core tier 1 capital adequacy ratio rose to 9.33% and provision coverage ratio was 264.26% as of June 30, 2024.

5.Ping An delivered excellent results in insurance funds investment. In a complex and volatile market environment, Ping An's insurance funds investment portfolio achieved an annualized comprehensive investment yield of 4.2% in the first half of 2024, up 0.1 pps year on year. The portfolio achieved a 5.4% average comprehensive investment yield over the past decade.

6.Ping An continued to develop integrated finance. Retail customers increased to 236 million as of June 30, 2024; 24.9% of them held four or more contracts within the Group, with a retention rate of 97.8%.

7.Ping An continued to implement its health and senior care ecosystem strategy, achieving significant positive results with differential advantages. By integrating providers, Ping An partnered with all top 100 hospitals and 3A hospitals, and accumulated about 50,000 in-house doctors and contracted external doctors in China as of June 30, 2024. Ping An partnered with approximately 233,000 pharmacies as of June 30, 2024, up by over 2,500 from the beginning of the year. Customers entitled to service benefits in the health and senior care ecosystem accounted for over 68% of Ping An Life's NBV in the first half of 2024.

8.Ping An actively fulfilled its social responsibilities and supported the real economy. Ping An cumulatively invested nearly RMB9.46 trillion as of June 30, 2024 to bolster the real economy. Green investment of insurance funds and green loan balance reached RMB124,877 million and RMB164,634 million respectively as of June 30, 2024. Ping An's green insurance premium income amounted to RMB23,605 million, and funds provided for rural industrial vitalization via "Ping An Rural Communities Support" totaled RMB17,024 million in the first half of 2024. Ping An made its debut in the Fortune China ESG Impact List in 2024.

9.Ping An further increased its brand value. In 2024, Ping An ranked 53rd on the Fortune Global 500 list and remained first in the global "Insurance: life and health" industry; 29th on the Forbes Global 2000 list and remained 1st among Chinese insurers; 1st on the Brand Finance Insurance 100 list for the 8th consecutive year.

Deepened integrated finance model drove the stable growth in three core businesses.

Life insurance operating results grew continuously, and the business quality continued to improve. Ping An Life continued to enhance its channels and improve business quality under the "4 channels + 3 products" strategy in the first half of 2024. By upgrading "insurance + service" solutions, Ping An Life continuously strengthened its presence in health and senior care sectors to empower high-quality business development. Life & Health NBV grew 11.0% year on year to RMB22,320 million in the first half of 2024. Ping An Life recorded a material improvement in its persistency ratios with the 13-month persistency ratio rising 2.8 pps year on year and 25-month persistency ratio rising 3.3 pps year on year in the first half of 2024.

Ping An Life continued to enhance channel development. In the agent channel, the company continued to deepen the transformation and improve the team structure, focusing on recruiting high-quality new agents with the support of existing high-quality agents. Agent channel NBV grew 10.8% year on year in the first half of 2024. NBV per agent grew 36.0% year on year. The proportion of "Talent+" new agents increased by 10.2 pps year on year. The number of Ping An Life's individual life insurance sales agents reached about 340,000 as of June 30, 2024. In the bancassurance channel, Ping An Life adhered to its value-oriented transformation strategy. Bancassurance channel NBV rose 17.3% year on year in the first half of 2024. In Community Grid and other channels, Ping An Life focused on retained customers and set up 126 Community Grid outlets in 90 cities as of June 30, 2024, an increase of 39 cities from the beginning of the year. Ping An Life built a team of approximately 15,000 highly competent specialists who perform effective service operations. Community Grid's 13-month policy persistency ratio of retained customers improved by 5.8 pps year on year in the first half of 2024, and FYP was 2.6 times that for the same period last year. In the lower-tier channel, Ping An Life continuously promoted sales in 7 provinces, gradually building robust sales channels in the first half of 2024.

"Insurance + service" offerings have gained traction. Ping An Life provided health management services to nearly 16 million customers in the first half of 2024. More than 120,000 customers qualified for home-based senior care services, which covered 64 cities across China as of June 30, 2024. Ping An has unveiled premium health and senior care communities in 5 cities.

Ping An P&C maintained stable business growth and good business quality. The company grew its insurance revenue by 3.9% year on year and improved its overall combined ratio ("COR") by 0.2 pps to 97.8% in the first half of 2024. In auto insurance, overall operations are steady and in good order. Auto insurance premium income rose 3.4% year on year to RMB104,824 million, and vehicles insured increased 5.9% year on year in the first half of 2024. As a one-stop service platform for auto owners, the "Ping An Auto Owner" app had more than 218 million registered users as of June 30, 2024, with over 142 million vehicles linked to it. Ping An P&C offers leading online claims services and scored 90.87 in the Auto Insurance Service Quality Index evaluation by CBIT (China Banking and Insurance Information Technology Management Co., Ltd.), positioning the company among the leading players in the property and casualty insurance industry.

Ping An Bank maintained steady business performance and adequate risk provisions. The bank adheres to its strategy of "strong retail banking, selective corporate banking, and specialized interbank business." Net profit grew 1.9% year on year to RMB25,879 million in the first half of 2024. Core tier 1 capital adequacy ratio increased to 9.33% as of June 30, 2024. Ping An Bank continuously strengthened risk management and maintained adequate risk provisions. Non-performing loan ratio and provision coverage ratio were 1.07% and 264.26% respectively as of June 30, 2024. The bank promoted the high-quality sustainable development of its retail business. Retail assets under management ("AUM") rose 2.2% from the beginning of the year to RMB4,120,630 million, and retail deposit balance grew 6.9% from the beginning of the year to RMB1,290,345 million as of June 30, 2024. In corporate business, Ping An Bank closely follows national strategies to serve the real economy. Corporate loan balance grew 11.4% from the beginning of the year to RMB1,592,139 million as of June 30, 2024. Corporate deposit balance grew 3.7% from the beginning of the year to RMB2,280,467 million.

Ping An delivered excellent results in insurance funds investment. The Group's insurance funds investment portfolio grew 10.2% from the beginning of the year to more than RMB5.20 trillion as of June 30, 2024. The Group upheld a balanced and prudent approach to its insurance funds investment portfolio under the guidance of long-term strategic asset allocation in the first half of 2024. The portfolio achieved an annualized comprehensive investment yield of 4.2% in the first half of 2024, up by 0.1 pps year on year. The portfolio achieved a 5.4% average comprehensive investment yield over the past decade.

Ping An advanced its integrated finance strategy under a customer-centric philosophy. The Group focused on the development of retail customers, building a brand of heartwarming financial services by providing "worry-free, time-saving, and money-saving" one-stop integrated financial solutions. Integrated finance brought Ping An higher operational efficiency, lower operating and risk costs, and higher customer retention rates. The Group's retail customers increased 1.9% from the beginning of the year to 236 million as of June 30, 2024; 24.9% of retail customers held four or more contracts within the Group, with a retention rate of 97.8%. Contracts per retail customer reached 2.93. Over 87.92 million retail customers held multiple contracts with different subsidiaries. Thanks to Ping An's diverse integrated finance products and channels, as well as the enhanced "worry-free, time-saving, and money-saving" services, new customers acquired in the first half of 2024 totaled 13.92 million. Retail cross-selling deepens as Ping An adheres to long-term customer development and continuously gains customer insights. Middle-class and above customers accounted for approximately 77.7% of the Group's total retail customers, and high net-worth individuals ("HNWIs") held about 20.13 contracts per customer as of June 30, 2024.

Ping An launched a Chinese "managed care model" as a new driver of value growth. Ping An actively promoted the Chinese "managed care model" by seamlessly combining its online/offline health and senior care ecosystem with financial businesses in which Ping An acted as a payer. The Group built a health and senior care ecosystem in China with differential advantages, including "online, in-store and home-delivered" service capabilities, extensive coverage of health and senior care service resources, and access to high-quality proprietary resources.

Ping An empowered core financial businesses through differentiated "Product + Service" offerings. 28.6% of the Group's new retail customers were acquired from its health and senior care ecosystem in the first half of 2024. Customers entitled to service benefits in the Group's health and senior care ecosystem accounted for over 68% of Ping An Life's NBV in the first half of 2024. More than 63% of Ping An's 236 million retail customers used services from the health and senior care ecosystem as of June 30, 2024. They held approximately 3.36 contracts and RMB57,500 in AUM per capita, 1.6 times and 3.8 times those held by non-users of these services respectively. Nearly 16 million customers of Ping An Life used services from the health and senior care ecosystem in the first half of 2024. Notably, nearly 70% of Ping An Life's newly-enrolled customers used health management services in the first half of 2024.

Ping An made significant progress in retail and corporate customer development by effectively integrating insurance with health and senior care services. The Group's health and senior care ecosystem had more than 67,000 paying corporate clients and their nearly 27 million employees were served in the first half of 2024. Ping An Health had approximately 40 million paying users over the 12 months ended June 30, 2024. PKU Healthcare Group's revenue continued to grow to approximately RMB2.52 billion in the first half of 2024, driven by its robust operations and faster development since its takeover by Ping An in 2021. Ping An had about 50,000 in-house doctors and contracted external doctors as well as 34 general hospitals, health management centers, and children's rehabilitation centers in China as of June 30, 2024. The Group also partnered with more than 36,000 hospitals, over 104,000 health care management institutions, and approximately 233,000 pharmacies in China as of June 30, 2024. Overseas, Ping An partnered with more than 1,300 health care institutions in 35 countries as of June 30, 2024, including 8 of the global top10 on the Newsweek's World's Best Hospitals List.

Ping An continued to build world-leading AI capabilities. The Group focused on developing core technologies and securing proprietary intellectual property rights. According to the latest ranking released by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in 2024, Ping An ranked second globally with 1,564 generative AI patent applications. The Group's patent applications led most international financial institutions, totaling 52,185 as of June 30, 2024. Ping An had a first-class technology team of more than 20,000 technology developers and over 3,000 scientists as of June 30, 2024. From the perspective of transforming and upgrading Ping An's core businesses, technology benefits are reflected in higher sales, better business efficiency, and stronger risk management. The volume of services provided by Ping An's AI service representatives reached about 870 million times, accounting for 80% of Ping An's total customer service volume in the first half of 2024. It took an average of 7.4 minutes to close a claim with Smart Quick Claim. Moreover, claims savings via smart fraud risk identification grew 4.3% year on year to RMB6.1 billion in the first half of 2024 as Ping An continuously strengthened risk management.

In the second half of 2024, China's economic recovery will be further bolstered as the government deepens reform comprehensively and household consumption and public expectations continuously improve. Ping An will thoroughly study and implement the spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (the "CPC"), uphold the CPC Central Committee's centralized, unified leadership over financial work, adhere to a people-centered value orientation, relentlessly pursue high-quality development, and strive for sustainable, well-structured and high-quality resilient growth. Ping An will continue to implement its business policy of "focusing on core businesses, boosting revenue and cutting costs, optimizing structure, and enhancing quality and efficiency," and advance its technology-driven "integrated finance + health and senior care" strategy. Taking the "worry-free, time-saving, and money-saving" value proposition as its business guidance, service standard, and long-term commitment, the Group strives to create long-term, stable and sustainable value for customers, employees, shareholders and society.

- End -

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Aurwest Resources Corporation ("Aurwest" or the "Company") (CSE:AWR) today reports the Company's financial and operational results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2024. For further information please see the Company's Consolidated Financial Statements and Management's Discussion and Analysis ("MD&A") filed on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.com under the Company's profile.

Further to filing the Company's Financial Statements and MD&A, the Company is pleased to provide an update on our quarterly operating highlights as set out below:

Second Quarter 2024 Financial Highlights

Consolidated cash and cash equivalents of $12,537 as at June 30, 2024.

Net loss for the second quarter was $76,893 or ($0.00) per share.

Cash used in operating activities, before changes in working capital, for the second quarter was ($84,883).

Cash used in investing activities was ($3,211), associated exploration and evaluation expense.

The Company worked to minimize future capital obligation which will allow the Company to refocus its ongoing future exploration activities at its Stars Copper project in B.C.

For Additional Information

Cameron MacDonald

Telephone: (403) 585-9875

Email: cmacdonald@aurwestresources.com

Website: www.aurwestresources.com

About Aurwest Resources Corporation

Aurwest is a Canadian-based junior resource company focused on the acquisition, exploration, and development of gold properties in Canada. The Company currently holds a 100% interest in the Stellar copper/gold project totaling 734 hectares plus an additional 3,762 hectares of contiguous claims at the Stars projects located approximately 65 kilometers southwest of Houston British Columbia.

Forward-Looking Information

Statements included in this announcement, including statements concerning our plans, intentions, and expectations, which are not historical in nature are intended to be, and are hereby identified as "forward-looking statements". Forward looking statements may be identified by words including "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "expects" and similar expressions. The Company cautions readers that forward-looking statements, including without limitation: additional exploration of the properties may not locate significant gold mineralization, the exploration program may not be completed as planned or at all; the Company may not be able to assemble a seasoned exploration team, the path finder elements may not be indicative of gold mineralization; the western margin of the Dunnage zone may not be located within the Property; the structural elements of the Central Newfoundland Gold Belt may not be similar to the Abitibi and Fosterville gold camps; the Company's ability to raise additional funding to conduct exploration; receipt of permits to conduct the exploration plans and matters relating to the Company's future operations and business prospects; certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Readers are advised to rely on their own evaluation of such risks and uncertainties and should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, except in accordance with the applicable laws.

The Canadian Securities Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Aurwest Resources Corporation

View the original press release on accesswire.com
PEMBROKE PINES, FL / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Green Leaf Innovations, Inc. (OTC PINK:GRLF), a Florida corporation and an emerging growth company engaged in the marketing and distribution of handmade premium cigars, is pleased to announce the signing of a letter of intent to acquire SOFLO Wholesaler Group, Inc., a leading wholesale cigar distributor.









SOFLO Wholesaler Group, Inc. has made significant strides in the cigar industry over the past four years, earning a reputation as the distributor of the #1 rated cigars among the Top 30 in the industry. Under the leadership of President Miguel Pinto, an industry veteran with over 20 years of experience, SOFLO has grown its market share to serve over 400 customers across various sectors, including cigar lounges, smoke shops, cigar distributors, C-stores, and duty-free shops.

In 2023, SOFLO reported revenues of $2.3 million, with anticipated growth projected for 2024. The company's current assets exceed $500,000, further solidifying its strong financial foundation.

The acquisition of SOFLO Wholesaler Group, Inc. will significantly enhance Green Leaf Innovations' product offerings, which include premium cigars and cigar accessories, and will bolster its presence in the expanding U.S. and international markets.

Roberto Mederos, CEO of Green Leaf Innovations, Inc., commented, "This strategic acquisition marks a pivotal moment for our company as we continue to build on our commitment to delivering the finest cigars to our customers. With Miguel Pinto and the SOFLO team joining forces with Green Leaf, we are confident that this partnership will drive growth and value for our shareholders."

The transaction is expected to close in the coming weeks, subject to customary closing conditions.

About Green Leaf Innovations, Inc.

Green Leaf Innovations, Inc., a Florida corporation, is an emerging growth company engaged in the Marketing and Distribution of handmade premium cigars. The company strategically imports and exclusively distributes some of the best known premium cigar brands in the Market created by the Mederos family a Third generation Cigar maker with Robert Mederos at the helm who has owned and operated handmade cigar operation in Nicaragua and the US for over 20 years with a rich family history in the craft dating back to the 1800s Cuba, brands such as CUBANACAN, MEDEROS and TABACALERA SERRANO. In addition to it the company also distributes packaged whole leaf Tobacco to cigar lounges, smoke shops, C-stores and vape shops across the United States and soon International Markets.

Additional information can be found on our websites http://www.greenleafinnovation.com or follow us on Twitter @otcgrlf.

For more information, press only:

Phone number: (800) 303-6268

Email: info@greenleafinnovation.com

Safe Harbor Statement:

The information posted in this release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You can identify these statements by use of the words "may," "will," "should," "plans," "expects," "anticipates," "continue," "estimate," "project," "intend," and similar expressions. The Company may also make written or oral forward-looking statements in its filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, in press releases and other written materials, and in oral statements made by its officers, directors or employees to third parties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate. The Company cautions that these forward-looking statements are further qualified by other factors including, but not limited to, those set forth in the Company's Annual Reports on Form 10-K and its other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or anticipated. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, general economic and business conditions, effects of continued geopolitical unrest and regional conflicts, competition, changes in technology and methods of marketing, delays in completing various engineering and manufacturing programs, changes in customer order patterns, changes in product mix, continued success in technological advances and delivering technological innovations, shortages in components, production delays due to performance quality issues with outsourced components, and various other factors beyond the Company's control. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or to revise any statements in this release, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

Contact Information

RYAN MEDICO

MARKETING MANAGER

info@greenleafinnovation.com

8003036268

SOURCE: Green Leaf Innovations, Inc.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Highlights:

BamaStar natural flake graphite concentrate was successfully upgraded to 99.95% fixed carbon, which is suitable for lithium-ion batteries and a variety of other value-add applications.

South Star is advancing a process flowsheet for producing coated, spheronized, purified graphite ("CSPG") using commercially available equipment and industry standard, proven technology with no special products or proprietary intellectual property.

The purification test results will be incorporated into the upcoming National Instrument 43-101 Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA"), which is scheduled for publication in September 2024.

South Star's immediate go-to-market commercial strategy is to produce high-quality graphite concentrates from Santa Cruz Graphite Mine in Brazil beginning in 2024 for a variety of industrial applications and sectors. Concurrently, technical product-development programs are continuing to advance the Company's vertically integrated midstream and downstream product suite for value-added applications using graphite concentrates from both Santa Cruz and BamaStar, with commercial sales planned by Q4 2026.

SOUTH STAR BATTERY METALS CORP. ("South Star" or the "Company") (TSXV:STS)(OTCQB:STSBF) is pleased to announce the positive purification results using a classic chemical purification process with its technology partner, Dorfner Anzaplan GMBH ("Anzaplan"). Chemical purification is the proven industry standard, which is currently the primary scalable, commercially-viable technology in use for improving the quality of concentrate graphite for a broad range of value-add applications, including lithium-ion batteries ("LiB"). Further to the March 23, 2024 press release, the purification test results will be incorporated into the upcoming PEA, which is scheduled for publication in September 2024.

Multiple kilograms of run-of-mine, natural flake graphite concentrate from the BamaStar Graphite Project ("BamaStar") with an average fixed carbon content of 93.47%, were purified to 99.95% C at Anzaplan's laboratory in Hirschau, Germany. The excellent purification results prove the material can be upgraded to a purity that is suitable for a broad range of battery applications including, alkaline, lead-acid and LiB, as well as value-add applications such as conductivity enhancement materials, expandable/expanded graphite, brushes, foils and gaskets. Additionally, the initial tests are unoptimized and resulted in extremely pure graphitic carbon with low levels of contaminants, as well as ease and flexibility of upgrading using dilute reagents. Additional test work, studies and optimizations are ongoing.

Richard Pearce, President and CEO of South Star, commented: "We are pleased to announce these exciting purification results for BamaStar, as part of the upcoming PEA study. Both our projects have now proven their suitability to attain purified grades suitable for LiBs and other value-add applications. In multiple conversations with LiB battery manufacturers, they all emphasize a similar message for potential anode suppliers. They are looking for solid partners that have scalable projects in secure jurisdictions and can provide similar anode products to their current materials secured from Asia using simple, proven technologies and production flowsheets. They also want alternative production locations in the Americas and Europe to ensure a more secure, more diversified supply chain. South Star is proud of its accomplishments at Santa Cruz as the first new graphite producer in the Americas since 1996, with production planned for Q3 2024. Our team is executing the Company's strategic plan of bringing vertically integrated, phased/modular production in the Americas of midstream and downstream products in a disciplined, technically viable and profitable business plan with commercial sales planned by 2026."

South Star has a go-to-market commercial strategy to offer an extremely high-quality graphite concentrates from Santa Cruz in Brazil to a broad array of possible markets and sectors in 2024. Concurrently, technical product-development programs are continuing to advance the Company's vertically integrated midstream and downstream product suite for value-added applications -- specifically, battery-graphite products, including specialty Coated Spherical Purified Graphite ("CSPG" or "Active Anode Material") for lithium-ion ("Li-ion") battery applications and conductivity-enhancement products applicable to all commercial primary and secondary battery chemistries.

# # #

ABOUT DORFNER ANZAPLAN GMBH

Dorfner is a leading European specialty minerals producer delivering high-quality mineral products to different industries. ANZAPLAN was founded in 1985 to become the most independent venture within the Dorfner group of companies while concentrating the group's analytical and engineering know-how to serve external customers. Extensive know-how in specialty minerals processing, including liberation of fine-grained minerals, separation, flotation, and mechanical, chemical, and thermal modification derived from more than a century of day-to-day processing experience at Dorfner, has been successfully applied in the processing of various graphite raw materials. Furthermore, Dorfner has detailed expertise in advanced chemical and thermal purification, upgrading graphite concentrates to >99.9% purity levels. Today Dorfner is a specialist with a strong focus on specialty minerals and metals businesses (e.g. graphite, lithium minerals, rare-earth elements, high purity quartz), providing a one-stop-shop solution across all phases of the economic evaluation and process development -- with technological expertise from its laboratories, test-center and pilot-plant processing facilities including basic and advanced engineering services.

Purification processes including mechanical, chemical, and thermal-refinement technologies are key elements in ANZAPLAN's and Dorfner's daily business to efficiently remove impurities by targeting high-value products. ANZAPLAN's experience in the processing of graphite includes extensive test work carried out for several different projects including flake and hydrothermal vein graphite deposits as well as processing of synthetic graphite.

About South Star Battery Metals Corp.

South Star is a Canadian battery-metals project developer focused on the selective acquisition and development of near-term production projects in the Americas. South Star's Santa Cruz Graphite Project, located in Southern Bahia, Brazil is the first of a series of industrial- and battery-metals projects that will be put into production. Brazil is the second-largest graphite-producing region in the world with more than 80 years of continuous mining. Santa Cruz has at-surface mineralization in friable materials, and successful large-scale pilot-plant testing (> 30 tonnes) has been completed. The results of the testing show that approximately 65% of graphite concentrate is +80 mesh with good recoveries and 95%-99% graphitic carbon (Cg). With excellent infrastructure and logistics, South Star is fully funded for Phase 1, and the construction and commissioning are underway. Santa Cruz will be the first new graphite production in the Americas since 1996, with Phase 1 commercial production projected in Q3 2024. Phase 2 production (25,000 tonnes / year) is partially funded and planned for 2026, while Phase 3 (50,000 tonnes / year) is scheduled for 2028.

South Star's second project in the development pipeline is strategically located in Alabama, U.S.A. in the center of a developing electric-vehicle, aerospace, and defense hub in the southeastern United States. The BamaStar Project includes a historic mine active during the First and Second World Wars. A NI 43-101 guided technical report with the maiden resource estimate has been filed on SEDAR. Trenching, Phase 1 drilling, sampling, analysis, and preliminary metallurgical testing have been completed. The testing included a traditional crush/grind/flotation concentration circuit that achieved grades of approximately 94-99% Cg with approximately 90% recoveries. The vertically integrated production facilities include a mine and industrial concentrator in Coosa County, AL and a downstream value-add plant in the Southeast U.S., which will be upgrading natural flake graphite concentrates from both Santa Cruz and BamaStar mines. South Star is executing on its plan to create a multi-asset, diversified battery-metals company with near-term operations in strategic jurisdictions. South Star trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol STS, and on the OTCQB under the symbol STSBF.

South Star is committed to a corporate culture, project execution plan and safe operations that embrace the highest standards of ESG principles, based on transparency, stakeholder engagement, ongoing education, and stewardship. To learn more, please visit the Company website at http://www.southstarbatterymetals.com .

This news release has been reviewed and approved by Richard Pearce, P.E., a "Qualified Person" under National Instrument 43-101 and President and CEO of South Star Battery Metals Corp.

On behalf of the South Star Board of Directors,

MR. RICHARD L. PEARCE,

President & Chief Executive Officer

For additional information, please contact:

South Star Investor Relations

Email: invest@southstarbatterymetals.com

Phone: +1 (604) 706-0212

Website: www.southstarbatterymetals.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/southstarbm

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/southstarbatterymetals

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/southstarbatterymetals/

YouTube: South Star Battery Metals - YouTube

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT

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 press release.

Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking statements relate to information that is based on assumptions of management, forecasts of future results, and estimates of amounts not yet determinable. Any statements that express predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance are not statements of historical fact and may be "forward-looking statements". Forward-looking statements in this press release include, but are not limited to statements regarding moving Santa Cruz into production and scaling operations as well as advancing the Alabama project; and the Company's plans and expectations.

Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: risks related to failure to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis and on acceptable terms; risks related to the outcome of legal proceedings; political and regulatory risks associated with mining and exploration; risks related to the maintenance of stock exchange listings; risks related to environmental regulation and liability; the potential for delays in exploration or development activities or the completion of feasibility studies; the uncertainty of profitability; risks and uncertainties relating to the interpretation of drill results, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; risks related to the inherent uncertainty of production and cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses; results of prefeasibility and feasibility studies, and the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with the Company's expectations; risks related to commodity price fluctuations; and other risks and uncertainties related to the Company's prospects, properties and business detailed elsewhere in the Company's disclosure record. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances. Actual events or results could differ materially from the Company's expectations or projections.

SOURCE: South Star Battery Metals Corp.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
West Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - Surge Battery Metals Inc. (TSXV: NILI) (OTCQX: NILIF) (FSE: DJ5) (the "Company" or "Surge") is pleased to announce that Surge and M3 Metals Corp. ("M3M") have entered into a property purchase and sale agreement (the "Purchase Agreement") whereby M3M, in consideration of the issuance to M3M of a total of 1,200,000 common shares of the Company, will sell to the Company all of its right, title and interest in and to the Texas Springs Properties (the "Properties") in the area of the Company's Nevada North Lithium Project.

The Properties, which Surge and M3M each own fifty (50%) percent of, were the subject of a mineral property option agreement (the "Option Agreement") dated effective July 26, 2023. The Option Agreement, and all rights and obligations under it, has been terminated by the Purchase Agreement.

Upon closing of the Purchase Agreement, Surge will own a one hundred (100%) percent right, title and interest in and to the Properties and M3M will execute quit claim deeds to the Properties which will be in registrable form for (and will be registered in) Elko County, Nevada.

More information concerning the Properties, including their location and number, can be found in Surge's continuous disclosure documents filed on SEDAR as well as in news releases of Surge, including its news release dated July 26, 2023, and the technical report filed on April 28, 2024.

The Purchase Agreement is subject to its acceptance for filing with the TSX Venture Exchange.

The Company also wishes to announce that it has granted a total of 2,850,000 stock options, exercisable for a period of five years, at an exercise price of 40 cents a share to certain directors, officers, and consultants.

About Surge Battery Metals Inc.

Surge Battery Metals, a Canadian-based mineral exploration company, is at the forefront of securing the supply of domestic lithium through its active engagement in the Nevada North Lithium Project. The project focuses on exploring clean, high-grade lithium energy metals in Nevada, USA. Lithium is a crucial element for powering the electric vehicles of tomorrow. With a primary listing on the TSX Venture Exchange in Canada and the OTCQX Market in the US, Surge Battery Metals Inc. is strategically positioned as a key player in advancing lithium exploration, contributing significantly to the sustainable future of the electric vehicle industry.

About the Nevada North Lithium Project

The Company's Nevada North Lithium Project, located in the Granite Range southeast of Jackpot, Nevada 73 km north-northeast of Wells, Elko County, Nevada. The first two rounds of drilling, completed in 2022 and 2023, identified a strongly mineralized zone of lithium bearing clays occupying a strike length of more than 3,000 meters and a known width of up to 950 meters. Highly anomalous soil values and geophysical surveys suggest there is potential for the clay horizons to be much greater in extent. The Nevada North Lithium Project has a pit-constrained Inferred Resource containing an estimated 4.67Mt of Lithium Carbonate Equivalent (LCE) grading 2,839 ppm Li at a 1,250 ppm cutoff. The 2024 drilling program is complete and continued to intersect high-grade lithium mineralization and has extended drill-indicated mineralization 1,300 meters to the south from 2022 and 2023 holes. The 2024 drilling results will be incorporated into an updated and expanded resource estimate, which will be released mid to late September.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

"Greg Reimer"

Greg Reimer,

President & CEO

Keep up-to-date with Surge Battery Metals on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.

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 document may contain certain "Forward-Looking Statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and applicable Canadian securities laws. When used in this news release, the words "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "target, "plan" or "planned", "possible", "potential", "forecast", "intend", "may", "schedule" and similar words or expressions identify forward-looking statements or information. These forward-looking statements or information may relate to future prices of commodities including lithium and nickel, the accuracy of mineral or resource exploration activity, reserves or resources, regulatory or government requirements or approvals including approvals of title and mining rights or licenses and environmental, local community or indigenous community approvals, the reliability of third party information, continued access to mineral properties or infrastructure or water, changes in laws, rules and regulations including in the United States, Nevada or California or any other jurisdiction which may impact upon the Company or its properties or the commercial exploitation of those properties, currency risks including the exchange rate of USD$ for Cdn$ or other currencies, fluctuations in the market for lithium related products, changes in exploration costs and government royalties, export policies or taxes in the United States or any other jurisdiction and other factors or information. The Company's current plans, expectations, and intentions with respect to development of its business and of its Nevada properties may be impacted by economic uncertainties arising out of any pandemic or by the impact of current financial and other market conditions (including US government subsidies or incentives) on its ability to secure further financing or funding of its Nevada properties. Such statements represent the Company's current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon several assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by the Company, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political, environmental (including endangered species, habitat preservation and water related risks) and social risks, contingencies, and uncertainties. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. The Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements or information to reflect changes in assumptions or changes in circumstances or any other events affecting such statements and information other than as required by applicable laws, rules, and regulations.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220698

SOURCE: Surge Battery Metals Inc.
TOKYO, Aug 22, 2024 - (JCN Newswire) - Eisai Co., Ltd. and Biogen Inc.announced today that the humanized amyloid-beta(A) monoclonal antibody "Leqembi" (brand name, generic name: lecanemab) has been granted a Marketing Authorization by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in Great Britain.1 Lecanemab is indicated for the treatmentof mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and mild dementia due to Alzheimer's disease (AD) in adult patients that are apolipoprotein Ee4 (ApoE e4)* heterozygotes or non-carriers.1 Lecanemab becomes the first treatment for early AD (MCI and mild dementia due to AD)2 that targets an underlying cause of the disease, to be authorized in a country in Europe.1Lecanemab selectively binds to A aggregate species, with preferential activity for toxic A protofibrils** (as well as fibrils, which are a major component of Abeta plaques).2,3,4 It binds to these aggregate Abeta species to neutralize and clear them from the brain.2,3,4The approval was primarily based on Phase 3 data from Eisai's global, placebo-controlled, double-blind, parallel-group, randomized Clarity AD clinical trial, in which the medicine met its primary endpoint (change from baseline in the Clinical Dementia Rating Sum of Boxes [CDR-SB] at 18 months) and all key secondary endpoints with statistically significant results.2 Inthe indicated population in Great Britain, the most common adverse reactions were infusion-related reaction, amyloid-related imaging abnormalities with hemorrhage (small spots of bleeding) (ARIA-H)+, fall, headache and amyloid-related imaging abnormalities with cerebral edema (build-up of fluid) (ARIA-E).++1In the United Kingdom, it is estimated that 982,000 people are living with dementia,5 and AD is the cause in 60-70% of people with dementia.6 These numbers are expected to rise, as the population ages.5,6Eisai is working collaboratively with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) and the National Health Service (NHS) to make this medicine available to eligible people living with early AD as soon as possible.Eisai serves as the lead for lecanemab's development and regulatory submissions globally with Eisai and Biogen co-commercializing and co-promoting the product and Eisai having final decision-making authority. In Great Britain, Eisai and Biogen will co-promote the medicine, with Eisai distributing the product as the Marketing Authorization holder.*Apolipoprotein E is a protein involved in the metabolism of fats in humans. It is implicated in AD.**Protofibrils are thought to be the most toxic Abeta species that contribute to brain damage in AD and play a major role in the cognitive decline of this progressive and devastating disease. Protofibrils can cause neuronal damage in the brain, which can subsequently adversely affect cognitive function through multiple mechanisms.7 The mechanism by which this occurs has been reported not only by increasing the formation of insoluble Abeta plaques, but also by directly damaging signaling between neurons and other cells. It is believed that reducing protofibrils may reduce neuronal damage and cognitive impairment, potentially preventing the progression of AD.8CDR-SB is a commonly used diagnostic tool, which can help to stage dementia due to AD.9 It is a global cognitive and functional scale that measures six domains of functioning, including memory, orientation, judgement and problem solving, community affairs, home and hobbies, and personal care.9+ARIA-H: amyloid-related imaging abnormalities with hemorrhage (microhemorrhages, and superficial siderosis).++ARIA-E: amyloid-related imaging abnormalities with oedema (edema/effusion).More information can be found in the Summary of Product Characteristics and Patient Information leaflets which will be published on the MHRA Products website within 7 days of approval.MEDIA CONTACTSEisai Co., Ltd.Public Relations DepartmentTEL: +81 (0)3-3817-5120Eisai Europe, Ltd.EMEA Communications Department+44 (0) 7974-879-419Emea-comms@eisai.netBiogen Inc.Jack Cox+ 1-781-464-3260public.affairs@biogen.comEisai Inc. (U.S.)Libby Holman1-201-753-1945Libby_Holman@eisai.comINVESTOR CONTACTSEisai Co., Ltd.Investor Relations Department TEL: +81 (0) 3-3817-5122Biogen Inc.Chuck Triano+ 1-781-464-2442IR@biogen.comAbout lecanemab (Leqembi)Lecanemab is the result of a strategic research alliance between Eisai and BioArctic. It is a humanized immunoglobulin gamma1 (IgG1) monoclonal antibody directed against aggregated soluble (protofibril) and insoluble forms of amyloid-beta (Abeta).2,3Lecanemab's approval in Great Britain was primarily based on Phase 3 data from Eisai's global Clarity AD clinical trial, in which it met its primary endpoint and all key secondary endpoints with statistically significant results.1,2 Clarity AD was a Phase 3global, placebo-controlled, double-blind, parallel-group, randomized study in 1,795 patients with early AD (MCI or milddementia due to AD, with confirmedpresence of amyloid pathology), of which 1,521 were in the indicated population in the label in Great Britain (ApoE e4 heterozygotes or non-carriers).1 Of the total number of patients randomized 31% were non-carriers, 53% were heterozygotes and 16% were homozygotes.1 The treatment group was administered lecanemab 10 mg/kg bi-weekly, with participants allocated in a 1:1 ratio to receive either placebo or lecanemab for 18 months.1The primary endpoint was the global cognitive and functional scale, CDR-SB.1 In the Clarity AD clinical trial, treatment with lecanemab, in the indicated population in Great Britain (ApoE e4 heterozygotes or non-carriers), reduced clinical decline on CDR-SB by 33% at 18 months compared to placebo.1 The mean CDR-SB score at baseline was approximately 3.2 in both groups.1 The adjusted least-squares mean change from baseline at 18 months was 1.15 with lecanemab and 1.73 with placebo(difference, -0.58; 95% confidence interval [CI], -0.81 to -0.34; P<0.00001).1 CDR-SB is a global cognitive and functional scale that measures six domains of functioning, including memory, orientation, judgement and problem solving, community affairs, home and hobbies, and personal care.9In addition, the secondary endpoint from the AD Cooperative Study-Activities of Daily Living Scale for Mild Cognitive Impairment (ADCS-MCI-ADL), which measures information provided by people caring for patients with AD, noted 39% less decline compared to placebo at 18 months.1 The adjusted mean change from baseline at 18 months in the ADCS-MCI-ADLscore was -3.5 in the lecanemab group and -5.7 in the placebo group (difference, 2.2; 95% CI, 1.3 to 3.1; P<0.00001).1 The ADCS-MCI-ADL assesses the ability ofpatients to function independently, including being able to dress, feed themselves and participate in community activities.In the indicated population (ApoE e4 heterozygotes or non-carriers), the most common adverse reactions were infusion-related reaction (26%), ARIA-H (13%), fall (11%), headache (11%) and ARIA-E (9%).1Lecanemab is licensed in the U.S., 10 Japan, 11 China, 12 South Korea, 13 Hong Kong, 14 Israel, 15 the United Arab Emirates16 and Great Britain1 and marketed in the U.S., Japan and China. Eisai has also submitted applications for approval of lecanemab in 10 countries and regions, including the European Union.This medicine is subject to additional monitoring. This will allow quick identification of new safety information.About NHS, NICE and SMCThe NHS is a public healthcare system with the principle of providing free medical services to citizens. The NICE and the SMC are independent bodies that carry out assessments on the status of all newly licensed medicines, all new formulations of existing medicines and new indications for established products regarding their health benefits and price justification as advisory boards to the NHS about whether or not a newly licensed drug should be accepted for use under national health insurance.About the Collaboration between Eisai and Biogen for ADEisai and Biogen have been collaborating on the joint development and commercialization of AD treatments since 2014. Eisaiserves as the lead of lecanemab development and regulatory submissions globally with both companies co-commercializing and co-promoting the product and Eisai having final decision-making authority.About the Collaboration between Eisai and BioArctic for ADSince 2005, Eisai and BioArctic have had a long-term collaboration regarding the development and commercialization of AD treatments. Eisai obtained the global rights to study, develop, manufacture and market lecanemab for the treatment of AD pursuant to an agreement with BioArctic in December 2007. The development and commercialization agreement on theantibody back-up was signed in May 2015.About Eisai Co., Ltd.Eisai's Corporate Concept is "to give first thought to patients and people in the daily living domain, and to increase the benefits that health care provides." Under this Concept (also known as human health care (hhc) Concept), we aim to effectively achieve social good in the form of relieving anxiety over health and reducing health disparities. With a global network of R&D facilities,manufacturing sites and marketing subsidiaries, we strive to create and deliver innovative products to target diseases with high unmet medical needs, with a particular focus in our strategic areas of Neurology and Oncology.In addition, we demonstrate our commitment to the elimination of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), which is a target (3.3) of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), by working on various activities together with global partners.For more information about Eisai, please visit www.eisai.com (for global headquarters: Eisai Co., Ltd.), and connect with us onX, LinkedIn and Facebook. The website and social media channels are intended for audiences outside of the UK and Europe. For audiences based in the UK and Europe, please visit www.eisai.eu and Eisai EMEA LinkedIn.About BiogenFounded in 1978, Biogen is a leading biotechnology company that pioneers innovative science to deliver new medicines to transform patient's lives and to create value for shareholders and our communities. We apply deep understanding of human biology and leverage different modalities to advance first-in-class treatments or therapies that deliver superior outcomes. Our approach is to take bold risks, balanced with return on investment to deliver long-term growth.The company routinely posts information that may be important to investors on its website at www.biogen.com.Follow Biogen on social media - Facebook, LinkedIn, X, YouTube. The website and social media channels are intended for audiences outside of the UK and Europe.Biogen Safe HarborThis news release contains forward-looking statements, about the potential clinical effects of lecanemab; the potential benefits, safety and efficacy of lecanemab; potential regulatory discussions, submissions and approvals and the timing thereof; thetreatment of Alzheimer's disease; the anticipated benefits and potential of Biogen's collaboration arrangements with Eisai; the potential of Biogen's commercial business and pipeline programs; including lecanemab; and risks and uncertainties associated with drug development and commercialization. These statements may be identified by words such as "aim," "anticipate," "believe," "could," "estimate," "expect," "forecast," "intend," "may," "plan," "possible," "potential," "will," "would" and other words and terms of similar meaning. Drug development and commercialization involve a high degree of risk, and only a small numberof research and development programs result in commercialization of a product. Results in early-stage clinical studies may notbe indicative of full results or results from later stage or larger scale clinical studies and do not ensure regulatory approval. You should not place undue reliance on these statements.These statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those reflected in such statements, including without limitation unexpected concerns that may arise from additional data, analysis or results obtained during clinical studies; the occurrence of adverse safety events; risks of unexpected costs or delays; the risk of other unexpected hurdles; regulatory submissions may take longer or be more difficult to complete than expected; regulatoryauthorities may require additional information or further studies, or may fail or refuse to approve or may delay approval of Biogen's drug candidates; including lecanemab; actual timing and content of submissions to and decisions made by the regulatory authorities regarding lecanemab; uncertainty of success in the development and potential commercialization of the medicine; failure to protect and enforce Biogen's data, intellectual property and other proprietary rights and uncertaintiesrelating to intellectual property claims and challenges; product liability claims; and third party collaboration risks, results ofoperationsand financial condition. The foregoing sets forth many, but not all, of the factors that could cause actual results to differ fromBiogen's expectations in any forward-looking statement. Investors should consider this cautionary statement as well as the riskfactors identified in Biogen's most recent annual or quarterly report and in other reports Biogen has filed with the U.S. Securitiesand Exchange Commission. These statements speak only as of the date of this news release. Biogen does not undertake anyobligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements.(1) Lecanemab Great Britain Summary of Product Characteristics(2) van Dyck, H., et al. Lecanemab in Early Alzheimer's Disease. New England Journal of Medicine.2023;388:9-21. https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2212948.(3) Johannesson, M., et al. Lecanemab demonstrates highly selective binding to A protofibrils isolated from Alzheimer's disease brains. Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience. 2024;130:103949. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mcn.2024.103949.(4) Sehlin, D., et al. Large aggregates are the major soluble A species in AD brain fractionated with density gradient ultracentrifugation. PLoS One. 2012;7(2):e32014. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0032014.(5) Alzheimer's Society. 2024. The economic impact of dementia. Available at: https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/about-us/policy-and-influencing/dementia-scale-impact-numbers. Last accessed: August 2024.(6) World Health Organization. 2023. Dementia. Available at: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact- sheets/detail/dementia. Last accessed: August 2024(7) Amin, L., Harris, D.A. A receptors specifically recognize molecular features displayed by fibril ends and neurotoxicoligomers. Nature Communications. 2021;12:3451. doi:10.1038/s41467-021-23507-z.(8) Ono, K., Tsuji, M. Protofibrils of Amyloid- are Important Targets of a Disease-Modifying Approach for Alzheimer's Disease. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2020;21(3):952. doi: 10.3390/ijms21030952. PMID: 32023927; PMCID: PMC7037706.(9) Morris, J.C. The Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR): current version and scoring rules. Neurology. 1993;43:2412-2414.(10) U.S. Food and Drug Administration. 2023. FDA Converts Novel Alzheimer's Disease Treatment to Traditional Approval. Last accessed: August 2024.(11) Reuters. 2023. Japan approves Alzheimer's treatment Leqembi by Eisai and Biogen. Last accessed: August 2024.(12) The Pharma Letter. 2024. Brief - Alzheimer drug Leqembi now approved in China. Last accessed: August 2024.(13) Pharmaceutical Technology. 2024. South Korea's MFDS approves Eisai-Biogen's LEQEMBI for Alzheimer's. Last accessed: August 2024.(14) Pharmaceutical Technology. 2024. Hong Kong approves Leqembi for Alzheimer's treatment. Last accessed: August 2024.(15) BioSpace. 2024. Leqembi approved for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease in Israel. Last accessed: August 2024.(16) United Arab Emirates Ministry of Health & Prevention. 2024. Registered Medical Product Directory. Leqembi. Last accessed: August 2024.Source: EisaiCopyright 2024 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved.
ZTEM survey highlights prominent conductivity feature under cover within area dubbed Copper Junction

Fieldwork highlights prospective porphyry target at Copper Junction, coincident with prospective alteration and copper mineralization

Four new polymetallic showings discovered, with samples returning assay values up to 1.04 g/t Au, 3.63% Cu, 1.37% Mo, 2.6% Zn, and 0.12% W

Sudbury, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - Transition Metals Corp. (TSXV: XTM) ("Transition" or "the Company") is pleased to provide an update on exploration work completed at its Pike Warden project ("the Property") located near Whitehorse, Yukon. This summer, the Company's exploration team focused on areas of the property considered prospective for hosting porphyry Cu-Au mineralization, including Copper North, Copper Junction, and Olympus (Figure 1). The work involved collecting samples and data to better characterize the geology, structure, alteration, fracture and vein density, and vein types in these areas, as well as sampling any prospective-looking mineralization.

Final data from the Z-Axis Tipper Electromagnetic system (ZTEM) survey, flown by Geotech Ltd. over Pike Warden (see news release dated June 22, 2024), has been received. Notably, the Company's preliminary interpretation of the ZTEM data highlights a large conductivity anomaly located centrally within one of the more prominent areas of prospective alteration and elevated copper mineralization, Copper Junction.

Scott McLean, P.Geo., CEO of Transition Metals, commented, "We are encouraged that our work continues to highlight some compelling untested Cu-Au porphyry targets. Our geological team is actively collaborating with our geophysical consultants to prioritize key targets on the property in preparation for drilling."

Figure 1: Pike Warden project map, with prominent structural trends, discovered polymetallic showings, and recent highlight samples.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/2766/220787_eb389c1644b0da0e_002full.jpg

Sampling Results

In total, 79 samples were submitted for analysis, returning values of up to 1.04 g/t Au, 3.63% Cu, 1.37% Mo, 2.61% Zn, and 0.12% W from regions of outcropping and scree mineralization. This work has confirmed four new mineralized showings, named Steam, Whistle, Contrition, and Daedalus (Figure 1). With the addition of these new zones, the total number of mineralized showings on the property now stands at twenty-nine.

During the sampling conducted this summer, 92% of the collected samples were found to contain elevated levels of pathfinder elements, which are used to vector towards centers of mineralization. Notably, 47% of these samples exhibited anomalous concentrations of key metals, including copper, gold, silver, molybdenum, zinc, lead, and tungsten. These elevated and anomalous values contribute to the company's growing database, providing valuable insights for ongoing exploration. Select highlighted values are presented above to showcase the potential of the area. However, the reader is cautioned that only select highlight values are reported, that rock samples (bedrock and scree) are selective by nature, and that values reported may not represent mineralization of the entire project area.

Transition Metals adheres to rigorous sampling and analytical protocols that meet or exceed industry standards. Samples are securely stored until they are transported in batches to the ALS Geochemistry facility in Whitehorse, Yukon. Each sample batch includes certified reference materials, blanks, and duplicates, all processed under the control of ALS. The samples were analyzed in Vancouver by ALS Chemex, with ALS Laboratories' quality system meeting the requirements of International Standards ISO/IEC 17025:2005 and ISO 9001:2015. The analysis was conducted using the ME-MS61 method, which reports 48 elements through four-acid digestion followed by ICP-MS. Gold was analyzed using the AU-ICP21 method, involving fire assay fusion with an ICP-AES finish. In cases of over-limit results, gold was determined by fire assay with a gravimetric finish, and base metals were analyzed using ore-grade (OG62) four-acid digestion with an ICP-AES finish.

Copper Junction

This summer's work highlights the potential of the Copper Junction area to host a large-scale copper porphyry system. In this region, the Company's preliminary interpretation of the recently completed ZTEM survey identifies a prominent east-west magnetic low trend that crosscuts a northeast-southwest trend of elevated conductivity. This feature, one of several identified on the Property, is centrally located within the expanded alteration and copper mineralization footprint in the Copper Junction area (Figure 2). Condor North Consulting ULC ("Condor") is currently further processing and refining the ZTEM geophysical data.

The conductivity feature identified at Copper Junction occurs at the intersection of two significant structural trends. The first trend is associated with an east-west striking concentric feature, interpreted as a collapse structure related to the Bennett Lake caldera complex. The second trend follows a cluster of northeast-trending features which host the majority of the copper and molybdenum mineralization, as well as the epithermal-style base and precious metal occurrences identified to date on the property. These northeast-trending structures appear to also control increased fracture and vein density, enhanced potassic alteration, and sites of copper mineralization peripheral to the defined ZTEM conductivity feature located under cover within the Copper Junction region.

Figure 2: A photograph of the Copper Junction area looking west-southwest, illustrating the location of copper mineralization, including the new Whistle and Steam showings, in relation to the east-west structure and the ZTEM conductivity feature.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/2766/220787_eb389c1644b0da0e_003full.jpg

Next Steps

The Company plans to use the recently collected geological information, along with the geophysical interpretations and 3D inversion models, to assist in refining areas prospective for hosting porphyry-style copper-gold mineralization on the Property. The exploration team will continue to evaluate and prioritize this data in preparation for drill testing.

The recent field program included detailed geological mapping, particularly around potential porphyry target centers, with a focus on fracture density, vein styles, dike types, alteration abundance, alteration intensity, and mineralization associations. These activities have generated a significant amount of new data, which will be used to refine the Company's geological model of the Property. This includes analyzing altered, unaltered, and mineralized samples in geological studies to investigate the geological environment, pressure-temperature fluid evolution, and the broader mineralizing system preserved on the Property

About the Pike Warden Property

The Pike Warden property (Figure 1) is located in the traditional territory of Carcross/Tagish First Nation and is situated on the northern rim of the Bennett Lake Caldera Complex, one of the largest extinct volcanic centers in Canada.

The property is located approximately 65 kilometres southwest of Whitehorse, Yukon, and is composed of 203 contiguous mining claims totaling approximately 41 km. The property encompasses a combination of historic and recently discovered high-grade polymetallic gold, copper, and silver epithermal showings that are indicative of a large epithermal-porphyry system in the vicinity of the Bennett Lake Volcanic Complex. In June 2022, Transition entered into an option agreement to acquire a 100% interest in the property from the Vendor in exchange for cash, shares, and work expenditures over a four-year period (see Company news release dated June 28, 2022).

Qualified Person

The technical elements of this news release have been approved by Mr. Benjamin Williams, P.Geo. (PGO), Senior Geologist of Transition Metals Corp. and a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101.

About Transition Metals Corp.

Transition Metals Corp. (TSXV: XTM) is a Canadian-based, multi-commodity explorer. Its award-winning team of geoscientists has extensive exploration experience which actively develops and tests new ideas for discovering mineralization in places that others have not looked, often allowing the company to acquire properties inexpensively. Joint venture partners earn an interest in the projects by funding a portion of higher-risk drilling and exploration, allowing Transition to conserve capital and minimize shareholder's equity dilution. Further information is available at www.transitionmetalscorp.com or by contacting:

Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Information

Except for statements of historical fact contained herein, the information in this news release constitutes "forward-looking information" within the meaning of Canadian securities law. Such forward-looking information may be identified by words such as "plans", "proposes", "estimates", "intends", "expects", "believes", "may", "will" and include without limitation, statements regarding estimated capital and operating costs, expected production timeline, benefits of updated development plans, foreign exchange assumptions and regulatory approvals. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate; actual results and future events could differ materially from such statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include, among others, metal prices, competition, risks inherent in the mining industry, and regulatory risks. Most of these factors are outside the control of the Company. Investors are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking information. Except as otherwise required by applicable securities statutes or regulation, the Company expressly disclaims any intent or obligation to update publicly 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 the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220787

SOURCE: Transition Metals Corp.
Since expanding to North American market in early 2024, Dexory has deployed solutions in six states

Since announcing its expansion to the North American market in February 2024, Dexory, the leading data intelligence company, has seen significant growth in the market. It has deployed its AI-powered robotics and analysis solution, DexoryView, for innovative customers across six states already. Its latest customer is Texas based JAMCO GROUP, marking the first deployment of the technology in the "Lone Star State." JAMCO GROUP is using AI-powered robotics and digital twin technology to gain a deeper understanding into its operations across its distribution centers.

"The North American market has been very responsive to the DexoryView solution and value proposition," says Todd Boone, Head of North America for Dexory. "Since our expansion to the market and our first customer deployment in early 2024, we have witnessed multiple high profile organizations such as JAMCO GROUP deploy the technology to gain visibility of their entire operations. Holistic real-time data enables powerful insights that are key to driving business forward in the modern age."

Faced with unique challenges in its distribution center in Laredo, TX, the JAMCO GROUP team has traditionally been carrying out cycle counts manually across a 400,000 square foot site with 26,000 pallet locations. Additional challenges for this site include racking systems that extend to six levels. Doing the cycle count manually, whilst relying on scissor lifts, has proven to be time-consuming and prone to inaccuracies. Prior to DexoryView, JAMCO GROUP also tried drone technology to optimize their warehouse and stock taking operations, but it was not able to achieve the level of accuracy or data required to drive actionable changes across the business.

"We tried drone systems, but these presented substantial limitations when it came to battery life and had inconsistencies when it came to reading barcodes," says Rolando Valdes, Vice President of Information Technology at JAMCO GROUP. "We needed a solution that would provide us with data accuracy and that would be able to cope with sites that may be prone to floor imperfections. The Dexory robots are robust and durable and provide us with great accuracy for our cycle counts. We are able to have our cycle count done daily within a matter of hours and have rich, actionable insights at our disposal in real-time."

With the robots carrying out cycle counts, JAMCO GROUP has been able to save countless hours in retrieving goods, which has resulted in the team being able to ship out an item quicker than before. One of the benefits from deploying DexoryView has been seen in employee safety. Due to the robot being able to scan up to 40 feet, there is no need for JAMCO GROUP to send employees to do counts at those heights.

"Forward thinking and innovative businesses are looking for ways that they can improve their services and make operations more efficient and JAMCO GROUP is exactly that type of organization," says Oana Jinga, CCO&PO and Co-Founder at Dexory. "JAMCO GROUP required a robust solution that would deliver accurate and actionable data to ensure that its operations are not disrupted by inaccuracies or time-consuming processes. With DexoryView, the team is able to carry out tasks, while directing resources to more business critical operations."

About Dexory

Dexory captures real-time insights into warehouse operations using fully autonomous robots and Artificial Intelligence. Using autonomous technology to unlock data and drive insights through all levels of business operations, helping companies boost their performance and unlock their full potential. Instant access to real-time data helps optimise the present, de-risk the future and discover the intractable in each location and at every stage of the product journey through the warehouse and onto dispatch.

Founded in 2015, by three founders, Andrei, Oana and Adrian, and is based in the UK. The founders are school friends from Romania, who moved to the UK a decade ago with experience accumulated across engineering and tech roles at Formula 1, Google, and IBM. Combining commercial nous with deep technical expertise, the three founders are now working together to help transform warehouse management practices worldwide.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240822131263/en/

Contacts:

Media contact:



For Dexory:

Janne Virtanen, PR Manager Email: janne.virtanen@dexory.com

Brands2Life UK and USA dexory@brands2life.com (UK) or DexoryUS@brands2life.com (US)
FORT LAUDERDALE, FL / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Splash Beverage Group, Inc. (NYSE American:SBEV) ("Splash" or the "Company"), a portfolio company of leading beverage brands, announced that it has begun closing on a private placement for operating capital.

Previously announced in the company's corporate update on May 15th, 2024, the Company was entering into a financing agreement with a wealth management firm in upstate NY. That agreement was finalized and the capital raise is in process. The first tranche has been finalized and the company is in the process of onboarding cash, a Form 8K to follow later today or tomorrow.

The first tranche is just over $4M and approximately half the cash has been received. The balance is expected in the next couple of days.

Documents for the second tranche of $4M have been distributed and approximately $3m have been executed. With these commitments in hand, the Company expects to complete the second tranche in short order.

Additionally, the $2.4M financing from last year has been retired and will no longer apply any downward pressure on the stock. The Company believes this is an extremely important point and will answer questions on the conference call later today.

Today's Conference Call Details:

Date: Thursday, August 22, 2024

Time: 4:00 pm. ET

Call: 888-506-0062 (US Toll Free) or 973-528-0011 (International)

Participant Access Code: 648719

Webcast: A live webcast will be available and can be accessed from the Investors section of the Company's website or by clicking here

All interested parties are invited to participate. Please connect at least 15 minutes prior to the conference call to ensure adequate time for any software download that may be required to join the webcast.

For those unable to join the live webcast, a replay will be available until Friday, August 22, 2025, at 1-877-481-4010 (US) or 1-919-882-2331, replay pin number 51153. Additionally, to access the archived webcast, please visit the Investors section of the Company's website or click here

Follow Splash Beverage Group on Twitter: www.twitter.com/SplashBev

About Splash Beverage Group, Inc.

Splash Beverage Group, an innovator in the beverage industry, owns a growing portfolio of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage brands including Copa di Vino wine by the glass, SALT flavored tequilas, Pulpoloco sangria, and hydration and recovery drinks. Splash's strategy is to rapidly develop early-stage brands already in its portfolio as well as acquire and then accelerate brands that have high visibility or are innovators in their categories. Led by a management team that has built and managed some of the top brands in the beverage industry and led sales from product launch into the billions, Splash is rapidly expanding its brand portfolio and global distribution.

For more information visit:

www.SplashBeverageGroup.com

www.copadivino.com

www.drinksalttequila.com

www.pulpo-loco.com

Forward-Looking Statement

This press release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of U.S. federal securities laws. Words such as "expect," "estimate," "project," "budget," "forecast," "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "may," "will," "could," "should," "believes," "predicts," "potential," "continue" and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from the expected results and, consequently, you should not rely on these forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. These forward-looking statements and factors that may cause such differences include, without limitation, the risks disclosed in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 8, 2021, and in the Company's other filings with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance upon any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. Except as required by law, the Company disclaims any obligation to update or publicly announce any revisions to any of the forward-looking statements contained in this press release.

Contact Information:

Splash Beverage Group

Info@SplashBeverageGroup.com

954-745-5815

Contact Information

Splash Beverage Group

Splash Beverage Group

info@splashbeveragegroup.com

941-554-8381

SOURCE: Splash Beverage Group

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - Nova Pacific Metals Corp. (CSE: NVPC) (OTCQB: NVPCF) (FSE: YQ10) (WKN: A40GFH) (the "Company," or "Nova Pacific") is pleased to announce a non-brokered private placement (the "Private Placement") for gross proceeds of up to $2,000,000.

The non-brokered Private Placement will consist of up to 8,000,000 units (the "Units") priced at $0.25 per Unit. Each Unit will include one common share of the Company (a "Share") and one warrant (a "Warrant"), with each Warrant allowing the holder to purchase an additional Share at an exercise price of $0.40 for a period of two years.

The Warrants will include an acceleration clause such that if, following the expiration of the statutory hold period applicable to the Warrants, the Shares trade at or above $0.90 for 10 consecutive trading days, Nova Pacific will have the option to accelerate the exercise period by delivering a notice to the holders of the Warrants. In such a case, holders will have 30 days from the date of the notice to exercise their Warrants.

Nova Pacific's CEO, Mr. J. Malcolm Bell, stated, "The recently completed NI 43-101 technical report on the Lara "Kuroko" style, massive sulfide deposit has recommended an infill drilling program sufficient to calculate a measured and inferred ore deposit capable of supporting a prefeasibility study (PFS). This financing, once completed, will contribute substantially to continued development and the production potential of this highly attractive and well-located project."

Nova Pacific intends to use the proceeds of the Private Placement for exploration, general corporate purposes and working capital. All securities issued in connection with this Private Placement are subject to a statutory hold period of four months and one day pursuant to applicable securities laws.

In connection with the Private Placement, the Company may pay finder's fees to eligible non-related parties of up to 8% of the gross proceeds raised. Additionally, Nova Pacific may issue broker warrants ("Broker Warrants") equal to up to 8% of the Units sold. Each Broker Warrant will entitle the holder to purchase Share at a price of $0.25 per Share for a period of two years.

About Nova Pacific

Nova Pacific is a Canadian exploration and development company focused on pursuing projects with a significant mineral discovery thus providing a viable pathway to potential development. The key projects owned by the Company are its recently acquired Lara VMS project located on Vancouver Island, British Columbia and its Deer Musk West Lithium project located in Clayton Valley, Nevada. The Company intends to continue its exploration and development efforts on its mineral projects with a view towards maximizing shareholder value.

We recognize the importance of partnering with Indigenous communities for projects located on traditional lands to deliver long-term mutual benefits.

For additional Information please visit: www.novapacificmetals.com

On behalf of the Board of Directors

J. Malcolm Bell

Chief Executive Officer, Director

For Further Information, please contact:

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/220730

SOURCE: Nova Pacific Metals Corp.
China reports progress in disability prevention

Xinhua) 10:27, August 22, 2024

BEIJING, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- China's actions to implement a five-year national plan for disability prevention have been progressing smoothly with some targets set for 2025 being achieved ahead of schedule, according to the China Disabled Persons' Federation (CDPF) on Wednesday.

Significant progress has been made on the promotion of disability prevention knowledge, and the prevention of birth defects, disability-causing disorders and diseases, as well as disabilities caused by injuries, said a CDPF document issued at a press conference.

Disability rehabilitation services have also been greatly enhanced, it said.

Feng Li, an official with the CDPF, said that to date, pre-marital medical examinations have covered over 76 percent of the country's newlyweds and the rate of prenatal screening has reached 91.3 percent.

Besides, over 60 percent of patients with major chronic diseases such as high blood pressure and diabetes have been placed under standardized management programs at the community level, while basic rehabilitation services are now accessible for over 85 percent of people with disabilities, Feng said.

China has established a whole-process service system for people with severe mental disorders, with over 96 percent of relevant registered patients receiving proper management, said Li Dachuan, an official from the National Health Commission.

Aug. 25 this year marks the country's eighth Disability Prevention Day.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Warsaw/New Delhi, Aug 21 (UNI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his address to the Indian diaspora in Warsaw, commended their role in the success of Operation Ganga during the evacuation of thousands of Indian students from Ukraine during the conflict with Russia in 2022.

Prime Minister Modi also announced a new initiative called Jamsaheb Memorial Youth Exchange Program under which 20 Polish youth would be invited to India each year, to further strengthen the special bond with Poland.

Earlier, Prime Minister Modi was welcomed with special warmth and exuberance by the community. In his address, he noted that a visit to Poland by an Indian Prime Minister was taking place after 45 years and he was eagerly looking forward to meeting President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Donald Tusk to strengthen India-Poland ties.

He stated that India as the Mother of Democracy and its shared values with Poland bring the two countries closer, a statement said.

Prime Minister Modi shared his thoughts on the significant contribution made by the Indian Diaspora in strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries. He called upon the community to become a brand ambassador of tourism to India and be part of its growth story.



He noted that the Dobry Maharaja, Kolhapur and Battle of Monte Cassino memorials were shining examples of the vibrant people-to-people ties between the two countries.

PM Modi also recalled the help provided by Poland during the earthquake in Gujarat.

Prime Minister Modi spoke about the transformative progress achieved by India in the last 10 years. He expressed confidence that India will become the third largest economy in the next few years. He also spoke about his vision for the country to becoming a developed nation - Viksit Bharat - by 2047.

He stated that Poland and India were enhancing their partnership in areas of new technology and clean energy and driving green growth.

The Prime Minister dwelt on Indias belief in 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam'  the world is one family  which inspires it to contribute to global well-being and to be the First Responder in humanitarian crises.

The MEA spokesperson in a post on X said:

"Indian diaspora - a crucial pillar of India-Poland partnership!

A vibrant Indian diaspora in Poland welcomed PM @narendramodi with great joy and fervour.

"In his address, PM shared his thoughts on the transformative progress achieved by the country and outlined his vision for Viksit Bharat. He also dwelt on Indias age-old philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam and its contribution to global progress and well-being.



"PM announced a new initiative called Jamsaheb memorial youth exchange program under which 20 Polish youth will be invited to India every year."

UNI RN
Leading analyst firm recognizes IRONSCALES for groundbreaking innovations in generative AI, consistent recognition of emerging threats, and rapid growth in both revenue and strategic partnerships

IRONSCALES, the AI-powered email security leader protecting 15,000 global customers from advanced phishing attacks, today announced it has been recognized as a global leader in innovation and growth in Frost Sullivan's 2024 Frost Radar: Email Security report. This accolade comes just weeks after IRONSCALES secured its fourth consecutive placement in the Inc. 5000 list, solidifying the company's status as one of the fastest-growing private companies in the U.S., and fastest-growing vendors in the cybersecurity industry.

As the industry pioneer in API-based email security, IRONSCALES was honored for recognizing emerging threats ahead of peers and rapid, sustained revenue growth. According to Frost, "Application Program Interface (API)-based email security is a significant trend within the email security industry. This is mainly because Secure Email Gateways (SEGs) are unable to detect social engineering attacks due to their design."

"With the growth of generative AI, the cybersecurity and phishing landscape is rapidly evolving, and IRONSCALES stands out as an industry leader that consistently demonstrates excellence in innovation and growth," said Sarah Pavlak, Industry Principal at Frost Sullivan. "It was one of the first vendors to introduce API-based email security and generative AI into its platform. Moreover, its differentiated approach of unifying AI and continuous human insights makes it well-positioned to help organizations and MSPs protect against advanced phishing attacks."

What Sets IRONSCALES Apart from Other Email Security Vendors

In this year's installment of the Radar, Frost Sullivan selected and analyzed the top 21 of over 40 market participants in the Email Security space. IRONSCALES was recognized for a wide range of attributes, achievements, and accolades. According to the report, IRONCALES highlights include the following:

IRONSCALES has stayed ahead of its competitors with its concentration on protecting against social engineering attacks before it became a major industry trend, developing an API-based solution to address the fact that secure email gateways cannot offer this protection.

In 2023, IRONSCALES was the first email security vendor to incorporate generative AI capabilities into its platform. This included GPT-powered phishing simulation training to improve employee awareness. Themis Co-pilot for Microsoft Office was also included. This GPT-powered chat assistant allows employees to understand and report threats directly in Microsoft Outlook, reducing the administrative load on IT and SecOps teams. These features give customers the ability to stay ahead of disastrous targeted phishing attacks.

Image-based and QR code attacks have quickly become a top attack method. IRONSCALES was among the first vendors to recognize this emerging threat, targeting emails and prompting enhancements to ML/deep learning models to detect them in O365 and Google Workspace.

The company has a thriving MSP and MSSP ecosystem that includes more than 1,500 managed service providers, and demonstrations of its impressive product portfolio with market-leading technology commonly finalize deals.

"We are incredibly honored to receive this recognition from the experts at Frost Sullivan," said Eyal Benishti, CEO at IRONSCALES. "Our inclusion in this select group of email security vendors is a testament to our team's tireless commitment to securing every single one of our customers against the latest, most sophisticated forms of email-based attacks. Faced with increasingly sophisticated threats brought on by generative AI, the IRONSCALES team will continue to do what it does best innovate. This recognition is excellent motivation for us to continue pushing the boundaries of what's possible in email security."

For a closer look at this year's findings, download a copy of the 2024 Frost Radar: Email Security report here.

About IRONSCALES

IRONSCALES is the leader in AI-powered email security protecting over 15,000 global organizations from advanced phishing threats. As the pioneer of adaptive AI, we detect and remediate attacks like business email compromise (BEC), account takeovers (ATO), and zero-days that other solutions miss. By combining the power of AI and continuous human insights, we safeguard inboxes, unburden IT teams, and turn employees into a vital part of cyber defense across enterprises and managed service providers. IRONSCALES is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. To learn more, visit www.ironscales.com or follow us on X @IRONSCALES.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240822550170/en/

Contacts:

Doug De Orchis

Scratch Media Marketing for IRONSCALES

doug@scratchmm.com
Investment, led by Warburg Pincus' Capital Solutions team, to drive next phase of innovation and expansion

MIAMI and PRINCETON, N.J., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Miami International Holdings, Inc. (MIH), a technology-driven leader in building and operating regulated financial markets across multiple asset classes, today announced a $100 million investment from Warburg Pincus, a leading global growth investor. Subject to certain conditions, Warburg Pincus may expand its investment in MIH to support additional growth.

The growth investment will accelerate the next phase of MIAX's global expansion as it executes on its strategy of building a diversified revenue stream across multiple asset classes and geographies. Among other uses, the investment will fund the construction and fit-out of a physical trading floor in Miami, Florida for MIAX Sapphire, MIH's fourth national securities exchange for trading U.S. multi-listed options. MIAX Sapphire will operate both an electronic exchange and physical trading floor. The electronic exchange successfully launched on August 12, 2024, with the trading floor in Miami scheduled to go live in 2025.

MIAX Sapphire will be the first national securities exchange to establish operations in Miami. The new trading facility will include a next-generation trading floor, ancillary office space for MIAX employees and market participants, conference facilities and broadcast media space.

"We are pleased to welcome Warburg Pincus as a strategic partner and look forward to leveraging its highly respected expertise and deep network of relationships in global financial services. Together with our exchange member firms we believe we have assembled a group of the top financial partners in the world," said Thomas P. Gallagher, Chairman and CEO of MIH. "The investment will provide MIH with additional funding to expand strategic partnerships in financial futures and proprietary products and will also provide capital to pursue acquisitions in the U.S. and internationally to accelerate our continued growth."

The investment will also support further growth and expansion of MIH's agricultural and financial futures businesses on its two U.S. futures exchanges, Minneapolis Grain Exchange (MGEX) and MIAXdx including the development of new matching engine and clearing technology using MIH's proprietary technology. Additionally, the investment will fund the Company's expansion plans into international markets including the development and trading of new proprietary and other financial products.

"Tom Gallagher and the leadership team at MIAX have successfully engineered a technology-driven family of exchanges that set a new standard of reliability and excellence in the U.S. options trading industry. Our investment, along with ample dry powder to help support future growth, reflects our confidence in MIAX's potential," said Gaurav Seth, Managing Director, Head of Capital Solutions, Americas at Warburg Pincus. "We are thrilled with MIAX's progress to date and excited about the significant opportunities for MIH."

"Our investment provides capital at a pivotal moment for MIAX," said Lee Becker, Managing Director and member of the Capital Solutions team at Warburg Pincus. "With MIAX's strong, collaborative relationships with leading market participants, this investment supports our conviction in the entire MIAX management team and its strategy to drive continued growth and expansion across multiple asset classes in the exchange space."

Lee Becker will join the board of directors of MIH. Mark Messing, Vice President at Warburg Pincus and member of the Capital Solutions team, will attend board meetings as a visitor.

Piper Sandler & Co. acted as financial advisor to MIH and Broadhaven Capital Partners acted as financial advisor to Warburg Pincus in connection with the transaction.

Davis Polk & Wardwell, LLP served as financing counsel to Warburg Pincus and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP served as financing counsel to MIH. Gallagher, Briody & Butler serves as corporate counsel to MIH.

Appleby (Bermuda) Limited served as special financing counsel in Bermuda to Warburg Pincus and BeesMont Law Limited serves as legal counsel in Bermuda to The Bermuda Stock Exchange (BSX), a wholly owned subsidiary of MIH.

About MIAX

MIAX's parent holding company, Miami International Holdings, Inc., owns Miami International Securities Exchange, LLC (MIAX), MIAX PEARL, LLC (MIAX Pearl), MIAX Emerald, LLC (MIAX Emerald), MIAX Sapphire, LLC (MIAX Sapphire), Minneapolis Grain Exchange, LLC (MGEX), Ledger X LLC d/b/a MIAX Derivatives Exchange (MIAXdx), The Bermuda Stock Exchange (BSX) and Dorman Trading, LLC (Dorman Trading).

MIAX, MIAX Pearl, MIAX Emerald and MIAX Sapphire are national securities exchanges registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission that are enabled by MIAX's in-house built, proprietary technology. MIAX offers trading of options on all four exchanges as well as cash equities through MIAX Pearl Equities. The MIAX trading platform was built to meet the high-performance quoting demands of the U.S. options trading industry and is differentiated by throughput, latency, reliability and wire-order determinism. MIAX also serves as the exclusive exchange venue for cash-settled options on the SPIKES Volatility Index (Ticker: SPIKE), a measure of the expected 30-day volatility in the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY).

MGEX is a registered exchange with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and offers trading in a variety of products including Hard Red Spring Wheat Futures. MGEX is a Designated Contract Market (DCM) and Derivatives Clearing Organization (DCO) under the CFTC, providing DCM and DCO services in an array of asset classes.

MIAXdx is a CFTC regulated exchange and clearinghouse and is registered as a DCM, DCO, and Swap Execution Facility (SEF) with the CFTC.

BSX is a fully electronic, vertically integrated international securities market headquartered in Bermuda and organized in 1971. BSX specializes in the listing and trading of capital market instruments such as equities, debt issues, funds, hedge funds, derivative warrants, and insurance linked securities.

Dorman Trading is a full-service Futures Commission Merchant registered with the CFTC.

MIAX's executive offices and National Operations Center are located in Princeton, N.J., with additional U.S. offices located in Chicago, IL and Miami, FL. MGEX offices are located in Minneapolis, MN. MIAXdx offices are located in Princeton, N.J. BSX offices are located in Hamilton, Bermuda. Dorman Trading offices are located in Chicago, IL.

To learn more about MIAX visit www.miaxglobal.com.

To learn more about MGEX visit www.miaxglobal.com/mgex.

To learn more about MIAXdx visit www.miaxdx.com.

To learn more about BSX visit www.bsx.com.

To learn more about Dorman Trading visit www.dormantrading.com.

About Warburg Pincus

Warburg Pincus LLC is a leading global growth investor. The firm has more than $83 billion in assets under management. The firm's active portfolio of more than 225 companies is highly diversified by stage, sector, and geography. Warburg Pincus is an experienced partner to management teams seeking to build durable companies with sustainable value. Since its founding in 1966, Warburg Pincus has invested more than $117 billion in over 1,000 companies globally across its private equity, real estate, and capital solutions strategies.

Warburg Pincus' Capital Solutions team collaborates closely with the firm's 270+ investment professionals and 40+ value creation executives across Warburg Pincus' global industry verticals, critical to sourcing and underwriting differentiated, attractive investments. In addition to a long and successful track record of investing in capital solutions like transactions historically, the Warburg Pincus Capital Solutions Founders Fund portfolio consists of investments including, DriveCentric, Excelitas, Nord Security, and Service Compression.

The firm is headquartered in New York with offices in Amsterdam, Beijing, Berlin, Hong Kong, Houston, London, Luxembourg, Mumbai, Mauritius, San Francisco, Sao Paulo, Shanghai, and Singapore. For more information visit www.warburgpincus.com. Follow us LinkedIn.

Disclaimer and Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

The press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase any securities of Miami International Holdings, Inc. (together with its subsidiaries, the Company), and shall not constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer; solicitation or sale would be unlawful. This press release may contain forward-looking statements, including forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as "may," "future," "plan" or "planned," "will" or "should," "expected," "anticipates," "draft," "eventually" or "projected." You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements.

All third-party trademarks (including logos and icons) referenced by the Company remain the property of their respective owners. Unless specifically identified as such, the Company's use of third-party trademarks does not indicate any relationship, sponsorship, or endorsement between the owners of these trademarks and the Company. Any references by the Company to third-party trademarks is to identify the corresponding third-party goods and/or services and shall be considered nominative fair use under the trademark law.

Media Contacts:

Andy Nybo, SVP, Chief Communications Officer

(609) 955-2091

anybo@miaxglobal.com

Sarah Bloom, Warburg Pincus

Sarah.bloom@warburgpincus.com

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1396492/MIAX_Logo.jpg

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MSPs Can Leverage Evaluations to Deliver Value-Added Services

BURNABY, BC / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Leading business process outsourcing company Integrated Financial Technologies (IFT) reported today that its Operational Assessment projects have identified six back-office areas where many businesses lack efficiency. These areas include use of antiquated technology, inadequate data storage, siloed departments, the assignment of specific employees as a single point of information, the inability to cross-sell products, and lack of corporate documentation.

During its assessments, IFT reviews each organization's processes, workflows, procedures, and infrastructure to help evaluate operations. Based on the results the assessments generate, IFT offers a series of recommendations that companies can pursue to optimize their workflows and procedures.

According to IFT's assessments, the top areas for improvement include:

- Use of legacy technology: Many organizations rely on networking systems, applications, and processes that are outdated. This creates complex environments that are difficult to manage and upgrade. As an example, IFT found that many companies still depend on manual data input compared to automated systems for tasks like data processing, employee scheduling, CRM, and other crucial areas of documentation.

- Data storage: A surprising number of organizations utilize on-premises data storage systems, such as on-site server closets that house much of their data. In contrast, cloud-based systems offer increased security and redundancy, often delivering automated back-up and fail-over systems to protect against downtime and data loss in the case of an outage or disaster.

- Assigning staff as a single point of information: Many companies assign a single person to know everything about a product or job function, such as payroll, CRM, or software development. If that person decides to leave the company-or suffers a serious illness-disaster looms. Ideally, company knowledge should be shared with several employees to create redundancy.

- Inability to cross-sell: Many businesses are unwilling to cross-sell added services, leaving money on the table. Companies can use historical data to turn any inbound customer service inquiry into a sales opportunity. Remember, existing customers already have a propensity to buy, so savvy businesses should use nearly every interaction as a sales query.

- Siloed communications: At both small and large companies, there is a tendency for departments to use disparate technologies and proprietary processes. The inability to freely communicate and share information via common platforms and procedures between departments impacts productivity.

- A lack of company-wide documentation: Even businesses that maintain organized, company-wide processes typically do not document procedures and best practices in any concrete way. Communication of workflows, customer engagement practices, personnel policies, and job postings should be provided in a format that is accessible to the entire organization. This helps to create consistency and equity throughout the company, giving everyone equal access to the company's best practices.

Creating MSP Opportunities

IFT has developed a general assessment manual that MSPs can leverage to conduct assessments for their customers. These assessments enable partners to demonstrate additional value to businesses, and provide channels with a high-margin opportunity to deliver much-needed solutions. MSPs can offer the assessments as a white-label service and can tap into IFT's market-leading BPO solutions to provide trusted, economical, and scalable back-office solutions to businesses.

"Many of the organizations we assist are successful companies with effective practices, but we find there is always room to drive efficiency and lower costs. This opens the door for MSPs to work with us and fill those technology and service gaps," said Tod Chisholm, president at IFT. "We typically go on to fulfill opportunities in close to 75 percent of the organizations we assess. In the end, the process delivers value to businesses, while enhancing the MSP's customer relationships and establishing new revenue streams."

For more information on IFT's Operational Assessments and how its smartsourcing program can generate opportunities for MSPs, visit www.iftsolutions.com.

About Integrated Financial Technologies

Integrated Financial Technologies (IFT) is a market leader in delivering efficient, reliable, and secure back-office solutions to channel companies across North America. Based in Vancouver, IFT's unique combination of deep expertise and robust technology enables them to provide a multitude of services for resale by MSPs in areas like sales, collections, reporting, and customer care. IFT's North American-based agents are fully trained in financial services processes and a host of service-related industries, and adhere to strict data privacy and security mandates. These white-labeled services enable end-customers to increase revenue, lower operating costs, and improve customer service-without incurring added overhead. For more information on IFT's channel offering, please visit www.iftsolutions.com.

PR Contact:

Suzanne Mattaboni

Parallel Communications Group, Inc.

610-737-2140

??: @Parallel_PR

LinkedIn

smattaboni@parallelpr.com

SOURCE: IFT

View the original press release on accesswire.com
AUSTIN, Texas, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT



NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA



SAN JOSE DIVISION In re ORACLE CORPORATION STOCKHOLDER DERIVATIVE

LITIGATION



This Document Relates to:



ALL ACTIONS



Lead Case No. 5:19-cv-00764-BLF



SUMMARY NOTICE OF PENDENCY AND SETTLEMENT OF DERIVATIVE ACTION



Related Derivative Case:



5:19-cv-02448-BLF



Judge: Hon. Beth Labson Freeman

Date First Action Filed: Feb. 12, 2019









TO: ALL PERSONS AND ENTITIES THAT HELD ORACLE CORPORATION ("ORACLE") COMMON STOCK AS OF MARCH 22, 2024 AND WHO CONTINUE TO HOLD SHARES THROUGH THE DATE OF THE FINAL FAIRNESS HEARING ("CURRENT ORACLE STOCKHOLDERS").

PLEASE READ THIS NOTICE CAREFULLY AND IN ITS ENTIRETY.

IF YOU ARE A CURRENT ORACLE STOCKHOLDER, YOUR RIGHTS WILL BE AFFECTED BY THIS SETTLEMENT .

YOU ARE HEREBY NOTIFIED of a proposed settlement ("Settlement") of the above-referenced shareholder derivative action (the "Action"). If the Court approves the proposed Settlement, all Current Oracle Stockholders (defined below) will forever be barred from contesting the fairness, adequacy, and reasonableness of the Settlement and from pursuing the Released Plaintiffs' Claims. All capitalized terms used in this notice that are not defined have the meanings provided in the Stipulation of Settlement entered into on March 22, 2024 ("Stipulation"), by (1) Lead Plaintiff City of Providence ("Lead Plaintiff"); (2) Lawrence J. Ellison, Safra A. Catz, and Paula R. Hurd, as Trustee of the Hurd Family Trust and personal representative of the Estate of Mark Hurd1 (the "Individual Defendants"); and (3) nominal defendant Oracle (together with the Individual Defendants, "Defendants"). THIS NOTICE PROVIDES ONLY A SUMMARY OF THE SETTLEMENT. You can obtain more information by reviewing the Stipulation, as well as the full Notice of Pendency and Settlement of Stockholder Derivative Action ("Notice"), both of which are available on Oracle's investor relations website at https://investor.oracle.com, and on Lead Plaintiff's Counsel's website at www.labaton.com.

In exchange for the Settlement and the releases provided for, subject to the terms of the Stipulation, the Parties have agreed to several corporate governance measures for a period of at least five years from the Effective Date of the Settlement that implement review procedures after Oracle's quarterly earnings conference calls and consideration of whether any correction, amendment, or change to any of the statements made during the call should be considered.

Co-Lead Counsel have not received any attorneys' fees for their work, and will ask the Court, on behalf of Plaintiffs' Counsel, for an award of attorneys' fees, payment of reasonable litigation expenses, and a service award for Lead Plaintiff ("Fee and Expense Amount"). The total request by Plaintiffs' Counsel will not exceed $700,000. Oracle will pay the Fee and Expense Amount awarded by the Court. Oracle Stockholders are not personally liable for any such fees or expenses.

PLEASE ALSO TAKE NOTICE that a Settlement Fairness Hearing will be held before United States District Judge Beth Labson Freeman on November 14, 2024, at 8:45 am., either in person at the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, San Jose Courthouse, Courtroom 3 - 5th Floor, 280 South 1st Street, San Jose, CA 95113, or by telephone or video conference (in the discretion of the Court), to consider whether the Judgment, substantially in the form of Exhibit A to the Stipulation, should be entered: (i) approving the terms of the Settlement as fair, reasonable, and adequate and in the best interests of Oracle and Oracle's stockholders; (ii) dismissing the Action with prejudice, pursuant to the terms of the Stipulation; and (iii) ruling upon applications for the Fee and Expense Amount.

Please Note: The date and time of the Settlement Fairness Hearing may change without further written notice to Current Oracle Stockholders. Any changes and procedures related to remote participation will be posted on Oracle's investor relations website at https://investor.oracle.com and Lead Plaintiffs' Counsel's website at www.labaton.com.

Any person or entity who or which owned Oracle common stock as of March 22, 2024 and continues to hold the stock as of the date of the Settlement Fairness Hearing ("Current Oracle Stockholder") may object to the approval of the proposed Settlement and/or any application for the Fee and Expense Amount, and appear at the hearing to explain their views, provided that they file any such objections with the Court no later than October 24,2024, according to the instructions in the full Notice. The Court can only approve or deny the proposed Settlement; it cannot change the terms of the Settlement.

Because the Settlement resolves a derivative lawsuit, which was brought on behalf of and for the benefit of Oracle rather than individual class members, the benefits from the Settlement will go to Oracle. Current Oracle Stockholders will not receive any direct payment from the Settlement and Current Oracle Stockholders cannot request exclusion.

ACCORDINGLY, THERE IS NO PROOF OF CLAIM FORM FOR STOCKHOLDERS TO SUBMIT IN CONNECTION WITH THIS SETTLEMENT.

If you have any questions regarding this notice, the Action, or the Settlement, you may contact Co-Lead Counsel:

Mark C. Molumphy, Esq.

Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy

840 Malcolm Road, Suite 200

Burlingame, California 94010

(650) 697-6000

mmolumphy@cpmlegal.com

Alfred L. Fatale III, Esq.

Labaton Keller Sucharow LLP

140 Broadway

New York, NY 10005

(888) 219-6877

settlementquestions@labaton.com

PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE COURT, DEFENDANTS, OR DEFENDANTS' COUNSEL REGARDING THIS NOTICE



DATED: August 8, 2024 BY ORDER OF THE U.S. DISTRICT COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA





____________________________

1 Defendant Mark Hurd passed away during the pendency of the Action.
The collaboration of these two longstanding Detroit area organizations aims to propel forward-thinking conversations nationally through traditional and digital marketing efforts

TROY, MI / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Simons Michelson Zieve (SMZ), a 360-degree agency providing everything from media to creative to performance marketing, announced today that it has been selected by The Henry Ford in Dearborn as its agency of record. The agency will manage a wide variety of services for the multivenue museum, including strategy, brand stewardship, creative and media. The Henry Ford includes Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, Greenfield Village, and the Ford Rouge Factory Tour along with the Benson Ford Research Center, Giant Screen Experience, Henry Ford Academy and offers specialty programs throughout the year and an online presence at thehenryford.org.









"We are honored to be partnering and collaborating with The Henry Ford, one of the country's most revered cultural institutions, and proud to have a shared history established in Detroit and sustained for nearly a century," said Debbie Michelson, vice chair, client director at SMZ. "The Henry Ford has brought innovation, inspiration, imagination, ingenuity, and insight through its initiatives for 95 years and we are very excited to have this opportunity to magnify and share their mission with the world."

SMZ was selected through a competitive review which highlighted its strategic thinking, along with its fully integrated media and creative capabilities. Additionally, the shared values, loyalty, and longevity of the organizations, both started in 1929, contributed to the decision to partner.

Through the partnership, SMZ will develop strategic campaigns to amplify The Henry Ford's mission to help shape a better future through unique educational experiences based on authentic objects, stories, and lives from America's traditions of ingenuity, resourcefulness, and innovation.

"For 95 years, SMZ has amplified the mission and brand of businesses, nonprofits and cultural institutions across the country," said Ellen Hill Zeringue, Vice President of Venues, Programs and Marketing for The Henry Ford. "The mission of this full-service agency clearly parallels that of The Henry Ford and we are thrilled to be working with this team in an effort to introduce this institution and its world-class collections and programs to new audiences."

ABOUT SMZ

SMZ is Detroit's oldest independent advertising agency and a tight-knit group of listeners, thinkers and doers who have delivered winning ideas for 95 years. Current client partners include The Henry Ford, Michigan Lottery, Broadway in Detroit, Comerica Bank, University of Michigan-Flint, Detroit Tigers, Planet Fitness, Genisys Credit Union, General RV and more. Learn more at smz.com.

ABOUT THE HENRY FORD

Located in Dearborn, Michigan, The Henry Ford is a globally recognized destination that fosters inspiration and learning from hands-on encounters with artifacts representing the most comprehensive collection anywhere focusing on innovation, ingenuity, and resourcefulness. Its unique venues include Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, Greenfield Village, Ford Rouge Factory Tour, Benson Ford Research Center, Giant Screen Experience and Henry Ford Academy, a public charter high school. The Henry Ford inspires every individual to unlock their potential and help shape a better future through a variety of channels, including its online presence thehenryford.org, its Emmy-winning national television series, The Henry Ford's Innovation Nation, and The Henry Ford's Invention Convention Worldwide, a global K-12 invention education curricular program that teaches students problem-solving, entrepreneurship, and creativity skills. With the support of a growing community of affiliates and supporters, The Henry Ford is the home of RTX Invention Convention U.S. Nationals, Invention Convention Americas and Invention Convention Michigan.



Contact Information

Wendy Metros

wendyme@thehenryford.org

Related Images

SOURCE: Simons Michelson Zieve (SMZ)

View the original press release on newswire.com.
Dieppe, New Brunswick--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - Colibri Resource Corporation (TSXV: CBI) (OTC Pink: CRUCF) ("Colibri" or the "Company") is pleased to report the results of geological mapping and outcrop sampling recently completed on the Plomo property at the EP gold project located in the Caborca Gold Belt, NW Sonora. Highlights include outcrop grab samples which returned values up to 2.99 grams per tonne ("g/t") Au which extend the footprint of surface mineralization at the San Perfecto target approximately 350 meters ("m") and samples from La Culebra target area that returned values up to 4.64 g/t Au occurring over a strike length of approximately 650 m.

Ian McGavney, President & CEO of Colibri commented: "The southwest part of the San Perfecto area is on the books as a priority drill target for Colibri. We are extremely pleased with the results of the recent mapping and sampling at San Perfecto which expanded the area of known mineralization and thereby the scope and potential of our drill target. The work at La Culebra has confirmed historical sampling and demonstrates discovery potential over a 650 m strike length which remains open. We are very encouraged by the common copper occurrences at La Culebra. Reporting these new results from our most advanced, highest priority target and from one of our earlier stage targets clearly demonstrates the significant discovery potential of the large EP property position"

San Perfecto Target

Work recently completed at the San Perfecto target area includes geological mapping and the collection and assay of 29 outcrop grab samples. Results include 14 samples which returned values greater that 0.1 g/t Au, including 9 samples greater than 0.5 g/t Au and 6 samples greater than 1.0 g/t Au, that define a cluster of mineralized outcrops which extend the footprint of known surface mineralization at San Perfecto approximately 350 m to the east-southeast. The footprint of mineralization at San Perfecto is now approximately 1,250 m by 700m and remains open to the southeast (see figure 1). The mineralization is hosted by moderately to strongly foliated and altered diorite. Alteration consists of strong silicification and sericite with disseminated and oxidized fine grained pyrite. Quartz micro-veinlets are locally recognized in the higher-grade samples. The diorite host rock and style of mineralization is continuous for approximately 1 km to the northeast at the San Perfecto target. The domain of foliated, altered, and mineralized diorite is coincident with a northeast magnetic low trend and overlies a strong apparent chargeability anomaly.

The San Perfecto target area is characterized by variably to strongly altered volcanic and intrusive rocks. Anomalous to high grade gold mineralization is associated with fine grained pyrite bearing altered rocks, altered rocks with veinlets and vein stockworks, and with larger veins hosted by fault zones. A total of 616 samples are reported from the San Perfecto Target surface area (102 by Colibri and 514 historical) of which 315, approximately 50%, have returned values greater than 0.10 g/t Au and 213, approximately 35%, have returned assay values greater than 0.25 g/t Au. Ninety-one samples (approximately 15% of the total) have returned Au assays greater than 1.00 g/t with the highest grades, up to 58.9 g/t Au being associated with strong silicification and veins in faults zones. A number of historical (artisanal) pits have been developed in the San Perfecto area including a larger production pit with a surface opening approximately of 35 m x 30 m. Only two exploration holes have been drilled in the area and both have intersected significant mineralization. Supported by interpretation of magnetic and IP data sets, the Company has interpreted the San Perfecto area as being indicative of a well developed high level orogenic gold system with the potential to host economically significant mineralization. The San Perfecto is a top priority target on the EP project.



Figure 1: San Perfecto Samples Map

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/4269/220792_a946ef2424a7aaa3_001full.jpg

La Culebra Target

La Culebra target area is located approximately 3 km to the southeast of the prioritized core target areas on the Plomo property. The recently completed work was undertaken to follow up on historical assays with reported values up to 4.28 g/t Au. A total of 34 grab samples were taken from La Culebra target area; 14 of the samples returned assay vales greater than 0.1 g/t Au, which includes 9 samples greater than 0.5 g/t Au, 5 samples greater than 1 g/t Au, and high values of 4.64 and 4.46 g/t Au. Mineralization is hosted by rusty zones which were mapped over a 650 m strike length in a northeast direction and coincident with an andesite-rhyolite contact (Figure 2). The rusty zones host historical test pits. Alteration consists of quartz, sericite and oxidized pyrite and common malachite occurrences.



Figure 2 - La Culebra Samples Map

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/4269/220792_a946ef2424a7aaa3_002full.jpg

About the EP Project and Next Steps

The EP Gold Project is located within the Caborca Gold Belt ("CGB") of northwestern Sonora and is comprised of the Evelyn and the Plomo properties covering a total of 4,766 hectares ("Ha"). The northwest trending CGB is approximately 500 km in length and is characterized by a number of orogenic-type gold deposits, prospects, and occurrences including the > 15 million ounce La Herradura Mine, located 25 km west of EP, the > 2-million-ounce Noche Buena Mine located approximately 8 km southwest of EP, and the past producing Soledad-Dipolos Mine (> 3 Moz Au) located approximately 32 km to the northwest of EP (see figure 3).





Figure 3: EP Project location within the Caborca Gold Belt

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/4269/220792_a946ef2424a7aaa3_003full.jpg

The Evelyn property was acquired by the Company in 2012 and the acquisition of the Plomo property was completed in March of 2023. On the Evelyn property, Colibri has completed comprehensive surface exploration including soil sampling, geological mapping and outcrop sampling, an airborne magnetic survey, and a property wide induced polarization survey. Since February 2020, Colibri has drilled a total of 12,333 metres (total of reverse circulation and core drilling) and is advancing mineralized zones at the Main Zone, El Sahuaro, and West Sahuaro. On the Plomo property, the Company has compiled historical exploration data and has completed earlier stage exploration programs which included geological mapping and outcrop sampling at selected target areas on the property.

The Company is continuing to advance its EP project-wide interpretation and exploration model and has identified 14 target areas (see figure 4) with recent and historical work that includes high grade grab samples from outcrop, high grade grab and channel samples from historical mine working, and drill intercepts that are both locally high grade and are consistent with grades being mined in the Caborca Gold Belt. Current work includes interpretation and inclusion of the airborne (drone) magnetic survey over a selected part of the Plomo property that was completed in January, 2024 and recent mapping and sampling to plan and prioritize drilling and continued surface exploration.





Figure 4: EP Project Targets

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/4269/220792_a946ef2424a7aaa3_004full.jpg

QUALIFIED PERSON

Jamie Lavigne, P. Geo and a Director for Colibri is a Qualified Person as defined in NI 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical information in this press release.

ABOUT COLIBRI RESOURCE CORPORATION:

Colibri is a Canadian-based mineral exploration company listed on the TSX-V (CBI) and is focused on acquiring, exploring, and developing prospective gold & silver properties in Mexico. The Company holds four high potential precious metal projects: 1) 100% of EP Gold Project in the significant Caborca Gold Belt which has delivered highly encouraging exploration results and is surround by Mexico's second largest major producer of gold on four sides, 2) 49% Ownership of the Pilar Gold & Silver Project which is believed to hold the potential to be a near term producing mine, and 3) two highly prospective interests in the Sierra Madre (Diamante Gold & Silver Project and Jackie Gold & Silver Project.

For more information about all Company projects please visit: www.colibriresource.com.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements:

This news release contains "forward-looking statements". Statements in this press release which are not purely historical are forward-looking statements and include any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future. Actual results could differ from those projected in any forward-looking statements due to numerous factors. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the plans, expectations and intentions contained in this press release are reasonable, there can be no assurance that they will prove to be accurate.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220792

SOURCE: Colibri Resource Corporation
CHICAGO, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Weather Forecasting Systems Market is valued at USD 2.2 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach USD 3.1 billion by 2029, at a CAGR of 7.0% from 2024 to 2029 according to a new report by MarketsandMarkets. The weather forecasting systems market is driven by the growing need for accurate and timely weather predictions which is essential for sectors such as aviation, agriculture, and disaster management. Advancements in technologies such as enhancement in data analytics software, satellite sensors, and integration of AI & ML are driving the market growth for better accuracy and reliability. The impact of climate change globally is driving the demand for advanced weather forecasting systems to manage extreme weather events effectively.

Download PDF Brochure: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=29645152

Browse in-depth TOC on "Weather Forecasting Systems Market"

213 - Tables

60 - Figures

276 - Pages

Weather Forecasting Systems Market Report Scope:

Report Coverage Details Market Revenue in 2024 $ 2.2 billion Estimated Value by 2029 $ 3.1 billion Growth Rate Poised to grow at a CAGR of 7.0% Market Size Available for 2020-2029 Forecast Period 2024-2029 Forecast Units Value (USD Million/Billion) Report Coverage Revenue Forecast, Competitive Landscape, Growth Factors, and Trends Segments Covered By Solution, Application, Forecasting Type, Vertical, Purpose Geographies Covered North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Rest of World Key Market Challenge Occurrence of false weather alarms Key Market Opportunities Increasing computing capability of supercomputers for weather forecasting Key Market Drivers Need for continuous weather monitoring to enable disaster management

Based on the Vertical, the Renewable Energy segment is estimated to grow at highest CAGR during the forecast period.

Based on the Vertical, the Renewable Energy segment is estimated to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. The renewable energy projects such as wind farms and solar panels heavily depend on accurate weather forecasts. Effective forecasting helps optimize energy production, manage grid stability, and reduce costs. The countries globally are adopting sustainable energy solutions regarding the climate change challenges which demand for the development of advanced weather forecasting systems to drive the market growth of the segment.

Based on the Solution, the Hardware segment is estimated to hold the highest market share during the forecast period.

Based on the Solution, the Hardware segment is estimated to hold the highest market share during the forecast period. The hardware segment by solution is divided into a Barometer, Anemometer, Hygrometer, Rain Gauge, Thermometer, Communication & Data Loggers, Sounding systems & Radiosondes, Satellite sensors, Weather antennas, and others. These components are essential for collecting and analyzing atmospheric data and are expected to be in high demand as compared to software. The growing need for accurate and reliable physical data collection tools for effective and enhanced weather forecasting drives the market growth of the segment.

Inquiry Before Buying: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_BuyingNew.asp?id=29645152

Based on regions, the Asia Pacific is projected to grow at the highest CAGR for the Weather forecasting systems industry during the forecast period.

Based on region the Asia Pacific region is estimated to account for the highest CAGR during the forecast period. The growth of the market in this region is attributed to the rising need of modern weather forecasting systems for disaster preparedness and response. The countries in this region, such as India and China, are going through rapid economic and industrial development which is increasing the demand for precise weather data for sectors such as agriculture, aviation, and shipping. The Asia Pacific weather forecasting systems market is expected to witness significant growth due to advanced technological innovations, and growing investments in development of advanced weather forecasting systems in the region.

Key Players

The Weather forecasting systems companies is dominated by a few globally established players such as Vaisala (Finland), DTN (US), Accuweather, Inc. (US), The Weather Company LLC (US), and StormGeo (Norway).

Get 10% Free Customization on this Report: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestCustomizationNew.asp?id=29645152

Browse Adjacent Market: Aerospace and Defence Market Research Reports &Consulting

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Advancement in technology and reduced operational costs are the two prime factors driving the growth of global autonomous logistics vehicles market.

PORTLAND, Ore., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Allied Market Research published a report, titled, "Autonomous Logistics Vehicles Market by Automation Level (Level-3, Level-4 and Level-5), Application (Civil, Robo Taxi, Ride Share, Ride Hail, Self-Driving Truck and Self-Driving Bus), and Component (Hardware, Software, and Service): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2024-2033". According to the report, the autonomous logistics vehicles market was valued at $45.0 billion in 2023, and is estimated to reach $87.6 billion by 2033, growing at a CAGR of 7.0% from 2024 to 2033.

Prime determinants of growth

Advancement in technology and reduced operational costs are the two prime factors driving the growth of global autonomous logistics vehicles market. Furthermore, high investment expenditure and regulatory issues are the two main factors that can restrain the growth of global autonomous logistics vehicles market. Moreover, increase in productivity and cost efficiency in logistics operations can create an important opportunity for the growth of global autonomous logistics vehicles market.

Request Sample of the Report on Autonomous Logistics Vehicles Market Forecast 2033: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/request-sample/A136160

Report coverage & details:

Report Coverage Details Forecast Period 2024-2033 Base Year 2023 Market Size in 2023 $45.0 billion Market Size in 2033 $87.6 billion CAGR 7.0 % Segments Covered Automation Level, Application, Component and Region. Drivers Advancement in technology Reduced operational costs Opportunities Increase in productivity Cost efficiency in logistics operations Restraint High investment cost Regulatory Issues

Procure Complete Report (Pages PDF with Insights, Charts, Tables, and Figures):

https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/checkout-final/autonomous-logistics-vehicles-market-A136160

Segment Highlights

The automotive logistics vehicles market is segmented into automation level, application, component and region. Based on automation level, the market is divided into level 3, level 4, and level 5. As per application, the market is divided into civil, robo-taxi, ride-share, ride-hail, self-driving truck, and self-driving bus. By component, the market is classified into hardware, software and services. Region wise, the market is analyzed across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa.

Based on automation level, level 3 segment dominated the market in 2023, as Level 3 automation involves vehicles that can operate autonomously under certain conditions but still require human intervention when situations exceed their capabilities. However, the level 4 segment is expected to grow at a significant rate in the market, as Level 4 automation involves high automation where the vehicle can perform all driving functions under certain conditions without human intervention.

Based on application, the self-driving truck dominated the market in 2023. This is primarily due to the efficiency and cost-effectiveness offered by autonomous trucks in long-haul freight transportation. However, robo taxi is expected to grow at a significant rate in the market as high amount of research and development work is in the process to build a final product for robo taxi.

Based on component, software dominated the market in 2023. This is because software is the main aspect of the autonomous vehicle that keeps the vehicle connected virtually. However, the hardware segment is expected to grow at a significant rate in the market, as hardware is required to support the software.

Regional Outlook

Based on region, North America dominated the market in 2023, due to high presence of technology related automobile companies in the region. However, the Asia-Pacific region is expected to grow at a significant rate in the market due to growing software and autonomous companies in the region.

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Key Players: -

Rio Tinto

CaterPillar Inc.

Komatsu

Westwell

UISEE

Dematic

Daifuku Co., Ltd.

Siasun Robot & Automation Co., Ltd.

Meidensha Corporation

Toyota Motor Corporation

Swisslog

CSG Systems, Inc.

Beijing Idriverplus Technology Co., Ltd.

Neolix

JD.Com, Inc.

Cruise LLC

Enride

Gatik, Inc.

Nuro, Inc.

Starship Technologies

Tesla

Waymo LLC

Yandex

The report provides a detailed analysis of these key players in the global autonomous logistics vehicles market. These players have adopted different strategies such as new product launch, and collaboration to increase their market share and maintain dominant shares in different regions. The report is valuable in highlighting business performance, operating segments, product portfolio, and strategic moves of market players to showcase the competitive scenario.

Recent Developments:

In January 2023, Caterpillar showcased autonomous logistics vehicles at CES, demonstrating their efficiency and safety in extreme environments. They also announced a collaboration with Freeport-McMoRan to convert their Cat 793 haul trucks to autonomous systems.

In March 2024, Komatsu collaborated with Toyota to develop autonomous light vehicle that combine with Komatsu's autonomous haulage system. The main aim behind the project is to improve safety and productivity in mining operations.

In June 2023, Westwell launched Terminal GPT, a digital port operating platform, at TOC Europe in Rotterdam. The platform integrates artificial intelligence and machine learning for smart decision-making and operational planning. Key products include the Q-Truck, an autonomous, battery-powered commercial vehicle with power-on air smart energy service for efficient battery swaps. The Q-Truck is known for its cab-less design, allowing it to operate in various environments such as seaports, airports, and factories without human intervention.

In June 2023, Dematic launched its third-generation freezer-rated automated guided vehicles, to enhance safety and efficiency in extremely cold environments such as cold storage facilities by reducing human intervention and minimizing risks associated with cold stress and occupational hazards. The vehicles comprise of sensor and navigation features.

In 2023, Meidensha Corporation launched the Meiden AGV Kit. The kit offers cost economy feature, efficient solution for companies to integrate autonomous vehicles in their logistics operations.

In March 2023, Pony AI, collaborated with Neolix. The companies collaborated to design an automated driving domain controller for Neolix's X3 Plus, with delivery expected to reach thousands. The vehicle will be involved in logistics, retail, urban services, unmanned vehicle education and other fields.

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Six police officers from the Antioch and Pittsburg police departments in California paid others to take online college courses for them, in an effort to get bachelor's degrees and secure higher pay.

Now, they face jail time instead.

Five of the six officers pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud earlier this year. Antioch Police Department's Morteza Amiri, the only one two went to trial, was convicted by a federal jury last week.

In one of the texts shared at Amiri's trial, he wrote to the person taking his courses that he would pay "per class."

"[D]on't tell a soul about me hiring you for this," Amiri wrote. "[W]e can't afford it getting leaked and me losing my job."

Amiri received two convictions with a maximum of 20 years in prison; his sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 12. The other five officers were Patrick Berhan, Amanda "Nash" Theodosy, Samantha Peterson, Ernesto Mejia-Orozco, Brauli Rodriguez Jalapa.

In April, Peterson was sentenced to three years of supervised release and to perform 100 hours of community service. The remaining officers' sentences are scheduled for later this year.

"Amiri engaged in a calculated conspiracy to defraud his police department of taxpayer funds. His actions were a violation of the law and a grave betrayal of public trust," FBI Special Agent in Charge Robert Tripp said in a Friday statement. "Amiri and his co-conspirators' deception has no place in law enforcement. With this conviction, he now faces the consequences of his actions."
Additional funding is urgently needed to scale up access to safe inclusive, equitable quality education for refugees as well as vulnerable host community children.

CAIRO, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Over 748,000 refugees and asylum-seekers are registered with UNHCR Egypt, a majority of whom are women and children who have recently arrived in Egypt fleeing the brutal conflict that started in Sudan in April 2023. Since the conflict broke, the registered Sudanese refugee population has grown almost sevenfold and numbers are expected to keep rising.

With needs growing exponentially, resources are running thin for the Government of Egypt, UN agencies and other strategic partners to provide refugee and host community children with safe, protective quality learning spaces.

The 2024 Sudan Regional Refugee Response plan calls for $109 million to respond to refugee education needs across the region. To date, only 20% of this amount has been mobilized, including $4.3 million - or 40% of the requirement for Egypt.

On a high-level UN mission to Egypt this week, Education Cannot Wait (ECW), UNHCR and UNICEF stressed the funding shortfall and called for urgent increased international support for children forcibly displaced by the armed conflict, both inside Sudan itself and in neighboring countries.

While the Government of Egypt has taken notable steps to provide refugees with access to education services, with 9,000 children arriving every month, approximately 54% of newly arrived children are currently out of school, according to a recent assessment by UNICEF and the World Bank.

"Families fleeing the brutal conflict in Sudan have endured the most unspeakable violence and seen their lives ripped apart. For girls and boys uprooted by the internal armed conflict, education is nothing less than a lifeline. It provides protection and a sense of normalcy amidst the chaos, and gives them the resources they need to heal and thrive again," said Yasmine Sherif, Executive Director of Education Cannot Wait, the global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises within the United Nations. "In the spirit of responsibility sharing enshrined in the Global Compact on Refugees, I call on international donors to step up their support. Needs are fast outpacing the response. Additional resources are urgently required to ensure that refugee and host community children in Egypt and other refugee receiving countries in the region can attend school and continue learning. The future of the entire region is at stake," she said.

"Forcibly displaced children should not be denied their fundamental right to pursue their education, their flight from conflict can no longer be an impediment to their rights. UNHCR together with ECW and UNICEF continue to ensure that children's education, and therefore their future, are safeguarded," said Dr. Hanan Hamdan, UNHCR Representative to the Government of Egypt and to the League of Arab States. "To this end, it is crucial to further support Egypt as a host country. It has shown remarkable resilience and generosity, but the increasing number of displaced individuals requires enhanced international assistance. By strengthening Egypt's capacity to support refugees, we can ensure that more children have access to education and eventually a brighter future," she added.

Mr. Jeremy Hopkins, UNICEF Representative in Egypt, said, "UNICEF is steadfast in its commitment to ensure that conflict-affected Sudanese children have the opportunity to resume their education. In Egypt, through innovative Learning Spaces and the Comprehensive Inclusion Programme, UNICEF is working diligently, under the leadership of the Egyptian government in cooperation with sister UN agencies, and development partners, to create inclusive learning environments and strengthen resilient education systems and services. This not only benefits displaced Sudanese children but also supports host communities by ensuring that all children have access to quality education." He added, "UNICEF calls on the international community to stand in solidarity with the displaced Sudanese children whose education is at stake, and to provide the necessary resources and support to strengthen national systems that will ensure that both Egyptian and non-Egyptian children can realise their right to education."

During the high-level ECW mission in Egypt, the ECW delegation met with key strategic partners - including donors, UN agencies, and local and international NGOs - and with Sudanese refugees, to take stock of the scope of needs and the ongoing education response by aid partners.

In December 2023, ECW announced a US$2 million First Emergency Response grant in Egypt. The 12-month grant, implemented by UNHCR in partnership with UNICEF, is reaching over 20,000 Sudanese refugees in the Aswan, Cairo, Giza and Alexandria Governorates.

Interventions supported by the grant include non-formal education, cash grants, social cohesion with host communities, mental health and psychosocial support, and construction and refurbishment work in public schools hosting refugee children to benefit both refugee and host community children.

Beyond Egypt, ECW has allocated US$8 million in First Emergency Response grants in the Central Africa Republic, Chad, Ethiopia and South Sudan to address the urgent protection and education needs of children fleeing the armed conflict in Sudan.

In Sudan, ECW has invested US$28.7 million in multi-year and emergency grants which have already reached more than 100,000 crisis-affected girls and boys.

ECW calls on leaders to increase funding for the regional refugee response and other forgotten crises everywhere. ECW urgently appeals to public and private donors to mobilize an additional US$600 million to reach 20 million crisis-impacted girls and boys with safe, quality education by the end of its 2023-2026 Strategic Plan.

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TOKYO, Aug 22, 2024 - (JCN Newswire) - Hitachi High-Tech Corporation announced today the global launch of TM4000PlusIII and TM4000III Tabletop Microscopes equipped with support features for automation and stable operation.The TM Series shrinks the electron microscope to a size capable of being mounted on a tabletop. Thanks to theircompact size and ease of installation, desktop microscopes are widely used not only for R&D, but also in quality controlat manufacturing sites, science education at schools, and other purposes. In manufacturing environments in particular, there is a need to increase the efficiency of observation tasks and streamline operations so that even users with limited expertise can easily observe a large number of samples.The TM4000PlusIII is equipped with automation support features that enable users to create recipes for numerous conditions. Recipes can control functions such as stage position adjustment and magnification, which previouslyneeded to be manually configured every time for each sample. In addition, they come equipped with maintenance features designed to facilitate consistent observation. One such function is a monitoring system that checks the condition of the tungsten filament* and graphically reports its condition. Since tungsten filaments require regular replacement, this function allows users to track the filament lifetime and plan ahead with maintenance tasks to allow for smooth and consistent operation of the tool.*Tungsten filaments: A single part used in the electron gun of an electron microscope. They are typically made by bending a thin wire made of tungsten (element symbol: W), which is a highly heat-resistant metal, into a hairpin-like shape and connecting it to an electrode. The tungsten filament emits an electron beam when heated.Product Development BackgroundBecause the TM Series makes it possible to conduct high-precision observation and analysis, even when installationspace is limited, it has come to be a critical tool during the development and quality control of new materials. Recently, the TM Series has contributed to conserving the environment and maintaining people's health by being used to develop environmentally friendly materials and their manufacturing processes, as well as analyze harmful substances in the atmosphere. In manufacturing environments, the trend of decreasing feature size and stricter quality control has led to an increase in the number of SEM users. However, not all new users have specialized knowledge and operatingskills. Amidst this trend, we developed the TM4000PlusIII and TM4000III to have this sought-after optimization and simplification of observation tasks for the purposes of enabling the acquisition of high-precision data without any variability, regardless of who is operating the microscope or their level of expertise.Key Features1. Making Tasks More EfficientThe automation support feature with the TM4000PlusIII allows for observation procedures, such as stage movement, magnification changes, and imaging, to be saved as recipes. They can then be executed to run automatically with a single click. This makes operations more efficient and standardizes techniques among users. This is beneficial for those looking to automate routine tasks and for users who are concerned about having to manually configure observation conditions.The TM4000PlusIII also features a setting for high-current mode which enables faster operations due to the increasedobservation signal. For example, in particle analysis a large number of measurement points are required which can bevery time consuming to collect. The high-current function shortens measurement time for each location while reducing the overall time involved in such tasks.2. Plan Ahead with the Filament Monitoring FunctionThe microscopes come equipped with new support features to ensure they can be used with peace of mind at all times. One example is the filament indicator feature, which allows users to track the filament life on screen, preventinginstances of observations being interrupted due to filament replacements occurring mid-observation.3. Ideal for Educational PurposesThe TM Series is equipped with low-vacuum and high-sensitivity backscattered electron detectors, which eliminate the need for complicated pretreatment processes. This makes it possible to conduct observations on a variety of sampleswith ease, enabling the TM Series to be utilized in educational settings.Additionally, as digital skill development becomes a critical subject in educational settings, the TM4000PlusIII allowusers to experience and learn important programming concepts such as "sequential execution," "repetition," and "conditional branching" via the automation support features.The TM4000PlusIII and TM4000III will be exhibited at JASIS 2024 at the Makuhari Messe International ExhibitionHalls in Chiba, Japan, from September 4 through September 6, 2024.Hitachi High-Tech aims to ship a target total of 6,000 TM Series units across the global market as quickly as possible to contribute to manufacturing worldwide. Hitachi High-Tech will continue to refine our core analysis technologies, and provide measurement and inspection solutions that support R&D and quality control operations in a wide range of fields, in order to help improve people's QoL (Quality of Life) and to resolve social issues related to the environment, resilience, and security and safety.About Hitachi High-TechHitachi High-Tech, headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is engaged in activities in a broad range of fields, includingmanufacture and sales of clinical analyzers, biotechnology products, radiation therapy systems, semiconductor manufacturing equipment, analytical instruments, and analysis equipment. Also, we provide high value-added solutions in industrial fields such as mobility, connected, environment and energy, etc. Through business based on our core Observation, Measurement and Analysis technologies, we will contribute to the realization of a sustainable society by solving social issues.The company's consolidated revenues for FY2023 were approx. JPY 670.4 billion. For further information, visit www.hitachi-hightech.com/global/en/Business Contact:Takeshi KamimuraGlobal Sales Planning Dept.Beam Technology & Analytical Systems Business Div., Core Technology & Solutions Business GroupHitachi High-Tech CorporationEmail: takeshi.kamimura.jj@hitachi-hightech.comSource: Hitachi, Ltd.Copyright 2024 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved.
neurocare is pleased to announce that it has received FDA clearance for its industry-leading intermittent Theta Burst Stimulation (iTBS) protocol, available across its Apollo TMS Therapy System and other Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation systems for clinical practice.

ATLANTA, GA / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / neurocare group ("neurocare" or the "Company"), a leading innovator in personalized mental health and performance, is pleased to announce that it has received FDA clearance for its industry-leading intermittent Theta Burst Stimulation (iTBS) protocol, available across its Apollo TMS Therapy System and other Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation systems for clinical practice.

neurocare's Apollo TMS Therapy System has FDA approval for iTBS

TMS is a non-invasive brain stimulation technique and an evidence-based treatment for depression which can be delivered in ambulant settings as an alternative to medications and with minimal side-effects. During TMS therapy, a magnetic coil on the patient's head emits a focal stimulation to boost neural pathways in the brain.

iTBS is a more time-efficient treatment protocol with just over three minutes required for an individual treatment session for patients with depression. Additionally, this allows for more sophisticated treatment protocols, giving the provider more flexibility in treatment to enhance clinical care.

In recent years, neurocare and its TMS team in Germany have engineered an advanced technology for delivering iTBS which ensures a consistent and efficient delivery of full stimulation power across the entire burst sequence. This offers a superior solution to other TMS systems on the market, where the pulse strength can decay with subsequent pulses, resulting in less than optimal clinical care.

"We knew it was important to give physicians the confidence in using innovative technologies like TMS, so it was a key focus area for our team to find a solution to the challenge of output power consistency in iTBS stimulation," said Dr. Kerstin Haringer, Group Head of TMS technology at neurocare group, Munich, Germany. "Thanks to the dedication of our world-class engineering team, we achieved superior power consistency for our TMS systems, thereby making the iTBS protocol more reliable."

When being treated with an iTBS protocol on the Apollo TMS system, a patient can now receive a reliable stimulation dose that accurately reflects the parameters set by the physician.

"We are excited to be able to offer this new best-in-class technology so our customers can in turn provide the best care to their patients," said Stanford Miller, Group Executive Vice President, and Managing Director of neurocare group North American operations.

Since 2021, neurocare has built a substantial network of clinic partnerships and private physician users in the field of psychiatry across the USA. More than 175 clinics and institutions have adopted the Apollo TMS Therapy system to help the most difficult-to-treat patients they service. The Apollo is FDA-cleared as a treatment for major depression after a patient has tried and not benefited from oral antidepressant medications. Apollo TMS Therapy is a covered service by most private and public health insurance providers.

Contact Information

Sally Remington

Global Marketing Manager

media@neurocaregroup.com

+49 152 2305 8385

SOURCE: neurocare group

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Company Announcement

No. 47/2024

Copenhagen, 22 August 2024





Interim report, 1 January - 30 June 2024



Scandinavian Tobacco Group A/S reports second quarter 2024 results and maintains full-year guidance



For the second quarter of 2024 Scandinavian Tobacco Group delivered a 6.3% increase in reported net sales by DKK 2.4 billion with an EBITDA margin before special items at 24.5%. Net sales increased 4.8% organically driven by Handmade Cigars and Next Generation Products. The decline rate in Machine-Rolled Cigars & Smoking Tobacco improved compared with the first quarter. The EBITDA margin is impacted by an improving, yet still negative, volume development, mix changes and investments in growth. In the second half of the year, the Group is expected to deliver organic net sales growth and a continued improvement in the EBITDA-margin. The full year guidance is maintained.

Second Quarter 2024 - Financial Performance

Net sales of DKK 2,366 million (DKK 2,225 million) with 4.8% positive organic growth.

EBITDA before special items was DKK 580 million (DKK 514 million) with an EBITDA margin of 24.5% (23.1%).

Adjusted Earnings Per Share (EPS) were DKK 4.1 (DKK 3.5).

Free cash flow before acquisitions was DKK 177 million (DKK 159 million).

Return on Invested Capital (ROIC) was 10.5% (13.1%).

Growth Enablers delivered a high double-digit growth rate and accounted for 12% of Group net sales.

In the first six months of 2024, net sales increased by 3.0% to DKK 4.3 billion (DKK 4.2 billion), organic net sales growth was 1.5%, the EBITDA margin was 21.2% (23.6%), free cash flow before acquisitions was DKK 52 million (DKK -20 million) and Adjusted EPS were DKK 5.8 (DKK 6.7).

CEO Niels Frederiksen: "The second quarter financial performance supports our expectation for the full year. During the past months, we have taken material steps in executing our strategy and to safeguard our financial performance in challenging markets. The new commercial structure has been completed and we have taken additional steps to re-establish our market position in machine-rolled cigars and to improve our cost agility across the group. Further, the acquisition of Mac Baren strengthens our smoking tobacco business where the combination with our existing business will deliver meaningful synergies and good value for our shareholders".

Acquisition of Mac Baren

With effect from 1 July 2024, Scandinavian Tobacco Group has acquired Mac Baren Tobacco Company A/S ("Mac Baren") in a transaction valued at DKK 535 million. Mac Baren is a leading global smoking tobacco company, which includes a strong portfolio of pipe tobacco brands, fine-cut tobacco brands and brands within the nicotine pouch category. Mac Baren adds a valuable portfolio of brands within the smoking tobacco category, increases our presence in the nicotine pouch market and contributes to improved financial results.

Financial Guidance 2024



The financial guidance 2024 is unchanged.

Net sales in the range of DKK 8.8-9.1 billion

EBITDA margin before special items in the range of 22%-24%

Free cash flow before acquisitions in the range DKK 0.8-1.0 billion

Adjusted EPS in the range of DKK 12.5-14.5

The full-year financial guidance for 2024 is exclusive of the impact from the acquisition of Mac Baren Tobacco Company. The financial impact of the acquisition will be communicated as soon as the integration planning period has been completed, but no later than at the release of the third quarter interim report, on 12 November 2024.

For further information, please contact:

Torben Sand, Director of IR & Communication, phone +45 5084 7222 or torben.sand@st-group.com

A conference call will be held on 23 August 2024 at 10.00 CEST. Dial-in information and an accompanying presentation will be available at investor.st-group.com/investor around 09:00 CEST.

Attachment
The ASEAN market is a key market area for Dongfeng Motor's overseas business. Dongfeng has increased the launch of new products in Vietnam, Myanmar and Cambodia, strengthened customer service, actively promoted localized marketing, firmly implemented the international development strategy with its strong automobile manufacturing strength and long-standing industry experience, and is committed to jointly developing a mutually beneficial and win-win future with its partners.

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Dongfeng Conducted Pre-sales Training and Customer Delivery Ceremony in ASEAN Market (Photo: Business Wire)

In the Vietnamese market, Dongfeng Commercial Vehicles and its partners build a full value chain cooperation system, including product research and development, sales training, marketing and after-sales service. By organizing a series of theme activities of service marketing innovation, it enhances the professional ability of service technicians, and strengthens product adaptability and service response speed.

In May, Dongfeng successfully held the launch conference of the DOGFENG GX tractor in Vietnam, and participated in the whole process of pre-sales and after-sales of the product, which promoted the growth of brand volume. Also, Dongfeng Motor pays attention to service quality, systematically conducts new product listing and maintenance training, ensures that consumers get timely and efficient service support, and significantly improves customer satisfaction and brand loyalty.

In Myanmar market, Dongfeng Commercial Vehicles have increased customer loyalty through free maintenance activities. In the Indonesian market, Dongfeng Motor places great emphasis on local characteristics, offering customers a high-quality experience through professional exhibitions and test drives. In Cambodia, it strengthens the user experience and product reputation through the launch events of new cars.

At the upcoming 21st China-ASEAN Expo, Dongfeng Motor will showcase 10 representative models and nearly 100 products across four categories, including agricultural machinery and spare parts, present a unified group image, strengthen cooperation and exchanges with potential partners of ASEAN countries, and promote international development.

Dongfeng Motor will always take customer demand as the guide, deepen localization development, fully implement the concept of "customer first" in product innovation, marketing strategy, channel expansion and service upgrade, and achieve sustained growth in global business.

Website:

http://www.dongfeng-global.com/

https://www.facebook.com/DongfengMotorCorporationGlobal

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https://www.facebook.com/DongfengMotorCorporationME

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Contacts:

China Dongfeng Motor Industry Imp. Exp. Co. Ltd

Fan Shaoyang

gjb-fansy@dfmc.com.cn
AMINA Bank Launches a Banking Package for Web3 Startups and Scale-ups, Offering Fee-free Accounts and Digital Asset Services to Drive Growth, Expansion, and Innovation in the Underserved Web3 Ecosystem

AMINA Bank, a FINMA-regulated digital assets bank, announces its new banking package tailored for Web3 startups and scale-ups. The package is designed to draw in and empower innovation by offering growth-stage projects a comprehensive suite of financial tools and services and removing many of the traditional barriers to entry.

Myles Harrison, Chief Product Officer at AMINA Bank, said: "Web3 startups and scale-ups often struggle to find banking partners that fully understand the intricacies of digital assets and offer products tailored to their specific needs. With the launch of AMINA Bank's Startup Package, we are not only providing a bank account; we're opening a gateway to an integrated financial ecosystem that supports both traditional and digital assets. This initiative underscores our commitment to empowering the next generation of innovators in the Web3 space and the wider startup ecosystem."

The AMINA Bank Startup Package provides startups and scale-ups with access to AMINA Bank's products, including:

Current accounts with no monthly fees in CHF and EUR with USD and HKD coming soon.

with no monthly fees in CHF and EUR with USD and HKD coming soon. Payments services in a wide range of global currencies.

in a wide range of global currencies. Notice and Fixed Term Deposit Accounts.

Crypto custody, staking, and spot trading services.

AMINA Bank eliminates many of the financial barriers faced by Web3 startups and scale-ups. With no onboarding fees, no minimum funding requirements, and no monthly fees for the package, it provides an ideal solution for startups navigating the financial complexities of the digital age.

Su Carpenter, Executive Director of CryptoUK, expressed her thoughts on AMINA Bank's latest offering, stating: "At CryptoUK, we have long championed accessible and appropriate banking and financial services for the Web3 industry. We fully support organisations like AMINA Bank in offering innovative, user-friendly, and accessible products that strengthen the ecosystem. The key to securing growth, success, and global competitiveness lies in addressing the gaps within the Web3 sector, and we are encouraged to see institutions like AMINA Bank leading the way in creating opportunities for our industry to thrive."

The package is available for companies with less than five years of operation or under CHF 10 million in funding (or equivalent). This new product aligns with AMINA Bank's goal of being the first choice for digital asset innovators by providing flexible and secure solutions from a FINMA-regulated institution.

The AMINA Bank Startup package, which already has a waiting list of interested prospects, is available from today. Eligible companies can register their interest today via AMINA Bank's website.

This new package marks another step in AMINA Bank's ongoing commitment to serve the innovative and rapidly growing Web3 sector which is expected to achieve a 45% value growth, reaching $49.1bn by 2030. By providing this package, AMINA Bank is setting new standards for banking in the digital age, ensuring that Web3 startups and scale-ups have the robust financial support they need to thrive, backed by the security of AMINA Bank's established, FINMA-regulated position.

Myles Harrison, Chief Product Officer at AMINA Bank, is available for interview upon request

About AMINA Crypto. Banking. Simplified. Founded in April 2018 and headquartered in Zug, AMINA (formerly SEBA) is a pioneer in the financial industry. In August 2019, AMINA received a Swiss banking and securities dealer license. The broad, vertically integrated spectrum of services, combined with the highest security standards, make AMINA's value proposition unique. AMINA operates globally from its regulated hubs of Switzerland, Abu Dhabi, and Hong Kong to offer fiat and crypto services to progressive investors, traditional and crypto-native alike, whether individuals, corporates, or institutions.

CVVC Global Report and CB Insights named AMINA as one of the Top 50 Companies within the blockchain ecosystem. Aite Group awarded AMINA their 2021 Digital Wealth Management Impact Innovation Award in the 'Digital Startup of the Year' category, and LinkedIn listed AMINA as one of the Top Startups 2021 in Switzerland. In 2022, AMINA won the Digital Assets Offering or Service at the WealthBriefing Swiss EAM Awards, and the bank was also recognised for its product offering SEBAX and won the Best ETP of the Year award at the Swiss ETF Awards 2022. In 2023, AMINA won the European WealthBriefing Award in the Digital Assets Solution, Fund Manager category.

To learn more about AMINA, visit www.aminagroup.com

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240822361959/en/

Contacts:

Wachsman

Conor McManus

Consultant

aminabank@wachsman.com
Miami, Florida--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - A new survey conducted by OysterLink has revealed alarming rates of restaurant workers feeling compelled to work while sick.





Most Restaurant Workers Go to Work When They're Sick



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/10722/220667_21f721d4548b7aa5_001full.jpg

Nearly 75% of the respondents reported feeling pressured to work despite illness always or often, with only 25% stating they feel the need to come to work while sick rarely or never. The survey was conducted online among hospitality industry professionals in the first half of 2024.

"Restaurant workers are essential to communities, and their well-being directly impacts the quality and safety of service", said Milos Eric, General Manager at OysterLink. It's crucial to address the systemic pressures that force them to choose between their health and their jobs, and to provide platforms that support both their well-being and professional growth."

According to the research by US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, around 40 incidents of food poisoning are linked to sick restaurant workers. Most restaurants have policies for sick workers recommended by the FDA Food Code. These rules require staff to inform managers if they're ill, however, one-third of these policies do not list the exact symptoms that should keep sick employees from working.

To navigate this issue and understand when it's essential to stay home restaurant workers can explore OysterLink's guide How To Call In Sick To Work.

About OysterLink

OysterLink is a job platform in the restaurant and hospitality industry. It features market trends and celebrity interviews to guide career growth. Currently, OysterLink attracts over 150,000 monthly visitors and is growing.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220667

SOURCE: OysterLink
Sokoman Minerals Corp. (TSXV:SIC)(OTCQB:SICNF) ("Sokoman" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that a diamond drill rig has been mobilized to the Fleur de Lys Property, with drilling to commence immediately. The 2,000-m, Phase 1 program will test historical showings and targets generated by Sokoman's 2021-2024 till / prospecting programs, including the Golden Bull prospect discovered in 2023.

The program is planned for 20 holes at an average depth of 100 m, with drilling beginning at the southern end of the area to test targets identified, but not tested, by Noranda in the 1980s and ending at the Golden Bull area in the central portion of the six to eight km2 target area with approximately 50% of the program planned for Golden Bull.

Timothy Froude, P.Geo., President and CEO of Sokoman Minerals states; "We are very pleased to start our maiden drill program at Fleur de Lys. We have systematically explored the property during the past three years, targeting world-class, Dalradian-type, orogenic gold mineralization in a similar geological environment in Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom. The Curraghinalt deposit in Northern Ireland, hosting more than six million ounces of gold, is currently one of the largest undeveloped gold deposits in the Caledonian-Appalachian Orogen. The program will test at least five distinct target areas highlighted by the Golden Bull Prospect, including targets not tested by Noranda in the late 1980s. Regional exploration will continue to define till and rock sample anomalies to generate more drill targets."

The six to eight km2 target area includes several discrete targets highlighted by the Golden Bull Prospect, which is defined by 124 grab samples, with visible gold noted, and with 34 values >500 ppb Au to a maximum of 9,020 ppb (9.02 g/t) Au, in laterally extensive stylolitic quartz float consisting of angular to sub-angular boulders. Approximately 50% of the grab samples from the broader Golden Bull target area have given values >100 ppb Au, suggesting the potential for additional, undiscovered gold zones.

Drilling will be conducted by Springdale Forest Resources based in Springdale, NL, utilizing a Duralite tracked rig recovering NQ size drill core. The program will run on a day-shift-only basis with a two-man drill crew working a 12-hour shift. Assaying will be done at Eastern Analytical Ltd., in Springdale, approximately 90 km by Provincial highways from the Fleur de Lys property.

Photo 1: Tim Froude with a typical boulder from Golden Bull - Fleur de Lys Project

QP

This news release has been reviewed and approved by Timothy Froude, P.Geo., a "Qualified Person" under National Instrument 43-101 and President and CEO of Sokoman Minerals Corp.

Analytical Techniques / QA/QC

Samples, including duplicates, blanks, and standards, are submitted to Eastern Analytical Ltd. in Springdale, Newfoundland for gold analysis. Eastern Analytical Ltd. is an accredited assay lab that conforms to the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025. Samples are delivered in sealed bags directly to the lab by Sokoman personnel. All samples of quartz vein material were submitted for total pulp metallics and gravimetric finish. Total pulp metallic analysis includes: the whole sample is crushed to -10 mesh; and then pulverized to 95% -150 mesh. The total sample is weighed and screened to 150 mesh; the +150 mesh fraction is fire-assayed for Au, and a 30 g subsample of the -150 mesh fraction is fire-assayed for Au; with a calculated weighted average of total Au in the sample reported as well. One blank and one industry-approved standard for every twenty samples submitted is included in the sample stream. Random duplicates of selected samples are analyzed in addition to the in-house standard and duplicate policies of Eastern Analytical Ltd. All reported assays are uncut.

About Sokoman Minerals Corp.

Sokoman Minerals Corp., based in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, focuses primarily on its gold projects, including the wholly-owned Moosehead, Crippleback Lake, and the extensive Fleur de Lys project near Baie Verte. This latter project aims to discover Dalradian-type orogenic gold mineralization like the Curraghinalt and Cavanacaw deposits in Northern Ireland. The company has also partnered with Benton Resources Inc. on three large-scale joint ventures: Grey River, Killick Lithium formerly Golden Hope, and Kepenkeck, positioning Sokoman as one of the largest landholders in Canada's emerging gold districts.

In October 2023, Sokoman and Benton entered into an agreement with Piedmont Lithium Inc. to advance the Killick Lithium Project. Under this deal, Piedmont can acquire up to 62.5% of the project by investing up to $12 million in exploration and issuing $10 million in shares over three phases. The project, previously known as Golden Hope, is now part of Killick Lithium Inc., a subsidiary of Vinland Lithium Inc., in which Piedmont has acquired a 19.9% stake for $2 million. Sokoman and Benton maintain operational control during the earn-in phases and retain a 2% NSR royalty on future production. Additionally, Piedmont holds exclusive marketing and first-refusal rights on the lithium concentrates for the life of the mine.

Projects optioned with optionee fully vested:

East Alder Project optioned to Canterra Minerals Inc (SIC retains 850,000 shares of CTM plus 1% NSR)

Startrek Project optioned to Thunder Gold (SIC retains 1,750,000 shares of TGOL plus 1% NSR)

The Company would like to thank the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador for the financial support of the Moosehead and Fleur de Lys Projects through the Junior Exploration Assistance Program during the past few years.

For more information, please contact:

Timothy Froude, P.Geo., President & CEO Cathy Hume, VP Corporate Development, Director T: 709-765-1726 T: 416-868-1079 x 251 E: tim@sokomanmineralscorp.com E: cathy@chfir.com

Website: www.sokomanmineralscorp.com | Twitter: @SokomanMinerals

Facebook: @SokomanMinerals | LinkedIn: @SokomanMineralsCorp

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.

Investors are cautioned that trading in the securities of the Corporation should be considered highly speculative. Except for historical information contained herein, this news release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially. Sokoman Minerals Corp. will not update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof. More detailed information about potential factors that could affect financial results is included in the documents filed from time to time with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities by Sokoman Minerals Corp.

SOURCE: Sokoman Minerals Corp.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Vevey, August 22, 2024

Nestle appoints Laurent Freixe as CEO of Nestle S.A., Mark Schneider leaves the company

The Board of Directors of Nestle has appointed Laurent Freixe, currently Executive Vice President and CEO Zone Latin America (LATAM), as Chief Executive Officer Nestle S.A., effective September 1. The Board has also nominated Laurent Freixe as a candidate for the Board of Directors at the 2025 Annual General Meeting.

Mark Schneider, Chief Executive Officer, has decided to relinquish his roles as CEO and member of the Board of Directors. Over his 8 years with the company, he has actively shaped the company's portfolio, in line with Nestle's strategy and with a focus on high-growth categories like coffee, pet care and nutritional health products.

Laurent Freixe joined Nestle in France in 1986. Since then, he has continuously progressed within the company, assuming various positions of increasing responsibility across different businesses, markets and Zones. He successfully managed Zone Europe during the financial and economic crisis, from 2008 until 2014. He then took over as CEO of Zone Americas, where he accelerated growth. Following the creation of Nestle's new Zone structure in 2022, Laurent Freixe was named CEO Zone Latin America, where he has been successfully leading through challenging conditions.

Laurent Freixe has been a member of the Executive Board for 16 years and, as such, has played an important role in strengthening the strategic direction of the company and its portfolio. With his profound understanding of Nestle's culture and values, he has led several global corporate initiatives to improve productivity, increase operational efficiency, simplify processes and drive innovation. Additionally, Laurent Freixe is committed to developing future leaders and talents, as evidenced by his active role in the Nestle Leadership and Training Programs as well as the Nestle Needs YOUth initiative, which promotes youth employment.

Paul Bulcke, Chairman of the Board of Directors, said: "The Board of Directors is delighted to announce the appointment of Laurent as the new CEO. I have known Laurent for a long time and highly regard him as a talented leader with strategic acumen, extensive in-market experience and expertise as well as a deep understanding of markets and consumers. He has demonstrated his ability to deliver results in challenging market conditions. Laurent's curiosity fuels his passion for innovation and positive change. Laurent is the perfect fit for Nestle at this time. Under his leadership, Nestle will further strengthen its position as a dependable, reliable company through consistent and sustainable value creation."

Paul Bulcke continued: "I would also like to express our gratitude to Mark for his significant contributions to Nestle and for his outstanding, steady leadership in turbulent times. Mark has been instrumental in the great progress we have made on our sustainability agenda. We extend our best wishes to him in all his professional and personal endeavors."

Laurent Freixe said: "I am privileged to have been given the opportunity to continue building and strengthening Nestle, and I am excited to take on this responsibility. There will always be challenges, but we have unparalleled strengths, such as iconic brands and products, an unmatched global presence, leading innovation and execution capabilities, and above all, exceptional people and teams. We can strategically position Nestle to lead and win everywhere we operate."

Mark Schneider said: "Leading Nestle for the past 8 years has been an honor for me. I am grateful for what we have achieved, having transformed Nestle into a future-proofed, innovative and sustainable business. I would like to thank the entire Nestle community for what we have accomplished together and wish Laurent all the best in his new role."

Contacts:



Media:

Christoph Meier Tel.: +41 21 924 2200

mediarelations@nestle.com



Investors:

Luca Borlini Tel.: +41 21 924 3509

ir@nestle.com
Sophia Rosing, a former University of Kentucky student, pleaded guilty Monday to multiple charges related to a racist attack on a Black student.

Rosing, 23, admitted to four counts of fourth-degree assault, one count of disorderly conduct, and one count of public intoxication, according to the Lexington Herald-Leader.

The incident occurred in November 2022 when Rosing, who is white, assaulted Kylah Spring, a Black student working at the front desk of a campus residence hall. The attack, which was captured on video and widely shared on social media, showed Rosing hitting and kicking Spring while using racial slurs.

Following the assault, Rosing was expelled from the university and banned from campus.

"The safety and well-being of our students is our top priority, and we will not tolerate behavior that threatens it," the school said in a statement.

Her attorney, Fred Peters, said that the guilty plea followed a mediation session between Rosing and Spring.

"A lot of things got said, apologies were made and we worked it out," Peters told the outlet. "Her life has been on hold for the past 18 to 20 months. She has had a lot of time to think about what she has done, and she wrote a nice letter of apology."

Rosing faces up to one year in jail, 100 hours of community service, and a $25 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 17.
NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Lenovo

By Scott Tease, Vice President and General Manager of High-Performance Computing and AI at Lenovo

Running 100KW+ server racks without the need for specialized data center air conditioning with 6th Generation Lenovo Neptune

Lenovo announced the 6th generation of Lenovo Neptune liquid cooling, designed to help businesses unlock the power needed for AI without forfeiting their sustainability goals. Lenovo also announced its 18th annual Report, sharing its progress toward 2030 emissions reduction goals, increased participation in the circular economy, industry-leading representation of women in technical roles 1, increased employee volunteerism, and proactive governance of AI as we work to become the leading provider of smarter AI for all.

For nearly 20 years, we have been measuring and reporting our sustainability efforts and now that we are in the AI Era - we are bringing this experience to bear, ensuring that sustainable computing is the cornerstone of responsible AI advancement and our mission to make AI accessible for all.

Lenovo first announced its smarter AI for all vision at Lenovo Tech World in October 2023. Since then, Lenovo has launched an AI-enabled solution for real-time tracking of its manufacturing emissions, an AI-powered engine to give customers insights on their IT emissions, and numerous social impact initiatives to support communication for people with hearing loss, preserve the voice of an individual suffering from ALS, connect non-profits to trusted resources for AI, and ensure its own AI solutions are reviewed for inclusion and accessibility, among other responsible AI factors.

In the last year, Generative AI has taken the world by storm, capturing the attention of users, the press, investors, and organizations globally. Unfortunately, the energy required to power all this innovation has adverse implications on ESG efforts and commitments to sustainable computing. Organizations will be challenged to modernize trillions of dollars' worth of installed IT equipment used to provide AI, while simultaneously maintaining the commitment to providing smarter technology that builds a brighter, more sustainable future.

Lenovo is working every day to support the mainstream rollout of AI-ready computing without sacrificing energy efficiency. Power efficiency remains crucial to making the rollout of these compute-intensive workloads accessible for all businesses. A key element to enabling this transformation? Water.

Lenovo Neptune?has led the world in data center cooling technology for more than a decade. With more than 40 industry-first patents, Lenovo continues pushing the envelope in the use of liquid to remove heat, enabling customers to realize up to a 40% reduction in power consumption and a 3.5x improvement in thermal efficiencies compared to traditional air-cooled systems. Our direct water-cooling solution recycles loops of warm water to cool data center systems and keep all the server components cool, reducing the need for power-hungry system fans in data center operation.

As we look ahead, with today's announcement, the 6th generation of Lenovo Neptune liquid cooling will support the mainstream rollout of AI-ready computing without sacrificing energy efficiency, leveraging new design innovation, like cold plate designs and on-memory cooling, to make more power efficient computing available across all ThinkSystem V3 and V4 servers. With this next generation, Lenovo Neptune will also allow AI and HPC customers to run 100KW+ server racks without the need for specialized data center air conditioning, because 98% of all heat will be transferred to the water loop.

Lenovo Neptune liquid cooling technology can help customers achieve ultra-low Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) in their data center. PUE is the ratio of the total amount of energy used by the data center facility overall to the energy used by just the computing equipment. By implementing direct water-cooling of CPUs, GPUs, and NVIDIA NVLink technology, systems, the Lenovo ThinkSystem SR780a can both provide sustained maximum performance without reaching thermal limits and reduce the environmental impact over a traditional fully air-cooled server. In fact, Lenovo Neptune provides more sustained computing power in a compact footprint that allows for extreme power efficiency without compromising model training time.

Lenovo's ongoing liquid cooling innovation with partners is also critical to helping customers advance on their AI journey. For example, colocation partnerships are helping customers implement high-performance private AI even if they lack the data center footprint or infrastructure for liquid cooling. Most recently, Lenovo partnered with Digital Realty on their groundbreaking liquid-to-chip cooling technology and the next evolution in high-density deployment support. Direct liquid cooling (DLC) brings liquid directly to customers' infrastructure, in order to effectively meet the pervasive demand for AI. Lenovo's collaboration with Digital Realty empowers clients to meet their sustainability goals and address the needs of AI, without sacrificing the power necessary to perform high demands.

Partners like Digital Realty are helping us pave the way to give responsible access to AI for every industry, every company and every person. As we focus on technology solutions that help build a more sustainable future, Lenovo Neptune is designed to make data center computing as powerful and efficient as possible, empowering customers to meet their sustainability goals and exponentially grow generative AI and intelligence through infrastructure that doesn't sacrifice efficiency for higher performance.

1 Based on published data from competitors and peers

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Lenovo on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Lenovo

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/lenovo

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Lenovo

View the original press release on accesswire.com
With the launch of Accountant Partners' new location, Huntington Beach businesses can now access expert tax planning, cloud accounting integration, and a unique pricing guarantee.

HUNTINGTON BEACH, CA / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Accountant Partners, a leading firm specializing in small business accounting and tax planning, is excited to announce the opening of its newest location in Huntington Beach, California. This expansion is a significant step in the firm's mission to provide personalized and impactful financial services to small businesses in the vibrant Huntington Beach community.

Huntingdon Beach Small Business Accountant

Huntingdon Beach Small Business Accountant

With over 200,000 residents and 20,630 businesses, Huntington Beach is a thriving hub of economic activity. From tourism to manufacturing and aerospace, these businesses have varying financial and accounting needs that Accountant Partner's new location aims to serve. With 1 in 4 businesses failing each year, according to a Lending Tree report, small businesses must get the support they need to thrive, especially financially.

Accountant Partners is poised to serve this dynamic market, offering tailored solutions that include tax planning, business growth strategies, and seamless integration with cloud accounting software. Their approach is designed to minimize tax burdens by $10K to as much as $1M, helping local businesses save money and grow profitably.

"As a Huntington Beach small business accountant, we understand the unique challenges and opportunities facing local businesses," said Allan Bayer, Managing Partner at Accountant Partners. "Our goal is to provide the financial insights and support business owners need to thrive. We are thrilled to bring our expertise to this community."

The new Huntington Beach office will offer a comprehensive range of services tailored to meet the needs of small business owners, including:

Tax Plan For Current Year & Beyond

Deduction Review & Strategy Planning

Legal Entity Optimization Across LLC, S Corp, Partnership

Retirement Options To Save While Minimizing Taxes

Insurance Review To Protect Assets & Reduce Taxes

TCJA, FFCRA, CARES Review For Liability Minimization

IRS & Court Case References Support Positions

Core Strategy Implementation

Business Tax Preparation

Quarterly Estimated Payments

Quarterly Core Tax Planning & Implementation

Quarterly 1-On-1 Review Tax Position

As Accountant Partners opens its doors in Huntington Beach, it invites small business owners to experience the difference that expert, personalized accounting can make. With a focus on integrity, efficiency, and client success, Accountant Partners is ready to help Huntington Beach businesses reach new heights.

For further details on how to work with a Huntington Beach small business accountant, visit https://accountantpartners.com/small-business-accountant-huntington-beach/ or contact Accountant Partners directly at (657) 300-6966.

About Accountant Partners:

Accountant Partners is a leading small business accounting firm helping business owners in Huntington Beach, CA save up to $1M per year in taxes through partner-level accounting, reporting, and strategic advisory. With 27 years of experience, Accountant Partners specializes in best-in-class tax minimization strategies, personalized advisory, and technology-driven efficiency.

Contact Information

JP Richards

Director of Communications

releases@drakedigital.com

844-703-0880

SOURCE: Accountant Partners

View the original press release on newswire.com.
With funding from the CVS Health Foundation, the Southern Birth Justice Network and the University of Florida Mobile Outreach Clinic will expand maternal health services in areas with limited accessibility.

NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Direct Relief today announced more than $1.3 million from the organization's Fund for Health Equity will be disbursed to groups focused on improving maternal health outcomes in underserved areas.

The grants, awarded to the Southern Birth Justice Network and the University of Florida Mobile Outreach Clinic, were made possible by a generous donation from the CVS Health Foundation, the independent, philanthropic arm of CVS Health.

"Direct Relief is privileged to support these organizations that work tirelessly to support their communities every day, and that will now be able to expand their services to even more patients," said Dr. Byron Scott, Direct Relief COO and Co-Chair of the Fund for Health Equity. "We are deeply grateful to the CVS Health Foundation and their leadership, which acts as a powerful force multiplier, allowing more of this essential work to take place for people who need it most."

The Southern Birth Justice Network based in Miami, Florida, works to expand access to midwifery and doula care for Black, Brown, Indigenous, LGBTQ+, low-income, and other marginalized communities. The organization established the National Black Midwives Alliance, a professional group that represents Black midwives across the U.S., in 2018.

Direct Relief's grant will support the National Black Midwives Alliance in establishing itself as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and in implementing programs connected to midwives' and doulas' work across the country.

In north central Florida, the University of Florida Mobile Outreach Clinic offers primary care to all patients regardless of location, health insurance, immigration status, or income -?the only such service in the area.

The grant from Direct Relief's Fund for Health Equity will help to establish a new perinatal mobile health clinic, providing clinical services to rural women who are at high risk of poor birth outcomes, many of whom are ineligible for public insurance. The clinic will also offer mental health, pregnancy, postpartum, and lactation support for patients. Training lay community members to become perinatal community health workers, lactation counselors, and doulas will be another focus.

In particular, the purchase of a mobile medical unit and ultrasound machines, and the hiring and training of community members from underrepresented groups in the area, will be funded by the grant.

Since the start of the Fund in 2021, more than $50 million has been provided to support 163 organizations across the U.S.

The awardees were selected by the Fund for Health Equity's Advisory Council, which includes the following members:

 Co-Chair Regina Benjamin, MD, MBA, 18th US Surgeon General of the United States, Founder Bayou Clinic, Inc.

 Co-Chair Byron Scott, MD, MBA, Direct Relief COO

 Martha Dawson, DNP, MSN, RN, FACHE, President and CEO President of the National Black Nurses Association, Associate Professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham

 Jane Delgado, Ph.D., MS, President and CEO of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health

 Gail Small, JD, Head Chief Woman, a citizen of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe

The Southern Birth Justice Network based in Miami, Florida, works to expand access to midwifery and doula care for Black, Brown, Indigenous, LGBTQ+, low-income, and other marginalized communities. The organization established the National Black Midwives Alliance, a professional group that represents Black midwives across the U.S., in 2018. The group was one of two organizations to recently receive a grant from the CVS Health Foundation and Direct Relief's Fund for Health Equity. (Courtesy photo)

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Direct Relief on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Direct Relief

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/direct-relief

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Direct Relief

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Conclusion of insolvency proceedings possible in 2025 with substantial dividend for the creditors

Following lengthy and difficult negotiations, the insolvency administrator for Qimonda, Dr Michael Jaffe, and Infineon Technologies AG have reached final agreement in the action relating to undervalue and liability for impairment of capital, which had been pending at the Munich Regional Court at first instance since 2010.

Qimonda AG emerged from Infineon Technologies AG in 2006 after Infineon Technologies had transferred its memory chip division to Qimonda at the time. At its height, it employed 13,500 people globally and had some of the highest sales among global chip manufacturers. It was listed on the New York Stock Exchange in August 2006. In January 2009, Qimonda AG was obliged to file for insolvency after it was unable to continue to run its business profitably in the previous years and was also unable to obtain state funding.

Action relating to undervalue and liability for impairment of capital pending since 2010

The carve-out of the memory chip division took place in 2006 by way of two contributions in kind made to Qimonda AG. In the action brought by the insolvency administrator Dr Michael Jaffe in 2010 before the Munich Regional Court, the insolvency administrator asserted that the memory chip business carved off and contributed to by Infineon Technologies AG was not recoverable. The insolvency administrator brought an action for reimbursement of the impairment of capital from the issue amounts of the shares issued to Infineon as part of the process of carving out Qimonda (referred to as the "action relating to undervalue and liability for impairment of capital").

In January 2024, the expert appointed by the court submitted an opinion that showed a negative value for the contributed domestic and foreign business units. Both parties raised objections to the expert opinion. Infineon had also cited other aspects, such as the fact that the liquidation value of the assets contributed would reach the values required for the contributions in kind. This was not the subject of the expert opinion.

Settlement agreement for 800 million euros

Following the submission of the expert opinion, the parties held in-depth settlement talks. The negotiated settlement now provides for a settlement amount of 800 million euros. The actual payment amount is slightly lower, as Infineon is submitting a declaration of subordination for already established schedule claims, among other things, which corresponds to a value of around 26.5 million euros and at the same time increases the insolvency dividend for the creditors. In addition, the partial settlement concluded in 2014 provided for a credit amount of 15 million euros already paid, which must now be taken into account. After deduction of all items, Infineon will therefore pay 753.5 million euros to the insolvency estate of Qimonda AG.

In total, Infineon will then have paid an amount of around 1 billion euros to the insolvency estate of Qimonda AG. In 2014, the remaining disputes between Infineon Technologies AG and the insolvency administrator had already been resolved in a partial settlement and all patents of Qimonda AG were sold to Infineon Technologies AG. Infineon had already paid a total of 260 million euros at the time.

The creditors' committee of Qimonda AG and the Management Board and Supervisory Board of Infineon Technologies AG have already approved the settlement. It will be implemented without delay, which will then also enable the insolvency proceedings to be concluded and a substantial insolvency dividend to be paid to the creditors.

"This settlement means that the final matter in dispute in the insolvency proceedings over the assets of Qimonda AG has been resolved. Consequently, preparations can now begin to bring the proceedings to a conclusion and allow the creditors to also benefit from this significant success," said insolvency administrator Dr Michael Jaffe.

Proceeds of over 1.2 billion euros realised from disputed transactions

The insolvency administrator Dr Michael Jaffe has thus realised proceeds of over 1.2 billion euros for the creditors in consistently contentious disputes with various parties. For the creditors, this represents a significant success which could not have been expected at the start of the proceedings. As purely a holding company, Qimonda AG had neither substantial liquid funds nor assets that could have been easily realised when the application was filed. Almost all subsidiaries were themselves involved in insolvency proceedings. The success of the insolvency proceedings therefore depended to a large extent on the ability to enforce claims against third parties and also to realise the intangible assets embodied in the patent portfolio to the best possible extent.

At the time, Qimonda AG's patent portfolio comprised thousands of patents and patent applications worldwide. The property rights related to inventions with relevance to the semiconductor, computer and telecommunications industries, most of which had been licensed to major market players prior to the insolvency. Numerous legal disputes were then conducted in Germany and abroad regarding the holding of the licences during the insolvency. In particular, there was a dispute about the effects the German insolvency proceedings had on the licence rights to the US patents of Qimonda AG. The former licence holders, including Samsung, Infineon, IBM, Hynix, Intel, Nanya and Micron, took the position that their licence rights continued to exist despite the insolvency. After the US Bankruptcy Court in Alexandria initially ruled in favour of the insolvency administrator in November 2009, the dispute had to be taken all the way to the US Supreme Court. In the landmark case Jaffe v. Samsung Electronics Co. (135 S.Ct. 66) in October 2014, the US Supreme Court ruled in favour of the licence holders with regard to the US patents.

At the same time, the patent portfolio was marketed via a licensing campaign, which also involved patent litigation. This resulted in the realisation of total licence revenues of around 100 million euros. The patent portfolio was finally offered on the market in an international sales process and sold to Infineon Technologies AG as the highest bidder.

Further proceeds were generated from legal challenges: In particular, transactions that had taken place shortly before the insolvency application was filed were contested and litigation was also conducted in this regard across several instances, which have since been settled to the benefit of the insolvency estate. Proceeds totalling around 200 million euros were realised from these legal challenges.

Positive effects also for creditors of subsidiaries

The conclusion and implementation of the settlement with Infineon Technologies AG will also have a positive impact on the creditors of the insolvent subsidiaries, in particular Qimonda Dresden GmbH & Co. oHG and Qimonda Holding BV. Those creditors will benefit as the companies specified are entitled to substantial claims against Qimonda AG and will receive corresponding insolvency dividend payments, which they will pass on to their creditors. In addition to the employees, this also affects public authorities in Germany and Portugal which had granted subsidies prior to the insolvency. Their claims will probably be satisfied (almost) in full.

Additional information:

For over two decades Dr jur. Michael Jaffe has regularly been appointed by the courts in complex, large-scale insolvency cases where the objective is to secure the assets for the creditors and to realise the best possible value. He has specialist expertise in group insolvency proceedings in multiple stages, and proceedings with cross-border circumstances. Dr jur. Michael Jaffe's best-known national and international insolvency cases include the media group KirchMedia of the late Dr Leo Kirch, the former global memory chip manufacturer Qimonda, and the German subsidiaries of the Petroplus group. As insolvency administrator for three of the German P&R container management companies, he sold the global fleet of containers. In addition, since 25 August 2020, he has acted as the insolvency administrator of Wirecard AG and further Wirecard companies.

The law firm JAFFE Rechtsanwalte Insolvenzverwalter has been one of the leading law firms in the fields of insolvency administration, insolvency law and restructuring (in compliance with the ESUG law on further facilitation of company restructuring) for more than two decades, in particular for complex and cross-border proceedings. Its many years of experience, expertise and independence provide a crucial foundation for this, and they are frequently in demand, especially in complex proceedings. This is one of the reasons the firm has enjoyed the trust of courts and creditors for decades, particularly in complex proceedings where the interests of the parties involved are in conflict. With its own highly-effective structure, which has grown over the years, the firm can conduct proceedings of any size in the interests of creditors.

Please do not hesitate to contact us for further information:

Insolvency administrator Media relations Dr jur. Michael Jaffe Sebastian Brunner Lawyer Corporate Communication Specialist lawyer for tax law Telephone: 0175/5604673 Specialist for Insolvency Email: sebastian.brunner@brunner-communications.de and restructuring law

Franz-Joseph- Str. 8 Franz-Joseph- Str. 8 80801 Munich

SOURCE: Sebastian Brunner Communications

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - West High Yield (W.H.Y.) Resources Ltd. (TSXV: WHY) (the "Company" or "West High Yield") is announces that, further to its news releases dated July 9, 2024 and August 9, 2024, it is closing its previously announced private placement offering (the "Offering") of units (the "Units").

The Company confirms that it issued a total of 435,076 Units for total gross proceeds of $143,575.05 under the Offering. Each Unit consisted of one (1) Common share of the Company (each, a "Common Share") and one half (1/2) of one (1) Common Share purchase warrant (each, a "Warrant"). Each Warrant, together with CAD$0.45, entitles the holder thereof to acquire one (1) additional Common Share for eighteen (18) months from each Offering closing date. The Company's news release of August 9, 2024 incorrectly noted that each Unit consisted of one (1) Common Share and one (1) Warrant, and shall be considered corrected by the information contained in this news release.

The proceeds from the Offering have and will be used for concluding the Company's mining permitting process, covering essential operations and general working capital purposes and expenses. The Offering is subject to certain closing conditions including, but not limited to, the receipt of all necessary approvals, including the acceptance and approval of the TSX Venture Exchange (the "TSXV").

About West High Yield

West High Yield is a publicly traded junior mining exploration and development company focused on acquiring, exploring, and developing mineral resource properties in Canada. Its primary objective is to develop its Record Ridge critical mineral (magnesium, silica, and nickel) deposit using green processing techniques to minimize waste and CO2 emissions.

The Company's Record Ridge critical mineral deposit located 10 kilometers southwest of Rossland, British Columbia has approximately 10.6 million tonnes of contained magnesium based on an independently produced National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101") Preliminary Economic Assessment technical report (titled "Revised NI 43-101 Technical Report Preliminary Economic Assessment Record Ridge Project, British Columbia, Canada") prepared by SRK Consulting (Canada) Inc. on April 18, 2013 in accordance with NI 43-101.

Qualified Person

Rick Walker, B.Sc., M.Sc., P.Geo., the Company's geologist, is a "Qualified Person" as defined in NI 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical information in this news release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Information

This press release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. The forward-looking statements and information are based on certain key expectations and assumptions made by the Company. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward-looking statements and information are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements and information because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct.

Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are made and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking information. Some of the risks and other factors that could cause the results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information include, but are not limited to: general economic conditions in Canada and globally; industry conditions, including governmental regulation; failure to obtain industry partner and other third party consents and approvals, if and when required; the availability of capital on acceptable terms; the need to obtain required approvals from regulatory authorities; and other factors. Readers are cautioned that this list of risk factors should not be construed as exhaustive.

Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on this forward-looking information, which is given as of the date hereof, and to not use such forward-looking information for anything other than its intended purpose. The Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities in the United States. The securities of the Company will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act") and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of U.S. persons except in certain transactions exempt from the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act.

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.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220831

SOURCE: West High Yield (W.H.Y.) Resources Ltd.
Coppernico Metals Inc. (TSX:COPR) ("Coppernico" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the voting results for the election of its Board of Directors at the Annual General Meeting (the "Meeting") of Shareholders held on August 21, 2024, in Vancouver, British Columbia. The director nominees as listed in the Company's Information Circular dated July 5, 2024, and SEDAR+ filed July 12, 2024, were elected as directors of the Company at the Meeting to serve until the next Meeting.

A total of 73,325,930 of the Company's common shares ("Common Shares") were present or represented by proxy at the Meeting, representing 41.37% of the outstanding Common Shares. The voting results for the election of directors are as follows:

Election of Directors:

Name of Nominee Votes

For Votes

For (%) Votes

Withheld/Abstain Votes

Withheld/Abstain (%) Ivan James Bebek 61,619,458 99.33 413,428 0.67 Antonio Arribas 61,642,298 99.37 390,588 0.63 Gordon J. Fretwell 61,604,332 99.31 428,554 0.69 Keenan Jennings 61,637,732 99.36 395,154 0.64 Jeffrey R. Mason 60,601,518 97.69 1,431,368 2.31 Mary Jane McQuhae 61,590,505 99.29 442,381 0.71 Marie Helene Turgeon 61,603,120 99.31 429,766 0.69

There were 11,293,044 non-votes recorded (but not voted) for each director. Non-votes are discretionary votes given to a broker by a US beneficial holder, but such votes are not allowed under Canadian Securities Regulations.

Reappointment of Auditor:

Votes

For Votes

For (%) Votes

Withheld/Abstain Votes

Withheld/Abstain (%) Davidson & Company LLP 73,040,151 99.61 285,779 0.39

Voting results have been filed on www.sedarplus.ca.

Ivan Bebek, CEO and Chair of Coppernico, stated, "We are delighted to welcome MJ McQuhae to our Board. As a former BHP executive and currently the Group Head of Project Services at Anglo American, MJ brings a wealth of experience and insight to our team. We also extend our gratitude to our shareholders for their supportive votes. We are actively drilling our fourth hole at our ongoing Sombrero drill and have an excellent cash position which takes the Company and its current plans into 2026. We look forward to providing updates on our exploration activities."

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Ivan Bebek

Chair & CEO

For further information, please contact:

Coppernico Metals Inc.

Phone: +1 778 729 0600

Email: info@coppernicometals.com

Website: www.coppernicometals.com

Twitter: @CoppernicoMetal

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/coppernico-metals/

About Coppernico

Coppernico is a mineral exploration company focused on creating value for shareholders and stakeholders through diligent and thoughtful project evaluation and exploration excellence in pursuit of the discovery of world-class copper-gold deposits in South America. The Company's management and technical teams have a successful track record of raising capital, discovery and the monetization of exploration successes. The Company, through its Peruvian subsidiary Sombrero Minerales S.A.C., is currently focused on the Ccascabamba (previously referred to as Sombrero Main) and Nioc areas within the Sombrero Project in Peru, its flagship project, and is reviewing additional premium projects in South America.

The Sombrero Project is a land package of approximately 102,000 hectares located in the north-western margins of the world-class Andahuaylas-Yauri trend in Peru. It consists of a number of prospective exploration targets characterized by copper-gold skarn and porphyry systems, and precious metal epithermal deposits. The Company's NI 43-101 technical report, with an effective date of April 17, 2024, and as filed on SEDAR+ on May 23, 2024, focuses on the Ccascabamba and Nioc target areas of the project.

Coppernico Metals Inc. is currently listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under symbol "COPR". More information about the Company can be found on the Company's profile on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca).

Cautionary Note

No regulatory organization has approved the contents hereof.

This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking statements are often identified by terms such as "may", "should", "anticipate", "expect", "intend" and similar expressions and include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to: the Company's drill plans, and its financial position in the future. No certainty can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward-looking statements included in this news release should not be unduly relied upon. Forward-looking statements are based on a number of assumptions and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company's control, which could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those that are disclosed in or implied by such forward-looking statements. Readers should refer to the risks discussed in the Company's AIF and other continuous disclosure filings with the Canadian Securities Administrators, available at www.sedarplus.ca. These factors are not, and should not be construed as being, exhaustive. Accordingly, readers should not place heavy reliance on forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this new release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Any forward-looking information and the assumptions made with respect thereto speaks only as of the date of this news release. The Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking information after the date of this news release to conform such information to actual results or to changes in the Company's expectations except as otherwise required by applicable legislation.

SOURCE: Coppernico Metals Inc.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Cool Company Ltd. (NYSE: CLCO CLCO.OL, "CoolCo" or the "Company") will host a First Half 2024 Earnings call and webcast presentation on Thursday, August 29, 2024, at 8:00 A.M. New York 2:00 P.M. Oslo 1:00 P.M. London. The presentation will be available to download from the Presentations and Webcasts subsection of the Investors section of the Company's website at www.coolcoltd.com.

We recommend that participants join the conference call via the listen-only live webcast link provided. Sell-side analysts interested in raising a question during the Q&A session that will immediately follow the presentation should access the event via the teleconference dial-in options listed below. We recommend connecting 10 minutes prior to the scheduled start time. Information on how to ask questions will be given at the beginning of the Q&A session. There will be a limit of two questions per participant.

a. Listen-only live webcast link

Go to the Investors News Presentations and Webcasts section at www.coolcoltd.com and click on the "Webcast" link.

b. Teleconference

Conference call participants who wish to raise a question during the Q&A session should join the teleconference by phone using one of the following options and conference ID CCL1H24:

North America +1 800-579-2543 International +1 785-424-1789

Please download the presentation material from www.coolcoltd.com (Investors News Presentations and Webcasts) to view it while listening to the conference.

If you are not able to listen at the time of the call, you can access a replay of the event audio on www.coolcoltd.com (Investors News Presentations and Webcasts) (on-demand link is available for one year).

ABOUT COOLCO

CoolCo is an LNG Carrier pure play with a balanced portfolio of short and longer-term charters, the cash flows from which form the basis of the Company's quarterly dividend for common shareholders. In addition to the built-in and funded growth from two newbuilds scheduled to be delivered in the second half of 2024, CoolCo's strategy includes ongoing assessment of opportunities for vessel acquisitions and potential consolidation in a fragmented market segment. Through its in-house vessel management platform, CoolCo manages and operates its LNG transportation and infrastructure assets for a range of the world's leading companies in addition to providing such services to third parties. CoolCo benefits from the scale and stature of Eastern Pacific Shipping and its affiliates, encompassing CoolCo's largest shareholder and the owner of one of the world's largest independent shipping fleets, which strengthen the Company's strategic position with regard to shipyards, financial institutions, and access to dealflow. CoolCo supports the world's decarbonization and energy security needs and has stated its intention to reduce its emissions by 10-15% through its LNGe upgrade program, as part of a fleet-wide improvement target of 35% between 2019 and 2030.

Additional information about CoolCo can be found at www.coolcoltd.com.

This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to Regulation EU 596/2014 (MAR) article 19 number 3 and Section 5-12 the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240822857809/en/

Contacts:

For further information, please contact:

c/o Cool Company Ltd +44 207 659 1111 ir@coolcoltd.com

Richard Tyrrell Chief Executive Officer

John Boots Chief Financial Officer
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - Radio Fuels Energy Corp. (CSE: CAKE) (the "Company" or "Radio Fuels") is pleased to announce it intends to complete a non-brokered private placement (the "Private Placement") to raise $1,500,000 through the issuance of 11,538,462 common shares in the capital of the Company (the "Shares", and each, a "Share") at a price of $0.13 per Share.

The Private Placement is fully allocated and the Company intends to use the net proceeds from the Private Placement as working capital. The payment of finder's fees in connection with the Private Placement is not anticipated.

Closing of the Private Placement scheduled for August 30, 2024, is subject to regulatory approval, including the acceptance of the Canadian Securities Exchange. All Shares to be issued pursuant to the Private Placement will be subject to a statutory hold period of four months from the date of issuance.

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 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 laws or pursuant to available exemptions therefrom. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of the securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.

About Radio Fuels Energy Corp.

The Company is a junior natural resource company focused on providing exposure to uranium and other commodities through the investment, acquisition, exploration, and development of projects and companies.

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.

Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward Looking Information

This news release contains certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively, "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking statements are frequently, but not always, identified by words such as "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "potential", "possible", and similar expressions, or statements that events, conditions, or results "will", "may", "could", or" should" occur or be achieved. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein, without limitation, statements relating to the Private Placement, including the size of the Private Placement, anticipated date of closing, proposed use of proceeds, and the receipt of regulatory approvals and timing thereof, are forward-looking statements. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Forward-looking statements reflect the beliefs, opinions and projections on the date the statements are made and are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by Radio Fuels, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements and the parties have made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation, the risk that Radio Fuels may be unable to complete the Private Placement on the terms presented or at all, and the risk that Radio Fuels may be unable to obtain the required approvals in connection therewith. Readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements and information contained in this news release concerning these items. Radio Fuels does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking statements of beliefs, opinions, projections, or other factors, should they change, except as required by applicable securities laws.

// NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES //

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220811

SOURCE: Radio Fuels Energy Corp.
Exploration work on its 100% Northern Lights Copper Project to begin immediately

Prior small-scale copper production in the early 1900s

Historic reports document copper mineralization grading 3% to 12% Cu

Recent sampling confirms copper mineralization (1% to 19% Cu) over widths up to 4 meters at the surface

Accelerated exploration program to be undertaken as a priority to test width & grade

Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - Li3 Lithium Corp. (TSXV: LILI) (FSE: WD9) ("Li3 Lithium" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that shareholders approved a Company name change (the "Name Change") at the Annual and Special Meeting of Shareholders held on August 22, 2024 (the "Meeting") and the directors of the Company have determined to change the name of the Company to "Global Copper Corp.". The new trading symbol will be 'CUCU'.

The Name Change remains subject to TSXV and regulatory approval. No further action will be required by existing shareholders with respect to the Name Change. Certificates representing common shares of the Company will not be affected by the Name Change and will not need to be exchanged. The Company encourages any shareholder with any questions or concerns to contact the Company or to discuss any of the foregoing with their broker or agent.

Li3 Lithium is proposing to change its name to more accurately reflect the activities and future focus of the Company. Stephen Dunn, President and Chief Executive Officer of Li3 Lithium, commented: "The proposed name change reflects the Company's new strategy of focusing globally on copper exploration and project development. We see the energy transition to a net-zero carbon world as opportunity for minerals explorers to focus on the explosive growth anticipated in demand for copper."

Coincident with the Name Change, the Company is also pleased to announce that it has initiated a property-wide soil and rock geochemical sampling survey on its 100%-owned, 485 hectare Northern Lights Copper Project (the "Project) in Nevada. The program is designed to test for and expand on the copper skarn mineralization that occurs on the property. Results from the survey will be used to identify zones to be tested by diamond and or reverse circulation drilling in the coming months.

The Project is located 25 km from Yerrington, Nevada and is in close proximity to Nevada Copper Corporation's producing Pumpkin Hollow copper mine. Historic records confirm prior small-scale intermittent production of copper on the Northern Lights property in the early 1900s. Sampling undertaken by the Company confirms that Northern Lights has copper mineralization (1% to 19% Cu) over widths up to 4 meters at the surface. Results from the Company's data compilation, geologic mapping, surface rock geochemistry, and the magnetic survey confirm that additional exploration at Northern Lights is justified.

The Company intends to commence a two phase exploration program as recommended in the Northern Lights Copper Project 43-101 Report dated 31 December 2021. Phase 1 will commence immediately and include a ground-based EM (electromagnetic) survey to define high-grade copper mineralization coincident with the magnetic anomalies previously identified and a property-wide soil and rock geochemical sampling survey. Results from the EM survey, magnetic survey, geologic mapping, and surface copper geochemisty will be used to further refine drill targets. Phase 2 will consist of reverse circulation drilling to confirm copper mineralization indicated by the four data sets described above. Reverse circulation drilling will also confirm the width and grade of copper mineralization projected at depth below the historic workings on the Northern Lights' fault.

"We intend to fast-track exploration on the Company's promising 100% owned Nevada copper project. Demand for copper is forecast to undergo unprecedented structural change driven by the global energy transition with mined copper supply forecast to enter a deficit position starting as early as 2025 (see Figure 1 - Copper Demand Chart below). The project's U.S. location coincides nicely with the U.S. Government's recent addition of copper to its Critical Minerals List and opens up the possibility of funding via the U.S. Government's recently approved initiative. The clean energy transition cannot occur without a significant increase in copper production. The U.S Government's legislative and funding initiative will help copper projects in the US that are necessary for the clean energy transition by allocating additional resources to the mining sector, including funding for exploration and feasibility studies," said Stephen Dunn, Chairman of the Company.

Figure 1: Copper Demand Chart

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/5472/220848_609a7aeac4a37851_001full.jpg

Nevada - Northern Lights Copper Project

Li3 Lithium's 100%-owned Northern Lights Copper Project is located in the central portion of Nevada's well known Walker Lane Trend about 25 kilometers (15 air miles) southeast of Yerington, Nevada (See Figure 2 below). The property consists of 58 lode mining claims covering 1200 acres (485 hectares) and is in close proximity to Nevada Copper Corporation's producing Pumpkin Hollow copper mine. There are also several active copper exploration projects underway in close proximity to the property.

Figure 2: Northern Lights Copper Project Location Map

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/5472/220848_609a7aeac4a37851_002full.jpg

The Pumpkin Hollow ore deposit is characterized by an intense magnetic high as shown in Figure 3, which uses the same base map as Figure 2. The Northern Lights project is located between two magnetic highs in the eastern portion of the map (see Figure 3 below).

Figure 3: Regional Aeromag Map

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/5472/220848_609a7aeac4a37851_003full.jpg

Mineralization observed on the property consists of: 1) massive magnetite, goethite, hematite, chalcopyrite replacement zones in the Triassic limestone and siltstone; 2) smaller, fracture- controlled zones of magnetite, goethite, hematite with copper oxide; and 3) disseminated pyrite, chalcopyrite, and copper oxides in sedimentary rocks as well as altered dacite porphyry. Visible copper oxide mineralization occurs in a northwest-trending zone approximately 1,500 meters long and 100 meters wide (5,000ft x 330ft). This replacement-skarn style of mineralization (deposit type) is similar to the nearby copper deposit at Pumpkin Hollow, currently in production by Nevada Copper Corporation.

The objective of the Company is to confirm the deposit model with additional surface exploration work following by drilling to define a mineable high-grade copper deposit. The project is currently in the early exploration phase but planned drilling will confirm the grade, thickness and downdip extent of the mineralization confirmed at the surface.

Technical information

Quality Assurance and Quality Control of Li3 Lithium's programs are under the control of the Company's geological employees and are consistent with industry best practices.

Qualified Person

John Cleary, is the non-independent qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects for the technical disclosure contained in this news release. Mr. Cleary has reviewed and approved the technical disclosure contained in this news release. The qualified person has not completed sufficient work to confirm the historic information on the Project and in the vicinity, particulary regarding historical drill results, historical mine production and historical grab samples. However, the qualified person believes that these results were completed to industry standard practices. The information provides an indication of the exploration potential of the Project but may not be representative of expected results. Also, mineralization hosted on adjacent and/or nearby properties, particularly with respect to neighbouring mineral resources, is not necessarily indicative of mineralization hosted on the Company's Project.

About Li3 Lithium Corp.

Coincident with this news announcement, Li3 Lithium is focused its 100% owned Northern Lights Copper Project in Nevada. The Northern Lights Copper Project is located in the central portion of Nevada's well known Walker Lane Trend about 25 km southeast of Yerington, Nevada. The property covers 1,200 acres (485 hectares) and is in close proximity to Nevada Copper Corporation's producing Pumpkin Hollow copper mine. There are also several active copper exploration projects underway in close proximity to the property. Li3Lithium plans to confirm the deposit model with additional surface exploration work following by drilling to define a mineable high-grade copper deposit.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT:

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.

This news release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward looking information is frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "may", "will", "would", "potential", "proposed" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. These statements are only predictions. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the information is provided, and is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward- looking information. For a description of the risks and uncertainties facing the Company and its business and affairs, readers should refer to the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change, unless required by law. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220848

SOURCE: Li3 Lithium Corp
Manhattan College is now officially Manhattan University.

The change, which the school announced Wednesday, aims to better showcase its wide range of academic programs and attract a more diverse, global student body. The New York State Board of Regents gave the green light to the new name on Aug. 1.

"I've always thought of Manhattan College as something bigger, given the number of disciplines in the three schools we operate, the superb quality of our faculty, and the growing international reach of the student body. It's a natural evolution in our long history in New York City, and a natural progression of our legacy that has stood for more than 170 years," President Milo Riverso said in a statement.

The institution, which has been around since 1853, started in Manhattan before moving to the Bronx, New York, in 1923.

Riverso also pointed out that the university status will help clarify the school's standing in countries where "college" can be misunderstood as equivalent to high school.

According to the university, a majority of the 3,000 students, faculty and staff that participated in a May 2022 survey supported the name change.
Root Global, a Berlin, Germany-based startup that provides a climate operating system for the food & beverage industry, raised 8m in seed funding.

The round was led by Point Nine, with participation from Project A, HelloWorld, and Arc Investors.

The company intends to use the funds to expand operations and its development efforts.

Led by Maurice Hensl and Eric Oancea, Root Global provides the RootOS platform, which helps companies across the food system manage their climate footprint and reduce GHG emissions.

Since launching the platform in October 2023, the company has onboarded some of Europes biggest Food & Beverage players, including the largest dairy plant in Europe and the largest fast-food chain in the world. Through them, the system work with over 10k farmers in helping them manage and reduce millions of tons of CO2e.

FinSMEs

22/08/2024
Solace, a Redwood City, CA-based provider of a digital health platform, raised $14M in Series A funding.

The round was led by Inspired Capital with participation from existing backers Craft Ventures and Torch Capital, as well as new investors, including Anne Wojcicki, Susan Wojcicki, RiverPark Ventures and Coalition Operators.

The company intends to use the funds to accelerate the development of its digital platform for patients and advocates and expand its network of healthcare advocates and its coverage across the United States.

Co-founded by Jeremy Gurewitz and Sara Sargent, Solace is a digital platform that connects people with expert healthcare advocates covered by insurance. Using proprietary technology to match individuals with dedicated, personal advocates, the company cuts through the red tape of healthcare and supports individuals and families.

Solace is now covered across all 50 U.S.

FinSMEs

22/08/2024
The clearances come amid growing pressure from Indias electronics manufacturing industry, which has been pushing for the approval of investments linked to China to help expand and deepen the countrys supply chains read more

An inter-ministerial panel in India has approved five to six investment proposals in the electronics manufacturing sector, including some from Chinese companies and others with connections to China.

This development is particularly notable as these approvals mark some of the first in recent times involving Chinese entities, given the heightened border tensions and increased scrutiny on investments from China in India, according to a report by Economic Times.

Among the prominent companies to receive approval is Chinese electronics giant Luxshare, a major supplier to Apple. Additionally, a joint venture between Bhagwati Products (Micromax) and Huaqin Technology has been cleared, with the Chinese firm taking a minority stake in the venture. Other approved proposals include Taiwan-based firms that are listed in Hong Kong or have investments originating there.

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Some of these are Taiwanese companies with beneficial owners who have interests in Hong Kong or are listed on the Hong Kong exchange, while a few are genuine Chinese firms, said an official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The clearances come amid growing pressure from Indias electronics manufacturing industry, which has been pushing for the approval of investments linked to China to help expand and deepen the countrys supply chains.

So far, two rounds of meetings have been held by the inter-ministerial panel, resulting in the approval of seven to eight proposals across various sectors, with the majority in electronics.

Indian companies have been lobbying for a re-evaluation of trade ties with China, particularly regarding Press Note 3. In 2020, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) amended the foreign direct investment (FDI) policy, requiring prior government approval for investments from countries sharing a land border with India. This move followed the India-China border clashes in mid-2020.

However, the government now appears to be cautiously reopening to Chinese investments, with safeguards in place. The shift is driven by the belief that increasing local value addition is crucial for India to achieve self-sufficiency in electronics manufacturing.
Over the past two years Pratt & Whitney has invested more than $40 million into our Centers of Excellence (CoE) across engineering, digital transformation, supply chain operations, and customer service, says Ashmita Sethi, country head & president, Pratt & Whitney, an RTX business, India read more

With rapid fleet and passenger growth being witnessed in India, do you see a focus towards sustainable flying?

This is an incredibly exciting time for commercial aviation in India. With rapid fleet and passenger growth and historic orders across the board, airlines are taking the lead on securing the 2000+ airplanes India will need in the next two decades. This rapid fleet growth comes with the need for efficient and sustainable aircraft engines.

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Operating economics and fuel efficiency are the key to success in India. However, sustainability remains a key factor for airlines, and they look to what engine makers like Pratt & Whitney are doing to help them meet the industrys commitment to net zero by 2050.

Across our portfolio, Pratt & Whitney already makes the worlds most efficient engines for single-aisle aircraft. We continue to drive advancements on our sustainability roadmap, and we expect the Indian aviation industry to participate and benefit from these advancements.

What are some of the latest advancements youve made on this roadmap?

Just last month, as RTX we announced the preliminary design review of hybrid-electric Pratt & Whitney GTF engine demonstrator for the Clean Aviation SWITCH project. By combining two Collins Aerospace megawatt-class electric motor generators within a Pratt & Whitney GTF engine, the hybrid-electric propulsion system aims to enhance engine efficiency across all phases of flight, offering the potential to reduce fuel burn and emissions for future short- and medium-range aircraft.

SWITCH Hybrid-Electric GTF

Hybrid-electric propulsion is a key part of RTXs technology roadmap for enabling more sustainable aviation. We are advancing hybrid-electric technologies through multiple demonstrator programs applicable to a variety of future aircraft platforms, including STEP-Tech and the RTX Hybrid-Electric Flight Demonstrator.

In fact, the RTX Hybrid-Electric Flight Demonstrator which has a Collins Aerospace 1MW electric motor combined with a highly efficient thermal Pratt & Whitney turboprop engine, is being tested on the DeHavilland Dash-8 aircraft platform. The demonstrator targets a 30% improvement in fuel efficiency compared to todays most advanced turboprops  and we believe that it will be uniquely suited for Indias regional aircraft that operate in the UDAN segment in the future.

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Are your teams in India helping develop these advancements?

The work being done by more than 6000 RTX employees is supporting our cutting-edge technologies that will drive the future of flight. Over the past two years Pratt & Whitney has invested more than $40 million into our Centers of Excellence (CoE)  across engineering, digital transformation, supply chain operations and customer service. These CoEs are co-located with Collins Aerospace and RTX Enterprise Services and are designed to facilitate close collaboration within our RTX businesses in-country.

Teams at Pratt Whitney Hyderabad Training Center deploying Percept Digital tool on the V2500

Collins sites in Bengaluru work across all six portfolios of the company including avionics, interiors, advanced structures and connected aviation solutions. In fact, Collins Aerospace, was one of the first Indian entities to domestically produce and export an aviation product to the US.

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Could you elaborate on your investments in India?

Pratt & Whitneys legacy in India goes beyond just powering the 600+ aircraft that we do today. Our first, flagship investment was the India Customer Training Center in Hyderabad in 2015. The center provides specialized training on our advanced engines and has delivered more than 15,000 student days of training for over 60 operators.

In 2023, we officially opened the doors to our new India Engineering Center (IEC) in Bengaluru, India and 2024 alone, weve established two new centers of excellence  the India Digital Capability Center (IDCC) and the Customer Service Center (CSC) in Bengaluru. With the IDCC we are looking to accelerate our digital transformation worldwide  including areas like data analytics, Industry 4.0, cybersecurity and application development.

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RTX Campus with Pratt & Whitney and Collins Aerospace at Yelahanka Bengaluru

The Customer Service Center now delivers a wide range of services for our turboprop and business jet fleet, including maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) support, spare part management, engine leasing, engine reliability analysis and contract administration.

At Pratt & Whitney we also continue to invest in Indias aerospace supply chain and aim to expand our sourcing from India to reach nearly $150M annually by 2030. Meanwhile, Collins Aerospace works with nearly 200 suppliers in India and is expanding this network.

In addition, Collins Aerospace is investing an additional $200 million in expanding its R&D and production facilities in India, and we are building a test facility in Bengaluru that will allow the work being done in-country to go through qualification and certification here in India.
The release of the period political drama has been delayed multiple times; it was previously scheduled to be released on November 24, 2023 read more

The Akhal Takht, the highest temporal seat of the Sikhs, and the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) have demanded an immediate ban on the film Emergency, claiming it tries to character assassinate Sikhs.

SGPC chief Harjinder Singh Dhami, addressing a press conference, also sought the registration of an FIR against the Kangana Ranaut, the films writer, director, producer and lead actor.

Emergency, starring actor-MP Ranaut, is slated to hit the screens next month.

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The release of the period political drama has been delayed multiple times; it was previously scheduled to be released on November 24, 2023.

Expressing strong objection, Gyani Raghbir Singh, Jathedar (head) of the Akal Takht, said it is clear from the released excerpts of the film that it has deliberately misrepresented the character of Sikhs as separatists, which is part of a deep conspiracy.

This is a despicable act of disrespecting the community by creating an anti-Sikh narrative about the martyrs of June 1984, he said in a statement.

The community can never forget the anti-Sikh brutality of June 1984 and Ranauts film is trying to character assassinate Jarnail Singh Khalsa Bhindranwale, who has been declared a Qaumi Shaheed (communitys martyr) by Sri Akal Takht Sahib, Singh said.

Dhami said this film has been made by Ranaut, who remains in controversy due to her anti-Sikh and anti-Punjab statements, with the intention of deliberately character assassinating Sikhs, which the community cannot tolerate.

He alleged that Ranaut has often deliberately made statements that provoked the sentiments of Sikhs, but instead of taking action against her, the government is protecting her.

He urged that the Lok Sabha MP be booked for inciting religious sentiments of Sikhs for her act through the film Emergency.

He said the film could cause a lot of anger and resentment in the Sikh community.

Dhami said in the past, there have been numerous instances where Sikh sentiments were hurt due to the misrepresentation of Sikh characters and the disregard for religious concerns in films.

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He urged the Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting to impose an immediate ban on the Emergency film and said it should be ensured that no film with anti-Sikh sentiments is released from now on.

The SGPC president called for the inclusion of Sikh members in the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), claiming biased decisions are being taken due to the absence of a Sikh member.

He said the SGPC has on several occasions passed resolutions in its general meeting to demand the inclusion of a representative of Sikhs in the CBFC, but the government is not meeting the demand.
Three days after the superyacht Bayesian sank off the coast of Sicily, the divers recovered four bodies, taking the total number to five. One person remains missing. It is believed the bodies of UK tech entrepreneur Michael Lynch and his daughter were found on Wednesday read more

Rescue personnel work near a bodybag at the scene where a luxury yacht sank, off the coast of Porticello, near the Sicilian city of Palermo, Italy, August 22, 2024. Reuters

Four bodies aboard the wreck of a luxury yacht that sank off the coast of Sicily were recovered by divers on Wednesday (August 21). The British-flagged superyacht Bayesian went down in the early hours of Monday morning near the Sicilian capital of Palermo after being caught in a violent tornado, called waterspout.

The vessel was carrying 22 people, including 12 crew members and 10 passengers. Fifteen survivors were rescued, while six remained missing including British tech entrepreneur Michael Lynch. One person confirmed to be dead early on in the rescue operations is chef Recaldo Thomas.

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Rescue workers are searching for the people unaccounted for. However, a spokesperson for the Italian coast guard has said those missing were presumed dead.

Who is still missing and who has been found? Lets take a closer look.

Who has been found?

Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah are believed to have been found during the rescue mission on Wednesday, as per The Telegraph report.

Lynch, a tech entrepreneur, was once dubbed Britains Bill Gates. He is a founder of the software company Autonomy Corporation, Invoke Capital and cybersecurity firm Darktrace, reported Forbes.

Just weeks before, the 59-year-old was acquitted in the US on multiple fraud charges, reported BBC. The case was related to the sale of his company Autonomy to the tech giant Hewlett-Packard (HP) in 2011, over which he had been facing 20 years in jail.

Lynch had told Sunday Times last month that he was about to go on a very long holiday.

British tech magnate Mike Lynch walks into federal court in San Francisco, March 26, 2024. File Photo/AP

The people on board the superyacht were celebrating Lynchs legal victory, as per New York Times (NYT). Several from the group were involved in his recent trial.

According to the Times newspaper, his daughter Hannah was to study English at Oxford University in the fall.

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Salvo Cocina, the director of Sicilys civil protection agency, told The Telegraph that he believed Lynch and his daughter had been found.

He continued: On behalf of myself and my colleagues, I would like to express my deepest sympathy to the families of the victims and express our condolences to them at this difficult time.

The four bodies recovered, whose identities are yet to be revealed, were trapped inside their cabins when the vessel sank earlier in the week, reported NYT.

Recaldo Thomas, a Canadian-Antiguan chef, was confirmed dead after his body was recovered near the Bayesian yacht. He was working on the boat, reported BBC.

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Who remains missing?

Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy Bloomer are still missing.

Jonathan, who is also the chairman of the insurance provider Hiscox, studied at Imperial College London. He had appeared at the US trial as a defence witness for Lynch, as per the Financial Times.

Speaking to BBC, Bloomers twin brother, Jeremy, said he and his family were coping the best we can.

He was my elder by half an hour, so, it means a lot when you lose a twin brother. Well still wait and see, so its fingers crossed," he said.

Jeremy said he hoped that some onboard the sunken yacht had survived in air pockets.

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Jonathans wife Judy is a trustee of The Eve Appeal charity, which supports gynaecological cancer research. As per Independent, the charity described her as a brilliant champion for womens health and medical research an incredible supporter, committee member, and trustee of our charity for over 20 years.

Chris Morvillo, a lawyer with the Clifford Chance law firm in New York, is also missing. He represented Lynch in his US trial.

According to his biography on the firms website, 59-year-old Morvillo served as an assistant attorney for the southern district of New York from 1999 to 2005. His tenure included working on the criminal probe of the attacks on the World Trade Center, reported BBC.

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His wife and US jewellery designer Neda Morvillo is also unaccounted for, as confirmed by the law firm Clifford Chance.

A spokesperson for the firm said: We are in shock and deeply saddened by this tragic incident.

The 57-year-old runs her luxury jewellery business under the name, Neda Nassiri. Neda has been designing and hand-crafting fine jewellery in New York City for over 20 years, her companys website says.

ALSO READ: Luxury yacht sinks off Sicily: Marine experts delve into what might have happened

Who survived?

The 15 rescued people included nine members of the yachts crew. Eight were admitted for treatment at local hospitals and have since been discharged, reported Forbes.

Angela Bacares, Lynchs wife, is among the survivors.

Charlotte Golunski, a partner at Lynchs Invoke Capital, was rescued along with her partner and baby girl, as per the BBC report.

Ayla Ronald and her partner were among the rescued. She had defended Lynch in court and was part of the celebration on the yacht.

James Catfield, the captain of the superyacht, was among those rescued. Leo Eppel, a crew member, also survived the horror.

With inputs from agencies
The Hema Committee report, released by the Kerala government this week, unearths some disturbing details about sexual harassment, exploitation and discrimination faced by women in the Malayalam film industry. The findings have evoked strong reactions from politicians, film stars and the states womens panel read more

The Hema Committee report on the discrimination, harassment and exploitation faced by women in the Malayalam film industry has sent shockwaves across Kerala. The report was released by the Kerala government on Monday (August 19), over four years after it was submitted to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

The damning disclosures shed light on the pervasive and persistent sexual harassment plaguing the Malayalam cinema industry. The report has evoked strong reactions from film stars, politicians and the womens panel.

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Lets take a closer look.

On casting couch and more

The Hema Committee report has documented distressing accounts of sexual harassment, exploitation, and ill-treatment of women in the Malayalam film industry. It lays down the issues faced by women in cinema.

Many have alleged they faced unwanted advances even before starting the work, reported PTI.

The report talks about the existence of the practice of casting couch in the industry, wherein powerful men demand sexual favours in return for work opportunities in movies. It mentioned that female actors who agreed to compromise are given code names, while those who refuse are forced out of the film industry.

It has come out in evidence that certain men in cinema, who are well-known and well-reputed for their ability as artist, director or whoever he be in the film industry have shocked certain women in cinema by sexual harassment and physical advances made by them towards them, the report stated.

Women are also subjected to suggestive and vulgar comments by men in the workplace. Other instances of harassment included drunk male actors knocking on the doors of their female co-actors hotels.

One of the accounts mentioned says a female actor had to act as the wife of her abuser and perform a hugging scene just a day after he assaulted her, which caused her deep trauma.

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Women are denied even basic facilities, such as toilets and changing rooms on sets.

Fear of retribution, including threats to life, prevents women from coming forward and reporting instances of sexual abuse. Many who were examined before the committee were afraid to reveal things which they experienced we realised that their fear is well-founded, Indian Express reported citing the document. Women who complained were subjected to cyber attacks, especially from toxic fan clubs.

In 2017, the Kerala government had constituted a three-member committee led by retired Kerala High Court judge K Hema to examine the issues of sexual harassment and gender inequality in the Malayalam film industry. This had come after an actress assault case involving actor Dileep.

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After speaking to several women in the industry on different issues, the panel submitted a 295-page report to the Kerala chief minister in December 2019. As per ANI, the reports 63 pages were redacted before making it public this week.

The Kerala High Court on Thursday (August 22) asked the state government to submit the entire Hema panel report, including the sections redacted for confidentiality, reported Indian Express.

All-male mafia

According to the Hema panel report, there exists an influential group of men, dubbed mafia by a prominent actor, that wields significant control and calls shots across the industry. This is a lobby of 10 to 15 men, consisting of producers, directors, actors and production controllers, that calls unofficial bans on anyone who open up about the issues of the industry. Anyone who displeases this group or falls out of favour can also be banned.

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The report mentioned that women are prevented from speaking out as they would be banned from cinema and subjected to other harassments, since such persons are powerful in cinema and all men in cinema will stand together by them.

No man nor woman dare to utter any word which may offend anyone belonging to the power group, because such a person will be wiped off the industry by the powerful lobby, the report observes.

The Hema Committee report pointed out how a prominent male actor who called this group of men mafia lost work not only in films but also in TV serials. Even though he is one of the best actors in the industry, he could be kept away, when the 10 to 15 joined hands to ban him from the cinema, The News Minute (TNM) cited the document as saying.

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The Hema panel report says that setting up an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) may be ineffective as its members could be threatened or coerced by powerful individuals in the Malayalam film industry.

Instead, the panel suggested the government should enact an appropriate statute and establish a Tribunal to address the issues faced by women in cinema.

Reactions to Hema report

The opposition Congress in Kerala blasted the Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF government after the contents of the report came to light.

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said on Monday, It is utterly shameful and shocking that the government sat on this report for nearly five years now.

Congress VD Satheesan, the Leader of Opposition in the Kerala Assembly, accused the state government of protecting powerful individuals in the film industry. Whose interest did the government want to protect by hushing up a chain of atrocities? he said.

The Kerala government has defended the delay citing the sensitive information in the report.

The Congress-led UDF has demanded a probe into the complaints by women IPS officers.

CM Vijayan has said the government is seriously considering the suggestions made by the panel. Kerala minister Saji Cherian has promised the recommendations of the report would be implemented soon, reported The South First.

Kerala Womens Commission has called for immediate intervention of the authorities. Based on the suggestions of the Hema Committee, the Womens Commission will recommend to the government to take the necessary steps to ensure grievance redressal committees as per the POSH Act in shooting sets, womens panel chief P Sathi Devi said, as per PTI.

The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (PoSH) was enforced to prevent sexual abuse of women at workplaces.

The Women in Cinema Collective (WCC), an outfit of women professionals in the industry, hoped the government would study the report and take action. It said in a Facebook post, We sincerely hope the government will take all necessary steps to study and act upon the recommendations. This is the voice of women, and it must be heard!

Sarada, a veteran actress and member of the Hema panel, said casting couch has existed for a long time in the film industry but was hardly discussed openly. She said that while actors engaged in consensual relationships in the past, the dynamics have changed over the years and terms like compromise and adjustment have become increasingly common, reported Onmanorama.

The late veteran actor Thilakans son, Shammi, has disclosed that the well-known actor referred to in the report, who was banned by the powerful lobby, was his father.

Sonia Thilakan, the daughter of the late veteran actor, hit out at this 15-member group in the industry, accusing it of a hidden agenda and targeting her father like mafia gangsters. She said that a leading actor, who claimed to feel guilty for how he treated his father, later misbehaved with her, The South First reported.

If someone like me, who is part of the industry, has to face such issues, you can imagine the situation of leading heroines and other female actors, Sonia said.

Bollywood actor Tanushree Dutta, who emerged as the face of the MeToo movement in India, dismissed the Hema panel report as useless.

A safe workplace is a fundamental right for everyone. I have no faith in these committees or the system. It feels like theyre just wasting our time instead of addressing real issues, she reportedly said.

Lakshmi Manchu, an actress and daughter of leading Telugu star Mohan Babu, said life is not fair to women. She said her experience in Mollywood was different as everyone knew her father.

Stand up for yourself. Ive been pushed over, but I stood my ground. I might lose a few (things), but I know Im gaining for the person whos coming after me, Manchu told Hindustan Times.

Why the report matters

The Hema panel report resonates beyond Kerala. Sexual harassment within the Indian film industry remains a mostly hushed-up topic. Those who came out with their stories of abuse during the MeToo movement found no justice and their alleged assaulters are already back in business.

While Bollywood celebrities have spoken about their casting couch experiences, this is the first time a government in India formed a panel to study the issues faced by women in cinema.

As the WCC noted, this is the first time there is a report on how gender works in the film industry.

The committees report and recommendations hold great significance. Only time will tell what Kerala will do to bring the necessary reforms and whether other state governments will take note.

With inputs from agencies
Hersh Goldberg-Polin is one of the eight Americans kidnapped after Hamas attack on Israel last year. His parents, Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg-Polin, gave a moving speech, pleading for the release of those who continue to be held captive in Gaza. They were greeted with an extended ovation and chants of Bring him home by the thousands of Democratic delegates in Chicago read more

Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who is being held hostage in Gaza, speak on Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, US, August 21, 2024. Reuters

The Democratic National Convention barrelled into its third day on Wednesday.

There was one group that was welcomed with loud applause at the Democratic convention  the parents of young men taken hostage after Hamas attacked Israel.

Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg-Polin, whose son Hersh Goldberg-Polin was kidnapped, gave a moving speech, pleading for the release of the dozens of people who continue to be held captive in Gaza.

This may be the couples largest audience yet, with 20 million Americans tuning in every night to watch the convention in Chicago, as per Times Now.

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Heres all we know about the young man.

About Hersh Goldberg-Polin

Hersh is one of the eight Americans kidnapped after Hamass attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.

He was at the Nova music festival in a forest region near the Gaza Strip when militants led by Hamas broke through Israels border fence, killing roughly 1,200 people and taking 253 captives, according to Israeli estimates. Of the people killed, around 360 were attending the festival.

Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who is being held hostage in Gaza, speak on Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, US, August 21, 2024.

Rachel recalled at the convention that Hersh was attending the music festival advertised as celebrating peace when Hamass onslaught began.

Hersh managed to get several kilometres away from the festival site in a car, before seeking refuge in a roadside bomb shelter with 27 others. However, gunmen from Hamas gathered outside and started hurling grenades.

Part of his left arm was blown off by a grenade as he was abducted.

The mother said, He was loaded onto a pickup truck and stolen from his life, and me and Jon into Gaza. She and her husband wore stickers with the number 320, drawing attention to the number of days their son has been held.

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In a video that was uploaded on Hamass Telegram account in May of this year, Hersh raises his arm in front of the camera to reveal a healed stump in place of his hand, according to BBC. After critiquing Israels military campaign in Gaza, he addresses his parents and two sisters personally and urges them to continue advocating for his release.

His mother Rachel said Like Vice President Kamala Harris, he was born in Oakland, California. He had just turned 23 four days before he was abducted, as per the report.

Bring them home

This is a political convention. But needing our only son  and all of the cherished hostages  home is not a political issue. It is a humanitarian issue, said Jon Polin.

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Jon Polin and his wife, Rachel Goldberg-Polin, were greeted with an extended ovation and chants of Bring him home by the thousands of Democratic delegates in Chicago.

Jon Polin, left, and Rachel Goldberg, parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, speak on stage during the Democratic National Convention Wednesday, August 21, 2024, in Chicago. AP

The captives father continued by expressing gratitude to Congressmen of both parties and the Biden administration in particular for their efforts in negotiating a hostage settlement.

We are all deeply grateful to them. Were also profoundly thankful to you  the millions of people in the United States and all over the world who have been sending love, support and strength to the hostage families. Youve kept us breathing in a world without air, Jon said, adding, There is a surplus of agony on all sides of the tragic conflict in the Middle East. In a competition of pain, there are no winners."

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In our Jewish tradition, we say Every person is an entire universe. We must save all these universes. In an inflamed Middle East, we know the one thing that can most immediately release pressure and bring calm to the entire region is a deal that brings this diverse group of 109 hostages home and ends the suffering of the innocent civilians in Gaza, Jon said as per The Times of Israel.

The time is now, he says to more applause.

Rachel then addresses her son directly, Hersh, if you can hear us, we love you, stay strong, survive.

In Gaza, there are still more than 100 hostages, however some are thought to have been killed. Families of six of the eight American hostages were in Chicago to bring attention to the plight of their loved ones.

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The parents of Omer Neutra, who is being held captive, Ronen and Orna Neutra, were granted a speech slot at the Republican National Convention last month.

Time is running out, Ronen Neutra told The Associated Press at the Democratic convention. And all leaders must work together in a bipartisan fashion to put pressure on both Hamas and the Israeli government and reach a deal that is so much overdue, so much overdue.

A sensitive issue for Democrats

The speech put an emotional and human face on the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Democrats face pressure from pro-Palestinian protesters to more forcefully press Israel to end the siege that has levelled much of the Gaza Strip and killed tens of thousands of people, according to the Gaza health ministry, which does not distinguish in its death count between militants and civilians.

Polin and his wife, Rachel Goldberg-Polin, were greeted with an extended ovation and chants of bring him home by the thousands of Democratic delegates in Chicago. AP

Delegates of the uncommitted movement, which was sparked by dissatisfaction with President Bidens handling of the Israel-Hamas war, announced to reporters late Wednesday that officials denied their request for a Palestinian to speak during the convention, as per The Associated Press.

The group of 36 delegates has outsized influence as they stem from pivotal battleground states like Michigan, which is part of the so-called blue wall critical to Democratic chances in November.

The movements leaders had negotiated for weeks with the Harris campaign and convention organisers and were given a panel Monday afternoon to discuss family members lost or maimed in Israels offensive.

I have asked for the vice president to call us back and tell us that the suppression of Palestinian Americans does not belong in the Democratic Party and a Palestinian speaker will speak on this stage, Uncommitted National Movement co-founder Abbas Alawieh said. Im waiting for the call.

On Tuesday, multiple pro-Palestinian demonstrators were arrested after clashing with police during a protest that began outside the Israeli consulate and spilt out onto the surrounding streets.

Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday as the United States presses Israel and Hamas to agree to a bridging proposal that could lead to a cease-fire in the war in Gaza.

With inputs from agencies
Indias Chandrayaan-3 mission helmed by ISRO has uncovered compelling evidence supporting the theory that the Moon was once covered by a vast ocean of magma. The Pragyan rovers data revealed a consistent presence of ferroan anorthosite, a crucial mineral, across the lunar south pole, suggesting a shared geological history with other regions read more

The rising moon is seen behind tree branches in Gardanne, France, August 20, 2024. File Image/Reuters

Indias Chandrayaan-3 mission helmed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has unveiled groundbreaking insights about the Moon, shedding new light on its origins and geological history, particularly in the unexplored lunar south pole region.

The mission, which successfully placed the Pragyan rover on the Moons surface, has provided crucial data that has not only met but exceeded the scientific communitys expectations.

How was this find possible?

On August 23, 2023, Indias Chandrayaan-3 mission made history as its Vikram lander softly touched down on the Moon, specifically at 69.37S latitude and 32.35E longitude, a location now named Statio Shiv Shakti.

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Soon after, the Pragyan rover, equipped with state-of-the-art scientific instruments, rolled out and began its exploration. Over the next ten days, Pragyan traversed approximately 103 metres of lunar terrain, methodically analysing the lunar soil at 23 different locations within a 50-metre radius of the landing site.

Watch:

The rover was equipped with the Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) and the Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscope (LIBS), two instruments designed to measure the elemental composition of the lunar soil.

The APXS, developed by the Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) in Ahmedabad, used X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy and particle-induced X-ray emission to detect and quantify various elements in the soil.

By firing X-rays and alpha particles at the lunar surface, APXS recorded the characteristic X-ray lines of elements such as silicon (Si), magnesium (Mg), aluminum (Al), iron (Fe), calcium (Ca), and several minor elements, including sulphur (S), chromium (Cr), and titanium (Ti).

Watch:

The meticulous process of data collection involved stopping the rover at strategic points to allow the APXS to gather sufficient readings. The observation time at each location varied from 20 minutes to up to three hours, depending on mission requirements.

Over the course of the mission, APXS recorded a total of 31 hours of data, providing a comprehensive picture of the lunar soils composition near the south pole.

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Did the Moon once house a magma ocean?

One of the most significant findings from Chandrayaan-3s data is the strong support it provides for the Lunar Magma Ocean (LMO) hypothesis. This theory posits that the Moon was once entirely covered by a vast ocean of molten rock.

As this magma ocean cooled, it led to the formation of different layers within the Moon, including the crust, mantle, and core.

Picture shows magma along a 1-km-long fissure in a lava field north of the Vatnajokull glacier, which covers part of Bardarbunga volcano system in Iceland, August 29, 2014. Representational Image/Reuters

According to this hypothesis, the Moons crust is predominantly made of a rock type called ferroan anorthosite (FAN), which is rich in the mineral plagioclase. FAN is believed to have formed as the less dense plagioclase minerals floated to the surface of the cooling magma ocean, solidifying into the Moons outermost layer.

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Also Read | First anniversary of Chandrayaan-3 mission: When India pioneered landing on lunar south pole

Chandrayaan-3s Pragyan rover detected significant amounts of FAN in the lunar soil near the south pole, a finding that aligns with previous missions like NASAs Apollo and the Soviet Unions Luna, which observed similar compositions in the equatorial and mid-latitude regions of the Moon.

The discovery of FAN in the south pole region is particularly crucial because it extends the validity of the LMO hypothesis to a new and previously unexplored area of the Moon. It confirms that the Moons crust, even in geographically distant regions, has a consistent composition, supporting the idea that the Moons surface was once a homogeneous ocean of magma.

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Is this theory full proof?

While the detection of FAN reinforces the LMO hypothesis, Chandrayaan-3s data also revealed the presence of magnesium-rich minerals in the lunar soil.

This finding introduces a little complexity to the LMO hypothesis, as it suggests that the lunar crust near the south pole is not composed solely of FAN but is instead a mixture of materials, including those from deeper within the Moon.

People watch a live stream of Chandrayaan-3 spacecrafts landing on the moon, inside an auditorium of Gujarat Science City in Ahmedabad, India, August 23, 2023. File Image/Reuters

The presence of these magnesium-rich minerals is particularly intriguing because it implies that material from the Moons upper mantle may have been brought to the surface. This could have occurred during the formation of the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) Basin, the largest known impact crater in the solar system.

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The SPA Basin, which is approximately 2,500 kilometres wide and 8 kilometres deep, is believed to have been formed by a massive asteroid impact around 4.2 to 4.3 billion years ago. This impact would have excavated material from deep within the Moon, potentially mixing it with the surface material and creating the diverse composition observed by Pragyan.

Also Read | Ramesh Kunhikannan: The man who joined Forbes list of billionaires, courtesy Chandrayaan-3

The detection of magnesium suggests that the lunar soil at Statio Shiv Shakti is not just a simple remnant of the early lunar crust but also contains material from deeper layers, offering direct insight into the Moons internal structure and its evolutionary history.

Chandrayaan 3s Vikram Lander and Pragyaan Rover. File Image/ISRO

This blending of materials from different depths could explain why the lunar soil near the south pole has a more complex composition than previously observed regions.

Why is this find by ISRO significant?

The findings from Chandrayaan-3 have significant implications for our understanding of the Moons geological history and its formation.

The data supports the idea that the Moons crust was formed from a global magma ocean, but it also suggests that subsequent events, such as the formation of large impact basins, have played a crucial role in reshaping the lunar surface and mixing materials from different depths.

This insight is critical for future lunar exploration, as it provides a more nuanced understanding of the Moons geological processes. The uniform composition of the soil observed by Pragyan also offers a valuable baseline for future remote sensing missions.

An enthusiast with his body painted in tri-colours reacts as he holds up a model of LVM3 M4 which was used in launching of Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft on the eve of its moon landing, in Ahmedabad, India, August 22, 2023. File Image/Reuters

This consistency across different regions of the Moon suggests that the processes that shaped the lunar crust were global in nature, reinforcing the LMO hypothesis on a broader scale.

Indias Chandrayaan-3 mission has not only advanced our understanding of the Moon but has also positioned India as a key player in the global space exploration community. The missions success has been celebrated across the country, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi designating August 23 as Indias new National Space Day, marking the day of the historic lunar landing.

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With inputs from agencies
The CBI submitted its status report to the Supreme Court on the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at Kolkatas RG Kar Medical Hospital. The central agency claimed the crime scene might have been altered. It also brought to light the many inconsistencies in the way the West Bengal Police handled the case  first telling the victims parents it was a suicide before changing their statement to say it was a murder read more

Students stage a protest over the alleged sexual assault and murder of Kolkata's PG trainee doctor, in Patna, Thursday, August 22, 2024. PTI

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday submitted to the Supreme Court its status report on the alleged rape and murder of a trainee doctor at Kolkatas RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

The Supreme Courts division bench, headed by the Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud, is hearing the matter after it initiated a suo motu case in response to the case.

This is the second hearing at the CJIs division bench in the matter and all eyes now are on the proceedings at the division bench.

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Heres what the report reveals.

Everything altered

In its status report, the CBI claimed the crime scene might have been tampered with.

On behalf of the victim, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the Supreme Court that the CBI entered the probe on the fifth day, at which point everything was altered. In response to Mehtas submission, Kapil Sibal, speaking on behalf of the West Bengal government, stated that everything is videographed and not altered, as per Indian Express.

It also brought to light inconsistencies in the way the West Bengal Police handled the case, first telling the victims parents it was a suicide before changing their statement to say it was a murder.

The victims friend insisted on recording because they thought there was a cover-up in the case, according to the central agency.

The senior doctors, colleagues of the victim asked for videography, that means even they felt there was a cover-up, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing on behalf of the victim, was quoted as saying by LiveLaw.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra during hears suo moto on the case related to the alleged sexual assault and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor in Kolkata, at the Supreme Court in New Delhi, Thursday, August 22, 2024. PTI

Another significant problem revealed by the report is the apparent delay from the time the body was discovered in the hospitals seminar room early on August 9 and the notification of the local police of the occurrence.

Mehta stated that the victims top doctors and colleagues insisted on videography after the body was cremated and that an FIR was filed at 11:45 pm, indicating that they had suspicions as well.

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According to lawyer Kapil Sibal, the post-mortem took place between 6:10 and 7:00 pm.

Responding to the same, Justice Pardiwala said, The procedure followed by the police in criminal law is not as stated in the CrPC or what I have seen in my 30 years of career. So is it true that unnatural death report was given after the post-mortem.

SCs big questions

The Supreme Court questioned whether the case was initially considered an unnatural death when the police sent the victims body for examination and, if it was not deemed unnatural, why the post-mortem was conducted at all.

Media reports state that Chief Justice DY Chandrachud mentioned during the hearing that at 10:10 am, the police stations General Diary entry records a call from RG Kar Hospital informing that a woman was discovered unconscious in the seminar room.

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He underlined that it is evident from the case diary that the crime scene was not secured until the post-mortem was completed.

CJI asked Kapil Sabil, What is the reason ? Why the FIR is lodged after 14 hours after the incident. The principal of the college should have come to the college and directed filing of FIR. Who was he in touch with? The moment he tendered resignation, he is assigned as the principal of another college.

The court has ordered the Kolkata police officer who recorded the initial entry in the case to appear at the next hearing and provide details about the timing, as per Hindustan Times.

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CJI Chandrachud on Tuesday had highlighted that the case raises systemic safety concerns for doctors across India, especially women in public hospitals.

The apex court constituted a 10-member National Task Force (NTF) to recommend measures ensuring the safety and well-being of medical professionals, particularly women. The NTF is led by Surgeon Vice Admiral Arti Sarin and is expected to submit an interim report within three weeks and a final report within two months.

The Supreme Court urged protesting doctors to return to work assuring them that their safety concerns are being addressed at the highest level.

The investigation

News agency IANS sources reportedly said that the CBI officials are currently trying to figure out why the hospital authorities, especially, the former and controversial RG Principal Sandip Ghosh took so much time to inform the police after the discovery of the body.

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The agency has been interrogating Dr Ghosh to join the dots since last Friday. He has been grilled for about 12 to 14 hours almost every day.

Even after interrogating several medical and non-medical staff of the hospital, the investigating officials are yet to identify the individual who first spotted the body since contradictory statements have been given.

The second-year postgrad had gone to an empty seminar room alone that evening to catch some sleep after working a 36-hour shift. There is no on-call room at the hospital.

The following morning, August 9, her partially clothed body was discovered there with several injuries.

The primary suspect is Sanjoy Roy, a Kolkata Police volunteer who served as a civil servant and was given access to every department while he was stationed at the police outpost at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

According to NDTV, CCTV footage showing him entering the building where the doctors body had been found murdered served as the basis for his arrest. A Bluetooth headset found next to the victims body was seen on his neck in the CCTV footage. It turned out that his phone had been linked with it.

Roy reportedly confessed to the crime shortly after police began questioning him, according to local media. He had nonchalantly informed the cops, Hang me if you want, according to the reports.

The Supreme Court will resume hearings in the case on September 5.

With inputs from agencies
Temple University students are on edge after two violent robberies occurred Monday night, just as the new school year is kicking off.

The first incident happened at the intersection of 11th Street and Montgomery Avenue, where a student was attacked and robbed by three juveniles, according to the Temple University Police Association. Another student was assaulted at the Broad and Cecil B. Moore Avenue subway station, also by a group of three young suspects who made off with his backpack.

Temple University Police and the Philadelphia Police Department quickly apprehended the three suspects, who were identified as two 13-year-olds and a 15-year-old. Shortly after, Temple Police responded to reports of a shooting on North 18th Street, but no injuries were found.

"We urge all students and faculty to exercise caution and remain vigilant while on campus. Your safety is our priority," Temple police wrote in a Facebook post.

Despite the incidents coming just a day before freshmen moved to campus, Police Chief Temple Police Chief Jennifer Griffin told WPVI News that the university is reporting a significant drop in crime compared to last year.

"One of those advancements we've made is license plate readers; several are located throughout campus. Within just weeks of installing it, we made an apprehension of an individual in a stolen vehicle. We were able to return that vehicle to the owner," she told the outlet.
Facing protests, the West Bengal government has removed Suhrita Paul as the principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, a week after the appointment was made. Paul will now serve as head of Barasat Medical college read more

Under mounting pressure from protesting medical students, the West Bengal government on Wednesday sacked RG Kar Medical Colleges recently appointed principal, Suhrita Paul.

She along with three other senior officials of the institution, who have been under scrutiny since the tragic rape and murder of a junior doctor on hospital premises earlier this month, have now been transferred.

Paul had stepped into the principals role on August 13, following the resignation of her predecessor, Sandip Ghosh. However, her tenure at the state-run college was short-lived.

What factors triggered her untimely removal? Lets take a closer look

How Suhrita Paul was appointed?

Following the growing public outcry over the brutal incident at RG Kar Hospital, protests against the then-principal, Sandip Ghosh, quickly escalated. Under intense pressure, Ghosh stepped down, citing moral responsibility and alleging a political conspiracy against him. He claimed that he was being defamed on social media following the tragedy.

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In a swift response, the West Bengal government appointed Suhrita Paul, who was serving as an Officer on Special Duty (OSD) at the Health and Family Welfare Department, as the new principal.

However, Ghoshs resignation and his subsequent transfer to Calcuttas National Medical College only fueled the students anger further and Pauls appointment did little to quell the unrest.

Tensions reached a boiling point on August 15, when a mob vandalised the hospital campus, attacking the protest site and damaging public property. The midnight chaos led to a heated confrontation between Paul and the protesting students.

When they demanded immediate action, Pauls frustration was clearly visible. If you cant trust me for one hour then send me home also, she retorted, drawing a parallel to Ghosh. She insisted, I need one hour to do some official work. You need to believe me, I wont go. You have to believe me. If you cant believe me then dont expect anything from me.

VIDEO | You (students) will have to believe somebody or the other. You will have to trust me. You will have to give me one hour, says RG Kar Medical Colleges newly appointed Principal Suhrita Pal while interacting with protesting students.



(Full video available on PTI Videos pic.twitter.com/oyl0tHCglb  Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) August 15, 2024

Despite her efforts to assert control, Paul, like Ghosh, struggled to gain the trust of the agitating students.



Paul is missing, supposed to be guardian

On Wednesday, tensions at RG Kar Medical College reached a critical point as medical students marched from the CGO Complex (CBI office) to Swasthya Bhavan, demanding that the new principal be removed.

The Times of India report said, that despite assuming the role, Paul had only visited the campus once, choosing instead to work from West Bengal Swasthya Bhavan (West Bengal Health Department) for the past nine days. Her absence, particularly after the August 15 vandalism incident, drew significant criticism from students.

A junior doctor expressed frustration to PTI, Our newly-appointed principal Dr. Suhrita Paul has gone missing. She is supposed to be our guardian, but she has not turned up at the campus since the night the hospital was vandalised. We have heard that she is operating out of Swasthya Bhavan. So we are headed there to find her out.

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Carrying placards, banners, and posters, the protestors began their foot march. They placed their demands with Principal Secretary Narayan Swarup Nigam and other top Health Department officials at Swasthya Bhavan, which included removal of Paul and three other hospital officials.

Protesters march to Swasthya Bhawan on Wednesday. PTI

We are scared after the rape-murder of a colleague and the vandalism at our hospital. In these trying times, we attempted to flag our concerns several times, but the new principal, Suhrita Pal, didnt show up. If she has no willingness to even come to the institution, she better resign, one of the protesting students told The Times of India.

After hearing their concerns, Nigam accepted their demands, stating, We want normalcy to be back and healthcare services to be regularised. Security arrangements have also been enhanced.

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In response to these developments, the West Bengal government appointed Paul as head of Barasat Medical College and named Manas Kumar Bandhopadhyay as the new principal of RG Kar Medical College.

Along with Pauls removal, the newly-appointed medical superintendent and vice-principal, Bulbul Mukhopadhyay, and the head of RG Kars Chest Medicine Department, Dr. Arunabha Datta Chaudhuri, were also transferred.

Dr. Saptarshi Chatterjee has been appointed as the new vice-principal, while Mukhopadhyay and Chaudhuri have been reassigned to other positions within the medical college.

With input from agencies
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived in Ukraine, a first since the Russian invasion began. For this visit, the PM spent hours on a train from Poland, which has in the past been used by other world leaders such as US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron to visit the war-torn country read more

Amid much hype and hoopla, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived in Ukraine during which he is expected to share perspectives on peaceful resolution of the ongoing conflict with the Ukrainian leader.

Modis visit to Ukraine comes on the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. This is the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Ukraine since the country became independent in 1991.

Interestingly, Modi made his way to Ukraine from Poland via the Rail Force One overnight train, which carried US President Joe Biden from Poland to Kyiv in February 2023.

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What do we know of this train? Heres a look inside.

On board Rail Force One

It is reported that PM Modi undertook a 10-hour rail journey from Polands Przemysl Gowny to Ukraine on board the Rail Force One  the same diesel-powered train that US President Joe Biden used to make his surprise visit to Kyiv in February last year.

US President Joe Biden sits on a train as he goes over his speech marking the one-year anniversary of the war in Ukraine after a surprise visit with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in Kyiv. File image/Reuters

The train, run by Ukrzaliznytsia or Ukrainian Railways, comprises wood-panelled cabins and is kitted out for executive-level work a long table, a sofa, and a TV on the wall. As per a New York Times report, Biden had a hard time sleeping during the long train ride, recalling his previous trips to Kyiv, including a speech to the Ukrainian Parliament and his remarks on his final trip in 2017. He read a briefing memo on the history of Kyiv back to its founding and reflected on his history with the city.

The wheels for many world leaders

Notably, this rail service has also been used by other world leaders who have visited Ukraine amidst the war. It was first used by prime ministers of Poland, Slovenia and the Czech Republic to visit Kyiv in March 2022.

This was followed up by visits by other top politicians, including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Canadian Premier Justin Trudeau, and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also made the journey to Ukraine, along with French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, on board the same train in June 2022.

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Even Hollywood actor Sean Penn and music superstar Bono of U2, have used the train to reach Kyiv.

French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi travel on board a train bound to Kyiv after departing from Poland in 2022. File image/Reuters

Alexander Kamyshin, the head of Ukraines railway company, tells The Guardian that the safety of the world leaders on board the Rail Force One is of paramount concern. We have not had one leak. There have been no photographs from train attendants. We respect the confidence of the delegations.

He notes that a challenge that he does face is to treat the various delegations properly because, like Biden, they spend more time on the train than they do in Kyiv. He spent 20 hours on the train and four hours in Kyiv. Everyone knows Ukrainians are brave. We also want them to know that we are welcoming.

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Why the train though

The world leaders who have made their way to Ukraine amidst the ongoing war have chosen Rail Force One, as there are few other alternatives to train travel. The airspace over Ukraine has been closed since the February 24, 2022 invasion and many roads are barely accessible due to heavy fighting. Thus, the railway has established itself as the best means of transporting politicians from around the world to Kyiv.

Workers repair damaged railroad tracks, as Russias invasion of Ukraine continues, in Kharkiv region. File image/Reuters

According to a CNN report, as of February 2023, over 200 foreign diplomatic missions have arrived in the country by train so far, in a programme that is now called iron diplomacy.

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And while the train journey is comparatively safer, it is not without peril. Russian missile strikes continue to target tracks, bridges and train stations, with the aim of disrupting arms supplies.

Ukraines vast rail network

The Rail Force One has also shone a light on Ukraines vast rail network which, at nearly 15,000 miles, is the 12th largest in the world. Since the war began, rail officials have worked ceaselessly to keep Ukraines trains running. Theyve moved over four million refugees and more than 330,000 metric tonnes of humanitarian aid, sending trains right up to  and sometimes beyond  the front lines of the conflict.

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Some trains have also been refitted to become mobile medical facilities. Around 2,500 civilians were evacuated for medical treatment via rail in 2022, reported CNN.

Ukrainian Railways have moved over four million refugees and more than 330,000 metric tonnes of humanitarian aid since the war began. File image/Reuters

When asked how he manages it all  the bombs, the attacks and the many diplomatic missions  Kamyshin told The Wired: Institutions like Ukrainian Railways always have a plan.

However, he has also expressed frustration at Rail Force One, which has caused delays to other services on the railway line. That was painful for me and my team, he was quoted as telling The Wired. I apologised to my customers because thats not the proper level of service we should provide.

With inputs from agencies
PM Narendra Modi reiterated a message of peace during his visit to Poland, saying India believes in dialogue and diplomacy to resolve conflict. This has been New Delhis stance ever since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, despite pressure from the West to oppose Moscow read more

Its been 909 days of the Russia-Ukraine war and a resolution seems a distant dream. Several countries have tried to mediate between Moscow and Kyiv but none have succeeded so far. Amid this, India stands out  as it has maintained a fine balance between the two, calling for both sides to resolve their differences and negotiate peace in the region.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been a constant supporter of permanent peace in the region and he reiterated this message once again in Poland while addressing the Indian diaspora in the Polish capital. Modi is on a two-day trip to Poland, a first for an Indian leader in four decades and will head to Ukraine on August 23 for a one-day visit.

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As we gear up for this historic visit  no Indian prime minister has visited Kyiv  lets take a closer look at how India and PM Modi have always stood for peace, urging both nations to sort out their differences through dialogue and diplomacy.

Modis war and peace message in Poland

Before departing for Poland on August 21, PM Modi in a statement called for an early return to peace and stability and said he would share perspectives on a peaceful resolution of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. As a friend and partner, we hope for an early return of peace and stability in the region, Modi said.

Later, addressing the Indian diaspora in Warsaw, Modi said that he was a supporter of peace and reiterated that this is not an era of war and any conflict should be resolved through diplomacy and dialogue.

India is the land of Lord Buddhas legacy. Therefore, India is an advocate of permanent peace in this region. Indias concept is clear  this is not an era of war India believes in dialogue and diplomacy to resolve conflict, Modi told the gathering.

Modis message of peace in Poland comes just a day before he visits Ukraine. Modis Poland visit is a first by an Indian leader in 45 years. PTI

In his address, he said, Todays India wants to connect with all. Todays India talks about the development of all. Todays India is with all and thinks about the interests of all.

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War cannot solve problems

Modis message of peace in Poland isnt the first time that the Indian PM has batted for dialogue in the Russia-Ukraine war. Earlier in July, PM Modi made a visit to Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin, a first since the war broke out two years ago.

At the time, PM Modi addressing his dear friend Putin had said that peace is of utmost importance and a solution to the war in Ukraine cannot be found on the battlefield. I know that war cannot solve problems, solutions and peace talks cant succeed among bombs, guns and bullets. And we need to find a way to peace through dialogue, Modi told Putin in televised remarks at the Kremlin.

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He had further said: When innocent children are murdered, one sees them die, the heart pains and that pain is unbearable.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visit Atom pavilion at the Exhibition of Achievements of National Economy (VDNKh) in Moscow, Russia. File image/PTI

The Indian leaders comments came a day after a lethal strike on a childrens hospital in Kyiv, just one of a series of attacks that killed 37 people in Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned Modi for visiting Russia, calling the trip a devastating blow to peace efforts. It is 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, Zelenskyy wrote in a message on social media.

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In Ukraine today, 37 people were killed, three of whom were children, and 170 were injured, including 13 children, as a result of Russias brutal missile strike.



A Russian missile struck the largest children's hospital in Ukraine, targeting young cancer patients. Many were pic.twitter.com/V1k7PEz2rJ  Volodymyr Zelenskyy /   (@ZelenskyyUa) July 8, 2024

A month before he visited Russia, PM Modi at the G7 summit in Italys Apulia also called for a human-centric approach to find a solution to the conflict in Ukraine in his sit-down with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. He conveyed to the Ukrainian leader that India would continue to do everything within its means to support a peaceful solution to the Ukraine conflict and that the way to peace is through dialogue and diplomacy.

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India abstains from UN vote

New Delhi has also taken a stance of neutrality on the Russia-Ukraine war at international platforms. It abstained from voting in a UN General Assembly resolution that condemned Russias invasion of Ukraine in February last year.

While abstaining, India said that peaceful dialogue was the only way out. Indias permanent representative to the UN, Ruchira Kamboj, said: No solution can ever arrive at the cost of human lives.

Notably, it has also abstained from similar resolutions both at the UNGA and at the UNSC in the past. In fact, in 2022, India abstained on a US-sponsored UN Security Council resolution that deplores in the strongest terms Russias aggression against Ukraine, with New Delhi saying dialogue is the only answer to settling differences and disputes.

Offering a reason for its abstention, India said it did not endorse the harsh language used in the resolution condemning Russias actions. It wants to maintain a balance between the Western bloc led by the US, and Russia, since it has strategic partners on both sides.

Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to Prime Minister Narendra Modi during their talks on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. File image/AP

Not an era of war

Modi has continuously reiterated Indias stance on peace and it all began in September 2022 at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. On the sidelines of the meet, Modi had told Russias Vladimir Putin: I know that todays era is not an era of war, and I have spoken to you on the phone about this.

He added, Weve spoken to you many times on the phone before on this, that democracy, diplomacy and dialogue  these things help the world. In the coming days, we will get the chance to talk about how to move on to the road to peace, I will also get the chance to better understand your viewpoint.

Responding to Modis remark, Putin stated, I know your position on the conflict in Ukraine, the concerns that you constantly express. We will do everything to stop this as soon as possible.

Modis remarks were appreciated the world over, with the United States being heartened by it. US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan appreciating the statement by PM Modi told reporters at a White House news conference that what the prime minister said was a statement of principle on behalf of what he believes is right and just (and) it was very much welcomed by the US.

United States Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti also hailed PM Modis statement, saying that it caught the ears of the entire world. What a powerful idea. What a necessary idea.

It is left to be seen if PM Modis message for peace through dialogue and diplomacy is heeded. As of now, it appears that peace is a distant dream as Ukraine and Russia engage in deadly drone attacks, amidst Ukrainian troops advance in Russias Kursk region.

With inputs from agencies
Hindu priest Rakesh Bhatt brought a spiritual touch to the third day of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday. Hailing from Bengaluru, the Indian-American priest has a strong background in religious studies and rituals. Rallying support for Kamala Harris, he called for unity and invoked the ancient Indian concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam read more

The third day of the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday started uniquely  with the chants of Vedic prayer.

Hindu priest Rakesh Bhatt brought a spiritual touch to the political convention held at the United Centre in Chicago.

Rallying support for Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, Pandit Bhatt called for unity and invoked the ancient Indian concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, meaning the whole world is one family.

Heres all we know about him.

Who is Pandit Rakesh Bhatt?

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Born into a traditional Madhwa Brahim family in Bengaluru, Pandit Bhatt has a strong background in religious studies and rituals.

He received special training in Tantrasaara (Maadhva) Agama and the Rig Veda from Pejavar Swamiji of Udupi Ashta Matha, his guru, as per Hindustan Times.

The senior Hindu priest speaks fluent Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, English, and Hindu.

According to the report, he holds Bachelors and Masters degrees in Sanskrit, English, and Kannada. He received his education at Jayachamarajendra College in Sanskrit and Osteen College in Bengaluru, where he majored in Kannada and English.

Born into a traditional Madhwa Brahim family in Bengaluru, Pandit Rakesh Bhatt has a strong background in religious studies and rituals. Reuters

He was awarded the title of Satshastra Vidwan by Mantralaya, Uttaradi Matha, and Udupi Ashta Matha, among other institutions, reported The Times of India.

Prior to his July 2013 appointment at the Sri Siva Vishnu Temple in Maryland, Pandit Bhatt was employed by Udupi Ashta Matha and had temporary positions at Badrinath and Salem Raghavendra Swami Koil.

During his recent appearance at the Democratic National Convention, the Indian-American priest sought blessings for a united country, by saying, Even if we have differences when it comes to the nation, we have to be united and it moves us towards justice for all."

He continued, We should be in unison. Let our minds think together. Let our hearts beat as one. All the betterment of society. May this make us powerful so we can unite and make our nation proud. We are only a universal family. The truth is our foundation and always prevails. Lead us from unreal to real, from darkness to the light, and from death to immortality. Om Shanti Shanti Shanti.

Ajay Jain Bhutoria, Deputy National Finance Chair of the Democratic Party, shared a video of Bhatt on X and captioned it, Hindu prayer at the DNC today is a significant moment, showcasing the Democratic Partys commitment to inclusivity and diversity. It is heartening to see the rich cultural and spiritual traditions of the Indian American community being honoured on such a prominent stage.

Bhutoria added in the thread, It is a proud day for Indian Americans and all who cherish the diversity of faiths that make up the American tapestry. This act of prayer is not just a religious observance; it is a celebration of the unity that transcends cultural and religious boundaries.

With inputs from agencies
A striking 90-foot-tall bronze statue of Lord Hanuman has been unveiled in Texas, US. Dubbed the Statue of Union, it is the third tallest sculpture in the US only surpassed by the Statue of Liberty and the Pegasus and Dragon figure in Florida read more

During a grand Pran Pratishtha event in Houston city of Texas on August 18, the statue, called the Statue of Union, was unveiled. Image Courtesy: X/@saffronsunanda

A striking 90-foot-tall bronze statue of Lord Hanuman was recently unveiled in US Texas.

Dubbed the Statue of Union, the striking new landmark, is visible from miles around as it is now the third tallest sculpture in the US. The unveiling of this majestic statue represents a new milestone in the cultural and spiritual landscape of America, organisers said.

Heres all we know about it

1. The Statue of Union, is located at Sri Ashtalakshmi Temple in Sugar Land, Texas. The website, named after the sculpture, says that the statue is about creating a spiritual epicenter where hearts find solace, minds find peace, and souls find a path to transcendence.

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2. Regarding the choice of name for the statue, the website said, The Statue of Union will be North Americas tallest statue of Lord Hanuman, an embodiment of strength, devotion, and selfless service. Hanuman united Sri Rama with Sita and hence the name, Statue of Union.

3. The colossal statue is one of the tallest in the US, trailing only behind the Statue of Liberty (151 feet) and the Pegasus and Dragon in Florida (110 feet). It replaced the Our Lady of the Rockies statue as the third tallest in the US, which stands at 88.6 feet.

The third tallest statue in the US is now located in Sugar Land, TX, standing at 90 feet tall.



Located at Sri Ashtalakshmi Temple, the Statue of Union depicting Hindu god Hanuman was recently inaugurated, believed to represent strength and hope.pic.twitter.com/Nuzu2JUavN  Julia  (@Jules31415) August 21, 2024

4. According to the statement issued by the organiser, the statue is built on the visions of His Holiness Sri Chinna Jeeyar Swamiji, a Padma Bhushan awardee and esteemed Vedic scholar. He envisioned the project as a spiritual epicentre for North America, the organiser added.

5. The statue was unveiled during a grand three-day Prana Prathishta ceremony held from August 15 to 18. The event featured a helicopter showering flowers on the statue, sacred water sprinkling, and a 72-foot-long garland draped around Lord Hanumans neck, all while thousands of devotees chanted the names of Shri Ram and Hanuman in unison.

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The Pran Pratishtha ceremony of the 90-foot-tall Hanuman statue was held on August 18 at Houston, Texas. The statue, named the "Statue of Union," is now the third tallest statue in the United States. The statue stands as a tribute to Lord Hanuman's role in reuniting Sri Rama and pic.twitter.com/TR2fl1xK2d  SuryaKantham (@Kantham1897) August 21, 2024

6. As per the organisers statement, The rituals in the ceremony were led by Sri Chinna Jeeyar Swamiji and overseen by a multitude of Vedic priests and scholars, and were a powerful display of devotion and spirituality.

7. Indian mythologist and writer Devdutt Pattanaik suggested that the Hanuman statue, with both arms raised, is inspired by the Thai Buddhas gesture of do not fight. On X, Pattanaik shared a photo of the sculpture and remarked, Thank you guys - a shift from those rather inauspicious (angry) images promoted by Breaking Bharat Bullies. However, this theory has been challenged by many social media users.

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American Hindus in Texas built a rather unusual giant Hanuman statue based on the (Thai) Buddha's gesture of "do not fight". both palms raised.



Thank you guys - a shift from those rather inauspicious (angry) images promoted by Breaking Bharat Bullies. pic.twitter.com/LojFdhH7qS  Devdutt Pattanaik (@devduttmyth) August 21, 2024

8. One user responded, It is Abhaya mudra, by Buddha, to calm the sea associated with the flooding of Neranyjara River. You are interpreting to suit your agenda. Charming." Another commented, lol. Our mythologist doesnt know the difference between Abhaya mudra and the do not fight gesture. Without cultural context, one could say Hanuman was sculpted with a high five gesture.

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10. According to Financial Express, a 25-foot-tall statue of Lord Hanuman, previously the tallest in the US, was installed in Delaware in June 2020. Weighing an impressive 45 tonnes, it was shipped from Hyderabad to New York by sea before being installed in Hockessin, New Castle County, Delaware.

Patibanda Sharma, President of the Hindu Temple of Delaware Association, had told ANI, It has been shipped from Warangal, Telangana to Delaware."



With input from agencies
Canadian National (CN) and CPKC  the two biggest railroad companies in Canada  locked out their workers after a deadline to come to an agreement with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, which represents some 10,000 engineers, conductors and dispatchers over a new contract passed. Experts say this could cost businesses billions of dollars and hurt consumers both in Canada and the United States read more

A worker walks next to a train parked at the CPKC Kinnear Yard in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Reuters

Canadas freight railways have shut down over a labour dispute with their teamsters union.

Canadian National (CN) and CPKC  the two biggest railroad companies in Canada  locked out their workers after a deadline to come to an agreement with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference which represents some 10,000 engineers, conductors and dispatchers over a new contract passed.

Experts are warning that this development could cost businesses billions of dollars and hurt consumers both in Canada and the United States.

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But what happened? Why did it happen? And what could the impact be?

Lets take a closer look:

What happened and why?

CN and CPKC had been negotiating with the union for a long time  nine months and a year respectively  to try to iron out new contracts.

The lockout went into effect at midnight on Thursday (August 22) after failing to reach an agreement.

As per The Guardian, over 9,000 workers have been locked out.

The negotiations are stuck on issues related to the way rail workers are scheduled and concerns about rules designed to prevent fatigue and provide adequate rest to train crews.

Both railroads had proposed shifting away from the existing system, which pays workers based on the kilometres in a trip, to an hourly system they said would make it easier to provide predictable time off.

The railroads said their contract offers have included raises consistent with recent deals in the industry. Engineers make about $150,000 a year on Canadian National while conductors earn $120,000, and CPKC says its wages are comparable.

But the union representing CPKC workers told The Guardian that the firm intended to gut the collective agreement of all safety-critical fatigue provisions.

They claim crews will be forced to stay awake longer, boosting the risk of accidents.

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But the CPKC said its offer maintains the status quo for all work rules and fully complies with new regulatory requirements for rest and does not in any way compromise safety.

The union representing CN workers similarly claimed the company would create a fatigue-related safety risk.

Paul Boucher, president of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, told QZ, Despite reaping billions in profits over the years, CN is demanding concessions that would drag working conditions back to another era.

He claimed that one provision in the proposed contract would force workers to relocate to different parts of Canada for long periods to accommodate labour shortages.

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This highly profitable company is playing hardball with the Canadian economy, doing whatever it can to line the pockets of its managers and shareholders, no matter the consequences, Boucher added.

Rail cars loaded with canadian wheat travel through the Rocky Mountains on the Canadian Pacific railway line near Banff, Alberta. Reuters

Similar quality-of-life concerns about demanding schedules and the lack of paid sick time nearly led to a US rail strike two years ago until Congress and President Joe Biden intervened and forced the unions to accept a deal.

CN said it was waiting for a response on one final offer made late Wednesday when it locked the workers out.

CN told The Guardian that the union did not respond to another offer by CN in a final attempt to avoid a labour disruption.

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Without an agreement or binding arbitration, CN had no choice but to finalise a safe and orderly shutdown and proceed with a lockout.

CPKC spokesperson Patrick Waldron said the union rejected its last offer that CEO Keith Creel made at the table in person

The CPKC added, The TCRC [union] leadership continues to make unrealistic demands that would fundamentally impair the railways ability to serve our customers with a reliable and cost-competitive transportation service.

Both railroads have said they would end the lockout if the union agreed to binding arbitration.

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The union told the newspaper, Despite months of good faith negotiations on the part of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, parties remain far apart, and both CN and CPKC have begun their lockout of 00:01 today  Despite the lockout, the Teamsters remain at the bargaining table with both companies.

All rail traffic in Canada and all shipments crossing the US border have stopped, although CPKC and CNs trains will continue to operate in the US and Mexico.

Billions of dollars of goods each month move between Canada and the US via rail, according to the US Department of Transportation.

Whats the possible impact?

Experts say the impact could be devastating on Canada  and eventually the US.

As per The Guardian, CN and CPKC control nearly all of the railway track in Canada.

They also operate the bulk of the freight.

Canada has never experienced both companies having a work stoppage at the same time.

The newspaper quoted the Railway Association of Canada as saying that the railroads carry goods worth $740,000 every day.

Over half the aviation fuel at Canadas busiest airport, Torontos Pearson airport, is sent by rail.

A strike would also likely affect the mining, agriculture and retail industries.

CNN quoted a report from the Anderson Economic Group as saying a three-day halt could result in $300 million of economic loss.

A seven-day stoppage could cause a loss of over $1 billion.

Kristin Dziczek, policy advisor in the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicagos research, policy, and public engagement division, told the outlet, It will take weeks to unwind the problems caused by a shutdown of even a few days because things will end up not where theyre supposed to be.

Manufacturing companies may have to scale back or even shut down production if they cant get rail service, while ports and grain elevators will quickly become clogged with shipments waiting to move. And if the dispute drags on for a couple weeks, water treatment plants all across Canada might have to scramble without new shipments of chlorine.

If railways are not picking up the goods that are coming in by ships, then pretty soon your terminals get filled up. And at that point you cannot take any vessels at the terminal anymore, said Victor Pang, chief financial officer at the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority.

He pointed to the 13-day strike by 7,400 British Columbia dockworkers last summer, which manufacturers said blocked the flow of $368 million worth of goods each day.

Some companies would undoubtedly turn to trucking to keep some of their products moving, but theres no way to make up for the volume railroads deliver. It would take some 300 trucks to haul everything just one train can carry.

If rail traffic grinds to a halt, businesses and families across the country will feel the impact, Jay Timmons, president and CEO of the National Association of Manufacturers, said in a statement. Manufacturing workers, their communities and consumers of all sorts of products will be left reeling from supply chain disruptions.

A drone view shows a train arriving at the CN Rail freight depot in Hamilton. Reuters

There will be other impacts as well, including on the more than 30,000 commuters in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal who will be scrambling to find a new way into work because their trains wont be able to operate over CPKCs tracks while the railroad is shut down.

Many companies across all industries rely on railroads to deliver their raw materials and finished products, so without regular rail service they may have to cut back or even close.

Thats why the US government kept rail workers from going on strike two years ago and forced them to accept a contract despite their concerns about demanding schedules and the lack of paid sick time.

The railways move an average of 69,000 tons of fertilizer product per day, equivalent to four to five trains, said Fertilizer Canada spokesperson Kayla FitzPatrick.

Disruptions will cost the industry $40 million to $46 million per day in lost revenue, not including logistical and operational costs, she said.

Canadian meat producers warned that a rail stoppage would result in millions of dollars in losses and waste.

The Canadian Meat Council and Canadian Pork Council said some processing plants expect to lose millions of dollars a week, and noted these facilities would be forced to shut down within seven to 10 days of a rail stoppage.

Once the railways resume service, it would take two to five weeks for plants to return to normal capacity.

There is concern that the movement of Ontario soybeans to export markets, primarily Japan, will completely stop just before the harvest, said Crosby Devitt, CEO of Grain Farmers of Ontario.

With crop-shipment delays lasting beyond a week, companies must pay contract penalties and demurrage for ships waiting for grain to arrive, piling significant cost onto the industry, said Wade Sobkowich, executive director of the Western Grain Elevator Association.

Well be playing catch-up for the rest of the harvest year, till next July, he said.

Impact on US

Experts say the stoppage would eventually disrupt North Americas agricultural supply chain, snarling shipments of everything from wheat to fertiliser and meat.

Canada is the worlds top exporter of canola, used in food and biofuel, and of potash fertilizer, as well as the No. 3 wheat exporter.

While a lockout or strike would directly involve 10,000 Canadian employees of the railroads, not those in the US, it would have knock-on effects on the US economy due to the countries criss-crossing rail lines.

As per CNN, auto plants in the US could briefly shutter for lack of engines, transmissions or stampings.

Water treatment plants near the Canada border might also fall short of chlorine.

Which is why nearly three dozen North American agriculture groups, in a joint letter to the US and Canadian governments on Monday, urged action to avoid a stoppage.

The impact of a strike would be particularly severe on bulk commodity exporters in both Canada and the United States as trucking is not a viable option for many agricultural shippers, the letter said, citing large volumes and vast distances.

The stoppage will halt shipments of US spring wheat from Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota to the Pacific Northwest for export, said Max Fisher, chief economist at the National Grain and Feed Association.

CPKC ships grain from the Dakotas and Minnesota to west-coast export terminals via Canada, according to the US government.

US farmers still have nearly two-thirds of the spring-wheat crop to harvest, the US Department of Agriculture said on Monday. Soy, corn and canola harvests are still a few weeks away in North America.

Shippers are also concerned about U.S. corn products heading to Canada. In 2023, Canada was the top destination for US ethanol exports, and almost three-quarters traveled by rail, according to USDA.

We just cant have the railroads not operating, Fisher said.

The US exported $28.2 billion of agricultural products last year to Canada, its third-largest destination for agricultural exports behind China and Mexico, USDA said.

The US imported $40.1 billion of Canadian agricultural products last year, making Canada the second-largest origin of U.S. agricultural imports behind Mexico, the agency said.

About 85 per cent of the 13 million metric tons of US potash imports last year came from Canada, nearly all of which crossed by rail, according to USDA.

US corn farmers apply fertilizers in fall and spring, but potash imports from Canada are consistent throughout the year, said Krista Swanson, chief economist for the National Corn Growers Association.

Given constant trade flows and the importance of the trade relationship between the two nations, there is no good time for this to occur, Swanson said.

Canadas railroads have sometimes shut down briefly in the past during contract negotiations  most recently CPKC was offline for a couple days in March 2022  but it is rare for both railroads to stop at the same time. The impact on businesses will be magnified because both CN and CPKC have stopped.

Both CN and CPKC had been gradually shutting down since last week ahead of the contract deadline. Shipments of hazardous chemicals and perishable goods were the first to stop, so they wouldnt be stranded somewhere on the tracks.

As the Canadian contract talks were coming down to the wire, one of the biggest US railroads, CSX, broke with the US freight rail industrys longstanding practice of negotiating jointly for years with the unions. CSX reached a deal with several of its 13 unions that cover 25 per cent of its workers ahead of the start of national bargaining later this year.

The new five-year contracts will provide 17.5 per cent raises, better benefits and vacation time if they are ratified. The unions that have signed deals with CSX include part of the SMART-TD union representing conductors in one region, the Transportation Communications Union, the Brotherhood of Railway Carmen and the Transport Workers Union.

TCU President Artie Maratea said hes proud that his union reached a deal without years of unnecessary delay and stall tactics.

Best interest of both sides

Trudeau has been reluctant to force arbitration because he doesnt want to offend the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference and other unions, but he urged both sides to reach a deal Wednesday because of the tremendous economic damage that would follow a full shutdown.

It is in the best interest of both sides to continue doing the hard work at the table, Trudeau said to reporters in Gatineau, Quebec. Millions of Canadians, workers, farmers, businesses, right across the country, are counting on both sides to do the work and get to a resolution.

Numerous business groups have been urging Trudeau to act.

The Guardian quoted them as saying in a joint statement that the government has a responsibility to protect the Canadian public and maintain national security, and it is time to act decisively to fulfil that obligation.

Trudeau said Labor Minister Steven MacKinnon met with both sides in the CN talks in Montreal on Tuesday and would be on hand for the CPKC talks in Calgary, Alberta. MacKinnon later said he wrapped up his meetings with the rail companies and the Teamsters.

Workers, farmers, commuters and businesses cant wait. Canadians need urgency at the table. The parties need to get deals done now, he posted on the social platform X.

With inputs from agencies
This is the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Poland in 45 years read more

PM Narendra Modi at an event during his Poland visit (Photo: X/Narendra Modi)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has kicked off day two of his Poland visit with a meeting with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

In the first such visit in more than 45 years, Tusk is hosting Modi and the high-level delegation in Warsaw for talks at the Chancellery in Warsaw.

Before the talks, Modi and the delegation were accorded a ceremonial welcome by Tusk.

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Following the ceremonial, the two leaders left to hold the talks. Visuals of the two leaders engaged in a conversation at a table have appeared from Warsaw.

#WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds a bilateral meeting with his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk in Warsaw. pic.twitter.com/X5zwUeeyQ9  ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2024

Following the talks, the two leaders will make statements to the media later in the afternoon. He is also scheduled to meet Polish President Andrzej Duda.

Later in the day, Modi is also scheduled to lay wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, meet businesspersons of the country, and hold a session with Polish influencers. Earlier on Wednesday, Modi arrived in Poland and addressed the Indian diaspora at an event in Warsaw.

Poland is the first stop in Modis two-nation visit to Eastern Europe. On Friday, Modi will arrive in Kyiv where he will meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Modis complete schedule for day 2

Firstly, Modis talks with Tusk are scheduled for 1:15 pm in Warsaw. Following the talks, the two leaders are expected to make joint statements at 2:40 pm.

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Following the joint statement, Tusk will host Modi for lunch, according to ANI.

At 5 pm, Modi will lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers, the national monument of Poland that honours those unknown personnel who made the supreme sacrifice for the defence of Poland.

At 5:30, Modi will interact with business leaders.

Later in the evening, at 8 pm, Modi will interact with Polish business leaders.

Tomorrow, Modi will arrive in Kyiv after a 10-hour train journey. All world leaders arrive in Kyiv by train as civilian air travel to the country for leaders is not preferred because of the ongoing fighting.

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Modis visit to Ukraine, the first by any Indian premier, comes at a turning point in the war where both countries are making dangerous moves. While Russia is nearing the capture of a key logistical hub in eastern Ukraine that could be a major victory, Ukraine has captured more than 1,200 square kilometres of territory in Russias Kursk region which it hopes to use to its advantage during any negotiations in the future.
At a joint press briefing with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged Poland to join the Make in India initiative to make products to be exported to the world read more

Speaking in one voice, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Polish PM Donald Tusk called for the end of the ongoing wars and conflicts.

Modi held talks with Tusk at the Chancellery in Warsaw on Thursday during his two-day visit to Poland. At the joint press briefing after the talks, the two leaders announced the upgradation of the India-Poland relationship to Strategic Partnership.

In context of the ongoing wars in Ukraine and the West Asia, Modi said that no solutions can be found on the battlefield.

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The conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia are of deep concern to all of us. India firmly believes that no solution to any problem can be found on the battlefield, said Modi.

Tusk appreciated Modis stance on the Ukraine conflict and said that India has an important role to play in diffusing the crisis.

Modi is the first Prime Minister of India to visit Poland in 45 years. After the two-day visit to Poland, Modi would go to Kyiv in a 10-hour ride on the first-ever visit to Ukraine by any Indian premier. The visit to both the European nations come at a time when the Ukraine conflict is at a critical point as both Ukraine and Russia are cutting deeper into each-others territories.

Calling for more trade and investments, Modi also urged Poland to be part of the Make in India initiative to manufacture goods in India to export to the world.

India willing to support all efforts to restore peace

Speaking in the midst of a raging war in Ukraine, Modi said that India remains committed to playing role to restore peace.

Terming the loss of innocent lives as the biggest challenge to humanity, Modi said that India supports the restoration of peace through dialogue and diplomacy.

In any crisis, the loss of innocent lives is the biggest challenge for humanity. We support dialogue and diplomacy for the restoration of peace and stability at the earliest. For such purposes, India is willing to support all possible efforts along with friendly nations, said Modi in Hindi.

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On his part, Tusk said that Modi was committed to the immediate resolution of the conflict in Ukraine.

PM Modi confirmed that he is committed to the peaceful, just, and immediate stoppage of war in Ukraine. We believe India can play an important and positive role and this declaration is very important, said Tusk, according to a Hindi translation of his remarks.

Tusk further wished Modi well for his visit to Ukraine. He said, Mr Prime Minister, you will undertake a 10-hour journey to Ukraine. I am confident it will be historic.
The prime minister will travel to Kyiv from Poland in a Rail Force One train that will take around 10 hours. The return trip will also be of the same duration. read more

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday left for a historic visit to Ukraine after concluding his two-day productive trip to Poland during which he held wide-ranging talks with the Polish leadership.

#WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi emplanes from Warsaw, Poland.



In the second leg of his visit, PM Modi will travel to Ukraine which will be the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister after the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1992. pic.twitter.com/HqL6kB5ESZ  ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2024

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PM @narendramodi concludes a productive visit to Poland, setting a new milestone in bilateral relations. This high-level Prime Ministerial visit after four decades will widen and deepen India-Poland relations, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal posted on X.

PM @narendramodi concludes a productive visit to Poland, setting a new milestone in bilateral relations.



This high-level Prime Ministerial visit after four decades will widen and deepen India-Poland relations. pic.twitter.com/393HDe4nYp  Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) August 22, 2024

Modi, who is visiting Ukraine at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has said that he will share with the Ukrainian leader perspectives on peaceful resolution of the ongoing conflict.

His visit to Kyiv comes nearly six weeks after his high-profile trip to Moscow which triggered criticism from the US and some of its Western allies.

This is the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Ukraine since the country became independent in 1991.

I look forward to the opportunity to build upon earlier conversations with President Zelenskyy on strengthening bilateral cooperation and share perspectives on peaceful resolution of the ongoing Ukraine conflict, Modi has said. As a friend and partner, we hope for an early return of peace and stability in the region.

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India has not yet condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine and has been calling for resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy.

Before leaving Warsaw, Modi said that his Poland visit has been special.

It is after decades that an Indian PM set foot on Polish soil, Modi said in a post on X at the end of his visit to Warsaw.

Modi arrived in Poland on Wednesday on the first leg of his two-nation visit during which he will also travel to the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. His visit to Poland is the first trip by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in the past 45 years.

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This visit gave an opportunity to deepen cooperation with a valued friend. We look forward to closer business and cultural connect with Poland. Our friendship can certainly contribute to a better planet. I thank the Polish people and Government for their warmth, the prime minister added.

My Poland visit has been special. It is after decades that an Indian PM set foot on Polish soil. This visit gave an opportunity to deepen cooperation with a valued friend. We look forward to closer business and cultural connect with Poland. Our friendship can certainly contribute pic.twitter.com/DMQTuZSPVc  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 22, 2024
Sandip Ghosh, the former principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, is now under fire for a series of grave accusations, including the illicit sale of deceased bodies. These explosive allegations come from Akhtar Ali, a former deputy superintendent at the same hospital, who has exposed a disturbing narrative.

In an exclusive with India Today, Ali revealed that Ghosh was allegedly entangled in a sinister operation, trafficking biomedical waste and medical supplies across the border to Bangladesh. Even more shocking, Ali accused Ghosh of participating in the unethical sale of unclaimed corpses, which were reportedly sold to individuals with additional security clearances and then exported.

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Ali took decisive action, presenting his allegations to the state vigilance commission and participating in a probe that ultimately held Ghosh accountable. However, in a twist of fate, Ali was transferred from his role the very day he handed over the damning report to the state health department.

While the courts will ultimately decide Ghoshs guilt, the implications of a dead body trade ring extend far beyond national borders, raising alarms on an international scale.

Kolkatas tryst with dead body business

Medical students worldwide depend on anatomical models for their training, but behind these educational tools lies a disturbing truth. As revealed in an NPR report, a shadowy trade in human skeletons has thrived in Kolkata for over 200 years, supplying universities and hospitals worldwide.

This grim trade traces its roots to the British colonial era, when grave robbers were employed to excavate bodies from Indian cemeteries for medical use. Despite evolving laws, the gruesome practice of exhuming and selling skeletons continues to this day. In many parts of Kolkata, cemeteries have been disturbed for decades, their graves long emptied.

What was once a booming multimillion-dollar industry in the 1970s faced a significant blow when India officially banned the export of human remains on 16 August 1985. This decision followed shocking allegations that some traders were resorting to murder to obtain skeletons. However, the ban wasnt Indias first attempt to curb this trade. Earlier bans, first in 1952 and then during the Emergency, were swiftly liftedthe first lasting only a few months and the second reversed after the Janata Party came to power.

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While the new law forced many companies out of business, one Kolkata-based firm, Young Brothers, continued operating until complaints from locals led the government to intervene. Founded in 1980, Young Brothers markets itself as a leading producer and supplier of medical education and training models. With decades of experience, the company offers an extensive range of products, including pathology models, Child CPR Training Manikins, pharmacology models, and skeletal materials. Among their offerings, they advertise Disarticulated Skeleton Real Original Bones and life-sized human skeletons, priced at Rs 3,020 each. Although these items are marketed for legitimate medical study, it is critical to ensure that their origins are not part of a sinister history.

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We are having a manufacturing license from competent authority hence we dont face any problem supplying to (medical) institutions, said Meenakshi Aron, proprietor of Young Brothers.

A 1985 India Today article referenced a Life magazine feature that revealed a darker side of this trade. During the Bengal famine in 1943, Kolkata-based exporter Sanker Narayan Sen allegedly crafted skeletons from famine victims fished out of rivers or collected from the killing fields of Bengal. Sens business thrived for four decades until he denounced it after retirement, provoking resentment from the Association of Exporters of Anatomical Specimens. The association even petitioned then-Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on behalf of 13 Kolkata-based exporters and their 300 employees, who depended on the skeleton trade for their livelihood. Skeleton importers in the US, Europe and Japanwho relied entirely on India, the worlds sole exporter of skeletonsalso protested the ban.

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This dark legacy of Kolkatas skeleton trade serves as a stark reminder that behind the tools of medical education, there can be unsettling truths that stretch across centuries.

Why bone markets thrive in India

Indias journey of economic liberalisation, privatisation and the surge of consumerism since the 1990s has undeniably brought numerous benefits to the common man but also paved the way for significant legal, ethical and human rights challenges.

The rise of medical colleges in India, which have more than doubled since 1980, has fuelled an increased demand for human skeletons for anatomy education. Despite the Indian governments 1985 ban on the export of human remains, the illegal trade in human bones has persisted, driven by weak enforcement of laws and widespread poverty. According to a report in The National News, this underground trade sees an estimated 20,000-25,000 human skeletons smuggled out of India annually, primarily to medical institutions in the United States, Japan, Europe and the Middle East.

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Indias fascination with anatomy is deeply rooted in history with ancient scholars like those from the Atreya-Charaka and Sushruta schools documenting a large number of bones in the human body. British colonial rule further institutionalised the study of anatomy leading to a formal demand for human skeletons in medical education. The post-1985 scenario, however, reflects a grim reality where, despite legal prohibitions, the demand for human skeletons is met through clandestine operations, often exploiting the poorest segments of society.

While privatisation and economic liberalisation have brought substantial progress to India, the dark side of these developments cannot be ignored. The illegal trade in human bones and more so in dead bodies, is a stark reminder of the need for stronger regulations, better enforcement and a more ethical approach to medical education. The challenge lies in balancing economic growth with the protection of human rights ensuring that progress does not come at the cost of the most vulnerable.

Legal and ethical violations

The flourishing black market in human remains flagrantly violates several laws, including Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, which guarantees the right to life and personal liberty. It also contravenes the Transplantation of Human Organ Act, 1994. Beyond its legal breaches, this trade raises grave ethical and human rights concerns, often preying on marginalised communities who are coerced or deceived into selling the remains of their loved ones.

In an advisory on upholding the rights and dignity of the deceased, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) highlighted a significant gap in Indias legal frameworkthere is no specific legislation dedicated to protecting the rights of the dead. Despite this, courts have consistently emphasised the importance of upholding the dignity of the deceased. In the landmark 1989 Parmanand Katara v. Union of India case, the Supreme Court ruled that the rights to life, fair treatment, and dignity, as enshrined in Article 21, extend to a persons dead body. These posthumous rights grant the deceased moral standing in the legal system, ensuring their wishes and interests are respected even after death.

The NHRC advisory stresses the States duty to protect these rights, especially in cases of natural and unnatural deaths, such as accidents, suicides and homicides. To combat crimes against the dead and ensure their dignity, the advisory calls for the creation of standard operating procedures (SOPs) by states and Union Territories. These SOPs should be developed in consultation with key stakeholdersincluding hospital administrations, police, forensic experts, district administrations, municipal bodies, civil society groups and citizensto ensure comprehensive protection and respect for the deceased.

Indias legal framework for regulating the trade in human remains is riddled with gaps. Although Article 21 of the Constitution provides for the dignity of the deceased, enforcement remains woefully inadequate. The NHRCs call for comprehensive procedures to safeguard the deceased has yet to translate into effective action. The lack of stringent enforcement and coordination among various stakeholdersincluding hospitals, police, and funeral serviceshas allowed the black market to thrive, undermining the very dignity that the law seeks to protect.

Dead body business is global

Recent revelations by Newsweek have uncovered a chilling case in northern China, where prosecutors have charged dozens in a decade-long scheme involving the illegal trafficking of human cadavers. According to an indictment leaked in May by the Taiyuan Peoples Procuratorate, the operation spanned at least seven provinces and nearly a dozen localities. The accusedranging from funeral home managers and doctors to company shareholdersallegedly trafficked over 4,000 bodies to Shanxi Osteorad Biomaterial Co. and Sichuan Hengpu Technology Co., generating approximately $53 million from 2015 to 2023.

Shanxi Osteorad, a key player in the bone graft market and a subsidiary of the state-owned China National Nuclear Corp, has been accused of falsifying donor agreements and mishandling cadavers. This scandal shines a harsh light on a broader issue within Chinas biomedical industry, where despite stringent regulations, enforcement is evidently lacking.

But this isnt just a problem in China. Across the globe, the United States is grappling with its own issues in the trafficking of human remains. While organ and tissue transplants are tightly regulated, the sale of cadavers for research and education remains largely unchecked. Experts like Angela McArthur from the University of Minnesota Medical School have pointed out that the lack of federal oversight has turned the market into a free-for-all, according to a Reuters report.

High-profile cases, such as the Harvard Medical School scandal in June 2023, have brought the issue into stark relief. In this case, up to 400 cadavers from the schools anatomical gifts programme were allegedly sold, reflecting a troubling trend where body donation programmes are exploited for profit.

The illegal trade in human remains is a complex global issue, entangled with cultural, legal and economic factors. The cases in China, the US and India highlight a widespread problem where regulations are struggling to keep up with illicit practices. Tackling this challenge requires robust international cooperation, stronger regulatory frameworks and greater public awareness. Countries must enforce stricter controls, ensure transparency in body donation programmes and close the loopholes that allow for the exploitation of the deceased. Only through comprehensive measures and global solidarity can we truly uphold the integrity and dignity of human remains.

Global context and Indias role

Indias situation underscores a critical global problem: the inadequate regulation of the human remains trade. The challenges faced by India are mirrored in other nations underscoring the urgent need for international cooperation and a unified approach to protect the dignity of the deceased.

While India has made progress in curbing the illegal bone trade, significant challenges persist. To effectively combat the global black market in human remains, the country must intensify its efforts to close legal loopholes and strengthen regulatory frameworks. The dignity of the deceased depends on a concerted global response and Indias actions are a crucial part of this broader effort.
Indias neighbourhood challenges are manifestations of its intimate but intricate relations with neighbours, structural issues between them and the role and competing interests of the US and China read more

(File) National flags of India and Bangladesh being lowered during celebrations of the 53rd Independence Day of Bangladesh, on the outskirts of Siliguri, West Bengal, on March 26, 2024. PTI

Having cordial and fruitful relations with its neighbours is both a necessity and a challenge for a country. The reason is straightforward: because attacks typically materialise in the neighbourhood, this is where the most danger exists. India is no exception. India and its neighbours have been united for centuries by the umbilical cord of history, culture and civilisation. Since closeness breeds comfort, compulsions as well as contempt, neighbourhood relationships are invariably delicate and complex. This is especially true in a country like India, where the majority of neighbours are bound by what may be called a civilisational relationship

Indias style of dealing with its South Asian neighbour other than Pakistan oscillates between two ends of the pendulum: the regional superpower and security approach practised by Indira Gandhi; and the more conciliatory approach advocated by Indira Kumar Gujral (so-called Gujral Doctrine). Narendra Modi added a pre-eminence of economic angle to these two approaches. But Indias primary goals have remained the same: the primacy of India in South Asia and limiting the interference of other majors in the region. The Indian states quest for regional primacy is often resentfully regarded as a demand for hegemony by neighbouring states. Lately, New Delhi has realised that the earlier policy of seeking to prevent an engagement between its neighbours and outside power needs rethinking. And it requires an active competition for influence, particularly with China.

Against this backdrop, India faces multiple challenges in the neighbourhood  the ever-present anti-India constituency in South Asia, such as in Maldives, Bangladesh, and Nepal. Anti-India rhetoric serves an instrumental purpose in galvanising public sentiments to gain political mileage. In a sense, India is a seemingly permanent domestic issue in political competition for power. Indias folly of playing favourites among political rivals inside these nations exacerbated these challenges in South Asia. The ongoing political crisis in Bangladesh is a telling example of the flawed Indian policy of nurturing only Sheikh Hasina at the expense of other political players. A mature foreign policy demands close, continuous, cooperative engagements with all stakeholders despite ideological or political differences. A test of a successful foreign policy is how it manages divergences and forges convergences.

The other that challenges arise are structural; given the asymmetry in size, population, economy and overall CNP (comprehensive national power) vis-a-vis South Asian countries, it constantly breeds a sense of overdependence on India and the perceived notion of infringement on their strategic autonomy and complete exercise of sovereignty. To free themselves from the perceived claustrophobic embrace of India, they look for other options to counterbalance India.

South Asian nations often play the China card in their foreign policy assertions. With the growing Chinese economic and political power profile, it is no longer a mere counterbalance to India. China has emerged as an important economic partner for South Asian countries. Under the auspices of its ambitious BRI, Chinas economic footprint is everywhere, much to the detriment of Indias influence in the region. China has adopted an assertive foreign policy approach in Asia and South Asia to position itself as a supreme global power, replacing the US.

Chinas strategic objective has been to confine India in South Asian affairs by using its small neighbours, and for that, the presence of irritants between India and its small neighbours is essential. The Chinese effort to resolve its boundary disputes with all South Asian nations except India and recent overtures to Bhutan is a strategy to win over countries in the region. Indias entanglement border disputes present India in a bad light. Like any other regional power, India suffers from two handicaps. First, it is much stronger than its neighbours but not strong enough to dictate regional terms and align them with its strategic calculus. Second, it is prone to compete with other superpowers in the region for influence.

India, unlike China, is a resident power prone to ethnic conflict, refugees, and other spillovers. Everything that binds India with its neighbours  culture, tradition, language  also creates tension. Sometimes, minor issues assume crisis proportions. However, China, a non-resident power, doesnt have sensitivities like India does in South Asia. South Asian nations over-reliance on China has limitations as they are mere pawns in the geopolitical chessboard of South Asia.

On the other hand, Indias economic, human and environmental security is intrinsically linked to peace and prosperity in the region. Another major global player in the area, the USA, has been a less frequent geopolitical force in South Asia in recent times while having long been a constant in the region. Although Washingtons presence in South Asia wasnt always beneficial for New Delhi, and sometimes its interests are at cross purposes with India. For instance, in Bangladesh, the USA, not China, is the impediment to stable and cordial relations. In Dhaka, the US wanted regime change. The US administration doesnt seem to care that the regime change will empower groups hostile to cordial ties with India, including Islamist fundamentalists, in the same way that the US showed no concern when radical Islamists took power after government changes in Iraq, Libya, and Tunisia.

The US policy of turning a blind eye to the enduring China-Pakistan Axis emboldens the policy of creating an artificial parity between India and Pakistan. The Pakistani army and the US administrations close relationship never bodes well for Indias regional security interests. In sum, Indias neighbourhood challenges are manifestations of its intimate but intricate relations with neighbours, structural issues between them and the role and competing interests of the US and China.

The Way Out

First things first, India needs to realise the fact that the power dynamics in South Asia have shifted dramatically. South Asia, where India held a dominant position, has vanished, and China has become a strong competitor for regional supremacy. Despite our dislike for it, China also owns Indias neighbours and the periphery. India could deal with reality more effectively if it adopted a pragmatic and realistic framework rather than clinging to the long-gone idea of Indian primacy.

Second, New Delhi must actively seek out friendly external actors in the region to get involved. Mere invocation of cultural and historical ties is insufficient and must be buttressed with relations economic, trade, and connectivity aspects. It is necessary to plug the gap between promise and delivery, and private players should rope in for the timely completion of infrastructure projects.

Third, Indian diplomacy needs to be adaptable enough to involve various players in each of the nations it borders. Diplomacy is the skill of decreasing the anti-Indian sentiment of those in the neighbourhood rather than detesting them. Similarly, it is good policy to deal with those in power, but it is terrible to engage with those in power alone.

Dr Amitabh Singh is an Associate Professor at the School of International Studies, JNU, New Delhi. Ankur Dixit is a Research Scholar at the School of International Studies, JNU, New Delhi.
Vietnams ability to hold its territorial claims in the South China Sea while balancing close ties with China amid growing friendship with the Philippines and the US will be watched closely read more

(File) Chinese President Xi Jinping and Vietnam's President To Lam shake hands after a signing ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China on 19 August 2024. Reuters

Vietnams newly elevated top leader, To Lam, landed in China on Sunday, for his first state visit after becoming general secretary of the ruling Communist Party. The Vietnamese President arrived in the southern Chinese province of Guangzhou on a three-day visit, where he met Chinese President Xi Jinping signalling the close ties between the two communist neighbours.

Despite the South China Sea conundrum and the resulting clashing interests, the history of the Vietnam War and shared communist ideology cement the bond between the two countries that have substantial economic and trade ties. The countries have signed bilateral and multilateral agreements, including the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

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Even the Middle Kingdoms nine-dash line in the South China Sea, often cited as an example of Chinese expansionism, was 11-dash line, but in 1952, China gave up its claims over the Gulf of Tonkin during the time of cordial relations between Mao Zedong and Vietnam.

China could well understand the implication of the first overseas trip of the new general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam and aptly stated last week that Lams tour fully reflects the great importance he attaches to the development of ties between both parties and countries.

China has always regarded Vietnam as a priority in its neighbourhood diplomacy, and supports Vietnam in adhering to the Party leadership, taking the socialist path suited to its national conditions, and deepening the cause of reforms and socialist modernisation, Xi reportedly said during his meeting with Lam. Lam, in the same vein, said that the ties with Beijing are a top priority for Hanoi and that the visit is the affirmation of the Party and the Vietnamese government to value the relation with China.

This affirmation was quite needed as Vietnam has recently concluded a historic joint coast guard exercise with the Philippines. Also, as per the recent reports, Vietnam has accelerated the expansion of its outposts in the Spratly Islands, that too in a manner such that it bolsters its position in relation to China, but does not pose any threat to the other main claimant in the area, the Philippines.

Also, Hanoi upgraded ties with Washington to the highest level in September 2023, while agreeing to build a community of shared future with Beijing in early December.

Meanwhile, despite having overlapping claims with the Philippines  to the features in the Spratly chain  Hanoi and Manila have strengthened ties and have collectively challenged Beijings assertiveness in the South China Sea. While the Philippines has joined a new-security grouping in the Indo-Pacific named Squad with the US, Australia, and Japan as the other members, and, as such, has apparently allied with the West a step enough to raise eyebrows in Beijing, the impact of which we see on the growing tensions between the two nations in the South China Sea  Vietnam is still able to maintain the delicate balance.

All this signals to the balance, which apparently Hanoi has been able to maintain, as its economy continues to perform well. News reports show how Vietnam enjoys big jump in exports, industrial production. The fact that exports in July were said to have risen by 19 per cent year-on-year, while an index for industrial production rose by 11.2 per cent.

Vietnam seemingly enjoys close ties with China, has improved its relations with the US, holds joint drills with the Philippines in the South China Sea, and remains a benefactor of the Wests initiative to de-risk or de-link China in a quest to diversify supply chains.

Clearly, the economic and strategic planning of this southeast Asian communist nation deserves praise, till someone realises how China works  diplomatically and strategically.

Beijing, at least in rhetoric, keeps economic and territorial issues separate; also, the Chinese technique of salami slicing and its ability to reinterpret or change the terms and temper of diplomatic negotiations is quite deft and can happen at times surprisingly for the other party. Remember that when India was celebrating the rhetoric of Hindi-Chini Bhai Bhai, tensions on frontiers were growing, which ultimately led to the Himalayan debacle of 1962. Even after the Galwan incident of May 2020, when ties between New Delhi and Beijing are at lows, China advises India to keep territorial disputes separated from economic cooperation.

So, if Vietnam can be an exception to this Chinese pattern, it will be an achievement for which Hanoi will deserve appraisal. But what if the pattern continues? Can territorial issues, which otherwise are very sensitive concerning the identity and the pride of a nation, be something Hanoi can relent upon? Anyways, the future of the ties between these two theoretic ideological partners will be worth observing in international relations.

The views expressed are personal and do not necessarily reflect those of Firstpost.
Since adding AI capabilities, Ray-Ban and Meta Platforms have seen substantial success with their smart glasses. The new AI-enhanced versions of Ray-Bans glasses, which retail for around $300, have sold more in just a few months than their predecessors did in two years read more

Style and comfort are already becoming key priorities for some companies. Hong Kong-based Solos, for instance, plans to release its new AirGo smart glasses this fall, aiming to compete directly with Ray-Ban and Meta by offering a lighter and similarly priced alternative. Image Credit: Pexels

Chinese tech companies are diving headfirst into the growing market for AI-powered smart glasses, aiming to capitalize on the surge in consumer interest following the release of Metas Ray-Ban smart glasses.

This new wave of AI-enhanced eyewear is seen as a promising opportunity to combine the power of generative AI with wearable technology, offering consumers a futuristic and convenient way to access advanced digital tools.

One of the latest entrants in this competitive field is Superhexa, a Xiaomi-backed startup that recently launched its AI audio glasses, Jiehuan.

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Priced at an affordable 699 yuan (approximately $98), these glasses are designed to offer functionality similar to their more expensive counterparts, such as quick access to large language models (LLMs) via built-in speakers and microphones.

LLMs, which power intelligent chatbots like OpenAIs ChatGPT, allow users to interact with AI in real time, enhancing the practicality and appeal of these smart glasses.

The founder and CEO of Superhexa, Xia Yongfeng, highlighted the potential of these glasses by noting that using hands to hold a smartphone might soon be considered inefficient, given the evolution of wearable AI technology.

The rapid advancements in generative AI have significantly boosted the intelligence of smart glasses, making them more attractive to consumers. These glasses can now provide real-time AI assistance, such as answering queries about the environment or translating conversations on the spot.

Since adding AI capabilities, Ray-Ban and Meta Platforms have seen substantial success with their smart glasses. The new AI-enhanced versions of Ray-Bans glasses, which retail for around $300, have sold more in just a few months than their predecessors did in two years.

This trend indicates a growing consumer appetite for smart eyewear, with Sinolink Securities projecting that shipments could reach 2 million units by the end of the year, a significant jump from the 480,000 augmented reality glasses shipped last year.

Chinese companies are keen to offer similar features at a fraction of the cost. Superhexas Jiehuan glasses boast impressive features like 11 hours of music playback, up to two weeks of standby time, and a lightweight design at just 30 grams.

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The glasses also include voice-guided navigation, AI chat, and audio translation capabilities. However, early users have pointed out some limitations, such as difficulties with voice recognition in noisy environments.

The market is becoming increasingly crowded, with other Chinese startups like Liweike and Sharge, as well as tech giants like Huawei, launching their own AI glasses in recent months. Despite the enthusiasm, some industry analysts, like Ivan Lam from Counterpoint, caution that the market may face challenges.

Current AI glasses, which are essentially regular spectacles with added tech features like speakers and cameras, might not appeal to those who dont typically wear glasses. Furthermore, the added weight from electronic components could be a deterrent for widespread adoption. To stay competitive, manufacturers will need to focus on reducing weight, enhancing the user experience, and extending battery life.

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Style and comfort are already becoming key priorities for some companies. Hong Kong-based Solos, for instance, plans to release its new AirGo smart glasses this fall, aiming to compete directly with Ray-Ban and Meta by offering a lighter and similarly priced alternative.

Even startups like Realities and Brilliant Labs are emphasizing design and functionality, with products like the G1 glasses and Frame smart glasses that cater to both consumers and enterprise markets. These glasses, though pricier than Superhexas, are mainly targeting international markets where AI models are less restricted.

The race to dominate the AI smart glasses market is heating up, with Chinese firms eager to carve out a niche by offering affordable, innovative options. As the technology continues to evolve, the next few years will likely see significant developments in how AI integrates with everyday wearable devices, potentially reshaping how people interact with the digital world.
The primary goal of this magnetic launch system is to transport helium-3, a rare isotope on Earth but plentiful on the Moon, back to our planet. Helium-3 is highly valued by scientists for its potential application in future nuclear fusion power plants read more

A team of Chinese scientists is working on an ambitious project to develop a magnetic launch system designed to fling cargo from the Moons surface towards Earth. This innovative concept, which seems straight out of science fiction, is being seriously considered with a proposed budget of $18 billion.

The project aims to use the Moons low gravity and lack of atmosphere to facilitate the launch process, according to a study published in the journal Aerospace Shanghai and highlighted by Interesting Engineering.

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The system would feature a 165-foot rotating arm that would gradually increase in speed, eventually reaching the Moons escape velocity of 2.38 kilometres per second. Once this velocity is achieved, the arm would release a capsule into space, sending it on a trajectory toward Earth.

The entire operation would be powered by a combination of solar panels and nuclear energy. The primary goal of this magnetic launch system is to transport helium-3, a rare isotope on Earth but plentiful on the Moon, back to our planet. Helium-3 is highly valued by scientists for its potential application in future nuclear fusion power plants, which could revolutionize energy production.

The very fact that this project is being proposed by credible scientists in China suggests that the race for lunar resources, particularly rare and expensive minerals, is heating up. The potential for a new gold rush on the Moon is becoming increasingly likely as countries and companies look to the lunar surface for valuable resources.

China is not alone in such lunar ambitions. In the United States, a startup is actively seeking funding to mine helium-3 on the Moon and bring it back to Earth. This effort is part of a broader movement among businesses and organizations focused on establishing a lunar economy.

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Many of these ventures are banking on the success of NASAs upcoming Artemis missions, which aim to land humans on the Moon and establish a permanent colony there. One of the goals of this lunar colony is to drive economic development and create jobs, many of which are expected to involve mining activities.

However, the growing interest in lunar mining is also setting the stage for a new geopolitical space race, primarily between the United States and China. Both nations have ambitious plans for space exploration and resource extraction, and the outcome of this race could have significant implications for the future.

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The competition is not just about who can extract resources first but also about who will set the rules and establish dominance in space for generations to come. Helium-3 extraction may only be the beginning of a much larger contest for control over the Moons resources.

As these projects progress, the development of technologies and the establishment of territories on the Moon could shape the future of space exploration and resource management. The stakes are high, and the race is on, with the potential to redefine the global balance of power in space.
The new deal aims to provide crucial financial support to local journalism, which has been struggling in recent years, while also allowing research into AI that could have far-reaching implications for the industry read more

The agreement has received backing from key players, including the California News Publishers Association, which represents more than 700 news organisations, Googles parent company Alphabet, and OpenAI. Image Credit: Reuters, Reuters

California will become the first state in the US to channel both taxpayer money and contributions from tech companies into journalism and artificial intelligence (AI) research, following a landmark agreement announced on Wednesday.

The deal, which marks a significant development in the intersection of technology and media, will see the state and tech giants collectively contribute approximately $250 million over the next five years to support news organisations based in California and to establish an AI research program.

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This initiative is scheduled to begin in 2025, with an initial investment of $100 million. The majority of this funding is earmarked for news organisations.

The deal aims to provide crucial financial support to local journalism, which has been struggling in recent years, while also fostering AI research that could have far-reaching implications for the industry.

Governor Gavin Newsom emphasised that this agreement represents a significant step forward in safeguarding the future of journalism in California. By leveraging resources from the tech industry without imposing additional taxes on Californians, the deal aims to revitalise local newsrooms and rebuild a robust California press corps.

The governor highlighted the importance of journalism in a functioning democracy and expressed confidence that this initiative would help ensure its survival in the state.

The agreement effectively concludes a prolonged conflict between California lawmakers and tech companies, sparked by a proposal from Assembly member Wicks. Her initial bill sought to mandate that companies like Google, Facebook, and Microsoft pay a percentage of their advertising revenue to media outlets for linking to their content.

This proposal, modelled after similar legislation in Canada, faced staunch opposition from the tech industry. Over the summer, tech companies launched advertising campaigns to discredit the bill, and Google even temporarily removed news sites from search results for some users in an effort to pressure lawmakers to abandon the proposal.

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Wicks described the partnership as a groundbreaking cross-sector commitment to sustaining a free and dynamic press in California. She sees this agreement as a first step towards empowering local news outlets to continue their essential work, ensuring that journalism remains a vital part of the states social fabric.

California has been grappling with the rapid decline of journalism jobs, a trend that has accelerated as traditional media companies struggle to adapt to the digital age. Since 2005, more than 2,500 newspapers have closed across the US, according to Northwestern Universitys Medill School of Journalism. In California alone, over 100 news organisations have disappeared in the last decade, highlighting the urgent need for intervention.

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The agreement has received backing from key players, including the California News Publishers Association, which represents more than 700 news organisations, Googles parent company Alphabet, and OpenAI. However, the deal has also drawn criticism from some quarters. Journalists, particularly those associated with the Media Guild of the West, have expressed concerns that the agreement could harm Californias news organisations rather than help them.

State Senator Steve Glazer, who previously proposed a bill to offer tax credits to news organisations for hiring full-time journalists, argued that the agreement undermines efforts to find a long-term solution for saving independent journalism.

Senate President Pro Tempore Mike McGuire also shared his concerns, saying that while tech platforms continue to enjoy substantial profits, newsrooms across California have been decimated. He questioned whether the funding and measures outlined in the deal would be sufficient to address the deep-seated challenges facing the industry.

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As California moves forward with this pioneering initiative, the success of the agreement in supporting journalism and advancing AI research will be closely watched, both within the state and beyond.
Musks legal team tried to keep the ownership details confidential, arguing that X Holdings routinely keeps its ownership information private and considers it confidential. However, the judge wasnt convinced by these arguments read more

Musk, who bought Twitter in 2022 for $44 billion and subsequently rebranded it as X, has kept the specific details of his companys ownership largely under wraps for unknown reasons. Image Credit: AFP

Elon Musk is facing a legal push to reveal the full ownership structure of X Holdings, the parent company behind the X platform (formerly Twitter) and his AI startup, xAI.

This move comes after a federal judge in California ruled on Tuesday that a detailed corporate disclosure statement from X Holdings must be unsealed, which will make public the complete list of stakeholders in Musks companies.

The decision marks a significant step towards transparency, especially given the secretive nature of X Holdings. Musk, who bought Twitter in 2022 for $44 billion and subsequently rebranded it as X, has kept the specific details of his companys ownership largely under wraps for unknown reasons.

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The acquisition led to significant changes, including laying off about 75 per cent of the staff, and since then, questions have lingered about who exactly holds stakes in X Holdings.

This ruling stems from a lawsuit filed by a group of former Twitter employees, who are seeking payment of arbitration fees they incurred after disputes with their former employer.

They argue that the public has a right to know who is behind the scenes at X, especially given its role as a major social media platform.

Musks legal team tried to keep the ownership details confidential, arguing that X Holdings routinely keeps its ownership information private and considers it confidential. However, the judge wasnt convinced by these arguments.

In the ruling, the judge noted that the disclosure statement does not contain any sensitive trade information that would require keeping it sealed. For this reason, X Holdings has been ordered to file the disclosure document in court by September 4.

This ruling is likely to shed light on the extent of involvement from high-profile investors like Jack Dorsey, the co-founder and former CEO of Twitter, who rolled over more than $1 billion worth of his Twitter shares into the company during Musks acquisition.

Other known investors include Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and prominent venture capital firms like Andreessen Horowitz and Sequoia Capital. However, the full breakdown of all investors and the overall company structure has remained a mystery  until now.

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Silverman, who pushed for the disclosure, emphasized the importance of this information being made public. He pointed out that understanding who owns and potentially influences a platform like X is crucial for transparency and accountability, particularly in todays digital age where such platforms play a significant role in public discourse.

In short, the courts decision marks a step toward greater transparency regarding the ownership and control of one of the most influential social media platforms in the world.
Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Kyiv, Ukrainian Ambassador Oleksandr Polishchuk has urged India to intensify its efforts as a representative of the Global South to facilitate a fair and enduring resolution to the conflict in Ukraine. read more

Born in 1963, Ukraines ambassador to India Oleksandr Polishchuk began his military career as a cadet at the Kyiv Higher Military Command School in 1980. He graduated from the Kyiv Higher All-Military Command School in 1984 and the Academy of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in 1996.

Military service: Polishchuk served in various command, staff positions and General Staff within the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and Ministry of Defense from 1984 to 2010. He retired as a Major-General.

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Post-military career: After retirement, he took on senior civil service roles in the Ministry of Defense and the Ukraine National Security and Defense Council. He also worked as a state expert and headed departments within the Council.

National Security and Defense Council: From 2014 to 2017, he held senior positions in the National Security and Defense Council.

Non-governmental and academic roles: From 2018 to 2019, Polishchuk was involved in expert analytical work for a non-governmental organization and conducted scientific research at the National Institute for Strategic Studies.

Deputy Minister of Defense: From October 2019 to July 2023, he served as Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine and chaired the Interagency Commission on Military-Technical Cooperation and Export Control**.**

Tripartite Contact Group: He was a member of the Ukrainian delegation in the Trilateral Contact Group and represented Ukraine in the working subgroup on security issues from 2020 to 2022.

NATO Mission: From 2004 to 2007, Polishchuk served as Deputy Military Representative of the Ukrainian Mission to NATO**.**

Ambassador to India: Appointed by the President of Ukraine in June 2023, Polishchuk is currently the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the Republic of India.

Call for global south support: Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Kyiv, Polishchuk urged India to be more active in bringing about a just and lasting peace in Ukraine.
Independent candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr has support of 2.8% voters, according to a recent poll of polls read more

Robert F Kennedy Jr, the Independent candidate with no chance to win the 2024 presidential election, is formally expected to exit the contest.

While his presence or absence in the race may appear to be meaningless at first, thats not the case. The way supporters of Kennedy go may help make or break the fortunes of the two remaining candidates. As things stand, it appears that Trump is set to get a boost.

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Kennedy has the support of 2.8 per cent of voters, according to the latest poll of polls by Decision Desk HQ and The Hill.

As Kenndy is much closely aligned to Trump than Harris and his Independent supporters are more likely to be conservatives or moderate Republicans, the voters aligned with him are most likely to switch to Trump than Harris. The fact that Kennedy is most likely going to endorse Trump will further bolster this thinking.

Multiple outlets, such as The New York Times and CNN, have reported that Kennedy may announce his exit from the race on Friday and endorse Trump. He is also reported to be vying for a Cabinet berth in case Trump wins the election.

There are strong indications that Kennedy may endorse Trump. His running mate, Nicole Shanahan, has said that the campaign is weighing two options: staying in the race and risk having a Harris presidency or supporting Trump.

Theres two options that were looking at. One is staying in, forming that new party, but we run the risk of a Kamala Harris and [Tim] Walz presidency, because we draw votes from Trump or we draw somehow more votes from Trump. Or we walk away right now and join forces with Donald Trump. We walk away from that and we explain to our base why were making this decision, said Shanahan on Impact Theory podcast.

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RFK Jrs VP Nicole Shanahan says the campaign is weighing two options, staying in but we run the risk of a Kamala Harris presidency or we walk away right now & join forces with with Donald Trump and explain to our base why we're making this decision.



pic.twitter.com/cBNu9S8HnO  Vera Bergengruen (@VeraMBergen) August 20, 2024

How will Kennedys exit affect Trump or Harris?

Kennedy has been a favourite of Republicans than Democrats. His preference among Republicans has been higher than even among Independents.

In January, Kennedy had an 18 per cent positive rating among the Republicans, 4 per cent among Independents, and -25 among Democrats, according to a survey by NBC News.

By July, Kennedy had lost a great chunk of support among the Independents and Democrats but retained most of the Republicans support.

In July, Kennedy had an 11 per cent positive rating among Republicans, -18 among Independents, and -38 among Democrats, according to the NBCs survey.

In an analysis of the survey findings, NBC Senior Political Editor Mark Murray noted that while potential share of Kennedy supporters is smaller than it used to be, it could be decisive in a close election.

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The latest Decision Desk-The Hill poll of polls shows that Harris leads with 48.3 per cent against Trumps 43.7 per cent and Kennedys 2.8 per cent.

DDHQ Polling Average Update: Full Field National



 Kamala Harris (D): 48.3% (+4.6)

 Donald Trump (R): 43.7%

 Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (I): 2.8%



This average is based on 57 polls.https://t.co/DSExArNot6  Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) August 21, 2024

Harris lead of 4.6 per cent is set to be eroded by half if Kennedys voters shift to Trump and they are bound to as there is little to no overlap between the support base of Harris and Kennedy. While Harris is a pro-choice, pro-vaccine, and an internationalist, Kennedy is on shaky grounds on abortion, opposes vaccines, and is an isolationist  ticking off all boxes of Trumps far-right Make America Great Again (MAGA) lot.
The Bayesian, a 56-meter (184-foot) British-flagged yacht, went down in a storm early Monday as it was moored about a kilometer (a half-mile) offshore. Civil protection officials said they believed the ship was struck by a tornado over the water, known as a waterspout. read more

Scuba divers of the Italian Firefighters corp at the scene of the search for a missing boat, in Porticello, southern Italy, Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. - File Photo AP

Seven people are believed to have died, including British tech tycoon Mike Lynch and Morgan Stanleys Jonathan Bloomer, after a luxury yacht belonging to Lynchs family sank off the northern coast of Sicily on Monday. However, fifteen of the 22 people who were on board were rescued from the boat.

Here is what we know about the Aug. 19 accident.

VIOLENT STORM

The Bayesian, a British flagged 56-metre (184-feet) superyacht, sank in the dark shortly before 5 am (0300 GMT) off the port of Porticello, near Palermo, after being hit by a violent storm, the Italian coast guard said.

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The coast guard said bad weather had been forecast, but added that it was more virulent than expected. Some locals spoke of a waterspout, or sea whirlwind, of exceptional force.

THE OTHER BOAT

The nearby yacht, the 42-metre Sir Robert Baden Powell, remained anchored and weathered the storm after its captain turned on the engine to keep control and avoid a collision with the Bayesian.

The captain, Karsten Borner, said he did not know if the crew of the Bayesian had managed to switch on its engines.

I only know that they went flat with the mast on the water and that they sank in two minutes, he said.

INCOMPREHENSIBLE

Andrea Ratti, a nautical design professor at Milan Polytechnic university, said a boat the size of the Bayesian could only sink so rapidly by taking in a huge amount of water.

He suggested that one or more portholes, windows or other openings may have been left open, broken or smashed by the waterspout, letting in water. However, an industry expert in Britain said it should have taken hours for the Bayesian to fill up with enough water to sink it, making its swift demise incomprehensible.

Matthew Schanck, chair of Britains Maritime Search and Rescue Council, said the Bayesian was the victim of a so-called black swan, a rare event with a high impact.

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RECORD MAST

The Bayesian featured the worlds tallest aluminium mast, measuring 72 metres. A tall mast has a lot of surface area exposed to the wind, but Ratti and structural engineer Filippo Mattioni said it is not by itself an element of vulnerability in a storm.

Fire department diver Marco Tilotta said the wreck was intact and the mast was still attached. He added, that divers had not been able to inspect the full length of the mast but the section they had seen was undamaged.

RETRACTABLE KEEL

The Bayesian had a retractable keel - a stabilising structure under the hull which can be partially lifted to reduce the depth of the ship when entering shallow waters or harbours.

Both Ratti and Mattioni wondered if the yacht had been anchored with the keel up, compromising its stability in a violent storm.

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UNSINKABLE

The Bayesian was built in 2008 by Perini Navi, an Italian luxury yacht maker. It was refitted twice but not by Perini, a source with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

Giovanni Costantino, CEO of the Italian Sea Group which owns Perini, said the yacht was one of the safest boats in the world and basically unsinkable.

He added that its sinking was due to a chain of human errors given that the storm was expected, speaking in interviews to Italian media.

Had the crew shut all doors and hatches, turned on the engine, lifted the anchor, lowered the keel and turned the yacht to face the wind, they would have suffered zero damage, the CEO said.

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He added that data showed it took 16 minutes from when the wind began buffeting the yacht, and it began taking on water, for it to sink.
Thailand on Thursday also confirmed Asias first known case of a new, deadlier strain of mpox in a European male who landed in Bangkok on August 14 from Africa. read more

Mpox belongs to the same family of viruses as smallpox but causes milder symptoms like fever, chills and body aches, and mostly spreads through close skin-to-skin contact, including sexual intercourse. Image- FP

The World Health Organisation said on Thursday that Africas Ivory Coast has reported cases of mpox Clade 2 for the first time since the start of the multi-country outbreak in 2022.

The World Health Organization declared mpox a global public health emergency for the second time in two years, following an outbreak of the viral infection in the Democratic Republic of Congo that has spread to neighbouring countries.

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Thailand on Thursday also confirmed Asias first known case of a new, deadlier strain of mpox in a European male who landed in Bangkok on August 14 from Africa.

Democratic Republic of Congo has been hit hardest as the total number of cases has reached 27,000 cases and more than 1,100 deaths reported since January 2023, since January 2023, largely among children.

The newer strain  with a fatality rate of 3%  has been spreading across several African countries and is reported to have killed more than 500 people in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Children and adolescents are also getting sick, with known fatal cases exceeding 60% among patients under the age of 5.

Asian countries, including China, India, and Pakistan, many of which have high population densities, have recently intensified their surveillance efforts. Travelers from affected regions are being asked to report any symptoms, and hospitals are on heightened alert for potential cases.
by Gary Borjesson

I came to psychotherapy from philosophy, first starting therapy in my forties while on sabbatical from St. Johns College. I was struck by its transformative powerso struck that I ultimately resigned my tenure and returned to graduate school to train as a therapist. But Ive hardly left philosophy behind. Freud reminds me of Nietzsche. Socrates fingerprints are all over the motives and methods of psychoanalysis. Donald Winnicott and Erik Erikson bring to mind Hegel, and the list goes on.

Philosophy and psychotherapy (and the humanist tradition in general) see our lives as developmental journeys. In the spirit of Socrates, they view self-exploration and self-awareness as essential to self-actualization. This may seem obvious, but its easy to lose sight of. Which makes it remarkable that many academics dont believe being a philosopher need include examining themselves. Yet, how could it not? After all, philosophy means the love of wisdom, and who would say of a true philosopher what Regan said of her father, King Lear, that he hath ever but slenderly known himself.

Its equally remarkable that the Socratic spirit is often absent in therapists, in their own lives and in their work with clients. A variety of forces (not least insurance companies) lead many therapists and clients to focus on techniques and tools for reducing symptoms; this draws attention away from the person as a whole. There is nothing wrong with focusing on symptom-relief, as the advertised evidence-based solution-focused therapies like CBT do. After all, people vary in what they want and need from therapy, so we should welcome experimentation and a variety of approaches.

That said, if therapy is to encourage deeper self-exploration, it needs to go beyond symptoms to the whole person suffering them. Thus psychotherapy as I mean it here is curious about the patients history, about who they are and want to be; about their gifts, passions, loves, hopes, fears, and aspirations. We typically call these depth therapies. The depth comes from deliberate attention to early childhood experience, unconscious processes, and larger questions of meaning and significance. Psychoanalysis and Jungian analytic psychology are prominent examples.

Depth therapies are often criticized for being inefficient and expensive, for lacking evidence-based methods and results, even for encouraging years of navel-gazing without tangible results. One might agree with some of these points and still conclude, as I and many others do, that they are the best approaches for those seeking to get to know themselves and to make lasting personal change. Depth therapy is vulnerable to such criticisms in part because self-exploration and characterological change are complex, gradual processes that can be effective, but are irreducible to simple methods. In contrast, its relatively easy to observe and measure progress when the goal is limited to evidence of symptom-relief. (It is not clear that these approaches bring lasting relief.)

Some years ago, a bright, sensitive 21-year-old started a session one day by saying, I dont think Im going to deal with my addiction until I figure out what I want for my life.and to do that Im realizing I first need to figure out what I think it means to be a good person.

My eyes welled with tears, I was so heartened to hear this. For a year Id been hearing how depressed and lonely he was, how painful (and sometimes fun) it was to get high all the time, how disagreeable his parents were being. But today he had turned toward a larger existential question. A question directed not to his symptoms, but to a search for meaning.

I thought of how Aristotle begins the Metaphysics: Human beings naturally yearn to know. My patient yearned to know, not from philosophical curiosity or academic interest, but because he was stuck. Having thoroughly surveyed his stuckness, he had a real question. Its not that if he answered this question, then all his problems would be solved. But now, at last, he was asking his own questionan existential one that put his challenges in a larger, non-pathologizing perspective.

For example, as he started exploring what he might want, his view of his addiction shifted. Now instead of being a bad shameful part of himself, it appeared to him more as an obstacle to moving forward. He was heartened when I suggested that his substance use could be seen as a way hed been trying to relieve his symptoms, but now he was finding it was more hindrance than help. Such re-frames made it easier to examine parts of himself hed been avoiding, since now he began to feel and see how they were more misguided than bad.

I was also glad for him because its easier to face difficulties when you know where you want to go. Obvious, right? Yet, how many of us really know where we want to go? Even when we do know, it is easy to lose sight of the big picture and find ourselves preoccupied with our immediate situation and problems. Motivation comes more easily with a positive and informed vision of the good we want.

Over the years my students have pointed out, rightly, that many people sure dont seem to desire to understand, and this makes Aristotles view seem naive to them. But what this apparent contradiction actually reveals is just that learning and growth require favorable conditions. This is as true of acorns and amoebas as it is of people. Besides, as I often tell my patients (and the patient in me), even when conditions are favorable, there will be difficulties, pain, crises, traumas, loss, and grief. This is worth emphasizing; otherwise we risk pathologizing normal life experiences by taking favorable conditions to mean absence of resistance. This mistake fuels the harmful tendency of some parents to overprotect their children from difficulties and occasional failure, as if these were a hindrance, rather than a necessary condition, for growing up.

Philosophy and psychotherapy agree that meeting challenges is essential to growthits part of the path. In his influential account of psychosocial development, psychoanalyst Erik Erikson observed that our lives are characterized by a series of crises. In the first 18 months of life, for example, the crisis concerns trust vs. mistrust. Good-enough parenting helps the child pass through this stage and internalize trust and hope.

Erikson reminds me of Hegel, who described the development of consciousness as a highway of despair. Thats not all it is, otherwise who would keep traveling down the road! For Hegel, the despair comes from questioning and sometimes from abandoning familiar beliefs and opinions and ways of being, for the sake of better knowing ourselves and the world. Similarly, psychotherapy includes feeling the anxiety, fear, and grief that comes while reckoning with our defensesso that we can face parts of ourselves that, like my patient, wed prefer to avoid, but which are getting in our way.

I started therapy because I felt stuck in a state of pervasive dissatisfaction. I knew the problem was personal, but it wasnt until I was in therapy that I learned the extent to which the help I needed was interpersonal. Probably I should have known, its announced in the Greek root of psychotherapy, which means care of the psyche. Then again, one reason people seek therapy is because its hard to see our own blind spots. One of mine was thinking, in true Socratic fashion, that in therapy Id find an ally whod help me get to the root of my dissatisfaction. And I did find this.

But the transformative power came from an unexpected source. Not from insights and techniques, as valuable as these were. It came, rather, from the accumulated experience over months and years of my therapists steady, reliable, warmly intelligent caring attention. She didnt offer much in the way of advice or tools; she knew (better than I did) that this wasnt really the help I needed. Instead, she provided the thing that marks where psychotherapy takes its own path, becoming its own art: keen, artful attention to the therapeutic alliance, to provide the favorable conditions for self-exploration, especially of those pained, traumatized, ashamed parts of our selves that often stand in the way of healing and growth. I hadnt expected that the warm alliance with my therapist would itself be key to the help I have received. Yet this is exactly what the research shows.

I could have told my patient what I thought he should do, and what tools would help. And sometimes, despite myself, I did. But this was the philosopher and teacher and anxious-to-help part of me getting in his way. From listening and getting to know him, I had learned something about the specific conditions favoring his growth. I knew, for instance, that he had high-powered overbearing parents who had been advising and cajoling and trying to rescue him for years. If what he had needed was information and advice, hed have been thriving! What he needed, however, was what those who loved him found so hard to give: space, time and encouragement to ask his own questions, and learn what he thought and felt about his lifewithout having to defend against anxiety-driven parents pressing him to do what (they thought) was best.

I remember thinking that I wanted to do for him what my therapist had done for me: provide the favorable relational conditions that would allow him to give to those wounded, ashamed parts of himself the same warmly attentive regard that I was doing my best to give him.

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Student protesters shout slogans during a rally against controversial changes to election laws that could further enhance the political influence of outgoing President Joko Widodo, at the parliament building in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Thursday. AP

Amid fierce nationwide protests, Indonesian lawmakers on Thursday dropped plans to controversially revise regional election laws.

According to a Bloomberg report, the proposed changes would have effectively allowed President Joko Widodos youngest son to join a gubernatorial race, while reinstating nomination thresholds that could enable allies of the outgoing leader as well as President-elect Prabowo Subianto to run virtually uncontested in elections in Central Java and Jakarta.

Parliamentary allies of Widodo had sought to reverse a court ruling on the law, which if successful would have also blocked a vocal government critic of the president from running for the important post of Jakarta governor.

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Deputy speaker Sufmi Dasco Ahmad told Reuters that deliberations will continue in the parliaments next sitting period, which effectively means that it would not apply to this years elections or under the administration of President Joko Jokowi Widodo, who leaves office in October.

Meanwhile, thousands protested outside parliament, accusing Widodo of undermining democracy, while others carried a mock guillotine bearing his face.

Security forces fired tear gas and water cannon as protesters breached and set ablaze part of the gates of parliament, television footage showed, while demonstrations broke out across the country.

The unrest was sparked by a dispute over which government agency should set electoral laws. Parliament had planned to ratify changes reversing a recent constitutional court decision but postponed and later shelved the plan due to public outcry.

This power struggle has fueled criticism of Jokowi, who is accused of trying to consolidate power before his term ends in October.

Jokowi, who is completing his maximum two terms, will be succeeded by president-elect Prabowo Subianto and vice-president-elect Gibran Rakabuming Raka on October 20.

With inputs from agencies
MEA made it clear that the flood situation in Bangladesh is not due to the release of waters from the Indian dam station on the Gumti River, that flows through Indias Tripura and Bangladesh read more

People get on a boat as they look for shelter during a flood, amidst heavy rains that caused widespread flooding in the northeastern part of the country, in Sylhet, Bangladesh, June 18, 2022. File Image / Reuters

As several protesters in Bangladesh accuse India of causing floods in the countrys eight districts, the Ministry of External Affairs issued a statement clarifying that India has nothing to do with the situation. At least eight districts in Bangladesh are experiencing severe flooding recently.

Amid the chaos, students of Jagannath University (JnU) blamed India for the floods and held a protest march on Wednesday. The student alleged that the floods were caused after India opened the sluice gates of the Dumboor and Gazaldoba dams without informing Dhaka.

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In light of the accusation, MEA made it clear that the flood situation in Bangladesh is not due to the release of waters from the Indian dam station on the Gumti River, that flows through Tripura and Bangladesh.

Flood situation in Bangladesh not due to release of waters from Indian dam on Gumti River, Tripura:https://t.co/8hcnRkoBF1 pic.twitter.com/p5zY0LII7D  Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) August 22, 2024

We have seen concerns being expressed in Bangladesh that the current situation of flood in districts on the eastern borders of Bangladesh has been caused by the opening of the Dumbur dam upstream of the Gumti River in Tripura. This is factually not correct, the MEA said in a statement on Thursday.

MEA clarifies why floods are happening

In the statement, the ministry noted that in the span of a few days, the catchment areas of the Gumti River that flow through India and Bangladesh have seen the heaviest rainfall this year. The flood in Bangladesh is primarily due to waters from these large catchments downstream of the dam, the statement reads.

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The Dumbur dam is located quite far from the border - over 120 Km upstream of Bangladesh. It is a low-height (about 30m) dam that generates power that feeds into a grid from which Bangladesh also draws 40MW power from Tripura, the MEA explained.

Along the about 120 Km river course we have three water level observation sites at Amarpur, Sonamura and Sonamura 2, the ministry furthered, adding that Tripura and adjoining districts of Bangladesh have seen rainfall continuing since August 21.

As two countries sharing 54 common cross-border rivers, river water cooperation is an important part of our bilateral engagement. We remain committed to resolving issues and mutual concerns in water resources and river water management through bilateral consultations and technical discussions, the ministry concluded.

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600 students of JnU in Bangladesh took part in the demonstrations demanding a fair share of international waters, The Dhakha Tribune reported.

JnU student Rakib told the Bangladeshi news outlet that the opening of the Dumboor and Gazaldoba dams by India has caused flash floods in Bangladesh. We want a fair share of international river waters. Indias relations with its neighbouring countries like Nepal, Bhutan and the Maldives have deteriorated due to its aggression, he alleged. However, no Bangladeshi authority pointed fingers at India as of now.
The stoppage is set to cripple shipments of grain, potash and coal while also slowing the transport of petroleum products, chemicals and autos read more

Canadian National Railway (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) announced the lockout of their Canadian workers on Thursday (August 22) after failed labour talks, resulting in a shutdown of their rail networks in the country.

The decision, confirmed by the Teamsters union representing close to 10,000 workers at the companies, sets the stage for an unprecedented rail stoppage that could badly damage the Canadian economy and have a significant effect on cross-border trade with the United States.

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Canada is the worlds second-largest country by area and relies heavily on rail transport. The stoppage is set to cripple shipments of grain, potash and coal while also slowing the transport of petroleum products, chemicals and autos.

Industry groups had urged Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus Liberal government to prevent a stoppage, noting Canadas railways transport around C$380 billion ($277 billion) worth of goods annually.

US railroad Union Pacific said on Tuesday a stoppage would halt the movement of 2,500 rail cars across the border daily.

The Canadian and U.S. economies are highly integrated. Rail transport accounted for 14% of total bilateral trade of $382.4 billion between the countries for the first half of the year, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.

The stoppage comes after months of talks. The union and the companies struggled to reach an agreement on key terms, with both sides accusing the other of bad faith.

The union is seeking improved provisions for fatigue, rest, and scheduling, stressing the need for worker safety.

CN said it had offered better wages and a deal that would have seen employees work fewer days per month, but the union did not respond.

CPKC said a negotiated outcome with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) union was not within reach.

The companies said they had made final offers to the Teamsters in an attempt to avoid the stoppage and urged the union to engage in negotiations.

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Teamsters have put forward multiple offers, none of which were seriously considered by either company, the union said in a statement, adding it would remain at the bargaining table with both companies despite the lockout.
In her brief address on the third day of the Democratic National Conventions, Pelosi accused former US President Donald Trump of brazenly assaulting the bedrock of democracy read more

Former US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi delivers speech at the third day of Democratic National Convention. Reuters

While urging people to vote for Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, former US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi emphasised that Harris is ready to take the United States to new heights. In her brief address on the third day of the Democratic National Conventions, Pelosi accused former US President Donald Trump of brazenly assaulting the bedrock of democracy.

The 84-year-old veteran politician was reportedly one of the key players who convinced US President Joe Biden to drop his re-election bid. Pelosi started her address by lauding the Biden administration and called it one of the most successful presidencies of modern times.

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From here, she put forward the case for Harris, describing her as a person of deep faith which is reflected in her community care and service. I know that Vice President Harris is ready to take us to new heights, Pelosi averred. She insisted that politically, Harris is astute and strategic in winning difficult elections.

Ive known Kamala Harris for decades. Personally, I know her as a person of faith which is reflected in her community care and service, the former speaker recalled. Officially, she is a leader of strength, wisdom and eloquence on policy, she added.

Pelosi recalls the horrors of January 6

During her address, Pelosi recalled the horrors of January 6 and insisted that the recovery from the Capitol riots made clear that the US democracy is only as strong as the courage and commitment of those entrusted with its care.

And we must choose leaders who believe in free and fair elections, who respect the peaceful transfer of power, she said. The choice couldnt be clearer. Those leaders are Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Walz, she added.

The veteran politician also took time to laud the political career of Minnesota Governor and Harris VP pick Tim Walz. Touting his victory in a red district, Pelosi hailed Walz for voting for the Affordable Care Act.

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Slams Trump for attacking democracy

Just like former US President Bill Clinton, Pelosi slammed Trump and blamed him for the Capitol riots. Never before had a president of the United States so brazenly assaulted the bedrock of our democracy, so gleefully embraced political violence, so wilfully betrayed his oath of office, she said.

Let us not forget who assaulted democracy on January 6, she added. In 2022, Pelosi bowed out to run for re-election in the midterms. However, she still remains the only woman to serve as the US Speaker of the House. The congresswoman from California still has a stronghold in the party and backed Walzs bid for the VP ticket.
At least five more murder cases were filed on Thursday against Bangladeshs deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina, her former cabinet members read more

The Hasina-led government was replaced by an interim government, and 84-year-old Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus was named its Chief Adviser. File Photo- FP

With the filing of five more murder cases against former Bangladeshs prime minister Sheikh Hasina, her former cabinet members and top police officials on Thursday, the total number of cases against her reached 49.

Of the five new cases, three were filed in Dhaka while two cases were registered in Narsingdi and Bogura, the Daily Star newspaper reported.

Out of the total cases, 40 cases were lodged for murder, seven for crimes against humanity and genocide, one for abduction, and one for an attack on a Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) procession.

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Watch Also: Bangladesh May Seek Sheikh Hasinas Extradition From India | Vantage with Palki Sharma

Hasina, the 76-year-old Awami League chairperson, resigned and fled to India on August 5 after unprecedented anti-government student-led protests against her government over a controversial quota system in jobs.

Hasina and 46 others were sued for the killing of a street hawker during protests in Ashulia on August 4 in Dhaka.

Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader, former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan, former AL lawmakers Md Saiful Islam and Talukdar Mohammad Towhid Jung Murad and former inspector general of police Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun were among the accused.

A resident of Uttara Paschim area filed another case with the court of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Mainul Islam against Hasina and 32 others over the death of a 12-grader at the Airport area on August 5.

A resident of Mohammadpur filed a case with the court of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Rajesh Chowdhury against Hasina and 67 others over the killing of a 23-year-old youth in the citys Mohammadpur on July 19.

In Narsingdi, a murder case was filed against Hasina and 81 others over the killing of a businessman during the anti-discrimination student movement on July 19.

In Bogura, Hasina, her sister Sheikh Rehana, son Sajeeb Wazed Joy, daughter Saima Wazed Putul and 76 others were sued in a case filed over the abduction and killing of a union level BNP leader in the districts Shibganj upazila in 2018.

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Over 230 people were killed in Bangladesh in the incidents of violence that erupted across the country following the fall of the Hasina government, taking the death toll to more than 600 since the massive protest by students against a controversial quota system in government jobs first started in mid-July.

With inputs from agencies.
In his address, Clinton lauded the legacy of US President Joe Biden, supported US Vice President Kamala Harris bid for the White House and equated Trump with chaos read more

Former US President Bill Clinton delivers his address on the third day of Democratic National Convention. Reuters

While addressing the third day of the 2024 Democratic National Convention, former US President Bill Clinton unleashed lethal attacks against ex-President Donald Trump but warned that the Democratic Party should not underestimate adversaries.

In his address, Clinton lauded the legacy of US President Joe Biden, supported US Vice President Kamala Harris bid for the White House and equated Trump with chaos. Clinton also took time to take potshots at Trumps age, a tactic the Republican presidential nominee used against his former nemesis Biden.

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Two days ago, I turned 78, the oldest man in my family for four generations. And the only personal vanity I want to assert is Im still younger than Donald Trump, he said in his speech on the third night of the DNC. Clintons address came a day after Former US President Barack Obama presented a case on why people should vote for Harris.

It is pertinent to note that Clinton is just a few months younger than Trump, who turned 78 in June this year. If Trump wins the elections and stays in power for four years, he will surpass US President Joe Biden to be the oldest sitting president in the United States history.

Trump creates chaos: Clinton

Trumps age was not the only attribute, targetted by Clinton in has address. While laying out the case for Harris, the former President claimed that Trump creates chaos, something the United States shouldnt be looking forward to.

Will this president take us backwards or forward? Will this president give our kids a brighter future? Will this president bring us together or tear us apart?  Donald Trump has been a paragon of consistency. Hes still dividing. Hes still blaming. Hes still belittling other people. He creates chaos and then he sort of curates it, as if it were precious art.

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Clinton also mentioned that Trump mostly talks about himself. The former president said that Trump is like a tenor who warms up by singing Me me me. What does Donald Trump do with his voice? He mostly talks about himself  his vengeance, vendettas, complaints, his conspiracies. The next time you hear him, dont count the lies - count the Is, he said.

When Kamala Harris is president, every day will begin with you, you, you, you, he furthered.

However, Clinton emphasised that the Democratic party should never underestimate adversaries. He noted that the party has already seen one election slip away, referring to his wife, former First Lady Hillary Clintons failed bid for the White House.

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You should never underestimate your adversary, and these people are really good at distracting us, he remarked.

We Democrats have a lot of hay in the bar. Weve got massive achievements, and massive advances, but there are still a lot of slips between today and election day that we have to navigate. We need Kamala Harris, the president of joy, to lead us, he added.

Clinton lauds Harris McDonalds record

Clinton also took time to laud Harriss background in working at McDonalds. When she was a student, she worked at McDonalds. She greeted every person with that thousand-watt smile and said, How can I help you? And now, at the pinnacle of power, shes still asking How can I help you? he said.

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Ill be so happy when she actually enters the White House because, at last, shell break my record as the president who has spent the most time at McDonalds," Clinton exclaimed.

Clinton went on to laud the Biden administration and paid homage to Bidens political legacy. He had an improbable turn that made him president. When we were in the middle of a pandemic and an economic crash, he healed our sick and put the rest of us back to work, the former president asserted.

He strengthened our alliances for peace and security, stood up for Ukraine, and tried desperately to get a ceasefire in the Middle East. And then he did something really hard for a politician to do  he voluntarily gave up political power, he concluded.

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Overall, Clinton was not the only one who took jabs at Trump, Democratic House minority leader Hakeem Jefferies compared the former reality TV star to a boyfriend that wont go away. Jefferies insisted that Trump has spent the last four years spinning the block trying to get back into a relationship with the American people.

Bro, we broke up with you for a reason, he laughs, sparking cheers from the crowd. There is no reason for us to ever get back together. Been there, done that and were not going back, he added.

On the third day of the DNC, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz will be accepting the VP nomination from the Democratic Party for the upcoming polls in November.
Its been 10 months since Hamas raided Israeli locations killing around 1,200 and taking more than 250 prisoners, but Israel has rescued only seven hostages alive. More than 55 have died during this period 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

Israel this week announced recovering the bodies of six hostages abducted by Hamas operatives during their October 7 raids on Israeli territories. Israels Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the bodies were retrieved during a complex operation into Hamas-built tunnels beneath the city of Gaza.

Israels National Institute of Forensic Medicine identified the deceased captives as Yagev Buchshtav, 35; Nadav Popplewell, 51; Alexander Dancyg, 76; Avraham Munder, 79; Yoram Metzger, 80; and Chaim Perry, 80.

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Till date, Israel has identified 56 hostages as dead in Gaza allegedly under the Hamas watch. It has additionally identified 65 people believed to be in Hamass captivity in Gaza.

Like the current case of six deceased hostages, it is unclear how or when those held captive by Hamas have died over the past 10 months. Hamas often accuses Israel of killing some of the captives during strikes on Gaza.

At least on one occasion, Israels military admitted to the death of hostages during operation in the Gaza area. In June, military spokesperson Daniel Hagari identified four hostages who were believed to have been killed while Israeli forces were operating in the area.

So, how many hostages are still with Hamas?

Lets start from the beginning. In official figures, 251 Israelis and people of other nationalities were abducted during the Hamas raids in October last year. The number of hostages vary in reports depending on the source and context of information as Israel counts four persons who were taken prisoners by Hamas during 2014-15 among hostages.

Israel has rescued only seven captives alive. This happened during a special mission that Israeli forces carried out in June. More than 200 Palestinians were killed in that Israeli military operation.

More than 115 hostages have been freed alive by Hamas in different prisoner exchange deals. When the last batch of prisoners were freed in June, the tally reached 116 as four Israelis were rescued from Gaza.

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Of all the freed hostages, 78 have been Israeli women and children, who were released as part of a deal between Israel and Hamas.

Three Russian-Israeli dual citizens  two women and one man  were also freed, but they were not part of any prisoner exchange deal.

Five Israelis had already been released in October itself.

Of the rest, 23 Thai hostages and one Filipino were freed when the Thai government reached a separate deal with Hamas  in two batches in November and December 2023.

According to the Hostages Families Forum, an organisation that represents most hostage families, there are still 109 hostages remaining in Hamass captivity. Following Tuesdays announcement of the recovery of six bodies of hostages, the forum has renewed its call on the Benjamin Netanyahu government of Israel to conclude a hostage release deal with Hamas as a matter of urgency.

The forum said, The immediate return of the remaining 109 hostages can only be achieved through a negotiated deal. The Israeli government, with the assistance of mediators, must do everything in its power to finalise the deal currently on the table.

Amnesty International also estimates that the number of hostages in Hamass captivity is more than 100. Reports quoting Israeli officials say that at least one-third of the hostages are believed dead.

Israel has a moral and ethical obligation to return all the murdered for dignified burial and to bring all living hostages home for rehabilitation, read the Hostage Families Forums statement.

This is where the current negotiation that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken attempted during his ninth and latest visit to West Asia since October 7 is centred on. Described as a bridging proposal, the peace deal calls for a six-week truce, an exchange of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners, and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from major population centres in Gaza.
Six out of 12 passengers died in the shipwreck, and five bodies were found inside the wreck. Emergency services are still trying to locate the body of the last missing person, Lynchs daughter Hannah. read more

Rescue personnel pour water on a body bag containing the corpse of British entrepreneur Mike Lynch, who died when a yacht owned by his family sank off the coast of Porticello, near the Sicilian city of Palermo, Italy, August 22, 2024. Image- Reuters

A series of indescribable, unreasonable errors by the crew led to the shipwreck in which British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch and six others died earlier this week, the yacht manufacturers CEO told Reuters on Thursday.

The British-flagged Bayesian, a 56-metre-long (184-foot) superyacht with 22 people aboard - 12 passengers and 10 crew - capsized and sank on Monday within minutes of being hit by a pre-dawn storm while anchored off the coast of northern Sicily.

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The boat suffered a series of indescribable, unreasonable errors, the impossible happened on that boat  but it went down because it took on water. From where, the investigators will tell, Giovanni Costantino said in an interview.

The CEO ruled out any design or construction errors, which he called unlikely after 16 years of trouble-free navigation, including in more severe weather than on Monday.

He blamed the Bayesians crew for the incredible mistake of not being prepared for the storm, which had been announced in shipping forecasts. This is the mistake that cries out for vengeance, he said.

Costantino said passengers should have been summoned out of their cabins and assembled at a point of safety while the boat was being prepared for the storm by pulling up the anchor, closing doors and hatches, lowering the keel to increase stability and other measures.

Had correct procedures been followed, all passengers would have gone back to sleep after one hour and the next morning they would have happily resumed their wonderful cruise, Costantino said.

Another yacht anchored near the Bayesian escaped unharmed. The captain of the sunken yacht and other crew members have not commented publicly on the disaster, while Italian prosecutors investigating it are due to hold a press conference on Saturday.
It is unclear if parliament will reconvene to pass the law before the registration for regional elections opens next Tuesday read more

Indonesias parliament postponed ratifying changes to an elections law on Thursday amid protests in multiple cities, following outcry over legislation seen to strengthen the political influence of outgoing President Joko Widodo.

The plenary session to pass the changes was delayed due to a lack of a quorum, legislator Habiburokhman told reporters outside the parliament building.

It is unclear if parliament will reconvene to pass the law before the registration for regional elections opens next Tuesday.

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The parliament planned to ratify changes that would have reversed a ruling by the constitutional court earlier this week. The legislative changes would have blocked a vocal government critic in the race for the influential post of Jakarta governor and also paved the way for Widodos youngest son to run in elections in Java this November.

The power struggle between the parliament and the judiciary comes amid a week of dramatic political developments in the worlds third-largest democracy and in the final stretch of the presidents second term.

Widodo downplayed the concerns, saying on Wednesday the court ruling and parliamentary deliberations were part of standard checks and balances.

The home affairs minister said the changes were intended to provide legal certainty.

More than 1,000 demonstrators gathered on Thursday outside the parliament building in Jakarta and across multiple cities in Java, some holding banners accusing Jokowi of destroying democracy. Authorities fired tear gas at demonstrators in Semarang, according to footage from Kompas TV.

This is the peak of my disdain, said Afif Sidik, a 29-year-old teacher who joined the protest outside parliament.

This is a republic. Its a democracy, but if its leadership is decided by one person, or an oligarch, we cant accept that.

Legal experts and political analysts have described the power struggle as bordering on a constitutional crisis.

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Elections analyst Titi Anggraini characterised the manoeuvre as constitutional insubordination.
Biden stressed the importance of upcoming Cairo talks in overcoming obstacles. The discussion follows Antony Blinkens Middle East mission, which failed to secure a truce between Israel and Hamas read more

US President Joe Biden meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, US, July 25, 2024. File Image/Reuters

US President Joe Biden, in a phone conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday (August 21), pressed on the need to finalise a Gaza ceasefire-for-hostages deal.

He said the upcoming negotiations in Cairo are crucial to achieving this goal, according to a statement from the White House.

The president stressed the urgency of bringing the ceasefire and hostage release deal to closure and discussed upcoming talks in Cairo to remove any remaining obstacles, the White House statement read.

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Biden and Netanyahu also discussed the ongoing US efforts to bolster Israels defenses against threats from Iran, including its proxy groups Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis. This includes current US military deployments in the region, which have been ramped up in response to escalating tensions.

Vice President Kamala Harris, who is set to formally accept the Democratic nomination for the upcoming presidential election on Thursday in Chicago, also participated in the call.

This dialogue follows US Secretary of State Antony Blinkens rapid diplomatic mission across the Middle East, which concluded on Tuesday (August 20) without securing an agreement between Israel and Hamas militants for a truce in the ongoing conflict in the Palestinian enclave.

Blinken, alongside mediators from Egypt and Qatar, is backing a US-proposed compromise aimed at narrowing the gaps between the conflicting parties in the protracted 10-month Gaza conflict.

Negotiators, who have been striving for months to broker a ceasefire agreement, are scheduled to reconvene in Egypt in the coming days.

The conversation took place against the backdrop of heightened regional instability, particularly following the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on July 31, an act Iran has vowed to avenge, blaming Israel for the assassination. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied involvement in Haniyehs death.

Securing a Gaza ceasefire remains a top priority for Biden. A senior US official on Friday described the talks as nearing a breakthrough, though a final agreement has remained frustratingly out of reach.

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In the ongoing negotiations, Hamas is demanding a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, including the Philadelphi corridor. Israel, however, insists on retaining control of the corridor, which it seized in late May, citing the destruction of numerous tunnels beneath it.

With inputs from Reuters
Some 42 million Americans now identify as multiracial, or 13% of the country, according to the US Census Bureau. That is up from 2% in 2000 when the census first allowed people to select multiple races read more

US Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris speaks as she is filmed for a live broadcast into Chicago's Democratic National Convention (DNC), after delegates of each state delegation ended the roll call to once again nominate her as presidential nominee, during her rally in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, US, on August 20, 2024. Reuters File

The daughter of a Jamaican father and Indian mother, both immigrants, Kamala Harris reflects the United States changing demographics.

When she steps onto the stage Thursday evening in Chicago to accept the Democratic Partys nomination as their presidential candidate, she will represent the countrys fastest growing racial category.

Some 42 million Americans now identify as multiracial, or 13% of the country, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. That is up from 2% in 2000 when the census first allowed people to select multiple races.

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America has long been a self-styled melting pot of people who trace their origins around the world, but in practice some states legally segregated citizens by race until the civil rights laws of the 1960s and laws prohibiting interracial marriage were not overturned until 1967.

Social change since, though, has been rapid. Barack Obama was elected as the countrys first Black president in 2008, and Harris would be the first Black woman and South Asian if elected in November.

Were living in a situation 50 years later where we could be looking at our second mixed-race president, and its beautiful, said Svante Myrick, president of People for the American Way, an advocacy group, whose father was Black and his mother white.

Americas future will look even more diverse. The vast majority of multiracial people are younger than 44 and a third are still children.

The trend has been met by confusion, upset and worse from some of the USs shrinking white majority. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump drew groans at a gathering of Black journalists last month when he falsely portrayed Harris as pivoting from Indian to Black.

I dont know, is she Indian or is she Black, Trump said. But you know what, I respect either one.

Harris has long identified with both her parents ancestry. In Trumps remarks, some multiracial people saw echoes of their own experience of being asked to choose one or the other.

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Harris upbringing makes her a better leader for America, Democrats in Chicago said.

When you have individuals who carry multiple experiences in the same person, thats an asset, said Representative Maxwell Frost, who is Lebanese, Puerto Rican and Haitian, speaking at a Politico event on the sidelines of the convention. That enhances her ability to legislate and advocate on behalf of a broad range of Americans.

The Harris campaign did not respond to a request for comment, nor did spokespeople for Trump.

As the US becomes more diverse and multicultural, white nationalist groups continue to thrive online, pushing conspiracy theories such as the The Great Replacement, while some Republican lawmakers have focused on banning books and canceling classes focused on racial history.

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Thousands of racial hate crimes are reported yearly, with 232 aimed at people of multiple races in 2022, the most recent year for which FBI data is available.

Unfortunately, were really into a period of backlash, said Matthew Delmont, a Dartmouth College history professor who has studied the demographic trend, despite the 2020 election of Harris as vice president and her administrations elevation of racial justice priorities.

So much of that was push back that really emerged in response to the Obama presidency and it was really stoked among people who are scared by the demographic trends in the United States.

Tara Setmayer, an Afro-Latina and white conservative co-founder of political action committee the Seneca Project, said she was once attracted to the Republican Party in part because of its emphasis on color-blind policies.

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Do Democrats take it too far at times with the racial identity politics? Well, yeah, she said.

Now an independent, Setmayer said some of the Republican Partys recent rhetoric on issues including illegal migration carried undercurrents of racism. Republicans reject those criticisms, saying their focus on border controls are aimed at securing the country for all Americans.

This is really their last gasp at trying to stop the country from evolving, and I think theyre missing out on something thats beautiful, Setmayer said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held talks with Poland President Andrzej Duda on ways to deepen ties between the two countries and said that India greatly values the warm relations with Poland read more

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held talks with Poland President Andrzej Duda on ways to deepen ties between the two countries and said that India greatly values the warm relations with Poland.

Taking to X, PM Modi said, Happy to have met President Andrzej Duda in Warsaw. We had an excellent discussion on ways to deepen India-Poland ties.

PM Narendra Modi tweets, "Happy to have met President Andrzej Duda in Warsaw. We had an excellent discussion on ways to deepen India-Poland ties. India greatly values the warm relations with Poland. We look forward to boosting commercial and cultural linkages between our nations pic.twitter.com/GEEmEgSBn0  ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2024

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PM Modi said that India greatly values the warm relations with Poland.

We look forward to boosting commercial and cultural linkages between our nations in the times to come, added the Prime Minister.

In another post on X, PM Modi said that he laid a wreath at Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Warsaw.

"In Warsaw, laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier," tweets Prime Minister Narendra Modi



(Pics: PM Narendra Modi/X) pic.twitter.com/TExCOQRcs6  ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2024

During the meeting, the two leaders also discussed regional and global issues.

A boost to - partnership!



PM @narendramodi met President @AndrzejDuda of Poland at Belweder Palace in Warsaw today.



The leaders reviewed bilateral ties and discussed ways to take them to newer levels. Discussions also covered regional and global issues. pic.twitter.com/6LPsV9CDa3  Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) August 22, 2024

A boost to India-Poland partnership! PM @narendramodi met President @AndrzejDuda of Poland at Belweder Palace in Warsaw today. The leaders reviewed bilateral ties and discussed ways to take them to newer levels. Discussions also covered regional and global issues, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a post on X.

Prime Minister Modis visit to Poland is the first trip by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in the past 45 years.

Earlier in the day, PM Modi received a ceremonial red carpet welcome at the Chancellery before his talks with Prime Minister Donald Tusk during which they decided to elevate the bilateral relationship into a Strategic Partnership.

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With inputs from agencies
Kennedy will speak Friday about the present historical moment and his path forward, his campaign announced Wednesday, fueling growing speculation that he could drop out and support Trump read more

Close allies to Donald Trump are quietly urging independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to endorse the Republican nominee if he withdraws from the campaign for the White House as soon as this week.

Trumps son, Donald Trump Jr., along with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson and GOP donor Omeed Malik are among those who have been working behind the scenes to lobby Kennedy to drop out of the race and back Trump, according to a person familiar with the efforts. The person requested anonymity to discuss private conversations.

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Kennedy will speak Friday about the present historical moment and his path forward, his campaign announced Wednesday, fueling growing speculation that he could drop out and support Trump. Kennedys running mate openly discussed the possibility on a podcast this week, saying the campaign was considering a move to join forces with Trump to limit the election chance of Kamala Harris, whose Democratic convention winds up Thursday night in Chicago.

The move would have once seemed unthinkable for Kennedy, a Democrat for most of his life and  as the nephew of President John F. Kennedy and the son of Robert F. Kennedy  a member of a beloved Democratic dynasty.

Last month, during the Republican National Convention, Kennedys son posted and then quickly deleted a video showing a phone call between Kennedy and Trump, in which the former president appeared to try to talk Kennedy into siding with him.

Kennedy will give a speech in Phoenix, hours before Trump is scheduled to hold a rally in neighbouring Glendale. A spokesperson for Kennedy, Stefanie Spear, declined to say whether he planned to drop out or why he chose Arizona for his speech.

Trump and Kennedy have been in regular contact in recent weeks, including a meeting in Milwaukee as Republicans gathered for their national convention last month.

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He told CNN Tuesday that he would love an endorsement from the independent candidate, whom he called a brilliant guy.

He also said he would certainly be open to Kennedy playing a role in his administration if Kennedy drops out and endorses him instead.

Hes a very smart guy. Ive known him for a very long time, Trump told the network. I didnt know he was thinking about getting out, but if he is thinking about getting out, certainly Id be open to it.

Trump, who had previously railed against Kennedy as the most radical left candidate in the race, was also asked by CNN If he would consider appointing Kennedy to a role in his administration if he wins in November,

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I like him a lot. I respect him a lot, Trump said. I probably would, if something like that would happen. Hes a very different kind of a guy  a very smart guy. And, yeah, I would be honored by that endorsement, certainly.

After leaving the Democratic primary to run as an independent, Kennedy built an unusually strong base of support for someone running without the backing of a major party. It was unclear exactly where his support was coming from, which worried Republicans and Democrats alike.

But since President Joe Biden ended his reelection campaign and Democrats coalesced around Vice President Harris as their nominee, Kennedys rise has been stunted. It looks increasingly unlikely that he will be able to make the debate stage when Trump and Harris face off next month, a moment Kennedy counted on for momentum and legitimacy. His campaign finances have also been strained.

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The news comes a little over a week since a New York judge ruled that Kennedy should not appear on the ballot in the state because he listed a sham address on nominating petitions. Kennedy has appealed, but has faced several similar challenges around the country.

On Wednesday, he was in a courtroom in a suburb of New York City, testifying in a trial for another ballot lawsuit in the state, this one backed by the Democratic National Committee, that challenges the signatures collected by his campaign.

During a break in the court proceedings, Kennedy declined to answer questions from reporters about whether he was dropping out.

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Hes also facing a likely legal challenge in Arizona, where last week he submitted signatures that may have been collected by a super PAC that supports him, which Kennedys critics say is illegal coordination between a candidate and an independent political group.
The arrival heightens the US military presence in the region amid rising tensions following assassinations attributed to Israel, which have prompted threats of retaliation from Hezbollah and Iran read more

The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier, along with its accompanying destroyers, arrived in the West Asia, the US military announced on Wednesday (August 21), following an order from Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin to expedite the strike groups deployment.

Aircraft carriers are the centerpiece of Americas Naval forces.

This arrival temporarily increases the number of US aircraft carriers in the region to two, as the Lincoln is set to replace the USS Theodore Roosevelt. The deployment comes amid heightened concerns of regional conflict following recent high-profile assassinations attributed to, or claimed by, Israel.

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About USS Abraham Lincoln

USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), equipped with F-35C and F/A-18 Block III fighters, entered the US Central Command (USCENTCOM) area of responsibility, the command overseeing U.S. military operations in the Middle East stated on social media.

The USS Abraham Lincoln, the flagship of Carrier Strike Group 3, is accompanied by Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 21 and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 9, the command added.

USS Abraham Lincoln is Americas fifth Nimitz-class aircraft carrier. The largest warships in the world, Nimitz-class aircraft carriers support and operate aircraft that engage in attacks on airborne, afloat, and ashore targets, according to the US Navy.

Concerns among US leadership

US leaders are concerned about the increasing violence in the Middle East following recent attacks by Israel on Hamas and Hezbollah leaders. These attacks have prompted threats of retaliation. Iran has also threatened to respond after the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, which occurred a day after the killing of senior Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut.

On August 11, the Pentagon had announced that Defence Secretary Austin had directed the USS Abraham Lincoln to accelerate its transit to the Middle East after initially ordering its deployment to the region earlier in the month.

With inputs from agencies
Since occupying Tibet after a military invasion in 1950-51, China has systematically harassed the natives and eroded the Tibetan language, culture, and history read more

Two senior US officials on Wednesday met the Dalai Lama and discussed with him the Chinese human rights abuses in Tibet.

The 14th Dalai Lama is the spiritual leader of the Tibetans. He has lived in exile in India since 1959 when he had to flee for his life following the Chinese crackdown following a failed Tibetan uprising against the repressive Chinese rule. In 1950-51, China invaded Tibet and occupied it. Since then, China has systematically eroded the Tibetan language, culture, and heritage, and has imposed the language and culture of Han Chinese people in the region.

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The officials who met the Dalai Lana in New York included Uzra Zeya, Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights and Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues, and Kelly Razzouk, the Special Assistant to the President and National Security Council Senior Director for Democracy and Human Rights.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Zeya said that she conveyed greetings from President Joe Biden to the Dalai Lama for a smoot recovery and reaffirmed the unwavering support to the Tibetan community.

Honored to meet with His Holiness the @DalaiLama, a global figure for compassion and nonviolence. I conveyed greetings from @POTUS, wishing a smooth recovery and reaffirming the United States unwavering support for the Tibetan community.



Read more here: https://t.co/IKOM7b7xxE pic.twitter.com/n3XxEBCm9g  Under Secretary Uzra Zeya (@UnderSecStateJ) August 21, 2024

The Dalai Lama is staying in the United States since June when he went there for a medical procedure.

In an accompanying statement, the Department of State said that Zeya and Razzouk reaffirmed to the Dalai Lama the US commitment to advancing the human rights of Tibetans and supporting efforts to preserve their distinct historical, linguistic, cultural, and religious heritage.

Under Secretary Zeya welcomed His Holiness the Dalai Lamas lifelong dedication to promoting nonviolence and compassion. The Under Secretary also took the opportunity to discuss with His Holiness Tibetan cultural preservation, the United States ongoing efforts to address human rights abuses inside Tibet, and support for resuming dialogue between the PRC and His Holiness and his representatives, said the statement.

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The Dalai Lama, a Nobel Prize laureate, has preached the cause of the Tibet the world over for decades. Even as Chinas economic might keeps most of the conversations about its human rights abuses and organised majoritarian violence against minorities like Tibetans and Uighur Muslims mum, the countries have become relatively more vocal in recent years. Earlier this year, a delegation led by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul met the Dalai Lama in New Delhi and made supportive statements.

House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, part of the delegation, said that while the legacy of the Dalai Lama will live on, Chinese ruler Xi Jinping will die a man forgotten by history.

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His Holiness Dalai Lama, with his message of knowledge, tradition, compassion, purity of soul and love, will live a long time and his legacy will live forever. But you, the President of China, youll be gone and nobody will give you credit for anything. Dalai Lama would not approve of my saying that when I criticize the Chinese government, he says, lets pray for Nancy to rid her of her negative attitudes. I hope he will indulge me today to say that change is on the way. As our colleagues have said hope brings some faith and the faith of the Tibetan people in the goodness of others is what is going to make all the difference, said Pelosi.
The patient, who landed in Bangkok on August 14 from Africa, tested positive for clade Ib and the authorities have identified 43 close contacts of the patient and put them under surveillance, according to a report, citing the Department of Disease Control read more

Thongchai Keeratihattayakorn, head of Thailand's Department of Disease Control, speaks following the suspected first case of mpox in Bangkok. AFP

Thailand on Thursday confirmed Asias first known case of a new, deadlier strain of mpox in a European male who landed in Bangkok on August 14 from Africa.

According to a Bloomberg report, citing the Department of Disease Control of Thailands health ministry, the patient tested positive for clade Ib and the authorities have identified 43 close contacts of the patient and put them under surveillance.

Thailands Department of Disease Control wishes to confirm the lab test result which shows mpox Clade 1b in a European patient, Department of Disease Control was quoted as saying in a statement, adding that the World Health Organization (WHO) would be informed of the development.

We have monitored 43 people who have been in close contact with the patient and so far they have shown no symptoms, but we must continue monitoring for a total of 21 days, added the statement.

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The patient with illnesses and symptoms associated with mpox was admitted to a hospital on Aug. 15, a day after his arrival in Bangkok.

The newer strain  with a fatality rate of 3%  has been spreading across several African countries and is reported to have killed more than 500 people in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Children and adolescents are also getting sick, with known fatal cases exceeding 60% among patients under the age of 5.

Unlike a earlier milder strain that erupted in 2022 and spread primarily through men who have sex with men, the current variant that produces fluid-containing lesions is spreading through all kinds of sexual activity and other close physical contact.

Asian countries from China to Indian and Pakistan  many of which are densely populated  have beefed up surveillance lately. Travelers from affected countries were being asked to self-report symptoms and hospitals were on alert for suspected cases.

The patient with symptoms related to mpox was admitted to a hospital on August 15, just a day after arriving in Bangkok.

The new strain of mpox, which has a 3% fatality rate, is currently spreading across several African countries and has resulted in over 500 deaths in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The strain is also affecting children and adolescents, with fatal cases exceeding 60% among those under the age of 5.

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Unlike the milder strain that emerged in 2022 and predominantly affected men who have sex with men, the current variant causes fluid-filled lesions and is transmitted through various types of sexual activity and other forms of close physical contact, reported Bloomberg.

Asian countries, including China, India, and Pakistan, many of which have high population densities, have recently intensified their surveillance efforts. Travelers from affected regions are being asked to report any symptoms, and hospitals are on heightened alert for potential cases.

With inputs from agencies
Dozens of world leaders converged on a Swiss resort in June this year to discuss how to bring peace to war-ravaged Ukraine, though any hopes of a real breakthrough were muted by the absence of Russia. read more

Ukraine said representatives of more than 40 countries took part in a meeting on Thursday to follow up on a peace summit hosted by Switzerland in June.

Thursdays meeting, which took place online, was the first in a series of working group sessions stemming from the Switzerland summit.

Watch Also: PM Modi Calls for Talks to End Ukraine War | Vantage with Palki Sharma

More than two years into the war, the combatants remain as far apart as theyve ever been, with Kyiv sticking to its demands that Russia leave all Ukrainian territory it has seized and Moscow pressing on with its grinding offensive that has already taken large swaths of eastern and southern Ukraine.

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Watch Also: Zelensky Wants Buffer Zone in Russia, As PM Modi Plans Ukraine Visit | Vantage with Palki Sharma

Kyiv has announced a string of battlefield successes since it crossed unexpectedly into Kursk region on Aug. 6. Moscow has steadily inched forward in eastern Ukraine, pressuring troops worn down by 2-1/2 years of fighting.

Russian forces have been fighting Ukrainian troops in Kursk, which borders Ukraine, since Aug. 6, when thousands of Kyivs troops smashed through the border, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people.
Ukraine smashed through the Russian border in the Kursk region on Aug. 6 in an attempt to force Moscow to divert troops from the rest of the front, though Russian forces have continued to advance in eastern Ukraine in recent days. read more

Ukrainian service members look for unexploded shells after a fighting with Russian raiding group in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv File Photo- AFP

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced on Thursday that his forces had captured another Russian village as he visited a border area where Ukrainian troops had crossed into Russia over two weeks ago.

Meanwhile, the US Embassy in Kyiv issued a warning of a heightened risk of Russian missile and drone strikes across Ukraine in the coming days, coinciding with Ukraines Independence Day on August 24.

The embassy posted a statement on its website on Wednesday evening, cautioning of an increased risk of attacks over the next several days and through the weekend.

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For Ukrainians, Independence Day has taken on greater significance since Russias invasion, which has stirred patriotic feelings among many people.

This year, the date falls more than two weeks after Ukraine launched a surprise cross-border incursion into Russias Kursk region, even as Russian troops inch forward steadily in the east of Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Moscow will deliver a worthy response to the incursion which he has described as a major provocation.

Meanwhile, Russian forces prevented a Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance team from piercing the border in the western Bryansk region, about 240 km (150 miles) from the site of Ukraines incursion into the neighbouring Kursk region, a Russian official said.

Russia said on Wednesday that its forces had advanced in eastern Ukraine and had begun to push back Ukrainian forces in the Kursk region, though a senior commander cautioned that Ukrainian forces were regrouping for another possible attack

Authorities in Kursk said they had begun installing concrete shelters to help protect civilians amid the Ukrainian incursion.

Kyiv has announced a string of battlefield successes since mounting the action, but Moscow has been inching forward in eastern Ukraine for months, pressuring troops worn down by hard years of fighting following Russias invasion in February 2022.

The Russian defence ministry said on Thursday its forces had captured the village of Mezhove in Ukraines eastern Donetsk region. Russia has repeatedly said the Ukrainian offensive on its soil has been halted. Ukraine has continued to tout advances.

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Zelenskiy said he had met his top commander, Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi, during his visit to the border region of Sumy. Official video footage showed them shaking hands and embracing but did not make clear when the visit took place.

Zelenskiy said in a statement there had been a decrease in shelling and in civilian casualties in Sumy since the Kursk operation. Ukrainian forces had also captured one more Russian village, he said. Ukrainian officials have previously said Kyiv controls more than 90 settlements there.

Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov told a visiting delegation of U.S. congressmen on Wednesday that Kyivs attack on Kursk was intended to protect Ukraine.

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Umerov said in a statement: Our goals there (in Kursk) are to clear the border from Russian military threats and make enemy shelling and attacks on our towns and villages impossible.

The incursion has boosted morale among Ukrainians as they prepare to mark 33 years since independence from the Soviet Union on Saturday. The U.S. Embassy in Kyiv however warned on Thursday there was a heightened risk of Russian missile and drone attacks throughout Ukraine in the coming days connected to Independence Day.

With inputs from agencies.
In an exclusive conversation with Firstpost, Professor from DePaul University and author Craig Sautter explained what happened during the 1968 Democratic Convention. What makes him one of the best people to speak on the subject is the fact that he was there when the protests took over Chicago and left the city scarred for decades read more

US President Joe Biden, Democratic presidential candidate and US Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff stand on stage during Day one of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, US, August 19, 2024. Reuters

The Democratic National Convention (DNC) kicked off on August 19 in Chicago, a month after US President Joe Biden withdrew from the 2024 US Presidential Election race. The four-day event will see the coronation of Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee for the November polls, where she will go head-to-head against former US President Donald Trump.

Apart from grand speeches by former presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, this years DNC is notable because Chicago will be hosting it. Fondly called the Windy City, Chicago has hosted the most number of conventions in the United States, this being the 26th. Interestingly, the first-ever US political convention was also held in Chicago in 1860.

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While hosting several Republican and Democratic Conventions, Chicago witnessed the most chaotic and turbulent DNC as well. Many easily get reminded of the doomed DNC convention of 1968 with the phrase Chicago 68. The convention is still engraved in peoples minds because of the mayhem that happened inside and outside the DNC headquarters.

Democratic Presidential nominee and US Vice President Kamala Harris makes a surprise address on the first day of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, August 19, 2024. Source: AP

In an exclusive conversation with Firstpost, Professor from DePaul University and author Craig Sautter explained what happened during the 1968 Democratic Convention. Prof. Sautter has written several books elucidating the history of political conventions. What makes him one of the best people to speak on the subject matter is the fact that he was there when the protests took over Chicago and left the city scarred for decades.

Chicago: The Convention City

Hosting a convention for either the Republican or Democratic parties can be a matter of pride and joy for any city, however, it takes a lot of work. Different states lobby the national committee, either the Republican or Democratic committee. Usually, there are three or four cities that want to hold the convention and each committee puts on their case why they should hold the event, Sautter told Firstpost. He mentioned that often a convention is held in a state where a party wants to win in November.

For example, this year the Republicans held their convention in Wisconsin because thats going to be a very close state. But Chicago has had twice as many conventions as any other city, he added. Referring to Chicago as the convention city Sautter explained what makes the city stand out.

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Were really the convention city and part of that is because were right in the middle of the United States. So, people from the East Coast or the West Coast can get to our city easily, he said.

Workers prepare for the 2024 DNC. Source: AP

Sautter also emphasised that holding the convention in Chicago this year also reflects the kind of approach the Democratic Party will be taking in the race for the White House. Well, Chicago, Illinois is a progressive place and the Democratic Party has a progressive platform. Kamala Harris is a progressive candidate on issues such as abortion, housing and immigration. Illinois and Chicago really fit everything that the Democratic Party is trying to project to the country, he said.

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1968 DNC: The doomed convention

Over the years, Chicago has hosted 14 Republican and 11 Democratic elections However, after the 1968 convention, neither of the two parties came back to Chicago, until 1996, when Democrats conducted the DNC that chose former president Bill Clinton as their nominee. Sautter noted that during the 60s, Chicago witnessed all sorts of turbulence.

Temperament of Chicago before the convention

Sautter recalled that two big issues that dominated American politics at that time and became the cause of tensions in Chicago were the civil rights movement against the segregation that was still in practice in the southern states and public resentment over the ongoing Vietnam War.

Sauter explained that while the Democratic Party dealt with the former by introducing the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Civil Rights Act of 1965, the latter has left the party divided. Since about 1966, some members of the Democratic Party were very upset that we were bombing North Vietnam, that large numbers of Vietnamese were being killed and by 1968, 25,000 American soldiers had been killed and tens of thousands others had been injured, he said.

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The police at that time called the anti-war protesters communists, traitors, hippies, and things like that. So, there was a natural confrontation, he recalled.

He also mentioned that there was growing public discontent over the assassination of renowned American activist Martin Luther King Jr. in April 1968, four months before the DNC. 100 cities in the United States were set on fire, including Chicago, where two square miles almost burnt to the ground, he added. Sautter emphasised that the assassination of Former US Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy also added fuel to the fire.

In this April 3, 1968 file photo, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. stands with other civil rights leaders on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tenn., a day before he was assassinated at approximately the same place. Source: AP

The author of the book titled Inside the Wigwam: Chicago Presidential Conventions 1860-1996, noted that RFK was a leading anti-war candidate and would have gotten the nomination. However, his assassination and the partys push for Johnsons Vice President Hubert Humphery did not sit well with the anti-war faction within the party.

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In this June 5, 1968 file photo, Hotel busboy Juan Romero, right, comes to the aid of Senator Robert F. Kennedy, as he lies on the floor of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles moments after he was shot. Source: AP

Sautter stated that while Humphery was strong on civil rights his decision to keep backing Jhonson on the war and the fact that he hadnt run in any primaries, made many people question his nomination.

Then why Chicago

Amid all the chaos that was happening within the Democratic party and in the US, Chicagos then-Mayor Richard J. Daley came up with his share of draconian laws to curtail the protests. Two of them were Shoot to kill arsonist and Shoot to maim looters. During the Martin Luther King riots, there were lots of arsons going on. So, Mayor Daley said an arsonist is equivalent to a murderer because theres people living in these buildings. So, he issued a shoot-to-kill order, Sautter averred.

1968 file photo shows Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley at the podium during the first day of the Democratic National Convention. Source: AP

When asked why was the city still chosen to conduct the convention, Sautter had a simple answer to the question: Daley was in good books among the top brass of Democrats. Well, the city was chosen because of Mayor Daley, who was a big backer of the party and was a person who is credited with Jack Kennedy (former president John F Kennedy) winning the election. He was a favourite of the presidents, and he was a big backer of LBJ, he told Firstpost.

The Convention: Mayhem that was happening inside

During the insightful conversation, Sautter emphasised that the demonstrators on the streets represented the divisions in the convention hall. The DNC was holding its events at the Stockyards International Amphitheater.

About two-thirds of those delegates backed President Johnson but about one-third were in favour of ending the war immediately. There were fights inside the hall. The hall was actually too small for all the delegates, so nobody could really move around without some kind of tension, he explained. Sautter also emphasised that the diverse composition of the parties in 68, also reflected the diverse opinions of that time.

New York delegates, later joined by delegates from New Hampshire, protested against the Vietnam War during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Aug. 28, 1968. Source: AP

The delegates in the past were picked by the bosses of the parties in each city or each state. But because of the big turmoil in 1968, both presidential parties changed their rules so that 50 per cent of the delegates had to be women, 50 per cent had to be men, and they had to have a racial composition reflecting the state that they were from, he said.

When asked if things would have been different if Republicans were hosting their convention in the city than Democrats. Sautter emphasised that nothing would have stopped the eventual volcanic eruption. Well, the Republicans held their convention in Miami Beach, and there was actually a riot after that among African Americans, he added.

The May Day: Riots that ensued outside

Sautter was a 21-year-old Philosophy student from Indiana University, who drove to Chicago for the 1968 Democratic National Convention. During the interview with Firstpost, he recalled what he witnessed on the streets of Chicago. He mentioned that during the run-up to the convention, the demonstrators were really upset since theyd been involved in primaries and anti-war people had won all these primaries.

Well, I think there were a lot of young people there, and their idealism was sort of crushed. Were under the illusion that if the police were going to arrest you, they would just take you and put you in a police wagon. Instead, they charged with billy clubs and tear gas, and it was just a horrible situation, Sautter recalled.

In this Aug. 28, 1968, file photo, a demonstrator with his hands on his head is led by Chicago Police down Michigan Avenue during a confrontation with police and National Guardsmen who battled demonstrators near the Conrad Hilton Hotel, headquarters for the Democratic National Convention. Source: AP

Police were all around the anti-war demonstrators in Michigan Avenue. There were helicopters in the air, there were firecrackers going off. Eventually, an order was given to clear the streets, and the demonstrators sat down in the streets, and the police fired tear gas. At that point, there were fights, and it was a mess.

People were greatly disillusioned. When I went back to campus, there were three or four times as many anti-war protesters as there had been in the spring, because everybody watched this on TV, 30 million Americans and people around the world were watching it, he added.

He recalled that part of the reason why the clashes erupted was because Mayor Daley did not issue proper permits to demonstrators. Mayor Daley said there would be law and order in the streets of Chicago, and he issued no permits for demonstrations, for example, in the parks and things like that. So, there was really nowhere else to go except the streets. The difference this year is that permits are being given, and there are marching corridors for the protester, Sautter explained.

The Trial of Chicago Seven

One of the major events that followed the turbulent DNC was the Trial of Chicago Seven. The Chicago Seven, originally the Chicago Eight were seven defendants  Rennie Davis, David Dellinger, John Froines, Tom Hayden, Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, and Lee Weiner  charged by the United States Department of Justice with conspiracy, crossing state lines with intent to incite a riot during the 1968 DNC. The Chicago Eight eventually became the Chicago Seven after the case against codefendant Bobby Seale was declared a mistrial.

In this Feb. 28, 1970, file photo, the seven defendants in the Chicago Conspiracy Trial hold a press conference in Chicago after the 7th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals granted their request for bail. Source: AP

Recalling the trial, Stautter noted that some of the leaders were arrested on conspiracy charges of crossing state lines to incite riots, which was really not the case, because both the anti-war and the civil rights movements were totally democratic, and they were totally decentralized. So, we didnt need leaders to tell us what to do.

The long-term impact of Chicago 68: 1996, the year of redemption

When asked if there was any sort of long-term impact of the convention, Sautter said the rules were completely changed after Chicago 68. As I said, the rules were totally changed after that. So, instead of the convention picking the candidate, the people in the primaries in each one of the states leading up to the convention get to vote, and whoever they pick, the delegates are bound to vote for who the people actually voted for. So, its much more democratic now, he said.

However, Sautter highlighted that exceptions were made his year. This year is an exception because President Biden stepped down and all the primaries were already over. So, his VP stepped forward and people seemed to rally behind her, mostly because they wanted to defeat former President Trump, he added.

The 1996 DNC was also conducted in Chicago. Source: AP

While elucidating how the 1996 Democratic National Convention became the era of redemption Sautter noted that the convention went smoothly. Interestingly It was Richard J Daleys eldest son Richard M. Daley who was the Mayor of Chicago when the Democrats came back to the city after 28 long years.

Obsessed with this moment in history in which the DNC dances to the Macarena...... ne'er again shall the twain meet ...... i hope pic.twitter.com/bgTONmvrh4  Willem (@jil_slander) April 18, 2020

Well, the convention went very smoothly and it was like a big party. There was a dance craze that year called the Macarena. There were very few protests. It was a renominating convention. So, there was no turmoil at all. It sort of knocked 1968 off the front page, he recalled.

Chicago of Today: How DNC 2024 will not be a Chicago 68 2.0

If one looks at the circumstances under which the DNC happened in 2024 and 1968 closely, one can find a lot of odd similarities. Both the DNCs took place in Chicago, both the sitting presidents at the time dropped their re-election bids and pushed their VPs for the ticket and both second-in-commands were not tested in primaries. The political climate of 2024 is also tense with growing discontent among Americans over the United States support of Israel and the ongoing Gaza crisis.

Earlier this year, we saw many pro-Palestinian supporters using tactics used by anti-Vietnam war protesters while raising their voices; one of the notable examples was the Hamilton Hall sit-ins. However, Sautter said that chaos like 1968 wont happen this year. I think for one thing the police are very different from 1968. In 1968, a lot of the members of the police had been in Vietnam or they had served in Korea. So, they were very pro-US Army, he exclaimed.

Chicago police replace fence knocked down by protesters, Source: AP

Now, its much more different, much more professionalised. There will be protests here among the pro-Palestinians and there may be very big protests, even bigger. But I think that there wont be the clashes. The police superintendent Snelling said that unless theres violence committed by the protesters themselves, the police will not get involved, he added.

During the conversation with Sautter, he also explained what holding a DNC would mean for the newly elected Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker. Well, I think that theres great enthusiasm for Kamala Harris as the candidate. So, if she does very well, that means that other people down the ballot, as we call them, governors, people running for the United States Senate or the United States House of Representatives will do well, depending on the state. Pritzker has a good record. Hes been a good governor for Illinois, and particularly from the Democratic point of view, he said.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, right, stands with Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson during a Democratic National Convention security briefing at the US Secret Services Chicago Field Office Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Chicago. Source: AP

Hes on top of the issues that Democrats care about. So, I think that hes probably a little disappointed that Kamala Harris ended up instead of Joe Biden. Joe Biden might have been defeated, and then Pritzker would have been in line in four years. Now, he might have to wait eight years, and he may be out of this picture by then, he added.

Wigwam: Other notable conventions that happened in Chicago in the past

While the 2024 DNC is happening at the famous United Center, things were different in the past. In his book, Inside the Wigwam: Chicago Presidential Conventions 1860-1996, Sautter mentioned how temporary structures were built to hold the event.

The building that former President Abraham Lincoln was nominated in, in 1860, actually only had three sides and was built up against a brick building next door. So, it was a temporary building that they tore down after the convention, he said.

He emphasised that over the years the infrastructure to hold the election has grown but he also pointed out that in the old days, you could come right up to the convention centre and hear the speakers. There was no security thing. Now, we have, fences all around the United Center to keep people far, with helicopters overhead.

President John Kennedy talks in his White House office with Vice President Lyndon Johnson (centre) and Sen. Hubert Humphrey (left) on Feb. 7, 1961, in Washington. Source: AP

When asked what some of the other notable conventions Chicago hosted, Sautter pointed out that the city conducted the convention where Franklin D. Roosevelt gave the New Deal speech and Dwight D. Eisenhower was also nominated here. However, one of the Chicago conventions he fondly spoke about was the 1896 convention.

One great one in 1896, that was called the Cross of Gold Convention, where the US was suffering from the Great Depression, and people wanted silver to be, like, minted instead of gold. William Jennings Bryan, the candidate, got up and said You shall not press down upon the brow of labour this crown of thorns; you shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold, he said.

US President Joe Biden embraces Vice President Kamala Harris on the first day of DNC in Chicago. Source: AP

Another odd similarity that came out during the discussion was the fact that both Humphry and Harris called themselves candidates of Joy. Humphreys first slogan was, Im the candidate of joy, just like Kamala. But because the war was going on and the cities were burning, he had to drop that one, he recalled. When asked who he thinks will win the November polls, Sautter closed off the interview with a smile, saying Expect the unexpected.
Alipay app available in 16 languages to facilitate foreigners traveling in China

Xinhua) 10:52, August 22, 2024

GUANGZHOU, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese payment services platform Alipay recently announced that it now provides services in 16 languages, which it expects will help international tourists travel in China more smoothly.

Services on the smartphone app are now available in French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, Russian, Turkish, Malay, Indonesian, Thai, Korean, Japanese and Vietnamese, in addition to the Chinese and English services already in use.

With the latest update, foreign visitors in China can use the app's payment service in the language of their choosing. Other frequently used services in the app, including a hotel booking platform, can be translated into that language with a single click using Alipay's translation tool.

The People's Bank of China, the central bank, in February held a meeting to optimize payment services in the country. Relevant government authorities have since collaborated to refine the national payment services system, providing increased convenience to elderly people and foreigners in China.

In June, a research group at the Beijing Foreign Studies University's Silk Road Research Institute released a report on the travel and payment experiences of foreigners in China. It surveyed more than 700 foreign travelers who had traveled to China from over 100 countries, finding that 98 percent of respondents would recommend traveling to China to their friends, and that 86 percent believe the payment experience in China has become more convenient.

In the first half of 2024, spending among inbound travelers on Alipay surged eightfold year on year, and the number of Chinese companies using Alipay for business involving international tourists saw a yearly increase of 300 percent, according to Alipay.

With "China Travel" trending on social media platforms, China's inbound tourism is experiencing a surge and these visits are expected to boost consumption.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, average daily consumption among foreign tourists in China was 3,459 yuan (about 485 U.S. dollars) in 2023. In the first seven months of this year, the number of foreigners visiting China soared 129.9 percent year on year to 17.25 million, according to the National Immigration Administration.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Explore the rich history and architectural beauty of Trinity Episcopal Church in this captivating tour given by Reverend Jimmy Abbott. Join J.R., Lisa, Erika, and Reverend Jimmy in uncovering the layers of history, from its founding in 1841 to its role in wartime and natural disasters.
Welcome to my genealogy blog. Genea-Musings features genealogy research tips and techniques, genealogy news items and commentary, genealogy humor, San Diego genealogy society news, family history research and some family history stories from the keyboard of Randy Seaver (of Chula Vista CA), who thinks that Genealogy Research Is really FUN! Copyright (c) Randall J. Seaver, 2006-2024.
felicilin at 22-08-2024 05:22 PM (1 month ago) (f)

Justice Olukayode Ariwoola retired as the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) on Thursday, August 22, marking the end of his tenure with a strong call for reforms to ease the burden on the Supreme Court.

Justice Olukayode Ariwoola retired as the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) on Thursday, August 22, marking the end of his tenure with a strong call for reforms to ease the burden on the Supreme Court.

Speaking at a valedictory session held in his honour at the Supreme Court in Abuja, Justice Ariwoola highlighted the apex court's overwhelming caseload, noting that many of these cases should have been resolved at the appellate level.



"The right to a fair hearing can only be guaranteed when lawyers and litigants do not have to wait for so long to have their cases heard," he emphasised.



He also called for the appointment of more judicial officers to ensure timely adjudication of cases.



Justice Ariwoola's retirement comes as he reaches the mandatory retirement age 70.



His tenure as CJN began in June 2022, following the resignation of his predecessor, Justice Tanko Muhammad, due to health issues.



Ariwoola was confirmed as CJN by the Senate in October 2022 after serving as a Justice of the Supreme Court since 2011.



As Justice Ariwoola steps down, the National Judicial Council (NJC) has recommended Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun to President Bola Tinubu for appointment as the next CJN.



Pulse Nigeria reported that if President Tinubu approves the recommendation by the NJC, Justice Kekere-Ekun will become the second female CJN in Nigeria.



Maryam Mukhtar was the first female Chief Justice of Nigeria, serving from July 2012 to November 2014.



This transition marks a significant moment for the Nigerian judiciary as it seeks to address the challenges highlighted by the outgoing CJN.



Breaking: Justice Olukayode Ariwoola retires as Chief Justice of Nigeria pic.twitter.com/BBNsSQsWRf  TVC News (@tvcnewsng) August 22, 2024 Speaking at a valedictory session held in his honour at the Supreme Court in Abuja, Justice Ariwoola highlighted the apex court's overwhelming caseload, noting that many of these cases should have been resolved at the appellate level.he emphasised.He also called for the appointment of more judicial officers to ensure timely adjudication of cases.Justice Ariwoola's retirement comes as he reaches the mandatory retirement age 70.His tenure as CJN began in June 2022, following the resignation of his predecessor, Justice Tanko Muhammad, due to health issues.Ariwoola was confirmed as CJN by the Senate in October 2022 after serving as a Justice of the Supreme Court since 2011.As Justice Ariwoola steps down, the National Judicial Council (NJC) has recommended Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun to President Bola Tinubu for appointment as the next CJN.Pulse Nigeria reported that if President Tinubu approves the recommendation by the NJC, Justice Kekere-Ekun will become the second female CJN in Nigeria.Maryam Mukhtar was the first female Chief Justice of Nigeria, serving from July 2012 to November 2014.This transition marks a significant moment for the Nigerian judiciary as it seeks to address the challenges highlighted by the outgoing CJN.

Post Reply Posted: at 22-08-2024 05:22 PM (1 month ago) | Addicted Hero
China claims self-ruled Taiwan as its territory and has ramped up military and political pressures on the democratic island in recent years
Sat Saturday

84 /55

Mix of sun and clouds. Highs in the mid 80s and lows in the mid 50s.
The City of Grand Junction is looking to continue its e-scooter pilot program at least through the end of the year with an eye toward putting a permanent program in place.

The program launched in May 2023 with scooter companies Bird and Lime as vendors, and an update was given to City Council at a workshop Monday.

Mobility Planner Henry Brown said through June there had been about 129,500 rides total so far, and about 199,200 miles traveled.

The total number of vehicles available has increased, Brown said, although that number goes down during the winter.

According to Brown, the highest ridership is during the weekends or holidays in the months of May through October, with the highest ridership occurring in the Horizon Drive corridor, Las Colonias, Colorado Mesa University and downtown areas.

Brown said the shared scooters account for about three crashes per quarter that EMS has to respond to.

City staff is recommending extending the pilot program to the end of 2024,or until an ordinance can be passed, Brown said, while preparing for a permanent permitting process.

The general sentiment is we want to make it better for the city to run, and we want to make it better both for non-riders and the riders of these devices, Brown said.

e-Scooters Through June: * 129,500 rides total * 199,200 miles traveled Highest ridership areas, May through October: * Colorado Mesa University * Downtown * Horizon Drive corridor * Las Colonias

City Council was receptive to those recommendations.

Going back a couple years, I was one of the more skeptical council members on this plan, this pilot, Council Member Randall Reitz said. Concerns about them being strewn across the community, causing lots of accidents, becoming a blight, but I will say that my concerns have been much allayed by the process so far.

The Grand Junction Police Department also had concerns at the start of the program with safety and litter, but Police Chief Matt Smith said Monday those concerns were unfounded.

Theres no undue burden for us, Smith said. We really havent seen much activity.

Some residents have noted the scooters create the impression of clutter, Brown said, and the program in the future will look to keep the scooters out of the paths of sidewalks.

Brown also said the city is looking into expanding the program to areas such as Grand Junction Regional Airport and the Blue Heron Boat Ramp.

My favorite one is Blue Heron, right now thats about a half mile west of our existing boundary at 24 Road, Brown said. And what I think could be really neat and what weve heard from some community members interested in is more easily being able to shuttle river trips with one vehicle. So the idea being able to drive your car to Las Colonias, putting in there, and then float down to Blue Heron and have reliability and being able to expect a scooter there so you can get back to your vehicle to pick up your boat.

I think thats a really neat idea to make things more simple, to free up parking capacity and to create a new option for people to travel where today they dont have a lot of options, Brown continued.
New York Man Arrested for Operating as an Illegal Agent of the Chinese Government in the United States

Wednesday, August 21, 2024

For Immediate Release

Office of Public Affairs

Yuanjun Tang, 67, a naturalized citizen of the United States and resident of Queens, New York, was charged by criminal complaint with acting and conspiring to act in the United States as an unregistered agent of the People's Republic of China (PRC) and making materially false statements to the FBI. Tang was arrested today in Flushing, Queens, and will be presented this afternoon.

According to court documents, Tang is a former PRC citizen who was imprisoned in the PRC for his activities as a dissident opposing the one-party authoritarian political system controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the PRC's sole ruling party. In or about 2002, Tang defected to Taiwan; he was subsequently granted political asylum in the United States and has since resided in New York City, where he has regularly participated in events with fellow PRC dissidents and leads a nonprofit dedicated to promoting democracy in China.

Between at least in or about 2018 and in or about June 2023, Tang acted in the United States as an agent of the PRC by completing tasks at the direction of the PRC's Ministry of State Security (MSS), which is the PRC's principal civilian intelligence agency. The MSS is responsible for, among other things, the PRC's foreign intelligence, counterintelligence, espionage and political security functions.

Specifically, through a particular email account, encrypted chats, text messages and audio and video calls, Tang regularly received instructions from and reported to an MSS intelligence officer regarding individuals and groups viewed by the PRC as potentially adverse to the PRC's interests, including prominent U.S.-based Chinese democracy activists and dissidents. He also traveled at least three times for face-to-face meetings with MSS intelligence officers and helped the MSS infiltrate a group chat on an encrypted messaging application used by numerous PRC dissidents and pro-democracy activists to communicate about pro-democracy issues and express criticism of the PRC government. Law enforcement recovered instructions Tang received from the MSS and photographs, videos and documents that he collected or created for transmission to the MSS from numerous electronic devices and accounts belonging to Tang.

Tang also made materially false statements to the FBI. He falsely claimed that he was no longer able to access an email account through which he had communicated with his MSS handler through draft emails.

Tang is charged with one count of conspiring to act as an agent of a foreign government without notifying the Attorney General, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison; one count of acting as an agent of a foreign government without notifying the Attorney General, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison; and one count of making false statements, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison. If convicted, a federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department's National Security Division, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams for the Southern District of New York and Executive Assistant Director Robert Wells of the FBI's National Security Branch made the announcement.

The FBI is investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jane Yumi Chong for the Southern District of New York and Trial Attorney Scott Claffee of the National Security Division's Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the case.

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Topic: National Security

Components: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

National Security Division (NSD)

USAO - New York, Southern

Press Release Number: 24-1037

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Secretary Blinken's Call with Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani

US Department of State

Readout

Office of the Spokesperson

August 20, 2024

The below is attributable to Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel:

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke today with Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani. The Secretary and the Prime Minister discussed ongoing efforts to negotiate a ceasefire agreement that would alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian people and secure the release of hostages. They underscored that the bridging proposal presented by negotiators addresses the remaining gaps in a manner that allows for swift implementation of the deal. The Secretary and Prime Minister discussed continuing to work together to convey that no party should take actions to undermine efforts to reach a deal. The Secretary expressed gratitude to the Prime Minister for Qatar's vital role in mediating negotiations and promoting regional peace.

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Secretary Antony J. Blinken delivers remarks to the press, in Doha, Qatar, on August 20, 2024.

US Department of State

Remarks

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Doha, Qatar

August 20, 2024

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Good evening, everyone. We had a good day in Egypt and now in Qatar. I had a chance in Egypt, as you know, to see President Sisi, Foreign Minister Abdelatty, the Intelligence Chief Abbas Kamel, and here in Qatar I was just on the phone with the prime minister who is traveling to Australia but saw the Minister of State Al-Khulaifi. And with our partners in Egypt and Qatar, our message is simple, it's clear, and it's urgent: We need to get the ceasefire and hostage agreement over the finish line, and we need to do it now.

Time is of the essence. Time is of the essence because with every passing day the well-being and lives of the hostages are in jeopardy. Time is of the essence because every single day women, children, men in Gaza are suffering without access to adequate food, medicine, and at risk of being wounded or dying in fighting that they didn't start and they cannot stop. And time is of the essence because with every passing day there's the danger of escalation in the region - escalation that we've been working to prevent from day one since October 7th.

With Egypt and with Qatar we're united in purpose and united in action. We're working in our different ways to try to ensure that there is not escalation, sending the necessary messages to all of the potential actors, including Iran, including Hizballah, to avoid taking any steps that could escalate the conflict or spread it. We're united in our work with the parties to try to bring this agreement across the finish line. And Qatar and Egypt in particular are in direct contact with Hamas, working to bring it along as we work to conclude this agreement.

Now, as I think everyone remembers, President Biden put out a detailed plan for a ceasefire and the release of hostages in May. The entire world endorsed it. The UN Security Council endorsed it. And since then we've been working to bring the parties along. A lot of work went into that, and we got to the point where, as we were working on implementing that plan, it was necessary hearing from both the parties to provide some clarifications, to provide some additional detail, and that's exactly what went into the bridging proposal that our three countries put forward just a little over a week ago.

Israel has now accepted that proposal - I heard that directly from Prime Minister Netanyahu yesterday - and we hope and expect that Hamas will do the same. That's the critical next step, but once that happens we also have to complete the detailed implementation agreements that go along with putting the ceasefire into effect. And there it's very important that everyone do what's necessary to bring the flexibility to the table to make sure that we can the get implementation agreed and that the parties to the ceasefire can make good on the commitments that they've made in the agreement.

So that's a process that's ongoing at the same time. We're engaged every single day with Israel, and our Qatari and Egyptian partners are engaged with Hamas, and over the coming days we are going to do everything possible to, one, get Hamas on board with the bridging proposal, and then to make sure that both parties work on and agree to necessary details of implementation that would allow everything to go forward. So what's where we are. And I'd just return to what I started with, which is a strong sense, a strong commitment on the part of the United States, Egypt, Qatar, and for that matter many other countries, on the fierce urgency of now. This needs to get done and it needs to get done in the days ahead, and we will do everything possible to get it across the finish line.

MR PATEL: Tom Bateman.

QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, you mentioned 

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Tom.

QUESTION: You mentioned President Biden's statement in May 31* which was explicitly clear that a permanent cessation of hostilities would involve the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. That sounded unequivocally clear. So how can any proposal or clause now that involves any form of Israeli presence on the ground be consistent with this framework?

And just to expand on that, the Israeli media has quoted Prime Minister Netanyahu today as having said that "Israel won't leave the Philadelphi Corridor and the Netzarim Corridor regardless of the pressure to do so. These are" - he's quoted as saying - "strategic military and political assets. I told this to Blinken. Maybe I convinced him."

Is that true? And if so, what is your response?

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, Tom, here's what I can say. First, going back to the very early days when we put out the so-called Tokyo Principles about the future, one of them is very clear that the United States does not accept any long-term occupation of Gaza by Israel. More specifically, the agreement is very clear on the schedule and the locations of IDF withdrawals from Gaza, and Israel has agreed to that. So that's - that's as much as I know. That's what I'm very clear about.

QUESTION: He said complete withdrawal 

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Again, I am not going to - I'm not going to get into the details of the agreement. But it is laid out in the agreement - an agreement that Israel has endorsed - and it is specific as to the locations and the schedule for withdrawals.

MODERATOR: Rob 

QUESTION: And on the second point, that Mr. Netanyahu (inaudible) quotes (inaudible)? The prime - Benjamin Netanyahu was quoted in the Israeli media 

SECRETARY BLINKEN: I can't speak to what he's quoted as saying. I can just speak to what I heard from him directly yesterday when we spent three hours together, including, again, Israel's endorsement of the bridging proposal and thus the - the detailed plan. And that plan, among other things, as I said, includes a very clear schedule and locations for withdrawals.

But the other thing is it's so clearly in the interests of all concerned, starting with Israel, to bring this to a close. And I think that was also reflected in the conversation that I had. The hostages depend on it. The security of the country depends on it. The ability to really ensure that we don't have the conflict spreading to other places, because Gaza is in many ways the key to making sure that we can actually move things in the north in Lebanon and Hizballah in a better direction.

It's the key to helping make sure that we can take down the temperature in the Red Sea with the Houthis. It's the key to seeing if we can pursue a normalization agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia, which both countries remain very interested in. It's the key to actually putting everyone, starting with Israel, on a path to greater peace and security. And of course, it's key to getting the hostages home, which Israelis desperately want to see happen, and we want to see happen, we need to see happen. There are Americans who remain hostage in Gaza. And I was very clear about the American interest in making sure that our people come home to their families and that the remains of those who perished are brought back.

MODERATOR: Robert, go ahead.

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Robert.

QUESTION: Thank you, Mr. Secretary. If the - if this bridging proposal was endorsed and agreed to by both the Egyptians and Qataris, can you help us understand how the proposal was advanced over the course of your stops today? And you've received the assurances from Israel and you've had the support of Egypt and Qatar as negotiating partners and intermediaries. Has the needle moved at all when it comes to Hamas, and are you more confident today that they will agree to this proposal than you were when you left Israel?

And if I may, what are your expectations as to the outcomes of talks over the next coming days when negotiators are set to reconvene?

SECRETARY BLINKEN: So the bridging proposal that was put forward was put forward on behalf of all three of our countries. The United States put it forward with the full support of Egypt and Qatar. And what's happening now is, among other things, both Egypt and Qatar in their engagements with Hamas are making very clear as necessary what's in that proposal, explaining it as necessary if there's any confusion, so that Hamas fully understands it and agrees to it.

As I said before, the bridging proposal is based on the May - the late May agreement that President Biden put out and endorsed and incorporated a UN Security Council resolution. And then we heard from both parties different comments on it. We tried to reflect some of those comments in this bridging proposal. And a bridge, by definition, has two parties to it. There are two points to a bridge. So we've tried to reflect that in the bridging proposal, and now the process is making sure that Hamas fully understands it and what's in it. And I believe that they - again, they should be prepared to endorse it, just as Israel has endorsed it.

And then the critical thing is getting clear understandings on implementation of the agreement, and there are some complicated pieces of business that are involved there. That's exactly why it's so important that the negotiators who are working the details of this have maximum flexibility - from the Israeli Government and also from Hamas's leadership - so that we can actually bring this to a conclusion, bring it over the finish line.

And in this, as I said, the United States, Egypt, and Qatar are absolutely united, and - but they have a unique role in being able to engage with Hamas. We of course are deeply engaged with Israel. And the three of us working together, I believe, can get this to where it needs to go. But as always, these things sometimes take more time than you want. What we are all united on is the urgency of the moment, because, as I said, with every passing day, more bad things can happen to more - to more good people who don't deserve it. And we're united in that, and we're going to continue to do the work.

There's one other thing I should actually share with all of you, which is that of course the - we were intensely focused on Gaza during this visit, but in Egypt in particular but also here in Qatar, we had extensive discussions about Sudan. And it's very important that people focus on that too, because with everything else going on in the world, the worst humanitarian situation in the world right now is in Sudan. There are more people in Sudan who are suffering from fighting, from violence, from lack of access to food and basic humanitarian assistance, and we are very determined to try to move that to a better place as well.

We convened talks in Switzerland that are - that are ongoing. At the same time, we've been working very closely with Egypt, with Saudi Arabia, with the United Arab Emirates, with the African Union - not only to try to get a cessation of hostilities and bring the parties together around that and a way to verify the agreements that they hopefully will reach, but also to get humanitarian assistance into the tens of millions of people who need it.

We have an agreement now, over the last couple of days, that critical access points in Sudan to allow humanitarian assistance to get in will be opened by both the SAF and the RSF, the two competing parties. And we obviously need to see that move forward, but that's critical in bringing life-essential assistance to people who desperately need it. And as we're doing that, of course, we're working on trying to get a broader agreement on a cessation of hostilities. And there, again, the work, the coordination with Egypt has been absolutely critical. And I didn't want to leave this without telling you that this is something that we've spent a fair bit of time on as well.

MR PATEL: Thank you, everybody.

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Thanks, everyone.

MR PATEL: Thanks, guys.



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USS San Diego Departs for Japan

US Navy

20 August 2024

From Courtesy Story

SAN DIEGO -- The San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship USS San Diego (LPD 22) left San Diego, Aug. 14, for Sasebo, Japan.

San Diego will replace USS Green Bay (LPD 20), also a San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship, which has been forward deployed to Sasebo for a decade. Green Bay will return to the United States at its new homeport of San Diego.

The forward presence of San Diego supports the United States' commitment to the defense of Japan, enhances the national security of the United States and improves its ability to protect strategic interests. San Diego will directly support the Defense Strategic Guidance to posture the most capable units forward in the Indo-Pacific Region.

"USS San Diego is prepared for this move. Being forward deployed will be very rewarding for the crew and families. We appreciate all the support and fond memories of the City of San Diego, but it's time for the city's namesake USS San Diego to lead the charge. America is counting on us to deter aggression, defend our national security interests, and preserve our way of life," said Capt. David Walton, San Diego commanding officer.

San Diego was commissioned May 19, 2012, and has been stationed in San Diego for 12 years. The ship's motto is "Semper Vigilans," or "Always Vigilant." Its crest, adapted from the City of San Diego's coat of arms, recalls the city's origin as a mission settlement. The mission bell has been replaced with a ship's bell, acknowledging the city's long-standing connection to the maritime industry and the U.S. Navy. The palm wreath signifies honor and victory.

Maintaining an FDNF capability with the most advanced ships supports the United States' commitment to the defense of Japan and the security and stability of the vital Indo-Pacific region.

bilateral relationship nearly a year after the two countries upgraded to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. The program underscores the province's commitment to global partnerships and disaster preparedness.

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US Army advisors build relationships, partnership during major exercise in Africa

By Maj. Richard Dickson August 21, 2024

GABORONE, Botswana -- August 2024 was a time of excitement and successes for Botswana, from the country's first ever gold medal in the Olympic games, to the completion of exercise Southern Accord 2024 back home. In their own uniquely analogous ways, the two accomplishments highlight the teamwork, cooperation and perseverance needed to achieve strategic wins.

Exercise Southern Accord 2024, a bi-annual joint exercise sponsored by U.S. Africa Command and led by U.S. Army Southern European Task Force - Africa, brings together U.S. Army, Air Force and Botswana Defence Force personnel to conduct a variety of training. The exercise is designed to enhance bilateral military capabilities and interoperability. This year marks the first time since 2012 that Botswana hosted the exercise.

Advisors from the 2nd Security Force Assistance Brigade (2d SFAB) out of Fort Liberty, North Carolina, participated in the exercise that spanned 10 total days across 3 separate training locations in Botswana. These advisors played a critical role in the success of the exercise and the continued partnership with BDF counterparts.

U.S. Army 1st Lts. Grace Sullivan and Olivia Jeans, gender focal points with 2d SFAB, served as advisors during a Women, Peace and Security (WPS) forum in Gaborone. They conducted a subject matter expert exchange with their BDF counterparts, leading several classes over a two-day span. The result was enhanced partnership through discussion and lessons learned from both militaries, helping implement new ideas into their respective country's programs.

For the U.S. military, WPS is part of a national strategy and National Action Plan set forth by President Biden in 2023 which renewed commitment to the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325. According to a White House press release in October 2023, the focus of WPS remains on participation, protection, integration and institutionalization, partnerships, as well as relief, response and recovery.

The WPS forum at Southern Accord consisted of several classes and discussions led by both BDF and U.S. military personnel. Subjects included the roles of gender focal points, U.S. WPS framework, national, regional and international framework, as well as focusing specifically on the BDF's strategy for implementing gender perspective.

Sullivan and Jeans both attended a WPS course in Vicenza, Italy, prior to assuming their roles as Gender Focal Points, and the BDF are the first partner force with which they've worked in this capacity. Southern Accord is also their first time participating in a major exercise in Africa.

"As a junior female officer in the U.S. Army, WPS is an important initiative for myself and all other service members," said Sullivan, who is part of the U.S. Army Nurse Corps. "Women must not just be given a seat at the table. We must be heard and integrated accordingly."

Simultaneous with WPS, a Maneuver Advisor Team (MAT) conducted training in the Shoshong district of eastern Botswana. U.S. Army Capt. Jeremy Fowler, the team leader for MAT 2321, and his team served as liaisons between the BDF and the North Carolina National Guard, who shares a State Sponsorship Program with Botswana.

MAT 2321 has extensive experience on the continent of Africa, spending about a month with their BDF partners prior to the exercise and recently participating in another major SETAF-AF led event, African Lion 2024, working alongside partner forces from Morocco. Their participation in these exercises is part of a 9-month employment to Africa, which takes them to several different nations to train and share best practices with respective partner forces.

Training between the MAT and the BDF included infantry small unit tactics, operational logistics, intelligence preparation of the operational environment, and reconnaissance and security operations. These are all focus areas that both nations can implement lessons learned from one another's experiences. The training continuously focused on taking the unique experiences from both nations and building stronger partner capacity and integration.

"This has been an amazing experience," said Fowler. "Our BDF partners have been very hospitable hosts, and the relationships we've developed will last a lifetime."

The combat-focused integration between the U.S. and BDF forces developed during the exercise was put on display in a closing ceremony exhibition that included both forces conducting a simulated platoon attack in an urban area. Moving side-by-side, both forces showed their professionalism and expertise while working together to achieve a common objective, something that resonates across the tactical, operational and strategic levels.

SFAB advisors come from all different backgrounds and are meticulously chosen for their designated roles in the unit. Fowler shared that the experience of being employed for rotations in Africa as a junior officer or mid-career noncommissioned officer is invaluable. The rewards not only include joint and multinational experience, but developing friendships and learning and sharing cultural knowledge that enhance individual and unit readiness.

"The SFAB has been one of the most rewarding experiences in my military career," said Fowler. "Nowhere else in the conventional Army can you establish lasting relationships with soldiers from other countries and see the strategic impacts a small team is making. If the SFAB advisor role was a specific military occupational specialty, I would volunteer

to stay for the rest of my career."

Exercise Southern Accord 2024 came to a close August 15, 2024.

About 2SFAB

2SFAB, assigned to SETAF-AF, specializes in providing security force assistance and advisory support to African partner nations. Tasked with enhancing the tactical proficiency, operational capabilities, and overall effectiveness of African military forces, the 2nd SFAB plays a pivotal role in strengthening defense partnerships across the continent.

About SETAF-AF

SETAF-AF serves as a dedicated headquarters under U.S. Africa Command and U.S. Army Europe and Africa, coordinating Army activities across Africa to provide scalable crisis response options.

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US Army's continuous transformation seen as 44th ESB-E begins fielding Phoenix E

By Candy C Knight August 21, 2024

BAUMHOLDER, Germany -- The 44th Expeditionary Signal Battalion-Enhanced, 2d Theater Signal Brigade, embarked on a significant mission in June 2024 - fielding the Phoenix E, a crucial step in replacing the older Phoenix D system.

The Phoenix E system is a flexible, diverse multi-band, SATCOM system with the ability to operate with various military and commercial satellites and multiple satellite networks as per mission requirements. Housed in transit cases and operated from a shelter on standard military vehicles, this system offers deployment flexibility by repackaging into transit cases alone or reducing the number of vehicles needed for transportation and operation.

The older systems were returned, marking the beginning of Phoenix E inventories that will now be accounted for on the Global Combat Support System-Army battalion property list.

The Phoenix E is designed to seamlessly interface with the other equipment fielded by ESB-E formations across the Army. This includes the Scalable Network Node baseband equipment, which provides connectivity to other satellite systems in the Integrated Tactical Network.

"The Phoenix E terminal is a transportable, quad-band, multi-tactical satellite communications terminal operating in the SHF band," said Mark Owens, Supply and Service Branch Chief, 2d Theater Signal Brigade. "It incorporates Internet Protocol capable Frequency Division Multiple Access and Time Division Multiple Access Net-Centric Waveform modems to increase network diversity, robustness, and capacity along with the addition of a duel head upgrade to access two satellites and/or bands simultaneously."

The primary difference between the Phoenix D and E models is the type of equipment with which they can interface. The Phoenix E can seamlessly interface with Internet Protocol baseband equipment that the Army is transitioning to, which the Phoenix D cannot. It is a simpler design with reduced equipment but with the same high throughput capabilities. It also eliminates several obsolescence issues with the Phoenix D, which has been in the field for nearly 20 years.

This transition is not just a change in equipment but a testament to the vital role played by the battalion in the fielding process. The battalion's efforts were acknowledged and recognized with the receipt of 12 M1165A1 vehicles and six 5K generators. The transition is an indication of the scale and impact of the operation and a testament to the importance of the battalion's mission.

The 44th ESB-E is the United States Army Network Enterprise Technology Command's second overseas unit to receive Phoenix E and the first to be fully automated.

The battalion is conducting two weeks of new equipment training. The battalion provided the Project Managers Tactical Network SATCOM team with sufficient workspace to conduct fielding and assist Soldiers with system setup and tool inventory layouts.

"Program Manager Tactical Network has a specific fielding plan," said William Campbell, SATCOM Engineer, PM Tactical Network. "The process takes up to 60 days, not including system travel time to the unit location. Initially, the logistics team will in-process the Phoenix E systems at the unit being fielded after the systems arrive. A technical team follows to configure, validate and test each system to ensure it meets the system baseline and operates correctly. The logistics team then inventories and hands off the equipment to the fielded unit. A training team then conducts the 80-hour New Equipment Training, and the 12-hour Planners and Managers Training."

The 44th Expeditionary Signal Battalion-Enhanced, located in Baumholder, Germany, builds, operates and defends mission command systems and networks in support of Unified Land Operations.

The 2d Theater Signal Brigade delivers integrated and interoperable theater communications and cyber capabilities to enable decision dominance across all levels and phases of war in support of combat forces and mission partners in Europe and Africa.

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Philippines reportedly mulls expanding provisional arrangement with China after latest collision incident

Global Times

By Yu Xi Published: Aug 21, 2024 11:22 PM

The Philippines is reportedly considering broadening the scope of provisional arrangement with China to ease tensions in the South China Sea.

Alexander Lopez, the spokesperson of the maritime council of the Philippines, said in a televised briefing on Tuesday that the two countries' provisional arrangement on resupply missions to Ren'ai Jiao (Ren'ai Reef) could be "expanded to a bigger area," Bloomberg reported on Tuesday.

The provisional arrangement on humanitarian resupply of living necessities to a Philippine warship illegally grounded at Ren'ai Jiao was reached in July. The latest move of the Philippines came after two Philippine coast guard vessels, without permission from the Chinese government, intruded into the adjacent waters of Xianbin Jiao, and acted dangerously by ramming the China Coast Guard vessel on Monday.

The Chinese Embassy in the Philippines on Tuesday urged the Philippines to earnestly observe the arrangement reached with China and to refrain from taking actions that may complicate the situation. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Manila's move seriously infringes on China's sovereignty, and threatens peace and stability in the South China Sea.

The Philippines, after seeing China's determination to safeguard its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests, perhaps has started to reflect on whether its current policies are reasonable and whether they could maximize its national interests, Chen Xiangmiao, director of the world navy research center at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

Chen said that sending such a signal may be also a strategy to "let China put its guard down," and ease pressure on the Philippines through playing the victim.

China's attitude toward the Philippines has always been to listen to what it says and watch what it does, Chen said, adding "it all depends on whether the Philippines keeps its promises."

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Hezbollah conducts fresh attacks on Zionist positions

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Aug 21, 2024

Tehran, IRNA -- The Lebanese Resistance Movement Hezbollah has conducted fresh attacks on four Israeli military bases and gathering places of the Zionist regime's soldiers.

In a statement on Wednesday, Hezbollah announced that the Islamic Resistance fighters targeted a Merkava tank with a guided missile at the Al-Abbasiyah site, inflicting a direct hit, the Beirut-based Al Mayadeen news network reported.

Hezbollah fighters also targeted the Zionist regime's military base in the occupied region of Wadi Hunayn.

Also, the Islamic Resistance fighters bombarded Ramim barracks, the command headquarters of Golani units with a Katyusha missile barrage.

Hezbollah further noted that its fighters targeted the positions of Israeli occupation soldiers at the Misgav Am site with missiles, achieving direct hits.

Since the Operation Al-Aqsa Storm by the Palestinian resistance groups, Hezbollah has carried out daily retaliatory operations against Israeli targets to engage the Zionist military in northern Palestine, and taking some of the pressure off the resistance in Gaza.

Several Israeli military bases have been destroyed, and military equipment such as tanks, personnel carriers, and armored vehicles have also been targeted by the Lebanese resistance.

3266**2050

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Iran strongly slams Israel's ongoing brutal genocide in Gaza

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Aug 21, 2024

Tehran, IRNA -- Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman, Nasser Kanaani, has vehemently condemned the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza, urging the international community to implement practical measures against the apartheid regime.

In a Farsi post on his X account on Wednesday, Kanaani said that August 21 marks the anniversary of the Zionists' crime in setting fire to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, which is the first Qibla for Muslims worldwide.

He added that this day has been designated as the International Day of Mosques following a proposal by the Islamic Republic of Iran and was adopted by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

Kanaani emphasized that on the International Day of Mosques, there is a strong denunciation of the ongoing aggressions by the Zionist regime against the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the persistent brutal genocide of the Palestinian people.

While strongly condemning the widespread and horrific destruction of the Zionists in the Gaza Strip, he once again called on the world to take practical, immediate, and effective measures against the apartheid regime.

Over the past ten months, in addition to the massacre of more than 40,000 Palestinian civilians, including thousands of babies, children, and women in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, the Zionists have carried out extensive destruction of mosques and churches, and have clearly shown their hostility to the sanctities of the religions and their divine teachings to the whole world, he underlined.

3266**2050





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Hezbollah launches fresh attacks on Israeli-controlled positions

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Aug 21, 2024

Tehran, IRNA -- Lebanon's Hezbollah targeted the Zionist settlements and the Israeli army's positions in the north of occupied Palestine and the occupied Golan in Syria with missiles and drones.

Lebanon's Hezbollah in a statement announced that in the framework of supporting the people of Gaza and the Palestinian resistance and in response to the Zionist regime's aggression in the Beqaa, Lebanon, the Zionist regime's base in the occupied Golan region of Syria was targeted by Katyusha missiles.

Lebanon's Hezbollah in another statement announced that it targeted Hadab Yaron site in the north of Palestine with a Kamikaze drone.

In line with supporting the steadfast Palestinian nation in the Gaza Strip and helping its brave and honorable resistance, after monitoring the Israeli enemy soldiers and the movements of a group of Israeli soldiers around barracks in Zariit, Islamic resistance fighters targeted there with artillery on Wednesday.

Hezbollah, in line with decreasing the pressures put by the Zionists on the resistance groups in Gaza, has been taking heavy operations against the Israeli regime's bases on Palestinian soil since the outset of the Gaza war last October.

9376**9417





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Iraqi resistance conducts drone attack on Eilat

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Aug 21, 2024

Tehran, IRNA -- The Iraqi resistance says it has attacked an important Israeli target in the Port of Eilat with several drones.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq said that it targeted the Eilat port, also known as Umm al-Rashrash, in the occupied territories with several drones.

The resistance movement said its fighters launched the attack on an Israeli air base in Eilat.

The Zionist regime's media reported earlier that warning alarms sounded in the Eilat port air space in the south of occupied Palestine.

The Iraqi resistance has warned the occupying regime of more severe attacks if it continues its genocidal war against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health in a statement on Tuesday announced that at least 40,173 Palestinians have been killed and 92,857 others wounded since the beginning of the Israeli regime's war on Gaza on October 7 last year.

7129**4354

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A look at the Defence news 12 - 18 August

Netherlands Ministry of Defence

News item | 21-08-2024 | 08:00

On 15 August, a ceremony was held at the Dutch East Indies monument in The Hague to commemorate the liberation of the Dutch East Indies following the capitulation of Japan, 79 years ago.

This event marked the end of the Second World War. The ceremony honoured all civilian and military victims of the Japanese occupation.

New Bronbeek exhibition tells the story of the Dutch East Indies

The rise and fall of the Dutch East Indies is the topic of the new permanent exhibition at the Bronbeek Museum in Arnhem. The Netherlands Minister of Defence, Ruben Brekelmans, opened the exhibition.

No cause for celebration on anniversary of Geneva Conventions

This year it is 75 years since the Geneva Conventions were established. Last week, the international humanitarian law platform (Nationaal Platform Humanitair Oorlogsrecht) released a statement saying that the rules of this humanitarian law are as relevant as ever and the world should cherish them. The platform unites representatives from the Netherlands Ministries of Defence and Foreign Affairs, and the Red Cross. Even though the platform considers the 75th anniversary a milestone, it also says that there is no reason for celebration, considering the level of human suffering in today's conflict areas.

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Security exec: PH has 'unassailable rights' to WPS

Philippine News Agency

By Priam Nepomuceno

August 21, 2024, 2:12 pm Updated on August 21, 2024, 5:32 pm

MANILA -- National Security Adviser (NSA) Eduardo Ano has reiterated Manila's "unassailable rights" in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) amid China's latest aggressive actions on air and sea.

Ano made this assertion in Tuesday's phone conference with US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, according to a statement from the National Security Council (NSC) released on Wednesday.

"The two NSAs exchanged information on the current maritime security situation in the region and particularly raised grave concerns on the recent illegal, aggressive, and dangerous actions of China's People's Liberation Army-Air Force (PLAAF) against a Philippine Air Force (PAF) aircraft conducting a routine maritime security operation over Bajo de Masinloc; and Chinese Coast Guard vessels against Philippine Coast Guard ships while en route to Patag Island and Lawak Island in the WPS," it added.

The NSC was referring to the Aug. 8 incident where two Chinese jet fighters dropped flares near the flight path of a PAF NC-212i aircraft which was then on a maritime patrol over Bajo de Masinloc, and the Aug. 19 incident near Escoda Shoal, where China Coast Guard ships harassed and conducted dangerous maneuvers that heavily damaged two Philippine Coast Guard vessels.

During his talk with Sullivan, Ano said the Philippines' unassailable rights in the WPS are based on international law, including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the 2016 Arbitral Award.

He also thanked the US government for its unwavering support and ironclad commitment to the Philippines-United States alliance.

Meanwhile, Sullivan lauded the recently concluded inaugural Philippines-Vietnam joint coast guard exercise and Manila's efforts to expand the conduct of maritime cooperative activities with like-minded countries in the region and beyond.

"The two NSAs look forward to the implementation of strategic priorities to accelerate the Philippines' capability development and to continuously modernize the alliance," the NSC added.

Meanwhile, Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra said the newly established National Maritime Council (NMC) would decide the country's next step regarding these incidents.

The NMC was created by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. through Executive Order (EO) 57, issued on March 25 to strengthen the Philippines' maritime security and increase maritime domain awareness among Filipinos amid China's aggressive tactics and threats in the WPS.

"Any legal action by the Philippines regarding maritime issues in the West Philippine Sea must first be deliberated by the National Maritime Council," Guevarra said, adding that the final decision would rest with the President. (With a report from Benjamin Pulta/PNA)

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Hamas, Islamic Jihad leaders meet in Doha amid continued Israeli genocide

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 21 August 2024 11:31 PM

Senior figures from the Gaza Strip-based Palestinian resistance movements of Hamas and Islamic Jihad have met in the Qatari capital Doha, discussing the latest political and field developments concerning the Israeli regime's ongoing war of genocide against the coastal sliver.

The meeting took place at Hamas' headquarters in Doha on Wednesday between a delegation hailing from the group's leadership and Ziyad al-Nakhala, the Islamic Jihad's secretary general, and his deputy Mohammad al-Hindi.

"They emphasized the necessity of stopping the aggression and war being waged against our people and holding the officials of the occupation accountable for their crimes against humanity," Hamas said of the meeting in a statement.

The regime has been waging the war on Gaza since October last year in response to a retaliatory operation staged by the territory's resistance groups. At least 40,223 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed and 92,981 others injured so far during the brutal military onslaught.

The resistance leaders also addressed "the steadfastness of the resistance, and its ability to strike throughout all occupied Palestine."

They were referring to the numerous operations that resistance groups from Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen have been conducting against the occupied Palestinian territories in support of the war-hit Gazans.

The resistance officials, meanwhile, addressed the negotiations, which were being held in Doha aimed at potential conclusion of a truce deal that could halt the war.

They held the Israeli regime responsible for thwarting the efforts of the mediators by insisting on continuing the aggression and reneging on previous agreements, particularly the proposal that Hamas agreed on in July.

On July 2, the movement announced its approval of the proposal that had been forwarded by the administration of US President Joe Biden featuring a permanent ceasefire, the regime's withdrawal from Gaza, and initiation of a reconstruction process among other things.

The regime, however, rejected the plan and later came up with new conditions, including keeping its forces inside Gaza along the territory's border with Egypt.

The resistance officials, however, reaffirmed that any agreement had to ensure a complete halt to the aggression and complete withdrawal of the regime's forces from Gaza. Such a deal also had to envision commencement of the territory's reconstruction and removal of a siege that Tel Aviv has been simultaneously enforcing against it, they added.

"The participants stressed the necessity of ensuring the rapid delivery of humanitarian aid and the needs of the people in Gaza regardless of the outcomes of the ongoing indirect negotiations," the officials noted.

"They warned of the consequences of the continued collective punishments imposed by the occupation on our people in the Gaza Strip."

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Hamas calls for end to decades-long Israeli terrorism against Palestinians

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 21 August 2024 5:17 PM

On the occasion of the international day of remembrance of terror victims, the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas has called for an end to decades-long Israeli terrorism against the Palestinians and the regime's occupation of Palestine.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Gaza-based resistance group, while referring to the International Day of Remembrance and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism, said Palestinians are the prime example of falling victims to Israel's terrorism and occupation for the past several decades.

"Our Palestinian people have been victims of organized and continuous terrorism for more than seven decades. We call for an end to the ... terrorism of the occupying Zionist entity, halt to its aggression, and end to its unjust occupation of our land," Hamas stated.

Back in 2017, the United Nations General Assembly designated August 21 as an international day to honor the victims and survivors of terrorism in order to allow victims of terrorism to have their needs supported and their rights upheld.

Hamas said while the UN and the countries around the globe celebrate the aforementioned day, "our Palestinian people are still being subjected to the most heinous war of genocide, ethnic cleansing, and systematic destruction of all aspects of human life in the Gaza Strip."

"Over the course of ten months of aggression and genocide, more than 40,000 martyrs have been killed, most of whom are women and children, in addition to more than 93,000 wounded and injured, over 10,000 missing under the rubble, and thousands who were kidnapped and detained in occupation prisons and detention centers amidst international inability and failure to stop the terrorism of the Zionist entity against more than two million Palestinian citizens in the Gaza Strip," the resistance movement said.

Hamas said the establishment of such an international day to remember victims of terrorism "places the United Nations and the international community with its institutions and agencies before a historical responsibility to work seriously and responsibly to expose the terrorism of this Zionist entity against our people."

Hamas added that the occasion also makes the UN "escalate and continue all practical measures to prosecute it (Israel) in the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court."

The resistance movement cautioned the UN against being "satisfied with the statements and condemnations that the fascist occupation" regime makes "in light of the American bias and support, and the absence of (an international) deterrence to curb its terrorism against our land, people and sanctities."

The regime has had in place a near-total siege on the war-torn Gaza Strip, which has reduced to a trickle the flow of foodstuffs, medicine, electricity, and water into the Palestinian territory.

Palestinian people have been victims of decades-long Israeli terrorism and aggression "in flagrant violation of all international norms and covenants and divine laws, and in defiance and blatant disregard for the resolutions issued by international and UN institutions as a rogue entity that is free from all human values and moral principles," Hamas added.

The Gaza-based resistance movement also held the international community fully responsible for Israel's ongoing and escalating terrorism against Palestinians in Gaza, the occupied West Bank, Jerusalem al-Quds and the occupied lands of 1948

"We call for an end to the terrorism of the Zionist occupation and an end to its aggression and the war of genocide it is committing against the Gaza Strip. We also call for justice for our people in their legitimate rights and struggle to defend themselves and their lands, and work to end the Zionist occupation, the cause of this ongoing suffering," Hamas stated.

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Israel bombs yet another school in Gaza City

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 21 August 2024 2:45 PM

Israel's military forces have bombed yet another school housing displaced Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

The Gaza Media Office said on Wednesday the Israeli military struck Salah al-Din School and a nearby house in Gaza City, killing four people and wounding 18.

Israel's military also confirmed the attack on the school building, but claimed it has targeted a Hamas command and control center inside the school.

The Palestinian resistance group has not reacted to the military's statement yet, but it has repeatedly denied that its fighters operate from civilian facilities such as schools and hospitals.

Schools in the Gaza Strip have been used to shelter nearly two million displaced Palestinians, since Israel launched its campaign of death and destruction in Gaza on October 7.

In an attack on another school in Gaza City, the regime's forces killed at least 12 people on Tuesday.

According to an Al-Jazeera report, in the past ten months, Israeli forces have hit more than 500 schools in Gaza.

The military forces have killed more than 40,200 people in the Palestinian territory since early October, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. The toll includes 50 deaths in the past 24 hours, according to ministry figures.

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Israel assassinates Fatah official in airstrike in southern Lebanon

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 21 August 2024 11:13 AM

An official with the Palestinian Fatah movement has been killed after the Israeli military carried out an airstrike in southern Lebanon, as tensions continue to escalate.

Fathi Abu al-Aradat, a senior member of the Palestinian movement, identified the victim as Khalil al-Maqdah, saying the Fatah official was killed after an Israeli strike hit his vehicle near the southern Lebanese city of Sidon.

The latest incident marks the first such attack on Palestinian movement Fatah in over 10 months of clashes between fighters of Lebanon's resistance movement Hezbollah and the Israeli military.

Lebanese media also confirmed the strike, with al-Nahar Arabic-language daily newspaper reporting that several people were injured in the attack.

Footage posted by Lebanese media showed a car engulfed in flames, with thick black smoke rising as a crowd gathers.

Hezbollah and Israel have been exchanging fire since early October, shortly after the occupying regime launched its war on Gaza.

The movement has vowed to keep up its retaliatory operations as long as the Tel Aviv regime continues its onslaught on Gaza that has so far killed more than 40,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured tens of thousands others.

In its most daring attack against Lebanon since the beginning of the Gaza onslaught, Israel assassinated Fuad Shukr, a senior Hezbollah military commander and an advisor to the movement's Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, in a strike against a building in a suburb of Beirut late in July.

Hezbollah has pledged to avenge the blood of Fuad Shukr, as well as Ismail Haniyeh, the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas' former political leader, who was assassinated in a separate assassination operation conducted by Tel Aviv in the Iranian capital Tehran late last month.

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Iraqi resistance vows to 'surprise' enemy inside, outside Iraq after attacking Ain al-Assad

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 21 August 2024 8:52 AM

A major Iraqi resistance group has claimed responsibility for a strike on the US-occupied Ain al-Assad Airbase in the west of the Arab country, saying it would launch further attacks that will "surprise" the enemy.

Haider al-Lami, a member of the political office of the Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba, made the remarks on Tuesday, after a rocket strike wounded five US personnel at Ain al-Asad airbase in Iraq's western province of Anbar last week.

"In the coming days, we will witness unprecedented attacks by the Iraqi resistance, which will surprise the enemy inside and outside of Iraq," he said.

On August 15, three explosions were heard near Ain al-Asad airbase, leaving five US military personnel wounded.

Iraqi resistance groups have vowed to continue their operations against military bases, where American military forces are stationed.

Iraqi resistance forces have conducted dozens of strikes on the US-run military installations in both Iraq and Syria amid growing anti-US sentiments in the region over Washington's support for Israel's genocidal war against Gaza, which has so far killed over 40,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

There are nearly 2,500 American troops in Iraq and some 900 in Syria as part of, what Washington claims to be, a fighting force against Daesh.

The US has maintained its presence, although the Arab countries and their allies defeated the Takfiri terrorist group in late 2017.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq has also been launching attacks on Israeli targets ever since the occupying regime started the genocidal war on Gaza.

On Monday, it carried out new operations against Israeli military targets on the occupied Syrian Golan Heights.

Also on Tuesday, the umbrella group of resistance factions said it had targeted the regime's military site in the occupied Umm al-Rashrash also known as Eilat.

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Aug 20: 'Axis of Resistance' operations against Israeli occupation

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 21 August 2024 8:25 AM

By Press TV Website Staff

Amid Israel's genocidal war on Gaza, which has killed nearly 40,200 Palestinians so far, the majority of them children, resistance groups in Palestine and across the region continue their operations against the Tel Aviv regime and its Western backers.

The major operations carried out by the Palestinian and regional resistance groups on Tuesday, August 20, are as follows:

Al-Qassam Brigades' operations on Aug 20:

Engaged in combat with Israeli special forces unit at point-blank range using hand grenades and machine guns in the Canada area of Tal Al-Sultan neighborhood, west of Rafah city, southern Gaza Strip.

Targeted Israeli forces fortified inside a house next to Al-Qadisiya School with a TBG shell in the western camp of Tal Al-Sultan neighborhood, west of Rafah city in the southern Gaza Strip.

Targeted and destroyed a "Merkava" tank with an Al-Yassin 105 shell near Al-Quds Open University in the Tal Al-Sultan neighborhood, west of Rafah city, southern Gaza Strip.

Al-Quds Brigades' operations on Aug 20:

In a joint operation with Omar Al-Qasim Forces and Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, targeted supply lines of the Israeli military in the Netzarim axis surrounding the "Turkish Hospital" with 107mm rockets and mortar shells.

Targeted the gathering of Israeli soldiers and their military vehicles that were advancing in the vicinity of Omar Al-Agha School in the Al-Qarara area, northeast of Khan Younis city, southern Gaza Strip, with a barrage of mortar shells.

Detonated a pre-prepared high-powered Rabie-1 explosive device on a convoy of Israeli military vehicles storming the Aqaba Junction axis in Tayaseer, Tubas, occupied West Bank.

Ambushed an Israeli force near Al-Salam Mosque and opened fire at them in the city of Nablus, occupied West Bank.

Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades' operations on Aug 20:

Launched an anti-armor shell at a "Namer" armored personnel carrier in the Tal Al-Sultan neighborhood near the Red Housing in the city of Rafah, southern Gaza Strip.

In a joint operation with the Martyr Abdulqader Al-Husseini Brigades, sniped an Israeli soldier holed up in a home in Yabna camp in the central of Rafah, southern Gaza Strip.

In a joint operation with the Al-Quds Brigades and the Martyr Omar Al-Qasim Forces, bombed the supply line in the "Netzarim" axis surrounding the Turkish Hospital with 107mm missiles and mortar shells.

In a joint operation with the Martyr Abdulqader Al-Husseini Brigades, blew up an Israeli military Merkava 4 Baz tank with a highly explosive "Yasser 2" bomb, around the Al-Qadisiyah intersection in the Tal Al-Sultan neighborhood, west of Rafah city, southern Gaza Strip.

Targeted a gathering of Israeli soldiers and their military vehicles in the Al-Qarara area northeast of the city of Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, with mortar shells.

Targeted command and control headquarters of the Israeli military in the "Netzarim" axis with two 107 mm missiles and heavy-caliber mortar shells.

Martyr Omar Al-Qasim Forces' operations on Aug 20:

In a joint operation with Al-Quds Brigades and Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, targeted supply lines of the Israeli military in the "Netzarim" axis surrounding the "Turkish Hospital" with 107mm rockets and mortar shells.

Al-Asifah Forces' operations on Aug 20:

Targeted gatherings of Israeli soldiers and military vehicles in the "Netzarim" axis with 107mm rockets.

Martyr Omar Al-Qasim Forces' operations on Aug 20:

Detonated an anti-personnel explosive device on Israeli soldiers in the Al-Salam neighborhood, east of Rafah, southern Gaza Strip.

Martyr Abdulqader Al-Husseini Brigades' operations on Aug 20:

Engaged in fierce clashes with Israeli soldiers around the Hamad city area.

Targeted the Israeli military's command and control site in the "Netzarim" axis with two 107 mm rockets.

Hezbollah's operations on Aug 20:

The command center of the Golan Division 210 in the Nafah site and the armored brigade of Division 210 in the Yarden site were targeted with rockets.

The Branit site was targeted with appropriate weapons.

The headquarters of Division 146 in Jaatoun was targeted with Katyusha rockets.

The surveillance equipment at the Jal Al-Alam site was targeted with appropriate weapons.

The Marj site was targeted with rockets.

The Ramia site was targeted with artillery shells.

The Shoumera site was targeted with Katyusha rockets.

The Metat site was targeted with Katyusha rockets.

The command center of the 7th Armored Brigade of the Golan Division 210 in the Katzavia site was targeted with drones.

The Ya'ara site was targeted with Katyusha rockets.

The Birkat Risha site was targeted with artillery shells.

A surface-to-air missile was launched against a warplane that violated the Lebanese airspace, forcing it to retreat.

Islamic Resistance in Iraq's operations on Aug 20:

Targeted a vital military site in the occupied Um Al-Rashrash "Eilat" with a drone.

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Israeli airstrikes in Yemen's port city of Hudaydah kill 3 civilians, injure 90

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 21 August 2024 1:27 AM

The Yemeni health ministry says an Israeli attack on the port city of Hudaydah has killed at least three civilians and wounded 90 more.

Yemeni officials said the attack on Tuesday targeted oil storage facilities and a power plant in the country's south.

The Israeli army has also confirmed that its fighter jets struck targets in Yemen.

A spokesman for the Ansarallah resistance movement has slammed the attack, saying that pressuring Yemen to stop supporting Gaza is doomed to fail.

The group also said Israel will pay the price of the attack.

Israel also attacked oil storage facilities and a power plant in Hudaydah on July 20.

At least nine people were killed and 87 others wounded in the Israeli air raids when Israeli warplanes struck more than two dozen oil storage tanks and two shipping cranes in the Yemeni port as well as a power plant in the province.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Monday denounced last month's Israeli airstrikes on the Hudaydah port as a "possible war crime."

"The attacks appeared to cause disproportionate harm to civilians and civilian objects," the New York-based rights group said.

"Serious violations of the laws of war committed willfully, that is deliberately or recklessly, are war crimes."

Iran strongly condemns Israeli attack

Iran strongly condemned the Israeli attack on Hudaydah port facilities.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan'ani said that the oppressed but powerful people of Yemen are paying the price for supporting the innocent women and children of Gaza.

Kan'ani added the attacks demonstrated the aggressive nature of the child-killing Israeli regime, warning such dangerous adventures would further spread the war and escalate tensions across the region.

Kan'ani said the Zionist regime and its supporters; in particular, the United States bear direct responsibility for any unpredictable and dangerous consequences resulting from the attacks.

Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah denounce Israeli strike

The Palestinian resistance movement Hamas also condemned Tel Aviv.

The group said Israel will undoubtedly be burned by the fire that broke out in Hudaydah.

Condemning the Israeli aggression, the Islamic Jihad said it would not have been possible without the blatant support of the US administration and the British government.

Hezbollah in a statement has voiced support for the Yemeni people in defending their sovereignty.

Yemenis have declared their open support for Palestine's struggle against the Israeli occupation since the regime launched a devastating war on Gaza on October 7 after the territory's Palestinian resistance movements carried out a surprise retaliatory attack, dubbed Operation Al-Aqsa Storm, against the occupying entity.

The Yemeni Armed Forces have said that they won't stop their attacks until unrelenting Israeli ground and aerial offensives in Gaza end.

Israel launched its brutal campaign of genocide in Gaza on October 7, 2023, after Palestinian resistance groups conducted a surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Storm into the occupied territories.

The regime has had in place a near-total siege on the coastal territory, which has reduced to a trickle the flow of foodstuffs, medicine, electricity, and water into the Palestinian territory.

Israel has killed more than 40,000 Gazans, most of them women, children, and adolescents.

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Iraqi resistance strikes vital Israeli military site

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 21 August 2024 12:35 AM

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq has carried out new operations against a vital Israeli military site.

The umbrella group of resistance factions said on Tuesday that it targeted the regime's military site in the occupied Umm Al-Rashrash also known as Eilat.

The group added that the operation was in support of Palestinians and in response to Israel's ongoing genocidal war in Gaza.

The Iraqi resistance group has repeatedly stated that it will continue its anti-Israel operations if the Gaza genocide continues.

Regional resistance groups have repeatedly targeted sensitive and important Israeli bases in occupied Palestine.

They have also targeted American sites in Iraq and Syria in recent months amid growing anger at the US support for Israel's bloody war on the Gaza Strip.

Israel's genocidal war against Gaza has so far killed more than 40,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

On Sunday evening, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq carried out operations against Israeli military targets on the occupied Syrian Golan Heights.

The Iraqi resistance said that the operations were in support of Palestinians and in response to Israel's massacres of civilians in Gaza.

There are nearly 2,500 American troops in Iraq and some 900 in Syria as part of, what Washington claims to be, a fighting force against Daesh.

The US has maintained its presence, although, the Arab countries and their allies defeated the Takfiri terrorist group in late 2017.

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Taliban Bars UN's Human Rights Envoy From Entering Afghanistan

By RFE/RL's Radio Azadi August 21, 2024

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers have banned UN's Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Richard Bennett from entering the country, spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid was quoted as saying by private Afghan broadcaster Tolo. Mujahid accused Bennett of providing "false" information about the situation in Afghanistan and spreading "propaganda." Bennett called the ban "a step backwards" and said it "sends a concerning signal" about the Taliban's engagement with the United Nations and the international community on human rights. Bennett was appointed in 2022 to monitor Afghanistan's human rights situation. He has traveled to Afghanistan several times and pointed to grave human rights violations, especially against Afghan women and girls.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/bennet-un-rapporteur-taliban- mujahid/33086738.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Despite U.S. Optimism, Israel-Hamas Cease-Fire Deal Appears Some Way Off

By Kian Sharifi August 21, 2024

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in the Middle East hoping to broker an elusive cease-fire deal aimed at ending Israel's devastating war in the Gaza Strip.

But the top U.S. diplomat left the region on August 21 -- his ninth visit during the 10-month-old war -- without securing any major breakthroughs.

Experts say key differences remain between Israel and EU- and U.S.-designated Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, the two sides in the conflict.

"This is still very much a work in progress, and I'm personally not optimistic," said Firas Maksad, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute in Washington.

'Sheen Of Optimism'

Ahead of Blinken's latest visit, U.S. officials expressed optimism that a cease-fire deal was closer than ever.

He traveled to Israel, Egypt, and Qatar in a bid to inject urgency to secure an agreement. During his stay in Tel Aviv, he warned that this was "maybe the last opportunity" to secure a deal.

But Blinken appeared to be downbeat in comments he made as he ended his tour of the region.

Confidence had grown after Blinken met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and announced that Israel had accepted a U.S. "bridging proposal" aimed at narrowing the gaps between the two sides in the war. He then urged Hamas to do the same.

But just a day later, Netanyahu was quoted by Israeli media as disagreeing on a key sticking point -- the full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza.

Hamas has not explicitly rejected the U.S. proposal, but said it went against previously agreed terms.

Washington has been keen to add urgency to the protracted cease-fire talks after Israel's suspected assassinations of Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas, in Iran and a senior Hizballah commander in Lebanon last month. Tehran, which backs Hamas and Hizballah, has vowed revenge, sparking fears of a wider regional war.

Maksad said the United States is putting a "sheen of optimism" on the talks to pressure Israel and Hamas into accepting the proposed cease-fire deal and to assure Iran and Hizballah that progress is being made.

The goal, Maksad added, is to prevent an Iranian-led attack on Israel and avert an all-out war in the volatile region.

Iran has so far delayed its retaliation against Israel and has suggested that it does not want its actions to impact cease-fire talks.

'War May Not Actually End'

Experts say it is not even clear if the two men central to the negotiations want peace -- Netanyahu and Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, who has been blamed for masterminding the deadly October 7 attacks in Israel that triggered the war in Gaza.

Key members of Netanyahu's right-wing coalition are opposed to a cease-fire deal.

"[Netanyahu] knows his coalition in the Knesset would be at risk if he signs a deal that ends the war," said Michael Horowitz, head of intelligence at the Bahrain-based Le Beck International consultancy.

Meanwhile, Hamas may be waiting for an Iranian strike on Israel, "which would escalate regional tensions and may give the group more leverage in the future," Horowitz added.

Maksad said that Sinwar from the onset of the war has "wanted to very much draw in Iran and its various proxies in support of his cause."

What could potentially complicate matters further is the attempted suicide bombing in Tel Aviv on August 18, which Hamas claimed to have carried out in cooperation with the Palestinian Islamic Jihad extremist group.

Hamas renounced suicide attacks in 2006 before taking over in Gaza as it sought more legitimacy and international recognition. But the return of suicide operations could have consequences, according to experts.

"It suggests the war may not actually end, but may only morph into something more terrifying, more destructive, and ultimately more threatening both to Israeli security and the future hopes of a Palestinian state," said Gregory Brew, a senior analyst at the U.S.-based Eurasia Group.

Deal's Sticking Points

Specific details of the U.S. cease-fire proposal have been kept under wraps, but analysts say it envisions a multiphase deal.

Horowitz said the first phase would include a gradual withdrawal of Israeli troops from most of Gaza and the release of some of the scores of Israeli hostages held by Hamas in return for Palestinian prisoners.

Negotiations would also be held to facilitate a permanent cease-fire during the second phase.

"Hamas is concerned that, even if it signs the U.S. bridging proposal, talks for a permanent cease-fire between phase 1 and phase 2 will fail, and Israel will use this as an excuse to resume the war," he said.

Horowitz said that Netanyahu wants to retain the right to decide which Palestinian detainees are released in the prisoner exchange. Crucially, he added, Netanyahu also wants the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to maintain a presence along at least one of two strategic corridors in the Gaza Strip.

The Philadelphi corridor is a narrow strip of land running along the enclave's southern border with Egypt. The Netzarim corridor, which runs just south of Gaza City, divides the territory into southern and northern sections.

"Hamas's main objective is to secure a permanent end to the war and the full withdrawal of all IDF troops -- to that end, accepting Israel's right to keep troops inside the territory is unacceptable," said Brew.

He added that "without Israeli concessions on Philadelphi or Netzarim -- or, less likely, a full Hamas retreat from the issue -- a deal doesn't look likely."

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/us-israel-hamas-gaza- ceasefire-optimism/33087279.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Dodik Denies That Secession From Bosnia Has Ever Been Policy Of Republika Srpska

By RFE/RL's Balkan Service August 21, 2024

SARAJEVO -- Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik denied on August 21 that the Serbian entity of Bosnia-Herzegovina has ever pursued a policy of secession and or disputed the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Bosnia under the Dayton agreement.

Dodik said, however, that Republika Srpska "has the right to a political fight for its status" under the Dayton agreement.

Dodik made the comments a day after CIA Director William Burns visited Sarajevo amid what a U.S. government official described to RFE/RL as "worrying secessionist rhetoric and actions."

Bosnia "is a community of two equal entities and three constituent peoples, so I encourage Mr. Burns' position that the responsibility for the functioning of the country lies with all ethnic communities," Dodik said on X.

He also said he welcomed cooperation in the area of terrorism, indicating that he believed Burns made the visit to discuss that topic.

"The fight against terrorism is a duty of the entire free world. In this context, the visit by the CIA director, Mr. William Burns, to Bosnia-Herzegovina is important," he said. "Republika Srpska is committed to this fight and welcomes any cooperation in this sphere."

The U.S. official who spoke with RFE/RL about Burns' visit said the CIA director held meetings at the Bosnian presidency with colleagues in the intelligence community, members of the presidency, and the foreign minister.

"They discussed issues of mutual interest, which include the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Bosnia-Herzegovina," according to the official, who asked not to be named.

Dodik, who has been designated for sanctions by the United States, backed a proposal in May that called for the "disassociation" of Republika Srpska from Bosnia. The United States called it "secession by another name" and said it contradicted the Dayton agreement, which ended the 1992-95 Bosnian War.

Dodik has also raised concerns among Bosnia's Western allies because of his ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Dodik reaffirmed in February after meeting Putin in the Russian republic of Tatarstan that Republika Srpska would not join Western sanctions against Moscow over its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Denis Becirovic, the current chairman of Bosnia's tripartite presidency, expressed gratitude to Burns for U.S. assistance to Bosnia in building a democratic and multiethnic state. He said he told Burns that the dangerous anti-Dayton policy of Republika Srpska threatens peace and security in Bosnia and the region.

"This is a very important visit, primarily from the security aspect, but it is also a confirmation of the strong support of the United States for the independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of Bosnia-Herzegovina," Becirovic said on Facebook.

Almir Dzuvo, the chief of Bosnia's Intelligence and Security Agency, who met with Burns on August 20, told RFE/RL that that the visit had been agreed to earlier and that Burns "expressed support for cooperation' between the two countries' intelligence agencies and between the United States and Bosnia.

Analysts and current and former Bosnian officials considered the visit a response to the challenges posed by the Kremlin's influence in the region and the secessionist aspirations of pro-Russian Bosnian politicians.

"I am convinced that this is a serious problem, because the director of the CIA rarely goes on such missions and publicly announces it," said Srdja Pavlovic, a historian and associate of the Wirth Institute at the University of Alberta in Canada. "I suppose that one of the reasons is the growing malign influence of Serbia and Russia in the Balkans," Pavlovic told RFE/RL.

Margarita Assenova, a senior fellow at the Jamestown Foundation in Washington, agreed that Serbia has been stirring up trouble in Bosnia for some time and it's become "more visible and more dangerous."

Burns' visit is a "very good message" to Serbia that the United States will not tolerate its actions, Assenova said.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/bosnia-dodik-republika- srpska-burns-secession/33087559.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Secretary Blinken's Call with Jordanian Foreign Minister Safadi

US Department of State

Readout

Office of the Spokesperson

August 21, 2024

The below is attributable to Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel:

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke with Jordan's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Ayman Safadi. The Secretary stressed the urgent need to finalize the ceasefire deal that would alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian people and secure the release of hostages. The Secretary underscored that the bridging proposal presented by the negotiators addressed the remaining gaps in a manner that allows for swift implementation of the deal. The Secretary also discussed the importance of reducing tensions in the region and reaffirmed the commitment of the United States to the preservation of the historic status quo at Jerusalem's holy sites. Secretary Blinken reiterated his gratitude for Jordan's leadership in providing life-saving humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians.

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Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General

Department of Public Information . News and Media Division . New York

21 August 2024

The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today's noon briefing by Stephane Dujarric, Spokesman for the Secretary-General.

** Secretary-General/Deputy Secretary-General's Travels

Alright, good afternoon. Our Secretary-General is in Apia, in Samoa, where later today he is expected to meet with the Prime Minister of Samoa [Fiame Naomi Mataafa]. He will also visit a district which has been impacted by climate change and will have a chance to speak to local residents who have been forced to move due to sea level rise and coastal erosion, and hear of their experiences. The Secretary-General will then visit the new wing of the new UN House, which was just completed by the Government, and is expected to meet with UN staff. And tomorrow he will meet with civil society representatives including women and youth before he heads to Auckland, New Zealand.

Also, to flag that our Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed, is just traveling from Egypt and she is about to land in Mongolia. In the capital, Ulaanbaatar, she will participate in the World Women's Forum at the invitation of the Government. While in Mongolia, she will meet with senior government officials, nomadic communities and other stakeholders. And we will obviously keep you informed of all of their activities.

** Security Council

Back here this morning, the Security Council heard a briefing from Elizabeth Spehar, the Assistant Secretary-General for Peacebuilding Support. The theme of the open debate on peacebuilding and sustaining peace was "The New Agenda for Peace  addressing global, regional and national aspects of conflict prevention". Ms. Spehar said that building and sustaining peace is central to the work of the Security Council and of the United Nations. And yet, she said, the number of conflicts is at a decade-long high, inflicting unimaginable suffering and devastating economies and robbing communities of their future. Ms. Spehar pointed out that as outlined in the Secretary-General's report on A New Agenda for Peace, prioritizing conflict prevention and peacebuilding can contribute to reversing these trends. It can also provide people affected by violence with opportunities and reduce the human and economic costs of war, she said. Her full remarks were shared with you.

** Myanmar

And I wanted to share with you an update on the situation in Myanmar, which we have not updated you on for some time. In Myanmar, where conflict is widespread, the deteriorating situation in northern Shan, Mandalay region, and Rakhine State is driving displacement of human beings. Reports we are receiving show intensifying hostilities in Rakhine have caused casualties and new displacement, notably in Maungdaw Township, on the border with Bangladesh. On 5 August, an estimated 20,000 people were reportedly displaced from three downtown Maungdaw wards. There are also reports of more people crossing into Bangladesh. In northern Shan, there has been a resurgence of fighting since late June, with an estimated 33,000 people displaced from four townships. There are also reports of civilian casualties; homes and other structures have also been destroyed according to the information we're getting.

Torrential monsoon rains since the end of June are aggravating the already dire humanitarian situation. Some 393,000 men, women and children have been impacted by this flooding. The 2024 Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan, which aims to reach some 5.3 million people across the country, is focusing on displaced people, hard-to-reach conflict areas and locations with the most severe needs. However, of the $993 million which we need to implement this Plan, we've only received 23 per cent, which means that just over $225 million are in the bank. Despite the challenges, some 2.1 million people across Myanmar were reached by UN and other humanitarian partners during the first half of this year. They received assistance such as food, health, nutrition and water and sanitation support. More resources are urgently needed for partners to respond at scale to the growing needs of this crisis.

** Occupied Palestinian Territory

Turning to the situation in Gaza, our colleagues in the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs continue to sound the alarm and warn of the mass evacuation orders issued by the Israeli military this month that are pushing people into overcrowded and unsafe areas along the coast while making it even more difficult for aid organizations to operate. The evacuation orders issued today for part of Deir al Balah and Khan Younis have impacted 115 sites that are hosting more than 150,000 men, women and children who have been displaced. This includes 80 makeshift sites, 4 United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and others' centres, and 29 informal shelters. As with past evacuation orders, today's directives also impact our offices, warehouses and residences used by us and other humanitarian organizations as well as the families of staff. Following today's evacuation from Deir al Balah, many aid workers had to evacuate their homes once again with their families.

Today's orders have made three water wells inaccessible. Those wells serve tens of thousands of people. In Deir al Balah, the water supply has decreased by 70 per cent, and there are also critical shortages of sanitation and hygiene materials. So far in August, the Israeli authorities have issued 11 evacuation orders impacting about a quarter of a million people. To put that figure into context, at the start of August, we already estimated that some 90 per cent of Gaza's current population of 2.1 million people had already been displaced at least once since 7 October 2023. This month's directives have also cut off sections of Salah ad Din road, a main passage for humanitarian movements. This has forced aid operations through the Coastal Road, which is extremely difficult to use due to the high level of informal settlements and people moving along those roads, which makes it difficult to move trucks, if not impossible.

As we have said repeatedly, there is no safe place in Gaza. People displaced in the wake of these evacuation orders face grave risks for their safety while fleeing, and they are arriving in areas with little to no supplies or services for them. Civilians must be allowed to seek protection. Those displaced must also be guaranteed the right to voluntary return. Meanwhile, violence is ongoing in the West Bank, as well. According to our Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs update, as of Monday, it says that more than 600 Palestinians were killed in the West Bank, as well as East Jerusalem, since October - the vast majority by Israeli forces, and at least 11 by Israeli settlers. During the same period, 15 Israelis were killed by Palestinians in the West Bank, as well as East Jerusalem.

The Office has also recorded some 1,270 attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians over the last 10 months, causing deaths and injuries and damage to property. As a reminder, there is a scheduled briefing of the Security Council tomorrow on the Middle East tomorrow, for our part Tor Wennesland, the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process will be briefing, albeit remotely, via video technology.

** Sudan

Moving to Sudan, I can tell you that the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs is telling us that more than a dozen aid trucks  including some from the World Food Programme (WFP) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) - have now crossed into Darfur from Chad via the Adre border crossing. WFP says their trucks were carrying sorghum, pulses, oil and rice that will benefit some 13,000 people who are at risk of famine in the Kereneik area of West Darfur. For its part, IOM says the essential relief items delivered to Sudan will support more than 12,000 people in need.

As we said before, the Adre crossing from Chad is the most effective and the most direct way for us to deliver humanitarian assistance to Sudan at a scale and speed required to respond to the huge hunger crisis in the country. WFP tells us that trucks can cross into Darfur from Adre and then reach key distribution points in the very same day  basically, in one day. In the meantime, our humanitarian colleagues continue to engage with the Sudanese authorities to facilitate additional trucks coming in the coming days and months. We will need a constant supply of humanitarian goods. It is critical to sustain that flow of food and nutrition assistance into and across Sudan, where more than a dozen areas are either at risk of or in famine. WFP is scaling up food assistance there and aims to support more than 8 million men, women and children by the end of this calendar year.

** South Sudan

Heading south to South Sudan, today the Force Commander for the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), Lieutenant General Mohan Subramanian, was in the town of Renk, in the Upper Nile State. While there, he stressed the need for urgent planning and collaboration to mitigate the risks of predicted heavy rains and flooding. Since the start of the current round of hostilities in Sudan, more than 780,000 men, women and children have crossed the border and headed to Renk town. Peacekeepers established a temporary base in the area and are helping to ensure the safe delivery of aid, providing protection to deter violence between diverse communities forced to live together in congested conditions and share dwindling resources.

** Ukraine

Moving to Ukraine, our humanitarian colleagues tell us that aid workers in the east and south-east of the country are providing critical support to people impacted by yesterday's attacks which killed or injured dozens of civilians, including children, according to local authorities. And following the specific attacks we told you about yesterday in the town of Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region  where a transit site for displaced people was hit  aid workers have been distributing materials for emergency repairs, as well as providing psychosocial and other types of assistance.

Also in the Donetsk fegion, Matthias Schmale, our new Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine, led a three-truck aid convoy today to the front lines of Kurakhove. We, along with our partners delivered 13 metric tons of medical supplies, hygiene items, solar lamps and other necessities to some 400 families affected by the ongoing conflict. This was the ninth humanitarian convoy to the Donetsk Region this year. In the town of Malokaterynivka, in the Zaporizhzia Region, our humanitarian partners on the ground say that shelling from artillery struck a busy cafe full of children, as well as homes of some 50 families. Aid workers mobilized support  materials for emergency repairs and hygiene items  to those impacted by this.

** Tribute to Victims of Terrorism

Today is the International Day for the Remembrance and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism. This year's theme is "Voices for Peace: Victims of Terrorism as Peace Advocates and Educators". This morning, in a video message, the Secretary-General said at a high-level event to commemorate the Day that "Acts of terrorism create a wave of unimaginable grief. Families and communities torn apart by terrorists are forever changed." He added that this day urges us to listen to them and to learn. For his part, the Under-Secretary-General for the Office of Counter-Terrorism, Vladimir Voronkov, underscored our commitment to prevent emergence of more victims and remains as steadfast as ever, adding that "listening to victims' experiences is a powerful reminder that terrorism has no place in [this] world".

And just to flag that on 8 and 9 October, the Office of Counter-Terrorism and the Kingdom of Spain will co-host an international conference on "Victims of Terrorism: Education as a Tool for Prevention, Peacebuilding and Empowerment of Victims of Terrorism", that will be held in Spain. The aim is to build on the momentum and recommendations from the 2022 Global Congress on Victims of Terrorism that was held here in New York.

** Mpox

An update on Mpox: IOM appealed today for $18.5 million to provide crucial health-care services to migrants, internally displaced people and host communities at risk of mpox in East Africa, the Horn of Africa and the southern part of the continent. The funds will support infection, prevention and control measures, particularly at border crossings. IOM called for swift action to protect those most at risk and to mitigate the impact of the outbreak. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are over 15,000 suspected cases of Mpox in the Democratic Republic of the Congo alone. Other cases have been confirmed in Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa and Uganda.

** Financial Contribution

Finally, if I say to you 126, what does that mean? Yes, it's one more than 125, which we were at when we thanked our friends in Zambia and the Seychelles. Who paid today, you ask? Anybody who gets this one is good. There is a good clue. Another sea-locked country, as we like to call them  this time in the general Pacific region. It is comprised of over 2,000 mostly coral islands. They are divided into four states/administrative regions: Pohnpei, Chuuk, Yap and Kosrae. What country are we talking about? Capital is Palikir. The Federated States of Micronesia. We thank them. 2,000 islands and $31,000 in dues. Edie Lederer?

** Questions and Answers

Question : Thank you, Steph. A Greek oil tanker as we speak is drifting and on fire after repeated attacks in the Red Sea, reportedly by Yemen's Houthi rebels. Does the Secretary-General have any comment on this latest rather dire attack?

Spokesman : It's yet another very vivid example of the real impact of the ongoing situation in the region. The attacks by the Houthis on commercial shipping, which has an impact not only on the ship that is hit itself, but it could cause great ecological risks and has a huge impact on the global trade.

Question : A second question following up on what you announced about Sudan and aid getting in through Adre. Is any aid getting into El Fasher which remains besieged?

Spokesman : I'm not aware of anything having actually gone into El Fasher and which indeed continues to be in a dire situation. Amelie?

Question : Thanks, Steph. I have two questions on two countries. A follow-up on Sudan first. On Monday, you said the Sudanese authority gave the permission to 131 trucks to cross Adre border crossing. You said today a dozen crossed. So, what is the reason why there's not 131 trucks? Is it logistical reasons or administrative reasons?

Spokesman : I would say it's a mix of many different reasons. We are operating in a very difficult environment. We're grateful for the aid that did get in and we will continue to have to push for more.

Question : And when do you suppose to have the rest of the trucks going through?

Spokesman : As soon as possible.

Question : Okay. And my second question, if I may, on Haiti. It's going to be two months this week that the first Kenyan troops or policemen arrived in Haiti for the mission. Have you noticed any kind of improvement of the situation since they arrived? And how do you see the situation going forward? I mean, when do you expect the mission to be fully operational to see if they can really make a difference?

Spokesman : The fact that they were able to deploy in June and July is a critical step in the right direction. But, what is needed is not just the redeployment. It is to ensure that they get the adequate funding and that it is high enough and that it is sustained. The other issue is that we can't look at it strictly through the security lens through the deployment. We also have to look at the political situation, because in the end, an improvement in the political situation is what will make a real difference. I mean, both the force and getting that conducive constitutional reform in holding of general elections are both intertwined. So, they'll have to move in tandem. Dezhi, Linda, Benny, Georgia.

Question : Can you remember that many?

Spokesman : I don't know, but let's see.

Question : Okay. So, two questions. First, New York Times recently reported that President Biden approved a classified nuclear strategy plan from the US for the first time to re-originate its deterrent strategy to focus on China. What is the Secretary-General's take on a country who had over 3,700 stockpiles that had a strategy on the country that has less than 500 nuclear warheads which also promised no first use?

Spokesman : It will not come as a surprise to you Dezhi, that we do not have access to the same classified material that the New York Times has. So, I can't speak to the veracity of the story. What I can only say and is that we've said many times is that the Secretary-General is very concerned about the acute risks of nuclear weapons being used and the importance of dialogue and diplomacy with the goal of moving to a nuclear free world.

Question : Oh, I have a second question. The outgoing Israeli ambassador, Erdan, when he accepted interviews, he said, and I quote, "The UN building in Jerusalem needs to be closed and erased from the face of the earth." I know that Secretary-General, in his acceptance of the credentials, he said it's important to remain the relation with Israeli mission to have conversation and to have productive cooperation. What does the Secretary-General's reaction on his remarks on particularly, the building of the UN in Jerusalem?

Spokesman : Look, the UN presence in Jerusalem, we feel, is critical to fulfilling the mandate that the Security Council and the General Assembly have given the UN in terms of pushing for peace in the Middle East. I'm not going to comment on comments made by a former Permanent Representative. We wish him well. I can tell you that the Secretary-General met with the incoming Permanent Representative, Ambassador [Danny] Danon. They spoke publicly. They also spoke privately. And the Secretary-General looks forward to a constructive relationship with the Permanent Mission of Israel led by Ambassador Danon. And you were right, I completely forgot now. Who did I say next? You, Benny. Okay. Okay.

Question : Follow-up?

Spokesman : Yes. Okay.

Question : So does the UN consider the 7 October 2023 attack on civilian communities in southern Israel an act of terrorism?

Spokesman : I think the Secretary-General has been very clear on that point of denouncing it multiple times the terrorist attacks conducted by Hamas against Israelis on [7 October 2023].

Correspondent : Because I...

Spokesman : What's your next?

Question : I went downstairs to see the exhibition that the counterterrorism group has put in. There's no mention of that. There's no mention of the AMIA attack. There was no mention of attacks in Bulgaria and so forth and so on. Do you see a pattern here?

Spokesman : What I can tell you is that the exhibit, which was designed by our colleagues at the Office for Counter-Terrorism, was launched in May of 2022. So, it's the same exhibit that was launched in May of 2022.

Question : So, Danny Danon, who you just mentioned, is denouncing the fact that there's no mention in this day of the 7 October 2023 attack. Do you have any response to that?

Spokesman : No. What I've just told you is that this exhibit is the same one that was launched. What I can tell you is that the exhibit is the same one that was launched in May of 2022. It has been seen in different parts of the world. I have no doubt that at some point it will be updated.

Correspondent : Yeah. And again, since we're talking about 2022, there were a lot of attacks on civilians by Hamas, by, I don't know who did the AMIA. I mean, I do know, but there's no...

Spokesman : Look, we have been...

Question : So, there's no representation of any of those. And there's at least two representations of attacks on Palestinians. So, is there a pattern here or no?

Spokesman : I do not agree with your pattern assessment. What I can tell you is that the Office of Counter-Terrorism is focused on supporting all victims of terrorism, all survivors of terrorism. And the Secretary-General himself, since 7 October 2023, has repeatedly, and I would say more than a dozen times, if not two dozen times, met with families of hostages who were taken on 7 October 2023 by Hamas. He has met with people who had since been released following the terrorist attacks. So, our support for all victims of terror is clear.

Question : The GA has struggled with the definition of terrorism for a long time. And one of the reasons it did was because there was a demand by some Member States that any acts against occupation, specifically against Israel, would not be included in the definition. Does the Secretary-General agree with that proposition?

Spokesman : Benny, the Secretary-General is not a member of the General Assembly. He does not have a vote on resolutions. We leave it to the wisdom of Member States to agree on a definition of terrorism. In the meantime, the Secretary-General will continue to denounce acts of terrorism as he has done since he came into office and as his predecessors have done. Linda, then Georgia.

Question : Thank you, Stephane. Apropos of Amelie's question regarding the status of conditions in Haiti since the arrival of the Kenyan troops and police. I was just wondering, is the UN satisfied with the level of funding and assistance that's been provided so far?

Spokesman : The funding could be higher. There is $85 million committed. And out of those $85 million, $21.6 [million] has actually been received for this force, which, as we've said a number of times, is now run by the UN Secretariat. To succeed, it will need funding and it will need constant funding and predictable funding. But, another key part of progress in Haiti is up to the Haitian political leaders, Haitian civil society, to move in the right direction, to allow the Haitian people to rebuild their country, not just physically, but politically, as well.

Question : Thank you, Stephane. In the Middle East, I would like to ask you if you have any updates on the ongoing talks in the region, because the news that are coming are not very encouraging.

Spokesman : You mean in terms of a possible ceasefire talks in Gaza? No, the Secretary-General is being kept informed. As I had mentioned to you, he spoke to the Prime Minister of Qatar not too long ago. Other officials have been in touch with various parties. I think it's important in these negotiations, which will have a real-life impact on millions of people, to wait for an outcome and for us not to add to the speculation.

Question : Are you still optimistic?

Spokesman : We are still very much hopeful that all the parties involved will find the political courage and the political will to come to an agreement. Madame?

Question : Thank you, Stephane. On Afghanistan, Richard Bennett, the Special Rapporteur of the UN Human Rights Council was banned to travel to Afghanistan by the Taliban. I would like to know if Secretary-General does have any comments on that. Thank you.

Spokesman : What I can tell you is that the Human Rights Office has confirmed that the Special Rapporteur, Mr. Bennett, was told informally that he would not be welcome. He had been in Afghanistan, I think, in 2022, after the takeover of the de facto Taliban authorities. For us, the mandate of Special Rapporteurs who are completely independent of the Secretary-General, they are a key part of the human rights architecture. There are a number of cases where Special Rapporteurs do not have access to the areas they are covering. It does not stop them from issuing reports and finding other ways to report. But this is also a good moment to remind people that the human rights situation in Afghanistan, especially that of women, that of girls, remains of great concern to us and to the international community.

Question : Okay. Sorry. Just "the woman and the girls" is the matter of the human rights issue or in general?

Spokesman : No, no. I said especially. Thank you. Yes, sir.

Question : Thank you, Stephane. And it's on Bangladesh. [Inaudible] newspapers offices of East West Media Group, including my newspaper, Bangladesh Pratidin, were attacked and vandalized on Monday afternoon. As a result, journalists are suffering from insecurity because the miscreants have not been arrested yet. In this situation, the UN Secretary-General has any statements or comments?

Spokesman : The safety and well-being of journalists anywhere in the world is of critical importance for any country especially for countries going through a transition. It is important that journalists be allowed to do their work and that those who commit violence against journalists be held to account.

Question : I have a follow-up. An UN investigation team going to Bangladesh. The people of Bangladesh expect the UN team to investigate all the murders, robberies and arson that took place between 15 July and 19 August. What is the position of the United Nations in this regard?

Spokesman : I would ask you to ask that question to our human rights colleagues who are in the lead on this. But it is clear that all perpetrators of acts of violence will need to be held accountable. Yes, sir, please. Alexei, go ahead.

Question : Thank you so much, Stephane. The permanent missions of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger have said in a joint letter that the Security Council should take measures against Ukraine due to its support of terrorism in the Sahel region. I'm wondering if the Secretary-General have any message on this topic? And maybe what message?

Spokesman : The letter, if it has not yet been received, will be shared with Security Council members as needed. Our message is one of encouraging everyone to work towards the stability of the Sahel region, which is something we have been very actively involved in. Tony?

Question : Shukran, Steph. In your briefing about Sudan, there was no mention today about the cholera. While our people on the ground, reporters, are talking about the spread of the cholera infections. And between January and July, there was more than 2,400 cases. I wonder if OCHA [Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs] are monitoring the situation.

Spokesman : Yes, we are. And I think I mentioned, if my brain serves me well, I mentioned it either yesterday or Monday.

Correspondent : Okay, another question.

Spokesman : Yeah. But yes, we are monitoring.

Question : Okay, to Gaza, Israeli forces have attacked Salahuddin School west of Gaza today, earlier, where hundreds of people, of course, have taken refuge. Any reaction?

Spokesman : Yes, we've seen some reports of that through open sources. We're trying to get a bit more detail. I mean, just, I think yet another example of the suffering of civilians in this conflict and the fact that there really are no safe places. Benny?

Correspondent : Just a follow-up on the question on the ceasefire talks.

Spokesman : A little closer your microphone, please.

Question : Sorry. Just a follow-up on the question on the ceasefire talks. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, who seems to be almost as updated on the talks as the Secretary-General, said last night and earlier today that Israel has accepted the bridging proposal that was put forward and Hamas has obviously rejected it because they said so. Does the Secretary-General agree with that assessment? Is there any comment on that?

Spokesman : The comment is the same answer I gave to Georgia, which is we're not going to start to provide minute by minute commentary of what is being said by one party or another. What we want is for the parties to find the political will to come to an agreement.

Question : In his talk with the Qataris, did they say the same thing as Secretary Blinken?

Spokesman : His talks with the Qatari were between the Secretary-General and the Prime Minister of Qatar. On that note, I wish you adieu or see you tomorrow, at least.

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Gaza: Latest evacuation orders leave civilians dangerously close to frontline

By Daniel Johnson in Geneva and Ziad Taleb in Gaza

21 August 2024 - "Continuous" Israeli military evacuation orders in Gaza threaten already extremely vulnerable people in the enclave with further forced displacement, raising concerns that vital services could soon be cut off, UN humanitarians warned on Wednesday.

More than 10 months into the war in Gaza, sparked by Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel that left some 1,250 dead and more than 250 taken hostage, nearly all Gazans have been displaced at least once - and often multiple times - by repeated orders to evacuate and intense Israeli bombardment.

"Nowhere in the Gaza Strip is safe...It does feel like people are waiting for death," said Louise Wateridge, spokesperson for the UN agency for Palestine refugees, in an online message on X.

"Areas that were (in) the humanitarian zone are now the frontline," she told UN News, noting also that Gazans "are never more than a few blocks away from the frontline now".

Kamal Al-Sultan, a displaced child from Beit Lahia in northern Gaza, told UN News in Gaza that he has been displaced seven times since the war began, most recently from Deir Al-Balah Preparatory School for Boys, where he had sought shelter and safety.

"We were displaced from Beit Lahia to Deir Al-Balah, and now they are asking us to leave," he told UN News. "We don't know where to go."

'Like your soul leaving your body'

According to the UN agency for Palestine refugees, UNRWA, these new evacuation orders now cover approximately 84 per cent of the Gaza Strip. Meanwhile, many Gazans are being forced to move yet again.

"This displacement from Deir Al-Balah is our fourteenth," said Yahya Halas, a displaced person from the Shujaiya neighbourhood east of Gaza City. "We were displaced from Shujaiya to the city of al-Zahraa to Rafah then to Khan Younis twice and to Deir Al-Balah three times. How long will this continue?"

He said being displaced is "not just about carry a bag".

"Displacement is like the soul leaving the body," Mr. Halas said. "We have children and women. We have belongings and food. Where will we go when all the displaced people go west? If you go to the west of Deir Al-Balah, you won't be able to walk because there are so many people already there."

Crucial axis road cut

In its latest update on the emergency, the UN aid coordination office, OCHA, insisted that the "relentless" hostilities and repeated evacuation orders in Gaza have continued to constrain relief operations "already hampered by access constraints, fuel shortages, and other challenges".

OCHA reported that parts of Salah ad Din road - a crucial passage for humanitarian missions from south to north - were caught up in an evacuation order by the Israeli authorities issued on Saturday for Deir Al-Balah.

"This has made it nearly impossible for aid workers to move along this key route," it noted. The Israeli Defense Forces issued a new order affecting neighbourhoods in the central city on Wednesday morning.

Gaza's coastal road "is not a viable alternative" anymore, OCHA continued, explaining that the beaches along this route are "crowded with makeshift shelters" for Palestinians forcibly uprooted from their homes.

"As a result, convoy movements along the coastal road are extremely slow, and critical supplies and services - such as water trucking - are not reaching people in need at anywhere near the scale required," the UN aid office warned.

Tanks in Khan Younis

In Khan Younis, where Israeli tanks have returned, UNRWA expressed growing concerns that key facilities in areas of the southern city slated for evacuation may soon be damaged or destroyed.

These include the just-restored water pumping station that serves some 100,000 people, the UNRWA Japanese Health Centre that re-opened last month and is slated to play a key role in the upcoming polio vaccination campaign and the Khan Younis Training Centre, a large facility now used as a warehouse to store humanitarian supplies.

"Without that warehouse, we cannot bring aid in and put it anywhere," explained Ms. Wateridge. "There are no warehouses left."

"You've got water, you've got medicine and vaccinations and you've got distribution; if any of these facilities gets damaged and destroyed, that is going to be disastrous," she told UN News.

West Bank toll mounts

Meanwhile, UN aid coordination office OCHA reports that on average, at least one Palestinian has been killed every day so far this month by Israeli airstrikes in the occupied West Bank. Since October, airstrikes there have killed 128 Palestinians - including more than two dozen children.

As of Monday, OCHA says more than 600 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since October - the vast majority by Israeli forces, and at least 11 by Israeli settlers. During the same period, 15 Israelis were killed by Palestinians in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

OCHA has also recorded some 1,270 attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians over the past 10 months, causing deaths and injuries, as well as damage to property.

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UNRWA

21 Aug 2024

The Gaza Strip

Ongoing strikes by Israeli Security Forces (ISF) continue, with aerial, land and maritime bombardments across the Gaza Strip, resulting in civilian casualties, displacement and the destruction of residential structures and public infrastructure.

During the reporting period, the Israeli Authorities issued additional evacuation orders (17 August), warning people living in parts of Deir al Balah (Middle Areas), including the entire Al Maghazi Refugee Camp. Since October, according to OCHA, approximately 314 square kilometres, or nearly 86 per cent of the Gaza Strip, has been placed under evacuation orders by the Israeli military. On World Humanitarian Day, 413 humanitarian organisations around the world including UNRWA and other UN agencies, ICRC, IFRC and NGOs appealed to all States, parties to armed conflict and the wider international community to: End attacks on civilians and take active steps to protect them and the critical civilian infrastructure they rely on.

Protect all aid workers, including local and national actors, and their premises and assets and facilitate their work, as called for in UN Security Council Resolution 2730 adopted last May.

Hold perpetrators to account. Those who commit violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) cannot go unpunished.

On World Humanitarian Day, UNRWA's Commissioner-General paid tribute to aid workers killed and injured around the world including at UNRWA. Gaza continues to be one of the most dangerous places in the world for humanitarian aid workers and health workers, with at least 289 aid workers, including 207 UNRWA team members killed, in addition to 885 health workers.

The World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), UNRWA and partners are expected to launch polio vaccination campaign to over 640,000 children under ten years of age across the Gaza Strip starting end of August. WHO and UNICEF have requested all parties to the conflict to implement humanitarian pauses in the Gaza Strip for seven days to allow for two rounds of vaccination campaigns to take place. These pauses in fighting would allow children and families to safely reach health facilities and community outreach workers to get to children who cannot access health facilities for polio vaccination. Without the humanitarian pauses, the delivery of the campaign will not be possible.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appealed to all parties to "provide concrete assurances right away guaranteeing humanitarian pauses" for a polio vaccination campaign in Gaza, reiterating that "the ultimate vaccine for polio is peace and an immediate humanitarian ceasefire."

According to the Health Cluster's latest evacuation orders and forced displacement into small and overcrowded areas, continue to have a negative impact on public health including: i) limited access to basic amenities like WASH facilities and a limited supply of safe drinking water; ii) overcrowding with people living in tents or poor shelter infrastructure, leading to an increased risk in the occurrence and spread of infectious diseases; iii) poor access disrupting emergency medical services and response.; iv) overwhelmed health facilities, compromising the quality of care and putting patients' lives at risk.

According to the UN, up to 1.9 million people (or nine in ten people) across the Gaza Strip are internally displaced, including people who have been repeatedly displaced (some up to 10 times).

Several challenges stand in the way of collecting much needed humanitarian supplies from the Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) crossing point in southern Gaza. These include deteriorating law and order, the war and insecurity, damaged infrastructure, fuel shortages and access restrictions. According to OCHA, between 1 and 12 August 2024, only an average of 76 humanitarian trucks entered the Gaza Strip every day. This is well below the pre-crisis average of 500 trucks per working day.
Pacific Partnership and Pacific Angel Come Together to Strengthen Disaster Preparedness in Quang Ngai, Vietnam

US Navy

21 August 2024

From Lt. j.g. Winslow Blow

QUANG NGAI, Vietnam -- USNS City of Bismarck and U.S. Air Force personnel arrived in Quang Ngai, Vietnam on August 19, marking the beginning of the Vietnam mission stop for Pacific Partnership 2024-2 (PP24-2) and Pacific Angel 2024-3 (PA24-3).

Pacific Partnership and Pacific Angel jointly organized the Vietnam mission stop to strengthen disaster response preparedness and international cooperation. The mission will take place from August 19 through August 31.

In Quang Ngai, the PP24-2 and PA24-3 programs will bring together approximately 200 participants, including personnel from the Australian Defense Force, British Armed Forces, Chile, Japan, and members of the U.S. Armed Forces. The U.S. Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City will attend the opening ceremony on Aug. 20.

"During this year's Pacific Partnership and Pacific Angel mission, we highlight the enduring friendship that drives the U.S.-Vietnam relationship forward in disaster response, medicine, and education. This progress is even more meaningful when we consider how our two countries have overcome our shared past to build a brighter future for the next generation," said U.S. Consul General Susan Burns.

The Pacific Partnership and Pacific Angel humanitarian mission includes a range of activities aimed at enhancing disaster response capabilities, providing humanitarian assistance, and fostering mutual understanding between partnering nations. Medical professionals will conduct exchanges and training sessions at various hospitals and medical centers in Quang Ngai, covering topics such as mass casualty incidents, surgeries, public health, and infectious diseases. In addition, U.S. and Vietnamese officials will hold discussions on forest fire prevention, coastal erosion, and natural disaster management, accompanied by a site survey of the Nghia An anti-erosion embankment.

"Our leaders understand the importance of collaboration, with experts both inside and outside of government, to strengthen and enhance the resilience of vulnerable communities, particularly through disaster preparedness initiatives," said U.S. Navy Captain Daniel Keeler, PP24-2 mission commander. "We aim to strengthen coordination on regional and global issues of shared concern and interest, contributing to collective efforts to uphold peace, stability, cooperation, and development both in the region and worldwide."

Construction efforts will also play a significant role in the mission, with repairs and renovations planned at several local facilities, including Tinh Minh Kindergarten, Nghia Lo Medical Station, Tinh Khe Elementary School, and Tinh Khe Medical Station. These projects are designed to improve the infrastructure and resilience of local community sites. The mission will also emphasize community engagement through a series of English language and music exchanges with students at local schools, fostering cultural interactions and mutual understanding.

"We are dedicated to working with each host nation and our sister branches to enhance capacity,

interoperability, combined readiness, and partnership in the Indo-Pacific," said Major Bradley

Emmett, PA24-3 mission commander. "The relationships built and sustained with our partners

through these missions, civil-military operations, and military exchanges help preserve peace and stability in the region. We look forward to working with them in the upcoming week."

The PP24-2 and PA24-3 mission represents a milestone in foreign affairs engagement with Quang Ngai province, reinforcing the U.S.-Vietnam bilateral relationship nearly a year after the two countries upgraded to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. The program underscores the province's commitment to global partnerships and disaster preparedness.

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US official holds talks in Africa on responsible use of military AI

By Timothy Obiezu August 21, 2024

A U.S. State Department official was in Nigeria this week to meet with local and regional authorities about the responsible use of artificial intelligence in military applications.

Mallory Stewart, assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of Arms Control, Deterrence and Stability, said her two-day visit with Nigerian officials from the regional bloc ECOWAS was part of the United States' commitment to deepen security cooperation in Africa.

The U.S. government has been working with 55 nations, including African nations, "to agree upon responsible uses of AI in the military context, using AI in a manner consistent with international laws [and] recognizing inherent human bias," Stewart told journalists Wednesday.

"We've learned the hard way [that there is] inherent human bias built into the AI system ... leading to maybe misinformation being provided to the decisionmaker," she said.

The goal, she continued, "is to hear from as many countries as possible that are at the stage of working in artificial intelligence to their military to see how we can minimize the risks."

Last year, the Global Terrorism Index report named sub-Saharan Africa an epicenter of terrorism, accounting for nearly 60% of terror-related deaths. It is unclear whether the terror groups are using AI.

Nigerian authorities have been pushing for the integration of artificial intelligence in military operations, while acknowledging that adopting AI will require Africa-specific policies.

Security analyst Kabiru Adamu of Beacon Consulting said the use of AI in military operations has advantages.

"Given the position of the U.S. in terms of its military capacity and technological advancement, it will definitely be in the position to support Nigeria's desires, especially if it's able to contextualize some of the peculiarities within the Nigerian security space," Adamu said. "We can't isolate ourselves from the international committee of nations. AI is embedded in security, so we have to do it. But we need to be cognizant of the supporting infrastructure for good technology. Power is one of them, culture."

The founder of Global Sentinel online magazine, Senator Iroegbu, said that while AI has benefits, the technology still needs to be treated with caution.

"It limits casualties in terms of the number of soldiers that will be deployed, so you conserve your boots," Iroegbu said. "It helps penetrate rough terrains, gather more intelligence. It's good that there's growing awareness of the issue of artificial intelligence, but Nigeria needs to first of all try to define its own policy and strategy with regards to artificial intelligence. More sensitization needs to be done, and more policy aspect of it needs to be developed."

In June, African ministers unanimously endorsed landmark continental AI strategy to advance Africa's digital future and development aspirations. And last week, the African Union approved the adoption of AI in public and private sectors in member states, including Nigeria.

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UN human rights investigator confirms Taliban refused him access to Afghanistan

By Ayaz Gul August 21, 2024

United Nations-appointed special rapporteur Richard Bennett confirmed Wednesday that the Taliban, Afghanistan's de facto leaders, had prohibited him from entering the country.

Bennett called for the Taliban to lift the travel ban and establish a "constructive" dialogue to resolve differences.

He made the statement a day after the Taliban reported that they had barred him from the country for allegedly "spreading propaganda."

Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid disclosed the decision to Afghan broadcaster TOLOnews late Tuesday. He accused the U.N. envoy of misrepresenting "the ground realities" in the country and providing "misleading" information to the global community.

"The Taliban's public announcement that they will no longer grant me access to Afghanistan is a step backwards and sends a concerning signal about their engagement with the United Nations and the international community on human rights," Bennett said.

"Despite this announcement, the substance of which was conveyed to me previously, I will continue to engage with the people of Afghanistan, both inside and outside the country, as well as other relevant stakeholders, noting that I have not traveled to Afghanistan for over a year."

Bennett reports to the U.N. Human Rights Council based in Geneva and has conducted several trips to the Afghan capital to investigate the human rights situation since he assumed his current duties in 2022  a year after the radical Taliban returned to power.

"Mr. Bennett's travel to Afghanistan has been prohibited because he was assigned to spread propaganda in Afghanistan," Mujahid said. "He is not someone we trust. ... He used to exaggerate minor issues and propagate them."

In his response Wednesday, Bennett said he had consistently sought to engage transparently with Taliban authorities to offer an "impartial assessment of facts" and make "practical recommendations" for improvement.

"Where there are differences of view, constructive dialogue is the answer. I urge the Taliban to reverse their decision and reiterate my willingness and availability to travel to Afghanistan," he said.

In one of his recently published assessments, Bennett highlighted the Taliban's sweeping curbs on Afghan women's access to education, employment and public life at large, demanding they be immediately reversed.

Bennett alleged that women and girls under Taliban rule "are being persecuted based on gender," calling it a crime against humanity. He added that the "institutionalized, systematic and widespread nature" of the activity justifies it being framed as "gender apartheid."

Mujahid dismissed the U.N. findings and subsequent statements by Bennett as propaganda, saying the Taliban respect women's rights in line with their interpretation of Islamic law and Afghan customs.

"Even after repeatedly requesting Mr. Bennett to adhere to professionalism during work ... it was decided that ... his reports are based on prejudices and anecdotes detrimental to [the] interests of Afghanistan and the Afghan people," Taliban Foreign Ministry spokesman Abdul Qahar Balkhi told the Reuters news agency.

Taliban officials do not respond to VOA queries because they have imposed a ban on the media outlet.

De facto fundamentalist Afghan authorities have barred girls ages 12 and older from attending school and women from many public and private sector workplaces, including the U.N.

In addition, women are not allowed to undertake road trips beyond 78 kilometers without a male guardian, and they are barred from visiting parks, gyms and public baths.

"The Taliban barring Bennett from entering the country is one of many signs that their crackdown on human rights, especially the rights of women and girls, is ongoing and continuing to deepen," said Heather Barr, the associate women's rights director at Human Rights Watch.

"The international community  and the U.N.  should respond to this provocation by the Taliban by committing to never discussing the future of Afghanistan without women on the agenda and at the table," she told VOA via email.

The Taliban attended a U.N.-organized meeting for the first time last month in Doha, where they interacted with envoys from more than two dozen countries on matters related to Afghanistan's economic and humanitarian challenges.

The U.N. did not invite Afghan women or human rights representatives, however, citing the Taliban's opposition, a move that drew strong criticism of the world body.

No country has officially recognized the Taliban as the legitimate government since they seized control of Afghanistan in 2021, mainly citing the harsh treatment of women and girls.

Many top Taliban leaders remain under international terrorism sanctions, and the Afghan banking sector is largely isolated from the rest of the world, with about $9 billion in central bank assets being frozen in the U.S. and European banks.

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Cameroon opposition, civil society blame low voter registration on president Biya

By Moki Edwin Kindzeka August 21, 2024

Cameroon is trying to register voters before the nearing deadline. But the political opposition and civil society say most qualified voters are reluctant to register because they think President Paul Biya plans to rig elections. Barely 50% of qualified civilians have registered for the election expected in October 2025.

Cameroon's elections management body, ELECAM, says 7.9 million civilians have registered as voters ahead of the August 31 deadline set by the central African states electoral law.

Cameroon is preparing for presidential elections next year to end an ongoing seven-year mandate. The date for the presidential polls will be decided by longtime leader Paul Biya.

Biya was declared the winner of the country's 2018 presidential polls, even though some opposition and civil society groups reject the results and accuse Biya of massive fraud to maintain his grip on power.

Cameroon rights groups say citizens are afraid to register because voters who protested what they claim was the stolen victory of the opposition Cameroon Renaissance Movement, or MRC, leader Maurice Kamto in 2018 were jailed for rebellion and attempted insurrection.

The MRC and a coalition of political parties that support Kamto say they will not tolerate fraud and electoral malpractice during the expected 2025 polls. They are urging civilians to register because voter registration is fundamental to credible elections.

The opposition and civil society say they have sent caravans to towns and villages all over Cameroon to encourage citizens to register and qualify to vote before registration ends in 10 days.

A member of the opposition moves in neighborhoods in Buea, capital of Cameroon's English-speaking Southwest region, is asking people who expect to register to also be ready to protest, should the polls be rigged.

Tamfu Richard is a human rights lawyer and a member of the Cameroon Party for National Reconciliation, or CPNR. Richard said the CPNR is particularly encouraging disgruntled youths who constitute a majority of Cameroon's population to register, vote and come out massively to protest, should their victory be stolen again.

He said the opposition will not allow Biya and his government to continue ruling Cameroon with an iron fist.

"Cameroon is at a crossroads where the current leader is of age and has been there for 42 years, so it is in the interest of Cameroonians to have a different face, somebody who is young at the helm. It is in the interest of Cameroonians to make sure that they massively register, supervise their votes and defend it when the time comes," he said.

Cameroon's opposition and civil society estimate there are close to 16 million potential voters in the country of about 30 million civilians.

Forty-seven-year-old merchant Emmanuel Neba said a majority of Cameroonians are reluctant to register because they believe Biya, who has been in power for over four decades, wants to rule until he dies.

"We know that Paul Biya will still win the elections. In America Joe Biden is 82 and he abandoned his candidacy to a younger person, but in Cameroon, Paul Biya who is 91 wants to continue to be president forever, and that is why the youths are not eager to go and register to{qualify} to vote," he said.

Cameroon opposition and civil society say citizens should emulate the example of Chad, which has more than 8.2 million registered voters among a population of about 18 million. They say Cameroonians should also get inspired by Senegal where over 7 million people in a population of about 17.5 million registered for the West African state's March 19 presidential elections.

Opposition and civil society proponents say that the massive involvement of youth in Senegal made victory possible for 40-year-old Bassirou Diomaye Faye over 62-year-old Macky Sall, who was running for a third term as president in the West African country.

Cameroon government officials assert Biya has won all presidential elections he contested since the return of multiparty politics in 1990. The government refutes opposition claims that Biya is planning to rig elections next year and warns civilians against what officials say is increasing hate speech ahead of the polls.

Opposition and civil society say the Cameroon government considers criticizing Biya hate language and threatens arrests.

Biya has not publicly announced that he will run again in the October 2025 presidential elections, but his supporters and government ministers have been organizing political rallies calling on him to run again.

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Russia leverages ouster of Bangladesh PM to baselessly accuse US of fomenting coup

By William Echols August 21, 2024

The unfounded conspiracy theory that the United States orchestrated the ouster of Bangladesh's former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina dominates Russian disinformation narrative. The propaganda campaign involves top state officials and news media.

The narrative is nothing new: For decades, Russia has sought to discredit democratic and popular protests around the world as U.S.-fomented "color revolutions," ignoring the reality of domestic politics and local grievances.

Commentary and analysis in Russia's state-run Sputnik news agency repeatedly described the events that led Hasina to resign and leave Bangladesh for India on August 5 as a U.S.-led color revolution.

Critics say Hasina, once an advocate for democratic governance, had become increasingly authoritarian, securing a fourth term in office in January.

The U.S. had expressed concerns about the systematic crackdown on the opposition, critics, human rights activists and journalists, which greatly hampered the ability for Bangladesh to hold a free and fair election.

But the events that led to Hasina's resignation began in mid-June, when student protests against a quota system for government jobs kicked off.

A preliminary U.N. report said those initially peaceful protests "reflected deeper economic frustrations among young people in Bangladesh," punctuated by high youth unemployment.

The report noted the "democratic and civic space has become increasingly restricted in Bangladesh."

The government responded by violently suppressing the demonstrations, leading to hundreds of deaths. That crackdown only fueled public unrest, prompting Hasina to eventually resign and flee.

Conspiracy theories, which Russian media amplified, followed.

'Resignation statement'

On August 11, India's Economic Times newspaper reported on an undelivered speech, conveyed to it by Hasina's "close associates."

In that speech, Hasina allegedly said she would have "remained in power" had she "surrendered" sovereignty of Bangladesh's Saint Martin Island and "allowed America to hold sway over the Bay of Bengal."

On August 11, Hasina's son Sajeeb Wazed said the alleged "resignation statement" attributed to his mother was "completely false and fabricated."

The White House called the claim "simply false."

Russian state-owned media Sputnik India has repeatedly used the discredited "resignation letter" to claim the U.S. toppled Hasina's government, repeatedly failing to acknowledge Wazed's rebuttal.

In June 2023, Hasina claimed, without evidence, that her domestic opponents and outside forces were threatening Bangladesh's sovereignty over Saint Martin.

U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller responded that Washington had "never engaged in any conversations about taking over St. Martin's Island."

Nikolai Patrushev, a top aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin, also claimed that U.S. and Western allies orchestrated chaos in Bangladesh because Hasina refused to let the U.S. establish a military presence there.

Other commentary published by Sputnik alleged the U.S. "wants to turn Saint Martin into another Okinawa," a Japanese island housing the U.S. military bases.

Because of a number of factors, including its size, location and terrain, Saint Martin is not a viable option for a U.S. naval or air base.

Tender for gas field

Sputnik India also insinuated that the U.S. orchestrated Hasina's ouster to take control of Bangladesh's energy resources.

In an August 18 X post, Sputnik India claimed Hasina had announced a tender for an offshore gas field Bangladesh discovered in May, attracting "interest from major U.S. firms like Exxon Mobil."

That post, which included a GIF image of U.S. President Joe Biden, questioned whether the discovery of those resources and the resignation of Hasina were a "coincidence."

Bangladesh did discover reserves in a state-controlled gas field in May, but a local firm is handling extraction of that gas.

The Russian speculation about connection between Exxon Mobil's interests with Hasina's ousting has no merit. Exxon Mobil had expressed interest in exploring energy reservoirs in the Bay of Bengal in March 2023, and in March 2024, a licensing round was announced to explore 24 oil and gas blocks.

There is no indication that process affected Hasina's resignation.

Russian media further attempted to leverage the events in Bangladesh to sow distrust of the U.S. in India.

Sputnik India reported that intelligence is "keeping an eye on" meetings between U.S. diplomats and the opposition, even though U.S. diplomats also routinely meet with members of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

India's The Hindu newspaper reported the Indian government is concerned about repeated messages spread by Russian media, misleading the public about meetings between foreign diplomats and political figures, which it called "a legitimate part of their duty."

Russia's claims that the U.S. would topple Hasina's government stretch back months.

Prior to Bangladesh's general election on January 7, which the evidence suggests was neither free nor fair, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused the U.S. of planning to stage an "Arab Spring" type of uprising and "further destabilize the situation," if the outcome wasn't to Washington's liking.

White House national security spokesman John Kirby called the allegation"classic Russian propaganda."

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First WFP trucks cross Sudan's reopened Adre border with food for communities at risk of famine

World Food Programme

21 August 2024

ROME -- The first WFP food supplies destined for desperate communities in Sudan's Darfur have crossed the Adre border from Chad, after it was reopened by the Sudanese authorities following a six-month closure.

WFP trucks, carrying sorghum, pulses, oil and rice destined for 13,000 people at risk of famine in Kereneik, West Darfur, crossed on Tuesday evening. WFP has food and nutrition supplies for around 500,000 people ready to move swiftly through the newly re-opened route.

"The re-opening of the Adre crossing is critical for the effort to prevent famine from spreading across Sudan, and it must now stay in use. I want to acknowledge all parties for taking this vital step to help WFP get lifesaving aid to millions of people in desperate need," said WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain. "We urgently need to reach every corner of Sudan with food assistance - and this requires humanitarian corridors and all border crossings to be open so aid agencies can bring in supplies every single day. This is the only way to avoid widespread starvation."

The Adre crossing from Chad is the most effective and shortest route to deliver humanitarian assistance into Sudan - and particularly the Darfur region - at the scale and speed required to respond to the huge hunger crisis. From Adre, trucks can cross into Darfur and reach key distribution points on the very same day.

Since Adre's official closure in February, WFP was able to operate two convoys via the Adre crossing - one in March and one in April. But otherwise, WFP has been using the longer route through Chad's Tine crossing into North Darfur, as well as long, dangerous routes from Port Sudan that cross battle frontlines and through areas controlled by different militia groups, to reach communities in Darfur.

There needs to be a constant flow of food and nutrition assistance into Sudan to address alarming levels of hunger. Humanitarian needs are acute across Sudan, and WFP is scaling up food assistance in all 14 areas either in famine or at risk of famine, largely located in Darfur, Kordofan, Khartoum, and Gezira, with the aim to support up to 8.4 million people by the end of the year.

# # #

The United Nations World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.

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Russo-Ukraine War - 21 August 2024 - Day 910

Su M Tu W Th F Sa 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

A number of claims and counterclaims are being made on the Ukraine-Russia conflict on the ground and online. While GlobalSecurity.org takes utmost care to accurately report this news story, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos.

On 24 February 2022, Ukraine was suddenly and deliberately attacked by land, naval and air forces of Russia, igniting the largest European war since the Great Patriotic War. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a "special military operation" (SVO - spetsialnaya voennaya operatsiya) in Ukraine in response to the appeal of the leaders of the "Donbass republics" for help. That attack is a blatant violation of the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine. Putin stressed that Moscow's goal is the demilitarization and denazification of the country. The military buildup in preceeding months makes it obvious that the unprovoked and dastardly Russian attack was deliberately planned long in advance. During the intervening time, the Russian government had deliberately sought to deceive the world by false statements and expressions of hope for continued peace.

"To initiate a war of aggression... is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole." [Judgment of the International Military Tribunal]

The UK Ministry of Defence reported that according to a report by the Russian investigative outlet Vazhnyye lstorii one of the units deployed to defend against the Ukrainian incursion into Kursk oblast is a Specialised Motor Rifle Regiment formed unusually of Aerospace Forces (VKS) personnel. According to the report, the Motor Rifle Regiment was formed in May 2024 and has been subordinated to the Russian Northern Grouping of Forces.

Reportedly personnel forming the VKS-manned Motor Rifle Regiment include those previously in specialist roles such as early-warning radar operators and at Long Range Aviation Heavy Bomber regiments. Diverting personnel from these previously high priority areas likely demonstrates continuing personnel shortages. By employing them in an infantry role, they are also being misused, which could reduce Russian capability to re-take territory in Kursk oblast.

Russia continues to develop new units and recruit more personnel to sustain its mass attritional warfare approach against Ukraine. The high casualty rates that result mean that Russia needs to continuously replenish front line infantry personnel, which will almost certainly continue to limit Russia's ability to generate higher capability units.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that in total, 110 combat clashes have taken place since the beginning of this day. Ukrainian defenders continue to decisively block the attempts of the Russian enemy to advance deep into Ukrainian territory, giving the invaders an effective fire effect. The hottest situation remains in the Pokrovsky direction.

Today Russian zagarbniki made on the territory of Ukraine one nail missile strike with two rockets, and 76 air strikes, dropping 100 kabs. More than three thousand shellings were also carried out at the positions of Ukrainian troops and settlements.

In the Kharkiv direction, Russian forces five times attacked the defensive borders of Ukrainian warriors near lipciv and vovcans ka. Four attacks down, one to go.

In the Kupians komu direction, 16 combat clashes took place near Petropavlivka, Synkivka, Stelmakhivka, Berestovoye and in the area of Andriyivka. Twelve clashes completed, four are ongoing.

In the Lyman direction throughout the day Russian zagarbniki 17 times attacked the positions of Ukrainians near Torsky, Novosergiyivka, Makiyivka, Grekivka and Sergiyivka. Ukrainian defenders repelled 16 attacks, one more to go.

In the Sivers komu direction the defenders of the Ukrainian land repelled one Russian assault in the area of Spirnogo.

In the Kramatorsky direction, six battles were sharpened near Grigorivka, Chasovoy Yar and Predtechiny, one of which is still continuing.

In the Toretsky direction Russians five times attacked Ukrainian troops near Toretsk and Northern. They did not have any success.

From the beginning of this day, 46 battles were sharpened near Panteleimonovka, Vozdvizhenko, Green Field, Peace, Grodivka, Nikolaivka, Novogrodivka, Mykhailivka and Ptichogo. Defense forces repelled 44 attacks, two are still continuing.

According to preliminary information, today 238 Russian occupants were killed and wounded in this direction were defecated. Also destroyed a combat armored vehicle, a military vehicle and a car. In addition, a tank, five artillery systems and a combat-armored vehicle were damaged.

In the kurakhiv direction, Russian forces 13 times attacked Ukrainian positions, tried to advance near georgiivka, konstantinivka and pobeda. Got a decent cut off.

In the Vremivskiy, Orihivskiy and Pridniprovskiy directions of active activities of the occupiers have not been noted. However, the Russian zagarbniki inflict air strikes and permanently shell the territory of Ukrainian cities and villages and positions of Ukrainian units.

The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported that the units of the Sever Group of Forces in Volchansk and Liptsy directions have engaged 43rd mechanised and 92nd assault brigades of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the 36th Marine Brigade, and the 13th National Guard Brigade near Zolochyov, Liptsy, and Volchansk (Kharkov region).

The AFU losses were up to 100 Ukrainian troops, three motor vehicles, one 152-mm D-20 howitzer, and two 122-mm D-30 howitzers.

The units of the Zapad Group of Forces have captured more advantageous lines and positions, inflicted losses on manpower and hardware of 14th, 43rd, 66th, 116th mechanised brigades of the AFU, and the 110th Territorial Defence Brigade close to Tabayevka, Peschanoye, Petropavlovka (Kharkov region), Stelmakhovka, Chervonaya Dibrova (Lugansk People's Republic), and Torskoye (Donetsk People's Republic).

Six counter-attacks of the 115th AFU Mechanised Brigade's assault detachments, the 110th Territorial Defence Brigade, and the 12th AFU Azov Special Operations Brigade have been repelled.

The AFU losses were up to 470 Ukrainian troops, one tank, four motor vehicles, one U.S.-made 155-mm M198 howitzer, and one 152-mm Msta-B howitzer.

The units of the Yug Group of Forces have improved the tactical situation, inflicted losses on manpower and hardware of 28th, 30th, 32nd mechanised, 56th motorised infantry, 72nd air assault brigades of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and the 116th Territorial Defence Brigade near Pereyezdnoye, Grigorovka, Orekhovo-Vasilyevka, Chasov Yar, Kurdyumovka, and Konstantinovka (Donetsk People's Republic).

The AFU losses were more than 700 Ukrainian troops, three motor vehicles, one U.S.-made M777 howitzer, one 152-mm Msta-B howitzer, two 152-mm D-20 howitzers, one 122-mm D-30 howitzer, two U.S.-made 105-mm M119 guns, one Croatian-made 122-mm RAK-SA-12 MLRS launcher, and two electronic warfare stations.

One ammunition depot has been destroyed.

As a result of active actions, the units of the Tsentr Group of Forces have liberated Zhelannoye (Donetsk People's Republic).

In addition, Russian troops have launched strikes on formations of 23rd, 53rd, and 151st mechanised brigades of the AFU, and the 15th Brigade of the National Guard close to Shcherbinovka, Tarasovka, Zhuravka, Kalinovo, Dzerzhinsk, and Grodovka (Donetsk People's Republic).

Six counter-attacks by 47th and 150th mechanised brigades of the AFU, the 14th Brigade of the National Guard, and the Lyut Assault Brigade of the Ukrainian National Police have been repelled.

The enemy losses were more than 630 Ukrainian troops, 12 Kazak armoured fighting vehicles, U.S.-made 155-mm M777 and M198 howitzers, one 152-mm Giatsint-B gun, one 152-mm D-20 howitzer, one 152-mm Msta-B howitzer, and four 122-mm D-30 howitzers.

The units of the Vostok Group of Forces have delivered strikes at manpower and hardware of the AFU 58th Mechanised Infantry Brigade, 106th and 125th territorial defence brigades near Vodyanoye, Ugledar, Prechistovka, and Velikaya Novosyolka (Donetsk People's Republic).

Four counter-attacks of the AFU 72nd Mechanised Brigade and the 125th Territorial Defence Brigade have been repelled.

The AFU losses were up to 130 Ukrainian troops, one infantry fighting vehicle, five motor vehicles, one 155-mm Braveheart self-propelled artillery system, and one UK-made 155-mm FH-70 howitzer as well as one 122-mm D-30 howitzer.

The units of the Dnepr Group of Forces have inflicted fire damage on the 65th Mechanised Brigade of the AFU and the 39th Coastal Defence Brigades close to Malye Shcherbaki and Novodanilovka (Zaporozhye region).

The AFU losses were up to 30 Ukrainian troops, five motor vehicles, and two 152-mm D-20 howitzers.

Operational-Tactical Aviation, unmanned aerial vehicles, Missile Troops and Artillery of the Russian Groups of Forces have destroyed one POL depot as well as clusters of AFU manpower and hardware in 131 areas.

Air defence systems have shot down seven French-made Hammer guided aerial bombs, one Neptune-MD anti-ship missile, 15 U.S.-made HIMARS projectiles, and 63 unmanned aerial vehicles.

In total, 639 airplanes and 282 helicopters, 30,255 unmanned aerial vehicles, 575 air defence missile systems, 17,348 tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, 1,416 combat vehicles equipped with MLRS, 13,470 field artillery guns and mortars, as well as 24,977 units of special military equipment have been destroyed during the special military operation.

The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation also reported that the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation continue to repel the AFU attempt to invade the territory of the Russian Federation.

The units of the Sever Group of Forces supported by Army Aviation and artillery have thwarted attacks launched by enemy assault detachments in the direction of Komarovka, Korenevo, Malaya Loknya, and Russkaya Konopelka.

As a result, the Armed Forces of Ukraine losses were more than 45 Ukrainian troops killed and wounded, two of them captured, two tanks, one U.S.-made M113 armoured personnel carrier, and six armoured fighting vehicles.

The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation continue reconnaissance and search operations to locate and eliminated the enemy small sabotage and reconnaissance groups attempting to get to the depth of the Russian territory.

n addition, air strikes, artillery fire, and actions of the defending troops have engaged manpower and hardware of the AFU the 22nd Brigade, the 115th Mechanised Brigade, the 82nd Air Assault Brigade close to Apanasovka, Borki, Vishnyovka, Kositsa, Nizhniy Klin, Snagost, Sverdlikovo, and Kazachya Loknya.

Operational-Tactical Aviation have attacked the concentration areas of AFU reserves in Sumy region: 22nd and 41st mechanised brigades, the 82nd Air Assault Brigade, the 92nd Assault Brigade, 103rd, 106th, and 129th territorial defence brigades as well as the 69th Rifle Battalion in the areas of Belopolye, Boyaro-Lezhachi, Glukhov, Krasnopolye, Novye Virki, Pokrovka, Pisarevka, Mogritsa, and Yunakovka.

The AFU lost up to 300 Ukrainian troops and 26 armoured vehicles, including six tanks, three armoured personnel carriers, 17 armoured fighting vehicles as well as two motor vehicles, four artillery guns, and two MLRS launchers.

??Since the beginning of hostilities in Kursk region, the AFU losses amounted to up to 4,400 Ukrainian troops, 65 tanks, 27 infantry fighting vehicles, 27 infantry fighting vehicles, 53 armoured personnel carriers, 316 armoured fighting vehicles, 133 motor vehicles, 31 artillery guns, five SAM launchers, nine MLRS launchers, including three of HIMARS system and one MLRS system, six electronic warfare stations, as well as four units of engineering vehicles, including two counterobstacle vehicles and one UR-77 mine clearing vehicle.

The operation to neutralise the AFU units is in progress.

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Albanese Government investment to boost Long-Range Strike for ADF and deliver jobs for Hunter Region

The Hon Pat Conroy MP

Minister for Defence Industry and Capability Delivery

Minister for International Development and the Pacific

22 August 2024

The Albanese Government will contribute up to $850 million in partnership with Kongsberg Defence Australia to manufacture and service missiles at Williamtown near Newcastle.

The project, which involves construction of a factory in the Newcastle Airport precinct, is expected to generate more than 500 jobs in the construction phase and almost $100 million in economic benefits to the local area. Once complete, the factory is expected to employ approximately 100 people.

The factory will manufacture and service Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) and Joint Strike Missiles (JSM) to be used by the Australian Defence Force (ADF). It will be one of only two facilities in the world capable of producing NSM and JSM with the other site in Kongsberg, Norway.

Construction of this factory, expected to start later this year, represents a leap forward for Australia's defence industry that highlights the Government's commitment to a future made in Australia.

The Albanese Government is including Kongsberg Defence Australia as a strategic partner in the Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance (GWEO) Enterprise. The GWEO Enterprise is backed by a commitment of up to $21 billion over the coming decade through the Government's 2024 Integrated Investment Program.

It delivers on priorities in the 2024 National Defence Strategy to both develop the ADF's ability to precisely strike targets at longer range and manufacture munitions in Australia.

The JSM - which can be fitted to the F-35A aircraft - and NSM are modern anti-ship cruise missiles designed to defeat highly capable enemy warships. Both can also be deployed against land-based targets.

The NSM will enhance the maritime and land strike capabilities of Hobart class destroyers and Anzac class frigates, and will replace the Harpoon anti-ship missile, supporting the increased lethality of the enhanced surface combatant fleet. HMAS Sydney test-fired a NSM in July 2024.

The establishment of the manufacturing facility at the Newcastle Airport precinct will help make Australia more self-reliant and boost war stocks, while supporting the local economy and Australia's defence industry.

Quotes attributable to Minister for Defence Industry and Capability Delivery, the Hon Pat Conroy MP:

"Today's announcement is another example of the Albanese Government's commitment to keeping Australians safe while also supporting a future made in Australia.

"This is about investing in our advanced, high-tech manufacturing industry and developing our sovereign defence industrial base in areas which have been identified as strategic priorities, which in turn means we can accelerate capability delivery to the ADF.

"We cannot deliver the generational uplift in capability outlined in the National Defence Strategy without our industry partners, and we look forward to working with Kongsberg Defence Australia as a GWEO Strategic Partner."

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China's Xi pledges closer ties with Fiji for 'ocean of peace'

Sitiveni Rabuka is the latest Pacific island leader to visit Beijing in recent months.

By Harry Pearl for BenarNews 2024.08.21 -- Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged to deepen development ties with Fiji and support Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka's plan for an "ocean of peace," as the Pacific leader finished a 10-day visit to the Asian superpower before attending a major regional forum next week.

Fiji's relations with China have cooled under Rabuka, who reset a police cooperation agreement with Beijing earlier this year in what was a significant blow to Chinese security interests in the South Pacific.

Beijing has hosted several Pacific island leaders in recent months, including Vanuatu Prime Minister Charlot Salwai, Nauruan President David Adeang and Solomon Islands leader Jeremiah Manele.

Rabuka met with Xi in Beijing's Great Hall of the People after touring the economic hubs of Zhejiang and Fujian and observing poverty alleviation efforts in Yunnan province.

"China is ready to help Fiji and other Pacific island countries cope with climate change, and strengthen development cooperation with them to make the Pacific Ocean an ocean of peace, friendship and cooperation," Xi said, according to a report Tuesday by state news agency Xinhua.

Rabuka, who led two coups in Fiji in the late 1980s, has called for Pacific island nations to declare their ocean territories a "zone of peace" as the United States and China jostle for influence in the region. A formal declaration will be considered at the upcoming Pacific Island Forum (PIF) leaders meeting in Tonga next week.

Rabuka said that Fiji was ready to learn from China's experience and keen to increase collaboration in poverty reduction, infrastructure and connectivity, Xinhua said.

On Sunday, Rabuka held talks with China's No. 2 official Premier Li Qiang. The two leaders said they were committed to deepening cooperation in trade, infrastructure, agriculture, fisheries and tourism, according to a statement from the Chinese government.

China said it was ready to import more goods from Fiji and boost foreign investment in the country. Rabuka and Li witnessed the signing of cooperation documents on trade and infrastructure construction, though no details were provided.

A statement released by the Fijian foreign ministry said that Rabuka had highlighted Suva's desire for China to help "transform the country's infrastructure in the years ahead."

Earlier this week, the Fijian government announced it would develop a Chinese language program to teach Mandarin, Chinese culture and values in Fijian schools.

Rabuka had been due to take part in a PIF fact-finding mission to New Caledonia after leaving China, but the trip was deferred amid reports of disagreement between the territory's pro-independence governing coalition and Paris. Finding a long-lasting solution to unrest in New Caledonia will be high on the agenda at the 53rd PIF leaders forum.

The world's second biggest economy has become an increasingly important trade, investment and aid partner to Fiji.

Fiji was the first Pacific island country to establish diplomatic ties with the People's Republic of China and its strategic location at the center of the South Pacific has made it a focus for Beijing's diplomatic efforts in the region.

Beijing's relations with Fiji burgeoned in particular after Australia, New Zealand and other countries sought to punish it for Frank Bainimarama's 2006 coup that ousted the elected government.

In 2011 under Bainimarama, the two countries struck a police cooperation agreement that allowed Chinese officers to be deployed in Fiji and China donated equipment and surveillance technology such as drones.

But the agreement was put under review by Rabuka in 2023 and a decision was made this year to scap short-term deployments of Chinese officers and curtail intelligence sharing.

BenarNews is an RFA-affiliated online news organization.

Copyright 1998-2024, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content August not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Hong Kong journalists say press freedom declines further

Many cite the recent Article 23 security law as a contributing factor in fears for the future.

By Ray Chung for RFA Cantonese, Chen Zifei for RFA Mandarin 2024.08.21 -- Press freedom in Hong Kong has fallen to its lowest point since an annual survey of the city's journalists began 11 years ago amid fears it will weaken still further in the wake of Article 23 security legislation passed in March.

More than half of journalists who responded to the latest Hong Kong Journalists' Association survey said press freedom had declined over the past year, with more than 90% of respondents saying that press freedom had declined overall for the fifth year in a row.

The Press Freedom Index, carried out with the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute, received completed survey questionnaires from 251 working journalists between March and May 2024, polling their opinions about the level of press freedom.

A poll of 1,000 randomly selected members of the public showed little perceived change from the previous year, however.

"Journalist respondents were highly concerned about the potential impact of Article 23 national security legislation a introduced in March 2024 a on the media in Hong Kong, with more than 90% saying this would significantly impact press freedom in the city," the association said in a statement on its website.

Jimmy Lai

Press groups have expressed concern that the language in the law around sedition and state secrets is too vague, and could be interpreted to cover actions or speech by journalists.

Many cited the case of Next Digital media mogul Jimmy Lai, who is currently standing trial on two counts of "conspiracy to collude with foreign forces," one count of "collusion with foreign forces" under the 2020 National Security Law, which ushered in a citywide crackdown on public dissent in the wake of the 2019 protests.

Much of the prosecution's evidence centers on opinion articles published in Lai's now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper.

Lai has been an outspoken supporter of the pro-democracy movement, and several editors at his former paper are also awaiting sentencing for calling for international sanctions in columns and opinion pieces.

The 2020 National Security Law and the Article 23 legislation were also in the top five factors affecting journalists in Hong Kong, the survey found, while respondents also cited the disappearance of South China Morning Post journalist Minnie Chan on assignment in Beijing and the sacking of the political cartoonist Zunzi by the Ming Pao newspaper.

Association chairperson Selina Cheng, who was fired from her job at the Wall Street Journal for running in elections to lead the union, said there was a gap between the public perception of press freedom and journalists' experience of it when doing their jobs.

"The public mostly notices the finished product ... and may not consider self-censorship," Cheng said. "And if journalists have concerns while reporting, writing or editing, the public may not know about it, but the journalists do."

Current affairs commentator Johnny Lau said the process had been one of "gradual compression" on journalists.

"The general public wouldn't notice that as a sudden thing like a needle prick, but instead gradually adapts to the pain," Lau said. "The government's approach is subtle, and reduces the public's demand for information, which is actually a way to hide things from the people."

Cheng said she isn't optimistic that things will change any time soon.

Vague wording

The "Article 23" Safeguarding National Security law passed in March includes sentences of up to life imprisonment for "treason," "insurrection," "sabotage" and "mutiny," 20 years for espionage and 10 years for crimes linked to "state secrets" and "sedition." It also allows authorities to revoke the passports of anyone who flees overseas.

Officials in China and Hong Kong say that journalists are safe to carry out "legitimate" reporting activities under both the 2020 National Security Law and the Article 23 Safeguarding National Security Law, which was passed on March 23.

Yet the wording of the laws is vague, leaving journalists trying to read between the lines of official denunciations and legal rulings to figure out where the boundaries lie.

Getting it wrong can get a journalist censored, fired, or sent to jail.

Since the Press Freedom Index was founded in 2013, there has been a clear downward trend in the ratings of both the public and journalists, the Association said, adding that the journalists' score has plummeted from 42 to 25 in the past decade, while the public score fell from 49.4 to 42.2.

Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2024, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content August not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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China In Eurasia Briefing: The Power of Siberia-2 Pipeline Hits A Snag In Mongolia

By Reid Standish August 21, 2024

Powered Down In Mongolia

Mongolia's government voted not toto include the Power of Siberia-2 natural gas pipeline that connects Russia to China through its territory in its spending plans for the next four years, a sign that the megaproject may be on hold.

Finding Perspective: Mongolia's new coalition government voted on August 16 for its action program for its four-year term and notably did not include the 2,594-kilometer pipeline, meaning they don't expect the ambitious project to begin construction during that span.

While the bulk of the energy project rests between Beijing and Moscow reaching an agreement, Mongolia would need to be involved in construction and transmission fee negotiations.

Power of Siberia-2, which is a joint project between the China National Petroleum Corporation and Gazprom, would take at least five years to build and would look to bring gas from the huge Yamal Peninsula reserves in western Siberia to China.

Much of these reserves were originally intended to be sold to the European Union, but Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine has left Moscow looking for a new market in China, the world's largest consumer of natural gas.

But Beijing currently has no particular incentive to agree to the new pipeline, and there have been ongoing disputes and tough negotiations between China and Russia over price and supply levels.

In June, the Financial Times newspaper, citing "people familiar with the matter," reportedthat talks are frozen over what Russia sees as China's unreasonable demands.

What's Next? The decision by Mongolia's government is seen by some analysts as the latest sign that the pipeline is facing setbacks.

"It's premature to declare the project over, but the omission signals significant challenges," Aleksei Chigadaev, a China expert and former visiting lecturer at the Higher School of Economics in Moscow, told me.

Moscow's bargaining power with its more economically powerful neighbor has weakened over the course of the war in Ukraine, and questions remain over Gazprom's ability to underwrite such a complicated venture.

The natural gas pipeline, which would bring gas to northern China, is also uncertain because it faces competition from China's growing shifttoward renewable energy and Beijing's wider strategy to avoid being too dependent on any one exporter.

"North China's access to [global] liquefied natural gas (LNG) markets is expanding, and global LNG markets will likely remain oversupplied for the rest of the decade," Joseph Webster, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, told me.

"Additionally, north China can squeeze out incremental volumes from domestic production and the existing lines of the Central Asia-to-China [pipeline]."

Why It Matters: Approval for the pipeline would transform Gazprom's current fortunes by tying it further to a massive consumer market, but Beijing's tough stance also underscores how Russia's invasion of Ukraine has left President Vladimir Putin lacking leverage.

Concluding a deal on a project as expansive as Power of Siberia-2 is incredibly complex, but China clearly believes it is holding better cards.

Beijing also has alternatives to pursue. Xi has also offered support for the construction of the so-called Line D pipeline, which would be the fourth to bring Turkmen gas to China.

As Chigadaev explains, the Turkmen pipeline offers some clear advantages.

"The pipeline will be significantly shorter than the Russian one, and its construction will be entirely controlled by China, including investments, the construction process, and operations," he said. "Negotiating with Turkmenistan's political leadership is also easier -- it has an even higher level of authoritarianism than Russia and a simpler economy."

Still, as Webster notes, Power of Siberia-2 and Line-D feed different parts of China and don't necessarily cancel the other out, although "China's future and even current natural gas demand is a big analytical blind spot."

"Line D is believed to service southern China, which would place it in only indirect competition with Power of Siberia-2, which would deliver gas to customers in northern China," he said. "Line D is more likely to compete against American and Australian LNG. But the routes of Line D and Power of Siberia-2 aren't finalized yet. Things could change."

Three More Stories From Eurasia

1. Li Qiang In Russia and Belarus

Chinese Premier Li Qiang arrived on August 20 in Moscow on a three-day official visit where he is expected to hold talks with his Russian counterpart Mikhail Mishustin and Putin.

The Details: The visit will focus on bilateral ties and economic cooperation between China and Russia as part of a regular diplomatic track created for both countries' prime ministers.

Ahead of the visit, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said Li planned to "exchange in-depth views on practical cooperation in bilateral relations and issues of common concern" in talks with Mishustin.

Neither the Chinese or Russian side mentioned the war in Ukraine in their previews, but Li's trip is the first from a Chinese official since Ukraine's incursion into Russian territory.

Li will then depart Moscow for Belarus, where he'll meet with Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko and strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka.

Belarus relies heavily on Russia for political and financial support but has also looked to balance that dependence with closer ties with China.

In July, Belarus became the 10th member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and also hosted China for military exercises in the western part of the country, some 5 kilometers from the Polish border.

2. Kazakhstan's Nuclear Energy Bid

Kazakh officials held their 20th public discussion in the country about building a new nuclear power plant on August 20, my colleague Asemgul Mukhitkyzy from RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reports.

What You Need To Know: The most recent public forum was held in the capital, Astana, and came before a possible national referendum on this issue.

The discussion tour includes officials and nuclear energy experts and are partly held as part of an effort to raise public awareness, dispel myths and misinformation about nuclear power, and quell any safety or environmental concerns from having another plant in the country.

Kazakh officials have not yet said who will be building the plant, but the government is reportedly considering proposals from French, South Korean, Chinese, and Russian companies.

3. Diluting Tajikistan's China Debt

Tajik Deputy Finance Minister Yusuf Majidi says China's share of Tajikistan's external debt is decreasing each year, RFE/RL's Tajik Service reports.

What It Means: Speaking at a recent press conference, Majidi said Tajikistan's total debt owed to China is $1.5 billion and Dushanbe has paid back $610 million already.

He added this leaves Tajikistan's remaining debt owed at around $850-890 million and the government has been taking steps to limit its debt exposure.

"China's share in the structure of Tajikistan's external debt is decreasing. After 2018, we have only received grants from China," Majidi explained to reporters.

Tajikistan's growing financial dependence on China has been a major source of criticism for the Tajik government, with China owning half of the country's foreign debt and being its main source of external investment.

Added to those financial concerns, all of the terms of loan contracts agreed to with China have not been made public and have sparked fears that Tajikistan's inability to repay its loans could lead to offering land or other concessions in exchange for debt relief.

According to the Finance Ministry, the grace period for a number of loans owed to China's Export-Import Bank will stop at the end of 2025 and Dushanbe will need to pay off a percentage of its Chinese-owned debt.

Across The Supercontinent

Yuan Listed: In a move designed to boost cross-border trade with China, the National Bank of Kyrgyzstan announcedit will begin publishing the official exchange rate of the yuan against the Kyrgyz som starting on September 1.

Wheat Woes: Kazakhstan has suspended wheat exports to China for an undetermined period following unilateral tariff changes by Beijing, the Kazakh Ministry of Agriculture said in an August 7 statement.

The Not 'For You Page': TikTok's algorithm promotes the Chinese government's narratives on hot-button issues such as Tibet, Taiwan, and the Uyghurs while suppressing content critical of Beijing, a new studyhas found.

A Dawn Raid And A Ruling: Legal claims brought by the Chinese firm Nuctech that European Commission raids in April to search for evidence of state subsidies were illegal have been thrown outby a court in Luxembourg.

Nuctech is a maker of body and baggage scanners for airports and ports and they sued the commission in June over the raids being unlawful. The ruling by the court could have a wider effect on Chinese businesses in Europe and the case is the most high-profile use of the European Commission using its foreign subsidies regulation.

One Thing To Watch

Azerbaijan officially applied to become a member of BRICS, the group of emerging-market nations led by China and Russia that also includes Brazil, India, and South Africa as founding members.

The country's Foreign Ministry made the announcementon August 20. Azerbaijan is the latest applicant to BRICS, which has consisted of just five members for years until it expanded with the inclusion of Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, and Egypt in January.

The development also comes after Azerbaijan signed a strategic partnership agreement with China on July 3 on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/china-eurasia-power- of-siberia-mongolia-putin/33086686.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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China, Russia eye stronger all-round practical cooperation

Global Times

By Yang Sheng and Bai Yunyi Published: Aug 22, 2024 12:20 AM

Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Wednesday co-chaired the 29th regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin in Moscow and said China is ready to work with Russia to strengthen all-round practical cooperation between the two countries, and push the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era to a new level.

Analysts said that China-Russia ties remain solid and can withstand any impact and interruption from outside, and will continue to benefit the two peoples by boosting trade and comprehensive cooperation, while China's stance for peace on the Ukraine crisis will remain unchanged.

While co-chairing the meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government, Li said that China is ready to work with Russia to follow the strategic guidance of the two heads of state and take the opportunity of the 75th anniversary of diplomatic ties to uphold mutual respect, mutual trust, everlasting friendship and mutual benefit.

Mishustin said Russia is ready to work with China to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, continue to deepen mutual trust, expand cooperation in investment, energy, economy and trade, culture and sub-national areas, and ensure the success of the Russia-China Years of Culture.

Mishustin pledged Russia will join China in strengthening communication and coordination in international affairs, better safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of the two sides, and pushing forward the bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era.

After the meeting, the two leaders signed a joint communique of the 29th regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government and a new version of the outline of the China-Russia investment cooperation plan.

According to the Kremlin, Putin also met Li in Moscow on Wednesday. "Our countries have large-scale joint plans, projects in the economic and humanitarian areas, we expect them to last for many years," the RIA state news agency quoted Putin as saying.

Wang Xiaoquan, an expert with the Institute of Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said that this is the 29th meeting between the heads of government of the two countries. This is proof that China-Russia relations have set a paradigm for major power relations in a world in turbulence, which is based on long-term and stable win-win cooperation and solid mutual trust and respect.

Comprehensive partnership

A key characteristic of the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for the new era is the comprehensive communication mechanism that covers almost all governmental sectors and departments in all fields, Wang noted.

The two countries will use the communication mechanism to jointly deal with problems that emerge when the two sides develop their relations, and they will constantly strengthen their mutual trust and tacit understanding, experts noted.

China and Russia are both permanent members of the UN Security Council so they do have reason to maintain frequent and high-level communication to not only handle bilateral issues, but also to undertake diplomatic cooperation to jointly take responsibility to safeguard the multi-polarization process of the world, analysts said.

"Therefore, the recent frequent exchanges between Chinese and Russian leaders and senior officials are not pushed by any other element or pressure, but are driven by normal demand of the two countries to develop their relations," Wang said.

Yang Jin, an associate research fellow with the Institute of Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Wednesday that the meeting between the heads of government normally focuses on trade and economic issues, as well as implementation of the consensuses reached by the heads of state of the two countries.

Currently, there are some changes in the battlefields of Russia-Ukraine conflict, but the exchanges between China and Russia have nothing to do with these changes. Normal cooperation between the two countries in all fields can effectively withstand the pressure and impacts from outside, and China's neutrality and stance for peace on the Ukraine crisis will not change, Yang noted.

Deal with challenges

Mishustin said at the meeting with Li that Moscow and Beijing should jointly defend their interests and the principles of the multipolar world order in the conditions of Western sanctions pressure, Russian news agency Tass reported on Wednesday.

"Western countries are trying to maintain their global dominance and contain the economic and technological potential of Russia and China," Mishustin said.

"That is why it is important to concentrate efforts on protecting our common interests, building a multipolar world order and strengthening coordination on international platforms," Mishustin emphasized, according to Tass.

Cui Heng, a research fellow with the Center for Russian Studies of East China Normal University, said that in the past two years, the US and NATO have tried to stigmatize and interrupt China-Russia relations, but these attempts have failed, as the two countries are just doing what they should and what they must to take care of their people from the harms of Western sanctions.

"Russian people have the right to live and enjoy economic development, so when Western firms withdraw from Russia, it's very natural that China and other economies from the Global South will come in, so the US and its followers are in no position to appoint blame about that," Cui noted.

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China hits out at EU over EV draft findings, warns damage to ties

Global Times

By GT staff reporters Published: Aug 22, 2024 12:00 AM

Chinese officials and industry representatives on Wednesday lashed out at the European Commission(EC) for its newly released draft definitive findings of the probe against Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), warning that the EU's wrong, protectionist action seriously undermines mutual trust and cooperation between China and the EU as it hurts Chinese firms' confidence in the EU market.

The EC's announcement, which still included hefty tariff rates against Chinese EV makers, also created even more hurdles for the ongoing consultations between the two sides aimed at resolving the dispute, experts said. Experts also drew a stark contrast between China's sincerity in resolving the dispute through talks and the EU's intensifying protectionism and crackdown against Chinese firms and products.

Meanwhile, China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) on Wednesday launched a countervailing investigation into certain dairy products from the EU at the request of the Chinese domestic industry. Chinese experts said that the relevant investigation, initiated upon the domestic industry's application and launched according to law and WTO rules, is completely different from the EC's protectionist probe that violates WTO rules.

After the EC disclosed its definitive findings of its so-called anti-subsidy investigation and maintained a maximum tariff rate of 36.3 percent against Chinese EV makers, compared to a 9 percent rate from EVs made by Tesla in China on Tuesday, a number of Chinese ministries and industry groups have slammed the move.

The EC's so-called investigation is typical trade protectionism and politically-motivated action. It ignores the facts, disrespects WTO rules, goes against the trend of history, disrupts the EU's green transition process and global effort to respond to climate change, and will harm the EU itself as well as others, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning on Wednesday.

Chinese and EU officials have launched talks in a bid to resolve the dispute. Since the end of June, the two sides have held more than 10 rounds of technical consultations, according to the MOFCOM on Tuesday.

"The EU's protectionist move will harm China-EU economic and trade cooperation, disrupting the existing consultation and negotiation process between the two sides and setting a bad precedent for resolving similar issues," Cui Hongjian, a professor from the Academy of Regional and Global Governance with Beijing Foreign Studies University, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

Profound negative impact

Beyond the ongoing consultations, the EC's protectionist move will also not only hurt the legitimate interests of relevant parties in the short term, but also have profound negative impact on the broad economic and trade cooperation between China and the EU, Chinese industry representatives and experts said.

In a statement on Wednesday, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said the EC's move has brought great risks and uncertainties to Chinese companies in operating and investing in the EU and has damaged their confidence in EU market. "The CAAM expresses strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition on behalf of the Chinese automobile industry."

In addition to the EV tariffs, the EU has also intensified crackdown measures against a series of Chinese products and companies under its so-called Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR), which has already led to some Chinese firms backing out of projects in the EU. China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products (CCCME) has recently warned that the EU's increasing protectionism under the FSR could lead to the loss of investment from Chinese firms.

The CCCME vowed that as it is a defendant in the investigation, it will continue to represent the Chinese EV industry to carry out work in response to the EU's move and resolutely defend the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese EV companies through various means.

SAIC, which has been subjected by the EC to a 36.3 percent provisional tariff rate, said it will "take further legal measures based on the development of the situation and safeguard its own rights and interests," in a statement sent to the Global Times on Wednesday.

Zhang Xiang, secretary general of the International Intelligent Vehicle Engineering Association, said that although the EC's tariffs, once imposed, could lead to fluctuations in the exports of related Chinese EVs in the short term, there is still huge overseas market potential for Chinese EVs. Moreover, the EU will unlikely receive growing Chinese EV investments, "because there are other policy risks," Zhang told the Global Times on Wednesday.

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Macao SAR chief executive Ho says not to run for new term

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 09:35, August 22, 2024

MACAO, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng issued a statement on Wednesday, saying that he will not participate in the upcoming election for the sixth-term chief executive.

In the statement, Ho expressed his deep gratitude to the central government, various sectors of Macao society, and residents for their trust and strong support over the past five years. He also extended thanks to all public servants for their close cooperation.

He noted that he and the fifth Macao SAR government had promoted Macao's diversified development, striven to build a new pattern of Macao's development, and reshaped Macao's new competitive advantages under the concept of "unity and efforts, change and innovation."

He expressed his profound feelings for Macao and emphasized that he had done his utmost for its development. However, due to health reason and considering Macao's long-term development, he decided not to participate in the election for the sixth-term chief executive.

He pledged to fully support the sixth chief executive and the Macao SAR government in governing according to law, thus working for the cause of "one country, two systems" and Macao's development.

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VISIT OF ADMIRAL MARCOS SAMPAIO OLSEN, COMMANDER BRAZILIAN NAVY

India - Press Information Bureau

Ministry of Defence

Posted On: 21 AUG 2024 1:19PM by PIB Delhi

Admiral Marcos Sampaio Olsen, Commander of Brazilian Navy is on an official visit to India from 19 to 24 Aug 24. The visit aims to enhance maritime cooperation between the two countries as well as showcase the commitment of like-minded navies to collaborate and cooperate on shared challenges in the maritime security.

Adm Marcos Sampaio Olsen called on Adm Dinesh K Tripathi, Chief of the Naval Staff on 21 Aug 24 at New Delhi and held discussions on various aspects encompassing operational engagements, technical cooperation, and training. He was received with a ceremonial Guard of Honour at the South Block Lawns.

Indian Navy cooperates with the Brazilian Navy through various initiatives, which include operational interactions, training cooperation and other maritime avenues. The two navies have also been interacting in multilateral forums like MILAN and India-Brazil-South Africa Maritime (IBSAMAR). Bilateral Defence Cooperation between the two countries is conducted through the Joint Defence Committee, steered by respective Ministries of Defence. As part of his official engagements, the Commander of Brazilian Navy is also scheduled to meet Defence Secretary, National Maritime Security Coordinator, and Vice Chief of Army Staff in Delhi. During this visit, Admiral Marcos Sampaio Olsen would also visit Information Fusion Centre - Indian Ocean Region (IFC-IOR) at Gurugram and will hold interaction with various Defence Industry representatives.

In addition to New Delhi, the Commander of Brazilian Navy, would also visit Mumbai, where he would be interacting with Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command, as well as visit indigenous warships & submarines; Naval Dockyard; and Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders limited.

****

VM/SPS



(Release ID: 2047230)

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INDIAN NAVY SIGNS MoU WITH BEML LTD.

India - Press Information Bureau

Ministry of Defence

Indian Navy and BEML Ltd. join forces to drive indigenisation of marine equipment and systems

Posted On: 21 AUG 2024 11:57AM by PIB Delhi

In a major push towards indigenisation of critical Marine Engineering equipment of the Indian Navy. BEML Ltd., a 'Schedule A' company under the Ministry of Defence and one of India's leading Defence and Heavy Engineering manufacturers has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Navy on 20 Aug 24.

The MoU was concluded at the Naval Headquarters at New Delhi between Rear Admiral K Srinivas, ACOM(D&R), Indian Navy and Shri Ajit Kumar Srivastav, Director of Defence, BEML. This initiative is a pivotal step in enhancing bilateral cooperation for indigenous design, development, manufacture, testing and product support of critical Marine Engineering equipment and systems.

Aligned with the Government of India's Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative, the partnership aims to strengthen self-reliance in defence production and reduce dependence on foreign OEMs.

****

VM/SPS



(Release ID: 2047188)

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'Iran response to Haniyeh assassination will occur at moment of maximum surprise'

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Aug 21, 2024

New York, IRNA -- Iran's Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York has said that the Islamic Republic's response to Israel's assassination of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh will be carried out in a way to ensure that it "occurs at a moment of maximum surprise."

"The timing of Iran's response will be meticulously orchestrated to ensure that it occurs at a moment of maximum surprise", the mission said on Wednesday when asked whether Tehran is withholding its response to Israel so the ongoing Gaza ceasefire talks can proceed.

Ismail Haniyeh was martyred in an Israeli airstrike on his accommodation in the Iranian capital on July 31, a day after he attended the inaugural of Iran's new president Masoud Pezeshkian.

Iran says Haniyeh was an official guest of the Islamic Republic, and that the Israeli attack was a violation of the country's sovereignty.

"Iran's response must punish the aggressor for its act of terrorism and infringements upon Iran's national sovereignty", the mission said, adding that the response should serve as a deterrent as well.

The Islamic Republic's response must "bolster Iran's deterrence capabilities to induce profound regret within the Israeli regime, thereby serving as a deterrent...Iran's response must be carefully calibrated to avoid any possible adverse impact that could potentially influence a prospective ceasefire" in Gaza.

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Zionist regime root cause of threat to regional, int'l peace, security: Iran FM spox

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Aug 21, 2024

Tehran, IRNA -- Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani has said that the racist Zionist regime is the root cause of threat to the regional and international peace and security.

In reaction to the joint statement by the prime ministers of Australia and New Zealand regarding the crisis in West Asia, Kanaani noted that the statement only addressed some facts while omitting other significant ones.

He highlighted the global call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the protection of civilians, and the prompt and sufficient delivery of humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza, stressing that the international community must undertake practical and effective actions to realize this demand and compel the Zionist regime to comply with the terms.

He underscored that the joint statement from Australia and New Zealand once again demonstrated their double standards concerning fundamental human rights, international law, and regional developments.

The Foreign Ministry spokesman highlighted that the overt and covert support for a regime that has been engaged in committing genocidal war against the oppressed Palestinian people means encouraging the criminal Zionist regime to continue such horrible crimes.

Referring to the crimes committed by the Israel's regime in Palestine and at the regional level, he said that the stability and security of the region have been exposed to dangerous threats caused by criminal behaviors that violate the UN Charter and the provisions of international law by the Zionist regime, adding that the provisions of the joint statement issued by Australia and New Zealand are a clear example of turning a blind eye to the facts and deviation of the public opinion.

In a situation where the UN Security Council has failed to issue even a single statement condemning the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the former leader of Hamas's politburo, by the Zionist regime due to the unwavering support of the US for the Zionist regime, the unreasonable calls from Australia and New Zealand to the Islamic Republic of Iran are considered as ignoring Iran's inherent right to retaliate against the aggressor and establish deterrence against the Zionist regime's adventurism, he noted.

Kanaani emphasized that the racist Zionist regime is the root cause of the threat to regional and international peace and security, noting that Australia and New Zealand's double-standard approach to adhering to international norms will not only fail to reduce tension in the region but also embolden the criminal Zionist regime to perpetuate its destabilizing actions in the region.

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President Pezeshkian appreciates parliament's absolute support for Cabinet

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Aug 21, 2024

Tehran, IRNA -- Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has appreciated the country's parliament for its vote of confidence in his list of Cabinet ministers, saying the fact that the legislature approved all the ministers is a sign of high level of cooperation and synergy between the two branches of the government.

In a letter addressed to Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf on Wednesday, Pezeshkian said that absolute vote of members of the parliament to approve his cabinet ministers was a social asset which strengthens the newly-elected administration's approach to create a sense of national unity in the country.

He reiterated that he had considered the views of high-ranking political and executive officials of the country as well as various political, social and cultural groups before submitting the list of Cabinet ministers to the parliament.

Iran's parliament on Wednesday approved all 19 candidates proposed by Pezeshkian to fill ministerial posts in his new government.

The vote came following four-and-a-half days of intense discussions in the chamber, including debates in its expert committees where proposed ministers submitted their plans and defended their records.

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Iran says 'manner and timing' of its response will be least expected by Israel

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Aug 21, 2024

New York, IRNA -- Iran's permanent mission to the United Nations says the Islamic Republic will carefully plan the timing and manner of its response to the Israeli assassination of Hamas's political leader Ismail Haniyeh to ensure "maximum surprise" and "deterrence" are achieved.

"The timing, conditions, and manner of Iran's response will be meticulously orchestrated to ensure that it occurs at a moment of maximum surprise; perhaps when their eyes are fixed on the skies and their radar screens, they will be taken by surprise from the groundaor perhaps even by a combination of both," the mission said in a statement on Wednesday night.

Haniyeh was assassinated in a targeted strike on his residence in northern Tehran hours after he had attended the inauguration ceremony of Iran's newly-elected president, Masoud Pezeshkian, late in July. Iran vowed to deliver a "harsh response" to the brazen act of terrorism on its soil to punish the Israeli regime.

The statement by the UN mission in New York comes amid speculation on whether Iran had intentionally delayed its response until the outcome of ceasefire talks in Gaza was clear. Two days of negotiations in Doha, mediated by Qatar and Egypt and involving the United States and Israel concluded on Friday without a breakthrough, but further talks have been planned for next week in Cairo. Hamas has boycotted the talks.

The mission said Iran will carefully calibrate its response "to avoid any possible adverse impact that could potentially influence a prospective ceasefire."

It added that Iran's response would serve two primary objectives: punishing the aggressor and enhancing deterrence.

"First, it must punish the aggressor for its act of terrorism, and infringements upon Iran's national sovereignty. Second, it must bolster Iran's deterrence capabilities to induce profound regret within the Israeli regime, thereby serving as a deterrent against the repetition of any act of aggression in the future," the statement said.

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Iran's response to Haniyeh assassination to take Israel 'by surprise': UN mission

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 21 August 2024 11:05 AM

Iran's permanent mission to the United Nations has said the country is to respond to the Israeli regime's assassination of Hamas's senior leader, which took place inside the Islamic Republic last month, in a time and manner that would take the regime "by surprise."

"Maybe when their (the Israelis') eyes are on the sky and the radar screen, they are [going to be] surprised from the ground, and maybe a combination of the two," the mission said in a statement on Wednesday.

Ismail Haniyeh, the Palestinian resistance movement's former Political Bureau chief, was assassinated in a targeted killing operation in Tehran on July 31. He was in the Iranian capital to attend the inauguration ceremony of Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian.

The mission said "Iran's response should have two clear results."

"First, it must punish the aggressor for terror and violation of Iran's national sovereignty. Second, it should strengthen Iran's deterrence power and bring the [Israeli] regime deep remorse to prevent any future aggression," it added.

The statement, meanwhile, said "Iran's response should also avoid a possible negative impact on a possible [Gaza] ceasefire."

Earlier this month too, the mission had likewise said "we hope that our response will be completed on time and in a way that does not harm the possible ceasefire."

It had, however, asserted at the same time that the Islamic Republic's right to retaliate had nothing to do with the issue of ongoing talks aimed at hammering out a truce in the Israeli regime's October-present war on the Gaza Strip.

"Our national security and sovereignty have been violated during the recent terrorist act of the Israeli regime. We have the right to legitimate defense and this has nothing to do with the Gaza ceasefire," it had noted.

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In Rare Move, Iranian Parliament Approves Full Cabinet Of New President Pezeshkian

By RFE/RL's Radio Farda August 21, 2024

Iran's hard-line parliament approved moderate reformist Masud Pezeshkian's 19-member Cabinet, accepting the entire slate of ministers without a change for the first time since 2001.

The vote on August 21 included the appointment of 61-year-old career diplomat Abbas Araghchi -- a member of the negotiating team that reached a nuclear deal with world powers in 2015 -- as Iran's new foreign minister.

Pezeshkian, a doctor and a former health minister, defeated ultraconservative hard-liner Saeed Jalili in a July 5 runoff vote and was sworn in earlier this month.

The election was triggered by the death of President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash in May.

Pezeshkian has called for "constructive relations" with Western countries and favors reviving the 2015 deal that fell apart after then-President Donald Trump unilaterally pulled the United States out of the deal in 2018.

Iran's acute economic doldrums have since worsened under the weight of the harsh sanctions.

Pezeshkian has also said he supports the principles of the Islamic republic and said that he plans to follow Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's policies.

He has also questioned Iran's methods of enforcing the Islamic head scarf for women following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in 2022 while in the custody of Iran's dreaded morality police for allegedly wearing her hijab improperly.

He has also said that while the hijab law should be observed, "there should never be any intrusive or inhumane behavior toward women."

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/in-rare-move-iranian-parliament- approves-full-cabinet-president-pezeshkian/33087217.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Iran's Military Denies Safety Breach Was Partial Cause Of Chopper Crash That Killed President

By RFE/RL's Radio Farda August 21, 2024

The General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces has rejected a media report saying that the helicopter crash in May in which Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi died was caused by weather conditions and the aircraft's inability to handle the weight it was carrying.

Iran's semiofficial Fars news agency reported on August 21 that the investigation into the helicopter crash had been "fully completed by the regulatory and security institutions."

Fars quoted an unnamed security source informed of the final investigation as saying there was "absolute certainty that what happened was an accident." The monitoring and security institutions "did not identify a suspicious factor" in their final assessments, Fars reported.

The two reasons given for the crash were bad weather conditions and the helicopter's inability to handle the weight of extra passengers that exceeded safety protocols, the source added.

According to the Fars report, the chopper was carrying two passengers beyond the recommended capacity when it crashed.

But after the Fars report, the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces "strongly rejected" the reported findings, saying in a statement carried by state media that it was "distorted and discredited."

The headquarters said the claim that the helicopter was carrying more people than its capacity was "fundamentally false."

The Bell 212 helicopter had a capacity of 15, including one pilot, according to the manufacturer. Raisi and seven others were killed when the helicopter crashed on its way to the city of Tabriz on May 19 in heavy fog as it crossed a mountainous and forested area.

Some reports at the time noted that because of international sanctions it has been difficult for Iran to obtain parts for its aging helicopter fleet. The Bell 212 was made in the United States and procured by Iran from the United States before the 1979 Iranian revolution.

Iran elected a new president, reformist Masud Pezeshkian, in June and on August 21 the country's hard-line parliament approved his 19-member Cabinet, accepting the entire slate of ministers without a change for the first time since 2001.

With reporting by AFP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/raisi-iran-helicopter-crash-accident- investigation-weight-weather/33087461.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Iran Says Retaliation To Haniyeh Killing May Take Time

By RFE/RL's Radio Farda August 21, 2024

Iran says it will take its time in its response to the July 31 killing in Tehran of Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of the U.S.- and EU-designated Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.

Iran has kept the world on edge since it promised to strike Israel -- which it blames for the attack that killed Haniyeh -- a move experts say could plunge the region into an all-out war.

Israel has neither confirmed nor denied carrying out the attack. But it has vowed to kill leaders of Hamas over the group's October 7 attack inside Israeli territory that killed 1,200 people. Around 250 others were taken hostage, some of whom have since been released.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said after the assassination that Iran was "duty-bound" to avenge its "guest."

"Time is in our favor, and the waiting period for this response could be long," Ali Mohammad Naini, a spokesman for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), said on August 30, adding any response "may not be a repetition of past operations."

The 62-year-old Haniyeh was killed while he was in Tehran to attend the July 30 inauguration ceremony for Iran's new president, Masud Pezeshkian.

Tehran has rebuffed calls by Western nations to show restraint, insisting it has a legitimate right to respond to the killing of Haniyeh on Iranian territory.

The killing of Haniyeh and talk of retaliation comes as Washington continues to push to get Hamas and Israel to agree to a temporary cease-fire and a deal to release hostages being held in Gaza. Senior officials from the United States, Israel, Qatar, and Egypt are engaged in the latest round of talks to secure such a deal.

Naini did not comment on how Iran may respond to the attack on Haniyeh, but his reference to "past operations" may refer to Tehran's launching of more than 300 missiles and drones at Israel in April in response to Israel's suspected bombing of Iran's embassy compound in Damascus.

Damage from the Iranian attack was minimal with some analysts saying the response appeared to be measured to avoid a broader conflict.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-says-retaliation-to- haniyeh-killing-may-take-time/33086940.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Iran's parliament approves new president's minister appointees

By VOA Persian August 21, 2024

Iran's parliament gave a "vote of confidence" to President Masoud Pezeshkian's proposed ministers on Wednesday, officially establishing his government.

Pezeshkian previously said he had secured approval from the "highest levels of the system" for all his appointees.

Pezeshkian took power in Iran after winning a snap election last month, following the death of hardline President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash in May.

Before the parliamentary vote, Pezeshkian underscored that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei had approved the appointments. He also noted that he had reached agreements with the Ministry of Intelligence, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and other intelligence agencies, which led to the final list.

The president said that the backgrounds of the appointees presented to parliament were "clear" and that potential candidates "who had even the slightest doubts about them were excluded from the lists without us needing to make any further comments."

The review of the proposed ministers began Saturday and continued through Wednesday.

Before the parliamentary vote, President Pezeshkian emphasized that his administration's plans are to implement and pursue the "general policies of the system," as outlined by Khamenei.

Pezeshkian also noted that Khameini selected the only woman in the Cabinet, Housing and Road Minister Farzaneh Sadegh.

Typically, the supreme leader must approve the top official of key ministries in the Islamic Republic.

According to the published votes, Aziz Nasirzadeh, the candidate for the Defense Ministry, received the highest number of votes, with 281 out of 288 members of parliament. Mohammadreza Zafarghandi, the candidate for the Health Ministry, received the lowest, with 163 votes.

Some other ministers approved were Ahmad Donyamali for the Ministry of Sports, Gholamreza Nouri Ghezeljeh for the Ministry of Agriculture and Abbas Aliabadi for the Ministry of Energy.

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PM call with Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel: 20 August 2024

The Prime Minister spoke to Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this afternoon.

20 August 2024

The Prime Minister spoke to Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this afternoon.

The Prime Minister started by expressing his sincere condolences to the Israeli people and the loved ones of the six hostages recovered in Gaza this morning, including British national Nadav Popplewell.

The leaders discussed diplomatic efforts to secure a ceasefire and the release of hostages, and the Prime Minister welcomed Israel's support for the American 'bridging proposal' and emphasised the need to move quickly.

Regional de-escalation was in everyone's interests, as the impact of miscalculation would come at great costs for all sides, the leaders agreed.

The UK was steadfast in its support for Israel's right to self defence, and would continue to work with partners to uphold regional security, the Prime Minister added.

The Prime Minister also urged Prime Minister Netanyahu to ensure greater access to detainees held by Israel, the increased delivery of aid to Gaza and to ensure international law was upheld at all times.

The leaders agreed to stay in close touch.

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Readout of President Joe Biden's Call with Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel

August 21, 2024

President Biden spoke today with Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel. The President and the Prime Minister discussed active and ongoing U.S. efforts to support Israel's defense against all threats from Iran, including its proxy terrorist groups Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, to include ongoing defensive U.S. military deployments. The President stressed the urgency of bringing the ceasefire and hostage release deal to closure and discussed upcoming talks in Cairo to remove any remaining obstacles.

###

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Rohingya refugees drown fleeing Myanmar's war as concerns mount

The Muslim community has been caught in crossfire between ethnic minority insurgents and junta forces.

By RFA Burmese 2024.08.21 -- Twenty-six members of Myanmar's persecuted Rohingya minority drowned when their boat capsized as they were trying to flee to Bangladesh, witnesses said, an accident likely to compound fears that the largely Muslim community is facing a new round of genocide.

Rohingya living in Rakhine state in western Myanmar have been caught in crossfire between ethnic minority insurgents fighting for self-determination against Myanmar's military, with both sides accused of killing them.

Some analysts have warned that the latest attacks are worse than those inflicted on the community in 2017, when a Myanmar military crackdown against Rohingya militants triggered an exodus of some 700,000 people to Bangladesh.

As then, Rohingya are again fleeing the violence to Bangladesh, many crossing a border river in small boats.

On Monday, a crowded boat crossing the Naf River to Bangladesh sank killing 26 of those onboard, witnesses said, the latest in a spate of deadly accidents on the river.

"There were 30 people on the boat including 18 children. Only four survived. The rest died," said one of the witnesses who declined to be identified because of security fears.

Rescue workers searching for bodies had found seven victims, including four children and a pregnant woman, he added.

Aung Kyaw Moe, deputy minister of human rights for Myanmar's shadow National Unity Government, said the boat was heading to Bangladesh because of intense fighting in Maungdaw township on the border between junta troops and the Arakan Army, or AA, insurgent group.

"They fled for their lives. They were worried about where the heavy artillery would fall," he said. "The Naf River is dangerous because of the ebb and flow of the tide. They had to risk their lives."

Aung Kyaw Moe said the situation in Rakhine state was confusing because some areas were controlled by junta forces while others were in the hands of the AA, with tens of thousands of Rohingya caught up in the conflict.

The AA draws its support from the largely Buddhist ethnic Rakhine community, the majority in the state. The rebels are fighting Myanmar's military for greater autonomy, in alliance with ethnic minority forces from other areas and democracy activists who took up arms after the army overthrew an elected government in 2021.

Both sides have been accused of killing Rohingya, with AA fighters blamed for attacking people believed to be supporting junta forces.

On Aug. 5, dozens of Rohingya people were killed by fire from heavy weapons as they waited for boats to cross to Bangladesh, survivors told Radio Free Asia. Some survivors said the AA was responsible though the insurgents denied that.

Torched homes

On Aug. 12, Human Rights Watch said both the junta and the AA had committed extrajudicial killings and widespread arson against Rohingya, Rakhine and other civilians in Rakhine state.

"Ethnic Rohingya and Rakhine civilians are bearing the brunt of the atrocities that the Myanmar military and opposition Arakan Army are committing," said the group's Asia director Elaine Pearson. "Both sides are using hate speech, attacks on civilians, and massive arson to drive people from their homes and villages, raising the specter of ethnic cleansing."

The recent attacks on Rohingya were "worse than in 2017" and represents a "second wave of genocide", two experts told a press briefing in the United States this month.

There were about 60,000 displaced people in Rakhine state before the latest round of fighting resumed late last year but now there are more than 500,000, aid groups there say.

Echoing growing concerns about the Rohingya, the U.K.-based Burma Human Rights Network, or BHRN, called on Wednesday for the international community to protect Rohingya, particularly those in Maungdaw.

It cited witnesses as saying many Rohingya had been killed in boat accidents or from bombs on the banks of the Naf River. The group cited witnesses as saying AA fighters had torched Rohingya homes in Maungdaw.

"These problems started when the junta forcibly recruited Rohingya for military service," Kyaw Win, director of Burma Human Rights Network, told RFA. "If there are violations by AA troops on the ground, the AA needs to be exposed and action needs to be taken."

The AA, in an Aug. 18 statement, accused "Muslim armed forces" of setting fire to homes and it warned that rights activists making accusations could affect harmony between ethnic groups. The AA said it had evacuated nearly 20,000 people, including Rohingya, from embattled Maungdaw town and would move more to safety.

Kyaw Win said forces opposed to the junta throughout the country, including the National Unity Government and other insurgent groups, had been reluctant to criticize the AA, their anti-junta ally.

But he said the international community should investigate the AA's actions and take measures, including sanctions, if necessary.

Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Mike Firn.

Copyright 1998-2024, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content August not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Owner of Kansas Company Pleads Guilty to Crimes Related to Scheme to Illegally Export U.S. Avionics Equipment to Russia and Russian End Users

Tuesday, December 19, 2023

For Immediate Release

Office of Public Affairs

Cyril Gregory Buyanovsky, 60, of Lawrence, Kansas, the owner and president of KanRus Trading Company Inc., pleaded guilty today for his role in a years-long conspiracy to circumvent U.S. export laws by filing false export forms with the U.S. government and, after Russian's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, continuing to sell and export sophisticated and controlled avionics equipment to customers in Russia without the required licenses from the U.S. Department of Commerce.

"Buyanovsky admitted to a long-running scheme to smuggle sophisticated U.S. avionics equipment to Russia, doubling down to hide his actions after Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine," said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department's National Security Division. "Today's guilty plea demonstrates the Justice Department's commitment to cut off Moscow from the means to fuel its military and hold those enabling it accountable in a court of law."

"The rejection of tyranny and the protection of democracy are among the foundational principles of the United States of America. Our country continues to hold steadfastly to these ideals," said U.S. Attorney Kate E. Brubacher for the District of Kansas. "After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the U.S. government imposed export controls and sanctions to prevent the weaponization of U.S. manufactured technology against Ukraine in a conflict intended to usurp its right to sovereignty within its borders. As long as there are people who value greed and profit over freedom and justice, the U.S. Department of Justice will remain vigilant and investigate and prosecute these crimes."

"Buyanovsky's guilty plea serves as a reminder to those who defy U.S. law to support Russia's aggression - know you will be held accountable for your actions," said Executive Assistant Director Larissa Knapp of the FBI's National Security Branch. "The FBI, along with our partners, works diligently to identify and prevent illegal transfers of sophisticated equipment to hostile nations and will pursue those who support such smuggling operations."

"The diversion of controlled U.S.-origin goods and falsification of end user information for use by Russian end users will be vigorously investigated," said Special Agent in Charge Aaron Tambrini of Department of Commerce's Office of Export Enforcement Chicago Field Office. "Individuals will be pursued and prosecuted wherever they are located."

According to court documents, as part of his guilty plea, Buyanovsky admitted that between 2020 and when he was arrested in March, he conspired with others - including co-defendant and former KanRus vice president Douglas Edward Robertson, 56, of Olathe, Kansas - to smuggle U.S.-origin avionics equipment to end users in Russia, as well as Russian end users in other foreign countries, by, among other actions, knowingly filing false export forms and failing to file required export forms with the U.S. government. In these forms, Buyanovsky and his conspirators lied about the exports' value, end users and end destinations.

Buyanovsky further admitted that on at least one occasion in 2021, he and Robertson smuggled a repaired Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) to the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB) by removing the FSB sticker from the device before sending the device to a U.S. company to be repaired and then reattaching the sticker before shipping the TCAS back to the FSB in Russia.

Buyanovsky further admitted that after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and the U.S. government tightened export controls concerning Russia, he, co-defendant Robertson and other conspirators continued to purchase and export U.S.-origin avionics equipment to customers in Russia and took numerous steps to hide their illegal activity from law enforcement, including by lying to U.S. suppliers about the intended end users; shipping goods through intermediary companies in Armenia, the United Arab Emirates, and Cyprus; continuing to file false export forms with the U.S. government; and using foreign bank accounts in countries other than Russia, such as Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Cyprus and the United Arab Emirates, to funnel money from the Russian customers to KanRus in the United States.

In addition to pleading guilty, Buyanovsky consented to the forfeiture of over $450,000 worth of avionics equipment and accessories and a $50,000 personal forfeiture judgment. According to court documents, among the equipment that Buyanovsky forfeited was a pallet of avionics devices that was detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection the day before Buyanovsky and Robertson were arrested.

On Dec. 7, as part of the U.S. government's interagency efforts to dismantle Russian procurement networks designed to circumvent U.S. export controls and sanctions imposed in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the Department of Commerce added many of the entities and individuals involved in Buyanovsky's illegal export scheme to the Commerce Department's Entity List

, which imposes specific license requirements on all listed individuals and entities.

As a result of today's guilty plea, Buyanovsky faces a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison - five years for the conspiracy count and 20 years for the money laundering count. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 21, 2024.

Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department's National Security Division, Task Force KleptoCapture Co-Directors David Lim and Michael Khoo, U.S. Attorney Kate E. Brubacher for the District of Kansas, Executive Assistant Director Larissa Knapp of the FBI's National Security Branch, Special Agent in Charge Stephen A. Cyrus of the FBI Kansas City Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Aaron Tambrini of the Department of Commerce's Office of Export Enforcement Chicago Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge John Johnson of the Department of Commerce's Office of Export Enforcement Miami Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI and the Department of Commerce's Office of Export Enforcement are investigating the case. U.S. Customs and Border Protection provided substantial assistance.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Scott Rask and Ryan Huschka for the District of Kansas and Trial Attorney Adam Barry of the National Security Division's Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the case.

The investigation was coordinated through the Justice Department's Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement task force dedicated to enforcing the sweeping sanctions, export controls and economic countermeasures that the United States, along with its foreign allies and partners, has imposed in response to Russia's unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine. Announced by the Attorney General on March 2, 2022, and under the leadership of the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, the task force will continue to leverage all of the department's tools and authorities to combat efforts to evade or undermine the collective actions taken by the U.S. government in response to Russian military aggression.

Topics: Export Control

National Security

Components: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

National Security Division (NSD)

USAO - Kansas

Press Release Number: 23-1449

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Working meeting with Head of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov

The Head of the Chechen Republic updated the President on the region's socioeconomic development.

August 20, 2024

22:45

Grozny

At the beginning of the meeting, President of Russia Vladimir Putin congratulated Ramzan Kadyrov on the progress made in developing Grozny, the capital of Chechnya.

The Chechen leader thanked Vladimir Putin for his close attention to the Chechen Republic. Ramzan Kadyrov said that the socioeconomic situation in the region is stable, adding that the regional government is working tirelessly to reduce unemployment. The goal is it to bring it down to 5 percent by the end of the year.

The head of the republic noted that more than 500 investment projects are being implemented in Chechnya, including the renovation of the airport and railway station, the modernisation of the local cement plant and the construction of a hydroelectric power station.

In mid-July, the Chechen Republic hosted the Caucasus Investment Forum, which was attended by more than 4,000 participants from 33 countries. Importantly, some 100 agreements worth more than 106 billion rubles were signed on the sidelines of the forum.

Ramzan Kadyrov stressed that the Chechen Republic ranks first in cash performance under national and federal projects. Chechnya is taking part in 25 programmes, with 21 of them delivering positive results.

In addition, the region is actively building residential properties and infrastructure. The current area of development is 6.365 million square metres, and it is expected to reach 7.172 million square metres by the end of the year. According to the head of the republic, residents have been relocated from 178,500 square metres of dilapidated housing since 2019 as part of the national projects.

Separately, Ramzan Kadyrov informed the President about the republic's active participation in the special military operation. Since 2022, more than 47,000 fighters have been sent to the theatre of the special military operation, including about 19,000 volunteers trained at the Russian Special Forces University in the city of Gudermes.

The fighters have been equipped with the necessary ammunition and provided with specialised equipment purchased by the Akhmat-Khadji Kadyrov Foundation (named after Ramzan Kadyrov's father, the first president of Chechnya). The region has also built up a reserve of tens of thousands of trained and equipped fighters who are ready to leave for the line of contact. In addition, the Foundation has sent more than 26,000 tonnes of humanitarian aid to the residents of the liberated territories.

Furthermore, Ramzan Kadyrov informed the President that a fully-fledged branch of the Defenders of the Fatherland Foundation to support participants in the special military operation was functioning in the republic.

Concluding the meeting, Vladimir Putin noted that a great deal has been achieved in the republic thanks to the hard work and talent of the Chechen people. He wished Ramzan Kadyrov every success in implementing all of his plans, and stressed that the federal government will continue to support the region's development.

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Latvian National Extradited for Scheme to Illegally Export Advanced U.S.-Origin Aircraft Technology to Russia

Wednesday, August 21, 2024

For Immediate Release

Office of Public Affairs

Oleg Chistyakov, also known as Olegs Aitsjakovs, 55, of Latvia, made his initial appearance in a federal court in Kansas City, Kansas, today after being extradited from Latvia. Chistyakov is the third defendant in this case to face charges in connection with a years-long conspiracy to sell sophisticated avionics equipment to Russian companies, after Russia's unlawful invasion of Ukraine and despite heightened additional U.S. economic countermeasures levied against Russia.

According to court documents, Chistyakov allegedly conspired with U.S. citizens Cyril Gregory Buyanovsky, 61, of Kansas, and Douglas Edward Robertson, 56, of Kansas, to facilitate the sale, repair and shipment of U.S.-origin avionics equipment to customers in Russia and in other countries that operate Russian-built aircraft, including the Federal Security Service of Russia (FSB). Buyanovksy and Robertson were charged and arrested in March 2023 and have both pleaded guilty. Buyanovsky is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 14 and Robertson is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 3.

As alleged, Chistyakov, while operating from Latvia and often through his Emirati company RosAero FZC, worked with Buyanovsky and Robertson through their U.S. company, KanRus Trading Company Inc. (KanRus), to circumvent U.S export laws by purchasing avionics equipment from U.S. companies for customers in Russia. Chistyakov allegedly acted as a broker for KanRus by soliciting quotes, negotiating prices and terms of delivery and facilitating payments between KanRus and customers in Russia. As alleged, Chistyakov and his conspirators attempted to conceal their illegal activities by creating false invoices, transshipping items through third-party countries, such as Germany and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), using bank accounts in third-party countries, such as Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and the UAE, and exporting items to intermediary companies which then reexported the items to the ultimate end destinations.

Many of the entities and individuals involved in Chistyakov's alleged scheme were added to the Commerce Department's Entity List in December 2023, which imposes specific license requirements on transactions made by all listed individuals and entities.

Chistyakov is charged with conspiracy, Export Control Reform Act violations, smuggling and money laundering violations. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and up to a $1 million fine. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department's National Security Division, Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Matthew S. Axelrod of the Commerce Department, Executive Assistant Director Robert Wells of the FBI National Security Branch and U.S. Attorney Kate E. Brubacher for the District of Kansas made the announcement.

The FBI and the Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security are investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Scott Rask and Ryan Huschka for the District of Kansas and Trial Attorney Adam Barry of the National Security Division's Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the case. The Justice Department's Office of International Affairs worked with Latvian authorities to secure the extradition of Chistyakov to the United States.

The investigation was coordinated through the Justice Department's Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement task force dedicated to enforcing the sweeping sanctions, export controls and economic countermeasures that the United States, along with its foreign allies and partners, has imposed in response to Russia's unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine. Announced by the Attorney General on March 2, 2022, and under the leadership of the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, the task force will continue to leverage all of the department's tools and authorities to combat efforts to evade or undermine the collective actions taken by the U.S. government in response to Russian military aggression.

Topic: National Security

Components: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

National Security Division (NSD)

USAO - Kansas

Press Release Number: 24-1038

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Meeting with Premier of the State Council of China Li Qiang

Vladimir Putin had a meeting with Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China Li Qiang in the Kremlin.

August 21, 2024

15:15

The Kremlin, Moscow

Beginning of Russia-China talks

Vladimir Putin: Friends,

I am pleased to welcome all of you a especially you, Mr Premier, on your first official visit to Moscow leading a representative Chinese delegation.

Our countries have developed large-scale joint plans and projects in the economic and humanitarian spheres, which are set to continue for many years. Together with our friend President Xi Jinping, we have established key points of reference during our summits in Moscow and Beijing. These points were further consolidated by agreements reached during our conversation in July, on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Heads of State Council meeting in Astana. Please convey our friendly greetings and best wishes to President Xi, and we look forward to seeing him in October at the BRICS summit in Kazan.

We must not forget that October 2 marks the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between our countries. We will duly commemorate this significant milestone.

I have been informed that today you and Prime Minister Mishustin held a detailed discussion on the entire range of trade, economic and humanitarian cooperation issues at the regular meeting of Russian and Chinese heads of government. A number of bilateral documents aimed at furthering beneficial cooperation have been signed.

We are delighted to have you here. Our trade relations are not only developing but also flourishing, thanks in part to the efforts of our Chinese friends. The attention and commitment shown by both governments towards the development of trade and economic relations have yielded positive results.

China has been a regular participant in the Eastern Economic Forum, and we look forward to seeing the Chinese delegation led by Vice President of the People's Republic of China Han Zheng in Vladivostok in October. We hope that he will take part in the event.

Welcome.

Li Qiang (retranslated): President Putin, I am delighted to meet with you once again.

Let me start by conveying sincere greetings and best wishes on behalf of President of China Xi Jinping.

This is my first visit to Russia as the Premier of the State Council of China. Over the past two days, I have taken part in several face-to-face meetings with my Russian colleagues, gained a sense of optimism the people of Russia have, and witnessed Russia's vibrant socioeconomic development.

Under your wise leadership, Russia has remained focused on promoting sustained economic growth over the past two years. In fact, your country's GDP increased by 4.7 percent in the first six months of this year alone. Achieving such a high rate is never easy, and as your close friend and ally, we cannot help but welcome and deeply appreciate these achievements.

The strategic leadership of President Xi Jinping and President Putin has guided China-Russia relations and elevated them to an unprecedentedly high level. The two heads of state have met twice since the beginning of this year. Together, you launched historical celebrations of the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Russia, outlining new plans and providing a powerful impetus for deeper bilateral ties.

Looking ahead, we stand ready to work with you to fulfil the top-level decisions and expand our multi-faceted mutually beneficial cooperation.

I am at your disposal to discuss matters of mutual interest. Thank you.

<...>

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Putin visits Chechnya first time in 13 years, hails Russia as 'invincible'

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 21 August 2024 10:48 AM

Russian President Vladimir Putin has made an unscheduled trip to Chechnya after nearly 13 years, commending Russia as "utterly invincible" amid Ukraine's aggression on the country's soil.

Putin arrived at Grozny airport in the local capital by helicopter on Tuesday and met Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov on his first visit to the North Caucasus region since 2011.

The Russian president visited the Special Forces University in Chechnya and praised the trainees who volunteered for service before being deployed in Ukraine.

Putin inspected the military academy bearing his own name, observed some of the lessons and briefly spoke with the special forces commanders, instructors and volunteers training at the facility.

"It is my pleasure to meet you here," Putin told the trainees. "The decision you made was difficult. It is one thing to shoot at a range, but another to put your life and limb at risk. But you feel the need to protect the Fatherland and the courage to make that call."

The Russian leader underlined, "Those who make such a decision have already won. I want to congratulate you, to thank you for such a decision, and wish you luck with all of my heart. So long as we have men like you, we are absolutely and utterly invincible."

Kadyrov, for his part, said he had trained more than 47,000 soldiers, including volunteers, since the start of Russia's military operation in Ukraine.

"The next group of volunteers who've undergone training at the Special Forces University will be setting out for the special military operation zone in the coming days," the head of Chechnya said.

Kadyrov also announced that the Chechen Republic has "tens of thousands" of reservists ready to fight the Ukrainians, with media reports falling short of specifying whether any of the forces will be sent to repel Kiev's incursion into the Russian region of Kursk.

Putin later visited the grave of Kadyrov's father, former Chechen leader Akhmat Kadyrov, a command post and a mosque in Grozny.

The Russian president had earlier on Tuesday censured Kiev's incursion into Kursk region, saying the Ukrainians were "trying to destabilize" the country. "We will punish the criminals. There can be no doubt about that."

Thousands of Ukrainian forces on August 6 invaded neighboring Russia in a surprise attack on the western region.

Russian troops have been fighting the invading Ukrainian forces since, stopping their further advancement deeper into their country's territory.

Ukrainian forces' invasion of Kursk has been described as Kiev's biggest attack on Russian soil since the Ukraine war started in February 2022.

The West has loaded Ukrainian armed forces with an overwhelming supply of Western weapons and ammunition since Russia launched its military campaign in Donbas.

Despite the West's all-out support for Kiev, the former Soviet republic has failed to gain significant military objectives against Russia in the US-led Western countries' proxy war.

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Putin's Azerbaijan Visit Signals Russia's Waning Influence In The South Caucasus

By Joshua Kucera August 21, 2024

Russian President Vladimir Putin, making his first visit to Azerbaijan in six years, marveled at how Baku, the capital city, had developed. "It's an oasis, I would say, in the region," he said at an August 19 meeting with his Azerbaijani counterpart, Ilham Aliyev.

It was an apt phrase.

In the past few years, Azerbaijan has indeed emerged as the most welcoming spot for the Russian leader in a tumultuous South Caucasus region. Armenia is rapidly turning against its erstwhile Russian ally, while Georgia -- in spite of its own current crisis with the West -- remains deeply unfriendly territory for Putin.

At home, meanwhile, Putin is dealing with the unexpected headache of a Ukrainian military incursion into the Kursk region that the Russian military has not been able to turn back.

In Baku, a beaming Aliyev welcomed Putin into his residence with a hug, and first lady and Vice President Mehriban Aliyeva gave him a kiss. Putin marveled at the "family atmosphere" in which he was received.

But there are limits to the Aliyevs' hospitality, and Baku has been playing multiple sides as part of its well-established multivector foreign policy. In the Caucasus of 2024, though, that may be the best Putin can get.

Behind the smiles and hugs, Azerbaijan has been pushing to shut Russia out of regional politics in which, until recently, Moscow had been deeply involved.

For decades, Russia -- along with the United States and European countries -- played a key role in diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia. But Azerbaijan, believing the conflict-resolution process had become a venue for outside powers to exert their influence in the region, has in recent months managed to push Russia and other foreign powers out of the process and to work on a peace treaty with Armenia one-on-one.

In another setback for Russia, Azerbaijan also recently announced it was removing a contentious issue from the treaty negotiations: a transportation link between mainland Azerbaijan and its exclave of Nakhchivan, through southern Armenia, known by its Azerbaijani name, the Zangezur Corridor.

While that route is of critical importance to Azerbaijan, it also represents a chance for Russia to gain a new foothold in the region. Armenia and Azerbaijan initially agreed that the route would be guarded by Russia's state security service, and Moscow still harbor hopes such a provision will be fixed in the final agreement. In that context, Putin's comments in Baku on the peace negotiations appeared a bit plaintive.

"If we can do something so that we can sign a peace agreement with Azerbaijan and Armenia, complete the delimitation and demarcation of the border, as we discussed a lot, unblock logistics and the economy, we would be very glad," Putin said.

Other, even more difficult, issues weren't mentioned.

In May, a senior Russian official announced that Moscow hoped to open a consulate in Karabakh, the territory at the heart of the long-running conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan now fully controls the territory, after its September 2023 offensive resulted in the flight of the entire population of 100,000 ethnic Armenians. But the news about a prospective Russian consulate set off alarm bells among Azerbaijanis, who saw in it a hidden Kremlin agenda to reassert Russian -- and possibly Armenian -- influence in the territory.

Ahead of Putin's visit, the Russian news agency Tass interviewed the Azerbaijani ambassador to Moscow, Polad Bulbuloglu, and asked him about the issue.

Bulbuloglu gently signaled Azerbaijan's resistance to the idea, noting vaguely that in Azerbaijan "the field of work for consulates is limited." Following the Tass interview, Bulbuloglu followed up with an Azerbaijani government-affiliated website, Haqqin, and issued a fastidious correction that again delicately signaled Baku's resistance: "I didn't say that a Russian consulate might appear in Karabakh. I said that the issue is in the discussion stage."

Aliyev and Putin did not mention the consulate in their public remarks.

Meanwhile, as the two leaders met in Baku, in another part of the city, an erstwhile adviser of Putin, Ruben Vardanian, sat in prison, one of several officials from the former Armenian-backed unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic who were arrested following Azerbaijan's retaking of that territory last year.

Ahead of Putin's visit, the Union of Armenians in Russia sent him an appeal asking him to raise the issue of the Karabakh prisoners. That issue, too, was unmentioned.

It has been easier to find common ground on economic relations between the two countries. When Aliyev visited Moscow in April, the focus was on expanding a transportation network connecting Russia, via Azerbaijan, to Iran and ports on the Persian Gulf. The project is of critical strategic importance to Russia, which is trying to redirect its trade links to the east and south after its relations with the West collapsed following its 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

While Azerbaijan stands to benefit from the trade expansion, as well, a brief exchange between the two leaders in Baku made Russia look like the more eager party. Total trade turnover between the two states stands at "a little more than $4 billion -- a good number," Aliyev said.

"But it doesn't correspond to the potential of our capacities," Putin added.

When the August 19 meetings concluded, the two announced they had signed agreements on topics like food security and labor inspection. A new Russian-Azerbaijani University will be opened in Baku, and the two countries will start joint production of oil tankers.

To some Azerbaijanis, that modest takeaway exposed what they saw as the real reason for the visit: a chance for Putin to look like he had allies when he is actually internationally isolated.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-azerbaijan-karabakh- caucasus-trade-politics/33085516.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Commentary: Work for substantial progress in building China-Vietnam community

Xinhua) 10:53, August 22, 2024

HANOI, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and Vietnamese President To Lam paid a state visit to China from Sunday to Tuesday, his inaugural foreign visit as Vietnam's top leader.

Currently, China is making active efforts to comprehensively deepen reforms, while Vietnam is conducting a comprehensive review of its nearly 40 years of renovation experience. This visit served to strengthen the exchange of governance experiences, deepen strategic trust, and promote the alignment of development strategies between the two countries.

By intensifying high-level exchanges and strategic communication, both countries have also signaled a commitment to strengthening their traditionally close relationship, enhancing political trust and deepening practical cooperation, underscoring a shared vision of solidarity.

China and Vietnam are linked by mountains and rivers, and the friendship between their people is deeply rooted in history. The older generations of leaders from the two countries forged a deep "comrades-plus-brothers" friendship during their revolutionary struggles for national independence and development.

A century ago, Ho Chi Minh, a revolutionary leader in Vietnam's struggle for independence, arrived in Guangzhou, marking the beginning of a new chapter in Vietnam's journey towards national liberation. Now, a hundred years later, To Lam chose Guangzhou as the first destination of his visit to China. During his visit, he paid tribute to the sites of Vietnam's revolutionary martyrs, reiterating his dedication to upholding the spirit of friendship and furthering the longstanding ties between the two countries.

Last December, Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Chinese president, made a successful state visit to Vietnam. During the visit, the two sides decided to build a China-Vietnam community with a shared future that carries strategic significance.

Over the past six months, leaders of both parties and countries have engaged in frequent interactions, providing strong momentum for bilateral relations to enter a new stage of higher political trust.

In the meantime, mutually beneficial cooperation between China and Vietnam has continued to deepen, laying a solid foundation for the building of a strategically significant China-Vietnam community with a shared future.

From January to July, bilateral economic and trade cooperation stayed at a high level, with the trade volume reaching 145 billion U.S. dollars, a growth of 21 percent. Notably, Vietnam's fruit and vegetable exports to China reached 2.1 billion dollars, accounting for 64 percent of Vietnam's total fruit and vegetable exports.

In terms of local border trade cooperation, several international and bilateral ports have been opened, contributing to border trade and cross-border tourism between China and Vietnam.

From January to July, the China-Vietnam freight trains departing from Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region shipped a total of 6,850 containers, a 16-fold increase year on year. In July alone, 1,922 containers were shipped, exceeding the total shipment volume of the first quarter, and marking the third time this year that a new monthly shipping record has been set.

The enhancement of economic exchanges and cross-border infrastructure has led to an increase in cultural exchanges between China and Vietnam. So far this year, 2.1 million Chinese tourists have visited Vietnam, making China the second-largest source of tourists. In the 2022-2023 academic year, more than 23,000 Vietnamese students studied in China.

The deepening relationship between the two countries has also created more opportunities and broader prospects for Vietnamese students studying Chinese. Currently, over 10,000 primary and secondary school students in Vietnam are learning Chinese, and more than 20,000 university students are studying the language.

During To Lam's visit, more than 10 cooperation agreements were signed, covering areas such as connectivity, industry, finance, customs inspection and quarantine, health, news agencies and media, subnational cooperation, and people's livelihoods. These agreements fully reflect the vision of both sides to share opportunities, seek common development, and jointly promote the deepening and solidification of the China-Vietnam community with a shared future that carries strategic significance.

The deepening of China-Vietnam relations serves the fundamental interests of both nations and aligns with the current global trends. As the 75th anniversary of diplomatic ties between China and Vietnam approaches next year, this will send a strong message to the world, highlighting their steadfast dedication to jointly promoting regional and global peace, stability and development.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
First joint training within Russian-Mongol Selenga 2024 exercise takes place in Mongolia

21.08.2024

The first joint training within Russian-Mongol Selenga 2024 exercise takes place in Mongolia.

The Eastern Military District's servicemen of the Joint Group of Forces and the Armed Forces of Mongolia determined the routes of advance according to the special features of the terrain at a training ground as well as honed on the organisation of communication and interaction.

The Joint Staff agreed on common command signal for both sides.

Motorised rifle units trained a joint offensive with deployment to the combat line at a specified speed of combat vehicles.

'For the first time, Russian-Mongol exercises had FPV drones employed. The servicemen of both sides are acting cohesively and in an orderly manner,' said Task Force Executive Officer Adam Matsiyev.

The upcoming joint flight-tactical missions for helicopter crews of the Eastern Military District's Army Aviation and the Air Force of Mongolia are also being developed. In addition, for the first time, Special Operations Forces' units performed an airborne landing with Mi-8AMTSh helicopters.

For the first time, the joint exercise includes units of the Land Forces, the Aerospace Forces and Special Forces of the Russian and Mongolian Armed Forces with a total strength of around 700 people and around 200 units of military hardware. The Aerospace Forces will be presented with fighter, ground-attack, and army aviation.

Press Service of the Eastern Military District

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Russia Denies Germany Sharing Information on Nord Stream Attacks

Sputnik News

20240821

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The German Foreign Ministry's statements that Berlin is sharing information with Moscow on the Nord Stream terrorist attacks are a lie, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday.

Oleg Tyapkin, the director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Third European Department, said in an interview with Sputnik that Russia had officially filed a claim against Germany regarding the investigation into the Nord Stream bombing and is seeking to hold talks on Germany fulfilling its international obligations in the fight against terrorism. On Monday, German Foreign Ministry spokesperson Sebastian Fischer said that Berlin is exchanging data with Russia on the Nord Stream bombings, but is not providing information on the interim results of the investigation.

"They [the German authorities] do not provide the facts they have on this investigation to the Russian side, although they are obliged to do so. Russia insists on holding official bilateral consultations in accordance with the current regulations. They, by the way, are prescribed in the UN anti-terrorist conventions," Zakharova told a briefing, adding that these statement on the exchange of information "are a lie."

Germany responds to all Russia's inquiries regarding the Nord Stream attacks with empty formal replies, the diplomat said, adding that not a single such document contains factual information.

A Sputnik

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Taiwan to test new generation TOW launch platforms in Pingtung drills

ROC Central News Agency

08/21/2024 10:56 PM

Taipei, Aug. 21 (CNA) Taiwan's military will hold the Tien Ma Exercises next week in Pingtung County, during which a new generation of TOW missile launch platforms will be tested as part of night-time shooting drills for the first time, a military source said.

The two-day exercises, scheduled to kick off on Aug. 26, will test tube-launched, optically tracked, wire-guided (TOW) 2A missiles on M1167 High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles, which are TOW 2B carriers, a source with knowledge of the matter said.

In addition, because TOW 2B launchers are equipped with thermal imaging and tracking aim functions, they will be tested for night-time combat capabilities for the first time since they were commissioned into the armed forces, the source added.

Compared with older-generation TOW 2A munitions, TOW 2B missiles can carry out "top attacks," are wireless, and have a range of at least 4,500 meters, making them ideal for targeting bunkers, armored vehicles and landing craft.

Su Tzu-yun (ece), a research fellow at the Institute of National Defense and Security Research under the Ministry of National Defense, said the primary goal of test-firing TOW 2A missiles from TOW 2B launch platforms is to test their compatibility.

As TOW 2A missiles were developed earlier, doing so will also help to clear some of the missiles that are nearing their decommissioning date, Su explained.

Regarding the planned night-time live-fire drills, Su added it will help the armed forces better respond to Chinese ambushes, given that the People's Liberation Army could launch strikes at any time of day.

China has ramped up military pressure against Taiwan in recent years.

It has frequently sent its aircraft across the median line of the Taiwan Strait since 2022 and used other forms of military intimidation against Taiwan, including staging a large-scale military exercise around the country on May 23 titled Joint Sword 2024A, just days after the inauguration of President Lai Ching-te (ea).

(By Matt Yu and Sean Lin)

Enditem/AW

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China's authoritarian ambitions will not stop with Taiwan: Lai

ROC Central News Agency

08/21/2024 03:47 PM

Taipei, Aug. 21 (CNA) President Lai Ching-te (ea) on Wednesday called on democratic nations to take "concrete action" to address the threat of China's authoritarian expansion, noting that Taiwan was not the only target as Beijing sought to change the international order.

"China's growing authoritarianism will not stop with Taiwan, nor is Taiwan the only target of China's economic pressures," Lai told the Ketagalan Forum, a security dialogue held annually in Taipei.

"Democratic countries must come together and take concrete action," Lai said, noting that "only by working together can we inhibit the expansion of authoritarianism."

He said China had sought to intimidate its neighbors and undermine regional peace and stability through military exercises in the Taiwan Strait, the South China Sea and the Western Pacific, which were sometimes conducted in collaboration with Russia.

Lai also called China out for what he called "weaponized trade" and economic coercion against not just Taiwan, but Japan, Korea, Australia, Lithuania, and Canada, among other countries.

The president also accused Beijing of having attempted to "infiltrate and influence elections in Taiwan and other countries" through the use of "cyberattacks, cognitive warfare, disinformation and political interference."

Lai said Taiwan "will not be intimidated" by the challenges posed by China and would continue to reform the country's defense, increase spending and build up civil defense resilience.

He went on to say, without elaborating, that Taiwan would also seek exchanges and cooperation with other countries in defense and security, which he said would demonstrate "the strength of deterrence" and "prevent war."

On the economic front, Taiwan has also greatly reduced its dependence on the Chinese market, Lai said, citing government figures that showed Taiwan's investment in China had dropped from a 2010 peak of 83.8 percent of the total outbound investment to 11.4 percent in 2023.

In the meantime, Taiwan, intent on diversifying trade, will continue to seek opportunities to negotiate new trade agreements with other countries or join regional trade blocs, Lai added.

Wary of Beijing's multifaceted pressure campaign against Taiwan, however, Lai said his administration would work to maintain the status quo in the Taiwan Strait and was willing to cooperate with China on a reciprocal basis.

"As a responsible member of the international community, Taiwan will neither yield nor provoke," he said, adding that his cross-strait policy remained stable and consistent.

Meanwhile, former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, who was invited to deliver a keynote speech at the one-day forum, expressed his concerns over the situation in the Taiwan Strait.

Noda, a member of Japan's House of Representatives, noted that Japan should repeatedly convey to the international community the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

A veteran politician from the opposition Constitutional Democratic Party, Noda also told CNA later that "there is no difference between the ruling party and the opposition [in Japan] when it comes to Taiwan."

"Taiwan is an extremely important partner that shares our fundamental values," said Noda, who served as Japanese prime minister from 2011 to 2012.

(By Teng Pei-ju)

Enditem/ASG

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China urged to lift restrictions on travel to Taiwan

ROC Central News Agency

08/21/2024 10:40 PM

Taipei, Aug. 21 (CNA) China can show goodwill in the stalled resumption of cross-Taiwan Strait tourism-oriented travel, by first allowing Chinese tourists to visit the Kinmen Islands for a major holiday in early October, a lawmaker representing the Taiwan-controlled islands said Wednesday.

In a statement released that day, Legislator Chen Yu-jen () said that a delegation she is a member of will bring up the issue of cross-strait tourism along with other topics involving Kinmen when it meets with Song Tao (), director of China's Taiwan Affairs Office, in Beijing on Thursday.

Following the first post-COVID-19 Chinese tour group to visit the Taiwan-controlled Matsu Islands in early August, allowing similar visits to Kinmen would mark another important step in the resumption of Chinese tourists visiting Taiwan, and Taiwanese group tourist travel to China, said the legislator of the opposition Kuomintang (KMT).

Allowing Chinese tourists to visit Kinmen during China's Oct. 1 "Golden Week" holiday would create positive interactions in rebuilding relations between Taiwan and China, she added.

Chen said the delegation will also bring up during Thursday's meeting with Song a suggestion by the Mainland Affairs Council that if China lists Taiwan as a designation Chinese tourists can visit, Taiwan will allow local travel agencies to organize group tours to China.

Other issues on which the delegation plans to table proposals "crucial to developments in Kinmen" during the meeting with Song, include China permitting its citizens to study in Kinmen, according to the statement.

Other topics listed in the statement include the establishment of a joint trading platform for agricultural and fishery products in waters around Kinmen and China's Xiamen, located less than 10 kilometers away, and allowing Kinmen-based financial institutes to set up operations in Xiamen.

The delegation, led by Kinmen County Council Speaker Hung Yun-tien () of the KMT, arrived in Beijing Wednesday evening.

Its members for the four-day visit include several Kinmen County councilors, Travel Quality Assurance Association executive Chen Yi-hsuan (), and officials of tourism promotion groups in Kinmen, according to Chen.

Premier Cho Jung-tai () told CNA that Taiwan is open to Chinese tourists, students and religious practitioners, blaming China for politicizing related issues, in an interview on Aug. 14.

Meanwhile, Legislator Chuang Jui-hsiung () of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party told reporters in Taipei Wednesday that Taiwan's government welcomes Chinese tourists.

It is the Chinese authorities that restrict where Chinese tourists can visit, Chuang said, adding that he also hopes to see China show goodwill by first lifting those restrictions, without the precondition of Taiwan making certain arrangements regarding relations across the Taiwan Strait.

Travel links between Taiwan and China have been largely frozen for the past three years, due mainly to the COVID-19 pandemic.

China halted independent travel to Taiwan on Aug. 1, 2019, citing the poor state of cross-strait relations. It then suspended group travel to Taiwan in 2020.

Taiwan briefly lifted its ban on China-bound group trips on March 1 as border controls were phased out after the easing of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the ban was quickly reinstated except for trips organized before June 1.

On April 28, Beijing announced an easing of travel restrictions, which it said would take effect pending the resumption of direct ferry traffic between Matsu and Pingtan County in Fujian.

(By Chou Hui-ying, Wang Yang-yu and Kay Liu)

Enditem/AW

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'Silicon Shield' is about more than just Taiwan: Scholar

ROC Central News Agency

08/21/2024 09:05 PM

Taipei, Aug. 21 (CNA) A research fellow at Academia Sinica introduced the concept of "Silicon Shield 2.0" at a security forum in Taipei on Wednesday, saying it was not "Taiwan centric," but seeks to integrate Taiwan into international supply chains.

While there is a debate over whether the "Silicon Shield" -- the idea that Taiwan's production of 90 percent of the world's advanced chips acts as a deterrent against China -- protects or increases the risk Taiwan faces, Wu Jieh-min () from Academia Sinica's Institute of Sociology said the concept should not be seen as Taiwan centric.

"It is not just about Taiwan's security, but about global economic stability and security," he said at the Ketagalan Forum's economic security panel.

He added that the true power of the "Silicon Shield" does not lie in Taiwan's semiconductor capabilities but in the catastrophic "global consequences of disruption to the chip supply chain from any conflict over Taiwan or in the region."

Wu stressed that replicating Taiwan's semiconductor ecosystem elsewhere would be too "complex, costly, and time-consuming" because it is the outcome of "decades of investment in the infrastructure, research, and a specialized workforce."

Therefore the United States' adoption of re-shoring or friend-shoring policies -- moving chip manufacturing to the U.S. or its allies -- are "far from quick fixes," Wu said.

The immediate priority is to ensure security in the Taiwan Strait and the wider region, he added.

However, ensuring regional peace is necessary but not enough, the scholar said, adding "Taiwan must take a more active role in international cooperation."

"Silicon Shield 2.0" seeks to elevate Taiwan's role in global security by more fully integrating Taiwan's role in global economic security by integrating its semiconductor ecosystem into the international network, Wu said.

Such integration is already taking place now, for example, through the investment by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) in the U.S. state of Arizona, Japan's Kumamoto, and Germany's Dresden, which should be viewed positively as an extension of Taiwan's influence, he said.

However, Wu said Taiwan also needs to boost its participation in international security mechanisms.

"Taiwan's current network of international support is bilateral and informal, which is insufficient to address the increasingly complex geopolitical situation," the scholar noted.

He stressed that expanding Taiwan's involvement in multilateral organizations would benefit the U.S. and its allies.

Meanwhile, energy security was also brought up by former Slovakian Prime Minister Eduard Heger during the security panel.

Heger said the Indo-Pacific region should learn from the mistake of becoming too dependent on Russian oil and gas made by Slovakia and other European countries.

"I would say that we basically traded our values for cheap gas," he warned, adding that although the country had a plan from 2006 to diversify, it was not taken seriously.

The price of Russian gas and oil after the Russia-Ukraine war started in 2022 shot from an average of 20 euros (US$22.25) per megawatt hour to 350 euros at its peak. The price of electricity also rose from between 50 and 60 euros per megawatt, peaking at 1,000 euros, he said.

Yeo Han-koo, a senior fellow at Peterson Institute for International Economics in the U.S., said renewable energy was a good solution for energy independence and the climate crisis.

But he also pointed out that many Asian countries have isolated power grids, in contrast to Europe, which has an interconnected power grid that allows for energy to be sent between countries.

Yeo encouraged Asian countries to work together to overcome this challenge.

(By Alison Hsiao)

Enditem/kb

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China's 'growing authoritarianism' won't stop with Taiwan: Lai Ching-te

Taiwan's president also warned of Beijing's 'military expansionism'.

By Taejun Kang for RFA 2024.08.21 -- Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te on Wednesday urged the world's democratic countries to come together and act to prevent China from expanding authoritarianism and changing the rules-based international order.

China regards Taiwan as a renegade province that should be reunited with the mainland, by force if necessary. The democratic island has been self-governing since it effectively separated from mainland China in 1949 after the Chinese civil war.

Speaking at the annual Ketagalan Forum on Indo-Pacific security in Taipei, Lai cautioned that Taiwan was not Beijing's "only target".

"China has even weaponized trade. Using various pressures and threats, it's politically manipulating not just Taiwan, but also Japan, Korea, Australia, Lithuania, Canada, and other countries," said Lai.

"China intends to change the rules-based international order. That is why democratic countries must come together and take concrete action. Only by working together can we inhibit the expansion of authoritarianism," he added, stressing that China's "growing authoritarianism" would not stop with Taiwan.

Lai is a member of Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party, or DPP, which Beijing accuses of harboring separatist aspirations.

He came to power after winning a January election despite Beijing's fierce opposition to his bid. He ran on a platform of promoting peace in the Taiwan Strait while not compromising on claims of Taiwanese sovereignty.

China has dialed up diplomatic, economic and military pressure on the island since former president Tsai Ing-wen's administration came to power in 2016, as DPP member Tsai also refused to acknowledge that Taiwan and the mainland belonged to "One China."

There have been near-daily sightings of Chinese warships around the democratic island as well as fighter jets and drones in the skies around it.

But Lai said China's "military expansionism" was taking place elsewhere, pointing to its joint exercises with Russia in the South China Sea, among other places.

"Such actions are intended to intimidate China's neighbors and undermine regional peace and stability," Lai said. "Taiwan will not be intimidated. We will take responsibility to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait."

The annual Ketagalan Forum is aimed at enhancing cooperation and dialogue among like-minded parties so as to maintain and advance peace, security, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific.

Former and current senior officials from 11 countries, including former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley attended the gathering, the first of its kind since the Lai administration took office.

Edited by Mike Firn.

Copyright 1998-2024, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content August not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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PLA activities in the waters and airspace around Taiwan

ROC Ministry of National Defense

2024/08/22

PLA activities in the waters and airspace around Taiwan

Date

6 to 6 a.m. (UTC+8) Wednesday to Thursday, Aug. 21-22

PLA activities

8 PLA aircraft, and 6 PLAN vessels operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 a.m. (UTC+8) today. 3 of the aircraft entered Taiwan's southwestern and eastern ADIZ. ROC Armed Forces have monitored the situation and employed CAP aircraft, Navy vessels, and coastal missile systems in response to the detected activities.



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Secretary Blinken's Call with Turkish Foreign Minister Fidan

US Department of State

Readout

Office of the Spokesperson

August 21, 2024

The below is attributable to Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel:

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan today regarding the Secretary's recent trip to the Middle East. They discussed ongoing diplomatic efforts to prevent regional escalation and their shared commitment to creating conditions for a durable ceasefire, bringing the hostages home, and ensuring vital humanitarian aid reaches those in need in Gaza. They also discussed a range of regional issues.

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Ukraine: Federal Council decides on further measures of the 14th package of sanctions

Swiss Government

Bern, 21.08.2024 -- On 21 August, the Federal Council decided to adopt further measures of the EU's 14th package of sanctions against Russia. These measures will take effect on 27 August. On 9 July, 69 individuals and 47 entities were already added to Switzerland's sanctions list.

In response to Russia's ongoing military aggression against Ukraine, as well as Russia's continued destabilising actions that undermine Ukraine's territorial integrity, sovereignty and security, the EU adopted new measures against Russia on 24 June as part of its 14th package of sanctions. Already on 9 July, the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research (EAER), in its capacity as the competent body, implemented sanctions on an additional 69 individuals and 47 entities.

On 21 August, the Federal Council decided to adopt further measures of the EU's 14th package of sanctions against Russia. These include a clarification of the bans on Russian diamonds, making them internationally harmonised. The effective implementation of sanctions against Russia and international coordination are of great importance to the Federal Council. The Federal Council has also extended the deadlines for granting exemption permits with regard to the withdrawal of investments from Russia. The aim is to ensure that Swiss companies can legally terminate their business activities in Russia. The amendments will enter into force on 27 August.

The 14th package of sanctions adopted by the EU on 24 June provides for a number of additional measures, which are currently being examined in detail. The head of the EAER informed the Federal Council about the measures at their meeting on 21 August. The Federal Council will discuss these measures in due course.

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Ukraine Reports Intense Fighting Near Pokrovsk As Russian Forces Press For Breakthrough

By RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service, Current Time and RFE/RL's Russian Service August 21, 2024

Ukraine's military said its forces came under repeated attack on August 21 around the town of Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region, where Russian forces are pressing for a breakthrough.

In a statement, the General Staff of the Ukrainian military said there were 46 Russian attacks in the Pokrovsk area over the course of day. Of these, 44 were repelled and two were ongoing into the evening hours local time.

It also said 238 Russian troops were killed or wounded in the same area on August 21. It did not disclose Ukrainian losses, and it was not possible to verify the number of Russian soldiers killed.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukraine's military was responding to the Russian push by strengthening its forces around Pokrovsk, one of the hottest areas of the front.

The Ministry of Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine has ordered a forced evacuation of children with their parents or legal representatives from certain districts of the Donetsk region, including Pokrovsk.

There were dozens of other clashes across the front line on August 21. Most of them were repelled, according to the General Staff, but some continued into the late evening hours.

The governor of the Bryansk region of Russia, Aleksandr Bogomaz, said Russian forces prevented an attempted incursion into the region by Ukrainian troops. Bogomaz said the attempted breakthrough occurred in the Klimovo district of the region, which borders the Chernihiv region of Ukraine.

"The enemy has been hit by fire. Currently, the situation at the site of the clash has stabilized," Bogomaz said on Telegram.

Ukraine said separately that it had destroyed a Russian pontoon bridges with U.S.-made weapons in Russia's Kursk region. A video posted by Ukrainian special forces showed strikes on several pontoon crossings after Russia reported that Ukraine has destroyed at least three bridges over the Seym River.

"Where do Russian pontoon bridges 'disappear' in the Kursk region? Operators...accurately destroy them," Ukraine's Special Operations Forces said on Telegram.

Claims of battlefield success could not be independently verified.

The Kremlin believes the fighting to repel Ukraine's incursion into the Kursk region will last for months and is trying to prepare the public for this "new normal," sources close to the Russian presidential administration and the government have told the Meduza and Verstka news websites.

The reports came as Russia is battling to repel the two-week-old Ukrainian incursion into its region bordering Ukraine, where Kyiv's forces say they control more than 1,260 square kilometers and 92 settlements.

The news outlets said the Ukrainian incursion "shocked" Russian elites, but now that the initial shock has passed, "they've gotten used to it."

'New Reality'

At the same time, the Kremlin is using its propaganda machine to try and prepare Russians for life in the conditions of a "new reality" and "new normality," said the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

"The Kremlin proposes convincing Russians that an enemy that breaks through to Russian territory will face 'inevitable defeat,' but 'the return of territories will take time and Russians need to wait,'" one of the sources said.

Russian elites are expecting the resignations of those responsible for the Ukrainian breakthrough, a source told Meduza.

Ukraine's leadership has repeatedly clarified that its bold move into Kursk is meant to establish a buffer zone inside Russia meant to protect Ukrainian civilians from cross-border Russian shelling.

The American Institute for the Study of War said Ukrainian forces continued to advance along the entire front line in Kursk.

Earlier on August 21, Ukrainian naval forces struck a Russian S-300 antiaircraft complex in Russia's Rostov region, Ukraine's General Staff reported, while Russia said it was subjected to one of the most intense waves of Ukrainian drone strikes that ever targeted the capital, Moscow.

Ukraine's General Staff said the strike against the S-300 missile complex near the settlement of Novoshakhtinsk in the Rostov region was carried out by naval force units and the consequences of the strike are still being evaluated.

"Russian invaders also use S-300 missiles to attack peaceful Ukrainian cities, destroying residential buildings and terrorizing the civilian population," the General Staff said.

Rostov regional Governor Vasily Golubev separately said a Ukrainian missile had been shot down in the region, without giving details.

Meanwhile, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said Ukrainian drones targeted the Russian capital in one of the largest such attacks, adding that air defenses shot down 10 of the drones.

"This is one of the largest attempts to attack Moscow with drones of all time," Sobyanin wrote, adding no casualties or material damage were reported.

Russia's Defense Ministry separately said its air defense systems shot down 45 Ukrainian drones.

"Eleven drones were destroyed over the Moscow region, 23 over the Bryansk region, six over the Belgorod region, three over the Kaluga region, and two over the Kursk region," it said.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/pokrovsk-intense-fighting- moscow-drones-rostov-kursk-ukraine/33086648.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Blown Bridges: As Ukraine's Invasion Expands, Russia Closes In On Donbas City

By Mike Eckel August 21, 2024

Up until this weekend, the western reaches of the Seym River, a meandering waterway flowing west across the Kursk region into Ukraine, was spanned by three low, two-lane, concrete-and-asphalt bridges that served road traffic for the southern Russian territory.

As of August 20, however, those three bridges are now impassable, partially destroyed by a series of Ukrainian attacks that pose serious problems for Russian forces struggling to contain Ukraine's two-week-old expanding invasion of Russia.

The goal of the effort -- which has stunned Russia, surprised the West, and possibly rewritten the narrative of the entire war -- remains uncertain, although President Volodymyr Zelenskiy signaled that at least one of the aims is to create a buffer zone.

But it's an open question whether a border buffer zone will change the fact that, some 400 kilometers to the south, Russian forces are on the verge of capturing Pokrovsk, a Donbas city whose fall would imperil Ukrainian supply and logistics lines all along the front line across the Donbas.

Here's a look at where things stand 30 months into Europe's largest land war since World War II.

All Eyes On Kursk

The last time Ukraine pulled off an offensive maneuver that reset the battlefield, not to mentioning gobsmacking outside observers, came in late 2022: in the eastern part of the Kharkiv region, and further the south, on the west side of the Dnieper River, in the Kherson region.

Ukraine tried to pull off an even more ambitious counteroffensive last year, but that ground to a halt, resulting in major personnel and equipment losses and widespread disappointment.

The Kursk invasion has surprised observers, but it's unclear if it will reset the battlefield.

More than 1,000 troops, including some of Ukraine's most battle-hardened units, backed by tanks and heavy weaponry, were believed to have been involved in the initial foray on August 6, which quickly overran undermanned and underbuilt border defenses. The number of Ukrainian troops has reportedly grown by at least five times since.

According to Ukrainian and Russian officials, open-source intelligence, and analysts, Ukrainian troops have been spotted digging fortified defensive positions in several locations. That suggests the invasion's goal is not just to attack Russian positions and retreat back across the border but to hold territory as a chip for future negotiations.

"It's a calculated risk that they've taken; they knew what they were doing," said Pentti Forsstrom, a retired Finnish Army lieutenant colonel who is now a senior researcher at the National Defense University in Helsinki.

"People were thinking: 'This is the attritional phase of the war, nothing special will happen, the fighting goes on, but nothing changes, so this is a good time to do something,'" he said. "And the Ukrainians did it. They didn't wait. They took the initiative into their own hands, forcing Russia to respond."

The strikes on the Seym bridges, in Kursk's Glushkovo district, are also significant: The bridge that was apparently hit sometime over the weekend -- announced in a drone video issued by Ukraine's air force commander on August 18 -- was the third to have been rendered impassable in recent days.

Destroying the bridges hinders Russia's ability to move forces and mount an effective defense, an effort that to date has been shambolic -- though that might change as more experienced units arrive. It also increases the risk that some Russian forces could be encircled.

"The strikes on the bridge crossings...and the advance of Ukrainian defense forces' forward units to the western bank of the river suggest that the objective...is to take control of a portion of Kursk Oblast south of the Seym," according to the Center for Defense Strategies, a Kyiv think tank headed by a former Ukrainian defense minister.

Satellite imagery shows Russian troops have tried to erect a handful of temporary pontoon bridges across the Seym.

On August 18, in his first remarks outlining the objectives of the incursion, Zelenskiy said Ukrainian forces were seeking to destroy "as much Russian war potential as possible," as well as to create "a buffer zone on the aggressor's territory."

There was another goal, said Mykhaylo Podolyak, a top Zelenskiy adviser.

"The third task is, of course, to show the type of war that Ukraine is waging, compared with the type of war that Russia is waging," he said in an interview with Current Time. "Russia is destroying populated areas. Russia, in fact, is going to occupy and seize populated areas. Ukraine does not intend to seize populated areas. It does not intend to occupy this territory."

In a separate speech, Zelenskiy trumpeted Russia's flat-footed response as an illustration that Moscow's threats about major escalation were illusory.

"It is the time when the world is shedding its last and very naive illusions about Russia, illusions that have significantly hindered the defense of Ukraine," he said.

Western observers, meanwhile, have been surprised not only by the Ukrainian success but also by the ineffectual Russian reaction.

"Russia is still pulling together its reaction to this incursion," U.S. Army General Christopher Cavoli, NATO's top military commander, said on August 15 during a talk in New York. "There has been a fairly slow and scattered reaction to it. Part of that is because it's not exactly clear who is in charge."

Send In The Conscripts

The Ukrainian advance has sent tens of thousands of Kursk residents fleeing; at least 130,000, as of August 20. It is a flood of people that has stretched resources and nerves in the regional capital, also called Kursk.

For the Kremlin, there's another, bigger people problem looming: the role of conscripts being deployed against Ukrainian troops.

Under Russian law, all men between the ages of 18 and 40 are required to serve in the armed forces. The law also puts some limits on deploying conscripts to war zones, requiring a minimum of four months of service and specialized training, and including an outright prohibition on deployment outside of the country.

That means the war in Ukraine has been fought only with contract volunteers -- "kontraktniki" -- as well as recruited prison inmates.

That, in turn, has insulated the wider Russian population from the horrors of the Ukraine conflict, which has killed or wounded at least 350,000 Russian soldiers (and a comparable number of Ukrainians), according to Western estimates.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said multiple times that conscripts would not be deployed to combat areas. But the Ukrainian invasion of Kursk is changing that calculus.

At least 22 Russian conscripts went missing in the Kursk region in the first week of Ukraine's invasion, according to the news outlet iStories.

In the northern region of Murmansk, mothers of conscripts who began service in early July have circulated petitions demanding their sons not be sent to the Kursk region.

Relatives of conscripts from the central region of Bashkortostan told the news organization Vyorstka that some of their brothers and sons who had been stationed in the Kursk region had gone missing and may have been captured.

"What right do they have to send conscripts there?" one woman, who asked to be identified only as Olga, told RFE/RL's Siberia Realities. Putin promised that only kontraktniki would fight, she said.

Ukrainian forces have also released videos and photographs purporting to show scores of Russian prisoners of war, and observers say more than 1,000 soldiers may have been captured during the Kursk incursion. If true, that would present the Kremlin with an even bigger headache.

Idite Lesom, an NGO that helps Russians being mobilized or conscripted, said it had fielded scores of calls from parents complaining their sons had gone missing or were set to be deployed to fight Ukrainian troops.

"Formally, they cannot all be sent to the combat zone, but their commanders are obviously much more concerned now that they will get a slap on the wrist if they do not promptly carry out the order" to deploy to Kursk, Grigory Sverdlin, the NGO's founder, told RFE/RL's Russian Service.

Oksana Deyeva, a woman from the Voronezh region whose son was drafted in 2023 and had served near the Kursk village of Korenevo, published a petition on the website Change.org, calling on Putin to order the withdrawal of any conscripts.

"A full-scale offensive is under way on our territory today. Save the lives of soldiers who are not prepared for military action. You promised parents that [conscripts] would not participate in military action!!!! We believe in you," the petition read.

Deyeva did not respond to multiple messages from RFE/RL seeking further comment.

Pokrovsk Has (Almost) Fallen

Ukraine's successes have eclipsed more dire news further south, along other parts of the 1,100-kilometer front line.

Russian commanders, who have more men, more weaponry, and more willingness to conduct infantry-wave assaults, are grinding down Ukrainian defenses in three locations along a 70-kilometer section of the front: Chasiv Yar, Toretsk, and Pokrovsk.

Pokrovsk, in particular, is under critical threat, according to analysts and open-source maps and intelligence. On August 20, Russian forces were reported within 11 kilometers of the city, which has a dwindling civilian population of around 50,000. Authorities have called on civilians to evacuate the city, as well as the neighboring town of Myrnohrad.

"If Pokrovsk still has two weeks, then Myrnohrad has only a few days left," Yuriy Tretyak, the head of the local military administration, told RFE/RL's Donbas Realities.

Now a garrison town with supply depots and trauma facilities, Pokrovsk sits astride a key highway -- known variously as the T-0504 or N23 -- that heads northeast toward Kostyantynivka, a city with a major railway junction. Russian forces were even closer to the highway, less than 7 kilometers, as of August 19, according to Deep State, an open-source mapping group with ties to Ukraine's military.

Russia's Defense Ministry on August 21 claimed it had captured Nyu-York, a town also often spelled New York, located to the east of Pokrovsk. Ukrainian officials did not immediately confirm the town's loss, which would put more pressure on the defense of Pokrovsk.

Russia's seizure of the highway would be a major rupture of Ukrainian supply lines and would put further pressure on Kostyantynivka, which is being threatened from the northeast by Russian advances into the city of Chasiv Yar.

As of August 20, Russian forces controlled Chasiv Yar's Kanal district on the eastern side and have started sending scout units to try to establish a foothold across the Siverskiy Donets, the Donbas Canal, which Ukraine has relied on for defense.

The relentless Russian advances have again highlighted one of Ukraine's biggest problems: manpower.

Despite passing a new mobilization law this spring, the system for recruiting, equipping, training, and deploying new recruits continues to work slowly, experts said, giving Russia the advantage, overwhelming Ukrainian positions with bloody but effective infantry assaults.

"It's not about materiel, weapons. I have the feeling that Western aid is adequate enough. But the Ukrainians don't have the personnel to use those materials, to fire those weapons," Forsstrom told RFE/RL. "The Russians have the same problems in recruiting, but of course Russians have the money to attract soldiers. The Ukrainians don't. So they have to rely on the morale of the Ukrainian people."

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-kursk-russia- donbas-invasion/33085815.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Zelenskiy Says Solution Needed For Loan Secured By Frozen Russian Assets

By RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service August 21, 2024

Ukraine needs a real mechanism that will enable Russian frozen assets to work for the country in the coming months, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said.

Zelenskiy said in his evening video address that the topic was discussed with Ukraine's partners on August 21 "to bring real decisions closer to the promised $50 billion from frozen Russian assets."

There has been a lot of discussion in the past about the transfer of the funds to Ukraine, but Zelenskiy said that despite these statements Ukraine still needs a real mechanism.

"It is necessary that the funds from the aggressor's assets work for real assistance in defense against the aggressor," he said. "Relevant discussions have been going on for too long, and finally solutions are needed."

Western countries froze some 276 billion euros ($300 billion) in sovereign Russian wealth funds following Moscow's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. In June, the Group of Seven (G7) industrialized countries decided to service a $50 billion loan for Ukraine with proceeds generated by the so-called immobilized assets.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has suggested that the G7 could agree on the terms of providing Ukraine with a $50 billion loan secured by the assets by October.

Yellen said in June that there was "no legal problem" in providing Ukraine with the loan. She also rejected Russian President Vladimir Putin's accusation that the use of income from Russian assets for the benefit of Ukraine was theft.

Most of the frozen Russian sovereign funds -- some 210 billion euros ($228 billion) -- are held in Europe, while about $10 billion ($11.1 billion) is in the United States, the news website Euractiv.com estimates. Some $30 billion ($33.4 billion) are in Japan, and $10 billion in Britain.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced last month that 1.5 billion euros ($1.6 billion) of "proceeds from immobilized Russian assets" would be transferred to Ukraine for defense and reconstruction.

"There is no better symbol or use for the Kremlin's money than to make Ukraine and all of Europe a safer place to live," von der Leyen said on July 26.

In reaction to von der Leyen's announcement, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia would not leave the EU's move unanswered but said Moscow's response had to be carefully planned.

The Foreign Ministry said that "any encroachment on Russian state property under the guise of any contrived 'reparation mechanism' would be nothing more than theft at the state level."

Western countries have discussed the possible confiscation of the frozen assets, but it is associated with greater legal difficulties than using the proceeds from them.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-loan-frozen- assets/33087639.html

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Ukraine Loses Over 700 Soldiers in Fights With Russia's Battlegroup Yug - MoD

Sputnik News

20240821

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia's Battlegroup Yug eliminated more than 700 Ukrainian servicemen over the past 24 hours, the Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) said on Wednesday.

"The Ukrainian armed forces lost over 700 servicemen, three vehicles [in battles with the Yug group]," the MoD said in a statement.

Battlegroup Tsentr liberated the settlement of Zhelannoye in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) and repelled six counterattacks, eliminating over 630 Ukrainian troops, the statement read, adding that Battlegroup Zapad repelled six counterattacks and eliminated up to 470 Ukrainian troops.

Kiev lost up to 130 fighters in battles with Battlegroup Vostok and up to 100 soldiers in battles with Battlegroup Sever, the ministry added.

A Sputnik

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US, UK, Poland Took Part in Preparing Ukraine's Operation in Kursk - Russian Foreign Intel

Sputnik News

20240821

On August 6, Ukrainian forces launched an incursion into Russia's Kursk region, which was slammed by President Vladimir Putin as a large-scale provocation. The Kiev regime planned the attack with the participation of the US and NATO, Russian presidential aide Nikolai Patrushev earlier said.

Ukraine's operation in Russia's Kursk region was prepared with the participation of the US, UK, and Polish intelligence services, the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) said.

"According to available information, the operation of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Kursk region was prepared with the participation of the US, British, and Polish intelligence services. The units involved in it underwent combat coordination in training centers in the UK and Germany. Military advisers from NATO countries are providing assistance in managing Ukraine's units that have invaded Russian territory, and in using Western weapons and military equipment," the agency told Russian media.

NATO countries are also providing the Ukrainian military with satellite reconnaissance data on the deployment of Russian troops in the area of aathe operation, the SVR added.

As the situation on the front deteriorates for Ukrainian troops, Kiev's Western handlers have been pushing it to move combat operations deep into Russian territory in recent months, Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service said. One of the goals was to provoke an upsurge in anti-government sentiment and influence domestic policy in the country.

A Sputnik

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We Need the Proceeds of the Aggressor's Assets to Work for Real Defense Assistance Against the Aggressor - Address by the President

President of Ukraine

21 August 2024 - 20:44

Dear Ukrainians!

The key points for today.

First. There have already been several reports by Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi. The frontline - our positions, primarily it is the Pokrovsk direction, our Donetsk region. We understand the enemy's steps and we are getting stronger. We have checked the ammunition supply. And it is very important that our partners really fulfill their obligations. On each package, on all our agreements. This is fundamental for our defense. Our operation in the Kursk region - our combat work continues; steps are being taken. We control the designated areas. And I thank all our guys, all our units for continuing to replenish the exchange fund.

Second. I had a long, very detailed meeting with Government officials and representatives of the Verkhovna Rada. There were several issues. We are planning decisions that need to be made to support our Defense Forces. And also, to support economic activity in the country. So that we can not only save jobs, but also give the Ukrainian economy more opportunities, more potential for growth. These are important issues, and so are the conclusions drawn after meetings with entrepreneurs in the regions. The Government will provide all the details when the relevant draft decisions are prepared. But we can already say that we have agreed with the Government: the Ministers will look for alternative solutions without putting pressure on legitimate business. And we have also agreed on additional national steps for de-shadowing. In addition, today we discussed our work with partners on advancing real decisions on the promised $50 billion from the frozen Russian assets. There have already been many political statements from our partners. There is still a lot being said about this. But we need a real mechanism. We need the proceeds of the aggressor's assets to work for real defense assistance against the aggressor - for all of this to work for Ukraine and Ukrainians in the coming months. The relevant discussions have been ongoing for too long, and we finally need decisions.

And one more thing for today.

I spoke with Patriarch Bartholomew. I thanked him for his support of Ukraine and Ukrainians, our defense, our independence. I informed him about the law passed to strengthen our spiritual independence. It is very important that we share a common understanding of the unifying potential for Ukrainian Orthodoxy that this passed law provides, and everything is provided for it, in sufficient measure, to really eliminate dependence on Moscow and to add unity to Ukraine.

I thank everyone in the world who stands with Ukraine!

Glory to Ukraine!

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Andriy Yermak Held a Telephone Conversation with the Minister of Enterprises and Made in Italy

President of Ukraine

21 August 2024 - 16:36

Head of the Office of the President Andriy Yermak held a telephone conversation with Minister of Enterprises and Made in Italy Adolfo Urso. First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine and Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yuliia Svyrydenko also took part in the conversation.

Andriy Yermak spoke about the development of the Made in Ukraine economic platform initiated by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

During the conversation, the parties agreed to intensify cooperation within the framework of this project and to hold a Ukraine-Italy conference aimed at strengthening interaction between Ukrainian and Italian businesses.

The Head of the Presidential Office thanked the Italian side for confirming its delegation's participation in the thematic conference dedicated to the Energy Security point of the Peace Formula and for the continued support of the Ukrainian people in their fight against Russian aggression.

Andriy Yermak and Adolfo Urso agreed to continue discussing areas of cooperation within the framework of Italy's G7 presidency this year.



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Modi calls for peace and stability as he heads to Ukraine

By Anjana Pasricha August 21, 2024

Ahead of a visit to Ukraine, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for an early return to peace and stability and said he will "share perspectives" on a peaceful resolution of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

Modi will travel to Kyiv on Friday after visiting Poland. He will hold talks with Ukraine's President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy weeks after a visit by the Indian prime minister to its longstanding partner Moscow drew sharp criticism from the Ukrainian leader.

Modi met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in July on a day when Russian missiles struck multiple targets including a children's hospital in Kyiv killing many civilians.

The Indian leader had called the death of children heart-wrenching, but images of Modi hugging Putin were embarrassing, according to analysts.

"The optics of the Russia visit were not good. So, the effort by going to Ukraine is to show that India is not just taking a passive position on the conflict but wants to actively help in a settlement," said Manoj Joshi, distinguished fellow at the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi.

Zelenskyy had said that it was a "huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts" to see Modi hug "the world's most bloody criminal in Moscow on such a day."

Modi will be the first Indian prime minister to visit Ukraine since the two countries established diplomatic ties.

"As a friend and partner, we hope for an early return of peace and stability in the region," Modi said in a statement on Wednesday before leaving New Delhi. He said his trip will be a "natural continuation of extensive contacts" between India and Ukraine.

Modi met Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit held in Italy in June. In March this year, Ukraine's foreign minister visited the Indian capital in a bid to give momentum to their political and economic ties.

India has not joined its Western allies in directly holding the Kremlin responsible for the war, but it has been urging the two nations to resolve their conflict through dialogue and diplomacy.

The Indian foreign ministry said on Monday that India has "substantive and independent ties" with both Russia and Ukraine and was ready to support the negotiation of a peace settlement.

"India has high credibility with Russia,'' analyst Joshi told VOA. ''So the hope is that it can play some kind of a mediatory role and can raise issues with Moscow directly.''

The visit is also seen as an effort by India to balance its growing ties with Western countries with its refusal to join them in isolating its decades-long partner Russia.

Following the Modi-Putin summit, the United States State Department said it had raised concerns with India about its relationship with Russia and hoped it would use its ties with Moscow to firmly encourage the Kremlin to adhere to the United Nations charter.

Since the conflict began more than two years ago, India has abstained from all U.N. votes against Russia and become one of the biggest buyers of Russian oil as it continues to trade with Moscow.

Analysts say New Delhi's big challenge is to convince the West and Kyiv that its friendship with Russia is not an endorsement of Putin's Ukraine policy.

"India is walking the tightrope,'' Joshi said. ''As the war continues and even becomes more intense, it brings more pressure on New Delhi and the Indian position stands out starkly, especially as the Western position on Russia hardens."

Modi's visit to Poland, the first by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in 40 years, is expected to focus on strengthening economic and political cooperation. He will meet both Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and President Andrzej Duda, according to the foreign ministry.

Analysts say Modi's visit to the two countries - Poland and Ukraine - is also part of India's efforts to increase its engagement with countries in central and eastern Europe as it tries to raise its global profile.

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Ukraine's Zelenskyy considers ban on Russia-linked religious groups

By Tatiana Vorozhko, Nataliia Churikova August 21, 2024

A new Ukrainian law aimed at removing the influence of the pro-Moscow Russian Orthodox Church enjoys broad popular support in Ukraine but is being viewed with reservations by international advocates for religious freedom.

Passed on Tuesday by Ukraine's parliament, the law banning religious organizations that maintain ties to Moscow follows years of controversy over ties between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

The law empowers a government office, the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience, to scrutinize religious organizations for possible connections with Russia. If connections are found, the SSU will first issue a prescription to eliminate the violations. If the ties remain, the office will go to court to stop the religious organization's activities.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to sign the law. He congratulated lawmakers for passing the legislation "regarding our spiritual independence," saying that they will "continue strengthening Ukraine and our society."

The Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations, which represents more than 90% of Ukrainian religious communities, welcomed the law's adoption.

"We categorically condemn activities of the Russian Orthodox Church, which has become an accomplice to the Russian invaders' bloody crimes against humanity, which sanctifies weapons of mass destruction and openly declares the need to destroy Ukrainian statehood, culture, identity, and, more recently, Ukrainians themselves," it said in a statement.

The Russian Orthodox Church operates only in Russia-occupied parts of Ukraine and in some monasteries directly subordinated to it. So, the ban will mostly apply to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which, according to the Ukrainian authorities, still maintains its ties to the ROC. After the Russian invasion in 2022, the UOC claimed that it broke those ties.

According to a survey by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology conducted in May, 83% of Ukrainian citizens believe that the state should intervene in the activities of the UOC; 63% of respondents want it to be banned.

Religious freedom critics

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, an independent agency responsible for reviewing possible violations of religious freedom abroad and making policy recommendations to the U.S. administration and Congress, has expressed concern about the law's impact on Ukraine's regular faithful.

"The most recent version of the law does not fully address prior concerns about the law's potential to impose collective punishments on entire religious communities. It also introduced new problematic aspects that could compromise the protection of freedom of religion or belief and freedom of expression," says a statement that USCIRF Chair Stephen Schneck sent to VOA.

The commission said it will monitor the law's implementation after it goes into effect and urged Ukrainian authorities "to ensure that the legislation complies with Ukraine's commitments under international law."

MAnika Palotai, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Religious Freedom Institute, called the legislation "divisive."

"It divides people. It divides the international community. There will be questions about what will happen to those people who belong to this church. What choices do they have?"

Viktor Yelensky, head of the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience, told VOA that Ukraine will adhere to its laws and international obligations.

"Ukraine is not North Korea," Yelensky said. "The procedure established by this law is quite democratic. The organization in question can challenge our demands in court at various stages. Only the court can stop the activities of the structures of the UOC if it does not want to sever ties with the Russian Orthodox Church."

Most Ukrainian Orthodox Christians belong to parishes with no affiliation with the Russian Orthodox Church.

After centuries in which the Russian Orthodox Church was the predominant Christian denomination in Ukraine, represented by the Ukrainian Exarchate, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church established itself as a separate entity in 1990 while maintaining relations with the Russian church.

In May 2022, its leaders announced their complete independence from the Moscow-based church, which has been a strong supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin's strategy of conquering Ukraine.

According to a survey conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology, only 4% of Ukraine's population identifies with the UOC. UOC claims that the true number is higher.

There is another Orthodox Christian church in the country a the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, which was granted independence by the Patriarchate of Constantinople in 2019. Since then, many parishes and individuals have switched their affiliation from UOC to OCU, and the process continues.

The UOC spokesperson, Metropolitan Kliment, insisted that the new law will deny Ukrainian citizens and UOC believers the freedom of conscience and religious beliefs. He said that lawmakers ignored appeals from Ukrainian soldiers faithful to this church and targeted the UOC for ties with Moscow that do not exist.

"There are no Moscow churches in Ukraine. Our Church has been operating in Ukraine since time immemorial, and its priests and millions of believers are conscious citizens of Ukraine, not imported from abroad. We did not elect this Verkhovna Rada [parliament] so that it would take away our churches during the war, as the Russians do in the occupied territories," he wrote to VOA.

In March 2024, the Moscow Patriarchate officially declared the war in Ukraine "holy." The "World Russian People's Council" issued a decree which said that "the entire territory of modern Ukraine should fall under the exclusive influence of Russia."

The UOC, in its statement published the next day categorically rejected and condemned that declaration: "Instead of providing ideological support and justification for Russia's military aggression and intervention in Ukraine, we believe that the Orthodox Church in Russia should have raised her voice against this war of aggression."

However, since the beginning of the Russian invasion, Ukrainian authorities have opened criminal cases against more than 100 clergy members of the UOC for such crimes as treason, collaborationism, aiding and abetting the aggressor country and the sale of firearms.

Ukrainian MP Mykyta Poturaiev, the chairman of the Committee on Humanitarian and Information Policy, which worked on this legislation, told VOA that the law doesn't ban the UOC. Its latest version, adopted this week, established an extended grace period of nine months for Ukrainian organizations that still have ties with Russia to sever them and decide on their future.

"They can establish a dialogue with Istanbul, with the Patriarch of Constantinople, or they can establish a dialogue with the Orthodox Church of Ukraine," he said.

He insisted that the law doesn't target religious customs or beliefs but only collaboration with the enemy. "It would be strange if we allowed the FSB or another Russian state body to operate in Ukraine now because they are enemies," he said.

Archimandrite Cyril Hovorun, a Ukrainian theologian and professor at University College Stockholm, says the challenge posed by the Russian Orthodox Church is not unique to Ukraine but is more urgent there than elsewhere.

"All European countries with a sizeable presence of the Moscow Patriarchate face the same dilemma: how to neutralize its influence without violating human rights."

He said no single country, including Ukraine, has come up with an ideal solution.

"Nevertheless, the adopted law features mechanisms that help contain the damaging Russian influence without damaging the freedom of religion in the country," he told VOA.

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White House downplays Chinese concerns over possible US nuclear strategy change

By William Gallo August 21, 2024

White House officials on Wednesday appeared to downplay Beijing's sentiment that it is "seriously concerned" after a report alleged the United States recently approved a secret plan to shift some of the focus of its nuclear strategy away from Russia to deal with Beijing's nuclear weapons buildup.

"The guidance issued earlier this year is not a response to any single entity, country, nor threat," National Security Council Spokesman Sean Savett told VOA in response to emailed questions. "We have repeatedly voiced concerns about the advancing nuclear arsenals of Russia, [China] and [North Korea]."

"The most recent guidance builds on what was issued by previous administrations a there is far more continuity than change," he said.

Savett did not provide details of the new strategy but noted that "while the specific text of the guidance is classified, its existence is in no way secret."

Late Tuesday, The New York Times reported that U.S. President Joe Biden in March approved a new "nuclear employment guidance," a highly classified document outlining how the U.S. would use nuclear weapons in a potential conflict.

The report said the document, updated every four years, reorients U.S. nuclear deterrent strategy to deal with China's massive expansion of its nuclear arsenal. The document also orders U.S. forces to prepare for the possibility of "coordinated nuclear challenges" from China, Russia, and North Korea, according to the report.

Asked about the report during a press briefing Wednesday, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson accused the United States of "peddling the China nuclear threat narrative" and "finding excuses to seek strategic advantage."

"China is seriously concerned about the relevant report, and the facts have fully proven that the United States has constantly stirred up the so-called China nuclear threat theory in recent years," said Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning.

Russia has not responded to the report.

For decades, U.S. nuclear policy has been primarily focused on Russia, the only other country with comparable nuclear weapons capabilities.

However, U.S. officials have increasingly warned that China's nuclear buildup under President Xi Jinping is proceeding faster than previously expected.

In an unclassified document released late last year, the Pentagon estimated that the Chinese military had more than 500 operational warheads in its arsenal and will have more than 1,000 warheads by 2030.

That compares to the United States, which possesses a nuclear stockpile of about 3,700 active warheads, according to estimates compiled by the U.S.-based Arms Control Association.

Russia has roughly 4,380 nuclear warheads, including about 1,550 on strategic delivery systems, according to estimates cited by the group.

Given those numbers, Russia remains the "major driver" behind U.S. nuclear strategy, said Daryl G. Kimball, the director of the Arms Control Association, in a post on social media site X.

The Times report overstates the changes outlined in the U.S. nuclear weapons guidance document, according to Kimball, who insisted there has been no reorientation away from Russia toward China.

"Despite China's nuclear expansion, Russia's arsenal significantly exceeds that of China's - even after Xi's ambitious plan is complete. Until that changes, focus will remain on Russia's arsenal," said Hans Kristensen, director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists.

"But planning against China is increasing, as reflected in the document," Kristensen added in a post on X.

U.S. officials have publicly referred to the nuclear weapons document at least twice, without offering much detail on its contents.

In June, Pranay Vaddi, the White House National Security Council's senior director for arms control and nonproliferation, said the new guidance "emphasizes the need to account for the growth and diversity" of China's nuclear arsenal, as well the need to deter Russia, China, and North Korea simultaneously.

According to Vaddi, the U.S. will continue to pursue nuclear arms restraints with Russia and China, but "without a change in the trajectory that Russia, [China], and North Korea are on," the U.S. "will need to continue to adjust our posture and capabilities to ensure our ability to deter and meet other objectives going forward."

Vipin Narang, an MIT nuclear security specialist who until recently focused on nuclear policy in the Pentagon, said earlier this month that Biden "recently issued updated nuclear weapons employment guidance to account for multiple nuclear-armed adversaries, and, in particular, the significant increase in the size and diversity of [China's] nuclear arsenal."

"It is our responsibility to see the world as it is, not as we hoped or wished it would be," said Narang. "It is possible that we will one day look back and see the quarter century after the Cold War as 'nuclear intermission'."

U.S. and Chinese officials both frequently speak of the dangers of nuclear war, but efforts to hold dialogue on the issue have failed.

Last year, U.S. and Chinese officials agreed to negotiations on nuclear non-proliferation and arms control, ahead of a meeting between Biden and Xi. But China suspended the talks last month, citing U.S. arms sales to the self-ruled island of Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own.

Many analysts are also concerned about growing military and diplomatic cooperation between Russia and China. In 2022, Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed on a "no-limits" partnership and have recently expanded joint military exercises and other cooperation.

Earlier this year, Russia also restored a Cold War-era mutual defense treaty with nuclear-armed North Korea and hinted at further defense cooperation.

Since invading Ukraine in 2022, Putin has repeatedly issued thinly veiled threats about using nuclear weapons against Western-backed forces there.

VOA White House Correspondent Anita Powell contributed to this story from Washington.

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TORONTO, Aug. 21, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Xanadu Mines Ltd (ASX: XAM, TSX: XAM) (Xanadu, XAM or the Company) is pleased to report an increase in the Mineral Resource Estimate (Resource, Mineral Resource Estimate or MRE) for its flagship copper-gold project at Kharmagtai, in the South Gobi region of Mongolia (Figure 1 and Table 1). The updated Resource increases contained copper metal by 14% or 463kt Cu and contained gold by 9% or 764k Oz Au and is largely driven by updating the resource reporting criteria to reflect pit-shells generated in the pre-feasibility study (PFS) in conjunction with re-estimation of the underlying models to include 7,300m of new drilling completed in six holes at White Hill and five diamond drill holes at Golden Eagle.



Highlights

Significant increase in Kharmagtai Resource from 3.4Mt to 3.8Mt Cu and from 8.5Moz to 9.3Moz Au contained metal, a 463Kt increase in contained copper ( Cu ) and 764Koz increase in contained gold ( Au ).

and from a 463Kt increase in contained copper ( ) and 764Koz increase in contained gold ( ). A small increase of approximately 123kt of contained copper and 156koz of contained gold arose from an update of the underlying models to incorporate new drilling subsequent to the last MRE update (11 holes for approximately 7300m). The Competent Person also made some minor adjustments to classifications as part of this update.

The balance of the change was driven by reporting the Mineral Resource falling within the revenue factor 1.4 PFS pit optimisation shells to the notional open pit cut-off grade of 0.2% CuEq, with material falling outside those shells reported to the notional mass underground cut-off of 0.3% CuEq resulting a net increase of material being reported at the lower cut-off. The previous approach used subjectively derived flat relative levels to define potentially open pit resources from underground (refer Figure 3).



Xanadus Executive Chairman and Managing Director, Mr Colin Moorhead, said This update reflects and is consistent with the final model informing The Kharmagtai PFS, which is on track for delivery in the current quarter. We are keeping all planned infrastructure outside of the revenue factor 1.4 pit-shells to ensure sufficient flexibility for the open pits to grow in the future. There is therefore a reasonable expectation that mineralisation falling within those pits may eventually be extracted by open pit mining and it is appropriate that this Mineral Resource is reported to cut-off grades that are consistent with this. It is also very pleasing to see underlying resource growth driven by the recent discovery of a zone of higher-grade copper and gold mineralisation at the White Hill, which clearly remains open at depth and supports our exploration model targeting potential underground opportunities beyond the scope of the PFS.

Table 1: Comparison 2023 vs 2024 Resource

Resource

Cutoff

(% CuEq)

Classification

Tonnes (Mt)

Grades Contained Metal CuEq (%) Cu (%) Au (g/t) CuEq

(Mlbs) CuEq

(kt) Cu

(kt) Au

(koz) 2024

0.20 (OC)

0.30 (UG)

Indicated 890 0.37 0.26 0.21 7,300 3,300 2,300 6,000 Inferred 590 0.34 0.25 0.17 4,500 2,000 1,500 3,300 20231

0.20 (OC)

0.30 (UG)

Indicated 790 0.38 0.27 0.22 6,700 3,000 2,100 5,600 Inferred 460 0.37 0.27 0.19 3,800 1,700 1,300 2,900

Note: Figures may not sum due to rounding and significant figure do not imply an added level of precision.





Figure 1. Resource growth in CuEq tonnes between 2023 and 2024 MREs. Growth attributable to additional drilling is a comparison of the 2023 and 2024 MREs reported using the same 2023 reporting criteria.

MINERAL RESOURCE ESTIMATE UPDATE OVERVIEW

Xanadu engaged independent consultants, Spiers Geological Consultants (SGC), to prepare an updated Resource for Kharmagtai. The Resource has been reported in accordance with the JORC Code 2012, is effective as of 31st July 2024, and is shown in full in Tables 8 to 11.

Drilling results from the past 6 months (including 11 holes for 7,300 metres of drilling) have been incorporated into an updated JORC 2012 Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) for the Kharmagtai Copper and Gold Deposit in Mongolia (Figure 2).

This Resource is an update to the December 2023 Mineral Resource Estimate. Results from the main body of infill drilling suggested that at White Hill the grades were increasing at depth, below the PEA designated pit and that there was potential that the orebody was shallowing towards the south. White Hill is open at depth (Figure 3), to the south and to the west. Additionally, infill drilling at Golden Eagle has linked two zones of shallow higher-grade gold mineralisation and increased the contained gold within the Golden Eagle resource.

Previous MRE estimations were reported using two different cut-off grades, for open pit (0.2%CuEq) and underground (0.3% CuEq) above and below specifically designated RLs for each deposit. Levels were based on preliminary optimisation analysis and a 0.2% CuEq cut-off grade during the 2021 Scoping Study. The underground Resource was reported below the nominated mRLs levels based on preliminary optimisation analysis and a 0.3% CuEq cut-off grade, reported with inside a 0.1%CuEq geological reporting wireframe. Tables 2 and 3 show the 2024 and 2023 Global Resource estimates both using the 2023 criteria described above.

Table 2. 2024 Global Resource combined for OC and UG at 0.2 and 0.3% CuEq respectively in 2023 criteria

Classification

Tonnes

(Mt)

Grades Contained Metal CuEq

(%) Cu

(%) Au

(g/t) CuEq

(Mlbs) CuEq

(kt) Cu

(kt) Au

(koz) Indicated 820 0.38 0.27 0.22 6,900 3,100 2,200 5,700 Inferred 480 0.37 0.27 0.19 3,900 1,800 1,300 2,900

Note: Figures may not sum due to rounding and significant figure do not imply an added level of precision.

Table 3. 2023 Global Resource combined for OC and UG at 0.2 and 0.3% CuEq respectively2

Classification

Tonnes

(Mt) Grades Contained Metal CuEq

(%) Cu

(%) Au

(g/t) CuEq

(Mlbs) CuEq

(kt) Cu

(kt) Au

(koz) Indicated 790 0.38 0.27 0.22 6,700 3,000 2,100 5,600 Inferred 460 0.37 0.27 0.19 3,800 1,700 1,300 2,900

Note: Figures may not sum due to rounding and significant figure do not imply an added level of precision.

Pit optimisations conducted to inform the ongoing PFS have defined more appropriate spatial constraints for open pit mining with the company using the revenue factor 1.4 pit shells, defined by 1.4x the expected revenue on current PFS assumptions, to inform key infrastructure decisions (i.e. all permanent infrastructure has been designed to fall outside the RF1.4 pit limits). Material falling within those pit-shells is now considered to have reasonable expectation of eventual economic extraction by open pit mining methods, therefore has been reported to a 0.2% CuEq cut-off. Material falling outside those shells continues and below the previously used RLs are reported at the higher mass underground mining cut-off of 0.3% CuEq. Tables 4 and 5 show the 2024 Global Resource estimate using the previous and current criteria. The net effect of this change was to increase the proportion of the global resource reported at 0.2% v 0.3% (Figure 4).

Table 4. 2024 Global Resource combined for in RV1400fpit and "Other" at 0.2 and 0.3% CuEq respectively

Classification

Tonnes (Mt)

Grades Contained Metal CuEq (%) Cu (%) Au (g/t) CuEq (Mlbs) CuEq (kt) Cu (kt) Au (koz) Indicated 890 0.37 0.26 0.21 7,300 3,300 2,300 6,000 Inferred 590 0.34 0.25 0.17 4,500 2,000 1,500 3,300

Note: Figures may not sum due to rounding and significant figure do not imply an added level of precision.

Table 5. 2024 Global Resource combined for OC and UG at 0.2 and 0.3% CuEq respectively in 2023 criteria

Classification



Tonnes (Mt)



Grades Contained Metal CuEq (%) Cu (%) Au (g/t) CuEq (Mlbs) CuEq (kt) Cu (kt) Au (koz) Indicated 820 0.38 0.27 0.22 6,700 3,100 2,200 5,700 Inferred 480 0.37 0.27 0.19 3,900 1,800 1,300 2,900

Note: Figures may not sum due to rounding and significant figure do not imply an added level of precision.

SGC considers that data collection techniques are consistent with industry best practice and are suitable for use in the preparation of a Resource to be reported in accordance with JORC Code 2012. Available quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) data supports the use of the input data provided by Xanadu.

The Resource is considered to have reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction (RPEEE) on the following basis:

the deposit is located in a favourable mining jurisdiction, with no known impediments to land access or tenure status; and

the volume, orientation and grade of the Resource is amenable to mining extraction via traditional open-pit and underground methods;

The Resource models are well understood and there is substantial upside potential to be realised by better understanding the economics of the deposit. As demonstrated in the images below, significant volumes of mineralisation have been modelled that fall outside of the constraining pit wireframe. These parts of the model will be targeted for further investigation through economic studies to assess if more of this material can be brought into the Mineral Resource.

The total Mineral Resource Estimate includes material classified as oxide totalling 50Mt @ 0.34% CuEq which can be found in Table 7.





Figure 2: Plan view of the Kharmagtai district showing the additional drilling informing the 2024 MRE update.





Figure 3: Cross section through the White Hill Deposit showing resource growth and open nature of the White Hill deposit with grades generally increasing with depth. Faulting has shifted the resource towards the surface in the south, suggesting additional drilling may add significant shallower tonnes and change the shape of the current pits.





Figure 4: Schematic Cross Sections showing the cut-off grade reporting boundaries at White Hill. The 2023 December estimate was reported using a simplistic RL depth for open pit potential based on work conducted during the 2021 Scoping Study. The 2024 resource is being reported using optimised pit shapes generated during the ongoing PFS.

Tables 6-7 show the 2024 MRE in detail, with resource classification using the 2023 criteria.

Table 6: Kharmagtai Project  Potential Open Pit Mineral Resource Estimates 2024  by resource classification using the 2023 Reporting Criteria.

Deposit

Classification



Tonnes

(Mt)

Grades Contained Metal CuEq

(%) Cu

(%) Au

(g/t) CuEq

(Mlbs) CuEq

(kt) Cu

(kt) Au

(koz) SH Indicated

190 0.42 0.28 0.28 1,800 810 540 1,700 WH 370 0.33 0.25 0.17 2,700 1,200 910 2,000 CH 30 0.42 0.29 0.25 260 120 80 230 ZA 10 0.26 0.15 0.23 50 20 10 60 GE 40 0.28 0.12 0.29 260 120 50 400 ZE 20 0.31 0.18 0.26 140 70 40 170 PE Total Indicated 660 0.36 0.25 0.21 5,200 2,400 1,600 4,600 SH Inferred

30 0.30 0.17 0.24 200 90 50 230 WH 80 0.26 0.20 0.12 460 210 160 300 CH 10 0.24 0.20 0.07 40 20 20 20 ZA 10 0.25 0.15 0.19 60 30 20 70 GE 30 0.25 0.12 0.25 140 60 30 200 ZE 20 0.26 0.13 0.23 110 50 30 140 PE Total Inferred 170 0.26 0.17 0.17 1,000 460 300 1,000

Notes:

CuEq (lbs and t) accounts for Au (g/t) value and CuEq (t) must not be totalled to Au ounces

Figures may not sum due to rounding

Significant figures do not imply an added level of precision

Resource constrained by 0.1%CuEq reporting solid inline with geological analysis by XAM

Resource constrained by open cut above nominated mRL level by deposit as follows SH>=720mRL, WH>=915mRL, CH>=1100mRL, ZA>=920mRL, ZE>=945mRL, PE>=1100mRL and GE>=845mRL

CuEq equation (CuEq=Cu+Au*0.60049*0.86667) where Au at USD$1400/oz and Cu at USD$3.4/lb was employed according to the Clients' (XAM) direction.

Au recovery is relative with Cu rec=90% and Au rec=78% (rel Au rec=78/90=86.667% with number according to the Clients' (XAM) direction



Table 7: Kharmagtai Project  Potential Underground Mineral Resource Estimate 2024  by resource classification using the 2023 Reporting Criteria.

Deposit

Classification

Tonnes

(Mt)

Grades Contained Metal CuEq

(%) Cu

(%) Au

(g/t) CuEq

(Mlbs) CuEq

(kt) Cu

(kt) Au

(koz) SH Indicated

30 0.58 0.35 0.44 400 180 110 440 WH 100 0.46 0.37 0.16 1,000 460 370 530 CH - 0.37 0.28 0.18 30 10 10 20 ZA 20 0.47 0.32 0.28 250 110 80 220 GE - - - - - - - - ZE - - - - - - - - PE Total Indicated 160 0.48 0.36 0.24 1,700 760 570 1,200 SH Inferred

30 0.42 0.32 0.20 260 120 90 180 WH 150 0.43 0.35 0.15 1,400 620 510 680 CH - 0.36 0.30 0.12 10 - - - ZA 130 0.43 0.30 0.25 1,200 560 390 1,000 GE - - - - - - - - ZE - 0.40 0.06 0.67 - - - - PE Total Inferred 300 0.43 0.33 0.19 2,900 1,300 990 1,900

Notes:

CuEq (lbs and t) accounts for Au (g/t) value and CuEq (t) must not be totalled to Au ounces

Figures may not sum due to rounding

Significant figures do not imply an added level of precision

Resource constrained by 0.1%CuEq reporting solid inline with geological analysis by XAM

Resource constrained by open cut above nominated mRL level by deposit as follows SH>=720mRL, WH>=915mRL, CH>=1100mRL, ZA>=920mRL, ZE>=945mRL, PE>=1100mRL and GE>=845mRL

CuEq equation (CuEq=Cu+Au*0.60049*0.86667) where Au at USD$1400/oz and Cu at USD$3.4/lb was employed according to the Clients' (XAM) direction.

Au recovery is relative with Cu rec=90% and Au rec=78% (rel Au rec=78/90=86.667% with number according to the Clients' (XAM) direction



Tables 8-11 show the 2024 MRE in detail, with resource classification using the 2024 criteria.

Table 8: Kharmagtai Project  Potential Open Pit Mineral Resource Estimate 2024 within the revenue factor 1.4 pit  by resource classification.

Deposit

Classification

Tonnes

(Mt)

Grades Contained Metal CuEq

(%) Cu

(%) Au

(g/t) CuEq

(Mlbs) CuEq

(kt) Cu

(kt) Au

(koz) SH Indicated

210 0.44 0.29 0.29 2,100 940 610 2,000 WH 500 0.35 0.26 0.16 3,800 1,700 1,300 2,600 CH 40 0.39 0.28 0.22 310 140 100 260 ZA 40 0.32 0.21 0.20 260 120 80 240 GE 40 0.28 0.12 0.29 260 120 50 400 ZE 20 0.31 0.18 0.26 140 60 40 170 PE - - - - - - - - Total Indicated 850 0.37 0.26 0.21 6,900 3,100 2,200 5,700 SH Inferred

30 0.29 0.18 0.20 190 90 60 200 WH 210 0.34 0.27 0.12 1,500 700 570 820 CH 10 0.24 0.19 0.08 40 20 20 20 ZA 120 0.33 0.23 0.20 830 380 260 730 GE 20 0.25 0.12 0.25 140 60 30 200 ZE 10 0.24 0.15 0.17 80 30 20 80 PE - - - - - - - - Total Inferred 400 0.32 0.24 0.16 2,800 1,300 950 2,000

Notes:

CuEq (lbs and t) accounts for Au (g/t) value and CuEq (t) must not be totalled to Au ounces

Figures may not sum due to rounding

Significant figures do not imply an added level of precision

Resource constrained by 0.1%CuEq reporting solid inline with geological analysis by XAM

Resource constrained by RV1400fpit (coded field equal to 1)

CuEq equation (CuEq=Cu+Au*0.60049*0.86667) where Au at USD$1400/oz and Cu at USD$3.4/lb was employed according to the Clients' (XAM) direction.

Au recovery is relative with Cu rec=90% and Au rec=78% (rel Au rec=78/90=86.667% with number according to the Clients' (XAM) direction

Resource "other 0p2 and 0p3" NOT inside RV1400fpit above and below nominated mRL level by deposit as follows SH>=720mRL, WH>=915mRL, CH>=1100mRL, ZA>=920mRL, ZE>=945mRL, PE>=1100mRL and GE>=845mRL

Model: KH_ALL_GLOBAL_OKMOD_FINAL_V3_FORCLIENT_140624_inRV1400fpit



Table 9: Kharmagtai Project  Potential Open Pit Mineral Resource Estimate 2024 outside the revenue factor 1.4 pit at 0.2% CuEq by resource classification.

Deposit

Classification

Tonnes

(Mt)

Grades Contained Metal CuEq

(%) Cu

(%) Au

(g/t) CuEq

(Mlbs) CuEq

(kt) Cu

(kt) Au

(koz) SH Indicated

- 0.33 0.19 0.27 10 - - 10 WH - 0.29 0.20 0.17 10 10 - 10 CH - 0.27 0.19 0.14 - - - - ZA - - - - - - - - GE - 0.23 0.09 0.26 - - - - ZE - 0.29 0.10 0.37 - - - - PE Total Indicated - 0.30 0.19 0.22 20 10 - 20 SH Inferred

10 0.39 0.18 0.41 50 20 10 70 WH 20 0.27 0.18 0.16 90 40 30 80 CH - 0.26 0.23 0.06 10 - - - ZA - - - - - - - - GE - 0.25 0.12 0.24 10 - - 10 ZE - 0.33 0.08 0.47 30 10 - 60 PE Total Inferred 30 0.30 0.17 0.25 180 70 40 220

Notes:

CuEq (lbs and t) accounts for Au (g/t) value and CuEq (t) must not be totalled to Au ounces

Figures may not sum due to rounding

Significant figures do not imply an added level of precision

Resource constrained by 0.1%CuEqreporting solid inline with geological analysis by XAM

Resource NOT constrained by RV1400fpit (coded field equal to 1)

CuEq equation (CuEq=Cu+Au*0.60049*0.86667) where Au at USD$1400/oz and Cu at USD$3.4/lb was employed according to the Clients' (XAM) direction.

Au recovery is relative with Cu rec=90% and Au rec=78% (rel Au rec=78/90=86.667% with number according to the Clients' (XAM) direction

Resource "other 0p2 and 0p3" NOT inside RV1400fpit above and below nominated mRL level by deposit as follows SH>=720mRL, WH>=915mRL, CH>=1100mRL, ZA>=920mRL, ZE>=945mRL, PE>=1100mRL and GE>=845mRL

Model: KH_ALL_GLOBAL_OKMOD_FINAL_V3_FORCLIENT_140624_inRV1400fpit



Table 10: Kharmagtai Project  Potential Underground Mineral Resource Estimate 2024 outside the revenue factor 1.4 pit at 0.3% CuEq by resource classification.

Deposit

Classification

Tonnes

(Mt)

Grades Contained Metal CuEq

(%) Cu

(%) Au

(g/t) CuEq

(Mlbs) CuEq

(kt) Cu

(kt) Au

(koz) SH Indicated

10 0.46 0.30 0.29 140 60 40 130 WH 10 0.41 0.35 0.12 100 50 40 40 CH - 0.33 0.23 0.19 - - - - ZA 10 0.47 0.33 0.28 130 60 40 110 GE - - - - - - - - ZE - - - - - - - - PE Total Indicated 40 0.45 0.32 0.24 380 170 120 280 SH Inferred

30 0.42 0.32 0.19 240 110 80 160 WH 60 0.38 0.32 0.12 480 220 180 210 CH - 0.38 0.34 0.09 - - - - ZA 80 0.42 0.30 0.23 750 340 240 610 GE - - - - - - - - ZE - 0.40 0.06 0.67 - - - - PE Total Inferred 160 0.41 0.31 0.19 1,500 670 500 980

Notes:

CuEq (lbs and t) accounts for Au (g/t) value and CuEq (t) must not be totalled to Au ounces

Figures may not sum due to rounding

Significant figuers do not imply an added level of precision

Resource constrained by 0.1%CuEq reporting solid inline with geological analysis by XAM

Resource NOT constrained by RV1400fpit (coded field equal to 1)

CuEq equation (CuEq=Cu+Au*0.60049*0.86667) where Au at USD$1400/oz and Cu at USD$3.4/lb was employed according to the Clients' (XAM) direction.

Au recovery is relative with Cu rec=90% and Au rec=78% (rel Au rec=78/90=86.667% with number according to the Clients' (XAM) direction

Resource "other 0p2 and 0p3" NOT inside RV1400fpit above and below nominated mRL level by deposit as follows SH>=720mRL, WH>=915mRL, CH>=1100mRL, ZA>=920mRL, ZE>=945mRL, PE>=1100mRL and GE>=845mRL

Model: KH_ALL_GLOBAL_OKMOD_FINAL_V3_FORCLIENT_140624_inRV1400fpit



Table 11: Kharmagtai Project  Oxide Mineral Resource Estimate 2024 inside the revenue factor 1.4 pit at 0.2% CuEq by resource classification.

Deposit

Classification

Tonnes

(Mt)

Grades Contained Metal CuEq

(%) Cu

(%) Au

(g/t) CuEq

(Mlbs) CuEq

(kt) Cu

(kt) Au

(koz) SH Indicated

10 0.38 0.25 0.26 74 30 20 70 WH 30 0.32 0.24 0.16 180 80 60 130 CH 10 0.42 0.31 0.21 55 20 20 40 ZA - 0.33 0.12 0.40 6 - - 10 GE - 0.33 0.11 0.42 26 10 - 50 ZE - 0.32 0.20 0.24 20 10 - 20 PE - 0.26 0.13 0.24 - - - - Total Indicated 50 0.34 0.23 0.21 360 170 110 330 SH Inferred

- 0.25 0.14 0.20 - - - - WH - 0.29 0.22 0.14 10 - - 10 CH - 0.24 0.20 0.07 - - - - ZA - 0.29 0.13 0.30 - - - - GE - 0.26 0.10 0.31 10 - - 20 ZE - 0.21 0.05 0.31 - - - - PE - 0.23 0.11 0.24 - - - - Total Inferred - 0.27 0.16 0.20 30 10 10 30

Notes:

CuEq (lbs and t) accounts for Au (g/t) value and CuEq (t) must not be totalled to Au ounces

Figures may not sum due to rounding

Significant figures do not imply an added level of precision

Resource constrained by 0.1%CuEq reporting solid inline with geological analysis by XAM

Resource constrained by RV1400fpit (coded field equal to 1)

CuEq equation (CuEq=Cu+Au*0.60049*0.86667) where Au at USD$1400/oz and Cu at USD$3.4/lb was employed according to the Clients' (XAM) direction.

Au recovery is relative with Cu rec=90% and Au rec=78% (rel Au rec=78/90=86.667% with number according to the Clients' (XAM) direction

Resource "other 0p2 and 0p3" NOT inside RV1400fpit above and below nominated mRL level by deposit as follows SH>=720mRL, WH>=915mRL, CH>=1100mRL, ZA>=920mRL, ZE>=945mRL, PE>=1100mRL and GE>=845mRL

Model: KH_ALL_GLOBAL_OKMOD_FINAL_V3_FORCLIENT_140624_inRV1400fpit

ESTIMATE METHODOLOGY

The Kharmagtai resource models have been estimated by Ordinary Kriging (OK) using third party software and are post processed in SGCs preferred software. An internal process review was conducted by SGC and no third-party modelling was undertaken at this time.

Data searches were aligned consistent with the strike, dip and plunge (where appropriate) of the mineralisation consistent with the domain and geometry modelling as a result of the detailed geological investigation put forth by Xanadu (the Client).

According to the Clients interpretation, the mineralisation host exhibit geometries which are consistent with those geometries defined by the spatial analysis of grade (in this instance Copper, Gold, Molybdenum and Sulphur).

A nominal composite length of 4 metre down hole was used for inputs which was settled upon during consultation with the Client and the Clients preferred Geological Consultant team.

Where appropriate data was transformed and geometry modelling and variograms of the variables were calculated and modelled.

Several iterations of the modelling process were undertaken to assess the sensitivity of estimates to estimation parameters. Post processing, model validation and reporting were undertaken in SGCs preferred third party software in-line with the Clients end use.

Ordinary kriging of the variables was performed in the UTM_47N grid. Block dimensions were selected in line with data density and modelling methodology as well as taking into account potential mining methodologies. Search and data criteria were assessed and implemented, in-line with modelling strategy. Models were constructed and iteration undertaken to assess modelling sensitivities to data and search criteria.

The block estimates were validated against the informing data to ensure that they were consistent with the original informing data in a three-dimensional sense and within the search neighbourhood via data analysis.

The block estimates were exported to SGCs preferred third party software and where appropriate, a topographic surface was applied as were other surfaces and solids which may have acted upon the estimates. Each model area was then compiled into a global model where all fields underwent secondary validation and data/s were assigned (where deemed appropriate by SGC in consultation with the Clients geological team) as well as coding for primary domain and the calculation of Cu% and CuEq% were completed.

Final densities were assigned where necessary and model validation completed ahead of final report preparation.

Individual blocks in the resource models (within the Global Kharmagtai Resource Model) have been allocated a resource classification of Indicated and Inferred confidence category based on the consideration of the number and location of data used to estimate the grade of each block in-line with the modelling approach established during the week-long collaboration between XAM staff, SGC and a third-party representative on behalf of XAM. In addition, further consideration incorporated into the resource classification discussion included (but not limited to) the following aspects, quality control and assurances (both internal to XAM and the associated laboratories employed as well as third party laboratory analysis) relating to sampling, sample handling, sample preparation and analysis, database administration and validation. The resource classification also takes into account structural complexity and the associated geological models and constraining solids, as well as population distributions and geometry.





Figure 5: Illustration of resource classification within the 2024 PFS pit shells.

About Xanadu Mines



Xanadu is an ASX and TSX listed Exploration company operating in Mongolia. We give investors exposure to globally significant, large-scale copper-gold discoveries and low-cost inventory growth. Xanadu maintains a portfolio of exploration projects and remains one of the few junior explorers on the ASX or TSX who jointly control a globally significant copper-gold deposit in our flagship Kharmagtai project. Xanadu is the Operator of a 50-50 JV with Zijin Mining Group in Khuiten Metals Pte Ltd, which controls 76.5% of the Kharmagtai project.

For further information, please contact:



Colin Moorhead

Executive Chairman & Managing Director

E: colin.moorhead@xanadumines.com

P: +61 2 8280 7497

This Announcement was authorised for release by Xanadus Executive Chair & Managing Director.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained in this Announcement, including information as to the future financial or operating performance of Xanadu and its projects may also include statements which are forwardlooking statements that may include, amongst other things, statements regarding targets, estimates and assumptions in respect of mineral reserves and mineral resources and anticipated grades and recovery rates, production and prices, recovery costs and results, capital expenditures and are or may be based on assumptions and estimates related to future technical, economic, market, political, social and other conditions. These forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by Xanadu, are inherently subject to significant technical, business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from estimated or anticipated events or results reflected in such forwardlooking statements.

Xanadu disclaims any intent or obligation to update publicly or release any revisions to any forwardlooking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, circumstances or results or otherwise after the date of this Announcement or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, other than required by the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) and the Listing Rules of the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) and Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX). The words believe, expect, anticipate, indicate, contemplate, target, plan, intends, continue, budget, estimate, may, will, schedule and similar expressions identify forwardlooking statements.

All forwardlooking statements made in this Announcement are qualified by the foregoing cautionary statements. Investors are cautioned that forwardlooking statements are not guarantee of future performance and accordingly investors are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forwardlooking statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein.

For further information please visit the Xanadu Mines Website at www.xanadumines.com.

APPENDIX 1: COMPETENT PERSONS STATEMENT

Mr Robert Spiers is a full time Principal Geologist employed by Spiers Geological Consultants (SGC), 4 Martin Street, Mount Martha, Victoria, Australia. Mr Spiers is contracted on a consulting basis by Xanadu Mines.

Mr Spiers graduated with a Bachelor of Science (BSc) Honours and a double Major of Geology and Geophysics from Latrobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and has been a member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists for 26 years; working as a Geologist for in-excess of 30 years since graduating.

Mr Spiers has sufficient experience that is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity being undertaking to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2012 Edition of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves. Mr Spiers consents to the inclusion in the report to which this statement is to be attached of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.

The information in the report to which this statement is to be attached that relates to Mineral Resources is based on information compiled by Mr Robert Spiers, a Competent Person who is a Member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists or a Recognised Professional Organisation (RPO) included in a list posted on the ASX website from time to time.

Mr Spiers consents to the disclosure of this information on the page/s in the form and context in which it appears.

To the best Mr Spiers knowledge, neither SGC, himself and / or other related parties have any conflict of interest with by XAM in accordance with the transparency principle set out by the JORC code and supported by ASX rulings.

In relation to the above statement, Mr Spiers holds 750,000 ordinary shares in the ASX listed XAM entity purchased on market in accordance with the XAM trading policy (guidance notes 27). The aforementioned shareholding does not constitute a material holding in the company in question.

Mr Spiers has read the definition of competent person set out in the JORC code and guidelines for the reporting of Mineral Resource Estimates and certify that by reason of his education, affiliation with a professional association (MAIG) and past relevant work experience, that he fulfils the requirements of a Competent Person for the purposes of JORC 2012.

As of the date of this document, to the best of Mr Spiers knowledge, information and belief, the Public Release / Technical Report to which this statement is to be attached (in relation to the Reporting of the Kharmagtai Mineral Resource Estimation December 2023) contains all the scientific and technical information that is required to be disclosed in relation to the Mineral Resources to make the Public Release / Technical Report not misleading with respect to the sections for which Mr Spiers is responsible.

Dated the 21st day of August 2024.





__________________________

Robert Spiers, BSc Hons, MAIG

Our Customer

This report has been produced by or on behalf of Spiers Geological Consultants (SGC) for the sole use by Xanadu Mines (XAM or the Customer). The Customers use and disclosure of this report is subject to the terms and conditions under which SGC prepared the report. All items in the report must if used in a third-party report be taken in context and consent from SGC must be sought on each occasion.

Notice to Third Parties

SGC prepared this report for the Customer only. If you are not the Customer:

SGC have prepared this report having regard to the particular needs and interests of the Customer, and in accordance with the Customers instructions. It did not draft this report having regard to any other persons particular needs or interests. Your needs and interests may be distinctly different to the Customers needs and interests, and the report may not be sufficient, fit or appropriate for your purposes.

SGC does not make and expressly disclaims from making any representation or warranty to you  express or implied regarding this report or the conclusions or opinions set out in this report (including without limitation any representation or warranty regarding the standard of care used in preparing this report, or that any forward-looking statements, forecasts, opinions or projections contained in the report will be achieved, will prove to be correct or are based on reasonable assumptions).

SGC expressly disclaim any liability to you and any duty of care to you.

SGC does not authorise you to rely on this report. If you choose to use or rely on all or part of this report, then any loss or damage you may suffer in so doing is at your sole and exclusive risk.

Inputs, Subsequent Changes and No Duty to Update

SGC have created this report using data and information provided by or on behalf of the Customer [and Customers agents and contractors]. Unless specifically stated otherwise, SGC has not independently verified that data and information unless expressly noted. SGC accepts no liability for the accuracy or completeness of that data and information, even if that data and information has been incorporated into or relied upon in creating this report (or parts of it).

The conclusions and opinions contained in this report apply as at the date of the report. Events (including changes to any of the data and information that SGC used in preparing the report) may have occurred since that date which may impact on those conclusions and opinions and make them unreliable. SGC is under no duty to update the report upon the occurrence of any such event, though it reserves the right to do so.

Mining Unknown Factors

The ability of any person to achieve forward-looking production and economic targets is dependent on numerous factors that are beyond SGCs control and that SGC cannot anticipate. These factors include, but are not limited to, site-specific mining and geological conditions, management and personnel capabilities, availability of funding to properly operate and capitalize the operation, variations in cost elements and market conditions, developing and operating the mine in an efficient manner, unforeseen changes in legislation and new industry developments. Any of these factors may substantially alter the performance of any mining operation.

APPENDIX 2: ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS AND DISCLAIMERS

Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves Reporting Requirements

The 2012 Edition of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves (the JORC Code 2012) sets out minimum standards, recommendations and guidelines for Public Reporting in Australasia of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves. The Information contained in this Announcement has been presented in accordance with the JORC Code 2012.

The information in this Announcement relates to the exploration results previously reported in ASX Announcements which are available on the Xanadu website at:

https://www.xanadumines.com/site/investor-centre/asx-announcements

The Company is not aware of any new, material information or data that is not included in those market announcements.

Copper Equivalent Calculations

The copper equivalent (CuEq or eCu) calculation represents the total metal value for each metal, multiplied by the conversion factor, summed and expressed in equivalent copper percentage with a metallurgical recovery factor applied.

Copper equivalent grade values were calculated using the following formula:

CuEq or eCu = Cu + Au * 0.60049 * 0.86667,

Gold Equivalent (eAu) grade values were calculated using the following formula:

eAu = Au + Cu / 0.60049 * 0.86667.

Where:

Cu - copper grade (%)

Au - gold grade (g/t)

0.60049 - conversion factor (gold to copper)

0.86667 - relative recovery of gold to copper (86.67%)

The copper equivalent formula was based on the following parameters (prices are in USD):

Copper price - 3.4 $/lb

Gold price - 1400 $/oz

Copper recovery - 90%

Gold recovery - 78%

Relative recovery of gold to copper = 78% / 90% = 86.67%.

APPENDIX 3: KHARMAGTAI TABLE 1 (JORC 2012)

Set out below is Section 1 and Section 2 of Table 1 under the JORC Code, 2012 Edition for the Kharmagtai project. Data provided by Xanadu. This Table 1 updates the JORC Table 1 disclosure dated 8 December 2023.

JORC TABLE 1 - SECTION 1 - SAMPLING TECHNIQUES AND DATA

(Criteria in this section apply to all succeeding sections).

Criteria Commentary Sampling techniques Representative  core samples were split from PQ, HQ & NQ diameter diamond drill core on site using rock saws, on a routine 2m sample interval that also honours lithological/intrusive contacts.

The orientation of the cut line is controlled using the core orientation line ensuring uniformity of core splitting wherever the core has been successfully oriented.

Sample intervals are defined and subsequently checked by geologists, and sample tags are attached (stapled) to the plastic core trays for every sample interval.

Reverse Circulation ( RC ) chip samples are  splits from one meter ( 1m ) intervals using a 75%:25% riffle splitter to obtain a 3kg sample

) chip samples are  splits from one meter ( ) intervals using a 75%:25% riffle splitter to obtain a 3kg sample RC samples are uniform 2m samples formed from the combination of two  split 1m samples. Drilling techniques The Mineral Resource Estimation has been based upon diamond drilling of PQ, HQ and NQ diameters with both standard and triple tube core recovery configurations, RC drilling and surface trenching with channel sampling.

All drill core drilled by Xanadu has been oriented using the Reflex Ace tool. Drill sample recovery Diamond drill core recoveries were assessed using the standard industry (best) practice which involves removing the core from core trays; reassembling multiple core runs in a v-rail; measuring core lengths with a tape measure, assessing recovery against core block depth measurements and recording any measured core loss for each core run.

Diamond core recoveries average 97% through mineralisation.

Overall, core quality is good, with minimal core loss. Where there is localised faulting and or fracturing core recoveries decrease, however, this is a very small percentage of the mineralised intersections.

RC recoveries are measured using whole weight of each 1m intercept measured before splitting

Analysis of recovery results vs grade shows no significant trends that might indicate sampling bias introduced by variable recovery in fault/fracture zones. Logging All drill core is geologically logged by well-trained geologists using a modified Anaconda-style logging system methodology. The Anaconda method of logging and mapping is specifically designed for porphyry Cu-Au mineral systems and is entirely appropriate to support Mineral Resource Estimation, mining and metallurgical studies.

Logging of lithology, alteration and mineralogy is intrinsically qualitative in nature. However, the logging is subsequently supported by 4 Acid ICP-MS (48 element) geochemistry and SWIR spectral mineralogy (facilitating semi-quantitative/calculated mineralogical, lithological and alteration classification) which is integrated with the logging to improve cross section interpretation and 3D geological model development.

Drill core is also systematically logged for both geotechnical features and geological structures. Where drill core has been successfully oriented, the orientation of structures and geotechnical features are also routinely measured.

Both wet and dry core photos are taken after core has been logged and marked-up but before drill core has been cut. Sub-sampling techniques and sample preparation All drill core samples are  core splits from either PQ, HQ or NQ diameter cores. A routine 2m sample interval is used, but this is varied locally to honour lithological/intrusive contacts. The minimum allowed sample length is 30cm.

Core is appropriately split (onsite) using diamond core saws with the cut line routinely located relative to the core orientation line (where present) to provide consistency of sample split selection.

The diamond saws are regularly flushed with water to minimize potential contamination.

A field duplicate  core sample is collected every 30 th sample to ensure the representivity of the in-situ material collected. The performance of these field duplicates is routinely analysed as part of Xanadus sample QC process.

sample to ensure the representivity of the in-situ material collected. The performance of these field duplicates is routinely analysed as part of Xanadus sample QC process. Routine sample preparation and analyses of DDH samples were carried out by ALS Mongolia LLC ( ALS Mongolia ), who operates an independent sample preparation and analytical laboratory in Ulaanbaatar.

), who operates an independent sample preparation and analytical laboratory in Ulaanbaatar. All samples were prepared to meet standard quality control procedures as follows: Crushed to 75% passing 2mm, split to 1kg, pulverised to 85% passing 200 mesh (75 microns) and split to 150g sample pulp.

ALS Mongolia Geochemistry labs quality management system is certified to ISO 9001:2008.

The sample support (sub-sample mass and comminution) is appropriate for the grainsize and Cu-Au distribution of the porphyry Cu-Au mineralization and associated host rocks. Quality of assay data and laboratory tests All samples were routinely assayed by ALS Mongolia for gold

Au is determined using a 25g fire assay fusion, cupelled to obtain a bead, and digested with Aqua Regia, followed by an atomic absorption spectroscopy ( AAS ) finish, with a lower detection (LDL) of 0.01 ppm.

) finish, with a lower detection (LDL) of 0.01 ppm. All samples were also submitted to ALS Mongolia for the 48-element package ME-ICP61 using a four-acid digest (considered to be an effective total digest for the elements relevant to the Mineral Resource Estimate ( MRE )). Where copper is over-range (>1% Cu), it is analysed by a second analytical technique (Cu-OG62), which has a higher upper detection limit ( UDL ) of 5% copper.

)). Where copper is over-range (>1% Cu), it is analysed by a second analytical technique (Cu-OG62), which has a higher upper detection limit ( ) of 5% copper. Quality assurance has been managed by insertion of appropriate Standards (1:30 samples  suitable Ore Research Pty Ltd certified standards), Blanks (1:30 samples), Duplicates (1:30 samples   core duplicate) by XAM.

Assay results outside the optimal range for methods were re-analysed by appropriate methods.

Ore Research Pty Ltd certified copper and gold standards have been implemented as a part of QC procedures, as well as coarse and pulp blanks, and certified matrix matched copper-gold standards.

QC monitoring is an active and ongoing processes on batch-by-batch basis by which unacceptable results are re-assayed as soon as practicable.

Prior to 2014: Cu, Ag, Pb, Zn, As and Mo were routinely determined using a three-acid-digestion of a 0.3g sub-sample followed by an AAS finish (AAS21R) at SGS Mongolia. Samples were digested with nitric, hydrochloric and perchloric acids to dryness before leaching with hydrochloric acid to dissolve soluble salts and made to 15ml volume with distilled water. The LDL for copper using this technique was 2ppm. Where copper was over-range (>1% Cu), it was analysed by a second analytical technique (AAS22S), which has a higher upper detection limit (UDL) of 5% copper. Gold analysis method was essentially unchanged. Verification of sampling and assaying All assay data QA/QC is checked prior to loading into XAMs Geobank data base.

The data is managed by XAM geologists.

The data base and geological interpretation is managed by XAM.

Check assays are submitted to an umpire lab (SGS Mongolia) for duplicate analysis.

No twinned drill holes exist.

There have been no adjustments to any of the assay data. Location of data points Diamond drill holes have been surveyed with a differential global positioning system ( DGPS ) to within 10cm accuracy.

) to within 10cm accuracy. The grid system used for the project is UTM WGS-84 Zone 48N

Historically, Eastman Kodak and Flexit electronic multi-shot downhole survey tools have been used at Kharmagtai to collect down hole azimuth and inclination information for the majority of the diamond drill holes. Single shots were typically taken every 30m to 50m during the drilling process, and a multi-shot survey with readings every 3-5m are conducted at the completion of the drill hole. As these tools rely on the earths magnetic field to measure azimuth, there is some localised interference/inaccuracy introduced by the presence of magnetite in some parts of the Kharmagtai mineral system. The extent of this interference cannot be quantified on a reading-by-reading basis.

More recently (since September 2017), a north-seeking gyro has been employed by the drilling crews on site (rented and operated by the drilling contractor), providing accurate downhole orientation measurements unaffected by magnetic effects. Xanadu have a permanent calibration station setup for the gyro tool, which is routinely calibrated every 2 weeks (calibration records are maintained and were sighted)

The project Digital Terrain Model (DTM) is based on 1m contours from satellite imagery with an accuracy of 0.1 m. Data spacing and distribution Holes spacings range from <50m spacings within the core of mineralization to +500m spacings for exploration drilling. Hole spacings can be determined using the sections and drill plans provided.

Holes range from vertical to an inclination of -60 degrees depending on the attitude of the target and the drilling method.

The data spacing and distribution is sufficient to establish anomalism and targeting for porphyry Cu-Au, tourmaline breccia and epithermal target types.

Holes have been drilled to a maximum of 1,400m vertical depth.

The data spacing and distribution is sufficient to establish geological and grade continuity, and to support the Mineral Resource classification. Orientation of data in relation to geological structure Drilling is conducted in a predominantly regular grid to allow unbiased interpretation and targeting.

Scissor drilling, as well as some vertical and oblique drilling, has been used in key mineralised zones to achieve unbiased sampling of interpreted structures and mineralised zones, and in particular to assist in constraining the geometry of the mineralised hydrothermal tourmaline-sulphide breccia domains. Sample security Samples are delivered from the drill rig to the core shed twice daily and are never left unattended at the rig.

Samples are dispatched from site in locked boxes transported on XAM company vehicles to ALS lab in Ulaanbaatar.

Sample shipment receipt is signed off at the Laboratory with additional email confirmation of receipt.

Samples are then stored at the lab and returned to a locked storage site. Audits or reviews Internal audits of sampling techniques and data management are undertaken on a regular basis, to ensure industry best practice is employed at all times.

External reviews and audits have been conducted by the following groups:

2012: AMC Consultants Pty Ltd. was engaged to conduct an Independent Technical Report which reviewed drilling and sampling procedures. It was concluded that sampling and data record was to an appropriate standard.

2013: Mining Associates Ltd. was engaged to conduct an Independent Technical Report to review drilling, sampling techniques and QAQC. Methods were found to conform to international best practice.

2018: CSA Global reviewed the entire drilling, logging, sampling, sample shipping and laboratory processes during the competent persons site visit for the 2018 MRE and found the systems and adherence to protocols to be to an appropriate standard.



JORC TABLE 1 - SECTION 2 - REPORTING OF EXPLORATION RESULTS

(Criteria in this section apply to all succeeding sections).

Criteria Commentary Mineral

tenement

and land

tenure

status The Project comprises 2 Mining Licences (MV-17129A Oyut Ulaan and (MV-17387A Kharmagtai): Xanadu now owns 100% of Vantage LLC, the 100% owner of the Oyut Ulaan mining licence. The Kharmagtai mining license MV-17387A is 100% owned by Oyut Ulaan LLC. Xanadu has an 85% interest in Mongol Metals LLC, which has 90% interest in Oyut Ulaan LLC. The remaining 10% in Oyut Ulaan LLC is owned by Quincunx (BVI) Ltd (Quincunx).

The Mongolian Minerals Law (2006) and Mongolian Land Law (2002) govern exploration, mining and land use rights for the project. Exploration

done by

other

parties Previous exploration at Kharmagtai was conducted by Quincunx Ltd, Ivanhoe Mines Ltd and Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd including extensive drilling, surface geochemistry, geophysics, mapping.

Previous exploration at Red Mountain (Oyut Ulaan) was conducted by Ivanhoe Mines. Geology



The mineralisation is characterised as porphyry copper-gold type.

Porphyry copper-gold deposits are formed from magmatic hydrothermal fluids typically associated with felsic intrusive stocks that have deposited metals as sulphides both within the intrusive and the intruded host rocks. Quartz stockwork veining is typically associated with sulphides occurring both within the quartz veinlets and disseminated thought out the wall rock. Porphyry deposits are typically large tonnage deposits ranging from low to high grade and are generally mined by large scale open pit or underground bulk mining methods. The deposits at Kharmagtai are atypical in that they are associated with intermediate intrusions of diorite to quartz diorite composition; however, the deposits are in terms of contained gold significant, and similar gold-rich porphyry deposits. Drill hole

Information Diamond drill holes are the principal source of geological and grade data for the Project.

See figures in this ASX/TSX Announcement. Data

Aggregation methods A nominal cut-off of 0.1% eCu is used in copper dominant systems for identification of potentially significant intercepts for reporting purposes. Higher grade cut-offs are 0.3%, 0.6% and 1% eCu.

A nominal cut-off of 0.1g/t eAu is used in gold dominant systems like Golden Eagle for identification of potentially significant intercepts for reporting purposes. Higher grade cut-offs are 0.3g/t, 0.6g/t and 1g/t eAu.

Maximum contiguous dilution within each intercept is 9m for 0.1%, 0.3%, 0.6% and 1% eCu.

Most of the reported intercepts are shown in sufficient detail, including maxima and subintervals, to allow the reader to make an assessment of the balance of high and low grades in the intercept.

Informing samples have been composited to two metre lengths honouring the geological domains and adjusted where necessary to ensure that no residual sample lengths have been excluded (best fit). The copper equivalent (CuEq or eCu) calculation represents the total metal value for each metal, multiplied by the conversion factor, summed and expressed in equivalent copper percentage with a metallurgical recovery factor applied.



Copper equivalent (CuEq or eCu) grade values were calculated using the following formula:



eCu or CuEq = Cu + Au * 0.60049 * 0.86667,



Gold Equivalent (eAu) grade values were calculated using the following formula:



eAu = Au + Cu / 0.60049 * 0.86667.



Where:



Cu - copper grade (%)



Au - gold grade (g/t)



0.60049 - conversion factor (gold to copper)



0.86667 - relative recovery of gold to copper (86.67%)



The copper equivalent formula was based on the following parameters (prices are in USD): Copper price - 3.4 $/lb

Gold price - 1400 $/oz

Copper recovery - 90%

Gold recovery - 78%

Relative recovery of gold to copper = 78% / 90% = 86.67%. Relationship between mineralisation

on widths

and intercept

lengths Mineralised structures are variable in orientation, and therefore drill orientations have been adjusted from place to place in order to allow intersection angles as close as possible to true widths.

Exploration results have been reported as an interval with 'from' and 'to' stated in tables of significant economic intercepts. Tables clearly indicate that true widths will generally be narrower than those reported. Diagrams See figures in the body of this ASX/TSX Announcement. Balanced

reporting Resources have been reported at a range of cut-off grades, above a minimum suitable for open pit mining, and above a minimum suitable for underground mining. Other

substantive

exploration

data Extensive work in this area has been done and is reported separately. Further

Work The mineralisation is open at depth and along strike.

Current estimates are restricted to those expected to be reasonable for open pit mining. Limited drilling below this depth (-300m RLl) shows widths and grades potentially suitable for underground extraction.

Exploration on going.



JORC TABLE 1 - SECTION 3 - ESTIMATION AND REPORTING OF MINERAL RESOURCES

Criteria Commentary Database integrity The database is managed using Micromine Geobank software. Data is logged directly into an Excel spread sheet logging system with drop down field lists. Validation checks are written into the importing program ensures all data is of high quality. Digital assay data is obtained from the Laboratory, QA/QC checked and imported. Geobank exported to CSV TEXT and imported directly to the Micromine software used for the MRE.

The combined database was provided for the MRE.

Validation of the data import include checks for the following: o Duplicate drill hole or trench names, One or more drill hole collar or trench coordinates missing in the collar file, FROM or TO missing or absent in the assay file, FROM > TO in the assay file, Sample intervals overlap in the assay file, First sample is not equal to 0 m in the assay file, First depth is not equal to 0 m in the survey file, Several downhole survey records exist for the same depth, Azimuth is not between 0 and 360 in the survey file, Dip is not between 0 and 90 in the survey file, Azimuth or dip is missing in survey file, Total depth of the holes is less than the depth of the last sample, Total length of trenches is less than the total length of all samples. Negative sample grades.

No logical errors were identified in the analytical data. Site visits Site visits was conducted by SGC during the period 5th of September 2022 through to the 16th of September 2022. Geological interpretation Geological data has been collected in a consistent manner that has allowed the development of geological models to support the Mineral Resource estimate. Copper and gold mineralisation is controlled by porphyry phases, oxidation zone, the level of veining, breccia, country rocks and barren dykes.

Solid geological models were generated in Leapfrog for each of the deposits using the following methodology Composite copper and gold grades to 10m intervals Define cut-offs using changes in slope of histograms and cumulative log plots Create raw grade shells for these using implicit numeric modelling (e.g. 800, 1500 and 4000ppm Cu) Define the main dividing features/structures between populations (clusters of grade) Build these structures in detail using grade, lithology, and structural information For each compartment/fault block Group the main lithologies into like units Build geological shapes from these units Re-build the grade shells within each compartment using information from the geological shapes to help constrain the grade shapes Once each compartment was built, they were assessed in context with each other and refined so that the models made geological sense.

Geological interpretation and wireframing were based on sampling results of drill holes and trenches, which were logged at 2 m intervals (average, tied to lithological boundaries during logging).

SGC do not believe that the effect of alternative interpretations

SGC do not believe that the effect of alternative interpretations will have a material impact on the overall Mineral Resource Estimates.

The geological interpretation is considered robust & alternative interpretations are not considered to have a material effect on the Mineral Resource. No alternate interpretations are proposed as geological confidence in the model is moderate to high. As additional geological data is collected from additional drilling, the geological interpretation will be continually updated.

The factors affecting continuity both of grade and geology are most likely to be associated with structural controls and local complexity the knowledge of which is considered at a moderate level with the current spacing of information. The broad approach to the mineralisation modelling is an attempt to model an unbiased interpretation. Dimensions Stockwork Hill: The strike length of the mineralised zone is about 1,350 m. Width is up to 800 m, traced down dip to 1,250 m. Mineralisation outcrops at the surface.

White Hill: The strike length of the mineralised zone is about 1,800 m. Width is up to 830 m, traced down dip to 1,210 m. Mineralisation outcrops at the surface.

Copper Hill: The strike length of the mineralised zone is about 630 m. Width is up to 150 m with apparent plunging to SW at about 40 degrees. traced down dip to 420 m dipping 70 degrees to SE. Mineralisation is outcropped at the surface.

Zaraa: The strike length of the mineralised zone is about 1,300m. Width is up to 600m with apparent plunging to SW at about 60 degrees. traced down dip to 1,280m dipping. Mineralisation outcrops at the basement surface, beneath 35m of Palaeozoic cover.

Golden Eagle: The strike length of the mineralised zone is about 400m. Width is up to 400m. traced down dip to 450 m. Mineralisation outcrops at the basement surface, beneath 35m of Palaeozoic cover.

Zephyr: The strike length of the mineralised zone is about 1,030 m. Width is up to 310 m. Traced down dip to 350m. SE. Mineralisation outcrops at the basement surface, beneath 30m of Palaeozoic cover. Estimation and modelling techniques Ordinary Kriging technique was employed using third party software based on low coefficient of variation between samples in the mineralised domain.

Grade interpolation and search ellipses were based on variography and geometry modelling outcomes.

Modelling was conducted in three passes with block sizes being 20.0 m E by 20.0 m N by 10.0 m RL; discretisation was 5x5x2 for all project areas

In the first pass data and octant criteria used were, Minimum Data=12, maximum Data=32, Minimum Octants=4. Search radii was 55 mE by 75 mN by 10 mRL.

An expansion factor of 1 was applied so in the second pass saw the same data and octants criteria with an expanded search to 110mE by 150mN by 20mRL.

The third pass saw Minimum Data=6, maximum Data=32, Minimum Octants=2. Search radii was 110mE by 150mN by 20mRL.

Top cutting was applied to domains and elements which displayed a very strongly skewed nature as summarise in the report reference and in accordance with the prevailing coefficients of variation.

Secondary attributes including the modelling of density which was also modelled on three passes (as above) which included the same data and octant criteria as above.

No dilution was expressly added to the SGC model however domain was largely driven by geological and grade domains created by the Client (XM) and provided to SGC which tends to incorporated the full population range in the geological domains and a constrained population range in the grade domains in=line with the grade domain constraints.

No assumptions were made by SGC regarding the recovery of by-products

Copper, gold, molybdenum and sulphur were modelled as elements.

Blocks in the model were defined based on the likely mining bench heights and the domaining took into account the SMU proposed at the outset of 4 m E by 4 m N by 2 m RL.

The interpretation or domain model was largely driven by the lithology / geology, oxidation state, and structural intervention and mineralised trends observed over the various project areas. Grade was used as a secondary domain driver for the definition of boundarieswhere deemed appropriate by the XAM resource team.

The model was validated in a third party software using section and plan comparisons back to original informing data as well as with the use of swath plots to assess local grade variability between the model and informing data. Moisture Tonnages are estimated on a dry basis. Cut-off parameters Mineralised domain interpreted on grade  0.1% CuEqRec inside the local interpretation solids by area with reference to local variability.

Assumed to be reasonable cut-off for open pit and underground propositions given probability plot curve inflexions and grade population distributions.

Resources estimated at a range of cut-offs and reported at a 0.2% CuEqRec cut-off grade for open pit and 0.3% CuEqRec for underground public reporting. Mining factors or assumptions This item is beyond the scope of work for SGC as such this item details were not addressed by SGC but will remain the responsibility of the Client and Clients representatives.

Consideration was given by SGC to SMU factors, blocks in the model were defined based on the likely mining bench heights and the domaining took into account the SMU proposed at the outset of 4 m E by 4 m N by 2 m RL. Metallurgical factors or assumptions No metallurgical factors or assumptions used to restrict or modify the resource estimation were employed by SGC proceeding or during the construction of the model. Metallurgical recovery was not modelled as an attribute of the model. To date preliminary historical metallurgical recovery analysis has indicated recovery of Cu% to be 90% and Aug/t to be 78% overall.

To the best of SGCs knowledge no further work has been conducted in regard to metallurgical recovery which would indicated anything to the contrary of the recovery numbers put forth by the Client. Environmental factors or assumptions No environmental factors or assumptions were used to restrict or modify the resource estimation. Bulk density Bulk density was estimated into block models and post processed on the basis of data analysis by primary domain and oxidation to assign missing values with average density values.

In all 54,364 bulk density measurements were taken from non-specified drilling samples by XAM site representatives during the period 2014 through to 2023 drilling program. The remainder of the SG database is historical in nature. Classification The resource classification was based on drilling density (and the availability of data to present to the search neighbourhood, geological modelling, oxidation and, density and recovery data as well as data quality considerations

The classification criteria is deemed appropriate by SGC. Audits or reviews Other than those noted in this report, to the best of SGC knowledge, no additional public and formalised audits or reviews have been undertaken to date concerning the Mineral Resource Estimates for Kharmagtai. Discussion of relative accuracy/confidence Outlines of resource classifications were reviewed against drill-hole data density and assays results and each block in the model has a resource classification which indicates the relative (block to block) confidence level.

Mineral resource estimate technique was deemed appropriate by an internal peer review by SGC as were the estimates themselves.

Total mineral resource estimate based on global estimate.

No production data was available at the time the estimates were undertaken.

The block model was produced to represent global estimates, however the model honours the local grade distributions appropriately given the drilling data provided and the domaining strategy employed.

The relative accuracy of the Mineral Resource estimate is reflected in the reporting of the Mineral Resource as per the guidelines of the 2012 JORC Code.



JORC TABLE 1 - SECTION 4 - ESTIMATION AND REPORTING OF ORE RESERVES

Ore Reserves are not reported so Section 4 is not applicable to this Announcement.

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/74a9929d-aa56-41a7-9485-78ce2c9d267b

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/2eea4a23-bf41-4a3f-b1cb-09733767a0cb



https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/195841f8-35a7-4658-81a7-0398ff0646b5



https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/354406c4-d9d3-499f-848b-2a74b682043c



https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/a4d88903-f184-4a84-9a29-3097187927ad



https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/fafcc17d-63cf-434e-a2c2-60da00e5142c



1 ASX/TSX Announcement 8 December 2023  Kharmagtai Mineral Resource grows by 13% CuEq; including >25% increase in higher-grade core

2 ASX/TSX Announcement 8 December 2023  Kharmagtai Mineral Resource grows by 13% CuEq; including >25% increase in higher-grade core
NEW YORK, Aug. 21, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --

WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, announces an investigation of potential securities claims on behalf of shareholders of Customers Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE: CUBI) resulting from allegations that Customers Bancorp may have issued materially misleading business information to the investing public.

SO WHAT: If you purchased Customers Bancorp securities you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement. The Rosen Law Firm is preparing a class action seeking recovery of investor losses.

WHAT TO DO NEXT: To join the prospective class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=28067 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email case@rosenlegal.com for information on the class action.

WHAT IS THIS ABOUT: On August 8, 2024, during market hours, the Federal Reserve Board of Governors issued an announcement entitled Federal Reserve Board issues enforcement action with Customers Bancorp, Inc. and Customers Bank. Attached to the announcement was a written agreement between the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, Customers Bancorp, Inc., and Customers Bank. The agreement stated the most recent examinations and inspection of [Customers Bancorp and Customers Bank] conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia [. . .] identified significant deficiencies related to the Banks risk management practices and compliance with the applicable laws, rules, and regulations relating to anti-money laundering (AML), including the Bank Secrecy Act [. . .], including the rules and regulations issued thereunder by the U.S. Department of the Treasury [. . .], and the AML requirements of Regulation H of the Board of Governors [of the Federal Reserve System] [. . .]; and the regulations issued by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the United States Department of the Treasury[.]

On this news, the price of Customers Bancorp common stock fell by 13.3% to close at $47.01 on August 8, 2024.

WHY ROSEN LAW: We encourage investors to select qualified counsel with a track record of success in leadership roles. Often, firms issuing notices do not have comparable experience, resources, or any meaningful peer recognition. Many of these firms do not actually litigate securities class actions. Be wise in selecting counsel. The Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm has achieved the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company. Rosen Law Firm was Ranked No. 1 by ISS Securities Class Action Services for number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 4 each year since 2013 and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. In 2019 alone the firm secured over $438 million for investors. In 2020, founding partner Laurence Rosen was named by law360 as a Titan of Plaintiffs Bar. Many of the firms attorneys have been recognized by Lawdragon and Super Lawyers.

Follow us for updates on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm/.

Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Contact Information:

Laurence Rosen, Esq.

Phillip Kim, Esq.

The Rosen Law Firm, P.A.

275 Madison Avenue, 40th Floor

New York, NY 10016

Tel: (212) 686-1060

Toll Free: (866) 767-3653

Fax: (212) 202-3827

case@rosenlegal.com

www.rosenlegal.com
NEW ORLEANS, Aug. 21, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ClaimsFiler, a FREE shareholder information service, reminds investors that they have until August 30, 2024 to file lead plaintiff applications in a securities class action lawsuit against Seritage Growth Properties (Seritage or the Company) (NYSE: SRG), if they purchased the Companys securities between July 7, 2022 and May 10, 2024, inclusive (the Class Period). This action is pending in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.



Get Help

Seritage investors should visit us at https://claimsfiler.com/cases/nyse-srg/ or call toll-free (844) 367-9658. Lawyers at Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC are available to discuss your legal options.

About the Lawsuit

Seritage and certain of its executives are charged with failing to disclose material information during the Class Period, violating federal securities laws.

On August 14, 2023, the Company disclosed a material weakness in its internal control over financial reporting due to a deficiency in the design of our control over the identification of impairment indicators for investments in real estate and documentation of evidence of review related to the failure to identify potential indicators of impairment related to development projects in a timely manner. On this news, the price of Seritages shares fell $0.86, or 9.67%, to close at $8.03 per share on August 15, 2023, on unusually heavy trading volume.

Then, on May 10, 2024, the Company released its 1Q2024 financial results, disclosing that it was adjusting [its] pricing projections for some of [its] assets resulting in the gross value of the Companys portfolio of assets being reduced by at least $325 million. On this news, the price of Seritages shares fell $2.54, or 27.3%, to close at $6.78 per share on May 13, 2024, on unusually heavy trading volume.

The case is He v. Seritage Growth Properties, et al., 24-cv-05007.

About ClaimsFiler

ClaimsFiler has a single mission: to serve as the information source to help retail investors recover their share of billions of dollars from securities class action settlements. At ClaimsFiler.com, investors can: (1) register for free to gain access to information and settlement websites for various securities class action cases so they can timely submit their own claims; (2) upload their portfolio transactional data to be notified about relevant securities cases in which they may have a financial interest; and (3) submit inquiries to the Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC law firm for free case evaluations.

To learn more about ClaimsFiler, visit www.claimsfiler.com.
SINGAPORE and CHICAGO, Aug. 21, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Christies International Real Estate, a global leader in luxury real estate, has officially launched in Singapore, marking a significant milestone in its Southeast Asia expansion strategy.

Operating from a newly refurbished historic shophouse on China Street in Singapores Central Business District (CBD), Christies International Real Estate Singapore will specialize in residential brokerage services with a focus on Singapores well-established luxury real estate market. It will also assist Singapore-based capital, both individual and institutional, with investing in real estate opportunities around the world through the brands extensive global network. The firm is led by Singapore-based Harmeet Bedi and Dipika Bedi, and Himmat and Rohini Singh, longtime owners of Christies International Real Estates affiliate in India.

The team brings a wealth of experience to this new venture. Himmat and Rohini Singh each have over 25 years of experience in luxury real estate, while Harmeet Bedi has more than 30 years of banking and real estate investment management expertise, including a decade in C-suite roles, most recently as CEO of Singapore-based Prime US REIT Management Pte. Ltd. Dipika Bedi complements the team with more than 20 years of experience in advertising, marketing, art sales and event management.

The business partners will reintroduce Christies International Real Estate under new ownership and management to the Singapore market, where luxury real estate has experienced over a decade of continuous growth. Singapores high standard of living, stable political environment, robust economy, and favorable tax policies continue to attract a steady stream of buyers and investors, reinforcing the strong long-term growth fundamentals of the luxury real estate market. For instance, single-family homes, especially the highly coveted Good Class Bungalows (GCBs) which typically feature land sizes exceeding 15,000 square feet, are valued between S$35 million and S$65 million ($26.8 million and $49.7 million USD), which is reflective of Singapores reputation as one of the most prestigious real estate markets in the world.

Notable developments further solidify Singapores position as a prime destination for luxury real estate. The exclusive 32 Gilstead in District 11, which has seen units sell for S$14 million each ($10.7 million USD), and the recent en bloc sale of Kew Lodge on Kheam Hock Road for S$66.8 million ($51.1 million USD), further emphasize the escalating value of prime land in this highly desirable district.

Additionally, the redevelopment of 19 Nassim by Keppel Land in the prestigious Nassim neighborhood underscores the sustained demand for luxury properties in Singapore's most sought-after areas. Upcoming launches in Marina Bay and River Valley highlight the ongoing vibrancy and allure of Singapores high-end real estate market, reinforcing its status as a premier destination for luxury investments.

Singapore is a tight-knit, highly capitalized, and brand-conscious luxury real estate market, with buyers and sellers who expect the highest level of service  exactly what Christies International Real Estate provides, said Harmeet Bedi, Managing Director, Christies International Real Estate Singapore. We are confident that discerning clientele from Singapore and the region will appreciate the brands tailored service and international network.

The current dynamism and potential in Singapores luxury residential real estate market, combined with the increasing need for global investment opportunities from both individual and institutional capital based in Singapore, makes this the perfect time to reintroduce the Christies International Real Estate brand here, adds Himmat Singh, joint managing director, Christies International Real Estate Singapore. Rohini and I are excited to expand our long-standing partnership with Christies International Real Estate. With the brands world-class marketing, unmatched international network, and commitment to premier service, were bringing the most recognized and trusted name in luxury real estate to one of the most sophisticated real estate markets in the world

Christies International Real Estate Singapore will offer national and international exposure for listings through the Christies International Real Estate network, which has brokerages in nearly 50 countries and territories. Clients will also gain access to exclusive marketing partnerships and a relationship with the iconic Christies auction house for the sale of fine art and luxury goods, including wine and watches. Christies International Real Estate maintains a close relationship with Christies auction house, enabling clients on both sides to leverage the unique synergies between the worlds of high-end real estate, art, and luxury items.

As we expand our presence in Southeast Asia, we see great potential for the Christies International Real Estate brand in Singapore, especially with Harmeet and Himmat at the helm, said Helena Moyas de Forton, managing director, head of EMEA and APAC at Christies International Real Estate. Their extensive industry experience, unrivaled knowledge of Singapores real estate market, and commitment to bespoke, first-class service will make Christies International Real Estate Singapore the firm of choice for Singapores luxury real estate clientele.

Christies International Real Estate has affiliates throughout Asia, including in Dubai, India, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Japan.

###

About Christies International Real Estate

Christies International Real Estate has successfully marketed high-value real estate around the world for more than 30 years. Through its invitation-only Affiliate network spanning nearly 50 countries and territories, Christies International Real Estate offers unparalleled services to a global clientele at the luxury end of the residential property market. For more information, please visit christiesrealestate.com.

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MONTREAL, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CN (TSX: CNR) (NYSE: CNI) has formally locked out employees represented by the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) as of Aug. 22 at 00:01 ET, after the union did not respond to another offer by CN in a final attempt to avoid a labour disruption.



This offer improved wages and would have seen employees work less days in a month by aligning hours of service in the collective agreement with federally mandated rest provisions. The offer also proposed a pilot project for hourly rates and scheduled shifts on a portion of the network as CN continues to believe this is a better and more predictable framework for our employees.

Without an agreement or binding arbitration, CN had no choice but to finalize a safe and orderly shutdown and proceed with a lockout.

Over the last nine months, CN has negotiated in good faith. The Company consistently proposed serious offers, with better pay, improved rest, and more predictable schedules. The Teamsters have not shown any urgency or desire to reach a deal that is good for employees, the company and the economy.

We urge the Teamsters to engage in these negotiations with the urgency and importance that this situation requires.

Current Rest and Wages

Rest:

By combining Duty and Rest Period Rules (DRPR), paid sick days, personal leave days, and existing rest and vacation provisions in their collective agreements, conductors and locomotive engineers currently work approximately 160 days a year.



Wages:

In 2023, the average conductor earned approximately $121,000 , not including pension and medical benefits.

, not including pension and medical benefits. In 2023, the average locomotive engineer earned approximately $150,000, not including pension and medical benefits.

Background on 2024 Negotiations and Offers

In January, CN offered the TCRC a modernized agreement that improved safety, wages, and work/life balance while protecting acquired rights. This offer was refused.

The offer was then improved in April with a focus on better wages (75$/hour for Locomotive Engineers and 65$/hour for Conductors), job security, and guaranteed earnings for employees. The TCRC refused the improved offer.

In May, CN then presented a simplified offer within the framework of the existing collective agreement with improved wages and predictable days off, which the TCRC also refused.

In the absence of a path forward, CN offered to voluntarily submit to binding arbitration in June. Binding arbitration is a process where both parties empower a mutually agreed upon independent arbitrator to determine the terms of a settlement. It is an impartial approach that would achieve a resolution while avoiding a costly disruption to supply chains, Canadian consumers, and the Canadian economy. The TCRC refused this offer.

All of the information regarding the offers, including details on the proposed wages, rest, and labour availability, is available publicly here.

CN Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements by CN included in this news release constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and under Canadian securities laws. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions. CN cautions that its assumptions may not materialize and that current economic conditions render such assumptions, although reasonable at the time they were made, subject to greater uncertainty. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of terminology such as believes, expects, anticipates, assumes, outlook, plans, targets, or other similar words. Forward-looking statements reflect information as of the date on which they are made. CN assumes no obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements to reflect future events, changes in circumstances, or changes in beliefs, unless required by applicable securities laws. In the event CN does update any forward-looking statement, no inference should be made that CN will make additional updates with respect to that statement, related matters, or any other forward-looking statement.

About CN

CN powers the economy by safely transporting more than 300 million tons of natural resources, manufactured products, and finished goods throughout North America every year for its customers. With its nearly 20,000-mile rail network and related transportation services, CN connects Canadas Eastern and Western coasts with the U.S. Midwest and the Gulf of Mexico, contributing to sustainable trade and the prosperity of the communities in which it operates since 1919.
Dublin, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Australia Internet of Things Market, By Region, Competition, Forecast and Opportunities, 2019-2029F" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



Australia Internet of Things Market was valued at USD 12.63 Billion in 2023 and is expected to reach USD 22.98 Billion by 2029 with a CAGR of 10.27% during the forecast period.



The IoT market is driven by advancements in sensors, cloud computing, and data analytics, allowing for more sophisticated and scalable solutions. Key sectors benefiting from IoT include healthcare, where it supports remote patient monitoring and personalized care; manufacturing, with smart factories and predictive maintenance; and smart cities, which improve infrastructure and public services.

The market is growing rapidly due to increased adoption of connected devices, improved connectivity, and the proliferation of big data analytics. As IoT technology continues to evolve, it is expected to play a significant role in transforming industries and enhancing everyday life.



Key Market Trends

Growth of Smart Cities



One of the prominent market trends in the Australia Internet of Things sector is the rapid development of smart cities. The concept of smart cities involves using IoT technology to enhance urban living through improved infrastructure, efficiency, and sustainability. This trend is driven by the need to address urbanization challenges, such as traffic congestion, energy management, and public safety.



Smart Infrastructure is a key aspect of this trend. Australian cities are increasingly adopting IoT solutions to monitor and manage urban infrastructure. For example, smart traffic management systems use IoT sensors to collect real-time data on traffic flow and adjust traffic signals accordingly. This helps reduce congestion and improve transportation efficiency. Similarly, smart lighting systems equipped with IoT sensors can optimize street lighting based on real-time conditions, leading to energy savings and enhanced public safety.



Energy Efficiency is another major focus of smart city initiatives. IoT technology is used to develop smart grids and energy management systems that monitor and optimize energy usage. Smart meters and sensors track energy consumption in real-time, allowing for better management of resources and integration of renewable energy sources. This trend contributes to more sustainable urban environments by reducing energy waste and promoting greener practices.



Public Safety is significantly enhanced through smart city solutions. IoT-enabled surveillance systems and emergency alert platforms provide real-time monitoring of public spaces and immediate communication during crises. For instance, smart surveillance cameras equipped with IoT sensors can detect and report suspicious activities, improving the effectiveness of law enforcement and emergency response.



Citizen Engagement is also being transformed by smart city technologies. IoT applications enable residents to interact with city services and provide feedback through digital platforms. This fosters greater community involvement and helps cities better understand and respond to the needs of their inhabitants.



Overall, the growth of smart cities represents a major trend in the Australia IoT market, driven by the desire to create more efficient, sustainable, and livable urban environments. As cities continue to embrace IoT solutions, the trend is expected to expand, influencing various aspects of urban management and development.



Advancements in Industrial IoT (IIoT)



Another significant trend in the Australia IoT market is the advancement of Industrial IoT (IIoT). IIoT refers to the application of IoT technology in industrial settings, where it plays a crucial role in optimizing operations, enhancing productivity, and ensuring safety. This trend is driven by the increasing need for automation, efficiency, and data-driven decision-making in industries such as manufacturing, mining, and logistics.



Predictive Maintenance is a major focus within IIoT. By deploying IoT sensors on industrial equipment, businesses can monitor machinery in real-time and predict potential failures before they occur. This proactive approach reduces downtime, extends equipment lifespan, and minimizes maintenance costs. For instance, IIoT systems can analyze data from sensors to identify wear and tear or detect anomalies, allowing for timely maintenance actions.



Automation and Robotics are being significantly enhanced through IIoT. Connected devices and advanced analytics enable more precise control and automation of industrial processes. Robotics integrated with IoT technology can perform complex tasks with high accuracy and efficiency. This trend is particularly evident in manufacturing environments, where IIoT-driven automation systems streamline production lines, improve quality control, and increase throughput.



Data Analytics is another critical aspect of IIoT advancements. The massive amounts of data generated by IoT sensors require sophisticated analytics tools to derive actionable insights. IIoT solutions leverage big data analytics and machine learning algorithms to optimize operations, forecast demand, and enhance decision-making. For example, data-driven insights can help companies optimize supply chains, improve inventory management, and reduce operational costs.



Safety and Compliance are also prioritized within IIoT. IoT technology helps monitor environmental conditions, equipment performance, and compliance with safety regulations. Real-time monitoring systems can detect hazardous conditions and ensure that safety protocols are followed, reducing the risk of accidents and ensuring regulatory compliance.



Advancements in Industrial IoT (IIoT) represent a major trend in the Australia IoT market. The focus on predictive maintenance, automation, data analytics, and safety highlights the transformative impact of IoT technology on industrial operations. As industries continue to adopt IIoT solutions, the trend is expected to drive significant improvements in efficiency and productivity.

Key Attributes:

Report Attribute Details No. of Pages 88 Forecast Period 2023 - 2029 Estimated Market Value (USD) in 2023 $12.63 Billion Forecasted Market Value (USD) by 2029 $22.98 Billion Compound Annual Growth Rate 10.2% Regions Covered Australia



Report Scope:

Key Market Players

IBM Corporation

Cisco Systems, Inc.

Microsoft Corporation

Intel Corporation

Siemens AG

General Electric Company

Oracle Corporation

SAP SE

Honeywell International Inc.

Schneider Electric SE

Australia Internet of Things Market, By Platform:

Network Management

Application Management

Device Management

Australia Internet of Things Market, By Component:

Software

Hardware

Service

Australia Internet of Things Market, By Application:

Consumer Electronics

Smart Mobility & Transportation

Building & Home Automation

Connected Logistics

Smart Retail

Others

Australia Internet of Things Market, By Region:

New South Wales

Northern Territory

Queensland

South Australia

Tasmania

Victoria & Western Australia

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/c8jaf2

About ResearchAndMarkets.com

ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.

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Dublin, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Male Aesthetics - Global Strategic Business Report" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The global market for Male Aesthetics is estimated at US$14.6 Billion in 2023 and is projected to reach US$20.6 Billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 5.0% from 2023 to 2030. This comprehensive report provides an in-depth analysis of market trends, drivers, and forecasts, helping you make informed business decisions.





The growth in the male aesthetics market is driven by several factors, including the destigmatization of male grooming, the influence of celebrity culture, and increased disposable income among men. As societal perceptions continue to shift, there is a growing acceptance and encouragement for men to pursue beauty and grooming practices, expanding the consumer base.



Celebrity endorsements and the visibility of male public figures openly discussing and embracing aesthetic treatments have significantly contributed to this trend, making such practices more mainstream. Additionally, economic factors play a crucial role; as men gain more disposable income, they are more likely to allocate funds towards aesthetic services and products.



The market has also seen a surge in specialized boutiques and clinics that cater exclusively to male aesthetics, providing customized and discreet services. These businesses are not only enhancing the availability of specialized products and services but are also elevating the consumer experience, further driving market growth. Together, these dynamics underscore a robust and dynamic sector poised for continued expansion as male aesthetics becomes an integral part of modern male identity and lifestyle.



Key Insights:

Market Growth: Understand the significant growth trajectory of the Non-Surgical Procedure segment, which is expected to reach US$10.2 Billion by 2030 with a CAGR of a 5.0%. The Surgical Procedure segment is also set to grow at 4.6% CAGR over the analysis period.

Regional Analysis: Gain insights into the U.S. market, estimated at $4.0 Billion in 2023, and China, forecasted to grow at an impressive 8.1% CAGR to reach $4.3 Billion by 2030. Discover growth trends in other key regions, including Japan, Canada, Germany, and the Asia-Pacific.

Report Features:

Comprehensive Market Data: Independent analysis of annual sales and market forecasts in US$ Million from 2023 to 2030.

In-Depth Regional Analysis: Detailed insights into key markets, including the U.S., China, Japan, Canada, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East, and Africa.

Company Profiles: Coverage of major players such as Assurance Skin, Laser & Aesthetics, Candela Corp. (Candela Medical), Cutera Aesthetics, and more.

Complimentary Updates: Receive free report updates for one year to keep you informed of the latest market developments.

Key Attributes:





Report Attribute Details No. of Pages 250 Forecast Period 2023 - 2030 Estimated Market Value (USD) in 2023 $14.6 Billion Forecasted Market Value (USD) by 2030 $20.6 Billion Compound Annual Growth Rate 5.0% Regions Covered Global



MARKET OVERVIEW

Influencer Market Insights

World Market Trajectories

Global Economic Update

Male Aesthetics - Global Key Competitors Percentage Market Share in 2024 (E)

Competitive Market Presence - Strong/Active/Niche/Trivial for Players Worldwide in 2024 (E)

MARKET TRENDS & DRIVERS

Increasing Social Media Influence Drives Demand for Male Aesthetic Treatments

Technological Advances in Non-Invasive Procedures Propel Market Growth

Growing Acceptance of Male Cosmetic Procedures Expands Market Opportunities

Aging Population and Desire for Youthful Appearance Bolster Market Demand

The Impact of Celebrity Culture on Male Aesthetic Choices

Rising Disposable Income Among Males Strengthens Business Case for Aesthetic Services

Integration of AI and Imaging Technologies in Aesthetic Practices

Evolving Attitudes Toward Male Grooming Boosts Cosmetic Product Sales

Influence of Millennial and Gen Z Demographics on Market Dynamics

Exploring the Expansion of Men's Skincare and Anti-Aging Market

Growth in Medical Tourism Supports Aesthetic Service Offerings

The Role of Virtual Consultations in Expanding Client Base

FOCUS ON SELECT PLAYERS

Assurance Skin, Laser & Aesthetics

Candela Corp. (Candela Medical)

Cutera Aesthetics

Cynosure Aesthetics

Dr Rajendra Gujjalanavar

Excellence (A Brand of BTL)

Grey's Aesthetics

KLNIK

La Sante

Lumenis Be Ltd.

Manor Health

Medicosmetic Skin Clinic

Spark (a trademark of Allergan, Inc., an AbbVie Company)

The Maercks Institute

Vaser (A Brand of Solta Medical a division of Bausch Health Companies Inc.)

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/7jp0pp

About ResearchAndMarkets.com

ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.

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TORONTO, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Goliath Resources Limited (TSX-V: GOT) (OTCQB: GOTRF) (FSE: B4IF) (the Company or Goliath) is pleased to announce it has closed the $2,000,000 order from a strategic global commodity group based in Singapore, plus additional orders for gross proceeds of $5,406,080 in the first tranche. The second tranche up to a total of $6,500,000 is expected to close early September 2024.



The non-brokered private placement is a combination of: (i) Non-Flow-Through shares (NFT) to be sold at a price of $1.11 each and Flow-Through shares (FT) to be sold at a price of $1.28 that will qualify as a flow-through share within the meaning of Subsection 66(15) of the Income Tax Act (Canada). The first tranche consisted of 2,782,410 NFT shares for gross proceeds of $3,088,475 and 1,810,629 FT shares for proceeds of $2,317,605 for aggregate proceeds of $5,406,080.

The Company intends to use the proceeds for general operating expenses and exploration related programs on its properties located in and around the Golden Triangle of northwestern British Columbia.

The proceeds from the FT offering will be used for Canadian exploration expenses as such term is defined in paragraph (f) of the definition of Canadian exploration expense in Subsection 66.1(6) of the tax act, flow-through mining expenditures as defined in Subsection 127(9) of the tax act that will qualify as flow-through mining expenditures, and B.C. flow-through mining expenditures as defined in Subsection 4.721(1) of the Income Tax Act (British Columbia), which will be incurred on or before Dec. 31, 2025, and renounced with an effective date no later than Dec. 31, 2024. British Columbia Super Flow - the B.C. mining flow-through share (B.C. MFTS) tax credit allows BC Residents who invest in flow-through shares to claim a provincial non-refundable tax credit of 20% of their B.C. flow-through mining expenditures. B.C. flow-through mining expenditures are specific exploration expenses incurred by a PBC and renounced by a corporation issuing the flow-through shares.

Goliath paid finders' fees composed of 6% cash totaling $67,342.26 and 6% finder warrants totaling 59,382 on certain orders in connection with the first tranche of the placement, subject to compliance with the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange. All securities issued and sold under the offering will be subject to a hold period expiring four months and one day from their date of issuance. Completion of the offering and the payment of any finders' fees remain subject to the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals, including the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange.

About Goliath Resources Limited

Goliath Resources Limited is an explorer of precious metals projects in the prolific Golden Triangle of northwestern British Columbia. All of its projects are in world class geological settings and geopolitical safe jurisdictions amenable to mining in Canada. Goliath is a member and active supporter of CASERM which is an organization represents a collaborative venture between Colorado School of Mines and Virginia Tech. Goliaths key strategic cornerstone shareholders include Crescat Capital, Mr. Rob McEwen and Mr. Eric Sprott.

For more information please contact:

Goliath Resources Limited

Mr. Roger Rosmus

Founder and CEO

Tel: +1.416.488.2887

roger@goliathresources.com

www.goliathresourcesltd.com

Other

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange), nor the OTCQB Venture Market accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Certain statements contained in this press release constitute forward-looking information. These statements relate to future events or future performance. The use of any of the words "could", "intend", "expect", "believe", "will", "projected", "estimated" and similar expressions and statements relating to matters that are not historical facts are intended to identify forward-looking information and are based on Goliaths current belief or assumptions as to the outcome and timing of such future events. Actual future results may differ materially. In particular, this release contains forward-looking information relating to, among other things, the ability of the Company to complete financings and its ability to build value for its shareholders as it develops its mining properties. Various assumptions or factors are typically applied in drawing conclusions or making the forecasts or projections set out in forward-looking information. Those assumptions and factors are based on information currently available to Goliath. Although such statements are based on management's reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that the proposed transactions will occur, or that if the proposed transactions do occur, will be completed on the terms described above.

The forward-looking information contained in this release is made as of the date hereof and Goliath is not obligated to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. Because of the risks, uncertainties and assumptions contained herein, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The foregoing statements expressly qualify any forward-looking information contained herein.

This announcement does not constitute an offer, invitation, or recommendation to subscribe for or purchase any securities and neither this announcement nor anything contained in it shall form the basis of any contract or commitment. In particular, this announcement does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, securities in the United States, or in any other jurisdiction in which such an offer would be illegal.

The securities referred to herein have not been and will not be will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the U.S. Securities Act), or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to or for the account or benefit of a U.S. person (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 an exemption from such registration is available.

NOT FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES OR FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER OF THE SECURITIES DESCRIBED HEREIN
Covina, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- According to Prophecy Market Insights, the global pediatric clinical trials market size and share is projected to grow from USD 31.4 Billion in 2024 and is forecasted to reach USD 56.2 Billion by 2034, exhibiting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.6% during the forecast period (2024 - 2034).

Pediatric Clinical Trials Market Report Overview

Pediatric clinical trials are a specialized segment of clinical research focused on studying the safety, efficacy, and dosage of medications, therapies, and medical devices in children. These trials are essential because children differ from adults in terms of physiology, metabolism, and developmental processes, which can significantly affect how they respond to treatments.

Many pediatric conditions especially rare diseases affect only small numbers of patients which makes it difficult to recruit enough participants for statistically significant studies. Conducting clinical trials in pediatric populations helps identify the most effective treatments for various childhood diseases and conditions leading to better health outcomes and quality of life for children.

Download a Free Sample Research Report with Latest Industry Insights: https://www.prophecymarketinsights.com/market_insight/Insight/request-sample/5558

Our Free Sample Report includes:

Overview & introduction of market study

Revenue and CAGR of the market

Drivers & Restrains factors of the market

Major key players in the market

Regional analysis of the market with a detailed graph

Detailed segmentation in tabular form of market

Recent developments/news of the market

Opportunities & Challenges of the Market

Competitive Landscape:

The Pediatric Clinical Trials Market is characterized by rapid growth, technological innovation, and fierce competition. Companies are expanding their global presence, focusing on sustainability, and diversifying their service offerings to stay competitive.

Some of the Key Market Players:

Synteract

ICON Plc.

Syneos Health

Medpace, Inc.

PPD Inc.

Premier Research

LabCorp Drug Development

QPS Holding

Pfizer Inc.

The Emmes Company, LLC

IQVIA Inc.

To Know More on Additional Market Players, Download a Free Sample Report Here: https://www.prophecymarketinsights.com/market_insight/Insight/request-pdf/5558

Analyst View:

More studies on pediatric disorders are being driven by the rising prevalence of these problems which include both uncommon and chronic illnesses. The need for clinical trials that can create efficient treatments for illnesses like type 1 diabetes, children's malignancies, and also genetic disorders has increased due to their increased prevalence.

Market Dynamics:

Drivers:

Advances in Pediatric Medicine and Technology

Innovations and advances in technology in pediatric medicine are opening up new avenues for clinical trials. More efficient and focused pediatric research is being made possible by the advancement of biomarkers, personalized medical techniques and also advanced diagnostic instruments.

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Market Trends:

Expanding Applications across Therapeutic Areas

Although Pediatric Clinical Trials have primarily targeted oncology, their use is spreading to other therapeutic domains as immunology, neurology, cardiology as well as rare disorders.

Segmentation:

Pediatric Clinical Trials Market is segmented based on Phase, Study Design, Age Group, Therapeutic Area, and Region.

Phase Insights

This sector includes Phase I, Phase II, and Phase III. Phase III segment is expected to dominate the target market growth as these trials involve a significant number of participants and are conducted across multiple sites to ensure that the findings are statistically applicable to a broader population.

Study Design Insights

In the target market treatment studies are the most dominant segment as these studies are essential for the development of therapies specifically designed for pediatric patients. Children's distinct physiological and developmental factors in contrast to those of adults, influence how drugs function and are metabolized.

Age Group Insights

In the target market, children are the most dominant segment as children as a whole have a vast spectrum of illnesses and health issues that call for particular care and remedies. Pediatric diseases, respiratory ailments, congenital problems, and pediatric cancers are among the issues that are frequently the focus of pediatric clinical trials.

Therapeutic Area Insights

In the target market oncology is the most dominant segment as the prominence of oncology in pediatric clinical trials can be attributed to several critical factors that highlight the need for specialized research and treatment in this industry.

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Recent Development:

In August 2024, UCLA launched a groundbreaking clinical trial for a vaccine targeting aggressive pediatric brain cancer. The primary characteristic of this kind of brain tumor is a specific mutation in the H3-3A gene, which codes for a crucial regulatory element on histone H3. This mutation causes major RNA processing changes that have a broad impact on the behavior of cancer and how it responds to therapy.

Regional Insights

North America: This region benefits from significant investment in pediatric research from both public and private sectors. Government grants, private funding as well as philanthropic contributions are substantial enabling extensive research efforts into pediatric diseases and conditions.

This region benefits from significant investment in pediatric research from both public and private sectors. Government grants, private funding as well as philanthropic contributions are substantial enabling extensive research efforts into pediatric diseases and conditions. Asia Pacific: There is rising awareness of the importance of pediatric research, coupled with an increasing prevalence of pediatric diseases and this awareness is driving demand for clinical trials to develop new and effective treatments for childhood conditions in this region.

Browse Detail Report on "Pediatric Clinical Trials Market Size, Share, By Phase (Phase I, Phase II, Phase III, and Phase IV), By Study Design (Treatment Studies, and Observational Studies), By Age Group (Infants, Toddlers, Children, and Adolescents), By Therapeutic Area (Oncology, Infectious Diseases, Respiratory Diseases, Rare Diseases, Neurological Disorders, and Other Therapeutic Areas), and By Region - Trends, Analysis, and Forecast till 2034" with complete TOC @ https://www.prophecymarketinsights.com/market_insight/pediatric-clinical-trials-market-5558

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Portage, Michigan, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Stryker (NYSE: SYK), a global leader in medical technologies, announced today a definitive agreement to acquire Vertos Medical Inc., a privately held company providing a minimally invasive solution for treating chronic lower back pain caused by lumbar spinal stenosis.

Lumbar spinal stenosis affects millions of people globally and is a leading cause of pain and disability. Patients today are seeking minimally invasive treatment options, valuing reduced recovery times and quicker returns to daily life. Vertos Medicals mild procedure provides a solution for pain relief and may improve mobility1,2 without the need for major surgery.

We are committed to helping customers restore patients quality of life with interventional solutions to address chronic pain, said Andy Pierce, Group President, MedSurg and Neurotechnology, Stryker.

This acquisition strengthens our minimally invasive pain management portfolio with differentiated treatments and expands our reach across ambulatory surgery centers.

Allowing patients to get back to what matters most to them is what matters most to us, said Eric Wichems, Vertos Medicals Chief Executive Officer. Strykers mission and focus on interventional solutions provides an opportunity to further improve patients' quality of life.

This transaction is subject to customary closing conditions. Stryker and Vertos Medical Inc. will continue to operate as separate entities and proceed with business as usual until the transaction closes.

About Stryker

Stryker is a global leader in medical technologies and, together with its customers, is driven to make healthcare better. The company offers innovative products and services in MedSurg, Neurotechnology, Orthopaedics and Spine that help improve patient and healthcare outcomes. Alongside its customers around the world, Stryker impacts more than 150 million patients annually. More information is available at www.stryker.com .

Media contact

Beth Sizemore

Sr. Director, Strategic Communications

beth.sizemore@stryker.com

References
HIGHLIGHTS

Detailed re-logging and additional sampling from 11 historical diamond holes in priority target areas at the Belltopper Gold Project ( Belltopper ), has delivered multiple new significant gold intercepts across a range of known and emerging targets.

), has delivered multiple new significant gold intercepts across a range of known and emerging targets. Significant new intercepts from the recent additional (infill) sampling include: 6.0 m @ 4.37 g/t Au from 169 m ( including 5.0 m @ 5.18 g/t Au from 169 m) in DDHMA1 on the Never Despair Reef. 2.0 m @ 7.19 g/t Au from 52 m ( including 1.15 m @ 12.01 g/t Au from 52 m) and 2.0 m @ 3.87 g/t Au from 43 m ( including 1.0 m @ 6.92 g/t Au from 43 m) in MD04 on the emerging Butchers Gully Fault target, a layer parallel structure to the high-grade Leven Star Reef . 3.1 m @ 3.29 g/t Au from 36 m ( including 1.3 m @ 7.26 g/t Au from 37.3 m) in MD06A, also on the Butchers Gully Fault . 2.1 m @ 3.82 g/t Au from 78.9 m ( including 0.6 m @ 9.74 g/t Au from 79.3 m) in MD07 on NW Fault 9, an important, west-dipping, sub-parallel trending structure to the high-priority Missing Link Reef target. 13 m @ 0.64 g/t Au from 90 m ( including 1 m @ 1.92 g/t Au from 94 m) in DDHMA2 on the West Panama Reef .

These results validate prospective gold intervals identified during the re-logging exercise, including current modelled high-grade gold +/- antimony reefs that were intersected, but not originally sampled in historic programs.

NW Fault 9 and NW Fault 4 , identified from previous modelling, belong to an important set of gold-bearing, west-dipping structures that form a component of the anticline-related (e.g. Fosterville-style), epizonal targets at Belltopper.

, identified from previous modelling, belong to an important set of gold-bearing, west-dipping structures that form a component of the anticline-related (e.g. Fosterville-style), epizonal targets at Belltopper. The re-logging program has confirmed controls on higher-grade mineralisation and refined the position of several target reefs and key structural features such as modelled high-grade shoots and high priority target anticline corridors.

Current focus is on delivering an exploration target for the network of high-grade historic and newly discovered gold reefs at Belltopper and growing the pipeline of conceptual high-value shallow and deeper targets.

Novo Executive Co-Chairman and Acting CEO Mike Spreadborough said, Belltopper in Victoria is an exciting high-grade gold project, located in a proven gold jurisdiction. The excellent work completed by our geological team, which has uncovered multiple significant intercepts including grades of up to 12.01 g/t Au, highlights the exciting opportunity we have in front of us to further explore and develop Belltopper into a project with size and scale. We have a busy period of work planned at Belltopper at a time when the price of gold is at all-time highs.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Novo Resources Corp. (Novo or the Company) (ASX: NVO) (TSX: NVO) (OTCQX: NSRPF) is pleased to report significant assay results received from a relogging and infill sampling program completed across 11 previously under sampled, historic drill holes, located within priority target corridors at the Belltopper Gold Project (Belltopper) in Victoria (Figure 1).





Figure 1, Belltopper Gold Project location map with regional gold occurrences and major structures.1

Novo has not conducted data verification (as that term is defined in National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects and JORC 2012) in respect of the data set out in Figure 1 and therefore is not to be regarded as reporting, adopting or endorsing those results/figures. No assurance can be given that Novo will achieve similar results at Belltopper.

____________________________________

1 See the following for source documents in relation to the [historical gold] production figures for Bendigo, Fosterville, Costerfield, Castlemaine and Ballarat. Wilson, C. J. L., Moore, D. H., Vollgger, S. A., & Madeley, H. E. (2020). Structural evolution of the orogenic gold deposits in central Victoria, Australia: The role of regional stress change and the tectonic regime. Ore Geology Reviews, 120, 103390. Phillips, G. N., & Hughes, M. J. (1996). The geology and gold deposits of the Victorian gold province. Ore Geology Reviews, 11(5), 255-302. Costerfield Operation, Victoria, Australia, NI 43-101 Technical Report, March 2024; Agnico Eagle Mines Detailed Mineral Reserve and Mineral Resources Statement (as at December 31, 2023). Agnico Eagle Mines Limited. Fosterville Gold Mine. Retrieved August 21, 2024, from Agnico Eagle Website For Comet and Sunday Creek exploration results, refer: Great Pacific Gold Company TSXV release dated 11 January 2024, and Southern Cross Gold Company ASX release dated 5 March 2024, respectively.





SUMMARY

A re-logging and infill sampling program completed on 11 previously under-sampled historic diamond drill holes at Belltopper, has delivered multiple new significant gold intercepts across a range of known and emerging targets.

Highlights include:

6.0 m @ 4.37 g/t Au from 169 m ( including 5.0 m @ 5.18 g/t Au from 169 m) in DDHMA1.





from 169 m ( from 169 m) in DDHMA1. 2.0 m @ 7.19 g/t Au from 52 m ( including 1.15 m @ 12.01 g/t Au from 52 m) in MD04.





from 52 m ( from 52 m) in MD04. 2.0 m @ 3.87 g/t Au from 43 m ( including 1.0 m @ 6.92 g/t Au from 43 m) in MD04.





from 43 m ( from 43 m) in MD04. 3.1 m @ 3.29 g/t Au from 36 m ( including 1.3 m @ 7.26 g/t Au from 37.3 m) in MD06A.





from 36 m ( from 37.3 m) in MD06A. 2.1 m @ 3.82 g/t Au from 78.9 m ( including 0.6 m @ 9.74 g/t Au from 79.3 m) in MD07.





from 78.9 m ( from 79.3 m) in MD07. 13 m @ 0.64 g/t Au from 90 m (including 1 m @ 1.92 g/t Au from 94 m) in DDHMA2.



(Note: See Appendix 2 for complete assay results.)

The mineralisation presented in the body of this news release is not necessarily representative of mineralisation throughout the Belltopper Gold Project. Intercepts are expressed as down-hole intersections and should not be presumed to represent true widths, which vary from hole to hole and between reefs (refer JORC Table 1).

New intercepts associated with the Never Despair (e.g. DDHMA1) and West Panama (e.g. DDHMA2) reefs (Figure 2), further highlight the unrealised potential for a network of historic high-grade gold-reefs on the Project that have been developed to varying degrees at surface or underground during the mid to late 1800s, but not extensively mined. Most of the key historic reefs on the project have very little (< 5 holes) to no modern drill testing.

New intercepts reported for the Butchers Gully Fault (e.g. MD04, MD06A) showcase the potential for this emerging +1 km steep, northwest dipping structure, that trends in parallel with the high-grade Leven Star Reef.

The new significant intercept associated with NW Fault 4 (MD07) is notable. This target was mapped as a sub-vertical to steep west-south-west dipping quartz reef and belongs to an important set of gold-bearing, west-dipping structures that form a component of the anticline-related (e.g. Fosterville-style) epizonal targets at Belltopper. The NW Fault 4 target may potentially link with the NW Fault 9 target mapped to the north (Figure 2), which returned 2.0 m @ 15.18 g/t Au from 9 m, in recently drilled BTD0042. These target faults combined have a strike length of ~1 km.

Of further note, both NW Fault 4 and NW Fault 9 are also modelled to interact with the Missing Link Granite, a porphyritic felsic intrusion and hence provide targeted structural intersections to test for intrusion hosted mineralisation, either along the margins of, or extending into, the Missing Link Granite itself.

Detailed information from re-logging allows better understanding of the geology and controls on higher-grade mineralisation at Belltopper. Data from the program has allowed Novo to precisely locate and refine specific target reefs and key structural features, such as modelled high-grade shoots and high-priority target anticline corridors. This is fundamental data that will be applied to ongoing targeting moving forward.

____________________________________

2 Refer to the Companys news release dated June 4, 2024, released to ASX on June 5, 2024.





RESULTS AND INTERPRETATION FROM THE RELOGGING PROGRAM

A recent review of archived historic diamond core has highlighted a significant opportunity to validate several targets at Belltopper, by means of re-visiting select historic drill core and completing a re-logging and infill sampling exercise.

The re-logging program at Belltopper focused on 11 historic drill holes located within current priority target areas (Figure 2). Historic sampling practices vary from hole to hole, but as a general theme, the sampling was restricted to specific targets, or completed as niche-style sampling, and in many instances, what are recognised as gold-prospective zones today, were not originally sampled.





Figure 2, Location of re-logged and infill sampled historic drill-holes with significant new assays highlighted. Callouts represent new assays > 5-gram x meters.

Detailed geology and geotechnical logging were completed on all 11 holes and included collection of magnetic susceptibility and specific gravity data. The re-logging campaign included a sampling component which involved gold and multi-element assaying on previously uncut prospective intervals identified during the re-logging exercise, or across uncut intervals where modelled target reefs are projected to intersect the drill hole. Samples for assay were also collected where previous historic significant assays remained open (either at upper or lower sample intervals), or where infill sampling was extended to cover previous gaps in data between closely spaced historic assays.

Standard QAQC practices were adhered to as outlined in JORC Table 1. In total some 1,643 primary and 225 QC samples were submitted for fire assay gold and multi-element as part of the re-logging exercise. Table 1 highlights all (+2-gram x metre) significant intercepts returned from the recent infill sampling program completed. Refer to Appendices for a full listing of all anomalous (>0.3-gram x metre) intersections. The intercepts presented in both Table 1 and Appendix 2 represent either:

entirely new independent intercepts, or

extension and upgrading of historic intercepts, or

extension and integration of two or more previous intercepts by means of infill sampling.



Table 1, Significant (+ 2-gram x metre) intersections reported for recent infill sampling of historic drill holes at Belltopper. Intercepts calculated with 0.3 g/t Au cut-off and 2 m internal dilution. High grade included intercepts calculated with 1.0 g/t Au and no internal dilution. All significant intersections from recent infill sampling program on historic drill holes reported.

Drill

Hole Including From

(m) To

(m) Interval

(m) ^ Au

(g/t) Au

g*m

^^ Intersection MD03 14.00 19.00 5.00 0.55 2.7 5.00 m @ 0.55 g/t Au from 14 m MD03 45.00 47.00 2.00 1.80 3.6 2.00 m @ 1.80 g/t Au from 45 m MD04 43.00 45.00 2.00 3.87 7.7 2.00 m @ 3.87 g/t Au from 43 m MD04 inc. 43.00 44.00 1.00 6.92 6.9 1.00 m @ 6.92 g/t Au from 43 m MD04 52.00 54.00 2.00 7.19 14.4 2.00 m @ 7.19 g/t Au from 52 m MD04 inc. 52.00 53.15 1.15 12.01 13.8 1.15 m @ 12.01 g/t Au from 52 m MD06A 36.00 39.10 3.10 3.29 10.2 3.10 m @ 3.29 g/t Au from 36 m MD06A inc. 37.30 38.60 1.30 7.26 9.4 1.30 m @ 7.26 g/t Au from 37.3 m MD06A 420.00 425.50 5.50 0.70 3.9 5.50 m @ 0.70 g/t Au from 420 m MD07 25.00 30.00 5.00 0.69 3.4 5.00 m @ 0.69 g/t Au from 25 m MD07 78.90 81.00 2.10 3.82 8.0 2.10 m @ 3.82 g/t Au from 78.9 m MD07 inc. 79.30 79.90 0.60 9.74 5.8 0.60 m @ 9.74 g/t Au from 79.3 m MD07 154.00 155.60 1.60 1.22 2.0 1.60 m @ 1.22 g/t Au from 154 m MD08A 123.00 125.00 2.00 1.60 3.2 2.00 m @ 1.60 g/t Au from 123 m MD08A inc. 124.00 125.00 1.00 2.30 2.3 1.00 m @ 2.30 g/t Au from 124 m LSDDH7 196.40 197.40 1.00 3.41 3.4 1.00 m @ 3.41 g/t Au from 196.4 m DDHMA1 41.10 45.10 4.00 0.64 2.6 4.00 m @ 0.64 g/t Au from 41.1 m DDHMA1 169.00 175.00 6.00 4.37 26.2 6.00 m @ 4.37 g/t Au from 169 m DDHMA1 inc. 169.00 174.00 5.00 5.18 25.9 5.00 m @ 5.18 g/t Au from 169 m DDHMA2

DDHMA2

inc. 90.00

94.00 103.00

95.00 13.00

1.00 0.64

1.92 8.4

1.9 13.00 m @ 0.64 g/t Au from 90 m

1.00 m @ 1.92 g/t Au from 94 m

^ All width and intercepts are expressed as metres downhole rather than true width. Most intersections tabulated above will have an oblique component. Refer to drill cross sections and JORC Table 1. Calculated as length weighted averages. ^^ Au g/t multiplied by metres.

The Never Despair Reef was intersected at approximately 170 m down-hole in DDHMA1 and is characterised by a 5m wide zone of silica  sericite altered sediments with intervals of white, bleached puggy fault material and laminated quartz veins (Figure 3). Assays returned 6.0 m @ 4.37 g/t Au from 169 m, including 5.0 m @ 5.18 g/t Au across the reef. Strongly elevated arsenic, and elevated silver, molybdenum and antimony accompany this interval.

Figure 3, DDHM01 from 169.15 m  174.9 m. Never Despair intersection returning 6.0 m @ 4.37 g/t Au from 169 m. Strongly elevated As, and elevated Ag, Mo, and Sb accompany this interval.

The Never Despair Reef dips to the NE and is currently interpreted up to 675 m along strike. Surface workings are restricted to the central portion of the trend and along a roughly 200 m section of the Never Despair structure, in a complex area where multiple reefs with different orientations converge. Local underground development along the Never Despair Reef itself is primarily within 30 m of the surface below the significant surface workings, although additional development along a 20 m segment of the reef occurs to depths down to 60 m in the south, where the Never Despair Reef converges at depth with the adjacent Panama Fault (Figure 2 and Figure 4).

The Butchers Gully Fault was intersected at shallow depths in several re-logged historic holes, including: MD02, MD03, MD04 and MD06A; with the best intercepts reporting 2.0 m @ 7.19 g/t Au from 52 m (including 1.15 m @ 12.01 g/t Au) and 2.0 m @ 3.87 g/t Au from 43 m (including 1.0 m @ 6.92 g/t Au from 43 m) in MD04; and 3.10 m @ 3.29 g/t Au from 36 m (including 1.3 m @ 7.26 g/t Au) in MD06A. Elevated arsenic, bismuth, and antimony accompany these intervals. This fault typically manifests in shallow core intervals as a limonite-rich zone, with quartz fracture veining and intervals of iron and sulphidic tectonic breccia.

The Butchers Gully Fault is an emerging, +1 km long target reef that dips sub-vertical to steeply to the northwest and trends in parallel with the high-grade Leven Star Reef, which is located roughly 80 m to the southeast (Figure 2 and Figure 4). Refer to Table 1 (>2-gram x metre) and Appendix 2 (>0.3-gram x metre) for additional significant intercepts on these drill holes.

Target NW Fault 4 was intersected at around 80 m down-hole in MD07 (Figure 4) and is represented by a limonite rich puggy tectonic fault breccia host predominantly in silt (Figure 5). A significant gold interval associated with this structure returned 2.1 m @ 3.82 g/t Au from 78.9 m, including 0.6 m @ 9.74 g/t Au. This intercept is bound by a 10 cm section of core loss between 79.9 m  80.0 m. Elevated arsenic, antimony, bismuth, molybdenum and tungsten accompany this interval.





Figure 4, Geological cross section displaying the portion of drill traces for re-logged holes that fall within the field of view. Refer to Figure 2 for location of cross section A  A. Cross section is north-facing with a +/- 20 m field of view. Callouts highlight significant intersections > 5-gram x metre that are captured within the field of view. Refer to Appendix 2 for all significant (> 0.3-gram x metre) for drill holes part depicted on section.

Target NW Fault 4 represents a mapped, sub-vertical to steeply west-dipping quartz-bearing tectonic breccia, which is interpreted over an ~ 320 m strike length and modelled to interact with the Missing Link Granite outcrop (Figure 2). Target NW Fault 9 may represent an extension of NW Fault 4, mapped to the north, which returned 2.0 m @ 15.18 g/t Au from 9 m, in previously reported assays for drill hole BTD0043. Both faults report narrow, high-grade results and display similar mineralisation styles and multi-element characteristics. These faults have a combined target strike-length of ~ 1 km (Figure 2 and Figure 4).

____________________________________

3 Refer to the Companys news release dated June 4, 2024, released to ASX on June 5, 2024.









Figure 5, MD07 from 76.9 m  81.0 m. The limonite rich puggy fault breccia represents the NW Fault 4 mineralised structure returning 2.1 m @ 3.82 g/t Au from 78.9 m, including 0.6 m @ 9.74 g/t Au. Elevated arsenic, antimony, bismuth, molybdenum and tungsten accompany this interval.

The West Panama Reef was intersected at around 41 m down-hole in DDHMA1 returning 4.0 m @ 0.64 g/t Au from 41.1 m, and at 90 m down-hole in DDHMA2 returning 13 m @ 0.64 g/t Au from 90 m including 1 m @ 1.92 g/t Au. Elevated arsenic, bismuth, antimony, and tungsten are associated with this interval. Within DDHMA2 this fault is represented by strongly silica and sericite altered and annealed granulestone with well-developed quartz stockwork veining.

The West Panama Reef is a steep to moderately steep, NE-dipping structure that is currently interpreted to extend for ~ 670 m (Figure 2 and Figure 5). Small segments (<10%) of this reef were explored and developed locally down to a depth of around 90 m.

BELLTOPPER FORWARD PROGRAM

Current work is focussed on delivering an exploration target for the dense network of known, emerging and newly discovered high-grade, epizonal gold-reefs that characterise the landscape at Belltopper.

Integration of historic, recent and new exploration data from the current logging and sampling program into an evolving 3D target model is ongoing and fundamental to effective targeting. This includes integration of data and interpretation from the recent hyperspectral sampling program which is currently being progressed and scheduled to be complete by the end of Q3 2024.

The recent re-logging program, coupled with previous exploration, have allowed an improved understanding of the overall prospectivity, mineralisation styles and characteristics, and key structural controls on the higher-grade zones at Belltopper. From these learnings, both the extensions to modelled high-grade zones, along with well understood reefs are targeted; as well as high-value, emerging shallow and deeper conceptual targets, which includes both intrusion related mineralisation, and the world class, Fosterville-style, high-grade epizonal mineralisation, of which Belltopper displays many of these characteristics.

Authorised for release by the Board of Directors.

CONTACT

Investors:

Mike Spreadborough

+61 8 6400 6100

info@novoresources.com North American Queries:

Leo Karabelas

+1 416 543 3120

leo@novoresources.com Media:

Cameron Gilenko

+61 466 984 953

cameron.gilenko@sodali.com



QP STATEMENT



Dr. Christopher Doyle (MAIG), is the qualified person, as defined under National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (NI 43-101), responsible for, and having reviewed and approved, the technical information contained in this news release. Dr. Doyle is Novos Exploration Manager  Victoria.

There were no limitations to the verification process and all relevant data and records were reviewed and verified by a qualified person (as defined in NI 43-101).

JORC COMPLIANCE STATEMENT

The information in this report that relates to new exploration results at the Belltopper Gold Project is based on information compiled by Dr. Christopher Doyle, who is a full-time employee of Novo Resources Corp. Dr. Christopher Doyle is a Competent Person who is a member of the Australian Institute of Geoscientists. Dr. Christopher Doyle has sufficient experience that is relevant to the style of mineralisation and the type of deposits under consideration and to the activity being undertaken to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2012 Edition of the 'Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves'. Dr. Christopher Doyle consents to the inclusion in the report of the matters based on her information in the form and context in which it appears.

The information in this news release that relates to previously reported exploration results at Belltopper is extracted from Novo's announcement released to ASX on 5 June 2024 and which is available to view at www.asx.com.au. The Company confirms that it is not aware of any new information that materially affects the information included in the original market announcement and that all material assumptions and technical parameters underpinning the estimates in the market announcement continue to apply and have not materially changed.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Some statements in this news release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Canadian and Australian securities law and regulations. In this news release, such statements include but are not limited to planned exploration activities and the timing of such. These statements address future events and conditions and, as such, involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the statements. Such factors include, without limitation, customary risks of the resource industry and the risk factors identified in Novos annual information form for the year ended December 31, 2023 (which is available under Novos profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and at www.asx.com.au) in the Companys prospectus dated 2 August 2023 which is available at www.asx.com.au. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date those statements are made. Except as required by applicable law, Novo 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 Novo updates any forward-looking statement(s), no inference should be drawn that the Company will make additional updates with respect to those or other forward-looking statements.

ABOUT NOVO

Novo is an Australian based gold explorer listed on the ASX and the TSX focused on discovering standalone gold projects with > 1 Moz development potential. Novo is an innovative gold explorer with a significant land package covering approximately 6,700 square kilometres in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, along with the 22 square kilometre Belltopper project in the Bendigo Tectonic Zone of Victoria, Australia.

Novos key project area is the Egina Gold Camp, where De Grey Mining is farming-in to form a JV at the Becher Project and surrounding tenements through exploration expenditure of A$25 million within 4 years for a 50% interest. The Becher Project has similar geological characteristics as De Greys 12.7 Moz Hemi Project1. Novo is also advancing gold exploration at Nunyerry North, part of the Croydon JV (Novo 70%: Creasy Group 30%), where 2023 exploration drilling identified significant gold mineralisation. Novo continues to undertake early-stage exploration across its Pilbara tenement portfolio.

Novo has also formed lithium joint ventures with both Liatam and SQM in the Pilbara which provides shareholder exposure to battery metals.

Novo has a significant investment portfolio and a disciplined program in place to identify value accretive opportunities that will build further value for shareholders.

Please refer to Novos website for further information including the latest corporate presentation.





1. Refer to De Grey ASX Announcement, Hemi Gold Project Resource Update, dated 21 November 2023. No assurance can be given that a similar {or any) commercially mineable deposit will be determined at Novos Becher project.





APPENDIX 1: BELLTOPPER DRILL COLLARS



Hole ID Hole

Type Depth

(m) Easting Northing RL

AHD

(m) Collar

Dip () Collar

Azimuth

(MGA94

55) () Collar

Azimuth

(Mag) () Company Date

completed BTD001 DD 323.7 263866.02 5880369.85 524.18 -66 128.484 118.984 NOVO 28-Nov-23 BTD002 DD 594 263701.31 5881202.77 457.18 -60 145.117 135.617 NOVO 21-Dec-23 BTD003 DD 389.7 264162.29 5880827.97 489.97 -51.05 135.07 125.57 NOVO 18-Jan-24 BTD004 DD 521 263530.06 5880820.71 471.69 -45 90.23 80.73 NOVO 08-Feb-24 BTD005 DD 299.9 263394.65 5880825.96 471.94 -50 90.495 80.995 NOVO 19-Feb-24 BTD006 DD 400.6 263263.53 5880606.13 470.22 -37.88 144.53 135.03 NOVO 08-Jan-87 MD01 DD 352.2 263787.47 5880326.69 526.36 -57 144.5 135 GBM 20-Dec-07 MD02 DD 262 263787.42 5880326.77 526.39 -50 144.5 135 GBM 10-Jan-08 MD03 DD 478.5 263787.36 5880326.85 526.39 -65 144.5 135 GBM 01-Nov-08 MD04 DD 255 263788.00 5880328.62 526.37 -51.5 124.5 115 GBM 26-Jan-08 MD05 DD 266.9 263785.35 5880325.81 526.34 -50 166.5 157 GBM 08-Feb-08 MD06A DD 426.8 263785.10 5880326.89 526.36 -66 165.5 156 GBM 24-Feb-08 MD07 DD 249 263783.43 5880326.00 526.32 -55.5 239.5 230 GBM 03-Mar-08 MD08 DD 241.2 263575.14 5880074.01 434.02 -54.9 134.7 125.2 GBM 09-Apr-08 MD08A DD 450.3 263574.36 5880074.15 434.05 -55.5 134.5 125 GBM 02-May-08 MD09 DD 259.8 263573.87 5880074.24 434.07 -65.9 134.5 125 GBM 12-May-08 MD10 DD 191.3 263680.28 5878848.91 475.87 -60 254.5 245 GBM 25-May-08 MD11 DD 261 263680.66 5878849.04 475.87 -70 259.3 249.8 GBM 05-Jun-08 MD12 DD 999.8 263587.00 5880641.00 471.52 -85.5 279.5 270 GBM 17-Mar-10 MD13 DD 112.4 263795.58 5880084.40 457.50 -30 315 305.5 GBM 23-Dec-21 MD14 DD 365.5 263797.55 5880078.04 456.24 -50 270 260.5 GBM 24-Jan-22 MD15 DD 131.2 263853.37 5880118.38 452.71 -50 315 305.5 GBM 03-Feb-22 MD16 DD 204 263921.11 5880337.81 518.16 -73 135 125.5 GBM 15-Feb-22 MD17 DD 380 263849.25 5880561.10 523.92 -50 265 255.5 GBM 09-Mar-22 MD18 DD 320 263569.06 5880639.13 470.11 -50 260 250.5 GBM 29-Mar-22 MD18A DD 35 263569.46 5880639.23 470.13 -50 260 250.5 GBM 30-Mar-22 MD19 DD 553.9 263831.60 5879274.76 472.01 -50 260 250.5 GBM 03-May-22 MD20 DD 551.4 263828.50 5878871.91 477.38 -58 260 250.5 GBM 07-Jun-22 MD21 DD 255.5 263959.98 5880254.29 481.10 -68.4 318.6 309.1 GBM 27-Jun-22 MD22 DD 252.8 263587.28 5880638.16 471.78 -45.9 93.9 84.4 GBM 10-Jul-22 LSRC1 RC 87 264059.03 5880480.22 492.41 -60 135.5 126 Eureka 20-Aug-94 LSRC2 RC 111 264004.09 5880453.50 495.34 -55 135.5 126 Eureka 22-Aug-94 LSRC3 RC 111 263987.44 5880430.88 498.14 -55 135.5 126 Eureka 26-Aug-94 LSRC4 RC 110 263977.25 5880409.48 501.61 -55 135.5 126 Eureka 27-Aug-94 LSRC5 RC 110 263960.40 5880390.00 507.44 -55 135.5 126 Eureka 28-Aug-94 LSRC6 RC 70 263993.79 5880335.47 496.58 -56 315.5 306 Eureka 29-Aug-94 LSRC7 RC 105 263989.42 5880302.66 491.44 -55 315.5 306 Eureka 29-Aug-94 LSRC8 RC 112 263960.64 5880254.82 481.32 -55 315.5 306 Eureka 30-Aug-94 LSRC9 RC 73 263888.69 5880235.61 474.55 -60 315.5 306 Eureka 01-Sep-94 LSRC10 RC 112 263860.81 5880200.34 469.75 -55 315.5 306 Eureka 04-Sep-94 LSRC11 RC 96 263857.09 5880170.10 463.53 -55 315.5 306 Eureka 05-Sep-94 LSRC12 RC 82 263852.64 5880119.70 452.86 -50 315.5 306 Eureka 07-Sep-94 LSRC13 RC 118 263828.12 5880095.91 454.24 -50 315.5 306 Eureka 08-Sep-94 LSRC14 RC 100 263798.14 5880084.18 456.59 -50 315.5 306 Eureka 09-Sep-94 LSRC15 RC 100 263926.07 5880344.94 517.80 -50 135.5 126 Eureka 11-Sep-94 LSRC16/D14 RC/DD 101.1 263908.39 5880335.61 518.96 -60 135.5 126 Eureka 23-Sep-94 LSRC17/D15 RC/DD 84 263909.51 5880334.60 518.75 -50 135.5 126 Eureka 03-Oct-94 HMDDH1 DD 180.7 263933.48 5880659.32 512.75 -50 279.5 270 Pittson 16-Dec-91 HMDDH2 DD 70 263872.24 5880377.30 523.19 -50 99.5 90 Pittson 22-Dec-91 HMDDH3 DD 176.5 263853.66 5880488.54 526.55 -50 279.5 270 Pittson 31-Dec-91 LSDDH1 DD 100.6 263942.09 5880228.14 474.18 -50 311.5 302 Pittson 01-May-90 LSDDH2 DD 162.4 263942.09 5880228.14 474.18 -65 311.5 302 Pittson 09-May-90 LSDDH3 DD 110.4 263894.70 5880179.43 450.94 -50 311.5 302 Pittson 13-May-90 LSDDH4 DD 49.5 263989.89 5880343.02 500.13 -55 311.5 302 Pittson 15-May-90 LSDDH5 DD 140.7 264045.76 5880359.72 473.23 -65 311.5 302 Pittson 18-May-90 LSDDH6 DD 60.5 264073.00 5880423.93 476.30 -55 311.5 302 Pittson 19-May-90 LSDDH7 DD 333 263977.71 5880144.28 431.21 -60 311.5 302 Pittson 03-May-91 LSDDH8 DD 199 263799.51 5880084.94 457.06 -62 311.5 302 Pittson 12-May-91 LSDDH9 DD 201 263894.14 5880430.78 517.00 -50 141.5 132 Pittson 18-May-91 LSDDH10 DD 98.5 264192.32 5880515.60 501.26 -55 310.5 301 Pittson 23-May-91 LSDDH11 DD 9 264114.83 5880499.34 496.16 -52.5 303.5 294 Pittson 23-May-91 LSDDH12 DD 106.2 264319.66 5880637.86 487.26 -55 319.5 310 Pittson 28-May-91 LSDDH13 DD 247.8 264007.53 5880606.35 499.33 -50 131.5 122 Pittson 08-Jun-91 DDHMA1 DD 298.6 263526.83 5880314.86 431.11 -45 74.5 65 Molopo 18-Jan-87 DDHMA2 DD 182.3 263489.40 5880328.73 433.31 -45 74.5 65 Molopo 28-Jan-87 DDHMA3 DD 260.65 263688.97 5880516.92 499.41 -53 244.5 235 Molopo 11-Feb-87



All drill collars are reported in MGA94 Zone 55. All collars are located within Retention Licence RL006587





APPENDIX 2: BELLTOPPER RELOGGING SIGNIFICANT INTERSECTIONS

Standard Intercepts calculated with 0.3 g/t Au cut-off and 2 m internal dilution. High grade included intercepts calculated with 1.0 g/t Au and no internal dilution.

^ All width and intercepts are expressed as metres downhole rather than true width. Calculated as length weighted averages.

^^ Au g/t multiplied by metres.

Logged core loss treated as 0 g/t Au grade in all calculations. The gold assay of a primary sample from a duplicate pair will be used in all calculations. Any isolated gold intersections separated by internal dilution must independently be above the average cut-off grade when including the grades of the internal dilution.

All new or updated significant intersections > 0.3 GM from recent relogging and sampling exercise

Drill Hole Including From

(m) To

(m) Interval

(m) ^ Au (g/t) Au g*m ^^ Intersection MD02 42.00 43.00 1.00 0.44 0.4 1.00 m @ 0.44 g/t Au from 42 m MD02 75.40 77.00 1.60 0.33 0.5 1.60 m @ 0.33 g/t Au from 75.4 m MD02 83.00 85.00 2.00 0.58 1.2 2.00 m @ 0.58 g/t Au from 83 m MD02 141.00 142.00 1.00 0.47 0.5 1.00 m @ 0.47 g/t Au from 141 m MD03 14.00 19.00 5.00 0.55 2.7 5.00 m @ 0.55 g/t Au from 14 m MD03 22.00 23.00 1.00 0.39 0.4 1.00 m @ 0.39 g/t Au from 22 m MD03 27.00 28.00 1.00 0.44 0.4 1.00 m @ 0.44 g/t Au from 27 m MD03 31.00 32.00 1.00 0.34 0.3 1.00 m @ 0.34 g/t Au from 31 m MD03 36.00 37.00 1.00 0.43 0.4 1.00 m @ 0.43 g/t Au from 36 m MD03 45.00 47.00 2.00 1.80 3.6 2.00 m @ 1.80 g/t Au from 45 m MD03 129.90 131.00 1.10 0.38 0.4 1.10 m @ 0.38 g/t Au from 129.9 m MD04 15.00 16.00 1.00 0.38 0.4 1.00 m @ 0.38 g/t Au from 15 m MD04 43.00 45.00 2.00 3.87 7.7 2.00 m @ 3.87 g/t Au from 43 m MD04 inc. 43.00 44.00 1.00 6.92 6.9 1.00 m @ 6.92 g/t Au from 43 m MD04 50.00 51.00 1.00 0.31 0.3 1.00 m @ 0.31 g/t Au from 50 m MD04 52.00 54.00 2.00 7.19 14.4 2.00 m @ 7.19 g/t Au from 52 m MD04 inc. 52.00 53.15 1.15 12.01 13.8 1.15 m @ 12.01 g/t Au from 52 m MD04 81.00 82.00 1.00 0.33 0.3 1.00 m @ 0.33 g/t Au from 81 m MD04 109.00 110.00 1.00 1.90 1.9 1.00 m @ 1.90 g/t Au from 109 m MD06A 28.50 30.00 1.50 0.35 0.5 1.50 m @ 0.35 g/t Au from 28.5 m MD06A 32.00 32.80 0.80 1.06 0.9 0.80 m @ 1.06 g/t Au from 32 m MD06A 36.00 39.10 3.10 3.29 10.2 3.10 m @ 3.29 g/t Au from 36 m MD06A inc. 37.30 38.60 1.30 7.26 9.4 1.30 m @ 7.26 g/t Au from 37.3 m MD06A 173.75 174.08 0.33 0.36 0.1 0.33 m @ 0.36 g/t Au from 173.75 m MD06A 350.00 351.00 1.00 0.30 0.3 1.00 m @ 0.30 g/t Au from 350 m MD06A 409.73 410.03 0.30 0.40 0.1 0.30 m @ 0.40 g/t Au from 409.73 m MD06A 420.00 425.50 5.50 0.70 3.9 5.50 m @ 0.70 g/t Au from 420 m MD06A inc. 423.50 424.40 0.90 1.17 1.1 0.90 m @ 1.17 g/t Au from 423.5 m MD06A inc. 425.10 425.50 0.40 1.08 0.4 0.40 m @ 1.08 g/t Au from 425.1 m MD07 25.00 30.00 5.00 0.69 3.4 5.00 m @ 0.69 g/t Au from 25 m MD07 inc. 26.00 26.70 0.70 1.33 0.9 0.70 m @ 1.33 g/t Au from 26 m MD07 53.90 55.00 1.10 0.85 0.9 1.10 m @ 0.85 g/t Au from 53.9 m MD07 78.90 81.00 2.10 3.82 8.0 2.10 m @ 3.82 g/t Au from 78.9 m MD07 inc. 79.30 79.90 0.60 9.74 5.8 0.60 m @ 9.74 g/t Au from 79.3 m MD07 inc. 80.00 81.00 1.00 1.59 1.6 1.00 m @ 1.59 g/t Au from 80 m MD07 114.80 116.90 2.10 0.51 1.1 2.10 m @ 0.51 g/t Au from 114.8 m MD07 154.00 155.60 1.60 1.22 2.0 1.60 m @ 1.22 g/t Au from 154 m MD07 inc. 155.00 155.60 0.60 2.33 1.4 0.60 m @ 2.33 g/t Au from 155 m MD08 202.00 203.00 1.00 0.72 0.7 1.00 m @ 0.72 g/t Au from 202 m MD08 206.00 207.00 1.00 0.38 0.4 1.00 m @ 0.38 g/t Au from 206 m MD08 222.52 223.42 0.90 0.35 0.3 0.90 m @ 0.35 g/t Au from 222.52 m MD08A 114.21 114.60 0.39 2.44 1.0 0.39 m @ 2.44 g/t Au from 114.21 m MD08A 123.00 125.00 2.00 1.60 3.2 2.00 m @ 1.60 g/t Au from 123 m MD08A inc. 124.00 125.00 1.00 2.30 2.3 1.00 m @ 2.30 g/t Au from 124 m MD08A 134.00 135.00 1.00 0.61 0.6 1.00 m @ 0.61 g/t Au from 134 m MD08A 152.78 153.09 0.31 0.35 0.1 0.31 m @ 0.35 g/t Au from 152.78 m MD08A 173.05 174.00 0.95 0.42 0.4 0.95 m @ 0.42 g/t Au from 173.05 m MD08A 285.00 285.44 0.44 0.71 0.3 0.44 m @ 0.71 g/t Au from 285 m MD08A 291.03 292.00 0.97 0.40 0.4 0.97 m @ 0.40 g/t Au from 291.03 m MD08A 298.00 298.70 0.70 0.61 0.4 0.70 m @ 0.61 g/t Au from 298 m MD08A 301.00 302.00 1.00 0.63 0.6 1.00 m @ 0.63 g/t Au from 301 m MD08A 342.88 344.00 1.12 0.32 0.4 1.12 m @ 0.32 g/t Au from 342.88 m MD08A 422.00 423.00 1.00 0.87 0.9 1.00 m @ 0.87 g/t Au from 422 m LSDDH7 196.40 197.40 1.00 3.41 3.4 1.00 m @ 3.41 g/t Au from 196.4 m DDHMA1 20.60 22.00 1.40 0.31 0.4 1.40 m @ 0.31 g/t Au from 20.6 m DDHMA1 41.10 45.10 4.00 0.64 2.6 4.00 m @ 0.64 g/t Au from 41.1 m DDHMA1 62.40 63.40 1.00 0.89 0.9 1.00 m @ 0.89 g/t Au from 62.4 m DDHMA1 146.00 148.00 2.00 0.30 0.6 2.00 m @ 0.30 g/t Au from 146 m DDHMA1 157.95 158.80 0.85 0.43 0.4 0.85 m @ 0.43 g/t Au from 157.95 m DDHMA1 169.00 175.00 6.00 4.37 26.2 6.00 m @ 4.37 g/t Au from 169 m DDHMA1 inc. 169.00 174.00 5.00 5.18 25.9 5.00 m @ 5.18 g/t Au from 169 m DDHMA1 176.00 177.00 1.00 0.34 0.3 1.00 m @ 0.34 g/t Au from 176 m DDHMA2 8.60 10.10 1.50 0.60 0.9 1.50 m @ 0.60 g/t Au from 8.6 m DDHMA2 90.00 103.00 13.00 0.64 8.4 13.00 m @ 0.64 g/t Au from 90 m DDHMA2 inc. 94.00 95.00 1.00 1.92 1.9 1.00 m @ 1.92 g/t Au from 94 m DDHMA2 105.00 106.00 1.00 0.34 0.3 1.00 m @ 0.34 g/t Au from 105 m DDHMA2 115.00 116.00 1.00 0.50 0.5 1.00 m @ 0.50 g/t Au from 115 m DDHMA2 118.00 119.10 1.10 0.41 0.5 1.10 m @ 0.41 g/t Au from 118 m DDHMA2 148.00 150.00 2.00 0.37 0.7 2.00 m @ 0.37 g/t Au from 148 m DDHMA2 156.00 157.00 1.00 0.40 0.4 1.00 m @ 0.40 g/t Au from 156 m DDHMA2 168.00 169.00 1.00 0.82 0.8 1.00 m @ 0.82 g/t Au from 168 m DDHMA3 2.00 3.00 1.00 0.40 0.4 1.00 m @ 0.40 g/t Au from 2 m DDHMA3 52.30 53.30 1.00 0.40 0.4 1.00 m @ 0.40 g/t Au from 52.3 m DDHMA3 94.00 98.00 4.00 0.38 1.5 4.00 m @ 0.38 g/t Au from 94 m DDHMA3 99.00 100.00 1.00 0.36 0.4 1.00 m @ 0.36 g/t Au from 99 m DDHMA3 103.00 105.00 2.00 0.48 1.0 2.00 m @ 0.48 g/t Au from 103 m DDHMA3 110.00 111.00 1.00 0.75 0.8 1.00 m @ 0.75 g/t Au from 110 m DDHMA3 112.00 113.00 1.00 0.31 0.3 1.00 m @ 0.31 g/t Au from 112 m DDHMA3 116.00 120.20 4.20 0.44 1.8 4.20 m @ 0.44 g/t Au from 116 m DDHMA3 122.30 124.30 2.00 0.38 0.8 2.00 m @ 0.38 g/t Au from 122.3 m DDHMA3 133.30 134.40 1.10 0.43 0.5 1.10 m @ 0.43 g/t Au from 133.3 m DDHMA3 135.60 136.10 0.50 0.40 0.2 0.50 m @ 0.40 g/t Au from 135.6 m DDHMA3 148.00 148.75 0.75 0.45 0.3 0.75 m @ 0.45 g/t Au from 148 m DDHMA3 152.60 153.10 0.50 2.22 1.1 0.50 m @ 2.22 g/t Au from 152.6 m DDHMA3 207.00 208.75 1.75 0.65 1.1 1.75 m @ 0.65 g/t Au from 207 m DDHMA3 inc. 207.00 207.50 0.50 1.19 0.6 0.50 m @ 1.19 g/t Au from 207 m





JORC Code, 2012 Edition  Table 1 Belltopper Gold Project

Section 1 Sampling Techniques and Data

(Criteria in this section apply to all succeeding sections.)

Criteria JORC Code explanation Commentary Sampling techniques Nature and quality of sampling (eg cut channels, random chips, or specific specialised industry standard measurement tools appropriate to the minerals under investigation, such as down hole gamma sondes, or handheld XRF instruments, etc). These examples should not be taken as limiting the broad meaning of sampling.

Include reference to measures taken to ensure sample representivity and the appropriate calibration of any measurement tools or systems used.

Aspects of the determination of mineralisation that are Material to the Public Report.

In cases where industry standard work has been done this would be relatively simple (eg reverse circulation drilling was used to obtain 1 m samples from which 3 kg was pulverised to produce a 30 g charge for fire assay). In other cases more explanation may be required, such as where there is coarse gold that has inherent sampling problems. Unusual commodities or mineralisation types (eg submarine nodules) may warrant disclosure of detailed information. All drill holes within the Belltopper Project were drilled as either diamond or reverse circulation holes. The detail of the various phases of drilling are discussed under drilling technique in the section below.

Details of sampling and assay methods are discussed in the sections below under the headings sub-sampling techniques and sample preparation and quality of assay data and laboratory tests respectively.





Criteria JORC Code explanation Commentary Drilling techniques Drill type (eg core, reverse circulation, open-hole hammer, rotary air blast, auger, Bangka, sonic, etc) and details (eg core diameter, triple or standard tube, depth of diamond tails, face-sampling bit or other type, whether core is oriented and if so, by what method, etc). Drilling at the Belltopper Project includes both diamond drilling (DD) (88.83%) and reverse circulation drilling (RC) (11.17% of drilling) across nine phases of drilling: Summary of Belltopper Drilling Phases

of

Drilling Holes Type Company Year Hole

Count Total

Metres Max

Depth

(m) % of

drilling BTD Series BTD001-BTD006 DD Novo 2024 6 2528.9 594 16.80% MD Series

MD13-MD22 DD Novo/



GBM 2022 11 3161.7 553.9 21.00% MD12 DD GBM 2010 1 999.8 999.8 6.64% MD1-MD11 DD GBM 2008 12 3694 478.5 24.54% LSRC/D Series LSRC16/D14, LSRC17/D15 RC with DD Tails Eureka 1994 2 185.1 101.1 1.23% LSRC Series LSRC1-LSRC15 RC Eureka 1994 15 1497 118 9.94% HMDDH Series HMDDH1-HMDDH3 DD Pittson 1992 3 427.2 180.7 2.84% LSDDH Series LSDDH1-LSDDH13 DD Pittson 1990 13 1818.6 333 12.08% DDHMA Series DDHMA1-DDHMA2 DD Molopo 1987 3 741.55 298.6 4.93% Total 66 15053.85 100% Max Depth

MD12 is the deepest DD hole from the project at 999.8 m. The deepest RC hole was drilled to 118 m. The overall average hole depth from Belltopper is 228 m. Drill Method

All diamond drilling utilised standard wireline drilling methods.

The MD Series (MD13-MD22) was drilled with triple tube HQ3 and NQ3 core diameter, all other drill phases were drilled with conventional HQ core (63.5 mm diameter) from surface with occasional NQ or NQ2 Core tails. Core Orientation All diamond core from the MD Series onwards was orientated to varying degrees. The BTD series utilised a REFLEX ACT III digital core orientation system, while DD core from the MD13-MD22 series was orientated with a Boort Longyear TruCore orientation tool. Earlier DD core used varying methods of core orientation including a traditional spear method. Bedding and key foliation relationships are well understood and were often used to calibrate the orientation of drill core.





Criteria JORC Code explanation Commentary Drill sample recovery Method of recording and assessing core and chip sample recoveries and results assessed.

Measures taken to maximise sample recovery and ensure representative nature of the samples.

Whether a relationship exists between sample recovery and grade and whether sample bias may have occurred due to preferential loss/gain of fine/coarse material. Diamond core recovery was recorded in logs run by run and, in general, core loss greater than or equal to 0.2 m was recorded in geological logs. Core loss zones were treated as zero grade in any significant intersection calculation.

Drilling recovery data for RC drilling is recorded in drill logs as good, medium or poor with recovery generally considered by the geologist logging as good. Summary of drilling recovery % Recovery BTD Series 99.6 MD Series 95.4 HMDDH Series 90.7 LSRC/D Series 99.6 LSRC Series Good DDHMA Series Good The sampling methods utilised are appropriate and representative of the of the drilled ground.

Particularly in historical drilling, occasional core loss was observed within ore zones. More recent drilling efforts focused on ensuring good recovery in these zones.

Significant sample bias or High grading due to any core loss has not been observed.





Criteria JORC Code explanation Commentary Logging Whether core and chip samples have been geologically and geotechnically logged to a level of detail to support appropriate Mineral Resource estimation, mining studies and metallurgical studies.

Whether logging is qualitative or quantitative in nature. Core (or costean, channel, etc) photography.

The total length and percentage of the relevant intersections logged. All diamond drill core was washed and metre-marked, orientated (where appropriate), and then selectively logged for geotechnical parameters (RQD, recovery and rock strength), lithology, mineralisation, weathering, alteration, quartz vein style and percentage and number of quartz veins per metre. Later core logging ( BTD and MD series and relogging of historic core) included measurements for magnetic susceptibility, and representative density measurements. Additional comments relating to specific mineralised intervals were added once assays were received.

Since 2020, many of the historic drilled DD holes have been relogged and infill sampled to ensure consistent interpretation of key features and the identification of any previously missed mineralised zones.

Both wet and dry photographs are available for all MD and BTD series holes and for the vast majority of historic core.

All logging is of a standard that allows identification and interpretation of key geological features to a level appropriate to support a possible mineral resource estimation in the future. Sub-sampling techniques and sample preparation If core, whether cut or sawn and whether quarter, half or all core taken.

If non-core, whether riffled, tube sampled, rotary split, etc and whether sampled wet or dry.

For all sample types, the nature, quality and appropriateness of the sample preparation technique.

Quality control procedures adopted for all sub-sampling stages to maximise representivity of samples.

Measures taken to ensure that the sampling is representative of the in situ material collected, including for instance results for field duplicate/second-half sampling.

Whether sample sizes are appropriate to the grain size of the material being sampled. DD core was sampled by cutting it using a diamond saw longitudinally in half. Samples were cut to geological boundaries or to a preferred length of 1.0 m. Where a core orientation line was present, core was cut 2 cm to the left of the line (when looking down hole). When no cut line was present, core was cut longitudinally down the apex line of the most prominent geological feature (such as bedding or vein boundaries). Once cut, the upper half of core (left side of the tray when looking down hole) is placed in a pre-labelled calico bag and dispatched for analysis. The lower half of core is returned to the core tray in its original orientation.

In general, sample intervals ranged from 0.3 m to 1.3 m.

RC samples (LSRC series) were split using a Jones riffle splitter to a nominal 3-5 kg sample weight.

Field duplicates were representative of the original primary pair either as a quarter core duplicate or RC riffle-split duplicate.

Once at the laboratory, all sample material was crushed and pulverized prior to analysis. Samples from the BTD and MD13-MD22 Series were coarse crushed using the ALS method CRU-21 and pulverise up to 3 kg to 85 % passing 75 microns (ALS Method PUL-23).

The sampling methods and sample sizes are appropriate to the style of mineralisation (fine-grained free gold, fine grained disseminated auriferous sulphides or the oxidized equivalents).





Criteria JORC Code explanation Commentary Quality of assay data and laboratory tests The nature, quality and appropriateness of the assaying and laboratory procedures used and whether the technique is considered partial or total.

For geophysical tools, spectrometers, handheld XRF instruments, etc, the parameters used in determining the analysis including instrument make and model, reading times, calibrations factors applied and their derivation, etc.

Nature of quality control procedures adopted (eg standards, blanks, duplicates, external laboratory checks) and whether acceptable levels of accuracy (ie lack of bias) and precision have been established. Assay Method

For the recent BTD series, drilling of MD13-MD22, MD12 and any recent infill sampling of historic holes, samples have been submitted to ALS Laboratories Adelaide for analysis using the methods described below: Gold was analysed with a 50 g ore grade (DL of 0.01 g/t Au) Au fire assay and an atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) finish (ALS Method Au-AA26). Original assaying of MD12 used trace level (DL of 0.001 g/t Au) ALS Lab Method Au-AA21 with a nominal 30 g sample weight. Multielement geochemistry was analysed for a suite of 48 elements obtained by a four-acid near-total digestion with a combination of Inductively coupled plasma (ICP) Mass Spectrometry (MS) and Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (AES) finish on a 0.25 g pulp sample (ALS Lab Method ME-MS61).

Samples from GBM MD01 to MD11 series holes were originally assayed at Amdel Laboratories in Adelaide Gold was analysed with Fire Assay method FA1 (DL of 0.01 g/t Au) Multielement geochemistry was analysed with method IC3E using a sample of up to 0.2 g of the analytical pulp digested using a HF/multi acid digest, with solution presented for analysis with ICP Optical Emission Spectroscopy (OES).

Samples from original LSRC, LSRC/D, LSDDH and HMDDH series utilised ALS lab method PM203 for gold analysis (DL of 0.02 g/t Au) based on the aqua regia digestion of a 50 g charge and a fire assay with an Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS) finish.

The original lab method for DDHMA series holes could not be determined with confidence. Any gold assay of significant grade (0.1 g/t Au) has been resampled using the same lab method as used by the BTD series (Au-AA26 and ME-MS61).

All assays were performed at external laboratories.

A portable XRF available on site during recent drilling has only been used to assist with mineral identification. QAQC Method For the recent BTD series drilling, drilling of MD13-MD22 and any recent infill sampling of historic holes (Includes earlier MD, LSDDH DDHMA series holes), staff used an industry accepted QAQC methodology incorporating blind field duplicates, blanks, and certified reference materials (CRM) standards. Standards and blanks were inserted at a rate of four each per hundred samples (see Standard ID table) and field duplicates were inserted at a nominal rate of four per hundred with geologist discretion for duplicate placement. Table of CRM standard insertion rate Standard ID Sample ID ending in OREAS 232 33, 83 OREAS 239 or

OREAS 232b 58 OREAS 264 08 BLANK

OREAS C26d

Or

OREAS C26e 16, 41, 66, 91 Laboratory QAQC involves the use of internal lab standards using certified reference material, blanks, splits and replicates as part of the in-house procedures.

QAQC insertion rates for early-stage drilling are in line with industry standards at the time. The LSRC series included the insertion of field blanks and standards at a rate of approximately 5 per 100 samples and conducted riffle split field duplicates nominally at 20 to 30 m intervals. Original LSDDH and HMDDH series sampling included the insertion of approximately 12 % field duplicates and the occasional insertion of field blanks and standards. No QAQC assay data was reported with original DDHMA series samples.

No issues of concern were identified in a comprehensive review of QAQC data associated with the Belltopper project.





Criteria JORC Code explanation Commentary Verification of sampling and assaying The verification of significant intersections by either independent or alternative company personnel.

The use of twinned holes.

Documentation of primary data, data entry procedures, data verification, data storage (physical and electronic) protocols.

Discuss any adjustment to assay data. All significant intersections were checked and verified internally by senior qualified Novo staff.

Twinned holes were not completed.

All primary drill data was documented, verified (including QAQC analysis) and stored within an industry-standard SQL database. Location of data points Accuracy and quality of surveys used to locate drill holes (collar and down-hole surveys), trenches, mine workings and other locations used in Mineral Resource estimation.

Specification of the grid system used.

Quality and adequacy of topographic control. Drill collar surveys

All BTD and MD series collars were initially surveyed by company staff using a hand-held GPS. At the completion of each program all collars were surveyed in MGA94 Zone 55 and MGA2020 zone 55 by a Registered Licensed Surveyor using a Differential GPS system (DGPS).

Holes drilled by Eureka and the majority of holes drilled by Pittson in the mid 1990s (LSRC/D & LSRC Series and HMDDH & LSDDH Series respectively) were surveyed in AMG84 Zone 55 by a Registered Licensed Surveyor using a theodolite.

The collar positions for the DDHMA Series are considered less reliable, as they have been digitised off old plan maps. Although the general drill pads for these holes could be located, Novo staff were unable to locate the collar positions.

Most collar positions, except for the DDHMA series collars, have been validated in the field.

A high-resolution LIDAR survey flown in Dec 2022 over the Belltopper project has assisted in validating the collar position of all Belltopper drill holes.

All drill collars have been converted to and are presented in MGA94 Zone 55. Downhole surveys Downhole surveying of DD for the MD and BTD series were carried out at a nominal depth of 6 m, then every 25 m from thereon and at end of hole. The BTD series drilling used a REFLEX EZ-TRAC digital magnetic hole survey system, while the MD13-MD22 series used a Boart Longyear TruShot magnetic multi-shot tool. DD holes MD01-MD11 were surveyed with a magnetic single shot camera

Earlier DD holes were surveyed using a magnetic single shot camera at the collar, then at nominal 50 m intervals down hole and at end of hole depth. RC holes were surveyed at collar and end of hole depth. Data spacing and distribution Data spacing for reporting of Exploration Results.

Whether the data spacing and distribution is sufficient to establish the degree of geological and grade continuity appropriate for the Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve estimation procedure(s) and classifications applied.

Whether sample compositing has been applied. Drilling at the Belltopper project has primarily focused on the Leven Star prospect area. Drilling along this mineralised trend has been at a nominal 30-50 m spacing along strike and down-dip. The deepest Leven Star intersection occurs approximately 400 m below the surface topography.

Drilling outside the Leven Star mineralised trend has been of a scout nature testing narrow lode mineralisation styles.

Coupled with a comprehensive understanding of the historic workings and detailed geological mapping there is good confidence in the continuity of mineralised structures and other geological features outside of the Leven Star mineralised trend.

DD core samples were not physically composited.

RC samples were physically composited into four-meter intervals for initial sampling. Any composited samples returning grade were subsequently resampled at a one-meter infill intervals. Orientation of data in relation to geological structure Whether the orientation of sampling achieves unbiased sampling of possible structures and the extent to which this is known, considering the deposit type.

If the relationship between the drilling orientation and the orientation of key mineralised structures is considered to have introduced a sampling bias, this should be assessed and reported if material. In most cases, holes were drilled across strike at a high angle to the interpreted mineralisation geometry.

No sampling bias is considered to have been introduced by the drilling orientation.

Further discussion regarding drilling orientation is presented under the heading Relationship between mineralisation widths and intercept lengths. Sample security The measures taken to ensure sample security. All samples from the BTD and MD13-MD22 series were transported by a commercial courier directly to ALS Laboratories in Adelaide from the Novo/GBM core facility in Castlemaine, Victoria.

During previous drill programs, samples were either delivered via courier or directly delivered by staff to the appropriate laboratory.

Available core, coarse rejects and pulps are stored at the Novo core facility in Castlemaine, Victoria. Audits or reviews The results of any audits or reviews of sampling techniques and data. No audits of either the data or the methods used in this program have been undertaken to date.



Section 2 Reporting of Exploration Results



(Criteria listed in the preceding section also apply to this section.)

Criteria JORC Code explanation Commentary Mineral tenement and land tenure status Type, reference name/number, location and ownership including agreements or material issues with third parties such as joint ventures, partnerships, overriding royalties, native title interests, historical sites, wilderness or national park and environmental settings.

The security of the tenure held at the time of reporting along with any known impediments to obtaining a licence to operate in the area. The Belltopper Project is enclosed within retention license RL006587 (Originally granted on 23 rd September 2020 for a period of 10 years) and EL007112 (Originally granted on 3 rd of July 2020 for a period of 5 years). All reported drilling associated with the Belltopper Project is located within RL006587

September 2020 for a period of 10 years) and EL007112 (Originally granted on 3 of July 2020 for a period of 5 years). All reported drilling associated with the Belltopper Project is located within RL006587 The rights, title and interest of RL006587 and EL007112 are held under Rocklea Gold Pty Ltd (100% subsidiary of Novo resources Corp.)

Part of retention license RL006587 is located within the Fryers Ridge Conservation Reserve. The Reserve is classified as restricted Crown land under the Mineral Resources Development Act 1990 and may be used for mineral exploration and mining, subject to the approval of the Minister for Environment and Conservation.

Novo has accepted the Schedule 4 conditions of the Land Use Activity Agreement between the Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation and the State of Victoria applying to all Crown land including road reserves within the retention license. Exploration done by other parties Acknowledgment and appraisal of exploration by other parties. The project area has been explored by several companies since the 1970s. In 1987 Molopo/Paringa drilled 3 DD holes for 741.55 m. In 1990-92 Pittson drilled 16 DD holes for 2245.8m. In 1994 Eureka drilled 15 RC holes for 1682.1m and 2 RC holes with DD tails for a further 185.1m.

GBM Resources drilled 12 DD holes (MD01 to MD11 including MD08A) for 3694 m in 2008 followed by a single 999.8 m hole (MD12) which was drilled in March 2010).

In joint venture with GBM Resources, Novo Resources drilled 3161.7 m of HQ and NQ diamond core across 11 holes (MD13 to MD22 including MD18A). Geology Deposit type, geological setting and style of mineralisation. The geology within the project area consists of a series of Early Ordovician turbidites that form part of the Castlemaine Supergroup within the Ballarat-Bendigo Structural Zone of the Lachlan Fold Belt. The sediments comprise of a very uniform and well-bedded sequence of marine sandstone and mudstone interbedded with fossiliferous black shale. The Drummond North goldfield is a north-trending belt of fault-related mineralised zones, extending from the Humboldt reef in the north to the Queens Birthday reef in the south, a distance of around 4 kilometres. Approximately 30 % of the tenement area is covered by basalt cover.

Historically two styles of mineralisation have been investigated at Belltopper Hill, located within the Drummond North Goldfield. One comprises steeply dipping, north-west to north-trending quartz veins with associated stockwork zones (e.g. Panama and Missing Link) that were worked to shallow depths in the late 1800s. The other is a northeast-striking zone that cuts obliquely across bedding in the Ordovician sedimentary rocks and was worked for a short time in the 1930s as Andrews Lode but more recently as the Leven Star Zone. Most modern exploration has targeted the Leven Star lode with only modest attention paid to the other reefs on Belltopper or to the reef lines south of the hill where the bulk of historical production occurred.

Recent drilling has also highlighted the potential of saddle reef style mineralisation within the Belltopper corridor.

At Leven Star, the GBM 2008 resource work determined that the reef, up to 8m wide, follows a narrow, brittle fault zone with associated intense fracturing and quartz vein development in the country rock. Deformity and reef width are controlled by lithology with the best development in coarser-grained sandstone units. Sulphide mineralisation occurs as; fine-grained pyrite/stibnite/bismuth-telluride/bismuthinite in quartz veins and country rock fractures, disseminated clots of pyrite-arsenopyrite-stibnite-pyrrhotite-chalcopyrite, and as fine needles and radial clots associated with sericite. Pyrite is most widespread while stibnite-arsenpyrite are restricted to stockwork veins and larger-scale quartz veins. Alteration is dominated by sericite, within quartz veins and as vein selvedge. Carbonate/sulphide alteration is extensive as haloes around breccia zones. Skarn-like assemblages of scheelite/fluorite/cassiterite with coarse bladed calcite and muscovite are also present.

The Drummond/Belltopper mineralisation shares similarities with the Fosterville gold field; mapped distribution and scale of workings, reef geometry, gold in arsenopyrite disseminated in country rocks, sulphide-carbonate alteration and gold antimony association, and mineralisation age (370 Ma).

Mineralisation may be associated with buried intrusion(s) of IRG or porphyry affinity. Evidence for intrusion-related mineralisation includes; outcropping auriferous and altered porphyritic monzogranite with overprinting gold-bearing sheet veins, a Falcon gravity low anomaly spatially associated with the hill and mineralisation, presence of Mo-Bi-W-Te-Sb in soils and rocks on Belltopper, and anomalous Mo-Bi-Sn-W-Cu-Sb-Zn to significant depth in the deep exploration hole MD12. Drill hole Information A summary of all information material to the understanding of the exploration results including a tabulation of the following information for all Material drill holes: easting and northing of the drill hole collar elevation or RL (Reduced Level  elevation above sea level in metres) of the drill hole collar dip and azimuth of the hole down hole length and interception depth hole length.

If the exclusion of this information is justified on the basis that the information is not Material and this exclusion does not detract from the understanding of the report, the Competent Person should clearly explain why this is the case. Detailed drill hole information is provided in the accompanying table. Data aggregation methods In reporting Exploration Results, weighting averaging techniques, maximum and/or minimum grade truncations (eg cutting of high grades) and cut-off grades are usually Material and should be stated.

Where aggregate intercepts incorporate short lengths of high grade results and longer lengths of low grade results, the procedure used for such aggregation should be stated and some typical examples of such aggregations should be shown in detail.

The assumptions used for any reporting of metal equivalent values should be clearly stated. Reported gold intersections have been calculated with length-weighted averages using the following parameters:

Standard intersections

 0.3 g/t Au cut-off and 2 m internal dilution.

 High grade included intercepts calculated with 1.0 g/t Au and no internal dilution.

Granite/intrusive intersections

 Significant intersections across broad intrusive zones in MD17, MD22 and DDHMA3 were calculated using a 0.1g/t Au cut-off grade and no more than 5m internal dilution.

 0.3 g/t Au cut-off and 2 m internal dilution.  High grade included intercepts calculated with 1.0 g/t Au and no internal dilution.  Significant intersections across broad intrusive zones in MD17, MD22 and DDHMA3 were calculated using a 0.1g/t Au cut-off grade and no more than 5m internal dilution. All width and intercepts are expressed as metres downhole. Calculated as length weighted averages.



Reported core loss was treated as 0 g/t Au grade in all calculations.

The gold assay of a primary sample from a duplicate pair was used in all calculations.

Any isolated gold intersections separated by internal dilution must independently be above the average cut-off grade when including the grades of the internal dilution.

Metal equivalents were not reported. Relationship between mineralisation widths and intercept lengths These relationships are particularly important in the reporting of Exploration Results.

If the geometry of the mineralisation with respect to the drill hole angle is known, its nature should be reported.

If it is not known and only the down hole lengths are reported, there should be a clear statement to this effect (eg down hole length, true width not known). Reported gold intersections from drilling represent apparent downhole widths.

Most targeted mineralised trends for the Belltopper Project are interpreted to be vertical to sub-vertical with many drill holes intersecting mineralisation at an acute angle of between 30  and 65 . As a result, true widths of most significant intersections are likely to be a reduced factor of reported apparent downhole widths. In general, it is estimated that true width twill be between 40 % and 85 % less than the reported downhole widths.

In summary of more recent drilling: BTD001 intersects Leven Star at a shallow angle. True widths for these intersections will be between 50 % and 60 % lower than the reported downhole widths. BTD002 was drilled shallow along the strike of geology with the aim of increasing the potential of intersecting anticline related mineralisation. The two most elevated intersection in BTD002 were Welcome Fault (4.1 m @ 2.4 g/t Au from 36.1 m) and Hanover fault (19.15 m @ 0.7 g/t Au from 216 m in BTD002). BTD002 intersected both structures at a shallow angle and the true width of these structures are likely to be around 40% less than the reported down hole width. Cross section interpretation of BTD003 indicates that BTD003 intersected Butcher Gully fault at a high angle, while other key intersections from this hole were likely intersected at a shallower angle, and the true width of these structures are likely to be around 20% to 30 % less than the reported down hole width. Cross section interpretation of BTD004 and BTD005 indicate most drill intersections were at a high angle to intersected reefs with the notable exception of the Missing Link (12.26 m @ 1.4 g/t Au from 185 m) and Missing Link Footwall (3.17 m @ 1.1 g/t Au from 164.11 m) which were both intersected at a shallow angle of around 30 degrees. True widths for these intersections will be approximately 40 % less than the reported downhole widths. BTD006 intersected Piezzi Reef Fault (7 m @ 1.9 g/t Au from 179 m) at a shallow angle. The true width of this intersection is likely to be between 50 % and 40 % less than the reported downhole width.

Diagrams Appropriate maps and sections (with scales) and tabulations of intercepts should be included for any significant discovery being reported These should include, but not be limited to a plan view of drill hole collar locations and appropriate sectional views. Collar plans showing drill collar locations are included. Balanced reporting Where comprehensive reporting of all Exploration Results is not practicable, representative reporting of both low and high grades and/or widths should be practiced to avoid misleading reporting of Exploration Results. A table of significant intersections with a gram metre intersection of greater than 0.3 GM with the detailed parameters is presented within this report. Other substantive exploration data Other exploration data, if meaningful and material, should be reported including (but not limited to): geological observations; geophysical survey results; geochemical survey results; bulk samples  size and method of treatment; metallurgical test results; bulk density, groundwater, geotechnical and rock characteristics; potential deleterious or contaminating substances. Other recent phases of exploration at Belltopper include: Detailed geological mapping. 2801 soil geochemistry samples at a nominal spacing of 100 m by 50 m, increasing to 25 m by 25 m spacing in areas of anomalism. 1084 multielement rock chip samples. Compilation and 3D digitisation of historic production workings. Recent geophysics surveys including: 15.2 line km of 2D dipole-dipole induced polarisation. 83.1 line km of ground magnetics. 121 new stations of ground gravity (merged with GBM 2008 ground gravity survey).

Further work The nature and scale of planned further work (eg tests for lateral extensions or depth extensions or large-scale step-out drilling).

Diagrams clearly highlighting the areas of possible extensions, including the main geological interpretations and future drilling areas, provided this information is not commercially sensitive. Work by Novo has identified strong potential for the discovery of additional resource ounces within the Drummond and Belltopper Hill goldfields.

Potential targets can be classified into categories based on structural domains and target models; Incremental increases to the current Leven Star resource where shoots are open at depth and along strike. Step over or repeat of Leven Star parallel structures defined by geophysics, mapping, and soils data. Intersection between key mineralised structures (including Leven Star reef, the Missing Link, Hanover Reef, and Welcome Fault structures) and project scale anticlines (Mostly notably, Belltopper Anticline) Blind mineralisation associated with north-northwest trending mineralised structures including; Piezzi Reef, O'Connors Reef, and Panama Reef under the west dipping regional Taradale Fault. Poorly tested 1.5+ km system strike length from Queens Birthday to OConnors Reefs. Further investigation of intrusion related gold system (IRGS) model; mineralisation in sheeted veins, breccias or disseminations at margin or within near-surface dykes or deeper-seated intrusion(s). Unrealised potential for intrusion hosted gold (e.g. modelled intersections of high-grade gold reefs with the Missing Link Granite are untested at Belltopper).






Mount Laurel, NJ, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Holman, a global automotive services leader, is celebrating the organizations 100th anniversary. Founded by Steward C. Holman on August 23, 1924, Holman began as a single Ford dealership in New Jersey. Since then, the organization has experienced steady growth and success through three generations of family ownership. Today, Holman is one of the largest family-owned automotive services organizations in the world with more than 9,000 employees across North America, the United Kingdom, and Germany.

One hundred years ago, my grandfather laid the foundation for our company when he opened Rice & Holman Ford with an emphasis on both customer care and community involvement, said Chair of the Board Mindy Holman. As I reflect on this milestone, I'm incredibly grateful to our people, who are responsible not only for our growth and success but also for creating an exceptional organizational culture. I know dad and granddad would be equally proud.

Since 1924, Holman has leveraged its unrivaled competencies and industry expertise to deliver innovative automotive services to both B2B and B2C customers around the globe. Highlights of Holmans journey over the last century include:

1924  Steward Holman opens Rice & Holman Ford dealership in New Jersey

 Steward Holman opens Rice & Holman Ford dealership in New Jersey 1946  Holman begins remanufacturing engines and transmissions, laying the foundation of its powertrain business

 Holman begins remanufacturing engines and transmissions, laying the foundation of its powertrain business 1947  Holman expands its automotive dealership footprint into Florida

 Holman expands its automotive dealership footprint into Florida 1948  Holman establishes its fleet management division

 Holman establishes its fleet management division 1982  Holman expands into commercial vehicle upfitting to support its fleet customers

 Holman expands into commercial vehicle upfitting to support its fleet customers 1989  Holman expands its fleet management business to Canada

 Holman expands its fleet management business to Canada 1993  Holman expands its fleet management business to Mexico

 Holman expands its fleet management business to Mexico 2010  Holman acquires Auto Truck Group, significantly increasing its upfitting capacity

 Holman acquires Auto Truck Group, significantly increasing its upfitting capacity 2011  Holman expands its fleet management business to the United Kingdom

 Holman expands its fleet management business to the United Kingdom 2013  Holman enters the German fleet management market through a pair of acquisitions

 Holman enters the German fleet management market through a pair of acquisitions 2016  Holman establishes its insurance services division and nearly doubles its retail footprint with the acquisition of a Washington-based dealership group

 Holman establishes its insurance services division and nearly doubles its retail footprint with the acquisition of a Washington-based dealership group 2017  Holman expands into commercial vehicle rack and equipment manufacturing

 Holman expands into commercial vehicle rack and equipment manufacturing 2019  Holman launches its venture capital funding division

 Holman launches its venture capital funding division 2024  Holman again doubles its retail business through an acquisition in North Carolina

Today, Holman, headquartered in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, provides an extensive range of automotive related services including industry-leading fleet management; commercial vehicle equipment manufacturing; powertrain distribution and logistics services; insurance and risk management services; and retail automotive sales as one of the largest privately owned dealership groups in the United States with 59 dealerships across nine states.

While the purpose of our company remains focused on providing a rewarding career and a better life for the employees that come to work at Holman, it is our relentless pursuit of creating an exceptional customer experience that drives our organization forward each day, said Holman Chief Executive Officer Chris Conroy. Mindys dad, Mr. Joe Holman, would often remind us to always focus on the customer that is right in front of you. If you provide the best experience you can for that customer, you earn the right to find another and do the same. While a simple reminder, it is this philosophy, and our deeply rooted values, that continue to guide us as we embark on our second century in business.

Throughout 2024, Holman has celebrated 100 years of driving whats right (the companys corporate philosophy) with a series of events for employees and their families across the various regions in which the business operates.

For additional information about Holman or to learn more about the companys remarkable history, please visit Holman.com.

About Holman

Holman is a global automotive leader that serves both commercial and consumer clients The Holman Way by always doing the right thing for our people, our customers, and the community since 1924. The Holman story began 100 years ago as a single Ford dealership in New Jersey. Today, Holman, headquartered in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, is one of the largest family-owned automotive service organizations in North America with nearly 9,000 employees across North America, the UK, and Germany.

Holman delivers a unique range of automotive services including industry-leading fleet management and leasing; commercial vehicle equipment manufacturing; powertrain distribution and logistics services; commercial and personal insurance and risk management; venture capital funding; and automotive retail sales as one of the largest privately owned dealership groups in the United States. Guided by its deeply rooted core values and principles, Holman is continuously Driving Whats Right. For additional information, please visit Holman.com and connect with Holman on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook.

Press Photos & Video Available Here

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Boston, MA, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Beacon Hill is proud to announce its continued recognition on several key lists in the 2024 Staffing Industry Analyst (SIA) rankings. For the ninth consecutive year, Beacon Hill has been honored among the Largest Staffing Firms in the US, securing the #26 spot. This achievement reflects the companys steadfast commitment to providing exceptional workforce solutions across various industries.

Beacon Hills dedication to excellence is further demonstrated by its ranking on additional specialized SIA lists:

Largest Office/Clerical Staffing Firms in the US : #13  6th year

: #13  6th year Largest Life Sciences Staffing Firms in the US : #13  6th year

: #13  6th year Largest Finance/Accounting Staffing Firms in the US : #14  6th year

: #14  6th year Largest IT Staffing Firms in the US: #11  9th year

These accolades highlight Beacon Hills significant impact in the staffing industry, affirming its position as a leader in delivering top-tier talent and innovative solutions. The companys ongoing success is a testament to the dedication and expertise of its teams, who continue to set benchmarks in the industry.

Beacon Hill remains committed to advancing its mission of empowering businesses with the talent and workforce solutions they need to thrive while providing exceptional career opportunities for professionals across the nation.

About Beacon Hill

Beacon Hill is a leading nationwide provider of staffing and consulting solutions delivered by our collective of 1,400+ of the industrys foremost specialty practitioners. Job seekers and companies seeking to augment their staff receive white-glove service from our industry-focused divisions: Beacon Hill Associates, Beacon Hill Digital & Creative, Beacon Hill Financial, Beacon Hill Government Services, Beacon Hill HR, Beacon Hill Legal, Beacon Hill Life Sciences, Beacon Hill National Security, Beacon Hill Solutions and Beacon Hill Technologies.

Click here to learn more about our specialty divisions and market sectors.

If you are interested in pursuing career opportunities, click here to view all current openings.

Beacon Hills niche brands provide direct hire, executive search, contract staffing, contract consulting, contract-to-hire, and MSP/VMS and RPO solutions to emerging growth companies and the Fortune 500 across multiple market sectors and all industries. In 2023, Beacon Hill outpaced the markets growth with revenues over $1 billion.

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Directorate Change

Serabi Gold plc (Serabi or the Company) (AIM: SRB, TSX: SBI, OTCQX : SRBIF), announces that Clive Line, Finance Director of Serabi, has informed the Board of his intention to retire at the end of December 2024 and as a result to step down from his role with Serabi and as a Director of the Company. Notwithstanding, Mr. Line has agreed with the Board that he will remain available to assist the Company after the end of December 2024 for a period of up to a further six months.

The Board will appoint Mr Colm Howlin, the current Group Controller of Serabi, to the role of Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the Company to succeed Mr. Line upon his departure. He will be working alongside Mr. Line, during this transition period. Mr. Howlin, is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ireland. He has been with the Company since 2013 and is fluent in Portuguese. At this time Mr. Howlin will not, in his role as CFO, be appointed to the Board of Serabi.

Michael Hodgson, CEO of Serabi, said: Clive will be much missed by all at Serabi. It has a been a pleasure to work alongside him and I would like to thank him for his very significant contribution to the business. He has been instrumental at helping me bring the Company to its current position with a strong balance sheet and able to fund the next stage of development and growth of our Palito and Coringa operations from operating cash flow. Having been with the Company for over 11 years, Colm Howlin is well qualified to take over as the Companys CFO and continue to maintain the necessary level of financial discipline over our operations.

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014 as it forms part of UK Domestic Law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018.

The person who arranged for the release of this announcement on behalf of the Company was Clive Line, Director.

Enquiries

SERABI GOLD plc

Michael Hodgson t +44 (0)20 7246 6830

Chief Executive m +44 (0)7799 473621

Clive Line t +44 (0)20 7246 6830

Finance Director m +44 (0)7710 151692

Andrew Khov m +1 647 885 4874

Vice President, Investor Relations &

Business Development

e contact@serabigold.com

www.serabigold.com

BEAUMONT CORNISH Limited

Nominated Adviser & Financial Adviser

Roland Cornish / Michael Cornish t +44 (0)20 7628 3396

PEEL HUNT LLP

Joint UK Broker

Ross Allister t +44 (0)20 7418 9000

TAMESIS PARTNERS LLP

Joint UK Broker

Charlie Bendon/ Richard Greenfield t +44 (0)20 3882 2868

CAMARCO

Financial PR - Europe

Gordon Poole / Emily Hall t +44 (0)20 3757 4980

HARBOR ACCESS

Financial PR  North America

Jonathan Patterson / Lisa Micali t +1 475 477 9404

Copies of this announcement are available from the Company's website at www.serabigold.com.

See www.serabigold.com for more information and follow us on twitter @Serabi_Gold

Assay Results

Assay results reported within this release include those provided by the Company's own on-site laboratory facilities at Palito and have not yet been independently verified. Serabi closely monitors the performance of its own facility against results from independent laboratory analysis for quality control purpose. As a matter of normal practice, the Company sends duplicate samples derived from a variety of the Company's activities to accredited laboratory facilities for independent verification. Since mid-2019, over 10,000 exploration drill core samples have been assayed at both the Palito laboratory and certified external laboratory, in most cases the ALS laboratory in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. When comparing significant assays with grades exceeding 1 g/t gold, comparison between Palito versus external results record an average over-estimation by the Palito laboratory of 6.7% over this period. Based on the results of this work, the Company's management are satisfied that the Company's own facility shows sufficiently good correlation with independent laboratory facilities for exploration drill samples. The Company would expect that in the preparation of any future independent Reserve/Resource statement undertaken in compliance with a recognized standard, the independent authors of such a statement would not use Palito assay results without sufficient duplicates from an appropriately certificated laboratory.

Forward-looking statements

Certain statements in this announcement are, or may be deemed to be, forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are identied by their use of terms and phrases such as believe, could, should envisage, estimate, intend, may, plan, will or the negative of those, variations or comparable expressions, including references to assumptions. These forward-looking statements are not based on historical facts but rather on the Directors current expectations and assumptions regarding the Companys future growth, results of operations, performance, future capital and other expenditures (including the amount, nature and sources of funding thereof), competitive advantages, business prospects and opportunities. Such forward looking statements reect the Directors current beliefs and assumptions and are based on information currently available to the Directors. Several factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements including risks associated with vulnerability to general economic and business conditions, competition, environmental and other regulatory changes, actions by governmental authorities, the availability of capital markets, reliance on key personnel, uninsured and underinsured losses and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. Although any forward-looking statements contained in this announcement are based upon what the Directors believe to be reasonable assumptions, the Company cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with such forward looking statements.

Qualified Persons Statement

The scientific and technical information contained within this announcement has been reviewed and approved by Michael Hodgson, a Director of the Company. Mr Hodgson is an Economic Geologist by training with over 30 years' experience in the mining industry. He holds a BSc (Hons) Geology, University of London, a MSc Mining Geology, University of Leicester and is a Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining and a Chartered Engineer of the Engineering Council of UK, recognizing him as both a Qualified Person for the purposes of Canadian National Instrument 43-101 and by the AIM Guidance Note on Mining and Oil & Gas Companies dated June 2009.

Notice

Beaumont Cornish Limited, which is authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority, is acting as nominated adviser to the Company in relation to the matters referred herein. Beaumont Cornish Limited is acting exclusively for the Company and for no one else in relation to the matters described in this announcement and is not advising any other person and accordingly will not be responsible to anyone other than the Company for providing the protections afforded to clients of Beaumont Cornish Limited, or for providing advice in relation to the contents of this announcement or any matter referred to in it.

Neither the Toronto Stock Exchange, nor any other securities regulatory authority, has approved or disapproved of the contents of this news release
Dublin, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Pet Care Market - Focused Insights 2024-2029" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The Pet Care Market was valued at USD 226.92 billion in 2023, and is expected to reach USD 340.71 billion by 2029, rising at a CAGR of 7.01%.

The global pet care market report consists of exclusive data on 48 vendors. The market is fiercely competitive, featuring major players like Nestle Purina, Mars, Hill's Pet Nutrition, Blue Buffalo, J.M. Smucker Company, PetSmart, Petco, A Place for Rover, Chewy, and Ancol Pet Products, dominating extensive product ranges and global reach. These companies lead in pet food, treats, and healthcare products, leveraging strong brand equity and innovation.

Regional and niche brands also thrive, offering specialized products tailored to local preferences. In pet services, companies like PetSmart and Petco compete with independent groomers and boarding facilities, focusing on personalized customer service and convenience. E-commerce platforms like Amazon and Chewy are pivotal, offering broad product selections and efficient delivery. At the same time, traditional retail outlets remain crucial for immediate access and expert advice on pet care.



The global pet care market exhibits diverse regional dynamics reflecting consumer preferences and market maturity levels. North America is the largest global pet care industry market, driven by high pet ownership rates and significant spending on pet care products and services. This growth is fueled by an Increasing focus on pet health and wellness, premiumization of pet products, and the humanization of pets.

Pet ownership demographics in North America are diverse, with millennials and Generation Z emerging as key consumer segments. These younger pet owners spend more on premium products and services, focusing on their pets' health, wellness, and overall lifestyle. Additionally, the trend of smaller household sizes and increasing urbanization contributes to the demand for pet care services like dog walking, grooming, and boarding.



Europe emphasizes sustainability, focusing on natural and eco-friendly pet products, driven by a growing market for organic pet foods and biodegradable accessories. Europe represents a significant global pet care industry market, characterized by a growing population of pet owners and increasing expenditures on pet-related products and services. Countries like Germany, the UK, France, and Italy are among the largest markets within Europe, each contributing to the region's overall growth.



Increasing Mobile Pet Grooming Services & Enrolment for Grooming And Expos



The global pet care market is witnessing a significant uptick in mobile pet grooming services and participation in grooming expos. Mobile grooming services offer unparalleled convenience by bringing professional grooming directly to the pet owner's home, alleviating the stress and logistical challenges of transporting pets to grooming salons. These services are particularly beneficial for pets who experience anxiety or stress in unfamiliar environments, as the home setting provides a more comfortable and familiar atmosphere.

Mobile grooming vans have state-of-the-art grooming tools and amenities, allowing groomers to deliver high-quality services comparable to those in traditional salons. This trend is also reflected in the growing enrolment in grooming expos and training programs, which provide platforms for professional groomers to enhance their skills, network with peers, and stay updated on the latest industry innovations.

For instance, companies like PetSmart and Wag'n Tails are expanding their mobile grooming fleets, responding to the rising consumer demand for at-home pet care solutions. Events like Groom Expo West and Intergroom attract thousands of professionals and enthusiasts, highlighting the burgeoning interest in pet grooming education and innovation.



Increasing Technological Integration



Technological advancements are revolutionizing the pet care industry, integrating many innovations that enhance pet safety, health monitoring, and overall care. Smart collars, health monitoring apps, pet cameras, and automated feeders are becoming essential for modern pet owners. These technologies allow owners to track their pets' location, monitor their health and activity levels, and even interact with them remotely, ensuring that pets receive consistent care and attention even when their owners are away. For example, the Fi Smart Dog Collar provides real-time GPS tracking and activity monitoring, alerting owners if their pet leaves a designated safe area, thus preventing potential accidents or loss.

Additionally, apps like Petcube enable owners to engage with their pets through interactive cameras and treat dispensers, allowing them to play with and monitor their pets from anywhere. This technological integration enhances the quality of pet care and provides peace of mind to pet owners, knowing they can always stay connected to their pets. Furthermore, innovations such as automated feeders and water dispensers ensure that pets have access to food and water on a regular schedule, promoting better health and well-being.



Rise in Pet Ownership



The rise in pet ownership is a significant driver of growth in the global pet care market. This increase can be attributed to various factors, including changing social dynamics, increased urbanization, and the growing recognition of the benefits of pet companionship. More households welcome pets as integral family members, driven by the desire for companionship, emotional support, and the health benefits of pet ownership. Pets are known to reduce stress, increase physical activity, and provide emotional comfort, making them popular among individuals and families seeking to enhance their quality of life.

The COVID-19 pandemic also boosted pet ownership as people sought companionship and emotional support during extended periods of isolation and remote work. This rise in pet ownership has increased demand for a wide range of products and services, including food, grooming, veterinary care, and accessories. Companies like Mars Petcare and Nestle Purina PetCare have seen significant market growth, reflecting the expanding customer base driven by higher pet ownership rates globally.



Skilled Labor Shortage



The pet care market faces a notable skilled labor shortage, which impacts the quality and availability of services such as grooming, veterinary care, and training. The demand for experienced and qualified professionals in these areas often exceeds supply, leading to longer service wait times and increased pressure on existing staff. This shortage is exacerbated by the specialized skills required in the industry, including knowledge of animal behavior, health, and proper handling techniques.

For instance, the grooming sector faces challenges in recruiting trained groomers who can handle various breeds and styles. Companies like Banfield Pet Hospital and VCA Animal Hospitals have invested in training programs and partnerships with veterinary schools to address this shortage, but the gap remains significant. The skilled labor shortage affects service delivery employee retention and job satisfaction, as overworked staff may experience burnout and high turnover rates.

KEY QUESTIONS ANSWERED:

How big is the global pet care market?

What is the growth rate of the global pet care market?

Which region dominates the global pet care market?

Who are the major global pet care market players?

What are the key drivers of the global pet care market?

Key Attributes:





Report Attribute Details No. of Pages 155 Forecast Period 2023 - 2029 Estimated Market Value (USD) in 2023 $226.92 Billion Forecasted Market Value (USD) by 2029 $340.71 Billion Compound Annual Growth Rate 7.0% Regions Covered Global

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE



Key Vendors

A Place for Rover

Ancol Pet Products

Blue Buffalo

Chewy

Hill's Pet Nutrition

J.M. Smucker Company

Mars

Nestle Purina

Petco

PetSmart

Other Prominent Vendors

A Very Important Pet

Aller Petfood

American Boarding Kennels

Beaphar

BHJ

Bob Martin

Camp Bow Wow

Country Paws Boarding

Diamond Pet Foods

Earthbath

Freshpet

Fromm Family Foods

Fur Frenzy Pet Spa

Halo

Hartz

Just For Pets

Kennel Club USA

KONG

Kriser's

Oscar's Pet Resort

Outward Hound

Partner in Pet Food

Pet Palace

PetBecker

Petmate

Pets at Home

PetSafe

Petsfolio

PetSuites

Preppie Pooch

Rosewood Pet Products

Rush Direct

saturn petcare

Spectrum Brands

Swifto

The Zuri Pet Spa

United Petfood

Zooplus

SEGMENT ANALYSIS



By Product

Food Type

Toys & Clothing

Housing & Bedding

Pet Hygiene & Care Products

Others

By Food Type

Dry Food

Wet Food

Treats & Snacks

Others

By Pet Services

Grooming

Boarding

Others

By Grooming

Bath & Dry

Hair & Skin

Nail & Paws

Eye, Ear, & Teeth

Others

By Boarding

Short-term

Long-term

By Pet

Dog

Cat

Others

By Distribution Channel

Offline

Online

By Geography

North America

The U.S.

Canada

Europe

Germany

The U.K.

France

Italy

Spain

APAC

Japan

China

India

Australia

South Korea

Latin America

Brazil

Mexico

Argentina

Middle East & Africa

Turkey

South Africa

Saudi Arabia

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/7mvwox

About ResearchAndMarkets.com

ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.

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PHILADELPHIA, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Attention Toyota Motor Corp. (Toyota or the Company) (NYSE: TM) Investors. A securities fraud class action lawsuit has been filed against Toyota on behalf of purchasers of Toyota securities between June 23, 2022 and June 2, 2024, inclusive (the Class Period).



CLICK HERE to learn more about the lawsuit.

Important deadline: Investors who purchased or acquired Toyota securities during the Class Period may, no later than August 23, 2024, seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class.

Toyota is a Japanese car manufacturer.

On June 3, 2024, the New York Times published an article entitled Toyota and Other Japanese Carmakers Say They Mishandled Safety Tests. This article stated that Toyota [. . .] and other top Japanese automakers said on Monday that internal investigations found they had mishandled vehicle testing on dozens of models over the past decade. Further, Toyota said it had failed to gather proper data when doing pedestrian and occupant safety tests for three models, including its popular Yaris Cross sport utility vehicle.

On this news, Toyotas American Depositary Shares (ADSs) fell $5.34 per ADS, or 2.45%, to close at $212.17 per ADS on June 3, 2024.

For additional information or to learn how to participate in this litigation, please contact Berger Montague: Andrew Abramowitz at aabramowitz@bm.net or (215) 875-3015, or Peter Hamner at phamner@bm.net or (215) 875-3048, or CLICK HERE .

A lead plaintiff is a representative party who acts on behalf of all class members in directing the litigation. The lead plaintiff is usually the investor or small group of investors who have the largest financial interest and who are also adequate and typical of the proposed class of investors. The lead plaintiff selects counsel to represent the lead plaintiff and the class and these attorneys, if approved by the court, are lead or class counsel. Your ability to share in any recovery is not, however, affected by the decision whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff. Communicating with any counsel is not necessary to participate or share in any recovery achieved in this case. Any member of the purported class may move the Court to serve as a lead plaintiff through counsel of his/her choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain an inactive class member.

Berger Montague , with offices in Philadelphia, Minneapolis, Delaware, Washington, D.C., San Diego, San Francisco and Chicago, has been a pioneer in securities class action litigation since its founding in 1970. Berger Montague has represented individual and institutional investors for over five decades and serves as lead counsel in courts throughout the United States.

Contacts:

Andrew Abramowitz, Senior Counsel

Berger Montague PC

(215) 875-3015

aabramowitz@bm.net
PARSIPPANY, N.J., Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Acrow, a leading international bridge engineering and supply company, has announced two of its modular steel bridges have been installed in Centreville, Alabama, to minimize inconvenience to motorists during a project to replace two aging bridges on State Route 5. The detour bridges were considered essential to the success of the project, as no reasonable alternate route was available for local commuters, first responders, and commercial farming vehicles.



Acrows modular steel Mabey Universal panel bridges were selected for the project, and rented to The Bridge Builders of Alabama, LLC, the contractor awarded the project by the Alabama Department of Transportation. The single-span bridges are each 169.74 feet long and have a width of 30 feet to accommodate two lanes of traffic. Designed to AASHTO ASD HS20, they have plain steel decks with a 4  5 average asphalt overlay to create a 2% crown.

One bridge was installed over Blue Girth Creek, the other over Blue Girth Reserve. The site conditions warranted a slight downhill launch of each, which was challenging given the weight of the bridges, which was 286 tons each. However, Acrows engineering expertise and site technician, combined with the extensive experience of the contractor, enabled the safe installation of both bridges with a crane-assisted launch. They will be in place until the new permanent bridges are completed, anticipated to be early 2025.

Acrows durable bridging solutions are an excellent choice to consider over phased construction during infrastructure rehabilitation projects, said Eugene Sobecki, Director National Sales & Military Business Development. Quickly and easily built and installed, they are available for rent or purchase, and increase work zone safety while reducing work zone user impacts.

Added Russ Parisi, Acrows Vice President, North America, Acrows versatile modular steel detour bridges can provide DOTs and contractors a cost-effective way to minimize the road user costs of projects. Well suited to a diverse range of applications, Acrows detour solutions can help DOTs and contractors keep projects on or ahead of schedule.

About Acrow

Acrow has been serving the transportation and construction industries for more than 70 years with a wide range of modular steel bridging solutions for permanent, temporary, military and emergency use. Acrows extensive international presence includes leadership in the development and implementation of bridge infrastructure projects in over 150 countries across Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Middle East. For more information, please visit www.acrow.com.

Media contact:

Tracy Van Buskirk

Marketcom PR

Main: (212) 537-5177, ext. 8; Mobile: (203) 246-6165

tvanbuskirk@marketcompr.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/a595342f-9262-4f62-9a79-30937a97322a
Washington, D.C., Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The National Hydropower Association, Americas leading trade association for the U.S. water power industry, is proudly celebrating National Hydropower Day this Saturday, August 24th. The sixth annual commemoration honors the water power industry and the American workers who support this vital, renewable resource. This years theme is Hydro Powers, which acknowledges the many ways water power provides for Americans  whether its through cleaner communities, local job creation, a reliable grid, innovative energy solutions, and more.

Im incredibly honored to wish everyone a very happy National Hydropower Day, said NHAs President and CEO, Malcolm Woolf. Hydropower is the flexible renewable energy source. It complements wind and solar by providing carbon-free electricity when the wind isnt blowing and the sun isnt shining. As our nation strives to meet growing electricity demand while simultaneously cleaning our grid, its never been more important to share the foundational role of hydropower with every energy stakeholder  from elected officials to friends and neighbors.

This year, NHA kicked things off early, highlighting hydropower in each region of the country throughout the past week. NHA thanks the supporters who have already joined the celebration with creative social media posts, vital thought leadership, and calls to action  a reminder that water power is more than an industry; its a community with a shared vision for a clean energy future.

For more than 140 years, hydropower has powered America with renewable energy. Today, it accounts for around 6% of all electricity generated in the United States and nearly 30% of all renewable energy generation. In addition, technologies like Pumped Storage Hydropower (PSH) account for around 96% of utility-scale energy storage capacity while the burgeoning marine energy sector provides untapped potential to generate clean power from waves, tides, and currents. The U.S. conventional hydropower fleet includes 2,252 hydropower plants across 48 states, which possess a total generating capacity of 80.58 GW, plus 22 GW of pumped storage, resulting in over 100 GWs capacity of reliable, carbon-free electricity to power an estimated 30 million American homes and businesses.

Despite the important role they serve, many facilities across the country are at risk of being decommissioned. Licenses for nearly 450 hydro facilities are set to expire by 2035, putting about 16 GW of electricity at risk when America needs all renewables working together to achieve ambitious energy and climate goals. Due to the lengthy and costly relicensing process, which takes over seven years on average and millions of dollars in administrative costs, industry surveys show that over a third of hydropower industry asset owners are actively considering decommissioning a facility. If this occurs, it could worsen grid reliability at a time when extreme weather and the need for reliable energy couldnt be greater. To achieve a clean energy future, the country must tap into all renewable resources.

We have an opportunity to preserve and strengthen water power across America, but we can only succeed if we tell our story, added Woolf. Thats why commemorations like National Hydropower Day are so important, and why NHA continues to advocate for the water power industry at the highest levels of government. Hydro powers America, and we should celebrate its past and potential every day.
CARY, N.C., Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- INE Security , a global cybersecurity training and certification provider, recently launched initiatives with several higher education institutions in an ongoing campaign to invest in the education of aspiring cybersecurity professionals.

There is a critical skills gap in the industry, which has enormous implications for businesses and individuals alike, said Dara Warn, INE Securitys CEO. We are working to partner with higher education institutions to close that gap, rewrite the book on how to prepare cybersecurity students, and ultimately reinforce the entire industrys strength and security.

According to the team, in a world where digital threats transcend borders, the need for robust cybersecurity education has never been more critical. Universities around the globe are stepping up, recognizing that their role in preparing the next generation of cybersecurity experts is crucial not only for national security but also for maintaining global competitiveness. As cyber threats become more sophisticated, educational institutions are compelled to provide their students with the skills necessary to navigate and mitigate these risks effectively.

One of the most pressing reasons for advanced cybersecurity training is the sheer scale and global nature of cyber threats. According to the 2020 Cost of a Data Breach Report by IBM, the average total cost of a data breach globally reached $3.86 million, highlighting the severe economic impact of these incidents. This global threat landscape requires a workforce that is not only technically proficient but also equipped with a comprehensive understanding of international cybersecurity challenges.

INE Security + Columbus State University

Columbus State University (CSU) is a public university located in the southeastern United States, serving approximately 7,000 students annually. To address the growing demand for skilled cybersecurity professionals in Georgia, CSU launched the NEXUS program in 2017, driven by the states identified shortage of 15,000-30,000 IT and cybersecurity professionals. The challenge was that CSUs cybersecurity education lacked hands-on labs and certification opportunities, making it difficult for students to gain practical skills and accredited certifications essential for the cybersecurity workforce.

In 2019, CSU partnered with INE Security to integrate the Junior Penetration Tester (eJPT) certification into its curriculum. The eJPT learning paths hands-on nature, robust application, and immediate feedback were key in addressing the practical training gap. Cybersecurity lecturers at CSU led the integration of the eJPT certification. Since then, 122 students have registered and completed the certification, following a progressive training model starting with IT Fundamentals and CompTIA certifications, followed by eJPT, and culminating in the SEC+ certification. The eJPT certification ensures foundational skills for advanced roles, with a 90% first-attempt pass rate and immediate feedback for those retaking the exam.

INE Security + FOUR18 Intelligence

FOUR18 Intelligence works with students to deliver live-fire training, and partnered with INE Security to enhance hands-on, real-world cyber defense education. The collaboration aims to make high-quality cybersecurity training accessible and impactful for learners at every stage of their career, anywhere in the world. Part of the strategy centers around FOUR18s DEF3NSE system, which is the first of its kind to offer live-fire cyber threat learning and micro-internships at scale. The partnership is designed to provide students a truly immersive learning experience that prepares them for real-world security risks through practical hands-on engagement, a goal achieved through the joining of INE Security and FOUR18 Intelligence.

INE Security + Virtually Testing Foundation

Virtually Testing Foundation (VTF) is a California-based 501(c)3 e-learning non-profit organization that started with a mission to educate and help people transition into the field of cybersecurity. INE Security partnered with VTF as a technical training resource, giving the organizations interns access to premium training, hands-on labs, on-demand videos, immersive learning tactics, and discounted access to highly sought-after industry certifications. The partnership opportunity enables VTF interns to access top-tier training materials at no cost, representing a crucial stride in equipping individuals with cybersecurity skills to close critical skills gaps.

Career Prospects

The career prospects in the cybersecurity field are highly promising. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 31% growth in employment for information security analysts from 2019 to 2029, significantly faster than the average for all occupations. This demand reflects the critical need for cybersecurity professionals who are well-versed in handling both national and international challenges.

Furthermore, the integration of advanced technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning in combating cybercrime highlights the evolving nature of the field and the continuous learning opportunities it presents. Universities that collaborate with cybersecurity firms to incorporate these technologies into their training programs not only enhance the learning experience but also ensure that their students are prepared for the future demands of the cybersecurity landscape.

Higher education Impact on The Future

Higher education institutions and organizations that invest in comprehensive cybersecurity training, especially through partnerships with experienced cybersecurity training partners, are making a significant contribution to the global economy. By equipping students with the necessary skills to face and address international cyber challenges effectively, these institutions are ensuring that their graduates are not only competitive but also ready to lead in the global arena. These efforts not only protect the institutions data and reputations but also prepare their students for a world where cybersecurity expertise is revered and essential.

About INE Security:
Boca Raton, FL, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Winners of the 32nd annual HCM Excellence Awards were announced today. Winners will be honored on stage at the HCM Excellence Conference and Awards Gala, January 28-30, 2025, at the Hilton West Palm Beach, Florida.

Excellence Award winners are shown to be organizations that truly value their employees and invest in them through their human capital management programs. These HCM programs have been validated as best in class for business value and the impact on the employees themselves, said Brandon Hall Group Chief Operating Officer Rachel Cooke, HCM Excellence Award program leader.

Learn more about Brandon Hall Group Awards at https://excellenceawards.brandonhall.com/.

Submissions were entered by organizations around the world and ranged from large conglomerates to small businesses, government and nonprofit organizations.

The 2024 Brandon Hall Group HCM Excellence Awards showcased exceptional accomplishments in Human Capital Management, with Accenture as the leading winner. The awards recognized organizations that have truly excelled in their HCM strategies, demonstrating a commitment to innovation and employee development.

Organizations with more than 50 award wins this year are: Accenture, BTS, Capgemini, Cognizant, Deloitte, EI Design Powered by MPS and NIIT.

The organizations with 21 to 50 wins are Bank of America, Chrysalis, Colgate-Palmolive, Genpact, GP Strategies, HP, ICICI Lombard, Infopro Learning, KPMG, Mercer, Metlife, NovoEd, PepsiCo, Shell, Siyona Tech, SweetRush and Upside Learning.

Organizations winning 10-20 awards included Cimsa, CrossKnowledge, Dogus, General Motors, Google, Handcrafted Learning, HCL Technologies, Hexaware, IBM, Innova Akademi, Johnson & Johnson, Julius Baer Group, Kraft Heinz, HSBC, Marriott International, NIIT StackRoute, Ozemio, Regeneron, Standard Chartered Bank, Supplier Leadership on Climate Transition, Tata Consultancy Services, Training Pros, TD Bank, UVA Darden Executive Education & Lifelong Learning, Verizon, Wells Fargo, and Zurich Insurance.

These organizations, along with many others recognized at the awards, exemplify the best practices in HCM, setting a high standard for others in the industry. Their dedication to fostering a positive and productive work environment through effective HCM strategies serves as an inspiration for organizations worldwide.

To view a complete list of winners, visit https://excellenceawards.brandonhall.com/winners/.

Entries were evaluated by a panel of veteran, independent senior industry experts, Brandon Hall Group analysts, and executives based on these criteria:

Alignment to their business need and environment.

Program design, functionality and delivery.

Adoption, integration, user experience, innovation and creativity.

Overall effectiveness, impact, and measurable benefits.

Our award recipients demonstrate an unwavering commitment to excellence in human capital management, said Brandon Hall Group Chief Executive Officer Mike Cooke. This year, we've witnessed some of the most groundbreaking applications of HCM strategies in our organization's history. Many of these innovations leverage cutting-edge technologies and foster unprecedented levels of cross-functional collaboration, resulting in remarkable improvements in operational efficiency and employee engagement.

Select winners will also serve as presenters in breakout sessions, sharing their leading practices during the conference.

Learn more about Brandon Hall Group Awards at https://excellenceawards.brandonhall.com/.

About Brandon Hall Group

Brandon Hall Group is the only professional development company that offers data, research, insights, and certification to Learning and Talent executives and organizations. The best minds in Human Capital Management (HCM) choose Brandon Hall Group to help them create future-proof employee development plans for the new era.

For over 30 years, we have empowered, recognized, and certified excellence in organizations worldwide, influencing the development of over 10 million employees and executives. Our HCM Excellence Awards program was the first to recognize organizations for learning and talent and is the gold standard, known as the Academy Awards of Human Capital Management.

The awards recognize the best organizations that have successfully developed and deployed programs, strategies, modalities, processes, systems and tools that have achieved measurable results. We are honored to receive applications from organizations worldwide ranging from small, medium, large and global enterprises to governments, not-for-profits and associations.

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SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hagens Berman urges NuScale Power Corporation (NYSE: SMR) investors who suffered substantial losses to submit your losses now. The firm also encourages persons with knowledge who may be able to assist in the investigation to contact its attorneys.



Visit: www.hbsslaw.com/investor-fraud/SMR

Contact the Firm Now: SMR@hbsslaw.com

844-916-0895

NuScale Power (SMR) Investigation:

On July 29, 2024, Hunterbrook Media reported that the SEC is conducting an active and ongoing investigation into NuScale and noted that after Hunterbrook's publication a spokesperson wrote in a statement: [w]e are unaware of any SEC investigation into NuScale or any reason for such an investigation.

But, on August 2, 2024, NuScale did an about face. The company admitted that, contrary to its July 29 denial, in December 2023 the SEC requested information relating to the companys employment, severance, and confidentiality agreements. In addition, NuScale revealed that the SEC requested additional information from the company on July 31, 2024.

Each of these events drove the price of NuScale shares sharply lower.

Were investigating the propriety of NuScales financial disclosures and operations, including whether the companys agreements with employees suppress whistleblowing, said Reed Kathrein, the Hagens Berman partner leading the investigation.

If you invested in NuScale Power and have substantial losses, or have knowledge that may assist the firms investigation, submit your losses now 

If youd like more information and answers to frequently asked questions about the NuScale Power investigation, read more 

Whistleblowers: Persons with non-public information regarding NuScale Power should consider their options to help in the investigation or take advantage of the SEC Whistleblower program. Under the new program, whistleblowers who provide original information may receive rewards totaling up to 30 percent of any successful recovery made by the SEC. For more information, call Reed Kathrein at 844-916-0895 or email SMR@hbsslaw.com.

About Hagens Berman

Hagens Berman is a global plaintiffs rights complex litigation firm focusing on corporate accountability. The firm is home to a robust practice and represents investors as well as whistleblowers, workers, consumers and others in cases achieving real results for those harmed by corporate negligence and other wrongdoings. Hagens Bermans team has secured more than $2.9 billion in this area of law. More about the firm and its successes can be found at hbsslaw.com. Follow the firm for updates and news at @ClassActionLaw.
SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hagens Berman urges Arbor Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: ABR) investors who suffered substantial losses to submit your losses now.



Class Period: May 7, 2021  July 11, 2024

Lead Plaintiff Deadline: Sept. 30, 2024

Visit: www.hbsslaw.com/investor-fraud/ABR

Contact the Firm Now: ABR@hbsslaw.com

844-916-0895

Securities Class Action Against Arbor Realty Trust, Inc. (ABR):

Arbor Realty Trust is facing intensifying scrutiny as a series of damning reports and legal actions cast doubt on the companys financial health and business practices. The latest salvo came from analyst Bashar Issa, who on August 17 predicted the multifamily lender will be unable to cover its dividend by year-end.

Issa, in a report published on Seeking Alpha, cited a ballooning payout ratio, shrinking balance sheet, and the potential impact of a Federal Reserve rate cut as key factors behind his bearish outlook. The analyst warned risk-averse investors to stay clear of Arbor.

The new concerns follow closely on the heels of a series of blistering reports from activist short seller Viceroy Research, which accused Arbor of misleading investors about the quality of its loan book and engaging in window-dressing to obscure financial troubles. The most recent report, released earlier in August, pointed to a 10% surge in delinquent loans to $1 billion as evidence of the companys deteriorating financial condition.

Arbor is also battling a class-action lawsuit alleging securities fraud. The suit, filed in late July, accuses the company of painting a misleadingly rosy picture of its business performance.

Investor concerns about Arbors financial health first emerged in Mar. 2023 when NINGI Research questioned the value of the company's real estate holdings, particularly its mobile home portfolio.

Then, in Dec. 2023, Viceroy Research released a report alleging widespread issues with the company's loan book.

Finally, on July 12, 2024, reports of a federal investigation into the company's lending practices broke.

Each of these revelations caused the price of Arbor shares to decline sharply.

These allegations have prompted prominent shareholder rights firm Hagens Berman to commence an investigation into potential securities fraud.

We are investigating whether Arbor Realty may have misled investors about its financial health and the quality of its loan book, said Reed Kathrein, a partner at Hagens Berman. Investors deserve to know the truth about their investments, and we are committed to holding companies accountable.

If you invested in Arbor and have substantial losses, or have knowledge that may assist the firms investigation, submit your losses now 

If youd like more information and answers to frequently asked questions about the Arbor case and our investigation, read more 

Whistleblowers: Persons with non-public information regarding Arbor should consider their options to help in the investigation or take advantage of the SEC Whistleblower program. Under the new program, whistleblowers who provide original information may receive rewards totaling up to 30 percent of any successful recovery made by the SEC. For more information, call Reed Kathrein at 844-916-0895 or email ABR@hbsslaw.com.

About Hagens Berman

Hagens Berman is a global plaintiffs rights complex litigation firm focusing on corporate accountability. The firm is home to a robust practice and represents investors as well as whistleblowers, workers, consumers and others in cases achieving real results for those harmed by corporate negligence and other wrongdoings. Hagens Bermans team has secured more than $2.9 billion in this area of law. More about the firm and its successes can be found at hbsslaw.com. Follow the firm for updates and news at @ClassActionLaw.
BROSSARD, Quebec, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Diagnos Inc. (DIAGNOS or the Corporation) (TSX Venture: ADK) (OTCQB: DGNOF) a leader in early detection of critical health issues through the use of its FLAIRE platform based on Artificial Intelligence (AI), announces that the 2024 annual general and special meeting of shareholders (the Meeting) will be held on September 25th, 2024, at 10 a.m.



Purposes of the Meeting

To receive the annual report of management, the audited consolidated financial statements of the Corporation for the financial year ended March 31, 2024 and the independent auditors report thereon; To elect the directors of the Corporation; To reappoint Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton, LLP, as independent auditor of the Corporation for the ensuing year and to authorize the directors to fix its remuneration; To approve, by ordinary resolution, the amendment to the Corporations existing stock option plan in order to increase the maximum number of common shares that may be issued pursuant thereto by 2,000,000, as approved by the Board of directors on August 21, 2024; and To transact such other business as may properly come before the Meeting or any adjournment thereof.

Attendance / participation at the Meeting

Registered Shareholders and Non-registered Holders (as defined in the 2024 Management Information Circular available on www.sedarplus.com) who do not intend to vote at the Meeting are kindly asked to participate via videoconferencing using this link; meeting link .

Registered Shareholders and duly appointed proxyholders who intend to vote at the Meeting will be able to vote in person at the Corporations head office located at 7005 Taschereau Blvd, Suite 265, Brossard, QC.

The Corporation is strongly recommending all shareholders to vote by proxy in advance of the Meeting.

About DIAGNOS

DIAGNOS is a publicly traded Canadian corporation dedicated to early detection of critical health problems based on its FLAIRE Artificial Intelligence (AI) platform. FLAIRE allows for quick modifying and developing of applications such as CARA (Computer Assisted Retina Analysis). CARAs image enhancement algorithms provide sharper, clearer and easier-to-analyze retinal images. CARA is a cost-effective tool for real-time screening of large volumes of patients.

Additional information is available at www.diagnos.ca and www.sedarplus.com.

For further information, please contact:

Mr. Marc-Andre Massue, CFO and Secretary

DIAGNOS Inc.

Tel: 450-678-8882 ext. 235

This press release contains forward-looking information. We cannot guarantee that the forward-looking information mentioned will prove to be accurate, as there may be a significant discrepancy between actual results or future events and those mentioned in this statement. DIAGNOS disclaims any intention or obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The forward-looking information contained in this press release is expressly covered by this caution.

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.
DENVER, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ibotta, Inc. (NYSE: IBTA), the leading technology company providing digital promotions and performance marketing solutions, announced today that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program, with authorization to purchase up to an aggregate of $100 million of the Companys Class A common stock (the Share Repurchase Program). The Share Repurchase Program has no expiration date. Repurchases under the Share Repurchase Program may be made from time to time through open market repurchases or through privately negotiated transactions subject to market conditions, applicable legal requirements, and other relevant factors. Open market repurchases may be structured to occur in accordance with the requirements of Rule 10b-18 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the Exchange Act). The Company may also, from time to time, enter into Rule 10b5-1 plans to facilitate repurchases of shares of its Class A common stock under this authorization. The Company is not obligated under the Share Repurchase Program to acquire any particular amount of Class A common stock, and the Company may terminate or suspend the Share Repurchase Program at any time. The timing and actual number of shares repurchased may depend on a variety of factors, including price, general business and market conditions, and alternative investment opportunities.



Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Any statements relating to expectations concerning matters that are not historical facts may constitute forward-looking statements. When words such as believe, expect, anticipate, will, outlook or similar expressions are used, the Company is making forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot give readers any assurance that such expectations will prove correct. These forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including those related to the Companys relatively limited operating history, which makes it difficult to evaluate the Companys business and prospects, the demands and expectations of clients and the ability to attract and retain clients. The actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements as a result of numerous factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. These and other factors are disclosed in the Companys reports filed from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission, available at www.sec.gov. Readers are urged not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. The Company does not intend to update any forward-looking statement contained in this press release to reflect events or circumstances arising after the date hereof, except as required by law.

About Ibotta ("I bought a...")

Ibotta (NYSE: IBTA) is the leading provider of digital promotions for CPG brands, reaching over 200 million consumers through a network of publishers called the Ibotta Performance Network (IPN). The IPN allows marketers to influence what people buy, and where and how often they shop  all while paying only when their campaigns directly result in a sale. American shoppers have earned over $2 billion through the IPN since 2012. Ibotta is headquartered in Denver, and has been listed as a top place to work by The Denver Post and Inc. Magazine.

Contact

Corporate Communications

Hilary OByrne, hilary.obyrne@ibotta.com

Investor Relations

Shalin Patel, shalin.patel@ibotta.com
Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP Securities Litigation Partner James (Josh) Wilson Encourages Investors Who Suffered Losses Exceeding $100,000 In Toyota To Contact Him Directly To Discuss Their Options



If you purchased or acquired securities in Toyota between June 25, 2022 and June 2, 2024 and would like to discuss your legal rights, call Faruqi & Faruqi partner Josh Wilson directly at 877-247-4292 or 212-983-9330 (Ext. 1310).

[You may also click here for additional information]





NEW YORK, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP, a leading national securities law firm, is investigating potential claims against Toyota Motor Corporation (Toyota or the Company) (NYSE: TM) and reminds investors of the August 23, 2024 deadline to seek the role of lead plaintiff in a federal securities class action that has been filed against the Company.

Faruqi & Faruqi is a leading national securities law firm with offices in New York, Pennsylvania, California and Georgia. The firm has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors since its founding in 1995. See www.faruqilaw.com.

As detailed below, this Complaint alleges that, throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements, as well as failed to disclose material adverse facts, about the Companys business and operations. Specifically, Defendants misrepresented and/or failed to disclose that: (1) Toyota understated its malfeasance relating to certification of its cars and issues relating to overall legal compliance; and (2) as a result, defendants statements about its business, operations, and prospects, were materially false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages.

On June 3, 2024, The New York Times published an article entitled Toyota and Other Japanese Carmakers Say They Mishandled Safety Tests. This article stated, in pertinent part, that Toyota [. . .] and other top Japanese automakers said on Monday that internal investigations found they had mishandled vehicle testing on dozens of models over the past decade. Further, Toyota said it had failed to gather proper data when doing pedestrian and occupant safety tests for three models, including its popular Yaris Cross sport utility vehicle.

On this news, Toyotas American Depositary Shares (ADSs) fell $5.34 per ADS, or 2.45%, to close at $212.17 per ADS on June 3, 2024.

The court-appointed lead plaintiff is the investor with the largest financial interest in the relief sought by the class who is adequate and typical of class members who directs and oversees the litigation on behalf of the putative class. Any member of the putative class may move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff through counsel of their choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member. Your ability to share in any recovery is not affected by the decision to serve as a lead plaintiff or not.

Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP also encourages anyone with information regarding Toyotas conduct to contact the firm, including whistleblowers, former employees, shareholders and others.

To learn more about the Toyota class action, go to www.faruqilaw.com/TM or call Faruqi & Faruqi partner Josh Wilson directly at 877-247-4292 or 212-983-9330 (Ext. 1310).

Follow us for updates on LinkedIn, on X, or on Facebook.

Attorney Advertising. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP (www.faruqilaw.com). Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter. We welcome the opportunity to discuss your particular case. All communications will be treated in a confidential manner.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/108f3b4c-efca-4b12-aa2b-fe1d2243f9b7
VANCOUVER, Aug. 21, 2024 - August 22, 2024 - Sydney, Australia

Patriot Battery Metals Inc. (the "Company" or "Patriot") (TSX: PMET) (ASX: PMT) (OTCQX: PMETF) (FSE: R9GA) advises that Ken Brinsden, the Company's President, CEO and Managing Director, will host a live investor webinar today, to present the findings of the Preliminary Economic Assessment on the Shaakichiuwaanaan Project, reported in the announcement dated 21 August, "PEA Highlights Shaakichiuwaanaan Project as a Potential North American Lithium Raw Materials Supply Base".

Mr Brinsden will update investors on the key findings of the PEA, with the opportunity for investors, analysts and shareholders to submit questions via the online Q&A webinar portal following the completion of Mr Brinsden's presentation. Alternatively, questions can be submitted in advance via email to the Company's Investor Relations managers - Brad Seward (Australia/Asia) and Olivier Caza-Lapointe (North America/Europe).

Registration Details

The webinar will commence at 8.30am Australian Western Standard Time / 10.30am Australian Eastern Standard Time / 8.30pm Canadian Eastern Daylight Time and will last approximately 45 minutes. Investors, shareholders and media can register to attend the webinar via the following link:

https://www.bigmarker.com/read-corporate/Patriot-Battery-Metals-TSX-PMET-ASX-PMT-Preliminary-Economic-Assessment-PEA-Confirms-Shaakichiuwaanaan-Project-as-a-Future-North-American-Lithium-Raw-M

A recording of the webinar will be released through Patriot's website and social media platforms for the benefit of investors in North American time zones.

Investor and Media Contacts:

Brad Seward Nicholas Read - Australian media inquiries Vice President, Investor Relations Read Corporate T: +61 400 199 471 Tel: +61 419 929 046 E: bseward@patriotbatterymetals.com E: nicholas@readcorporate.com.au



Olivier Caza-Lapointe

Head, Investor Relations - North America

T: +1 (514) 913-5264

E: ocazalapointe@patriotbatterymetals.com



About Patriot Battery Metals Inc.

Patriot Battery Metals Inc. is a hard-rock lithium exploration company focused on advancing its district-scale 100%-owned Shaakichiuwaanaan Property (formerly known as Corvette) located in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region of Quebec, Canada, which is accessible year-round by all-season road and is proximal to regional powerline infrastructure. The Shaakichiuwaanaan Mineral Resource1, which includes the CV5 & CV13 spodumene pegmatites, totals 80.1 Mt at 1.44% Li 2 O Indicated, and 62.5 Mt at 1.31% Li 2 O Inferred, and ranks as the largest lithium pegmatite resource in the Americas, and the 8th largest lithium pegmatite resource in the world. Additionally, the Shaakichiuwaanaan Property hosts multiple other spodumene pegmatite clusters that remain to be drill tested, as well as significant areas of prospective trend that remain to be assessed.

____________________________________ 1 Shaakichiuwaanaan (CV5 & CV13) Mineral Resource Estimate (80.1 Mt at 1.44% Li 2 O and 163 ppm Ta 2 O 5 Indicated, and 62.5 Mt at 1.31% Li 2 O and 147 ppm Ta 2 O 5 ppm Inferred) is reported at a cut-off grade of 0.40% Li 2 O (open pit), 0.60% Li 2 O (underground CV5), and 0.80% Li 2 O (underground CV13) with an Effective Date of June 27, 2024 (through drill hole CV24-526). Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves as they do not have demonstrated economic viability.

For further information, please contact us at info@patriotbatterymetals.com or by calling +1 (604) 279-8709, or visit www.patriotbatterymetals.com. Please also refer to the Company's continuous disclosure filings, available under its profile at www.sedarplus.ca and www.asx.com.au, for available exploration data.

This news release has been approved by the Board of Directors.

"KEN BRINSDEN"

Kenneth Brinsden, President, CEO, & Managing Director.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/preliminary-economic-assessment--investor-webinar-302228028.html

SOURCE Patriot Battery Metals Inc.
Vancouver, August 22, 2024 - Nova Pacific Metals Corp. (CSE: NVPC) (OTCQB: NVPCF) (FSE: YQ10) (WKN: A40GFH) (the "Company," or "Nova Pacific") is pleased to announce a non-brokered private placement (the "Private Placement") for gross proceeds of up to $2,000,000.

The non-brokered Private Placement will consist of up to 8,000,000 units (the "Units") priced at $0.25 per Unit. Each Unit will include one common share of the Company (a "Share") and one warrant (a "Warrant"), with each Warrant allowing the holder to purchase an additional Share at an exercise price of $0.40 for a period of two years.

The Warrants will include an acceleration clause such that if, following the expiration of the statutory hold period applicable to the Warrants, the Shares trade at or above $0.90 for 10 consecutive trading days, Nova Pacific will have the option to accelerate the exercise period by delivering a notice to the holders of the Warrants. In such a case, holders will have 30 days from the date of the notice to exercise their Warrants.

Nova Pacific's CEO, Mr. J. Malcolm Bell, stated, "The recently completed NI 43-101 technical report on the Lara "Kuroko" style, massive sulfide deposit has recommended an infill drilling program sufficient to calculate a measured and inferred ore deposit capable of supporting a prefeasibility study (PFS). This financing, once completed, will contribute substantially to continued development and the production potential of this highly attractive and well-located project."

Nova Pacific intends to use the proceeds of the Private Placement for exploration, general corporate purposes and working capital. All securities issued in connection with this Private Placement are subject to a statutory hold period of four months and one day pursuant to applicable securities laws.

In connection with the Private Placement, the Company may pay finder's fees to eligible non-related parties of up to 8% of the gross proceeds raised. Additionally, Nova Pacific may issue broker warrants ("Broker Warrants") equal to up to 8% of the Units sold. Each Broker Warrant will entitle the holder to purchase Share at a price of $0.25 per Share for a period of two years.

About Nova Pacific

Nova Pacific is a Canadian exploration and development company focused on pursuing projects with a significant mineral discovery thus providing a viable pathway to potential development. The key projects owned by the Company are its recently acquired Lara VMS project located on Vancouver Island, British Columbia and its Deer Musk West Lithium project located in Clayton Valley, Nevada. The Company intends to continue its exploration and development efforts on its mineral projects with a view towards maximizing shareholder value.

We recognize the importance of partnering with Indigenous communities for projects located on traditional lands to deliver long-term mutual benefits.

For additional Information please visit: www.novapacificmetals.com

On behalf of the Board of Directors

J. Malcolm Bell

Chief Executive Officer, Director

For Further Information, please contact:

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 forwardlooking information. Forwardlooking information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "anticipate", "plan", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "intend", "should", and similar expressions. Forwardlooking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forwardlooking information. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in this forwardlooking information as a result of regulatory decisions, competitive factors in the industries in which the Company operates, prevailing economic conditions, changes to the Company's strategic growth plans, and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. The Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forwardlooking information are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forwardlooking information should not be unduly relied upon. Any forwardlooking information contained in this news release represents the Company's expectations as of the date hereof, and is subject to change after such date. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forwardlooking information whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities legislation.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220730
Vancouver - Global Stocks News - Sponsored content disseminated on behalf of West Red Lake Gold. On August 20, 2024 West Red Lake Gold Mines (TSXV: WRLG) (OTCQB: WRLGF announced the start of a 2024 surface drilling program across its 100% owned Madsen Mine Property located in Ontario, Canada.

"After completing a thorough review of the available geologic data for the Madsen property, our team has generated some new exploration concepts and identified a number of highly prospective targets that share characteristics with known resource areas," stated Will Robinson, VP of Exploration in the August 20, 2024 PR.

"We had originally planned to do follow up drilling at Rowan, where we have high confidence ounces and a strategy to grow the resource," Robinson told Guy Bennett, the CEO of Global Stocks News (GSN). "But given the time it will take to get Rowan plugged into our production pipeline, we decided to allocate 2024 flow-through exploration dollars to areas closer to Madsen."



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"After conducting a systematic evaluation of all available geological data, we selected drill targets positioned along the primary Madsen structural trend, with proximity to the Russet Lake and Venus ultramafic units," said Robinson.

"There is a 3-to-4-kilometer structural trend northeast of Madsen that has had very little drilling done on it. Along this trend we already have Madsen, then two kilometers to the southwest, we've got the Starratt-Olsen Mine, which historically produced 160,000 ounces. We have another deposit, Wedge, along that same trend. There's a lot of blue sky to the northeast."

"The trend loosely follows the Balmer-Confederation Unconformity," added Robinson. "We're looking for splays - or second order fractures - which can host thick veins of gold. The splays tend to come off at predictable orientations, which is helping us design an efficient drill program."

"In this surface program, the drill holes will be 300-500 meters deep. We'll be assaying the core from the collar down to the bottom, treating them like pure exploration holes."

"Re-starting the mine is our primary focus," Robinson told GSN, "But we are concurrently pursuing opportunities to make new high-grade discoveries."



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WRLG plans to drill up to 10,000 meters of NQ diamond drill core, testing a number of high-priority targets across the Madsen property.

Drill targets were selected based on:

their position along primary structural trends

proximity to the Russet Lake and Venus ultramafic units

periodicity along strike of the main Madsen structural corridor relative to known mineralized splays (Fork, McVeigh and North Austin)

WRLG recognized this periodicity of known mineralized splays along the Madsen structural corridor through an evaluation of deposit-scale structural relationships.

The average spacing between these known mineralized splays is approximately one kilometer. Interpretation of the regional aeromagnetic dataset, which was flown in 2014, suggests that additional splays could be present along strike from Madsen to the northeast.

TARGET DESCRIPTIONS:

Upper 8

The Upper 8 target is a shallower geologic analog to the well-known high-grade 8-Zone and positioned within the same lithologic unit (Russet Lake Ultramafic) approximately 750m up-plunge from the main 8-Zone.

MJ

The MJ target is currently a high-grade portion of the Wedge resource. It is also an 8-Zone analog hosted within two concordant shear zones up to 40 meters in width and characterized by deformed gold-bearing quartz veins hosted within altered and deformed basalt and peridotite within the Russet Lake Ultramafic.

North Venus

The North Venus target is located approximately 2km northeast along strike from the North Austin zone. The geophysical signature at North Venus displays a very similar magnetic response in size, orientation and magnitude to the Fork splay.

North Starratt

The Starratt Mine is located approximately 2km southwest of the Madsen Mine and was the second largest past producer on the Madsen property with ~164 koz of gold produced between 1948-1956 [4.]



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On June 5, 2024 WRLG stated that the company "has a goal to restart the high-grade Madsen gold mine in the second half of 2025."

WRLG CEO Shane Williams' specific expertise is moving mineral assets along the development chain into production, on schedule and on budget. He has designed, built and operated mines (open pit and underground) in Greece, Turkey and Canada - for Skeena Resources, Eldorado Gold and Rio Tinto.

Much of the required work is happening behind the scenes on a pre-feasibility study detailing the restart plan. This study is targeted for release in the coming months.

Mine restart projects underway or imminent include: underground development including access to planned near-term mining areas and a 1.2-km tunnel to connect the two sides of the mine, installation of a permanent primary crusher, test mining, mining camp construction, building staff facilities, installation of evaporator fans and a tailings dam lift.



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The Madsen Gold Mine is fully permitted and has a brand-new 800+ tonne per day mill, a tailings and water treatment facility. [1]

The Madsen Mine deposit presently hosts an NI 43-101 Indicated resource of 1.65 million ounces of gold grading 7.4 g/t gold and an Inferred resource of 0.37 Moz of gold grading 6.3 g/t gold. [2.] [3.]

The technical information presented in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Will Robinson, P.Geo., Vice President of Exploration for West Red Lake Gold and the Qualified Person for exploration at the West Red Lake Project, as defined by NI 43-101 "Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects".

Contact: guy.bennett@globalstocksnews.com

Disclaimer: West Red Lake Gold paid Global Stocks News (GSN) $1,500 CND for the research, writing and dissemination of this content.

Full Disclaimer: GSN researches and fact-checks diligently, but we can not ensure our publications are free from error. Investing in publicly traded stocks is speculative and carries a high degree of risk. GSN publications may contain "forward-looking statements" such as "project," "anticipate," "expect," which are based on reasonable expectations, but these statements are imperfect predictors of future events. When compensation has been paid to GSN, the amount and nature of the compensation will be disclosed clearly.

References:

SRK Consulting. (2021). Independent NI 43-101 Technical Report and Updated Mineral Resource Estimate for the PureGold Mine, Canada (West Red Lake Gold Mines, Ed.) [Review of Independent NI 43-101 Technical Report and Updated Mineral Resource Estimate for the PureGold Mine, Canada. Mineral resources are estimated at a cut-off grade of 3.38 g/t Au and a gold price of US1,800/oz. Please refer to the technical report entitled "Independent NI 43-101 Technical Report and Updated Mineral Resource Estimate for the PureGold Mine, Canada", prepared by SRK Consulting (Canada) Inc., and dated June 16, 2023, and amended April 24, 2024. A full copy of the SRK report is available on the Company's website and on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Please refer to the technical report entitled "Independent NI 43-101 Technical Report and Updated Mineral Resource Estimate for the PureGold Mine, Canada", prepared by SRK Consulting (Canada) Inc., and dated June 16, 2023, and amended April 24, 2024. The Madsen Resource Estimate has an effective date of December 31, 2021 and excludes depletion of mining activity during the period from January 1, 2022 to the mine closure on October 24, 2022 as it has been deemed immaterial and not relevant for the purpose of the updated report. A full copy of the SRK report is available on the Company's website and on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca Website: Ministry of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry. "MDI52K13NW00011 - Ontario Geological Survey." Geology Ontario. Accessed August 15, 2024.

Copyright (c) 2024 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
Vancouver, August 22, 2024 - Global Stocks News - Sponsored content disseminated on behalf of Dolly Varden Silver. On August 19, 2024 Dolly Varden Silver (TSXV:DV) (OTC:DOLLF) released additional results from the Wolf Vein step-out directional drilling.

Dolly Varden Silver is advancing its 100% held Kitsault Valley Project, located in the Golden Triangle of British Columbia, Canada. The 163 sq. km. project hosts high-grade silver and gold resources. The recently consolidated Big Bulk project 5 km to the east is prospective for porphyry and skarn style copper and gold mineralization.

Drill hole DV24-412 averaged 606 g/t Ag over 16.20 meters on a 45-meter step-out from 2023 drilling and 31 meters below DV24-404 (previously released August 12, 2024).

Approximately 8,000 meters of an ongoing 25,000m drill program at the Company's 100% owned Kitsault Valley Silver and Gold Project is being drilled at the Wolf Vein to expand and infill the plunge of high-grade silver mineralization.

Wolf Vein Step-out Drilling Highlights

DV24-412: 606 g/t Ag, 0.61% Pb and 1.43% Zn over 16.20 meters, including 868 g/t Ag, 0.18% Pb and 0.88% Zn over 2.27 meters.

DV24-414: 771g/t Ag, 2.93% Pb and 2.29% Zn over 3.77 meters, including 1,065 g/t Ag, 4.64% Pb and 3.48% Zn over 2.26 meters within a 15.02m wide vein breccia zone grading 254 g/t Ag, 0.86% Pb and 1.34% Zn.



Click Image To View Full Size

"The strength of mineralization including strong native silver and pyrargyrite plus strong, accessory base metals appear to be increasing to the southwest as we vector towards a key structural intersection point," stated Shawn Khunkhun, CEO of Dolly Varden Silver. "These holes, oriented by directional drilling, show excellent continuity of the high-grades at the Wolf Vein."

A total of four southwest step-out holes have been completed from one drill pad. Dolly Varden Silver is using directional drilling technology to precisely target areas for step-out and infill work.

"Directional drilling allows you to position the drill bit exactly where you want it to be, without re-drilling hundreds of meters from the surface," VP Exploration Robert van Egmond told Guy Bennett, the CEO of Global Stocks News (GSN). "It's an ideal technique for us to explore the Wolf Vein."

Drillhole DV24-404 (previously released August 12, 2024) is the initial "mother" hole on a step-out collared at surface. DV24-404 intersected 1,091 g/t silver over 9.38 meters, with significant base metal grades. (intervals reflect core length, true width is estimated to be 60 to70%).

Drillholes DV24-409, DV24-412 and DV-414 reported in this release are "daughter" holes directed off the initial "mother" hole DV24-404.

The wide, high-grade silver intersection in drill hole DV24-412 is located 31 meters below previously reported drill hole DV24-404 and demonstrates that the vertical extent of the plunging high-grade zone is consistent at depth.



Click Image To View Full Size

Figure 3 above: Wolf Vein showing higher-grade silver plunge (pink) within low grade mineralization envelope in red. Section looking northeast, 25 meters wide window.

On August 20, 2024 Dolly Varden Silver announced that a previously announced bought-deal financing of $25 million has been upsized to $28 million.

The upsized financing consists of:

a. 10,000,000 common shares at a price of $1.00 per share for gross proceeds of $10 million.

b. 14,400,000 common shares that will qualify as "flow-through shares" at a price of $1.25 per FT Share for gross proceeds of $18 million.

According to the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC):

A flow-through share is a type of common share that permits the initial purchaser to claim a tax deduction equal to the amount invested.

The flow-through share regime allows public companies to transfer to investors certain exploration expenditures conducted on Canadian soil.

Flow-through share financing contributes over 65% of the funds raised on Canadian stock exchanges for exploration across the country, generating significant exploration activity within Canadian borders.

"The exploration and mining industry in Canada-one of Canada's leading economic drivers-has benefited from the flow-through share tax regime, which was implemented in the 1970s to promote exploration investment in Canada," writes Bennett Jones, a legal firm with expertise in mining and capital markets.

On the DV Silver bought-deal financing, Research Capital is the sole bookrunner and co-lead underwriter, Haywood Securities is co-lead underwriters, on behalf of a syndicate of underwriters, including Raymond James.



Click Image To View Full Size

DV's precious metal inventory has increased 300% in the last four years through acquisition. Exploration drilling done after 2019 will be added in on the next property wide mineral resource estimate

Key Highlights of 2024 Drilling Program:

Three drill rigs mobilised

Initial 25,000 meters diamond drilling planned

Focus on Homestake Silver and Wolf Deposits

Follow up on new discoveries



Click Image To View Full Size

"Exploration drilling is important for Dolly Varden," van Egmond told GSN. "We see growth potential on the property. There's a lot of unexplored areas, and surface showings that deserve attention. The allocation of this summer's exploration meters includes four or five targets."

"Dolly Varden is trading at about $1.80 an ounce in the ground," KhunKhun told GSN. "The average company trades about $4 a silver ounce in the ground. If our exploration program continues to hit high-grade silver as we have at the Wolf Vein, there is a likelihood that we are going to be revalued."

On November 2, 2023 Dolly Varden Silver announced that it has closed a deal where Hecla Canada invested $10 million in DV Silver, raising its stake in DV Silver from 10.6% to 15.7%.

Hecla Mining has a market cap of USD $3.82 billion and trades on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Q2, 2024 financial results released August 6, 2024 report revenues of $245.7 million, the highest in Hecla's history.

Hecla's bottom line has benefited from the rising spot price of silver - up 70% in the last two years, from USD $17/ounce to $29/ounce.

"Hecla's increased ownership stake is a benefit to us," Khunkhun told GSN. "Hecla has demonstrated it is a sticky shareholder. They're looking to expand their North American silver portfolio."

Rob van Egmond, P.Geo., Vice-President Exploration for Dolly Varden Silver, the "Qualified Person" as defined by NI43-101 has reviewed, validated and approved the scientific and technical information contained in this GSN release.

Contact: guy.bennett@globalstocksnews.com

Disclaimer: Dolly Varden Silver paid Global Stocks News (GSN) $1,500 CND for the research, writing and dissemination of this content.

Full Disclaimer: GSN researches and fact-checks diligently, but we can not ensure our publications are free from error. Investing in publicly traded stocks is speculative and carries a high degree of risk. GSN publications may contain "forward-looking statements" such as "project," "anticipate," "expect," which are based on reasonable expectations, but these statements are imperfect predictors of future events. When compensation has been paid to GSN, the amount and nature of the compensation will be disclosed clearly.

Copyright (c) 2024 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
Vancouver, August 22, 2024 - Arizona Gold & Silver Inc. (TSXV: AZS) (OTCQB:AZASF) ("AZS" or the "Company) is pleased to announce that all resolutions as set out in the Company's notice of meeting and information circular dated July 18, 2024 were passed at its annual general meeting held in Vancouver B.C. on August 22 2024 (the "AGM").

The shareholders approved all motions put forth at the AGM, including the re-election of the four directors, appointment of Smythe LLP as auditors of the Company and the approval of the Stock Option Plan. A total of 34,909,417 common shares of the Company's issued and outstanding shares were represented in person or by proxy at the AGM.

The following four incumbent directors were re-elected:

Mike Stark

Gregory Hahn

Eugene Spiering

James Engdahl

Following the AGM, the Board of Directors re-appointed Mike Stark as President and CEO, Gregory Hahn as Vice-President, Exploration and Dong H. Shim as CFO and Corporate Secretary.

Appointment of Chair of the Board and New Director.

The Company wishes to announce the resignation of Mr. Mike Stark as Chair of the Board of the Company and the appointment of Mr. James Engdahl as Chair of the Board of Directors to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Mr. Stark as Chair of the Board of Directors.

The Company also wishes to announce the appointment of Mr. John McVey as an additional independent director of the Company. Mr. McVey brings both domestic and international mining sector experience, most recently as CEO of Procon Mining & Tunnelling, a role he served from 2015 until his retirement earlier this year. His contracting and consulting career spans more than 35 years, and includes executive and senior management experience with Bechtel, SNC-Lavalin and Kilborn. Mr. McVey is a licensed professional engineer with considerable public and private sector board experience, obtaining the ICD.D designation in 2017.

"It is a privilege to join such a dynamic and respected organization, especially with several very promising projects and at a time when the precious metals sector is showing significant strength." stated Mr. McVey. "I look forward to the challenges and opportunities which lie ahead and am eager to bring my experience and insights to this role."

"AZS Management is proud to announce that once again, our leadership team is improving in depth and experience. We feel very fortunate to welcome John to our impressive team of experts. John has vast experience in executive and leadership positions in both domestic and international mining. John recognizes our Company's potential and appreciates the leadership direction of Arizona Gold & Silver. John is eager to contribute his knowledge and expertise to the success of AZS. Please join me in welcoming John to Arizona Gold & Silver Inc.," stated Mike Stark, President & CEO.

About Arizona Gold & Silver Inc.

Arizona Gold & Silver is a young exploration company focused on exploring gold-silver properties in western Arizona and Nevada. The flagship asset is the Philadelphia gold-silver property where the Company is drilling off an epithermal gold-silver system.

On behalf of the Board of Directors:

ARIZONA SILVER EXPLORATION INC.

Mike Stark, President and CEO, Director

Phone: (604) 833-4278

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.

Copyright (c) 2024 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
Mayor Cory Booker, an outspoken advocate for gay and lesbian equality, was once far less tolerant of others, he conceded in an opinion column he wrote for his college newspaper while at Stanford.
Antonelli set for Friday debut, 2025 Mercedes deal

According to reports in the Dutch and Italian specialist media, Kimi Antonelli really is set to make his Formula 1 race debut in 2025.

Kimi Antonelli, Austria test 2024

 Mercedes

De Telegraaf newspaper says Toto Wolff has finally given up on the possibility of trying to lure Max Verstappen from Red Bull to Mercedes to replace the Ferrari-bound Lewis Hamilton.

All speculation can be put on ice, correspondent Erik van Haren wrote, as Mercedes knows that Max Verstappen is not an option for 2025.

The outcome is that Wolff will simply sign a race deal with his Italian protege Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who finally becomes eligible for a super license as of his 18th birthday on the Sunday of this weekend's Dutch GP.

Less than a week after that, he is then set to make his debut during an official grand prix weekend, replacing Hamilton in initial Friday practice at Monza, according to specialist Italian reports.

Antonelli's 2025 race deal announcement is also expected to be made at his home Italian GP.

De Telegraaf, meanwhile, insists that Wolff has not given up on Verstappen completely, thanks to a supposed clause in the Dutchman's current contract allowing him to exit for 2026 in the event that Red Bull's performance continues to slide.

1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve thinks the design of F1's budget cap is having an effect on Red Bull's current situation, as did the Christian Horner scandal.

That's why it (the budget cap) was put in place, he told Prime Casino. "It is having an effect. The turmoil did not help and the fact that Verstappen is a single driver in the team instead of the team having two drivers does not help. He's carrying everything on his shoulders.

The same thing kind of happened with Mercedes. It took them a while to realise that losing is possible, and it takes a while to reinvent yourself and put yourself in form to be able to push to the edge when you've spent years without having to push, Villeneuve added.

(GMM)
Liberty to sell F1 shares to fund MotoGP deal

Liberty Media will partly fund its acquisition of MotoGP by selling more than 10 million shares in Formula 1.

Fernando Alonso, Belgian GP 2024

 Aston Martin Racing

Liberty Media intends to exercise its option to deliver additional cash in lieu of shares of (Formula 1) as part of its previously disclosed proposed acquisition of Dorna Sports, part of an official media statement read.

The statement implies that Dorna, the commercial rights holder of MotoGP, is demanding to be paid in cash rather than Formula 1 shares.

Liberty announced its deal to buy MotoGP, the two-wheeled equivalent to F1, in early April this year.

The company said at the time that MotoGP will remain an independently run company attributed to Liberty Media's Formula One Group tracking stock .

(GMM)
Red Bull to fight further F1 staff losses says Marko

Red Bull will "fight" against any further efforts from Formula 1 rivals to poach staff.

Max Verstappen, Belgian GP 2024

 Red Bull

Since Max Verstappen began to dominate, the energy drink company's top F1 team has been leaking top employees - including Dan Fallows, Rob Marshall, Lee Stevenson, Adrian Newey, and Audi's future new team boss, Jonathan Wheatley.

Red Bull F1 consultant Dr Helmut Marko suggested the team was fairly powerless to retain Wheatley, as his new and sizeable Audi salary is protected under the budget cap rules.

We wouldn't have been able to keep up with them, he told Auto Motor und Sport.

And now there are fears that given Newey's influence, and also Wheatley's long-term contacts at Red Bull, more departures may soon be forthcoming.

We are broadly and well positioned as a team, but we will fight for every employee, Marko insisted.

Some think Red Bull's internal turmoil in 2024, including the Christian Horner scandal, was not only Newey's but also Wheatley's trigger to leave.

I don't believe it is the turmoil that made him leave, 1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve told Prime Casino. "It's just a step up in a career. It's (like) James Vowles leaving Mercedes for Williams.

It (the turmoil) might have opened the door, but ultimately it is a step up in career, the Canadian added.

Villeneuve, however, also tips Red Bull to weather the storm.

It won't help them, he said, "but it is a great team. Mercedes went to the bottom of their wave and now they're starting to climb the wave again. Red Bull will do the same.

The good news for Red Bull is that the well-connected Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf is now reporting that Toto Wolff has finally given up on trying to poach Verstappen. Kimi Antonelli is expected to be announced as Lewis Hamilton's 2025 successor next weekend at Monza.

As for Villeneuve, he thinks Red Bull could also survive without triple world champion Verstappen.

There was Red Bull before Max and they were winning a lot so Max is not the answer to everything, he said. He is a huge part of the puzzle. Not an easy piece to replace.

Villeneuve will also be keeping his eye on the FIA's new clampdown, as of this weekend at Zandvoort, against asymmetrical braking systems - which some believe is aimed primarily at Red Bull.

There's been some regulation changes about the bias braking - left to right - the steered braking, so we'll have to see who it affects, he said. It will be interesting to see which team it affects.

(GMM)
Sauber told to change F1 team name for Dutch GP

Sauber has been told to drop its official team name and related branding at this weekend's Dutch GP.

Valtteri Bottas, Belgian GP 2024

 Sauber

For 2024, with the Alfa Romeo naming deal now lapsed, the Swiss outfit decided to adopt a blatant sponsorship approach to its new title - with the online casino Stake taking centre stage.

But the official acronym 'SF1TKS' - standing for Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber - was a clever move amid the reality that Stake, as an online gambling platform, is banned in certain countries.

Switzerland's federal casino commission even commenced proceeding against Sauber for illegal advertising.

If Stake is banned, we will have an alternative team name, team representative Alessandro Alunni Bravi explained earlier this year. Depending on the country, we work with Stake or Kick, a different sponsor.

A 'Stake' ban for the Formula 1 team will definitely apply this weekend at Zandvoort, although with a higher profile compared to similar restrictions in Australia, Spain, Belgium and Qatar this season.

Kansspelautoriteit (Ksa) has ordered the organisation of Formula 1 in Zandvoort, the Dutch GP, and the Sauber racing team not to advertise for illegal gambling provider Stake during the event in Zandvoort, the Dutch gaming authority declared in a statement.

The Ksa ... finds it undesirable that illegal gambling is advertised at a Dutch event with the reach and size of Formula 1, also because the event attracts a lot of attention among vulnerable groups, it added.

The board of the Ksa has therefore urgently requested both Sauber and the organisation of the Dutch GP not to drive under the name Stake and not to advertise for this provider.

(GMM)
Thailand's F1 hopes hit by political turmoil

Hopes that Thailand could be Formula 1's next exotic new grand prix destination appear to have taken a hit.

Alex Albon, Belgian GP 2024

 Williams

In April, amid rumours of a potential street race in Bangkok, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali travelled to the Southeast Asian country to meet with prime minister Srettha Thavisin.

Thavisin was then at Imola for more talks with Formula 1 officials, where he said it is his policy to place Thailand on the global radar for international events and activities .

The PM's visit made Italian automobile chief Angelo Sticchi Damiani, representing both Imola and Monza, very nervous.

We are in a context where everything is changing rapidly, he said, wary that one of Italy's two races could be the victim of a deal for Thailand. The prime minister of an Asian country that wants F1 was present in Imola.

However, the situation has now changed. Just days ago, Thavisin was forced by Thailand's constitutional court to step down, because he had appointed a minister convicted of bribery.

According to 1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve, the potential collapse of Thailand's F1 bid is not a disaster, because he thinks another global region deserves a grand prix more.

F1 is global, more than it has ever been, and Africa is a continent that's missing, he told Prime Casino. "So it seems logical that there should be a push to go to Africa.

Honestly, it's also very political, where (F1) goes.

(GMM)
Wyoming's primary election gave voters the chance to narrow down the field of candidates within their party before the general election in November. In Sweetwater County, many races were also decided in the primary election when there were only Republican candidates running.

The primary election took place Tuesday, August 20. The unofficial results were shared Tuesday night. A total of 6,499 ballots were cast in Sweetwater County, with 5,442 Republicans voting, 925 Democrats voting, and 132 non-partisan ballots cast.

The Green River City Council could potentially be changed by the election results. Although Council Member Sherry Bushman is likely to retain her seat, having beaten Mark Peterson by 200 votes, Council Member George Jost might not return to the council after losing to Jessica Maser by 136 votes.

Other changes in leadership will occur this year, with several races ending with incumbents being beaten by their opponents. House District 60 Representative Tony Niemiec lost in a close race to Marlene Brady, coming up short by 45 votes. House District 48 Representative Clark Stith lost to Darin McCann by 127 votes. Albert Sommers, who previously served as a representative for House District 20 and Speaker of the House, also lost his race for Senate District 14, losing to Laura Pearson by 163 votes.

Other races were close victories for incumbents, with candidates describing them as "nail biters" as they watched the unofficial results come in at the County Court House on Tuesday night. Wyoming Representative J.T. Larson for House District 17 won by 81 votes, while Representative Codie Wylie of House District 39 won by 44 votes.

The Sweetwater County Board of County Commissioners is on track to continue without changes, with current commissioners Mary Thoman and Taylor Jones maintaining a decisive lead.

The federal races for senator and representative were also decisively won by the incumbents John Barrasso and Harriet Hageman.

A handful of Democratic candidates ran for various positions, but were uncontested in their races, so they will automatically move on to the general election, which will take place Tuesday, November 5.

The full unofficial results for the primary election can be found on sweetwatercountywy.gov.

Primary election unofficial results

(Republican candidate results are listed for partisan races; Democratic candidates were all uncontested)

Federal offices

United States Senator

1. John Barrasso: 3,306

2. Reid Rasner: 1,518

3. John Holtz: 438

United States Representative

1. Harriet Hageman: 4,184

2. Steven Helling: 1,025

State offices

State Senator, District 12

1. John Kolb: 1,313

2. Jeff Ramaj: 814

State Senator, District 14

1. Laura Taliaferro Pearson: 324

2. Albert Sommers: 161

3. Bill Winney: 91

State Representative, House District 15

1. Pamela Thayer: 20

2. Terry Lee Weickum: 10

3. Sheryl Foland: 6

State Representative, House District 17

1. Joshua Thomas (J.T.) Larson: 562

2. Terry Ellison: 481

State Representative, House District 18

1. Scott Heiner: 393

2. Thomas D. Crank: 179

State Representative, House District 39

1. Cody Wylie: 501

2. Laura Mckee: 457

3. Marshall Burt: 88

State Representative, House District 47

1. Robert "Bob" Davis: 327

State Representative, House District 48

1. Darin McCann: 617

2. Clark Stith: 490

State Representative, House District 60

1. Marlene Brady: 567

2. Tony Niemiec: 522

County

County Commissioner

1. Mary E. Thoman: 2,992

2. Taylor C. Jones: 2,707

3. Rose M. Mosbey: 2,095

Green River

City Council, Ward I

1. Sherry Bushman: 468

2. Mark Peterson: 268

City Council, Ward II

1. Jessica Maser: 297

2. George Jost: 161

City Council, Ward III

1. Robert V. Berg: 585

Rock Springs

City Council Ward I

1. Tim Robinson: 355

2. Rick Milonas: 233

City Council Ward II

1. Robert B. Zotti: 1,057

City Council, Ward III

1. Larry Hickerson: 505

City Council, Ward IV

1. Brent Bettolo: 677

Granger Town Council

1. Kimberly G. Nygaard: 16

2. Vern Howey: 15

3. Jimi Frazier: 9

Superior Town Council

1. Thomas McCune: 59

2. Sandra S. Merritt: 41
WHITE MOUNTAIN-"That's a lot of horses," lamented Cheyenne resident Robyn Smith from a high-desert ridgeline.

It wasn't her first exasperated exclamation. "Argh, oh crap," was her immediate reaction to learning a federal judge had given the Bureau of Land Management the OK to proceed with plans to fully remove two wild horse herds from the landscape in southwest Wyoming.

A retired architect donning a "Return to Freedom" ball cap that featured a bucking mustang, Smith proudly described herself as a wild horse advocate. On this crisp Thursday morning in the hill country north of Interstate 80, she was doing one of her favorite things: Watching mustangs.

Smith's interest in the equines - an icon of the West, albeit a nonnative one - had evolved organically into activism, stemming from a wildlife photography hobby. "We started doing more horse photography," she said, "and then we started [wondering], 'Well, what do you mean you're going to round them up?'"

Soon, Smith was invested enough that she was sitting through wild horse-related legal proceedings and traveling to observe roundups - government run wild-horse gathers exactly like what was happening in the distance.

While Smith and a dozen or so others watched on for hours, a helicopter commissioned by the Bureau of Land Management herded one band of horses, then another, toward a trap. Once inside, they were sorted and trucked away.

The animals were members of what the BLM considers the White Mountain Herd. It's vastly overpopulated, at least going by what the federal agency considers an "appropriate" number for this landscape. By day's end, 144 animals - 52 stallions, 63 mares and 29 foals - had been removed, which meant the crews were almost exactly a quarter of the way to their goal of taking 586 mustangs off the range over the next couple weeks.

The White Mountain Herd's horses are well known enough that they're being allowed to persist. The BLM even advertises a scenic drive that winds through the heart of the herd management area. The plan is to maintain in the neighborhood of 205 to 300 horses in this region, which reaches from Rock Springs northwest to Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge.

The Adobe Town Herd, in the Red Desert, is also being allowed to persist: BLM plans call for 225-450 horses here.

The neighboring Salt Wells and Great Divide Basin herds, meanwhile, are slated for elimination.

Wild horses compete with sheep, cattle and native wildlife for forage and other resources. That fact is particularly problematic in the eyes of some, and a prime driver of horse policy in this "checkerboard" swath of southwest Wyoming where private and federal land interchange in square-mile blocks that meet at the corners. The cattle and sheep-centric Rock Springs Grazing Association owns and leases about 1.1 million acres of private land in the checkerboard - and for decades fought the BLM over wild horses.

Litigation and more litigation

A year ago, the association sued, asking a court to compel federal land managers to remove free-ranging mustangs from their unfenced land.

After the BLM finalized an environmental impact statement calling for trimming the two herds and eliminating two others in spring 2023, a coalition of 11 wild-horse advocates came together to file a suit of their own challenging the decision.

U.S. District Court of Wyoming Judge Kelly Rankin, a Biden administration appointee, ruled in the BLM's favor in both lawsuits on Wednesday.

"The Court agrees that ... wild horses are improperly maintained on private lands," the federal judge wrote in his decision on the Rock Springs Grazing Association's complaint. "However, this maintenance, although 'improper,' does not necessarily require an immediate remedy."

Rankin again sided with the government on each of the "litany" of claims brought by wild horse advocates, who argued the BLM arbitrarily and capriciously violated the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971 and several other federal laws.

"Ultimately, however, the Court finds that each contention fails for either conflating the [BLM's Resource Management Plan amendment] with a removal decision, misconstruing BLM's obligations, or [because it is] contradicted by the record," the judge wrote.

Lyons, Colorado resident Carol Walker was one of the plaintiffs. The day after Rankin's ruling, she joined Smith on the ridgeline observing the roundup.

"I don't do it because I like it," Walker said. "It's because I know the contractors will treat the horses better if there's public here."

Walker joined an appeal filed Friday in the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals.

"My concern is the BLM is going to try to zero out these herds as fast as they can," she said, "before our appeal even gets here."

Represented by Eubanks and Associates, a similar coalition of wild horse advocates, environmental groups and individuals joined the appeal.

"We expected this case to be decided by a higher court, and we are returning to the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, where we have already twice prevailed in defending the Red Desert's wild horses from this special-interest-driven eradication plan," Suzanne Roy, executive director of American Wild Horse Conservation, said in a statement.

A phone call to the Rock Springs Grazing Association went unreturned.

Because of the protracted legal battle that's likely to be extended further yet, it's unlikely that BLM will immediately remove the entire Salt Wells and Great Divide Basin herds, said Brad Purdy, the agency's deputy state director for communications. Although the agency completed a revision to its Resource Management Plan for wild horses - and Rankin upheld that plan - there's still a requirement to study the action of eliminating a herd under the National Environmental Policy Act.

Roundups could continue

BLM-Wyoming started that NEPA study process in June, proposing to remove roughly 5,000 mustangs from three of the four horse management areas in the Rock Springs Field Office - including the two complete herd eliminations. With the appeal expected, though, it's unlikely that the required environmental assessment will be completed anytime soon, Purdy said.

That's not to say federal contractors will stop rounding up horses in the checkerboard anytime soon.

Nationally, BLM is aiming to take 20,000 wild horses off the landscape in 2024. Numbers have come down from the high point, but the current population of about 74,000 horses and wild burros nationwide is still nearly three times the "appropriate" management level - a dynamic that holds true in southwest Wyoming, where there are thousands more horses than the agency and many residents desire.

"Could BLM do a gather to bring those [herds] back down to the [target population]? I think we could," Purdy said. "But I don't think we could zero out the herd, because that's under litigation." Essentially, intensive roundups throughout the region could continue - and if they do, it'll put BLM in a better position to complete the whole herd removals, if or when the litigation wraps up.

For horse advocates, those roundups aren't especially fun. Descriptions like "unspeakable" and "cruel" were common among the observers. Cheyenne resident Barry Smith - Robyn Smith's husband - wouldn't even watch.

"I get too emotional," he explained from the cab of his SUV, where he waited out the roundup.

"Some of the pilots are better than others," Barry Smith said. "Some are pretty good, and if the horses slow down, they kind of hold back and stay higher. Others overrun them, I think."

Jay D'Ewart, the BLM Rock Springs Field Office's wild horse and burro specialist, was the man in charge Thursday. While taking lunch in his pickup, he professed to having something in common with the wild horse advocates who kept an eye on his operation.

"I'm just like them, I love horses," D'Ewart said, "I own them, I use them, I ride them - I just like it."

He loved seven previously rounded-up mustangs so much, in fact, that he took them home. Some of those horses came from herds in line to be eliminated.

D'Ewart hadn't yet caught up on the court ruling, having been tied up prepping for the weeks-long roundup. But it's a decision that could make him a busy man.

WyoFile is an independent nonprofit news organization focused on Wyoming people, places and policy.
CASPER (Wyoming News Exchange)  Yellowstone National Park rangers arrested a Virginia man Saturday after he allegedly stole a heavy wrecker while intoxicated and told rangers he was a federal agent on a mission.

The incident began just before 5 p.m., Saturday, when Alan Bowling, born in 1967, attempted to buy a beer at the Old Faithful Upper General Store and had his credit card declined. He then left the general store, got into the heavy wrecker without permission of [the park] and drove the wrecker away, according to an affidavit.

Rangers received a report of the stolen red, heavy wrecker about five minutes after Bowlings card was declined. But they didnt have to chase him down. The wrecker was heading toward them. After driving through a large wooden fence, the wrecker cruised through a field, past Old Faithful, near a ranger station and a helipad.

Rangers detained Bowling following a short chase on foot.

Bowling initially identified himself as Nathan Patterson, undisclosed United States Marshal, and told rangers that he needed the wrecker to get to the United States Marshals headquarters.

A police report also stated that Bowling had an odor of alcohol about his person.

Bowling faces charges of operating a vehicle while under the influence; interfering with a government employee engaged in official duty; destroying government property; creating or maintaining a hazardous offensive condition; operating a vehicle in a prohibited area; disobeying a rule of a court of the United States; driving a vehicle with disregard for the safety of people or property, and unlawfully exercising possession over the property of another with the purpose to depriving the owner of the property.
A federal judge in Wyoming dismissed a lawsuit Thursday alleging the states ban on selling delta-8 and similar substances is unconstitutional.

The substances are similar to marijuana and occur in tiny amounts in the cannabis plant, but anecdotally produce milder effects and, in some cases, can be synthesized using dangerous chemicals.

Judge Kelly Rankin accepted the states motion to dismiss for many of the same reasons he dismissed the plaintiffs request for a temporary restraining order or injunction, he stated.

Much of the analysis remains the same and the Court will incorporate the reasoning and cited authority from that Order herein, he wrote. Accordingly, the Court finds Defendants Motion should be granted and Plaintiffs claims are dismissed with prejudice.

The plaintiffs  a cohort of delta-8 business owners, manufacturers, users and an agricultural operation  failed to prove any of their claims of unconstitutionality, Rankin continued. That included claims that the law violates the interstate commerce clause, amounts to unconstitutional taking and is void for vagueness.

The fact that Plaintiffs are unhappy with the substances [the ban] prohibits, does not make the law vague, he stated.

He also found that the federal lawsuit naming the governor and the state as defendants was inappropriate, citing Eleventh Amendment protections. Only the Wyoming attorney general and Wyoming Department of Agriculture Director Doug Miyamoto were proper defendants.

Rankins ruling does not give plaintiffs the option to appeal in the U.S. District Court of Wyoming, and the group has since filed an appeal to the 10th Circuit Court.

Or rather, plaintiffs amended an appeal filed Thursday morning  before Rankins ruling  which was already asking the appeals court to reconsider their request for an injunction.

The ban went into effect in July, and has cost some plaintiffs businesses thousands of dollars each day, they previously told the court. Wyomings delta-8 industry grew considerably in the years before the ban went into effect, blossoming out of a perceived loophole in the 2018 Farm Bill legalizing hemp at the federal level. The same language in that federal legislation was later adopted in Wyoming.

WyoFile is an independent nonprofit news organization focused on Wyoming people, places and policy.
Wyomings primary election is in the books, with thousands of voters showing up at the polls on Tuesday to make their voices heard.

It was an interesting election, with less races than the 2022 election, and less candidates running against one another within those races. But that didnt stop it from being highly contested, with tense debates and personal attacks as candidates presented arguments of why they were better than their opponents and what they would do differently.

It was also a campaign season where terms like RINO (Republican in name only) were often tossed around and candidates debated what it meant to be a true patriot/conservative/etc.

Admittedly, the worst of the mud slinging came from out of state flyers that were largely criticized and debunked by local candidates and public leaders. Still, that doesnt mean the candidates themselves didnt call one another out on their differing opinions as well, with accusations of not truly believing, voting for, or representing the right ideals either stated or implied.

Also, the elephant in the room is a big one  the fact that it was almost entirely elephants in the room, with practically no donkeys to be seen.

The vast majority of candidates were Republican, with only five Democrats running in the entire election. Over 83% of voters were also Republican, although a decent chunk of Democrats still showed up at the polls as well.

These facts demonstrate an interesting trend in Wyoming and Sweetwater County, where the divide between Republican choices and Democratic choices just keeps widening. Often, Democrats have little to no actual choices in the primary election, and many races end up being decided in the primary when there are no democrats running at all.

This may be one reason why many who may have more Democratic beliefs and tendencies are actually registered Republicans, being technically inside the party so they feel like they can have a say. Its also a reason many candidates end up switching parties, giving them a better shot at getting elected by running on a Republican ticket. So, perhaps it is true that many people within Sweetwater County are Republican in name only, because they feel that its the only way to be involved in the process.

With this being the case, were seeing a larger amount of diversity of opinions within the Republican party. This is why the term RINO has become increasingly weaponized, used by individuals or groups to label those whose views and policies differ from their own. Its as if by saying someone is a RINO, youre saying that all their positions are incorrect and invalid.

Honestly, Im very bothered by this whole mentality.

First, it plays into the us vs. them way of thinking that is already so prevalent in our society, and so dangerous. This mentality is often seen between political parties, where the other is viewed as the enemy, as only morally wrong and in need of being defeated. This is problematic enough on its own. But now the same mentality is also extending to different factions and people on different sides of the spectrum within one party. So if youre labeled a RINO, it means youre wrong and must be stopped.

This also creates the idea that everyone within a political party should have exactly the same beliefs all the time. People act like sharing the same political label should make everyone cookie cutter images of one another, and youre only a true member of the party if you fit one exact profile. The problem is, each person bases that cookie cutter image off of themselves and their own beliefs. And if you dont align, youre wrong.

But the reality is that absolutely none of us will agree all of the time on every issue. And thats a good thing!

The concept of democracy and representation is that there is power within diversity, and that listening to people as a whole, with all their different perspectives, is how we can find solutions. When we disagree, the answer isnt to immediately fight and shame each other. Disagreements are an opportunity to listen (not just react), to have good faith discussions, and to try to truly understand. We also need to stop dehumanizing those we disagree with, and stop assuming that their motives are evil. If we give each other the benefit of the doubt, and believe were all trying to do whats best, we can maintain respect even through disagreements, and work together to find compromises and solutions that work.

When it comes to the actual RINOs in Sweetwater County, we have to ask  when choices are taken away from people, how much can we blame them for wanting to maintain the ability to choose? The idea of a two party system is designed to create more choices. But here, it just doesnt work that way.

So, when it comes to the diverse range of opinions within the Republican party, I have a radical idea. Instead of fighting it, why dont we embrace it?

Instead of being up in arms about who does and doesnt fit the label, why dont we listen to the differing ideas people have, and use them to find solutions and make all of us stronger together?
There are still toques in this city, if you know where to look. I dont mean in the simpering, synecdochical sense of chefs. I mean literal toques, high and crisp as meringue, with their lofty connotations of French expertise and earned-by-blood chefiness. On a recent week, I saw eight. They topped the heads of rank-and-file cooks at dueling chef-counter restaurants, where they telegraphed their establishments ambition and aura, as instantly as the $400ish-per-person price tag after tax and tip. At Cesar in west Soho, and Chefs Table at Brooklyn Fare in Hells Kitchen, the higher the hat, the closer to God.

These restaurants are two of the latest iterations of New Yorks luxury tasting menu, a genre that has limped a little lately. The four-figure dinner for two may be alive and well  those with money to spend have always found extravagant places to spend it  but some of the haute counters of yore have closed (Ko) or been overhauled (Blanca, now under the care of Victoria Blamey). Cesar is new and Brooklyn Fare is newly updated, though both restaurants come with a provenance others do not. Neither would be here without the original Chefs Table at Brooklyn Fare, in the original Brooklyn, a tiny tasting room attached to a grocer across the street from the Hoyt-Schermerhorn station. Back in 2009, Cesar Ramirez began spinning 19 courses a night out of a janky prep kitchen, as much, it seemed, by compulsion as design  having honed his craft under David Bouley, he simply couldnt not, even in comparatively reduced circumstances. The risk was rewarded; in 2010, the restaurant earned two Michelin stars. In 2012, Chefs Table at Brooklyn Fare was upgraded to three (the same year as Eleven Madison Park) and topped restaurant-of-the-year lists.

But 2024 is a long way, temporally and spiritually, from 2012. And many of the hallmarks of voluptuous excess that defined Ramirez and Brooklyn Fares cooking then  sterling ingredients flown in from all over the world, hushed solemnity, a parade of single, exquisite bites  define Ramirez and Brooklyn Fares cooking now, even though Ramirez and Brooklyn Fares cooking are these days at odds. Last year, Chefs Table at Brooklyn Fare abruptly closed, with a flurry of legal filings between Ramirez and its owner, Moneer Issa, with allegations of defamation and unpaid wages and theft and malfeasance flying on either side. From the ashes, two tasting-menu temples have risen: Ramirezs Cesar, and a revived Chefs Table at Brooklyn Fare, now under the stewardship of two of Ramirezs former deputies, Max Natmessnig and Marco Prins.

Cesar occupies a blond-wood oasis behind gauzy curtains on Hudson Street; Chefs Table at Brooklyn Fare, a slightly more caramel-colored counter once again tucked away in a well-stocked mini-market, now in Manhattan. (Ramirez originally moved with it, in 2016; the entrance is just past the tea bags and a tower of LaCroix.) The atmosphere at both is more spalike than restaurant; despite a radio-rock soundtrack (Girl, Youll Be a Woman Soon from Pulp Fiction came on while I dined at Cesar), the rooms were almost penitentially still. At Cesar, a couple  I think  seated next to me spoke barely a word to each other their entire dinner, preferring to silently photograph each course presented to them with professional-grade digital SLRs. The couple a few down at Brooklyn Fare subsided, not too long into their meal, into parallel consultations on their iPhones.

Thats no fault of the cooking, which remains  at both  precise, involved, and baroque. The seeming requirement to reward big-spending diners with braggable ingredients can shave down the surprise a great meal can offer; of course, there are servings of A5 Wagyu, langoustines, Hokkaido uni, and caviar by the scoopful. Even the preparations can echo, a reminder that both sprang from a common parent. One of Ramirezs famous originals was a truffled uni toast, served on a buttered round of brioche. Having delighted last decades big spenders, it returns at Cesar to delight this ones, lest anyone get less than his moneys worth; and a version pops up at Brooklyn Fare, too, where the brioche is substituted for a baton of waffle (recipe courtesy of the Dutchman Prinss grandmother) and showered with its own snow of shaved black truffle. (Australian, the server will tell you, where its still prime truffle season.)

Each counter does have its share of surprises. I never thought I could swoon for smoked-eel rillettes until I swooned for Ramirezs, piped into a tiny cigarette of tuile  and Im not likely to again, unless eel rillettes take off wildly, as I doubt they will. Some of his pairings of flavor and texture are exponentially delicious and completely underdescribed by the elliptical menu that will be furnished if you ask for it: Live Norwegian langoustine with Kaviari caviar doesnt even hint at the cod mousse underneath or the basil gelee on top of it, a Pacific parfait. At Brooklyn Fare, I enjoyed a single Maine scallop in a sauce of vin jaune  the Juras oxidative white wine  and fig-leaf oil, as well as the way finger lime pulp and trout roe popped together like springy soda bubbles around an escabeche of Japanese snapper.

So why did I leave these restaurants feeling stuffed but unfulfilled? Their cooks have earned their toques; their technique is flawlessly correct. Its the pampered chill I cant warm to, the refrigerated, placeless ambience of total luxury. (I watched, at Cesar, a woman in a Dior sweatsuit sit alone for 20 minutes, until her date returned to wrap her in an Hermes blanket.) Very little about either felt tied to New York; we might have been at any blond counter in any financial capital of the world.

Its hard to lay blame for this on the talented chefs and staff members, who glide about knowledgeably and solicitously. Neither restaurant appears to be suffering. Having supported one Brooklyn Fare for years, New York City seems eminently capable of supporting a split and spored two: midweek in August, each was full. They are not the citys most expensive outings  dinner at Yoshino will still run you $500 a head  but even so, they remain out of reach, by design, to all but the most wealthy or the most willing. What are the rest of us missing? After a week of touristing, I can confirm: quality cooking, but cold comfort.
If youve been eyeing a new budget tablet thats also under 10-inches then the recently announced Redmi Pad SE 8.7 might be just up your alley. It comes in two options, the first being Wi-Fi only and the second adding LTE connectivity. Both are now making their way to Europe, the UK, and other markets after debuting in India last month.

Regardless of which Redmi Pad SE 8.7 one you go for, youre getting an 8.7-inch IPS LCD with 800 x 1,340px resolution, a 90 Hz refresh rate, and a 5:3 aspect ratio. The panel is also rated at up to 600 nits brightness in outdoor mode and features a 5MP front-facing camera. The screen is flanked by dual speakers with Dolby Atmos and you also get a headphone jack if you prefer wired audio.

The back gets a single 8MP shooter capable of FHD video recording. Both versions of the tablet come with MediaTeks Helio G85 chipset with 4GB RAM and 64/128GB storage. Storage is expandable via the onboard microSD card slot.



Redmi pad SE 8.7 comes in Wi-Fi only and 4G versions

The software side is covered by Xiaomi HyperOS running on top of Android 14. Xiaomi also added a 6,650 mAh battery with 18W charging support though the tablet only ships with a 10W charger.



Redmi Pad 8.7 SE in Graphite Gray, Aurora Green, and Sky Blue

Redmi Pad SE 8.7 comes in Graphite Gray, Aurora Green, and Sky Blue colors. Pricing for the 4/64GB Wi-Fi only version starts at 150/120 while the LTE model is an extra 30/30 more for the same RAM and storage.

Redmi Pad SE 8.7 4G  Redmi Pad SE 8.7

We may get a commission from qualifying sales.
The Guam Bus is launching its latest bilingual CHamoru childrens book An Taya Elektrisidat on Saturday at the Guam Museum.

The launch is scheduled from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. and will have chesa, sticker and coloring sheets giveaways and also an art raffle, according to a release from The Guam Bus.

People interested in the book can meet the author and get their book signed.

The book which means When Theres No Electricity is written by Michael Lujan Bevacqua and illustrated by his brother Jack Bevacqua. The illustrations are based on sketches by Michael Bevacquas oldest child Sumahi.

The book tells the story of three CHamoru children on Guam, who struggle to find fun things to do after a typhoon has devastated Guam, leaving the island without power or internet.

With some guidance from their Nanan biha (grandma), she reminds them that there are plenty of ways to enjoy life and our island without your cellphones or tablets.

The three children that are featured in the book are Michael Bevacquas children, Sumahi, Aklie and Lulai.

This story was particularly meaningful for our family at least since Mawar last year was the first devastating typhoon all four of my kids had experienced and adjusting to weeks without power or limited internet was difficult for them, as Im sure it was for many of our families, Michae Lujan Bevacqua said.

He said The Guam Bus makes it a point to create a book for each of their children and including them in their books.

For Sumahi who is now a senior at John F. Kennedy High School, her book was the first book that The Guam Bus published back in 2015, Michael Bevacqua said.

Aklie who is now a sophomore at JFK had his book published in 2017, he shared.

For Lulai who will turn 3 soon, we are already working on a book just for her, but she is featured alongside her older siblings in the story, and loves to point at them as say este si Sumahi. este si Aklie. este...Guahu, he said.
As part of celebrating 110 years of doing business on Guam, the management team of Atkins Kroll donated a years use of a Toyota Sienna HV vehicle to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Guam & CNMI during a presentation on Aug. 22, 2024 at the Tamuning dealership. Members of the Calvos Insurance management team were also on hand to provide the nonprofit organization with 12-months of insurance coverage for the automobile.
With two separate school start times this year the Guam Department of Education has released two 2024-2025 calendars.

The two calendars were approved by the Guam Education Board.

The calendars detail important dates parents, students and educators should know this academic school year.

These calendars include critical dates such as the start and end of each quarter, holidays, breaks, professional development days, and parent-teacher conference days. This information is crucial for planning and ensuring a smooth and successful academic year, GDOE said in a release.

One calendar reflects the school year for schools that started on Aug. 15 and the other for those that started on Aug. 22.

The schools that started on Aug. 15 still have parent-teacher conferences scheduled while those who started on Aug. 22 have none.

The six parent-teacher conference days in the calendar had to be removed in order to provide kids enough instructional days for the year, according to Barbara Adamos, GDOE acting deputy superintendent for educational support and community learning.

She said a parent or guardian can contact the teacher and ask to meet for any day, any time, as long as the teacher is on duty.

Teachers are bound by policy to ensure that they make contact with parents, and meetings could occur over the phone or via Zoom as well, she said.

Officials last week also clarified that the calendar does not actually provide 180 days of class time  there are 173 instructional days  but it does provide the equivalent of 900 hours of classroom instruction, which is allowed under Guam law.

The students who started school on Thursday either went to online classes or attended school at another campus. Those students will attend class on alternating days.

GDOE has eyed Sept. 30 to have nearly all students back at their own campus as it works to get more schools inspected by the Department of Public Health and Social Services.

Some students wont be back to their own campus like Simon Sanchez High School and F.B. Leon Guerrero Middle School as they will remain closed. They will continue attending double-session classes.
Parties in the termination appeal of former Guam Visitors Bureau research director Nico Fujikawa will argue before the Civil Service Commission in November.

Fujikawa, terminated in April for insubordination, argues he was he was targeted and harassed by GVB General Manager Carl Gutierrez.

GVB management sent law enforcement officers to serve Fujikawas termination notice, an action the former employee called an attempt at intimidation by management.

The incident spurred the Guam Police Department to launch an internal affairs investigation back in May.

Attorneys for GVB and Fujikawa appeared before the CSC for a status call conference Wednesday.

GVB legal counsel Charles McDonald said management intends to move to dismiss the case, on the grounds that Fujikawa did not appeal his termination in a timely manner.

Attorney Jacquelin Teralje, for Fujikawa, said her client alleges that his termination notice violated the 90-day cutoff management had to take action against him.

GVB management issued Fujikawas termination notice on April 10, exactly 90 days from a Jan. 11 meeting with GVB deputy general manager Gerry Perez that served as the basis of the firing.

Guam law requires management of any agency to serve an adverse action no later than 90 days from when management knew or should have known the facts or events which form the alleged basis for the adverse action.

Parties have up until Sept. 25 to file motions in the case.

A motion hearing is scheduled for Nov. 14.
The Guam Waterworks Authority may spend an extra $9.6 million buying Fena Lake water from the U.S. Navy this fiscal year, mostly due to a big increase in rates.

GWA General Manager Miguel Bordallo told the Consolidated Commission on Utilities Tuesday that Navy rates more than doubled in the last few quarters, though an increase in water purchases has been a small cause of the increase.

He said GWA originally budgeted about $6 million to buy water from the Navy this fiscal year, but is expected to spend closer to $15.6 million.

Bordallo told the CCU he would provide a breakdown by next week of how much GWA needs to raise its own water rates to cover costs to the Navy.

CCU Commissioner Simon Sanchez commented that rates increased by 120% in just four months. He stressed that GWA would have to pay another $50 million covering that cost over the next five years.

The Navys Fena Water Treatment Plant is the biggest source of water in southern Guam, and GWA buys water from the plant to keep up with demand down south.

Even before the Navy raised rates, GWA was operating at a loss in reselling the water to customers, PDN files show.

We have been told that the reasons for the increase have been primarily because of the renewed base operating contract and those costs going up, Bordallo said.

He told commissioners there was no negotiating with the military on the costs.

They just raise the price and we are stuck paying it, he said.

GWA is able to reprogram some money to cover some of that $9.6 million increase, but will need approval from the CCU to amend its budget for another $5 million in unauthorized expenses.

Commissioner Francis Santos suggested that the CCU contact Del. Jim Moylan and ask him to add a provision to the national defense budget requiring the military to cover the cost of any rate increase.

Sanchez asked that GWA meet with military command about the issue, and suggested raising sewage rates for the military to cover the cost. He said the sudden increase was unacceptable.

Bordallo said that there are a number of projects lined up to reduce consumption of Navy water, but it is a challenge in certain areas down south, like Santa Rita-Sumai, Hagat, and Piti.

GWAs five-year plan calls for a number of projects meant to reduce reliance on water from Fena, for both cost and resilience reasons.

After Typhoon Mawar last May, the Navy stopped providing water from Fena, the PDN reported. Coupled with broken water mains, GWAs water reservoirs depleted and residents villages across the south were left with low or no water pressure at the time.
PLA Navy's Po Lang embarks on offshore training, diplomatic visits

(People's Daily App) 10:57, August 22, 2024

On August 20, the PLA Navy's first sail training ship, the Po Lang, embarked on a training mission and diplomatic visits to countries including Vietnam, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Singapore, with a stopover in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Specialized in various areas, cadets from the Dalian Naval Academy aboard the ship will primarily focus on sail training, while also practicing traditional navigation skills to enhance their capabilities in key operational areas. This mission aims to improve the professional skills of naval cadets, strengthen exchanges, cooperation, and mutual trust with the navies of the visited countries, and contribute to building a maritime community with a shared future.

(Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun)
A Jordanian citizen living in Orlando, Florida, is facing multiple charges after allegedly launching a series of politically motivated attacks on local businesses and a solar power facility.

Hashem Younis Hashem Hnaihen, 43, is accused of threatening to use explosives and causing extensive damage to a solar power generation site in a campaign to protest U.S. support for Israel.

We allege that the defendant threatened to carry out hate-fueled mass violence in our country, motivated in part by a desire to target businesses for their perceived support of Israel, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland, said in a news release. Such acts and threats of violence, whether they are targeting the places that Americans frequent every day or our countrys critical infrastructure, are extremely dangerous and will not be tolerated by the Justice Department.

At a detention hearing on Aug. 14, Hnaihen was ordered to remain in custody pending trial.

According to court documents, beginning around June, Hnaihen targeted and attacked businesses in the Orlando area he believed supported Israel. Wearing a mask, under the cover of night, Hnaihen smashed the glass front doors of businesses and left behind warning letters.

In the letters, which were addressed to the U.S. government, Hnaihen laid out a series of political demands, culminating in a threat to destroy or explode everything here in whole America. Especially the companies and factories that support the racist state of Israel.

At the end of June, as law enforcement worked to identify the masked attacker, Hnaihen broke into a solar power generation facility in Wedgefield, Florida, where investigators said he targeted critical electronic equipment, causing more than $700,000 in damage after he spent hours systematically destroying solar panel arrays by smashing them and cutting wires, before leaving behind two more copies of his threatening demand letter.

Following a multi-agency investigation, Hnaihen was arrested July 11 and charged with four counts of threatening to use explosives and one count of destruction of an energy facility. If convicted, he faces up to 60 years in prison.

Targeting and attacking businesses for perceived beliefs is unacceptable, U.S. Attorney Roger Handberg for the Middle District of Florida said in a news release. The U.S. Attorneys Office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate and federally prosecute those who make violent or hate-based threats and who seek to act on these threats.




Haiti - Cap-Haitien : Important meeting with American Ambassador Hankins





On Wednesday, August 21, 2024, U.S. Ambassador to Haiti Dennis B. Hankins visited the Cap-Haitien City Hall for a very important working meeting, as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen U.S.-Haiti bilateral relations, particularly in the areas of security, economic development, and local governance.



The meeting began with an in-depth discussion on the security situation in Cap-Haitien. Representatives from the City Hall shared their concerns about security challenges and explored possible solutions to improve the protection of citizens.



The discussion then focused on the management of persons displaced by violence, a particularly important topic given the current challenges related to displaced populations. Participants addressed the needs of their compatriots and discussed solutions for their resettlement in dignified and sustainable conditions. This dialogue helped to clarify the actions needed to better support these displaced families.



In addition, the City Hall discussed a strategic project to develop the region's port infrastructure, including the construction of a new modern port or wharf in Petite Anse. This meeting provided an opportunity to solicit support in order to realize this project, which is essential to local economic development.



Finally, the discussions covered the general political situation in the country. Participants discussed electoral preparations, the challenges posed by gangs, and the debates surrounding the amendment of the Constitution. These discussions highlighted the complexity of the current political context and the need for continued dialogue.



This visit marks a significant turning point in the strengthening of relations between the City Hall of Cap-Haitien and the Embassy of the United States.



Ambassador Hankins took the opportunity to discuss the recent sanctions imposed by the United States Treasury Department against former Haitian President Michel Martelly and made it clear, "The United States, as a state governed by the rule of law, takes measures based on solid information. We took this long to impose sanctions on Michel Martelly because we wanted to make sure that all the evidence was gathered and that the decision taken was justified."



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iciHaiti - Boat-People : 182 Haitian migrants intercepted and repatriated to Haiti





An HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircrew notified the U.S. Coast Guard 7th District of an overloaded boat in distress approximately 56 miles south of the Turks and Caicos Islands. The Coast Guard 7th District diverted the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Paul Clark to intercept the boat carrying 182 Haitians in irregular migration status.



"Hurricane season is an especially dangerous time for unlawful maritime migration," said Lt. Nicholas Fujimoto, a Coast Guard law enforcement officer with the 7th District. "The Coast Guard is proactively monitoring the maritime approaches to the U.S. and international waters of the Caribbean to prevent the tragic loss of life at sea. Makeshift vessels are unseaworthy and incapable of handling the rougher seas caused by unpredictable weather and tropical storms."



He reiterates that migrants intercepted at sea or apprehended on land will not be allowed to remain in the United States or on U.S. territory. Any person arriving illegally may be declared ineligible for legal immigration options and repatriated to their country of origin or departure, in accordance with U.S. law, policies, and international treaty obligations.



The Coast Guard, along with its partners in Homeland Security Task Force Southeast, maintains a continuous presence with air, land, and maritime assets in the Straits of Florida, Windward Passage, Mona Passage, and the Caribbean Sea.



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Haiti - CARICOM : Post-visit report of the Group of Eminent Personalities in Haiti





"In response to an invitation from the President of the Transitional Presidential Council (CPT) and calls from stakeholders, the CARICOM Eminent Persons Group (EPG) made an in-person visit to Haiti on 11-16 August 2024 in order to ascertain and evaluate the progress accomplished in the transition process to be in a position to report to the Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).



The visit permitted an exchange of views and dialogue with representatives of a wide spectrum of Haitian society  the bicephal executive; the Director-General of the Haitian National Police; the Minister responsible for womens affairs, the nominating sector leaders; the leadership of political parties not represented on the CPT nor in the government; the civil society sector including womens and human rights associations; the religious and private sectors; labour unions; and a visiting diaspora group. The EPG also met with representatives of Haitis major international partners (Canada, France, the USA) as well as the representatives of the United Nations Office in Haiti (BINUH), the Organisation of American States (OAS), and the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSSM) Force Commander.



The visit to the CPT and the Prime Minister facilitated an update on the overall situation, their activities and plans as well as their concerns. The EPG was encouraged that the CPT appeared to be making some effort to overcome the delays in putting in place a number of the key institutions and entities required under the April 3 Accord between the stakeholders, such as the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP), the Government Action Oversight Organ (OCAG), the National Security Council, and the National Conference. The issue of the estrangement between some sectors and their Council representatives and the resulting friction was raised. The EPG also discussed the unease among the stakeholders resulting from the non-publication of the April 3 Accord, the absence of the proposed critical institutions, Council inaction, and the negative impact on the Council of its inaction on the allegations of corruption against three of its members.



A major concern articulated by both governance institutions was the difficulties experienced by the Haitian police and the Kenyan force in addressing insecurity. This remains the foremost expectation of the Haitian people. The common concern articulated was that the Kenyan force was both under-staffed and under-equipped and as a result lacked the capacity to hold reclaimed territory. The need for the provision of adequate funding for the MSSM for an early resolution of these equipment and personnel shortfalls was emphasized., necessities also required by the Haitian police.



For his part, the Prime Minister Conille was acutely aware that the window of opportunity would not last long and that the people of the country expected delivery. He made it clear that the lack of resources and the breakdown of State institutions were impediments, but that efforts were underway to address the critical socio-economic and humanitarian issues that beleaguered the population. The Prime Minister emphasized that, unless the issue of insecurity is resolved, progress in other critical theatres of government action would very likely be compromised.



In the meetings with the wide scope of civil society representatives and the political parties not represented in the CPT and government, there was the common view that what was needed was a reset and a reconfiguration of the CPT. There was unanimity with regard to the concerns and issues raised  the inability of the State to improve security; disappointment over the lack of impact of the presence of the Kenyan forces; the erosion of public confidence in the CPT, exacerbated by the corruption scandal and strident demands for the three Councillors to be withdrawn; increasing concern that because of delays, perceived as inaction, the transition process would not meet its deadline of February 2026 for the seating of an elected president. The political party representatives not linked to the CPT decried the non-inclusive nature of the Council of Ministers and the pecuniary and other advantages that were likely to be enjoyed in the lead-up to elections by those political parties represented on the Council through their designated ministers.



Delays in installing the critical institutions, the need for greater effectiveness in attaining the major objectives in the allotted time, and the corrosive impact of the allegations of corruption have contributed to the fragility of the transition process. The corruption allegations could not have come at a worse time, and will require speedy resolution in order to preserve the integrity of the institution and public confidence in the transition process. In this regard, the enquiry of the anti-corruption investigative agency will be of critical importance. There needs to be a return to the ethos of the agreement in Jamaica of March 11, 2024, which was built on inclusiveness, consensus and accountability."



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Haiti - News : Zapping...





New Consul of Haiti in Orlando

The Consulate of Haiti in Orlando informs the Haitian Community that Nedgie Phanord Jean Baptiste is the new Consul and that she is open to all suggestions for a better policy of proximity with the Haitian Community.



CEP Representatives : Deadline

The Presidential Transitional Council (CPT) informs that it continues to work tirelessly and that the announced deadline of August 28, 2024, to complete the process of designating the persons to be part of the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) will be respected. The CPT takes note of the delay observed in the process of the formation of the CEP caused by disputes made by certain organizations of the same sector and on the other hand, the non-compliance by others with the terms of reference sent to them. The CPT grants sectors that have not yet done so an additional period ending on Monday, August 26, 2024 to notify it of the choice of their representative.



New Ambassador of France

On Wednesday, August 21, 2024, the Embassy of Haiti in France had the pleasure of hosting the courtesy visit of the new Ambassador of France appointed to Haiti, Antoine Michon. On this occasion, Charge d'Affaires Volcy and Ambassador Michon discussed in particular the strengthening of bilateral relations, the priorities of the Haitian Government, France's support for the Haitian National Police, the issue of the deployment and financing of the Multinational Mission for Security Support in Haiti, as well as the consolidation of academic cooperation between the two countries.



PM's tour in the North

Prime Minister Garry Conille, accompanied by members of the diplomatic corps, will begin a tour of the North department, starting this Thursday, August 22 until August 24. This tour reflects the Government's efforts to boost regional development and strengthen relations with local stakeholders. Conille plans to meet with regional officials and economic stakeholders to discuss priority areas for the North department.



Arrest of the alleged murderer of 3 young missionaries

As part of the investigation, the national police are investigating the murder of three young missionaries, including a Haitian and two Americans, on Thursday, May 23, 2024 in Lizon, commune of Croix-des-Bouquets. https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-42404-haiti-flash-three-missionaries-including-an-american-couple-killed-by-gangs.html and https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-42404-haiti-flash-three-missionaries-including-an-american-couple-killed-by-gangs.html ; the Central Directorate of the Judicial Police (DCPJ) arrested Benice Celestin, 52, for his alleged involvement in these murders



Basketball : The Christ-Roi team wins the Super 8 tournament

The Haitian Basketball Federation successfully held its tournament called Super 8, organized during this month of August in Delmas 33 at Parc Sainte Clair for young people under 20. Team Christ-Roi won the trophy by defeating Power Vikings (73-52) in a one-sided final.



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A total of 33 protesters are accused of insubordination to the police, and 28 of them also of violation of privacy relating to public premises and one of criminal damage.

THE DISTRICT COURT of Helsinki on Monday began hearing a case in which dozens of people face criminal charges for participating in a protest organised by Extinction Rebellion Finland outside the Government Palace in Helsinki in October 2021, reports YLE.

The defendants have all rejected the charges, insisting that the protest was lawful and took place in a public place.

Some of the protesters were on the steps leading to the main entrance and others outside another entrance to the governmental building  some having affixed themselves to the building with glue and padlocks, according to the public broadcasting company. The sole count of criminal damage stems from glue stains on a window.

Officers at Helsinki Police Department ruled that the protest was unlawful and took altogether 52 people into custody after the protesters failed to comply with police orders to vacate the premises. While the underage protesters were released promptly, 48 protesters were held in police custody for about 28 hours.

A fair share of the protesters avoided charges because they could not reached in time.

On Monday, the prosecution argued that the protesters should be fined for violating the privacy of public premises by blocking access to and from the building and for being insubordinate to the police by refusing to obey the order to disperse.

They didnt obey the police request to relocate, so the police had the right to terminate the protest, Juulia Lehtonen, the district prosecutor handling the case, said to YLE.

The defence argued that the charges should be dismissed on grounds that the steps of the government building constitute a public place. While the protesters sought to get as close to lawmakers as possible to make sure their demands for declaring a climate emergency were heard, they neither attempted to enter the building nor prevented anyone from entering or leaving the building.

As the protest was peaceful and caused only minor disturbance, the police did not have the right to terminate it, the defence added.

This question boils down to limiting basic rights. Finnish law has no provisions that grant police the right to suspend a protest unless it causes an immediate danger or it includes illegal activity, said Tuuli Talvinko, the licensed legal counsel representing the defendants.

A chief inspector who was assigned to the protest revealed in court that police discussed the nature of the protest with a prosecutor on duty before suspending and ultimately bringing protesters into custody.

To an experienced police there was nothing unclear about the purpose. No one was able to get in our out through the main entrance of the Government palace, the chief inspector testified.

Helsinki Police Department have admitted to mishandling communication regarding the protest. A spokesperson stated on the day of the protest that the protest posed a security threat to people inside the building.

Several people inside the building, including cabinet members and President Sauli Niinisto, said the protest did not inhibit their ability to move.

The District Court of Helsinki will issue a verdict on the case on 2 September 2024, according to YLE.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT
Which WNC city ranks 2nd 'Most Dog Friendly' in the U.S.?

To mark National Dog Day on Aug. 26, LawnStarter fetched 2024's Most Dog-Friendly Cities.

LawnStarter compared the 500 biggest U.S. cities based on five categories: dog-friendly housing and businesses, friendliness of dog-related laws and affordability of canine services like training and dog sitting among 34 total metrics. Key takeaways were:





Cities lacking dog-friendly housing can be ruff for pup parents to navigate. Southern and Southwestern cities like Sandy Springs, Georgia(No. 213), Santa Fe, New Mexico (No. 3), and Allen, Texas (No. 81), offer the best access to dog-friendly digs with plenty of rentals allowing dogs, spacious homes, and large backyards.

Big cities like New York (No. 27), Austin, Texas (No. 10), and Los Angeles (No. 28) claim the most pup-furrendly businesses. Less populated places like Arizona cities Scottsdale (No. 1), and Tucson, (No. 4), and Asheville, North Carolina, (No. 2), run with the big dogs, enjoying great access to accommodations, restaurants, and shopping centers allowing pooches.

Northern cities like Cicero, Illinois (No. 498), and Paterson, New Jersey (No. 499), land in the doghouse, alongside Waterbury, Connecticut, inlast place. These cities lack access to veterinarians, dog sitters, and dog parks, and have low rates of dog-friendly rentals.

Unmentioned by the surveyor were the more than two dozen brewpubs in Asheville, which are famously dog friendly.
(JNS) - Mary Ellen Richichi, a non-Jewish middle-school teacher in the Florida public school system, grew up immersed in Holocaust education. Her father, who served in the U.S. military during the Cold War, was always watching History Channel documentaries about World War II.

"I'll never forget, I was probably about 7 or 8, and he said to me, 'Holocaust and World War II is one of the events you need to know and never forget,'" Richichi told JNS.

Her father passed what she called his extensive immersion in history on to her, which led her to "want to know more and just read as much information...
(JTA)  What are these for? the security guard at the Dubai airport asked as three others inspected my bris kit  the bag of supplies I carry when I perform circumcisions on Jewish baby boys.

Whenever I travel for work and Im away from Israel for only a short time, I never check a bag, so this can make for interesting encounters at the X-ray machines. There are times Ive lied and said I make jewelry, but since circumcision is a cultural norm in the United Arab Emirates and other Muslim countries, I decided to come clean. I perform circumcisions, I replied. They looked at me with blank st...
(JNS)  The Defense Security Cooperation Agency, part of the U.S. Department of Defense, notified Congress on Tuesday that U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken had approved five potential sales to Israelcollectively worth up to $20.3 billionof tactical vehicles, mortar and tank cartridges, missiles and F-15 fighter jets.

The sale of F-15IA and F-15I+ aircraft and related equipment costs up to $18.82 billion, according to the agency. Israel has requested to buy 50 new F-15IA jets, which are made by Boeing, the agency said.

The United States is committed to the security of Israel, and it...
(JNS) - In a sign of the times, billboards have been placed along highways in Los Angeles and Philadelphia to address the rising tide of antisemitism in the United States.

"Who's behind this chaos?" reads one. Another says, "Did you miss your flight when this airport was shut down by an anti-Israel mob?"

Three billboards were put up in Los Angeles during the last week of July, and two in Philadelphia were erected the first week of August. Both are scheduled to stay in place through most of the month.

The nonprofit U.S. Forum for Israel is funding the bicoastal signage with support from the Ins...
(JNS) - Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday that the current negotiations could be Israel's last chance to secure the return the remaining hostages captured by Hamas on Oct. 7.

Speaking ahead of meetings with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog in Tel Aviv, Blinken said, "This is a decisive moment, probably the best, maybe the last opportunity to get the hostages home, to get a ceasefire, and to put everyone on a better path to enduring peace and security."

"I'm here as part of an intensive diplomatic effort on President Biden's instructions to try to get...
(New York Jewish Week)  Columbia University restricted access to its campus on Monday, a sign that the university is girding for a renewal of anti-Israel student protests as the fall semester is set to begin.

The universitys chief operating officer, Cas Holloway, said in a Friday statement that the campus would effectively be closed to members of the public starting on Monday. The official first day of classes is Sept. 3, though some schools orientation activities begin this week.

This change is intended to keep our community safe given reports of potential disruptions, Holloway said. We...
(JNS)  The Kremlin regards the creation of a Palestinian state as a top priority, Russian President Vladimir Putin told Palestinian Authority chief Mahmoud Abbas during their first in-person encounter since Gaza terrorists carried out the worst single-day massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.

The two men last met in October 2022, on the sidelines of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia in Kazakhstan.

We believe that in order to secure lasting and stable peace in the region, it is imperative to implement all U.N. resolutions, with the establishment of a full-...
Sam Friedman, Shalom Orlando's chief development officer, left the Central Florida Jewish community on Aug. 2 to begin a new position as the executive director & CEO of the Jewish Educational Alliance and Jewish Federation in Savannah, Ga. He will begin his new job Aug. 26.

Friedman moved to Central Florida in 2014 to take the position of director of community relations at Central Florida Hillel, under the leadership of Aaron Weil. In this capacity, Friedman built relationships with off-campus groups. In 2016 he was promoted to assistant director of CF Hillel and planned new programs, includin...
(JTA) - Kamala Harris' presidential campaign has named Ilan Goldenberg, an Israeli-born former peace negotiator, as its liaison to the Jewish community, sources say.

Three people with close ties to the organized Jewish community and the Harris campaign confirmed the pick to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. The campaign did not return a request for comment.

Goldenberg, who has served as Vice President Harris' adviser on Middle East issues, has previously been an acerbic critic of both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Palestinian leadership. He formed close ties with the organized...
(JTA) - Hundreds of mourners gathered in Rishon Lezion, Israel, Tuesday night for the funeral of Jordan Cooper, 26, an American-born "lone soldier" who had died the day before from a severe allergic reaction.

His parents, Marla Covin Cooper and Ross Cooper, younger brother Ethan and grandfather Jerry were visiting him in Israel when he died, and ahead of his funeral a request went out to the public saying that they were inviting members of the public to "come and accompany him on his final journey so that he won't be alone in death."

The request circulated widely, animating Israelis who unders...
(JNS)  Tehran is advancing its secret nuclear program, bringing the Islamic Republic closer to building atomic bombs, Iran International reported on Wednesday.

Three independent sources in Iran told the London-based opposition media outlet that the regime is moving forward with its nuclear weapons program by restructuring the Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research (SPND), retaining Mohammad Eslami as the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, and resuming tests to produce nuclear bomb detonators.

The Biden administration privately warned Tehran in June about its research...
(JNS) - When we discuss Israel's history, we often speak in terms of geography: the partition plan, the 1948 border, the pre-1967 armistice lines, the post-1967 borders and the post-1973 boundaries. Now, we must add the pre- and post-2023 borders. The major difference is that instead of expanding the size of the Jewish state, it has shrunk since Oct. 7 because of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's failure to protect northern Israel.

For roughly a decade, he avoided direct confrontation with Hamas, preferring to "mow the lawn" with periodic airstrikes that killed few terrorists and pro...
(JTA)  A man charged with multiple counts in the killing of Detroit synagogue president Samantha Woll has had a murder charge dismissed by the judge in the case.

Woll, a 40-year-old Democratic and interfaith activist and president of the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue, was found stabbed to death outside of her home on Oct. 21, 2023.

Her killing came just two weeks after Hamas Oct. 7 attack on Israel, alarming Jews in Detroit and beyond who feared that she had been the victim of an antisemitic attack. But law enforcement was quick to say that her killing was not a hate crime.

Jackson-Bolanos,...
By

(New York Jewish Week) - Vandals defaced the apartment building of Cas Holloway, Columbia University's chief operating officer, on Thursday, splattering red paint around the entrance to the building and painting inverted red triangles, a Hamas symbol, on its facade.

The vandals also smashed a glass door, put up threatening posters, and released insects inside the building, according to the New York Post.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul condemned the vandalism, saying the NYPD's Hate Crimes Task Force was investigating.

"Hateful, antisemitic displays like this will not be tolerated in New York, a...
(JTA)  A group of 99 Jewish clergy from across the United States signed a statement calling for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to a ceasefire deal that would free the remaining hostages held by Hamas.

The signatories of the clergy statement include well-known rabbis spanning the country and the Jewish denominational spectrum. The list includes Reform, Conservative, Orthodox, Reconstructionist, Renewal and Secular Humanistic leaders.

The statement comes as a new round of negotiations is set to begin Thursday in Qatar under intense pressure from the United States and other i...
(JNS)  U.S., Egyptian and Qatari leaders released a statement on Thursday calling jointly for an immediate conclusion to talks between Israel and Hamas about a ceasefire and hostage release agreement.

It is time to bring immediate relief both to the long-suffering people of Gaza as well as the long-suffering hostages and their families, the three stated. The time has come to conclude the ceasefire and hostages and detainees release deal.

The statement, signed by U.S. President Joe Biden, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, called on bot...
US, UK again attack Houthi targets in Yemen

(JNS)  American and British forces carried out airstrikes on Houthi targets on Yemens Kamaran Island on Monday, Iranian state media reported.

Irans official IRNA news agency reported that there was no immediate information on casualties or damage following the coalition strike.

U.S. Central Commandthe geographic command responsible for the Middle Eastand the British Ministry of Defense did not immediately confirm the airstrikes.

Kamaran, Yemens largest island in the Red Sea, is located off the port city of Hodeidah. Both the isle and the port a...
(JNS)  An Iranian attack on the Jewish state could be this week, but U.S. President Joe Biden is confident that we have the capability available to us to help defend Israel should it come to that, John Kirby, the White House national security communications advisor, told reporters on Monday.

The White House shares Israels same concerns and expectations about the potential timing of Irans reaction to the July 31 assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in a heavily-guarded Tehran guest house complex.

Israel has neither confirmed nor denied involvement, but Jerusalem is ge...
(Israel Hayom via JNS)  Cynthia Nixon, John Oliver, Chef Jose Andres; an award-winning writer with an essay in The London Review of Books; protesters outside the Nova exhibit in Manhattan; celebrities, faux-academics, and activists. These are some of the people who have been engaging in a particularly noxious form of antisemitism since the Oct. 7 massacre.

Lesley Klaff explained this particular phenomenon in 2014. What has been called Holocaust Inversion, she wrote in Fathom, involves an inversion of reality (the Israelis are cast as the new Nazis and the Palestinians as the new Jews...
(JNS)  Irans propaganda mills are falsely claiming that they have not attacked Israel in retaliation for Israels targeted assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh because they do not want to interfere with ongoing ceasefire talks. With this excuse, Iran is trying to garner legitimacy in world politics.

So, once again, it has to be pointed out that Iran is the head of the snake; the cause of all of the instability in the Middle East. Oct. 7 could never have happened if it werent for Iran. Hezbollah would not have one missile if it werent for Iran.

Iran does not hide its intention of...
There are certain stories that just never go away. They dont get swallowed up by the 24-hour news cycle. They grind away at your soul, drop by drop, day by day, hour by hour.

In Israel, that story looks at you wherever you go.

From the moment you land at Ben Gurion Airport, youre greeted by images of hostages captured by Hamas ten months ago. All over the country, billboards and posters carry their faces. In the cosmopolitan city of Tel Aviv, you see those faces everywhere, on city streets, on the ocean promenade, on Dizengoff Square, where a circular fountain features photos of hostages, ad...
During World Water Week from August 2529, the Indian Health Service is hosting events across Indian Country to highlight successful projects funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) and to recognize the importance of improving water and sanitation infrastructure in tribal communities. These events will also celebrate the 65th anniversary of the IHS Sanitation Facilities Construction Program (SFC) and its unique and successful history.

We should be doing everything in our power to ensure all Americans have access to clean drinking water. The health and safety of our children, our families, and our communities depends on it, said Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra. The Biden-Harris Administration has made investments in critical infrastructure and pursued collaborative projects and partnerships with tribes to improve the health and wellbeing of Native people and communities. Working together, we will continue our efforts to bring clean drinking water, reliable sewage systems, and effective solid waste disposal facilities to tribal communities.

Over the last century, federal investments have been made to modernize water and sanitation systems in Native communities, however adequate sanitation facilities are still lacking in approximately 41,000 American Indian and Alaska Native homes, with more than 5,000 lacking access to a safe water supply and/or waste disposal facility. However, the IHS, through the SFC Program, continues to develop much-needed infrastructure across Indian Country.

Having access to clean water is something that many take for granted, yet there are far too many communities across Indian Country that to this day do not have access to safe and reliable water and sanitation infrastructure, said IHS Director Roselyn Tso. I have seen firsthand the impact of not having access to these essential services. It is a matter of public health, but it is also a matter of respect for our Native people. For 65 years, the Indian Health Service has played a leading role in improving water and sanitation services to our people, but with limited resources. This is why the Biden-Harris Administrations historic investment in this infrastructure is so important in improving overall well-being of our tribal communities.

The BIL, which appropriates $700 million in each fiscal year from FY 2022 through FY 2026 for the SFC Program, is an unprecedented investment in our nations infrastructure and competitiveness, supporting crucial sanitation projects that will result in substantial improvements to clean water and sanitation systems in American Indian and Alaska Native communities across the country. Currently, over 800 BIL-funded SFC projects are in some state of implementation, ranging from procurement to construction to final report.

The IHS also continues to partner with federal agencies through the Infrastructure Task Force to work towards a shared goal of improving access to clean water and sanitation in communities across the country. For example, the Environmental Protection Agency works collaboratively with tribal governments, tribal utilities, and tribal members to regulate many utilities, provide technical assistance to support compliance and infrastructure development, and support technical capacities that promote sustainable operations. The goal is to improve access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation on tribal lands.

EPAs partnership with IHS and other federal agencies through the Infrastructure Task Force is a primary example of how successful collaboration and leveraging can create impactful improvements in tribal communities, said EPA Assistant Administrator for International and Tribal Affairs Jane Nishida. Access to clean and safe drinking water is a core component of EPAs mission to protect human health and the environment, and the infrastructure investments of the Biden-Harris Administration are making unprecedented progress possible in this area.

IHS World Water Week events include site visits to:

Lac Courte Oreilles Water Tower Improvements  New Post, Wisconsin : This project work will include painting failed coating systems, installing and replacing de-icing equipment, sealing and repairing cracks in the concrete standpipe roof, installing security fencing and gaskets on hatches, and properly sealing all air gaps.

: San Carlos Wastewater Treatment Facility Expansion  San Carlos, Arizona: This project involves constructing a 75-acre total retention lagoon with piping, manholes, site fencing, including a sewer force main extension. Once completed, the project will improve the tribes ability to operate and maintain the SCWWTF eliminating raw sewage overflows at the lift station, hydraulic overloading of the lagoon, overflows of the existing berms and illegal discharges that violate the EPA Clean Water Act.

Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation Mission Wastewater System Upgrades  Mission, Oregon : This project will involve constructing a wastewater reuse facility consisting of collection system improvements, a new wastewater system headworks, packaged activated sludge and tertiary filtration treatment systems, sludge drying beds, an ultraviolet disinfection system, 19,000-feet of recycled wastewater conveyance, approximately 92-million gallon capacity recycled water storage wetlands and ponds, irrigation intake and pump station, electrical improvements, surface restoration, road crossings, and necessary appurtenances required for a fully operational wastewater reuse treatment and disposal facility.

: Cherokee New Water Treatment Plant & Raw Water Intake  Stilwell, Oklahoma : The project involves constructing a new process building, water treatment plant, a new chemical building, and new high-service pump station, and will benefit over 950 homes.

: Creek/Wagoner Country RWD #5 Water Treatment Plant Expansion  Broken Arrow, Oklahoma : The project involves constructing a new water treatment plant, including a new treatment process building, two new pulsating clarifiers, four new declining rate filters, new chemical feed building, new SCADA system, and a new high service pump station. Site piping and various electrical and controls work will be included to interconnect the treatment processes.

: Omaha Tribe of Nebraska Water Treatment Plant  Macy, Nebraska : The project involves installing a new water treatment plant that can remove radium, iron, and manganese below EPA standards. Once completed, the project will improve the tribes ability to operate and maintain their drinking water system.

:

The site visits are a continuation of visits that took place throughout the year in support of water infrastructure projects in all 12 IHS areas.

The IHS launched an interactive website in 2023 to furnish insights into projects funded through the BIL. This dynamic platform will consistently offer updated information, encompassing project funding amounts, tribes served, homes impacted, and project statuses.

The nationwide Sanitation Facilities Construction Program is responsible for the delivery of environmental engineering services and sanitation facilities to American Indians and Alaska Natives, providing homes and communities with essential water supply, sewage disposal, and solid waste disposal facilities. The program provides technical and financial assistance to American Indian tribes and Alaska Native villages for cooperative development and construction of safe water, wastewater, and solid waste systems and related support facilities.

The IHS, an agency in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, provides a comprehensive health service delivery system for approximately 2.8 million American Indians and Alaska Natives who belong to 574 federally recognized tribes in 37 states. Follow the agency via social media on Facebook, X, and LinkedIn.
Andhra Pradeshs Telugu Desam Party, a partner in the ruling National Democratic Alliance, wants a greater say in the running of the Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The regional party, which has 16 Lok Sabha MPs has asked to be included in closed-door consultation on crucial bills and reforms before they are tabled for discussion in both the houses of the parliament.

Leaders from the party, who asked not to be named, said they were not consulted on the recent debate on the Waqf Amendment Bill, which suggested changes to the functioning of the Waqf board. Following the uproar in the parliament over enforcing the 40 amendments, the TDP voiced its suggestion through its MP in the Lok Sabha. Ganti Harish Madhur, the MP from Andhra then suggested forming a joint parliamentary committee (JPC), and, the NDA, therefore, has bought time to discuss the amendments with all the stakeholders involved, said a senior TDP leader who did not wish to be quoted.

The party also dispatched its general secretary, minority cell, Fathullah Mohammad, to Delhi to speak to its alliance partners and the Muslim clergy to soften their reactions to the perceived ramifications of the changed bill. It also directed its MPs to convince the BJP to convene a meeting with the four influential institutions - Tablighi Jamaat, Ah le Hadees, Ah le Sunnat, and the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board.

Waqf, UCC and the impact on Andhra

The party fears an adverse reaction from Muslim voters in the state if the powers of the Waqf Board were weakened with the 40-odd amendments proposed by the Union government. TDP leaders have also alleged that the timing of the UCCs announcement on Independence Day is to gain political ground before the crucial four-state elections are due in a few weeks.

On both the UCC and the Waqf bill, we need to know what aspects of civilian life will be impacted if the UCC is passed. Ours is a secular country and the Indian Constitution allows citizens to practice their religion according to their faith system. The BJP should have ideally discussed this issue with the alliance partners before announcing it publicly, said a senior TDP leader who has been with the party since inception.

The Waqf Board in Andhra is the largest owner of assets after the Indian Railways. Just 10 km outside the capital city of Amaravati, the Waqf owns a prime property of 110 acres. Muslim leaders in the TDP and the Minorities Commission fear that this parcel of land and others will be forcefully taken back.

All land issues need to be resolved amicably. From Srinagar to Kanyakumari, everyone encroaches upon land across faiths. It is made out to be a case against Muslims. I am not sure how not having Muslims on the Waqf Central Council or the Waqf Board helps resolve issues. But we will seek court intervention if the reform leads to danger bells ringing and our lands being compromised, said Fathullah Mohammad, the TDP general secretary of the minority cell.

Does the TDP fear that its interests will be shortchanged in the NDA?

We do not foresee a situation where the bill would be passed without suggestions from our religious institutions, the TDP leader said. That said, a TDP national spokesperson mentioned that the communication lines are smooth between the BJP and its allies and that the NDA is working effectively. We see that the BJP is making an effort to reach out to us. We are ensuring that our input always reaches the right people be it on the hiring of lateral entrants or the NEET issue, the leader said.

However, with the TDP netting more than 70% of the minority vote in the state, it would have an adverse impact in the Rayalaseema region where nearly 50% of the Muslim community reside in Andhra. Andhra Pradesh has close to 75 lakh Muslims with more than 50% of the Muslims living in four Rayalaseema districts and the remaining scattered between the coast and the delta region. Nearly 9% of Andhras population are Muslims.

NMD Farooq, a senior leader from the state, is apprehensive that if the Waqf bill is passed without taking all inputs, the TDP would be seen as a party that does not have much influence over the Union government. From instituting the Minorities Finance Commission in 1985 to having the Haj House built in Hyderabad, and establishing the Maulana Abdul Kalam Azad Urdu University in then Andhra Pradesh, the TD founder, and former chief minister NT Rama Rao and current AP CM N Chandrababu Naidu have a reputation of safeguarding the interests of minorities.

What we have now is a tricky situation. But we feel assured that as long as Naidu is part of the NDA, there is no threat to secularism, NMD Farooq said.

Deepika Amirapu is a freelance journalist based in Hyderabad.
Since the last few decades, India has seen a surge of innovative companies and organisations across various sectors, showcasing the country's entrepreneurial spirit and technological advancements. From interior design and furniture to artificial intelligence and digital marketing, these businesses are addressing diverse needs in the market. The following 10 business ventures reflect India's dynamic economy and the ongoing efforts to meet the evolving demands of consumers and society.

Matter of Space Pvt. Ltd.

Founded in 2017 by the dynamic designers & professionals Mr. Kartik Jain, Mr. Sharib Alam, and Mr. Sanju Thukran. Matter of Space was started on the core thought of making luxury interiors accessible & affordable for a larger group.

Being one of the best interior designers in Gurgaon, their team understands that affluent & luxurious interior design is the dream of many. That's why they founded this interior design company, whose approach is to deliver interior design services with 100% transparency and professionalism.

Matter of Spaces in-house manufacturing facility, spanning 9000 square feet, is a cornerstone of their ability to deliver exceptional quality and design at affordable prices. This strategic asset empowers them to execute luxury interior projects precisely and efficiently. Their team of best interior designers in Gurugram, has a proven track record, having completed over 500 projects encompassing both residential and commercial spaces.

2.Konica Minolta CSR

Under its CSR initiative 'Project Pravah' and in partnership with NGO Manav Vikas Sanstha, Konica Minolta Business Solutions India inaugurated newly constructed checkdams in Shravasti District.

These checkdams aim to harness and store rainwater, addressing water scarcity and improving soil fertility, benefiting over 6,868 individuals.

The initiative aligns with six Sustainable Development Goals, including Clean Water & Sanitation and Climate Action.

Project Pravah also offers organic farming training to local farmers, promoting sustainable agriculture. Commenting on the project going live, Mr. Katsuhisa Asari, Managing Director of Konica Minolta India, emphasized the project's role in empowering local communities and enhancing agricultural resilience as it aligns with the priorities outlined by the Government of India to promote Productivity and Resilience in Indian Agriculture landscape.

This initiative exemplifies the power of corporate-NGO collaboration in driving meaningful change.

For more information, visit [Konica Minolta CSR] https://bt.konicaminolta.in/about-us/sustainability/corporate-social-responsibility/

3.Drpshippr

Aman Mudgal, founder of Getsalenow and Iluminatees, developed Drpshippr to address challenges faced by dropshipping businesses in India. After experiencing high return-to-origin (RTO) rates in his ventures, the entrepreneur created a system to reduce RTO issues and improve profitability for e-commerce stores.

Drpshippr, owned by Getsalenow, offers Shopify store owners various services. These include store management, account management, Meta ads, and a professional dashboard. A key feature of Drpshippr's offering is zero RTO fees, which can significantly impact a store's bottom line. The company is about to present research, legal, and marketing services to people who want to build their brand image.

Drpshippr has two hundred fifty active stores and plans to expand its client base to one thousand stores by the end of next year. Through its services, Drpshippr aims to provide opportunities for individuals to establish successful e-commerce businesses.

https://drpshippr.com/

4.Digibrood

Digibrood, a Kolkata-based digital marketing agency, launches affordable solutions for small businesses to provide equal opportunities for Indian online businesses. Recognising the importance of digital presence and addressing concerns about high costs and unsuccessful strategies, Digibrood offers performance-based, result-guaranteed services.

CEO Krishnendu Das states, With our affordable solutions, businesses can start seeing results with a minimum investment of just 100 per day. We guarantee at least five sales for our clients with this minimal investment.

Digibrood is expanding by offering franchises across Indian cities and plans to launch DIGIBROOD Academy in 2025 to educate future digital marketers. This initiative by the company is designed to fill the gap in the industry by providing cost-effective digital marketing services and making online growth accessible to small businesses.

Link: https://digibrood.in/

Contact no.: +91 8777571887

5.House of Midas

House of Midas is a family-owned jewellery business that has been operating for nearly three decades. Originally founded by Priya and Mrinal Das's, father, the company entered the online world to share its creations with a wider audience.

In February 2021, the siblings launched the brand's online presence, determined to carry on their family's legacy with a fresh approach. With over twenty-five years of experience, their skilled artisans craft stunning jewellery in sterling silver, gold, diamonds, and gemstones, all under one roof. House of Midas caters to custom needs, allowing customers to have their dream jewellery crafted from the comfort of their homes.

Successfully delivered over 10,000+ 925 Sterling Silver orders and 200+ Gold Orders till date. As we venture to new catagory of products, partnerships and customers we look forward to serve and grow our community of 50k+ even stronger.

For more information, visit www.houseofmidas.in

6.Canistel

Canistel, a Mumbai-based food tech company founded by three BITS Pilani graduates, offers multi-category organic products.

Leveraging word-of-mouth publicity, the company achieved sales of seven crores in July this year alone. To meet the growing demand for organic products, Canistel has established production units in Karnataka, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, and Haryana.

The brand aims to achieve one hundred crore rupees in revenue for the current financial year and plans to expand its product range and distribution network. It operates from Mumbai and leverages the city's business environment to grow. Furthermore, Canistel's scale-up strategy includes maintaining product quality while optimising operations.

The brand offers organic products, such as A2 desi cow ghee, wood-pressed oils, raw honey, and peanut butter. Canistel sells its products through various channels, including multiple online platforms. The company's growth reflects the increasing consumer interest in organic and health-focused products in India.

7.AMIEE Association

The AMIEE Association, guided by Dr. Aamir Junaid Ahmad, is bringing the application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) to daily work. As Secretary, Dr. Ahmad collaborates with esteemed organisations and individuals across India, united by a passion for harnessing AI and ML to drive innovation. The association offers its members opportunities to participate in Workshops and Faculty Development Programs (FDPs) as domain experts, bringing growth in both academic and professional spheres.

AMIEE is a hub for new ideas, where members engage in the latest research and hands-on learning experiences. The association supports its members' academic and professional endeavours. Through these initiatives, AMIEE is helping individuals to innovate and transform industries using AI and ML technologies.

8.Mathionix Technologies

Mathionix Technologies, formed in 2023, provides organizations with AI-driven business solutions. The company formed a partnership with MI Tech USA, which resulted in an innovative AI-driven digital marketing platform. This partnership showcased Mathionix's capacity to leverage artificial intelligence to optimise marketing campaigns and improve customer engagement.

Prateek Pareek, the visionary behind Mathionix Technologies, was instrumental in bringing this AI-integrated solution to life. The company provides tailored AI solutions for a variety of industries, including healthcare, banking, and retail. Its scalable and adaptable approach ensures that solutions evolve with clients' needs, whether for startups or established enterprises.

Mathionix Technologies continues to push the boundaries of AI applications, specialising in tailored solutions across various industries.

For more information: https://mathionix.com

9.Best Kitchenette

Best Kitchenette, founded in 2012 by Dilip Yadav, is a furniture experience center with locations in Nashik, Pune and Mumbai that has expanded its product range apart from Modular kitchen and home furniture. The company values high quality products with affordable prices and delivered on time.

Best Kitchenette began by focusing on modular kitchen and home furniture since their expertise less space maximum utilization. Now providing a complete range of home furniture for bedrooms, living rooms, and more, Best Kitchenette is dedicated to understanding your personal style and needs to create spaces that are both beautiful and practical. Their goal is to make your home reflect who you are, blending elegance with functionality.

The team at Best Kitchenette turns personal goals into real results. They know every home has its own story. They design spaces that are both stylish and practical, creating an environment that reflects the people who live there.

For more information: https://bestkitchenettes.com/

10.Shivam Autozone

Shivam Autozone, a leading Maruti Suzuki dealership in Mumbai, has become a comprehensive automotive solutions provider. Founded by Mr. Samir Jani, the company has an impressive network of over 25 locations spanning Mumbai, Thane, and Palghar. Shivam Autozone serves a wide range of car buyers through its presence in all four Maruti Suzuki channels: Arena, NEXA, Commercial, and True Value.

The dealership has an extensive network of multiple showrooms and service centers leading to an ever-expanding customer base - a testament to their commitment to exceptional customer service. This wide-ranging setup enables Shivam Autozone to offer an easy-to-use framework that addresses various customer requirements efficiently and gives them an unmatched experience in all their car-related needs.

Guided by the philosophy 'Live the change', Shivam Autozone builds long-term relationships with customers, partners, and stakeholders. The company is a go-to place in the automotive retail sector, creating customers for life. Shivam Autozone isn't just a dealership; it's your trusted partner in the world of Maruti Suzuki.

For more information: https://shivamautozone.com

Compiled by Storybizz

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Aug 22 - Search engine giant Baidu reported flat quarterly revenue on Thursday, as a sluggish economy weighed on advertiser spending. Baidu reports flat Q2 revenue as

Revenue in the second quarter was 33.93 billion yuan , compared with analysts' average estimate of 33.55 billion, LSEG data showed.

Net income fell 8% to 7.4 billion yuan but beat the 6.45 billion yuan expected by analysts.

U.S.-listed shares of Baidu were up more than 1% in premarket trading.

Baidu's online marketing business, which generates the majority of its revenue, fell 2% to 19.2 billion yuan.

The decline reflects a slowing Chinese economy still recovering from a property market slump, prompting advertisers to tighten their budgets.

The company has in recent years raised its investment in AI and other advanced technologies as part of its transformation into a self-described "AI company".

Ernie, Baidu's large language model platform touted as a rival to OpenAI's GPT, has been embedded into various app services, aiming to improve user experience.

The company has also launched a paid version of its Ernie-powered chatbot for public use, while selling I services powered by Ernie to developers through its cloud computing offerings.

As part of its AI push, Baidu has also ramped up investment in autonomous vehicles. Its Apollo Go robotaxis are now operating in multiple Chinese cities, with the largest fleet of 500 vehicles running in Wuhan.

While this business has yet to significantly contribute to revenue, Baidu has said that Apollo Go operations in Wuhan are expected to reach break-even by the end of this year.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Workers at a pharmaceutical factory in southern India were trying to plug a chemical leak when an explosion ripped through it, killing at least 17 people and injuring 36, the firm's chief financial officer said on Thursday. People outside the reactor pharma unit of pharmaceutical company Escientia where a fire broke out following an explosion, in Anakapalle, Andhra Pradesh, Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (PTI)

Wednesday's blast came around noon at the privately-held Escientia Advanced Sciences in Andhra Pradesh, where nearly 400 employees make intermediate chemicals and active ingredients for export to the United States and other Western countries.

Also Read: Infosys delays onboarding of 2000 graduates for over 2 years, complaint filed

"It looks like it happened from a solvent leak," said Srinivasa Rao Korada, chief financial officer of the Escientia Group, adding that it was not clear what triggered the leak.

"Workers had noticed that leak, they were attending to it, and had almost plugged the leak when this happened," he told Reuters by telephone.

One of the worst industrial accidents in recent years in India, often called the pharmacy of the world, came a year after a fire at a pharmaceuticals factory in the same Anakapalli district of the state killed two people and injured five.

Also Read: 'Struggling to pay bills': Byju's insolvency case fans fears of employees

The company is collaborating with authorities to investigate the reason for the leak, Korada said, adding that smoke and fire had prevented the company from investigating immediately.

Officials said they were scanning closed-circuit television footage and questioning the injured to decide if human error was responsible.

"Preliminary investigation shows ... there was some vapour leak that led to chemical reactions, which caused the explosion," said state Industries SecretaryN.Yuvaraj, who identified the solvent involved as methyl tert-butyl ether.

Methyl tert-butyl ether, or MTBE, is a flammable liquid that finds use as an additive in unleaded gasolines to achieve more efficient burning, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says on its website.

An inquiry will be held into the accident, said the state's chief minister, Chandrababu Naidu, an ally in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's federal government, adding, "We also hope this will be the last such incident."

The factory started operations in 2019 with an investment of 2 billion rupees ($24 million), said Vijaya Krishnan, the district's collector, or top revenue official.

Also Read: Adani Group looking to sell up to 5% stake in Adani Power, Ambuja Cements: Report
Home-grown FMCG major Dabur India on Thursday said it will set up a 400-crore manufacturing plant in Tamil Nadu's Villupuram district, marking the company's maiden foray into the South. Dabur owns power brands like Dabur Chyawanprash, Dabur Honey, Dabur Honitus, Dabur PudinHara, and Dabur Lal Tail

State Industries Minister TRB Rajaa said, Dabur has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the state government to this effect on Thursday.

The MoU outlines an approved Phase 1 investment of 135 crore, scaling up to 400 crore over five years, Dabur India said in a statement.

Also Read: Not against e-commerce, want them fair and honest, Piyush Goyal clarifies after accusing Amazon of predatory pricing

The new plant set up in SIPCOT Tindivanam at Viluppuram district of Tamil Nadu would help Dabur to scale up its business from South India further, which currently accounts for around 18-20 per cent of its domestic business.

The MoU was signed between Guidance Tamil Nadu, the investment promotion agency of the state represented by its Managing Director Vishnu and Dabur India CEO Mohit Malhotra in the presence of Chief Minister M K Stalin, Industries Minister TRB Rajaa, Chief Secretary N Muruganandam.

"Welcome to Tamil Nadu, @DaburIndia! In fact, welcome to South India! In the presence of Honourable @CMOTamilNadu Thiru. @MKStalin avargal, @Guidance_TN today signed an MoU with Dabur for the establishment of a world-class manufacturing plant, their FIRST EVER in South India, at the SIPCOT Food Park in #Tindivanam, Villupuram district," Rajaa said in a post on 'X.'

He said the company will invest 400 crore in this facility which will create over 250 jobs.

Also Read: Oil tanker Sounion 'poses environmental risk' after Red Sea attack

"More importantly, it will open up new opportunities for farmers in the nearby #Delta region to sell #AgroProduce to be processed in this facility," he added.

Dabur's decision to choose Tamil Nadu is a testament to the state's thriving industrial ecosystem and availability of a work-ready labour force, Rajaa added.

"This investment will allow us to better serve the growing demand for our products in South India and strengthen our market presence in the region. We look forward to contributing to Tamil Nadu's economic development by creating jobs and working closely with local vendors and supplier partners," Dabur India Chief Executive Officer Mohit Malhotra said.

On January 31, Dabur India's board had approved an investment of 135 crore for setting up a new facility in South India, which will manufacture a range of its Ayurvedic Healthcare, Personal care and Home Care products like Dabur Honey, Dabur Red Paste and Odonil air fresheners.

The new facility will be designed with a focus on energy conservation in both its construction and operations, the statement said.

Dabur India is one of India's leading FMCG Companies and its portfolio includes Power Brands such as Dabur Chyawanprash, Dabur Honey, Dabur Honitus, Dabur Pudin Hara and Dabur Lal Tail, Dabur Amla and Dabur Red Paste and Real.

Also Read: Crayola trademarks the smell of its crayons, a 'slightly earthy soap with pungent, leather-like clay undertones'
Google has brokered a deal with California lawmakers to provide millions of dollars to local newsrooms, according to a Politico report, which added that this resulted in sharp criticism from journalists and Democratic lawmakers. The Google logo is displayed in front of company headquarters during the Made By Google event on August 13, 2024 in Mountain View, California. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images via AFP)

Also Read: Ola's Bhavish Aggarwal mocks Elon Musk: Try something new for a change

Why did Google enter into a deal to fund newsrooms?

Google's deal is the latest among a series of global efforts, especially in countries like Australia and Canada, where tech companies support the journalism they profit from, according to the report which added that this was because the media industry has seen a decline as readership migrated online and advertising dollars evaporated, resulting in thousands of job cuts globally.

What is the deal all about?

The deal states that Google and the state of California would be jointly contributing money over five years to support local newsrooms, excluding broadcasters, using aNews Transformation Fund housed at UC Berkeleys journalism school.

Also Read: Infosys, foreign airlines and foreign shipping lines may get GST relief: Report

Google would be giving $110 million and the state would give $70 million, the report quoted Assembly member Buffy Wicks, an Oakland Democrat who led the negotiations for the deal, as saying.

Why are journalists and lawmakers criticizing the deal?

The funding is also earmarked for artificial intelligence (AI), which stoked fears in many journalists that their jobs could be replaced.

Democratic legislators felt that Google was using its influence to get favourable terms from Sacramento.

Also Read: Paytm share price jumps over 5%, Zomato up 2% on ticketing business deal

However, the California News Publishers Association supported the deal, calling it a first step in steering journalism towards a more sustainable business model, and journalist union Media Guild of the West, said that the deal would not alter the Google's vast power over newsrooms.
IT employee union Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES) filed a formal complaint with the Ministry of Labour and Employment against Infosys. The IT company delayed onboarding process for around 2,000 fresh engineering graduates for over two years, NITES noted. These graduates were selected for roles such as system engineer and digital specialist engineer as early as April 2022. Figurines with computers and smartphones are seen in front of Infosys logo in this illustration.(Reuters)

Those selected received offer letters but the onboarding process has been repeatedly postponed. Affected graduates were required to participate in unpaid pre-training programs and undergo additional assessments as well which complicated the onboarding process more.

NITES claimed that despite fulfilling all the prerequisites set by Infosys, these graduates have been kept in limbo which is a serious breach of trust by Infosys.

Harpreet Singh Saluja, president of NITES, expressed deep concern over the situation, telling Economic Times, We believe that this is not just a breach of trust by one of Indias largest IT companies, but also a significant issue that impacts the future of our countrys IT workforce and economy. We are calling on the government to take immediate and strict action against Infosys to ensure that such exploitative practices are halted and that the rights of these young professionals are protected."

The company has said earlier that it plans to hire between 15,000 and 20,000 graduates in FY25. Infosys announced plans to resume campus placements and off-campus fresher hiring in the current fiscal year. In FY25, the top four IT firms in India are expected to collectively add about 82,000 freshers.
The government is not against e-commerce and only wants fair competition between online and offline businesses, Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal said on Thursday, August 22, 2024, after having accused Amazon of predatory pricing a day earlier. Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal

We are very clear that we want to invite FDI (foreign direct investment), we want to invite technology, we want to have the best of the world, and we are not against online at all," Goyal said at an industry event in Mumbai. "Online e-commerce has tremendous benefits. It has the benefit of convenience, speed, it gives you comfort in your homes, many benefits.

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However, this comes after he said on Wednesday that the e-commerce sectors rapid growth is more of a matter of concern, rather than pride, as it can lead to employment loss in traditional retail businesses since e-commerce is eating into the market share of small retailers by offering high-margin products like consumer electronics and apparel at discounted rates.

What was Piyush Goyal's criticism on Amazon?

Goyal criticised the investment strategies e-commerce giants like Amazon use, suggesting that the losses they face due to large payments to professionals and top lawyers get balanced out by new investments.

Also Read: Chemical leak led to Andhra pharmaceutical factory blast that killed 17, CFO says

India's e-commerce sector is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 27% from 2018 to 2030, according to Pahle India Foundation's 'Net Impact of E-Commerce on Employment and Consumer Welfare in India' report.

E-commerce also generated 16 million jobs, according to the report.

Also Read: Infosys delays onboarding of 2000 graduates for over 2 years, complaint filed
A Greek-flagged oil tanker carrying 150,000 tonnes of crude that was evacuated by its crew after being attacked in the Red Sea now poses an environmental hazard, the EU's Red Sea naval mission "Aspides" said on Thursday. The Greek-flagged oil tanker Sounion is seen heading into the Finnart Ocean Terminal in the United Kingdom on Nov. 29, 2017. (David Mackinnon/AP)

Sounion was targeted on Wednesday by multiple projectiles off Yemen's port city of Hodeidah, where the Iran-aligned Houthis have been attacking ships in solidarity with Palestinians in the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

Also Read: FSSAI to crack down on restaurants not displaying nutritional and allergen info on menu: Report

"Carrying 150,000 tonnes of crude oil, the MV SOUNION now represents a navigational and environmental hazard," Aspides said in a post on social media platform X.

The Houthis, who control Yemen's most populous regions, have yet to claim responsibility for the attack.

The Sounion was the third vessel operated by Athens-based Delta Tankers to be attacked in the Red Sea this month. The attack caused a fire onboard, which was extinguished by the crew, Delta Tankers said in a statement.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency reported on Wednesday that the attack led to the loss of engine power. The vessel was now anchored between Yemen and Eritrea, a maritime security source told Reuters on Thursday.

Delta Tankers said it is working on a plan to move Sounion to a safer destination for further checks and repairs.

Also Read: Infosys delays onboarding of 2000 graduates for over 2 years, complaint filed

The EU Red Sea naval mission said it responded to a request from the captain of the Sounion and dispatched a ship to rescue the crew to Djibouti, the Aspides said.

"While approaching the area, the EUNAVFOR ASPIDES ship destroyed an Unmanned Surface Vessel (USV) that posed an imminent threat to the ship and the crew," Aspides added.

The Greek shipping ministry said the vessel was sailing from Iraq to Agioi Theodoroi in Greece with a crew of two Russians and 23 Filipinos.

In dozens of attacks in the Red Sea since November, the Houthis have sunk two vessels and seized another, killed at least three sailors and upended global trade by forcing ship owners to avoid the popular Suez Canal trade shortcut.

In another incident on Thursday, a vessel reported an explosion close to it that caused minor damage after an encounter with an uncrewed vessel 57 nautical miles south of Yemen's port of Aden, the UKMTO said. The vessel and its crew were safe and it was proceeding to its next port of call.

Greek Shipping Minister Christos Stylianidis condemned on Wednesday the attack on the Sounion, saying its was "a flagrant violation of international law and a serious threat to the safety of international shipping".

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Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma said that the company will refocus on delivering a long-term, sustainable and profitable business model in a letter to shareholders. He wrote, After resolving many of the challenges that we faced, we are now refocused on our path to deliver a long-term, sustainable and profitable business mode." Vijay Shekhar Sharma, founder and chairman of One97 Communications Ltd., operator of Paytm, attends the Japan Fintech Festival in Tokyo, Japan.(Bloomberg)

Highlighting that the last financial year was one of the most important learning experiences for the company, he said that the fintech company will focus on generating free cash flow for the rest of the year. This comes after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) placed crippling restrictions on Paytm Payments Bank citing persistent non-compliance and material supervisory concerns in January this year.

He noted, In the last quarter, we encountered regulatory action on our associate entity Paytm Payments Bank Limited (PPBL), which presented significant challenges and provided us with many valuable lessons."

The Paytm boss said that the company would focus on artificial intelligence (AI)-led cost savings and build AI-first products to help small merchants and micro-businesses. The company has also identified significant savings through the use of AI and expanded in areas where we see the future of technology heading.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced that auto-replenishment of balances in FASTag and National Common Mobility Card (NCMC), would be included under the e-mandate framework, in a circular on Thursday, August 22, 2024. The e-mandate framework was established in 2019 for safeguarding customers by informing upcoming debits to their accounts. (Vipin Kumar/HT)

Also Read: Not against e-commerce, want them fair and honest, Piyush Goyal clarifies after accusing Amazon of predatory pricing

It has been decided to include auto-replenishment of FASTag and NCMC, as and when the balance falls below a threshold set by the customer, under the e-mandate framework, the circular read.

Payments for auto-replenishment, since they are recurring in nature but without any fixed periodicity, will be exempt from the requirement of pre-debit notification.

Also Read: Onion prices remain high due to supply shortages, Shravan month ending, reduced acreage

What is the e-mandate framework?

The e-mandate framework was established in 2019 for safeguarding customers by informing upcoming debits to their accounts.

Also Read: Crayola trademarks the smell of its crayons, a 'slightly earthy soap with pungent, leather-like clay undertones'
Dozens of Byju's employees and parents of students are showing a growing sense of desperation as people plan to take the offensive against the troubled edtech company whose board currently stands suspended with assets frozen, Reuters reported. Byju's crisis: BYJU'S owner Byju Raveendran photo is seen on his company web page in this illustration. (Reuters)

"A lot of people, including myself, have stopped taking classes because there's no point doing charity for the company anymore," the report quoted Sukirti Mishra, 29, who once earned $1,200 a month teaching mathematics courses, as saying. She now faces the anger of parents after she halted classes for their children.

However, she's also struggling to pay medical bills and loans installments, after having gone unpaid for months.

Also Read: Good news for freshers: 72% employers want to hire you in second half of 2024

She's not alone. After three months without pay, many of Byju's 27,000 employees are considering street protests or lawsuits.

The Supreme Court is set to hold its next hearing in the insolvency process on Thursday, siding with the protesting US lenders.

Since a court-appointed officer took charge of the company, about 3,000 employees have filed claims, providing bank statements as proof, said one senior company executive, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

"I guarantee this: When we regain control, your salaries will be paid promptly," company founder and former billionaire Byju Raveendran assured staff this week in an internal memo seen by Reuters.

Employees face a long road ahead as it could take months to find a new buyer, or liquidate Byju's assets. And the law gives no guarantee that employees and teachers can recover all their dues in the end.

What happened at Byju's?

Byju's, started in 2011, was once a darling of global investors, valued at $22 billion in 2022. It became popular by offering online training courses during the COVID-19 pandemic, but is now locked in a dispute with U.S. lenders seeking $1 billion in unpaid dues. Its insolvency threatens to be the biggest upset in a celebrated startup sector.

Also Read: Adani Group looking to sell up to 5% stake in Adani Power, Ambuja Cements: Report

Investors such as Dutch technology investor Prosus accused Raveendran of mismanagement in disputes that became public, though the executive has denied wrongdoing.

What have employees done so far?

About 280 employees of Byju's have approached a state grievance panel to demand action on unpaid salaries, accusing the firm of not paying to the government the taxes it deducted from their salaries.

Also Read: Google enters deal for $110 million US newsroom funding, but journalists and democrats oppose it

"We are deeply concerned about the company's financial stability ... our fear (is) that the company may be planning to shut down operations without settlingourdues," they said in a letter on Aug. 5.
In another road rage incident in Bengaluru, a biker was killed after he was chased by a car, which rammed into his bike on Wednesday night. The incident happened at Vidyaranyapura area and Bengaluru police arrested two people in connection with the case. Bengaluru biker killed in another road rage incident, frequent incidents cause concern among city commuters

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According to reports, a minor clash erupted between the biker and car driver after both vehicles collided while in traffic. The argument escalated and it reportedly led to a road rage where the car chased down the bike and hit it from behind later. The biker succumbed to severe injuries and an FIR has already been lodged.

CCTV footage that went viral on social media showed the car chasing down the bike at high speed at night.

There has been an increase in road rage incidents in Bengaluru in recent times. The police have already warned commuters to file FIRs if they are involved in road rage incidents and advised them to dial 112 in an emergency.

Also Read - Bengaluru auto drivers ask Karnataka govt for revision of fixed ride fares

Recently, a scary road rage incident went viral on social media where a bouncer attacked a couples car. He shattered the window of the car and created a ruckus at Sarjapur road and visuals went viral on social media. However, Bellandur police arrested the bouncer who attacked the car.

Meanwhile, the people are requesting police take stricter measures and implement more patrolling to avoid such incidents. Bengaluru police also said that any road rage incident, causing trouble for commuters will not be tolerated. In an X post, Bengaluru police said, Glass shattered, but so are his chances of roaming freeRoad rage ends in handcuffs.
The Sikh Progressive Front (SPF), a socio-religious organisation, has urged community members in Jammu and Kashmir to vote responsibly in the coming assembly elections and not to fall prey to empty promises. The Sikh Progressive Front (SPF) president Balvinder Singh urged members of the community to vote responsibly for those who addressed their demands, including making Punjabi one of the official languages of Jammu and Kashmir. (Representational photo)

Addressing mediapersons in Jammu on Wednesday, SPF president Balvinder Singh said: Cast your vote wisely and responsibly for those who address the Sikh communitys demands, including making Punjabi one of the official languages of J&K.

He said: Sikh delegations met the PDP-BJP coalition government from time to time with their demands but nothing was done. In the past four years, we have been meeting lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha, but he expresses his inability, putting the ball in the Centres court. The fact is that even today, posts of Punjabi language teachers are vacant in colleges.

Balvinder Singh said that the BJP-led Centre had provided reservation to communities, such as Gujjars, Paharis and Kashmiri Pandits, and taken initiatives to bring West Pakistan refugees and PoJK refugees into the mainstream. If the children of Kashmiri migrants can get benefits then why cant Sikh children from Kashmir also get the same? We had also demanded OBC status to Sikhs of Kashmir but nothing was done, he said.

We will vote for the party that promises political representation to the Sikhs, he said.

While the file on full compensation to 14 Sikhs killed in the 1989 riots in Jammu gathered dust over the years, a party is now including the issue in its manifesto. May I ask them who they are trying to fool? he said.

According to the 2021 census, the Sikh population in J&K was 2,34,848.
National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah on Thursday announced that his party would ally with the Congress to fight in all 90 assembly constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir that go to the polls in three phases from September 18. Leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge with National Conference leaders Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah at their residence in Srinagar on Thursday. (X)

Announcing the tie-up after talks with the Congress leadership in Srinagar, Farooq said: The common programme for the NC-Congress alliance is aimed at defeating divisive forces in country.

Earlier, Leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge called on Farooq and NC vice-president Omar Abdullah at their Gupkar Road residence.

A Congress leader said the two parties have been holding deliberations at the local level for the alliance.

According to an NC leader, the parties have had three rounds of discussions over the shape of the alliance and seat-sharing between them.

The two parties had contested the Lok Sabha elections together as part of the INDIA bloc with the Congress losing both the seats in Jammu, while the NC lost one of the three it contested in the Kashmir Valley.

Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir will be held in three phases on September 18, September 25 and October 1. The counting of votes will be held on October 4.
Strap: Reason behind suicide has not been ascertained yet; no suicide note found A couple along with their nine-year-old son ended their lives by jumping before a moving train at Ghungrana village in Ludhiana on Thursday afternoon. The reason behind the suicide has not been ascertained yet. (HT File)

A couple along with their nine-year-old son ended their lives by jumping before a moving train at Ghungrana village in Ludhiana on Thursday afternoon. The reason behind the suicide has not been ascertained yet.

According to the locals, the man, who used to install lifts in buildings, had indulged in a monetary dispute with some of his business associates, which could be the reason behind taking the extreme step.

The deceased, 32, along with his wife, 30, and nine-year-old son was living in Ghungrana village. On Thursday afternoon, he drove the car to the railway crossing. They parked the car near the railway track and jumped before a moving train. The locals noticed mutilated bodies and alerted the railway police.

The police reached the spot and initiated an investigation. The police sent the bodies to the civil hospital for the postmortem. A pall of gloom descended on the village as the news of three deaths reached there.

ASI Gurmel Singh, who is investigating the case, said no suicide note was found.

According to the villagers, the mans elderly parents are living in the other portion of the house, while he along with his wife and son was living in the separate portion of the house. His father had already disowned him.

The villagers stated that the man was in the business of installing lifts in the buildings and malls. He had indulged in a dispute with some of his business associates over monetary issues. People used to visit his home over the dispute. It is suspected that he has taken the extreme step following the pressure created by the business associates.

The ASI said that the police are investigating to find out the reason behind the suicides. The police are also scanning mobile phones of the man and his wife.
Harassed by a stalker, a 17-year-old girl reportedly ended her life by consuming poison. The Sadar Jagraon police have booked a stalker for abetment to suicide following the complaint of the father of the victim. Harassed by a stalker, a 17-year-old girl reportedly ended her life by consuming poison. The Sadar Jagraon police have booked a stalker for abetment to suicide following the complaint of the father of the victim. (HT File)

The accused has been identified as Gursewak Singh of Kaunke Kalan village. He is yet to be arrested.

The FIR has been registered following the complaint filed by the father of the victim.

According to the complainant, the victim was a student of Class 12.

He added that his daughter used to go to school daily at around 8 am. On August 20, she left for the school at around 7.45am but didnt reach there. The school staff made a call to them to find out the reason.

The complainant added that his daughter returned home at around 1.30 pm. On being asked the girl stated that the accused used to stalk her. He intercepted her on her way and offered her a lift on his bike to the school, but instead of taking her to school, he took her somewhere else.

The girl was stressed as she felt that the accused had defamed her as many villagers had seen her with the accused on the bike, the complainant said.

He added that they tried to calm her. After he left for work, her daughter ended her life by consuming poison.

ASI Randhir Singh, who is investigating the case, said that the police lodged an FIR against Gursewak Singh under Section 108 of the BNS. A hunt is on for his arrest.
The Samrala Police arrested a Machhiwara resident for creating a ruckus in the court where he appeared for the hearing of a case and assaulting the gunman of the magistrate. The Samrala Police arrested a Machhiwara resident for creating a ruckus in the court where he appeared for the hearing of a case and assaulting the gunman of the magistrate. (HT File)

The accused has been identified as Gurpreet Singh of village Haidon Bet of Machhiwara.

The FIR has been lodged following the statement of constable Jasmeet Singh, who is deputed as a gunman with the magistrate (family court, Samrala) Neelam Arora.

The constable stated that the accused started creating ruckus in the court. Despite being asked repeatedly the accused kept on shouting.

The constable added that after coming out of the court, the accused assaulted him and tore his uniform. He alerted the Samrala Police and filed a complaint.

ASI Davinder Singh, who is investigating the case, said that the police arrested the accused after reaching the spot. The police lodged an FIR under sections 132, 221 and 352 of the BNS against the accused.
In his first visit after announcement of assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir, Congress MP and leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Thursday vowed the restoration of statehood for Jammu and Kashmir as soon as possible on a day when the Congress and the National Conference sealed an alliance. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi during a press conference in Srinagar. (Waseem Andrabi /HT)

Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge addressed party workers in Srinagar followed by a media interaction.

Addressing the media, Gandhi said, It is a priority for the Congress and the INDIA alliance to restore statehood to Jammu and Kashmir as soon as possible. We had expected that this would be done prior to the elections but elections have been declared. It is a step forward and we are hoping that statehood would be restored as soon as possible and the rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, democratic rights will be restored to them.

Jammu and Kashmir will have assembly elections in three phases on September 18, 25 and October 1, the first since the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019 that stripped the region of its special status and split it into two union territories. The last assembly elections were held in 2014.

Gandhi said it was the first time since Independence that a state had been downgraded to a UT, adding, This has never happened before. UTs have become states but it is the first time that a state has become a UT. So, we are very clear in our national manifesto as well that it is a priority for us that the people of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh get their democratic rights back.

Invokes deep connection

with people of J&K

Looking to strike a chord, he invoked his very deep connection with the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

We understand that youre going through a very difficult period, a tough period and we want to remove violence. Like I had said in Bharat Jodo Yatra, we want to open a shop of love in the market of hate, he said.

Earlier during the workers meeting, Kharge had also invoked Gandhis blood relation with the region, saying, As Rahul Gandhi said, his relationship with J&K is not limited to likes or dislikes. He is related to J&K by blood. We hope J&K will stand with us in the election.

No coalition at

cost of workers

Gandhi talked about alliance in the polls but assured the workers that there wont be a coalition at the cost of the interests of Congress workers and leaders. All you (workers) should remain assured that there will be no compromise on the interests and respect of party workers and leaders, he said.

While talking to the media, Kharge said that they were working on the alliance for the polls by first talking to local workers and leaders. How will the alliance work? We are working on the advice from local leaders, he said.

Kharge, meanwhile, also expressed interest in taking all opposition together, saying when the INDIA alliance was formed, Gandhi spoke to all leaders. We saw its results. The biggest success of the alliance was stopping a dictator from acquiring absolute majority, he said.

They (the government) are frustrated today. You saw how new laws were taken back or sent to a joint parliamentary committee like the one about the Wakf Board amendment. The first voice to rise against this was Rahul Gandhi. Similarly lateral entry issue, he said.

Kharge and Gandhu later met National Conference leaders Farooq Abdullah and his son Omar Abdullah at Gupkar, following which Farooq said talks were held in a cordial atmosphere and the alliance with Congress was on track.

The alliance is final which will be signed in the evening. The alliance is on all the 90 seats. CPIM leader MY Tarigami is also with us, Farooq said, adding, Our common program is to fight together and defeat the divisive forces in the country.
The indefinite protest by resident doctors here against the alleged rape and murder of a trainee medic in a Kolkata hospital entered the 11th day on Thursday despite the Supreme Court requesting protesters to resume work. Doctors protest demanding justice against the alleged sexual assault and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor of the Kolkata RG Kar Hospital, at Jantar Mantar in Delhi on Wednesday. (ANI)

Patient services in hospitals across Delhi have been severely affected by the protest.

Also Read: Kolkata doctor's rape-murder: Protesting Delhi AIIMS doctors to hold OPD outside health ministry today

Last Tuesday, the Supreme Court took suo motu cognisance of the rape and murder case in Kolkata and constituted a 10-member National Task Force to formulate a protocol for ensuring the safety and security of doctors and other healthcare professionals.

Also Read: AIIMS Delhi begins security audit amid doctors protests over safety concerns

The 10-member task force headed by Vice Admiral Arti Sarin has been asked to submit its interim report within three weeks.

However, some doctors' associations expressed dissatisfaction with the composition of the task force.

Also Read: OPD, elective services hit in Delhi as doctors at private hospitals join stir

"We don't understand the basis for selecting the task force members. There should have been representation from resident doctors, which is what we have been advocating for.

"Additionally, there should be representation from professors of government medical colleges as acts of violence are predominantly observed in government hospitals, not in private facilities," an official of the doctors' body said.

Meanwhile, the Federation of All India Medical Association has moved the Supreme Court seeking interim protection for doctors till the recommendations of the NTF are implemented.

Seeking intervention in the ongoing proceedings before the apex court, the plea contended that doctors have often been subjected to alleged instances of violence and threats to their safety and security.

"It is of utmost importance that there is adequate representation from resident doctors since they are experiencing real-time problems on a routine basis and may be in a position to offer a real-time solution to these problems.

"Involvement of resident doctors will ensure that comprehensive guidelines are formed after holistic discussion with all stakeholders," the plea said while also seeking implementation of the Central Protection Act for the safety and security of the doctors.

The plea has sought the installation of CCTV cameras in all sensitive areas, including hospital and hostel entrance and exit gates and the corridor areas.

Among the key demands in the petition is the installation of CCTVs, strict compliance to the provisions of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2013, setting up a round-the-clock distress call facility to provide immediate assistance to healthcare workers in emergency situations.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Delhi Police on Thursday busted an Al-Qaeda module, arresting 11 people and detaining three others across Jharkhand, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh. Official sources indicated that Delhi Police Special Cell teams have conducted raids at 15 locations across the three states. (File)(Sunil Ghosh/HT photo)

The module, as per the current state of operations, was being led by one Dr. Ishtiyaq of Ranchi (Jharkhand), and it was aspiring to declare 'khilafat' and execute serious terrorist activities within the country, a Delhi Police statement said, according to news agency PTI.

Based on intelligence inputs, an operation was carried out in collaboration with the police forces from the involved states. Official sources indicated that Delhi Police Special Cell teams have conducted raids at 15 locations across the three states, reported PTI.

The recovered items included one AK-47 rifle, a .38 bore revolver, six live cartridges of .38 bore, 30 live cartridges of .32 bore, and 30 live cartridges for the AK-47. Authorities also found a dummy Insas rifle, an air rifle, and an iron elbow pipe. The cache also contained one hand grenade, a key remote control mechanism, some wires, a 1.5-volt AA battery, a table watch, four ground sheets, a target, a camping tent, and various food items such as biscuits, a packet of chips, and a water bottle.

The Special Cell registered a case under Section 61 (criminal conspiracy) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita on July 15. Since then, the anti-terror unit has been gathering information about the suspects, according to sources, quoted by PTI.

Here is how the arrests took place

Six people were arrested in Rajasthan's Bhiwadi, while undergoing weapons training, according to a police officer quoted by PTI. The arrested individuals are Hasan Ansari, Enamul Ansari, Altaf Ansari, Arshad Khan, Umar Farooq, and Shahbaz Ansari, all residents of Jharkhand. They had been residing in Rajasthan for the past few days.

Five more people were arrested in Ranchi, Jharkhand, following their arrest. The officer further said that the additional suspects were identified as Ishtiyaq Ahmed, Motiur, Rizwan, Mufti Rahmatullah, and Faizan.

Members of the terror module received training, including weapon handling, at various locations, such as the jungles of the Aravalli Hills in Rajasthan, according to another officer. A large-scale operation was conducted in these hill jungles to apprehend the suspects.

The Delhi Police also reported that three additional individuals were detained from Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh for questioning.

There is suspicion that the module was planning to carry out a terror attack in northern India during the upcoming festive season, the police added.

A senior police officer involved in the operations revealed that the Al-Qaeda module has been active for several months, with its members coordinating through social media.
After 11 days, resident doctors at Delhis All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital called off the strike on Thursday in response to an appeal made by the Supreme Court of India. Doctors watch the live stream of SC proceedings at RML Hospital on Wednesday. (Raj K Raj/HT Photo)

After 11 days of protest, resident doctors at Delhis All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital on Thursday called off their indefinite strike over the rape and murder of a trainee doctor in Kolkata earlier this month.

Their decision to resume all out-patient department (OPD) consultations, elective surgeries, and non-essential services was announced hours after an appeal for the same was made by the Supreme Court.

Resident doctor associations in most government hospitals across India have been protesting against the brutal rape and murder of a female resident doctor of the RG Kar Hospital and Medical College in Kolkata on August 9. As a result, all elective services, including OPDs, non-emergency surgeries, diagnostics, among other services, were halted.

Read more: Kapil Sibal laughs in SC amid hearing on Kolkata case, SG Tushar Mehta reacts

Emergency services, however, have been fully functional that included intensive care units, hospital casualty etc.

Earlier on Thursday, the Supreme Court had implored doctors to end their stir: How does a public health infrastructure run if the doctors dont report to work? Justice and medicine cannot go on a strike.

In the interest of the nation RDA AIIMS has decided to call off the 11-day strike. This decision comes in response to the appeal and direction of the Honble Supreme Court of India. We extend our sincere appreciation to the Supreme Court for taking cognizance of the RG Kar Medical College incident and addressing the broader issue of safety and security of health care workers across the country, the statement issued by RDA, AIIMS-Delhi, said.

We also commend the formation of the national task force to ensure that these concerns are addressed promptly and effectively, it added.

During the course of the strike, non-essential services such as OPDs, and non-emergency surgeries, and laboratory work, were reduced by up to 90%, and similar situation was being witnessed in other public hospitals causing massive inconvenience to patients.

Read more: Kolkata rape-murder: CBI gets nod for polygraph test on ex-principal, 4 doctors

Resident doctors at RML Hospital also announced that they will resume work fully from Friday morning.

In view of the developments with respect to our demands, and our concerns being addressed by the honorable SC, we hereby declare the strike to be withheld, read the RML RDAs statement. The doctors also added in the statement that no disciplinary action should be taken against them for halting work. Considering the unprecedented nature of our cause, we request that no absences be recorded, nor any salaries deducted for the duration of the strike, said the doctors.

The doctors statements also urged the authorities to adhere to the directives issued by the apex court.

We strongly urge the authorities to strictly adhere to the directives issued by the Supreme Court Our primary responsibility patient careremains our utmost priority, and we are dedicated to upholding it, the AIIMS RDAs statement further read.

To address the safety concerns of doctors, the Union ministry of health and family welfare directed government hospitals to conduct security audits to gauge the individual hospitals need to expand security cover. AIIMS-Delhi announced on Wednesday that it has initiated a collaborative internal security audit to assess and improve safety measures across its campus.

AIIMS has formed two committees: a five-member committee to address immediate concerns raised by the doctors and a 15-member committee focused on enhancing overall security measures.

Dr Puneet Kaur, head of the department of biophysics, will chair the 15-member security audit committee. The committee includes representatives from the Faculty Association of AIIMS (FAIIMS), Resident Doctors Association, Students Union, Nurses Union, and the Society of Young Scientists, among others.
New Delhi, A 56-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly assaulting doctors and misbehaving with nursing staff at the Jag Pravesh Chandra Hospital in Northeast Delhi, officials said on Thursday. HT Image

Israr , who runs a spare parts shop, had taken his wife to the hospital for treatment on Wednesday night when he allegedly assaulted doctors, they said.

As the accused threatened the doctors and abused them, hospital staffers recorded it on their mobile phones.

According to the FIR, the accused's wife was given medication by the doctor on duty based on her complaints but her husband refused those and instead suggested his own mode of treatment, a police official said.

Dr Rajneesh, a junior resident at the hospital told PTI Videos that when the hospital staffers ignored the man's suggestions, he became violent and started misbehaving with the doctors.

"We tried to pacify him but he started abusing us and assaulted some of us. He also misbehaved with our nursing staff," the doctor said.

The FIR claimed that the accused shouted on the hospital premises, hampering the treatment of other patients, and destroyed government property. He forcefully went inside the doctors' duty room and provoked other people to beat the medics, it claimed.

It has also been alleged in the FIR that the accused assaulted doctors in the duty room and while referring to the alleged rape and murder of a trainee woman doctor in Kolkata asked why were medics in Delhi concerned about it.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Joy Tirkey said an FIR under BNS sections 221 , 221 voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty and 132 was registered at New Usman Police Station.

Further investigation is underway, the police officer said.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
A 56-year-old man was arrested for allegedlyassaulting doctors and staffers at Jag Pravesh Chandra Hospital in Shastri Park in east Delhi on Tuesday night, police said on Thursday. The suspect had come with a patient who was unhappy with the doctors treatment and argued with the doctor. The accused was identified as Mohammed Israr, a resident of Chauhan Bangar. (Representational image)

The accused was identified as Mohammed Israr, a resident of Chauhan Bangar who has a spare parts shop in Kashmere Gate, said deputy commissioner of police (north east) Joy Tirkey.

Police said that around 9pm, 52-year-old Sameena visited the hospital with her husband Israr complaining of a stomach ailment, saying she had diarrhoea. She and her husband were unhappy with treatment given by the doctors. Sameena wanted an injection while doctors gave her tablets. This led to a heated exchange and Israr misbehaved with the doctors and other staff in Casualty ward of JPC Hospital, Tirkey said.

Based on the complaint by the chief medical officer, a case under Section 221 (obstructing public servant in discharge of duty), 121 (1) (voluntarily causing hurt), and 132 (assault on public servant) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita was registered and Israr was arrested.

In his complaint, he said that when the casualty doctors refused the treatment asked by the patient, her husband started abusing and shouting at the doctors, hampering the treatment of patients in casualty, the FIR said. The accused allegedly damaged property at the hospital, went to the nursing station and then shouted at them as well. In a video, Israr was seen challenging a staffer and shouting at him.

He forcefully came inside the duty doctors room... He physically assaulted the doctors in the duty room... the FIR said.

On July 9, in Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, a woman died after childbirth after which her family members - about 50 of them - created ruckus in the department charging at the doctors forcing about 10 of them into a room. Three persons were arrested in connection with the incident.

The incident comes in the midst of protests by resident doctors in Delhis government hospitals demanding safety and security for themselves.
Mumbai: The Maharashtra government on Thursday appointed I S Chahal, a 1989 batch IAS officer, as the additional chief secretary of the home department. Chahal, who currently serves as additional chief secretary in the Chief Minister's secretariat, previously held the position of municipal commissioner of Mumbai. IS Chahal is a 1989 batch IAS officer, HT Photo

The appointment comes amidst growing criticism of the home department's performance, particularly in light of recent atrocities against young girls in Badlapur.

The role of home secretary was previously held by Sujata Saunik, who was appointed chief secretary on 30 June. Following her promotion, Saunik continued to oversee the home department and administrative reforms as additional chief secretary.

The home secretary is responsible for supervising the work of the police department.

Several candidates were considered for the position of additional chief secretary (home). Chief Minister Eknath Shinde favoured Chahal, while Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who also serves as home minister, had other candidates in mind. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) advocated for Manisha Mhaiskar, the additional chief secretary of the Public Works Department, to assume the role. However, Mhaiskar's 1992 batch status posed a potential issue, given that the Director General of Police, Rashmi Shukla, is from the 1988 batch, and Police Commissioner Vivek Phansalkar is from the 1989 batch.

The government also contemplated appointing V Radha from the General Administration Department as additional chief secretary. However, concerns were raised about her seniority, as she belongs to the 1994 batch.

Government sources indicated that the home department required dedicated leadership, leading to Chahal's appointment. "Had we not appointed someone now, the Election Commission would have assigned a regular officer once the code of conduct was enforced," said a senior IAS officer.

The Chief Minister's office currently houses two senior IAS officers. The second officer, Vikas Kharge of the 1994 batch, was recently promoted to additional chief secretary.

Chahal is set to retire in 2026 and could potentially succeed Saunik as chief secretary. Saunik may apply for the state election commissioner post, which becomes vacant next month. If selected, Chahal could assume her role. Otherwise, he would need to wait until her retirement in June 2025.
Mumbai: A peaceful protest organised by various railway passenger associations on Thursday morning saw limited participation, despite calls for improved train services and infrastructure upgrades. The demonstration, part of the "Wear Your White" campaign, took place until 9:30 a.m. at several railway stations across Mumbai's suburban network. A peaceful protest organised by various railway passenger associations on Thursday morning saw limited participation. HT Photo

Association members distributed black bands to commuters at Thane, Dombivli, Asangaon, and Diva stations. However, support was notably scarce in Badlapur, which had witnessed a nearly 10-hour rail blockade on Tuesday. That earlier protest had drawn thousands, expressing outrage over perceived inaction by state authorities in addressing the sexual assault of two four-year-old girls.

The associations presented a list of demands, including prioritising local trains over long-distance services during peak hours and restricting long-distance trains from tracks designated for local services on the Kurla to Kalyan corridor. They also called for the expedited completion of long-delayed projects, with railways announcing firm deadlines.

Additional requests included the implementation of a "Code Red" system when local services are disrupted, the utilisation of mail train lines for local services, and the establishment of a dedicated joint authority for the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR).

Most passenger associations began setting up stalls and distributing black bands from 6:30 a.m. Following notices from railway authorities warning against unlawful activities on rail premises, the stalls were positioned outside station entrances.

In Dombivli, association members reported distributing 10,000 black ribbons to the public.

Siddesh Desai, a member of Mumbai Rail Pravasi Sangh, stated, "We distributed around 25,000 black bands to commuters approaching the stations. We have received fair response from the public till now and the protest has been peaceful."

Many members departed for work after participating in the morning's activities. Sanjay Mistry, a member of the rail passenger association from Badlapur, commented, "We distributed around 1,000 black bands. Neither the public nor the media seem to understand the importance of this protest given the low interest levels."

The associations' "Wear Your White" campaign failed to gain significant traction. Madhu Kotian, president of Mumbai Rail Pravasi Sangh, observed, "Barely 1% of the public knew or acknowledged this protest while the rest didn't seem to be bothered by the rail issues. Despite publicising about the protest on social media, the public seemed indifferent to such serious issues plaguing this city's most essential mode of commute."

Protesters posed with banners and documented the event through photographs. At several stations, the demonstrations concluded by 9:30 a.m.

Railway officials reported that police personnel were deployed in substantial numbers across various stations to monitor the situation.
A local court on Thursday rejected the bail applications of six persons, including the teen drivers parents, in connection with the alleged blood-swapping in the Kalyaninagar Porsche car crash case. It is alleged that after the teen driver crashed his car into a motorbike and killed two IT professionals in the wee hours of May 19, his parents and others conspired to replace his blood samples to establish that he was not drunk at the time of accident. (PTI FILE PHOTO)

Additional Sessions Judge UM Mudholkar refused bail to the 17-year-olds parents, suspended doctors of Sassoon General Hospital Ajay Taware and Shrihari Halnor, and alleged middlemen Ashpak Makandar and Amar Gaikwad.

It is alleged that after the teen driver crashed his car into a motorbike and killed two IT professionals in the wee hours of May 19, his parents and others conspired to replace his blood samples to establish that he was not drunk at the time of accident.

The prosecution argued that if given bail, the accused might pressurise the witnesses and tamper with the evidence.

Senior Public Prosecutor Shishir Hiray said his main argument was that the accused toyed with the judicial system by tampering with evidence.

The defence team representing the accused in the case are Harshad Nimbalkar, Sudhir Shah, Rishikesh Ganu, Prashant Patil, Prasad Kulkarni and Shivam Nimbalkar.

Investigation officer ACP Ganesh Ingale highlighted concerns about witness intimidation and the risk of flight, citing parallels to high-profile fugitives Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi.

The 45-page order released by the court highlights that parents of the child in conflict with law (CCL) are influential figures and if granted bail, the accused might intimidate witnesses.

Meanwhile, labour contractor Arun Kumar Singh, who has been on the run, has moved the court for anticipatory bail on Thursday. While the crime branch has arrested two, including the father of one of the two minors who were with the 17-year-old driver, for their alleged involvement in swapping the blood samples, Singh is yet to be nabbed.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Ukraine will be followed very closely by Indias interlocutors in the West and Russia, given that it comes after his trip to Moscow a little more than a month ago for the summit with President Vladimir Putin. Images of Modi embracing Putin on the day a Russian strike hit Kyivs largest childrens hospital and the visit coinciding with the NATO Summit in Washington triggered outrage in the West and Ukraine. The trip to Ukraine has already generated considerable speculation about any role that India could play in the ongoing efforts to find a peaceful resolution to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi reviews a military honour guard during an official welcoming ceremony in front of the Polish Prime Minister's Office in Warsaw, Poland on August 22, 2024. (Photo by Sergei GAPON / AFP) (AFP)

The Indian side has been loath to take on any role in directly mediating between the two warring countries though it has indicated that it can help by passing messages between the two sides. The Ukrainian side has already said one of the main topics for discussion is President Volodymyr Zelenskyys ten-point peace formula, which calls for withdrawal of Russian forces and restoration of borders, and urged India to take on a greater role, as the voice of the Global South, in peace efforts based on the formula. This is a tough ask, given that India is not keen on doing anything that is seen as going against Russia, one of its oldest strategic partners and a key supplier of defence hardware and energy.

Much as India enjoys the benefits of its friendship with Russia, the emerging Russia-China no-limits relationship has become a source of concern in New Delhi. Ties with Moscow may be leveraged against Beijing-caused heartburn, but Russia remains an unequal partner to China, something that India must hedge against. And, it must assure the West, that it remains committed to peace and democracy.
The Non-Collegiate Womens Education Board (NCWEB), Delhi University, released the cut-off list for students seeking admission for BA and BCom courses. Candidates who would like to check the cut-off list can visit the official website of Delhi University (DU) at du.ac.in. As per the information mentioned on the official website, online admission will commence at 10 am on August 23, 2024, and will continue till 11.59 pm on August 25, 2024, at the respective teaching centres. (Kunal Patil/HT photo)

As per the information mentioned on the official website, online admission will commence at 10 am on August 23, 2024, and will continue till 11.59 pm on August 25, 2024, at the respective teaching centres. The NCWEB-DU cut-off list is prepared as per the following categories: General (G), OBC, SC, ST, EWS and PwD.

For BA Programme:

For general category students looking for BA (History + Political Science course), the cut-off in Miranda House is 88 and it is 87 in Hans Raj College. For the BA ( Economics + Political Science course) under the general category, the cut-off stands at 85 in Miranda House and 83 in Hans Raj College.

For BCom Programme:

For general category students looking for the BCom Programme, the cut-off in Miranda House is 88 while it is 87 in Hans Raj College.

Candidates who would like to check the cut-off list can check it here.
Somalia to seek stronger strategic cooperation with China in economic development, security: president

Xinhua) 10:59, August 22, 2024

MOGADISHU, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud received credentials on Wednesday from Wang Yu, the newly appointed Chinese ambassador to Somalia.

Mohamud commended the new Chinese ambassador's desire to promote ties between Somalia and China, pointing out the importance of strengthening the strategic cooperation between the two countries, particularly in areas of economic development, trade, and security.

"Somalia bestows great importance on the partnership with China and is ready to work with China to continuously expand friendly cooperation and enhance bilateral relations," Mohamud said in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia.

The Somali leader observed that China supports Somalia in several areas, including humanitarian aid, scholarships, and efforts to safeguard national unity and territorial integrity.

On his part, Wang commended Somalia's progress in peace, security, and national reconstruction over recent years.

Wang emphasized China's willingness to work jointly with Somalia and further implement the consensus reached by the two countries to elevate the China-Somalia relationship to new heights.

Wang replaces Fei Shengchao, who was appointed as the Chinese ambassador to Somalia in September 2021.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) has postponed the State Services preliminary exam scheduled for 25 August. The decision was taken during a meeting held on Thursday. MPSC announced on its X handle: In the commission meeting held today, it has been decided to postpone the Maharashtra Gazetted Civil Services Combined Preliminary Examination 2024 scheduled for 25 August 2024. The fresh exam date will be announced soon.

Protesting students preparing for competitive exams for various state government jobs have been staging agitation in Pune over MPSC's decision to not schedule exams for the agriculture department along with exams for other departments. The aspirants also demanded that MPSC postpone the exams as the 25 August schedule clashed with the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) exams, affecting candidates appearing in both.

In view of the agitation, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had on Wednesday urged the MPSC chairman to take positive decisions on students demands.

MPSC held a meeting in this regard in Mumbai, with Commission members and a delegation of protesting students also present. Following the meeting, MPSC announced on its X handle: In the commission meeting held today, it has been decided to postpone the Maharashtra Gazetted Civil Services Combined Preliminary Examination 2024 scheduled for 25 August 2024. The fresh exam date will be announced soon.

The protest has also taken a political turn, with NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar issuing an ultimatum saying that if the government does not take the agitation seriously and clarify its stand today, he will join the protest. Other NCP (SP) leaders, including Rohit Pawar and Supriya Sule, have also visited the protest site at Navi Peth, where agitators have blocked the LBS road.

Reacting to MPSC's decision, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, "Yesterday I requested the MPSC, and I am very grateful to the Chairman of Maharashtra Public Service Commission and all the members for honouring this request and taking a decision in the interest of the students."

Despite MPSC's exam postponement announcement, protesting aspirants are continuing their agitation. They have blocked the key LBS road connecting Deccan with Sinhgad Road in Pune. Aspirants are now demanding recruitment to 15000 posts, among other things.
She was only 31. Her mind was full of dreams with a future replete with prospects and promises. Little did she know that the fateful night of August 9 would wipe her away from the history of existence leading to an uproar so massive that was not confined to India alone but transcended beyond the seven seas. The brutality that transpired at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata led to the loss of a promising young life who chose to serve humanity as a doctor. The incident has now led the nation asking if there should be stringent laws in place to prevent such gruesome incidents in the future. (Representative image/Anshuman Poyrekar/HT Photo)

The horrific rape and murder of the PG trainee doctor at the now infamous RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata continues to send shockwaves, not just for the brutality associated with the incident but also because of the blatant disregard for safety protocols that should have been observed by the institution, which could have prevented the ghastly occurrence.

Moreover, the incident reflects the kind of ghoulish level of inhumanity that runs rampant in campuses not only restricted to the health sector alone but across fields and disciplines.

The big question one needs to ask now is  what is the way forward?

It was in 2013 that India enacted the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, also known as the Prevention of Sexual Harassment (POSH) Act, which obligates companies to provide a secure working environment for female employees. At the same time, the act was also designed to provide a proper redressal mechanism for women subjected to sexual harassment while incorporating the Vishaka Guidelines. The POSH Act was enacted following the gruesome Nirbhaya case of 2012 that shook India by the soul.

However, are the objectives of the POSH Act truly being met? A recent report by the Business Standard that cited data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), claimed that the country had reported over 400 cases of sexual harassment at workplaces between 2018 and 2022.

Of these, an average of 445 cases were reported yearly during this period. Furthermore, more than 419 cases, or about 35 per month, were reported in the country in 2022, with Himachal Pradesh topping the list, followed by Kerala, Maharashtra, and Karnataka.

Clearly, given the current situation, it does seem like instances of sexual harassment at workplaces continue to be a burning issue.

Now to know what changes can be initiated to prevent any untoward incidents at workplaces, and make it a safe zone for all, especially women, Hindustan Times Digital spoke to experts comprising of advocates and young doctors who work round the clock to cater to the needs of the patients.

The POSH Act: An outline

Elaborating on the POSH Act, Advocate Nashrat Majid from Guwahati said, The Prevention of Sexual Harassment at Workplace Act, 2013 (POSH Act) was a landmark legislation in India aimed at providing a safe and secure work environment for women. The Act mandates the establishment of an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) in workplaces with ten or more employees to address complaints of sexual harassment. It outlines a comprehensive mechanism for reporting, inquiry, and redressal, emphasising confidentiality, protection from retaliation, and support for the complainant. The Act also extends to students, patients, and clients, broadening the scope beyond traditional employee-employer relationships.

The loopholes in the POSH Act and changes required

Advocate Majid explained that the POSH Act has certain loopholes from a legal standpoint. She said, Firstly, it places a significant burden on employers to constitute and manage the ICC, which may not always be feasible for smaller organizations or those lacking resources. Additionally, the Act does not adequately address the potential for bias or lack of training among ICC members, which can lead to mishandling of cases.

She stressed that to make the Act stronger, authorities must address critical gaps which undermines its effectiveness. She said that the requirement for conciliation before an inquiry should be made an easy process for victims so that they don't feel pressurised.

Additionally, there should be clear penalties for non-compliance of POSH Act by employers, and also a presence of a centralised authority to oversee the implementation of the Act.

Enhanced focus on prevention' rather than redressal

Jahnabi Goswamee, a Gandhinagar-based law student from Guwahati, recalled that a similar incident had happened almost a decade ago in the Assam Medical College and Hospital, Dibrugarh when a junior doctor was murdered at the ICU by a ward boy.

She said, We have also heard of similar cases like that of Vishaka and Aruna Shaunbag. Sexual harassment of women in the workplace has become a pressing issue and it is high time that there is stringent enforcement of the POSH Act. I would say, that instead of working on the "redressal" aspect after the damage is already done, authorities should instead emphasise on the "prevention" aspect, thereby keeping the woman's safety intact.

Increased sensitisation campaigns on POSH Act at workplaces

Dr Kasturi Sharma from the SUM Hospital in Bhubaneshwar, who was deeply affected by the tragic fate of a fellow trainee doctor in Kolkata, said, Authorities must ensure that no female feels unsafe at a place where she earns her daily bread. This can only be done when the objectives of the POSH Act are recognised in truest sense. The management must adopt mechanisms such as regular sensitisation programmes on the POSH Act at workplaces or conduct routine workshops to educate employees at intervals about the importance of the Act that was designed to prevent such unfortunate events. Being respected and protected is a basic human right that all citizens must enjoy, and women are no exception, she added.

Referring to the RG Kar incident, she added, One might think how one incident can affect women and doctors in particular and that is because it could have been me. The same duties, the same responsibilities she had on that day, I do too. If you put yourself in our place you can only imagine how horrifying it is.

A collective outrage and re-evaluation of the laws in place

Dr Ritwik Sharma, another healthcare worker from Guwahati, also expressed his grief over the recent incident at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, and said Such atrocities demand not only our collective outrage but also a serious re-evaluation of our legal system. Laws such as POSH must be more stringent when dealing with crimes of this nature, ensuring that the consequences are severe and swift.

"Moreover, there is an urgent need for heightened security measures within medical institutions. The scrutiny of attendants and visitors should be more rigorous, as doctors, unlike many other professionals, are constantly interacting with a wide range of people, many of whom are under extreme stress due to illness. In such a volatile environment, anything can happen, and it is imperative that we take steps to safeguard those who are dedicating their lives to saving others.

The system must change, and it must change now, to protect the lives and well-being of those who are the backbone of our healthcare system, he added.

It may be mentioned here that the Supreme Court on Tuesday called for the setting up of a 10-member national task force to make recommendations on prevention of violence and safe working conditions for medical professionals.

A bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said that the task force will submit its interim report within three weeks and the final report within two months. As per the Courts directive, the doctors panel will frame guidelines for ensuring the safety and protection of medical professionals and healthcare workers across the country.

The top court also said, If women are not able to go to work and working conditions are not safe, we are denying them equality.
Modern School, Barakhamba Road celebrated the 78th Independence Day recently on the theme Inclusivity. Sanjay Kumar (IAS), Secretary, Department of School Education & Literacy and Major Gen Sanjay P. Vishwasrao, Additional Director General, National Cadet Corps took part in the celebrations.(Handout)

Sanjay Kumar (IAS), Secretary, Department of School Education & Literacy, Ministry of Education, Government of India, took part in the celebration as the Chief Guest and Major Gen Sanjay P. Vishwasrao, Additional Director General, National Cadet Corps as the Guest of Honour.

Anuradha Singh, President, Board of Trustees, Modern Schools; Ambika Pant, Secretary, Board of Trustees, Modern Schools; Mira Pradeep Singh, Treasurer, Board of Trustees, Modern Schools; Col Vijay Chadda, Member, Board of Trustees, Modern Schools & Chairman, School Managing Committee; and other Members of the Board of Trustees, Modern Schools & School Managing Committee were present at the celebrations.

Also Read: Independence Day 2024: Art installation in Mumbai's Bandra depicts the cycle of life

The School Choir sang the National Anthem while the National Flag was hoisted. Dr Vijay Datta, Principal of Modern School Barakhamba Road, introduced the Chief Guest and other dignitaries to the differently-abled members of the team SPORTABILITY, Inclusive Academy and briefed them about the initiative taken up by the School.

A dance-drama performance titled Inclusivity: Unstoppable Indians with the live choir mesmerised the audience. Other highlights of the celebration were School Band, NCC Display and the Bagpipers March. The kaleidoscopic ballet and the melodious panorama served as a great set off for the Independence Day, mentioned a press release issued by the school.

Also Read: Independence Day: Rakul Preet Singh, Raghav Juyal, Mona Singh: Actors recall childhood memories of celebrating I-Day
New Delhi, "Girls Will Be Girls", the debut production of actor couple Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal, will bring down the curtain on the 15th edition of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne on August 25. Richa Chadha-Ali Fazal Production 'Girls Will Be Girls' to close 2024 IFFM

Directed by Shuchi Talati, the coming-of-age film has received acclaim at several international festivals, including Cannes, where it was screened under Cannes Ecrans Juniors, as well as its award-winning run at the Sundance Film Festival where it had its world premiere.

According to the makers, "Girls Will Be Girls" is set in a boarding school in a small Himalayan hill town in northern India. It follows the journey of Mira, a 16-year-old girl, whose rebellious awakening is intertwined with her mother's unfulfilled coming-of-age experiences. It stars Preeti Panagrahi and Kani Kusruti in the lead.

Fazal and Chadha, who have backed the film via Pushing Button Studios, said they are looking forward to the Australian premiere of "Girls Will Be Girls" at IFFM.

"We are incredibly honored that 'Girls Will Be Girls' has been chosen to close such a prestigious film festival. The journey of this film has been remarkable, and we are thrilled to share it with the Australian audience. We are certain the film will find much love the way it has so far internationally," said Fazal.

"We are beyond thrilled that 'Girls Will Be Girls' will close the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne 2024. This film has been a labor of love, and it's incredibly rewarding to see it resonate with audiences worldwide. Thank you for the immense support and we are grateful to IFFM for choosing our film to close their 15th edition of the festival," added Chadha.

Mitu Bhowmick Lange AM, festival director of IFFM, said they are honoured to have "Girls Will Be Girls" as the closing night film of this year's gala.

"The section was specifically made as the film truly speaks of the current times and is an absolute true to the coming of age genre. The film has made such an incredible journey internationally and we are proud to present the film in Australia with its official Australian premiere at IFFM," she said.

"Girls Will Be Girls" is an Indo-French co-production, a collaboration of Pushing Buttons Studios, Blink Digital, Crawling Angel Films and Dolce Vita Films. It also stars Jitin Gulati and Kesav Binoy Kiron.

IFFM opened on August 15.

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Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopezs marital woes began on their honeymoon in Lake Como, Italy, an insider told Page Six. The couple had several public outings during their honeymoon, with a lot of shopping and PDA. They were caught on camera on various occasions. Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopezs marital woes began during what was supposed to be the happiest time of their life (REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo)(REUTERS)

He was unhappy with paparazzi following them. She is an international superstar, and he acted like it came as a surprise that they would be followed around, the source said.

The source said that when the pair was not in front of the camera, they would barely speak to each other during what was supposed to be the happiest time of their life. He sold her on him being a changed man, and that lasted a very short time.

He doesnt want [the entourage] and all the drama that comes with that in his home

Another source said that Affleck finally came to his senses about their renewed love when his sobriety started to settle in with normality. When they began seeing one another again, he was just getting sober  He was in a vulnerable state, and whatever their chemistry played into that  He was in this frenzied, excitable state, the insider said.

Affleck has opened up about his struggles with alcohol in the past. The last time he returned to rehab was in 2018.

Once Affleck began adjusting to his sober life, the romance reportedly started wearing off. He wanted privacy, and the attention that came with Lopezs celebrity status disturbed him, the insider said. He doesnt want [the entourage] and all the drama that comes with that in his home, the source said.

Lopez has officially filed for divorce from Affleck after two years of marriage. The actress filed the papers in Los Angeles on Tuesday, August 20, and listed the separation date as April 26, 2024.

Sources previously told the outlet that Affleck was very protective of Lopez, and thus held off on filing for divorce. Shes furious. He has humiliated her. He was the one who initiated getting back together  She made a big deal that he was the love of her life, a source said in the past.
Alex Rodriguez's cryptic quote post Bennifer divorce

A quote attributed to the retired MLB player via The Con.cept's Instagram page read, You either go one way or the other, you might as well be the one deciding the direction. Alex later shared the image on his Instagram story shortly after news of Jennifer's divorce filing broke.

Jennifer Lopez-Alex Rodriguez relationship

Jennifer and Alex began dating in 2017 and got engaged in 2019. They officially ended their engagement in April 2021. At that time, the former couple issued a joint statement to USA Today, which read, We will continue to work together and support each other on our shared businesses and projects. We wish the best for each other and one anothers children. Out of respect for them, the only other comment we have to say is thank you to everyone who has sent kind words and support.

Jennifer Lopez files for divorce without legal representative

Jennifer filed for divorce on Tuesday in the Los Angeles County Superior Court. Her petition for the dissolution of their marriage was filed on the two-year anniversary of their Georgia wedding. The Atlas actor filed for divorce on her own, without an attorney or legal representative. She stated the separation date as April 26, 2024, which is about four months ago. This timeline makes sense as the couple spent their summer living apart.

Ben Affleck flew back to LA

Ben spent time with ex-wife Jennifer Garner and their three kids before the oldest, Violet, moved to Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. He flew back to LA the same day the divorce was filed. Ben and Jennifer (Garner) were spotted leaving the airport together in a car.
Lionsgate recalled its new trailer for Francis Ford Coppolas  Megalopolis  Wednesday amid revelations that critics' quotes were fabricated. Lionsgate recalls and apologizes for Megalopolis trailer for fabricated quotes

Lionsgate is immediately recalling our trailer for Megalopolis, a Lionsgate spokesperson said in a statement to The Associated Press. We offer our sincere apologies to the critics involved and to Francis Ford Coppola and American Zoetrope for this inexcusable error in our vetting process. We screwed up. We are sorry.

The trailer, released earlier Wednesday, included quotes from critics like Pauline Kael and Roger Ebert of other Coppola films that did not actually appear in their reviews. The intent, it seems, was to highlight the critical divisiveness of now-classics like The Godfather and Apocalypse Now, leaning into some of the more negative reactions to Megalopolis, the self-financed $120 million epic opening in September.

The trailer attributed a quote to Kael that The Godfather was diminished by its artsiness. But Kael loved The Godfather, and this phrase was not used in her March 1972 review of the film for The New Yorker. Ebert also did not write that Coppolas Bram Stokers Dracula was a triumph of style over substance. Quotes from Rex Reed and Vincent Canby, about Apocalypse Now, did not appear in their reviews either.

Megalopolis has been decades in the making, and it received many mixed reviews upon its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year. It has also come under scrutiny of late for alleged misconduct on set, after videos leaked of Coppola hugging and kissing extras during a club scene. Representatives have not responded to the s requests for comment about the videos.

The film is set to have its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival next month before hitting theaters on Sept. 27.

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Actor and comedian Mindy Kaling shared a message for Ben Affleck amid his divorce from his wife, Jennifer Lopez. As per an E Online report, Mindy asked Ben to "hang in there". She was hosting the 2024 Democratic National Convention on Wednesday. (Also Read | Jennifer Lopez's ex-fiance Alex Rodriguez shares cryptic note on Instagram after Bennifer divorce) Mindy Kaling spoke about Ben Affleck after his reported divorce from Jennifer Lopez.

Mindy has a message for Ben

Mindy said, "I couldnt leave here without giving a shoutout to the amazing delegation from my home state, Massachusetts. I love you, Massachusetts. Everyone is always hating on us, but they just dont get it."

Speaking from the stage in Chicago, Mindy gave a shoutout to several people, "Go Sox! Go Jayson Tatum! Ben Affleck, hang in there." She also said that "Dunkin Donuts is the best coffee in the world".

About DNC

Apart from Mindy, Kerry Washington, Ana Navarro and Tony Goldwyn hosted the event. DNC, which started on August 19, will run till August 22. Nearly 50,000 visitors reportedly attended the convention, including approximately 4,000 delegates. The theme of the convention is For the People, For Our Future.

About Jennifer and Ben

After a relationship that spanned two decades, Jennifer Lopez filed for divorce from Ben. Court records showed that Jennifer filed the petition on Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court. TMZ reported that Jennifer listed the date of separation as April 26, 2024. It added that she did not mention any prenuptial agreement.

After meeting, falling in love and getting engaged in the early 2000s  and starring together in 2003's infamous Gigli and 2004's Jersey Girl  the couple parted ways, blaming in part the pressure of the public eye.

They reunited two decades later and married  twice  in 2022. The couple had flown to Las Vegas, lined up with their license with four other couples and were wed just after midnight. A month later, they had a much grander wedding at Ben's house in Georgia, in front of friends and family.

 with AP inputs
New Delhi, Hollywood star Bill Skarsgard, who is playing the lead role in the upcoming film "The Crow", says he is drawn to movies that explore conflicts within its characters. Morally ambiguous characters more interesting: Bill Skarsgard on 'The Crow'

Skarsgard, who is the son of Stellan Skarsgard and brother to actors Alexander, Gustaf and Valter Skarsgard, is popular for essaying the role of Pennywise the Dancing Clown in the horror movie "It" and its sequel. He was also the lead villain in "John Wick: Chapter 4".

In "The Crow", a reboot of the 1994 cult movie of the same name, the Swedish actor stars as Eric as well as the titular Crow, a musician who is resurrected and decides to avenge his and his fiancee's death.

"Morally ambiguous characters are more interesting to me than the traditional, straightforward, kind of black and white hero archetype. The more conflict within the hero, the more interesting .

"That's the kind of movie that I'm drawn towards watching as well... If it's too black and white, it doesn't feel truthful to me," the 34-year-old actor told PTI in an international roundtable.

"The Crow" directed by Rupert Sanders will be released on August 30 in India by PVRINOX Pictures.

The 1994 original movie, which was directed by Alex Proyas, featured Brandon Lee, son of martial artist and star Bruce Lee, in his last film role. Brandon Lee, who was 28, died in an on-set accident while filming a key scene that involved him being shot.

Skarsgard said he watched Proyas' movie starring Brandon Lee and carried it "in spirit" but ultimately he wanted to play the character in his own way.

"This is the only way I know how to approach something, which is my way. This is a new story... Rupert's version of Eric was very different from the original. And that was the point," he added.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
The 2024 K-World Dream Awards will air on Thursday, August 22, at 4:30 p.m. KST. Kicking off with the blue carpet event before the main ceremony, the show will be exclusively live-streamed in real time only on Hellolive. Japanese audiences should tune into Lemino for the broadcast. aespa and NCT 127 will be attending the 2024 K-World Dream Awards in Seoul on August 22, 2024.

K-pop artists, including NCT 127, ITZY, aespa, ZEROBASEONE, TOMORROW X TOGETHER and others, will be attending the event, formerly known as the Soribada Best K-Music Awards and K Global Heart Dream Awards.

The star-studded music extravaganza will celebrate musicians who have shone exceptionally bright the past year. Returning MCs Jun Hyun Moo and Jang Do Yeon will host the ceremony for the second consecutive year at Jamsil Indoor Stadium in Seoul, South Korea.

K-World Dream Awards winners announced so far

Two days ahead of the official broadcast, the winners of the Best Song/Best Music award were pre-announced. The title has been awarded to five teams  Zico (ft Jennie), Le Sserafim, SEVENTEEN, (G)I-DLE and IVE. The former Spot! collaboration particularly gained more attention than anticipated on a global scale due to the BLACKPINK member's affiliation with the project.

Also read | Pokemon fans will love this Japanese airline: World's 1st in-flight safety video featuring Pikachu, Eevee and others

Jeon Yujin will take home the Girl Solo Popularity Award trophy. On the other hand, Kim Jaejoong was announced as the Boy Solo Popularity Award winner. Another voting-based award was Global UPick Choice. ZEROBASEONE's Zhang Hao won this contest.

If last year's pattern is to be followed this time as well, other award categories are expected to be as follows:

Best Artist, 10 Bonsang winners (Main Prize), five Best Music winners (pre-announced), Best Unit, Best World Tour, Best Performance, Best Music Video, Best Co-Ed Group, Rookie Award, Next Leader, Favourite Boy Group (Popularity Award), Favourite Girl Group (Popularity Award), Favourite Idol Fandom Donation, Best Vocal, Best OST, Best Hip Hop, Best Rock, Listener's Choice Award, Music Icon, Worldwide Rookie, Best Producer and others.

2024 K-World Dream Awards lineup

The first lineup of this year's K-World Dream Awards was revealed on July 12. Subsequent announcements followed.

As per all official revelations, the South Korean awards night welcomes NCT WISH, ILLIT, QWER, UNIS, BADVILLAIN, YOUNG POSSE, ITZY, aespa, Billlie, tripleS, KISS OF LIFE, NCT 127, TOMORROW X TOGETHER, P1Harmony, ZEROBASEONE and Hi-Fi Un!corn.

Also read | Viral: Taylor Swift's demure dancer, who paired up with Travis Kelce at Wembley, took a tumble mid-concert in London

Soloists Baekho, Lee Mujin, BIBI, JD1 (Jeong Dong Won) and Ha Sung Woon will also be attending the ceremony.

Days before the event, the official social media platforms disclosed an additional lineup. According to the new update, Lee Chaeyeon will also attend.

(Attendance and award categories are subject to change.)
BTS rapper Suga is under criminal investigation in a drunk driving case. Several reports emerged claiming that he will be summoned by the Seoul police for questioning on Thursday. Now, as per Korea JoongAng, BTS agency HYBE has issued a statement denying such reports. (Also Read | Internet reacts as protest trucks with messages demanding Suga's removal from BTS seen in Seoul) BTS member Suga is currently serving in the South Korean military.

What HYBE said about Suga

A HYBE official said, "The summoning schedule that has spread is wrong, and he will not be attending today." The official didn't confirm the summoning date. Several reports on Wednesday evening said that Suga would appear before the police on Thursday but wouldn't answer questions from reporters.

How Suga got involved in drunk driving case

On August 6, Suga was investigated for driving an electric scooter after drinking in Seoul's Yongsan District. The incident took place the same day. He was booked and questioned at the Yongsan Police Station on charges of violating the Road Traffic Act.

A breath analyser test revealed that Suga's blood alcohol concentration was at a level warranting license cancellation, which is 0.08 per cent or higher, according to the police. He was let go after the police investigation was complete.

Suga had apologised

Following that, Suga "sincerely apologised" to BTS ARMY. He had said that the police had fined him and revoked his license following the incident. Suga, whose real name is Min Yoongi, issued an apology on Weverse, "It is with a very heavy and apologetic heart that I have to come to you with such disappointment. After drinking at dinner last night, I rode home on an electric kickboard. I violated road traffic laws without realising that I was not allowed to use an electric kickboard while drunk due to the simple thought that it was a short distance away."

"While setting up my electric scooter at the front door of my house, I fell. A police officer was nearby, and as a result of a breathalyser test, my license was revoked, and I was fined. Although no one was harmed or any facilities were damaged during this process, I bow my head in apology to everyone as it is my responsibility, and there is no room for excuses," he added.

About Suga

One of the seven members of BTS, Suga, has been serving as a social service agent since March. He is scheduled to be discharged in June 2025. A social service agent is an alternative form of military service in South Korea.
When Vijay was growing up, he was a big fan of pop star Michael Jackson. He loved to dance and perform to Jacksons songs. In fact, more than his studies, thats what he was popular for in school and college as well. And it was natural that his father, producer and director S A Chandrashekar, wanted his only son to become an actor and top Tamil star one day. (Also Read: 10 actors turned politicians from Tamil Nadu before Vijay: MGR, Kamal Haasan to Jayalalithaa, Khushbu Sundar) Actor-turned-politician and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam President Vijay addresses supporters during the unveiling of party's flag at party headquarters, on the outskirts of Chennai.(PTI)

Chandrashekar introduced him in the lead role at the age of 18 in Naalaya Theerpu in 1992. Today, 32 years later, Vijay has become a top star in Kollywood and has his eyes set on becoming the future Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu thanks to his political party Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK). However, he owes a large part of his success in cinema now in politics to his fans who have supported him unwaveringly for decades.

What makes Vijay special to fans

Interestingly, Vijays fan base consists mostly of youngsters (read boys) whose age ranges from 10 to 30. Most of these youngsters see themselves in Vijay  someone who doesnt have Greek God looks but is more a regular boy-next-door who can dance superbly and belt out a song or two as well. In fact, in his initial acting years, he was criticised for his looks but that dies down when his films turned out to be superhits.

Most of the characters he has played right from the age of 18, showcase Vijay as a young man who can romance a pretty girl, do some action, elicit a lot of laughs with his comedy and play the family man as well. His characters have added on new dimensions with his age and his fans too has grown up with him along the way. In fact, they see in him their reflection and live vicariously through him.

A classmate of his from school tells HT, In school, Vijay was very popular with the girls but he never used to pay much attention to that. He loved performing on stage and his friends were those who came from all walks of life  from the rich to the poor. He was a very nice person and he has a charm that you see still exists today.

Vijays charming demeanour and his smile is enough to send his fan boys into a tizzy as can be seen with the fan selfies he has posted over the last few years on social media. Vijay Karthikeyan, who added the prefix Vijay as he is a Vijay fan, is crazy about his hero and idol.

His profile clearly reads Forever, Thalapathy Vijay Fan and when you ask him why he loves the Tamil star, he replies, Right from my childhood days, I have liked him and been a fan. Ill definitely support whatever he does and whatever decision he takes in politics. I love his dedication towards his passion (cinema and now politics) and this is an inspiration for millions. I am proud to be his fan.

Karthikeyan is not the only fan who echoes this sentiment. Vijay is seen as very humble and even in public wears a short and jeans like most of his fans and keeps a low profile too. He may own the most luxurious cars but as we saw, he went to cast his vote on his sons bicycle and this endeared him to his fans more. Vijay has always portrayed himself as one of the boys and this has worked in his favour. Most of the people who are his fans today have grown up watching his films and they are the ones who are batting for Vijay in politics too.

The Nanban stars fans have stood by him through thick and thin and this political journey of his will be incomplete without them. They are the driving force and his biggest strength when it comes to talking about the party and doing the grassroot level work for TVK. On Thursday, Vijays manager Jagadish, wrote on X (formerly Twitter), posting pics of the GOAT star at the launch of TVK anthem that it feels emotional, powerful and motivated.

Vijays fan, DP Karthik says, As the TVK flag soars high, I take pride in knowing that the future of Tamil Nadu is secure and in capable hands. Another fan, Kavi Kannan, vows not to let down his Thalapathy and says, The happiness and glow on his face is real (at the flag launch). Hes not going to regret his decision. The Tamil Nadu people are not going to let him down!

How will Vijay fare in politics?

It was only in 2009 that Vijay officially launched his fans club called the Vijay Makkal Iyakkam (VMI). His political ambitions were out in the open in the last decade but at that time the VMI supported the AIADMK in 2011. As his fan club membership grew larger, it engaged in a lot of charity work and Vijay encouraged his fan base to do more community work. He brought in Bussy Anand, a politician from Puducherry, as his confidante and adviser for the political arena. The Beast star was not one to talk about politics openly but he tested out waters in 2021 when TVK contested the local body elections.

Over the last few years, Vijay has held numerous fan club meetings talking about politics and his ambitions and getting his fans on board with the idea. After all, they are the ones who would carry him to victory or defeat in this arena. Numerous events, including felicitating school toppers, were held to promote Vijay and he constantly thanked his fans for their support.

And in February 2024, he officially launched the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) and on August 22, unveiled the flag and symbol of the party. As known the General Secretary of TVK is Bussy Anand and the Treasurer is Venkatramanan and the party work is done under their supervision. The state-level conference that Vijay announced on Thursday will be his show of strength when it takes place.

Right now, Vijays TVK reportedly boasts over 10 lakh members (exact numbers not released by TVK). In a membership drive the TVK launched in March 2024, the aim was to enrol two crore cadres. The party used technology  a QR code  and social media apps to get people to register as a TVK member. As of now, only the district and assembly constituency in-charges have been appointed by the party. Till now, TVK has held its cards close to its chest revealing as little as possible.

Political commentator Sumanth Raman tells HT, It is way too early to comment about Vijays political fortunes since he has not released the party ideology and what TVK stands for. The anthem he has launched for TVK is quite catchy though. In todays political scenario, a large fanbase alone will not be enough to sustain any star in the long run  it is only a starting point.

Another political analyst told HT that decades ago when MG Ramachandran came into politics, there was only Sivaji Ganesan who was seen as his rival star. Now, there are many Tamil stars and all have their own separate fan associations. Most of Vijays fans are between the ages of 15 to 35 and are male semi-employed semi-literate youth. How many fans of his are women? His fans below the age of 18 have no voting power as well. Hence, one cant really rely on the fan base to translate into votes in elections, he added.

Right now, the DMK doesnt appear to be enthusiastic about Vijays political entry and he is seen as a direct competitor to Udhayanidhi Stalin and could split the DMKs votes. The two parties to be most affected by Vijays TVK would be the DMK and Seemans Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK) due to the overlapping demographics, add political analysts. Also, if Vijay talks about Tamil nationalism on which Seemans NTK is founded, then it could impact NTK tremendously.

Political analyst Bharath Kumar explains, This is the right time for Vijay to start his political activities but how far hell succeed is a big question. No doubt, hes the Tamil star with the biggest fan following but not all fans are potential voters and converting this to votes is going to be really tough. Plus, you already have well-established parties like the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), which has won 10 elections in Tamil Nadu and you have the AIADMK.

He adds, Vijay has to defeat both these parties and the BJP to succeed. BJP has grown from 4% voteshare in Tamil Nadu to 11% voteshare today. The BJP itself found it tough to fight the established DMK like we saw in the last elections. And we have Seeman and NTK too. Vijay will have to fight these four parties and we dont know if hell form any alliance. And he is also yet to spell out his ideology which will have a big impact too.

When one talks about Vijays political entry, the other actor who comes to mind is Vijayakant who acted as messiah of the masses on screen and successfully entered politics. During Vijayakants time there was no social media but today, if there is one negative news then popularity goes down drastically and Vijay is quite aware of this.

Adds Bharath Kumar, Vijay is very successful in cinema and he has to be able to convince people that he has left cinema to serve the people and get them on his side. There will also be comparisons with Kamal Haasan who people troll for launching a party and then happily joining the DMK for his personal benefit. If Vijay needs to be successful in politics, he has to fight against the BJP central government and the DMK state government and project TVK as the perfect alternative  and thats a huge task for him and TVK.
British actor Lucien Laviscount emerged as a heartthrob across the globe when he popped up as Alfie in season 2 of Darren Star's Emily in Paris. In an exclusive interview with Hindustan Times, Lucien talks about his journey on the show, growing to love Paris unlike his character, and why Alfie keeps going back to Emily despite repeated heartbreaks. (Also Read  Emily in Paris season 4 part 1 review: Not everything is perfect, but all of it is beautiful) Lucien Laviscount as Alfie in Emily in Paris season 4

When you entered Emily in Paris season 2, you said you felt like the new kid on the block. You were signed on for only 2 episodes, but here you are in season 4. How at home do you feel with the set, and with Paris?

The city and the cast just embraced me on day one. All my emotions were getting the better of me before I started filming. I remember my first day, Lily came up to me and gave me a hug. And she held on too me for extra long and she whispered in my ears, You've got this, Lucien, you've got this. And from then on, it just opened up. Everyone was so welcoming. And I love Paris. Paris has become the second home to me now. The people, the culture, the food, it's a magical, magical place, and it's given me so much. So yeah, thank you Paris for being amazing. And thank you my cast for making me feel home. Alfie is a part of me, and will be a part of me forever because of the great experiences I've had in the city, and because of the people that make the city so special. So yeah, Alfie feels like home.

Lily Collins as Emily and Lucien Laviscount as Alfie

From what we saw in part 1 of season 4, Emily broke Alfie's heart again. What is it about Emily that keeps drawing Alfie back to her? Is he being led on?

I think when he met Emily, he was in a state of fleeing, of escape. His state of mind was to just run away from Paris, run away from everything. He found a true connection with her. She opened his eyes. They became good friends, as much as everything else. It's difficult to walk away from someone who had such a big impact on your life. I don't think she's leading him on. I think she's figuring out for herself. Alfie is figuring out as well. He didn't realise that he was in this love triangle situation. So I think he's just being honest to his feelings. I think that's what there is across the board  they're just trying to be as honest as they can to their emotions, although that might come across the wrong way.

Emily in Paris season 4 part 2 will release on September 12

Emily says that both Alfie and Gabriel (Lucas Bravo) mean so much to her for different reasons. What do you think her reasons for Alfie are?

Gosh, Alfie is just that breath of fresh air for her. I think he gives her that feeling of being alive without dealing with any of the pressures that she has to deal with Gabriel's character. There's a freedom to that. He allows her to be who she is in the moment that is now. She doesn't have to carry anything from her past here. Alfie is almost like that fresh start for her. And Alfie is a cool guy. I'd want to be friends with Alfie (chuckles).

Emily is torn between Alfie and Gabriel

Do you think Alfie and Emily also connect because they're outsiders to the city?

I think that definitely has a part to play there. Anyone coming from a different place and starting a whole life somewhere new definitely draws the nomads kind of thing together, if that makes any sense. It definitely draws people together. But I think it's much deeper than that. There's an attraction there clearly, and a level of respect between them. She respects where Alfie works, and he appreciates  or well, has learnt to appreciate  how she works and how she goes about business. So I guess it's less about the situation they're in, more about what they're making of that situation that draws them together.

You said Paris is your second home now. What do you think is stopping Alfie from loving Paris like you do, or growing to love it like Emily did?

I don't want to talk on behalf of all British people right now, but the only thing we can ever agree on is the weather. We love to complain about the weather. We love to complain about things. That's the thing. Alfie could be in paradise, and he could find cracks within that. And that attitude is a charm as well. It kind of keeps everything grounded. Not that he doesn't run away with his emotions, but it does keep him grounded, I'd say.

Finally, is there a word of advice you'd give to Alfie for the next instalment?

Change. Yeah, just change. There are lots of things that go up and down, there are a lot of moving parts, but in part 2, there's a lot of change that happens in his life.

Emily in Paris season 4 part 1 is streaming on Netflix. Part 2 will drop on September 12.
Indias G20 presidency has made digital public infrastructure (DPI) a central offering, showcasing the countrys beneficial experience of technology and digitalisation and its relevance to countries of various income levels. Expositions on DPI focus on it being inclusive, trustworthy, and serving the global good, as well as ways in which DPI can support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). India has taken a pioneering role in developing an effective DPI ecosystem through India Stack. Its vast and valuable experience offers learnings for other countries and world regions. DPI (Digpu)

Similar discussions are taking place in other regions, notably within the European Union (EU). The EU is at the forefront of the regulation of digital markets and services, introducing digital commons as an innovative model for shared and collective governance of essential digital resources. The EU has demonstrated a strong commitment to including digital commons in its digital strategy, aiming to assert the Unions values and norms, to bridge geographic gaps and accelerate the progress towards SDGs.

In its report The Age of Digital Interdependence, the UN Secretary Generals High-level Panel on Digital Cooperation coined the term digital public goods for digital technologies and content that can accelerate the achievement of the SDGs if they are freely and openly available, with minimal restrictions on how they can be distributed, adapted and reused (UN, 2019). In late 2019, the governments of Norway, Sierra Leone, UNICEF and iSPIRT, an Indian non-profit organisation that has played a vital role in the development of DPIs in India, formally initiated the Digital Public Goods Alliance as a follow-up to the High-level Panel.

Given the immense potential of DPIs, digital commons and digital public goods, especially in the context of advancing SDGs, there is a pressing need to align these diverse perspectives, experiences and debates. Such alignment will foster the development of shared visions and the effective utilisation of DPIs and digital commons to establish an open, free, and secure digital future for all (UN, 2023). Additionally, this synergy will contribute to the ongoing discussions surrounding the UN Global Digital Compact, planned for ratification during the Summit of the Future in September 2024.

Nevertheless, a significant challenge in this endeavour is a terminological confusion. This article aims to address this confusion by unpacking the terms DPIs, digital commons, and digital public goods, and considering their use by India and within the EU. Indias DPI experience has been mainly practitioner-led, and a body of academic work has yet to be developed. There is also only limited literature on the relation between DPIs and digital commons, and between DPIs and digital public goods in advancing SDGs. We identify the shared and compatible elements of DPIs and digital commons and highlight areas where India and the EU converge and diverge in their policies and approaches. We also advocate for the G20s role in facilitating consensus building and promoting knowledge exchange on DPIs and digital commons.

The paper begins by introducing the concept of DPI and its core elements, presenting Indias approach and experience in this domain. It then examines the concept of digital commons, outlining the EUs approach and priorities. Following that, the paper elides these two concepts, arguing that DPIs and digital commons should be designed and implemented as digital public goods to fully unlock their potential as drivers of progress toward achieving SDGs.

The report can be accessed by clicking here.

This article is authored by Vy Dang, Eva Maria Lynders, Wulf Reiners, German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS) and Aliasger Bootwalla, Gateway House.
The publicly available version of the Justice Hema committee report does not reveal names of alleged perpetrators of sexual harassment and violence it recorded, but filmmaker Jude Anthany Joseph believes the names should be made public. A file photo of 2018 director Jude Anthany Joseph

Joseph, who directed the Malayalam film 2018 which was Indias official entry for Best International Feature Film in the 96th Academy Awards, says, The complaints should be seriously looked into by the government and there should be action against whoever has been named. They havent revealed the names, but I think they should reveal the names of people against whom there are complaints.

Joseph worries, People think the entire [Malayalam film] industry is like that. Such a perception affects people like me too. He adds that three of the four films he has madeSara's (2021) Oru Muthassi Gadha (2016), Ohm Shanthi Oshaana (2014)have been about the right of women to make their own choices.

Also Read: Lakshmi Manchu speaks out after Hema Committee report findings: Women are constantly being silenced

The Justice Hema Committee was formed in 2017 following the alleged abduction and sexual assault of a woman actor working in the Malayalam film industry. The committee made its report public seven years after the incident on August 19. The 233-page report says that a culture of sexual harassment pervades the Malayalam film industry.

Talking about how he deals with complaints of harassment on sets, Joseph shares, Once an actor complained about an assistant director on my set. She said the assistant director had started messaging her saying he has developed a soft corner for her and things like that. I threw the assistant director out the same day the actor made the complaint and he was never part of my set again.

Also Read: Women face harassment in Malayalam film industry, says Justice Hema Committee report

He further says, I always try to give people the freedom to come and complain to me if they are uncomfortable, be it a lead actor, a technician or a junior artist. In order to ensure that women in film sets are able to work freely, Joseph suggests, There should be a member of the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) or a similar committee at every film set ensuring women working on that film feel safe and protected.

Asked how male filmmakers and actors can be better allies of their female counterparts, Joseph says, I can say that I listen to every complaint on my set, irrespective of it coming from a man or woman. We are all civilised people. It is not very difficult. He adds, Things like this happen across industries. The film industry is just more under the media glare. I worked in [the] IT [Information Technology] industry, and I had heard such stories in that industry too. Irrespective of industry, there should be a way to punish people who engage in such acts, and the punishment should be both legal and professional. Such people should not get a chance to make a film, produce a film or act in a film.

Also Read: Sexual harassment in Malayalam film industry: 6 shocking findings by Hema Committee

On the impact of the Justice Hema committee report on the Malayalam film industry, the 41-year-old says, There should be more conversation on these issues. I think it is a good thing that such conversations are being triggered. That will be better for both cinema and the industry. 
The Justice Hema Committee report has highlighted severe discrimination and sexual exploitation faced by women in the Malayalam film industry. In response, actor Lakshmi Manchu, who made her Malayalam debut in 2022 with the film Monster, has commented on the harsh realities women endure in this field, saying "what has been okay for all these years is not okay anymore". She further says that she "encourages, pleads and begs of women to scream, to say no, to come out and say this is wrong" for change to be brought about. A file photo of actor Lakshmi Manchu

Reacting strongly to the report and it's findings, Manchu tells us, "No matter what industry it is, we [women] are constantly being silenced. If you speak up, you get fired, you get demoted. You're constantly trying to balance your way through it," adding, "The men are not aware where to draw the line. It is time for us to re-educate these people [the men], and not just an industry. I'm not saying it is not there. I'm not saying it's there, but it's there everywhere. And it's our prerogative to say this is happening here for changes to be brought about."

Also Read: 2018 director Jude Anthany Joseph on Hema Committee report: Perpetrators should be named

Double-edged sword

Manchu acknowledges the complexity of addressing these issues. It is every woman's prerogative to say no. Now it takes two hands to clap, right? Some take it, some don't, she points out. She recounts how women in the industry have faced inappropriate advances and how they've navigated these situations. I know girls in this industry who have been approached for favours. We've talked about it when we've gotten together and spoken about how dirty it was, but how they've managed to get out of it. So, do you want to give in or do you want to stand up? It's a double-edged sword, and you have to, unfortunately, lay the groundwork as I say, to how do we manage?

Reflecting on the historical context of women's struggles for power and the fear that has silenced them, the 46-year-old says, We've been burnt, calling ourselves witches from when women have been in any kind of power; men just burned us saying if she had a voice, she's a witch. They put fear among us and killed us, burned us alive."

She adds: "We are slowly, in a snail's pace, finding the strength, but we are finding it like a Godzilla, and I think it takes that one moment to stand up and say, 'What is this?' And then for us to come together and support that. But if you don't talk about it and keep quiet, we don't know what is going on out there. So I encourage, plead and I beg women to scream, to say no, to come out and say this is wrong. If you're going to keep quiet and say, 'Chalo, is baar main, I will let it go for my benefit,' then you're silencing thousands of women through this lack of women."

Also Read: Sexual harassment in Malayalam film industry: 6 shocking findings by Hema Committee

Challenges in the industry

The actor highlights the broader societal issues contributing to these problems. She points out the lack of support for women who speak out, saying, "Coming from a severe patriarchal society there is constant fear with everything that is happening in the world right now - with the rape, with murder. The police are saying, the hospitals are giving out statements saying how a woman should be rather than condemning what had happened. So what are we fighting? We are fighting basic rights and equality of human rights, of being safe in our workspace. And for us again, not all women have the luxury to voice it because, again, it's bread and butter. They need to put food on their table. It is not so easy for a woman to say no, don't do this. They'll [the men] say get lost. Bring another one who will listen to us.

Manchu shares a specific incident involving a well-known actor who demanded a change in casting. I have heard a journalist come to me and say a very big actor who was shooting outdoors, who was shooting in Canada, they had already cast a woman and he came and said, 'No, that woman won't give, cast somebody else.' So where do we draw a line?

Also Read: Women face harassment in Malayalam film industry, says Justice Hema Committee report

Ask her about the lack of a redress system and what resources or support systems she thinks should be put in place, Manchu says that more than anything else, it is essential to educate men about how to treat women. Let's concentrate on the men for a minute. They are the perpetrators. It makes my blood boil. I'm a mother of a girl child. Now what? I have to give her pepper spray and send her out or do I have to say go out baby, the world is a safe place for you because the men will take care of you? she questions. She also emphasises the need for a comprehensive awareness program for men to understand issues of consent and appropriate behaviour.

Industry cliques and the mafia system

Manchu also addresses the existence of cliques and the mafia system within the industry as highlighted in the Hema Committee report. Although she is less familiar with the Malayalam film industry, she notes similar issues in Telugu and Tamil cinema. There are many cliques, there are many groups. This group won't talk to that group. You create pockets of people because the men are very insecure. They need to be in these cliques to make them feel like they are superpowers," says Manchu adding that despite the challenges, she is hopeful that these revelations will lead to change.

She points to the impact of the #MeToo movement in the Telugu industry, where significant changes were implemented. When the Me Too movement happened, I and members in the Telugu industry, we brought about a lot of change, she says, adding there is need for continued vigilance and systemic reform.
At the Paris Olympics 2024, the disqualification of wrestler Vinesh Phogat from the finals due to being 100 gm overweight, left every Indian with a broken heart. Actor Nakuul Mehta was also one of them and in honour of Vinesh he recited a beautiful poem that he posted on Instagram. Mention Vinesh to him and he relates how the recent tragedy in Kolkata where a medical trainee was raped and murdered at a hospital is like a causal effect of what Vinesh fought for earlier. Nakuul Mehta on the Kolkata rape-murder horror case

Mehta says, All of us are aware of the fight Vinesh had to put through and the circumstances she went through in the last year. With whats going on in the country right now, with the incident in Kolkata, we have suddenly woken up and are protesting and dissenting. But honestly, this should have started when our wrestlers were out fighting the authorities on sexual misconduct. We didnt stand up for that, we only wake up when its too late, and it has happened today as well, he says, referring to the wrestlers protests in 2023.

Nakuul is in awe of Phogats achievement irrespective of her result in Paris. Her achievement in the Olympics is nothing short of spectacular. For her to beat the Japanese wrestler, who had never been beaten before ever, was just amazing. In the final too, she was to face the Australian wrestler she had already defeated twice before, so there was a good chance that she would have bagged the gold and created history. It could have been the greatest highlight of our relationship. But no matter what happened, for her to rise from the ashes and reach the Olympics after everything that happened to her, is nothing short of spectacular. It truly moved me, he says, adding that he recorded his poem while he was in Ladakh and got to know about it getting viral two days later. I had no idea how it went out and resonated with so many people. It was after two days that I was able to get the network and see the reception. The poetry was a humble tribute to the giant inspiration that Vinesh is. Its tragic what happened with Vinesh, but I feel she should be celebrated as much as we are celebrating Neeraj Chopra or Manu Bhaker.

Coming back to the Kolkata horror, Nakuul insists, It takes something so gruesome for us to wake up, but the wrestlers protest was happening in front of everyone in Delhi, yet no one batted an eyelid. The actor admits that Independence Day this day didnt feel as celebratory because of the incident: I have been feeling it for a while. What happened is just so gruesome, but recently there was a case with a Dalit girl which didnt get reported as such and there are so many such incidents that have been happening every day in our country and no one is taking cognizance of it. I am glad that people have woken up, but I hope it doesnt stop at one protest, one Instagram post of five stories. It needs continued support.

As a man, Nakuul asks other men to fulfil their role in this whole scenario. Its up to us man to take a stand and change the thinking at grassroot level. Women have been facing this for far too long and it just couldnt be them protesting. We need to put in even more. As men, we should learn from this and try to be better. Its not the time to have discussion about men and women. Its time to make a safer space for women around us, he ends.
Rishab Shetty, who recently won a National Film Award for his 2022 film Kantara, has found himself embroiled in a controversy after comments he made during an interview with MetroSaga about Bollywood went viral online. In Kannada, Shetty was quoted as saying, "Indian films, particularly Bollywood, often portray India negatively. These so-called art films get showcased at international events and receive special attention. For me, my nation, my state, and my language are sources of pride. I believe in presenting them in a positive light to the world, and that's exactly what I strive to do." Actor Rishab Shetty's comment on Bollywood hasn't gone down well with social media users.

Also read: Rishab Shetty says OTT platforms don't buy Kannada content: Forced to put our content on YouTube

Backlash from Bollywood enthusiasts

Soon after Shetty's comments surfaced online, many interpreted it as an attack on Bollywood. The criticism intensified when a Reddit post highlighted a scene from Shettys own film Kantara, showing him pinching co-star Sapthami Gowdas waist. This has fueled further debate on social media platforms. A user by the handle GlindePop wrote, I dont agree with what he said. Films are a reflection of reality and indian films show both the good and bad sides of the country, just like how it should be. Iamrandom17 wrote, the content in kantara and the way women were treated in that clearly wasnt showing india or indians in a good light

Industry responds

Filmmaker Ashoke Pandit, President of the Indian Film and Television Directors' Association, views Shettys comments as a form of retaliation following actor Arshad Warsis recent criticism of actor Prabhas' character in the film Kalki 2989AD. Pandit asserts, You have to control your language when talking about anybody. Aap kisi ke upar aise comment nahi kar sakte. Arshad shouldn't have said it, kyunki saamne se retaliation aayega. Talk about the film. Ultimately, it's a creative industry. North, South, East, West toh hai hi nahi! Unke actors hamare yahaan kaam karte hain and vice versa. Also, you are dubbing your films in Hindi and releasing them in this belt, this means you need our culture and Bollywood!

Director Hansal Mehta, known for internationally acclaimed films like Shahid (2012), considers Shettys remarks a sweeping generalisation. Mehta suggests, Though I wonder what the context is. Often statements are quoted out of context leading to controversy. Im sure he meant no disrespect.

Actor Chunky Panday, who has appeared in Telugu films such as Saaho, believes that Hindi films play a crucial role in maintaining cultural ties for NRIs. He comments, Not at all. I travel so often abroad. I met so many different NRI families, who are grateful to Bollywood for letting their children remain in touch with their culture. Other Indian films as well. If someone has said such a statement, they must be having their reasons. Cinema doesn't have a language.

Ad guru Prahlad Kakkar dismisses the notion of a North versus South conflict. He explains, I don't think anybody is doing this deliberately. It all depends on the director and writer of any film, what they are putting out." He further says, "If at all people have an objection to Indian films showing India, and feel they are carrying it on their shoulders saying 'we are the only ones doing it', tend to be ridiculed a bit all over the world. They take themselves too seriously. We have had films like Laapataa Ladies, which was such a mature film. We have always been comparing our films with their (South) sensibilities, which have always been very different.

Also read: National Awards: Rishab Shetty says Kantara is a tribute to our land, dedicates award to Daiva Nartakas

Actor Adil Hussain, who has appeared in international projects like Star Trek and Life of Pi, responds by suggesting that Shettys criticism should differentiate between Bollywood and arthouse films. Hussain states, He should have differentiated between Bollywood films and arthouse Hindi language films which he is saying are generally given the red carpet at film festivals. Most Bollywood films are lost in the glitter of the 5-10 percent upper middle class and upper class families. If he means bad light by showing poverty, not all arthouse films do that. India is not shown in a bad light, it's the largest chunk of Indian reality. It's telling the truth, not to put our country in a bad light.

Meanwhile, filmmaker Shekhar Kapur, who is a prominent figure in Hollywood, takes a more neutral approach. This is an ongoing argument and will never end. Ultimately every film maker must do what his heart says, he ends.
Skiplagging, also known as hidden city ticketing, is a travel practice where passengers book a multi-city flight but disembark at the layover city, bypassing the final destination to save money. For example, you might book a flight from Delhi to Bengaluru with a layover in Pune. Instead of continuing to Bengaluru, you get off in Pune, effectively flying directly from Delhi to Pune. This can save you money compared to booking a direct flight. This tactic is popular in the United States and other parts of the world. Skiplagging has gained popularity because it can lead to significant savings, but it's not without its challenges, says Deep Kumar, a travel advisor. While this practice can be cost-effective, it's important to understand the risks involved.



Benefits and risks of Skiplagging Airlines generally frown upon this practice and have the right to cancel future flights or revoke frequent flyer benefits for those caught

While skiplagging can offer substantial discounts on airfare, it comes with significant risks. Airlines generally frown upon this practice and have the right to cancel future flights or revoke frequent flyer benefits for those caught. Additionally, schedule changes can disrupt skiplagging plans, leaving travelers stranded. While skiplagging can be tempting, the potential for baggage issues and airline restrictions make it a risky proposition. It's often more reliable and less stressful to choose a direct flight, says travel content creator Shenaz Treasurywala. Beyond these immediate concerns, frequent skiplaggers might also face legal repercussions, as some airlines have begun to crack down on this practice more aggressively, employing advanced technology to detect and penalize those who engage in it.

What are the alternatives?

Given the risks associated with skiplagging, travelers seeking to save on airfare might consider these alternative strategies.

1. Booking flexibility: Being flexible with travel dates and times can often lead to lower fares.

2. Airport choice: Consider flying into smaller, less popular airports to find potential savings.

3. Travel rewards: Utilizing airline miles or credit card points can significantly reduce flight costs.

4. Incognito browsing: Some travelers believe that booking flights in incognito mode can prevent airlines from increasing prices based on search history. Exploring budget airlines or promotional offers can also provide cost-effective options without the associated risks of skiplagging


New Delhi: Africa is an emerging market for Indian exports to expand rapidly, commerce secretary Sunil Barthwal said on Thursday, adding that New Delhi is considering doubling exports to African countries to $200 billion by 2030 by focusing on potential areas such as automobiles, agro-products, pharmaceuticals, and logistics. Commerce secretary Sunil Barthwal (X/@IndianStandards)

India can help African countries in ensuring their food security, he said. Indian agriculture and agro-tech firms could play an instrumental role in expanding Africas food production capacity through various measures, such as the sharing of seed technology and the setting up of incubation centres, he said.

Indias bilateral merchandise trade with African countries stood at $100 billion in 2022 and is expanding, he said. Barthwal was speaking at the valedictory session of the 19th India-Africa Business Conclave, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in New Delhi. The session was attended by vice presidents of five African nations: The Republic of Burundi, Republic of The Gambia, Republic of Liberia, Republic of Mauritius, and Republic of Zimbabwe.

Speaking at the session, ministry of external affairs (MEA) secretary, economic relations, Dammu Ravi urged Indian investors to establish deep footprints in Africas manufacturing zones and proposed them to consider expanding special economic zones (SEZs) in Africa.

Barthwal said the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) has identified four potential areas of trade: automobiles; agriculture and agro-processing; pharmaceuticals; and transportation and logistics. We firmly believe that these sectors have huge potential for collaboration in terms of investment, trade, technology, and capacity building between Africa and India, he said.

While processed foods and seed technology have better prospects in the area of agricultural trade, pharmaceuticals is another major area with huge potential for Indian exports, he said adding Indias pharmaceutical exports to Africa stood at $3.8 billion in 2023, which can grow multifold as Indian firms can provide affordable medicines and healthcare to the African people.

Africa can also supply critical minerals to Indian industries, a fundamental input for Indias green energy transition. Critical minerals, like cobalt, copper, lithium, nickel, and rare earths, play a crucial role in the manufacturing of EVs and other clean energy products such as wind turbines.

Speaking on the occasion, Republic of Gambia vice president Muhammad B.S. Jallow said that the conclave facilitated discussions with Indian companies in key areas such as energy, infrastructure development, affordable housing, and healthcare, which in turn will further strengthen the India-Africa partnership.

Republic of Mauritius vice president Marie Cyril Eddy Boissezon described India and Africa as natural allies with shared civilisational values. He called for sustained and focused efforts to derive concrete benefits from India-Africa cooperation in areas such as digitalization, healthcare, space development, pharmaceuticals, infrastructure, power, and capacity building.

Speaking about India-Africa ties at the same forum on Wednesday, Union commerce minister Piyush Goyal said, We are very aligned in our desires, ambitions, and aspirations. We are looking for a better quality of life for our people, greater investments, and economic growth and prosperity. While our trade and investments have been strong, there is so much more that we can achieve together.

Goyal minister recalled Prime Minister Narendra Modis vision of a compact between countries of the Global South, which opens new avenues for mutual interest and expanded cooperation, and mentioned Indias assistance to Africa through 196 lines of credit amounting to over $12 billion, benefiting 42 countries.

Highlighting the collaborative efforts under the leadership of PM Modi to bring the African Union (AU) into the G20 as a full member, Goyal noted that Indias efforts to raise African issues in various global forums mark the beginning of a strengthened partnership between India and Africa.
Guwahati: Several media organisations in Assam have expressed concern and slammed chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for questioning a journalists religious identity and allegedly targeting him. Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma (File Photo)

On August 21, during a media interaction in Guwahati, one reporterShah Alamquestioned Sarma about alleged illegal hill-cutting at Mandakata, which falls in his Jalukbari constituency.

In the interactions that followed, which can be seen in videos that went viral, the CM asked the reporters name and associated him with the Muslim owner of the private university on the outskirts of Guwahati, which Sarma had earlier accused of indulging in flood-jihad by cutting hills in nearby Meghalaya leading to flash floods in Guwahati.

I would like to question Shah Alam and Mahbubul Haque of USTM (University of Science and Technology Meghalaya) whether they would allow us to live in Assam, Sarma retorted while adding that the biggest issue in the state was demographic change (the Muslim population growing at a faster rate than Hindus).

In a statement issued on Thursday, the Journalist Union of Assam (JUA) slammed Sarma for the personal attack on Alam based on his religion.

Instead of answering the query from the journalist, the chief minister referred to his religious identity, JUA president Samim Sultana Ahmed and general secretary Dhanjit Kumar Das mentioned in the statement.

The Gauhati Press Club also issued a statement expressing concern at the comments made by the CM and remarked about increasing instances of disparaging responses by political leaders when journalists ask them questions, as part of the job, during press interactions.

In the latest case, the honorable chief minister pulled the religious identity of a journalist into context without any apparent relevance during a press interaction on August 21. The Gauhati Press Club expresses deep concern at such an incident. We urge all political leaders to ensure no recurrence of such instances in the future and show dignity to their position and the medias role, said the statement by GPC president Sushmita Goswami and general secretary Sanjoy Ray.

A journalists duty is to ask questions. To answer or not is the prerogative of the person being asked the question. However, in this case, the concerned journalists question was pulled out of context, with his religious identity foregrounded without any conceivable reason, another statement issued by president Durba Ghosh and general secretary Nasreen Habib of the Assam Women Journalists Forum.
Badlapur school sexual abuse: The Bombay high court has taken suo motu cognizance of the alleged sexual assault of two four-year-old girls at a school in Badlapur in Maharashtra's Thane district. The matter will be heard on Thursday by a division bench of Justice Revati Mohite Dere and Justice Prithviraj Chavan. The Bombay high court has take suo moto cognizance of the Badlapur school sexual abuse and will hear the case today(PTI Photo)

Two kindergarten students in Badlapur were sexually abused in their school toilet allegedly by a male sweeper, causing enraged parents and citizens to protest outside the school on Tuesday. The accused, a 23-year-old Akshay Shinde, was arrested last week.

Agitations turned violent with stones being thrown and the school being vandalised. The Maharashtra Police arrested more than 40 people and registered an FIR against 300 people following the massive protest.

The assault was uncovered when one of the girls complained of pain in her private parts. She later told her parents that the accused touched her when she had gone to use the toilet.

The parents of the two girls talked and realised that both had been scared to go to school and shared similar stories. A local doctor confirmed that the two girls had been sexually assaulted.

Chief minister Eknath Shinde promised swift action in the case by forming a special investigation team and has also called for a review of Sakhi Savitree committees in the state, meant to ensure the safety of women and children.

Susieben Shah, chairperson of the Maharashtra State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, condemned the school for not having any female attendants in toilets and for negligence.

The incident that happened in Badlapur yesterday is very condemnable. Yesterday I visited the school and also enquired there and we felt that there were some shortcomings in all sections, she said.

Chief minister Shinde has come under fire from opposition parties for playing politics in the case. Congress state president Nana Patole along with the NCP(SP) have called for a Maharashtra Bandh on August 24.
An enclave for all things Bengali (from pujo to phuchka) in the heart of the Capital, Chittaranjan Park is staring at an unusual crisis. A view of the Fish Market at CR Park in New Delhi, on Wednesday. (Sanchit Khanna/HT Photo)

Geopolitical turmoil in Bangladesh has shaken kitchens in the south Delhi colony  it has pushed fish prices in the colonys markets through the roof, squeezed supplies to a trickle and pushed a delicacy off the menu.

Exports from Bangladesh have stopped since Sheikh Hasina resigned as Bangladesh prime minister amid mayhem on August 5, said shopkeepers and wholesalers, forcing suppliers to source supplies from other parts of the country.

But, for CR Park, that isnt good enough. Authenticity is everything and only the cross-border catch will do.

Most Bengalis are not comfortable with Indian-origin varieties. They prefer to buy Padma Ilish (hilsa sourced from the Padma river) at 3,000 a kilo rather than Gujarati Ilish for a third of the price, said Dulal Chandra, who owns a shop in CR Park Market 1.

Read more: Three more cases filed against Sheikh Hasina in Bangladesh's international crimes tribunal

They prefer Dhakai Pabda at 1,800 a kilogram than the Andhra variety at 900, he added.

Other varieties such as shol, padba, shing and koi which were exported from Indias eastern neighbour have also dissipated from store shelves, forcing people to go local, said shopkeepers

For the past few days, ilish supplies have dwindled because of whats happening in Bangladesh. Many people who have some stocks are hoarding it and selling it at a premium, said Pradeep Manna, a fish seller in Market 2.

You also have ilish from Odisha, he said. But its not the same.

Where fish is a staple, ilish, or hilsa, is a delicacy for most Bengali homes, and forms the backbone of spreads during festivities and celebrations. To be sure, Dhaka banned the import of ilish to India in 2012, citing production shortages and disagreements over the Teesta water-sharing agreement. However, in 2013, then prime minister Hasina allowed limited imports in the weeks before Durga Puja every year in what became known as hilsa diplomacy.

Read more: 17 Bangladesh nationals enter Assam, one arrested: Police

The ban, however, has had little impact on dining tables, whether in West Bengal or Delhi, with fishers exploiting loopholes at the border to ship fish through for more than a decade.

Traders said CR Park consumes around 60 quintals of fish a month, and all of Delhi 300 quintals. Varieties from Bangladesh account for a third of this share, and with this supply nearly wiped out, homes are feeling the pinch and shopkeepers are scrambling to retain customers.

Our family used to eat fish every alternate day. But now, we prefer chicken and eggs in our meals now, said Sanjoy Sengupta, a resident of nearby Masjid Moth who travels to CR Park several times a week for his piscine supplies.

Worse still, residents complain that the stocks which occupied pride of place on the high concrete slabs in the colonys buzzing markets are now tasteless at best and stale at worst.

Most of the fish varieties available in CR Park market are stale, said Sengupta.

Cross-border tensions have been heightened across Indias eastern frontier since August 5, with the Border Security Force (BSF) under strict instructions from the Union home ministry to keep illegal immigrants away. Similarly, trade has been it across the board as well.

Subrata Dasgupta, who travels from his Defence Colony home to CR Parks fishmarket, said poor quality is a turn-off for him now.

I dont know what is happening. The price of Padma Ilish has soared to over 2,600 per kilogram and even those fish are stinking. The supplies from Gujarat just doesnt cut muster, he said.

Our plates are lacking the usual flavour because of this conflict, said Nirmalendu Dutta, secretary of CR Park K-blocks residents welfare association.

He also outlined a deeper worry that has rippled through the colonys lanes, compact households and its famous kerbside tea stalls  the choked supply may derail Durga Puja celebrations.

Ilish preparations are key to the 10-day festival, which begins on October 4.

If the standstill continues, it will definitely ruin the fervour of Durga Puja in our locality, said Dutta.

Syed Anwar Maqsood, secretary of the Fish Importers Association in West Bengal, said they were also concerned about supplies ahead of the festival.

Legally, supplies are banned. Bangladesh usually allows around 3,900 tonnes of hilsa to be exported ahead of Durga Puja. This year, though, we are unsure if that will happen given the regime change, he said.

Restaurants in CR Park have also had to reorient their recipes to adjust for the crunch.

The prices of our signature Bhapa Ilish preparation have not changed, but we have been forced to shrink quantities, said a spokesperson of Oh! Calcutta restaurant in nearby Greater Kailash 3.
A school bus with children onboard in Bihar's Gopalganj almost caught fire after driving over a burning tyre on a road blocked by Bharat bandh protesters. Police and district administration intervened on time and prevented the incident. School bus with children on board almost burns after driving over a burning tyre during the Bharat Bandh

Also Read: Opposition calls for Maharashtra Bandh on August 24 over Badlapur abuse case

People had gathered in the area as part of the Bharat bandh called by by Dalit and adivasi groups against a recent Supreme Court order on reservation for scheduled castes.

In a video, a yellow bus can be purportedly seen surrounded by a mob armed with sticks. A man was seen burning a tyre right under the bus. The road the bus was on had been blocked with several burning tyres seen scattered around.

While initial reports claimed that the mob had attacked the bus and tried to set it on fire, the Gopalganj Police clarified that though people protesting had burn tyres and blocked the road, they did not attempt to burn the bus.

The bus drove over one of the burning tyres on the crowded road which caused the near-fatal accident.

Watch the video here:

In another video, men stopped a bike, with a woman riding pillion, while they try to pass through the area.

The superintendent of police in Gopalganj, Swarn Prabhat, told NDTV that a high alert had been issued due to the Bharat bandh. He also said a large police contingent and magistrates had been deployed at various locations in the town.

Gopalganj saw mixed responses to the Bharat bandh, with vehicles traveling smoothly on some roads while disruptions were caused by protestors along National Highway 27 and the railway tracks.

The Bharat bandh was called by Dalit organisations against a recent Supreme Court's judgment, which held that states could make sub-classifications within SCs, to grant reservation to those deemed are socially and educationally more backward among them.
The BJP and the AAP traded barbs on Thursday over removal of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's photo from an Independence Day advertisement by the Delhi government. Delhi minister and AAP leader Atishi.(PTI)

Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva alleged people are "shocked" to see dual faces of the Kejriwal government ministers as they want the chief minister's photo in the Independence Day advertisement but themselves omit it from the Cultural department advertisement.

The AAP hit back at the BJP charging it to be driven by a "petty mentality" and being insecure by Kejriwal's strong connection with the people of Delhi.

"Their insecurity is evident in the disgraceful act of removing his photo from the Independence Day posters," the AAP said in a statement.

Information and Publicity Minister Atishi on Tuesday issued show cause notices to top officers of the department for release of the advertisement without the Delhi chief minister's photo without her approval.

The officers of Directorate of Information and Publicity (DIP) had objected to Kejriwal's photo in the advertisement on the basis that he was currently under judicial custody.

"Minister Atishi has created a controversy over a Independence Day advertisement wishing to issue the advertisement with the jailed CM Kejriwal's photo but officials refused to issue it as that would have been against Independence Day function protocol and dignity," Sachdeva said.

He claimed that even as Atishi created the "controversy", her Cabinet colleague Saurabh Bhardwaj has himself put up hundreds of advertisement hoardings of a function of the Culture department without the chief minister's photo.

The AAP asserted the Delhi chief minister is the head of the democratically elected government and his photograph "embodies the values of democracy and independence".

The BJP's days in the country are numbered and people have rejected their "negative and regressive" politics, said the AAP.
A bomb threat message found in the washroom of a Mumbai-Thiruvananthapuram Air India flight that resulted in a full emergency being declared at the Thiruvananthapuram airport on Thursday turned out to be a hoax, police officials said. Security personnel conduct inspection of an Air India aircraft after it received a bomb threat, in Thiruvananthapuram, Thursday. (PTI)

One of the passengers was likely behind the hoax, officials said, adding that no explosive was found on the aircraft after an intensive search carried out by security agencies.

The information about the threat was relayed by the pilot of the aircraft to the airport authorities after a bomb in flight message was found written on a piece of tissue in the washroom around 7.30am when the plane was approaching the airport, the officials said.

Subsequently, a full emergency was declared at the airport at 7.36am, they said, and the aircraft with 135 people on board landed at around 8am and moved to an isolation bay.

Read more: Police investigate as at least 125 institutions in Canada receive bomb threats

Operations at the airport continued uninterrupted despite the bomb scare. The crew carried out all the laid-down security drills keeping passenger safety as top priority, the airline said in a statement.

Air India accords top priority to the safety of its passengers and crew, it said.

The passengers were evacuated by around 8.44 am and security agencies, including a bomb detection squad, inspected the aircraft for any explosive devices, the officials said.

The emergency declared at the airport in the morning was withdrawn around 12.10pm after security agencies confirmed it was a hoax, police officials said, adding that all the 135 passengers who travelled on the flight were permitted to leave at 12.45pm.

Police have launched an investigation into the incident.

Read more: Bomb threat on Air India flight triggers emergency at Thiruvananthapuram airport

The bomb threat was not there when the aircraft took off from Mumbai. So, the person behind the hoax threat is suspected to be a passenger, Thiruvananthapuram deputy commissioner of police Bharat Reddy said.

We have around three suspects among the passengers. We have taken handwriting samples from all passengers to get a match with the threat. The investigation is going on. No one has been detained yet, Reddy said.
A Kolkata court on Thursday allowed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to conduct a lie-detection test on Sandip Ghosh, the former principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, and four others in connection with the alleged rape and murder of a trainee doctor earlier this month, officials said. Former RG Kar Hospital principal Sandip Ghosh reaches CBI office for questioning in connection with the rape and murder case. (PTI Photo)

The CBI, which took over the investigation from the Kolkata Police last week following a directive from the Calcutta High Court, has interrogated Ghosh multiple times.

The agency had sought the court's permission for a polygraph test due to alleged inconsistencies in Ghosh's responses during questioning.

"We want to further verify Ghosh's answers, as there have been discrepancies in some of the replies to our questions. Therefore, we are mulling over the option to conduct a polygraph test on him," PTI quoted an unnamed official as saying.

Read: AIIMS doctors call off 11-day strike after Supreme Court's appeal

The case revolves around the death of a postgraduate trainee doctor whose body was discovered in a seminar hall at the hospital on August 9. The discovery of the body, which bore severe injury marks, has triggered widespread protests across the country, especially within the medical community.

CBI officers have questioned Ghosh over his specific role after getting the news of the doctors death, and why he allegedly made the parents wait for nearly three hours before getting to see her body, reported PTI.

Follow LIVE updates on Kolkata rape-murder case

Ghosh has also been questioned about the renovation of rooms adjacent to the seminar hall where the body was found, which took place shortly after the incident, as per PTI report.

The CBI has already obtained court permission to conduct a polygraph test on Sanjay Roy, a civic volunteer who has been arrested in connection with the case.

The federal agency took over the probe into the trainee doctors rape-murder from the Kolkata Police last week upon directions of the Calcutta High Court.
New Delhi: The Xi Jinping regime is fuming after the senate in Australia, a QUAD partner, passed an urgency resolution on Wednesday rejecting Beijings misinterpretation of the UN resolution 2758 and the international law regarding Taiwans status. Chinese President Xi Jinping.

While Beijing response is expected within a day or so, the Australian senate resolution moved by Senators David Fawcett and Deborah ONeill has made it clear that the UN resolution was limited to a seat in the global body and has nothing to do with either One China policy or the status of Taiwan.

Senator ONeill stated :  Taiwan is a leading Indo-Pacific democracy and an important partner of Australia. We share with Taiwan a commitment to an open, inclusive and stable Indo-Pacific region.

Senator Fawcett apparently highlighted the impact of PRCs strong arm tactics and warned that the distortion of UN Resolution 2758 would weaken UNs integrity and increase the challenge to international rule based order.

China has been using UN resolution 2758 to push its One China narrative with the entire world and coerces small countries and African nations to reiterate this narrative in all of the bilateral statements. It used to be a standard mantra for joint statements with India before 2010.

While China uses the UN 2758 to buttress its claim that Taiwan is just another province of the PRC, the Australian interpretation is that the resolution was only limited to transfer of UN seat from the Republic of China to the People's Republic of China. The resolution was passed on October 25, 1971 after the US under Richard Nixon had pushed for a detente with the PRC as a counter-weight to the erstwhile USSR.

It is understood that other Australian senators supported the resolution stating that it directly affected the peace and security of the Indo-Pacific and asked the PRC to stand down from its aggressive behavior against Taiwan. One senator even called for escalation of military activities targeting Taiwan.

The Australian motion follows the launch of the 2758 initiative to reject what they call Chinese distortion of the UN Resolution and support Taiwans claim for meaningful participation in UN agencies and beyond.
Leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Thursday said that if the Congress is voted to power in the coming Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections, it will restore statehood and democratic rights of the people of the Union Territory. Rahul Gandhi addresses the media in Srinagar along with Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge (left) on Thursday. (Reuters Photo)

Addressing a press conference after interacting with Congress workers in Srinagar, Gandhi said, We understand you are going through a tough period. Our national manifesto is clear that the people of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh will get their democratic rights back. It is a priority for the Congress and INDIA bloc to restore statehood to J&K and democratic rights of its people.

Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir will be held in three phases  September 18, September 25 and October 1. The counting of votes will be done on October 4.

Accompanied by Congress president and Rajya Sabha MP Mallikarjun Kharge, Gandhi met party workers from across Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday morning.

After interacting with them, he said, You are not workers, you are family. As soon as we got to know that elections were going to be conducted, we first decided to come here to Jammu and Kashmir because we wanted to give a message to the people of every state that for us the representation of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and their statehood is the most important thing. In the history of India, after Independence, many UTs have been converted into states but there is only one example when statehood was taken away and a Union Territory was created.

Kharge said that Gandhi was related to Jammu and Kashmir by blood and appealed to voters by saying that their votes are needed to save the country and the culture and rights of the citizens.

If we win the elections in J&K, the whole of India will come under our control. As Rahul Gandhi said, his relationship with J&K is not limited to likes or dislikes. He is related to J&K by blood. We hope J&K will stand with us in the elections. The BJP is always the one who decides where and when to begin elections. All their anger and frustration are targeted only at the Congress because no other party gives them a tough fight. The only person who dares to fight is Rahul Gandhi. We need your votes to save the country, to save your culture and rights, Kharge said.

During the visit, Gandhi and Kharge gathered feedback on the grassroots-level preparations for the assembly elections. District Congress presidents and district development council members from all 10 districts of the Valley were present at the interaction.

The two Congress leaders are headed to Jammu, where they will hold discussions with party workers of the 10 districts in the region.
Eknath Shinde's statement alleging political motive behind the violent protests in Thane district's Badlapur over the alleged sexual assault of two four-year-old girls, is one that can only be made by an abnormal person, ex-Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray remarked on Thursday. Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde (PTI Photo) and former Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray (HT File Photo)

Those who feel there is politics behind the Badlapur protest are either abnormal or protector of the culprits, Thackeray said at a press conference without naming Shinde, Maharashtra's chief minister who succeeded him in the top post.

On Wednesday, a day after the violent stir, Shinde had also claimed that most of the protestors were 'not from Badlapur.'

At least 25 police personnel were injured in stone-pelting at the Badlapur railway station and other parts of the town during the protest. Eventually, police had to resort to a lathi-charge to disperse the crowd occupying railway tracks for several hours.

The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), a three-party alliance of which Thackeray's Shiv Sena (UBT) is a constituent along with the Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar), will hold a state-wide bandh (shutdown) on Saturday to protest the Badlapur incident and the rise in crime against women in the state.

There is no political motive behind the bandh. It is aimed at creating awareness that the security of women should be a priority. It also aims to awaken the government, the Shiv Sena (UBT) chief stated in Mumbai.

Meanwhile, having taken suo motu cognisance of the incident, the Bombay high court, in a hearing on Wednesday, questioned the Maharashtra Police over its handling of the case. Also, the Maharashtra government has already announced that the accused, 23-year-old Akshay Shinde, a contractual cleaner in the girls' school, will be tried in a fast-track court; it also appointed senior lawyer Ujjawal Nikam as the special public prosecutor.

(With PTI inputs)
New Delhi, The Supreme Court on Thursday said the bail plea of activist Jyoti Jagtap, who is an accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, would be heard together with a separate pending petition filed by the NIA challenging the bail granted to one of the co-accused. Elgar-Parishad case: SC to hear activist Jyoti Jagtap's bail plea with NIA's pending petition

The apex court had in September last year extended the stay granted by the Bombay High Court on the implementation of its verdict granting bail to activist Mahesh Raut, an accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case.

The National Investigation Ageny has challenged in the top court the September 21, 2023 order of the high court granting bail to Raut, who was arrested in June 2018 in connection with the case.

Jagtap's bail plea came up for hearing on Thursday before a bench of justices M M Sundresh and Aravind Kumar.

Additional Solicitor General K M Nataraj, appearing for the NIA, told the bench about the pendency of the probe agency's plea against the bail granted to Raut.

"The entire issue will have to be gone into in detail. Kindly consider one aspect. In respect of another accused, one petition is already pending. He was enlarged on bail and that has been stayed by this court," the law officer said.

"We will take both the matters together," the bench observed.

It directed the top court registry to take appropriate order to post both the matters together.

"Either that will come with this or this will go with that," the bench said.

The counsel appearing for Jagtap, who was arrested in September 2020, said she has been in custody for almost four years now.

He said a total of 16 persons were arrested in connection with the case, out of which seven were out on bail while one of them had passed away.

He referred to the allegations levelled against Jagtap, and said there are 295 witnesses in the case and charges are yet to be framed.

The counsel argued that nothing has been recovered from Jagtap during the investigation.

Jagtap has moved the apex court challenging the October 17, 2022 order of the high court that refused to grant her bail, saying the NIA case against her was "prima facie true" and that she was part of a "larger conspiracy" hatched by the banned CPI outfit.

The high court had said Jagtap was an active member of the Kabir Kala Manch group, which during its stage play at the Elgar Parishad conclave held in Pune on December 31, 2017 gave not only "aggressive, but highly provocative slogans".

The 2017 Elgar Parishad conclave was held at Shaniwarwada, an 18th-century palace-fort located in the heart of Pune city.

Jagtap, accused of singing and raising provocative slogans at the conclave along with other KKM members, was arrested in September 2020 and has been lodged in jail under judicial custody.

According to the investigators, provocative speeches that were allegedly made at the conclave triggered violence at Koregaon-Bhima on the outskirts of Pune on January 1, 2018.

Jagtap is lodged in jail for alleged offences, including under the Unlawful Activities Act.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
A full emergency has been declared at Thiruvananthapuram airport on Thursday following a bomb threat on an Air India flight arriving from Mumbai.



The flight landed at the airport around 8am and was directed to an isolation bay and passengers were safely evacuated by 8.44am.



The threat was communicated by the pilot around 7.30am as the aircraft neared Thiruvananthapuram airport. There were 135 passengers on board, and further details on the threat's origin and other information are still pending, PTI reported. Tiruvananthapuram airport: All passengers and crew members onboard Air India Express flight IX 385 landed safely at Thiruvananthapuram airport. (PTI)

Following the communication, a full emergency was declared at the airport at 7.36 am. There has been no impact on life and airport operations are currently uninterrupted, the report added.

However, details on the origin of the threat and other information are awaited.



A specific security alert was detected on Air India flight AI657 during cruise from Mumbai to Thiruvananthapuram on August 22. The flight has landed safely in Thiruvananthapuram and has been parked in a remote bay for the mandatory checks by security agencies. All passengers and crew disembarked safely, ANI quoted Air India spokesperson as saying.



On June 17, authorities detained a 13-year-old boy for allegedly sending an email to Delhi Airport falsely claiming that a bomb had been planted on a Dubai-bound flight.

An emergency was declared by airport authorities upon receiving the email, and Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport was placed on high alert.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (IGI Airport) Usha Rangnani said that the boy sent the email "just for fun" after being influenced by news of another teenager who had made a hoax bomb threat call a few days earlier.

Hoax bomb threats to airports and hospitals have increased in recent times. On June 18, 41 airports including those in Jaipur, Chennai and Varanasi received bomb threat over emails. This led to extensive anti-sabotage checks that lasted for hours, but all the threats were found to be hoaxes.

Earlier, around 60 hospitals across Mumbai had also received hoax emails about bombs kept in their premises. Mumbai police had said this included both private and public hospitals and all emails were sent using Virtual Private Networks (VPN) to the hospital's public mail-id's.

Hoax bomb threats and messages disrupt flight schedules and also require a thorough inspection of all passengers, their luggage and the entire aircraft. Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) had proposed a five-year flying ban for those found guilty of such acts.
Bengaluru, Amid opposition charges of a cover-up and tampering with documents, Karnataka Home Minister G Paramaeshwara on Thursday said the alleged erasure of a line using a whitener in a 2014 letter written by Chief Minister Siddaramaiahs wife B M Parvathi to the Mysuru Urban Development Authority will be looked into, if necessary. The Congress government on July 14 constituted a single member inquiry commission under former High Court Judge Justice P N Desai to probe the MUDA alternative site allotment 'scam'. "It needs to be looked into. I don't know. They have made a statement. The SIT or the investigation agency, will look into it if necessary," Parameshwara told reporters, in response to a question. In the letter, Parvathi had sought alternative land in lieu of her 3.16 acres on which MUDA had formed a layout. Opposition BJP and JD claimed that whitener was used to erase a line in which Parvathi specifically sought alternative land in the posh Vijayanagar Layout. Since the allegations surfaced against him, Siddaramaiah, denying any wrong doing, has repeatedly maintained that his wife did not seek alternative plots in any specific locality. "The Desai commission has begun its work, in case any one gets such information whether media or from public, they can say it before the commission instead of making public statements and creating confusion," Parameshwara added. Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot on August 16 granted sanction for prosecution of Siddaramaiah in connection with the 'scam, giving a major jolt to the nearly 15 month old Congress government. Parameshwara responded to a question on Gehlot using bulletproof car for the first time on Wednesday since assuming office in 2021 and his security being reinforced, amid mounting tensions between the ruling Congress and the Governors office. "We don't know about threat the Governor has, we are not aware as to who told him about the threat perception. He has sought for security, it has been given, which he is entitled to," he said. Further noting that BJP is protesting seeking Siddarmaiah's resignation, the Minister said, it is their right to protest, but there is no question of the Chief Minister resigning and there is no need for it On Special Investigation Team of the Lokayukta seeking prosecution sanction from the Governor against JD leader and Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy, he said it was because "illegalities have happened." "If it is called illegal, nothing can be said." To a question on BJP and JD alleging that the government was trying to "safeguard" the CM, he said: "Why does the CM have to be safeguarded? Is he not safe? He is very safe. What has happened to say he is unsafe? If we do one meeting it is being alleged that attempts are being made to safeguard the CM." "At the most we might do a resolution at a Congress legislature meeting and say that we all stand by the CM. In the cabinet we have said that we all stand by the CM. What's wrong with it?" Parameshwara added.

Erased line in CM''s wife''s letter to MUDA will be looked into, if necessary: Home Minister
Over the last few months, around 16 teams of officials from the National Disaster Management Authority, scientists and security officials have taken up expeditions to glaciers at an altitude of 4500m and above to map the threat they could pose to populations downstream in the event of a glacial lake outburst. Of the nearly 7,500 glacial lakes in the Indian Himalayas, NDMA has found 189 high-risk lakes that require mitigation measures.

Of the nearly 7,500 glacial lakes in the Indian Himalayas, NDMA has finalized 189 high-risk lakes that require mitigation measures, NDMA officials said.

The Centre has now approved the 150-crore National Glacial Lake Outburst Floods Risk Mitigation Programme (NGRMP) on July 25, the officials said.

The programme aims at detailed technical hazard assessments, and installing automated weather and water level monitoring stations (AWWS) and early warning systems (EWS) at the lakes and in downstream areas.

The primary objective of this programme is to attempt lake-lowering measures to reduce the risk of GLOF from such lakes.

Depending on the state of a glacial lake is found to be in, a range of mitigation measures can be taken, said Safi Ahsan Rizvi, advisor (mitigation), NDMA.

Read more: 2 years on, PMC awaits NDMA funds

Satellite imagery and historical research has led us to categorise 189 lakes as high risk. These are now undergoing ground-truthing. Then three simultaneous activities will be done a) Placement of automated weather and water level monitoring stations and early warning systems b) digital elevation modelling and bathymetry and c) assessing best means to reduce the risk of that lake including by lake-lowering, Rizvi said.

But monitoring the state of these high-risk glaciers involves surveying them manually. Of the 16 teams that set out for their expeditions, one could not reach the spot due to inclement weather.

Others have returned with relevant data, which the states will now use to finalise their mitigation strategies, said Safi Ahsan Rizvi, advisor (mitigation), NDMA.

Each team consisted officials and assistants ranging from five to 20, and included scientists, officials and security forces and their expeditions, on foot, took three to seven days.

Of the 15 expeditions completed, six were in Sikkim, six in Ladakh, one in Himachal Pradesh, and two in Jammu and Kashmir. Another seven expeditions are underway. Given the inhospitable terrain and weather conditions at heights of 4,500 m and above, there is only a June to September window to approach these formidable lakes. Several visits will be needed to implement lake-lowering measures, some of which could require civil engineering, a note by NDMA on the project said.

Read more: New landslide hotspots found in Himalayas, Western Ghats, warns survey

These composite expeditions are assessing structural stability and potential breach points of glacial lakes, gathering relevant hydrological and geological samples and data, measuring water quality and flow rates, identifying risk zones and making downstream communities aware.

The study of glacial lakes was necessitated after recent incidents involving outbursts.

On August 16, flashfloods struck Thame, a village in the Khumbu region of Nepal which was due to an outburst flood from Thyanbo glacial lake.

An initial assessment of damage by the local authorities shows 14 properties have been destroyed, including one school, one health post, five hotels and seven homes. Several glacial lakes lie upstream of Thame. Satellite images of the area dating back to 2017 obtained by International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) from the European Space Agencys Copernicus earth observation programme show these lakes constantly changing in size. Researchers at ICIMOD confirm that some of them frequently expand and contract, making them susceptible to breaches.

ICIMODs 2023 assessment, Water, Ice, Society, and Ecosystems in the Hindu Kush Himalaya, stated that the glaciers, snow, and permafrost of the Hindu Kush Himalaya are undergoing unprecedented and largely irreversible changes over human timescales, primarily driven by climate change and are some of the most vulnerable to these changes in the world.

ICIMOD warned that floods and landslides are projected to increase, with climate the key driver in many of the water- and cryosphere-related disasters already recorded in recent years, through meltwater, larger and more potentially dangerous lakes, unstable slopes from thawing permafrost, and increasing sediment loads in rivers.

In India too, Uttarakhand saw glacier breach induced flash floods in February 2021 Rishi Ganga valley killing over 200 people, nearly washing away two hydropower plants, while also damaging Raini village, a historical border village where the Chipko movement was active.

Last year, there was a Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) in portions of Lhonak Lake in Sikkim which caused water levels to rise with very high velocities downstream along the Teesta River Basin in the early hours of October 4. The GLOF caused extensive damage including to the Teesta III dam.

NDMA expects risk from glacier disasters to escalate in the coming years. There are several studies and assessments on the impact of climate change. While attribution science on which weather anomaly is caused by which element of climate change is still in flux, India has to deal with two daunting hazards. One, extreme altered FDI (frequency, duration and intensity) of precipitation and two, extreme heat, Rizvi explained.

Both these factors impact glacial melt, which increase the volume of water in glacial lakes, thereby threatening the inherent stability of weak moraine dams, he said.

All technical agencies, including National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), Central Water Commission (CWC), Geological Survey of India (GSI), Defence Geoinformatics Research Establishment (DGRE), National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI), National Institute of Hydrology (NIH), Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology (WIHG), Indian Army, Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) among others and an international agency the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) are involved with the States in planning and implementing this programme. There is a separate programme envisaged on the same lines for J&K and Ladakh, Rizvi said.
At least 16 workers were killed and 30 others injured in a massive explosion that ripped through a multinational pharmaceutical manufacturing unit in Andhra Pradesh on Wednesday. Police said that while the cause for the explosion was not yet known, the blast resulted in a fire that gutted the entire factory and trapped the workers inside. (PTI)

State labour minister Vasamsetty Subhash said the explosion in the reactor occurred during the lunch break at pharmaceutical company Escientia Advanced Sciences Private Limited, located in the Atchutapuram special economic zone (SEZ) in Andhra Pradeshs Anakapalli district.

Of the 16 deceased, 10 of them have been identified. The victims include assistant general manager V Sanyasi Naidu (50), laboratory in-charge Rami Reddy (35), chemist N Harika (22), production operator Partha Sarathy (23), plant helper Y Chinna Rao (25), P Rajasekhar (22), plant operators K Mohan (20), Ganesh, H Prashant and M Narayana Rao.

It will take some more time to identify the other victims. Rescue operations are still going on. Because of the heavy smoke coming out of the factory, it is becoming difficult to take up quick operations, Subhash said.

Read more: 15 killed, 40 injured in blast at Andhra Pradesh pharma factory

Atchutapuram inspector of police M Buchaiah said a first information report (FIR) in the case will be registered soon.

Anakapalli superintendent of police M Deepika said that the exact cause of the explosion in the reactor was not yet known, but it resulted in a fire that gutted the entire factory and trapped several workers inside.

The accident also caused thick smoke to cover the companys surrounding area. The loud noise from the explosion caused panic among the local villagers.

We immediately rushed eight large fire brigades to the scene to extinguish the flames. Later, three more fire engines joined them to put out the fire, Deepika said.

The blast in the reactor resulted in the collapse of the slab of the first floor of the factory. There were at least 300 workers in the factory at the time of the explosion. But most of them had come out because of the lunch break. It is believed that some of the workers might have been trapped under the debris of the collapsed slab, Deepika added.

Anakapalli district collector Vijaya Krishnan said the fire broke out at 2:15 pm at Escientia Advanced Sciences Pvt Ltd at Atchutapuram in Anakapalli district. The factory operates with 381 employees in two shifts. The blast occurred during lunch time. Therefore, staff presence was less, Krishnan added.

At least 30 workers suffered burn injuries and were shifted to NTR District Hospital at Anakapalli, while others were rushed to hospitals in Visakhapatnam, 20km away.

Read more: 4 children dead, 24 hospitalised due to alleged food poisoning at Andhra orphanage

The SEZ is spread over an area of 5595.47 acres of land in Atchutapuram and Rambilli districts. It was notified as a SEZ by the Centre in 2007.

Escientia Advanced Sciences, which manufactures intermediate chemicals and active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) commenced production in April 2019 with an investment of 200 crore.

It is located in a 40-acre campus in the Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporations (APIIC) multi-product special economic zone (SEZ) at Atchutapuram cluster.

According to the company profile, Escientia is based in South Windsor, Connecticut, United States. It is a global contract research, development, and manufacturing organisation serving pharmaceutical and biotech companies in the discovery, development, and launch of small-molecule drugs.

The company has two R&D centers in Connecticut (US) and Hyderabad, as well as a commercial manufacturing site at Anakapalli.

Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu expressed shock over the loss of lives and called up district authorities to enquire about the incident.

Expressing concern over the possibility of increasing the death toll, Naidu directed that the authorities take all steps to prevent the loss of any further lives. He asked the higher authorities and industry department officials to rush to the incident spot and stay put there till all the workers were rescued.

The chief minister assured that the government would stand by the families of the deceased and extend all possible assistance.

A month ago, a worker was killed and two others sustained injuries in an explosion of a reactor at Vasanth Chemicals, a chemical factory in Atchutapuram SEZ. In the same SEZ, six workers were killed in June 2023 after a chemical reactor blast at Sahiti Pharma.
Unfettered growth of e-commerce in India may cause huge social disruption, impacting the livelihood of 100 million small retailers across the country, Union commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal said on Wednesday, accusing multinationals such as Amazon of resorting to unfair practices such as predatory pricing to gain market share. His comments are likely to cause concern among large e-commerce companies, Indian as well as foreign, as well as investors that have pumped billions of dollars into them. Piyush Goyal (ANI)

Commenting on Pahle India Foundations report Net Impact of E-Commerce on Employment and Consumer Welfare in India, Goyal said that the study has prompted us to start assessing the subject based on data and empirical evidence. Im being contrarian ... we have seen this happened in the West. I dare say, Europe, America, all have seen the consequences of this, he said referring to the disappearance of so-called Mom-n-Pop or kirana stores. Cautious about its disruptive potential, Switzerland initially discouraged e-commerce and later allowed it in a limited way, he added. While Goyal did not elaborate, it is likely that he was referring to the new laws governing e-commerce that will come into effect in the European country from next year, that recognize e-commerce platforms as deemed suppliers -- a move that is likely to have far-reaching impact on them.

Im not wishing away e-commerce. Its there to stay Since this is a study about the impact it should be dispassionate. It should come out with even more details, he said emphasising the social need to venture out for shopping and eating out with friends instead of becoming a country of couch potatoes watching OTT and ordering in every day.

Read more: Why Piyush Goyal thinks Amazon's India investments should not be celebrated: Making up for losses

But, I dont deny that e-commerce has a role. But, well have to think very carefully and cautiously what that role is. Is predatory pricing policy good for the country where Amazon says we are going to invest a billion dollars in India, and we all celebrate. We forget the underlying story that the billion dollars is not coming in for any great service or any great investment to support the Indian economy. They made a billion dollars loss in their balance sheet that year. They have to fill in that loss. And how did that loss get caused? They paid 1,000 crore to professionals. I dont know who these professionals are.., he said.

Id love to know which chartered accountants, professionals, lawyers get 1,000 crore unless you are paying all the top lawyers to block them so that nobody can fight a case against you. 

The minister continued in the same vein:  If you make 6,000 crore loss in one year, does that not smell of predatory pricing to any of you? They are, after all an e-commerce platform. They are not allowed to do B2C (business to consumer).

Indian laws only allow multinational e-commerce companies to operate platforms that connect sellers to buyers. They cap the stake the companies can have in the sellers. Foreign investment in retail and e-commerce are both issues of significant political relevance in India. It is widely believed that small traders and retailers constitute the core electoral base of the Bharatiya Janata Party which heads the NDA coalition governing the country.

Amazon officials declined comment on Goyals statements.

The minister also accused multinational e-commerce companies of bypassing the law. The ecommerce platform legally cannot do business to consumer. They create entities where Indians contribute to making those entities, sadly. Then they get caught. So, they start closing down those entities.

Indias e-commerce market was estimated to be $22 billion in 2018 and estimated to grow at $350 billion by 2030. It is dominated by Amazon, and Flipkart, which is owned by WalMart. It is dominated by Amazon, and Flipkart which is owned by WalMart.

Goyal specifically targeted online pharmacies and the sale of mobile phones online.

Speaking about the fate of over 500,000 pharmacies in the country, Goyal said online sale of drugs and medicines could result in there being no verification of prescriptions. Whos going to take care of our children today? Online you can order what you want Its a matter of concern. Local pharmacist would take your prescription. He knew all the local doctors around. He would check the genuineness of that prescription. And make sure your children are protected. Whos going to give that protection? That delivery boy!... 

He said that several neighbourhood mobile phone stores have disappeared in last 10 years, giving space to large retailers. Now theres no recourse to get phones repaired because multinational mobile manufacturers want people to buy new phones, he added.

Recognise, my friends, India is a developing country. We are not yet America. We are not Switzerland with $100,000 per capita income, he said.

The minister admitted that technology will play its part. Technology is a means to empower. Is a means to innovate. It is a means to meet consumer requirements, probably, sometimes more efficiently.

Emphasising the need to see that sector grows in an orderly manner, he said: We will have to see that this connectivity, this convenience is citizen centric. It democratizes or socialises the benefits to larger sections of society. It ensures that in the race for market share we dont land up causing huge disruption for 100 million small retailers across the country, who also serve.

According to blogs published on the companys website, Amazon has pledged to invest $26 billion in India by 2030, digitise 10 million small businesses, enable $20 billion in exports, and create two million jobs by 2025. It has thus far digitised over 6.2 million micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), enabled nearly $8 billion in exports, and created over 1.3 million jobs in India since inception, according to the information on its website.
Hyderabad The Telangana high court on Wednesday refused to grant stay on the demolition of the farmhouse of Bharat Rashtra Samithi working president and former minister K T Rama Rao at Janwada village on the outskirts of Hyderabad on the ground that it was built in the catchment area of Osman Sagar reservoir on Musi river, people familiar with the matter said. HC refuses to stay proposed demolition of KTR farmhouse, but says follow the rules

KTR later claimed that he did not own any structure at Janwada, but he had taken the farmhouse on lease from his friend Badvelu Pradeep Reddy, a realtor. If it is an illegal construction, I dont mind if the authorities demolish it and I shall convince my friend in this regard, he said.

The demolitions of illegal structures built on lake beds and catchment areas of water bodies are being carried out by Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA), a separate wing created by the Congress government headed by chief minister A Revanth Reddy in July.

On Wednesday, Pradeep Reddy moved the state high court seeking a direction to the HYDRAA authorities not to demolish the farmhouse at Janwada. The high court, while refusing to pass any orders in this direction, asked the authorities to follow the rules in carrying out their job without resorting to indiscriminate demolitions.

He argued that his farmhouse was being falsely linked to a politician and expressed concern that the government might demolish it with ulterior motives. He made the HYDRAA commissioner a respondent in his petition.

It asked the HYDRAA authorities to take into account all the relevant documents related to the farmhouse, including municipal permission and building approvals, before taking any further steps.

Reacting on the courts direction, KTR said he had no objection for the demolition of the farmhouse, if it was within the limits of full tank level of the reservoir or even the buffer zone.

But at the same time, the government should also take up demolition of similar structures built by the Congress leaders, ministers and MLAs in the buffer zone of Osman Sagar reservoir or other water bodies, he said.

He alleged that several ministers and even Revanth Reddy had constructed houses against the norms. I shall show all of them to the authorities and the media. Let the authorities demolish all these structures, KTR said.
The Congress is set to stage a nationwide protest on Thursday over the US short seller Hindenburg Research's allegations against SEBI chief Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch.



The party is demanding the Securities and Exchange Board of India chairman's resignation and a joint parliamentary committee probe into the Adani Group issue. Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch.(PTI)

The Hindenburg Research, in its latest report earlier this month, has alleged that Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband owned stakes in offshore entities linked to the Adani Group's alleged financial misconduct.

The US investment research firm has also said that 18 months since its damning report on Adani, SEBI has shown a surprising lack of interest in Adani's alleged undisclosed web of Mauritius and offshore shell entities.

However, the husband-wife duo has denied the allegations as baseless, asserting that their finances are an open book. The Adani Group has also termed the allegations as malicious and manipulative, based on select public information.

Tomorrow, the Indian National Congress will conduct 20 press conferences across the country to highlight the need for a JPC into the Modani Maha Ghotala that has widespread ramifications for the economy, and for crores of small investors - for whom the integrity of capital market regulators is essential, Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday.

Party leaders to protest at Jantar Mantar

In Delhi, the Congress party has announced it will hold a protest at Jantar Mantar from 10 am to 1 pm. Party spokesperson Supriya Shrinate alleged that the Hindenburg report had questioned the integrity and impartiality of Madhabi Buch, saying that despite the Supreme Courts direction to probe the Adani Groups dealings, the SEBI chief, after 18 months of delay misled the apex court with false information."



She said that only a JPC probe comprising of domain experts can uncover the whole truth about the Adani Groups shady dealings. She added that since the Modi government has remained silent on the Hindenburg report, despite appointing the regulator, only a JPC probe can expose SEBIs complicity in protecting the interests of the Adani Group.



Every effort was being made to make Adani the richest in the county by using all devious methods including misusing probe agencies like ED, CBI and the Income Tax department. All rules including foreign investment and foreign policy were being changed to suit the Adanis growth and cover up money laundering, said Shrinate.
India on Thursday dismissed reports that the opening of a dam on the Gumti river in the northeastern state of Tripura had caused floods in Bangladesh, and said the flooding in the neighbouring country was due to waters from large catchments downstream. The Indian side pointed out that the catchment areas of the Gumti river had witnessed heavy rains. (File photo)

The external affairs ministry issued a statement on the situation after reports, mainly on social media in Bangladesh, claimed the floods were caused by the opening of Indias Dumbur dam.

Some reports even implied New Delhi resorted to such a step after the fall of the government of former premier Sheikh Hasina, who stepped down and fled to India on August 5 following a student-led uprising.

Also Read:Tripura: At least 10 killed after heavy rain causes floods; over 34,000 displaced

The statement said concerns expressed in Bangladesh about floods in some districts on the eastern borders being caused by the opening of the Dumbur dam in Tripura were factually not correct.

The Indian side pointed out that the catchment areas of the Gumti river, which flows through both countries, had witnessed the heaviest rains of this year over the past few days. The flood in Bangladesh is primarily due to waters from these large catchments downstream of the dam, the statement said.

Dumbur dam, which is located more than 120 km from the border and upstream of Bangladesh, is a low height dam of about 30 metres. Power generated by the dam feeds a grid in Tripura, from which Bangladesh draws 40 MW.

Along the 120-km course of the river, India has three water level observation sites at Amarpur, Sonamura and Sonamura 2.

Heavy rainfall has been continuing since August 21 in the whole of Tripura and adjoining districts of Bangladesh. In the event of heavy inflow, automatic releases have been observed, the statement said.

The Amarpur water level observation station is part of a bilateral protocol under which India transmits real-time flood data to Bangladesh.

Data showing rising trend has been supplied to Bangladesh up to 1500 hrs on 21 August 2024. At 1800 hrs, due to flooding, there was a power outage leading to problems of communication. Still, we have tried to maintain communication through other means created for urgent transmission of data, the statement said.

Floods on rivers flowing between India and Bangladesh are a shared problem inflicting sufferings [on] people on both sides and requires close mutual cooperation towards resolving them, the statement said.

India and Bangladesh share 54 cross-border rivers, and the statement described river water cooperation as an important part of bilateral engagement. India remains committed to resolving issues and mutual concerns in water resources and river water management through bilateral consultations and technical discussions, the statement said.

The two sides have reached water sharing agreements on all the rivers except the Teesta. A pact on the Teesta has been held up since 2011 because of opposition from West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee. Under Indias Constitution, the governments of states, through which a cross-border river flows, must sign off on water-sharing agreements with another country.
New Delhi: India is ready to work with friendly countries to provide all possible support for the early restoration of peace and stability in Ukraine and West Asia since no problem can be settled on the battlefield, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Polish counterpart Donald Tusk in Warsaw (X/@narendramodi)

The conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia are a matter of deep concern for all of us, Modi told a media interaction following talks with his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk in Warsaw. The remarks came a day ahead of Modis visit to Kyiv, which is being watched closely for any role India can play in bringing Russia and Ukraine to the negotiating table.

It is Indias firm belief that no problem can be solved on the battlefield. In any crisis, the loss of lives of innocent people has become the biggest challenge for the whole of humanity, Modi said, speaking in Hindi.

We support dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability. For this, India, along with friendly countries, is ready to provide all possible support, he said.

Tusk, speaking in Polish, said Modis visit is being seen as a possible step towards a peace process. I am very glad that [Modi] has confirmed his readiness for personal involvement in achieving a peaceful, just, and swift end to the war. We are both convinced that India can play a very important and positive role here, he said.

This is significant, especially since the prime minister will be visiting Kyiv in a few hours. We all believe that this visit can also be historic, Tusk said.

Poland has emerged as the strongest supporters of Ukraine, providing military equipment worth billions of dollars and hosting millions of Ukrainian refugees, mainly because of concerns about the fallout of a Russian victory.

Following the conclusion of his engagements in Poland on Thursday, Modi will travel by train to Ukraine, where he is set to hold talks with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday. Before beginning the two-nation European tour, Modi said he would discuss the peaceful resolution of the conflict in Ukraine as India desires the early return of peace and stability in the region.

India has so far not publicly criticised Russias invasion of Ukraine, and it has abstained or voted against most Ukraine-related resolutions at the United Nations. It also stepped up the purchase of discounted Russian commodities such as oil and fertilisers despite initial criticism of the move from the West. At the same time, it has called for a return to dialogue and diplomacy to find a lasting solution to the conflict.

Ukraine has nudged India to take on a greater role in ongoing peace efforts because of its proximity to Russia and its role as the voice of the Global South. The Ukrainian side has also said Zelenskyys peace formula will be one of the most important topics for discussions during Modis visit.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who is on a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir to meet party workers ahead of the assembly election, had dinner with his colleagues at Srinagar's Ahdoos restaurant last evening and later enjoyed ice cream at Lal Chowk. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi arriving in Srinagar on a two-day visit of Jammu and Kashmir. (Waseem Andrabi/HT)

Ahdoos is considered one of the well-known restaurants in the city, famous for its Kashmiri Wazwan' specialties. During the visit, extensive security was deployed around the hotel, which has a view of the Jhelum River.

Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, and party chief Mallikarjun Kharge landed in Srinagar on Wednesday and were welcomed by an enthusiastic crowd.



Both leaders are scheduled to chair a meeting with party workers in Srinagar on Thursday at 10am and later address a press conference at 11.30am. They will then fly to Jammu at 2.15pm to meet with its leaders.

Political activities in the region have gained momentum as both the Congress and BJP explore alliance options with like-minded parties. The Congress leadership is expected to hold meetings with leaders of the National Conference and the Peoples' Democratic Party, both of which are part of the INDIA bloc.



The Bharatiya Janata Party has sent its leader, Ram Madhav, to Srinagar to engage with local leaders ahead of the polls. Madhav played a key role in forming the PDP-BJP alliance in 2015, working closely with Mufti Sayeed and later with Mehbooba Mufti.

Assembly poll in 3 phases from September 18

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on August 16 announced that the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly elections will be held in three phases with results to be declared on October 4.

Polling for the first phase will be held on September 18, the second phase on September 25, and the final phase on October 1.

Jammu and Kashmir has 87.09 lakh eligible electors including 44.46 lakh males, 42.62 lakh females, and 3.71 lakh first-time voters. Polling will be held at 11,800 polling stations across the Union Territory.

The UT has been without an elected government since June 2018, when Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) broke its alliance with Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) forcing Mehbooba Mufti to resign as chief minister.
Former Jharkhand chief minister and state cabinet minister Champai Soren on Wednesday ruled out the possibility of a reconciliation with the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and indicated that he may float his own political party before the upcoming assembly elections, days after he travelled to Delhi amid rumours that he would join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Jharkhand water resources minister and former chief minister Champai Soren. (File)

Champai was Jharkhand chief minister from February 2, days after his predecessor and JMM acting president Hemant Soren was imprisoned, till July 3. He made way after Hemant was released from jail.

The JMM chapter in my life is now closed. Theres no way to return to the party, which I nurtured with my blood and sweat for the past 45 years, he told HT at his ancestral village Jilinggora.

I had announced on July 3, the day I was made to resign, that I will now start a new chapter in my political journey. I posted my pain, agony and overwhelming emotions on my social media forums like X and Facebook, Champai said, referring to a post he made on Sunday, in which he said he will start a new chapter after being humiliated and insulted during his time at the helm of the eastern state.

Read more: Jharkhand ex-CM Champai Soren announces plan to float new political party, keeps doors open for alliance

I dont want to repeat it. I will now set out on the tour of Jharkhand, building the organisation and exploring new like-minded political friends, he said on Wednesday.

Champai travelled to Delhi on Sunday, after visiting Jamshedpur on Saturday. However, Champai insisted that he did not meet BJP leaders in Delhi.

I didnt meet any BJP leader there or in Kolkata, asserted Champai. When asked about speculation that he would join BJP and its National Democratic Alliance (NDA) partner Hindustani Awami Party (HAM) chief Jitan Ram Manjhi welcoming him into the fold, Champai said, I thank and wish all my well-wishers the best.

There was no immediate reaction from the JMM.

Read more: Jharkhand Ex-CM Champai Soren says 'all 3 options open' amid buzz over BJP

In his post on Sunday, Champai said the alleged humiliation left him with three options  first, to retire from politics, second, to form my own separate organisation and third, if I find a companion on this path, then to travel further with him.

In the 81-member state assembly, the JMM-led grand alliance has 45 MLAs and the BJP-led opposition has 30 legislators. Rest six MLAs are of smaller parties or independents. The assembly election in Jharkhand is due this November with that of Maharashtra.
Kolkata: The arrest of Sanjay Roy, a civic volunteer working with the Kolkata police, as prime suspect in the August 9 rape and murder of a 31-year-old postgraduate trainee doctor at the state-run R G Kar Medical College and Hospital has once again raised questions on the role and duties of civic volunteers in West Bengal police. (HT Photo/Anshuman Poyrekar)

A number of police officers HT spoke to said although the Supreme Courtwhich took charge of the hearing through a suo motu petitionwill decide Roys fate, nobody can deny that his arrest has not surprised anyone.

The civic volunteers, who need to pass the Class 8 to be eligible for the job, are frequently described by the opposition parties in Bengal as cadres of the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC).

A senior police officer said that the erstwhile government had inducted these volunteers to manage traffic, but the TMC government started deploying them to police stations to make up for low manpower in departments.

There are more than 70,000 civic volunteers drawing a monthly salary of Rs. 9,000 who are part of the West Bengal police. They are a level below the home guards.

A section of Bengals population sees the civic police, as they are commonly referred to, as a rogue force. Many of them have been arrested in recent years in criminal cases, a senior Kolkata police official said on condition of anonymity.

On August 10, a day after the R G Kar Hospital incident, another civic volunteer, Susanta Roy, arrived as a patient at the Bhatar State General Hospital in East Burdwan district and allegedly threatened a female doctor with the same consequence as the Kolkata victim if she did not treat him correctly.

The doctor carried out her duty and later lodged a complaint with the health department officials, following which he was arrested, a district police officer said.

On August 18, Md Hasan Gazi, a 35-year-old civic volunteer attached to the Mograhat police station in South 24 Parganas district, was arrested for stealing Rs.40,000 from the bank account of a retired session court judge in June by using the latters ATM card.

Investigation revealed that Gazi stole the ATM card. Security cameras caught him withdrawing the money, a district police officer said.

The unnatural death of Anis Khan, a student leader from Kolkatas Aliah University, in February 2022, created a stir across Bengal.

The charge sheet filed by the state police said an attempt was being made to illegally detain Khan when he jumped from the roof of his home in Howrah district. Charges were brought against two police officers, a home guard, and two civic volunteers. The case is being heard by the Calcutta high court.

On March 21, 2023, Calcutta high court judge Rajasekhar Mantha ordered the government to issue a clear set of guidelines on duties to be performed by these volunteers. The judge gave the order while hearing a case pertaining to a missing citizen whose family alleged that he was picked up from home in 2022 by policemen and two civic volunteers.

On May 24, 2023, the West Bengal police directorate passed an order stating civic volunteers will only assist police units deployed to manage traffic, tackle illegal parking, manage crowds during festivals, and ensure public safety.

A civic volunteer cannot be entrusted with any law enforcement duties, said the order, which cited justice Manthas direction to the government.

At R G Kar Hospital, Sanjay Roy was not performing any of these duties, officials said.

Roy, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) found, was attached to the Kolkata Police Welfare Committee and assigned to visit police personnel and their relatives admitted at various hospitals.

While this explained how Roy entered R G Kar Hospital, the investigators are trying to find out how he reached the third-floor seminar hall in the chest departmentwhere the victims body was foundso late at night.

According to the post-mortem report, the crime took place between 3am and 5am on August 9. Outsiders are not allowed to enter any hospital ward at such hours. The CBI has sought the courts permission to make Roy take the polygraph test on camera.

CBI has questioned Anup Dutta, a Kolkata police assistant sub-inspector whose photos with Roy were found on social media.

Low manpower in the West Bengal police, a reason often cited to justify recruitment of civic volunteers, was recently discussed in the Lok Sabha as well.

In reply to a question, Union minister of state for home Nityanand Rai told the Parliament on March 28, 2023, that Bihar and West Bengal have the lowest ratio of police personnel to per lakh (0.1 million) population in the country at 75.16 and 97.66, respectively.

Rai said that according to the Bureau of Police Research and Development, the same ratio for the whole country as on January 1, 2022 is 196.23 as per sanctioned strength and 152.80 as per actual strength.

The sanctioned strength for Bengal is 160.76, Rai said in his written reply.

Samik Bhattacharya, chief spokesperson of the Bharatiya Janata Party Bengal unit, alleged that the volunteers comprise an army that TMC has raised with tax payers money.

They have been accused of extorting money from truckers and shopkeepers and intimidating opposition party workers during elections. Strong action is the need of the hour, Bhattacharya said.

No TMC leader commented on the issue till Thursday afternoon.
The Resident Doctors' Association (RDA) of AIIMS, New Delhi, on Thursday called off its strike in the case of rape-murder of a trainee doctor at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. The patient reception centre at AIIMS in New Delhi deserted on Saturday, August 17, due to the ongoing protest by doctors over the rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor in Kolkata. (Vipin Kumar/HT Photo)

The RDA decision to resume work came after the Supreme Court, having taken suo motu cognisance of the RG Kar incident, appealed to the country's medical fraternity to return to duty.

The strike at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in the national capital, was called off on the eleventh day.

Kolkata rape and murder case | Supreme Court denounces 'inhuman' 36-hour shifts for doctors, urges task force to act

In the interest of the nation and spirit of public service, RDA, AIIMS, New Delhi, has decided to call off 11-day strike. The decision is in response to the appeal and direction of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India. We extend our sincere appreciation to the Supreme Court for taking cognisance of the RG Kar incident and addressing the broader issue of safety of security of healthcare workers across the country, the association said in a statement.

We strongly urge the authorities to strictly adhere to the directives issued by the Supreme Court. Furthermore, we appreciate the directive that no punitive action be taken against the protesting doctors. Our primary responsibility  patient care  remains our utmost priority, and we are dedicated to upholding it, the statement added.

The RDA, however, stated it will continue its struggle through a symbolic protest after duty hours, doing so until justice is served.

On directions of the Calcutta high court, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is probing the case. The accused, Sanjoy Roy, is a civic volunteer of the Kolkata Police.
Kolkata doctor's rape-murder case hearing: Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud on Thursday debunked the arguments related to the presence of 151 mg semen in the body of the 31-year-old trainee doctor who was allegedly raped and murdered at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9. Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud. (PTI file)

A three-member bench, led by Justice DY Chandrachud, was hearing a suo motu case related to the alleged rape and murder of the postgraduate doctor.

During the hearing, one of the lawyers said, Lordships, (it is said) the PMR (post mortem report) talks about 151 mg of semen, it is in ML."

To that, CJI Chandrachud replied, Don't confuse this. Don't use social media to make arguments in the court. We have specifically now the post mortem report before us. We know what that 151 refers to. Let's not use what we read on media and make legal arguments on that basis.

Several social media posts and some media reports had earlier claimed that 150mg of semen was found in the victim's body.

Kolkata Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal had urged the public to disregard rumours and narratives surrounding the rape and murder of the trainee doctor. He emphasised the importance of trusting the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is currently handling the investigation.

His comments come amid various speculation about the case, including false claims that the police had informed the victim's family of a suicide and had found 150mg of semen in her body.

He categorically denied informing the victim's family that she had committed suicide and refuted the rumour about the semen found in her body.

Why is rumour-mongering going on even now? It is wrong that we informed the victim's family that she had committed suicide. It is wrong that 150mg of semen were found in her body, he said.

On Thursday, the Supreme Court also termed extremely disturbing the Kolkata Polices delay in registering the unnatural death of the woman doctor.

Resume work: SC to protesting doctors

It also asked protesting doctors to resume work and assured them that no adverse action would be taken after they rejoin. Questioning the sequence and timing of legal formalities conducted by police, a bench comprising DY Chandrachud said it was very surprising that the postmortem of the deceased was conducted on August 9 between 6.10pm to 7.10pm before the registration of case as unnatural death.

"How was it that the post-mortem was conducted at 6.10 pm on August 9 and yet the unnatural death information is sent to Tala police station at 11.30 pm on August 9. This is extremely disturbing," the bench, also comprising Justice J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, said.

It directed the Kolkata Police officer, who registered the first entry about the rape-murder that has shocked the country, to appear in the next hearing and disclose the time of the entry.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the CBI, told the top court that the most shocking fact is that the FIR was registered at 11.45pm after the postgraduate medic was cremated.

State police told parents it was suicide, then they said it was murder. Victim's friend suspected cover up and insisted on videography, Mehta told the bench.

(With inputs from agencies)
Kolkata doctor rape-murder case highlights: The Supreme Court on Thursday heard the pleas in connection with the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata. The bench examined the case status report submitted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in a sealed cover....Read More

The Supreme Court, taking suo motu cognizance of the Kolkata rape-murder case, had asked the CBI to submit a status report on its investigation on August 22. The CBI was also scheduled to look into the mob vandalism at the hospital and provide all details.

The Supreme Court criticised the West Bengal government for mishandling the case and also asked them to submit a report on the mob which had entered the hospital, which was the scene of the crime, during a peaceful protest. The bench questioned the Kolkata police on why an unnatural death case was registered after conducting the postmortem.

The CBI, meanwhile, grilled former RG Kar Hospital principal Sandip Ghosh for the sixth consecutive day.

As protests continue across the country, the Supreme Court has also set up a National Task Force (NTF) to look into the larger issue of ensuring safety for medical professionals, especially women. During the hearing, the CJI observed that the NTF should have a portal to receive anonymous complaints from doctors who fear for their safety. CJI also assured the resident doctors that their concerns will be heard by the NTF and there is no need for actual representation from them.

Doctors' organisations, who have been striking till now, have promised to inform and cooperate with the NTF and have also asked for a central law on the issue. The task force has been ordered to submit an interim report within three weeks and a final report within two months.
The Supreme Court on Thursday directed protesting doctors to return to work and assured the counsel for AIIMS Nagpur that no adverse action will be taken against them once they rejoin. Doctors and students of Lady Hardinge Medical College at a protest in Jantar Mantar. (Arvind Yadav/HT Photo)

Resident doctors at AIIMS Nagpur informed the Supreme Court that they are being victimised for protesting in response to the Kolkata rape-murder case.

The counsel argued that the doctors were being marked absent and barred from exams, requesting a lenient stance. However, Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud responded, saying the court cannot instruct the administration to record false attendance.

Follow Kolkata doctor rape-murder case Live Updates



He advised the doctors to first return to work, assuring that no action would be taken against them afterward. Another counsel pointed out that doctors at PGI Chandigarh participated in a rally but returned to work afterward.



In response, Chief Justice DY Chandrachud said that once all doctors return to work, the court would issue a general order. [R]est assured that once doctors resume duties, we will prevail upon authorities to not take adverse actions. How will the public administrative structure run if they don't resume work? said JCI.

Chief Justice DY Chandrachud also mentioned that the national task force (NTF) would include resident doctors, ensuring their voices are heard. The counsel further urged the court to include resident doctors in the task force discussions.



If we ask representatives to be part of the NTF, it becomes impossible to work. There are very senior women doctor in the NTF, they have worked for a very long time in the health care... Committee will ensure it will hear all representatives, we will reiterate that in our order, Live Law quoted CJI as saying.

The Supreme Court on August 20 constituted a nine-member national task force (NTF) comprising eminent doctors and health care administrators to address the safety concerns of medical professionals it expressed alarm over the grisly rape-and-murder of a young doctor in Kolkata that has galvanised the country and sparked sweeping protests.




Kolkata rape-murder case: The Supreme Court on Thursday questioned the West Bengal government about the 14-hour delay in filing the First Information Report (FIR) related to the rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. Thousands of junior doctors, senior doctors, medical students and other medical professionals take out a protest rally from CGO Complex to Swasthya Bhaban, headquarters of State Health and Family Welfare department over rape and murder of a trainee doctor of RG Kar Medical College & Hospital in Kolkata, India, on Wednesday. (Photo by Samir Jana/ Hindustan Times)

During the hearing, the bench, led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud, also raised concerns about the former principal of the medical college, asking, "Who was in touch with the principal of RG Kar Medical College? Why did he delay the FIR? What was the purpose?"

Here is what the bench heard about the timings

Representing the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in court, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta claimed that senior doctors at the Kolkata hospital, along with the victim's colleagues, requested a videograph, indicating that they, too, suspected a cover-up.

"The (victim's) father insists on registering an FIR. The hospital does not register the FIR. The father insisted and got the FIR registered. The FIR is lodged after the cremation. This is an attempt to cover up. We entered the probe on day five, everything was altered by then," Mehta said.

The Supreme Court questioned the sequence and timing of the police's legal formalities, saying that the post-mortem was conducted between 6:10 pm and 7:10 pm on August 9, even before the case of unnatural death was officially registered.

How was it that the post-mortem was conducted at 6:10 pm on August 9, and yet the unnatural death information was sent to the Tala police station at 11:30 pm on August 9? This is extremely disturbing, the bench, also comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, said.

The court directed the Kolkata Police officer who made the initial entry about the incident to appear at the next hearing and reveal the exact time of the entry.

Solicitor General Mehta informed the court that the most disturbing aspect is that the FIR was registered at 11:45 pm, after the post-graduate medical student had already been cremated.

SC directs Centre to ensure safety of doctors

The bench said peaceful protests regarding the Kolkata incident must not be disrupted by the West Bengal government. However, the court clarified that it has not prohibited the state government from exercising its lawful powers.

"When we say peaceful protesters will not be disturbed, we also mean proper protocol will be followed," the top court said.

The court further ruled that no coercive action should be taken against doctors for protesting.

Additionally, the court urged all parties involved in the case not to politicize the issue, stating that the law will take its course. This came after Mehta highlighted an objectionable statement made by a West Bengal minister.

The bench directed the Union Health Ministry Secretary to establish a portal where stakeholders can submit suggestions to the National Task Force (NTF) on doctor safety.

As the hearing began, the Supreme Court urged the protesting doctors to return to work, assuring them that no adverse action would be taken once they resumed their duties. After this, AIIMS doctors appreciated the Supreme Court's intervention. They announced the end of their 11-day strike, which had started in response to the rape and murder incident at a government hospital in Kolkata.
The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the protesting doctors to resume their duties, while hearing a suo motu case related to the rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata. The bench also assured the protesting doctors that the court would ensure no adverse action is taken against them. Doctors and students of Lady Hardinge Medical College at a protest in Jantar Mantar. (Arvind Yadav/HT Photo)(HT_PRINT)

Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud was responding to concerns that the protesting resident doctors from AIIMS Nagpur are being marked absent and are not being allowed to sit for their exams. The doctors' counsel urged the bench to take a lenient view of the matter.

Let them all return to work. We will pass some general orders, please rest assured that once doctors resume duties we will prevail upon the authorities to not take adverse actions. How will the public administrative structure run if they don't resume work, asked the CJI.

The CJI also assured other doctors' associations that their concerns would be heard by the National Task Force (NTF), constituted by the court to recommend safety measures for healthcare professionals. The Federation of Association of Medical Associations of India (FAIMA) and Delhi Medical Association had filed petitions seeking the inclusion of resident doctors representatives in the NTF.

The bench also took note of the long working hours of doctors in public hospitals. Due to such working conditions, the council said, the doctors are not in a physical or mental state to resist even when somebody teases them. We have gone to public hospitals, I have slept on the floor of a public hospital when somebody is not, we know that doctors work over 36 hours, the CJI observed.

On security concerns, the counsel said those doctors inside the hospitals are still feeling terrorised by the members of the administration and goons, etc. The CJI observed that the NTF should have a portal to receive anonymous complaints regarding security concerns from those doctors. While noting that the state government is free to take action against those indulged in vandalism, the court observed that those protesting peacefully against the brutal crime shall not be disturbed.

The bench also instructed the Union Health Secretary to convene a meeting with the Chief Secretaries and police chiefs of states and Union Territories within a week to establish measures for ensuring the safety of medical professionals in public hospitals.
Kolkata: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday got permission from a city court to conduct the polygraph test on the former principal and four doctors of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, with whom the victim allegedly had dinner before being found dead the next morning. All Doctors Association protest against the rape-murder of a Kolkata trainee doctor on Wednesday (HT Photo/Bachchan Kumar)

The CBI is probing the August 9 incident in which a 31-year-old trainee doctor was allegedly raped and killed at the hospital premises.

The CBI moved the Sealdah ACJM court seeking permission to conduct a polygraph test on the former principal, Dr Sandip Ghosh, and four doctors of RG Kar Hospital. They were taken to the court on Thursday. The court has granted permission, a CBI official told HT.

Also Read: Whom is he protecting?: CJI Chandrachud questions Kolkata hospital principals transfer, role in FIR

This comes after the Supreme Court, while hearing a suo moto case taken over the incident, directed the Sealdah court on Thursday to pass necessary orders by 5pm on Friday.

The request for conducting a polygraph test has been submitted before the ACJM Sealdah. It is stated to be under process. The ACJM Sealdah shall pass orders on the application no later than 5pm on August 23, a bench comprising Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, justices JB Pardiwala, and Manoj Misra stated.

To be sure, the result of a polygraph test is not considered a confession and is not admissible in the court of law. The tests are done only to assist investigators in their investigation and get leads from the suspect, and the test is not scientifically proven to have a complete success rate.

The top court also questioned the West Bengal government over the 14-hour delay in filing the First Information Report (FIR)

The federal agency had earlier sought permission to conduct a polygraph test on Sanjay Roy, the prime accused in the case, from the Sealdah court. Roy, a civic volunteer with the Kolkata police, was arrested a day later after the rape and murder took place and was handed over to the CBI.

The agency has already questioned Ghosh for more than 75 hours since Friday. The four doctors were also questioned by the CBI earlier.

The 31-year-old trainee doctor had last spoken to her parents around 11:15pm on August 8. She had told her parents that she would soon have dinner and had ordered chicken bharta and roti. The victim and the four doctors had dinner around 12:30pm. They also watched the Olympics for the Neeraj Chopra match. Later she went to sleep at the seminar room around 2:30am on August 9, said a doctor of RG Kar Hospital.

Also Read: Supreme Court denounces inhuman 36-hour shifts for doctors, urges task force to act

Investigations have revealed that the incident took place between 4:00am and 4:30am on August 9, and her body was found in the morning around 9:45am in the chest seminar room on the third floor of the emergency building.

Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party held a protest rally in Salt Lake on Thursday. Police personnel were deployed at the Swasthya Bhavan, the headquarters of the state health department.

A scuffle also broke out between the police and BJP workers in which senior leaders, including Suvendu Adhikari, leader of the opposition in the state legislative assembly, and BJP Rajya Sabha member Samik Bhattacharya, were detained.
Kolkata doctor's rape-murder case: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday submitted to the Supreme Court its status report on the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. In its status report, the CBI claimed the crime scene was altered and the West Bengal Police told parents it was a suicide, then they said it was a murder. All Doctors Association protests in Navi Mumbai against the rape-murder of a Kolkata trainee doctor on Wednesday, (Bachchan Kumar/ HT PHOTO)

The Supreme Court commenced hearing a suo motu case related to the rape and murder of a postgraduate medic at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata. A bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra hearing the matter.

When CJI Chandrachud asked about the medical report of the injury of the accused, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the West Bengal government, informed the Supreme Court that this is part of the case dairy.

Solicitor general Tushar Mehta apprised the Supreme Court said that CBI entered the investigation on the 5th day, everything was altered and the probe agency did not know there was such a report.

Kapil Sibal countered Tushar Mehta's submission saying everything is videographed not altered.

Mehta said that FIR was registered at 11:45am after the cremation of the body and videography was done after the senior doctors and colleagues of the victim insisted for it and which means they also suspected something.

The top court on Tuesday had constituted a 10-member National Task Force (NTF) to formulate a protocol for ensuring the safety and security of doctors and other health care professionals.

Terming the incident as "horrific", the apex court had excoriated the state government over the delay in filing the FIR and allowing thousands of miscreants to vandalise the state-run facility.

The alleged rape and murder of the junior doctor in a seminar hall of the state-run hospital has sparked nationwide protests.

On August 13, the Calcutta High Court ordered the transfer of the probe from the Kolkata Police to the CBI, which started its investigation on August 14.
New Delhi, The Supreme Court on Thursday termed extremely disturbing the Kolkata Polices delay in registering the unnatural death of the woman doctor who was raped and murdered at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. It also asked protesting doctors to resume work and assured them that no adverse action would be taken after they rejoin. Questioning the sequence and timing of legal formalities conducted by police, a bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud said it was very surprising that the postmortem of the deceased was conducted on August 9 between 6.10 pm to 7.10 pm before the registration of case as unnatural death. Kolkata rape: SC terms 'extremely disturbing' cop delay in registering unnatural death, asks protesters to return to work

"How was it that the post-mortem was conducted at 6.10 pm on August 9 and yet the unnatural death information is sent to Tala police station at 11.30 pm on August 9. This is extremely disturbing," the bench, also comprising Justice J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, said.

It directed the Kolkata Police officer, who registered the first entry about the rape-murder that has shocked the country, to appear in the next hearing and disclose the time of the entry.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the CBI, told the top court that the most shocking fact is that the FIR was registered at 11.45 pm after the postgraduate medic was cremated.

"State police told parents it was suicide, then they said it was murder. Victim's friend suspected cover up and insisted on videography," Mehta told the bench.

As the hearing commenced, the top court asked protesting doctors to resume work, and assured them that no adverse action will be taken against them after they rejoin.

The apex court was told by the counsel for resident doctors at AIIMS Nagpur that they are being victimised for protesting over the Kolkata rape-murder case.

"Once they get back to duty, we will prevail upon authorities to not take adverse action. How will public health infrastructure run if the doctors do not work?" the bench asked.

If there is difficulty after that, come to us but let them first report to work, it said.

The top court said its heart goes out to all patients visiting public hospitals.

It assured doctors' associations that the National Task Force will hear all stakeholders.

The brutal assault and murder of the junior doctor has sparked nationwide protests. Her body was found with severe injury marks inside the seminar hall of the state-run hospital's chest department. A civic volunteer was arrested by the Kolkata Police in connection with the case the following day on August 10.

On August 13, the Calcutta High Court ordered the transfer of the probe from the Kolkata Police to the CBI, which started its investigation on August 14.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Hyderabad : The previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government had not taken any instructions from the Centre for tapping the telephones of various individuals, including a high court judge, advocates, political opponents and journalists, a senior official of the Union ministry of home affairs (MHA) has informed the Telangana high court. MHA not aware of telephone tapping in Telangana by BRS government, says official

People familiar with the matter said MHA undersecretary Nutan Kumari on Tuesday submitted an affidavit before the high court, which has initiated a suo motu (on its own) petition on the reports of snooping on a judge, among others, during the previous regime under K Chandrashekar Rao.

In the affidavit, Kumari said the MHAs nod was not mandatory as the secretary of the state home department is the competent authority to issue an order for interception of the phones of any subscriber registered in that state.

Both Union and state governments are authorised to issue directions for lawful interception under Section 5(2) of the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885, and Rule 419-A of the Indian Telegraph Rules, 1951, she informed the court.

According to Rule 419-A, though state home secretary accords permission for such interceptions, there is a committee headed by chief secretary that reviews all such approvals for interceptions.

All interception orders should be sent to the chief secretary within seven days. If the committee headed by the chief secretary chooses not to revoke such permissions, they will remain in force for a period of 60 days and may remain in force, through renewals, for a period of 180 days and not beyond that, Kumari said in the affidavit.

It was also pointed out that records related to lawful interception are classified as highly confidential and are destroyed every six months by the competent authorities, as stipulated in the rules, unless they are needed for ongoing or future investigations.

Under Section 42(2) of the Telecommunication Act, 2023, any unauthorised access or interception of a telecommunication network or data could result in severe penalties, including imprisonment for up to three years, fines up to 2 crore or both, she said.

Meanwhile, special chief secretary of Telangana home department Ravi Gupta also filed an affidavit before the high court on Tuesday, claiming that accused police officers led by then special intelligence bureau (SIB) chief T Prabhakar Rao fraudulently obtained permissions from the department by misleading the higher-ups for intercepting phones and internet of selected individuals all over the state.

Gupta was the home secretary from October 2019 to December 2022 when the alleged unauthorised phone tapping started. Gupta said Prabhakar Rao was brought in as SIB chief for a period of three years upon his retirement from intelligence wing and played a key role in tapping the phones of various individuals during the BRS regime in the state.

The then state government had issued separate orders allowing three senior IPS officers to permit interception on an urgent basis if there was no time to take approval from the competent authority (home secretary). But all such urgent actions had to be approved by the competent authority/home secretary later, Gupta said.

The home secretary added the SIB team led by Prabhakar Rao, who was made designated authority to carry out tapping of phones, had violated norms. He had not taken approval from the competent authority to get his action ratified even after the tapping was done, Gupta said, adding the SIB team later destroyed the hard discs and all key data collected over the years.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, ahead of his landmark Ukraine visit, on Wednesday said India is a supporter of peace in the volatile region as he reiterated this is not an era of war and any conflict should be resolved through diplomacy and dialogue. Prime Minister Narendra Modi attends a wreath laying ceremony in honour of the "Good Maharaja" Jam Sahib of Nawanagar, in Warsaw, Poland, on Wednesday.(AP)

Addressing the Indian diaspora in the Polish capital Warsaw, PM Narendra Modi also said for decades, India had a policy to maintain distance from all the countries. However, the policy of today's India is to remain close to all the countries, he added, amid chants of Modi-Modi.

Empathy is one of the identities of Indians. Whenever any trouble mounts in any country, India is the first country to extend help... When Covid came, India said humanity first... India helps citizens of other countries. India believes in Buddhas tradition, therefore, believes in peace not war... India is an advocate of peace in this region and it is clear that this is not time for war. We need to be together to fight challenges. India focuses on diplomacy and dialogue, Modi said during his Poland visit.

Also Read | Peace effort: PM Modi begins visit to Poland, Ukraine

Modi's statement comes ahead of his trip to Kyiv - the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Ukraine since the country became independent in 1991.

Modi, who is visiting Ukraine at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelensky, has said he will share with the Ukrainian leader perspectives on peaceful resolution of the ongoing conflict.

Modi will visit Ukraine nearly six weeks after his high-profile trip to Russia which triggered criticism from the US and some of its Western allies.

Today's India wants to connect with all. Today's India talks about the development of all. Today's India is with all and thinks about the interests of all, Modi told the Indian diaspora.

Also Read |

The prime minister Modi's visit to Poland is the first trip by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in the past 45 years.

Modi also lauded Indian community members for helping Indian students who were stuck in Ukraine when the war erupted in 2022. He also thanked the Poland government for opening doors for Indian students and removing visa restrictions.

You people helped the Indian students who were stuck in Ukraine. We all have witnessed it. You helped them a lot. You all opened your home doors for them, organised langar. Polish government removed the visa restrictions for Indian students. Poland, with their whole heart, opened their doors for our students. Today also when I meet Indian students who have returned from Ukraine, they praise you all and the Polish government. Today I want to congratulate you all, the Polish government and the people, on behalf of 140 crore Indians. I salute you all, Modi said.

Speaking about the recent elections that were held in India, Modi said, India is not only the mother of democracy, but it is also a participatory and vibrant democracy. The people of India have unwavering faith in democracy. We have seen this confidence in recent elections also. This was the biggest election in history. 180 million voters voted in elections recently held in European Union. Three times more people, 640 million voters voted for elections in India.
The Supreme Court on Thursday asked both Punjab and Haryana state governments to persuade agitating farmers to clear the highway along Shambhu border as it deferred decision on forming the expert committee for resolving concerns of farmers over minimum support price (MSP) and other issues till September 2. Punjab advocate general Gurminder Singh said the farmers have no issues with the opening of the highway. (HT file photo)

The bench headed by justice Surya Kant also permitted the two states to suggest the proposed terms of reference for the expert committee to comprise independent persons related with agriculture.

The bench, also comprising justices Dipankar Datta and Ujjal Bhuyan said, On the composition of the committee and the issues to be resolved by them, we have done our homework. We will do that. But we request both states to assure the farmers that since now the court is considering having a forum for them to reach out with their grievances, the issue can be resolved only as per law.

Punjab advocate general Gurminder Singh informed the court that the state officials held a meeting early this week with farmer unions and explored the possibility of clearing the Ambala-New Delhi national highway for partial movement of traffic, as suggested by the top court on August 12.

The farmers have no issues with the opening of the highway. But they are firm on their resolve to agitate, he said.

Also Read:Partially reopen Shambhu border: Supreme Court to Punjab, Haryana

Singh further stated that the state was even open to permitting them to proceed on vehicles which are permissible according to the Motor Vehicles Act (MV Act).

The bench told Punjab AG, You must persuade them to clear the highway and remove their tractor and trolleys.

Singh said that the deliberations are still underway, and the farmer unions have sought time to get back on the states suggestion.

The court posted the matter on September 2 to consider passing further orders on the composition of the expert committee and its terms of reference.

Haryanas additional advocate general Lokesh Singhal, who was also present in court, pointed out that the farmers are still insisting on travelling on tractors to march till Parliament.

The bench said, In a democratic set-up, this kind of impressions are there. We want both states to make a joint initiative to persuade them (farmers). Your joint efforts can resolve the issue.

The court further said that the committee to be set up will have a wider mandate to make suggestions that can amicably resolve the law-and-order situation arising from time to time.

It allowed both Punjab and Haryana to make recommendations on what issues they would like the committee to consider.

Since you have interacted with farmers, you are aware of their concerns. You can point out which are the issues you would like to be resolved by the Union government. You can even suggest tentative issues which you think the committee should look into, the bench said.

Passing a short order, the court said, We have suggested to Punjab AG and Haryana AAG to submit proposed issues which will be subject matter of reference for the committee to be constituted by this court.

The same was directed to be filed within a day or two.

Punjab AG requested the court to permit the state to suggest names of more experts to be nominated on the expert panel.

So far, Punjab had given only one name while Haryana came up with six names.

We initially thought it would be a small committee of one or two persons. But now we would like to give a few more names to the court, Singh said.

The bench allowed the request and said, Whether it is a big or small committee, our intention is to give it some power to make recommendations. Our mandate to the committee will be to resolve the issue and give its suggestions.

Singh told the court that it will hold another round of meetings with the farmer unions to crystallise the issues proposed for the committee.

The court said, Meanwhile, the representatives of states shall continue to meet with farmers and shall apprise this court on the outcome of those meetings by the next date of hearing.

The order of the court came while hearing an appeal filed by the Haryana government against an order of the Punjab and Haryana high court in July directing it to remove the barricades and allow traffic movement along Shambhu border.

The HC direction came on a petition filed by a local resident Uday Pratap Singh as the closure of the arterial road posed a serious situation to people staying in the immediate locality who frequented Ambala for medical treatment and other purposes.

The top court stayed the HC direction and had on August 12 favoured partial opening of the highway for ambulances, essential services, local residents and girl students required to travel inter-state for jobs, education, among others.

The police chiefs of both states were directed to convene a meeting and work out modalities for the same.
A day ahead of his visit to conflict-torn Ukraine, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said India firmly believes that a solution to any conflict cannot be found on the battlefield and it is ready to extend all possible cooperation for the restoration of peace and stability in the region. Narendra Modi, India's prime minister, speaks at a news conference in Warsaw, Poland, on Thursday.(Bloomberg)

Modi made the remarks after holding wide-ranging talks with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk that saw the elevation of India-Poland ties to the level of strategic partnership.

In the second leg of his two-nation trip, Modi will be in Kyiv for around seven hours. He will leave for the Ukrainian capital onboard a train this evening and the journey will take around 10 hours.

"The conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia are matters of deep concern for all of us. It is India's firm belief that a solution to any problem cannot be found on the battlefield," Modi said in his media statement after talks with Tusk.

"The loss of lives of innocent people in any crisis has become the biggest challenge for the entire humanity. We support dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability," Modi said.

"For this, India, along with its friendly countries, is ready to provide all possible support," he said.

Modi arrived in Warsaw on Wednesday, in the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Poland in nearly half a century.

Also read | Ahead of Ukraine visit, PM Narendra Modi says India supports peace in this region

"Today is a day of special significance in the relations between India and Poland. Today after 45 years an Indian prime minister has visited Poland," he said.

"This year we are celebrating the 70th anniversary of our diplomatic relations. On this occasion, we have decided to transform the relationship into a strategic partnership," Modi said.

Modi said India and Poland have been cooperating with each other on the international stage.

"We both agree that reform in the United Nations and other international institutions is the need of the hour to face global challenges," he said.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi met with National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah in Srinagar on Thursday to discuss a possible pre-poll alliance for the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections. Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge met National Conference president Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah in Srinagar.(X/@kharge)

Farooq Abdullah described the meeting, which took place at his residence on Gupkar Road, as "cordial" and on track.

The meeting was held in a very cordial atmosphere. The alliance is on track and it will go on well with God's grace...It is final, it will be approved by this evening...This (alliance) has been done on all 90 seats, the former chief minister told reporters.

Abdullah further said, "CPI(M)'s (MY) Tarigami is also with us. I hope our people are with us too and that we win with a huge majority to improve the lives of the people."

Read: Why Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge did not have Wazwan in Srinagar? Rahul Gandhi replies

Kharge shared images of the meeting on X, and said, We, along with Shri Rahul Gandhi, had a warm courtesy meeting with Shri Farooq Abdullah and JKNC Vice President, Shri Omar Abdullah in Srinagar, today.

The potential alliance comes after both parties contested the Lok Sabha elections together as part of the INDIA bloc. Despite the alliance, the Congress lost both of its seats in Jammu, and the NC lost one of the three seats it contested in the Kashmir Valley.

The assembly elections, which will be held in three phases on September 18, 25, and October 1, are seen as crucial for both parties as they seek to strengthen their position in the region.

What Rahul Gandhi said on Jammu and Kashmir's statehood

Earlier in the day, Rahul Gandhi reiterated the Congress party's commitment to restoring statehood to Jammu and Kashmir.

It is our priority and also of the INDIA bloc to restore statehood in J-K as soon as possible... We are hoping that statehood will be restored as soon as possible and the democratic rights of the people of J-K will be restored, Gandhi said at a press conference after an interaction with party workers in Srinagar.

The Congress leader said he has "a very deep relation" with the people of J-K and it is always a pleasure for him to visit here.

With PTI inputs
India is ready to work with friendly countries to provide all possible support for the early restoration of peace and stability in Ukraine and West Asia since no problem can be settled on the battlefield, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Warsaw on Thursday. (REUTERS)

The conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia are a matter of deep concern for all of us, Modi told a media interaction following talks with his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk in Warsaw. The remarks came a day ahead of Modis visit to Kyiv, which is being watched closely for any role India can play in bringing Russia and Ukraine to the negotiating table.

It is Indias firm belief that no problem can be solved on the battlefield. In any crisis, the loss of lives of innocent people has become the biggest challenge for the whole of humanity, Modi said, speaking in Hindi.

We support dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability. For this, India, along with friendly countries, is ready to provide all possible support, he said.

Read more: India ready to work with friendly nations to restore peace in Ukraine: Modi

Tusk, speaking in Polish, said Modis visit is being seen as a possible step towards a peace process. I am very glad that [Modi] has confirmed his readiness for personal involvement in achieving a peaceful, just and swift end to the war. We are both convinced that India can play a very important and positive role here, he said.

This is significant, especially since the prime minister will be visiting Kyiv in a few hours. We all believe that this visit can also be historic, Tusk said.

Poland has emerged as the strongest supporters of Ukraine, providing military equipment worth billions of dollars and hosting millions of Ukrainian refugees, mainly because of concerns about the fallout of a Russian victory.

Following the conclusion of his engagements in Poland on Thursday, Modi will travel by train to Ukraine, where he is set to hold talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday. Before beginning the two-nation European tour, Modi said he would discuss the peaceful resolution of the conflict in Ukraine as India desires the early return of peace and stability in the region.

Read more: On eve of Ukraine visit, PM Narendra Modi's not time for war message from Poland

India has so far not publicly criticised Russias invasion of Ukraine and it has abstained or voted against most Ukraine-related resolutions at the United Nations. It also stepped up the purchase of discounted Russian commodities such as oil and fertilisers despite initial criticism of the move from the West. At the same time, it has called for a return to dialogue and diplomacy to find a lasting solution to the conflict.

Ukraine has nudged India to take on a greater role in ongoing peace efforts because of its proximity to Russia and its role as the voice of the Global South. The Ukrainian side has also said Zelenskys peace formula will be one of the most important topics for discussions during Modis visit.
The Supreme Court has initiated the process of formulating broad guidelines to strengthen and streamline the functioning of bar associations across the country, seeking suggestions from all lawyers bodies within four weeks. Emphasising that this effort was a long-term investment crucial for the institutions future, a bench comprising justices Surya Kant and Dipankar Datta on Wednesday made it clear that the issue was not adversarial but aimed at institutional reform. The proceedings stemmed from a case concerning allegations of discrimination against the Madras Bar Association. (HT PHOTO)

Unless we start doing something now, how will we succeed? There cannot be a magical wand to do everything, said the court, urging all parties involved to start submitting their suggestions. To facilitate the process, the court appointed advocate Vipin Nair, president of the Supreme Court Advocates-On-Record Association (SCAORA), as the nodal counsel. Nair will coordinate with all bar associations nationwide to gather their inputs, which will be compiled and circulated according to the courts order.

The suggestions are expected to address a wide range of issues, including the criteria for admitting members to various bar associations, the conduct of elections, and the overall governance of these bodies.

The proceedings stemmed from a case originally concerning allegations of discrimination and elitism against the Madras Bar Association. Although the petitioners in the case expressed their willingness to withdraw these allegations, the Supreme Court decided to examine the broader issue of bar association reforms.

Senior advocate S Prabhakaran, representing the Bar Council of India (BCI), informed the court that notices had been issued to bar associations across the country to gather their responses. However, the bench clarified that the courts focus was not on grievances but on necessary reforms even as it cautioned against any reluctance to engage in the process, warning that such non-cooperation would not deter the courts intention to address the issues at hand.

During the proceedings, the bench posed questions for consideration, including the criteria for admitting members to the district, high courts, and Supreme Court bars, and whether there should be uniform standards across the board. It also addressed concerns about the substantial funds spent on bar association elections and suggested that an independent regulatory body might be necessary to oversee these elections, given the numerous complaints and election petitions.

The bench proposed it could fix one day each for addressing issues specific to district, high court, and Supreme Court bar associations, ensuring that every member has one vote. The court acknowledged the need for basic infrastructural improvements for bar members and directed SCAORA to include suggestions on this aspect.

As part of the process, the Supreme Court directed the registry to post a notice on its website, informing all high court and district bar associations to submit their suggestions to the SCAORA president. The matter has been scheduled for a hearing in October.
Wrestlers Vinesh Phogat and Sakshi Malik, in identical posts on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) claimed on Thursday that Delhi Police have removed security cover of three female wrestlers, complainants in the sexual harassment case against ex-Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. Ex-WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh (File Photo)

The trio of Phogat, Malik, and fellow grappler Bajrang Punia, had spearheaded a wrestlers' protest in Delhi against Singh, the-then WFI chief accused by several women grapplers, including minors, of sexual abuse. A member of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Singh has repeatedly denied the allegations.

Delhi Police have withdrawn security of female wrestlers who will testify against Brij Bhushan, Phogat and Malik wrote on their respective X handles, tagging police, Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) and National Commission for Women (NCW).

Earlier, in a statement through their legal team, the complainants, of whom one will appear in the Rouse Avenue Court on Friday, alleged removal of their security cover.

Issuing clarification on the matter, police said that the security cover of the complainants had not been withdrawn, adding that the Personal Security Officers (PSOs) assigned to the concerned wrestlers reported late for duty because of a misunderstanding.

In May, the court had ordered framing of charges against the Uttar Pradesh strongman, observing there was sufficient material for him to be charged for sexual harassment.

At the recent Paris Olympics, Phogat suffered a heartbreak, as she was found overweight ahead of her gold medal bout, resulting in her disqualification. Her appeal in the Court for Arbitration of Sport (CAS) was rejected.

On the other hand, Malik, who won bronze at the Rio Olympics in 2016, retired in December last year to protest the election of Sanjay Singh, a close associate of Brij Bhushan, as WFI president.
Supreme Court hearing on Kolkata doctor rape-murder: The Supreme Court on Thursday, August 22, termed extremely disturbing the Kolkata Polices delay in registering the unnatural death of a trainee woman doctor who was raped and murdered at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra during hearing on a suo motu case related to the alleged sexual assault and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor in Kolkata on August 22, 2024.(PTI)

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra was hearing the matter.

The Supreme Court also asked protesting doctors to resume work and assured them that no adverse action would be taken after they rejoin. Questioning the sequence and timing of legal formalities conducted by police, a bench comprising said it was very surprising that the postmortem of the deceased was conducted on August 9 between 6.10pm to 7.10pm before the registration of case as unnatural death.

Kolkata doctor rape-murder case: Top 5 observation by Supreme Court

How was it that the post-mortem was conducted at 6.10pm on August 9 and yet the unnatural death information is sent to Tala police station at 11.30pm on August 9. This is extremely disturbing, the bench said. Justice JB Pardiwala said, The entire procedure followed by your state police is something I have not encountered in 30 years. Once they (protesting doctors) get back to duty, we will prevail upon authorities to not take adverse action. How will public health infrastructure run if the doctors do not work? If there is difficulty after that, come to us But let them first report to work, it said. The Supreme Court directed the Kolkata Police officer, who registered the first entry about the rape-murder that has shocked the country, to appear in the next hearing and disclose the time of the entry. The top court said its heart goes out to all patients visiting public hospitals. It assured doctors' associations that the National Task Force will hear all stakeholders. "We are deeply concerned about the inhuman working hours of resident doctors across the country. Some doctors work 36-hour shifts. The committee appointed should look into streamlining the on-duty hours of all doctors. 36 or 48 hour shifts are just inhuman!," CJI Chandrachud said.

Kolkata doctor allegedly rape and murdered at RG Kar hospital

The brutal assault and murder of the junior doctor has sparked nationwide protests. Her body was found with severe injury marks inside the seminar hall of the state-run hospital's chest department. A civic volunteer was arrested by the Kolkata Police in connection with the case the following day on August 10.

On August 13, the Calcutta High Court ordered the transfer of the probe from the Kolkata Police to the CBI, which started its investigation on August 14.

(With inputs from agencies)
The Delhi Police has termed the alleged physical assault of AAP Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal at chief minister's residence as "brutal" and urged the Supreme Court to dismiss the bail plea of accused Bibhav Kumar in the case. Delhi Police with chief minister Arvind Kejriwals aide Bibhav Kumar leave CM's residence after recreation of the scene in AAP MP Swati Maliwal's assault case in May, 2024. (PTI)

The Delhi Police, in its reply to the bail plea of Kumar, an aide of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, also told the top court to hear Maliwal too in the case.

Kumar, who is currently in judicial custody, is accused of assaulting Maliwal on May 13 at Kejriwal's official residence and has challenged the July 12 order of the Delhi High Court denying him bail.

"The present case is a case pertaining to a brutal assault on a sitting Member of Parliament by influential ex-officer pertaining to the Chief Minister's residence wherein the occurrence of incidence is also at the residence of the Chief Minister of Delhi...and such an incident has had a grave impact on the minds of general public and any adjudication in the said case will have cascading effect on the minds of general public," said an affidavit filed by Deputy Commissioner of Police Manoj Kumar Meena.

The affidavit said that the accused is an "influential person" in comparison to the victim and "the present case requires the complainant to be heard as any liberty granted to the accused petitioner herein directly affects her safety and wellbeing and also of her family members".

It said the victim corroborated her complaint in her statement recorded before a judicial magistrate as well.

"It is important to note that the victim was deeply traumatized by the harassment and assault she experienced. Furthermore, the victim is an esteemed sitting Member of Parliament from a ruling party in Delhi, and she was brutally assaulted at a highly sensitive location, the Hon'ble Chief Minister's residence.

"This severe incident significantly impacted her mental state, causing her to remain confined to her home for four days following the assault," the affidavit said.

A bench headed by Justice Surya Kant is hearing the case. On August 1, the bench had made some strong observations about the alleged offence and the accused.

An FIR was registered against Kumar on May 16 under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code, including those related to criminal intimidation, assault or using criminal force on a woman with the intent to disrobe, and attempt to commit culpable homicide. He was arrested on May 18.

While denying him bail, the high court had said that the accused enjoys "considerable influence" and no ground was made out to grant him the relief. It cannot be ruled out that witnesses may be influenced or evidence tampered with in case the petitioner is released on bail, the high court had said.
Tamil superstar Vijay on Thursday unveiled the flag and symbol for his political party Tamizhaga Vetri Kazhagam. Vijay will hoisted the flag at the Panaiyur party office and release an official song for the political party as well. Tamil actor Vijay unveiled the representative flag for his political party Tamizhaga Vetri Kazhagam today

The two-coloured maroon and yellow flag has elephants on both sides and a peacock surrounded by stars at the centre.

In February, Vijay had announced the launch of Tamizhaga Vetri Kazhagam and said he would be contesting the 2026 assembly election in Tamil Nadu. His party did not align with any political bloc in the recent Lok Sabha elections.

Also Read: Actor Vijay calls for NEET ban, flags bias

During the event, Vijay said, "I know you all are waiting for our first state conference. Preparations are on for it and very soon I will announce it. Before that, I unveiled our party's flag today. I feel very proud... We will work together for the development of Tamil Nadu."

Also Read:Will Vijay continue to act after joining politics? The GOAT director Venkat Prabhu has the answer

The actor also promised to work for the welfare of Tamil Nadu and said, Tamil Nadu will be better from now on. Victory is sure.

The flag reveal will follow a massive rally in the last week of September to formally launch the party in the eyes of the public in Vikravandi in northern Tamil Nadu. The registration of the party under the Election Commission is at an advanced stage and will soon be complete.

Sources told Deccan Herald that the flag anthem was composed by popular music director S Thaman, while lyrics were penned by V Vivek.

Over 300 workers of the TVK as well as members of Vijay's fan clubs were invited for the event.
A 16-member Indian Navy and National Disaster Response Force team on Thursday recovered the body of a trainee pilot from Jharkhands Chandil Dam three days after a two-seater training aircraft crashed there minutes after taking off . An Indian Navy and NDRF team recovered the body on Thursday. (X)

Officials said fishermen spotted Shubhrodeep Duttas body entangled in the watery bushes even as the search was on for the instructor pilot Shatru Jeet Anand. The aircraft of Alchemist Aviation Pvt Ltd lost contact with the Jamshedpur Air traffic control and crashed into the dam 15-20 minutes after taking off from the Sonari Airport.

District police superintendent Mukesh Lunayat said that Duttas parents identified his body. We have sent it post-mortem, said Lunayat.

Dutta was the only child of Subarno and Pradip Dutta. He joined the flying school of Alchemist Aviation Pvt Ltd over a year back after clearing his class 12 exam.

Chandil sub-divisional officer Shubhra Rani, who was at the site for two days, said the Navy team arrived in Jamshedpur late Wednesday night and started the search operations at 4.30 am on Thursday.

Director General of Civil Aviation and Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau teams were at the site of the crash for an investigation into the crash. Alchemist Aviation Pvt Ltd managing director Mrinal Kanti Pal said the teams discussed the mishap with him.
Agartala: At least 12 people were killed after heavy rainfall in Tripuras capital city Agartala led to floods due to overflowing Gomati River, with nearly 65,400 people being displaced, officials said on Wednesday. The state government has announced a holiday for all educational institutions for Thursday and Friday. (HT sourced photo)

Landslides occurred in 2,032 locations, out of which 1,789 areas have been cleared and the restoration work is going on in full swing, said an official. Officials said that water Level of rivers in six locations across the State is above the danger mark in Dhalai, Khowai, South Tripura, West Tripura, North Tripura and Unakoti Districts.

Tripura received one of the highest levels of rainfall in last 24 hours on 22.08.2024 notably in South Tripura District (Bogafa: 493.6 mm), Sepahijala District (Sonamura: 293.4 mm), West Tripura District (Agartala: 233 mm) and Gomati District (Udaipur: 155 mm). As a result, the whole State is affected with floods very badly. Particularly Gomati, South Tripura, Unakoti and West Tripura Districts have been severely affected, reads a press communique from Relief, Rehabilitation and Disaster Management Department on Thursday evening.

Moreover, 844 poles were broken and 151 transformer, 310 Km conductors and 2 sub-stations were damaged due to heavy rainfall.

An official of the State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) had earlier in the day said that nearly 34,100 people from 6,620 families have taken shelter in 346 relief camps spread across eight districts of Tripura.

On the government opening floodgates at Dumboor dam, which is the reservoir of Gumti hydro-electric power project at Gomati district, Tripura power minister Ratan Lal Nath said no such steps were taken and excessive water overflew from the dam after water crossed the reservoirs holding capacity of 94 meter.

No gate of Gumti hydro-electric project has been opened. The reservoirs capacity is to hold water up to 94 meters. Water will automatically escape through the gate when it crosses this mark. There is no reason to panic as the administration is fully aware of the situation, the minister said in a social media post.

Chief minister Dr Manik Saha on Wednesday visited the flood affected areas and took stock of the situation. He said the officials in different districts are working to extend support to the flood-affected people. He also urged all social organisations to extend their assistance in this crisis.

I urge all those who may be affected by the flooding to please cooperate with the authorities and move to the shelter houses immediately. Your safety is our top priority, CM Saha wrote on his official X account.

Meanwhile, 120 NDRF personnel landed at the Maharaja Bir Bikram (MBB) Airport in an Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft, followed by a second MI-17 helicopter. Four columns of personnel were also deployed by the Assam Rifles for the rescue operation along with the civil administration.

Rescue operations underway! Weve deployed an MI-17 helicopter to Amarpur to evacuate stranded persons. This is part of our sustained efforts to provide critical support & assistance to flood-affected areas. Were committed to reaching those in need, Saha said.

This comes after Saha apprised Union home minister Amit Shah of the flood situation and said that the Centre has assured to send National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams apart from boats and helicopters.

120 NDRF personnel have already landed at MBB Airport in three aircrafts of the Indian Air Force. They will soon start rescue operations in flood-affected areas. I thank honorable Prime Minister Narendra Modi and honourable Home Minister Amit Shah for standing with people of Tripura in this tough time, CM Saha said in post in Facebook.

 Spoke with CM Tripura, Dr Manik Saha Ji, and took stock of the flood situation in the state. The Centre is rushing teams of NDRF, apart from boats and helicopters, to the state to assist the local government in relief and rescue operations. Assured of all possible assistance from the Centre as and when required. The Modi government firmly stands with our sisters and brothers in Tripura during this hour of crisis, Shah said in a post on X.

In the last 24 hours, Agartala recorded 233 mm, considered to be the highest rainfall ever recorded in the capital. According to the Indian Meteorological Department ( IMD), rainfall is likely reduce from Thursday evening, red alert in all the districts has been maintained.

An IMD official stated that low pressure area on Bangladesh and other neighbouring areas continued today and it is expected to move westward across the Bay of Bengal in the coming 48 hours. A cyclonic circulation is expected to form over the Bay of Bengals northern part and adjoining areas on Friday.

The state has also announced closure of all educational institutions, including government, government-aided, and private (schools, colleges and state-run universities), which have been shut since Tuesday, until further notice.

Till late night on Wednesday, West Tripura district magistrate Vishal Kumar and others were seen on the ground in Agartala and adjoining areas as evacuation of people from the flood-affected areas are going on as the administration announced to stay away from vulnerable areas.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge also expressed condolence over the deaths and stressed that the central and state governments should take immediate relief and rehabilitation measures.

Deeply concerned about the flood situation caused by heavy rainfall in Tripura where many people have lost their lives, and about 5,600 families have sought refuge in relief camps, he said.
Prabhu Rajagopal, a professor of mechanical engineering at IIT Madras, is the winner of this years Vigyan Yuva Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar award in the newly introduced category of Technology and Innovation. He talks about his work with technologies for the assessment of the condition of infrastructure assets remotely. Prabhu Rajagopal is a professor of mechanical engineering at IIT Madras.

What I do

I work primarily on sensors and robotics, particularly for nondestructive evaluation and maintenance of infrastructure assets. For example, we develop robots that are sent into pipelines to assess their condition, or into dam reservoirs to inspect them for their integrity.

I specialise in guided ultrasonics and submersible robotics. Such robots can be used to inspect petroleum or municipal pipelines, or dams and bridges. My PhD is in ultrasonic technologies for assessment of structural integrity. Remote inspections can be performed either using guided acoustics (thats also one of my specialisation areas) or using normal ultrasound but with a robot.

How I do it

In the industry, there is a pressing demand for performing ultrasonic inspections remotely, for example deep underwater, or at places where you have very high temperatures, radiation, or very high pressure. Based on the conditions in which the robots are going to operate, we design and fabricate them, and test them first in mock conditions and then in real conditions before releasing them for operations.

The payload can be visual cameras, thermal cameras, acoustic cameras, or acoustic sensors. I have developed novel waveguide and feature-guided wave sensors. The information collected by robots can be either transmitted live or recorded for retrieval later. Once we have that information, we analyse it and conclude whether the structure is okay or has defects.

Among the robots I have designed is HomoSEP, which aims to eliminate manual scavenging. This robot is deployed in septic tanks, at the bottom of which the sludge has accumulated into a hard substance. HomSEPs go inside and mechanically stir the content and homogenise it, after which a machine that is integrated sucks out the contents.

I am very passionate about startups and have created five to date. We created the first of these, Planys, because the oil and gas industry, Reliance in particular, wanted us to inspect storage tanks using robots. We developed technologies in the laboratory, then created a startup and commercialised the technology. Today the startup is serving the oil and gas industry in India and abroad with these solutions. My other startups, too, license my innovations and take my research to deployment on the field such Solinas for sanitation robotics, and Xyma for waveguide sensors. I am excited about the prospect of applying distributed ledger technologies in engineering and healthcare, being commercialised by my most recent startup, Plenome.
West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee's office refused to accept a confidential letter sent to her by governor CV Ananda Bose in the Kolkata rape-murder case, an official in the governor's office claimed on Thursday, according to PTI. West Bengal governor CV Ananda Bose and chief minister Mamata Banerjee (File Photo/PTI)

A confidential letter was sent by a messenger to the Chief Minister's Office last night. But the CMO refused to receive it, the Raj Bhavan official told the news agency.

While the official declined to reveal the content of the letter, the CMO, too, refused to comment on the matter.

On Wednesday, the governor visited the victim doctor's residence in the North 24 Parganas district to meet her parents. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Bose said he would write to the chief minister regarding his meeting with the victim's parents.

I came here straight from Delhi to meet the parents and to understand their sentiments. They told me certain things which I would keep confidential for now. Based on the information that I have, I will write a letter today and send it to the CM in a sealed cover. I will discuss the rest of the things with you later, he stated.

On the previous day, Bose held a telephonic conversation with the parents.

The gruesome incident took place at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata on August 9; Sanjoy Roy, the man arrested for the alleged rape-murder, is a civic volunteer with the Kolkata Police.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is probing the case.
The death toll from the explosion at a pharmaceuticals plant in Andhra Pradesh rose to 17 on Thursday, with 34 others injured. The explosion occurred on Wednesday at the 40-acre Escientia Advanced Sciences plant in Anakapalli district and officials suspect that the blast originated from a chemical reactor. People outside the reactor pharma unit of pharmaceutical company Escientia where a fire broke out following an explosion, in Anakapalle, Andhra Pradesh.(PTI)

Pained by the loss of lives due to a mishap at a factory in Anakapalli. Condolences to those who lost their near and dear ones, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

10 points on explosion at Andhra Pradesh pharmaceuticals plant

After the incident at Escientia Advanced Science Pvt Ltd. at 2.15pm, injured workers with severe burns and blood-soaked bodies were transported to hospitals in ambulances. Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu has ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident and promised strict action against the management if negligence is found to be the cause. District police superintendent M Deepika said rescue operations are complete with a final toll of 17 dead and 34 injured.Investigators believe the blast was caused by a gas leak that eventually reached an electrical panel.



Read: Bomb threat on Air India flight triggers emergency at Thiruvananthapuram airport

4. The company manufactures intermediate chemicals and active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and it began operations in April 2019 with an investment of 200 crore.

5. It is located on a 40-acre campus within the Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation's (APIIC) multi-product SEZ at the Atchutapuram cluster.

6. The damage could have been worse, but fewer workers were in the plant at the time of the accident due to lunchtime.

7. While reports suggest the accident was due to a reactor blast, officials said that the incident occurred when solvent oil was being pumped between floors, causing a leak that led to a fire and a subsequent large explosion, according to a post on X by Andhra Pradesh deputy chief minister Konidala Pawan Kalyan.

8. Relatives of the victims, who were wailing, complained that authorities were not keeping them informed about the developments or the whereabouts of their affected family members.

Also read: Tamil actor Vijay unveils Tamizhaga Vetri Kazhagam party flag: Victory is sure

9. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge expressed condolences for the loss of lives in the tragic fire and urged the government to take measures to prevent such incidents in the future.

10. The company has two R&D centers in Connecticut (US) and Hyderabad, as well as a commercial manufacturing site at Anakapalli.
Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi reiterated on Thursday that restoring statehood to Jammu and Kashmir remains a top priority for both the Congress party and the INDIA bloc. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi speaks during the party workers' meeting, in Srinagar, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (PTI)

He said while the Congress had hoped statehood would be restored before the assembly elections, the announcement of the election schedule is a step forward.

This is the first time since independence that a state has become union territories. This has never happened before. We are very clear in our national manifesto as well that it is a priority for us that the people of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh get their democratic rights back, said Rahul Gandhi during a media briefing in Srinagar.

Rahul Gandhi along with Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge landed in Srinagar on Wednesday to gather feedback from grassroots workers about preparations for the upcoming assembly polls in the region.

Polling for the first phase will be held on September 18, the second phase on September 25, and the final phase on October 1.

We understand that you are going through a difficult and tough period, and we want to end the violence. Maine Bharat Jodo Yatra mein bhi bola tha ke hum nafrat ke bazar mein mohabbat ki dukaan kholna chahate hain, izzat se aur pyar se. (I had said during the Bharat Jodo Yatra that we want to open a shop of love in the market of hatred, with respect and affection) Gandhi said.

What Rahul Gandhi told party workers in Srinagar?

While addressing party workers in Srinagar, Rahul Gandhi said, There will be an alliance, but it will be formed while maintaining the respect and dignity of Congress party workers.

He added that every worker and leader has devoted their life to protecting the ideology of the Congress party and advancing its vision, and he is aware of the challenges they face.

The India bloc has shaken the confidence of Narendra Modi. You must have seen that earlier, Narendra Modi would come boasting with his chest out, but now he comes with his shoulders lowered. It is the ideology of the Congress and INDIA bloc that defeated him, he added.

Dinner with Mallikarjun Kharge

Rahul Gandhi also shared lighter moments with workers, saying that on Wednesday evening, he and party chief Mallikarjun Kharge went for dinner and he enjoyed Wazwan while Kharge did not.

Kharge ji has a bit of a problem. He went to Kerala for treatment and is now a vegetarian. The doctor has instructed him to eat vegetarian food for 15 days, and he couldnt enjoy Wazwan yesterday.
The Calcutta high court on Thursday questioned the West Bengal government over the delay in forming a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe allegations of financial irregularities at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, which is already facing scrutiny over a rape and murder case. The SIT was constituted on August 20, nearly a year after the allegations first surfaced. Calcutta high court advocates hold posters during a protest to condemn the rape and murder of a doctor in Kolkata on August 19, 2024.(AFP)

Akhtar Ali, the former deputy superintendent of the state-run medical college, petitioned for an investigation by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) into the alleged financial misconduct under the tenure of former principal Sandip Ghosh.

'Whom is he protecting?': SC questions RG Kar principals transfer, role in FIR

Ali claimed that he had reported Ghoshs alleged financial irregularities to state authorities in 2023, yet no substantial action was taken until recently.

During the hearing, Justice Rajarshi Bharadwaj, presiding over the case, asked the state government why it had taken a year to form the SIT after the allegations were first reported. The court has scheduled the next hearing for Friday.

Read: Kapil Sibal laughs amid hearing in SC on Kolkata case, SG Tushar Mehta responds

Sandip Ghosh was removed from his position as principal following the rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor at the hospital on August 9.

Ali has alleged that Ghosh was involved in scams related to biomedical waste, the illegal handling of dead bodies, failing students for bribes, awarding unnecessary tenders, and operating unauthorised kiosks on hospital premises.

I have filed a case in the High Court, a criminal case, that case has been registered and its admission hearing is tomorrow. I have also appealed to the High Court for my safety and security because I am also getting threats. And this is a very big scam. Sandip Ghosh has a very big nexus which I want to expose, he told ANI.

Read: AIIMS doctors call off 11-day strike after Supreme Court's appeal

CBI gets approval to conduct polygraph test on Sandip Ghosh

Meanwhile, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) received the court's approval to conduct a polygraph test on Sandip Ghosh and four other doctors who were on duty on the day of the rape and murder of the trainee doctor.

The CBI, which took over the investigation from the Kolkata Police following a high court order, has alleged that there was an attempt to cover up the crime.
Every book lovers dream is to own an antique book with a cloth binding the smell of history and of ancient times. And if the cloth-bound book comes straight out of the Victorian era, then it's a dream come true. However, it may not be all dreams and fun  a recent study states that touching antique books can actually poison us. Shocking revelations have been made by the study that state that the cloth bindings of the book can sometimes contain harmful chemicals and toxins. Shocking revelations have been made by the study that states that the cloth bindings of the book can sometimes contain harmful chemicals and toxins. (Unsplash)

What makes antique books so sought-after by book lovers?

Well, vibrant colours, intricate designs, and the feeling of owning a book from the Victorian era make antique books a dream for any bibliophile. However, what we may not know is that we might be secretly getting poisoned when we touch these books. The study states that the same vibrant colours that attract us to books come from toxic dyes. The study was conducted by a team of researchers from Lipscomb University in Tennessee  they studied the potential health risk that is lurking on the shelves of libraries and private collections for centuries now.

ALSO READ: Habits that could increase cancer risks

Antique books.(Unsplash)

In a media release, Abigail Hoermann, an undergraduate studying chemistry at Lipscomb University, said that the old books contain toxic dyes. The study explores the ways toxic dyes can affect people and how old books can be safely stored without the impact of the harmful dyes becoming a health hazard.

The connection between toxic dyes and book covers:

Vibrant colours on antique book covers.(Unsplash)

During the Victorian era of the 19th and early 20th centuries, vibrant colours were used on book covers to catch the attention of book lovers. Hence, book binders used colourful dyes to make the book covers extremely attractive. Various pigments were used to do the same. Some of these pigments contained harmful substances such as arsenic, lead, and chromium. When handled, or inhaled, these substances can lead to health issues. Prolonged exposure can cause cancer, lung damage, and fertility issues.
Indias remarkable strides in science and technology are reflected in the prestigious Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar  the National Science Award  conferred by the President of India this week. Among the scientists recognised for their contributions, I am honoured to be acknowledged in the field of climate science. Climate science, of course, is a dynamic field that will be key to India tackling the climate crisis as it unfolds  now and in the future. As the countrys climate landscape evolves rapidly, often outpacing our research and development efforts, it raises critical questions: How has this landscape shifted, and what steps can we take to address the grave challenges that accompany it? A drone view shows a landslide site after multiple landslides in the hills in Wayanad district, in the southern state of Kerala, India, July 31, 2024. REUTERS/Francis Mascarenhas (REUTERS)

Indias climate landscape has experienced dramatic changes over recent decades. The once favourable geographical positioning, flanked by the seas and the mountains, now faces significant threats. The Indian Ocean is warming rapidly, and the Himalayan glaciers are melting away. The subcontinent now faces more frequent and intense weather events, including floods, cloudbursts, landslides, heatwaves, droughts, and cyclones. The climate impacts are compounded by increasing land-use changes and rapid development. These impacts threaten food, water, and energy security and endanger lives and livelihoods across India.

It is now clear we need comprehensive early warning systems, not just forecasts. Addressing the escalating climate challenges requires more than weather forecasting. Indias forecasting system is among the best globally, fairly capable of predicting our tropical weather conditions up to three days in advance. However, weather forecasts do not always translate to the impacts experienced on the ground. Weather information needs to be taken to the next level, to generate landslide and flashflood forecasts and also early warnings for climate-sensitive diseases like dengue. This year, July and August saw a number of landslides, including the ones in Wayanad that took over 500 lives, and a flurry of dengue cases across the country. We did not have a comprehensive framework to provide early warnings for these events.

Effective early warning systems must integrate local topography, demographics, and infrastructure. They should account for regional variations and ensure timely communication of risks, which requires enhanced coordination across various government ministries and departments. We urgently need a dedicated research and development institution focused on early warning systems. Such an institution should facilitate data exchange, promote inter-ministerial cooperation, and provide actionable insights to the disaster management authorities.

We also need policies that can safeguard lives and livelihoods. Reactive disaster management responses to forecasts are often inadequate to save lives and livelihoods. A more proactive approach is needed, one that involves disaster-proofing regions at the district and panchayat levels. We need policies that focus on identifying hazardous hotspots  whether it is landslides, cloudbursts, heatwaves, or dengue  and implement proactive measures to protect the most vulnerable populations. We have the technological capability to achieve this, and it is crucial for protecting those most at risk.

And, very significantly, we need to make the relevant data accessible. Data accessibility and sharing are critical for addressing climate challenges in India, yet they remain one of the biggest hurdles. The countrys data accessibility policy mandates that data from all ministries and departments be open and shareable, with data management units in each ministry ensuring public accessibility. The principle is straightforward  publicly-funded data should be available in the public domain. However, poor implementation has created barriers to transdisciplinary research. For example, my research students request for forest vegetation data to study climate impacts was met with demands for exorbitant fees from the forest department, despite the department being a primary beneficiary. Similarly, another students attempt to access weekly dengue data for developing a health early warning system was hindered by lack of access, despite the data being held by state health departments. This situation highlights the urgent need for a robust framework to make Indias data more accessible, ensuring it supports research and decision-making within the country.

Climate adaptation requires collective action, and local communities are crucial to this effort. Educating people about climate risks and engaging them in disaster preparedness can significantly enhance response strategies. Communities can participate in activities like monitoring weather and climate conditions, restoring local ecosystems, and contributing to early warning systems through citizen science networks.

Integrating indigenous knowledge with modern science offers a holistic approach to managing environmental risks. By involving communities in these efforts, we strengthen our ability to develop resilient, adaptive strategies to face climate challenges together.

India stands at a critical juncture in its climate journey. The need for comprehensive, multi-layered approaches to climate resilience has never been more pressing. By investing in advanced early warning systems, ensuring robust data accessibility, and developing proactive policies, we can better mitigate the impacts of the climate crisis and safeguard our most vulnerable populations.

As we celebrate scientific achievements and recognise the contributions of our innovators, let us also commit to building a resilient and disaster-proof India. A local early warning mission is as important to the Earths future as any space mission. With dedication and a comprehensive approach, we can tackle the climate challenges of today and ensure a safer, more secure future for all.

Roxy Mathew Koll is a climate scientist at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology and a lead author andreviewer of recent IPCC reports. The views expressed are personal
As we reflect on humanitys rapid evolution over the past century, electrical devices are at the heart of this progress, making our lives more seamless and efficient. In a world where wires connect us and switches light our paths, Havells stands out as a beacon of innovation and sustainability. From its modest beginnings to becoming a global powerhouse, Havells' story is one of vision, perseverance, and a deep-rooted commitment to enhancing lives. Experience this extraordinary journey through the series "Illuminating the Future: The Story of Havells" and "Incredible Journeys Havells: Beacon of the Future," now streaming on discovery+. Legacy of Havells through 'The Havells Journey'

A Dream Born in Post-Independence India

In 1983, Qimat Rai Gupta saw potential where others saw failure. He took over the struggling Delhi-based company and, within a year, transformed it into a success. Gupta, a visionary in post-independence India, was driven by a mission to create world-class products in his homeland. Under his leadership, this small company evolved into Havells, a name synonymous with trust and innovation. His journey reflects the entrepreneurial spirit and high standards that have made Havells a globally trusted brand.

Innovating for a Brighter Tomorrow

Havells dedication to innovation stems from a profound understanding of consumer needs. The Consumer Experience and Design (CXD) team gathers insights from real-world interactions to create groundbreaking products. With over 850 team members and four centers of excellence focused on IoT, AI, and Industry 4.0 technologies, Havells is at the forefront of modern manufacturing.

The companys advanced manufacturing plants produce millions of household appliances annually, ensuring high efficiency and quality. This commitment extends to their swift installation services, guaranteeing seamless product integration and optimal performance.

The inspiring story of Havells

A Legacy of Leadership and Integrity

In 2014, Anil Rai Gupta, the son of Qimat Rai Gupta, took over as chairman. His leadership has been crucial in steering Havells through challenges, including the global financial crisis, and transforming it into a globally recognized brand. Anils innovative marketing strategies and commitment to quality have elevated Havells, while his focus on empathy and respect has fostered a culture of empowerment within the company.

Reflecting on his fathers journey, Anil says, "Sometimes I'm amazed by the sheer grit and perseverance it took for QRG to build a business during those times. It must have been very tough for him." This legacy of resilience and vision continues to drive Havells forward.

Committed to a Sustainable Future

Havells' dedication to sustainability is evident in their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, energy consumption, and plastic waste. They have planted millions of trees and installed solar plants, significantly reducing carbon emissions. Their CSR initiatives, such as Chote Kadam Badi Soch, focus on health, education, and environmental conservation, making a tangible impact on society.

Making it in India, Taking it to the World

Today, Havells India Limited is a leading Fast Moving Electrical Goods (FMEG) company and a major power distribution equipment manufacturer with a robust global presence. The company excels across a range of products, from circuit protection devices to home appliances and air conditioners. Havells pioneered exclusive brand showrooms with Havells Exclusive Brand Stores, now numbering over 700 nationwide. Additionally, their Havells Connect service offers doorstep support, ensuring high customer satisfaction.

At Havells India Ltd., our vision extends beyond manufacturing. We are dedicated pioneers in shaping a world where sustainability is the norm. Each product we develop is a testament to our unwavering commitment to a cleaner, brighter future. Leveraging cutting-edge technology and innovative practices, we strive to provide the highest quality products to our consumers.

Collaborating with an industry giant like Warner Bros. Discovery has been an extraordinary experience. Their unparalleled expertise and commitment to excellence have significantly enriched our journey. This partnership has not only elevated our standards but also reinforced our belief in the power of collaboration to drive forward-thinking solutions."

Says Mukesh Kumar Jain, Vice President at Havells India Ltd.

Tanaz Mehta, Head of Advertising Sales, South Asia, Warner Bros. Discovery, said, Collaborating on the Havells series has been an exciting opportunity to showcase their extraordinary journey and innovation. By presenting their story through two engaging documentaries, we highlighted Havells' impressive growth and global impact, while also reflecting our commitment to delivering compelling and inspiring content that resonates with viewers.

Havells journey exemplifies how vision, perseverance, and innovation can transform a small enterprise into a global leader. Guided by the legacies of Qimat Rai Gupta and Anil Rai Gupta, Havells continues to illuminate homes and lives, paving the way for a sustainable and hopeful future.

Catch both episodes, "Illuminating the Future: The Story of Havells" and "Incredible Journeys Havells: Beacon of the Future," streaming now on discovery+ for an inspiring look into the legacy and innovations of this iconic brand.

Disclaimer: This article is a paid publication and does not have journalistic/editorial involvement of Hindustan Times. Hindustan Times does not endorse/subscribe to the content(s) of the article/advertisement and/or view(s) expressed herein. Hindustan Times shall not in any manner, be responsible and/or liable in any manner whatsoever for all that is stated in the article and/or also with regard to the view(s), opinion(s), announcement(s), declaration(s), affirmation(s) etc., stated/featured in the same.
A lot of us have grown up with the idea that working with one company for decades will eventually yield rich dividends. This notion is being increasingly challenged by todays youth - and not without good reason. HR professionals weigh in on frequent job switches (Representational image)

During previous generations, if you stay loyal to an organisation ... theyll take care of you for life. Right now, the retirement benefits are not livable, Jerome Zapata, human resources director at Kickstart Venturesm, told CNBC Make It.

The HR professional conceded that employees who frequently switch jobs are likely to get paid better because merit increases can only go so far.

However, there is still a stigma associated with job hopping. Candidates who switch jobs too frequently may be considered a flight risk by companies, who would then be wary of hiring them.

Employees should weigh up the advantages and disadvantages of hopping jobs as it could be lucrative if they want to explore new career paths or a pay rise but if they do it too frequently, they can also be considered a flight risk, and companies may be cautious in investing in them, Sumita Tandon, Director for HR, APAC at Linkedin told CNBC Make It.

Very different from the 80s and 90s

A 2024 report by Endowus and Intellect revealed that 43% of Gen Z and millennial employees in Hong Kong and Singapore indicate frequent thoughts of leaving their jobs, underscoring significant turnover intention.

The situation is not much different in other parts of the world. Better work-life balance and bigger paychecks are two reasons why employees switch jobs. An employee explains how job hopping benefits her.

Vera Lau, 27, has worked at three companies in the last three years. I dont think loyalty pays off ... Its all very transactional. Youre only valuable for as long as they see you as valuable, Lau told CNBC Make It. If you dont learn and you dont earn, its time to go.

The situation was very different in the 80s and 90s. People were just grateful to hold a job and to make a paycheck, she said. Our perspective on work has changed ... our lives are not built around it [anymore] and your paycheck itself is not even enough to pay the bills or buy a house.
The Indian YouTuber who divided the internet by complaining about a $5 (roughly 400) tip in a US restaurant once bragged about earning 35 lakh a month. Ishan Sharma started a massive row by refusing to tip his server at a New York eatery, prompting her to keep his balance amount of $5 as tip for herself. Indian YouTuber Ishan Sharma sparked a row with his post on tipping in the US

He complained about the incident in a deeply divisive post on the social media platform X. While some voiced their support for the Indian YouTuber in refusing to tip his server, others accused him of ignoring the social norms of a different country.

In his post, Sharma said that his server refused to return the balance amount of $5 after he ordered food worth $45 and paid $50 in cash. I asked for change and she said you have to pay the tip and went away, he claimed. The Indian YouTuber asked the server if tipping is mandatory, but his query was ignored.

He called tipping in the United States a scam in his X post. However, leaving a tip of 15 to 20% is standard practice while eating out in the US. Sharma even admitted that his friend, a local, felt guilty that he left a tip of only 10% - and that too after arguing with the server.

Plenty of X users, both Indians and Americans, criticised the content creator for his act. The issue became murkier after some social media users dug up an old video where Ishan Sharma claimed to have earned 35 lakh in a month.

Take a look at the video below:

In the old clip, Sharma said that he earned 35 lakh in a month and called it a small amount.

X users were enraged by the throwback video and criticised the YouTuber for creating an issue out of 400 while earning so much. They accused him of being rude and stingy while willfuly ignoring the fact that tipping is customary in the US.

Cheap people like him made Indians hated, one X user commented.

Its not about how much money someone makesits the mindset of cheapness thats deeply ingrained in us. This idea of 'save money wherever you can' runs through the veins of many Indians, another opined.

However, a number of social media users also supported Sharma and said tipping should be a personal choice and cannot be enforced as mandatory.
A Karnataka High Court judge refused to entertain a woman's request for 6 lakh per month as alimony from her ex-husband, saying that she could start earning if she wanted to spend so much. The judge asked how a single woman could spend  6 lakh per month(X/@DeepikaBhardwaj)

A video from the court proceedings is being widely circulated online shows the womans advocate trying to secure a monthly maintenance amount of 6,16,300 from her ex-husband. The judge refused to pay heed to his arguments, asking how anyone could spend 6 lakh per month and calling the amount unreasonable.

In the video, the womans lawyer claimed that she needs 4 to 5 lakh per month for treatment of her knee pain, physiotherapy, medicines and other related expenses. For her basic needs of bangles, sandals, slippers, watches etc, she demanded 50,000 per month, and 60,000 on top for food.

The womans lawyer also pointed out how her ex-husband wears all branded clothes  like Calvin Klein t-shirts that cost 10,000 each  whereas she has to make do with old dresses.

In the video, he also acknowledges that the ex-husband is paying for their childrens school and tuition fee.

Please dont tell the court that this is what a person requires, the judge said in response to the petition. Six lakh, sixteen thousand, three hundred per month? Does anybody spend this much? A single lady for herself? the judge asked.

Well if she wants to spend, let her earn. Not on the husband, the Karnataka High Court judge continued.

The judge also asked the womans advocate to explain to her that her demand was unreasonable. You have no other responsibility of the family. You dont have to take care of the children, she pointed out, adding that alimony should not be a punishment to the husband.

Much appreciated

The judges take on the petition was widely lauded on social media, where the video has been watched over 2 million times.

Once again female judges showing the way with right questions and correct judgements! Hope this happens a lot more often, wrote one X user. This Judge is a truly a future CJI material. Hope this is noticed and taken into cognisance, another said.

Her husband earns in crores, so she wants to maintain the same standards. Spending 4-5 lakhs on doctors? Even if a physiotherapist charges 1,500-3,000 per visit and comes daily for a month, the total would be at most 1 lakh. How are they even calculating this? And a gold loan? If theyre so rich, why would they need a gold loan? author Isha Singla asked.
In a frightening move, a US woman jumped into a Bengal tiger enclosure at the Cohanzick Zoo in New Jersey on Sunday and nearly got bitten by the wild cat. As the tiger moved inches before her, the woman poked her fingers through the inner fencing. The tiger almost injured the woman as she was leaving the enclosure. (Unsplash)

The Bridgeton Police Department confirmed the incident on their Facebook page and also showed a video of the woman dangerously close to the tiger. Later, the department deleted the video. However, by that time, the clip had already made its way to various social media platforms.

Fox reporter Steve Keeley posted the video on his X page. The clip shows the woman, wearing a dark top and white shorts, right next to the tiger. She could be seen trying to poke it with her hand. The tiger swatted and attempted to bite at the woman's hand before she climbed back over the wooden barrier to leave the enclosure. According to the original police department post about the incident, she was nearly injured. (Also Read: Tiger's ferocious roars while moving towards safari vehicle shock people. Watch)

In his post, Keeley also added, "Despite the signs that clearly state 'Do Not Climb Over The Fence' at Fence at the Cohanzick Zoo in Cumberland County, Bridgeton Police hope the public can help them identify the woman who nearly got bit by one of the two 7-year-old, 500-pound tigers who live there."

Watch the video of the woman here:

This post was shared on August 21. Since being posted, it has garnered more than 35,000 views. The share also has numerous likes and comments. (Also Read: Influencer walking with pet tiger shocks social media: 'I would be scared to death')

Here's how people reacted to it:

An individual wrote, "It's highly predictable that someone will jump that fense. The zoo will get sued if someone gets hurt. There should be no feasible way a visitor can come in physical contact with a tiger."

Another person added, "Props to the tigers for having mercy."

"Shocking Steve! Certainly not the smartest astronaut orbiting the earth, now is she," added another X user.
By David Ljunggren and Promit Mukherjee Canada moves quickly to end rail shutdown, sees trains running soon

OTTAWA -The Canadian government moved quickly on Thursday to end an unprecedented rail stoppage, announcing it would ask the country's industrial relations board to issue a back-to-work order that should come soon.

Canada's top two railroads, Canadian National Railway and Canadian Pacific Kansas City, had locked out more than 9,000 unionized workers earlier in the day, triggering a simultaneous rail stoppage that business groups said could inflict hundreds of millions of dollars in economic damage.

The relations board, which is independent, will now consult the companies and union before issuing an order. CN said it would end its lockout Thursday at 6 p.m. ET .

"I assume that the trains will be running within days," Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon told reporters.

As well as requesting a back-to-work order, MacKinnon asked the board to start a process of binding arbitration between the Teamsters union and the companies.

The sides blamed each other for the stoppage after multiple rounds of talks failed to yield a deal. The union and CPKC were not immediately available for comment.

CN spokesperson Jonathan Abecassis told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp that it could take the company a week or more to catch up on shipments.

MacKinnon's decision marked a change of mind by the Liberal government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, which had said it wanted to see the matter settled at the bargaining table.

"We gave negotiations every possible opportunity to succeed ... but we have an impasse here," said MacKinnon.

"And that is why we have come to this decision today."

RELIANT ON RAIL

Business groups and companies had demanded the government act. Trudeau said earlier in the day that the stoppage would soon have an impact across the country.

Canada is the world's second-largest country by area and relies heavily on trains to transport a wide range of commodities and industrial goods. Its economy is heavily integrated with that of the United States, meaning a stoppage would roil North American supply chains.

The rail companies previously said they were forced into the lockouts to avoid strikes at short notice. They said they had bargained in good faith and made multiple offers with better pay and working conditions.

Paul Boucher, head of the Teamsters rail union, had accused CN and CPKC of being "willing to compromise rail safety and tear families apart to earn an extra buck".

Unions typically do not want contracts decided through arbitration as it removes their leverage from withholding labor to secure better terms.

The left-leaning New Democratic Party, which has traditionally received strong union support and props up Trudeau's government, opposed the government's decision.

"Justin Trudeau has just sent a message to CN, CPKC and all big corporations - being a bad boss pays off," party leader Jagmeet Singh said in a statement.

The stoppage has crippled shipments of grain, potash and coal while also slowing the transport of petroleum products, chemicals and autos.

Tens of thousands of people who depend on certain commuter rail lines into Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal were also hit by the lockouts, since all train movement on these CPKC-owned lines has halted indefinitely.

The stoppage was largely rooted in scheduling, availability of labor, and demands for better work-life balance, according to the union and companies. It comes after Ottawa introduced new duty and rest-period rules in 2023.

CN has said it wants workers to stay on the job for up to 12 hours, in line with government norms, a change that it said would improve productivity.

But CN workers now have shifts of up to 10 hours a day, and the Teamsters do not want to relax those conditions.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Chicago: On Wednesday night, Democrats sought to reclaim the idea of being the party of freedom and projected their nominee for president, Kamala Harris, as the person who will protect this freedom while Donald Trump would take it away. US producer/actress Oprah Winfrey arrives to speak on the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on Wednesday. (AFP)

And to do that, they deployed their old guard, former President Bill Clinton and former House speaker Nancy Pelosi; American cultural icons, Oprah Winfrey and Stevie Wonder; a pool of younger leaders in the party, governors Josh Shapiro, Wes Moore and secretary of transportation Pete Buttigieg; and a range of leaders from affiliate organisations working on human rights, reproductive rights, and rights of sexual minorities. And, if the response of the 20,000 plus participants in Chicagos United Center Arena at the partys convention was an indication, the message resonated.

With the evening centered on the theme of A fight for our freedoms, Democrats, who have long been projected as the party of big government even as Republicans have portrayed themselves as the party of liberty; sought to turn the tables. This is a messaging shift that has sharpened after Harris became the partys candidate last month.

Oprah makes surprise appearance

Oprah, who identifies as a political independent, made a surprise appearance at the convention after a video where everyday Americans described what the idea of freedom meant to them. The crowd erupted in applause and gave her a sustained standing ovation.

She placed abortion at the forefront, referring to the testimonies of those who had suffered due to the Supreme Courts decision to overturn the national protection to abortion. Pointing to her body, she said, If you do not have autonomy over this, if you cannot control when and how you choose to bring your children into this world and how they are raised and supported, there is no American dream. The women and men who are battling to keep us from going back to a time of desperation and shame and stone-cold fear, they are the new freedom fighters. And make no mistake: They are the best of America.

Oprah paid tribute to those Black girls who were at the forefront of fighting school segregation in the 1950s, and linked it to Kamala Harriss story. At school and at home, somebody did a beautiful job of showing this young girl how to challenge the people at the top and empower the people at the bottomThey instilled in her a passion for justice and freedom and the glorious fighting spirit necessary to pursue that passionAnd soon..we are going to be teaching our daughters and sons about how this child of an Indian mother and a Jamaican father, two idealistic, energetic immigrants..how this child grew up to become the 47th President of the United States.

Buttigieg, who is gay, mocked Trump and JD Vance, but also linked the idea of freedom with his own story of having a family; he and his husband have two toddlers. This kind of life went from impossible, to possible; from possible to real; from real to almost ordinary, in less than half a lifetime. But that didnt just happen. It was brought about. Through idealism and courage. Through organising and persuasion. And storytelling and, yes, through politics. The right kind of politics.

The party of real freedom

Shapiro, who was in the running to be Harriss vice-presidential pick, projected Democrats as the party of real freedom and attacked Trump for wanting to take away rights and freedom. Its not freedom to tell our children what books they are allowed to read. Its not freedom to tell women what they can do with their bodies. It sure as hell isnt freedom to say you can go vote but he gets to pick the winner. Instead, Shapiro said, real freedom was having great public schools, investing in the police and community, when someone can join a union, marry who she wants, start a family on her terms. Real freedom is when she can look at Madam President and know that this is a nation where everything and anything is possible.

Maryland governor Moore, an Afghanistan veteran and the first Black governor of his state, built on the theme of freedom, but laced it with the idea of patriotism, another issue that Democrats have sought to reclaim from Republicans.

Clinton targets Donald Trump

Clinton, the 78-year old former president who said he had begun attending conventions since 1972 and left office 23 years ago, turned the tables on Donald Trump by saying he was still younger than the Republican nominee. He called Harris the president of joy who would look out for all Americans, while Trump was obsessed with me, myself, I. But given the mood of jubilation in Democratic ranks, perhaps in a reminder of what had happened to his wifes campaign in 2016, Clinton also warned his party from not being complacent and underestimating the adversary. And Pelosi, the grand old lady of the Democratic Party who played a critical role in getting Joe Biden to drop out of the race, reminded the Democratic delegates about the mob attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021 and how it was Democrats who had saved democracy that day.

By putting freedom, patriotism and democracy on the ballot, Democrats hope they can secure their base but also win over the swing vote. Whether the message resonates outside the hall of the party faithful will be known on November 5.
* In Kenya, drought-weary farmers reap rewards of early warnings

UN seeks to protect crops with early warning systems

*

Meteorological data, text messages tip off farmers

*

System can help reduce famine caused by droughts, floods

By Peter Yeung

KILIFI COUNTY, Kenya, - W hen farmer Teresa Kahindi harvested nearly two tonnes of maize two years ago amid a severe drought, her neighbours in the Kenyan coastal county of Kilifi accused her of witchcraft.

Many of her fellow farmers had not produced even a single sack, weighing about 90 kg, of the staple, during the fifth consecutive season of almost no rain in eastern Kenya, where arid conditions can devastate harvests.

"They said I was a witch," said Kahindi, 53, while strolling through her fields of black-eyed peas, mung beans, cassava, finger millet and sunflowers.

"But it's not true. We can't farm like we used to do. Now we must rely on climate forecasts."

Kahindi's drought-defying harvest was thanks to a sophisticated early-warning system that includes cutting-edge meteorological data, radio and text alerts and on-the-ground teams that ensure communities can take pre-emptive action to avoid crop losses.

In March 2022, a month before the rainy season was due to begin, Kahindi was advised to adapt her plans at a seminar for farmers run by county officials.

She prepared her plots with manure to enhance water retention, covered the soil with dry grass mulching to reduce evaporation and planted drought-tolerant maize seeds, which require less water and mature faster than other varieties.

"Knowledge can transform farming," says Kahindi.

Kenya's early warning system, funded by the government and a patchwork of international agencies, may offer a template for countries to meet the United Nation's 2022 goal to protect "all people on Earth" by 2027 through early warning systems.

The U.N. launched the Early Warnings for All Action Plan for Africa in Kenya's capital of Nairobi last year in an effort to accelerate a slow rollout in other parts of the continent.

"In terms of early warning, Kenya stands out as a big brother for East Africa," said Zablon Shilenje, the World Meteorological Organization's coordinator for Africa.

REDUCING FAMINE RISK

As extreme weather events increase due to manmade climate change, the Kenyan model allows farmers to switch agricultural techniques or the crops they cultivate to adapt to predicted conditions, such as intense droughts or heavy floods.

Between 2020 and 2022, the Horn of Africa suffered its worst drought in at least 70 years, exacerbated by the climate phenomenon La Nina. Some 23 million people required humanitarian aid at a cost of more than $1.8 billion.

More people will be exposed to drought as the region's population is set to double to 400 million by 2055.

Food security experts say Kenya's early warning system has mitigated the impact of disasters  in turn minimising the likelihood of famine in one of the world's most food insecure regions.

Between 2010 and 2011, when repeated droughts struck the East African nation, 2.8 million Kenyans were left "severely hungry."

Thanks to early warnings, a million fewer people suffered during similar droughts in 2016 and 2017, even as the U.S. government halved its spending on food aid, according to a report by the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID.

The effort to predict droughts dates back to 1985 with the founding of the Famine Early Warning Systems Network , a USAID-funded programme that began in the aftermath of a catastrophic Ethiopia famine but now covers more than 50 countries.

Supported by Kenya's National Drought Management Authority and Agriculture Ministry, as well as international NGOs, the system uses high-resolution satellite, crop and other climate data to predict the risk of drought, sometimes up to eight months in advance.

Local authorities interpret, verify and communicate forecasts to millions of farmers through radio, television, SMS and WhatsApp messages and sometimes provide them with subsidised fertilisers and seeds.

"We are able to foresee severe events in a timely manner," said David Gikungu, director of the Kenya Meteorological Department.

'COME A LONG WAY'

Advances in data collection, modelling and satellite monitoring have helped make early warning more reliable over the years, said Chris Funk, director of the Climate Hazards Center at UC Santa Barbara, which processes most of FEWS NET's data.

Other improvements include an understanding of the complex climatic conditions that drive drought in the Horn of Africa and the region's communications infrastructure.

"We've really come a long way," Funk said. "We have an impressive suite of tools now. It's been successful in stopping people from starving."

A study of FEWS NET data by U.S. researchers found 92 percent of early warnings in Kenya were accurate, aided by better monitoring of socioeconomic factors, such as food prices and violent conflict.

While Kenya's early warning system is now highly accurate at predicting natural disasters, critics say decisionmakers don't always act on time or with enough financial support.

"Unless the government and other stakeholders put up the resources, then it can't work," said James Odour, NDMA's director from 2012 to 2022.

"Unless action is taken on the early warning, then it's pointless."

Nelson Mutanda, responsible for early warning systems at the NDMA, said the government instructed counties to allocate 2% of their annual budgets to early warning and gave local authorities the responsibility of managing funds.

"Counties have enough budget ," he said. "But some don't prioritise it. They can't come crying to us for support just because they haven't properly prepared."

He added: "And we expect farmers who are capable should take initiative without waiting for funding."

'LAST MILE'

Research suggests pre-emptive intervention can save billions of dollars. A 2022 report by the World Bank found that spending $1 billion on early warnings can avert $35 billion of disaster-related losses annually.

Another major challenge is disseminating warnings to rural populations.

In Kenya's southern county of Kajiado, home to the pastoralist Indigenous Maasai, drought warnings may not be understood, due to illiteracy rates, or sometimes are not even delivered when there are gaps in government or humanitarian resources.

"I need help, I would accept training," said Ole Mwato, a 46-year-old Maasai who lost 20 cows and 80 goats in the 2020-2022 droughts.

"It's a lot of pain to lose the animals. There was no grass, no water. That's why they died."

Others are resistant to undertaking laborious tasks, such as digging pits to retain water, seeing it as a potential waste of time because past forecasts were unreliable or traditional cultural beliefs that say the rains are controlled by the gods.

To improve forecast accuracy, 50 low-cost, 3D-printed automatic weather stations, capable of sending highly accurate meteorological data every 15 minutes, are being installed by FEWS NET across Kenya, including three in Kilifi. For now, Kahindi is leading by example, encouraging local farmers to adapt their methods to future weather in order to maximise yields.

"We must work together to beat famine," she said.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
ZIV HOSPITAL is nestled at the bottom of Safed, the highest city in Israel, not far from the border with Syria and Lebanon. In November the hospital acknowledged that hackers had penetrated its computer systems. An Iran-backed hacking group would later claim to have gained access to 500 gigabytes of patient data, including 100,000 medical records linked to Israeli soldiers. That is hardly unusual. Hackers regularly target and breach hospitals, usually to extort ransoms.

The digital assault on Ziv, however, embodied the cyberwar raging between Israel and its enemies in the aftermath of Hamass massacre of Israelis on October 7th. The attack was novel in several respects, says Gaby Portnoy, the head of the Israel National Cyber Directorate (INCD), the countrys defensive cyber-agency, in an interview with The Economist. For one thing, it was a joint operation conducted by Iran and its ally Hizbullah, the militia and political party that dominates Lebanon. They didnt work so well together until October 7th, he says. We now see themexchanging targets, exchanging capabilities. They are almost the same.

Read all our coverage of the war between Israel and Hamas

The choice of target also broke with the past. Iran and Hizbullah had not previously attacked Israeli hospitals, says Mr Portnoy, a retired brigadier-general. After October 7th Ali Khamenei, Irans supreme leader, ordered cyber-operations against Israel to be expanded, he says, citing Israeli intelligence. The result has been a barrage both more intense and more refined.

The rate of cyberattacks against Israel rose three-fold after October 7th. Iranian ones have grown more sophisticated, with less spillover beyond the intended target. They are more accurate, they collect better intel and they go to the right places, says Mr Portnoy. They know more about Israel, sometimes, than we do. Previously it would take Iran weeks to exploit software vulnerabilities that had become public, he adds. That has fallen to days.

None has succeeded in disrupting Israels critical infrastructure, such as power or water systems, in part thanks to digital sensors placed inside the networks of crucial facilities after October 7th. Most of the intrusions are, in essence, a form of harassment rather than anything resembling an armed attack. Some are meant for espionage rather than subversion. But many are also a form of information warfare.

Know your enemy

Some Iran-linked hackers have masqueraded as the families of hostages captured by Hamas, with the aim of widening divisions in Israeli society. Iranian hackers have developed a sophisticated understanding of Israels social and political fractures, notes a recent study by the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv, with separate messages aimed at proponents and opponents of the war.

In some cases, hackers intending to frighten Israelis need not even hack anything, notes James Shires of the European Cyber Conflict Research Institute. For example, an Iranian group leaked footage purporting to be from outside Israels Nevatim air base. It was, in fact, from an unrelated site on a road of the same name in northern Israel. You get the effect by getting attention on it, he says.

Hamas itself, apart from some early hacking of surveillance cameras in Israel, has been almost irrelevant as a cyber force since December, says Mr Portnoy. He chalks that up to Israels war in Gaza, which has disrupted the groups hackers as well as its fighters. More broadly, Mr Portnoy, a veteran of Unit 8200, an elite intelligence unit that conducts offensive cyber-operations, acknowledges that protecting Israels computer networks requires penetrating enemy ones: You cannot do defence without offensive acts.

That is partly to identify the sources of attacks. But it is also to punch back. Consider Predatory Sparrow, a hacking group suspected to be a front for the Israeli government. In 2021 it disrupted the rail network and petrol stations across Iran, and hacked into digital billboards to display messages mocking Mr Khamenei. A follow-up in 2022 damaged three Iranian steel factories, spewing molten steel across the floor of one plant. In December it struck again, bringing down 70% of the petrol stations in Iran, declaring: This cyberattack comes in response to the aggression of the Islamic Republic and its proxies.

Israeli officials do not publicly acknowledge their role in these attacks. But Mr Portnoy insists that Israel shares the same norms and values as Western offensive cyber-agencies. We will not do things that our enemies are doing to us, he says. We are very concerned not to harm people, not to influence civilian life too much. Predatory Sparrow attacksunlike Russian or North Korean attacks on critical infrastructure in the pastshow signs of restraint and careful design, notes J.D. Work of the National Defence University in Washington. He cites features that prevent the malware from spreading to unrelated networks and the decision to use well-known, extensively documented tools rather than novel ones, which could result in the proliferation of advanced cyber capabilities.

The result is a lopsided cyberwar of very unequal actors, says Mr Shires. Israel has repeatedly shown it can do spectacular harm to the computer networks controlling some of Irans key infrastructure. Despite its progress, Irans capabilities are not much better than mid-level organised crime gangs, says a source. Israeli officials fear that could change suddenly. Iran has provided drones, shells and other arms to Russia for use in Ukraine; a concern is that Russia might reciprocate with cyber tools or know-how.

That would be a surprise. Russia has long used those tools to snoop on Iran itself, sometimes cannily pocketing intelligence that has been collected by Iranian spies. Even so, the lack of precedent does not reassure Israeli officials. Iran, says Mr Portnoy, in a click of a button could have superpower capabilities.

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Rescued Israeli hostage Noa Argamani has opened up about the horrors of Hamas captivity. The 26-year-old was successfully rescued by the IDF in June. Noa Argamani describes horrors of Hamas captivity (Photo by Richard A. Brooks / AFP)(AFP)

Every night I was falling asleep and thinking, this may be the last night of my life, Argamani, who was abducted by Hamas terrorists from the Supernova music festival on October 7, told a room full of G7 embassy representatives in Tokyo on Wednesday, August 21, according to AFP.

Argamani spent as many as eight months in captivity in the Gaza Strip. She recalled that she was unable to shower more than twice a month, and food and water were scarce.

I lost a lot of weight. We drank something like less than a half liter for a day, and there were days that we [were not allowed] to drink at all, Argamani said.

A disturbing video Argamanis abduction went viral after the October 7 attack on Israel. The video showed her screaming for help while being taken away by Hamas terrorists on a motorbike, her arms stretched towards her boyfriend Avinatan Or. Or was also kidnapped, and is reportedly still being held hostage in Gaza.

Argamani has now said that she survived the difficult times while being held captive by focusing on mindfulness and memories of better times. [Things like] scuba diving, everything that I liked to do in my free time before, it really helped me to get to just release, to know that if today Im okay, I dont need to worry about the future, she said.

And until the moment I was [rescued]  I just did not believe that Im still surviving, she added.

Its a miracle that Im here

Argamani returned home just in time to reunite with her ailing mother. Liora, her mom, who was battling stage 4 brain cancer, died in July.

Argamani said that her survival in Gaza was a miracle. And in this moment that Im still sitting with you, its a miracle that Im here. Its a miracle because I survived October 7, and I survived this bombing, and I survived also the rescue, she said.

Argamani urged the world leaders to secure the release of the remaining hostages, including Or. Avinatan, my boyfriend, is still there, and we need to bring them back before its going to be too late, she said.

We dont want to lose more people than we already lost, she added.

Argamani said she believes Or does not know she has been rescued. I just want to say that he should take care of himself, and I am waiting for him at home and doing as much as I can to bring him home to his family. And to me also, she said.
Toronto: Over 100 institutions in Canada were emailed bomb threats on Wednesday, with the wording on the messages seemingly identical to those received by many hospitals and malls in the Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR), India on Tuesday. Bomb squad team investigates after a bomb hoax call at a hospital in New Delhi, India on Tuesday. (HT)

Canadian media reported that approximately 125 institutions, mainly linked to the Jewish community, received the emailed threats, which were sent early in the morning, around 5am.

The outlet CBC News, which viewed a copy of an email, reported it had seemingly identical wording to those threatening government and private hospitals and malls in the NCR a day earlier.

In a statement, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said it was aware of threats made today to a number of institutions, including synagogues and hospitals, across Canada. We are working with local law enforcement, who are actively responding to ensure locations are safe and secure.

It also said the Federal Policing National Security Program was investigating the source of the threats. CBC cited RCMP Sergeant Charles Poirier as saying that its Integrated National Security Enforcement Team out of Montreal was leading the investigation and that the team was aware of the email sent in India and that it was in contact with international partners to see if suspects had been identified, and whether similar emails were sent in other places as well.

However, a senior Indian official said they had not been contacted on this account.

According to Indian media reports, the email said, We have placed many explosives in your building. They are placed in black backpacks. The bombs are set to go off in a few hours. You will all end up in a pool of blood, none of you deserve to keep living. Everyone inside the building will lose their lives. Similar threats had targeted NCR schools in May.

The institutions threatened were in all major Canadian urban centres including Toronto, Montreal, Calgary, Vancouver, Hamilton and Ottawa, where a hospital was targeted.

In a statement, the advocacy organisation, Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) said, We are in contact with law enforcement and all indications point to these threats being nuisance emails designed to disrupt lives.

We will remain vigilant, but we will never be intimidated, it added.

In a post on X, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau condemned the threats, as he said, Im disgusted at reports that more than 100 Jewish institutions across Canada were targeted by threats today. This is blatant anti-semitism.
MOSCOW, - Russia begins installing concrete shelters in Kursk region amid Ukrainian incursion

Authorities in Russia's western Kursk region have begun installing concrete shelters to help protect civilians amid an ongoing Ukrainian incursion, the acting regional governor said on Thursday.

Russian forces have been fighting Ukrainian troops in Kursk, which borders Ukraine, since Aug. 6, when thousands of Kyiv's troops smashed through the border, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people.

"On my instructions, the administration of the city of Kursk has identified key points for the placement of concrete modular shelters  in crowded places," Acting Governor Alexei Smirnov wrote on Telegram. Some 60 bus stations would be equipped with the shelters, he said.

Smirnov published a photograph of one of the concrete structures being delivered by truck. The city of Kursk has a population of around 450,000 people.

The governor said the shelters would be erected in two other towns, Zheleznogorsk and Kurchatov. The latter is home to the Kursk nuclear power plant, which Russia has accused Ukraine of

planning to attack, something Kyiv has denied.

Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency , is

scheduled to visit

the plant at the end of August.

Separately, a Russian official said on Thursday that Moscow's forces had prevented Ukrainian troops from piercing the border in the western Bryansk region, about 240 km from the site of the battles in Kursk.

Meanwhile, Russian forces are pressing ahead with their own offensive in eastern Ukraine as they seek to take full control of the Donetsk region.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
MOSCOW - Russia said on Thursday its troops had beaten back an attempt by a Ukrainian force to infiltrate its border in a different region to Kyiv's incursion onto Russian territory, while Ukrainian drones struck near an air base in southern Russia. Russia says it thwarts Ukrainian cross-border raid in new area

The governor of Bryansk region, Alexander Bogomaz, said the attack by a Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance team on Wednesday was thwarted by Russian border guards and military units.

It took place about 240 km from the site of Ukraine's incursion into the neighbouring Kursk region in western Russia, suggesting that the Kyiv government aimed to carry the war to more border areas.

Authorities in Kursk said on Thursday they had begun installing concrete shelters to help protect civilians amid the Ukrainian incursion.

Ukrainian troops piled through the Russian border into Kursk on Aug. 6 in a surprise assault after its troops had failed to make any significant gains on their own territory since late 2022.

Kyiv has announced a string of battlefield successes since mounting the action, but meanwhile Moscow has steadily pushed forward in eastern Ukraine, pressuring troops worn down by hard years of fighting following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Russia has repeatedly said the Ukrainian offensive has beenhalted. Ukraine has also continued to tout advances.

Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov told a visiting delegation of U.S. congressmen on Wednesday that Kyiv's attack on Kursk was intended to protect Ukraine.

Umerov said in a statement: "Our goals there are to clear the border from Russian military threats and make enemy shelling and attacks on our towns and villages impossible."

The incursion has boosted morale among Ukrainians as they prepare to mark 33 years since independence from the Soviet Union on Saturday. The U.S. Embassy in Kyiv however warned on Thursday there was a heightened risk of Russian missile and drone attacks throughout Ukraine in the coming days connected to Independence Day.

DRONE SWARMS

In Russia's southern Volgograd region, a fire broke out at a military facility after a Ukrainian drone crashed into it on Thursday, regional governor Andrei Bocharov said.

Bocharov, posting on Telegram, said no one had been hurt and he did not specify what facility had been attacked, but said the attack focused on the area of the Marinovka village, where a military air base is located.

Aviation watchdog Rosaviatsia said temporary restrictions were imposed on Thursday on the Volgograd airport, which was not accepting or sending aircraft.

Russia's defence ministry said it had shot down 28 drones over Russian territory.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Thursday he and his army chief had visited the border region of Sumy near the border with Russia. Ukrainian troops had taken control of one more village in the Kursk region, he said. Ukrainian officials have previously said Kyiv controls more than 90 settlements there.

The Ukrainian military's General Staff said the fighting on the eastern front remained intense and that Russian troops had launched 53 assaults and offensive actions on the front to the east of the transport hub of Pokrovsk in the last 24 hours.

The Ukrainian navy said its forces conducted an attack on a Russian ammunition and fuel storage site on the Moscow-held Kinburn Spit that juts out into the Black Sea in occupied southern Ukraine.

Russia said on Wednesday its forces had advanced in eastern Ukraine and had begun to push back Ukrainian forces in the Kursk region, though a senior commander cautioned that Ukrainian forces were regrouping for another possible attack

Ukraine has closely guarded its main aims in Kursk region but said it has carved out a buffer zone from an area Russia has used to pound targets in Ukraine with cross-border strikes.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Toronto: A number of Indo-Canadians have been arrested in recent days in connection with incidents of sexual assault. ukhmanjot Singh, who is wanted for his alleged involvement in sexual assault in Kitchener city, Ontario, Canada. (Credit: Waterloo Regional Police)

On Wednesday, the Surrey detachment of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) stated that charges had been approved in an alleged incident of sexual assault against 24-year-old Jatinder Singh, a resident of the town in Surrey. This followed an investigation that commenced on July 20.

At 3.15am (local time), police responded to a report of alleged stranger sexual assault. The victim reported that she was woken up by a man groping her in her residence. The victim screamed for help and the suspect fled, the release said. Jatinder Singh has also been charged with breaking and entering. He was produced before a court on August 16, but released on conditions including having no contact or communication of the victim or going within 50 metres of her.

Also on Wednesday, Waterloo Regional Police said it was searching for a person in connection with a sexual assault in the town of Kitchener on August 10. That suspect was identified as 21-year-old Sukhmanjot Singh, with connections to the Region of Waterloo and to Peel Region and he is considered armed and dangerous.

On Tuesday, police in Winnipeg in Manitoba said it had detained and charged 34-year-old Gurpreet Vehniwal. This followed police responding to an alleged abduction incident on August 16. A release said that three days earlier, the victim was confronted in his residence by two males, one of whom was known to him. He was allegedly beaten and abducted and driven to an undisclosed location where he was sexually assaulted and had his cellular phone and passport taken from him. He was eventually released and subsequently called the police.

Vehniwal faces multiple charges including those of robbery, kidnapping and sexual assault.

The cases reported this week add to a growing number in recent months. On July 27, Dr Sunilkumar Patel, 36, a dentist practising in the town of Ajax, was charged with two counts of sexual assault. He was released on an undertaking. This came after a patient visited the dental clinic on July 13 and on two instances, accused him of touching her inappropriately, according to Durham Regional Police, who were concerned there may have been additional victims.

Earlier in July, a 25-year-old was arrested, though later released from custody, in connection with allegations that he groped a dozen persons, including minors, at a water park in Moncton in the province of New Brunswick.

On July 12, Surrey RCMP said 59-year-old Ajastar Singh has been charged with sexual assault and sexual interference with a person under the age of 16. He was charged in relation with an investigation which began in May last year. On May 4, 2023, Surrey RCMP responded to a report that a 15-year-old female youth had been sexually assaulted at or in the area of the Gurdwara Dukh Nivaran, which is Surrey, British Columbia. The suspect was an employee at the gurdwara.

On July 4, Ajastar Singh was Singh was arrested for the two offences and appeared in court. He was released pending a future court date with multiple conditions, including no contact with children under the age of 16; not being at public areas where children under the age of 16 would likely be present; and not engaging in employment or volunteer work that involves working with children under the age of 16.
By Charlotte Greenfield Taliban appoints ambassador to UAE for first time since Afghanistan takeover

ISLAMABAD, - Afghanistan's Taliban-led foreign ministry said it has appointed its first accredited ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, the second country to accept an envoy at that level after China.

The UAE foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Taliban's government has not been officially recognised by any foreign capital and only Beijing has formally accepted the credentials of an ambassador.

The Taliban have also sent envoys to several countries including neighbouring Pakistan to head missions as "charge d'affaires".

The Taliban-run foreign ministry said in a statement late on Wednesday that Mawlawi Badreddin Haqqani had been nominated as its ambassador and presented his credentials to the UAE's foreign ministry's assistant undersecretary for protocol affairs.

"The newly accredited Ambassador of Afghanistan will soon formally present his credentials to the Emir of the United Arab Emirates during official ceremony," the ministry said.

The Taliban share economic ties with the UAE, which won contracts to run operations at Kabul airport in 2022. Interior minister Sirajuddin Haqqani, designated as a "specially designated global terrorist" by the U.S., met UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi in June.

The Taliban entered the Afghan capital on Aug. 15, 2021, as the Afghan security forces, set up with years of Western support, disintegrated and U.S.-backed President Ashraf Ghani fled.

Though China and the UAE have not formally recognised the Taliban administration or confirmed any official change in relations, diplomats and international analysts say formally accepting an ambassador is a grey area of international diplomacy that could constitute upgraded ties.

Many governments, especially Western nations including Washington, have said the path to any formal recognition of the Taliban will be stuck until they change course on women's rights and re-open high schools and universities to girls and women.

The Taliban say they respect rights in accordance with their interpretation of Islamic law and that restrictions on its banking sector and a lack of recognition are hindering its economy.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
LONDON, - The number of British visas granted to foreign health and care workers and family members of international students fell sharply after the previous Conservative government imposed restrictions to reduce net migration. UK visas for health and care workers slump following move to cut immigration

High levels of legal migration have long dominated Britain's political discourse and were one of the major drivers for the Brexit referendum in 2016.

Former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last year sought to reduce the number of foreign care staff and students coming to Britain, including preventing some post-graduate students from bringing family members.

Britain granted 89,095 health and care worker visas in the year ending in June, down 26% compared with a year earlier. Between April and June, the number of granted visas for these workers was down 81% year-on-year.

As part of efforts to bring down net immigration, the previous government tightened visa rules, introducing higher salary thresholds and curbs on care workers bringing in family members.

Marley Morris, associate director for migration, trade and communities at the Institute for Public Policy Research think tank, said the restrictions could exacerbate problems in a sector struggling to fill vacancies.

"The social care sector is still struggling with recruitment and the government will need to monitor the situation closely to avoid a further staffing crisis," he said.

The total number of visas issued to foreign students to study at British universities was 432,225 in the year ending in June, down 13% compared with a year earlier.

While visas granted to dependants of overseas students in the first six months of this year fell by 81% to 11,675 compared to the same period a year earlier.

Britain boasts some of the most famous and sought after universities in the world, from Oxford and Cambridge to Imperial College London. Business leaders argue they boost innovation, increase creativity and provide a form of soft power.

But some British ministers in the last government complained that some students and their dependants were applying for visas and then claim asylum or overstay.

Polls show that controlling immigration is now the most important issue for British voters for the first time in eight years, following far-right riots targeting Muslims and migrants that began earlier this month.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Dhaka: A team of the United Nations (UN) arrived in Bangladesh on Thursday to discuss modalities for an investigation into human rights abuses and violations during the violence and unrest that preceded the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government. A policeman aims his weapon at protesters during a curfew imposed following violence during protests against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her government, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on August 5. (AP)

The small team led by Rory Mungoven, chief of the Asia-Pacific Section of the office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, will hold preliminary discussions regarding the proposed investigation in order to extend support to the interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus.

Its really an exploratory visit for discussions with the interim government, with the advisers, with some of the ministries, with civil society, with a broad cross-section of Bangladeshi society, to hear your priorities, Mungoven told reporters about the teams eight-day visit in response to a request from the interim government.

The discussions will centre around the modalities for the investigation, the way the UN can work with the interim government and support the national process in Bangladesh going forward, he said after a meeting with Bangladeshs foreign secretary Masud Bin Momen.

UN human rights chief Volker Turk had phoned Yunus on August 14 and said a UN-led investigation would be launched soon to probe the killing of protesters during the students revolution. Turk also said a team of UN experts would visit Bangladesh to set up the investigation.

Mungoven assured Bangladesh of all assistance, including for the fact-finding investigation, and said his teams mission is to explore ways the UN can support Bangladesh at this time.

People familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity the team is expected to meet members of the interim government and civil society to collect information.

A statement from the UN Resident Coordinators Office in Bangladesh said the team will visit Dhaka during August 22-29 for preliminary discussions with the interim government and other stakeholders. The purpose of the visit is to understand their priorities for assistance in promoting human rights.

It is important to note that this visit is not an investigation, but rather it will focus on discussing the process for investigating human rights violations in light of the recent violence and unrest, the statement said.

Once details are finalised, a separate fact-finding team will be sent to Bangladesh in the coming weeks to conduct the investigation, the statement said.

The interim government has expressed its readiness to cooperate with the UN team to ensure a fair and impartial investigation.
A court in Romania's capital Thursday placed the divisive internet influencer Andrew Tate under house arrest for 30 days, as prosecutors investigate a sprawling new case that involves allegations of human trafficking of minors and sex with a minor. Andrew Tate shouts outside the Bucharest Tribunal after being placed under house arrest, in Bucharest, Romania, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. A court in Romania's capital on Thursday placed the divisive internet influencer Andrew Tate under house arrest for 30 days, as prosecutors investigate a sprawling new case that involves allegations of human trafficking of minors and sex with a minor. (AP Photo/Alexandru Dobre)(AP)

The Bucharest Tribunals decision comes a day after prosecutors detained six people including Tate, 37, and his brother Tristan Tate, 36, after masked police raided four homes in Bucharest and nearby Ilfov county. Prosecutors had asked the court to remand the brothers in custody for 30 days. Tristan has been placed under judicial control, which typically involves geographical restrictions and reporting periodically to the police.

The brothers' spokesperson, Mateea Petrescu, responded to the decision by saying the judge denied prosecutors' request due to the brothers' exemplary behavior" while previously under preventative arrest measures in a separate case, and that they firmly deny all of the allegations against them and remain steadfast in proving their innocence.

The Tate brothers, both former kickboxers and dual British-U.S. citizens, are already awaiting trial in Romania in a separate human trafficking case along with two Romanian women. Romanian prosecutors formally indicted all four last year.

In the new case, Romanias anti-organized crime agency DIICOT said it is investigating allegations of human trafficking, including the trafficking of minors, sexual intercourse with a minor, forming an organized criminal group, money laundering, and influencing statements. The alleged crimes date between 2014 and 2024.

DIICOT said the defendants used the coercive loverboy method to exploit 34 vulnerable victims who were forced to produce pornographic materials for a fee online, and that more than $2.8 million (2.5 million euros) it generated was kept by the defendants.

An unnamed foreign man also sexually exploited a 17-year-old foreigner, DIICOT alleges, and said he kept all of the $1.5 million (1.3 million euros) made from the criminal activity. The same man repeatedly had sexual relations and acts with a 15-year-old, the agency alleges.

Outside the court after the judge issued his house arrest measure, Andrew Tate told reporters that many of the alleged victims in the new case have statements in the Tate brothers defense. This is a set-up, its absolutely disgusting, fair play to that judge who saw through the bullshit and let us free, he said.

Andrew Tate, who has 9.9 million followers on the social media platform X, is known for expressing misogynistic views online and has repeatedly claimed that prosecutors have no evidence against him and that there is a political conspiracy to silence him. He was previously banned from various social media platforms for misogynistic views and hate speech.

During the entire criminal process, the investigated persons benefit from the procedural rights and guarantees provided by the Code of Criminal Procedure, as well as the presumption of innocence, DIICOT said.

During the police raids on Wednesday, which also involved scouring the Tate brothers' large property near Bucharest, authorities seized 16 luxury vehicles, a motorbike, laptops, thousands of dollars in cash, luxury watches, and data storage drives.

The latest case against the Tates adds to a litany of legal woes against them.

After the Tate brothers arrest in December 2022, they were held for three months in police detention before being moved to house arrest. They were later restricted to Bucharest municipality and nearby Ilfov county, and then to Romania.

In April, the Bucharest Tribunal ruled in that case that prosecutors case file against them met the legal criteria and that a trial could start but did not set a date for it to begin.

Last month, a court overturned an earlier decision that allowed the Tate brothers to leave Romania as they await trial. The earlier court ruled on July 5 that they could leave the country as long as they remained within the 27-member European Union. The decision was final.

In March, the Tate brothers also appeared at the Bucharest Court of Appeal in a separate case, after British authorities issued arrest warrants over allegations of sexual aggression in a U.K. case dating back to 2012-2015. The appeals court granted the British request to extradite the the Tates to the U.K., but only after legal proceedings in Romania have concluded.
BUELLTON, Calif.  President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday as the United States presses Israel and Hamas to agree to a bridging proposal that could lead to a cease-fire in the war in Gaza. Biden speaks with Netanyahu as US prods Israel and Hamas to come to agreement on cease-fire deal

Hamas and Israel have signaled that challenges remain amid significant differences over the presence of Israeli troops in two strategic corridors in Gaza and other issues, dimming Biden's hopes that a deal can soon be reached. Vice President Kamala Harris, who is in Chicago this week to accept her party's nomination at the Democratic National Convention, also joined the call.

Biden "stressed the urgency of bringing the ceasefire and hostage release deal to closure," the White House said in a statement. The two leaders also discussed using high-level talks in Cairo this week between mediators from the U.S., Israel, Egypt and Qatar to work through "remaining obstacles" to an agreement.

But hope that a deal can be completed, at least in the near term, appears to be diminishing.

The president on Friday said he was optimistic that an agreement could be reached after he spoke by phone with Qatars emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al Thani, and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, whose countries are key interlocutors with Hamas.

But by Tuesday, Biden was notably more muted about the prospects of the two sides coming to an agreement soon. He told reporters after delivering an address at the Democratic convention that Hamas was now backing off, but that the U.S. is going to keep pushing to land a cease-fire deal.

The president spoke with the Israeli prime minister from Santa Ynez, Calif., where he's vacationing with his family at the 8,000-acre property of the medical technology mogul and Democratic donor Joe Kiani.

The White House said Biden and Netanyahu discussed escalating tensions between Israel and Iran, and with militant groups  Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis  that are backed by Tehran.

The call came after Secretary of State Antony Blinken met this week with officials in Israel, Egypt, and Qatar and ahead of the new round of talks in Cairo later this week.

"This is a decisive moment, probably the best, maybe the last opportunity to get the hostages home, to get a ceasefire, and to put everyone on a better path to enduring peace and security," Blinken said after meeting with Netanyahu and Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Tel Aviv on Monday.

Officials in Egypt told The Associated Press on Wednesday that Hamas wont agree to the bridging proposal for a number of reasons  ones in addition to the long-held wariness over whether a deal would truly remove Israeli forces from Gaza and end the war.

One Egyptian official, with direct knowledge of the negotiations who requested anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter, said the bridging proposal requires the implementation of the deals first phase, which has Hamas releasing the most vulnerable civilian hostages captured in its Oct. 7 attack on Israel that sparked the war. Parties during the first phase would negotiate the second and third phases with no guarantees to Hamas from Israel or mediators.

The official said the proposal doesnt clearly say Israel will withdraw its forces from two strategic corridors in Gaza, the Philadelphi corridor alongside Gazas border with Egypt and the Netzarim east-west corridor across the territory. Israel offers to downsize its forces in the Philadelphi corridor, with promises to withdraw from the area, the official said.

Hamas is seeking a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, including the Philadelphi Corridor, a narrow 14.5-km-long stretch of land along the coastal enclaves southern border with Egypt.

Netanyahu met earlier this week with right-wing groups of families of fallen soldiers and hostages in Gaza. The groups, which oppose a cease-fire deal, said he told them Israel will not abandon the two strategic corridors in Gaza. Netanyahus office did not comment on the groups' accounts.

Blinken after his visit to Egypt and Qatar said the bridging proposal is very clear on the schedule and the locations of withdrawals from Gaza, but no details on either have emerged.

writer Samy Magdy in Cairo contributed reporting.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Former president Bill Clinton addressed the Democratic convention on Wednesday following a loud round of applause and cheers from the crowd. While he began his speech by hailing incumbent President Joe Biden, he launched a scathing attack on Donald Trump, citing his age. Former U.S. President Bill Clinton gestures onstage on Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center, in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 21, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Segar(REUTERS)

Clinton thanked Biden for courage, compassion, his class, his service and his sacrifice as the POTUS.

Bill Clinton warns Democrats, suggests not to underestimate adversary

In reference to Donald Trump, the GOP presidential candidate, Clinton warned that Democrats have already witnessed one election slip away when they thought it couldn't happen.

He advised his party to never underestimate your adversary, pointing out that these people are really good at distracting us.

We Democrats have a lot of hay in the bar. We've got massive achievements, massive advances, but there are still a lot of slips between today and election day that we have to navigate, he stated.

He chuckled after stating incorrectly that he has attended every DNC since 1976. He then corrects himself to mention1972, stressing that he is unsure of how many more DNCs he will be able to attend.

Clinton further lauded Kamala Harris, the US VP and Democratic presidential nominee, and said, We need Kamala Harris, the president of joy, to lead us.

He argued that the Trump campaign is skilled at creating uncertainty, adding that We've got to be tough. Clinton instructed delegates to show respect for individuals who hold divergent opinions.

Bill Clinton takes an aim at Trump's age, lauds Harris McDonalds record

Taking an aim at Trump's age, Clinton quipped, The only personal vanity I want to assert is that Im still younger than Donald Trump.

Clinton further praised Harris's working experience at McDonalds when she was a student.

I'll be so happy when she actually enters the White House because, at last, she'll break my record as the president who has spent the most time at McDonald's, he said.

Poking fun at Trump's arrogance, he blamed the GOP leader for singing me me me all the time. In contrast to Trump, he asserted, Harris' morning will begin with you you, you.

Clinton also made a jab about Trump's constant boasting about the size of the audiences he draws at his campaign rllies.

He questioned, Do you want to spend the next four years talking about crowd size, or do you want to spend the next four years building the economy from the bottom out and the middle up?

Notably, Barack Obama ridiculed Trump for the same thing last night.
Three teenagers were stabbed in the heat of a fight that broke out on a Bronx playground in New York City on Wednesday, authorities said. A fight escalated into stabbing on Prospect Playground in Bronx, New York City, on Wednesday. Three teen boys were hurt. (NYC Parks)

According to PIX11 News, the incident happened on Prospect Avenue in Tremont around 6 pm local time.

Individuals hurt in the brawl include a 15-year-old boy who suffered a laceration to his back, a second 15-year-old boy stabbed in the torso and a 16-year-old boy stabbed in the left thigh.

It's unclear what led to the fight that eventually developed into a stabbing at Prospect Playground.

The investigation is ongoing.

Also read | Police investigate as at least 125 institutions in Canada receive bomb threats

UPDATE (August 23 IST): Resident Skiej Burke told Bronx.News12.com, Its a bad look for us as a community, us as a unit. Were supposed to be a family. We should be able to talk through our issues and problems. Not revert to stuff like that.

All three children were taken to the hospital for medical aid. Meanwhile, police seem to have a person of interest in custody. Arrests haven't been made as of yet.

This news comes over a week after 39-year-old Clarence Woodward was arrested in connection with the double stabbing of two men inside the 24-hour 303 Laundromat in the Bronx. The stabbing happened on August 8.

Also read | Suspected DUI: Long Island mom kills son, 9, in wrong way crash; will face charges

Woodward was charged with murder, manslaughter and two counts of assault, according to police. Victims included a 47-year-old man stabbed in the back. Another man, stabbed in the legs, torso and back, was pronounced dead in the aftermath at Lincoln Hospital.
Nancy Pelosi began her speech at the Democratic National Convention by talking about the accomplishments of the Biden-Harris administration. She highlighted job creation, the expansion of the child tax credit and climate legislation. Nancy Pelosi says Harris ready to take us to new heights, blasts Trump for embracing political violence (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)(AFP)

And I know that Vice President Harris is ready to take us to new heights, Pelosi said.

The former House Speaker described Kamala Harris as a person of deep faith which is reflected in her community care and service, and said that the vice president is politically astute and strategic in winning difficult elections.

Pelosi also said that it had been an honour to work with Harris running mate, Tim Walz, in Congress. She touted the Minnesota governors victory in a red district and praised him for voting for the Affordable Care Act.

Never before had a president of the United States so brazenly assaulted the bedrock of our democracy

Pelosi went on to say that the US Capitol attack on January 6, 2021, made clear that our democracy is only as strong as the courage and commitment of those entrusted with its care. Blasting Donald Trump, she said, "Never before had a president of the United States so brazenly assaulted the bedrock of our democracy, so gleefully embraced political violence, so willfully betrayed his oath of office.

Let us not forget who assaulted democracy on Jan. 6. He did. But let us not forget who saved democracy that day. We did. she added.

Pelosi also said that we must choose leaders who believe in free and fair elections, who respect the peaceful transfer of power. The choice couldnt be clearer. Those leaders are Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Walz, she added.

Pelosi is believed to be one of those people who were concerned about the viability of Joe Bidens campaign. She is believed to have privately told the president that polling showed there was no way he could beat Trump. Pelosi is also believed to have supported Walz while he was rising among other vice presidential contenders.
Donald Trump, who recently faced an assassination attempt, abruptly stopped his campaign event in Asheboro, North Carolina, asking the audience to send a doctor, please. Donald Trump speaks from a bulletproof glass housing during a campaign rally, at the North Carolina Aviation Museum & Hall of Fame in Asheboro, North Carolina, U.S. August 21, 2024. REUTERS/Jonathan Drake TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY(REUTERS)

This was Trump's first outdoor rally since the 20-year-old gunman opened fire at his Pennsylvania campaign rally last month, killing at least one rally goer.

During Wednesday's rally, the Republican presidential nominee stopped speaking and questioned a portion of those in attendance, seeking clarification, What's wrong? A doctor, please! he shouted into the microphone because it appeared that one of the attendees needed medical assistance.

It is very hot here, I noticed, it's very hot and a lot of the people waited for days to get here, so I understand it, the former US President remarked, glaring at the area where the attendee was standing. Take your time, doctor, take your time, thank you! he added.

Trump and the audience clapped after sometime. He then stepped past the bulletproof glass that surrounded his podium, flanked by Secret Service officials, and made his way over to the area where the attendee was getting medical care.

Trump embraced and greeted the person, who had a water bottle in his hand. Amid chants of We love Trump, he went back behind the bulletproof glass at the podium and thanked the assembly. He went on to discuss national security in his remarks.

Also Read: Trump finally reveals where his son Barron will attend college: Hes all set in

Here's what Secret Service spokesperson said

Speaking to Newsweek, a Secret Service spokesperson clarified that the rally-goer is fine and it was a heat-related incident.

Trump's rally comes nearly a week after Kamala Harris' campaign event in the state that is considered a battleground.

Meanwhile, the Texas Republican Party praised President Trump for requesting medical assistance for a attendee at his rally. On social media, the state Republican branch called Trump a genuinely good guy.

Trump just stopped his whole rally to make sure one of the people in the audience was okay after there were shouts for a doctor in the crowd.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) on Wednesday mocked Donald Trump by comparing the former president to an old boyfriend who just won't go away. US House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Democrat from New York, speaks on the third day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on August 21, 2024. (AFP)

In his first speech at Democratic National Convention (DNC), Jeffries said: Donald Trump is like an old boyfriend who you broke up with, but he just won't go away.

He stated that Trump has been spinning his wheels for the past four years in an attempt to rebuild a relationship with the Americans.

The Democratic leader went on to blast Trump's 2018 tax bill, his COVID-19 record, and his involvement in the Jan. 6 attack. Bro, we broke up with you for a reason, he Democratic House minority leader quipped.

Donald Trump can spin the block all he wants, but there's not reason to ever get back together. Been there, done that. We're not going back, he asserted.

On Capitol Hill, Jeffries is regarded as one of the most skilled attack dogs for House Democrats since he knows how to tackle his Republican opponents.

He always describes them as extreme MAGA Republicans, the term he used during his Wednesday's speech as well.

Also Read: Bill Clinton roars at DNC with age swipe at Trump, hails Harris' McDonald's record but warns election could 'slip away'

Hakeem Jeffries' jab on Trump takes over Internet

Following his attack on Trump, Hakeem Jeffries started trending on X, formerly Twitter, for his remarks, with one user writing on X, Great stuff right here.

That's a pretty sharp and funny analogy from Hakeem Jeffries! He really captured the persistence of Trump's presence in politics with that comparison. It definitely adds a humorous twist to the ongoing political commentary, another commented.

Couldn't agree more! It's time to move on and focus on the future. That image is wild, can't wait to see what it's all about, a third user chimed in.

However, Trump's supporter got annoyed with Jeffries' jab on the ex-President.

One of the X users asked him, Why did you break up with Biden? while another stated, They all panicking because Donald Trump is going to win.

Trump and his campaign are yet to react on Jeffries' remarks.
MEXICO CITY  Backstage at a celebration of Indigenous peoples in Mexico City's sprawling central square, Carlos CGH traced his fingers across a black and red gaban, which is similar to a poncho. In Mexico, an Indigenous Triqui artist embraces his roots through contemporary rap

The garment, native to the Triqui people in western Oaxaca, is a source of pride for the 24-year-old rapper and reserved for special occasions. Its textured surface was decorated with intricate needlepoint patterns of multicolored corn husks.

As the rapper  whose full name is Carlos Guadalupe Hernandez  prepared for his performance, Oaxacan muralist Alberto Sebastian Bautista Figueroa brainstormed details. He crafted a drawing with the word RAICES, or ROOTS, in twisting strokes, for a mural he planned to create during the performance.

Were always proud, Guadalupe later said on stage, wearing the gaban. This goes out to all craftspeople who are here, people dont know all the history and all the resistance behind one garment.

Such details are an important part of his identity as a musician, representing his origins as a descendant of the Triqui nation. His verses are reflective of his culture, and he aims to conserve his native tongue, Triqui, through contemporary rap.

Triqui is one of many Mixtec languages spoken in Oaxaca and has four variants. One variant, Xnanj nu' a, is particular to Guadalupe's hometown of San Juan Copala.

To my Triqui brothers  farmworkers, students, doctors and all the women, Guadalupe rapped in Spanish. We fight every day for a better future. He held up a shirt that said Triqui Nation Resists! while his DJ dropped a series of trap horns.

The Indigenous Triqui people, numbering about 20,000, have struggled with political and social conflicts going back more than 80 years. The area also has become a hot spot for arms trafficking, drug trafficking and illegal logging.

Growing internal disputes for territorial control, including dozens of killings, have led to forced displacement for many in the community.

Many Triquis have moved to Mexico City but push to return to their homes. Guadalupe is originally from the municipality of Santiago Juxtlahuaca, which many Triquis were forced to leave. At the age of 6, he relocated to another Oaxacan city, Huajuapan de Leon, about two hours away.

He got his start in music at age 12 as a percussionist with a local band, surrounded by Oaxaca-Mixteca artists he admired. He started rapping in 2013, inspired by the local scene. "Like love at first sight, he recalled after seeing local lyricists perform.

He sees rap as a way to conserve his mother tongue.

Its a language that is at risk of disappearing. Parents and grandparents are no longer teaching it to their kids, he said. We learned that through rap we can make songs that would interest the new generations to speak it again.

In Oaxaca, the variety of rap is abundant. To mark the 50th anniversary of hip-hops birth, Oaxacas Sound Archive, an independent project to demonstrate the state's musical diversity, created a sonic map of the region's most influential rappers earlier this year. Carlos CGH was among them.

With about a dozen Indigenous languages, Oaxaca has nurtured a diverse scene. Among Guadalupe's peers are rappers who take pride in rapping in Mixtec, Zapotec, Cuicatec and other languages.

But the scene has suffered from the violence in Oaxaca. Last month, Rosty Bazendu, a passionate lyricist in the Zapotec language, was killed.

When you look up the Triqui community on the internet, a lot of things are going to come up regarding some of the problems we have, Guadalupe said. Here in Mexico City, I come to talk about whats within my community  the celebrations, the craftsmanship, the children, everyone who has stood out.

On stage, Guadalupes vision of Triqui culture comes to life.

Where are my people from the Triqui nation? he shouted. A family in the front row raised their hands.

His last song, dedicated to the people of Santiago Juxtlahuaca, opened with playful arrangements of traditional Oaxacan banda music.

The crowd cheered for El Baile del Diablo, or Devil's Dance, a traditional dance from the Oaxacan coast. The muralist Bautista exchanged his cans of spray paint for the traditional garb of the devil, wearing a handcrafted wooden mask and stomping across the stage.

Throughout the track, Guadalupe seamlessly wove Spanish verses with Triqui rhymes.

I will never forget my culture, tradition and language, he said with pride at the end.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
The third day of the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday, August 21, started in a unique manner with Hindu priest Rakesh Bhatt chanting a vedic prayer. Bhatt, a priest at the Sri Siva Vishnu Temple in Maryland, sought blessings for a united country with chants of "Om Shanti Shanti. Indian-American priest Rakesh Bhatt starts DNC day 3 with vedic prayer (Photo by CHIP SOMODEVILLA / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)

Even if we have differences, when it comes to the nation, we have to be united and it moves us towards justice for all," the Indian-American priest said while formally starting the third days proceedings in Chicago.

We should be in unison. Let our minds think together. Let our hearts beat as one. All for the betterment of society. May this make us powerful so we can unite and make our nation proud," he continued.

Bhatt added, We are one universal family. Truth is our foundation and always prevails. Lead us from unreal to real. from darkness to the light, and from death to immortality. Om Shanti Shanti Shanti."

Ajay Jain Bhutoria, Deputy National Finance Chair of the Democratic Party, shared a video of Bhatt saying the prayer at the DNC. He captioned the video on X, Hindu prayer at the DNC Convention today is a significant moment, showcasing the Democratic Party's commitment to inclusivity and diversity. It is heartening to see the rich cultural and spiritual traditions of the Indian American community being honored on such a prominent stage.

Bhutoria added in the thread, It is a proud day for Indian Americans and all who cherish the diversity of faiths that make up the American tapestry. This act of prayer is not just a religious observance; it is a celebration of the unity that transcends cultural and religious boundaries.

Who is Rakesh Bhatt?

Bhatt, a Madhwa priest, reportedly moved to the US from Bengaluru. He notably trained in Rig Veda and Tantrasaara (Maadhva) Agama, under his guru, Pejavar Swamiji of Udupi Ashta Matha.

The senior Hindu priest is fluent in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Hindi, English, Tulu and Sanskrit. He has a Bachelors and Masters degree in the languages Sanskrit, English and Kannada. He earned his Sanskrit degree from Jayachamarajendra College, and English and Kannada degrees from Osteen College, Bengaluru.

Bhatt worked at Badrinath and Raghavendra Swami Koil, Salem, for a short period after a brief stint at Udupi Ashta Matha. He then joined Sri Sri Vishnu Temple in July 2013.
Michelle Obama, the Former first Lady, came under fire for her hypocrisy after she advised Americans about not taking more than they need at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) on Tuesday. Former first lady Michelle Obama speaking during the Democratic National Convention Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)(AP)

During her powerful speech, Obama paid homage to her mother, Mary Robinson.

Stating that her mom and dad didn't aspire to be wealthy, she noted: In fact, they were suspicious of folks who took more than they needed. They understood that it wasn't enough for their kids to thrive if everyone else around us was drowning. So my mother volunteered at the local school.

Michelle Obama faces public outcry

Netizens on social media expressed outrage over Obama's remarks. They asked the former First Lady to considering her own wealth and multiple properties, including an opulent mansion in Martha's Vineyardthat her family owns. They also pointed out that her net worth is over $70 million.

Yeah Michelle Obama lost me wen she said my parents taught me not to trust wealthy people and shes worth 70 million. This election is comedy, one X user wrote.

The 70 MILLION DOLLAR Marthas Vineyard Socialist, Michelle Obama. Oh, how times have changed, a second user remarked.

Another criticised the entire lineup of DNC speakers for denouncing the wealthy. DNC speakers last night: Jack Schlossberg: son of Caroline Kennedy. Will inherit around $100 million. Gov JB Pritzker: family founded Hyatt Hotel chain. His inherited wealth is around $3.6 billion. Doug Emhoff: worth >$10 million. Barack & Michelle Obama: worth $70+ million.

One of the users even mentioned the prices of four Obamas properties: Washington DC home bought for $8.1M, Marthas Vineyard home bought for $11.75M, Beachfront home in Hawaii bought for $8.7M and Chicago home bought for $1.65Million.

This woman knows their voters dont bother to understand what shes saying, another user remarked.

Also Read: Trump fires back at Obamas DNC speeches after viral hand gesture: Should I get personal?

Kamala Harris blasts misogynistic Trump

On Tuesday night, Obama launched a barrage of accusations directed at Donald Trump in front of an enthusiastic throng at the DNC.

She labelled the GOP presidential nominee as misogynistic, racist, petty, and petty.

Calling Kamala Harris my girl, she urged the Democratic Party to come together in support of her.

She then unleashed a torrent of personal assaults on Trump on a night when her husband, Barack Obama, seemed to make fun of his "weird obsession" with size with a crude hand gesture.
Queen Camilla's relationship with stepson Prince William has been a complex one, marked by initial tension and slow but subsequent growth. When they first met, Camilla was reportedly shaking like a leaf, to the point of needing a gin and tonic to calm her nerves after their encounter according to a royal author. However, over time, the two have managed to forge a stronger bond, especially after Harry and Meghans exit, though they still have a lot to overcome. Britain's Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William, Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Charles, arrive for the World premiere of 'No Time To Die', in London.(AP)

Queen Camilla is little afraid of William

Royal expert and author Christopher Andersen spoke with Us Weekly, recalling the tension when Camilla first met William. The discomfort likely stemmed from the sensitive nature of their relationship, as Camilla was once labeled as the 'other woman' during Prince Charles's marriage to Princess Diana. After the controversial divorce and Diana's tragic death, Charles married Camilla, and it was finally time for her to meet his children.

Also read: Trump claims he is innocent after posting fake Taylor Swift endorsement photos: Happening with me too

She was shaking like a leaf, Andersen said. As soon as William left, she said she needed a gin and tonic, he added. However, a friend of close to the Parker Bowles family informed the outlet that the dynamics between the two is improving day by day, stating, William has warmed up to Camilla over time.

Kates health and Sussexes drama bridging the royal gap?

Experts say that Williams relationship with Camilla is gradually improving, with factors like Charles, Kates health and Harrys departure playing a big role. Its been a work in progress, an insider told Us Weekly.

Theres still a lot to overcome. The source added that William and Camillas bond strengthened after Harry left the royal family in 2020. William and Kate are focused on keeping things smooth and avoiding any extra drama. Theyve got enough to deal with already, thanks to Meghan [Markle] and Harry.

Also read: US job market meltdown: 818K jobs disappeared overnight in biggest revision since 2009

As per the royal insider, Kate Middleton was key in helping Prince William and Queen Camilla get along better. The person familiar with the case says that Kate was the first royal to welcome Camilla, way before anyone else in the royal family did. She always showed Camilla kindness and respect, even when some others were a bit more unsure.

In his memoir, "Spare," Prince Harry disclosed that he and William had urged their father to reconsider his marriage to Camilla. However, their pleas fell on deaf ears. Harry also described William's long-standing suspicions of "the Other Woman," which resulted in internal conflicts.
PD Vlog | Second-generation factory owner: finding different path from first generation

(People's Daily App) 11:03, August 22, 2024

Luo Zi's family has been in the beauty industry for 25 years and today owns six factories in Guangdong Province with an annual output value of over 100 million yuan (about $14 million). After graduating from the University of Warwick in the UK with a master's degree in Science, 28-year-old Luo returned to China to inherit the factory in 2021. It took time for the father and daughter to resolve disputes and cooperate. During this process, Luo hit upon a path different from that of her father.

(Produced by Lin Rui and Xie Runjia; Intern Yang Xinzhuo, Li Yuan, and Wang Yuqi also contributed to the story)

(Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun)
MOSCOW, - Police in St Petersburg have detained an Israeli-Canadian racing car driver wanted by the United States for alleged large-scale fraud relating to an illegal online stock trading scheme, the city's court system said on Wednesday evening. Russia detains Israeli-Canadian citizen wanted in US for fraud

The man, Joshua Cartu, is wanted, alongside his brothers David and Jonathan and several others, for allegedly operating a fraudulent binary options trading scheme between 2013 and 2018 that defrauded investors of millions of dollars, according to a U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission statement from May 2020.

The St Petersburg court service said Cartu had been detained on Aug. 19 at Pulkovo airport. It identified him as a citizen of Israel and Canada and said he was "wanted by the United States of America." It wasn't immediately clear when Cartu arrived in Russia.

On Wednesday, the court extended his detention by 72 hours. Reuters was not able to determine if Cartu had a lawyer.

The Canadian and Israeli embassies did not immediately respond to comment requests.

The court said Cartu could be charged under Russia's fraud statute, which carries a punishment of up to 10 years in prison.

"Cartu is not employed, has no permanent place of residence in St. Petersburg, but he has a passport of a foreign citizen, which makes it possible to cross the border of the Russian Federation without hindrance, thus preventing an extradition inspection," the court said.

Moscow and Washington do not have an extradition treaty.

The U.S. embassy did not immediately respond to a comment request.

Cartu was separately accused of fraud in Canada relating to a fradulent binary options scheme targeting Ontarians, according to a September 2020 statement from the Ontario Securities Commission.

Cartu's arrest comes less than a month after Russia and the West, led by the United States, conducted the largest prisoner swap since the Cold War, exchanging 16 people held in Russia and Belarus for eight Russians jailed in the West.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
With recent scientific studies confirming the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin, a sacred cloth believed to have been used to wrap the holy body of Jesus Christ, several AI-generated pictures have surfaced. Building upon this breakthrough, researchers have harnessed the power of artificial intelligence to create a high-resolution image based on the faint imprints left on the sacred cloth. Italian researchers use new X-ray technology to date the Shroud of Turin to 55-74 CE, supporting its authenticity as a 2000-year-old relic.(The shroud of Turin. (Photo: X/ @trad_west_))

The photos now making waves on the internet offer one of the most compelling glimpses of what Jesus Christ might have looked like.

Turin Shrouds authenticity backed by new study

The Shroud of Turin, a linen cloth bearing a faint image of a man, has long been revered by Christians and Jesus' followers as the burial cloth of the holy Christ. However, its authenticity has been a subject of intense debate, with many claiming it to be a medieval forgery.

Also read: US job market meltdown: 818K jobs disappeared overnight in biggest revision since 2009

A new study in the Heritage journal has called into question these statements, showing fresh X-ray dating proof that the Shroud is from around 2,000 years ago, during Christ's time.

Most people think Jesus was crucified around 33 AD, according to the Julian calendar, Bible stories, and beliefs from that time, which means it happened 1,992 years back.

AI shows True Face of Jesus

A recent study has debunked the long-held theory that the Shroud of Turin is a forgery, paving the way for advanced artificial intelligence to create a detailed rendering of the facial impression on the sacred cloth.

The Daily Express got Midjourney AI to provide a glimpse of a face that could be in the Shroud. The image shows a man with a long beard and hair, similar to how Jesus is usually depicted. The body is full of cuts and bruises, which fits with what we know about the crucifixion.

Also read: Tech tycoon Mike Lynch and daughter Hannahs dead bodies found in doomed Bayesian superyacht

Another image reveals a man with wounds on his exposed chest, implying he had been tortured and killed. One Daily Mail shard AI-generated image depicts a person wearing clothes, with eyes that look really deep, long hair, and hair on their face.

The Sun utilized the Clever AI tool Gencraft, which depicted Jesus with hazel eyes and a soft complexion. The image also shows clear signs of fatigue under his weary eyes.

What study found?

Italian researchers have cracked the age of the Shroud of Turin using some new X-ray technology. Dr. Liberato de Caro, leading the team, shared that the broad-view X-ray check showed a clear match between the Shroud and a piece of cloth from Masada, Israel, going back to 55 to 74 CE.

The experimental results are compatible with the hypothesis that the Turin Shroud is a 2000-year-old relic, the study said.

He also pointed out that the earlier studies that tried to figure out the shroud's age with carbon dating, ranging from 1260 to 1390, were not trustworthy. "Fabric samples are usually subject to all kinds of contamination, which cannot be completely removed from the dated specimen."
Donald Trump fired back at recent claims that Queen Elizabeth II thought he was very rude. On Thursday, the former president angrily dismissed the allegation made by Craig Brown in his new biography, Voyage Around The Queen. The Republican presidential nominee, who first met the late British monarch in 2018, said that he was her favourite president. Donald Trump has dismissed claims that the late Queen Elizabeth found him 'very rude'

Trump refutes claims Queen Elizabeth found him very rude

In his work, which was serialised in the Daily Mail this week, Brown wrote, Over the course of her reign, Her Majesty entertained many controversial foreign leaders, including Bashar al-Assad, Robert Mugabe, Idi Amin, Donald Trump, Emperor Hirohito and Vladimir Putin. She may not have found their company convivial; upon their departure, she may even have voiced a discreet word of disapproval, he added.

ALSO READ: Tim Walz's son Gus bursts into tears as father accepts VP nomination at DNC, That's my dad

Brown further wrote, A few weeks after President Trumps visit, for instance, she confided in one lunch guest that she found him very rude: she particularly disliked the way he couldnt stop looking over her shoulder, as though in search of others more interesting.

In response to the 67-year-old English critic's claims, Trump told the outlet, I have no idea who the writer is, but it was really just the opposite. I had a great relationship with the queen. She liked me and I liked her. Calling Queen Elizabeth a fantastic woman, the former US president recalled spending hours with her at a state dinner.

ALSO READ: Trump breaks silence on potential endorsement from RFK Jr, I would be

I think its a shame that a sleaze bag can write an article thats totally false. In fact, Ive heard always the opposite, Trump continued, adding, I heard I was her favorite president, and youve heard that too. She would say it to a lot of people.
A suspect arrested in Guatemala has been charged with helping coordinate the 2022 smuggling attempt that ended in the deaths of 53 migrants in Texas, the Justice Department announced Thursday, marking what U.S. officials called a significant expansion of their investigation into the horrific discovery inside an abandoned tractor-trailer on a back road. US government indicts Guatemalan suspect on smuggling charges over deaths of 53 migrants in trailer

U.S. authorities they will seek the extradition of Rigoberto Roman Miranda Orozco, who is charged with six counts of migrant smuggling resulting in death or serious injury in the deadliest human smuggling attempt across the U.S.-Mexico border. Authorities alleged he can be connected to four Guatemalan migrants in the trailer, three of whom died, and faces up to life in prison if convicted.

We will pursue you, whether you are hiding in the United States or youre hiding elsewhere, U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza said at a news conference in San Antonio.

Miranda Orozco, 47, is the first person arrested outside of the country to face charges in the U.S. in connection with the investigation. Esparza said seven people have been arrested in the U.S. Guatemalan officials announced the arrests of Miranda Orozco and six more people accused of helping smuggle the migrants Wednesday. Of those, only Miranda Orozco faces extradition to the U.S. and the others will be tried in Guatemala, Esparza said.

Carlos Merida, a lawyer for Miranda Orozco in Guatemala, said his client did not accept the charges, instead saying he was a regular citizen who was a migrant in the north for 15 years.

Those who were charged previously include Homero Zamorano Jr., who authorities say drove the truck, and Christian Martinez. Both are from Texas and were arrested shortly after the migrants were found. Martinez has since pleaded guilty to smuggling-related charges, while Zamorano pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial.

Four Mexican nationals were also arrested in 2023.

Authorities say the men were aware that the trailers air-conditioning unit was malfunctioning and would not blow cool air to the migrants trapped inside during the sweltering, three-hour ride from the border city of Laredo to San Antonio. Temperatures reached 100 degrees Fahrenheit while migrants screamed and banged the walls of the trailer for help or tried to claw their way out, investigators said.

According to the indictment against Miranda Orozco that was unsealed Wednesday, the smugglers had forced the migrants to give up their cellphones before getting inside the trailer, leaving them no way to call for help. An unknown powder was spread around the trailer to prevent the smell of human cargo from being detected by patrol dogs at border inspection stations.

When the trailer was opened in San Antonio, 48 migrants were already dead. Another 16 were taken to hospitals, where five more died. The dead included 27 people from Mexico, 14 from Honduras, seven from Guatemala and two from El Salvador. President Joe Biden called the tragedy "horrifying and heartbreaking.

Authorities allege that the men worked with human smuggling operations in Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico, and shared routes, guides, stash houses, trucks and trailers, some of which were stored at a private parking lot in San Antonio.

Migrants paid the organization up to $15,000 each to be taken across the border. The fee would cover up to three attempts to get into the country.

Guatemalan officials accuse the group of housing and transferring hundreds of migrants to the United States over several years.

Guatemala Interior Minister Francisco Jimenez told The Associated Press the arrests were made after 13 raids in three of the countrys departments. Police also seized vehicles and cash and rescued other migrants during the operations, Guatemalan officials said in a statement.

Santiago Palomo, spokesman for Guatemalas presidency, said the arrest "reflects the commitment of the Guatemalan government to the fight against organized crime" and collaborate with international agencies.

Vertuno reported from Austin, Texas, and Perez from Guatemala City.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
The Denton County Sheriffs Office has arrested seven Indians in a prostitution suppression sting operation, according to a Tuesday news release. The arrests of Indians come after Denton County Sheriff's Office carried out a prostitution suppression sting operation.

The arrests come after Denton County Sheriff's Office carried out a prostitution suppression sting operation. One person has been charged with soliciting a juvenile.

Eighteen males from North Texas were taken into custody as a consequence of the sting operation, which was designed to reduce the number of prostitutes in Denton County, the Sheriff's Office announced on Tuesday, as per Denton Record Chronicle. The Highland Village Police Department provided support for the operation.

Telugu origin arrested individuals have been identified as Nikhil Bandi, Monish Galla, Nikhil Kummari, Jaikiran Mekala and Karthik Rayapati. The charges filed against them include evading arrest and solicitation of prostitution.

Out of the 18 people, two people were detained on suspicion of soliciting prostitution from minors. Three individuals were taken into custody for avoiding arrest, and two others were accused with possessing guns illegally.

Requesting the services of a prostitute for someone under the age of eighteen is a second-degree crime, while solicitation of prostitution is a state jail felony, according to the state law. Illegal carrying of a firearm and dodging arrest or detention are Class A misdemeanors.

Following the operation, the Sheriff's Office's Human Trafficking Unit is currently investigating into other individuals who may be involved in prostitution.
White House has condemned Donald Trump's antisemitic remarks about Josh Shapiro in a scathing statement issued Thursday. The former president lashed out at the Pennsylvania Governor late Wednesday, calling his speech at the Democratic National Convention really bad and poorly delivered. However, the 51-year-old Democrat has now fired back at Trump's brutal Truth Social post. White House condemns Donald Trump's 'antisemitic' remarks about Josh Shapiro(REUTERS)

White House, Josh Shapiro condemn Trump's remarks about Pennsylvania Governor

Following the third day of the DNC, Trump criticised Shapiro on his social media platform, calling him the highly overrated Jewish Governor of the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He went on to say, Josh Shapiro made a really bad and poorly delivered speech talking about freedom and fighting for Comrade Kamala Harris for President.

In response to the GOP presidential nominee's harsh comments, Shapiro said, I think its clear over the last few years, Donald Trump is obsessed with me and obsessed with continuing to spew hate and division in our politics. Hes someone whos routinely peddled antisemitic tropes like this, per The Hill. He went on to explain that his speech was, in fact, the exact opposite of what the former president claimed.

Im talking about real freedom, bringing people together, accepting folks no matter what they look like, where they come from, who they love, who they pray to and say this is a place for you, Shapiro explained. Thats diametrically opposed to everything Donald Trump believes, and its clear that hes going to continue to be the hateful, divisive person that hes always been in this campaign, he added.

Meanwhile, Herbie Ziskend, the White Houses principal deputy communications director, also slammed Trump in a scathing statement that read, It is antisemitic, dangerous, and hurtful to attack a fellow American by calling out their Jewish faith in a derogatory way, or perpetuating the centuries-old smear of dual loyalty. President Biden and Vice President Harris believe we must come together as Americans to condemn and combat Antisemitism  and hate and bigotry of all kinds.
Gus Walz, the son of Kamala Harris' running mate Tim Walz, took the internet by storm as netizens hailed him and his family members for their heart-touching gesture to the Minnesota Governor during his emotional DNC speech on Wednesday. Tim Walz greets his family onstage during Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center, in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 21, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Blake(REUTERS)

After appearing on the stage, Walz hailed his family and expressed his love for them, mentioning that you are my whole world. The Governor also highlighted the infertility struggles of his and wife Gwen, and told the crowd about the difficulties they both had faced to conceive their two kids, Hope and Gus.

Gus, moved by his father's remarks, leaped out of his seat to say: That's my dad, while pointing his index finger towards him.

While Walz's son,17, burst into tears, his daughter Hope, 23, was seen making a heart symbol gesture.

Meanwhile, netizens hailed the Walz family for expressing their emotions publicly, with many people stating on X that this is called parenting.

Calling the Walz family ordinary people and down to earth, one netizen took a swipe at Donald Trump, asking: Can you imagine Melania and the rest showing that much genuine affection for Donald?

Meanwhile, some netizens were quick to note that Gus Walz is neurodivergent. He deals with ADHD, anxiety, and a nonverbal learning disorder. Kids and teens like Gus might struggle with controlling their feelings in social situations, an X user wrote.

Also Read: Tim Walz fakes IVF story to attack Republicans, his wife Gwen reveals the truth

Here is all you need to know about Gus Walz and his learning disorder

Walz has been public about the struggles of his 17-year-old son, who has ADHD, a non-verbal learning disability, and a disorder of anxiety.

ADHD is a brain development problem characterised by difficulty with control of impulses, hyperactivity, and difficulties in maintaining focus.

Walz and Gwen made clear in a statement to People magazine that they never saw Gus's conditions as a barrier.

Like so many American families, it took us time to figure out how to make sure we did everything we could to make sure Gus would be set up for success as he was growing up, they said.

The couple stated that Gus' condition is not a setback, but his secret power.

Gus preferred playing video games and likes to spend more time by himself.

The Walz family's candor about their son and their readiness to share their story in public, according to advocates for Americans with learning disabilities, will bring much-needed attention that may be able to assist others facing comparable difficulties, reported USA Today.

According to Zoe Gross, director of advocacy for the Washington-based Autistic Self Advocacy Network, It's a good thing when people in politics, who are running for office, are comfortable discussing disability issues and don't view it as a taboo or something that we shouldn't discuss.

She stressed that more people may now feel comfortable sharing their own disabilities or discussing the experiences of their families.
An Indian man living in Sweden has taken to social media to reveal why he thinks Indians are moving back to their country from Sweden. Sweden, the fifth-largest country in Europe, is among the top destinations Indians decide to settle in. However, the X user, Ankur Tyagi, pointed out that despite the beautiful landscapes, unique culture, and new experiences, many Indians find themselves wanting to return to their country. Viral post explains why Indians are returning home from Sweden (Pixabay - representational image)

Why do Indians want to leave Sweden?

Ankur listed several points that he thinks could be potential reasons. One of the reasons he listed is Professional Growth in India. He explained, With Indias economy booming, highly skilled professionals now have access to competitive salaries and exciting career opportunities, making a return home appealing.

Ankur also listed Loneliness and Lack of Close Friends as a reason. Living in the West leads to feelings of loneliness, especially when its hard to form deep, close friendships due to cultural differences or language barriers. Many Indians miss the strong social bonds and community life they had in India, which can be difficult to replicate in Sweden. This sense of isolation can be a key factor driving the decision to move back to India, where they can reconnect with long-time friends and enjoy a more familiar social environment, he wrote.

Ankur noted that one challenge Indians may face is that despite having proper qualifications and work experience, there are several spouses who find it difficult to find jobs in Sweden because of lack of Swedish language skills.

Ankur said that many Indians want to return to their country to support their ageing parents and stay closer to family. Some Indians, he pointed out, also leave Sweden to find better financial opportunities. He added that some Indians want to return because being close to family enhances overall happiness, especially for children who can bond with their grandparents.

Another reason Ankur listed is Social Integration. He explained, Some Indians face challenges in fully integrating into Swedish society, due to cultural differences and language barriers, making them feel more comfortable back in India.

Ankur suggested that Swedens weather might as well be one reason why Indians want to leave. The long, dark winters and cold climate of Sweden can be difficult for those used to Indias warmer weather, contributing to the decision to move back, he wrote.

Ankur noted that the cost of living in Sweden is very high, which can be difficult for many to bear. India, he said, might offer a better lifestyle at a lower cost.

The last reason Ankur listed is Remote Work Flexibility. The rise of remote work due to the pandemic has enabled many to work from anywhere. This has led some Indians to return to India while continuing to work for international employers, he explained.

Mind-boggling numbers

By far, the number of Indians moving to Sweden has outnumbered the number of Indians leaving every year in at least the last two decades, according to Statistics Sweden's population statistics of immigrants and emigrants. As many as 2,837 Indian-born people left Sweden between January and June, which is a 171 percent rise on the same period in 2023. By a pretty large margin, Indians are thus the biggest group of emigrated foreigners. Figures provided to the outlet The Local by Statistics Sweden suggested that for the first time since at least 1998, Sweden has had a negative net migration of Indians in a years first six months.

Robin Sukhia, secretary-general and CEO of the Sweden-India Business Council, urged people not to draw quick conclusions only based on these figures. We do not believe there is any special reason to this right now, likely have to wait for a full year assessment. Could be a combination of several factors from concluded studies, margins of error, high costs in Sweden last few years, lack of service apartments and accommodation in general. Difficult to know, he said.

As many as 2,461 Indian-born people moved to Sweden between January and June 2024. In the same period last year, the number was 3,681. Excluding the years 2020 and 2021, when the Covid-19 pandemic has struck, Indian immigration to Sweden is at its lowest level since 2017.
Some are wounded, most are very young and all want to go home. President Volodymyr Zelensky calls Russian soldiers captured in the lightning offensive into the Kursk region, Ukraine's "exchange fund".

He hopes the prisoners of war taken in the surprise push that caught Russia off guard can be quickly exchanged for some of the 6,500 or so Ukrainian soldiers that Moscow says it holds.

"This operation has become our largest investment in the process of releasing Ukrainians from Russian captivity," Zelensky said last week.

"We have already captured the largest number of Russian prisoners in one operation."

Ukraine has said large numbers of Russian servicemen -- reportedly in the hundreds -- gave themselves up during the offensive that began on August 6.

AFP asked for access to some of the POWs being held just across the border in Ukraine's Sumy region.

Though Ukrainian guards were standing nearby, the prisoners did not appear to be talking under duress.

One 22-year-old Russian POW -- a conscript -- said he and others were "simply abandoned by our command" when Ukrainian troops appeared.

"Everything was normal, everything was fine. And then this unexpected moment turned everything upside down," he said, sitting on a bunk in his cell.

"It was unexpected," he repeated.

The young man, who wore checked trousers and plastic slippers, said his hope was "to be exchanged and go back home -- back home to my family".

Another detainee, a 42-year-old border guard with a bandaged leg, said he was captured on the first day of the offensive.

"There was a complete encirclement and there were no opportunities to break through. So the decision was made to surrender," he said.

"I hope that they will exchange me and I will return home. My biggest hope is that, of course," he said.

The Ukrainian offensive caught Russia off guard.

Kyiv said thousands of its troops took part in the incursion, which comes two and a half years after the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The deputy head of the facility told AFP that "very large numbers" of Russian POWs have been captured so far, without giving a precise figure.

The POWs had initially been "afraid of everything", he said, but "came to life" after a couple of days when they saw that they were being well treated.

"On the battlefield they are hated soldiers and when they are captured they become ordinary people," said the guard, who gave his name as Volodymyr.

Ukrainian officials have not given a precise number of prisoners of war captured but have said many were young conscripts captured in the chaotic first days of the incursion.

Officials say 3,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been repatriated since the start of the war but "thousands" are still in Russian captivity.

At a meeting with foreign media including AFP in June, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Russia had 6,465 Ukrainian soldiers while Ukraine had 1,348 Russian soldiers.

There are regular exchanges between the two sides but usually involving only a few dozen people.

This time, Ukraine has said it is already in talks with Russia over an exchange for the Kursk POWs.

Human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said last week he had been contacted by his Russian counterpart Tatyana Moskalkova, claiming this was the first time that Moscow had initiated contact for a prisoner swap.

"I see that this situation... has at least forced the Russian side to take the initiative," he said.
Police in Romania raided the homes of controversial internet personality Andrew Tate as part of an investigation into new allegations against him.

They include sex with and trafficking in underage persons, along with money laundering and intimidating witnesses, according to the BBC.

The special prosecution service of the Romanian Organized Crime Directorate (DIICOT) announced in a statement that authorities searched four of Tate's houses in the capital, Bucharest, and in Ilfov County on Wednesday morning.

In response, Tate took to his X account to post:

"The Matrix is real. And they have a tried-and-true playbook. Slander is their number one tool, and the process is the punishment. But unfortunately for them, Good always wins in the end."

The Matrix is real.



And they have a tried and true playbook.



Slander is their number one tool and the process is the punishment.



But unfortunately for them,



Good always wins in the end. pic.twitter.com/UrjhTjlxMh  Andrew Tate (@Cobratate) August 21, 2024

Tate is a self-declared misogynist and was previously banned from social media platforms for his misogynistic views.

Both Tate and his brother, Tristan Tate, who also faces the same charges, have large followings on social media.

The brothers are accused of exploiting women through an adult content business, which prosecutors allege operated as a criminal group.

They were initially detained in Romania in December 2022 and released from house arrest in August 2023.
A pair of missing scissors forced the shutdown of one of Japan's busiest airports.

The scissors had been used at a store in the departure area of a domestic flight and caused an hours-long security search at the New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido.

Due to heightened concerns over the potential threat that the missing scissors could be used as a weapon on board a flight, 36 flights were canceled on Saturday, and another 201 were delayed amid the search, according to CNN.

"We are aware that the incident occurred due to the lack of proper usage, storage, and management systems by the store users," New Chitose Airport's operators said in a statement.

The airport handles approximately 15 million passengers a year. It was especially busy due to travelers returning home from a Japanese holiday, NDTV reported.

Japanese rock band 9mm Parabellum Bullet was among the affected by passengers and the band missed its performance at the Rising Sun music festival in Hokkaido.

"We will definitely get our revenge!!" the band said in a statement posted on the event's website.

Several travelers also took to social media to voice their frustrations.

"I feel like crying because my flight was canceled due to someone losing a pair of scissors," one user wrote on X.

"Because of this incident, the flight I was supposed to take was canceled, and now my reunion with my family, which I was looking forward to, has been shortened. It's a major disappointment," said another.

The scissors were eventually located, and flights resumed.

"We will investigate this incident, determine its cause, and prevent its recurrence. We will also reaffirm that this incident could relate to hijacking and terrorist attacks, and we will ensure that all airport personnel are fully aware of the importance of management," the airport operators stated.
President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that Russia's economic and trade links with China are "yielding results" as he welcomed Chinese Premier Li Qiang to the Kremlin.

Moscow has looked to Beijing as an economic lifeline since the Ukraine conflict began, with the two boosting trade to record highs as Russia faces heavy economic sanctions from the West.

"Our trade relations are developing successfully... The attention that the two governments on both sides are paying to trade and economic ties is yielding results," Putin said in a meeting with Li.

"Our states have worked out large-scale joint plans, projects in economic and humanitarian spheres, we expect for many years ahead," he added.

Li told Putin that "Chinese-Russian relations are at an unprecedentedly high level," according to the Kremlin's translation of his remarks, saying Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping had created a "strong impulse for further deepening of bilateral relations".

In a separate meeting with Li, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin hailed the countries' links as a powerful stabilising factor.

"Our partnership and strategic cooperation is especially important in a situation where new contours of the global order are being formed," Mishustin said.

"And in these conditions, the Russia-China link is a powerful stabilising factor, promoting economic growth in both countries and increasing quality of life for our citizens," the Russian premier said.

Moscow and Beijing both rail against "western hegemony", particularly what they see as US domination of global affairs, and Mishustin on Wednesday said the two countries must "focus efforts on protecting our shared interests".

Facing Western sanctions, Russia has pushed to use non-Western currencies as the basis for its trade.

"Today the share of the ruble and the yuan in mutual settlements is already over 95 percent," Mishustin said.

China presents itself as a neutral party in Russia's offensive on Ukraine and says it is not sending lethal assistance to either side, unlike the United States and other Western nations.

But it is a close political and economic ally of Russia, and NATO members have branded Beijing a "decisive enabler" of the war, which it has never condemned.

Beijing has also benefited from cheap Russian energy imports and access to vast natural resources, including steady gas shipments through the Power of Siberia pipeline.

Li's visit comes as India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting Poland, set to make his first visit to Ukraine at the end of the week. India, China's regional rival, is also close with Russia, but Modi has repeatedly called for an end to the conflict.
Eight Continents Hotels and Resorts, a global hospitality brand renowned for its luxurious accommodations, exceptional service, and unique travel experiences, is proud to announce the latest expansion of its prestigious portfolio with the addition of Stamps Golden Lagoon in Amritsar. This addition marks the brand's further commitment to enhancing its presence in key pilgrim destinations across India.

Situated just 260 meters from the iconic Golden Temple, Stamps Golden Lagoon is ideally located for travelers who wish to explore the rich history and vibrant culture of Amritsar. The service hotel offers a luxurious retreat with 20 elegantly designed rooms across five distinct categories, catering to the diverse needs of its guests. Each room is thoughtfully equipped with modern amenities, including flat-screen TVs, Wi-Fi, a mini-bar, an electronic safe, coffee/tea makers, air-conditioning, and premium bed linen and towels. The hotel ensures a comfortable and productive stay, whether guests are in Amritsar for leisure or business.

The hotel is renowned for its exceptional hospitality and commitment to delivering an unforgettable experience. Guests can indulge in a pure vegetarian multi-cuisine menu, crafted to satisfy a wide range of culinary preferences.

With its close proximity to popular tourist attractions such as Jallianwala Bagh, The Partition Museum, Sadda Pind, and the Wagah Border, Stamps Golden Lagoon is the perfect base for exploring the rich heritage of Amritsar. Additionally, the hotel offers a range of amenities including complimentary private parking, a 24-hour front desk, a travel desk, housekeeping services, and 24-hour security. Guests can also enjoy a unique dining experience at the hotel's rooftop restaurant, which offers breathtaking views of the city.

Richa Adhia, Managing Director, Eight Continents Hotels & Resorts, said, "We are thrilled to expand our presence in Amritsar with the addition of Stamps Golden Lagoon to our prestigious portfolio. This property reflects our commitment to providing exceptional service, luxurious accommodations, and memorable experiences for our guests. Amritsar holds a special place in the hearts of travelers from around the world, and we are honored to contribute to its vibrant hospitality scene with this stunning new hotel."

"We are thrilled to join hands with Eight Continents Hotels & Resorts, a premier name in global hospitality. With their expertise and support, we are confident that we can elevate our hotel to new heights, offering an experience that travelers will cherish forever. We look forward to welcoming guests to this beautiful city and providing them with an unforgettable stay." said Akshit Aggarwal and Jaspinder Singh, Owners of Golden Lagoon. "Our vision has always been to offer more than just a place to stay; we strive to create spaces where our guests can immerse themselves in the local culture while enjoying the finest in luxury and comfort. Stamps Golden Lagoon, with its unparalleled location and exceptional service, is a testament to our commitment to excellence in the hospitality industry. We are excited to welcome travelers to this beautiful city and provide them with an experience they will cherish forever."

Eight Continents Hotels & Resorts is on the expansion spree. The company has recently expanded to Nainital, Jodhpur, Varanasi and Scotland. With properties across key destinations worldwide, Eight Continents is dedicated to creating unforgettable memories for every guest.
Andrew Frosch is a Senior Vice President for the HVS Americas Brokerage & Advisory division in Houston. Andrew specializes in the acquisition and disposition of hospitality assets and advises both private investors and institutional clients. He has participated in more than 100 hotel transactions valued at over $400 million across the United States; moreover, he has managed hotel transactions of all classes and sizes, from independent, $1-million, limited-service hotels to $50-million, select-service portfolios across multiple states. Andrew earned his Bachelor of Science (BS) from The University of Texas at Austin and is a licensed real estate broker in Texas.
In Sicily, summer is known to last longer. This year, in a city historically tied to hospitality and welcome, the atmosphere of vacation and relaxation will linger until October. The city of Marsala is ready to host the first edition of "Insolito Marsala"; a festival that weaves together wine tourism, Ho.Re.Ca 3.0, art, and technology into a single experience. From October 2nd to 6th, Marsala will transform into a stage for events, standing out in an increasingly crowded and oversaturated landscape through its unique combination of tradition and modernity, positioning itself as a national and international point of reference.

"Insolito Marsala aims to turn the city into a symbolic destination for enthusiasts of gastronomy and authentic hospitality," says Giorgio Triani, co-organizer of the festival. "Through a rich program of tastings, storytelling, cutting-edge technologies, and creative collaborations, we aim to capture the interest of visitors and industry professionals, offering them an "unusual experience".

A Hybrid and Widespread Festival

From October 2nd to 6th, wine industry professionals, Ho.Re.Ca experts, teachers, and students will participate in conferences, webinars, masterclasses, and private and professional tastings at the Monumental Complex of San Pietro and Palazzo Fici in Marsala in a hybrid format. The events aimed at the general public will involve wineries, restaurants, bars, and other local activities, making the entire city an active part of the festival in a multifaceted event that will shed new light and attention on the authentic soul of western Sicily with an unprecedented openness to advanced international experiences such as those in Porto, Bordeaux, Switzerland, and the United States.

Event Highlights

Two days will be dedicated to hospitality with presentations of case studies by internationally renowned speakers such as Henri Roelings, Founder of Hospitality Net; Andrea Palmoso and Jacopo Longhi of SwissHospitalitySolutions and Simone Puorto of TravelSingularity, among many others.

For wine lovers, the festival offers several unmissable initiatives. The workshop on content creation in the wine economy, with the participation of the national AIS and the main wineries of the area, promises to be a highlight. In addition, innovative tastings such as "edible bubbles"  flavor spheres ranging from Marsala wine to citrus and coffee  will create a unique sensory experience, realized in collaboration with the Department of Gastronomic Physics of the University of Parma and food designer Roberta Razzano.

Not only Hospitality and Wine but also Ho.Re.Ca with meetings exploring the significant transformations of the sector and literature. One of the most anticipated events is the meeting with Stefania Auci, author of "The Florios of Sicily," on October 3rd at 6:00 PM at the Monumental Complex of San Pietro. During this public event, Auci will share previously unpublished insights into the Florio saga in a fascinating journey through the island's history.

Innovation and Tradition: A Winning Synergy

The festival promotes collaboration between different professions and sectors, creating a meeting point for the exchange of best practices and innovations. Among the most ambitious initiatives are the creation of a digital twin of the Marsala Wine Museum in the Metaverse, developed by the University of Parma, and the presentation of limited-edition wine bottles with special labels associated with NFTs. "Our goal is to build a real network hub to foster cultural exchange and mutual promotion, creating a multifaceted and rich festival," says Salvatore Agate, Councilor for Tourism of the City of Marsala.

The Endless Sicilian Summer

Insolito Marsala leverages the climate and welcoming atmosphere of Sicily. The events will be held outdoors, allowing participants to enjoy the last glimpse of summer in a unique location. In addition to food and wine events, the festival will offer evening DJ sets and mixology sessions, giving each night a unique flavor. Marsala thus becomes a mosaic of stories and flavors that invites visitors to explore, understand, and experience it.

An Unusual Origin

Insolito Marsala was born from the Digital Summer School organized for ten years in Favignana and Marsala as part of the Master in Digital, Mobile, and Social Communication of the University of Parma and is sponsored by the Sicilian Regional Assembly, the City of Marsala, and the Marsala Wine Road Association.

Since 2022, our passion for innovation and hospitality has driven us to focus on the HoRe.Ca sector (hotels, restaurants, cafes)," says Triani. "This year, Insolito was born (or rather is being born), an event that we hope will accompany us and you for many years to come. We want to create value for the area by strengthening local networks in an international perspective that looks at the most advanced experiences, such as Porto and Bordeaux. This is how our idea was born, the culmination of years of work celebrating a land as multifaceted as a mosaic with a festival of many souls. Giorgio Triani, Insolito Marsala co-organizer

Insolito Marsala is organized with the collaboration of two major universities: the University of Parma, with its origins and professors such as Alberto Salarelli, a historian of gastronomy, and Filippo Arfini, coordinator of the course in Economics and Management of Sustainable Food Chains, and the University of Palermo, thanks to the participation of professors such as ,Gianfranco Marrone, a semiologist, and Filippo Sgroi, coordinator of the first Sicilian degree in Gastronomic Sciences.

For more information, program updates, and event details, visit the website www.insolitomarsala.it.

VISIT WEBSITE

Giulia Triani

Press Office, Insolito Marsala

+39 3454789324

Insolito Marsala
Historic photo of the Nolte building in Seguin, Texas. - Image Credit City of Seguin

The City of Seguin announced that it is seeking qualified partners to work with on the redevelopment of the historic Nolte property abutting Central Park in the City's downtown. Seguin officials recently purchased the property and are working with TBA Douglas Architects to create a development plan to reimagine the site. The City of Seguin is now issuing a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) from experienced developers. Interested parties can sign up here to receive the RFQ when it goes live on Wednesday, August 28, 2024.

The RFQ is part of a strategic real estate initiative, in which the City aims to divest its interest in the property, while facilitating a visionary project that enriches the fabric of the community. The issuance of a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) marks the initial step in a two-step process, culminating in a Request for Proposal (RFP), to identify a developer capable of executing the City's vision and objectives. City officials are eager to see what developers have in mind for the property, with the expectation that it should catalyze economic growth, foster community engagement and preserve cultural heritage.

The property, located at 101 East Nolte in downtown Seguin, consists of an entire city block just south of Central Park. The site consists of four buildings lining E. Nolte and a large surface parking lot to the south of the buildings. Two historic buildings, the Nolte National Bank Building and the Post Office, located at the north west corner of the site, will be a major component of the redevelopment. The property sits on 0.92 acres in the heart of downtown and in its current configuration, the buildings encompass 40,000 square feet across two stories.

Following the issuance of the RFQ, the City of Seguin will host a site tour at 10 a.m. on Thursday, September 5, 2024 for interested developers; those interested in attending can RSVP here. A formal Request for Proposals will be sent to selected teams at a later date.

As one of the fastest growing cities in the United States, Seguin is an attractive market for developers to enter into. For more information on the RFQ process please click here.
Global Travel and Tourism Sector Deal Activity Down by 10.4% YoY During January-July 2024

A total of 415 deals (comprising mergers and acquisitions (M&A), private equity, and venture financing deals) were announced in the travel and tourism sector during January to July 2024, which was a year-on-year (YoY) decline of 10.4% compared to the 463 deals announced during the same period in 2023, according to GlobalData.

Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, comments: Deal activity remained a mixed bag across different regions and countries, with some of them experiencing a fall in deal volume, while others showcasing improvement. And the same was the case with the deal types under coverage as well.

A significant part of the decline was driven by North America, which saw its deal volume fall by 30.9% during January-July 2024 compared to January-July 2023. Asia-Pacific and South and Central American regions also showcased YoY decline of 16.3% and 42.9% in deal volume during January-July 2024, respectively.

However, Europe saw YoY improvement in deal volume by 16.8% during the review period as some of the key markets in the region witnessed growth in the number of deals, whereas deal volume for the Middle East and Africa mostly remained at the same level.

Meanwhile, key markets including the US, South Korea, China, Australia, and France witnessed a 30.4%, 5.6%, 50%, 27.8% and 45% decline in deal volume during January-July 2024 compared to the same period in the previous year. However, markets such as the UK, India, Japan, Spain, and Germany experienced improvement in deal volume during the review period.

An analysis of GlobalDatas Deals Database also revealed that the volume of M&A deals declined by 6.6% during January-July 2024 compared to January-July 2023, whereas the number of venture financing deals fell by 25.4% YoY. Meanwhile, the deal volume for private equity deals improved by 21.4%.
Guestroom at the ibis Styles Mysuru Hotel - Image Credit Accor

Accor and Brigade Hotel Ventures Ltd. (BHVL) announced the launch of the first ibis Styles property in Karnataka, located in the cultural capital of India. This marks the opening of the third ibis Styles hotel in India, following successful launches in Goa. ibis Styles Mysuru will be the fourth hotel opening between Brigade and Accor, enhancing this partnership further. The grand opening event, held at the stylish new hotel on KRS Road, marked a significant milestone in the city's hospitality landscape.

ibis Styles Mysuru redefines hospitality with its unique fusion of contemporary design and cultural nuances. The hotel's sleek interiors draw inspiration from the vibrant birds of Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary, creating a sophisticated yet welcoming atmosphere for guests. With 130 well-designed rooms, ibis Styles Mysuru caters to a variety of needs, offering comfortable accommodations for every traveler. The hotel's 30 suites provide a cozy retreat, featuring designated kitchenettes, private balconies, spacious living areas, and family-friendly rooms. Additionally, the dedicated children's play area ensures a delightful experience for families.

Guests at the property can look forward to a remarkable culinary journey. The Verandah offers a unique fusion of traditional and contemporary cuisines, creating a dining experience that caters to diverse palates. For a more relaxed atmosphere, the Flamingo Bar, located in the lobby area, provides a serene setting perfect for enjoying a refreshing drink and unwinding in style. Soon, guests will also be able to enjoy KA 16, the highly anticipated rooftop restaurant, which promises stunning views and an exquisite menu. The hotel also boasts five state-of-the-art meeting rooms and a spacious banquet hall, accommodating a variety of events. For those looking to host occasions in natural settings, the hotel offers comprehensive outdoor catering services.

The hotel features a range of amenities, including a swimming pool and a 24/7 fitness center, ensuring guests have everything they need for a comfortable and enjoyable stay. Guests can also take advantage of exclusive benefits through the Accor Live Limitless lifestyle loyalty program, which offers unique experiences, special offers, and patrons can earn points on all stays, dining, spa treatments, and events.

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Garth Simmons, Chief Operating Officer of Accor's Premium, Midscale, and Economy Division in Asia ,said," Our partnership with Brigade Group has been instrumental in bringing our vision to life. This collaboration marks our fourth hotel overall and the first ibis Styles with the Brigade Group. We are grateful for their unwavering support and dedication. Together, we have created a space that not only meets the needs of modern travelers but also pays homage to the rich heritage of Mysuru. Upon the grand opening of ibis Styles Mysuru, guests can anticipate an authentic home-away-from-home experience within an innovative and welcoming environment."

Speaking at the inauguration, M R Jaishankar, Executive Chairman, Brigade Group said, "Mysuru is a key leisure destination in Karnataka. It is a popular getaway for tourists and a resting point for those travelling to the Western Ghats. The number of tourists coming into Mysuru has significantly increased in the last three years, post Covid-19. ibis Styles Mysuru is a blend of contemporary design and the traditional essence of Mysuru. Our aim is to redefine the hospitality experience for guests. This will be Brigade Group's 27th project in Mysore and its 9th hotel across India in partnership with global hospitality brands."

Commenting on the grand opening, Anuj Chaudhry, Cluster General Manager, said, "We are thrilled to unveil our first ibis Styles property in Karnataka. Drawing inspiration from the vibrant birdlife of Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary and infused with the energy of Accor, our hotel is designed to meet the needs of the modern travelers. We are confident that ibis Styles Mysuru will redefine hospitality in the region, providing a fresh and exceptional experience for all our guests."
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ROPE to Host Ghana Experience Event

PITTSFIELD, Mass.  The Rites of Passage & Empowerment (R.O.P.E.) program will host its Ghana 2024 Experience event at 6 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 24 at the Berkshire Innovation Center (BIC), 45 Woodlawn Ave., Pittsfield.

The program, which is free and open to the public, will feature reflections from R.O.P.E. scholars and ambassadors who traveled to Accra, Ghana in July for the group's bi-annual service-learning trip. Following the program, Ghanaian-themed refreshments will be available.

"R.O.P.E.'s journey to varied regions of Ghana continues to be transformative. Having this educational experience greatly impacts our Mentees identity, self-esteem and increases their knowledge of history as well as their awareness as global citizens," said R.O.P.E. Founder Shirley Edgerton. "We invite you to hear their stories as well as some of the committed and impressive Mentors and family members that journeyed with our Mentees across the Atlantic Ocean."

Founded in 2010 by Edgerton, R.O.P.E. is a proven mentoring program for adolescent girls of color, providing them with the skills and knowledge to enrich their personal development and expand their global awareness.

During the 14-day trip, R.O.P.E. scholars and ambassadors engaged with young Ghanaians at the Oak Tree Orphanage and School and visited multiple historic sites in the country's capital city, Accra, as well as sites in Cape Coast and Kumasi.

For more information, contact Edgerton at 413-496-4602.
Andrew Fitch took the waters on Tuesday for his third annual long-distance summer vacation adventure and fundraiser.

North Adams Councilor Kayaking for Hoosic River Revival



Stops marked along the way to the Hudson river. NORTH ADAMS, Mass.  A city councilor is paddling his way up the Hoosic River to raise funds for the Hoosic River Revival.

Andrew Fitch took the waters on Tuesday for his third annual long-distance summer vacation adventure and fundraiser. Last year, he walked 75 miles over five days between North Canaan, Conn., and Stamford, Vt..

This year, Fitch is kayaking navigable portions of the river from the Cheshire Reservoir to the mouth of the Hoosic, where it flows into the Hudson River in Stillwater, N.Y., over the course of five days and 70 miles.

He will be assisted by his boyfriend, Laurence Wilson, and several Hoosic River Revival board members with carrying his kayak over the many dams, flood chutes, and other obstructions along the river.

Following two years of fundraising treks across the state, he says he is no novice to the region's diverse landscapes, winding roads, and welcoming communities.

"Embarking on another great Massachusetts adventure, I'm so excited to be mixing it up this year," Fitch said in a statement. "I'll be tapping into my love for the waterways in my own back yard and flowing along with the Hoosic."

His walk last year raised $6,200 for Roots Teen Center in North Adams; in 2022, he walked across the state from Williamstown to Provincetown, and raised more than $5,000 for the National Network of Abortion funds.

This year, he has decided to raise funds for the Hoosic River Revival, donating $40 for his 40th birthday (Aug. 20) and $1 for every mile kayaked on this 70-mile journey. Fitch hopes the greater community will match his contributions and aid in fundraising for this organization

"Hoosic River Revival is a nonprofit which works to rehabilitate North Adams flood chutes with a modern flood risk mitigation system," said Judith Grinnell, found and board member of the Revival. "This project also hopes to revitalize the surrounding areas and create a system that will ensure the city has a healthy, attractive river with an array of public, riverfront places and greenways that will promote relaxation, recreation, economic development, and community connections."

Fitch welcomes friends, family and the local community to follow his trip on social media. He is highlighting each day's progress with facts and live photos, encouraging awareness, information and support for the improvement of this important waterway.

"The revitalization of the Hoosic river provides an enormous opportunity for North Adams and the communities along its shores for safety, economic opportunity, and the beautification of a vital asset. I can't think of a better way to spend my birthday than supporting and fundraising for an initiative so important to the Northern Berkshires," he said.

To make a donation to this campaign, visit this link . Follow along on Facebook and Instagram at @fitchaj

To view the planned route (weather and navigation-depending), visit this link.
As it celebrates its sixth anniversary, realme Philippines is set to unveil the realme 13 Pro Series 5G on August 28 at the yearly Fan Festival. The newest additions to the brands Number Series comprise of the realme 13 Pro+ 5G and realme 13 Pro 5G, both incorporating realmes latest breakthrough in its AI innovation.

Catch the local launch at the annual realme Fan Festival

The realme 13 Pro Series 5G features an Ultra Clear Camera with AI, which merges advanced hardware and software to achieve unparalleled image clarity, detail, and color accuracy. Beyond the eye-catching designs reflecting the legendary master of Impressionism, Claude Monet, here are more reasons for the Squad to get pumped up for the realme 13 Pro Series 5G launch.

Say goodbye to blurry images with the AI Ultra Clarity

Blurry images would now be a thing of the past, thanks to the AI Ultra Clarity featured in the realme 13 Pro Series 5G. This software feature uses AI to increase clarity or enhance the resolution of blurry images. The AI Ultra Clarity is versatile regarding types of photos or files to use it on. The feature can work on photos taken by the device, old photos taken by older smartphone models, low-resolution images found online or on social media, and photos from other sources that cannot be downloaded in their original high-resolution format.

The AI Ultra Clarity is designed to improve or sharpen the details of an image, whether of buildings, plants, flowers, or other objects with relatively regular textured patterns. Cropped sections of an image that look pixelated when zoomed in can also be enhanced for better details.

On top of this, it has a Pro-XDR that analyzes the contents of photos taken by the devices camera and adjusts brightness to help improve dynamic range, lights, and shadows for a more realistic image when being viewed.

Push the boundaries of mobile photography with Dual 50MP Sony Cameras with OIS

The realme 13 Pro+ 5G is crafted with a dual Sony main camera system that lets users capture exceptional images in different lighting conditions. The realme 13 Pro+ 5G is the first to use the Sony LYT600 Periscope Camera that supports 120x SuperZoom. When using the periscope camera, users can take clearer shots in Photo Mode, Street Mode, Night Mode, and Moon Mode 2.0 (when set to 10x Zoom and above). This camera also supports 3x Optical Zoom and up to 6x In-Sensor Zoom and Portrait Mode set to a focal length of 80mm.

The other camera in the dual system is the Sony LYT701 OIS Camera, which has a 50MP resolution and lets users capture images with 3x Nightscape. This feature makes taking pictures in nighttime scenarios more convenient.

On the flip side, the realme 13 Pro 5G is equipped with a 50MP Sony LYT600 that delivers stunning day and night photography. This impressive setup delivers exceptional image quality with a 26mm equivalent focal length, f/1.88 aperture, OIS, and 2x In-Sensor Zoom. Users can also enjoy various features in the AI Imaging Algorithm, such as the AI HyperRAW, AI Denoise, AI Portrait, AI Pure Bokeh, AI Natural Skin Tone, and AI Image Stabilization.

Refined Smartphone Experience with 120Hz Curved OLED Display (ArmorShell Protection)

Be at ease when using the realme 13 Pro Series 5G, even in harsh environments. The new installations in the Number Series are designed with ArmorShell Protection, a technology developed by realme to enhance a devices durability against drops and scratches. In terms of external environmental factors, the realme 13 Pro Series 5G is equipped with a Rainwater Smart Touch and has an IP65 Dust & Water Resistance rating to ensure protection from dust, splashes of water, and low-pressure splashes from any direction.

Finally, the realme 13 Pro Series 5G has AI Eye Protection that identifies frequencies when the user yawns or blinks to identify fatigue and adjusts color temperature and brightness for smart eye protection. Users can also toggle on the Bedtime Mode, Color Temperature adjustment, and a Paper Texture function to personalize their overall smartphone experience.

Catch the official launch and get first dibs through blind pre-order

The Squad can be part of the live launch event at the realme FanFest at the Gateway Mall II, Quantum Activity Center on August 28. The event starts at 1:30 PM and seats are open to the public on a first come, first served basis. To make the celebration even more exciting, the Squad can see the new realme 13 Pro Series 5G up close at the booths in the event venue.

As for those who cannot join on-ground, fret not, as the launch and the realme FanFest will be live-streamed on realmes official Facebook page. Make sure to tune in so as not to miss any moment!

Want to secure a brand new realme 13 Pro Series 5G? The Squad can now place a blind pre-order at any realme physical store nationwide until August 28 and get a limited-offer Screen Protection Plan worth P1,299 and Mystery Box worth P29,999 for FREE.

To know more about the realme 13 Pro Series 5G, head over to the realme website or follow realmes official Facebook page.
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Yes, the outrageously storied character actor Carol Kane is hired by filmmakers today for her chops. And that big, smoky, instantly recognisable New York growl of hers. But surely theres an appeal to just having her sit on your set and tell anecdotes from her five decades in showbiz?

Her stories are endless. What it was like to be held hostage in Dog Day Afternoon, or slap around Bill Murray in Scrooged. How long it took her to be buried under those witchy prosthetics in The Princess Bride, or how nervous she was to converse in comfortable, romantic gibberish with Andy Kaufman in the seminal sitcom Taxi. Then theres the rest of her extensive CV. The Last Detail. Addams Family Values. Annie Hall. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. God, I wish I was stuck in a lift with her. Or at least an incredibly long car journey. Instead were doing a phone interview, time is of the essence, and Kane keeps asking me questions.

How old are you, Adam? Kane inquires, raspily yet softly. I tell her Im 31. She turns on a dime. Oh, youre a baby boy! Call me when youre 60, goodbye! The 72-year-old lets out a broad howl, befitting for a woman whos made a career out of playing eccentrics and tricksters. I think Ive just been Carol Kaned.

Ive asked about whether shes ever personally experienced a late-in-life transformation, the theme of her brilliant new film, Between the Temples. Its a sensitive, odd-couple comedy, in which she plays a retired music teacher who reconnects with one of her old students. Ben (Jason Schwartzman) is a Jewish cantor in mourning over the death of his wife. Kanes Carla is slightly adrift, her son lives far away, and life in sleepy Upstate New York isnt scratching that itch anymore. She believes a bat mitzvah could help. Carla is ethnically Jewish through her father, but her parents were communist atheists  therefore no bat mitzvah. She and Ben clash, then bond, then sort of maybe fall in love. Ish. Its a romp. Think the gentle comedy of Harold and Maude meets the zippy chaos of Uncut Gems. Kane is marvellous.

I ask her that question again. When has she transformed her life? I suppose, in some ways, you could say this movie is doing that for me, she says, serious now. I havent played the quote-unquote leading lady in a very long time. At my age, one is largely relegated to playing grandmothers, and then those grandmothers are sort of secondary to the story. This moment, though, feels novel for her. And I appreciate it more the second time around.

The first time was trickier. In 1976, The New York Times characterised Kane as someone who kept drifting, slightly off-centre, through other peoples movies. This was the age of the American New Wave, a period of radical ideas, extraordinary new talent and sex and violence on film  it was gnarlier, kinkier, more cerebral than ever before. Kane was along for the ride.

I make sure to check in on him, and thank goodness hes still answering my calls On keeping in touch with Jack Nicholson

She was the mousy bank teller in Dog Day Afternoon, Art Garfunkels girlfriend in Carnal Knowledge, a sex worker in The Last Detail, the babysitter menaced over the phone in When a Stranger Calls. In Annie Hall, she is Woody Allens socialist intellectual ex who rejects his attempts at a come-on with a single, withering line: I love being reduced to a cultural stereotype. Hester Street, a quiet 1975 drama about Russian-Jewish immigrants in New York, drew her enormous critical acclaim and an Oscar nomination.

Kane tells me, though, that she didnt know what to do with such adulation. Oh god, Adam, I had no idea, she whispers, embarrassed. I made such bad choices, and I turned down so many beautiful opportunities. She wont be pressed on what they were, but the memory still stings. She felt undeserving of success, and uncomfortable as a movie star. There is a scene in Between the Temples that casts back to those feelings. Carla, it is revealed, had a short-lived music career, and recorded a single album in the Seventies. We see the album art, featuring a photo of a young Kane. She is supernaturally beautiful in it, all sultry eyes and Botticellian curls of hair. She was so pretty, Carla whimpers. I just didnt know it.

Odd couple: Jason Schwartzman and Carol Kane in Between the Temples ( Sony )

Did she feel that way about herself? Absolutely, Kane says. I never thought I was pretty. I guess thats not an atypical or unusual syndrome for young women, you know? But I certainly had it in spades. Her voice is hushed now. She changes the subject, brightening. Anyway, the dramatic work Ive done Hester Street, or The Last Detail, or Wedding in White  did you ever see that? Its a beautiful movie. Donald Pleasence played my dad  hes one of your peeps! She means that hes British. I loved that dramatic work, but once you break into comedy, you have a little more leeway with your looks. She lets out that big laugh again. You dont have to rely on them as much!

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It was Gene Wilder who saw something funny about Kane, whose wide eyes had previously only been used for their vulnerability, her croaky voice for its guile. He cast her in his silent-movie satire The Worlds Greatest Lover, which led to her moving from New York to Los Angeles and subsequently being cast in Taxi.

My time with Kane is running low at this point, so out of desperation I propose a game. Could I throw out the name of someone Kane has worked with or who she has called a friend, and have her speedily say the first things that come to mind about them? Ooh, so like a lightning round quiz? Kane beams. Yes! Exactly like that. She is up for it.

Nonsense humour: Kane with Andy Kaufman in the seminal sitcom Taxi ( Shutterstock )

We begin. (The speedy, succinct lightning round angle is, well, swiftly abandoned). How about Bette Davis? For a bit of background, Kane and Davis were unlikely pals in the early Eighties  Kane, having moved to LA, was living in an apartment building with Daviss long-time assistant Kathryn Sermak, who introduced them. I was on my way to Australia to do a movie and I had never been there, Kane recalls. I mentioned this to Kathryn, and an hour later an embossed envelope was put under my door. I open it and it reads: Ive been to Australia. Maybe I can help? Come for drinks at six  Bette Davis. Can you f***ing imagine? Oops, I guess I shouldnt say f***ing.

Davis met Kanes father, and once came to one of Kanes parties to meet the Taxi cast. She was so open to meeting young people, Kane adds. And she loved men! We had some very handsome men in that cast, you know? We had Tony Danza

Its a great story, but also a long one. See what I mean about needing to be stuck in a lift with her? Time is ticking. I need to throw out another name and fast. Jack Nicholson? Ding, ding, ding! Kane chirps, like a slot machine. I knew you were gonna say Jack. She has so many stories, she teases. So we talked about the Academy Awards, right? Im at the Beverly Hills Hotel, living on my $400 unemployment [cheque], and I dont win, right? You know who did win that night? Jack! For Cuckoos Nest. But the next morning Kane pauses for effect. Its as quiet as a graveyard in my room. No one is ringing until about 11, and its Jack. He says, Whitey  thats the nickname he gave me  Whitey, you wanna come to lunch with me and Anjelica [Huston]? Because he knew what the mornings like after you dont win, and he took me to lunch to make me feel better. Theyre still in touch. Not a lot, but we keep at it. I make sure to check in on him, and thank goodness hes still answering my calls. The 87-year-old has been awol for a while  is he doing OK? Oh, hes still Jack, she laughs.

Old friends: Kane with Jack Nicholson in The Last Detail ( Shutterstock )

The publicist who has connected us cuts in. Our time is up. But my game! What about Bill Murray? Tina Fey? Kermit the Frog? Blessedly, Kane is flexible. A negotiation ensues between Kane and the publicist  there can be some more time, but only for a price. Adam, you owe me 100, Kane cracks. I wont answer the next question until it gets into my account, OK? Could I get it to her later? You know what? Yes, you may. I trust you.

Phew. All right. We start up again. What about Shelley Duvall? Were speaking a few weeks after Duvalls death. She and Kane were friends and peers in the Seventies, both playing Allens exes in Annie Hall, and both wallflowers on the Hollywood scene. Ahh, jeez, Kane sighs. Its so sad. Theyd lost contact over the decades, but she remembers her fondly. Shelley would always take me out to dinner, give me support and friendship and guidance. She was such a complex, brilliant, interesting, generous person.

Kane with her Between the Temples co-star Jason Schwartzman earlier this year ( Getty Images )

OK, next. Woody Allen? Always enigmatic to me, but elusive and brilliant, she says. I think that movie [Annie Hall] is extraordinary. I must ask more, but Kane  a person to whom a tangent is never too far off  interrupts. You know Annie Hall used to be called Anhedonia, right? I vaguely knew this, I tell her. Its the condition wherein you feel nothing  a sort of perpetual numbness. I always liked that title  its pretty fascinating. And I guess itd force people to go to the dictionary.

And on that unassuming note, our time is finally up. She apologises, quite genuinely. Just out of my curiosity, who else was it that you wanted to ask me about? I mention more names. Murray, Fey, Garfunkel, all of the filmmakers shes worked under. Mike Nichols. Gus van Sant. Elaine May, for Gods sake! She sighs, moved. I will say, those people you mentioned  and Hal Ashby, Sidney Lumet, all those people  I just dont understand how I got so privileged to work with such great artists. She sounds practically verklempt at this point. Ill never get over it.

We say our goodbyes. Until the day were stuck in a lift, anyway. Thatd be nice.

Between the Temples is in cinemas from 23 August
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The journalist who called out Blake Lively over an uncomfortable sit-down has named the celebrity who was, on the other hand, the most wonderful person to interview.

Last week, Norwegian journalist, Kjersti Flaa, posted a clip of a 2016 interview with Lively, which made her want to quit her job. Flaa was met with huge support from viewers who criticised the Gossip Girl star for being rude.

In a new video posted on Monday (19 August), the reporter thanked people who had been sending her supportive messages. She said that people who bullied and had mean girl energy should be called out in Hollywood and held to account.

She then went on to reveal that it was the sweet actor Kristen Stewart who saved the day following her disastrous chat with Lively. The interviews were in promotion of the 2016 film Cafe Society, directed by Woody Allen, in which Lively starred opposite Parker Poesy and Stewart.

I want to shout out Kristen Stewart who was the person I interviewed after the horrific incident, and she was the most wonderful, wonderful person to interview, Flaa said.

She saved my day, you know I was terrified walking into that interview because I had just experienced what I had, so for her to just treat me like, she was so sweet. So, Im happy I interviewed her afterwards.

Many questioned why Flaa had shared the clip so many years after the interview was first conducted, particularly as it emerged just as Lively had been facing criticism for a tone-deaf approach to promoting It Ends With Us.

open image in gallery ( YouTube/ Kjersti Flaa )

She explained: I got so many questions from people asking why I decided to post that interview now, eight years later, and the reason for that is that I got contacted by another reporter who told me a story that was a little similar to this one that he had experienced and then we started talking about it and comparing notes.

And then I felt like you know, its not ok to behave like that and I think it needs to be called out. Also, it took me a while to be honest with you to actually get over it, it affected me for a while because it made me nervous while interviewing other people after that.

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Flaa calimed that she was not aware of the drama surrounding It Ends With Us.

I blamed myself for it for a long time because I felt like I did or said something wrong and thats the reason why I waited so long, she said. I actually hadnt read up about all the other controversy that was going on.

open image in gallery ( YouTube/ Kjersti Flaa )

In the wake of her clip going viral, Flaa has begun to sell anti-bullying merchandise on Etsy, including T-shirts with the viral #littlebump phrase printed on them, in reference to a particuarly awkward moment in the interview.

Prior to the chat, Lively had announced that she was pregnant with her second baby with her husband Ryan Reynolds in May. Flaa began the interview by congratulating the actor on her little bump to which Lively sarcastically responded: Congrats on your little bump.

Livelys negative publicity comes amid rumours of an ongoing feud between the actor and her co-star and director Justin Baldoni, with Baldoni reportedly having hired Johnny Depps crisis manager, and PR veteran Melissa Nathan, according to Deadline.

One person wrote in the stars defence: One thing about me. I will defend Blake Lively. Do I agree with certain ways shes promoted this movie? No I dont. But ripping a women apart, bringing up old videos etc. Its not OK.

Lively has also been defended by one of her It Ends With Us co-stars.
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Lionsgate pulled its trailer for Francis Ford Coppolas self-financed magnum opus Megalopolis after it was revealed to feature fabricated quotes from film critics.

The trailer was released on Wednesday and showed quotes from some of the most renowned critics in the industry offering harsh critiques of Coppolas past films.

Pauline Kael of The New Yorker described The Godfather as being diminished by its artsiness in a review, according to the trailer, while Andrew Sarris of Village Voice called it a sloppy self-indulgent movie.

Bilge Ebiri of Vulture, however, soon pointed out that most of these lines didnt exist in the original reviews.

The trailer similarly claimed that Roger Ebert had described Bram Stokers Dracula as a triumph of style over substance. The line is actually from Eberts review of the 1989 film Batman and doesnt show up in his review of Dracula.

Ebert, in fact, seemed to like the film. The movie is an exercise in feverish excess, and for that if for little else, I enjoyed it.

In a similar vein, while Daily News critic Rex Reed didnt particularly enjoy Apocalypse Now, he never called it an epic piece of trash.

Called out for the misleading quotes, Lionsgate pulled the trailer.

Lionsgate is immediately recalling our trailer for Megalopolis, it said. We offer our sincere apologies to the critics involved and to Francis Ford Coppola and American Zoetrope for this inexcusable error in our vetting process.

We screwed up. We are sorry.

Adam Driver and Nathalie Emmanuel in Megalopolis ( Lionsgate )

Owen Gleiberman of Variety was also featured in the trailer.

Even if youre one of those people who dont like critics, we hardly deserve to have words put in our mouths, the critic said. Then again, the trivial scandal of all this is that the whole Megalopolis trailer is built on a false narrative.

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Ebiri questioned the decision to market the film using fabricated quotes despite the fact that some critics did dislike several films by Coppola which ended up becoming classics.

Yes, Coppola has built a career on films that perplex some critics and audiences when they first come out but are eventually revealed to be visionary works of art, he said. And, yes, Megalopolis will be a divisive movie.

Taking on critics might be an exciting and cathartic marketing tactic, but I suspect Megalopolis will need critics championing it when it actually comes out. And making up fake quotes from our heroes is probably not the best way to get us on your side.

The Independent has reached out to Lionsgate for comment.

Megalopolis debuted at the Cannes Film Festival where it was met with mixed reviews. It is set to release in theatres in September.

The Independents Geoffrey Macnab gave Megalopolis three stars, describing it as being deeply flawed and very eccentric.

The film stars Adam Driver as Cesar, an artist-inventor nursing dreams of a utopian metropolis at odds with the citys mayor, played by Giancarlo Esposito. It also stars Nathalie Emmanuel, Aubrey Plaza, Laurence Fishburne, Shia LaBeouf, Jon Voight and Dustin Hoffman.

In a recent analysis of Coppolas work, Macnab noted the directors struggle to find funding for his latest work, which was produced over decades.

It was as if the Hollywood executives were looking for payback for all those past occasions when Coppola had criticised their way of doing business or when he had taken their money and produced a box-office turkey, such as the romantic musical One from the Heart (1981) or his car designer biopic Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988).

Coppola has been accused of inappropriate behaviour on set, including reportedly pulling women to sit on his lap and trying to kiss some of the topless and scantily-clad female extras. Coppola has denied the allegations.

My mother told me that if you make an advance towards a woman, it means you disrespect her, and the girls I had crushes on, I certainly didnt disrespect them, he said. Im not touchy-feely. Im too shy.
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A new Netflix film has earned an enviable score of 100 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes  but has thus far failed to crack the streaming services Top 10 charts.

Daughters, a documentary following four prisoners who bond with their daughters while in jail, was released on Netflix on 14 August.

Rotten Tomatoes, a review aggregator website, has compiled more than 50 reviews of the film, all of which are positive  landing it a rare Fresh score of 100 per cent.

On social media, viewers have praised the film, with one person writing: Dont watch the Daughters Netflix documentary unless you like crying.

Trigger warning! #daughters on #netflix will have you in tears! cautioned another. Its a documentary that follows inmates in their families as they prepare for a father-daughter dance in a DC jail.

Someone else commented: Daughters on Netflix broke my damn heart. This should be required viewing upon entry for men with daughters. Aint no way you cant understand the pain youre causing your children after watching this. I hope Aubrey learns to hope and love again. God bless these families.

Back in January, the film was acquired by Netflix following its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival.

open image in gallery One of the subjects of award-winning documentary Daughters ( Netflix )

Actor Kerry Washington, who worked as an executive producer on the film, shared a post celebrating the news on her birthday.

Happy Birthday to ME! I received the best birthday present in the world yesterday. Daughters going to be coming to Netflix!!!! she wrote. I am so beyond thrilled for all of the amazing people who worked to bring this beautiful project to life and for all of YOU who will now get to see it!!!!!

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Despite the acclaim lavished on Daughters, however, the film is yet to crack the Netflix charts.

Currently, the most watched film in the streaming services UK catalogue is The Union, an original action-thriller starring Mark Wahlberg and Halle Berry that has a paltry score of 36 per cent in comparison.

The film follows a New Jersey construction worker whose life is upended when he encounters his high school sweetheart after 20 years apart.

Also on the Top 10 charts are the 2014 Cameron Diaz romcom The Other Woman, true crime documentary The Murder of Air McNair, and inlaw comedy Why Him?.

Daughters can be streamed now on Netflix in the UK and Ireland.

If youre travelling abroad and want to stream Daughters 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.
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Kneecap is so confident and single-minded in its telling of the semi-fictionalised origins of its titular west Belfast hip-hop trio, that it may make anyone whos never heard of them feel like a bit of a loser. Its a film that not only signals a major musical arrival, but ends up feeling a lot bigger than the conventional (and often confining) boundaries of the music biopic. Kneecap is the story of Belfast and of the ceasefire generation  the ones who were told that all is well, that they live in the moment after the moment, even when their nations traumas are still writ into their bones. Its a story, too, crucially, about language deployed as an act of liberation and defiance.

Every word of Irish spoken is a bullet fired for Irish freedom, Naoise O Caireallains Irish paramilitary father Arlo (Michael Fassbender) tells him. Hes faked his death to evade the British authorities and now lives incognito as a yoga instructor, mockingly nicknamed Bobby Sandals by his son, after the leader of the 1981 hunger strike (also famously played by Fassbender in Steve McQueens Hunger, released in 2008).

Thats the fictional bit of Kneecaps biography. A lot of what comes next is true  O Caireallain, under the stage name Moglai Bap, formed a group in 2017 with Liam Og Mo Chara O Hannaidh and JJ DJ Provai O Dochartaigh. O Dochartaigh is a former schoolteacher who took to wearing a balaclava of the Irish tricolour to conceal his identity on stage, and did, as the film portrays, once drop his trousers to reveal the words Brits out written on each butt cheek. All band members play themselves.

Ceasefire generation: Mo Chara, Moglai Bap and DJ Provai ( Curzon )

And writer-director Rich Peppiatt has, without breaking a sweat, faithfully captured the trios hard-partying, righteously angry schtick. Kneecap opens with a joke about a young Naoise and Liam, as altar boys, sneaking weed into the priests thurible (the swinging metal container filled with incense) and doping the entire congregation. Its followed by lots of onscreen doodles, a stop-motion ketamine haze, and a storyline about how Liam has a sexual kink for arguing with Protestant girls (namely, Jessica Reynoldss Georgia) about whether its Northern Ireland or North of Ireland.

The fact they do all this while (largely) speaking Irish is the point. The trio were formed, and the film takes place, during a period of lengthy debate around the Irish Identity and Language Act. When finally passed in 2022, the act provided the language with official recognition and protection. JJs wife, Caitlin (Fionnuala Flaherty) is a campaigner, and is concerned over who should be its best ambassadors. An organisation called the Radical Republicans Against Drugs are less polite about their objections to Kneecap.

But who is this respectability even for, when the only way a language dies is when theres no one left who speaks it? The films politics are clear-eyed, and embrace both the global and the intimate  from a shot of a Palestinian flag flying from an apartment block window, to the final title card noting that an indigenous language dies every 40 days, to a scene where Naoise tearfully begs his father to speak to him in Irish (Fassbender is a smart casting choice here, able to express decades worth of sorrow in a fairly contracted screen time).

Kneecap argues the difference between language as archival work and language as something radical and alive. And for any non-Irish speakers agitated by the need to read subtitles? Well, as they might say in Belfast, they can f***k up.

Dir: Rich Peppiatt. Starring: Naoise O Caireallain, Liam Og O Hannaidh, JJ O Dochartaigh, Josie Walker, Fionnuala Flaherty, Jessica Reynolds, Adam Best, Simone Kirby, Michael Fassbender. 18, 105 mins.

Kneecap is in cinemas from 23 August
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The executive producer of a forthcoming original documentary about British pop band Take That has said he hopes it will capture their two-pronged success story.

This week, it was announced that David Soutar, the Bafta-nominated director behind hits such as Bros: After the Screaming Stops, would develop a behind-the-scenes documentary for Netflix about one of Britains biggest boybands.

It is being produced by Gabe Turner of the Emmy Award-winning production company Fulwell 73, and promises to deliver unprecedented access to the band via exclusive interviews with Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen, along with insights from former members Robbie Williams and Jason Orange.

Turner told The Independent that he and his creative team were inspired in part by Netflixs 2023 Wham! documentary, which delved into the origins of the pop duo, as well as Andrew Ridgeleys frustrations with fame, and the late George Michaels struggles with his identity.

When you look at whats out there at the moment, theres a lot of content about true crime, heavy stuff, he said. But we watched the Wham! documentary and everyone felt great the next day  its a beautiful, authentic story about friendship, success and navigating the world.

Formed in 1990 by manager Nigel Martin-Smith, who sought to replicate the US success of New Kids on the Block, the original lineup comprised Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen and Robbie Williams.

open image in gallery Take That perform at the Sanremo Song Festival, Italy, in 2011 ( Getty Images )

They broke through with hit singles such as Barlows original ballad A Million Love Songs, then achieving a Number Two album with their 1992 debut, Take That and Party.

In 1994, they achieved national fame following the release of second album Everything Changes, which was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize and included the No 1 singles Pray and Relight My Fire.

Their world tour between 1993 and 1995 then turned them into international stars, spawning a range of posters, stickers, dolls, clothing and other merchandise.

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Williams, who was the subect of his own Netflix documentary last year, famously left the band in July 1995, with the rest of the group splitting in February the following year.

Take That returned as a four-piece with a world tour and new music in 2006, releasing new hits such as Patience, Shine and Greatest Day.

open image in gallery Howard Donald, Gary Barlow and Mark Owen of Take That perform on stage ( Getty Images )

Williams returned for their record-breaking Progress album and world tour, before his and Oranges departures. Barlow, Donald and Owen have continued as a trio since 2014.

Turner believes that one of the most fascinating things about Take That is how they managed to conceive a comeback using brand new songs, rather than embarking on a Greatest Hits tour.

I dont know of another band who came out, smashed it, and then when they went away, they ended up coming back with hit songs that were just as big as the first ones, he said.

I cant really think of anyone else who did that. So its an amazing two-parter of those two periods of time, reliving the Nineties and the madness of it all, and then the comeback which wasnt a lap of honour but more about collaborating and coming up with these huge new hits.

open image in gallery Executive producr Gabe Turner said he was impressed by Barlows songwriting ( Ian West/PA Wire )

Turner is a partner at Fulwell, formed with his brother Ben, Leo Pearlman and producer/director Ben Winston. James Corden joined as a partner in 2017.

Fulwell has previously worked with Barlow and Take That, including on Barlows music videos for Let Me Go and Face to Face with Elton John.

The band have been really good partners to us for a long time and theyre open to different things, Turner said. As soon as we mentioned [the documentary]I think they liked the sound of it.

One thing I see in them is that theyre very comfortable in themselves, and I dont think theyll shy away from talking about anything. Theyre very honest and open about it all  and theyre happy where theyre at, still singing, still dancing. Theyve got this beautiful story to tell.
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Playwright and screenwriter James Graham has hit out at the lack of working-class people in the TV industry, as he delivered the Edinburgh TV Festivals prestigious MacTaggart lecture on Wednesday (21 August).

Graham, born in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, referred to his own upbringing and state-school education when making the case for a more multi-faceted approach to diversity.

He referred to class as everyones least favourite diversity and representation category compared to more visible, sometimes simpler to define areas of diversity that he said fire up the activist in us.

Citing statistics revealed in a recent report by Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre at the University of Sheffield, he said that only 8 per cent of people in television are working-class  figures which the report suggested meant class representation was at the lowest it had been in ten years.

The Dear England writer said that this limited the number of people bringing their experiences, outlook, stories, culture in a medium that is meant to reflect all those things back to us.

The Emmy-nominated writer of Brexit: The Uncivil War called for greater attention to be paid to challenges of social mobility, particularly in defining it as a concept.

We are squeamish about defining it, and as a result, we quite often still exclude it from industry measurements around diversity, he continued.

I could be wrong, but compared to other areas of under-representation, when it comes to class, I feel like we just dont feel it, as much, in our bones.

open image in gallery Graham made the case for greater representation ( YouTube/Edinburgh TV Festival )

He suggested that the aversion to discussions of class could be that British embarrassment over money thing; were uncomfortable.

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But he justified the demand for diversity as a case for better business, in addition to visibility, as he explained that working-class audiences make up the bulk of TV audiences.

Working-class audiences have been measured to be the demographic which consume the most hours of television. It is a category of representation with the largest disparity between makeup of the country and makeup of our industry yet it is often the only significant category not to be formally included in most of our standard measurements of diversity, Graham said.

They are the largest potential audience to reach for the content that we make yet they are they are the demographic least able to find a foothold in the industry to bring their experiences.

Using the examples of diversity monitoring forms, he explained that he had only once been asked for his parents occupation when being considered for judging panels.

Graham explained he had often had to find other ways of mentioning his social class so that it would be considered, given that class no obvious visible indicators or is a protected characteristic, and had been left in confusion over his own class status.

I meant it when I said that class isnt just money, the jobs that your parents had, its part of what forged you, he said. In other words a key part of your coding, your morality, your sense of self, which creates a philosophical quandry. In no other part of your identity do you become less yourself as your circumstances change.

Describing the effects of representative television on his own experience, he recalled the positive influence of diverse stories.

I thought the whole world was full of people who spoke like, thought like, felt like my family. Im not sure the same can entirely be said now.

The James MacTaggart lecture has been the highlight of the Edinburgh TV Festival since 1976, and often covers topics provoking conversation. Recent speakers include Michaela Coel, Louis Theroux and Emily Maitlis.
Ask Ji Zhenyong to pick his favourite spot in town and he will point immediately to the weathered stone walkways next to the waters edge.

The canal is linked deeply to our history and heritage here, you can say it runs in our blood, he said.

Ji, 54, is a resident of Xingan county in Guilin, South Chinas Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region. He is also the 17th generation of doujun  traditional weir and water lock sentinels charged with guarding and maintaining the Lingqu Canal, an ancient waterway built 2,200 years ago when the country was first unified.

Weve been so much a part of Lingqu, looking after it, Ji said. Of course, we dont actually guard it now in modern times, but its still our role as responsible residents to help keep it flowing steadily and smoothly, through a healthy, clean and sustainable environment.

Jis sense of duty reflects the latest efforts to preserve and promote Lingqus physical, cultural and social value  the man-made waterway is the first of its kind, a pioneering hydraulic, navigational feat stretching 22.6 miles through four major towns as it links the Xiang and Lijiang rivers and, by extension, the major Yangtze and Pearl river basins.

The International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage recognises Lingqu Canal as a World Heritage Irrigation Structure, an exquisite illustration of Chinese technical and engineering capabilities ... helping the economic and social development of rural areas.

Lingqu is also on the UNESCO World Heritage tentative list, being considered for nomination as a site of outstanding universal value.

According to the UNESCO citation, the canal is lauded as a model of early canals that reflects the Asian hydraulic and navigation technology of ancient civilisation. It integrates navigation, irrigation and flood control functions and is an outstanding example of comprehensive, sustainable and effective use of natural resources in traditional Chinese agricultural society, helping to maintain stability in the south of a unified country.

Children play on the banks of the canal ( PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY )

Today, the Lingqu Canal stands as an important cultural heritage and a multifunctional hydraulic project serving irrigation, flood control, water supply and tourism, altogether offering a successful blend of tradition and innovation ranging from trade to tourism.

Following the unification of ancient China under the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC), Qinshihuang, the eras first ruler, set about building a waterway for grain transport that would help sustain his armies heading south, with the project completed in 214 BC, said Chen Xinghua, honourary president of the Lingqu research association.

This vital link known subsequently as the Lingqu Canal became a benchmark for flood control and irrigation, he said.

Lingqu connected Chinas central plains with its south, playing a major role in cultural and material exchanges between China and overseas. It connected the hinterland with the southern ports and, as such, the ancient Maritime Silk Road.

For example, figurines of foreigners in the Han (206 BC-220) and Tang (618-907) dynasties were successively found on the banks of Lingqu. They are the products of cultural exchanges between China and the West, Chen said.

Protecting Lingqus rich legacy for everyone includes its structures, surrounding environment and water quality, said Bi Huangwen, a local official.

We will strengthen the environment along the canal, maintain and restore its scenic spots and cultural relics and uphold high water quality, all adhering to international standards, he said.

Inland Waterways Internationals president Rudy Van der Ween announced in late October that Guilin and its Lingqu museum would host the 2026 World Canals Conference.

A World Canals Conference is the opportunity to bring together hundreds of canal enthusiasts, professionals and scholars from around the world, to exchange good practices on canals, including the protection of historic canals or features, revitalisation of canal systems, harbour sites, canal trails and amenities; the presentation or interpretation of canals and corridors  their history and various elements; canals as a means to promote tourism, spur economic development and urban renewal, he said.
Common, affordable and often overlooked, the toothbrush can unspool a fascinating, multibillion-dollar business tale, especially when the story is set in Hangji town of Yangzhou, Jiangsu province.

Wherever humans reside, there are toothbrushes made in Hangji. The engraving on a wall at the local toothbrush museum often attracts visitors attention. It is not a tall claim. Hangji, a small town of 15 square miles, makes 80 per cent of toothbrushes in China and accounts for 35 per cent of the worlds total.

The town boasts more than 2,000 toothbrush manufacturers and supporting enterprises, including famous brands Colgate, Sanxiao, LMZ and Perfect. They produce more than 7.5 billion toothbrushes annually that are sold to about 80 countries and regions. This makes Hangji the worlds largest toothbrush production base, according to local authorities.

Its journey started about 200 years ago during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Back then, a local farmer, Liu Wanxing, used ox bones for the handle and horsehair for the bristles to make toothbrushes for dignitaries and nobles. He then replaced horsehair with pig bristles to largely reduce costs and sold the product to ordinary people as well. His descendants and apprentices further developed the business. And so it went on till 1976, when the first toothbrush factory was founded. After the launch of Chinas reform and opening-up policy in 1978, the number of workshops once reached nearly 10,000.

A worker operates a production line of toothbrushes in Hangji ( CHEN SHENGWEI / XINHUA )

These days, the penetration rate of toothbrushes has reached almost 100 per cent in China. A toothbrush costing around 10 yuan (1.09) to 12 yuan (1.31) can be used for several months. This means, there is no room for significant expansion in this category. With low unit prices, profit margins also tend to be thin, like the handle of the humble toothbrush.

Yet, Hangji toothbrushes annual output value is 13 billion yuan (1.41 billion).

Amid rising global awareness levels of healthy and green lifestyles, characterised by aspects like oral health, Hangji started making high-end, environmentally friendly and intelligent products that have won recognition from picky clients in the Middle East, Europe and the Americas.

That is why staff members on Chinas first domestically made polar icebreaker Xuelong2, or Snow Dragon 2, use customised toothbrushes from Hangji.

Brush bristles with a diameter of only 0.1 millimetres can better care for the gums of expedition team members in polar low-temperature environments. Additionally, considering environmental factors, brush handles produced using polylactic acid materials can biodegrade within three months, said Li Yang, general manager of Yangzhou Sanfeng Brush Co Ltd, the producer.

Yangzhou Shuguang Toothbrush Factory, founded in Hangji about 40 years ago, collaborated with the National Engineering Research Centre for Nanotechnology and Application to develop a new environmentally friendly toothbrush made from sugarcane refining residue straw, achieving 100 per cent degradation. The toothbrush is sold to dental clinics in European countries such as Germany and Sweden.

Tu Xinye, head of the factory, said its products used to be sold for 0.1 yuan (0.01) with low added value. It survived through large production and sales. The innovative toothbrush helped it expand to a high-end market as fierce competition marked the low-end, homogeneous market.

Oclean, headquartered in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, built its intelligent factory in Hangji. Operations started in May, and since then it has been producing kids smart toothbrushes that can play songs, remind them to brush again missed areas and provide parents with a report generated using artificial intelligence in the embedded app.

In Hangji, the labour-intensive sector is also transforming towards a digitalised and cost-effective operation mode.

At the green and intelligent factory of Jiangsu Sanxiao Group Co Ltd, 150 robots perform tasks like injection molding and injection gluing.

Besides intelligent robots, the factory boasts automated assembly lines and an intelligent management system, which can operate 24 hours a day. It can produce 2 million toothbrushes per day, increasing production efficiency by 50 per cent, inventory turnover by 100 per cent and shortening delivery cycles by 50 per cent, said Han Xiaotian, the groups executive chairman.
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India has chosen to stay on the sidelines since its close ally Russia invaded Ukraine, dismissing pressure from Western nations to join in condemnation of Vladimir Putins war while still seeking deeper trade ties with the likes of the US and UK.

This tricky balancing act is one that prime minister Narendra Modi is expected to keep up during his visit to Kyiv, the first by an Indian prime minister since the two countries established diplomatic relations over 30 years ago.

Mr Modi arrived in Kyiv on Friday, having been in Poland on Thursday for the first leg of his Europe trip.

The timing of the visit, during which Mr Modi will meet president Volodymyr Zelensky, has not gone unnoticed: it coincides with Ukraines National Flag Day, commemorating its independence from the Soviet Union.

It also comes just over a month after the prime minister met Vladimir Putin in Moscow, inviting criticism from Western capitals as well as Mr Zelensky, who called it 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 on such a day.

The same day Mr Modi and Mr Putin were meeting, Russian forces carried out missile strikes across Ukraine that reportedly killed at least 42 people.

open image in gallery Vladimir Putin awards Narendra Modi the Order of St Andrew the Apostle at the Kremlin in Moscow ( AP )

Strategic observers say Mr Modis trip to Kyiv is aimed at reassuring Indias Western partners upset over his Moscow visit. And although it is mainly being undertaken for the sake of optics, the trip may present an opportunity for New Delhi to strengthen defence cooperation with Ukraine, which has been providing spare parts for its warships.

Modis visit is primarily about providing reassurance to the West after the fallout of the Moscow visit, which coincided with the airstrikes in Ukraine ahead of the Nato summit, Chietigj Bajpaee, a senior research fellow for South Asia at Chatham House, told The Independent.

Its a form of strategic signalling by India to the West and Europe in particular which has been more critical of India.

Swaran Singh, professor of diplomacy and disarmament at the Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi, argues that Mr Modis trip is not an afterthought after his Moscow summit  but rather a way of India showing off its strategic autonomy.

Western pressures are important but the decision is fundamentally driven by Indias foreign policy being built on the axis of strategic autonomy. And to demonstrate - even to Moscow  New Delhi will have a bear hug with Putin and we will also engage in Ukraine as well, he told The Independent.

He also claimed that Mr Modi visiting Ukraine on the eve of its National Day was meant to send a message that India stands with the independence of Ukraine.

open image in gallery Narendra Modi meets Vladimir Putin in Moscow on 9 July 2024 ( AP )

In any case, it wont be easy for Mr Zelensky to sway India to his side against Russia. The Ukranian leaderships limited engagement with New Delhi in the past has yielded no significant shift its position, which is largely driven by self-interest.

India relies heavily on Russia for weapons and energy supplies, to the point that New Delhi is accused by the West of indirectly funding Moscows war by buying vast quantities of Russian crude oil. These purchases have increased almost 20-fold since 2021.

Just before leaving for the trip, Mr Modi said he will "share perspectives" on a peaceful resolution of the war. As a friend and partner, we hope for an early return of peace and stability in the region, he said.

Delhi has previously indicated a willingness to give support to resolve the conflict peacefully, but hasnt any plan, unlike rival China, which has proposed a 12-point peace plan.

I am sceptical of Indias ability to play the role of a mediator as its self-interest in Russia raises questions about whether it has the means and motivation to play the role of some sort of mediator or peace builder, particularly given its long-standing and close relationship with Russia, Mr Bajpaee said.

At most, he added, India could serve as a conduit to relay messages between Moscow and Kyiv and potentially offer a back channel for the West to communicate with Russia.

open image in gallery Narendra Modi met Vladimir Zelensky on the sidelines of the last G7 summit ( EPA )

Rahul Roy-Chaudhury, a senior fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in the UK, seemed to agree.

Expectation of India playing a role in mediation is too exaggerated, he said. In my view, India has been able to do a balancing act between all these different parties. It has been able to do it reasonably successfully. But that is the extent. Mediation means going far beyond this.

This could be because, Prof Singh said, India was wary of making a grand proposal, like Chinas peace plan, that could fall flat on its face.

India is being very cautious, very modest, very sublime. It is not making any grand proposals and any claims to do things as yet. I am also hopeful that a more definite wording will appear when Modi speaks in Kyiv, he said.

Mr Chaudhury said the West could try and project Mr Modis visit to Mr Zelensky as a victory borne out of its pressure and criticism of his trip to Russia.

Russia will understand that this is just for the optics and not much substance. And on Indias policy, there will be no substantive change in its ties with Moscow despite this visit to Ukraine, he said.

open image in gallery Vlodomyr Zelensky and Narendra Modi shake hands at the G7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan, last May ( Reuters )

At the same time, he pointed out, India could benefit by deepening defence trade with Kyiv. A number of Indian naval vessels rely on Ukrainian engines and spare parts, he explained.

If Moscow does object to Mr Modis visit, Mr Bajpaee said, it would manifest in other ways.

Putin could deepen or grow outreach between Moscow and Pakistan, for instance, he said.

In the worst-case scenario, Russia could lean more in Chinas favour in its border conflict with India.
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A Sri Lankan diplomat has been ordered by a court to pay more than half a million Australian dollars to her former housekeeper in back wages during her stay in Canberra allegedly under conditions similar to modern slavery.

Himalee Arunatilaka, who served as the former deputy high commissioner of Sri Lanka between 2015 and 2018, paid Priyanka Danaratna just three per cent of the minimum wage in Australia, according to the Federal Court.

Ms Arunatilaka paid Ms Danaratna 5,805 (AUD$11,212) during her three years of work, David Hillard, the domestic workers lawyer said. The national minimum wage for a 38-hour week is 340.12 (AUD $656.90).

She worked seven days a week for three years, and she had two days off in that entire time  and she did that because she burned her hand while preparing some food, Mr Hillard, a pro bono partner at the law firm Clayton Utz, said.

Ms Danaratna filed a civil case against her employer under the Fair Work Act after she fled Ms Arunatilakas residence.

The Federal Court on Thursday found that Ms Arunatilaka breached the Fair Work Act and was ordered to pay 193,642 (AUD$374,000) in unpaid wages and a further 87,501.44 (AUD$169,000) in interest, bringing the total amount owed to more than 281,143 (AUD$543,000).

The court stated that Ms Danaratna was required to work ordinary hours in excess of an average of 38 per week, in excess of 10 hours per day, for more than five hours without an unpaid break of at least 30 minutes for a meal every day, and in excess of an average of 38 hours per week without being paid overtime.

It also noted that she was required to perform work on public holidays without being paid penalty rates and not paid a 17.5 per cent annual leave loading.

Ms Arunatilaka has never engaged with this proceeding: she has not filed a notice of address for service, a defence or any evidence or submissions opposing Ms Danaratnas claim. She did not attend the hearing. Ms Danaratna has served on Ms Arunatilaka all the material relied upon in support of her claim namely, the initiating processes, pleadings, evidence and submissions, the court noted.

At hearing I made this order on the basis that I was satisfied that Ms Arunatilaka had been notified on numerous occasions of the claim against her and of the hearing and it appeared that she did not intend, by her own election, to take any part in the proceedings.

The Sri Lankan foreign ministry came to Ms Arunatilakas defence and said she had followed government-approved rates in paying the wages. The allowance approved by the ministry as the salary of the employee has been paid to her, a ministry statement said.

The ministry is satisfied that the said salary was paid to the domestic assistant by the employer as mutually agreed.

Ms Arunatilaka now works as the Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations Office at Geneva.

Mr Hillard alleged that his client was not allowed breaks or holidays during her employment.

"Its an example of how modern slavery works," he said. "Vulnerable employees find themselves trapped in a situation where their lives are nothing but work, in a job they cannot escape."

He said that the employees passport was taken by the diplomat and Ms Danaratna was not allowed to leave the house without her or her husbands permission.

She told me that she would give me the passport back before I left Australia. Ms Arunatilaka did not explain why she wanted my passport. I gave my passport to her. I never saw that passport again, Ms Danaratna said in an court affidavit quoted by ABC.

Ms Danaratna alleges was only allowed to go on short walks around the neighbourhood which allowed her to contact the Salvation Army, an evangelical Protestant Christian church that engages in charity work.

On 14 August 2018, I told Ms Arunatilaka and her husband that I was going for a walk. I left Ms Arunatilakas residence, and the two people from the Salvation Army were waiting for me nearby in a car, she said, adding that she stayed in a safe house there.

Mr Hillard said the envoy does not have diplomatic immunity protection as she is no longer a diplomat in the country.

Journalist and political analyst Ranga Jayasuriya wrote that Sri Lanka should expect consequences, not just reputational damage.

In his editorial in Daily Mirror, he asked what is worse  the Sri Lankan diplomat ordered to pay half a million Australian dollars or the foreign ministry defending the diplomat in what would be international embarrassment.

The Independent has reached out to Ms Arunatilaka for comment.
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More than 800 people were killed during the mass protests in Bangladesh that toppled the Awami League government and forced prime minister Sheikh Hasina to flee to India, a rights group in the country has said.

The South Asian nation was plunged into a crisis earlier this summer after students launched an agitation against a jobs quota for relatives of the 1971 war veterans.

The street protests quickly turned into an uprising against Ms Hasinas government, despite the top court scaling back the quota, culminating in the prime ministers ouster in early August.

At least 819 people were killed in the violent agitation, mostly in capital Dhaka, the Human Rights Support Society claimed on Tuesday. The dead included 83 children, five journalists and 51 law enforcement agents.

The group said they identified 630 of the dead based on information from their families, eyewitnesses and hospitals, and 189 remained unknown. At least 455 of them were shot to death while others were either burned or beaten to death.

As many as 311 people were killed in the first round of the protests between 6 July and 3 August, but the majority of the deaths were reported from 4 to 18 August when millions of people poured out protesting against police brutality against the demonstrators, the group claimed.

Police in Bangladesh were accused of using lethal force to contain the protests before stepping back in the wake of the prime ministers minister.

The rights group demanded the formation of an independent commission to ensure justice for those killed during the agitation.

A UN agency last week estimated that 650 people were killed in Bangladesh between 16 July and 11 August.

Those killed include protesters, bystanders, journalists and security forces personnel, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said in a report, adding that thousands of protesters and bystanders were injured.

The report suggested that the death toll could be an underestimate as restrictions due to curfew and internet shutdown hindered the process of data collection.

"Additional, alleged violations that also warrant thorough, impartial and transparent investigations included extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests and detention, enforced disappearances, torture and ill-treatment, as well as severe restrictions on the exercise of freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly, the report said.

Bangladesh, a country of 170 million, is currently ruled by economist Muhammad Yunus, along with student leaders of the agitation that ousted Ms Hasina.

Mr Yunus, upon taking over as chief adviser of the interim government, declared that his priority would be to restore "law and order".
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Sherpa living in Nepals Everest region were left worrying about their future after one of their villages was devastated last week by a powerful flood triggered by a glacial lake outburst.

Floodwaters swept through the serene Sherpa village of Thame, located at an altitude of around 3,800m, displacing about 60 residents and destroying over a dozen houses, several hotels, a school, and a health centre.

The flood changed the course of the Thame river, moving it right through the village and claiming half its land. It also covered much of the fertile farmland with mud and debris.

The disaster sparked fears about the safety and future of the Sherpa village.

Much of the remaining land now is full of debris and boulders, Yangji Doma Sherpa, a villager, told the BBC. This isnt like rebuilding the houses destroyed by the quake. When you have no land left, what can you build on?

In spite of the extensive damage to land and property, no deaths or injuries were reported. The flood arrived during the day, allowing the villagers to flee in time.

If this had happened at night, 200 to 300 people would have lost their lives, Ang Tshering Sherpa, a former president of the Nepal Mountaineering Association, told the British broadcaster.

Sherpas are exceptional climbers and many work as guides and porters for mountaineers on Mount Everest.

The flood disrupted essential services. It damaged the only hydel station serving the region, causing a power outage that cut off communication with the outside world.

The flood was caused by a glacial lake outburst, which is when its dam collapses and a massive surge of water flows out.

The glacial lakes responsible for this disaster were small and unmonitored, raising concerns about the lack of monitoring of such potential dangers.

Thousands of glaciers and glacial lakes in the Himalayas are poorly monitored, with very few having early flood warning systems. The gap in monitoring is particularly concerning given the accelerated melting of glaciers due to the climate crisis.

A 2021 study led by the University of Leeds found that Himalayan glaciers were losing ice 10 times faster than in previous centuries. Additionally, new lakes were forming, and existing ones expanding, increasing the risk of outbursts.

Nepalese authorities and the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development were investigating the remaining glacial lakes in the region to assess their risk and develop strategies to prevent future disasters.

The lack of disaster preparedness in many villages adds to the vulnerability. While some downstream villages had received training on how to respond to floods, Thame hadnt.

Anil Pokhrel, head of Nepals Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, said they were forming an expert team to study the risks posed by the remaining glacial lakes in the area and evaluate the safety of downstream settlements.

But local communities were wary of promises that might not be realised.

We hear all big plans, especially during conferences, and soon the plans are forgotten, Doma Sherpa told the BBC. But we cant forget about what this flood has done - and that there are other lakes lurking up there that can unleash disasters on us anytime.
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A social media influencer travelling through Afghanistan and posing with Taliban fighters has been attacked for her posts about the hardline regime. In the country, millions of girls and women are denied education, jobs, and other basic rights.

Somali-American influencer Marian Abdi, who goes by the name Geenyada Madow on her social media channels, was seen posting her photos and videos from Kabul, Bamyan, and other Afghan cities, mainly dressed in a full-length burqa.

Several Afghan women pointed out their erasure from public spaces by the militants as Ms Abdi posted her videos marking Afghanistan as a tourist destination. One of her posts on Twitter/X was captioned Met with the Tali*an, accompanied by the hashtag #viral2024. Social media users asked the TikToker and YouTuber if she asked the Taliban why they have stoned women and banned them from schools and colleges.

ln a time when Afghan girls and women are deprived of their most basic rights, it is deeply troubling and unacceptable to see someone like Geenyada Madow, who has gone to Afghanistan and lobbies for the Taliban, said Niloofar Naeimi, a human rights activist on Afghan womens issues. This action disregards the suffering and pain of millions of Afghan women who face oppression and persecution under the Talibans rule, she said.

Videos by the influencer also showed the grim reality of Afghanistan under the Taliban, as women didnt often feature in the videos she shot in the country. Ms Abdi was seen strolling the markets of Kabul and driving around in the city but in the company of a male tourist guide.

Ms Abdi was seen being greeted by Afghan men on the streets and markets as she claimed that she was the first Black Muslim person to have travelled to the war-ravaged nation. In her social media bio on Twitter/X, Ms Abdi said she loves exploring and sharing the realities of misunderstood countries.

In one of her videos on YouTube she said she met with Taliban fighters but did not record the interaction as she was not allowed to do so. Ms Abdi said she was confused and scared.

"I was super nervous, I am confused the fact that they would even allow me to talk to them. I couldnt record our conversation because they wouldnt allow me and my battery died. They asked me where I am from as they can see Im a foreigner, she said in her video.

I said Im Somali; theyre like okay are you from the West. I said yes, Im from America theyre like okay welcome, she said.

The influencer also claimed that she asked the Taliban why Afghan girls and women were not allowed to study beyond the sixth grade. She said she was met with different reactions of their faces and replies. She said she took their permission before asking the question to be respectful to them.

The only answer that made sense that came out of one of their mouths was were a new country... new government and things will change everything takes time. I was like thats it, they said yeah, the content creator said.

She defended herself against the remarks and addressed the social media backlash, claiming that she only asked for the photo to show to people that she met the Taliban fighters.

It is simply to say this is my experience, this is what I saw, this is how they treated me. I actually asked for the photo to show the people that I met them and that this is the interaction we had. I am for all womens rights and I would love to see one day women getting education and working. Please dont take everything out of context. Dont judge me for one photo, the influencer said.

Nice memories with the Taliban; did you ask about the stoning of Afghan girls or you were just too busy posing for photos with the Taliban? asked another user on Twitter/X.

Anyone supporting the Talibans oppressive regime while living in comfort abroad is part of the problem. Theyre turning a blind eye to the suffering of millions of women and girls trapped in their homes, stripped of their basic rights and freedoms, said Freshta Razbaan, lawyer and co-chair of the Afghan Advisory Committee at Prosecutors For Prosecutors (PFP) Campaign.

Promoting such a brutal regime is inexcusable. Instead of being silent or complicit, we should all be standing up against this cruelty, she said.
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A six-year-old boy, who went missing in a hilly forest area in Vietnam, has been found alive after five days. It is being hailed as a miracle rescue.

Dang Tien Lam, who lives in the Van Yen district in northeast Vietnam, went missing on 17 August after he went to play with his siblings near a stream and decided to return home alone.

But hours after he failed to return, police were alerted and a search operation was launched to find Lam.

More than 200 people, including police officers, soldiers, militia members and local volunteers were mobilised to find the boy.

Investigators scanned surveillance footage from nearby areas to eliminate the possibility of kidnapping and also drained fish ponds and scoured streams, district head Ha Duc Anh said.

He was finally found on Wednesday after a local farmer heard faint cries in the woods as he was returning to his tent. Ly Van Nang found Lam sitting among cassava bushes. He said the boy was so exhausted and weak that he was unable to stand.

Mr Nang said the boy asked him to carry him as he could not stand up.

I picked him up, and he said he was tired and hungry, asking if I had anything to eat, Mr Nang recounted.

Pictures showed a mud-covered frail boy in a red T-shirt drinking juice while sitting on a chair. He was also pictured in a hospital receiving care.

Lam said he survived on leaves and wild fruit during his time in the forest, according to reports.

He was found some 6km deep into the woods from where he went missing.

The police said finding Lam alive was a miracle and congratulated the family for the safe return of the boy, saying Congratulations on returning safely to your family.

Mr Nang said, [The boy told me] that when he got lost, he could not find his way home. And the more he walked, the more he could not find a way out.
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Thai politician Prawit Wongsuwan slapped a journalist on the head for asking him a question about the new prime minister, sparking outrage in the country.

A formal parliamentary investigation has been sought against Mr Prawit, 79, who has a controversial history, including alleged involvement in a military coup.

A video of the interaction in Bangkok last week between Duangthip Yiamphop, a veteran reporter for the Thai Public Broadcasting Service, and Mr Prawit, a retired general and former deputy prime minister, led to anger in Thailand.

Journalist associations condemned the politicians act as intimidation and an assault on press freedom. The recent attack on a journalist is unacceptable and cannot be ignored, Ittipan Buathong, president of the Thai Broadcast Journalists Association, said.

Its clear that what happened wasnt just teasing. It was an outright assault.

He alleged that Mr Prawit had acted inappropriately towards journalists before. This incident, if dismissed as trivial, risks repeating past scenarios where interviews have belittled the media, questioning their educational background to undermine their professional work.

Ms Duangthips employer called for Mr Prawit to be held accountable for violating the rules of ethical conduct.

Mr Prawit, who heads the Palang Pracharath Party, apologised, claiming he was teasing someone he knew well.

Because he was a soldier the teasing could appear to be violent but those close to him know that he teases like this all the time, Piya Tavichai, a spokesman for the party, said. He was teasing her as someone who he is close to.

Last year, Thailands military-appointed Senate rejected the outcome of an election won by a candidate who advocated for changes to a law criminalising criticism of the monarchy, allegedly under Mr Prawits influence.

Senior or influential figures feel they can act with impunity towards younger or less powerful people, Senator Tewarait Maneechai was quoted as saying by The New York Times.

Unfortunately, this has become a norm in Thai society.

Mr Prawit, president of Thailands National Olympic Committee, was leaving a meeting with athletes returning from the Paris Games when Ms Duangthip asked him in Thai, Have you watched the prime ministerial vote?

What did you ask? What kind of question is that? Mr Prawit responded and proceeded to slap her on the head multiple times before walking away.

Mr Prawit is accused of playing a role in orchestrating the 2014 military coup as Thailands top general, following his involvement in the ousting of Yingluck Shinawatra, sister of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Last week, Thailands constitutional court removed Srettha Thavisin as prime minister for appointing a convicted lawyer to his cabinet. Mr Srettha was replaced on Sunday by Thaksins daughter Paetongtarn Shinawatra.
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Deaths due to heat-related stress and illnesses could triple in Europe by the end of the century, scientists have warned.

Researchers say if current climate policies continue, heat could become as big a threat for Europeans as cold, which currently kills eight time more people.

The worst impact would be seen in southern Europe, including Spain, Italy, Greece, and parts of France, which are expected to be the most affected, according to the study publishedThe Lancet Public Health on Thursday.

Last two summers in Europe have already been the deadliest on record. In 2022, at least 60,000 people have been estimated to have died due to heat-related conditions, the highest toll on record. While in 2023, a study published this year found death toll to be at 43,729.

Under current climate policies, scientists from the Joint Research Centre at the European Commission estimate that by the end of the century, this figure could skyrocket from 43,729 to 128,809 annually by 2100.

Using data from 1,368 regions in 30 European countries, the researchers modeled temperature-related mortality risks for different age groups and various global warming scenarios.

This prediction is under the scenario when the global temperature rise by the end of the century will be 3 degrees Celsius, as projections show, double than what the Paris Agreement aimed for. However, if global warming can be limited to lower levels, the rise in temperature-related mortality could be significantly reduced.

The findings suggest that while deaths related to cold temperatures will slightly decrease, heat-related deaths will rise sharply, especially in southern Europe. Currently, around eight times more people in Europe die from cold than heat, but this ratio is projected to decrease dramatically by the end of the century.

Our analysis reveals that the ratio of cold-heat deaths will shift dramatically over the course of this century, with those attributed to heat increasing in all parts of Europe and surging in some areas, said Dr Juan-Carlos Ciscar, lead author of the study.

At the same time, cold-related deaths will decline slightly overall. Our study looks at more than 1,000 regions across 30 countries, enabling the identification of hotspots where people will be worst affected in the future.

open image in gallery A woman takes a selfie as she shelters from the sun with an umbrella near St Peter's Square during a heatwave in Rome, Italy ( Reuters )

Global warming wont save lives, as some misguided people suggest, Dr Emma Lawrance, climate cares lead at the Institute of Global Health Innovation, Imperial College London, who is not part of the study, said.

This research estimates that the number of heat-related deaths will continue to ramp up if humans keep warming the planet, while the number of cold-related deaths will only decrease slightly.

Its clear a hotter world is a deadlier world. With every tenth of a degree of warming from the burning of fossil fuels, well see more deaths from extreme heat, fires, floods, and storms fueled by climate change, increased spread of mosquito-transmitted disease and poorer air pollution, among many other climate health impacts.

The study warns of increased risks as the intensity of disasters is already increasing in Europe. Greece, which just saw a devastating wildfire which scorched an area the size of Paris near Athens.

View more

The study estimates that in a scenario where global temperatures rise by 3C, temperature-related deaths in Europe could increase by 13.5 per cent, resulting in 55,000 more deaths each year. The elderly population, particularly those over 85, is expected to bear the brunt of these changes.

Cold-related deaths are highest in Eastern Europe and the Baltic states, with rates between 25 and 300 per 100,000 people. In contrast, they are lowest in Central and parts of Southern Europe.

Heat-related deaths vary from 0.6 to 47 per 100,000, with the lowest in the UK and Scandinavia and the highest in Croatia and the southernmost parts of Europe.

The researchers acknowledge some limitations in their study, including the focus on urban populations, who typically face higher levels of temperature stress, particularly heat, than those in rural areas.

This research is a stark reminder of the number of lives that we are putting at risk if we fail to act quickly enough against climate change, says Dr Madeleine Thomson, head of climate impacts and adaptation at Wellcome, said.

And the predicted tripling of direct heat deaths is not even the full picture. Extreme heat kills but it also causes serious health harms. It has been linked to an increased risk of miscarriages and poorer mental health outcomes  both areas that urgently need more research.

The studys authors say Europe needs stronger policies to limit global warming and protect vulnerable regions and populations.

While the entire world is rapidly warming, Europe is the fastest-warming continent.

While the global mean near-surface temperature between 2013 and 2022 was 1.13 to 1.17C warmer than the pre-industrial level, making it the warmest decade on record, European land temperature increased by 2.04 to 2.10C.

The year 2023 was the hottest on record. In fact, research estimating past temperatures before the records began found that it was the hottest in the northern hemisphere over the past 2,000 years.

Last years extreme temperatures continued until the middle of this year, with July breaking the record streak with a slight drop in mercury.

Scientists from the European climate change agency Copernicus said the continent saw a record number of days with extreme heat stress when temperatures felt hotter than 45C due to humidity even if mercury was lower.
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Texas saw another day of record-breaking heat on Wednesday, leaving thousands without power as triple digit temperatures were forecast to continue through Thursday.

Sweltering conditions stressed the states energy grid and broke its operators demand record on Tuesday, according to The Dallas Morning News.

open image in gallery A tuber floats down the Comal River on Wednesday in New Braunfels, Texas ( (AP Photo/Eric Gay) )

The previous years record was 85,508 megawatts of electricity. The paper said the latest record was more than 50 megawatts higher, at 85,559 megawatts.

While the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) said in a Thursday morning tweet that the grid  which has previously suffered under the weight of demand  is operating under normal conditions with sufficient capacity to meet demand, outage tracker PowerOutage.US showed more than 8,500 customers remained without power.

Meanwhile, residents desperate to beat the heat have been forced to stay inside, or seek refuge in local bodies of water.

open image in gallery A tuber in a cowboy hat floats down Comal River on Wednesday in New Braunfels, Texas ( (AP Photo/Eric Gay) )

The National Weather Services Corpus Christi Office said records had either been broken or tied when the city reached 105 degrees Fahrenheit. Laredo jumped up to 109 degrees, tying its previous record.

Multiple weeks of August have seen highs above 100 degrees. Last Friday was no different and local TV station KTVT reported a UPS driver had crashed his truck after passing out from the heat .

In Sherman, KXII said the county jail experienced air conditioning issues over the weekend, with units struggling to keep consistent temperatures.

Two heat-related deaths were reported across North Texas last weekend, according to NBC 5. The station said a 76-year-old woman had passed away in Denton County, and a 72-year-old man died in Hood County.

open image in gallery A paddler moves down the Guadalupe River on Wednesday in New Braunfels, Texas ( (AP Photo/Eric Gay) )

The Texas A&M Forest Service raised the states Wildland Fire Preparedness Level in response to hot and dry conditions, with an increase in current and expected wildfire activity reported across the state.

On Tuesday, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott announced he had deployed additional state firefighting resources to assist affected communities.

As the state continues to endure triple-digit temperatures and dry vegetation, Texas is deploying additional firefighting resources to assist communities that have increased wildfire activity, he said in a statement.

On Thursday, the National Interagency Fire Center showed no active fires in the state, but said there were fuels and fire behavior advisories in place for Northwest Texas.

The Forest Service said there were more than 7,500 wildfires across the state last year, burning 205,144 acres.

open image in gallery A Border Patrol agent gives unaccompanied minors water outside Eagle Pass, Texas in early February ( (Photo by SERGIO FLORES/AFP via Getty Images) )

All of this comes amid burgeoning and continuing concerns regarding the states water resources.

In May, a bipartisan group of legislators wrote a letter asking Congress to withhold funds from Mexico until the country met obligations to resolve the ongoing water dispute. They argued that without the lack of reliable water deliveries, the quality of life for American citizens living along the Texas-Mexico border would be threatened.

Just over 40 percent of the state is under moderate-to-severe drought , according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

open image in gallery Texas Republican Senator John Cornyn speaks with reporters in Washington, D.C., in early February ( (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, Archive) )

Heat advisories and excessive heat warnings continued across the Lone Star State on Thursday.

The National Weather Service (NWS) said the ongoing heat wave over the Southern Plains and Gulf coast would continue into the weekend, with high temperatures in the upper 90s, likely breaking dozens of additional daily records.

In addition, scattered showers and thunderstorms are expected for parts of the Southern Plains region through Saturday.

Next week is forecast to bring more storms, but high temperatures remain in the 90s.

The Independent will be revealing its Climate100 List in September and hosting an event in New York, which can be attended online.
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We live in a society of rules. Mostly, these are the big ones, the hard and unwithering dicta written and codified by men in old-timey judicial wigs. You cannot steal; you cannot burn down a police car; you cannot bludgeon your landlord with a trowel. These we know. It is the law. But beneath these, nestled discreetly in our psychosocial cortex, is another set of rules: that slippery, malleable thing we call etiquette. And for all the hullabaloo made about the supposed Great British politeness, nowhere is the dubious and disposable nature of this etiquette more apparent than at music concerts.

To use a particularly egregious example: last weekend, at the London day festival All Points East, photos emerged of young revellers who had arrived early to see the headliner (indie sensation Mitski), only to spend the afternoon camped out on the floor by the frontal barricades, watching Netflix on their phones while the lesser-known support acts took to the stage. How these people avoided being buffeted underfoot or soaked with the accidental spillage of a reproachful pint is a mystery. (Many would say they were asking for it.)

Mitski has previously lamented the rampant etiquette infractions at her concerts: excessive screaming and creepy and overfamiliar yelling  Mother is mothering! being a particularly popular off-kilter catchphrase. Its likely this was a factor in her choosing to perform her recent tour to seated crowds. It can be tempting to write off these obnoxious behaviours as a problem specific to Gen Z  the gaucheness of a demographic whose understanding of how to behave in public was fritzed by the social-skills EMP device that was the Covid pandemic. But its more than this. Everywhere you look, everywhere you go, people are breaking the unwritten rules of concertgoing. It is fast becoming a lost language.

Part of the problem, perhaps, is that these rules are by their very nature unwritten. A few, of course, have a hard and fast consensus. Smoking, for instance  acceptable in the thick of an outdoor crowd, but indoors, strongly frowned upon. (Not to mention illegal.) A decade or two ago, holding aloft your mobile phone to capture video footage of a concert would have been a definite no-no; now, shifting demographics and technological ubiquity have made concert camming utterly, placidly accepted in most audiences. Whether you see it as a massive vibe-killer or a harmless means of preserving a live performance to later re-enjoy, is moot  its too widespread to curtail at this point.

Yet many other etiquette norms exist in more of a grey area. Intermittent talking is mostly tolerated, particularly during support acts  but talk too loudly, too persistently, or too near the stage, and you might be courting a stern shushing. Tall people are of course within their rights to stand wherever they so wish, but the taller you are, the more peeved off the people standing behind you are going to be  so if youre a hulking 7ft adonis, you might do well to avoid the front, fairness be damned.

One particularly muddy issue concerns the optics of pushing ones way towards the front of a concert crowd. Weve all been there  leaving your spot to visit the toilet or bar, and having to meekly nudge, sidle and um-excuse-me your way through a throng of people to return to wherever your mates happen to be standing. (If youre planning on drinking a lot, its polite to avoid standing at the very front of the crowd, to minimise the amount of laborious to-ing and fro-ing.) But oh! How different everything looks from the other side  when youre standing, sardined into a horde of people, enjoying a position you rightfully claimed, when some boorish chancer comes squeezing through willy-nilly. The right of way, as it were, of the whole endeavour, involves a complicated (and almost entirely sub-conscious) mental rubric, taking into account crowd density, proximity to the stage, and other myriad minor and subjective factors  if youre holding a tray of pints, for example, or trailing five people behind you in tandem.

Footage shows unauthorised fireworks set off in crowd during Dua Lipa concert

All of this depends, too, of course, on the style and sensibility of the music thats being staged. At an acoustic indie set, audiences might come to expect a certain pin-drop atmosphere; at a heavy metal concert, or a punk gig, violent jostling and frenzied yelling is not only OK, its probably encouraged. In some cases, its ruder not to mosh.

There has to be a degree of flexibility in the enforcement of etiquette at any live event. Most of the rules are born not of some life-or-death necessity but of basic human consideration; as such, gig crowds  which do, after all, comprise broadly like-minded people  have traditionally done a good job of policing themselves. To some extent, it boils down to something as simple and innate as this: dont be a d***. If everybody could just heed that, the music scene would surely be a better place.
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Nara Smith has hit back at how shes been labeled a tradwife as she opened up about her role as a working mother.

The 22-year-old model  who shares three children with husband Lucky Blue Smith  addressed some of the criticism shes faced on social media during an interview with Harpers Bazaar, published on August 22. While she acknowledged that shes been referred to as a tradwife, a phrase for a married woman who takes on traditional gender roles from the 1950s, she said that she wouldnt view herself in that way.

Thats one of the narratives that I have a really hard time wrapping my head around: the tradwife, whatever it is, said Smith  whos known for her viral TikTok videos about cooking for her family and husband. You dont see me getting on a plane, hopping to New York, modeling, coming back  all while I have a newborn  paying bills, filming content, getting my kids dressed.

Smith continued to hit back at how shes just been categorized by her responsibilities as a parent, rather than also by her career.

Being put into a certain box, just because people think that Im slaving away, is so weird to me. Im a working mom who gets to go about her day in a very different way than [someone with] a normal nine-to-five job would, she explained.

She was asked about the viral reaction to her performance in her videos, some of which have seen her make things such as bubble gum and Coca-Cola from scratch. However, according to Smith, she doesnt necessarily believe that the videos she makes are a big deal.

Im a girly girl. I love dressing up. I love fashion so much, she said. Sometimes my outfits arent the most practical, but then again fashion isnt always practical. Thats what I do. I post videos of me cooking for my kids and my husband. Its really not that deep.

Despite her busy schedule, throughout her personal and professional life, Smith still acknowledged that shes not sure how to define what she does for a living.

I never know what to say when people ask me [what I do], because technically, yes, I create content, she says. But then Im just living my life and sharing that with people, which a lot of people do.

Smith has previously hit back at the assumptions that have been made about her life, since typing the knot with her husband in 2020. The pair are now parents of three: Rumble Honey, three, Slim Easy, two, and Whimsy Lou Smith, four months.

In a video posted to TikTok in March, Smith first subtly discussed the tradwife accusations shes been hit with while acknowledging that her lifestyle is not for everyone.

Ive always wanted to be a young mom because growing up, my dad would always tell us that he regrets having kids later in life, she said. So I took that advice and its one of the best decisions I could have made, and I know its not for everyone.

She added: I was always very mature and independent and did a lot of things at a very young age. So I never feel like Im missing out on any of the partying, any of that, because Ive done all of that.

She also addressed some of her viral cooking videos, clarifying that cooking is simply a passion of hers that comes from her interest in wellness.

Ive always loved cooking, she explained. I just recently, in the past year, have gotten really passionate about it. It all started when I was dealing with really severe eczema and I had to make sure that what I put in my body would be good for my body. And thats kind of how I got into nutrition and food and cooking.
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The future direction of the monarchy is on a knife-edge, amid the passing of the late Queen, tense relationships, and a shrinking inner circle bolstered by an unprecedented health crisis.

Less than two years into his tenure as monarch, King Charles III announced his cancer diagnosis, reducing his public duties to recover. The Princess of Wales is also unable to carry out public duties, dealing with her own cancer diagnosis.

The number of working royals has been steadily shrinking since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped back in 2020, and Prince Andrew was stripped of his titles and patronages due to U.S. civil action over sexual assault allegations.

In this exclusive event for The Independent, Assistant Editor Vicki Harper and a panel of royal experts will analyse the current state of the shrinking Royal Family, look back at how we got here, and explore the potential next moves for the firm to stay relevant.

The first guest on our panel is Anna Pasternak, an international bestselling author and frequent royal commentator on television, radio and podcasts. Annas debut book, Princess in Love  about Princess Dianas affair with James Hewitt  was considered the scoop of the decade.

Anna is also on the Writers Advisory Council of the Free Speech Union and is the author of The American Duchess; the Real Wallis Simpson. In 2021, she spoke against the motion to abolish the British monarchy at The Oxford Union.

Tessa Dunlop will also join our panel. The twentieth-century historian, Sunday Times bestselling author and Royal Television Society awarded broadcaster was also a presenter on the BBCs BAFTA-winning series Coast, and appears on numerous history documentaries and talk shows, often commenting on royal news.

Our third panellist is Jonathan Spangler: royal historian, lecturer at Manchester Metropolitan University and the senior editor of The Court Historian, the journal of the Society for Court Studies. Jonathan specialises in the roles of second sons, or other more junior members of the royal family.

The event will be hosted on Zoom and will last one hour. It will take place on Tuesday September 10 and will start at 7pm BST.

Once signed up you will be able to ask questions to the panel. You can also post questions in the comments of this article.

For more information and to sign up for a free ticket click here.

No one tells The Independent what to report we are truly independent. Your support will allow us to keep it that way, and help us continue to organise these important and insightful virtual events. To send us a contribution click here.
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Police in Haiti have arrested a suspect in the fatal shooting of a U.S. missionary couple and a Haitian man who headed a nonprofit in an attack by gunmen earlier this year that stunned many in the troubled Caribbean country.

The May 23 killings of missionaries Davy Lloyd and his wife, Natalie Lloyd, and Jude Montis, the countrys director for Missions in Haiti Inc., a Claremore, Oklahoma organization, was blamed on gangs rampaging across Haiti's capital and beyond.

The killings took place in the community of Lizon, in northern Port-au-Prince. The city has crumbled under the relentless violence of gangs that control as much as 80% of the Haitian capital.

A video posted on social media late Wednesday by Haitis National Police shows a 52-year-old man in handcuffs, accused of being involved in the killings of the Lloyds and Montis.

Arrests in high-profile killings are very rare in Haiti. In the video, the suspect denies any involvement in the killings. It wasnt immediately clear if the man has been charged and if he has a lawyer.

Police claim the suspects phone was used to make calls after the killings, but the man rejected that accusation.

David Lloyd, the father of Davy Lloyd, told The Associated Press over the phone from Oklahoma on Thursday that he wasnt aware of the circumstances behind the suspect's arrest.

The young couple  Davy was 23 and Natalie just 21  were supposed to celebrate their two-year wedding anniversary in June.

They loved the Haitian people and were dedicated to that country, Lloyd said of his son and daughter-in law.

Natalie Lloyd was the daughter of Missouri state Rep. Ben Baker.

David Lloyd said his son had called him the night of the attack, to tell him that gangs had forced them to open the mission gates and looted the compound before he abruptly hung up. He said his son and others came under gunfire before the gang broke into the home and killed them.

They later set the house on fire, Lloyd said, adding that more than about 100 gang members were believed to have participated in the attack.

The mission compound has since closed, the first time in 26 years, and the children the mission served relocated to a safer community.

There are too many gangs in the area, he said. The country as a whole seems hopeless."

From January to May, more than 3,200 killings were reported across Haiti, with gang violence leaving more than half a million people homeless, according to the United Nations.

In February, gangs launched coordinated attacks on key government infrastructure, raided police stations and opened fire at the main international airport, forcing it to shut down for nearly three months. Gunmen also stormed into Haitis two biggest prisons, freeing thousands of inmates.

With Haitian authorities unable to deal with the chaos, a U.N.-backed police force from Kenya arrived in June to lead a multinational mission, nearly two years after Haiti's government requested urgent deployment of a foreign force.

In the police video, a narrator says the investigation in the case is ongoing: Whoever is involved in the killings, your turn will come up. You will be arrested.

___

Associated Press reporter Evens Sanon in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, contributed to this report.
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Lawyers for an Alabama inmate, scheduled to be executed with nitrogen gas this fall, argued in a Tuesday court filing that the state has ignored problems with the method as it seeks to carry out more nitrogen executions.

Attorneys for Carey Dale Grayson asked a federal judge to block the state from using the same nitrogen protocol that Alabama used in January to execute Kenneth Smith. The court filing cited witness descriptions of the execution and the findings of an autopsy conducted on Smith.

Alabama, after becoming the first state to carry out a nitrogen execution, has scheduled two additional executions with the new method. A second execution via nitrogen gas is set for Sept. 26 for Alan Eugene Miller. Grayson is scheduled to be executed Nov. 21.

Rather than investigating what went wrong  as other states have done following issues with executions. Defendants have chosen to ignore clear and obvious signs the current protocol contains major problems that will result in more unconstitutionally torturous executions if it continues to be employed, attorneys for Grayson wrote in the Tuesday night court filing.

The Alabama attorney generals office declined to comment Wednesday on the court filing but has maintained that the method is constitutional. Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall previously described the execution as textbook. The state will file a response later to the request for a preliminary injunction.

Smith had blood and fluid in his lungs after his death, according to an autopsy conducted by the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences. The state autopsy noted that his lungs when cut showed marked congestion and edema with dark maroon blood. It also noted that the tracheobronchial tree contained a small amount of frothy fluid.

An expert hired by Graysons legal team to review the autopsy wrote that the finding is highly concerning.

Dr. Brian McAlary, an anesthesiologist, wrote that it was the result of negative pressure pulmonary edema which occurs when drawing a breath is attempted against an upper airway obstruction, leading to fluid being drawn from blood vessels. He said it can also occur after strangulation or smothering with a plastic bag. He also wrote that the lack of a sedative given ahead of nitrogen gas increases the likelihood that the person will panic.

Mr. Smiths autopsy demonstrates what happens to the body when this panic response occurs. An individual experiencing panic and the sensation of the inability to breathe while also being denied oxygen will experience a constricted airway similar to an upper airway obstruction, McAlary wrote.

Dr. Thomas Andrew, who retired after two decades as the chief medical examiner of New Hampshire, told The Associated Press that lung congestion is consistent with asphyxia as the mechanism of death. He said as the heart rapidly fails, blood backs up and the lungs become quite congested.

Andrew said he thought it was possibly a bridge too far to conclude there was an airway obstruction. However, he did agree that the lack of sedation could cause a person to panic.

I think thats a critical critique of the protocols used in this form of execution... You certainly will have a sense of the absence of oxygen, air hunger, and all of the panic and discomfort that is part and parcel of that way of dying, Andrew said.

Alabama in 2018 authorized nitrogen gas as a new execution method. Grayson in 2018 selected it as his execution method but at the time the state had not developed a process for using it to carry out an execution.

Grayson was one of four teenagers convicted in the 1994 killing of 37-year-old Vickie Deblieux in Jefferson County. Prosecutors said Deblieux was hitchhiking from Tennessee to her mothers home in Louisiana when four teenagers, including Grayson, offered her a ride. Prosecutors said they took her to a wooded area, attacked and beat her and threw her off a cliff. The teens later mutilated her body, prosecutors said.

Grayson is the only one of the four facing the death penalty because he was 19 at the time of the crime.
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Cambodias prime minister on Thursday led a celebration of the return of dozens of precious artifacts from museums and private collectors abroad, and said his government will continue working to bring more home.

Hun Manet, who became prime minister last year when he succeeded his long-serving father Hun Sen, said the 70 returned statues symbolically reunited the Cambodian people with their ancestral souls. The artifacts were displayed at the Peace Palace, the seat of the country's government.

Many, if not all, the pieces were looted during a long period of civil war and instability while Cambodia was ruled by the brutal communist Khmer Rouge regime in the 1970s.

open image in gallery Cambodia Returned Artifacts ( AP )

Cambodia has benefited from a trend in recent decades that has seen the repatriation of art and archaeological treasures taken from their homelands. These include ancient Asian artworks as well as pieces lost or stolen in turmoil in places such as Syria, Iraq and Nazi-occupied Europe.

A total of 70 Khmer cultural objects have been returned through a range of different processes, including voluntary returns, negotiations, seizures and legal proceedings, from different collections such as from the Lindemann family, Jim Clark, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and other private collectors in the United States, the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts said in a statement.

The statement said the returned items include important Hindu and Buddhist masterpieces from the 9th-to-14th-century Angkor period and earlier, especially priceless stone statues such as a mythical warrior from the Hindu epic Mahabharata, statues of Shiva and Parvati, and the statue of Ardhanarishvara from the ancient capital of Koh Ker.

Hun Manet said that from 1996 until last month, 1,098 artifacts had been returned to Cambodia, 571 from private collections and 527 from foreign institutions and governments.

open image in gallery Cambodia Returned Artifacts ( AP )

open image in gallery Cambodia Returned Artifacts ( AP )

open image in gallery ( AP )

The 70 items displayed Thursday included 14 that arrived from New Yorks Metropolitan Museum of Art in early July; the remainder, from private collectors, arrived in late July.

The pieces that came from the New York museum were bought and trafficked by well-known art dealer Douglas Latchford, who was indicted in 2019 for allegedly orchestrating a multiyear scheme to sell looted Cambodian antiquities on the international art market. Latchford, who died the following year, had denied any involvement in smuggling.

A statement from the U.S. Embassy in Cambodia, said the U.S. government has facilitated the return of over 150 antiquities, including previous returns of the Hindu elephant god Ganesh statue and the 10th century Skanda on a Peacock, both on display at the National Museum of Cambodia in Phnom Penh.

The United States is a committed and reliable partner for protecting the cultural heritage of Cambodia, embassy Charge dAffaires Bridgette Walker, who attended the ceremony, was quoted saying. Returning looted artifacts to their rightful home is the right thing to do.

Cambodian-U.S. relations are generally strained, mainly because of Washington's criticism of alleged political repression and human rights violations by Cambodia's government,
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As Tim Walz prepares to give his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday night, the vice presidential nominee was contending with accusations that he had lied about he and wife Gwens fertility journey.

Today it came out that Tim Walz had lied about having a family via IVF. Who lies about something like that? his Republican rival, JD Vance, posted on X on Tuesday.

In a Harris campaign video clip from August 9, Walz said that his two children, Hope and Gus, were born through in vitro fertilization, or IVF.

Walz was responding to Vances complicated stance on fertility care. Vances comments from a 2021 Fox News interview recently resurfaced where he called women without children childless cat ladies but he has made more recent pro-fertility comments. The Ohio senator voted against the Right to IVF Act in June, but co-sponsored the IVF Protection Act.

First of all, if it was up to him [Vance], I wouldnt have a family because of IVF, and the things that we need to do reproductive  my kids were born in that way, Walz said.

Gwen Walz looks on as her husband Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz speaks at a campaign event in Pennsylvania last weekend. ( (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson) )

Earlier this week, the Walzes did an interview with Glamour magazine about their fertility journey. In the piece, Gwen Walz clarified that the couple had undergoneintrauterine insemination, or IUI, for years, and not IVF.

Like so many who have experienced these challenges, we kept it largely to ourselves at the time, Gwen Walz said, noting that the anxiety, the agony, and the desperation  can eat away at your soul.

She added: Knowing that pain, I cannot fathom the cruelty of politicians who want to take away the freedom for couples to access the care they need.

The Department of Health and Human Services says around 9 percent of men and 11 percent of women of reproductive age have experienced fertility problems in the US. Around one in six globally are affected by infertility, according to the World Health Organisation.

There are a range of treatments for how people can approach the deeply personal, and often painful, issue of infertility. And, the success rates vary wildly.

A selfie of Tim Walz and his family is taken by his 23-year-old daughter, Hope. Walz was en route to Philadelphia on Tuesday, August 6. ( Tim Walz )

Its a topic thats often rife with confusion.

I think that there [are] a lot of people that are confused about IUI vs. IVF. I think its not uncommon to make that mistake, Rachael Jones, a nurse practitioner and VP of Clinical Client Strategy at WIN, told The Independent on Wednesday.

In vitro fertilization, or IVF, is when eggs are surgically retrieved from the womans ovaries using a needleand fertilized with sperm outside of the body. Once the eggs are fertilized, they are considered to be embryos, and can be transferred back to the uterus using a catheter.

With intrauterine insemination, or IUI, a semen sample is washed to concentrate the sperm. The sperm is inserted into the uterus using a speculum and a soft catheter is inserted into the uterus, according to Northwestern Medicine.

For an IUI when its about time to ovulate those eggs oftentimes youll take a shot ... which is a trigger shot  to help time that ovulation, Jones explained.

Lupron is an example of a trigger shot, but that particular drug is not typically involved in IUI (only really in IVF). The one that is commonly used across both IUI & IVF is HCG (chorionic human gonadotropin), she said.

Lupron shots suppress the release of luteinizing hormone, which triggers important processes in the reproductive system.

There are common factors in both processes, including monitoring patients and taking medication to stimulate egg production. Women cannot get pregnant unless ovulation occurs.

But IVF typically involves more medication and is more invasive overall.

IVF attempts to stimulate an average of about 10 to 15 eggs in the ovaries. Hormones, mimicking the bodys natural ovulatory cycle, stimulate the ovaries, so more eggs can grow.

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris listens as Gwen Walz speaks at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania last Sunday. ( (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson) )

In order not to ovulate those, the patient takes the same trigger shot to time the ovulation.

Instead of putting the sperm inside the uterus at that point, youre taking the eggs out. So, you take the eggs out and then you fertilize them with sperm in a lab. And then, once the embryo has grown... you would either transfer the embryo back fresh, or you would freeze it for a future cycle, Jones said.

The success rates of these procedures vary. IUI success rates can be as high as 20 percent in some cases and as low as just 5 percent, decreasing as the patient gets older.

Generally, IUI success rates are much lower than IVF success rates. IVF rates can reach as high as 60 percent on a given cycle, if the embryo has been genetically tested and found to be normal.

An IUI cycle takes place along much the same time scale as an average menstrual cycle but IVF can take a lot longer.

Jones said with IVF, doctors let the body rest to prevent the risk of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome from the stimulatory drugs. Its a condition that can cause the ovaries to swell and become painful. Doctors often advise that embryos are frozen to allow the patient some time between egg retrieval and embryonic transfer.

Whether a person with fertility issues opts for IUI or IVF depends of a number of factors, including age, potential genetic pitfalls, the length of the processes, and the hefty price tags.

IUI takes less time and is cheaper. Without insurance, IUI costs $1,000-$2,000, according to Jones. If donor sperm is required, that costs about $700 per vial. Insurance providers may cover some or all of that cost

IVF, on the other hand, can cost $10,000-$15,000 out of pocket, with genetic testing and medication costs tacking on thousands more.

Some insurance companies are now compelled to provide infertility coverage for treatments, but that coverage varies by state. According to HealthInsurance.Org, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, and Massachusetts have IVF coverage through Essential Health Benefits (EHB) Benchmark Plans. EHB plans in two states, Iowa and North Carolina, include the diagnosis of infertility and medical stimulation of ovulation.

Some 43 percent of private employers offered coverage for IVF as of 2022.

Jones told The Independent that she had her own fertility journey to get pregnant with her daughter, and said that Gwen Walzs comments resonated with her.

I definitely feel that she is not alone in that... I know how to do this and it was still very hard to go through, she said.

People should talk about these experiences more, she added, and find support in others. Thats how you get through it and how you make it better.
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The World Health Organisation on Wednesday declared mpox a global health emergency in response to the growing number of cases both in Africa and other continents.

Mpox belongs to the same family of viruses as smallpox but causes milder symptoms like fever, chills and body aches. People with more serious cases can develop characteristic lesions on the face, hands, chest and genitals.

Formerly known as monkeypox, the virus that was first identified by scientists in 1958 when there were outbreaks of a pox-like disease in monkeys. The name was changed to mpox because it is inaccurate, with scientists suggesting that the virus may have actually originated from rodents.

This week WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus described the emergence and spread of a new variant of mpox as very worrying.

Its clear that a coordinated international response is essential to stop these outbreaks and save lives, he said, as he raised concerns about the viruss spread across international borders.

The first case to reported outside of Africa was discovered in Sweden, with officials in Thailand also seeking on Wednesday to determine the strain of an mpox case in a European man who arrived from Africa the previous week.

More than 17,000 mpox cases and 524 deaths have been reported in Africa this year alone, with more than 96 per cent of fatalities reported from the Democratic Republic of Congo. This is the second time in two years that the WHO has expressed deep concern about the virus, which first seized global attention in 2022.

The WHOs emergency declaration is aimed at spurring donor agencies and countries into action. But the global response to previous declarations has been mixed.

This photo supplied by MSF (Doctors Without Borders) dated 31 May 2023, shows health workers educating children on the symptoms of the mpox disease in Goma, Congo ( AP )

Africa CDC director general Dr Jean Kaseya said his own agencys declaration of a public health emergency was meant "to mobilise our institutions, our collective will and our resources to act swiftly and decisively." He appealed to Africas international partners for help, saying that the escalating caseload in Africa had largely been ignored.

"Its clear that current control strategies arent working and there is a clear need for more resources," said Michael Marks, a professor of medicine at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. "If a (global emergency declaration) is the mechanism to unlock these things, then it is warranted," he said.

Heritier Bwira, a Congolese health worker guides relatives and patients discharged on the hygienic measures to follow after recovering from Mpox ( Reuters )

For decades most human cases of mpox were seen in people in central and West Africa who had close contact with infected animals.

The WHO declared its first mpox emergency in 2022 when the virus was confirmed to spread via sex for the first time, triggering outbreaks in more than 70 countries across the world that had never previously reported cases.

Cases plunged dramatically after a sustained campaign to deliver vaccines. However, it remained endemic to certain parts of Africa where the vaccines could not be delivered.

The number of cases this year has jumped dramatically, already exceeding last years figure. Last week, the Africa CDC reported that mpox has now been detected in at least 13 African countries. Compared with the same period last year, the agency said cases are up 160 per cent and deaths have increased by 19 per cent.

Earlier this year, scientists reported the emergence of a new form of mpox in a Congolese mining town that can kill up to 10 per cent of people and may spread more easily.

Unlike in previous mpox outbreaks, where lesions were mostly seen on the chest, hands and feet, the new form of mpox causes milder symptoms and lesions on the genitals. That makes it harder to spot, meaning people might also sicken others without knowing theyre infected.

During the global outbreak of mpox in 2022, gay and bisexual men made up a large majority of cases and the virus was mostly spread through close contact, including sex.

This undated image provided by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases shows a colorized transmission electron micrograph of mpox particles (red) found within an infected cell (blue), cultured in the laboratory that was captured and color-enhanced at the NIAID Integrated Research Facility ( AP )

Although some similar patterns have been seen in Africa, children under 15 now account for more than 70 per cent of the mpox cases and 85 per cent of deaths in Congo.

Ahead of its emergency meeting, Mr Tedros said officials were dealing with several mpox outbreaks in various countries with "different modes of transmission and different levels of risk."

"Stopping these outbreaks will require a tailored and comprehensive response," he said.

The WHO said mpox was recently identified for the first time in four East African countries: Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. All of those outbreaks were linked to the epidemic in Congo.

This is an outbreak that has been simmering and festering and expanding over the course of a year now, Gregg Gonsalves, a Yale School of Public Health epidemiologist who has advised the WHO on mpox, was quoted as saying by the Washington Post. Im not quite clear why they took so long to do it, he added referring to the emergency declaration.

Now that its done, we need to move quickly to ensure DRC gets all the requisite tools they need to combat the outbreak.

One person in Sweden has been diagnosed with mpox caused by the clade I variant, marking the first such case outside Africa.

There are two distinct clades of the mpox virus: Clade I and Clade II. Clade II was responsible for the global outbreak that began in 2022. Clade I is considered more severe and is classified as a high consequence infectious disease.

According to the public health agency of Sweden, the individual contracted the virus during a stay in a part of Africa experiencing a major outbreak of clade I mpox.

Clade I is more likely to cause severe disease and higher mortality than clade IIb  the variant previously found in Sweden. Although the risk to the general population remains very low, the public health agency said the authorities are closely monitoring the situation.

Sweden has measures in place for infection control and no additional steps are needed at this time, it added.

MPXV  a virus related to smallpox  causes a rash illness that can range from mild and localised to severe and widespread.

Reuters reported on Friday that China will monitor people and goods entering the country for mpox over the next six months, following the declaration by the World Health Organisation that the virus is again a global health emergency.

Individuals from countries with mpox outbreaks who have had contact with cases or show symptoms are required to report to customs. Vehicles and goods from affected areas should be sanitised.

China classifies mpox as a Category B infectious disease, allowing for emergency measures during outbreaks.

The global health agency has released $1.45m from its emergency fund to assist surveillance, preparedness and response activities to contain the spread of virus, but would need up to $15m to ramp up the system effectively.
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Guatemalan police on Wednesday arrested seven Guatemalans accused of having smuggled 53 migrants from Mexico and Central America who died of asphyxiation in 2022 in Texas after being abandoned in a tractor trailer in the scorching summer heat.

They were the latest arrests after years of investigation into one of the deadliest human smuggling attempts to the United States. The dead included eight children.

Interior Minister Francisco Jimenez told The Associated Press the arrests were made possible after 13 raids in three of the countrys departments. They included Rigoberto Roman Mirnado Orozco, the alleged ringleader of the smuggling gang whose extradition has been requested by the United States.

This is a collaborative effort between the Guatemalan police and Homeland Security, in addition to other national agencies, to dismantle the structures of human trafficking, one of the strategic objectives of the government President Bernardo Arevalo in order to take on the phenomenon of irregular migration, Jimenez said.

Six people were charged previously.

Homero Zamorano Jr., who authorities say drove the truck, and Christian Martinez were arrested shortly after the migrants were found. Both are from Texas. Martinez later pleaded guilty to smuggling-related charges. Zamorano pleaded not guilty to smuggling-related charges and is awaiting trial. Four Mexican nationals were also arrested in 2023.

Authorities have said the men were aware that the trailers air-conditioning unit was malfunctioning and would not blow cool air to the migrants trapped inside during the sweltering, three-hour ride from the border city of Laredo to San Antonio.

When the trailer was opened in San Antonio, 48 migrants were already dead. Another 16 were taken to hospitals, where five more died. The dead included 27 people from Mexico, 14 from Honduras, seven from Guatemala and two from El Salvador.

Authorities have alleged that the men worked with human smuggling operations in Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico, and shared routes, guides, stash houses, trucks and trailers, some of which were stored at a private parking lot in San Antonio.

Migrants paid the organization up to $15,000 each to be taken across the U.S. border. The fee would cover up to three attempts to get into the country.

Orozco, the alleged ringleader, was arrested in the Guatemalan department of San Marcos, on the border with Mexico. The other arrests occurred in the departments of Huehuetenango and Jalapa. The police identified the gang as Los Orozcos because several of those arrested are family members and carry that surname.

___

Associated Press reporter Jim Vertuno contributed to this report from Austin, Texas.
 Close The public health emergency was declared by the WHO director general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus

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The World Health Organisation (WHO) has called for $135 million funding to combat the Mpox strain outbreak, which scientists say is mutating more rapidly than expected.

On August 14, the organisation declared an Mpox-related global health emergency for the second time in two years.

Speaking to WHO member states, Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the latest outbreak can be controlled and can be stopped.

$135 million of funding will be needed over the next six months to halt the outbreak, an amount which will likely increase over time, Mr Ghebreyesus added.

Scientists have expressed concern at the rate at which the current Mpox strain, Clade Ib, is mutating.

Nigerian scientist Dr. Dimie Ogoina said they dont understand the outbreak very well, leading to difficulty in addressing the diseases transmission and severity.

Seattle-based doctor Dr. Miguel Paredes said the virus is mutating more rapidly than we would expect.

Democratic Republic of Congo has faced the brunt of the outbreak, which has also spread to Burundi, Central African Republic, Rwanda, and Uganda.

The UK is readying itself after Sweden reported Europes first case of the deadly variant. Three days ago, Thailand confirmed Asias first suspected case of the variant.
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Italian scientists say they have found evidence that the Shroud of Turin may indeed have been Jesus Christs burial cloth, countering controversial previous research dating the artefact to medieval times.

The worlds most studied archaeological artefact has been subject to scrutiny since it first emerged in 1350s, bearing the faint image of a man that some believe to be an imprint of Jesus.

A few decades after the shrouds apppearance, Bishop Pierre dArcis of Troyes wrote a memorandum in 1389 denouncing it as a forgery.

But the cloth, housed in the Cathedral of St John the Baptist in Turin, continued to be studied and scrutinised.

A controversial study carried out in the 1980s dated the shroud to between 1260AD and 1390AD, branding it as a medieval forgery.

Bishops stand in front of the Shroud of Turin ( AFP via Getty )

A later study suggested the cloth wrapped the body of a tortured man but it was pulled owing to the lack of sufficient data to support the conclusions drawn.

The new study, using X-rays to inspect linen threads from the shroud, traces its origin all the way back to the time of Jesus.

Detail of Turin Shroud displayed inside cathedral of Torino ( Getty )

Though the study, published in the journal Heritage, falls short of concluding whether the shroud was actually Jesuss burial cloth, it dates its origin to 2,000 years ago.

The experimental results are compatible with the hypothesis that the Turin Shroud is a 2000-year-old relic, it says, claiming previous analysis might have been flawed due to contamination.

Researchers say cellulose contained in the shrouds fibres has aged slowly since the 14th century due to lower room temperatures in Europe.

This means that most of the cloths natural ageing, about 90 per cent, ocurred before the 1300s.

Microscope photographs of the shroud sample ( Heritage )

There is a catch, however.

Scientists say that the shroud can conclusively be said to be 20 centuries old only if there is further evidence showing the relic was kept safely at an average temperature of about 22C and relative humidity of around 55 per cent for 13 centuries before it emerged.

A more systematic X-ray analysis of more samples taken from the Turin Shroud fabric may be required to confirm their conclusions, they caution.

Screen displaying Shroud of Turin ( AFP via Getty )

The latest research could still help historians test their hypothesis about the shrouds origins.

They can check, for example, if the conditions detailed in the new study match possible locations in the world and historical periods in which the shroud could have been kept before its documented history.
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Two men have been stabbed at Chessington World of Adventures in southwest London.

Both were taken to hospital, one for treatment for his wounds, the other with only minor injuries.

Police arrested a third man on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm. It is believed that the three knew each other.

Officers were called just after 2.30pm on Thursday to reports of two injured people in the car park of the centre in Chessington, Kingston-upon-Thames.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: Officers and London Ambulance Service attended. A man was found on a nearby road with minor injuries.

A second man was found in a car park with knife wounds. A third male was arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm (GBH).

A spokesperson for Chessington World of Adventures told the BBC it was an isolated incident.

The emergency services were immediately alerted and the resorts fully trained first aid team administered care until ambulance teams arrived, they said.

We are fully supporting the Metropolitan Police with their investigation.

A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said: We sent resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew, an advanced paramedic and an incident response officer. We also dispatched Londons air ambulance.

We treated two people at the scene and took one patient to a major trauma centre.

The theme park, one of the UKs most popular, keeps more than 1,000 animals, including lions, tigers, gorillas, monkeys, tigers, reindeer and penguins.
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Half of staff on rape investigation teams are not fully qualified and are still training, police inspectors have warned.

A progress review of nine forces who have adopted a new model to transform the way police respond to rape and sexual offences  known as Operation Soteria  found major changes are still needed to make it a success on a national scale.

A report from His Majestys Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) found Operation Soteria has made positive cultural changes but rape cases are still taking too long to reach trial.

Inspectors found victims were waiting two years for cases to reach the courts amid backlogs, but in two of the forces the delays were up to four years.

In nearly every force inspected, half of rape investigation teams were not fully qualified and were still in training.

A police watchdog has inspected nine forces who have adopted Operation Soteria ( PA Archive )

The report also found some police forces are not effectively monitoring pre-charge bail conditions, such as banning a suspect from contacting a victim, and the conditions are not always sufficient to deter suspects from breaching them.

In addition, only half of staff spoken to by inspectors understood how to use protective orders effectively, such as sexual harm prevention orders.

They also found many Rape and Serious Sexual Offences (RASSO) teams are overstretched and there is insufficient funding for victim services.

Operation Soteria is an unprecedented programme designed to transform how the police handle rape and serious sexual offences.

It aims to lead to better outcomes for victims, including through the use of intelligence, analysis and digital forensics.

His Majestys Inspector of Constabulary Michelle Skeer said: For too long, victims of rape and serious sexual offences have been failed by the criminal justice system. Many struggle to come forward, out of fear of not being believed or being unable to access support.

It is crucial the police respond effectively to these devastating crimes. Thats why Operation Soteria sets out a new approach and model in response, grounded in decades of research examining policing practice.

Out of nine forces inspected so far, early signs of positive progress are being seen. For instance, new training is helping investigators understand victims and their response to trauma. Under Soteria, investigators also assess the wider context of a crime, including intelligence about the RASSO suspect and digital evidence.

But improvements are required to ensure Operation Soteria is implemented effectively. For example, some leaders didnt fully understand Soteria or the benefits it can offer.

We found resource gaps in digital forensics, analysis, victim support and investigation teams. In most forces we inspected, half of their rape investigation team roles are held by trainees.

Improvements are required to ensure Operation Soteria is implemented effectively, inspectors warned ( PA Archive )

In the report, the inspectorate made 14 recommendations to chief constables, the National Police Chiefs Council, the College of Policing and others.

These include making sure that forces have the right resources to identify and disrupt suspects and changing funding arrangements to make sure there is enough support for all victims of these crimes.

The inspector added: We recognise that forces are trying to make things better while dealing with high demand and limited resources. This is alongside the short-term funding for the Soteria Joint Unit and cases often taking too long to reach trial.

However, even with all these challenges, Soteria presents a major opportunity for the criminal justice system. We must keep up the momentum towards change and give victims the service they deserve.

Chief Constable Sarah Crew, Operation Soterias senior responsible officer, said: I am pleased to see that this first HMICFRS report found Soteria to be a true game-changer for policing.

It is important to note that we were at an early stage of implementation at the time of the inspection and, while the signs are positive and strong, we still have much to do to transform.

Force problem profiles still need to be improved, Early Advice from CPS isnt used consistently, and we continue to have a shortage of RASSO trained detectives although we are offering increased support and advice for these challenges and the College of Policing are working to provide appropriate, timely, training to all involved in this area of policing.

A Home Office spokesperson said: This government will make sure victims of rape or sexual abuse get the justice they deserve.

While we welcome the progress being made, in far too many cases victims are being let down. Thats why it is so important that the police continue to make long-lasting improvements and put perpetrators behind bars.

We will carefully consider the recommendations made in this report and work with the police to make the changes victims deserve.
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The Metropolitan Police have further traumatised an already vulnerable Black child who its armed officers mistakenly held at gunpoint last year, a leading activist has warned.

The 14-year-old, known as Child X, suffered injuries after he was rammed off his bike by a police van and handcuffed as he was confronted by marksmen in Hackney, east London, in July 2023, after they wrongly thought his water pistol was a real gun.

Campaign group the Alliance for Police Accountability (APA) condemned the childs treatment, saying his water pistol was unmistakably a toy and that the incident demonstrated the adultification of Black children.

It has since emerged that officers turned up at Child Xs home on 30 May and seized his phone claiming that hes suspected of being involved in a crime - something the family has denied.

APA will host an urgent community meeting on Thursday evening in London to discuss the Met Polices persistent and ongoing harassment of Child X and his family and Hackney Councils lack of response to the case.

Speaking to The Independent, rally organiser Lee Jasper, chair of the APA and veteran activist, accused the police of subjecting the family to an invasive and unjust search and referenced the strip-searching of a 15-year-old Black girl known as Child Q.

Despite all the apparent lessons that Hackney Council says it learned from the review of the Child Q case, what we found is we couldnt access any trauma support for that family - so this had to be independently sourced by Black Sox, the Black Equity Organisation and Hackney CVS had to source trauma intervention for the child and his neighbours.

Lee Jasper is calling for a safeguarding policy that protects Black children who interact with the police ( Supplied )

An internal investigation by the Metropolitan Police found no misconduct had been committed by the officers involved in the armed officers response to Child X last year.

Following public pressure, the IOPC launched an investigation into the incident last year which remains ongoing.

Following the case of Child X being reported by the media in October 2023, Hackney Council said the City and Hackney Child Safeguarding Partnership (CHCSP) would undertake a rapid safeguarding review.

The CHSCP is the key statutory body overseeing arrangements for safeguarding children and young people in the City of London and the Hackney borough.

Ms Benjamin added that the body would be looking to attend community meetings to hear from residents, and would comment further once the review is published.

However, campaigners have criticised the council for failing to prioritise the review or engage with Child Xs family in a meaningful way.

15 months later, we've got no outcome, Mr Jasper, a former mayoral policy advisor, said. Neither can the council be bothered to send anybody to tomorrows meeting to explain to the community why it is they've made no progress on the rapid review.

Campaign group the Alliance for Police Accountability (APA) have condemned Child Xs treatment ( PA Archive )

We want an urgent meeting with Hackney Council to discuss Child Xs case, and a meeting with the local Hackney police chief commander to understand why it is his officers feel completely empowered to harass this family, Mr Jasper explained.

Hackney Council has confirmed to The Independent that the rapid safeguarding review never actually began.

Councillor Anntoinette Bramble, Deputy Mayor of Hackney, said: The threshold for undertaking a Local Child Safeguarding Practice Review has not been met and any further examination of the incident by the City and Hackney Safeguarding Children Partnership relies upon information currently held by the IOPC and the police. This cannot be disclosed to the CHSCP whilst the IOPC investigation is ongoing.

Cllr Bramble added that shes Child Xs mother, most recently last month, to speak with her about the incident, the impact on her family, and to offer support.

A supplied image of the water pistol that Child X was playing with ( Supplied )

This comes as new data recently revealed that Black children remain four times as likely to be strip-searched across England and Wales, compared to national population figures.

The practice of child strip searches prompted a national outrage after the Child Q scandal in 2022, when it was revealed that police strip-searched a 15-year-old Black girl at school in east London, while she was on her period and without an adult present, due to suspected possession of cannabis.

No drugs were found on her person.

The APA is calling for every interaction with children under the age of 18, whether Black or white, to be independently monitored and subject to community scrutiny and interventions.

The biggest safeguarding threat to Black children in London is the Metropolitan Police Service and the reality is this: if you accept that the police are systemically racist, then you have to have a safeguarding policy for the protection of Black children underneath the age of 18 who could be subject to that systemic racism, Mr Jasper said.

There is virtually no monitoring of interactions with Black children and the police unless its part of a safeguarding referral.

Hence, our demand for the London Black Child Safeguarding Board. This would see the introduction of a forensic monitoring process for London - which currently there isnt - where any child who is arrested using force or subject to a strip search then receives an automatic safeguarding referral.

There is virtually no monitoring of interactions with Black children and the police unless its part of a safeguarding referral ( PA Wire )

The Alliance of Police Accountability (APA) is a newly established UK network consisting of influential Black individuals and national Black organisations.

The groups primary focus is on transforming policing and promoting a new public health approach to address serious violence, empowering Black communities across England and Wales.

The Met Police have denied that officers search of Child Xs home is connected to the armed incident last year.

Detective Chief Superintendent James Conway, in charge of policing for Hackney and Tower Hamlets, said: We understand why the community remain concerned about the incident in July 2023. It was understandably extremely distressing for the boy involved as well as his family and we have apologised to them for the trauma we caused.

I know there is further concern about a search warrant carried out on Wednesday, 29 May. I want to make really clear this has no connection to the incident last summer. The search was conducted by officers investigating a life-threatening arson in October 2023.

The fire caused extensive damage to a flat which had residents inside and resulted in that family having to be re-homed. It was incredibly fortunate no-one was seriously harmed.

A child has been since interviewed under caution at a police station, accompanied by a family member, and enquiries continue.

This is an entirely separate matter and the public, but most importantly the victims of this attack, rightly expect us to investigate a really serious crime and make every necessary enquiry.

We are working hard to rebuild the confidence Londoners, particularly Black Londoners, have in our service.
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An extra 400,000 people will be caring for their elderly, sick or disabled relatives for more than 10 hours a week by 2035, new analysis which lays bare the scale of social care needs in the UK suggests.

As the UK population gets older and lives with illness longer, many more people will have to step in to provide the care that health and social care services cant. New research from think tank Joseph Rowntree Foundation projects that 990,000 more people will be providing some type of informal care by 2035  an increase of 10.6 per cent compared to now.

The anti-poverty charity is calling for the government to create a future care needs taskforce, which would look at ways to support the booming number of informal carers.

The report found that paid care services would be insufficient to meet the growing need for support. Since 2016, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation found that only a fifth of over-65s in the UK who needed care used paid-for services alone. The rest used just informal unpaid care or a combination of both.

Researchers projected that 10 years from now, there will be 4 million people providing 10 hours or more of care, and 10.3 million carers in total.

One carer, Ruth Holden, 45, who lives near Manchester, looks after her husband Paul and her two teenage children.

She told The Independent how she tries to get by during the summer holidays when her children no longer get weekly food vouchers from college.

She said: Im mainly a full-time carer for my husband because he cant be left for a huge amount of time. He used to work as a cleaner but one day, he fell down some stairs. We thought he had just hurt his back but he had actually damaged his spine.

He carried on working and then it caused numbness in his leg. He cant walk any more and uses an electric wheelchair.

She continued: It is difficult that he cant get out and about as much. Because he lacks mobility, it has caused leg ulcers and thrombosis, which makes him isolated and it can be difficult.

Ruth Holden is a full-time carer for her husband ( Christians Against Poverty )

Ms Holden volunteers at the local food bank when she can because she too has needed their help. I try and help people out because Ive been there and done it. My kids go to the youth club at the church and they told the minister there that I needed to use the food bank because I wasnt brave enough to tell them myself.

Ive had to use it a few times, but since Ive had PIP Ive managed to keep myself out. But you still have days where youre just holding on until the money comes through, she explained. Personal independence payment (PIP) is the new name for disability living allowance.

Charity Christians Against Poverty helped her get signed up for PIP after she was diagnosed with fibromyalgia.

When asked what politicians could do to help carers, Ms Holden said: It would be nice to be supported to have a bit of independence and go back to work. Its down to whether you can get care and I cant afford to pay for care services.

I wish they had a reality check that these benefits are needed and probably need to be a bit higher. What they think is a budget for people is not a sensible budget.

Last weekend, work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall vowed that Labour would ditch the divisive rhetoric and blame culture towards people on benefits.

She said that an overhaul of the benefits system is needed. Weve never seen more people written off. The last parliament was the worst for economic inactivity on record. It is for us to put this right. But we will need big reforms and big changes. I know people worry about this but I want to say, we are on your side, she said.

Abby Jitendra, policy adviser at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, said: In the next 10 years, the UK faces a crisis of care as we get older and live with illness for longer. Our already strained paid care system is unfit to meet growing and changing care needs.

On top of that, a million more of us will be caring despite inadequate support which leaves unpaid carers at a higher risk of poverty. Government should set up a future care needs taskforce to plan cross-governmental action to meet the rising tide of care needs.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: It is clear the adult social care system is broken, and we are determined to tackle this head-on.

We will engage widely with a range of stakeholders, including people with lived experience, to inform our plans to create a sustainable National Care Service and are committed to ensuring a professional, well supported social care workforce is able to provide personalised and accessible care to all those who draw on it as demand increases.
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GCSE results day has arrived, as pupils across the UK find out what grades they have achieved in their recent exams.

For many, its an emotional time as they secure the grades they have worked hard for, or are disappointed to have just missed out.

Since 2017, the way GCSEs are graded in England has been different. Whereas before they were given letter grades the same as A-Levels, ranging from A* to G, they are now given a number ranging from 9 to 1.

The Conservative government at the time said the change was made to reflect reforms that had been made to GCSEs, giving them new and more demanding subject content. They write that the new grades also signal to employers that pupils have taken the new version of the qualifications.

Pupils find out their GCSE results on August 22 (PA) ( PA Archive )

The numbered grades were rolled out from 2017, with all subjects being brought under the new system by 2020. The changes have meant there are more top grades, with a 9 being equivalent to higher than an A*, which was previously the top possible grade.

These changes only apply in England and Northern Ireland currently, with Wales set to follow course from September 2025. Scottish students take National 4 and 5 exams instead of GCSEs.

Although the change was finalised around four years ago now, many employers who were used to the previous grading system will still ask applicants what the letter grade equivalent to their grade is. Many students will also just be curious about what their grades would be under the previous system.

What are the GCSE grade equivalents?

Grade 9 = above an A*

Grade 8 = between grades A* and A

Grade 7 = grade A

Grade 6 = just above a grade B

Grade 5 = between grades B and C

Grade 4 = grade C

Grade 3 = between grades D and E

Grade 2 = between grades E and F

Grade 1 = between grades F and G

What are the 2024 GCSE grade boundaries?

Grade boundaries, which detail how many marks are required to achieve a certain grade, are released by all the awarding bodies on results day.
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Seven years after the Grenfell Tower disaster claimed the lives of 72 people, the country risks witnessing a similar tragedy, the head of the firefighters union has warned.

With the final report of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry set to be published on 4 September, Fire Brigades Union (FBU) chief Matt Wrack has expressed deep concern over the lack of progress in addressing fire safety and building regulations.

He criticised the government, claiming it has failed to address the ongoing cladding crisis and implement substantial fire safety reforms.

We are frustrated about how long it has taken before getting to the final stage of the inquiry seven years on, he told The Independent. Ourselves, firefighters, and the community feel there has been no justice delivered following the horrific incident.

Fire Brigades Union general secretary Matt Wrack ( PA Archive )

The inquiry, commissioned by then-prime minister Theresa May, has taken years to complete, a delay Mr Wrack believes has allowed dangerous conditions to persist.

The Conservative government at the time pledged to fund the removal of unsafe cladding from residential properties and introduced a Building Safety Fund to support leaseholders.

However, it has been a slow process, with data published in June revealing that less than a quarter of the 4,336 identified buildings had completed the necessary works. In around 1,000 cases, buildings work had not even begun.

Seventy-two people died in the Grenfell Tower fire and many more were injured (PA) ( PA Wire )

Mr Wrack added: There has not been substantial change in building safety. We think there needs to be a fundamental change in the approach to policy and look into how the building safety has been dealt with in Britain.

Large numbers of poeple are still living in buildings that are not adequaquately safe.

Mr Wrack argued the Grenfell tragedy is rooted in failures among politicians and decades of deregulation have allowed eroded safety standards.

We have made the point that the failings that led to the Grenfell Tower fire are situated at the very high level of government, he said: Senior government ministers have allowed regulations that delivered safety to be watered down and got rid of.

You can look at all the prime ministers over the past 40 years overseeing that. There have been a lot of hands involved in all of this.

Mr Wrack bellieves the repercussions of these decisions led to the catastrophic blaze engulfing the building in London. He warned cladding used at Grenfell, which the first part of the inquiry found to be the principal reason for the rapid spread of the blaze, is still present in several UK buildings.

He said: Cladding was placed not only on Grenfell Tower but other residential buildings around the country, and that hasnt been resolved.

Insurance premiums have soared in the wake of the building safety scandal which emerged following the Grenfell Tower fire ( Guy Smallman/Getty Images )

The FBU has urged the government to legislate to restrict poeple from living in dangerous buildings.

As the union and victims wait for the inquirys conclusions, Mr Wrack is clear where the accountability lies.

He said: The idea that the fire service measure are what caused the Grenfell Tower fire is wrong. What caused the disaster at Grenfell is wrapping up a building in deadly flammable cladding. That is criminal and that was what allowed it to happen.

The questions we should be asking politicians is why it happened and why have poeple who compromised the safety of those who died in Grenfell Tower not been held accountable. Why there have not been any arrests? Why is nobody facing prison senteces as a result of this?

Bereaved and survivors will speak at Grenfell Testimony Week before representatives from some companies they hold responsible for the fire (PA) ( PA Archive )

Responding to Mr Wracks comments, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local government insisted the Labour government is committed to securing jsutice for the Grenfell Tower victims and improving building safety.

A government spokesperson said: We will never forget the 72 lives lost at Grenfell and remain absolutely committed to securing justice for the bereaved, survivors and the wider community.

In the governments manifesto, we set out our commitment to improving building safety, including accelerating cladding remediation, ensuring anyone responsible for the building safety crisis pays and better protecting leaseholders.
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A donation page set up to fund the search of missing teenager Jay Slater is still receiving donations almost two weeks after his funeral.

Created by the 19-year-olds best friend Lucy Mae, the last person to have contact with Jay before his disappearance on 17 June, the GoFundMe page was established to ignite a rescue mission for the apprentice bricklayer.

Slater, from Accrington, Lancashire, went missing in Tenerife following a music festival. After leaving with strangers he befriended at an afterparty, Jay attempted a 10-hour walk back to his accommodation after missing his bus.

Following the discovery of Jays body after a 29-day search, his mother, Debbie Duncan, 55, encouraged members of the public to keep donating to the GoFundMe to cover the costs of the repatriation of his body to the UK.

She also intended to use the already significant sum raised to give the teen, who died on his first ever holiday without his parents, the send-off he deserves.

The fundraiser has now raised 72,686 with the latest donation being received just 12 hours ago.

It has been a source of controversy online after questions were raised about how the significant sum would be spent.

Jays autopsy revealed that the teenager died after a fall or plunge from height, which left him with several broken bones.

Jay Slater was found dead after going missing on holiday in Tenerife in June (Family handout/LBT Global/PA) ( PA Media )

Jays mother, Debbie, recently told The Sun that she has been relentlessly trolled as a result of the fundraiser, which she claims she was initially unaware of.

I did not know anything about GoFundMe and did not know what it was, she told the outlet.

We were only told about it by Lucy when we were at the police station. We have had all these people slagging me off about a GoFundMe that I didnt ask for.

I said, so I dont want to use it and didnt want to touch it.

The only things its been used for are some accommodation costs, the dog team that came over  and some repatriation costs which are still ongoing.

The charity LBT Global said repatriation costs to the UK can exceed 20,000, leaving the Slater family with over 50,000 for other costs incurred by the search mission and funeral.

The coffin of Jay Slater being carried into Accrington Cemetery Chapel in Lancashire on 10 August. ( PA Wire )

Jay Slater with his mum Debbie Duncan. ( Supplied )

Footage of the teenagers funeral has gone viral online after his family decided to honour his memory with a live DJ set and rave in a marquee tent.

Debbie claims to have been in regular contact with GoFundMe and said the fundraising platform knows the money has not been misused.

I have been speaking to GoFundMe me virtually every day and they have been amazing and so supportive, she added to The Sun.

They know the money has not been misused  and have been telling me I dont have to explain what every last penny has been used for.

The Independent has reached out to GoFundMe and Lancashire Police for comment.
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Workers will soon be able to ignore work-related emails and calls outside office hours under new rules to be introduced by the Labour government.

Meeting the partys right to switch off campaign pledge, the plan will see workers empowered to disconnect from their jobs outside regular hours, including the right to refuse to take on extra work at the weekends.

The plan has received renewed backing from Keir Starmer this week, with the prime ministers deputy spokesperson saying: This is about ensuring people have some time to rest.

Good employers understand that for workers to stay motivated and productive they do need to be able to switch off, and a culture presenteeism can be damaging to productivity.

The plans are expected to cover workers annual leave, meaning bosses would not be allowed to ask employees to carry out work-related tasks while on holiday.

They will come as part of the governments Plan to Make Work Pay, thought to be spearheaded by new deputy prime minister Angela Rayner.

Other measures in the package were outlined during the Kings Speech in July. They include banning exploitative zero-hours contracts, ending fire and rehire, and making sick pay available from day one of any job.

The new plans are thought to be spearheaded by new deputy prime minister Angela Rayner ( PA Wire )

Unlike those measures, however, the right to switch off will not be enshrined in law. Instead, it will likely be recommended in the codes of practice for businesses.

The Trades Union Congress general secretary Paul Nowak said: No one should be pushed to the brink because of their job.

Ever-increasing hours, pace and expectations at work are causing problems up and down the country. This is a recipe for burnt-out Britain.

So we welcome these measures to tackle work intensity. Introducing a right to switch off will let workers properly disconnect outside of working hours.

The policy is popular among voters, with a recent Savanta poll finding 69 per cent supported the right to switch off outside of working hours.

In the UK, there is no currently no official right to disconnect from work, but employers can implement their own policies. Current legislation states that a working week should be no more than 48 hours on average, calculated over a 17-week period.

However, if a boss wants to contact their employee outside of these hours, they can. In theory, they can also pressure them to respond or take on additional work without being sanctioned.

Labour said the policy will ensure that working from home does not become homes turning into 24/7 offices, adding that it is inspired by models in Ireland and Belgium.

The code of practice for employers in Ireland gives workers the right not to be regularly required to perform work duties outside normal hours or to be penalised for refusing to do so.

The right to disconnect in Belgium is set in law for all public sector workers and those employed by businesses with at least 20 employees.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner at 10 Downing Street (Ian Vogler/Daily Mirror/PA) ( PA Wire )

Will Stronge, director of The Autonomy Institute think tank and author of Overtime, said: These kinds of things are really important steps to put boundaries on the working day.

There should be much more strict limits to when the working day finishes, given that in today's world of remote work, there is often blurring between work and life: answering 'just one more email' and so on.

The conversation around work-life balance is really important in this country. Were seeing a huge health epidemic around overwork, workload stress and anxiety.

However, the director also said the effectiveness of the policy will come down to the detail, adding he would like to see a stricter version of the policy like the one that is in place in France.

Under French laws, it is illegal for an employer to reprimand a worker for not responding to out-of-hours calls  and the offence can carry a fine.

British firm Rentokil was fined 60,000 by a French court in 2021 for failing to respect the right to disconnect of an employee based in the country. It was the first fine under the law which came into place in 2016.

The statutory workers rights laid out in the Kings Speech are expected to come into place in spring, with the new right to switch off likely to come around the same time.
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Tributes have been paid to those who have died following the sinking of the Bayesian superyacht owned by tech tycoon Mike Lynch.

The yacht sank with 22 passengers and crew onboard after a freak storm off the coast of Sicily in the early hours of Monday, with six people on board confirmed to have died as the search continues for the final missing passenger.

Tech tycoon Mike Lynch, Morgan Stanley banker Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judith Bloomer, lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo, were all identified this morning after their bodies were recovered.

The body of Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, the yachts chef, had been found close to the wreck of the vessel on Monday.

An ambulance carrying the fifth recovered body leaves Porticello Harbour to the mortuary ( Jonathan Brady/PA Wire )

Tributes have now been paid to the victims of the sinking, while the rescue mission for the final missing person - Mr Lynchs 18-year-old daughter, Hannah.

Mike Lynch, the tech tycoon who just months ago was cleared of a high-profile, 13-year fraud case relating to the sale of his company Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard, was described by old friend Brent Hoberman as an inspiring titan and a figurehead for a generation of British entrepreneurs, according to This Is Money.

Mr Hoberman, the founder of online travel company Lastminute.com, who said he had known Mr Lynch for 28 years, added that he was a real patriot, while Tech London Advocates founder Russ Shaw said he was a true visionary.

Financial journalist David Worsfold said Mr Lynch had time for everybody and was an engaging, welcoming man.

Mike Lynch was cleared of a multi-billion pound fraud case relating to his company, Autonomy ( PA Archive )

He told LBC that Mr Lynch was a man of passion, with a love of mathematics, technology and music. The keen clarinet player once formed a jazz ensemble with his friends, Mr Worsfold said.

The family of Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy said in a statement: We are grieving for our loved ones and all of those affected by the tragedy.

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the emergency services and everyone who helped tirelessly in this rescue operation.

Our parents were incredible people and an inspiration to many, but first and foremost they were focused on and loved their family and spending time with their new grandchildren.

Together for five decades, our only comfort is that they are still together now.

This is an unimaginable grief to shoulder. Our only ask is that our familys privacy is respected at this time.

Mr Bloomer was also commended by the NSPCC for which he was the former honorary treasurer.

The childrens charity chairman Neil Berkett described him as a very kind individual with a great sense of humour.

We are deeply saddened that the deaths of Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy have been confirmed after the yacht they were on tragically sank off the coast of Sicily, Mr Beckett said.

We are so grateful for everything they did for children and the NSPCC and our thoughts are with their family, friends and colleagues at this desperately sad time.

Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer was identified this morning after recovery by the Italian coast guard ( PA Media )

Eve Appeal, a gynaecological cancer charity, also paid tribute to Mrs Bloomer, who worked for the organisation as a board member.

She is a brilliant champion for womens health and medical research... an incredible supporter, committee member, and trustee of our charity for over 20 years, they said.

A friend of Recaldo Thomas, the chef whose body was found on Monday, told The Independent: He was a one-of-a-kind special human being. Incredibly talented, contagious smile and laugh, an incredible voice with a deep love of the ocean and the moon.

Gareth Williams, another friend, told the BBC was a well-loved, kind human being with a calm spirit, while another Eli Fuller, told the outlet Mr Thomas was friends with everybody.

Recaldo Thomas was described as a one of a kind special human being with a calm spirit ( Facebook )

Chris Morvillo, the lawyer who was found dead alongside his wife, was described as a legal giant by fellow lawyer Joseph Azam.

Any of us who have practised law in the white collar space are probably in shock with the news of the tragic and bizarre death of Chris Morvillo. He came from a line of legal giants. Thinking of his family tonight and the loss of this great legal talent, Mr Azam wrote on X.

A former mentor of Mr Morvillos wife Neda said she was totally shocked about the yacht tragedy, before Mrs Morvillos body was identified.

Chris Morvillo was described as a gentle giant and Neda as incredibly smart ( Patrick McMullan via Getty Image )

Goldsmith Cecelia Bauer trained Mrs Morvillo in jewellery-making - after which she created her own jewellery company Neda Nassiri - and described her as very upbeat, very happy, and incredibly smart.

She was glad to help anybody out that she could, Ms Bauer added. She was extremely generousShe was very special.
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With the Bayesian lying on her side 50 metres underneath the now gentle waters of the Mediterranean, mystery still surrounds how the 56-metre superyacht, sank in the typhoon off the port of Porticello.

Remotely controlled underwater vehicles and cave divers are looking to raise the yacht, which experts will examine in the coming days.

Italian publication Giornale di Sicilia reported post-mortem examinations were completed at a Palermo hospital and the bodies have now been returned.

The Bayesian was hit by a suspected downburst of strong wind early on 19 August. The 56m-long, 30 million yacht drifted for about 400 metres from its anchorage near the fishing port of Porticello before sinking.

Fifteen of the 22 passengers and crew survived the incident by clambering onto an inflatable liferaft.

The bodies of tech billionaire Mike Lynch, dubbed Britains Bill Gates, his 18-year-old daughter Hannah and four other people were found by divers on board. Post-mortem examinations suggest they had been trapped in a room below deck.

Jonathan Bloomer, the international chairman of Morgan Stanley Bank; his wife Judith, a psychotherapist; Christopher Morvillo, a US lawyer; and his wife Neda, a jewellery designer, also died in the sinking.

Mike Lynch is among those confirmed as dead ( PA Archive )

It will take weeks for Ambrogio Cartosio, the chief prosecutor of Termini Imerese, and his team to establish whether the sinking of the Bayesian was down to human error, an unpredictable weather event or whether anyone is liable.

Italian Navy divers have recovered video surveillance equipment from the wreckage parts of the deck, computer material, video surveillance systems, hard drives and various other equipment, that could explain how the Bayesian sank.

Prosecutors have said they will interview the survivors  some of whom were pictured leaving the Domina Zagarella hotel in Santa Flavia, which has become the headquarters for survivors, police and rescuers.

Many questions face the investigators:

Were access hatches left open?

One expert at the scene in Sicily said an early focus of the investigation would be on whether the yachts crew had failed to close access hatches before the tornado struck.

Yachting experts have suggested that the hatches being open could have allowed the Bayesian to fill with water quickly and sink.

But Andrea Ratti, a nautical design professor at Polytechnic University of Milan, said a boat the size of the Bayesian could only sink so rapidly by taking in a huge amount of water.

One can make plausible assumptions that leave room for doubt, he said, before suggesting that one or more portholes, windows or other openings may have been broken or smashed open by the waterspout.

The recovered video could show whether the crews left doors open, which might have allowed the yacht to flood.

Was the boat prepared for a storm?

Prosecutors will look at whether appropriate measures were taken in preparation for the storm.

The luxury superyacht called The Bayesian off Porticello, Palermo ( BAIA Santa Nicolicchia/AFP via G )

The yachts captain, James Catfield, from New Zealand, told Italian media of the suddenness of the waterspout that turned a luxury super yacht into a death trap.

We just didnt see it coming, he said.

Luca Mercalli, the president of the Italian Meteorological Society, said on Tuesday that the crew should have made sure that all the guests were awake and given them lifejackets in light of the forecasted heavy rains.

The coast guard said bad weather had been forecast, but added that it was more virulent than expected. Some locals spoke of a waterspout, or sea whirlwind, of exceptional force.

It was a strange thing, fisherman Andrea Carini said. The Bayesian was at anchor, its sails down, when the tempest hit, with another yacht moored nearby.

A nearby yacht, the 42-metre Sir Robert Baden Powell, remained anchored and weathered the storm after its captain turned on the engine to keep control of the vessel and avoid a collision with the Bayesian.

Moment Bayesian yacht is engulfed by storm ( Giornale di Sicilia / Reuters )

The captain, Karsten Borner, said he did not know whether the crew of the Bayesian had managed to switch on its engines.

I dont think they did things wrong, I think they were surprised by the power of the storm, he said.

I only know that they went flat with the mast on the water and that they sank in two minutes, he said, adding that the storm was very violent, very intense, bringing in a lot of water and I think a turning system like a tornado.

Did the worlds largest aluminium mast have anything to do with the sinking?

The Bayesian has one of the largest masts in the world ( EPA )

The Bayesian was built by Italian shipbuilder Perini in 2008 with a 75m (246ft) mast which it claims is the tallest aluminium mast in the world.

Scott Painter, who took over Lynchs multi-billion dollar software company called Autonomy, founded in 1996, said Lynchs yacht may have been more vulnerable due to the mast.

The mast was the ultimate sailors bragging right, Painter told the outlet. That mast mustve been over 240 feet tall, which is either the tallest or second tallest in the world.

He added: That could certainly contribute to a capsize as it would destabilize the yacht. And if it were to lean over too far, it could absolutely capsize the yacht.

Captain Borner said: If the mast had been broken they wouldnt have capsized.

Would a lightning shock wave damage the mast?

Colonel Attilio Di Diodato, director of the Italian Air Forces Center for Aerospace Meteorology and Climatology, said the agency had registered intense lightning activity and strong gusts of wind in the area.

The Bayesian had one of the tallest aluminium masts in the world, according to its builder, Perini Navi.

Having a tall aluminium mast would not make it the safest port to be in case of a storm, said Andrea Ratti, associate professor of nautical design and architecture technology told the Politecnico di Milano.

The type of intensity unleashed by a violent lightning storm could have created a significant shock wave, he added.

Was the Bayesian keel retractable and was it down?

The Bayesian had a retractable keel, a fin-like apparatus under the hull that helps stabilise boats and acts as a counterweight to the mast. It is not known whether it was down at the time of the vicious storm.

Both Ratti and Mattioni questioned whether the yacht had been anchored with the keel up, reducing the vessels depth under water and making it less stable. Ratti said strong winds might have caused the boat to start oscillating wildly, like a pendulum, putting exceptional strain on the mast.

Divers have only ten minutes to investigate boat ( Vigili del Fuoco/AFP via Getty I )

Was the the Bayesian properly anchored?

Tom Sharpe, a retired Royal Navy commander and defence commentator, told CBC News that a mast the size of the Bayesians is designed for a massive sail, and without that sail raised and catching the wind, the gusts likely wouldve had a negligible impact on the aluminum pole.

He instead suggested the anchor may have played a pivotal role.

My kind of working assumption is that she was probably a bit further in at anchor, and its very likely, in these sort of conditions, that her anchor dragged, he said.

He added the 10-strong crew was better off steering toward the anchor to stabilise the yacht or even raising the anchor and steering into the open Meditteranean to ride out the storm.

They might have got caught in that middle ground where theyre not on a particularly good anchorage but the anchor is now controlling the bow of the ship, he posted.

Prosecutors have said their investigation will take time, and will require the wreck to be pulled up from the sea bed.
Just under 10 weeks ago, 59-year-old Mike Lynch was on trial in San Francisco on 17 charges of fraud. He was almost guaranteed to receive a 25-year sentence.

He was terrified that he would die in a US prison, not because he was guilty  he had spent 30m on legal fees arguing his innocence  but because its almost unheard of in the US to win a case against the US Justice Department. His chances of winning were put at 0.5 per cent. However, after 13 years of putting together detailed evidence to support his plea, he was acquitted and it felt like a miracle.

Once back in the UK, Lynch set about celebrating what he called his second life. Through tears, he told one interviewer how even the traffic in London seemed magical. Im just thinking this is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen, he said.

This month, the tech tycoon took his family, friends and lawyers for further celebrations on a Mediterranean cruise aboard his luxury sailboat. It sank in a freak violent squall in the small hours of Monday. His body was discovered on Wednesday, alongside five others recovered from the sunken Bayesian superyacht with his 18-year-old daughter Hannah still reported missing.

The chance of such a yacht being knocked flat by a weather event while anchored was minuscule because it had simply never happened before. Sailing expert Stewart Campbell, editor-in-chief of Boat International, said on Newsnight: Ive been speaking to a lot [of people in] the industry today and they are as shocked as me  and just in utter disbelief that this could happen.

As if beating infinitesimal odds twice in a few weeks wasnt freakish enough, it has since emerged that Lynchs co-defendant in the US trial, his companys former vice-president of finance Stephen Chamberlain, was killed by a car on Saturday while out running in Cambridgeshire.

The chance of both defendants dying within weeks of the trial, are beyond absurd. The combination of all three events is beyond crazy. Although it is all bound to be a cluster of coincidences, both lucky and tragic, there will doubtless be X-Files-like conspiracy theories about the affair for years to come.

The ultimate irony, however, is that the Essex-born academic, technology business innovator and tycoon, prime ministerial adviser and general member of the great and good was also one of the worlds leading authorities on probability theory.

Were Lynchs story not true, anyone who went to Netflix with a dramatisation of it would probably be shown the door for being ludicrously improbable.

Specifically, Lynch was a proponent and teacher at his alma mater Cambridge University of Bayesian mathematics. Indeed, he named his boat after the theory of Thomas Bayes, an 18th-century statistician and Presbyterian minister in Tunbridge Wells.

Bayesian maths embraces the idea that predictions of unusual outcomes  freak weather events for one  cant be made accurately using a conventional fixed framework of information. Instead, they have to be constantly updated with fresh data on how a situation develops. Bayesian maths is also the basis of the current boom in artificial intelligence, in which Mike Lynch was a pioneer.

Emergency services search for a missing boat in Porticello, southern Italy ( AP )

Dubbed the British Bill Gates, Lynch sounds to many like a major-league nerd (possibly lucky not to be serving some serious prison time). However, I can vouch for a very different Lynch. Id been in touch with him since 2016 and found him not just almost alarmingly straightforward and honest, but very amusing, extraordinarily erudite in everything from technology to classical cultures, and unexpectedly unorthodox in his views on science.

This is how I came to be in his Pall Mall office eight years ago for a sparkling one-to-one meeting-cum-tutorial on the subject of not technology, not his already mounting legal problems but dogs.

Mike Lynch had contacted me about a column I wrote for many years in the Financial Times. He knew that I was interested in fringe science  I once wrote a book on Uri Geller  and that wed been at the same Essex school but hadnt known each other at the time. Lynch therefore decided that I was the person to talk to about helping him set up a research project into the sixth sense of dogs.

It was a subject that fascinated him. Lynch explained that he was convinced dogs have a hitherto unexplained sixth sense  that they really do know things without conventional sensual input.

For example, they seem to know if youre on your way home, even if youre miles away. Ive done this informal experiment many times, he told me. Ill get on a train in London for our house in Suffolk and at that exact second, they will get excited. My wife and I have ruled out as many possible clues as we can. Shell note the moment they start barking and it will match up with me stepping onto the train.

Mike Lynch was extradited last summer to face a US criminal fraud trial but he was ultimately cleared ( Reuters )

The problem was, he went on to explain, that the experimental work that had been done in this area was flawed. For his next big project, he wanted to fund some proper, rigorous, incontestable research.

Im not a parapsychologist or a paranormalist, he told me. I dont believe in auras or energies or anything weird. Im firmly entrenched in science, and I know this is controversial, but theres an effect out there that needs explaining.

As a first step, he wanted me to write a column inviting people to describe their experiences with dogs sixth sense, and then help him launch a dedicated website for them to post their accounts. That way we build a database of supposedly psychic dogs to work with.

We discussed possible names for the website, and how wed get together to discuss the next step. He was about to go off with David Cameron on a trade mission, I was living in New York at the time, so diaries needed coordinating.

He wasnt what I had expected, but I found him fascinating, especially as he rattled through his theories further for nearly 90 minutes. He was an inspiring teacher with a big brain and was patient when I lagged behind, or got the wrong end of the stick.

Dogs are incredibly good at reading peoples emotions, he said. The key thing is that dogs are unusual among creatures in that they have mirror neurons, which are very important. These are the neurons in the brain that put you in someone elses shoes. If I hit my hand with a hammer, youll wince. Its the basis of empathy.

Were Lynchs story not true, anyone who went to Netflix with a dramatisation of it would probably be shown the door for being ludicrously improbable

This makes it possible for children around two and a half to learn to lie. Deceit is fascinating because to be deceitful, you have to realise that not everyone has the same information you have. So its a major step and a highly intelligent function. Dogs run a model in their mind of what its like to be you, or another dog. This is how they become pack animals.

This, he admitted, was all traditional science. The big question, he wanted to know the answer to, was whether there was something beyond that and, a sort of realm that you cant explain. You have to have a good understanding above all of probability  the probability that this or that effect is explicable using known science.

This is why its about time that the experiment was redone properly, so we can find out whether there are dogs that can actually produce a statistically meaningful outcome.

Being a world authority in mathematical theory, Lynch was reassuring that he was totally a believer in the scientific method, but he wanted me to bear in mind that the mammalian brain is the most complex item in the known universe too.

So the idea that we would understand everything about it sounds arrogant, he insisted. I want sceptics to be all over the study even though they might not want to believe it.

He said this way he could show  or not  that dogs are Bayesian calculators. Bayesian logic is kind of magical thinking in a way because its so much more subtle and complex than classical logic. What dogs do in their Bayesian way is use intuition  see data in a different way. But this is not magic, its science and its going to lead a few years from now to astonishing developments in AI.

This leap to AI eight years ago from the dry theories of a long-dead clergyman wasnt surprising. Lynch had the type of brain that was always ahead of its time.

The tycoon outside a federal court in San Francisco in March this year ( AP )

Regarded by many in both academia and business as a tech genius, its why in 2011 his technology company, Autonomy, sold for $11.7bn to the fading computer giant HP. It was HP who seem to have suffered buyers regret later and started blaming Lynch and his team  incorrectly  for fiddling the books.

For a hard-headed academic his view of intuition made sense in terms of data processing and how we predict things happening. He was adamant that hunches, gut feeling, intuition were all sophisticated measures by which decisions are taken, not boring spreadsheets. This is why big companies make such bad decisions. The danger of analysis drives me nuts but Ive had to learn this.

He recounted a story from the past when a posh dreamer came to him with a great idea to download music over the internet. Lynch said he spent a long time explaining to him why his vision wouldnt work. That it would take four days to download a single over the internet and the disc to store it on would cost the same as the average house.

Reflecting on his response, he said: Of course, what I should have done is said all of that and then gone away and plotted the cost of disc drives and realised he could be on to something. But the over-analysis stopped it happening and I missed out.

Mike Lynchs dog project never happened. My interview with him never ran thanks to the question mark over him with the, as then, unsettled court case.

Thats really sad, he emailed me after I told him. But thanks for trying. He seemed truly upset. We stayed in touch throughout the trial, and were still discussing the Ultimate Dogs Experiment while he was in San Francisco in the run-up to the trial and the court case itself. As the judge proved, I wasnt the only person to find Lynch convincing and exuding both character and integrity.

I discussed the whole, heart-rending story yesterday with a medical consultant friend from school who had been following his travails. We agreed that this latest tragic twist in his incredible story, feels as improbable as it does just desperately sad.

Bayesian maths is used extensively in forecasting probable weather, so what are the odds against a boat called Bayesian being capsized by a tornado/waterspout in the Mediterranean?

Smart arse question, sorry, my friend wrote back, But with all the money in the world, why does an expert on predicting natural events sleep with friends and family on a boat when the weather is so awful?

Unfortunately, we will probably never know.
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The growing suspicion that King Charles is trying to push Prince Andrew out of the crowns Royal Lodge has intensified in recent days after the monarch moved to axe his disgraced brothers security personnel.

The Duke of York has lived in the 30-room mansion in Windsor Great Park for over 20 years, but after his friendship with convicted paedophile Jefferey Epstein came to light, which forced him to resign from royal duties, the King is thought to have considered the property too extravagant.

Earlier this year, it was reported Andrew refused an offer to move out of Royal Lodge into the nearby Frogmore Cottage.

The Duke of York currently holds residence at the royal lodge in Windsor ( Shutterstock )

The duke had signed a 75-year lease on the mansion in 2003, which entitles him to stay at Royal Lodge for 250 a week and meant Charles has no legal grounds to evict him from the property.

However, the King appears to have now resorted to stealthier tactics to remove him. By axing the dukes entire security team Andrew now has to either finance for them himself - which could cost millions for the duke with no viable income - or leave the mansion entirely.

A palace insider told the The Sun: Everyone is speculating this means the duke will have to leave the Royal Lodge because what other reason could there be to take his security away?

Earlier this year, it was reported Andrew refused an offer to move out of Royal Lodge into nearby Frogmore Cottage. ( Getty / PA )

Sources added: It isnt a secret that the King wants him out.

Andrews private security have been privately funded by Charles after he lost publicly-funded police protection in 2022 alongside his military affiliations and royal patronages.

If Andrew decides he cannot personally finance security at the lodge, he will be forced to move to another residence.

While he turned down Frogmore months ago, this seems like a likely choice for a future move. The Grade II-listed Frogmore Cottage has been part of the royal familys property portfolio since the 19th century.

Over the years, various members of the royal family have lived in the 10-bedroom house, which was first built as a retreat for Queen Charlotte, the wife of King George III, in 1801.

Frogmore Cottage is a Crown Estate property (Steve Parsons/PA) ( PA Archive )

It came to wider public attention for being the first marital home and UK residence of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

However, the couple were officially evicted from the property in 2023 after the release Prince Harrys bombshell autobiography, Spare.

Harry and Meghan carried out renovations on the cottage using 2.4 million of taxpayers money, but have since paid it back in full by making a contribution to the Sovereign Grant.

The lodge may be more familiar to Andrew than most, as it was reported that Harrys cousin and Andrews daughter, Princess Eugenie, and her husband Jack Brooksbank moved into the property briefly in 2021 after they had their first child.

If Andrew is adamant on avoiding a residence at Frogmore, he may instead consider Wood Farm on the Sandringham Estate.

The five-bedroom red brick property was home to Prince Phillip following his retirement in 2017 and would certainly keep Andrew away from the public eye.

If Andrew is adamant on avoiding a residence at Frogmore, he may instead consider Wood Farm on the Sandringham Estate. ( Bav Media/Shutterstock )

It has been used over the years by several members of the royal family. King George V and Queen Marys youngest son, Prince John, resided at Wood Farm with his with his nurse away from his family, due to his epileptic condition before he died aged 13 in 1919.

Princess Diana and Kate Middleton are also believed to have stayed at the property before they married.

The humble abode could be the perfect fit for Andrew, as the York family have reportedly spent past Christmases at the home.
Humanoid robots put on eye-watching display at World Robot Conference in Beijing, showcasing Chinas cutting-edge robotics prowess

13:22, August 22, 2024 By Tao Mingyang and Liu Yang ( Global Times

A staff checks a humanoid robot at the World Robot Conference 2024 on August 21, 2024. (Photo: Tao Mingyang/GT)

At the World Robot Conference 2024, which kicked off in Beijing on Wednesday, Chinese tech companies showed their newly developed humanoid robots, with participants from both China and abroad treated to a remarkable display of cutting-edge prowess.

Humanoid robots continued to take center stage during this year's conference, attracting visitors with walking, hurdling, and dance routines at the exhibition areas. Wherever the humanoid robots went, they were surrounded by large crowds taking photos and making videos.

Visitors said that they were deeply impressed by the rapid development of China's robotics sector, while noting that China continues to provide an open platform for industrial cooperation through the robot conference.

Shenzhen-based Leju Robotics brought its latest service humanoid robot, which can cook, make juice and sort items, as well as humanoid robots for industrial tasks such as moving heavy items.

Wang Song, a representative of the company, told the Global Times that Leju is working with Huawei, using its large Pangu artificial intelligence (AI) model to complete cooking, sorting and handling tasks. He said that the competitiveness of humanoid robots lies in the rapid development of large model task-planning capabilities.

Another Chinese robotics company called UBTECH showed its application of humanoid robots on car manufacturing lines. The robots, powered by AI, can complete quality testing and sorting and handling of parts.

"Now we have deployed our humanoids to the car manufacturing lines of Nio, Geely and the FAW Group's plant in Qingdao," said a representative of UBTECH.

Brad Nelson, professor of robotics and intelligent systems at ETH Zurich, told the Global Times that the conference brings together some of the most outstanding robotics researchers from around the world, giving them a chance to meet face-to-face in Beijing.

Nelson said he was impressed by China's manufacturing capability and supply chain, which are tough to duplicate, even in some developed countries.

Marina Bill, president of the International Federation of Robotics and head of marketing and sales at ABB Robotics, told the Global Times at the conference on Wednesday that as the world's largest manufacturing hub, China has deployed a large number of automated manufacturing processes. This trend has had a profound impact on the industry - in particular, its use and development direction.

As one of the earliest countries to introduce AI as a national development strategy, China has combined AI with robots and continuously evolved new application scenarios, she said, adding that AI will continue to bring new opportunities to the world and the robotics industry.

To foster new quality productive forces, China will establish a mechanism for ensuring funding increases for industries of the future; and the country will improve the policy and governance systems for promoting the development of strategic industries such as next-generation information technology, AI, aviation and aerospace, new energy, new materials, high-end equipment, biomedicine and quantum technology, and steer emerging industries toward sound and orderly development, according to a resolution adopted by the third plenary session of the 20th Communist Party of China Central Committee on further deepening reform comprehensively to advance Chinese modernization.

(Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun)
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Scammers offered fake links to a live stream of the funeral of one of the Southport stabbing victims, police have warned.

Merseyside Police said officers from its cyber unit were made aware of a number of Facebook accounts providing a fake link, and link to a donations page, for a live stream of the funeral of six-year-old Bebe King, which was held on Saturday.

Bebe, Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, suffered fatal injuries in the attack at the Taylor Swift-themed dance class on July 29.

Bebe King was one of the three children killed in the knife attack (Merseyside Police) ( PA Media )

The force issued advice on avoiding similar scams ahead of Elsies funeral, due to be held on Friday.

Detective inspector Steve Frame said: We are aware of social media accounts offering people the chance to view live streams of funerals in exchange for donations.

Flowers outside the Atkinson Art Centre following the July 29 knife attack (Owen Humphreys/PA) ( PA Wire )

To take advantage of such a tragic incident is appalling and we want to give people advice on how to avoid being scammed.

Many frauds start by tricking people into entering their details into an apparently legitimate site. Take care when accessing websites, particularly those promoted by social media accounts  they may not be what they appear to be.

Never automatically click on a link in an unexpected email, text or social media post.

Remember, email addresses and phone numbers can be spoofed, so dont use those as a means to verify that a message or call is authentic.

The best way to get in touch with a company is to use a known email or phone number, such as the one on the back of your bank card.

The service for Elsie, which her family are referring to as Elsies Special Day, will be held in Birkdale, near Southport, on Friday.

On Wednesday a web developer was facing a criminal charge over claims he helped spread misinformation about the accused Southport attacker.

Farhan Asif, 32, has been charged with cyber terrorism after false claims quickly spread online that the suspect was a Muslim immigrant to the UK, when in fact he was born in Wales and comes from a Christian family.

Pakistani police announced the charge on Wednesday, and said that Asif claimed he was not the original source of the false information, but reposted it from social media.

After three little girls were murdered at a holiday club in Southport on July 29, false rumours including a fake name for the suspect spread on X, formerly Twitter, appearing to originate from an apparent news website called Channel3 Now.

The sites editor-in-chief posted an apology July 31 for the misleading information published in a recent article on our website, Channel3 Now. We deeply regret any confusion or inconvenience this may have caused.

The false details spread quickly online in the UK, with riots breaking out in various locations.
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Migrants crossing the Channel in small boats fell by almost a third in Rishi Sunaks last year as prime minister, figures show, piling pressure on Sir Keir Starmer to continue the downward trend.

In the year to 30 June, days before the general election, there were 31,493 arrivals in the UK via small boats. It marked a 29 per cent fall on the year before and a slight decrease from the same period two years ago.

Coming just days after Yvette Cooper fleshed out Labours alternative to the Rwanda deportation policy, which would have sent some asylum seekers to the east African nation, the figures will add to the pressure on the government to bring the numbers down further.

Keir Starmer and Yvette Cooper will now be under greater pressure to cut small boat arrivals, with the news numbers were already falling ( PA )

Tory leadership contender and shadow home secretary James Cleverly said: The actions I took as home secretary are working... thats the inheritance I left Labour.

But theyre undoing all of this progress. They have ditched our deterrent, have no clear plan to smash the gangs, have nowhere to send failed asylum seekers who they cant return, have failed to hire anyone to run their phantom border command, and are already planning to roll over for the EU and open our borders.

But Home Office minister Seema Malhotra said the figures showed Tories had left the immigration and asylum system in chaos.

Since 2019, net migration trebled to a record high. Despite the hundreds of millions pumped into the Rwanda partnership, small boat crossings for the first half of this year went up by almost 20 per cent. The asylum backlog has soared, costing the taxpayer billions. And the removal of foreign national offenders has dropped 20 per cent since 2010, she said.

The Home Office also said the average number of people per boat increased over the year, highlighting the growing risk being taken by the smuggling gangs responsible for the trade. There were 51 people per boat, compared with 44 per boat a year earlier and 10 per boat in 2019.

Despite the fall over the past 12 months, Home Office data for the first six months of 2024 shows that the number of small boat crossings was a fifth higher than the same period in 2023.

On Wednesday, Ms Cooper announced a series of measures including a pledge to raise the number of returns to 2018 levels over the next six months  meaning more than 14,000 deportations by the end of the year. But that figure is far lower than the 45,000 returned in 2010 under the previous Labour government and fewer than the 19,000 migrants who have arrived in Britain by crossing the Channel in small boats so far this year.

James Cleverly took credit for a fall in migration numbers, describing it as the inheritance he left Labour ( PA )

The government also revealed plans to increase detention capacity with 290 beds at two removal centres, Campsfield in Kidlington, Oxfordshire, and Haslar in Gosport, Hampshire. But these plans are being criticised as a backwards step as both sites were plagued with problems before they shut in 2019 and 2015 respectively, including hunger strikes and suicides.

Between 2018 and June 2024, there were 3,788 returns of small boat arrivals  just 3 per cent. The vast majority of these were Albanians after Britain and Albania signed a joint returns agreement.

Labour has also promised to speed up the processing of migrants, which the Conservatives have warned will lead to tens of thousands being granted asylum.

Almost all (99 per cent) of those who arrived by small boats in the year to June claimed asylum, and the grant rate for those who claimed asylum was 71 per cent between 2018 and June 2024. Of all small boat asylum claims made in the past year, 96 per cent remain undecided, the figures showed.

Cleverly rubbished Labours attempts to beef up security by referring to the new governments phantom border command ( PA )

The Home Office said there are 76,268 people who have waited more than six months for a decision on their asylum claim, with charities including Refugee Action calling for those people to be allowed to work.

As well as the lengthy waits for asylum decisions to be processed, the Home Office figures laid bare the spiralling costs of the system, which have jumped from 568m in 2011 to 4bn in 2023, while staff productivity has fallen drastically.

A Home Office spokesman said there was a long way to go to reduce historically high levels of legal migration ... immigration brings many benefits to the UK, but it must be controlled and managed so the system is fair.

Work is already underway across government to tackle the root causes behind high international recruitment, which is still driving up numbers of overseas workers on the skilled worker visa. By linking immigration, labour market and skills systems we will ensure we train up our domestic workforce and address this shortage of skills.
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An elections technology company is taking full responsibility for glitches that kept many Florida county elections officials from immediately posting primary results Tuesday night.

While the problem didn't affect voters or ballot counting, there were still unanswered questions Wednesday.

Tallahassee-based VR Systems issued a brief statement but refused to answer questions on how widespread the problem was, why it wasn't prepared for websites that slowed or crashed, and how it's going to fix a problem that popped up during a low-turnout primary when it deals with a much larger demand for information during a hotly contested presidential election in less than three months.

The problem didn't affect how counties reported the primary vote to the state, nor did it affect the state's ability to provide election updates. But people checking local election websites Tuesday night couldn't access results as they came in.

We share everyones sense of urgency to identify why people may have experienced problems accessing our customers websites," the company said in a brief statement. First and foremost, the election night reporting of the unofficial results was not impacted, and there is no indication of malicious activity.

The company said an increase in website traffic contributed to the problem.

VR Systems didn't return emails and phone calls from The Associated Press seeking more details on the glitch. A reporter went to its office to ask for additional information in person and was told anyone authorized to speak on the issue was too busy. The reporter was also told to visit the company's website for a statement and that the company was unable to print a copy of that statement at its corporate headquarters.

While the issue didn't affect the process of casting, tabulating and reporting votes, it did cause a headache for the counties that use VR Systems, including some of the state's largest.

This had no impact on our ability to report our unofficial results. We did so without any delays at all," said Gerri Kramer, a spokesperson for the supervisor of elections in Hillsborough County, which encompasses Tampa and many of its suburbs. Our unofficial results were uploaded to the state, and shared publicly via social media and in our public Canvassing Board meeting. Additionally, we made sure media knew where to find the results so that they could report them, as well.
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A nine-month-old child in Texas died after their grandmother left them strapped inside a hot car for almost eight hours.

The incident happened on Wednesday in Beeville, Texas, approximately 100 miles southeast of San Antonio. Police said the child was found unresponsive around 4pm that day locked in a car seat. The car seat was inside the grandmother's vehicle.

The high in Beeville on Wednesday was 106 degrees Fahrenheit (41C). Texas saw a day of record-breaking heat on Wednesday, which left thousands without power.

Beeville police detectives are currently on the scene of what appears to be a temperature related death of a 9-month-old child, the police said in a statement on Wednesday. A preliminary investigation has determined that the childs grandmother had left the child in the rear seat of her car in the child safety seat since approximately 8:30 this morning. The child was found at approximately 4pm non-responsive by the grandmother.

Police said that the incident was being worked as a "criminal homicide," according to ABC News.

The Beeville police are being assisted by the Department of Public Safety Texas Rangers," the statement said. "No charges have been filed in connection to this case at this time, but such charges are expected to be filed.

Beeville Police Department and City Hall in Beeville, Texas ( Google Maps )

According to Kids and Car Safety, there have already been at least 25 other cases in the US involving children dying after being left in hot cars by their parents.

In May, an 11-month-old baby girl died after her parents left her inside a hot car as they went to church in Florida. The baby had been left in the vehicle for around three hours while her parents attended the service, according to authorities.

The following month, a Florida man was arrested and accused of leaving a six-year-old child in a locked car while he went to work. The girl died later at a hospital due to extreme heat. Before they took her for treatment, the paramedics on scene noted that her internal body temperature was 107.2 degrees Fahrenheit (42C). The high in the Bradenton area of Manatee County on May 20 was 89 degrees (32C).

In July, a mother in South Florida was charged with child neglect after she was accused of leaving her four-year-old daughter in a hot car for more than half-an-hour while she shopped at a Walmart, according to the Hollywood Police Department. The child was rescued after witnesses called the local police and fire to break the car's windows. The charges were later dropped.

This month, a six-month-old boy in Louisiana died after one of his parents forgot to drop him off at hia daycare. The parent left him in a car as temperatures rose above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 C). The baby was found in the backseat around 5:46pm on Tuesday, according to ABC News. The heat index reached 112 degrees (44C) in Baton Rouge on the day of the incident.

Two children  a one-year-old boy and a 10-month-old girl  died on August 13 in separate hot car incidents, according to Kids and Car Safety.

The groups data shows that Texas has the highest number of child deaths due to hot cars between 1990 and 2023, with a total of 155 deaths. Florida is the second most deadly state for children when it comes to hot cars, with 118 deaths over the same time period. California is the third deadliest, with 65 deaths.
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A babysitter who permanently disabled a 5-and-a-half-month-old boy by shaking him until his brain bled has pleaded guilty to manslaughter over his death three decades later.

Terry McKirchy, then 22, had been caring for Benjamin Dowling in 1984 at his parents Fort Lauderdale, Florida home when she shook him so violently that he suffered a brain hemorrhage that left him with life-altering disabilities.

Dowling died in 2019, at the age of 35, from injuries related to the incident, an autopsy concluded at the time.

In July 2021, McKirchy, who was by then 59, was charged with first-degree murder over Dowlings death. On Wednesday, McKirchy, who was living in Texas when she was indicted by a Broward County grand jury and arrested by US Marshals in Texas, where she was living, admitted to the lesser charge of manslaughter.

Broward assistant public defender David Fry, McKirchys attorney, read an apology letter in court to Dowlings parents, Joe and Rae, in which McKirchy said she had been feeling overwhelmed by life when she caused Benjamins grievous injuries.

It was in a state of impulse and anger that I struck Benjamin while he and other children were crying, McKirchy, now 62, wrote in the letter, according to the Associated Press. Your life and Benjamins life were truly harmed by me and I am truly sorry.

Fry did not respond on Wednesday to The Independents request for comment and a copy of the letter.

McKirchys one-time best friend addressed the court and McKirchy herself, saying, You sat with me face to face and you denied doing anything to that baby. You told me Benjamin fell off the couch. You lied straight to my face.

According to the indictment, on July 3, 1984, McKirchy did unlawfully and feloniously commit the crime of murder in the first degree by inflicting injuries on Benjamin Keith Dowling, a human being,

[T]o wit: while Terry Smith McKirchy was engaged in the commission or attempted commission of Aggravated Child Abuse, and as a result of such injuries, Benjamin Keith Dowling did languish and die on September 16, 2019.

In a statement to announce the murder charge, prosecutors said, The passage of time between the injuries sustained and the death of the victim were considered by the forensic experts who conducted the autopsy and ruled the death was directly caused by the injuries from 1984. This case was presented to the grand jury, which determined that this was a homicide.

Terry McKinchy was arrested on murder charges in 2021. ( Broward County Sheriffs Office )

The autopsy report, signed by Associate Medical Examiner Phoutthasone Thirakul, M.D. and dated December 5, 2019, lists the cause of death as sequelae of abusive head trauma. The manner of death is listed as Homicide (Assaulted by other person).

In 1985, McKirchy  who was six months pregnant with her third child and had been facing 12 to 17 years  pleaded no contest to attempted murder, receiving a sweetheart sentence of weekends in jail for three months, followed by three years probation. She told reporters she was innocent, and that her conscience was clear.

But once Dowling died, prosecutors were able to re-charge McKirchy with murder.

Benjamins life would be irreparably altered by McKirchy, enduring numerous surgeries, eating through a feeding tube, and never being able to speak or walk on his own.

Benjamin smiled when a familiar voice spoke to him or he heard something that tickled him, his obituary read. He was [the] number 1 fan for his talented brother and sister in their many activities and sporting events. He traveled many places in the US and even the Bahamas for a wonderful family reunion. Benjamin taught us all many valuable life lessons and everyone who knew Benjamin was better because they did.

The Dowling family moved from Fort Lauderdale to the Sarasota area in the 1990s.

When McKirchy was charged with murder in 2021, the family issued a statement about their son without a single mention of his former sitter.

Benjamin never crawled, fully rolled over, walked, never talked, never fed himself, he never enjoyed a hamburger or an ice cream cone, he could never tell us when he had an itch or anything hurt, the statement said. When he cried in pain, we as a family and caregivers had to guess as to what was wrong and hope that we could satisfy his need.

After she was rearrested in 2021, McKirchy was released on a $100,000 bond. In May, she surrendered to Florida authorities and has remained detained since. At sentencing, McKirchy faces a maximum of 15 years behind bars.
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A Florida mother has been arrested after allegedly getting in a fight with a high school student at a bus stop.

Authorities with the Flagler County Sheriffs Office responded to a call in Daytona North, Florida on August 15. According to the police, the fight stemmed from a friendship fallout that occurred during the summer.

Two teenage girls involved in the altercation allegedly got off a bus and agreed to fight each other.

At one point, 34-year-old Kathryn Stephanopoulos, one of the girls mothers, allegedly got involved in the scuffle and had a child in a headlock, Fox News reported. Her daughter then reportedly started another fight with a girl who tried to break up the initial altercation.

The ordeal was recorded on an observers phone and in the video, students can be heard making commentary during the fight.

Yo! Not the mom! one student said.

After the incident, one child began arguing with the woman and hit her in the face with a metal cup.

Did she just hit her with a Stanley Cup? one student can be heard saying in the video. Yes she did! another replied.

Thats crazy! the first student said.

Kathryn Stephanopoulos, 34, has been charged with one count of felony child abuse after allegedly getting into a fight with her daughter ( Flagler County Sheriffs Office )

Officials took the woman into custody on Monday on one count of felony child abuse. She was then transferred to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility.

One child was arrested for aggravated battery, while misdemeanor charges against the other juvenile were forwarded to the state attorneys office.

Instead of de-escalating the situation, we have a mother who joined in the fray, setting a bad example for her child and those at the bus stop, Sheriff Rick Staly said.

She certainly wont receive mother of the year with her actions. Parents need to set the example and not be part of the problem. Luckily, no one was seriously injured, but now a mother is facing serious charges for losing control of her temper.
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A New York drug smuggler and loan shark who Donald Trump gave clemency was arrested on Tuesday after allegedly punching his 75-year-old father-in-law in the head during a domestic dispute  adding to the list of his violent history.

Jonathan Braun, 41, was allegedly chasing his wife around their Long Island home during an argument when his father-in-law stepped in to protect his daughter. Braun then punched his father-in-law in the head twice, resulting in injury, court documents seen by The New York Times said.

When Nassau County Police arrived, Brauns wife told them this was the third time her husband physically assaulted her within five weeks. He allegedly injured her after throwing her off a bed and in another instance, punched her in the head multiple times after throwing her to the floor, The Times reported.

Braun was arrested and charged with two counts of assault in the third degree, one count of assault in the second degree, and one count of petit larceny. He pleaded not guilty to all counts.

Attorney Marc Fernich, who is representing Braun, said in an email that his client was released on his own recognizance after pleading guilty and will address the allegations judicially.

In a statement, the Nassau County District Attorney said, My office requested bail be set at $35,000. The judge presiding over arraignment released the defendant on his own recognizance. We respectfully disagree with the Judges decision. The Nassau County District Attorneys Office continues to thoroughly review the evidence in this case and prepare for prosecution.

What appears to be an ordinary arrest has attracted media attention because it is not the first time Braun has stumbled into legal trouble or been accused of acting violently  and yet he was one of 94 individuals offered commutation  or reduced sentencing  by former president Donald Trump

On January 19, 2021, hours before he left office, Trump commutated Braun, who had only served two and a half years of his 10-year-long sentencing.

Braun was indicted and later pleaded guilty to leading a large marijuana-smuggling ring. He turned himself in to law enforcement officials in 2011  after briefing fleeing the United States. But he wouldnt be sentenced until 2019.

In the seven years Braun was out on bail awaiting sentencing, he took on a major role in a predatory small-business lending scheme, Bloomberg News reported.

By the time Braun reported to prison, the Federal Trade Commission and the New York attorney general had opened investigations into the scheme. Those investigations were still ongoing when Trump selected Braun for commutation and included some alarming accusations.

Attorney General Letitia James alleged Braun used threats to compel business owners to pay up like I will take your daughters from you, I am going to make you bleed, You have no idea what Im going to do and Be thankful youre not in New York, because your family would find you floating in the Hudson.

In the FTCs lawsuit announcement, they also said Braun and his co-defendants threatened consumers with physical violence.

It is unclear why or how Braun was chosen for the clemency. Typically, presidents rely on the Office of the Pardon Attorney within the Justice Department to vet potential clemency candidates. But Trump did not use that.

In the White Houses clemency announcement, they did not explain why Braun was being chosen for clemency, provided an extremely brief description of his charges and also spelled his name wrongly as Jonathon.
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The Missouri Supreme Court has blocked an agreement that would have spared the life of death row inmate Marcellus Williams and instead ordered a hearing to proceed on his innocence claim, with just a little over a month to go before his scheduled execution for the 1998 murder of a St. Louis newspaper reporter.

The ruling late Wednesday came hours after St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorneys office told The Independent it had agreed with court officials to a consent judgment that would vacate the 2001 death sentence of Williams if the 55-year-old immediately enters whats known as an Alford plea.

Under such a plea, an individual accepts the punishment of being found guilty of a crime while still maintaining their innocence.

Williams would have been sentenced to life in prison without parole on Thursday. Instead, the Sept. 24 execution date is still on, pending a hearing before St. Louis County Circuit Judge Bruce Hinton on his innocence claim.

Missouri death row inmate Marcellus Williams is expected to be sentenced to life without parole

The deal had replaced a hearing that was planned for Wednesday, where Williamss attorneys were expected to present new DNA evidence they said ruled him out in the stabbing murder of St. Louis Post-Dispatch reporter Felicia Gayle, which could have upended the inmates scheduled execution.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has sought to deny Williamss appeals, arguing courts have already heard his claims, and said Wednesday he opposes the consent judgment.

Bailey argues DNA testing of the murder weapon in the case, a bloodied knife, merely shows law enforcement handled the weapon after the killing, rather than proving Williamss innocence.

Throughout all the legal games, the defense created a false narrative of innocence in order to get a convicted murderer off of death row and fulfill their political ends, Bailey wrote in a statement. Because of the defenses failure to do their due diligence by testing the evidence that supposedly proved their point, the victims have been forced to relive their horrific loss for the last six years.

The state prosecutor also argued other evidence proves Williamss guilt, such as the testimony of two informants. Police investigating the murder found a St. Louis Post-Dispatch-branded ruler in Williamss car and discovered a laptop belonging to Gayles husband at the home of a man who claimed Williams gave it to him.

A representative of Gayles family expressed a desire that the death penalty not be carried out and the familys desire for finality as part of a conference regarding the consent judgment, according to court documents obtained by CNN.

By agreeing to an Alford plea, the parties will bring a measure of finality to Felicia Gayles family, Williamss lawyer Tricia Rojo Bushnell told the outlet, while ensuring that Mr. Williams will remain alive as we continue to pursue new evidence to prove, once and for all, that he is innocent.

Additional reporting by AP.

The Independent and the nonprofit Responsible Business Initiative for Justice (RBIJ) have launched a joint campaign calling for an end to the death penalty in the US. The RBIJ has attracted more than 150 well-known signatories to their Business Leaders Declaration Against the Death Penalty - with The Independent as the latest on the list. We join high-profile executives like Ariana Huffington, Facebooks Sheryl Sandberg, and Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson as part of this initiative and are making a pledge to highlight the injustices of the death penalty in our coverage.
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One of the doctors charged in connection to Matthew Perrys fatal ketamine overdose has reopened his medical practice  and can still see patients.

Dr Salvador Plasencia, along with Dr Mark Chavez, was charged with conspiring to distribute ketamine after the Friends actor was found dead in a hot tub at his Pacific Palisades home last October.

Three others have been charged  Perrys former personal assistant Kenneth Iwamasa, a friend of a friend of Perrys Erik Fleming, and Jasveen Sangha, known as the Ketamine Queen. Plasencia  who was reportedly known colloquially as Dr P  is also charged with distributing ketamine and altering and falsifying records related to the federal investigation.

Now the doctor appears to be heading back to work after a sign was spotted on the door of his practice confirming the charges against him and informing patients he cannot prescribe any controlled substances.

Dr Plasencia has surrendered his DEA registration number and currently cannot prescribe any controlled substances. He still maintains a medical license issued by the State of California, the sign on the door of the Malibu Canyon Urgent Care in Calabasas read.

Matthew Perry was found dead in a hot tub at his Pacific Palisades home last October ( 2017 Invision )

His attorney, Stefan Sacks, told The LA Times his client can still treat patients in some circumstances but must explain the charges against him and patients need to sign a consent form if they are willing to proceed.

The conditions are that he disclose in writing the existence of the pending federal case, and the fact that he cannot prescribe controlled substances, Sacks said. Patients are then required to sign a written consent form for treatment So basically the requirement is disclosure and informed consent.

Plasencia allegedly taught Iwamasa how to inject Perry with the ketamine, according to prosecutors. At one point, the doctor injected Perry in the backseat of his car during a meeting in Long Beach.

Jasveen Sangha, who has been dubbed the Ketamine Queen by prosecutors ( Instagram )

The DOGs indictment suggests the doctor saw Perry as a cash cow, citing text messages he sent to Chavez about a month before the actors death. I wonder how much this moron will pay, he wrote in one. Lets find out, he wrote in another. In a third text to Chavez, Plasencia described meeting Perry as like a bad movie.

Matthew Perrys journey began with unscrupulous doctors who abused their position of trust because they saw him as a payday, to street dealers who gave him ketamine in unmarked vials, the DOJ said in a statement announcing the arrests.

Plasencia could be imprisoned for up to 10 years for each ketamine-related count and up to 20 years for each record falsification count he faces. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges and is due back in court on October 8.

Sangha has also pleaded not guilty and will appear in court in October, while Fleming, Chavez, and Iwamasa have reached a plea deal.
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A Nebraska man accepted plea deals in two separate cases this week  one related to terroristic threats in connection to taking an active shooter drill too far and another related to sexual assault charges.

John Channels, a 29-year-old former Offutt Air Force Base security officer, pleaded no contest on Tuesday to multiple counts of terroristic threats in connection with the fake drill at Omaha Catholic Charities in 2022, WOWT reported.

Channels, who had identified himself as an Offutt Civilian Police Officer, was hired to conduct an active shooter drill as a training exercise. But it devolved into a realistic reenactment  that made workers believe they were in real danger.

Investigators found that Channels had fired blanks from a prop gun, banged on the buildings windows, asked unidentified individuals to pretend to be victims, and advised Catholic Charities to not tell its employees about the fact that this was a drill, court documents obtained by KETV stated.

Police have said they were unaware of the drill and were not in contact with Channels ahead of the exercise.

On Wednesday Channels also pleaded no contest to charges of possession of child sexual abuse images, first-degree sexual assault and first-degree sexual assault of a child, Omaha World-Herald reported.

He was accused of sexually assaulting his taekwondo student. The girl told authorities in 2021 that the pair had been in a quasi-dating relationship from 2019-2021  when she was aged 12 to 14. During that time, he encouraged her to send him provocative photos and forced her to perform a sex act on him, according to reports.

He could face up to 12 years behind bars for the terroristic threats charges and and a minimum of 21 years for the sexual assault and child sexual abuse images charges, the World-Herald reported.

Channels is scheduled to be sentenced in both cases on October 25. He is currently being held in Douglas County Correction Center , booking records show.
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An Ohio mom and her boyfriend have been arrested after her 6-year-old son was attacked by a pit bull while being restrained with handcuffs as a form of corporal punishment, police said.

Angelina Williams, 27, of Cleveland and her boyfriend, Taylor Marvin-Brown, have been arrested on separate charges of endangering children and obstructing justice, after police responded to a 911 call in the early evening of August 17 that a pit bull had bitten a 6-year-old child on the neck and ear. Upon arrival, officials found the child in serious condition, and he was quickly flown to the hospital.

Robert Michalski, 47, who the sheriffs office claim owns the dog that attacked the child, is also being held at Ashland County Jail on charges of endangering children and tampering with evidence.

Williams had recently moved in with Michalski to his Savannah residence from Cleveland with her two children  the boy and his sister, who is roughly similar in age, as revealed in her bond hearing.

She later explained that Michalski, who also owns the Chapel Street residence that police were called to, is her uncle.

Police say that during their investigation they discovered evidence that the 6-year-old had been restrained with handcuffs on his hand and feet when the pit bull attacked him. A press release says Marvin-Brown was at the house and assisted with the restraining of the 6-year-old.

Angelina Williams (left), Robert Michalski (center) and Taylor Marvin-Brown (right) are in police custody after Williams six-year-old son was attacked by a pit bull ( Ashland County Jail )

During a search of the house on August 18, investigators found Michalski hiding with his dog in a cubbyhole upstairs, at which point deputies took all three adults into custody. Officials also took the pit bull into custody to be housed as a vicious dog.

Williams wept during her bond hearing, which revealed she does not have custody of her children, who were with her on visitation per a court order at the time of the attack.

Prosecuting Attorney Christopher Tunnell claimed Williams had been using handcuffs and rope on her children as a disciplining method, with pictures of them bound in that manner found on her phone.

The incident on Saturday allegedly came about when the little boy in some way objected to picking up dog excrement by the side of the house, prompting the three adults involved to put him in handcuffs and try to tie him to a chair with rope, according to the prosecutor.

Tunnell said it was at this point that the boy fell to the ground and was attacked by the pit bull, which caused severe and serious lacerations to the childs neck and a significant amount of bleeding.

Williams held her head in her hands while listening to the account of what happened to her son.

Some of the co-defendants applied pressure to the boys wounds, and left the house with him to meet first responders in an effort to get him help, with Tunnell going on to claim Williams had lied to investigators about what happened to her son.

He revealed she has a prior record, having been charged as a juvenile in 2012 for assault, and in 2016 for domestic violence that was later revised to disorderly conduct. Her bond was set to $300,000.

The dogs not even my dog, the cuffs arent even my cuffs, Williams insisted during the hearing. I didnt even know that the cuffs were illegal or anything was wrong with it.

My uncle told me that it was okay, the mother-of-two claimed, hanging her head. I never meant any harm, I really didnt.

Michalskis bond was set to $150,000, while Marvin-Browns was set to $250,000, with further hearings set for Friday.
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An Arizona man has been detained after he allegedly made several social media threats to kill former president Donald Trump.

Ronald Syvrud, 66, made the threats over the last few weeks, a spokesperson for Cochise County told CNN. The spokesperson didnt say which platform Syvrud used to make the threats.

The Benson resident has several outstanding warrants, including DUI charges, felony hit and run, as well as failing to register as a sex offender, the Cochise County Sheriffs Office wrote on Facebook.

The Sheriffs office added on the social media platform as a public safety consideration that Syvrud is being sought as an investigative lead for threats to kill a presidential candidate.

Later on Thursday, they said Syvrud has been taken into custody without incident in Cochise County.

Trump visited the US-Mexico border in the county on Thursday to deliver remarks on immigration.

The former president was asked about the man who allegedly made threats against him during his speech at the border. While he said he hadnt known that the Secret Service was looking into the man, Trump said he was not that surprised.

Ive heard its dangerous, but I also have a job to do I havent heard about that. They probably want to keep it from me, he added, according to CNN. I have heard it was very unsafe to make this trip, there were some people that really didnt want me to make it.

The arrest comes just six weeks after the assassination attempt on Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania when his ear was grazed by a bullet from the rifle of gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20. One rally attendee was killed and two others were injured in the shooting. Crooks was killed by Secret Service snipers.

Cochise County Sheriff Mark Dannels told DailyMail.com before Trumps border speech and the arrest of the suspect that security had been increased because of the threats and he noted that the speech was taking place in an open venue.

We have zero tolerance for any kind of threats or intents of violence, so well find him. Hell go to jail, Dannels told the outlet earlier on Thursday. Hes a registered sex offender here in Cochise County, and we were looking for him. Hes out of compliance as part of his violations. So were looking for him on that.

Were going to arrest him on that. But also the fact his pulse was obviously directed toward this event. So we want to talk to him about that, he added.

The Independent has contacted Sheriff Dannels for comment.

Trump arrived at the southern border just after 12pm on Thursday, meeting with Cochise County officials at the border wall. His team was made aware of the search for Syvrud before his arrival, according to CNN. The US Secret Service is investigating the suspect.

The former president began his remarks by blasting President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, speaking to the press surrounded by law enforcement officials and families of victims of crimes by people who crossed the border unlawfully, according to the Arizona Republic.

Calling Harris a Marxist, Trump falsely claimed the Vice President wants open borders.

Trump spoke at an area where the border wall remains unfinished, pointing to pieces of the wall piled up at the scene.

It could have been put up in a matter of weeks, he claimed, saying that it was the Rolls-Royce of walls.
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Guatemalan police on Wednesday captured seven people suspected of being involved with a 2022 human smuggling operation that saw 53 migrants die of asphyxiation  including eight children  in the back of a sweltering tractor-trailer in Texas.

Interior Minister Francisco Jimenez announced the arrests on social media, applauding the joint effort between his agency, the Guatemalan Armed Forces, and Homeland Security Investigations, the US Department of Homeland Securitys investigative arm. Officers and agents carried out 13 raids in three administrative departments, which Jimenez said dismantled a trafficking network known as Los Orozcos.

Alleged ringleader Rigoberto Roman Miranda Orozco, known as Rigo, was nabbed in the department of San Marcos, according to Guatemalan authorities. On Thursday, US officials announced an indictment charging Orozco with six counts of migrant smuggling resulting in death or serious injury.

Six others were previously arrested for allegedly being part of what officials said was the single deadliest migration-related incident at the US-Mexico border. The US government has requested Orozcos extradition, according to the Associated Press. Authorities also seized vehicles and cash, and rescued other migrants during the raids, the AP reported.

First responders found dead bodies stacked up in the sweltering trailer, according to authorities. ( AP )

Los Orozcos reportedly charged migrants as much as $15,000 each to be spirited into the US, with the fee covering three tries to cross. The smuggling network stretched from Guatemala into Honduras and Mexico, and was made up of a complex web of clandestine routes, guides, or coyotes, stash houses, and trucks for transporting the human cargo.

In the case that led to Wednesdays arrests, officers with the San Antonio Police Department were summoned to the outskirts of the city on June 27, 2022, after concerned citizens called 911 to report an abandoned big rig packed with people. When cops arrived on the scene, according to federal court filings, they discovered dozens of exhausted, dehydrated migrants in the back of the truck, with dead bodies, many of them hot to the touch, stacked on top of one another . Others were lying on the pavement or in nearby brush.

The deadly three-hour journey from the Mexican border to San Antonio began with 64 people, of which only 11 would survive. The vehicle was made to look like a refrigerated truck, but in fact had no working air conditioning, according to court filings. Temperatures in the trailer were said to have reached 150 degrees.

As the temperature inside the trailer rose, chaos ensued, reads a May 2024 indictment filed against three of suspects. Some [of the migrants] screamed and banged on the walls for help. Others kicked and clawed at the sides of the trailer attempting to escape. Most eventually passed out, unconscious.

The driver, identified as 45-year-old US citizen Homero Zamorano Jr. , was found hiding in the vicinity and arrested after at first claiming he was one of the survivors. Zamorano was allegedly high on meth when he was caught.

Driver Homero Zamorano Jr. at first tried to pass himself off as a victim, but was quickly found out by investigators. ( Reuters )

SAPD Officers were led to the location of an individual that was observed hiding in the brush before running to abscond from responding citizens, the criminal complaint against Zamorano states. At the location, SAPD officers encountered and detained Homero Zamorano Jr Zamorano Jr. was escorted to a local hospital for medical evaluation.

But when HSI agents reviewed security video of the tractor trailer passing through an immigration checkpoint, the complaint says they saw Zamorano matched the individual from the surveillance footage and was wearing the same clothing.

Zamorano was arrested and charged with one count of alien smuggling resulting in death.

In the aftermath, Gustavo Garcia-Siller, the archbishop of San Antonio, told the New York Post , Its so hard for us here to think that people are people, that we are part of a larger reality, humanity... Theyre people. They have families. They have suffered enough to make that kind of a trip to the United States with hope to connect with family and to live a more dignified life. These are the poor, the neglected.

Zamorano, whose attorneys did not respond on Thursday to a request for comment from The Independent, remains detained as he awaits trial. If convicted, he faces life in prison.
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The first class of incoming students at elite university MIT since last years Supreme Court ruling outlawing race-conscious affirmative action programs has significantly fewer Black and Hispanic students, and more Asian ones, according to newly released data on the class of 2028.

Massachusetts Institute of Technologys Black enrollment declined from 15 to 5 percent compared with last year, while Hispanic and Latino enrollment fell from 16 to 11 percent. Asian student enrollment, meanwhile, grew from 40 to 47 percent this year.

The numbers, the first released from an elite US university since the ruling, could give indications of how the Supreme Court precedent will affect other institutions.

MIT officials celebrated the incoming class while continuing to express their support for the aim of building a diverse student body.

The class is, as always, outstanding across multiple dimensions and willlike last years class, and those before itbring us an inspiring influx of new talents, interests and viewpoints, MIT president Sally Kornbluth said in a statement on Wednesday. But what it does not bring, as a consequence of last years Supreme Court decision, is the same degree of broad racial and ethnic diversity that the MIT community has worked together to achieve over the past several decades.

MIT is first elite school to release admissions numbers since Supreme Court ruling ( Getty Images )

I am convinced, from empirical data and personal experience, that the MIT education is strongest when our student body is, above a high bar of academic excellence, broadly diverse, MIT dean of admissions and student financial services Stu Schmill told a university news page.

The shift in the incoming classs demographics mirrors claims made in the high-profile lawsuits from Students for Fair Admissions against Harvard and the University of North Carolina that brought down the arguments.

In the suits, SFFA argued affirmative action policies were effectively discriminating against Asian American and white students.

Every student admitted to the class of 2028 at M.I.T. will know that they were accepted only based upon their outstanding academic and extracurricular achievements, not the color of their skin, Edward Blum, a conservative legal strategist who founded SFFA, told The New York Times.

Under the Supreme Court decision, students can still talk about how their race, ethnicity, or culture impacted their life in other parts of their application like their personal statement, but admissions officials cant formally consider race as an explicit factor in admissions.
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Conservative commentator Ann Coulter has deleted a social media post mocking Tim Walzs son after an onslaught of criticism.

Gus Walz briefly stole the show on Wednesday night, during his fathers speech to accept the partys vice presidential nomination at the Democratic National Convention. The 17-year-old was filmed in the family box, crying with pride and calling out, Thats my dad.

On Thursday morning, Coulter shared a news article about the teenagers emotional reaction which included a photo of him.

Talk about weird Coulter wrote above the news article.

The backlash against the firebrand commentator was swift and ferocious. A number of people noted that Gwen and Tim Walz had told People magazine this week that Gus has a non-verbal learning disorder, ADHD, and an anxiety disorder. The parents described the conditions are their sons secret power.

Ann Coulter deleted a post mocking Gus Walz after she was skewered on social media ( Getty Images )

When our youngest Gus was growing up, it became increasingly clear that he was different from his classmates, the Walzes told the magazine. Gus preferred video games and spending more time by himself.

They added: When he was becoming a teenager, we learned that Gus has a non-verbal learning disorder in addition to an anxiety disorder and ADHD, conditions that millions of Americans also have.

Coulter was soon trending on the social media platform, as was Gus, and the phrase: Hes 17.

Tommy Vietor, former Obama staffer and podcaster, wrote: I can see why a child loving their parents would feel foreign to you.

The founder of the gun safety groups, Moms Demand Action and Everytown, Shannon Watts, wrote on X: I am neurodivergent. When I was 14, I was diagnosed with ADHD, OCD, and several learning disorders, including dyscalculia.

Were not weird, were wonderful. And were your family, friends, and fellow Americans.

Even after Coulter removed her post, the criticism continued.

Former Republican strategist Rick Wilson wrote: Ann Coulter will die alone, and forensic pathologist will discover her withered corpse is nothing but Marlboro reds and box wine.

Jesuit priest James Martin noted that the hateful comments came from self-professed Christians.

90 percent of the Christian life is: Dont be mean, he wrote. Also, do you think Jesus would mock someone with any kind of disability? Remember your Gospels: these are precisely the people Jesus seeks out.

Historian Ruth Ben-Ghiat also posted: They learned from the best: Trump, who has long mocked people with disabilities and whose Project 2025 would restrict benefits to disabled veterans.

The Independent has attempted to contact Coulter for comment.
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A proposed measure that would have allowed Arkansans to vote on expanding abortion rights in the state will not be on the ballot in November, the state Supreme Court said on Thursday.

In a 4-3 ruling, the majority of the Arkansas Supreme Court upheld the secretary of states decision to reject the petition for the amendment, saying organizers behind the effort did not correctly submit the required number of signatures.

Arkansas For Limited Government, the group behind the petition, submitted more than 100,000 signatures in support of the amendment  exceeding the 90,704 required to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot.

But the Arkansas Secretary of State denied the petition, saying the group failed to submit sworn statements that confirmed paid canvassers were instructed on how to collect roughly 14,000 of those signatures.

That left the petition at 87,675  slightly less than the required amount.

Boxes containing signatures supporting a proposed ballot measure to scale back Arkansas' abortion ban are delivered to a room in the state Capitol on July 5 ( AP )

As such, we ordered the Secretary to count the signatures from volunteer canvassers, but we do not order him to count the signatures from paid canvassers. Because the number of the initial count of signatures fails to meet the facial validity threshold required by law, we deny further relief, Justice Rhonda Wood wrote in the majority opinion.

The proposed amendment would have prevented the states from restricting access to abortion up to 18 weeks or in cases of rape, incest, fatal fetal anomalies or to protect the life or health of the pregnant person.

Nearly all forms of abortion are outlawed in Arkansas except in cases where the pregnant persons life is at risk.

The state does not provide exceptions in cases of rape or incest.

Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders praised the state Supreme Courts decision and took credit for building the first conservative Supreme Court majority in the history of Arkansas.

The crux of the cases dispute was extremely technical.

The Arkansas Secretary of State argued that election officials could only count 87,675 of the collected signatures because they came from volunteers. But signatures collected from paid canvassers could not be counted because Arkansas for Limited Government did not submit the proper documentation for the paid canvassers in a bundle  rather they submitted it separately.

Supporters and opponents of a proposed ballot measure to scale back Arkansas' abortion ban hold signs outside the old Supreme Court chamber at the state Capitol in July ( AP )

State law requires campaigns to submit documentation identifying each paid canvasser by name and confirm that they received training on the rules for gathering signatures.

In the dissenting opinion, Chief Justice John Kemp accused the court majority and the Arkansas Secretary of State of treating the petition differently from others.

Why are the respondent and the majority determined to keep this particular vote from the people? The majority has succeeded in its efforts to change the law in order to deprive the voters of the opportunity to vote on this issue, which is not the proper role of this court, Kemp wrote.

Arkansas For Limited Government called the decision infuriating and thanked the more than 800 volunteers who worked to coordinate signatures collections.

We cant  and wont  rest until Arkansas women have access to safe, standard health care and the autonomy to make decisions about their bodies free from governmental interference, the organization said.
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Bill Clinton tore into Donald Trump while touting Kamala Harriss leadership on Wednesday at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago  in a speech seeking to help shepherd his party into a new era.

Clinton leaned heavily into the role of elder statesman in his remarks while describing Trump as self-centered and positioning Harris, the Democratic nominee, as the natural opposite.

He began by referencing his age  notable by the slightly raspy voice and shake in the hands  while still getting in a dig at Trump.

"Two days ago I turned 78  the oldest man in my family, Clinton remarked. And the only personal vanity I want to assert, is that I'm still younger than Donald Trump."

The joke drew laughs before Clinton pushed deeper into his criticism of Harriss rival.

[H]ow does Donald Trump use his voice? Mostly to talk about himselfhis vengeance, vendettas, complaints, conspiracies, he said.

The next time you hear him, dont count the lies, count the Is. Hes like the tenor warming up before the opera: me, me, me, me.

Clinton then delivered rapid-fire remarks, making references to some of Trumps more unique rally themes.

Former president Bill Clinton was one of the primetime speakers on night three of the convention, and delivered a reserved but multi-layered takedown of Donald Trump ( Getty Images )

Do you want to build a strong economy from the bottom up and the middle out? Or do you want to spend the next four years talking about crowd sizes? ... Do you want to strengthen our alliances and stand up for freedom and democracy around the world? he said.

Or a tribute to the late great Hannibal Lecter? Do you want to save our country and our world from the calamities of climate change? Or obsess on the vital debate between getting eaten by sharks or electrocuted?

He then reflected on Trumps debate performance. I almost croaked during the first debate when Trump said nobody respect America anymore like they did when he was president, Clinton said.

And with a straight face! Look, you gotta give it [to him]  hes a good actor.

While Clinton didnt echo the chant which Harriss campaign has embraced, were not going back, he did his best to set the vice president apart as the candidate of the future, with Trump representing the past.

Bill Clinton: I almost croaked during the first debate when Trump said 'nobody respect American anymore' like they did when he was president. And with a straight face! Look, you gotta give it -- he's a good actor -- he cited the presidents of North Korea and Russia pic.twitter.com/PALkWa2ISZ  Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 22, 2024

I want an America thats more joyful, inclusive, and future-focused. Where we weather the storms and earn the benefits together. Thats the America Kamala Harris will lead, Clinton said.

Donald Trump a paragon of consistency  is still dividing, blaming, and belittling. He creates and curates chaos. Its showmanship, but its not leadership.

Clintons forceful but stoic tone contrasted with the energetic and aggressive message from another former president, Barack Obama on Tuesday. It leaned into painting Harris as the younger candidate representing Americas future in a way that only a symbol of the partys past could really do.

Clintons speech, according to reports, was rewritten after he saw the first day of the convention. Some noticed on Wednesday that he read it off paper, instead of from the teleprompter.

He also delivered perhaps the most somber moment of the night, a recognition of his place in the background of the partys future which Joe Biden had only brushed at during his own passing the torch remarks on Monday night, pushed out of primetime by younger speakers.

I have no idea how many more of these I'll be able to come to, said Clinton, noting that he had started coming to conventions in 1976  no, 1972.

Bill Clinton is reading not from a teleprompter, but pages of actual paper. Which, for those of us who started covering him in the '92 campaign, means he didn't finish his last version of his speech in time to load it on the teleprompter.  Susan Milligan (@MilliganSusan) August 22, 2024

Clinton also thanked Biden directly for choosing to step aside for Harris, something he compared to the decision of George Washington to step down after his second term, which set the two-term precedent followed to the modern era.

[H]e did something that's really hard for a politician to do: he voluntarily gave up political power," said Clinton. George Washington knew that. And he did it, and he set the standard for us serving two terms before it was mandatory. It helped his legacy, and it will enhance Joe Biden's legacy."

His remarks were followed by another symbol of the partys past, Nancy Pelosi, who has actively embraced a shifting role which has included giving up the reins of the House Democratic caucus to Hakeem Jeffries.

Pelosi, who went willingly into her new backbencher position, was seen as a key player involved in pushing Biden towards making the decision to step down from the Democratic ticket last month.

Harriss running mate Tim Walz was the keynote speaker for the next-to-last night of the convention; Harris herself will deliver her address on the final night on Thursday.
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Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel discussed Kamala Harris record defending the rights of LGBTQ+ Americans  and channeled the movie star and gun rights activist Charlton Heston to deliver a message to Republicans who are trying to take away those rights.

Nessel, the states first openly gay attorney general, took the stage at the third night of the DNC on Wednesday to tout Harris record protecting same sex marriage when she was attorney general in California.

In 2011, she refused to defend Californias ban on same sex marriage. She refused to argue that some families should have fewer rights than other families. It meant a lot. She was fighting for families like mine, Nessel told the crowd in Chicago.

The Michigan AG said she faced a similar situation in 2022, when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade and her states archaic abortion ban was resurrected.

In his concurring opinion to reverse Roe, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas suggested that the Supreme Court should also reconsider the rulings protecting the right to contraception, same-sex relationships, and same-sex marriage.

Dana Nessel delivers powerful message to the Supreme Court justices who are trying to roll back the rights of some Americans ( EPA )

Nessel then took a line from Charlton Heston, the actor-turned-president of the National Rifle Association. Heston, one of Hollywoods biggest movie stars of the 1950s, informed Democrats in 2000 that they wouldnt be able to strip him of his gun unless they took it from his cold, dead hands.

She put her own spin on the now-famous line: I got a message for the Republicans and the justices of the United States Supreme Court: You can pry this wedding band from my cold, dead, gay hand! She joked: And Im retaining a lot of water, so good luck with that!

The crowd erupted into cheers.

Just as the same sex marriage ban was overturned in California, so too was the abortion ban in Michigan, Nessel added.

I know that whether shes attorney general or president of the United States, Kamala Harris will always be in our corner, the Michigan AG said.

Nessel also took a few jabs at Donald Trump.

She pointed out that the former president not only appointed half of the Supreme Court justices who decided to reverse the landmark ruling but also is now facing his own legal battles: We know that she will appoint Supreme Court justices who will protect our freedoms. And let me tell ya, Kamala knows you go from the courthouse to the White House and not the other way around.

Later in the evening, the convention heard from Minnesota Governor and Harris running mate Tim Walz, when he accepted the vice presidential nomination.
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Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump are set to face off against each other for the first time on the national debate stage on Tuesday and how they perform under the limitations of the rules will be under a microscope.

After several days of back-and-forth, the two candidates finally agreed to comply with the same rules that Trump and President Joe Biden used during the first presidential debate back in June.

That includes muted microphones, no pre-written notes, no live audience, no sitting, and no speaking with campaign staff between commercial breaks.

Though many of the rules are standard for presidential debates, the originally agreed-up regulations could put Harris at a disadvantage since she has a different skill set than President Joe Biden.

Here are the rules for Tuesdays debate in Philadelphia and who stands to benefit.

Muted mics

Microphones will be live only when the candidate whose turn it is to speak is talking. Otherwise, they will remain muted.

This was a rule that Biden and Trump initially agreed upon. But its one that Harris tried to change once she became the Democratic presidential nominee.

Despite Trump saying it doesnt matter to him whether microphones stay on, his team threatened to pull out of the debate if the rules were changed.

Former president Donald Trump during the first presidential debate against President Joe Biden. Audiences and the media agreed that Trump prevailed in the first debate ( Getty Images )

Trump is notorious for interrupting people and making snide comments when he is being attacked. During his civil and criminal trials, judges have scolded the former president for speaking out of turn in the courtroom.

Brian Fallon, a top aide for Harris, wrote on X that Trumps handlers dont trust him to spar live.

Ultimately, Harris agreed to the muted microphone rule but Fallon told ABC News that Harris would be fundamentally disadvantaged.

However, a pool of journalists will be permitted in the hall and can report on remarks that are muted for television audiences, according to AP.

No prepared notes or help

Candidates cannot bring pre-written notes or props to the podium and must stand for the entire duration. They will be given a pen, pad of paper and water bottle. Additionally, campaign staff may not interact with either candidate during the two commercial breaks.

Improvising is neither Harris nor Trumps strong suit but the former president has more experience doing so than Harris.

Vice President Kamala Harris during the 2020 vice presidential debate. Audiences largely considered Harris to be the winner of that debate ( AFP via Getty Images )

Trump goes on long-winded, off-topic tangents at rallies, press conferences and during interviews. But hes good at praising his agenda and policies while tearing down Democrats, although sometimes it results in him making extreme statements.

As a former prosecutor, Harris excels in getting to the point concisely and clearly. But when asked to improvise, she can stumble and say things that are easily misconstrued. In previous interviews, she has been mocked or criticized for misspeaking.

No opening statements

There will be no opening statements during the debate, only closing statements. Trump has won a coin toss and chose the order of statements. Harris will give the first closing statement and Trump will go last.

The former president is at a slight advantage since he can hear all of Harriss talking points before delivering the final word of the debate.

Moderators will ask the questions

Only the moderators of the debate, David Muir and Linsey Davis, will be permitted to ask questions and there will be no live audience.

This means candidates must answer the question in full, and give a rebuttal in a direct and easy-to-understand way, because it will be a slightly more formal setting than previous debates.

Harris has a slight advantage to the former president in this aspect because she is better at remaining on topic and hitting multiple points more quickly than Trump.

The debate will air on ABC News beginning at 9 p.m. ET on Tuesday.
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The Democratic National Convention (DNC) has now entered its final day at the United Center in Chicago, where some of the partys biggest heavyweights have taken to the stage over the last three days.

While the DNC is first and foremost a presidential nominating convention, Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate Tim Walz already have their places in the White House race sown up after a five-day round of online voting for delegates wrapped on August 5.

Now, as many as 50,000 visitors have descended on the Steven Spielberg-coordinated convention in the Windy City, including 5,000 delegates from 50 states and territories, plus 15,000 members of the media, tens of thousands of guests and a huge contingent of Gaza ceasefire protesters.

The convention has been organized around four distinct themes, one for each day: Mondays was For the People, examining the Biden administrations accomplishments in the White House and how a future Harris Cabinet could continue its work, Tuesdays was A Bold Vision for Americas Future, Wednesdays was A Fight for Our Freedoms and Thursdays is For Our Future.

Here the latest on what we know about the conventions schedule.

Monday

Kamala Harris and Joe Biden at the DNC on Monday August 19 2024 ( AP )

President Joe Biden delivered the headline speech on the opening night, giving an emotional address to rapturous applause from the crowd.

Introduced by First Lady Dr Jill Biden and his daughter Ashley Biden, the 81-year-old president ran through his accomplishments in the Oval Office before making a forceful case against Donald Trump.

Denying that he was angry with members of his party who pressured him to step aside from the 2024 race, Biden explained: I love my job, but I love my country more.

Hillary Clinton, the partys 2016 presidential nominee, also spoke of her desire to see the highest, hardest glass ceiling smashed with the election of a first female president.

Delegates also heard from Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Jim Clyburn, Jasmine Crockett, Robert Garcia, Grace Meng and Jamie Raskin, Senators Raphael Warnock and Chris Coons, Governors Andy Beshear and Kathy Hochul, DNC chair Jaime Harrison and United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain.

Tuesday

Michelle Obama and Barack Obama received a warm welcome at the DNC on Tuesday ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. )

The Obamas took to the stage on Tuesday delivering an electrifying endorsement of the Harris-Walz administration while eviscerating Trump.

Michelle denounced Trump for peddling a narrative of fear and declared that hope is making a comeback while also poking fun at Trumps reference to Black jobs, adding that the job hes currently seeking might just be one of those Black jobs.

In his speech, Barack heaped praise on both Harris and Biden while slamming Trump for the childish nicknames, the crazy conspiracy theories, this weird obsession with crowd sizes.

Other speakers included Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff  including a touching video tribute from his son Cole Senators Chuck Schumer, Bernie Sanders, and Tammy Duckworth, Billionaire Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and Trumps former press secretary Stephanie Grisham.

Wednesday

Walz delivered a rousing speech as he formally accepted the VP nomination ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. )

Walz took to the stage to deliver a rousing acceptance speech to formally accept his vice presidential nomination.

Met with roaring chants of Coach! Coach! Coach! he dived into a football-themed metaphor: Its the fourth quarter, were down a field goal, but were on offense and we have the ball, were driving down the field and boy do we have the right team... Kamala Harris is ready!

Former president Bill Clinton also took to the stage and made a jibe at Trumps age, noting that he celebrated his 78th birthday on Monday but I'm still younger than Donald Trump.

Oprah Winfrey also made a surprise appearance, slamming JD Vances childless cat ladies comments.

Former House speaker Nancy Pelosi, former VP hopefuls Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro also delivered speeches.

Thursday

As is tradition, Kamala Harris will wrap up the final day of the convention on Thursday night with a headline speech as she formally accepts the nomination to be the Democratic Partys 2024 presidential candidate.

Reverend Al Sharpton, a prominent civil rights activist and baptist minster, has also announced he will take the podium.

Additionally, former Republican congressman and outspoken Trump opponent Adam Kinzinger is expected to speak.

How to watch:
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Donald Trump is complaining that Barack and Michelle Obama got a bit too personal with their attacks against the former president in their Tuesday night speeches at the Democratic National Convention.

Trump, who falsely claimed for years that former President Barack Obama wasnt born in the United States, asked a crowd at a rally in Asheboro, North Carolina on Wednesday if they had seen Barack Hussein Obama ... taking little shots.

Trump has in the past used Obamas middle name to falsely suggest that hes Muslim.

He was taking shots at your president and so was Michelle, Trump said. You know, they always say, Sir, please stick to policy, dont get personal, but theyre getting personal all night, these people.

Trumps advisors and conservative pundits have been urging the former president to target Vice President Kamala Harriss record instead of making personal attacks against her.

Donald Trump points after speaking about national security during a campaign rally at the North Carolina Aviation Museum & Hall of Fame in Asheboro, North Carolina, August 21, 2024. Trump has been getting increasingly personal in his attacks against Kamala Harris ( AFP via Getty Images )

Trump has repeatedly called her names and even falsely claimed that she has misrepresented her race as he appeared for an interview with the National Association of Black Journalists late last month.

The former president asked the North Carolina crowd on Wednesday: Should I get personal, or should I not get personal?

Getting personal seemed to be the more popular option with the crowd.

Barack and Michelle Obama spoke at the DNC on Tuesday night and they appeared to leave their 2016 call when they go low, we go high behind and instead rallied the raucous crowd with forceful rejections of Trump.

Going small is petty, its unhealthy, and, quite frankly, its unpresidential, Michelle Obama told the convention.

Its his same old con  doubling down on ugly, misogynistic, racist lies as a substitute for real ideas and solutions that will actually make peoples lives better, she added.

Barack Obama at one point appeared to suggest that Trump is not only concerned about crowd sizes as he looked down at his hands.

Barack Obama gestures while speaking about Donald Trumps crowd size at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on 20 August 2024 ( Independent US )

Democrats as a party appear to have abandoned the notion of going high as Harriss running mate and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz rose to prominence slamming Republicans as weird and creepy.

Trump has increasingly attacked his foes on both sides of the aisle with personal attacks and lies, such as calling Harris a Marxist and referring to her as Comrade Kamala.

Michelle Obama slammed Trump for his comments on race during her 20-minute speech on Tuesday night, saying that the former president has done everything in his power to try to make people fear us.

Former first lady Michelle Obama speaking during the Democratic National Convention Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, in Chicago ( AP )

His limited, narrow view of the world made him feel threatened by the existence of two hard-working, highly educated, successful people who happen to be Black, she said.

Barack Obama blasted Trump as a 78-year-old billionaire who has not stopped whining about his problems since he rode down his golden escalator nine years ago.

It has been a constant stream of gripes and grievances thats actually been getting worse now that hes afraid of losing to Kamala, he added.
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Donald Trump launched a blistering middle-of-the-night attack on Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro branding him the highly overrated Jewish Governor.

The Republican presidential nominees rant appeared to have been provoked by Shapiros speech at the Democratic National Convention, where he hit out at Trump saying that he isnt offering freedom at all to the American people.

Shapiro, who had been on the shortlist to become Kamala Harriss running mate in the presidential election, told the convention on Wednesday night: Its not freedom to tell our children what books theyre allowed to read. Its not freedom to tell women what they can do with their bodies.

And, hear me on this, it sure as hell isnt freedom to say you can go vote, but he gets to pick the winner.

Taking to Truth Social after the DNC closed out for the day, Trump fired back at Shapiro while claiming that he himself has done more for Israel than any person.

The highly overrated Jewish Governor of the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro, made a really bad and poorly delivered speech talking about freedom and fighting for Comrade Kamala Harris for President, yet she hates Israel, he said, pushing one of his repeated baseless attacks.

Shapiro (seen at the DNC) was on the shortlist to be Kamala Harriss running mate in the presidential election ( REUTERS )

Yet Shapiro, for strictly political reasons, refused to acknowledge that I am the best friend that Israel, and the Jewish people, ever had. I have done more for Israel than any President, and frankly, I have done more for Israel than any person.

On Thursday morning, Shapiro hit back at Trumps comments, describing them as antisemitic tropes.

First off, its clear over the last few weeks that Donald Trump is obsessed with me and obsessed with continuing to spew hate and division in our politics, he told reporters.

Hes someone who has routinely peddled antisemitic tropes like this. Remember, hes the guy who wanted Doug Mastriano to have this job. Hes the guy who has been repeatedly rejected by the voters of Pennsylvania, he himself lost in 2020.

All of [Trumps] handpicked candidates have lost, and I think hes heading for another loss this time to Kamala Harris.

Trump hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Mar-a-Lago last month ( AP )

Trump has previously baselessly claimed that it was very insulting to Jewish people that Harris chose Tim Walz as her running mate  rather than Shapiro. Harriss own husband, Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, is Jewish.

He has also made other wild claims about the Israel Gaza conflict including claiming there would be a world war in the Middle East if he does not return to the White House this November.

If we win, itll be very simple. Its all going to work out, and very quickly. If we dont, youre going to end up with major wars in the Middle East, and maybe a third world war, he said as he hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Mar-a-Lago last month.
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The Department of Justice is reportedly investigating multiple people with ties to Russian state media, weeks after federal officials warned that the Kremlin is attempting to influence the upcoming presidential election through the media.

The FBI has searched multiple individuals this month as part of the probe, including former U.N. weapons inspector and U.S. foreign policy critic Scott Ritter, and foreign policy commentator Dimitri Simes, US officials briefed on the investigation told The New York Times.

Neither are charged with crimes and the FBI told The Independent it has no comment regarding the reported investigation.

Ritter, who has contributed to the state-controlled Russia Today (RT) network since 2020, was the subject of an FBI search on August 7 at his home in New York state.

Agents were seen carrying out boxes of evidence, which reportedly included mobile phones, computers, and hard drives.

The FBI is reportedly probing individuals who worked with Russian state media, including former UN weapons inspector Scott Ritter

Im being targeted because I have made an effort to try to improve relations between the United States and Russia, to try to bring about arms control. To try to bring about peace, Ritter told the Delmar, New York-based Spotlight News site the day of the search. Apparently, someone in the U.S. government takes umbrage at this.

A Virginia home owned by Simes, former head of the Center for the National Interest think tank, was reportedly searched on August 13.

The FBI conducted court-authorized law enforcement activity. We have no further comment as this is an ongoing matter, the FBI told Rappahannock News regarding the search.

Simes, who hosted a talk show on Russias state Channel One network, told Russian channel Sputnik earlier this month he didnt know why he was being targeted either.

It clearly is an attempt to intimidate, not only somebody from Russia, but just anyone who goes against official policies and particularly against the deep state, he said.

The commentator was mentioned in the Mueller report investigating Russian influence operations on the 2016 election, including for passing on what he believed was incriminating information about then-candidate Hillary Clintons husband, former president Bill Clinton, to Jared Kushner, Donald Trumps son-in-law.

Simes was not accused of any wrongdoing in the report.

In his interview with Sputnik, Simes added that he hadnt been in the United States since 2022.

Last month, the office of the US Director of National Intelligence warned that Russian officials were attempting to use the media to influence US politics.

Russian influence actors have undertaken distinct efforts during this election cycle to build and use networks of U.S. and other Western personalities to create and disseminate Russian-friendly narratives, the DNI wrote in a public assessment. These personalities post content on social media, write for various websites with overt and covert ties to the Russian Government, and conduct other media efforts.

Any attempt to investigate alleged Russian influence over US elections is politically fraught, as the 2016 round of probes led to damaging reports about both candidates and accusations from Trump that the justice system was being wielded by his opponents to keep him from power.
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Supporters of Kamala Harris shouldnt feel too confident about recent polls that put her ahead of Donald Trump, according to the president of one of the largest super political action committees (PAC) backing her.

Chauncey McLean, of Future Forward USA, told a panel hosted by the University of Chicago Institute of Politics that internal polling numbers are much less rosy than what the public sees.

We have it tight as a tick, and pretty much across the board, McLean said.

His comments came as the vice-president was due to be crowned as the partys candidate at this weeks Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

Polling consolidated by FiveThirtyEight shows Harris with a nearly 3-point lead over Trump, RealClearPolitics has Harris leading by 1.5 points and Cook Political Report shows Harris has a less than 1-point lead.

Recent polls by The New York Times/Siena College, Emerson College and CBS/YouGov have affirmed that Harris is leading Trump by a minimal margin  even in some key swing states. Those numbers are a fairly significant change from just a month ago when Trump led Joe Biden by several points.

Kamala Harris campaigns in North Carolina, a key swing state that the president of Future Forward said she needs to win ( Getty )

Bidens exit from the 2024 race was in part due to his polling numbers, which suffered significantly after his faltering performance in the first election debate.

Since he dropped out and endorsed Harris, Democrats have seen an uptick in polling numbers, boosting their confidence in winning the election.

But McLean says Future Forwards polling operation indicates the race is still extremely tight.

Since the vice-president became the nominee, we talked to 375,000 Americans, McLean said. What you see in the public polls  you know, a large public poll is [only] 1,000 surveys.

But Harriss entrance into the 2024 race has opened up several pathways to victory that Biden did not necessarily have. That is thanks to newfound support from young people of color, McLean said.

But still, Harris will need to win one of three key swing states, Georgia, North Carolina or Pennsylvania, in order to win, Reuters reported.

McLean said Future Forward has at least $250m left to spend, which they plan on doing through a digital and television advertising campaign to begin Labor Day and go through Election Day.

So far, the super PAC has raised $134m in advancement of the Harris campaign, according to OpenSecrets.
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Days before the Democratic National Convention kicked off in Chicago, a university professor innocuously tweeted her excitement about the upcoming protests against the Gaza war outside the United Center, triggering a firestorm.

Oh Kamala is NOT ready for Chicago. But dont worry; were ready for her, Eman Abdelhadi, an activist and professor of sociology at the University of Chicago, wrote.

Just minutes later, Kamala Harris supporters replied that they had reported her to the Feds.

The @SecretService & @FBI have just entered the chat because this seems like a real threat against the Vice President of the United States, wrote one .

I reported it/her and flagged the FBI Secret Service and FBI Chicago field office dont play with K-Hive, wrote another in response, referencing the nickname Harriss online supporters go by.

Abdelhadi, who is Palestinian, was shocked that her seemingly inoffensive tweet was being depicted as a violent threat.

I think its very clear that if I werent Muslim, if I werent Palestinian, if I werent Arab, that none of this would have happened, she told The Independent.

Emad Abdelhadi, a sociology professor at the University of Chicago, was called by the FBI over a tweet she posted about a Gaza protest at the DNC. ( Sarah-Ji / The Independent )

She also saw the jump to suspicion as a painful reminder of the way Muslim Americans have been treated by Americans for decades, especially after the September 11 attacks in 2001.

I dont think its an accident that they called the FBI. It was like this is whos supposed to deal with you people when you get rowdy, she added.

Nine days later, Abdelhadi got a phone call from the Chicago FBI office. The words US Government flashed up on caller ID. She was too afraid to answer.

Good morning, Im looking to speak with Professor Abdelhadi, the man who identified himself as an FBI agent said on the voicemail. Your name came across my desk and I had a couple of questions for you.

Abdelhadi said listening to it transported her back to the aftermath of 9/11, when massive FBI surveillance programs targeted Muslim communities like hers across the country. Authorities raided her mothers workplace and people in her community went to jail.

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators protest outside the United Center, the host venue of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 22, 2024. ( REUTERS )

I cried, she said. I was triggered, and I was surprised by that.

It just brought up so much for me, because the FBI was a regular presence in my community, she said. And even when they werent physically there, the threat and the knowledge that they were surveilling us was very real, it affected everything.

Abdelhadi quickly found a lawyer and they called the FBI agent back. Her lawyer instructed her to remain quiet while he answered the questions for her. The agent asked if Abdelhadi planned to commit any acts of violence, and if she had a history of drug abuse or access to a weapon, to which her lawyer answered no.

Eman Abdelhadis tweet. ( Screengrab / X )

The FBI did not respond to a request from The Independent for comment.

Abdelhadi saw her experience of pro-Harris supporters seeing her as a threat as emblematic of how Gaza protesters have been treated by the Democratic Party since the war began last year.

It just speaks to the cruelty and callousness that the Democrats are treating this with, she said. What was really shocking about this, and whats been shocking about the DNC, is seeing that same callousness and cruelty filter down even to the Democratic base.

Some 69 per cent of Democrats disapprove of Israels war in Gaza, according to a Gallup poll published in July. But President Joe Biden has refused calls from within his own party to withhold weapons sales to Israel to pressure it to agree to a ceasefire, even as the death toll from the conflict has reached 40,000 and famine has spread across the territory .

When Biden announced that he would abandon his re-election campaign, the movement had expressed hope that Harris might usher in a shift in policy. Abdelhadi and others who protested at the DNC were trying to shift Harris on policy, but the convention has largely shunned those efforts.

Until Harris changes US policy and at least considers the prospect of limiting arms to Israel, Abdelhadi said she could not vote for her.

Ive made it very clear publicly, and I think many like me have made it clear, that we need for our votes to be earned, Abdelhadi said. I dont want to see Trump win, but she hasnt earned it.

Protesters march during a demonstration outside the Democratic National Convention Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, in Chicago. ( Associated Press )

Roughly three dozen uncommitted delegates  who were sent to the DNC by voters in Democratic primaries in protest of the Biden administrations support for Israels war in Gaza  had asked the Harris campaign to allow a Palestinian American to speak on stage during this weeks convention. That request was denied on Wednesday.

To add insult to injury, a viral video showed Democrats leaving the convention hall on Wednesday, passing by a group of protesters who were reading the names of Palestinian children killed in Gaza. Some of them covered their ears as they went by, others mocked the protesters.

Its a reminder of something that as a Muslim and Arab Ive always known, Abdelhadi said, which is that my life doesnt really matter to most of my countrymen, that Im deeply disposable, and so is my community.
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House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries ignited the crowd at the third night of the Democratic National Convention when he likened Donald Trump to an old boyfriend who wont go away during a fiery speech.

The New York Democrat compared the former president to an ex that isnt taking the hint that to move on, prompting the crowd to erupt into laughter on Wednesday night at the Chicago convention.

Donald Trump is like an old boyfriend who you broke up with, but he just wont go away, he said. He has spent the last four years spinning the block trying to get back into a relationship with the American people.

Pointing to Trumps handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, his 2020 election fraud claims, his involvement in the January 6 Capitol attack, and his appointments of three justices who decided to overturn Roe v Wade, Jeffries concluded: We broke up with you for a reason.

Donald Trump can spin the block all he wants, but theres no reason for us to ever get back together, he continued. Been there, done that. Were not going back.

Jeffries sent the crowd into a roar of laughter when he likened Trump to an old boyfriend that wont go away ( REUTERS )

Jeffries then turned to Harris record and stances, calling her a courageous and compassionate leader.

He hailed her as putting people before politics, protecting the middle class, upholding the Affordable Care Act, and fighting for reproductive health care.

He also praised President Joe Biden, saying he will go down as one of the most consequential presidents of all time.

Later in the night, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz accepted the vice presidential nomination.

Thursday will be the final day of the convention, where Harris is expected to accept the presidential nomination.
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While Hunter Biden vacationed with his family in Santa Ynez Valley in California on Wednesday, nearly 100 miles away in Los Angeles his lawyers empathetically defended him in his final pretrial conference before his federal tax case heads to trial.

Mark Geragos, an attorney who joined Bidens legal team recently, was pushing back on the prosecutions plan to bring up embarrassing details of Bidens past, like spending money on drugs, girlfriends and lovers, expensive hotels and more rather than pay his taxes.

They want the character assassination, they want to slime him, that is the whole purpose, Geragos told District Court Judge Mark Scarsi.

It arrived after lead prosecutor Leo Wise said that the personal details of Bidens life, specifically while he was battling addiction, were part of evidence closely related to the nine tax-related charges at the center of the case.

Biden is charged with three felony and six misdemeanor charges that accuse him of avoiding paying at least $1.4 million in taxes while maintaining an extravagant lifestyle between 2016 and 2019.

Mark Geragos, a lawyer who recently joined Hunter Bidens legal team, will defend him in federal court in California ( Getty Images )

During that time, Biden had an addiction to crack cocaine and alcohol  something, he has previously said, emerged while he was grieving the death of his older brother, Beau Biden.

Geragos argued that the defense should be allowed to explain to the jury the context behind Bidens addictions, like how the death of his mother and infant sister when he was a young boy and then the death of his brother as an adult triggered his addictions.

[Prosecutors] are creating a portrait for the jury of someone who was plopped down in West Hollywood and decided to just party and do cocaine as if he didnt have a care in the world, Geragos said.

But Judge Scarsi was not convinced that evidence related to why addiction occurs was relevant.

By the end of the pretrial conference hearing, it became clear that the California tax case would echo much of what occurred during Bidens federal gun charges trial in Wilmington, Delaware.

Salacious and embarrassing details of Bidens life took center stage during that trial, like how he spent thousands of dollars on expensive hotel rooms to use crack cocaine, how his ex-wife needed to sweep their car for drugs before allowing their daughters to drive it, and more.

It culminated in emotional testimony from Bidens eldest daughter, Naomi Biden, who tearfully recounted how her fathers addiction impacted her relationship with him. Biden was ultimately found guilty on all three federal gun charges.

Prosecutors will likely revisit some of those personal details in the California tax charges case. They have also signaled in court filings they plan to introduce evidence related to Bidens foreign business dealings that cast a negative shadow on him.
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Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance turned the joyous task of ordering donuts into a deliciously awkward encounter, a new video reveals.

The Ohio Senator walked into a donut shop in Georgia ahead of his remarks in Valdosta, Georgia on Thursday, where he introduced himself to a server who immediately said she did not want to be filmed, in a stilted exchange that is not helping the Republican candidate divorce himself from the weird label.

Im JD Vance. Im running for vice president, Vance tells the donut shop worker, who simply replies: Okay.

Were gonna do two dozen. Just a random assortment of stuff here, he continues while browsing the donuts in the display cases.

Everything. A lot of glazed here. Sprinkle stuff. A lot of cinnamon rolls. Just whatever makes sense, Vance said.

As the worker fills up his box of donuts, Vance struggles to make small talk by asking workers behind the counter how long they have been working there.

He asked one worker how long the place had been around, and was told it had been in business for four years.

JD Vance struggles to make small talk while ordering donuts ( C-Span )

About four years? Okay, Vance said. Well, we selected this place. I didnt know if it had been here for 20 years or four years. You never know.

The clip comes as Vance has strived to combat the weird description that Democrats, including vice president Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, have given him.

A series of resurfaced clips and text messages capturing Vances extreme stances have contributed to this label. Vance called pregnancy resulting from rape inconvenient, branded Harris a childless cat lady, suggested that parents should have more of a vote than childless adults, and drastically flip-flopped on his views about Trump.

Vances cringey donut shop visit is reminiscent of another recent flubbed food stop  which social media users ate up.

Earlier this week, Vance tried to crack a joke when ordering a Philly cheesesteak at the famed Pats King of Steaks, but he wound up being accused of committing a crime against humanity.

I dont like Swiss cheese either, but everybody says its insulting, Vance told a worker at the joint, which is considered the inventor of the cheesesteak and famously only uses American, provolone or cheez whiz in the delicacy. Why do you guys hate Swiss cheese so much?

The employee replied: We dont hate it, we just dont use it. We usually use cheez whiz.

While Vance seemed to have been cleverly referencing John Kerrys 2004 presidential campaign, when he asked for a cheesesteak sandwich with Swiss cheese during a visit to Pats, the internet thought the encounter hurt his campaign chances.

He also recently found himself in a bind when one of his attempts at a joke came back to bite him.

When asked this week how he is preparing to debate Tim Walz in October, Vance replied: Well, I found a good friend from back home who embellishes and lies a lot, Im having him stand in for Tim Walz.

But the insult quickly backfired as several social media users joked Vance was referencing Donald Trump, who has become notorious for lying over everything from election results and crowd sizes to the weather. The Washington Post estimated that during his presidency he made more than 30,000 false or misleading statements.
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Watch as Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance campaigns in Valdosta, Georgia, on Thursday 22 August.

The visit marks Senator Vances second trip to the state since former president Donald Trump selected him as his running mate.

He will be campaigning on the same day that Kamala Harris is set to formally accept the Democratic nomination ahead of the 5 November election.

Vice President Harris will make the most important speech of her political life on Thursday evening, a month after her party forced Joe Biden to exit the race.

Her own presidential ambitions were always clear but had been undermined by her own shaky 2020 campaign and bumpy vice presidential term.

Since being thrust to the top of the Democrat ticket, she has tightened the race against Mr Trump.

Ms Harris forceful stump speeches have been met by a surge in enthusiasm from voters. If she wins on 5 November, she will be the first Black, South Asian woman elected president.
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A new poll shows Kamala Harris has halved Donald Trumps lead in Texas, a state widely expected to vote Republican come November.

Harris has cut Trumps lead to just under five points, according to a survey from the University of Houston and Texas Southern University released Thursday. Their last survey, recorded June 20 to July 1, had Trump with a nine-point lead over President Joe Biden.

These numbers are consistent with national polling. Harris has a 3.3-point lead over the former president, an average of major national polls shows. A recent New York Times/Siena College poll also showed Harris holding a four-point lead in the battleground states of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin.

Chauncey McLean, president of Future Forward USA, one of the largest super political action committees backing Harris, said on Wednesday the campaigns internal polling is much less optimistic.

We have it tight as a tick, and pretty much across the board, McLean said.

Since the vice-president became the nominee, we talked to 375,000 Americans, McLean continued. What you see in the public polls  you know, a large public poll is [only] 1,000 surveys.

Colin Allred is battling Ted Cruz for a Senate seat ( Getty Images )

The same Texas survey shows Senator Ted Cruz just 2.1 points ahead of his competitor, Representative Colin Allred. The June-July survey showed Cruz and Allred in a similarly tight competition.

Allred was set to speak at the Democratic National Convention on Thursday night ahead of Harris as he attempts to garner support in the race against Cruz. The incumbent Republican has held his senate seat since 2013.

The lead between Harris and Trump could shift in the coming days as independent candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr reportedly prepares to drop out of the presidential race.

While its unclear exactly which candidate Kennedy voters will turn to  if they vote at all  his supporters in swing states could have the ability to turn the tides in this close race.

Kennedy is expected to endorse Donald Trump following mounting pressure from Donald Trump Jr and former Fox News personality Tucker Carlson pressured him to drop from the race, a report revealed on Thursday.
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Kenan Thompson trolled Republicans about the Project 2025 agenda as he took to the stage at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday night.

In a speech that combined both humor and gravity, the comedian and longtime Saturday Night Live cast member walked out on stage carrying a big old book version of Project 2025.

The crowd went wild, booing as Thompson explained that he was carrying the conservative blueprint for a second Donald Trump term.

Yeah, yeah - boo! he laughed.

You ever seen a document that could kill a small animal and democracy at the same time? joked Thompson.

Here it is, he said. You know how when you download an app and there are hundreds of pages there that you dont read, its just the terms and conditions, and you just click Agree, right?

Well these are the terms and conditions of a second Trump presidency. You vote for him, you vote for all of this  lets take a look! he said, slamming the book down on the table in front of him.

Kenan Thompson drops Project 2025 book in front him at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago ( AP )

After a brief minute of unfortunate technical difficulties, Thompson was joined by a woman named Becky on the screen behind him, who revealed she had a wife of about eight years.

Aw, thats amazing. Very, very cute! Thompson said, before cracking open the behemoth of a document: But I have got some bad news for you.

Turning to page 584 of Project 2025, Thompson read out that Project 2025 calls for the elimination of protections for LGBTQ+ Americans, earning another round of boos from the audience and a thumbs down from Becky.

So yeah, right back to the Stone Age, he quipped.

Thompson then spoke to Anita, an OBGYN.

She is an OBGYN that delivers babies. Uh oh, Thompson said.

Its bad news isnt it, replied Anita, while he flipped through the pages of the book.

Kenan Thompson speaks on day three of the Democratic National Convention ( AP )

Thompson told her that Project 2025 would ban aboriton nationwide and throw healthcare providers in jail.

Thompson was also joined by Sharia, a proud civil servant in the Department of Education.

Thompson pointed out that Project 2025 seeks to purge federal agencies of anyone who isnt a MAGA loyalist as well as the elimination of the Department of Education.

Thompson went on to remind the audience that Project 2025 is a real document which can be found online, including on Kamala Harriss website.

And mostly importantly, he added, you can stop it from ever happening by electing Kamala Harris as the next president of the United States.

Project 2025 is a blueprint outlining policies and proposals for a Trump second term should he win the presidential election in November.

It includes Social Security cuts, an aim to ban access to the abortion pill and rescinding regulations prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, transgender status, and sex characteristics.

The blueprint is spearheaded by the Heritage Foundation and more than a dozen former Trump administration officials.

Trump has publicly tried to distance himself from Project 2025, saying at a recent rally: I dont know anything about it, I dont want to know anything about it.

However, numerous former Trump officials worked on the document and his running mate JD Vance wrote the foreword to the Project 2025 leaders new book.

One of the projects other leaders Russell Vought, who also headed the Office of Management and Budget during the second half of the Trump administration and has been tipped as a possible chief of staff in his second term, last week told undercover reporters that the former president is in fact very supportive of their work.
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Pro-Donald Trump conspiracy theorist Mike Lindell has fulfilled his promise of shaving off his mustache and infiltrating the Democratic National Convention  where he was seen getting into a spat with a 12-year-old influencer.

The MyPillow CEO, who attended the Republican National Convention last month, had previously announced in a video on X his plans to go incognito at the Democratic partys event by donning a disguise so inconspicuous that you wont recognise me.

On Wednesday, it became apparent that Lindell had pulled off his cunning plan with a newly clean-shaven Lindell seen at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, sporting a panama hat and a pair of sunglasses.

But, despite his distinct lack of upper lip hair, Lindell failed to manage to slip under the radar.

Footage from the event shows the former Trump advisor having a series of spats with other attendees.

In one video, Lindell is seen spouting a number of baseless claims including a false claim that hundreds of thousands of votes were missing in Georgia during the 2020 election.

Mustache-less Mike Lindell is mocked by 12-year-old influencer Knowa ( X )

257,000 votes  this happened last week, a judge ruled in Georgia  that are missing from the 2020 election, he said.

There is no evidence for this, with the closest news headline being an Associated Press fact check which actually debunks that claim.

When asked for his source, Lindell replied: Trust me bro.

It was at this moment that the 67-year-old businessman met his match: 12-year-old Democratic influencer Knowa.

So your source is, trust me, bro? the young content creator quipped in a video posted to his 43,000 X followers.

No, Lindell fiercely retorted. Its in your papers in Georgia. You need to read your news.

Knowa in a selfie with Don Lemon ( Knowa/X )

Youre full of c**p, Knowa concluded as he walked away from the heated confrontation.

Knowa has quickly become a crowd favorite at the DNC, and has been spotted mingling with big names including Don Lemon and Stacy Abrams. His Instagram also features him in photos with Harris.

In a video shared by Lindell on X from the DNC, he exclaims wow as he sits in a barbers chair in awe at his new look.

The election denier then explains he is attending the DNC to promote his own event, which he says features several Chicago Democrats who have switched allegiance to back Trump. Were gonna interview, were gonna find people, he says.

Mike Lindell has been an ardent Trump supporter since meeting him prior to his first term in 2016 ( AFP via Getty Images )

Lindell founded MyPillow before becoming a staunch Trump ally and peddler of baseless conspiracies.

He once promoted the cardiotoxic substance oleandrin as an effective treatment for Covid-19 in the summer of 2020.

Months later, Lindell continued to falsely claim that the 2020 election was rigged and played a significant role in financing unsuccessful attempts to overturn the result.

He later falsely claimed that members of the anti-fascist group Antifa were behind the January 6 Capitol riot, dressed in disguise as Trumps cronies.

In February, Lindell was ordered to pay $5m  not including interest  to a man who in 2021 accepted his Prove Mike Wrong challenge by proving that Lindells so-called evidence showed no widespread voter manipulation in the 2020 election.
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The group Muslim Women for Harris-Walz has announced that it is disbanding in uproar after a request to give a Palestinian speaker a slot at the Democratic National Convention was denied.

The Biden-Harris administration has received heavy criticism for its steadfast support for Israel during the war in Gaza that has so far killed more than 40,000 people.

During this weeks DNC, uncommitted delegates descended on Chicago and urged Kamala Harriss campaign to host a Palestinian American speaker on the main stage at the convention.

Abbas Alawieh, a Michigan delegate who is acting as a spokesperson for the uncommitted delegates, said on Wednesday evening that he got a call telling him the answer is no.

In response, the delegates  who were elected in state primaries in protest of current president Joe Bidens support for Israel  staged a small protest outside the United Center on Wednesday night and the group Muslim Women for Harris-Walz announced that it was shuttering its operations.

In the statement, Muslim Women for Harris-Walz said they cannot in good conscience continue with the group in light of the decision.

A small group of uncommitted delegates hold a sit-in just outside the United Center to protest the lack of a Palestinian American speaker at the Democratic National Convention ( EPA )

The group added that the parents of the 23-year-old Israeli hostage, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who appeared onstage on Wednesday night, showed more empathy towards Palestinian Americans and Palestinians than our candidate or the DNC has.

This is a terrible message to send to Democrats. Palestinians have the right to speak about Palestine. We pray that the DNC and VP Harris team makes the right decision before this convention is over. For the sake of each of us, the statement added.

Protesters said that the impromptu sit-in, which initially began when the group was waiting for a phone call from the Harris campaign, would continue until their demands are met.

Alaweih told reporters outside the DNC that the vice-presidents decision to suppress us is unacceptable.

Ive run out of options from my position as a delegate, so Im leaning into my power as an everyday person. And Im not going anywhere, he said.

Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez appeared via FaceTime to speak to the group and reassured them their protest was paired with a very strong inside push, referring to those inside the DNC.

She added that the request for a Palestinian speaker to appear is not an irrational thing to ask for, its a basic thing to ask for.

Protesters rally at a demonstration in Union Park during the Democratic National Convention Wednesday ( AP )

The Democratic National Committee provided space for two panel discussions during the convention - one focused on Arab and Palestinian issues, which featured leaders from the Uncommitted movement - and another focused on Jewish American issues, including rising anti-semitism and hate speech.

Campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez also met with local Arab American and Jewish American leaders in Michigan last week.

Democratic voters in states like Michigan, North Carolina and Minnesota used their state primaries to vote uncommitted in protest of the war in Gaza, resulting in sending 30 delegates to Chicago.

Since the start of the convention, at least 55 protesters have been arrested following clashes with police.

More pro-Palestinian protests are expected later today when Harris will officially accept the Democratic partys nomination for president.

Margaret DeReus, the executive director for the Institute for Middle East Understanding Policy Project, told The Independent earlier this week: I think were [at] a moment of real opportunity where vice-president Harris can turn the page on what has been a disastrous chapter in President Bidens administration.

DeReuss organization hosted a meet-and-greet and panel about Israel and Gaza on Tuesday morning where she said the encouraging words must also reflect deeds from Harris  and Biden.

I think [Biden] should realize that if he wants vice-president Harris to win in November, there are things that he could do as president now to make that more likely, she said.

And I think she can indicate, and should indicate, how her administration would be different in terms of its policies on Gaza.
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Legendary rocker Neil Young gave Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz permission to use his song "Rockin' in the Free World" as an entrance theme at the Democratic National Convention.

Walz reportedly specifically sought permission from Young to use the song, CNN reports.

It's not the first time the song has been used by a political candidate; back in 2015 Donald Trump also used the song, but famously not with Young's permission to do so.

Young not only did not give his permission, but he actively tried to force Trump to stop using the song. He sent the campaign several cease-and-desist threats, but Trump ignored the artist's wishes for years.

The rocker eventually filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Trump in 2020.

Tim Walz used Neil Youngs Rockin in the Free World as entrance music after seeking  and receiving  the legendary rockers permission to use the song ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. )

Unlike with Trump, Young reportedly had no issued with Walz using the song.

Rockin' in the Free World  like Bruce Springsteen's Born in the USA  is often assumed to be patriotic, when in fact both are protest songs, lobbing critiques of society. Young's song highlights a lack of empathy for the poor and references pollution, war, and drug abuse in the US.

The song's gripes with the US were what raised eyebrows when US Secretary of State Antony Blinken played the song at a bar in Kyiv in May.

He played "Rockin' in the Free World" alongside Ukrainian band 19.99 during a visit to address the nation's ongoing war with Russia.

"The United States is with you, so much of the world is with you. And theyre fighting, not just for Ukraine but for the free world  and the free world is with you too," Blinken said during his performance.

Sec. of State Antony Blinken joins a band in Kyiv to perform Neil Youngs Rockin in the Free World.

At the same time, Blinken was facing criticism for the US's stance on Israel's violence in Gaza, and his on-stage appearance didn't earn him any goodwill amongst those critical of the war.

Four days after his big guitar show in Ukraine, Israel conducted an airstrike at a Gaza refugee camp that killed more than 30 people. Days later, protesters yelled at Blinken that he would be remembered as the "butcher of Gaza."

Blinken  acting as an executor of the will of the US government  probably wasn't who Young had in mind to carry his tune.

Young  like many other artists  has tried to force Trump to stop using his song ( Getty Images )

Similarly, Beyonce almost certainly did not have Trump in mind when she released Freedom, but the former president used the song in a video anyway. At least he tried to earlier this week, but Beyonce threatened to sue, and Trump's campaign removed the video.

Instead of playing over Trump, Beyonce's Freedom will be used by Vice President Kamala Harris as her campaign walk-out song.
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As a volunteer for the Democratic National Convention and a proud American, I had the rare opportunity to watch live as Vice President Kamala Harris accepted the Democratic nomination for President of the United States. As a fellow woman of color, this was meaningful to me  but it was even more noteworthy because it happened on the fourth anniversary of my dads death. My father Armando, a Cuban exile and small-business owner, was a staunch Republican, but Id like to think hed be proud of me nevertheless.

From an early age, Dad cautioned me not to take my civic duty for granted. He never missed an election; sometimes I tagged along as a kid when he went to the voting booth.

Dad had voted Republican since he became a citizen in the 1960s. Like many Cubans, he had never forgiven the Democratic Party for the failed Bay of Pigs invasion in 1961, where Cuban exiles trained by the US attempted to overthrow Fidel Castro but were abandoned by the Kennedy administration. That failure left a lasting distrust among the community. Add to that the fact that the GOP has historically taken a more hardline stance against Castros dictatorship and has advocated for stricter sanctions and a firm foreign policy against communist states  something that aligns with the views of many Cuban exiles  and you might begin to understand why he always cast his ballot for a Republican.

In fact, my father said he would never vote for a Democrat for any office for as long as he lived.

Part of me thinks Dad would be both impressed and annoyed by my determination and persistence to volunteer for a party he vowed never to support. I attended my first prospective volunteer virtual information session for the Democrats last December, and submitted my application early in the summer, as soon as I was eligible to do so. I provided personal details, including my Social Security number, date of birth, and other identifiers, to the US Secret Service for clearance. With thousands of applicants across the country vying for a volunteer spot, I was happily surprised to be among those chosen.

Every day, fellow convention-goers and I went through rigorous, airport-style security before we can entered the convention venue. I was on the media logistics team, so during the week, I primarily worked on press check-ins and answered questions, but I also went on food runs to ensure fellow volunteers are fed.

During our volunteer info sessions, we learned there were more than 50,000 people who attended the convention, including nearly 5,500 delegates and alternates, 20,000 members of the media, senior government officials, and elected leaders from around the country. There were also business leaders, entrepreneurs, nonprofit leaders, and more.

Cusido on Day 2 of the DNC ( Carmen Cusido )

In between volunteer duties, colleagues and I took turns heading to the upper levels (or sometimes, if we were lucky, close to the convention floor) of the United Center in Chicago to catch primetime speeches by President Joe Biden, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former first lady Michelle Obama, and other political superstars. I was able to meet Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, a mental-health advocate who I greatly admire. I was also stationed within feet of Pete Buttigieg, whose speeches and media interviews I look to as both sources of personal inspiration and as good examples of expert message delivery.

Some tasks were different this time, but the process was familiar to me. Because before I became a pro-choice, climate-conscious, universal-healthcare-supporting Democrat, I volunteered at the Republican National Convention in New York City in 2004.

Carmen Cusido with Rep. Jamie Raskin at the DNC ( Carmen Cusido )

Growing up in a working-class New Jersey town, my identity as the American-born daughter of elder Cuban exile parents shaped my worldview. Summers spent in Miamis Little Havana with family only reinforced my conservative upbringing. I attended anti-communist plays (I often was the only child in the audience) and participated in hours-long pig roasts where my parents and maternal grandmother joined uncles, aunts, cousins, and other family as they animatedly discussed the fall of the Soviet Union and the latest US-Cuba policies. These discussions werent just about politics; they were about who we were, and who we might be in the future.

By 2004, I was a 21-year-old college senior, but I was an anomaly among my peers. While most college kids typically decorate their dorms with a string of lights, potted plants, a photo wall, and music posters, I displayed Bush Cheney 04 campaign signs, anti-communist bumper stickers, and pictures of myself with local Republican politicians.

Carmen Cusido, age 21, volunteering at the RNC ( Carmen Cusido )

At the time, I hadnt yet begun fertility treatments or knew of friends who needed medically necessary abortions (or chose to terminate their pregnancies for other reasons.) I had not yet worked for a global wildlife conservation organization, which opened my eyes to the urgent need for action on environmental issues. My friends and I hadnt yet been laid off or left jobs during health crises, leading me to realize how crucial universal healthcare can be.

But gradually, as the years went on, all of that happened  and my views changed in response to the life that I was living.

Dad and I  who barely spoke as it was  found less to talk about when I registered as a Democrat in the early 2010s. We did find some common ground near the end of his life, though. When he received his primary ballot to vote in New Jersey in June 2020, Dad looked at me and said, I dont want to vote for Trump. He said the pandemic would be over by Easter, and everything would be open, and he lied.

Papi, does that mean youre ready to finally vote for a Democrat? I joked.

Me, vote for a Democrat? No, never, he answered, without hesitating. What else can I do?

The Bush twins at the RNC ( Carmen Cusido )

Well, you can write someone in, I said.

Okay, Dad responded, and penned the name of Marco Rubio, Floridas Cuban-American senator, in the write-in box.

Todays version of the GOP  with its insistence on policing womens reproductive choices and controlling what books students can or cannot read  feels like a scary glimpse into the kind of terrifying government overreach that my parents and other family members escaped from.

I think Dad sensed that, too, because he admitted during that same conversation: Carmen, the Republican Party is no longer what it used to be.

I guess we can agree on that, I answered.

Carmen Cusido is a freelance writer based in Northern New Jersey. She is working on a memoir about grief and loss titled Never Talk About Castro and Other Rules My Parents Taught Me.
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A group of 50 Republican veterans have written a letter to Tim Walzaccusing him of egregious misrepresentations when discussing his military service.

The letter, posted on the official Trump-Vance campaign website, said the Minnesota governor had exploited and co-opted the experiences of Americas combat veterans for personal gain.

To be blunt, when you falsely claim military service that did not happen and abandon your post, you diminish the real sacrifices made by veterans who did serve in combat, the letter reads. Military service is not merely a job or a uniform.

It continued: Those who serve in the Armed Forces endure rigorous training, face perilous situations, and make sacrifices that most civilians cant comprehend. The honor of wearing the uniform is earned through dedication, bravery, and an unwavering sense of duty.

You have displayed none of these characteristics as you have lied your way through a political career launched on the foundation of a title you did not earn and combat deployments you did not take part in.

50 Republican veterans have written a letter to Tim Walz accusing him of egregious misrepresentations over his military service ( Getty Images )

The letter marks the latest attempt by Republicans to attack Walz over his service since he joined the Democratic ticket. Such attacks have been spearheaded by JD Vance, a Marine Corps veteran. Before retiring and running for Congress, Walz served 24 years in the Army National Guard.

It also highlighted remarks made by the governor in 2018, in which he spoke of weapons of war that I carried in war while making a speech about gun violence. Harriss campaign said in a statement Walz misspoke at the time.

Wednesdays letter cited Walzs previous comments, and his decision to resign from the National Guard months before his unit deployed overseas.

The Harris campaign previously referred to Walz as a retired command sergeant major. Walz reached that rank, but he did not complete the requirements to keep it before he retired  something the lawmakers described as not honorable.

You have stated that you are damn proud of your service, and like any American veteran, you should be. But there is no honor in lying about the nature of your service, the letter stated.

It concluded: Americas veterans and servicemembers are rightfully concerned about what would happen to them should you ascend to the Presidency. When America asked you to lead your troops into War, you turned your back on your troops.

Attacks on Walzs military service have been spearheaded by Republican rival JD Vance, a Marine Corps veteran ( REUTERS )

You have violated the trust of our brothers and sisters in arms. Their blood, sweat, and sacrifice are the only reason our nation is able to exist. Until you admit you lied to them, there is no way you can be trusted to serve as Vice President.

Walz spoke out over the attacks during a speech to the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union. These guys are even attacking me for my record of service, he said last week.

And I just want to say, Im proud to have served my country and I always will be. With my dads encouragement  a guy who served in the Army during the Korean War  I signed by for the Army National Guard two days after my 17th birthday.

Then in 2005, I felt the call of duty again, this time of being a service to my country in the halls of Congress. My students inspired me to run for that office, he added.

The Independent has contacted the Harris-Walz campaign for comment on the letter.
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Donald Trump revealed on Wednesday who he thinks has been the nastiest speaker at the Democratic National Convention so far.

Its New York Governor Kathy Hochul.

The former president took to Truth Social to slam the governors total hatred, which Trump argued had no bounds.

During the first night of the DNC on August 19, Hochul spoke of her shared values with presidential candidate, Kamala Harris, namely grit, determination, and compassion.

The governor, who took office three years ago after Andrew Cuomo left amid sexual misconduct allegations, went on to say that those values have always defined New Yorkers. But not Trump.

Donald Trump was born a New Yorker, but ended up a fraud, a philanderer, and a felon, she said.

Hochul said that New York has had to deal with Trump for 78 long years and slammed the fraud, the tax-dodging, the sham university, the shady charities.

Former President Donald Trump responded on Truth Social to criticism from New York Governor Kathy Hochul who called him a fraud ( Getty / AFP )

She also blasted Trump for stiffing contractors and ripping off workers.

He abuses women, brags about it, and then takes away their rights. And New Yorkers are sick of it, she said, before she apologized to Floridians because Trump had to flee to Mar-a-Lago.

Trump hasnt spent much time in New York lately. Except, that is, to get convicted of 34 felonies, she said.

In a Truth Social post on Wednesday, Trump responded to Hochuls remarks. He called her a very unpopular governor, adding that she was the nastiest speaker on Monday evening ... as it pertains to your favorite President, me.

Her total hatred, and statements made about me, had no bounds, Trump said.

Trump claimed that he did a GREAT job in New York, saying that he employed thousands of people, built some of the most beautiful and successful buildings, and paid billions of dollars in taxes.

Noting that he may win the November election, Trump asked if it wouldnt ... be better for the people of New York State to have a Governor who got along with the President? 

Adversarial relationships are not good in politics! he wrote.

He called the New York courts biased and hateful, saying it was no wonder the judges have treated me so badly considering the vitriol displayed by Hochul.

In her Monday speech, Hochul, in one of the most high-profile moments of her career, praised the Biden administration, saying Trump talked big about bringing back manufacturing jobs. But you know who actually did it? President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
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Warning: This livestream has not been independently fact-checked and may contain misinformation.

Watch as Donald Trump visits the frontier with Mexico in Montezuma Pass, Arizona, on Thursday 22 August.

The Republican candidate for Novembers election is making a trip to the US border on the same day Kamala Harris is set to accept the Democratic Partys nomination.

He is expected to speak about immigration policy in Arizona, a key swing state, as Republicans try to derail Ms Harris momentum by drawing attention to a critical election issue.

Back in Chicago, where the 2024 Democratic National Committee is being held, Ms Harris plans to talk about her life as the daughter of a Jamaican father and Indian mother and lay out her plans to tackle rising costs and advance personal freedoms.

She will also deliver a robust denunciation of former president Trump, according to aides.

Ms Harris has raised a record-breaking $500 million in a month and has narrowed the gap or taken the lead against her Republican rival in many opinion polls of battleground states.
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Donald Trump and his running mate JD Vance are touring vital swing states this week as they try to blunt the momentum of the Democratic convention.

Trump and Vance were in Asheboro, North Carolina on Wednesday afternoon, the former presidents first outdoor event since he survived an assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania last month.

Behind bulletproof glass, Trump railed against his rival Kamala Harriss national security policy then, as he often does, wandered off course and attacked President Joe Biden, former president Barack Obama, and former First Lady Michelle Obama following their speeches at the DNC in Chicago.

On Thursday, Trump is scheduled to speak about border issues in Arizona, and Vance is set to campaign in Georgia, two competitive states important for his path to the White House in November.

The former president is set to visit the border in Cochise County at 11.30am local time on Thursday. The Trump campaign announced the visit on Sunday, saying that theres no end in sight for Kamala Harris border crisis.

Donald Trump and JD Vance shake hands during a campaign rally in Asheboro, North Carolina on August 21. The former president is set to visit Nevada and Arizona later this week ( REUTERS )

Trump will host an event in Nevada on Friday morning before returning to Arizona that afternoon to rally in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale at 4pm. Trump will speak at the Desert Diamond Arena, where Kamala Harris rallied supporters earlier this month. Trump also appeared at a Phoenix rally in June.

Independent presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr will also speak in the Phoenix area on Friday about the path forward for his campaign. There have been reports that hes set to end his campaign and possibly endorse Trump.

The former president will speak at a Las Vegas restaurant on Friday about his no taxes on tips policy in a state with a high share of restaurant and hospitality workers.

Trump is set to appear at the Italian-Mexican fusion restaurant, Il Toro E La Capra, at 12pm local time, according to KLAS.

Trump and Vance have been on a campaign swing through battleground states all week. Trump visited an equipment manufacturer in York, Pennsylvania on Monday while Vance spoke in North Philadelphia. The events have been taking place during the day to avoid clashing with the DNC programming in primetime.

On Tuesday, Trump visited Howell, Michigan, a town with historic links to white extremism, where he attacked Vice President Kamala Harriss record on crime and safety.

The Associated Press contributed to this report
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Sphen, a gentoo penguin who became famous as part of a same-sex power couple with his partner Magic, has died at the age of 11 in Australia.

The couple, who were together for six years after they fell in love at Sea Life Sydney Aquarium, successfully fostered two chicks  Sphengic (also known as Lara) in 2018 and Clancy in 2020.

The pair  dubbed the penguin power couple  gained global attention in 2018 after their relationship became a symbol of equality and inspired cultural references, including a Mardi Gras float and a mention in the Netflix series Atypical.

The loss of Sphen is heartbreaking to the penguin colony, the team, and everyone who has been inspired or positively impacted by Sphen and Magics story, the aquariums general manager Richard Dilly said.

Sphen was nearly 12, old for gentoo penguins, when he passed away earlier this month, according to aquarium staff. Gentoo penguins are the worlds fastest underwater birds.

Sphen and Magics love story captivated the world and its been an honour to welcome local and international fans, some of whom travelled long distances to see them in real life, Mr Dilly said.

Numerous books recount their love story, and documentaries about same-sex animal couples have also featured Sphen and Magic, the aquarium staff said.

In 2021, when the couple celebrated their third anniversary together, the aquariums penguin keeper, Kiera Ponting, said she was thrilled to see the happy couple still together. She described them as one of the most devoted couples in the colony.

After Sphens passing, the aquarium team brought Magic, aged eight, to see his partners body to help him understand that Sphen would not be coming back.

Sphen (left) and Magic tending to an egg at the aquarium ( AFP )

Magic, who is now facing his first breeding season without Sphen, was allowed to see his partners body and sang in response. He immediately started singing, which was beautifully reciprocated by the colony, a spokesperson for the aquarium said.

The teams focus is now on Magic, who will soon prepare for his first breeding season without Sphen. The aquarium staff earlier noted that in the wild, penguins typically only raise one chick at a time.

Sphen and Magics love story captivated the world. Magic still regularly collects the most perfect pebble that he can find for Sphen, displaying what a great hunter and partner he can be, Ms Ponting said in 2021.

They set a great example to the rest of the colony. Theyre inseparable and proving just how strong penguin bonds can be.

Weve noticed many of the newer penguin couples setting up their nests close to Sphen and Magic, which we think is them trying to learn from the best.

The pair became poster penguins for equality and tolerance ( AFP )

The keepers first started to notice Sphen and Magics fondness for each other when they began bringing each other carefully selected pebbles for a nest. Had either not been interested, they would have rejected the pebbles by pushing them away with their beak. Instead, each admired the pebbles they were given.

Earlier, the aquarium staff had described Magic as excitable and playful, one who chased after toys and anything that shone. He would also greet visitors. Sphen, taller and with a bigger beak, was quieter, more serious, and less interested in toys and humans. But when they began to bow to each other  a way of flirting in gentoo penguin world  the aquarium staff took notice.

You would see Magic standing in his spot looking for Sphen, and he would call and Sphen would come running over and give Magic a little bow and sing as well, Tish Hannan, head of penguin supervision at the aquarium, said at the time. Theyve chosen each other. Thats it. Theyre bonded now.

Through Sphen and Magics fame, the aquarium has also been able to share important messages on conservation, plastic pollution, global warming, and the importance of protecting wild penguins through fundraising initiatives, the aquarium said.

The couple with their first chick Sphengic. Staff say other penguins chose to nest close to the model parents ( AFP )

Sphen apparently passed away from natural causes earlier this month, just before his 12th birthday.

Heartbroken fans of the gay couple left messages for Sphen and Magic on the aquarium board. One said: Rest well, Sphen. My heart is breaking for Magic, Lara, Clancy, and the whole penguin/sea-life team.

Another wrote: Thank you Sphen and Magic for showing the world that love naturally comes in many forms. Our hearts ache for Magic.

And a third added: My heart stopped when I read this news. I have always loved these penguins and the story of their unbreakable bond. Sphen, you will be missed by thousands. Sending all of my love and well wishes to the staff of SEA LIFE  and of course, to Magic.
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Controversial influencer Andrew Tate has been ordered to be put under house arrest in Romania as he faces accusations of human trafficking and sexual exploitation, including involving minors.

A Romanian court has decided the internet personality should be placed under house arrest, his representative said in a social media post on Thursday, after prosecutors requested that he be detained for 30 more days.

The former professional kickboxer and his brother Tristan were among six people taken into custody on Wednesday for an initial 24 hours after dozens of masked police officers carried out fresh raids at the Tate brothers home early in the morning.

Controversial influencer Andrew Tate has been ordered to be put under house arrest in Romania ( AFP via Getty Images )

Romanian organised-crime prosecution service DIICOT asked the Bucharest court to arrest the Tate brothers for 30 days, but the judge decided to place Andrew Tate under house arrest and Tristan under judiciary control for that period, their representative, Mateea Petrescu, said.

"The Tates salute the decision and firmly deny all allegations levelled against them, emphasising that the accusations are baseless and unsupported by substantial evidence," Petrescu wrote in a statement.

Tate was already indicted in mid-2023 along with his brother and two Romanian female suspects for human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women, allegations they denied.

Before their latest detention, the brothers had been subject to a travel ban, under which they were free to travel within Romania but not leave the country.

Gendarmes wearing balaclavas walk outside the residence of Andrew Tate during an early morning police search raid on the outskirts of Bucharest in Romania on Wednesday ( AP )

A self-described misogynist, social media influencer Tate has gained millions of fans by promoting an ultra-masculine lifestyle that critics say denigrates women.

A post on Tate's account on social media platform X said: "All they try to do is damage my name with complete bullshit. It did not specify who was being referred to.

DIICOT conducted three other home searches in Ilfov county and the Bucharest municipality on Wednesday morning.

It said in a statement that it had ordered the detention of six people for crimes, including forming an organised crime group, human trafficking, trafficking of minors, sexual intercourse with a minor and money laundering.

Former professional kickboxer and social media influencer Andrew Tate (right) and his brother Tristan (left) leave the appeal court in June ( EPA )

It said it had requested that three of the detained defendants remain in custody while another one be put under house arrest.

According to DIICOT, two of the accused used the "loverboy" method, which involves convincing victims that they are in a romantic relationship, to force 34 victims into making pornography which they then sold online for proceeds of over $2.8 million and 887,000 tokens.

DIICOT alleges that one of the defendants forced a 17-year-old minor to produce pornography in Britain and Romania creating profits of $1.5 million. It also alleges that the same defendant repeatedly had sexual relations with a 15-year-old victim.
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British technology tycoon Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah were among the people initially unaccounted for after his superyacht Bayesian sank in a storm off the coast of Sicily in the early hours of Monday.

On Saturday morning, Italian authorities announced a manslaughter investigation had been launched into the deaths of seven people, after a five-day operation that has seen divers carefully navigating their way into the cabin bedrooms.

After a decade-long legal battle which had seen him extradited to the US to face an $11bn fraud case, Mr Lynch had celebrated by inviting his close friends, colleagues and those who helped him on his legal team aboard his boat as a gesture of gratitude.

Mike Lynch missing ( PA Archive )

Yet a week of sunshine along the Italian coastline would soon turn to horror after the boat capsized shortly before dawn, only offering those onboard a few minutes to get themselves to safety.

British tech mogul Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah were among the seven people who died after the Bayesian superyacht sank near Porticello at about 5am local time on Monday.

Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judith Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Christopher Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo also died.

The British-flagged vessel named Bayesian was carrying 12 passengers and 10 members of crew when it sank at around 5am local time near the Sicilian capital of Palermo.

The yachts chef, Recaldo Thomas, is already confirmed to have died after his body was recovered from the wreck on Monday, while 15 survivors were rescued.

Here's what we know about the 22 people on board:

Mike Lynch

Hannah and Mike Lynch ( Supplied )

British technology tycoon Mike Lynch had been in the headlines long before the boat incident following being the centre of a high-profile fraud case.

The 59-year-old is known for founding Invoke Capital and Autonomy, and his disappearance comes just weeks after he was cleared of all charges by a US jury related to the sale of his software company Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard (HP) in 2011.

HP claimed, just a year after the sale, that Mr Lynch had used accounting tricks to artificially inflate its value before the sale. He spent 13 months under house arrest before being extradited to the US last May for a trial that acquitted him in June this year on all 15 counts.

Mr Lynch told a Sunday Times journalist last month that he was about to go on a very long holiday.

In June, he spoke of his indescribable relief at being back at home in Suffolk with his wife, daughters and their six dogs. He told reporters: I am looking forward to returning to the UK and getting back to what I love most: my family and innovating in my field.

Angela Bacares

Mike Lynch and Angela Bacares ( Desmond O'Neill )

Wife of Mike Lynch, 57-year-old Angela Bacares managed to escape to safety and is in a wheelchair with abrasions on her feet that prevent her from walking, according to la Repubblica.

The newspaper said she told doctors that at 4am, the boat had tilted and she and her husband were woken up.

Under Angela Bacares name, the couples estimated wealth is 852m, the Sunday Times Rich List revealed in 2023. They have a house in Chelsea, west London, but primarily live on their farm in Suffolk with their six dogs and rare breeds of pigs and cows.

Hannah Lynch

Hannah Lynch ( Supplied )

Mr Lynch was travelling with his daughter Hannah, whose body was lifted ashore on Friday afternoon.

The 18-year-old had just completed her A-levels and secured a place to read English at Oxford University. Hannahs former English teacher Jon Mitropoulos-Monk said she was one of the best English students in the country having scored 100% in her English Literature GCSE.

Patrick Jacob, a family friend, paid tribute to her on Friday, saying: Hannah was charming and ferociously intelligent with an insatiable thirst for life and knowledge. She was also warm, loving and deeply considerate; remarkably for her age. I am 50 years older than her and in my life I have never met anybody like Hannah. We have lost one of our brightest stars whose future held so much promise. Her loss is unbearable.

Chris Morvillo

Neda Morvillo and Chris Morvillo ( Patrick McMullan via Getty Image )

Chris Morvillo is a lawyer who represented Mr Lynch in his US trial. He is a partner at the Clifford Chance law firm who confirmed on Tuesday he was among the six missing.

In his most recent LinkedIn post, he thanked the legal team that helped win Mr Lynchs trial. At the end of the post, he thanked his family for their support: And, finally, a huge thank you to my patient and incredible wife, Neda Morvillo, and my two strong, brilliant, and beautiful daughters, Sabrina Morvillo and Sophia Morvillo.

None of this would have been possible without your love and support. I am so glad to be home. And they all lived happily ever after.

Neda Morvillo

Chris Morvillos 57-year-old wife Neda was with him on the holiday. She has a luxury jewellery brand, which she runs under her maiden name Neda Nassiri.

Her husbands firm Clifford Chance said in a statement: Our thoughts are with our partner, Christopher Morvillo, and his wife Neda who are among the missing.

Jonathan Bloomer

Jonathan Bloomer ( PA Media )

Another of those confirmed to be dead is lawyer Jonathan Bloomer who is the chairman of investment bank Morgan Stanley International.

He is also chairman of the insurance provider Hiscox, which confirmed he is missing. Its group chief executive Aki Hussain said they were deeply shocked and saddened by the news.

Mr Bloomer was a defence witness for Mr Lynch during his US criminal trial and the pair are believed to be good friends, according to the Financial Times.

Judy Bloomer

Jonathan and Judy Bloomer ( Family Handout/PA )

Jonathan Bloomers wife Judy was also on board the yacht and has been confirmed dead.

Mr Hussain said in his statement: Our thoughts are with all those affected, in particular our chair, Jonathan Bloomer, and his wife Judy, who are among the missing.

Mrs Bloomer is on the board of The Eve Appeal charity, which focuses on gynaecological cancers. The charity described her as a brilliant champion for womens health and medical research... an incredible supporter, committee member, and trustee of our charity for over 20 years.

Recaldo Thomas

Recaldo Thomas ( Facebook )

Recaldo Thomas was the superyachts chef and the first person whose death was confirmed.

The Canadian-Antiguan national was found by the Italian coastguard near the sunken boat. A friend of Mr Thomas, who asked to remain anonymous, said the yachting community has been saddened by his death.

She told The Independent: He was a one-of-a-kind special human being. Incredibly talented, contagious smile and laugh, an incredible voice with a deep love of the ocean and the moon. I spoke to him nearly every day. He loved his life his friends and his job.

Ayla Ronald

Ayla Ronald ( Clifford Chance )

Ayla Ronald and her partner are two of the 15 who survived the yacht disaster, law firm Clifford Chance confirmed.

The 36-year-old worked defended Mr Lynch in court and was on the trip as part of the celebration for his acquittal.

Clifford Chance said in a statement: Our utmost priority is providing support to the family as well as our colleague Ayla Ronald, who together with her partner, thankfully survived the incident.

She is originally from Christchurch, New Zealand, but lives in London, her father Lin Ronald told The Telegraph, saying she was very shaken.

Mr Ronald said that she was invited to go sailing as a result of the success in the recent United States court case.

Matthew

Aylas partner Matthew also survived the boat disaster. There is little more known about his background or condition.

Charlotte Golunski

Charlotte Golunskys face covered by an officer from the British embassy as she leaves hospital in Italy ( REUTERS )

Charlotte Golunskis testimony of the ordeal on the ship were some of the first to be published after she was rescued along with her one-year-old daughter, Sofia.

She spoke to Italian newspaper La Repubblica, confirming she survived the yacht sinking and told how she kept her daughter alive after she was rescued. She said: I held her afloat with all my strength, my arms stretched upwards to keep her from drowning. It was all dark. In the water I couldnt keep my eyes open. I screamed for help but all I could hear around me was the screams of others.

The 35-year-old is a partner at Invoke Capital, one of Mr Lynchs law firms, and has worked there since 2012, according to her LinkedIn profile.

James Emsley

Ms Golunksis partner James Emsley was also rescued from the yacht, according to Sicilys civil protection agency. There is little information on him, but it has been confirmed the 36-year-old is the father of her one-year-old daughter.

Sofia

One-year-old Sofia was rescued from the water by her mother and subsequently looked after in hospital.

Ms Golunski told the Italian newspaper La Repubblica that her family survived only because they were on deck when the yacht sank after encountering a heavy storm.

Dr Domenico Cipolla told local media that the family have had a physical and psychological upheaval of their lives.

He said the hospital provided toys for the baby, cuddles, and fed them because they were frightened and hungry.

The family of three left the Di Cristina Childrens Hospital in a black van on Tuesday via a back entrance today. They were accompanied by an officer from the British embassy, who covered the familys faces with a jacket to hide them from a huddle of photographers.

James Catfield

The captain of the superyacht James Catfield survived the horror and broke his silence on Tuesday with just five words.

He said: We didnt see it coming and was described as limp as he waited outside an emergency room in the Sicilian town of Termini Imerese, according to local media.

Leo Eppel

The Italian coastguard confirmed on Tuesday evening that Leo Eppel, a crew member, also survived the yacht sinking.
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The identities of five bodies found inside the wreck of the luxury superyacht Bayesian have now been confirmed, and include British technology tycoon Mike Lynch.

Also confirmed dead is Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judith Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Christopher Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo, all of whom were aboard when the boat sank in a severe storm off the coast of Sicily.

Mr Lynchs 18-year-old daughter Hannah remains missing, with search efforts resuming on Thursday morning and Salvatore Concina, the head of Sicilys civil protection agency, saying it remained their priority to find her.

The 50-metre vessel sank as a fierce storm battered the area overnight, and was flying a British flag, according to ship-tracking site Marine Traffic.

For the latest updates on this story, follow The Independents live blog

What do we know about the missing people on the yacht?

Mike Lynch was among the six tourists who were initially missing after disaster struck. The British technology tycoon founded software giant Autonomy in 1996 and was made an OBE for services to enterprise in 2006. In June, he was cleared of conducting a massive fraud relating to a $11 billion (8.64bn) sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

One man, the yachts chef Recaldo Thomas, was the first person confirmed dead, after his body was discovered on Monday in the hours after the sinking.

Loved ones have paid tributes to Mr Thomas, a Canadian-born man who had been living in Antigua, on social media. One said: Rest in Power big man. I dont know what else to say except I love you, and I always will. Another wrote: Going to miss you so much Recaldo Thomas still finding this so hard to believe.

Have you been affected by this story? Email rachel.hagan@independent.co.uk

It is understood that Mr Lynch had planned the superyacht cruise as a celebration with family, employees and lawyers who supported him during the decade-long trial.

Among the 15 survivors rescued from a lifeboat was Mr Lynchs wife Angela Bacares. Another survivor, Charlotte Golunski, 35, told Italian journalists how she saved her one-year-old daughter Sofia from drowning.

The Bayesian sailing boat ( EPA )

She told La Repubblica she lost Sofia for two seconds, adding: I held her afloat with all my strength, my arms stretched upwards to keep her from drowning. It was all dark. In the water I couldnt keep my eyes open. I screamed for help but all I could hear around me was the screams of others.

According to her LinkedIn profile, Ms Golunski is a partner at Mr Lynchs firm, called Invoke Capital.

Charlotte, Sofia and Charlottes husband, James have now been discharged from hospital.

Ayla Reynold, from New Zealand, working at Clifford Chance, also survived the horror with her partner. Her father Lin Ronald confirmed to The Telegraph she had been invited aboard as thanks for assistance in Mr Lynchs recent court case. He said that his daughter had not given many details about what happened, but said: There are deaths and she and her partner are alive.

Two more survivors have also been named as Leah Randall and Katja Chicken. They are both reportedly South African and worked as crew members on the Bayesian.

Where did the yacht sink?

The luxury yacht sunk off the coast of the Sicilian capital of Palermo in Italy.

The 56-metre-long sailboat sank with 22 people on board shortly before sunrise, the Italian coast guard said in a statement.

Map showing where superyacht sank off Sicily ( PA Graphics )

The wind was very strong. Bad weather was expected, but not of this magnitude, a coast guard official in Palermo told Reuters.

Storms and heavy rainfall have swept down Italy in recent days  with floods and landslides causing major damage in the north of the country  after weeks of scorching heat.

The boat left the Sicilian port of Milazzo on 14 August and was last tracked east of Palermo on Sunday evening, with a navigation status of "at anchor", according to vessel tracking app Vesselfinder.

The Bayesian superyacht

The luxury boat, which had been cruising along the Italian coastline, was owned by Revtom, a company registered to Mr Lynchs wife Angela Bacares, which is based on the Isle of Man.

The Bayesian is 56 metres long, according to VesselFinder.

The superyacht can accommodate up to 12 guests in six suites and is listed for rent for up to 195,000 euros (166,000) a week.

Bayesian completed several sailings in recent days, calling at various ports in Sicily.

Formerly known as Salute, or health in Italian, its 75-metre mast is the tallest aluminium mast in the world, Italian shipbuilder Perini said on its website.

The route of the Bayeasian yacht took in its final hours before the storm ( vessel finder )

Perini constructed the boat in 2008 and it was last refitted in 2020 and was managed by yachting company Camper & Nicholsons.

Camper and Nicholsons International, confirmed to The Independent that the Bayesian sailing yacht encountered severe weather and subsequently sank.

What do we know about the search

Body bags were seen being taken to the port of Porticello on Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning.

Mr Concina said there will be an investigation in due course, but the priority is finding the missing teenager.

As the body bags were taken back to the port, dozens of emergency services staff were waiting, and one bag was seen being put in the back of an ambulance.

Inspections of the yacht's internal hull took place on Wednesday morning after divers succeeded in smashing through a glass window to enter it amid a reportedly difficult search operation.

Five bodies were found in the wreck of the sunken Bayesian yacht on Wednesday ( PA Wire )

A helicopter was drafted in to help the search effort as divers from the local fire service entered the water with torches attached to their headgear. A police boat and divers also entered the water on Wednesday afternoon.

Fire crews said they had been accessing the vessel through natural entrances, without making openings. Remotely controlled underwater vehicles have been used, with naval units and cave divers also taking part in the search, the coastguard said.

A team of four British inspectors from the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) also arrived in Porticello to look at the site of the sinking. The MAIB is looking into what happened because the Bayesian was flying a British flag, it is understood. The Italian Coastguard said the MAIB is not involved in the search for the missing people, and that it has not been requested to assist.
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Friends have paid tribute to the brilliant, caring and beautiful daughter of tech tycoon Mike Lynch after her body was recovered from the Italian yacht disaster.

Hannah Lynch was one of 22 people onboard her fathers luxury boat the Bayesian when it capsized during stormy weather on Monday. Italian rescue teams retrieved her body, the last of six to be found, on Friday after five days of searching.

Grieving classmates said the 18 year-old, who was set to attend Oxford in a matter of weeks before tragedy struck, was a lover of literature and life.

Hannah and Mike Lynch pictured together ( Supplied )

The love Hannah had for everything she held dear was passionate and pure, Katya Lewis said. She had a warm and beautiful soul. Being with Hannah made me feel whole and happy. She is the most special friend anyone could ask for and I will always love Hannah.

Hannah had been due to study English at the University of Oxford having recently finished her A-levels, and has been described as a gifted pupil by her former teacher.

Hannah was warm, loving and considerate a classmate said ( Supplied )

Jon Mitropoulos-Monk, Head of English at Latymer Upper School said: Ive never taught someone who combined sky-high intellectual ability with warmth and enthusiasm in the way Hannah did.

She lit up the classroom with her energy, passion for learning and sheer intelligence (though never with a hint of arrogance). One of the best English students in the country, she scored 100% in her English Literature GCSE.

The bodies of her father Mr Lynch, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo, have all been recovered from the wreckage and identified.

Mr Lynch has been celebrating the end of a 13 year legal battle on the trip ( PA Wire )

The yachts chef, Recaldo Thomas, was found and identified on Monday, just a few hours after the vessel capsized. The Italian coastguard have now confirmed that the search has resumed to find the teenager, who remains unaccounted for.

Hannahs mother, Angela Bacares, was among the 15 survivors who were rescued from a lifeboat after the boat dramatically sank in minutes at around 5am on Monday morning.

Prior to the tragedy, Mr Lynch had been hosting colleagues and collaborators in celebration after winning an $11bn fraud case in the US.

Those also killed include Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer; his wife, Judy Bloomer; Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo; and his wife, Neda Morvillo.

Hannah had studied at Upper Latymer School but had been due to attend Oxford in September ( Google Maps )

The prestigious Latymer Upper School in Hammersmith, where she had been a pupil, has said they are all incredibly shocked after a yacht sank with her onboard.

A spokesperson said: We are all incredibly shocked by the news that Hannah and her father are among those missing in this tragic incident and our thoughts are with their family and everyone involved as we await further updates.

Since her fathers death has been confirmed, tributes have flooded in from across the science and technology sector, with David Tabizel, Mr Lynchs Autonomy co-founder, saying: The world has lost a genius. His family have lost a giant of a man.

The search has ended after five days ( AFP via Getty Images )

Mr Lynch was a member of the Create The Change fundraising board, set up by Cancer Research UK, which helped fund the building of the Francis Crick Institute.

Chairman Lord John Browne, who described him as a human being of great ability, said: MikeLynch should be remembered as the person who catalysed a breed of deep tech entrepreneurs in the UK.

His ideas and his personal vision were a powerful contribution to science and technology in both Britain and globally.
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Hungary's government has said it is prepared to provide free one-way tickets to Brussels for migrants and asylum seekers attempting to enter the European Union.

The comments come in response to hefty fines recently imposed on the country over its restrictive asylum policies.

Speaking at a news conference in Budapest, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's chief of staff, Gergely Gulyas, criticized a June ruling by the European Court of Justice that ordered Hungary to pay a fine of 200 million euros ($216 million) for persistently breaking the blocs asylum rules, and an additional 1 million euros per day until it brings its policies into line with EU law.

Brussels wants to force us at any cost to let migrants in, Gulyas said, referring to the EU's headquarters in Belgium.

He said that if the EU continues to force regulations on Hungary that does not make it possible to detain migrants at the border, his country will offer every migrant transport to Brussels free of charge.

Migrants arrive at the Hungarian border fence between Serbia and Hungary ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. )

Hungarys anti-immigrant government has taken a hard line on people entering the country since well over 1 million people entered Europe in 2015, most of them fleeing conflict in Syria. The country built fences protected by razor wire on its southern borders with Serbia and Croatia and a pair of transit zones for holding asylum seekers on its border with Serbia. Those transit zones have since closed.

But the EU has taken issue with Hungary's unusually rigid asylum system, and asked the bloc's top court to fine Budapest for forcing people seeking international protection to travel to its embassies in Serbia or Ukraine to apply for a travel permit, a violation of EU rules that oblige all member countries to have common procedures for granting asylum.

Orban, a right-wing populist who is consistently at odds with the EU, has earlier vowed that Hungary would not change its migration and asylum policies regardless of any rulings from the European Court of Justice.

Syrian refugees cross into Hungary underneath the border fence on the Hungarian - Serbian border ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. )

On Thursday, Gulyas blasted the fines Hungary has incurred over its asylum system, saying: Hungary doesnt want to pay this daily fine indefinitely, so we will make it possible for people to enter if they want, and will offer them a one-way ticket to Brussels.

If Brussels wants migrants, then it can have them," he continued.

Hungary's threat to transport migrants to Brussels mirrors similar moves from Republican governors in the United States, who since 2022 have bussed or flown undocumented immigrants to Democratic strongholds like New York, Los Angeles and Chicago in protest of federal asylum procedures.
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Watch as Italian rescuers search for the final missing person following the sinking of the Bayesian superyacht off the coast of Sicily.

The boat sank in a severe storm in the early hours of Monday, with those missing including British billionaire Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah, Morgan Stanley International chairman Jonathan Bloomer; his wife, Judy Bloomer; Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo; and his wife, Neda Morvillo.

Five bodies have now been found inside the vessel.

Identities of the recovered bodies have not been confirmed by authorities, despite local and international media reporting some had been identified.

One man, the boats chef Recaldo Thomas, was confirmed dead on Monday, while a further 15 people survived the disaster.

Bodies of four people were recovered on Wednesday, while efforts to bring a fifth to shore were ongoing", the head of Sicilys civil protection agency Salvatore Cocina said.

The whereabouts of the missing sixth person remain unknown, he added.
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The dark history behind the Choco Leibniz biscuit empire has been revealed after a report shed new light on its links to forced labour during the Nazi era.

The Bahlsen family has acknowledged the painful past of their company, which has produced the iconic biscuits since 1891, following intense scrutiny in recent years.

The family commissioned two historians to conduct a review of their relatives conduct in Nazi Germany after heiress Verena Bahlsan, 31, sparked furore in 2019 by suggesting forced labourers were treated well.

The findings, published this week, have concluded the family had openly supported the Nazi party and furthermore benefited from forced labour policies under its rule.

The family have acknowledged the firms history on their websites, admitting that the company did take advantage of the economic opportunities offered by National Socialism.

CEO of Bahlsen, Werner M Bahlsen ( DPA/AFP via Getty Images )

It went on to confirm that the Bahlsen brothers were Nazi party members and at times supported the SS financially.

They also confirmed their company employed more than 800 forced labourers from various European countries, mostly women from Poland and Ukraine.

The forced labourers also included war prisoners from France, Italy and other countries. The family said these people were forcibly recruited, made to work many more hours, provided less food, paid significantly lower wages and had limited opportunities to go outside.

In a statement published to the Lorenz Snacks website, another food company founded by the family in 1999, the family the findings of the review had shaken us to the core.

The family have acknowledged the firms history on their websites, admitting that the company did take advantage of the economic opportunities offered by National Socialism. ( DPA/AFP via Getty Images )

What happened under the responsibility of the brothers Hans, Werner and Klaus Bahlsen were terrible injustices and cannot be excused by anything, it read.

What the Bahlsen brothers did during the Second World War contradicts everything we stand for, our principles and our deepest personal convictions.

It added: We stand together for a united Europe, for democracy, freedom and respect for human rights - wherever we operate. Hans, Werner and Klaus Bahlsen did not. They arranged themselves with the criminal Nazi regime and they profited from the war economy during the Second World War. And they were never held accountable for any of this.

An independent team of historians researched the companys past from 2019 to 2024 and has now published their 6000-page review in a book.

Vera Bahlsen, 25, says comments about family firms use of forced labour were thoughtless amid calls for boycott of brand

The research was commissioned after Verena Bahlsan, whose father owns the Bahlsen company, was accused of being oblivious to history and downplaying the suffering of hundreds of its workers.

Ms Bahlsan apologised for her comments which she made when asked about the companys past exploitation of forced labourers by German newspaper Bild.

That was before my time, and we paid the forced labourers exactly as much as German workers and we treated them well, she said.

The biscuit heiress was also criticised for boasting about her wealth and spending habits. At a marketing conference around the same time, she told delegates: Im a capitalist. I own a quarter of Bahlsen, thats great. I want to buy a sailing yacht and stuff like that.

Following the publication of the article, Lars Klingbeil, secretary general of the centre-left Social Democrats, told Bild: If you inherit such a large estate, you also inherit responsibility and should not come across as aloof.

She later left the company to pursue her own projects in 2022.
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The European Union sent two water bombing planes from Spain to the Portuguese island of Madeira on Thursday to help efforts to put out a wildfire that has been raging for eight days.

The blaze, which started on 14 August, has burned nearly 12,355 acres of vegetation, mostly in mountainous areas with steep slopes and difficult access.

Portugal requested assistance via the EU civil protection mechanism RescEU. EU authorities provided the two Canadair planes and said the bloc stood ready to deploy additional resources if necessary.

Regional government chief Miguel Albuquerque said the planes would join the firefighting effort on Thursday afternoon.

These planes, which dump 6,000 litres of water, will be only used to tame the fire in the central mountain range. They cannot be utilised in urban or agricultural areas, he told the state broadcaster RTP.

Firefighters have been battling for days to extinguish the fire, feeding on dry woodland ( EPA )

Firefighters, backed by a dozen vehicles and a helicopter were tackling the blaze in the central mountain range and in Ponta do Sol, on the southern coast. Both fronts are on high ground and away from residential areas.

The Atlantic island of Madeira  an autonomous region of Portugal with around 250,000 residents, and which is a popular tourist destination  has been on alert for high temperatures and risk of wildfires for days.

Rising global temperatures due to climate change have led to more frequent wildfires, from southern and eastern Europe to North America and parts of Asia.

A burned roadside shrine in the Nea Penteli suburb of Athens ( AP )

Meanwhile, in Greece, the government said on Tuesday it would offer emergency compensation totalling millions of euros to hundreds of households and businesses affected by a blaze that killed one woman and burned 10,000 hectares near Athens.

The blaze began on 11 August near the town of Varnavas, 22 miles from the capital, and within a day reached the citys northern suburbs on the slopes of Mount Penteli, one of the closest forests to the capital.

Inspections so far have identified some 146 houses severely damaged, with 31 businesses also affected.

Authorities will offer up to 150,000 to households, 80 per cent in government aid and 20 percent in interest-free loans, and up to 500,000 to destroyed businesses, the finance ministry said in a statement.

It was not immediately clear how much the state had budgeted for compensation, but a government official told Reuters that the amount would exceed 30m, including 5.2m of extra subsidies to affected municipalities.
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British technology tycoon Mike Lynch has been confirmed dead after his superyacht sank off the coast of Italy, while search efforts continue for his 18-year-old daughter Hannah.

Five bodies have now been recovered from the wreckage of the Bayesian, which capsized during the early hours of Monday morning in stormy weather and a freak tornado.

An Italian government official confirmed that the sixth and final missing passenger is Lynchs daughter Hannah, and that she is believed to be on the boat.

The former Latymer Upper School pupil had joined her parents on the vessel, ahead of starting an English degree at the University of Oxford in September.

Morgan Stanley international bank chair Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo, and his wife Neda Morvillo, have also been identified as among the deceased after a three-day search operation.

Specialist divers returned to the wreckage site on Thursday ( AP )

A statement from the Bloomer family expressed gratitude to the emergency services, and added: Our parents were incredible people and an inspiration to many, but first and foremost they were focused on and loved their family and spending time with their new grandchildren.

Together for five decades, our only comfort is that they are still together now.

This is an unimaginable grief to shoulder. Our only ask is that our familys privacy is respected at this time.

The body of Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, who was working as a chef on the superyacht Bayesian, was recovered at the scene of the sinking on Monday.

Itaiian rescue workers bringing a body bag to shore on Thursday morning ( AP )

It is understood that Lynch, who was the creator of software giant Autonomy, had organised the boat trip for his family, close friends, colleagues and his legal team after winning an $11bn fraud case in June.

Tributes have begun flooding in for the 59-year-old entrepreneur, with Lynchs Autonomy co-founder David Tabizel saying: It looks like weve lost our dear Dr Mike Lynch. RIP. The world has lost a genius. His family have lost a giant of a man.

As well as Autonomy, Lynch was on the board of several prominent institutions including the BBC and the British Library, and was a fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.

Tim Davie, BBC director-general, said: We are deeply saddened by the awful news about the deaths of those aboard the Bayesian yacht.

Mike Lynch was an outstanding BBC director who made a major contribution during his time on the board, from 2007 to 2012.

Lynch was on the board of several prominent institutions including the BBC and the British Library ( PA )

Wise, generous and insightful, he played a particularly key role in accelerating our transformation as a digital organisation.

His wife, Angela Bacares, was among the 15 guests and crew to be rescued from the sea after they escaped on a lifeboat.

Specialist divers, fire service crew and the Italian coastguard were seen on Thursday returning to the site of the wreckage, which is resting on the seabed around half a mile off the coast of Porticello.

Salvo Cocina, of Sicilys civil protection agency, said that an investigation would take place in due course but that the priority remained focused on finding Hannah Lynch.

However, the operation has been described as complex, with debris and furniture cluttering the narrow passageways leading to the cabin bedrooms, where the drowned guests have been discovered.

Rescue workers off the coast of Porticello harbour ( AFP via Getty )

Divers are also only able to search the vessel in 10-minute windows due to the distance and the risk of developing nausea, known as the bends.

The tragedy comes as industry sources told The DailyTelegraph that Lynch put the 30m sailboat up for sale in March earlier this year, before changing his mind after he was acquitted of fraud and withdrawing it from the market four months later. He was reportedly set to review the decision in the autumn after enjoying the summer on board.

A decision on whether to immediately raise the sunken yacht from the seabed is not on the agenda, but will be considered in due course, a spokesperson from the Italian coastguard has said.

The disaster has baffled naval marine experts who said such a vessel, built by Italian high-end yacht manufacturer Perini and presumed to have top-class safety features, should not have sunk.

Giovanni Costantino, CEO of The Italian Sea Group, which includes Perini, said the Bayesian was one of the safest boats in the world and practically unsinkable.

Lynch reportedly had tried to sell the Bayesian earlier this year ( costanostrayachtsupply.com/PA )

Authorities have been gathering witness statements from the survivors at a hotel complex in Porticello, while the captain James Cutfield was reportedly questioned for two hours.

An Italian doctor at the hospital where British tourist Charlotte Emsley and her one-year-old daughter were taken said the mother held her baby above the waves after the yacht sank.

Dr Domenico Cipolla, of Di Cristina Childrens Hospital in Palermo, told PA: Obviously the mother and the husband were so shaken by what has happened, it was a tragedy for them.

She told me that two minutes after falling asleep with her baby they were in the water, she did not understand how this happened, it went dark.

She held the child high in her arms above the waves, for a few seconds the baby was in the water, but she saved her. She sometimes cried for her friends in the hospital.
 Close Final moments of seven who died in Bayesian tragedy revealed by fire service boss

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The captain of the Bayesian has insisted that he did everything possible to save those on board the superyacht, according to local reports.

Sources close to James Cutfield, 51, told the Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera that the 51-year-old New Zealander is currently living through the darkest days of his life as he is under investigation for possible manslaughter and culpable shipwreck charges.

They reportedly said Mr Cutfield repeatedly insists that he did not abandon any of the 22 passengers and crew and that he did everything could could to save them.

However, there reached a point when he could do little as the vessel had taken on too much water, they added.

Since Wednesday, Tim Parker Eaton, the engineer who was in charge of securing the yachts engine room, and sailor Matthew Griffith, who was on watch duty on the night of the disaster, are also under investigation for the same possible charges, their lawyer said on Friday.

British technology tycoon Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah were among the seven people who were killed after his superyacht capsized and went down on 19 August within minutes of being hit by a pre-dawn storm off the coast of Sicily.
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Boats like Mike Lynchs superyacht are unsinkable, according to the chief executive of the company that builds and sells the vessels.

Giovanni Costantino, the chief executive of the Italian Sea Group, said there are no flaws with the design and construction of the Bayesian and it is one of the safest boats in the world.

The Bayesian, a 184-ft superyacht carrying 22 passengers and crew, was anchored off the port of Porticello, near Palermo, when it disappeared beneath the waves in a matter of minutes after a freak tornado struck.

The Italian Sea Group owns Italian high-end yacht manufacturer Perini that built the vessel owned by British tech magnate Mike Lynch, who was confirmed dead on Thursday after his body had been recovered from the wreck of the boat.

Mr Lynchs 18-year-old daughter Hannah is still unaccounted for. The bodies of the other four people who vanished when the boat went down were recovered from the yacht on Wednesday.

Giovanni Costantino, the CEO of the Italian Sea Group ( Sky News )

The ship sank because it took on water, from where investigators will have to say, Mr Costantino told television news programme TG1 late on Wednesday.

Citing data from the yachts automatic tracking system and based on available footage, Mr Costantino said it took 16 minutes from when the wind began buffeting the yacht, and it began taking on water, for it to sink.

Mr Costantino said the Milan-listed group had suffered enormous damage to its reputation, with shares falling 2.5 per cent since the disaster.

Scuba divers of the Italian Firefighters corp at the scene of the search for a missing boat, in Porticello, southern Italy ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved )

The disaster has baffled naval marine experts who said such a high end vessel should have top-class fittings and safety features and should have been able to withstand such weather.

Besides Mr Lynch and his daughter, the other people who failed to escape from the boat were Judy and Jonathan Bloomer, a non-executive chair of Morgan Stanley International; and Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife, Neda Morvillo.

Technology tycoon Mike Lynch has died in the yacht disaster (Yui Mok/PA) ( PA Wire )

Fifteen people, including Mr Lynchs wife, managed to get to safety, while the body of the onboard chef, Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, was found near the wreck hours after the disaster.

Specialist rescuers have been searching inside the hull of the sunken yacht for the past three days, but operations have been challenging due to the depth and the narrowness of the places that the divers are scouring, the fire brigade said.

Additional reporting by agencies
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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a historic visit Friday to Ukraine, a month and a half after he traveled to Moscow to hold talks with President Vladimir Putin.

Officials in India and Ukraine have said the visit will focus on boosting economic ties and cooperation in defense, science and technology.

But analysts say the visit could also be an attempt to have India strike a more neutral stance after what has been seen as a lean toward Russia, given Modis recent Moscow visit, his country's historic, Cold War-era relationship with Russia and New Delhi's avoidance of directly criticizing Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.

Why is Modi visiting Ukraine?

Modi's landmark visit is the first to Ukraine from a prime minister of India since the country established diplomatic relations with Ukraine over 30 years ago. He will arrive in Kyiv after a two-day visit to Poland.

Analysts say the timing of the trip is aimed at controlling fallout from the Indian leader's July 8-9 trip to Russia.

That trip coincided with a NATO leaders gathering in Washington and Russian missile strikes on a hospital in Ukraine that killed scores of people, drawing strong criticism from Zelenskyy. The Ukrainian leader called Modi's meeting a huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts after the Indian leader was seen hugging Putin.

While Modi did not address the missile strikes directly, he alluded to the bloodshed while sitting next to Putin, and condemned any attack that harms innocent people.

This week's Ukraine trip represents India trying to balance the situation after being seen as tilting towards Russia, said K C Singh, a strategic affairs expert and former diplomat.

Indian officials are downplaying any connections with the Moscow trip. This is not a zero-sum game ... these are independent, broad ties, Foreign Secretary (West) Tanmaya Lal said this week.

Despite pressure from the West, New Delhi has refrained from condemning Russias invasion or voting against it in U.N. resolutions. It has avoided taking sides and urged Ukraine and Russia to resolve the conflict through dialogue.

Modis visit is designed to some extent to show that New Delhis strategic orientation remains non-alignment, and as such, to keep balance in its foreign policy, said Derek Grossman, an Indo-Pacific analyst at the RAND Corporation.

What are Indias ties to Russia?

India and Russia have had strong ties 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.

India has joined China in becoming a key buyer of Russian oil following sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies that shut most Western markets off to Russian exports.

Modis visit to Moscow was seen by analysts as reinforcing their partnership, especially since Russia remains a crucial trade and defense partner. Some 60% of Indias military systems and hardware is of Russian origin, and New Delhi now gets more than 40% of its oil imports from Russia.

Trade between the two has also seen a sharp increase, touching close to $65 billion in the 2023-24 financial year, according to Indias foreign ministry.

What about India's ties to Ukraine?

Bilateral trade between India and Ukraine is much lower, at about at $3 billion before the invasion, but Modi and Zelenskyy have interacted since at the sidelines of global events and the Ukrainian foreign minister also visited New Delhi earlier this year.

India has also provided several consignments of humanitarian assistance to Ukraine since the invasion.

Analysts say Zelenskyy is unlikely to raise Modis meeting with Putin - at least publicly.

But Modis Moscow visit and the India-Russia relationship will be a strong undertone to his Ukraine trip, even if it not explicitly mentioned in public statements, added Chietigj Bajpaee, who researches South Asia at the Chatham House think tank.

How will this trip be perceived?

The trip is likely to be well-received in the U.S. and other Western countries that had been critical of Modi's meeting with Putin in July, Grossman said.

For Modi, this trip is an opportunity to engage Zelenskyy and secure Indian interests there, push back against Russian overreach and placate the West, Grossman added.

But while the trip will offer some reassurance to the West, it will remain clear that India maintains a closer relationship with Moscow and Modis visit will not change this perception, Bajpaee said.

Modi is unlikely to use this visit to seek a role for India as a peacemaker in the conflict, which some had speculated it would do at the onset of the war given New Delhis ties to Russia and emerging stature globally.

Indian behavior has been to try to stay out of resolving it, and to only occasionally comment against further aggression, said Grossman, adding that India  unlike China or Turkey  hasnt come forward with a peace plan, for example.

Meanwhile, the Kremlin will be observing Modis visit, but short of any statements that are highly critical of Russia, it is unlikely to be concerned, Bajpaee said.
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Ukraine has targeted an airfield deep inside Russia in a drone attack aiming to destroy Russian glide bombs that have been used to target Ukrainian border regions.

Footage showed thick black smoke billowing above the Marinovka airfield in Volgograd, where the one-tonne bombs  used to flatten Ukrainian buildings  were believed to have been hit at 3.30am.

Up to 28 drones were launched across Russia by Ukraine in the attack, according to the Russian defence ministry, with Moscow claiming the airfield fire was caused by falling debris.

Follow live updates here

Most of the drones were destroyed. As a result of the UAV crash, a fire broke out on the territory of a defence ministry facility, Andrey Bocharov, the regions governor, said.

However, a Ukrainian security source said a storage site for fuel and glide bombs was hit in the early morning attack.

Footage showed thick black smoke billowing above the Marinovka airfield in Volgograd after the early morning strike ( Reuters )

The source added that the attack was part of a campaign of Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian airfields that are used by warplanes to conduct regular attacks on targets in Ukraine.

In recent months, Kyiv has flagged Russias use of the cheaply-produced glide bombs dropped by Putins warplanes as a particular menace to Ukrainian settlements in the east.

It comes as Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelesnky visited Ukraines border Sumy region, close to where his military launched a shock attack across the border into Russias Kursk.

Mr Zelensky said he had met his top commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi, during the visit, nearly two weeks after the cross-border offensive which is estimated to have taken around 300 square miles of territory.

However, Russia said its troops had beaten back an attempt by a Ukrainian force to infiltrate its border in a different region to Kyivs initial incursion.

Ukraine said it was targeting Russias one-tonne glide bombs  often used to flatten Ukrainian towns and cities ( AP )

The raid took place about 240km (150 miles) from the site of the Ukrainian incursion into the Kursk region in western Russia.

Authorities in Kursk said they had begun installing concrete shelters to help protect civilians amid the Ukrainian incursion.

Ukrainian troops piled through the Russian border into Kursk on 6 August in a surprise assault after its troops had failed to make any significant gains on their own territory since late 2022.

Kyiv has announced a string of battlefield successes since mounting the action, but Moscow has been inching forward in eastern Ukraine for months, pressuring troops worn down by hard years of fighting following Russias invasion in February 2022.

The Russian defence ministry said on Thursday its forces had captured the village of Mezhove in Ukraines eastern Donetsk region.

A view of a Ukrainian military operation in Kursk, released by the 95th Air Assault Brigade ( Reuters )

Meanwhile, Russian president Vladimir Putin has also accused Ukraine of trying to strike Russias Kursk nuclear power plant in an overnight attack and said Moscow had informed the UN nuclear safety watchdog about the situation.

Acting Kursk governor Alexei Smirnov told Putin that the situation at the Kursk plant, which has four Soviet graphite-moderated RBMK-1000 reactors, was stable.

The enemy tried to strike at the nuclear power plant during the night today, Putin told a meeting of senior officials about the situation in Russian border regions.

The International Atomic Energy Agency has been informed, they promise to come themselves and send specialists to assess the situation, Putin said.

He did not provide further details about the incident or provide documentary evidence to back up his assertion. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine.

Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), on 9 August appealed for maximum restraint to avoid a nuclear accident at the Kursk plant.

Two of the RBMK-1000 reactors are in shutdown and two are fully operational. Construction of Kursk-2, essentially new reactors of the VVER-TOI type, was begun in 2018.
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Russia has opened a criminal case against a British jounalist and says it will seek his arrest over reporting on Ukraines assault on Kursk.

Nick Paton Walsh, CNNs chief international security correspondent, was said to have crossed the Russian border to film Kyivs incursion into Kursk earlier this month.

CNN, which on 16 August broadcast a report from Sudzha, a Russian border town currently under Kyivs control, did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Russias Federal Security Service (FSB) said it would issue an international arrest warrant related to Mr Walshs case, as well as two other journalists believed to have travelled alongside him.

The maximum punishment for anyone found guilty of illegally crossing the border is five years in jail, the FSB warned.

A view of a Ukrainian military operation in Malaya Loknya, Kursk Region, Russia in this screen grab obtained from a handout video released by the 95th Air Assault Brigade ( via REUTERS )

On 6 August, Ukraine launched a surprise cross-border incursion into Kursk from the Ukrainian Sumy region and rapidly advanced into Russian territory.

Kyivs forces have claimed to have taken more land in a fortnight than Russia has in Ukraine during this entire calendar year.

Ukraines army chief Colonel General Oleksandr Syrksyi claims his forces have captured almost 445 square miles (1,150 sq kilometres) of land in Kursk.

US journalist Evan Gershkovich was released from a Russian prison as part of a major prisoner swap with the US earlier this month ( EPA )

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a US-based think tank that tracks developments on the frontline, offers a more conservative estimate of around 300 square miles (800 sq km).

In Mr Walshs report, he spoke about the smell of death and seeing bodies decomposing in the street as well as people hiding in bomb shelters.

At the start of August, US journalist Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter, was released as part of a major prisoner swap between Washington and Moscow.

The 32-year-old was arrested in March 2023, with Moscow accusing him of gathering secret information during a reporting trip in central Russia. Western nations lined up to decry the trumped up nature of the charges against him.
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The helicopter crash in which president Ebrahim Raisi was killed was allegedly caused by bad weather conditions, Iran's initial probe has found.

Raisi, 63, died alongside Irans foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and two senior local officials on board the helicopter on 19 May. The bodies were found after hours of frantic search through a foggy mountainous region in Iran's East Azerbaijan province.

The president and the other men were flying in a US-made Bell 212 helicopter, when due to harsh weather conditions the aircraft lost the ability to handle the weight it was carrying, Fars news agency reported, citing a security source.

"The investigation in the case of Ayatollah Raisi's helicopter crash has been completed," the unnamed source told the news agency.

The source stressed it was absolutely certain that "what happened was an accident".

The two reasons for the accident were identified to be unsuitable weather conditions and the helicopter's inability to handle the weight it was carrying, leading to it crashing into a mountain, the source added.

The investigation indicates that the helicopter was carrying two people more than the capacity that security protocols allow, the source told Fars news agency.

However, the communications centre of the Armed Forces General Staff, responsible for publishing information on the crash investigation, denied the findings of the report, state media reported. The army in May had said it found no evidence of criminal activity in the crash.

"What is mentioned on Fars news about the presence of two people in the helicopter against the security protocols ... is completely false", the armed forces said.

The officials were traveling following a visit with the Azerbaijani president to discuss the joint Qiz-Qalasi Dam infrastructure project over the Aras River, which separates Iran and the Azerbaijani exclave Nakhchivan, when the helicopter crashed between Jolfa and the border region Varzaqan.

Up to 40 teams of rescuers  including Irans Revolutionary Guard, ambulances, surgeons, rangers, drones and dogs were involved in the search for Raisi  which lasted for hours as a result of fog, rain and darkness.

Raisi was a hardliner viewed as a potential successor to Irans supreme leader Ali Khamenei. Since taking office in 2021, he has ordered a tightening of morality laws, overseen a bloody crackdown on anti-government protests and pushed hard in nuclear talks with world powers.

He was sanctioned by the US and other nations over his involvement in the mass execution of prisoners in 1988.

In 2010, he was among the individuals and entities who were sanctioned by the European Union for alleged involvement in nuclear or ballistic missile activities.
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Watch as Israelis pay their respects at a funeral on Thursday, 22 August, for a hostage whose body was retrieved from captivity in Gaza and brought to Israel during a military operation.

The bodies of six captives were retrieved from Gaza this week.

They included British-Israeli citizen Nadav Popplewell, 51, Yagev Buchshtab, 35; Alexander Dancyg, 76; Avraham Munder, 79; Yoram Metzger, 80; and Chaim Perry, 80.

It came as Antony Blinken warned that time is of the essence to secure a Gaza ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

The US secretary of state travelled to the Middle East for truce talks and said Washington was doing everything possible to secure an agreement between Israel and Hamas.

It came after Mr Blinken said Israel had accepted the latest proposal to end the 10-month-old war while Hamas said it veered too close to Israels demands.

The deal needs to get done and it needs to get done in the days ahead, and we will do everything possible to get it across the finish line, Mr Blinken said.

The plan would involve an initial six-week ceasefire, during which a limited number of female, elderly and sick Israeli hostages would be freed in exchange for Palestinians held in Israeli jails.
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American Airlines is suspending flights to Israel through late March, extending a break in service that started in the early days of the war in Gaza.

A spokesperson for the airline said Wednesday that customers with tickets for flights to Tel Aviv can rebook at no extra charge or cancel their trip and get a refund.

The airline said flights to Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv will be suspended through March 29. The airline updated a travel advisory on its website over the weekend.

We will continue to work closely with our partner airlines to assist customers traveling between Israel and European cities with service to the U.S., the spokesperson said.

Delta Air Lines extended its suspension of Tel Aviv flights through Sept. 30 from Aug. 31. United Airlines has suspended service indefinitely.

All three airlines stopped flying to Israel shortly after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that started the war. Many other international airlines did the same, although some later resumed them.

Germanys Lufthansa announced Monday that based on a current security analysis it would halt all flights to Tel Aviv, Amman, Beirut, Teheran and Erbil in Iraq through Monday.

About 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians, died in the Oct. 7 attack, which was followed by Israel's bombardment of Gaza. About 40,000 people have died in Gaza, according to the Hamas-controlled health ministry there. U.S. attempts to broker a cease-fire agreement have been unsuccessful.
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Several Florida cities have long been top U.S. destinations for LGBTQ+ tourists, but maybe not for long.

Many were shocked this week when travelers learned that Florida's tourism marketing agency quietly removed the LGBTQ Travel section from its website sometime in the past few months.

Popular areas include Key West, Fort Lauderdale, Wilton Manors and St. Petersburg.

Business owners who cater to Florida's LGBTQ+ tourists said the move marks the latest attempt by officials in the state to erase the LGBTQ+ community. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis previously championed a bill to forbid classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity, and supported a ban on gender-affirming care for minors, as well as a law meant to keep children out of drag shows.

It's just disgusting to see this, said Keith Blackburn, who heads the Greater Fort Lauderdale LGBT Chamber of Commerce. They seem to want to erase us.

The change to Visit Florida's website was first reported by NBC News, which noted a search query still pulls up some listings for LGBTQ+-friendly places despite the elimination of the section.

John Lai, who chairs Visit Florida's board, didn't respond to an email seeking comment on Tuesday. Dana Young, Visit Florida's CEO and president, didn't respond to a voicemail message Wednesday, and neither did the agency's public relations director.

open image in gallery Hundreds of people line Central Avenue and cheer during the 10th Annual St. Pete Pride Street Festival & Promenade in St. Petersburg ( (c) 2012 Tampa Bay Times/Leah Millis )

Visit Florida is a public-private partnership between the state of Florida and the state's tourism industry. The state contributes about $50 million each year to the quasi-public agency from two tourism and economic development funds.

Florida is one of the most popular states in the U.S. for tourists, and tourism is one of its biggest industries. Nearly 141 million tourists visited Florida in 2023, with out-of-state visitors contributing more than $102 billion to Floridas economy.

Before the change, the LGBTQ+ section on Visit Florida's website had read, Theres a sense of freedom to Floridas beaches, the warm weather and the myriad activities  a draw for people of all orientations, but especially appealing to a gay community looking for a sense of belonging and acceptance.

Blackburn said the change and other anti-LGBTQ+ policies out of Tallahassee make it more difficult for him to promote South Florida tourism since he encounters prospective travelers or travel promoters who say they don't want to do business in the state.

Last year, for instance, several civil rights groups issued a travel advisory for Florida, saying that policies championed by DeSantis and Florida lawmakers are openly hostile toward African Americans, people of color and LGBTQ+ individuals.

But visitors should also understand that many Florida cities are extremely inclusive, with gay elected officials and LGBTQ+-owned businesses, and they don't reflect the policies coming from state government, Blackburn added.

Its difficult when these kinds of stories come out, and the state does these things, and we hear people calling for a boycott, Blackburn said. On one level, its embarrassing to have to explain why people should come to South Florida and our destination when the state is doing these things.
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Flights in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand faced disruptions and cancellations after a volcanic eruptions sent ash plumes into the sky, with authorities warning they could continue for weeks to months.

On Thursday August 22, at least 10 fights were cancelled and three were delayed from both Tauranga and Rotorua Airports, which mostly serve domestic Air New Zealand journeys, following the eruption of Whakaari White Island volcano. It appears that the flight schedule has now gone back to normal.

"We are continuing to monitor the situation to determine whether any further flights in or out of Rotorua will be impacted and advise customers travelling today to check the Air NZ app or our website for the latest information on their flight, a spokesperson from the airline told AFP Thursday.

"The decision to cancel or delay flights this morning was a proactive safety measure."

Whakaari White Island is itself a volcano that is found around 48km from the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand in the Bay of Plenty.

open image in gallery Steam rising from the Whakaari White Island volcano in New Zealand on Thursday ( GNS SCIENCE/AFP via Getty Images )

The island was once a popular tourist destination until it was shut off to the public after a disaster in 2019 when it erupted and killed 22 people who were visiting the island.

The volcano had begun near continuous minor eruptive activity on 9 August with minor amounts of volcanic ash in the steam and gas plume, GNS Science, a research institute that has been monitoring the volcano, said.

The institute added that this could continue for weeks to months. The Bay of Plenty Civil Defense said in a statement on Thursday that changes in wind direction may affect aviation.

Stay in touch with your airline if you have flights planned, but the advice to our communities is the same.

Follow the advice of the harbourmaster and keep a distance of 2 nautical miles from the island if you are out on the water, they added.

Footage taken of the volcano by the MetService and GNS suggests that the increased amount of ash in the plume is coming from a new active vent around 10-15m in length.

While westerly winds have been mostly pushing the ash away from the mainland, a northerly wind pushed the plume towards the Bay of Plenty overnight, causing the ash to be a risk to any flights due to fly in the path, New Zealands MetService meteorologist Mathapelo Makgabutlane told 1News.

As the weather changes the plume may at times be blown towards the Bay of Plenty coast, GNS wrote in their monitoring update. However, with the current levels of ash emission, there is a very low likelihood of ash impacting the mainland.

New Zealand raised its volcanic alert level earlier this month to three, which is a minor eruption, out of a maximum of five levels.

The Independent has contacted Air New Zealand for comment.

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The captain of a boat who helped rescue survivors from the Bayesian superyacht has recalled how the boat sank "in just two minutes" off the coast of Sicily on Monday, 19 August.

The vessel sank in a severe storm, with the bodies of five people recovered from the wreckage.

Tech tycoon Mike Lynch has been identified as one of the bodies recovered, along with Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judith Bloomer, lawyer Christopher Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo.

The boats chef Recaldo Thomas was confirmed dead on Monday,

"We couldn't see them anymore, they disappeared from the radar," captain Karsten Borner told Sky News of the moment the boat sank.
University College Cork economics lecturer Seamus Coffey has been appointed as chair of the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council

Finance Minister Jack Chambers has appointed economist Seamus Coffey as the new chair of the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council.

Mr Coffey is a lecturer in the economics department at University College Cork. He was previously a member of the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council from 2016 and was chair from January 2017 to December 2019.

In October 2016, he was also chosen as an independent expert by the Minister for Finance to review Irelands corporation tax code and has served on the Commission on Pensions.

He is also a member of the National Economic and Social Council and the current president of the Irish Economic Association.

Mr Coffey was appointed to the role of chair of the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council from a shortlist of candidates following an open competition earlier this year.

His term as chair of the budgetary watchdog will commence this week and will last for four years, with the possibility of reappointment for up to two further four-year terms.

In his role as chair of the council, Mr Coffey is set to receive a daily fee of 684 for a maximum of 96 days a year.

He will replace Professor Michael McMahon who has been acting chair since July 2023.

Professor McMahon will continue to serve as a member of the council.

I am keenly aware of the important role that the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council plays in our budgetary process, Finance Minister Jack Chambers said.

"Mr. Coffey brings a wealth of experience to the role of chair and I know he will continue to ensure that the council continues to make an important contribution to the public discourse around the many fiscal and economic challenges facing the State..

Earlier this year, the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council accused the Government of fiscal gimmickry, adding that current budgetary policy is not appropriate for the economy or the public finances.

In June, the council reported that the National Spending Rule, which seeks to keep annual increases in core spending to 5pc, is set to be breached this year by more than predicted. It estimates that it will rise to 6.7pc this year.

Since the rule was introduced in 2021, breaches add up to 8.5bn (9.7pc) by 2024, the council said at the time. This number is larger than the Governments estimate, because we account for likely spending overruns and fiscal gimmickry, it added.
Damien Garvey of Bank of Ireland, awards chair Noirin OSullivan, Anthony Brabazon of UCD, and Irish Independent Business Editor Donal ODonovan Picture by Shane ONeill Photo: Shane O'Neill

The UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School has launched its 17th annual awards, that recognise the critical role that business journalists play in helping society understand complex financial issues.

The awards are sponsored by Bank of Ireland and will be decided by an independent jury drawn from academia, industry and the media. This years jury will be chaired by Noirin OSullivan, the former garda commissioner.

Journalism is a core component in any healthy business community, economy, or society

The awards, run in association with the Business Journalist Association of Ireland (BJAI), celebrate excellence in Irish business journalism in all platforms.

Prizes will be awarded in seven categories including Business News Story of the Year, Upcoming Journalist of the Year and Business Interview of the Year.

Speaking at the launch, Damien Garvey, head of group external communications at Bank of Ireland, said: We are proud to sponsor the UCD Smurfit School Business Journalist Awards.

Journalism is a core component in any healthy business community, economy, or society  and that should be recognised. Through these awards, we look forward to highlighting excellence in business journalism.

Professor Federica Pazzaglia, director of UCD Smurfit School and associate dean of UCD College of Business said: As Irelands premier business school, we are committed to co-creating a vibrant environment with our business students, academics and corporate stakeholders that is conducive to the creation and exchange of new knowledge and ideas with a positive impact on business and society.
The start-up may be set for another large fundraising round to help finance the deal

LetsGetChecked, the online health test start-up headquartered in Dun Laoghaire, has reportedly acquired struggling US online pharmacy, Truepill, for $525m.

Both companies have been approached for comment.

The news was first reported by the US news site Axios.

LetsGetChecked is one of a handful of privately-held Irish firms valued at over $1bn

The Irish unicorn  which has already raised $285m in venture capital funding on top of over $100m in debt financing  may need to raise another funding round to complete the deal.

Truepill, which has raised around $370m, was once valued at over $1.6bn but has recently struggled to hit sales targets and has come under legal fire from the US Drug Enforcement Agency.

Founded by Irishman Peter Foley in 2015, LetsGetChecked lets people order tests for a wide range of health issues and then analyses the results.

LetsGetChecked employs approximately 700 people globally, with the majority of its business being done in the United States, where it counts such companies as Amazon and Berkshire Hathaway as corporate clients using its services.

The acquisition of Truepill was reportedly engineered by the Boston-based Optum Ventures, which is a significant investor in both companies.

LetsGetChecked is one of a handful of privately-held Irish ecommerce start-ups valued at over $1bn, which earns it an industry description as a unicorn company.

The Irish unicorn may need to raise another funding round to complete the deal

Irish investment fund Elkstone has backed the start-up, as have high-profile individuals such as Rory McIlroy.

Earlier this year, LetsGetChecked began a genetic testing service for those checking potential hereditary predispositions to certain medical conditions, such as cancer and cardiovascular problems.

It also recently settled a class action suit in the US over the accuracy of its tests for Lyme disease, removing the test from its online offering. No details of the settlement were disclosed.

The company says that it has completed over 10 million tests across 50 biomarkers, with around 250,000 abnormal results detected from the tests.

In the US, Truepill supplies consumers, doctors and other health providers with medication on order.
According to phone industry soothsayers, by now, most of us should know someone with a folding flip phone.

Industry sales figures suggest that the public has yet to share manufacturers enthusiasm for folding phones  but that hasnt deterred Samsung, which is by far the dominant maker of folding and flip phones in the Irish and European markets.
In cinemas; Cert 15A

Jason Schwartzman confirms his status as one of the funniest actors in independent cinema with this bockety Jewish comedy about two caricatures finding an unlikely solace in one another at different stages in their lives.

He plays Ben, a cantor at a New York synagogue undergoing a life crisis after the death of his alcoholic wife. After getting punched out in a bar fight, he awakens to the face of Carla (Carol Kane), his music teacher growing up.

They rekindle an odd rapport, before Carla announces she wishes to make her Bat Mitzvah despite being in her later years, and wants Ben to mentor her. This raises more than an eyebrow with Bens same-sex parents (Dolly de Leon and Caroline Aaron) and the rabbi (Robert Smigel), who would all prefer Bens attentions went to the rabbis beautiful but troubled daughter Gabby (Madeline Weinstein).

Few cinema settings are more adept at self-parody than Judaism, and this delightfully wonky, screwball stagger from director Nathan Silver (co-writing with C Mason Wells) reminds us why. Schwartzman and Kane whip up a chemistry all their own, while cuts and sound edits conjure an absurd world encasing them.

Five stars
Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez return with yet another murder mystery and an even more impressive star-studded supporting cast

Charles, Oliver and Mabel return to our screens this month in season four of the Emmy Award-winning US comedy series, Only Murders in the Building, and guess what? Theres another murderer in town  a fresh new line-up of starry supporting players too.

But what, exactly, is happening in season four, who is in trouble this time, and how long can televisions snappiest murder mystery keep up the joke? Lets find out

Eva Longoria is part of the new supporting cast for season four of Only Murders in the Building. Photo: Disney

What is Only Murders in the Building about?

Created by Steve Martin and John Hoffman, Only Murders in the Building sets up its stall in a snazzy Upper West Side New York apartment block  the Arconia  where a trio of strangers come together to share their love of true-crime podcasting.

Meet Charles-Haden Savage (Steve Martin), a retired, self-centred actor with too much time on his hands.

And then theres Oliver Putnam (Martin Short), a washed-up Broadway director in desperate need of a gig, and Mabel Mora (Selena Gomez), a young, enigmatic artist whos renovating her aunts oversized apartment.

Charles needs a pal  Oliver and Mabel are in the same boat.

Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez are seen filming 'Only Murders in the Building' on April 24, 2024 in New York, New York. (Photo by MEGA/GC Images)

An unlikely friendship ensues, and when someone at the Arconia dies under suspicious circumstances, the gang decides to start up a podcast of their own.

No prizes for guessing what they call it. For whatever reason, the Arconias residents keep on getting themselves into trouble. More murders means more podcasts. And thats that, really.

Martin Short, Selena Gomez and Steve Martin are seen at the film set of the 'Only Murders in the Building' TV Series on March 21, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)

Who else stars in Only Murders in the Building?

Make way for the flashiest guest list in television. Sting (yes, that Sting) appeared in season one, alongside Amy Ryan, Nathan Lane, Tina Fey and the Academy Award-winning DaVine Joy Randolph.

The great Shirley MacLaine joined the fold in season two, as did Amy Schumer and Cara Delevingne.

In season three, Paul Rudd, Matthew Broderick and Meryl Streep arrived at the party.

Meanwhile, season four features  deep breath everyone  Eugene Levy, Kumail Nanjiani, Eva Longoria, Molly Shannon, Zach Galifianakis and Melissa McCarthy.

Some of these new additions will portray new characters  others will play fictionalised versions of themselves. Prepare to be confused.

Selena Gomez is seen filming "Only Murders in the Building" in the Upper West Side on May 29, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Gotham/GC Images)

What is the plot for season four of Only Murders in the Building?

Spoilers ahead, obviously. At the end of season three, poor Sazz Pataki (Jane Lynch), Charles oddball stunt double, was shot by a mysterious sniper after sneaking into his apartment.

Is Sazz really dead? It looks that way. Was the bullet meant for Charles? Probably, and to help solve the crime, our podcasting pals pay a visit to the mysterious residents of the Arconia's West Tower corner (weve never been there before).

Martin short and Steve Martin guest hosting The Jimmy Kimmel Show (Disney/Randy Holmes)

Elsewhere, things are about to get a little meta: the folks in Hollywood are making a film about the Only Murders crew, which means Charles, Mabel and Oliver will need to head out to sunny LA to meet the real-life actors wholl play them on the big screen.

Enter Levy (playing movie Charles), Galifianakis (movie Oliver) and Longoria (movie Mabel). Oh, and somehow, Charles and the gang find time to visit his sister (McCarthy) in Long Island.

What are critics saying about season four of Only Murders in the Building?

Reviews are embargoed until Tuesday, August 26, but hey, the first three seasons were critically acclaimed, so weve no reason to worry, right? Not exactly.

Truth be told, the last season was more than a little creaky, and the Irish Independents TV critic Pat Stacey suggested the series was starting to run out of ideas.

Mystery has been edged out by romance and musical numbers, which are eating up far more time than is necessary, Stacey wrote in his 2023 review.

The recruitment of Streep and Rudd as guest stars this season was much trumpeted in advance. The reality is that having two such big names on board is a burden rather than a blessing.

Will the self-referential humour wear thin this time around? We certainly hope not. The first two seasons were magical  fingers crossed for a return to form in season four.

What does the Only Murders in the Building cast have to say about the new season?

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter this month, Gomez (currently nominated for a Lead Actress in a Comedy Series Emmy) calls it the most exciting season yet.

Thats what I would definitely say with confidence because it was far too fun, says Gomez. How it came together was so magical.

Everyone had a blast. And people are in for a ride, you know. Taking us to LA and then doing all the other stuff is exciting. Its going to be, to date, probably my favourite season.

When does season four of Only Murders in the Building begin?

The fun kicks off on Disney+ on Tuesday, August 27. Just like last time, there are 10 new episodes and the series will roll out in weekly instalments, wrapping up on October 29.

Will there be a fifth run? Only a fool would bet against it.

Only Murders in the Building season four, episode one, premieres on Disney+ on Tuesday, August 27.
Zak and Talia (far left) with presenters Siomha Ni Ruairc, Grainne Ni Seoige and James Kavanagh and the other contestants of the first season of the Virgin Media show Gra ar an Tra. Photo: Ruth Medjber

Siomha Ni Ruairc has described the second season of Gra ar an Tra as "sexier and a little bit naughtier as the show is set to return this autumn.

The brand-new season of the Irish dating show, hosted by Ni Ruairc, James Kavanagh and Grainne Seoige, will welcome ten new singletons to the Gaeltacht to find love for both the Irish language and each other.

While speaking to the Irish Independent, Ni Ruairc said: There was a lot of sexual tension in the house this year, it was palpable.

This year will also see the first LGBTQ+ contestant in the dating show.

James Kavanagh said: At times, you almost felt like a mad scientist watching all these things go on.

"But the representation of a gay person in there was brilliant, and it does work. So hopefully, shows like Love Island can see that.

"Also, not to have just an LGBTQ+ Gra ar an Tra and a straight one, it's nice to just have it mixed and and this show has shown that that does work. Kavanagh said, adding the show is first of its kind in Ireland.

It added a new dynamic to the show which wasnt seen last year, Ni Ruairc said.

"We keep talking about being fresher and different this year, they really did bring some extra spice and relationships that we didn't see last year.

"I'm really proud to have worked on a dating show that, for the first time, has LGBTQ people in it. We're at the forefront.

The fact that the Virgin Media dating show depicts people learning Gaeilge contributes to the shift in Irelands relationship with the language, she said.

"People are just seeing Irish being more normalised in the content we consume, in the TV and the movies that we watch. So I'd love to think that Gra ar an Tra isn't an anomaly anymore. It's just another amazing show going out on Virgin Media that just happens to be bilingual.

I grew up with Irish. It was the language of my household at home, and I live a lot of my life through Irish. So I always talk about the importance of normalisation of Gaeilge, that it's not just a school subject.

It's really refreshing for people to see it in a new environment, in a modern environment, in a sexy environment like Gra ar an Tra and that people go: Oh, wait, I can actually have a different relationship with the language. What I did with it in school doesn't define my relationship with it.

"Gra ar an Tra is an amazing platform for that to be shown. It's also important that there's different levels of Irish in the show. I come from a bilingual background, whereas James would have only had the experience in school.

Kavanagh said he was dormant with his Gaeilge for years after secondary school.

In the last 10 years or so, I've done a few things that have awakened it. I'm really enjoying getting back into it and just learning the cupla focal, he said.

"I've had friends who've watched Gra ar an Tra and are now learning Irish in the evening, or picking up the dictionary at home and trying to make their language a bit broader.

Gra ar an Tra returns to Virgin Media in October.
Gardai in County Cork are investigating several reports of alleged fraud relating to the sale of fire safety equipment in recent months to farmers, business owners and rural dwellers.

It is understood that numerous reports of alleged fraud have been made to gardai in Skibbereen.

Similar allegations of alleged fraud have been made in different parts of Munster including in South Kerry.

A Kerry farmer who wished to remain anonymous told The Corkman how she also fell victim to alleged fraud in recent weeks. Four weeks ago this person arrived in our yard. We got fire extinguishers from him a few years back. He caught us on the wrong foot as he told us he was back to check on the ones that we had previously purchased. He knew exactly what we had in the house with regards to fire extinguishers.

The farmer said the salesman knowingly endangered them by selling them inadequate fire extinguishers. We have an old farm house with a lot of wood panelling on the walls. He supplied us with fire extinguishers for our house and farm workshop that are inadequate and incomplete. He sold us completely wrong safety equipment. He actually knowingly endangered us by doing that. We were out of pocket by 420. He has done the same with a couple of neighbours. My husband and I are now amongst that mans many victims.

The woman quickly realised the new fire extinguishers were inadequate after liaising with the manufacturers.

She then made contact with the salesman who promised to take away the equipment, but he never returned. Our neighbour had a phone number for him as he tried to sell him a calving camera. I phoned him and he tried to come up with a load of excuses. He said he would call the following day and take away the goods and refund the money. We havent heard from him since.

This only spurred the determined Kerry farmer into more decisive action as she proceeded to make a formal complaint at her local garda station. I went to my local garda station to file a report. I found out there was an active investigation and the guards were looking for more victims to come forward. It is a live investigation. We are now aware that the alleged fraudster is targeting older people, farmers and small business owners, primarily in the Cork and Kerry areas, but also further afield.

I want to try and drum up a bit more publicity, the victim of the alleged fraud said. I want to let people know not to be embarrassed as they are not the only ones. If people are unsure about somebody selling something at their house, just trust your gut and turn them away. If you are a victim of fraud, dont be embarrassed and report it to your local garda station. The more people that come forward, the better the chances of securing a conviction in due course.

A spokesperson for An Garda Siochana told The Corkman: Gardai have received a number of reports of alleged fraud that occurred in Skibbereen, County Cork in recent months. Enquiries are ongoing at this time.

Anyone who believes they may have been a victim of fraud, or any crime, should report to their local garda station who can assess and potentially investigate the matter on their behalf.

Members of the public should always be vigilant about unsolicited contact from unknown parties offering services and/or goods, the spokesperson added.

Further fraud prevention advice from An Garda Siochana can be found on the garda website: https://www.garda.ie/en/crime/fraud/
Brendan Gleeson calls for investment in communities that lack services to bring people along

Brendan Gleeson calls for investment in communities that lack services to bring people along

Wed 21 Aug 2024 at 17:50







Brendan Gleeson has said communities that are lacking in public services should be invested in if they are to accommodate large groups of people.
British PM was urged not to intervene in case of innocent man convicted of murder: Would it do Northern Ireland any good?

Whitehall feared overturning of innocent mans conviction could add fuel to fire of the Troubles

Iain Hay Gordon (left) had been the victim of a travesty of justice in 1953 when he was found to have stabbed Queens University student Patricia Curran to death.

Stephen Gordon and Sam McBride Thu 22 Aug 2024 at 09:44

Civil servants warned against the British Prime Minister intervening over the conviction of a young man ultimately cleared of murdering a judges daughter because it might shake public faith in the justice system.
Sacked teacher Enoch Burke returns to former school in defiance of court order

Enoch Burke returns to former school in defiance of court order

Conor Feehan and Shane Phelan Thu 22 Aug 2024 at 15:50







Teacher Enoch Burke has defied a court order for him to stay away from his former job in a Westmeath school and turned up as it opened for its first day of term today.
Poverty pay rates and delays in workers qualifying forcing people to walk away

Government home-building targets are at risk due to dropout rates among apprentices, it has been warned.

Preliminary results of a survey by trade union Connect, to be published today, reveal a crisis of delays and poverty pay rates in the craft apprenticeship system.

The survey of over 600 apprentices in 21 trades finds many young people are dropping out of training due to years of delays and poor pay.

Connect says this critically undermines the possibility of major house-building projects.

Brian Nolan, assistant general secretary of Connect, said there are approximately 22,000 people training as craft apprentices. The dropout rate from these courses is close to 20pc.

Today we are issuing some preliminary results which are deeply concerning for the young workers directly affected and, on a wider scale, [it impacts] the possibility of solving the housing crisis in this generation, he said.

More than a quarter of apprentices said they were paid below the correct minimum pay rates. These rates can be lower than the state minimum wage of 12.70 per hour.

High numbers of apprentices reported delays of up to three years in completing their apprenticeship.

Mr Nolan said many apprentices are being used as cheap labour long after their training should have ended.

He said house-building targets will not be met unless they start getting these people through the system and getting them out to build these houses.

The union official claimed there is not enough emphasis from industry and Government on supporting crafts including carpentry, bricklaying, painting and decorating.

On the other hand, he said electrical trades are arguably oversubscribed and there are not enough training facilities to provide for the numbers involved.

At current rates, we will only be able to replace the amount of craftspeople currently employed in our economy, he said.

The reality is that with the extensive delays, apprentices are becoming just a low-paid group of workers within construction and other industries.

He said some employers take apprentices on, but delay registering them for three to six months so they may be paid a lower rate for much longer than they should be.

The first-year rate applies for 12 to 24 months in some cases, he said. There is a merry-go-round of apprentices leaving one employment to go to another.

They may be dismissed or leave an employer because they are not getting the training they need. There is too much emphasis on ramming numbers into the apprenticeship system rather than building a quality system that is recognised worldwide.

Over 20pc of apprentices surveyed said they had been dismissed or left the company where they began their apprenticeship.

The crisis in our apprentice system should be a national scandal with nearly one in five apprentices dropping out before full qualification, said Mr Nolan.

The Government and opposition parties are making grandiose claims about the rate of house building they envisage to solve our countrys worsening accommodation crisis.

At the same time, the young craftspeople essential to delivering on this are being driven out of the trades by a collapsing apprenticeship system and poverty wages being paid.
The ex-Taoiseach also got to see the Obamas urge attendees at the convention to put their full weight behind the Harris-Walz team

Leo Varadkar flew into Chicago to attend the Democratic National Convention where he has been feted as a VIP guest by senior US politicians.

The former Taoiseach was seen with Democratic heavyweight and former House of Representatives Speaker, Nancy Pelosi at last nights convention.

They cheered on as Tim Walz, who is the Vice Presidential nominee on the Democratic ticket with Kamala Harris, gave a colourful speech to 20,000 delegates at the United Centre in the Windy City.

Pelosi herself was warmly greeted be delegates when she took to the stage to endorse Walz and Harris.

Varadkar also saw Barack and Michelle Obama urge attendees at the convention to put their full weight behind the Kamala-Walz team in a bid to thwart Donald Trumps bid to be re-elected President of the US.

Back in April 2019 Pelosi was hosted by Varadkar when he was Taoiseach and she addressed Dail Eireann, an occasion which saw Bono, among others, watch from the gallery.

Now a TD for Dublin West, the 45-year-old is expected to also attend tonights session of the convention, which is due to hear a rousing speech by Harris, at which the Vice President will be rubber-stamped by delegates to become the partys Presidential nomination in Novembers election.

Harris was parachuted in as the partys candidate after Joe Biden pulled out of the race last month.

Biden had been urged by prominent Democratic Party members that he was trailing in the polls behind Trump and was likely to lose the election.

Varadkar has close links with Chicago, as his partner Matt Barrett has spent time working and training in the city in hospitals there in the past through his profession as a cardiac doctor.

The Irish politician also shares with a heritage link with Harris - as both have parents from India. Varadkars father and Harriss mother were both born in India.

Leo posted several videos on his Stories section on Instagram of his time at the convention last night, including images of Walz and his family taking to the podium and his snap with Pelosi.
Kerry TD Michael Healy Rae has called on Garda Commissioner Drew Harris to do the right thing and resign from his position with immediate effect, however other opposition parties disagree.

Mr Harris tenure as Garda Commissioner is due to come to an end next June, after he received a two year contract extension in 2023.

In recent weeks, it was reported that Commissioner Harris would not seek a further contract extension, though the Department of Justice issued a statement which said no conversation had taken place with Mr Harris in relation to his contract.

"There was no offer from Government, the Minister for Justice or any Department of Justice official in relation to any further extension to the Garda Commissioners term, a spokesperson said.

"The Garda Commissioner was appointed by Government in 2018 for a term of five years. This was subsequently extended for a further two year period.

"The Commissioner is widely regarded, including by the public and the independent Policing Authority, as doing what is a very demanding and fulfilling role to an excellent standard, the spokesperson added.

Now, Independent TD Michael Healy Rae is calling for Mr Harris to resign immediately saying the commissioner has lost the full confidence of the force.

I have never doubted the Commissioners genuine effort to do the right thing, but the role and challenges have simply become too great for him and indeed the current Minister for Justice Helen McEntee and it is clear that things are getting a whole lot worse rather than better.

The Kerry TD said he believed waiting ten months for a new commissioner to take over would make the situation worse in relation to social disorder.

Crime and social disorder do not wait, and another ten months will in my opinion see things get a whole lot worse and will make the job of a new Commissioner almost impossible, Mr Healy Rae said.

Mr Healy Rae said he had spoken with rank and file Gardai and said that the current policing policy in response to disorder was not fit for purpose.

He added that Gardai feared for their lives and being challenged on the streets was becoming a common occurrence for them.

The almost common day occurrence of Gardai being challenged on the streets with ever increasing fears for their lives does not show the effects of good leadership.

Mr Harris should read the room in these unprecedented times and show the type of leadership that is needed and step aside from the post with immediate effect rather than bowing out next [June] 2025, Mr Healy Rae said.

However, opposition parties have said they do not echo the Kerry TDs calls, with party spokespeople on Justice arguing that the force needed stability.

Clearly there has been a lot of upheaval in An Garda Siochana and clearly none of that is what any of us need. But I dont think, given the fact that he doesnt have a lot of his term left that it would serve anybodys interest to have this level of upheaval to continue, Labour MEP Aodhan O Riordain said.

I think that while there has been issues and we are undermanned, and I think [Mr Harris] has been quite vocal himself in saying that, what we dont need now in the current circumstances is a resignation thats going to destabilise the situation, Mr O Riordain added.

The newly elected MEP said it was easy to call for resignation but instead politicians should be focused on assessing the role of the Gardai, the supports and resources needed as well as funding.

Social Democrats TD Catherine Murphy said it was important to find the right person to take his place.

Id be very reluctant to be looking for somebody to go early until you know the position is going to be filled.

Because its just going to mean you could have a gap there where you have somebody acting up if you like and then you lose a little bit of capacity, Deputy Murphy said.

There is a lot to do between now and June and obviously the most important thing is to get the right person for the job, Ms Murphy added.

Last November, Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald called on Commissioner Drew Harris and Justice Minister Helen McEntee to resign in the wake of the Dublin riots.

However, Sinn Feins justice spokesperson Pa Daly said their focus was on recruitment and retention within the force.

"Drew Harris has indicated he is not renewing his contract. Our position on his tenure and the reasons for that position are on the public record, Deputy Daly said.

"The far more important issue now is the crisis within the Gardai. Retention and recruitment is a concern at the rank and file, middle management and in upper management.

The Sinn Fein TD was critical of Fine Gael, who he said was responsible for the retention and recruitment crisis within the force.

The blame for this rests squarely with Fine Gael, who have been responsible for the Gardai for 13 years now.

"We would urgently appoint a taskforce to examine this issue within the first few months of any Sinn Fein led government," Mr Daly said.
Lawyers for Irish hotelier Paddy McKillen claim efforts to serve legal papers on a Qatari royal, with whom he has been engaged in a long-running dispute, were blocked by armed and aggressive security guards.
Sinn Fein once again brought in the most money of any Northern Ireland political party, according to its latest accounts.

The income includes more than 200,000 from mysterious benefactor William E Hampton.

Northern Irelands Electoral Commission has published the 2023 accounts of the four political parties who had an income or expenditure of 250,000 or more last year  Sinn Fein, the DUP, Alliance and the SDLP.

Combined, these four parties brought in 2,303,564 (2,712,271), against an expenditure of 2,398,324.

Sinn Fein had an income of 1,095,081, followed by the DUP with 435,905 and Alliance with 376,874. The SDLP brought in a total of 395,704.

Of these four parties, Alliance and Sinn Fein brought in more money than they spent in 2023.

Political parties receive donations from various sources and also public funds, which are generally listed together on the Electoral Commissions website.

Sinn Fein received 752,252 in donations and public funds in 2023, while the DUP secured 141,993 and Alliance brought in 119,158.

The SDLPs accounts have 77,650 listed under donations and fundraising income.

There is no limit on donations a party here can accept, under Electoral Commission rules, however donations more than 7,500 - or smaller contributions from the same benefactor that exceed the limit when combined - must be reported.

Jackie Killeen, director of electoral administration and regulation at the Electoral Commission, said: We are committed to making sure political funding is transparent.

Larger parties spend and receive considerable sums of money so its important that information on their finances is accessible to the public.

Publishing their accounts allows voters to see how parties are funded and choose to spend their money.

A closer look at Electoral Commission filings throughout the year shows the individual donations made to each party.

In 2023, Sinn Fein received three payments totalling 212,866 from William Hampton.

The Englishman, a former market trader, died in Wales in 2018 and left a small fortune to the republican party in his will.

Payments began in 2019 and that year alone Sinn Fein received 2m for the benefactor, who had no clear ties to the party.

Mr Hampton - who had cash in more than two dozen bank accounts across the globe - was living in a caravan when he made the will and later died in a nursing home.

It is unclear how the eccentric Englishman became so wealthy, however it is understood he inherited money and land from his father.

To date, Sinn Fein has received almost 3.5m from Mr Hampton.

Concerns have previously been raised over the donations from Mr Hampton, given the differing rules on either side of the border.

In the Republic, parties cannot receive contributions of more than 2,500. This led to suggestions Sinn Fein could use the money received from Mr Hampton to fund activities south of the border.

The Ulster Unionist Party did not have an income or expenditure of more than 250,000 last year, with its accounts being published last month.

In 2023, the UUP had an income of 191,614 against an expenditure of 207,006.
RTEs Director of Content Jim Jennings is to leave the national broadcaster at the end of this month, it has been confirmed.

Director General Kevin Bakhurst confirmed the departure in an update to staff this morning.

He said RTE reached an agreement around the terms of Mr Jennings departure with the support of the Workplace Relations Commission.

A spokesman for RTE said part of the process of the settlement brokered by the WRC includes the terms remain confidential, RTE News reported.

Today's News in 90 seconds - 22nd August 2024

I would like to thank Jim for his long service to RTE and his great contribution to the organisation and public service media for almost 40 years, Mr Bakhurst said.

"Jim leaves at a time when the organisation is redefining the Audio and Visuals briefs as part of RTEs new strategy.

"I wish Jim the very best for the future, he added.

The terms under which Jim Jennings leaves RTE will be kept confidential, after the Workplace Relations Commission was brought in to mediate a deal between the outgoing executive and the broadcaster.

RTE announced on Thursday that the Director of Content, who has been on sick leave for most of the last year, is to leave the national broadcaster at the end of this month

Mr Jennings departure from RTE ended up before the WRC after the broadcaster and the former Director of Content were unable to agree on a settlement. His case went through RTES remuneration committee and the RTE board, but a settlement still could not be agreed. Kevin Bakhurst, Director General of RTE, had previously confirmed that RTE had been taking legal advice throughout the process with Mr Jennings.

Under the WRCs code of practice for its mediation service, mediation is conducted in private and the terms of any settlement are not published.

In a message to staff on Thursday, Mr Bakhurst said that Mr Jennings would be leaving the organisation on August 31, after 40 years.

I would like to thank Jim for his long service to RTE and his great contribution to the organisation and public service media for almost 40 years, he said.

He added: I am pleased we have been able to reach agreement around the terms of his departure with the support of the Workplace Relations Commission. I wish Jim the very best for the future.

In July, Mr Bakhurst told the Oireachtas media committee that Mr Jennings case had ended up in the WRC because we were unable to do a deal early on.

They went to the WRC and  because it has gone to the WRC, I am very limited in what I can say about it. I sorry about that.

We have taken legal advice. The matter has gone through the remuneration committee. It has gone through the board. We tried to arrive at a settlement but could not. The matter ended up in the WRC. We took legal advice throughout on it. As I think I said before, I personally do not like making payouts to people. However  there was an expectation I would change the senior team at RTE. I cannot deliver change to the organisation with the same team that was in place before.

Mr Jennings had been a member of the RTE board when the payments controversy first emerged in 2023. When Mr Bakhurst took over as Director General, one of his first acts was to stand down organisation's Executive Board, and replace it with a temporary interim leadership team. Mr Jennings was not included in the new team.

Mr Bakhurst had told the Oireachtas media committee that if he was to exit people from any organisation, there is no alternative but to offer payouts to people.

If you just try to get rid of them with the wrong process, you end up paying more in legal fees and costing the taxpayer more. I do not like paying out large sums of money but I have to live within Irish law in trying to change the organisation, he said.

The former Director of Content had declined to appear before the Oireachtas committee when it was probing the payments scandal, for health reasons. Mr Bakhurst had said that Mr Jennings would have liked to appear to answer questions but he had been given very clear medical advice. Mr Bakhurst said he believed him and supported him.

More to follow...
A blood test to detect proteins that signal if a patient has Alzheimers disease could speed up diagnosis and dramatically reduce the need for more invasive investigative procedures, Irish researchers have revealed.

The team from the Institute of Memory and Cognition at Tallaght University Hospital in Dublin examined the performance of a new blood test  plasma p-Tau217  to detect the amyloid plaques that build up in the brain in people with the disease.

Currently, amyloid plaques can only be found by carrying out a lumbar puncture  a spinal tap  in order to obtain a sample of cerebrospinal fluid.

This is an invasive procedure and there can be limited access to the scans.

The team from the Dublin hospital wanted to find out how effective blood tests are as an alternative, offering a less invasive procedure for the patient while also being easier to roll out and less costly.

The research in the journal Alzheimers Research and Therapy found that the blood test plasma p-Tau217 was more than 90pc as accurate as the outcome from lumbar punctures.

They examined blood test cut-off values and found that if the blood test was used in the future, more than half of lumbar punctures could be avoided.

They said this would have significant implications in terms of invasiveness, length of time to a diagnosis and also may cut down on cost.

While lumbar punctures are safe and well-tolerated as diagnostic procedures, a small number of patients may experience side effects such as headaches.

The study was led by Dr Adam Dyer, a geriatric medicine trainee and specialist registrar at Tallaght University Hospital.

His team used samples from a biobank that has been established at the hospitals Institute of Memory and Cognition.

Patients who have symptoms and are undergoing a diagnostic lumbar puncture for the detection of Alzheimers opt to donate cerebrospinal fluid and blood samples for future research.

Commenting on the research, Dr Dyer said: This study found that blood tests such as plasma p-Tau217 demonstrate excellent performance to detect the changes that are characteristic of Alzheimers disease. In the future, clinical use of these blood tests may enable us to avoid invasive tests such as lumbar punctures in over half of individuals who currently have these procedures performed.

He said the research is one of a handful in the world to assess this in real- world clinical cohorts and the first Irish study to examine the performance of these blood tests.

Following on from this, researchers plan to look at whether performance of these blood tests can be matched in diagnostic laboratories.

Patients with a negative or positive result could avoid a lumbar puncture.

Professor Sean Kennelly, a geriatrician and director of the Institute of Memory and Cognition, said that a timely and accurate diagnosis of Alzheimers disease is of paramount importance to living well with this condition, and our ability to support diagnosis using a simple blood test like this has the potential to revolutionise this area for affected people.
Education Minister Norma Foley said a culture of non-acceptance around the use of mobile phones in post-primary schools was needed. Photo: PA

Education Minister Norma Foleys announcement of a policy banning phones in secondary schools has been met with calls for her to focus on the teacher recruitment and retention crisis.

New guidance has been broadly welcomed by teachers and principals, while the union for second-level students has said it will not be supporting the new policy and should have been consulted prior to the announcement.

The two main teachers unions have noted there are other needs to be addressed in the sector and many schools have their own phone policies in place already.

A spokesperson for the Teachers Union of Ireland (TUI) said schools already have working policies around phones and it remains focused on the Department of Education tackling teacher recruitment issues.

We note the Minister's comments yesterday in relation to mobile phones and we await the guidance that she has said she will send to schools. In this regard, it is important to note that many schools already have policies in place that work well.

In terms of current priorities, we remain gravely concerned by the teacher recruitment and retention crisis and once again urge the Department to properly engage with us to tackle this significant problem that sees students lose out on subject choices.

Concerns around recruitment have been echoed on the opposition benches, as Social Democrats education spokesperson Gary Gannon TD said the Minister should be focused instead on tackling teacher shortages with schools across the country scrambling to fill vacancies.

As schools reopen this week, the Ministers focus has been on a notional ban on smartphones in second-level classrooms, Mr Gannon said.

This sounds good in principle and such a ban would be positive if workable solutions could be found. However, because schools are managed by their patrons, this is not something that the Minister or her department have any real control over.

But other urgent issues facing schools around the country  such as teacher vacancies and capitation grant shortfalls  are all within the Ministers gift to resolve.

The Association of Second Level Students in Ireland (ASTI) welcomed the Ministers plan but said a blanket ban would require consultation with stakeholders  including parents, teachers and school management bodies.

Long-established practice is that second-level schools, in consultation with all the stakeholders in a school community, agree school policies, including policies on the use of mobile phones, a spokesperson said.

Policies vary from no use of mobile phones to limited use, where students are allowed to use their phones for specific education purposes.

A partnership approach means the unique needs of the school community can be considered and therefore the policy is more likely to achieve buy-in from the school community.

The ASTI said there is a much more pressing need for proper school resourcing to tackle issues including cyberbullying. This would include increased resourcing for guidance counselling and providing students with the skills for using technology in learning.

Writing for The Journal on Thursday, Ms Foley said the policy will aim to keep students off their phones through the entire school day, including lunch breaks, to increase traditional social interactions between students at lunchtimes instead of having them stuck on their phones.

Director of the National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals (NAPD) Paul Crone said the use of the word ban may not be the best way to communicate the policy, but getting students off phones during breaks is a positive.

We try not to use the word ban because of the connotations that would have with young adults and teenagers. To ban something is like a challenge, he said.

Mr Crone said no phones during break times has proven to be a win-win in some schools, where students are socialising more and getting more exercise by going on walks together.

What teachers noticed was that lunch time and break time were silent times because the students would sit there eating lunch on their phones and they wouldnt be interacting.

A lot of schools have gone down the road of tackling that part of the equation, by negotiation and buy-in, and all of a sudden, the temperature rises. The loudness and volume rise. Students are talking to each other, laughing and interacting.

The Irish Second-Level Students Union (ISSU) has said it cannot support the new policy and should have been consulted to raise valid concerns with the policy before the Ministers announcement.

Many students require their phones for health and safety purposes. As the representative of over 600 schools in Ireland, we put students welfare as our top priority, ISSU leas-uachtaran Mairin Harding said.

We would not want to see a situation where a student doesnt have access to their phone when its needed for a medical condition or accessibility purposes.

At the end of the day, with a blanket ban, we are putting students at risk of slipping through the cracks, and thus the ISSU cannot endorse this plan.

A spokesperson for the Department of Education said: "The wellbeing of all learners is a key priority of the Department, as well as the empowerment of parents and school communities through education and information.

The mobile phone ban during the school day is designed to improve the learning environment in schools by reducing distraction. It will reduce the risk of cyberbullying and access to inappropriate content during school hours. Furthermore, it will reduce the risk to traditional social interactions between students at lunchtimes.

On teacher supply, the spokesperson said there are now more teachers than ever working in the Irish education system and added schools will be given flexibility on how they implement the phone ban.
Key West, Fort Lauderdale, Wilton Manors and St. Petersburg are among several Florida cities that have long been top US destinations for LGBTQ+ tourists.

So it came as a surprise this week when travellers learned that Florida's tourism marketing agency had quietly removed the LGBTQ Travel section from its website sometime in the past few months.

Business owners who cater to Florida's LGBTQ+ tourists said this week that it marked the latest attempt by officials in the state to erase the LGBTQ+ community.

Republican Governor Ron DeSantis previously championed a bill to forbid classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity, and supported a ban on gender-affirming care for minors, as well as a law meant to keep children out of drag shows.

It's just disgusting to see this, said Keith Blackburn, who heads the Greater Fort Lauderdale LGBT Chamber of Commerce. They seem to want to erase us.

Visit Florida is a public-private partnership between the state of Florida and the state's tourism industry. The state contributes about $50 million each year to the quasi-public agency from two tourism and economic development funds.

The change to its website was first reported by NBC News, which noted a search query still pulls up some listings for LGBTQ+-friendly places despite the elimination of the section.

Representatives of Visit Florida did not respond to contacts from AP this week.

Florida is one of the most popular states in the US for tourists, and tourism is one of its biggest industries. Aer Lingus flies direct from Dublin Airport to both Orlando and Miami.

Nearly 141 million tourists visited Florida in 2023, with out-of-state visitors contributing more than $102 billion to Floridas economy.

Before the change, the LGBTQ+ section on Visit Florida's website had read, Theres a sense of freedom to Floridas beaches, the warm weather and the myriad activities  a draw for people of all orientations, but especially appealing to a gay community looking for a sense of belonging and acceptance.

Blackburn said the change and other anti-LGBTQ+ policies out of Tallahassee make it more difficult for him to promote South Florida tourism since he encounters prospective travellers or travel promoters who say they don't want to do business in the state.

Last year, for instance, several civil rights groups issued a travel advisory for Florida, saying that policies championed by DeSantis and Florida lawmakers are openly hostile toward African Americans, people of colour and LGBTQ+ individuals.

But visitors should also understand that many Florida cities are extremely inclusive, with gay elected officials and LGBTQ+-owned businesses, and they don't reflect the policies coming from state government, Blackburn added.

Its difficult when these kinds of stories come out, and the state does these things, and we hear people calling for a boycott, he said.

On one level, its embarrassing to have to explain why people should come to South Florida and our destination when the state is doing these things.
Palestinians comfort each other after a school sheltering displaced people was hit by an Israeli strike in Gaza City. Photo: Reuters

Hamas has directly criticised US president Joe Biden for saying the militant group is backing away from a ceasefire deal in the Gaza Strip, claiming his comments caused great astonishment and disapproval and demonstrated blind bias towards Israel.
The National Womens Council of Ireland extends its deepest sympathies to the family, friends and loved ones of Nell McCafferty on her death.

We are indebted to Nell. She was unafraid to name injustice where she saw it, and at times she was deeply unpopular for it. But her work paid dividends.

Nell and many others like her helped shape the Ireland we live in  a country more equal and less ashamed, where women are freer to live the lives we deserve.

Nell was the very definition of a fearless feminist, and the positive effect she has had on the lives of women today cannot be overstated. As a founding member of the Irish Womens Liberation Movement, she achieved huge gains for women in the area of equal pay, availability of contraception and supports for lone parents.

Famously, she travelled to Belfast on the contraception train and distributed condoms to the people of Dublin on her return.

As a proud Derry woman and civil rights activist, Nell made sure the conflict and experiences of women in the North were not ignored across the island.

She was a life-long anti-poverty campaigner, and her journalism from the courts revealed a keen understanding of the effects of poverty and inequality on peoples lives.

Her book, A Woman to Blame, on the Kerry Babies case, laid bare the misogyny at the heart of that case, one that became emblematic of the way women were treated in Ireland in the late 20th century.

National Womens Council, Dublin

It makes sense to pay key workers in Dublin more than in rest of the country

Dublin is one of the most successful  and expensive  cities in the world.

Surely it is illogical that a garda, a teacher or a nurse living in Knocknagoshel in west Kerry or Lifford in Co Donegal is paid the same as a counterpart in Dublin?

All other successful capital cities have weighting allowances for key workers, yet all our politicians and unions refuse to acknowledge the need to do anything to attract and retain them.

I believe Dublins future success, both socially and economically, is under threat.

We face a significant breakdown in law and order, more gardai leaving the force than joining, educational standards falling due to a scarcity of teachers, hospitals and nursing homes seriously understaffed and too many of our well-educated and brilliant nurses emigrating.

Paschal Taggart, Rathgar, Dublin 6

Sinead is right  TV has killed the vibe in pubs, just like it did in our homes

I agree with the sentiments expressed by Sinead Ryan about giant TV screens in pubs.

My own bugbear is racing coverage, with the volume vibrating through the foot and punters roaring encouragement at whatever horse is carrying their few bob.

I am reminded of an observation by Dave Allen when TV was just making its presence felt.

He said when you called to visit somebody you were greeted at the door thus: Youre welcome, come in, sit down and ssshh.

Tom Gilsenan, Beaumont, Dublin 9

Well done on the editorial focusing on all those who are suffering in Palestine

Kudos to the Irish Independent for expressing solidarity with people afflicted by the scourges of persecution, violence, hunger, starvation, diseases and armed conflicts (August 19).

Regrettably, World Humanitarian Day this year comes at a time of unspeakable human suffering in Gaza. Hopes for a permanent ceasefire are dim.

The lack of vaccines is bound to produce a generation of children with life-threatening diseases that were consigned to the dustbin of history. Gaza is now a cemetery for children.

Dr Munjed Farid Al Qutob, London

US says it is pushing for a ceasefire in Gaza, but has had zero success to date

US secretary of state Antony Blinken is on his 10th visit to Israel, purportedly pushing for a ceasefire in the conflict with Hamas.

However, one has to wonder if Blinken is genuinely exerting any real pressure on prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Despite the devastation in Gaza, there is little evidence that Netanyahu is feeling any serious repercussions from the US.

The US must take a firm stand. Continuing to fund Israels military operations, which result in the deaths of innocent Palestinians, is unacceptable. By supplying weapons, the US is complicit in the violence.

How can the US not see what the rest of the world clearly views as shameful, inhumane actions that show a total disregard for innocent civilians? The message to Israel should be unequivocal: without an immediate ceasefire, the US will halt all military aid and reconsider its long-standing alliance.

Moreover, the US should no longer use its veto power at the UN to protect Netanyahu from facing the consequences for potential war crimes. Shielding him from accountability only encourages further atrocities.

Jessica Toal, Belfast

Government postponing tax to ease the housing crisis speaks volumes

The decision to postpone the implementation of the Residential Zoned Land Tax is not only disappointing, it also contradicts the Governments assertion that the housing crisis is the most pressing issue of our time.

This modest initiative has yet to generate any revenue, with not a single cent collected.

Meanwhile, those Machiavellian actors with the power to influence policy continue to sit on their properties, artificially inflating prices while homeless numbers are at record levels, those paying exorbitant rents cannot afford to buy, house prices have exceeded Celtic Tiger levels and a generation of young people are stuck in their parents homes.

While it is important to acknowledge that active farmland should not have been included in this measure, surely a tweaking of the legislation through a statutory instrument could have achieved the aim of protecting genuine farmers.

One cannot help but suspect that the deferment of its implementation is more about appeasing wealthy developers and speculators than genuinely protecting farmers.

This reluctance to act sends a troubling message about government priorities, undermining efforts to address the urgent housing crisis.

Thomas OConnor, Crumlin, Dublin 12
Music loving Professor Luke O'Neill is also in a band, The Metabollix. Photo: Ruth Medjber

Music festival season is still in full swing, with Sounds from a Safe Harbour, District X, Clonakilty International Guitar Festival and Westport Festival of Chamber Music yet to come.

This trio spotlights music as an art form, solace, and as a mirror.

Music as therapy is as long established as it is fascinating, and Dervishs Shane Mitchell and psychologist Shane Martin explore its many nuances in the Music and the Mind Podcast (Apple, Spotify).

Each episode investigates a set theme, such as Music and Dementia (with Liz Ryan who sings at the National Concert Halls popular dementia friendly Tea Dance Tunes series); Music and Flow (fiddler Martin Hayes and psychologist Dr Jolanta Burke discuss what happens when musicians experience flow state); Music and Identity (IADT lecturer Dr Michael Murphy deep dives into Irish music history); Music and Resilience (music therapist Dr Katie Fitzpatrick explains its physical and psychological effect on chronic pain and recovery).

There are also My Life in Music episodes in which well-known guests (so far Adrian Dunbar and Luke ONeill) shuffle through their favourite tunes at key moments in their lives.

The long-running Private Passions (Apple, Spotify, BBC Sounds) also frames music as memoir. Its a classy, cerebral BBC Radio 3 production in which musicians, scholars, scientists, chefs, artists, activists and creatives thumb through their music collections and share autobiographical notations in the process.

Author Raynor Winn is an interesting guest on 'Private Passions'

Theres a wealth of authors here, from across the genres  thriller queen Val McDermid, time travelling David Mitchell, and memoirist Raynor Winn, who, in 2018s The Salt Path exquisitely detailed how being made homeless prompted she and her husband, suffering from a rare neurodegenerative disease, on a 1,010km walk around Britains south west coast.

Theyve been long-distance walking (and nature writing) ever since, with pastoral folk, Vaughan Williams, Schubert and Britten keeping them company. Composer Michael Berkeley is the refined host  a godson of the aforementioned Benjamin Britten.

Noel Gallagher  and even Liams son Gene  has been on the interview trail this summer, marking the 30th anniversary of Oasiss debut album Definitely Maybe. The sparring Gallagher brothers remain tight-lipped about a reunion; in the meantime Jo Whiley and Steve Lamacqs The Rise and Fall of Oasis (Apple, Spotify, BBC Sounds) is a nostalgic romp through the bands songs, swagger and legacy.
Cork star Ciara O'Sullivan pictured with Camogie fans Lelia Coleman, Kate Coleman, Isobelle O'Keeffe, Andrea O'Connor and Megan Coleman on the visit of the O'Duffy Cup to Millstreet. Picture John Tarrant

Cork star Ciara O'Sullivan and the O'Duffy Cup with members of the Coleman family, John, Mary, Emma, Nicola and Patrick. Picture John Tarrant

Lucy Kiely pictured with Cork star Ciara O'Sullivan and the visit of the O'Duffy Cup in Millstreet. Picture John Tarrant

Jereniah and Liam Buckley, Rathcoole in the company of the O'Duffy Cup in Millstreet. All photos by John Tarrant.

A prized piece of silverware received a warm welcome to Millstreet this week with the visit of the ODuffy Cup.

The visit came came after a fantastic double by the Cork ladies in Croke Park where they won both the All Ireland Intermediate and Senior Camogie titles.

A familiar face in Millstreet this summer was Ciara OSullivan, part of the triumphant Cork Senior squad that defeated Galway in the decider. The Newcestown native took up a position at the popular Colemans business at a time her sporting career was blossoming after overcoming serious injury.

Having finished my finance degree at UCC, Ive come to Colemans for the summer months before commencing a graduate programme at KPMG in October. Im really enjoying my work in Millstreet and to bring the ODuffy Cup is special, said Ciara.

The skillful player is no stranger to All Ireland glory, helping Cork to win two All Ireland Minor Camogie titles in addition to being part of a successful county winning Newcestown Intermediate team.

Drafted into the Cork senior panel in 2021, the rebelletes reached back to back All Ireland only to incur defeats to Galway and Kilkenny. There was further disappointment for one of Corks brightest talents as she was hit with an anterior cruciate ligament injury in early 2023.

I did my ACL in the Ashbourne University tournament in February last year and that meant I missed out on playing when Cork won the All-Ireland final last year and I also missed the club action. It was great to return this year, to be involved in the actual set up, said Ciara.

Clearly, Cork Camogie fans are numerous in Millstreet with Ciara taking the time to greet fans both young and old with the glittering trophy. She also happily posed for photographs and signed jerseys and hurleys. She also had timely advice for the young people out there:

Whatever you want to do in life, whether its sport, music or any other pursuit, go at it, leave no stone unturned and you will value the involvement.
11 vacant pubs are set to be redeveloped to create nearly 30 new homes in Cork city and county.

The redevelopment is being undertaken under new government initiatives aimed at tackling vacancy, increasing housing supply and rejuvenating urban areas.

Planning exemptions introduced in 2018, removed the requirement for planning permission for the conversion of certain types of vacant commercial property into residential units.

In 2022, the exemption was extended to allow vacant pubs to be converted into homes.

In 2022 and 2023, 11 notifications relating to pubs were received by Cork City Council and Cork County Council combined with the intention to create 30 new homes.

The Minister of State at the Department of Health, Colm Burke welcomed the news. Converting empty buildings into new homes for people in Cork is a crucial pillar of Housing for All. These figures demonstrate that policies easing the planning process for converting unoccupied commercial premises, including pubs, into residential use are effectively increasing housing supply, reducing vacancy, and rejuvenating urban areas across Cork.

Minister Burke who is a Fine Gael TD in the Cork North Central constituency said reviving vacant properties can serve as a powerful catalyst for communities. During my visits to communities in Cork, Ive witnessed firsthand the transformation of vacant pubs into vibrant apartments, bringing life back to neighbourhoods.

Streamlining these exemptions and simplifying the conversion of commercial buildings into high-quality homes is not just practical, it is essential to ensure the vibrancy of our local communities. Reviving vacant and derelict properties can serve as a powerful catalyst for regeneration, breathing new energy into Cork communities, he added.

Minister Burke continued: With additional government initiatives like the enhanced resources for local authorities' Vacant Homes Offices, the Repair and Lease Scheme, and the Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant, which offers up to 70,000 to transform a vacant property into a permanent home, we are not just building houses; we are building futures.
HIQA inspection report highlighted urgent concerns over staffing levels and care

The HIQA inspection was carried out on March 6 this year. Stock image: Getty

A nursing home resident in Swords had just two showers in one month due to lack of staff, according to a new report published today.

Tara Winthrop Private Clinic, Pinnock Hill, Swords, Co Dublin, had an unannounced inspection by The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) on March 6 this year.

The centre is made up of five units with a capacity of 140 beds, of which 112 are en-suite bedrooms. There were 120 residents on the date of the HIQA inspection.

It highlighted that residents werent getting showered enough as per the requirements in their care plans, with one resident not receiving a shower since 22 February 2024.

Other problems highlighted in the report included residents with injuries and illnesses not being monitored and cared for, laundry going missing and little activities for residents.

While residents were complimentary of individual staff members, they expressed concerns with the level of care provided and activities available at the centre.

According to the HIQA report, residents told inspectors they would like to be able to shower more frequently and would like more things to do on a day-to-day basis.

Residents expressed frustration with the ongoing limited access to showers, their access to showers was not informed by personal choice but by staffing routines and numbers, the report said.

Inspectors were also told that staff were a bit rushed, especially in the morning, and although they would like a shower every 2 to 3 days this was not always possible.

The report said that one particular resident, whose care plan stated likes a shower every 3 to 4 days, had just two recorded showers in the month of February.

Another resident told inspectors they had been left sitting in wet continence wear for two hours, as staff had more urgent people to see to.

The report also stated that residents had to wait for prolonged periods of time before they received the care they required.

Other examples highlighted in the report where care fell below the standard required included:

Residents admitted for respite care following limb fractures were not having their fractured limb checked for colour, warmth and sensation on a routine basis. This is a repeat finding from a previous inspection.

A resident required to use a reserved shower room to reduce the risk of spreading infections. However, this was not detailed.

A resident who had sustained a fall and bruising to the head did not have a care plan to monitor the bruising.

A resident who had broken skin needed to be repositioned every two hours. However, records reviewed did not show the resident received this level of care.

A resident was assessed as needing a comfort chair by occupational therapy (OT) following recent surgery. However, there was no record of the OT assessment available.

Residents admitted with fractures were not routinely assessed for pain and it was unclear if the medication prescribed was effective.

Where a resident was assessed as needing one-to-one supervision, this care was not provided. For example, one resident required one to one supervision (additional funding was evident) but didnt have the supervision arrangements in place.

Some residents spoken with during the HIQA inspection said the days are repetitive, as theyve to spend a lot of time watching TV and that there isn't much to do.

In February, residents expressed their wish was for outdoor trips and activities such as afternoon tea and cupcakes with their loved ones.

Inspectors observed an undue reliance on television and background music in lieu of interesting and meaningful activities for residents.

In the absence of staff, due to vacant posts or staff leave, there was no system in place to ensure residents had access to activities, the report said.

Some residents also reported that staff are kind and caring, but there can be communication difficulties due to a language barrier.

They also reported that staff sometimes communicate in their first language while providing care, excluding residents from the conversation.

Following day two of the HIQA inspection, inspectors issued an urgent compliance plan in relation to staffing needs and delivery of care.

In a response submitted to HIQA, the registered provider gave assurances that the centre has sufficient staff and resources to deliver care to all its residents

As of May 31 this year, all residents had their care plan reviewed and updated with the resident preferences on their shower frequency.

Residents are receiving shower as per the care plan. This is monitored on a daily basis by the clinical nurse managers.

A spokesperson for Tara Winthrop Private Clinic said a significant amount of progress that has been made since this inspection in March.

Our care home, like many in the industry, is still recovering from the long-term impacts of Covid-19.

Were committed to the long-term security, welfare, and comfort of our residents and therefore we have invested heavily, and will continue to invest in quality staffing, and facilities to help improve the quality of care and physical environment and to ensure Tara Winthrop succeeds as our sector still recovers.

Since this inspection, we have already seen significant progress made following investment and diligent work, which we believe will be reflected in future inspections and reporting.

Over the last 24 months, we have diligently been rebuilding following this unprecedented period.

This includes the hiring of almost 30 new, and experienced healthcare assistants and nursing staff, as well as an investment of 490,000 over three years with a further 80K allocated for investment by the end of the year.

We have also refocused our efforts on driving quality of care across every area of our home, including ensuring that each resident has a tailored care plan that supports their individual needs.

The team at Tara Winthrop is dedicated to giving our residents excellent person-centred care, and we are continuously working, not just to meet all current and new regulatory requirements, but more importantly to ensure a safe, bright, clean, and comfortable home for our residents.
A popular Dublin dining spot and karaoke bar has announced its immediate closure, warning that unless the Government gets off its hands and helps, it wont be the last.

Ukiyo restaurant opened on Exchequer Street in Dublin in 2004 and quickly became a popular spot in the citys nightlife scene, known for its transformation into a karaoke and late-night bar.

Duncan Maguire opened Ukiyo in 2004 and was soon joined by his wife, Lou Leahy, who between them run the restaurant for over 20 years.

The news comes as another blow to the citys hospitality industry, with celebrity chef Dylan McGrath announcing last week the immediate closure of two of his restaurants, Brasserie Sixty6 and Rustic Stone.

In a statement on Instagram, the owners of Ukiyo expressed immense sadness in announcing the closure.

We want to especially thank all our amazing and loyal staff, both past and present, for all they have contributed to building the legend that is Ukiyo, they said.

Ukiyo would not have been the same without our DJs, who brought their incredible record collections, and our suppliers and tradespeople, who supported and stuck by us over the last two decades.

Our biggest thank you is reserved, of course, for our customers, who returned time after time for our special brand of hospitality and good times.

They cited the trials and tribulations theyve faced as a business, such as the pandemic and the stock market crash, along with other bumps along the road.

Ukiyo, a japenese restaurant and karaoke bar, opened in 2004

However, they claimed the final straw for them has been the margins in their business, which they say are so meagre.

There is no future for us and so many more of our fellow businesses, they said.

We have tried everything and given everything to this business, but unless the Government gets off its hands and helps the hospitality sector, we will certainly not be the last.

Three more of our neighbours closed last week. We are all within fifty metres of each other, all respected, long-established, and highly regarded on one of Dublins busiest thoroughfares.

"If this is not direct evidence of a systemic decline in our industry and in our immediate urban fabric, then I dont know what is.

Tourism and hospitality are the lifeblood of employment in our communities, towns, and cities. If the Government acts now, maybe more of our colleagues will keep their jobs and their businesses.

To do nothing will mean the death of our industry and a huge blow to the Cead Mile Failte that we extend to Irelands visitors every year.

We will always have our memories to share, and we wish long life to the countless romances, engagements, weddings, and few babies that were born along the way. This is the end for now, but we will hopefully see you all again, further on down the road.

The Restaurants Association of Ireland (RAI) has been campaigning for increased support for hospitality businesses, with an average of two restaurants, cafes, and other food-led businesses continuing to close each day across the country.

Businesses in the hospitality sector are calling on the Government to reinstate the 9pc VAT rate on food, which was raised to 13.5pc last year.
James Blunt plays Collins Barracks in Dublin on Saturday, August 24

UK singer-songwriter James Blunt brings his self-deprecating sense of humour to the stage at Collins Barracks in Dublin this Saturday, August 24.

Shortly after leaving the army in 2002, Blunt released the biggest-selling album of the decade in the UK, Back To Bedlam, which sold over 12 million copies.

He also released a further succession of hit albums and a brace of huge singles including 1973, Stay The Night, Bonfire Heart and OK.

Heres everything you need to know ahead of his Dublin gig:

Are there any tickets left?

There are still some tickets left on singularartists.ie at 69.99.

Who is the opening act?

Blunt will be joined by special guest, Belfast multi-instrumentalist Gareth Dunlop.

What songs will he play?

Based on previous gigs, heres what James could play:

Beside You

Saving a Life

Wisemen

Carry You Home

All the Love That I Ever Needed

Dark Thought

Goodbye My Lover

The Girl That Never Was

High

Love Under Pressure

Postcards

I Won't Die With You

Coz I Luv You

You're Beautiful

Same Mistake

Stay the Night

OK

Encore:

Monsters

Bonfire Heart

1973

How do I get to the venue?

You can get the Red Line Luas to the Museum stop which is beside the venue. You can also get the 26 bus going towards Liffey Valley or the 69 bus from Aston Quay, going towards Rathcoole.

Will there be parking?

There is no parking on site for this event with adjacent roads closed. Its urged that you travel by public transport where possible.

How do I enter the venue?

Entry to each event is through Liffey Street West.

When will gates open?

Gates for all shows open at 6pm.

What should I have ready?

You should have your ID and your ticket ready before entering. You should also expect to be searched, all bags must be A4 size or smaller.

What time will gigs finish at?

The bars for all shows will close at 10pm. Concerts will finish no later than 10.30pm.

What items are prohibited?

The following items are banned from all concerts.

Fireworks, chinese lanterns, flares and high-power torches

Alcohol or drugs

Animals (except guide dogs) are not allowed

Anything which could be considered an offensive weapon

Laser pens

Professional photographic equipment

Selfie sticks

Umbrellas

High-vis clothing

Bicycles

Will the shows be accessible?

All shows are fully standing this year, however if you or a member of your group need seats or any accessibility assistant, you should contact organisers before the show to arrange access at hello@singularartists.ie.
Killarney-based Meabh de Brun who is nominated for an award for her radio play

Meabh de Brun, who is based in Killarney is a finalist in the 17th Writers Guild of Ireland (WGI) Zebbie Awards.

The award-winning actor, playwright and writer is a finalist in the Best Radio & Audio Drama Script category for her radio play High Spirits, which was broadcast on Near FM.

High Spirits, which de Brun also performed in, is a dark comedy in which three siblings and one in-law gather after a patriarchs burial to honour his unusual wishes.

Despite a tumultuous year for the arts last year, with strikes, cutbacks and the erosion of opportunities for emerging talent, an exceptionally high standard of writing is reflected throughout this years nominations, with other nominees including Christine Molloy & Joe Lawlor who wrote the highly acclaimed feature film Baltimore.

The awards ceremony, which will be presented by Tara Flynn, will take place on Tuesday, September 3 at The Sugar Club in Dublin, and Cork.

This years Zebbie Awards will also present former Senator David Norris,

The Zebbie Awards celebrate the best of Irish writing in Theatre, Television Drama, Continuing Drama, Short Film, Feature Film, Radio and Animation. Only WGI members can read the nominated scripts and vote in the awards.

They are named in honour of O.Z. Zebby Whitehead, a Broadway and Hollywood actor who was a great supporter of theatre and writing in Ireland after he moved to Dublin in 1963.

This years awards take place as the Writers Guild of Ireland celebrates its Emerald Anniversary, marking 55 years since it was first established as the Society of Playwrights in Ireland.

As part of its Emerald celebrations, the WGI will be hosting the World Conference of Screenwriters 2024 in Galway this October, where over two hundred screenwriters from all across the world will gather to discuss their craft and their industry.

The WGI, which campaigns for rights, remuneration, more control of work and better recognition for its members, represents over 400 Irish writers for film, television, theatre, radio, animation and games.
There is growing concern among anglers in County Kerry regarding the escape of up to 30,000 farmed salmon at Rosroe in Killary Harbour, County Galway, earlier this month.

Anglers in Kerry say the large scale escape could pose a serious risk to salmon genetics if they interbreed with wild stocks.

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) is said to have been notified on August 13th that there had been an escape of salmon close to Galway Harbour.

Damage to a cage or net is allegedly the cause of the escape. Salmon farm proprietors are requested to notify the Department of Marine, and Inland Fisheries Ireland, within 24 hours when an escape happens

Brendan Danaher is the PRO of Mountcollins and Brosna Anglers. He insists that if the fish enter rivers and begin interbreeding, it will have a detrimental impact on wild stocks in prime angling locations in the county and elsewhere.

While it is not certain the fish will impact Kerry rivers, it raises wider concern among anglers regarding the regulations and safety surrounding the salmon farm industry in general.

When contacted by The Kerryman, Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) said it believes the escaped salmon from Killary Harbour pose a significant risk to wild Atlantic salmon populations in Galway and Mayo currently.

It is possible that these fish can swim into neighbouring counties over time. IFI understands a very significant number of farmed salmon are now in the marine environment in the Killary Harbour area, said an IFI spokesperson.

The IFI has also made contact with local fishery owners and angling clubs regarding the incident.

We continue to monitor for any escaped fish at local rivers in Galway, and at our research trapping facilities in the National Salmonid Index Catchment, River Erriff. Identification of these farmed salmon mixing among wild stocks can be challenging due to the lack of clear markers identifying farmed fish.

Salmon Watch Ireland is requesting that the Marine Institute issue a statement regarding the escape in Killary Harbour, and the health status of the farmed salmon that escaped into the wild.

We are particularly interested to ascertain if these fish pose a risk to human health as anecdotal reports indicate that a significant number of these fish are being caught and some consumed, it said.

Salmon Watch Ireland also sought a response from the Health Service Authority, BIM and the Food Safety Authority.
Mo Chara won the award for Best Craft Bar at the 2024 Bar of the Year Awards

The popular Mo Chara bar in Dundalk, Co Louth won a coveted national award at the 2024 Bar of the Year Awards when they were named as Craft Bar of the Year.

The winners were announced on Monday, August 19 at a gala awards ceremony hosted by Anton Savage at the Clayton Hotel, Burlington Road.

Mo Chara were named as the gold winner, ahead of Revolution Craft Beer & Whiskey Bar, Co. Waterford and Treaty City Brewery, Co. Limerick.

The overall Bar of the Year Award went to Paladar in Cork won for the second time at the ceremony, taking top spot in a competition that saw over 700 submissions entered and only the best bars being shortlisted as finalists.

Winning Craft Bar of the Year is a major achievement for friends Paul Kelly, Vino Mulligan and Cillian Mulligan who launched Mo Chara in the former Century Bar, Roden Place almost three years ago.

Since then they have established it as part of the community in Dundalk, hosting regular music and arts events, doing collaborations with local and visiting chefs, and launching their own beer.

Their fame has spread far and wide and recently they were invited by Moglaibag of Kneecap to bring their Mos Lager stubbies to Belfast for the unveiling of the mural unveiling beside the Hawthorn Bar in aid of Palestine
The Dundalk cafe visited by US president Joe Biden during his trip to Ireland in April last year has ceased trading, with owners blaming rising costs for the tough decision to close the doors of the popular Clanbrassil Street establishment.

In a heartfelt post on social media, owners Jerome McAteer and Bobby Wain of McAteers The Foodhouse and Catering and said: It has been a difficult few years (as it has been for everyone else) and has become harder by the day to keep the ship afloat. Brexit did not help and Covid changed so much.

They said that the challenges facing the hospitality industry, such as high food costs, rising energy bills, packaging and just basic supplies, together with this Governments insistence on keeping the Vat rate at 13.5pc instead of 9pc and all the extras they have thrown onto the small employer, has made it impossible for us to continue trading.

They said that as much as they would love to stay open, there is only so much they can charge for a sandwich before it becomes a total rip-off to customers.

As it stands, the way we like to run our business, means our current revenue is falling short to keep the doors open. So we have decided to close before the waters get too rough.

The dog-loving couple said that theyd had a brilliant 15 years during which time they met so many fantastic people and dogs and it is because of this that they shall be eternally grateful.

"We would like to sincerely thank each and everyone of you, whether you are an old regular, a current regular or just an occasional customer for spending your hard-earned money here in McAteers. We feel the shop was like its own little community and had become a safe space where many of you felt comfortable to come into. We certainly hope this was the case.

Jerome McAteer, McAteer's Food House introduces some of his staff to President Joe Biden and Tanaiste Micheal Martin.

The cafe had earned a well-deserved reputation for being dog-friendly and Mr McAteer wrote that probably the thing myself and Bob are most proud off is helping to create a positive and loving environment to all our beloved dogs. I hope we have been able to show that they really are mans best friend and that once they are well behaved, sitting with you in any cafe/ bar etc should be the norm.

"Being able to shine a light on all the great work that Dundalk Dog Rescue, the amazing volunteers do, has also given us great pleasure and even though we wont be here any longer, the two of us shall continue to fight their corner, he said.

The craic and laughs we have had over the past 15 years have made it all worthwhile

They thanked all their fellow traders and local businesses in the town who always supported them, especially those on Clanbrassil Street in Dundalk.

Their biggest thank you was to their wonderful staff, whom they described as their own little family.

Like any family, there have been a few arguments along the way, but they have been few and far between. The craic and laughs we have had over the past 15 years have made it all worthwhile. We have always had each others backs, and myself and Bob are just gutted that we cant have your backs this one last time. We love you all and wish you nothing but good health and happiness in the future.

Signing off, Mr McAteer said that theyd had an absolute blast and will be grateful to their dying day to the people of Dundalk and all the surrounding areas for "always being so kind to us and allowing us to spend such a long time on the greatest street in the country.

Speaking last year about the preparations for the visit of Mr Biden, Mr Wain said: We had the Secret Service and the gardai coming in, and were locked down for two days. We left the building on Monday night with the gardai here with their sniffer dogs and snipers on the roof. Then we were locked in here for six or seven hours before he arrived. It was all so surreal.The dog-loving US president, the first to have a rescue dog in the White House, immediately struck a bond with the cafe owners.

He grabbed the two of us and gave us the biggest bear hug. He came down into the restaurant and was talking about family and dogs, said Mr Wain. We told him how we had raised 25,000 at our wedding and he was blown away by that. He couldnt believe that the people of the town had given 550,000 in total to build a (dog) rescue centre.

Mr Biden spent over 20 minutes in the deli and restaurant, happily chatting with staff and posing for photos.

His team were trying to get him to leave, but he just kept talking and walked down the back to look at our wall of dog photos, Mr Wain added.

"He hugged our two staff members who have special needs, Conor Halpenny from Louth village and Einri McMahon from the Point Road, and got his photo taken with them.

While much of their conversation was about dogs, Mr Wain also took the opportunity to tell Mr Biden that Dundalk was multi-cultural town that welcomed people from many countries.

Wanting to give the President a personal gift to mark his visit to their restaurant, he presented him with a gold medal won by his grandfather Jim Beckett, who was one of Irelands top swimmers and athletes.

US president Joe Biden visits McAteer's while on a walkabout through Dundalk. Photo: PA

Its an 18-caret gold medal and I just felt it was something beautiful to give him. He said hes going to keep it in a display case in the Oval Office and share its story and then send it back to me when his presidency is over.

For staff member Patricia Moriarty, the Presidents visit was particularly special as she grew up in the US and is an American citizen.

"He was fantastic. Hes just lovely and we had the best of time. It was such great craic, she said of his visit. We knew for two weeks that he was coming and were very lucky that we were picked.

The news that the much-loved cafe, which also included a deli, gift and homewares section, as well as outside catering, has closed has been greeted with sadness by customers and fellow traders, many of whom have shared their memories of visiting it down the years.

The Dundalk Business Improvement District Scheme (Bids) team wrote you will be missed so much, guys, because your contribution to Clanbrassil Street has been so much more than you will ever give yourselves credit for, the street will be lonely without you there!!! We have enjoyed getting to know you and wish you happiness in your future endeavours.

The owners of the Spirit Store music venue wrote: To our good friends in McAteers The Food House & Catering, there are no words that can express our deep sadness at hearing this news. We are just gutted for you both, and for your wonderful staff. The community you helped to foster on Clanbrassil Street will feel a great loss today, and Dundalk town will be the poorer for it.

Ryan Tubridy with Jerome McAteer at the cafe. Photo: Facebook/The Food House

"As a fellow business owner in the town, I understand and feel every word you've written, Grainne Wynne wrote. the hospitality sector is on its knees and unfortunately the Government wont realise or care until they are at home making their own lunch and cutting their own hair. A difficult decision to make but now that its done, focus on the good you have done, the happy memories you have helped create over the years and the stamp that you have left on our town. Go with your heads held high and be proud of all you have achieved.

The team at Byrnes Chemist on Church Street said they were absolutely gutted to hear this sad news. You guys were the heart of the street. You will be sadly missed by everyone. Thanks so much for all the great food and more importantly all the chats and laughs.

Bobby Wain with US president Joe Biden in the much-loved cafe

"So so sad to read this, another fabulous business gone from the town something has to be done to help small businesses; the council rates alone are crippling. We wish you guys the very best in the future and you will be sorely missed, said The Study Academy.

This is the third such business in the Co Louth to announce that it is closing its doors in recent weeks, following on from the closure of The Townhouse Bar and Restaurant and The Coffee Corner.
Louth Vounteer Centre are calling on members of the pubic to nominatee local volunteers for the Volunteer Ireland Awards

The Louth Volunteer Centre are asking people to nominate local volunteers for the 2024 Volunteer Ireland Awards.

The awards take place annually and celebrate the immense contribution volunteers make to communities across Ireland,

Louth has a strong community spirit and people volunteer in large numbers. We have a proud history of Louth volunteers being selected as finalists in various categories and have had a few deserving winners over the years,. Louth Volunteer Centre Manager Kayleigh Mulligan said. It is important that the commitment of local volunteers is recognised and rewarded, so we would strongly encourage the public to nominate someone that makes a difference in the local community.

The awards are open for nominations in eleven categories: arts, culture and festivals; campaigning and activism; children and youth; environmental and animal care; health and wellbeing ; safety and emergency services; social inclusion and community support; sports and recreation; small group (3-19 volunteers); large group (20+ volunteers); and volunteer manager

Aside from the awards handed out on the night, every single volunteer that is nominated will receive a special thank you card from Volunteer Ireland.

Louths very own volunteers Michael Butler, Freda Carville and Colleen Hardy, made the national shortlist in 2023 in the Arts, Culture & Festivals categories so it would be wonderful if the wee county could be so well represented again this year!

Louth Volunteer Centre brings Co. Louth together by offering equal opportunities to all sections of the community to participate in meaningful voluntary activity. Louth Volunteer Centre provides a placement service between individuals and groups who want to undertake voluntary activity and organisations that are seeking to involve volunteers. They match individuals and groups interested in volunteering with appropriate opportunities. They offer advice and support to both volunteers and organisations through a range of services including information, consultation, training and Garda Vetting.

They believe passionately in the value and benefits of volunteering for all: the individual, the organisation and wider society. Volunteers contribute to community development, active citizenship and social capital.

Louth Volunteer Centre recently marked its 20th Anniversary with an exhibition and launch in the Highlanes Gallery in Drogheda. The event was attended by Minister Heather Humphries, the team and board of Louth Volunteer Centre and a range of stakeholders from the community in Louth.
Wicklow teacher Gillian Porter with Vhaina Mahweta (51), a farmer and mother-of-six living in the drought-affected Mwenezi region of Zimbabwe. Photo: Christian Aid/Lisa Fagan

Wicklow teacher Gillian Porter with widowed grandmother Loveness Chapano and grandsons, Liberty (7) and Litzani (5), outside their newly built home in Ndiyadzo village in the Chipinge region of Zimbabwe. Photo: Christian Aid/Lisa Fagan

A Wicklow school teacher who recently returned from Zimbabwe has praised the life-changing difference made by Christian Aid in helping drought-affected regions of the southern African nation.

Gillian Porter, who teaches at St Brigids National School in Annacurra and lives near Clonegal, visited the drought-affected Mwenezi region where Christian Aid is helping farmers survive by planting sesame, which is naturally drought-tolerant because it puts down a three-metre root that reaches damp soil below the surface.

During her ten days in July visiting projects supported by Christian Aid Ireland, Gillian met people struggling with extreme poverty and the impact of living on the front-line of the climate crisis.

Christian Aids local partner Sustainable Agriculture Technology is helping almost 4,000 small-scale farmers in the region to survive drought and other climate shocks. Vhaina Mahweta, aged 51, is one of the farmers who joined the project and received sesame seeds.

We planted all our seeds as usual, but the rains have been poor and some of the sesame received no rain at all after planting, Vhaina said.

All our other crops perished, but the sesame germinated and produced seed for us to sell. The sesame is helping us to survive the drought. I use the income to buy food and pay school fees for my children.

The project also includes a processing plant to clean the seed and make more products to sell, such as sesame oil, while a cooperative allows growers to reach new markets and fetch a higher price for their harvest.

After leaving Mwenezi, Gillian travelled to the Chipinge region in the east of the country to meet a widowed grandmother who received a new home thanks to funding from Christian Aid after Cyclone Idai destroyed their previous home in 2019.

Loveness Chapano, who has been the sole carer for six of her grandchildren since their mother died, is among more than 150 families whose homes were repaired or rebuilt following Idai, one of the worst tropical cyclones ever to make landfall in the southern hemisphere.

My new home is made from concrete and steel, so its strong enough to survive any more cyclones, Loveness commented.

We feel safe now. We are happy here.

Gillian lives with her husband Ray near Clonegal, County Carlow, and attends St Fiaacs Church of Ireland in Clonegal.

She supports Christian Aid Ireland with her donations and by organising an annual sponsored walk which sets off from St Fiaacs Church to raise funds for the charitys work, with Gillian and the other supporters who travelled to Zimbabwe covering the cost of their trip.

Reflecting on her experience, Gillian said: It was a privilege to visit the beautiful country of Zimbabwe and to meet people coping with the devastating impact of drought and cyclones.

I was pleased to see how the donations made to Christian Aid by ordinary people are helping farmers like Vhaina to make a living, growing sesame and how Loveness and her grandchildren are now safe in their new home.
Wicklow Social Democrats TD Jennifer Whitmore has said the Government missed the opportunity to prevent the addresses of politicians and their families from being made public in advance of the recent local elections, and has warned action needs to be taken urgently as a general election looms.

In February this year, in response to the growing concern among people in politics about their safety, Deputy Whitmore brought a bill forward to remove the need for candidates to have their addresses on the ballot paper.

In the Electoral (Home Address of Candidates) Bill 2024, she urged the Government not just to allow this bill pass through to second stage but to actually champion it so that it is available to all candidates as we head into a year of elections.

In light of a spate of threats recently against elected representatives, including Wicklow Taoiseach Simon Harris, Deputy Whitmore said the bill was a missed opportunity and asked why the Government have not dealt with this aspect of risk.

Some 60 TDs and senators recently admitted they have had threats made against them, with the threats ranging from being threatened with a gun, to a threat of being hanged. In an Irish Independent survey of 218 politicians earlier this month, it found that, of the 67 who responded, 60 had received threats online or in person and 52 of those had reported that threat to gardai or sought their advice.

The loss of privacy and safety is an urgent concern for election candidates and that was the reason I introduced the Electoral (Home Address of Candidates) Bill 2024, she said.

"The bill ends the publication of candidates' addresses on public electoral documents, including nomination, ballot, and postal ballots and the need for this bill is, unfortunately, a stark reflection of the times we live in.

Since I introduced the bill, the Dail government has regrettably remained inactive on this critical issue, which is deeply disappointing and frustrating. As seen in the recent local elections, candidates' addresses are still printed on the ballot, a situation that can be extremely distressing for candidates.

"The realisation that their home and their family's home details are being made so publicly available is a source of great concern, especially in our current times. There is no valid reason for this to continue, and concerns about voters being able to identify the locality of the candidates can be addressed in other ways, she continued.

Currently, a candidate for election is required to publish an address on both nomination papers and ballot papers, which the deputy said is tantamount to invasion of privacy because it is not just the privacy of the candidate but also the privacy of his or her children, partner and perhaps parents.

Recent reports and comments from government officials about the increased risk of the targeting of politicians homes have added to these concerns, she said.

The landscape has changed considerably in recent years, with threats against those running for public office and elected representatives becoming more frequent and increasingly sinister. They range from aggressive protests outside their homes to damage to property.

There is also a growing public awareness of the gendered nature of the abuse, with online attacks on female politicians often being highly sexualised. If we are to foster a more inclusive political landscape, we must do everything in our power to protect all candidates, especially those from underrepresented groups. Members of our migrant communities might also be deterred from running for public office if they are required to publish their addresses for fear of being targeted by far-right elements.

This is an urgent issue that must be tackled head on by Government. The ramifications of not doing so are unimaginable, she concluded.
A teaser clip for a drama about the bombshell Newsnight interview with the Duke of York has been released.

A Very Royal Scandal will dramatise journalist Emily Maitliss scrutiny of Andrew over his relationship with the convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

The three-episode Prime Video series sees former BBC journalist Maitlis played by Mrs Wilson actress Ruth Wilson, and Good Omens actor Michael Sheen as the duke.

In a teaser shown at the Edinburgh TV Festival on Thursday, Sheens character asks Maitlis (Ruth Wilson) to question him on his defence to accusations from Virginia Giuffre that they had sex.

Ruth Wilson as Emily Maitlis (Prime Video/PA)

It begins with the duke being thanked for the interview, before The Thick Of It star Joanna Scanlan, as Andrews ex-private secretary Amanda Thirsk, runs over to prompt him that there needs to be a discussion about the alibis.

Scanlan says: Sir, the alibis, you didnt mention those.

Sheen then tells Wilson: You didnt ask me about my alibis as discussed the sweating, and Pizza Express.

Wilson says that they will absolutely do it now, before they resume the interview.

The cameras and recordings are checked before filming is resumed, and the clip ends.

The disastrous Newsnight grilling in 2019 saw Andrew responding to Ms Giuffre claiming one alleged encounter began with the duke sweating heavily as they danced at London nightclub Tramp.

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But Andrew told Maitlis he had a medical condition at the time which meant he did not sweat, and that he had no recollection of ever meeting Ms Giuffre.

He also insisted he spent the day taking one of his daughters to the Pizza Express in Woking for a party.

Andrew has strongly denied the allegations about him, and settled his US sexual assault case out of court with no admission of guilt.

Maitlis, who left Newsnight to host The News Agents podcast with fellow former BBC journalists Jon Sopel and Lewis Goodall, is an executive producer on the Prime Video show.

Netflix released a film called Scoop, with the work of Newsnight producer Sam McAlister, earlier this year about the same interview.

It starred Doctor Who actress Billie Piper as McAlister, Rufus Sewell as Andrew and Gillian Anderson as Maitlis.

A Very Royal Scandal will premiere on September 19 exclusively on Prime Video in the UK, US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
Not long after the BBC took Gary Lineker off air for comparing UK government rhetoric on migrants to that of Nazi Germany, footage emerged of him appearing to anoint Jermaine Jenas as his successor on Match of the Day.
Ex-footballer and Match of the Day presenter Jermaine Jenas has been sacked from presenting The One Show and the football programme on the BBC.

The former England and Tottenham midfielder has been axed from the corporation amid reports he was the subject of complaints over inappropriate behaviour.

He has presented a number of flagship programmes for the UKs national broadcaster, and has worked on some of the biggest sporting events, including the 2024 Euros.

The former Spurs midfielder had been touted by some as a long-term replacement for Gary Lineker.

The 41-year-old has been removed from the BBC One evening programme following an internal investigation by the corporation because of alleged complaints about his behaviour, The Sun has reported.

A BBC spokesperson said: "We can confirm that he is no longer part of our presenting line-up."

He has not presented The One Show, where he was made a permanent co-host in 2021, since July 22 when it took a two-week break for the Olympics.

Jenas moved into television punditry early, when he was unable to recover from a knee injury, and has consistently worked across a number of media outlets, as well as the BBC, including TNT Sports.

The former England international has yet to address his sacking  in a bizarre twist, the 41-year-old was a surprise presenter on talkSPORTs Drive programme alongside Jermaine Pennant on Thursday afternoon as news of his departure from the BBC broke.

It has also been claimed that Jenas has been dropped by agent MC Saatchi, with his page no longer available on the companys website.

As well as playing for England, he also played for Tottenham Hotspur for eight years between 2005 and 2013 after signing from Newcastle United.

Jenas is married to wife Ellie who he tied the knot with in 2011. They have two daughters, Geneva and Olivia, plus baby son Jacob, together. Jenas has an older daughter from a previous relationship who lives in the United States with her mother.
How low can we go? Boys in Green must aim to end one of the worst losing streaks in our football history
Night school enriches lives of young people in E China's Shandong

People's Daily Online) 13:33, August 22, 2024

Libraries, cultural centers, and community organizations in Jinan city, east China's Shandong Province have launched various night schools, and taking part in these programs has become a fashionable trend for the city's youth.

The night schools offer courses in areas like AI office skills, short video editing, dancing, vocal music, intangible cultural heritage handicrafts, beauty, fitness, calligraphy and floral art.

 : Students learn makeup at a night school of Jinan Library of Jinan city, east China's Shandong Province. (Xinhua/Zhu Zheng)

 : Night school students copy The Starry Night, a painting by the Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh. (Photo/Kong Deming)

 : Night school students learn the basic knowledge of woodworking under the teacher's guidance. (Photo/Guo Liangnan)

 : A teacher shares knowledge about AI with students at a night school class. (Photo/Kong Deming)

High demand

Every Thursday at 8 p.m., the classroom for the short video editing course at the Jinan Library is always full of students practicing short video production and editing under the guidance of a teacher. The class's atmosphere is relaxed and lively, and students demonstrate their deep interest in the subject by continuing to ask the teacher questions after class.

Wen Cong, who works in the real estate industry, attends the class because it teaches skills required for her work. "I've never received professional instruction on the subject, so I've always felt that I've needed to improve my skills," she said.

Besides giving her needed professional development, the course also enables her to make better use of her free time. "In the past, after work, I would just lie down at home and spend time on my phone the whole evening," she said.

Night schools, which used to be popular in the 1980s as a way to educate during non-working hours, experienced a decline with the expansion of higher education and the development of internet technology. Recently, however, night schools have regained favor among young people.

In November 2023, Jinan Library conducted a survey to solicit citizens for their preferences for night school courses and received over 3,000 responses. "The first batch of courses were determined according to the survey results," said Li Dehu, director of the cultural activities department at the library.

On Dec. 28, 2023, the library rolled out its first batch of nine courses including makeup classes for beginners, coffee tasting and making, and home organization. Some 19,000 citizens competed online for 270 enrollment spots. Those who didn't secure spots left messages asking for more courses.

Statistics show that the students attending the first batch of night school courses came from diverse backgrounds, including teachers and social media content creators.

Integration of resources and mutual learning

This year, to meet the demands of citizens, Jinan's Culture and Tourism Bureau integrated resources from public libraries and cultural centers across the city.

The imitative has improved its course offerings, campus locations, and faculty. After expanding teaching locations, citizens can now attend night school at professional institutions or nearby popular cultural venues.

The Jinan Library as part of the initiative offered 58 courses, with over 2,100 attendees. The Jinan Cultural Center offered over 30 night school courses, attracting nearly 1,000 students.

According to Zhang Junshan, deputy head of Jinan Cultural Center, this year the center added fitness classes and classes teaching traditional Chinese medicine wellness. The center also increased the number of teaching locations.

Zhang Ming, who has been a makeup artist for 13 years, immediately accepted the offer when invited to teach at the cultural center. "Sharing my knowledge with young people after a day's work is very fulfilling," she said.

The makeup course includes eight sessions. Each starts at 7 p.m. every Wednesday and lasts for one and a half hours. Most of the students were born in the 1980s and 1990s, with a small number of students born after the year 2000.

"When explaining makeup techniques, I demonstrate on half of a student's face, letting the student complete the other half," she said. Zhang Ming added that her daytime job is doing makeup for broadcasters, which often puts her in a tense state, but she finds teaching at night school relaxing and enjoyable.

Instructors for the initiative's programs are comprised of professionals from cultural centers, teachers, and part-time teachers. Part-time teachers are chosen from a pool of teachers that are screened for quality, ensuring the best of the best.

Popular and well-received

In communities with a large proportion of young people, night schools are particularly popular.

According to Li Lihong, secretary of the Party branch of Fenghuang Guoji neighborhood, the neighborhood includes several commercial areas, and the residents are mostly young entrepreneurs. The night school initiated by the community has become a new platform for young people to relax, acquire skills, and make friends after work.

Li added that considering the diverse needs of the youth, they must offer courses that are flexible and have varied content. Each course is scheduled from 7 to 8 p.m. on weekdays, with one class per week.

Moving forward, the neighborhood plans to continuously gather feedback from young people, adjust course content, and increase the number of available seats. Currently, courses in traditional Chinese medicine, makeup, calligraphy, and short videos are being planned.

In the Jinan Innovation Zone, a graduation ceremony took place for a night school's coffee course. The students showcased the coffee making skills they acquired, filling the air with the rich aroma of coffee.

"At first, I enrolled in the night school to pass the time, but I never expected to learn so much about coffee and learn the skills needed to perform latte art. I also made friends with a group of classmates who share my passion for coffee and a love for life," said Gao Chang. Gao, a designer, plans to continue her study at the night school to become a professional barista.

"Established in last October, the youth night school in the Jinan Innovation Zone has set up three locations, serving 860 young people," said Li Lu, an official of the high-tech zone.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun)
Taliban fighters celebrate the third anniversary of the withdrawal of US-led troops from Afghanistan, in Kabul, Afghanistan (Siddiqullah Alizai/AP)

Afghanistans Taliban rulers have issued a ban on womens voices and bare faces in public under new laws approved by the supreme leader in efforts to combat vice and promote virtue.

The laws were issued Wednesday after they were approved by supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, a government spokesman said. The Taliban had set up a ministry for the propagation of virtue and the prevention of vice after seizing power in 2021.
Ukrainian servicemen of 148th separate artillery brigade of the Air Assault Forces fire towards Russian positions by a M777 howitzer at the frontline in Donetsk region, Ukraine (Evgeniy Maloletka/AP)

The Biden administration will send around 125 million dollars in new military aid to Ukraine, US officials have said.

It comes as Washington works to get a better understanding of Kyiv's incursion into Russia and how it advances the broader battlefield goals more than two years into the war.
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Since our founding in September of 1963, The Independent has been dedicated to giving Livermore, Pleasanton, Dublin, and Sunol readers the news they need to be in-the-know about what's going on in the Tri-Valley region.
Image courtesy: Facebook/Dabur India

New Delhi/Chennai/IBNS: India's home-grown FMCG major Dabur plans to start its first manufacturing unit in South India by investing Rs 400 crore in the next five years.

Dabur India has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Tamil Nadu government for the project with an approved Phase1 investment of Rs 135 crore, scaling up to Rs 400 crore over a period of five years, according to reports.

The manufacturing facility, which will be set up in SIPCOT Tindivanam in Tamil Nadu, is expected to generate direct employment for around 250 people, besides creating thousands of indirect job opportunities, said Dabur India.

"This investment will allow us to better serve the growing demand for our products in South India and strengthen our market presence in the region," Dabur India Limited chief executive officer (CEO) Mohit Malhotra said.

This will be amongst Dabur India's most-modern and environment-friendly manufacturing facilities with the capacity to manufacture a range of the FMCG company's products for the South market.

Dabur India Ltd, one of India's leading FMCG Companies, reported an 8.27 percent rise in consolidated net profit at Rs 494.35 crore in the first quarter ended June 2024.

The company had posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 456.61 crore in the same quarter last fiscal.

Dabur India's consolidated revenue from operations in the quarter under review was at Rs 3,349.11 crore as against Rs 3,130.47 crore in the year-ago period, reports Moneycontrol, adding that the counter increased to an intraday high of Rs 647.7 per share on the National Stock Exchange (NSE), zooming 2.1 percent from its previous close.

The stock of Dabur India climbed 15.26 percent this year so far, as per reports.
Photo courtesy: IBNS File

The Supreme Court on Thursday resumed hearing on the case pertaining to the 31-year-old lady junior doctor's rape and murder at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. On Tuesday, the top court had lashed out at the West Bengal government and administration over the administration's lapses including delay in filing of an FIR. The top court had ordered the posting of CISF at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

Supreme Court asks protesters to resume work, bars Mamata govt from stopping peaceful protests

The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the junior doctors, who are protesting against the rape and murder of a 31-year-old post-graduate trainee doctor, to resume work ensuring no coercive action will be allowed to be taken against them, media reports said.

The top court has also asked the West Bengal government, which is at the receiving end of a massive public anger, to not stop any peaceful protest over the rape-murder that has sent shockwaves across the country and also brought the state administration under scanner over its alleged cover-up.
Photo courtesy: Screenshot grab from YouTube video

Kolkata/IBNS: The West Bengal government on Wednesday introduced changes in the top administrative posts of Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital , where junior doctors are on ceasework protesting against the brutal rape and murder of a 31-year-old post-graduate medical student.

As demanded by the students, Professor Dr. Suhrita Paul has been replaced as the RG Kar principal with Dr. Manas Kumar Bandyopadhyay.

Dr. Paul took charge after Dr. Sandip Ghosh stepped down following protests from the students.

Dr. Paul has been appointed the Barasat Government Medical College and Hospital principal, the post which was held by Dr. Bandyopadhyay.

RG Kar Medical College and Hospital medical superintendent Professor Dr. Bulbul Mukhopadhyay has been removed. Professor Dr. Saptarshi Chatterjee has been appointed to the post.

The government has removed Professor Dr. Arunava Dutta Chaudhuri as the head of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital's Chest Medicine Department, where the victim was a trainee.

The rejig came a day after the junior doctors marched to the Swasthya Bhawan, the head office of the state health department, and made the demands.

The state government has also cancelled the appointment of Dr. Sandip Ghosh as the principal of Calcutta National Medical College, where he was controversially posted hours after his resignation from the same post of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

The trainee doctor was allegedly raped and murdered at the seminar hall of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, which is located in North Kolkata's Belgachia area.

One person, a civic volunteer, has been arrested in connection with the case but protesting students as well as the victim's parents suspect more people are involved in the case.

Meanwhile, Dr. Ghosh was on Thursday summoned for the seventh consecutive day after the Central Bureau of Investigation took charge of the case.

As per the Supreme Court order, CISF has been posted at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, which was vandalised in the intervening night of August 14 and 15.
Photo Courtesy: Narendra Modi X page

Indian PM Narendra Modi laid a wreath and paid tribute to The Dobry Maharaja Memorial in Warsaw on Wednesday.

The memorial, located at the Square of the Good Maharaja, Warsaw, is a remembrance of the deep respect and gratitude that the people and government of Poland have for the Jamsaheb of Nawanagar Digvijaysinhji Ranjitsinhji Jadeja, [of modern day Jamnagar in Gujarat].

"During second World World War, the Jamsaheb provided shelter to over a thousand Polish children and is today remembered as the Dobry(Good) Maharaja in Poland," read a statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs.

The profound impact of his generosity lives on among the Polish people.

At the memorial, Prime Minister Modi met with the descendants of Polish people who were given shelter by the Jamsaheb.

Prime Ministers visit to the memorial highlights a special historical connection between India and Poland that continues to be cherished by the people of the two countries.
Photo courtesy: Screenshot grab from YouTube video of Supreme Court

New Delhi/IBNS: The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the junior doctors, who are protesting against the rape and murder of a 31-year-old post-graduate trainee doctor, to resume work ensuring no coercive action will be allowed to be taken against them, media reports said.

The top court has also asked the West Bengal government, which is at the receiving end of a massive public anger, to not stop any peaceful protest over the rape-murder that has sent shockwaves across the country and also brought the state administration under scanner over its alleged cover-up.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Mishra resumed hearing on the case that was taken by the top court on Tuesday.

The next hearing will be held on September 5.

Why was the crime scene not secured? Supreme Court asks Bengal govt

In a tough question for the Bengal government, which is represented by advocate Kapil Sibal, the court also asked why a post-mortem was conducted before a First Information Report.

The state administration has been asked why a FIR was filed on "Unnatural Death" even when the autopsy report claims rape and murder.

In its observation, the top court said, "I have not come across a case like this in my last 30 years, Bengal not following criminal procedure code."

The trainee doctor was allegedly raped and murdered at the seminar hall of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, which is located in North Kolkata's Belgachia area.

One person, a civic volunteer, has been arrested in connection with the case but protesting students as well as the victim's parents suspect more people are involved in the case.

'Haven't seen a case like this in 30 years'

In its observation, the top court said, "I have not come across a case like this in my last 30 years, Bengal not following criminal procedure code."

The court said this as it questioned the timeline of the case and lashed out at the state police for filing a UD (Unnatural Death) case even after the autopsy report.
Photo Courtesy: Narendra Modi X page

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday laid a wreath and paid tribute at the Monument to the Battle of Monte Cassino in Warsaw.

He became the first Indian PM to visit Poland in 40 years.

This Monument commemorates the sacrifice and valour of soldiers from Poland, India and other countries who fought alongside each other in the famous Battle of Monte Cassino in Italy during the second World War.

"Prime Ministers visit to the Monument underscores the shared history and deep-rooted ties between India and Poland that continue to inspire many," read a statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs.

Modi will visit Ukraine after Poland.
Kolkata: The West Bengal BJP unit led a protest march on Thursday in the eastern outskirts of the city, demanding justice for the lady doctor, who was brutally raped and murdered at R G Kar Medical College and Hospital earlier this month.

"We want the truth to come out and we want justice. The state government and the state health department are trying to hide the truth. The state health department and R G Kar Hospital has tried to wipe out the evidence," BJP leader Dilip Ghosh was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

The streets resonated with chants of "We want justice," as women from all walks of life, along with party activists, united in a rally demanding accountability and an end to violence against women.

The rally, led by senior state BJP leaders, was headed towards Swasthya Bhawan. However, the police set up barricades near Indira Bhawan in Salt Lake to prevent the protesters from advancing further.

A clash erupted between Kolkata police and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers and the police finally detained them.

BJP leader and leader of opposition in West Bengal Assembly Suvendu Adhikari said, On one hand, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is staging protests, claiming she wants justice for the victim, while on the other, she has deployed a team of top lawyers to the Supreme Court to achieve the opposite.

She has mobilised the full power of the state government, using taxpayers' money to hire the most expensive lawyers. The entire nation is watching the live hearings in the Supreme Court. Everyone can see whats happening. People will respond appropriately when the time comes, he added.

BJP leader Roopa Ganguly, who took part in the agitation, said that the people of West Bengal have little hope.

Although the evidence has been destroyed, we have hope that the culprit will be caught, Ganguly was quoted as saying by Mint.

The young doctor, whose body was found on August 9, was raped and murdered while on duty.

The following day, a civic volunteer was arrested by Kolkata Police in connection with the gruesome crime.

On August 13, the Calcutta High Court ordered the case to be transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which began its investigation on August 14.
Representative image/ courtesy: Pixabay

Bolpur/IBNS: Amid the massive outrage and nationwide protest over the brutal rape and murder of a trainee doctor at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, it has come to light that a married woman was raped and sexually assaulted at gunpoint in Bengal's Bolpur, Anandabazar Patrika reported.

According to the victim's family, the incident happened three days ago. The victim, who was traumatised by the incident, tried to commit suicide by popping sleeping pills, ABP reported.

After getting discharged from the hospital on Wednesday, she went straight to the police station to lodge a complaint.

Within a few hours, the police were able to arrest the accused, Feroz, who is an active Trinamool Congress worker in the area. However, the local TMC refused to accept that the accused was a party worker

The victim lived with her husband and two children. However, owing to his work, the husband mostly stayed outstation.

As per the victim's family, the accused took advantage of her husband's absence at home and often harassed her.

Three days ago when the victim had gone out to fetch water, she was taken to a nearby barn and raped at gunpoint, the family told ABP newspaper.

According to the FIR, the victims, hands and legs were tied and the accused even inserted the gun in her private parts. He reportedly took pictures of the gruesome episode and threatened to spread the same on social media.

The victim also accused that Feroz tried to kill her 4-year-old son with a sack, who was also present at the crime scene.

When she went to the hospital to get treatment following the assault, Feroz fled the area. On return from the hospital initially, she tried to commit suicide out of shame and fear. However, her neighbours took her to a hospital.

Feroz was arrested from a neighbouring village, according to the police.

"Since I did not accept Feroz's ill proposals, he raped me at gunpoint. I want extreme punishment for him," the victim was quoted as saying by ABP newspaper.

His husband echoed the same and said, "Feroz took advantage of my absence from home most of the time."

Feroz, however, denied all allegations and called them lies.

Police said action will be taken no matter who is involved in the crime. they have registered an FIR on several sections of the IPC including rape and assault.


Photo courtesy: File image/UNI

Srinagar: In a major development, National Conference (NC) leader Farooq Abdullah has confirmed that the party will be forming an alliance with the Congress for the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections, media reports said.

Both parties have agreed in principle to join forces and discussions on seat-sharing arrangements are underway, reported India Today.

Late-night talks were held between leaders of the National Conference and Congress in Srinagar, focusing on a seat-sharing arrangement between them.

Sources reveal that the Congress is keen on contesting 12 seats in the Kashmir Valley while offering 12 seats to the NC in the Jammu region, the report said.

However, no final decision has been reached, and another round of talks is expected in the next day or two to finalize the agreement.the report said.

This alliance could play a significant role in shaping the political dynamics of Jammu and Kashmir in the forthcoming elections.

With the Election Commission of India (ECI) having announced the much-awaited Jammu and Kashmir Assembly polls, political activity in the region is ramping up after a six-year break.

The last major political event was the Lok Sabha elections, but now, with the Assembly elections approaching, the political activities in the Union Territory have once again intensified.

The Jammu Kashmir Assembly polls are historic, being held for the first time since the region underwent major changes over the past five years, including the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019.

This led to the conversion of the state to a Union Territory (UT) and its division, with Ladakh becoming a separate UT without a legislature.

The elections will be held in three phases on September 18, September 25, and October 1, with the results expected to be announced on October 4.
Photo courtesy: X/@RDA_UP

Kolkata/IBNS: Doctors in West Bengal will continue their protest against the brutal rape and murder of their colleague at the RG Kar Hospital in Kolkata despite the Supreme Court's appeal to them for resuming work.

The West Bengal Junior Doctors Front will not call off their protest, unlike their counterparts at AIIMS Delhi despite the Supreme Court's appeal to call off the strike.

The apex court had given assurance that "no stringent action" would be taken against them.

Earlier in the day, the resident doctors at Delhi's AIIMS hospital called off their nearly two-week-long strike against the horrific incident in Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College which shocked the nation.

Also read: RG Kar rape-murder: Delhi's AIIMS doctors to resume work after Supreme Court's appeal

In a statement, the Resident Doctors' Association, or RDA, said they had done so after receiving assurances from the Supreme Court, which on Wednesday called on medical professionals across the country to "please trust us" and return to their duties.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation doctors have also called off their strike.

The Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) has called off its protest. The association said they will stand with RG Kar Medical College and Hospital and will continue a symbolic peaceful protest.

"We will conduct a peaceful march once every week in coordination with other Resident Doctors' Associations in Delhi to show solidarity and support to RG Kar College," it said.

The Supreme Court took a suo motu cognizance of the incident listed the matter on Tuesday and made strong observations against the conduct of the college's principal and the investigation carried out later.

The top court had requested the doctors to resume duties as it could affect people in need of medical care.

On Thursday, the Chief Justice of India, Dy Chandrachud, "We earnestly appeal to all doctors... we are here to ensure their safety and protection. Please trust us, that is why we have not left the matter to the (Calcutta) High Court."

The Supreme Court on Thursday urged the junior doctors, who are protesting across West Bengal demanding justice for the 31-year-old post-graduate medical student's brutal rape and murder, to resume their duties, media reports said.

"Poor people cannot be left in lurch," said Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud to prevent the crippling of the medical facilities.

The top court earlier in the day resumed hearing on the RG Kar case that has sent shockwaves across the country, ignited public fury and brought the West Bengal government under fire over its alleged cover-up.

"If they are on duty, they will not be marked absent and if they are not on duty, then law will be followed. Ask them to first return to work, no one will take adverse action against any doctor. If there is difficulty after that, then come to us, but let them first report to work," the CJI said when an advocate appearing for resident doctors at AIIMS claimed protesting doctors have been marked absent.

The top court has assured the doctors' representatives that all their grievances and issues will be taken care of by the National Task Force.

"The committee will ensure all representatives are heard," said the top court.
The Sikh diaspora, known for its generosity and commitment to community service, has long been a pillar of support for gurdwaras and Sikh institutions worldwide.

These organizations, often funded by the collective contributions of the sangat (community), are expected to uphold the highest standards of integrity and transparency, reflecting the core teachings of Sikhism: honesty, selfless service, and the oneness of humanity.

Yet, recent events have revealed a disturbing pattern of fund misuse and misappropriation, casting a shadow over the very institutions meant to uphold these values.

In Canberra, Australia, Prabhdeep Singh Sandhu, Secretary of the Canberra Sikh Association (CSA), is embroiled in allegations of financial misconduct. Sandhu allegedly withdrew substantial amounts41,000 and 5,500 local currencyfrom the CSAs official bank account to cover legal fees related to a defamation suit against him.

The suit was brought by Satnam Singh, the former President of CSA. What makes this situation particularly egregious is that these withdrawals were reportedly made without the knowledge or consent of other CSA committee members.

This breach of trust not only raises questions about Sandhus actions but also about the governance and oversight mechanisms within the CSA.

This issue is not isolated. Across the globe, in the UK, the Sikh Federation UK (SFUK), a prominent organization claiming to represent Sikh interests, faces serious allegations of financial impropriety.

According to a report by the Network of Sikh Organizations, the SFUK has allegedly spent hundreds of thousands of pounds on promoting an agenda that emphasizes an exclusive Sikh ethnicity, a move that starkly contradicts the inclusive teachings of the Sikh Gurus.

Despite repeated inquiries, the SFUK has failed to disclose the exact amount spent or the proportion of these funds that were donated by the sangat.

Worse still, gurdwaras in Wolverhampton and Southampton have reportedly seen their funds depleted, raising concerns about the misdirection of resources that were meant to serve local communities.

Adding to the controversy, an audio clip recently surfaced in which Jaswinder Singh Maloya, the son of Beant Singh (one of the assassins of Indira Gandhi), accuses the SFUK of siphoning off funds and failing to support the Sikh community meaningfully.

Maloya, who travelled from Australia to the UK at the SFUKs invitation for a radio show, expresses his dismay at the organizations neglect and disrespect towards him, and more importantly, towards the cause they claim to champion. His criticism highlights a troubling disconnect between the SFUKs public image and its actual conduct.

These incidents reflect a broader problem within some Sikh institutions and gurdwaras, where the focus has shifted from genuine community development to the promotion of divisive agendas and personal gain.

The misuse of fundswhether to settle personal legal battles or to advance narrow political objectivesrepresents a betrayal of the sangats trust and a deviation from the Sikh principles of transparency, equality, and service to all.

The Sikh community must take a stand against such practices.

There is an urgent need for greater accountability and transparency in the management of funds within Sikh institutions.

Committees must ensure that all financial transactions are conducted with the utmost integrity and that the funds donated by the sangat are used solely for the betterment of the community.

Moreover, it is essential to reject any attempt to use Sikh institutions as platforms for promoting exclusivist ideologies that run counter to the inclusive spirit of Sikhism.

At a time when the world needs the universal message of love and unity espoused by Guru Nanak, it is disheartening to see some Sikh institutions fall prey to the same divisive forces that have plagued humanity for centuries.

The sangat has a right to demand better from its leaders and to hold them accountable for their actions.

Only through collective vigilance and a return to the core values of Sikhism can we ensure that our institutions truly serve the purpose for which they were intended.

(Photo and text courtesy: Khalsavox.com)
Photo courtesy: washington.org

As Washington, DC gears up for the theatre week, take a look at some of the most beautifully built, historically iconic theaters in the DC region. A variety of performances grace stages throughout the District  here's a list of historic theaters in and around DC and how to experience them!

Photo courtesy: washington.org

Experience elegant culture at the Kennedy Center

The iconic Kennedy Center has been hosting great cultural events over the years including the Kennedy Center Honors where the President of the United States honours lifetime achievement of artists and other talented individuals. The center shelters seven theaters, including the Concert Hall, known for its impressive acoustics and symphonic performances, and the Opera House, with its luxe red decor and massive, 50-foot-wide, starburst-like crystal chandelier (a gift from Sweden). Washington Improv Theater will present POTUS Among Us, an interactive presidential election satire. GALA Hispanic Theatre has Las 22+ Bodas de Hugo (The 22+ Weddings of Hugo) by artistic director Gustavo Ott, a hilarious romp. And of course, the classic board game Clue comes to life at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

Photo courtesy: washington.org

Bow down to the Bard at the Shakespeare Theatre Company

For more than 25 years, the Shakespeare Theatre Company in DC has committed itself to serving as the nations premier classical theater. STC operates out of two spaces, including Sidney Harman Hall at the Harman Center, which seats 775, and the Lansburgh Theatre, which seats 451. The glittering, glass-enclosed Harman Center in Penn Quarter showcases classic Shakespeare plays, modern updates and Shakespeare-inspired original shows. For more Shakespearean excitement, visit the Folger Shakespeare Library, which contains the world's largest collection of materials relating to Shakespeare and his works. In addition to the collection, guests can see Shakespeare plays and learn more about the famous playwright with rotating exhibits.

Performers will light up stages across the region in roles they were destined to play. In an immersive nightclub experience, DC legend Roz White plays Billie Holiday in Lady Day at Emersons Bar and Grill (presented by Mosaic Theater Company). School of Rock alumni lookalikes Alex Brightman (Broadway) and David Flynn (West End) come together for Comedy of Errors at Shakespeare Theatre Company's Klein Theatre.

Photo courtesy: washington.org

Visit grave history at the Ford's Theatre

In 1865 President Lincoln was assassinated at Fords Theatre by John Wilkes Booth. Today, Fords remains a working theater with multiple productions each year, but it is also a living museum dedicated to Lincolns life and death. During the day, the National Park Servicerun venue offers tours of the theater as well as admission to the Fords Theatre Center for Education and Leadership across the street, which features in-depth exhibits on Americas 16th president.

Photo courtesy: washington.org

Get on your feet at Lincoln Theatre

Dating back to 1922, the Lincoln Theatre was considered a precursor and influence on the Harlem Renaissance, hosting such marquee acts over the years such as Washington natives Duke Ellington and Pearl Bailey, along with greats like Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Nat King Cole and Louis Armstrong. The theater, located on "Washington's Black Broadway", served the city's African American community when segregation kept them out of other venues. Today the historic theater located near DCs most iconic restaurant Bens Chili Bowl, continues to attract national talent to its stage with a packed calendar of touring acts. Be sure to also check out its partner venue and Washington institution, 9:30 Club.

Photo courtesy: washington.org

Catch a show at Warner Theatre

A trip to the Warner Theatre is worth it just to see the 1924-era buildings grand architecture. After a $10 million renovation, the venue has been restored to its former glory with features like a marble and gold leaf lobby and a dramatic interior complete with crystal chandeliers and intricate carved ceilings. The venue may be the ultimate throwback, but today you can catch nationally known comedians making a tour stop, Broadway-bound musicals and other modern performances.

Photo courtesy: washington.org

See a world-class musical performance at Strathmore

Just outside of DC in Bethesda, Maryland sits a picturesque performing arts venue dedicated to bringing a diversity of music to the DC region. Music fans will find a comprehensive lineup of folk, rock, blues, pop, jazz, show tunes and more at the modern music venue, The Music Center at Strathmore. Also on the campus, the Mansion at Strathmore presents more intimate programs in its 100-seat theater. The Mansion also hosts afternoon tea service on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Also not to be missed, Strathmore has a cool concert venue up the road in Rockville called AMP.

Photo courtesy: washington.org

Meet 45+ theatres in one day

At Theatre Weeks free Kickoff Fest on Saturday, Sept. 28 at Arena Stage, you will have the chance to meet and greet with representatives from more than 45 DC-area theatres. The event will feature interactive workshops, pop-up performances, panel conversations, ticket giveaways and activities for fans of all ages. Register for free beginning Sept. 9.

Photo courtesy: washington.org

Celebrate theatre by foot, bike or bus

Get a little behind-the-scenes access and info about #dctheatre  as well as some exercise  on a free bike ride tour to area theatres. You can also venture on a walking tour of downtown DCs historic theatres (in partnership with WalkingTown DC/Events DC). If a bus tour is more your speed, join Smithsonian Associates for a full day of stops at local venues. More information and registration will be available Sept. 9 at theatreweek.org.

Theres no better time to explore the wonders of the stage than during Theatre Week, when #dctheatre joins together to offer $20, $40 and $60 tickets to over 30 productions at venues all over the District, Maryland and Virginia (DMV). You can also attend free events like the Kickoff Fest at Arena Stage, a bike ride with behind-the-scenes access, a powerhouse concert on the District Wharf and lots more. Make sure to mark the calendar: Theatre Week tickets go on sale Sept. 9 at theatreweek.org.
Spiralling anti-quota protest in Bangladesh led to the deposition of Sheikh Hasina. Photo Courtesy: Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International Public License/Wikimedia Commons

Dhaka/IBNS: The HSC and equivalent examinations in Bangladesh, which were postponed earlier, have been called off completely amid protests from a section of students who demanded that they have to be qualified without any test, media reports said. However, Anti-Discrimination Movement student leaders said the decision taken after the protest by a group is illogical and should be reversed.

A section of students reached the secretariat on Wednesday and demanded the cancellation of the examinations, which were postponed earlier.

The examinations were postponed in multiple phases due to anti-quota protests.

From July 18 to August 1, examinations have been postponed to multiple dates.

However, the cancellation of the examination has been confirmed on Wednesday. Dhaka Board Chairman Professor Tapan Kumar Sarkar confirmed the news.

The method to prepare the results will be decided later.

According to The Daily Post, a source at the education board said that after Sheikh Hasina's deposition, the trunk containing question papers was damaged in the attacks on police stations in different areas. "For this, the decision to take the test from August 11 was postponed. The Education Board proposed to the interim government to take the postponed examinations from September 11. It was also approved," the daily reported.

The candidates are keen to have results on the basis of the number of subjects on which examinations have been conducted.

However, Hasnat Abdullah and Sarjis Alam, coordinators of anti-discrimination student protest, said cancellation is a bad development and the exams should have been held.

The student leaders told a Bangladesh publication: "We do not support the cancellation under any circumstances."

They said various groups are taking to streets with unreasonable demands with different motives under the present circumstances and forcing such decisions.

Those who had sought cancellation of the HSC and equivalent exams do not know how to evaluate merit. The exams had to be taken. The decision to cancel the tests is illogical, Alam told the media while visiting the injured at Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital in Dhaka on Tuesday, reported bdnews24.com

Hasnat Abdullah said the HSC candidates who had stormed the Secretariat on Tuesday confined all officials, including the education secretary, the portal reported quoting the student leader.

The decision to cancel the remaining exams was taken in consultation with the secretary, education advisor and the chief advisor under such a circumstances, they said.

Bangladesh is currently under the rule of an interim government, led by Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus, after Sheikh Hasina resigned as the Prime Minister and fled to India facing massive protests.
Photo courtesy: X & FB/MHA Singapore

Singapore/IBNS: Singapore authorities are investigating a Bangladeshi national believed to have alleged terror links, who has now entered the country's territory and preached to migrant workers at Tuas Dormitory here on Aug 9 without a permit, media reports said.

Amir Hamza had previously been arrested by the Bangladeshi government for alleged terror links.

Singapore's Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) Wednesday said it is investigating the preacher, Amir Hamza, and others involved in the event, including the organiser.

It said strong action will be taken if they are found to have breached Singapores laws or posed a security concern.

Possible action includes deportation, prosecution or detention under the Internal Security Act, the ministry said.

"Amir Hamzas sermon propagated extremist and segregationist teachings that were dangerous, and detrimental to Singapores communal harmony, it added in a statement.

Singapore's MHA said the Internal Security Department (ISD) was aware of Amir Hamza and his background, but that the Bangladeshi had used a passport that bore a different name from that in its databases to enter Singapore on Aug 9.

It also did not have his biometrics at the time of his entry.

Minister for Home Affairs and Law K. Shanmugam told reporters on Wednesday that from all appearances, the passport looked to be validly issued but with a different name, and Amir Hamza slipped through because of this passport issue.
Spy thriller Berlin will be released soon on OTT. The film, which premiered at the Jio MAMI Festival held last year, received a lot of praise from the audience. The film is now finally ready to be premiered on the OTT platform Zee5. Yes, you read that right. Digital rights for Berlin have been acquired by OTT platform Zee5. The film will make its OTT debut on September 13. After its screening at the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival, this will be Berlin's direct-to-OTT release on Zee 5. The film's makers shared its trailer video a few days ago on different social media platforms, including YouTube. Here's all you need to know about the film before its release:

Plot

Berlin, which never had a theatrical release, is directly being launched on the OTT platform Zee5. The announcement of its OTT debut was made by Zee5 on Monday. The Berlin OTT release date has not been announced yet, but it is clear that it will be released on Zee5 only.

Also Read: Citadel: Diana season 1 OTT release date Prime Video: When to watch this Italian spy action show

Berlin is all about the arrest of a deaf man named Ashok, who gets accused of being a spy. The film is set in the 1990s. The stoery of the fiulm further progresses with the investigation into the spy case.

Cast and crew

Berlin stars actors like Aparshakti Khurana, Ishwak Singh, Rahul Bose, Rajiv Khadelwal, and Atul Kumar in crucial roles. The actors in supporting roles are Kabir Bedi and Anupriya Goenka.

It has been directed by Atul Sabharwal. The film has been produced by Zee Studios and Yipee Ki Yay Motion Pictures.

Excited about the Berlin OTT release? Stay tuned to know when it will be out on Zee5.

For more news and updates from the world of OTT, and celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment.


Netflix has been expanding the type of content it has to offer to its subscribers. The streaming platform is coming up with a brand-new and very interesting South Korean cooking competition series very soon, crazy right?. Titled as Culinary Class Wars, the show has set its release date and it will release on the OTT platform next month. In Culinary Class Wars, black spoon hidden masters are all set to face off against Koreas top white spoon star chefs. Culinary Class Wars will be released on Netflix on 17th September 2024.





Plot

Culinary Class Wars pits Korea's top "white spoon" star chefs against Michelin-starred chefs, culinary survival show winners, and industry legends. The "black spoon" hidden masters include home-meal restaurant chefs, trendy pub owners, Chinese restaurant chefs with solid legacies, and school canteen chefs in charge of celebrity meals.

According to Netflix, the director Kim Hak-min claims they wanted to highlight the remarkable diversity of Korean culinary specialists with this global Netflix broadcast. A diverse group of 100 candidates, encompassing Korean, Western, Chinese, Japanese, and Fusion cuisines, were chosen based on their distinct culinary ideologies.

Cast and crew

The two iconic judges on the show, Chef Anh Sung-jae of Mosu Seoul, the country's sole Michelin three-star restaurant, and Paik Jong-won, the top restaurateur and national culinary mentor in Korea, will further heighten the excitement. Kim Hak-min is the director.

Culinary Class Wars is the first culinary survival show on Netflix Korea, which debuted after Physical: 100 became a global hit.

Also read: Nobody Wants This OTT release date Netflix: When to watch this romantic comedy series

For more news and updates from the world of OTT, and celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment.


Your Friendly Neighborhood Spiderman is releasing soon on OTT. The animated series will stream on the OTT platform Disney+ Hotstar on November 2. The series is based on the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man. The trailer for the show is not out yet, but here's everything else you need to know about it:

LIVE from the @DisneyD23 Marvel Animation Sneak Peek:



Meet your Norman Osborn, @colmandomingo, and Peter Parker, @hudsonthames, from Marvel Animations Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man!  #D23 pic.twitter.com/vbtec7RuDV  Marvel Studios (@MarvelStudios) August 10, 2024

Plot

Your Friendly Neighborhood show is set in a time where Norman Osborn becomes Parker's mentor instead of Tony Stark. The show is all about Peter Parker's story and his time as Spider Man.

The first season of the show will debut on Disney Plus in November only on Prime Video, and the second season of the show is also in making.

Also Read: Kalki 2898 AD On OTT: 4 scenes from Prabhas starrer that fans think are better than the entire film

According to IMDb, "the animated series follows Peter Parker on his way to becoming Spider-Man in the MCU, with a journey unlike we've ever seen and a style that celebrates the character's early comic book roots."

Cast and crew

Your Friendly Neighborhood Spiderman is one of the TV series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It has been produced by Marvel Studios Animation.

Music in the show has been handled by Leo Birenberg and Zach Robinson. The show's theme title is a rap remix of original Spider-Man theme songs.

Here are the main characters of Your Friendly Neighborhood Spiderman and the actors behind them:

The main character of the show; Peter Parker, or Spider-Man, is played by Hudson Thames. Other main characters are played by actors like Eugene Byrd, Grace Song, Hugh Dancy, Kari Wahlgren, Paul F. Tompkins, and Colman Domingo, among others.
Ahead of the release of Kangana Ranaut's highly anticipated film Emergency, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) has demanded a ban on the film saying that it deliberately character assassinates the Sikh community. Not just this, the committee is also seeking a First Information Report (FIR) against Ranaut who is the writer and director of the movie. To avoid such misinterpretation, it also wants a representative of Sikhs to be included in the Central Film Censor Board.

Kangana Ranaut's Emergency in trouble

Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee demands a ban on the film

Taking to social media, President of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, Harjinder Singh Dhami, said that the film is making a deliberate attempt to prove the Sikh community. He questioned how the film has been certified by Central Board of Film Certification, demanding a Sikh member to be included in the team to avoid this in future.

Asking for a ban on the film based on the Emergency imposed in the country by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, Singh wrote, "The Shiromani Committee has passed resolutions several times in its general meeting demanding that a representative of Sikhs must be included in the Central Film Censor Board, but it is a pity that the government is not implementing it. It is very important to ban this film because it is natural that the release of this film will create a lot of anger and resentment in the Sikh community."

               '                                 ,     Harjinder Singh Dhami (@SGPCPresident) August 21, 2024

He also said that Kangana Ranaut has deliberately made expressions that provoke the sentiments of Sikhs, but instead of taking action against her, the government protects her. He demanded a case should be filed against her for inciting the religious sentiments of Sikhs for her act through the film Emergency. Citing an example, Singh said that movie titled Punjab 95, based on the life of human rights Sikh activist Bhai Jaswant Singh Khalra, was not approved by the censor board even after 85 cuts. However, Emergency, which presents "false facts about Sikh community" has been approved. He pointed out the double standards of the government.

Anti-Sikh film Emergency should be banned immediately: @SGPCPresident

-FIR should be filed against Kangana Ranaut for character assasinating Sikhs - Advocate Dhami

Amritsar:

The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) President Advocate Harjinder Singh Dhami has demanded https://t.co/zN5fMgyYvW  Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (@SGPCAmritsar) August 21, 2024

The committee claimed that seeing the teaser, trailer and promos of Emergency, it is clear that the story of the film deliberately misrepresents Sikhs characters as separatists, which is a part of a deep conspiracy. He also slammed the film's "anti-Sikh narrative".



Also Read: 'Unreal shamelessness': Kangana Ranaut criticised for promoting her movie Emergency outside parliament

For more news and updates from the world of OTT, celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment.


We have all at some point in our lives watched Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah, the Indian comedy show that has successfully completed 16 years. Each character in the show is so unique and has hilarious antics that we have almost started recognising the actors who play these roles with their character names. If you are a fan of the show too, would you want to meet these actor who made the show successful with their brilliant acting skills in real life? Olympic winner Aman Sehrawat recently met TMKOC's Jethalal aka Dilip Joshi and fans cannot tame their excitement.

Aman Sehrawat gifts 'Fafda Jalebi' to Dilip Joshi

Taking to Instagram, Aman who has become India's youngest Olympic medalist by winning bronze medal in men's 57kg freestyle wrestling at the 2024 Paris Olympics, shared photos with the Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah actor. Expressing his happiness and excitement, he wrote, "Today I felt great meeting Jethalal (Dilip Joshiji) @maakasamdilipjoshi Seeing these always makes me laugh and happiness in "Tarak Mehta Ka Ulta Chasma", thank you so much for visiting me."

Credit: Instagram

In one of the photos, Aman can be seen receiving Gujarati delicacies Fafda and Jalebis from Dilip Joshi. Fans were bowled over seeing this. On the other hand, Dilip took to Instagram Stories to share the same photos. In the caption, he shared he was honoured to meet him and also wrote, "Celebrating Aman Sehrawat's bronze medal win with the best way I know - the Jalebi Fafda way."

Fans had the best reaction to Aman and Dilip's meeting

Credit: Instagram

Seeing their photos together, fans also shared their excitement. One of them took the comments section and wrote, "Dude you lived the dream of MILLIONS... bronze medal is okay but meeting JETHALAAL CHAMPAK LALA GADA was More than WONDERFUL." Another one called them, "Two legends." Some of the fans of the show even cracked some jokes. "Goli beta masti nahi," wrote one of them.

Also Read: Before 'Taarak Mehta', Dilip Joshi Had Decided To Quit Acting, Was Unemployed For A Year

For more news and updates from the world of OTT, and celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment.
Bollywood actress Sonam Kapoor Ahuja is the one actor that you need to follow if you are a fashion enthusiast. With her impeccable sense of fashion and vast knowledge of all things couture, Sonam is one Indian celeb who's achieved global fame. Even if it is not a high-fashion event, Sonam brings her fashion A-game. Recently the diva has been rocking the fashion world with her unique and well-put-together corporate looks and her latest one is the best of them all. Take a look!

Sonam Kapoor's corporate couture

In her latest photos, Sonam can be seen wearing a sleek double-breasted jacket with notched lapels and a long skirt set by fashion designer Phoebe Philo. Styled by her sister and celebrity fashion stylist Rhea Kapoor, the 39-year-old actress paired her regal purple 'boss lady' suit with a light pink shirt and ballet flats. She accessorised her outfit with a cool pair of sunnies and a handbag. The fashion icon rounded off her look with dewy makeup featuring flushed cheeks and a nude lip, and styled her hair in a middle-parted loose bun.

Take a look at her other recent looks that redefine the 'corpcore' trend, giving a whole new definition to what it means to get ready for work!



Sonam is the face of the up-and-coming Indian fashion scene and often represents India on the international stage. In fact, at the 2024 Paris Fashion Week, Sonam was the lone Indian celeb who was invited to attend the Dior Haute Couture Fall Winter Show.

On the work front, Sonam Kapoor will next be seen in 'Battle for Bittora', a film based on best-selling author Anuja Chauhan's novel of the same name.

Also Read: Dia Mirza styles her 12-year-old sandals: 5 ways you too can practice sustainable fashion

For more on lifestyle, astrology and health from around the world please visit Indiatimes Lifestyle.


As the allure of studying and working abroad continues to draw many Indians, a troubling trend has emerged in Swedenone of Europe's top destinations for immigration with approximately 7,480 Indians migrating to the country in 2023. As highlighted in a report by The Local, the first months of 2024 have witnessed a record exodus of Indian migrants, marking the highest numbers since 1998.

Data from Statistics Sweden, a Swedish government agency, show that more Indians are leaving the country than moving there.

The Indian diaspora in Sweden began forming in the 20th century, with a significant increase in Indian migration in the 21st century due to changing immigration laws and a focus on attracting skilled workers and students. By the end of 2022, there were 50,000 Indians living in Sweden.

However, Statistics Sweden reports that in the first half of 2024 - between January and June - 2,837 Indian-born individuals left Sweden, an increase of 171% from the previous year.

This meant that Sweden experienced its first negative net migration of Indians since at least 1998. This makes Indians the largest group of emigrants, surpassing people from Iraq, China, and Syria.

Credit: Unsplash | Representational image

Robin Sukhia of the Sweden-India Business Council suggests that this trend might be due to various factors, such as high living costs, limited accommodation, and recent tech layoffs.



Additionally, The Local notes that stricter work permit rules and a 20% drop in work permits for highly qualified immigrants could also be contributing to this shift.

Ankur Tyagi, an Indian living in Sweden, shared reasons on X which he thinks is behind the rising number of Indians leaving the country.

Why Indians Are Moving Back to India from Sweden.



After enjoying Sweden's beautiful landscapes, unique culture, and new experiences, many Indians are finding themselves drawn back to India.



As an Indian living in Sweden, here are my thoughts on why this trend is becoming more https://t.co/1bHb8On05e  Ankur (@TheAnkurTyagi) August 21, 2024

With India's booming economy offering better career opportunities and competitive salaries, many find returning home appealing. Further, loneliness and difficulties forming friendships in Sweden due to cultural and language barriers also play a role, Tyagi says.

Spouses struggle to find work due to language issues is another reason, as per Tyagi, and family responsibilities drive many to return to support aging parents.

He adds that some are attracted by higher pay and lower taxes in the USA, while others seek the quality of life and family time available in India. Sweden's harsh winters and the high cost of living also contribute to the decision.

Additionally, the flexibility of remote work allows some to work for international employers while living in India, Tyagi concludes.

For Indians thinking of studying and living in Sweden, here's a Reddit thread that might be helpful:

For more information on exams, results and careers, please visit Indiatimes Education.
Mpox, the viral infection formerly known as Monkeypox and caused by the Monkeypox virus, is spreading panic around the world as cases continue to be reported from more countries. Thailand became the sixth country in the world and the third in Asia to report the Clade 1b strain of Mpox in 2024. The rapid spread of Mpox, which in the past has largely remained limited to Central Africa, has raised fears of another COVID-19-like pandemic. While health experts say it is unlikely to cause another pandemic, they warn against letting our guard down.

CREDIT: REUTERS

Risk of Mpox spread in India

"Currently, it is a concern primarily for individuals with a travel history to regions where the virus is endemic, such as certain parts of Africa. However, cases have been reported globally, including in countries where the disease was not previously seen. While the immediate threat to the general population is relatively low, vigilance is necessary, particularly in individuals who have travelled to or from affected areas," said Dr. Rohit Garg, Consultant in Infectious Diseases, Amrita Hospital, Faridabad.

According to Dr. Nasiruddin G, Consultant in Internal Medicine, Fortis Hospital, Cunningham Road, Bengaluru, the risk of Mpox in India is low.

CREDIT: REUTERS

"India currently assesses a low risk of widespread Mpox transmission, primarily affecting those with recent travel history to endemic areas. However, vigilance is necessary as cases in regions like Europe and North America indicate ongoing vulnerabilities," he said.

Also read: Pakistan confirms first case of Mpox, on traveler returning from the Middle East

Mpox symptoms

If you have a travel history or contact with a suspected Mpox patient, these are the symptoms to watch out for:

- Fever

- Headache

- Muscle aches and back pain

- Swollen lymph nodes

- Chills and exhaustion

- Rash: Develops 1-3 days after fever, starting on the face and spreading to other parts of the body. The rash progresses from macules (flat lesions) to papules (raised lesions), vesicles (fluid-filled lesions), pustules, and eventually scabs.

- Lesions: Can appear on the face, hands, feet, genitals, and mucous membranes.

CREDIT: REUTERS

Precautions while caring Mpox patients

If someone tests positive for Mpox, the following precautions should be adhered to:

- Isolation of the affected patient in a separate room

- Caregivers should wear masks, gloves, and gowns when handling the patient or their belongings.

- Hand hygiene

- Regular cleaning and disinfection of surfaces that the patient may have touched

- Avoid sharing items

"If a member of your household tests positive, maintain isolation, limit contact, and ensure the patient uses separate utensils and linens. Caregivers should wear masks and gloves and practise strict hygiene to prevent transmission," said Dr. Nasiruddin.

According to Dr. Garg, not all Mpox patients require hospitalisation.

"Hospitalisation is not necessary for all Mpox patients. Mild cases can be managed at home with supportive care. However, hospitalisation may be required for severe cases, especially those involving complications such as secondary bacterial infections, or for patients who are immunocompromised," Dr. Garg said.

CREDIT: REUTERS

Quarantine for Mpox patients

He, however, said that Mpox patients should quarantine themselves to reduce the risk of the virus spreading.

"Quarantine is advised for confirmed cases to prevent the spread of the virus. This typically involves isolation at home or in a healthcare facility until the patient is no longer contagious, which is generally when all lesions have crusted over and a fresh layer of skin has formed," he said.

"Patients should be isolated until all lesions have healed, typically 2-4 weeks. Caregivers must maintain distance, wear protective gear, and ensure the patient has adequate food and sanitation. Regular cleaning of shared spaces is essential," Dr. Nasiruddin said.

Care for Mpox patients includes:

- Symptomatic relief: Provide medications to manage symptoms such as fever and pain (e.g., paracetamol).

- Hydration: Ensure the patient stays hydrated.

- Nutrition: Provide nutritious meals to support the immune system.

- Skin care: Keep the skin clean and dry, and avoid scratching lesions to prevent secondary infections.

Like other viral infections, patients with comorbidities or immunocompromised status may be at risk of Mpox developing into a serious health condition.

Those in the risk category include:

- HIV/AIDS

- Immunosuppressive therapies

- Chronic conditions including diabetes and hypertension

- Pregnancy

- Children

"Special precautions should be taken for these groups," Dr. Nasiruddin said.

No long-term complications from Mpox

Unlike COVID-19, Mpox has no known long-term health complications associated with the infection.

"Most people recover fully from Mpox within 2-4 weeks. However, there can be complications such as secondary bacterial infections, scarring, and, in rare cases, more severe conditions like encephalitis. Long-term effects are generally uncommon, but severe cases can result in prolonged recovery and possible residual scarring," Dr. Garg said.

MPOX 



 #Mpox is a viral illness that can be managed with supportive care. Learn how it spreads, recognize the symptoms, and follow these prevention tips



Here is what you need to know!#MpoxAwarenessb @MoHFW_INDIA pic.twitter.com/XHKONGZpzP  PIB India (@PIB_India) August 22, 2024

Mpox is not sexually transmitted

Ever since Mpox started spreading outside Africa in 2022, there have been rumours that the infection is spread through same-sex relations. However, doctors say that this claim is untrue.

"Mpox is not a sexually transmitted infection, but it can spread through close physical contact, including sexual contact. While there have been clusters of cases reported among men who have sex with men, the virus can affect anyone regardless of sexual orientation. The key factor is close, skin-to-skin contact with an infected person," Dr. Garg said.

#WATCH | On mpox, DGHS & Director, NCDC, Dr Atul Goel says, "It's a zoonotic disease that is generally restricted to the continent of Africa in the Democratic Republic of Congo. This year, it has moved out of Africa and the case has been detected in Sweden due to which the WHO pic.twitter.com/J4N98RoeS6  ANI (@ANI) August 20, 2024

Why WHO has not recommended mass vaccination

Mpox is an infection that can be prevented with vaccination, but the World Health Organization (WHO) currently does not recommend mass immunisation.

"WHO is not recommending mass vaccination, citing the limited global supply of vaccines and the generally low risk to the broader population. In a populous nation like India, the focus should be on preventive strategies, including contact and airborne transmission precautions, public health education, strengthening surveillance systems, targeted vaccination for high-risk groups, and ensuring robust healthcare response protocols to manage and contain any potential outbreaks," Dr. Garg said.

For more news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News.
In winters this year, right in time for the holiday season, North Korea is gearing up to reopen limited international tourismyes, you read that right, its not a drill! Nearly five years after closing its borders due to the Covid-19 pandemic, two tour companies linked to the secretive state have confirmed that travel to the country is back on. For those eager to explore one of the worlds most isolated nations or seeking a once-in-a-lifetime travel adventure, this could be the ultimate, albeit unconventional, holiday destination.

Beijing-based Koryo Tours and Shenyang-based KTG Tours both announced online on Wednesday that tour groups will soon be allowed to visit Samjiyon, a mountainous city claimed to be the birthplace of the late North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.



While exact tour dates are still pending, Koryo Tours confirmed that tourism to Samjiyon, and possibly the rest of North Korea, will officially resume in December 2024.

The company also mentioned that itineraries and more details will be finalised in the coming days and weeks.

Can Indians travel to North Korea?

Yes, Indians can travel to North Korea. Indian passport holders are eligible to apply for a North Korea visa, which has a processing time of 15 to 20 days and a fee of USD 50.

Credit: Freepik

Two types of visas are available:



Tourist Visa: Ideal for Indian passport holders visiting North Korea for tourism, sightseeing, or seeing friends and relatives.

Business Visa: Ideal for those attending business meetings, exhibitions, or conferences in North Korea.

Credit: Canva

According to tour operator BTW Visas, the following requirements must be met for a North Korean visa:



Genuine Traveler: You must have a valid reason for traveling to North Korea.

Financial Capability: You must have enough funds to support yourself and any dependents during your stay.

Reason to Return: Strong ties to your home country are required to ensure you will return after your visit.

Good Character: A clean criminal record is necessary, and a Police Clearance Certificate (PCC) may be required.

Good Health: You must meet the minimum health standards set by the authorities.

To learn more about the experience of traveling to North Korea, check out the video below by a traveller named Nick, who goes by the name 'Indigo Traveller' on social media. Nick visited North Korea in 2018 and described his experience as 'surreal' and 'overwhelming.' He documented his journey in a series of videos on YouTube, one of which is featured here:

For more news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News.
The Democratic National Convention in Chicago, held ahead of the US presidential elections in November, witnessed a unique event on Wednesday. Day three of the DNC started with Vedic prayers, with a Hindu priest from the Sri Siva Vishnu Temple in Maryland becoming the first speaker of the day.

The priest, Rakesh Bhatt, was invited to the stage along with Bishop Leah Daughtry of The House of the Lord Church to start the proceedings of the final day of the DNC.

Democratic National Convention showcases a Hindu Prayer on stage for the first time ever from Sri Rakesh Bhatt of Sri Siva Vishnu Temple in Maryland #DNC2024 #Election2024 pic.twitter.com/cpavw8jwB2  Diya TV (@DiyaTV) August 21, 2024

'We have to be united'

Bhatt opened the prayers with "Om Shanti" and chanted a Vedic prayer seeking blessings for a united country.

Even if we have differences, when it comes to the nation, we have to be united, and it moves us towards justice for all, he said.

CREDIT: SSVT

We should be in unison. Let our minds think together. Let our hearts beat as one. All for the betterment of society. May this make us powerful so we can unite and make our nation proud, the senior Hindu priest said.

Also read: Democratic National Convention: Bill Clinton calls Kamala Harris 'President of Joy' as she formally accepts nomination

'One universal family'

We are one universal family. Truth is our foundation and always prevails. Lead us from unreal to real, from darkness to light, and from death to immortality. Om Shanti Shanti Shanti, Bhatt said.

'Significant moment for Indian American community'

"Rakesh Bhatt's Hindu prayer at the DNC today is a significant moment, showcasing the Democratic Party's commitment to inclusivity and diversity," Deputy National Finance Chair of the Democratic Party, Ajay Bhutoria, said.

Hindu prayer at the DNC Convention today is a significant moment, showcasing the Democratic Party's commitment to inclusivity and diversity. It is heartening to see the rich cultural and spiritual traditions of the Indian American community being honored on such a prominent stage pic.twitter.com/6wNsnthmbd  Ajay Jain Bhutoria (@ajainb) August 22, 2024

Who is Rakesh Bhatt?

Bhatt, who hails from Bengaluru, has been serving as the priest at the Sri Siva Vishnu Temple in Maryland. He is a Madhwa priest trained in Rig Veda and Tantrasaara (Maadhva) Agama under his guru, Pejavar Swamiji of Udupi Ashta Matha.

CREDIT: SSVT

According to reports, Bhatt, who holds both Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Sanskrit, English, and Kannada, is fluent in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Hindi, English, Tulu, and Sanskrit.

For more news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News.
A viral video circulating on social media shows a judge at the Karnataka High Court expressing frustration over a woman's hefty maintenance demand of over Rs 6 lakh from her ex-husband, made through her lawyer. The judge questions the legitimacy of such a large monthly amount, a stance that has earned widespread praise from netizens. Many have lauded her for raising the right questions and delivering fair judgments, further highlighting the crucial role female judges play in bringing justice.

Check out the video here:

KARNATAKA HIGH COURT :



Wife asking for 6,16,000 per month maintenance



4-5 Lacs per month for knee pain, physiotherapy



15000 per month for shoes dresses



60000 per month for food inside home



Few more thousands for dining outside home



JUDGE : ASK HER TO EARN  pic.twitter.com/G0LUpIaA33  Deepika Narayan Bhardwaj (@DeepikaBhardwaj) August 21, 2024

The woman's total maintenance request of Rs 6,16,300 per month includes expenses such as Rs 4-5 lakh for knee pain treatment and physiotherapy, Rs 15,000 for shoes and dresses, Rs 60,000 for home food, and several thousand more for dining out.

Her lawyer emphasised that her ex-husband's preference for wearing branded clothes is a key reason behind the high maintenance request. He pointed out that while the ex-husband wears expensive brands, like Rs 10,000 Calvin Klein t-shirts, she has to make do with old dresses.



Credit: Freepik

The judge was scathing in her response.



She stated, Please dont tell the court that this is all a person requires.

"If she wishes to spend such a sum, she should earn it herself rather than burdening her husband. Does anybody spend this much, a single lady for herself? So if she wants to spend, let her earn. Not on the husband, she said.

The judge also highlighted that the ex-husband already provides for their children, meaning the entire requested amount is solely for the woman.

You have no other responsibility of the family. You dont have to take care of the children, she pointed out.

Further criticising the excessive demand, the judge remarked that alimony should not serve as a punishment for the husband: Thats not the purpose of Section 24 and it is not a punishment to the husband that he is having disputes with wife to grant Rs 6,16,000. You should be reasonable in telling it, not that I will tell some figure and the court will give some amount or the other.

Angry at the situation, she added, We want to send a loud and clear message to all the litgants who want to exploit the process of the court, this is an exploitation.

How did people react?

The video, which quickly went viral with nearly 2 million views in under 24 hours, saw many people emphasising that the judge's response was the need of the hour.

The judge received widespread praise from people:

Credit: X/ @DeepikaBhardwaj

Others pointed out how this is a disrespect of the court itself:



Credit: X/ @DeepikaBhardwaj

What is your opinion on this?

To stay updated on the stories that are going viral, follow Indiatimes Trending.


On Sunday, a woman from the United States jumped into a Bengal tiger exhibit at the Cohanzick Zoo in New Jersey, nearly being bitten by the wild cat. As the tiger crept inches ahead of her, the woman pushed her fingers through the inner netting.

The Bridgeton Police Department confirmed the event on Facebook and shared a video of the woman uncomfortably near to the tiger. Later, the department removed the video. However, by then, the video had spread across other social media channels.



Who shared the videos on social media?

LOOK: Bridgeton Police want to identify this woman, who climbed over the tiger enclosures wooden fence at the Cohanzick Zoo and began enticing the tiger, almost getting bit by putting her hand through the wire enclosure. 1/4 pic.twitter.com/DPRFi5xFg1  Steve Keeley (@KeeleyFox29) August 21, 2024

Fox reporter Steve Keeley shared the video on his X page. The video shows a woman wearing a dark top and white shorts standing next to a tiger. She tried to poke it with her hand.

What did the tiger do?

2/4 Despite the signs the clearly state Do Not Climb Over The Fenceat the Cohanzick Zoo in Cumberland County, Bridgeton Police hope the public can help them identify the woman is who nearly got bit by one of the two 7 year old, 500 pound tigers who live there. pic.twitter.com/IqWJDL6W04  Steve Keeley (@KeeleyFox29) August 21, 2024

The tiger swatted and tried to bite the woman's hand before she climbed back over the wooden barrier to exit the enclosure. According to the original police department article regarding the incident, she was almost wounded.

In his post, Keeley also added, "Despite the signs that clearly state 'Do Not Climb Over The Fence' at Fence at the Cohanzick Zoo in Cumberland County, Bridgeton Police hope the public can help them identify the woman who nearly got bit by one of the two 7-year-old, 500-pound tigers who live there.



How did people on the internet react?

The post was shared on August 21. Since its publication, it has received over 35,000 views. The post has also received countless likes and comments.

First question. Why the actual phuck is a tiger in Bridgeton?  Derek Chapman, MD, MBA (@DrBullishHarami) August 21, 2024

Its highly predictable that someone will jump that fense. The zoo will get sued if someone gets hurt. There should be no feasible way a visitor can come in physical contact with a Tiger.  Bread Baker (@challahman) August 21, 2024

Props to the tigers for having mercy  Erickonasis31 (@edub30) August 21, 2024

Dumb people like her are the reason that these animals sometimes have to be shot because idiots like her may have been killed by it.  MichelleJane (@MichelleJarw) August 21, 2024

Also read: Zoo owner's swim with Lakshman the tiger goes viral, watch

What do you think about this? Tell us in the comments.

To stay updated on the stories that are going viral follow Indiatimes Trending.
Do you remember when a man discovered that a package of Lays weighed only 8 grams rather than the 30 grams as claimed on the packaging? Disappointed, the man filed a lawsuit against PepsiCo. The court found that it was in favour of the customer, ordering PepsiCo to deposit Rs 50,000 in the customer Welfare Fund within 90 days.

The company was also ordered to pay Rs 5,000 for emotional anguish and Rs 2,000 for legal fees to the impacted client. Now, a man claims he found only 4 pieces of chips in a Lays packet.

What did the man find in the Lays packet?

Customers who believe their chip packs are misleading have been criticising Lays for years. While the inflated bags look appealing, they frequently contain more air than chips.

Recently, a Reddit member shared a terrible incident from their trip to Goa. Feeling famished, the user purchased a Rs 10 package of Lays, only to discover four chips inside.

Credit: Reddit | The user purchased a Rs 10 package of Lays, only to discover four chips inside

Along with his complaint, the individual shared images of himself holding the four chips and another image of the packet's contents, both of which plainly reveal an insufficient number of chips.



He wrote, "I got four chips in the Rs 10 Lays packet. I was quite hungry and purchased Lays at a gas station near Goa. "I opened the first packet and got this surprise." Since the person shared the post, it has received more than 1700 upvotes.

How did people on the internet react?

The post immediately gathered popularity, with some readers advocating that the case be taken to consumer court, others sharing their own similar complaints, and a few making light of the situation. Many people on the internet could relate to the post. Here's what people said.

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Also read: Bournvita Influence? Food Pharmer Claims Success As PepsiCo Commits To Cut Palm Oil In Lay's Chips

What do you think about this? Tell us in the comments.

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Banks in various states across India will be closed on Monday, August 26 for Shri Krishna Janmashtami, according to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) holiday calendar.



On Monday, August 26, 2024, many private and public sector banks in various cities across India will be closed for Janmashtami. According to the RBI's website, this holiday is declared under the Negotiable Instruments Act. However, not all banks in the country will be closed, only those in certain states.

Janmashtami Bank Holiday in these cities

Cities like Ahmedabad, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Dehradun, Gangtok, Hyderabad (Andhra Pradesh and Telangana), Jaipur, Jammu, Kanpur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Patna, Raipur, Ranchi, Shillong, Shimla, and Srinagar will have banks closed. If you plan to do any banking in these cities, make sure to complete your tasks in advance.

Stock Market Update for Krishna Janmashtami

Credit: Freepik

In August, apart from Saturdays and Sundays, the stock market had only one public holiday on August 15 for Independence Day. The stock market will be closed on August 24 (Saturday) and August 25 (Sunday).

Krishna Janmashtami 2024 is on Monday, August 26. The whole country will joyfully celebrate Lord Krishna's birthday. While many places will have holidays, the stock market will remain open for trading as usual on the BSE and NSE. The commodity trading platform MCX (Multi Commodity Exchange) will also be open.

Remember, except for a few public holidays, the stock market and MCX are closed every Saturday and Sunday. In August, aside from Saturdays and Sundays, the stock market had only one public holiday, which was on August 15 for Independence Day. The market will be closed on Saturday, August 24, and Sunday, August 25, due to the holidays.

Heres a list of the key Bank Holidays in August 2024:

August 13 (Tuesday): Patriots Day  Banks will be closed in Manipur.

August 15 (Thursday): Independence Day/Parsi New Year (Shahenshahi)  Banks across India will be closed.

August 19 (Monday): Raksha Bandhan/Jhulana Purnima/Birthday of Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya Bahadur  Banks will be closed in Tripura, Gujarat, Odisha, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Himachal Pradesh.

August 20 (Tuesday): Sree Narayana Guru Jayanthi  Banks will be closed in select states.

August 26 (Monday): Janmashtami (Shravan Vad-8)/Krishna Jayanthi  Banks will be closed in Gujarat, Odisha, Chandigarh, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Rajasthan, and more.

Digital Banking: A Convenient Solution During Bank Holidays

Despite the many bank holidays in 2024, customers can still handle their finances through digital banking. It allows you to do important banking tasks from anywhere, anytime, without going to a bank branch. Whether you use a laptop, tablet, or smartphone, digital banking ensures your financial transactions run smoothly, even when banks are closed.

Why is Janmashtami celebrated?

Credit: Freepik

Janmashtami is a Hindu festival that marks the birth of Lord Krishna, celebrated on the eighth day (Ashtami) of the Bhadrapada month, which usually falls in August or September. Lord Krishna, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu, was the eighth child of Devaki and Vasudeva. Long ago, Mathura was ruled by the cruel King Kansa, who spread fear and terror across the land.



After hearing a prophecy that Devaki and Vasudevas eighth son would be his downfall, Kansa imprisoned them and killed their newborns. However, since Krishna was divine, the gods helped him escape. On the night Krishna was born, the prison guards fell into a deep sleep, allowing Vasudeva to flee with baby Krishna. He traveled from Mathura to Vrindavan and left Krishna in the care of his friend Nanda and Nandas wife Yashoda. When Krishna grew up, he returned to Mathura to defeat Kansa, fulfilling the prophecy and ending Kansa's reign of terror.

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Rethymno police have arrested a foreign national suspected of stealing over 20,000 euros in cash and jewelry from hotel rooms in the area. The arrest followed an investigation by the Rethymno Security Subdivision, which solved four theft cases in the region.

The suspect is accused of stealing a total of 3,080 euros in cash, 17,100 euros worth of jewelry, and a safe from various hotel rooms between August 12 and August 19.

During a search of the suspect's residence, police recovered 2,200 euros in cash, along with clothing items and burglary tools.

The suspect is now facing charges related to these thefts.

   iefimerida.gr
Greece's tourism sector is basking in a golden summer, with a 12.2 percent surge in revenue during the first half of 2024, reaching 6.921 billion.

The number of visitors also soared, increasing by 15.5 percent to 11.625 million, according to data from the Bank of Greece. The impressive performance

highlights the country's enduring appeal as a premier tourist destination and its resilience in the face of global economic challenges.

June 2024 proved particularly strong, with a 7.7 percent increase in revenue to 3.115 billion euros and an 8.8 percent rise in tourist arrivals to 4.681 million. Although the average spending per tourist saw a slight decline, the overall growth in visitor numbers and total expenditure significantly boosted Greece's tourism income.

German tourists emerged as the top spenders, contributing over 1.2 billion euros, followed closely by British tourists at just over 1 billion euros. Americans ranked third, adding 540 million euros to the revenue.

The increase in tourist spending resulted in a healthy travel balance surplus of 2.861 billion euros in June 2024, a notable rise from the previous year. Revenue from EU-27 residents grew by 4.6% in June, driven primarily by a 34.5 percent surge from non-Eurozone EU countries. However, revenue from Eurozone countries and the US saw a slight decline.

Despite a minor dip in average tourist expenditure, the overall increase in arrivals and total spending has significantly bolstered Greece's tourism industry in the first half of 2024.

   iefimerida.gr
The Greek coast guard intercepted the vessel and safely transported the passengers, including 67 men , 27 women , and 21 children, to a migrant reception centre on Lesvos. Unfortunately, the boat sank shortly after the rescue operation.
The former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has urged Nigeria Labour Congress to remain strong and avoid being intimidated amid struggle with Federal government.

Obis statement is coming, following an invitation of NLCs President, Joe Ajaero, by the Police on Monday.

The former Anambra states governor said that the summon given to Ajaero by police was expected since the organized labour poses threat to the governments autocratic intention.

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In a statement released to the public on Thursday morning, Obi advised the police to exercise caution and follow the rule of law in managing the union leaders case.

He said: The anxiety generated by Nigeria Polices invitation to the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Mr. Joe Ajaero for an interview should not be unexpected given the critical position he holds as leader of the nations workforce.

READ MORE: Ajaero: TUC Accuses FG Of Intimidating Organised Labour

The NLC is an interlocutor of the Federal Government on various labour disputes and other national interest issues. On that basis alone, without prejudice to due process, Mr Ajaero represents an umbrella organization that should inform the authorities of their approach and modalities.

The alleged infractions listed on the letter of invitation circulating on Social Media, are weighty and there is no clarity on the circumstances and if the authorities are attributing these to personal conduct or responsibilities devolving on Mr Ajaejo as the undisputed leader of NLC.

Extreme caution must thus be exercised in the manner in which this issue is handled. It is not unexpected that government will boot try autocratic methods to vow labour as a potential opposition force.

Invitations like the one to Ajaero are expected. But the rule of law and the laws of evidence should be observed. Labour should stick to its strengths and powers in order to maintain democratic order and sanity.
The President of the Trade Union Congress, Festus Osifo, has said that there is an attempt by the federal government to intimidate the Nigeria Labour Congress.

Recall that the Police, on Monday, summoned the NLC President, Joe Ajaero, for questioning over accusations of terrorism financing, treasonable felony, cybercrime, and other related offenses.

Reacting to the development, during an appearance on Channels Televisions Politics Today, on Wednesday, urged the President Bola Tinubus government to reveal the specific charges against Ajaero.

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READ MORE: If Anything Happens To Ajaero, Well Go On Strike Tonight  NLC Threatens

He said: You could see that as of today, there was a response from our lawyer, Femi Falana, saying that the government should come clean and tell us what are the offences.

They should open up much more because Nigerians need to know. The way it is generally perceived today is that you are muzzling the labour movement. Joe Ajaero does not present himself.

Anything that he is doing, he is doing it on behalf of the members of the Nigeria Labour Congress.

For us, we will continue to be advocates to push government to do what is right in all ramifications.

The final thing that we will do is to shut down the oil and gas industry so that the refinery can work.
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has vowed to remain in the Peoples Democratic Party, despite internal crisis facing the major opposition party.

Wike made the vow during a press conference on Wednesday in Abuja to mark his first anniversary as FCT minister.

The former governor of Rivers state, while reacting to questions about the possibility of his exit from the party, amid ongoing crisis both in the Rivers PDP and at the national level, the FCTs Minister said that he would not run from the vampires.

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Wike also noted that he could join the All Progressives Congress if he wanted, noting that he maintained his integrity by refusing to support the PDP presidential candidate during the 2023 elections, while still delivering wins for the party in Rivers.

He said: Ive told you I do not run from any fight. I will stay there; I will fight it out. Who am I going to run from? The vampires? How can you say that?

Can I tell you something? Anybody who knows me knows too well if I want to join APC today; when I was in then PDP, didnt I say that I would not support your presidential candidate? Did I do it secretly?

READ MORE: PDP Wont Survive If Wike Is Still A Member  Edwin Clark

All those people who are saying those things, did they bring one member who has won an election? Did the PDP not win? I stood my ground on the principle that if this is not done, we will not accept it. People should know you for something. Integrity is very important.

INFORMATION NIGERIA reports that many stakeholders and Governor Sim Fubaras supporters have been calling for the suspension of Wike, from the PDP, adding that the party wont progress, if he remain as a member.
Operatives of the Kano State Police command have arrested 41 suspected criminals and recovered dangerous weapons including illicit drugs.

The Command Public Relations Officer SP. Abdullahi Haruna Kiyawa stated this in a statement issued to the public on Wednesday.

It was gathered that the development is coming, following a series of raids on criminal hideouts and black spots in areas of public outcry within Kano Metropolis.

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In a statement made available to newsmen on Wednesday the Kano State Police Command, Public Relations Officer, SP Abdullahi Kiyawa, attributed the achievement to the sustenance of intelligence-led policing by CP Dogo.

He said: Following a series of raids on criminal hideouts and black spots in areas of public outcry within Kano Metropolis, the Command has arrested forty-one (41) suspects and recovered dangerous weapons and intoxicating drugs, with investigation ongoing.

I deeply appreciate the public support as all forms of crimes are reducing drastically.

READ MORE: Mother, Five Children Feared Dead After Eating Expired Local Food In Kano

This achievement is a testament to the commands commitment to ensuring the safety and security of the good people of Kano State.

The police command is pleased to report that all forms of crimes are reducing drastically in the State, thanks to the cooperation and support of the law-abiding citizens.

Im assuring Kano residents of the commands relentless commitment to protecting lives and properties.
The Katsina State Police Command has announced that its officers have arrested six persons, suspected to be armed robbers in the state.

Disclosing this to the public on Wednesday, during a press briefing, the states police spokesman, ASP Abubakar Sadiq, told journalists at the command headquarters that the Commissioner of Police, Aliyu Abubakar Musa, swiftly deployed a team of operatives to investigate and apprehend the perpetrators.

Sadiq noted that the states commissioners deployment is coming, following a series of reports about the activities of the notorious syndicate of armed robbers terrorising Filin Polo quarters in Katsina metropolis and its environs.

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He said: The team promptly swung into action and successfully dismantled a six-man syndicate of notorious armed robbers terrorising Filin Polo quarters of Katsina metropolis.

On 30 July 2024, at about 02:20 hours, the suspects, armed with dangerous weapons such as knives and cutlasses, criminally conspired and trespassed into the house of Muntari Usman, aged 45, located in Filin Polo quarters.

They attacked and robbed him of the sum of one million eight hundred and fifty thousand naira (1,850,000.00).

Similarly, on 11 August 2024, at about 02:00 hours, the syndicate conspired with one Dan Bichi, who is currently at large, to trespass into the homes of Badiya Mansur, aged 20, and Fatima Mohammed, aged 40, stealing one sheep and one ram valued at two hundred and twenty thousand naira (220,000.00).

READ MORE: Police Arrest 13-Year-Old Bandits Informant In Katsina


Didi Esther Walson-Jack, Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HoCSF), has urged civil servants to improve their computer skills in line with the digitalisation policies of the Service.

These policies are embedded in the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan 2021-2025 (FCSSIP-25) and the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubus administration.

During a tour of designated centres for the 2024 compulsory Confirmation and Promotion Examination (COMPRO) Computer-Based Test (CBT) in Abuja, Walson-Jack stressed that public servants must align themselves with these technological advancements to remain relevant in the civil service.

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The CBT, conducted by the Office of the HCSF in collaboration with the Joint Admissions Matriculation Board, is a key component of this digitalisation effort.

READ ALSO: Tinubu Appoints Didi Esther Walson-Jack As Head Of Service

The 2024 COMPRO exercise, targeting junior category officers, saw the participation of 12,444 candidates, including 2,324 from the Federal Capital Territory, across 45 centres nationwide.

According to a statement by Eno Olotu, the Director of Communications, OHCSF, the HoCSF was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the Common Services Office, Raymond Omachi, who expressed satisfaction with the CBT process.

Omachi noted that the new system would not only expedite the transmission of results but also enhance transparency and efficiency within the civil service.

To be relevant in todays Civil Service under the digitalisation programme, you must be computer literate. If youre not, its imperative to improve your skills because programmes are in place to train officers in line with global best practices, the statement read.
The Lagos State Police Command has nabbed three suspected kidnappers who were terrorising residents of the states Ikorodu district.

SP Benjamin Hundeyin, the commands Public Relations Officer, said this in a statement in Lagos on Wednesday.

He stated that the suspects allegedly attempted to kidnap a car dealer on Ebute-Igbogbo Road in Ikorodu on Tuesday before being apprehended.

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READ MORE: Biker Dead, Passenger Hospitalised As Truck Crushes Motorcycle In Osun

Three suspects, whose ages ranged from 23 to 33, (names withheld), have been in our custody since Tuesday shortly after the incident.

Efforts are on to arrest two other suspects who escaped during the raid, he said.

According to the spokesperson, an inquiry into the incident has begun.
Chidimma Adetshina, a Miss South Africa finalist, has returned to Nigeria after two decades to compete in the Miss Universe Nigeria pageant.

On Wednesday, 23-year-old model arrived in Lagos and expressed her excitement at reconnecting with her heritage as she prepares to represent Taraba state in the Miss Universe Nigeria pageant.

Speaking to the media, Chidimma conveyed her eagerness to be a part of her joyful introduction to the nation and her intentions to explore it while she is around.

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Im just thrilled to be back in my fathers land after 20 years,

Im eager to immerse myself in the culture and learn more about where I truly come from, she said.

Chidimma also expressed her unwavering determination to win the Miss Universe Nigeria title, underlining her desire to use her platform to promote togetherness and appreciate diversity.

My goal is obviously to win the crown.

As someone who has faced adversity, I want to use my story to bring people together. We should value diversity and celebrate our differencesits the key to building a stronger community where everyone is recognised and appreciated.

READ MORE: BBNaija S9: Nelita Emerges HOH For Second Time, Earns Immunity

She expressed gratitude to the Silverbird Group for the opportunity to compete, particularly after withdrawing from the Miss South Africa pageant due to a nationality issue and xenophobic incidents.

In addition to modelling, Chidimma is seeking a law degree and intends to continue her education after the contest.

Im a law student, and once I graduate, Id like to further my studies in that field, she added.

Watch her speak below
A member of the Peoples Democratic Partys Board of Trustees, Senator Abdul Ningi, has called for the expulsion of Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.

Ningi, on Wednesday, described the political activities of the former governor of Rivers state as anti-party behavior.

The Bauchi South Senator said that it was wrong that Wike remained a member of the PDP and at the same time enriching and influencing other parties to fight the main opposition political party.

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Ningi, during an interview on Wednesday with Arise TV, explained that the internal crisis in the party was an outcome of the last general election.

He noted that some of the party members who did not get what they wanted in the last poll were out to destroy the party.

Ningi said: The mindset of some key actors is that this party must not survive. This party does not warrant our sympathy because at a time in the immediate past, some people did not get what they wanted.

READ MORE: I Wont Run From You Vampires  Wike To PDP Leaders Amid Partys Crisis

They are members of the PDP, otherwise there wouldnt have been crisis. You cannot be a member of the PDP and at the same time be a member of another party. You cannot be a member of the PDP and at the same time enriching or influencing other parties to fight the PDP.

We have written a letter, the BOT has written a letter to him (Wike), to also meet him. When we were in Port Harcourt, we also tried to understand the irreducible minimum that the governor can give the party to survive in the state.

And we have taken that. Our next venture is, of course, to see the FCT minister and have also a discussion with him.
Matthew Santiago is escorted into a courtroom in the Montgomery County Courthouse on Thursday. Santiago was sentenced to two to five years in state prison for, prosecutors say, buying drugs that later killed his girlfriend's 6-year-old son. Read more

A Norristown man whose girlfriends 6-year-old son overdosed on narcotics he had purchased pleaded guilty Thursday to involuntary manslaughter, endangering the welfare of a child, and drug possession.

Matthew Santiago, 35, was sentenced to two to five years in state prison and five years probation for his role in the death of Dominic Lyons. During the tense hearing, one of the boys relatives tried to attack Santiago for comments he made in the courtroom.

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In handing down the sentence, Montgomery County Court Judge Wendy Rothstein told Dominics loved ones, including his father, Hussein Lyons, that she was deeply sorry for their loss.

No parent should have to bury their child, Rothstein said. I know this isnt comforting to you, and no sentence would bring back your son, but this sentence is significant.

Santiago was living with and dating Kristin Sabatino on July 16, 2023, when Dominic was found cold to the touch and stiff inside the couples apartment on Willow Street. The boy was pronounced dead at the scene.

Dominics blood tests revealed that the boy had high levels of fentanyl and xylazine in his system at the time of his death. The amount of narcotics in the boys blood was so high, according to prosecutors, that Dominic would have had to ingest the drugs.

Prosecutors said Thursday that Santiago had routinely purchased fentanyl, LSD, Xanax and other drugs for both himself and Sabatino over a two-year period. Other drug paraphernalia, including needles, was found strewed throughout the home that Sabatino and Santiago shared with Dominic and their daughter, who was 2 at the time of their arrests.

 READ MORE: Coatesville couples recklessness exposed their 8-year-old son to the narcotics that killed him, DA says

Sabatino faces similar charges, and has a trial pending in Montgomery County Court scheduled for October.

In a statement to Rothstein, Hussein Lyons said Thursday that nobody gave his son a fighting chance.

I just want justice to be served, and I guess it will be in the eyes of the court, but it will never be enough, Lyons said. Its not fair. [Dominic] should still be here.

Santiago taunted Lyons in response, telling him, You werent even in [Dominics] life. His comments prompted another member of Lyons family to rush at Santiago before being stopped by sheriffs deputies. The man was escorted out of the courtroom and the hearing was temporarily paused as Rothstein warned against further outbursts.

Deputy District Attorney Brianna Ringwood said the plea deal offered to Santiago was made with the approval of Dominics family, but acknowledged that no sentence is enough.

Theres no sentence that is going to change what happened, Ringwood said. And, really, its unfair that this child is not here to spend time with his family, to go to school, and to just do the things that a 6-year-old does.

Frank Genovese, Santiagos attorney, said his client accepted and admitted that the lifestyle he was living led to Dominics death, and wanted to take accountability.

I think the driving factor in his mind was to take responsibility for what happened to Dominic, Genovese said, of the plea. He always thought of him as his own son, even though he wasnt his, and just, quite honestly, felt terrible about what happened.

At the time of Dominics death, Sabatino  who has a 2017 conviction for endangering the welfare of a child after police found her overdosed while caring for a then-infant Dominic  told officers she was in recovery and had not been using fentanyl.

But text messages recovered by investigators showed that Sabatino had been complaining of feeling dope sick and had asked Santiago to buy her heroin three days before Dominics death.

In interviews with detectives, Sabatino said she had given her son Benadryl the night before his death after he said his eyes were itchy and he felt shaky. The next morning she called 911 when she went to wake him up and found he was not breathing.
Health systems in the competitive Philadelphia-area market can continue banning doctors and other clinicians from going to work for competitors after a federal judge in Texas struck down this week a Federal Trade Commission rule from April that banned such employment contracts. These noncompete agreements impact one in five American workers, including many health-care workers employed by hospitals, nursing homes, and home-care agencies.

Up to 45% of physicians are bound by noncompete agreements, according to the American Medical Association. These clauses often include a distance in which doctors cannot take new jobs for a number of years. In the Philadelphia area, where multiple hospitals compete within a small geography, such prohibitions could require physicians to leave the region to change jobs.

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 READ MORE: The FTC banned non-compete agreements. Experts say Philly doctors should wait to shred their contracts.

So when the FTC announced the ban, which was set to go into effect in September, many physicians cheered. But experts advised that the FTCs rule was unlikely to go into effect without a legal challenge.

On Tuesday, Judge Ada Brown of the Northern District of Texas ruled that the FTC didnt have the proper authority to ban noncompetes. Brown also found the rule to be a one-size-fits-all approach with no end date, making it overly broad.

We are disappointed by Judge Browns decision and will keep fighting to stop noncompetes that restrict the economic liberty of hardworking Americans, hamper economic growth, limit innovation, and depress wages, FTC spokesperson Victoria Graham said in a statement.

Here is what Philadelphia area-physicians and health-care workers need to know about the ruling and the future of the FTCs noncompete ban.

What is a noncompete?

An agreement that bars workers from taking a new job in a certain geographic area, professional field, or with specific competitors for a period of time.

A typical noncompete clause for physicians includes a geographic distance  such as radius from a hospital  and restricts them from accepting a job within it for a certain time period.

What did the FTC decide?

Noncompete agreements are a method of unfair competition, the FTC ruled in April.

If the rule went into effect, it would have generally banned employers from signing new noncompetes with workers.

The rule would have also voided most existing noncompete provisions, except for senior executives. The FTC said that only 1% of workers fall into that category.

Some doctors in private practice and nonprofits could have been exempt from the rule on a case-by-case basis.

Who sued to stop the noncompete ban?

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other groups representing businesses and employers sued the FTC in an effort to prevent the noncompete ban from taking effect.

Tuesdays opinion is in response to a lawsuit filed by Ryan LLC, a Dallas-based tax services firm.

The American Hospital Association, an industry group, filed a court brief in support of Ryan. It argued that physicians are fundamentally different from other workers and recommended that the FTC exempt high-skilled workers from its rule.

What did the Texas District judge decide?

Judge Brown struck down the noncompete ban nationwide, saying that the FTC exceeded its authority when it issued the rule.

The role of an administrative agency is to do as told by Congress, not to do what the agency thinks it should do, Brown wrote in the opinion.

Brown cited in her opinion a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that curtailed an administrative agencys ability to issue rules without explicit authority from Congress.

In addition, Brown called the rule arbitrary and capricious, stating that it is overly broad and doesnt rely on proper evidence. The FTC cited studies on the impacts of state laws regulating noncompetes, but the court noted that no state has a ban as sweeping as the FTCs proposal, so the evidence amounted to an apples-to-oranges comparison.

The FTC also didnt explain why it imposed a near-total prohibition, instead of targeting specific, harmful non-competes, Brown wrote.

Whats next for the FTC rule?

The FTC rule will not go into effect unless a higher court reverses Browns decision.

We are seriously considering a potential appeal, Graham, the FTC spokesperson, said in a statement.

The path to reverse the ruling wont be easy for the FTC, said Larry Pockers, a partner at Duane Morris, a Philadelphia-based law firm. Browns ruling is well-reasoned, Pockers said, and could resonate with the conservative-leaning courts that would review an appeal  the Fifth Circuit Court and, later, the U.S. Supreme Court.

Without a change to the Supreme Courts composition, he said its hard to see the agency finding a sympathetic ear to its sweeping rule.

The FTC ban is likely dead on arrival to the U.S. Supreme Court, Pockers said.
Penn is renewing its membership in a national cancer partnership that funds research into how the immune system can be armed against cancer. Read more

The University of Pennsylvania has renewed a national cancer research partnership focused on studying how the bodys immune system can be used to fight  and maybe cure  cancer.

Penn was a founding member of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy in 2016. The organization was created with a $250 million gift from Silicon Valley entrepreneur Sean Parker with the goal of bringing together the leading researchers in cancer immunology.

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PICI announced last month that it would invest an additional $125 million in research efforts, clinical trials, and training for early-career scientists at Penn and other members of the PICI network.

Being part of PICI has opened new doors for teamwork across institutions that has already proved to be very fruitful in moving immunotherapy forward as a pillar of cancer treatment, Carl June, director of the PICI Center at Penn and the universitys Center for Cellular Immunotherapies, said in a statement.

June was among the first scientists who developed chimeric antigen receptor T cell, CAR-T, therapy for blood cancers. The technique involves removing T cells, a type of white blood cell, genetically modifying them to target cancer cells, and infusing them back into the bloodstream.

 READ MORE: Emily Whitehead was the first child cured of cancer with therapy from Penn. Shes back as a freshman.

CAR-T is considered a cure for certain types of blood cancer, such as childhood leukemia. But researchers have struggled to find ways to apply the technique to solid tumors, which account for the vast majority of cancers, such as cancers of the breast, lungs, and prostate.

The new $125 million in PICI funding will be distributed as grants over the next five years.

The PICI network also includes Stanford University; University of California, Los Angeles; University of California, San Francisco; Weill Cornell Medicine; Dana-Farber Cancer Institute; and the Gladstone Institutes.
The historic Montco mansion that was offered for free to anyone able to move it still doesnt have a taker. But theres a new twist in this preservation vs. development saga.

Not only is the 1834 Hood Mansion still on the Limerick property  now it appears, so were some of the original owners.

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The Eastern Pennsylvania Preservation Society, which has been trying to save the Hood Mansion, says it commissioned recent archaeological digs at the property which turned up, what they believe, are the remains of family patriarch and 19th-century Philadelphia merchant John McClellan Hood, his wife, Elizabeth, and two of their offspring, Washington and Montgomery.

We need to raise awareness about the fact that the developer was willing to just pretend that they werent there and just build this warehouse project, said Tyler Schumacher, Eastern Pennsylvania Preservation Society president. Were going to use this to further our cause to save the mansion.

King of Prussia attorney Edmund J. Campbell, who represents MCD 7 LLC, the Brooklyn-based development company that owns the property, said his client learned about the discovery of the human remains on Aug. 15 from the Eastern Pennsylvania Preservation Society and the Limerick Township Historical Society.

We are committed to ensuring that this matter is handled with the utmost respect and sensitivity, Campbell said in an email statement. Our primary concern is to make certain that this situation is managed according to best practices and procedures.

He added that the societies have been asked to stop their activities on the property until the owner can confirm the appropriate procedures being followed.

We are in the process of reviewing the material provided to us, Campbell said. We contacted independent consultants to provide us with guidance as to appropriate next steps.

Schumacher said the digs began in June and continued into early August. The specialists involved were Nathan Babb from the Boyertown Historical Societys archaeological division, forensic archaeologist Kimberlee Moran of Rutgers University, and independent archaeologist Alex Denning.

According to Schumacher, the developer told Eastern Pennsylvania Preservation Society and town officials that he believed there were no human remains still on the property.

I want to make it crystal clear that we would have preferred to not do the dig, but we really didnt have much of an option, because he told us they werent there, the preservation leader said. We needed to prove it.

DNA testing has not been done on the remains, but the preservationists believe they are of Hood family members based on documentation and other information theyve obtained. Schumacher said they believe additional remains are still on the property.

The remains are being held at a local funeral home, he said.

Earlier this year, Schumacher said the developer told the society if they could find someone to remove the Hood Mansion from the property, they could have it free of charge.

So far, that hasnt worked out.

We had four people who were fairly serious, and unfortunately, all of those deals fell through, said Schumacher, who started the society because he wanted to preserve the Hood Mansion. He is also the facilities site manager at Lynnewood Hall in Elkins Park.

The 112-acre property had been the summer home of Hood, an Irish immigrant and successful Philadelphia businessman, and his wife and their 13 children. Their eldest son, Washington Hood, a West Point graduate, had a monument erected in his honor on the property, and a mausoleum was created for family members. Their brownstone mansion has 17 rooms, oak beams, chestnut floors, and nine fireplaces.

The estate is said to have served as a stop on the Underground Railroad for slaves fleeing to freedom. According to Eastern Pennsylvania Preservation Society, 15 Hood family members were interred on its grounds.

Over the decades, however, vandalism and grave robbery forced most of the remains of the family members to be moved to Laurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia, according to Eastern Pennsylvania Preservation Society. In July, the monument to Washington Hood, a marble obelisk, was vandalized.

The Limerick Township Historical Society was able to secure a plot for the new remains and the monument, which is being repaired, at the Limerick Church Burial Ground. This will be used in case they cannot be returned to the Hood property, Schumacher said.
At New Liberty Distillery, canned cocktail options include a sparkling vodka lemonade, gin and tonic, margarita, vodka soda, and an orange crush made with vodka, soda water, and orange. Ready-to-drink spirits beverages will now be able to be sold in more retail locations in Pennsylvania. Read more

With the Pa. Senates approval, a bill that expands the availability of canned cocktail drinks beyond state-run Fine Wine & Good Spirits stores, now heads to the governors desk. Under the legislation, Pennsylvanians will be able to purchase ready-to-drink cocktails at their local restaurants, grocery chains, and beer stores.

The legislation amends the state liquor code to allow ready-to-drink beverages , also known as canned cocktails, to be sold in nearly 13,000 retail locations with liquor licenses, provided they obtain an additional license for RTDs. The Senate bill passed July 11 by 32-17. A spokesperson for Shapiros office confirmed to The Inquirer that the governor plans to sign the bill into law.

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Heres a reform that folks will like. Thanks to this budget, youll be able to get your High Noons and your Statesides  made right here in Pennsylvania  at your local grocery store or your local gas station. That is real freedom, Shapiro said July 11, after signing a $48 billion state budget for the 2024-25 fiscal year.

The law stipulates that canned cocktails must be under 12.5% ABV, cannot be sold after 11 p.m., and their sale is limited to 192 fluid ounces, or about 16 cans, per transaction for off-site consumption.

State Sen. Mike Regan, the prime sponsor of the canned cocktail bill, looks forward to seeing Pennsylvanians have more options to buy these spirit-based drinks in-state.

The passage of this bill is monumental, for the first time in 91 years, Pennsylvania consumers will be able to buy liquor-based alcohol to-go at their local grocery store, convenience store, beer distributor, or restaurant. For years, Pennsylvanians have been traveling across state lines to buy RTDs and this will certainly help stop some of the border bleed, Regan said.

Canned cocktails are the fastest-growing category of spirits in the U.S., with sales increasing by more than 25% year-over-year to $2.8 billion in revenue in 2023, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States. The councils surveys indicate that adults increasingly prefer spirit-based RTDs over malt- and wine-based options, said Ainsley Giglierano, Distilled Spirits Council vice president of public affairs and state policy.

Its a great move to increase consumer convenience and choice. This bill would allow ready-to-drink cocktails in an additional 13,000 private outlets, on top of the 600 state stores, Giglierano said. That increase in adult consumer access is really great for Pennsylvania consumers. They seek out these products because of their fresh ingredients and real spirits in these ready-to-drink cocktails.

Alex Baloga, president of the Pennsylvania Food Merchants Association, which represents local grocery and convenience stores, said this new law is driven by consumer demand. In a recent study of more than 2,000 U.S. adults  both consumers and nonconsumers of cocktails  86% believed spirit-based RTDs should be sold where other RTD drinks are available.

Like when wine was put into retail stores, this is another seismic shift in the beverage landscape, bringing Pennsylvania in line with pretty much everybody else in the rest of the country, Baloga said. This is a step in the right direction. This makes consumers lives easier. They can go to a grocery store, get what they need, and avoid making a second or third trip.

However, the fees for the RTD liquor license present a hurdle for some smaller and more rural retail locations, said Chuck Moran, president of the Pennsylvania Licensed Beverage and Tavern Association, which represents smaller, family-owned establishments.

I heard from a restaurant owner who owns several restaurants in the Philadelphia area, and he said the $2,500 fee and yearly 2% fee on total sales of these products bought from the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board doesnt benefit the smaller businesses and bars, Moran said. Its nice to have this option, but we just dont think youre going to see the amount of sales coming out of restaurants that youll see from beer distributors and grocery stores.

The expanded canned cocktail sales will go into effect 60 days from when Shapiro signs the bill into law.
Pennsylvania delegate Kieran Franckie shows his political pins on Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024 at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Read more

Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter

Happy warm and sunny Thursday, and congrats to Romanos of Delco: Their stromboli-inspired chips won this years Flavored by Philly contest.

Pennsylvanians have been prominently featured at the Democratic National Convention this week, from the governor to influencers. Below, we dig into how and why content creators from the Philadelphia area are covering the DNC.

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And The Boss is back on the Streets of Philadelphia this week. For some local fans, loving Bruce Springsteen is a family affair.

Read on for these stories and many more.

 Julie Zeglen (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)

If someone forwarded you this email, sign up for free here.

Pennsylvania has been front and center at the DNC this week (literally, in the case of the states delegates, who are seated right in front of the stage).

Among those in attendance are Philly-area content creators participating in the first cohort of influencers covering the convention  many getting more exclusive access than journalists  as the party seeks to reach younger voters.

For burbs-based Alex Pearlman, that means sharing memes and seemingly off-the-cuff moments with Gov. Josh Shapiro. For new-to-Philadelphia Dara Starr Tucker, its shifting her contents focus from national to state politics since getting more connected to local peers.

Whats the value of posting from the convention? Politics reporter Aliya Schneider has the story.

Here are more local moments from the DNC and beyond:

 Shapiro gave his definition of real freedom in a prime-time speech Wednesday. Hes spent the week boosting his national profile while keeping a potential eye on the 2028 or 2032 presidential race, as politics reporter Julia Terruso writes from the ground.

 Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff earlier in the week discussed growing up in north-central New Jersey.

 Harris campaign will launch new ads focused on Asian American voters in battleground states, including Pennsylvania.

 Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, one of the largest historically Black sororities, held their conference in Philadelphia last week and emphasized the importance of voting.

 Artist Sheryl Oring brought her typewriter to town and invited people to express their thoughts directly to the next U.S. president.

Visit Inquirer.com throughout the day for the latest from Chicago.

What you should know today

Its Bruce week in Philadelphia, as the Monmouth County, New Jersey native plays two makeup shows at Citizens Bank Park.

 For some Philly families, The Boss is the tie that binds. They bond over lyrics, name their pets after song titles, and have seen dozens of concerts together across the country and beyond  some upward of 80 times. But they say nothing beats hometown shows.

 Its much deeper than just going to a concert or loving his music or loving the experience, one Montgomery County devotee told The Inquirer. Its part of the roots of our family.

 Arts reporter Rosa Cartagena has the story on Springsteens multigenerational appeal.

Want more Bruce? Read up on how the rocker transformed into a political artist 40 years ago and which album is the favorite of Democratic VP candidate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, or take The Inquirers lyrics quiz. Look out for music critic Dan DeLucas review of night one, plus the setlist, today on Inquirer.com.

 Trivia time

A Kensington distillery has gone national thanks to the popularity of which breakout drink?

A) Fishtown Iced Tea, Rectified Spirits

B) Surfside canned cocktails, Stateside Vodka

C) Vieux Carre absinthe, Philadelphia Distilling

D) Bloody Butcher bourbon, New Liberty Distillery

Think you know? Check your answer.

What were...

 Joining: The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Boards rare whiskey lottery by Friday.

 Learning: The ropes at these Philadelphia climbing gyms.

 Reading: A Philly Bookstore Crawl guide to the best books of 2024 so far.

 Unscramble the anagram

The Philly songstress who performed on the second day of the DNC.

PLIABLE LATTE

Email us if you know the answer. Well select a reader at random to shout out here. Cheers to Walter Tsou, who solved Wednesdays anagram: Steve Van Zandt. The Jersey-raised guitar player, backup vocalist, and musical director of the E Street Band plays with Bruce Springsteen in Philly this week.

Photo of the day

 Enjoy the rest of your Thursday. Back at it tomorrow!

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.
Democrats cheer during Michelle Obamas remarks on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, during the 2024 DNC in Chicago. Read more

When President Joe Biden withdrew from the presidential race on July 21 and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic Partys platform had already been locked in for five days.

So, a 92-page document that mentioned Biden 287 times, touting his first-term accomplishments and articulating goals for his second, is now the agenda of a campaign being run by Harris  who is referenced only 32 times.

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Will that make a difference?

Not really, said Stephen Medvic, director of the Center for Politics and Public Affairs at Franklin & Marshall College, and an expert on elections. I dont think theres anything different in the platform from what Harris has been saying, or what she herself did in the Biden administration.

While she might emphasize certain points differently, Harris agrees with much of the agenda.

The platform, which touches on issues such as abortion, the economy, jobs creation, climate change, the border, and criticism of former President Donald Trump  mentioned 150 times  will remain the Democrats worklist going forward, albeit with a new boss calling the shots.

Historically, while a platform is by no means binding, it offers the public a sense of its partys principles and priorities in the upcoming election. Not a strategic plan with metrics, a platform  especially one for a second-term administration  presents past accomplishments as much, or more than, future goals, Medvic said.

A few of the Democratic platforms major topics include:

The economy and the cost of living

Tapping the rich while cutting taxes for working families, Democrats say in the platform that by closing loopholes theyll make billionaires pay a minimum income tax rate of 25%, raising $500 billion in 10 years.

The platform adds plans to end preferential treatment for capital gains for millionaires, so they pay the same rate on investment income. There will also be a crackdown on junk fees  hidden charges that airlines, internet providers, and hotels add to peoples bills without their knowledge.

Additionally, some 500,000 households, including those of low-income veterans and young people aging out of foster care, will receive rental assistance, according to the platform. The plan also calls for funding to help build or renovate 2 million homes nationwide.

A new Neighborhood Homes Tax Credit will be introduced, the first ever to focus on creating affordable housing not just for renters, but for homeowners.

The platform references Americans coping with the high costs of food, housing, and health care. In remarks dovetailing with the Democratic plan, Harris recently unveiled an economic agenda, in which she focuses on such expenses.

One difference between Harris and the platform is that Harris proposes a $25,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers, versus a $10,000 credit stated in the Democratic document.

The border and immigration

The next Democratic administration will push Congress to provide the resources and authorities that we need to secure the border, the platform states. This would include additional border patrol agents, immigration judges, asylum officers, cutting-edge inspection machines to help detect and stop the flow of fentanyl, and funding for cities and states that are sheltering migrants.

These planks appear to be a rebuttal to Trumps constant refrain that the Democrats have fumbled all aspects of border control.

In the platform, the Biden administration criticizes Trump for using his influence to kill a bipartisan deal with Congress that included the toughest and fairest set of reforms to secure the border. It would have made our country safer and made our border more secure, while treating people fairly and humanely and expanding legal immigration, consistent with our values as a nation.

The platform also calls for ways to expand legal immigration for those coming to the U.S. to escape violence. And it emphasizes ways to keep families together by supporting a pathway to citizenship for long-term undocumented individuals and securing the future of the DACA program (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), a policy that temporarily protects undocumented immigrants who came to the United States as children from deportation.

The war in Gaza and how to talk about it

The platform declares that Biden and Harris believe a strong, secure, and democratic Israel is vital to the interests of the United States.

It also says the administration supports a two-state solution that ensures Israels future as a Jewish and democratic state with recognized borders, and that it upholds the right of Palestinians to live in freedom and security in a viable state of their own.

The war in Gaza has sharply divided the Democratic Party and the platform appears to be an effort to address concerns of the pro-Israel and pro-Palestinians factions within the party.

The platform expresses the intention to broker an immediate and lasting cease-fire deal that secures the return of hostages and addresses the immense civilian pain and extreme suffering being caused by the conflict, including the displacement and death of so many innocent people in Gaza.

Further, the platform says that Biden and Harris oppose settlement expansion, as well as any effort to unfairly single out or delegitimize Israel.

Aware of pro-Palestinian sentiments resonating throughout America and the Democratic Party, it seems that Harris has spoken about the humanitarian toll in Gaza more than Biden has, indicating a slight departure from the platform, according to Dan Mallinson, a professor of public policy and administration at Penn State Harrisburg. Protests have probably pushed her more on that. Pro-Palestinian protesters demonstrated at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago throughout the week.

The fight for reproductive rights

In the platform, Democrats discuss how Biden and Harris have joined other like-minded Americans to restore reproductive freedom for every woman in every state.

Much of the document includes a summary of what the Biden administration has already done, including challenging threats from Republicans to prosecute people who help women travel to different state for abortion care.

The Biden administration has worked to safeguard the privacy of patients and providers, according to the platform, by strengthening federal health privacy protections, cracking down on the illegal sharing of personal information, and issuing guidance to protect student privacy.

Harris can use the platform to hit harder on abortion rights, Mallinson said.

The issue has grown more consequential this presidential election, the first since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, and the federal right to an abortion in 2022.

Ideas in the platform like codifying Roe and increasing IVF access are consistent with Harris approach, he added. But I think its more central to her campaign than it was to Bidens. He was where his party is on the issue, but her campaign talks about freedom, and this fits in well.

Plus, shes a much stronger messenger than Biden as a woman, and its easier for her to forcefully argue the issue. Its a comfort thing for her.

The problem(s) with Donald Trump

The Democratic platform brims with enmity toward Trump. Nearly every major category listed in the document includes an allegation of how the former president sits on the wrong side of an issue.

One of the main criticisms of Trump, the platform imparts, is that his view of the world is limited to what he sees from his country club at Mar-a-Lago, echoing a line that Biden used on the campaign trail.

In the platform, Trump is specifically criticized for:
U.S. Rep Andy Kim of New Jersey speaks on day three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. Read more

U.S. Rep Andy Kim of New Jersey opened his speech Wednesday before the Democratic National Convention with the story of the first time he brought his sons to the U.S. Capitol building.

When he asked his sons if they loved the Capitol, his young son Austin responded: I love the Capitol, and lowercase, too.

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Shortly after, things took a much more somber turn, when on January 6, 2021, a mob stormed the same Capitol building.

Kim, who is now vying in November for the U.S. Senate seat formerly held by Bob Menendez, gained national attention following the attack on the Capitol for his decision that night to grab a trash bag and begin cleaning up debris.

 READ MORE: The unremarkable suit Andy Kim wore while cleaning the Capitol will be a museum artifact

Speaking to the DNC crowd, Kim recalled that moment.

What I learned on January 6 is that all of us, all of us are caretakers of our great Republic, Kim said. We can heal this country, but only if we try.

 READ MORE: Andy Kims underdog Senate campaign broke barriers and actually excited voters

Issuing a plea for voters to pick Vice President Kamala Harris to be the nations next president, Kim insisted that the chaos of the current political moment could subside.

As a father, I refuse to believe that our kids are doomed to grow up in a broken America, he said.

Kims colleague, U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware, who is also running for the U.S. Senate, also addressed the convention Wednesday night, speaking about bright hope, the name of the church her grandmother attended in Philadelphia for seven decades. Bright Hope is the name of a Baptist church in North Philadelphia that was founded in 1911.

Its not just a name, its how I approach my life, Rochester said.

Bright hope, Rochester said, can be seen in Black entrepreneurs and investments in economic opportunities and affordable housing.

Ladies and gentlemen, she said, bright hope is four words: Madame President Kamala Harris.
Keep reading by creating a free account or signing in.
Police arrived at Matthew McCaffery's home Friday night in what he says was a swatting incident. Earlier that day McCaffery, a municipal leader for the Montgomery County GOP, spoke on CNN about his decision to support Vice President Kamala Harris for president. Read more

A former Montgomery County Republican official who said he was swatted for supporting Vice President Kamala Harris was featured Wednesday evening in a video shown at the Democratic National Convention.

One of the main reasons why I wont support Donald J. Trump for president again starts with his chaotic behavior, Matthew McCaffery of Upper Merion said in the video, which featured former Trump supporters.

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McCaffery was one of two Pennsylvanians featured in the video. His appearances comes just days after an alleged swatting incident at his home. He said he was swatted last weekend  a term for when someone calls in a fake emergency to draw police to a specific address  after he went on CNN to discuss his support for Harris.

 READ MORE: Montco Republican who was swatted after CNN interview supporting Kamala Harris lost his position with the county GOP

Upper Merion police have not commented on what happened.

McCaffery, whose face is featured on Republicans Against Trump billboards across Pennsylvania, was also removed from his leadership position on the Montgomery County Republican Committee in Upper Merion on Monday for supporting the Democratic nominee.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro speaks on day three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. Read more

CHICAGO  Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro campaigned around the country this week without ever leaving the Windy City.

On Wednesday morning, he got a standing ovation from a group of bleary-eyed New Hampshire delegates, a crowd thats familiar with vetting potential presidential candidates.

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I specifically wanted to be here in New Hampshire this morning  because when the power is in the hands of New Hampshire, you all know how to pick a president, and you know how to get the job done, Shapiro told the 80 delegates gathered for breakfast in a room at the Westin overlooking Lake Michigan.

Afterward, he took an elevator up the third floor to speak to delegates from Nevada  another early primary state  and then back down to New Jersey on the second floor. Hours later, he delivered a prime-time address on the main convention stage.

Today we find ourselves writing the next chapter, Shapiro said from the United Center stage. Will we be a nation defined by chaos and extremism? Or will we choose a path of decency, honor and continued progress?

 READ MORE: Gov. Josh Shapiro gives a prime-time speech at the DNC defining real freedom

Shapiro, 51, lost the highly watched veepstakes two weeks ago but hes been a welcomed  and busy  surrogate across state delegations, receptions, and Democratic caucus meetings at the convention. It wasnt the job he auditioned for, but hes leaned into it all the same, boosting his profile in crowds that include influential party brass as he keeps a potential eye on the 2028 or 2032 presidential race.

Conventions have historically elevated politicians, like President Barack Obama, who was a candidate for Senate when he addressed the convention in 2004, just four years before he won the presidency.

Shapiro entered the week already in the national spotlight. Throngs of reporters followed him around this week as he made headlines slamming former President Donald Trump and Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Scott Perry, and shrugging off a feud with Sen. John Fetterman, Pennsylvanias other prominent national political figure, who skipped the convention.

The veepstakes drew both praise and scrutiny of Shapiro, but in Chicago, he got mostly admiration.

You know and I know, Governor Shapiro is a well-organized, principled politician with centrist views that has attraction all over this country, Philadelphia Building Trades union president Ryan Boyer said at a reception for Black Philadelphia leaders in Chicago. So a whole lotta breakfasts wanna hear from him.

A really strong bench

And the rooms Shapiro spoke to (filled with plugged-in party loyalists and elected leaders who mostly know him well) greeted him warmly. Arkansas delegates seeking a photo chased him into the hallway after his remarks to their delegation on Monday.

Their vice chair, Jannie Cotton had introduced him as the favorite VP pick among the delegates.

Shapiro filmed a short BeReal video for a younger New Hampshire supporter and then signed a middle-aged womans copy of Democracy in Retrograde. At the Nevada breakfast, enough delegates swarmed him after his remarks, that a staffer suggested a group picture to keep his schedule on track.

He told South Carolina delegates hed be seeing a lot of them. The state, where Shapiro vacations, played a major role in winning President Joe Biden the Democratic nomination four years ago.

Throughout his appearances, Shapiro promoted the Harris-Walz ticket, as well as his administrations work. He wasnt the only one in the veep conversation who was making the rounds this week. Govs. Gretchen Whitmer, of Michigan, Andy Beshear, of Kentucky, Wes Moore, of Maryland, and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg were all making similar stops.

Our up-and-coming future leaders are really impressive. We have a really strong bench, said Jim Demurs, a New Hampshire delegate attending his 10th convention.

But Demurs noted that Shapiro, who spoke at the New Hampshire state partys annual dinner last year, has been making friends in the key early state.

New Hampshire people have gotten to see him, theyve gotten to know him, and theyre starting to make friendships, Demurs said. Bill Clinton is the classic example of a guy who came to New Hampshire for literally a dozen years before he ever decided to run for president... So making these relationships is really a good move.

Pennsylvania center stage

Some of the focus on Shapiro is an extension of Pennsylvanias key role in the election and how thats been highlighted throughout the week in Chicago. He got a prime-time speaking slot on Wednesday night and helped cast the states ceremonial roll call votes for Harris on Tuesday.

The governor, who avoided TV interviews in the two-week span he was being considered as Harris running mate, did sit-down interviews with several national outlets, including Politico, CNN, and Fox News.

 READ MORE: Inside Josh Shapiros under-the-radar campaign to be the Democratic vice presidential nominee

Ive been on the ballot since 2004 in Pennsylvania, Shapiro said in a conversation with Politico. I have never lost an election. Ive run in three statewide elections, Ive won all three, and twice set a record for the most votes ever. So I know a little something about winning in Pennsylvania.

His stump speeches were similar across audiences, with some regional flair. He talked about getting s done with Arkansas and opted for the more family friendly stuff, with New Hampshire. He commended Nevada Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen, who is up for reelection this year and who formerly ran a Jewish Temple.

You might not know this because they havent really covered it, but Im Jewish, Shapiro told Nevadans. I will tell you this it is way harder being a synagogue president than being a U.S. senator.

Trump claimed in Wilkes-Barre last week that Shapiros Jewish faith played a role in Harris decision to reject him as a running mate, a claim that has been forcefully rebutted by both Shapiro and the Harris campaign.

Across all of his speeches, Shapiro hit what has become a theme  broadly defending freedom and preaching the governing productivity that he said voters crave, without many specifics.

They want us to go out and put points on the board for them every day, get stuff done to make sure their kids have a great education, that theyve got those safe communities to live in, and theyve got real opportunity, Shapiro said at the New Hampshire breakfast. They want us to protect their fundamental rights and their freedoms, and that my friends, is the cause of my work.

A real freedoms happy hour hosted by Shapiro and Lt. Gov. Austin Davis, echoed the theme, and featured mini Chicago-style hot dogs and an opportunity for the governor to address his home state crowd in front of a keystone draped in red, white, and blue linen.

The event was packed with Pennsylvania Democrats who had publicly supported Shapiro becoming the vice presidential pick.

The $64 question

Delegates from outside Pennsylvania largely had a positive impression of Shapiro and said they considered him part of a group of could-be future presidents. None of the more than a dozen delegates interviewed named a favorite in a highly theoretical contest that is still years away while at a convention focused on Harris.

Hes straightforward, a good speaker, very polished but will he be a favorite? Thats the $64 question, said Tony Tollefson, a retired member of the United Auto Workers and Michigan delegate who watched Shapiro speak at a Labor Council meeting. You got six, seven governors, or senators lining up to be the guy or gal. And eight years from now, thats an eternity.

Shapiro has faced scrutiny from teachers unions because of his support for private school vouchers, but he did have support of Pennsylvania organized labor groups during the VP selection process.

Veda Kanitt, a Minnesota delegate who was happy Walz got the VP nod, was impressed with Shapiros remarks at the labor event, particularly when he talked about securing pay for aspiring teachers. But shes not thinking about any election beyond November. We need to send Trump packing for good, so he never runs again, Kanitt said.

Wyoming delegate Ken Chastek said Shapiro has the sound and fire of Barack Obama. But Chastek, who grew up in Pennsylvania before moving to Wyoming, said his neighbors without ties are not nearly as familiar. I dont think hes a household name yet by any means.

Some delegates said Shapiro came off as a great orator, but was perhaps a little too polished and questioned how well hed connect.

Carlos Cardona, a delegate from New Hampshire, commended Shapiros aggressive stumping schedule for Harris after losing out on the running mate role. Hes a team player ... and I think thats really the theme in this convention.

He would be a great presidential candidate, Cardona added. Whenever hes ready, well be there, ready to welcome him and interview him for the job.

Staff writers Sean Collins Walsh and Gillian McGoldrick contributed to this article.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro speaks on day three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. Read more

CHICAGO  Gov. Josh Shapiro brought his motto of real freedom to the national stage on Wednesday in a prime-time speech before the Democratic National Convention, after weeks of making a name for himself as the popular and moderate governor in one of the nations most important swing states.

Shapiro, 51, is Pennsylvanias first-term Democratic governor. A rising star in the Democratic Party, he made his DNC debut this year, never having spoken at previous conventions.

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And this week, he made a splash in Chicago, following weeks in the national spotlight as a contender to be Vice President Kamala Harris running mate that led him to speak to nearly a dozen state party breakfasts, give dozens of interviews with media outlets across the ideological spectrum, and host a Real Freedom happy hour to kick off the convention.

As Shapiro took the stage, the Pennsylvania delegation chanted get s done!  his administrations motto. His daughter Sophia, and wife Lori, sat with the group, next to Lt. Gov. Austin Davis.

Shapiro gave a brief but energizing speech on the third night of the convention, defining real freedom as access to good schools, clean water and safe communities  and accusing former President Donald Trump and Republicans of trying to limit the rights of Americans.

While [Trump] cloaks himself in the blanket of freedom, what hes offering isnt freedom at all, Shapiro said. Because its not freedom to tell our children what books theyre allowed to read. Its not freedom to tell women what they can do with their bodies. And it sure as hell isnt freedom to say you can go vote, but he gets to pick the winner.

 READ MORE: Josh Shapiro is used to winning. But losing out on VP is hardly a defeat.

Shapiro ran through several examples of what he sees as real freedom in the United States, and claimed that Democrats are the party that actually believes in it. He also hearkened back to the Founding Fathers declaring independence in Philadelphia nearly 250 years ago from a king, adding that Americans have continuously chosen to advance freedom since then.

Shapiros message  and his successful campaign stump speech from 2022 that helped him win Pennsylvania by 14 percentage points that year  fit in with the nights theme, A Fight for our Freedoms. He spoke in a prime spot in the hour before Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was scheduled to take the stage.

 READ MORE: People close to Josh Shapiro saw at an early age that his career would catch fire

Kamala and Tims names may be on the ballot, but its your rights, its our rights, its our future and freedoms that are on the line, Shapiro told the crowd. You have the power to shape the future of this country, just like our ancestors who fought for freedom on the battlefield and sat-in at lunch counters so their kids could stand up.

He encouraged Democrats to organize at home and on their For You pages, a direct call to young people using TikTok and other social media apps to get out the vote in November. Shapiro has expanded the governors office to better reach constituents, using TikTok and Instagram to connect with them.

Shapiro has been in the national eye since President Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race last month, thrusting him into the spotlight as a potential vice presidential candidate to run alongside Harris. He remains Pennsylvanias most popular politician after weeks of scrutiny, including several pressure campaigns against him.

But Wednesday, though his voice was hoarse, he got to show off one of his most-complimented talents  his public speaking  to thousands of Democratic delegates and donors in Chicago and millions of viewers at home.

Shapiro, whose speech cadence is often compared to that of former President Barack Obama, earlier in the day said Obama is the greatest orator of my lifetime.

I dont, like, listen to Barack Obamas speeches, I dont try and do that. I speak from the heart, Shapiro said during a live interview with Politico ahead of his speech.

Shapiro also told Politico that the motto of real freedom came from a conversation with his wife and high-school sweetheart, Lori, at the kitchen table during his 2022 gubernatorial run, after she was upset with Republicans claiming they were the party protecting freedom. He took notes during the conversation, and debuted it on the campaign trail in Erie a few days later.

His speech before the DNC is a continuation of that message, he said. As he left the stage in Chicago Wednesday night, Shapiro pointed at the Pennsylvania delegation, where his wife and daughter sat. I love you, he said.
A call center dispatcher works as Councilmember Jamie Gauthier and Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel host a press conference (not shown) in the Radio Room at Police Headquarters Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024 to discuss changes to the departments 9-1-1 Call Center. After years of turmoil and short staffing in the city announced changes to make its 911 call center more efficient and more attractive to job seekers. Read more

Philadelphias 911 call takers are getting across-the-board 10% raises and new opportunities for advancement as city officials try to make the job more attractive amid a years-long crisis of understaffing.

Police Commissioner Kevin J. Bethel and City Councilmember Jamie Gauthier announced the changes Thursday  including pay in line with the regional average and a new path to becoming supervisors  which aim to boost morale among the citys 300 dispatchers.

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Supervisors in the radio room have long been police officers who went to the academy, meaning that call takers couldnt be promoted. Now, the supervisors will be a mix of sworn and civilian personnel. Bethel said it was unacceptable that dispatchers previously had no way to advance.

What they endure is substantial, he said. They are the epicenter of the activity that we do here.

The pay increase  a 5% raise atop a 5% raise thats contractually obligated through the dispatchers union  was one of the results of a City Council probe led by Gauthier. She called for hearings last year after police botched the response to a homicide in her Southwest Philadelphia district, sending officers to the wrong location of a crime scene.

 READ MORE: Philly Police made changes after botching a 911 response, but the radio room remains in crisis

In July 2023, police received a 911 call about a shooting on the 1600 block of 56th Street. Officers were sent to North 56th Street instead of the actual crime scene on South 56th, where Joseph Wamah had been killed. His body was not discovered until two days later after the same gunman allegedly returned to the street and shot six more people, killing four of them.

Police brass testified during the Council hearing last fall that theyd made changes to the scripts that call takers use to guide phone conversations and that dispatchers now ask more details about directional indicators.

But call takers said the problems in the radio room ran deeper. They described severe understaffing, mandatory overtime, and plummeting morale that made retention especially challenging. At the time, the city said more than 300 call-takers had left the job over the course of three years.

The staffing situation has slightly improved but has not abated. Police officials said Thursday that there are about 300 employees in the radio room, which is budgeted to have about 360  a 16% vacancy rate. Bethel said that the department is aggressively recruiting new employees, and that the pay increase should help.

Before the raise, Philadelphia Police dispatchers made a minimum of $42,000 a year, which officials said was 10% less than the average minimum pay among dispatchers at other agencies in Philadelphia and the collar counties.

A wage increase and a chance to advance was a key priority for workers and should improve retention, said Gordon Zimmitt, president of AFSCME District Council 33 Local 1637, the union that represents 911 dispatchers. He described the changes as small tokens of our appreciation.

911 operators are the first first responders, Zimmitt said. We want to thank them. Not often  hardly ever  are they thanked by our citizens. No one calls 911 to say thank you.
Digital safety warriors If cybercrime was treated as a country, and its estimated US$9.5 trillion costs to business was GDP, then it would rank third in the world after the US and then China. That number is forecast to steadily rise, making it one of, if not THE biggest threat to clients businesses. During a 15-week process, IBs research team conducted one-on-one interviews with specialist brokers and surveyed thousands more to gain a keen understanding of what insurance professionals think of the current market offerings to their clients. Using that information, our researchers then awarded 5 stars to those carriers who were most recommended by brokers. IBs 5-Star winners offer a vital service to their clients, particularly in light of the large-scale data breaches over the past two years, which, according to reports, have negatively impacted at least 45% of Australians. In the second half of 2023, Australias OAIC received 483 notifications, signalling a 19% increase over the first half of the year. And its not just the number of attacks clients face; data collected by Coalition in its 2023 Cyber Claims Report: Mid-year Update also shows an increase in the severity of claims for businesses of all sizes and:

12% increase in cyber claims in the first six months of 2023



ransomware claims frequency rose by 27% from the second half of 2022



claims severity reached a record high, increasing by 61% from the previous half and 117% over the past year

This chimes with data gathered by Rubrik Zero Labs, which found that 82% of Australian organisations experienced a cyberattack in 2023.

Data breaches were the most prevalent attack, making up 54% of incidents, higher than the global average of 38%. Business email compromise attacks were the second most common, seen in 45% of incidents. Cloud environments were the most targeted in Australia, with 75% of local respondents reporting malicious activity. SaaS recorded the second most malicious activity, reported by 60% of respondents, followed by on-premise infrastructure with 46%.

Australia is a mature market and an early adopter of cloud and many enterprise security technologies, says Rubrik vice president Antoine Le Tard. As such, local organisations have been investing heavily in perimeter security for the past decade, yet Australia holds the unenviable title of leading the world in data breaches. The cloud is a powerful business enabler, but it comes with inherent risk, particularly with vulnerable, sensitive data.

The OAIC recorded the most common sectors that notify them that their data has been breached. Health service providers had a 35% share of the yearly total, while the second most common finance sector had 22%.



Insurance broker and risk adviser Laura Meyer of MeyerInsure underscores the need for Australian businesses to be vigilant.

There is a perception that these attacks only happen to the big guys, and this leads to a false sense of security and a general laxity, she says. A lot of clients have basic cybersecurity knowledge, but there is still a big gap between that knowledge and the real-world application. I spend a lot of time talking to clients about assessing their risks and what could go wrong.

This message is echoed by Mark Luckin, national manager of Locktons cyber and technology practice, who warns of an ongoing disconnect with respect to the communication of the relevance, quantification and consequences of cyber and technology risks for Australian organisations.

He adds, This leads to a slower than required focus from organisations on being cyber resilient. Comparing our pace of adoption of technology, the regulatory environment in Australia  up until recently  has arguably been slow to adopt in ensuring the consequences of not being cyber resilient are aligned with the potential for breaches.

Luckin also feels providers need to face all their responsibilities to clients.

The insurance industry does have an obligation  to a point  to assist society or, in this case, organisations, to better improve their risk management and mitigation posture, he says. Tangibly and realistically, it can do this by sharing loss and claim relevant data.

The variables suggested by Luckin to share include:

the cause of events, noting that this is already indirectly done by changes in posture expectations from insurers



effective claim/loss mitigants they have identified within their portfolio that have been shown to mitigate losses occurring in the first place



effective claim/loss claim severity mitigants that have been shown to effectively shorten the life cycle of an event

Meyer would also like to see more resources offered industry-wide to enable clients to be more aware of the risks, particularly with Australia being such a hotbed for attacks. For a client, she approached six insurers, and only one had anything outside of FAQs and claims examples.

There needs to be a concerted effort from insurers to provide resources and opportunities for prospective clients to learn more so their cybersecurity and awareness become a proactive part of their business. I also think better support services (access to experts, rapid response planning, etc.) and cyber awareness training available for clients could be a fantastic selling point, she explains.

Another initiative Meyer would like to see implemented is the standardisation of terminology.

Its getting better than it was several years ago, but I certainly find as a broker trying to compare different cyber policies that it can be complex, she adds. If its complex for us, imagine how the client feels. Standardised terminology at minimum would go a long way to supporting brokers so they feel confident in discussing and explaining cyber to their clients.





5-Star Cyber insurance providers excel in coverage and claims



In IBs 2024 survey, the nationwide brokering community rated the performance of cyber insurance providers theyve worked with across nine areas identified as most crucial.

The companies that ranked highest overall distinguished themselves based on the strength of their products as well as their effectiveness in:

coverage



flexibility



ability to handle claims



pricing



This year, brokers prioritised coverage, claims, underwriting expertise and breach response as among their top considerations when placing a cyber policy, consistent with 2023s results.

The rise of policy education from sixth place to fifth suggests that brokers increasingly value insurers who invest in their knowledge and understanding to serve clients better.





The 5-Star Cyber insurance provider has earned repeated recognition as a genuine specialist, driven by its singular focus.

The companys senior leaders acknowledge that offering more than just insurance is more important than ever to remain at the leading edge of the niche market.

What we are doing, to the extent possible without living in someones system, is providing a real-time risk management threat intelligence service, COO Colin Pausey says. Were trying to keep one step ahead of the threat or at least be in equal step in sync with the threat.

Brokers rated Emergence highly across time-tested performance metrics and awarded top marks for its exemplary execution of:

broker policy education



coverage



claims payment/processing



breach response



external scanning

Its the two-way communication thats absolutely key; we listen to the brokers, ask them what they want and then we try and deliver

Colin Pausey Emergence Insurance



Pausey asserts that the companys incident response and claims handling teams are the jewel in their crown. Their expertise and dedication to excellence can help their insured customers quickly shut the door on an attack, particularly when every second counts.

We are incredibly consistent, which is reflected in the feedback we get from others and our own internal observations, he says. Were large enough now to handle all aspects under the same roof, including distribution, underwriting, incident response, claims and technology.

That business model affords Emergence a significant advantage as it doesnt rely on external incident response or claims handlers, enabling it to remain at the forefront with a commitment to:

24/7 incident response , often within 30 minutes, helping to minimise any damage



highly specialised cyber claims team that guides customers through the process, learns from incidents and becomes better prepared for future cyber attacks



team collaboration, ensuring a seamless customer experience

The in-house teams are so operationally efficient and effective in assisting customers to take better risks that Pausey credits them with ensuring Emergences underwriting profitability by addressing vulnerabilities sooner rather than later.





Emergence is well positioned to help small and medium-sized businesses with its leading comprehensive policy known as Cyber Event Protection (CEP005), which it took to the next level by consulting brokers on how to enhance before releasing the latest version in February 2024.

For example, CEP005 policy wording was simplified to aid broker and client understanding, D&O liability was added as an optional cover, and the company prioritised being more affirmative based on claims seen in recent years.

In addition, its broker education and information campaign on the policy included:

a webinar attended by over 3,000 brokers



a planned webinar on claims examples

We are all about empowering brokers to sell cyber insurance, says Pausey. Weve always gone out and asked the brokers what they wanted. We can have that conversation with the brokers that tells us what more we can do to help them sell the policy and advise their clients.



Positive broker-insurer relationships drive policy enhancement



Given the dynamic nature of risk, Pausey emphasises that identifying and managing risk has been a challenge over the past five years.

He says that new threats are constantly emerging, and the threat actors are becoming more sophisticated, forming business empires within themselves, and using AI with learning capabilities more effectively than they were previously.

At the same time, AI can be deployed as a defensive tool. But he notes that the main issues for businesses of all sizes are:

getting the basics right



avoiding complacency



planning for when a breach happens, not if

One of the biggest keys is that threat actors are now better and more capable of identifying the low-hanging fruit, the easier challenges, because theyre using the same technology were using, he explains. They can identify where there are exploits or potential exploits, and its easier for them to get into systems.





Key revelations in the OAICs Notifiable Data Breaches Report for July to December 2023 underscore the persistent and evolving nature of cyber threats:

483 breaches reported, up 19% from 407 breaches in January to June 2023



malicious or criminal attacks remained the leading cause (67%) of data breaches



health and finance sectors remained the top reporters of data breaches. Health reported 104 breaches (22% of all notifications), and finance reported 49 breaches (10%)



the majority of breaches (65%) affected 100 or fewer people



additionally, of the 483 primary notifications, the agency received 121 secondary notifications, a marked increase from 29 secondary notifications in January to June 2023

Expert recommendations



Locktons Luckin underscores what makes a cyber insurance policy stand out in the Australian market.

He says, It should have clear, defined, purposeful policy language that plainly outlines the intention of cover and endorsements that provide coverage enhancements are great, but not at the expense of foundational cover.

Other key features he pinpoints include:

immediate, local claims authority



an industry-leading panel of incident response experts



add value by way of insured-specific risk monitoring and notification services



facilitation of discounted, easily accessible cyber security solutions or third-party assistance


If we look at probably the last six to 12 months, weve been able to start focusing more externally on what our brokers need from us, rather than internally to deliver this underlying insurance margin, he said.
Brokers provided feedback on the most important aspects of a cyber insurance policy and rated the insurers they had partnered with based on those criteria. The assessment covered various factors, including the comprehensiveness of coverage, flexibility, claims handling efficiency, pricing, and the overall quality of the products offered by insurers.
Tom Clementi (pictured above), chief executive officer of Pool Re, stated that the reinsurer considers various forms of risk transfer capacity in its reinsurance program and has appointed the advisors to explore potential ILS and similar solutions. The goal is to enhance protection for UK taxpayers.
Whats next for Latin Re?

As for what the future holds, he shared that when Latin Re started, its goal for the first two-to-three years was to be the best Brazilian reinsurance broker. It was only when it had enough people that it was able to spot where it differentiated itself from the rest of the market and could add further value to its partners across the re/insurance market. Its still part of its ambition for the future, but only part of a growth objective that has evolved and changed as the business has done the same. We are not sales company, he said. We are more of a service company.
While the unfavorable mortality experience in the US negatively impacted both IFRS results and operating capital generation, Friese said that the company remains on track to meet its operating capital generation guidance of 1.1 billion for 2024. The company expects that the assumption updates will help reduce IFRS claims experience variances and improve operating results.
As part of this effort, the department is recruiting statewide for various positions, such as analysts, while also promoting from within and bringing in outside consultants. These steps aim to improve staffing ratios and accelerate the rate decision process, according to a department official involved in the regulatory reform.
The law further updates requirements for audited financial reports from MGAs. These reports must now include the opinion of an independent certified public accountant and must report the MGAs financial position as of the most recent year-end, as well as the results of its operations and cash flows. Carriers are required to submit these reports to the commissioner upon request.
Garrison of Navigators, a brand of The Hartford, is stepping in to complete Lopezs unfinished term after the latter retired from the same firm and resigned from the WSIA board last month. Levinson, meanwhile, takes over for Jordan-Foster, who left the board following her departure from AXIS Insurance.
While much of the focus is on ship operations, TT emphasized that every participant in the freight supply chain has a role to play. Ensuring the accuracy of the verified gross mass at the point of transport order, as well as proper load distribution and secure packing of cargo into containers, is crucial. As such, TTs cargo integrity campaign remains a cornerstone of its efforts, alongside partners in the Cargo Integrity Group.
Maine didnt violate the U.S. constitutional rights of religious schools by requiring them to abide by the states antidiscrimination law to receive taxpayer-funded tuition assistance, a federal judge ruled. But the judge also acknowledged that a higher court will ultimately have the final say.

U.S. District Judge John Woodcock Jr. said he sees no constitutional violation in requiring religious schools to abide by the Maine Human Rights Act.

The plaintiffs are free to practice their religion, including the teaching of their religion as they see fit, but cannot require the state to subsidize their religious teachings if they conflict with state antidiscrimination law, the judge wrote.

A notice of appeal to the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston was filed on Friday, a day after Woodcock issued his 75-page decision rejecting the plaintiffs request for an injunction.

The lawsuit is one of two in Maine that focus on the collision between a 2022 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that Maine cannot discrimination against religious schools in providing tuition assistance and a state law requiring that schools participating in the tuition program must abide by the Maine Human Rights Act, which includes protections for LGBTQ students and faculty.

The Maine Human Rights Act was amended by state legislators regarding how it applies to schools before the Supreme Court decision. The law bans discrimination on the basis of race, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity or disability. This means schools must not discriminate against gay and transgender teachers and students, which could conflict with some religious schools beliefs.

Adele Keim, senior counsel for Becket Law, which is representing the plaintiffs, accused Maine lawmakers of using the antidiscrimination measure to make an end run around the Supreme Court with the specific aim of preventing the participation of religious schools. She also said the law is applied unevenly because the state has sent tuition dollars to an all-girls school in Massachusetts.

The lawsuits were filed after the justices ruled 6-3 that Maine cannot discriminate between secular and religious schools when providing tuition assistance to kids in rural communities that dont have a public high school. The program allows those students to attend another school, public or private, of their choosing.

A spokesperson for Attorney General Aaron Frey declined comment on Monday.

The lawsuit was brought on behalf of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland; a Roman Catholic-affiliated school, St. Dominics Academy in Auburn, Maine; and parents who want to use state tuition funds to send their children to St. Dominics. Another lawsuit, brought by parents who wanted to send a child to Crosspoint Church in Bangor, is already pending before the appeals court in Boston. Keim said she wouldnt be surprised if the appeals court hears arguments from both cases at the same time.

The high courts decision was hailed as a victory for school choice proponents  potentially giving life to efforts in some of the states that have not directed taxpayer money to private, religious education.

But the impact in Maine has been small. Since the ruling, only one religious school, Cheverus High School, a Jesuit college preparatory school in Portland, has participated in the states tuition reimbursement plan, a spokesperson said.

Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics K-12 Maine
The family of a man fatally shot by a Connecticut police officer as he tried to flee in a stolen car while being attacked by a police dog has filed a wrongful death lawsuit and called Wednesday for a federal civil rights investigation of the department.

The mother and sister of Mike Alexander-Garcia Jr. joined their lawyers at a news conference, criticizing the officers actions and alleging racial profiling by West Hartford police in the deadly confrontation in August 2023. They said they are seeking justice and accountability.

To the officer who took my sons life, you cant comprehend the pain and loss you have inflicted on our family, his mother, Jacqueline Garcia, said in a statement. I hope that through this tragedy there can be reflection and change so that no other family endures the heartache we are experiencing.

The lawsuit filed in state court last week names West Hartford Officer Andrew Teeter, the police department and the town, alleging violations of Alexander-Garcias constitutional rights, state laws and police policies and procedures. Lawyers for Alexander-Garcias family notified the town that they are seeking damages that could top $75 million.

The shooting remains under investigation by the state inspector generals office, which reviews all deadly uses of force by police statewide to determine whether criminal charges are warranted.

West Hartford released a statement saying it was waiting for the inspector generals final report.

West Hartford is committed to police accountability and transparency, the towns corporation counsel, Dallas Dodge, wrote. A lawsuit at this stage contains unproven allegations, and it is important to note that this matter is still under investigation by the Office of Inspector General.

Teeter did not return an email seeking comment.

Authorities said the series of events unfolded on Aug. 8, 2023, after a license plate reader alerted police to a stolen car. Officers chased the car, which crashed into two other vehicles and became disabled. Police said they caught another man who was driving the stolen car, while Alexander-Garcia ran away.

Alexander-Garcia, 34, then tried to carjack two vehicles before running into a car tire shop and hopping into a sport utility vehicle that was being serviced, police said.

According to surveillance, dashboard and body-camera video, Teeter ran into the shop and tossed his police dog through the open passenger door window of the SUV, then opened the door and ordered the dog to attack Alexander-Garcia.

The dog bit Alexander-Garcia as he sat in the drivers seat yelling Please! Dont kill me!

Teeter was in the passengers seat with the dog when the SUV backed out of the service bay, turned, glanced off a parked police cruiser and a tree and began to drive off. After yelling dont do it and Im going to shoot you multiple times, Teeter fired several shots into Alexander-Garcias back.

The SUV crashed into a utility pole. Lawyers for Alexander-Garcia alleged Teeter fired three of the five shots after the vehicle struck the pole.

Mike was surrendering to the police when he was shot, said Peter Bowman, a lawyer with BBB Attorneys representing Alexander-Garcias family. He pleaded for his life to the officer and yet Officer Teeter still chose to shoot him five times.

Teeter was treated for a broken rib and cuts on his head, while the police dog was not injured, officials said.

The lawsuit alleges Teeter did not issue clear commands to Alexander-Garcia and violated the department policies by throwing the police dog into the SUV and entering the vehicle instead of trying to de-escalate the situation. It also claims Alexander-Garcias actions did not warrant the use of deadly force.

In calling for a federal civil rights investigation, Alexander-Garcias lawyers referred to annual state reports on traffic stops by police statewide that said West Hartford police pulled over minority motorists at disproportionate rates compared with white motorists. Alexander-Garcia was Hispanic. Teeters race and ethnicity have not been disclosed.

Ken Krayeske, another lawyer for Alexander-Garcias family, said the police department hasnt taken adequate actions to address the traffic stop disparities despite the data. He said official requests for a federal probe have been made to the U.S. Attorney Generals office and the Department of Justice.

While the state reports highlight disparities in traffic stops by race and ethnicity, they note the data does not provide sufficient evidence of racial profiling.

Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Lawsuits Law Enforcement
A federal judge in California on Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit accusing social media platform X of forcing out workers with disabilities after Elon Musk took over the company and barred employees from working remotely.

U.S. District Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin in San Francisco said the plaintiff in the 2022 proposed class action, Dmitry Borodaenko, failed to show how Musks mandate to return to the office specifically impacted employees with disabilities. The judge gave him four weeks to file an amended lawsuit including more detailed claims.

Borodaenko, a former engineering manager and cancer survivor, claims he was fired shortly after Musk acquired X, then called Twitter, for refusing to report to the office during the COVID-19 pandemic. The lawsuit claims X violated a federal law requiring employers to accommodate workers disabilities.

Musk said in a memo to the companys staff in November 2022 that employees should be prepared to work long hours at high intensity or quit, and later tweeted that it was morally wrong to work from home.

Martinez-Olguin on Wednesday said the ban on remote work did not amount to disability discrimination.

Borodaenkos theory improperly relies on the assumption that all employees with disabilities necessarily required remote work as a reasonable accommodation, Martinez-Olguin wrote.

A lawyer for Borodaenko did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

X responded to multiple requests for comment with emails stating busy now, please check back later.

The lawsuit is one of several that former employees filed in the months following Musks $44 billion acquisition of the company and the ensuing layoffs of about 75% of its workforce.

Other cases accuse Twitter of not giving employees and contractors advance notice of layoffs, failing to pay billions of dollars in promised severance, and disproportionately targeting women and older workers for job cuts. X has denied wrongdoing.

Some of those cases have been dismissed, prompting appeals from the plaintiffs that are pending.

(Reporting by Daniel Wiessner in Albany, New York, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and David Gregorio)
Yacht insurance provider OMAC is the carrier on the hull for the Bayesian, a 56-meter-long (184-ft) sailboat, that was hit by a ferocious storm on Monday, sinking off the northern coast of Sicily, two sources with knowledge of the matter said.

The syndicates providing insurance include Travelers Companies Inc., Navium Marine and Convex, while British Marine is the protection and indemnity (P&I) insurance provider, the sources said.

Reuters could not ascertain the value of the yacht or what the value of potential claims could be.

Update: Divers Retrieve 5th Body From Mike Lynch Yacht Sunk Off Sicily

Ships typically have P&I insurance, which covers third-party liability claims including environmental damage and injury. Separate hull and machinery policies cover vessels against physical damage.

Convex declined to comment, while OMAC, Travelers, Navium and British Marine did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.

The British-flagged superyacht was carrying 22 people and anchored off the port of Porticello when it was hit by a fierce, pre-dawn storm on Monday. Fifteen people managed to escape the yacht before it capsized.

Four bodies were found on Wednesday aboard the sunken wreck of the yacht belonging to the wife of British tech magnate Mike Lynch, sources close to the rescue operation told Reuters.

Morgan Stanleys and Hiscoxs Bloomer Among Those Missing After Yacht Sinks

The global yacht insurance market has faced significant challenges in recent years, largely due to natural disasters like Hurricane Maria in 2017 and Hurricane Ian in 2022, which devastated numerous charter bases and hundreds of yachts.

In response, insurers have increased rates and reevaluated their guidelines and risk appetite. Insured losses in the market have mostly stemmed from hurricanes, severe storms, floods, and other weather events in North America, the Caribbean, and Europe, according to a report by broker Marsh.

(Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain and Manya Saini in Bengaluru; editing by Michelle Price and Sandra Maler)

Photograph: Italian firefighters scuba divers are docked at the harbor of Porticello, southern Italy, Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, as rescue teams returned to the site of a storm-sunken superyacht to search for six people, including British tech magnate Mike Lynch, who are believed to be still trapped in the hull 50 meters (164-feet) underwater. (AP Photo/Salvatore Cavalli)

Topics Carriers
Swiss Re AGs first-half net income beat estimates, as the re-insurer avoided higher claims from natural catastrophes that have impacted the broader insurance industry.

Profit for the second quarter was $996 million, resulting in net income of $2.1 billion for the six months to June, the Zurich-based insurer said in a statement Thursday. Return on the groups investment portfolio was 4% for the first half of the year, compared with 2.8% a year earlier.

After a strong start in the first half of this year, we maintain our 2024 targets, including group net income of more than $3.6 billion, Chief Executive Officer Andreas Berger said in a statement.

In its key property and casualty business, Swiss Re reported $989 million in net income in the first half, mainly due to low reported large natural catastrophe claims that were partially offset by selected additions across natural catastrophe and man-made loss reserves.

Swiss Res performance contrasts with the hits taken by insurers during a period when weather events jumped well above the 10-year average. Both Allianz SE and Zurich Insurance Group AG reported weaker property & casualty results on the back of events including flooding in Germany, though they reported higher profit.

The reinsurer attributed part of its result to disciplined underwriting. Earlier this month the company warned that global insured losses from natural catastrophes reached $60 billion in the first half.

Swiss Re said that the planned exit from its digital insurance business iptiQ is progressing, while disclosing a net loss of $182 million for the first half of 2024.

Swiss Re to Withdraw From Digital Insurer iptiQ, Reports Strong Q1 Net Income of $1.1B

European insurers saw their stock price taking a hit in the past last month as Hurricane Beryl caused billions in damage after becoming the Atlantics earliest Category 5 hurricane on record.

Earlier this year, Swiss Re appointed Andreas Berger as its new CEO in a surprise management reshuffle. Berger took over from Christian Mumenthaler who stepped down after a quarter of a century at the company. The firm also named Anders Malmstrom as its next chief financial officer to replace John Dacey who will retire from his executive role in March 2025.

Photograph: A logo sits on a sign outside Swiss Re AGs headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland, on Tuesday, March 18, 2014. Photo credit: Philipp Schmidli/Bloomberg

Copyright 2024 Bloomberg.

Topics Catastrophe Profit Loss Claims
Yellow weather warnings are in place for Scotland on Thursday, as the remnants of Hurricane Ernesto bring strong winds and heavy rain.

Theres an alert for rain across western Scotland, with more than 100 millimeters (4 inches) forecast for higher ground, according to the UK Met Office. At the same time, a wind warning covers parts of northern Wales, northern England and southern Scotland, with gusts of up to 60 miles (97 kilometers) per hour expected.

Our global forecast model shows that Ernesto remnants have phased in with the jet stream, becoming part of a large scale extra-tropical storm system, which could also impact Norway, according to Climavision.

Hurricane Ernesto brought dangerous winds and drenching rains to Bermuda last week, flooding low-lying areas of the British territory. The conditions on Thursday have the potential to disrupt transport across northern parts of the UK, including rail and ferry services.

High wind generation saw UK day-ahead prices for delivery on Thursday fall to their lowest since Aug 8.

 Yellow weather warning UPDATED 

Heavy rain across western Scotland

Valid 1100 Wednesday to 0800 Thursday

Latest info  https://t.co/QwDLMfRBfs

Stay #WeatherAware pic.twitter.com/pCigWi4vAN

 Met Office (@metoffice) August 21, 2024

Thunderstorm alerts are in place for parts of southern Europe, including the eastern Pyrenees, Italys Veneto region and Serbia.

Climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of heat waves, triggering extreme weather events from violent storms to wildfires. As the Mediterranean Sea warms  reaching a record average temperature last week  its turbo-charging storms across the region.

In Greece, Athens and the surrounding Attica region still face a high risk of wildfires, along with a number of Aegean islands including Crete and Rhodes. Winds and temperatures will pick up on Friday.

There were 23 wildfires in 24 hours to 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

Photograph: Waves crash on the west coast of Scotland in 2017. Photo credit: Andy Buchanan/AFP/Getty Images

Related:

Copyright 2024 Bloomberg.

Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Hurricane
NORTH SIOUX CITY, S.D. (AP)  Half of a collapsed rail bridge connecting South Dakota and Iowa was blasted in a controlled demolition, part of the process to remove the bridge months after it fell into the river, swollen from severe flooding.

The steel bridge over the Big Sioux River connected North Sioux City, South Dakota, with Sioux City, Iowa. It was partially underwater after heavy rains in late June brought record high river crests in the two states, along with Minnesota and Nebraska.

The blast on the South Dakota side of the bridge, owned by BNSF Railway, occurred Monday morning, according to reports from broadcast station KTIV in Sioux City, Iowa. Officials established a perimeter on both sides of the river, closing nearby roads and advising people to stay away.

At 9 a.m. local time, charges were successfully used to cut the bridge span into sections, allowing it to fall into the river for removal, Kendall Sloan, BNSF communications director, said in a statement.

The condition and position of the failed spans made controlled blasting the safest way to remove them, Sloan added.

Sloan said crews will use a crane to remove the fallen pieces over the next week, and a second controlled blast will target the Iowa side of the bridge, likely in September.

Amy McBeth, public affairs director for BNSF, told KTIV that the controlled demolition needed to happen in two parts because a causeway is needed on both sides to allow the heavy equipment near the river.

The design process for a new bridge is underway and the rebuild is expected to take about nine months.

Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Flood
Some East Palestine, Ohio, residents want more time and more information before they have to decide by a deadline this week whether to accept their share of a $600 million class-action settlement with Norfolk Southern over last years disastrous train derailment.

But its not clear whether the judge will rule on their motion before Thursdays deadline for people who live within 20 miles (32 kilometers) of the derailment to file a claim.

Residents who live within 10 miles (16 kilometers) of the Feb. 3, 2023, crash near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border also have to decide whether to accept up to $25,000 per person for personal injuries, although accepting that money will force them to give up the right to sue later if someone develops cancer or other serious illness because of the chemical exposure.

The amount residents can receive varies by how close they lived to the derailment, with people who lived within 2 miles receiving $70,000 for property damage. People who lived at the outer edge of the area might only receive a few hundred dollars.

One of the key complaints in the motion filed by attorney David Graham is that attorneys who represented residents in the lawsuit havent disclosed any of the results of testing done around town by their own expert, Stephen Petty, who has testified in hundreds of lawsuits about contamination concerns, to determine the extent of the contamination caused when toxic chemicals spilled and burned after the derailment.

Some of the attorneys involved in the case promised residents in news interviews early on that Pettys data would be disclosed in court filings to lay out the impact on East Palestine. So Graham asked the judge to order that information to be released to try to address residents concerns.

Fast forward to their present, post-settlement posture, and class counsel and their PR machine have now forgotten all about their star testing expert, Petty, Graham wrote.

Instead of Petty, the lawyers brought out a different expert at an online town hall meeting a couple weeks ago who told residents he didnt think anyone in town would develop cancer as a result of the derailment. But Dr. Arch Carson didnt make clear what data he relied on for that opinion other than a brief mention of tests from the Environmental Protection Agency.

Researchers studying the health of residents in the area and tracking respiratory problems, rashes and other ailments they are reporting say it may not be clear for years what the long-term implications of the derailment will be.

I completely disagree with Dr. Arch Carson  there is no research data that suggest that his statement is correct, said Dr. Erin Haynes, who is leading one of the main studies in town and is chair of the Department of Epidemiology and Environmental Health at the University of Kentucky College of Public Health.

Graham suggested that the plaintiffs attorneys might be more interested in collecting their up to $180 million in legal fees than representing residents interests.

The plaintiffs lawyers didnt immediately respond to the motion Monday, but they have previously defended the settlement that was announced in the spring. They have said the settlement is bigger than any past derailment settlement that has been made public, and that the amount of time residents received to evaluate the deal is similar to other settlements.

Some residents have complained that the initial opt-out deadline in the lawsuit came less than a week after the National Transportation Safety Board held a hearing on its findings in the investigation.

Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
AM Best has revised the outlooks to negative from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long-Term ICRs) of a- (Excellent) of Farm Bureau Town and Country Insurance Company of Missouri and New Horizons Insurance Company of Missouri.

These companies are collectively called Missouri Farm Bureau Group. Concurrently, AM Best has revised the outlooks to negative from stable and affirmed the FSR of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term ICR of a- (Excellent) of Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company of Missouri (FBLICM). All companies are domiciled in Jefferson, Missouri.

The ratings reflect Missouri Farm Bureau Groups balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management (ERM).

Missouri Farm Bureau Group experienced a reduction in surplus in 2023 from underwriting losses from uncharacteristic storm activity. Although the group is taking appropriate measures to prevent future underwriting losses, operating performance challenges persisted through the first half of 2024, further reducing the groups capitalization, AM Best said.

This reduction, coupled with an increase in insurance risk, has strained the groups overall balance sheet quality. Given that this quality likely will be impacted through the intermediate term, AM Best has revised the outlooks to negative. The groups operating performance remains adequate as AM Best believes appropriate rate increases likely will be earned in the near term, alleviating further near-term challenges; however, a large rebound of surplus is less likely in this timeframe.

The ratings of FBLICM reflect its balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate ERM. Given the negative pressures surrounding Missouri Farm Bureau Group, the organizations lead rating unit, the negative outlooks reflect the possibility that the business profile assessment of FBLICM will be strained in the intermediate term.

Source: AM Best

Topics Trends Agribusiness AM Best Missouri
Atlanta-based Titan Aerospace Insurance, one of the larger aviation insurance brokers, has acquired Plimsoll Specialty Markets, a boutique aviation and aerospace brokerage house also based in Atlanta.

Michael Clark, president of Plimsoll, is now president of Titan Specialty Markets, the companies said in a news release. Before Plimsoll, Clark was head of aviation and aerospace at QBE Insurance Group, a multinational insurance and reinsurance carrier with headquarters in Australia. Prior to that, he was at Old Republic Aerospace insurance.

Titan said it has clients around the world and has offices in five Southeast states and in Denver. Its sister company, Titan Aviation Fuels, has some 600 branded locations in the United States. Titan also maintains an aerobatic team, seen at air shows around the country.

Topics Mergers & Acquisitions Excess Surplus Aviation Aerospace
Commentary: EU's tariff move needs a reality check on EV industrial chain

15:40, August 22, 2024 By Cao Bin and Zuo Wei ( Xinhua

BEIJING, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The European Commission's latest draft decision to slap hefty import duties on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) will definitely hurt European businesses, as the decision ignores a bare truth: the shared weal and woe along industrial chains.

Some politicians are busy stoking fears over the supposed risk of relying too much on China-made products while trumpeting the de-risking narrative, but they have lost sight of the fact that China's EVs are increasingly manufactured globally, which means that erecting a tariff barrier will not benefit local industries in Europe.

China's EV industry has a long industrial chain and involves extensive participation from the United States and Europe. From assembly robots and car chips to tires and stereos, the auto parts and components of a China-made EV demonstrate the close cooperation among global companies across various industries.

As with an iPhone, one can hardly say with complete certainty that it is made or not made in the United States, as every product coming off the production lines has taken a global journey that involves multiple suppliers in multiple countries.

This reality check echoes well the response of the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) on Wednesday, which warned that the commission's move could "severely impact the EU's automotive industry, employment, and efforts toward green and sustainable development."

CAAM urged the European side to uphold dialogue and cooperation to foster a "fair, non-discriminatory and predictable market environment" conducive to the automotive industry's development.

The automotive industries of China and Europe are highly complementary, a fact that has been proved repeatedly by BMW, Volkswagen, Faurecia and other EU companies with their expanding new energy vehicle (NEV) business in China.

Foreign brands, in fact, hold an important position in China's EV exports. One example is Tesla, which ranked a steady first in China's export volume of NEVs in 2023.

In the meantime, Chinese companies such as CATL, NIO and BYD have built factories in European countries including Germany and Hungary, contributing to the competitiveness of the EU electric vehicle industry.

The draft decision to impose definitive countervailing duties, however, has heightened the concerns of Chinese EV manufacturers over the possible risks of investing in Europe.

Industrial analysts have criticized using "overcapacity" as a pretext to pan-politicize economic and trade issues to restrict China's EV industry. Such actions not only fail to address relevant countries' own industrial challenges, but will further drag down the growth of global trade and the recovery of the world economy.

As the commission's investigation advances, it is worth noting that the probe on Chinese EVs that started last October was not initiated by the EU's industries, but was an ex-officio action, meaning it was initiated by the commission grounded on the threat of damage.

The China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products responded on Wednesday that there was a serious lack of procedural transparency in the commission's probe, which failed to provide objective analysis of the indicators of damage to the EU industry.

Standing in sharp contrast to the repulsion of some EU politicians over China's EV industry is the welcome from the broader market. For instance, Chinese EV manufacturers have tapped into the Southeast Asian markets, including Thailand and Indonesia, forming partnerships with local companies and establishing production facilities.

The New York Times described Thailand's ambitious goal to have EVs account for 30 percent of its automobile production by 2030 as an objective "that seems unattainable without Chinese companies."

So far, at least 12 Chinese car companies have entered the Mexican market, a move expected to facilitate local transition to clean energy and strengthen the latter's competitive position in the global EV industry.

All of these suffice to illustrate what may be overlooked by misconceptions about industrial chains. It is not just about the already globalized EV industry. From chips to semiconductors, industrial chain cooperation is a vivid demonstration of a community with a shared future for humanity in the industrial age.

Some politicians love to play the "China threat" card for political gain, fueling fear of the so-called China-centric industrial chains. The truth is that there has never been a global supply chain that centers around a single country, nor will there ever be in the future.

The dynamism and sustainability of value chains, including crucial aspects like research and development, must rely on multi-centered cooperation across the globe.

That being said, what political headwinds cannot change is the trend that businesses are ever more interdependent, comprising integrated communities with shared interests. Thus, openness, inclusiveness and mutually beneficial cooperation are the only right choice.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP)  West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice, deep in the middle of a U.S. Senate race, is also in a mad-dash legal fight to keep a historic West Virginia hotel at his luxury resort before its auctioned off next week due to unpaid debts.

Around 400 employees at famous The Greenbrier hotel received a letter Monday from an attorney representing health care provider Amalgamated National Health Fund saying they will lose coverage Aug. 27 unless the governors family pays $2.4 million in missing contributions, Peter Bostic of the Workers United Mid-Atlantic Regional Joint Board said Tuesday.

The coverage would end the day the hotel is set to go to auction, which Justice family attorneys have asked a judge to stop. They argue in part the auction would harm the economy and threaten hundreds of jobs.

The Justice family hasnt made contributions to employees health fund in four months, and an additional $1.2 million in contributions will soon be due, according to the letter from Ronald Richman, an attorney with Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP, the firm representing the Amalgamated National Health Fund.

The letter also said that some contributions were taken out of employees paychecks but never transferred to the health fund, which concerned union officials.

We are heartbroken and disappointed to learn that The Greenbrier Hotel, despite its contractual and legal obligation to do so, has become severely delinquent to our Health Insurance carrier, Bostic said in a statement. The Greenbriers delinquency has put our members Health Care benefits in severe jeopardy and is morally and legally wrong.

The letter was first reported on by RealWV, a news site run by former Democratic state Sen. Stephen Baldwin. Democrat Glenn Elliott, Justices opponent in the U.S. Senate race and the former mayor of Wheeling, wrote on the social media platform X that Justices sense of entitlement to things that arent his is limitless and indefensible.

Justice, who owns dozens of companies and had a net worth estimated at $513 million by Forbes Magazine in 2021, has been accused in numerous court cases of being late in paying millions for family business debts and fines for unsafe working conditions at his coal mines.

He began serving the first of his two terms as governor in 2017, after buying The Greenbrier out of bankruptcy in 2009. The hotel has hosted U.S. presidents, royalty and, from 2010 until 2019, a PGA Tour tournament.

Justices family also owns The Greenbrier Sporting Club, a private luxury community with a members-only resort within a resort. That property was scheduled to be auctioned off this year in an attempt by Carter Bank & Trust of Martinsville, Virginia, to recover more than $300 million in business loans defaulted by the governors family, but a court battle delayed that process.

The auction, set for a courthouse in the small city of Lewisburg, involves 60.5 acres  including the hotel and parking lot.

The hotel came under threat of auction after JPMorgan Chase sold a longstanding Justice loan to a credit collection company, McCormick 101, which declared it to be in default.

In court documents filed this week, Justice attorneys said a 2014 deed of trust approved by the governor is defective because JPMorgan didnt obtain consent from the Greenbrier Hotel Corporations directors or owners, and that auctioning the property violates the companys obligation to act in good faith and deal fairly with the corporation.

Neither attorneys for the Justice family nor Greenbrier CFO and Treasurer Adam Long responded to requests for comment Tuesday.

Photo: The Greenbrier Hotel, a five-star resort in White Sulphur Springs. (AP Photo/Jon C. Hancock, File)

Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics West Virginia
A 56-year-old former Washington State meter reader who claimed she was so traumatized from a workplace dog attack that she fainted at the sight of dogs has pleaded guilty in a workers compensation fraud case.

According to a Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) news release, a department investigation found that despite insisting her PTSD and dog phobia were so severe she couldnt work, Linda Lashell Jordan had six dogs, including some she was fostering or advertising for sale, at her southwest Washington home.

Jordan recently pleaded guilty to second-degree attempted theft of state workers compensation benefits, a gross misdemeanor offense. Wahkiakum County Superior Court Judge Heidi Heywood sentenced Jordan to 30 days of jail and allowed her to serve it under electronic home monitoring.

This is clearly a case of someone abusing the workers comp system, said Celeste Monahan, assistant director of L&Is Fraud Prevention and Labor Standards division. Its not a victimless crime. She was taking money from the fund that helps workers who really are seriously injured on the job and need support to heal and get back to work.

The L&I investigation determined that Jordan took more than $162,000 in wage-replacement payments from September 2016 to October 2019 while claiming she could not work.

The Washington Attorney Generals Office prosecuted the case based on L&Is investigation. L&I is seeking repayment from Jordan.

While working as a meter reader for the Pacific County Public Utility District in 2007, a dog bit Jordans right arm, causing serious injury. According to the news release, over the next several years, she filed injury claims to L&I and maintained she couldnt risk working or even driving a vehicle because she might encounter a dog.

Jordans medical providers confirmed she couldnt work due to her on-the-job injuries. In 2014, for example, her doctor confirmed she fainted whenever she saw dogs and could not return to her job, according to charging papers.

In 2018, when a claim manager suspected something was amiss, an undercover L&I investigator visited Jordan at her home and found that she had three French bulldogs and three boxers, who, according to the news release, were swarming around her and she didnt faint or look scared. Jordan told the investigator she and her husband had been rescuing and fostering boxers for 30 years and warned him that one of the dogs might bite, charging papers said.

The investigation also found that Jordan advertised dogs for sale on Facebook using her maiden name and her husbands name. And although her health care provider advised her not to drive in case she saw a dog and fainted, investigators saw Jordan driving nine times in 2018 and 2019.

When shown evidence, a psychiatrist who once treated Jordan changed Jordans previous diagnosis from post-traumatic stress disorder and dog phobia to malingering  pretending an illness or injury to avoid work  charging papers said. The psychiatrist found that Jordan could return to work as a meter reader as early as September 2016.

Photo: A Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) investigations photo shows Linda Lashell Jordan with two of her boxers, which were among a half-dozen dogs she was fostering or selling at her home in 2018. (Courtesy of L&I)

Topics Workers' Compensation Washington
A former electrician turned filmmaker is enjoying the biggest breakthrough of his career after his latest film became a critical and audience smash in the US.

Bantry filmmaker Damian McCarthy has experienced a career game-changer since his low-budget horror, Oddity, proved to be a hit with both film fans and critics.

The film - which was shot on location on the grounds of Bantry House - won the Audience Award in the Midnighter section of the prestigious SXSW in Texas. The movie currently has a 96% positive rating on international review aggregate site, Rotten Tomatoes.

The reception to it has been mind-blowing, says McCarthy. For me, it's been truly amazing how much people have enjoyed it. You never know how people react to it.

We won the Audience Award in Texas, and then it went on to Overlook, and we won the Audience Award there. I got to travel to South Korea last month with the film. I went to Switzerland, I won a prize there. I've got to meet so many of my filmmaking heroes that have seen the film. It's been a really crazy couple of months with it, but very exciting. And I'm already working on my next film off the back of the success of Oddity.

Those filmmaking heroes include some of the directors that McCarthy grew up watching as he first honed his love for horror.

I've got to meet the guys at Blumhouse - they obviously have an amazing track record. I've got to meet Sam Raimi, who I'm a huge fan of - Evil Dead II is still probably my favourite film. He's such a self-made filmmaker, going back to Evil Dead and how they had no financing for that, no contacts in the industry, and how he was able to work his way up to huge films like Spider Man.

I also got to speak with M Night Shyamalan which was very interesting. It's been really encouraging - it just shows me how one film can really change things.

Carolyn Bracken in Oddity, by Bantry filmmaker Damian McCarthy.

This is the West Cork filmmakers second feature film, following a succession of shorts and his well-received debut, 2020s Caveat.

An Irish-set horror, Oddity unfolds in a remote country house, where Dani (Carolyn Bracken, playing dual roles) is brutally murdered at the house she and her husband are renovating. Suspicion falls on a patient at the local mental health institution where her husband works. But Danis blind twin, Darcy, a psychic and collector of cursed items, has other ideas.

Much of the praise for McCarthys film has focused on its elegant and clever construction, and how it builds its unnerving and unsettling moments. He says the visuals were very important in that regard.

I think as a horror fan, it's that fine line between suggesting stuff and showing too much, says McCarthy. I think it's a mix of wanting to give the audience very definite, frightening visuals that they've got something to think about when they get home after the movie, but then it's also to leave enough up to their own imaginations.

As they did for his first feature, the Shelswell-White family at Bantry House accommodated McCarthy as he crafted his latest story in a spooky setting. We shot Caveat in the grounds of Bantry House at the back in this renovated stables, and I built my sets in the same room for Oddity, he says. The room itself is so interesting with its walkways and its high ceilings and stone walls, I wrote Oddity around that location.

It was very much written to take place there, and I was very lucky that again, Bantry House allowed me to come back and to make Oddity there. It's a great location - very interesting for a haunted house movie, I think.

I was very inspired by it, and just thought it's such a cool location. It's almost like you can shoot these wide shots, but still remain indoors and have that great mix. The film gets quite claustrophobic because you're trapped in the house, but at the same time, the threat could still be anywhere, because the room is so big and there are so many entrances to the room, and there are these dark shadows and spaces that we don't get to visit. For that it's a perfect location - you kind of get the best of both worlds.

McCarthys father ran a shop in Bantry, John McCarthy Electrical, in the 1980s and 1990s, which included a video rental business. It was here that the filmmakers love for horror was first honed, and he first explored the idea of making his own films.

I was always a huge fan of horror films and filmmaking in general. I went to St John's College in Cork and studied there for three years, just learning how to make short films, your general filmmaking basics.

But After St John's, I would have gone back to work. My day job was working with my dad as an electrician. It (filmmaking) was always a hobby. If I went to an interesting location at work, for example, if we were rewiring a house or an office, Id think: Oh, this place is quite interesting. I'd ask the owners if I could come back at the weekend and maybe shoot something. I did that for a long time.

I was always writing feature films and trying to learn, how do you make a feature film? Because it's impossible to make a living from short films. I thought if I could make a feature film, I'd be able to maybe get my foot in the door, be able to do it professionally.

Another scene from Oddity.

The success of Oddity has been a game-changer for McCarthy, and he is already working on his next horror, which he also plans to shoot in West Cork. It comes at a buoyant time for Irish horror filmmakers internationally.

People are saying: Whats happening in Ireland at the moment? because of the amount of successful horror filmmakers that are coming out. Lee Cronin did Evil Dead Rise, and we've got Kate Dolan, Ciaran Foy, Lorcan Finnegan - all those super talented filmmakers, and their films are getting internationally recognised. Even if they're not set in Ireland, they still have our sense of humour. We're exporting such good stuff at the moment.

As with his first two feature films, McCarthy is looking forward to getting the cameras rolling again in his home county later this year or early next. We plan to film here, and we've got so many crew already down here and amazing locations.

I'm definitely going to make use of it and try to keep our crews down in Cork and try to promote the industry down here. It's a fantastic time and I do think the West Cork Studios is going to be very good for the industry down this side of the country.
Oscar-winning actress Cate Blanchett will return to the London stage after six years in a new adaptation of Anton Chekhovs The Seagull.

The Australian film star will play celebrated actress Arkadina while The Musketeers actor Tom Burke will star as her lover Trigorin.

It marks a return to the Barbican Theatre stage for Blanchett, 55, who last performed at the venue in Botho Strausss Big And Small (Gross Und Klein) in 2012.

Cate Blanchett last appeared on stage in London in 2019 (Ben Birchall/PA)

Her last London theatre role was in a 2019 production of Martin Crimps When We Have Sufficiently Tortured Each Other at the National Theatre.

The production reunites Blanchett and Burke, 43, who have recently completed filming on Steven Soderbergh-directed thriller Black Bag.

Burke has worked on TV shows including The Crown, The Lazarus Project and mini-series Great Expectations, and has appeared in theatre shows including Romeo And Juliet at Shakespeares Globe and the UK tour of Don Carlos.

Blanchett has an extensive career on stage as well as starring in films including Notes On A Scandal (2006), Blue Jasmine (2013) and Oceans Eight (2018).

The play follows Arkadina as she arrives at her familys country estate for the weekend and finds herself caught up in a storm of conflicting desires.

Her playwright son, Konstantin, struggles to step out of her shadow as he pursues his own artistic ambitions and her lover Trigorin becomes the object of affection for the aspiring young actress Nina.

Tom Burke will play Trigorin in the production (Ian West/PA)

Another production of The Seagull, starring Game Of Thrones actress Emilia Clarke, played in London two years ago.

Director Thomas Ostermeier said: I have known and admired Cate for many years and to see her on stage is always a privilege.

I am thrilled that we will make our first artistic collaboration with this production of The Seagull at the Barbican, and that London will experience this once-in-a-generation actress in one of the greatest theatrical roles of Arkadina.

Im also very pleased to be forging a new artistic relationship with Tom Burke, who will play the role of Trigorin.

The production will play a limited six-week run at the Barbican Theatre from February 2025. Public bookings will open on October 9.

The full cast and creative team will be announced shortly.
Cmere, whats the story with getting a divorce? The old doll woke me up Wednesday with the news that shes going to dump me live, on Instagram.

I said why girl, and she said because her last few posts on Insta were about as popular as an upstairs fart on the 202.

I said whats that got to do with anything and she was like, Bennifer, Dowcha Donie, Bennifer?

I thought she was after having a turn, until she explained that Jennifer Lopez is in the headlines because she is getting a divorce from Ben Affleck.

So Thursday morning my old doll announced the break up of Dirley (her name is Shirley). It got three likes, and one of them was off her mam which I thought was a bit sly out of her, there will be words there.

Heres the twist Audrey  another like came from my ex, Diane, bit of a nob from St Lukes, she was always weak for a bit of Dowcha Donie.

Im thinking of asking her out, never miss a good opportunity, am I right? The problem is Shirley  we havent actually split up, its just for her 247 followers on Instagram.

Do you think shell mind if Im seen walking down McCurtain Street with Diane on my arm?

 Dowcha Donie, Blackpool

Ive been down this road before. My Conor and I split up once for tax reasons. Well, I slept with someone working with the Revenue, but you know yourself.

Hey, myself and my partner started dating in college, we were like voted the best looking couple in our year.

I was looking at some photos there, amazing skin. Were still together 14 years later, and just bought an apartment in Jacobs Island (my mother paid for most of it, shed have her solicitor after me if I didnt put that in).

Myself and my partner are really happy, the sex is as good as youd expect it to be after 14 years (twice a week, special requests for your birthday). The problem is, my partner has lost her looks.

Its not her fault in fairness, shes still got exceptional muscle tone and there isnt an ounce of fat on her  its just, I dont know, she isnt a stunner any more.

Im not thinking of leaving her, shes still my bestie. But when I say I shouldnt have to do as much housework as her because Im better looking, she goes ballistic.

I dont want to sound like a dick, but its not my fault shes lost her looks. Last night I refused to empty the dishwasher because in fairness, my mother paid for our apartment.

My partner said I was being unreasonable. Who is being unreasonable here?

 Jay, Jacobs Island

I think your mother is being unreasonable. Sorry now, but she should have put you somewhere nicer than Jacobs Island.

Guten Tag. I have been in Ireland now for nine months and I thought I was finally getting a handle on how you people think. Then, the Rose of Tralee happened.

I work in a data analysis company and my Irish colleagues all have excellent third level degrees, although some of them studied in Limerick.

But now they have lost their minds, talking about this Rose of Tralee. From a distance it would appear they enjoy watching this show, but after listening for a while, I think they get a perverted pleasure from sneering at a show that was popular with their parents.

We have a word for that in German but it is too long to fit on one page.

Now I am thinking I should start my own Rose of Tralee style festival, maybe call it the Lily of Leipzig.

There is this guy from Kerry in the office, I asked him how you would go about setting up a festival like this.

He is totally on board as long as I give him 3,000 euro in Bitcoin and a season ticket for Bayern Munich. He seems like a very nice guy in fairness. But can I trust this Kerryman?

 Gunther, Leipzig and Ballincollig

The first and only Kerry man I trusted swore blind he was after having the snip. The result is my 23 year old son, Paudie.

Its getting expensive on our WhatsApp group Douglas Road Stunners Who Spend 400 Euro on Back To School Shoes.

All the bantz this week are about back to school, with a particular emphasis on what sex romps were planning with our husbands (the Kens) now the kids are out of the house.

Im thinking of spending 400 quid on a negligee to surprise my Ken, but that probably means Ill have to get little Fiachras winter coat in Lidl. (Our new air conditioner business is ahead of its time, I wish global warming would get a move on in Ireland.)

Would you pick up the coat for me, Ive more to lose if Im spotted in Lidl?

 Jenni, Douglas Road

I got the coat just there. I picked up a negligee as well when was in there, as a surprise for your Ken. Dont take this the wrong way now, but he was very excited when I showed it to him.
A rite of passage that practically every Irish person must endure is the Leaving Cert.

The ritual sacrifice of our young people at the hands of the State Examinations Commission to guarantee two weeks of sun every June.

If you are receiving your Leaving Cert results, I thank you for your service. My mother was delighted with the drying weather during maths paper 2.

You sweated through Newtons Laws, titrations, Shakespeare and An Triail, as if the six years of secondary school hadnt been torture enough. Congratulations!

You may think you can wash your hands of it all, but youve got years of Leaving Cert related nightmares ahead of you. Thats part of the terms and conditions of Irish adulthood.

Your parents signed the contract on your behalf, just before your first cup of Barrys tea. Just last week, I showed up to my maths exam without a calculator and woke up in a cold sweat  something for you to look forward to.

I got my Leaving Cert results two years ago. Funnily enough, it was a bit of an anti-climax. Results were supposed to be released at 10am.

At 9.30am, I was ironing a shirt, just getting ready for the day. I decided to check if results had been released early, and they had.

So I was just on my own in my living room, holding an iron, and wondering what I was supposed to be feeling.

My mother had covid at the time, so I shouted my results into her bedroom, as she cursed not being able to go out for a celebratory breakfast.

I was part of the first cohort of students to sit a regular Leaving Cert without predicted grades following the pandemic. I wore a mask to school for most of sixth year.

I got covid just after the mocks and missed two weeks of school. So, its fair to say I was looking forward to experiencing a bit of normalcy in college, seeing as my final three years in school had been dictated by covid.

Deciding what I would be doing in college was another issue. I thought I wanted to study English, but that didnt sound academic enough in my head, so I avoided telling people.

The build up to results was a little overwhelming. Attempting to predict the grades Id come out with. Terrified that I wouldnt get into the college course that was at the top of my CAO.

Then all of a sudden, the grades are written down in front of you. Youre not sure how youre supposed to react. And you still dont know yet if youll get into the course youre after.

As Im writing this, Im aware of the unease a lot of students are feeling now. Getting results from such a big exam will inevitably bring up a lot of emotions.

I didnt really know what to feel when I got my results. Part of me was glad that it was over. But I also wished I had done better in some subjects.

Then there was the worry about starting college and wondering if Id even enjoy the course I had been lusting after.

But the biggest lesson Ive learned since then, is that theres so many ways of getting where you want to go.

Seeing all of my friends go off and study medicine, fine art, and sciences, or do post Leaving Cert courses, really opened my eyes to that.

Theres a back door, side door, and about 75 windows into every career. If tomorrow won't be what you hoped for, youll figure it out.

Its important to have some perspective; one disappointing run of exams isnt proof that youre not capable.

I know how all-consuming a disappointing grade can be, but a bad grade isnt the universes way of saying youre less than. Dont let it turn into that.

The next few days can be nerve racking, as you wait for college offers to come out. But this is a unique time in your life, try to enjoy it a little bit.

No matter what grades youve gotten, finishing the Leaving Cert is an achievement in itself, and you should be proud. Go out and celebrate that.

Soon the dreams of having to do your English exam in the nude will set in. And thats how youll know youve really completed the Leaving Cert.
Saturday

Viking bead-making workshop

Cork Public Museum, 11am

As part of Heritage Week 2024, the School of Irish Archaeology is running a Viking bead-making workshop where kids can create their own necklaces and bracelets using polymer clay. The workshops are aimed at kids aged between six and 12. The event is free but you need to reserve your spot here.

Childrens book launch

Lexicon Library, Dun Laoghaire, 2-3.30pm

Author Helen OSullivan is launching her book series called The Gollogans at the Lexicon Library in Dun Laoghaire with a free event that includes kids crafts and story-time. Children age 6-9 can immerse themselves in the world of the Gollogans and get their books signed on the day.

Sunday

Pop-up vintage market

Sea Church, Ballycotton, Cork, 12-4pm

Sea Church is playing host to a pop-up vintage market with Sally Kirby of Free Spirit Vintage packing the venue with clothing, jewellery and crafts on the day. Have a browse through the vintage bits and pieces in this picturesque venue with sea views. Theres a handy playground directly across the road to keep the kids occupied too.

Limerick Show

Limerick Racecourse, all day

Limericks family and agricultural festival takes place at Limerick Racecourse on Sunday. The annual event attracts 15,000 visitors, 1,000 competitors and 150 exhibitors every year. Its a jam-packed day with everything from show jumping and cattle shows to art, craft and baking competitions and a pet dog parade. Theres also a free kid zone to keep the kids busy, live music and a fashion show. Tickets are 15 for adults and children under 16 go free. The programme for the day is here.

All weekend

Pitchd Festival

Cork, August 23  September 1

The circus and street arts festival kicks off on 23rd August. Its a week-long festival so there will be plenty of opportunities to get involved with events and workshops happening throughout the week, including a festival gala on 24th August in The Everyman. Theres also a free pop-up circus skills event on Douglas Street for all the family on 24th. The festival programme is available here.

Spike Island Literary Festival

Spike Island, Cobh, Cork

Spike Island Literary Festival. Picture: Joleen Cronin

This is the third year of the fledgling literary festival, which focuses on crime writing. Set on Spike Island, a former prison, its a popular festival featuring some of the biggest names in crime writing. This year authors including Jo Spain, Arlene Hunt, Sinead Crowley, Neil Lancaster and former state pathologist Dr Marie Cassidy, who will all take part in author panels. There will also be an opportunity for aspiring writers to get real-world advice from a renowned literary agent. Find out more about the festival and book your tickets here.

Plan ahead

Guinness Cork Jazz Festival

October 24-28

Picture: Darragh Kane

It might feel like a long way off but its always a good idea to get your tickets early, particularly for popular events. Its a stellar line-up this year, and while tickets for headliner Gregory Porter are already sold out, there are still so many amazing performers to see including Buena Vista All Stars Presents  One Night in Havana, Kamasi Washington, Seum Kuti & Egypt 80 and Mary Coughlan. There will, of course, be plenty of other events happening around the city from music trails to pop-up events  its always a fun-packed weekend. Tickets are available here.
Ireland's 420m annual dairy exports to China are under threat in what is seen as an escalating tit-for-tat trade conflict between China and the EU.

Chinas Ministry of Commerce has begun an investigation into imports of dairy products originating from the EU, examining 20 subsidy schemes operating in a number of countries including Ireland, Italy, Croatia, Austria, Belgium, and Finland.

China's action is being viewed as a response to tariffs imposed by the EU on Chinese-made electric cars imported into Europe.

As part of its anti-subsidy investigation, the European Commission this week revealed the draft decision to impose duties on a range of EV imports including an additional 9% tariff on Tesla vehicles.

Farm representatives have said there is now fear that Irish food exports are being held hostage in a dispute that is not even tangentially related to our sector or process.

Last year, Ireland exported 420m of dairy products to China, including specialised nutritional powders and casein.

Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association (ICMSA) president Denis Drennan said any negative impact on dairy exports would be a savage blow at a time when primary dairy producers are reeling from low prices, adverse weather, and years of high inputs.

The ICMSA president, who represents 16,000 Irish dairy farmers, said that if the EU is going to embark on a trade dispute that wipes out dairy product trade with China, then the association will be demanding that the EU compensate the farmers.

Last year, Ireland exported 420m of dairy products to China, including specialised nutritional powders and casein.

Mr Drennan warned that farmers will be the ones who end up paying the cost of a trade dispute that we had nothing to do with and resolution of which is completely outside our control.

The launch of the investigation comes ahead of Bord Bia hosting a Government-led trade mission to China in September, to be attended by Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue, promoting Irish products such as dairy and beef.

Chinas commerce ministry said the dairy products covered in this investigation are cheeses, milk, and cream products intended for human consumption.

Conor Mulvihill, director of Dairy Industry Ireland, the Ibec association representing primary and secondary dairy manufacturers, said that most of Irelands cheese exports are directed to the British and EU markets.

Mr Mulvihill said that while any threat of trade disruption is unwelcome, and China is an important market for both EU and Irish dairy, Irish dairy is well diversified in its product mix and destination countries.

Conor Mulvihill, director of Dairy Industry Ireland, said most of Irelands cheese exports are directed to the British and EU markets.

Expressing his disappointment at the announcement by Chinese authorities to open the subsidy investigation, Mr Mulvihill said: We are calling on the EU Commission and the Irish Government to work quickly to resolve the investigation and ensure that farm families and the industry are not negatively impacted.

The Irish dairy industry produces and exports in full compliance with EU and World Trade Organization rules. Chinas decision to launch this anti-subsidy probe follows its previous move in June when it launched an anti-dumping investigation into imported pork products from the EU."
A man wrongly convicted of one of Northern Irelands most notorious murders wrote directly to former UK prime minister Harold Wilson in 1969 appealing for his name to be cleared in the interests of basic human justice.

Iain Hay Gordon, from Glasgow, was found guilty but insane over the murder of judges daughter Patricia Curran in 1952.

Ms Curran, who was 19 at the time of her murder, had been stabbed 37 times in the grounds of her family home in Whiteabbey, Co Antrim.

Iain Hay Gordon in uniform, being led to a court in Belfast, where he was found guilty of murdering judges daughter Patricia Curran in Co Antrim in November 1952 (PA)

She was a student at Queens University in Belfast, and the daughter of Lancelot Curran, then a High Court judge who later became the Chief Justice in Northern Ireland.

Hay Gordon was a 20-year-old RAF national serviceman at the time of her death.

He spent seven years in hospital before he was released. He campaigned for his name to be cleared, claiming police had forced him to confess.

His murder conviction was finally quashed at Northern Irelands Court of Appeal in 2000.

The file entitled Criminal Lunatic, Gordon Iain Hay, Holywell Mental Hospital is one of more than 700 documents released at the Public Record Office in Belfast under the 30/20-year rule.

The majority of the files relate to the year 2002, although a number deal with events in earlier years.

Iain Hay Gordon celebrates being cleared of the murder in 2000 (Paul Faith/PA)

Hay Gordon sent his letter to Mr Wilson on October 13 1969.

The typed note, which was signed by hand, says: You will recall that I spoke to you for a few minutes as you were leaving the St Mungo Halls, Glasgow, on Friday evening and you suggested that I should write to you.

On Saturday March 7th 1953, I was found guilty but insane of the murder of Miss Patricia Curran, daughter of Mr Justice Curran which took place on 12th November 1952.

He added: I was released in August 1960 and since then, supported by my family and friends, I have been seeking a re-examination into this case.

The Attorney General Mr Elwyn Jones, the Lord Chancellor, Lord Gardiner, Mr Tom Sergeant, Secretary of Justice, Mr Jeremy Thorpe, leader of the Liberal Party, and the distinguished psychiatrist Dr Desmond Curran have implicit faith in my innocence and there has been some recent correspondence on this matter between a Mrs Turtle and the Home Secretary Mr Callaghan and Lord Stonham.

The letter continues: To us this is a case of basic human justice and I feel that I cannot have any peace of mind unless my name is cleared.

For this reason I am appealing to you.

The only undisputed fact in this case is that Patricia Curran was stabbed to death 37 times

The UK's ministry of home affairs file also includes a summary of the case entitled The Curran Murder Case: Rough draft for a new summary of events.

It states: The only undisputed fact in this case is that Patricia Curran was stabbed to death 37 times sometime between 5.20pm on the 12th November 1952 when she was seen getting off a bus at Whiteabbey and 2am the following morning when her body was found in the grounds of her home.

Who the murderer was, how, when and where the murder took place, and even the circumstances under which the body was actually found are all questions that seem to worry journalists, lawyers, doctors and, not least, the general public.

It is remarkable that so much doubt should still exist 16 years after Iain Hay Gordon, the 20-year-old Scottish national serviceman stationed at the time in Whiteabbey, was found guilty but insane.

The file also includes a number of letters from members of the public asking for the case to be re-examined.
An unprecedented row between senior gardai and the Government over the vacant position of deputy commissioner has momentarily paused after the deadline for applications for the job was extended by a week.

Public Jobs, which is running the competition on behalf of the Policing Authority, updated its advertisement for the position during lunchtime on Thursday  extending the deadline from today to next Thursday.

The brief extension follows a concerted effort by six assistant commissioners  the third highest rank in the organisation  for a deferral of the deadline and the provision of information on resolving a tax issue.

These senior officers have made it clear they will not apply until that information is made known.

It is believed the assistant commissioners anticipated a longer postponement, with some sources believing it is an effort by the authorities to force their hand.

It is understood that, so far, no steps have been taken to provide the required information to the commissioners on the tax issue.

The six assistant commissioners have claimed they are being "discriminated" against, as they would face a significant tax burden if they got the job, something which other applicants would not face.

They wrote to Justice Minister Helen McEntee last week urging her to defer the deadline.

This was followed on Tuesday by similar letters sent to Garda Commissioner Drew Harris and the Policing Authority.

On Wednesday, the six assistant commissioners wrote again to Ms McEntee.

The Irish Examiner understands there has been a lot of activity going on in the background in the last 24 hours to try and take the heat out of the issue.

While formal comments have been sought from the Policing Authority and the Department of Justice on the deadline, none have been forthcoming.

The Government advertised the position for a second time at the end of July, with a closing date for applications 3pm today.

An attempt last year to fill the position, the second highest rank in An Garda Siochana, failed after the countrys eight assistant commissioners, and the bulk of its 47 chief superintendents, did not apply for the post.

Of those people that did apply, none were recommended by the Policing Authority to the Government.

Unfair tax burden

The six internal assistant commissioners  the remaining two are former PSNI officers  have consistently claimed that they would be hit with an unfair tax burden compared to other candidates.

They have claimed this discriminates against them, with estimates the tax burden could be between 100,000 and 500,000.

The Government decided not to fill the position of deputy commissioner last October and in December the finance minister set up an external examination of the tax issue.

Sources have described the level of trust between the assistant commissioners and Ms McEntee as 'low'. Picture: Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie

The assistant commissioners said Ms McEntee had made assurances the position would not be filled until the issue was resolved.

The external review has completed its work and has sent its report to Finance Minister jack Chambers for a decision  but no decision has yet been made known.

On July 26, the position was advertised again and the deadline was set for today 3pm.

During lunchtime Public Jobs updated the ad, changing the deadline to next Thursday.

In response to questions, the Policing Authority said as set out in the Garda Siochana Act 2005, the selection competition for Deputy Garda Commissioner is undertaken by publicjobs and thus publicjobs will determine whether it is appropriate to make any changes to the competition closing date.

"The Authority has been aware of the concerns raised in relation to the personal taxation status of certain individuals for some time. The matter has been considered on a number of occasions collectively by the Authority. While appreciating the concerns, this is not a matter in which the Authority has any role.

"The Standard Fund Threshold has universal application across the public and private sectors and taxation matters are dependent on individual, personal circumstances. The salary for the role of Assistant Commissioner applies equally to all, and taxation matters are dependent on the individual.

As would be expected, due to the varying statutory responsibilities of the Authority, publicjobs and the Minister in relation to the nomination of a person to government for appointment to the role of Deputy Commissioner in the Garda Siochana, there has been ongoing communications between the various officials."

Similar questions were sent on Thursday to the Department of Justice and a reply is awaited.

Sources have described the level of trust between the assistant commissioners and Ms McEntee as low.

Garda Commissioner set to retire

Commissioner Harris, who received a two-year extension, is set to retire within the next 10 months.

The two deputy commissioners would traditionally be strong contenders for the position.

There is some concern among senior ranks of the organisation if an external candidate (not including Irish-born former PSNI officers) is appointed to the deputy commissioner position.

The rank of Deputy Commissioner Policing and Security became vacant with the retirement of Anne Marie McMahon.

Afterwards, Deputy Commissioner Strategy and Governance, Shawna Coxon (a former Canadian police boss who joined two years ago) was moved over to a renamed role of Deputy Commissioner Operations.

The security role was removed with the assistant commissioner Security & Intelligence, reporting directly to Mr Harris.

The DC Strategy and Governance role is now described as vacant on the Garda website.

It is not clear which of the two deputy commissioner roles is being advertised, although the advert said one of the two positions was vacant.
Irish doctors have warned of the challenges faced by young transgender people here due to a "lack of clarity" around alternatives to a now-closed UK service.

Six consultants working mainly in paediatrics, psychiatry, and endocrinology raised nine urgent questions about the direction of care for these patients almost five months after the Tavistock GIDS (gender identify development service) was closed following concerns raised by the Cass Review about use of puberty blockers.

There were strong links between Ireland and Tavistock, with 233 referrals between 2012 and 2023. By 2022, there 72 Irish patients on its waiting lists among 5,000 altogether.

The concerned clinicians include Professor Donal OShea, Dr Paul Moran, Dr Susan OConnell, and Professor Fiona McNicholas.

They say many challenges remain for these clinical services in Ireland.

There were strong links between Ireland and Tavistock, with 233 referrals between 2012 and 2023. Picture: Aaron Chown/PA

The substantial body of evidence showing little or no evidence of benefit and possibility of harm is of grave concern, they said in an article in the Irish Medical Journal.

Access to GIDS UK has now been removed and there is a lack of clarity regarding alternative care pathways.

They ask what doctors should tell parents when they ask for advice about referral or treatment, due to the lack of information about future transgender services here.

Are we knowledgeable or confident to advise regarding social transition? they ask.

It is also unclear how clinicians should treat young people who were previously placed on puberty suppressing hormones or cross-sex hormones through Tavistock.

They query how young people prescribed privately or by doctors from other countries can be treated and why treatment is diverted through Camhs.

They warn of uncertainty for young people who waited months or years only now to realise there appears to be a blanket ban on puberty blockers in NHS clinics.

What can we say when asked by a carer or youth why must they travel to UK for gender-specific healthcare services? they ask.

Most of all, they warn: How can we safeguard youth and ensure that whatever stance we take follows our Hippocratic oath, and our promise to primum non nocere, referring to the adage first do no harm.

They highlight significant challenges in recruiting expert staff, which have contributed to the lack of a specialised Camhs for transgender young people.

Development of a new national model of care is eagerly awaited, they say, and they welcome the appointment of a clinical lead for this.

In the meantime, they say Irish services may need to return to the watchful waiting therapy model originally used by Tavistock before hormone use became so prevalent.

This time we will also be waiting for research towards safe, evidence-based practice.

The closure of Tavistock followed two critical reports, known together as the Cass Review.

It recommended extreme caution be used when prescribing hormones to under-18s, saying a clear clinical rationale is needed to do this, rather than waiting until the person turns 18.

NHS England said, in March, that there was not enough evidence to support the safety or clinical effectiveness of puberty-suppressing hormones to make the treatment routinely available for children and young people.

The Irish paper Cass Report and Implications for Transgender Youth and Services in ROI can be read in the Irish Medical Journal.
The Department of Foreign Affairs has warned more than 100 Irish citizens still in Lebanon they should not rely on evacuation options if a full-scale war breaks out and commercial flights are grounded.

At the start of this month, the department said it was establishing contact with all Irish citizens in Lebanon as military tensions are cranking up in the region, with a spate of retaliatory attacks now engulfing Israel, Lebanon, and Iran.

A Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman said it has undertaken significant contingency planning to prepare for a possible consular crisis as a result of an escalation in Lebanon".

He said the department, including officials from the Irish Embassy in Cairo, remains in regular contact with the more-than 100 Irish citizens in Lebanon and that any evacuation scenario would need to be a coordinated international effort and require extensive cooperation with key partners".

However, he added: An evacuation of civilians, including Irish citizens, from Lebanon is likely to be a complex and difficult operation.

If the security situation deteriorates, we may be limited in the assistance we can provide. Citizens should not rely on evacuation options being possible if commercial options become unavailable.

He reiterated that the department strongly advises against all travel to Lebanon".

Fears are growing that Iran and its proxy allies, such as Hezbollah, based in Lebanon, will launch a full-scale attack on Israel and draw the Middle East into all-out war.

The British Government is so concerned about this risk that it has put more than 1,000 troops on standby in Cyprus to evacuate their citizens.

Black smoke rises after an Israeli airstrike on Kafar Hamam, a Lebanese border village on May 17. Picture: Mohammed Zaatari/AP

They have RAF personnel on standby at their base at Akrotiri and Royal Marine commandos at their navy base in Dhekelia.

Hundreds more troops are on standby in Britain who will be flown out to bolster the contingent in Cyprus, should a major and sea evacuation of British citizens from Lebanon be required.

Here, the Department of Defence has said it is carrying out contingency planning in the event that 332 Irish peacekeeping troops from the 124th Infantry Battalion serving in the country with the United Nations have to be evacuated.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Defence said it does not ordinarily comment on operational matters, but that contingency planning is part and parcel of the planning in operational deployments.

Soldiers before the visit of Tanaiste Micheal Martin to the 124th Infantry Battalion at Camp Shamrock in Lebanon. Picture: Niall Carson/PA

Given the ongoing security issues in South Lebanon, contingency planning is ongoing should the need for evacuation arise, she said.

It should be underlined, however, that the Government remains committed to our missions in the Middle-East, including UNIFIL [Lebanon], and the Government has no plans to evacuate our personnel currently.

"The Government will continue to monitor the situation closely, along with our partners in the UN and the wider international community, the spokeswoman added.
Figures from the business and technology sectors have paid tribute to Mike Lynch after the tech moguls death was confirmed on Thursday.

Mr Lynch was confirmed to have died aged 59 after a luxury yacht, Bayesian, sank off the coast of Sicily.

Mr Lynch was born in Ilford, Essex, and raised in nearby Chelmsford, where his mother was a nurse and his father a firefighter. His mother is originally from Tipperary while his father is a Cork native.

Mr Lynch's success led to seemingly obligatory descriptions of him as Britains Bill Gates but, in truth, his story differs hugely from that of the Microsoft founder.

He was the creator of software giant Autonomy, which grew to become one of the most prominent tech firms on the planet.

David Tabizel, Mr Lynchs co-founder at Autonomy, said: It looks like weve lost our dear Dr Mike Lynch. RIP. The world has lost a genius. His family have lost a giant of a man.

As well as Autonomy, Mr Lynch was on the board of several prominent institutions including the BBC and the British Library, and was a fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.

Tim Davie, BBC director-general, said: Wise, generous and insightful, he played a particularly key role in accelerating our transformation as a digital organisation.

The academy paid tribute to its mentor, donor and former council member on Thursday.

In a statement, it said: The trustee board, fellows and staff of the Royal Academy of Engineering are deeply saddened to learn of the death of Mike Lynch and send our profound condolences to his family.

Eleanor Lightbody, chief executive of AI legal firm Luminance which Mr Lynch set up, said: Mike was a visionary unlike any other.

He had a unique ability to spot the next technological revolution and solve tomorrows challenges before others even knew they were coming.

Beyond that, it was his connection to people that made him special.

He had a steadfast belief in the UKs technology sector, in our incredible academic institutions, and in the talent he took the time to spot and nurture, regardless of background or discipline.

Above all, Mike was a kind man who had an impact on many and will be sorely missed.

I feel honoured to have known him, worked with him and learnt from him over the years.

The UK has lost someone with the means, authority, knowledge and drive to propel the UK into technological leadership, but his legacy will live on in all of the extraordinary businesses he built and mentored, as well as his family who are in my thoughts.

Suranga Chandratillake, partner at Balderton, a venture capital firm in London, said: Mike Lynchs PhD at Cambridge put him at the very forefront of modern artificial intelligence.

More than just technology, however, Mike contributed vastly to its commercialisation.

Mike didnt just invent things, he built products and companies.

By my count, he founded over 10 technology companies and was instrumental in the building of three that became multi-billion dollar public companies (Autonomy, blinkx and Darktrace)  a personal track record without equal in the UKs technology ecosystem.

I worked for Mike for five years and he then served on my board at blinkx for close to a decade.

I can share that he was an unfailingly supportive mentor who challenged and supported in equal measure.

Years before Covid, he mastered hybrid work, splitting his time between Cambridge (where the tech was built), London (where it was sold) and Suffolk (which he loved dearly), and juggled leading his work with being a loving and much-loved dad and husband.

He was famously fiercely competitive but, to his friends, equally fiercely loyal and always ready for a cup of tea and a chat.

The loss to the UKs technology ecosystem is incalculable but I am as sad to lose an old friend and all my thoughts are with his wonderful family who are facing an unthinkable double tragedy at this time.

A boat carrying a dive team returns from the site of the Bayesian (Jonathan Brady/PA)

A Darktrace spokesperson said: We are shocked and saddened by the news confirming the death of Mike Lynch and the other victims of this terrible tragedy.

Mike was a founding investor in Darktrace, an active champion of the UKs technology sector and a committed husband and father. His loss will be felt by many. Our thoughts are with his family and all the families who have lost loved ones in this awful event.

Family friend Patrick Jacob said: Mikes ability to identify and solve complex problems was phenomenal as was his ability to simplify and explain them.

As a friend, Mike was never dull and always ready for a lively debate on almost any topic conducted with intelligence and convivial vigour.

He could be challenging and direct but I never came away from seeing him without feeling my life was enriched by the experience.

Martina King, chief executive of Featurespace, a fraud prevention company, said: It is a high statistical probability that Featurespace wouldnt be a thriving technology company without Mike.

Our co-founders, Professor Bill Fitzgerald and Dave Excell, were inspired by Mikes combination of intellect and commercial acumen.

They benefited from his friendship and guidance.

Mikes personal investment in Featurespace supported the development of an invention that has proved fundamental in the progress of AI and he served as a Non-Executive Director for over 10 years from 2008  2019.

Mike was a true champion of the UK technology sector, including the need for greater diversity and advocated for many female leaders, including me.

Cambridge, the technology sector, colleagues and friends will be unable to calculate the loss of this truly extraordinary, intellectual, inventive, humorous and generous man. He will be sorely and deeply missed.

The chief executive of the British Library, Sir Roly Keating, said: Mikes extraordinary understanding of technology, combined with his passion for the British Librarys mission to share knowledge, made him an invaluable member of our board.

He was thoughtful, perceptive and supportive, and will be deeply missed by all of us who worked with him in his time here.

Meanwhile, the chairman of the Francis Crick Institute described Mike Lynch as a human being of great ability.

Mr Lynch was a member of the Create The Change fundraising board, set up by Cancer Research UK and which helped fund the building of the Institute, a biomedical research centre.

John Browne said: Mike Lynch should be remembered as the person who catalysed a breed of deep tech entrepreneurs in the UK.

His ideas and his personal vision were a powerful contribution to science and technology in both Britain and globally.

Michelle Mitchell, chief executive of Cancer Research UK, said: We are deeply saddened to hear of the death of Mike Lynch and all those who have been affected by this tragedy.

We are deeply saddened to hear of the death of Mike Lynch ... Together with his wife, Angela, Mike was a valued donor to Cancer Research UK and a member of the board for our Create The Change campaign, which funded the building of the Francis Crick Institute

Together with his wife, Angela, Mike was a valued donor to Cancer Research UK and a member of the board for our Create The Change campaign, which funded the building of the Francis Crick Institute.

Mike Lynch was a hugely significant and pioneering figure in the UK technology sector

Technology industry group TechUK added to the tributes.

A spokesman said: Mike Lynch was a hugely significant and pioneering figure in the UK technology sector.

President of the Royal Society, Adrian Smith, said: Mike Lynch was an exceptional scientist, mathematician and entrepreneur, who turned his knowledge of Bayesian statistics and pattern recognition into innovative and successful technology companies.

As president of the Royal Society, a fellow statistician and friend, I offer my deepest condolences to Mikes family, and all of those affected by this tragic news.
A 61-year-old man has appeared in court in relation to the murder of three Northern Ireland policemen in an IRA bomb attack in 1982.

Martin John McCauley, with an address at Esmondale, Naas, Co Kildare, appeared before the High Court after being arrested on foot of an extradition warrant.

Detective Sergeant Adrian Murray told the court that he arrested McCauley in Naas at 6.41pm on Wednesday after asking him several questions to establish his identity.

Mr Murray also said he showed him a copy of the EU-UK Trade and Co-operation Agreement in the English language.

He identified McCauley to the court on Thursday as the man at the back of the room in an orange top.

He said the warrant related to the PSNI investigation into the murder of Royal Ulster Constabulary Sergeant Sean Quinn and constables Allan McCloy and Paul Hamilton.

The three RUC officers were killed in an IRA blast at Kinnego Embankment in Co Armagh on October 27 1982.

Royal Ulster Constabulary Sergeant Sean Quinn and constables Allan McCloy and Paul Hamilton (Family handouts/PA)

Mr Murray told the court that a bomb was placed on a culvert and detonated remotely from a van overlooking the road.

He said the detonation site was on a raised embankment and a plastic sheeting was placed on the embankment.

He added that it is believed the car bomb was detonated by two members of the IRA and described the attack as carefully planned.

The detective also referred to forensic evidence in the case against McCauley.

The court heard that McCauleys role in the incident has not yet been determined, but he will be charged with the murder of the three RUC officers on 27 October 1982.

The detective said when he asked McCauley if he knew what the charges were about, he answered no.

Mr Murray objected to bail due to the serious nature of the incident.

Andrew Moriarty, representing McCauley in court, said they would be applying for bail and that McCauley was entirely anchored to this jurisdiction.

He also told the court that McCauley has indicated his preparedness to be interviewed by PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boutcher.

Ms Justice Miriam ORegan said she was satisfied that the man in court was the man named in the warrant, Martin John McCauley.

Im satisfied that the correct person is before the court, she said.

She adjourned the matter until next Wednesday when it will appear before the Criminal Courts of Justice and remanded McCauley in custody.

The Public Prosecution Service (PPS) confirmed an individual is to be prosecuted for the murder of three RUC officers.

It said the decision was taken in April, before controversial new legacy laws came into effect, which prevent new cases being mounted.

A PPS spokesperson said: Following careful consideration of all the available evidence in a file submitted by Operation Kenova, the PPS took a decision to prosecute one individual in relation to the 1982 murders of Sergeant Sean Quinn and Constables Allan McCloy and Paul Hamilton.

As proceedings are live it would not be appropriate to comment further.
A father and son charged in connection with the stabbing of two brothers in an alleged feud over land in West Cork have again appeared before Clonakilty District Court.

Jerry Brennan Snr, aged 77, and his son William, aged 33, are charged with assaulting Jerry Brennan Jnr and John Brennan and producing knives at the family home in Dunmanway earlier this month.

Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) directions had not yet been given and the State was seeking a further remand in custody until September 3, Sergeant Tom Mulcahy told the court.

William Brennan, an electrical engineer who had been working in Holland, has a very high income and assets that would need to be valued before legal aid could be considered, Judge Brendan OReilly said.

His weekly income is very high. And there are assets there that are not valued that should be valued for the next day, Judge OReilly said.

I will have to reserve legal aid until the next statement of means  certain assets here have not been valued.

William Brennan consented to being remanded in custody until September 3, but requested through his solicitor that he be presented to court in Clonakilty on September 3, and not to appear via videolink.

His father, Jerry Brennan Snr, represented by solicitor Myra Dinneen, consented to appear via videolink on September 3.

Jerry Brennan Snrs wife stared intently at her husband, son and Judge OReilly throughout the proceedings.

Both men have an address at 2 Long Bridge in Dunmanway, Co Cork.

Ongoing feud

Previously, Garda Jonathan ODonovan told a special sitting of Bantry District Court that a feud had been ongoing for 14 years between a mother, father, and their three sons over a will and the distribution of property at Ballyhalwick townland in Dunmanway.

William Brennan has been charged with assault causing harm to his older brothers John Brennan and Jerry Brennan Jnr.

He has also been charged with producing a hunting knife in a manner that was likely to intimidate at Ballyhalwick in Dunmanway.

Mr Brennan Snr is charged with assault causing harm to his sons John Brennan and Jerry Brennan Jnr at Ballyhalwick.

He is also charged with producing a one to two inch pocket knife in the course of the dispute.

Det Gda ODonovan told a court on Monday that gardai were called to Ballyhalwick at 7.05pm on August 17, 2024, as Jerry Brennan Jnr and John Brennan had been stabbed at the house allegedly over a piece of land.

Det Garda ODonovan said that Jerry Jnr suffered a severed artery in his arm whilst John Brennan incurred a punctured lung.

On Monday, Judge OReilly had asked if it was a fair characterisation to say that it was a dispute over land and the blood is up. Det Garda ODonovan agreed that it was.

William Brennan wore a dark suit, blue striped tie and light blue checked shirt in court on Thursday.

His father wore a brown tweed jacket, brown jumper and check shirt.
Plans for up to 350 homes in Corks western suburbs are being prepared after the ESB and the Land Development Agency (LDA) confirmed a land transfer deal.

The ESB has agreed to transfer to the LDA a 2.7hectare greenfield site at its Sarsfield Road regional headquarters in Wilton, which the agency bought for just over 3m last year.

The site is next to Wilton Shopping Centre and near the Cardinal Court and Wilton Court residential estates.

The Irish Examiner reported last December how site was valued at 500,000 but the deal included some 2.6m in compensation to the ESB for the inconvenience of selling the land.

The LDA has already appointed a design team for the housing project and said it expects to lodge a planning application for about 350 new homes on the site with Cork City Council in the first quarter of next year.

The proposed homes will include a mix of affordable for sale houses and cost rental apartments.

The LDA said subject to planning approval, construction could start in early 2026, with the first homes being delivered in late 2028.

The agency also said it plans to engage in extensive public consultation and will publish framework and vision documents to facilitate this before any planning application is made.

The ESB has agreed to transfer to the LDA a 2.7hectare greenfield site at its Sarsfield Road regional headquarters in Wilton, which the agency bought for just over 3m last year. File picture: John Sheehan Photography

The site, just over 4kms from the city centre, has public transport links along Sarsfield Road. New pedestrian and cycle links are proposed for the area.

It is close to the South Ring Road and within short walking or cycling distance of Cork University Hospital, Munster Technological University, schools, shops and other local services.

The LDA is already delivering 267 homes at the former St Kevins Hospital site in Shanakiel in Cork city and is developing 302 cost-rental apartments at Horgans Quay.

The Irish Examiner reported last week how the LDA is also set to begin advance survey works over the coming months on a massive site in Kilbarry which, long-term, has the potential to deliver over 3,000 homes.

LDA chief executive John Coleman said the transfer of the ESB site is another positive development for the agency as it continues to ramp up the delivery of affordable new homes.

This planned development will have the potential to provide much-needed housing and new facilities in a desirable area alongside established communities and close to a range of existing amenities and services, he said.

The LDA is actively working with state bodies to access state-owned land that has the potential to deliver thousands of homes.
In Athboy, Co Meath, a group has gathered around a brand new polytunnel at Athboy Community Allotments. The tunnel is empty, but one of those who have assembled is carrying an example of what the tunnel will soon be used to germinate  a one-year-old baby alder tree.

Ryan Wilson-Parr is one of the ecologists from Boyne Rivers Trust, a conservation group formed in October 2021 which works to rehabilitate the Boyne.

Members of Athboy Community Allotments and Boyne Rivers Trust  Darren Dineen, Muireann Lyons, David Bebb, Jack Rogers, and Ryan Wilson-Parr  plan to grow saplings of native trees and restore the Boyne catchments riparian vegetation. Picture: Gareth Chaney

This is just the first building block and weve been so lucky that the allotments have given us this area, Mr Wilson-Parr says. In time, this tunnel will be filled with young saplings and well have an area outside for growing on the trees.

SUSTAINABILITY & CLIMATE Check out our Sustainability and Climate Change Hub where you will find the latest news, features, opinions and analysis on this topic from across the various Irish Examiner topic desks and their team of specialist writers and columnists.

This is our first tree nursery space. We are hoping to develop a network of sites throughout the county as community projects.

"We want people to volunteer, to collect seed from local sources in the catchment, grow it, pot it on and plant it.

He gestures to the young alder he is carrying: This tree, along with hopefully several thousand others, will be going into Jacks land next year.

Jack Rogers is another member of Boyne Rivers Trust, whose farmland nearby will serve as a pilot for an ambitious alluvial forest project the group is launching. In time, they aim to restore the Boyne catchments riparian  or riverside  vegetation by planting native tree species throughout the entire Boyne catchment.

All the river woods in the Boyne catchment have disappeared, Mr Wilson-Parr says.

We only have 16 hectares of our original alluvial forest left. Theres been hundreds of years of grubbing out, drainage, and intensification.

"We have a tiny remnant of the original woodland left and the rivers ecosystem isnt functioning as it should because weve lost so much biodiversity and tree cover.

The Rivers Trust umbrella group began in the UK and now has 65 member organisations across England, Northern Ireland, and Ireland. The Boyne Rivers Trust is a relative newcomer.

The Boyne, which rises to the east of Edenderry and flows some 112km through towns including Trim, Navan, and Drogheda before entering the Irish Sea, is a river with fascinating mythology and heritage: The Salmon of Knowledge was said to be caught on the Boyne by Fionn Mac Cumhaill. Perhaps more tangibly, the Newgrange World Heritage Site is located in the Boyne Valley.

But the Boyne catchment is now fourth on the EPAs list of most at-risk catchments.

The plaque above Pat OTooles head at his home in Trim commemorates a prize salmon he caught. But, rather than being the stuffed remains of the creature itself, as may have been the practice in years gone by, it is a replica. In the era of catch and release, the salmon that anglers catch are released back into the river. Picture: Gareth Chaney

Despite there being 10 special areas of conservation (SACs) in the Boyne catchment and it being a vital spawning ground for the increasingly threatened Atlantic salmon, there is just one river monitoring site of high quality on the Leinster Blackwater, the Boyne tributary near Kells, Co Meath.

Of 114 river waterbodies in the catchment, 51% are considered at risk of not meeting their Water Framework Directive objectives, according to the EPAs last catchment report in May 2024. Of the river bodies in the catchment, 69% are of moderate or poor water quality.

So the battle for the Boyne is very real and very urgent. But what do trees have to do with water quality?

Tree root networks provide natural flood protection, improve water quality, and increase biodiversity, Mr Wilson-Parr explains. And tree cover along river banks provides another climate future-proofing benefit: Their shade cools the water temperature.

We have a bigger problem in that water temperatures within the catchment are getting higher, so a lot of parts of the river are now inhospitable to Atlantic Salmon in the summertime, Mr Wilson-Parr says.

The Atlantic salmon population has itself declined by almost 80% over the last 30-40 years, so that alone is reason to really get behind this initiative.

The Boyne Rivers trust native alluvial woodlands project has been funded by Lawpro, the Local Authority Waters Programme. The Boyne has been selected as one of five catchments across the country piloting a proposed catchment management plan process coordinated by Lawpro in 2024.

The Boyne The River Boyne is a river in Leinster, the course of which is about 112km long. Save our rivers It rises at Trinity Well, Newberry Hall, near Carbury, Co Kildare, and flows towards the northeast through Co Meath to reach the Irish Sea between Mornington, Co Meath, and Baltray, Co Louth. The River Boyne and its tributaries comprise about 530km of river channel and drain an area of 1,040sq miles. This river is one of the countrys premium brown trout angling waters offering superb fishing to the visiting angler.

Dawn Meats plan

In the spring of the same year the Boyne Rivers Trust was founded, Dawn Meats Navan plant applied for planning permission to Meath County Council for a 7.2km pipe to discharge 400,000 litres of treated effluent from their abattoir into the Boyne per day.

There was public outcry.

A group called Save the Boyne was formed, and hundreds of residents, kayaking and angling groups, and local representatives submitted objections to the plan. Even 007 himself weighed in, with Pierce Brosnan, who was born in Navan, recording a video appeal for Save the Boyne.

Nevertheless, Meath County Council granted planning permission for the controversial scheme in April 2022, and the local authoritys decision was appealed to An Bord Pleanala by Save the Boyne and others.

An Bord Pleanala turned down a request to hold a public oral hearing. Although a decision was due by September 2022, no inspectors report has been made public and there has been no decision.

While Boyne Rivers Trust as a group does not currently engage in advocacy work such as planning objections, for some individual members, the experience of the Dawn Meats application was something of a catalyst: People sat up and really paid attention to water quality on the Boyne.

I would have been very activated by that, and it did activate a lot of people, Jack Rogers says.

We think that the concern around water quality is justified.

One of the Boyne Rivers Trusts aims is to promote community connections to the water, and higher interest and custodianship as a result.

For David Bebb, secretary of Athboy Community Allotments  where the Boyne Rivers Trust Native Alluvial Woodlands project is about to take root  the knock-on impacts for allotment holders could be profound.

We are a small community concern, but to be involved in something that is going to have such a significant impact on the Boyne catchment is something were very proud to be involved in, he says with enthusiasm.

Were 20 allotment holders here, just growing our veg and potatoes and flowers: We are potentially having a major impact on restoring the Boyne.

Catch and release  and gravel

The Boynes reputation as a salmon river is the stuff of lore. The magnificent migratory fish come up from the sea, through the estuary, and far into its streams and tributaries every winter to spawn.

So when the river is under threat, so too is its role as the birthplace of the King of Fish. Atlantic salmon stocks have been decimated globally by everything from commercial over-fishing to hydromorphology in the form of weirs and dams on their migratory path, to fish farms with a deadly lice burden.

Pat OToole of Trim Athboy & District Angling Association has a plaque on the wall of his house outside Trim with his prize salmon, a whopping 23-pounder, on it. Look closely, though, and youll see that this is a replica rather than a real stuffed fish: Since the Boyne went catch and release 18 years ago, the replica is an acceptable memento and the live fish gets returned to the river after its epic battle.

Mr OToole has fished on the Boyne for 63 of his 69 years and often fishes overseas in Canada, Iceland, or even Argentina. In the winter, he walks along the tributaries of the Boyne, observing the salmon spawning.

Hes been involved in conservation actions for a long time, including protests to prevent netting the migrating salmon on their way up to spawn, a practice that was stopped eventually 18 years ago, at the same time that the anglers agreed to go catch and release.

But he says the problems started far earlier, when the Boyne and its tributaries were dredged as a form of flood relief, beginning in 1960s and ending in 1986.

These were all the main salmon spawning grounds, he says with a disbelieving shake of his head. And a lot of the gravel was just taken out and dumped on the bank. It was never rehabilitated.

Atlantic Salmon may be just one species, but their presence since ancient times has been connected to the health of Irish rivers: Their fry are a food source for a vast range of other species.

Pat OToole fishing on the Boyne in Trim, Co Meath. Trim Athboy & District Angling Association worked with the IFI and OPW to put lorryloads of fresh gravel into the Boyne to provide a crucial spawning grounds for Atlantic salmon. Pictures: Gareth Chaney

Mr OToole was one of the people who made a submission against the Dawn Meats abattoir effluent application. He says the area below the proposed discharge pipe is already under pressure  he filmed video of algal bloom in the river near Slane last year  and that if anything were to go wrong with the treatment of the discharged effluent, salmon would be affected.

Below that pipe, the salmon come into the river and if the water is low, the salmon hold in pool below where the pipe is meant to go, he says.

Although Dawn Meats argue that their plan is an environmental improvement  currently their waste water is tanked offsite to a waste water treatment facility, and their plans contain extensive upgrades to their onsite waste water treatment  Mr OToole does not agree.

Gravel spawning streams in the Boyne in Co Meath. Not all ecologists agree with such large-scale interventions but Pat OToole says the 2018 re-gravelling helped greatly increase the Boyne fry count. Pictures: Gareth Chaney

If the water was going to be that pure coming out of the plant, why do they need to discharge it at all? he says. Why cant they store it and reuse the water?

Agriculture is the top significant pressure impacting 66% of the at-risk waterbodies within the Boyne catchment, followed by 39% impacted by hydromorphological pressures and 16% by domestic wastewater.

But waste water is an area of major concern to the anglers who say the waste water treatment capacity in the area is not fit for purpose when it comes to the rate of housing development and new homes in what is now Dublins commuter belt.

They have particular concerns in nearby Kells. It is unsustainable population growth unless the infrastructure can support it, they say. Mr O'Toole says:

We dont want to stop people building houses: Everyone needs a home. But why not build the infrastructure first?

"Theyre just going to build more and more houses and more. And once the river is gone, its gone.

Out on the river, Mr OToole wants to display several sites where the anglers have worked with Inland Fisheries Irelands (IFI) local representatives and the OPW on a form of river rehabilitation they say will help the recovery of the Atlantic salmon. Hes wary of naming some of the tributaries visited for fear of poachers, but he shows the Irish Examiner three areas that have been, or are in the process of being, re-gravelled.

As silt from human activities  including farming, road and construction runoff, forestry, and waste water treatment  enters the water, it settles in the gravel beds the salmon need for spawning and calcifies into a hard surface, he explains.

Why gravel beds matter

Salmon rely heavily on loose gravel beds for their very survival. Female salmon use their tails to create a nest called a redd to lay their eggs while spawning. After the eggs hatch into tiny alevins, in this crucial stage in the salmons life cycle, they hide in the gravel around where they hatched.

In 2018, the anglers worked with the IFI and OPW to put 16 lorryloads of fresh gravel into the Boyne near Trim.

Although the approach has its detractors and not all ecologists think that disturbing the river to such an extent is a good idea, Mr OToole says the fry count, literally the number of baby salmon you can count in the water, proves the success of the re-gravelling scheme. He says:

At one stage, the fry count was only four, and then it went up to 26, and by 2020 it was 92. That just shows how productive doing the work is.

Mr OToole and his fellow anglers want to see a regular programme of re-gravelling on the tributaries that the salmon use. The anglers feel that providing this spawning habitat plays a vital role in reversing salmon stock decline.

We can do nothing about whats happening to them at sea. What we can do, its whats here in the river, he says. If you dont have the maternity up here, you dont have the salmon. All we can do is look after the spawning streams, which are the most natural hatcheries youll ever have.

Spawning streams in the Boyne in Co Meath. Picture: Gareth Chaney

At another site, works are ongoing in agreement with the landowner. Mr OToole shows a third site, which was re-gravelled last year, as well as being fenced against livestock to create a riparian zone, funded by a salmon conservation fund that comes out of the anglers river licences.

The water is sparkling clear, with young fish of different species darting amongst a variety of aquatic plants. Mr OToole surveys the scene with satisfaction.

If it werent for the human activities that are causing silting, the river wouldnt need these works, he agrees.

Well, you cant control everything thats happening, but theres two ways you can go: You can do nothing, or you can do something, he says. I walk these rivers all the time in the winter, and there was spawning in every place I went to. So that leaves me very optimistic.

As long as the work is done, we can protect it. Theres no further place than here: This is the very beginning for the salmon. If the farmers keep working with the fishery board, its a win-win for everyone.
As delegates assembled in Chicago for the start of the Democratic National Convention on August 19, something surreal was happening 6,000 miles away in Israel. In Tel Aviv, the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, declared that Israel had accepted a bridging proposal to move towards a ceasefire. He insisted that it was now up to Gazas Hamas leadership to say yes.

Yet even as he spoke, officials from both the Israeli government and Hamas said there had been no movement in the peace talks in Qatar.

This is far from surprising, given that just three weeks before, Hamass chief negotiator and political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, had been assassinated in Tehran, almost certainly by Israel. Then, when Israels negotiators told their prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, on August 18 that they needed some room to manoeuvre  and that after months of negotiations, a deal based on his positions could not be agreed  he reportedly refused to budge.

So, as Blinken made his statement that a deal was within reach, Netanyahu was telling the families of hostages held by Hamas that he was not sure there will be a deal. The Hostage Families Forum commented that: The prime ministers remarks are effectively a torpedoing of the hostage deal. Netanyahu wont face [the fact] that abandoning the hostages leads to their being murdered in captivity.

Meanwhile, 6,000 miles away outside the United Centre in Chicago, a group of pro-Palestine protesters called for an end to the Israeli offensive, cursing the man they call Genocide Joe Biden. Inside, Democratic attendees were honouring the outgoing US president. As he accepted his partys plaudits, Biden made a declaration which has proved to be illusory: A few days ago, I put forward a proposal that brought us closer to that goal [of peace] than weve been since October 7.

Biden has presided over a deeply divided Democratic Party on the issue of the conflict in Gaza. But he has long been a solid supporter of Israel, and raced to Tel Aviv soon after the October 7 attacks to show solidarity with Netanyahu, whom he bear-hugged, pledging: As long as the United States stands  and we will stand forever  we will not let you ever be alone.

Overcoming Gaza

Kamala Harris has taken a different approach to Gaza and the future of Israel and Palestine, including being more overt in her demands for a ceasefire. It remains to be seen how she will approach the divisions in her party on the issue as she campaigns for the White House between now and November.

Before Biden stepped out of the race in July, the conventional wisdom among many analysts was that Israel-Gaza could cost the Democrats the election. In the key swing state of Michigan, there are officially 211,405 Arab Americans  with some estimates of up to 500,000. That groups votes could be decisive, given the margin in favour of Trump of less than 11,000 in the 2016 election, and just over 150,000 in favour of Biden in 2020.

But then Harris replaced Biden on July 21. Within days, a deficit of between three and seven percentage points in polling in Michigan turned into an advantage of between three and four points. This turnaround has shown no signs of reversing itself.

Beyond Michigan, Harris has been galvanising young voters who had previously been alienated by Bidens position on the Middle East. Some of this may be due to the difference of Harris on the issue. This spring, while not making a clear break from the administrations support of Israel, she began emphasising the welfare of Gazas civilians, who  she said  must be protected both from Israels attacks and the humanitarian crisis they have caused.

In early April, Harris put down a marker when she commented on a phone call between Biden and Netanyahu: "We will make sure Israel is never left without an ability to defend itself. At the same time, if there are not changes to their approach, its very likely were going to change our approach."

Campaigning in Arizona on August 9, Harris responded to protesters chanting free Palestine by stopping her speech and directly addressing their concerns. I have been clear, she told them. Now is the time to get a ceasefire deal and get the hostage deal done.

Competing realities

Harriss line is not enough for some pro-Palestine activists  but the wider context for the Democratic Partys campaign is that most prospective voters in the presidential election will have priorities other than Gaza. And the pro-Palestinian protestors have been no more than a ripple against the wave of unity inside the United Center, with the acclamation of Biden and the enthusastic ovation for Harris.

So, if the tide is turning, it does not appear to be because of Gaza. To the contrary, Harris and her popular vice-presidential pick, Tim Walz, have not only clawed back small leads in the five swing states previously thought to be pivotal to the race, but also other states which appeared lost to Trump on Bidens watch are now in play.

Harris has reversed deficits of up to eight points to take leads in Arizona and North Carolina. She has erased Trumps advantage in Nevada, and closed to within one or two points in Georgia.

At the Democratic convention, Harris fired up the crowd: This November, we will come together and declare with one voice, as one people: we are moving forward.

She led them in a call and response: When we fight, we win. The next day, in Gaza, an Israeli airstrike on a school serving as a shelter for civilians killed 12 people.

Amid the illusion of the ceasefire, there are three realities: Netanyahu  facing an early election and a possible trial on bribery charges if the war ends  cannot afford one. Harris can win whether or not one is agreed. And Gazas civilians will continue to die without one.

Scott Lucas Professor of International Politics, Clinton Institute, University College Dublin
HEADTURNING hairdresser Wayne Lloyd has put his Ballydehob salon up for sale for 475,000, as he prepares to relocate overseas.

However the three times winner of the Worlds Best Stylist intends to retain his Bandon hair salon, where his VIP clients can continue to enjoy the hairdressing flair that has garnered him 24 gold medals, and his team 250 awards, over a more than 40-year career.

While myself and my husband [Ron Lehane] are going to live between Spain and Eastbourne, in the UK, I will be flying back to look after my VIP clients in Bandon every three weeks. These are people who have been loyal clients to me over the years, Mr Lloyd said.

The British couple opened their Ballydehob salon on Main Street in 2007, at a premises adjoining the building they are now in, The Cornstore, which was derelict at the time.

After their landlord restored the landmark building we were his first port of call, Mr Lloyd said.

The pair moved to West Cork for a quiet life in 2007, but the reverse happened, as Mr Lloyds career took off. Awards came thick and fast  thrice winner of Irelands Hairdresser of the Year, being one of very many.

While non-disclosure agreements keep him schtum vis-a-vis celebrity clients, he reveals that he has worked with Greek-Irish model Georgia Salpa and hes given a haircut to Eastenders actress Kat Slater.

EastEnders actress Jessie Wallace aka Kat Slater, was a client of Wayne Lloyd Picture: PA PA

His Ballydehob premises is fro sale with Niamh Moloney of Sherry FitzGerald ONeill. A three-storey building in a central location, the 270 sq m former cornstore includes ground floor commercial and two fully equipped overhead apartments.

Hair salon at the Cornstore

The 107 sq m salon has 10 hairdressing seats, is in turnkey condition and available immediately on vacant possession. It includes a new bathroom/kitchen area.

On the first floor, a one-bed apartment includes a spacious kitchen/living room and a shower room.

Penthouse apartment on second floor

A top floor penthouse apartment has a second bedroom.

Ms Moloney says the building has the advantage of each floor having its own electricity supply and separate entrance. She adds that the floors are concrete and that the building energy rating is a C3.

DETAILS: Niamh Moloney Tel: 028 21404 E: info@sfoneill.ie
More than 1,000 pro-Palestinian protesters marched past a park on Wednesday where pro-Israel demonstrators had gathered earlier and towards the arena hosting the third night of the Democratic National Convention (DNC).

The demonstration, which stayed largely peaceful, came a day after violent clashes between police and protesters led to 56 arrests.

As marchers passed under a new elevated train station near the United Centre that was completed just before the DNC, officers were seen bringing a person to the ground on the platform above.

Hundreds of protesters pushed against the edge of the station, banging on the glass with their hands and flag poles as they called on police to free the person. The person left through the stations emergency exit moments later, accompanied by officers but not in handcuffs, prompting cheers from the crowd.

Protesters march during a demonstration outside the Democratic National Convention (Julio Cortez/AP)

Earlier, police escorted pro-Israel demonstrators out of a park near the United Centre as the area was blocked off ahead of the march.

The rally was organised by the US Palestinian Community Network, a Palestinian and Arab community-based organisation.

It came one night after an intense standoff with Chicago police at a protest not affiliated with a coalition of more than 200 groups that has organised other permitted rallies and marches this week.

Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein attended Wednesdays rally and criticised police use of force, calling them an overwhelming presence.

This is an absolute intimidation of the American people to silence our protest, she said. This is an absolute violation of our basic democratic rights.

Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling said those arrested on Tuesday night outside the Israeli Consulate, about two miles from where Democrats were meeting, showed up with the intention of committing acts of violence, vandalism. He called police response proportionate.

As the Chicago Police Department, we did everything that we could to de-escalate that situation, he said during a news conference.

Protesters rally at a demonstration in Union Park during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. (Noah Berger/AP)

Thirty of the people detained by police were issued citations for disorderly conduct, according to Chicago police.

One person was arrested on a felony charge of resisting police, while nine were charged with misdemeanours including disorderly conduct, resisting officers, battery, assault and criminal damage to property, police said.

The intense confrontations between pro-Palestinian protesters and officers began minutes into the demonstration, after some protesters  many dressed in black, their faces covered  charged at a line of police who had blocked their march.

They eventually moved past the officers but were penned in several times throughout the night by police in riot gear who did not allow protesters to disperse.

Mr Snelling said two people were taken to the hospital with minor injuries, one for knee pain and one with a finger injury. Two officers were injured but refused medical attention, he added, saying three journalists were among those arrested. He did not have details on charges.

The Israeli Consulate has been the site of numerous demonstrations since the war in Gaza began in October and protests during the DNC have largely focused on opposing the Israel-Hamas war.

The largest protest so far, which attracted about 3,500 people on Monday, was largely peaceful and resulted in 13 arrests, most related to a breach of security fencing. Two were arrested on Sunday night during another mostly peaceful march.

Also on Wednesday, a man who escaped from a Mississippi courthouse and is wanted on murder and armed robbery charges was taken into custody following a standoff with police at a restaurant about half a mile from the United Centre. There was no indication that he had any connection to the convention.
Former US president Bill Clinton returned to the Democratic National Convention stage to denounce Donald Trump as selfish and praise Kamala Harris.

Giving another of his emblematic, off-the-cuff addresses ahead of a speech by vice presidential nominee Tim Walz in Chicago, Mr Clinton delivered homespun lines about the election and urged Democrats to back Ms Harris.

What does her opponent do with his voice? He mostly talks about himself, he said. So the next time you hear him, dont count the lies, count the Is.

Hes like one of those tenors opening up before he walks out on stage trying to get his lungs open by saying: me, me, me, me. When Kamala Harris is president, every day will begin with you, you, you.

In 2024, we have a clear choice: We The People versus Me, Myself and I.

Bill Clinton gestures during his speech (J Scott Applewhite/AP)

Clinton, who left office more than 23 years ago, cracked jokes about former President Donald Trumps age  and his own.

I actually turned 78 two days ago, Clinton said. The only personal vanity I want to assert is that Im still younger than Donald Trump.

He said President Joe Biden has, like George Washington, enhanced his legacy by deciding to leave office, saying he healed our sick and put the rest of us back to work.

Organisers dubbed Wednesday night a fight for our freedoms with the focus on abortion access and other rights key to their campaign against the Republican nominee.

Speaker after speaker argued their party wants to defend freedoms  especially abortion access and voting rights  while Republicans want to take them away.

House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said Mr Biden would go down as one of the most consequential presidents of all time while describing Ms Harris as a courageous leader, a compassionate leader and common-sense leader.

He said former president Trump is like an old boyfriend who you broke up with, but he just wont go away.

He has spent the last four years spinning around the block, trying to get back into a relationship with the American people, the New York Democrat said. Bro, we broke up with you for a reason.

Stevie Wonder performs during the Democratic National Convention (J Scott Applewhite/AP)

Stevie Wonder implored the crowd to choose courage over complacency and vote before performing Higher Ground, while other celebrities on stage included comedian Kenen Thompson and actress Mindy Kaling.

Representative Pete Aguilar, the highest-ranking Latino in Congress, labelled Mr Trump a threat to the values his immigrant family grew up with in Southern California.

Only Kamala Harris and Tim Walls will protect the American dream so that every family can earn a living, own a home, and reach their full potential, Mr Aguilar said.

This is a vision for America that Donald Trump will never understand. All he knows is chaos and division.

Mr Trump bashed the convention on Wednesday as a charade and noted the fact that he has been a frequent topic of conversation.

He singled out his predecessor Barack Obama for a highly critical speech on Tuesday night, saying he had been nasty.

While much of the focus was on the presidential race, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairwoman Representative Suzan DelBene told the party faithful it was not enough to win the White House.

A Democratic Congress is how we turn promises into progress, she said.

Democrats only need to pick up a handful of seats to retake the majority in the House from Republicans.
A passenger was arrested at an Australian airport after he left a stationary airliner through an emergency exit, walked along a wing and then climbed down a jet engine to the tarmac, officials said.

Jetstar Flight JQ507 arrived at Melbourne Airport from Sydney on Thursday and had parked at a terminal gate when the man left the plane by the right-side exit.

Opening the exit automatically deployed a slide from the back of the wing at the fuselage to the ground, a Jetstar statement said.

But the man walked along the wing and climbed down one of the Airbus A320s two engines.

Passenger Audrey Varghese said passengers screamed and shrieked as the man began erratic behaviour shortly before he opened the hatch.

The man was exhibiting some quite strange behaviour, Ms Varghese told Melbourne Radio 3AW.

As soon as the plane started coming to a stop, he immediately got up and charged to where the emergency exit row is.

Australian Federal Police officers had been alerted by Jetstar staff and said they had arrested the man for alleged aggressive behaviour and breaching aircraft safety protocols.

He was assessed by paramedics and taken to a hospital where he remains, the police statement said.

Police were continuing to investigate with charges likely at a later date.

Melbourne Airport said the man was detained by aircrew and ground staff before police arrested him.

Melbourne Airport is proud of the exceptional response from ground crew, which meant there was no immediate danger to other passengers or airport staff, an airport statement said.
A drone attack sparked a fire at a military facility in the Volgograd region of southern Russia on Thursday, regional officials and the countrys Ministry of Defence said.

Regional Volgograd governor Andrei Bocharov said on Telegram that a defence ministry facility was on fire after being attacked with drones in the area of Marinovka. There were no casualties, he said.

Mr Bocharov did not specify what was damaged but Russian Telegram channels said that drones attempted to attack a military air base near Marinovka in the village of Oktyabrsky.

Ukraine did not acknowledge the attack but it comes as Ukraine has intensified its attacks on Russia, with a ground offensive into the Russian region of Kursk and drone attacks that targeted Moscow on Wednesday in what the capitals mayor called one of the largest done attacks to date since Russias all-out invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

This satellite photo from Planet Labs PBC shows a fire at an oil depot earlier hit by a drone attack near Proletarsk, Russia, on Monday (Planet Labs PBC via AP)

Videos shared on Russian social media channels showed thick black smoke rising from the air base and an explosion in the night sky reportedly near the base. Marinovka is about 185 miles east of the Ukrainian border and about the same distance west from the border with Kazakhstan.

The Baza Telegram channel, which is close to Russian law enforcement, said one drone was taken down several miles from the airfield and that wreckage from another fell on a trailer near the air base, causing it to catch fire.

Data from Nasa fire satellites, which monitor Earth for forest blazes, showed fires breaking out around the air bases apron, where fighter jets have previously been seen parked.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has toured the Ukrainian region of Sumy in his first visit to the border since his forces entered Russian territory more than two weeks ago.

After a meeting with Ukraines military commander, Mr Zelenskyy said Ukrainian forces have claimed control of another settlement in the Russian region of Kursk and taken more Russian prisoners of war whom he hopes to exchange for captured Ukrainians. He referred to that as Ukraines exchange fund.

Another settlement in the Kursk region is now under Ukrainian control, and we have replenished the exchange fund, Mr Zelenskyy wrote on the social media platform X after hearing a report from the military commander, Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi.

But the gains there come as Ukraine continues to lose ground in its eastern Donetsk region. The Russian Defence Ministry announced on Thursday that its military has claimed control of the village of Mezhove.

Ukraines push into Russia marks the first capture of Russian territory since the Second World War.

It comes as both sides in the war use drones to attack far within enemy lines.

A Ukrainian drone attack caused a fire at a military facility in southern Russia as Kyiv pushes its offensive in the Kursk region and struck key infrastructure including bridges.

Andrei Bocharov, governor of the Volgograd region, said on Thursday that a defence ministry facility was on fire after being attacked by drones in the area of Marinovka, in a sign that Ukraine is not letting up on its attacks. He did not specify what was damaged.

Ukraine attacked Russia overnight with 28 drones, Russias Ministry of Defence said. Thirteen were shot down over the Volgograd region, seven over the Rostov region, four over the Belgorod region, two over the Voronezh region, and one each over the Bryansk and Kursk regions, the ministry said.

Russian Telegram channels said drones attempted to attack a military air base near Marinovka in the village of Oktyabrsky. Videos shared on Russian social media showed an explosion in the night sky, reportedly near the base. Marinovka is about 185 miles east of the Ukrainian border and about the same distance west from the border with Kazakhstan.

Ukraine claimed responsibility for the attack.

Ukraines Security Service and the Special Operation Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine conducted the drone attack on Wednesday night striking the Marinovka airfield in Russia, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press.

The attack came as the ground offensive in Russias Kursk region rattles the Kremlin. The daring operation could involve as many as 10,000 Ukrainian troops backed by armour and artillery, military analysts say.

The Baza Telegram channel, which is close to Russian law enforcement, said one drone was taken down several miles from the airfield and that wreckage from another fell on a trailer near the air base, causing it to catch fire.

Data from Nasa fire satellites, which monitor Earth for forest blazes, showed fires breaking out around the air bases apron, where fighter jets have previously been seen parked.

This satellite photo from Planet Labs PBC shows a fire at an oil depot earlier hit by a drone attack near Proletarsk, Russia, on Monday (Planet Labs PBC via AP)

Another fire burned on Thursday in Russias Rostov region, where firefighters struggled for the fifth day to put out a fire at an oil depot in the town of Proletarsk caused by a Ukrainian drone attack on Sunday.

Russian state television channels have largely avoided covering the attack. Russian Orthodox priests visited Proletarsk to pray for injured firefighters.

Independent Russian Telegram channels said another powerful explosion was heard on Wednesday evening and shared videos of a fireball burning in the night sky. State news agency Tass said 47 people were injured while putting out the blaze, but firefighters succeeded in stopping fires in six fuel tanks.

Satellite photos from Planet Labs PBC analysed on Thursday by The Associated Press showed the fire at the oil depot still intensely burning as of Wednesday. Storage tanks at the facility appeared engulfed in flames. Visible flames could be seen in the images, with a thick black smoke cloud drifting west over the city of Proletarsk.

Kursks acting governor, Alexei Smirnov, said authorities began putting up concrete shelters at bus stops and other locations around the city on Thursday to protect from shelling.

He said similar work will be done in Zheleznogorsk and Kurchatov, where the Kursk nuclear power plant is located.
A court in Pakistan has allowed investigators to question a man in their custody for four more days about his role in spreading misinformation that sparked rioting in the UK.

The courts decision came a day after authorities charged the suspect Farhan Asif, 32, with cyber terrorism following his arrest from his home in Lahore, the capital of eastern Punjab province.

Asif, who is a freelance web developer, was produced before the court amid tight security. He was not allowed to talk to the media.

Kiran Muqeem, a prosecutor for the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), told the court that Asif did not co-operate with officers after the same court the previous day allowed them to question him for a day. They demanded his custody for two weeks but the court said it would only allow it for four more days.

Plainclothes police officers escort Farhan Asif, centre, after his court appearance, in Lahore, Pakistan (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

Mr Muqeem later told reporters that Asif disseminated fake news and caused riots in parts of the UK.

Asif was handcuffed and wearing blue shalwar kameez garments when brought to the court.

His lawyer Rana Rizwan told reporters that the court remanded his client into the custody of the federal agency in a hurry and without hearing him.

We were informed by the court that the case of Asif would be taken up after lunch break. But the court took up the matter before the lunch break, and allowed the FIA to keep him in their custody, Mr Rizwan said.

Asif is accused of spreading misinformation from YouTube and Facebook about the British teenage suspect in a stabbing attack that killed three girls and injured 10 other people on July 29 at a dance class in Southport.

The false information claimed that the suspect was a recently arrived asylum-seeker and had a name that suggested he was Muslim. After the misinformation led to a violent mob attacking a mosque near the site of the stabbing the next day, police took the unusual step of clarifying that the suspect was born in the UK.

British media has widely reported that his parents are from Rwanda and are said to have Christian beliefs. Channel3 Now, an account on the X social media platform that purports to be a news channel, was one of the first outlets to report the false name, Ali Al-Shakati.

A Facebook account for the channel said it is managed by people in Pakistan and the US. But, officials say Asif was solely running Channel3 Now, and he spread misinformation to gain more viewers.
A truckload of methamphetamine disguised as a shipment of watermelons was seized at a US-Mexico border crossing in San Diego, US Customs and Border Protection said.

The methamphetamine, valued at more than five million dollars (3.8 million), was found on August 16 when the cargo aboard a tractor-trailer from Mexico was unloaded for a detailed inspection, the agency said in a statement.
The Biden administration will send around $125m in new military aid to Ukraine, US officials have said.

It comes as Washington works to get a better understanding of Kyivs incursion into Russia and how it advances the broader battlefield goals more than two years into the war.

US officials said the latest package of aid includes air defence missiles, munitions for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), Javelins and an array of other anti-armour missiles, counter-drone and counter-electronic warfare systems and equipment, 155mm and 105mm artillery ammunition, vehicles and other equipment.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, centre and Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrsky, right, look at a map during their visit to Sumy, Ukraine (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office/AP)

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the aid has not been publicly announced.

The formal announcement could come as soon as Friday, which is the eve of Ukraines Independence Day.

The weapons are being provided through presidential drawdown authority, which means they are taken from Pentagon stockpiles and can be delivered more quickly.

The aid comes as Ukrainian forces continue to broaden their surprise offensive into Russia, where officials say they have taken about 109sq/km of territory around Kursk.

Russian troops, meanwhile, are making gains in the east, around the Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, a critical logistics hub.

Pentagon officials have said repeatedly that the US has been talking with Ukrainian leaders to get a better assessment of their longer-term goals for the Kursk operation, particularly as they see Russia advancing near Pokrovsk.

If Pokrovsk falls, the defeat would imperil Ukraines defences and bring Russia closer to its stated aim of capturing the Donetsk region.

Russian soldiers are now just 10km away.

Asked about the Kursk operation, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said on Thursday that we are still working with Ukraine on how that fits into their strategic objectives on the battlefield itself.

The US, she said, understands that Ukraine wants to build a buffer zone along the border, but the administration still has more questions about how it furthers Ukraines broader war effort.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made his first visit to the border area, where his forces launched the offensive on August 6, on Thursday.

He said Kyivs military had taken control of another Russian village and captured more prisoners of war.

The latest package of aid brings the total amount of US security assistance to Ukraine to more than $55.7bn since Russias invasion in February 2022.
08/22/2024

Jax MIX, Jax State's new signature general education program, launches this semester. The program embeds badged microcredentials, which students may access via courses and events, making Jax State the first in the nation with such an innovative option within general education.

"We are excited to offer new pathways and credentials to help students show employers the skills and content they have mastered as a complement to their chosen major," stated Dr. Staci Stone, Vice Provost of Academic Affairs. "This unique program emerged from about three years of work by faculty, staff, and students dedicated to revamping the state-required general studies program."

With Jax MIX, students still complete the general education courses required by the state of Alabama. Still, they may now choose clusters of courses that are the foundation for a microcredential in Community Engagement, Environmental Stewardship, Ethical Leadership, Global Connections, or Media Literacy. The Jax MIX badges are available to all Jax State undergraduate students, including transfer and dual enrollment students. When students enroll in courses in a focus or attend a Jax MIX event, they are enrolled in a pathway and can see their progress towards a badge in Canvas Credentials, which is available via their Canvas course shells.

"Jax MIX invites students to take ownership of their general education. It improves clarity concerning the composition and purpose of general education," said Dr. Ben Gross, Jax MIX Director. "Furthermore, the program fosters the examined life by encouraging students to pursue focus options, attend campus events, and earn microcredentials based on their general education. As some in society are questioning the value of the academy, Jax MIX offers a response by engaging students to reach for meaningful self-discovery in their general education curriculum."

Gross, an associate professor of political science in the Department of Sociology and Political Science, was an initial member of the general education committee and served as the interim coordinator for high-impact practices and assessment for that committee. Gross directs the Tocqueville Lecture Series and co-edits the university's first peer-reviewed journal, Compass: An Undergraduate Journal of American Political Ideas.

Joining Gross in leading the Jax MIX Program is Dr. Marija Reiff, an assistant professor of English who serves as the Jax MIX Microcredentials Coordinator. Reiff has taught college students in the US and abroad and teaches general education courses in writing, public speaking, and literature.

The new Jax MIX Assessment Coordinator is Dr. Ross Martin, an assistant professor of geology in the Chemistry and Geosciences Department. Martin created the Sustainable Trail Science Microcredential, and the core of his teaching load is Jax MIX courses GY241 and GY 242, Introductions to Physical and Historical Geology.

Rounding out the Jax MIX staff is Karlie Johnson, an associate professor and the History, Geography, and Anthropology Librarian, who is the Jax MIX Events Coordinator. As a librarian, Johnson has more than ten years of experience working closely with general education courses, and she served on the 2023-2024 Jax State Extended General Education Committee.

A unique facet of Jax MIX is the combination of academic requirements and event participation. The first Jax MIX event was held last week, when new Jax State students attended College Connections during J Week.

"We are so excited to be working with campus partners to offer events as part of Jax MIX Microcredentials," stated Johnson. "The events are a fun and creative way for students to engage more holistically in their general education studies while becoming immersed in campus life. We have many more events forthcoming throughout Fall 2024, like the Manners Gallery art exhibition 'Reeling Thoughts: Artist Talk and Show Opening,' which counts towards the Environmental Stewardship badge."

To see all upcoming Jax MIX Events, go to www.jsu.edu/jaxmix. Faculty, staff, and student groups interested in partnering with us for an event should submit the Jax MIX Event Form.
( Middle East Monitor )  Promises of absolute victory in Gaza are nothing but gibberish, according to Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant. Gallants comments were not meant to be public, but somehow were leaked and published by Israeli media on 12 August.

The explanation of why Benjamin Netanyahu is pursuing a losing war in Gaza has been largely confined to the prime ministers personal interests, not least the avoidance of corruption trials, preserving his extremist government coalition and avoiding an early general election. Still, none of these rationales explain the absurdity of continuing with a war which, in the words of former Prime Minister Ehud Barak, is The worst failure in Israels history.

What else could explain Netanyahus motive for the war? And why are his most crucial government allies, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, determined to prolong it? The answer may not lie in Gaza, but in the occupied West Bank.

While Israel is extending its failed military campaign in the Strip with no clear strategic objectives, its war on the West Bank is driven by very clear motives indeed: the annexation of the occupied Palestinian territory and the ethnic cleansing of large sectors of the Palestinian population. This is not only obvious through Israels daily actions in the West Bank, but also because of the clear statements made by Israels extreme far right government officials, including a commitment by Netanyahus own Likud party to advance and develop settlement in all parts of the land of Israel  in the Galilee, Negev, Golan Heights and Judea and Samaria. The latter, of course, is what Zionists call the West Bank.

An audio recording obtained by the Israeli group Peace Now conveyed the following remarks by Smotrich at a June 9 conference: My goal is to settle the land, to build it, and to prevent, for Gods sake, its division and the establishment of a Palestinian state.

To do so, the far-right politician has assigned himself the job of change(ing) the DNA of the system. This system was put in place decades ago, following Israels military occupation of the West Bank in 1967. It began a slow but determined process of illegal annexation of Palestinian territories. The process included the establishment, in 1981, of the so-called Civil Administration.

This was and remains essentially a branch of the Israeli military.

However, it was described as civil as part of a government effort to convert a temporary military occupation into the permanent colonisation of Palestine. This entailed the practical annexation and continued expansion of the illegal Israeli Jewish settlements built on Palestinian land after the June 1967 Six-Day War.

The Oslo Accords in 1993-94 gave Palestinians nominal administrative control over small areas in the West Bank, designated as areas A and B. This necessitated the transfer of some of the Civil Administrations responsibility to the newly-formed Palestinian Authority, based on the understanding that the PA will always prioritise Israels security. The arrangement allowed Israel to expand, unhindered, its illegal settlements in most of the West Bank and East Jerusalem, tripling both the size and population of the settlements between 1993 and 2023.

As Israels colonial plan in the West Bank reached its zenith, Netanyahu sought in 2020 to reinforce Israeli gains with the annexation of more than 30 per cent of the West Bank. Due to international pressure and growing Palestinian resistance, however, Netanyahu postponed his plan, albeit with the understanding that annexation remains on the table.

Without much fanfare, though, Israel swapped its hope for a sweeping de jure annexation of the West Bank with de facto control, through rapid seizures of Palestinian land and the expansion of its settlements, all of which are illegal under international law.

Although the Israeli military is faltering in Gaza, the genocide is being used as a smokescreen to finalise Israels settler-colonial plans in the West Bank.

This process was dubbed by Smotrich in 2017 as a victory by settlement. Now in a position of power and with access to a massive budget, he is making his lifes goal a reality.

For Smotrichs dream to be realised, he needed to revitalise the once central role of the Civil Administration. In May, he invented a new position called deputy head of the administration, granting the position to his close associate Hillel Roth.

Now both men have unparalleled and sweeping rights to expand the settlements. Since coming to power in December 2022, Netanyahus latest government has approved 12,000 new housing units for illegal settlements, while ordering the demolition of thousands of Palestinian homes and other civilian infrastructure.

In the first three months of 2024, Israel declared nearly 6,000 acres of the West Bank to be state-owned land, and therefore made it eligible for settlement construction. The decision was described by the Israeli watchdog Peace Now as the largest West Bank land grab in 30 years.

The ethnic cleansing of Palestinians is already under way. According to the Norwegian Refugee Council, in the first half of 2024 alone, at least 1,000 Palestinians were forcefully displaced while nearly 160,000 were affected by home demolitions.

The Israeli war on the West Bank has come at a high price in Palestinian blood. As of 12 August, at least 632 Palestinians had been killed with 5,400 wounded in the West Bank alone, according to the Ministry of Health. When the war on Gaza is over, the war on the West Bank will grow more intense and bloodier, but with the clear strategic goal of annexing the whole territory, even though the International Court of Justice resolved on 19 July that Israels annexation and assertion of permanent control in the West Bank is illegal.

To avoid an even greater war and genocide than that which is taking place before our eyes in Gaza, the international community must use all available means to enforce international law and bring to an end Israels brutal, genocidal occupation of Palestine.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor or Informed Comment.

Via Middle East Monitor
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - Ximen Mining Corp. (TSXV: XIM) (FSE: 1XM) (OTC Pink: XXMMF) (the "Company" or "Ximen") announces that it has completed mobilizing crews and equipment and is commencing the start of the 2024 drill program at its Brett epithermal gold project near Vernon in southern BC.

All equipment including a diamond drill, D6 Cat, Hitachi excavator and ancillary pumps and hoses have been mobilized to the Brett property and a temporary camp has been established. Access trails have been re-opened and the drill is being moved onto the site of the first drill hole for 2024. Field work, including prospecting and surveying activities are also underway.

Photos from Brett Project: Unloading equipment (left) and temporary camp (right)

Map of Mineralized Zones at Ximen's Brett Project

The drill program is designed to extend the most prominent mineralized zone at the Brett, the Main Zone to the southeast and at depth, and to test for extensions to the New Discovery Zone (located east of the Main Zone). Drill holes were designed and ranked using parameters including gold soil anomalies, pathfinder element soil anomalies, resistivity, IP chargeability, magnetic anomalies, VLF anomaly, LiDAR lineaments, porphyry proximity, and high gold assay proximity.

The first drill hole is designed to confirm results of historic holes on the Main Zone and test a western zone of anomalous gold (see Figure 1)

Figure 1. Longitudinal (left) and Cross Section (right) showing first planned hole for 2024

The Brett project (20,043 hectares) covers low-sulfidation epithermal-style gold mineralization hosted in Eocene Penticton Group volcanic rocks. Epithermal-style gold mineralization was discovered in 1983, and a 291 tonne surface bulk sample was shipped to the smelter at Trail, BC in the 1990's that averaged 27.74 grams per tonne gold and 63.7 grams per tonne silver (Brett 2017 NI 43-101 report). Multiple zones of mineralization occur over a two kilometer strike, including both bulk-mineable and bonanza high grade styles. Ximen conducted LiDAR and airborne magnetic surveys over parts of the Brett property in 2022. Interpretation, 3D modeling and target refinement were then completed in preparation for the 2024 drilling program.

Readers are cautioned that historical records referred to in this News Release have been examined but not verified by a Qualified Person. Further work is required to verify that historical records referred to in this News Release are accurate.

Dr. Mathew Ball, P.Geo., VP Exploration for Ximen Mining Corp. and a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101, approved the technical information contained in this News Release.

On behalf of the Board of Directors,

"Christopher R. Anderson"

About Ximen Mining Corp.

Ximen Mining Corp. owns 100% interest in three of its precious metal projects located in southern BC. Ximen`s two Gold projects, The Amelia Gold Mine and The Brett Epithermal Gold Project. Ximen also owns the Treasure Mountain Silver Project adjacent to the past producing Huldra Silver Mine. Currently, the Treasure Mountain Silver Project is under an option agreement. The option partner is making annual staged cash and stocks payments as well as funding the development of the project. The company has also acquired control of the Kenville Gold mine near Nelson British Columbia which comes with surface and underground rights, buildings and equipment.

Ximen is a publicly listed company trading on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol XIM, in the USA under the symbol XXMMF, and in Frankfurt, Munich, and Berlin Stock Exchanges in Germany under the symbol 1XMA and WKN with the number as A2JBKL.

This press release contains certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian securities This press release contains certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation, including statements regarding the receipt of TSX Venture Exchange approval and the exercise of the Option by Ximen. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts; they are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "believes," "intends," "estimates," "projects," "aims," "potential," "goal," "objective," "prospective," and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will," "would," "may," "can," "could" or "should" occur, or are those statements, which, by their nature, refer to future events. The Company cautions that forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made and they involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Consequently, there can be no assurances that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Except to the extent required by applicable securities laws and the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements if management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change. Factors that could cause future results to differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements include the possibility that the TSX Venture Exchange may not accept the proposed transaction in a timely manner, if at all. The reader is urged to refer to the Company's reports, publicly available through the Canadian Securities Administrators' System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval (SEDAR) at www.sedarplus.ca for a more complete discussion of such risk factors and their potential effects.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, nor shall there be any sale of securities in any state in the United States in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.

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.

Ximen Mining Corp

888 Dunsmuir Street - Suite 888, Vancouver, B.C., V6C 3K4 Tel: 604-488-3900
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Europacific Metals Inc. (TSXV:EUP) (OTCQB:AUCCF) (the "Company" or "EuroPacific") is pleased to announce that Mr. Karim Rayani, who has been serving as the Company's Chief Executive Officer, Director since October 17, 2023, has now been appointed as Executive Chairman of the Board effectively immediately. Mr. Rayani will continue to hold the position of Chief Executive Officer alongside of his responsibilities as Executive Chair succeeding Catalin Kilofliski. The board of Directors thanks Catalin for his years of service to the Company, he was instrumental in forming EuroPacific. We wish him well in his future endeavors.

In addition to these management changes, EuroPacfic has appointed Dr. Wazir Khan, a renowned exploration geologist with more than 30 years' experience spanning multiple metallogenic districts including Au-Cu-Mo-Ag porphyries, Abitibi greenstone epithermal Au deposits-Cariboo gold belt. He has expertise in mineral exploration from greenfield and brownfield to feasibility studies in the mining sector. He holds a Ph.D. in economic geology and igneous petrology from University of Iowa, USA, M.Phil. in mineralogy from University of Baluchistan, and M.Sc. in mineralogy/petrology, from University of Peshawar, Pakistan. His career includes work with the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission, Geological Survey of Pakistan, Iowa Geological Survey, US, Noront Resources, Premier Gold Mines, Red Lake Gold Mines, Barkerville Gold Mines, Rich Copper Exploration and Advanced Gold Exploration. Dr. Khan has been a member of the team involved in early exploration work at Reko Dig Cu-Au porphyry deposit of Barrik Gold in Baluchistan, Pakistan, and early-stage exploration in discovery of Ring of Fire chromite, nickel, platinum, palladium, and zinc deposits in northern Ontario. He has supervised open pit mine operation of Barkerville Gold Mines at Bonanza Ledge mine in BC Cariboo gold belt, Key Lake and Hard Rock drill exploration programs for Goldstone Resources and Premier Gold Mines in Abitibi greenstone Belt, Buck Lake, Dobie Lake, and Melba drilling exploration for Rich Copper, Advanced United and Advanced Gold Exploration in Sault Ste Marie and Timmins areas in northern Ontario. Dr. Khan's teaching includes at University of Iowa as Teaching Assistant and Principal Scientific Officer at COMSATS, Abbottabad Pakistan. Dr. Khan is member of Geological Society of Canada. His geological research, geological mapping, metallogenic modelling, and exploration work has resulted in publications of over a dozen reports, maps and research papers.

"Wazir Khan's addition to our board strengthens our technical capabilities, his extensive experience in finding and developing projects from exploration through development will be of great benefit to EuroPacific," said Karim Rayani, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of EuroPacific. "He will be a tremendous asset to the Company as we further develop our project portfolio in Portugal along the Iberian Peninsula. I would like to finish by thanking Catalin for his years of service to the Company, under his leadership the Company made great strides, and we wish him well in his future endeavors."

Corporate Update

The Company has completed 11 holes at the Miguel Vacas copper deposit totaling 1,410m. Most of the holes intercepted a wide quartz-breccia zone varying from approximately 5m up to more than 30m thick. An undercut 350m hole was completed in addition to the initial plan. Results have been received for eight of the eleven holes drilled to date. All holes have successfully intersected the breccia zone over a strike length of 1.1km and confirmed it is open along strike both to the north and south.

Significant results include (further details are summarized in the table below):

Hole # 1 - 22.8m grading 2.76 % Cu , from 49.4m with 9.0m grading 7.49% Cu from 57.8m

Hole # 3 - 12.3m grading 1.55% Cu , from 66.6m.

Hole #4 - 10.5m grading 2.56 % Cu , from 62.0m, with 5.0m grading 4.52% Cu , from 62.0m

Hole #8 - 14.1 m grading 1.06% Cu from 47.0m, with 6.9m grading 1.81% Cu, from 52.2m

Based on these good results, a decision was made to drill a deeper hole (Hole #11) to investigate the primary ore at depth and to compare it with shallow intercepts regarding mineralogy, grades and thickness. Assays are pending from 3 holes including the undercut hole #11 which intersected significant sulphide mineralization at depth well below the supergene zone. The Company is still awaiting final assays.

About Europacific Metals Inc.

EuroPacific Metals Inc. is a Canadian public company listed on TSXV and in US on OTCQB. The Company holds brownfield gold, and copper-gold projects located in Portugal. The Company is focused on exploration in highly prospective geological settings in Europe jurisdictions. EuroPacific Metals ("EUP") owns a total of 100% equity interest in EVX Portugal, a private Portugal based company, that holds the legal exploration rights from the Portugal Government on the Borba 2 ("Borba 2") exploration properties, covering approximately 328 square kilometers in the Alentejo region in Southern Portugal. Miguel Vacas is the most advanced prospect within the Borba 2 license.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

Europacific Metals Inc.

Mr. Karim Rayani, Chair, Chief Executive Officer

11th Floor - 1111 Melville Street

Vancouver, BC V6E 3V6

E: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

www.europacificmetals.ca

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Except for historical information contained herein, this news release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially. Except as required pursuant to applicable securities laws, the Company will not update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof. More detailed information about potential factors that could affect financial results is included in the documents filed from time to time with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities by the Company.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - European Energy Metals (TSXV: FIN) (FSE: W28) ("European Energy" or the "Company") is pleased to report that is has identified additional new areas of widespread Lithium-Cesium-Tantalum (LCT) pegmatite mineralization on its exploration licenses at its 100% owned Central Finland Lithium Project.

Key Takeaways:

Multiple new spodumene-bearing LCT-type pegmatite boulder clusters and trends have been identified and sampled during the first two months of the 2024 campaign A total of 450 rock chip grab samples have been collected and submitted to ALS Laboratory for analysis, with assays pending

Pegmatite boulder trains individually traced over 1200 metres ("m")

Large individual boulders/blocks of spodumene pegmatite locally up to + 4 m diameter

Five new Exploration License (ELs) applications totaling 10,220 hectares (ha) were recently submitted bringing the Company's total holdings to 15,770 ha (see Aug 15, 2024 press release)

New ELs largely contiguous with Keliber's licenses and within 1 km of known lithium pegmatite deposits and the Keliber Spodumene Concentrator Plant

Figure 1. The Finland Lithium Pegmatite Project - New Spodumene Mineralization

Nabba Prospects

The highlight of 2023 was the discovery of the Kyrola prospect on the Nabba EL, where an 850m by 110m spodumene-bearing boulder field was discovered, comprised of 49 rock chip grab samples assaying from 3.84% Li 2 O to 0.003% Li 2 O, with 15 of the 49 samples returning assays in excess of 0.50% Li 2 O (Li 2 O = lithium oxide).

The initial prospecting at Nabba in 2024 has identified new spodumene bearing LCT pegmatites mineralization in multiple areas. One of which was located 2.3 km west of Kyrola within an LCT pegmatite boulder cluster, with three boulders containing course visible 30-40% spodumene. Another was 6 km northwest of Kyrola, where follow-up prospecting of a boulder that assayed 0.36% Li 2 O in 2023, which outlined LCT boulders with spodumene observed locally over a distance of >1.2 km.

Jylha and Tastula Prospects

The new Jylha and Tastula ELs are contiguous with the western boundary of Keliber's ELs. Spodumene-bearing LCT-type pegmatites have been identified in multiple clusters and/or trends (minimum of six) over a total distance of 12.5 km.

The Jylha North prospect comprises a cluster of 58 LCT pegmatite boulders of which 22 contain visible spodumene. Individual boulders range in size from 10s of centimetres to over 3 m in diameter. This occurrence is situated approximately 1 km south-southeast of the Emmes Lithium Pegmatite deposit which comprises 1.08 million tonnes grading 1.22% Li 2 O.

The Morkyla Prospect, which lies approximately 1.5 km west of the Levikangas Lithium Pegmatite deposit (0.47 million tonnes grading 1.00% Li 2 O), is a cluster of large boulders and blocks of spodumene-bearing pegmatite. Individual boulders are over 4 m in diameter and contain course visible spodumene (see Figure 2)

Figure 2. Morkyla Prospect. Morkyla discovery boulder (left); course spodumene crystals in same boulder (right)

Tastula Prospects

Three separate clusters of spodumene -bearing LCT pegmatite boulders were identified during initial reconnaissance prospecting. These occur over an approximate 2 km by 4 km area with individual boulders being over 1.5 m in diameter.

Discussion

The Company's projects are in the Kaustinen-Seinajoki region, which is highly prospective for LCT pegmatite deposits, as evidenced by the success of the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK) and subsequently Keliber Oy in discovering significant Li-bearing spodumene pegmatite prospects and deposits in the region. The Company's success in identifying widespread spodumene-rich LCT pegmatitic boulders is very encouraging, as the area is topographically flat and extensively covered by a thin veneer of glacial overburden.

It is important to note that all the significant deposit and prospect discoveries (with one exception) in the belt were found by tracing boulders back to source and identifying the source ultimately through drilling. The GTK/Keliber Oy discoveries demonstrate that boulders are generally located within 300 - 500 m of their source suggests excellent potential for discovery on the Company's licenses.

European Energy Metals cautions investors grab samples are selective samples by their nature and are not necessarily indicative of mineralization on the property. The Company further cautions the presence of lithium mineralization on Keliber Oy's properties is not necessarily indicative of similar mineralization on the Company's mineral reservations.

"Through multiple phases of exploration our team continues to discover new, highly prospective areas of LCT mineralization which has led to a tripling of our project size" commented Jeremy Poirier, CEO of European Energy Metals. "This is a testament to the strength of our exploration team in their ability to discover the expressions and ultimately the source of these lithium rich deposits. Our exploration program remains fully-funded and ongoing with assays from the first batch of samples expected in the coming weeks."

QA/QC Statement

Samples were submitted to ALS Laboratories in Sodankyla Finland. ALS inserted internal standards, blanks and pulp duplicates within each sample batch as part of their own internal monitoring of quality control protocols. European Energy Metals monitors precision and bias performance by inserting certified lithium standards (OREAS 750 and OREAS 753) as well as blanks into each batch submitted to ALS at a rate of 1:25.

The major element oxides and trace elements including Li, Cs, Ta and Be were analysed by ALS analytical package ME-MS89L + B-MS89L involving digestion by Na2O2 fusion followed by ALS's super trace ICP-MS methodology. QAQC results to date do not indicate any analytical accuracy issues with all standards returning values Li values within 3 standard deviations of their certified mean and blanks returning expected values.

Mike Basha, P.Eng., P.Geo. (NL), VP Exploration of European Energy Metals Corp., a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, has prepared this press release and compiled the results discussed herein.

About European Energy Metals Corp.

European Energy Metals Corp. is a junior mining company currently focussed on the Lithium-Cesium-Tantalum Finnish Pegmatite Project in central Finland. Governing bodies in Europe and Finland are legislating environmentally friendly and energy independent laws and policies. One of the key components is access to REE and, specifically, lithium. The company's exploration licenses are located within 1 kms of the Keliber mine and production complex, currently under construction and expected to begin production in H2 2025.

An estimated 600 million investment by Keliber's parent company Sibanye-Stillwater Limited (NYSE: SBSW) in partnership with the Finnish Minerals Group (www.mineralsgroup.fi) is underway in the Kautinen Region and will see the development of open-pit and underground mining from several deposits, construction of a central spodumene concentrator plant and a lithium hydroxide chemical plant at tidewater in Kokkola. When completed, this complex will comprise a complete hard-rock spodumene pegmatite lithium supply chain (source: www.sibanyestillwater.com).

The Company also has several 100 percent owned precious metals projects in Northern Finland. They are located in the Paleo-Proterozoic Greenstone Terrane of Northern Finland comprised of multiple greenstone belts including the CLGB which hosts world-class gold (eg Kittila Deposit, owned by Agnico Eagle and Ikkari Deposit, owned by Rupert Resources) and base metal deposits (eg Kevitsa owned by Boliden and Sakatti owned by Aglo-American). The belt's potential is also suggested by the presence of several major mining companies in the belt. The belt has very recently garnered significant interest following an offer from Rupert Resources to buy B2Gold's 70% interest in a Joint Venture between B2Gold and Aurion Resources which lies adjacent to Ruperts Ikkari Deposit, for $102 million. The joint venture ground is strategic to Ruperts proposed development of the Ikkari Deposit but is also host to numerous gold prospects along a structural corridor that extends >125 km.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward Looking Information

This news release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking information is typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipate, intend, estimate, postulate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. Such statements include, without limitation, statements regarding the future results of operations, performance and achievements of the Company, including the presence of lithium mineralization at, and the exploration and development potential of, the Finland Pegmatite Project. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurances that such expectations will prove to be correct. All such forward-looking information is based on certain assumptions and analyses made by the Company in light of their experience and perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments, as well as other factors management believes are appropriate in the circumstances. This information, however, is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ from this forward-looking information include the costs of any anticipated work programs and the ability to fund such costs, required approvals in connection with any work programs and the ability to obtain such approvals, risks inherent in exploration as well as those described under the heading "Risks and Uncertainties" in the Company's most recently filed MD&A. The Company does not intend, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or revise the forward-looking information contained in this news release, except as required by law. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - Nova Pacific Metals Corp. (CSE: NVPC) (OTCQB: NVPCF) (FSE: YQ10) (WKN: A40GFH) (the "Company," or "Nova Pacific") is pleased to announce a non-brokered private placement (the "Private Placement") for gross proceeds of up to $2,000,000.

The non-brokered Private Placement will consist of up to 8,000,000 units (the "Units") priced at $0.25 per Unit. Each Unit will include one common share of the Company (a "Share") and one warrant (a "Warrant"), with each Warrant allowing the holder to purchase an additional Share at an exercise price of $0.40 for a period of two years.

The Warrants will include an acceleration clause such that if, following the expiration of the statutory hold period applicable to the Warrants, the Shares trade at or above $0.90 for 10 consecutive trading days, Nova Pacific will have the option to accelerate the exercise period by delivering a notice to the holders of the Warrants. In such a case, holders will have 30 days from the date of the notice to exercise their Warrants.

Nova Pacific's CEO, Mr. J. Malcolm Bell, stated, "The recently completed NI 43-101 technical report on the Lara "Kuroko" style, massive sulfide deposit has recommended an infill drilling program sufficient to calculate a measured and inferred ore deposit capable of supporting a prefeasibility study (PFS). This financing, once completed, will contribute substantially to continued development and the production potential of this highly attractive and well-located project."

Nova Pacific intends to use the proceeds of the Private Placement for exploration, general corporate purposes and working capital. All securities issued in connection with this Private Placement are subject to a statutory hold period of four months and one day pursuant to applicable securities laws.

In connection with the Private Placement, the Company may pay finder's fees to eligible non-related parties of up to 8% of the gross proceeds raised. Additionally, Nova Pacific may issue broker warrants ("Broker Warrants") equal to up to 8% of the Units sold. Each Broker Warrant will entitle the holder to purchase Share at a price of $0.25 per Share for a period of two years.

About Nova Pacific

Nova Pacific is a Canadian exploration and development company focused on pursuing projects with a significant mineral discovery thus providing a viable pathway to potential development. The key projects owned by the Company are its recently acquired Lara VMS project located on Vancouver Island, British Columbia and its Deer Musk West Lithium project located in Clayton Valley, Nevada. The Company intends to continue its exploration and development efforts on its mineral projects with a view towards maximizing shareholder value.

We recognize the importance of partnering with Indigenous communities for projects located on traditional lands to deliver long-term mutual benefits.

For additional Information please visit: www.novapacificmetals.com

On behalf of the Board of Directors

J. Malcolm Bell

Chief Executive Officer, Director

For Further Information, please contact:

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 forwardlooking information. Forwardlooking information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "anticipate", "plan", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "intend", "should", and similar expressions. Forwardlooking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forwardlooking information. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in this forwardlooking information as a result of regulatory decisions, competitive factors in the industries in which the Company operates, prevailing economic conditions, changes to the Company's strategic growth plans, and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. The Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forwardlooking information are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forwardlooking information should not be unduly relied upon. Any forwardlooking information contained in this news release represents the Company's expectations as of the date hereof, and is subject to change after such date. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forwardlooking information whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities legislation.
In this tranche, Myriad has raised gross proceeds of $1,170,000 and welcomes a Swiss uranium fund to the cap table.

Myriad Uranium holds a 75% earnable interest in the Copper Mountain Uranium Project which saw C$117m (2024$) in exploration and development expenditures by Union Pacific during the 1970s.

Union Pacific drilled approximately 2,000 boreholes, discovered 7 uranium deposits, and developed a 6-pit mine plan for Copper Mountain, estimating resources of between 15.7 and 30.1 Mlbs eU 3 O 8 . Union Pacific further estimated the potential of known and speculated targets at the project to be over 65 Mlbs. These estimates are historical and not yet current under NI 43-101. See the statement regarding historical estimates below.

Myriad is raising capital to fund drilling at Copper Mountain in order to bring these historical estimates current under NI 43-101 and, if possible, go beyond them.

Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - Myriad Uranium Corp. (CSE: M) (OTCQB: MYRUF) (FSE: C3Q) ("Myriad" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has closed another tranche of its previously announced non-brokered private placement financing (the "Financing") (see Myriad's news release dated August 13, 2024). In this tranche of the Financing, Myriad raised gross proceeds of $1,170,000 through the issuance of 4,680,000 units (each, a "Unit") at a price of $0.25 per Unit. Each Unit is composed of one common share of the Company (each, a "Share") and one-half of one common share purchase warrant (each full warrant, a "Warrant"), with each Warrant entitling the holder to purchase one Share at an exercise price of $0.30 per Share until August 21, 2026.

Myriad's CEO, Thomas Lamb, said, "In this tranche, we are pleased to welcome a Swiss uranium fund and several other prominent investors to the cap table. We are gratified that exceptions are being made to market cap thresholds. We continue to raise funds for our 2024 exploration program at Copper Mountain."

In connection with closing this tranche of the Financing, the Company paid aggregate finder's fees of $46,000 and issued an aggregate of 184,000 finder's warrants (each, a "Finder's Warrant"), each Finder's Warrant exercisable for one Share at a price of $0.25 until August 21, 2026. Securities issued under this tranche of the Financing are subject to a four month hold period expiring December 22, 2024, in accordance with applicable Canadian securities laws. The Company intends to use the proceeds of this tranche of the Financing for the Company's 2024 exploration program at Copper Mountain and for general working capital.

An officer of the Company participated in this tranche of the Financing, and such participation is considered to be a "related party transaction" as defined under Multilateral Instrument 61-101 ("MI 61-101"). This is exempt from the formal valuation and minority shareholder approval requirements of MI 61-101 as the fair market value of such participation does not exceed 25% of the market capitalization of the Company, as determined in accordance with MI 61-101. The Company's directors unanimously approved such officer's participation. The effect of such officer's participation is to provide the Company with additional working capital. There were no prior valuations made in the past 24 months in respect of the Company that relates to the subject matter of or is otherwise relevant to such officer's participation. The Company did not file a material change report respecting such officer's participation at least 21 days before closing this tranche of the financing, which is reasonable given the MI 61-101 exemption noted above.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities described in this news release in the United States. Such securities have not been, and will not be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or any state securities laws, and, accordingly, may not be offered or sold within the United States, or to or for the account or benefit of persons in the United States or "U.S. Persons", as such term is defined in Regulation S promulgated 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.

The Company also announces that it has entered into an amending agreement dated August 21, 2024 with Rush Rare Metals Corp. ("Rush"), which agreement amends the property option agreement dated as of October 18, 2023 between Myriad and Rush pursuant to which Myriad has the right to earn up to a 75% interest in the Copper Mountain Project in Wyoming, USA. The amending agreement stipulates terms and conditions respecting past and future additions to the Copper Mountain Property, including that: additional claims will be governed by the amended option agreement per the "area of mutual interest" clause of the agreement; Myriad will pay the costs of any such additions; if Myriad does not earn an initial 50% interest in the Copper Mountain Property under the amended option agreement, Rush will reimburse Myriad for the costs of all such additions; and if the parties mutually agree to sell, option, joint venture or otherwise dispose of any such additional claims, Myriad will be entitled to 50% of the proceeds of such disposition as if Myriad has already earned an initial 50% interest in the Copper Mountain Property under the amended option agreement.

Historical Estimates

While Myriad Uranium has determined that the historical estimates described in this news release are relevant to the Copper Mountain Project area and are reasonably reliable given the authors and circumstances of their preparation, and are suitable for public disclosure, readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on these historical estimates as an indicator of current mineral resources or mineral reserves at the project area. A Qualified Person (as defined under NI 43-101) has not done sufficient work to classify any of the historical estimates as current mineral resources or mineral reserves, and Myriad Uranium is not treating the historical estimates as a current mineral resource or mineral reserve. Also, while the Copper Mountain Project area contains all or most of each deposit referred to, some of the resources referred to may be located outside the current Copper Mountain Project area. Furthermore, the estimates are decades old and based on drilling data for which the logs are, as of yet, predominantly unavailable. The historical resource estimates, therefore, should not be unduly relied upon.

Inherent limitations of the historical estimates include that the nature of the mineralization (fracture hosted) makes estimation from drill data less reliable than other deposit types (e.g, those that are thick and uniform). From Myriad Uranium's viewpoint, limitations include that the Company has not been able to verify the data itself and that the estimate may be optimistic relative to subsequent work which applied a "delayed fission neutron" (DFN) factor to calculate grades. On the other hand, DFN is controversial, in that the approach is viewed by some experts as too conservative. Nevertheless, it was applied in later resource estimations by Union Pacific relating to Copper Mountain.

In order to verify the historical estimates and potentially re-state them as current resources, a program of digitization of available data is required. This must be followed by re-logging and/or re-drilling to generate new data to the extent necessary that it is comparable with the original data, or new data that and can be used to establish the correlation and continuity of geology and grades between boreholes with sufficient confidence to estimate mineral resources.

Qualified Person

The scientific or technical information in this news release respecting the Company's Copper Mountain Project has been approved by George van der Walt, MSc., Pr.Sci.Nat., MGSSA, a Qualified Person as defined in National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Mr. van der Walt is employed by The MSA Group (Pty) Ltd (MSA), a leading geological consultancy providing services to the minerals industry, based in Johannesburg, South Africa. He has more than 20 years industry experience and sufficient relevant experience in the type and style of mineralisation to report on exploration results.

The information and interpretations thereof are based on the Qualified Person's initial review of historical reports, which were recently obtained by the Company. The information did not include original data such as drilling records, sampling, analytical or test data underlying the information or opinions contained in the written documents. Therefore, the Qualified Person has not reviewed or otherwise verified the information and has not done sufficient work to classify the historical estimates as current mineral resources or mineral reserves. The Qualified Person considers the information to be relevant based on the amount and quality of work undertaken and reported historically. A more thorough review of any available original data will be undertaken and reported on in more detail in future releases.

About Myriad Uranium Corp.

Myriad Uranium Corp. is a uranium exploration company with an earnable 75% interest in the Copper Mountain Uranium Project in Wyoming, USA. Copper Mountain hosts several known uranium deposits and historic uranium mines, including the Arrowhead Mine which produced 500,000 lbs of eU3O8. Copper Mountain saw extensive drilling and development by Union Pacific, which developed a mine plan and built a leach pad for one of the deposits at Copper Mountain. Operations ceased in 1980 before mining could commence due to falling uranium prices. Approximately 2,000 boreholes have been drilled at Copper Mountain and the project area has significant exploration upside. Union Pacific is estimated to have spent C$117 million (2024 dollars) exploring and developing Copper Mountain, generating significant historical resource estimates which are detailed here. A recent detailed update with Crux Investor can be viewed here. The Company's presentation can be viewed here.

Myriad also has a 50% interest in the Millen Mountain Property in Nova Scotia, Canada, with the other 50% held by Probe Metals Inc. For further information, please refer to Myriad's disclosure record on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca), contact Myriad by telephone at +1.604.418.2877, or refer to Myriad's website at www.myriaduranium.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Mineralization hosted on adjacent or nearby properties is not necessarily indicative of mineralization hosted on the Company's properties. This news release contains "forward-looking information" that is based on the Company's current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections. This forward-looking information includes, among other things, the Company's business, plans, outlook and business strategy. The words "may", "would", "could", "should", "will", "likely", "expect," "anticipate," "intend", "estimate", "plan", "forecast", "project" and "believe" or other similar words and phrases are intended to identify forward-looking information. The reader is cautioned that assumptions used in the preparation of any forward-looking information may prove to be incorrect, including with respect to the Company's business plans respecting the exploration and development of the Company's mineral properties, the proposed work program on the Company's mineral properties and the potential and economic viability of the Company's mineral properties. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the Company's actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such factors include, but are not limited to: changes in economic conditions or financial markets; increases in costs; litigation; legislative, environmental and other judicial, regulatory, political and competitive developments; and technological or operational difficulties. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect our forward-looking information. These and other factors should be considered carefully, and readers should not place undue reliance on such forward-looking information. The Company does not intend, and expressly 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 law.

The CSE has not reviewed, approved or disapproved the contents of this news release.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Westhaven Gold Corp. (TSX-V:WHN) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a strategic transaction with Talisker Resources Ltd. (TSX:TSK) (Talisker) which will, together with additional staking completed by Westhaven, expand the Shovelnose gold property by 24,000 hectares to 41,623 hectares . The Shovelnose is located within the prospective Spences Bridge Gold Belt (SBGB), which borders the Coquihalla Highway 30 kilometres south of Merritt, B.C.

Westhaven entered into a property purchase agreement dated August 19, 2024 (the Agreement) with Talisker to acquire 12 claims covering 23,550 hectares contiguous with its Shovelnose gold property (the Claims). Westhaven has staked an additional 450 hectares. Please see claims map below.

Westhaven has increased its exposure to this emerging epithermal gold district; Spences Bridge Gold Belt.

Exploration by Westhaven has highlighted a corridor that hosts South Zone, FMN and Franz, extends for over 11km and trends into these claims to the southeast.

The southeast extent of this corridor is highly prospective, containing anomalous epithermal pathfinders; antimony (Sb) and mercury (Hg), and the recently discovered Certes showing, where banded mercury-bearing, high level epithermal quartz has been identified. Please see maps below.

The Certes showing (located ~6km to southeast of the South Zone) and the southeast extent of the corridor has not been drill tested.

The presence of high-level quartz veins and anomalous Sb-Hg geochemistry, suggests that the southeast extent of the Shovelnose epithermal corridor is more preserved, raising the potential for additional discoveries within this area.

Gareth Thomas, President & CEO, states, Property wide prospecting, sampling, and mapping continue to generate new zones of interest outside of the main discovery and resource areas at Shovelnose. Cumulative geochemical and geophysical data continues to highlight a potentially significant mineralized corridor that projects across the Shovelnose property in a northwest-southeast orientation. Thomas goes on to add, This corridor which now spans more than 11 kilometres, includes the Franz, FMN, Line 6 and South zones and soon-to-be drill tested, Certes Zone. By acquiring and staking these claims, Westhaven has increased the potential exposure to this mineralized corridor as well as prospective ground identified by Taliskers exploration efforts.

Pursuant to the Agreement, Westhaven will acquire the Claims from Talisker by paying $20,000 in cash, granting a 1% Net Smelter Royalty (NSR) on the Claims and issuing an aggregate of 1,500,000 common shares of the Company. The shares will be subject to contractual restrictions to be released in equal installments at 4 months, 8 months and 12 months from the date of issue. Westhaven will have the option to buyback the 1% NSR at anytime for $1,000,000.

The transaction remains subject to satisfaction of closing conditions customary for transactions of this nature as well as TSX Venture Exchange approval (TSXV). In addition to the contractual restrictions outlined above, all of the shares issuable pursuant to the Agreement will be subject to applicable resale restrictions under Canadian securities laws and the rules and policies of the TSX Venture Exchange.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

WESTHAVEN GOLD CORP.

"Gareth Thomas

Gareth Thomas, President, CEO & Director

Qualified Person Statement

Peter Fischl, P.Geo., who is a Qualified Person within the context of National Instrument 43-101 has read and takes responsibility for this release.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

About Westhaven Gold Corp.

Westhaven is a gold-focused exploration company advancing the high-grade discovery on the Shovelnose project in Canadas newest gold district, the Spences Bridge Gold Belt. Westhaven controls ~60,950 hectares (~609.5 square kilometres) with four gold properties spread along this underexplored belt. The Shovelnose property is situated off a major highway, near power, rail, large producing mines, and within commuting distance from the city of Merritt, which translates into low-cost exploration. Westhaven trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the ticker symbol WHN. For further information, please call 604-681-5558 or visit Westhavens website at www.westhavengold.com

Shovelnose - Newly Acquired Claims

Rock Geochemistry  Antimony (Sb)

Rock Geochemistry  Mercury (Hg)






Thursday, August 22,2024 - United States President Joe Bidens administration has asked President William Ruto to ensure that all police officers who killed and abducted Kenyan youths during the recent anti-Government protests are arrested and prosecuted.

During the two months of protests that almost brought the Kenya's Kwanza Government to its knees, police officers killed over 50 Gen Zs and wounded thousands.

The US, through Senator Chris Murphy, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, reported discussing with Ruto and Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi their concerns about the deaths and abductions of Kenyans during protests.

Murphy said he told Ruto and Mudavadi that Kenya's relationship with the U.S. could not reach its full potential unless the Government held those who violated Kenyans' rights accountable.

"There were reports of very brutal treatment of protesters by the Kenyan police forces.

That's unacceptable.

For our alliance with Kenya to grow, the right of citizens to protest peacefully must be protected," Murphy said.

The Senator further emphasised the importance of democracy in the country, stating that for it to be achieved, the Government must guarantee everyones right to peaceful protest.

"Hopefully, the President and the Foreign Minister heard those demands.

We want democracy to be alive and well.

We want it to prosper here in Kenya.

But the only way that happens is for every citizen in Kenya to be able to protest the Government peacefully," he said.

The Kenyan DAILY POST






Thursday, August 22,2024 - The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) has offered a cash reward to any Kenyan who will help in arresting murder suspect, Collins Jumaisi, who escaped from Gigiri Police Station on Tuesday.

Jumaisi who is the suspect behind the killing of 42 women in Kware, Nairobi, escaped with 12 others in a case that police said was an inside job.

DCI announced on Thursday that it was seeking information that could assist detectives to trace and rearrest Jumaisi.

Police intend to prefer charges against the suspect for the murder of forty-two women including his wife.

A significant cash reward will be provided to anyone with credible information leading to the suspects arrest, DCI said in an appeal.

Police said Jumaisi, 33, had confessed to the killings the DCI described as psychopathic.

The suspect is from the Shiru Sub-location, Shaviringa Location, Hamisi Sub-county in Vihiga County.

DCI asked members of the public with information on the suspects whereabouts to file confidential or anonymous reports through its hotline 0800722203 or the police hotlines 999, 911, and 112.

Informers can also report at any police station countrywide.

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Thursday, August 22, 2024 - Education CS Julius Migos strongly defended the new university funding model, saying it is the way to go in addressing the financing needs of students from various backgrounds.

Speaking during the International Confederation of Principals in Mombasa County, the CS noted that the new model is tailored to address the needs of students with various financial capacities.

Migos further noted that the Ministry had taken note of the concerns and vowed to solve the issues in the next few weeks.

The funding model has been in existence for 29 years, the only thing that has changed is that the needs of testing instruments were adjusted and reviewed to ensure that those children who need the government support benefit most from the government funds, he explained.

The new university model was unveiled by President William Ruto to ensure university students receive funding in proportion to their needs.

The new fund has five bands categorized according to the financial capacity of students families.

The CS further revealed that the bands were created so that children of those who can afford can bear rightful share of the school burden.

He further added that as a ministry, his team created a portal to facilitate the re-banding of students.

The Kenyan DAILY POST






Thursday, August 22, 2024 - A Nairobi court has set free five police officers who aided the escape of murder suspect Collins Jumaisi and 12 others at Gigiri Police Station on Tuesday morning.

Magistrate Martha Nazushi directed the five to execute a personal bond of Sh200,000 each to secure their release.

Additionally, Nazushi directed the officers to each provide a contact to execute a Sh100,000 bond.

She made the decision following an application by the prosecution to allow the detention of the suspects for an additional fourteen days to aid a DCI-led investigation.

The magistrate said the prosecution failed to present compelling grounds to warrant the continued detention of the officers assigned to Gigiri Police Station where Jumaisi and twelve others escaped.

Police consider Juamaisi a prime suspect in a spate of murders in Nairobis Kware area.

The magistrate dismissed the Public Prosecutors case that the DCI was yet to retrieve surveillance footage for forensic investigations and that the five were yet to record their statements.

James Gachoka had told the court that the five - Corporal Ronald Babo, and Constables Evans Kipkirui, Mollent Achieng, Zachary Nyabuto, and Gerald Mutuku - aided the escape of thirteen detainees including Jumaisi.

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Thursday, August 22, 2024  Nyandarua Senator John Methu has advised Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua to rethink his political strategy ahead of 2027.

This comes even as his political marriage with President William Ruto is headed for a nosedive.

Speaking yesterday, Methu urged Gachagua to consider partnering with Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka, Trans-Nzoia Governor George Natembeya, and other like-minded leaders, as he seeks to consolidate his political capital.

Methus call is a clear sign of the shifting political alliances in Kenya.

He believes that by forming strategic partnerships, Gachagua could not only solidify his support base but also secure his political future in an increasingly volatile environment.

The Senator stressed the importance of adopting a broad-based approach, similar to Rutos strategy of including opposition figures in his government.

However, Methus suggestion is laced with caution. He warned Gachagua against maintaining a hardline stance against opposition parties, arguing that this could alienate potential allies.

"I want to plead with you to dismantle the traps we had placed against the opposition, as they could potentially ensnare our friends.

"Use this opportunity to build new relationships, regardless of their political strength," Methu advised.

Methu, however, advised Gachagua to steer clear of Narc Kenya Party leader Martha Karua, whom he dismissed as having "no significant backing."

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Thursday, August 22, 2024 - Members of the Kikuyu community have silently abandoned President William Ruto, going by sentiments made by Nyandarua County Senator John Methu on Wednesday.

Methu, who was among the mourners at the burial of Kiambu Senator Karungo wa Thangwas sister, urged Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua to consider forming an alliance with former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka and Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya.

The senator further urged DP Gachagua to emulate President William Rutos approach of building a broad-based government by collaborating with opposition figures, regardless of their political affiliation or the strength of their parties ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

I advise you to use this opportunity to build new relationships by collaborating with smaller parties, including those led by Kalonzo Musyoka and George Natembeya, as well as individuals with a few MPs, regardless of their political strength, Methu said.

However, Methu advised Gachagua not to consider Narc Kenya Party leader Martha Karua, asserting that she has no significant backing.

The Kenyan DAILY POST






Thursday, August 22,2024 - Former President Daniel Moi's Press Secretary, Lee Njiru, has told President William Ruto not to think that he is clever than his predecessors who were disorganized by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga when they allowed him into their Government.

Moi allowed Raila Odinga into the Government and he was ousted by the people in 2002, Mwai Kibaki allowed Raila Odinga into the Government and his legitimacy was questioned resulting in the 2007 post-election violence where over 1,100 Kenyans deaths and President Uhuru Kenyatta had a disgraceful last tenure when he associated with Raila Odinga in 2018.

Appearing on Jeff Koinange Live (JKL) on Wednesday evening, Njiru told Ruto not to think that by allowing Raila Odinga into his Government, everything would go as planned.

Njiru said Raila Odinga will disorganize the Ruto Government to suit his interests which include eating  with his people.

I have been watching Raila for a long time. Wherever Raila enters, however organized it is, he has to disorganize and reorganize it to suit his own interests. He did it during the time of Moi, Kibaki, and Uhuru and he has done it once more. Raila and his people need to eat, he has confessed that that is his objective, Njiru told Jeff.

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Thursday, August 22, 2024 - Former Public Service Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria has officially announced his return to the political arena after his controversial sacking from President William Rutos Cabinet.

This comes after he announced his intention to run for president, a move that may not sit well with Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, who is also eyeing the presidency.

Kuria, known for his fiery rhetoric and unyielding stance, took to X to share his aspirations.

Responding to a message from Gachagua, who urged him to remain patient and trust in divine timing, Kuria declared his belief that he would become the kingpin of the Mt Kenya region and ascend to the presidency.

"I strongly trust that [God] will make me the current Mt Kenya kingpin and the 6th President of the Republic of Kenya," Kuria stated, showcasing his unwavering confidence.

This surprising move comes after a tumultuous period marked by Kuria's outspoken criticism of Gachagua.

The two have been at odds, particularly over Gachagua's 'one-man-one-shilling-one-vote' proposal and his public attacks on National Intelligence Service (NIS) Director General Noordin Haji.

Kuria had been vocal in his disapproval of Gachagua's leadership style, accusing him of dishonesty and manipulation, particularly concerning the controversial Finance Bill 2024.

The Kenyan DAILY POST






Thursday, August 22, 2024- Muslim faithfuls are calling for action against the General Manager of Mombasa Beach Hotel alleging that he has repurposed one of the two prayer rooms into a guest room - a decision that left over 100 Muslim men and women forced to pray in an overcrowded space which they argue is not suitable for worship and goes against Islamic practices.

They warn that the situation could lead to protests if authorities do not address the issue promptly particularly since Mombasa Beach Hotel is a public institution and this management decision is seen as unfair to Muslim clients.

"Hi Nyakundi. There's an issue which a group of muslim faithfuls request you to share on both your fb and X page regarding Mombasa Beach Hotel. The General Manager-Mr.Ronald Simiyu is unfairly treating muslim clients/guests by converting one of the two prayer rooms for the ladies and gentlemen to be used as guest room and now a large group of muslim men and women are praying in one tiny room which is not only congested but un Islamic too.

All modern business institutions in kenya today respect the faith of their clients and provide them with a conducive space for their spiritual connection but it's unfortunate Mombasa Beach Hotel has designated a guest room with beds inside to be used for prayer by a group of more 100 muslims during the day and change the same for guest to spend in the at night.

The said GM who's only in an acting capacity will definitely provoke the huge muslim clients to protest against a public institution which he's running as his private business enterprise.

We argue the authority concerned with hotel to urgently action against the GM before this business loses customers in large numbers."

Via Cyprian Nyakundi






Thursday August 22, 2024 - Even as the DCI detectives intensify the manhunt for escaped serial killer Collins Jumaisi and 12 other detainees, it has now emerged that the serial killer was working with Gigiri Police Officers who helped him escape.

New details indicate that Jumaisi, a man accused of killing 42 women, and his co-escapees did not flee under the cover of darkness but simply walked out of the precinct's main door.

This happened under the watchful eyes of two police officers on night shift duty, who, according to eyewitness accounts, may have been complicit in the escape.

Investigations into the jailbreak have taken a sharp turn, with detectives zeroing in on the mobile phone records and financial transactions of the police officers who were on duty that night.

The forensic analysis of these communications is expected to shed light on the possible involvement of the officers in facilitating the escape.

What has shocked the public even more are revelations from a fellow detainee, who witnessed the escape firsthand.

The suspect, who had been arrested for fraud, recounted how the officers on duty seemed unusually lenient, allowing him to keep money in his possession - a rare occurrence in Kenyan police cells.

He also noted that around midnight, the duty officer conducted a roll call, after which he left the cell doors unlocked. This careless act provided Jumaisi and the other detainees with the perfect opportunity to escape.

The witness further revealed that all 13 suspects, including Jumaisi, were already outside their cell cubes when he arrived at the station around 9pm.

Jumaisi had been unchained, his cell door opened, and the handcuffs that had restrained him were found discarded in his empty cell. The ease with which the escape was executed has only deepened suspicions of police collusion.

Adding to the controversy, the witness claimed he saw one of the Eritrean detainees hand money to the police officers before they announced they were heading to the canteen.

One of the officers, he alleged, appeared to be intoxicateda detail that aligns with reports from insiders who mentioned a corporal known for reporting to duty while drunk.

With the officers conveniently absent, the 13 detainees simply walked out of the station, unchallenged.

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Thursday, August 22, 2024 - Azimio Leader Raila Odinga has technically announced his exit from Kenyan politics.

Speaking during a joint media briefing with Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, Raila said that going forward, he will not be very active in Kenyan politics.

According to Raila, he would be focusing his attention on his African Union Commission (AUC) chairperson campaign.

He noted that it will be a transitional phase from active participation in Kenyan politics and moving to African continental politics.

At the moment, I am involved in the campaigns but that does not mean that Kenya ceases to exist.

"I am not going to be very active in Kenyan politics henceforth, as I continue to focus my attention on the continental campaign.

It is a transitional phase from active participation in Kenyans to moving towards African continental politics, Raila remarked.

Kenya formally submitted the requisite documentation for Odinga on Monday, July 29 to the Dean of Eastern Region, Dharmraj Busgeeth.

The ODM leader will face Djiboutis Foreign Minister, Mahmoud Youssouf, as Anil Kumarsingh Gayan from Mauritius and Richard Randriamandrato from Madagascar in the AUC chairperson election which will be held in January 2025 during the African Union Summit.

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Thursday, August 22, 2024 - Controversial Kimilili Member of Parliament, Didmus Barasa, once served in the army.

However, the rogue MP only worked in the military for one year and 76 days before he was relieved of his duties over absenteeism and forgery.

On October 1, 2021, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) warned Barasa against misusing the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) titles.



The anti-graft agency accused the lawmaker of impersonating the military officials despite having left the forces.

This is because Barasa refers to himself as Captain, yet he only acquired the rank of Private.

See the photo that he posted on his X account.

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Thursday, August 22, 2024 - Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua met his critic and former Public Service Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria yesterday during the burial of Senator Karungo Wa Thangwas brother Martean Wainaina Thang'wa and sister-in-law Peninnah Wanjiru in Kiambu County.

In his speech at the funeral, Gachagua told Kuria to relax after President William Ruto declined to reappoint him back to Cabinet.

According to Gachagua, God does not close a door without opening another, and when the time comes, God will reveal the next job Kuria will undertake.

"My brother Moses Kuria, relax. There is no door that God closes without opening another.

"We wish you well. Dont dwell on it too much; when the time comes, God will provide new opportunities, said Gachagua.

This was after Kuria claimed that the political infightings in the Mt Kenya region resulted in the formation of the broad-based government that saw allies of ODM leader Raila Odinga joining the cabinet.

"A person shouldn't start a fight if they don't know how they'll win it. And how they'll finish it, we need to be people who strategize for victory.

"Even those who have come from the opposition are here because we started a fight without knowing how we'd finish it. We are the ones who have invited them, Kuria stated.

The former Gatundu South MP is among the 11 CSs who failed to make it to the newly reconstituted broad-based Cabinet.

The Kenyan DAILY POST
China: a rising star in global coffee industry

16:47, August 22, 2024 By Gao Qiao, Liu Yaoyang ( People's Daily

Tourists buy coffee in front of a stall during a coffee festival held in Zhoushan, east China's Zhejiang province, June 1, 2024. (People's Daily Online/Chen Yongjian)

China's coffee industry has experienced significant growth in the past few years, leading to its emergence as a prominent player in the international coffee market.

According to data from the International Coffee Organization, China's demand for coffee in 2023 has increased by 15 percent year-on-year.

Allegra World Coffee Portal, a leading information platform for the global coffee industry, said that China has overtaken the United States as the largest branded coffee shop market in the world by outlets, after growing a whopping 58 percent year on year in 2023.

Li Hong, vice president of Yunnan Agricultural University in southwest China's Yunnan province, said that the explosive growth of the Chinese coffee industry is manifested in every link of the country's coffee industrial chain.

In breeding and cultivation, China is rapidly developing superior domestic coffee varieties while also introducing high-quality foreign strains, to build a solid genetic foundation. Meanwhile, the country is applying modern agricultural technologies to coffee plantations, boosting the yield and quality of Chinese coffee.

In coffee processing, China considers it important to promote and apply green and low-carbon technologies, striving to mitigate pollution during the early stages of coffee processing. For instance, Yunnan Agricultural University has developed an automatic production line that involves waterless skin removal and micro-water degumming, resulting in lower pollution and water consumption.

The China Kunshan International Fair for Coffee Industry 2024 is held in Kunshan, east China's Jiangsu province, May 16, 2024. (People's Daily Online/Zhang Feng)

Currently, new development models that integrate the entire coffee industrial chain are being explored across China, with the emergence of coffee estates being a particularly noteworthy trend.

Xinzhai village in Baoshan city, Yunnan province has employed a "coffee estate+" model, which facilitates coffee estates' cooperation with village committees, relevant research institutions, cooperatives and farmers. It helps impart new techniques to coffee growers, commercializes new research outcomes, and provides consumers with a one-stop "from seed to cup" experience of local coffee culture. This model not only increases income for coffee growers, but contributes to the vitalization of rural industries.

Li attributed the rapid development of the Chinese coffee industry to the country's huge domestic market. The shift in the consumption preferences of the young Chinese, their increased consumption ability, and the constant release of new coffee products are all creating new market opportunities.

Besides, China has continuously strengthened its innovation ability in coffee-related technologies, and made rapid progress in variety breeding, boutique coffee production and product innovation, laying a solid foundation for the quick advancement of the Chinese coffee industry, Li said. Coffee enterprises are also bringing forth new sales ideas and improving logistics services to expand their sales channels, he added.

Coffee-related organizations and renowned enterprises around the world are all optimistic about the potential of the Chinese market, and have lifted their input into it. The emerging chain coffee shops in different business forms and the launch of new brands and products have to a large extent promoted the consumption growth and cultural communication of coffee in China.

As international trade is more and more facilitated, a large quantity of raw materials including coffee beans are imported to China through different channels, offering strong support for the development of the coffee industry.

Villagers dry coffee beans in Mangmao village, Menglian county, southwest China's Yunnan province. (People's Daily Online/Liang Zhiqiang)

The competitiveness of the Chinese coffee industry is multifaceted. China presents a vast and lucrative market for coffee, with immense growth potential and robust consumer spending power.

Coffee-growing regions in the country enjoy natural advantages in coffee cultivation, and Yunnan province in particular, is quite a standout in this regard, accounting for over 98 percent of the country's coffee planting area and producing more than 98 percent of the country's coffee yield, according to a 2023 report related to the development of coffee industry in Yunnan.

However, the Chinese coffee industry still faces development bottlenecks when compared to traditional coffee powerhouses overseas. For example, most coffee varieties still have to be imported, and there remains a notable gap between China's coffee production, processing technology and cutting-edge international standards. Besides, the branding and marketing capabilities of Chinese coffee enterprises still need to be improved.

An expert noted that China's unique consumer groups and consumption market of coffee products have shaped the country's own coffee culture that is more inclusive with Chinese characteristics.

China's coffee market holds enormous potential by tailoring products to diverse regional flavor preferences, developing a wide array of innovative offerings, and introducing more novel crossovers with Chinese styles, the expert added.

Looking ahead, China's coffee industry should further integrate all segments of its value chain while placing greater emphasis on consumer needs. By expanding the overall market, the industry can gradually achieve high-quality and sustainable development.

(Web editor: Chang Sha, Liang Jun)
Olivia Kelleher

The funeral of Derry journalist, author, feminist and campaigner Nell McCafferty will take place Friday in Longtower in her home city.

She died in the early hours of Wednesday at a nursing home in Fahan, Co Donegal following a long illness.

President Michael D Higgins led the tributes to Ms McCafferty following her passing.

He said that she was a pioneer in raising those searching questions which could be asked, but which had been buried, hidden or neglected.

Indeed, this is one of the aspects which was most remarkable from the very beginning in her work.

"Nell had a unique gift for stirring peoples consciousness, and this made her advocacy formidable on behalf of those who had been excluded from society. A defining feature across Nells life was such a fierce drive to tackle repression, poverty and authoritarianism wherever she saw it.

"Across so many areas, including her work on the Kerry Babies case captured in her book A Woman to Blame, the Troubles, her own life experience and so many other areas beside, Nells writing remains a compelling and courageous record of those decades.

"As a writer and activist, including as a co-founder of the Irish Womens Liberation Movement, Nell McCafferty played a vital role and leaves a true legacy in fighting for feminism and womens rights across the island.

Nell was predeceased by her parents and several of her siblings. She is lying in repose at the home of her sister Carmel in Belmont Crescent in Derry on Thursday.

A requiem mass for Nell will take place tomorrow (Thursday) at 12.30pm in St Columbas Church in Longtower.

A private cremation will follow in Lakelands Crematorium, Co Cavan.

Mourners are asked to make donations in lieu of flowers, if desired, to The Foyle Hospice, the immediate family or Kieran Connor, McClafferty Funeral Directors, Unit 3a, Rathmor Business Pk, Derry, BT48 0LZ.
THE village of Milltown is to celebrate the end of Heritage Week in the most curious of fashions  with a family day beside the Hanged Man.

To those less aware of the locality, The Hanged Man is one of the most famous pubs along the canal, and has an ideal location for leisure between the premises and the canal.

This will be the second year in a row the village has done their bit to celebrate Heritage Week, and the canalside festivities will occur this Sunday (25 August)  the final day of Heritage Week - between the hours of noon and 5pm.

This is just to celebrate what we have in the village, said organiser Pearl Voigt.

Were going to have an exhibition of old photos of place and people, which caused great nostalgia last year, she said.

We have a number of marquees along the canal for all the craft stalls, including bog oak and wood-turning, and a display of ring throwing by All-Ireland champ Christy Downey, who was very popular last year, she revealed.

In the Old School, the Milltown Art Group will be exhibiting their workand there will be a vintage display of old tools and implements as a point of conversation, she said.

Local woman Katie ORourke will continue the heritage theme with a demonstration of all stages of ancient wool production.

Well akso have all the kids ususals. Like a bouncy castle and face-painting, she said.

The Old Mill is from the 13th century, and there is an old poster in the Freemans Journal from 1820 for canal trips out to Milltown, where they could change to a horse and trap to go to the Curragh races.

This tradition will be continued with boat trips on the canal on Sunday down as far as the Point of Gib, as well as paddleboarding for the slightly more intrepid.

There is no admission charge, and everythings free bar the coffee and tea, said Pearl, apart from what the craft people charge.

Parking will be available in the school car park.

Last year was a great success, and it was lovely to see everybody along the canal enjoying the biodiversity, and the sunshine, and we are delighted to be celebrating our heritage, she concluded.

.
Recreation facilities on Coillte lands in Kildare, including walking trails, carparks and toilet facilities are to be improved, with additional funding announced recently.

The investment is part of a strategic partnership between the Department of Rural and Community Development and Coillte to maintain and manage existing trails in Coillte forests, and to develop new recreation opportunities.

Funding of 94,745 will be used to deliver a range of projects in Coillte parks in Kildare, to include 50,000 for Donadea Forest Park and 44,745 across Killinthomas, Moore Abbey, Mullaghreelan, and Rahin.

The pandemic highlighted the benefits of getting out and enjoying our great outdoors and more people now make time to regularly visit our beaches, lakes, mountains and forests. This investment underscores the importance of keeping these amenities at a high standard, said Minister Martin Heydon, TD for Kildare South.

This is also good news for tourism locally. We know that an estimated 18 million visits are made to our recreational areas in Ireland and we are known for our rural tracks and trails. Indeed, Donadea Forest Park was announced as the third most popular non-ticketed Coillte Park in Ireland, hosting 203,543 visitors in 2023. Maintaining and upgrading our facilities at these forest parks will enhance their appeal and encourage people to get out in nature more.
The Kilkenny County Council Arts Office officially launched the 24th edition of the Kilkenny Poetry Broadsheet during the Kilkenny Arts Festival earlier this month in the Parade Tower.

It was launched by Kilkenny Arts Festival Poet in Residence, Martina Evans and Kilkenny County Councils Arts Officer, Mary Butler. The aim of the publication is to give local writers a platform for their work. Published since 2000, it continues to be a treasured platform for writers to showcase their work. This year 110 poems were submitted by 60 writers for consideration, with 13 poems selected for publication by Irish poet James Harpur.

The Broadsheet was beautifully illustrated by local designer and illustrator Tim Harper of Wax Botanical.

Poets selected for publication included: Cathy Hogan, Fergal Canton, Ian Chambers, Janis Woodgate, Alice Bennett, Gobnait Kearney, David Kirby, Susie Lamb, Noel Howley, Carmel Hogan, Angela Esmonde, Aoife Riach and Paddy Doyle.

Writer James Harpur, this years editor, had the tough yet enjoyable task of selecting the poems for publication. James Harpur has published eight books of poetry, including The Examined Life (2021), a verse memoir of his time at boarding school. He has also published a debut novel, The Pathless Country, set in Galway, Dublin and London in the years leading up to the 1916 Rising. It was winner of the JG Farrell Award and shortlisted for the John McGahern Prize. He is a member of Aosdana and lives in West Cork.

I was deeply touched by these poems, with their tales of illness and loss, wistful longings, obsessions, gentle reflections on landscapes, and poignant memories of childhood: it was like opening a benign Pandoras Box full of the elements of the human condition.

Mary Butler, Arts Officer said that the Arts Office is delighted to be providing an annual opportunity for established and emerging Kilkenny poets to be published and share their work with audiences new and old.

The Kilkenny Poetry Broadsheet Issue 24 is available free at the Arts Office, Patricks Court, Patrick Street, Kilkenny. It is also available from all the libraries throughout the county.
The President of ICMSA, Denis Drennan, has said that last months Teagasc National Farm Survey, shows a 69% collapse in dairy farm incomes in just the last year.



Mr. Drennan said that governments inaction in the face of the collapse in farmer incomes and the value of the agriculture sector had moved past just hapless confusion and contradictions must now be deemed deliberate and a matter of state policy.

Try and imagine any other occupation in Ireland working a 60-hour week where a government agency produces figures showing a fall income in just a single calendar year of almost 70%? Try and imagine a situation in, for instance, the public sector where any group of workers were asked to just shrug and accept a fall in income of even 7% - still less 70%. Imagine the response and imagine the Government falling over itself to apologise and come forward with reasons explaining away the fall in income. Our farmers  arguably the best in the world  are losing their livelihoods and the Irish Government just shrugs and moves on preparing the next round of green regulations or useless and half-baked schemes aimed at non-commercial farming and funded at the expense of the farmers  like the milk suppliers  who are already seeing their incomes falling by massive double-digits year-on-year.

Its actually impossible to exaggerate the shambles that the Government has made of what was, until recently, Irish agris flagship sector  the one area in which Ireland was deemed world-beating and the economic engine of rural Ireland, said the Dunbell farmer.

To illustrate his point, Mr Drennan cited the Teagasc figures that calculate the income of a single labour unit at 34,567 (the 49,432 figure is based on 1.43 labour units) and he noted that at that rate farmers were working well below the minimum hourly rate. The average dairy farmer works at least a 60-hour week, at 34,567 they are coming out with about 11 per hour before they meet debt repayments. The Irish Government and the civil servants responsible for the state of the dairy sector should be ashamed to show their faces in public on the basis of those figures, continued Mr Drennan.

The ICMSA President said that the pretence that nothing could be done about the farm income situation and that it was just market forces at play was to add insult to injury. We do not accept that theres nothing that can be done; at the very least the Irish Government could stop introducing policies that cost farmers money and take their regulatory foot off the necks of these farmers. The average dairy farmer has debt of 136,171, much  if not most  of which can be tracked back directly to Government action whether on stocking rates, slurry storage, inaction on excessive inputs costs and diseases, or wholly inadequate direct supports.

They should be ashamed of those figures and determined to turn them around.
Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of EOG Resources, Inc. (NYSE:EOG  Free Report) by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 3,881 shares of the energy exploration companys stock after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLCs holdings in EOG Resources were worth $489,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in EOG. Wright Investors Service Inc. grew its stake in shares of EOG Resources by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc. now owns 10,163 shares of the energy exploration companys stock valued at $1,299,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. CVA Family Office LLC increased its position in EOG Resources by 11.0% during the 2nd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 820 shares of the energy exploration companys stock worth $103,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Field & Main Bank raised its holdings in EOG Resources by 1.4% in the first quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 6,163 shares of the energy exploration companys stock valued at $788,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. PDS Planning Inc lifted its holdings in shares of EOG Resources by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 2,152 shares of the energy exploration companys stock valued at $275,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moody National Bank Trust Division boosted its position in EOG Resources by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 8,420 shares of the energy exploration companys stock worth $1,076,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. 89.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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EOG Resources Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of EOG Resources stock traded down $0.26 on Wednesday, hitting $124.99. The company had a trading volume of 2,668,748 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,171,879. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.30. EOG Resources, Inc. has a twelve month low of $108.94 and a twelve month high of $139.67. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $125.58 and a 200-day moving average of $124.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 2.05.

EOG Resources Announces Dividend

EOG Resources ( NYSE:EOG Get Free Report ) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The energy exploration company reported $3.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $2.98 by $0.18. EOG Resources had a return on equity of 25.65% and a net margin of 30.33%. The business had revenue of $6.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.49 EPS. The firms revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that EOG Resources, Inc. will post 12.13 earnings per share for the current year.

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 17th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 17th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.91%. EOG Resourcess dividend payout ratio is 28.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on EOG shares. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of EOG Resources in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. They issued a peer perform rating for the company. Truist Financial cut their price target on EOG Resources from $136.00 to $130.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. UBS Group increased their price target on EOG Resources from $166.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Tuesday. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on EOG Resources from $130.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of EOG Resources from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a positive rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $144.15.

Get Our Latest Report on EOG

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Charles R. Crisp sold 6,500 shares of EOG Resources stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.60, for a total value of $816,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 60,892 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,648,035.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other EOG Resources news, COO Jeffrey R. Leitzell sold 4,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Friday, August 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.48, for a total value of $505,920.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 35,058 shares of the companys stock, valued at $4,434,135.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Charles R. Crisp sold 6,500 shares of EOG Resources stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.60, for a total transaction of $816,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 60,892 shares of the companys stock, valued at $7,648,035.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

EOG Resources Company Profile

(Free Report)

EOG Resources, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, explores for, develops, produces, and markets crude oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas primarily in producing basins in the United States, the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and internationally. The company was formerly known as Enron Oil & Gas Company.

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Want to see what other hedge funds are holding EOG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for EOG Resources, Inc. (NYSE:EOG  Free Report).

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iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF (BATS:USMV  Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $89.44 and last traded at $89.43, with a volume of 2253314 shares. The stock had previously closed at $88.89.

iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF Price Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $85.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $83.21. The firm has a market cap of $26.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.30 and a beta of 0.59.

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Institutional Trading of iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,779,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF during the 4th quarter worth approximately $134,000. Bfsg LLC purchased a new stake in shares of iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF during the 4th quarter worth approximately $134,000. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC now owns 24,043 shares of the companys stock worth $1,935,000 after acquiring an additional 590 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jackson Hole Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF by 701.9% during the 4th quarter. Jackson Hole Capital Partners LLC now owns 834 shares of the companys stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 730 shares in the last quarter.

About iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF

The iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF (USMV) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the MSCI USA Minimum Volatility (USD) index. The fund tracks an index of US-listed firms selected and weighted to create a low-volatility portfolio subject to various constraints. USMV was launched on Oct 18, 2011 and is managed by BlackRock.

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Average age of lead actors in new shows this month hits 51.6

By KTimes

ENA premiered its thriller drama "Your Honor" on Aug. 12, featuring seasoned actors Son Hyun-joo, 59, and Kim Myung-min, 51, in the leading roles. The thriller focuses on the respective paternal love of these two characters: one the father of a murderer and the other, the father of the murder victim.

JTBC launched its new weekend drama "Romance in the House" on Aug. 10, starring actors Kim Ji-soo, 51, and Ji Jin-hee, 53. Both actors, with 32 and 25 years of experience respectively, are taking on leading roles in one of the most competitive time slots for dramas. The series revolves around the story of a divorced couple.

Similarly, KBS's new Wednesday-Thursday drama "Perfect Family," which began airing on Aug. 14, features experienced actors Kim Byung-chul, 50, and Yoon Se-ah, 46, in the leading roles. The drama revolves around a family caught up in a murder case, with the two actors portraying a married couple at the heart of the story.

The average age of the six lead actors in these three newly launched dramas is 51.6 years. The landscape of Korean dramas is quickly mirroring its aging society, with the voices of the youth fading and stories increasingly focusing on individuals in their 40s and 50s.

Last month, the number of people aged 65 or older in Korea surpassed 10 million, edging the country closer to becoming a super-aged society. Korean dramas, like the nation itself, are aging.

Aging population shapes drama casting trends

The shift in drama content aligns with the changing demographics of the country.

According to Statistics Korea, the median age of the population has risen to 45.7 years, more than double the median age in 1980, which was 21 years.

Yoon Suk-jin, a professor of Korean literature at Chungnam National University, said, "As aging progresses, the perception of being in your 50s as being 'old' has weakened. This trend has influenced drama productions, with actors who began their careers 20 to 30 years ago continuing to play major roles."

This trend is also evident in recent online streaming dramas, where lead roles are often given to established actors in their 40s and 50s, such as Yum Jung-ah and Cho Jin-woong for "No Way Out: The Roullete" and Kim Hee-ae and Sul Kyung-gu for "The Whirlwind."

Youth-centric dramas decline as focus shifts to older generations

Youth-centric dramas are becoming increasingly rare. It is difficult to find dramas where young actors voice the concerns and stories of their generation.

Even the most popular and talked-about dramas of the first half of this year have largely focused on the conflicts and relationships of older adults rather than the experiences of younger people.

Dramas like "Queen of Tears," which explores the rekindling of love between a divorced couple, and "Marry My Husband," centered on revenge against an unfaithful husband, are examples of this trend.

While there are traces of young romance in "Lovely Runner," the story mainly revolves around themes that resonate with viewers in their 30s and 40s, blending the experiences of teenagers into a broader narrative aimed at an older audience.

In recent years, youth-oriented dramas have been limited to a few titles like "Twinkling Watermelon" (2023), "Twenty-Five Twenty-One" (2022) and "Our Beloved Summer" (2021).

Cultural critic Kim Heon-sik said, "As youth dramas have dwindled, the stories of young people have been absorbed into dramas aimed at viewers in their 30s and 40s. Meanwhile, those in their teens and 20s are leading the charge on social media and web dramas, where they prefer to consume content outside of traditional TV."

The shrinking population of people in their 20s, combined with long-standing employment challenges, has further reduced the presence of young adults in mainstream dramas.

Newcomers struggle to find their place

The shrinking drama market is accelerating these trends. Production companies and broadcasters focused on catering to those in their 30s and 40s, are increasingly opting for "safe choices" by casting well-established actors who have proven their talent and marketability rather than taking risks on newcomers.

As a result, the traditional pathway for new actors to rise through drama roles is deteriorating. K-pop idols venturing into acting, find that their success rate remains low also.

"The continuous casting of actors who have been active for decades is making it difficult for a new generation of actors to break into the industry," critic Kim said. "To expand both the pool of actors and the viewership, we need dramas that appeal to a broader audience, bridging the gap between generations."

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by generative AI and edited by staff at The Korea Times.
By Baek Byung-yeul

In the film "Because I Hate Korea," the main character Gyena faces multiple challenges, including a two-hour commute from Incheon to Seoul, the pressure to meet unreasonable demands from her superiors at work, and feelings of inferiority due to her modest background compared to her wealthy boyfriend.

To escape her seemingly hopeless life, the woman in her late 20s, played by Ko A-sung, who works at a financial company, decides to quit her job and move to New Zealand in the upcoming film.

Based on Chang Kang-myoung's 2015 novel of the same title, Because I Hate Korea depicts the struggles of young people in Korean society, where everyone is expected to follow the same path or risk being left behind.

From the start, the film candidly explores various issues within Korean society, particularly highlighting the frustrations and injustices experienced by young people. Gyena decides to leave Korea to escape the injustices and embark on a journey to discover her true self, seeking happiness beyond the relentless pressures of the rat race.

By alternating between Gyenas life in Korea and her new experiences in New Zealand, the film shows her determination to adapt to a new culture and overcome prejudices while searching for her own path.

Clearly, New Zealand isn't the paradise Gyena imagined. She finds herself juggling various part-time jobs while attending graduate school to manage her new life.

Director Jang Kun-jae said he was inspired to make the film after reading the novel in 2015. He aimed to portray the challenges of life in Korean society, which he has personally experienced, and to offer comfort to young people who are struggling.

"Of course, I'm in a different position than Gyena. I'm a married man in my 40s with a child. Even from my perspective, Korean society is a tough place to live," Jang said during a press conference in Seoul, Wednesday. "While this film doesn't cover all social discourses, I believe the characters represent people we commonly see. I hope the film sends an encouraging message to young people."

Ko, known for her roles in director Bong Joon-ho's hits, "The Host" and "Snowpiercer," was drawn to the characters quest for self-discovery and a better life, despite the hardships she faces.

In the movie, there's a children's book about a penguin who didn't like the cold. The penguin goes through a really hard process to get to the warm southern country, and the message of the book is that you can have it all because you've gone through hardships yourself, Ko said.

She added that from the moment she first received the script, she knew she couldn't pass up the opportunity to portray an ordinary woman in her late 20s who is weary of life.

"Gyena's life in another place wasnt easy either, but that's why I played her with the mindset that she will make it.

"Because I Hate Korea" premiered as the opening film at last year's Busan International Film Festival, where it received considerable acclaim. The film alternates between depicting life in Korea and New Zealand, without portraying either place as an absolute utopia.

The film's balanced portrayal of both countries, coupled with Gyena's personal journey and decisions, allows viewers to understand the complexities behind her choices and the reasoning behind the provocative title "Because I Hate Korea."

The film will hit local theaters on Aug. 28.
Korea's rice production to fall for third year in 2024: data
Hana Financial Group launched the fourth cohort of its Hana Waves next-generation leadership program for women at its headquarters in Seoul on Wednesday.

Hana has been running the leadership program since 2021 to cultivate women as future leaders. "Waves" stands for Women's Actions, Voices and Emotions, reflecting its goal of making waves of innovation through women's active participation in society.

The program has so far trained 98 women leaders over three cohorts. It has strengthened its footing as a leading program for women's career development, with seven of the participants having been promoted to executive positions.

The 22 participants for the fourth cohort of the program were selected based on recommendations from the CEOs of related companies. It is expected to help them further develop expertise and leadership by offering training in diverse areas such as leadership, strategy, communication, team projects, digital knowledge and data, as well as feedback from those who have already completed the program.

Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo said at a launching ceremony that the financial group has been cherishing and nurturing employees based on their performance rather than their diploma, background or gender.

Ham himself is an example, as he started working right after graduating from high school. He later got a college diploma by working during the day and studying at night and rose to the top position at the country's major financial group by proving his capabilities.

Ham told attendees, "To become an attractive leader, we should lead by example and continuously enhance competitiveness by learning. The most important thing is to win the hearts of customers and employees by always thinking from their perspectives. That is the foundation of management and the role of leadership."
The chief of the financial regulator on Thursday emphasized the need to reform the country's online payment system following massive payment delays at two e-commerce platforms.

Kim Byoung-hwan, head of the Financial Services Commission (FSC), said the government will also seek to establish new regulations governing payment gateway (PG) service providers.

"The recent TMON and WeMakePrice incident was a problem that occurred under the complex payment system in a newly emerging industry such as e-commerce," Kim said in a meeting with the heads of 15 credit finance businesses, including credit card companies and capital firms.

"The government plans to come up with ways to ensure the safety of electronic transactions, along with a regulation system for PG firms," added Kim. "(It) also plans to look into a possible need to redesign the very payment system, along with ways to improve regulations related to the problem in hand."

The government said Wednesday that delayed payments by the two e-commerce platforms, owned by Singapore-based Qoo10, have amounted to nearly 820 billion won ($614 million) so far, and are expected to reach up to 1.3 trillion won.

"I ask credit card firms to play a more responsible role in enhancing the stability of the payment system since they play a key role in the local payment system," Kim told the meeting, according to the FSC.

To the heads of capital firms at the meeting, the FSC chief called for "swift resolution" of weak real estate project finance (PF) loans, which many believe may pose a serious threat to the local economy amid growing household debts.

"If needed, the government, too, will actively consider additional steps to support the resolution of bad PF loans," he said.

The total value of outstanding PF loans stood at 134.2 trillion won as of end-March, while the delinquency ratio on such loans stood at 3.55 percent, up 0.85 percentage point from three months earlier, the financial regulator said earlier. (Yonhap)
Senior citizens received a pension of 650,000 won ($486.2) per month on average in 2022, which came far below the minimum cost of living, data showed Thursday.

A total of 8.18 million people aged 65 and older, or 90.4 percent of the total population of the age group, received pension payments from more than one type of pension program, including the basic state pension, as of 2022, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.

The average monthly amount stood at 650,000 won, marking an 8.3 percent increase on-year, and it was larger than the upper limit covered under the national basic pension of 623,368 won.

But the National Pension Research Institute has said that a senior citizen needs at least 1.24 million won per month to live.

Of the total recipients, 40.4 percent drew a pension of between 250,000 won and 500,000 won, followed by 27.5 percent getting 500,000 to 1 million won, and 19.9 percent receiving less than 250,000 won.

The data also showed that 80.2 percent of people aged 18-59 joined at least one pension program, and their average monthly premium came to 318,000 won.

Of the economically active individuals in the age group, 94.5 percent joined a pension program, but the rate among the unemployed came to 50.8 percent.

Korea has been expanding pension programs in an effort to help ensure financial stability for senior citizens amid rapid aging.

In 2020, the poverty rate among Korea's elderly citizens stood at 40.4 percent, the highest among member nations of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), a government report showed. (Yonhap)
Valued at over $2 bil., the firm raises $80 mil. in series B funding

By Lee Yeon-woo

PIP Labs, the developer behind the blockchain startup Story Protocol, vowed Thursday to help creators protect their intellectual property (IP) and generate sustainable revenue amid an increasing prevalence of AI-driven copyright theft.

"We believe that all intellectual and creative works can fall under the category of IP, and all of them are going to face dramatic changes in this new age of AI," Jason Zhao, chief protocol officer and co-founder of the PIP Labs, said during the press meeting in Seoul.

"Story is trying to solve a problem of how IP will be monetized when the entire internet is being scraped by these AI models."

Zhao previously worked as the youngest product manager for Google's AI lab, DeepMind. In 2022, he co-founded PIP Labs with Lee Seung-yoon, who founded the mobile fiction platform Radish in 2016 and successfully sold it to Kakao for 500 billion won ($374 mil.) in 2021.

Zhao highlighted that AI models are currently utilizing people's data and IP without compensation, which can lead to AI imitating the works of creators or even style. Yet, the current legal system is too slow, complex and costly for most creators, especially those without access to intermediaries to secure IP deals.

"AIs might put your recommendation, your photos and IPs in their answers, but they aren't going to give you anything," Zhao said. "Why would anyone continue to create if no one is going to compensate for the work?"

Story Protocol's platform allows creators to register their IP and outline terms for their use. It also allows creators to receive compensation from various parties, who can then adapt and further utilize the content for secondary purposes. The firm uses blockchain technology to track registered IP usage automatically.

To date, more than 200 entities, including David Goyer, who wrote the script for "The Dark Knight" trilogy, have registered over 20 million intellectual properties on the platform, according to the firm.

"Creators, even if they are not familiar with web 3.0 or the technology, can still have their work backed by the law," Zhao said.

During the conference, PIP Labs also announced that it raised about $80 million in a series B funding round, with its value reaching over $2.2 billion.

The round was led by Andreessen Horowitz, one of the world's largest venture capital firms, with participation from Polychain Capital. Notable investors also include HYBE founder Bang Si-hyuk and Paris Hilton. This brings PIP Labs' total funding to around 191 billion won.

Ahead of Story Protocol's mainnet launch later this year, the firm will begin hosting a series of events for IP developers starting in September.
By Baek Byung-yeul

Korean Chinese dishes "Jjajangmyeon," noodles in black bean sauce, and "tangsuyuk," fried meat with sweet and sour sauce, are beloved staples for many Koreans.

ALT.a, a vegan restaurant in Seoul, selected these types of Asian cuisines to provide healthy and delicious meals without any animal-based ingredients. This approach caters not only to vegetarians, who avoid all animal products like meat, milk, and eggs, but also to those who are unfamiliar with vegan food.

Nestled in Itaewon, renowned for its international atmosphere, ALT.a has shown since its 2022 opening that its approach is effective. The restaurant's entire menu features meat alternatives instead of meat and seafood, and it has gained popularity by offering a variety of Asian cuisines, including familiar Korean Chinese dishes like jjajangmyeon, all at reasonable prices.

Lucia Lee, the manager of ALT.a, explained that ALTist, an alternative food producer known for its stevia sweeteners, selected Asian cuisines as the main theme for the vegan restaurant to connect more effectively with Korean customers.

"ALTist is a company that makes healthy alternative foods, including meat alternatives. The company opened ALT.a to show how meat alternatives can be presented to people curious about the taste of meat alternatives," Lee told The Korea Times on Monday.

"The reason for choosing Asian cuisine among various options is that there are many familiar dishes for Koreans. We offer dishes familiar to Koreans like tangsuyuk and yurinyuk using meat alternatives called 'veef.'"

For many Koreans, including myself, vegan food is often seen as just healthy dishes made from vegetables. However, ALT.a reimagines familiar Asian cuisines and mimics the texture of meat, making their vegan offerings feel more approachable and recognizable.

"Many customers come without knowing this is a vegan restaurant. Later, when they find out this is a vegan restaurant, they say they didn't know vegan food could be this delicious," Lee said.

When this reporter sampled the restaurant's signature dishes, Yurinyukfried "beef" in a hot and sour soy sauce  and Doenjang Jjajangmyeon  bean paste "beef" noodles  they were on par with other popular Asian cuisines.

"The advantage of the vegan food served in our restaurant is that it's low in calories and cholesterol-free. Unlike other Asian restaurants that cook with lard, we use vegetable oil, which results in a lower overall calorie content," the manager said.

She added that ALT.a attracts customers from various age groups, not just the health-conscious younger generation.

"It's difficult to become a perfect vegan from the start. I hope customers will take the opportunity to learn about vegan culture step by step by tasting vegetarian food here," Lee said.

ALT.a could be an excellent choice for visiting vegans who want to experience Korean-style Chinese dishes, which have been popularized through Korean dramas and movies.

"In fact, many vegan tourists from abroad tell us that they saw scenes in Korean dramas where actors eat jjajangmyeon and tangsuyuk and they wanted to try it too, but couldn't because they're vegan. They say they were able to enjoy these dishes deliciously at our restaurant," the manager said. "It's rewarding to hear that ALT.a can fulfill that need for them."

 Address: 109 Bogwang-ro, Yongsan District, Seoul

 Phone: 02-790-8688

 Hours: 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. (break time: 3-5 p.m.)

 Website: Instagram @alt.a_official
North Korean children were not vaccinated against polio for the third straight year in 2023, with key inoculations for its infants also not being properly administered, a report by the World Health Organization (WHO) showed Thursday.

The immunization coverage with the type 3 oral polio vaccine (OPV3) for North Korea stood at zero last year, unchanged from that for 2021 and 2022, according to the 2024 Expanded Program on Immunization fact sheet.

The vaccination rate with OPV3 in North Korea had stayed above 98 percent in 2014-2019 before falling to 70 percent in 2020. Since then, no vaccination against polio has been administered in North Korea.

North Korea's BCG vaccination rate against tuberculosis also declined to 63 percent last year, down from 99 percent the previous year. In 2023, the inoculation rate against measles stood at 28 percent in the North, down from 67 percent a year earlier.

A sharp decline in the vaccination rates for North Korean children is believed to be caused by a shortage of essential vaccines due to the reclusive regime's border closure over the COVID-19 pandemic. North Korea began reopening its border with China in late August 2023.

Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho said in March that the impact of North Korean children not being properly vaccinated will become evident three to five years later. (Yonhap)
South Korea's point man on North Korea said Thursday that the incoming U.S. government will reaffirm its long-standing goal of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula, regardless of the outcome of the upcoming presidential election.

The remarks by Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho came after both the Democratic and Republican parties omitted the long-elusive denuclearization goal from their platforms, raising questions about how the new administration might handle North Korea's nuclear threats and whether this signals any potential shift in policy focus.

"Regardless of which party takes power, I believe the incoming administration will reassess its North Korea policy early on," Kim said during a press conference with foreign correspondents in Seoul.

"I expect that they will reaffirm their commitment to the complete denuclearization of North Korea, and our government will also continue to work in that direction," the minister said.

The omission of denuclearization in party platforms has also sparked concerns that Pyongyang could misinterpret it as an opportunity to seek U.S. acknowledgment of North Korea as a de facto nuclear power and shift negotiations toward arms control rather than denuclearization.

Reiterating Seoul's commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, the minister emphasized the importance of strengthening deterrence against North Korea's provocations and illegal acts.

Kim, a former conservative professor, is known for his hard-line stance toward North Korea and his strong advocacy for human rights.

"I once again emphasize the importance of complete denuclearization of North Korea by actively protecting the NPT (Non-proliferation Treaty) regime through cooperation," Kim said.

Kim also reiterated his hope that North Korea would respond to South Korea's recent offer for an official dialogue channel, emphasizing that the agenda for the long-stalled talks could cover any topic.

President Yoon Suk Yeol proposed earlier this month that South and North Korea establish a working-level dialogue channel, during a Liberation Day speech marking the 79th anniversary of independence from Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule.

"I hope (North Korea) will respond to our proposal for a dialogue channel," Kim said.

The proposal comes amid heightened tensions after North Korea sent balloons filled with trash across the border in retaliation for South Korean civic groups sending balloons carrying propaganda leaflets critical of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

North Korea has been erasing references to unification since its leader Kim defined inter-Korean relations as those between "two hostile states" and labeled South Korea as his country's "invariable principal enemy."

Some critics have argued that Yoon's unification vision lacks an initiative for mutual respect between the two countries' political systems, a concept that was a key element of South Korea's official unification formula unveiled in 1994 under the liberal Kim Young-sam administration.

However, the unification minister asserted that North Korea is the one disregarding South Korea's political system, urging the reclusive regime to explain its recent hostile rhetoric.

Yoon used his speech to unveil a blueprint for unification and extend new outreach to Pyongyang, following the South Korean government's recent offer to provide relief supplies for flood damage in the isolated regime, which is suspected to have suffered significant damage in its northern border areas.

Yoon also proposed the establishment of a working group between the two Koreas to discuss ways to ease tensions, resume economic cooperation, and increase exchanges. (Yonhap)
Kim Yung-ho hopes next US administration will remain steadfast in objective of NK's denuclearization

By Kwak Yeon-soo

On Thursday, Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho urged North Korea once again to respond to South Koreas request for working-level consultations to initiate dialogue between the two Koreas.

Kim stressed that the formation of the inter-Korean working group is the most important action plan addressed in President Yoon Suk Yeols 8.15 Unification Doctrine.

President Yoon made the suggestion to North Korea to engage in working-level consultations without limiting the agenda. Weve seen a history where the working-level consultations eventually led to higher-level consultations and an agreement between the two Koreas. So Id like to ask the North to carefully consider our proposal and return to the path of dialogue, Kim said during a press conference with foreign correspondents in Seoul, Thursday.

The minister said South Korea will utilize the advancement of technologies to spread outside information and culture to North Korea, taking the example of how the introduction of satellites brought about change in the USSR during the Cold War.

According to Kim, about 80 percent of the 6,351 North Korean defectors who settled in South Korea between 2013 and 2022 said they had access to foreign media content including South Korean dramas and movies.

North Koreans have a high level of desire and demand for information from the outside world, Kim said. If you look back in history, there were cases where the authorities tried to use force and oppression against people to prevent the spread of specific culture and information. However, history has proven that all of these efforts failed. We will try our best to make sure that North Koreans access to outside information is protected.

Kim expressed hope that the next U.S. administration, whether led by Vice President Kamala Harris or former President Donald Trump, will implement a policy that calls for the denuclearization of North Korea.

Both the Democrats and the Republicans have not mentioned the denuclearization of North Korea. Whichever party comes in next, there will be a policy review in the beginning. During this process, we sincerely hope there is a mention of the complete denuclearization of North Korea as one of the priorities and goals for U.S. diplomacy, he said. The South Korean government will also work closely to make sure this idea is implemented in the U.S.

As part of the Yoon administrations efforts to gain international support for unification, the government said it would survey 10 different countries this year to find out how people in other countries think about the concept of Korean unification.

We will use this data as a reference for our unification diplomacy and our cooperation with the international community, Kim said.

He also reaffirmed adherence to the Camp David agreement, saying that the U.S. and Japan expressed a commitment to ensure peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and support South Koreas "audacious initiative."

South Korea will on Sept. 3 launch the 2024 Global Korea Forum, an extension of the annual Global Korea Forum hosted by the Ministry of Unification since 2010.

We hope the Global Korea Forum offers a comprehensive review of all issues related to North Korea where we can talk about various topics like human rights, climate change and space technology, Kim said.
The number of patients hospitalized for COVID-19 showed signs of abating, health authorities said Thursday.

Although the weekly number of COVID-19 inpatients grew last week, the growth rate of hospitalization plunged, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).

The number of COVID-19 patients in 220 hospitals last week came to 1,444, up 5.7 percent from a week earlier, the KDCA said.

That compared with 1,366 patients in the second week of this month, up 55.2 percent from a week earlier, and 880 patients in the first week, up 85.7 percent from a week ago.

"Considering the current trend, the number of infections is expected to decrease after this week or the next," KDCA Commissioner Jee Young-mee said during a meeting with related government agencies.

Jee added that the number of infections this week, previously estimated at 350,000, would likely be "smaller than anticipated."

The KDCA also announced that it has completed the purchase of 260,000 doses of COVID-19 treatments using a reserve fund of 326.8 billion won ($244.3 million), with 177,000 doses set to be available at local pharmacies starting Monday next week.

To prevent the spread of the virus among students, the government has issued guidelines to schools ahead of the new semester, including requiring students to take leave if they exhibit severe COVID-19 symptoms. (Yonhap)
Hanoi wants Vietnamese firms to invest more in Korea

By Kim Hyun-bin

Vietnamese Ambassador to Korea Vu Ho acknowledged the strong trade relationship between the two countries, highlighting that Vietnam accounts for nearly half of all ASEAN exports to Korea. However, he emphasized the need to address the current imbalance in investments, noting that while Korean companies have a significant foothold in Vietnam, Vietnamese businesses face difficulties entering the Korean market.

The deficit is still there, Ho said during an interview with The Korea Times at the Vietnamese Embassy in Seoul, Aug. 5. Korean investment in Vietnam is substantial, but Vietnamese businesses in Korea are few. We need to address this imbalance for mutual growth.

When asked about potential areas to address this economic imbalance, the newly appointed ambassador pointed to the importance of regulatory adjustments and fostering cultural understanding. The two economies are complementary, but the way of doing business is different, he explained. We must close the gaps in manpower and knowledge to truly complement each other.

The ambassador also discussed the factors that make Vietnam an attractive destination for Korean investors, citing the countrys strategic location, economic potential and youthful labor force. Korea is currently the largest foreign investor in Vietnam, with a cumulative total investment of $85.8 billion as of 2023, which represents 18.3 percent of all foreign investment in the country.

Ho also highlighted ongoing efforts to enhance the Vietnam-Korea Free Trade Agreement, which has been a cornerstone of their economic relationship since it took effect in 2015.

Vietnam is a place where you can invest for the long term, with sustainable interests, he said, adding that the country still offers considerable opportunities for growth and development.

Despite these positive aspects, the ambassador acknowledged the challenges that Vietnam faces in exporting to Korea, particularly due to non-tariff barriers, language differences and technological disparities.

Korea is a society of laws, and sometimes these regulations create obstacles for Vietnamese businesses, he said.

Korea is currently Vietnam's third-largest trading partner, following China and the United States, with bilateral trade reaching $76 billion in 2023. Additionally, Korea ranks as Vietnam's third-largest export market and second-largest import market.

The ambassador also spoke openly about the evolving relationship between the two nations, underscoring the importance of balancing both countries interests while addressing challenges in trade, investment and cultural exchanges.

The relationship between Vietnam and Korea has become a strategic partnership, Ho said. With the recent visit of our prime minister, weve entered another important phase, solidifying this partnership for the long term. This relationship isnt just measured in years or decades, but for centuries to come.

He emphasized the comprehensive nature of this partnership, stressing that all areas of cooperation  political, economic, cultural and tourism  are interconnected.

To connect all the dots together is my priority, rather than focusing on one or two fields of operation, Ho said. Our interests must align smoothly to ensure that we achieve harmony in all aspects of our relationship.

The ambassador further noted that Korea, as a developed country with strong capital and technological capabilities, is deeply integrated into the global value chain and in need of a young, expansive market to sustain its growth. Conversely, Vietnam is a rapidly progressing nation with a favorable demographic profile  nearly 100 million people, 70 percent of whom are aged between 15 and 64  and is highly regarded by international credit rating agencies. This makes Vietnam an attractive destination for investment, particularly given its participation in various regional and international cooperative frameworks, including new-generation free trade agreements with broader and more comprehensive commitments.

Tourism

In the realm of cultural exchanges and tourism, Ho expressed surprise at the high number of Korean tourists visiting Vietnam. In 2023, Korea ranked first in terms of tourist arrivals in Vietnam, with 3.6 million visitors, accounting for 28 percent of the international tourist market. Meanwhile, Vietnam ranked fifth among countries sending visitors to Korea, with 420,000 Vietnamese tourists.

Korean people are hard-working and hard-playing, Ho said. Vietnam offers a balance of good working conditions and leisure opportunities, which is why its so appealing to them.

As for his personal objectives during his tenure, Ho said, If I can safely complete my tenure, its already a win. His primary focus, he noted, is on strengthening the ties between Korea and Vietnam, ensuring that both nations continue to reap the benefits of their strategic partnership.
By Kim Hyun-bin

As his tenure in Korea draws to a close Aug. 29, Israeli Ambassador to Korea Akiva Tor delivered a heartfelt speech reflecting on his experiences, both professional and personal, over the past four years. Tor emphasized the challenges and responsibilities of representing Israel on the global stage.

"The job of an Israeli diplomat is to make Israel's case in the most truthful and compelling way. Israel is far from perfect. Israel is certainly not always right, but I believe that Israel is almost always misunderstood," he said at a farewell reception held at the ambassador's residence in Seoul, Tuesday.

Despite the challenges, he said that representing his country in Korea was a privilege, "It's been my honor to do my best to present Israel to you, to the Korean government, people and culture. But I felt always very honored to represent Israel, even in the most difficult days and even when we make mistakes."

Looking ahead, Tor voiced optimism for peace in the Middle East despite the region's ongoing challenges, stating, "Peace will return to our region sooner or later." He emphasized the importance of resolving the conflict with the Palestinians, describing it as "our most important and most troubled relationship."

Turning his attention to Korea, the ambassador expressed admiration for the resilience and depth of Korean culture.

"The Korean culture is somewhere between 4,000 and 5,000 years old, and that means that I think that the Korean culture has within it the ability and the strengths to overcome all difficulties," he said.

Addressing the challenges faced by modern Korea, including issues like low birthrates and intense competitiveness, he expressed confidence in the country's future.

"You'll recover and you'll go back to normal, and Korea will be a huge success within our lifetime," he added.

Reflecting on his departure from Korea, Tor spoke jokingly about returning to a more modest lifestyle in Israel.

"We're going back to our middle-class home in a middle-class city called Beit Shemesh, halfway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. No driver, only one car ... but our home is very beautiful. It opens up into a wheat field, and from there you can see the Beit Jamal Monastery," he said.

"It's been a wonderful four years. I think Naomi (spouse) and I both fell in love with Korea, and we will take this experience with us forever."
Ignored requests for medical care led to preventable death, lawyer claims

By Lee Hyo-jin

The family of a Chinese man who died earlier this year at an immigration facility in Seoul filed a lawsuit against the government Thursday alleging that his death was a result of negligence and a lack of proper medical attention.

Migrant rights activists say that the death highlights widespread human rights violations in Korea's immigration detention facilities, where detainees often endure inhumane treatment and are deprived of basic needs.

Duroo, an association for public interest law representing the bereaved family of the deceased, held a press conference in front of the Seoul Central District Court, where the family filed a lawsuit against the government seeking 56 million won ($42,000) in compensation.

According to the lawyers, the Chinese national died on the evening of Jan. 1 at the Seoul Southern Immigration Office in Gangseo District, two weeks after being detained when officials discovered his visa had expired. The autopsy revealed that he died from peritonitis caused by a ruptured liver abscess, exacerbated by his severe diabetic condition.

The detainee, who suffered from chronic illnesses including diabetes and high blood pressure, requested medical attention multiple times, but officials ignored the requests, the lawyers said.

"I visited my husband several times while he was detained, and it was clear that his health was deteriorating," his wife said during the press conference. "On the morning of the day he died, he called a friend to say he was so sick he felt he was going to die. Yet the officials still ignored him."

She, also a Chinese national, wished to remain anonymous due to concerns about potential visa-related repercussions.

"I and my young son lost the breadwinner of our family in a sudden death that could have been prevented if he had been allowed to go to the hospital just once."

She also mentioned that a police investigation into the incident concluded without holding any immigration officials accountable, attributing the cause of death to chronic health conditions.

"Do I have to endure this unfair situation just because I'm a foreign woman with poor Korean skills and can't afford a lawyer? Where is the justice?" she added.

The facility where the Chinese man was held operates as a temporary holding center, detaining foreign nationals accused of visa violations until their cases are processed. Detainees typically stay there for days or even weeks while awaiting deportation or the completion of administrative procedures.

Attorney Lee Han-jae of Duroo alleged that the immigration office violated relevant laws, which state that upon admission to a detention facility, a foreign national must undergo a physical examination.

"The rule also stipulates that if a foreign national is ill, they must receive medical care from a doctor. If there isn't a doctor available at the facility, the officials must call in a doctor or the patient must be transferred to an outside medical institution for treatment," Lee explained.

"The essence of this case is that the minimum necessary actions required for detaining a person were not taken at all."

Sim Ah-jung, a migrants' rights activist, emphasized that this incident is one of the many preventable deaths occurring in immigration detention facilities, citing a similar incident at the Busan Immigration Center on Aug. 16, 2022.

"In the name of 'protection,' non-Korean nationals are being detained in immigration facilities across the country, suffering from mental and physical harm. These facilities are intended as temporary holding centers for administrative processes, not places to hold people indefinitely," she said.

The Korea Times reached out to the Ministry of Justice for comment, but they did not respond at the time of writing.
By Anna J. Park

A seasoned military expert has published a book that examines the medieval origins of military professionalism and also explores the historical development of civil-military relations from the standpoint of military history.

Titled "War and Society in the Middle Ages: The Origin of Civil-Military Relations and Military Professionalism," the book was published by the Institute for Military History, an organization under the authority of the Ministry of National Defense, responsible for investigation, collection and compilation of defense history, military history and war history.

Author Nam Bo-ram, a senior researcher at the military history institute, said that this book is intended to explore how historical events from the medieval era serve as historical foundations of today's civil-military relations and and the concept of military professionalism.

"The way medieval empires and kingdoms used military force for survival and prosperity, shaping military effectiveness and social values, closely mirrors how today's government and military work to strengthen national defense and establish themselves as a military for the people," Nam told The Korea Times during a recent phone interview.

The book primarily covers historical events from the eighth century, when the Carolingian Empire was established in Western Europe, to the 13th century, when the kingdoms of France and Germany began to recognize their unique identities.

Among the historical events discussed are the relationships between monarchs and vassals, the military utility of cavalry, oaths of allegiance, infantry spear techniques, the knightly class and chivalry and monetary relations and mercenaries.

The book also features vivid depiction of various medieval battles, including the Battle of Riade (933), the Battle of Lechfeld (955), the Humiliation of Canossa (1077), the Saxon revolt (1077-1088), the Battle of Bouvines (1214), Italian Campaign by Frederick I (1154-1176), the Battle of Legnano (1176), the Battle of Stirling Bridge (1297), the Battle of Courtrai (1302) and the Battle of Morgarten (1315).

The author expressed his hope that the medieval events covered in this book will significantly enhance readers' comprehension of the origins of key military concepts, such as the principles of military force, the laws of war, nobilesse oblige and the military staff system.

"The book traces the origins of what we now call 'military professionalism' back to the knightly class and chivalry of the medieval era. I hope that as readers delve into the medieval wars and battles discussed in the book, they will also find the exploration of the medieval roots of core values like loyalty, honor and fidelity  fundamental to modern military professionalism  both refreshing and captivating," Nam said.

The Institute for Military History explained the book will be available both online and offline through the National Assembly Library and the National Library of Korea.

The author's previous publications include "The Battle of Hyunri-Hangye" (2009), "Theory of War and Military Doctrine" (2011), "U.S. Army MHD Report Series 1-10" (2014), "War and Fashion: Generals Dressed by Chanel" (2019) and "NATO Response Forces: History, Issues, and Challenges" (2021).
Police have opened an investigation into a pro-North Korean online media outlet founded by Korean American pastor Choi Jae-young on suspicion of violating the National Security Act, officials said Thursday.

Choi, who has made headlines for secretly filming himself handing over a luxury handbag gift to first lady Kim Keon Hee in 2022, reportedly participated in the creation of the media outlet in 2018.

The Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency, 33 kilometers west of Seoul, has been investigating an editor of the outlet on charges of violating the anti-communist law, the officials said. Police have already questioned the editor and raided his residence in Seoul and business entity in the central city of Jecheon on Aug. 18, they added.

The editor is accused of posting an article praising the North Korean regime on the website of the outlet. He said in the article that the final victory is to drive out the United States from the country and end the national division.

The media outlet's website also contains posts about North Korea, saying the North is a truly wonderful and great country and both its leader and people are models of human victory. It also praises North Korean leader Kim Jong-un as a man full of ardent affection for the people. (Yonhap)
The CEO of Binggrae, Korea's major dairy maker, was indicted for assaulting a police officer under the influence of alcohol, judicial officials said Thursday.

The Seoul Western District Prosecutors Office indicted Kim Dong-hwan, the oldest son of Kim Ho-youn, the former chairman of the food company, on charges of obstruction of official duties last week.

Kim, 41, is accused of beating a police officer who arrived at the scene after a resident filed a complaint against him for kicking up a fuss while drunk in Seoul's Yongsan district on June 17.

Kim was appointed the CEO of Binggrae in March in what is widely viewed as the third-generation succession of the family business. (Yonhap)
A Seoul court on Thursday ordered a doctor to pay 40 million won ($29,948) in fines for administering propofol to actor Yoo Ah-in without leaving a medical record.

The Seoul Central District Court handed down the ruling, saying the doctor had not left a detailed note or medical record when giving a high dose of propofol and had written the prescription without a medical checkup.

In January, the prosecution indicted the doctor, along with five other doctors, on charges of overprescribing psychotropic medications, including sleeping pills and propofol, to actor Yoo Ah-in.

Five other doctors were all sentenced to pay fines or given a suspended sentence, and they have appealed the decision to a higher court.

Meanwhile, Yoo is awaiting the sentencing of the first trial next month after he was indicted on charges of habitually abusing illegal drugs on 181 occasions under the pretext of cosmetic procedures between 2020-2022. (Yonhap)
Police said Thursday they have launched an investigation into threatening messages posted on the website of the German Embassy in Seoul.

Nearly 100 messages have been posted on the website since Tuesday, including threats to install explosives at the embassy or blow up key facilities, such as Seoul Station and Asan Medical Center, according to Namdaemun Police Station.

The texts were written in German, Korean and Japanese, police said.

The messages did not indicate when the explosions would take place, but police said their content and format appeared similar to a string of threatening emails and faxes sent to local public agencies since last August.

Police patrolled the mentioned locations, including the embassy, after receiving a report on the messages Thursday afternoon but found no explosives.

Police are tracking the writer's IP address. (Yonhap)
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said Thursday that Korea will push to expand free trade agreements (FTAs) with emerging markets in Asia and Africa to boost the export-driven economy and enhance supply chain resilience.

Han unveiled the trade policy road map during a ministerial meeting to address challenges from the rapidly changing global trade environment and supply chain disruptions.

"We will expand the FTA network in major emerging markets, including Asia and Africa, to support local companies' businesses in their global business efforts," Han said.

Han said the government will explore ways to stabilize supply chains of key items through regional trade deals like the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) and bilateral pacts with key partner countries.

"We will actively participate in discussions on new trade norms, particularly in areas such as digital and climate, to uncover business opportunities for our companies," he said.

Korea has signed FTAs with 59 nations, covering 21 agreements, which represents about 85 percent of the world's gross domestic product.

The IPEF, a U.S.-led regional trade pact involving 14 nations in the Indo-Pacific, last month appointed Korea as the chair of a body dedicated to addressing supply chain crises under the agreement.

Han also introduced measures to support e-commerce exporters in entering the global market, including simplifying the customs declaration procedures and expanding customs refunds to boost their price competitiveness. (Yonhap)
A Seoul court of appeals, reversing a ruling by a district court, ordered Japan's Nippon Steel on Thursday to pay compensation of 100 million won ($74,676) to four children of a deceased South Korean victim of Japan's wartime forced labor.

The appellate division of the Seoul Central District Court made the ruling in a lawsuit filed by the descendants of the victim, surnamed Jeong, who demanded 200 million won by claiming he was forcibly mobilized to work for the Japanese company's Iwate steel mill from 1940-42.

Earlier, the same court ruled against the plaintiffs, saying their rights to claim compensation had expired.

But the appellate court reversed the ruling without disclosing specific explanations in court. (Yonhap)
Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung has tested positive for COVID-19, forcing the postponement of scheduled events, including talks with ruling party leader Han Dong-hoon.

Lee, recently elected leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) for a second term, had been scheduled to hold his first talks with Han of the ruling People Power Party on Sunday, but Lee's side has asked to postpone the meeting, Han said Thursday.

"A while ago, we heard from Chairman Lee's side that he has to postpone the meeting between the ruling and opposition parties planned for this Sunday due to his COVID-19 symptoms," Han said during a supreme council meeting at the National Assembly.

Han said he will better prepare for the meeting with the extra time and said he hopes to discuss ways to end political strife and livelihood-related issues in the upcoming talks.

A DPK official told reporters Lee tested positive after showing symptoms of a cold earlier Thursday and will go into self-quarantine.

The two leaders will reschedule the meeting after Lee recovers, according to the official.

Lee's plans to visit former President Moon Jae-in in the southeastern city of Yangsan and the wife of the late former President Roh Moo-hyun in the southeastern rural village of Bongha later this day were also postponed. (Yonhap)
Prosecutors face backlash for acquitting Kim Keon Hee of graft charges

By Anna J. Park

First lady Kim Keon Hees acceptance of a Dior handbag from a Korean American pastor is likely to remain a contentious issue for the Yoon Suk Yeol government throughout the presidents term in office, as the prosecutions decision to acquit her of violating anti-graft laws has failed to convince both the public and the opposition.

Labeling prosecutors as a puppet of Yoon, a former prosecutor, liberal opposition parties and civic groups are ramping up their demands for a special counsel investigation into the allegations, which the president has already rejected.

The Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office (SCDPO), which investigated the allegation that Kim received a luxury bag worth about 3 million won ($2,252) from a pastor in 2022, concluded that Kim was not guilty of any wrongdoing. The office stated that the bag was given "not in exchange for favors" but simply "out of gratitude."

The conclusion was reached about four months after the investigation team was assembled.

SCDPO chief Lee Chang-soo reported the conclusion to Prosecutor General Lee One-seok, Thursday.

Kim is alleged to have accepted the bag, along with other items such as cosmetics and liquor, from Pastor Choi Jae-young between June and September 2022. Choi recorded the acceptance of the bag with a hidden camera and released the footage through online media last year.

While Choi claimed he sought certain favors in exchange for the gifts, prosecutors concluded that Kim was either unaware of his requests or that there was a time gap between receiving the gifts and the solicitations. Prosecutors determined that the bag and other gifts were more likely given as a "means of facilitating meetings" or as a "gesture of gratitude," rather than as a bribe for favors.

Despite the conclusion by prosecutors, it seems unlikely that the controversy surrounding Kim will die down anytime soon. The unclear outcome, which has failed to convince the opposition bloc and liberal civic groups, is likely to keep haunting the president throughout his term.

The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) criticized the prosecutors for their conclusion that the first lady should face no charges.

The prosecution, which was supposed to investigate those in power, has now degenerated into one that protects those in power, DPK spokesperson Noh Jong-myun said in a statement. "The prosecution has ultimately granted immunity to the first lady in the luxury handbag case ... The prosecution has turned the prosecutor general into a puppet to grant immunity to Kim."

Another DPK spokesman, Cho Seung-rae, argued that the acquittal underscores the need for a special counsel investigation into Kim's luxury bag case.

"The politically biased prosecution may offer false leniency, but the people will never forgive them. No one will believe the luxury bag was merely a 'token of gratitude' and not 'in exchange for favors.' We need to uncover the truth through a special counsel investigation," Cho said.

The liberal opposition bloc sought a special counsel investigation during the previous National Assembly session in May and passed a relevant bill, but Yoon vetoed it.

Cho Kuk, the leader of the minor opposition Rebuilding Korea Party (RKP), also criticized prosecutors.

"The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, which acts mercilessly toward opposition politicians and ordinary citizens, is exceptionally eager to grant immunity to Kim," Cho said. "From now on, then, the spouses of public officials, journalists, and university professors (who are subject to the anti-graft law) can receive luxury handbags as a token of appreciation. Only if they claim there were no favors in return, they will be excused," he added.

On the other hand, the ruling People Power Party (PPP) took a cautious stance regarding the issue.

The party's leader, Han Dong-hoon, told reporters that judicial judgments are based on "facts and legal principles," adding that he believes the prosecutors' decision was in line with these standards.
By Kim Ae-ran

Scorching heat mixed with strong sunlight and high humidity affects our daily lives. My nephew living in Daegu says that he feels almost like he's in a hot frying pan. The heat wave is spread all over the world.

In such hot summer weather, walking under the trees in a forest is one way to be refreshed. Because of this refreshing benefit of trees, preserving nature and creating green spaces has been one of the challenging tasks to make the globe a better place to live.

I imagine that the vast fields and lands once created endless networks of jungles filled with trees, plants, flowers, streams, lakes, ponds and rocks.

However, under the constant influence of civilization, many green spaces have been developed and cultivated for other purposes. Despite much development here and there, it is good to see that green spaces are maintained thanks to mindful people with goodwill.

People with spiritual vision, especially ecologists and environmentalists, have constantly made efforts to protect nature from further damage. Thanks to their goodwill and inspiring vision, we can still appreciate and enjoy the beauty of the marvelous nature around us.

One day, when I took a walk in Brookline near Boston, I came across Fairsted, a Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site!

Out of curiosity, I read a profile of Frederick Law Olmsted (1822-1903) introduced in a leaflet and found out that he was a great environmentalist with a promising vision and inspiring goodwill.

Olmsted was the first landscape architect in America, whose celebrated designs include Central Park in New York City, Biltmore Estate in Ashville, N.C., the Worlds Fair in Chicago, the Capitol Grounds, Prospect Park in Brooklyn, Riverside in Illinois and Stanford University in California.

As the nations premier park maker and designer, he moved to a farmhouse in Brookline, Mass., in 1883, and created the five-mile trails called the Emerald Necklace covering the linked paths from Franklin Park, Arnold Arboretum, Jamaica Pond, Olmsted Park and Muddy River to Back Bay Fens.

The Emerald Necklace is a grand parkway connecting the heart of the city with the pastoral and picturesque rural scenery of the suburbs. Olmsted had a vision for creating the necklace in nature to give people a lovely dale gently winding between low wooded slopes, giving a broad expanse of unbroken turf, lost in the distance. He dreamed that everybody could escape from the industrialized urban society through the space.

He believed that no great town can long exist without great suburbs. He thought that our body and spirit could be healed through a close relationship with nature. Truly, we need some quiet places to be free from the stress, tension and pressure due to the hectic lifestyle.

As he firmly believed, beautiful scenery has more than restorative powers. Pastoral nature has a moral and spiritual influence on human behavior and it promotes a healthy community life that is harmonized with leisure, contemplativeness, resilience and happy tranquility.

Since my Spiritual Exercises in June this year, I jog for about an hour early every morning, facing toward the east to feel the sunrise. I think the sunrise is one of the best gifts from nature. Jogging, slowly breathing in and out, and facing the heavens give me refreshing perspectives on life.

I really appreciate all those who make the globe green, peaceful and beautiful.

The author is a member of the Daughters of St. Paul (Figlie di San Paolo), living the Good News and proclaiming it with various means of social communication.
By Woo Jong-soo

What is cybersecurity? Joseph Nye Jr., a renowned political scientist, noted that security is like oxygen, emphasizing its fundamental importance.

As the head of the National Office of Investigation at the Korean National Police Agency (KNPA), I would like to draw a comparison between cybersecurity and oxygen. Just as we take the air we breathe for granted, we often overlook the cybersecurity measures that protect our daily lives.

However, once compromised, restoring cybersecurity can be as challenging as purifying polluted air.

The advent of information and communications technology (ICT) has empowered us to trade cryptocurrencies, remotely control home appliances, express opinions freely online and gain insights into one anothers perspectives.

However, on the other side, we face troubling realities: cryptocurrencies are exploited by criminals, leaked personal information is rapidly disseminated online and unchecked false information spreads without restriction.

One of the key characteristics of oxygen is its unobstructed flow. Similarly, to combat increasingly sophisticated and transnational cybercrime in the boundless realm of cyberspace, cybersecurity must also transcend geographical and linguistic barriers through swift and coordinated international cooperation.

To that end, the Korean police are collaborating with overseas law enforcement institutions in countries such as the U.S. Japan, France, Netherlands, Australia and Singapore. Additionally, partnerships with international institutions such as Europol and Interpol and global IT firms including Google, Apple and Binance are also playing a crucial role in these efforts.

Building upon our international cooperation network, the Korean police have achieved significant milestones.

In collaboration with Australian authorities, the Korean police executed a seizure and search operation at the residence of an individual in Australia who operated a website distributing illegal sexual exploitation materials, and obtained crucial evidence for the investigation.

We also analyzed evidence on a suspect who hacked a cryptocurrency exchange in collaboration with the French police, which has confirmed the suspects charges. Additionally, the Korean police are exchanging real-time information with the U.S. FBI to respond to Kimsuky, known as North Koreas hacker group, and we are enhancing international cooperation by deploying liaison officers to Europol.

The Korean police will not remain complacent. Instead, to prepare for the future, we will host the 2024 International Symposium on Cybercrime Response (ISCR) in Seoul from Aug. 27 to 29 and invite cybersecurity experts from around the world to participate.

The event will serve as a platform for experts dedicated to building a robust cyber ecosystem to share their visions, ideas and investigative techniques. Under the theme Cybersecurity: From Here and Beyond, it will facilitate valuable exchanges and collaborations.

The ISCR is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year and has become one of the flagship events hosted by the KNPA. I believe this milestone underscores its status as a premier platform for cybersecurity experts from around the world.

I look forward to reinforcing the cybersecurity capabilities of the Korean police from this years ISCR and elevating the global standards of cybersecurity.

The writer is deputy commissioner general for investigation at the National Police Agency.
By Michael Breen

The news earlier this month that the late Kim Dae-jungs son had sold the family home in Seoul to the owner of a coffee franchise stirred up the former presidents political descendants in the opposition Democratic Party of Korea.

The house in Donggyo-dong in the capitals Mapo District must not become a cafe, they said. It should be preserved for history, even if it means, they proposed rather undemocratically, that the new owner should be forced to sell.

A few days later, however, Kim Dae-jungs son, Hong-gul, the previous owner, appears to have come to some sort of agreement with his buyer. He announced the house would be turned into a memorial for his parents. The Kim Dae-jung and Lee Hee-ho Memorial Hall will open to the public just a few weeks from now, he said.

I have to say this story stirred a few memories for me. I remember the house well. There was a time when it was ringed, three-deep, by riot police who blocked all visitors save for Kims seven secretaries and other staff, foreign diplomats who covered Korean politics for their governments and the foreigners in the foreign press. I was in this last group and, as most foreign press were actually Korean and harassed by police, we were a small band.

Kim Dae-jung was born on Haui-do, an island off the southwest coast, and grew up in Mokpo. He moved into the house in Donggyo-dong in 1962 and, besides jail time, a two-year exile in the United States and a period in Britain researching unification, lived there until 1995 when he moved to Ilsan in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province.

During his 1998-2003 presidency, the old house was torn down to make way for the current five-story building. He lived there after his term was over until his death in 2009.

My first visit was in February 1985, the day Kim returned from the U.S. exile. Such was the fear that day that the government of Chun Doo-hwan would kill him at Gimpo Airport, as the Filipino opposition leader Ninoy Aquino had been killed two years earlier in Manila, similarly returning from the States, that foreign democracy advocates and journalists protectively filled the plane and tried to stick with him. When police manhandled some of them and whisked Kim away, people panicked.

Some of us reckoned that the real intent of the authorities in doing this was to deny those who had come to greet him. Theyd just take him home by a route that avoided the welcoming crowds, so we went there. I was one of the first to arrive and be let in. Another was Don Kirk, who interestingly, almost 40 years later, was also a columnist for this newspaper.

For the next two or three years, our small group of seven foreign correspondents would have lunch with Kim Dae-jung and, separately, with the other main opposition figure, Kim Young-sam, every other month. We would host one and, the next time, they would host.

In those days, Kim Dae-jungs photo and name were banned from local media. This gave rise to the reference to the Donggyo-dong person for DJ and Sangdo-dong person for YS.

The foreign press had more affection, I think it is true to say, for DJ because he spoke English. But also, because he had suffered and represented the southwest, which was the underdog in pre-democracy Korea.

He was one of those men made better by his wife, an academic and Christian lady. DJ was a Roman Catholic and, applying his faith to politics, sought to forgive those who crushed the pro-democracy side in order that in time all, including the ruling side, might benefit and prosper from it. He intended to break the cycle of revenge. This impression sometimes overwhelmed me. I remember, in our group around his dinner table, or there on my own, listening to him and getting quite emotional.

He took the foreign press very seriously because the local media was controlled and, he believed, we held the torch for democracy at a time when any chance it would ever come seemed most hopeless.

There is no doubt he was a great man. But, thinking now about how to memorialize him, he was not the only one. Perhaps it is always this way with history, that we single out people who represent the historic moment and forget others in a way that at the time may seem unfair. Perhaps this is why it usually takes time to forget the supporting cast, simplify the story and build statues to one or two.

The truth is that Korean democracy did not arrive because a pro-democracy leader or two triumphed over an alternative. There was no theocracy, monarchy or communist party to be shoved out. There was a system to be tweaked, as hard as that was. That is because, from the start, Korea was an aspiring democracy.

We should memorialize those most prominent in its arrival, but we should be careful not to claim it was the work of one person. As DJs house becomes a memorial, I would hope for similar recognition of a few other people at the same time.

Perhaps, given this, it is appropriate that it be done by private ownership.

Michael Breen (mike.breen@insightcomms.com) is the author of "The New Koreans."
Protracted medical void cannot be good for society

The medical crisis triggered by a strike by junior doctors in February, which protested the government's plan to increase medical student admissions, remains unresolved with no clear end in sight. Emergency rooms are facing severe challenges due to a surge in COVID-19 cases, a slow return of junior doctors, and the approaching winter. With large hospitals heavily dependent on these junior doctors, their absence is placing a considerable strain on both healthcare professionals and patients in emergency rooms.

Emergency rooms are crucial for critically ill patients and those needing urgent care. Recently, many emergency rooms nationwide have been struggling with a severe shortage of doctors and staff. For example, Chungnam National University Sejong Hospital, located south of Seoul, had to close its nighttime operations on Aug. 22 and Aug. 29 due to the resignation of three specialist doctors. Similar issues are affecting other facilities, including Soon Chun Hyang University Hospital in Cheonan and Dankook University Hospital. Of the 408 hospitals with emergency rooms, approximately 1.2 percent are under pressure to limit their hours. Many other hospitals are reducing the number of emergency room beds, raising significant concerns about the impact on patient care.

The current crisis is largely due to a shortage of medical professionals. Out of the approximately 12,000 trainee doctors who left their positions in February, the Ministry of Health and Welfare's estimate as of July 15 revealed that only 1,155  about 8 percent  had returned to their hospitals.

In the recent special recruitment drive for the second half of the year, only 125 applications were received for approximately 7,645 available trainee doctor positions. This alarmingly low number of returning trainees is concerning. Many are opting for part-time work instead, believing that returning for the second half of the training, after missing the first half, would be ineffective.

The government and the medical community, especially medical school professors, need to come together to address the medical reform process, which poses a potential threat to public health if left unaddressed. The surge in COVID-19 infections and unprecedented cases of heat-related illnesses are further straining emergency rooms. Government statistics revealed that 13,494 people visited emergency rooms in July due to COVID-19, a figure six times higher than in June. In the first 11 days of August alone, emergency room visits surged to 18,702. Additionally, the number of COVID-19 patients admitted to 220 hospitals nationwide rose to over 1,350 in the second week of August,

On Wednesday, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency stated that the recent rise in COVID-19 cases does not constitute a crisis, but that "it should be viewed as a process in which COVID-19 becomes an endemic."

That may well be technically true. The current dominant strain, KP.3, is less severe and has a lower fatality rate. However, it is known for its high transmissibility, leading to a greater number of infections. Although COVID-19 is now classified as endemic in the country, the ongoing medical crisis raises serious concerns about whether our usually high-quality healthcare system and government can effectively handle the rising number of patients.

The government has been slow to address this urgent issue, and the medical community remains firmly opposed to the proposed increase of 2,000 enrollment slots. In response, the government suggested various measures, such as raising doctors' treatment fees. However, these abrupt proposals have angered the medical community, particularly because the government also announced it was mulling granting hospital permits to those who have not only passed the national medical exam but also completed hospital training.

Although it may seem overdue, the government must now engage in serious discussions and take gradual, well-considered steps with the medical community before moving forward with the promised medical reform. Both parties need to approach the situation with a spirit of compromise to find a balanced solution.
The chief of SK Group, Korea's chip-to-chemical conglomerate, said Thursday the group will be quick to respond to AI-induced changes to grasp business opportunities and seek growth.

In the group's annual SK Icheon Forum, SK Group Chairman and Chief Executive Chey Tae-won made the remarks, sharing his view with the group's employees on the burgeoning AI ecosystem and the group's response to upcoming changes.

Mentioning the outlook of the AI market, Chey said, "The AI value chain does guarantee profits (for businesses) at the moment and big tech firms are making massive investments to take the lead in the AI market."

There might be a bumpy road ahead but the AI industry is on track for further development, he said.

The chairman has recently had meetings with leaders of major tech firms, such as AI giant Nvidia, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC), Microsoft, U.S. e-commerce giant Amazon.com Inc., and OpenAI, which unveiled ChatGPT in late 2022.

"Big tech companies share a common view that nuclear power will be essential in operating AI data centers, which require a huge amount of energy," Chey said. "Any changes in energy mix due to the need of nuclear energy will also generate new business opportunities for us (the group)."

SK Group, the country's second-biggest conglomerate by assets after Samsung Group, has a variety of energy-related affiliates.

If the AI growth accelerates, SK Group will be able to seek businesses involving the AI data centers' hardware and large language model (LLM), a type of AI program that can recognize and generate text, among other tasks, the chairman said.

SK hynix, the group's flagship affiliate, has emerged the leading supplier of high-bandwidth memory chips, or HBMs, used in AI chipsets to Nvidia. (Yonhap)
Tech leaks increase amid intensifying competition

By Nam Hyun-woo

Korean companies' dominance in the global display market is being increasingly challenged by their Chinese counterparts, with recent data revealing that Chinese firms' global OLED market share surpassed that of Korean companies for the first time in the first quarter of this year.

Industry insiders attribute this shift to Beijing's "patriotic consumption" campaign, which not only served as an informal boycott of imported products but also led Chinese smartphone manufacturers to favor OLEDs made by domestic producers.

Korean display makers such as Samsung Display and LG Display are striving to maintain their leadership in premium products by retaining their technological lead on Chinese players, but the competition is intensifying as evidenced by a growing number of tech leak cases.

Hot pursuit

According to data from market tracker Omdia, Chinese firms accounted for 49.7 percent of global OLED shipments in the first quarter of this year, surpassing Korean firms, which held 49 percent.

In the first quarter of last year, Korean and Chinese companies held market shares of 62.3 percent and 36.6 percent, respectively, maintaining a 25.7-percentage-point gap. However, this narrowed quickly to 9.5 percentage points three months later.

The gap widened to 14.9 percentage points in the third quarter and 16.7 percentage points in the fourth, but ended up being reversed in the January-to-March period this year.

In terms of OLED revenues, Korean firms are still maintaining a dominant market share with 62.8 percent in the first quarter of this year, with Chinese companies following with 36.4 percent.

This means that Samsung and LG still have their prowess in high-value products, but the revenue gap is also narrowing quickly, given that Korean and Chinese firms each accounted for 74.2 percent and 25.2 percent in the first quarter of last year.

Display industry officials attributed this trend to Chinese firms rise in OLEDs for smartphones, as Huawei, Xioami, Oppo and other Chinese smartphone makers increasingly use displays manufactured by their compatriots.

According to another market tracker Beijing Sino Research, Chinese display companies accounted for 50.7 percent of the global smartphone OLED market by shipment in the first half of this year, up 10.1 percentage points from a year earlier. During the same period, that of Korean companies declined to 49.3 percent from 59.4 percent.

Since China launched the Made in China 2025 strategy in 2015, the country has been promoting its goal of improving the self-sufficiency of its industries, resulting in major smartphone manufacturers using domestically manufactured OLEDs in their new products.

According to data from the Korea Display Industry Association, 16 percent of smartphones made by Chinese makers used OLEDs manufactured by Korean companies last year, plunging from 77.9 percent in 2021 and 55.6 percent in 2022.

After Chinese display makers claimed leadership in the LCD market, Korean firms have quickly lowered their reliance on LCDs and focused on OLEDs, an industry official said. Though Korean display makers maintain technological leadership for now, Chinese companies are in pursuit in terms of not only price competitiveness but also technologies.

Technology war

Amid the intensifying competition, the number of trade secret leak cases is also rising.

According to the National Police Agency, police have investigated 12 cases of overseas technology leaks in the first half of this year, up from eight during the first half of last year. Among the 12 cases, three were related to the display industry.

On a yearly basis, police investigated only one leak of display technology in 2019, but the number grew to three in 2021 and 12 in 2023, showing that the competition is ever-intensifying.

In a recent case, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office indicted three former LG Display employees, including a former team leader, for violating the Act on Prevention of Divulgence and Protection of Industrial Technology and other related laws.

The indicted individuals face charges of allegedly photographing the blueprint of LG Display's Guangzhou plant and providing them to a Chinese rival between 2021 and 2022. LG Display produces large OLEDs for TVs at this plant and has invested over 5 trillion won ($3.75 billion) to establish mass production facilities.

While monitoring former employees, we have confirmed the circumstances that our technology has been leaked and requested law enforcement authorities to investigate, an official at LG Display said.

We are enhancing our security management and systems, and will thoroughly respond with legal actions to any attempts to leak our information, including industrial technology and other trade secrets.

Last month, the Suwon District Court sentenced a former Samsung Display senior researcher to six years in prison for leaking OLED technologies.

The former researcher was indicted for attempting to leak technology related to OLED electronic circuit manufacturing equipment and inkjet equipment used to bond panels and cover glass to China from 2018 to 2020. The prosecution estimates that these trade secrets are valued at a minimum of 340 billion won.

The researchers five accomplices received prison sentences ranging from one to two years, but the researcher fled to China. After returning to Korea in May last year, the researcher was arrested by the prosecution in September.
By Park Jae-hyuk

Hyundai Steel said Thursday that it has made various efforts to secure future growth engines and enhance its competitiveness in the market.

The steelmaker signed a memorandum of understanding in June with Czech automotive components maker Tawesco and Italian steel service center Eusider to provide Volkswagen, Stellantis and other major carmakers with low-carbon steel plates in compliance with the European Unions Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism.

Amid the Korean firms ongoing investments at its low-carbon steel plate manufacturing facility in Dangjin, South Chungcheong Province, the Korean firm has formed this partnership in response to the growing demand for eco-friendly products of its European clients.

Hyundai Steel and its partners plan to test components made with low-carbon steel plates and carry out joint marketing campaigns to expand their presence in the market.

Last month, the steelmaking unit of Hyundai Motor Group signed a non-disclosure agreement with Singapores Advanced Remanufacturing and Technology Center (ARTC) to develop artificial intelligence for smart factories.

ARTC has already teamed up with with Hyundai Motor Group Innovation Center Singapore.

Hyundai Steel expects its recent partnership with ARTC to lead to innovation in steelmaking.

Additionally, the steelmaker has paid attention to the production of steel products used for substructures of offshore wind farms, as the company views the offshore wind power industry as lucrative.

According to the company, steel products used for substructures of offshore wind farms need to resist heavy weight, strong vibrations, low temperatures and corrosion caused by salt water.

Based on its track record of supplying steel pipes to Jeju Hanlim and Taiwans TPC offshore wind projects, Hyundai Steel seeks to dominate the market for steel products used in the substructures of offshore wind farms.

The global demand for offshore wind plants will grow further, a Hyundai Steel official said.

We have entered the market, considering its growth potential.
Hyosung reduces risk in governance structure

By Lee Min-hyung

Following a governance reform for independent management under the third-generation heir of the newly established holding company of the Hyosung Group, HS Hyosung is tasked with expanding its global presence in the next-generation materials business.

In February, the group unveiled a plan to split the holding firm by launching HS Hyosung, aiming to grant separate authority to the two heirs of the group, Hyosung Group Chairman Cho Hyun-joon and HS Hyosung Vice Chairman Cho Hyun-sang.

Under the drive, both leaders recently exchanged part of their shares in each firm through a block deal, allowing the vice chairman to become the largest shareholder of HS Hyosung. This move will help him exert tighter control over the new holding firm.

The leader of HS Hyosung is widely expected to concentrate on identifying new revenue streams for Hyosung Advanced Materials, the firm's key cash-cow affiliate. This company is a global leader in the tire cord industry, with its products primarily used in passenger cars and holding a 45 percent share of the global market, according to the company.

The affiliate generated an operating profit of 65.8 billion won ($50 million) in the second quarter of this year, up 35.4 percent from a year earlier, despite a slowdown in the global petrochemical industry. Sales also reached 840.5 billion won during the same period.

However, the company also needs to secure more stable revenue sources in other materials businesses. Therefore, the new head of HS Hyosung is expected to focus on diversifying its materials business into promising areas such as future mobility, aerospace, and eco-friendly materials.

Under the leadership of the vice chairman, we plan to continue investments in research and development for the future materials businesses with huge growth potential, an official at HS Hyosung said.

However, HS Hyosung faces potential risks due to its heavy reliance on the materials affiliate. If the business experiences any unexpected external shocks, there is a significant risk that the holding firm could be adversely affected, potentially impacting all the businesses under its umbrella.

HS Hyosung manages six affiliates, including the materials arm. Hyosung Information System, the company's IT infrastructure arm, is also aiming to undergo a major transformation to align with the ongoing technological shift driven by big data and artificial intelligence (AI).

The new holding firm will also collaborate with global companies in the supply chain management (SCM) solutions business both domestically and internationally. Hyosung leverages its expertise in global SCM, assisting clients in managing their supply chains in major and emerging markets, including Vietnam.

HS Hyosung has also expressed ambitions to aggressively pursue mergers and acquisitions to scale up its overall business volume and expand its presence in the global market.

We will also respond promptly to any demands from global clients and the market, and generate more synergies with our affiliated companies, the official at the company said.

Sibling feud nearing end

Hyosung Group has long been entangled in a sibling feud among the three sons of the late former Honorary Chairman Cho Suck-rai.

However, the recent stock block deal between the heads of the two Hyosung holding firms has paved the way for the conglomerate to realign its governance structure, potentially eliminating risks associated with the heirs.

Earlier, Cho Hyun-joon, the eldest brother with the most influence within Hyosung Group, was the controlling shareholder of HS Hyosung with a 33.03 percent stake. However, the recent deal reduced his stake to 23.12 percent.

But Cho Hyun-sang, the youngest heir of the group, increased his stake in HS Hyosung to 31.96 percent.

Former Hyosung Vice President Cho Hyun-moon, the second-oldest brother, recently reached an agreement with the Hyosung Group chairman to establish a public welfare foundation with his share of the family inheritance. Currently, he is not involved in any management activities within the group.
Vice President Kamala Harris will further strengthen the United States' alliances and partnerships around the globe if elected president in November, a former White House official said Wednesday, stressing she believes in a "strong" American leadership.

Susan Rice, national security adviser from 2013-2017, made the remarks during a press briefing in Chicago, where the Democratic National Convention is in progress to celebrate Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, as the party's nominees for president and vice president.

Though she noted that she was not speaking for Harris, Rice expressed a "high degree of confidence" that the "fundamentals" of American foreign policy will be consistent with those of the Biden administration.

"She will embrace and strengthen further our alliances and partnerships around the world, not just in Europe and Asia but also in places like Latin America, Africa and the Middle East," Rice said.

"I believe you will see differences in emphasis, differences in tone, and she will undoubtedly unveil new perspectives and new initiatives," she added.

Rice also underscored Harris' belief in America's global leadership role.

"Kamala Harris believes in strong American leadership of the world, that our values, our strength, need to be harnessed for the well-being and security of the American people, but also for the greater global good," she said.

Though there is still uncertainty over her foreign policy vision, Harris is expected to build on President Joe Biden's approach designed to reinvigorate and leverage America's network of regional alliances and partnerships to confront security challenges, including North Korean threats.

In a virtual briefing involving Harris' campaign officials and other Democrats, U.S. lawmakers anticipated continuity in terms of the diplomatic strategy to bring together U.S. allies to promote regional security and economic cooperation.

"I'm very optimistic that the kind of collaborations and partnerships and alliances that we've seen from the Biden-Harris administration will, in fact, continue," Rep. Jill Tokuda from Hawaii said.

Tokuda pointed out that Harris was involved in the Biden administration's efforts to promote trilateral cooperation among South Korea, the U.S. and Japan, and among the U.S., the Philippines and Japan, among other groupings.

Rep. Judy Chu of a Californian district echoed the view.

"I think that Kamala Harris is in sync with what the Biden administration has already been doing," she said. (Yonhap)
U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday pressed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the urgency of sealing a deal for a truce in Gaza and the release of hostages, the White House said, but Israel and Hamas stuck firmly to their demands.

The call between the leaders, in which Vice President Kamala Harris also took part, came after Palestinian health officials reported at least 50 Palestinians killed by Israeli airstrikes over a 24-hour period.

Biden stressed to Netanyahu "the urgency of bringing the ceasefire and hostage release deal to closure and discussed upcoming talks in Cairo to remove any remaining obstacles," a White House statement said.

U.S., Israeli, Egyptian and Qatari negotiators, who are expected to meet in Cairo this weekend, have for months struggled to bridge differences between Israel and Hamas.

But Israel and Hamas on Wednesday held to their demands.

"Israel will insist on the achievement of all of its objectives for the war, as they have been defined by the Security Cabinet, including that Gaza never again constitutes a security threat to Israel," Netanyahu's office said in a statement.

Denying an Israeli television report, it said Israel had not agreed to drop its demand to maintain troops in the Philadelphi Corridor, the border strip between Gaza and Egypt, an issue that has been a major sticking point.

A Hamas statement said its officials, meeting with the head of Palestinian Islamic Jihad about progress in the talks, reiterated key Hamas demands. These include an end to Israel's Gaza operation, a full Israeli pullout and a deal to exchange Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

The call between Biden and Netanyahu followed a whirlwind trip to the region by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken that ended on Tuesday without producing a breakthrough in the 10-month-old war.

In Gaza itself, the Israeli military said jets hit around 30 targets throughout the enclave including tunnels, launch sites and an observation post.

It said troops killed dozens of armed fighters and seized weapons including explosives, grenades and automatic rifles.

The Israeli military struck a school and a nearby house in Gaza City, killing at least four people and wounding 15, including several children, Gaza's Civil Emergency Service said.

The Israeli military said in a statement that it hit Hamas militants operating at a command center inside a compound that previously served as a school.

It accused Hamas of continuing to operate from civilian facilities and areas, an allegation Gaza's dominant Islamist militant group denies.

Commenting on Israel's attack on the UN-run school, the head of the UN's Palestinian refugee agency, Philippe Lazzarini, wrote on X that "children reported killed and injured. Some were burnt to death."

"Gaza is no place for children anymore. They are the first casualty of this merciless war," he wrote. "A ceasefire is beyond overdue."

In the town of Bani Suhaila near Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, an Israeli airstrike killed seven Palestinians at a tent encampment for displaced people, medics said.

Israel orders civilians to move

The Israeli military issued new evacuation orders in the heavily overcrowded area of Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians displaced by the fighting have sought shelter.

The orders, which the military said were needed to clear civilians from what had become "a dangerous combat zone," were soon followed by tank fire with at least one person killed and several wounded by machine gun fire, medics and residents said.

Israel's military campaign has killed more than 40,000 people in Gaza since October, according to Palestinian health authorities.

The war began on Oct. 7 when Hamas gunmen stormed into Israeli communities and military bases, killing around 1,200 people and abducting about 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.

The misery of people in Deir Al-Balah, who were on the move yet again as they sought to escape fighting, was compounded by the so far fruitless wait for a ceasefire agreement.

"Unfortunately, we may die before we see an end to this war. All ceasefire talk is a lie," Aburakan, 55, who has had to change refuge five times since October due to Israeli attacks, told Reuters via a chat app.

Most of Gaza's 2.3 million population has been displaced multiple times since the start of the Israeli campaign. Even in areas designated safe zones, there have been regular reports of casualties from Israeli strikes. (Reuters)
Ukrainian civilians on Wednesday fled areas close to the front line as Russian troops steadily seized more territory across the eastern Donetsk region.

The Russian army has captured several towns and villages in recent days, even as Moscow scrambles to fight off a Ukrainian counterattack into its western Kursk region.

Civilians in Myrnograd  less than 10 kilometers (six miles) from the front line  told AFP that increased shelling had finally prompted some to leave, two and a half years after Russia launched its full-scale invasion.

"I need to leave, because the situation is really getting worse. Every day  not even every day, but every hour  is like an avalanche," said Maksym, a 40-year-old mine worker.

A recent strike hit the nine- story block of flats where he lives, blowing out the windows.

"Thank God I wasn't home but I decided to leave, because life is precious," he said.

AFP reporters saw civilians watching as houses burned after a recent Russian shelling attack on the small town.

The remains of a half-destroyed residential building stood surrounded by rubble and a burnt-out car was crumbling by the side of the road.

Firefighters were tackling a blaze at another house hit in a recent barrage, as its owner stood outside, shirtless.

Russian troops are fighting to reach the key logistics hub of Pokrovsk, a strategically important city five kilometers west of Myrnograd.

Officials on Monday ordered families with children to evacuate Pokrovsk and the surrounding areas, where they said more than 50,000 people still live.

Asked whether he would return one day, Maksym said: "I'd like to believe so."

'Sorry for the children'

Galyna, 74, on Wednesday was helping her granddaughter leave for the comparative safety of central Ukraine.

"My granddaughter is scared. I feel sorry for the children," she said.

Regional officials said they had set up a temporary accommodation center for families forced to abandon their homes but with nowhere else to go.

Russia on Wednesday claimed its latest territorial advance, with the defense ministry saying its forces had captured the town of Zhelanne, around 20 kilometers to the southeast.

Moscow claims to have annexed the industrial Donetsk region, as well as three others in eastern and southern Ukraine, despite not having full control over any of them.

The Donetsk region has been at the center of the war between Russia and Ukraine since 2014, when Moscow-backed separatists tried to seize control of the Donbas region and secede from Kyiv.

Separately, Ukraine's parliament voted on Wednesday to join the International Criminal Court (ICC), as Kyiv seeks to bring Russia to justice over war crimes it is alleged to have committed throughout its invasion.

Ukraine signed the Rome Statute that founded the court in 2000, but had not ratified it on fears Ukrainian soldiers could face prosecution.

Drone attacks

Ukrainian military units disputed Russia's claim that it had taken control of the town of New York, one of its key targets in recent months.

Moscow's defense ministry said Tuesday its forces had seized it in a recent advance.

Kyiv might have hoped its shock border incursion into Kursk, now in its third week, would force Moscow to divert troops from other parts of the front line.

It claims to have captured dozens of settlements and more than 1,000 square kilometers of territory in the unprecedented cross-border assault.

So far there has been little sign that fighting on the front lines in Ukraine's east has subsided, however.

Russia on Wednesday foiled an attempt by a group of Ukrainian fighters to cross the border into its western Bryansk region, which neighbors the Kursk region.

Regional governor Alexander Bogomaz wrote on Telegram that "during a battle, an attempt to break through was prevented by FSB border guards" who fired on the enemy fighters. He described the attackers as a "reconnaissance-sabotage group".

The situation at the scene was now "under control", the governor said.

Both countries also launched attempted overnight drone strikes aimed at Kyiv and Moscow.

Russia said it destroyed 45 drones  11 of them headed for the Russian capital.

"This is one of the largest ever attempts to attack Moscow with drones," Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said.

The Ukrainian air force said it detected 72 air targets over Ukraine and downed 50 drones and one missile, some of which were headed for Kyiv. (AFP)
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy toured the northeastern Ukrainian region of Sumy on Thursday in his first visit to the border area since his forces entered Russian territory more than two weeks ago.

After a meeting with Ukraines military commander, Zelenskyy said Ukrainian forces have claimed control of another settlement in the Russian region of Kursk and taken more Russian prisoners of war whom he hopes to exchange for captured Ukrainians. He referred to that as Ukraine's exchange fund.

Another settlement in the Kursk region is now under Ukrainian control, and we have replenished the exchange fund, Zelenskyy wrote on the social media platform X after hearing a report from the military commander, Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi.

But the gains there come as Ukraine continues to lose ground in its eastern Donetsk region. The Russian Defense Ministry announced Thursday that its military has claimed control of the village of Mezhove.

Ukraine's push into Russia marks the first capture of Russian territory since World War II.

It comes as both sides in the war use drones to attack far within enemy lines.

A Ukrainian drone attack Thursday sparked a fire at a military facility in southern Russia as Kyiv pushes its offensive in the Kursk region and struck key infrastructure including bridges.

Andrei Bocharov, governor of the Volgograd region, said Thursday that a defense ministry facility was on fire after being attacked by drones in the area of Marinovka, in a sign that Ukraine is not letting up on its attacks. He did not specify what was damaged.

Ukraine attacked Russia overnight with 28 drones, Russia's Ministry of Defense said. Thirteen were shot down over the Volgograd region, seven over the Rostov region, four over the Belgorod region, two over the Voronezh region, and one each over the Bryansk and Kursk regions, the ministry said.

Russian Telegram channels said drones attempted to attack a military air base near Marinovka in the village of Oktyabrsky. Videos shared on Russian social media showed an explosion in the night sky, reportedly near the base. Marinovka is about 300 kilometers (185 miles) east of the Ukrainian border and about the same distance west from the border with Kazakhstan.

Ukraine claimed responsibility for the attack.

Ukraines Security Service and the Special Operation Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine conducted the drone attack Wednesday night striking the Marinovka airfield in Russia, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.

The attack came as the ground offensive in Russia's Kursk region rattles the Kremlin. The daring operation could involve as many as 10,000 Ukrainian troops backed by armor and artillery, military analysts say.

The Baza Telegram channel, which is close to Russian law enforcement, said one drone was taken down several kilometers (miles) from the airfield near Marinovka and that wreckage from another fell on a trailer near the air base, causing it to catch fire.

Data from NASA fire satellites, which monitor Earth for forest blazes, showed fires breaking out around the air bases apron, where fighter jets were previously seen parked.

Another fire burned Thursday in Russia's Rostov region, where firefighters struggled for the fifth day to put out a fire at an oil depot in the town of Proletarsk caused by a Ukrainian drone attack Sunday.

Russian state television channels have largely avoided covering the attack. Russian Orthodox priests visited Proletarsk to pray for injured firefighters.

Independent Russian Telegram channels said another powerful explosion was heard Wednesday evening and shared videos of a fireball burning in the night sky. State news agency Tass said 47 people were injured while putting out the blaze, but firefighters succeeded in stopping fires in six fuel tanks.

Satellite photos from Planet Labs PBC analyzed Thursday by The Associated Press showed the fire at the oil depot still intensely burning as of Wednesday. Storage tanks at the facility appeared engulfed in flames. Visible flames could be seen in the images, with a thick black smoke cloud drifting west over the city of Proletarsk.

Kursk's acting governor, Alexei Smirnov, said authorities began putting up concrete shelters at bus stops and other locations around the city Thursday to protect from shelling.

He said similar work will be done in Zheleznogorsk and Kurchatov, where the Kursk nuclear power plant is located. (AP)
FORT WAYNE  Indiana State Police detectives are investigating a second inmate death in a week at the Allen County Jail. The county coroner declared the first from natural causes and said the second was due to hanging.

In the most recent case, at 8 p.m. Wednesday the Allen County Coroners Office was notified of a death investigation from the Allen County Jail. The inmate had been transported to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

An autopsy was completed and notification was made to the next of kin of Keimar Lovell Butler, 28, of Fort Wayne. According to online records, Butler was facing charges in Allen Superior Court of Felony 6 possession of methamphetamine, Felony 6 possession of a narcotic drug, and misdemeanor possession of paraphernalia.

The cause of death was asphyxia due to hanging, and the manner of death was suicide, according to the coroner's office.

According to the Indiana State Police, the following occurred:

Butler had been incarcerated in the Allen County jail since July 22. He was housed in solitary confinement in W-Block, which is a disciplinary unit. At 6:31 p.m. Wednesday, jail staff noticed that the window on Butler's cell door was covered. The jailer entered the cell to remove the window covering and found Butler unresponsive and hanging by a bed sheet from the bed frame. Jail staff attempted CPR to resuscitate Butler. Emergency medical personnel were immediately called to assist before he was taken to a hospital.

Before the cell check at 6:31 p.m., the previous check of Butler's cell was at 5 p.m. Nothing was noted out of the ordinary at that time and jail video does not show anyone else entering the cell between the jail staff checks, according to the ISP.

The incident remains under investigation by the Allen County Sheriffs Department, the Indiana State Police, the Allen County Prosecutors Office and the coroners office.

The previous death of Paul Green, 36, of Fort Wayne, was declared by the coroner's officer as natural due to peritonitis, an infection of the stomach lining.

Green was found unresponsive by jail staff at 2:50 a.m. Aug. 16 in Cell Block R3, where he was on a medical watch list, according to the ISP. A jail nurse performed CPR before Green was transported by ambulance to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, the ISP reported.
China's banks have seen steady asset expansion since the start of the year, an official with the country's financial regulator said on Wednesday.

The assets of financial institutions in China's banking sector grew 7 percent year on year to 423.8 trillion yuan (about 59.43 trillion U.S. dollars) at the end of July, Xiao Yuanqi, deputy head of the National Financial Regulatory Administration, told a press conference.

Xiao said the sector's non-performing loan ratio stood at 1.61 percent at the end of July, down 0.08 percentage points compared to the same period last year.

The sector's capital adequacy ratio stood at 15.53 percent at the end of June, indicating that the sector has sufficient "ammunition" to withstand risks, Xiao said.

Looking to the future, the administration will continue to help banks optimize asset-liability structure and cultivate new sources of profit growth to enhance profitability, he added.

Zarazeno ct 22.08.2024 06:08:57 Vydano Zdroj scio.gov.cn Original english.scio.gov.cn/pressroom/2024-08/22/content_117381304.htm lang en
Jerusalem, Aug 22 (AP) Israeli tank and drone strikes in Gaza on Wednesday killed at least 17 people, according to hospital staff and Associated Press journalists who counted the bodies.

The strikes happened in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza and Khan Younis in the south.

Also Read | PM Modi Poland Visit: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Pays Homage at 3 Memorials, Including Good Maharaja Square, in Warsaw (See Pics).

Lebanon's Hezbollah on Wednesday launched more than 50 rockets, hitting a number of private homes in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights. Hezbollah said the attack was in response to an Israeli strike deep into Lebanon on Tuesday night.

The attacks came a day after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with fellow mediators Egypt and Qatar as he pressed ahead with the latest diplomatic mission to secure a cease-fire in the war in Gaza, even as Hamas and Israel signalled that challenges remain. Diplomatic efforts had redoubled as fears grow of a wider regional war after the recent targeted killings of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders, both blamed on Israel, and threats of retaliation.

Also Read | Indian Doctor Oumair Aejaz Arrested in US for Taking Photos and Filming 13,000 Videos of Naked Children and Women.

Meanwhile, key mediator Egypt expressed skepticism Wednesday as more details emerged of the proposal meant to bridge gaps between Israel and Hamas.

Officials in Egypt, in its unique role as both a mediator and affected party since it borders Gaza, told The Associated Press that the Hamas militant group will not agree to the bridging proposal for a number of reasons  ones in addition to the long-held wariness over whether a deal would truly remove Israel forces from Gaza and end the war.

President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, the White House said, without immediately giving details on what was said.

Hamas is believed to still be holding around 110 hostages captured during the Oct. 7 attacks that started the war. Israeli authorities estimate around a third are dead. During the October 7 attack, militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians.

Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed over 40,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count. The war has caused widespread destruction and forced the vast majority of Gaza's 2.3 million residents to flee their homes, often multiple times. (AP)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
On 21 August Argentinas lower chamber of congress rejected a decree of necessity and urgency (DNU) issued by Presidentto boost funding for the national intelligence agency (Side).

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On 21 August thousands of indigenous Colombians began an indefinite protest in the capital Bogota to demand action against worsening violence in the southwestern department of Cauca.

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On 21 August Brazils Presidentlaunched a joint environmental initiative with the leaders of congress,(senate) and(lower house), and the president of the supreme court (STF),

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College students will be arriving on campuses across Pennsylvania in the coming days but some will come with one thing missing  confidence in knowing they have the money to pay their tuition.

The rollout of the new federal Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, has proven to be a royal mess with all of its delays, glitches and processing errors that have hindered schools ability to finalize financial aid packages for students.

Trina Snyder, Shippensburg Universitys director of financial aid and scholarships, describes the scene in her office these days as very chaotic at best and unlike any she has seen in more than 25 years in the field.

The office phones are ringing off the hook. Students and their families want answers the financial aid office cant provide. And on top of that, Snyder has a lot of new staff to train because the pressure from the fits and starts and complications surrounding the new FAFSA have driven away many of her employees.

The FAFSA delays and fiasco just continue to surprise us, Snyder said.

The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency, which administers the state grant program, has been dealing with the collateral damage caused by the glitches, delays and processing errors associated with the FAFSA rollout for months.

PHEAA officials say they typically begin receiving the data from completed FAFSA forms in early October for the following academic year. This year, the agency received it in May, eight months late.

On top of that, the nearly half million records arrived all at once rather than incrementally, hindering the agencys ability to swiftly process data to determine grant eligibility, which can provide up to $5,750 a year.

Also complicating matters is the application for the state grant was not linked to the new FAFSA as it historically has been to make a one-stop shop for students and families.

PHEAA is working to address this situation by sending out emails to first-time students encouraging them to complete the application for some of the more than $400 million in aid the state is making available through the grant program this year.

Returning students are also receiving emails if they previously applied for a state grant but PHEAA officials say they do not need to do anything unless significant changes to their academic career occurred, such as changing schools.

Additionally, PHEAA is hosting a webinar to help students and families complete the state grant application at 6 p.m. Aug. 29. Registration for this session can be found at pheaa.org/virtual. (An additional webinar was held at 6 p.m. Aug. 21.)

Were doing everything we can to help students and families, said Nathan Hench, PHEAAs senior vice president for public affairs.

PHEAA is encouraging college financial aid offices to use their state grant estimator tool to help tentatively package financial aid based on an assumption that a student is eligible for a grant.

Still, it is not a situation financial aid officers like Snyder  or students  want to be in so close to the start of the new academic year.

The bottom line is they just want to know what were doing to help them pay their bills and not be distracted by that in class, Snyder said. Were doing everything we can to give them more time [to pay their bills] and explaining whats going on in the process.

PHEAAs board leaders  Sen. Wayne Fontana, D-Allegheny, the chairman, and Rep Steven Mentzer, R-Lancaster County, vice chairman  sent a letter to their legislative colleagues this week to update them about the situation and explain how the new FAFSA, not PHEAA, is at the root of the problem.

It is frustrating that PHEAA has dealt with unprecedented challenges this year, including difficulties brought on by the Biden-Harris administrations mishandling of the FAFSA application process, said Sen. Scott Martin, R-Lancaster County.

The updated FAFSA was meant to simplify the form, which PHEAA spokeswoman Bethany Coleman said it has done. It just took longer than expected, giving colleges less time to make financial aid offers to students as well as less time for students to decide where to enroll and figure out how to pay for their education.

PHEAA officials told lawmakers the FAFSA-related issue impacting the state grant program this year is expected to continue for several years before the federal Department of Education re-establishes the link. .

Snyder said the best her office can do is keep everyone informed from students to the student accounts office to landlords about the situation.

Communication is the key here, she said. The students are nervous, as expected, but I think that were being transparent and being clear with them. What were doing, like giving them the credit on the bill, giving bill deferments. I think thats helping. They understand that a lot of this stuff is out of our control, especially this year.

Jan Murphy may be reached at jmurphy@pennlive.com. Follow her on X at @JanMurphy.
A new book has been published by a group of Laois writers, under the mentorship of writer and poet Eileen Casey.

'Beneath the Sky of Stars' is a collection of works that examines Laois through a lens of Irish folklore and mythology.

The book was launched on Tuesday, August 20 in Stradbally library.

Ms Casey has worked with the group of Laois writers over a series of three workshops in Stradbally, with the last one taking place earlier this year.

"We met each month in Stradbally Arts Centre, we were given every welcome," Ms Casey said.

The book features ten contributors: Eileen Casey, Theresa Barnett, Christine Holohan, Mick Morrissey, Breda Nugent, Cabrini Cahill, Anne Gaynor, Pat Lanham, Audrey Powell and Catherine 0'Brien.

"Working with this group of County Laois writers has been a very positive experience," explained Ms Casey.

"Each writer had their own individual, unique voice. This is clearly evident in 'Beneath the Sky of Stars'. The title of the book comes from the eponymous title of one of Jim Fitzpatrick's paintings."

The writer said that overall, the project was smooth sailing, but the group ran into difficulty obtaining copyright permission from The National Gallery. 'Beneath the Sky of Stars' sources inspiration from the artworks of Jim Fitzpatrick and Harry Clarke, and includes several images of their artworks in the publication. The title and cover art is from a 1989 work by Jim Fitzpatrick.

"It was difficult enough obtaining copyright permission from The National Gallery," Ms Casey said.

"There are a quartet of Harry Clarke's images in the publication. But it was worth a bit of hassle. His images are life affirming, powerful and truly beautiful.

"I believe that chapbooks should be works of art in themselves. Including images from Clarke and Fitzpatrick greatly adds visual impact to the chapbook. Also, the work of Jim Fitzpatrick in particular marries very well with mythology as that's where he draws his inspiration from," the poet said. Pictured: 'Beneath the Sky of Stars' book cover. Based on the work of Jim Fitzpatrick of the same title, 1989.

Originally from the Midlands, Ms Casey and the Laois Writers group found plenty of inspiration in Laois.

"Beneath the Sky of Stars aims to re-imagine the landscape of County Laois through the prism of mythology/fairy lore or legend," said Ms Casey.



"Oughaval Woods features together with placenames such as Rosenallis, Timahoe and Portlaoise. The stories are firmly located in County Laois and its landmarks."

While Laois is rich in legends and mythology, there were many ancient Irish myths explored through the groups writings.

"Each writer was free to re-invent existing mythologies in contemporary ways. When the idea was first mooted I asked the writers to imagine going into a supermarket, buying a salmon and then realising it was the Salmon of Knowledge," said Ms Casey.

"Saint Mochua features as does Saint Patrick and Saint Brigid, among other characters. Titles include 'Aine of Lea Castle, 'Ogma', 'The Stradbally Oak', 'Fairyland', among others."

Pictured: Facilitator to the Laois Writers Group, Eileen Casey with Breda Nugent, Anne Gaynor and Christine Holohan at the launch of Beneath the Sky of Stars. Photo: Alf Harvey.

While the collection shares common themes rooted in local landscapes, there is a wide variety of tones and styles across the pieces from each contributing writer.

"Having varying styles and tones adds greatly to an overall texture in terms of originality and voice," the writer said.

"It's important for writers to recognise and nurture their own voice, it's not like anyone else's."

The launch itself was a huge success, and saw Stradbally come out to support its writers.

"The launch was highly successful, a lovely warm, welcoming atmosphere prevailed," Ms Casey finished.

Laois County Council's Creative Communities Engagement Officer David Broderick also attended the book launch, and praised the writers for their creativity and talent. "The lore referred to throughout the book have survived, some for thousands of years often through folk memory alone," said Mr Broderick. "One quick example of the importance of folk memory is from the excavation of the Newgrange mound by Micheal O Kelly in the 1960s when the locals were able to inform OKelly that they always heard the then closed mound had a connection with the sun. "This folk memory had survived through local generations for thousands of years," he said. Pictured: David Broderick from Creative Ireland Laois speaking at the launch. Photo: Alf Harvey. "That is how precious the preservation of local knowledge can be. It can often evolve or distort but its essence can be based on an element of truth. "This collection of fascinating stories has now in its own unique way helped preserve the mythology and lore of county Laois in such a beautiful and accessible way. "So, huge credit to Eileen for coming up with the idea of this project and all those wonderful writers who contributed so imaginatively. It must also be said the eye catching/memorizing illustrations by Harry Clarke and Jim Fitzpatrick add another world element that fuse so well with the stories held within this book. "I am delighted on behalf of Creative Laois/Creative Ireland to have been able to assist (through our HTA Grant) in this county Laois publication created by the Laois Writers which is now a gift to the wider community of County Laois," Mr Broderick finished.
There were still more inmates in the wing of Portlaoise Prison than it can accommodate a week after 11 prisoners there took overdoses that left some in intensive care in the Laois town's hospital.

Irish Prison Service (IPS) figures from Wednesday, August 21 show there were 237 prisoners behind bars at Ireland's only high-security jail. A week earlier on August 20, when the overdose victims were hospitalised, there were 245 prisoners in the prison on Portlaoise's Dublin Road.

Those who took the drugs were all housed in the jail's C wing where there were 201 inmates on August 13. A week later there were 194 on the wing. The landing has a capacity for just 181 prisoners.

Portlaoise Prison should only accommodate 229 prisoners but there were 237 people locked up on August 21. This is down slightly from 245 on August 13.

There were 966 prisoners in custody at the neighbouring Midlands Prison in Portlaoise on August 21. The jail has a capacity of 875 offenders.

The HSE revealed the drugs involved were a newly detected synthetic Benzodiazepine called Clobromazolam.

The Government, through Minister for Justice Helen McEntee, established a High-Level Taskforce in 2021 to examine and come up with proposals to address mental health needs and addiction treatments for people while imprisoned and primary care support on release.

In the wake of the overdoses the Irish Penal Reform Trust said that overcrowding in prisons is making it more difficult for inmates to tackle addiction.

The trusts executive director Saoirse Brady told RTE radios Morning Ireland that prisons are overstretched with a record number of people in jails.

Irish prisons were 111% full on August 21 with 5,017 in jail and 4,516 beds available.
As the start of the college academic year approaches and Leaving Certificate results are released, many Laois students will prioritise securing accommodation.

Those using a letting agent should ensure that the agent they engage is licensed by the Property Services Regulatory Authority (PSRA).

During the accommodation search, students may encounter bogus letting agents who attempt to exploit them by fraudulently extracting financial payments.

These bogus agents may operate online and falsely claim to hold a valid PSRA licence number, making it essential for students to thoroughly check the legitimacy of any agent they encounter.

All Property Services Providers (Letting Agents, Auctioneers, Estate Agents and Management Agents) operating in the Republic of Ireland must hold a PSRA licence to provide a property service.

Licensed Property Services Providers are regulated by the PSRA, ensuring that the consumer has access to the PSRAs complaints process and in the case of financial loss through the dishonesty of a licensed property service provider can make a claim on the PSRAs Compensation Fund.

To ensure that you are dealing with a legitimate letting agent, follow these steps to verify their credentials:

Request to See the Licence

When engaging with a Property Services Provider, always ask to see their licence. This is a credit card sized licence featuring the licensee's name, photograph, the licence categories, the expiry date and a unique PSRA licence number - a 6 or 12 digit code that always begins with double zero.

Check the Licence Number

Verify the licence number is valid by cross-referencing it with the PSRA Register of Licensed Property Services Providers, available at www.psr.ie. This step confirms that the provider's details are up-to-date and legitimate.

The CEO of the PSRA, Ms Maeve Hogan stated that:

Students, whether starting or returning to college, should be cautious of bogus letting agents when searching for accommodation.

To protect themselves from rental scams, its essential to verify that the letting agent is licensed by the PSRA. Using a licensed agent provides consumer protection, and if something does go wrong, a client may be entitled to compensation from the PSRA compensation fund.

Students should check the PSRA Register of Licensed Property Services Providers at www.psr.ie to confirm the agents details

If you have any doubts about whether a letting agent is licensed, contact the PSRA on Freephone: 1800-252712, Telephone: 046-9033800 or Email: info@psr.ie

Unlicensed Letting Agents, Auctioneers, Estate Agents and Management Agents are breaking the law and do not provide any PSRA consumer protection.

Anyone aware of unlicensed operators is urged to contact the PSRA at info@psr.ie
More than 28 million euro was stolen from victims of investment fraud in Ireland last year, as gardai issue a warning to the public.

The amount of money stolen from victims of investment fraud has dramatically risen, with the amount taken last year more than the previous two years combined.

Figures released by gardai also show that between January 2020 and this month, over 75 million euro was reported stolen in Ireland through investment fraud.

So far this year, more than 13.5 million euro has been taken from victims of investment fraud in Ireland.

Gardai have advised the public to pay particular close attention when considering any potential investments given the staggering amounts involved.

Investment fraud is where criminals pose as investment managers to fool someone into investing money in schemes and projects that do not exist.

Gardai said that during a period of high cost of living, criminals are taking advantage by cloning webpages and targeting victims through online and social media adverts by promising once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to instantly invest with fast and large financial returns.

Between January 2020 and August this year, over 1,117 people have reported incidents of investment fraud, with 44% of the reported incidents made reference to Bitcoin or Crypto.

Men are increasingly becoming the victim of the type of fraud and remain most at risk.

The majority of victims in the past four years have been men (64%) and those aged over 40 make up over half of all victims.

Gardai disclosed several reported incidents from this year which include;

Earlier this year a victim reported that she saw a post on social media advertising investment opportunities.

The woman made contact with the company, which she believed was legitimate, and during the course of their engagement she agreed to transfer 28,600 euro from her Revolut account to another.

Separately, a man came forward to report that he was the victim of an investment fraud after he came across a trading broker online.

He initially invested 250 euro and after several more investments he noticed his equity rising rapidly.

He was able to withdraw 5,000 euro and therefore believed that the company was legitimate.

He continued to invest considerable size sums of money and within weeks had invested 250,000 euro.

The online trading broker disappeared and the victim has suffered a huge financial loss.

In another incident, after seeing an advert on a social media platform for an investment scheme, this victim reported that he had filled in his personal details and was contacted by purporting to be involved in the investment opportunity.

After some discussion, the victim believed would be investing in trading through a mobile app and was enticed to send on 45,000 euro.

He was recently assured that he held over 727,000 euro return which was available in USD coin via an Ethereum wallet but when he checked he could not access it in an Atomic wallet.

When he questioned this with his contact, the victim was told would need to pay 36,000 euro in Dirt (Deposit Interest Retention Tax ) tax to access to funds.

It was then that he realised he may have invested in a fraudulent scheme and reported it to An Garda Siochana.

Gardai advised the public to not not invest money until you get reliable financial and legal advice; check the regulatory status of the company via the Central Bank of Ireland webpage; Do not respond to pop-up/social media ads or messages with claims about investment returns and ignore unsolicited approaches or cold calls about investments.

Detective Superintendent Michael Cryan of the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau said: Investment fraud is on the rise and the schemes are more sophisticated than ever before.

Sadly, those who become victims are ordinary, decent people that are having huge amounts of their life savings stolen from them be it their inheritance or a retirement lump sum.

The fraudsters involved in fraudulent investment schemes will sound convincing and claim to have insider knowledge but they are career criminals that are following a well-rehearsed script.

It is crucially important that we are all mindful of who were are transferring money too and to be careful when sending via an international money transfer app to make sure it can be tracked.

Investment fraud can easily happen and no one is to be judged  we really encourage anyone who has been a victim in the past or who has more recently become a victim of investment fraud to please come forward and speak with us in any garda station.
There is an onus on Laois farmers and other landowners to ensure trees and hedges on their property do not make roads unsafe.

That's according to Laois County Council which as issued guidance to landowners ahead of the start of the hedge-cutting season which runs from September 1 to February 28.

The council says "there is an onus on landowners" to ensure that any trees and hedges on their property:

Do not obstruct or interfere with the safe use of the public road.

Do not obstruct or interfere with the maintenance of the public road.

Do not pose a hazard to people using the public road.

County Hall also advice that hedgerows along the public road that require cutting or trimming back "should be cut immediately" with all cuttings removed from the roads and verges. It also advises that adequate signposting should be provided.

The local authority says roadside trees should be inspected and "necessary action" taken to prevent any potential hazard to the public. It adds that such inspections should be carried out by suitably qualified personnel.

The council also says that liability for damage or injury resulting from such hazards will rest with the landowner/occupier.

Landowners are also asked to note that where Japanese Knotweed occurs it should not be cut. It adds that no ground disturbance should take place at these sites at any time of year.

Anyone who detects Japanese Knotweed Please is asked to report the location to the Michael Buckley in the Roads Department at RoadsAdmin@laoiscoco.ie or phone 057 8664000.

Laois County Council's Acting Director of Services for Roads Paul McLoughlin thanked landowners for their co-operation.
Questions have been raised over Ukrainian refugees in Ireland being given preferential treatment over Irish citizens regarding Government back-to-work schemes.

Independent Sligo-Leitrim TD Marc MacSharry criticised as discriminatory the requirement that Ukrainian refugees in Ireland need to be unemployed for nine months to access community employment schemes.

Irish citizens must be unemployed for a year.

The Independent TD has previously criticised the Governments 'favouritism towards Ukrainians.

Earlier this year, he told the Dail that the Governments policy on Ukrainian refugees creates a two-tier system, calling out the inability to provide accommodation for those very genuine cases seeking international protection.

Last November, Mr MacSharry also said it was discriminatory that Ukrainian students can attend third-level education for free, when Irish students cant.

Mr MacSharry wrote to Minister Humphreys TD asking to revisit the eligibility criteria for back to work schemes.

It has been brought to my attention by a number of community employment supervisors who are running very successful community employment schemes around the country, that Irish citizens are being discriminated against when it comes to filling community employment placements, wrote Mr MacSharry.

I very much regret the reality that this favouritism towards Ukrainian nationals only serves to fuel resentments, undermine solidarity and nurtures ethnic intolerance in local communities.

I strongly urge you to immediately revisit the scheme eligibility criteria and urgently re-establish the same qualifying period for all applicants, he added.

The Department of Social Protection told Mr MacSharry that the eligibility criteria for community employment schemes are kept under active review by the department.

As of May 2024, there are 884 Ukrainians living in Leitrim. The issue of perceived preferential treatment of refugees remains a pressing one in local communities.
The body of technology tycoon Mike Lynch has been recovered after a luxury yacht sank off the coast of Sicily, as his 18-year-old daughter reportedly remains missing.

The Italian Coastguard confirmed the news that the sixth and final person yet to be found is a woman.

Mr Lynch, his daughter Hannah, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo, and his wife Neda Morvillo were lost when the Bayesian sank at around 5am on Monday.

Searches are continuing for businessman Mike Lynchs daughter Hannah (Jonathan Brady/PA)

In a statement confirming their parents deaths, the Bloomer family described the couple as incredible people and an inspiration to many.

They said: We are grieving for our loved ones and all of those affected by the tragedy.

Our parents were incredible people and an inspiration to many, but first and foremost they were focused on and loved their family and spending time with their new grandchildren.

Together for five decades, our only comfort is that they are still together now.

This is an unimaginable grief to shoulder.

The body of the fifth person recovered from the yachts wreckage was returned in a blue body bag to the port of Porticello on Thursday morning.

Of the 22 passengers and crew on board, 15  including Mr Lynchs wife, Angela Bacares  were rescued after escaping on to a lifeboat.

The body of Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, who was working as a chef on the superyacht Bayesian, was recovered at the scene of the sinking on Monday.

The boat trip was a celebration of Mr Lynchs acquittal in a fraud case in the US.

Mr Lynch has strong Irish links as his mother was a nurse from Tipperary and his father a fireman from Cork.

In a 2015 radio interview, Mr Lynch confirmed that he was born in Ilford in London, despite a number of reports that he was born in Ireland and raised in England.

He said during the same interview that he spent childhood summers in Carrick-On-Shannon and Tipperary and has family who still live there.

The businessman, who founded software giant Autonomy in 1996, was cleared in June of carrying out a massive fraud relating to its 11 billion US dollar (8.64 billion) sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

A decision on whether to raise the sunken yacht from the seabed is not on the agenda, but will be in the future, a spokesman from the Italian Coastguard has said.

Vincenzo Zagarola told PA: This is not a topic on the agenda. It will be, but not now.

He also said that the Italian Coastguards working theory is still that the missing woman is inside the boat.

The luxury yachts captain, James Cutfield, was reportedly questioned by authorities for two hours as they began speaking to all crew members.

The body of Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer was also recovered from the wreckage (Hiscox/PA)

A helicopter was previously drafted in to help the search effort, and divers from the local fire service have been seen entering the water with torches attached to their headgear.

Fire crews from the Vigili del Fuoco said they had been accessing the vessel through natural entrances, without making openings.

Remotely controlled underwater vehicles have been used, with naval units and cave divers also taking part in the search, the Italian Coastguard has said.

Bayesian was moored around half a mile off the coast of Porticello when it sank at about 5am local time on Monday as the area was hit by a storm.

The wreckage of the Bayesian is resting on the seabed off the coast at a depth of 50 metres (164ft).

(PA Graphics)

Fire crews described the operation as complex, with divers limited to 12-minute underwater shifts.

Survivors have been recuperating at a hotel complex in Porticello, where authorities are gathering witness statements.

An Italian doctor at the hospital where British tourist Charlotte Emsley and her one-year-old daughter were taken said the mother held her baby above the waves after the yacht sank.

Dr Domenico Cipolla, of Di Cristina Childrens Hospital in Palermo, told PA: Obviously the mother and the husband were so shaken by what has happened, it was a tragedy for them.

She told me that two minutes after falling asleep with her baby they were in the water, she did not understand how this happened, it went dark.

She held the child high in her arms above the waves, for a few seconds the baby was in the water, but she saved her.

She sometimes cried for her friends in the hospital.
TRU Precious Metals Completes Granting of Golden Rose Option to Eldorado Gold





TRU Precious Metals Corp. (TSXV:TRU)(OTCQB:TRUIF)(FRA:706) ("TRU" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that, further to its news release dated July 30, 2024, it has now received an outstanding drill permit and accordingly has satisfied all pre-conditions to the definitive earn-in agreement (the "Option Agreement") transaction with Eldorado Gold Corporation (TSX: ELD, NYSE: EGO) ("Eldorado"). Pursuant to the Option Agreement, Eldorado has been granted the exclusive option (the "Option") to earn an 80% ownership interest in TRU's Golden Rose Project ("Golden Rose"), strategically located along the gold deposit-bearing Cape Ray - Valentine Lake Shear Zone in Central Newfoundland.

TRU CEO Steve Nicol commented: "We are delighted to welcome Eldorado, a gold producer with global operations, as a strategic partner to TRU. The TRU team is eager to drive exploration efforts forward and we look forward to a successful collaboration with Eldorado to unlock the potential of the project."

Additional terms of the Option Agreement can be found in the Company's news release dated July 30, 2024. A copy of the Option Agreement will be filed under TRU's SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca. The description of the Option Agreement contained herein is qualified by the complete text of the Option Agreement.

About Eldorado Gold Corp.

Eldorado is a gold and base metals producer with mining, development and exploration operations in Turkiye, Canada and Greece. The Company has a highly skilled and dedicated workforce, safe and responsible operations, a portfolio of high-quality assets, and long-term partnerships with local communities. Eldorado's common shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: ELD) and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: EGO).

About TRU Precious Metals Corp.

TRU (TSXV:TRU, OTCQB:TRUIF, FSE:706) is on a mission to build long-term shareholder value through prudent natural resource property development and transactions. TRU is exploring for gold and copper in the highly prospective Central Newfoundland Gold Belt on its 100%-owned Golden Rose Project, a regional-scale 264.25 km2 land package including 45 km of strike length along the deposit-bearing Cape Ray - Valentine Lake Shear Zone, directly between Calibre Mining's Valentine Gold Project and AuMEGA Metals' Cape Ray Gold Project. In addition, TRU has an option to acquire up to an aggregate 65% ownership interest in two claim packages covering 33.25 km2, including a 12 km strike length along the Shear Zone within Golden Rose. The Golden Rose Project is currently optioned-out to TSX-listed Eldorado Gold Corporation.

TRU is approximately 36%-owned by European strategic investor Ormonde Mining plc (AQSE:ORM).

For further information about TRU, please contact:

Olga Nikitovic

President & CFO

TRU Precious Metals Corp.

Phone: 1-855-760-2TRU (2878)

Email: [email protected]

To connect with TRU via social media, below are links:

X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/TRUMetals

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TruMetalsCorp

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/tru-precious-metals-corp/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/TRUMetals/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TRUMetals/

Acknowledgement

TRU would like to thank the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador for financial support through the Junior Exploration Assistance Program and the Federal Government for its critical mineral assistance funding for the exploration activities at Golden Rose.

Forward-Looking Statements and Disclaimers

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements, including those relating to performance of the Option Agreement, the Company's relationship with Eldorado, and exploration plans for the Golden Rose Project. These statements are based on numerous assumptions regarding the Option Agreement, the Project, and the Company's operations at Golden Rose that are believed by management to be reasonable in the circumstances, and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including without limitation: the Option may never be exercised by Eldorado as proposed or at all; the exploration potential of the Golden Rose Project; risks inherent in mineral exploration activities; and those other risks described in the Company's continuous disclosure documents. Actual results may differ materially from results contemplated by the forward-looking statements herein. Investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and should not place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements herein except as required by applicable securities laws.

This press release is solely the responsibility of TRU, and Eldorado is not in any way responsible or liable for the contents hereof.

Neither TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: TRU Precious Metals Corp.

22 august 2024 at 02:00

View the original press release on accesswire.comNews published onand distributed by:
Argentina Lithium Reports Geophysical Survey Adds Nearly 600 Hectares of Potential Brine Aquifer at Rincon West Project and Plans Additional Drilling





TSX Venture Exchange (TSX-V): LIT

Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FSE): OAY3

OTCQX Venture Market: LILIF

VANCOUVER, BC, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - Argentina Lithium & Energy Corp. (TSXV: LIT) (FSE: OAY3) (OTCQX: LILIF), ("Argentina Lithium" or the "Company") announces the completion of geophysical surveys at its Don Fermin property (the "Property"), part of the Company's Rincon West lithium project in Salta Province, Argentina. The results of these deep-seeking geophysical studies expand the potential extent of conductive brine aquifers at the project by nearly 600 hectares and have provided targets for a new 6-hole drill program at the project, for which permitting is underway.

The Property covers 1,456 hectares on the eastern flank of the Salar de Rincon, approximately 19 km east of the Company's main Rincon West property block (see location map, here). The block is located adjacent to Rio Tinto's Rincon Project and 1.1 kilometres northeast of Argosy Minerals' Rincon Project.

A total of 24.2 line-kilometres of Transient Electromagnetic (TEM) sounding surveys were completed. The surveys provide electrical resistivity data capable of detecting and delineating conductive strata potentially associated with concentrated lithium brines. TEM soundings are an advanced reconnaissance technique frequently employed in the exploration of lithium salars, and the method was successful at delineating the potential brine aquifer for drill targeting at the Company's Rinconcita II and Villanoveno II properties, where all holes drilled to date have intersected significant intervals of lithium-bearing brine (see Company news releases filed on SEDAR+ and the Company's website at www.argentinalithium.com for details).

"The TEM survey is a powerful tool that once again has provided us with excellent information for targeting. We are excited to move towards drilling at Don Fermin and to potentially define a second area for lithium resource delineation in the future." stated Miles Rideout, V.P. of Exploration.

The TEM surveys, data modeling and presentation were completed by the Argentinean subsidiary of Toronto-based Quantec Geoscience Ltd., ("Quantec"). Quantec is a recognized leader in the industry, with experience spanning over 40 countries with over 5,000 geophysical projects. Quantec has considerable experience in the provision of geophysical services for the evaluation of salars in the Puna Region of Argentina.

A total of 129 soundings were completed at 200 metre intervals along eight east-west lines and three north-south lines (see Figure 1). Data were acquired with a Geonics Ltd. PROTEM System operated in centre-loop sounding mode with 200 m transmitter loops. The sounding data were recorded at 2.5 and 25 Hz. repetition rates. The data were modelled with 1-D resistivity-depth inversions, which were compiled as 2D resistivity transects of the project. The maximum depth of investigation varied from 200 metres to as much as 1200 metres below surface.

Figure 1 presents a map showing the extent of highly conductive subsurface strata at the project (shaded yellow), interpreted from the TEM to represent the potential extent of concentrated brine aquifer and covering an area of approximately 596 hectares.

Figure 2 presents a sequence of TEM sections overlaid on the interpretation map. The upper bound of each section represents the topography of the terrain at surface. The lower extent of each section represents the maximum depth of investigation, not the limit of the conductive targets. In this presentation, warm colours shading red-to-purple designate electrically-conductive strata consistent with brine aquifers in a salar setting. Cold colours (blue-white) represent resistive units interpreted to lack brine potential. The electrical resistivity data are presented in Ohm-metre units.

Based on published drill data and geophysics from similar salar projects, the Company expects prospective aquifer zones to exhibit resistivities below approximately 5 Ohm-m. Brine-rich porous units are expected to produce resistivities on the order of 1 Ohm-m.

Qualified Person

Frits Reidel, CPG is a Qualified Person as defined in National Instrument 43-101, is the Principal of Atacama Water Consultants, and is independent of Argentina Lithium. Mr. Reidel has reviewed the work carried out by the Company's exploration team at the exploration-stage Rincon West property. The disclosure in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Mr. Reidel.

About Argentina Lithium

Argentina Lithium & Energy Corp is focused on acquiring high quality lithium projects in Argentina and advancing them towards production in order to meet the growing global demand from the battery sector. The Company's recent strategic investment by Peugeot Citroen Argentina S.A., a subsidiary of Stellantis N.V., one of the world's leading automakers, places Argentina Lithium in a unique position to explore, develop and advance its four key projects covering over 67,000 hectares in the Lithium Triangle of Argentina. Management has a long history of success in the resource sector of Argentina and has assembled some of the most prospective lithium properties in the world renowned "Lithium Triangle". The Company is a member of the Grosso Group, a resource management group that has pioneered exploration in Argentina since 1993.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

"Nikolaos Cacos"

_______________________________

Nikolaos Cacos, President, CEO and Director

www.argentinalithium.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.

This news release contains forward-looking statements. Generally, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of terminology such as "anticipate", "will", "expect", "may", "continue", "could", "estimate", "forecast", "plan", "potential" and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements address future events and conditions and therefore involve inherent risks and uncertainties. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, that address activities, events or developments management of the Company believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future, including, without limitation, statements about the Company's plans for its mineral properties; the Company's business strategy, plans and outlooks; the future financial or operating performance of the Company; and future exploration and operating plans are forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual results of the Company to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements and, even if such actual results are realized or substantially realized, there can be no assurance that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on, the Company. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations include, among other things: risks and uncertainties related to the ability to obtain, amend, or maintain licenses, permits, or surface rights; risks associated with technical difficulties in connection with mining activities; the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with the Company's expectations; the state of financial markets in Canada and other jurisdictions; the Company's ability to meet its working capital needs; fluctuations in metal prices; operations in foreign countries and the compliance with foreign laws; environmental regulations or hazards and compliance with regulations associated with mining activities; climate change and climate change regulations; fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; failure to obtain or delays in obtaining necessary governmental and regulatory approvals; labour disputes and other risks generally in the mining industry. There may be other factors that cause results or events to not be as anticipated. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements. Readers are encouraged to refer to the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis for a more detailed discussion of factors that may impact expected future results. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof or the dates specifically referenced in this press release, where applicable. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, unless required pursuant to applicable laws. All forward-looking statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

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.

SOURCE Argentina Lithium & Energy Corp.

22 august 2024 at 07:00

News published onand distributed by:
Affiliated Distributors Selects Suppli as New A/R AD Service Provider





Suppli was selected by AD after a rigorous evaluation of digital accounts receivable and payment platforms

The partnership allows Suppli to expand on its existing relationships with AD members across the group's 860 independent distributors

AD members will be eligible to benefit from a rebate on Suppli's software fees

AUSTIN, Texas, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Suppli , the digital accounts receivable platform that enables construction distributors and suppliers to turn their credit department into a competitive advantage, today announced that it has been selected by Affiliated Distributors ("AD") as a Preferred Service Provider.

AD's Service Provider program is designed to bring growth-oriented independent distributors and best-in-class supplier and service provider partners together with the purpose to outperform the market and to stay ahead of the competition. All AD Service Providers are subjected to a rigorous screening process and must meet AD's criteria for approval, including demonstrated industry knowledge, exceptional product features, and a commitment to serving independent distributors.

"Given our mission overlap of supporting independent distributors, we couldn't be more excited to partner with AD. This stamp of approval is a testament to the quality of the Suppli platform and our singular focus on building tools that help independent distributors level the playing field when it comes to managing accounts receivable, payments and their online customer experience" said Suppli Co-founder and CEO, Ryan Ayers. "We've been privileged to work with AD members like Drywall Supply, Messco Building Supply, Carolina Drywall Supply and Conking & Calabrese and look forward to expanding our partnership going forward."

Sebastian Gruenheid, Senior Procurement Manager, Professional Services at AD, said: "Our team was equally impressed by Suppli's comprehensive feature set and their thoughtfulness in designing a platform that's accessible for independent distributors of various sizes. Delivering value to AD members was underscored by the incredibly strong feedback we received around the quality of Suppli's ongoing customer support."

National brands have invested billions in customer-facing technology to capture modern buyers, while independent distributors are often stuck using homegrown spreadsheets, dated generalist software, and manual processes to manage their customer relationships.

Suppli empowers independents to turn routine account management and payment tasks into a delightful, digital customer experience that competes with national and big box suppliers with features like text-based payments, a mobile-friendly customer portal, automated customer notifications, integrated lien waiver requests, one-click deposits, and more. The Suppli platform also integrates with leading industry ERPs to eliminate manual entry and reconciliation with auto cash-app for every payment.

About Suppli

Suppli is a digital accounts receivable platform that enables construction distributors and suppliers to turn their credit department into a competitive advantage. Top material vendors leverage Suppli to deliver the digital customer experience their customers demand and supercharge their credit teams with tools to get paid faster and reduce risk. Suppli is led by a veteran founding team of building materials suppliers, software engineers, and financial experts.

For more information, or to schedule a demo, please visit www.gosuppli.com .

About Affiliated Distributors

AD is the largest contractor and industrial products wholesale purchasing cooperative in North America. AD provides independent distributors and manufacturers of construction and industrial products with support and resources that accelerate growth and enhance profitability. Our 900-plus independent owner/members span 14 divisions in the U.S., Mexico and Canada with annual sales exceeding $75 billion. AD's 14 divisions cover industries including electrical, industrial, safety, bearings and power transmission, plumbing, PVF, HVAC, decorative brands and building materials. For more information, visit www.adhq.com.

SOURCE Suppli

22 august 2024 at 07:00

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Canadian North Resources Received a Governmental Grant for Community Engagement Support Program





TORONTO, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Canadian North Resources Inc. ("the Company," TSXV: CNRI; OTCQX: CNRSF; FSE: EO0 (E-O-zero)) is pleased to announce that it has been awarded a grant for its Community Engagement Support Program ("CESP") from the Government of Nunavut, represented by the Minister of the Department of Economic Development & Transportation (EDT).



The CESP aims to support the Company's ongoing community engagement activities in Nunavut through contributions to cover costs associated with engagement and consultation work required during the permitting and regulatory stages of an exploration project.

Under CESP, the Company has signed the CESP Contribution Agreement ("the Agreement") that the Government of Nunavut will contribute $98,875, with an initial payment of $49,437.50, which has just been received. The balance is expected upon the submission of a final report to be completed on January 31, 2025.

The funds will be used to facilitate community engagement activities, including community site visits and focus groups at Ferguson Lake, translation of materials to ensure all communications are accessible and inclusive, and professional services related to community outreach. The Company has planned the community engagement program and the environmental reconnaissance study for the Ferguson Lake project to be conducted late this summer.

Dr. Kaihui Yang, the Company's President and CEO, emphasized the importance of this Agreement: "We are committed to building strong, respectful, and productive relationships with the people of Nunavut. This support from the Government of Nunavut is pivotal in ensuring that our exploration activities are aligned with the values and expectations of local communities."

About Canadian North Resources

Canadian North Resources Inc. is an exploration and development company focusing on the metals for the clean-energy, electric vehicles, battery and high-tech industries. The company is advancing its 100% owned Ferguson Lake nickel, copper, cobalt, palladium, and platinum project that covers an area of 253.8 km of mining leases (96.9 km) and surrounding exploration claims (156.9 km) in the Kivalliq Region of Nunavut, Canada.

The Ferguson Lake mining property contains a substantial National Instrument 43-101 compliant Mineral Resource Estimate announced on March 19 2024, which include Indicated Mineral Resources of 66.1 million tonnes (Mt) containing 1,093 million pounds (Mlb) copper at 0.75%, 678Mlb nickel at 0.47%, 79.3Mlb cobalt at 0.05%, 2.34 million ounces (Moz) palladium at 1.10gpt and 0.419Moz platinum at 0.19gpt; and Inferred Mineral Resources of 25.9Mt containing 558Mlb copper at 0.98%, 333Mlb nickel at 0.58%, 39.6Mlb cobalt at 0.07%, 1.192Moz palladium at 1.43gpt and 0.205Moz platinum at 0.25gpt. In particular, 80% of the Indicated Mineral Resources is Open Pit with 52.7Mt at 0.65% Cu, 0.43% Ni, 0.05% Co, 0.97g/t Pd and 0.17% Pt, which provides a solid Mineral Resource base for the initial development of a potential large mine. The Mineral Resource model indicates significant potential for resource expansion along strike and at depth over the 15 km long mineralized belt and a number of undefined mineralization zones and prospective areas. (Refer to "Independent Technical Report on the Mineral Resource Estimate for the Ferguson Lake Project, Nunavut, Canada ("the Technical Report")", prepared by SRK Consulting and Ronacher McKenzie Geoscience Inc., effective March 19, 2024, filed by the Company to the System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval ("SEDAR+") through the Internet at https://www.sedarplus.ca/landingpage/ on May 3, 2024. The Technical Report has also been posted on the Company's website at www.cnresources.com.)

For further information please visit the website at www.cnresources.com or contact:

Dr. Kaihui Yang, President and CEO

Phone: 905-696-8288 (Canada) 1-888-688-8809 (Toll-Free)

Email: [email protected]

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

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.

These factors should be considered carefully, and readers should not place undue reliance on the Company's forward-looking statements. The Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements contained in this news release and the documents incorporated by reference herein are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct. In addition, although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward looking statements, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. The Company undertakes no obligation to release publicly any future revisions to forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this news or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as expressly required by law, anticipated events, except as expressly required by law.

22 august 2024 at 08:00

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VERSES Completes First Phase of Digital Twins Interoperability Project with JPL





VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- VERSES AI Inc. (CBOE:VERS) (OTCQX:VRSSF) ("VERSES'' or the "Company"), a cognitive computing company specializing in next generation intelligent systems, announces completion of a research collaboration with NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which successfully demonstrated cross-platform interoperability between Digital Twin (DT) systems for lunar explorations. The project is part of a research phase of the Company's GENIUStm beta program.



Because of the difficulty of accessing objects in space, DT systems are critical for lunar exploration. DT enables engineers on Earth to manage the health of systems on the Moon and facilitates virtual planning and testing of lunar activities before robotic systems execute potentially dangerous tasks. Furthermore, lunar exploration is evolving into a collaborative international effort and DT has the potential to support testing across organizations globally. The primary challenge to achieving this vision of collaborative lunar exploration is the interoperability between DT systems. In this project, the team from VERSES AI Inc., NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), and California State University, Northridge (CSUN), demonstrated real-time joint testing of a lander model at CSUN and a rover DT model at JPL on distributed NVIDIA Omniverse platforms via standard-based spatial web protocols. Additionally, cross-platform collaborations between Omniverse and Unity platforms were demonstrated using these protocols. The team also showcased IP protection by executing a Physics-Informed Neural Network (PINN) model remotely at JPL while testing the model at CSUN.

"We are thrilled to be working with JPL to help unlock the potential for multinational cooperation on the moon," said Capm Petersen, Chief Innovation Officer, VERSES. "The Spatial Web standards, which GENIUS is the first developer toolkit to support, were designed to address the universal problem of transforming any data, not just geometry and geography, into a unified shared model including the rights and rules that govern the relationships between people, places, and things."

VERSES, in partnership with the Spatial Web Foundation , worked with JPL researchers to model data using Spatial Web standards with the objective of allowing government agencies, private sector aerospace entities, and universities, each having different technology stacks, to collaborate in a unified real time simulation of the lunar surface.

"Coordination on the moon is a significant unsolved problem. Having developed mapping standards for Earth as the former Chief Technology Officer of the Open Geospatial Consortium, I'm excited to join forces with JPL on exploring how the Spatial Web standards could enable extraterrestrial interoperability," said George Percivall, Vice-Chair of IEEE Spatial Web Standards Working Group.

The initial results of the collaboration were presented by Dr. Ed Chow, Manager, Civil Programs Office and Principal Investigator at Jet Propulsion Laboratory, on July 18th & 19th at the Digital Twins for Cislunar and Lunar Surface Ecosystem Workshop at JPL in Pasadena, California. Attendees included scientists, researchers and experts from aerospace agencies and technologies companies working on digital twins and autonomous agents for lunar explorations.

PwC estimates that the Lunar economy could grow to a $170 billion market in the next 20 years.

VERSES Chief Commercial Officer, Michael Wadden, added, "As far as we know this marks the first demonstration of interoperability between distributed and disparate Digital Twin systems using the spatial web standard."

Wadden will be presenting a keynote based on the work titled: "Digital Twin Interoperability for Lunar Exploration" at the Digital Twin Consortium third quarter meeting in Chicago, IL on September 12, 2024. Virtual and in person registration can be found here: https://www.digitaltwinconsortium.org/events/q3-2024-member-meeting/

About VERSES

VERSES is a cognitive computing company building next-generation intelligent software systems modeled after the wisdom and genius of Nature. Designed around first principles found in science, physics and biology, our flagship product, GENIUS tm, is a toolkit for developers to generate intelligent software agents that enhance existing applications with the ability to reason, plan, and learn. Imagine a Smarter World that elevates human potential through technology inspired by Nature. Learn more at verses.ai , LinkedIn and X .

The Spatial Web Foundation

The Spatial Web Foundation (SWF) is dedicated to the development and implementation of socio-technical standards that will provide a safe and secure and interoperable foundation for the Spatial Web. These standards ensure that exponential technologies are not only technically robust but also socially beneficial, safe, compliant with existing laws, and in alignment with societal norms and values. SWF is a community of developers, creators, scientists, and innovators with a shared mission to enable a hyper-connected, contextually aware, ethically-aligned network of humans, machines, and artificial intelligence.

On behalf of the Company

Gabriel Rene, Founder & CEO, VERSES AI Inc.

Press Inquiries: [email protected]

Investor Relations Inquiries

U.S., Matthew Selinger, Partner, Integrous Communications, [email protected] 415-572-8152

Canada, Leo Karabelas, President, Focus Communications, [email protected] 416-543-3120

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

When used in this press release, the words "estimate", "project", "belief", "anticipate", "intend", "expect", "plan", "predict", "may" or "should" and the negative of these words or such variations thereon or comparable terminology are intended to identify forward-looking statements and information. Although VERSES believes, in light of the experience of their respective officers and directors, current conditions and expected future developments and other factors that have been considered appropriate, that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements and information in this press release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on them because the parties can give no assurance that such statements will prove to be correct. The forward-looking statements and information in this press release include, among others, current and future research projects, benchmark testing, as well as the beta and launch of Genius. Such statements and information reflect the current view of VERSES.

There are risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in those forward-looking statements and information. In making the forward-looking statements in this news release, the Company has applied various material assumptions. 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. There are a number of important factors that could cause VERSES actual results to differ materially from those indicated or implied by forward-looking statements and information. Such factors include, among others: currency fluctuations; limited business history of the parties; disruptions or changes in the credit or security markets; results of operation activities and development of projects; project cost overruns or unanticipated costs and expenses; and general development, market and industry conditions. The Company undertakes no obligation to comment on analyses, expectations or statements made by third parties in respect of its securities or its financial or operating results (as applicable).

VERSES cautions that the foregoing list of material factors is not exhaustive. When relying on VERSES' forward-looking statements and information to make decisions, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. VERSES has assumed that the material factors referred to in the previous paragraph will not cause such 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 VERSES as of the date of this press release and, accordingly, are subject to change after such date. VERSES does not undertake to update this information at any particular time except as required in accordance with applicable laws.

22 august 2024 at 08:00

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ICE First Look at Mortgage Performance: Delinquencies improved in July despite Hurricane Beryl's impact on Houston homeowners





Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE), a leading global provider of technology and data, reports the following "first look" at July 2024 month-end mortgage performance statistics derived from its loan-level database representing the majority of the national mortgage market.

Data as of July 31, 2024 Total U.S. loan delinquency rate (loans 30 or more days past due, but not in foreclosure): 3.37% Month-over-month change: -3.46% Year-over-year change: 4.80% Total U.S. foreclosure pre-sale inventory rate: 0.35% Month-over-month change: 1.05% Year-over-year change: -15.93% Total U.S. foreclosure starts: 30,000 Month-over-month change 32.30% Year-over-year change: 13.91% Monthly prepayment rate (SMM): 0.60% Month-over-month change: 11.63% Year-over-year change: 19.86% Foreclosure sales: 5,500 Month-over-month change: 3.69% Year-over-year change: - 9.57% Number of properties that are 30 or more days past due, but not in foreclosure: 1,812,000 Month-over-month change: -61,000 Year-over-year change: 112,000 Number of properties that are 90 or more days past due, but not in foreclosure: 435,000 Month-over-month change: 5,000 Year-over-year change: -33,000 Number of properties in foreclosure pre-sale inventory: 188,000 Month-over-month change: 2,000 Year-over-year change: -32,000 Number of properties that are 30 or more days past due or in foreclosure: 1,999,000 Month-over-month change: -59,000 Year-over-year change: 80,000

Top 5 States by Non-Current* Percentage Mississippi: 8.02% Louisiana: 7.93% Alabama: 5.70% Indiana: 5.34% West Virginia: 5.16% Bottom 5 States by Non-Current* Percentage Oregon: 2.12% Montana: 2.03% Idaho: 2.03% Washington: 2.02% Colorado: 2.00% Top 5 States by 90+ Days Delinquent Percentage Mississippi: 2.08% Louisiana: 1.85% Alabama: 1.45% Arkansas: 1.28% Indiana: 1.16% Top 5 States by 12-Month Change in Non-Current* Percentage Alaska: -7.40% New York: -6.59% Vermont: -3.57% Idaho: -3.29% California: -2.84% Bottom 5 States by 12-Month Change in Non-Current* Percentage Arizona: 11.73% Louisiana: 11.32% Tennessee: 9.33% Arkansas: 8.96% Nebraska: 8.07%

*Non-current totals combine foreclosures and delinquencies as a percent of active loans in that state. Notes: 1) Totals are extrapolated based on ICE's McDash loan-level database of mortgage assets. 2) All whole numbers are rounded to the nearest thousand, except foreclosure starts and sales, which are rounded to the nearest hundred.

The company will provide a more in-depth review of this data in its monthly Mortgage Monitor report, which includes an analysis of data supplemented by detailed charts and graphs that reflect trend and point-in-time observations. The Mortgage Monitor report will be available online at https://www.icemortgagetechnology.com/resources/data-reports by Sept. 4, 2024.

For more information about gaining access to ICE's loan-level database, please send an email to [email protected].

About Intercontinental Exchange

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE) is a Fortune 500 company that designs, builds and operates digital networks that connect people to opportunity. We provide financial technology and data services across major asset classes helping our customers access mission-critical workflow tools that increase transparency and efficiency. ICE's futures, equity, and options exchanges ? including the New York Stock Exchange ? and clearing houses help people invest, raise capital and manage risk. We offer some of the world's largest markets to trade and clear energy and environmental products. Our fixed income, data services and execution capabilities provide information, analytics and platforms that help our customers streamline processes and capitalize on opportunities. At ICE Mortgage Technology, we are transforming U.S. housing finance, from initial consumer engagement through loan production, closing, registration and the long-term servicing relationship. Together, ICE transforms, streamlines and automates industries to connect our customers to opportunity.

Trademarks of ICE and/or its affiliates include Intercontinental Exchange, ICE, ICE block design, NYSE and New York Stock Exchange. Information regarding additional trademarks and intellectual property rights of Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. and/or its affiliates is located here. Key Information Documents for certain products covered by the EU Packaged Retail and Insurance-based Investment Products Regulation can be accessed on the relevant exchange website under the heading "Key Information Documents (KIDS)."

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 ? Statements in this press release regarding ICE's business that are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of additional risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see ICE's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings, including, but not limited to, the risk factors in ICE's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, as filed with the SEC on February 8, 2024.

Category: Mortgage Technology

ICE-CORP

Source: Intercontinental Exchange

22 august 2024 at 09:05

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Sudan Regional Refugee Crisis: Education Cannot Wait, UNHCR, UNICEF and Strategic Partners Call for Increased Resources for the Education Response in Egypt and Across the Region During High-Level UN Mission





Additional funding is urgently needed to scale up access to safe inclusive, equitable quality education for refugees as well as vulnerable host community children.

CAIRO, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Over 748,000 refugees and asylum-seekers are registered with UNHCR Egypt, a majority of whom are women and children who have recently arrived in Egypt fleeing the brutal conflict that started in Sudan in April 2023. Since the conflict broke, the registered Sudanese refugee population has grown almost sevenfold and numbers are expected to keep rising.

With needs growing exponentially, resources are running thin for the Government of Egypt, UN agencies and other strategic partners to provide refugee and host community children with safe, protective quality learning spaces.

The 2024 Sudan Regional Refugee Response plan calls for $109 million to respond to refugee education needs across the region. To date, only 20% of this amount has been mobilized, including $4.3 million ? or 40% of the requirement for Egypt.

On a high-level UN mission to Egypt this week, Education Cannot Wait (ECW), UNHCR and UNICEF stressed the funding shortfall and called for urgent increased international support for children forcibly displaced by the armed conflict, both inside Sudan itself and in neighboring countries.

While the Government of Egypt has taken notable steps to provide refugees with access to education services, with 9,000 children arriving every month, approximately 54% of newly arrived children are currently out of school, according to a recent assessment by UNICEF and the World Bank.

"Families fleeing the brutal conflict in Sudan have endured the most unspeakable violence and seen their lives ripped apart. For girls and boys uprooted by the internal armed conflict, education is nothing less than a lifeline. It provides protection and a sense of normalcy amidst the chaos, and gives them the resources they need to heal and thrive again," said Yasmine Sherif, Executive Director of Education Cannot Wait, the global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises within the United Nations. "In the spirit of responsibility sharing enshrined in the Global Compact on Refugees, I call on international donors to step up their support. Needs are fast outpacing the response. Additional resources are urgently required to ensure that refugee and host community children in Egypt and other refugee receiving countries in the region can attend school and continue learning. The future of the entire region is at stake," she said.

"Forcibly displaced children should not be denied their fundamental right to pursue their education, their flight from conflict can no longer be an impediment to their rights. UNHCR together with ECW and UNICEF continue to ensure that children's education, and therefore their future, are safeguarded," said Dr. Hanan Hamdan, UNHCR Representative to the Government of Egypt and to the League of Arab States. "To this end, it is crucial to further support Egypt as a host country. It has shown remarkable resilience and generosity, but the increasing number of displaced individuals requires enhanced international assistance. By strengthening Egypt's capacity to support refugees, we can ensure that more children have access to education and eventually a brighter future," she added.

Mr. Jeremy Hopkins, UNICEF Representative in Egypt, said, "UNICEF is steadfast in its commitment to ensure that conflict-affected Sudanese children have the opportunity to resume their education. In Egypt, through innovative Learning Spaces and the Comprehensive Inclusion Programme, UNICEF is working diligently, under the leadership of the Egyptian government in cooperation with sister UN agencies, and development partners, to create inclusive learning environments and strengthen resilient education systems and services. This not only benefits displaced Sudanese children but also supports host communities by ensuring that all children have access to quality education." He added, "UNICEF calls on the international community to stand in solidarity with the displaced Sudanese children whose education is at stake, and to provide the necessary resources and support to strengthen national systems that will ensure that both Egyptian and non-Egyptian children can realise their right to education."

During the high-level ECW mission in Egypt, the ECW delegation met with key strategic partners ? including donors, UN agencies, and local and international NGOs ? and with Sudanese refugees, to take stock of the scope of needs and the ongoing education response by aid partners.

In December 2023, ECW announced a US$2 million First Emergency Response grant in Egypt. The 12-month grant, implemented by UNHCR in partnership with UNICEF, is reaching over 20,000 Sudanese refugees in the Aswan, Cairo, Giza and Alexandria Governorates.

Interventions supported by the grant include non-formal education, cash grants, social cohesion with host communities, mental health and psychosocial support, and construction and refurbishment work in public schools hosting refugee children to benefit both refugee and host community children.

Beyond Egypt, ECW has allocated US$8 million in First Emergency Response grants in the Central Africa Republic, Chad, Ethiopia and South Sudan to address the urgent protection and education needs of children fleeing the armed conflict in Sudan.

In Sudan, ECW has invested US$28.7 million in multi-year and emergency grants which have already reached more than 100,000 crisis-affected girls and boys.

ECW calls on leaders to increase funding for the regional refugee response and other forgotten crises everywhere. ECW urgently appeals to public and private donors to mobilize an additional US$600 million to reach 20 million crisis-impacted girls and boys with safe, quality education by the end of its 2023-2026 Strategic Plan.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2487795/Education_Cannot_Wait_group_photo.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1656121/Education_Cannot_Wait_Logo.jpg

22 august 2024 at 10:08

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Canadian Premium Sand Inc. Announces Third Quarter 2024 Results





CALGARY, Alberta, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Canadian Premium Sand Inc. ("CPS" or the "Company") (TSXV: CPS) is pleased to announce its third quarter 2024 financial results. The Company's interim financial statements and notes thereto and Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three and nine months ended June 30, 2024, are available under CPS's SEDAR+ profile.



Highlights

The Company devoted its time and resources during the three-month period ended June 30, 2024, to advancing its integrated patterned solar glass manufacturing facility in Selkirk, Manitoba (the "Project"). Specifically, the Company:

Continued discussions with certain debt and equity capital investors that have expressed interest in financing the Project; and





Remained engaged with both the Province of Manitoba and the Government of Canada to progress potential financial incentive packages.



"We look forward to securing financial incentive packages from the Governments of Canada and Manitoba that will enable the Company to move rapidly towards a successful financing of the Project. The demand for patterned solar glass in North America continues to accelerate with visibility for upwards of 65GW of demand by 2030 which represents a 500% increase from current levels. We remain focused on establishing North America's first source of patterned solar glass and to facilitating our customers' stated goal of securing a low-risk and low-carbon solar energy supply chain", stated Company President & CEO, Glenn Leroux.

About Canadian Premium Sand Inc.

The Company is developing manufacturing capacity for ultra high-clarity patterned solar glass through a Company-owned facility to be located in Selkirk, Manitoba that utilizes the high-purity, low-iron silica sand from its wholly owned Wanipigow quarry leases and renewable Manitoba hydroelectricity. The Company is a reporting issuer in Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia. Its shares trade on the TSXV under the symbol "CPS".

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.

CONTACT INFORMATION: Canadian Premium Sand Inc. Glenn Leroux Cam Deller President and Chief Executive Officer Chief Financial Officer [email protected] [email protected] Investor Relations [email protected] 587.355.3714 www.cpsglass.com

Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements contained in this press release constitute forward-looking statements relating to, without limitation, expectations, intentions, plans and beliefs, including information as to the future events, results of operations and the Company's future performance (both operational and financial) and business prospects. In certain cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "expects", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", "believes", "plans", "seeks", "projects" or variations of such words and phrases, or state that certain actions, events or results "may" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Such forward-looking statements reflect the Company's beliefs, estimates and opinions regarding its future growth, results of operations, future performance (both operational and financial), and business prospects and opportunities at the time such statements are made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or circumstances should change. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions made by the Company that are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. In particular, this press release contains forward-looking statements pertaining, but not limited, to: the expectation that the Project will be funded in 2024 and the transition of the Company activities from development to operational; the potential economic benefits of the Project and the expected demand of solar energy; the anticipated market for the Company's patterned solar glass and the ability to achieve the goals of the Company's customers; future development plans; industry activity levels; industry conditions pertaining to the solar glass manufacturing industry; the ability of and manner by which the Company expects to meet its capital needs; and the Company's objectives, strategies and competitive strengths. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve numerous current assumptions, known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to differ materially from those anticipated by the Company and described in the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking information and statements contained in this document speak only as of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation to publicly update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances, except as may be required pursuant to applicable laws.

22 august 2024 at 17:30

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Our goal in Liberia is to shift from rice importation to rice production in the medium to long term, and invest in local farmers by providing capital, skills, technology, and equipment for local production, Koung said.
THE 149th Dublin Horse Show welcomed thousands to its iconic grounds in the RDS and I had the honour of attending.

I went on Thursday to the international sporting and social event of the summer, which combines sport, style and socialising in the heart of Dublin city.

Best Dressed took place on the day, at the band lawn, where the most stylish person Lorraine Ryan Kelly walked away with 10,000 in cash. Congratulations!

Opting for a V-neck, sky blue coloured dress with petal details, I felt it was the right fit for a spotlight summer outing.

I also sported a striking hat with rose detailing and some pearls to match, with my accessories from Tadhg Kearney jewellers in Limerick city.

It was a day of glorious galavanting, despite the wet weather on the way up.

READ MORE: Verizon staff recognised by Limerick City Tidy Towns team

Following the Galway Races, I feel like I have a wonderful appreciation for the equestrian world.

Beyond the fashion and fun, the sport itself is highly impressive. Watching the elite international showjumping teams perform has the wow factor.

However, the show showcases more than elite riders  with over 165 classes and competitions that cover everything from Connemara pony classes to ladies side saddles, there is truly something for everyone who has even a small interest in horses. And like me, who is no expert in anything equestrian but loves attending race meetings during the summer.

There is also a RDS shopping village, indoor and outdoor bars and restaurants serving scrumptious local produce, as well as street food from around the world.

Days out like these are always calendar staples and though I don't want them to end, we have so much to look forward to, and I am grateful for every moment.

XxCelia
A YOUNG girl aged 12 is 'doing well' following surgery after she was seriously in a 'heinous' assault at her home in Limerick-border town, Charleville.

The child is thought to have sustained serious head injuries in what is understood to be an assault on her home by suspected masked men with slash hooks.

Gardai and emergency services attended the scene at a home in the New Line area of Charleville on Monday night, August 19, at approximately 11:30pm. The perpetrators damaged both the house and a car outside.

The girl was transferred to Cork University Hospital with serious injuries before being taken Temple Street Children's Hospital in Dublin.

They're very hopeful that she'll make a full recovery, Superintendent Gary McPolin said.

READ MORE: Gardai concerned for welfare of Clare man missing for over a week

This happened on a Monday night, it's unacceptable, inexcusable, and will not be tolerated, either by the local people or by the gardai.

The people in Charleville are completely disgusted with whats happened in their town. Its a very law-abiding town with very decent people who have very good relationships with the guards and vice versa.

Its suspected that the child was injured as part of an ongoing feud between families in Limerick and Cork.

Gardai are appealing for witnesses or anyone with information to contact the investigation team at Mallow Garda Station at 022 31450, the Garda Confidential Line at 1800 666 111, or any garda station.

Investigations are ongoing and no arrests have yet been made.
SPECIAL measures which meant more than 7,000 people in West Limerick had to boil their water have now been lifted.

Local TD Niall Collins has this Thursday afternoon confirmed that the boil water notice in place for householders in Askeaton, Foynes, Ballyhahill, Loghill, Ballysteen, Pallaskenry, Kildimo, Shanagolden and surrounding areas is now at an end.

It means that they can drink cold water from their taps once again.

It was originally put in place back in May 2023 following the detection of cryptosporidium in the supply.

Mr Collins, a Minister of State at the Department of Further and Higher Education has warmly welcomed the end of measures.

- -



Following remedial works & receipt of satisfactory monitoring results, the boil water notice is . pic.twitter.com/1doQPDepac  Niall Collins (@NiallCollinsTD) August 22, 2024

READ MORE: Minute's silence for Limerick vet at Cappamore Show

He said: "It has been a huge disruption to the lives of thousands of people along the estuary. We have put significant resources into the treatment plant. It will come as a huge relief to so many people that we are now returning to normality."

"These measures went on far too long. I have had many confrontations with Irish Water about this. I'm glad we are at the point where we are returning to normality," added the Limerick TD.

READ MORE: Today's the day: thousands of Limerick students get Leaving Certificate results

Uisce Eireann confirmed that the boil water notice on the Foynes Shannon Estuary Public Water Supply has been lifted with immediate effect.

A spokesperson for the utility said the notice was issued in May 2023 to protect the health of approximately 7,000 customers following the detection of cryptosporidium at the plant.

"Uisce Eireann has implemented remedial measures to existing processes and has also undertaken upgrades at the plant.

"Drinking water experts from Uisce Eireann worked to lift the notice as quickly and safely as possible. Following satisfactory water samples and consultation with the Health Service Executive, the boil water notice has now been lifted.

"All customers impacted by the boil water notice can now resume normal use of the public water supply," said the spokesperson.

Uisce Eireann "acknowledges the impact of the notice on customers and thanks the community for their support while the notice was in place".

"Uisce Eireann's primary focus remains the protection of public health and we worked with our stakeholders to lift the notice as quickly as possible.

"We are grateful to customers, elected representatives and the media for their assistance in sharing information on the boil water notice.

The Uisce Eireann Customer Contact Centre, open 24/7 on freephone 1800 278 278, is available to answer queries in relation to the lifting of this notice. Further information is available on www.water.ie ," said the spokesperson.

Uisce Eireann is responsible for delivering public drinking water and wastewater services for the people of Ireland. We are committed to enabling communities to thrive by continuously upgrading and developing critical infrastructure to support sustainable growth and development, providing safe drinking water, and enhancing the environment.
TRIBUTES are being paid to the late Mary Harvey nee Rowe following her passing on August 19 after a prolonged illness.

Maurice O'Sullivan from the Torch Players drama group described the late actor best known for her portrayal of Bridie Clancy in Killinascully as "wonderful, talented, unique and very funny." She graced the boards in numerous Torch productions. Mary first took to the stage with the Fit Ups at the tender age of 14 in the 1960s.

Mr O'Sullivan said Mary had a unique natural talent. "She was one of those extraordinary actors who just did it without having to think too much about it. It was an audacious talent and she possessed a wicked, terrific sense of fun."

With Torch she won Best Actress awards at drama festivals across the country. Her crowning glory was winning Best Actress for her depiction of Beatrice in The Effects of Gamma Rays on Man in the Moon Marigolds at the All Ireland Drama Finals in Athlone and the Dundalk International Festival in 1998.

Thomas Fitzgerald from Fitzgerald Heritage Centre in Bruff said Mary's death was a devastating loss to the culture of the town. "Beloved by all who knew her and revered by local thespians, Mary stood tall for the quality of her acting."

READ MORE: Award-winning historian with a brilliant mind, Dr Alan McCarthy PhD, passes away aged 32

He added that she could turn her hand to any role offered to her. "Recognised in America as well as her homeland for her utter brilliance, Mary Rowe's passing marks a black day for us all. No doubt she is treading the boards in heaven entertaining all around her," concluded Mr Fitzgerald.

Actor Chris Rowley paid tribute to Mary, saying she was such a "talented actress" and giving of praise and support to anyone who she worked with. "A true pro and a pleasure to be with, whether on stage or in the green room!"

The late Limerick woman inherited her great performing talents from her mother Sadie who was a stalwart of The Bruff Shamrock Players who were the dramatic group in Bruff throughout the 1930s and 1940s.

Mary is survived by her partner Frank, sister Carmel, nephews Pat and John Paul, niece Michelle, grandnephew Ryan, extended family, neighbours, drama community and her many friends.

Mary will repose in McMahon's Funeral Home, Newmarket-on-Fergus tomorrow (Thursday) from 5.30pm to 7pm followed by removal to Our Lady of the Rosary Church. Funeral Mass on Friday, August 23 at 11.30am followed by burial afterwards in Ss Peter's and Paul's Church ground, Bruff.
Abbey Tauchen |

Lincoln University of Missouri Assistant Professor of Political Science Dr. Elizabeth Dorssom has been honored with the 2024 Michael Brintnall Teaching and Learning Award, a prestigious recognition in the field of political science.

The award, presented by the American Political Science Association (APSA), celebrates Dr. Dorssom's innovative approaches to teaching and her commitment to enhancing the learning experience for her students.

"When I'm teaching, I try to make political science interesting so that students are encouraged to pay attention to what is happening in the Government and why voting is important," Dorssom says. "My goal is to demonstrate to students that Politics affects their lives and why they should pay attention to the actions of their elected officials."

Dr. Dorssom enriches her classroom by emphasizing the importance of voting and integrating current events into her lessons with a "Politician of the Day" segment. She uses creative methods like playing songs from Hamilton to spark debates about the U.S. Constitution and federalism. Additionally, she engages students with assignments such as creating short videos on voting, similar to TikTok, and uses Quizizz to assess learning. Dr. Dorssom is committed to continuously improving her teaching by attending pedagogy conferences and workshops to explore new technologies and activities.

"What I love most about teaching is seeing the proverbial lightbulb turn on in students' heads when they understand a new concept," Dorssom says. "It is a great feeling."

Read the full release in Political Science Today here.
Abbey Tauchen |

Lincoln University of Missouri has announced the appointment of two new leaders in student affairs  Cornelius Brownlee, M.S., Ed.S., as assistant dean of student conduct and community standards, and Issac Bivins Jr., MHED, as assistant dean of student engagement.

Brownlee brings over 15 years of experience in higher education and human resources, having held significant leadership roles at institutions such as Tennessee State University, Broward College, Palm Beach County Government and Miami-Dade County Government. Most recently, as executive director of equity and inclusion at Tennessee State University, Brownlee managed a $2.3 million budget, led Title IX and Title VI compliance and spearheaded diversity and inclusion initiatives. His academic credentials include a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership with a focus on human resource development from Florida Atlantic University, an Ed.S. in the same field, a masters degree in integrated marketing and management communication and a bachelors degree in rehabilitation counseling from Florida State University. Brownlees comprehensive experience is further supported by his EEOC Investigator Training and certifications as a Title IX Coordinator and DEI Practitioner.

Bivins is an advocate for student engagement and success, with an educational foundation in social work and higher education administration. Bivins holds a Bachelor of Science in social work from Jarvis Christian University, a Master of Higher Education Administration from Southern New Hampshire University and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Education in leadership and higher education at St. Edwards University. In his previous role as assistant director for alumni affairs at Jarvis Christian University, Bivins was instrumental in enhancing alumni relations, developing recruitment strategies and organizing impactful events. His prior experience includes serving as a case manager coordinator for Communities In Schools and a behavior resource specialist for Texas ACE, where he effectively supported student retention, behavior improvement and academic guidance.

With the addition of Brownlee and Bivins, Lincoln University is poised to further enhance its commitment to student success, engagement and community standards.
(Bloomberg) -- Budget carrier AirAsia Bhd has secured a $443 million dual-tranche private financing to use partly for refurbishing planes grounded during the pandemic, according to people familiar with the matter.

Private credit funds Ares Management Corp. and Indies Capital Partners Pte. Ltd. provided a $200 million tranche for the refurbishment of the aircraft to get them back in the air, said the people who asked not to be identified discussing private matters. Aircraft lessors provided the other $243 million portion to refinance lease liabilities.

AirAsias structured deal is another instance of the growing popularity of private credit in Asia that is fast becoming a serious rival to mainstream lending by offering higher, floating rates of return.

The financing, structured as privately-placed bonds linked to revenue, is secured by the sale of future airline tickets from AirAsias key routes, the people said.

Evercore Inc. is AirAsias financial advisor, while A&O Shearman is its international counsel. Milbank LLP is representing the lenders.

Ares declined to comment. A&O Shearman, Evercore, Indies and Milbank did not immediately respond to requests for comment. AirAsia confirmed the deal is taking place.

The private credit tranche of AirAsias latest securitized deal pays a coupon of 11% per annum and has a four-year tenor, the people said. The lessor piece offers 7% per year and carries a two-year maturity. The deal has been signed but not yet funded.

Also Read | Economic Survey 2024: Indian aviation on cusp of unprecedented growth

The terms of the transaction have changed from the initial stage, which circulated in the second half of last year, following negotiations, according to the people.

AirAsia is no stranger to the private credit space. The carriers engineering and maintenance affiliate Asia Digital Engineering Sdn. Bhd. in April 2023 had raised $100 million from investment firm OCP Asia Ltd., according to a statement at the time.
(Bloomberg)- Didi Global Inc. swung to a profit in the June quarter, a welcome boost for the company as it prepares for a potential re-listing in Hong Kong.

Chinas leading ride-hailing provider reported a net profit of 1.4 billion yuan ($196 million), from a small loss a year earlier. Revenue climbed 4.1% to 50.9 billion yuan, after ride-hailing transactions hit a record.

Also Read | China Cuts Back on New Permits For Coal Power as Renewables Boom

The results reflect how the company is gradually recovering from a tough few years. Once hailed as a national champion that defeated Uber Technologies Inc. in China, Didis business took a hit after Beijing clamped down on the internet industry.

Also Read | Walmart tears up China online strategy with JD.com stake sale

Regulators fined the company $1.2 billion in 2022 and forced it to de-list from New Yorks mainboard after Didi proceeded with an IPO despite authorities objections. In May, co-founder Jean Liu  who helped oversee the US debut  stepped down from her roles as president and board director. She was appointed chief people officer instead.
Chipotle Mexican Grill hired Scott Boatwright seven years ago to help fix the chain. His next job is simple: Dont break it.

The Mexican-inspired restaurant company is for now turning to Boatwright, its longtime operations head, to maintain a run of strong sales and profits that have helped Chipotle buck broad industry malaise. Boatwright steps into the top role on an interim basis after Brian Niccol, Chipotles chief executive officer since 2018, was tapped last week to run Starbucks.

Niccols hiring was cheered by Starbucks investorsand mourned by Chipotles, with its stock dropping 7.5% on the day of the announcement. Starbucks touted Niccols decades of restaurant experience and marketing skill, which helped turn around Chipotle and more than double the burrito chains annual sales between 2017 and 2023.

Chipotle had been riding high before Niccols surprise exit. The company in July said same-store sales grew about 11% in the quarter ended June 30, when Starbucks and other big chains reported traffic declines. Chipotle expects its same-store sales to increase at least 5% this year.

Niccol has largely been Chipotles public face as the Newport Beach, Calif.-based company moved past food-safety problems and rebuilt its brand. Behind the scenes, Niccol has been backed by a team of seasoned executives and operations specialists who are capable of carrying the torch at Chipotle, according to shareholders, analysts, former company officials and other restaurant industry executives.

One of the things Brian is good at is surrounding himself with great people," said Meredith Sandland, CEO of Empower Delivery, a consulting firm. The former Taco Bell executive worked with Niccol before his time at Chipotle.

A Chipotle spokeswoman said the chains board is conducting an external CEO search and has hired a search firm as a matter of good governance. Chipotle said Boatwright wasnt available for an interview.

Some shareholders and industry analysts said they would like Boatwright to stay in the job. The 51-year-old former Arbys executive has decades of restaurant experience and was central to Chipotles efforts to resolve food-safety problems.

Federal officials implicated the company in at least five foodborne illness outbreaks between 2015 and 2018, with investigators finding that some workers werent following safety protocols, such as reporting to work when sick.

The fallout badly bruised Chipotles sales and its overall brand, which centered on fresh, natural ingredients that it advertised as a healthier alternative to fast food.

Steve Ells, Chipotles founder, in 2017 recruited Boatwright to become the chains chief restaurant officer. Boatwright at the time was nearly two decades into a career at Arbys, helping the roast-beef sandwich chain navigate a turnaround and leadership change.

Boatwright has spent years working closely with restaurant managers, employees and franchisees, and is known for having an open-door policy, according to industry executives who have worked with him. At Arbys, Boatwright was often dispatched to markets that needed operational help, said Melissa Strait, a former chief people officer at Arbys who worked with Boatwright.

He could go in there and, pretty quickly, figure out what was holding a market back," Strait said.

He also has a sense of humor. At an Arbys franchisee convention years back, Boatwright participated in an eating contest featuring the chains Meat Mountain sandwichturkey, ham, roast beef, chicken tenders and other ingredients piled between bread.

Boatwrights early goal at Chipotle was to improve food safety while maintaining restaurants use of ingredients prepared fresh each morning, he said in a podcast interview last year. The chain needed more-consistent standards across its restaurants, he said, as well as leaders with the time and focus to help implement them.

What we lacked was a level of sophistication with leadership development," Boatwright said on the Future Ready Leadership" podcast. Its a recipe for disaster in a high-growth organization."

A company spokeswoman said Chipotle hasnt experienced major food safety concerns in recent years. Its practices have earned industry recognition.

The companys executive bench includes Chris Brandt, Chipotles marketing chief since 2018. Industry analysts have credited him with creating digital marketing campaigns that have helped pull in younger consumers.

Curt Garner, a Chipotle executive since 2015 who now leads technology, was recruited to the chain after helping to design the Starbucks app. Chipotles digital rewards program now has roughly 40 million users.

Chipotles shares have regained ground since their initial drop, and some shareholders said they are sticking with the chain.

Its never a one-man band," said Stephanie Link, chief investment strategist for the wealth-management firm Hightower. Link said her firm bought Chipotle shares last week, seeing a buying opportunity when the stock declined on the news of Niccols departure. They have a good bench, even without Brian."

Restaurants are under growing pressure as consumers pare discretionary spending, and other chains anticipate a decline in same-store sales this year. Chipotles sales have held up despite several menu price increases in recent years, benefiting from loyal consumers who tend to be more affluent and health-conscious than the average restaurant patron.

The chain in recent months has been criticized over the size of its portions, with some consumers convinced that its bowls and burritos had become skimpy in the past year.

Chipotle said in July that it was retraining staff in some stores to be more generous with food portions. In recent weeks, some consumers have posted praise and photos of heaping bowls on social media.

The chains weekly foot traffic growth continued to outpace the fast-food and fast-casual industry as a whole over the first seven months of this year, according to location data from Placer.ai.

Mark Madeley, a Mexican-food fan in Houston, doesnt want Chipotle to make big changes. He said he wants the chains leaders to keep staffing restaurants with friendly people who dish up filling meals.

To me, the brand stands for fresh, quality ingredients, prepared to your liking," he said.

Write to Heather Haddon at heather.haddon@wsj.com
IT major Cognizant has announced the appointment of Rajesh Varrier as global head of operations and India Chairman & Managing Director after the resignation of Rajesh Nambiar, who is set to become Nasscom president.

Nasscom announced the appointment of Nambiar as its president-designate. She will succeed Debjani Ghosh after she completes her term in November 2024. Nambiar was previously a member of the Nasscom Executive Council before being elected chairperson in 2023.

In a release, Cognizant said Varrier's responsibilities will include operations, delivery excellence, workforce planning, India leadership council, expansion and other key responsibilities.

Cognizant today announced the appointment of Rajesh Varrier as Global Head of Operations, effective September 2, 2024. Additionally, he will be appointed as Chairman & Managing Director, India, assuming the role on October 1, 2024, as Rajesh Nambiar leaves Cognizant to become president of Nasscom, the company said.

Varrier will be an executive vice president of Cognizant, reporting to Ravi Kumar S, Cognizant's chief executive officer.

Before joining Cognizant, Varrier served as EVP, Head of Global Services and Infosys Americas, and Global Head of Infosys' Digital and Microsoft businesses.

Also Read | Rajesh Nambiar quits Cognizant to lead Nasscom; Rajesh Varrier his successor

He also served as SVP of Digital Experience for the Microsoft business at Infosys. Before joining Infosys, Varrier was the CIO and Digital officer for Aditya Birla Sun Life Insurance and founder of the analytics firm Activecubes.

He holds an undergraduate degree in Physics and a post-graduate degree in Computer Engineering from the University of Mumbai.

Nambiar is an industry leader having worked and led global teams at TCS, IBM, Ciena and Cognizant. His leadership and strategic initiatives have been instrumental in positioning Indias tech sector as a global lead, Nasscom said.

The Nasscom release quoted Nambiar as saying: This is truly an exciting time for the industry, as we focus on the accelerated transition to AI-first companies, making talent our greatest competitive advantage, driving growth, and increasing investments in IP creation and R&D. I am both privileged and honoured to take on this opportunity to collaborate with all stakeholders to enhance the Indian tech sectors capabilities.

Also Read | Cognizant EVP says firm offering salaries between 4-12 lakh to fresher engineer

Debjani Ghosh, current president of Nasscom, observed that the tech sector is pivotal to Indias growth and added that the IT industry association has played a key role in shaping Indias tech leadership globally.

Leadership at Nasscom is fully empowered to carry forward the charter and I am confident that Rajesh will elevate it to even greater heights. I welcome him and look forward to working with him, she said.

Nasscom had appointed a search committee to appoint the next president. The committee was headed by Keshav R. Murugesh, Group CEO, WNS, and members included Harish Mehta, Som Mittal, Krishnakumar Natarajan and Sindhu Gangadharan, PTI reported.
Adani Power announced on Thursday that the Hyderabad bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has approved its plan to acquire Lanco Amarkantak Power Ltd (LAPL) with an upfront payment of 4,101 crore. LAPL is currently undergoing the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, as stated in a filing with the BSE.

The acquisition is subject to the fulfillment of certain conditions outlined in the resolution plan. Upon completion, Adani Power will obtain 100% ownership of LAPL through a cash transaction.

Also Read | Zomato-Paytm ticketing deal appetizing for both

LAPL operates a 2x300 MW (600 MW) thermal power plant (Phase-I) located in Pathadi Village, Korba District, Chhattisgarh.

The majority of the power generated from the Phase-I capacity is supplied to the Haryana and Madhya Pradesh distribution companies through long-term power purchase agreements facilitated by Power Trading Corporation Ltd.

LAPL has secured a long-term fuel supply agreement of 2.784 MMT with South Eastern Coalfields Ltd (SECL), a subsidiary of Coal India Limited.

Additionally, LAPL is developing a 2x660 MW (1320 MW) expansion capacity under Phase II.

Also Read | Zomato to shut down intercity Legends services with immediate effect

The acquisition is expected to be finalized within 60 days of the National Company Law Tribunals approval order, by October 20, 2024.

LAPL's core objective, the generation of power, aligns with the main business focus of the company.

The successful acquisition and implementation of the resolution plan for LAPL will bolster APLs position as India's leading private sector power producer, with a combined operational capacity of 15,850 MW, according to the statement.

Also Read | FTX says creditors overwhelmingly back reorganization plan

Furthermore, Adani Group plans to reduce its debt by decreasing promoter holdings in companies like Adani Power and Ambuja Cements, according to media reports.

According to the report, Adani Group's promoters are considering selling a 5 per cent stake in both Adani Power and Ambuja Cements.

After the report, Adani Power shares fell to their lowest point, dropping 1.2 per cent to 686.75.
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Thursday appointed an arbitrator to address the dispute related to fintech firm BharatPe's allegations against its former managing director Ashneer Grover concerning breach of confidentiality under his employment agreement.

Justice C. Hari Shankar issued the order after BharatPe filed a plea for arbitration, accusing Grover of violating his employment contract by disclosing confidential company information on social media.

Both parties agreed to arbitration, but Grovers counsel proposed using the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) due to its involvement in related shareholder disputes.

BharatPe contested this proposal, arguing that the employment agreement specifies arbitration under the Delhi International Arbitration Centre (DIAC). The court upheld BharatPe's position.

Previously, the high court had fined Grover 2 lakh for sharing inappropriate posts about BharatPe, despite his assurance to the court that he would not do so. Grover has since deleted the posts and apologized.

In November 2023, Resilient Innovations, which operates BharatPe, filed a plea seeking an interim injunction against Grover to prevent further disclosure of confidential information.

This legal action was triggered by Grovers recent posts on X (formerly Twitter), where he disclosed sensitive details about BharatPe's Series E funding round, including the number of shares allocated to investors and the specific amounts invested by each.

BharatPe vs Grover Following his ouster in 2022, BharatPe initiated multiple legal actions against Grover.

In December 2022, the company approached SIAC to reclaim Grovers 1.4% restricted shareholding due to his termination without board consent.

BharatPe also filed a 88 crore damages suit with the Delhi High Court, alleging misappropriation of funds and reputational harm. Additionally, BharatPe lodged a criminal complaint with the Economic Offences Wing (EOW), which led to the registration of an FIR in May 2023.

Look-out circulars (LOCs) were issued against Ashneer Grover and his wife in November 2023 in connection with a cheating and forgery case. In May 2024, the court allowed the Grovers to travel abroad separately after they provided a surety of 80 crore each.

Grover's legal disputes also involve BharatPes co-founders. Bhavik Koladiya has filed a suit alleging a breach of the share purchase agreement dated 3 December, 2018, and claiming ownership of 16,110 shares, approximately 3.10% of BharatPes total shareholding.

The high court, in April, barred Grover from selling or making third-party claims on these shares.
New Delhi: Birla Fertility & IVF has completed the acquisition of BabyScience IVF Clinics, founder and chairperson Avanti Birla told Mint. The acquisition, its second in three months, will strengthen the companys presence in the western part of the country and take its total number of clinics across India to 50, she said. It will continue to look for opportunities in west and northeast India, and overseas as it aims for 100 clinics by FY28, Birla added. The company is looking to go global maybe not this year but the next, she said.

Birla did not disclose the size of the deal. The company will initially take a co-branded approach, with BabySciences current employees continuing to oversee operations, she said.

Also read: Why patient education is essential for couples seeking IVF treatment

BabyScience IVF Clinics is based in Bengaluru and mainly operates in cities in south and west India such as Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chennai. It has 12 clinics across Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Haryana. The acquisition marks Birla Fertility & IVFs entry into three new states.

Infertility on the rise Indias IVF industry is projected to grow rapidly in the coming years, according to analysts, driven by a surge in medical tourism and an increase in health conditions contributing to infertility. An estimated 25-30 million couples in India are currently grappling with infertility issues, and companies are ramping up their plans to tap this opportunity.

Ernst & Young expects India's IVF market to grow to $1.45 billion by 2027 from $793 million in 2020 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15-20%. Custom Market Insights estimates the industry will surpass $5.05 billion by 2033 at a CAGR of 16.23%.

In May, Birla Fertility & IVF acquired an 86% stake in ARMC IVF, a chain of fertility centres based in Kerala. The deal, estimated by industry sources to be worth about 100 crore, added seven clinics to Birla Fertilitys portfolio.

 500-crore investment These acquisitions, Birla said, will help the company achieve its goal of 100 clinics by FY28 by investmenting more than 500 crore. It plans to achieve this goal through a mix of organic expansion, inorganic growth, and partnerships.

Also read | Mint Explainer: What falling total fertility rate will mean for India

Whenever we start looking internationally, itll possibly be in Southeast Asia and the Middle East. This can be done in a host of ways: organic, inorganic, and partnerships. But India remains the focus for the next 15 months, she added.
New Delhi: Packaged consumer goods company Dabur India Ltd will set up a new manufacturing facility in Tamil Nadu with an initial investment of 135 crore. The company plans to scale it up to 400 crore over the next five years.

This is Daburs first manufacturing unit in south India and will help expand capacity across brands such as Red Toothpaste, Odonil and Honey.

The company signed a memorandum of understanding with the state government for the plant on Thursday.

Last year, Dabur had commenced construction of its largest manufacturing facility in India in Madhya Pradesh, with an estimated investment of 550 crore. The unit will manufacture a range of food products, Ayurvedic medicines and health supplements, the maker of Vatika hair oil, and Real Juice said.

Dabur operates 14 manufacturing plants in India and draws a large part of its business from markets in northern India.

Capacity expansion comes as consumer goods makers increasingly extend their reach in response to the rising demand for branded products.

Also read | Rural comeback should be more enduring trend going forward: Dabur India CEO

Dabur's investment will allow the company to better serve the growing demand for its products in south India and strengthen its market presence in the region, said chief executive officer Mohit Malhotra.

The FMCG major reported an 8% growth in consolidated net profit to 500 crore in the June quarter. Revenue was up 7% to 3,349 crore. In FY24, it reported revenue of 12,404 crore, with a net profit of 1,843 crore.

Dabur sells products under the home and personal care categories, apart from food and beverages and healthcare products. Its brands include Meswak toothpaste, Dabur honey, Amla hair oil, and Real fruit drinks.

We've chosen to set up a manufacturing unit in Tamil Nadu as part of our strategy to be closer to our consumers, said Rahul Awasthi, global head of operations, Dabur India. This will also enhance our sourcing of agricultural produce from local farmers in Tamil Nadu, he added.
Cryptocurrency-trading platform FTX Trading, which declared bankruptcy in November 2022, said an amended reorganization plan won overwhelming preliminary support from all classes of creditors entitled to vote.

More than 95% of creditors who submitted votes on the amended plan, filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District Court of Delaware, were in favor of it, the company said, citing unofficial voting reports.

Final voting results will be filed with the bankruptcy court before a confirmation hearing scheduled for Oct. 7.

Earlier this month, FTX and Alameda Research agreed to a consent order requiring them to pay $12.7 billion in monetary relief to fraud victims. This resolved litigation brought against the company by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

FTX was ordered to pay $8.7 billion in restitution and $4 billion in disgorgement to compensate losses by victims of a fraudulent scheme orchestrated by the companys founder, Samuel Bankman-Fried, and other FTX insiders.

In March, The Wall Street Journal reported Bankman-Fried was sentenced to a prison term of 25 years, after a jury found him guilty of stealing billions of dollars from FTX customers and defrauding investors and lenders to Alameda Research, his crypto-investment firm.
Singapores budget carrier Scoot Air plans to build its partnership with Air India Express slowly and steadily as the parent companies of both the airlines work on building synergy ahead of Air India-Vistara merger.

This is relatively new. It is a unilateral thing right now, so you can see Scoot flights on Air India Express website and that will allow them to ticket to the Scoot-beyond destinations with some limitations, Brian Torrey, general manager-India and West Asia at the low-cost subsidiary of Singapore Airlines, told journalists in New Delhi. This is a partnership that is developing. If it is more comprehensive, we want to be very clear on how it benefits our customers.

Earlier this month, Air India Express, an Air India subsidiary, launched a virtual interline platform with Scoot as the inaugural partner. This will enable customers to book flights from India and the Middle East to 60 Scoot destinations across Australia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Laos People's Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Philippines, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Scoot has a unique link to Air India. The Indian airline's chief executive officer and managing director Campbell Wilson was previously the CEO at Scoot and is among the founding members of the budget carrier born in 2011. Wilson is now spearheading the merger between Air India and Vistara, a 51:49 joint venture between the Tata Sons and Scoots parent Singapore Airlines. Once completed, Singapore Airlines is set to hold 25.1% stake in the combined Air India group.

Also Read | Class war: IndiGo shows Air India it means business The aim of offering competitive airfares Scoot, which counts India as its third largest market after Singapore and China, is now looking at ways to offer competitive airfares to Indian travellers who fly beyond Singapore to other destinations in the airlines network.

As we grow the network beyond Singapore and as we become more diverse in terms of what we sell from Indian market into East Asia, we need to have more control over how that pricing shows, Torrey said. We have invested in our revenue management process so that we can offer an origin-destination pricing that is unique to a market.

So, with these systems upgrade, as we add new destinations, there is unique pricing for the Indian market to go to these destinations--we always want to stay competitive, he added.

Also Read: Indian airlines, airports adopting AI tools to improve services Fleet expantion Scoot took to the skies in 2012 and merged with Tigerair Singapore in July 2017. It has a fleet of over 50 aircraft including Boeing B787, Airbus A320neo family aircraft, and two of the recently inducted Embraer E2 aircraft. The airline plans to add two more Embraer E2 aircraft in 2024 and five more of these 112-seater planes by the end of 2025.

The airline has almost recovered its Indian air traffic to pre-covid levels. It carried 192,829 passengers to and from India in January-March, over 99% of the pre-covid level of 193,880 passengers registered during the same period in 2019. However, the traffic in the March quarter of this year was around 5% less than the year-ago level of 202,117 passengers.

Indian travellers are going off the beaten track. MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions) group is a very big movement from India; the groups keep getting bigger, they used to be 200 people, now you have groups of 2000 people, they are always looking for new destinations, Torrey said. We see growth in leisure travel across age groups. And in the segment of VFR (visiting friends and relatives).

India opportunity The low-cost subsidiary of Singapore Airlines currently flies to Amritsar, Coimbatore, Chennai, Trivandrum, Vishakhapatnam, and Tiruchirappalli. The airline also sees potential in several other Indian international airports, including the ones coming up in Jewar and Navi Mumbai, but is currently restricted under the air service agreement.
Mumbai: Trent Ltd could grow to "10 times" its current size, chairman Noel Tata said on Wednesday, on a day the company's stock hit a 52-week high, but refused to commit to a timeline for achieving this, in keeping with his restrained personality.

"Trent has the opportunity to be 10X its size, but dont ask me by when," Tata told Mint in an interview.

Rising investor interest has led to the Tata Group's retail company's shares appreciating 250% in the past one year to Wednesday's closing price of 6,776.70 apiece on the BSE. Trent's market capitalization of more than 2.40 trillion makes it the fourth-most valuable Tata company, behind Tata Consultancy Services Ltd, Tata Motors and Titan Ltd.

Tata Steel, the oldest group company, is valued at about 1.9 trillion, and is in the fifth place.

"All our group companies are doing exceptionally well, and each one is constantly raising the bar," said Noel, who also sits on the board of Titan, Tata Steel, Voltas and Tata Investment Corporation.

Investor's interest

Investor enthusiasm mirrors Trent's financial performance: Revenue jumped 54.2% to 12,669 crore in the year ended March 2024, and profit swelled 82% to 1,029 crore.

At the heart of this impressive growth is Trent's success with its smaller-format apparel store, Zudio. Many organized retail giants, including Reliance Retail and Aditya Birla Fashion Retail, are still searching for their homegrown apparel brands, which is driving them to make expensive acquisitions and alliances with foreign brands and well-known designers.

Trent has stayed away from acquisitions and Tata denied the market chatter of acquiring Indian ethnic wear Fab India.

Zudio was launched in 2016 as a large-format store, but the model had bombed by 2020, before its revival began. Learning from the mistakes made during its initial phase helped Zudio get the size of the format and offerings right. It is now on an overdrive, with 559 stores across 169 cities at the end of June 2024.

Analysts admire the perseverance displayed by Noel Tata in building and scaling Trent.

"Noel Tata has done a version of the Asian Paints strategy in India. He's opening a new store, almost one a day. He's pulling it off because of the rapid inventory turns and the speed at which the clothes fly off the shelf. Credit to the team at Trent. They worked hard at it for ten years, with lots of trial and error and patience, and finally, they hit the right note," says Saurabh Mukherjea, founder and CIO of Marcellus Investment Managers.

"the price point is incredibly low. So, while they say the average selling price is 500, when I visit the store, I find most items to be well below 500 apiece," Mukherjea, whose funds and his parents own Trent in their portfolio, added.

It has democratised department store shopping in a way that no other retailer has ever managed, he said.

Zudio's second coming

Noel, 67, who steers the business from his office at Vios Towers, an upscale office complex near Sion, located between Tata headquarters Bombay House and Bandra-Kurla Complex, explained Zudio's second coming.

He has bulge-bracket businessmen like Mukesh Ambani and Kumar Mangalam Birla competing in the same market, but Noel, the half-brother of Ratan Tata, remains unfazed.

"India makes up one-sixth of the world's population, and there is huge headroom for all current and future competitors to address this market," he says.

Star Bazaar, its grocery retail vertical, is breaking even, and Trent will accelerate this journey by adding more stores, confident that it has finally found the right model.

However, his company's strategy will remain focused, even as his peers make acquisitions, sign up designer labels, and form alliances with global brands.

"Launching a private label brand is very different from launching a multi-brand store format. With Westside, we chose to be completely branded; we had to develop the entire product portfolio and constantly evolve it to meet our customers acceptance and find (real estate) properties. Back in 1999, the required competencies for this did not exist, so we had to train and learn on the go. Retailers who today try to pivot to be predominantly private labels will realise how difficult it is," said Noel.

Grocery, the next growth engine

Star Bazaar, its grocery retail vertical, is breaking even, and Trent will accelerate this journey by adding more stores, confident that it has finally found the right model.

"Look at DMart's success. Grocery retailing is a very difficult and competitive business, but if the customer proposition and execution are right, DMart has shown that it can be substantially value-accretive to shareholders," he said.

In succession planning, Noel confirmed that his son Neville was recently promoted to managing director of its joint venture with British retail giant Tesco.

"I enjoy mentoring our next generation of leaders, including Neville," he said.
INDIAN EXPRESS on a Friday evening is always bustling. Diners from all corners of India dig in to kebabs and curries. Kingfisher, an Indian lager, flows freely, and Bollywood music blares from the speakers. A similar (if slightly more abstemious) scene plays out down the road at Radha Krishna, a vegetarian eatery. One might be in any of a dozen cities in India. But this paratha party is happening in Bangkok.

Indias economic rise has lifted millions out of poverty and given the country greater geopolitical heft. Less obvious is the effect of its growing consumer class on other countries. International departures from India more than doubled, to 27m, in the decade to 2019. Overseas spending by Indian travellers tripled between 2010 and 2023, to $33bn. One forecast suggests it will jump to $45bn next year. Driving this is a mix of demography and economics. People aged between 25 and 34 are the most keen on travel; a fifth the population will age into that group soon. The middle class is expected to be twice as big by 2047. The number of valid Indian passports grew from 52m a decade ago to 93m this year.

By 2040 the number of international departures could hit 80m or even 90m, reckons McKinsey, a consultancy. That is not far off the 104m Chinese who went abroad in 2019. But Chinese consumers are increasingly staying at home; their foreign travel is not growing as fast as it used to. Indians are thirsty to see the world. Unlike the Chinese at a similar stage, however, they are not rushing to Europe. It is countries closer to home that are reaping the rewards.

View Full Image (The Economist)

In recent decades, as China became the worlds biggest source of tourists, Western countries adjusted. Governments simplified visa processes, airports installed signage in Mandarin, and shops started accepting Chinese payment platforms. But they have been slower to court Indian tourists. Meanwhile, Middle Eastern and South-East Asian countries are racing ahead. Thailand and Malaysia have suspended visa requirements for Indians. Other countries are recruiting Bollywood stars as brand ambassadors: Abu Dhabi tourism has landed Ranveer Singh, who used to promote Switzerland; Dubai has roped in Saif Ali Khan and Sara Ali Khan, a father-and-daughter duo. The countries that welcome Indians will enjoy both the economic benefits and the cultural soft power that tourism affords.

For lessons on how to do it, look to the South-East Asian countries that were early to grasp Indias potential. They are now redoubling their efforts in hopes of replacing Chinas flagging numbers. In 2019 Chinese accounted for 11m of Thailands 40m overseas visitors. Last year they were a mere 3.5m out of 28m. Indians, on the other hand, keep coming. A decade ago around 1m visited annually; that level was already reached in the first half of 2024. Many are on their inaugural trip abroad. Margaux Constantin of McKinsey thinks Bangkok could take over from Dubai as Indians number-one leisure destination this year. Thailands tourism ministry estimates that Indians generated 63bn baht ($1.8bn) in 2023, or around 0.4% of Thai GDP.

Thailand appeals to Indians because it is cheap, easy to get to and welcoming. The last point is most important. The Indian passport is a weak document, providing visa-free or equivalent entry to just 58 countries, mostly small islands in the Pacific and Caribbean. Even Cubans and Belarusians have better access to the world. Last year Thailand lifted all visa requirements for Indians, a privilege usually reserved for rich Western countries. Visitor numbers immediately shot up. Iran, Kenya and Sri Lanka have also abolished visas for Indians. More modest loosening helps, too. When Azerbaijan launched an e-visa programme for Indians in 2017, annual arrivals tripled within a year and doubled again the next year, to 160,000.

Rich Western countries, on the other hand, make Indians feel unwanted. Waiting times for American tourist-visa interviews can be longer than a year. Britains visa fees are extortionate. Getting a visa for Europes border-free Schengen zone, if an appointment can be found, requires stacks of paperwork, evidence of financial health and proof of intention to return. Many travellers find it humiliating. Some refuse to go. Its too painful a process to go through for a visa you may or may not get and if you do get it, its for the exact duration of stay," says a Bangalore-based professional who works for a European firm. He prefers South-East Asia. Last year 19% of Indian applications for a British visit visa were rejected, as were 15% of applications for the Schengen region. By design or otherwise, theyre losing out," says Rajesh Magow, the boss of MakeMyTrip, Indias biggest online travel agent.

View Full Image (The Economist)

Moreover, Indians tend to be last-minute travellers. Britons book international trips three months in advance, on average, and Americans two months. Indians do so barely 30 days earlier. That is not enough time to get a visa to Europe or North America. Indians still travel to America and Britain in big numbers, largely to see friends and family in the huge Indian diaspora; visa problems make them less appealing as holiday destinations. Europe performs even worse. No country in the Schengen region is among the top ten destinations for Indians except France, which comes seventh. Germany and Italy rank below Kuwait and Qatar. Europeans worried about overtourism can rest easy; Indians are taking their rupees elsewhere.

After visas, the biggest factor influencing where Indians decide to go is the ease of getting there. Direct flights have surged: 31 Indian cities now offer international flights to 322 destinations, up from 23 and 272 in 2015. Foreign airports are knocking at our doors pretty much every other day," says Pieter Elbers, the boss of IndiGo, Indias largest airline.

These numbers, too, are poised to take off. WizzAir, a European budget airline, is considering introducing direct flights to India. AirAsia, based in Malaysia, just added its 17th Indian destination. VietJet, a Vietnamese low-cost carrier, has expanded beyond Mumbai and Delhi to smaller Indian cities. Vietnams fortunes changed because it got connectivity," says Neil Patil of Veena World, a tour operator. Two years ago there were barely any direct flights. Today there are more than 200 every month. Arrivals from India have jumped nearly ten-fold to 30,000 a month.

The effect is even greater when an Indian airline launches a direct route, says Binit Somaia of CAPA India, an aviation consultancy. They have broader sales bases and bigger domestic marketing budgets. Indian tourist arrivals to Turkey grew by 50% after IndiGo started daily nonstop flights to Istanbul in 2019. It recently started flying to Central Asia and the Caucasus. Uzbekistans cities quickly filled up with Indian tourists. Carriers are adding foreign destinations at a quick clip. Akasa Air, just two years old, operated only domestically six months ago. Now it flies to five international destinations. IndiGo and Air India, the flag carrier, are ordering dozens of new wide-body aircraft. In total, Indian carriers have some 1,500 planes on order. Next year Mumbai and Delhi will each get a second international airport.

The third major consideration is cost. Indians budget-conscious habits have led travel firms to innovate in making trips cheaper. Agencies such as MakeMyTrip offer discounts and coupons galore. Many tie up with banks to offer credit: around a fifth of urban Indians who took out a personal loan did so for leisure travel, according to a survey in 2023. Moreover, as India itself gets pricier, other places start to look like a bargain. At peak times Thailand offers better value than Goa, Indias beach-and-booze state.

The number of people with cash to spare is growing, too. Those with household incomes of over $10,000 are less price-sensitive, says Mr Magow. Goldman Sachs, a bank, estimates that some 60m individuals make at least that much. Another 40m are likely to join them by 2027. CAPA India is even more optimistic: it thinks more than half of Indian households will have incomes over $10,000 by 2030.

One European(ish) country that is focusing on Indian travellers is Russia, where visitors from the West have dwindled. It sees India as a prime" market and its government is said to be negotiating bilateral visa-free access. Other countries whose tourism boards are actively wooing Indians tend to be far from Europe: places like Kenya and Australia. Saudi Arabia hopes to attract 7.5m Indians by 2030, up from 1.5m last year.

Apart from visas, flights and prices, winning more Indian tourists has to do with the sort of cultural pitch a country makes. Middle Eastern countries promise shoppingwith discountsand adventure activities. Thailand, eager to shed its reputation as a drinking and sex-tourism destination, is targeting solo women and high-spending wedding groups. The bets on Bollywood go beyond getting stars as brand ambassadors: countries compete to host the filming of Indian movies and television shows. Switzerland is still benefiting from a spate of Bollywood movies shot there in the 1990s. Singapores tourism board encourages producers to film in the city-state.

A paneer of respectability

A final question is the availability of Indian foodespecially vegetarian. It is the top concern for many outbound travellers. In March Ankesh Kanuga, a 43-year-old pharmacist in Mumbai, made his first trip overseas, to Azerbaijan. Over four days Mr Kanuga and a dozen friends skied, visited historical sites and sampled the nightlife for a total cost of about 90,000 rupees ($1,100) each. His chief complaint was the lack of Indian restaurants and vegetarian food. Still, Mr Kanuga says he would like to go abroad again and again". Tens of millions of Indians feel the same way.

Some denizens of rich countries may not be sorry to hear that Indians are not coming to visit. Overtourism has become a bogeyman in many places, especially European cities. But the consequences of turning away visitors from a huge rising power go beyond economics. Tourism shapes global culture; it helps determine which places are seen as important and which are overlooked. Even at its most superficial, it builds personal connections between countries. It is easier to hold prejudices about places one has never seen. The countries that invest in attracting Indians will shape the mental geography and implicit alliances of the future. At the moment, it is South-East Asia and the Middle East that are doing so. America and Europe are missing out, as are the Indians who would like to see them.

 2024, The Economist Newspaper Ltd. All rights reserved.

From The Economist, published under licence. The original content can be found on www.economist.com
The much-awaited Jackson Hole annual symposium kicked off on Thursday, August 22, at Wyoming in the United States of America (USA), with central bankers worldwide assembled to attend the globe's premier economic gathering. US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will address the symposium on Friday, August 23, the marquee event for financial markets worldwide.

Investors hope Fed chair Powell will clarify whether he feels inflation has cooled enough to justify an interest rate cut next month and if he worries about a rising unemployment rate. Wall Street experts believe Powell will shift focus to labor market trends as inflation has cooled consistently in the last few months.

Where is Jackson Hole? Jackson Hole is located northwest of the US State of Wyoming, near the border with Idaho in Teton County. It refers to the valley between the Teton and Gros Ventre mountain ranges. Grand Teton National Park primarily occupies the northern part of Jackson Hole.

Kansas City Federal Reserve's annual symposium is held at Jackson Lake Lodge in Grand Teton National Park. It is an annual conference or gathering of global central bankers and economists in the Wyoming mountains.



Jackson Hole 2024: Details of events The 2024 Economic Policy Symposium, "Reassessing the Effectiveness and Transmission of Monetary Policy," will be held between August 22-24.

The program begins on August 22 with a dinner served beneath antler-decorated lights at the historic Jackson Lake Lodge. Attendees entering the private dining room pass by a preserved grizzly bear in the lodge's public lounge, which boasts an expansive view of the craggy Teton Range.

The conference goes until midday on Saturday and largely consists of discussions of academic papers. This year's theme is reassessing the effectiveness and transmission of monetary policy.

The Jackson Hole event draws keen investor attention and sometimes delivers a rough ride for markets, depending on what the world's most influential monetary policymakers say in formal remarks and interviews on the sidelines.



Jackson Hole: When to watch US Fed chair Jerome Powell's speech? US Fed chair Powell will address a group of central bankers at the event hosted by the Fed's Kansas City branch at 10 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EST), which means 7:30 pm Indian Standard Time (IST) on Friday, August 23.



Jackson Hole: Where to watch US Fed chair Jerome Powell's speech? Viewers can catch live updates of Fed chair Powell's speech at Jackson Hole on livemint.com; Alternatively, one can visit the US Federal Reserve's official website -https://www.federalreserve.gov/; and the official account of the US Fed on the microblogging platform X--https://x.com/federalreserve to watch Powell's speech on Friday, August 23 at 7:30 pm IST or 10:00 am EST.

What to expect from Powell's speech at Jackson Hole? Powell is widely expected to hint at a potential rate cut in September while addressing policymakers at Jackson Hole. Given the recent economic indicators, experts say theres a strong possibility that Powell might signal a 25 bps or even a 50 bps rate cut next month.

Some Fed officials said a half-point Fed rate cut in September would become more likely if there were signs of a further slowdown in hiring. The next jobs report will be issued on September 6. In the last policy decision, Powell said if US inflation continues to fall, a reduction in our policy rate could be on the table" when the Fed next meets in September.



Jackson Hole event: Historical relevance The Kansas City Fed has held its yearly symposium since 1978. Its initial focus was agriculture, but after a few years, the organizers broadened the meeting's scope and tried attracting bigger names. In 1982, they moved the meeting to its current location to entice then-Fed Chair Paul Volcker, a devotee of flyfishing, to join.
NEW DELHI : India's economic boom has opened up a lucrative new playground: the legal profession. The surge in corporate activity, fuelled by an accelerating economy and a burgeoning middle class, has created a voracious appetite for legal services. This, in turn, has sparked fierce competition among top-tier law firms to recruit law graduates.

As the 2024 academic year concludes, law graduates are stepping into a job market where their skills are more coveted than ever. Law firms across India have ramped up their hiring efforts, offering higher salaries to attract fresh talent needed to navigate the complexities of a fast-growing corporate landscape.

The fight for talent

Top law firms have been increasing both intake and salaries to prepare for the surge in legal services. Cyril Shroff, managing partner at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, pointed out that while his firm trimmed fresher salaries, they still hired 170 graduates this year to build a strong foundation for future market demand.

Read this | IIM grads get a reality check in a tight job market

"With the expected growth in India Inc., the demand for legal professionals is poised to grow commensurately," said Shweta Shroff Chopra, partner and member of the management board at Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas. The firm, which has hired 10% more freshers this year, is offering a median salary of 20 lakh.

While Shroff Chopra did not disclose last year's starting salaries, she confirmed that this year's offers are higher.

Neha Gianchand, chief marketing officer at Trilegal, which recruited 123 freshers, emphasized that the growing demand for legal services has contributed to maintaining higher retainer levels for freshers.

Corporate law firms have offered salaries in the range of 18-22 lakh this year for hires from top-rated National Law Universities, according to Manoj Kumar Singh, placement director, National Law University Jodhpur (NLUJ).

"All law firms are offering approximately 200,000-300,000 more to freshers this year, compared with their offers last year. They are also hiring more people now. A majority of those who apply for campus placements in NLUJ are placed in the country's top law firms," Singh told Mint in a telephonic conversation.

Of the 120 students in NLUJ's 2024 batch, around 70 enrolled for placements, and 60 were successfully placed, Singh said.

Looking ahead to the 2025 batch, which has the same number of students, 44 have already received job offers, even though the placement process has only just begun and will continue throughout the year, he said. Most of these students have secured positions as associates in law firms or as in-house counsel in corporates and NGOs.

The competition for top-notch legal talent is fierce, with tier-1 firms not only vying against each other but also facing challenges from foreign law firms and corporates that are strengthening their in-house legal teams.

"We also compete with foreign firms who find great talent in India and take them abroad, as also with companies who are beefing up their in-house legal functions," Amar Sinhji, executive director of human resources, Khaitan and Co, told Mint.

Economic growth and legal demand

Indias booming economy is creating a ripple effect across the legal industry. As per data from the corporate affairs ministry, 185,312 new companies were registered in FY24, a 51% increase from FY19s 123,938 registrations. Simultaneously, corporate insolvencies approved under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code more than tripled, rising from 75 in FY19 to 269 in FY24, according to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI).

And this | Raising funds for education in budget may solve employment issues

These figures underscore the growing need for legal expertise as businesses navigate an increasingly complex market environment.

With the global economy on a downturn, India, with its growing geopolitical importance and growth story, is in a rather nice spot. There is increased domestic demand which is spurring activity for professionals like us. Despite global uncertainties, we continue to grow year-on-year, and exceeding expectations," said Rabindra Jhunjhunwala, senior partner at Khaitan & Co. The firm, which hired 76 freshers this year, up from 72 last year, sees rising transactions and restructuring activities as clear indicators of an impending surge in demand for legal services.

In May, the Bar Council of India (BCI), the nations regulator for legal education, directed all law institutions to incorporate novel domains such as arbitration, mediation, cyber laws, and forensic laws into their syllabi.

These emerging areas of law are rapidly gaining traction among law firms, creating a burgeoning market for new lawyers, according to placement coordinators.

Three of the nation's top five law schools have seen an increase in the number of students placed from the 2021 batch to the 2023 batch. Simultaneously, two of these institutions also reported a surge in median salaries, according to data from the National Institutional Ranking Framework.

"We have seen an increase in both the number of hires by law firms and the salaries offered this year. Newer avenues of law, like cyber laws and arbitration, have also opened up more job opportunities for students," said Ratna Sahasrabuddhe, assistant coordinator of the Placement Cell at ILS Law College. "This year, weve also observed an uptick in corporate hiring, particularly as companies expand their in-house legal teams. As the economy grows, we are becoming a more litigious and aware society," added Sahasrabuddhe, who has nearly a decade of experience in law school placements.

A numbers game

Despite the growing demand for legal services, the number of law graduates in India far exceeds the available positions at top-tier firms. This fierce competition has led to a significant increase in the number of law graduates who end up in lower-paying roles or even struggling to find employment at all.

More here | Mint Explainer: Why Indian schools continue to fail rural teens

In FY22, over 134,000 students graduated with a bachelor's degree in law, a 21% increase from an estimated 110,000 who graduated in FY21, according to data compiled by Mint from the education ministry's All India Survey of Higher Education report

Over 100,000 students appear for the All India Bar Exam each year, but only a fraction secure positions at leading law firms or corporates. The majority find themselves in lower-paying roles, such as junior litigators in local courts.

Salaries for junior litigators typically range from 15,000 to 25,000 a month, depending on the location of the practice, according to students.

"About half of my college enrolled in the placement process, which can get you jobs in law firms or corporations. Of these, only a third secured jobs from my batch," said Keyur Jaju, a 2024 graduate from ILS Law College who landed a position at a top-tier law firm.

Also read | Why coaching capital Kota has failed its entrance test

For others, Jaju said, the career paths include pursuing judiciary roles, further education, or joining family-run practices. "I was a first-generation lawyer, so I had to try for the higher-paying law firm job. The rest start practising litigation, most commonly."
Mumbai: The National Payments Corp. of India (NPCI) plans to hive off its card network RuPay and lending feature Credit on UPI, in an effort to focus better on its growing product portfolio amid steady balance sheet growth.

The corporation, India's umbrella body for retail payments, has already carved out three businesses as wholly-owned subsidiariesNPCI International Payments, Bharat BillPay and NPCI BHIM Services, three people familiar with the matter said. According to the people cited above, it is planning a restructuring exercise to streamline operations into six broad businesses.

The next in line may be card network RuPay, NPCI's rival to global networks like Visa, Mastercard and American Express which has seen significant growth over the past two years, two of the three people said on the condition of anonymity.

Launched in 2012, RuPay debit and credit cards are issued by over 1,300 banks, according to NPCI. The network is now available in five countries, including Singapore and the UAE. In June 2023, the Reserve Bank of India allowed foreign currency cards on RuPay. In FY24, there were 968 million transactions via RuPay cards, lower than 1.26 billion in FY23. The quantum of transactions remained unchanged at 2.4 trillion across both years.

On 13 August, NPCI said it is carving out NPCI-BHIM as a fully owned subsidiary, citing the growing demand for digital transactions and the need to promote financial inclusion. However, industry experts suggested that another driving factor may be to take on private entities such as PhonePe and GooglePay, which dominate the market for UPI transactions. The move to grow BHIM is also aimed at reducing ecosystem dependence on a few large private players, experts said.

UPI data

India recorded about 131 billion UPI transactions in FY24, up from 83.7 billion in FY23, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in April, citing NPCI data. In July, 14.44 UPI billion transactions worth 20.64 trillion were processed, up 45% year on year in terms of volume and 35% in terms of value. UPI is now available in seven countries outside India.

NPCI could then look to segregate its lending business under Credit on UPI," said a third person. Under Credit on UPI introduced in October 2023, NPCI facilitates loans by linking credit cards to UPI IDs, or through pre-sanctioned credit lines extended by banks against UPI IDs.

The NPCI also operates the National Automated Clearing House (NACH), FASTag, Aadhar-enabled payment services (AePS), UPI Lite and UPI 123Pay. The corporation may also look to hive off one of these, the people cited earlier said.

July saw 323 million FASTag transactions, up 9% from a year earlier, worth 5,578 crore, up 12% year-on-year. Meanwhile, AePS transaction volumes were 11% lower and transaction value was 18% down to 97 million trades worth 24,218 crore in July 2024.

A spokesperson for NPCI declined to comment.

Experts said NPCI's existing subsidiaries have helped it focus better on specific areas.

A subsidiary has also ensured that even as the tech infrastructure is shared with the parent, each of these verticals would independently be run by a separate team," said Mihir Gandhi, partner and leader, payments transformation, PwC India. It would be interesting to track how the BHIM UPI subsidiary does as it will have a consumer-facing business."

According to Gandhi, a separate subsidiary could also mean that NPCI is able to introduce more features on its existing products or launch new products.

In July, 14.44 UPI billion transactions worth  20.64 trillion were processed, up 45% year on year in terms of volume and 35% in terms of value.

Others believe that creating subsidiaries helps unlock the business potential of verticals, and aims to provide enough focus and budget, along with an independent machinery.

For instance, NPCI International is required to liaison with local regulatory bodies in several overseas markets, global payment systems and governments. It requires a very different skillset that the core NPCI team could do and we have already seen adoption of UPI in so many countries," said Parijat Garg, a fintech expert.

NPCI's growth

NPCI International was set up as a subsidiary of NPCI in August 2020 primarily to expand the reach of UPI and RuPay abroad. "It is also a matter of pride for NPCI that several countries such as Asia, Africa and the Middle East have displayed interest towards replicating our model in their own nations," NPCI's managing director and chief executive officer of NPCI Dilip Asbe said at the time.

There has been tremendous growth in digital payments, said the third person, a senior payments industry executive.

With so many new players coming into the ecosystem and NPCIs own books also growing, it makes sense for them to start looking at each vertical as an individual business segment which can be allowed to grow on its own," the executive said.

Since the share of other private players has remained low while the proposed volume cap for UPI platforms is expected to be extended, the move to grow BHIM, experts said, is also aimed at reducing ecosystem dependence on a few large private players.

While NPCI is an umbrella organization for retail payments, it also competes with private entities in several segments such as card infrastructure and bill payments. It also grants licences or approves the participation of Issuer Banks, PSP (Payment Service Providers) Banks, Third Party Application Providers (TPAP) and Prepaid Payment Instrument issuers (PPIs) in UPI.

Give this overarching role, segregating business operations into separate subsidiaries seems to be the next step for NPCI to avoid any potential question of bias towards its own products and services, and to ensure that all businesses operate at arms length to each other within an open market structure, the experts cited above said.

Its a long-ish exercise. They seem to be looking at each business segment to ascertain which has become too large or that which may not have picked up as expected and needs special attention," said the second person, adding the restructuring exercise could also see some consolidation of existing lines of business within these broad verticals.

An initiative of the Indian Banks Association and Reserve Bank of India, NPCI was set up in 2008 as a not-for-profit entity to provide infrastructure to the banking system for physical and electronic payments and settlement systems.

Ten core promoters of NPCI are State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Canara Bank, Bank of Baroda, Union Bank of India, Bank of India, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Citibank and HSBC. In 2016, the shareholding was expanded to 56 member banks, following which in 2020, other entities such as Payment System Operators (PSO), payments banks and small finance banks were inducted.
New Delhi: The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) is considering issuing and renewing licences only to those pharmaceutical firms that can prove they follow good manufacturing practices.

The movethe first suchassumes significance given the growing size of the Indian pharmaceutical industry, currently at $65 billion, and the crisis of confidence faced by it.

Pharma standards

Good Manufacturing Practices, or GMP, prescribed in Schedule M of the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945, set the standards for pharma companies on the quality of raw materials, methods, machines, processes, personnel, facility and environment, among other things.

Also read | India's drug regulator drafts norms to report adverse effects of vaccines

The health ministry made GMP mandatory in December last year. However, drugmakers have been slow in following the rule, with some said to be still adapting to the compliance requirements.

The matter was discussed in a Drugs Consultative Committee (DCC) meeting in June which recommended that all states shall follow the rules notified last December.

Following the recommendation, the apex drug regulator who is the central licensing authority and state licensing authorities will be checking on GMP compliance, and taking a call on licence issuance or renewal on the basis of GMP reports.

Also read | Who is responsible at drugmakers? Regulatorand state licensing authorities would be checking wants to find out

According to the December 2023 notification, pharma companies with annual revenues of Rs250 crore and above were to compulsorily follow GMP within six months, while those with revenues of less than Rs250 crore had 12 months to do so.

The increased compliance with GMP standards would bring Indias drug manufacturing capability at par with global standards, especially those issued by the WHO. Moreover, this would ensure the production of globally acceptable quality of drugs.

This exercise comes in the backdrop of contaminated Indian cough syrups being linked to the deaths of children in developing countries, including 66 in Gambia and 68 in Uzbekistan in 2022.

Over 10,000 drug firms in India

India is the largest supplier of medicines to low- and middle-income countries  drugs that require a WHO GMP certification.

However, of the 10,500 drug manufacturing units in India, 8,500 are small businesses that do not have GMP certification. According to government figures, the remaining 2,000 firms have GMP certification.

The Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO), the DCGI and state drugs controllers (SDCs) have been conducting the inspections of pharma companies since last year. Around 400 premises including MSMEs have been inspected so far.

During the inspection a number of drug samples were drawn and tested. Certain samples were found to be not of standard quality".

On 2 August, the union health ministry stated that more than 300 actionslike show cause notices, stop production orders, suspension, cancellation of licences, etc.were taken by state licensing authorities.

Industry welcomes the initiative

Sudarshan Jain, Secretary-General of the Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (IPA), said, As far as quality of drugs are concerned, we welcome all initiatives by the drug regulator. It is in line with revised Schedule M which makes it mandatory for drug firms to follow GMP standards as per international standards and thus quality becomes fundamental."

Daara Patel, Secretary General at Indian Drugs Manufacturing Association said that GMP are being followed by all member companies. IDMA is going webinars to sensitize the companies to meet the government compliance.

Queries sent to the ministry of health spokesperson remained unanswered till press time.
It is 70 years since AT&Ts Bell Labs unveiled a new technology for turning sunlight into power. The phone company hoped it could replace the batteries that run equipment in out-of-the-way places. It also realised that powering devices with light alone showed how science could make the future seem wonderful; hence a press event at which sunshine kept a toy Ferris wheel spinning round and round.

Today solar power is long past the toy phase. Panels now occupy an area around half that of Wales, and this year they will provide the world with about 6% of its electricitywhich is almost three times as much electrical energy as America consumed back in 1954. Yet this historic growth is only the second-most-remarkable thing about the rise of solar power. The most remarkable is that it is nowhere near over.

To call solar powers rise exponential is not hyperbole, but a statement of fact. Installed solar capacity doubles roughly every three years, and so grows ten-fold each decade. Such sustained growth is seldom seen in anything that matters. That makes it hard for people to get their heads round what is going on. When it was a tenth of its current size ten years ago, solar power was still seen as marginal even by experts who knew how fast it had grown. The next ten-fold increase will be equivalent to multiplying the worlds entire fleet of nuclear reactors by eight in less than the time it typically takes to build just a single one of them.

Solar cells will in all likelihood be the single biggest source of electrical power on the planet by the mid 2030s. By the 2040s they may be the largest source not just of electricity but of all energy. On current trends, the all-in cost of the electricity they produce promises to be less than half as expensive as the cheapest available today. This will not stop climate change, but could slow it a lot faster. Much of the worldincluding Africa, where 600m people still cannot light their homeswill begin to feel energy-rich. That feeling will be a new and transformational one for humankind.

To grasp that this is not some environmentalist fever dream, consider solar economics. As the cumulative production of a manufactured good increases, costs go down. As costs go down, demand goes up. As demand goes up, production increasesand costs go down further. This cannot go on for ever; production, demand or both always become constrained. In earlier energy transitionsfrom wood to coal, coal to oil or oil to gasthe efficiency of extraction grew, but it was eventually offset by the cost of finding ever more fuel.

As our essay this week explains, solar power faces no such constraint. The resources needed to produce solar cells and plant them on solar farms are silicon-rich sand, sunny places and human ingenuity, all three of which are abundant. Making cells also takes energy, but solar power is fast making that abundant, too. As for demand, it is both huge and elasticif you make electricity cheaper, people will find uses for it. The result is that, in contrast to earlier energy sources, solar power has routinely become cheaper and will continue to do so.

Other constraints do exist. Given peoples proclivity for living outside daylight hours, solar power needs to be complemented with storage and supplemented by other technologies. Heavy industry and aviation and freight have been hard to electrify. Fortunately, these problems may be solved as batteries and fuels created by electrolysis gradually become cheaper.

Another worry is that the vast majority of the worlds solar panels, and almost all the purified silicon from which they are made, come from China. Its solar industry is highly competitive, heavily subsidised and is outstripping current demandquite an achievement given all the solar capacity China is installing within its own borders. This means that Chinese capacity is big enough to keep the expansion going for years to come, even if some of the companies involved go to the wall and some investment dries up.

In the long run, a world in which more energy is generated without the oil and gas that come from unstable or unfriendly parts of the world will be more dependable. Still, although the Chinese Communist Party cannot rig the price of sunlight as OPEC tries to rig that of oil, the fact that a vital industry resides in a single hostile country is worrying.

It is a concern that America feels keenly, which is why it has put tariffs on Chinese solar equipment. However, because almost all the demand for solar panels still lies in the future, the rest of the world will have plenty of scope to get into the market. Americas adoption of solar energy could be frustrated by a pro-fossil-fuel Trump presidency, but only temporarily and painfully. It could equally be enhanced if America released pent up demand, by making it easier to install panels on homes and to join the gridthe country has a terawatt of new solar capacity waiting to be connected. Carbon prices would help, just as they did in the switch from coal to gas in the European Union.

The aim should be for the virtuous circle of solar-power production to turn as fast as possible. That is because it offers the prize of cheaper energy. The benefits start with a boost to productivity. Anything that people use energy for today will cost lessand that includes pretty much everything. Then come the things cheap energy will make possible. People who could never afford to will start lighting their houses or driving a car. Cheap energy can purify water, and even desalinate it. It can drive the hungry machinery of artificial intelligence. It can make billions of homes and offices more bearable in summers that will, for decades to come, be getting hotter.

But it is the things that nobody has yet thought of that will be most consequential. In its radical abundance, cheaper energy will free the imagination, setting tiny Ferris wheels of the mind spinning with excitement and new possibilities.

This week marks the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere. The Sun rising to its highest point in the sky will in decades to come shine down on a world where nobody need go without the blessings of electricity and where the access to energy invigorates all those it touches.
Orient Technologies IPO: Bidding for the initial public offering (IPO) of Orient Technologies Limited opened on 21st August 2024 and will remain open for bidding till 23rd August 2024. The company has fixed the Orient Technologies IPO price band at 195 to 206 per equity share. After day one of bidding, Orient Technologies IPO subscription status suggests a strong response by the primary market investors. Meanwhile, the grey market has gone bullish on Orient Technologies IPO. According to stock market observers, Orient Technologies IPO GMP (grey market premium) today is 33.

Orient Technologies IPO GMP today As mentioned above, Orient Technologies IPO GMP today is 33, which is 3 higher than yesterday's GMP of 30. They said that the rise in the grey market sentiments regarding Orient Technologies IPO can be attributed to two significant reasons: strong Orient Technologies IPO subscription status after day one of bidding and positive sentiments in the Indian stock market. They said Orient Technologies IPO GMP may improve further if the bull trend on Dalal Street extends for a few more sessions.

Orient Technologies IPO subscription status By 3:09 PM on day 2 of bidding, the public issue had been booked 14:49 times, the retail portion of the public offer had been filled 21:73 times, the NII portion had been subscribed 16.08 times, and the QIB segment had been booked 0.10 times.

Orient Technologies IPO review Giving a 'subscribe' tag to the public offer, Anand Rathi says, "Orient Technologies is engaged in I.T. solutions and related services across the business verticals. OTL's business operations involve technologically advanced solutions for which the company collaborates with a wide range of technology partners, including Dell International Services India Private Limited (Dell), Fortinet, Inc. (Fortinet) and Nutanix Netherlands B.V. (Nutanix). At the upper price band, the company is valued at a P/E of 20.7x with a market cap of 8,580 million post-issue of equity shares and a return on net worth of 27.2%. On the valuation front, the company is fairly priced. Thus, we recommend a "SUBSCRIBE" rating for the IPO."

Infographic: Courtesy mintgenie

B.P. Equities has also assigned a 'subscribe' rating to the book build issue, saying, "Orient Technologies' financial performance is likely to be driven by expanding its product and services portfolio, increasing its global footprint, long-term relationships with customers and collaboration with technology partners, thereby heightening its ability to design and innovate products and provide solutions tailored to specific customer requirements. The issue is valued at a P/E of 20.7x on the upper price band based on FY24 earnings, which is deemed fair compared to its peers. Therefore, we recommend a SUBSCRIBE rating for the issue."
Premier Energies IPO price band: The Premier Energies Limited IPO price band has been fixed in the range of 427 to 450 per equity share of the face value of 1. The Premier Energies IPO date of subscription is scheduled for Tuesday, August 27, and will close on Thursday, August 29. The allocation to anchor investors for the Premier Energies IPO is scheduled to take place on Monday, August 26.

The floor price and the cap price are 427 times and 450 times the face value of the equity shares respectively.

The Premier Energies IPO has allocated up to 50% of the shares in the public issue for qualified institutional buyers (QIB), 15% for non-institutional investors (NII), and a 35% of the offer is set aside for retail investors. Eligible employees participating in the employee reservation portion can avail of a discount of 22 per equity share.

The basis of allotment of shares for the Premier Energies IPO is currently scheduled to be finalised on Friday, August 30. Refunds will be initiated by the company on Monday, September 2, and the shares will be credited to the demat account of allottees on the same day after the refund process.

Founded in April 1995, Premier Energies Limited specialises in the production of integrated solar cell and solar panels. Its range of offerings includes solar cell, solar module, monofacial and bifacial modules, as well as EPC and O&M solutions.

The company operates five manufacturing facilities, all located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India.

Premier Energies Limited serves a diverse client base which includes NTPC, TATA Power Solar Systems Ltd, Panasonic Life Solutions Private Ltd, Madhav Infra Projects Ltd, and various others. The company has also exported its products to the United States, Hong Kong, South Africa, Bangladesh, Norway, Nepal, France, Malaysia, Canada, Sri Lanka, Germany, Hungary, the United Arab Emirates, Uganda, Turkey, South Korea, China, Taiwan, and the Philippines.

As per the red herring prospectus (RHP), the company's sole listed peers is Websol Energy System Ltd.

From FY21 to FY23, the company's operating revenue grew at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 42.71%. Revenue for FY24 rose by 120% to 3,143 crore. In FY24, the firm generated a profit of 231 crore, up from a deficit of 13.3 crore the previous year.

Premier Energies IPO details The initial public offering (IPO) comprises a fresh issuance of equity shares totaling up to 1,291.4 crore and an Offer for Sale (OFS) of a maximum of 3.42 crore shares by the existing shareholders, which amounts to approximately 1,539 crore based on the upper band price of 450.

As part of the offer-for-sale component, South Asia Growth Fund II Holdings LLC (SAGF II) will sell 2.68 crore equity shares, South Asia EBT Trust will divest 1,72,800 equity shares, and promoter Chiranjeev Singh Saluja will offload 72,00,000 equity shares.

The company's promoters collectively possess a 72.23% stake, while the public holds 26.12% of the shares, which includes ownership by South Asia Growth Fund II Holdings LLC, and the remaining 1.65% shares are held by employee trusts.

The issue has book-running lead managers in the form of Kotak Investment Banking, JP Morgan, and ICICI Securities.
InterGlobe Aviation, which owns and operates IndiGo, celebrated its 18th year of operations on 5 August with impeccable operating efficiency. The airline turned around its pandemic losses to earn a record profit in FY24, and this reflected in its stocks performance. It surged 125% from April 2023 to August 2024, beating the Nifty 50s 42% return over the same period.

View Full Image Source: TradingView

The rally came after a year of organisational restructuring and boardroom changes. Let's start from February 2022, where the stock bottomed out, falling more than 23%.

It was a horrible year for the economy as a whole, and stock prices were in retreat after a wild rally. It was also the year IndiGo co-founder Rakesh Gangwal exited the board and announced that he planned to reduce his stake in the company. Gangwal and his family have sold almost 18% of their stake since September 2022 and now own less than 20% of InterGlobe Aviation.

While investors generally dont react positively to promoters selling shares, this particular exit seems to have been conducted in a transparent and orderly manner.

From losses to record profits

Investors did eventually absorb Gangwals gradual exit in 2023. They welcomed the new management after it took the airline from a net loss of 305 crore in FY23 to a record profit of 8,167 crore in FY24. Driving these profits were the strong demand induced by post-pandemic revenge" travel and limited growth in overall capacity, which boosted realisations.

View Full Image Source: InterGlobe Aviation annual report FY24

In a market suffering with lower capacity due to the grounding of some planes with Pratt & Whitney engines, Indigo increased its capacity by 22%. It received new planes from previous orders, extended aircraft leases and signed new ones. At the end of the first quarter, it had 18 planes on damp lease.

The airline has 70-80 of its 382-strong fleet grounded because of engine issues. The engine supplier has agreed to provide IndiGo customised compensation for this.

In its March 2024 presentation, IndiGo said it would continue to lease more aircraft to achieve its target of growing capacity by double digits in FY25. While these leases will affect the airline's profits in the short term, they will help it maintain its market share. So while it tackles short-term issues, management has charted a systematic path to achieving its long-term goals.

The impact of this move is apparent in recent data. IndiGo increased its fleet size from 367 in March to 382 in June, adding five planes on damp lease and 10 on operating lease. It plans to add more than one aircraft per week in FY25. This helped IndiGo increase its market share to 62% in July from 60.8% in June, according to data from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DCGA).

The next phase of growth

IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers aims to double the airline's fleet to 600 aircraft by 2030. This might seem like an ambitious target. After all, it took IndiGo 14 years and a no-frills approach to achieve a fleet size of 362 (from 19 in FY10).

But it is also true that Indian aviation was a challenging market when IndiGo entered it in 2006. It had to compete with the likes of Kingfisher, Jet Airways and Air India, all while paying high fuel prices because of Indian import duties. Several full-service airlines were unable to fill most of their business-class seats and fell into bankruptcy.

Meanwhile, IndiGo used the no-frills model to squeeze in more seats, and became the go-to airline for first-time travelers in Indias price-sensitive market. Today it is the market leader with a 62% share, 100 million customers, and less competition.

It has the management chops and experience to pull off the next phase of growth, too. Having said that, to grow from here, the airline needs a new perspective. As the saying goes, If you keep doing what youve always been doing, youll keep getting what youve always been getting." IndiGo has adopted a new strategy as it looks to transition from the no-frill model to a full-service airline.

Enter IndiGo Stretch Cabin

The carrier has announced its new business offering, IndiGo Stretch Cabin, which features 12 seats in a 2-2 configuration (Air Indias business-class cabin has eight seats). Apart from plush seats, IndiGo Stretch customers will enjoy curated meals, a wide selection of beverages, advance seat selection, priority check-in and anytime boarding.

You will be able to book an IndiGo Stretch seat for Delhi-Mumbai flights scheduled around mid-November. The introductory price is 18,018 (an economy class seat costs around 4,000). The airline plans to gradually extend this offering to 12 metro-to-metro routes by the end of 2025, but will it be able to fill these seats?

Historical data shows that many full-service airlines in India fell into losses as they failed to fill their business-class cabins. According to the DCGA handbook 2023-24, full-service carrier Vistara was operating at a loss of 264 crore in FY23. The only carrier apart from IndiGo that reported an operating profit was low-cost carrier Air India Express.

Aware of these risks, IndiGo is treading cautiously in its business-class journey. It is attempting this at a time of record profits, which gives it the financial flexibility to handle the high cost of providing business-class service. At first, the plan did not excite the investors, and InterGlobe Aviations share price fell by 2.1% after the announcement.

International plans

One segment that has investors excited, though, is IndiGos expansion into international skies. Long-haul flights offer higher yields and are more profitable than domestic ones. IndiGo increased its share in international operations from 11.5% in FY20 to 17.6% in FY24, as per DGCA data. In the June 2024 quarter, 27% of Indigos available seats per kilometer were on international routes, and it plans to grow this in a structured manner in the coming years.

It is deploying existing planes on international routes, adding new destinations every quarter. At the end of FY24, the airline served 33 international destinations. It has also forged code-sharing partnerships with eight international airlines, enabling connectivity to 49 more destinations worldwide.

Indigo is expanding its fleet, too. It will introduce the A321 XLR in 2025, and has ordered 500 aircraft scheduled to be delivered in phases by 2035, and 30 wide-body A350-900 aircraft that will start to arrive in 2027. The new orders combined with previous pending orders bring IndiGos outstanding order book to around 980 aircraft. With such a huge order book, it is looking to capitalise on the Indian governments 1 trillion investment in airport infrastructure.

View Full Image Source: InterGlobe Aviation March 2024 presentation

India has a geographical advantage, with 65% of the worlds population living within five to six hours of flying time. Improving airport infrastructure would help the country create international hubs on the lines of Singapore and Dubai.

Crisil Ratings expects international passenger traffic to increase at a compound annual growth rate of 10-11% in the next four years, from just 5% in FY16-20, driven by rising disposable incomes, easier visas, more airports and better connectivity.

Final takeaway

IndiGo is leaving its comfort zone in the no-frills market to enter the next phase of growth. It is doubling its fleet size and routes, and adding a new class of seats. Add to this a new loyalty program and the IndiGo of today is already very different from what it once was.

On the flip side, the high costs of offering business class could be offset by higher margins for international operations. ICRA has also upgraded InterGlobe Aviations long-term rating to AA- (stable) on its strong net profit and international expansion plans. Thats a good sign.

IndiGo stock is trading at 86 times its book value, an important valuation metric, hinting that the market has priced in high growth. Its price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple, however, is 21x. The absence of other viable listed airline companies means theres nothing to compare this to, but IndiGos 10-year median P/E is 20.5x.

That being said, while the company seems poised to robust growth, the stocks high valuation could limit its upside. Time will tell.

Note: The purpose of this article is only to share interesting charts, data points and thought-provoking opinions. It is NOT a recommendation. If you wish to consider an investment, you are strongly advised to consult your advisor. This article is strictly for educational purposes only.

Puja Tayal is a seasoned financial writer who works with companies such as Motley Fool Canada and Market Realist. With more than 17 years of experience in fundamental research, she provides comprehensive, well-researched insights on companies operations in her articles.

Disclosure: The writer or his dependants may or may not hold the stocks/commodities/cryptos/any other asset discussed here as per Sebi guidelines.
It looks like Indian auto stocks were running out of fuel after a prolonged journey that saw them achieve new milestones and deliver impressive performances. The sector had been on a remarkable upward trajectory for months, consistently reaching new heights and capturing investor attention.

However, August has marked a notable shift. After eight consecutive months of bullish momentum, which spanned from November 2023 to July 2024, the Nifty Auto index has taken a significant hit, tumbling 4.3 per cent in August so far.

The decline in auto stocks followed weak financial results from auto companies for the June quarter and a slowdown in passenger vehicle (PV) sales in the first quarter of the current financial year. These factors pushed inventory levels to record highs, negatively impacting investor sentiment toward the sector.

Also Read | Resourceful Automobile IPO subscribed over 4 times on day 1; check GMP

Amid this, analysts have downgraded their ratings for PV manufacturers. Many predict that the Indian auto sector will undergo a consolidation phase in FY25, considering the high-performance levels of the previous year.

Despite record-breaking sales of over 1 million units in Q1 FY25, the growth rate was only 3 per cent. The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) had earlier forecasted PV growth for FY25 to be below 5 per cent, citing increased competition and excess supply as major challenges.

While PV sales exhibited moderate growth, the 2W segment saw a strong recovery in 1QFY25, with wholesale volumes rising by 21 per cent year-on-year. This growth was driven by a rebound in demand within the replacement segment in rural markets, robust performance in the premium motorcycle category, and a lower base effect.

Additionally, the scooter share in two-wheeler volumes increased by 190 basis points year-on-year in 1QFY25, partly due to a rise in scooter demand across regions, fuelled by greater EV adoption.

Looking at the top losers in August, Balakrishna Industries led with a 14 per cent drop, following multiple brokerage firms lowering their target prices after the company's June quarter results. Bosch and Apollo Tyres also saw declines, each falling 8 per cent within the Nifty Auto Index.

Other notable declines include Tata Motors, down 7 per cent; Maruti Suzuki, down 6 per cent; and Mahindra & Mahindra, which dropped 5.3 per cent. Additionally, Exide Industries, Samvardhana Motherson, Eicher Motors, Bharat Forge, and MRF saw declines ranging from 2 per cent to 6 per cent.

PV Inventory levels are at a record high The slowdown in demand for passenger vehicles has pushed the inventory at auto dealerships across the country to an all-time high of over 700,000 units worth 73,000 crore, according to the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA).

FADA said that the vehicle stockpile has climbed from 6567 days in early July to 7075 days now. FADA Vice President CS Vigneshwar said that the high inventory poses a substantial risk to dealer sustainability, necessitating extreme caution.

He has also urged PV original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to be vigilant about potential dealer failures due to these high inventory levels.

Indias passenger vehicle sales rose by 10 per cent in July, reaching 320,129 units, according to FADA data. However, PV wholesales for July saw a year-on-year decline of 2.5 per cent, standing at 3.41 lakh units, largely due to the high base effect from the previous year.

Largest car maker scales back production Maruti Suzuki India is scaling back its production in response to lower-than-expected passenger vehicle demand in the first quarter of the 202425 fiscal year. Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC), the company's majority shareholder, confirmed this move, as per a Business Standard report.

Livemint could not independently verify the news development.

We are currently adjusting production to reduce market stock and are closely monitoring demand trends. India will be in a critical period with the upcoming festival season, so we will closely monitor demand trends," Suzuki Motor Corporation told analysts in a conference call, Business Standard reported, quoting the transcript of the call.

Despite a 7.4 per cent year-on-year increase in production to 496,000 units during the first quarter, sales growth lagged significantly, rising by only 1.2 per cent to 427,000 units, according to the Business Standard report.

Also Read | Maruti Suzuki sees discounts surge 50% to drive Q1FY25 sales

In 1QFY25, Maruti Suzuki's market share declined by 70 basis points year-on-year (excluding sales to Toyota). This drop was primarily due to significant losses in market share in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana (570 basis points), and Karnataka (80 basis points). However, these were partially offset by gains in Kerala (390 basis points) and Tamil Nadu (50 basis points).

Meanwhile, Mahindra & Mahindra and Toyota Motor saw market share increases of 200 and 160 basis points year-on-year, respectively, while Tata Motors experienced a 40 basis point decline in market share, according to Kotak Institutional Equities.

Mixed views on M&M Citi has lowered its price target for Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) from 3,340 to 3,180 while maintaining a 'Buy' rating. This adjustment reflects a challenging outlook for the SUV market, where M&M holds a significant share.

Despite the reduced target, Citi highlighted that M&M's tractor segment continues to perform well. The demand for M&M's SUVs has not met previous expectations, even with the company's expanded production capacity, leading to a revision in volume and earnings forecasts for this segment.

Other brokerages, however, remain optimistic about M&M's prospects. Nomura has upheld its 'Buy' rating with a revised target of 3,417, and Morgan Stanley maintains an 'Overweight' stance with a target of 3,304, particularly encouraged by the anticipated success of the new Thar Roxxa five-door variant of the popular Thar off-roader.
StoxBox has released its "Techno Funda Super 7 picks" for August 2024, highlighting seven stocks that offer a blend of resilience and growth potential. These stocks have been selected based on expert market analysis, with the aim of delivering immediate gains and long-term value.

Heres a closer look at StoxBoxs top picks: 1. BPCL: BPCL, a key player in Indias oil and gas sector, has seen its stock surge 100 percent since October 2023. Currently in a consolidation phase, BPCL is showing signs of a bullish breakout. StoxBox recommends buying BPCL at 328, with a target of 357 and a stop loss of 317. 26.9%. Looking ahead, BPCL is set to invest 16,400 crores in FY25, focusing on refinery expansion, pipeline infrastructure, and increased retail outlets, which should help mitigate current challenges and support long-term growth, said the brokerage.

2. HCL Tech: HCL Tech is demonstrating robust relative performance with increased buyer demand, which is a positive. StoxBox suggests purchasing HCL Tech at 1,650, targeting 1,785, with a stop loss of 1,601. HCL Tech is likely to perform well in FY25 due to a higher non-discretionary portfolio, better deal conversions, healthy TCV, and a robust pipeline, noted the brokerage.

"We believe HCL Tech is well-placed from a long-term perspective, given its multiple long-term contracts with the worlds leading brands. Moreover, we believe that an encouraging demand environment will help eliminate uncertainty over discretionary spending," it added.

3. PAYTM: After a significant 80 percent drop from its listing week high, the pattern analysis of PAYTM indicates potential signs of the stock reaching a bottom. The recent upward movement has been accompanied by short phases of accumulation, further reinforcing the potential trend. StoxBox recommends buying Paytm at 555, with a target of 615 and a stop loss of 530 in the short term. Paytm's large and active user base of 7.8 million monthly transacting users supports a stable business model, enabling revenue from both consumers and merchants through cross-selling opportunities.

"We believe constant improvement in operating leverage will continue to drive its profitability. As we advance, we expect revenue and profitability to improve, driven by growth in operating parameters such as GMV, an expanding merchant base, recovery in loan distribution and continued focus on cost optimisation," noted the brokerage.

4. Petronet LNG: Petronet is well-positioned to capitalize on lower LNG prices and rising gas demand. StoxBox suggests buying Petronet at 366, targeting 401 with a stop loss of 351 in the short term. The stock also demonstrates high buyers' demand and an improving price strength relative to the market, further underlining its positive outlook. The companys growth prospects are buoyed by favorable market conditions and strategic positioning, said the brokerage.

"As a leading player in Indias LNG import sector, Petronet LNG, backed by major public sector companies like ONGC, GAIL, IOCL, and BPCL, holds a 33 percent market share and manages approximately 75 percent of the country's LNG imports. The company operates two regasification terminals with a combined capacity of 22.5 MMTPA and is effectively expanding its facilities at competitive costs. These factors position Petronet LNG to capitalize on market trends and drive robust future growth," explained the brokerage.

5. Rail Vikas Nigam: Despite weak Q1FY25 results, RVNL, a leading name in the civil construction business, is expected to rebound due to its strong order book of 83,200 crore. StoxBox recommends buying RVNL at 565, targeting 626 with a stop loss of 538. The RVNL stock has exhibited a significant increase, more than doubling in value since reaching a low point in May 2024, prior to experiencing a period of mild profit booking, it noted. The company is optimistic about a revenue rebound in the remaining quarters, aiming for 17,700 crore, an 8 percent YoY increase.

6. TCS: TCS is forming a cup and handle pattern, showing strong momentum with RSI indicators handle pattern. Additionally, the stock demonstrates characteristics of a true market leader, which is a positive sign. The RSI across daily and higher timeframes is trading well above their medians without showing any divergence against the price, suggesting strong momentum in the price movement. StoxBox advises buying TCS at 4,375, with a target price of 4,705 and a stop loss of 4,241.

Despite short-term IT industry challenges, TCSs focus on emerging technologies like cloud and AI positions it as a market leader, expected to drive growth and profitability in H2FY25. Considering its client profile, ability to win large deals, and strong demand pipeline, TCS will be a key beneficiary in a challenging environment, it stated. Additionally, TCS's focus on improvement in utilization, higher realization, automation, lower sub con cost and decelerating supply side pressure will drive margins.

7. Zomato: Zomato's price has been on a strong uptrend since hitting a low point in January 2023, completing a full-circle and indicating potential momentum in the ongoing price trend.  The stock has shown resilience to drawdowns below its shorter-term moving average, offering a low-risk, high-reward opportunity. Additionally, Zomato displays improving EPS, price strength, and strong buyer demand, which are all positive signs. StoxBox recommends buying Zomato at 262, with a target of 285 and a stop loss of 252.

The company is expanding its quick commerce segment, Blinkit, and investing in its B2B business, Hyperpure, with expectations of continued growth and improved margins. Moreover, the company exhibits strong optimism regarding growth prospects across food delivery and quick commerce segments, with strategic investments to enhance customer experience and service quality. They are navigating challenges focusing on maintaining profitability and expanding market share, noted the brokerage.

These seven stocks offer a compelling mix of short-term gains and long-term potential, making them ideal picks for investors looking to leverage growth opportunities in key sectors.
Textile art is all set to be in sharp focus at the upcoming edition of the Delhi Contemporary Art Week (DCAW). To be held from 31 August at Bikaner House, this annual event has been amplifying artistic voices and trends from the Indian subcontinent for the past six years. The seventh edition is no different. This year, the DCAWorganised by six like-minded galleries, all helmed by womenis not just looking at the revival of weaves, but at the many ways in which artists are creating sculptural, multimedia or even digital practices using textile to uncover layers of personal histories and identity politics. The exhibition, Threads that Bare, will see 14 artists such as Geeta Khandelwal, Udita Upadhayaya, Sumakshi Singh, Anoli Perera, Khadim Ali and Ruby Chishti showcase their textile practices.

The evolving art ecosystem

The event has grown exponentially since its inceptionthis year nearly 80 artists are participating in the DCAW. According to gallerist Bhavna Kakar, one of the co-founders of the annual event, the idea has always been to bring together all the stakeholders, from artists and galleries to curators, connoisseurs, students and young collectors, to see the journey that the contemporary art ecosystem has made in south Asia.

Threads that Bare is one such effort to show how the participating artists have pushed the boundaries of aesthetic in ways that would have seemed unimaginable a decade ago. Through the manipulation of fabric, thread, and texture, these artists reveal not only the enduring beauty of Indian textiles but also their capacity to communicate profound stories and emotions in the language of contemporary art," says Kakar, who is also the founder of Latitude 28.

Also read: The evolution of intelligence: Best books, podcasts on the world of AI

Take the Quetta-born artist Khadim Alis monumental mixed media work Im the Third Script 2 (171x54 in). Hailing from the Hazara tribe of Afghanistan, Ali, who lives in Sydney, negotiates and explores the loss and trauma that emerges from migration. His work, with its deep connection to miniature tradition and tapestry, is enhanced with the artists own understanding of the craft of carpet-making, which many Afghani refugees learnt in order to survive wars and calamities.
A milestone Burmese menu

The vegetarian Burmese restaurant and tearoom, Burma Burma is celebrating its tenth anniversary with a limited-edition The Ten-Year Trail dine-in menu. It features Burmese regional specialities and community dishes with items like, highway meal parcel from Yangon, a hearty meal of steamed rice and curry, accompanied with a salad and fresh herbs. Burmese cuisine has a lot of fresh flavours and its evident in their choice of salads. These include siman thoke, from the Prom tribe in the Shan region, made with chickpea tofu shreds and raw papaya, and a steamed rice tofu salad from Yangon. The restaurant doesnt serve alcohol. There have created unique drinks to go with the food. Theres the traditional Burmese cooler mont let saung, with palm jaggery and coconut milk; the refreshing sugarcane juice kan lan yay is elevated with raspberry puree, lime and nori salt; and for the adventurous, theres durian float that combines durian banana milk, black grass jelly and nata de coco. The menu will be available till September 30 across all its outlets in Mumbai, Delhi NCR, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Hyderabad, and Ahmedabad.
Mumbai-based Sanchit Jain was aghast when his credit card payment on an e-commerce website was successful despite keying in the wrong CVV. Concerned about the security of his card payments, Jain wrote to ICICI Bank, his credit card issuer, seeking clarification.

The banks response was, however, not satisfactory. He was told that the CVV or card verification value wasnt validated because his card was tokenised. As per the card network's guidelines, CVVa three-digit number given on the back of debit and credit cardsis no longer required to validate tokenised card payments, the bank said.

Card tokenisation happens when cardholders save their cards online on e-commerce sites or mobile apps. Customers save their cards on apps or sites where they transact frequently to avoid typing out the full details of the card each time they make a payment. Consumers mostly save their card details on e-commerce sites like Amazon and Flipkart, food delivery apps like Zomato and Swiggy and quick commerce apps like Blinkit and Zepto.

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This tokenisation replaces the cards details, such as the card number and expiry date, with encrypted tokens, making it difficult for cybercriminals to steal the card's information. However, the CVV cant be encrypted. Hence, payments on saved cards are completed by keying in the cards CVV and a one-time password (OTP).

As per ICICIs response to Jain, payment networks have told banks that CVV is no longer a mandatory field for saved cards.

A matter of concern

Jain is now concerned about the safety of such cards, especially in situations where phones are lost or stolen. If someone loses their phone, payments can be made on apps or websites where cards are saved by anyone who has the phone. The OTP required to authenticate the payment will also be sent to the same phone," he said.

To confirm the bank's statement, we attempted payments on HDFC Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and ICICI Bank debit cards saved on Amazon by keying in the wrong CVV. All payments were successfully completed. This indicates that most major banks seem to have disabled CVV for authentication.

These payments are now authenticated solely by the OTP sent to the cardholders registered mobile number.

Mails sent to ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, and Kotak Bank questioning the security implications of removing CVV were not answered.

As per ICICIs response to Jain, the bank validates the CVV for cases where the payment network passes the CVV value on to the bank. To understand what this means, let us first understand the flow of a card payment saved online.

Card payment flow

When a payment is initiated, the merchants acquiring bank sends a request to the card network (Visa, Mastercard, Rupay) along with the card's tokenised number and expiry date, and CVV, which is not encrypted. The card network pushes the request along with the card details to the card issuing bank, seeking payment approval. At this stage, the issuing bank validates the details of the card sent to it and authenticates payment with OTP.

Number and expiry date are tokenised, whereas CVV is not

As per ICICI Banks response to its customer query, card networks and merchants bank no longer pass on CVV to the cardholders bank for validation. This is the reason why payments are not declined by banks on saved cards even when the CVV entered is wrong.

The tokenisation of the card ensures that the card data is securely stored. CVV is a static value tied to the physical card and is not relevant for credential-on-file token transactions," ICICI Banks said in its response.

Transactions in India are also two-factor authentication for additional security. Based on the tokenization feature, CVV is not a mandatory field to be verifiedWe clarify that the transactions processed without the validation of CVV and basis the other parameters mentioned earlier are as per guidelines," it added.

In response to queries sent byMint,Visa said it hadintroduced CVV-free domestic online transactions on tokenized cards last year for the convenience of customers. We worked closely with the regulator and ecosystem to strengthen payments security and accelerate the adoption of tokenisation," the card network said.

Following Visa, Mastercard and Rupay have also launched CVV-free payment features for tokenised cards. The card networks say the aim is to make domestic card-not-present (CNP) tokenised transactions faster and seamless.

To be sure, CVV continues to be mandatory for card payments that are not stored online. Also, CVV is to be given at the time of storing a card to successfully tokenise it.

What you should do

Cybersecurity expert Ritesh Bhatia said the only way to safeguard cards against potential fraud in such cases is by adding biometric authentication on the phone. Adding password-based security on the apps where the cards are saved will also help.

Experts also advice saving only those cards online that are linked to secondary bank accounts with a low balance. Another alternative is setting daily transaction limits to 10,000 or less, especially on credit cards.

Also Read: What you need to know about secured credit cards

One may argue that even UPI payments are susceptible to fraud when phones get stolen or lost. Still, all major UPI apps require biometrics or a PIN to complete the payment at checkout.

Visa, in its statement, said that in the event of device theft, consumers are advised to immediately report the incident to their respective banks, including through their online channels, to block their cards. This enables banks to take prompt action to prevent potential fraud by blocking the affected card/s and implementing other inbuilt security measures."

Also Read: Credit card debt: Traps to avoid and strategies to pay off faster
Aditya Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund has launched ABSL Nifty India Defence Index Fund for the public. The new fund offer (NFO) was launched on August 9 and will close on August 23. The scheme will again reopen within five days from the date of allotment.

The scheme aims to garner investment from those investors who are seeking to add exposure to a government policy-driven industry, and are also looking to add a sector, which has low correlation to the broader market, to their portfolio.

In order to woo investors to invest in this scheme, the mutual fund house points out that India is among the top four defence spenders after the US, China and Russia.

Also Read | HDFC Defence Fund NFO closes today. Details here

What kind of mutual fund scheme is this? It is an open-ended index mutual fund replicating the Nifty India Defence Total Return Index.

What is the main objective of investing in this fund? The schemes investment objective is to provide returns that correspond to the total returns of securities as represented by the Nifty India Defence Total Return Index, subject to tracking errors. However, there is no assurance that the investment objective of the scheme will be achieved.

How may one invest in this scheme? One can invest a minimum of 500 in this scheme and in multiples of 100 thereafter. Since the scheme has both regular and direct plans, the investors are supposed to mention the plan for which the subscription is made by indicating the choice in the application form.

Each plan has the following options:

I. Growth

II. Income Distribution cum capital withdrawal (IDCW)

Are there similar mutual funds in the market? Motilal Oswal Mutual Fund and HDFC Mutual fund also offer schemes in the category of defence sector.

How will the scheme benchmark its performance? The scheme will be benchmarked to the performance of Nifty India Defence Total Return Index.

How does the scheme plan to allocate its assets? The scheme plans to invest between 95 to 100 percent in equity & equity-related securities constituting the Nifty India Defence index, while the remaining 0 to 5 percent in debt and money market instruments (including cash and cash equivalent).

The key constituents of the index as on July 15, 2024 include Bharat Electronics (19.08%), Hindustan Aeronautics (18.28%), Solar Industries India (15.07%), Cochin Shipyard (10%), Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (8.38%), Bharat Dynamics (7.66%) and Data Patterns (5.18%).

Are there any entry or exit loads to this scheme? The scheme has an exit load (0.05% of applicable NAV) for redemption/ switch-out of units on or before 30 days from the date of allotment. After 30 days from the date of allotment, there is nil redemption/ switch out of units.

Who will manage this scheme? The scheme will be managed by Haresh Mehta and Pranav Gupta.

Also Read | When should one shift equity investment to debt investments?
Delhi, the national capital, is set to encounter major transportation issues on August 22 and August 23 in connection with a strike organised by auto and taxi driver unions, IANS reported. This strike, involving more than 15 unions from Delhi-NCR, comes as a protest against app-based cab services, including Ola and Uber.

In the backdrop of reduced earnings of auto and taxi drivers and its impact on their livelihoods, these driver unions will be staging a protest against the adverse effects of app-based cab services.

Also Read | Bike Taxi App Rapido Becomes Enters the Unicorn Club

What auto, taxi unions say? Despite raising concerns about inadequate compensation on several occasions, the unions allege that the central and state governments failed to address their issues.

For several years, we have been writing to governments and departments about companies like Ola and Uber, but no one listens. These companies present their side, and the government presents its side, but these businesses operate as a game of donations, with the government also involved. We demand an end to this game,  news agency IANS quoted President of Delhi Auto Taxi Transport Congress Union Kishan Verma as saying.

Delhi Auto Taxi Transport Congress Union President accused private Ola and Uber taxi drivers of engaging in unethical activities involving alcohol and drug trade in addition to smuggling.

Kishan Verma said, Employment for auto and taxi drivers, which is being affected or taken away, must be addressed. Private Ola and Uber taxis are involved in smuggling, and there is also trade in alcohol and drugs. To address these issues, we are going on strike. The organisation has decided that on August 22 and 23, all auto and taxi services in Delhi NCR will be suspended, reported IANS.

Suggesting a ban on app-based cab services and the need for a government-backed application, the Union representative informed that ride-hailing service companies are charging 45 percent commission on their trips. He noted, We are not getting anything. E-rickshaws and bikes with private number plates are plying on roads."
(Bloomberg) -- Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus government stepped in to try to end a work stoppage at Canadas two largest railways that has brought rail traffic to a halt.

Labor Minister Steven MacKinnon asked the Canada Industrial Relations Board to impose binding arbitration on Canadian National Railway Co., Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. and the Teamsters union, he announced Thursday afternoon in Ottawa.

He also ordered the parties to extend their current labor contract, and said the railways should resume operations forthwith. MacKinnon said hes confident the measures will get trains rolling again and end a lockout that began just after midnight Ottawa time on Thursday. But its not guaranteed.

The industrial relations board  an independent tribunal  will now have its own process to follow. MacKinnon said the board will have to consult with both sides in the coming hours, and he hopes a decision will come very quickly that will send railway employees back to work.

The two railways control about 80% of Canadas rail network, and shutting them down swiftly causes economic harm. A two-week lockout would shave as much as C$3 billion ($2.2 billion) from the countrys nominal gross domestic product, including a C$1.3 billion hit to labor income and a C$1.25 billion loss to corporate profits, said the Conference Board of Canada. Moodys put a higher price tag on the stoppage, saying it could reduce nominal GDP by as much as C$4.8 billion if it lasted two weeks.

The companies and the railways remain far apart in negotiations, the labor minister said.

Millions of Canadians rely on our railways every day  workers, farmers, ranchers, commuters, small businesses, miners, chemists, scientists  the list goes on and the impacts cannot be understated, and they extend to every corner of this country, MacKinnon said.

Business groups in Canada and the US have been calling on the Canadian government to intervene, as the lockout disrupted the countries interconnected supply chain. Commodities like coal, wheat, fertilizer and lumber depend on the railways and there are few shipping alternatives.

Last week, the federal government denied Canadian Nationals request to seek arbitration and instead encouraged the parties to reach a deal at the bargaining table, but they couldnt.

Teamsters, which represents over 9,000 workers at the two railways, said its members were negotiating provisions to address scheduling and crew fatigue. The previous collective agreements had expired on Dec. 31, 2023.

(Updates with more details beginning in the fifth paragraph.)

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
(Bloomberg) -- Kamala Harris campaign strategy for confronting the politically charged issue of the war in Gaza at the Democratic National Convention has been mostly to avoid confronting it at all.

Wary of alienating supporters in key swing states  including progressives and pro-Palestinian voters in Michigan and Minnesota, and Jewish voters in Pennsylvania  Democrats on the conventions main stage have kept mention of the war to a minimum.

Thats despite rising pressure from pro-Palestinian voters who want to see Harris push harder for a cease-fire and to let a Palestinian-American address the crowd Thursday on its final night. So far, the only extended discussion of the war came when the parents of an American-Israeli hostage seized by Hamas spoke to the convention but stuck to calls for their son and the others who were taken to be freed.

The balancing act reflects a broader campaign strategy by Harris, whose team is focused on spurring enthusiasm for her candidacy for now and leaving policy positions for later. Thats included maintaining support for Israel in the Gaza war  the most divisive foreign-policy issue of the moment  while declining to contradict speculation that she might, if elected, put more pressure on Israeli leaders to come to a cease-fire than President Joe Biden has.

This idea that shes going to get out there and somehow renounce one side or the other and make a hard policy decision  no, said Joel Rubin, a former deputy assistant secretary of State and a Democratic political strategist. The Democratic political convention is about mobilizing votes for the nominee, not subtracting them.

Earlier: Harris Doesnt Support Halting Arms Flow to Israel, Aide Says

Before Democrats nominated Harris, the 2024 election looked to be the rare instance in which foreign policy might play a key role. The party was bracing for pro-Palestinian protests in Chicago, scenes they feared would turn off swing state voters and usher in a second term for former President Donald Trump.

Criticism of Bidens handling of the war has garnered so much attention that a group from the Uncommitted Movement, representing more than 730,000 voters who selected or wrote in uncommitted during the presidential primaries, sent 30 delegates  of about 4,700 total  to the convention in Chicago.

Trump and Republicans were eager to play up the internal divisions, accusing Harris of antisemitism for passing over Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro as her vice presidential pick, a notion Shapiro has rejected. The GOP dedicated one of its conventions four nights in Milwaukee to national-security themes and portraying the Biden-Harris administration as undermining US leadership in the world.

But Harris campaign has declined to join that fight, and foreign policy has barely featured at all in the first three nights of the DNC. Harris team has engaged the Uncommitted Movement behind the scenes, hoping that the outreach will appeal to pro-Palestinian voters while publicly pledging continued support for Israel.

We will continue to and have unwaveringly stood with Israel, campaign adviser Brian Nelson told a Bloomberg News roundtable. She will continue to talk about those things, a lot of those communications will come in the form of her day job, the thing that she is doing every day. So Im sure it will be a topic shell have the opportunity to talk about over the course of the campaign.

That strategy threatened to backfire on the final day of the convention, with prominent Democrats and their supporters boosting calls for a Palestinian-American speaker on the conventions main stage in the hours before Harris addresses the crowd in her acceptance speech later Thursday.

They made the demand after the parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was taken hostage in the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas, spoke on Wednesday night and called for peace in the region. His father, Jon Polin, said theres a surplus of agony on all sides of the tragic conflict in the Middle East.

Ocasio-Cortez, UAW

In a social media post after Goldberg-Polins parents spoke, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said the humanity of the 40,000 Palestinians killed under Israeli bombardment must be a focus just as we must honor the humanity of hostages.

In her own speech to the convention on Monday, the progressive lawmaker said Harris is working tirelessly to ensure a cease-fire in Gaza and bringing the hostages home.

Margaret DeReus, the executive director of Middle East Understanding, said that a speaker on the main stage would show that the party takes the issue seriously.

I know that the Uncommitted Movement has given multiple names to the campaign, DeReus said in a phone interview. Frankly, even that would be a gesture, but it would be a more meaningful one and would signal that the campaign takes this issue seriously.

For the time being, the campaign was able to point to signs its strategy might be working. The protests that Democratic leaders worried would disrupt the convention have remained mostly calm. Activist groups had promised that tens of thousands of people would show up outside to protest the war in Gaza and disrupt the event, evoking memories of 1968 when Chicago hosted a convention during the Vietnam war. So far the numbers have been fewer than expected and mostly peaceful.

Inside the hall, some convention-goers walked the floor wearing keffiyehs and holding signs in support of Palestinians, but there have been few disruptions.

Young Democrats said the priority was getting Harris into office, and worrying about the Palestinian question later.

What I was noticing a lot online is there are people who are like  After the election, Im back to protesting, but until then Im coconut-pilled, I will do what I can to stop Trump, said Michelle Amor, a 31-year-old from New York who works with Filipinos for Harris, referring to the Internet meme linked to support for the vice presidents candidacy.

--With assistance from Josh Wingrove, Hadriana Lowenkron, Simone Foxman, Natalia Drozdiak and Akayla Gardner.

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
New Delhi: Commerce secretary Sunil Barthwal urged African countries to unite in calling for reforms at the World Trade Organization (WTO) and to address key issues such as food security, technology transfer and industrial policy.

Barthwal told the India-Africa Conclave that a unified approach is essential for achieving reforms and improving global trade practices.

"India and African countries share strong common views and interests on food security, agriculture, technology transfer, and WTO reforms. In a fragmented and protectionist global environment, it is crucial for both regions to stay united and continue to pursue the mandated priorities agreed upon at the Doha Development Round in the WTO, the commerce secretary said.

The commerce secretary offered tailored capacity-building programmes to African nations in trade facilitation, promotion, finance, policy, and negotiations through Indias key institutions, including the Centre for WTO Studies, the Centre for Trade and Investment Law and the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade.

Also read | WTO expects gradual recovery in global trade in 2024

India is also planning to start new free trade agreement (FTA) discussions with South Africa, a key constituent of the South African Customs Union (SACU).

Beyond exports, there is significant potential to expand India's import basket from Africa. A Commonwealth Secretariat study highlights that 17 African countries could supply 129 unique intermediate products to India, currently sourced from less competitive suppliers.

Facilitating market access for these African products can benefit both India and Africa, enhancing trade opportunities and competitiveness.

India-Africa trade grows with new logistics plans In FY24, India exported goods worth $38.17 billion to African countries. Key destinations included Nigeria with $3.6 billion, South Africa with $8.71 billion, and Tanzania with $4.62 billion, among others. Key products exported to African nations include petroleum products, engineering goods, drugs and pharmaceuticals, rice, textiles, electronic goods, etc.

The secretary also announced plans to share the PM Gati Shakti master plan and the Unified Logistics Interface Portal (ULIP) with Africa to support the development of efficient logistics infrastructure and improve multimodal connectivity. These programs demonstrate how digital tools and infrastructure can enhance logistics efficiency and reduce costs.

The PM Gati Shakti master plan is an integrated framework designed to enhance logistics infrastructure and improve multimodal connectivity across India.

Also read | India to leverage South Africas WTO case to push for relaxation of EU food safety standards

Mint reported on 5 May that India planned to use a new case filed by South Africa against the European Union's stringent food safety regulations on citrus fruit to advocate for relaxed standards that currently restrict a broad range of Indian food exports.

The EU's stringent safety norms have significantly limited India's exports of chilies, tea, basmati rice, milk, poultry, bovine meat, fish, and chemicals.

The 13th Ministerial Conference of the WTO, held in Abu Dhabi in February, concluded without reaching consensus on key issues such as agriculture and fisheries, despite an additional day of negotiations and intensive efforts.
An Air India flight from Mumbai to Thiruvananthapuram was put in an isolation bay at Thiruvananthapuram airport after a bomb threat was received, according to sources cited by news agency PTI.

The flight, AI657, with 135 passengers onboard, landed safely at Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram Airport.

According to airport officials, all passengers were safely evacuated from the flight, and a full emergency was declared at the airport, reported ANI.

Also Read | Roof leaks at Hyderabad airport amid heavy rain; video goes viral

Airport sources informed PTI that the pilot communicated the bomb threat mid-flight as the aircraft approached the Thiruvananthapuram airport at 7.30 am. As the aircraft approached the Thiruvananthapuram airport, officials declared a full emergency at 7.36 am.

According to an ANI report, flight AI657 was parked in a remote bay for mandatory checks by security agencies after the passengers and crew disembarked safely by 8.44 am.

"A specific security alert was detected on Air India flight AI657 during a cruise from Mumbai to Thiruvananthapuram on August 22. Crew carried out all the laid-down security drills, keeping passenger safety as top priority. The flight has landed safely in Thiruvananthapuram and has been parked in a remote bay for the mandatory checks by security agencies. All passengers and crew disembarked safely. Air India accords top priority to the safety of its passengers and crew," ANI quoted an Air India spokesperson.

The Thiruvananthapuram International Airport authorities also issued a statement regarding the full emergency. The statement reads, AI 657 (BOM-TRV) reported a bomb threat at 0730 hours on August 22, 2024. A full emergency was declared at TRV Airport at 0736 hours. The aircraft landed safely. It is now parked at the Isolation Bay, where the evacuation process has begun. There has been no impact on life. Airport operations are currently uninterrupted."

Bomb threat at Delhi hospitals and malls This latest bomb scare comes two days after hospitals and malls in Delhi received bomb threat emails on Tuesday. Police beefed up security at over 100 hospitals and malls in the national capital.

According to officials, a number of prominent government and private hospitals received bomb threats on August 20, including AIIMS, Safdarjung, Sir Ganga Ram, Apollo and Fortis.
The Delhi Police Special Cell busted an Al-Qaeda-inspired terror module, and arrested 11 individuals who were undergoing weapon-handling training.

Dr Ishtiyaq-led module, aimed to establish a 'Khilafat' and carry out terrorist activities in India.

The accused were arrested from Jharkhand, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, in a joint operation with police forces from the states, respectively.

An operation was conducted after receiving intelligence inputs.

"The module, as per current state of operations, was being led by one Dr. Ishtiyaq of Ranchi (Jharkhand), and it was aspiring to declare 'khilafat' and execute serious terrorist activities within the country," reported PTI quoting Delhi Police statement.

Delhi police also detained some people from Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh for questioning. They are being interrogated and additional detentions are anticipated.

Officials said that raids are being conducted to recover arms, ammunition and documents.

ANI reported that the police seized various items from the spot, including, one AK-47 rifle, a .38-bore revolver, one air rifle, one iron elbow pipe, one hand grenade, and six live cartridges of AK-47, among others.

Amol Vinukant Homkar, IG Operations, Jharkhand Police, said that so far eight suspects have been detained and are being questioned.

Also Read | Jammu and Kashmir: CRPF inspector killed in terror attack in Udhampur

"In the search operation, a few illegal weapons, laptop, mobile phone sand suspicious documents have been recovered. All these suspects are being questioned, suspicious documents are being verified. On that basis, raids are being continued...After the operations end and on the basis of the questioning of the suspects and verification of documents, further legal action will be taken. Once the entire operation concludes, we will give you detailed information about the same," Homkar told ANI.

In May 2024, the Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) arrested four suspected Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorists, all Sri Lankan nationals, from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad.
Amid violent protests in Maharashtra, the Bombay High Court has taken suo motu cognizance of the alleged sexual assault of two girls at a school in Badlapur.

As reported by ANI, the High Court was told that the investigation has started from every angle, and there will be no mistake anywhere.

The court asked if the case was registered under POCSO. Advocate General Biren Saraf said, yes, and a woman officer was present at that time.

After review, the SIT will submit the entire report to the court, said Advocate Saraf. The court asked girls to complain to the school. Saraf said it seems so from the FIR.

Did you register any case against the school? There is a provision in POCSO to make the concerned officer of the school a party for not reporting the crime, the Court asked.

A division bench of Justice Revati Mohite Dere and Justice Prithviraj Chavan is hearing the matter.

Accused will be severely punished.., says Piyush Goyal Union Minister and BJP MP from North Mumbai, Piyush Goyal said, The accused should be severely punished and strict action should be taken at the earliest. The punishment should instil fear in the hearts of all who commit such crimes... The CM and DCMs have taken cognisance of the issue. I hope that the accused will be quickly and severely punished via Fastrack court.

The alleged sexual assault of two fourth-grade girls at a school in Maharashtra's Badlapur has sparked outrage.

On August 17 police arrested an attendant of the school for allegedly abusing the girls. This incident has created massive outrage among the people in Badlapur.

Meanwhile, the Maharashtra State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (MSCPCR) has recommended the establishment of special branches or "mini-police stations" for women and children in every police station across the state.

This development came in the wake of an alleged delay in registering the crime by the police in Badlapur. Chairperson Susieben Shah shared a detailed plan in this regard during a press conference in Mumbai on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, police used lathi-charges to disperse protestors who had blocked the railway tracks at Badlapur station. This disruption led to the diversion of 12 mail express trains and the partial cancellation of 30 local trains.

Railway services resumed late at night after the police cleared the protesters. Maharashtra Police have made several arrests and filed FIRs in connection with the large-scale protest, which resulted in stone-pelting, train service interruptions, and police action. Officials have reported that the situation has since returned to normal.
Congress leaders sought the replacement of special prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam on Thursday amid a probe into the Badlapur sexual assault case. The party also flagged doubts against SIT Chief Special IG Arti Singh who is currently leading the investigation into the case.

SIT is led by IPS Arti Singh and we doubt her. The government-appointed advocate to represent the case in the fast track court  Ujjwal Nikam  is already a member of the BJP. Both of them should be replaced and there should be justiceCongress demands that the culprits should be punished severely, said Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole.

Two four-year-old girls were sexually assaulted inside the washroom of a schoool in the Thane district of Maharashtra earlier this month. Members of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi have also targeted Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde over the incident.

Also Read | Maharashtra bandh on Aug 24 to protest against Badlapur sexual abuse case

The incident has sparked widespread outrage with protests erupting in the western state this week. Authorities used tear gas and other measures to control the crowd on on Tuesday as angry locals pelted the school with stones and (separately) demonstrators blocked the railway tracks at Badlapur station.

The Bombay High Court has also taken suo motu cognizance of the absolutely shocking incident  with a division bench calling for action against the school for failing to report the incident despite being aware of it. The court also lambasted the police over delay in registering the FIR.

The incident took place on August 12 and 13 with an FIR being lodged several days later. Court documents show that the accused  a male attendant at the Badlapur school  was arrested on August 17. The bench also directed the SIT to file a report by August 27. It has sought to know what steps were taken to record the statement of the girls and their families.
A local court on Wednesday extended the police custody of the man arrested for allegedly sexually abusing two girls at a school in Badlapur, Maharashtra, until August 26. Here are the top ten updates:

1. The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) has called for a Maharashtra bandh on August 24 to protest against the alleged sexual assault on the two girls, PTI reported. MVA allies  Congress, Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP) headed by Sharad Pawar  took the decision after a meeting here, said Vijay Wadettiwar, leader of opposition in the state assembly. He said all MVA allies will participate in the bandh. We discussed the issue of womens security in the state and the failure of the BJP-led Mahayuti government on all fronts, he said.

2. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray said, We have declared a Maharashtra bandh on 24th August in protest against the atrocities on girls in Badlapur. If girls are not safe in school then what is the meaning of 'Mulgi Shikli, Pragati Jhali'? Last week, demonstrations were held across the country regarding the incident that happened in Bengal. The bandh we have called is not politically motivated. Just like we fight against Corona...We have to fight against the distorted mentality.

3. The Kalyan Bar Association has urged its members to refuse to represent the accused in the case. Meanwhile, a police official reported that the initial investigation indicates that some antisocial elements exploited the protest in Badlapur on Tuesday.

4. Police are probing how such a large crowd gathered at the Badlapur railway station, he said. Police are also examining some phone calls and videos in this regard, the official said.

5. Internet services in Badlapur were suspended on Wednesday, a day after the massive protest over the alleged sexual abuse of the two kindergarten girls, and 72 persons have been arrested in connection with the violence during the stir, officials said.

6. At least 25 police personnel were injured in the incidents of stone-pelting at the railway station and other parts of Badlapur during the protest, as thousands of protesters blocked railway tracks at the station and stormed the school building.

7. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday said he has ordered the formation of a special investigation team headed by senior IPS officer Arti Singh, while Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said action will be taken against the school and the guilty wont be spared.

8. NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule targeted the state government over the Badlapur sexual abuse case and demanded the resignation Fadnavis, who holds the home portfolio. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a protest organised to condemn the Badlapur incident, she accused the Eknath Shinde-led dispensation of not being serious about the issue of women's safety, and alleged that while the government was busy breaking parties, it had no time for common people.

9. CM Shinde on Wednesday claimed that the protest at Badlapur was politically motivated and aimed at maligning the state government. A majority of protesters were outsiders, he added.

10. As reported by PTI, Mumbai Congress president Varsha Gaikwad led a protest outside Mantralaya, the state secretariat, over the Badlapur incident. The school, where the two young girls were allegedly sexually abused, preferred to cover up the crime instead of helping their parents file a police complaint, said Susieben Shah, chairperson of Maharashtra State Commission for Protection of Child Rights. Had the school management promptly alerted the police, the chaotic situation in Badlapur could have been avoided, she said.
New Delhi: Indias health ministry is working on an updated advisory and guidelines on Mpox a week after World Health Organization (WHO) declared it a global emergency as a deadlier strain of the virus spreads to more countries.

Incorporating suggestions from the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the updated alert will include identifying sick patients at the ports of entry; isolation of suspected and confirmed cases; lab tests; symptoms, prevention, reporting of patients to the hospitals; surveillance strategies; community awareness; and hospital infection control measures, said an official aware of the matter. The ministry may release the advisory to the public soon, the official said.

The new Mpox strain found in Africa is more lethal than the previous one detected in 2022 and can also spread through sexual contact. As many as 99,176 laboratory-confirmed cases, including 208 deaths, were reported to WHO from 116 countries from 1 January 2022 through 30 June 2024. That the virus has turned deadlier is reflected in 537 deaths from among 15,600 cases since last year.

Also read | How prepared is India for an Mpox outbreak?

It is very important to sensitize the general public about common symptoms and how to report it to a doctor, the official quoted earlier said. The virus may entre India via international travel, therefore, strong surveillance at the port is a must.

The first human case of Mpox, formerly known as Monkeypox virus, was detected in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of Congo but was neglected. The virus caused a global outbreak in 2022. The current upsurge in parts of Africa, along with the spread of a new sexually transmissible strain, is an emergency, not only for Africa, but for the entire globe.

Mpox virus spreads through prolonged close contact, including the sexual route, with an infected patient. It is transmitted by body/lesion fluid of the patient or contaminated clothing/linen. Occasionally, the virus is passed on via objects and surfaces touched by an infected person.

Infections are generally self-limiting, lasting between two and four weeks; patients usually recover with supportive medical care and management.

Difficult to prevent from entering India "The way the virus is spreading to different countries, it is not easy to stop it from getting into any country, including India, due to high global mobility, said Raman Gangakhedkar, former scientist and national chair at the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).

He said cases in the country will rise only if people start hiding infections and dont report it to the doctor. Stressing that there is no reason to panic as of now, he said, We will have to educate people. The government has done the right thing by strengthening surveillance especially at airports."

According to Gangakhedkar, there is a need to update the advisory as the new Mpox clade 1b has high chances of getting transmitted to the sexual route. Even when the previous clade 2 entered Europe in 2022-23, scientists suspected it was coming in the gay community, but definitive evidence could not be obtained as the spread stopped in 2023, he said.

Also read | ICMR conducting serosurvey to assess mpox risk in India

The previous clade showed lesions near genitals in adults and on face and extremities in children, he said. Since clade 1b shows legions all over the body within five days of acquiring the infection, Gangakhedkar said this will help in screening passengers at airports.

One of our successful public health programsNational AIDS Control Programwill help us as we have access to the at-risk population, if Mpox establishes itself in our country, he said. The covid-19 pandemic exposed healthcare system to barrier nursing and preventive measures. We will be able to contain the Mpox virus well in India.
The Supreme Court on Thursday termed extremely disturbing the Kolkata Polices delay in registering the unnatural death of the woman doctor who was raped and murdered at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

Here are the top ten updates:

1. Questioning the sequence and timing of legal formalities conducted by police, a bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud said it was very surprising that the postmortem of the deceased was conducted on August 9 between 6.10 pm to 7.10 pm before the registration of case as unnatural death.

1. A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud was told by the counsel for resident doctors at AIIMS Nagpur that they are being victimised for protests over the Kolkata rape-murder case. CJI added, I have not come across a case like this in my last 30 years, West Bengal is not following criminal procedure code.

Also Read: Kolkata Doctor Case Hearing Live Updates

2. How was it that the post-mortem was conducted at 6.10 pm on August 9 and yet the unnatural death information is sent to Tala police station at 11.30 pm on August 9. This is extremely disturbing, the bench, also comprising Justice J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, said.

3. It directed the Kolkata Police officer, who registered the first entry about the rape-murder that has shocked the country, to appear in the next hearing and disclose the time of the entry.

4. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the CBI, told the top court that the most shocking fact is that the FIR was registered at 11.45 pm after the postgraduate medic was cremated.

5. "State police told parents it was suicide, then they said it was murder. Victim's friend suspected cover up and insisted on videography," Mehta told the bench.

6. As the hearing commenced, the top court asked protesting doctors to resume work, and assured them that no adverse action will be taken against them after they rejoin.

7. Once they get back to duty, we will prevail upon authorities to not take adverse action. How will public health infrastructure run if the doctors do not work, the bench, also comprising Justice J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, said.

8. If there is difficulty after that then come to us, but let them first report to work, the bench said. The SC peruses the status reports filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), West Bengal government, in the case.

9. The rape and murder of a trainee doctor have ignited nationwide protests. The Supreme Court took suo motu cognizance of the case and established a National Task Force to recommend safety guidelines for medical professionals. The CBI is currently investigating the incident.

10. SC said it is deeply concerned about the safety of doctors across India. If women cannot go to work and be safe, we are denying them the basic right to equality. We have to do something, the court said.

The alleged rape and murder of a junior doctor in a state-run hospital's seminar hall has ignited nationwide protests. The doctor's body, bearing severe injuries, was discovered in the seminar hall of the hospital's chest department on August 9. The following day, a civic volunteer was arrested by the Kolkata Police in connection with the case.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) submitted a status report on the Kolkata doctor rape-murder case before the Supreme Court on Thursday. In its report, the CBI claimed the crime scene was altered, and the West Bengal Police told parents initially that it was a suicide.

The Supreme Court was hearing a suo motu case which pertains to the alleged rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor in the seminar hall of the RG Kar College and Hospital in Kolkata. The heinous crime took place on August 9. Parents claimed they received a call in the morning from the Assistant Superintendent of the Chest Medicine Department informing them that their daughter had died by suicide. They also said they had to wait three hours before authorities allowed them to see their daughter's body. They said they found the body in a half-naked condition.

The CBI took over the probe into the case from the Kolkata Police on August 13.

What has CBI probe revealed so far? 1. Crime scene altered: Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the CBI in the court, said the crime scene was altered when the CBI entered the investigation on the fifth day. Advocate Kabil Sibal, appearing for the West Bengal government, countered Tushar Mehta's submission, saying everything is videographed and not altered.

2. Parents were initially told it was suicide: Mehta said the police registered the first FIR after cremation at 11:45 pm. Then they told parents that it was suicide, then death and then friends of the doctor at the hospital insisted on videography, and thus they also suspected something is amiss, he was quoted by Bar and Bench as saying.

During the hearing on Thursday, the Supreme Court asked the reason for the 14-hour delay in lodging an FIR of the incident. Kapil Sibal said, ...it was the father of the deceased who did not permit the filing of FIR.

3. No gangrape? Sources told India Today that the CBI probe does not indicate that the trainee doctor was gangraped. The investigation suggested that Sanjay Roy, a civic volunteer arrested for the crime, was the only person involved. Police arrested Roy on August 10, a day after the rape and murder, in the RG Kar College and Hospital premises.

The DNA report also reportedly confirmed the involvement of one person. As per the India Today report, the forensic report indicated that the doctor was raped and killed by Roy. However, the CBI is yet to conclude its investigation into the alleged involvement of more people in the case.

What else happened in SC today During the court hearing on Thursday, there was confusion over when the unnatural death (UD) case was registered. The Supreme Court expressed surprise that the postmortem preceded registration of UD case.

Justice Pardiwala asked the West Bengal government if they sent the body for postmortem, was it then a case of unnatural death or not? "If it was not unnatural death, then what was the need for a postmortem? When you start doing the postmortem, then it is a case of unnatural death. UD case of 861 of 2024 registered at 23:30 hours, and FIR registered at 23:45. Is this record correct?" the judge asked.

Sibal stated that the unnatural death case was registered at 1:45 pm. He told the court, The postmortem report and the seizure list all had the UD case report time and number. Even the inquest report has it. This is all mentioned in the case diary.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking stringent laws and quick justice in rape cases. In the letter dated August 22, she highlighted the "regular and increasing occurrence of rape cases throughout the country". Her statement came amid a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the rape and murder of a trainee doctor in Kolkata.

I wish to bring to your kind attention the regular and increasing occurrence of rape cases throughout the country and in many cases, rapes with murder are committed, the West Bengal chief minister said in the letter she shared on X.

Also Read | Kolkata Doctor Case Hearing Live: FAIMA calls off strike after SC appeal

Citing data, Mamata Banerjee wrote, it is horrifying to see that almost 90 cases of rapes occur daily throughout the country."

This shakes the confidence and conscience of the society and the nation. It is bounden duty for all of us to put an end to it so that the women feel safe and secure, the West Bengal CM said.

Banerjee demanded that such a serious and sensitive issue needs to be addressed comprehensively through stringent central legislation prescribing exemplary punishment against the persons involved in such dastardly crimes.

Also Read | Kolkata rape-murder: Scuffle breaks out between cops and protesting BJP workers

She said the proposed legislation should also consider setting up Fast-Track Special Courts for speedy trial in such cases. To ensure quick justice, trials in such cases should preferably be completed within 15 days, she told PM Modi.

Banerjee's letter came amid the ongoing probe into the alleged rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor in the seminar hall of Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9. The incident triggered mass nationwide protests this month.

Many opposition leaders are calling for Banerjee's resignation as the CM over the rape and murder case. BJP MP Saumitra Khan expressed concern and claimed that the Kolkata Police is trying to cover up the case and asked for the resignation of the West Bengal chief minister on Thursday.
Mumbai is set to witness a Wear Your White protest today organised by ten prominent railway commuter organisations. As a show of solidarity, the unions have called on Mumbaikars to participate in the agitation on August 22, which will not impact the operations of local train services, FPJ reported.

The protest is aimed at demanding immediate action on five critical issues affecting the citys lifeline, FPJ quoted the secretary of Mumbai Rail Pravasi Sangh, Siddhesh Desai, as saying.

Wear Your White protesters demands The protest outlines five demands, including the timely operation of suburban local trains and increased suburban services; prioritising suburban trains over long-distance trains during peak hours; proper use of the fifth and sixth lines to segregate long-distance and suburban trains; and setting up of a unified transport body for Mumbai and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR).

Siddhesh Desai said that local train commuters have long expressed frustration over the perceived bias of railway authorities towards Mail and Express trains. Passenger associations are demanding a halt to the operation of Mail and Express trains on the tracks built under the Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP), specifically for local trains on the Kurla to Kalyan and Thane to Diva routes.

Also Read | Mumbai local train update: Local trains in Badlapur affected on THIS route

Pointing out that the local train network caters to millions of Mumbaikars daily, he said, The protest seeks to bring attention to the dire need for reforms that prioritize the local train services during peak hours and call for the expedited completion of long-stalled projects, FPJ reported.

Following a long-drawn 2.5-hour meeting on Wednesday between the Rail passengers associations and Central Railway, it was decided that the agitators would stage the protest without disturbing the train services and would not enter railway station premises.
Ramanjit Singh  the mastermind behind the Nabha jailbreak  was arrested on Thursday following his extradition from Hong Kong. The Punjab resident had been the key conspirator who had made it possible for six hardcore criminals  including two terrorists  to escape in 2016. An INTERPOL Red Notice was issued against Singh in 2017 and extradition proceedings began a year later.

"The Global Operations Centre of Central Bureau of Investigation has coordinated with Punjab Police and INTERPOL NCB- Hong Kong for the return of a Red Notice Subject Ramanjit Singh from Hong Kong to India on August 22," a CBI spokesperson said in a statement.

Singh  also known as Romi  was extradited from Hong Kong in an operation coordinated by the CBI and the Punjab Police. He was accompanied on the flight by a Punjab Police team and arrested upon arrival in Delhi.

Also Read | US nabs most wanted leaders of Mexican Sinaloa cartel including son of El Chapo

After tireless efforts by @PunjabPoliceInd, Romy, the key conspirator, is being brought back today to face justice. He was in touch with #ISI and other escaped prisoners, including Harminder Singh Mintu and Kashmir Singh Galwaddi of the Khalistan Liberation Force (#KLF), read a post on X by Punjab Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav.

16 criminals had opened indiscriminate fire outside Punjab's Nabha jail in November 2016 to engineer the escape of six individuals. Harjinder Singh alias Vicky Gounder, Neeta Deol, Gurpreet Sekhon, Aman Dhotian and terrorists Harminder Mintoo and Kashmir Singh Galwaddi had managed to flee the prison but were later re-arrested. Gounder was killed in a police encounter in January 2018 in Rajasthan

According to police, Romi coordinated the attack on the maximum security Nabha jail by providing financial and logistical support to the escapees. He had provided weapons and fake IDs to gain access to the prison and funded the gangsters' preparations to execute the jailbreak.

Romi was arrested in June 2016 in a weapons recovery and fake credit cards case. However he fled to Hong Kong upon getting bail in August 2016. He was held in Hong Kong in February 2018 following accusations of his involvement in a robbery there.

A Punjab Police team visited Hong Kong in June 2018 and secured his provisional arrest. He had been in judicial custody there since then.
Reiterating the importance of dialogue and diplomacy to resolve conflict, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his Poland speech on Wednesday, said that India is an advocate of permanent peace in the region.

India is the land of Lord Buddha's legacy. Therefore, India does not believe in war and advocates for peace in this region, PM Modi said while addressing the Indian diaspora in Poland. The message has come ahead of PM Modi's visit to Ukraine.

Notably, this is the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Poland in more than forty years. Highlighting India's diplomacy and international relations policy of remaining equidistant, PM Modi said, Today's India is with all and thinks about the interests of all.

PM Modi's words in Poland will be closely evaluated ahead of his Ukraine visit, which has come nearly a month after he visited Russia and met President Vladimir Putin. PM Modi is scheduled to visit Ukraine at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelensky. Here are key highlights from PM Modi's speech in Poland.

PM Modi's speech in Poland | 10 highlights -PM Modi underlined India's concept on resolving internal conflict and said, India's concept is clear: this is not an era of war, and it is the time to unite to tackle the biggest challenges of humanity. Thus, India believes in dialogue and diplomacy to resolve conflict. The message bore resemblance to PM Modi's speech in Russia month ago.

-Applauding the efforts of Indians residing abroad, the prime minister said that they are bringing laurels to the country through their effort as India is moving ahead on the path of development while priding itself on its values and heritage.

-"Wherever we go, we Indians can be seen making maximum efforts. Be it entrepreneurship, caregivers or our service sector, Indians are bringing laurels to the country through their efforts," ANI quoted the PM as saying.

-Recalling India's policy of Humanity first which came in display during the Covid pandemic, PM Modi said that empathy is an identity of Indians. PM Modi said that India is among one of the first responders which lend a helping hand to other nations reeling with emergency situation.

Also Read | Poland exploring extradition of Nazi war veteran lauded in Canadian Parliament

-"We sent medicines and vaccines to more than 150 countries of the world. Wherever there is an earthquake or any disaster in the world, India has only one mantra: Humanity first. If there is a war, India says - Humanity first and in this spirit, India helps the citizens all over the world," PM Modi stated.

-PM Modi also expressed his gratitude towards the Poland government for helping the Indian students stuck in Ukraine at the time of the beginning of the Russian invasion. PM Modi congratulated the Indians in Poland and the government for supporting Indians during Russia-Ukraine war.

-"You all opened your home doors for them, organised langar. Polish government removed the visa restrictions for Indian students. Poland, with their whole heart, opened their doors for our students. Today also when I meet Indian students who have returned from Ukraine, they praise you all and the Polish government. Today I want to congratulate you all, the Polish government and the people, on behalf of 140 crore Indians. I salute you all," ANI quoted the PM as saying.

Also Read | How Ukrainian refugee entrepreneurs are changing Poland

-PM Modi also hailed the successful completion of the general elections held in India, which are considered as the world's largest democratic exercise. India is not only the Mother of democracy, but it is also a participatory and Vibrant Democracy. The people of India have unwavering faith in democracy. We have seen this confidence in recent elections also. This was the biggest election in history, PM Modi told Indian diaspora in Poland on Wednesday.

- "During elections in India, thousands of political parties participated in this elections, nearly 8000 candidates contested polls, more than five million voting machines, more than eight million polling stations, more than 15 million employees worked in the elections. This kind of management, efficiency, and the trust on the elections is India's strength," he added.

-PM Modi recalled the contribution of Jam Saheb of Nawanagar Digvijaysinhji Ranjitsinhji Jadeja who risked his lives to save Polish women and children during World War II.

"Jam Saheb is still remembered as 'Dobry or Good Maharaja' in Poland. During World War II, when Poland faced difficulties, when thousands of women and children from Poland were wandering from place to place for shelter, Jam Saheb, Digvijay Singh Ranjit Singh Jadeja ji came forward. He had built a special camp for Polish women and children and he told the women and children of the camp that just as the people of Nava Nagar call me Bapu, I am your Bapu too," he stated.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday that the struggle in Ukraine and West Asia is of deep concern for all of us. He said, "India strongly believes that the solution to any problem cannot be found in battlefield".

"Amid any problem, the loss of life of innocent people has become a challenge for the entire humanity. We support dialogue and diplomacy in solving the issues. PM Modi said India is ready to join hands with other friendly nations to assist," PM Modi said while speaking at a press meet Plan Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi held bilateral talks with his Poland counterpart Donald Tusk on Thursday. "I am glad to have met my friend, Prime Minister Donald Tusk," PM Modi posted on X.

During the meeting, the two leader "stock of the full range of India-Poland relations". PM Modi said, "We are particularly keen to deepen linkages in areas such as food processing, urban infrastructure, renewable energy and AI."

They also discussed ways to expand cooperation in defence and security. "It is equally gladdening that we have agreed on a social security agreement, which will benefit our people," PM Modi said.

Also Read | Polands ruling coalition wants the central bank chief tried in court over hurting state interests

Speaking at the press meet on Thursday, PM Modi said people of India can never forget the help Poland extended in rescuing Indian students during the Ukraine conflict in 2022.

"We both agree that reforms in the United Nations and international institutions are the need of the hour to face global challenges. Terrorism is a big challenge for us. Climate change is a matter of common priority for us. We will work for a green future by combining our capabilities," he said
Prince Harry has bid a final goodbye to royal life in the UK and chances for a possible reunion or return to his homeland are sparse. According to an Irish Mirror report, Prince Harry made his final separation from the Royal Family after making the US his permanent residence. Prince Harry's return for the tenth anniversary of the Invictus Games in May this year has been considered as his final goodbye to royal life.

Also Read | Will Prince Harry and Meghan Markle be stripped of their Royal titles?

Amid the tensions between Prince Harry and the Royal family after the release of Duke of Sussex's memoir Spare, there is hardly any possibility of return of Prince Harry to the Royal Family even when King Charles III is dealing with a rigorous cancer.

Even if Harry begged to be allowed back to help out - even if his father King Charles became so ill he was unable to carry out his duties - whatever happens, the call to help will never go out to Montecito. Making the US his primary residence is Harrys final goodbye, The Mirror quoted royal expert and author Tom Quinn.

Earlier this year, it was disclosed that Prince Harry had changed his permanent residence to the United States from the United Kingdom. Earlier, Buckingham Palace had confirmed that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are vacating Frogmore Cottage, a former residence in England.
Reports claiming that Prince William will not invite Prince Harry to his coronation are accurate, his friends confirmed this with the American media outlet The Daily Beast. They also added that the next time William expects to see his brother in the flesh again will be at the funeral of King Charles.

William's friend told the publication that things are totally frozen between the two of them. "It is hard to overstate how utterly William feels betrayed and hurt on a very personal level. The two brothers were so close growing up that they would finish each others sentences."

Also Read | Prince William unlikely to invite Harry to his coronation

Amid all the trauma of their mother dying and their dad being quite distant, the friend said, the closeness of the brothers was an amazing thing to witness.

Talking about Harry's book, which the prince has said was written to "explain why he left" the Royal Family, the friend said they don't believe that the primary motivation of the book was that noble.

However, they added, Reading Harrys book, I was really struck by how honest he was about the depth and the importance of his relationship with William when they were younger."

"It makes his decision to basically sell out his entire family, but particularly William, for a bumper payday even more inexplicable, the friend told The Daily Beast.

On reports that Harry would not be invited to Williams coronation, the tried said it was 100 per cent true.

"Why would William and Kate want all the distraction and circus that his presence would bring? I suspect that William will see Harry one more time in his life in the fleshat their fathers funeral.

Also Read | Prince William seeks to exclude estranged brother Harry from future coronation

The Daily Beast also quoted a former Buckingham Palace staffer as saying that the planning for Williams coronation is well underway, and as they understand, there are no plans to invite Harry.
Prince William was upset because Harry and Meghan Markle kept calling his wife "Kate" instead of "Catherine" even in messages wishing her well after her cancer diagnosis, sources close to the Prince and the Princess of Wales have revealed to the Daily Beast.

This deliberate choice of name might have added to William and Kate's decision not to acknowledge Harry and Meghan's sympathy, the publication added.

Also Read | Prince Philip blamed Meghan Markle for Harry leaving Royal Family

William and Harry have such a strained relationship that they havent communicated since Queen Elizabeths funeral nearly two years ago, according to the Daily Beast. When Harry and Meghan reached out to sympathise with Kate after her cancer diagnosis, William and Kate didnt reply.

The Sussexes are currently in Colombia. They hope to spotlight their humanitarian work instead of their well-known family tensions.

A report in The Sunday Times reveals that William didn't inform Harry about Kates cancer diagnosis before she spoke publicly. After Kate shared the news, Harry and Meghan's team reached out privately to William and Kate, but their attempt was reportedly ignored.

Also Read | Will Prince Harry and Meghan Markle be stripped of their Royal titles?

Harry and Meghan's team announced publicly that they had reached out to the future king and his wife after Kate's diagnosis became known. However, as per The Sunday Times, William and Kate did not respond to their attempt to communicate.

Now, it is revealed that William reportedly felt upset when Harry and Meghan referred to Catherine as "Kate" in a public statement. The message wished for privacy and peace for her and the family.

William found it disrespectful A friend has mentioned that William found it disrespectful, as Catherine prefers to be called by her full name, and this preference was ignored.

Though the issue may seem minor, according to the Daily Beast, it particularly bothered William during such a difficult time. It may have contributed to William and Kate's not responding to the Sussexes message.

Also Read | Entire Royal Family plotted against Harry-Meghan: Expert reveals

Those of us who know William know that it is one of the things that pushes his buttons. Pushing his buttons while he was going through his wifes cancer seemed an entirely unnecessary and deliberate irritation, the friend said.
Prince William may not forgive Harry anytime soon for the comments made in his book Spare. The Prince of Wales is particularly upset about the mention of Kate Middleton's alleged coldness towards Meghan Markle, The Times reported.

According to sources, William doesnt often mention Harry, as his attention is more on his familyhis wife, children, and fatherrather than his brother.

A source told the publication that the future king might not invite Prince Harry to his coronation due to their strained relationship. The two brothers, once very close, have apparently not communicated since Queen Elizabeth II's funeral in September 2022.

William reportedly wants his coronation to look and feel different. According to the publication, this may mean not inviting Harry.

According to those close to William, he currently prefers not to have his brother present at his crowning. A close friend mentioned that the brothers have become distant, which is dreadfully sad.

Harry has been outrageously disloyal, according to Royal sources who spoke to The Times. Harry and Meghan could have left with dignity and decency and not trashed the institution. The conclusion is theyve made money from trashing his family, said the source.

A long-time friend of Harry mentions that only a few people still hear from him through WhatsApp. They notice that Harry seems frustrated and dissatisfied with how things have turned out.

I think he misses being over here [in Britain] desperately and wants to be admired more. Anyone who knows him feels hed rather be top of the pops here with everyone loving him, as they do with William and Kate, the friend said.

Harry-Meghans disrespect for Kate Royal Family sources have told the Daily Beast that Prince William feels bothered when Harry and Meghan refer to his wife as "Kate" rather than "Catherine". The Sussexes did so even in their messages of support following her cancer diagnosis.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday called up Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha to take stock of the flood situation in the state and assured him of all assistance from the Centre. Tripura is witnessing heavy rains which has resulted in flooding, landslide in the state.

Also Read | Weather update: IMD issues orange alert for heavy showers in 7 states

Amit Shah assures full support Taking to X, the Home Minister wrote on X, Spoke with CM Tripura, @DrManikSaha2 Ji, and took stock of the flood situation in the state. The Centre is rushing teams of NDRF, apart from boats and helicopters to the state to assist the local government in relief and rescue operations.

He added, The Modi government firmly stands with our sisters and brothers in Tripura during this hour of crisis."

Death toll due to flood-related incidents According to a PTI report, the flood-related incidents in the state have resulted in 10 deaths, with one person still missing since Sunday. The report also added that over 32,000 people have taken shelter in 330 relief camps due to heavy rainfall.

People navigate a flooded street following incessant rains in Agartala, north eastern Tripura state (AP Photo)

Currently, the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), and central paramilitary units, including the Assam Rifles, are actively involved in the rescue and relief operations in the impacted regions.

Also Read | Multiple landslides in Himachal Pradesh: Rescue operation underway in Shimla

Water level in all major rivers crosses danger level mark Earlier on Wednesday, a government release said, Due to excessive rainfall since Sunday, the water level in all major rivers has already crossed the danger mark flooding several areas. Ten people killed in landslides and flood-related incidents since Sunday. The state witnessed as many as 1,900 landslides causing disruption in road connectivity.

Agartala: Tripura CM Manik Saha inspects a flood-affected area after heavy rains, on the outskirts of Agartala. (PTI Photo)

CM announces closure of schools, colleges In a tweet, the CM said, Due to the current flood situation, it has been decided that all educational institutions, including Government, Government-aided, and private(Schools, Colleges and State run universities) will remain closed until further notice. A formal notification will be issued shortly.
(Updates with closing prices)

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Corn and soy down as Pro Farmer tour predicts big yields

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Wheat falls despite Canadian rail stoppage as low Black Sea prices weigh

By Heather Schlitz

CHICAGO, Aug 22 (Reuters) - Chicago Board of Trade wheat futures hit contract lows on Thursday as low prices for Black Sea wheat and a stronger dollar undercut the competitiveness of U.S. grains, analysts said. Industry players said a lockout of more than 9,000 unionized Canadian rail workers, which began Thursday morning, has had a limited impact on CBOT futures, though a longer stoppage could bump up demand for U.S. exports.

"You might get some business coming to the U.S., but you're not going to get the business the very next day," said Mark Schultz, chief analyst at Northstar Commodity. "But if it lasts until next week, you might see some business coming our way."

Canadian railway operators have shut down their rail networks, disrupting exports from North America.

Chicago corn and soy futures also fell as results from the Pro Farmer crop tour reinforced expectations of bumper U.S. production, analysts said.

"We're paying more attention to the crop tour and yields than we are to the rail strike," said Jack Scoville, vice president of Price Futures Group.

CBOT corn ended down 4-3/4 cents to $3.93-1/2 per bushel, and soybeans ended down 20 cents to $9.61-1/2 per bushel.

The most-active December soft red winter wheat contract lost 8-1/2 cents to settle at $5.35-1/2 per bushel after hitting a contract low of $5.26-1/4 a bushel. Corn yield prospects in Illinois are the biggest in the Pro Farmer crop tour's 32-year history and the state's soybean-pod count is the largest seen on the tour since 2000, scouts on the annual U.S. Midwest tour reported on Wednesday. The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Thursday reported a fourth consecutive day of soybean sales to China, but the uptick in demand was overshadowed by strong yield estimates and competition from cheap South American crops.
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Ford pivots to hybrid three-row SUVs, resulting in costs of up to $1.9 billion

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Ford delays next-generation electric F-150 truck to 2027, adds electric van

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Ford exec says EV pivot is necessary for future profitability

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Analysts question Ford's slow pivot and lack of flexible product plan

By Nora Eckert

DETROIT, Aug 22 (Reuters) - At a packed investor day in Dearborn, Michigan, last year, Ford Motor executives lauded their forthcoming three-row electric SUV, which they said would be rolling off assembly lines in 2025.

"We call it a personal bullet train. It's beautiful and it's unlike anything in the segment so far," Doug Field, Ford's head of EVs, and a former executive at Apple and Tesla , said at the May 2023 event. Fifteen months later, the personal bullet train was officially derailed on Wednesday as the U.S. automaker killed it before it even launched, a sign of the industry's deepening retrenchment on EVs as consumers have been slower than anticipated to jump on board battery-powered technology.

"The reality is that the market changed," Marin Gjaja, Ford's chief operating officer for its EV division, told Reuters on Thursday. "As we saw the growth and adoption rate fade, we were furiously trying to catch up." Ford executives said they would instead focus on hybrid three-row SUVs, one of the most prominent EV product pivots to date - and one that could cost the company up to $1.9 billion. Removing a significant vehicle from Ford's EV future, one that executives had promised would differentiate the company in a crowded field, also means leaders will have to refresh their pitch to investors about how they will turn around the automaker's slumping stock.

"You've been in that box with all of us and it's now time to break out," Ford CEO Jim Farley told investors during the May 2023 event, referring to the company's stock valuation, after touting the three-row SUV. Ford shares have fallen 25% from their July peak this year, and are down about 5% from the 2023 investor day.

But Gjaja said Ford's pivot is a sign the company is making the hard decisions necessary to produce profitable EVs, something he said is a challenge even for EV giants like Tesla .

"The real question here is, how do we create enough scale with the right products, with the right features and offerings that can get us to a scale level where we can be profitable on both the vehicle side and on the software services," Gjaja said. On Wednesday, Ford also said it planned to push back another much-anticipated vehicle, the new electric version of its F-150 truck, until 2027, two years after it was initially intended to launch. It said it will add an electric van to its future lineup as it doubles down on its strengths: pickup trucks and commercial vehicles.

Ford will provide an update on its EV plans in the first half of 2025.

Some industry observers wondered why it took the automaker so long to switch gears.

"The criticism Ford will have to face is why its product plan was not more flexible from the beginning, why it has been slow to implement these changes, and why investors will need to wait for a comprehensive update until next year," Bernstein analyst Daniel Roeska said in a research note.

'STARTING TO SEE THE FRUITS' With the EV truck delayed, the three-row SUV killed and Ford facing EV losses of up to $5.5 billion this year, investors are eagerly awaiting Ford's affordable EVs from its "skunkworks" team, made up of more than 100 engineers and software specialists based in California.

Farley has said he is staking the company's future on this group's success. The first such product will be a midsized electric pickup, Ford said Wednesday.

"The progress they've made in two years is nothing short of breathtaking, and we're starting to see the fruits of that," Gjaja said. Still, buyers will have to wait more than two years before that model rolls off assembly lines. Ford's decision to shift into building three-row hybrid SUVs, instead of EVs, is providing some reassurance to analysts about its near-term strategy. The automaker and many rivals are increasingly leaning in to hybrid technology that combines an electric motor with a gasoline-powered engine as a bridge to EVs, and Farley has said hybrids will likely be a significant part of Fords portfolio in the future.

The $1.9 billion hit on the cancellation of the three-row SUV will sting, but many analysts said Ford ultimately made the right call.

"There's no sense making what's potentially already going to be a $1.9 billion hit an even bigger number by sticking with the vehicle even though you know you don't have a path to profitability with it," Morningstar analyst David Whiston said.

Still, Ford's crosstown rival General Motors is standing by plans to begin production of an electric three-row SUV this year - the Cadillac Escalade IQ, which Whiston said is a result of GM's earlier start into building ground-up EVs.
China has hit the brakes on new coal-fired power projects, as the rapid take-up of clean energy proves sufficient to meet consumption growth in electricity.

Just 9 gigawatts of coal power was permitted in the first half of this year, 83% less than the same period in 2023, according to a joint study released on Thursday by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, and Global Energy Monitor.

Still, the pipeline for coal-power remains substantial  and a threat to Chinas climate goals  with annual permits exceeding 100 GW in both 2022 and 2023, the study found. Over 41 GW of coal plants were under construction in the first half of 2024, more than 90% of the total being built around the world, it said.

With clean power now capable of meeting the countrys electricity demand growth, China should cancel its remaining coal proposals and accelerate the retirement of its existing coal plants, said Christine Shearer, a research analyst at GEM.

Instead, China is expanding its coal fleet, already the worlds largest, as a backstop to its record-breaking deployment of renewables like wind and solar, which offer only intermittent power. But the plants are expensive and designed to last decades, and environmentalists are concerned that coal consumption is being set up to plateau, when the climate crisis demands that usage should plunge.

Greenpeace East Asia, which has reported similar data on new permits, said its an open question whether approvals are slowing only because the pipeline is so stuffed, or whether a turning point in the energy transition has been reached as coal becomes an increasingly impractical power source.

On the Wire

China has launched an anti-subsidy investigation into dairy imports from the European Union, the latest development in a tit-for-tat trade dispute between the two sides.

Towering mounds of coal are piling up at mines, ports and power plants across China. Its an energy-transition signal that miners and traders ignore at their peril.

Chinas major zinc smelters are discussing possible output cuts, after tight global supplies of concentrate and weak demand forced spot processing fees into negative territory.

This Weeks Diary

Thursday, Aug. 22:

Friday, Aug. 23:
Chris Morvillo, a partner at law firm Clifford Chance in New York who successfully defended British tech tycoon Mike Lynch in a criminal trial that ended in June, was among those killed in the sinking of a luxury yacht earlier this week. Morvillo was 59.

The deaths of Morvillo and his wife, Neda, were confirmed in a statement by Clifford Chance.

We are heartbroken at the tragic passing of our partner, Christopher Morvillo, and his wife, Neda, the firm said. We are deeply saddened and still coming to terms with this terrible loss.

Lynch was also among those killed when the yacht sank in a severe storm off the coast of Italy on Monday with 22 people on board.

A partner at the firm since 2011, Morvillo had held broad oversight of Lynchs two-continent legal defense against charges that he duped Hewlett Packard Co. into overpaying for his software firm, Autonomy Corp.

Lynchs acquittal in June, following a trial in San Francisco, vindicated Morvillos strategy of highlighting flaws in HPs acquisition of Autonomy. After the acquittal, Morvillo said that the verdict closes the book on the long effort to pin the blame on his client.

One unresolved chapter in the dispute, however, was a civil case in the UK that resulted, in 2022, in a judge ruling that Lynch had fraudulently boosted the value of his company. In that case, the judge was still determining what damages Lynch would have to pay.

Before becoming a white-collar-crime defense lawyer, Morvillo worked as a federal prosecutor in the Southern District of New York, where he assisted in the criminal investigations following the 9/11 terror attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

He was also a lead prosecutor in the case of Lynne Stewart, the civil-rights defense attorney known for taking on controversial and infamous clients. Stewart was convicted in 2005 on charges of helping a terrorist client communicate with his followers.

Morvillo graduated from Fordham University School of Law in 1992 before starting as an attorney the following year. His father, Robert Morvillo, was a prominent New York defense lawyer whose clients included Martha Stewart when she was facing obstruction-of-justice charges related to illegal stock trading.

With assistance from Daniel Taub.
Floods in eight districts of Bangladesh were caused by heavy rainfall and not water release from the dam on the Gumti river in Tripura, India said on Thursday.

This comes after India faced criticism from Bangladesh over the sudden floods, with allegations they were caused by the opening of sluice gates of th Tripura dam.

Denying the claim, the ministry of external affairs in a statement said, We would like to point out that the catchment areas of Gumti river that flows through India and Bangladesh have witnessed heaviest rains of this year over the last few days. The flood in Bangladesh is primarily due to waters from these large catchments downstream of the dam."

Also Read: India to discuss Teesta water project and renewal of Ganga water treaty The statement also noted that the Dumbur dam is located 120 kilometres upstream from the Bangladeshi border and stands at a modest height of 30 metres. The dam is used for power generation, with 40 megawatts of electricity supplied to Bangladesh.

Incessant rain in Bangladeshs Sunamganj, Moulvibazar, Habiganj, Feni, Chattogram, Noakhali, Cumilla and Khagrachhari affected three million people and killed at least two people.

Persistent monsoon low-pressure The flood situation emerges at a time when Bangladesh is going through a political transition after the ouster of long-serving prime minister Sheikh Hasina.

Also Read: Bangladeshs ousted PM Sheikh Hasina charged with murder case of grocery owner during quota reform protest Hasina is currently in India, having abruptly left Dhaka after resigning on 5 August due to a popular students-led movement. The Awami League, her political party, has long been perceived as pro-India, which meant that her removal from power had thrown up diplomatic challenges for New Delhi.

India has three water-level observation sites along the 120-km stretch of the river from the Dumbur dam to the Bangladeshi border at Amarpur, Sonamura, and Sonamura 2. The Amarpur station is part of a bilateral protocol under which India provides real-time flood data to Bangladesh.

In the event of heavy inflow, automatic releases have been observed, the Indian statement noted.

Data shared with Bangladesh India stated that data on rising water levels from Amarpur was shared with Bangladesh until 3 pm on August 21, after which communication was disrupted. At 6 pm, due to flooding, there was a power outage leading to communication problems. Nevertheless, we have tried to maintain communication through alternative means established for urgent data transmission.

Power minister of Tripura Ratan Lal Nath had at 6.30 pm on Wednesday on Facebook posted that no gate of the Gumti hydroelectric project has been manually opened.

The reservoirs capacity is up to 94 meters. Once the water level exceeds this limit, the gates will automatically release water. Conversely, if the water level drops below 94 meters, the gates will automatically close. Accordingly, as the water level in the Gomati reservoir has risen above 94 meters, water is being released automatically through two gates. One gate is releasing water at a 50% rate, he posted in Bengali.

Also Read: Out of Bangladesh fire, Indian students find themselves in the frying pan He further stated that there was no reason to unnecessarily panic about this and urged the people of the concerned areas to be alert.

The official statement emphasised that floods on common rivers between India and Bangladesh are a shared problem, inflicting suffering on people on both sides, and require close mutual cooperation for resolution.

As two countries sharing 54 common cross-border rivers, river water cooperation is an important part of our bilateral engagement. We remain committed to resolving issues and mutual concerns in water resources and river water management through bilateral consultations and technical discussions, according to the statement.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, arrived in the Polish capital on Wednesday, in the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Poland in nearly half a century. In the second leg of his two-nation trip, Modi will be in Kyiv for around seven hours on Friday.

Following the Modi-Tusk talks, the two sides unveiled a five-year "Action Plan" (2024-2028) for the India-Poland strategic partnership identifying a range of areas including defence, trade, agri-tech, energy, green technologies, infrastructure, pharmaceuticals and mining for cooperation.

In his remarks, Modi said the social security agreement will promote the mobility of the workforce and ensure their welfare.

Also Read | Mohandas Pai asks PM Modi to intervene as GIFT city halts approval

The prime minister also thanked Poland for facilitating the evacuation of Indian students from Ukraine after the conflict began in 2022.

Tusk said Poland wants to expand its defence cooperation with India. "We are ready to take part in the modernisation of military equipment."

A joint statement said both sides recognised the need to strengthen and deepen cooperation in the defence sector.

Also Read | Modi govt wants to seize waqf lands and hand them over to friends: Sanjay Singh

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk (R) and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi address a press conference after talks at the Polish Prime Minister's Office in Warsaw, Poland on August 22, 2024.

India and Poland on Thursday upgraded their ties to the level of a "strategic partnership" and inked a social security pact to promote the mobility of skilled workers following wide-ranging talks between PM Modi and his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk.

In the meeting, both sides vowed to significantly expand the bilateral defence and security ties with Tusk expressing Warsaw's eagerness to be a key partner in New Delhi's aim to boost domestic defence production and modernise its armed forces.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the President of Poland Andrzej Duda during a meeting, in Warsaw, Poland.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday met with Polish President Andrzej Duda and discussed ways to deepen bilateral ties and bolster commercial and cultural linkages between the countries.

"Happy to have met President @AndrzejDuda in Warsaw. We had an excellent discussion on ways to deepen India-Poland ties. India greatly values the warm relations with Poland. We look forward to boosting commercial and cultural linkages between our nations in the times to come," Modi said in a post on X after the meeting.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi lays a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, in Warsaw, Poland

Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Warsaw.

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is a monument dedicated to the unknown soldiers who have given their lives for Poland. It is one of many such national tombs of unknowns erected after World War I, and the most important monument in Poland.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a meeting with Indologists, in Warsaw, Poland

PM Modi had a "fruitful" exchange of views with a group of prominent Polish Indologists here and he deeply appreciated their work on Indian culture, language and arts as well as their efforts in strengthening cultural ties between the two countries.

The group of Indologists included Prof Maria Christopher Byrski, Prof Monika Browarczyk, Prof Halina Marlewicz, Prof Danuta Stasik and Prof Przemyslaw Szurek.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk during his ceremonial welcome at the Chancellery, in Warsaw, Poland

Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets Gawel Lopinski, CEO of Billenium Pvt. Ltd., a Polish IT company which has a notable presence in Pune, in Warsaw

PM Modi also met with Gawel Lopinski, CEO of Billenium Pvt Ltd, a prominent Polish IT company with a notable presence in Pune.

During the meeting, the Prime Minister highlighted Indias growth story propelled by a favourable investment climate and the Make in India program, the MEA said.

He enquired about his expansion plans and mentioned the significant opportunities for business collaboration between India and Poland in the field of new and emerging technologies, AI, cybersecurity and digital economy, it said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a meeting with Kabaddi players Michal Spiczko and Anna Kalbarczyk, in Warsaw

PM Modi leaves for Ukraine

Prime Minister Narendra Modi being given a warm send-off as he emplanes for Rzeszow (Poland)

After concluding his two-day "productive" trip to Poland, the Indian PM left for a historic visit to Ukraine.

Modi, who is visiting Ukraine at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has said that he will share with the Ukrainian leader perspectives on peaceful resolution of the ongoing conflict.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi emplanes for Rzeszow (Poland), in Warsaw,

His visit to Kyiv comes nearly six weeks after his high-profile trip to Moscow which triggered criticism from the US and some of its Western allies.
Israeli negotiators arrived in Cairo for another round of talks aimed at cementing a cease-fire in the Gaza war even as an agreement remained elusive and US officials warned time was running out.

Israeli officials said David Barnea, the head of Israels Mossad intelligence agency, was in the Egyptian capital with his team. The USs top envoy for the region, Brett McGurk, was also there, according to US National Security Council spokesman Eduardo Maia Silva.

The talks are the latest in a months-long effort to halt the war that followed Hamass Oct. 7 attack, during which the group killed 1,200 Israelis and took 240 people hostage. Israels campaign in response has killed some 40,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in the region.

On the table is a proposal backed by the US, Egypt and Qatar that provides for a phased cessation of hostilities, the release of hostages held by Hamas, a surge of humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from key areas of the enclave.

Earlier: Blinken Says Time Is of the Essence for Gaza Truce Deal

The meeting comes after Secretary of State Antony Blinken returned to Washington from a whirlwind trip to Israel, Egypt and Qatar intended to bring the parties closer to agreement. After a three-hour meeting Monday in Jerusalem, both Blinken and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had backed the bridging proposal, leaving the onus on Hamas to accept.

Time is of the essence, Blinken told reporters on the airport tarmac in Doha, minutes before beginning the trip home to the US. Israel has now accepted that proposal  I heard that directly from Prime Minister Netanyahu yesterday  and we hope and expect Hamas will do the same.

Hamas representatives have countered that Netanyahu has continued to add conditions to the cease-fire plan.

President Joe Biden has also pushed to get a cease-fire, especially with the issue becoming a point of contention among Democrats back home. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators have protested at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, and some groups have criticized Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democrats nominee to succeed Biden as president, for not featuring a Palestinian voice on the main stage of the convention.

Hamas didnt participate directly in talks in Doha last week. Instead, Egypt and Qatar served as intermediaries to the group, which is designated a terrorist organization by the US and European Union.
U.S. arms sales to Israel are a potent symbol of Washingtons support for its closest Middle East ally, and potentially a powerful tool of influence over it.

With prospects for a cease-fire in Gaza hanging in the balance, the Biden administration is facing the political limits of that power.

The decision last week by the Biden administration to move forward with $20 billion in weapons deals for Israel after months of delays came just ahead of Secretary of State Antony Blinkens trip to the Middle East in what many viewed as a last-ditch effort to get an agreement that will halt fighting in Gaza.

Blinken returned to Washington on Wednesday with no breakthrough, though talks are continuing.

State Department officials said last weeks announcement of weapons sales was decided independent of hopes for a cease-fire. But some inside the administration said they hoped the sales would signal that the U.S. is backing Israel amid concerns about a potential Iranian retaliatory attack in response to the recent killings of a senior Hamas leader in Tehran and a Hezbollah commander in Beirut.

The announcement also came while Congress is in recess, reducing the chances of public pushback by some Democratic critics.

The Biden administration may have intended to encourage Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to embrace a cease-fire agreement, said Daniel Levy, a former Israeli government official. But that approach could ultimately backfire, he added, because when Washington provides weapons, Netanyahu feels that he has won, and he can manage America as he always does."

The sales announced by the administration last week include a fleet of F-15 warplanes, military vehicles, mortars, tank ammunition, and missiles. The State Department said delivery of most of the weapons wouldnt begin until 2026, and not until 2029 in the case of the aircraft.

For decades, weapons have been a core component of the U.S.-Israel relationship. Israel is the recipient of more than $3 billion in annual military aid, and most of its weapons purchases are made with U.S. government funding.

In the more than 10 months since Hamass Oct. 7 assault on Israel, which according to Israeli authorities killed more than 1,200 people, the U.S. government has at times rushed arms to Israel, even using an emergency rule to send it artillery and tank shells. The U.S. has also delayed some sales without public explanation and paused one shipment of bombs hoping to encourage Israel to contain the conflict.

At the start of the current war in Gaza, the Biden administration organized an airlift of tens of thousands of bombs and other weapons to Israel. As civilian casualties in Gaza mounted, the Biden administration stopped accelerating those shipments, and then decided to withhold a single shipment of large bombs to pressure Netanyahu to scale back its plans for an attack on the city of Rafah in southern Gaza.

At least 40,000 people in Gaza have been killed since the start of the current conflict, according to Palestinian officials, whose numbers dont say how many are combatants.

President Biden warned Israel in March that an attack on Rafah, where more than a million Palestinians were sheltering at the time, would cross a red line." Cutting off weapons wasnt on the table, Biden said, but he left open the possibility that the U.S. might withhold some types of military assistance to Israel.

Israel overhauled its military plan for going into Rafah, which the Biden administration said was the result of the decision to withhold the heavy bombs. But most civilians still ended up fleeing the city, and deaths have continued.

The Biden administration lifted its hold on delivery of 500-pound bombs but continues to freeze shipment of 2,000-pound bombs. Some observers question whether holding the weapons really had a significant impact on Israel.

Trying to have leverage at a time of war is the worst time because that is when a partner is the least likely to be directed by the administration," a Republican congressional official familiar with the sale said. Countries are not going to limit their war because the U.S. is trying to fight the war from Washington. That is the worst kind of micromanagement."

The White House referred comment to the State Department, and the Israeli prime ministers office didnt respond to a request for comment.

I know that our policy has not changed with respect to security cooperation with Israel. If anything, we recognize that the threats are more acute," a State Department official said. At the same time, at the highest levels, we are raising issues of civilian harm with Israel."

Israel has continued bombing Gaza, resulting in a heavy toll on civilians. An Israeli airstrike on Aug. 10 on a school in Gaza City killed dozens of people. The Israeli military said the school was being used as a militant command post.

The civilian deaths have frustrated the Biden administration, but havent led to a fundamental change in policy in arms sales, U.S. officials say. State Department reports have found that Israel may have violated humanitarian law while using U.S. provided weapons, but stopped short of concluding that Israel violated international law, allowing sales to proceed.

Limiting arms sales to Israel is also politically difficult, because Netanyahu has proven adept at speaking directly to American lawmakers. Fast tracking U.S. military aid can dramatically expedite an end to the war in Gaza and help prevent a broader war in the Middle East," he said, speaking to Congress during a July visit.

The difficulties of using arms sales to influence policy goes beyond Israel, according to Rachel Stohl, a senior vice president of research programs at the Stimson Center, a Washington-based think tank.

There is often no clear indication that weapon sales have changed the policies of the recipient country," Stohl said. What happens is we give implicit permission for countries to act in a certain way."

Write to Nancy A. Youssef at nancy.youssef@wsj.com and Jared Malsin at jared.malsin@wsj.com
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to take a 20-hour overnight train journey on 23 August to reach from Poland to Ukraine in his official visit.

PM Modi's choice of taking the special train  Train Force One  to reach the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, is seen as a bold move, especially considering the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

Earlier on Monday, the MEA had said, PM Narendra Modi will undertake an official visit to Ukraine later this week on Friday, August 23, on the invitation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

This will be the first visit by any Indian prime minister to Ukraine in more than 30 years since New Delhi established its diplomatic relations with the second-largest European country after Russia.

Now, with PM Modi taking this train route over flight, people are curious as to what made PM Modi opt for this.

Why train  Train Force One? The 'Train Force One' is considered one of the most luxurious trains in the world. But, this is not the main reason for PM Modi taking the train route.

According to details, all the airports in Ukraine are closed due to the Russia-Ukraine war, and the train route is considered a safe option.

As per Indian time, PM Modi will leave for Kyiv on Thursday evening. He will meet President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and it is speculated that both leaders may sign important defence deals.

Others who took this train? Before PM Modi, US President Joe Biden travelled to Ukraine by this special train, reported News18. Also, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and former Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi in 2022 travelled to Ukraine by this train.

Train Force One: Features Built in 2014 for tourists in Crimea, the Train Force One appears like a high-end hotel on wheels. It is equipped with a large table for important meetings, a plush sofa and a wall-mounted TV.
Thailand reported a case of the highly transmissible Clade 1b strain of Mpox this week amid growing concerns about a global outbreak. The case  the first to be reported from Asia  comes mere days after Sweden reported the first such case outside Africa.

The test results confirm that he is infected with the Clade 1b strain of monkeypox, which is the first case diagnosed in Thailand, but this man is likely infected from an endemic country, officials told Reuters.

The infected individual is a 66-year-old European man who arrived in Thailand last week from an unspecified African country where the disease was spreading.

Also Read | Mpox scare! Vaccinations to be rolled out within days in THESE countries

The World Health Organisation declared the Mpox surge a public health emergency of international concern earlier this month (its highest alert level) as cases soared in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Now the virus has crossed from its epicentre in the Democratic Republic of Congo to other African nations and was detected this week for the first time in Sweden and Pakistan.

The highly transmissible Clade 1b strain of the virus has killed hundreds of people in the country and recently crossed from its epicentre into other African nations. Cases belonging to the regular strain of the virus were also detected in Pakistan and the Philippines recently.

There are two subtypes of mpox: the more virulent and deadlier Clade 1, endemic in the Congo Basin in central Africa; and Clade 2, endemic in West Africa. Clade 1b is a new offshoot of Clade 1, which is now called Clade 1a. The Clade 1b outbreak in northeastern DRC was first detected in September last year and is spreading rapidly.

Clade 1a traditionally has outbreaks resulting from infections from sick animals, with some limited follow-on transmission between humans at the household level, or within communities. However experts have not isolated or detected zoonotic transmission of Clade 1b  leading to the belief that it is circulating exclusively within the human population." Experts are trying to work out if there is a difference in disease severity between Clades 1a and 1b.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to visit Ukraine this Friday at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, according to Tanmaya Lal, a senior official at the Ministry of External Affairs, during a briefing in New Delhi.

This visit will allow both leaders to discuss collaboration in defence, economic and business relations, and science and technology.

Ukraines Presidential Office also confirmed Modis trip, highlighting that it will be the first time the two leaders meet to sign multiple cooperation agreements and address bilateral and multilateral cooperation issues. Modi's visit follows criticism from Zelenskyy of Modis two-day trip to Moscow in July, during which he met with President Putin on the day Russian missiles targeted Ukraine, resulting in numerous casualties.

Speaking on PM Modis meeting with Zelenskyy, Diplomat and former Ambassador Rajiv Bhatia told LiveMint that the visit aims to strengthen bilateral cooperation and to advocate for peace in the region, which is currently suffering from a devastating war.

Prime Minister Narendra Modis government has expanded the non-alignment policy by introducing multi-alignment, a strategy of all-vector hedging in its geopolitics.

India fully understands that an armed conflict is going on, which is caused by one invasion. India stands by the UN charter and international laws. Moreover, India does not see merit in public condemnation of one country, Bhatia added.

New Delhi has refrained from criticizing Russia over the war, significantly increased its imports of cheap Russian oil, and continues to advocate for resolving the conflict between Ukraine and Russia through dialogue and diplomacy. PM Modi while sitting alongside Russias Putin, said, Peace is of utmost importance, Modi said, adding, When innocent children are murdered, one sees them die, the heart pains and that pain is unbearable.

Modis trip will mark the first visit by an Indian head of state to Ukraine since diplomatic relations were established over 30 years ago, following Ukraine's independence in 1991.

We had good relations with Ukraine centred around trade, economic, education, and defence cooperation. There has already been a good relationship ever since we established diplomatic relations 30 years back when the Soviet Union collapsed and emerged as a new nation-state. The visit will expand around these lines India would extend more humanitarian assistance, and Ukraine would take an interest in the Indian companies while focusing on post-war reconstruction recovery work, the Senior diplomat added.

In the fiscal year 2021-22, India's goods trade with Ukraine was approximately $3.4 billion, and Ukraine ranks among India's top 50 trade partners.

Moreover, India is not neglecting Europe, which had previously been a lower priority or focused mainly on major powers. Under Modi's leadership, the government revived trade negotiations with the European Union (EU) and concluded a trade and investment agreement with the EFTA group.

Europe is important; the government has a foreign policy based on multi-alignment. A better relationship with Ukraine would also fetch better relations with Europe, Bhatia concluded.

The EU is India's largest trading partner, accounting for 124 billion worth of goods trade in 2023, or 12.2% of total Indian trade, topping the USA (10.8%) and China (10.5%).
Former President Donald Trump threatened large tariffs on countries that dont accept deported migrants, suggesting that his immigration and trade policy could become closely intertwined if he returns to the White House.

The countries will accept them back, and if they dont accept them back we do no trade with those countries and we charge them big tariffs, Trump said Thursday at an event in Montezuma Pass, Arizona.

Immigration remains a cornerstone of Trumps reelection pitch. He has pledged to complete the construction of a wall along the entire border and to carry out the largest deportation effort in US history. Polls indicate that a majority of Americans support curbing immigration.

Hes also made imposing large tariffs on both adversaries and allies a key portion of his economic policy. Hes even suggested he would like to raise enough money from import levies that he could drastically reduce income taxes, a major upheaval to how the US generates revenue to fund the government that would have widespread costs on consumer goods.

Trump visited the US-Mexico border on Thursday as he intensified his attacks on Vice President Kamala Harris handling of illegal immigration, part of his effort to reclaim Arizona, a state he narrowly lost by just over 10,000 votes in 2020.

It was his first border visit since February, landing on the same day as Harris keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago  a pointed move to divert attention away from his rival as she prepares to give the biggest speech of her political career.

Trump has been on a week-long tour of swing states as he attempts to regain ground hes lost in recent weeks following President Joe Bidens departure from the race.

Opinion polls show frustration with Democrats following an increase of undocumented and unhoused immigrants entering major cities and swamping social services during the Biden administration. Democratic mayors have voiced concerns that their cities are struggling to cope with the influx of people.

Last month, Harris committed to reintroducing a bipartisan border security bill that was previously blocked by Republicans at Trumps urging. The proposed legislation would grant the president authority to close the border if migration levels exceeded certain thresholds.

For more: See {ELEC GO} on the Bloomberg Terminal for US election news

After the bipartisan bill collapsed, Biden announced measures to limit asylum claims at the border if daily crossings surpassed 2,500. In July, arrests of individuals illegally crossing the border dropped by 32%, the lowest figure in nearly four years, following Bidens directive, according to US Customs and Border Protection.

In anticipation of Trumps visit to the US-Mexico border, local Republicans were ramping up efforts to mobilize supporters in Arizonas rural Cochise County. People have been pouring in. Theyre coming in droves to get signs and hats, said Inga McCord, a volunteer with the Cochise County Republican Committee, from their Sierra Vista office.

But McCord said local strategy is focused on getting Republicans to vote, versus swaying undecided voters to pick Trump over Harris. Its just getting people out to vote, she said. If you have a brain in your head, youre going to tell the difference between them.

At the countys Democratic headquarters volunteer Pat Smith said Harris has sparked new interest. She said a man came into the office on Wednesday and planned to vote for the first time since 2016. Theres enthusiasm, she said.

Sierra Vista Mayor Clea McCaa, who changed his party affiliation from Democrat to independent in the conservative stronghold said his town needs resources.

Our town is 45,000 people and we need more resources at the border. Patrolling the border thats what we need.
STETSKIVKA, UkraineUkrainian troops said they are moving to encircle an estimated 3,000 Russian troops that are hemmed against a river in Russias Kursk province, seeking a fresh blow against Moscow in the third week of a surprise incursion.

Ukraines military said it used U.S.-supplied Himars rocket systems and explosive drones to strike pontoon crossings and bridging equipment as Russia scrambled to prevent the encirclement of its forces between the Seym river and the Ukrainian border.

Ukraines Aug. 6 incursion has embarrassed Russian President Vladimir Putin by seizing dozens of towns and villages across a territory as large as any Russia has captured in a year of offensives in Ukraine. Kyivs forces are now expanding their control along the border and striking Russian supply routes, as Moscow is ramping up counterattacks using massive glide bombs and troops rushed in from Ukraine and other parts of Russia.

The incursion hasnt, so far, shifted the dynamic on the wars main battlefields in eastern Ukraine, where Russia is advancing in toward Pokrovsk, a key Ukrainian logistical hub, and Toretsk, a city on strategically important high ground.

Meanwhile, Russian authorities said Wednesday they had thwarted a barrage of drone attacks on Moscow and other regions. Russias Defense Ministry said it had destroyed 45 drones deployed by Ukraine, including 11 that were shot down over the Moscow region.

In Kursk, Ukraine is stretching the breadth of its incursion rather than seeking a deeper advance that would be easier to cut off, said Mick Ryan, a military strategist and retired major general in the Australian Army.

They are holding more-defensible terrain thats closer to Ukraine and easier to support," said Ryan.

Ukraines intent to hold what officials have called a buffer zone poses a dilemma to Putin as to whether to try to oust forces in what could be a costly operation. Such an effort would require pulling sizable forces from Ukraine, weakening promising offensives against strategic targets in the east and potentially opening gaps for Ukrainian troops to exploit.

For now, Russia appears mostly to be transferring forces from reserves and areas in Ukraine where fighting isnt as intense, such as the south or the northeast.

Theres a case for the Russians to see how this develops and to throw just enough at it to slow the Ukrainians down," said Ryan.

For Russia, recapturing all of the Kursk region may be a secondary goal to the more strategic aim of advancing farther into the eastern Ukrainian province of Donetsk, which Putin has declared part of Russia. Moscow has been recruiting some 25,000 men a month but suffers from a shortage of experienced soldiers of the kind needed to push the Ukrainians out.

There is little panic in Moscow around the situation in Kursk, said Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center. Putin, she said, sees Ukraines offensive there as having little effect on his broader strategic calculus, which centers on seizing all of Donetsk and, eventually, bringing about the collapse of Ukraines government to ease the path to negotiations that favor Russia.

Stanovaya said the Russian military doesnt want to be lured into a costly Kursk offensive that may require the kind of scorched-earth strategy previously used in Ukrainian towns such as Avdiivka and Bakhmut. Adopting the same tactic against Russias own towns in Kursk, where some civilians still remain, isnt a defensible policy.

If he doesnt find a military solution then this may go on for months or a year," she said of Ukraines foothold inside Russia. And people in Moscow have got used to this idea."

Still, the Ukrainian operation has dealt a blow to Putins pledge that the war he calls a special military operation" will be confined to Ukraine and have a minimal effect on the lives of ordinary Russians. Some of Ukraines military command have long argued that making Russians feel the war should be a key part of Kyivs strategy, because it increases the pressure on Putin to end it.

We want to bring the war to their territory," said the commander of a drone battalion in Ukraines 14th Regiment who has the call-sign Cold.

Colds drone units were among the first troops who entered Kursk and are now hunkered down in the basements of homes north of Sudzha, using their reconnaissance and strike drones to help Ukrainian forces blast their way forward.

He said Russia is putting up a stiffer fight. Earlier this week, it sent a force of 80 men into one of the Ukrainian-held villages, dropping 21 glide bombs on the settlement in the space of an hour in advance of its assault, which Ukraine repelled with difficulty.

Were paying a price too," Cold said.

The troops Russia is bringing in are well-equipped, Cold said, and some clearly have extensive combat experience. Russia has also successfully used its electronic warfare systems to down some of his units drones. He can see from the drones feeds how some Russian troops are digging in and establishing defensive positions along the new front line, clearly expecting a lengthy campaign.

The barrage of drones Ukraine sent to Russian regions Wednesday comes as Kyiv has been stepping up attacks on airfields to prevent Moscow from using them to launch its own drones and warplanes. Last week, Ukraine conducted what an official described as the largest drone attack on Russian military airfields since the start of the war, with strikes in Voronezh, Kursk, Savasleyka and Borisoglebsk.

Cheaper and more available than cruise missiles, domestically produced drones enable Kyiv to get around political constraints on using weapons supplied by Western allies in attacks deep inside Russian territory. Ukraine has also targeted Russian oil refineries with its drones.

In Sumy, a city in the Ukrainian region bordering Kursk, the roads are lined with military vehicles that are being used to ferry supplies into Kursk, including food and fuel for the troops. They also are bringing in generators as damage to infrastructure in the Kursk region means there is no electricity there.

As the Russians assemble pontoon bridges to try to cross the Seym, the Ukrainians are smashing them with artillery. Pvt. Andriy Brigadir of Ukraines 44th artillery brigade, which operates Western-supplied M777 artillery guns, said the Russian river crossings are often conducted in a panicked way that exposes them to Ukrainian fire.

The Russians are rushing in any men they can get right now," he said.

Those men now include marines from Russias Black Sea fleet, normally based far to the south in the Russian-held Crimean Peninsula, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. On Tuesday, the ministry also announced the creation of three new military formations tasked with defending Kursk province and two neighboring regions.

Ukrainian soldiers say that is unlikely to help the Russian soldiers severed from their supply lines near the Seym river.

Now that weve blown three of their bridges, its only a matter of time before this pocket closes for them," said the commander of a reconnaissance unit in the 14th Regiment who has the call-sign Croat.

Jane Lytvynenko, Isabel Coles and Ann M. Simmons contributed to this article.

Write to Matthew Luxmoore at matthew.luxmoore@wsj.com and James Marson at james.marson@wsj.com
Many are worried that China is making way more than the world needs. From electric vehicles to solar panels, plunging prices at home and abroad are igniting a new round of trade wars. Even Beijing is concerned: In a top-level meeting late last month, policymakers pledged to curb vicious competition" among businesses.

Industrial overcapacity has flared up in recent months. There isnt enough global demand to absorb all the lithium batteries, solar modules or steel that Chinese factories can produce. But this is happening at the painful expense of corporate profits.

More than half of industry supply in solar, EV, steel, and construction machinery isnt making money, a sharp deterioration from a year earlier, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

Even those producing consumer staples are not spared. Fresh milk, for instance, is caught in its longest price slump in 14 years, exacerbating a deflationary gloom thats enveloping the economy.

Weve been here before. China went through an extended producers deflation between 2012 and 2016, caused by the same problem. As the economy slowed, the utilization rate in the steel and coal industries contracted from 79% and 90% in 2010 to 70% and 65% in 2015, according to the International Monetary Fund.

Back then, excess capacity was also an international issue. About half of the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations against China in 2016 were related to steel.

President Xi Jinpings solution then was a supply-side reform that aimed to rein in production. Starting in 2015, the government closed factories and deployed 100 billion yuan ($14 billion) for severance pay to steel and coal workers. It was a success.

By 2017, deflation was gone, and some big state-owned enterprises, such as Aluminum Corporation of China Ltd., swung to profit. So its only natural that some industry insiders are urging the government to tackle supply again. But there are at least three reasons to believe why that wont work this time.

Firstly, the government has less sway in sectors where overcapacity is the most acute. If steel, coal and, to a lesser extent, aluminum were the big headaches a decade ago, the international focus this time is on lithium batteries, solar and EVs.

Unfortunately, unlike steel, where roughly half of the producers are state-owned, these new economy sectors are largely dominated by private businesses. The government cant really tell entrepreneurs what to do, unless Xi is prepared to return to the old days of a command economy.

Also read: Yellen Says Nothing Off Table in Response to China Overcapacity

Secondly, some industry leaders might see overcapacity as an advantage, in that it will force weaker ones to exit more quickly, leaving the survivors with a brighter future and fatter profits.

Take lithium batteries, for instance. Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. is the biggest manufacturer. Contrary to its peers, CATLs profit margin has been on the rise despite falling battery prices. Scale and good cost control are helping.

In EV production, BYD Co. is Chinas largest manufacturer. One may argue that price cuts jump-started its sales. In the second quarter, the company sold 426,000 units, putting it within striking distance of Tesla Inc., the worlds biggest EV seller.

Competition is the rule of nature" that businesses must embrace, chairman Wang Chuan-Fu said in early June, when his peers complained bitterly about oversupply.

Thirdly, Xis 2015 supply-side reform was a bit misleading in name because a major component ended up boosting demandthe other side of the equation.

For the shantytown redevelopment program, the government bought old homes and relocated families, especially in smaller cities, and revamped these areas with new infrastructure spending. That explained 58% of improvement in steel prices, versus capacity cuts 42%, according to IMF estimates.

This time around, stimulating demand is a lot harder. Much of it is overseas. Last year, exports accounted for 37%, 42% and 19% of Chinas battery, solar and EV production, respectively, according to Goldman.

To help its manufacturers, the government could only speed up EV adoption at home with more cash subsidies. Unfortunately, that incremental gain in the domestic market can be easily eroded by worsening geopolitical tensions between China and the West.

These factors perhaps explain why top policymakers have not come up with concrete actions even though they are clearly worried about the industrial oversupply and its impact on corporate profits as well as the broader economy.

As such, Chinas excess capacity problem will have to fester until even its industry leaders call it quits. That may be some years away. bloomberg
The Biden administration has been racing to close what it calls the last remaining gaps holding up a cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas. Instead, it is now wrestling with a growing dispute between Israel and Egypt.

At issue is Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus demand that Israeli troops be allowed to remain along the 9-mile border between Gaza and Egypt, known as the Philadelphi Corridor, which Israel says is a key smuggling route for Hamas.

Egypt has refused that demand, arguing it would constitute a violation of the Israeli-Egyptian peace treaty, Egyptian officials said. It also doesnt want to be seen as complicit in an Israeli occupation of Gaza, they said.

The impasse is threatening a rupture between two U.S.-backed partners in the region and deepening the complexities of a cease-fire deal that was already struggling to gain any traction. Egypt has been a key mediator between Israel and Hamas to pause the fighting in Gaza. Now, for those talks to succeed, Israel and Egypt will have to sort out their own disagreements first.

The U.S. has been trying to broker a compromise about the size of the Israeli force that would be stationed along the corridor, but Egypt has continued to reject any Israeli presence there at all.

White House Middle East coordinator Brett McGurk is slated to meet in Cairo on Thursday with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi and intelligence chief Abbas Kamal to try to find a path forward for the talks. This follows a meeting between U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the Egyptian president in New Alamein on Tuesday.

Analysts are skeptical whether a compromise over the presence of Israeli troops along the border is possible at all.

There is a crisis of distrust between Israel and Egypt," said Yisrael Ziv, a retired Israeli general who headed Israels Gaza division and is briefed on the war by current officials. I dont see how the Americans can circle the square: Either there is an Israeli presence, or there isnt one."

The U.S. is trying to swiftly wrap up a cease-fire deal not only to address humanitarian needs in the Gaza Strip but also now to de-escalate regional tensions as Iran and Lebanese militia Hezbollah prepare to respond to a pair of Israel-linked killings in Tehran and Beirut last month.

While U.S. officials have signaled a deal could be close, negotiators have said the parties remain far apart on important issues and that significant obstacles remain, including around Israeli troop deployments.

While pursuing the talks, the U.S. also has bulked up its military assets in the region. The USS Abraham Lincoln has arrived in the Middle East, the U.S. said overnight, putting a second carrier strike group in the region.

Ziv said the current impasse between Egypt and Israel is an outgrowth of increasing tension between the countries that began after Israels invasion of Rafah, the town on the border between Gaza and Egypts Sinai Peninsula.

Israel gave Egypt just hours notice of the impending operation, seizing control of the Gaza side of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, Egyptian officials said. The Egyptian government closed its side of the crossing in protest and threatened to downgrade Egypts diplomatic representation in Israel.

Egyptian officials say that the presence of Israeli forces in the area along the border with Egypt violates the terms of the 1979 Camp David peace treaty, which limits the number of troops either country can deploy near the border. The treaty bans Israel from deploying tanks, artillery and antiaircraft weapons in the Philadelphi Corridor. Israel denies any violation of the treaty.

Israel is insisting on its own presence in the corridor, because it doesnt believe it can count on Egypt to shut down Hamass weapons smuggling.

Israels military has said it found a number of tunnels in Rafah near the border with Egypt, though it hasnt said how many were operational on the Egyptian side of the border. Egypt denies such routes exist.

Israels cease-fire negotiators recently proposed establishing eight observation towers along the Philadelphi Corridor, while the U.S. tried to offer concessions by proposing two towers, the Egyptian officials said. Egypt rejected both proposals, arguing that any number of towers gives Israels military a presence and permanent access, they said.

Egypt is also seeking U.S. guarantees that even if Israel leaves the corridor in the first of what is meant to be three stages of the cease-fire deal, Israel wont return in later stages if the process stumbles.

Netanyahu has publicly vowed to ramp up the Israeli presence in the area if he believes there is a danger to Israels war aims of destroying Hamas and making sure militants in Gaza wont threaten Israels security in the future.

Israel will insist on the achievement of all of its objectives for the war, as they have been defined by the Security Cabinet, including that Gaza never again constitute a security threat to Israel," Netanyahus office said Wednesday. This requires securing the southern border."

Write to Dov Lieber at dov.lieber@wsj.com and Summer Said at summer.said@wsj.com
Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Ukraine is beyond a balancing act. It is a well-timed strategic move that translates Indias pitch for strategic autonomy on the ground and signals Indias ability to navigate both Russia and Ukraines close Western allies, such as the US. Mint explains.

What is the background to PM Modis visit to Ukraine?

Modi is the first Indian prime minister to visit Ukraine, 30 years after India first established diplomatic relations. The visit comes in the backdrop of his visit to Russia in July, which was seen as disappointing by Ukraine, and unnecessary by the US and its Western allies. However, India has not shied away from proclaiming its proximity with Russia while at the same pushing the need for dialogue and diplomacy for an eventual end to the war.

This visit should be read as an effort in that direction. Further, it is a move to re-wire its relationship with central Europe, which remains strategic for a rising India.

What is on the agenda?

India has stated that the focus of the visit is the entire gamut of India-Ukraine ties, including in areas of agriculture, infrastructure, pharmaceuticals, health and education, defence, and people-to-people ties. However, what remains most closely watched is will India pitch itself as a possible mediator between Russia and Ukraine. Or will it refrain from making a specific pitch for peace settlement, and stop with underlining the significance of dialogue and diplomacy.

In that direction, India has also demonstrated willingness to offer support that may be required not only to find a peaceful solution to the conflict but also in the recovery process for Ukraine.

What role can India play in the possible termination of the war?

PM Modi has clearly underlined the futility of war, and pushed for dialogue and diplomacy for possible termination of war. India has not spelled out a peace plan. Nevertheless, it has demonstrated its willingness to play the role of peacemakera role if it takes will enhance its global status. However, India did not attend, nor endorse the joint statement of the Ukraine Peace Summit held in June in Switzerland.

Why is Ukraine and Europe significant for a rising India?

India has clearly underlined Europe as a foreign policy priority and central to its rising power status. Ukraine remains the heartland in terms of Indias engagement within sub-regions within Europe, particularly central Europe. Indias position on Ukraine, is a double-edged sword. On one hand, it demonstrates its ability to navigate its autonomy, and balance its interest strategically. On the other, it also underlines its potential as a possible peacemaker as a rising power, given its close proximity to Russia, and its ability to be a possible counterbalance to China in Asia for the US.

Why would the US, China and Russia watch this visit closely?

Ukraine and its Western allies, particularly the US, think that India does have greater leverage on Russia than any other Western power. Against this backdrop, Modis visit has been welcomed by the US and is seen as a signal of a global community together in Ukraine.

Also Read: Mint Explainer: Indias diplomatic, trade challenges in a stormy neighbourhood

Russia would watch this closely. Despite immense pressure and criticism from the West, India is the worlds largest buyer of Russian arms, and has sought to capitalise on cheaper Russian oil as the US and European countries seek to limit the Russian energy sectors access to the global marketplace. China is closely watching India's visit and its potential role as a mediator in this conflict.

Shweta Singh is associate professor, department of international relations, South Asian University.

Also Read: Sakhalin stalemate: India eyes equity oil; Russia for dividends
In November 2022, after acquiring Twitter, Elon Musk joked to his millions of followers: Wait, if I Tweet does that count as work?"

An account secretly run by a Russian intelligence agency tried for a humorous reply: Your boss will be angry." The awkward joke got zero likes.

Russian trolls are ramping up their efforts again on social media ahead of another U.S. presidential election, and they seem desperate for influencers to notice them. Amid elevated fears of foreign election meddling, the exchange offered an early example of a shift toward relying more on low-quality, high-volume spam tactics that experts and officials say could escalate on social-media platforms in the coming months.

Since 2022, a Russian network of fake personas on the social-media platform now called X sought to interact with billionaire and X Corp. owner Musk and conservative political and media figures including Donald Trump Jr.and Tucker Carlson, pushing divisive content and narratives that sought to weaken international support for Ukraine.

The intention was to piggyback on the visibility and wide reach of the replies section of accounts with large followings to seed messages with both influencers and their audiences, according to social-media researchers.

The fake accounts, often posing as Americans, targeted a range of prominent political and media influencers, including U.S. lawmakers, journalists and news organizations, by replying to their posts, according to a Wall Street Journal review of more than a thousand posts.

In July, the U.S. Justice Department disclosed a list of usernames for nearly 1,000 X accounts tied to a bot farm that the department said was operated by Russias Federal Security Service, or FSB. But the DOJ shared few details about the networks activities beyond its general contours. By then, X had removed virtually all of the accounts.

The operation had been seeking to spread false or misleading information in and about the U.S., Europe and Israel and was focused on fanning political divisions and generating anti-Ukraine sentiment, U.S. and western officials said.

New data shared with the Journal by researchers from Clemson University offer an exclusive look at how the Russian government is positioning its online influence armies ahead of the U.S. presidential election in November. The Clemson researchers were able to use the list of accounts shared by the Justice Department and cross-reference it with historic data. They collected nearly 1,300 posts from more than 200 accounts tied to the network.

View Full Image Some images that were shared by the Russian-backed network of accounts on X. Photo: The Media Forensics Hub at Clemson University

Both Russia and Iran are waging operations to influence the election, U.S. officials say. Earlier this month, the Trump campaign blamed Iran for hacking some of its internal communications. The Federal Bureau of Investigation said it was investigating the matter. On Monday, U.S. intelligence agencies publicly linked the activity to Tehran.

While the accounts analyzed by the Clemson researchers didnt gain much visibility before being taken down and appear to have failed to attract the attention of the high-profile users they targeted, they may signal future tactics.

Darren Linvill, a social-media researcher at Clemson, said the data showcased how Russias playbook has shifted over the years from high-investment accounts" that require considerable time and energy to accrue large followings and convincing personas toward rapidly churning out low-quality accounts.

For example, the accounts replied over 50 times to various prominent accounts to claim that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wanted to compel Hungarya member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization more sympathetic to Russia than other European nationsto fight in the war.

#Zelensky wants to force the #Hungarians to fight?," the accounts replied to 2022 and 2023 tweets from Trump Jr., news outlets such as CNN, Fox News and Politico, and individual American journalists and members of Congress.

The accounts replied to or retweeted Musks posts around a dozen times, though those posts largely werent about Russia but instead were jokes or about other topics, the data show. The accounts also replied to or retweeted posts about various topics by Carlson a dozen times, including retweeting a post where the former Fox News host talked about his interview earlier this year of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The data didnt show any signs of Musk or Carlson engaging in return.

Are you sure this is true? In general I think Id trust a Russian bot farm before Id trust the Wall Street Journal," Carlson said about the Journals review. Less ideologically rigid."

Russia has relied on low-quality accounts to some degree since at least 2016. It appears able to create them more easily now due in part to artificial intelligence, officials and researchers said. At the same time, Russia has long sought to interact with social-media accounts with large followings, aiming to seed narratives among power users in hopes of eliciting a response that could attract viral attention.

Theres a reason they are trying to cash these lottery tickets," Linvill said of the effort to attract the attention of popular accounts. When they pay off, they pay off big."

Low-quality accounts are likely a response to greater scrutiny from platforms, researchers, and governments, Linvill said, because they can be created quickly, and if they are detected foreign actors can just create new ones. Other foreign actors, including some China-affiliated networks, have also used this tactic, he added.

U.S. authorities have warned that the Russian government has again committed to a broad campaign to influence the outcome of the U.S. presidential election in favor of Republican Donald Trump, as it did during the 2020 and 2016 cycles. U.S. intelligence officials have publicly offered few specifics about Russias activity beyond saying that Moscow poses the most serious foreign-influence threat to the election and that it has recently sought to influence specific voting groups, including those in swing states, while promoting divisive narratives and attempting to denigrate specific politicians.

View Full Image Elon Musk was among the high-profile individuals with whom the Russian network attempted to interact. Photo: Craig T Fruchtman/Getty Images

Russia has denied meddling in American elections. Iran, meanwhile, is determined to undermine Trumps re-election bid, according to U.S. intelligence agencies. Iran also has denied such accusations.

Trump Jr. was among a number of high-profile individuals, including Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey and others, to unwittingly retweet or otherwise engage with posts around the 2016 election season from accounts later identified to be part of the Internet Research Agency, a St. Petersburg-based Russian troll farm.

Russia is expected to ramp up its efforts targeting voters as Election Day nears, as it has in previous election cycles, U.S. intelligence officials said. Russia has historically denied Western allegations that it targets other nations with covert influence operations.

Musk dismantled much of the content-moderation infrastructure at the company formerly known as Twitter after his takeover through staff cuts and rule changes that he said were needed to promote free speech. Former employees have said Musks changes limit the platforms ability to detect covert influence efforts.

An X spokesman declined to comment for this article. Musk posted on X in July that the Justice Departments support was appreciated but that X was already suspending the Russian accounts. Xs policies prohibit creating deceptive profiles to mislead others and trying to artificially influence conversations on the platform such as by using fake accounts.

Sen. Mark Warner, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said U.S. resilience to foreign-influence operations has deteriorated since the last election due to a variety of factors, including advances in artificial intelligence and legal challenges to government cooperation with social-media companies that have chilled efforts to police the threat.

Were not as prepared in 2024 as we were in 2020 under President Trump," Warner said during a recent event on foreign-influence operations held by the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation. Foreign adversaries know misinformation, disinformation is cheap. And it works."

In response to a 2022 post from President Biden about taking care of members of the military, one of the fake accounts replied: lol."

Write to Alexa Corse at alexa.corse@wsj.com and Dustin Volz at dustin.volz@wsj.com
The Congress party will hold a nationwide agitation on August 22 demanding SEBI Chief Madhabi Puri Buch's resignation and a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe over Hindenburg-Adani row.

In its latest report released earlier this month, the US-based Hindenburg Research alleged on August 10 that SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch had stakes in obscure offshore funds used in the alleged Adani money siphoning scandal.

"The Indian National Congress will conduct 20 press conferences across the country to highlight the need for a JPC into the Modani Maha Ghotala that has widespread ramifications for the economy, and for crores of small investors - for whom the integrity of capital market regulators is essential, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X on Wednesday.

In the national capital, the protest will be held at the Jantar Mantar.

Every effort was being made to make Adani the richest in the county by using all devious methods, including misusing probe agencies like ED, CBI and the Income Tax department. All rules, including foreign investment and foreign policy were being changed to suit the Adanis growth and cover up money laundering, Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said in Delhi on Wednesday.

The Modi government must immediately seek the resignation of the SEBI chairperson and constitute a JPC in this regard, the Congress party demanded.

The allegations triggered a political slugfest with the Congress and other INDIA bloc parties demanding her removal and a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe while the BJP accused the opposition of being a part of a conspiracy to create financial instability and chaos in India.

Also Read | Sebi slaps 11 lakh penalty on IIFL Securities for violating stock broker rules

Buch and her husband have dismissed the charges as baseless and alleged that Hindenburg Research was attacking capital markets regulator SEBI's credibility and attempting a character assassination of its chief instead of replying to a show cause notice served to it for "violations in India".

The SEBI said the allegations against the Adani Group had been "duly investigated" and its chairperson disclosed and from time to time "also recused herself in matters involving potential conflicts of interest".

The Adani Group termed the allegations malicious and based on manipulation of select public information. The company said it had no commercial relationship with the SEBI chairperson or her husband.
CHICAGOAt cocktail parties and in quiet conversations on the sidelines of the Democratic convention, officials are trying to answer a question with crucial stakes: Who will Kamala Harris hire if she wins?

Harriss advisers insist it is too early to begin speculating about the coterie of boldfaced names who would fill out her cabinet and take top positions in the White House, as they are still ironing out the vice presidents campaign operation, writing her policy agenda and fine-tuning her pitch to voters. That hasnt stopped Washingtons ambitious power players from angling for jobs and quietly lobbying for their friends and allies.

The Wall Street Journal put together an early list of names that have emerged in conversations with senior Democrats in Chicago and Washington. The list suggests that Harris wants to bring in her own team, and that many current top Biden administration officials might not remain in their roles. The Democratic nominees advisers have taken early steps toward forming a transition team, which will oversee personnel vetting and other preparations for a potential Harris administration, though the team wont make decisions about nominations until after the election.

View Full Image One potential candidate for Harriss chief of staff is Minyon Moore, right, who is also running this weeks convention. Photo: Sophie Park for WSJ

White House

One of the most critical roles in any White House is chief of staff. Potential candidates for that job include Minyon Moore, a Harris ally who is running this weeks convention; former Labor Secretary Marty Walsh, who became friends with Harris when they worked together during the Biden administration; former Rep. Cedric Richmond; Lorraine Voles, Harriss current chief of staff; and Eric Holder, who served as attorney general during the Obama administration.

Harriss economic policy brain trust includes Brian Nelson, a former Treasury Department official; Mike Pyle, a former Harris aide and Bidens former deputy national security adviser for international economics; former National Economic Council Director Brian Deese; former Biden economic adviser Gene Sperling; Deanne Millison, Harriss former chief economic adviser; and Rohini Kosoglu, Harriss former domestic policy adviser. All of them are seen as candidates for jobs in Harriss administration.

Nelson, Pyle and Millison could lead the NEC, as well as former deputy NEC director Bharat Ramamurti, who got to know the vice president during the debate over student loan forgiveness. Possible candidates to lead the White House Domestic Policy Council include Kosoglu and Jennifer Klein, the director of the White Houses Gender Policy Council. Ike Irby, who was Harriss deputy domestic policy adviser in the White House until earlier this year, is also thought to be in line for a senior policy position, possibly focused on climate change.

Emmy Ruiz, a former adviser to Harriss 2020 presidential campaign who is a top political strategist at the White House, is also expected to score a senior White House position if Harris wins.

View Full Image Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo is said to be interested in being Treasury secretary. Photo: Ariel Zambelich/WSJ

Domestic and economic policy jobs

For Treasury secretary, Harris could consider Wally Adeyemo, current Secretary Janet Yellens deputy, as well as Nelson. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo is also said to be interested in running Treasury, and Don Graves, Raimondos deputy, is a potential candidate to run Commerce. Raimondo is seen as easily confirmable in the Senate because she could likely win the support of some Republicans.

Sen. Laphonza Butler (D., Calif.), who led Californias largest home care and nursing home workers union, has been mentioned as a potential Labor secretary.

Neera Tanden, Bidens Domestic Policy Council director as the administration negotiated for lower prescription drug prices and a key player during the passage of the Affordable Care Act, is seen as a contender to run the Department of Health and Human Services. Kavita Patel, a doctor and former Obama White House official, could be a candidate for a senior role at HHS. Nadine Burke Harris, Californias former surgeon general, could be in the running for U.S. Surgeon General.

As vice president, Harris has built relationships with chief executives and other business leaders, holding regular private dinners with executives at her Naval Observatory residence. She may choose to bring some of those executives into her administration, though advisers said she hasnt made any decisions. Wall Street financier Blair Effron, co-founder of investment bank Centerview Partners, has been discussed by Democrats as a potential candidate for Treasury or Commerce secretary. Harris is also close to former tech CEO Charles Phillips, co-chair of the Black Economic Alliance; Microsoft President Brad Smith; and former American Express CEO Ken Chenault. Chenault spoke at this weeks convention, prompting speculation that he could be in line for a top job in her administration.

Rahm Emanuel, Bidens ambassador to Japan and a former White House chief of staff to President Barack Obama, is another possibility for Commerce, particularly if Harris views the department as playing a bigger role in international affairs including countering China and shoring up the supply chain. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker is also said to be interested in a role in a Harris administration.

Attorney general and White House counsel

Harris, a former prosecutor, is likely to take great interest in choosing the lawyers that will run the Justice Department and the White House Counsels Office.

Potential candidates for those positions include: former Sen. Doug Jones (D., Ala.); Sally Yates, former President Barack Obamas deputy attorney general; and Vanita Gupta, the first woman of color to serve as associate U.S. Attorney General. Others in line for senior roles at the Justice Department or the White House Counsels Office include Kristine Lucius, a Harris adviser and former Senate Judiciary Committee chief counsel; lawyer Karen Dunn, who has helped Harris prepare for her debates; and Josh Hsu, a former counsel to Harris.

One wild card: whether Harris would hire her brother-in-law, Tony West, the chief legal officer at Uber and a former top Justice Department official during the Obama administration.

National security

Both Biden and Harriss advisers say at least some current national security officials are likely to get prominent roles, but she is likely to bring in her own people as well.

Phil Gordon, Harriss national security adviser, would be a strong candidate to assume that role if she wins the presidency. Current and former administration officials say the Middle East and Europe expert has served the vice president well, helping her office stay closely aligned with Bidens team. He has participated in recent Situation Room meetings about Israel-Hamas cease-fire talks and a possible Iranian strike on Israel.

Sen. Chris Murphy (D., Conn.) has been mentioned as a contender for secretary of state. He and Harris aligned on many issues during their mutual time in the Senate, particularly on ending the Saudi-led war on Yemen. They continue to speak fairly regularly, White House aides and foreign policy analysts said, trading notes on developments in Central Americas Northern Triangle and immigration. Murphy, who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committees Middle East panel, has also been an occasional sounding board on the region.

Tom Nides, who previously served in a top position at the State Department and as ambassador to Israel, is also considered to be a contender for a top national security position.

Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns could be considered for secretary of state, a move that would give Harris some connective tissue from the Biden administration.

Sen. Chris Coons (D., Del.), a close friend of Bidens, was seen as a leading contender for secretary of state, but it is unclear if Harris would tap him for the job. National security adviser Jake Sullivan, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austinwouldnt likely be extended in their current roles, current and former officials said.

Less certain is who might serve as defense secretary. For years, Sen. Jack Reed (D., R.I.) and Michele Flournoy have been regularly mentioned as a candidate for the job, though it is unclear whether Harris is eyeing them. Christine Wormuth, the current Army secretary, is also in the mix for the top Pentagon job.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigiegwho was vetted as a possible running mate for Harrishas been discussed by some Democrats as a contender for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Harris is also close with Sen. Mark Warner (D., Va.), the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, who could be a contender for director of national intelligence.

Write to Andrew Restuccia at andrew.restuccia@wsj.com, Tarini Parti at tarini.parti@wsj.com, Alexander Ward at alex.ward@wsj.com and Annie Linskey at annie.linskey@wsj.com
Referring to the public outrage over the Badlapur sexual abuse case, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP-SCP) supremo Sharad Pawar on Wednesday said that the people of Maharashtra want change as there is a lot of uneasiness among the people. The tremendous unrest among people stems from the government's apathy towards crimes in the state, said Pawar while speaking to reporters at the party office in Mumbai on Wednesday.

How strong is the reaction of the people when a serious incident happens? An example of this was seen yesterday in Badlapur. This means that there is a lot of uneasiness among the people, ANI quoted Pawar as saying. He also expressed concern over the sexual abuse of two kindergarten girls at a school in Badlapur.

Calling Lok Sabha elections result in Maharashtra a silent revolution, Sharad Pawar said that the people brought a change by giving Opposition's MVA alliance 31 of the 48 seats. The public has made up its mind to usher a change in the coming elections too, said Pawar according to PTI.

Maharashtra want change: NCP Chief Sharad Pawar Assembly elections are ahead. Meetings are being held. People of Maharashtra want change, ANI quoted Sharad Pawar as saying during a media interaction.

Pawar termed the Badlapur sexual abuse case as unfortunate and said that the protests in its aftermath are a testimony of people's anger. The public protest showed there was tremendous unrest among people as the government did not pay heed to the crime as it should have, the senior politician said.

I saw an example yesterday of how people react strongly. People want change, and we want to change the state, he added.
Aam Aadmi Party Member of Parliament (MP), Sanjay Singh alleged on Thursday that the Prime Minister Modi government intended to seize the lands of Waqf and hand them over to his friends. Singh also claimed that after Waqf, lands belonging to Gurudwaras, churches, and temples will also be taken and handed over to the friends of the Centre.

"Article 26 of the Constitution provides for the freedom of religious management. The Constitution drafted by Dr BR Ambedkar, which is implemented in India, states that there should be no government interference in the management of religious institutions, whether it is a temple, Mosque, Gurdwara, or Church," Singh said as the first meeting of the Joint Committee on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill met for first time on Thursday.

Officials from the minority affairs and law ministries are briefing them about the various amendments proposed in the draft law.

The 31-member committee, headed by Bhartiya Janata Party MP Jagdambika Pal, has been tasked by the Lok Sabha to scrutinise the contentious bill, which has drawn protests from the opposition parties and Muslim organisations.

"The efforts being made by the Modi government are solely driven by the intention to seize lands and hand them over to Adani. They have introduced a bill to give land to their friends. Once the Waqf Board's lands are seized, the lands belonging to Gurdwaras across the country will be taken, followed by churches and temples," Singh added.

The AAP MP also claimed that the government has already given railway land to their friends and handed over 13,000 acres of Indian Army land in Ayodhya.

"They want to seize the lands of Dalits and Adivasis. This bill is unconstitutional. We will certainly oppose it. There is no reason for government interference where it is not necessary, so why are they doing it? They want to snatch away the rights given in the Constitution of India," Sanjay Singh said.

Pal, the chairperson of the JPC said on Thursday that they will give maximum opportunities to the maximum number of people from minority organizations while discussing the bill.

Pal said that the government has a specific purpose for bringing this bill that the the properties handed to the Waqf should help the backward Muslims and women.

The parliamentary committee examining the bill has 21 members from Lok Sabha and 10 from Rajya Sabha.

The government introduced the bill in the budget session of Parliament which concluded earlier this month and it was decided to send the legislation to JPC for further scrutiny. The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, Waqf Act provides for the renaming of the Waqf Act, 1995, as the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act, 1995.

Also Read | Opposition vs BJP over Waqf Amendment Bill | Who said what in Lok Sabha

The bill seeks to omit section 40 relating to the powers of the Board to decide if a property is Waqf property, provide for filing of accounts of waqf by mutawallis to the Board through a central portal for better control over their activities, reform the Tribunal structure with two members and provide for appeals against the orders of the Tribunal to the High Court within a specified period of ninety days.
NASA's recent discovery of strange formations of an electrified layer of gas in the ionosphere has challenged the scientists' perception of having a complete understanding of the Earth's outer layer. Space experts are struggling to explain the existence of X and C-shaped structures discovered in the ionosphere under NASA's Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) mission.

What is the ionosphere? The ionosphere is the outermost layer of Earth's atmosphere. As the name suggests, it contains a large number of charged particles. The ionosphere is a very active part of the Earth's atmosphere, expanding and contracting depending on the energy it absorbs from the Sun. The gases in this layer are excited by solar radiation to form ions. Hence, the gas particles in this layer are electrically charged.

What has NASA discovered in Earth's atmosphere? NASA's Gold mission found strange formations of an electrified layer of gas in the ionosphere. The US Space agency has made an astonishing discovery of X- and C-shaped structures in the ionosphere. X-shaped formations are similar to crests and can appear in the ionosphere's plasma, which is a sea of charged particles generally found after solar storms. According to CNN, astronomers were aware of the presence of X-shaped crest-like formations in the ionosphere.

However, they have discovered the presence of C-shaped formations in the layer for the first time. Surprisingly, these never-before-seen Cs seem to have appeared during quiet times when there were no atmospheric disturbances, reported CNN citing a new research.

Is there any threat from C-shaped structure? The report also added that the unexplained and mysterious C-shaped formations in ionosphere can cause huge damage to humans. According to CNN report, C shaped formations and bubbles have the potential to disrupt communications.

Also Read | NASA images: 6 photos by Hubble telescope catch glimpses of outer Space
Laura Pakenham graduated from Trinity College through Irish and she speaks to Jessica Thompson about landing her dream job with TG4

Youd be forgiven for thinking youll have to travel further west to find fluent Irish speakers but, while Longford is not well-known for its Gaeilgeoiri, one local woman is hoping to change all that.



Lisryans Laura Pakenham recently attended at Leinster House and spoke with members of the Committee on the Irish Language, the Gaeltacht and the Irish-Speaking Community, to air their views and aspirations of the Irish language.



The Longford native is one of just 34 people in the history of the state to graduate from Trinity College with a Bachelor of Education through the medium of Irish.



Following her graduation late last year, Laura has started working full time for TG4, promoting the Irish language and encouraging engagement.



I think my true interest in the language was sparked as a teenager when I first went to the Gaeltacht to complete a summer course, Laura told Longford Life magazine.

PICTURES | Longford students step out in style for Templemichael College graduation ball



Up until that point, I merely viewed the language as a school subject, which I fortunately happened to be good at, which I believe helped me to maintain a positive outlook on the language until the point where I decided to fully immerse myself.



My time in the Gaeltacht as a teenager opened my eyes to see Irish as a living language that is used by thousands of people in this country.



Laura was educated in Lismacaffrey National School and Cnoc Mhuire Granard, solely through English before she decided to go on to do the Baitsileir san Oideachas Tri Mhean na Gaeilge, or Bachelor of Education through Irish.



Suddenly, after 14 years of education in English, she was not only studying at third level - and in Trinity College - but through a completely different language. That must have been intimidating?



Absolutely, said Laura. In the beginning I think I was oblivious as to what I had signed myself up for considering I had no previous experience with education through Irish.



I definitely struggled more than those in my course who had completed their education through Irish up until that point but, thankfully, all my fellow students and lecturers were so patient and supportive.

PICTURES | Shear delight! Longford sheep shearers put on top class display for Make A Wish



Over the duration of the four years, everything started to come together seamlessly as I immersed myself into the language further. It certainly wasn't an easy undertaking but will always be my proudest achievement.



And, of course, she feels very privileged to be among the first in the history of the state to graduate with this qualification, referring to it as an absolute honour.



This course is paving the way to train the teachers of the future who will lead Irish-medium education in a positive and uplifting direction, she said.



However, I must admit that I carry some guilt about the fact that I'm not applying my qualification in a classroom setting. I will always be Muinteoir Laura at heart but I believe it's insightful and stands testament to the quality of the course that I have taken my skill set and knowledge and applied those in the media industry.



Irish classes in schools today follow a very specific format and curriculum, which could be perceived as inadequate when it comes to actually speaking the language in an everyday setting. But Laura feels that it all depends on how well the teacher instils a love of the language in the students.



My stance on how Irish is taught in schools is that regardless of curriculum content, the teacher must have a passion and love for the language that they can transfer to their pupils.



Teaching Irish is a weighted task as you're combating negative opinions surrounding the language that students may be exposed to. I believe it's crucial that those teaching Irish outside the Gaeltacht provide an insight on the practical applications of the language and also career opportunities to ensure that students have an understanding of the greater context of the language outside the classroom.



The language is dead, some people might say. Nobody speaks it anymore, they might insist. But such negative attitudes towards our native language are certainly being challenged.



Unless someone has immersed themselves in the language, they are not in a position to refer to it as being dead, said Laura.



If you've never been to the Gaeltacht, had a conversation with a Gaeilgeoir, sat and watched TG4 or listened to likes of Radio na Gaeltachta, your stance on the vitality of the language is unsupported and factually incorrect.



Unfortunately, the narrative of Irish being a dead language is one that won't be re-written overnight but I am extremely hopeful about the success of its resurgence.



Our very existence as a nation is so tied to our language, Laura added. Gaeilge gives life to our traditions, place names, music, song, dance, names, heritage, history and culture.



Our language is at the core of our very being and existence as a country and should therefore be cherished and respected. In keeping the language alive we are keeping alive the work of poets, storytellers and those who fought to protect our country's identity.



Lauras way of doing that is through her work with TG4 - a role she says is an absolute dream come true. She currently works as a social media coordinator, promoting the Irish language across the nation, and receiving extremely positive feedback as she goes.



TG4 is at the centre of the preservation of Irish and I am so lucky to work for an organisation whose core values align so clearly with my own personal values.



For the most part, I'm received very positively on social media. Of course, there are trolls who make their way to my content and leave degrading comments about the language and my work to preserve it, but those are quickly deleted, she added.



I provide content for like-minded Gaeilge lovers and enthusiasts, regardless of fluency level. I have created a positive and uplifting online space on my social media platforms and am so grateful for the thousands of people who resonate with and learn from my content.



And the content is certainly easy to learn from. Lauras own tiktok account, @laurajpakenham is currently nearing 11,000 followers, and is bursting with content that provides followers with easy, doable ways of integrating the Irish language into everyday conversations.



The best way to learn a language is through immersion, said Laura. Engage with Irish language media and content, whether that be through social media, TV, radio or reading.



Research any resources in your area such as a ciorcal comhra or Irish classes. The Gaeilge is out there and once you open your mind and life up to the language, it will come flooding in, as well as support from Gaeilgeoiri.

Also read: What a photo - Mia's hair-raising experience! Longford rugby player stars with Leinster
Upon completing his Leaving Cert in St Mel's College Longford in 1986 Ciaran Prior had no map for his future.

I spent a couple of years working, he told the Leader, I worked for a car hire company, I was in the civil service for a year as well. Then I hopped into the Guards and did 32 years with them.

There's a haphazard incongruity about the description 'hopping into the Guards' for a man who would spend the final decade and half of his law enforcement career fixating on details.



At that time, the late 1980s, a career in uniform was attractive to Ciaran: There was such variety to it, the outdoor life, rather than sitting in an office. That certainly appealed to me, and the wide rage of the job.

I started in Dublin, I did eight years there before moving to Castlerea in County Roscommon. I spent the last 15 years as a crime scene investigator, which was very diverse.



The pros of life as a Garda were counterpointed by what Ciaran described as an intense fear of death in his childhood. When he took up the post as a Garda crime scene investigator, his job exposed him to the very thing he feared most as a child.

The 36 years between finishing secondary school and retiring from An Garda Siochana added layers to a life, one that presented an intriguing story.

Immediately after retirement he got to explore that story by presenting a TEDx talk, 'Life Lessons Dealing With Death' where he unfolded aspects of his unique life experience: I did the TEDx Talk on the night I left the Guards, the Lanesboro native said.



The presentation of the TEDx Talk was a more natural progression than some may think: From the day you go into the Guards you're speaking in public, because you're getting called to every type of a situation.

You're the one trying to control things, trying to take command, trying to sort things out. You're speaking in public at a high level. Sometimes it's a life and death situation.

A TEDx Talk is a showcase for speakers presenting well-formed ideas in under 18 minutes. To condense three decades of knowledge into a short format is quite a skill. Ciaran's presentation was well received.

A publisher from a book company saw the talk and reckoned it would expand out into an interesting book, and made an offer straight away, he recalls.



I took a step back and thought about it. I got myself a literary agent, Faith O'Grady, and the next thing I was talking to Penguin, Hachette and Bonnier, Blackwater, a whole lot of publishers.

They started a bit of a bidding process. There was big demand, because of the interest and fascination for crime scene investigation. There's an insatiable appetite for it, he tells.



From the seed of the online talk the book, Traces of Truth-A CSI Investigates Life and Death, grew. It recounts some of the more significant instances of grief, tragedy and sorrow Ciaran encountered throughout his crime scene investigation career.

It's more than just a police procedural. There's reflection on death I have drawn from experiences in my youth. I was called after my Uncle Ciaran who died tragically in a shooting accident when he was 14.

He was my mother's brother. As a child I felt that death had a shadow over me. The strange thing was that I went on to work in a job that exposed me to death on a huge scale.

Society's fascination with the details of crime is not a modern affliction, however Ciaran says television portrayals of CSI have ramped up that interest.



This book has provided an opportunity to lay out a philosophy informed by years of Garda work: There are some relevant snapshots from my earlier frontline policing, it offers an inside glimpse into how this strange world shaped my view of life and living.

The book provides an insight into the hard-earned lessons I learned, both professionally and personally, along the way.

I want to show how these experiences ultimately led to a transformation in my understanding of the true nature of death.

Traces of Truth is a revealing memoir, in which Ciaran details his work on some of Irelands most shocking murders.

It gives the reader behind-the-scenes access to real crime scenes and reveals the role of forensics in modern day policing, as well as the impact that constant frontline encounters with death had on the author's health.

That insight is deeply personal: Traces of Truth centres on the character, instinct and judgement required to see justice done, and is a reflection on life and death.



It traces the effect that a career spent dealing with mortality will leave on perception and psyche.

The personal nature of the book is an aspect of the work that particularly pleases Ciaran: There's a reflective process going on in the book. What death means and what it means for all of us to have this thing take over.

In the background we all know we're going to reach that point.

It's very different when you're looking at death every day, the way I was. It really brings it to the forefront of your mind. It teaches you how to live when you realise that the life we live is so fragile.

Although the book has yet to go on sale Ciaran says the reaction from anyone who has read it has been very positive: When my agent read it she was completely blown away.



One of the people in the publishers who saw it asked me who the ghostwriter was, I said, nobody. I've written it myself. I suppose I have to thank Jim Waldron's English class at Mel's for that, he laughs.

In the two years since Ciaran left the world of CSI he has secured a new career as a Super Generation Motivational Speaker which affords him the chance to use the 32 years of experience to educate others: It's something I love. I used to go to schools giving talks to the youngsters about the crime scene investigation end of it. I really got a kick out of that.

When I was invited to do the TEDx talk with reference to my crime scene days and the particular connection with death I had as a child, all that came together. That double dynamic also comes to play in the book.



For Ciaran taking the leap to present the online talk felt like an opportunity that arrived at the correct time : I was setting off on a new career after leaving the Guards. I figured going around to schools, businesses and colleges to give people the benefit of my life experience really appealed to me.



Those lessons are about resilience, leadership, well-being, that sort of thing. It's crazy how my life has taken off from that decision two years ago to leave the Guards.

Ciaran Prior's Traces of Truth-A CSI Investigates Life and Death goes on sale on September 19.
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The number of heat-related deaths in the UK is predicted to increase more than six-fold by the end of the century if the world warms by 3C, a study shows.

But deaths related to cold  currently much higher than from heat  are predicted to rise only slightly, reaching nearly 70,000 per year by 2100, according to analysis published in the journal Lancet Global Health.

Modelling data from 30 European countries also suggests heat-related deaths could triple in the continent by the end of the century under current climate policies, increasing from 43,729 to 128,809 per year.

In the same scenario, deaths attributed to cold would remain high, with a slight decrease from 363,809 to 333,703 by 2100, scientists said.

Dr Juan-Carlos Ciscar, of the Joint Research Centre at the European Commission, said: Our analysis reveals that the ratio of cold-heat deaths will shift dramatically over the course of this century, with those attributed to heat increasing in all parts of Europe and surging in some areas.

At the same time, cold-related deaths will decline slightly overall.

Our study looks at more than 1,000 regions across 30 countries, enabling the identification of hotspots where people will be worst affected in the future.

Heat-related deaths per year in the UK are predicted to rise six-fold, from 1,258 to 7,931 per year, while cold-related deaths are estimated to increase slightly from the current 64,195 to 64,952 per year by the end of the century.

In Ireland, cold-related deaths are predicted to jump from 3,974 to 7,696 per year by the end of the century, while deaths attributed to heat are estimated to rise from 30 to 563 per year.

Deaths from cold are highest in Eastern Europe and the Baltic states and lowest in Central and parts of Southern Europe, while heat-related deaths have the lowest rates in the UK and Scandinavian countries and are highest in Croatia and the southernmost parts of the continent, analysis shows.

Although most countries have pledged to curb emissions to slow down global warming, a United Nations analysis published last year suggests the world is still on track to warm by nearly 3C by the end of the century.

Dr David Garcia-Leon, also of the Joint Research Centre at the European Commission, said: There is a critical need for the development of more targeted policies to protect these areas and members of society most at risk from temperature extremes.

Commenting on the study, Dr Leslie Mabon, lecturer in environmental systems at The Open University, who was not involved, said: The results are broadly in line with what existing research has shown in multiple contexts around the globe  namely, that temperature extremes do not affect everyone equally, with the elderly and the least well-off being most at risk.

What is especially striking is that the authors find clear differences in risk across country boundaries and also regional clusters of mortality risk.

Temperature gradients do not respect borders, so, as the authors point out, this shows how demographic and socio-economic factors influence the risk we face from temperature extremes.

There are counter-measures we can take, which may be particularly effective if they are targeted towards the most vulnerable people and places.

For example, the study points to investment in health infrastructure, the presence of heat and cold preparedness plans, and the quality of the buildings we live and work in as factors that could reduce mortality under a changing climate.
A wholesome clip of a disguised son's last-minute 6,000-mile trip to Ireland to celebrate his dad's 80th birthday has taken off online.

Cormac O'Brien travelled from California to Ireland to join his family's trip to mark his dad Tim's 80th birthday.

A proud Corkman living in America for over 60 years, Tim O'Brien and his family planned a trip home to the West Cork town to mark his milestone birthday.

Cormac, however, originally wasn't able to make the trip before deciding to "come at all costs" with his young daughter and surprise his father.

"My dad moved from Bantry in 1963 to join the US Navy. Then New York, Arizona and now he lives in California - where I live," Cormac told Iconic Media. "He is the oldest of seven OBriens that are all still in Ireland.

"We always come back to Bantry for a visit. He chose to come here to spend his 80th and I couldnt make it until last minute.

"I decided to come at all costs with my three-year-old to surprise him," Cormac explained before saying it "feels great to be back".

Disguised with a fake moustache, a wig, sunglasses and a cap in the viral clip, Cormac hides in plain sight before delivering a pint of Guinness and whiskey chaser to the table and whipping off his disguise to surprise his dad.

Jimmy Crowley's pub erupts in laughter as the camera pans to a delighted Tim and the pair hug in a touching moment that has received over 23,000 upvotes on the popular Ireland thread on Reddit.
On Sunday 18 August, 13 days after Bangladeshs dictator Sheikh Hasina fell, the Revolutionary Communist International (RCI) held an online discussion to celebrate this victory and to offer a communist perspective and programme. The first phase of the revolution is over. Now it is necessary to complete the revolution! We include the recording of that discussion here.

The excellent attendance  over 170 people joined from all over the globe  reflected the thirst for a clear direction amidst these tumultuous events. Whilst many joined from Bangladesh, many others joined from the Bangladeshi diaspora in Britain, the US, Australia and elsewhere.

There were also many revolutionary communists in attendance, members and followers of the RCIs sections across the globe, who wanted to hear the communist perspective on these momentous events. This included comrades from Pakistan and India, to the US, Canada, Mexico, Britain, France, Germany, Austria and many, many other countries.

You can watch back the discussion here:

Chairing and opening the discussion was Fiona Lali of the Revolutionary Communist Party in Britain, who has become well known in the recent period in Bangladesh, for the unflagging solidarity that she and the RCP have given to the revolutionary masses throughout this process.

Fiona paid tribute to the sacrifice of the students who sparked and led this movement, leading to this important victory. She explained how the revolutionary upsurge transpired, and how it morphed from a fight against the rotten quota system to a revolutionary struggle to bring down Hasina after brutal violence was unleashed against the masses.

She also explained how the comrades of the RCI performed our internationalist duty to step up our solidarity efforts, joining protests of the diaspora in London, in New York and elsewhere.

Fiona finished by asking, what next? Since Hasina has fallen, weve seen her replacement with a new interim government headed by Dr. Yunus. But this is a capitalist government, and its interests are not compatible with those of the workers and mass of students. As she explained:

The point now is this: these student leaders have led this revolution on the grounds of democracy, but we have to ask, what is democracy, real democracy? Well, we have just seen this. A revolution is when the masses are intervening in their own story, in their own history, and actively, consciously taking control over it. So for this democracy to become real and more than just a flashpoint, what we are saying is that this revolution must continue. Our message from the start stays the same, which is that we call on the students and workers in Bangladesh to trust in themselves and themselves alone.

Fiona was followed by Ben Curry, a leading member of the Revolutionary Communist International and editor of marxist.com. Ben looked at three questions: Firstly, how were these tremendous victories won? What are the lessons of the revolution so far? And where will things head next?

Ben explained that 5 August was a turning point because this was when it became a truly popular revolution, spreading beyond the students to encompass broad layers, including factory workers, informal workers and peasants.

The democratic gains, he explained, were won on the streets by the students and the masses and paid for with blood. Dr. Yunus and his ministers did not play any role in this! They cannot claim responsibility for a single one of these democratic gains. They have been taken by the people themselves!

But the old capitalist state, riddled with Awami League officials, remains, only now with Yunus at its head. In this, there is a certain analogy with the first stages of the Russian Revolution of 1917.

In February, the Tsar was forced out, but the old Tsarist state remained, only with a democratic lick of paint. To complete the revolution, it was necessary for the workers to seize power, which they were able to do in October 1917, only because they had the clear-sighted revolutionary leadership of the Bolshevik Party. Bangladesh has had its February. Now the task is to complete a Bangladeshi October, for which a party on the model of the Bolshevik Party is required.

After Ben spoke, we were proud to be joined on the panel by two important communist student activists in Bangladesh, including Abdullah Hel Bubun from Dhaka University.

Bubun explained the challenges that the revolutionary left faces on campuses in Bangladesh. This challenge is caused by the fact that many so-called left parties have, over years, disgracefully supported the Awami League regime as a secular lesser evil to the other right-wing and Islamist parties.

These left parties from the Stalinist tradition have effectively said, first we must unite all progressive forces to fight communalism, then we can fight for socialism at some indeterminate point down the road.

We, as genuine communists, have nothing in common with this approach. Nonetheless, as Bubun explained, despite difficulties inherited from Stalinism, left-wing students also mobilised in this movement.

Bubun warned that those right-wing parties that were in opposition to Hasina, like the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami, are now painting themselves as a legitimate part of the revolution. Whilst there is little support for them among the students, they have the advantage over the discredited left that they are well-organised and well-funded.

Right-wing elements are insidiously trying to divert the revolution away from a class struggle towards communal, anti-Hindu sentiment, using the anger that exists at the role of the Modi regime in propping up Hasina.

In order to cut across these dangers, the left must fight for the leadership of this movement. But, as Bubun explained, what is needed is a complete break with the culture war ideas that have dominated until present, of secularism versus Islamism, which has consistently benefited the ruling class. What is needed is an openly revolutionary, class-struggle approach.

Next, Adam Pal, leader of the Inqalabi Communist Party in Pakistan, spoke, bringing solidarity greetings from revolutionary communists in Pakistan. He explained how the ruling class of Pakistan, which has had very cordial relations with the ruling class of Bangladesh, is trembling as a result of this movement.

The working class, on the contrary, is inspired by the incredible non-cooperation movement and general strike and the bravery of the masses.

Adam condemned the role of Indian imperialism in Bangladesh, and still they shelter Hasina to this day. However, he was careful to differentiate between the ruling class of India and the attitude of the workers. In fact, starting in West Bengal, just over the border, a mass movement has erupted across India after the rape and murder of a young female doctor. The Indian masses too are inspired by the mass movement in Bangladesh.

Adam analysed the role of the different actors: the right-wing opposition parties, the bankruptcy of the Stalinist parties, and the different foreign interests that are trying to intervene. Fundamentally, he explained, the masses can only hope for solidarity from the working masses of the world.

The workers in Bangladesh, the peasants and Bangladesh are yearning for a revolution, Adam explained, what is the way forward? The first step must be to found a party to break with capitalism.

Finally, Ben Curry concluded the meeting. He explained that what is going on in Bangladesh, like the events we saw in Sri Lanka two years ago, and in Kenya and Nigeria this summer, are all symptoms of the fact that capitalism is dying. But the working masses cannot seize power into their own hands and make a decisive breakthrough without a party.

Making an analogy with the Arab Spring of 14 years ago, Ben explained that this was the lesson of that revolution; it was the lesson of Sri Lanka two years ago. The vanguard of the workers and the most revolutionary students must learn this lesson in Bangladesh today. It is towards the building of revolutionary communist parties around the world that can lead a successful revolution that the RCI dedicates itself, and the meeting ended with a final appeal to all listeners to join us in that task.
The Procter & Gamble Company sent a proposal to Boston officials on Tuesday for a redevelopment of its iconic Gillette South Boston campus into housing, a waterfront park and new commercial space.

We anticipate the planning and development of this largely inaccessible site will create meaningful and positive improvements to the community, wrote Joseph Stegbauer, senior vice president of The Procter & Gamble Company, in his letter of intent to the City of Bostons Planning Department.

Though the letter does not include many details on what the project might entail, Stegbauer said it would turn the area from inaccessible into a community space and noted Gillettes 120-year presence in the Boston neighborhood. He added project construction would happen in phases.

While most of the 31-acre site is for commercial use, housing would comprise about a third of the redevelopment space, the letter to the BPDA said. Plans also include 50% of the site turned into usable green open spaces and one of the largest waterfront parks on private land in that sect of the city.

The entire project, located between A Street and the Fort Point Channel, is focused on climate resiliency, especially to rising sea levels, Stegbauer wrote. Additionally, the project is expected to create numerous construction and permanent jobs.

This is an important moment for our business and for Boston. Redeveloping our 31-acre South Boston site will create exciting new possibilities for the continued evolution of the city, said Kara Buckley, vice president of community affairs at Gillette, in a statement.

Mayor Michelle Wu released a statement on the initiative and called it a major investment, as it meets Bostons goals of growth.

Im glad to see Gillettes commitment to mixed-use, transit-oriented development that incorporates a climate resilience planning for the Fort Point Channel, and devotes half of the site to open space, Wu said.

Read more: Boston Italian chain to replace French brasserie 10 months after opening

My administration will continue to work closely with Gillette and the community through planning, design, and regulatory processes to ensure the details of this major investment best serve the community and are consistent with our goal of inclusive, resilient growth, the mayor said.

Currently, the World Shaving Headquarters currently has about 1.5 million square feet of office, manufacturing, lab, warehouse and other spaces on its Fort Point Channel site. Gillette plans to keep its headquarters and innovation center in South Boston.

P&G had announced its manufacturing operations would transition to a 150-acre campus in Andover last fall, and has been in conversations with the community to help guide this new redevelopment project in the interest of South Boston.

Parts of Gillettes Fort Point property have also been sold off to developers in recent years, including space for Eli Lilly & Co.s brand-new research and development center on Necco Street, and others, the Boston Business Journal noted.

Next steps include P&Gs submission of a master plan to the Planning Board, and the company will host an in-person site tour in September.

A website has been dedicated to the project for the public to follow, and the BPDA is looking for nominations for an Impact Advisory Group on the redevelopment. There will also be a series of community meetings in the fall.
John Oates, half of the legendary rock duo Hall & Oates, is not unfamiliar with playing songs and touring on his own.

The 76-year-old musician has put out seven solo albums over the course of 22 years, with his first being Phunk Shui in 2002, and toured numerous times as a solo act.

Oates, who is currently on tour in support of his recent album Reunion, will be playing two shows in Massachusetts this weekend.

But after his former bandmate, Daryl Hall, filed a lawsuit against Oates last year, Oates tour setlist may sound different than what Hall & Oates fans may think.

All I know is that at the end of the show, they give me a standing ovation  thats good enough for me, Oates told MassLive about his audiences reaction to his shows.

Hall & Oates officially broke up in May, Variety reported, but both artists have worked on their solo careers for decades.

When Oates first started touring on his own, people expected him to play Hall & Oates songs, something that really fell flat, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee told MassLive.

But as Oates put out more of his own music and went on his own tours, peoples expectations changed.

I decided [that] Im just going to do what I do and eventually build my own audience, and thats whats happened over the years, he said. Now my audience is really open-minded and they actually dont come to hear those songs. They come to hear whatever the heck Im doing.

Oates does still play a handful of songs from his time with former bandmate Hall, whom he met in 1967 when Oates was 18. But most of the songs are from the bands early days of Hall & Oates that Oates considers the most important.

I play a couple songs from Abandoned Luncheonette from the early 70s because it was a very influential album and I think without Abandoned Luncheonette [Hall] and I wouldnt even have had a career, Oates said. The 80s hits were so ubiquitous with MTV and all that, everybody knows about that. But very few people know really how we got there and how we got there, I think, is more interesting.

Oates brings out more popular hits, like the chart-topping Out of Touch and others that put Hall & Oates on the map. But at the end of the day, Oates show is meant to reflect his own musical journey.

I like to give people an idea of who I am as a musician, he said. Everyone knows me from Hall & Oates, [but] very few people really know who I am. And so this has given me a chance to really make a personal statement.

John Oates of the legendary rock duo Hall & OatesRocky Roode

Oates grew up on the sounds of swing, roots and folk, among other music genres, so he plays songs on tour that inspired him to become a musician.

These include songs by the likes of Mississippi John Hurt, Jimmy Rogers, Doc Watson, Curtis Mayfield, Smokey Robinson and everything in between, Oates said.

But during this tour, fans will mostly hear music off Oates ninth studio album Reunion, which he released in May. The musician considers the album to be his most cohesive, coherent and personal project yet.

I think it really is coming from a certain point of view from my songwriting and from my performance. Its mature. It is thoughtful, he said. Its about seeing the horizon. Its about knowing that there is a horizon out there. Its about honoring family and things like that and honoring the past.

Hall & Oates have not played together for more than two years, Oates said. The last time the duo performed was in October 2022, according to Rolling Stone .

In November 2023, Hall filed a lawsuit against Oates and his trust due to contractual and financial disputes, Philly Magazine reported at the time .

While the case was initially confidential, the week after, Hall filed a declaration accusing Oates of the ultimate partnership betrayal for planning to sell his share of the duos publishing to Primary Wave Music, according to The Guardian .

When asked if he had a specific reason for wanting to sell his half of the Hall & Oates catalog, Oates told MassLive, Yeah, but I cant go into it. But Oates did say that his personal relationship with Hall has essentially disappeared.

Unfortunately, the legal system has come in between us, the musician said. Its based around contractual and a business partnership that was established over 50 years ago that has been outdated. And trying to change it, there were some legal issues that needed to be worked through and were almost finished working through it.

Legal battle aside, Oates holds a positive mindset as he focuses on furthering his solo career.

Ive moved on totally and Im very happy with where Im sitting right now and I hope [Hall] is too, Oates said.

Oates will perform at The Cabot in Beverly on Saturday, Aug. 24 and will be at Dreamland Concert Series on Nantucket Sunday, Aug. 25.
Federal prosecutors on Wednesday charged three men in connection with the armed robbery of more than $500,000 worth of jewelry and precious metals from a Lawrence jewelry store in December.

Eric Rosario, 26, Rosnel Polanco, 26, and Robert Santana, 29, all of whom are Lawrence residents, are each charged with one count of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery. Santana was arrested Wednesday while Rosario and Polanco were already in custody on related state charges, according to acting U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Joshua S. Levys office.

All three men will appear in federal court in Boston at a later date, Levys office wrote in a statement.

Prosecutors say the trio entered a Lawrence jewelry store armed with guns on Dec. 15, 2023. Numerous employees were inside the store at the time and told police their jewelry and cellphones were stolen, according to the statement.

The three men are then accused of pointing guns at the victims heads and pressing the guns to their backs as they brought the employees downstairs to the basement where the stores office and safes were located, Levys office said.

Once they were downstairs, the trio forced the store owner to open the safes, according to the statement. In all, roughly $500,000 worth of jewelry and precious metals were stolen.

A second safe could not be opened, prosecutors said.

After robbing the store, prosecutors say the trio fled in a rented Nissan Altima that was found burned and torched in a field in Maine the next day.
An anti-abortion rights Pregnancy Resource Center filed a lawsuit Monday naming state officials and a pro-abortion group as defendants, accusing them of violating its rights and of unwarranted intimidation tactics.

A Womans Concern, which does business as Your Options Medical, offers pregnancy services like ultrasounds and pregnancy tests as well as what it calls Post-Abortion Support for women who may regret getting an abortion.

The anti-abortion rights group was founded in 1991 in Boston by three Christian women, according to the complaint.

In the lawsuit, Your Options Medical, or YOM, argues that its rights under both the First and Fourteenth Amendments were violated by state officials, including Gov. Maura Healey, the Department of Public Health and the advocacy group Reproductive Equity Now.

The group claims it has been targeted by the state through a pressure campaign to force it to shut down in which Healey and others have described YOM and similar facilities as dangerous.

This campaign involves selective law enforcement prosecution, public threats, and even a state-sponsored advertising campaign with a singular goal  to deprive YOM, and groups like it, of their First Amendment rights to voice freely their religious and political viewpoints regarding the sanctity of human life in the context of the highly controversial issue of abortion, the complaint, filed in Federal Court in Boston on Monday, reads.

A spokesperson for Healeys office declined to comment on the lawsuit. Reproductive Equity Now could not be reached.

According to the suit, state officials have accused YOM and other pregnancy resource centers of being a public health threat and of deceptive marketing. Healey and other officials have urged residents to report the centers to state law enforcement, according to the suit.

In June, the Healey administration launched what it described as a first-in-the-nation public education campaign on the dangers of anti-abortion centers, like Your Options Medical.

At a press conference announcing the initiative U.S. Rep. Katherine Clark, D-5th District, said these are con artists posing as health care professionals.

They are knowingly ... misleading patients for the sake of their ideology, Clark said.

Rebecca Hart Holder, one of the defendants named in the suit and the executive director of Reproductive Equity Now, said, anti-abortion centers are the foot soldiers of the anti-abortion movement.

Your Options Medical, in the suit, claims that the threats from state officials were targeted explicitly at its religious speech in violation of its rights under the First Amendment.

The Massachusetts policy is to single out for discriminatory treatment pro-life PRCs, the overwhelming majority of which are faith-based and adhere to religious views about the sanctity of human life, the suit reads.

The group seeks a permanent injunction against the state and Reproductive Equity Now that would order them to stop any advertising or campaigning that falsely accuses YOM of misconduct or of being a threat to public health. The suit also seeks relief in the form of attorneys fees and costs.

Your Options Medical is demanding a jury trial.
A Washington D.C. man was sentenced in Boston federal court Tuesday in connection with the theft of $32,000 worth of luxury items such as handbags, duffle bags, backpacks and sunglasses from a Gucci store in Wrentham, federal authorities said.

Linworth Hayes Crawford III, 30, was sentenced to eight months in federal prison followed by two years of supervised release, acting U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Joshua S. Levy said in a statement.

He also has to pay the Gucci store at the Wrentham Village Premium Outlets $32,000 in restitution, the statement said.

Crawford pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to transport stolen goods in interstate commerce and one count of interstate transportation of stolen goods in February, the acting U.S. Attorney said.

Crawford, Nathaniel Ownes, 33, of Maryland and others traveled from Washington, D.C., to the Wrentham Village Premium Outlets in Massachusetts on Sept. 16, 2021, federal prosecutors said.

The next morning, on Sept.17, 2021, Crawford, Owens and the others entered the Wrentham Gucci store by smashing its front glass door. They then stole $32,000 in high-end merchandise from the store, the prosecutors added.

The day after the theft, one of the suspects posted on Instagram that he had Gucci bags for sale, according to Levys office. The Instagram photos of the bags looked similar to the Gucci bags that were stolen from the Wrentham Village Premium Outlets.

Crawford also admitted to robbing a Prada store in Dawsonville, Georgia, where $37,000 in merchandise was stolen, Levy said. Meanwhile, Owens pleaded guilty in April 2024 and awaits sentencing.
The former bookkeeper of a Falmouth flooring company wrote checks to herself on her employers bank account, embezzling over $1.3 million from her job, according to federal prosecutors.

Susan Figuerido, 73, of Falmouth was charged with wire fraud and filing a false tax return, acting U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levy said in a statement. She has agreed to plea guilty in connection to her charges.

But a plea hearing hasnt been scheduled by Boston federal court yet, the statement said.

Between June 2015 and February 2023, Figuerido embezzled over $1.3 million from her job by writing checks to herself in her employers bank account, federal prosecutors said.

To hide her scheme, Figuerido didnt record the checks she wrote to herself in her jobs account system, prosecutors said.

She also didnt report or include the money she embezzled on her federal income tax filings, which less to a tax loss of nearly $353,000, prosecutors added.
A 71-year-old man who faces charges in Massachusetts tied to a pair of rapes in 1989 appeared in a Los Angeles County courtroom on Wednesday on unrelated charges, prosecutors confirmed.

Stephen Paul Gale, who was identified as a suspect in the 1989 rapes at a Framingham clothing store in April, was arraigned on a felony count of grand theft of personal property and two felony counts of check forgery, a spokesperson for Los Angeles County District Attorney George George Gascon wrote in an email. A judge set his bail at $2 million.

Gales arraignment was continued to Oct. 9. The charges he faces in L.A. County were filed on Aug. 8, 1996, according to the spokesperson.

Middlesex County prosecutors, who charged Gale in connection with the Framingham rapes, have not publicly said when he might be brought back to Massachusetts.

Gale, who had not been seen in public since 2008 at the time he was criminally charged in Massachusetts, was captured in Los Angeles on Aug. 8. Prior to his arrest, Gale led police on a one-and-a-half hour pursuit through the city that ended in Westwood.

In May, Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan announced Gale had been identified as the suspect in the 1989 rapes, and that he had been indicted on charges of aggravated rape, kidnapping and armed robbery.

When the U.S. Marshals Service announced his capture, they revealed that Gale is believed to be behind a series of rapes in Boston in 1989 and 1990 perpetrated by a man known as the Boston Strip Mall Rapist.

Officials did not say how exactly they tracked Gale to California, but said an interview with the marshals service in Nevada earlier this month led to information on which the services Pacific Southwest Regional Fugitive Task Force could take action.

On Dec. 27, 1989, Gale entered a womens clothing store on Route 9 in Framingham where two women, 18 and 29, were working, prosecutors say.

As the women prepared to open the store, prosecutors say Gale approached one of the women and said he was there to buy clothes and asked for help picking out an outfit.

Then, he showed the woman what he said was a gun and forced the two women into the back of the store, Ryan said.

Gale is accused of forcing the older woman, who was working as a manager at the time, to empty the locked safe at the back of the store, the stores cash register, and her purse. Prosecutors say he then had the young woman tape a note to the front of the store indicating it would open late that day.

After doing so, Gale is accused of forcing the women into two back rooms, where he demanded they remove their clothes, Ryan said. He is then accused of bringing each woman into the store office, where he sexually assaulted them.

The two women were able to flee the store with their coats through a fire door and ran through backyards in Framingham to a home where they sought aid, according to Ryan.
Freedom, its often said, isnt free. But for Democrats in Chicago this week, its been the gift that keeps on giving.

From the Beyonce song thats served as Vice President Kamala Harris walk-on music, to its strategic deployment across scores of speeches, Democrats have flipped the script on a patriotic noun that used to feel like the exclusive property of Republicans.

Instead of freedom from taxes and onerous regulation, or freedom from the government taking your guns, Democrats have reframed the word.

This week, its meant freedom for women to make their own health care choices, the freedom for Americans to choose whom they love, and the freedom not to worry about getting shot in school.

The Republicans gave them an opening with Dobbs, UMass Amherst political scientist Ray La Raja said, referring to the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision that toppled Roe v. Wade, sparking a wave of incandescent rage among women that continues to have electoral reverberations.

The smart strategy for Democrats is to frame some of the GOPs reactionary policies more broadly as restricting freedom because it will not resonate just with women, but with independents, he continued. At the very least, they may neutralize Republican claims in this election that they are the party of freedom.

The numbers back it up.

In an ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll released ahead of the convention, 91% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents said theyd be enthusiastic or satisfied if Harris were elected.

Thats a 19-point swing from the 72% of that same cohort who said the same thing about President Joe Biden.

All told, Democrats used the F-Word (freedom) more than 100 times during the conventions opening night on Monday, according to a Washington Post analysis.

And they were to devote the entirety of the conventions proceedings on Wednesday to it, with the theme A Fight for our Freedoms.

That same ABC News poll gave Harris a 6-point advantage over former President Donald Trump on an adjacent theme: Protecting democracy.

Delegates hold signs during the Democratic National Convention Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)AP

And inside the cavernous United Center, where convention delegates waved signs with Freedom emblazoned in block capital letters, the shift in messaging has not gone unnoticed  or unappreciated.

I think the Democrats, with Biden/Harris, have owned freedom, Bob Peters, a delegate from Lexington, told MassLive. As the mayor of Mesa, Ariz., John Giles said ... the party of John McCain doesnt exist.

If not for the Biden/Harris administration, [Russian leader Vladimir] Putin would be severely pressuring the NATO eastern flank, and if Trump were president, NATO would be in retreat, Peters said.

Whether Americans choose to accept it or not, the western, free world economies are tightly linked, and we are better off with a strong and free western Europe, which we share common values, Peters concluded. Thats a freedom agenda. And that is what todays Democrats and Harris/Walz stand for.

State Democratic Party Chairman Steve Kerrigan, who spoke for the Bay State during Tuesdays state-by-state roll call, confirmed that analysis.

The MAGA wing of the Republican Party has gone overboard in trying to control Americans decisions  over reproductive freedom, over what we read and who we love, he told MassLive.

Democrats havent changed on these issues, he continued. Americans are seeing that we are the party that trusts them to make the best decisions  not the government. Weve always stood for individual freedoms  from racism, sexism [and] poverty. That has been magnified by the extreme MAGA agenda.

The Dobbs decision changed everything but showed us all how far they will go to stay in power, Kerrigan concluded.

That conversation has continued outside the United Center in the plethora of convention-related events across Chicago this week.

On Tuesday, during an event hosted by Everytown for Gun Safety and Planned Parenthood, both Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Planned Parenthood President Alexis McGill Johnson framed the freedom question in the most personal of terms.

We are in a radical realignment around freedom, McGill Johnson said, according to Vanity Fair, as she slammed freedom deniers in the Republican ranks.

She credited advocates on the frontlines of fighting fascism, and observed that people care about their basic freedoms.

Whitmer, meanwhile, had a more direct message for those same advocates: Be bold.

She told advocates that they should not treat either issue  gun violence reduction and reproductive freedom  as a third rail that no one wants to talk about, Whitmer continued, according to Vanity Fair. Weve got to lean in and talk about it.

For Candy Glazer, a veteran Democratic activist from Longmeadow, and a DNC delegate, no party has a monopoly on the word.

The use of the word freedom belongs to everyone, she said.
The hospitalization of an Oxford resident who tested positive for Eastern Equine Encephalitis, or EEE, has prompted the towns Board of Health to issue an outdoor curfew.

The Board of Health approved the curfew at a meeting on Wednesday night and in support of a public health advisory issued by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Oxfords Director of Public Health Services Rike Sterrett told MassLive.

The Board of Health voted to finish all outdoor activities before 6 p.m. through Sept. 30 and before 5 p.m. on Oct. 1 until the first frost.

State health officials announced on Tuesday that the first human case of EEE since 2020 in Worcester County left the towns of Oxford, Douglas, Sutton and Webster at critical risk for the disease.

Ahead of Wednesdays meeting, Town Manager Jennifer Callahan wrote in a memorandum that the Board of Health would consider the issue of continued access of town-owned outdoor recreation facilities by private leagues and organizations.

She said that a family member of the hospitalized individual reached out to her office.

We have spoken now on two occasions, Callahan wrote. The family member wanted me to inform both the Board of Health and the broader public their loved one, who is still hospitalized and courageously battling this virus, actually lives right here in Oxford.

Speaking with family members, the individual said that they remembered not having been bit by a mosquitoes until recently, before they became symptomatic, according to memorandum.

The individual wanted residents to take the public health recommendations about stopping the spread of EEE seriously, she continued.

The family believes people should be informed and do their utmost to protect themselves, family and friends, especially while there is an increased risk for transmission and contraction of the virus, Callahan wrote.

There is no treatment for EEE, according to a joint statement from town health officials in Douglas, Oxford, Sutton and Webster. In Massachusetts, about half of the people infected with EEE die, with those who survive often being permanently disabled.

Symptoms of EEE appear five to 10 days after being bitten by an infected mosquito and include a high fever between 103 and 106 degrees, as well as a stiff neck, headache and fatigue.

Town health officials recommend the following precautions:
A Lowell man was sentenced in Boston federal court Wednesday in connection to robbing three different Worcester banks  in some cases with a gun  in April 2023, federal authorities said.

Joselito Santiago-Matias, 38, was sentenced to 76 months (6.3 years) in prison with five years of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to one count of bank robbery and two counts of armed bank robbery in May, acting U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levy said in a statement.

Santiago-Matias was also ordered to pay $20,528 in restitution, the statement said.

Santiago-Matias walked into a Santander Bank in Worcester with a mask on April 3, 2023, federal prosecutors said. He demanded money from the teller and left with $7,560.

Later on April 12, he walked into a Berkshire Bank in Worcester wearing a mask and carrying a gun, prosecutors added. He pointed the gun at the teller and stole $2,150.

On April 19, Santiago-Matias walked into a Santander Bank in Worcester and pointed a gun at the teller, and said, give me the bag or I will shoot you, before leaving with $10,818, Levys office said.
A 73-year-old man who prosecutors say was killed by his son inside their Plymouth home last week was remembered in his obituary as someone who always lent a hand to those in need.

Anthony Paluzzi, of Plymouth, was killed on the morning of Aug. 15, when, prosecutors say, his son Matthew Paluzzi stabbed him in the neck.

In his obituary, Anthony Paluzzi was remembered as a loving husband, father and grandfather who enjoyed spending time with his family and particularly his grandchildren. A graduate of Quincy High School and Quincy College, Anthony Paluzzi worked for the city as a carpenter for many years until his retirement, the obituary reads.
First responders were unable to find any signs of life after a rock wall fell on an excavator operated by a worker in a quarry in Sterling, Police Chief Sean Gaudette told the Sterling Select Board on Thursday.

Sterling police and firefighters converged on the quarry site near Chocksett Road at around 8 a.m. following the wall collapse, Gaudette told Chair Kirsten Newman in a short meeting.

Massachusetts State Police and representatives of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration were at the site, along with mine-safety officials, he continued.

Currently, mine safety is on scene [and] has taken over control, Gaudette said. They are establishing how to secure the rock wall so they could investigate further. Between those people and state police detectives, they will be handling everything from here on out.

Newman felt that the meeting needed to be held to discuss the permit granting authority for earth removal, she said. A cease-and-desist order to the operator was then issued.

This is a tragic event none of us really want to be reporting on, Vice Chair David Smith said. But, as the governing body, I believe its our due diligence to issue a cease-and-desist order.

Onyx Corporation, a sand and gravel business, was permitted by the board for earth removal at the quarry. The cease-and-desist will be in effect until such time that all investigating parties, whether it be OSHA, Division of Mine Safety and Massachusetts State Police have come out with a determination and deem the area safe and civil for operation, Smith said.

First responders from Leominster and Fitchburg also arrived to help Sterling officials at the quarry, the Telegram & Gazette reported.
The worker operating an excavator when a rock wall fell on them at a Sterling quarry has been pronounced dead, Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early Jr.s office announced Thursday.

At around 8 a.m., first responders were called to the quarry at 17 Stone Crest Way where part of the rock wall collapsed, Earlys office said in a statement.

Emergency crews used camera equipment to assess where the rock wall fell and determined there were no signs of life, the statement read.

The worker was pronounced dead at 8:39 a.m., but crews continued working to recover the workers body.

Representatives with the U.S. Department of Labor Mine Safety and Health Administration are inspecting the site to figure out the safety or moving forward with retrieval efforts at this time, Earlys office said.

During an emergency town Select Board meeting, Sterling Police Chief Sean Gaudette said Massachusetts State Police and representatives of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration were also at the site.

Select Board Chair Kirsten Newman and Vice Chair David Smith ordered a cease-and-desist be issued to Onyx Corporation, which operated in the mine for earth removal until such time that all investigating parties... have come out with a determination and deem the area safe and civil for operation, Smith said.

First responders from Clinton, Leominster, Barre, Fitchburg, Gardner, Holden and West Boylston came to the aid of Sterling emergency crews at the quarry site.
A coalition of the Bay States lawmakers on Capitol Hill have called on bankrupt Steward Health Care to look after some 1,200 workers set to lose their jobs at months end.

Steward must finally act responsibly toward its workers and pay them the severance and accumulated paid time off they are owed, the lawmakers wrote in a letter sent Thursday to Steward CEO Dr. Ralph de la Torre and the companys chief restructuring officer, John R. Castello.

The company, which is shuttering Carney Hospital in Dorchester and Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer, by the end of August must not seek to avoid its financial obligations to them through bankruptcy, the lawmakers wrote.

Massachusetts two Democratic U.S. senators, Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey, signed the letter.

So did all nine Democratic members of the states U.S. House delegation: Reps. Richard Neal, D-1st District; James P. McGovern, D-2nd District; Lori Trahan, D-3rd District; Jake Auchincloss, D-4th District; Katherine Clark, D-5th District; Seth Moulton, D-6th District; Ayanna Pressley; D-7th District; Stephen Lynch,D-8th District, and William Keating, D-9th District.

The letters release was to have coincided with a since rescheduled proceeding before a U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge in Houston.

The soon-to-be displaced workers are essential health care providers and employers for the regions they serve, particularly for working-class people and communities of color, the lawmakers wrote.

The best outcome for the workers, patients, and communities would be for these hospitals to stay open, they added.

Last week, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey said the state had agreed to deals in principle that would keep the doors open at the companys five, remaining Bay State hospitals.

Under the terms of the agreement, the state will take control of Saint Elizabeths Medical Center in Boston, while new operators would assume control of Saint Annes Hospital, Good Samaritan Medical Center, the Holy Family Hospitals, and Morton Hospital, Healeys office said.

The agreement did not extend to Carney and Nashoba Valley, the Democratic governors office said.

Last week, Healey mourned those shutdowns and laid the blame for the companys financial meltdown squarely at the feet of de la Torre.

I understand that the community, patients, and workers in Carney Hospital and Nashoba Valley Medical Center are rightly upset about these closures, and I want them to know that I am, too, she said. I am really upset about what Steward did, which was to run them to the point that after an exhaustive process, unlike the other hospitals, there was no [other] hospital operator willing to come forward with a bid to continue operations of those facilities.

This week, however, the firms that control the real estate of St. Elizabeths Medical Center in Brighton rejected what they say is the states low-ball offer for the property and told Healey that they will vigorously challenge her plan to take the land beneath bankrupt Steward Health Cares hospital by eminent domain.

The state offered the companies that control Stewards hospital real estate $4.5 million on Friday to purchase the fee and any other necessary property interests in St. Elizabeths Medical Center as the first step towards an eminent domain taking of the land, State House News Service reported.

The companies rejected that offer in a letter late Tuesday, saying the states proposal significantly undervalues the real property underlying St. Elizabeths and represents an amount less than the propertys annual tax bill.
The race for the White House between Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump might be gobbling up all the oxygen this election season, but here in the Bay State, there are other races worth watching.

And thats true even if the contests for the 40 seats in the state Senate and 160-member House, both controlled by Democrats, are largely challenger-proof.

About two-thirds of state House and Senate incumbents appear set to cruise to reelection this fall, according to an analysis by State House News Service.

Why? Well, a few things.

Namely, a political culture that favors the well-connected and a historically disorganized Republican Party. Put it all together, and you get one of the least competitive climates for legislative races in the nation, according to Ballotpedia.

But even with all that. There are still a few House and Senate races that bear watching this primary season.

Heres a quick rundown of those contests.

The entrance to the Massachusetts House of Representatives chamber

In the state House:

1st Bristol District:

Theres a three-way Democratic primary for the seat being vacated by Republican state Rep. Jay Barrows, a 17-year incumbent who announced his retirement on March 5.

The candidates are:

Kostas Loukos, of Mansfield, formerly served on the Mansfield Conservation Commission, and as the communitys elected moderator, according to his campaign website. A former intern for Barrows and other lawmakers, he currently serves on the Mansfield Industrial Development Commission and works as a gaming agent for the Massachusetts Gaming Commission.

David Martin, an attorney, has lived in Mansfield for more than 20 years, according to his campaigns website. He is the former CEO of the nonprofit Massachusetts Health Council, and was a lawyer and staffer in the state Senate during Gov. Deval Patricks administration.

Michael E. Toole, a former local select board member, touted his "24 years of experience as a business partner and executive," along with his public service experience, to underline his qualifications for office. His family established Dimitris Red Snapper, a popular restaurant in Foxborough, according to his campaign website.

1st Plymouth District

Four Democrats and two Republicans are competing for the seat held by GOP Rep. Matthew Muratore, whos running for the closely watched Plymouth and Barnstable state Senate seat being vacated by Democratic Sen. Susan Moran.

The Democratic candidates are:

Michelle Badger is a member of the Plymouth School Committee, who first took office in 2011, according to the election-tracking site Ballotpedia. On her campaign website, Badger says her family can trace its roots to the Mayflower. Shes picked up endorsements from a variety of organized labor groups, including Local 328 of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union and the state branch of the AFL-CIO.

Arthur Desloges, a retiree, is a former executive at Citibank, according to his campaigns website. A Boston College graduate, he also served in the Peace Corps. He is a former elected member of the Pinehills town meeting, and is a member of the Plymouth Democratic Town Committee.

Scott F Hokanson Sr., of Plymouth, is the founder of Brabo Payroll, based in Plymouth. He currently serves as Plymouth Area Chambers Board Chair. A longtime school and community volunteer, Hokanson also has worked as a mentor to young people at the Childrens Business Faire each fall and has worked to provide more opportunities to high schoolers whose [plans do] not include going to college.

Stephen Michael Palmer, of Plymouth, began his career in public life as an elected member of Braintrees town meeting, and later as a member of Plymouths town meeting. He has a long career in the hospitality industry, including posts at the Harvard Club of Boston, and the Algonquin Club, in the city, according to his campaign website.

The Republican candidates are:

Jesse Brown, a Plymouth resident, and a former Marine, described himself on his campaign website as the successful owner of a telecommunications construction company, and is a co-founder of the nonprofit Heidrea for Heroes, which provides services to veterans and their families. He is a former Massachusetts Labor and Workforce Development Board member, and an executive board member of the Plymouth Chamber of Commerce.

Dee Wallace Spencer, of Plymouth, is a principal lecturer of Supply Chain & Information Management at Northeastern University. She also has worked with the Plymouth County Regional Economic Development Foundation, according to her campaigns website.

27th Middlesex

This is one of those all the marbles kind of races, pitting an entrenched incumbent against a surprise challenger whos turned what could have been a sleepy contest into a real race.

Two Democrats, incumbent state Rep. Erika Uyterhoeven, and Kathleen Hornby will face each other in the Sept. 3 primary. Because there is no Republican candidate, the winner of the primary is effectively the winner of the Nov. 5 general election.

A bit about the candidates:

Erika Uyterhoeven: First elected in 2020, Uyterhoeven, of Somerville, has not faced a general election opponent in her last, two reelection races, according to The Boston Herald.

Before her election to the Legislature, Uyterhoeven was a co-founder of the advocacy group Act on Mass, and previously worked as a trainer and workshop facilitator for the Massachusetts Teachers Association, according to Ballotpedia. In 2016, she was a field organizer for U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., presidential campaign.

Kathleen Hornby: A Smith College graduate, Hornby is a former top aide to state Rep. Marjorie Decker, D-25th Middlesex, the House chairperson of the Legislatures Joint Committee on Public Health.

Hornbys fundraising kept pace with Uyterhoevens through the end of July. She reported receipts of $13,674, compared to Uyterhoevens $16,605. Still, the incumbents total war chest dwarfed Hornbys at $55,193 to $11,523 at the end of July, campaign filings showed.

A view of the Massachusetts state Senate chamber at the State House in Boston, Mass. (MassLive photo by John L. Micek).

In the state Senate

1st Suffolk District

Incumbent Democratic state Sen. Nick Collins, whose district includes Bostons largest neighborhood, Dorchester, faces a challenge from entrepreneur and advocate Juwan Skeens.

Collins, who has been vocal on issues surrounding the closing of the Steward-run Carney Hospital in the heart of Dorchester, appears concerned enough about his challenger that he blasted out a text message on Tuesday touting his record and appealing for support on Sept. 3.

Because there is no Republican candidate, the winner of the primary likely will be the winner of the Nov. 5 general election.

A bit about the candidates:

Nick Collins: First elected in 2018, Collins, a Boston Latin and Babson College graduate, is a former field director for Joe Biden, and was a staffer to former state Sen. Jack Hart. He is the Senates chairperson of the Legislatures

Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight.

Collins had $27,857 in his campaign account at the end of July. He reported receipts of $16,186 through the end of July, and expenditures of $15,274, election filings showed.

Juwan Skeens: On his campaigns website, Skeens bills himself as the candidate you never knew you needed, and the one that youve always wanted.

He is a former staffer to then-Boston City Council member Andrea J. Campbell, who is now the state attorney general. Since 2020, hes been a community organizer for the nonprofit Redefining Our Community Neighborhood Association.

Skeens had a little more than $383 in his campaign account at the end of July, according to election filings.

2nd Bristol and Plymouth District

Veteran Democratic state Sen. Mark Montigny, whos been in office for more than 30 years, will face his first primary challenger since 2008, in Molly Kivi, an accountant making her first bid for public office, according to The New Bedford Light.

Once again, because theres no Republican candidate on the ballot, the primary winner also is the likely winner of the Nov. 5 general election.

A bit about the candidates:

Mark Montigny: First elected to the New Bedford-based seat in 1992, Montigny has served as the Senates assistant majority leader since 2015, according to Ballotpedia. He also serves as the Senates vice chairperson of the Legislatures Joint Committee on Export Development.

Hes only faced a challenger twice in his 16 terms, according to The Light.

During his tenure in the Legislature, hes backed efforts to tame prescription drug prices and to clamp down on cell phone use behind the wheel.

Molly Kivi: An accountant who most recently worked for New Bedfords city government, Kivi told The Light she had launched her candidacy because she believes in competition.

Its not about winning or losing, she told the online news organization. Its about having a conversation.

Kivi told The Light she was motivated to run after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected efforts by some states to remove former President Donald Trump from the ballot under the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Something took hold, and I drove to the Secretary of States office to pick up [nomination] papers, she told The Light.

Plymouth and Barnstable District

Theres only one Democrat in the race to succeed Sen. Susan Moran, whos giving up the Cape Cod-based seat shes held since 2020 to make a run for Barnstable County Superior Court clerk.

But state Rep. Dylan Fernandes, D-Barnstable/Dukes/Nantucket, whos stepped up to replace her, has attracted some pretty high-profile support in the closely watched Senate contest.

David Plouffe, a former top adviser to President Barack Obama (and Ferndandes uncle) was set to host a Woods Hole fundraiser for his nephew, according to Politico.

Plouffe, a veteran Democratic operative, also is advising Vice President Kamala Harris White House campaign.

The states top, elected Democrat, Gov. Maura Healey, also is backing Fernandes, who worked on Healeys 2014 campaign for state attorney general.

Moran, who was first elected in 2020, announced last November that she would not seek reelection.

It was a real soul-searching experience for me, Moran told her hometown Cape Cod Times. With my background, which includes working in mental health and addiction treatment, coupled with a lifetime of federal and state court experience, it just kind of seemed to come together.

On the Republican side of the aisle, former U.S. Sen. Scott Brown, R-Mass., is backing state Rep. Mathew Muratore, R-1st Plymouth, whos one of the two GOP candidates for the seat, Politico also reported.

A bit about the candidates:

Dylan Fernandes: First elected in 2016, Fernandes, of Falmouth, is the Houses vice chairperson of the Legislatures Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources.

In a statement last December announcing his candidacy, Fernandes said his tenure representing part of the Cape and Islands on Beacon Hill has been the honor of my life.

I love the islands, and the greatest joy is the friendships I have forged with so many people across Nantucket, the Vineyard, and Cuttyhunk, he said, according to the Vineyard Gazette.

During his time on Beacon Hill, Fernandes has backed the creation of an island housing bank; pushed to add a member of the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) to the Marthas Vineyard Commission, and supported offshore wind efforts, the newspaper reported.

Mathew Muratore: Muratore was first elected to his Plymouth-based House seat in 2014. Among other postings, he currently serves on the powerful, budget-writing Joint Committee on Ways & Means.

A former local official in Plymouth, Muratore told the local Bourne Enterprise he was running because he thinks the Legislature needs a balance of power.

Resurgent state Republicans have been looking to chip away at the Democrats supermajority on Beacon Hill. They scored a win last year when GOP Sen. Peter Durant flipped a Worcester-based seat that had been held by Democrats.

Kari MacRae: MacRae, the other GOP hopeful in the Sept. 3 primary field, unsuccessfully challenged Moran in 2022, MassLive previously reported.

On her campaigns website, MacRae, of Bourne, said shes spent the past [three] decades working as a financial banking manager, small business owner and educator.

She has served on Bournes school committee since 2021. She took 44% of the vote in her Senate bid against Moran in 2022.
The firms that control the real estate of St. Elizabeths Medical Center in Brighton rejected what they say is the states low-ball offer for the property and told Gov. Maura Healey that they will vigorously challenge her plan to take the land beneath bankrupt Steward Health Cares hospital by eminent domain.

The governor announced Friday that the state plans to seize the land to facilitate a transfer of the hospital to Boston Medical Center, which she said was lined up to buy St. Elizabeths as part of a suite of deals struck -- but not yet finalized -- to keep five Steward hospitals here from closing. A hearing related to those deals previously postponed to Thursday was pushed off again late Wednesday afternoon, this time until Tuesday, Aug. 27.

The state offered the companies that control Stewards hospital real estate $4.5 million on Friday to purchase the fee and any other necessary property interests in St. Elizabeths Medical Center as the first step towards an eminent domain taking of the land.

The companies -- owner Medical Properties Trust along with lenders Apollo Global Management and ACREFI CS U, which took the lead -- rejected that offer in a letter late Tuesday, saying the states proposal significantly undervalues the real property underlying St. Elizabeths and represents an amount less than the propertys annual tax bill.

Accordingly, should the Commonwealth move forward with its proposed plan to exercise eminent domain and compensate ACREFI only $4.5 million for the property, ACREFI will have no choice but to exercise its constitutional and statutory rights and take any and all actions necessary to protect the interests of the investors to which it has fiduciary obligations, the letter from the lender says. ACREFI believes there are numerous procedural and constitutional issues raised by the Commonwealths proposed plan and conduct to date that it will vigorously challenge.

Healeys office said that it is completing the legal work necessary to move ahead with an official order of taking, which is required for the state to exercise its eminent domain powers.

Steward and Apollo need to stop playing games with peoples health care. We are moving forward with plans to take St. Elizabeths by eminent domain, a Healey spokesperson said Wednesday afternoon in response to the offer rejection.

The $4.5 million that Healeys administration offered Apollo for the St. Elizabeths land was the appropriate and fair market value of that property, the governor told reporters Friday. But the states offer letter said that the amount was based on the current third-party offer for St. Elizabeths Medical Center.

The Boston assessors office lists the assessed value of the land at 736 Cambridge St., where St. Elizabeths is located, at just under $51 million, with the building value listed at more than $140 million.

The Fifth Amendment to the Constitution gives governments the power to take private property by eminent domain - regardless of the owners wishes - so long as the government proves the property is needed for a public use and the owner is paid fair market value for the property.

Multiple appraisers agree with ACREFI that there is no realistic scenario in which the fair market value of the property is $4.5 million, the firm wrote in its letter.

The governor said last week that the state must pursue an eminent domain taking for St. Elizabeths after negotiations with Apollo proved unsuccessful and the company refused to move. Apollo declined to comment on the governors announcement and again declined to comment Wednesday on the rejection. But the offer rejection letter from ACREFI suggests the property owners and lenders disagree with the governors take on the situation.

Over the past several weeks, ACREFI has attempted to work with the Commonwealth to explore a number of different structures that would both (a) respond to the Commonwealths concerns, including about the long-term viability of St. Elizabeths as a hospital and (b) provide ACREFI with a fair result. Specifically, ACREFI has proposed structures featuring short-term leases, long-term leases, purchase options and other upside protections  in many cases, in direct response to the Commonwealths request for ACREFI to consider those options, the firm said.

ACREFI said it has made at least five proposals to the state regarding St. Elizabeths in recent weeks and remains open to discussing terms for a consensual transfer of the St. Elizabeths property, something it says it communicated to the state as recently as Saturday.

The Commonwealth has, however, rejected all such proposals and indicated this past weekend that it is no longer interested in negotiating any consensual solution in respect of St. Elizabeths, at least in the near term, ACREFI wrote.

The lenders also call the states plan to arrange for St. Elizabeths to be handed over to BMC effectively little more than a transfer of the significant value in the real estate that rightfully belongs to its owner (and ACREFI as mortgage lender) to BMC. They also suggest that an eminent domain taking was part of the states plan even before negotiations reached loggerheads.

It appears that BMC fully appreciated that the Commonwealth would ensure the hospital ended up in its hands one way or another, as BMC informed ACREFI during the bidding process that it had no reason to improve its bid because the Commonwealth would simply exercise eminent domain to deliver the hospital property to BMC in the event a consensual agreement was not reached, the letter says.

Healey said Friday that deals were in place to sell St. Elizabeths to BMC as well as to transfer four other Steward hospitals on five campuses to new owners: Lawrence General Hospital will buy the Holy Family Hospital facilities in Methuen and Haverhill, Lifespan will take over Morton Hospital in Taunton and Saint Annes Hospital in Fall River, and BMC will also buy Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton, as long as the deals are finalized and approved.

A Steward lawyer said Friday the company hoped to be signing asset purchase agreements for those hospitals by Monday and would present them to a U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge for approval at a hearing Thursday. That hearing was moved to Tuesday, Aug,. 27 as there was still no sign late Wednesday of movement around the deals that Healey announced last week.

The governors office did not respond to a question Wednesday about the status of the deals Healey announced Friday before taking off for the Democratic National Convention in Chicago for the week.
HADLEY  Some residents are having a hands-on experience with frustration, as the sudden closure of Elements Massage has left customers with unredeemed memberships and gift cards, sparking complaints to the Massachusetts Attorney Generals Office.

The Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development confirmed the closure of the studio at 379 Russell St. this week. The office said Elements Massage was issued a stop-work order by the Department of Industrial Accidents on May 22, after an investigation found the business was operating without workers compensation insurance.

Businesses cited for operation without the insurance coverage face minimum fines of $100 per day until insurance coverage is secured and fines are paid.
In a significant move to bolster its sugar industry, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade is partnering with the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) and the Intellectual Property Rights and Innovation in Africa (AfrIPI) project to host a pivotal two-day workshop on the establishment of a geographical indication (GI) for Mauritius Unrefined Sugars.

The workshop, scheduled for August 21st and 22nd, 2024, will convene key stakeholders from the sugar sector, government officials, and intellectual property experts.

The sugarcane industry has been integral to Mauritius cultural and economic fabric for centuries, shaping the nations identity and heritage. The unique and distinctive flavour of Mauritian unrefined sugars, renowned in international markets, is at this GI initiatives heart. With their unique qualities, these sugars are a source of pride for all stakeholders involved.

Geographical Indications (GIs) are potent tools that preserve the authenticity and origin of products, ensuring consumers can rely on their quality and unique characteristics. The workshop will delve into a prospective study commissioned by AfrIPI, which explores the feasibility of establishing a GI for Mauritius Unrefined Sugars.

Participants will engage in discussions surrounding the various options for GI registration and the subsequent implementation of the GI label, focusing on the broader benefits of GIs in promoting sustainable development and economic growth.

The workshops agenda also includes a sensory exploration of Mauritian unrefined sugars, allowing participants to experience first-hand the distinctive flavours that set them apart. Additionally, visiting the renowned LAventure du Sucre Museum will offer a deeper understanding of the islands rich sugar heritage.

The workshop is anticipated to provide valuable insights into the potential benefits of a GI for Mauritius Unrefined Sugars and foster consensus among stakeholders on the most effective path forward for the registration process. This inclusive initiative, which aligns with the governments broader commitment to promoting sustainable development in the agricultural sector, promises to create new economic opportunities for farmers and communities by safeguarding and promoting local products.
Mayo dog owners are being encouraged to clean up after their dogs as part of Vision Irelands campaign, Clear Our Paths.

The call comes after Vision Ireland published a survey exploring people who are blind or vision impaireds experiences of footpath obstacles.

Over a third of respondents were impacted by by dog waste in public spaces. Not only does dog fouling present a slipping hazard, but it can also be a problem for white cane users whose canes are often dirtied by faeces.

In Mayo, there were no dog fouling fines issued in 2023. Overall, very few dog fouling fines were issued across the country  just 46, a reduction of 36 fines from 2022.

Kerry County Council had the highest number of fines for dog fouling offences, with just 13 issued. 18 out of the 31 local authorities issued no fines at all.

While the number of fines issued across the country was low, Vision Ireland has welcomed efforts by local authorities to help reduce dog fouling.

Vision Ireland praised a number of councils for running awareness campaigns in order to highlight the issue of dog fouling, including Clare County Council, who provide dog litter bags at its area offices and other busy locations within its jurisdiction.

Both Tipperary County Council and Longford County Council provide Mutt Mitts, which allow dog owners to dispose of dog waste safely, while Meath County Council developed responsible dog ownership information leaflets.

Kevin Kelly, Head of Policy, Partnerships and External Affairs at Vision Ireland said, Parked cars and dog waste are two of the biggest hazards people who are blind and vision impaired in Mayo face on our footpaths."

"The number of parking fines issued alone is astounding and gives an idea of the many thousands of obstacles people with sight loss face in their daily lives.

"Fines alone will not solve these problems. We must all work together and do our part to clear our paths. If everyone takes more responsibility for their actions, we can work towards making paths in Mayo safer for all, Mr Kelly continued.

Cars parked on footpaths also have an adverse impact on the ability of people who are blind or vision impaired to navigate public spaces.

70% of survey respondents identified parked cars as blocking their route when using public paths. Data provided by local authorities revealed that over 22,000 fines were issued to motorists who parked on footpaths.

Just 172 parking on footpath fines were issued in Mayo in 2023, one of the lowest figures across the country.

Chantelle Smith, Vision Irelands National Access and Mobility Manager said When people who are blind and vision impaired encounter obstacles like parked cars on footpaths, they often result in them having to take the decision to step off the footpath onto the roadway into traffic.

"Unfortunately, this places them at significant risk as drivers may not be expecting them to do so as it is not a crossing point. Vision Ireland is calling on the public and motorists alike to be considerate of the needs of vulnerable pedestrians.

Vision Ireland is encouraging motorists in Mayo as well as dog owners to consider the hazards they may be creating and how they can affect people who are blind or vision impaired.

The organisation has created a dedicated web page to assist those in learning more about how to Clear Our Paths. Find out more here: Clear Our Paths.
Sinn Fein TD Rose Conway-Walsh has called for a general election as the government is failing to deliver social housing in Mayo, and nationwide.

This comes after new figures published by the Parliamentary Budget Office show that 4,018 people in Mayo are on social housing lists or in receipt of Housing Assistance Payment (HAP).

The report estimates that 4.4 percent of the entire Irish population has an ongoing need amounting to at least 235,659 people, of which 39 percent are children.

Furthermore, the figures estimate that the total build cost for all households with an ongoing need in Mayo is 637 million and 34.95 billion nationally.

Deputy Conway-Walsh commented that the only way to 'fix' the Governments mismanagement of the housing crisis is with a change of government.

Deputy Conway-Walsh said: This is further evidence of the governments inability to fix the housing crisis and their failure to deliver social and affordable housing for those who need it.

She explained how this report estimates a 56 percent increase in the number of social homes across the state is needed just to meet the current deficit.

She continued: Yet only last month, Taoiseach Simon Harris inexplicably claimed that a sufficient volume of social housing was being delivered.

These figures rubbish the Taoiseach's claim and show just how out of touch he and his government are when it comes to their failures to address the housing crisis.

The Sinn Fein TD also referenced three independent reports, which were released by the Society of Chartered Surveyors of Ireland, the Central Statistics Office, and Savills, and said they once again highlight that the governments housing plan is not working.

That is why we need a general election, a change of government and a Sinn Fein Minister for Housing, she concluded.
Human Resource professionals from across hotels and guesthouses in County Mayo recently gathered at Breaffy House Resort in Castlebar for the inaugural Irish Hotels Federation (IHF) Mayo Branch HR Fora.

Part of a national network, the IHFs Fora programme provides a platform for people managers to come together and learn from fellow HR professionals working in the industry in addition to expert guest speakers.

Declan Heneghan, IHF Mayo Branch Chairperson and General Manager of Knock House Hotel said: The Fora will facilitate a cross fertilisation of ideas and information around best practice in topics such as training and development, recruitment and career promotions, health and wellbeing, and education, in addition to up-to-date information on innovations and employment legislation.

It was fantastic to see a wide range of properties represented at our first meeting with a mix of guesthouses and hotels including 3-, 4- & 5-star establishments. The HR Fora provide an exciting opportunity for our HR managers to further develop rewarding workplaces with excellent prospects for skills development and careers.

The Mayo Branch HR Fora is the most recently established in the countrywide IHF Fora programme, which forms part of the IHFs wider people development objectives around the groups Shaping Brighter Futures programme.

Pictured above at the inaugural Irish Hotels Federation Mayo Branch HR Fora at Breaffy House Resort are:

Front row, from left: IHF Mayo Branch Chair, Declan Heneghan, Knock House Hotel; Louise Kelly, The Wyatt Hotel; Karen Kelly, Clew Bay Hotel; Evie Murphy, Great National Hotel Ballina; Breda Walsh, McWilliam Park Hotel; Deirdre Fitzsimons, Irish Hotels Federation and Wilson Bird, Breaffy House Resort.

Back row, from left: Colette Cave, The Mariner Westport; Maureen Carroll, Ashford Castle; Angela Costello, Westport Estate Hotel; Georgina Kilcoyne, Westport Hotel Group; Madeline Dermody, Westport Estate Hotel, Liona Carter, Breaffy House Resort and Niamh Williams, Failte Ireland.
by Joe Mandese @mp_joemandese, August 21, 2024

Kamala Harris has achieved something no Democratic opponent has since Donald Trump entered the presidential race in 2015 -- she has garnered more attention.

That was one of the surprising insights coming out of the Ipsos political tracking team's monthly election briefing this afternoon, which touched on a wide range of unprecedented and anomalous signals characterizing the current presidential predictions marketplace.

Based on the most recent polling, the Ipsos team has Harris slightly ahead of Trump, but based on the team's core prediction model, which also factors Biden's incumbent president approval rating, the Ipsos team still favors Trump to win -- at this point.

What isn't clear is how comparable the current Harris/Walz vs. Trump/Vance ticket scenarios are, given how unique this election news cycle has been, although Ipsos' Chris Jackson said that while incumbent sitting presidents like Biden normally have a "50/50" shot even with low approval ratings, the same thing may not be true for successor candidates like Harris.

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"When we look around the world in cases where an incumbent president doesn't run for reelection," Jackson said, successor candidates "only win about one time out of eight when the incumbent president is at this sort of approval level."

In other words, despite her recent performance in the polls and an expected bump from the Democratic National Convention this week, Harris still has an uphill campaign to the White House.

But Jackson also characterized Harris' ability to overshadow Trump for the past month as "miraculous."

"Looking at Google Search trends, which Trump has basically dominated since he emerged onto the stage in 2015 over whomever his Democratic rival was at the time," he said, "In the last month, Harris has actually beaten him two- or three-to-one in terms of Google Search traffic or news mentions."

Jackson, who has frequently described Trump's ability to garner attention and command the news cycle as a "super power," says Harris' ability to take that away from him has been a "rare feat of actually eclipsing Trump in the popular mind, at least temporarily."

In terms of current polling, Ipsos has Harris in a slight lead nationally and a little better than that in terms of its polling of the key swing states that will likely determine the presidential election's electoral outcome.

Asked which person swing state voters most associated with the word "weird," respondents to Ipsos' poll cited Trump nearly two-to-one over Harris.
by Laurie Sullivan @lauriesullivan, August 21, 2024

Google will now pay into a California fund for publishers and journalism in exchange for serving up content in the News section of its Search platform, a controversial deal that will see funding for newsrooms and an AI initiative.

The plan is a commitment of nearly $250 million during the next five years. One-fourth of the money will come from state taxpayers and three-fourths will come from Google and possibly private donors.

The public-private partnership between Google and California is intended to fund programs to research artificial intelligence (AI) and improve local journalism.



We appreciate the thoughtful leadership of Governor Newsom, Assemblymember Wicks, Chair Umberg, and Senator Glazer on these issues," Kent Walker, president of global affairs at Alphabet, Google's parent company told Media Daily News. "California lawmakers have worked with the tech and news sectors to develop a collaborative framework to accelerate AI innovation and support local and national businesses and non-profit organizations."

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Google has a long-established exchange with the web ecosystem including publishers through Search. It sends billions of clicks to websites daily for free, and has no plans for that to end. The company is working to maintain, evolve and ultimately enhance this type of exchange through generative artificial intelligence (GAI).

During the past two decades, Google has seen that by improving search and serving the information needs of users, it can create new opportunities for publishers, creators and businesses. That also supports Google's vision for GAI in Search.

There are no other additional partnerships today to announce, but that doesn't mean others are not in the works.

Under the deal, California will pay $30 million during the first year and $10 million in each of the next four years. The money will go into a journalism fund to be established at UC Berkeley School for Journalism.

Google will pay $15 million into the fund and $5 million to the AI accelerator in the first year, and then add $10 million to existing journalism programs. In each of the next four years, Google would pay $10 million into the fund and $10 million into the existing programs, according to The Mercury News.

The money becomes another line item in Google's quarterly expenses to run the company.

The majority of the funding from both will go to newsrooms. East Bay Assembly member Buffy Wicks' office announced the deal Wednesday, along with California Governor Gavin Newsom.
by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, August 22, 2024

The anonymous app Yolo, which allegedly promised that it would unmask harassers, must face a lawsuit by family members of teens who were bullied, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday.

In the ruling, a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals said Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act didn't immunize Yolo from liability over claims that it misrepresented its practices.

The ruling reversed U.S. District Court Judge Fred Slaughter's order dismissing the case. Slaughter, who presides in the Central District of California, ruled that Yolo was protected by Section 230 -- a 1996 law that broadly immunizes web companies from lawsuits over content created by users, including posts that are defamatory or harassing.

The appellate judges wrote that even if Yolo was immune from liability over the content of the posts, the company could still be sued for allegedly falsely advertising that it would reveal identities of people who violated the terms of service by posting abusive content.

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Yolo repeatedly informed users that it would unmask and ban users who violated the terms of service, Circuit Judge Eugene Siler wrote in an opinion joined by Judges Carlos Bea and Sandra Ikuta. Yet it never did so, and may have never intended to.

The judges noted that Yolo could still ultimately prevail at trial, adding that the company might argue that its statements regarding unmasking weren't promises to the plaintiffs, but were instead warnings to users.

The ruling comes in a dispute dating to 2021, when family members of Carson Bride and other cyberbullying victims brought a class-action complaint against Yolo, a former Snapchat extension that enabled users to anonymously message each other.

Bride committed suicide in 2020 after being harassed on Yolo.

On the night of his death, Carsons web search history shows that he was searching how to reveal Yolo usernames, the complaint alleges.

The complaint against Yolo also included products liability claims -- essentially that Yolo was dangerously defective due to its design.

The appellate panel sided with Yolo over those products liability allegations, writing that they were centered on the content of users' posts, and therefore covered by Section 230.

Plaintiffs product liability claims attempt to hold Yolo responsible as the speaker or publisher of harassing and bullying speech, Siler wrote, adding that claims that attempted to impose liability based on Yolo's failure to moderate content were foreclosed by Section 230.

That part of the decision could prove significant in a separate legal battle -- the closely watched class-action lawsuit by teens against Meta, Google, Snapchat and TikTok. That complaint includes claims that the tech companies' products are dangerously defective due to their design.

The mixed ruling comes just two months after the 9th Circuit sided against Meta Platforms in a separate battle over the extent of Section 230 immunity.

In that case, the appellate court said Oregon resident Christopher Calise and Nebraska resident Anastasia Groschen could attempt to prove that Meta violated its terms of service by allegedly failing to police fraudulent ads placed by third parties.

Meta had argued that it was protected by Section 230, but the appellate court said Section 230 wouldn't apply to claims that Meta broke its contract with users by violating its own terms of service, which allegedly included a promise to moderate third-party ads.

As with the decision involving Yolo, the appellate judges said it wasn't clear whether Meta's terms of service actually created an enforceable contract -- meaning that Meta could still prevail in the lawsuit.

Regardless of the ultimate outcome of the lawsuits, the 9th Circuit decisions appear to give plaintiffs who want to sue tech companies a workaround to Section 230, according to Santa Clara University law professor Eric Goldman.

Section 230 is losing its structural integrity in the 9th Circuit, Goldman says.

He adds that even without Section 230 the tech companies may still ultimately defeat the claims, but that doing so would likely require additional litigation.
by Danielle Oster , August 22, 2024

Livestreaming video platform Twitch has announced the main brand sponsors for its flagship North America TwitchCon event in San Diego next month, which celebrates gaming and streaming culture: AT&T, Capcom, Chevron, and Samsung.

AT&T will connect Twitch streamers to content on the events main stage, including sponsoring head-to-head Twitch Rivals competitive gaming matchups, as well as live episodes of Twitch content, and community events.

The sponsorship is a way to reach hundreds of gamers where they are, and enhance their experience with innovative and engaging content, said Mario Artesiano, AT&T director, sponsorships and experiential, in a release.

The Twitch Rivals Arena will be sponsored by insurance company State Farm, which promises to offer a special entrance and premium seating for competitions between top Twitch streamers.

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Other TwitchCon 2024 San Diego brand sponsors will host featured booths at the event: video game company Capcom will offer activities for attendees and updates on the companys games; fossil fuel company Chevron will provide streamer meetups, free swag, games, and snacks; and AT&T will host a booth focused on mobile gaming.

In addition to the main TwitchCon 2024 San Diego presenting brand sponsors, brand will also sponsor specific gaming challenges in the expo hall. Peloton will host a Games Done Quick Express 2024 event, challenging gamers to a speedrunning competition (completing a game or level in the fastest time) called Peloton LaneBreak Challenge, offering the chance to win prizes and raise money for charity. Acne treatment brand Differen will also host a series of high score challenges at the TwitchCon Arcade

The popular livestreaming video platform focused on gaming content first introduced the semi-annual TwitchCon convention in San Francisco back in 2015, with San Diego slated to serve as the location for its flagship North America event until 2028. Twitch claims to reach an average of 35 million visitors to the site daily, citing its 2023 internal data. Importantly for marketers trying to reach the demographic, it also claims that over 70% of its audience is in the 18-35 age range, according to analysis by audience measurement company GWI of Twitch from Q1-Q4 2022.
by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, August 22, 2024

Meta has asked a federal judge in California to authorize an immediate appeal of his ruling requiring the company to face allegations that it wrongly tracked Facebook users' visits to websites operated by health care providers.

In a motion filed Wednesday, the company argues that the ruling, issued by U.S. District Court Judge William Orrick in the Northern District of California, is at odds with a recent decision issued by a different federal judge -- Vince Chhabria, also in the Northern District of California. Last month, Chhabria dismissed a lawsuit alleging that Google's analytics tool collected sensitive data from health care sites.

That conflict warrants an immediate review by the appellate court, Meta writes.

Judge Chhabrias ruling shows that reasonable jurists can disagree on this question, meaning that there is (at least) a reasonable possibility that this courts ruling on intent could be reversed on appeal, Meta writes.

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The motion comes in a dispute dating to May 2022, when several Facebook users alleged in a class-action complaint that Meta tracks their visits to hospital and health-care websites via the Meta Pixel -- analytics code that transmits information about website visitors.

The patients, who are proceeding anonymously, sued soon after The Markup reported that 33 of the country's top 100 hospitals have the Meta Pixel on their sites.

Meta urged Orrick to dismiss the matter, arguing that its pixel isn't in itself illegal, and that it didn't intentionally receive sensitive health data. The company specifically said it instructs outside web developers who install the tracking code to avoid sending health information, and that it attempts to filter out sensitive data.

In January, Orrick allowed the users to proceed with some claims, including that Meta engaged in intrusion upon seclusion -- a broad California concept that allows people to sue for highly offensive privacy violations.

Last month, Chhabria sided with Google in a similar lawsuit. He ruled in that matter that even if the allegations regarding data collection from health sites were true, they wouldn't show Google intended to receive health care data.

Chhabria specifically noted in the ruling that he disagreed with Orrick's contrary conclusion.

Meta argues that it would be more efficient for an appellate court to weigh in on the question now than to wait until after the case goes to trial.

Given the significance of this intent issue for this pixel case (and others), the Ninth Circuits resolution of it is inevitable, Meta writes. The only question is when appellate review will occur: now (when definitive guidance from the Ninth Circuit could spare the Court and parties extensive efforts) or after final judgment (when the costs of those efforts are sunk).
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MCG physicians working to help prevent vision loss associated with space travel



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Almost 70% of astronauts experience a phenomenon involving vision and cognitive changes known as Spaceflight Associated Neuro-Ocular Syndrome (SANS).

Almost 70% of astronauts experience a phenomenon involving vision and cognitive changes known as Spaceflight Associated Neuro-Ocular Syndrome (SANS).

Health Risks Faced by Astronauts

How Does Space Travel Affect Eyesight?

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MCG physicians working to help prevent vision loss associated with space travel - (https://jagwire.augusta.edu/mcg-physicians-working-to-help-prevent-vision-loss-associated-with-space-travel/)

Long-duration space missions often cause vision and cognitive changes in astronauts, highlights a new study.Physicians at the Medical College of Georgia (MCG) at Augusta University are working with Polaris Dawn, the first of the Polaris Programs three human spaceflight missions, to better understand the eye changes many astronauts experience during spaceflight that can leave them with a wide range of symptoms once they return to Earth - from a new need for glasses to significant loss of vision . The Polaris Program is a first-of-its-kind effort to rapidly advance human spaceflight capabilities while continuing to raise funds and awareness for important causes on Earth ().More than 70% of astronauts experience a phenomenon known as Spaceflight Associated Neuro-Ocular Syndrome, or SANS, according to NASA. The syndrome can have a constellation of symptoms, including these changes in vision, said Matt Lyon, MD, director of the MCG Center for Telehealth. Astronauts can experience other maladies as well when body fluids, such as cerebrospinal fluid , shift, which can lead to structural changes in the brain The changes start happening on day one, said Lyon, who also is the J. Harold Harrison M.D. Distinguished Chair in Telehealth. We are not entirely sure what causes these issues with vision, but we suspect it has to do with a shift in cerebrospinal fluid in the optic nerve sheath. On Earth, gravity pushes that fluid down and it drains out, but in space, it floats up and presses against the optic nerve and retina.With the help of portable, handheld ultrasound machines, Lyon and his team hope to not only figure out the mechanism behind the changes, but also be able to predict which astronauts will be most likely to experience them.MCG patented the concept of using portable ultrasound to rapidly visualize damage from pressure and fluid changes in the optic nerve sheath, the layers of protective membranes around the nerve. Lyon is investigating how this part of the brain is affected by elevated cranial pressure and mild traumatic brain injuries . When the brain is injured, like many other organs, it swells and fills with fluid.Researchers worked with URSUS Medical Designs LLC, a Pennsylvania-based biotech company with expertise in ultrasound, to build a 3-D ultrasound machine that could help. A one-year $350,000 Small Business Innovation Research grant from the National Institutes of Health funded the project to build a device that added another dimension to 2-D transducers.Lyon and the MCG research team are now using those ultrasound machines to screen astronauts and determine who among them may already have these incompetent or damaged optic nerve sheaths. They suspect that those are the ones who will be more susceptible to the vision changes associated with SANS.We discovered that when the cerebral spinal pressure goes up with mild traumatic brain injuries (TBIs), there is resulting damage to the sheath that is likely lifelong, he explained. We think that when astronauts who have experienced concussions or mild TBIs go into space and experience the low-gravity fluid shifts, the sheath dilates from the increase in volume. It is like a tire  a normal tire remains its normal shape as it is filled with air, and the shape doesnt change. When its damaged, like bulges on the side of a tire, the fluid fills the bulges up and the sheath expands. This can cause pressure on the nerve and retina. A damaged sheath is less of a problem on Earth, but in space, the excess fluid has nowhere to go.The researchers dont yet know if the vision changes are caused by the sheer volume of fluid, by the associated pressure, or both. They are training Polaris Dawn crewmembers to use these ultrasound machines to measure both fluid and pressure in real time during spaceflight."If its just volume, we suspect the cerebrospinal fluid goes up, fills this floppy bag and gets stuck. Its almost like not flushing your toilets. Youre creating this toxic environment, because the cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) is what carries toxins away from your eyes and nerves, and instead the toxins sit against the optic nerve, killing it, Lyon said. But it could be that combined with the increased pressure that comes with increased CSF, which would be like getting intermittent hypertension in your eye.Next steps could include working to develop and fine tune countermeasures that would decrease fluid volumes in the head during spaceflight. For example, the U.S. space program and their international space partners use a vacuum-pant device, called lower- body negative pressure, that pulls blood and other fluids down in the body.This experiment will be part of an extensive suite of science and research performed throughout the mission. Polaris Dawn will collaborate with 23 institutions, including MCG, on the selected experiments. Other participating institutions include the Translational Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH); University of Texas, Houston; University of Colorado, Boulder; Baylor College of Medicine; Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; and the U.S. Air Force Academy.Source-Eurekalert
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Assessing burden tolerance amid the Medicaid Great Unwinding



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#Americans are calling on their state governments to simplify the #Medicaid enrollment process. Reducing administrative burdens could help more eligible people access #healthinsurance. #publichealth

Strong Bipartisan Support for Streamlining Medicaid Enrollment

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Assessing burden tolerance amid the Medicaid Great Unwinding - (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/puar.13853)

Millions of Americans who gained Medicaid coverage during the COVID-19 pandemic have lost their benefits since March 2023 due to the end of the public health emergency. Many are unlikely to successfully re-enroll due to the complexities of the Medicaid application process. (A new study by Dr. Simon F. Haeder from Texas A&M (Agriculture and Mechanical) University and a colleague from the University of Michigan examines Americans tolerance for administrative burdens in light of this significant policy change, known as the "Medicaid Great Unwinding."One effort to address the pandemic pushed states to make enrolling in Medicaid much easier, which caused enrollment to surge to unprecedented levels  even more than introduction of the Affordable Care Act marketplaces, Haeder said. And while we know a great deal about public support of these policies, we knew very little prior to this about support of the administrative processes that can be difficult but that are often central to a policys success.For their study, published inthe pair surveyed 4,074 Americans from Dec. 21 to Dec. 28, 2022, (before the unwinding) and 3,932 from Aug. 18 to Aug. 19, 2023, (as the unwinding took place). The surveys asked for opinions about five policies that lowered the cost of Medicaid enrollment by shifting the administrative burden from the individual to the state. Examples were the use of automatic renewals, pre-filled forms, contact information taken from other sources, improving processes for transferring Medicaid accounts and ensuring enough administrative capacity to perform these tasks.The surveys also asked for opinions about four policies aimed at improving outreach and communication, such as communicating Medicaid information through nontraditional platforms and using plain language in materials explaining how to begin and end enrollment.Respondents also were asked whether the burden-reducing measures taken on (or that should have been taken on) by the state during the pandemic should remain with the state or if these measures should return to individual beneficiaries, as was the case before the pandemic. Both surveys also contained experiments to find out if focusing on the detrimental and inequitable effects of increasing the administrative burden during the unwinding would affect public opinion.The responses for both surveys were remarkably similar despite the loss of Medicaid coverage for millions, and our experiment that emphasized these losses and how they could get worse had no effect on responses, Haeder said. We found broad support for burden reduction.While support was bipartisan, those who expressed empathy toward others, who were less able to handle administrative tasks or who had negative experiences with such tasks, and who viewed the burden as a form of systemic racism, had less burden tolerance, while those who express conservative beliefs or racial resentments had higher tolerance In addition, these ideological divisions grew stronger over time, and women generally became less tolerant of burdens over time.And while some state governments did better than others in reducing this burden during the pandemic, overall the Great Unwinding reflects how the health equity gap has widened post-pandemic.Source-Eurekalert
Welcome to your Daily Horoscope for August 22, 2024!

Want to hear the plans the universe has crafted for you today? Lets take a look at your horoscope. Aries Horoscope Today - August 22, 2024

shutterstock You might meet an old friend. Financially, things will turn in your favour as an inflow of huge amounts of money from business can be predicted. Those who have been unwell for a long time should consult a medical practitioner before things get worse. People might take you as an inspiration, so impart ethical knowledge to them. Your Lucky color is Brown. Your Lucky number is 28. Taurus Horoscope Today - August 22, 2024

shutterstock Health and wealth conditions don't seem favourable. Challenges and opportunities are coming your way, so be wise enough to identify and grab them. Do not let your anxiety and fear hold you back. The day is good for you, as it brings good news from your spouse. It's time you trust your instincts and abide by your commitments at work. Your Lucky color is Maroon. Your Lucky number is 10. Gemini Horoscope Today - August 22, 2024

shutterstock Try not to hasten things at work today, as it might ruin your past efforts. Avoid unwanted conversations with your partner or you will end up saying something which will invite bitterness in your relationship. Professional growth can be expected and will help you enhance your knowledge and skills. Take care of your health, by incorporating some fitness activities in your daily routine. Your Lucky color is Blue. Your Lucky number is 29. Cancer Horoscope Today - August 22, 2024

shutterstock If you are afraid to take professional risks, don't be afraid as success is just round the corner. You are likely to have a good time with your loved ones today. Being tech-savvy, you will find yourself around gizmos. Take care of your health and avoid testing your capabilities for a day. Financial conditions can be seen gaining strength. Your Lucky color is Black. Your Lucky number is 13. Leo Horoscope Today - August 22, 2024

shutterstock Those who are going through a break-up will gain some relief. Health-wise, avoid over-stressing yourself. Financial growth can be anticipated, but in the near future. It's a good day for those in desk jobs as whatever you take up today will bring favourable results. Your Lucky color is Green. Your Lucky number is 7. Virgo Horoscope Today - August 22, 2024

shutterstock You are so loyal, faithful and committed in a relationship that you expect the same from the other person but always end up disappointed. It is not advised to change yourself but try to reduce your expectations. Talking about your professional life, it's high time that you show some confidence in yourself and take up the activities that will help you grow. Health conditions seem favourable. Your Lucky color is Brown. Your Lucky number is 23. Libra Horoscope Today - August 22, 2024

shutterstock A hike in your list of ambitions and desires can be seen. Promotion or transfer in professional life can be anticipated. Financially, you may seek help from a relative or close friend. Health and wealth related matters seem to be favourable for you today. Love life can be seen growing. Those involved in any kind of legal suit can expect the verdict to be in their favour. Your Lucky color is Orange. Your Lucky number is 27. Scorpio Horoscope Today - August 22, 2024

shutterstock At this point of your life, you want your own space. Those who are committed may feel claustrophobic and demand space. Love life seems to invite a lot of complications. Partners must give each other some required space and allow time to heal everything. Health wise, some mental pressures are likely to trouble you. Your Lucky color is Purple. Your Lucky number is 13. Sagittarius Horoscope Today - August 22, 2024

shutterstock This is the time when you desperately desire to start something new but aren't really able to take a step ahead because you lack vision. You know the ends but you don't know the means. Few of you are bold, but even the quieter ones are brave and plucky in their own way. So, use your talent and find a vision. Love life seems to face some ups and downs where mind games can ruin the relationship. Your Lucky color is White. Your Lucky number is 22. Capricorn Horoscope Today - August 22, 2024

shutterstock Your personality is that of a calm and peaceful being, but your temper turns wicked when you find someone backstabbing you. Today might be the day when people around you may force you to lose your temper. Try to maintain distance with such people. Health cards reflect a promising scope ahead. Your Lucky color is Yellow. Your Lucky number is 27. Aquarius Horoscope Today - August 22, 2024

shutterstock Your new business plan is helping you mint money. Financially, you ought to have that feeling of security as there is sufficient availability of funds. You may consider purchasing an asset today. Part your time with your family members today and make them feel special. You will be in the best of health. Your Lucky color is green. Your Lucky number is 28. Pisces Horoscope Today - August 22, 2024
Internal safety documents obtained by Military.com show that warnings related to a mechanical issue that caused an Air Force Osprey to crash off the coast of Japan last year, killing eight airmen, had been identified as far back as 2013 but seemingly went unaddressed.

An investigation released earlier this month by the Air Force pointed to an issue in the controversial tilt-rotor aircraft's prop rotor gearbox as a cause of the Nov. 29 crash. Specifically, the service identified a single high-speed planetary pinion gear that had fractured.

But an internal Safety Investigation Board report -- which has not been made public -- showed that other gears in that gearbox similarly failed in 2013 and warnings related to that part failure were brought to the Pentagon a year later. Plus, serious manufacturing issues plagued the components for years.

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The Osprey, call sign Gundam 22, was on an Air Force Special Operations Command training mission off the coast of Yakushima Island, Japan. As the single gear began to shred, it sent debris throughout the gearbox, which in turn began to fail and caused the left proprotor to stop operating. The aircraft then fell out of the sky.

It was the deadliest CV-22B crash in the Air Force's history, claiming the lives of Maj. Jeffrey T. Hoernemann; Maj. Eric V. Spendlove; Maj. Luke A. Unrath; Capt. Terrell K. Brayman; Tech. Sgt. Zachary E. Lavoy; Staff Sgt. Jake M. Turnage; Senior Airman Brian K. Johnson; and Staff Sgt. Jake Galliher.

History of Gear Defects

Both the Air Force's public report, called an Accident Investigation Board, or AIB, and its internal Safety Investigation Board, or SIB, reports into the crash agree that Gundam 22 was brought down by the fracturing of a single gear -- a high-speed planetary pinion gear -- into five large pieces, which caused other failures in the proprotor gearbox.

The reports also go on to fault the Air Force Special Operations Command crew for not heeding the warning lights even though, according to members of the Osprey community, the warnings the crew received were considered common and the community often saw them as just part of the aircraft's operation.

However, the internal safety report found that the high-speed gear that failed on Gundam 22 because of a single crack was "similar to those seen on seven previous failures in low-speed planetary pinion gears." The two sets of gears sit next to each other in the gearbox and are made from the same alloy.

It notes that in all the other instances the Ospreys landed before the gear failed completely.

Later analysis showed that five of those prior failures, which go back to 2013, were caused by "non-metallic inclusions" -- a defect in the metal alloy from which the gears were made. Air Force investigators say that Gundam 22's gear also cracked "most likely due to non-metallic material inclusion."

Furthermore, the report found that, given the rate at which those inclusions were making it into the alloy used in the gears, a failure such as the one Gundam 22 experienced was bound to happen.

"The number of failures in low-speed planetary pinion gears will have a similar ratio to high-speed planetary pinion gears," the Air Force investigators wrote, before noting that, given "five such failures in low-speed planetary pinion gears ... one failure in the high-speed planetary pinion gear can be expected."

In 2014, the Joint Program Office, which oversees the Osprey program for the Pentagon, was sent a formal risk assessment titled "Gear Metal Raw Material Impurities" by Bell Textron and Boeing, the companies that build the Osprey. But, according to the Air Force internal investigation, the notice "did not adequately assess risk of high-speed gear failure."

Investigators also found that there was no testing of the high-speed gears done at the time, which meant there wasn't an "adequate understanding of the failure that occurred in this mishap."

When the Osprey program office -- part of Naval Air Systems Command, or NAVAIR -- received the notice in 2014, it did not fully process it to determine whether the risks it outlined would just be accepted by the military or somehow mitigated. It is not clear from the Air Force investigation why that did not occur.

Instead, the report found that "NAVAIR implemented contractual financial withholds in hope the contractor would correct deficiencies in the [alloy] processing that had resulted in previous gear failures."

That contractor -- Universal Stainless -- made the alloy that later failed in Gundam 22 and since 2014 has supplied "a significant proportion" of the alloy used in the Osprey gearboxes that are now under scrutiny.

Yet, since that Bell-Boeing risk assessment was issued in 2014, Air Force investigators found that "there have continued to be inclusion failures in [alloy], suggesting contractual financial withholds did not prompt corrective actions."

Military.com reached out to Bell Flight, the point of contact for questions regarding the V-22, for comment but did not receive a reply in time for publication.

Military.com also specifically asked the Joint Program Office whether NAVAIR still stands by its choice to use a financial approach as a way to handle substandard materials in V-22 component manufacturing or if Universal Stainless still makes parts for the aircraft.

The program office declined to comment.

J.J. Gertler, an aviation analyst and expert with the Teal Group, told Military.com in an interview that such an approach is "not unusual" but said ultimately the aircraft was approved to be received at the end of those negotiations.

"There are progress payments that go on during the course of a contract. It's not that they get all the money at the beginning or the end, and those progress payments are often withheld or modified until certain criteria are met, like you've got to hit this standard on that part or this amount of durability," Gertler said.

Ultimately, he said, somebody approved the aircraft to be received by the military.

Joint Program Office Role

Within the public report on the deadly crash in Japan was also a suggestion that the Joint Program Office had a role to play in the crash.

Air Force investigators found "that inadequate action at the program level and

inadequate coordination between the program office and the services prevented comprehensive

awareness" of the risks of the failures within the gearbox, and "substantially contributed to the mishap."

While the public report does not offer further detail about what actions the Osprey program office should have taken, the internal report shows that it was aware of at least five instances of gear failures on the low-speed side of the same gearbox that was at fault in the Gundam 22 crash.

Military.com reached out to the Osprey program office with nearly a dozen questions stemming from our review of the internal Air Force report, but officials declined to comment specifically on the safety investigation board findings.

An Air Force Safety Center spokesman declined to authenticate parts of the document, citing "the integrity of the information that may come from it." The documents obtained by Military.com are marked "Controlled Unclassified Information" -- a label used for nonsecret but internal information that the government wants to keep out of public view.

"Safety investigations are highly effective because of their inward-facing, limited-use analysis and follow-up action, a product of military safety privilege," Keith Wright, a spokesman for the Air Force Safety Center, told Military.com earlier this month. "The Accident Investigation Board is the official release mechanism for accident information."

The details about previous gear failures in the Osprey also cast doubt on the statements and assurances of top NAVAIR officials who claimed the issue that brought down Gundam 22 had not been encountered before or seemingly came out of left field.

Vice Adm. Carl Chebi, the head of NAVAIR, which oversees all V-22 operations across the military, said during a June 12 congressional hearing on Osprey safety "that data was presented to myself that indicated that the platform had experienced a catastrophic material failure that we have never seen before in the V-22 program."

NAVAIR and the V-22's Joint Program Office did not return a request for comment asking them to clarify Chebi's comments.

Past indications about possible safety issues with the gearbox were also not fully communicated to those flying and maintaining the aircraft.

Rebecca Heyse, a spokeswoman for the Air Force's Special Operations Command, told Military.com -- citing the public accident report findings -- that NAVAIR has done safety assessments on the gearbox and said those analyses found "failure to be remote or improbable, but also indicated that total loss of aircraft and crew were possible."

Heyse added that program-wide changes, such as advising less risky responses in certain situations, "were not always implemented, or were implemented in a manner that did not stress the severity of the risk." She noted that aircrew training on how to react to gearbox indications wasn't modified and that the findings "were not always communicated to the military services, limiting opportunities for service-specific changes."

Military.com reported earlier this month that AFSOC has now changed some of its protocol for aircrews in the wake of the crash.

Chebi has previously said that he doesn't expect the V-22 to be fully operational again until at least "mid-2025." But Lt. Gen. Michael Conley, the head of Air Force Special Operations Command, told reporters earlier this month he hopes to be supporting combatant commanders with the Air Force's Osprey by the end of the calendar year.

The revelations about the history of the gear problems come as family members from the Japan crash, as well as families of Marines who died in a 2022 V-22 Osprey training crash in California, are seeking legal representation.

Family members of the Marines filed a wrongful death lawsuit in May against Bell Textron and Boeing, which oversee the aircraft design, and Rolls-Royce, which manufactures the engines. It was not yet clear whether the families of the Japan crash victims are seeking a similar lawsuit.

Related: Pilots, Family Members Say Crew Is Being Unfairly Blamed for November's Deadly Air Force Osprey Crash
A junior enlisted soldier has been arrested and is awaiting trial after his pregnant wife went missing from an Army base in Hawaii three weeks ago, the service said Monday.

Pfc. Dewayne Arthur Johnson II, of Frederick, Maryland, was detained and placed in military pretrial confinement, the Hawaii-based 25th Infantry Division wrote on Facebook. His arrest comes weeks after his wife, Mischa Johnson, was reported missing from her home at Oahu's Schofield Barracks on Aug. 1, according to the Army's Criminal Investigation Division.

Johnson enlisted in the Army in 2022 and attended a combined basic and technical training course at Fort Moore, Georgia, that November. He joined the 25th ID as a cavalry scout in June 2023, the unit said.

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The Army did not answer by press time Wednesday when Johnson was arrested, when he is expected to appear in court, or what charges he may face. He has not yet appeared on the Army's public court docket.

Mischa Johnson, 19, was reportedly last seen inside her home on the evening of July 31, CID said. A reward poster described her as 5 feet 2 inches tall, 170 pounds and of Filipino descent, with a large dragon tattoo on her back. She was six months pregnant at the time of her disappearance.

She frequented the Ewa Villages and Waikiki areas and "may be emotionally distraught," the Honolulu Police Department said Aug. 2.

"Mischa is a loving wife who is committed to her marriage and looking to raise a child with her husband," her mother, Frances Tapiz-Andrian, told Military.com. "We trust CID with the ongoing investigation and are hopeful for the best outcome."

The 25th Infantry Division said Aug. 14 that Army officials in Hawaii did not believe the woman's disappearance indicated any broader threat to Schofield Barracks or the local Army community.

"Our efforts remain focused on locating Mischa, support to her family, and the safety and security of all personnel at U.S. Army Hawaii installations," the unit wrote. "This is a current and ongoing investigation and no further information is available at this time."

The Army encouraged anyone with information regarding Mischa Johnson's disappearance or location to contact the Criminal Investigation Division at (808) 208-0059. CID is offering a $10,000 reward in exchange for help finding the woman.

The public may also call CrimeStoppers at (808) 955-8300 or send anonymous tips via www.honolulucrimestoppers.org or the P3 Tips app.

Related: Soldier Found Dead on Fort Drum Was Killed by His Roommate, Military Officials Say
A retired Marine Corps general whose body was found aboard Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, California, in June died of natural causes, an autopsy report obtained by Military.com through a public records request found.

Retired Maj. Gen. William Mullen, 59, was found by staff at the base's Roadrunner Inn, where he was staying in temporary lodging, according to the report. He was due to check out at 11 a.m. but did not, prompting staff to check on him by prying open the door to his room.

Paramedics responded to the scene that afternoon and confirmed that Mullen had passed away at 1:39 p.m. June 29, the report said, adding that "there were no resuscitation efforts made."

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The autopsy, which was conducted by the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department coroner, found that a blood clot, also known as a deep vein thrombosis, in Mullen's left leg dislodged and traveled to his lungs, blocking the left and right sides of his pulmonary arteries, a condition also known as a pulmonary embolism.

The Naval Criminal Investigative Service told Military.com on Tuesday that the investigation into Mullen's death is ongoing, but would not comment on specifics or the autopsy findings.

"With regards to investigative timelines, there is no timeline for death investigations as each is different," Jeff Houston, a spokesperson for NCIS, said in an email to Military.com. "Death investigations take several months to complete at a minimum and sometimes can take more than a year to complete, depending on the circumstances of the investigation."

A Mullen family member also declined to comment.

The report, which included a document titled "coroner investigation," noted that Mullen's bags were packed and organized "as if he was leaving the premises."

Mullen was at the combat center to attend the change of command ceremony for the Marine Corps Tactics and Operations Group, or MCTOG, which occurred the day prior to his death, a spokesperson for Twentynine Palms told Military.com on Wednesday.

The autopsy noted that Mullen did not have a diagnosed medical history, but had been to a doctor prior to his death due to "some lung issues" and a bad cough, the report said, citing his next of kin. The doctor cleared him but prescribed an inhaler after "he had been unable to breathe properly," the autopsy said.

Mullen's family has a history of heart problems, the report added, but was otherwise "known to be healthy."

"There are also genetic conditions which can increase the risk of clot development, and it is possible that Mr. Mullen had a genetic condition which predisposed him to the development of blood clots," the autopsy stated, after it ruled out trauma, obesity or cancer, for example, and noted that the "underlying cause of the blood clots in the left lower extremity is unknown."

Dr. Carlos Mena-Hurtado, an associate professor of medicine (cardiology) at Yale University, reviewed part of the report with Military.com over the phone Wednesday and confirmed that the clot caused a "massive pulmonary embolism," resulting in the retired general's death.

"There are multiple risk factors," Mena-Hurtado said of pulmonary embolisms in general. "There are mechanical risk factors, like being immobile, like a fracture, like having recent surgeries, being in a wheelchair for long periods of time -- so anything that has immobility becomes a source or a risk for clots in the legs."

The pulmonary arteries transport oxygen-depleted blood from the heart to the lungs for oxygenation, according to the National Institutes of Health. Roughly 1 to 3 in every 1,000 adults in the U.S. develop deep vein thrombosis, also known as DVT or pulmonary embolism, each year, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Men are likely to experience recurrent instances of DVT, according to the NIH.

Other risk factors include blood illnesses, protein deficiencies or blockages in the leg veins, Mena-Hurtado added. Air travel -- especially involving long-distance or lengthy flights during which a traveler sits for extended periods -- can lead to DVTs, according to the Mayo Clinic. DVTs are the most common cause of pulmonary embolism, according to the facility.

"It's unpredictable. There's not necessarily an age cutoff," Mena-Hurtado said. "The age is linked to the potential cause, like if you break a leg -- whether you do it at the age of 10 or at the age of 80 -- you're at risk for it. If you have some genetic predisposition, more likely than not, it will show up at an earlier age."

Mullen was the commander of Twentynine Palms starting in 2016. He was an artillery officer and made multiple deployments to Iraq during a 34-year career in the Marine Corps. He retired in 2020, having served as the commanding general of the Marine Corps' Training and Education Command as his last billet.

"Maj. Gen. Mullen's dedicated service to our nation and the Marine Corps will always be remembered," Maj. Gen. Thomas Savage, head of the Marine Air Ground Task Force Training Command, said in a statement shared with Military.com in July. "Our thoughts and prayers are with his loved ones."

-- Patricia Kime contributed to this report.

Related: Retired Marine Major General Found Dead at Twentynine Palms; Investigation Ongoing
Since early summer, the BlackFly eVTOL has been flying above the Springfield-Beckley Municipal Airport in tests for the Air Force.

Its flight on Wednesday for the second (and final) day of the third annual National Advanced Air Mobility Industry Forum was probably the first time it flew for an appreciable number of people in the Dayton-Springfield, Ohio, area.

The BlackFly is aptly named, and it should be seen to be appreciated.

It's a light, nimble, single seat eVTOL (electric vertical take-off and landing) aircraft. Taking off outside the hangar for the National Advanced Air Mobility Center of Excellence, it didn't need a runway and it made hardly any noise.

At times, its movement seemed closer to floating than flying.

Drivers were slowing down or stopping on West Blee Road to the north as it flew.

Palo Alto, Calif. technology company Pivotal and Beavercreek's Modern Technology Solutions Inc. (MTSI) have been testing the craft -- but also testing the way the vehicle can be controlled remotely and charged with a portable DANNAR battery energy storage truck, which was also visible Wednesday.

AFWERX -- the Air Force arm dedicated to discovering and finding useful technologies -- wants to know what this craft can and can't do.

"We're looking at austere operations," Josh Lane, MTSI test manager, said at Springfield Wednesday just before the BlackFly took flight. "Imagine a disaster response. That green cable is 240 volts coming out of that (the DANNAR charging system) ... What if you need to cycle aircraft and quickly? We're showing all that."

"We're exploring a range of military-type use cases, from logistics and material transport to emergency response and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions," Jacob Wilson, AFWERX Agility Prime acting branch chief, said in a recent account of Air Force tests of the craft this summer.

The Air Force might be able to use it for intelligence flights, Lane said. It might be used for aerial inspections, deliveries, search and rescue or more.

"What if you had a lost camper in the woods?" he said. "What if you needed to bring them supplies or just find them? If you had a quick response like this to send out, those are the types of use cases that we're looking at."

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KYIV, Ukraine  Some new Ukrainian soldiers refuse to fire at the enemy. Others, according to commanders and fellow fighters, struggle to assemble weapons or to coordinate basic combat movements. A few have even walked away from their posts, abandoning the battlefield altogether.

While Ukraine presses on with its incursion into Russias Kursk region, its troops are still losing precious ground along the country's eastern front  a grim erosion that military commanders blame in part on poorly trained recruits drawn from a recent mobilization drive, as well as Russias clear superiority in ammunition and air power.

Some people dont want to shoot. They see the enemy in the firing position in trenches but dont open fire. ... That is why our men are dying, said a frustrated battalion commander in Ukraines 47th Brigade. When they dont use the weapon, they are ineffective.

The accounts come from commanders and soldiers who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity in order to speak freely about sensitive military matters. Others spoke on the condition that they be identified only by their call signs in keeping with Ukrainian military protocol.

Commanders say the recruits have contributed to a string of territorial losses that enabled Russias army to advance, including near the city of Pokrovsk, a critical logistics hub. If it falls, the defeat would imperil Ukraines defenses and bring Russia closer to its stated aim of capturing the Donetsk region. Russian soldiers are now just 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) away.

Adding to Ukraine's woes are Russia's huge advantage in manpower and its willingness to accept staggering losses in return for capturing small objectives.

The recently conscripted Ukrainians are a far cry from the battle-hardened fighters who flocked to join the war in the first year of the full-scale invasion. The new troops lack even a minimal level of training, commanders and soldiers from four brigades defending the Pokrovsk area said.

They described having to plan operations with infantry who are unable to shoot targets and uninformed about basic topography. Some recruits simply lacked faith in the battle plans of their superiors and walked away from prepared positions.

Frustrated with the quality of the new conscripts sent to the front line by territorial recruitment centers, commanders are now seeking to conduct their own mobilization drives to better screen and train new fighters, multiple commanders and soldiers said.

The main problem is the survival instinct of newcomers. Before, people could stand until the last moment to hold the position. Now, even when there is light shelling of firing positions, they are retreating, said a soldier with the 110th Brigade.

Not everyone is turning around and running away from battle, he added.

No, there are motivated people, but they are just very, very few, he said. The position is held as far as there are these people who are motivated and committed.

Following the implementation of a controversial mobilization law in May that established clearer regulations for territorial recruitment centers, Ukraine is reportedly drafting tens of thousands of fighters per month. Demand is highest in the infantry.

But there are logistical hurdles to train, equip and pay so many incoming people, and commanders constantly demand new soldiers. To ease that pressure, military leaders have had to take units from brigades in one region and transfer them to different areas to stabilize weak spots.

Some point the finger back at commanders who single out recent recruits for losses.

Viktor Kevliuk, a military expert with the Ukraine-based Center for Defense Strategies think tank, said the training offered to recruits is adequate. He said brigade commanders are looking for an explanation for tactical failures.

Likewise, the brigade commander has the appropriate tools to influence morale. If all these processes are established in the brigade, there will be no significant problems. If these mechanisms fail, we read about the negativity in social networks, he added.

And in intense fights such as the one in Pokrovsk, "it is the timely tactical decisions of commanders that make the difference, Kevliuk said.

In some instances, terrified new recruits have fled from the fight.

This fear creates panic and chaos, said the battalion commander in the 47th Brigade. This is also the reason we have lost.

The loss of the village of Prohres last month in the Pokrovsk region is the most recent example of territorial loss blamed on new recruits, commanders said. Units from the 31st Brigade left in a poorly coordinated frenzy, prompting the 47th Brigade to enter the battle and attempt to stabilize the line. A similar scenario unfolded in the village of Ocheretyne in May.

Not enough is done to train newcomers, the battalion commander said. They dont receive even the lowest standard of training required for our (combat) actions, he said.

The new men do not have enough practice assembling and shooting their rifles, he said. They also have not learned how to coordinate combat tasks in small groups or to use even simple tactics, he added.

From the command point, I would like to issue orders to small (infantry) groups, but I am not sure if they are capable of executing these orders because they lack coordination and communication, he said, adding, Sometimes, I want to shoot myself.

Ukraines sudden foray into Russia initially stirred hopes that the Kremlin might be forced to divide its military resources to respond. But so far, Russian forces have not wavered in their push toward Pokrovsk and other potential conquests.

Meanwhile, Ukraines lightning advance into Russian territory has slowed after two weeks, making only small gains, a possible sign that Moscow is counter-attacking more effectively.

Commanders in the east report that battles have only intensified since the incursion. Local authorities on Monday ordered Pokrovsks nearly 53,000 residents to evacuate within two weeks. In the neighboring town of Myrnohrad, even closer to Russian positions, residents were given only days.

The capture of Pokrovsk would undermine Ukrainian supply routes to the Donetsk region and ease Russias advance to the eastern cities of Sloviansk and Kostiantynivka. It would also mark Russias first major strategic win after months of painfully fought marginal gains.

In the last three months, the majority of Ukrainian territorial losses were recorded in the Pokrovsk area, according to three open-source monitoring groups, with fighting intensifying in the vicinity of the towns of Toretsk and Chasiv Yar. Russian forces dialed up the attacks in an attempt to capitalize on troop fatigue and shortages.

The offensive has also come at a huge cost to Moscow, with an estimated 70,000 troops lost in two months, according to the U.K. Defense Ministry, which posted the projection last month on X. Heavy losses have continued as Russian forces gradually approach Pokrovsk from the east and southeast.

Another challenge for Ukraine is a new tactic in which Russia deploys recurrent waves of smaller infantry units of two to four men. That has flummoxed Ukrainian drone operators, who find it difficult to target them, according to a drone operator with the 25th Brigade who uses the call sign Groot.

This is one of the main reasons for (Russias) success in Pokrovsk, he said. Its harder to detect them," especially under the cover of leafy trees.

As soon as the infantry get under the tree lines, its really hard to get them out of there with drones, and thats why we depend a lot on our infantry.

___

Associated Press journalist Volodymyr Yurchuk contributed.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has reassigned two top executives at the VA hospital in Buffalo after hearing complaints that local veterans experienced delays in receiving critical treatments.

Upon learning of concerns raised by clinicians about local leadership and instances of delayed care, VA immediately transferred the medical center director and the chief of staff out of clinical- and Veteran-facing positions pending the results of an investigation, VA Press Secretary Terrence Hayes said in a statement Wednesday morning.

Because the investigation is ongoing, the VA said it could not comment about whether Michael J. Swartz, executive director of the VA Western New York Healthcare System, or Chief of Staff Dr. Philippe Jaoude could return to those roles depending on what the probe finds.

Shawn De Fries, associate director of VA Finger Lakes Healthcare System, which includes the Canandaigua VA Medical Center, has been named the interim medical center director in Buffalo. VA Western New York Healthcare System serves roughly 2,000 patients a day and employs about 2,250 people.

News of the leadership changes came not long after U.S. Rep. Nick Langworthy sent a letter Tuesday to VA Secretary Denis R. McDonough. In the letter, Langworthy said it had come to his attention that the VA had informed the House Committee on Veterans Affairs that the Buffalo VA Medical Center had likely mismanaged oncology referrals made to the community.

Michael Swartz, executive director of the VA Western New York Healthcare System, has been transferred out of that position, pending an investigation.

Specifically, VA has reported that due to the medical centers mismanagement, veterans may not have received treatment as fast as they should have, wrote Langworthy, a conservative Republican who represents outlying parts of Erie County, as well as the Southern Tier.

Langworthy implored the VA to conduct a thorough and transparent review of the situation and to cooperate fully with the House Committees investigation. Langworthy said he would closely monitor the situation and continue to press for accountability to guarantee that no veterans health is compromised due to administrative failures.

This situation is deeply concerning, Langworthy wrote. The potential mismanagement of oncology referrals raises serious questions about the Buffalo VA Medical Centers adherence to established protocols and its overall commitment to the well-being of its patients.

In his statement, Hayes said the VA proactively informed Congress of this matter, and will continue to keep lawmakers and local veterans informed on the issues.

Providing veterans with the world-class care they deserve when and where they need it is our top priority, and VA has taken immediate steps to ensure the health care needs of veterans are being met, Hayes said.

VA is committed to providing veterans timely, quality health care  we will never settle for anything less, and we will continue to hold our employees accountable to the highest standards of care and services, he added. Because the investigation is ongoing, we cannot comment further at this time.

U.S. Rep. Tim Kennedy, a Democrat, issued a statement Wednesday afternoon, calling it "unacceptable for veterans to receive delayed care due to administrative failures."

"As a member of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, I am committed to providing oversight to ensure that these heroes receive the care they have earned and deserve," Kennedy said. "My Congressional colleagues and I will be monitoring the outcome of the investigation and taking appropriate action where needed."

The union that represents more than 400 nurses at the Buffalo VA Medical Center had previously raised concerns about the facilitys local leadership, though those issues revolved around staffing, rather than referrals for cancer care. However, staffing levels can have a significant effect on how long patients wait for care.

As union criticizes blizzard staffing plan, Buffalo VA says 'there is no shortage of nurses' at its hospital

Union nurses at the Buffalo VA Medical Center on Tuesday blasted what they said was the administration's failure to prepare for the deadly holiday storm with a proper staffing plan, noting it's emblematic of a larger, and ongoing, problem: VA administrators who are not listening to their concerns about a chronic worker crunch.

Several nurses, represented by National Nurses Organizing Committee/National Nurses United, in January 2023 blasted what they said was the Buffalo VA Medical Center administrations failure to prepare for the deadly 2022 Christmas weekend blizzard with a proper staffing plan. They said it was emblematic of a larger problem of VA administrators who were not listening to their concerns about a chronic staffing crunch.

An Office of Inspector General report on VA occupational staffing shortages, released this month, found the VA Western New York Healthcare System had 12 clinical occupation titles with shortages and seven nonclinical titles with shortages. With 19 titles designated as in a severe shortage, the VA Western New York Healthcare System was roughly in line with the VA systems in Syracuse (21 titles in shortage), in the Finger Lakes (25 titles) and in Albany (25 titles).

Nurses at the Buffalo VA are planning to hold a protest at noon Friday outside the Bailey Avenue hospital to discuss the VAs hiring freeze.

The leadership change and investigation also comes as the VA Western New York Healthcare System is renovating its 75-year-old campus on Bailey Avenue, with many projects geared toward modernizing and improving the patient experience.

With plans for new downtown hospital 'off the table' for now, VA is revamping its aging Buffalo medical center

The VA could still one day build a new Buffalo hospital  but that is something that would be "probably 20 to 25 years down the road."

While a new Buffalo VA Medical Center could one day be built, such a project is probably 20 to 25 years down the road, Swartz told The Buffalo News earlier this year.

So, the VA has more than $64 million worth of projects in active construction on the 1.1 million-square-foot Bailey Avenue campus, and another $3.1 million in projects ongoing at the Batavia VA Medical Center.

Tens of millions of dollars more in spending is projected at the VA Western New York Healthcare System over the next five to 10 years.

The VA also is securing a lease to relocate its research program from its research facility in Building 20 on the Bailey Avenue campus to an off-campus space that is more modern. Building 20, which was built in the 1990s and is connected to the main hospital, will then be expanded and repurposed to house surgical and critical care operations.

We will renovate what we can here, Swartz said, and I think Building 20 gives us a great opportunity to expand the footprint to meet the needs of modern health care.

But Swartz may no longer be the local leader leading those expansions.

___

(c)2024 The Buffalo News (Buffalo, N.Y.)

Visit The Buffalo News (Buffalo, N.Y.) at www.buffalonews.com

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KYIV, Ukraine  Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made his first visit Thursday to the border area where his forces launched their surprise offensive into Russia, saying that Kyiv's military had taken control of another Russian village and captured more prisoners of war.

While in Ukraines northern Sumy region, Zelenskyy said the new POWs from the Russian region of Kursk would help build an exchange fund to swap for captured Ukrainians.

Another settlement in the Kursk region is now under Ukrainian control, and we have replenished the exchange fund, Zelenskyy wrote on the social media platform X after hearing a report from his country's top military commander, Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi.

Zelenskyy did not name the newly captured village and did not cross over into Russia, which would been regarded by Moscow as a provocation. He previously has said that Ukraine has no plans to occupy the area long term but wants to create a buffer zone to prevent further attacks from that area into Ukraine.

Zelenskyy said the Kursk operation launched Aug. 6 has reduced Russian shelling and civilian casualties in the Sumy region.

In another example of Ukraine's intensifying attacks on Russia, emergency authorities in Russias Krasnodar region said a Ukrainian strike hit a cargo ferry loaded with fuel tanks at the port of Kavkaz, sparking a blaze. The port is on the Kerch Strait linking the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.

Russian Telegram channels posted videos purportedly showing a huge fire caused by the strike.

The daring Ukrainian foray has rattled the Kremlin, showing Russia's vulnerability and shattering President Vladimir Putin's efforts to pretend that the country has been largely unaffected by the 2 1/2-year war.

Ukraines push into Russia marks the first capture of Russian territory since World War II, but it comes as Kyiv continues to lose ground in eastern Ukraine.

Authorities in the city of Kursk, the capital of the Kursk region, began to put up concrete shelters at bus stops and other locations to protect against shelling. They plan similar work in Zheleznogorsk and Kurchatov, where a nuclear power plant is located, the region's acting Gov. Alexei Smirnov said on his Telegram channel.

Putin has ordered the creation of self-defense units in Russian regions bordering Ukraine, the Russian leader said in a video call with officials.

Smirnov reported to Putin that over 133,000 people have left areas affected by the fighting in the Kursk region, while more than 19,000 have stayed.

The governor of Bryansk, another Russian region bordering Ukraine, said authorities there have conducted training for emergency evacuation as a precaution.

Separately, the Russian Defense Ministry reported repelling Ukrainian attacks near the villages of Komarovka, Malaya Loknya, Korenevka and several other settlements in the Kursk region.

Education Minister Sergey Kravtsov said 114 schools in Russias border regions will start teaching remotely when the school year begins at the start of September.

Elsewhere, the Defense Ministry said Thursday that its military has claimed control of the Ukrainian village of Mezhove in Donetsk, part of the industrial Donbas region that Moscow seeks to take entirely.

Both sides in the war have been using drones to attack deep behind enemy lines.

Ukraine attacked Russia overnight with 28 drones, the Defense Ministry said. Thirteen were shot down over the Volgograd region, seven over the Rostov region, four over the Belgorod region, two over the Voronezh region, and one each over the Bryansk and Kursk regions, the ministry said.

Andrei Bocharov, governor of the Volgograd region, said Thursday that a military facility caught fire after being attacked by drones in the area of Marinovka, where Russia has a military air base. He did not specify what was damaged.

Videos shared on Russian social media showed an explosion in the night sky, reportedly near the base. Marinovka is about 300 kilometers (185 miles) east of the Ukrainian border.

Ukraine claimed responsibility for the attack. Ukraines security service and its special operation forces conducted the drone attack Wednesday night, striking the Marinovka airfield, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.

The Baza Telegram channel, which is close to Russian law enforcement, said one drone was taken down several kilometers (miles) from the airfield near Marinovka and that wreckage from another fell on a trailer near the air base, causing it to catch fire.

Data from NASA fire-watching satellites, which monitor Earth for forest blazes, showed fires breaking out around the air bases apron, where fighter jets were previously seen parked.

Another fire burned Thursday in Russia's Rostov region, where firefighters struggled for a fifth day to put out flames at an oil depot following a Ukrainian attack in the town of Proletarsk. State news agency Tass said 47 firefighters have been injured while putting out the blaze.

Satellite photos from Planet Labs PBC analyzed Thursday by The Associated Press showed the fire at the oil depot still intensely burning as of Wednesday. Storage tanks at the facility appeared engulfed in flames. Flames could be seen in the images, with a thick black smoke cloud drifting west over the city of Proletarsk.

Associated Press writers Emma Burrows in London and Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed to this report.
The Astros are signing right-hander Hector Neris, reports Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 on X. The righty was released by the Cubs earlier this week. Assuming its a major league deal, the Astros will need to make corresponding moves to get the righty onto their active and 40-man rosters once the deal is made official.

Neris, 35, returns to an organization that he has had success with. After many successful years with the Phillies, Neris joined the Astros going into 2022. He signed a two-year, $17MM deal with a club option for 2024, though he could vest that into a player option based on the number of appearances he made for the club during the life of the contract.

Over those two years in Houston, Neris got into 141 regular season contests, allowing 2.69 earned runs per nine. He struck out 29.1% of batters faced and gave out walks at a 9% clip. He earned five saves and 56 holds in that time. He also made 15 postseason appearances over those two years, including eight in 2022 with a 1.50 ERA, helping Houston win its second World Series title.

By July of 2023, he had made his 110th regular-season appearance with the club, thus converting the club option into a player option. He eventually decided to turn that down, taking the $1MM buyout and returning to free agency, rather than agreeing to the $8.5MM salary.

He eventually signed with the Cubs for the 2024 season, a one-year, $9MM guarantee. Again, there was a club/player option provision, this time with a $9MM salary on the table for 2025. It would begin as a club option that could become a player option with 60 appearances or 45 games finished in 2024.

His time as a Cub was mixed. He made 46 appearances for them this year with a 3.89 ERA that doesnt look too bad at first blush. However, his 23.5% strikeout rate and 13.3% walk rate were both significant drop-offs from his previous work. He managed to dance around those free passes a bit with a 76.9% strand rate thats on the lucky side, perhaps why his 4.09 FIP and 4.36 SIERA were a bit worse than his ERA.

The Cubs decided to set him loose, releasing him earlier this week. That was likely a reflection of his diminished performance but also the Cubs not wanting him to unlock that player option. Since Neris was released and no club grabbed him off waivers, that option is now dead and wont carry over to any new deal he signs.

Though he hasnt been as crisp this year, its a sensible pickup for the Astros. For one thing, theres no real financial cost. Because they released him, the Cubs are on the hook for the majority of his 2024 salary that is still to be paid out. The Astros only have to pay him the prorated version of the $740K league minimum salary for any time Neris spends on the roster, with that amount subtracted from what the Cubs pay.

The Astros have also taken a few hits in their bullpen. Kendall Graveman, Penn Murfee, Oliver Ortega and Bennett Sousa are all currently on the 60-day injured list, with each of them undergoing a significant surgery earlier this year. Righty Ryan Pressly also landed on the 15-day IL a few days ago due to a low back strain. Theres nothing to suggest Pressly is slated for a lengthy absence, but its another gap in the relief corps until he comes back.

Perhaps a return to a familiar environment can get Neris back on track after some wobbles this year. Even if that doesnt quite come to pass, its a low-cost signing that lengthens the clubs depth for the stretch run and postseason.
Dear Eric: My sons are currently 26 and 24 years old. Both went to amazing colleges and currently have six-figure careers. They both moved back home when their colleges shut down for COVID.

Neither son is looking to launch from the nest, blaming high costs of living in our area, blaming boomers for ruining the world, etc. They have a bad attitude when asked to do anything and contribute zero dollars to the household except pay their minimal student loan, car insurance and cellphone bill.

I am exhausted from constant cleaning, meal prep. The levels of entitlement and expectations are absurd. Ive asked for help, suggested they each take charge of dinner one night a week (cook or takeout!) and nothing is sticking.

I have even given a harsh deadline or two to the oldest. I dont know how to get them launched without damaging our relationships further.

PS involving their father, from whom Im amicably separated, is useless. He has refused to take care of himself over the last 20 years, is consumed with his illnesses, is not a positive role model and now has dementia.

 Overworked Mom

Dear Mom: Your sons are making six figures, dont have rent, and are treating their mother as their maid? Im calling the Hague.

Theyre going through a strange phase of life and think that being catered to is just part of your job. Absolutely false.

And I dont see what boomers ruining the world has to do with not cleaning up the house.

At this point, youve got to make things hard in order for them to get better.

Stop cooking for them, start charging them rent, take them off of your cellphone plan. Be clear with them that you have to do this because youre being treated with disrespect. The financial burden theyre placing on you will impact your retirement and your quality of life.

And make the rent equivalent to what it would be in your area. How do they expect to make it in the world if they dont know how to realistically budget for the world? Putting some financial requirements on them is a way of parenting them into adulthood.

Im going to be frank with you: its going to cause conflict. And some of your sons behavior may be a response to depression or trauma. You dont have to carry the burden of making everything OK, though.

Send questions to R. Eric Thomas at eric@askingeric.com or P.O. Box 22474, Philadelphia, PA 19110. Follow him on Instagram and sign up for his weekly newsletter at rericthomas.com.

2024 Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
The Jelly Roll Beautifully Broken Tour 2024 is coming to Detroits Little Caesars Arena in early November. Find tickets for under $100.

Shop Jelly Roll tickets on Vivid Seats, SeatGeek, StubHub, and Ticketmaster for more ticket options.

Jelly Roll performs during CMA Fest on Saturday, June 8, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. The country star is set to bring his "Beautifully Broken" tour to Birmingham in November 2024.(Photo by Amy Harris/Invision/AP)

Last month, country artist Jelly Roll added Little Caesars Arena to his 2024 tour route, now stopping in Detroit on Wednesday, November 6. The Beautifully Broken North American tour  with support from guests Warren Zeiders, Alexandra Kay, ERNEST, Shaboozey, and Allie Colleen  officially begins next Tuesday, August 27 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, and will have played arenas in Seattle, Los Angeles, New Orleans, Boston, Columbus, and more before performing in Michigan.

A blend of country, rock, and sometimes hip-hop Jelly Roll is known for his popular singles Son of a Sinner from 2021 and Need a Favor from 2022, as well as for collaborations with artists like mgk (Machine Gun Kelly), Jessie Murph, Lainey Wilson, and Post Malone.

See Jelly Roll live at Little Caesars Arena on Wednesday, November 6 (ticket prices listed below).

Tickets: Vivid Seats from $88 | SeatGeek from $83 | StubHub from $88 | Ticketmaster from $128
CHELSEA, MI - Students will have a new person ensuring theyre safe and sound when classes start in the Chelsea School District on Monday.

The district has hired a director of safety and security in a new grant-funded, two-year pilot position that school administrators said lines up with long-term strategic plans.

Douglas Whitsel, whose leadership in criminal justice education with the U.S. Air Force was highlighted in his recommendation for the position, will oversee all safety and security protocols across the district as school resumes on Aug. 26.

This includes developing and implementing safety plans, coordinating with local law enforcement and emergency services, overseeing safety drills, and ensuring compliance with safety regulations, Chelsea Superintendent Mike Kapolka said in an email.

This position will also actively engage with school staff, students daily, fostering relationships, and providing a reassuring presence.

Whitsels salary will be $86,600, Kapolka said.

A portion of state mental health and school safety grant money Chelsea received in 2023 will finance the position. According to the Michigan Department of Education, Chelsea had been recommended for $523,665 in funds.

Whitsel could not be immediately reached for comment.

The final green light to hire Whitsel came at the Monday, Aug. 19 Chelsea School Board meeting after a months-long hiring and planning process.

Of the original 74 applicants for the position, 35 were selected for a screening interview, while five were chosen for an interview with a panel that included John Seto, director of operations for Security Services at the University of Michigan; Lisa Nickel, the districts director of special education; Assistant Superintendent Marcus Kaemming and Chelsea Police Chief Kevin Kayzak.

Two were brought in for another round of interviews with Kaemming and Kapolka, as well as Chelsea schools officials Ross Potgiesser, director of operations; Ryan Spencer, director of technology; Nicole Darby, chief financial officer; and one teacher and two parents.

I will tell you, personally, it was kind of like, is there somebody that fits this job description, because it really was a unicorn, and we wanted to make sure we were doing the right thing because its kind of a touchy subject, Board President Kate Henson said.

But it helped me to have some conversations with Mike (Kapolka), and he reminded me that you guys do a great job of hiring people that fit our culture in our district. So, Im excited for whats to come and for Whitsel to join the team.

Chelsea saw the director as essential to sustaining the strong connection between physical safety and social-emotional well-being, Kapolka said.

If you would like more reporting like this delivered free to your inbox, click here and signup for our weekly newsletter: Michigan Schools.

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GENESEE COUNTY, MI -- Flags over Genesee County government buildings are flying at half-staff to honor the late Archie Bailey, a former mayor of Flushing and chair of the county Board of Commissioners.

Current commission Chair James Avery, D-Grand Blanc, ordered the flags be lowered on Thursday, Aug. 22, in recognition of Bailey, who died on Aug. 2 at age 87.

A retired school teacher, counselor and administrator in the Flushing School District, Bailey served as a commissioner from 2002 until 2014 and was elected chair of the county board in 2007.

Related: Former Flushing educator, mayor and county commissioner was a force to be reckoned with

Throughout his life, he was involved in his own and dozens of other political campaigns and causes and was a past president of the Michigan Municipal League and the Flushing Education Association.

Flushing was at his heart, former state Rep. Rick Hammel told MLive-The Flint Journal after hearing of Baileys death. He was a really good man (who) researched everything (and) always seemed to be looking at the political consequences and ramifications of his actions.

Bailey was the husband of the late Sue Bailey, who also served as a county commissioner and as the countys chief deputy clerk.
FLINT, MI  The Flint Police Department will host a career fair and meet and greet event on Thursday, Aug. 22, for area residents to learn more about employment opportunities.

Flint police are hiring for full-time officers, part-time officers, an intelligence analyst and a police academy trainee, according to an announcement from GST Michigan Works.

The career fair will go from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 22 at the Flint Police Department, 210 E. 5th St.

Food trucks, tactical vehicles, a bounce house, dunk tank and more will be up and running at the event.

The event is hosted in partnership with GST Michigan Works and Financial Plus Credit Union.

Want more Flint-area news? Bookmark the local Flint news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Flint daily newsletter.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI  As a server at Uccellos Ristorante in Caledonia, Brittany Jones says shes able to earn enough money to make ends meet for her and her two children.

But the 35-year-old single mother fears that could change when a new state minimum wage law takes effect next year.
CALHOUN COUNTY, MI  A Utah man escaped injury when he made an emergency landing in a cornfield in Calhoun County Wednesday morning.

Rescue crews were called to the aircraft emergency at 10:36 a.m. Aug. 21, in the cornfield in Clarendon Township, west of Homer, according to the Calhoun County Sheriffs Office.
MUSKEGON COUNTY, MI - A major internet service provider has made up to gigabit-speed internet accessible to rural parts of Muskegon County.

Spectrum on Wednesday, Aug. 21, said it has completed the first phase of a $2.2 million fiberoptic network in Ravenna Township, giving more than 120 rural homes and small businesses access to high-speed internet, mobile, TV and voice services.

The company expects to outfit about 400 more addresses in the township later this year.

Ravenna Township has a population of just under 3,000, according to the 2020 census.

Spectrum boasts internet speeds of up to 1 Gbps for residential and business customers, with starting speeds of 300 Mbps.

The fiberoptic buildout in Ravenna Township is part of an approximately $9 billion investment in 1.75 million unserved rural customer locations across 24 states.

Our investment is making it possible to deliver the high-value broadband, mobile, TV and voice services now available in Muskegon County, Thomas Yates, vice president of construction for Spectrums Michigan buildouts, said in a statement.

We are providing residents and small businesses superior connectivity at highly competitive prices, backed by a team of skilled local technicians and 100% U.S.-based customer service.

Spectrum received $2 billion from the Federal Communications Commissions (FCC) Rural Digital Opportunity Fund to help finance these projects.

The FCC established the fund in 2020 and allocated up to $20.4 billion to finance the construction of gigabit-speed broadband networks in rural areas over 10 years.

I am grateful that broadband expansion is coming to Muskegon County, thanks to Spectrums investment through the RDOF program, said state Rep. Luke Meerman, R-Coopersville, whose district includes Ravenna Township. Our communities look forward to expanded access to reliable connectivity.

Spectrums gigabit fiber internet has been available to parts of Muskegon County since 2019, and the company said it will continue to expand there, thanks to the RDOF program.

In addition to Ravenna Township, Spectrum plans to build fiber networks in Cedar Creek, Egelston, Holton, Moorland and Sullivan townships.

The company also said it will expand its existing service areas in Blue Lake, Casanovia, Dalton and Fruitport townships.

Construction on the rest of the network is expected to continue through much of 2025. Residents and businesses who want to see if they are in Spectrums build or service area can enter their address on the companys website.

Want more Muskegon-area news? Bookmark the local Muskegon news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Muskegon daily newsletter.

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2 developers take on affordable housing project in Holland

Muskegon food hall snags new tenants ahead of grand opening

Muskegons own Rosie the Riveter returns to plant she worked at during WWII

Whats being built on East Beltline? It will have lots of books  and Mexican food
CHICAGO, IL  Pete Buttigieg joined a chorus of political leaders and celebrities this week to portray Vice President Kamala Harris as a practitioner of politics inclusive to families of diverse backgrounds.

Buttigieg, the U.S. Secretary of Transportation and a Traverse City resident, was scheduled as one of the premier speakers during the third night of Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday, Aug. 21.

His 7-minute address involved the former U.S. Navy lieutenant  a veteran of the U.S. conflict in Afghanistan  talking about how Harris offered a more positive form of politics than her Republic opponent in the presidential race, Donald Trump.

America is ready for a better kind of politics, Buttigieg said.

The former mayor of South Bend was critical both of Trump and his running mate, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, of Ohio.

J.D. Vance is one of those guys that thinks, if you dont live the life he has in mind for you, then you dont count, Buttigieg said.

He referenced a quote from Vance, who has said, childless individuals have no physical commitment to the future of this country.

You know, senator, Buttigieg said during Wednesdays address, when I deployed to Afghanistan, I didnt have kids then. Many of the men and women who went outside the wire with me didnt have kids either. But, let me tell you, our commitment to the future of this country was pretty damn physical.

Buttigieg was critical of Trumps politics and the former presidents selection of Vance as a running mate.

Choosing a guy like J.D. Vance to be Americas next vice president sends a message, and the message is that they are doubling down on negativity and grievance, committing to a concept of campaigning best summed up in one word: Darkness, Buttigieg said. The thing is, I just dont believe America today is in the market for darkness.

Buttigieg railed against Trump-style politics he said divided loved ones.

Theyre telling you that your neighbor or nephew or daughter who disagrees with you isnt just wrong, but now theyre the enemy, Buttigieg said. I believe in a better politics; one that finds us at our most decent and open and great; the kind of politics that Kamala Harris (and running mate) Tim Walz are offering.

Buttigieg said there is a joy in the politics practiced by the likes of Harris and Walz.

I have come to this view, not by way of idealism, but by way of experience, said Buttigieg, who is gay and married to Michigan-born Chasten Buttigieg.

Im thinking of dinnertime at our house in Michigan, when the dog is barking and the air fryer is beeping and the mac-and-cheese is boiling over and it feels like all the political negotiating experience in the world is not enough for me to get our 3-year-old son and our 3-year-old daughter to just wash their hands and sit at the table.

Pete Buttigieg said those moments feel the most distant from politics.

And yet the makeup of my kitchen table  the existence of my family  is just one example of something that was literally impossible as recently as 25 years ago, when an anxious teenager growing up in Indiana wondered if he would ever feel belonging in this world.

He said his experience growing into a gay men, and then raising children with another gay man, was the result of the brand of politics he endorses.

The right kind of politics; the kind of politics that can make an impossible dream into an everyday reality, Buttigieg told the crowd.

I dont presume to know what its like in your kitchen, but I know  as sure as I am standing here  that everything in it  the bills you paid at that table, the shape of the family that sits there, the fears and the dreams that you talk about late into the night  all of it compels us to demand more from our politics than a rerun of some TV wrestling death match.

He said Harris represents that better politics.

That is what awaits us when America decides to end Trumps politics of darkness once and for all, Buttigieg said. That is what we choose when we embrace the leaders who are out there building bridges and reject the ones who are out there, banning books.

Buttigieg was among a lineup of day-three convention speakers that included Walz; former President Bill Clinton; and U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the former Speaker of the House. Oprah Winfrey, Stevie Wonder and Michigan Secretary of State Dana Nessel were among the days presenters too.

All endorsed Harris as the next president.

Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, was among the Democratic leaders considered a potential running mate for Harris this summer.

He has remained a frequent advocate for her campaign during guest appearances on political talk shows, including on networks typically associated with conservative-leaning viewership.

Buttigieg was elected mayor of South Bend in 2012 and served in that capacity until 2020.

He was among an early slate of candidates  along with Harris  seeking the 2020 Democratic nomination for president that Biden eventually secured.

Although Buttigieg withdrew his name from the race nine days earlier, he received 1.4% of votes in the March 2020 Michigan presidential primary election for Democrats.

One month before the 2020 Michigan presidential primary, though, Buttigieg experienced significant early victories in his bid for the presidency. He won the Iowa caucuses and placed second in the New Hampshire primary.

While the 42-year-old South Bend native did not practice politics in Michigan, he moved to the state in 2022 with his husband.

Were here because of family, Buttigieg said in July 2022. When I married Chasten, I married into Michigan at some level to begin with, but it was really the arrival of our children that cemented our relationship to Traverse City.
CHICAGO, IL  At the Democratic National Convention here, Michigans first openly gay statewide elected official delivered a fiery message in support of Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and her history fighting for LGBTQ+ rights.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel was the latest politician from the state at this weeks convention to support Vice President Harris, who once served as attorney general in California.

Being attorney general is a tough job but, as Californias attorney general, Kamala Harris has never shied away from a good fight, Nessel said during the Wednesday, Aug. 21, address. Shes held accountable environmental polluters, sexual abusers and transnational gangs, but what really stands out is when she stood up and protected her constituents freedoms.

Nessel referenced Harris work as attorney general more than a decade ago, when she opposed a ban on same-sex marriage in California.

She refused to argue that some families should have fewer rights than other families, Nessel said of Harris. She was fighting for families like mine.

Nessel is married to Alanna Maguire. The two women are raising twin sons together in southeast Michigan.

Nessel compared the California same-sex marriage ban to the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision that stripped away womens constitutional protections for abortions.

After Roe v. Wade was overturned, Michigans archaic abortion ban was resurrected, but Vice President Harris had my back, Nessel said. She reminded me that protecting peoples lives and defending their rights is our job. And, just as the same-sex marriage ban was overturned in California, so too was the abortion ban in Michigan.

Nessel then delivered a message she said was intended for Republicans and U.S. Supreme Court justices.

You can pry this wedding band from my cold, dead, gay hand, Nessel said, inspiring cheers from the crowd. And, Im retaining a lot of water, so good luck with that.

Nessel received applause from the convention center even before she launched into her 3-minute-long remarks. After she was introduced, the crowd welcomed her with repeated chants of her name, Dana.

Nessel has served as Michigans attorney general since voters elected her to the office in 2018. She won a second term in 2022.

The University of Michigan and Wayne State University Law School graduate carries a law enforcement resume that includes working as an assistant prosecutor in Wayne County.

Nessel operated in that role for more than a decade before, in 2005, she opened her own law firm.

Nessel is one part of the lineup of three Democratic women serving in Michigans top public offices.

That lineup includes Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who was announced as a Democratic National Convention speaker scheduled to address the United Center crowd Thursday, Aug. 22.
CHICAGO, IL  Michigan native Stevie Wonder performed one of his classic hits to thunderous ovation at the Democratic National Convention here.

The iconic Motown Records musician encouraged the crowd in Chicagos United Center to vote before launching into a live performance of Higher Ground, the hit single from Wonders 1973 album, Innervision.

This is the moment to remember, when you tell your children where you were and what you did, the 74-year-old told the crowd. We stand between historys pain and tomorrows promises. We must choose courage over complacency. It is time to get up and go vote.

Wonder encouraged the audience to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democrat campaigning for the White House.

We must keep on keeping on until we truly are a united people of these United States, Wonder said. And then we will reach our higher ground. Are we ready? Because, you know, we need Kamala Harris.

After also endorsing her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Wonder stepped in front of a piano and launched into Higher Ground alongside band members and dancers.

The performance remains available on YouTube by clicking here. Wonder begins Higher Ground at about the 4-minute mark.

Higher Ground was produced by Tamla, a subsidiary of Motown Records, founded in Detroit.

Wonder, born in Saginaw, was among a lineup of Motown Records musicians that blazed a trail on Billboard charts largely in the 1960s. Its most successful musicians included The Jackson 5, Smokey Robinson, The Supremes, The Temptations, Marvin Gaye and The Four Tops.
Although foreign investors own a fraction of U.S. farmland  about 3.4%  Michigan recently saw a jump in foreign-held acreage.

The number of foreign-owned acres went from 5.8% to 8.6% of all agricultural land two years ago, the latest federal data shows, putting Michigan among the top states for increases. Colorado had an increase of 557,000 acres, Alabama with 514,000 acres and Michigan recorded 461,000 acres.

These increases mostly reflect large purchases of forest land in Alabama and Michigan while increases in Colorado are mostly cropland and pasture, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in its annual report on the foreign holdings of farmland, which includes cropland, pastures and forests.

The following map shows which Michigan counties have the most foreign-owned agricultural acres and the top countries of foreign investors.

Despite a steady climb since 2017, foreign ownership remains a sliver of all U.S. agricultural land with the largest acreages in Maine, Colorado, Alabama and Michigan. Nearly half of the foreign-owned agricultural acres are forestland and a growing number of leased acres are being used for wind farms.

Related: Upper Peninsula forestland increasingly bought by foreign landowners

In Michigan, the bulk of the investment is in the Upper Peninsula where 90% of all foreign-owned acres are located. Keweenaw County ranks the highest with 370,345 acres followed by nine other Upper Peninsula counties. More than 96% of the foreign-owned acres in the Upper Peninsula are forestland.

This database shows the number of Michigans foreign-owned acres by country:

Bill Knudson, an economist from Michigan State University, says the biggest misconception is the scale of foreign investment in agricultural land. Only about 3.4% of all American farmland acres are owned by foreign entities with Canadian investors owning the largest stake of 14 million acres.

Theres a lot less foreign ownership than people think there is, Knudson said.

Of all foreign-held agricultural land in Michigan, Dutch investors own 24%, Canadian investors own roughly 20% and all others own about half.

It can be tricky pinpointing who exactly the foreign landowners are because the latest federal data is three years old. Additionally, many of the listed owners are LLCs that dont always reveal the parent company.

In the Upper Peninsula, one of the major foreign landowners is a timber investment firm called GMO Threshold Timber Michigan LLC. The company, which has ties to the Netherlands, held 433,212 acres across the Upper Peninsula per the latest detailed ownership report in 2021. Another is Great Lakes Forests LLC 1 and Great Lakes Forests Inc. 2, both incorporated by a Boston law firm in 2016, which own 361,349 acres. Their filings with the USDA name Canada and the United Kingdom.

Related: Guided hikes in Keweenaw Heartlands to highlight links to flagship preserves

Another misconception about farmland: Chinese investment.

Less than 1% of all foreign-owned agricultural acres are tied to Chinese investors, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Despite that, some lawmakers have raised Chinese farmland ownership as a national security concern with 33 states reportedly introducing bills last year to restrict it.

In Michigan, the USDA report shows zero farmland acres are tied to China.

Knudson says U.S. farmland attracts foreign buyers because its a good investment.

Farmland real estate values have steadily climbed over the years, most recently going up 7.4% from 2022 to 2023 following a 12% jump the year prior. In Michigan, farm real estate went up 9.4% from 2022  averaging $6,400  and 11.3% a year before that.

Its considered a pretty safe investment, Knudson said.
The Democratic National Convention was a destination for party members across the country to join and discuss their plan to win the election. As delegates, speakers, and politicians walked the halls McCormick Place in Chicago this week it was evident: Pro-Palestinian wear was all the rave.

Uncommitted Delegate Jonathan Simonds told Reckon that seeing the movements buttons and stoles worn around the convention, and having people walk to him to ask where they can get one, brought visibility to the popularity of the issue.

I was inspired to see that, Simonds said. When the top leaders of the party walk into the convention hall at the United Center and look around, they see us. They see our movement, and they know that were not going away.

Keffiyehs, the traditional Arab headdress that has become a symbol of Palestinian solidarity, were draped over shoulders and wrapped around necks. Democrats for Palestinian Rights stoles adorned formal attire, while pro-Palestinian bags and buttons punctuated the sea of blue and red typical of such gatherings.

Daniel Denvir, an alternate Undocumented delegate for Rhode Island said he wore his Democrats for Palestinian Rights gear to support his fellow Uncommitted delegates, the Palestinian people, and to send a message to the administration.

For me, its absolutely of the greatest moral urgency that the U.S. stop sending bombs to Israel, that Israel is using to commit a genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza, he said. And [were here] to make it clear that supporting Palestinian Liberation and an end to the genocide is a mainstream democratic issue that the party needs to urgently make a shift.

I was charging my phone in the DNC hallway (Im the alternate uncommitted delegate from RI), Jimmy Carters grandson Jason Carter spotted my keffiyeh-pattern stole, thanked me, and gave me a fist bump  https://t.co/bvGksAwHoK pic.twitter.com/q3LcVRGko0  Daniel Denvir (@DanielDenvir) August 21, 2024

The fashion trend at the DNC is more than skin-deep. It reflects a growing movement within the Democratic Party pushing for a shift in U.S. policy towards Israel and Palestine. This movement gained significant traction during the primary season, with more than 700,000 Democratic voters casting uncommitted ballots. This unprecedented show of protest voiced concern over President Bidens support of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus military campaign in the Gaza Strip and the resulting humanitarian crisis.

The presence of these Uncommitted delegates at the DNC underscores the depth of this issue within the party. Layla Elabed, co-chair of the Uncommitted National Movement, emphasized the urgency of the situation during Mondays Voices for Justice panel at the convention: All of us being here in this room, being on this panel, is not going to save lives, she said. A policy change, a policy shift, a change in course, is the only thing right now that will accomplish a ceasefire and save lives and end the occupation of Palestinians.

Packed house for the Palestine panel at the DNC. This feels like a defining moment in so many ways. I saw so many wearing ceasefire pins, shirts, flags, and kuffiyehs in the halls too. pic.twitter.com/uaXxFYO8Hu  Rep. Ruwa Romman (@Ruwa4Georgia) August 19, 2024

Just hours later, a banner that read Stop Arming Israel, was ripped from the hands of protesters seated at the United Center. The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) condemned the DNC audience member for assaulting the Muslim delegate who was holding the Stop Arming Israel sign. In a strong statement, CAIR called for criminal charges to be filed against the individual responsible for the assault.

Im at the DNC. Palestinian protestors quietly held up a cloth banner, I assume calling for a ceasefire, and two white men violently snatched it out of their hands. Prior to this people were told to hold up their signs to cover the banner as Biden spoke about democracy. #DNC2024 pic.twitter.com/oZrxgYLg92  Renee Bracey Sherman (@RBraceySherman) August 20, 2024

After DNC proceedings wrapped, I spoke with Babar Khan  a delegate wearing a keffiyeh from MN. He called himself Committed to the party & understanding of Kamala Harris limited influence over current Gaza policy but keen to see a statement shell move in a different direction pic.twitter.com/avEdb1MfzV  Akbar Shahid Ahmed (@AkbarSAhmed) August 21, 2024

You dont have to be uncommitted to support human rights, Minnesota Delegate Babar Khan told HuffPost senior diplomatic correspondent Akbar Shahid Ahmed.

As the week progressed, tensions flared Wednesday night when the Uncommitted movements request to have a Palestinian-American speaker on stage was denied by the Harris administration. Delegates staged a sit-in, which is currently ongoing at the time of publication. The decision also led to the disbanding of Muslim Women for Harris-Walz, a pro-Harris group, who stated they could not in good conscience continue their support in light of this development.

By Thursday morning, the number of keffiyehs in the DNC halls had dwindled from the first day of the convention, presumably in support of Pro-Palestinian events that occurred in other areas of the city, or in support of the sit-in.

As the convention progresses, the question remains: Will this visible show of solidarity translate into concrete policy changes? The Democratic Partys approach to the Israel-Palestine conflict could prove to be a defining issue in the upcoming election, potentially influencing voter turnout and support among key demographics.

Recent polling data underscores the political significance of this issue. A survey conducted by YouGov for the Institute for Middle Eastern Understanding (IMEU) Policy Project in key swing states revealed that a substantial portion of Democratic and Independent voters would be more likely to support Vice President Kamala Harris if she backed cutting off weapons to Israeli forces. The poll found that across Arizona, Georgia, and Pennsylvania, 80% or more of Democrats and Independents support a permanent cease-fire, while 60% or more disapprove of sending more weapons to Israel.
Kenta Maeda gave up six runs, including a grand slam to catcher Miguel Amaya, as the Chicago Cubs beat the Detroit Tigers 10-2 in the series finale Thursday afternoon at Wrigley Field.

The Cubs (63-65) took two of three from the Tigers (62-66).
Adtran Networks SE (OTCMKTS:ADVOF  Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $20.19 and last traded at $20.19, with a volume of 0 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $20.19.

Adtran Networks Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 84.13 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a 50 day moving average of $21.11 and a 200 day moving average of $21.28.

About Adtran Networks

(Get Free Report)

Adtran Networks SE engages in the development, manufacture, and sale optical and Ethernet-based networking solutions for telecommunications carriers and enterprises to deliver data, storage, voice, and video services worldwide. It offers open optical transport solutions, such as FSP 3000 open terminals, FSP 3000 open line systems, pluggables and subsystems, and optical access solutions; packet edge and aggregation products, including carrier Ethernet and programmable multilayer edge, metro aggregation, and edge computing products; disaggregated networking, such as packet optical terminals and ensemble activators.

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Jaguar Mining (OTCMKTS:JAGGD  Get Free Report) is one of 109 publicly-traded companies in the Metal Mining industry, but how does it weigh in compared to its rivals? We will compare Jaguar Mining to similar businesses based on the strength of its institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings, valuation, risk and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares Jaguar Mining and its rivals net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

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Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Jaguar Mining 28.17% 26.75% 17.80% Jaguar Mining Competitors -82.08% -3.43% -3.29%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Jaguar Mining and its rivals, as reported by MarketBeat.

Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Jaguar Mining 0 0 0 0 N/A Jaguar Mining Competitors 1194 2569 3125 121 2.31

Dividends

As a group, Metal Mining companies have a potential upside of 27.89%. Given Jaguar Minings rivals higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Jaguar Mining has less favorable growth aspects than its rivals.

Jaguar Mining pays an annual dividend of $0.25 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.7%. Jaguar Mining pays out 49.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, Metal Mining companies pay a dividend yield of 3.2% and pay out 80.7% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. Jaguar Mining is clearly a better dividend stock than its rivals, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

28.2% of shares of all Metal Mining companies are held by institutional investors. 13.0% of shares of all Metal Mining companies are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Jaguar Mining and its rivals revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

Gross Revenue Net Income Price/Earnings Ratio Jaguar Mining $97.23 million -$150,000.00 7.34 Jaguar Mining Competitors $6.79 billion $973.46 million -4.75

Jaguar Minings rivals have higher revenue and earnings than Jaguar Mining. Jaguar Mining is trading at a higher price-to-earnings ratio than its rivals, indicating that it is currently more expensive than other companies in its industry.

Volatility and Risk

Jaguar Mining has a beta of 2.75, suggesting that its share price is 175% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Jaguar Minings rivals have a beta of 1.15, suggesting that their average share price is 15% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Jaguar Mining beats its rivals on 7 of the 12 factors compared.

About Jaguar Mining

(Get Free Report)

Jaguar Mining, Inc. engages in the acquisition, exploration, development and operation of gold producing properties in Brazil. Its mining operations include Turmalina, Paciencia and Caete. The firm is also developing the Grurupi Project and exploring the Iron Quadrangle and Pedra Branca Project. The company was founded by Daniel R. Titcomb in 1984 and is headquartered Toronto, Canada.

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Canadian Apartment Properties REIT (TSE:CAR.UN  Get Free Report) has received an average recommendation of Moderate Buy from the eleven research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is C$56.77.

CAR.UN has been the topic of several analyst reports. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Canadian Apartment Properties REIT from C$58.00 to C$59.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Cormark raised their target price on Canadian Apartment Properties REIT from C$56.00 to C$57.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. National Bankshares reduced their price target on Canadian Apartment Properties REIT from C$60.00 to C$56.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. TD Securities lowered their price objective on Canadian Apartment Properties REIT from C$63.00 to C$60.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their target price on Canadian Apartment Properties REIT from C$54.00 to C$54.25 in a report on Friday, August 9th.

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Canadian Apartment Properties REIT Price Performance

Canadian Apartment Properties REIT Company Profile

Shares of CAR.UN opened at C$51.27 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 76.05, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.36. The firm has a market cap of C$8.57 billion, a PE ratio of -160.22, a PEG ratio of -10.12 and a beta of 1.22. The firms 50 day moving average price is C$46.94 and its 200 day moving average price is C$46.41. Canadian Apartment Properties REIT has a twelve month low of C$40.52 and a twelve month high of C$54.60.

(Get Free Report

CAPREIT is Canadas largest publicly traded provider of quality rental housing. As at December 31, 2023, CAPREIT owns approximately 64,300 residential apartment suites, townhomes and manufactured home community sites that are well-located across Canada and the Netherlands, with approximately $16.5 billion of investment properties in Canada and Europe.

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Cellnex Telecom, S.A. (OTCMKTS:CLNXF  Get Free Report) rose 3.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $37.73 and last traded at $37.73. Approximately 139 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 95% from the average daily volume of 2,711 shares. The stock had previously closed at $36.52.

Cellnex Telecom Stock Up 3.3 %

The businesss fifty day simple moving average is $34.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $35.23.

About Cellnex Telecom

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Cellnex Telecom, SA operates infrastructure for wireless telecommunication in Austria, Denmark, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Switzerland. It operates through three segments: Telecom Infrastructure Services, Broadcasting Infrastructure, and Other Network Services.

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Chemtrade Logistics Income Fund (TSE:CHE.UN  Free Report) had its price target lifted by Scotiabank from C$10.50 to C$11.00 in a research report released on Monday morning, BayStreet.CA reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on CHE.UN. National Bankshares upped their price objective on Chemtrade Logistics Income Fund from C$13.50 to C$14.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Chemtrade Logistics Income Fund from C$11.00 to C$12.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. CIBC raised their price objective on shares of Chemtrade Logistics Income Fund from C$13.50 to C$14.00 in a report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Desjardins upped their target price on shares of Chemtrade Logistics Income Fund from C$13.00 to C$13.25 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of C$12.85.

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Chemtrade Logistics Income Fund Stock Performance

Chemtrade Logistics Income Fund Dividend Announcement

Shares of CHE.UN stock opened at C$9.94 on Monday. The company has a market cap of C$1.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.86 and a beta of 1.49. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of C$9.36 and a 200 day moving average price of C$8.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 128.22. Chemtrade Logistics Income Fund has a 12 month low of C$7.60 and a 12 month high of C$10.11.

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be given a dividend of $0.055 per share. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 31st. Chemtrade Logistics Income Funds dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.52%.

About Chemtrade Logistics Income Fund

(Get Free Report)

Chemtrade Logistics Income Fund provides industrial chemicals and services in Canada, the United States, and South America. It operates through Sulphur Products & Performance Chemicals (SPPC), Water Solutions & Specialty Chemicals (WSSC), and Electrochemicals (EC) segments. The SPPC segment removes and/or produces merchant, regenerated, and ultra pure sulphuric acid, sodium hydrosulphite, elemental sulphur, liquid sulphur dioxide, hydrogen sulphide, sodium bisulphite, and sulphides.

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Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG  Free Report) by 6,417.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,300 shares of the restaurant operators stock after purchasing an additional 7,188 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLCs holdings in Chipotle Mexican Grill were worth $457,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill during the 1st quarter worth about $53,979,000. Transform Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 4,760.7% in the second quarter. Transform Wealth LLC now owns 9,527 shares of the restaurant operators stock valued at $597,000 after buying an additional 9,331 shares during the period. First Hawaiian Bank raised its holdings in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 4,731.0% in the second quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 17,150 shares of the restaurant operators stock valued at $1,074,000 after buying an additional 16,795 shares during the period. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 4,747.7% in the second quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 20,409 shares of the restaurant operators stock valued at $1,279,000 after buying an additional 19,988 shares during the period. Finally, MJP Associates Inc. ADV raised its holdings in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 5,588.0% in the second quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 12,798 shares of the restaurant operators stock valued at $802,000 after buying an additional 12,573 shares during the period. 91.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $61.00 to $56.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $54.50 to $55.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a buy rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a buy rating and set a $69.00 price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $62.36.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Curtis E. Garner sold 17,394 shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.68, for a total value of $951,103.92. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 358,300 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $19,591,844. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.02% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Stock Up 3.4 %

Chipotle Mexican Grill stock traded up $1.79 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $53.73. The companys stock had a trading volume of 14,527,004 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,202,653. The stocks 50-day moving average price is $122.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $80.76. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. has a 12 month low of $35.37 and a 12 month high of $69.26. The company has a market capitalization of $73.78 billion, a PE ratio of 57.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.24.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG  Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The restaurant operator reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $2.94 billion. Chipotle Mexican Grill had a net margin of 13.23% and a return on equity of 44.01%. Chipotle Mexican Grills revenue for the quarter was up 18.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $12.65 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. will post 1.09 EPS for the current year.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Profile

(Free Report)

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, owns and operates Chipotle Mexican Grill restaurants. It sells food and beverages through offering burritos, burrito bowls, quesadillas, tacos, and salads. The company also provides delivery and related services its app and website. It has operations in the United States, Canada, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

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Shares of Echelon Financial Holdings Inc. (EFH.TO) (TSE:EFH  Get Free Report) shot up 2% during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as C$1.51 and last traded at C$1.51. 2,900 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 94% from the average session volume of 51,759 shares. The stock had previously closed at C$1.48.

Echelon Financial Holdings Inc. (EFH.TO) Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business has a 50 day moving average price of C$1.51. The company has a market cap of C$18.13 million and a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.55.

Echelon Financial Holdings Inc. (EFH.TO) Company Profile

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Echelon Financial Holdings Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides property and casualty insurance products and services in Canada. It operates in two segments, Personal Lines and Commercial Lines. The Personal Lines segment primarily underwrites automobile and personal property insurance. The Commercial Lines segment designs and underwrites commercial property and automobile insurance.

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Shares of Entrepreneur Universe Bright Group (OTCMKTS:EUBG  Get Free Report) traded down 0% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $0.20 and last traded at $0.26. 2,800 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 90% from the average session volume of 27,020 shares. The stock had previously closed at $0.26.

Entrepreneur Universe Bright Group Stock Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average price of $0.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $0.31.

About Entrepreneur Universe Bright Group

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Entrepreneur Universe Bright Group, through its subsidiaries, provides digital marketing consultation services in the Hong Kong and People's Republic of China. It offers consulting, sourcing, and marketing services. The company was formerly known as REE International, Inc and changed its name to Entrepreneur Universe Bright Group in April 2020.

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Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Danaher Co. (NYSE:DHR  Free Report) by 55.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,586 shares of the conglomerates stock after purchasing an additional 2,002 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLCs holdings in Danaher were worth $1,396,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Danaher in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Tsfg LLC raised its stake in shares of Danaher by 733.3% in the 1st quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 100 shares of the conglomerates stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Danaher in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Danaher in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Danaher in the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.05% of the companys stock.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Danaher news, SVP Brian W. Ellis sold 9,600 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.16, for a total transaction of $2,641,536.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 20,230 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,566,486.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, SVP Brian W. Ellis sold 9,600 shares of Danaher stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.16, for a total value of $2,641,536.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 20,230 shares in the company, valued at $5,566,486.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Linda Filler sold 3,928 shares of Danaher stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.50, for a total transaction of $1,097,876.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 41,149 shares in the company, valued at $11,501,145.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 38,707 shares of company stock worth $10,786,944. Company insiders own 11.10% of the companys stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on DHR. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Danaher from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Danaher from $297.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Danaher from $270.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Danaher from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Danaher from $235.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $276.88.

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Danaher Trading Down 0.2 %

Danaher stock traded down $0.51 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $271.15. 1,455,079 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,837,010. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $258.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $254.08. Danaher Co. has a 52 week low of $182.09 and a 52 week high of $281.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $200.84 billion, a PE ratio of 45.96, a P/E/G ratio of 4.62 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR  Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.15. Danaher had a net margin of 16.94% and a return on equity of 11.06%. The business had revenue of $5.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.05 EPS. Danahers quarterly revenue was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Danaher Co. will post 7.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Danaher

(Free Report)

Danaher Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets professional, medical, industrial, and commercial products and services worldwide. The Biotechnology segments offers bioprocess technologies, consumables, and services that advance, accelerate, and integrate the development and manufacture of therapeutics; cell line and cell culture media development services; cell culture media, process liquids and buffers for manufacturing, chromatography resins, filtration technologies, aseptic fill finish; single-use hardware and consumables and services, such as the design and installation of full manufacturing suites; lab filtration, separation, and purification; lab-scale protein purification and analytical tools; reagents, membranes, and services; and healthcare filtration solutions.

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Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE:TSM  Free Report) by 9.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,860 shares of the semiconductor companys stock after acquiring an additional 439 shares during the period. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLCs holdings in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing were worth $845,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in TSM. Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. LifeSteps Financial Inc. bought a new position in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new position in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. North Star Investment Management Corp. lifted its stake in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing by 670.4% in the 1st quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 208 shares of the semiconductor companys stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sachetta LLC bought a new position in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Institutional investors own 16.51% of the companys stock.

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Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of TSM stock traded down $0.61 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $171.43. 9,425,362 shares of the companys stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 16,096,284. The stocks 50 day simple moving average is $171.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $151.96. The stock has a market cap of $889.11 billion, a PE ratio of 32.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.14. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited has a 12 month low of $84.01 and a 12 month high of $193.47. The company has a quick ratio of 2.21, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Increases Dividend

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing ( NYSE:TSM Get Free Report ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The semiconductor company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.11. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing had a net margin of 37.85% and a return on equity of 25.54%. The firm had revenue of $20.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.14 earnings per share. The companys revenue for the quarter was up 34.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited will post 6.45 EPS for the current year.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.4871 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 12th. This is a boost from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturings previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $1.95 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.14%. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturings dividend payout ratio is 36.95%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on TSM shares. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from $130.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Susquehanna reissued a positive rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from $168.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing from $150.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $200.00.

Check Out Our Latest Analysis on TSM

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Profile

(Free Report)

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, packages, tests, and sells integrated circuits and other semiconductor devices in Taiwan, China, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Japan, the United States, and internationally. It provides a range of wafer fabrication processes, including processes to manufacture complementary metal- oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) logic, mixed-signal, radio frequency, embedded memory, bipolar CMOS mixed-signal, and others.

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Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C  Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 20,559 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,305,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of C. MONECO Advisors LLC boosted its position in Citigroup by 2.9% during the second quarter. MONECO Advisors LLC now owns 5,542 shares of the companys stock worth $352,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Citigroup by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 4,295 shares of the companys stock worth $272,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the period. NorthRock Partners LLC grew its stake in Citigroup by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 6,288 shares of the companys stock valued at $398,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. raised its holdings in Citigroup by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. now owns 16,596 shares of the companys stock worth $1,053,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the period. Finally, Family Legacy Inc. raised its holdings in Citigroup by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Family Legacy Inc. now owns 6,330 shares of the companys stock worth $400,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.72% of the companys stock.

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Citigroup Trading Down 1.3 %

NYSE:C traded down $0.77 on Wednesday, reaching $60.54. The companys stock had a trading volume of 14,411,254 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,893,927. Citigroup Inc. has a 1-year low of $38.17 and a 1-year high of $67.81. The businesss 50-day moving average price is $62.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $60.66. The firm has a market cap of $115.48 billion, a PE ratio of 16.96, a PEG ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Citigroup Increases Dividend

Citigroup ( NYSE:C Get Free Report ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 12th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.13. Citigroup had a net margin of 4.95% and a return on equity of 6.26%. The company had revenue of $20.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $20.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.37 earnings per share. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Citigroup Inc. will post 5.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 5th will be issued a $0.56 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 5th. This is an increase from Citigroups previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.70%. Citigroups dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on C shares. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Citigroup from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an in-line rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Citigroup from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Citigroup from $66.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Citigroup from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Finally, Argus lifted their price objective on Citigroup from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Monday, July 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $68.06.

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Citigroup Profile

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Citigroup Inc, a diversified financial service holding company, provides various financial product and services to consumers, corporations, governments, and institutions worldwide. It operates through five segments: Services, Markets, Banking, U.S. Personal Banking, and Wealth. The Services segment includes Treasury and Trade Solutions, which provides cash management, trade, and working capital solutions to multinational corporations, financial institutions, and public sector organizations; and Securities Services, such as cross-border support for clients, local market expertise, post-trade technologies, data solutions, and various securities services solutions.

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Flexible Solutions International, Inc. (NYSE:FSI  Free Report)  Analysts at Greenridge Global dropped their Q3 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Flexible Solutions International in a research note issued to investors on Monday, August 19th. Greenridge Global analyst W. Gregozeski now anticipates that the company will post earnings of $0.06 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $0.08. The consensus estimate for Flexible Solutions Internationals current full-year earnings is $0.29 per share. Greenridge Global also issued estimates for Flexible Solutions Internationals Q4 2024 earnings at $0.08 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $0.06 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $0.08 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $0.08 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $0.10 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $0.32 EPS.

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Separately, StockNews.com assumed coverage on Flexible Solutions International in a report on Sunday. They set a hold rating on the stock.

Flexible Solutions International Trading Down 1.4 %

Flexible Solutions International stock opened at $2.88 on Tuesday. Flexible Solutions International has a 52-week low of $1.36 and a 52-week high of $3.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 2.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.86 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.16 and a beta of 1.47. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $2.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $2.03.

Flexible Solutions International (NYSE:FSI  Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 14th. The company reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.07 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $10.53 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.34 million. Flexible Solutions International had a net margin of 6.23% and a return on equity of 6.24%.

Institutional Trading of Flexible Solutions International

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Flexible Solutions International stock. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Flexible Solutions International, Inc. (NYSE:FSI  Free Report) by 4.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 379,245 shares of the companys stock after acquiring an additional 17,400 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned about 3.05% of Flexible Solutions International worth $664,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. 54.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Flexible Solutions International Company Profile

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Flexible Solutions International, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets specialty chemicals that slow the evaporation of water in Canada, the United States, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Energy and Water Conservation Products, and Biodegradable Polymers.

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Ares Management Co. (NYSE:ARES  Get Free Report) Chairman Bennett Rosenthal sold 27,172 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.67, for a total transaction of $3,958,145.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 222,828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,459,354.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Bennett Rosenthal also recently made the following trade(s):

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On Monday, August 19th, Bennett Rosenthal sold 10,154 shares of Ares Management stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.46, for a total transaction of $1,466,846.84.

On Friday, June 21st, Bennett Rosenthal sold 150,000 shares of Ares Management stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.94, for a total transaction of $19,791,000.00.

On Friday, May 31st, Bennett Rosenthal sold 100,000 shares of Ares Management stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.41, for a total value of $14,041,000.00.

Ares Management Price Performance

Shares of ARES opened at $144.48 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $140.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $137.33. Ares Management Co. has a fifty-two week low of $96.00 and a fifty-two week high of $155.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.76 billion, a PE ratio of 64.79, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.22.

Ares Management Dividend Announcement

Ares Management ( NYSE:ARES Get Free Report ) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The asset manager reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $788.68 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $860.09 million. Ares Management had a return on equity of 21.22% and a net margin of 12.86%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.90 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Ares Management Co. will post 4.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be issued a $0.93 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.57%. Ares Managements dividend payout ratio is presently 166.82%.

Institutional Trading of Ares Management

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Curated Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Ares Management by 199.7% during the 2nd quarter. Curated Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,658,217 shares of the asset managers stock worth $221,007,000 after acquiring an additional 3,321,434 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ares Management during the first quarter worth $264,729,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Ares Management by 58.5% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,058,394 shares of the asset managers stock valued at $674,183,000 after purchasing an additional 1,867,933 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Ares Management in the 4th quarter worth $205,499,000. Finally, Lone Pine Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ares Management in the 2nd quarter worth $209,884,000. 50.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on ARES. Barclays upped their price objective on Ares Management from $151.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Ares Management from $160.00 to $158.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Ares Management from $131.00 to $127.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Ares Management from $141.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Ares Management from $158.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $138.82.

View Our Latest Stock Analysis on ARES

Ares Management Company Profile

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Ares Management Corporation operates as an alternative asset manager in the United States, Europe, and Asia. The company's Tradable Credit Group segment manages various types of investment funds, such as commingled and separately managed accounts for institutional investors, and publicly traded vehicles and sub-advised funds for retail investors in the tradable and non-investment grade corporate credit markets.

Further Reading

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Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Invesco S&P 500 Low Volatility ETF (NYSEARCA:SPLV  Free Report) by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 139,401 shares of the companys stock after selling 2,639 shares during the quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc.s holdings in Invesco S&P 500 Low Volatility ETF were worth $9,054,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SPLV. Global Assets Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Invesco S&P 500 Low Volatility ETF by 6,354.7% in the 1st quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC now owns 2,499,503 shares of the companys stock valued at $164,642,000 after acquiring an additional 2,460,779 shares during the last quarter. Dynasty Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Invesco S&P 500 Low Volatility ETF during the 1st quarter worth about $33,326,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Invesco S&P 500 Low Volatility ETF by 50.6% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,385,562 shares of the companys stock valued at $86,819,000 after buying an additional 465,676 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in shares of Invesco S&P 500 Low Volatility ETF by 256.7% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 306,767 shares of the companys stock valued at $20,207,000 after buying an additional 220,764 shares during the period. Finally, Alaska Permanent Fund Corp boosted its stake in shares of Invesco S&P 500 Low Volatility ETF by 7.6% in the first quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp now owns 3,027,451 shares of the companys stock worth $199,418,000 after buying an additional 212,725 shares during the last quarter.

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Invesco S&P 500 Low Volatility ETF Price Performance

NYSEARCA:SPLV traded up $0.34 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $69.55. The company had a trading volume of 1,691,716 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,880,667. Invesco S&P 500 Low Volatility ETF has a 1-year low of $57.17 and a 1-year high of $69.58. The businesss 50 day moving average price is $66.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $65.16. The firm has a market cap of $7.52 billion, a PE ratio of 23.07 and a beta of 0.47.

Invesco S&P 500 Low Volatility ETF Company Profile

The Invesco S&P 500 Low Volatility ETF (SPLV) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the S&P 500 Low Volatility index. The fund tracks a volatility-weighted index of the 100 least-volatile stocks in the S&P 500. SPLV was launched on May 5, 2011 and is managed by Invesco.

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iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF (BATS:HEFA  Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $34.88 and last traded at $34.86, with a volume of 654885 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $34.64.

iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $6.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.31 and a beta of 0.62. The stocks fifty day moving average is $34.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $34.58.

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Institutional Investors Weigh In On iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HEFA. Richardson Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF by 891.2% during the 2nd quarter. Richardson Capital Management LLC now owns 902 shares of the companys stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 811 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in shares of iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF by 159.6% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,145 shares of the companys stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 704 shares during the period. WR Wealth Planners LLC grew its position in shares of iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF by 3,009.8% during the 2nd quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 1,275 shares of the companys stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 1,234 shares during the period. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF by 73.8% during the 2nd quarter. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,535 shares of the companys stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 652 shares during the period. Finally, Global Financial Private Client LLC bought a new position in shares of iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $58,000.

About iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF

The iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF (HEFA) is an exchange-traded fund that mostly invests in total market equity. The fund tracks a market cap-weighted, USD-hedged index of large- and mid-cap stocks from developed countries outside the US and Canada. HEFA was launched on Jan 31, 2014 and is managed by BlackRock.

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iShares MSCI India ETF (BATS:INDA  Get Free Report)s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $56.56 and last traded at $56.49, with a volume of 1588394 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $56.37.

iShares MSCI India ETF Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $56.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $53.35. The stock has a market cap of $10.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.95 and a beta of 0.51.

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Hedge Funds Weigh In On iShares MSCI India ETF

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of INDA. Jane Street Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of iShares MSCI India ETF by 1,073.3% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 16,108,870 shares of the companys stock worth $831,057,000 after buying an additional 14,735,874 shares in the last quarter. Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of iShares MSCI India ETF by 7,516.9% in the 2nd quarter. Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,434,018 shares of the companys stock worth $498,917,000 after buying an additional 9,310,161 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of iShares MSCI India ETF by 391.8% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 7,739,052 shares of the companys stock worth $431,684,000 after buying an additional 6,165,524 shares in the last quarter. OLD Mission Capital LLC bought a new stake in iShares MSCI India ETF during the 4th quarter worth approximately $187,403,000. Finally, Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co grew its position in iShares MSCI India ETF by 386.7% during the 2nd quarter. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 3,675,921 shares of the companys stock worth $205,043,000 after acquiring an additional 2,920,650 shares during the last quarter.

iShares MSCI India ETF Company Profile

The iShares MSCI India ETF (INDA) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the MSCI India index, a market-cap-weighted index of the top 85% of firms in the Indian securities market. INDA was launched on Feb 2, 2012 and is managed by BlackRock.

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iShares S&P/TSX 60 Index ETF (TSE:XIU  Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, August 20th, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be given a dividend of 0.266 per share on Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 27th. This is a positive change from iShares S&P/TSX 60 Index ETFs previous quarterly dividend of $0.26.

iShares S&P/TSX 60 Index ETF Stock Up 0.3 %

iShares S&P/TSX 60 Index ETF stock opened at C$35.17 on Thursday. iShares S&P/TSX 60 Index ETF has a 52 week low of C$28.49 and a 52 week high of C$35.32. The company has a 50 day moving average price of C$33.85 and a 200 day moving average price of C$33.43.

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About iShares S&P/TSX 60 Index ETF

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iShares S&P/TSX 60 Index Fund seeks to provide long-term capital growth by replicating, to the extent possible, the performance of the S&P/TSX 60 Index through investments in the constituent issuers of such index, net of expenses. The Index is comprised of 60 of the largest (by market capitalization) and liquid securities listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX), selected by Standard & Poors (S&P) using its industrial classifications and guidelines for evaluating issuer capitalization, liquidity and fundamentals.

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KBR, Inc. (NYSE:KBR  Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, August 22nd, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of 0.15 per share by the construction company on Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th.

KBR has raised its dividend by an average of 10.5% per year over the last three years. KBR has a payout ratio of 15.5% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect KBR to earn $3.84 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 15.6%.

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KBR Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE KBR traded down $0.02 during trading on Thursday, hitting $66.71. The company had a trading volume of 370,466 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,138,182. KBR has a 12 month low of $49.37 and a 12 month high of $69.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.96 billion, a P/E ratio of -34.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $65.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $63.22.

Insider Activity at KBR

KBR ( NYSE:KBR Get Free Report ) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The construction company reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $1.88 billion. KBR had a net margin of 2.77% and a return on equity of 27.92%. As a group, analysts anticipate that KBR will post 3.24 earnings per share for the current year.

In related news, insider Jalal Ibrahim sold 35,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.56, for a total value of $2,329,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 106,550 shares of the companys stock, valued at $7,091,968. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KBR has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. DA Davidson reaffirmed a buy rating and issued a $78.00 target price on shares of KBR in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. UBS Group increased their target price on KBR from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 14th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on KBR from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded KBR from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, KBR currently has a consensus rating of Buy and a consensus target price of $76.00.

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KBR Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

KBR, Inc provides scientific, technology, and engineering solutions to governments and commercial customers worldwide. It operates through Government Solutions and Sustainable Technology Solutions segments. The Government Solutions segment offers life-cycle support solutions to defense, intelligence, space, aviation, and other programs and missions for military and other government agencies in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia.

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Lecap Asset Management Ltd. lifted its stake in First Horizon Co. (NYSE:FHN  Free Report) by 48.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 85,187 shares of the financial services providers stock after buying an additional 27,765 shares during the period. Lecap Asset Management Ltd.s holdings in First Horizon were worth $1,343,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in First Horizon in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in First Horizon during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of First Horizon in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Horizon by 129.3% in the 1st quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 1,954 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,102 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of First Horizon during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 80.28% of the companys stock.

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First Horizon Price Performance

Shares of FHN stock traded up $0.01 on Wednesday, hitting $15.82. 3,332,906 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,701,005. The company has a 50 day moving average of $15.60 and a 200 day moving average of $15.14. First Horizon Co. has a 12 month low of $10.08 and a 12 month high of $17.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The stock has a market cap of $8.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.89.

First Horizon Dividend Announcement

First Horizon ( NYSE:FHN Get Free Report ) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $819.82 million. First Horizon had a return on equity of 8.84% and a net margin of 14.03%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.39 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that First Horizon Co. will post 1.46 EPS for the current year.

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. First Horizons payout ratio is currently 41.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on FHN shares. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of First Horizon from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a market perform rating and issued a $18.00 price objective on shares of First Horizon in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Raymond James cut First Horizon from a strong-buy rating to an outperform rating and set a $18.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Stephens started coverage on shares of First Horizon in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. They set an overweight rating and a $19.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of First Horizon from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report on Saturday, July 20th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $17.31.

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About First Horizon

(Free Report)

First Horizon Corporation operates as the bank holding company for First Horizon Bank that provides various financial services. The company operates through Regional Banking and Specialty Banking segments. It offers general banking services for consumers, businesses, financial institutions, and governments.

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Shares of Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN  Get Free Report) have been assigned an average recommendation of Hold from the seventeen ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $169.13.

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Lennar from $157.00 to $154.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an underperform rating and issued a $145.00 price target on shares of Lennar in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. Wedbush raised Lennar from an underperform rating to a neutral rating and set a $144.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. BTIG Research cut their target price on Lennar from $177.00 to $175.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Lennar from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th.

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Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lennar

Lennar Price Performance

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. D1 Capital Partners L.P. raised its stake in shares of Lennar by 428.9% during the second quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. now owns 2,420,000 shares of the construction companys stock worth $362,685,000 after buying an additional 1,962,447 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Lennar by 15.1% in the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,021,856 shares of the construction companys stock valued at $452,886,000 after purchasing an additional 396,951 shares in the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI acquired a new stake in Lennar in the first quarter worth $61,807,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lennar by 157.5% during the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 575,003 shares of the construction companys stock worth $98,889,000 after purchasing an additional 351,698 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in shares of Lennar by 20.9% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,015,641 shares of the construction companys stock valued at $302,084,000 after buying an additional 348,553 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.10% of the companys stock.

Shares of Lennar stock opened at $179.05 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $161.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $159.64. Lennar has a fifty-two week low of $102.90 and a fifty-two week high of $182.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 4.93 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The company has a market cap of $49.17 billion, a PE ratio of 12.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.60.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN  Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, June 17th. The construction company reported $3.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $3.20 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $8.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.57 billion. Lennar had a return on equity of 15.93% and a net margin of 11.58%. Analysts expect that Lennar will post 14.16 EPS for the current year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 5th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 5th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.12%. Lennars payout ratio is 13.60%.

Lennar Company Profile

(Get Free Report

Lennar Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a homebuilder primarily under the Lennar brand in the United States. It operates through Homebuilding East, Homebuilding Central, Homebuilding Texas, Homebuilding West, Financial Services, Multifamily, and Lennar Other segments. The company's homebuilding operations include the construction and sale of single-family attached and detached homes, as well as the purchase, development, and sale of residential land; and development, construction, and management of multifamily rental properties.

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MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in General Electric (NYSE:GE  Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 193 shares of the conglomerates stock, valued at approximately $31,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in General Electric during the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd purchased a new stake in General Electric in the 1st quarter worth approximately $37,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in General Electric in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Horrell Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in General Electric in the 1st quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in General Electric in the 1st quarter worth approximately $44,000. 74.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Russell Stokes sold 45,309 shares of General Electric stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.82, for a total value of $7,377,211.38. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 112,958 shares of the companys stock, valued at $18,391,821.56. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.66% of the companys stock.

General Electric Stock Performance

NYSE GE traded up $1.23 on Wednesday, hitting $171.22. 4,102,644 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,873,625. The company has a market capitalization of $187.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The businesss 50 day moving average price is $163.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $161.06. General Electric has a 52-week low of $84.42 and a 52-week high of $177.20.

General Electric (NYSE:GE  Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.21. General Electric had a return on equity of 16.07% and a net margin of 7.66%. The company had revenue of $9.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.68 earnings per share. General Electrics quarterly revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that General Electric will post 4.15 earnings per share for the current year.

General Electric Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 11th were given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 11th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.65%. General Electrics payout ratio is 36.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GE has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered General Electric from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on General Electric from $195.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on General Electric from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on General Electric from $190.00 to $211.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on General Electric from $148.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $190.38.

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General Electric Company Profile

(Free Report)

General Electric Company, doing business as GE Aerospace, designs and produces commercial and defense aircraft engines, integrated engine components, electric power, and mechanical aircraft systems. It also offers aftermarket services to support its products. The company operates in the United States, Europe, China, Asia, the Americas, the Middle East, and Africa.

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New Gold Inc. (TSE:NGD  Get Free Report) (ARCA:NGD) has received a consensus recommendation of Buy from the seven analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, three have given a buy recommendation and three have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is C$3.61.

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. National Bank Financial upgraded New Gold from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. TD Securities raised New Gold from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 21st. Cibc World Mkts raised New Gold to a strong-buy rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. National Bankshares upped their price objective on shares of New Gold from C$4.00 to C$4.25 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on shares of New Gold from C$3.25 to C$4.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd.

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Read Our Latest Stock Report on New Gold

New Gold Stock Up 1.1 %

Insiders Place Their Bets

NGD opened at C$3.66 on Friday. New Gold has a twelve month low of C$1.17 and a twelve month high of C$3.70. The companys 50-day moving average price is C$3.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is C$2.54. The stock has a market cap of C$2.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -91.50, a PEG ratio of -3.02 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 52.45.

In other news, Senior Officer Sean William Keating sold 50,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$3.63, for a total transaction of C$181,500.00. 4.92% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About New Gold

(Get Free Report

New Gold Inc, an intermediate gold mining company, develops and operates of mineral properties in Canada. It primarily explores for gold, silver, and copper deposits. The companys principal operating properties include 100% interest in the Rainy River mine located in Northwestern Ontario, Canada; and New Afton project situated in South-Central British Columbia.

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NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF (NYSEARCA:LQD  Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 718 shares of the exchange traded funds stock, valued at approximately $77,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NYL Investors LLC grew its holdings in iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. NYL Investors LLC now owns 9,329,454 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $1,032,397,000 after acquiring an additional 253,373 shares in the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund purchased a new stake in shares of iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF during the 4th quarter worth approximately $15,795,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. raised its position in iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF by 232.7% in the 4th quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 8,710 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $964,000 after purchasing an additional 6,092 shares during the last quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF by 22.7% in the 4th quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 9,822 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $1,087,000 after purchasing an additional 1,819 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its position in iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF by 15.0% in the 1st quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 10,629 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $1,158,000 after purchasing an additional 1,384 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.30% of the companys stock.

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iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF Stock Down 0.5 %

LQD stock traded down $0.55 on Thursday, hitting $111.44. The companys stock had a trading volume of 12,954,688 shares, compared to its average volume of 27,384,674. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $108.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $107.79. iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF has a 1 year low of $98.24 and a 1 year high of $112.28.

iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF Company Profile

iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF (the Fund), formerly iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond Fund, is an exchange-traded fund (ETF). The Fund seeks to track the investment results of the Markit iBoxx USD Liquid Investment Grade Index (the Index), which is a rules-based index consisting of liquid, the United States dollar-denominated, investment-grade corporate bonds for sale in the United States.

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Oxford Industries, Inc. (NYSE:OXM  Get Free Report)s stock price was down 3.3% during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $86.47 and last traded at $86.66. Approximately 280,395 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 18% from the average daily volume of 237,231 shares. The stock had previously closed at $89.66.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Oxford Industries from $94.00 to $92.00 and set a sell rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 13th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a market perform rating and set a $110.00 price target on shares of Oxford Industries in a report on Thursday, June 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $103.20.

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Oxford Industries Stock Up 2.9 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The firms 50-day simple moving average is $98.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $102.55. The company has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.64 and a beta of 1.54.

Oxford Industries (NYSE:OXM  Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 12th. The textile maker reported $2.66 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.70 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $398.18 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $404.81 million. Oxford Industries had a net margin of 2.62% and a return on equity of 23.78%. The firms revenue for the quarter was down 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.78 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Oxford Industries, Inc. will post 8.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oxford Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 19th were given a $0.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 19th. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.04%. Oxford Industriess dividend payout ratio is presently 108.50%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Thomas E. Campbell sold 17,540 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.91, for a total transaction of $1,752,421.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 24,865 shares in the company, valued at $2,484,262.15. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 5.70% of the companys stock.

Institutional Trading of Oxford Industries

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quarry LP raised its stake in Oxford Industries by 4,650.0% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 475 shares of the textile makers stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 465 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in Oxford Industries by 3.7% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 7,702 shares of the textile makers stock worth $771,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in Oxford Industries by 254.1% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 266,412 shares of the textile makers stock worth $26,681,000 after purchasing an additional 191,185 shares during the period. Maverick Capital Ltd. raised its stake in Oxford Industries by 673.5% during the second quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 62,642 shares of the textile makers stock worth $6,274,000 after purchasing an additional 54,544 shares during the period. Finally, Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C purchased a new position in Oxford Industries during the second quarter worth approximately $995,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.16% of the companys stock.

Oxford Industries Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Oxford Industries, Inc, an apparel company, designs, sources, markets, and distributes products of lifestyle and other brands worldwide. The company offers men's and women's sportswear and related products under the Tommy Bahama brand; and women's and girl's dresses and sportswear, scarves, bags, jewelry, and belts, as well as children's apparel, swim, footwear, and licensed products under the Lilly Pulitzer brand.

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StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Phoenix New Media (NYSE:FENG  Free Report) in a research report sent to investors on Sunday morning. The firm issued a hold rating on the information services providers stock.

Phoenix New Media Stock Performance

NYSE:FENG opened at $3.33 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 2.91 and a current ratio of 2.91. Phoenix New Media has a 52-week low of $1.10 and a 52-week high of $4.15. The firm has a market cap of $40.26 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.93 and a beta of 0.76. The businesss fifty day moving average is $3.13 and its 200 day moving average is $2.32.

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Phoenix New Media (NYSE:FENG  Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 13th. The information services provider reported ($0.06) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Phoenix New Media had a negative net margin of 10.17% and a negative return on equity of 6.12%. The company had revenue of $23.16 million for the quarter.

Phoenix New Media Company Profile

Phoenix New Media Limited provides content on an integrated Internet platform in the People's Republic of China. The company operates through two segments, Net Advertising Services and Paid Services. It offers content and services through PC channel, mobile channel, and telecom operators, as well as transmits content to TV viewers, primarily through Phoenix TV.

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Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO  Free Report) by 5.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,131 shares of the mining companys stock after buying an additional 279 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLCs holdings in Rio Tinto Group were worth $338,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rio Tinto Group in the 1st quarter worth $26,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 55.4% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 415 shares of the mining companys stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the period. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Rio Tinto Group in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Accordant Advisory Group Inc purchased a new position in Rio Tinto Group in the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, LifeSteps Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Rio Tinto Group during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 19.33% of the companys stock.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on RIO. HSBC raised shares of Rio Tinto Group from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Rio Tinto Group from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 21st. Berenberg Bank downgraded shares of Rio Tinto Group from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Hsbc Global Res raised Rio Tinto Group to a strong-buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Citigroup lowered Rio Tinto Group from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, May 20th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Rio Tinto Group currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy.

Rio Tinto Group Stock Up 2.2 %

NYSE RIO traded up $1.39 on Wednesday, reaching $63.39. The stock had a trading volume of 2,217,358 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,726,724. The company has a market capitalization of $79.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.84, a P/E/G ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Rio Tinto Group has a 1 year low of $59.80 and a 1 year high of $75.09. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $65.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.34.

Rio Tinto Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 6.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 16th. Rio Tinto Groups dividend payout ratio is 49.30%.

Rio Tinto Group Company Profile

(Free Report)

Rio Tinto Group engages in exploring, mining, and processing mineral resources worldwide. The company operates through Iron Ore, Aluminium, Copper, and Minerals Segments. The Iron Ore segment engages in the iron ore mining, and salt and gypsum production in Western Australia. The Aluminum segment is involved in bauxite mining; alumina refining; and aluminium smelting.

Further Reading

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding RIO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO  Free Report).

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Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY  Free Report) (NYSE:RY) had its price objective trimmed by Scotiabank from C$157.00 to C$154.00 in a report released on Monday, BayStreet.CA reports.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on RY. UBS Group set a C$165.00 price target on Royal Bank of Canada and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. TD Securities raised their target price on Royal Bank of Canada from C$160.00 to C$171.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. National Bankshares cut their price target on Royal Bank of Canada from C$161.00 to C$160.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Argus upgraded shares of Royal Bank of Canada to a strong-buy rating in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Royal Bank of Canada from C$168.00 to C$165.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of C$148.29.

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Royal Bank of Canada Price Performance

Shares of TSE:RY opened at C$153.56 on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada has a 1 year low of C$107.92 and a 1 year high of C$155.22. The stocks fifty day moving average price is C$149.21 and its 200-day moving average price is C$141.36. The company has a market cap of C$218.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.06, a PEG ratio of 10.64 and a beta of 0.85.

Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY  Get Free Report) (NYSE:RY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The financial services provider reported C$2.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of C$2.77 by C$0.15. The firm had revenue of C$14.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of C$13.58 billion. Royal Bank of Canada had a net margin of 28.37% and a return on equity of 13.38%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Royal Bank of Canada will post 12.588332 earnings per share for the current year.

Royal Bank of Canada Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, July 25th will be given a dividend of $1.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 25th. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.70%. This is a boost from Royal Bank of Canadas previous quarterly dividend of $1.38. Royal Bank of Canadas dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Royal Bank of Canada news, Senior Officer Bruce Washington Ross sold 20,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of C$140.99, for a total value of C$2,819,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 235 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$33,133.12. In other news, Senior Officer Neil Mclaughlin sold 14,778 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$146.26, for a total transaction of C$2,161,474.61. Also, Senior Officer Bruce Washington Ross sold 20,000 shares of Royal Bank of Canada stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of C$140.99, for a total value of C$2,819,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 235 shares in the company, valued at C$33,133.12. In the last three months, insiders have sold 101,302 shares of company stock valued at $14,592,565.

Royal Bank of Canada Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Royal Bank of Canada operates as a diversified financial service company worldwide. The company's Personal & Commercial Banking segment offers checking and savings accounts, home equity financing, personal lending, private banking, indirect lending, including auto financing, mutual funds and self-directed brokerage accounts, guaranteed investment certificates, credit cards, and payment products and solutions; and lending, leasing, deposit, investment, foreign exchange, cash management, auto dealer financing, trade products, and services to small and medium-sized commercial businesses.

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Dundee Precious Metals (TSE:DPM  Free Report) had its price target hoisted by Scotiabank from C$15.00 to C$16.50 in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning, BayStreet.CA reports.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on shares of Dundee Precious Metals from C$13.50 to C$16.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Dundee Precious Metals from C$15.00 to C$16.00 in a research report on Friday, July 12th. National Bankshares lifted their target price on shares of Dundee Precious Metals from C$13.50 to C$14.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, CIBC raised their price target on shares of Dundee Precious Metals from C$13.00 to C$14.50 in a report on Wednesday, July 10th.

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Dundee Precious Metals Stock Performance

Dundee Precious Metals Announces Dividend

Shares of Dundee Precious Metals stock opened at C$13.59 on Monday. Dundee Precious Metals has a one year low of C$7.79 and a one year high of C$13.62. The stocks 50-day moving average is C$11.71 and its 200-day moving average is C$10.70. The firm has a market cap of C$2.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.04 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 7.09 and a quick ratio of 6.61.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.055 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 27th. This represents a $0.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.62%. Dundee Precious Metalss dividend payout ratio is currently 14.57%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Xuefeng Chen sold 6,750 shares of Dundee Precious Metals stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$12.80, for a total transaction of C$86,400.00. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the companys stock.

Dundee Precious Metals Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Dundee Precious Metals Inc, a gold mining company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, mining, and processing of precious metals. The company primarily explores for gold, copper, and silver deposits. It holds a portfolio of projects located in Bulgaria, Namibia, Serbia, and Ecuador.

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StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Visionary (NYSE:GV  Free Report) in a research report released on Monday. The brokerage issued a sell rating on the stock.

Visionary Price Performance

Shares of Visionary stock opened at $2.11 on Monday. Visionary has a 12-month low of $1.52 and a 12-month high of $8.85.

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Visionary Company Profile

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Further Reading

Visionary Holdings Inc provides education resources to students worldwide. The company offers educational programs for secondary school, college, university, and advanced degree students that include degree-oriented educational programs, such as OSSD program, career-oriented two-year college, four-year university programs, and masters programs; and high school education programs, real estate development, animation education, vocational education, online education, and other education-related consulting services.

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Sweetgreen (NYSE:SG  Free Report) had its price target upped by Bank of America from $39.00 to $43.00 in a research note published on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock.

SG has been the subject of several other research reports. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Sweetgreen from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Sweetgreen from $26.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a report on Thursday, June 13th. Piper Sandler reissued a neutral rating and issued a $39.00 price objective (up previously from $33.00) on shares of Sweetgreen in a report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Sweetgreen from $35.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Friday, June 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Sweetgreen from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $37.00.

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Sweetgreen Stock Performance

Shares of SG stock opened at $34.47 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -37.06 and a beta of 2.30. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $28.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $24.78. Sweetgreen has a 52 week low of $8.64 and a 52 week high of $37.88.

Sweetgreen (NYSE:SG  Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported ($0.13) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.11) by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $184.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $180.79 million. Sweetgreen had a negative return on equity of 19.34% and a negative net margin of 14.33%. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 21.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.20) EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Sweetgreen will post -0.75 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Sweetgreen

In related news, insider Adrienne Gemperle sold 3,868 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.31, for a total transaction of $140,447.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 114,842 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,169,913.02. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Adrienne Gemperle sold 3,868 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.31, for a total transaction of $140,447.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 114,842 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,169,913.02. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jonathan Neman sold 150,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.50, for a total transaction of $4,575,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,100,000 shares of the companys stock, valued at $64,050,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 181,577 shares of company stock valued at $5,678,557. Company insiders own 21.52% of the companys stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sweetgreen

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Boulder Hill Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Sweetgreen in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $868,000. Conrad N. Hilton Foundation acquired a new position in Sweetgreen in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $434,000. Sei Investments Co. acquired a new position in Sweetgreen in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,110,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Sweetgreen by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,350,552 shares of the companys stock valued at $94,361,000 after acquiring an additional 224,522 shares during the period. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in Sweetgreen in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $490,000. 95.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Sweetgreen

(Get Free Report)

Sweetgreen, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates fast food restaurants serving healthy foods at scale in the United States. The company also accepts orders through its online and mobile ordering platforms, as well as sells gift cards that do not have an expiration date and can be redeemed. The company was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.

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The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW  Get Free Report) Director Carolyn Schwab-Pomerantz sold 12,320 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.10, for a total transaction of $802,032.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 562,129 shares of the companys stock, valued at $36,594,597.90. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Carolyn Schwab-Pomerantz also recently made the following trade(s):

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On Friday, July 19th, Carolyn Schwab-Pomerantz sold 9,000 shares of Charles Schwab stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.96, for a total transaction of $557,640.00.

On Thursday, June 20th, Carolyn Schwab-Pomerantz sold 9,000 shares of Charles Schwab stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.49, for a total transaction of $652,410.00.

Charles Schwab Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SCHW opened at $64.57 on Thursday. The Charles Schwab Co. has a 52 week low of $48.66 and a 52 week high of $79.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $114.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.02, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.99. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $68.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $70.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Charles Schwab Dividend Announcement

Charles Schwab ( NYSE:SCHW Get Free Report ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $4.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $4.68 billion. Charles Schwab had a net margin of 26.30% and a return on equity of 18.14%. The businesss revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.75 EPS. On average, analysts expect that The Charles Schwab Co. will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 9th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. Charles Schwabs dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.84%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Charles Schwab

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SCHW. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Charles Schwab by 33.4% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 69,360,233 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $4,771,985,000 after acquiring an additional 17,369,091 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Charles Schwab in the 4th quarter worth about $950,192,000. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Charles Schwab by 424.7% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,451,090 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $305,400,000 after acquiring an additional 3,602,830 shares during the last quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC lifted its holdings in Charles Schwab by 98.0% during the 4th quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC now owns 4,691,362 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $326,284,000 after buying an additional 2,322,156 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Darsana Capital Partners LP lifted its holdings in Charles Schwab by 200.0% during the 2nd quarter. Darsana Capital Partners LP now owns 3,000,000 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $221,070,000 after buying an additional 2,000,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.38% of the companys stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JMP Securities reduced their price objective on shares of Charles Schwab from $85.00 to $82.00 and set a market outperform rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Charles Schwab from $85.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a hold rating and set a $71.00 target price (down from $88.00) on shares of Charles Schwab in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Piper Sandler cut shares of Charles Schwab from an overweight rating to a neutral rating and cut their target price for the company from $80.00 to $64.00 in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Charles Schwab from $91.00 to $90.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $74.27.

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Charles Schwab Company Profile

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The Charles Schwab Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a savings and loan holding company that provides wealth management, securities brokerage, banking, asset management, custody, and financial advisory services in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Investor Services and Advisor Services.

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Shares of Uber Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:UBER  Get Free Report) rose 0.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $74.12 and last traded at $73.91. Approximately 1,477,090 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 18,815,482 shares. The stock had previously closed at $73.48.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UBER has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Uber Technologies from $100.00 to $95.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an outperform rating and issued a $80.00 price target on shares of Uber Technologies in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Oppenheimer reiterated an outperform rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Uber Technologies in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Uber Technologies from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Uber Technologies from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirty have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Uber Technologies currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $87.47.

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Uber Technologies Stock Down 0.0 %

The companys 50 day moving average is $69.15 and its 200 day moving average is $71.34. The company has a market cap of $154.36 billion, a PE ratio of 119.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Uber Technologies (NYSE:UBER  Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The ride-sharing company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.16. Uber Technologies had a net margin of 5.02% and a return on equity of 17.06%. The business had revenue of $10.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.18 EPS. The companys revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Uber Technologies, Inc. will post 1.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Uber Technologies

In related news, insider Tony West sold 89,234 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.18, for a total value of $6,083,974.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 124,945 shares of the companys stock, valued at $8,518,750.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi sold 500,000 shares of Uber Technologies stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.91, for a total value of $35,955,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,266,114 shares in the company, valued at approximately $91,046,257.74. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Tony West sold 89,234 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.18, for a total value of $6,083,974.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 124,945 shares of the companys stock, valued at $8,518,750.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 617,234 shares of company stock valued at $44,017,734 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 3.84% of the companys stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Uber Technologies

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UBER. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in Uber Technologies by 222.7% during the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 355 shares of the ride-sharing companys stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. increased its position in shares of Uber Technologies by 111.6% in the first quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 383 shares of the ride-sharing companys stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC raised its position in Uber Technologies by 563.9% during the second quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 405 shares of the ride-sharing companys stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 344 shares during the period. J.Safra Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of Uber Technologies during the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Uber Technologies by 1,038.5% during the second quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 444 shares of the ride-sharing companys stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 405 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.24% of the companys stock.

About Uber Technologies

(Get Free Report)

Uber Technologies, Inc develops and operates proprietary technology applications in the United States, Canada, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia excluding China and Southeast Asia. It operates through three segments: Mobility, Delivery, and Freight. The Mobility segment connects consumers with a range of transportation modalities, such as ridesharing, carsharing, micromobility, rentals, public transit, taxis, and other modalities; and offers riders in a variety of vehicle types, as well as financial partnerships products and advertising services.

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Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobras (NYSE:PBR  Free Report) had its price target cut by UBS Group from $19.40 to $18.10 in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the oil and gas exploration companys stock.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on PBR. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobras from $19.30 to $16.70 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Bank of America raised Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobras from a neutral rating to a buy rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $16.80 to $17.90 in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobras from a buy rating to a hold rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $21.20 to $17.70 in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobras presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $17.34.

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Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobras Trading Down 0.9 %

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobras Increases Dividend

Shares of NYSE PBR opened at $14.86 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobras has a 52-week low of $12.90 and a 52-week high of $17.91. The businesss 50 day moving average is $14.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $15.48.

The company also recently announced a Variable dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.165 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 23rd. This represents a dividend yield of 15.4%. This is an increase from Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobrass previous Variable dividend of $0.03. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobrass payout ratio is presently 26.45%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobras

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PBR. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobras by 460.2% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,787 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,468 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobras during the second quarter worth $30,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobras during the second quarter worth $32,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobras during the second quarter worth $35,000. Finally, ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobras during the second quarter worth $45,000.

About Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.  Petrobras

(Get Free Report)

Petroleo Brasileiro SA  Petrobras explores, produces, and sells oil and gas in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through Exploration and Production; Refining, Transportation and Marketing; and Gas and Power. It also engages in prospecting, drilling, refining, processing, trading, and transporting crude oil from producing onshore and offshore oil fields, and shale or other rocks, as well as oil products, natural gas, and other liquid hydrocarbons.

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VinaCapital Vietnam Opp Fund (LON:VOF  Get Free Report)s stock price traded down 0.7% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as GBX 474 ($6.16) and last traded at GBX 474 ($6.16). 302,769 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 42% from the average session volume of 213,247 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 477.50 ($6.20).

VinaCapital Vietnam Opp Fund Trading Down 0.7 %

The company has a market capitalization of 724.22 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -272.41 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 55.38 and a current ratio of 120.98. The businesss 50-day simple moving average is GBX 486.78 and its 200-day simple moving average is GBX 475.32.

About VinaCapital Vietnam Opp Fund

(Get Free Report)

VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund Limited specializes in private equity investments. The fund seeks to invest 80 percent of its portfolio in private equity and 20 percent in equitization projects will be re-allocated to listed shares. The fund also makes private investments. It invests in stocks of companies operating across the diversified sectors.

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Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. lifted its holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM  Free Report) by 0.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 50,457 shares of the business services providers stock after buying an additional 70 shares during the quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc.s holdings in Waste Management were worth $10,765,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WM. ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC grew its stake in Waste Management by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 1,577 shares of the business services providers stock valued at $336,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Waste Management by 29.7% during the 1st quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 214 shares of the business services providers stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Waste Management by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,273 shares of the business services providers stock valued at $911,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Cypress Asset Management Inc. TX grew its holdings in Waste Management by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Cypress Asset Management Inc. TX now owns 4,256 shares of the business services providers stock valued at $907,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, McAdam LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Management by 4.0% during the first quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 1,317 shares of the business services providers stock worth $281,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. 80.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Waste Management Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of WM stock traded up $1.28 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $209.38. The companys stock had a trading volume of 901,367 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,701,842. The company has a market cap of $84.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.74. Waste Management, Inc. has a one year low of $149.71 and a one year high of $225.00. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $209.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $207.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

Waste Management ( NYSE:WM Get Free Report ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts consensus estimates of $1.82. The firm had revenue of $5.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.43 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 39.52% and a net margin of 12.13%. The businesss revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.51 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.24 earnings per share for the current year.

In other Waste Management news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total transaction of $859,610.24. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 45,644 shares in the company, valued at $9,324,156.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 1,500 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $330,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 44,144 shares of the companys stock, valued at $9,711,680. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total value of $859,610.24. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 45,644 shares of the companys stock, valued at $9,324,156.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the companys stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Waste Management from $215.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $202.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. They set a buy rating and a $241.00 price target for the company. CIBC lowered their price objective on Waste Management from $223.00 to $213.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their target price on Waste Management from $229.00 to $224.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $215.83.

Read Our Latest Stock Report on WM

About Waste Management

(Free Report)

Waste Management, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of environmental solutions to residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in the United States and Canada. It offers collection services, including picking up and transporting waste and recyclable materials from where it was generated to a transfer station, material recovery facility (MRF), or disposal site; and owns and operates transfer stations, as well as owns, develops, and operates landfill facilities that produce landfill gas used as renewable natural gas for generating electricity.

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Several brokerages have updated their recommendations and price targets on shares of Entergy (NYSE: ETR) in the last few weeks:

8/20/2024  Entergy had its price target raised by analysts at Scotiabank from $115.00 to $119.00. They now have a sector perform rating on the stock.

8/12/2024  Entergy had its price target raised by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $131.00 to $141.00. They now have an overweight rating on the stock.

8/5/2024  Entergy had its price target raised by analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $124.00 to $131.00. They now have an outperform rating on the stock.

8/2/2024  Entergy had its price target raised by analysts at Scotiabank from $104.00 to $115.00. They now have a sector perform rating on the stock.

8/2/2024  Entergy had its price target raised by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $125.00 to $137.00. They now have an overweight rating on the stock.

8/2/2024  Entergy had its price target raised by analysts at Guggenheim from $118.00 to $128.00. They now have a buy rating on the stock.

7/22/2024  Entergy had its price target lowered by analysts at Barclays PLC from $116.00 to $115.00. They now have an equal weight rating on the stock.

7/8/2024  Entergy had its price target lowered by analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $120.00 to $117.00. They now have an outperform rating on the stock.

6/24/2024  Entergy had its price target lowered by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $103.00 to $98.00. They now have an underweight rating on the stock.

Entergy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ETR traded down $0.09 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $118.79. The company had a trading volume of 598,124 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,520,551. The stock has a market cap of $25.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.71. Entergy Co. has a twelve month low of $87.10 and a twelve month high of $123.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The businesss 50-day simple moving average is $111.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $107.35.

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Entergy (NYSE:ETR  Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.16. Entergy had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 14.75%. The company had revenue of $2.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $2.98 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Entergy Co. will post 7.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Entergy Dividend Announcement

Insider Buying and Selling at Entergy

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 13th will be issued a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.81%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 13th. Entergys dividend payout ratio is presently 45.34%.

In related news, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 3,200 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total transaction of $388,672.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 150,731 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,307,787.26. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO Andrew S. Marsh sold 3,200 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.46, for a total transaction of $388,672.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 150,731 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,307,787.26. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Peter S. Norgeot, Jr. sold 11,472 shares of Entergy stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.16, for a total value of $1,321,115.52. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 37,888 shares of the companys stock, valued at $4,363,182.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.39% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. CWM LLC raised its holdings in Entergy by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 14,747 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $1,492,000 after acquiring an additional 1,989 shares during the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System raised its holdings in Entergy by 6.3% in the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 234,595 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $25,275,000 after acquiring an additional 13,882 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC raised its holdings in Entergy by 11.1% in the 4th quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC now owns 55,261 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $5,592,000 after acquiring an additional 5,509 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Entergy in the 4th quarter valued at $127,675,000. Finally, Groupama Asset Managment acquired a new position in Entergy in the 4th quarter valued at $15,783,000. 88.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Entergy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and retail distribution of electricity in the United States. It generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electric power in portions of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, including the City of New Orleans; and distributes natural gas.

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Zaldy Dandan is a recipient of the Best Editorial Writer Award of the Society of Professional Journalists, and the CNMI Humanities Award for Outstanding Contributions to Journalism. His four books are available on amazon.com/.
Harare  Tensions have escalated between the ruling Zanu PF party and the Mthwakazi Republic Party (MRP) after the latter claimed to have established borders within Zimbabwe, effectively seeking to separate Matabeleland from the rest of the country. Zanu PF has responded with a forceful warning, vowing to crush any attempt at secession, Newsday has reported.

Speaking at the Herbert Chitepo School of Ideology orientation workshop for local authority officials in Harare, Zanu PF national political commissar Munyaradzi Machacha declared that the MRPs actions constituted a declaration of war against Zimbabwe.

We cannot negotiate our defence, our security and preservation of Zimbabwean unity. Internal peace and security is not negotiable and interference in our internal affairs, these are non-negotiable, Machacha asserted.

Machacha expressed strong disapproval of the MRPs actions, stating, The Mthwakazi, those young boys, setting their borders here in Zimbabwe is unacceptable, partitioning the country, splitting it into smaller States. That will be totally unacceptable. Anyone trying to do that is declaring war on the State and the State will descend on them.

The MRP, founded in 2014 in Bulawayo, advocates for the independence of Matabeleland, a region historically known as Mthwakazi, which encompasses parts of present-day Zimbabwe and Botswana.

The party seeks to revive the Mthwakazi State, which existed before the colonisation of Rhodesia. Their Facebook page describes the MRP as a revolutionary organisation fighting for MATABELELAND (MTHWAKAZI)s Independence away from Zimbabwe.

Machachas strong words come amidst a backdrop of growing political tensions within Zimbabwe. He acknowledged that divisions exist within both the ruling Zanu PF and the opposition parties.

We have noticed that there are disputes in both the ruling party and opposition parties. The sons of Zimbabwe are fighting against each other and in Zanu PF, there are frictions (which is) the same with the opposition, Machacha said.

Machacha also expressed concern about the activities of opposition activists, accusing them of attempting to sabotage the recent Sadc Heads of State and Government Summit held in Mt Hampden.

He warned that Zanu PF would not tolerate any such actions, stating, Some of the strategies being used by the opposition leading to anarchy are not acceptable. We will see you as terrorists and we will apply muscles and we will use maximum power.

The Herbert Chitepo School of Ideology, under Machachas leadership, is undergoing a transformation, moving from a Zanu PF project to a national programme. The indoctrination programme, which started with local authority officials, will soon be extended to lecturers at Zimbabwes institutions of higher education.

Meanwhile, Local Government and Public Works minister Daniel Garwe, addressing the gathering of local authority officials, emphasized that the workshop was not a partisan event.

We are here as Zimbabwe and we are here to declare [our] aspirations as Zimbabweans to shape the way forward, Garwe said.

We are not here for partisan politics. This is not a partisan project. This is a national programme. We are not here to facilitate allowances, but we are here for a national cause. We are here so that (after) three days, we are better equipped to run our councils in a patriotic way and developmental manner, he added.

The strong stance taken by Zanu PF against the MRP, coupled with the ongoing political tensions within the country, raises concerns about the potential for further unrest.

The MRPs call for secession, while met with strong opposition from the ruling party, highlights the simmering discontent and regional tensions that continue to plague Zimbabwe.

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Yves here. For those of you who follow KFF Health News, their Bill of the Month often features a howler of an abuse where the provider, typically a hospital, has not backed down on its dodgy charges. The KFF Health News bad press, or prospect thereof, pretty much always forces a climbdown by the biller.

Its surprising to see KFF Health News here depict an obvious fraud in such anodyne terms. As the headline indicates, a patient was billed for two separate surgeries when only one took place. This was easily verifiable by the lack of two operating/surgical center dates and two anesthesia administrations.

The egregiousness of the fraud is indirectly confirmed by the fact that the patient, a graphic arts designer, prevailed in court despite representing herself pro se, which is usually ill advised. Interestingly, however, the district in which the case was heard has only two judges and hears both regular civil and small claims. as most readers likely know, small claims courts are to accommodate parties representing themselves, since the amount in dispute is typically too low to support the cost of hiring counsel.

The comparatively small amount at issue also raises the question of whether the grifting provider, Pacific Rim Outpatient Surgery Center, engaged in this abuse regularly. One annoying element of this case is it is not entirely clear whether the collection agency that pursued patient Jamie Holmes bought the debt from Pacific Rim Outpatient Surgery Center or its purchaser, PeaceHealth. The article suggest the disputed bill was transferred to PeaceHealth before being sold. It would be useful to know if Holmes also tried disputing the charges with PeaceHealth, or whether the debt was transferred and sold before she was aware of the change in corporate ownership. This is not a mere academic matter, since continuing to dun Holmes would implicate it in fraud too.

The reason for banging on about this case is its such an obvious grift that it ought to be possible to curb it with legislation or regulation. For instance, if a medical provider and anyone acting as their agent or successor persists in trying to collect on a duplicate charge, that they are liable for treble the cost of the bad charge plus attorneys fees. Exposure of these abuses is good, but feasible reform proposals are even better.

By Tony Leys, KFF Health News rural editor/correspondent, who previously worked as a reporter and editor for the Des Moines Register. Originally published at KFF Health News

Jamie Holmes says a surgery center tried to make her pay for two operations after she underwent only one. She refused to buckle, even after a collection agency sued her last winter.

Holmes, who lives in northwestern Washington state, had surgery in 2019 to have her fallopian tubes tied, a permanent birth-control procedure that her insurance company agreed ahead of time to cover.

During the operation, while Holmes was under anesthesia, the surgeon noticed early signs of endometriosis, a common condition in which fibrous scar tissue grows around the uterus, Holmes said. She said the surgeon later told her he spent about 15 minutes cauterizing the troublesome tissue as a precaution. She recalls him saying he finished the whole operation within the 60 minutes that had been allotted for the tubal ligation procedure alone.

She said the doctor assured her the extra treatment for endometriosis would cost her little, if anything.

Then the bill came.





The Patient: Jamie Holmes, 38, of Lynden, Washington, who was insured by Premera Blue Cross at the time.

Medical Services: A tubal ligation operation, plus treatment of endometriosis found during the surgery.

Service Provider: Pacific Rim Outpatient Surgery Center of Bellingham, Washington, which has since been purchased, closed, and reopened under a new name.

Total Bill: $9,620. Insurance paid $1,262 to the in-network center. After adjusting for prices allowed under the insurers contract, the center billed Holmes $2,605. A collection agency later acquired the debt and sued her for $3,792.19, including interest and fees.

What Gives: The surgery center, which provided the facility and support staff for her operation, sent a bill suggesting that Holmes underwent two separate operations, one to have her tubes tied and one to treat endometriosis. It charged $4,810 for each.

Holmes said there were no such problems with the separate bills from the surgeon and anesthesiologist, which the insurer paid.

Holmes figured someone in the centers billing department mistakenly thought shed been on the operating table twice. She said she tried to explain it to the staff, to no avail.

She said it was as if she ordered a meal at a fast-food restaurant, was given extra fries, and then was charged for two whole meals. I didnt get the extra burger and drink and a toy, she joked.

Her insurer, Premera Blue Cross, declined to pay for two operations, she said. The surgery center billed Holmes for much of the difference. She refused to pay.

Holmes said she understands the surgery center could have incurred additional costs for the approximately 15 minutes the surgeon spent cauterizing the spots of endometriosis. About $500 would have seemed like a fair charge to her. Im not opposed to paying for that, she said. I am opposed to paying for a whole bunch of things I didnt receive.

The physician-owned surgery center was later purchased and closed by PeaceHealth, a regional health system. But the debt was turned over to a collection agency, SB&C, which filed suit against Holmes in December 2023, seeking $3,792.19, including interest and fees.

The collection agency asked a judge to grant summary judgment, which could have allowed the company to garnish wages from Holmes job as a graphic artist and marketing specialist for real estate agents.

Holmes said she filed a written response, then showed up on Zoom and at the courthouse for two hearings, during which she explained her side, without bringing a lawyer. The judge ruled in February that the collection agency was not entitled to summary judgment, because the facts of the case were in dispute.

Representatives of the collection agency and the defunct surgery center declined to comment for this article.

Sabrina Corlette, co-director of Georgetown Universitys Center on Health Insurance Reforms, said it was absurd for the surgery center to bill for two operations and then refuse to back down when the situation was explained. Its like a Kafka novel, she said.

Corlette said surgery center staffers should be accustomed to such scenarios. It is quite common, I would think, for a surgeon to look inside somebody and say, Oh, theres this other thing going on. Im going to deal with it while Ive got the patient on the operating table.

It wouldnt have made medical or financial sense for the surgeon to make Holmes undergo a separate operation for the secondary issue, she said.

Corlette said that if the surgery center was still in business, she would advise the patient to file a complaint with state regulators.

The Resolution: So far, the collection agency has not pressed ahead with its lawsuit by seeking a trial after the judges ruling. Holmes said that if the agency continues to sue her over the debt, she might hire a lawyer and sue them back, seeking damages and attorney fees.

She could have arranged to pay off the amount in installments. But shes standing on principle, she said.

I just got stonewalled so badly. They treated me like an idiot, she said. If theyre going to be petty to me, Im willing to be petty right back.

The Takeaway: Dont be afraid to fight a bogus medical bill, even if the dispute goes to court.

Debt collectors often seek summary judgment, which allows them to garnish wages or take other measures to seize money without going to the trouble of proving in a trial that they are entitled to payments. If the consumers being sued dont show up to tell their side in court hearings, judges often grant summary judgment to the debt collectors.

However, if the facts of a case are in dispute  for example, because the defendant shows up and argues she owes for just one surgery, not two  the judge may deny summary judgment and send the case to trial. That forces the debt collector to choose: spend more time and money pursuing the debt or drop it.

You know what? It pays to be stubborn in situations like this, said Berneta Haynes, a senior attorney for the National Consumer Law Center who reviewed Holmes bill for KFF Health News.

Many people dont go to such hearings, sometimes because they didnt get enough notice, dont read English, or dont have time, she said.

I think a lot of folks just cave after theyre sued, Haynes said.

Emily Siner reported the audio story.
Yves here. This article gives a sobering picture of how disconnected Democratic party insiders are from the dangerous conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, and their poor grasp of the Americas deteriorating stature and military reach. There is one sour note in this article. It take a recent report in the Washington Post, that Ukraine and Russia were negotiating an end to their energy war. Both the Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Maria Zarakhova and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov denied it. At most, these talks were low-level feelers.

By Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J. S. Davies, the authors ofWar in Ukraine: Making Sense of a Senseless Conflict, published by OR Books in November 2022. Medea Benjamin is the cofounder of CODEPINK for Peace, and the author of several books, including Inside Iran: The Real History and Politics of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Nicolas J. S. Davies is an independent journalist, a researcher for CODEPINK and the author of Blood on Our Hands: The American Invasion and Destruction of Iraq



DNC delegates unfurl banner during Bidens speech at the DNC. Photo credit: Esam Boraey

An Orwellian disconnect haunts the 2024 Democratic National Convention. In the isolation of the convention hall, shielded from the outside world behind thousands of armed police, few of the delegates seem to realize that their country is on the brink of direct involvement in major wars with Russia and Iran, either of which could escalate into World War III.

Inside the hall, the mass slaughter in the Middle East and Ukraine are treated only as troublesome issues, which the greatest military in the history of the world can surely deal with. Delegates who unfurled a banner that read Stop Arming Israel during Bidens speech on Monday night were quickly accosted by DNC officials, who instructed other delegates to use We  Joe signs to hide the banner from view.

In the real world, the most explosive flashpoint right now is the Middle East, where U.S. weapons and Israeli troops are slaughtering tens of thousands of Palestinians, mostly children and families, at the bidding of Israels Benjamin Netanyahu. And yet, in July, Democrats and Republicans leapt to their feet in 23 standing ovations to applaud Netanyahus warmongering speech to a joint session of Congress.

In the week before the DNC started, the Biden administration announced its approval for the sale of $20 billion in weapons to Israel, which would lock the US into a relationship with the Israeli military for years to come.

Netanyahus determination to keep killing without restraint in Gaza, and Biden and Congresss willingness to keep supplying him with weapons to do so, always risked exploding into a wider war, but the crisis has reached a new climax. Since Israel has failed to kill or expel the Palestinians from Gaza, it is now trying to draw the United States into a war with Iran, a war to degrade Israels enemies and restore the illusion of military superiority that it has squandered in Gaza.

To achieve its goal of triggering a wider war, Israel assassinated Fuad Shukr, a Hezbollah commander, in Beirut, and Hamass political leader and chief ceasefire negotiator, Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran. Iran has vowed to respond militarily to the assassinations, but Irans leaders are in a difficult position. They do not want a war with Israel and the United States, and they have acted with restraint throughout the massacre in Gaza. But failing to respond strongly to these assassinations would encourage Israel to conduct further attacks on Iran and its allies.

The assassinations in Beirut and Tehran were clearly designed to elicit a response from Iran and Hezbollah that would draw the U.S. into the war. Could Iran find a way to strike Israel that would not provoke a U.S. response? Or, if Irans leaders believe that is impossible, will they decide that this is the moment to actually fight a seemingly unavoidable war with the U.S. and Israel?

This is an incredibly dangerous moment, but a ceasefire in Gaza would resolve the crisis. The U.S. has dispatched CIA Director William Burns, the only professional diplomat in Bidens cabinet, to the Middle East for renewed ceasefire talks, and Iran is waiting to see the result of the talks before responding to the assassinations.

Burns is working with Qatari and Egyptian officials to come up with a revised ceasefire proposal that Israel and Hamas can both agree to. But Israel has always rejected any proposal for more than a temporary pause in its assault on Gaza, while Hamas will only agree to a real, permanent ceasefire. Could Biden have sent Burns just to stall, so that a new war wouldnt spoil the Dems party in Chicago?

The United States has always had the option of halting weapons shipments to Israel to force it to agree to a permanent ceasefire. But it has refused to use that leverage, except for the suspension of a single shipment of 2,000 lb bombs in May, after it had already sent Israel 14,000 of those horrific weapons, which it uses to systematically smash living children and families into unidentifiable pieces of flesh and bone.

Meanwhile the war with Russia has also taken a new and dangerous turn, with Ukraine invading Russias Kursk region. Some analysts believe this is only a diversion before an even riskier Ukrainian assault on the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. Ukraines leaders see the writing on the wall, and are increasingly ready to take any risk to improve their negotiating position before they are forced to sue for peace.

But Ukraines recent incursion into Russia, while applauded by much of the west, has actually made negotiations less likely. In fact, talks between Russia and Ukraine on energy issues were supposed to start in the coming weeks. The idea was that each side would agree not to target the others energy infrastructure, with the hope that this could lead to more comprehensive talks. But after Ukraines invasion toward Kursk, the Russians pulled out of what would have been the first direct talks since the early weeks of the Russian invasion.

President Zelenskyy remains in power three months after his term of office expired, and he is a great admirer of Israel. Will he take a page from Netanyahus playbook and do something so provocative that it will draw U.S. and NATO forces into the potentially nuclear war with Russia that Biden has promised to avoid?

A 2023 U.S. Army War College study found that even a non-nuclear war with Russia could result in as many U.S. casualties every two weeks as the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq did in two decades, and it concluded that such a war would require a return to conscription in the United States.

While Gaza and Eastern Ukraine burn in firestorms of American and Russian bombs and missiles, and the war in Sudan rages on unchecked, the whole planet is rocketing toward catastrophic temperature increases, ecosystem breakdown and mass extinctions. But the delegates in Chicago are in la-la land about U.S. responsibility for that crisis too.

Under the slick climate plan Obama sold to the world in Copenhagen and Paris, Americans per capita CO2 emissions are still double those of our Chinese, British and European neighbors, while U.S. oil and gasproduction have soared to all-time record highs.

The combined dangers of nuclear war and climate catastrophe have pushed the hands of the Doomsday Clock all the way to 90 seconds to midnight. But the leaders of the Republican and Democratic parties are in the pockets of the fossil fuel industry and the military-industrial complex. Behind the election-year focus on what the two parties disagree about, the corrupt policies they both agree on are the most dangerous of all.

President Biden recently claimed that he is running the world. No oligarchic American politician will confess to running the world to the brink of nuclear war and mass extinction, but tens of thousands of Americans marching in the streets of Chicago and millions more Americans who support them understand that that is what Biden, Trump and their cronies are doing.

The people inside the convention hall should shake themselves out of their complacency and start listening to the people in the streets. Therein lies the real hope, maybe the only hope, for Americas future.
AOC falsely claims Kamala Harris working tirelessly to secure a ceasefire

Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) falsely claimed at the Democratic National Convention that Vice President Kamala Harris is "working tirelessly to secure a ceasefire in Gaza" -- even though Harris's own campaign is actively touting her one-sided commitment to the Jewish state.

(Article by Chris Menahan republished from InformationLiberation.com)

After grassroots pressure, AOC said in March that the Biden admin is complicit in an unfolding genocide in Gaza. Now given a primetime appearance at the DNC, AOC forgets the whole genocide thing and falsely claims that Kamala Harris is working tirelessly to secure a ceasefire pic.twitter.com/ArPQBFgwHC  Aaron Mate (@aaronjmate) August 20, 2024

"After grassroots pressure, AOC said in March that the Biden admin is complicit in an unfolding genocide in Gaza," Aaron Mate commented Tuesday on X. "Now given a primetime appearance at the DNC [on Monday night], AOC forgets the whole genocide thing and falsely claims that Kamala Harris 'is working tirelessly to secure a ceasefire in Gaza.' "

"This came on the same day that the Biden-Harris admin pulled off their latest ceasefire scam that lets Israel dictate the terms," he added. "What an insult to Palestinians and everyone else actually working tirelessly to pressure the genocide-complicit, ceasefire-blocking admin that AOC is whitewashing."

The official TikTok account of the Harris campaign promoted the lie to their overwhelmingly pro-Palestine audience on TikTok:

The Biden-Harris regime is actually actively preparing for war with Israel's enemies and put forward a one-sided "ceasefire" proposal full of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's demands only for propaganda purposes.

This is basically the same bait-and-switch Harris pulled on her followers in March.

Here's the (hilarious) video in question where Kamala Harris called for a "ceasefire"basked in applausethen clarified she was only supporting Biden's plan for a temporary pause to the slaughter. https://t.co/XUqsIPpBIfpic.twitter.com/w5ebaCU65F  Chris Menahan ?? (@infolibnews) July 27, 2024

In July, Harris met with Netanyahu and pledged her "unwavering commitment" to Israel while only offering the Palestinians her "concern."

Kamala before securing the nomination: "To everyone who has been calling for a ceasefire...I see you and I hear you." Kamala after: "I'M SPEAKING NOW!!!" pic.twitter.com/7Mp67MJONw  Chris Menahan ?? (@infolibnews) August 8, 2024

Just days ago, the Biden-Harris regime approved a massive $20 billion arms sale to Israel to help them massacre Palestinians and prepare for war with Iran and Lebanon.

The Harris campaign went on record to the New York Times two weeks ago to state that "she does not support an arms embargo on Israel."

While Harris's campaign was busy spreading the lie that she's "working tirelessly to secure a ceasefire," her "Jewish outreach chief" and other allies were busy telling the Israeli media that she's going to do everything the Jewish state demands.

Live update: Harris wont cut or condition aid to Israel, former aide says https://t.co/V9fSwARL1Y  ToI ALERTS (@TOIAlerts) August 20, 2024

From The Times of Israel, "Harris won't cut or condition aid to Israel, former aide says":

A Kamala Harris administration will not cut or condition US security assistance to Israel, her former aide says during a panel on the sidelines of the Democratic National Convention. Jewish Democratic Council of America CEO Halie Soifer, who previously served as Harriss national security adviser in the Senate, notes that the Biden-Harris administration has approved more aid to Israel in the past six months  $15 billion  than any other administration ever. Also speaking on the panel organized by the American Jewish Committee is Rep. Brad Schneider who says he spoke yesterday with the Harris campaigns new Jewish outreach chief, Ilan Goldenberg, who assured him that the Democratic Partys presidential nominee would oppose a return to the Iran nuclear deal.

The Democrats' new party platform also pledges their "ironclad" commitment to Israel, as Antiwar reports:

On Monday, delegates at the Democratic National Convention voted to adopt the partys new 2024 platform, which vows ironclad support for Israel amid its US-backed genocidal war in Gaza. President Biden and Vice President Harris believe a strong, secure, and democratic Israel is vital to the interests of the United States, the platform reads. Their commitment to Israels security, its qualitative military edge, its right to defend itself, and the 2016 Memorandum of Understanding is ironclad. The 2016 Memorandum of Understanding is an agreement reached under the Obama administration that committed the US to providing Israel with $3.8 billion in military aid each year from 2019 to 2028.

Harris has been Israel First throughout her political career and there's zero reason to believe her position will change if she's installed as president.

Read more at: InformationLiberation.com
Armed Israeli settlers attack West Bank village, burning down properties and killing a young Palestinian man

A group of armed illegal Israeli settlers attacked the residents of Jit, a town east of Qalqilya in the occupied West Bank, killing a young Palestinian man

On Aug. 15, more than 70 armed Israeli settlers stormed into Jit at around 7 p.m. local time. The masked settlers hurled rocks and Molotov cocktails, storming the city and causing extensive property damage by burning cars, homes and other properties while firing bullets and tear gas canisters at residents.

The Palestinian Health Ministry reported that the armed settlers shot a 23-year-old Palestinian named Rashid Mahmoud Abdel Qader Sadda in the chest, killing him. One video captured medics performing CPR on Sadda. Images from the aftermath show a young girl comforting the grieving mother of Sadda.

Videos of the attack show burning vehicles and flames engulfing the ground floor of a two-story building while Palestinians desperately tried to extinguish the fires amid chaos and shouting.

Moawya Ali, a resident of Jit, quickly evacuated his five children to a nearby house when he saw the wave of armed Israeli settlers approaching his home. Upon returning, Ali witnessed around 30 settlers  armed, masked and dressed in black  jumping over his fence, breaking windows and throwing Molotov cocktails into his home. The ground floor was extensively damaged, with furniture completely hollowed out by flames and the air still thick with smoke. (Related: Israel sodomizes and kills Palestinian detainees, Candace Owens calls out silent Christians.)

Ali recounted the settlers shouting in both Arabic and Hebrew at him, declaring that they are members of Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir's "gang," and that "We are here to kill you, here to kill Arabs."

"They told us to leave, to go to Sinai, to Jordan, to Syria," added Ali. "[They said] we will come back for you and kill you."

Another resident, Mohamed Arman, was injured when settlers struck his face with a rock and torched his car. CCTV footage shows Arman confronting at least five settlers, who were armed and appeared to be prepared for the assault.

"They were prepared with weapons," Arman said, noting that the settlers had knives, M16 rifles and other firearms fitted with noise suppressors. "They came to commit a crime in the town."

International condemnation of the incident fails to quell the outrage of Jit residents and officials

Top Israeli officials and the international community have quickly disavowed and condemned the incident, but all this did little to cool the anger of Jit residents and officials.

"We have attacks but nothing to this level," said Nasser Sedda, the head of Jit village council and cousin of Rashid Sadda. "We haven't seen anything like this before, and without a prior warning. They caught the people off guard  women, children and elders were there."

Residents of Jit also stated that the assault was the most severe yet and they fear it may not be the last.

"Yesterday's event was not the first and will not be the last," said Jamal Yamin, a resident of Jit and member of the municipal committee. "But it was the most vicious." Yamin also condemned the international community for not doing anything despite knowing that the Palestinian people have no means to confront such attacks. "The world sees and hears what happens, and does nothing."

Murad Eshtewi, a spokesman for Fatah in the Qalqilya Province, stated that Israeli settler leaders have always green-lighted such violence.

"We cannot believe in the contradiction Netanyahu is now living," he said. "It sends a message to settlers that they can launch their attacks on the people of the town Jit."

Follow IsraelCollapse.com for more stories like this.

Watch the video below about demonstrators in Belfast removing Israeli products from shelves in protest of the continuing genocide in Gaza.

This video is from the Cynthia's Pursuit of Truth channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Prophecy preacher and genocide apologist Amir Tsarfati says the mass killing of Palestinians is not genocide because God told them to do it.

Despite overwhelming advantage in military equipment, Israel is incapable of destroying Hamas in Gaza, U.S. officials have now concluded.

Israel is on the verge of economic and mental health collapse as corporations shutter operations and new projects are cancelled.

Candace Owens urges Christian podcasters and politicians to condemn Israeli abuse of Palestinian detainees.

White House approves new $20 billion arms sales to Israel.

Sources include:

MiddleEastEye.net

CNN.com 1

CNN.com 2

Brighteon.com
Authorities: MYSTERY PASSENGER was aboard plane that crashed in Brazil on Aug. 9 with multiple cancer doctors

A mystery passenger was aboard the aircraft that crashed in Brazil on Aug. 9, according to authorities in the South American nation.

The Daily Mail disclosed the identity of the mystery passenger aboard the ill-fated Voepass ATR-72 turboprop plane as Constantino The Maia. According to the regional carrier, his name did not appear on the list of boarded passengers due to a "technical error." However, the Mail noted that it is unclear whether Maia was simply missed off the manifest or he snuck on board at the last minute.

The Voepass flight took off from Cascavel Regional Airport in Brazil's Parana state and was bound for Sao Paulo/Guarulhos International Airport in Sao Paulo state. But instead of landing at the airport, it crashed into the backyard of a condominium building in Sao Paulo's Vinhedo town. Fifty-eight passengers, including Maia, alongside four crew members, perished in the crash.

Brazil's Federal Police also began its own investigation, saying in a statement that it had dispatched specialists in plane crashes and the identification of disaster victims. Authorities also commenced transferring the corpses to the morgue, and called on victims' family members to bring any medical, X-ray and dental exams to help identify the bodies. Blood tests were also done to help identification efforts.

"As we see a possible body in the middle of the destruction of the plane, rescue teams come in. Then they take pictures, gather as much evidence from the victim as they can so the identification can be the most accurate," said firefighter Maycon Cristo. "We will investigate so this case is fully explained to the Brazilian people."

For now, the cause of the crash remains unknown. Guilherme Derrite, public security secretary for Sao Paulo state, told reporters that the plane's black box had been recovered  apparently in a preserved state.

8 Oncologists among the casualties of ill-fated flight

But even more mysterious than Maia's presence on the flight is the fact that eight oncologists were among the casualties of the ill-fated Voepass flight. Eduardo Baptistella, an official from the Regional Medical Council, confirmed the deaths of the doctors.

"These doctors were going to an oncology conference," he said. "These were people who dedicated their lives to serving others." (Related: Eight of the 68 people who died in Brazilian plane crash were cancer doctors on their way to SBTMO 2024.)

According to Baptistella, a total of 15 doctors were supposed to be traveling to the conference aboard the ill-fated flight. However, seven of them had taken an earlier service.

Other reports have also disclosed that the eight doctors were convinced that they had discovered a cure for the turbo-cancers caused by the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) injections. The oncologists were reportedly furious with Big Pharma and determined to help the billions deceived into taking the lethal gene therapies.

Clinical trials for this cure were in an advanced stage at the time of the oncology conference. But following the deaths of the eight doctors, these trials have been halted. Surviving researchers have sadly acknowledged that crucial knowledge was lost with their colleagues' untimely demise.

Head over to Conspiracy.news for more stories like this.

Watch this video discussing the possibility of the Voepass plane crash being caused by a computer glitch.

This video is from the Resistance Chicks channel on Brighteon.com.

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Dozens injured after Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner hits extreme turbulence over Atlantic.

Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 PLUNGES to less than 500 feet above the ground, terrifying Oklahoma residents.

Sources include:

DailyMail.co.uk

Independent.co.uk

GreekNewsOnDemand.com

Brighteon.com
Hackers steal over a million Social Security numbers and other sensitive personal information from National Public Data

Background check service National Public Data (NPD) has confirmed that hackers breached its systems and leaked Social Security numbers and other sensitive personal information of over a million people.

Earlier in August, Christopher Hoffman filed a lawsuit against Jerico Pictures Inc., the company that operates the NPD service, on behalf of the others affected. In the lawsuit, Hoffman accused the company of leaving about 2.9 billion records of sensitive personal data unencrypted and vulnerable to unauthorized access.

According to the complaint, a cybercrime organization known as "USDoD" allegedly infiltrated NPDs systems in late December 2023.

The hackers reportedly began leaking data in April 2024, with further leaks occurring throughout the summer. The compromised data includes Social Security numbers, mailing addresses, email addresses, phone numbers and other personally identifiable information for the last three decades. (Related: PayPal hack exposes names, social security numbers of 35,000 customers.)

The lawsuit, filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, also alleges that many of the affected were not customers of NPD. Their information was allegedly "scraped" by third parties and shared with the company without their consent. The database was then put on sale on the dark web for $3.5 million.

In line with this, the NPD published several statements admitting to the data breach.

In a notice published by the Office of the Maine Attorney General on Aug. 17, the NPD disclosed that 1.3 million people, including over 2,000 residents of Maine, were affected by the breach. Before that, the NPD also released an undated statement on its website to acknowledge the breach and advise consumers to mitigate potential harm associated with the unauthorized use of Social Security numbers. Additionally, the NPD sent letters on Aug. 10 to notify affected consumers of the breach and advise them to take steps to protect their financial information.

NPD recommended that individuals contact the three major U.S. credit reporting agencies  Equifax, TransUnion and Experian  to obtain a free credit report and consider placing a fraud alert on their credit files.

Some cybersecurity experts try to downplay the hacking

Troy Hunt, the founder of the "Have I Been Pwned" (HIBP) service, tried to downplay the hacking. Hunt stated that one version of the leaked database contained 134 million unique email addresses. He also revealed discrepancies within the data, including incorrect associations between names and dates of birth, as well as outdated addresses.

These findings mirror his own experience, as he discovered one of his email addresses is associated with two different birthdates, neither of which is correct.

Similarly, Bleeping Computer, a cybersecurity news platform, discovered that access to the official statement of the NPD regarding the breach has been blocked for IP addresses in various U.S. regions and even outside the country. Tests conducted by BleepingComputer found that some individuals were linked to incorrect names, and in some cases, outdated addresses were listed. Meaning, not all of the information in the leak appears to be accurate.

But many of the victims also confirmed the accuracy of the records included in the compromised data. The data even includes information about deceased individuals.

Visit CyberWar.news for more stories of data breaches and other hacking incidents.

Watch this video discussing the massive data breach of Social Security numbers.

This video is from the AllTheWorldsAStage channel on Brighteon.com.

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Sources include:

TheEpochTimes.com

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Keyboard warrior in the U.K. slapped with 3-YEAR JAIL SENTENCE for urging online followers to support anti-migration protests

A so-called "keyboard warrior" in the United Kingdom has been slapped with a punishment of three years behind bars for posts he made on the X platform

Wayne O'Rourke, 35, was sentenced to a three-year jail term for allegedly "stirring up racial hatred" during the recent anti-migration protests and riots. According to the local paper Lincolnshire Free Press, he had shared "misinformation" about Axel Rudakubana, the perpetrator of the mass stabbing attack in the English town of Southport. Rudakubana, who was born in the U.K. to Rwandan parents, killed three young girls during the July 29 attack.

The Rwandan perpetrator's attack sparked riots and protests all over the country, mainly spurred by Downing Street's lax policies toward migrants. O'Rourke reportedly gave his 90,000 followers advice on how to remain anonymous during these protests. While the advice he gave resulted in him spending time behind bars, left-wing protesters often give out these same tips without any repercussions.

Several of his posts urged residents of Southport and the city of Sunderland to take to the streets and protest. A separate post by O'Rourke urged rioters to "hold the line," citing the "us against them" remark allegedly said by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Circuit Judge Catalina Sjolin Knight of the Lincoln Crown Court told O'Rourke during sentencing: "You were not caught up in what others were doing, you were instigating it. The flames [were] fanned by keyboard warriors like you."

"This charge demonstrates that we will take fast and decisive action against anyone suspected of sharing harmful content online," commented Lincolnshire Police Chief Superintendent Kate Anderson. "We retain a commitment to proactively police and keep people safe across the county. This action shows that everyone is responsible for their actions  whether they be in public, or online."

Founder of anti-pedophile group suffers same fate as O'Rourke

O'Rourke isn't the only Briton facing jail time for allegedly "stirring up hatred"  a crime with a rather vague definition as most actions that fall under this charge are part of protected free speech. Phil Hoban, 48, suffered the same fate after a magistrate in the Leeds Crown Court sentenced him to eight months behind bars.

According to a separate Breitbart report, Hoban allegedly committed "racial abuse" toward pro-Palestinian counter-protesters during a non-violent protest in the city of Leeds on Aug. 3. He was reportedly witnessed imitating the Muslim manner of prayer "to mock their religion," making supposed slurs about Allah and rubbing his lips "toward a person of color." Judge Guy Kearl told Hoban during sentencing that his conduct and that of his fellow protesters "was designed to stir up hatred."

The 48-year-old denied allegations that he was a racist. He also denied making slurs against Allah, saying that he was chanting about a man named "Alan." (Related: 61-year-old man gets 18-month prison sentence for chanting "who the fu#k is Allah.")

According to the BBC, Hoban founded the Predator Exposure group that exposed pedophiles  but left the group after his conviction. He claimed to have exposed 440 online predators, telling Kearl during his trial that Predator Exposure had worked with police on numerous occasions to track down pedophiles.

The group played a big role in the arrest and sentencing of former Irish TV producer Kieran Creavan. Hoban's arrest followed a sting operation by the group, in which the producer was tricked into thinking he was meeting with a 13-year-old girl. Creavan was later jailed for 10 years on charges of sexual assault and child exploitation.

Head over to SpeechPolice.news for similar stories.

Watch this clip about the British government threatening to extradite and imprison Americans over online posts.

This video is from the Puretrauma357 channel on Brighteon.com.

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Sources include:

Breitbart.com 1

BBC.com 1

Breitbart.com 2

BBC.com 2

Brighteon.com
Kim Dotcom says Nazis, Zionists behind global conspiracy to control everything, destroy humanity

German-Finnish political activist and former hacker Kim Dotcom posted a message on X this week that implicates Nazis and Zionists as the architects behind the globalist effort to seize control of everything while destroying humanity.

According to Kim Dotcom, past hacking efforts have brought to light compelling evidence to suggest that the current "world domination plan" is a product of the so-called Elders of Zion who allegedly wrote a series of protocols under the same name.

Many claim that the Protocols of the Elders of Zion is an antisemitic fabrication, but Kim Dotcom says the plot is real. He names Allen Dulles as one of the key architects who helped reverse the diaspora by unleashing the Nazi party and ultimately the events of World War II.

Dulles "raised money from U.S. industrialists to fund Adolph Hitler, his Nazi party and his war," Kim Dotcom writes, adding that Dulles also "later became the director of the CIA during Kennedy and the head of the Warren commission that investigated the Kennedy assassination."

"Why would anybody believe a man with such a questionable record?" Kim Dotcom asks.

(Related: Amir Tsarfati and other prophecy preachers and teachers claim that there is no genocide happening Gaza  and if you say there is a genocide, then you are "antisemitic.")

Israel's special treatment

As for the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, Kim Dotcom says the document speaks for itself, especially in 2024 as the whole world witnesses firsthand, and for the first time to this degree, the formerly hidden agenda of Zionism.

"Why do Zionists have a massive overrepresentation in the media, politics, banking and world affairs?" Kim Dotcom asks. "How did such a small community get to dominate all the centers of power and information?"

"Why can Israel ignore UN resolutions, international law and commit a genocide in Gaza to standing ovations in the U.S. Congress? Why is Israel acting like it is above the law seemingly without any fear of consequences?"

The Protocols of the Elders of Zion outline the alleged plans of Zionism for world domination, including complete control of the media. Looking at the state of modern media, is such an idea really that far-fetched as to be dubbed a mere "conspiracy theory?"

"We shall absolutely control the media, so that not a single announcement will ever reach the public without our control," reads one passage of the document. "In this way we shall have a sure triumph over our opponents, for without the media, they are helpless."

In another section, the Protocols of the Elders of Zion talks about distracting the "brainless heads" of the public "with vain conceptions, fantastic theories, rotten amusement, games and filthy passions, so that they will be unable to use what intellect they have."

"They will never suspect that they have been stage managed by us," the document's authors boast.

Concerning business and enterprise, the authors of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion reveal that their plan all along has been to "establish huge monopolies so that all will go to ruin when the political smash-up comes"  sound familiar?

"We must at all cost deprive them of their lands and we must lower wages and raise the price of all necessities of life," the document continues.

"We shall create an economic crisis, which will stop dealings in all exchanges and bring industry to a standstill. We shall throw onto the streets whole mobs of workers, simultaneously, all over the world, who will rush to loot property and delight to shed blood."

Society at large is to be dominated by "a few billionaires devoted entirely to us" who oversee "the mass of enslaved people." Law enforcement officers and military soldiers are assigned to do the bidding of Zionism while the Zionists "create chaos and hostilities."

"Our greatest weapon is the media," the document ultimately declares.

More related news about the globalist takeover of the planet can be found at Globalism.news.

Sources for this article include:

X.com

NaturalNews.com
LGBTQ Pride activists in the U.K. arrested for child sex crimes

Two LGBTQ activists and former volunteers from the Pride in Surrey organization in the United Kingdom have been charged with a series of extensive and disturbing child sex abuse offenses

Stephen Ireland, the 40-year-old founder and director of the Pride in Surrey organization and self-proclaimed patron of the controversial LGBTQ+ charity Educate and Celebrate, has been accused of child rape, multiple sexual assaults, voyeurism, offering indecent photographs of minors and plotting kidnapping for over two years from August 2022 to July 2024.

Ireland faces 22 offenses, including the rape of a child under 13; two counts of engaging a child under 13 in sexual activity (penetrative); sexual assault of a child under 13; sexual communication with a child; engaging a child under 13 in sexual activity (non-penetrative); six counts of making indecent photographs of children; two counts of possession of an extreme pornographic image; two counts of possession of prohibited images of children; five counts of distributing indecent photographs of a child; and one count of publishing an obscene article.

Along with Ireland, David Sutton, 26, a former volunteer for the same organization, is also being charged with multiple sex crimes.

Suton has been accused of voyeurism, possession of extreme pornography, conspiracy to sexually assault a child and plotting to kidnap a minor. He faces seven additional offenses, including three counts of making indecent photographs of children; one count of possession of prohibited images of children; one count of possession of an extreme pornographic image; and two counts of distributing indecent photographs of a child.

Ireland and Sutton appeared in court on Aug. 15 after being arrested the day before.

Aside from the individual charges, Ireland and Sutton both face additional joint charges with 15 offenses, including six counts of conspiracy to sexually assault a child; one count of conspiracy to kidnap a child; four counts of arranging the commission of a child sex offense; one count of conspiracy to administer a substance with intent; one count of publishing an obscene article; one count of voyeurism; and one count of perverting the course of justice. (Related: Prominent LGBTQ activist and president of a university queer organization ARRESTED for downloading child pornography.)

The LGBTQ activists have been remanded into custody pending court appearance on Sept. 12.

Pride in Surrey suspends Ireland and Sutton after being charged with multiple sexual abuse of minors

Aside from the criminal charges, Surrey Pride disclosed that Ireland and Sutton have been suspended from the organization after they became aware of a police probe into them back in June. The organization also clarified that they were unaware of the investigation until Ireland and Sutton were charged.

"[We] have been made aware of an investigation that has been conducted involving two former volunteers, both of whom have now been charged," said the group in a statement. "On 12th June, Pride in Surrey were informed by Surrey Police of an ongoing investigation surrounding two volunteers. Both volunteers were immediately suspended from the organization. Following this, a decision was made to remove them both from the organization, as well as Stephen Ireland as a director. We were not aware of the exact nature of the crimes being investigated."

"[On Aug. 15] Pride in Surrey were made aware of the charges made against both volunteers via a social media post. We are appalled and horrified at the charges which have been brought against the two individuals," continued the statement. "We will fully cooperate with Surrey Police in any way they require. Our thoughts are with the alleged victims and their families."

Visit Psycho.news for more stories about child sex abusers.

Watch Gabor "Gabe" Zolna talk about transgender inmates sexually assaulting biological women in prison.

This video is from the zolnareport.com channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Man posing as a woman found GUILTY of sexually assaulting a mentally disabled teen.

Transgender pedophile arrested for production, distribution and possession of child pornography.

Gay former Democratic mayor sentenced to 150 years behind bars for 140+ counts of child pornography, but will only serve 30 years.

Trans former NH lawmaker faces federal charges for allegedly using daycare connections to generate child exploitation images.

Former president of regional LGBT pride organization in Canada charged with sex crimes against CHILDREN.

Sources include:

100PercentFedUp.com

DailyMail.co.uk

Brighteon.com
Lukashenko: Government in Kyiv is OUT OF TOUCH with the Ukrainian people

The incumbent government in Kyiv is out of touch with the sentiments of the Ukrainian people, according to Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.

Lukashenko, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, issued this sentiment in an Aug. 18 interview with the state-owned TV channel Russia-1. According to him, the neo-Nazi ideology prevalent in Kyiv does not resonate with the rest of the country's population.

"There are no longer any Nazis," Lukashenko told the outlet, adding that the few "rabid" nationalists remaining in Kyiv "no longer set the trend." He also pointed out in the same interview that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has lost the support of the majority. Around 70 percent "hate Zelensky because he promises one thing and does another," the Belarusian leader said without expounding on where he obtained the numbers.

Lukashenko added that another reason why Zelensky no longer enjoys the support of Ukraine's majority is "because people are dying" under his rule. Belarus had been inundated with fighting-age Ukrainian men "fleeing from the war" with their families.

"Out of them, 99 percent are men who do not want to fight," he continued. Minsk provides some of them with work and accommodation, while others have moved on to Western nations.

The results of an opinion poll published by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) in June indicated that around 43 percent of Ukrainians believe democracy is in decline under Zelensky. Of that 43 percent, 28 percent blame the Ukrainian government while 11 percent blame the conflict with Russia. Almost half of the overall respondents in the poll said economic conditions, including transparency and the governments fairness toward businesses, have worsened during Zelensky's rule.

But even before the KIIS poll, the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) noted in May that Zelensky's approval rating stood at a measly 17 percent even before the formal end of his term. "Over 70 percent of the public distrusts all Ukrainian media, while about 90 percent would like to leave the country," the SVR added.

Ukrainians will eventually realize the West deceived them

According to a separate Russia Today piece, Zelensky  a comedian who later starred in the Ukrainian TV series "Servant of the People"  "was elected president in 2019 on a promise that he would find a peaceful resolution of the conflict with the Donbas republics." But he eventually ended up adopting the same hostile policies as his predecessor, former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.

Despite his five-year term officially expiring in May, Zelensky remains the de facto leader of Ukraine. He cancelled Ukraine's 2024 presidential elections, citing martial law which he announced when the Russia-Ukraine war broke out in February 2022. Given this, Putin has argued that Zelensky's legitimacy as president has expired. (Related: Zelensky's presidential term has EXPIRED, but he still remains as Ukraines de facto chief executive.)

"When they realize that they were simply used and then they were dumped, once the Ukrainians realized that, they will come to us. We are going to rebuild everything that has been destroyed, but to a higher standard," Lukashenko said during the interview. He warned that the West wants to turn Ukrainian men into cannon fodder and Ukrainian women into sex slaves.

"Beautiful Ukrainian women are simply making a living through prostitution. And men get used any way [Kyiv's Western backers] want. Now they want to deploy them to the front line."

The Belarusian president said he had warned his Ukrainian counterpart that the West is fickle. According to Lukashenko, a new U.S. president might "refuse to honor old arrangements." He also warned Zelensky that even if the United Kingdom gives him enough money to buy a mansion somewhere, there remains the possibility of Ukrainian intelligence assassinating him for being a traitor.

Visit UkraineWitness.com for similar stories.

Watch Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko warning that Russia has more than depleted uranium in its arsenal against Ukraine.

This video is from the ?????? ?????????? channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Zelensky no longer legitimate leader of Ukraine  Putin.

Zelensky's legitimacy will soon be questioned  Kremlin.

The knives are out in Kiev: Once Ukraine loses the war, its elites will eat each other alive.

Permanent dictator: Zelensky declares NO MORE ELECTIONS in Ukraine until war ends.

Putin lambasts Ukraine, West for "distorting WWII history" to further stoke regional conflicts.

Sources include:

RT.com 1

RT.com 2

Brighteon.com
American Society of Plastic Surgeons condemns transgender surgeries for minors

The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) has condemned surgeries for gender-confused minors , breaking from the establishment position made by activist groups. According to a recent report, the ASPS will not be supporting the transgender surgical mutilation of minors.

The trade group said in an interview with City Journal's Leor Sapir that it "has not endorsed any organization's practice recommendations for the treatment of adolescents with gender dysphoria."

"ASPS acknowledged that there is 'considerable uncertainty as to the long-term efficacy for the use of chest and genital surgical interventions' and that 'the existing evidence base is viewed as low quality/low certainty,'" Sapir said.

ASPS has over 11,000 members and represents over 90 percent of plastic surgeons in the U.S. and Canada. The group's statement is the latest by a major medical organization refusing to abide by the mainstream transgender agenda, which has received critical attention for its false and ideological standards on gender and biological sex.

The World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), frequently mentioned as an authority on surgical and chemical interventions despite being an LGBT pressure group, has claimed that "transitions" were "medically necessary" so insurance companies would pay for them.

The administration of President Joe Biden also pushed the activist group to exclude age minimums for permanent surgeries. (Related: Biden health official pressured transgender health organization to remove age limit for trans surgeries.)

These procedures can leave individuals permanently infertile while also causing several health problems, including impaired bone density, lack of ability to breastfeed and other serious reproductive damage.

Puberty blockers are not really reversible, WPATH doctor admits

A WPATH doctor admitted in 2022 that puberty blockers are not really reversible.

"There's challenges with puberty suppression that we have to acknowledge and that's why it's 'reversible asterisks,'" Dr. Scott Leibowitz said. "One cannot be on puberty suppression endlessly. You get to a place where physiologically we need hormones."

As reported by the Washington Free Beacon the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) also allowed a small group of activists to write their transgender ethics.

"Though the organization's guidelines are framed as the consensus position of the AAP's members, only a handful of physicians had a role in shaping them," Aaron Sibarium wrote in 2022.

"Instead, insiders say, the AAP is deferring to small, like-minded teams of specialists ensconced in children's hospitals, research centers, and public health bureaucracies, rather than seeking the insights of pediatricians who see a wide cross-section of America's children."

Moreover, a review by the United Kingdom's National Health Service determined that claiming interventions support individuals with gender dysphoria is baseless. Several of them will outgrow their confusion as time goes by.

Some American medical experts have also warned about the damages of transgender drugs and surgeries.

Follow MedicalViolence.com for more news about transgender surgeries on minors.

Watch the video below discussing the dangers of transgender surgeries.

This video is from the Recharge Freedom channel on Brighteon.com.

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Hospital SUED for kidnapping a boy with autism and facilitating his TRANSITION despite family's disapproval.

Former chief pediatrician at Texas Children's Hospital who endorsed puberty blockers for minors now serves in the Biden administration.

Transgender surgeon promotes castration of teenagers as "an adventure for young people."

Ohio House of Representatives upholds trans surgery ban for minors, overrides DeWine's veto.

Sources include:

LifeSiteNews.com

City-Journal.org

FreeBeacon.com

Brighteon.com
Ukrainian parliament approves law BANNING the countrys biggest Orthodox church

The Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's unicameral parliament, has approved a law banning the country's biggest Orthodox church denomination

Russia Today (RT) reported that the Verkhovna Rada's proposal officially prohibits the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), which Kyiv has repeatedly accused of having ties to Moscow. The proposal, endorsed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, also explicitly bans the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) and all religious institutions affiliated with it.

People's Deputy (PD) Yaroslav Zheleznyak confirmed the passage of the law in a series of Telegram posts on Aug. 20. "Among the people, it [is called] the law banning the Moscow Church," he said. Earlier that day, 265 PDs voted in favor of the law while 29 voted against it and four PDs abstained.

While the law enshrining the ban will take effect in 30 days, it contains a caveat that gives the UOC nine months to sever all ties with the ROC. However, the UOC had declared full autonomy from the ROC several weeks after the Russia-Ukraine war broke out in February 2022. Despite this, Kyiv continued to accuse UOC clergy members of having ties to Moscow  often raiding churches and arresting prelates. (Related: War on CHRISTIANITY: West is mum on Ukraine's proposed legislation to ban Ukrainian Orthodox Church over alleged Russian ties.)

Verkhovna Rada Speaker Ruslan Stephanchuk said a week prior that the law would certainly result in the banning of "the Russian church in Ukraine"  pertaining to the UOC. Zelensky himself also referenced the law's imminent approval around the same time, claiming that it would "reinforce Ukraine's spiritual independence."

According to RT, "Ukraine has long experienced religious tensions" even before the war between Kyiv and Moscow broke out. The UOC and the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), which has the backing of Kyiv, are the two main rival factions. However, the ROC has denounced the OCU as schismatic.

"The UOC remains the largest Orthodox church in Ukraine, with more than 8,000 parishes across the country. However, some of these parishes are choosing to transfer to the jurisdiction of the OCU under pressure from authorities in Kyiv."

Ukraine's proposal to ban the UOC not without criticism

According to the Associated Press, the proposal denounces the ROC as "an ideological extension of the regime of the aggressor state" and "an accomplice to war crimes and crimes against humanity." But to extend this ban to the UOC, which has already declared its autonomy from the Russian counterpart, appears to be a bit too much.

Meanwhile, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said criminal proceedings have been initiated against over 100 UOC clerics for alleged war crimes since February 2022. Almost 50 of them have already been charged, while 26 have already been sentenced by courts. The SBU added that some UOC clerics were exchanged for Ukrainians in the custody of Moscow.

But Robert Amsterdam, a lawyer representing the UOC, denounced the legislation as a "grotesque violation of religious freedom" and called it "religious cleansing."

He argued that the new law makes it impossible for the UOC to defend itself because the proposal targets any organization that the ROC purports to control as per its governing documents. According to the lawyer, the UOC can't control what's in the ROC charter.

Moreover, Amsterdam also pointed out that the proposal targets any religious organization whose "authorized persons" are convicted for crimes against Ukraine's security. This amounts to illegal "collective punishment against an entire church and its believers for the alleged actions of its leaders, he continued.

"It's rare in law to find a bill so contemptuous of legal standards as this bill," the lawyer remarked. "We will go to every court we can. We will go to the United Nations."

Head over to UkraineWitness.com for similar stories.

Watch this video about Volodymyr Zelensky and Ukraine's Chief Rabbi Yaakov Bleich planning to ban the UOC.

This video is from the Cynthia's Pursuit of Truth channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

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Sources include:

RT.com

MSN.com

Brighteon.com
Barclays NOT pulling out of Israel bond auction despite pressure from pro-Palestine activists

Barclays was looking into pulling out from new Israel government bond auctions in response to recent calls for the British banking giant to boycott the auction and sever ties with Israel. However, it just ended up reaffirming its commitment to the country

The report indicated that Barclays, one of the foreign lenders helping the Israeli government to sell debt, had planned to leave the market in recent weeks.

But after more internal discussions, the bank informed Israeli officials that it would participate in the offering and continue to work as a primary dealer, operating alongside other international banks like Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank.

"We appreciate the bank's statement affirming its continued commitment to the State of Israel," said Yali Rothenberg, Israel's accountant-general. "It is crucial that leading global financial institutions, such as Barclays, choose to resist boycotting Israel and support its legitimate right to self-defense as a leading Western democracy."

In an undated statement on its website, the financial institution acknowledged that it had been asked why it invests in nine defense companies supplying Israel, saying that the questions "mistake" the bank's activities.

In a statement in May, when several Palestinian solidarity organizations published a report stating that Barclays has $2.48 billion of investments in Israel's arms industry, Barclays said it provides services to American, British and European companies "that supply defense products to NATO and its allies."

"Barclays does not directly invest in these companies. Decisions on the implementation of arms embargos to other nations are the job of respective elected governments. While we support the right to protest, we ask that campaigners do so in a way that respects our customers, colleagues and property," it stated.

Barclays was ranked as the third most active buyer of Israeli bonds at auctions among the 12 official primary dealers last year, according to official statistics. But it had fallen to 11th in the three months to the end of June. (Related: British banks are now closing the accounts of clients they dont politically agree with.)

Israel uses financial control to punish Palestine

As Israel continues to rely on international financial giants to keep itself propped up amid high spending on the conflict in Gaza, the country continues to use financial control to manipulate funds that provide basic goods and services to people in Gaza and the West Bank.

Israel's Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich even announced in May that his nation will withhold Palestinian tax revenues from the Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank "until further notice," the same day that Norway, Spain and Ireland announced that they will officially recognize the State of Palestine.

Said funds constitute between 60 to 65 percent of the Palestinian public budget and withholding them will have a devastating effect both on the Palestinian government and its people.

Israel has been manipulating funding to the West Bank for decades. Back in 1997, amid heightened violence between illegal Israeli settlers and Palestinian residents of the West Bank, the European Union was forced to step in to cover the PA's operational expenditures, and the United States eventually pressured Israel to transfer the revenues later that year amid peace negotiations.

In 2000, Palestinians staged a major uprising against Israeli occupation now known as the Second Intifada. Even though no evidence was found to support the allegations that the PA funded the uprising, Israel withheld tax revenues again, this time for two years, the longest period it has ever done so as per reports.

By 2002, PA's revenue dropped by 79 percent. The public sector employees, who at the time made up 26 percent of those working inside the West Bank and Gaza, went without their full wages for the entire period.

As the violence intensified until 2005, the West Bank and Gaza suffered immense destruction. Authorities estimated a $1.7 billion cost of replacing the damaged infrastructure. Israeli forces then turned many cities, towns and villages in the West Bank into restricted military zones. This pushed the Palestinian government to the brink of financial collapse.

With the EU's urging, international donors provided direct financial support, including social allowances for some unpaid government employees and financial assistance for low-income families. However, for Israel, the financial support bypassed the PA and was channeled through alternative mechanisms.

In 2011, Israel suspended tax revenues for one month after the PA applied for recognition as a full member of the United Nations General Assembly as the State of Palestine. In 2015, Israel withheld tax revenues for a sixth time after the PA applied to join the International Criminal Court.

From 2000 to 2017, the PA sustained $6.6 billion in losses as a result of the delayed revenue transfers due to the loss of interest earned and the borrowing costs of alternative financing.

In addition to withholding revenues, Israel unilaterally deducts bills for electricity, water, health, sewage and court orders before sending a net revenue amount to Palestine.

Head over to IsraelCollapse.com for similar stories.

Watch the video below that talks about Barclays' connection with the deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

This video is from the NewsClips channel on Brighteon.com.

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Far from being an ally, Israel is actually America's most dangerous ENEMY.

Sources include:

MiddleEastEye.net

FT.com

TheConversation.com

Brighteon.com
HHS deploys AI robots to inoculate social media users against HPV vaccine misinformation

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) have developed an artificial intelligence-powered weapon for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that will allow the government to police the internet for "misinformation" about HPV (human papillomavirus), Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19), and other "vaccines" on social media.

The team says its AI policing robot can be "swiftly and efficiently" adapted to address the spread of content online that negatively impacts Big Pharma's vaccine sales pipeline. Using United States taxpayer dollars, UPenn researchers say they now have the technology at the ready to "inoculate" social media users against "misinformation" about childhood vaccines.

Through a Freedom of Information Act request, Children's Health Defense (CHD) was able to procure grant documents showing that HHS is spending $4 million on an "Inoculate for HPV Vaccine" randomized controlled trial that began in April 2022 and will run through March 2027. The National Cancer Institute is also contributing cash to the project.

Headed by Melanie L. Kornides, an associate professor of nursing at UPenn, the AI robot development program aims to increase vaccine uptake across the U.S. population. It is also focused on developing "strategies to combat misinformation" in general.

Kornides and her cohort of digital health communication experts, software and program designers, social media analysts, and machine learning experts will run their social media "inoculation" experiment on the parents of 2,500 children between the ages of eight and 12. Data is being collected from platforms like YouTube, Twitter (now X), Facebook, and Instagram.

(Related: Did you know that HPV vaccines like Gardasil are triggering severe injuries and deaths in children?)

Using natural language processing to train AI in the weapon of censorship

Since most online talk about vaccines seems to take place on the above social media platforms, Kornides and her colleagues are using natural language processing to train their AI robot in how to identify "HPV misinformation," also known as posts and comments that are critical or questioning of HPV vaccines.

Regardless of whether the information is true or false, Kornides and her team aim to remove all of it that could cause parents to not vaccinate their children. Study subjects will be exposed to three separate study arms with different types of messaging in order to deploy the "inoculation tool" to test whether or not it makes them "immune" to "misinformation."

"A control group will get no particular messaging and two test groups will be exposed either to messaging designed to inoculate viewers against content critical of of HPV vaccines and content critical of anti-vaccine arguments," CHD reports.

"The subjects will get 'booster' doses of messaging at three and six months after their first inoculation ... If successful, the researchers wrote, this novel approach to combating health 'misinformation' can be used in 'wide-scale social media campaigns' addressing pandemics, childhood vaccination and other health issues."

The researchers claim that their new AI robot is necessary because "misinformation" about HPV vaccines is one of the leading drivers behind so-called "vaccine hesitancy," which they claim often comes from "anti-vaccine organizations."

According to Mary Holland, co-author of "The HPV Vaccine on Trial: Seeking Justice for a Generation Betrayed," what these UPenn researchers are trying to do is "a sign of weakness" within the public health industry.

"When you are censoring information, labeling it misinformation and smearing us, this is a sign that they've lost the science and are now in a verbal food fight," Holland is quoted as saying. "It's just a sign they are going to lose."

More related news about the AI takeover of the internet and Big Pharma's involvement in the heist can be found at Robots.news.

Sources for this article include:

ChildrensHealthDefense.org 1

ChildrensHealthDefense.org 2 [PDF]

NaturalNews.com
Lukashenko: Ukraine is pushing Russia to use NUCLEAR WEAPONS

Ukraine is goading Russia to use nuclear weapons through its incursion in the Kursk region, according to Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.

The Belarusian leader made this remark during an interview published on Aug. 18 by the state-owned TV channel Russia-1. According to Lukashenko, Ukraine's incursion in Kursk  the largest cross-border assault by Kyiv since the conflict and the first attack on Russia since WWII  posed enormous risks to global security.

"The danger is that this kind of escalation on the part of Ukraine is an attempt to push Russia into asymmetric actions  for example, the use of nuclear weapons," said Lukashenko. The close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin added that Moscow using its nukes would be a "PR bonanza" for both Kyiv and its Western backers.

Mac Slavo of SHTF Plan noted that "so far, Russia has exercised a lot of restraint in not following through with its threats  but surely it has a real line."

However, Lukashenko believes Moscow doesn't intend to use nuclear weapons against Ukraine. "Then we would probably have hardly any allies left. There would be no sympathetic countries left at all," Lukashenko said. He explained that this reaction would be based on the universal aversion to the nuclear fallout that would surely follow the use of these weapons.

Lukashenko also responded to statements by Ukrainian officials that the Kursk incursion was aimed at improving Kyiv's diplomatic position for possible negotiations with Moscow. He explained that while the plan is "a classic,  it does not work in a struggle against a great empire that has not even begun to fight in earnest. According to Lukashenko, he was sure that Russian forces would succeed in expelling the Ukrainian forces currently in Kursk. (Related: Ukraine wants to start talks using Kursk nuclear plant seizure as ultimatum  Akhmat head.)

Lukashenko encourages both sides to TALK

"According to its current nuclear doctrine, Russia can deploy its nuclear arsenal only 'in response to the use of nuclear and other types of weapons of mass destruction against it or its allies, and also in case of aggression against Russia with the use of conventional weapons when the very existence of the state is threatened,'" Russia Today (RT) wrote.

"Putin has said on several occasions that there is no need to use nuclear weapons in the Ukraine campaign. Moscow has warned that it may change its nuclear doctrine, but said that any changes would be in response to what it perceives as escalatory moves by NATO [North Atlantic Treaty Organization]."

Lukashenko said during the same interview that Moscow and Kyiv must "settle their differences through negotiations" lest Ukraine be totally destroyed. He referenced the two sides' peace talks from 2022, which collapsed at the time due to meddling by former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

"We must sit down at the negotiating table and discuss the issues. But if it goes on like in Kursk region, this will be an escalation that would result in Ukraine's destruction."

He also noted that the warring parties could re-engage based on a draft proposal from the 2022 talks Putin introduced and pick up from there. Lukashenko told Russia-1: "Yes, the situation on the ground has changed. But this [proposal] could be a start  for a discussion."

Head over to UkraineWitness.com for similar stories.

Watch Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko warning that Russia has more than depleted uranium in its arsenal against Ukraine.

This video is from the ?????? ?????????? channel on Brighteon.com.

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Sources include:

SHTFPlan.com

RT.com 1

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Brighteon.com
Members of Israeli negotiating team accuse Netanyahu of deliberately sabotaging ceasefire deal

Members of Israel's negotiating team suspect that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is deliberately undermining the chances of reaching a deal with Hamas , according to a report by Israel's public broadcaster Kan on Tuesday, Aug. 20.

A source cited by Kan suggested that Netanyahu's recent comments about maintaining Israeli control over the Gaza-Egypt border, known as the Philadelphi Corridor and the Netzarim Corridor, are intended to derail the negotiations.

"Netanyahus statement is meant to sabotage the talks," the source said. "He is aware that we are in a critical phase of discussing solutions for the Philadelphia and Netzarim Corridors ahead of the upcoming summit." (Related: Netanyahu expected to delay Gaza ceasefire deal until after the U.S. presidential election.)

The source further claimed that Netanyahu's statements contradict the agreements made with mediators and are detrimental to the progress of the negotiations.

A U.S. official traveling with Secretary of State Antony Blinken also expressed concerns about Netanyahu's remarks, noting that such "maximalist statements" are unhelpful in securing a ceasefire deal.

"These comments are not constructive and make it harder to finalize the agreement," the official told the Times of Israel.

While Blinken has not publicly criticized Netanyahu, he emphasized that it is up to Hamas to agree to the deal.

"In a productive meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu, he confirmed Israels support for the bridging proposal," Blinken said on Monday, Aug. 19. This proposal, which incorporates some of Netanyahus demands, does not include a permanent ceasefire. "The next crucial step is for Hamas to agree," Blinken added.

Israeli officials revealed to Axios that Netanyahu might have endorsed the U.S. proposal, knowing that Hamas would likely reject it. Hamas has called for the implementation of the ceasefire proposal put forth by President Biden in May.

On Tuesday, Hamas criticized the new proposal, calling it a "reversal" of the previous U.S.-backed plan and accusing the U.S. of yielding to Netanyahus "new conditions and criminal plans" regarding the Gaza Strip.

Daughter of dead Israeli hostage slams Netanyahu's handling of negotiations

Meanwhile, Inbal Albini Peri, daughter of one of the six Israeli hostages whose bodies were returned from Gaza by Israels military on Tuesday, has accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of prioritizing "political interests" over a ceasefire and hostage release agreement.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4's "Today" program, Peri criticized Netanyahu's handling of the negotiations, claiming her 80-year-old father, Chaim and his companions should have been among the first to be freed under any agreement with Hamas.

"They should have come back alive," she said. "I don't believe a word he is saying. I want him to apologize to my family and the other families."

Peri did not clarify her use of "political priorities," but her comments reflect growing frustration.

Netanyahu has maintained that he is doing everything possible to secure the release of all hostages taken during Hamas' October 7 attack. However, Peri expressed doubts about the prime minister's sincerity and effectiveness.

Following the October attack, which resulted in approximately 1,200 deaths and 251 hostages taken, Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza. Over 40,000 people have since died in Gaza, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.

A November agreement saw Hamas release 105 hostages in exchange for a ceasefire and the release of 240 Palestinian prisoners. Israel said 105 hostages remain captive, 34 of whom are presumed dead.

Peri's father was abducted after leaving a safe room to protect his wife. In December, Hamas' military wing released a video showing her father and other elderly hostages. In June, the Israeli military confirmed that her father and others had been killed.

On Tuesday morning, Israeli troops recovered the bodies of her father and five other hostages from underground tunnels in Khan Younis. Peri described this as a small closure for her family, though she lamented the loss of life.

"It only depended on our government and the mental state of our prime minister, who had different priorities. We should have been negotiating instead of fighting," she said.

Visit IsraelCollapse.com for more stories related to Israel.

Watch this ABC News report about the U.S., Qatar and Egypt calling for renewed negotiations between Hamas and Israel.

This video is from the TrendingNews channel on Brighteon.com.

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Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu calls for U.S.-Israel alliance to combat "Iranian threat."

Israels assassination of Hamas leader Haniyeh in Iran signals Netanyahus willingness to escalate conflict into full-scale regional war.

Netanyahu demands U.S. expedite aid to Israel, says Americans protesting Israel 'stand with evil.'

Sources include:

Antiwar.com

BBC.com

Brighteon.com
German doctor says monkeypox is a SCAM  its just COVID vaccine-induced shingles under a different name

In a recent interview with Austrian broadcaster, Dr. Wolfgang Wodarg, based out of Germany, revealed that one of the known side effects of Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) "vaccines" is a rashy, blistery, severe pain-filled condition that looks a whole lot like monkeypox , which the media is now calling "mpox."

The main symptoms of monkeypox include blistery rashes that are extremely painful, which is also characteristic of both herpes zoster and shingles. Shingles, by the way, causes a person to develop blisters on the skin that resemble chickenpox.

(Related: We warned our readers about this back in 2022 when monkeypox first emerged in U.S. headlines, revealing that shingles, autoimmune blisters, and herpes are all hallmarks of COVID jab poisoning.)

Attorney Aaron Siri made public some 390,000 reports from the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System showing that shingles is a common side effect of COVID "vaccination." Roughly one out of every 450 people who gets jabbed for COVID will develop shingles.

Dr. Wodarg reiterated all of this and more during his interview, which is unlikely to make the rounds in the United States or really anywhere in the West. In fact, a quick search for a transcript or clip of his interview on Google and Bing pulls up page after page of "fact checks" claiming that monkeypox has nothing to do with COVID injections. Alex Jones, however, shared it on his X page  and you can also watch it below:

German Doctor Exposes Monkey Pox Scam: Says It's a COVID-19 Vaccine Side Effect. From the German article titled: Doctor: Monkeypox is actually shingles, a side effect of the COVID vaccines The main symptom of monkeypox is the rash that can look like blisters and is accompanied pic.twitter.com/yWum7TsO0N  Alex Jones (@RealAlexJones) August 20, 2024

PCR tests for monkeypox are bogus, just like the ones for COVID

Like some kind of Pandemic 2.0 repeat, the stage is quickly being set to make monkeypox the next COVID, complete with lockdowns and PCR testing, which Dr. Wodang says are bogus just like they were the first time around.

PCR tests are nothing more than expensive ruses produced by the pharmaceutical industry  Dr. Wodang specifically mentioned Roche as one of their producers. The new narrative is that these PCR tests are necessary to detect the presence of monkeypox inside people's bodies.

This continued assault on the public's intelligence is wearing down people's understanding of diseases. There is one side that no longer even believes these so-called diseases are real outside of vaccine side effects while the other is so deathly afraid of the next "virus" that they are obeying whatever they are told by the media and government.

As for monkeypox, one can only imagine the number of "fully vaccinated" individuals who will eat up whatever gets dispensed concerning the disease and do whatever they are told. This includes taking PCR "tests" that whitewash the truth that monkeypox is a side effect of COVID "vaccination."

Dr. Wodang calls it a "perverse industry," referring to Big Pharma, that would pull these kinds of deceptions on the masses, scaring people into complying all for industry profit and eugenics purposes.

Another thing to consider about the rise of adult shingles throughout society is that this is likely a result of modern generations getting "vaccinated" for chickenpox. It used to be that chickenpox, like measles, was a common thing that people "caught" and recovered from naturally, providing them with lasting immunity  but that changed after chickenpox "vaccines" were introduced.

"I started seeing an increase in young people with shingles with this generation that was vaccinated for chickenpox," wrote someone on X claiming to have been a nurse for 20 years.

The latest news about COVID "vaccine" side effects and damage can be found at BadMedicine.news.

Sources for this article include:

Twitter.com

NaturalNews.com
Pentagon sends nuclear submarine, aircraft carrier to Middle East in anticipation of Irans retaliation against Israel

As the tension between Israel and Iran continues to escalate, United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin ordered a guided missile submarine to the Middle East and an aircraft carrier strike group to sail more quickly to the area earlier in August.

The order came out after the phone call between Austin and Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Galant on Aug. 11, which was confirmed by the Department of Defense (DOD) Press Secretary Major General Patrick Ryder.

Austin ordered the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group, with F-35C fighter jets onboard. He also ordered the deployment of the USS Georgia (SSGN 729) guided missile submarine to the region. The USS Georgia, a nuclear-powered submarine, was already in the Mediterranean Sea in July, according to a U.S. military post on social media, but it is rare for the U.S. to publicly announce the deployment of a submarine. Meanwhile, the Abraham Lincoln group had been in the Asia Pacific and had already been ordered to the Middle East to replace the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier strike group, which was scheduled to begin heading home.

In a statement by the DOD, Austin reiterated America's commitment to take every possible step to defend Israel and noted the strengthening of U.S. military force posture and capabilities throughout the Middle East in light of escalating regional tensions in the wake of the Israeli assassinations in Tehran and Beirut. (Related: White House approves new $20 billion arms sales to Israel.)

Political leader of the Iran-backed Hamas Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran on July 31, with Iran blaming Israel and promising to retaliate while the latter denied responsibility. The killing of Haniyeh came in the same week that Fuad Shukr, the senior military commander of another Iran-backed group Hezbollah, was killed in an Israeli attack on Beirut.

Last week, Austin said the military augmentation was expected to arrive in the area by the end of the month. The carrier has F-35 and F/A-18 fighter jets on board.

The Pentagon added in the statement that Austin and Gallant had also discussed "the importance of mitigating civilian harm, progress towards securing a ceasefire and the release of hostages held in Gaza."

Meanwhile, critics condemn the Biden administration for not minding its own business and insinuating itself in an unstable region like the Middle East. "The last thing the U.S. should be doing is getting involved in the affairs of a region that is thousands of miles away, that's no longer in the national interest," Big League Politics' Jose Alberto Nino said.

Biden "green lights" the continued genocide in Gaza by declaring Hamas is backing away from the truce

Hamas said that U.S. President Joe Biden's comment that the Palestinian group was backing away from a Gaza ceasefire agreement with Israel was "misleading."

"It's still in play, but you can't predict," Biden said while leaving the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. "Israel says they can work it out  Hamas is now backing away."

According to Hamas, the president's remarks "green lights" Israel to continue the war. "The misleading claims... do not reflect the true position of the movement, which is keen to reach a ceasefire" agreement, the Palestinian militant group said in a statement.

"The proposal recently presented to us goes against what the parties had agreed on July 2, this is considered an American response and acquiescence to the terrorist Netanyahu's new conditions and his criminal plans towards the Gaza Strip," Hamas added, referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The militant group also said Biden's remarks reflect a clear "American bias" toward Israel and Washington's complicity in the "war of extermination against defenseless civilians in the Gaza Strip."

Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was in Egypt Tuesday, Aug. 20, for talks on a Gaza ceasefire. He will then head to Qatar, which along with Egypt is brokering negotiations for a truce in the 10-month-old conflict. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi warned Blinken about the risk of Israel's war on Gaza expanding regionally in a way "difficult to imagine" and emphasized that "the time has come to end the ongoing war."

"The ceasefire in Gaza must be the beginning of broader international recognition of the Palestinian state and the implementation of the two-state solution, as this is the basic guarantor of stability in the region," El-Sisi said.

Head over to WWIII.news to read more stories similar to this.

Watch the video below where former intel officer Scott Ritter talks about Israel Defense Forces crumbling as Iran prepares the "knockout blow."

This video is from Cynthia's Pursuit of Truth channel on Brighteon.com.

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Despite overwhelming advantage in military equipment, Israel is incapable of destroying Hamas in Gaza, U.S. officials have now concluded.

UN experts demand targeted sanctions, arms embargo against Israel for crimes against humanity.

Sounding like a broken record, U.S. intelligence once again warns Iran is closer than ever to manufacturing nuclear weapons.

Sources include:

BigLeaguePolitics.Substack.com

Reuters.com

AlJazeera.com

Brighteon.com
American pharmaceutical companies accused of carrying out clinical trials with Chinese military

A bipartisan House committee has revealed that American pharmaceutical companies carried out drug trials in conjunction with the Chinese military for more than 10 years.

The revelation came in a letter penned by Republican and Democratic leaders on the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Robert Califf. In the letter, they pressed him to supply information about these clinical trials for new medications.

In their letter, they explained: These collaborative research activities raise serious concerns that critical Intellectual Property is at risk of being transferred to the [Chinese military] or being co-opted under the Peoples Republic of Chinas National Security Law.

They also expressed reservations about how much the results of clinical trials produced by China can be trusted.

The letter states that hundreds of clinical trials for drugs have been carried out at medical centers and hospitals in China that are affiliated with the People's Liberation Army (PLA) at sites such as the PLA's Air Force Medical University and the PLA's General Hospital and Medical School.

One of the institutions is operated by the PLA's Academy of Military Medical Sciences, an institution which the Department of Commerce has banned businesses in the United States from sharing technology with due to national security concerns.

Potential experimentation on Uyghur Muslims

The letter also draws attention to the fact that some of these trials took place in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, a place where China has been conducting genocide against the Muslims living there. Reports indicate that some have been subjected to organ harvesting, while female victims are routinely raped and sterilized in so-called reeducation camps.

As a result, it is impossible to determine whether those who participated in the trials did so willingly.

The committees letter notes: Given this, we believe that U.S. biopharmaceutical entities could be unintentionally profiting from the data derived from clinical trials during which the CCP forced victim patients to participate.

They are calling on the administration of President Joe Biden to carefully scrutinize these trials to protect our nations interests and the human rights of the Uyghurs.

"Given the historical suppression and medical discrimination against ethnic minorities in this region, there are significant ethical concerns around conducting clinical trials in (Xinjiang)," they cautioned.

The lawmakers posed a series of questions in their letter, including whether the FDA has ever reviewed clinical trials carried out in conjunction with the PLA or performed any on-site inspections of PLA facilities. They also ask how far back this practice goes and whether the FDA has ever notified an American biopharmaceutical firm that it carried out studies with the PLA.

They also asked the FDA to disclose the metrics it uses to assess the risks of intellectual property and technology transfers, giving them a deadline of Oct. 1 to respond.

One of the studies they focused on in their review of American clinical trials that included Chinese military hospital sites was for the Alzheimer's disease drug donanemab by Eli Lilly. Another was a study of a liver cancer drug by Pfizer known as Inlyta.

A representative from the Chinese embassy in Washington told Reuters that the accusations of intellectual theft are groundless and denied that the country is guilty of genocide in Xinjiang.

Vote expected next month on BIOSECURE Act

The letter comes as the House prepares for a vote on the BIOSECURE Act next month. Legislation was introduced earlier this year that proposes putting a stop to federal contracts with specific Chinese biotech firms that are believed to present a national security risk to the U.S. It will stop pharmaceutical companies from doing business with the firms in question, which could significantly compromise their bottom line.

Sources for this article include:

NYPost.com

100PercentFedUp.com
Trump says he is certainly on board with appointing brilliant RFK Jr. to a position in his administration

If former President Donald Trump wins the election this November, the former president says he is open to the idea of appointing independent presidential rival Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to some kind of cabinet position.

Following a recent campaign stop in Michigan, Trump spoke with the press about Kennedy. Trump said "I like him, and I respect him" about Kennedy, adding that he is a "brilliant" and "very smart guy" who Trump has known "for a very long time."

Kennedy recently urged his followers on X to not let the Democratic Party win the election, the implication being that he would rather his supporters vote for Trump as opposed to Vice President Kamala Harris. Now there is talk that Kennedy may drop out of the race entirely and throw his support behind Trump.

"I didn't know he was thinking about getting out," Trump said in response to this suggestion," but if he is thinking about getting out, certainly I'd be open to it."

The media asked Trump a second time if he is really serious about appointing Kennedy to a position within his administration, to which Trump affirmed his previous statement.

"I probably would, if something like that would happen. He's a very different kind of guy  a very smart guy. And, yeah, I would be honored by that endorsement, certainly."

(Related: After his assassination attempt, Trump called RFK Jr. to discuss vaccine injuries and the possibility of joining forces this November.)

Is Kennedy about to drop out of the race to join forces with Trump?

Kennedy's running mate, Nicole Shanahan, appeared in a podcast interview recently during which she suggested that the campaign is not so sure it will successfully form a new third political party to rival the two primary ones.

"There's two options that we're looking at and one is staying in, forming that new party," Shanahan said, noting that fundraising efforts have not gone as well as the campaign had hoped, not to mention all the attacks by a Democrat-affiliated super PAC.

"But we run the risk of a Kamala Harris and [Tim] Walz presidency because we draw votes from Trump. Or, we walk away right now and join forces with Donald Trump and explain to our base why we're making this decision."

One possible job opportunity for Kennedy under Trump is the role of vaccine safety investigator. One of Kennedy's specialties is telling the truth about the dangers and ineffectiveness of vaccines, and Trump has stated on multiple occasions that he, too, has concerns about vaccine safety.

Though the Kennedy family legacy leans more Democratic historically speaking, the Democrat Party of today, especially as it is mutating under a possible Kamala presidency, would be "unrecognizable" to Kennedy's father, Robert "Bobby" Kennedy Sr., as well as to his uncle, President John F. Kennedy.

Kennedy revealed that after speaking with Trump post-assassination attempt, Kennedy now has "a lot of respect for President Trump for reaching out to me."

"Nobody from the DNC, high or low, has ever reached out to me in 18 months," Kennedy further said.

The latest news suggests that Kennedy will drop out of the race around August 25, or at some point before the end of the week, and endorse Trump, this according to unnamed sources.

Kennedy could appear on stage with Trump at an upcoming campaign event in Phoenix, though the sources reportedly warned that Kennedy could change his mind.

"I will not confirm or deny that," Kennedy responded when asked directly by ABC News if any of this is true. "We are not talking about any of that."

More news about Trump's efforts to secure another presidential term can be found at Trump.news.

Sources for this article include:

TheNationalPulse.com

NaturalNews.com

ABCnews.go.com
Secret Service to shield Trump with bulletproof glass at outdoor events following assassination attempt

Following the multiple lapses in security that led to the near-assassination of former President Donald Trump, the United States Secret Service (USSS) has approved a new security plan to better protect the Republican nominee at outdoor events. The approved measure will include the use of bulletproof glass to shield him on stage

According to the Washington Post, the major enhancement in the USSS' standard security planning for the candidate campaign came following the law enforcement agency's advice that Trump temporarily pause outdoor rallies, after a gunman fired multiple shots at him at an outdoor fairground in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13.

The sheets of ballistic glass are normally only provided for presidents and vice presidents when deemed necessary at outdoor appearances, an extra layer of security organized and coordinated by the Department of Defense to shield the nation's top two leaders, the Post reported.

Vice President Kamala Harris, who is the Democratic nominee challenging Trump, would also be given similar protection if needed.

A USSS official also said the agency has begun positioning caches of ballistic glass around the country in various locations. Another Secret Service official, who requested anonymity, confirmed that they will still be adding other technical security assets that have not normally been provided for presidential candidates but declined to describe those tools. These technical security measures could include the use of drones. (Related: Sen. Johnson: FBI CAN'T BE TRUSTED on Trump assassination probe.)

Trump-Vance campaign holds first outdoor rally since assassination attempt

Trump continued his battleground state tour with a speech in Asheboro, North Carolina, on Wednesday, Aug. 21, marking his first outdoor event since the failed assassination attempt.

As promised by the USSS, his podium at the North Carolina Aviation Museum and Hall of Fame was surrounded by panes of bulletproof glass that form a protective wall across the stage.

Moreover, AP reported that storage containers have been stacked around the perimeter of the space to create additional walls and block sight lines. Snipers were also positioned on roofs at the venue, where old aircraft are sitting behind the podium and a large American flag is suspended from cranes.

Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, the Republican's vice president nominee, joined Trump in the event. Vance spent the week visiting battleground states in his busiest week of campaigning since the Republican primaries.

Trump won North Carolina by a comfortable margin in 2016. The state delivered the former president his closest statewide margin of victory four years ago and is once again considered a key battleground in 2024.

Lisa Watts, a retired business owner from Hickory, North Carolina, who was attending her fifth Trump rally, said she's feeling "very positive" about the race.

The rally coincided with the third day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, which formally named Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic presidential candidate for the upcoming elections.

"A month ago they never spoke her name and now she's like, the 'savior for the country,'" Watts said of the vice president. "I don't think that her record proves that she is ready to run this country."

According to Watts, she doesn't think Trump's chances of winning are much different now from when Biden was the Democratic nominee. "I think the Democrats are going to try to do everything they can to keep her up on that pedestal," she said, predicting the hype around Harris will fade.

Meanwhile, during the DNC convention, former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama assailed Trump, calling him out repeatedly by name.

"His limited and narrow view of the world made him feel threatened by the existence of two hardworking, highly educated, successful people who happen to be Black," Michelle said of Trump in a rousing speech as Barack mocked Trump's obsession with his crowd sizes and called Trump "a 78-year-old billionaire who hasn't stopped whining about his problems since he rode down his golden escalator nine years ago."

Visit Trump.news for stories related to the the former president's campaign.

Watch the video below that talks about independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. potentially joining Trump to defeat the tyrannical Democrat censorship regime.

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Sources include:

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Paladin founder Georgy Zakrevsky demands coup against Putin over military failures in Ukraine

President Vladimir Putin's top critic has called on the army to overthrow the Russian leader in what could be the biggest threat of revolt that Kremlin has faced since the Wagner mutiny last year.

Georgy Zakrevsky, founder of the Paladin private military company (PMC), launched a damning attack on Putin during a video on Telegram in which he blamed all the military failures in Ukraine on Putin personally and accused the Russian president of causing all of the country's economic and social problems.

"Our country is not just on the brink of disaster or already right next to it, our country is already in trouble, in big trouble," he said. "Drones are flying all over central Russia, right up to Moscow and St. Petersburg. They even attacked the Kremlin. Our Black Sea fleet is being pushed out. It's being pushed out as if we are not a great power with a great fleet, but some third-rate country."

He also argued that Moscow's aviation is practically not working because it is being pushed out. He also blamed Putin for the population that is dying out, becoming impoverished and spiraling to death.

"All they have time to do is bring in migrants. And all this was done by the so-called 'president' - 'The Great' Putin," he said.

Zakrevsky's PMC has around 300 members and has fought in wars around the world, including in Syria and Africa. Last year, Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin launched a stunning revolt against Putin, which didn't end well for the former.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces already control more than 1,000 square kilometers of Russian territory in the Kursk Oblast, according to Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi. Oreshkin told the news outlet Kyiv Independent that it is clear to the Russian people and the Kremlin that "things aren't going as well for Putin as he's trying to present it." (Related: NATO doubts Ukraine's ability to maintain control of Kursk amid fierce battles.)

Ukraine expresses intention to continue peace talks but not with Putin

The world watches as Kyiv continues with its aggressive offensive on Moscow, but Ukraine claims to still want to push through with the peace talks but not directly with the Russian leader.

According to a report on Politico, Ukraine would like to use a framework that could proceed even as the Kremlin refuses to send its diplomats to face-to-face meetings with a peace pact model taking inspiration from the July 2022 agreement that allowed Ukraine to resume grain exports out of the Black Sea.

Under that said format, Russia and Ukraine worked on separate agreements, overseen by the United Nations and Turkey as intermediaries, without a direct Moscow-Kyiv accord.

"In the Kursk region, we can see how the military tool is being used objectively to persuade [Russia] to enter a fair negotiation process," Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said earlier this month.

But Putin is not in the mood to talk.

"What kind of negotiations can we talk about with people who indiscriminately attack the civilian population, and civilian infrastructure, or try to create threats to nuclear power facilities? What can we even talk about with them?" Putin said.

The basis for what Ukraine wants is President Volodymyr Zelensky's 10-point plan drawn up in 2022. The format has now accelerated with Andriy Yermak, head of the president's office and Zelensky's main foreign policy official, telling European Pravda that 10 working groups were being set up to draw up action plans and timelines.

"We did not have negotiations with Russia. We had negotiations with Turkey and the UN, and they negotiated with Russia. It was a success," Yermak said. "The corridor operated for a year. There were a lot of problems, but it worked. We must acknowledge that. A similar format could be used again."

"Turkey, as always, is ready to facilitate the process," Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said in June. "We will not shy away from putting further efforts."

But Russia insisted that it would not attend the summit and called Ukraine's peace formula "completely unacceptable" for the Kremlin.

RussiaReport.news contains updates on the current situation in Russia.

Russia wiped out the elite NATO Brigade command staff about to enter Kursk. Watch this video.

This video is from the Prisoner channel on Brighteon.com.

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Ukraine's offensive in Kursk region is the first direct attack on Russia since WWII.

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Sources include:

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A groundbreaking study conducted across 30 field sites in the southwest UK has revealed the importance of incorporating varied habitats into the landscape at large.

The research, published today in Nature and led by ecologists at the University of Bristol, addresses critical questions in conservation and land management, shedding new light on species interactions and how food chains operate across multiple habitats.

The study found significant differences in food web structures among landscapes with one, two, or three habitats, including a more evenly distributed abundance of species. Multi-habitat landscapes host a higher number of species, including habitat specialists, leading to greater overall biodiversity.

Lead author Dr Talya Hackett, who ran the project from Bristol's School of Biological Sciences and is currently at University of Oxford, explained: "Conservation and restoration projects increasingly focus on landscape-scale efforts, however, data on species interactions are often limited to specific habitats, such as woodlands, farmland or urban areas."

The team found that multiple habitats demonstrated enhanced resistance to species loss, offering unexpected insights into ecosystem stability. They also discovered improved ecological functions since multi-habitat landscapes were associated with better pollination services, likely due to the complementary roles of diverse pollinator communities.

Project leader and co-lead author Professor Jane Memmott explained: "Landscapes are more than the sum of their parts; they exhibit properties such as increased buffering against species loss and improved pollination that cannot be predicted from the component habitats."

The study's outcomes suggest a shift in conservation strategies. Traditional management plans often focus on specific habitats, such as prairie restoration, wetland creation, or linking the same habitats together. However, the findings underscore the importance of also maintaining multi-habitat landscapes to enhance biodiversity conservation. The interconnectedness of habitats, facilitated by mobile species that depend on multiple environments, creates a more robust and functional ecosystem.

Co-author Dr Alix Sauve, research associate on this project, added: "Knowing how habitats work together is key when acquiring new nature reserves for instance. The landscape context of candidate sites should be considered to leverage ecosystem functioning and their stability in the long run."

Researchers compared the structure and function of food webs in landscapes with varying numbers of habitats. The study involved sampling plants, herbivorous insects, and their parasitoids, as well as pollinators, across six different habitat types. Over 11,000 species interactions were documented. A field experiment further assessed pollination efficiency using wild strawberries as a test plant, revealing the positive impact of habitat diversity on pollination.

The team now plans to explore the effects of specific habitat combinations and their compatibility. Further research may also examine other ecological functions, such as seed dispersal and decomposition, in multi-habitat landscapes. These studies could also have significant implications for agricultural practices, potentially enhancing food production and pest control, and ecosystem health.

This study highlights the complex and interdependent nature of ecosystems at the landscape scale.

Professor Memmott concluded: "Mobile species effectively glue the various habitats together, underscoring the intricate connections that sustain biodiversity and ecosystem services."
Suniel Shetty shares heartfelt birthday wishes for wife Mana

B

ollywood actor Suniel Shetty took to Instagram on Thursday to celebrate the birthday of his wife, Mana Shetty, with a heartfelt post.

In the post, Suniel shared an endearing black-and-white photograph of the couple in an affectionate embrace.

In the caption, Suniel expressed his love and admiration for his wife, writing, "Happy birthday wifey ... my fellow Leo, partner, best friend and confidant."

https://www.instagram.com/p/C-8dTO4OxCP/

The touching tribute quickly garnered attention from fans and industry peers alike, who inundated the comment section with birthday wishes.

Actor Riteish Deshmukh joined the celebration with a message that read, "Happy Birthday Mana !!!! Loads of love," while Tiger Shroff added a playful touch with, "Happy birthday mana aunty."

Neha Dhupia also conveyed her best wishes, commenting, "Love always ... happy birthday Mana ma'am."

Suniel and Mana Shetty, who married on December 25, 1991, welcomed their first child, Athiya, in 1992 and their second child, Ahan, in 1996.

Meanwhile, on the work front, Suniel has a lot of exciting projects lined up in his kitty.

From 'Welcome 3' to 'The Legend of Somnath', Suniel will be seen in varied roles in upcoming projects.

Speaking with ANI, he shared, " In the coming months, I will be seen in 'The Legend of Somnath'. I am quite excited about it. The film has already been made...only some VFX work is pending...I also have 'Welcome to the Jungle' and also a show 'Nanda Devi' with Lionsgate'." In a career of over three decades, Shetty has starred in movies such as 'Dilwale', 'Mohra', 'Gopi Kishan', 'Krishna', 'Vinashak', 'Dhadkan', 'Hera Pheri' films, 'Hulchul' and 'Main Hoon Na'.

Fans are eagerly waiting to see him reuniting with actor Akshay Kumar in 'Welcome to the Jungle'.

The film is the third installment of the hit franchise 'Welcome' which starred Feroz Khan, Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif, Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar and Paresh Rawal in the lead roles.

The second installment, titled 'Welcome Back', was released in 2015.

Actors John Abraham and Shruti Haasan replaced Akshay and Katrina in the second part.

Both films were helmed by Anees Bazmee.

'Welcome 3' will arrive in theatres this December. The third part was announced on Akshay's birthday last year with a promo.

Sharing the video, Akshay Kumar wrote, "Khud ko aur aap sab ko ek birthday gift diya hai aaj (Have given a birthday gift to myself and you all). If you like it and say thanks, I'd say Welcome(3) #WelcomeToTheJungle. In cinemas, Christmas - 20th December 2024. Welcome 3."

The video featured Akshay and the gang performing an acapella routine.

 Suniel Shetty shares heartfelt birthday wishes for wife Mana

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Those continuing to deny UNSC permanent membership must be called out: India

I

ndia has called for discrediting those opposing the expansion of the permanent membership of the Security Council and denying Africa's rightful place.

"Those who continue to deny the expansion of permanent category and Africa's rightful place in it must be called out," R. Ravindra, the charge d'affaires of India's UN Mission said on Wednesday.

"Africa's continued denial of representation in the permanent category of membership is a blot on the collective credibility of this council," he said at the High-Level Open Debate on Peacebuilding and Sustaining Peace convened by Sierra Leone, the Council's president.

India has always called for permanent African representation in an expanded Council and supports the African consensus demanding two permanent seats and increasing the elected seats for the continent from three to five, Ravindra said.

He pointed out that nearly 70 per cent of the Council's mandates for peacekeeping are for Africa.

Reforming the Council, an endeavour blocked for nearly a couple of decades is seeing a renewed push from African nations demanding action in time for the 80th anniversary of the UN's founding next year.

A 12-member group, Uniting for Consensus, has used procedural manoeuvres to prevent the reform process from advancing because of opposition to certain countries getting permanent seats.

The group is led by Italy and includes Pakistan and Canada.

Ravindra dismissed with contempt an attempt by Pakistan's Permanent Representative Munir Akram to raise the Kashmir issue and tie it to the Palestine issue.

"We earlier heard a delegation repeating again its falsehood about my country. I will not dignify this falsehood with a response in the interest of time. Such remarks deserve nothing but contemptuous dismissal," he said.

Ravindra did not mention Pakistan by name as that would have given it an opportunity to turn its right of reply into a megaphone for propaganda.

But the message was clear that he was referring to Akram, who had said, "The consequences of foreign occupation are nowhere as clear as in occupied Jammu and Kashmir and in Palestine".

Having failed to get any international attention for its line on Kashmir, Islamabad now tries -- so far unsuccessfully -- to tie it to the Palestine issue which has wider support.

Ravindra said that "terrorism is a global threat, not only to peace and security but also to development" and reiterated India's call for a comprehensive international anti-terrorism convention.

A global conflict prevention mechanism cannot be complete without a comprehensive approach to counter-terrorism, he added.

Preventing conflicts and promoting peace and security requires resources for socio-economic development and reforming the international financial institutions to provide more representation from the Global South on governing bodies.

Given the importance of development for peace-building, India has extensive development partnerships with countries in the Global South and the cumulative value of its developmental projects now exceeds $40 billion, he said.

At the third Voice of the Global South virtual Summit hosted last week by India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposed a comprehensive global development compact, he said.

Sierra Leone's Foreign Minister Alhaji Musa Timothy Kabba, who presided over the meeting, warned the "world remains on fire from both national and international conflicts" and it was "fueled by a complex interplay of geopolitical tensions, economic disparities, climate change, and the proliferation of weapons".

He said that a multi-pronged effort, including on the development front, by all countries was needed to face the challenges.

(Arul Louis can be contacted at arul.l@ians.in and followed at @arulouis)

 Those continuing to deny UNSC permanent membership must be called out: India

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On 10 years of 'Mardaani', makers announce new chapter of Rani Mukerji-starrer

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s Mardaani turned a decade old in Hindi cinema on Thursday, the makers of the film have teased the next chapter of the Rani Mukerji-starrer while celebrating the

Production Yash Raj Films banner took to YouTube, where they dropped a teaser of sorts, which begins from the first installment, which first released in 2014. The teaser shows moments from the first film and then switches to "Mardaani 2", which hits the big screen in 2019. It showcased highlights from the second installment and some iconic dialogues.

The production company captioned it: "10 years of #Mardaani and the next chapter awaits... Celebrating the feisty, daredevil cop #ShivaniShivajiRoy and the spirit of #Mardaani today. Thank you for a decade of love and appreciation for our beloved franchise. We are inspired... again... thanks to you. #RaniMukerji #10YearsOfMardaani."

Directed by Pradeep Sarkar, the first installment of the action thriller revolved around

around a stern police officer named Shivani Shivaji Roy, whose interest in the case of a kidnapped teenage girl leads her to uncover the secrets of human trafficking by the Indian mafia. The film also stars Jisshu Sengupta, Tahir Raj Bhasin and Saanand Verma in supporting roles

In "Mardaani 2", the 46-year-old star reprised her role as Shivani and this time her character was after a 21-year-old rapist and murderer, played by newcomer Vishal Jethwa. The film was directed by Gopi Puthran.

Rani was last seen in the film "Mrs. Chatterjee vs Norway". Directed by Ashima Chibber, the legal drama also stars Anirban Bhattacharya, Neena Gupta, and Jim Sarbh. "Mrs. Chatterjee vs Norway" was inspired by the real-life story of an Indian couple Anurup Bhattacharya and Sagarika Chakraborty whose children were taken away by Norwegian authorities in 2011. Rani was seen portraying the role of Sagarika, who fought with authorities and society to bring her children back to India.

 On 10 years of 'Mardaani', makers announce new chapter of Rani Mukerji-starrer

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Prez Murmu presents Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar 2024, 33 awards given to distinguished scientists

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resident Droupadi Murmu on Thursday presented the Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar 2024, at an award ceremony held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan's Gantantra Mandap.

This is the first time that the government is providing Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar (National Award for Scientists) to acknowledge and mark their contribution to nation-building.

In the first edition of Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar today, a total of thirty-three awards were presented to distinguished and eminent scientists in four categories - Vigyan Ratna, Vigyan Shri, Vigyan Yuva, and Vigyan Team.

The Vigyan Ratna Award was given to the scientists who have made lifetime contributions in any field of Science and Technology. Those who received this award included Prof. Govindarajan Padmanabhan, a pioneer of molecular biology and biotechnology research in India.

The Vigyan Shri Awards, given to the scientists having made distinguished contributions in the Science and Technology field, were presented to 13 scientists for their path-breaking research in their respective domains.

The Vigyan Yuva-SSB award was given to recognise scientists who made exceptional contributions in any field of science and technology. These awards were given to 18 scientists for their significant contribution in the areas spanning from the study of the warming of the Indian Ocean and its consequences, to the development of indigenous 5G base stations and communication and precision tests of quantum mechanics.

The Vigyan Team Award was given to a team of 3 or more scientists for making ground-breaking research contributions in any field of science and technology.

This was given to the team of Chandrayaan-3 for the successful landing of the Chandrayaan-3 lander, near the south pole of the moon.

The successful completion of the Chandrayaan-3 mission is one of the greatest scientific achievements in the nation and represents contributions in different areas of technology by the team of scientists in the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

 Prez Murmu presents Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar 2024, 33 awards given to distinguished scientists

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Phrama unit blast: Andhra CM announces Rs 1 crore ex-gratia for families of deceased

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ndhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday announced Rs 1 crore ex-gratia each for the families of those killed in a reactor blast in pharma company in Atchutapuram Special Economic Zone near here.

He called on the injured at Medicover and KGH hospitals here and assured them that the government would bear expenses of their treatment.

The Chief Minister announced Rs 50 lakh compensation each for the critically injured and Rs 25 lakh each for those who sustained simple injuries. He promised the injured that if required, the government would get their plastic surgeries done.

CM Naidu spoke to some of the injured and enquired about their condition. He advised them not to lose heart and promised all possible assistance from the government.

Later, he told media persons that the incident pained him a lot. He said the reactor blast resulted in the death of 17 people and left 36 others injured. While 10 employees sustained critical injuries, 26 received simple injuries.

The Chief Minister spoke to doctors and officials and directed them to ensure the injured get the best possible treatment.

He also had a word with the family members of the victims and consoled them. He assured them that the government would stand by them.

CM Naidu said the government would ensure that such incidents do not recur. Alleging that all systems were "destroyed" under the "rule of the previous government" which resulted in such disasters, he said his government would set things right and prevent such incidents.

The families of the victims demanded action against the company's management. They alleged that the company did not give them any information after the accident.

A reactor exploded at Escientia Advanced Sciences Private Limited on Wednesday afternoon, resulting in a huge fire.

The accident occurred when employees of a new shift were relieving their colleagues of their duties in the afternoon.

Visakhapatnam District Collector M. N. Harendhira Prasad said a comprehensive probe was underway into the incident.

He said preliminary investigation revealed that leakage of solvent led to the tragedy.

Twelve bodies were brought to KGH for autopsy while the remaining five bodies were shifted to the government hospital at Anakapalli.

 Phrama unit blast: Andhra CM announces Rs 1 crore ex-gratia for families of deceased

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Nikki Haley highlights 'moral clarity' in backing Taiwan against China

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ormer U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley emphasized the "moral clarity" of supporting Taiwan in its ongoing tensions with China during a meeting with President Lai Ching-te on Thursday, as reported by Taiwan's Central News Agency (CNA).

Haley, who served as the U.S.' top envoy to the U.N. from January 2017 to December 2018 under former President Donald Trump, stressed the urgent need for moral clarity in global affairs. In her address at the Presidential Office, Haley contrasted Taiwan's values with China's approach of "control and suppression," a difference particularly evident during the COVID-19 pandemic. Taiwan's Central News Agency reported Haley's critique of China's handling of the outbreak, accusing it of concealing the virus's origins and contributing to global suffering due to its "arrogance."

She praised Taiwan for its efforts to warn the World Health Organization (WHO) about the virus despite facing international isolation due to Chinese pressure. Haley reiterated that her visit is meant to show American support for Taiwan and to encourage a strong partnership across military, business, and academic domains. According to the Central News Agency, Haley stressed the importance of addressing potential threats proactively, especially considering global conflicts such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas War.

"We can't wait to see if China invades Taiwan; we need to get in front of the situation now," Haley said.

President Lai welcomed Haley on her first visit to Taiwan and thanked her for her support during her U.N. tenure. Lai also acknowledged Haley's recent address at the Taipei-based Ketagalan Forum, where she called on the U.N. to "stop ignoring" Taiwan and argued for its inclusion as a "full member" of the international organization. According to Taiwan's Central News Agency, Lai reaffirmed Taiwan's commitment to strengthening its national defence and economic resilience while standing with democracies worldwide.

Haley's visit primarily focused on her speech at the Ketagalan Forum, an annual international seminar funded by the Taiwan government that deals with security issues in the Indo-Pacific region. Central News Agency noted that Taiwan, officially known as the Republic of China (ROC), was expelled from the WHO in 1972 following the U.N.'s decision to recognize the People's Republic of China (PRC) as the sole representative of China.

 Nikki Haley highlights 'moral clarity' in backing Taiwan against China

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I hope PM Modi will be an important advocate for peace process: Former chairman of Ukraine Parliament

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head of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Ukraine, Dmytro Razumkov, former chairman of Verkhovna Rada (or Ukrainian Parliament) expressed his belief that PM Modi could play a key role as an advocate for peace in the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

While speaking with ANI, Razumkov spoke about PM Modi's visit to Ukraine and asserted that deepening relations with India is needed. "It is an important day as we will see Prime Minister Modi in Kyiv today on National Flag Day in support of our country and our independence. India is a great country internationally and economically. It is a good signal for relations between our two countries. We need to deepen our relations with India," Razumkov said.

Razumkov also spoke about India advocating peace and said, "We all need peace... I hope that Mr Modi will be an important advocate for the peace process. But we must understand that Russia is a very big and specific enemy. Ukraine also wants its territory back. I hope this visit will give a new opportunity for discussion and a better position for my country in this (peace) process," he said.

Meanwhile, while addressing a press meeting with Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk, PM Modi said India supports dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability and is ready to provide all possible cooperation along with its friendly countries.

"The ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia are a matter of deep concern for all of us. India firmly believes that no problem can be solved on the battlefield. The loss of innocent lives in any crisis has become the biggest challenge for entire humanity. We support dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability. For this, India is ready to provide all possible cooperation along with its friendly countries," the Prime Minister said.

The Prime Minister reached Poland on Wednesday on the first leg of his two-nation visit. He will go to Ukraine from Poland. The conflict between Russia and Ukraine has lasted for almost two-and-a-half years.

PM Modi, after wrapping up his engagements in Poland, will travel to Ukraine at the invitation of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. It will be the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Ukraine.

 I hope PM Modi will be an important advocate for peace process: Former chairman of Ukraine Parliament

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Sunita Williams' fate hangs in balance as NASA weighs return options

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ASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore arrived at the International Space Station (ISS) on June 6 and more than two and a half months later, their fate hang in balance as NASA mulls several options which can delay their return to earth to even February next year.

The astronauts left for the orbiting laboratory on June 6 aboard the Boeing Starliner after lifting off on June 5 from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida in the US.

Originally slated to return within a week, their stay could now potentially stretch to over eight months owing to serious issues with Starliner.

According to the US space agency, if it decides to return Starliner uncrewed, Sunita and Butch would remain aboard station until late February 2025.

NASA would replan the agency's SpaceX Crew-9 mission by launching only two crew members instead of four in late September. The two stuck astronauts would then return to Earth after the regularly scheduled Crew-9 increment early next year.

According to reports, it Elon Musk-run SpaceX is tasked with the return of Sunita and Butch, it will a major embarrassment for its rival Boeing.

At a press event, NASA officials said they have reached a point where, in the last week in August, "we really should be making a call, if not sooner".

Bowersox said the astronauts were "making the best" of their extra time aboard the ISS "but I'm sure they're eager for a decision, just like the rest of us."

The US space agency is under tremendous pressure to make a quick yet safe decision regarding the astronauts' return.

According to the US space agency, no final decisions have been made.

"NASA continues to evaluate all options as it learns more about Starliner's propulsion system. Butch and Suni may return home aboard Starliner, or they could come back as part of the agency's SpaceX Crew-9 mission early next year," it said.

The International Space Station is "well-stocked with everything the crew needs, including food, water, clothing, and oxygen".

Recently, a Northrop Grumman Cygnus spacecraft carrying 8,200 pounds of food, fuel, supplies, and science and a Progress resupply spacecraft carrying three tonnes of cargo arrived at the station.

NASA has additional SpaceX resupply missions planned through the end of 2024.

 Sunita Williams' fate hangs in balance as NASA weighs return options

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Water tariff hike inevitable in Bengaluru despite any objections: K'taka Dy CM

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Water tariff in Bengaluru has not been increased for the last 12-13 years and the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) is struggling to manage because of this. Hence, regardless of all objections, a hike is inevitable," said Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister, DK Shivakumar on Thursday.

He was speaking at the launch of the 'Cauvery Connection to Your Doorstep, Cauvery Water Connection to 110 Villages' campaign held in the Vidhana Soudha premises on Thursday.

Dy CM Shivakumar emphasised the necessity of providing water to the 1.40 crore population of capital city Bengaluru.

He stated, "We must take loans and expand the connection network to supply water. Without a tariff increase, the water supply company will not survive, and its employees will not be able to sustain themselves. The company is struggling to pay its electricity bills. We have not yet decided by how much the tariff will be increased. Let there be discussions, and let there be protests, but I am committed to this."

"In the last 14 years, electricity bills have been increased multiple times. To address this, a separate company within the department has been established, allowing the department itself to generate electricity through solar and other sources, leading to cost savings. All departments related to Bengaluru can collectively develop this programme," Dy CM Shivakumar said.

"With foresight, a company has already been prepared. Due to the establishment of the solar park in Pavagada, electricity is now available at Rs 3.5 per unit. When this was initiated, many mocked, asking if we had lost our minds. But this has resulted in significant cost savings in the supply of electricity," Shivakumar explained.

"Since BWSSB is under my control, many have come forward to discuss new projects. A similar proposal was made when I was in the energy department. In places like Mumbai, private companies supply electricity. As long as I am here, none of this is possible. I told them to leave this matter aside and not to bring it up in the news, and I sent them back," Shivakumar said.

"Both water and energy are very important sectors. Previously, I was the Energy Minister, and now I am the Water Resources Minister. During former CM JH Patel's tenure, there was a proposal to privatise water supply. Later, during former CM SM Krishna's government, when I was the Urban Development Minister, there was extensive discussion on this topic.

"There was an elaborate discussion in the Assembly. At that time, SM Krishna sent me abroad to study water supply privatisation. I visited France and other countries. They have a certain system in place there. I told SM Krishna that our BWSSB engineers work better than the engineers abroad," the Dy CM stated.

"Those who went abroad returned and continued working with us. They suggested replacing the water pipelines and establishing a new system, which would cost 30 per cent more. That system is not suitable for our state; it is more appropriate for cities like Delhi and Mumbai. Due to widespread opposition to privatisation, the proposal was dropped," Shivakumar maintained.

"As soon as I assumed office, the water supply was increased by 6 MLD. An additional 100 TMC of Cauvery water has been supplied to Tamil Nadu beyond the allocated share of water. We cannot hold back the surplus water. If we had another dam, it would have been more beneficial to them. I believe we will get justice in the Mekedatu project case in court," Shivakumar said.

"Some people have reported that the allocated water for the city can be directly drawn from KRS dam. There is also a consideration to bring water from Sharavathi River. However, the locals there are opposing it. The Yettinahole project has taken different turns due to political reasons, but I have brought it to a certain stage. The stalled work on the fifth phase of the Cauvery project will be resumed," the Dy CM informed.

When asked about the allegations that the Congress was responsible for the Governor traveling in a bulletproof car, he said, "The police have taken this step to protect him because there is a possibility that BJP and JD(S) miscreants might throw stones. We have information that BJP and Dalit members are trying to disrupt law and order to tarnish the government's image. We respect the Governor, which is why he has been provided with protection."

When asked about the BJP's protest against the Congress alleging insult to the Governor, he replied, "In a democratic system, anyone can criticize anyone, be it me or you. We must certainly give respect to those who deserve it. We definitely respect the Governor."

 Water tariff hike inevitable in Bengaluru despite any objections: K'taka Dy CM

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Tripura flood death toll rises to 12, more NDRF teams deployed

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he flood situation in Tripura, which has been lashed by heavy rains for the last four days, remained grim on Thursday and the India Meteorological Department (IMD) retained its 'Red alert' for all eight districts, officials said.

They added that more National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams have been deployed as the rains and floods continue to play havoc.

Till Thursday, 12 deaths, including that of a 12-year-old girl and a woman were reported from South Tripura, Gomati, and Khowai districts and two persons were also said to be missing.

A Disaster Management Department official said that two more fresh casualties due to the floods were reported from south Tripura and Gomati districts, while around 65,500 people are taking shelter in 450 relief camps in all eight districts.

He said that 17 lakh people were affected in the entire state, which witnessed the monsoon flood in such a catastrophic manner for the first time in several decades.

Chief Minister Manik Saha, who is supervising the disaster management work, spoke to Union Home Minister Amit Shah for the second day on Thursday and apprised him of the prevailing scenario.

Home Minister Shah said in a post on X, "Spoke with CM Tripura, Dr Manik Saha, and took stock of the flood situation in the state. The Centre is rushing teams of NDRF, apart from boats and helicopters, to the state to assist the local government in relief and rescue operations. Assured of all possible assistance from the Centre as and when required. The Modi government firmly stands with our sisters and brothers in Tripura during this hour of crisis."

Later, the Chief Minister while expressing gratitude to the Home Minister said that HM Shah informed him that 11 NDRF teams would be sent to Tripura from different locations in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.

He said arrangements would also be made for choppers to airlift stranded people in the flood-affected areas.

"More number of boats would also be sent along with the NDRF teams. The entire state government machinery has been working round the clock to tackle the unprecedented natural calamity. I thank public representatives, social workers and the people at large for cooperating with the state government in this hour of crisis," CM Saha said.

The central government has provided two helicopters for airlifting stranded people in Gomati and South Tripura districts.

Following the directions of the state government, due to the heavy rain and flooding, all educational institutions remained closed.

An India Meteorological Department (IMD) official said that though a 'heavy' to 'very heavy' rainfall alert has been continued and a 'Red alert' has been sounded in all eight districts, the rain is likely to reduce slightly from Thursday evening.

"The low pressure area over north Bangladesh and neighbourhood persisted over the same region on Thursday. The associated cyclonic circulation now extends up to 9.4 km above mean sea level. It is likely to move nearly westwards across West Bengal during the next 48 hours. Additionally, a cyclonic circulation is likely to form over North Bay of Bengal and neighbourhood on August 24," the official said.

The IMD recorded 233 mm rainfall in Agartala from 8.30 A.M. on August 21 to till 8.30 A.M. on Thursday.

According to Disaster Management Department officials over 1,055 houses were damaged either fully or partially and hundreds of trees were uprooted blocking many important highways.

Landslides occurred in 2,032 places across the state, out of which 1,789 locations were cleared by Thursday evening.

As per preliminary estimates, around 5,000 hectares of vegetable farms and 1.20 lakh hectares of other crop lands are still submerged.

Water Resource Department officials said that most of the prominent rivers in Tripura were either flowing above 'critical' or 'danger' levels while the state's main river Gomati has crossed the 'extreme danger' level in many places of Gomati and Sepahijala districts, as rainfall has continued.

The Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) has cancelled 10 local trains in Tripura.

An NFR spokesman said that due to heavy rain railway tracks were damaged in Gomati district, forcing the authorities to cancel these trains.

A Defence spokesman said that following the requisition from state administrations, four columns of Assam Rifles were deployed in different districts and they were working in close coordination with the civil administration to rescue civilians stranded due to floods.

First aid and essential items have been distributed by the Assam Rifles to hundreds of stranded people and those in relief camps.

 Tripura flood death toll rises to 12, more NDRF teams deployed

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Defence Minister Rajnath Singh reaches Washington as India and US deepen strategic partnership

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efence Minister Rajnath Singh arrived in Washington Thursday evening on a four-day visit to the United States at the invitation of the US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin.

During the visit, Defence Minister Singh will hold a bilateral meeting with his US counterpart and also meet the US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.

"The visit comes in the backdrop of the growing momentum in India-US relations and defence engagements at multiple levels. The visit is expected to further deepen and broaden the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership," the Ministry of Defence stated before Singh's departure.

The Defence Minister will also chair a high-level roundtable meeting with the US defence industry on the ongoing and future defence collaborations.

He is scheduled to interact with the Indian community later on Thursday, US time.

India and the United States have hailed progress on bilateral defence initiatives following the fifth annual India-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue in November 2023.

Washington has committed support for India's military modernization, initiatives to drive forward the US-India Roadmap for Defence Industrial Cooperation, strengthening maritime domain awareness in the Indian Ocean Region, and India's support for the rule of law in the Arabian Sea and adjacent waterways.

At the same time, the India-US Defence Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X) continues to facilitate joint defence technology innovation and co-production of advanced defence technology between the windustries of the two countries.

Sullivan visited India in June this year as both countries took next steps in strategic technology and defence cooperation during the third term of the NDA government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

New Delhi and Washington have had regular discussions and high-level visits on a range of strategic, regional, and bilateral issues, including the Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET).

Both countries have acknowledged that the iCET, launched by PM Modi and US President Joe Biden in January 2023, will play a defining role in deepening the strategic partnership between the two countries.

 Defence Minister Rajnath Singh reaches Washington as India and US deepen strategic partnership

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PM Modi and Polish President Duda discuss conflict in Ukraine and West Asia

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rime Minister Narendra Modi and Andrzej Sebastian Duda, President of Poland, held discussions on deepening the India-Poland partnership across a wide range of sectors - including food processing, Artificial Intelligence, energy, and infrastructure - during their meeting at the Belweder Palace in Warsaw on Thursday.

"They welcomed the upgradation of India-Poland ties to a Strategic Partnership. They also discussed regional and global issues including conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia. Prime Minister expressed sincere gratitude for Poland's invaluable and timely assistance in evacuating Indian citizens from Ukraine during Operation Ganga," the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) stated after the meeting.

The ministry revealed that both nations have also agreed on a social security agreement, ensuring greater benefits for citizens.

"India greatly values the warm relations with Poland. We look forward to boosting commercial and cultural linkages between our nations in the times to come," PM Modi posted on X after the meeting.

President Duda's office said one of the key topics discussed between the two leaders was the ongoing war in Ukraine and its global consequences.

Mieszko Pawlak, the head of the International Policy Bureau of the President of Poland, announced before the meeting that an important topic of talks between the President Duda and PM Modi will be "security issues and Russian aggression against Ukraine, in the context of Prime Minister Modi's recent visit to Moscow, but also talks during the peace summit in Switzerland , in which India participated, and its role in the peace process".

In an interview with Polish web portal Interia, Pawlak said that "an additional dimension of the discussion will be President Duda's recent visit to China".

The visit of PM Modi to Poland takes place on the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. The last visit of an Indian Prime Minister to Poland took place in 1979.

Earlier, while addressing the media after holding talks with his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk at the Federal Chancellery, Prime Minister Modi invited companies from Poland to join the 'Make in India, Make for the World' initiative as both countries decided to transform the bilateral relationship into a strategic partnership.

Tusk termed it as a "great privilege" to host PM Modi Modi on the eve of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

"This is a sufficient illustration of the significance of this visit and your presence today. This is undoubtedly proof of the increasingly good relations between our countries, of the significance for the entire region, I will not exaggerate if I say for the entire world between India and Poland," said the Polish PM.

He mentioned that the whole world admires India for the consistently democratic nature of its governance, which is "not common in that part of the world".

Identifying several areas for mutual cooperation, PM Modi remarked that Poland is a world leader in the field of food processing and Polish companies can join the mega food parks being set up in India.

He also touched on the issue of the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia, saying that it remains a "matter of deep concern" for everyone.

"India firmly believes that no problem can be solved on the battlefield. The loss of lives of innocent people in any crisis has become the biggest challenge for the entire humanity. We support dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability. For this, India, along with its friendly countries, is ready to provide all possible support," said Prime Minister Modi.

From Poland, PM Modi will be visiting Ukraine at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelensky which will be the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Ukraine.

 PM Modi and Polish President Duda discuss conflict in Ukraine and West Asia

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Hooda bats for RS nomination for Phogat, dismisses query on Cong ticket as 'hypothetical'

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ormer Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda has strongly advocated for a Rajya Sabha nomination for 'heartbroken' wrestler Vinesh Phogat, who missed out on an Olympic medal in Paris after she was disqualified for being overweight hours before her final bout in the 50 kg category.

During an exclusive interview with IANS on Thursday, the veteran Congress leader also called for giving the Haryana wrestler the same recognition which is accorded to an Olympian gold medallist.

However, when asked if the Congress is considering to offer her a ticket for the October 1 Assembly elections in Haryana, Hooda dismissed the query as hypothetical.

When asked about Deepender Singh Hooda's presence at the airport to receive Vinesh Phogat on her return from Paris, the Congress stalwart said, "We have always honoured sportspersons in this manner, including individuals like Manu Bhaker and Aman Shekhawat.

"Athletes do not belong to any party; they belong to the nation. That's why I suggested Vinesh Phogat should be nominated to the Rajya Sabha, as her feelings have been hurt. Both the state and Central governments should bestow upon her the honours typically given to an Olympic gold medallist."

On the possibility of Congress giving Vinesh a ticket for the Assembly elections, Hooda said, "That is a hypothetical question. No discussions or talks have taken place with me on this matter. She should be nominated to the Rajya Sabha as a mark of respect."

When asked if the next government in Haryana might be led by a Jat leader, Hooda replied, "Na jaat par na paat par, muhar lagegi haath par (Not caste or background, votes will go to the Congress symbol, the hand). This is Congress' policy."

Regarding the possibility of Rahul Gandhi becoming the Prime Minister in the future, Hooda said, "Rahul Gandhi has proven himself as a strong leader with high expectations from the public. As a leader, he is capable of holding any position. If Congress secures a majority, Rahul would be the strongest candidate for the role."

Hooda also denied any factionalism or groupism within the Haryana Congress, stating that tickets would be awarded to the most winnable candidates.

When asked about the potential impact of the Aam Aadmi Party going solo in the Assembly polls on Congress, Hooda asserted that the grand old party is well-positioned to form the government on its own.

"There is a clear indication from all sections of society that Congress is set to form the government in Haryana," he claimed, noting that there have been no discussions regarding an electoral pact with AAP at the state level.

 Hooda bats for RS nomination for Phogat, dismisses query on Cong ticket as 'hypothetical'

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He is able to quickly build positive relationships with students and staff, principal Kendra Bonam says. His lesson plans are creative and keep students engaged during PE. Bottenfield is lucky to have such an enthusiastic PE teacher.
MOSCOW, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang said here Wednesday that while consolidating cooperation in traditional areas, China is willing to work with Russia to explore cooperation in emerging areas. Li made the remarks when meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin after he co-chaired the 29th regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin. Li conveyed Chinese President Xi Jinping's cordial greetings and best wishes to President Putin. He said that the two heads of state have met twice this year, drawing a new blueprint and injecting strong momentum into further deepening bilateral relations and cooperation, especially at the historical juncture of the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Russia. The steady development of China-Russia relations not only serves the fundamental interests of the two countries and two peoples, but also contributes to regional and world peace, stability and prosperity, Li noted, expressing China's willingness to work with Russia to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, maintain the sound momentum of the development of bilateral relations, expand all-round mutually beneficial cooperation and achieve more practical results. Li pointed out that the current round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation is deepening, which implies huge development opportunities. China is ready to further highlight the role of scientific, technological and industrial innovation in powering bilateral cooperation with Russia, to constantly foster new economic growth points, he added. The two sides should continue to deepen cultural, tourism, education, youth and sub-national exchanges and cooperation to promote mutual understanding between the two peoples and pass on the cause of China-Russia friendship from generation to generation, Li said. Against the backdrop of accelerating changes in the world unseen in a century, China is ready to work with Russia to further strengthen multilateral coordination, deepen mutual trust and cooperation with developing countries, firmly promote a multi-polar world and economic globalization, and better safeguard its legitimate rights and interests and basic norms governing international relations. Putin asked Li to convey his cordial greetings and best wishes to President Xi. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Russia and China, which is a memorable year in the history of the development of bilateral relations, Putin said. Noting that Russian and Chinese heads of government held their annual meeting this morning, during which they had in-depth exchanges on economy, trade, people-to-people and cultural cooperation and signed a series of cooperation documents, Putin said this is a strong implementation of the important consensus reached between President Xi and him and has yielded fruitful results. Russia is willing to further strengthen mutually beneficial cooperation with China, expand cultural and people-to-people exchanges, and step up communication and coordination within BRICS and other multilateral mechanisms, so as to push for greater development of the Russia-China comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for the new era, said Putin.
A recent study published in Frontiers in Public Health highlights the positive impact of creative arts and crafting on various aspects of wellbeing and loneliness.

Study: Creating arts and crafting positively predicts subjective wellbeing. Image Credit: ESB Professional / Shutterstock.com

Combatting the loneliness epidemic

Wellbeing is defined as the positive psychological state of an individual, including positive emotions, life satisfaction, and a sense of fulfillment. Positive wellbeing is associated with higher educational achievements, positive physical health outcomes, and reduced mortality.

Comparatively, loneliness is a negative psychological state caused by the lack of high-quality social interactions. Loneliness can negatively impact an individuals quality of life, as well as their health and lifestyle behaviors and outcomes. As a result, loneliness can increase the risk of substance abuse, smoking and alcohol drinking, emotional distress, eating disorders, and premature death.

One key component of creativity is the experience of flow, which has been linked to a better quality of life. Engaging with creative arts and crafts can improve an individuals well-being and reduce loneliness-related negative feelings.

Creative arts and crafting encompass a wide range of activities, such as pottery, drawing, painting, knitting, sewing, and crochet. These activities are widely popular in the United Kingdom, with about 20% of the British population estimated to be engaged in them. In fact, the arts and crafts industry contributes about 3.4 billion to the U.K. economy.

One previous study involving a large-scale U.K. population reported that attending live sporting events is associated with higher subjective wellbeing and lower loneliness outcomes. As compared to these events, arts and crafts activities are more easily accessible and affordable and are already popular among U.K. residents.

About the study

The current study analyzed secondary data from 7,182 adults living in England. Data were obtained from the Taking Part Survey, a face-to-face household survey conducted between April 2019 and March 2020.

Self-reported information on the study participants age, gender, level of deprivation, health status, and employment status was considered in the analysis as known sociodemographic predictors of subjective wellbeing and loneliness outcomes.

Subjective wellbeing was measured through a questionnaire on anxiety, happiness, life satisfaction, and a sense of life being worthwhile. Loneliness was measured using a single-item questionnaire.

Subjective wellbeing and loneliness outcomes were compared between participants who reported affirmatively and negatively about their engagement with creative arts and crafts within the last 12 months.

Study findings

The analysis controlling for known sociodemographic predictors revealed that engagement with creative arts and crafts is significantly associated with increased life satisfaction, a sense of life being worthwhile, and happiness. However, engagement with creative arts and crafts did not significantly impact anxiety and loneliness outcomes, in addition to the effects of known sociodemographic predictors.

Engaging in arts and crafts activities can improve the wellbeing of individuals, irrespective of their gender, age, health and employment status, and levels of deprivation. Although sociodemographic predictors of subjective wellbeing and loneliness are static and cannot be manipulated, engagement with arts and crafts can be easily utilized to develop effective interventions to improve their wellbeing.

Future implications

Any interventions to combat the profound public health issues of low wellbeing and high loneliness could have a significant impact.

The current study included drawing, painting, knitting, sewing, and crocheting as art and craft activities. These activities are typically performed alone without companions, which may explain why engaging in arts and crafts did not significantly reduce loneliness.

Thus, future studies should carefully analyze the importance of social elements of engagement with creative arts and crafts. More research is also needed to investigate the mechanisms through which art and craft activities positively impact subjective wellbeing.

Some of the art and craft activities included in the current study may be perceived as stereotypically feminine, such as knitting and sewing. This suggests that the choice of these activities and their effects on subjective wellbeing may be confounded by gender as a sociodemographic variable. Additional research is needed to explore whether stereotypically masculine arts, such as carpentry and metalworking, can have a more significant impact the wellbeing of male participants.

Considering the positive impact of subjective wellbeing on health and longevity, policy makers should include interventions to improve wellbeing across the population. Increased funding for creative arts and crafts activities for the general population may benefit society as a whole by improving wellbeing in modern living.
Researchers at the University of Eastern Finland have developed a novel artificial intelligence-based algorithm, MV-DEFEAT, to improve mammogram density assessment. This development holds promise for transforming radiological practices by enabling more precise diagnoses.

High breast tissue density is associated with an increased risk of breast cancer, and breast tissue density can be estimated from mammograms. The accurate assessment of mammograms is crucial for effective breast cancer screening, yet challenges such as variability in radiological evaluations and a global shortage of radiologists complicate these efforts. The MV-DEFEAT algorithm aims to address these issues by incorporating deep learning techniques that evaluate multiple mammogram views at the same time for mammogram density assessment, mirroring the decision-making process of radiologists.

The research team involved with AI in cancer research consists of Doctoral Researcher Gudhe Raju, Professor Arto Mannermaa and Senior Researcher Hamid Behravan. In the present study, they employed an innovative multi-view deep evidential fusion approach. Their method leverages elements of the Dempster-Shafer evidential theory and subjective logic to assess mammogram images from multiple views, thus providing a more comprehensive analysis.

MV-DEFEAT showed remarkable improvements over existing approaches. It demonstrates a significant improvement in mammogram screening accuracy by automatically and reliably quantifying the density and distribution of dense breast tissue within mammograms. For instance, in the public VinDr-Mammo dataset which consists of over 10,000 mammograms, the algorithm has achieved an impressive 50.78% improvement in distinguishing between benign and malignant tumours over the existing multi-view approach.

Interestingly, the algorithm's effectiveness persisted across different datasets, reflecting its robust performance to adapt to diverse patient demographics. The study utilised extensive data from four open-source datasets, enhancing the algorithm's applicability and accuracy across different populations. Such capabilities underline the importance of AI-based approaches in medical diagnostics. Furthermore, while MV-DEFEAT significantly aids in breast cancer screening, the team at the University of Eastern Finland emphasises the need for continued refinement and validation of the algorithm to ensure its reliability and efficacy in clinical settings.

These promising results pave the way for the use of AI in enhancing diagnostic processes, potentially leading to earlier detection and better patient outcomes in breast cancer care.

To fully integrate AI like MV-DEFEAT into clinical practice, it is crucial to build trust among healthcare professionals through rigorous testing and validation. Indeed, our next steps involve further validation studies to establish MV-DEFEAT as a reliable tool for breast cancer diagnostics in Finland." Raju Gudhe, Doctoral Researcher of the University of Eastern Finland
In a groundbreaking exploration of cell surface biology, Ryan Flynn has uncovered a surprising role for RNA outside the confines of the cell. Flynn's research, which focuses on the biology of cell surface RNA, led to the discovery that certain RNAs are chemically linked to glycans-; complex carbohydrate polymers found on the cell surface.

In 2021, Flynn's group was the first to report that RNA can be found outside of the cell.

What was particularly exciting about that discovery is that nucleic acids, like RNA, were traditionally thought to be confined within the cell and physically separate from glycobiology." Ryan Flynn, Assistant Professor, Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Harvard Stem Cell Institute

He was also a Principal Investigator at Boston Children's Hospital. That discovery challenged the long-held notion that nucleic acids are restricted to the intracellular environment, revealing a previously unrecognized layer of complexity in cell surface biology.

In new research published today in Cell, Flynn and colleagues have discovered the mechanism of how RNA is chemically linked to N-glycans. Before this research, only proteins and lipids were known to be conjugated to glycans. Flynn's team has now added RNA to this list, a finding with important implications for understanding cellular biology. "Our work proves that there are actually three classes of glycoconjugates: proteins, lipids, and RNAs," he says. This discovery not only broadens the scope of known glycoconjugates but also opens new avenues for research into the functions of these glycoRNAs.

The challenge of proving the existence of glycoRNAs

Despite the initial excitement surrounding Flynn's 2021 discovery, there was a significant challenge: proving that these glycoRNAs truly existed as distinct molecules. Though the team presented data consistent with the existence of glycoRNAs, there was no direct evidence of a chemical linkage between the RNA and the glycan. This left room for reasonable skepticism within the scientific community, as some questioned whether the findings could be attributed to contaminants or other artifacts.

Addressing this outstanding question was top of mind  Flynn's team has spent nearly four years working on this problem developing new techniques to establish definitive proof. "The work that we've done over the past four years in this context was focused on developing two things," he explains. "On the technical side, we brought together a chemical approach to label the native glycoRNAs from any RNA source, and then we coupled it to a new, very sensitive style of mass spectrometry that enables RNA modification analysis." These advancements allowed the team to identify multiple linkersdirect connections between an RNA base and a sugarthus providing the first conclusive evidence of glycoRNAs as reported in the new Cell paper.

Implications for cell biology and immunology

The implications of this research extend far beyond the simple identification of a new molecule. GlycoRNAs, as Flynn's team discovered, could play a role in immune system interactions. "In the 2021 paper, we found evidence that glycoRNAs can interact with immune receptors," he says. This suggests that glycoRNAs could be a crucial component in how the immune system recognizes and responds to cells, potentially influencing everything from pathogen detection to autoimmune responses.

The presence of glycoRNAs on the cell surface could also have broader implications for cell-cell communication and signaling. As Flynn elaborated, "If you're trying to develop a mechanism understanding of why someone has autoimmunity, if you don't think about the RNA on the cell surface, you'll necessarily be missing something."

Flynn's research has reshaped the field of glycobiology. Prior to this work, the idea of glycoRNAs was met with skepticism. Now, as Flynn highlighted, the most recent edition of the Essentials of Glycobiology reference book refers to glycoRNAs as one of the "big" questions in glycobiology.

This shift in focus reflects the growing recognition of glycoRNAs as an important study area. "The goal of this is to stimulate more interest in glycoRNA biology and cell surface RNA biology," Flynn emphasizes. "This paper not only expands the understanding of RNA biology but has also opened up new possibilities for research into cell surface interactions and immune system function."

As the scientific community begins to explore this uncharted territory, the impact of Flynn's research will likely drive new discoveries and potentially lead to novel therapeutic strategies. Says Flynn, "We think this is going to change the view of its glycoRNA validity because it will be the direct evidence that a lot of the chemists and the glycobiologists were waiting for."
India is now selling weapons made in the country to other nations, reaching record levels in defence exports. Over the last decade, Indias defence exports have increased more than 30 times. This growth is partly due to global conflicts like the Russia-Ukraine war and the Israel-Hamas conflict, which have led many countries to strengthen their military capabilities. Currently, India reportedly exports military hardware to more than 90 countries. The Indian government has simplified the licensing and approval process to promote these exports. The government is also more willing to supply lethal weapons than before. The United States has become the largest destination for Indian defence exports. India is also focusing on supplying defence goods to Africa and other countries, offering easy credit and diplomatic support.

Recent data from the defence ministry shows a significant rise in exports. In the first quarter of 2024-2025, defence exports increased by 78 percent. Exports in April-June 2024 reached Rs 6,915 crore, up from Rs 3,885 crore in the same period last year. In 2023-2024, defence exports reached a record Rs 21,083 crore (about $2.63 billion), an increase of 32.5 percent from Rs 15,920 crore in the previous year.

The Narendra Modi government set an ambitious target in 2020 to achieve Rs 35,000 crore ($5 billion) in defence exports within five years. This goal is part of a broader plan to reach a turnover of Rs 1.75 lakh crore ($25 billion) in defence manufacturing by 2025.

Although the government has not disclosed specific details about the types of exports or the countries involved, sources indicate that Indias defence exports include a wide range of products. These products range from ammunition, small arms like sniper rifles, and bulletproof jackets to more advanced items such as drones, light torpedoes, armoured vehicles, and fast attack ships.

While the US is the largest importer, Myanmar has been a major buyer of Indian defence exports, particularly fuses and ammunition. Israel and Armenia have also emerged as important buyers. Notably, India has signed significant contracts, such as the BrahMos missile deal with the Philippines and deals for artillery and air defence systems with Armenia. The US accounts for nearly 50 percent of Indias total defence exports, making it the biggest buyer.
Interarch Building Products IPO Allotment Today: The IPO allotment of construction solutions provider Interarch Building Products Ltd is likely to be finalised on Thursday, August 22, in the evening. The Interarch Building Products IPO, which was open for public subscription between August 19 and August 21, received 93.79 per cent subscription. The IPO allotment is scheduled to be finalised today and if allotted the scrips, the investors will receive bank debit messages. They can also check the Interarch Building Products IPO allotment status on both BSE and NSE websites, as well as on registrar Link Intime Indias portal.

The 600.29-crore IPO received a whopping 93.79 times subscription, garnering bids for 43,87,55,568 shares as against 46,53,341 shares on offer.

Its price band was fixed at Rs 850-Rs 900 apiece. The Interarch Building Products IPO listing will likely take place on both BSE and NSE on August 26.

Interarch Building Products IPO: How To Check Allotment Status

Once the IPO allotment is finalised, the status can be checked by following these steps:

1) Go to the official BSE website via the URL https://www.bseindia.com/investors/appli_check.aspx.

2) Under Issue Type, select Equity.

3) Under Issue Name, select Interarch Building Products Ltd in the dropbox.

4) Enter your application number, or the Permanent Account Number (PAN).

5) Then, click on the I am not a robot to verify yourself and hit Search option.

Your share application status will appear on your screen.

You can also visit direct Link Intime portal  https://www.linkintime.co.in/Initial_Offer/public-issues.html and check the Interarch Building Products IPO allotment status.

Interarch Building Products IPO GMP Today

According to market observers, unlisted shares of Interarch Building Products Ltd are trading Rs 365 higher in the grey market than their issue price. The Rs 365 grey market premium or GMP means the grey market is expecting a 40.56 per cent listing gain from the public issue.

The GMP is based on market sentiments and keeps changing. Grey market premium indicates investors readiness to pay more than the issue price.

Interarch Building Products IPO: Details

The initial public offer (IPO) has a fresh issue of up to Rs 200 crore and an offer for sale of up to 44,47,630 equity shares.

The price range for the offer is fixed at Rs 850-900 per share. The initial public offer of Interarch Building Products was fully subscribed on the first day of subscription on Monday.

The initial share sale will conclude on August 21.

Proceeds from the fresh issue will be used for capital expenditures, system upgrades and general corporate purposes.

Interarch Building Products is one of the leading turnkey pre-engineered steel construction solution providers in India with integrated facilities for design and engineering, manufacturing and on-site project management capabilities for the installation and erection of pre-engineered steel buildings.

Ambit Private Limited and Axis Capital are the book-running lead managers to the offer.

The equity shares are proposed to be listed on BSE and NSE.
Orient Technologies IPO: The initial public offering (IPO) of information technology solutions provider Orient Technologies Ltd, which was opened for public subscription on Wednesday, received a 6.99 times subscription. The price band of the IPO has been fixed at Rs 195-206 per share. Now, till 4:30 pm on the second day of bidding on Thursday, the 215-crore IPO has received a 16.88 times subscription, garnering bids for 12,31,93,440 shares as against 72,97,670 shares on offer.

According to the latest data, the retail quota received a 24.77 times subscription, while the non-institutional investors category also got a 20.83 times subscription. The QIB category received a 0.12 times subscription.

The Orient Technologies IPO will be closed on August 23. Its price band has been fixed at Rs 195-Rs 206 apiece. The share allotment will likely be finalised on August 26, while its listing will take place on the NSE and BSE on August 28.

Orient Technologies IPO GMP Today

According to market observers, unlisted shares of Orient Technologies Ltd are trading Rs 50 higher in the grey market than its issue price. The Rs 50 grey market premium or GMP means the grey market is expecting a 24.27 per cent listing gain from the public issue.

The Rs 70 GMP is significantly higher than the Rs 30 premium recorded on Wednesday.

The GMP is based on market sentiments and keeps changing. Grey market premium indicates investors readiness to pay more than the issue price.

Orient Technologies IPO: Analysts Recommendations

Brokerage firm Master Capital Service Ltd in its IPO note said, Orient Technologies Limited expertise in developing IT products and solutions. The company offers wide range and diversified bouquet of products and services ranging from Data Centre Solutions to Cloud and Data Management Services. The company have recently ventured into Device as a service (DaaS). Under DaaS the company will provide desktops, laptops, tablets, printers, scanners, smartphones, and servers, bundled with software, along with managed services on a pay-per-use model i.e. on a subscription basis.

The company plans to expand geographic footprint and cater to a broader customer base globally. The company has already set up a branch in Singapore which is primarily engaged in the business of trading of computer equipment such as servers, storage and network devices. Investors looking to invest can invest in the IPO for medium to long term, it added.

Another brokerage firm Anand Rathi in its IPO note said, Orient Technologies is engaged in IT solutions and related services providing across the business verticals. OTLs business operations involves technologically advanced solutions for which the company collaborates with a wide range of technology partners including Dell International Services India Private Limited (Dell) and Fortinet, Inc. (Fortinet) and Nutanix Netherlands B.V. (Nutanix).

At the upper price band, the company is valuing at P/E of 20.7x with a market cap of Rs 8,580 million post issue of equity shares and a return on net worth of 27.2 per cent. On the valuation front, we believe that the company is fairly priced. Thus, we recommend a subscribe rating to the IPO, Anand Rathi stated.

Orient Technologies IPO: More Details

The initial public offering (IPO) is a combination of a fresh issue of Rs 120 crore and an offer for sale of up to 46 lakh equity shares valued at Rs 95 crore, at the upper end of the price band, by promoters. This aggregates the transaction size to Rs 215 crore.

Orient Technologies Ltd has fixed a price band of Rs 195-206 a share for its Rs 215-crore initial public offering.

Those offloading shares in the OFS are Ajay Baliram Sawant, Umesh Navnitlal Shah, Ujwal Arvind Mhatre, and Jayesh Manharlal Shah.

Proceeds from the fresh issue to the tune of Rs 79.65 crore will be used for funding capital expenditure requirements, Rs 10.35 crore for the acquisition of office premises at Navi Mumbai, and a portion will also be used for general corporate purposes.

Investors can bid for a minimum of 72 equity shares and in multiples thereof.

Over the years, the company has developed deep expertise in creating products and solutions for specialised disciplines across IT Infrastructure, IT Enabled Services (IteS), and Cloud and Data Management Services.

Orient Technologies has a diverse clientele spanning both public and private sectors, including industries like Banking, Financial Services, Insurance (BFSI), Information Technology (IT) & ITeS, healthcare, and pharmaceuticals.

It has clients such as Coal India, Mazagon Dock, DDcor, Jyothy Labs, ACG, Integreon, Bluechip, Tradebulls. The company primarily operates in India and has sales and services offices in cities across the country, including Navi Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad, New Delhi, Bengaluru, and Chennai.

Additionally, it has a branch office in Singapore.

As of June 30, 2024, Orient Technologies order book stood at Rs 101.20 crore.

Orient Technologies revenue from operations during the fiscal year 2024 increased to Rs 602.89 crore from Rs 535.10 crore in the previous year and profit after tax rose to Rs 41.45 crore in fiscal 2024 from Rs 38.30 crore in fiscal 2023.

Elara Capital (India) Pvt Ltd is the sole book-running lead manager for the IPO. The equity shares are proposed to be listed on the BSE and NSE.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is now accepting online applications for Clerk positions across various departments. Eligible candidates can apply by visiting the official BMC website atportal.mcgm.gov.in. It is important to note that the registration process is already underway, and the deadline to submit applications is September 8, 2024. Under this recruitment drive, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation aims to fill a total of 1,846 Executive Assistants in Group C- Clerical grade vacancies.

The official notification in Marathi, roughly translates to, All candidates (including backward class candidates) who fulfill the age limit and other eligibility criteria prescribed for unreserved (open) general posts are considered eligible for a recommendation. Reserved category candidates must apply for posts available in their category. However, it is mandatory to accurately mention their original category information in the application.

BMC Clerk Recruitment 2024: Eligibility Criteria

Age Limit: Applicants from the unreserved (Open) category must be at least 18 years old and no older than 38 years to be eligible for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Executive Assistant posts. However, the age must be a minimum of 18 years and a maximum of 43 years for Backward Category candidates.

Educational Qualification: Must have completed their Matriculation Examination from a recognised board.

BMC Clerk Recruitment 2024: Steps to Apply

Step 1: Candidates need to visit the official website of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation atportal.mcgm.gov.in.

Step 2: Locate the Prospectus section and navigate to the Careers tab on the homepage.

Step 3: Then, a list of current recruitments will be displayed on the screen.

Step 4: Post this, click on the link titled, Online Application Form for Executive Assistant (Previous Designation: Clerk).

Step 5: Select the New Registration button and key in all the required details in the registration form.

Step 6: Scan and upload the necessary documents including your signature, photograph and mark sheets.

Step 7: Pay the prescribed application fee to complete the registration process and submit the online form.

Step 8: Lastly, save a copy of the form for future use.

BMC Clerk Recruitment 2024: Application Fee

Candidates applying for the posts are required to pay a non-refundable application fee of Rs 1,000. However, applicants falling under the reserved category must pay a reduced fee of Rs 900.

BMC Clerk Recruitment 2024: Salary

Upon selection, applicants can expect a pay scale ranging between Rs 25,500- Rs 81,100 in pay Matrix-M 15 along with various allowances.
Chandigarh University has emerged as a centre of excellence for research and origination during the last 5 years. It delivers students plenty of opportunities through funding and mentoring to young and innovative minds. One such innovative mind is an engineering student named Navjot Singh  who hails from Ludhiana, Punjab. His father is an officer in the Indian Army. He is a student of Chandigarh University and has filed 77 patents and has won many awards. A patent is a property right granted by a government to an inventor for a set period of time. These patents include Revolutionising Network Security with sustainability and intelligent IOT enabled library bookshelf. His patent list also includes Revolutionary portable Device Integrating Nano sensors and Internet of Thing (IoT) for Early Detection of plant pathogens, Real Time AI Driven system for Anomaly Detection in Networks and Revolutionary Handled Cyber Security Device in Compact Form.

In 2024, he was awarded the Baroda Achievers Award in which a cash prize of Rs 31000 was awarded. He also received the Best Researcher of the Year award from Chandigarh University on the occasion of the 56th Engineers Day. He has qualified among 35 teams in the Smart India Hackathon organised by the Government of India.

According to a news agency, Navjot has secured sixth position in the e-Security Hackathon 2024 organised by the Computer Society of India. A total of 100 teams participated in it. He also secured first position in the Faculty Development Program on Disaster Management and Preparedness 2023 organised by the National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM), Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India.

At the international level, Navjot has received a Certificate of Excellence for Book Chapter Review from BP International in California. He has received a training certificate on bushfire from Newcastle University, Australia. He has also been selected as a member of the Technical Program Committee in the Society for Research Development (SRD).

Navjot Singh has published more than 70 research papers and book chapters. He has also received the Best Paper Presentation Award in IEEE-International Conference on Power Electronics, Intelligent Control and Energy Systems 2024, International Conference on Recent Developments in Cyber Security-2024, International Conference on Computational Intelligence and Computing Applications 2024, International Symposium on Computing and Communication Systems for Industrial Applications, Second International Conference on Data Science and Information Systems,2024.
NEET PG 2024 Result LIVE: Latest Updates On Date, Time & Direct Link Get the latest live updates on NEET PG 2024 results here. Learn how to download your scorecard, access the direct link, and stay informed about the result declaration from NBEMS on natboard.edu.in

NEET PG 2024 Result Live Updates: Details Needed to Check Scorecard Candidates who took the NEET PG 2024 exam can receive their scorecards by entering their registration number and date of birth as shown on the admit card on the portal once it is available at the official websites natboard.edu.in and nbe.edu.in.

NEET PG 2024 Overall Results to be Released First The NBEMS will first release the NEET PG results, followed by the distribution of individual scorecards to candidates. The initial result notification will include a comprehensive list featuring the names, roll numbers, and marks obtained by all candidates who appeared for the exam. Additionally, the notification will provide the category-wise cut-off marks, allowing candidates to assess their performance relative to the required benchmarks for their respective categories.

NEET PG 2024 Result Live Updates: Seats Available Across Medical Colleges Candidates who pass the NEET PG 2024 test will be considered for admission to 26,699 Doctor of Medicine (MD), 13,886 Master of Surgery (MS), and 922 Postgraduate Diploma seats.

NEET PG 2024 Result Live Updates: What Was The Exam Pattern? This year, the NEET PG exam was held on August 11, 2024, in two shifts: 9 am to 12:30 am and 3:30 pm to 7 pm. Each shift followed the same exam pattern, with candidates taking a computer-based test that included 200 multiple-choice questions for 3 hours and 30 minutes.

NEET PG 2024 Result Live Updates: Scorecards in Roll Number-Wise Format The NEET PG 2024 results will be released in a roll number-wise format. Every candidate who participated in the examination can view their individual scores by using their respective roll numbers to access the result.

'When Is It Going To De Declared?', NEET PG Aspirants Ask NBEMS Amid Delay In Exam Process As medical aspirants eagerly await the NEET PG 2024 results, the lack of an official announcement from the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) has led many to voice their concerns on X (formerly Twitter). The National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test-Postgraduate (NEET PG) took place on August 11, 2024, in two shifts, but candidates are still in the dark about when they can expect the results. The uncertainty surrounding the NEET PG 2024 result date has sparked considerable discussion online. On X, users have been actively seeking information about the results. One post inquired, Anyone aware of the NEET PG result date? When is it going to be declared? Read full Article

What After NEET PG Results Are Out? Know About Counselling Process After the release of NEET PG result, the counseling schedule will be released by NBEMS in due course of time. Admission in specialisation courses will be given only after the completion of NEET PG 2024 counseling.

NEET PG 2024 Result Live Updates: What Is The Normalisation Process? NBE will announce the NEET PG results based on the normalisation process as the exam was held in two different shifts. According to an official notice from NBE, the highest score in each shift will be set at the 100th percentile in this process. The top score for each shift will be considered the highest and all other scores will be compared relative to this top score. The percentile score will be calculated to 7 decimal places to avoid the bunching effect.

NEET PG 2024 Result Live Updates: Over 2 Lakh Took Exams The NEET PG 2024 postgraduate medical admission test was administered on August 11, 2024, for roughly 2,28,540 aspirants. The exam was administered in two shifts at 416 locations in 170 cities across the country.

When Will NEET PG Results Be Declared? The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for Postgraduate (NEET PG) 2024 was conducted on August 11 and the NBEMS is expected to announce the final answer key and results anytime soon. As per media reports, the scorecards are likely to be released by the end of August. However, NBEMS is yet to announce the official date and time of the NEET PG results 2024. All those who took the NEET PG medical entrance test can check the result on the official websites at nbe.edu.in or natboard.edu.in, once it is declared.

NEET PG 2024 Result Live Updates: How To Check? Step 1: Go to the official website of NBE  nbe.edu.in Step 2: Select NEET PG link from the webpage Step 3: Click on the NEET PG result PDF Step 4: The list will appear on your screen Step 5: Scroll through the list find your roll number and check your result

When Were NEET PG Results Released In The Last 5 Years? Know when the NEET PG results were released in the last 5 years, that is, between 2019-2023: 2023- The exam was held on March 5 and the result was declared on March 14. 2022- The exam was held on May 21 and the result was declared on June 20. 2021- NEET PG exam was held on September 11 and the result was released on September 28. 2020- The exam was held on January 5 and the result was declared on January 20. 2019- The exam was held on January 6 and the result was declared on January 31.

NEET PG 2024 Result Live Updates: Cut Off Date For Eligibility According to the official notification, the cut-off date for eligibility for appearing in the NEET PG 2024 would remain August 15, 2024.

NEET PG 2024 Result Live Updates: Know The Marking Scheme A computer-based testing modality (CBT) will be utilised to conduct the NEET PG exam. The test will have 200 multiple-choice questions with a total score of 800. Each accurate response will receive four marks, while each incorrect response will result in the deduction of one mark.

NEET PG 2024 Result: Check Last Year's Cut Off Marks Last year, the NEET PG cut-off for admission to MD/MS/DNB/Diploma courses was as follows:  General and EWS: 291 marks  General-PwD: 274 marks  SC, ST, OBC (including PwD belonging to these categories): 257 marks

NEET PG 2024 Result Live Updates: What About Answer Key? As per the official website, NBEMS will not issue the answer key for NEET PG this year. NBEMS shall not entertain any request for sharing any content of the examination including answer keys, answer sheets, reads the notice on the official website.

NEET PG 2024 Result Live Updates: Websites To Check The NBEMS will release the results on the following websites:  natboard.edu.in  nbe.edu.in

NBEMS Announces Normalisation Process for NEET PG 2024, Adopts AIIMS INI-CET Scoring Method According to NBEMS, the NEET PG 2024 scores would be generated using a normalisation process similar to that used by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi. This approach is also utilised for the AIIMS Institute of National Importance Combined Entrance Test (INI-CET). The NBEMS additionally cited a notification from AIIMS Delhi dated January 20, 2023, which said that the Percentile score is considered as the Normalised Score for the examination. The notification from AIIMS New Delhi went on to say that in order to avoid bunching and break ties between applicants, the percentile results for the test will be computed to seven decimal places. Read full Article
National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Thursday (August 22) said his partys alliance with the Congress is final on all 90 seats for the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections, which be held in three phases on September 18, September 25 and October 1.

Abdullah said the pre-poll alliance with the Congress will be signed in the evening in the presence of leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, who earlier called on the National Conference leadership at his residence. He also did not rule out the presence of the Mehbooba Mufti-led Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in a pre- or post-poll alliance.

#WATCH | J&K: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi arrive in Jammu. pic.twitter.com/E8d6aOc9yN ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2024

We had a good meeting, in a cordial atmosphere. The alliance is on track and, God willing, it will run smoothly. The alliance is final. It will be signed this evening and the alliance is on all 90 seats, he said about the meeting with the Congress leaders, adding that the CPI(M)s MY Tarigami is also a part of the alliance.

Asked about Gandhis assurance earlier in the day that it was the priority of the Congress and the INDIA bloc to restore statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, he said he is hopeful that full statehood with all powers will be restored.

Statehood is very important for all of us. This has been promised to us. This state has witnessed bad days and we hope it will be restored with its full powers. For that, we stand together with the INDIA bloc, he added.

The former chief minister of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir said there is no question of a common minimum programme. Our common programme is to fight the elections to defeat the divisive forces that exist in the country, he said.

About an alliance with the PDP, he said: Let us first go through the polls, then we will look into those things, he said. No doors are closed for anybody.

#WATCH | On pre or poll alliance with PDP, NC chief Farooq Abdullah says , "We do not know. Let us first go through the poll, then we will look into these things. No doors are closed for anyone."On common minimum program for alliance with Congress, NC chief Farooq Abdullah pic.twitter.com/cpqbJX4A28  ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2024

Questioned about the seat-sharing arrangement during the elections, Abdullah sought patience. Everything will come out before the first phase, he said.

He also refused to answer if he will contest the polls. He said he was happy that the meeting with the Congress leadership was held in a cordial atmosphere. To tell you honestly, my heart is very happy today because the way we attempted to make this country stronger in a cordial atmosphere, he added.
Reports of aggressive military drills by Chinese vessels near disputed South China Sea have increased over the past 17 months creating latest tensions in one of Asias biggest flashpoints.

Chinas Southern Theatre of Command carried out air and sea combat patrols near Huangyan Island to test strike capabilities.

The exercises appeared to be a response to same-day military manoeuvres by the US, Australia, Canada and the Philippines.

All military activities that disrupt the South China Sea, create hotspots, and undermine regional peace and stability are all being controlled to the best extent, Beijing noted.

In a joint statement, military chiefs from the US, Australia, Canada and the Philippines said they stand together to address common maritime challenges and underscore our shared dedication to upholding international law and the rules-based order.

What is the Latest Standoff?

In the recent months, the Philippines has accused China of unsafe behaviour on at least 12 occasions, often within the water of its exclusive economic zone (EEZ), according to the Philippines government data compiled thinktank the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).

The other accusations include that China has rammed Philippine vessels, used water cannon on them, damaging their ships, deployed a military-grade laser against its coast guard, and, most recently, used knives to puncture its rubber boats.

China continues to press claims over the entire South China Sea, despite a 2016 international tribunal ruling that backed the Philippines.

Scarborough Shoal is 240km (150 miles) west of the Philippines main island of Luzon and nearly 900km (560 miles) from the nearest major Chinese land mass of Hainan.

China seized the shoal, a triangular chain of reefs and rocks that form part of a rich fishing ground, after a month-long stand-off in 2012. The shoal had long served as a safe harbour for Filipino fishermen.

In June, China also introduced a new regulation that empowers its coast guard to detain foreigners accused of trespassing, and detain them for up to 60 days without trial, a move that has created greater anxiety among Filipino fishing communities.

Beijing blamed the escalation on Manila and maintained its actions to protect its claims were legal and proportional.

Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos said last month that if any Filipino serviceman or citizen were killed by a wilful act in the South China Sea, this would be very, very close to what we define as an act of war, and therefore, we would respond accordingly.

How Important Is South China Sea For World Trade?

Making up part of the western Pacific Ocean, the South China Sea sits between southern China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia and Malaysia.

About a third of global maritime trade passes through the 3.5 million square kilometer (1.4 million square mile) seaway annually, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

Around 40% of petroleum products traded globally are delivered via the sea every year.

It is also home to rich fishing grounds that provide for the livelihoods of millions of people across the region. More than half of the worlds fishing vessels operate in this area.

In 2016, around $3.6 trillion worth of goods and commodities travelled via sea, according to the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Another estimate put the figure as high as $5.3 trillion.

Tens of thousands of cargo vessels move through the South China Sea every year, carrying around 40% of Chinas, a third of Indias and 20% of Japans trade with the rest of the world, according to CSIS data.

What were the Most Serious Clashes in Recent Decades?

Some of the recent incidents include clashes between Vietnam and China and the Philippines and China.

 In 1974, China seized the Paracels from Vietnam, killing more than 70 Vietnamese troops.

 In 1988, the two sides clashed in the Spratlys, with Vietnam again coming off worse, losing about 60 sailors.

 In early 2012, China and the Philippines engaged in a lengthy maritime stand-off, accusing each other of intrusions in the Scarborough Shoal.

 Reports suggest that the Chinese navy sabotaged two Vietnamese exploration operations in late 2012 led to large anti-China protests on Vietnams streets.

 In January 2013, Manila said it was taking China to a UN tribunal under the auspices of the UN Convention on the Laws of the Sea, to challenge its claims.

 In May 2014, the introduction by China of a drilling rig into waters near the Paracel Islands led to multiple collisions between Vietnamese and Chinese ships.

 In June 2019, Manila accused a Chinese trawler of ramming a Filipino fishing boat with 22 people on board. The Filipinos were rescued by the Vietnamese.

 In early 2023, the Philippines said Chinese vessels have been shining lasers at Filipino boats to temporarily blind their crew. They also accuse the Chinese of dangerous manoeuvres by sailing too close or blocking the Filipinos path.

What is Indias Approach in South China Sea Dispute?

External affairs minister S Jaishankar during his visit to Manila in March stated Indias full support for the Philippines in upholding its national sovereignty.

A joint statement in 2023 between New Delhi and Manila had also called for China to adhere to the rules-based maritime order and acknowledge the International Court of Justice ruling of 2016 in favour of Manila.

New Delhis approach towards the South China Sea dispute mirrors its broader and economic aspirations on the global stage than its previous neutral position.

The participation of Indian state-owned enterprises, such as the Oil and Natural Gas Corporations overseas arm (ONGC Videsh), in oil and gas exploration projects in Vietnams exclusive economic zones (EEZs) and other similar ventures not only signified Indias economic stakes in the region but also its support for the principle of freedom of exploration and exploitation of maritime resources within the bounds of international law, specifically the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), as mentioned in an article by the Observer Research Foundation (ORF).

It should be noted that the transformation from Look East to Act East policy under Prime Minister Narendra Modis government has marked a more strategic and active engagement with the Indo-Pacific region.

This policy evolution reflects Indias acknowledgment of the changing geopolitical landscape and the need for a more proactive and multifaceted foreign policy approach with the Act East Policy emphasising not only economic integration but also strategic partnerships and expanded security cooperation with countries in the Indo-Pacific including Vietnam, Malaysia, and Singapore, besides the Philippines, the ORF article added.
The Kerala High Court has directed the state government to make available the Justice Hema Committee report, including the redacted portions before the court in a sealed cover by the next hearing on September 10.

The courts directions came in response to a plea filed on Thursday demanding criminal proceedings against the accused mentioned in the report.

The 233-page report by a three-member committee headed by retired justice K Hema provides a damning indictment of the discrimination and exploitation faced by women in the Malayalam film. The document was released on August 19 by the state information commission.

Why was the Hema Committee Formed?

The Malayalam films, which are often praised for being progressive, have a dark underbelly. In February 2017, a popular Malayalam woman actor had come forward alleging abduction and sexual assault on her in Kochi.

A prominent actor would later be implicated in the case which caused a shake-up in the industry, and brought under the scanner the discriminatory treatment faced by women in the Malayalam film industry.

The Women in Cinema Collective (WCC), comprising women actors, producers, directors and technicians, was formed in response to this incident. On May 18, 2017 the WCC submitted a petition to the Kerala Chief Minister demanding an inquiry into the incident, and larger gender issues plaguing the states film industry.

In July, 2017, the Kerala government formed a committee to look into the issues of sexual harassment and gender inequality in the Malayalam film industry. The committee submitted a 295-page report to Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan in December 2019.

Why was the Report Delayed?

The report, which was submitted to the CM in 2019, was kept under wraps for five years, and certain portions were redacted during its release this month to protect individual privacy.

Leader of Opposition VD Satheesan accused Pinarayi Vijayan of committing an offence for not initiating any legal action against the perpetrators mentioned in the report.

On August 20, CM Vijayan stated that the Hema Committee report had not been released earlier because Justice Hema had written to the government on February 19, 2020, requesting that the report not be made public due to its references that could affect the privacy of many individuals.

Why was the Report Released Now?

Five Right To Information activists approached the Kerala State Information Commission (KSIC) for more details on the report.

The KSIC decided on July 6, 2024 a controlled release of the report to the petitioners. Sixty-three pages of the report were redacted before its scheduled release on August 14.

The Kerala High Court stayed release of the report following a petition by film producer Saji Parayil, who argued that its publication would violate the right to privacy of individuals (including himself), and possibly expose them to retaliation and harassment. His petition was eventually dismissed.

An actress deposed before the committee, which further delayed the report. In her plea, she said she has the legal right to know how her statement was recorded in the report.

What are the Key Takeaways of the Report?

The committee identified at least 17 forms of exploitation experienced by women working in 30 different categories within the industry. These include sexual demands made to women seeking entry into the industry, sexual harassment, and various forms of abuse and assault.

 The report highlights persistence of practices like the casting couch, where women are often pressured into offering sexual favours to secure roles or avoid being blacklisted.

 The committee found that the women face discrimination in terms of remuneration and basic workplace safeguards such as internal complaints committee (ICC), which does not exist in practice. Women fear retaliation and are often coerced into not filing complaints.

 The report states that the Malayalam film industry is under control of certain producers, directors and actors  all male  and dominate other persons working in cinema.

 Women working in the industry often face a lack of safety and security, both in their accommodation and during transportation.

 The report revealed that online harassment and cyber-attacks against women are prevalent in the industry. It also highlighted that some male artistes were also banned for a longer period of time due to conflicts with power lobbies.

How are Actors Reacting to the Report?

It is very scary to hear what happened in the Malayalam industry. It is completely unacceptable. I appeal to all female artists that nothing is more important than safety and dignity, actor Abhishek Banerjee, who has acted in films like Stree-2 and Patal Lok, quoted PTI as saying.

According to filmmaker Anjali Menon, a prominent director and screenwriter in Malayalam cinema and WCC founding member, the report is the first step in dismantling unfavourable power structures within the industry. This opens up an opportunity to clean things up and move to a more equal progressive space, Menon told PTI.

I feel for the Kerala victim deeply Nothing will happen with these reports because women still continue to be attacked and exploited. It doesnt matter in this country who you are be it Miss India, or an actress, or educated or an accomplished person, it doesnt matter, said actor Tanushree Dutta.

Actor Parvathy, another prominent face in South cinema and a part of WCC, told Manorama News, If the government doesnt take necessary action despite such a damning report it will be damaging.

Kannada superstar Rishab Shetty, whose film Kantara won two National Film Awards, said while he has not read the report, women do face harassment and other issues in all spheres whether it is films, media or IT. We are always conscious that women working on our set feel safe and are free to talk if they face any issues, Shetty told PTI.
A 30-year-old man from Delhi has been in a vegetative state for the past 11 years after suffering head injuries from a fall from the fourth floor of his house. The Delhi High Court refused to order passive euthanasia for the man upon his parents request.

The high court said the facts of the case indicate the man is not being kept alive mechanically and he is able to sustain himself without any extra external aid. It also noted that the man was not on any life support, and therefore, he was not a candidate for passive euthanasia.

The parents approached the Supreme Court after the high court rejected their plea to constitute a medical board to examine if he could be euthanized.

The plea stated that his family had done their best to treat him. However, he had been confined to his bed since 2013 due to diffuse axonal injury with permanent vegetative state, quadriplegia with 100% disability. Diffuse axonal injury is a type of traumatic brain injury.

The Supreme Court bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud with Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra agreed with the verdict of the Delhi High Court.

Why are Courts Against Passive Euthanasia?

The Delhi High Court in its July 2 order had said, The petitioner is thus living and no one, including a physician, is permitted to cause the death of another person by administering any lethal drug, even if the objective is to relieve the patient from pain and suffering, it said.

The high court also referred to several Supreme Court judgements in which it was held that active euthanasia is legally impermissible.

Meanwhile, the top court said, The High Court held that passive euthanasia is not permissible as per the Common Cause judgment and that the person was not kept alive mechanically and was alive without external life support. We are in support with view of the High Court, that the case does not fall under the ambit of passive euthanasia, since there is no external life support.

The SC also sought response from the Central government since the parents of the 30-year-old man are aged and cannot care for their son who is bed ridden for 13 years, and if and if any other humanitarian solution can be found other than passive euthanasia.

Whats the Common Cause Judgment?

In 2018, the Supreme Court recognised the right to die with dignity as a fundamental right and prescribed guidelines for terminally ill patients to enforce the right.

In 2002, Common Cause, a registered society had written to the Ministries of Law & Justice, Health & Family Welfare, and Company Affairs as well as state governments, on the issue of the right to die with dignity.

The NGO approached the Supreme Court in 2005 under Article 32, urging for the declaration of the right to die with dignity as a fundamental right under Article 21. It also prayed the court to issue directions to the Union government to allow terminally ill patients to execute living wills for appropriate action in the event that they are admitted to hospitals.

Common Cause argued that terminally ill persons or those suffering from chronic diseases must not be subjected to cruel treatments. Denying them the right to die in a dignified manner extends their suffering.

In the Common Cause v. Union of India case, the Supreme Court had said, Thus, the law of the land as existing today is that no one is permitted to cause the death of another person, including a physician, by administering any lethal drug even if the objective is to relieve the patient from pain and suffering We are thus of the opinion that the right not to take a life-saving treatment by a person, who is competent to make an informed decision, is not covered by the concept of euthanasia as it is commonly understood but a decision to withdraw life-saving treatment by a patient who is competent to take decision as well as with regard to a patient who is not competent to take decision can be termed as passive euthanasia, which is lawful and legally permissible in this country.

In 2023, the SC modified the guidelines to make the right to die with dignity more accessible.

Whats the Validity of Euthanasia In India?

The practice of euthanasia can be classified into two categories:

Active Euthanasia: It is a method that involves taking active steps to end a life. It involves administering a patient a dose of medication through their intravenous line that will kill them. Active euthanasia is also sometimes referred to by the term aggressive euthanasia.

Passive Euthanasia: It is a deliberate act of causing someones death by withholding or withdrawing artificial life support such as a ventilator from a patient who is terminally ill. In a case like this, something that is essential to save a patients life is not done.

The application of Article 21 of the Indian Constitution states that no person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to the procedure established by law. Thus, the right to life and liberty would be devoid of any significance if it did not also protect the dignity of the individual.

In the case of KS Puttaswamy v. Union of India, the Supreme Court reiterated the principle that human dignity is an indispensable part of Article 21. Right to live with dignity is also said to include the smoothening of the process of dying in the case of a terminally ill patient with no hope of recovery. The legal position as it stands today is that right to life does not include right to die, but right to live with dignity does include right to die with dignity.

The issue of euthanasia directly came up before the Supreme Court in the case of Aruna Ramchandra Shanbaugh v. Union of India. The case was filed through an application by a friend of the petitioner who sought to use passive euthanasia in order to end Shanbaughs life who was a rape victim and had been in a persistent vegetative state (PVS) for the last 38 years.

The court in Aruna Shanbaughs case was of the opinion that passive euthanasia should be permitted when the patient is in a persistent vegetative state and held that it is ultimately for the court to decide, as parens patriae, as to what is in the best interest of the patient.

Passive euthanasia now possesses unequivocal legal sanctity as a result of the law being articulated in the Common Cause judgment.
The doctors at Delhis All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on Thursday called off their 11-day strike to protest the rape and murder of a Kolkata doctor after an appeal from the Supreme Court on the matter.

Earlier the day, the top court had asked protesting doctors to resume work and had assured them that no adverse action would be taken after they rejoin.

While putting out a post on X, the AIIMS Resident Doctors Association said, We are resuming duties following the Supreme Courts appeal and assurances and intervention in the RG Kar incident and safety for doctors . We commend the Courts action and call for adherence to its directives. Patient care remains our top priority.

While speaking to the media on the matter, RDA AIIMS Delhi president, Dr Indra Shekhar Prasad said, We are doctors. We provide public service and we want to continue our main service. We never want to go on a strikeBut the incident at RG Kar was so gruesome and it exposed the safety and security lapses in our health system. So, we had to go on a strike. This was not easy for us. Strike was more difficult for us than duty. But Supreme Court gave direction and formed a task forceWe appreciate this and hope that there will be justice in RG Kar incidentWe will resume our duties at the earliest.

The doctor associations started a nationwide protest on August 12, halting OPD services. Emergency services continued as usual.

The brutal assault and murder of the junior doctor sparked nationwide protests. Her body was found on August 9 with severe injury marks inside the seminar hall of the state-run hospitals chest department. A civic volunteer was arrested by the Kolkata Police in connection with the case the following day.

(with PTI inputs)
Special Cell of Delhi Police on Thursday busted an Al-Qaeda-inspired terror cell that was planning to execute terrorist activities within the country. Delhi police dismantled the terror cell in a joint operation with State Police forces of Jharkhand, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh and detained 14 individuals allegedly linked to the group.

While six individuals have been detained from Bhiwadi, Rajasthan, while actually undergoing weapon-handling training, eight suspects were detained from Jharkhand and UP for questioning.

AIIMS Radiologist Masterminded The Group

One Dr Ishtiyaq of Ranchi led the terror module who is staunch follower of Abdul Rehman Katki, a close associate of 26/11 Mumbai attack mastermind Abdul Rehman Lakhvi. Katki was arrested by Delhi Police in 2015 for his linkages with AQIS network, Abdul Rehman Lakhvi and Faratuallah Gauri in Afghanistan. He is currently lodged in jail.

Dr Ishtiaq is MBBS, MD Radiologist and running clinic in Ranchi. He was reportedly preparing to execute a series of high-profile terrorist activities aimed at establishing a Khilafat within India. As per reports, Dr Ishtiaq was trained by Katki.

The module, as per the current state of operations, was being led by one Dr Ishtiyaq of Ranchi (Jharkhand), and it was aspiring to declare khilafat and execute serious terrorist activities within the country, Delhi Police said in a statement.

The members of the module received indoctrination and weapons training at various locations, police said. Recoveries of arms, ammunition, literature etc from several locations are underway. Delhi police officials noted that an investigation is underway and more arrests are anticipated as raids continue.
In a decisive move to bolster the safety of women and children, Cabinet Minister and Guardian Minister of Mumbai Suburban District, Mangal Prabhat Lodha, has issued key directives to the District Collector. The minister has stressed the importance of implementing comprehensive safety measures across various schools and colleges in the district to curb incidents of abuse against women and children.

During a program at the Mumbai Suburban District Collectorate in Bandra, Minister Lodha announced that beginning September 1, all Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) in the state, along with every college in Mumbai Suburban, will provide self-defence training for young women. This initiative forms part of a broader strategy to empower women and ensure their safety in educational institutions.

Minister Lodha expressed grave concern over the rising instances of violence against women and children, citing the recent incident in Badlapur as a glaring example of the need for immediate action. The neglect of womens safety has led to tragic incidents, which is why strict instructions must be issued to all educational institutions, from kindergarten to postgraduate levels, across Mumbai Suburban, Lodha emphasised. He stressed that schools and colleges must conduct thorough background checks on their staff to prevent any untoward incidents.

The directives issued by the minister include several key measures:

1. Installation of CCTV cameras throughout the school premises, excluding restrooms, with regular maintenance checks by beat marshals or mobile police teams.

2. Permanent stationing of female staff members outside girls restrooms for constant supervision.

3. Assignment of female sanitation workers to clean restrooms used by minor girls and 10th-grade students.

4. Requirement of female staff presence on all buses, taxis, and vans used for student transportation.

5. Mandatory police verification of all sanitation workers employed in schools.

6. Collaboration with local NGOs to provide self-defense training for female students.

7. Encouragement for students to report issues via the 1098 helpline number, with schools required to display posters with this information.

8. Establishment of a separate committee of female parents in schools, with monthly meetings to discuss issues related to female students.

9. Display of posters in schools and colleges, informing women and girls about the 181 helpline for emergencies.

These measures reflect a proactive approach to addressing the safety concerns of women and children, making educational institutions safer spaces for all.

Following the Badlapur incident, the Maharashtra state government has issued a Government Resolution mandating the installation of CCTV systems in all school premises within one month. Schools that fail to comply will face government action. Principals have also been instructed to monitor footage thrice a week and take necessary action if any objectionable material is found.

Furthermore, the state government has mandated precautionary measures in the recruitment of school staff, including background checks for sweepers, peons, bus drivers, and security guards. Schools are also required to maintain a complaint box for students, form a student security council, and report any incidents to the government within 24 hours.
The Bombay high Court on Thursday began hearing of the violent protests over the sexual assault of two four-year-old kids in a school in Thanes Badlapur town. The court took suo motu cognisance of the matter on Wednesday.

A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Prithviraj Chavan is hearing the matter.

The Maharashtra government has also issued a set of directives to all the schools in the state mandating to install CCTV cameras and complaint boxes on their premises within a month. The decision came in wake of the horrific crime.

All private schools in the state are required to comply with new guidelines from the department, mandating the installation of CCTV cameras at appropriate locations within school premises. Failure to comply may result in actions such as withholding financial grants or revocation of the schools operating permit, the order said.

Also Read: Maharashtra: Man Befriends 13-year-old Girl On Instagram, Rapes Her Twice; Arrested Under Pocso Act

Here are the latest updates on the case:

The police have said that they would record the statements of accused Akshay Shinde under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) on Thursday.

Justice Dere noted that the second victims statements havent been recorded yet. She asked the AG to inform on next date why there was a delay to record her statements. This is such a serious offence. Two girls sexually assaulted, how can the police not take the issue seriously. We would want to know what steps you are taking to ensure security of school girls. Security and safety of girls cannot be compromised at all, Live Law quoted the justice.

Justice Chavan lambasted the administration and said that until there is a strong outburst, the police dont probe the case seriously. It has become a common thing now. Unless there is a strong outburst the machinery doesnt work. Do you want to say that unless people dont come on the streets probe will not be carried seriously, he said.

After their installation, the schools will have to periodically check the footage and if found unobjectionable, it will be the responsibility of the headmaster and school management to take further action, the order said.

State Education Minister Deepak Kesarkar has said that the failure to comply with the order may result in severe consequences such as revocation of the permission to operate the institution among others.

The state governments school education department has instructed school managements to conduct thorough background checks of all employees with the assistance of the local police station. Schools should provide the local police station the details and photographs of their employees.

The department has mandated for schools to appoint women employees on a priority basis for students up to six years.

Further, the schools have been ordered to install a complaint box and it will have to be examined if it is being used effectively. The school headmaster will be held responsible in case of lapses in this regard. The schools will also have to strictly adhere to government norms with regard to Sakhi Savitri Samiti and Vidyarthi Suraksha Samiti.

The government has also established a state-level security review committee headed by the School Education Commissioner. The committee will have six members. The committee will meet once every three months to review various measures taken to enhance the safety of students, and submit reports to the state government periodically.

The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition of parties including, NCP (SCP), Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Congress has called for a Maharashtra Bandh on August 24 as a mark of protest over the horrendous crime.

Maharashtra DGP Rashmi Shukla on Wednesday affirmed the police forces commitment to ensuring the safety and security of all citizens by going the extra mile. In a statement posted on the official X handle @DGPMaharashtra, DGP Shukla stated that the investigation into the Badlapur case is being conducted with the utmost diligence. We will leave no stone unturned in delivering justice to innocent children and their families, Shukla said.

A mob of local residents on Wednesday also attacked and vandalised the house of Akshay Shinde, the accused sweeper.According to the neighbours, the agitated mob of around 50-100 people entered the house and even attacked his family members.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday claimed that the massive protests was politically motivated and aimed at maligning the state government. He also slammed the opposition and said those doing politics over the incident should be ashamed. The chief minister claimed that some protesters were carrying placards mentioning the Ladki Bahin Yojana, his governments flagship financial assistance scheme for women. The placards said they did not want the monthly sum of Rs 1,500 but protection for their girls.

Internet services at Badlapur in Maharashtras Thane district were suspended on Wednesday a day after a massive protest over alleged sexual abuse of two kindergarten girls.

A local court on Wednesday extended the accused Shindes police custody till August 26.

Shinde has been accused of allegedly sexually abusing two four-year-old girls in the toilet of a school in Badlapur. The accused, who was working as a cleaner on contract via a third-party company, was arrested on August 17 after the girls parents pressed for a formal complaint despite an initial delay in filing the FIR.

Thousands of protestors on Tuesday blocked railway tracks at Badlapur station which caused massive disruption of local train services and diversion of some long-distance trains. At least 15 outstation trains and the local train services on the Ambernath-Karjat section were suspended for ten hours, leaving thousands of passengers stranded.

The Thane Police have arrested over 70 people and registered a First Information Report (FIR) against at least 300 people for protesting and blocking railway tracks which left at least 25 police personnel, including the railway cops, injured in incidents of stone-pelting.

(With inputs from agencies)
Junior doctors at state-run hospitals in West Bengal will continue their ceasework despite the Supreme Courts appeal to them to resume their duties. They have been protesting against the alleged rape and murder of a trainee doctor in Kolkatas RG Kar Medical College and Hospital for the past 14 days. Healthcare services are likely to remain affected at these medical institutions.

The doctors continued their stir Thursday (August 22) even though the state government transferred three RG Kar officials and cancelled the posting of the hospitals former principal Sandip Ghosh to the Calcutta Medical College and Hospital (CNMC). Their decision comes after resident doctors at AIIMS, Delhi, and RML Hospital announced that they were withdrawing their 11-day strike following the top courts appeal.

We are resuming duties following the Supreme Courts appeal and assurances and intervention in the RG Kar incident and the safety for doctors. We commend the courts action and call for adherence to its directives. Patient care remains our top priority, the Resident Doctors Association, AIIMS, New Delhi, said in a post on X.

The resident doctors association of RML Hospital said in a statement that given the Supreme Courts intervention and the progress made in addressing their demands, they will resume their duties from 8 am on Friday (August 23). The strike is being suspended in response to the SC taking suo motu cognisance of the case and the transfer of the probe to the CBI, it said.

Earlier in the day, the junior doctors in Bengal said their protests will continue as only part of their demands have been met and they will wait for the development at the Supreme Court. We have the main demand for the justice of our sister yet to be fulfilled. We will wait and see todays development at the Supreme Court and decide after that, a doctor told PTI in the morning.

As the hearing commenced, the SC made an impassioned appeal to the protesting doctors across India and asked them to get back to work. The court said justice and medicine cannot be stopped and moreover, it was issuing all the necessary directions to ensure their safety. It further directed no coercive action against them.

The apex court further said peaceful protests over the incident shall not be disturbed or disrupted by the West Bengal government. It, however, said has not injuncted the state government from exercising such lawful powers. When we say peaceful protesters will not be disturbed, we also mean proper protocol will be followed, the SC bench, headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, observed.

The assault and murder of the woman doctor in Kolkata sparked nationwide protests. On August 12, resident doctors associations started a nationwide protest, halting outpatient department (OPD) services. Emergency services continued as usual.

(With PTI inputs)
How safe is your data with banks, social media sites or banking applications? The UP Police have busted a gang of 12th-fail cyber thugs, experts in data breach, phishing and digital arrest, who used database with the banks and leaked data from mobile applications and social networking sites as a tool to rob people of their hard earned money. The police also found that the duo led a lavish life in Delhi with luxury cars and bouncers at their disposal.

The case came to light during interrogation where the duo admitted their alleged involvement in cyber fraud and revealed their modus operandi, stating how they used to target people using their personal information.

The Arrest

On Friday, UP Police arrested two cyber fraudsters, Sandeep Kumar Sen (23) and Mohd Sahil (19), residents of Attarsuiya and Khuldabad, respectively, from Prayagraj for allegedly cheating many people while posing as the officials of CBI, RBI, Income Tax, and other government agencies through a mobile application. On the complaint filed by one of the victims, a case under sections 319 (2), 318 (4), 308 (2), 336 (3), 111 (1) (2) of BNS and sections 66 and 67 of the IT Act was registered against the duo with the cyber police station.

The duo had contacted the victim through a mobile application and had allegedly duped him of Rs 68 lakh after they lured him to invest money for gains, the police said. Police have seized three mobiles, one cheque book, ten ATM cards, five fake SIM cards, and 14 bank accounts from their possession.

Deepak Bhukar DCP (City), Prayagraj, said the accused have duped the person of Rs 68 lakh. They first trapped the cyber fraud victim and lured him to make an investment of Rs 20 lakh in crypto currency through Defter/Laser Accounting App. The cyber fraudsters then called the victim posing as CBI, Income Tax and RBI officers and threatened to send summons and notices for making investments in crypto currency.

The victim was duped of cash worth Rs 68 lakh on different pretexts following which he approached the cyber police station and lodged an FIR. The cops at cyber cell traced the culprits and arrested them on Friday from Delhi.

Modus Operandi

During interrogation, the duo revealed several startling facts. Both the crooks admitted their involvement in duping over half a dozen people under the pretext of investments in cryptocurrency and digital arrests, amounting to Rs 1.5 crore, the police said. On questioning, the duo admitted that they have been purchasing bank customers details that include mobile numbers, bank account details and databases from the insurance agencies, WhatsApp and other banking sites to target people.

The duo revealed that initially they used to target people, using their bank details which they used to procure illegally either through the banks or through the leaked database from the mobile apps and other social networking sites, a cyber cop said. The cop said that the investigation revealed that insurance agents, sales agents, and others with similar job profiles had sold customer databases, often in PDF form, for a few thousand rupees.

Using the database, the cyber thugs used to target people, specially the ones with hefty bank balances. They then used to collect additional information related to their target, using their social media accounts, transaction histories and other mobile applications and study these databases before targeting them, a cyber cop aware of the development said. The duo then used to make random calls to potential victims to scam them under various pretexts, used to lure victims for investment in digital currency using false documents and later used to threaten people to implicate them in fake cases.

Charm For Branded Clothes, Luxury Cars Made Them Cyber Fraudsters

Sandeep and Sahil, two school dropouts, were possibly drawn into cybercrime due to their obsession with branded clothes, luxury cars, and expensive shoes, according to police. The duos lavish lifestyle left the cops astounded. Both Sandeep and Sahil owned a chain of bars and restaurants in Delhi, further adding to their opulent image. The police were particularly shocked by their extravagant living arrangements.

Other than owning a chain of bars and restaurants in Delhi, the duo used to keep two bouncers whom they paid Rs 80,000 per month, the cop revealed. Their wardrobe was filled with expensive t-shirts, including the one Sahil wore during the arrest, which cost around Rs 15,000. Several other t-shirts ranging from Rs 10,000 to Rs 25,000 were also found. The cop added, A section in their wardrobe was found stacked with expensive shoes costing Rs 25,000 and above.

The duo resided in a rented flat in Delhi, paying Rs 60,000 per month. The police also recovered luxury cars, expensive gadgets, phones, and watches from their possession.

Of late, UP has witnessed a spurt in cases of cyber fraud. As per the records with the Cyber Crime Cell, UP has witnessed more than 13,000 cases of cyber fraud in the financial year 2022 and 2023. However, officials say that the current year data is under compilation. UPs state capital alone has witnessed around 20 cases of cyber fraud in the recent past. Of others, the case of Dr Ruchika Tandon, an associate professor in the Neurology department at Lucknows SGPGI, who was duped of Rs 2.81 crore by cybercriminals and digitally arrested was the latest of all.
The recent debate surrounding the potential sale of army land to private builders in Ayodhya has stirred local concerns and allegations of government favouritism. This controversy has raised questions about the legality and process involved in acquiring such land.

To shed light on these issues, Ayodhya Commissioner Gaurav Dayal provided a comprehensive overview of the regulations governing army land. According to real estate experts, the acquisition of army land by private builders is a highly complex and regulated process. Army land, which is crucial for national security, cannot be sold directly to private entities. Transfers are only permitted under specific conditions and involve a lengthy approval process.

Any sale or transfer of army land requires explicit authorisation from both the Ministry of Defence and the Central Government. This process ensures that land is only allocated for projects of public interest, such as infrastructure development. If army land is to be given to a private builder, it must undergo a transparent tender process to ensure fair pricing and openness. Additionally, permissions from state and local authorities are mandatory to prevent any disruption to military operations and to manage land allocation effectively.

In a recent statement, Dayal clarified that no army or government land has been transferred to private builders in the Majha Jamthara area. This area, located near Panchkosi and 14 Kosi Parikrama Marg close to the Ram temple, is known for army practice and is used for various government schemes, including projects by Jal Nigam and Ramlala Park. Dayal confirmed that the land in question comprises government-owned Nazul land and some privately-owned parcels, but it does not permit commercial construction.

Experts in real estate emphasised that the hurdles for private builders seeking to acquire army land are significant. The legal and administrative requirements are stringent, deterring many from pursuing such transactions. Adhering to government regulations and procedural norms is crucial, making the process of acquiring army land both challenging and tightly regulated.

In conclusion, while the acquisition of army land by private builders is theoretically possible under certain conditions, it involves a rigorous and highly controlled process to ensure that national security and public interest are upheld.
Indias third mission to the moon has provided evidence of an ocean of magma which once existed on the Moons southern highlands  confirming scientists long-standing hypothesis of Moons origin and evolution from a giant ocean of magma which later cooled down.

Chandrayaan-3 launched by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) on July 14 was the first-ever spacecraft to land near the lunar South Pole on August 23. The latest findings were made by scientists from Ahmedabads Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) who analysed this crucial data from the landmark mission and published in the peer-reviewed scientific journal Nature on the missions first anniversary.

For long, it was believed that the Moon was a molten rock, covered by a huge ocean of magma. But we do not know how big or widespread it was, or whether this ocean actually existed or not. But the remote-sensing data from previous lunar missions, and investigation of the rock sample collected, indicated that it must have been the case. Still there was a lot of uncertainty, lead author and astrophysicist Professor Santosh Vadawale from PRL, Ahmedabad, told News18.

In order to establish this Lunar Magma Ocean (LMO) hypothesis, scientists have been trying to collect and analyse the lunar soil using remote-sensing data from different locations on the moon. So far, all the research into the Moons geology has relied on the observations/samples taken by previous missions like the Apollo (US), Luna (Soviet Union) and Change 5 missions (China) which explored the equator to mid-latitude regions. But none of them touched the relatively pristine, unexplored South Pole.

This was the first time that we have reported in-situ measurements of the lunar soil (regolith) from the highlands near the South Pole of the Moon. We provide concrete evidence of a uniform elemental composition of the lunar soil on the South Pole, as was observed with the samples collected from Moons equatorial to mid-latitude region taken by the Apollo 16 (USA) and Luna-20 (Soviet Union) missions, he added.

The landing site was primarily composed of the rock type ferroan anorthosite. The similarity in the chemical composition of the lunar soil thousands of kilometers apart on the Moon, confirms the Lunar Magma Hypothesis (LMO) for formation and evolution of the Earths nearest celestial neighbour. The hypothesis suggests that the Moon cooled during its formation  while the less dense ferroan anorthosite rocks floated to the lunar surface to form the highlands, the heavier minerals sank to form the mantle (middle layer of soil).

The present evidence will help scientists to uncover how the Moon was actually formed and evolved. The scientific findings also have implications on future moon exploration missions with countries racing to set up a lunar base for astronauts. While NASA has planned its Artemis programme, ISRO has also announced its next moon mission by 2027 to collect and return to Earth with samples of lunar rocks.

The data was collected using one of the payloads  Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) experiment  aboard the Pragyan rover. Just as the Lander Vikram touched down on the moon on August 23, the rover Pragyan rolled down and travelled a distance of 103 metres. The APXS instrument designed by PRL Ahmedabad was powered on during 30 rover stops of which 23 were used for scientific observations, with the lunar exposures ranging from 20 to 175 min.

It took as many as 23 measurements at various spots along its 103-metre tract of the lunar surface using its on-board alpha particle X-ray spectrometer, and measured the elemental composition of the Moons regolith (lunar soil) providing clues to the overall understanding of the origin and evolution of the Moon.
The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) on Thursday took over the security of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital following an order of the Supreme Court.

Earlier on Wednesday, around 150 personnel of the central agency were deployed at the medical facility, where a 31-year-old doctor was allegedly raped and murdered earlier this month.

VIDEO | The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) takes over the security of #Kolkatas RG Kar Hospital following the Supreme Courts order.#KolkataDoctorDeath #KolkataDeathCase(Full video available on PTI Videos  https://t.co/n147TvqRQz) pic.twitter.com/YcQXGi0mtg  Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) August 22, 2024

A day after the apex courts order, the Union home ministry wrote to the West Bengal chief secretary seeking deployment of the CISF at the state-run hospital.

A CISF team, led by a DIG rank officer, surveyed the hospital on Wednesday.

The force is expected to secure the resident doctors hostel and other facilities, the sources said.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday constituted a 10-member task force to formulate a national protocol to ensure safety and facilities for doctors. The task force will submit its interim report within three weeks and the final report within two months.

The apex court also ordered the deployment of CISF at the RG Kar hospital to provide security to the doctors.

The case pertains to the rape and murder of a trainee doctor in Kolkatas RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9. The prime accused, civic volunteer Sanjoy Roy, has been arrested. Amid the ongoing protests, some miscreants entered the premises of state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 14 and vandalised portions of the medical facility, where the body of the victim was found. The Calcutta High Court on August 13 had an order to transfer the probe from Kolkata Police to the CBI.

The horrific incident has shaken the country with nationwide protests going on demanding prompt action in the investigation.

(With inputs from agencies)
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is probing the Kolkata doctor rape and murder case, told the Supreme Court on Thursday that they were handed the investigation on Day 5 and everything was altered by then.

Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta, who was representing CBI, told the top court, CBI entered the probe on the fifth day and everything was altered by then.

The central probe agency submitted its status report in compliance with the Supreme Courts Tuesday directive and flagged issues with the date and time recorded by the Kolkata Police. The CBI also informed the court that former RG Kar principal, who they were questioning, was linked to several financial irregularities in the medical college and he had allegedly rented the surveillance cameras in the facility instead of buying them.

Follow Kolkata Doctor Rape Murder Case LIVE Updates

One aspect is the Daily Diary (DD) entry by Kolkata Police was made at 10:10 am, but the crime scene was secured only in the late evening. Its disturbing, SG Mehta told the three-judge Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud.

Kolkata Police Did Not Follow CrPC Rules: SC

To this, the court asked senior lawyer Kapil Sibal (appearing for the Bengal government) when the post-mortem was conducted. Sibal responded saying that the autopsy was done between 6:10 to 7:10 pm.

The court said as the body was taken for autopsy, it was a case of unnatural death. The court then asked Sibal when the inquest panchnama was drawn.

Following questioning, the apex court observed that the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) guidelines to handle a case of unnatural death were not followed by the Kolkata Police. The court asked Sibal to bring along the police officer responsible who could apprise the court of what exactly happened after the body was discovered.

Justice JB Pardiwala then commented, The entire procedure followed by your state (West Bengal) is something which I have not come across in the 30 years of my career.

The Supreme Court said though the crime took place in the night, the crime scene was secured after more than 18 hours around 7 pm on August 9 after the post-mortem of the body.

The court said, See it is clear that an unnatural death case was registered at 11:30 pm after the officer came back to the police station. This is after the post-mortem. The apex court then orally suggested the CBI to look into the irregularity.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said that the FIR was registered at 11:45 am after the bodys cremation, and the videography was only conducted after senior doctors and the victims colleagues insisted, indicating they also suspected foul play.

Supreme Court also directed the Kolkata Police officer, who registered the first entry about the rape-murder incident, to appear at the next hearing to disclose the time.

During the hearing of the case on Tuesday, after taking suo-moto cognisance of the case, the SC bench had pulled up the West Bengal government and criticised the role of the state police and the former principal of the institution, Sandip Kumar Ghosh. The bench also questioned the role of Ghosh and said it seemed there was an attempt to pass off the murder as a suicide.

Case Diary

The case pertains to the rape and murder of a trainee doctor in Kolkatas RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9. The prime accused, civic volunteer Sanjoy Roy, has been arrested. Amid the ongoing protests, some miscreants entered the premises of state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 14 and vandalised portions of the medical facility, where the body of the victim was found. The Calcutta High Court on August 13 had an order to transfer the probe from Kolkata Police to the CBI.

The horrific incident has shaken the country with nationwide protests going on demanding prompt action in the investigation.
After four years of relentless day-and-night efforts, four Bengali scientists have finally achieved success in their research, surprising the entire world with their groundbreaking discovery. Scientists from a remote district of West Bengal have revealed giant radio galaxies in the universe, which are several times larger than other galaxies. This discovery was highly praised by other scientists around the globe. The discovery was made almost entirely using indigenous technology.

The scientists mentioned that the dark corners of the universe still hide countless unknown cosmic objects that have yet to be discovered and are invisible to the naked eye. One such object is the Giant Radio Source (GRS) galaxies. These ancient, gigantic galaxies cannot be seen easily. These objects can be spotted only using radiowaves and wavelengths. Through these radio waves, 34 ancient giant galaxies have been identified by scientists. This discovery will surely be a significant development in the field of space science.

As per reports, for around four years, a team of Bengali astronomers has been on an unknown journey that led them to discover these 34 new giant radio galaxies. The researchers used 30 special radio telescopes at the National Centre for Radio Astrophysics (NCRA) of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), located near Khodad village, around 90 km north of Pune. The telescopes used are known as the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT), each having a diameter of 45 m.

The team of Indian astronomers, led by Professor Sabyasachi Pal, the head of the Department of Pure and Applied Science at Medinipur City College, made this amazing discovery using the TGSS radio sky map. The team also include PhD researchers Souvik Manik and Nitai Bhakta with Susanta Kumar Mondal, an assistant professor of physics at Sidho-Kanho-Birsha University in Purulia.

Professor and scientist Sabyasachi Pal said, These colossal radio galaxies in the universe usually are of huge sizes. Their sizes are equivalent to 20-25 Milky Way galaxies. By analysing the radio waves emitted from these massive galaxies, we were able to make this discovery after four years of hard work.
A full emergency was declared at Thiruvananthapuram airport on Thursday after a bomb threat on a Air India flight which had departed from Mumbais Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, reported news agency PTI.

Air Indias flight AI657 Mumbai-Thiruvananthapuram was put in in an isolation bay, and passengers were being evacuated following the threat.

#WATCH | Kerala: Visuals of the Air India flight AI657 which received a bomb threat today. The flight has landed safely at Thiruvananthapuram Airport and has been parked in a remote bay for the mandatory checks by security agencies. All passengers and crew disembarked safely. pic.twitter.com/547HWyPPrE ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2024

The threat was communicated by the pilot as the aircraft neared Thiruvananthapuram airport. There were 135 passengers on board, and further information on the threats origin and other details are still pending, the news agency said.

The airport also issued a statement saying that the aircraft reported a bomb threat at 07:30 am on Thursday. It said that the flight landed safely and was parked at the isolation bay where the evacuation process was initiated.

#WATCH | Kerala: Visuals of the Air India flight AI657 which received a bomb threat today. The flight has landed safely at Thiruvananthapuram Airport and has been parked in a remote bay for the mandatory checks by security agencies. All passengers and crew disembarked safely. pic.twitter.com/547HWyPPrE ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2024

AI 657 (BOM-TRV) reported a bomb threat at 0730 hours on August 22, 2024. Full emergency declared at TRV Airport at 0736 hours. The aircraft landed safely. It is now parked at the Isolation Bay, where the evacuation process has begun. There has been no impact on life. Airport operations are currently uninterrupted, it said.

Earlier in June, a similar bomb threat on Paris-Mumbai Vistara flight with 306 people onboard created a chaos after which a full emergency alert was declared at Mumbai Airport before its arrival.

According to the sources, Vistara flight UK 024 from Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris to Mumbai received a handwritten note on an airsickness bag threatening a bomb. Following this, a full emergency was declared. The aircraft had landed safely.

Vistara in a statement confirmed that a security concern has been noted by our staff while onboard the airlines flight UK 024 operating from Paris to Mumbai on 2 June 2024.

These incidents came amid a recent uptick in bomb scares on planes, hospitals, schools and malls across the country.
In a recent ruling, the Bombay High Court addressed a case involving allegations of domestic violence against the girlfriend of a married man by his wife. The courts Nagpur bench determined that a husbands girlfriend cannot be classified as a relative under domestic violence laws, effectively exempting her from charges under Section 498A of the IPC. This ruling came in response to a petition from the woman who was accused of engaging in an extramarital affair with the complainants husband.

Section 498A criminalises cruelty or harassment by a husband or his relatives towards a married woman, with penalties including up to three years of imprisonment and a fine. The courts division bench, led by Justices Vibha Kankanwadi and Vrushali Joshi, stated that since the petitioner woman is not a relative of the husband, Section 498A shall not be applied on her. The chargesheet is illegal as it is based on the allegation of an extramarital affair, not on the statutory definition, it said.

The case involved an educational institution employee from Maharashtras Chandrapur who was charged alongside the husband and his family under Section 498A. The petitioner argued that the laws scope is limited to the husband and his relatives, and that the charges against her stemmed from personal animosity due to her relationship with the complainants husband.

Legal experts suggested that the judgment clarified the application of domestic violence laws and underscores the importance of adhering to the statutory definition of relative.

This ruling is anticipated to influence the handling of similar cases in the future. Previously, the Supreme Court had emphasised that Section 498A should not be applied indiscriminately, noting that a single incident of inappropriate behaviour does not necessarily constitute harassment or cruelty.
The central government has banned 156 cocktail drugs  many of which you might have at home. The list of these banned products includes those used for hair growth, skincare, and pain relief, or as multivitamins, antiparasitics, antiallergics, and more.

Fixed-dose combinations (FDCs) are medicines that combine more than one drug in a single pill and are also referred to as cocktail medicines.

Although the drugmakers have not yet announced the financial impact of the ban, leading pharma companies such as Cipla, Torrent, Sun Pharma, IPCA Labs, and Lupin have all had some of their products affected by the prohibition.

According to the gazette notification issued by the government announcing the ban of these 156 fixed-dose combination (FDC) drugs, the central government is satisfied that the use of the drug FDC is likely to involve risk to human beings whereas safer alternatives to the said drug are available.

The notification said that the matter was examined by an expert committee appointed by the Centre, which deemed these FDCs irrational.

The notification clarified that the apex panel Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB) also examined these combinations and recommended that there is no therapeutic justification for the ingredients contained in these FDCs.

Hence in the larger public interest, it is necessary to prohibit the manufacture, sale or distribution of this FDC under section 26 A of Drugs and Cosmetics Act 1940, the notification said while declaring the ban on drug combinations listed individually. In view of above, any kind of regulation or restriction to allow for any use in patients is not justifiable. Therefore, only prohibition under section 26A is recommended.

Following the advice of DTAB, the notification said that the Central Government is satisfied that it is necessary and expedient in public interest to prohibit the manufacture for sale, sale and distribution for human use of the said drug in the country

On the list

While the industry is still analysing the impact of the ban, the list includes certain products which were already discontinued by many drugmakers. For instance, the combination of the antibiotic azithromycin with adapalene which is used to treat acne.

The list bans Aceclofenac 50mg + Paracetamol 125mg tablet. This is one of the popular combinations of pain-relieving medicines manufactured by top pharma companies.

The list also includes Paracetamol+Pentazocine which is used for pain relief and a combination of Levocetirizine + Phenylephrine which is used to treat runny nose, sneezing, or other symptoms caused by seasonal hay fever or allergic rhinitis. It includes many other combinations involving Levocetirizine which is an antihistamine that works by preventing the effects of histamine produced by the body.

The list bans magnesium chloride which is used in the treatment of nutritional deficiencies.

It also prohibits the combination of paracetamol, tramadol, taurine, and caffeine, in which tramadol is an opioid-based painkiller.

Drugmakers yet to respond, may go to court

An official comment from the industry is awaited as companies are still analysing the ban. Industry veterans told News18 that the list includes several FDCs which were licensed before 1988 and kept out of the list of consideration. They also believe that several litigations are likely to be raised as the process has not been done transparently.

Also, we are quite surprised that when these meetings with DTAB took place. We are still analysing and we believe that many pharma companies may drag the government into court cases, said an industry insider.

Why fixed-dose combinations are banned

On several occasions, public health experts have nudged the health ministry and the health regulatory agency, Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), to filter out cocktail drugs from the Indian market. The idea behind these cocktail medicines is to ease compliance for those required to take multiple medicines as part of long-term treatment or when the combination is proven to have a clear benefit over single-compound drugs.

However, these drugs have been under the scanner because a lax regulatory framework allowed several unscientific combinations to flood the market. There are also fears that this may increase drug resistance in people.

In 2016, the ministry started a drive to filter out irrational drug combinations from the Indian pharmaceutical industry by banning around 350 FDCs, which impacted over 2,700 branded drugs.
Forces like the BSF and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) have tightened security at the India-Bangladesh border not only to prevent human trafficking but also to address smuggling of cattle and Hilsa fish.

According to a senior Border Security Force (BSF) official, the force is monitoring the smuggling of cattle into Bangladesh and has instructed all troops to patrol round-the-clock. On the other side, sources indicated that the BGB has strengthened security to prevent the illegal smuggling of Hilsa, a popular fish in India.

Hilsa  often regarded the king of fishes in West Bengal  has a unique taste that has captured the imagination of generations of Bengalis. However, the low availability of the fish in India often shoots up its prices to as much as Rs 2,500 per kilogram, making it largely dependent on imports from Bangladesh. Moreover, the Hilsa of Bangladesh are considered tastier as they are primarily captured from River Padma  a sweet water breeding ground.

Historically, Hilsa has also been used as a bargaining chip between India and Bangladesh. Amid West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjees strong stand on not sharing the water of River Teesta with Bangladesh, former prime minister Sheikh Hasina played the Hilsa card multiple times, causing anger in West Bengal. In 2023, the government allowed 79 fish exporters to export 50 metric tons each to India, with permission valid until October 30.

Sources also claimed that during a meeting held after Hasinas government fell in Bangladesh, the BSF raised concerns about cattle smuggling. In response, BGB highlighted the issue of Hilsa smuggling. Additionally, the BSF Intelligence wing has been asked to check smuggling activities as local touts involved in human trafficking from the Bangladesh side might also assist in cattle smuggling.

Officials said attempts to smuggle cattle have been made in both Meghalaya and Bangladesh following Hasinas flight to India from Bangladesh. In a series of special operations, BSF troops thwarted cattle smuggling at the India-Bangladesh border in Meghalaya and rescued 23 cattle.

In another incident, BGB arrested five Indians, claiming they were armed and involved in cattle smuggling. On the other hand, the BSF argued that the BGB had wrongly arrested the individuals as they were trying to stop cattle smugglers and inadvertently crossed the border.

Last week, Bangladeshi authorities asked border-guarding forces to keep a close watch on Hilsa fish smuggling, and this has been discussed with Indian authorities as well, sources said. Since 2019, Bangladesh has allowed the export of Hilsa fish during Indias festival season that starts in October. However, during the Puja season, smugglers have historically attempted to smuggle Hilsa through the porous border, a challenge that will be tougher now due to the tightened security.
The Karnataka High Court on Thursday helped a man who was facing charges under Section 498A (cruelty) of the Indian Penal Code for allegedly not letting his wife eat french fries.

Justice M Nagaprasanna, who was hearing the case, noted that the complaint against the man was very trivial and, therefore, the investigation against him in the case was stayed.

While giving order for the cade, the High Court said, Allowing any investigation against the husband would become an abuse of the process of law and putting a premium on the allegations of the wife that she was not given to eat french fries at the relevant point of time. Therefore, there shall be an interim order of stay on all investigation qua the husband.

The Court also allowed the man to travel to the United States for work only after he accepted the undertaking that he will cooperate with the investigating authorities and not vanish.

He filed a petition alleging that the complaint against him was frivolous and thereby he sought a stay on the investigation.

His advocate told the Court that the wife had filed a complaint under Section 498A of the IPC against the man and his parents. The Court had earlier, stayed the probe against the parents.

The lawyer further submitted that his client was employed in the United States and he was not being able to go back for work since the jurisdictional court had issued a Look Out Circular (LOC) against him following the wifes complaint.

In her complaint, the wife had claimed that her husband had refused to allow her to eat French fries, rice, and meat soon after she gave birth to their child.

On the other hand, the husband argued that the wife used to make him do all the household chores during the six years that they lived in the United States before the birth of their child.

In his reply filed before the court, the man said, The time that she did not spend on the phone, she spent watching Pakistani dramas.

In connection to the case, Justice Nagaprasanna said that this was a clear abuse of the process of law and that the LOC was being used as a weapon, a Bar and Bench report stated.

The Court further noted that the entire complaint seemed frivolous and that it was inclined towards allowing the man to go to the US for his professional commitments.
A 21-year-old man has been arrested in Mumbai for befriending a 13-year-old girl on Instagram and raping her twice in different locations in two states.

According to Mumbai Police, the accused befriended the girl via Instagram and took her to a place in Andheri and raped her.

Police said the man took her to Gujarat later and raped her again. When the girl returned home after a few days, she showed the photo of the man to her family members and narrated her ordeal.

The girls family members registered a complaint at the Vakola Police Station following which a kidnapping and rape case was registered against the man under Sections 4, 8, and 12 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act, 2012.

The incident came to light amid widespread protests over the rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor in Kolkatas RG Kar medical college on August 9 and the sexual assault of two four-year-old girls at a kindergarten school in Maharashtras Badlapur on a few days ago.

Meanwhile, Cabinet Minister and Guardian Minister of Mumbai Suburban District, Mangal Prabhat Lodha, has issued important instructions to the District Collector of Mumbai Suburban regarding the safety of women and children. In a letter, he emphasised the need for all necessary measures to be taken for the safety of women and female students in various schools and colleges in the Mumbai Suburban area to prevent crimes against women and children.

Lodha stated that from September 1, self-defence training will be provided to young women in all Industrial Training Institutes across the state and in schools/colleges in the Mumbai Suburban area.
A motionless, half-naked body was discovered by a first-year PGT doctor of the chest department at 9.30 am, the first general diary (GDE 542) was recorded by Tala police station at 10.10 am, around 3.40 pm a confidential letter in a closed envelope was given by MSVP (medical superintendent cum vice principal) of RG Kar Hospital to the officer-in-charge (OC) of Tala PS for registration of FIR about discovery of a dead body, and 40 exhibits were seized from the crime scene by the forensics team of Kolkata police by the evening before the parents of the victim lodged an FIR at 11.45 pm adding sections of rape and murder.

Startling details of the day, August 9, when a young doctor was found raped and killed inside the seminar hall of RG Kar Hospital have emerged as News18 accessed crucial investigation documents and notes of Kolkata police.

How did investigation start and progress?

As the timeline recorded by the Kolkata police, officers from the nearest Tala police station reached the crime scene in two batches, first at 10.10 am and second by 10.30 am. The scene of the crime (SOC) was sealed and secured to prevent contamination immediately.

Senior officers including one of additional commissioner rank and some of a joint commissioner rank along with sleuths of the detective department and the forensics team with footprint and fingerprint experts, a photographer and a videographer reached the spot between 11 and 11.30 am. The family of the victim was informed by the assistant superintendent around 10.52 am and asked to reach the hospital. The commissioner of police reached the spot around 12.30 pm.

According to investigation notes, the on-duty emergency medical officer (EMO) declared the victim deceased at 12.44 pm. The state forensic science laboratory (FSL) team arrived shortly after to examine the scene. Despite procedural delays and protests from the victims family, who demanded a magisterial inquest and post-mortem under videography, the judicial process proceeded. Around 1 pm, the experts from the forensic science laboratory (FLS) arrived and at 1.10 pm, the family members, guided by the hospital authority, reached the seminar room. The EMO prepared the medical certificate and death certificate at 1.47 pm and the body of the victim was handed over to the police.

In the report (WB Form No 5370) that was sent to the magistrate, the police officer attending the case stated, Upon receiving the information, he rushed to PO (place of occurrence), and after reaching there he found a body of a lady in an unconscious state in half-naked condition. He established her identity. The lady was declared dead. He noted in the report that certain injuries were found on the person of deceased including injuries on her private parts, so the UD case (u/s 194 BNSS// 174 CrPC) started, vide Tala PS UD case no 861, so that process of Inquest and PM can be started without any delay.

Confidential intimation note about body

Around 3 pm, a verbal demand was made by the family members and colleagues of the victim for an inquest and post-mortem in the presence of a judicial magistrate and under videography. An officer was sent to Sealdah court to arrange a judicial magistrate. A requisition was given to ACJM Sealdah for deputing a JM to conduct an inquest and remain present during the PM examination. The hospital sent a confidential letter to the Tala PS for FIR registration, which was a general intimation rather than a specific complaint.

The post-mortem, conducted from 6.10 pm to 7.10 pm, was thoroughly documented. The body was then transferred to the morgue amid outrage and protest by the doctors, and by 11.45 pm, the familys specific complaint led to the registration of an FIR (under Tala PS Case No. 52/2024), detailing allegations of rape and murder. In between, the forensic team of DD and the state forensic lab examined the crime scene. A dog squad with sniffer dogs reached the spot around 8 pm.

The documents suggest that while the inquest and post-mortem were underway, investigators began scrutinising all entry and exit points of the scene of the crime (SOC) and reviewing CCTV footage. Eleven individuals, including four of the victims doctor colleagues who were on duty that night, were questioned to piece together the case details.

40 exhibits from crime scene seized

Between 8.30 and 10.45 pm, forensic experts seized 40 exhibits from the SOC under videography, witnessed by local observers. Following the post-mortem, the body was returned to the family, who then lodged an FIR at around 11:45 pm, detailing allegations of rape and murder against unknown individuals.

This led to the registration of FIR no. 52 at Tala police station.
In the evening digest today, News18 is covering the latest updates on the alleged rape and murder of a trainee doctor at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, including the observations of the Supreme Court in the case, and the ongoing CBI investigation. We are also covering Prime Minister Narendra Modis all-important state visit to Ukraine and Poland.

Mamata Banerjee Writes To PM Modi, Seeks Strict Anti-Rape Legislation

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday in connection to the Kolkata doctors rape and murder case and sought strict punishment for the culprit. Taking to her official X account, Banerjee said, I wish to bring to your kind attention the regular and increasing occurrence of rape cases throughout the country and in many cases, rapes with murder are committed. READ MORE

No Problem Can Be Solved On Battlefield: PM Modi On Ongoing Russia-Ukraine Conflict In Poland

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday expressed gratitude to Poland for its assistance in rescuing stranded Indian students during the Ukraine-Russian war in 2022. I want to thank the government and the people of Poland for this. People of India can never forget the help you have extended in rescuing Indian students during the Ukraine conflict in 2022, PM Modi said in his address. READ MORE

Everything Was Altered, We Entered The Probe On Day 5: CBI To Supreme Court In Kolkata Rape-Murder Case

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is probing the Kolkata doctor rape and murder case, told the Supreme Court on Thursday that they were handed the investigation on Day 5 and everything was altered by then. Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta, who was representing CBI, told the top court, CBI entered the probe on the fifth day and everything was altered by then. READ MORE

CCTV Caught Rape-Murder Accused Staring at RG Kar Victim Day Before Crime, Then He Struck Well Past Midnight

The noose is tightening around Sanjay Roy, the accused in the RG Kar Hospital rape and murder case, after CCTV footage, his confession, and scientific evidence established his presence near the 31-year-old victim a day before the crime. Sources told CNN-News18 that Roy, during his interrogation by Kolkata Police, confessed that he had observed the victim at the chest medicine ward on August 8, a day before the crime. CCTV footage of the ward also corroborates that Roy  a 33-year-old civic volunteer who had easy access to the hospital  was in the ward at around 11am  the same time when the victim and four other junior doctors were present in the ward. READ MORE

We Are Resuming Duties: AIIMS Doctors Body Calls Off 11-day Strike Against Kolkata Horror After SCs Assurance

The doctors at Delhis All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on Thursday called off their 11-day strike to protest the rape and murder of a Kolkata doctor after an appeal from the Supreme Court on the matter. Earlier the day, the top court had asked protesting doctors to resume work and had assured them that no adverse action would be taken after they rejoin. READ MORE

Farooq Abdullah Confirms Pre-Poll Alliance With Congress On All 90 Assembly Seats In J&K

National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Thursday (August 22) said his partys alliance with the Congress is final on all 90 seats for the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections, which be held in three phases on September 18, September 25 and October 1. READ MORE

Karnataka Governor In A Spot, Asked To Sanction Prosecution In Cases Against HDK, Former BJP Ministers

The Karnataka government has advised the governor to give permission to prosecute Union minister HD Kumaraswamy and three former BJP ministers in corruption cases against them. This comes amid a political slugfest triggered by the same sanction for chief minister Siddaramaiah in connection with the alleged MUDA site allotment scam on August 16. READ MORE

Bengaluru Road Rage: Rider Dead As Car Driver Hits Bike After It Brushes Past Vehicle

A rider lost his life in Bengaluru after a car driver hit his motorcycle for brushing past his vehicle. The incident took place in the Vidyaranyapura area on Wednesday night. According to police sources, as soon as the motorcycle brushed past the car, a scuffle erupted between the car diver and the motorist. READ MORE

Hyderabad Techie in Shock Over US Visa Interview Delay, Gets 470 Days Wait Time

A techie from Hyderabad was given a 470-day wait for a US visa interview slot while trying to book one for a friend  almost 1.2 years! Yes, you read that right! Amit Bhawani expressed shock at the wait time and even claimed that some people he knows managed to secure earlier slots through agents. READ MORE

Was he Exciting? No: Matthew Hayden Says Discarded India Star Sure Bet in Australian Conditions

Its been nearly a decade since India have kept hold of the Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT). Twice each they have bested Australia at home and on away tours to prove their superiority. Australians have long been itching to win a Test series on Indian soil but their egos have been bruised further having finishing second-best in their own backyard twice in a row now. READ MORE
While Mumbai, the city of dreams, is known for its nightlife, there is a eerie spot in the bustling city where people are afraid to visit even in the morning hours. Located at Colaba, this haunted place is known as Mukesh Mills.

Spread over more than 10 acres of land, it was once known for the manufacture of cotton clothes. It is said that around 1970, this mill caught fire for some reason and many people got engulfed in its flames.

A few years later, another fire broke out in the same mill, and that again led to the loss of many lives. Following this incident, Mukesh Mills was shut down in 1980 and now it has turned into ruins.

After the mill was closed, its owner decided to rent it out for shooting films. Many films were shot here and in a few years the place turned into a popular shooting destination.

Bollywood actor Bipasha Basu had once felt that the place was haunted during the shooting of her film Footpath.

Several other Bollywood actors have also felt the same during their shoots in Mukesh Mills. After several such claims, currently the place has been deserted and shooting has been stopped there.
A special court in western Uttar Pradeshs Shamli district on Thursday sentenced a man to 10 years in jail for raping a 15-year-old-girl, a government lawyer said.

Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) court of Judge Seema Verma also imposed a fine of Rs 45,000 on Javed, aged around 25, the lawyer said.

According to district government counsel Sanjay Chauhan, the accused had barged into the girls house in Kairana area of the district on June 7, 2020 and raped her when her family members had gone out for personal work.

The judge held the accused guilty under IPC sections 452 (house trespass),376 (punishment for rape) besides provisions of the POCSO Act, Chauhan added.
The Supreme Court on Thursday said the Kolkata Polices delay in adding an unnatural death case to its records while probing the rape and murder of the 31-year-old trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9 was extremely disturbing.

Follow Kolkata Doctor Rape Murder Case LIVE Updates

A top court bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra resumed hearing its suo motu plea related to the rape and murder of the trainee doctor on Thursday and said, One aspect is the Daily Diary (GD) entry by Kolkata Police was made at 10:10 am, but the crime scene was secured only in the late evening. Its disturbing.

It also questioned the time difference between the polices General Diary entry of recording the crime and securing the crime scene.

The court mentioned that it was very surprising that the postmortem of the deceased was conducted before the registration of the case as unnatural death.

The Supreme Court said though the crime took place in the night, the crime scene was secured after more than 18 hours around 7 pm on August 9 after the post-mortem of the body.

The court said, See it is clear that an unnatural death case was registered at 11:30 pm after the officer came back to the police station. This is after the post-mortem. The apex court then orally suggested the CBI to look into the irregularity.

During the hearing, the CBI submitted its status report in compliance with the Supreme Courts Tuesday directive and flagged issues with the date and time recorded by the Kolkata Police. The probe agency also informed the top court about the financial irregularities at RG Kar, especially the fact that the CCTVs were rented and not bought.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said that the FIR was registered at 11:45 a.m. after the bodys cremation, and the videography was only conducted after senior doctors and the victims colleagues insisted, indicating they also suspected foul play.

Supreme Court also directed the Kolkata Police officer, who registered the first entry about the rape-murder incident, to appear at the next hearing to disclose the time.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is currently on a visit to Poland. Following this, PM Modi will be travelling to Ukraine on August 23. However, instead of taking a flight to Kyiv, he is travelling from Poland to Ukraine on a special train.

The train, known as Train Force One is known for its luxury facilities and world class service. Interestingly, PM Modi will undertake this 20-hour overnight train journey for his seven-hour long visit to the Ukrainian capital.

The reason behind this long train journey is that all airports in Ukraine are closed owing to the Russia-Ukraine war. Hence, travel by train is considered to be a safe option.

Prime Minister Modi will leave for Kyiv Thursday evening, as per Indian time. During his visit to Ukraine, PM Modi will meet President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. It is expected that important defense deals will also be signed between the two countries during PM Modis visit.

PM Modi is not the only person to travel to Ukraine by Train Force One. Several other international personalities have traveled by this train during the ongoing Ukraine-Russia war. Earlier, US President Joe Biden has traveled to Ukraine by this special train. In 2022, French President Emmanuel Macron as well as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and former Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi has travelled to Ukraine by this train.

Originally built in 2014 for tourists in Crimea, this train has a beautiful, modern interior, which looks like a high-end hotel on wheels. The train features a large table for important meetings, a plush sofa and a wall-mounted TV. Arrangements have also been made for sleeping and resting.

The train has advanced security measures to protect its VIP passengers. From armored windows to secure communication systems, Train Force One is designed to handle the most challenging scenarios. The train is equipped with surveillance systems, a secure communication network and a dedicated team of security personnel.

Modi, who is visiting Ukraine at the invitation of President Zelenskyy, has said that he will share with the Ukrainian leader perspectives on peaceful resolution of the ongoing conflict.

PM Modis visit to Kyiv comes nearly six weeks after his high-profile trip to Moscow which triggered criticism from the US and some of its Western allies.
Amidst a shortage of legal representation for Sanjay Roy, who stands accused of the rape and murder of a female doctor at Kolkatas RG Kar Hospital, Supreme Court lawyer Ajay Prakash Singh expressed his willingness to consider taking on the case. In an exclusive interview with News18 Hindi, Singh indicated that he might be prepared to represent Roy if approached, though he noted that there would be certain conditions.

Previously, Singh was the defence lawyer for the accused in the 2012 Nirbhaya rape case and also the 2020 Hathras gangrape case. However, he faced public criticism over the same. Singh was also the lawyer for Bhole Baba in the recent Hathras stampede case.

In the recent interview, Singh did not directly address the case of Sanjay Roy, however, he emphasised that every accused individual had the right to legal representation. He stated that accused individuals need a defence lawyer to present their case in the court. If the accused does not receive a fair chance to defend himself, it sets a dangerous precedent, he added.

Singh acknowledged the publics strong sentiments against Roy, describing him as a figure of revulsion who has committed heinous acts. People view him as a menace to society, and there is little sympathy for him. Whether he is imprisoned or not, his potential threat to society remains a concern. There is a widespread belief that he might continue to pose a danger, even if released, Singh added.

When asked whether he would represent Roy, Singh said that presently not as the priority was to hear from the people involved. If the accuseds family members reached out to me, then I will consider it further, he added. Singh emphasised that any decision to take on the case would depend on whether Roys family contacts him directly.

Originally from Uttar Pradesh, Singh gained prominence through his involvement in several high-profile cases in recent years. His legal arguments have sparked debate from Delhis lower courts to the Supreme Court. Despite controversies, Singh is known for his willingness to represent those in need.
As Janmashtami 2024 approaches, Delhi is set to celebrate the birth of Lord Krishna with vibrant festivities. Whether youre looking for spiritual immersion or a cultural experience, these five temples and places in the capital are perfect to soak in the divine energy of this auspicious day.

Sri Sri Radha Girdhar Gopal Temple, Chandni Chowk

Tucked away in the narrow alleys of Chandni Chowk, the Banke Bihari Temple is a hidden treasure for Janmashtami celebrations. Renowned for its simplicity and traditional devotion, this temple provides an intimate, less commercialized experience. Now under the care of ISKCON Dwarka, the temple resonates with the unified chants of mantras and devotional songs, creating a spiritually vibrant atmosphere. Adorned with flowers and lights, the temples decor adds to its charm, and the distribution of prasad is an experience not to be missed.

Divya Jyoti Jagrati Sansthan

Divya Jyoti Jagrati Sansthan (DJJS) is set to celebrate Shri Krishna Janmashtami Mahotsav 2024 with grandeur and a focus on contemporary societal issues. This years theme, Darshan Itihaas Ka, Parivartan Aaj Ka (Recalling the Values of the Past & Transforming the Present), aims to address pressing challenges such as violence against women, religious animosity, and environmental degradation through the lens of Lord Krishnas teachings. The event, scheduled for August 25th and 26th at the DDA Ground in Dwarka, New Delhi, will feature traditional Vedic chants, dramatic performances inspired by Lord Krishnas life, and symbolic activities like the Matki-Fod Leela, led by prominent figures including Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and Olympic medalist Manu Bhaker. The breaking of matkis will represent a collective stand against social ills, while the centerpiece of the celebration, a technologically advanced 3D model of Govardhan Mountain, will symbolize environmental conservation. Attendees will actively participate by placing laathis into the model, each representing a personal pledge to protect the environment. With an expected attendance of 40,000-50,000 devotees, the event promises to be a spiritually and socially enriching experience, enhanced by cutting-edge VFX and 3D projections. The Mahotsav will be webcast live on the DJJS YouTube channel, extending its reach to a global audience, ensuring that the messages of peace, unity, and social responsibility resonate far and wide.

Birla Mandir (Laxmi Narayan Temple), Connaught Place

Birla Mandir, one of Delhis most iconic temples, is a hub for Janmashtami celebrations. Devotees flock here for the day-long festivities that include bhajans, kirtans, and a beautifully adorned idol of Lord Krishna. The temple is decorated with flowers and lights, creating a serene and divine ambiance. The midnight celebration, when Krishna is believed to have been born, is particularly special, with aarti and the distribution of prasad.

ISKCON Temple, East of Kailash

ISKCON Temple in East of Kailash is a prime destination for Janmashtami celebrations in Delhi. Known for its grand scale festivities, the temple hosts elaborate rituals, devotional singing, and a mesmerizing abhishek (ceremonial bathing) of Lord Krishnas idol. The highlight is the midnight aarti, marking Krishnas birth with intense devotion and joy. The temple also organizes cultural programs, including classical dance and drama performances depicting Krishnas life.

Chhatarpur Temple, South Delhi

Chhatarpur Temple, one of the largest temple complexes in India, is another magnificent place to celebrate Janmashtami. The temples sprawling grounds are decorated elaborately, and the celebrations here are marked by grand aartis, bhajans, and cultural performances. The highlight is the spectacular tableau (jhanki) depicting scenes from Lord Krishnas life. Thousands of devotees gather to witness the birth of Lord Krishna at midnight, followed by the distribution of prasad.

Akshardham Temple, Noida Mor

Akshardham Temple is not just a marvel of architecture but also a vibrant center for Janmashtami celebrations. The temple organizes special events for the occasion, including devotional music, dance performances, and discourses on Lord Krishnas teachings. The temple is illuminated beautifully, and the serene ambiance adds to the spiritual experience. The highlight of the celebration is the grand abhishek ceremony and the midnight aarti, which draws thousands of devotees.
As the love for Japanese cuisine spreads across India, a growing number of restaurants are mastering the art of traditional and contemporary Japanese dishes. Whether youre a sushi enthusiast or a ramen lover, these seven restaurants across the country offer an authentic and unforgettable Japanese dining experience. From the vibrant streets of Mumbai to the serene beaches of Candolim, each of these establishments provides a unique taste of Japans rich culinary heritage.

Taki Taki, Bengaluru & Mumbai

Experience the magic of Japanese cuisine with a modern twist at Taki Taki, located in both Bengaluru and Mumbai. This restaurant captivates diners with its live sushi bar, offering creations like the Taki Taki Maki, Spider Maki, and Victory Maki. As night falls, Taki Taki transforms into a glamorous lounge, making it the perfect spot for both dinner and drinks.

Address: Bengaluru: 10, Sankey Rd, next to BDA Head Office, Kumarapark West

Mumbai: World Crest, Unit No.1A & 1B, Lodha, Senapati Bapat Marg, Upper Worli, Lower Parel

Tel: 09538899155 / 07400491480

Mensho Tokyo, Delhi

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Delve into the heart of Tokyo without leaving Delhi at Mensho Tokyo. Renowned for its ramen, this minimalist eatery serves up rich broths and handmade noodles that are a must-try. The Tori Paitan ramen and Negi Goma Ramen are particularly popular, offering a comforting and authentic taste of Japanese cuisine.

Address: M 72, near Blue Tokai, Greater Kailash II, Greater Kailash

Tel: 09582975985

Shiro, Bengaluru

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For a luxurious Japanese dining experience, head to Shiro in Bengaluru. The menu features a wide range of contemporary Japanese dishes, including Tori Kawayaki, Prawn Tempura, and Otoro Sashimi. Shiros teppanyaki dishes, prepared live by skilled chefs, are a highlight not to be missed.

Address: 222, 3rd Floor, Comet UB City, Vittal Mallya Rd

Tel: 08041738861

Adrift Kaya, New Delhi

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Michelin-starred chef David Myers brings the essence of a modern Japanese izakaya to New Delhi with ADRIFT Kaya. Located at the JW Marriott, this restaurant offers a sophisticated setting and a menu that includes dishes like Mushroom Gyoza, Koji Lamb Rack, and Sake Marinated Salmon. The Burnt Cheesecake with Japanese whiskey is the perfect ending to a delightful meal.

Address: JW Marriott Hotel New Delhi Aerocity Asset Area 4, Hospitality District, near Indira Gandhi International airport

Tel: 01145212121

Zoca Courtyard, Bhubaneswar

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Zoca Courtyard is Bhubaneswars premier destination for Japanese cuisine. With a live sushi belt and a variety of delectable dishes like Rainbow Veg Sushi and Prawn Tempura Sushi, this restaurant offers an affordable yet luxurious dining experience. The elegant ambiance and innovative menu make it a must-visit for food lovers.

Address: LG-6,7,8,9, Idco Info Park, DLF Cyber City, Technology Corridor, Bhubaneswar

Tel: 09439554294

KOKO, Mumbai

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KOKO in Mumbais Kamala Mills Compound is where Japanese and Chinese cuisine meet in an upscale setting. Chef Eric Sifu and his team craft exquisite sushi rolls like the KOKO Signature Roll and Wild Salmon and Truffle Roll. Pair these with one of their expertly crafted cocktails for a dining experience that is both refined and relaxed.

Address: C Wing, Trade World, Kamala Mills Compound, Ground Floor, Lower Parel

Tel: 07715963030

Yazu  Pan Asian Beach Club, Candolim

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Overlooking the Arabian Sea, Yazu offers a relaxed beachside setting along with a menu of pan-Asian delights. Their Japanese offerings include the Chefs Signature Spicy Ramen Bowl, Tuna Overload Sushi, and Yazu Signature Dragon Roll. Perfect for a casual yet sophisticated meal with a view.

Address: Marquis Beach Resort Dando, Candolim

Tel: 07447709661

Whether youre a seasoned lover of Japanese cuisine or a curious foodie, these restaurants across India promise to transport your taste buds straight to Japan. Dont miss the chance to savor the rich flavors and culinary artistry that these establishments have to offer.
Raj B Shetty is one of the most prominent names in Sandalwood, hailed for his direction and acting. The filmmaker is now set to impress the audience with a feature in a Hindi-language release, reported to be an Anurag Kashyap directorial. Here are all the details of the project.

In a recent interaction, the actor-filmmaker revealed that Anurag Kashyap has been an inspiration to him as a filmmaker. He stated, Im taking on this role primarily for Anurag Kashyap, who has been a huge inspiration to me. According to him, when he chose the path of direction, the uniqueness of Anurags works. He loved to discuss his films with cinematographer Praveen Shriyan, Raj added.

The actor revealed he expressed his wish to collaborate with the Gangs Of Wasseypur director as a writer, to which he agreed. So, when he was offered the role, he accepted it without any delay. He said, Collaborating with him is a dream come true, and Im doing this cameo solely for the filmmaker. As per the reports, Raj was expected to join the untitled films set on Wednesday.

According to IMDB, the film stars an ensemble cast of Bobby Deol, Sanya Malhotra, Saba Azad, Sapna Pabbi and Joju George, who will be making his Bollywood debut. It is being produced by Vishesh Agrawal and Nikhil Dwivedi. Abhishek Banerjee and Sudip Sharma are the writers and the editing is done by Aarti Bajaj.

Raj last appeared in the Mammootty-starrer Turbo, which marked his Malayalam cinema debut. It was made under the direction of Vysakh. The cast also included Anjana Jayaprakash, Shabareesh Varma, Sunil and Kabir Duhan Singh. Mammootty is also the producer of the release, through his Mammootty Kampany banner. Christo Xavier composed the music and the cinematographer is Vishnu Sarma. Shameer Muhammed is the editor. The film was released in May, this year. Some of Rajs upcoming projects include 45 and another Malayalam project titled Rudhiram. The former is an Arjun Janya-directorial.
The revelations of the Justice Hema Committee report have left the entire nation shocked. The allegations in the report about the Malayalam film industry have raised concerns about the working conditions in the world of showbiz. While several actors have reacted to the report, the latest on the list is Stree 2 star Abhishek Banerjee. The actor condemned the findings of the report and said that the problem stems from the power structure in film industries.

In an exclusive interview with News18 Showsha, Banerjee, who has also been a casting director for 15 years, called the findings of the Hema Committee disgusting. He revealed that even one of his employees once tried to meet an actress outside the professional setting but faced strict punishment. As for my company, we had a very simple rule that we will not let any of our employees meet any actor  male or female  outside the office premises. Nobody is allowed to meet any actor outside the office  no coffee meetings, no dinner meetings, no drink meetings. Youre an actor, come to the office, meet us for discussions and go. It has happened in my company also. Somebody sent a message at night to an actress and all that and I got to know. We immediately fired them, Banerjee said.

As for Bollywood, the actor added, Sach bataun toh humne toh bohot clean kar diya hai casting departments main. When I became a casting director, thats exactly the first thing I said. Anmol (the co-founder of his company, Casting Bay) and I discussed that we will not keep the name of the company as Abhishek and Anmol Ahuja Company. We didnt even give our credits as Abhishek Banerjee and Anmol Ahuja. We always gave our credit as Casting Bay so that the power doesnt lie with us. The problem is the power structure. Its a feudal mindset. India is deep down still stuck to that feudal mindset that some saviour will come and save you. We are so weak that we will do anything for that saviour. We are very scared to speak up.

However, Abhishek also argued that a lot has changed in Bollywood as far as casting couch incidents are concerned. If you ask about our industry, I think it has changed a lot. The audience also understood the importance of casting. Now, the casting couch is not associated with casting directors that much. Ab voh baatein kam hoti hain. Pehle it was always about the masala. When I had just become a casting director, I remember I was travelling on a train and some people asked me what I did in Mumbai. I said, Main casting director hoon. They were like, Oh, casting couch. I felt very embarrassed and awkward, he shared.

I thought How do I change this perception? What do I tell my in-laws? Are they also thinking the same? Are my parents also thinking the same? Do we have no dignity? So, it has been 11-12 years of casting and we have been working on this. Now if you ask actresses or actors, they will tell you that every casting team is very professional. There is a fear because you know social media uproot such people. The #MeToo movement has also helped, Banerjee added.

The 39-year-old actor further explained how the Me Too movement changed things in the industry and shared, Sab darr gaye. Sabko samajh main aaya tha you cant hide anymore. The predators, the people in power are powerless because theyre hiding and doing it. If somebody is doing something in the dark, are they powerful? The law of the jungle is that lions and tigers are kings and hyenas have no power. They come in groups, in hiding. Sher saamne se aata hai.

We should stop calling them powerful. Whoever is trying to be a predator is not powerful. They are scared, so theyre telling you to meet them alone at night. We need to clearly understand the difference between powerful and powerless people. Predators are cowards, thats why theyre trying to oppress a weaker victim when nobody is watching, Abhishek added.

Besides having acted in successful projects like Stree 2, Stree and Paatal Lok, Abhishek Banerjee also works as a casting director. He co-founded his company, Casting Bay, eight years ago. He has worked as the casting director for films like No One Killed Jessica, The Sky Is Pink and The Dirty Picture among others.
Amy Jackson and Ed Westwick are all set to tie the knot after dating for over two years. The duo is heading to the breathtaking Amalfi Coast in Italy to say their I dos. Amy, who has been openly gushing about Ed on social media, shared a series of intimate photos on Instagram as they flew to their wedding destination, capturing the excitement and love that surrounds them.

In the first photo, Amy and Ed are seen sharing a passionate kiss, with Amy perched on Eds lap in a sleek white ensemble. The chemistry between the two is palpable, radiating through the picture. Amys statement earrings spelling BRIDE add a playful yet chic touch to her bridal look.

The second photo captures a tender moment between Amy and her son, Andreas, in the cockpit of the plane. The little one, dressed in a cute polo shirt and cap, gently holds onto Amy, who looks up at him lovingly.

In the final snap, Amy is seen sipping champagne with a serene expression, her BRIDE earrings catching the light. Her minimalistic bridal look exudes elegance, hinting at the sophisticated yet intimate wedding that awaits them in Amalfi. Sharing the photos, Amy simply captioned them, Lets get married baby @edwestwick, sending fans into a frenzy of excitement and congratulations.

Earlier this year, Amy revealed that it was her son Andreas who encouraged her and Ed to get married. The couple first met at an Aston Martin event in 2021 and went public with their relationship on Instagram in June 2022. Speaking about Eds relationship with Andreas, Amy told India Today, Andreas has known Ed since his whole existence Thats one of the reasons I love Ed so much.

The couple celebrated their engagement with family and friends in London, and now, they are all set to tie the knot in one of the most romantic locations in the world.
Anushka Sharma has dropped a major hint about her return to India after spending nearly a year in London. The actress, who reportedly welcomed her son Akaay Kohli in the British capital, recently took to Instagram to reveal that shell be coming back to Mumbai soon. This exciting update was shared through her Instagram story, where Anushka posted a promotional video from a healthy food and snacks brand that she endorses.

For more updates: Anushka Sharma Is All Set to Return to Mumbai 7 Months After Akaays Birth in London: See You

Fashion designer Manish Malhotra and filmmaker Karan Johar have been friends for over three decades now. In a recent interview, Malhotra opened up about his close bond with Johar and recalled how they became friends. Manish revealed that he met Karan for the first time while he was working on the 1993 movie Gumrah, which was produced by KJos father, Yash Johar.

For more updates: Manish Malhotra Opens Up On His Close Bond With Karan Johar: One Night We Decided To Go

Priyanka Chopra is a global icon and enjoys a huge fan following. She is a well-known name in Bollywood as well as Hollywood. Priyanka has always impressed fans with her strong performance. Her films include Mary Kom, Aitraaz, and many more. In an old interview, she revealed how she was offered Hrithik Roshan starrer Krrish. The Indian Express quoted her speaking with Anupam Kher on his talk show. Priyanka recalled director Rakesh Roshan spotted her at a funeral.

For more updates: Priyanka Chopra Recalls How She Was Offered Hrithik Roshan Starrer Krrish: Rakesh Roshan Saw Me At

Arshad Warsi recently recalled how Sanjay Dutt and him got into a fight with foreigners in Bangkok after they catcalled Anusha Dandekar. However, when Sanjay Dutts fans gathered at the scene and started cheering for him, the foreigners got scared thinking that he was a gangster.

For more updates: Arshad Warsi Reveals Sanjay Dutt Fought With Two Men Who Catcalled Anusha Dandekar: Gore Usko Dekhe

In the recent episode of Kaun Banega Crorepati 16, Amitabh Bachchan was seen getting emotional after a contestant named Nareshi Meena opened up about her brain tumour treatment. The 27-year-old contestant told Big B that her tumour is critical and therefore, the surgery needed to remove it is also expensive. She shared that she will use her prize money for her treatment.

For more updates: Amitabh Bachchan Gets Emotional, Funds KBC 16 Contestants Brain Tumour Treatment: Mujhe Aapka Sahayak
In what can be dubbed a festival for fans, Telugu megastar Chiranjeevi turned 69 on Thursday, August 22. Known for his work in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and even Hindi films, Chiranjeevi enjoys a massive fanbase across the country, thanks to his celebrated film career. On his 69th birthday this year, social media is overwhelmed with heartmelting wishes and love from fans and celebrities. Many Tollywood stars have extended their greetings.

To begin with, fans very own Pushpa Raj, aka Allu Arjun, wished Chiranjeevi on social media. Many happy returns of the day to our megastar Chiranjeevi garu, he wrote.

Many happy returns of the day to our megastar Chiranjeevi garu @KChiruTweets Allu Arjun (@alluarjun) August 22, 2024

RRR star Jr NTR also shared a birthday wish for the cinema icon and wrote, A very happy birthday Chiranjeevi Garu @KChiruTweets. Wishing you a year filled with joy, success and good health.

A very happy birthday Chiranjeevi Garu @KChiruTweets. Wishing you a year filled with joy, success and good health. Jr NTR (@tarak9999) August 22, 2024

Actor Sai Dharam Tej added a sweet post for his maternal uncle along with a bunch of Chiranjeevis pictures. Happy Birthday to My Supreme Hero, the one I look upto & aspire to do service to the people like him, My Dearest Pedha Mama @KChiruTweets Wishing you all the good health, love, happiness, laughter & happiest of the years #HBDMegastarChiranjeevi, he wrote.

Happy Birthday to My Supreme Hero,the one I look upto & aspire to do service to the people like him ,My Dearest Pedha Mama @KChiruTweets Wishing you all the good health, love, happiness, laughter & happiest of the years #HBDMegastarChiranjeevi pic.twitter.com/ov5qyLpqsM Sai Dharam Tej (@IamSaiDharamTej) August 21, 2024

Venkatesh Daggubati wished Chiranjeevi, with a picture of the duo and wrote, Happy Birthday, my friend @KChiruTweets! Wishing you peace, health and happiness always.

Happy Birthday, my friend @KChiruTweets! Wishing you peace, health and happiness always  pic.twitter.com/2f2a51nQDc Venkatesh Daggubati (@VenkyMama) August 22, 2024

Mahesh Babu also tweeted on the actors birthday and wrote, Happy birthday @KChiruTweets garu! Wishing you peace, great health, and continued success.

Happy birthday @KChiruTweets garu! Wishing you peace, great health, and continued success. Mahesh Babu (@urstrulyMahesh) August 22, 2024

Amid all social media posts, the Khaidi actors brother, politician Pawan Kalyan, also came forward with a strong message. In a statement, Kalyan lauded his elder brothers unparalleled contributions and compassion for others.

In the meantime, the Telugu star marked his birthday by paying a visit to the auspicious Tirupati temple with his family. Dressed in a traditional dhoti and kurta, Chiranjeevi was accompanied by his mother, wife Surekha, his granddaughter and other Konidela family members.

#WATCH | Andhra Pradesh: Actor Konidela Chiranjeevi offered prayers at Venkateswara Swamy Temple in Tirumala, on his 69th birthday. pic.twitter.com/umhjQlNcl2 ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2024

On the work front, the makers of his highly-anticipated film Vishwambhara also unveiled a captivating pre-look poster on Thursday. Showing Chiranjeevi in a powerful stance with a Trishul in his hand, the striking image promises an epic showdown. When darkness and evil take over the world, a shall shine bright to fight Happy birthday, MEGASTAR @KChiruTweets. Let the world witness your aura with #Vishwambhara, the post read.

When darkness and evil take over the world, a   shall shine bright to fightHappy birthday, MEGASTAR @KChiruTweets  Let the world witness your aura with #Vishwambhara  Get ready for a MEGA MASS BEYOND UNIVERSE, In cinemas from January 10th, pic.twitter.com/8pqHaIeRIe  UV Creations (@UV_Creations) August 22, 2024

The film releases on January 10, 2025.
Days ahead of its release, Kangana Ranauts Emergency has landed in big trouble. Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) and the Akhal Takht have demanded an immediate ban on the film, claiming it tries to character assassinate Sikhs by creating a narrative against them.

On Wednesday, SGPC chief Harjinder Singh Dhami, addressed a press conference when he sought an FIR against Ranaut and expressed objection against the film. He mentioned that even in the past, there have been several instances when Sikh sentiments were hurt due to the misrepresentation of the community in films. Seeking a ban on the film, he called the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) biased and urged for the inclusion of Sikh members in the censor board.

On the other hand, Gyani Raghbir Singh, Jathedar (head) of the Akal Takht also claimed that the film deliberately misrepresented the character of Sikhs as separatists, which is part of a deep conspiracy. He argued that the film disrespects the community and accused Kangana of deliberately character assassinating Sikhs. The community can never forget the anti-Sikh brutality of June 1984 and Ranauts film is trying to character assassinate Jarnail Singh Khalsa Bhindranwale, who has been declared a Qaumi Shaheed (communitys martyr) by Sri Akal Takht Sahib, he said.

Singh further claimed that even though Kangana Ranaut often makes statements against Sikhs, the government isnt taking any action against her. He further urged the authorities to book the actress-turned-politician for inciting religious sentiments of Sikhs for her act through the film Emergency.

Kangana Ranaut announced Emergency in 2021 but later clarified that even though it is a political drama, it is not Indira Gandhis biopic. The actress is not just playing the lead in the film but is also directing it. Besides Kangana, Emergency also stars Anupam Kher, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry and Shreyas Talpade among others. While Shreyas Talpade will be seen playing the role of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Anupam Kher will be seen as Jayaprakash Narayan. Late actor Satish Kaushik will also be seen as Former Deputy Prime Minister of India, Jagjivan Ram.

Emergency has been postponed multiple times and is now scheduled to hit theatres on September 6, 2024.
Kareena Kapoor Khan and her OG gang are the ultimate friendship goals we all aspire to. Whenever these fabulous friends come together for a gathering, its a treat for fans. Recently, they enjoyed a special outing and Kareena Kapoor shared a glimpse of their reunion, perfectly capturing the spirit of their bond.

In the photo, Karisma Khan is seen taking a mirror selfie with her sister Kareena Kapoor and her best friends Amrita Arora and Malaika Arora. Kareena dazzled in a white shirt, blue denim jeans and pointed-toe heels for the casual outing, while Karisma opted for an all-black ensemble. Malaika and Amrita also looked fabulous, with Malaika Arora in a white co-ord suit and Amrita in a striped shirt. Kareena captioned the picture, The Gang forever.

Despite her busy professional commitments and responsibilities as a mother, Kareena Kapoor Khan makes time to hang out with her girl gang. Recently, she enjoyed a fun-filled evening with besties Amrita Arora and Malaika Arora. Kareena shared several photos from their special time together, captioning them, Eternity and beyond. Twinning forever. Soul sisters.

In terms of work, Kareena Kapoor Khan last entertained the masses with her film Crew, co-starring Kriti Sanon, Tabu, Diljit Dosanjh and Kapil Sharma. Next up for her is The Buckingham Murders, the teaser of which was released on Tuesday. Set for release on September 13, the film portrays Kareena as Jasmeet Bhamra, a British-Indian detective, navigating through her haunting past. As seen in the teaser, she is grieving the loss of her own child while also solving the murder of a young boy from an Indian family.

Apart from Kareena Kapoor Khan, The Buckingham Murders will also star Ranveer Brar, Ash Tandon and Assad Raja in the supporting roles. What further adds to the excitement is the actress debut as a producer in this murder mystery. She, along with Ektaa Kapoor and Shobha Kapoor, has jointly bankrolled the film under the banners of Balaji Telefilms, Mahana Films and TBM Films. Besides the upcoming crime thriller, Kareena also has Rohit Shettys Singham Again in her kitty.
As Mani Ratnams Bombay recently celebrated its 29th anniversary, actress Manisha Koirala reminisced about the challenging experience of filming the iconic movie. Reflecting on the difficulties she faced, Manisha recalled the grueling conditions, such as shooting in a forest teeming with leeches and braving powerful waves crashing against rocks while filming the song Tu Hi Re, composed by AR Rahman and crooned by Hariharan.

In an interview with O2 India, Manisha, who made her Tamil film debut with Bombay, shared how the song Tu Hi Re presented unique challenges. Describing the experience, she said, Tu Hi Re was a very difficult song. There was one chunk, two places, which were extremely difficult (to shoot in). One was on the rocks and the sea hits on those rocks and big splashes come, that was pretty dangerous, but somehow we managed to shoot that and we got it right and everything was ok. The other place was I dont know which area that was, we were in the midst of a thick jungle and it was full of leeches.

She went on to explain, So, if you walk one step also, a little distance, leeches would be all over your leg. (For the song) I had to wear a skirt, that blue skirt and I had to run through the jungle It was full of leeches, there was a lot of difficulty. But then you find a mechanism, we were told, you put salt, someone we wore boots. We figured out how to navigate in a tough situation.

Bombay is a 1995 Indian Tamil-language drama film directed by Mani Ratnam, widely regarded as one of his most significant works. The film is set against the backdrop of the 199293 Bombay riots and tells the powerful story of a Hindu man, Shekhar (played by Arvind Swami), and a Muslim woman, Shaila Banu (played by Manisha Koirala), who fall in love and marry despite their different religious backgrounds. Their love story unfolds in a politically charged atmosphere, as they navigate the challenges of interfaith marriage and the societal tensions it incites.

As the couple moves to Bombay (now Mumbai) and starts a family, they are caught in the midst of the real-life communal violence that erupted following the demolition of the Babri Masjid. The film portrays the tragic consequences of religious intolerance and the impact of the riots on ordinary people, particularly the couples struggle to protect their children amidst the chaos.

Bombay is noted for its intense narrative, compelling performances, and a deeply emotional storyline that addresses the themes of communal harmony, love, and resilience. The films music, composed by A. R. Rahman, became iconic, with songs like Kehna Hi Kya and Tu Hi Re contributing to its lasting legacy. The cinematography by Rajiv Menon and the films realistic portrayal of the riots received widespread acclaim.

Despite initial controversy and censorship issues due to its sensitive subject matter, Bombay was a critical and commercial success. It has since been regarded as a landmark film in Indian cinema, lauded for its bold storytelling and its call for peace and unity in a time of deep division.
Payal Malik is celebrating her birthday with her family. A video has surfaced on social media in which the YouTuber, who appeared on Bigg Boss OTT 3 earlier this year, is seen celebrating her special day with her husband, Armaan and his second wife, Kritika.

The video shows Payal cutting her birthday cake as Armaan and Kritika stand alongside her. While Armaan is seen holding a party popper, Kritika cheers for Payal. They feed cake to each other before Payal and Kritika also dance together. The video has been shared on Instagram by YouTuber Yogesh Kathuria with the caption, Happy Birthday @payal_malik_53 God Bless You !! Comment Main Sab Wish Kardo . Watch it here:

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Yogesh Kathuria (@yogeshkathuria)

Payal Maliks popularity multiplied after she entered the Bigg Boss OTT 3 house in June this year with her husband Armaan and his second wife, Kritika. While Payal was the first one to get eliminated, Armaan walked out of the show during the finale week. Kritika was one of the finalists on Bigg Boss OTT 3.

The three faced hatred for their participation in the controversial reality show and were accused of promoting polygamy. Therefore, after her eviction, Payal expressed her desire to divorce Armaan. I am done with the drama and the hate. As long as it was about me, I was okay but now the hate is coming to my kids. This is so shocking and disgusting. I have decided to part ways with Armaan for the same reason. He can stay with Kritika while lIl take care of the kids, she said in one of her vlogs.

However, Payal changed her decision later and in another of her vlogs, she shared that she would not divorce her husband. She mentioned that she would prefer to die than separate from Armaan. I am back with some positivity. Things will be fine soon. Your love and support will be with us. After a point, negativity will also stop. When people will see our happy family, things will be fine. I am sure about it. Things werent good in the past too but everything got better. This time also, things will be fine. I know you people wont stop loving us. I am able to gather this courage only because of your support, Payal said.
Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa is currently in judicial custody as he is the accused number two in the Renukaswamy murder case. Now, there is a reported development in this case. As per the reports, the 15 accused who are in jail for the Renukaswamy murder case have understood that Darshan will not help them with the bail. Reportedly, the accused have realised that they committed a crime due to their admiration for the Kannada actor. Now, reportedly, they have started trying for relief measures themselves. According to reports, the accused Anukumar has already applied for bail. After the charge sheet is filed, it is reported that other accused are also going to apply for bail. These reports are not confirmed.

In another update related to the Renukaswamy murder case, the Director General of Police (Prisons) Malini Krishnamurthy has rejected the representation of actor Darshan Thoogudeepa. Darshan had sought home-cooked food and other facilities at Central Prison. At the hearing, Karnataka High Courts State Public Prosecutor BA Belliayappa informed that the actors representation was rejected on August 14, 2024. Also, the same was conveyed to the petitioner. However, senior advocate Prabhuling Navadgi, appearing for Darshan, said that the petitioner has not received a copy of the order. Justice M Nagaprasanna adjourned the hearing to September 5, thereby granting time to the petitioner.

What is Renuka Swamys Murder case?

Renuka Swamy, a pharmacist and fan of Darshan, reportedly sent vulgar messages to Pavithra Gowda on Instagram. Darshan and Pavithra were reportedly in a relationship for a decade, despite the former being married since 2003. When the 47-year-old actor learned about the messages, he discovered that Renuka lived in Chitradurga. The actor then contacted Raghavendra, who runs his fan club in Chitradurga. He then asked Raghavendra to bring Renuka to Bengaluru.

Renuka Swamy was allegedly taken to a location in RR Nagar. Here, he was beaten, resulting in his death from multiple injuries. His body was reportedly dumped in a drain near Summanahalli. As per the police, Darshan and Pavithra were present during the assault. Police told PTI, Darshan beat Renuka with a belt. After he fell unconscious, his accomplices hit him with sticks and threw him against a wall, which proved fatal.
Vijay Varma is gearing up for his next release on OTT titled IC814: Kandahar Hijack. The makers have released the trailer which has been receiving positive reviews. Tamannaah Bhatia also reviewed the trailer and praised it. She shared the trailer and mentioned that it looks very promising.

Taking to her Instagram stories, Tamanaah wrote, This is really going to redefine how people view OTT in India!! The trailer looks very promising! Kudos to the whole team! Reacting to the actresss story, Vijay extended his gratitude by saying, Thank you (red hearts and crossed fingers emojis). IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack series is based on the 1999 hijack of an Indian Airlines Flight IC 814. The key cast includes Naseeruddin Shah, Vijay Verma, Manoj Pahwa, Kumud Mishra, Arvind Swamy, Dia Mirza, Pankaj Kapur and Patralekhaa.

Take a look here:

The mini-series will also be the OTT debut of director Anubhav Sinha, renowned for his gritty dramas like Mulk, Thappad, Article 17 and Bheed. This thriller series is set to release on Netflix India this month.

The trailer opens with a group of Indian passengers preparing to depart from the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal. They are supposed to head towards Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi. Vijay Varma, portraying pilot Sharan Dev, greets the passengers, shares the general information and instructions and asks them to sit back and relax. Suddenly, five masked militants put him at gunpoint, assaulted the passengers on board and hijacked the flight.

It also shows that in New Delhi, Indian government officials  played by Pankaj Kapur, Dia Mirza, Manoj Pahwa and Naseeruddin Shah quickly spring into action. The passengers face an even greater threat as the plane is flown to Kandahar, Afghanistan, which was then, reportedly under Talibans control.

As for the true incident that the upcoming series is based on, in 1999, an Indian aircraft, IC 814, was reportedly hijacked by five terrorists on December 24, 1999, just 40 minutes after taking off from Kathmandu. The plane carrying about 180 passengers, was held hostage for about eight days. They were made to travel from Kathmandu to Amritsar and then to Lahore. After refuelling in Lahore, it flew to Dubai and finally to Taliban-controlled Kandahar.
Varun Dhawan starrer Bhediya was loved by the audience. The horror comedy received an overwhelming response and reportedly makers are planning to come up with the sequel. Pinkvilla has reported that makers will be starting the shoot by the end of next year. Varun Dhawan will also start gearing up for the project soon.

Pinkvilla quoted a source saying that Bhediyas character is very close to Varun Dhawan and Dinesh Vijans hearts. Varun and Dinesh recently announced that they will be returning with Bhediya 2. With the response that they have got for Varuns cameo in Stree 2, the actor-producer duo intends to start working on Bhediya 2 soon and take it on the floor by the end of 2025.

Talking about Bhediya , the film opened with low numbers. Speaking with Indian Express, the actor expressed that he had his hopes up for Bhediya. However, one has to pick themselves up and move forward in their career trajector. He stated, You pick yourself up and move on. You have to hit back, you cant sulk. Take a few days and get back to work. With Bhediya, my expectations were huge but we came in that period However, the film found its audience on OTT and three months after the release, the studio surprised me with the news that there will be a sequel. I love that character and am really looking forward to playing it again.

Bhediya trailer presents the life of a boy (played by Varun Dhawan) who gets bitten by a Bhediya aka a wolf. However, to everyones surprise, he soon starts to behave like a wolf. He howls, craves blood and flesh, and even goes after his friends to eat them. The trailer then introduces Kriti Sanon as a doctor, who is also left baffled after discovering Varuns ailment. The trailer looks promising and also has elements of comedy and action in it. However, it will surely also remind you of Spider-Man of the Twilight Saga.
Rewind to July 8. On that bright blue-sky day in Moscow, Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Within minutes, photos of President Putin enveloping his dearest friend Prime Minister Modi in a bear hug went viral.

The optics couldnt have been more jarring. Barely hours earlier, a Russian bombing raid had killed at least 41 people in Ukraine, including at a childrens hospital in the capital Kyiv. The West was outraged at this depraved war crime. President Putin may have been delighted to see Prime Minister Modi but leaders of the West  from Warsaw to Washington  were seeing red.

The US expressed concern and urged Prime Minister Modi to emphasise Ukraines territorial integrity during his talks in Moscow. The Biden regimes envoy to Delhi even warned India that it shouldnt take its friends for granted. Embattled Ukraines beleaguered President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was positively apoplectic and spat out his disapproval on social media site X, describing the meeting as 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.

Now, barely six weeks after his very public moral excoriation of Prime Minister Modi, Ukraines conscientious Chief Executive Officer is rolling out the red carpet to welcome the leader of the worlds largest democracy. The betrayal seemingly forgotten, Zelenskyy will now put his best foot forward to court Modi in the hope that the leader of the worlds largest democracy will be persuaded enough to side with Ukraine.

Zelenskyys change of heart is a stunning example of moral elasticity. Some of his well-wishers in the West are already souring at Zelenskyys about-face. But instead of shaming him for his opportunism, the Ukrainian President must be admired for his pragmatism. Zelenskyy has clearly understood that in the shape-shifting landscape of global diplomacy, there are no permanent friends only permanent interests. President Zelenskyy knows the value of Prime Minister Modis considerable utility as a bridge to President Putin.

If Zelenskyy doesnt mind who Prime Minister Modi supped with the night before then why should his other Western cohorts? Why must they urge India to pick a side? Why must they morally blackmail New Delhi into believing that it is under an obligation to get off the fence and condemn Russias invasion of Ukraine?

Indeed, India is within its rights to pose a few questions of its own to the West.

When did the West intercede on Indias behalf? And beyond India, when did the West show moral resoluteness to resolve conflicts in the Global South?

Chinas expansionism in its sphere of influence is at par with Russias neo-imperial acquisitiveness in its backyard Eastern Europe. China has routinely trespassed in both the subcontinent and the South China Sea. Yet, its flagrant violations of international law  both on land and at sea  have never moved the West to impose crippling economic sanctions. Why, one wonders?

Modi-plomacy with its emphasis on pluri-lateralism has given India the luxury to not pick a side except that of enlightened humanism. And it is in that context that Prime Minister Modi was able to famously counsel the West when he said, This is not an era of war, but it is a time of dialogue and diplomacy.

Importantly, he has been heard in both Moscow, Kyiv, and Brussels. If anything, it is the West that is obliged to heed Modis wise counsel and end a war that it has self-indulgently foisted upon the rest of humanity.

Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views.
Once again, the Mamata Banerjee government is in the dock for the planned attack by goons on the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 14. It is clear that the thousand-strong crowd aimed to disrupt the doctors protest and eliminate evidence of the heinous rape-murder of the female trainee doctor, who was only attending to patients at that unearthly hour. Instead of taking the proper course of action, we learn that the college principal has been shifted to a plum post elsewhere.

Surprisingly, the chief minister led a protest march, leaving people bewildered. Her blaming Ram and Vaam for the attack on the hospital is not only off the mark but also juxtaposes a venerable religious icon with atheistic communism  yoked by violence together, as Samuel Johnson might have said about incompatible comparisons. The question being asked everywhere is this: Was this protest rally against her own government? After all, law and order are the responsibility of the state government, and moreover, the home ministry is under Mamatas charge. I was reminded of the late Jyoti Basu, who was deputy chief minister in the Left Front government led by Ajoy Mukherjee.

The cult of political vendetta and violence has grown multifold over the years in West Bengal. This was particularly evident during the last Assembly elections in 2021, which were marred by widespread violence. At the time, newspapers reported the loss of scores of lives and attacks on thousands of properties, leading to the displacement of some seven thousand people to Assam, although, understandably, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee denied any violence. How those who did not vote for her party were singled out and punished through arson, rape, and murder remains unprecedented in post-independence India.

The chief minister denied these allegations, but when the National Human Rights Commission submitted its report on the violence to the Kolkata High Court, atrocities were revealed. Furthermore, a report by civil society members pointed to planned violence orchestrated with the help of Bangladeshi infiltrators, alleging some 15,000 such cases in just 16 districts!

It is indeed a sorry state of affairs in a state once known for great spiritualists and humanists like Swami Vivekananda, Sri Aurobindo, and Rabindranath Tagore. The land where Goddess Durga is worshipped with such gusto and reverence has been besmirched by the bestial treatment of a female trainee doctor. How the tide turned is a matter of grave concern and inquiry. Political scientists believe the malaise can be traced back to 1969, when the fall of the Left Front Government paved the way for a different kind of politics, one rooted in violence. The Trinamool Congress, though expected to change course, not only adopted the Lefts modus operandi but has gone one up on it. The argument appeals to common belief that the one waiting to take over the reins of power must be more ruthless than the ruler of the moment.

Whatever the history and explanations for the rise of violence to this extent in West Bengal, attempts must be made to set things on the right course. One hopes against hope that justice will be served for the victim of this heinous crime a crime so horrific that its details could leave an ordinary person sleepless for many nights, though the thick-skinned politicians wont lose a wink of sleep.

Jagdish Batra is an academic and writer, presently working as Professor & Executive Dean at OP Jindal Global University, India. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views.
The Election Commission of India has announced elections for Jammu & Kashmir and Haryana. While the political dynamics of J&K will naturally differ, the upcoming election in Haryana is set to reveal the true state of the Opposition alliance. Formed before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the INDIA bloc was meant to unify the Opposition parties against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP. However, the Haryana elections will expose the fragility and inconsistency of this alliance.

The INDIA bloc, despite its lofty claims, appears to be held together by a single goal  opposing Narendra Modi. This superficial unity is unravelling as Haryana heads to the polls on October 1. In a state where the BJPs performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha election was less than stellar, one might expect the Opposition to unite. Yet, the reality is quite the opposite. In Haryana, the Opposition parties are choosing to fight separately, revealing the underlying hypocrisy of their so-called alliance.

This fragmentation is not just a political misstep; it sends confusing signals to the electorate. A divided Opposition not only weakens the anti-BJP front but also sows doubt among voters. The Congress, which made gains in Haryana during this years general elections, is going it alone. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has also declared its intention to contest independently. Additionally, the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP), which once aligned with the BJP, has decided to strike out on its own, despite its significant non-Jat support base.

The result? A splintered Opposition that risks dividing the anti-BJP vote, inadvertently aiding the very party they seek to challenge. This raises a crucial question: What message does this send to the people of India? The Opposition, by refusing to collaborate in Haryana, appears to be driven by opportunism rather than a coherent strategy. This opportunistic behaviour not only weakens their position in Haryana but also undermines their credibility on the national stage. In the end, such disunity serves only to bolster the BJP, making it easier for them to capitalise on a fractured Opposition.

A Mirror to the Oppositions Flawed Strategy

Unlike the Congress, which still maintains a national presence, most other Opposition parties are inherently regional, each vying to expand their influence within specific territories. The JJP, for instance, with its considerable support base, aims to play kingmaker, while the AAP is keen on extending its reach beyond Delhi and Punjab.

This fragmented approach underscores the core issue with the Oppositions strategy  their unity is more superficial than substantive. If these parties truly wish to present a united front against the ruling BJP, then such opportunistic and hypocritical tactics must be abandoned. The essence of an alliance lies in compromise, in the willingness to prioritise collective goals over individual ambitions.

The BJP-led NDA under Prime Minister Narendra Modi exemplifies this principle. Despite ideological and strategic differences among its partners, the NDA has managed to maintain cohesion, often through compromises that serve the greater good of the alliance. This pragmatic approach has allowed the BJP to hold together a diverse coalition, even when it means making concessions.

The Opposition, if it wishes to pose a credible challenge, must learn from this. The unwillingness to compromise and the reluctance to set aside regional aspirations for a larger national agenda reflects a deeper disunity that voters can easily discern. In politics, as in life, compromise is not just necessary; it is often the key to success. If the Opposition fails to grasp this basic tenet, it risks not only electoral defeat but also the loss of its moral authority.

Congress Dilemma in Haryana: Strength and Strife

Haryana, once a stronghold of the Congress under the Hooda family, has seen a resurgence of the partys fortunes in recent years. Before BJPs Manohar Lal Khattar became the chief minister in 2014, Haryana was firmly in Congress grasp, largely due to the influence of Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Today, Hooda remains the partys most prominent face in the state, alongside Kumari Selja. The Congress vote share in Haryana climbed from 28 per cent in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections to a robust 48 per cent in 2024, a significant gain that also saw the party winning five out of ten Lok Sabha seats, all at the expense of the BJP.

This swing in voter support is a promising sign for the Congress as it heads into the state elections. However, internal divisions within the party threaten to undermine this momentum. The infighting is primarily between the factions led by Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Kumari Selja, both powerful figures in Haryanas political landscape. The Congress leadership faces a delicate decision  if they choose to bypass Hooda as the chief ministerial candidate, they risk alienating a key leader and his loyal base, especially given that Hoodas son secured a Lok Sabha seat in 2024.

Moreover, Hoodas stature as a seasoned and influential politician makes it unlikely that he would easily bow to directives from the Gandhi family, raising further complications. Rumours of strained relations between Hooda and the Gandhi family add another layer of uncertainty. Despite the Congress strong position in Haryana, these internal conflicts cast a shadow over their electoral prospects. The challenge for the Congress is not just to capitalise on the BJPs losses but to navigate its internal power struggles effectively. Without unity and a clear strategy, the party risks squandering the gains it has made.

AAPs Dilemma in Haryana: Strategic Aspirations and Political Realities

In the 2024 general elections, the Aam Aadmi Party joined forces with the Congress in Haryana, contesting one seat but ultimately losing. This defeat raises crucial questions about the AAPs future strategy  does the party intend to solidify its role within the broader Opposition alliance, or is it content to chart its own course? The aftermath of the 2024 elections has already seen tensions flare between AAP and the Congress in Delhi, undermining any semblance of a united front.

In Haryana, the AAP has announced that it will go it alone, severing ties with the Congress. The situation is further complicated by the absence of Arvind Kejriwal, who remains in jail over the liquor policy case. Without their charismatic leader, AAPs campaign in Haryana is struggling to gain traction. While the release of former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia has injected some momentum, its clear that Sisodia lacks the widespread appeal of Kejriwal. Kejriwals wife, Sunita, has stepped in to lead the campaign, but it remains to be seen whether she can effectively helm a full-scale assembly election effort.

Moreover, AAPs organisational strength in Haryana is minimal, lacking the grassroots presence that is crucial for electoral success. The partys strategy hinges on attracting disenchanted voters from the Congress and the Jannayak Janta Party, but its a risky bet. Historically, the AAP has struggled to dent the BJPs voter base, which remains steadfast at around 30 per cent in Delhi.

Haryana holds significant strategic value for the AAP. The state lies between Delhi and Punjab, both AAP strongholds, and winning Haryana would create a contiguous belt of AAP-governed states. This could offer the party a unique strategic advantage, solidifying its influence in northern India. However, without a clear strategy and strong leadership, AAPs ambitions in Haryana might remain unfulfilled, leaving the party to grapple with the political realities of regional competition.

Chautala Legacy: JJPs Pivotal Role in Haryanas Political Chessboard

The Chautala family is one of the most prominent and influential political dynasties in Haryana, with a legacy that dates back to the early 20th century. The familys political journey began with Chaudhary Devi Lal, a towering figure in Haryanas politics, often referred to as the Champion of Farmers. Devi Lal played a crucial role in the formation of Haryana as a separate state in 1966 and became the states chief minister twice, first from 1977 to 1979 and then from 1987 to 1989. His influence extended beyond Haryana as he also served as the deputy Prime Minister of India under the then PM V.P. Singh.

Devi Lals son, Om Prakash Chautala, continued the familys political legacy. Om Prakash Chautala served as the Chief Minister of Haryana four times between 1989 and 2005. His political career, however, was marred by controversies, including a conviction in a teacher recruitment scam, which led to his imprisonment.

The Chautala familys political influence was carried forward by Om Prakash Chautalas sons  Ajay Singh Chautala and Abhay Singh Chautala. However, internal family disputes and political differences led to a split within the family. Ajay Singhs son, Dushyant Chautala, formed the JJP in 2018 after a rift with his uncle Abhay Singh, who remained with the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), the original party founded by Devi Lal.

The JJP was born out of this family feud and quickly established itself as a significant political force in Haryana. In the 2019 Haryana Assembly elections, the JJP won 10 seats and became a crucial ally for the BJP, which needed support to form the state government. Dushyant Chautala was subsequently appointed as the Deputy chief minister. However, with time, the alliance between the JJP and the BJP soured, marred by infighting and growing discontent. Eventually, the JJP decided to part ways with the BJP, marking a significant shift in Haryanas political dynamics.

JJPs ambitions, however, are not about outright power; they are about strategic influence. The party recognises that it may not have the strength to govern Haryana on its own, but it is keen to play the role of kingmaker once again. This has led to speculation that the JJP might forge an alliance with the Congress, or alternatively, align with whichever party emerges victorious after the elections.

What makes the JJPs position particularly potent is its substantial non-Jat support base, a demographic that could prove decisive in the upcoming elections. If the JJP chooses to contest independently, it could draw votes away from both the Congress and the AAP, weakening their chances and potentially altering the electoral outcome. The Chautala legacy, though fractured, continues to play a pivotal role in shaping Haryanas political landscape, with the JJPs strategic manoeuvres likely to influence the states future.
The first meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill took place in the Parliament Annexe on Thursday.

A detailed presentation was made by officials of the ministry of minority affairs on the bill and its features as introduced before Parliament. Members of the ministry of law and justice were also present in the meeting.

Sources said all the opposition parties opposed the bill, calling it unconstitutional. The opposition MPs argued that interference with the Waqf Board was arbitrary and therefore the legislation must be scrapped.

Apart from violating the Constitution and its principles, they said, why should the whole meaning of waqf be changed by allowing non-Muslims and the government to interfere with its functioning, according to the sources.

In fact, some opposition lawmakers have argued that nothing can convince them that this is a pro-Muslim bill and therefore they are keen on eventually giving dissent notes, the sources added.

According to them, ruling National Democratic Alliance members Telugu Desam Party, Janata Dal (United), and Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) are in support of the bill. However, in the meeting, they voiced concerns about certain clauses and were hopeful that the government would accept their suggestions, the sources said. They said that in states like Bihar and Andhra Pradesh, the clause that said anybody who wants to hold such a property has to be at least a practising Muslim for the past five years would be an acceptable thing.

Before the start of the meeting, committee chairman and BJP Lok Sabha MP Jagdambika Pal said, The government has brought this bill with good intent, and it has 44 amendments that have been proposed. We will take into account the views of all opposition parties and leaders. The Joint Parliamentary Committee will also call the Waqf Board chairmen of all the states in its meeting on the Waqf Board Amendment Bill 2024 in the coming days. Among the minorities, no matter which sect they belong to, Deobandi or Bareilly, the committee will call all the stakeholders and the chairpersons of the Waqf Boards of the states.

The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, was introduced in the Lok Sabha on August 8. The government led by minority affairs minister Kiren Rijiju announced on the floor of the House that it was ready to send this bill for JPC scrutiny.

On August 9, the list of members who would be part of the JPC was announced. Led by Pal, the 31-member also has ruling BJP MPs Nishikant Dubey, Sanjay Jaiswal, Tejasvi Surya, and DK Aruna from the Lok Sabha. From the Rajya Sabha, the party has nominated Brij Lal and Ghulam Ali Khatana to the panel.

Among its alliance partners, the JD(U) has picked Dileshwar Kamait, the TDP has nominated Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu, and Arun Bharti has been nominated by Chirag Paswans LJP (RV).

From the opposition benches, Imran Masood and Syed Naseer Hussain from the Congress, Nadimul Haque and Kalyan Banerjee from the Trinamool Congress, A Raja and MM Abdulla from Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Mohibbullah Nadvi from Samajwadi Party, V Vijaysai Reddy from Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party, Sanjay Singh from Aam Aadmi Party, and Asaduddin Owaisi from All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen are among key members of this panel.

The Waqf Act, 1995, was enacted to regulate auqaf (assets donated and notified as waqf) by a waqif  the person who dedicates a property for any purpose recognised by Muslim law as pious, religious, or charitable.

On August 30, some Waqf Board people will be called before the parliamentary committee to hear their opinions. The panel will listen to the views of all stakeholders, including people from different sects like Sunni, Shia, Aga Khani, etc.

If necessary, members of the parliamentary committee can go to some big centres of the country like Lucknow, Hyderabad, etc, to meet the representatives of waqf.

In Thursdays meeting, JPC chairman Jagdambika Pal said that anyone can give their suggestions for the Waqf Amendment Bill. For this, an advertisement will be issued through newspapers and other mediums, providing an email address and phone number for this.
Once friends and allies but now foes, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Union minister HD Kumaraswamy are locked in a fresh war of words, with the latter accusing the Congress government of reopening old cases to blackmail him.

On August 14, the Karnataka Lokayukta Special Investigation Team (SIT) approached Governor Thawarchand Gehlot for the second time, seeking sanction to prosecute Kumaraswamy in an alleged illegal mining lease case. Ten months earlier, in November 2023, a request for prosecution had been submitted. The case stems from Kumaraswamys 2007 tenure as chief minister during which he allegedly granted a mining lease to Sri Sai Venkateshwara Minerals in violation of the law.

Siddaramaiah questioned why the Governor had not sanctioned Kumaraswamys prosecution with the same urgency as in the MUDA case. He pointed out that his sanction was granted within days of a private complaint, while Kumaraswamys case only reached this stage after a full investigation.

Siddaramaiah commented: If an arrest is warranted, it will happen without hesitation. Even a constable can arrest him if needed. At present, no such circumstance has arisen. Kumaraswamy is simply afraid the Governor will grant sanction.

Accusing the Congress government of targeting him out of jealousy, citing his Union minister status, Kumaraswamy retorted: This is a dead case  a case that lacks my signature. He also claimed that the Congress government was attempting to malign his reputation.

Even 100 Siddaramaiahs cannot arrest me. Do I look scared to you? he asked.

Siddaramaiah swiftly responded: Its not me  its the police who will arrest him. Even a constable is sufficient if required. Arrests are carried out by the police, not by Siddaramaiah.

Siddaramaiah further criticised Kumaraswamy, calling him a hit-and-run case. A similar statement was made by another former Karnataka chief minister, Jagadish Shettar, who in 2023 briefly joined Congress from the BJP and was made a Congress MLC. Shettar, now back in the BJP, had earlier remarked that Kumaraswamy habitually made allegations and fled the scene without offering proof.

Siddaramaiah added that Kumaraswamy had made many accusations without following them to a logical conclusion.

So, what is the Lokayukta case against Kumaraswamy?

During his first term as chief minister from 2006 to 2008, Kumaraswamy allegedly favoured Sri Sai Venkateshwara Minerals over 24 other bidders for a mining lease. It is claimed that the company received clearance in violation of rules, and that Kumaraswamy received Rs 150 crore in kickbacks from mining owners. Kumaraswamy called for a Lokayukta investigation, and a 2011 report found no loss to the exchequer and no improper allocation of mining areas.

This case was also mentioned in a broader Lokayukta report on mining scams, prepared by N Santosh Hegde, which implicated several figures, including BS Yediyurappa and Janardhan Reddy.

In November last year, the SIT first sought the Governors sanction to prosecute Kumaraswamy under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act.

A key piece of evidence cited by the SIT is forensic verification of Kumaraswamys signature on the mining lease file.

In 2014-15, the case reached the Supreme Court when Siddaramaiahs Congress government called for an inquiry. The court ordered the investigation to be completed within three months and reserved judgment pending final findings.

Now, in 2024, the SITs investigation is complete. Status reports have been submitted to the Supreme Court, though no final conclusions have been drawn, Kumaraswamy stated.

He added that when the SIT approached the Governor in November seeking sanction for prosecution, the Governor ordered a review due to concerns over a signature on the file. Kumaraswamy maintains that he is not involved and asserts that the government is damaging his reputation with a dead case.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee on Thursday called for legislation to ensure convictions in sexual assault cases within 50 days. His comments come in the wake of nationwide outrage over the recent rape and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata.

Abhishek Banerjee highlighted the alarming frequency of these crimes, noting that in the past 10 days alone, there have been 900 reported rape cases across India.

Over the past 10 days, while the nation has been protesting against the #RGKarMedicalCollege incident and demanding justice, 900 rapes have occurred across different parts of India  during the very time when people were on the streets protesting against this horrible crime, he posted on X.

Over the past 10 days, while the nation has been protesting against the #RGKarMedicalcollege incident and demanding justice, 900 RAPES have occurred across different parts of India  DURING THE VERY TIME WHEN PEOPLE WERE ON THE STREETS PROTESTING AGAINST THIS HORRIBLE CRIME. Abhishek Banerjee (@abhishekaitc) August 22, 2024

He emphasised the need for urgent and decisive action, stating, With 90 rapes reported daily, 4 every hour and 1 every 15 minutes  the urgency for a decisive action is clear. We need strong laws that mandate trials & convictions within 50 days, followed by the severest punishments, not just empty promises.

Abhishek Banerjee also called on state governments to push the central government for comprehensive anti-rape legislation.

State governments must act and urgently push the Union for a comprehensive anti-rape law that ensures swift and strict justice. Anything less is merely symbolic and tragically ineffective. WAKE UP INDIA!! he asserted.

Abhishek Banerjees Silence Makes Noise

Ironically, Abhishek Banerjees remarks come amid significant backlash against the TMC-led Bengal governments handling of the doctor rape-murder case. At the same time, speculation about a rift between him and his aunt, Mamata Banerjee, has been growing.

News18 earlier reported, citing TMC sources, tensions within the party, particularly regarding performance issues following the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. Sources noted that Abhishek Banerjee had previously suggested removing non-performers from the party or administration.

Sources further added that although has been vocal in Parliament and his own constituency, but not inside the party. There has always been a difference of opinion between a section of seniors and junior

Notably, Abhishek Banerjee was also recently absent from a rally led by Mamata, where she called for capital punishment for the accused in the rape-murder case.
Google is shutting down its lucrative bug bounty program by the end of August this year. Google has relied heavily on developers to help them find and report bugs in Android that are fixed immediately to stop it from becoming a big issue.

These researchers are even paid for their efforts and sometimes the amount can be in lakhs or crores. The Play Security Reward program was started in 2017 when Google had a hard time managing the issues that plagued Android users and the platform in general. So why is the company shutting down a program that has only helped Android become safer?

Play Rewards Program Shutting Down But Why

The Play Reward Program was set up by Google so that external and third-party security researchers can inspect, discover and report any major security bug that can become a concern for Android users. Google has its own internal security team but extending its wing has paid heavy dividends. The incentive for these researchers have been fruitful as well.

We have come across researchers getting paid in lakhs and crores depending on the severity and urgency of the bug. Play Store hosts millions of Android apps and out of them thousands are considered as top choice among smartphone users with over 100 million installs over the years. Google feels that in recent times the frequency of these bug reports have come down, which has played a big role in its decision to discontinue the program.

Googles Letter To Researchers On Shutting Down Rewards Program

Heres the letter that Google has sent out informing the researchers about its decision to end the program by the end of this month.

Dear Researchers,

I hope this email finds you well. I am writing to express my sincere gratitude to all of you who have submitted bugs to the Google Play Security Reward Program over the past few years. Your contributions have been invaluable in helping us to improve the security of Android and Google Play.

As a result of the overall increase in Android OS security posture and feature hardening efforts, weve seen fewer actionable vulnerabilities reported by the research community. Due to this decrease in actionable vulnerabilities reported, we are winding down the GPSRP program and it will end on August 31st.

Any reports submitted before then will be triaged by September 15 and the final rewards decisions will be made before September 30 when the program is officially discontinued. Final payments may take a few weeks to process.

I want to assure you that all of your reports will be reviewed and addressed before the program ends. We greatly value your input and want to make sure that any issues you have identified are resolved.

Best regards,

Tony

On behalf of the Android security team

Android continues to face malicious threats even today so we are not sure if shutting down a program that has served well for over 7 years is the right call, unless Google is happy with its internal team who will take the heavy work forward.
For years, Lays has been criticised by customers who feel misled by their chip packets. While the inflated bags seem tempting, they often contain more air than chips. Recently, a Reddit user recounted a frustrating experience from their trip to Goa. Feeling hungry, the user bought a Rs 10 pack of Lays, only to find four chips inside. The post quickly gained traction, with some users urging the matter be taken to consumer court, others sharing their own similar grievances and a few making light of the situation.

Along with his complaint, the individual also posted photos of himself holding the four chips and another image of the packets interior, which clearly shows the insufficient amount of chips. He wrote, Got 4 chips in Rs 10 Lays packet. I was super hungry and bought lays at a petrol pump in Goa. Opened the first packet and got this surprise. Since the user shared the post, it has garnered over 1700 upvotes.

Reacting to the post, a user suggested, This is your opportunity to earn a huge amount of money by reporting it to the consumer forum.

Another shared, I feel your pain bruh, been there felt that. Cant even laugh.

You guys are getting chips in Lays chips packet? I thought they were only making chips flavoured air sold in plastic bags lately, a comment read.

Another joked, Thats ridiculous, when did they start putting chips in the packet. I paid for the air inside. Want to have the refund.

An individual shared, What do you expect in Rs 10, a Michelin star meal? At least they threw in 4 chips for the premium experience.

One more added, Going for lays is the worst thing you did when you were hungry.

This isnt a new issue; in a previous case, a customer found that a packet of Lays weighed only 8 grams instead of the 30 grams stated on the label. Disappointed, the customer reported the discrepancy to the Consumer Education and Research Society (CERS), which took legal action against PepsiCo. The court ruled in favour of the consumer, ordering PepsiCo to deposit Rs 50,000 into the Consumer Welfare Fund within 90 days. Additionally, the company was instructed to pay Rs 5,000 for emotional distress and Rs 2,000 for legal costs to the affected customer.

As per the Times of India report, before going to court, the individual had contacted the company twice. While PepsiCo admitted the packet was underweight, they did not take the complaint seriously and offered only a gift hamper, which the person declined.
Since the 1950s, Pakistan has been represented internationally by the state-owned Pakistan International Airlines or PIA. More than nearly any other flag carrier, PIA has experienced three fatal crashes in the twenty-first century. In 2020, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) banned PIA from operating flights to Europe and the UK due to safety concerns and non-compliance with international aviation regulations. Now, in a video posted on Instagram, a man has detailed his experience of flying on the airline.

The man documented what he witnessed on one of the most dangerous flights in the world and the awful airline conditions in the video. In the caption of this video, he posed the question, Would you fly on this route? to his followers.

In the video, the user is seen boarding the aircraft and being informed right away by the cabin staff that video recording is not permitted. But as soon as he sits down, he reveals the broken seat handle, the duct-taped overhead bin and the empty spots filled with dust on the seat.

The man said in the video that their pilot interacted with the passengers and additionally provided them with details about Skardu city in Pakistan-administered Gilgit-Baltistan. Pakistan has a troubled reputation in the worldIt doesnt help when your national carrier is also banned from an entire continent, the caption read.

The man continued, saying that he made the decision to visit the northern areas by plane for the first time in more than ten years. He expressed excitement, saying it was something on his bucket list.

With more than a million views, users in the comments section were in for a hilarious response.

A user stated, I take it back Air India! You guys are good!

Another jokingly said, PIA = Pray I Arrive.

Looks beautiful. The country. Not the plane lol, read another comment.

An individual said, Watching this clip and hearing what you said about the Airlines gave me heart palpitations. But no doubt about the beauty you witnessed and God bless you for the risk you took to see it.

Yet another user said, Why would you awful airline.
Days after former Google CEO Eric Schmidt criticised the companys remote work and work life balance, now Nolan Church, a former Google recruiter, has shared useful advice for job seekers. Church, who has become the CEO of FairComp, urges people to avoid asking about work life balance during interviews. He argues that such questions could signal to recruiters that the candidate might be less committed to their work. Church advises that its better to focus on questions like what is the companys north star for the next 12 months? and what is the common trait of your top performers? However, he recommends saving questions about personal benefits after receiving a job offer.

In an interview with CNBC Make It, Church claims that asking about work life balance indicates to me that you dont want to work hard. Its a red flag. This needs to come after youve received an offer. I dont think youve earned the right to ask. Instead, one should be questioning the companys goals and mission during the initial interview process.

According to Nolan Church, such a question may shift the focus to your personal needs rather than showing your interest in making a contribution in the companys growth and in the team. He also feels that the question is too general, which can lead to unclear answers from the interviewer and wont help understand the company better. The ex-Google recruiter suggests that more specific questions, like asking about the key qualities of the companys top performers, could be a game changer.

In a 2021 interaction with the Wall Street Journal, Google CEO Sundar Pichai had discussed how to achieve a good work life balance between office and home. He suggested that three days at the office and two days working from home each week is the perfect setting. Pichai mentioned that in cities like New York and San Francisco, long commutes are a major issue. He believed that employees working in the office for three days a week is crucial for teamwork.

Meanwhile, Eric Schmidt, who stepped down from his role at Google in 2020, recently criticised the companys remote work policy. Speaking at Stanford University, he argued that employees are not spending enough time in the office, which he believes is delaying them to advance in the AI field.

Schmidt said, Google decided that work life balance and going home early and working from home was more important than winning. And the reason startups work is because the people work like hell. Im sorry to be so blunt. But the fact of the matter is, if you all leave the university and go find a company, youre not gonna let people work from home and only come in one day a week if you want to compete against the other startups.

The discussion about working from home and maintaining work life balance began when remote work became a norm during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A techie from Hyderabad was given a 470-day wait for a US visa interview slot while trying to book one for a friend  almost 1.2 years! Yes, you read that right! Amit Bhawani expressed shock at the wait time and even claimed that some people he knows managed to secure earlier slots through agents.

Bhawani who is clearly frustrated after failing to find a slot with a wait time under a year, asserted, Also, others I know went ahead with agents who were able to get them earlier slots. How is that possible?

Read| Bengaluru Man Forced to Pay Over Rs 400 Tip at US Restaurant, Asks Why Do I Pay Extra?

Everything can be rigged, he declared.

I was applying for a US visa for a friend & noticed the waiting time of 470 days.YES470 DAYS OF WAITING! Also, others I know went ahead with agents who were able to get them earlier slots. How is that possible,? Everything can be rigged. pic.twitter.com/newLOE5nVq  Amit Bhawani (@amitbhawani) August 20, 2024

In an update, shared that he successfully booked a US visa interview slot and the date falls in the August itself. He emphasised that he didnt resort to using Chrome extensions, scripts, bots or took help of an agent to secure the appointment. He didnt give up trying and at the end it was all worth it. Bhawani humourously added, I might need a new mouse after all that clicking.

After spending the whole day trying to book a #USVisa interview slot, I finally got one for August 26, 2024, without using any Chrome extensions, scripts, bots, or paying an agent!It looks like not giving up worked, but I might need a new mouse after all that clicking. https://t.co/6WyF6w5NYC pic.twitter.com/GGBnLR1N6Z  Amit Bhawani (@amitbhawani) August 21, 2024

In the comments section of the post, the techie revealed that he began his booking attempt around 11 pm and managed to find two slots for the visa interview in Mumbai and Delhi.

Also Read| Software Developer Earning Rs 30 LPA Opts Trains Over Flights: When I Was Struggling

In response to an X users query on any hacks if he used to get the slots, Bhawani revealed that he kept on refreshing the page, adding, I didnt check Kolkata / Chennai as I was not interested in going there for interviews, limiting the search to Hyderabad, Delhi, and Mumbai while continuously not giving up.

Heres how the Internet reacted to his posts:

Agents are charging 30k for early appointments, expressed an individual.

Another added, I applied for B1B2 in March 2022 and got date of Sep 2024. Youre still lucky.

One of my office colleague recently paid 50k per person for US visa  appointment in 1.5 months. Such are the levels of rigging, shared a third.

A fourth posted, My friend and his family applied for a US visa in 2022 as her sister was getting graduated and this year they got the call for an interview. Didi graduated 2 years back and she is currently working in Australia.

I booked for myself and got next day slot. Though I rescheduled it to one month later as it was suitable. You have to keep watch on slots, I think agents do the same too, said yet another Internet user.

A sixth chimed in, Theres nothing you can do about it, all you have to do is to keep an eye on them. They open up suddenly (cancelled slots), and some fresh slots also. Just get the timing right and have the data handy.
In an effort to shatter the stigma around sex, Ritesh D. Ritelin founded the firm Manzuri, which offers pleasure products to women. Nevertheless, he encounters challenges in de-stigmatising discussions around sexual well-being and health. The Goa-based businessman recently admitted to financial influencer Sharan Hegde on an edition of the 1% Club, I sell orgasms for a living." With a 70% holding in Manzuri, his estimated net worth is Rs 10 to Rs 12 crore.

The young businessman is trying to break one of the biggest taboos in the country  sex" with Manzuri. According to what he informed Hegde when they first entered the market in 2019 or 2020, there existed virtually nobody for women to turn to when looking for a reputable supplier of sex toys.

Ritelin continued, explaining that the Indian government does not recognise the existence of sex toys, therefore he had chosen to refer to the business as a wellness startup" rather than a sex toy company". Like, maybe a decade behind when it comes to pleasure tech," Ritelin stated.

Manzuri, which translates to consent" in Hindi, has allowed the company owner to establish a prosperous enterprise. As stated by Ritelin in the 1% Club YouTube video, he also brought the firm to Shark Tank India. He disclosed his liquid net worth of Rs 1.5 crore and talked candidly about finance in the 1% Club YouTube video. His non-liquid assets, however, are estimated to be worth Rs 8.5 to Rs 9.5 crore.

As for the applicable legal framework, it is based mostly on obscenity laws, which are followed by regulations that usually govern the quality of goods and defend consumer interests. However, there is no clear legislation in India that forbids the manufacturing, importation, or sale of sex toys.

The primary issue with this structure is that the legislations wording is sufficiently ambiguous to allow authorities to interpret it anyway they see fit, which poses a challenge. The main problem is the lack of clarity on how sex toys are classified under the Customs Act of 1962 and Section 292 of the IPC. Businesses face ambiguity due to the subjective aspect of obscenity," since customs officers have the authority to confiscate any sex tools they deem obscene.
In a shocking discovery, a Rajasthan family found a deadly king cobra inside the washing machine at their residence. A video now going viral shows the venomous five-foot reptile coiled inside the drum, leaving the residents in intense shock. According to an India Today report, the incident took place at Shambhudayals home in Swami Vivekanand Nagar in Kota. When Shambhudayal went to wash clothes in the machine, he was left shaken upon seeing the snake.

As seen in the video, the reptile was already in a defensive posture, seemingly ready to launch an attack on the residents. Startled by its sudden movement, Shambhudayal immediately retreated in fear and called a local snake catcher.

Luckily, the snake didnt cause any harm and was safely rescued. The snake catcher took it away from the residential area and released it into the wild. The snake, which measured over 5 feet in length, was carefully extracted from the washing machine. After rescuing the cobra, I released it into the Ladpura forest, far from the residential area, said the snake catcher, as quoted by the outlet.

He also explained that snakes often enter human-inhabited areas in search of prey, especially during the monsoons when their natural regions are waterlogged. It is common to find snakes in homes, shops and even hospitals, he added.

Notably, this is not the first time such an incident has come to light. Several wild creatures, like snakes and crocodiles, come out of water bodies and move amid the busy city roads.

Crocodile, Snake Sightings

After days of heavy rains, the Forest Department team rescued multiple crocodiles on a single day from various places in Kota. Measuring between 7 and 10 feet in length, the crocodiles were captured and later released into the wild.

In a more dangerous encounter, a child from Bihar ended up biting a snake after mistaking it for a toy. The incident took place in Gaya, where the toddler was playing on the terrace of his house. Taking the snake in his hand, the kid accidentally killed it. However, he was completely unharmed, much to the surprise of his family and parents.

According to the local community health centre, the snake was non-venomous and commonly spotted during the rainy season.
The third day of the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday kicked off with a first-of-its-kind Vedic prayer where the priest sought blessings for a united country.

Even if we have differences, when it comes to the nation, we have to be united and it moves us towards justice for all," said Indian-American priest Rakesh Bhatt as he formally started the third days proceedings of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago.

We should be in unison. Let our minds think together. Let our hearts beat as one. All for the betterment of society. May this make us powerful so we can unite and make our nation proud," the senior Hindu priest said.

A priest at the Sri Siva Vishnu Temple in Maryland, Bhatt hails from Bengaluru. He is a Madhwa priest trained in Rig Veda and Tantrasaara (Maadhva) Agama, under his guru, Pejavar Swamiji of Udupi Ashta Matha.

He continued, We are one universal family. Truth is our foundation and always prevails. Lead us from unreal to real. from darkness to the light, and from death to immortality. Om Shanti Shanti Shanti."

Bhatt, who is fluent in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Hindi, English, Tulu and Sanskrit, has a Bachelors and Masters degree in three languages: Sanskrit, English and Kannada. He obtained his English and Kannada degrees from Osteen College, Bengaluru and the Sanskrit degree from Jaychamarajendra College.

After working in Udupi Ashta Matha for a few years, he worked for a short period in Badrinath and Raghavendra Swami Koil, Salem and joined Sri Sri Vishnu Temple in July 2013.
One of Indias worst fears seems to be coming through. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has demanded that India must extradite embattled prime minister Sheikh Hasina so that she can be tried for the crimes and criminal cases against her.

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir told News18, It is our call to you that you should hand her over to the government of Bangladesh in a legal way. The people of this country have given the decision for her trial. Let her face that trial. Why did she run away? She should be here to face trial. India cant keep shielding her forever.

This has put India in a fix. India has an extradition treaty with Bangladesh, so it can ask for extradition if prosecution charges are moved against Sheikh Hasina. But there is one situation in which this treaty may not apply.

The treaty was signed in 2013 but there was an amendment in 2016 as per which it allowed exchange of convicts sentenced for more than a year in prison but does not apply to political prisoners and asylum seekers.

The catch, as per experts, is two fold. If Hasina is being asked to be extradited as a political leader, India can always deny it. Secondly, the treaty says extradition also has a dual criminal clause. India can always say that a crime which is considered criminal in both countries can ensure she has to be sent back.

The problem is prickly for India. On one hand, India holds Sheikh Hasina to be its friend and doesnt want to be pushed into handing her over, specially as it knows what it means for her. But on the other hand, not handing her over or dragging its feat could mean that India could antagonise its relations with the present and future regime in Bangladesh.

India is caught between the devil and deep sea and wanting to buy time.
Iskcon Kolkata vice-president and spokesperson Radharamn Das on Wednesday in a social media post alleged that a Hindu teacher in Bangladesh was forced to resign after facing mistreatment from former students. He shared his claims on X, accompanied by a video.

Another Hindu teacher in Bangladesh has been insulted by Muslim students he once taught and was forced to resign, Das claimed in his post.

Das further claimed that thousands of Hindus in Bangladesh are being pressured to resign from their jobs everyday.

Every day, thousands of Hindus in Bangladesh are being pressured to sign resignation letters. Their aim is to remove all 2.5 million Hindus working in Bangladesh, Das added.

Another Hindu teacher in Bangladesh has been insulted by Muslim students he once taught and was forced to resign. Every day, thousands of Hindus in Bangladesh are being pressured to sign resignation letters. Their aim is to remove all 2.5 million Hindus working in Bangladesh. pic.twitter.com/g4NyjnHfpp Radharamn Das   (@RadharamnDas) August 21, 2024

The video shared by Das purportedly shows the teacher in an office setting, surrounded by a group of men who appear to be engaging in behavior intended to demean him. Two of the men can be seen attaching cigarette boxes to the teachers shirt with a stapler, while the teacher looks visibly distressed and frightened.

News18, however, has not been able to independently verify the video or confirm the accuracy of Das claims.

Das allegations come amid rising concerns in India regarding the safety of the Hindu community in Bangladesh amid recent political changes. Sheikh Hasinas resignation and subsequent departure to India on August 5, after a period of unrest, has intensified these concerns.

Yunus Calls Modi, Assures Safety Of Hindus

An interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus was established on August 8.

On August 16, Yunus  in his first direct communication with New Delhi after becoming the head of Bangladeshs interim government  spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. During their conversation, Yunus assured that Dhaka would prioritise the protection and safety of Hindus and other minority groups.

In the discussion initiated by Yunus, Modi reaffirmed Indias support for a democratic, stable, peaceful, and progressive Bangladesh, and emphasised the importance of safeguarding Hindus and other minority communities in the affected country.

Yunus assurance came a day after PM Modis Independence Day speech, in which he expressed that 1.4 billion Indians are concerned about the safety of Hindus and minorities in the neighboring country.

(With inputs from agencies)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday expressed gratitude to Poland for its assistance in rescuing stranded Indian students during the Ukraine-Russian war in 2022.

I want to thank the government and the people of Poland for this. People of India can never forget the help you have extended in rescuing Indian students during the Ukraine conflict in 2022, PM Modi said in his address.

#WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi says I want to thank PM Tusk for giving me a warm welcome in the beautiful city of Warsaw. You have been a friend of India for a long time and you have a huge contribution to enhancing the relationship between India and Poland. Today after pic.twitter.com/KjeoRzWTnw ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2024

The Prime Minister also extended thanks to his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk for the warm welcome.

I want to thank PM Tusk for giving me a warm welcome in the beautiful city of Warsaw. You have been a friend of India for a long time and you have a huge contribution to enhancing the relationship between India and Poland, he added.

On the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia, PM Modi said it is a matter of deep concern for all of us.

India firmly believes that no problem can be solved on the battlefield. The loss of innocent lives in any crisis has become the biggest challenge for the entire humanity. We support dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability, he added.

Prime Minister Modi, who arrived in Poland on Wednesday, is currently on an official visit to the country. Following this, he is scheduled to travel to Kyiv in Ukraine, on August 23 for high-level meetings.

PM Modi visit to Poland is the first trip by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in the past 45 years. His visit also marks 70 years of official bilateral relations between New Delhi and Warsaw.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday met his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk and discussed ways to strengthen bilateral ties.

Modi arrived in Poland on Wednesday on the first leg of his two-nation visit during which he will also travel to the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.

I am glad to have met my friend, Prime Minister @donaldtusk. In our talks, we took stock of the full range of India-Poland relations. We are particularly keen to deepen linkages in areas such as food processing, urban infrastructure, renewable energy and AI. pic.twitter.com/a7VqCfj9Qa Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 22, 2024

Prime Minister Modis visit to Poland is the first trip by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in the past 45 years.

Modi received a ceremonial red carpet welcome at the Chancellery before the talks.

PM @donaldtusk and I also discussed ways to expand cooperation in defence and security. It is equally gladdening that we have agreed on a social security agreement, which will benefit our people. pic.twitter.com/aQmb4zvPWR Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 22, 2024

A new landmark in the India-Poland partnership! PM @narendramodi was warmly received by PM @donaldtusk of Poland at the Federal Chancellery in Warsaw and accorded a ceremonial welcome.

This visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Poland after 45 years will impart fresh momentum to the India-Poland partnership, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal posted on X.

Finally. After 45 years! Prime Minister @narendramodi, good to see you in Warsaw, Tusk posted on X.

Prime Minister Modi will also hold talks with President Andrzej Sebastian Duda.
PM Modi Leaves For Ukraine After Concluding Two-day Trip To Poland Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday left for Ukraine after concluding his two-day trip to Poland. PM @narendramodi concludes a productive visit to Poland, setting a new milestone in bilateral relations. This high-level Prime Ministerial visit after four decades will widen and deepen India-Poland relations, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal posted on X.

PM Modi Meets Kabaddi Players In Warsaw, Discusses How To Popularise It In Poland Celebrating a vibrant sporting connect. In Warsaw, I met Michal Spiczko and Anna Kalbarczyk, who are noted Kabaddi players. This sport is actively followed in Poland. We discussed how to further popularise this sport in Poland, including ensuring more tournaments between Indian and Polish players, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in an X post.

PM Modi Meets Scholars Of Indian History And Culture In Warsaw Met Prof Maria Christopher Byrski, Prof Monika Browarczyk, Prof Halina Marlewicz, Prof Danuta Stasik and Prof Przemyslaw Szurek in Warsaw. These eminent scholars and Indologists are working on different aspects of Indian history and culture. We talked about ways to make Indology more widespread. The distinguished academics also expressed joy on the increasing popularity of Yoga across Poland and Europe, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in an X post.

PM Modi Meets With MD Of Polish Manufacturing Company, Discuss Its Expansion Plans In India Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with Alina Posluszny, the MD of TZMO India, a leading Polish manufacturer of diversified hygiene products. PM Modi discussed the Make in India campaign and recent liberalizations in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policies, being taken in India. They also exchanged views on TZMOs expansion plans, given the thriving market and investment opportunities in India.

PM Modi Meets With CEO of Polish IT company, Discusses Business Collaboration Between India-Poland In AI, Cybersecurity And Digital Economy Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with Gawel Lopinski, the CEO of Billenium Pvt Ltd, a prominent Polish IT company with a notable presence in Pune. During the meeting, PM Modi highlighted Indias growth story propelled by favourable investment climate and Make in India program. He enquired about his expansion plans and mentioned the significant opportunities for business collaboration between India-Poland in the field of new and emerging technologies, AI, cybersecurity and digital economy. Prime Minister assured him of Indias commitment to Ease of Doing Business and investment friendly environment.

Social Security Agreement Between India And Poland Will Facilitate Issues Relating To Professionals Working In Either Countries: MEA Secretary West, Tanmaya Lal Speaking on the Social Security Agreement between India and Poland, MEA Secretary West, Tanmaya Lal said There has been an understanding which has been reached on the Social Security Agreement. You will have to wait for the Agreement to be signed which, we expect, will be done in the coming short time. That will really facilitate the issues relating to the professionals working in each others countries.

New Delhi And Warsaw Reiterate 'Unequivocal Condemnation' Of Terrorism In All Forms: India-Poland Joint Statement India- Poland Joint Statement Establishment of Strategic Partnership- The two leaders reiterated their unequivocal condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and emphasised that no country should provide a safe haven to those who finance, plan, support or commit terrorist acts. Both sides stressed the need for firm implementation of relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council, the UN General Assembly, as well as the implementation of the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy. They also reaffirmed on the early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT).

PM Modi Poland-Ukraine Visit LIVE: Leaders Of Both Countries Discussed Bilateral Relations And Ways To Take Them Forward, Says MEA Spokesperson A real boost for the India-Poland relationship! The Prime Minister of India @narendramodi met today with the President of Poland @Andrzejduda at the Belweder Palace. The leaders of both countries discussed bilateral relations and ways to take them to a new level. The discussions also covered regional and global issues, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in an X post.

'India Greatly Values Warm Relations With Poland': PM Modi Following a bilateral meeting with Polish President Andrzej Duda in Warsaw, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to microblogging site X, Happy to have met President @AndrzejDuda in Warsaw. We had an excellent discussion on ways to deepen India-Poland ties. India greatly values the warm relations with Poland. We look forward to boosting commercial and cultural linkages between our nations in the times to come.

PM Modi Poland-Ukraine Visit LIVE: PM Modi Holds Delegation-level Talk With Poland President Andrzej Duda Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a delegation-level talk with Poland President Andrzej Duda, in Warsaw.

PM Modi Poland-Ukraine Visit LIVE: PM Modi Lays Wreath At Tomb Of Unknown Soldier In Warsaw

PM Modi Poland-Ukraine Visit LIVE: PM Modi Holds Bilateral Meeting With Poland President Andrzej Duda Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived for a bilateral meeting with Poland President Andrzej Duda in Warsaw.

PM Modi Poland-Ukraine Visit LIVE: PM Modi Holds Bilateral Meeting With Poland President Andrzej Duda Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived for a bilateral meeting with Poland President Andrzej Duda in Warsaw.

'PM Modi's Visit Gives Us Hope of Peace...': Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko On Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Ukraine, Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko said, Prime Minister Modi is a legendary person for us. We know how many good things he did under his leadership for the people of India, that India developed economically so significantly that it is now the 5th largest economy in the world, being only 11 before his premiership. He contributed a lot to the rising prosperity of the Indian people for their development as a proud nation. The visit of Prime Minister Modi is not just historical for us, it also gives us hope that it will bring the necessary momentum to achieve sustainable, fair peace in Ukraine with a positive impact on the wider European region. Knowing the principal position of Prime Minister Modi and his respect for international law, especially the Statute of the United Nations that this peace dialogue will be based on the fundamental principle of the UN Charter and the foreign policy of India that includes respect for the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of other countries.

'We Support Dialogue And Diplomacy For Restoration Of Peace': PM Modi The ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia are a matter of deep concern for all of us. India firmly believes that no problem can be solved on the battlefield. The loss of innocent lives in any crisis has become the biggest challenge for the entire humanity. We support dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability. For this, India is ready to provide all possible cooperation along with its friendly countries, the Prime Minister said.

'We Want To Strengthen Our Cooperation In Defence And Trade': Poland PM Donald Tusk Poland PM Donald Tusk said, As far as exchanges between India and Poland are concerned, we discussed various topics. We want to strengthen our cooperation in the area of defence and trade. There is immense mutual possibilities. Poland is ready to take part in Indias defence modernisation. We have the necessary technological capability and expertsIndia is a global leader in the field of Artificial Intelligence and we are using this technology in several areas, including defence. We express gratitude to you for inviting our companies to your country. We want investment in the field of defence and that we cooperate with each other.

We Believe PM Modi's Ukraine Visit Will Be Historic: Poland PM Donald Tusk Poland PM Donald Tusk said, Today, we have decided to take our relations to the level of strategic partnership. This is not just a definition, not mere words. There is our resolution for mutual cooperation in various areas behind this. We began with a clarification on issues that are very emotional. PM Modi confirmed his willingness that he is ready for peaceful, rightful and immediate end to war. We believe that India can play an essential and very constructive role. So, this announcement is very important for us. PM, in 10 hours you will visit Ukraine. We believe that your visit to Ukraine will be historic.

Mutual Cooperation Between India And Poland In Defence Will Be Priority: PM Modi Prime Minister Narendra Modi says Close cooperation in the field of defence is a symbol of our deep mutual trust. Mutual cooperation in this area will be made a priority. Innovation and talent are the identity of the youth power of both our countries. A Social Security Agreement has been agreed upon between the two sides for the welfare of the skilled workforce and to promote mobility. India and Poland are also moving forward in close coordination on the international platform. We both agree that reforms in the United Nations and international institutions are the need of the hour to face global challenges. Terrorism is a big challenge for us. As countries like India and Poland, which believe in humanity. Climate change is a matter of common priority for us. We will work for a green future by combining our capabilities

PM Modi Hopes Poland's Support Will 'Strengthen Relations' Between India And EU Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, In January 2025, Poland will assume the presidency of the European Union. I am confident that your support will strengthen the relations between India and the EU. The ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia are a matter of deep concern for all of us. India firmly believes that no problem can be solved on the battlefield. The loss of innocent lives in any crisis has become the biggest challenge for the entire humanity. We support dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability. For this, India is ready to provide all possible cooperation along with its friendly countries. Poland has a very old and rich tradition of Indology and Sanskrit. A strong foundation of our relations has been laid by the deep interest in Indian civilization and languages. I saw a direct and living example of our deep people-to-people ties yesterday. I had the privilege of paying tribute at the memorial of Maharaja of Kolhapur. I am happy that even today the people of Poland respect his philanthropy and generosity. To immortalize his memory, we are going to start the Jam Saheb Nawanagar Youth Action Program between India and Poland. Every year, 20 young people from Poland will be taken on a visit to India
Former President Donald Trump claimed Wednesday that his Democratic opponent in the presidential election, Vice President Kamala Harris, met with Russian President Vladimir Putin just days before Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

Trump said in a speech in North Carolina: Remember when Biden sent Kamala to Europe to stop the war in Ukraine. She met with Putin, and then three days later, he attacked. How did she do? Do you think she did a good job? She met with Putin to tell him, Dont do it. And three days later, he attacked; thats when the attack started. Did you know that, General? (Retired Army Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg was at the North Carolina event.)

Facts First: Trumps claim is false. Harris has never met with Putin. In reality, she met with US allies, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, at the Munich Security Conference in the days before Russias February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Putin was not at the conference.

Frankly speaking, I cannot recall a single contact between President Putin and Mrs. Harris, a Kremlin spokesperson said last month, according to a state-owned Russian news agency.

The Biden administration was still trying to deter an invasion of Ukraine at the time of Harris 2022 trip to the conference in Germany, but top administration officials, including President Joe Biden himself, made clear that they believed Putin was already moving toward invading. As Harris was on her way to Germany, Biden told reporters that he thought a Russian attack will happen in the next several days.

CNN reported on the day the Munich conference began that a senior administration official said Harris had three key objectives: Focus on the fast-changing situation on the ground, maintain full alignment with partners and send a clear message to Russia that the US prefers diplomacy but is ready in case of Russian aggression.

The Munich conference was held from February 18 to February 20, 2022; Russia began its invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
Chants of Om Shanti filed the hall as Hindu priest Rakesh Bhatt surprised Americans by starting off the third day of Democratic National Convention at Chicago with a Vedic prayer. The United States is heading for presidential elections on November. Incidentally, Vice President Kamala Harris will be officially handed over the responsibility to lead the Democrats in the fight against Republican Party candidate Donald Trump from this stage.

The third day started off with Bhatts Om Shanti chants. Bhatt is a priest of Shri Shiv Vishnu Temple in Maryland. He prayed for the unity and development of America by chanting Vedic mantras from the stage of the Convention.

The Hindu priest said that despite differences, the country should remain united. We should speak in one voice. Our minds should think together. Our hearts should beat together. This will make us strong and we will be able to make our country proud by being united, Bhatt said.

Kamala Harris will address the gathering from this stage on Thursday. Earlier, Rakesh Bhatt had urged Americans to elect a leader who believes in the Vedic concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (the whole world is one family).

We are all part of the world family. Truth is our foundation and it always prevails. Take us from untruth to truth, from darkness to light and from death to immortality. Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti.

Rakesh Bhatt is a Madhwa Brahmin. He migrated to America from Bengaluru. Bhatt is trained in Rig Veda and Tantrasar (Madhva) Agama under the guidance of his guru Pejawar Swamiji of Udupi Ashta Math.

Bhatt speaks Hindi, English, Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Tulu fluently. He has Bachelors and Masters degrees in three languages  Sanskrit, English and Kannada. He completed his English and Kannada degrees from Osteen College in Bengaluru and Sanskrit from Sri Jayachamarajendra College in Mysuru. Following his stint at Udupi Ashta Math, he worked at Badrinath and Sree Raghavendra Mrithika Brindavana at Salem and then joined Sri Sri Vishnu Mandir in July 2013.

Democratic Party Deputy National Finance Chair Ajay Bhutoria said, Hindu prayer at the DNC Convention today is a significant moment, showcasing the Democratic Partys commitment to inclusivity and diversity. It is heartening to see the rich cultural and spiritual traditions of the Indian American community being honored on such a prominent stage.

The Democrats will officially hand over command to 59-year-old Kamala Harris to take on Donald Trump in the US Presidential elections that will be held later this year. The election campaigns in US suggest that the contest is close. The Presidential polls are scheduled on November 5.
Ice Age hunters who took down mammoths and other large game may not have done so by tossing spears. New research suggests this "would have been less than uselessleaving a hunter with no spear and an angry mammoth," per the Hill . Because no one knows for sure how ancient spears incorporating a wood shaft, wood or bone foreshaft, and fluted stone blades were usednone have been found intactarchaeologists at the University of California, Berkeley, experimented with replica spears in which a blade was lashed to the foreshaft, and foreshaft lashed to the pole. When the spears were thrown or thrust, the blades were prone to shatter against anything hard, like wood or bone, the Guardian reports.

The blades did cut through soft tissue, like hide, but proceeded no further. "The impact just dies," Dr. Scott Byram, a stone tool specialist at UC Berkeley and co-author of the study published Wednesday in PLOS ONE, tells the Hill. Used another way, however, these spears were likely far more effective, researchers say. They uncovered mounds of historical evidence of humans using planted spears, or pikes, to take down large game over thousands of years. Basically, the butt end of a pointed spear would be braced against the ground, with the blade facing upward. Hunters would encourage an animal to charge forward, impaling itself on the blade.

"You can actually stop the animal before you get killed," says Byram. The animal's momentum "keeps it moving so it gets stuck through the hide." With the pike technique, researchers believe "the spear tip functioned like a modern day hollow-point bullet," per UC Berkeley. "The kind of energy that you can generate with the human arm is nothing like the kind of energy generated by a charging animal," says study co-author Jun Sunseri, a Berkeley associate professor of anthropology. "It's an order of magnitude different." The researchers now hope to test pikes against a replica mammoth to better understand what Byram calls an "amazing" Native American hunting innovation. (More archaeology stories.)
A teenager who was handcuffed and threatened with jail time after falling asleep during a field trip to a Detroit courthouse is taking the judge to court. The lawsuit filed by Eva Goodman and her mother, Latoreya Hill, on Wednesday accuses Judge Kenneth King of violating the teen's rights, the Washington Post reports. The family is seeking at least $75,000. The lawsuit says that King "berated the minor on a live platform, ordered her jailed, caused her to be handcuffed, demanded that she take off her clothes and change into jail garb, imprisoned her for hours, and then conducted a fake trial."

"She's embarrassed, humiliated." Hill said Wednesday that the incident has been "pretty devastating" and her 15-year-old daughter doesn't want to go outside. WKYZ reports. "I wish I could have brought my daughter here for today, but she doesn't want to be in front of the camera," Hill said. "She doesn't want to talk. She's embarrassed, humiliated, and I can't blame her." After the incident last week, Hill said her daughter was tired because the family doesn't have a permanent home.
UPDATE

Aug 23, 2024 12:30 AM CDT

It may have actually been mealworms, not maggots, that sickened a guest at a breakfast for delegates at a Chicago hotel Wednesday. "I'm not sure that those were maggots," the city's police superintendent told the AP Thursday. "There was sawdust, so they were probably mealworms. They look the same. But that's still under investigation." One person who ate some of the tainted food was treated and released at the scene, police say. The incident remains under investigation.

Aug 22, 2024 7:45 AM CDT

The FBI and Chicago Police are investigating claims that activists placed bugs in a hotel breakfast buffet prepared for delegates at the Democratic National Convention. The incident occurred around 6:45am Wednesday at Chicago's Fairmont Hotel, where delegates from Indiana, Minnesota, Ohio, Missouri, and South Dakota are staying. Indiana delegate Karen Tallian, a retired state senator, said two women hiding in a bathroom "ran out and threw maggots into the breakfast buffet," per USA Today. Other witnesses described the bugs as crickets.
Guatemalan police on Wednesday arrested seven Guatemalans accused of having smuggled 53 migrants from Mexico and Central America who died of asphyxiation in 2022 in Texas after being abandoned in a tractor trailer in the scorching summer heat. They were the latest arrests after years of investigation into the deadliest tragedy of migrants smuggled across the border from Mexico, the AP reports. The dead included eight children. Interior Minister Francisco Jimenez says the arrests were made possible after 13 raids in three of the country's departments. They included Rigoberto Roman Miranda Orozco, the alleged ringleader of the smuggling gang whose extradition has been requested by the United States.

Police also seized vehicles and cash and rescued other migrants during the operations, they said in a statement. "This is a collaborative effort between the Guatemalan police and Homeland Security, in addition to other national agencies, to dismantle the structures of human trafficking, one of the strategic objectives of the government President Bernardo Arevalo in order to take on the phenomenon of irregular migration," Jimenez said. Authorities have alleged that the men worked with human smuggling operations in Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico, and shared routes, guides, stash houses, trucks and trailers, some of which were stored at a private parking lot in San Antonio.

Six people were charged previously. Homero Zamorano Jr., who authorities say drove the truck, and Christian Martinez were arrested shortly after the migrants were found. Both are from Texas. Martinez later pleaded guilty to smuggling-related charges. Zamorano pleaded not guilty to smuggling-related charges and is awaiting trial. Four Mexican nationals were also arrested in 2023. Authorities have said the men were aware that the trailer's air-conditioning unit was malfunctioning and would not blow cool air to the migrants trapped inside during the sweltering, three-hour ride from the border city of Laredo to San Antonio.

(More human smuggling stories.)
Lawyers for Alabama inmate Carey Dale Grayson are contesting the state's use of nitrogen gas for executions, claiming significant issues with the method. In a Tuesday court filing, they requested blocking his November 21 execution, arguing that Alabama ignored substantial problems highlighted by earlier executions, including that of Kenneth Smith in January. The autopsy on Smith showed blood and fluid in his lungs as well as congestion and edema.

Dr. Thomas Andrew, a former chief medical examiner, said the lung congestion that was detected is consistent with asphyxia as the method of death. He said as the heart rapidly fails, "blood backs up and the lungs become quite congested." The execution was also conducted without administering a sedative. "I think that's a critical critique of the protocols used in this form of execution," he said. "You certainly will have a sense of the absence of oxygen, air hunger, and all of the panic and discomfort that is part and parcel of that way of dying,"

Alabama has scheduled additional nitrogen gas executions, with Alan Eugene Miller set for execution on September 26. Grayson's attorneys criticize the state for not investigating the problematic outcomes of prior executions. The Alabama Attorney General's office has remained firm, arguing the method's constitutionality, but declined to comment directly on the recent court filing. Grayson was sentenced to death for his role in the 1994 murder of Vickie Deblieux, and his request for a preliminary injunction awaits a state response. (This story was generated by Newser's AI chatbot. Source: the AP)
Investigators have resolved the three-year-long mystery of missing Michigan woman Dee Warner. State police confirmed Wednesday that Warner's remains were discovered on a property owned by her husband. "Dee Warner's death has been ruled a homicide," authorities stated, adding that while positive identification and the manner of death have been confirmed, the investigation continues.

Warner, aged 52, went missing in April 2021. Her husband, Dale Warner, faced murder and evidence tampering charges in November related to her disappearance. He has pleaded not guilty, with his attorney declining immediate comment on the recent developments. Human remains were found last week in Lenawee County, about 70 miles southwest of Detroit, as disclosed by state police on Sunday.

Family members revealed that Warner's remains were inside a sealed, empty tank typically used for crop fertilizer. Her brother, Greg Hardy, recounted to WDIV-TV: "In the dark of night, in a building that had no cameras: slide her body in there, put the end cap back on it, and weld it completely shut," Hardy said during a site visit. (This story was generated by Newser's AI chatbot. Source: the AP)
Delta Air Lines will extend its flight suspension to Israel until October 31, citing continued hostilities between Israel and Hamas. "Delta is continuously monitoring the evolving security environment and assessing our operations," the airline noted. This announcement follows American Airlines' decision to halt US-Tel Aviv flights until March 29, 2024.

Both airlines will allow affected customers to rebook or get refunds. Delta customers can rebook on El Al and Air France through Delta's website. American Airlines will assist customers with partner flights connecting Israeli and European cities to US destinations. Other carriers have similarly suspended flights, although some have since resumed. Notably, Lufthansa announced it will halt Middle East operations to various cities including Tel Aviv and Beirut through Monday based on security assessments. (This story was generated by Newser's AI chatbot. Source: the AP)
Federal regulators have fined Lingo Telecom $1 million for its involvement in deceptive robocalls targeting New Hampshire voters that used AI to mimic President Joe Biden's voice. This settlement culminates an enforcement action by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which had initially wanted to see a $2 million penalty imposed. The calls, which were placed on January 21, falsely implied that participating in the state's presidential primary would bar voters from the general election in November.

The misleading phone messages, devised by political consultant Steve Kramer, went out to thousands of voters. Kramer, who employed a street magician to create the audio, stated his intention was to highlight AI risks, not mess with the primary. He faces a proposed $6 million FCC fine and state criminal charges that carry potential sentences of up to seven years for voter suppression and one year for candidate impersonation.

In addition to the fine, Lingo Telecom has agreed to stringent caller ID authentication rules and verification obligations to safeguard the accuracy of information from clients and upstream providers. FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel emphasized, "Every one of us deserves to know that the voice on the line is exactly who they claim to be." Loyaan Egal, FCC Enforcement Bureau Chief, warned that combining caller ID spoofing with AI voice-cloning technology poses a serious threat to political integrity. At the time of reporting, Lingo Telecom had not commented on the settlement. (This story was generated by Newser's AI chatbot. Source: the AP)
After she wrapped up the European leg of her Eras Tour with a concert at London's Wembley Stadium on Tuesday night, Taylor Swift said the cancellation of three shows in Vienna earlier this month was "devastating" and explained why she hadn't spoken out sooner. The shows were called off after authorities said they foiled an ISIS-linked plot to attack the concerts. In a post on Instagram Wednesday, Swift said she decided all her energy "had to go toward helping to protect the nearly half a million people I had coming to see the shows in London," CNN reports. "My team and I worked hand in hand with stadium staff and British authorities every day in pursuit of that goal, and I want to thank them for everything they did for us," she wrote.

"I am not going to speak about something publicly if I think doing so might provoke those who would want to harm the fans who come to my shows," Swift said. "In cases like this one, 'silence' is actually showing restraint, and waiting to express yourself at a time when it's right to. My priority was finishing our European tour safely, and it is with great relief that I can say we did that."
After 40 years in captivity, a former circus elephant in South Africa is learning a new trick: living in the wild. Male elephants in the wild don't leave their mothers until they are teenagers, but Charlie was captured in Zimbabwe when he was just two years old. He was trained to perform tricks at the Boswell Wilkie Circus and was later moved to South Africa's only national zoo, where he was the last remaining elephant at the Pretoria facility before a big move this week, the BBC reports. His new home is the Shambala Private Reserve, a 25,000-acre nature reserve where experts will help him prepare for life in the wild.

"Our dream is that at his own pace, Charlie will learn to be the elephant he was always meant to be, and that soon, he will meet up and integrate into the existing elephant community on Shambala," the EMS Foundation said in a statement. The group spent years negotiating with the South African government, which argued that signs of distress associated with captivity, including head-swaying, were "learned behavior from the circus life" that the elephant would not be able to unlearn. The group is also trying to secure the release to the wild of three elephants at a zoo run by the city of Johannesburg.

Michele Pickover, executive director of the EMS Foundation, says Charlie will be slowly introduced to larger spaces at the reserve, News24 reports. "We're not just dropping him off into a natural system," she says. "He's been in captivity for 40 years. It will be a process to get him back to what an elephant should be." Veterinarian Amil Khalil, who oversaw the transfer, says initial signs are positive. He tells the BBC that Charlie, who was alone at the zoo for four years after its other elephant died, was "very excited to hear other elephants from far away" and has started communicating with them. He says that it will take time for Charlie to learn to fend for himself, but "we must not forget that Charlie was born in the wild. He has spent almost two years with his mother living in freedom." (More uplifting news stories.)
The thing is, it probably took a lot of time to paint the drug packages to look like watermelons. But the results were, let's say, not that great. As a result, US border agents intercepted more than $5 million worth of methamphetamine at the US-Mexico border, reports the BBC. A release from the US Customs and Border Protection explains that agents at the Otay Mesa Commercial Facility in San Diego inspected a truck purported to be carrying watermelons from Mexico and discovered that more than 1,200 of the "melons" were actually packages of meth, wrapped in plastic and painted two shades of green.
Among industrial zones of various types in African countries, many were built and operated by Chinese enterprises. Through these zones, African countries can participate more effectively in the global production chain and promote the internationalization of local brands. NAIROBI, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- From Uganda to Egypt, and from Senegal to Nigeria, Chinese-operated industrial parks and zones are thriving across Africa, helping the continent better integrate into the global production chain and promote new African brands. Driven by the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China's involvement in African industry is also fostering the ecological and sustainable development of local manufacturing, thereby enhancing its competitiveness in the global market. As this fruitful cooperation continues, "Made in Africa" sees promising prospects. "MADE IN AFRICA" BOOMING Hellen Mugala, 27, joins hundreds of her colleagues each morning to commute to the Sino-Uganda Mbale Industrial Park in the eastern district of Mbale, Uganda. "This industrial park has helped many local people. I've gained skills and earned a living," she said. The park, invested in and operated by the private Chinese company Tian Tang Group, has attracted more than 40 companies since its establishment in March 2018, creating over 5,000 local jobs. One notable company in the park is Pearlight Technology Co., Ltd, which manufactures lighting products, contributing to reducing Uganda's dependence on imported LED lamps by producing them affordably and facilitating repairs. "Previously, Uganda's LED lamps were mainly imported, expensive, and difficult to repair. Chinese companies have changed this situation. Now, our company produces about 3 million LED bulbs and tubes annually, sold across Uganda," said local technician Joseph Otim. Spanning thousands of hectares, the park encompasses a wide range of sectors, including household appliances, daily beauty products, home fabrics, building materials, medicines, smartphones, televisions and automobiles. It reflects the achievements of Sino-African cooperation under the BRI and serves as a model for promoting local industrialization and modernization through incubating local brands. Among industrial zones of various types in African countries, many were built and operated by Chinese enterprises, such as the Diamniadio International Industrial Platform in Senegal, the Lekki Free Trade Zone in Nigeria, and the China-Egypt TEDA Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone in Egypt. Through these zones, African countries can participate more effectively in the global production chain and promote the internationalization of local brands. ECO-FRIENDLY MANUFACTURING The BRI encourages ecological and sustainable development, supports African countries in adopting green technologies and clean energy in manufacturing. This not only helps protect Africa's natural environment but also gives African manufacturing a "green manufacturing" label, enhancing its appeal in the global market. Based in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, Gogo Electric, one of the country's top three electric motorcycle manufacturers, imports lithium-ion batteries from China and assembles electric motorcycles for the local market. Janos Bisasso, its chief operating officer, said that customers can always bring their used batteries to a battery exchange station, where they can get a fully charged battery at a lower price. Over time, customers may realize that exchanging batteries is less expensive than refueling, encouraging them to choose electric motorcycles. In Kenya, the BasiGo project in Nairobi highlights the importance of cooperation in the eco-friendly transportation sector. Faced with local currency devaluation and rising energy import costs, the Kenyan government has expanded support for the electric vehicle sector, which relies on the country's renewable energy resources. BasiGo, a Kenyan startup, launched its electric bus service in March 2022, locally assembled from parts supplied by Chinese automotive company BYD. Mutoro Sifuna, BasiGo's marketing director, emphasized the significant energy cost savings of electric buses compared with diesel ones. They plan to introduce and operate 1,000 electric buses by 2025. BETTER FUTURE FOR "MADE IN AFRICA" Sino-African cooperation in the electric transportation sector has become a tangible example of the positive outcomes of the BRI. Chinese companies bring quality products and technologies that meet the needs of local businesses and contribute to the transition towards a more sustainable future. Africa has enormous potential in natural resources and labor. Through cooperation with China, Africa has begun to update its own production capabilities, while eco-friendly manufacturing and innovative technologies allow African brands to gain positions in the global market. Through further enhancing cooperation, China and Africa are shaping a promising future for "Made in Africa." African countries can develop more advanced technologies, get skilled professionals, and create larger markets. The BRI has already laid a solid foundation. With the determination of both parties and the support of the international community, "Made in Africa" is entering an era of prosperity and sustainable development, contributing to the global economy and improving the lives of African people.
Two Russian climbers injured on Gasherbrum in Pakistan reached a hospital in Peshawar on Thursday after being stranded for a week. The pair, part of a five-member team, attempted to retrieve the body of a fellow climber who perished last year. Their mission was halted when they were struck by a pile of ice on Friday.

Rescuers initially airlifted two climbers on Monday, but complications including poor weather kept the remaining two stuck at base camp until Wednesday. Akhtar Hussain, a police official in Skardu, confirmed the climbers are stable and receiving treatment after being brought to a hospital via ambulance on Thursday. The Alpine Club of Pakistan's secretary, Karrar Haidri, noted that search efforts for the fifth climber, presumed dead, have been halted.

Hussain said they expressed sadness over the loss of their fellow climber, but also thanks the Pakistani rescuers and army's efforts. Their injuries were relatively minor; one needed minimal care, while the other suffered bruises. Climbers undertaking such endeavors in Pakistan face significant risks, with frequent accidents due to avalanches and sudden weather changes. (This story was generated by Newser's AI chatbot. Source: the AP)
Social media influencer Andrew Tate was placed under house arrest for 30 days on Thursday while Romanian authorities investigate new allegations against him involving human trafficking and sexual exploitation. He and his brother Tristan, who was placed under judicial control, appeared in court on Thursday in Bucharest. Romania's anti-organized crime agency said that it's investigating allegations involving 35 possible victims and that six people in all have been detained, the BBC reports. Andrew Tate said Wednesday, after being questioned for several hours, that the accusations were "pathetic." Prosecutors "made up a lot," he said.

The prosecutors have accused the Tates of buying four luxury cars and registering them in the other people's names to conceal the proceeds of illicit activity. Sixteen luxury cars were impounded when authorities searched four properties Wednesday night, per the BBC. The two made about $2.8 million through sexual exploitation, prosecutors said. The brothers already were under orders to not leave Romania, though they could travel within the country, per the Guardian. They were indicted last year on charges including human trafficking, rape, and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women, all of which the Tates denied. The former kickboxerswho are dual British-US citizens, per the APare awaiting trial in that case.

Two of the suspects forced 34 victims into making pornography by convincing them they were in a romantic relationship, the agency said; the money came from selling the pornography online. Another allegation is that Andrew Tate had sex with a 15-year-old girl. Asked about that by the BBC, he refused to answer. He did call the overall case a setup, saying: "Thirty of those girls say we have done nothing wrong. Two are the mothers of our children, two have never even been here to Romania." (A court was not moved by the reported illness of the Tates' mother to allow them to leave Romania.)
UPDATE

Aug 23, 2024 6:47 AM CDT

In the famous words of Michelle Obama, "When they go low, we go high." And though she may have abandoned that sentiment for Wednesday's speech at the Democratic National Convention, she acted it out Thursday as some on social media took to bullying the 17-year-old son of Tim Walz for his emotional reaction to seeing his father on the DNC stage. "Thankful for you showing us all what real love looks like, Gus," the former first lady wrote on X. "Let's be a nation that embraces this kind of warmth and vulnerability, instead of making fun or mocking it."

Aug 22, 2024 2:50 PM CDT

The 17-year-old son of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz drew a lot of attention at the convention Wednesday when he wept during his father's speech. On Thursday, Gus Walz remained in the spotlight in another way. Conservative pundit Ann Coulter tweeted a link to a story and photo on Gus' tearful reaction and wrote, "Talk about weird ...," reports Politico. (It's a callback to Tim Walz using the same term against Republicans.) Coulter, though, deleted the tweet amid a quick and fierce pushback pointing out that Gus is only 17 and has what has been described as a nonverbal learning disorder, per the Daily Beast.
Venezuela's Supreme Court has backed President Nicolas Maduro's claims that he won last month's presidential election and said voting tallies published online showing he lost by a landslide were forged. The ruling is the latest attempt by Maduro to blunt protests and international criticism that erupted after the contested July 28 vote in which the self-proclaimed socialist leader was seeking a third, six-year term. The high court is packed with Maduro loyalists and has almost never ruled against the government, the AP reports.

Its decision, read Thursday in an event attended by senior officials and foreign diplomats, came in response to a request by Maduro to review vote totals showing he had won by more than 1 million votes. The main opposition coalition has accused Maduro of trying to steal the vote. On Election Day, opposition volunteers managed to collect copies of voting tallies from 80% of the 30,000 polling booths nationwide, which show opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez won by a more than 2-to-1 margin. The official tally sheets printed by each voting machine carry a QR code that make it easy for anyone to verify the results and are almost impossible to replicate, per the AP.

The ruling certifying the results contradicts the findings of experts from the United Nations and the Carter Center who were invited to observe the election. Both determined the results announced by authorities lacked credibility. Specifically, the outside experts noted that authorities didn't release a breakdown of results by each of the 30,000 voting booths nationwide, as they have in almost every previous election. The government has claimed  without evidencethat a foreign cyberattack by hackers from North Macedonia delayed the vote counting on election night and publication of the disaggregated results. Gonzalez was the only one of 10 candidates who did not participate in the Supreme Court's audit, a fact noted by the justices, who accused him of trying to spread panic. The former diplomat went into hiding after the election as security forces arrested more than 2,000 people and cracked down on demonstrations protesting the results.

(More Venezuela elections stories.)
Fairbanks, AK (99701)

Today

Snow showers. Low around 30F. Winds light and variable. Chance of snow 50%. Snow accumulations less than one inch..

Tonight

Snow showers. Low around 30F. Winds light and variable. Chance of snow 50%. Snow accumulations less than one inch.
TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune - www.newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain International Airport experienced robust passenger traffic and flight activity during July 2024, according to statistics released by the Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunications.

A total of 873,549 passengers traveled through the airport last month, with 424,517 arriving and 449,032 departing.

The number of arriving aircraft reached 4,498, while departing flights totaled 4,513. This resulted in a combined total of 9,011 aircraft movements at Bahrain International Airport in July.

Additionally, 41,391 transit flights passed through the airport.

Notable destinations saw significant passenger numbers in July. 55,743 passengers traveled to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. 45,715 passengers traveled to Doha, Qatar. 27,968 passengers traveled to Mumbai, India, and 11,642 passengers traveled to Islamabad, Pakistan.

The total volume of air cargo and mail handled in July amounted to 31,804 tons. This included 12,140 tons of transit cargo, 11,870 tons of inbound cargo, and 7,794 tons of outbound cargo.

The strong performance of Bahrain International Airport in July reflects the growing popularity of the country as a regional hub for travel and trade.

This positive trend is expected to continue in the coming months, further boosting Bahrains economy and tourism sector.
TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune - www.newsofbahrain.com

Five Bahraini travelers have been detained in Yemen since August 1st, raising concerns among their families and prompting calls for government intervention. MP Jalal Kazim Al Mahfoudh confirmed the detention, stating that he has taken up the case and is actively engaging with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to utilise diplomatic channels for their release.

The travelers, known for their passion for travel and exploration, embarked on a road trip from Bahrain to Salalah, Oman, a popular tourist destination. After spending time in Salalah, they crossed the Oman-Yemen border into Yemen legally and spent two nights there before planning to continue their journey to Abha, Saudi Arabia, via Yemen. However, they were stopped at a security checkpoint in Marib by forces affiliated with the internationally recognised government of Yemen.

Al Mahfoudh emphasised that the detainees are well-known in the community for their adventurous travels, and their entry into Yemen was solely for transit purposes on their way to Saudi Arabia. He disclosed that urgent communication channels have been established with relevant authorities, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is actively working through diplomatic means to secure the release of the detained citizens.

Meanwhile, Zakaria Mehdi Abdulrasul, father of two of the detained travelers, Mehdi and Hadi, appealed to Bahraini authorities for swift action to secure their release. He described his sons and their three friends as avid travelers who have explored numerous countries for years. He explained that they had chosen to travel to Abha via Yemen to shorten the journey, but were detained by Yemeni government forces in Marib for over 20 days.

Abdulrasul highlighted his sons' reputation as travelers, with their social media accounts filled with photos of their adventures across continents. He stressed that his son Mehdi works in the field of land transportation and frequently travels between countries for his work.

The family lost contact with the detainees on August 1st, after they initially confirmed their detention and ongoing investigation by authorities in Marib. The families are anxiously awaiting news of their loved ones' well-being.
TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune - www.newsofbahrain.com

The Ambassador of the Kingdom of Bahrain to Kuwait, Salah Ali Al Malki, has confirmed that all Bahraini citizens involved in a traffic accident in Kuwait are in stable condition and receiving treatment at the hospital.

Ambassador Al Malki explained that eight Bahraini citizens, including two men (one in his fifties) and six women (ranging in age from their twenties to fifties), were traveling in a vehicle driven by a tour operator. While en route to the Republic of Iraq, they were involved in a traffic accident that resulted in seven of them sustaining various injuries. All injured individuals were transported to Al Jahra Hospital for medical attention.

Ambassador Al Malki noted that two of the injured women sustained minor injuries and did not require hospitalisation.

"One of the injured individuals has already left the hospital and continued his journey to Iraq, while the driver and four women remain hospitalised for treatment due to back injuries," he explained.

He further clarified that one of the injured women, in her fifties, may require surgery based on the doctors' assessment of her condition.

Ambassador Al Malki stressed that the embassy is closely monitoring the condition of the injured citizens.

"The Bahraini Consul at the embassy, Hassan Al Saba'a, has visited them to ensure their well-being. He has also been in contact with the doctor overseeing their medical care, Dr Khalid Al Awadhi, to confirm they are receiving the necessary care," he pointed out.

Ambassador Al Malki assured that the injured individuals will continue their treatment in Kuwait as required by their medical condition before being safely returned to Bahrain.
AFP | Tehran, Iran

The Daily Tribune - www.newsofbahrain.com

At least 28 Pakistani pilgrims travelling to Iraq for a Shiite Muslim ritual were killed as their bus crashed in central Iran, state media reported early yesterday.

A bus carrying 51 Pakistani pilgrims overturned and caught fire in front of Dehshir-Taft checkpoint in the central province of Yazd on Tuesday night, Iranian state television reported.

It said 28 people have been killed and 23 injured so far with the possibility of the death toll increasing.

Yazd province crisis management chief Ali Malek-zadeh told the broadcaster that some of the injured were in critical condition.

Of the 23 injured, six have already been discharged from hospital, while the condition of seven others is critical, Malek-zadeh said. The dead consisted of 11 women and 17 men, he added.

Head of Iran traffic police, Teymour Hosseini, cited technical failure in the brake system and the high inclination of the road as the reasons for the crash.

The Iranian and Pakistani foreign ministries expressed their condolences and sympathies to the families of the bereaved. Most of the victims are residents of Pakistans southeastern Sindh province where the bus journey began.

Syed Sultan Ali, the brother of the tour operator, told AFP: My older brother Syed Shamsi has been running this service since 2010, and it has always gone so well. We have been deeply upset since last night.

He added that his brother is unhurt because he was travelling in a separate vehicle.

The Pakistani pilgrims were headed through Iran to Iraq to attend the Arbaeen commemoration, one of the biggest events of the Shiite calendar which marks the 40th day of mourning for Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Mohammed.
Agencies | Dubai, United Arab Emirates

The Daily Tribune - www.newsofbahrain.com

Three projectiles hit a merchant vessel off Yemens rebel-held port city of Hodeida on Wednesday, causing a fire onboard and leaving the ship without engine power, a British maritime security agency said.

The ship initially exchanged fire with two small vessels, one with three to five people onboard while the second carried around 10, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said.

The ship was later struck by two unidentified projectiles before being hit by a third, the agency, which is run by Britains Royal Navy, said.

There is a fire onboard and the vessel has lost engine power, it said, adding that there were no reports of casualties. The vessel is drifting and not under command, UKMTO said.

A spokesperson for the Greek port authority identified the vessel as the Greek-flagged Sounion, an oil products tanker owned by Delta Tankers, a Greek shipping company.

The ship, which carried a crew of 25 people, mostly Filipinos, departed from Iraq and was destined for a port near Athens where many refineries are based, the Greek port authority said.

No injuries have been reported so far, according to the port authority, which said the ship could have been hit either by missiles or drones. In a separate incident south of the Yemeni port city of Aden on Wednesday, another ship reported two explosions in the water in close proximity, UKMTO said.

The crew are reported safe and vessel is proceeding to the next port of call, the agency added.
Two Upper stages of Rockets at the Blue Origin New Glenn Factory were damaged in the last few weeks. These incidents are only now being reported.

The upper portion of one rocket crumpled into itself, in part due to worker error, while it was being moved to a storage hangar. It was moved from hot and humid conditions outdoors an into an air-conditioned storage hangar. It then collapsed like a crushed coke can.

In a separate incident, another upper rocket portion failed during stress testing and exploded.

New Glenn is designed to compete with SpaceX Falcon Heavy and is four years late.

Blue Origin is trying to launch NASA Escapade mission to Mars. It needs to launch in October, 2024 when the Mars launch window is open. Mars and Earth get aligned every two years.

The two mishaps involved hardware for the second and third flights of the New Glenn rocket, which are supposed to happen after the October debut.

NASA Escapade will send twin spacecraft that will study the Mars magnetic field.
Cumberland City Council, in Sydney's west, said the Tesla was rolled out in a bid to keep parking inspectors safe after a string of violent clashes.

Cumberland City Council said it deployed a Tesla Parking Safety Vehicle in 2021 to distribute ticketless parking fines to keep staff safe. Source: Facebook

A local council has defended its decision to roll out a "parking safety vehicle" to issue ticketless fines after criticism from the public, saying it was "disappointed" it was forced to resort to the method in response to a "sickening" spike in assaults on rangers.

Cumberland City Council, which oversees the bustling western Sydney suburbs of Auburn, Fairfield, Lidcombe, Merrylands and Westmead, said it deployed its customised Tesla EV in 2021 to keep staff safe, after a string of violent clashes. The Tesla is equiped with special cameras that are linked with licence plate monitoring software to allow the council to send electronic fines to drivers doing the wrong thing.

The council said "one staff member was hospitalised as a result of these assaults", with there being a shocking 33 violent incidents  equating to approximately 14 per year  between August 2019 and December 2021, before the introduction of the safety EV in the LGA.

It said since 2021, the rate at which staff had been abused drastically declined. Speaking to Yahoo News Australia, a Cumberland City spokesperson said the vehicle was only used in "high-risk areas".

The City rolled out the Tesla after a staff member was hospitalised as a result of the assaults. Source: Facebook

Council says attacks on staff decreased after Tesla's deployment

According to council officials, the technology is similar to that used in public and private carparks.

"In response to a number of sickening assaults on Council staff, Council implemented a trial of a vehicle with cameras on it that links to licence plate monitoring software, similar to what is used in major public and private carparks," the spokesperson told Yahoo.

"This data shows us that the implementation of this technology has reduced these incidents by just over 64 per cent. Council uses this vehicle in high-risk areas like our town centres and surrounding streets."

The Tesla can only detect offences in time-limited parking areas, no stopping zones, no parking zones and loading zones, they added.

"If the vehicle detects an offence, it is digitally sent to Revenue NSW on the same day. Revenue NSW then posts the fine," the spokesperson said. "Council still undertakes foot patrols every day. Council is disappointed that it has to implement these measures to provide a safer workplace for our staff."

'Invisible' parking fines controversial topic among NSW drivers

Ticketless, or "invisible", fines have been a heated topic of debate in recent times, with local governments in NSW in particular urged by the state government this month to cease or drastically reduce the practice.

Councils have been urged to "come to the table" and "deliver a solution which embraces transparency and fairness" after it was revealed the amount of ticketless parking fines handed down to unsuspecting drivers in one state has surged in the past financial year.

There was a whopping 49 per cent increase in NSW in the 2023-24 financial year when it came to the distribution of ticketless parking fines, new data revealed in August, with 822,300 of the infringements posted in 2023-24, compared to 551,400 in 2022-23.

The controversial system, which often results in drivers only becoming aware of the fine weeks after the offence, was introduced by the previous Coalition state government. It has seemingly divided councils across the state, with some saying they'll continue only issuing on-the-spot fines, while others insisting they won't revert back unless they're made to.

Drivers on the other hand appear to be unanimous in their calls to have the system abolished. NSW Minister for Finance Courtney Houssos backed those calls and said the community feedback has been overwhelming in favour of councils providing drivers with on-the-spot notifications of parking fines.

"Im grateful to the councils that have recognised the significant issues with the ticketless parking system introduced by the previous Liberal-National government," Houssos said.

"I have spoken to mayors and councils from across the state and many agree there is a fundamental issue with a failure to notify drivers at the time of the fine. If councils arent willing to provide a common-sense fix, the NSW government will step in and use our policy levers to ensure the ticketless parking fine system meets community expectations."

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

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A 33-year-old woman with 15 warrants out for her arrest was taken into custody after she threatened to kill a merchant on the Atlantic City boardwalk, officials said.

Fatima Gadson was blocking the entrance to the store when the the shopkeeper arrived to open up around 11:40 a.m. Tuesday, Atlantic City police said. The two then began arguing before Gadson allegedly spit on the man.

When the merchant called 911, Gadson tried to run off, police said. The shopkeeper grabbed her shirt in an attempt to hold the woman for police.

Gadson then lifted her shirt to show a gun and made the verbal threat before pedaling away on a bicycle, according to police.

The merchant provided police with a description of Gadson and officers found the bicycle before spotting her trying to walk into a store on the 2500 block of Pacific Avenue, police said. She was armed with what police said was an imitation gun.

After first ignoring police orders to drop the weapon, Gadson eventually surrendered inside the business, authorities said.

Gadson, of Philadelphia, is charged with simple assault, terrorist threats, obstruction of justice and a weapons offense.

She was arrested in April in Hamilton in Atlantic County on a warrant issued in Lindenwold for criminal trespass, drug possession and hindering apprehension, according to records. She also had warrants out of Cherry Hill and Camden on an array of charges, including theft of services, hindering and disorderly conduct, municipal court records state.

Gadson was sent to the Atlantic County jail. Attorney information wasnt immediately available.

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Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com.
Laura Benantis Melania Trump impression became such an institution on The Late Show that she got her own portmanteau:

Benania.

In fact, Benanti, the Tony-winning actor of stage and screen who grew up in Kinnelon, told NJ Advance Media last year that people started sending her threats over the impression.

I had to move because of it, she said, so she left New York and returned to New Jersey. (She currently lives in Essex County.)

But the end of the Trump administration didnt mean Benanti said goodbye to the former first lady for good.

More: N.J.s Laura Benanti on the Melania impression that made her leave N.Y.

The actor, who debuted her impression in 2016, brought it back once again for this weeks Democratic National Convention (watch below).

Benanti, 45, whose recent film and TV roles include No Hard Feelings and The Gilded Age, got into Melania mode for an episode of The Late Show, which is in Chicago for the DNC.

Host Stephen Colbert, who lives in Montclair, welcomed Benantis impression back to the show.

Her Melania dropped some memorable tidbits like Chicago-lago in the appearance, despite the real Melania Trump not speaking at the Republican National Convention.

Benanti, whose off-Broadway comedy show, Laura Benanti: Nobody Cares, is currently on Audible, called Chicago the greatest city in the world  because this week there is no chance my husband will be here.

Colbert wanted to know: what does she think of Trumps running mate?

I have always been in favor of him getting a new mate, she said. Up top.

With that, Colbert and Melania high-fived through their split screen.

Did you know that the Democrats are casting a magical spell to turn the first lady into a man? she asked Colbert.

When the Late Show host explained that if Kamala Harris is elected president, there would be a first gentleman instead of a first lady, Benania had another thought.

Why does she get to have a husband whos a gentleman? Benantis Melania said, pouting and throwing her arms down in frustration.

She gets Doug Emhoff, I get that jagoff ... Chicago slang, I love it here.

Benania said she loves Chicago so much, she plans to stay. With that, she donned a Mike Ditka-esque look of Bears hat, glasses and mustache.

I cheer for da hot dogs and I eat da Sox, Benanti said, laughing and breaking character for a moment as she lost her mustache.

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Amy Kuperinsky may be reached at akuperinsky@njadvancemedia.com and followed at @AmyKup.
A local immigration advocacy group is holding outreach sessions notifying undocumented immigrants who are married to U.S. citizens that they may qualify for a new residency program that launched this week.

Make the Road New Jersey is hosting a series of educational workshops and legal clinics to help people learn about the program  called parole in place  and their potential eligibility.

The goal is to reach the 11,000 people who live in New Jersey that are going to qualify for parole in place, said Diego Bartesaghi, a spokesman for the advocacy group.

On Monday, officials opened the program, which can grant undocumented immigrants married to U.S. citizens work authorization, protection from deportation and for some, a pathway to citizenship, immigration advocates said.

President Joe Biden announced the policy in June, according to ABC News.

To be eligible, applicants must have been in the country continuously for at least 10 years, not pose a security threat or have a disqualifying criminal history and have been married to a U.S. citizen by June 17, the day before officials announced the program, the news outlet reported.

Applicants must also pay a $580 fee to apply through the Department of Homeland Security, as well as fill out a lengthy application, ABC News reported. If approved, they have three years to seek permanent residency. During that period, they can get work authorization.

Make the Road New Jersey held the first informational session Wednesday night in Passaic and Elizabeth. Roughly 60 people attended in Passaic, and another 50 people attended in Elizabeth, said Bartesaghi.

The advocacy group has two additional sessions coming up:

Thursday, Aug. 22 at 6:30 p.m. at the YWCA at 357 New Brunswick Ave. in Perth Amboy

Thursday, Sept. 5 at 7:00 p.m. at 42 Broad St. in Elizabeth

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Brianna Kudisch may be reached at bkudisch@njadvancemedia.com.
Nicole Sherwin, 36, didn't know what was in the beauty treatment until after she got it.

Nicole Sherwin, 36, unknowingly agreed to have salmon sperm injected into her face on Saturday at a Melbourne cosmetic clinic. Source: TikTok

One mum eager to hide the signs of ageing on her face has turned to a curious beauty treatment recently launched in the Aussie market  with the source of the injectable substance raising plenty of eyebrows.

Nicole Sherwin, 36, has been regularly having cosmetic surgery for just under a year now and on Saturday she attended her clinic in Melbourne. However, rather than getting her usual treatment, her cosmetic nurse suggested Rejuran.

"She said you don't need fillers, this product Rejuran stimulates your own collagen growth," Sherwin told Yahoo News. "It's a long game, and you'll start to see results after a few months. It basically promotes your own cell regeneration."

It was only after agreeing to and receiving the $400 treatment that the mum of two toddlers was informed of what was injected into her face  salmon sperm.

"It wasn't until after I'd done it that she was like, 'By the way, it's derived from salmon sperm," Sherwin laughed, explaining she "wholly trusts" her cosmetic nurse who "knew [she'd] be fine with it".

Rejuran recently approved for cosmetic use in Australia

Rejuran was approved for cosmetic use in Australia last July, with it previously only used in drugs that helped treat symptoms associated with involuntary urination. The origins of how medical practitioners learned of its cosmetic enhancement abilities are unknown.

Much like Botox or fillers, patients have the drug injected under their skin. Immediately post-injection of Rejuran, patients experience bumping, however, this should disappear and leave no bruising.

Cosmetic use of Rejuran causes small, temporary bumps to form at the injection sites. Source: Instagram/drfionamilne

Taboo around cosmetic surgery dwindling as Aussies saying 'yes'

Whether Aussies are doing it to get within closer reach of the ever-shifting beauty standards, or simply because it makes them feel better, Sherwin believes people should go for it as long as they're doing it safely.

"I think as long as they're safe, which I know that in the Australian market they are, and the injector is ethical about it, go for it," she said. "If it's safe and it works and it makes you feel good, then I'm all for new innovation."

"I think a misconception is that people think when you get Botox, you are going to have a totally frozen face. But I think what they don't realise is so many people get it, and you don't notice," she said.

According to the Australasian College of Cosmetic Surgery and Medicine, more than one third of Aussies have considered cosmetic surgery, with these numbers growing  indicating the taboo around cosmetic surgery is lessening as more people opt-in.

Sherwin will attend her clinic again in four weeks to receive her next dose, explaining the process will take time as it relies on the skin's natural regeneration process, but she is excited by the promised outcome.

"It's for nobody but myself, it's just a little freshener," she said.

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A New Jersey financial counselor and U.S. Army reservist who admitted to defrauding Gold Star families that received death benefits after their family members died serving in the military has been sentenced to more than 12 years in federal prison.

Caz Craffy also will be subject to three years of supervised release and was ordered to forfeit $1.4 million on top of his 12-year, seven-month sentence, the U.S. Attorneys Office said Wednesday.

Also known as Carz Craffey, the 42-year-old Colts Neck resident was indicted in June 2023 after investigators accused him of targeting families of deceased veterans and collecting millions in commissions on trades in financial securities without the approval of his clients.

Craffy was a major in the U.S. Army reserves, having been enlisted since 2003, and also worked as a civilian employee of the U.S. Army at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst from November 2017 through January 2023 as a financial counselor, authorities said.

Gold Star families, families of military veterans who died while on active duty, are entitled to $100,000 plus up to $400,000 in service member life insurance, officials said.

As a civilian financial counselor, Craffy was responsible for offering general financial education to families receiving death benefits and was prohibited from providing personal opinions on what to do with those benefits, officials said.

Craffy acknowledged that he was prohibited from personally participating in any government matter in which he had an outside financial interest, yet he maintained outside employment with two financial firms from Point Pleasant Beach and Boca Raton, Florida, authorities said.

The financial firms paid commissions to Craffy based on the size and volume of trades, not on whether they earned any money, and were paid out of the accounts on whose behalf the trades were made, prosecutors said in the indictment.

Craffy admitted he encouraged families to invest benefits in accounts he managed in his outside, private employment, officials said.

Between May 2018 and November 2022, Craffy collected more than $9.9 million from Gold Star families to invest through accounts he managed in his private capacity and made trades without prior consent which violated both financial firms policies, officials said.

Craffy earned more than $1.4 million in commissions for the unauthorized trades, authorities said, which resulted in losses totaling more than $3.7 million.

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Matthew Enuco may be reached at menuco@njadvancemedia.com.

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com.
U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr.s death on Wednesday leaves Democrats in New Jerseys 9th Congressional District with just one week to select a replacement for the November ballot, setting the stage for a convention of leaders in Bergen, Passaic and Hudson counties.

Under state law, the three Democratic committees that make up the North Jersey district must submit a name to the New Jersey Secretary of State by Aug. 29  next Thursday  to be placed on the Nov. 5 ballot for Pascrells seat. With party leaders away at the Democratic National Convention, that doesnt leave much time to make sure the committees meet and endorse.
Exclusive: The Foreign Minister's office and Captain Paul Watson Foundation have met amid growing frustration Australia has been silent since his arrest.

Australian government officials have met with a representative of Captain Paul Watson, amid growing calls for it to intervene in the jailing of the anti-whaling activist. The discussions follow a call from French President Emmanuel Macron for Denmark to set him free.

Yahoo News can exclusively reveal the foreign ministers office has engaged with Captain Paul Watson Foundation Australia. The leader of the group described the talks as "positive", and it's understood Watson's arrest is now being investigated by the government. The meeting was arranged amid a growing international perception from some of Watson's supporters that Australia had abandoned him in his time of need.

Related: Surprising theory emerges as Japan butchers fin whales

Last decade Watson, a Canadian-American, had worked tirelessly to stop Japan killing whales in Antarctic waters and the adjacent Australian Whale Sanctuary. Sea Shepherd Frances co-founder and president Lamya Essemlali told Yahoo News that Australia should be demanding Paul's liberation and slammed the governments silence on the issue as cowardice.

Australia should have been enforcing that territory, and Paul did it for them. So the least they could do is speak out for Paul. Their silence is absolutely shameful. It's shameful, she said.

Essemlali has visited Watson several times in jail, describing his conditions there as not that bad but she warns Japan would be a different story, saying it has a middle-aged prison system. Its feared the 73-year-old would die in jail if he's extradited.

Japan is seeking revenge, and they will do everything they can to get that revenge. Paul knows that the only way to save his life and his freedom is for the public opinion and the media to speak out and for all the governments that have signed the global moratorium on whaling to speak out, she added.

Lamya Essemlali visiting Captain Paul Watson in prison. Source: Supplied

Government talks with Paul Watson supporter 'positive'

Yahoo News contacted the offices of Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for comment, and they directed questions to Foreign Minister Penny Wongs office.

Following discussions with her office, Haans Siver, who heads the newly formed Australia chapter of the Paul Watson Foundation, told Yahoo News the response she received was positive, and she now wants to see the government apply pressure to secure Watsons release.

This man who's dedicated his entire life to saving the whales, the government needs to help us, and put pressure on the Danish government to not extradite him, she said.

Australia and New Zealand took Japan to court over its whale hunting in the Southern Ocean. Source: EPA/TIM WATTERS/SEA SHEPHERD AUSTRALIA

Why is Australia being asked to intervene?

Watson, the co-founder of Greenpeace and founder of Sea Shepherd, was arrested on a secret Japanese issued international Red Notice when he entered Greenland, an autonomous region of Denmark.

Denmark has been repeatedly criticised by the Captain Paul Watson Foundation for allowing the residents of the Faroe Islands to butcher thousands of dolphins and whales.

French President Macron intervened because Watson had been a resident of France for several years. Watson's supporters also believe Australia has an obligation to speak out because the charges Watson faces are in relation to fighting against Japans illegal whaling in the Southern Ocean.

In 2014 Japan was ordered to withdraw from the region, after Australia successfully took it to the International Court of Justice. It then withdrew from Antarctic waters and began commercial whaling in its own territory, expanding its kill list to include fin whales this year which are listed as vulnerable to extinction, a decision Australia labelled disappointing.

Watson was en route to intervene in Japans plan to kill fin whales when he was ambushed a month ago by armed police, on a Red Notice from 2012 that relates to incidents on the Southern Ocean in February 2010. Charges are understood to include accomplice to an assault and ship trespass after he allegedly boarded a Japanese-owned ship.

It is not just overseas where there have been calls to release Watson. Tasmanian conservationist Bob Brown has been urging the government to intervene. And Greens Senator Peter Whish-Wilson is expected to be raising the matter in Question Time today.

Yahoo contacted Opposition Leader Peter Dutton's office on Monday for comment but it is yet to respond.

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In footage provided to Yahoo News, curious Aussies watched on in wonder as experts saved the stranded sunfish.

Dozens of bystanders standing on Frankston Pier, south of Melbourne, watched rescuers work to save the sunfish last week. Source: Supplied

Dozens of bystanders were seen teetering on the edge of a jetty at a popular Aussie beach last week  all staring in wonder at a rare creature in the water below. The crowd began to form after passersby spotted the 1.2 metre-long fish with a dorsal fin struggling in the knee-deep water near the Frankston Pier, south of Melbourne.

In footage provided to Yahoo News, the curious onlookers also appear to be concerned about the well-being of the ocean sunfish, otherwise known as a Mola mola, as it slowly flaps around near the shore. With equipment in hand, three officers with the Zoos Victoria Marine Rescue Unit can also be seen standing near the sunfish, gently guiding it back out to deeper parts of Port Phillip Bay.

Experts work to save sunfish's life after Melbourne stranding

Experts were first alerted of the sunfishs venture into shallow waters via a call to Victorian Fisheries Authoritys 24/7 hotline for reporting illegal fishing, prompting the rescue team to chuck on their wetsuits.

It was a stranded animal at one point so we were just lucky enough that when the tide came in that it was re-floated enough and they were able to escort it out into deeper water, Mark Kennan, MRU co-ordinator, told Yahoo News.

Weve been able to do that with a couple of sunfish  been able to assist and move them into deeper water. But we also find periodically sunfish still on the shoreline, and we presume that they strand and and dont get so lucky to go out with the tide, so we always respond to these things as quickly as we can.

Once the sunfish  considered small at a whopping 1.2m  was in the clear, fisheries officers used their patrol boat to collect the marine rescuers.

Fisheries officer stunned by 'live sunfish this close to shore'

Some sunfish can reach up to 4.2m and weigh up to 1,000kg, according to the Victorian Fisheries Authority, which posted additional footage on Facebook.

While the creatures are occasionally spotted in Port Phillip from time-to-time, Mornington Supervising Fisheries Officer, Rod, who was at the scene, said online its rare to see a live sunfish this close to shore  so rare hes never seen one like this in 35 years on the job.

Rescuers were able to guide the sunfish stranded near Frankston Pier, south of Melbourne, back out to deeper water. Source: Supplied

Mr Kennan said in his 11 years with the MRU there have been half a dozen callouts for sunfish, but only two have been able to be successfully guided back out into deep water.

I presume its just geographic stranding. They dont realise that when the tide goes out, its going to shallow up really quickly and theyre a big animal  and they swim in a vertical plane  so sometimes they just get stranded, he explained.

If you see any marine animals in distress or injured across Victoria please call the Melbourne Zoos Marine Response Unit on 1300 245 678.

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Devon County Council has announced a significant road closure on the A361 Barnstaple Bypass, beginning on September 23.

The road will be closed each night from 7pm to 7am, continuing until October 25, to accommodate essential maintenance and upgrades.

The nightly closures will allow crews to carry out extensive work, including resurfacing the carriageway, replacing French drain material, and removing the existing vehicle restraint system. These improvements are crucial to addressing the road's wear and tear, enhancing safety, and ensuring long-term durability.

ABOVE: The road closure and the diversion route. Credit: Devon County Council

Motorists are advised to plan alternative routes during this period, as the night-time closure is expected to cause substantial traffic disruptions.

A Devon County Council spokesperson said: Overnight closures are currently planned on the A361 between Portmore roundabout and Bishops Tawton roundabout from Monday 23 September to Friday 25 October. The overnight closures will be on weekday evenings from 7pm until 7am but the road will be fully open during daytimes Monday to Friday as well as being open 24 hours a day at weekends. The closures will enable resurfacing, drainage improvements and work on safety barriers on this stretch of road.

For updated information and details on alternative routes, drivers are encouraged to visit the Devon County Council website or follow local traffic advisories.

The Gazette will continue to provide updates as more information becomes available.
Australian researchers are warning the world could face a new pandemic.

Australian researchers are warning a deadly superbug hotspot is emerging on the nations doorstep as infections in animals become resistant to treatment. RMIT scientists have investigated the problem across South East Asia, sparking concerns the world could run out of effective antibiotics.

This could create a "pandemic-like situation" unlike any the world has seen before, author and biologist Professor Rajaraman Eri warned.

The problem is caused by farmers feeding healthy animals low doses of antibiotics to promote rapid growth. By thinning the lining of the gut and killing bacteria from inside the animal, more nutrients are absorbed. But the regular dosing results in surviving bacteria becoming resistant to the medicine.

Related: Aussies warned over common household mistake spreading deadly disease amid outbreak

Its not eating the meat from the animals thats the greatest danger, but rather the resistant bacteria entering soil and water through animal waste. Direct contact with the animals is also a means of transmission.

When animals are in close proximity to each other in industrial settings, diseases are also about to mutate quickly through a flock, as has been seen recently with the H5N1 virus thats swept across the world.

Drug resistance could kill 10 million a year

While the misuse of antibiotics is occurring overseas, it has the potential to impact the entire world. Global travel rates continue to rise following the Covid-19 pandemic, allowing diseases to rapidly spread.

There is a big pandemic waiting to happen in the form of antimicrobial resistance, Eri warned.

Eri collaborated with Thailand-based public policy expert Dr Pushpanathan Sundram on the report which was published in the International Journal of Food Science and Technology.

They concluded Australia regulates the use of antibiotics in animal feed, but thats not the case in many developing nations. And the World Health Organization has warned by 2050 drug-resistant diseases could trigger up to 10 million deaths every year.

Efforts in the region to regulate anti-microbial use are underway, but there's growing concern over consuming products with anti-microbial residues, which can impact human health due to the presence of antibiotic-resistant microbiota and pathogens in hosts, Sundram said.

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The simple yet frustrating move can attract a fine of $78, and is illegal in all Australian states and territories.

A driver's dashcam captured an elderly woman reserving an empty car space by standing in it. Source: Facebook

A car park scene experienced by a shocked driver has infuriated Aussies after a woman was caught on dashcam seemingly reserving an empty space by standing in it. Her position prevented the incoming driver from turning in and using the space, forcing him to eventually drive away.

"Just a Karen trying to reserve the spot for her husband," the Newcastle local claimed online, sharing the footage captured from his vehicle. The car park fiasco played out in Newcastle, a harbour city in New South Wales, on Thursday before being shared on social media shortly after.

The video shows the vehicle turning into the car park in Jesmond before approaching the empty space. There doesn't appear to be another free spot in view. But he's forced to stop when he notices an elderly woman standing in the way. The pedestrian is seen in the space waving to the driver and pointing to someone or something off-camera.

According to the poster, she was likely indicating that her husband would soon be using the empty space. She's then seen shaking her head while gesturing 'no' with her hand. The driver is stopped for a few short seconds before eventually driving off in search of another free space to park.

Pedestrian's car park act can attract $78 fine

While there doesn't appear to be a specific road rule prohibiting pedestrians from reserving a car park by standing in it, obstructing the path of any vehicle is considered an offence across all Australian states and territories.

According to road rule 236 in the Australian Road Rules, a model for most state's road legislation, pedestrians "must not cause a traffic hazard by moving into the path of a driver". Additionally, pedestrians "must not unreasonably obstruct the path of any driver".

But it can be tricky to enforce in private car parks.

Public areas, however, such as side streets, are governed by state and territory parking legislation, therefore fines can easily be issued. In NSW, fines of $78 apply.

According to the driver, the woman was reserving the spot for her husband. Source: Facebook

Aussies erupt over inconsiderate car park etiquette

The frustrating scenario struck a nerve with other Aussies who were quick to point out it's not okay to reserve a space, referring to car park etiquette.

"It's a massive fail, please tell me you did not let her get away with it! Just start driving in, she'll move," one person suggested. "What a Karen, I hope you drove in," another said.

"I cant believe anyone thinks this is okay. Although I have a couple of older family members who would do this," a third person shared.

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I decided that all of my energy had to go toward helping to protect the nearly half a million people I had coming to see the shows in London, she said of the next stop on her tour. My team and I worked hand in hand with stadium staff and British authorities every day in pursuit of that goal, and I want to thank them for everything they did for us.

Let me be very clear: I am not going to speak about something publicly if I think doing so might provoke those who would want to harm the fans who come to my shows, she continued. In cases like this one, silence is actually showing restraint, and waiting to express yourself at a time when its right to. My priority was finishing our European tour safely, and it is with great relief that I can say we did that.

Thousands of fans who had been eager to spend a few hours with Ms. Swift in Vienna  including many who traveled great distances to see her  shed tears over the canceled concerts. Many others who had planned to see her the following week in London endured anxious days, worrying both about their personal safety and about whether the highlight of their summer would also be called off.

But Ms. Swifts shows went on as planned, a fact that she celebrated in her Instagram post.

All five crowds at Wembley Stadium were bursting with passion, joy, and exuberance, she said. The energy in that stadium was like the most giant bear hug from 92,000 people each night, and it brought me back to a place of carefree calm up there.
Google, a news industry trade group and key California lawmakers announced a first-in-the-nation agreement on Wednesday aimed at shoring up newsrooms in the state with as much as $250 million.

Through a mix of funding from Google, taxpayers and potentially other private sources, the five-year deal would let Google avert a proposed state bill that could force tech companies to pay news organizations when advertising appeared alongside articles on the tech companys platform.

The announcement was packed with praise for the effort to stabilize the news industry, which has faced layoffs and shuttered newsrooms as readership has shifted online.

The deal not only provides funding to support hundreds of new journalists but helps rebuild a robust and dynamic California press corps for years to come, reinforcing the vital role of journalism in our democracy, Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement.
The New York attorney generals office late Wednesday night urged a state appellate court to uphold a more than $450 million civil fraud judgment against Donald J. Trump, arguing that the punishment was needed to protect the integrity of the marketplace.

In a legal filing, the attorney general, Letitia James, defended a judges February ruling that Mr. Trump had conspired to inflate the value of his properties to receive favorable loans and other financial benefits. Mr. Trump, the attorney generals office has argued, exaggerated his net worth by as much as $2.2 billion in any given year.

Mr. Trump indisputably participated in the fraud, Ms. Jamess office wrote in response to an appeal filed last month by Mr. Trump, adding that he, his adult sons and his company had used a variety of deceptive strategies.

The response marked the latest phase of a battle between Mr. Trump and Ms. James that has spanned the better part of five years. The appeals court will hear oral arguments on Sept. 26 and its decision could come by year-end, coinciding with the final stretch of a presidential campaign that has pitted Mr. Trump against Vice President Kamala Harris.
Shortly before 6 on Tuesday evening, Joshua Leifer was on his way to an event for his new book, Tablets Shattered: The End of an American Jewish Century and the Future of Jewish Life, when he got a call from his publicist.

In about an hour, he was to be in conversation with Andy Bachman, formerly the head rabbi at Congregation Beth Elohim, in Park Slope, Brooklyn, one of the best-known reform synagogues in the country. The talk had been planned a month ago; tickets had been sold and many people eventually showed up, but now there was a big problem.

The staff at Powerhouse, an arty but not aggressively political bookstore on the waterfront in Dumbo, where the discussion was being held, was objecting on the grounds that Rabbi Bachman was a Zionist.

He was not a Zionist who remained uncritical of Israel; he was not a zealot of the right. He believes in the Zionism of its literal definition, the animating principle of which is unacceptable to some faction of the pro-Palestinian left. I mean that Jews have a right to self-determination and a homeland of their own, he said.
A former babysitter in Florida was sentenced on Wednesday to three years in prison after she pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the 2019 death of a man whom she had disabled as an infant 35 years earlier, court records show.

The woman, Terry McKirchy, 62, had been indicted by a grand jury in 2021 on a first-degree murder charge in the death of Benjamin Dowling, but pleaded guilty to the lesser charge in an arrangement with prosecutors.

On July 3, 1984, Ms. McKirchy was babysitting for Mr. Dowling, who was six months old, when she violently shook him so hard that he suffered permanent brain damage, according to court records. He died of those injuries in 2019, at age 35.

Initially, Ms. McKirchy entered a no-contest plea in 1985 to first-degree attempted murder and aggravated battery of a child, court records show. Ms. McKirchy, who was pregnant at the time, spent weekends in jail until she gave birth, The Associated Press reported. She served 60 days in jail and then served three years probation, court records show.
Passengers on board the flight from Sydney could reportedly be heard screaming as the bizarre scene unfolded.

A Jetstar passenger was arrested at Melbourne Airport after forcing open a cabin door and jumping out the plane onto the tarmac on Thursday morning. Source: X/James Gordon

A Jetstar passenger has been arrested at Melbourne Airport after forcing open a cabin door and jumping out of the plane.

The drama unfolded on Thursday morning just after 10am when flight JQ507 arrived from Sydney.

Jetstar confirmed to Yahoo News that the passenger exited the plane by deploying an emergency exit.

"We can confirm that a passenger opened the emergency exit door after arrival into Melbourne, which automatically deployed the slide," a spokesperson said.

The plane was parked at a boarding gate at the time.

The reason behind the man's impulsive act is not currently clear, however, photos show the man clinging to one of the plane's engines before he landed on the tarmac. Ground staff were able to restrain the passenger before the Australian Federal Police intervened.

The ground staff have since been praised for their swift response to the incident. "Melbourne Airport is proud of the exceptional response from ground crew, which meant there was no immediate danger to other passengers or airport staff," a spokesperson from Melbourne Airport said.

The man deployed the emergency slide before walking along the plane's wing. Source: 7News

Man was 'shoving people' on plane, passenger claims

Sydney radio producer Audrey Varghese was travelling on the Melbourne-bound plane and said the man was exhibiting "strange behaviour" at the end of the flight.

"He first of all got up before the seatbelt sign was off, the plane was still moving, and [he] attempted to exit his row," she told 3AW. The cabin crew repeatedly told the man to sit down.

"As soon as the plane had started coming to a stop, he immediately got up and basically charged to where the emergency row is and in the process was shoving people, causing a bit of a commotion, ripped open the emergency door, the slide was deployed and he jumped off the plane," she said.

Fellow passengers reportedly shouted at the man to sit down before he forced open the cabin door. Source: X/gewwyArt

Varghese said she was "frightened" as "screams and shrieks" erupted from the cabin and she was concerned the man possibly had a weapon. There is no indication this was the case.

According to Sky News host Kieran Gilbert, passengers on the plane were speaking at the man to "please sit down" but instead he pulled the evacuation door and slid down the slide.

Travellers inside the airport filmed the scene from afar, showing the man apprehended by police on the tarmac. "I think he just jumped down," they remarked in the video posted online. "I kind of want to go on the slide," a fellow traveller can be heard joking.

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Wes Moore, the Democratic governor of Maryland, was still shaking hands as his body man began to lead him out of the afternoon cocktail party at an Italian restaurant above the Chicago River. Flanked by a retinue of aides and security officials, he and his wife, Dawn, left through a side door and made their way into a narrow hallway, past waiting trays of meatballs and lamb chops, into a prep kitchen  wrong way, everybody turn around  and, finally, into a capacious service elevator.

Yes, the Democratic National Convention is a party. It is also a nonstop logistical scramble for high-profile elected officials like Mr. Moore, whose presence is in constant demand.

You see a lot of back kitchens, he said. Theres a slogan we learned in the military: Stay frosty. Because things are going to move and shift, and I think theres been a lot of that, that weve seen, from the convention.

Mr. Moore, 45, a former Army captain who served in Afghanistan, was a guest of honor at the cocktail reception, sponsored by With Honor Action, which works with veterans in Congress. He had arrived there straight from an event across town, a panel discussion hosted by the Black Economic Alliance, where he spoke about patriotism, his family and his work on criminal justice reform. There had been many hands to shake.
A network of current and former Georgia inmates used drones to smuggle drugs and other contraband into state prisons, federal prosecutors said Wednesday in announcing charges against nearly two dozen people.

Twenty-three people were charged in two separate indictments that were unsealed Wednesday. All except six of those charged were former or current inmates of the states prison system, federal prosecutors said.

Twenty-two people named in the indictments are charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute marijuana and methamphetamine, which carries a statutory penalty of 10 years to life in prison, prosecutors said. The 23rd person was charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute and possession of a firearm in furtherance of the drug trafficking crime, prosecutors said.

These indictments identify networks of individuals determined to introduce into prisons controlled substances and other contraband that compromise the safety and security of individuals who are held in those facilities and those employed there, and further endanger members of the outside public, said Jill E. Steinberg, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.
Ever since Donald J. Trump issued a series of pardons and commutations as he left office, he and his allies have defended his administrations vetting of clemency candidates, claiming they went through a vigorous screening process.

But the case of one of those convicts  a New York drug dealer and predatory lender named Jonathan Braun, who had a history of violence and faced an array of other legal problems  has stood out and raised doubts about how rigorous the vetting was.

On Tuesday, the police on Long Island arrested Mr. Braun after he allegedly punched his 75-year-old father-in-law in the head. Mr. Braun struck his father-in-law twice as he tried to protect his daughter from Mr. Braun, who was chasing after her while the couple had an argument in their home, according to the Nassau County District Attorneys office.

Mr. Brauns wife, according to court documents, told police that Mr. Braun had assaulted her twice in the past five weeks. On July 17, the court documents said, Mr. Braun threw his wife off a bed onto the floor, causing her substantial pain and bruising her legs.
In late November 2019, as her once promising 2020 presidential campaign was faltering, Kamala Harris appeared in a cooking video with the actress and comedian Mindy Kaling. A week later, Ms. Harris quit the race.

On Wednesday, Ms. Kaling will trade a kitchen for a stage as she hosts the third night of Ms. Harriss nominating convention in Chicago.

Ms. Kaling is the third of four boldfaced names to fill the role, which entails delivering remarks and introducing speakers. The actor Tony Goldwyn was Monday nights host; Ana Navarro, a Republican commentator, was the emcee on Tuesday; and the actress Kerry Washington will do the job on Thursday.

Ms. Kaling is best known for her roles as Kelly Kapoor, a vain and ditsy employee on The Office, and Mindy Lahiri, a gynecologist, on The Mindy Project, which Ms. Kaling wrote and produced.
An 80-year-old Seattle woman who worked as a neighborhood dog walker was killed on Tuesday morning when a man got into her car, forced her out, struck her with the vehicle and drove off with her dog, which he later killed with a knife, the police said.

The woman killed in what the authorities said was a random attack was Ruth Dalton, a great-grandmother who the police said was well-loved.

She was in her Subaru in the Madison Valley neighborhood with at least two dogs inside just before 10 a.m. Tuesday when a man got in from the passenger side, officials with the Seattle Police Department said at a news conference on Wednesday afternoon. The two struggled, and the moving car went off the road onto a grassy area.

Nearby drivers stopped their cars and ran to help Ms. Dalton, the police said.

One bystander backed away when the man pulled out a knife, but he returned with a stick or bat to help Ms. Dalton, the police said. By the time the bystander had run back to Ms. Daltons car, the man had already forced her out. The carjacker put the Subaru into reverse, crashed into two vehicles, struck Ms. Dalton and drove off, the police said.
The environmental artist and activist Jenny Kendler favors a gentle form of persuasion when introducing ideas around climate change.

I aim to seduce people through beauty, Kendler said in a recent phone interview.

In Fort Jay, the 18th-century bunker on Governors Island, Kendler, 43, has installed nine sculptures about endangered marine life and ecosystems with ingredients from the ocean itself  seawater, found whale parts and recordings of humpback song.

The centerpiece is Other of Pearl, Kendlers serial work comprising rainbow-lipped oysters in 12 half shells. Oysters filter our coastal waters and help protect against flooding. Pollution and dredging have destroyed many of their habitats. A Governors Island initiative is hurrying to restore oyster reefs to the New York harbor.

Kendler displays each shell shiny side up in a bell jar. Lean in close, and buried within their iridescent linings youll find astonishing, human-made intrusions: minuscule copies, each the size of a bracelet charm, of the Artemision Bronze, the Crouching Venus and other Greek and Roman antiquities.
Adapted from the acclaimed novel by Min Jin Lee, the Apple TV+ drama Pachinko spans decades in the life of a Korean family, beginning first in 1915 under Japanese colonial rule in Korea and later in Japan, where the familys ambitions bump up against ingrained prejudice.

Pachinko, Season 2 of which premieres on Friday, hits on multiple emotional levels. The high drama of the many romantic entanglements melds with the thoughtful historical fiction about how a strange mixture of trauma and love reverberates through generations. It makes for a gem of a show about a familys will not only to survive but also to thrive.

At the center of the sprawling epic is Sunja, played as a young woman by Minha Kim and as a grandmother by Yuh-jung Youn, an Oscar winner for Minari. Season 1 charts Sunjas childhood, her first romance and betrayal, and then her move to Osaka, Japan, with Isak (Steve Sanghyun Noh), a young pastor who marries her while she is already pregnant. In the later timeline, which begins in New York City in 1989, Sunjas American-educated grandson, Solomon (Jin Ha), heads to Tokyo with aims of ascending in the business world. He assumes at first that he can use his Koreanness to an advantage.

Season 2 continues the 1989 story line, but jumps ahead in the other timeline to 1945, as the American bombing of Osaka looms. Sunja is now keeping herself afloat selling kimchi, though supplies are scarce. Her eldest son (Kang Hoon Kim) is studious but tormented by his classmates, while her youngest (Eunseong Kwon) is an adorable firecracker, whose presence enlivens the otherwise grim circumstances. (The wonderful opening credits sequence, which has the cast dancing to the 1969 Grass Roots tune Wait a Million Years, is also a burst of joy.)
A brutal reality for women in India

The Supreme Court of India this week took up the case of the ghastly rape and murder of a trainee doctor in a Kolkata hospital earlier this month. The case has convulsed the nation and led to doctor strikes and large street protests.

Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud identified a number of breakdowns in the official response to the murder of the woman, whose name may not be published under Indian law. The court also set up a national task force to recommend safety measures to protect medics, who are often subject to violence and abuse.

The police have arrested a 33-year-old man who was a volunteer at a police post at the hospital. Three senior officials there were removed from their posts.

Context: India, by many measures, remains one of the worlds most unsafe places for women. Rape and domestic violence are relatively common, and conviction rates are low. The case of the trainee doctor comes 12 years after a physiotherapy student died after being gang-raped on a bus in New Delhi, leading to national outrage.
Mike Lynch, a British software mogul who was once celebrated as a top technology leader  only to spend more than a decade defending himself against accusations that he orchestrated one of the biggest frauds in Silicon Valley history  died on Monday after his yacht sank off the coast of Sicily. He was 59.

An official in the Italian city of Palermo confirmed on Thursday that Mr. Lynchs body had been recovered by divers.

Twelve guests and 10 crew members were onboard the yacht, the Bayesian, when it went down during a violent storm. Mr. Lynchs wife, Angela Bacares, was rescued, along with nine crew members and five other passengers. Seven bodies have been recovered, including one thought to be that of Mr. Lynchs daughter, Hannah Lynch.

Mr. Lynchs death came two months after he was acquitted in federal court in San Francisco of criminal fraud charges, tied to the $11 billion sale of his company, Autonomy, to Hewlett-Packard in 2011. The takeover, widely regarded among investors as one of the worst deals in history, led HP to accuse Mr. Lynch of deception.


Late Thursday, the Canadian government ordered arbitration between the railroads and the rail workers union, a move that will end the shutdown. Read the latest coverage here.

Canadas two main railroads shut down for several hours on Thursday after contract talks with a labor union failed to reach a deal, forcing businesses in North America to grapple with another big supply chain challenge after several years of disruptions.

The sprawling networks of Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Kansas City are crucial to Canadas economy and an important conduit for exports to the United States, Mexico and other countries. Had it lasted, the stoppage would have forced companies to find other modes of transport, but for some types of cargo, like grains, there are no practical alternatives to railroads.
HOHHOT, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) -- A cross-Strait journalism camp for university students opened on Tuesday in the city of Hohhot, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, with approximately 200 students from both the mainland and Taiwan in attendance.

The students are from 10 universities on the mainland and eight universities in Taiwan.

The camp, the 30th of its kind, will focus on opportunities and challenges for future journalists on both sides of the Strait in the era of all-encompassing media.

The 11-day event will be held in Inner Mongolia and Beijing, and the students will live, study and take part in various activities, including cultural research, lectures, media organization visits and short video production.

First held in 2004, the location of the journalism camp has alternated between the two sides of the Strait, covering most of the major journalism schools on the mainland and in Taiwan. It has become an important platform for exchange and communication between journalism students from both sides of the Strait.
Sydneysiders say the site was responsible for numerous crashes. Council has listened to the complaints and taken action.

After years of campaigning from fed-up locals, a bizarre beachfront planter box in Coogee which was responsible for numerous accidents, has finally been removed. Source: Facebook

After years of campaigning from fed-up locals, a bizarre beachfront planter box which was responsible for numerous accidents and was the root of dozens of complaints, has finally been removed by council.

Residents of Coogee, in Sydney's eastern suburbs, have long been complaining about the concrete planter box that was placed in the middle of the road on the corners of Arden Street and Coogee Bay Road.

For at least two years locals criticised the box, which sometimes housed a tree and other times did not  which council claims was a result of "vandalism". Drivers said they regularly mounted the blocks that guarded the tree space, with multiple reports of damaged cars.

Sometimes the box featured a tree, but often it did not, with council blaming vandals for the times it'd been vacant. Source: Facebook

'Useless' planter box in middle of road responsible for numerous accidents, locals say

Many members of the community came forward to criticise its positioning, deeming it "useless" and questioning why council thought the left-hand lane on a busy beachfront thoroughfare was a suitable position for a tree.

When asked by Yahoo previously, a Randwick City spokesperson said removing the blocks wasn't "an option" because "trees add a lot of value to an urban environment".

Though as the years and months rolled by, the box became the site of many accidents. One as recent as last week, Yahoo News Australia understands. However council insisted the blocks acted as a wheel stop for the parking spots directly in front of it.

But locals say it's unsafe, with a Coogee man claiming in July he'd personally heard of "three cars that have smashed" into it in a single week.

However photos emerged on Wednesday showing contractors "finally" paving it over, giving many locals hope.

Speaking to Yahoo, a council spokesman confirmed the box is no more. "This tree on Coogee Bay Road has been subject to continual vandalism for a number of years with Council being forced to replace the tree on six occasions," he said.

"The coastal location and condition of the pit has also made establishing the tree in this location challenging. Given these ongoing issues, Council is removing the tree and the tree surround.

A 'planter box' designed to house a tree in the left-hand lane on a busy road repeatedly caused accidents, but now it's been removed. Source: Facebook

Coogee residents react after road hazard 'finally' removed

Online, eastern suburbs locals rejoiced at hearing the news.

"Well done  stupid bloody idea to put it there in the first place," one man said. "Great job driving some sense into those galoots." "Wow  what a weird place to put something  glad they are fixing it," a woman said.

"OMG! it's finally happened," wrote a man. "I dont know why Randwick Council love planting trees where it will block the view of oncoming cars [and] pedestrians... especially at intersections. Super strange," somebody else said.

Meanwhile, another local ominously joked: "Dont get too exited, maybe they're replacing it with something bigger".

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For years, when Michigan politicians talked about the states housing problem, they were referring to a surplus: too many run-down houses, stripped of valuable copper, sitting empty and blighting neighborhoods. Now the message has flipped. In her State of the State address this year, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer lamented the housing shortage and landed one of her biggest applause lines with, The rent is too damn high, and we dont have enough damn housing. So our response is simple: Build, baby, build!

If you want to know what the housing crisis for middle-income Americans looks like in 2024, spend some time in Michigan. The surplus-to-shortage whipsaw here is a mitten-shaped miniature of what the entire country has gone through.

Ive been writing about housing and the economy for two decades, and have watched as the nations housing market has made the journey from boom to bust to deficit, seemingly without pausing for a normal middle. There are lots of reasons this happened, but they center on a big one: the late-2000s housing bust, which the country has never fully recovered from. Or as Ali Wolf, chief economist at Zonda, a data and consulting firm, put it: The Great Recession broke the U.S. housing market.

At first, rapidly rising housing costs seemed like a regional problem. It made sense that places like San Francisco, which was already expensive, filled with well-paid tech workers and hamstrung by stringent building regulations, would be in crisis. Much of the rest of the country was still affordable, however, so high-cost superstar cities were seen as an exception instead of a warning.
There is perhaps nothing that unites the foot soldiers of capitalism like the universally agitating experience of commuting: sitting in traffic for hours; getting sweaty on (often-delayed) subways; suffering through mediocre bike lanes and threats of congestion pricing.

Brian Niccol, the newly minted chief executive of Starbucks, has found a personal solution: a 1,000-mile commute from his home in Newport Beach, Calif., to the companys headquarters in Seattle, on Starbucks corporate plane.

Mr. Niccol is the latest of the American supercommuting chief executives, a trend that has been on the rise since the turn of the millennium but has found increased attention since the coronavirus pandemic thrust remote work into the mainstream. Starbucks concessions to Mr. Niccol also underscore just how much companies are willing to bend in order to woo big-time executives  and how much leeway they have to do so, as corporate culture continues to adjust to post-pandemic norms.

The details of Mr. Niccols employment terms became public after Starbucks filed his offer letter and contract with the Securities and Exchange Commission. According to his contract, he will be offered use of the companys corporate jet to commute to Seattle, and will be provided housing and transportation for three months, or until he secures a secondary residence in Washington State.
Peter Dykstra, an environmental activist turned journalist who was known for his sardonic wit, once asked Senator James M. Inhofe of Oklahoma, Congresss most aggressive denier of climate science, for an interview, to take place in 2034.

Mr. Dykstras idea, as he wrote to the senators office in 2019, was that by that year, when Mr. Inhofe would turn 100, there would be no question about who was right and who was wrong about global warming.

Mr. Inhofe, through a spokeswoman, replied: Sure! How is 10 a.m. on Friday, November 17, 2034?

The interview will not take place. Mr. Inhofe, a Republican who repeatedly called climate science a hoax, and Mr. Dykstra, a former Greenpeace activist who became an environmental journalist for CNN, died within weeks of each other this summer: Mr. Inhofe on July 9, at 89, and Mr. Dykstra on July 31, at 67.

But the question of who was right and who was wrong has already been answered. Mr. Dykstra was right. This year is on track to be the hottest ever recorded, with man-made warming contributing to fiercer hurricanes, more intense wildfires, longer droughts and deadly threats to human health.
The static camerawork by the cinematographer Eric Lin gives Chloes stilted but openly vulnerable encounters a fluttering poignancy; particularly lovely is a ferry-ride conversation with an older man, Yatsuro (Issey Ogata).

The meandering nature of the film creates a special kind of intimacy with Chloe, one that relies almost entirely on Juris subtly heartbreaking performance. Chloes mourning isnt always legible, and we often see her engaging in banal activities like shopping, eating and playing with Toshis young daughter, Futaba (Futaba Okazaki); her awkward banter with friends is endearing though it also grows rather dull, and the constant obliqueness draws some power and believability away from the developing romance with Toshi. Theres an implication that repressed emotions are simmering beneath the mundane, but that doesnt always come across.

Ill Be Your Mirror

Not rated. Running time: 1 hour 51 minutes. In theaters.
Mountains, the feature debut from Monica Sorelle, opens by observing the demolition of a house. In one sense, Sorelle is simply setting the scene. Xavier (Atibon Nazaire), the father in the central family in the film, has a job razing buildings, a role he fulfills without much complaint (although at a crucial moment he sticks up for a co-worker).

Xavier is not overtly bothered by how his work might contribute to gentrification. They give me an address, I come to demolish it, he says, when confronted with the fact that he is slated to clear a 50-year-old church. But the tension at the movies heart involves the difficulty of leaving homes and finding new ones, as experienced by immigrants and their children in Miamis Little Haiti neighborhood.
Columbia Universitys medical school announced on Thursday that one of its graduates was donating $400 million, the largest gift in the medical schools history.

The gift, from P. Roy and Diana Vagelos, would expand biomedical research at a school that already bears their name, after they donated $250 million in 2017.

It comes at a critical time for the university, which spent much of the last school year convulsed by protests over the Israel-Hamas war. The universitys handling of those protests led some major donors to pause their contributions to the school.

Last week, the universitys president, Nemat Shafik, stepped down from her job, and was replaced in the interim by Dr. Katrina Armstrong, the chief executive of Columbia University Irving Medical Center, which includes the medical school.
In 2018, a Black teenager named Chrystul Kizer shot and killed a 34-year-old white man named Randall Volar III, who had sexually abused and trafficked her starting when she was 16 years old; she was 17 at the time of the killing. This week, a Wisconsin judge sentenced her to 11 years in prison, with another five under supervision. Rather than serving justice, her case illustrates with searing clarity the sexism and racism that corrupt our criminal justice system.

In a 2019 investigation, The Washington Post detailed Ms. Kizers life: Her single mother, who struggled to support her four children. The abusive man and the familys time in a homeless shelter. Ms. Kizer wanted money for snacks and school notebooks, so she placed an ad in an online forum called backpage.com, which was notorious for sex trafficking. (It has since been shut down.) Mr. Volar was the first one who answered. He showered her with gifts and took her to fancy dinners; she understood there was a price to these extravagances. But before long, she said he was taking her to hotels to have sex with other men. Hed wait outside for her and insist she turn the money over to him. He called himself an escort trainer. One night, when he wanted to have sex and she brushed him off, she said she fell to the ground and he jumped on top of her, trying to force off her clothes. She shot him twice in the head, and then, the police said, set his body on fire.

Ms. Kizers case has been in the national spotlight since she killed Mr. Volar; a petition to drop her charges garnered more than a million and a half signatures. In what was a major win for her side, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled in 2022 that she could argue that her crime was justified because she was trafficked by Mr. Volar  a groundbreaking ruling for trafficking victims. In order to make that argument, however, she would have to take her chances on a long, difficult, very public trial. Or she could take a plea deal.

Four months before his death, Mr. Volar had been arrested after another young girl called 911 claiming hed drugged her and was threatening to kill her. The police searched his home and found hundreds of videos of sexual abuse. He had a penchant for Black girls, like Ms. Kizer: Hers was among those young faces found in the videos. Mr. Volar was released without bail the same day, pending an investigation. The police saw girls in the videos that looked as young as 12 and 13, and yet, In many and most of the cases, we didnt know the age, the prosecutor Michael Graveley told The Post. So we literally did not know whether we had misdemeanors or felony.
Supporters of Kamala Harriss presidential campaign like to note that their candidate can prosecute the case against Donald Trump, a felon and recidivist Republican nominee. Speaking at rallies, the vice president has embraced the message, recalling that as a former courtroom prosecutor, district attorney and state attorney general, she took on all manner of predators, fraudsters and cheaters. So, hear me when I say, Harris tells the rapturous crowds of Insert State Here, I know Donald Trumps type!

Its a memorable line, and it has made Harriss identity as a prosecutor  even more so than, say, as a female candidate or as the child of immigrants  integral to her presidential pitch. Thats our choice, a video at the Democratic National Convention this week intoned, with Beyonces Freedom playing in the background. A prosecutor or a felon. But its also an identity with which Harris has long wrestled, not just in her presidential campaigns but in the two books shes written on her life and career. Harris may know Trumps type, but when it comes to her prosecutorial past, she seems less certain of her own type.

Harriss books, a decade apart in publication, are worlds apart in their style and politics. Smart on Crime: a Career Prosecutors Plan to Make Us Safer, appearing in 2009 when Harris was serving a second term as San Franciscos district attorney, is a wonks paradise, debunking myths about law enforcement and proposing a multiplicity of criminal-justice reforms. (Note the nifty triangulation: not tough or soft but smart on crime.) The Truths We Hold: an American Journey, which came out in 2019 when Harris was a first-term U.S. senator already eyeing the White House, is a more conventional memoir, spanning childhood, family and political campaigns, its policy ideas leavened with generic inspiration. (Reforms are needed if not for ourselves, she writes, then for our children and grandchildren. Also, it turns out we are better than this.)

Read together, the books show how Harris sanded off the rougher edges of her law-enforcement record for her first presidential campaign, offering a more negative and politicized vision of prosecutors influence in American life. Now, in her latest bid for the presidency, Harris is placing her prosecutorial background at the forefront of her message, once again reinterpreting her record, beliefs and ideas  or perhaps repackaging them  in the face of shifting public opinion.
Rick Steves, a travel writer who has built an empire of guidebooks, radio shows and television programs that focus on Europe, said on Wednesday that he had recently been diagnosed with prostate cancer.

Mr. Steves, 69, has written dozens of guidebooks over four decades and hosted programs like Rick Steves Europe, a series that began in 2000 and has now aired for 12 seasons on public television in the United States. He also hosts a radio show and podcast called Travel with Rick Steves. He announced the diagnosis in a social media post on Wednesday.

He said, in an interview from his home in Seattle on Wednesday, that his years of travel had taught him to seek experiences that broaden his perspectives, including culture shock, and his cancer diagnosis was not very different.

You learn a lot more about your home sometimes by leaving it and looking at it from a distance, he said by phone.
Kamala Harriss long political resume is well known and expansive: Before becoming vice president, she was a U.S. senator. Before that, she was the California attorney general and the district attorney in San Francisco. Here are some things you might not know about the Democratic Partys nominee for president.

1. Her name translates to lotus flower in Sanskrit. Its a near-mythical symbol in Indian culture, representing beauty, prosperity and fertility and is associated with the deity Lakshmi.

2. She has broken the most ties in U.S. Senate history. As vice president, she has often been called upon to cast a deciding vote when the Senate is deadlocked. Last year, she cast her 32nd tiebreaker, beating the previous record of 31 set by John C. Calhoun, who was vice president from 1825 to 1832.

3. Shes short (compared to presidents past). Five-foot-four, to be exact. If elected, she would be one of the two shortest presidents in American history. (The other is James Madison.) But her height checks in at just about average for an American woman.
Emma Ramsay died after she fell from a sixth-floor balcony at Hotel Vibra District in Ibiza on Tuesday while holidaying with friends.

The 19-year-old posted numerous videos and photos online in the hours prior to the accident. Source: Daily Mail/Instagram

A university student who died after falling from a sixth-floor balcony while on holiday with friends has been remembered as an incredibly kind and bright young woman. Emma Ramsays life was cut tragically short after she reportedly plunged from a room at Hotel Vibra District on the Spanish party island of Ibiza around 3am on Tuesday.

The Scottish law student had posted numerous videos and photos on social media in the hours before the horror accident showing her dancing and dining with friends. In one Instagram post, the 19-year-old said she was obsessed with this place, according to the BBC.

Local media reports emergency services rushed to the hotel but were unable to save Ramsay.

Emma Ramsay died after she fell from a sixth-floor balcony at Hotel Vibra District on the Spanish party island of Ibiza around 3am on Tuesday. Source: Olive Press News/Instagram

Tributes flow for 'bright and talented' law student

The teens heartbroken mum Barbara has paid tribute to her daughter online, describing her as my best friend in the whole world. I am going to miss you more than words will ever express. Rest in peace my sweet angel and sleep tight, Mummy loves you so so much, she posted, the BBC reports.

The headteacher at Ramsays high school, Lorna Lawson, said staff and students were shocked and saddened at the heartbreaking news.

Emma was an incredibly kind, hardworking, bright and talented pupil who contributed a great deal to our school community, she said. Friends have also shared their devastation, saying heaven just gained the most beautiful angel.

British authorities confirmed they are supporting Ramsays family and have been in contact with Spanish authorities.

Tourist's death reportedly related to concerning 'balconing' trend

The teen is the second tourist to have fallen to their death in Spain during the last week, with local media reporting a British man, 28, died after plummeting from a four-metre wall at a hotel in Mallorca on Saturday.

Ramsays death is believed to be related to a concerning trend known as balconing, in which people jump between balconies or into swimming pools below.

Last year, the Balearic Islands saw an increase in incidents, with at least 10 deaths connected to balcony falls, In Spain News reports.

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A man accused of taking part in a human-smuggling operation that led to the deaths of 53 migrants in Texas has been indicted by a federal grand jury in one of the deadliest episodes involving migrants on the southern border of the United States, federal prosecutors said on Thursday.

The man, Rigoberto Ramon Miranda-Orozco, 47, who was described by Guatemalan authorities as the ringleader of the operation, was expected to be extradited from Guatemala to the United States, U.S. prosecutors said at a news conference in San Antonio.

Six others, accused of being Mr. Orozcos accomplices, will be prosecuted in Guatemala, where investigators have secured the evidence needed to make the case, said Jaime Esparza, the U.S. attorney in San Antonio.

Guatemalan officials announced on Wednesday that they had arrested the seven people, including Mr. Orozco, in connection with the June 2022 human smuggling operation. Evidence showed that Mr. Orozco had worked with the others to secure payments from four of the migrants, three of whom died during their trip to San Antonio, according to the U.S. indictment.
A remarkable sighting has been reported on the sidelines of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Not Beyonce. Not Taylor Swift.

Its Bernie Sanders, laughing.

No, the notoriously curmudgeonly independent senator from Vermont has not been fully overcome by the theme of joy suffusing the proceedings: After all, he delivered a prime-time address on Tuesday night without once cracking a smile.

And its not that America is doing great. He will assure you, it is not.

But, in smaller forums and private conversations, Mr. Sanders, 82, exudes something like optimism about the future of the progressive movement he has nurtured for his entire career, and maybe a sense of vindication that the Democratic Party, as he sees it, has finally recognized that many progressive causes are broadly popular with Americans.

If you want to win an election, if you were a total phony and you didnt believe in anything, you would adopt much of the progressive agenda, Mr. Sanders said in an interview on Wednesday.
When Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey arrived at the Pennsylvania delegation breakfast on Thursday, he had already taken a dozen selfies, missed three elevators and fist-bumped a security guard. He was wiping sweat off his head with a table napkin.

All before he spoke a word.

My voice is shot, Mr. Booker, the guest speaker, told the crowd of familiar faces from New Jerseys swing state neighbor to the west. But that didnt stop him. As he neared the end of his 10-minute talk, Mr. Booker hopped off the stage and waded among the smattering of breakfast tables, shouting as much as his fatigued vocal cords would allow.

Conventions can feel like the Olympics for politicians, with dozens of speeches to give, donors to woo, tributes to pay and panels to anchor. Mr. Booker turns conventions into decathlons.
Representative Jasmine Crockett, Democrat of Texas, doesnt get nervous. Not when she spars with her Republican colleagues in committee hearings. Not when she questions the point of what she sees as fruitless impeachment inquiries.

Not even when she had the audacity to take the stage at a music festival in the Washington, D.C., area before tens of thousands of people who had not gathered to hear a politician speak.

But before Ms. Crockett addressed the Democratic National Convention on Monday, she felt a pit in my stomach and the weight of the moment, she told a group of mostly female mayors gathered on Wednesday for brunch on a sunny patio. She did not want to disappoint Vice President Kamala Harris, a friend and mentor who also happened to be the partys presidential nominee. Ms. Crockett worried whether she could deliver her most important argument yet in her short political career.

And, she added, no Black female, freshman member of Congress had been allotted a speaking slot, during prime time no less.
Democrats will bring down the curtain on their convention in Chicago on Thursday night with a showcase for Vice President Kamala Harris and the partys deep bench, giving marquee speaking slots to governors and candidates from critical swing states before Ms. Harris accepts the partys nomination for president.

Ms. Harris, whom Democrats quickly coalesced around after President Biden withdrew from the race and endorsed her, will follow a long list of speakers.

Senators Bob Casey of Pennsylvania and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin are scheduled to speak relatively early in the nights program. The two face tough re-election campaigns that could determine which party controls the Senate.

Two governors from states that could tip the presidential election will take center stage: Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan and Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina, who is set to speak directly before Ms. Harris. Representatives Elissa Slotkin of Michigan and Ruben Gallego of Arizona, who are running for the Senate in crucial races, will also be in the spotlight.
In a campaign otherwise light on policy specifics, Vice President Kamala Harris this week quietly rolled out her most detailed, far-ranging proposal yet: nearly $5 trillion in tax increases over a decade.

Thats how much more revenue the federal government would raise if it adopted a number of tax increases that President Biden proposed in the spring. Ms. Harriss campaign said this week that she supported those tax hikes, which were thoroughly laid out in the most recent federal budget plan prepared by the Biden administration.

No one making less than $400,000 a year would see their taxes go up under the plan. Instead, Ms. Harris is seeking to significantly raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans and large corporations. Congress has previously rejected many of these tax ideas, even when Democrats controlled both chambers.

While tax policy is right now a subplot in a turbulent presidential campaign, it will be a primary policy issue in Washington next year. The next president will have to work with Congress to address the tax cuts Donald J. Trump signed into law in 2017. Many of those tax cuts expire after 2025, meaning millions of Americans will see their taxes go up if lawmakers dont reach a deal next year.
Lee Saunders is a hugger.

The president of the 1.6-million-strong American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, Mr. Saunders was in his element on Wednesday, even if he happened to be inside a sterile, overly large, overly air-conditioned hotel ballroom in Chicagos South Loop.

Before the public-sector unions faithful, on the outskirts of the Democratic National Convention, Mr. Saunders greeted Brandon Johnson, Chicagos young mayor and a former teachers union activist, as a good friend, one of us and sent him off with a hug.

Next came Representative Mark Pocan, a progressive from Wisconsin, where Republican leaders have decimated public-sector unions. Were going to get our union back in Wisconsin, Mr. Saunders promised, before giving Mr. Pocan a hug.
Negative feelings about President Vladimir V. Putin have appeared to increase across Russia since Ukrainian troops pushed into Russian territory two weeks ago, according to a firm that tracks attitudes in the country by analyzing social media and other internet postings.

While news outlets in Russia have tried to put a more positive spin on the developments in the war, focusing on the Russian governments humanitarian response, some Russian social media users have expressed discontent.

Many of the online postings, according to the analysis by FilterLabs AI, say Ukraines advance is a failure of the Russian government and, more specifically, Mr. Putin.

It is difficult to accurately gauge public opinion in Russia, or any other authoritarian country, because people responding to polls often give answers that they think the government wants. To address that shortcoming, FilterLabs tracks comments on social media sites, internet postings and news media sites, using a computer model to analyze sentiments expressed by ordinary Russians.
The Food and Drug Administration approved updated Covid-19 vaccines on Thursday, paving the way for the shots to soon land in pharmacies, doctors offices and health centers. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said it will recommend that adults and children six months and older get updated vaccines. Heres what to know.

How are the new shots different?

The F.D.A. approved one vaccine from Pfizer and one from Moderna. Representatives from the drug companies said that their shots were ready to ship immediately after approval.

Both vaccines target KP.2, a strain of the coronavirus that started to spread widely this spring. The variants that are most prevalent in the United States right now are very similar to KP.2, and so the vaccines should protect against them.
The diamond was so large that it obscured the face of Botswanas president as he held it up for closer inspection on Thursday.

President Mokgweetsi Masisi grinned as he lifted the diamond, a 2,492-carat stone that is the biggest diamond unearthed in more than a century and the second-largest ever found, according to the Vancouver-based mining operator Lucara, which owns the mine where it was found.

This exceptional discovery could bring back the luster of the natural diamond mining industry, mining companies and experts say.

The diamond was discovered in the same relatively small mine in northeastern Botswana that has produced several of the largest such stones in living memory. Such gemstones typically surface as a result of volcanic activity.
The sugar industry is facing pressure to clean up its supply chains and improve oversight after revelations that women in India, the worlds second-largest sugar producer, work in debt bondage and are coerced into getting hysterectomies.

In the wake of the report, a group of labor leaders in India went on a three-day hunger strike recently to demand better working conditions. One of the companies that buy sugar in Maharashtra, Coca-Cola, quietly met with Indian government leaders and sugar suppliers last month to discuss responsible harvesting. And Bonsucro, a sugar industry body that sets standards, said that it would create a human rights task force.

The investigation into the sugar industry, by The New York Times and The Fuller Project, revealed a range of labor abuses, including that female sugar cane cutters in the western India state of Maharashtra were pushed into illegal child marriages so that they could work alongside their husbands. Locked into debt to their employers, the women are forced to return to the fields season after season, the report found.
In December 2012, a 23-year-old physiotherapy student boarded a bus in New Delhi a little after 9 p.m., expecting it would take her home. Instead, she was gang-raped and assaulted so viciously with an iron rod that her intestines were damaged. She died days later as India erupted in rage.

Nearly 12 years later, the nation is convulsing with anger once again  this time, over the ghastly rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor in a Kolkata hospital, as she rested in a seminar room after a late-night shift. Since the Aug. 9 killing, thousands of doctors have gone on strike to demand a safer work environment and thousands more people have taken to the streets to demand justice.

For a country desperate to be seen as a global leader, repeated high-profile cases of brutal sexual assaults highlight an uncomfortable truth: India, by many measures, remains one of the worlds most unsafe places for women. Rape and domestic violence are relatively common, and conviction rates are low.

This week, the Supreme Court of India took up the Kolkata case as one of fundamental rights and safety, questioning how hospital administrators and police officers had handled it and saying new protective measures were needed. The nation cannot wait for another rape and murder for real changes on the ground, Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud said.
Health officials in Thailand said on Thursday that they had confirmed a case of the version of mpox that prompted the World Health Organization to declare a global health emergency. Its the second time that the new and deadlier version has been found outside Africa.

The announcement of the case in Thailand is likely to stir concerns about the virus spreading more widely, especially after the version was discovered in Sweden last week. Previously the outbreak had been concentrated in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The version of the mpox virus detected in these recent cases is known as Clade Ib. Health officials are particularly concerned about it because it has a death rate of 3 percent, much higher than the 0.2 percent death rate observed in a 2022 outbreak.

That earlier outbreak was driven by a version called Clade IIb, which is spread predominantly through sexual contact. Men who had sex with men proved to be the most at risk, but behavioral changes and vaccinations curbed the spread.
Sphen, a male gentoo penguin whose enduring partnership with another male penguin in the colony led them to become international queer icons, has died, according to the Sydney aquarium that housed them. He was 11.

The penguin died earlier this month after his health deteriorated, the Sea Life Sydney Aquarium team said in an email. The aquarium did not give additional information on his ailment but said that it made the difficult decision to euthanize Sphen, easing him of any pain or discomfort.

For Sphen and Magic, a summer meet-cute in Sydney sparked their six-year partnership. Sphen, three years older, had come from SeaWorld, while Magic was born in an aquarium in Melbourne. In a colony of young, flirty penguins at Sea Life, the two had eyes only for each other: bowing, singing and bringing each other pebbles for a potential future nest, according to penguin keepers. Young gentoo penguins can take some time to choose their partners, but Sphen and Magic did not waste any.
Less than 17 hours after almost all rail freight traffic in Canada came to a standstill Thursday following a lockout by the countrys two main rail companies of 10,000 employees, the federal government told a labor board to end the shutdown and ordered arbitration.

The lockout had threatened to cause supply-chain disruptions in the United States and serious economic consequences within Canada. The moves followed months of contract talks that had failed to reach an agreement.

Steve MacKinnon, Canadas labor minister, said at a news conference in Ottawa on Thursday that he had told the Canada Industrial Relations Board to formally order the railways to restart service. He said that he expected trains would be rolling within days.

He also told the labor board to extend the contracts between the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference  the union that represents the workers locked out  and the railway companies: Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Kansas City. The contracts expired at the end of the last year.
Until a few weeks ago, when The New York Times's list of the best books of this century reminded me of the oversight, I had never read The Last Samurai, by Helen DeWitt.

Im somewhat ashamed to admit that for years I overlooked it because I thought it was the source material for the Tom Cruise movie of the same name, which held little appeal for me. Nor did I notice, in 2018, when Vulture declared it the book of the century, perhaps because at the time my life was dominated by a 6-week-old infant who didnt think much of literary fiction.

But Ive now finally read the book, which is just as good as everyone said. Although, like all really good literature, I had the feeling while reading it that no one else had ever really grasped its brilliance, which of course could only be properly understood when refracted through the lens of my own life.

As it turns out, the plot is not remotely about Tom Cruise fighting alongside 19th-century Samurai in Japan. Rather, it follows the story of a woman named Sibylla raising her brilliant young son Ludo in genteel poverty in 1990s London. Unable to afford heat for their home, the two spend their days riding the Circle Line of the London Underground.
Ukrainian officials are claiming that their military incursion into Russia this month coincides with a flurry of diplomatic overtures that could strengthen Kyivs push for wider international backing for its negotiating position in any potential peace talks.

That diplomacy has in part been aimed at engaging neutral nations or those that lean toward Russia, including China and India. And Ukraine cited a planned visit to Kyiv on Friday by Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India as evidence that diplomatic success goes hand in hand with its offensive in Russia.

Its important to have diplomatic evidence that the picture is more complicated, and these players also respect Ukraine and engage with Ukraine under these circumstances, Ukraines foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, said in an interview, referring to Mr. Modis visit. In July, Mr. Kuleba visited China as the Ukrainian military prepared its incursion, expressing support for a Chinese role in a peace process.

Many leaders of countries supporting Ukraine, including President Biden, have ventured to Kyiv during the war. Mr. Modi is the highest profile visit by a leader of a nation with close trade ties with Russia and political neutrality on the war.
Her funeral would be awesome, the young Ukrainian combat medic said, if it went as she had planned.

Mourners should wear a traditional embroidered shirt known as a vyshyvanka, the medic, Iryna Tsybukh, said in a video message to a friend outlining her wishes for her funeral if she was killed on the front line. Soldiers could come in army fatigues. And everybody should learn 10 meaningful Ukrainian songs to sing around her coffin.

Everyone will sing and learn something, she said in her message, smiling. In short, my funeral wont be in vain.
More than two weeks into its surprise offensive in western Russia, Ukraines advance has slowed, with its troops making only marginal gains around territory they already control.

But more than 200 miles to the southeast, another offensive is gaining momentum: Russias drive toward Pokrovsk, a stronghold in Ukraines eastern Donetsk region. In recent days, Moscows troops have seized at least three settlements and reached the outskirts of a town along a railroad to Pokrovsk, a logistics hub for the Ukrainian Army in the region.

The Russian advance has put the Ukrainians in the precarious position of defending one critical front while attempting to press forward on another, all with limited troop numbers and weaponry. President Volodymyr Zelensky said this week that Ukraine was working on boosting its forces in the east with more men and weapons to resist the Russian advance.

Heres a look at the overall situation on the battlefield.

Russia pushes toward Pokrovsk

This week, Russian forces have captured three more villages near Pokrovsk, according to DeepState, an analytical group with close ties to the Ukrainian Army, expanding their hold on the area. Moscows troops are now about eight miles from the center of Pokrovsk.
The following defendants were sentenced in Cayuga County Court in Auburn the weeks of Monday, Aug. 5, to Friday, Aug. 16:

 Ryan Bush, 20, of Brutus, was sentenced Aug. 6 by Judge Jon Budelmann to one to three years for fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property.

 Ryan Coleman, 36, of Red Creek, was sentenced Aug. 6 by Judge Budelmann to 3.5 years in state prison followed by two years of post-release supervision for third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance.

 Edward D. Babiarz, 34, of Cato, was sentenced Aug. 13 by Judge Budelmann to 5.5 years in state prison followed by three years of post-release supervision for third-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance, and was sentenced to 1.5 to three years for second-degree unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. Both sentences will run concurrently.

 Jeremy D. Darrin, 38, of Auburn, was sentenced Aug. 13 by Judge Budelmann to five years of probation, with the first six months in the Cayuga County Jail, for fifth-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance.

 Adam M. Herrington, 19, of Sterling, was sentenced Aug. 13 by Judge Budelmann to one year in the Cayuga County Jail. Herrington also has to register as a sex offender.

 Joseph E. Nichols, 31, of Auburn, was sentenced Aug. 13 by Judge Budelmann to half a year to three years for first-degree criminal contempt.

 Billy J. Thompson, 27, of Sennett, was sentenced Aug. 13 by Judge Budelmann to five years of probation, with the first six months in the Cayuga County Jail, for second-degree attempted assault.

 Christopher G. Yantch, 64, of Auburn, was sentenced Aug. 13 by Judge Budelmann to five years of probation and felony drug court for aggravated driving while intoxicated.

The records page: Blotter, restaurant inspections and more Visit the records page of auburnpub.com to see The Citizen's latest blotter, restaurant inspections and property transfers.
The Israeli military issued new evacuation orders in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, forcing more Palestinians to flee their homes and shelters, as the United States and others tried to salvage sputtering talks that could ease regional tensions and stop the 10-month war.

Thousands of civilians were already on the move, responding to Israeli orders issued a day earlier to leave several neighborhoods in central Gaza. Most of them have been displaced multiple times over the course of the war.

Mohammed Aborjela was among those who fled the city of Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza, after he received a phone message from the Israeli military on Wednesday afternoon warning that it would act forcefully against Hamas militants in the area.

Mr. Aborjela, 28, packed up the few belongings he had and headed to Al-Mawasi, a coastal area that Israel has declared a humanitarian zone, but that has come under attack numerous times. Hours after he arrived there, he said, shelling from tanks reached tents where people were sheltering.
A group representing relatives of hostages taken in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel said on Thursday that autopsies showed bullets were found in the bodies of six captives Israeli troops recovered from an underground tunnel in southern Gaza, raising questions about how they died.

The group, the Hostages Family Forum, said that the autopsy results indicated that the six hostages were taken alive and executed in the tunnels of Hamas.

But an Israeli military spokesperson, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter to families, said on Thursday that the autopsies showed marks suggestive of gunshots on the bodies and stressed it was too soon to determine whether gunshot wounds were the cause of death.

The autopsy reports have not been made public. The New York Times has not reviewed them and cannot confirm the results.

Four other bodies found in the tunnels near the hostages, believed to belong to Hamas militants, did not display the same marks, the military spokesperson said.

How and when the hostages died has been a matter of contention. Hamas has blamed the deaths on Israeli airstrikes, and the Israeli military has acknowledged some of them likely died while Israel was carrying out military operations in the area where they were found. Some Israel news outlets reported the hostages may have suffocated when the tunnel filled with toxins after an airstrike.
Behind the scenes at the Democratic National Convention, delegates from Uncommitted, a movement calling for a permanent cease-fire in Gaza and an arms embargo on Israel, demanded that a speaker of Palestinian descent address the convention from the main stage, as relatives of a hostage being held in Gaza spoke on Wednesday evening.

The group urged the party in a statement on Wednesday to show balance by ensuring Palestinian voices are heard on the main stage. With the convention concluding Thursday, the group added, the absence of Palestinians addressing the gathering sends a troubling message to our antiwar voters, suggesting they arent truly included in this party.

The statement came after a Jewish magazine, The Forward, reported that the parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was abducted from Israel on Oct. 7 in the Hamas-led attack that set off the war, would speak at the convention on Wednesday night. We strongly support that decision and also strongly hope that we will also be hearing from Palestinians, Uncommitted wrote.

Hours later, Rachel Goldberg and Jon Polin, Chicago natives, took to the convention stage. Wearing pieces of masking tape with the number 320  the number of days their son has been a hostage  they were greeted with a standing ovation and chants of Bring them home! Ms. Goldberg briefly broke down in tears.

At this moment, 109 treasured human beings are being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza, she said. They are Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists.

Ms. Goldberg noted that the hostages were from 23 countries, including eight Americans, one of which is her only son, who like the Democratic nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, was born in Oakland, Calif. Part of his left arm was blown off by a Hamas grenade on the day he was abducted.
The tanker, the Sounion, was sailing about 90 miles west of the Yemeni port of Hudaydah early on Wednesday when two small boats approached it, said a statement on social media from Britains maritime trade agency, which is based in Dubai.

The first craft had three to five persons onboard while the second had approximately 10, the statement said. The two small craft hailed the merchant vessel, leading to a brief exchange of small-arms fire.

The small craft retreated and the ship was then hit by three unidentified projectiles, starting a fire and causing the ship to lose engine power, it said. It was not clear on Thursday whether the fire had been extinguished.

The crew was rescued by a ship from an E.U. military mission, Operation Aspides, that has been mounted in response to attacks by the Houthi militia, according to a statement the mission posted on social media Thursday.

The statement included a photograph showing an enclosed lifeboat, typical in the oil industry, bobbing in the water and a second photo of crew members aboard a rescue speedboat.

After coming under attack, the ships captain called for help. The E.U. military destroyed what it described as an unmanned surface vessel that had posed an imminent danger to the Sounion. The crew was being transported to Djibouti, the statement said.

The Houthi militia, which is backed by Iran, began firing late last year on ships entering the Red Sea en route to the Suez Canal, which is a vital artery for vessels moving between Asia, Europe and the eastern United States.

The United States and Britain have launched strikes against the Houthis in response, but analysts have said they have done little to damage the militias military infrastructure. The attacks have continued, forcing ships to find alternative routes and disrupting global trade. Oil prices on Thursday were little changed, trading near their lowest levels of the year.

Over the course of dozens of attacks, at least two vessels have sunk and at least three crew members have been killed.

Jason Karaian contributed reporting.
The veteran PBS correspondent Judy Woodruff on Wednesday apologized for on-air comments suggesting there had been a phone call between former President Donald J. Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel to discuss a cease-fire deal. Aides to both men denied that such a call had taken place.

The denials came after a news report in Axios last week claimed the two men had spoken about the topic. Mr. Netanyahus office quickly denied the call had taken place and Axios updated its story to reflect his denial.

But the report took on new momentum this week, when Ms. Woodruff said during a PBS broadcast on Monday that the reporting is that former President Trump is on the phone with the Prime Minister of Israel, urging him not to cut a deal right now, because its believed that would help the Democratic presidential nominee, Kamala Harris.

On Wednesday, Ms. Woodruff released a statement calling her reference to the reports, which she said were from both Axios and Reuters, a mistake.

In the live TV moment, I repeated the story because I hadnt seen later reporting that both sides denied it, her statement said. This was a mistake, and I apologize for it.

Mr. Trump and Mr. Netanyahu last met on July 26 at Mr. Trumps club, Mar-a-Lago, in Palm Beach, Fla., in an effort to smooth out their relationship, which was strained after Mr. Netanyahu congratulated President Biden on winning the 2020 election. (Mr. Trump has never conceded he lost.)

Mr. Trumps campaign spokesman said the two men had not discussed slowing down a possible cease-fire agreement.

The only thing President Trump has told the prime minister is to get the war over with, said Steven Cheung, the Trump campaign communications director. Any assertion otherwise is fake news.

A spokesman for Mr. Netanyahu, Omer Dostri, said that reports that Mr. Trump had asked the prime minister to wait on a deal were a total lie.

Axios reported last week that the two had discussed the cease-fire in a phone call on Aug. 24, citing two unnamed U.S. sources. One of the sources said that Mr. Trumps call was intended to encourage Mr. Netanyahu to take the deal. Reuters published a report about the Axios account.

A person close to Mr. Trump also denied that the two men had spoken since the July 26 meeting.
Andrew Tate, an online influencer known for his displays of wealth and his misogynistic views, is facing criminal accusations over sexual misconduct in two separate cases.

Mr. Tate and his brother, Tristan Tate, have since 2022 been battling charges from Romanian prosecutors that include human trafficking.

They were detained in March on a separate arrest warrant issued by the British authorities, the Romanian police said, this one accusing them of sex crimes. In August, Romanian prosecutors carried out more searches of the Tates homes in connection with new accusations, including money-laundering and human trafficking. Also in August, Andrew Tate was placed under house arrest.

Heres what to know about the situation.

Who is Andrew Tate?

Mr. Tate, who is both British and American, is a former kickboxer who has gained a large online following by marketing a brand of antagonistic masculinity tied to lavish displays of wealth. That brand has included sexist views that demean women and argue that men are victims of feminism.
A cruise on the Mediterranean Sea aboard a superyacht was supposed to be a celebratory event for the British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch, who was acquitted in June of fraud charges tied to the sale of his company, Autonomy, to the tech giant Hewlett-Packard.

Instead, it turned into a disaster after the yacht, a 180-foot boat called the Bayesian, sank off the coast of Sicily in a violent storm. Of the 22 people aboard, 15 were rescued and seven others died. Search operations ended on Friday after the final body was recovered from the site of the sunken yacht.

Heres what we know about the passengers.

Mike Lynch and his family

Mr. Lynch, 59, is a British software entrepreneur who had once been described as his countrys Bill Gates. He founded the software firm Autonomy, which analyzed clients unorganized data, and turned it into one of the most prominent British technology companies of its time. He became a widely known corporate leader, who advised David Cameron, the British prime minister at the time, and joined the board of the BBC.

In 2011, Mr. Lynch sold Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard for $11 billion, which was far above its market value, earning him hundreds of millions. But HP investors almost immediately soured on the transaction, and the American tech giant quickly fired its chief executive  and then Mr. Lynch.
Who Are Kamala Harriss 1.5 Million New Donors?

An unprecedented wave of small-dollar donations for Harris After Biden dropped out of the race, donations poured into the Harris campaign faster than they had for any presidential candidate this cycle. Daily Biden/Harris donors 150,000 300,000 450,000 600,000 donors Jan. 1, 2024 April 1 July 1 Source: Federal Election Commission The New York Times

When President Biden ended his presidential campaign on July 21, making Vice President Kamala Harris the presumptive Democratic nominee, he unleashed the biggest wave of small-dollar enthusiasm the race has seen.

More than 1.5 million new donors gave to the Harris campaign in the last 11 days of July, according to estimates from a New York Times analysis of donor data filed with the Federal Election Commission. That figure comprises 40 percent of all donors to the Biden and now Harris campaign, which has been raising money since April 2023.

Donors both old and new gave to the newly renamed Harris campaign Both donors who had given to the Biden re-election campaign and new people who had not previously contributed rushed to donate to the Harris campaign. Biden donors Harris donors who had not given to Biden Harris donors who had previously given to Biden 150,000 300,000 450,000 600,000 donors July 1 July 31 Source: Federal Election Commission The New York Times

Mr. Bidens existing donor base was enthusiastic, as well: About 680,000 people who had previously donated to Mr. Biden  just over one-third of his previous donors  came back to give more to Ms. Harris in those 11 days.

More than half a million people total on July 21, and more than 600,000 on July 22, gave to the Democratic presidential campaign through ActBlue, its official fund-raising platform. Their contributions totaled more than $80 million in the first two days. From July 21 through the end of the month, the newly renamed Harris campaign raised $183 million through ActBlue.

The Timess analysis also combined the donor records with voter registration records to show that new Harris donors were much younger than Biden donors had been. Just 10 percent of Mr. Bidens donors in July were under 45 years old, compared with 28 percent of Ms. Harriss donors.

Age of donors to Biden compared with Harris 4% 2 Pct. of donors 0 2 4% Age <25 35 45 55 65 75 85+ = = Median age of Biden donors: 66 Median age of Harris donors: 56 Sources: Federal Election Commission; L2 Among donors who gave to the Democratic presidential campaigns in July via ActBlue. The New York Times

The share of Ms. Harriss newly acquired donors who were women under 45 was 17 percent  more than double the share of Mr. Bidens donors who were younger women. Younger men also made up a greater share of Ms. Harriss donors.

Across all ages, slightly more than 60 percent of both Mr. Bidens and Ms. Harriss donors were women.

In a geographic comparison of Mr. Bidens donors and Ms. Harriss, the makeup of both pools was very similar. Harris donors were slightly more likely to come from more educated areas: ZIP codes where more than half of those 25 and over had a bachelors degree. Ms. Harris also claimed a slightly higher share of first-time small-dollar donors from ZIP codes where more than 5 percent of the population was Black, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau. And differences between the candidates were minor when it came to their ZIP codes median household income.

Breakdown of Biden and Harris donors by ZIP code area: Percent of adults with bachelors degree 20% 10 Pct. of donors 0 10 20% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% = = Percent of Black residents 40% 20 Pct. of donors 0 20 40% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25%+ = = Median household income 30% 20 10 Pct. of donors 0 10 20 30% $0 $50,000 $100,000 $150,000 $200,000 $250,000+ = = Sources: Federal Election Commission; Social Explorer 2022 5-year ACS data Charts compare donors who gave to the Democratic presidential campaigns between April 25, 2023 and July 31, 2024 based on their ZIP code tabulation area. Percent of adults with bachelors degree is among those 25 and older. The New York Times

The Timess analysis did not look at contributions by large donors who give directly to the campaign, fund-raising committees or super PACs without going through ActBlue.

Large donors had been threatening to flee the party after Mr. Bidens disappointing debate performance, and while some small donors had rushed to the presidents support, they were far outnumbered by the wave of money that flooded in for former President Donald J. Trump after his felony conviction and the attempt on his life.

Full details on donations by large donors will not become clear until October, when the campaigns associated fund-raising committees are required to file reports with the Federal Election Commission. But on just the strength of small donors alone, the end of July was the most significant fund-raising moment for the Biden or Harris campaign of the entire cycle thus far, and the biggest week for Democratic fund-raising on ActBlue since the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

The Harris campaign in July announced that it had raised over $310 million, more than double what Mr. Trumps had, on the strength of fund-raising in the last 10 days of the month.
Gil Bashe

Losing sight of the long game is easy in a world where the media revolves around controversy. In a partisan political environment tension and disagreement attract more eyeballs than solutions regardless of the topic  health policy, gun legislation, education, or climate change. With the clock ticking louder and louder, counting down to irreversible climate disaster, do we have the appetite or time to avoid incremental resolution? Communication leaders have a responsibility to navigate their organizations through the distractions.

The UN Conference of the Parties (COP) has gathered annually for nearly three decades, bringing together leaders from almost every nation to tackle the most pressing issue of our time: climate change. However, the media's focus on immediate outcomes and controversies often invite us to overlook the long-term progress and significance of these Summits. It's important to remember that these events are not just about the headlines, but about the promise of change and hope they bring for a sustainable future.

Skeptics often point out the shortcomings of these Summits or raise concerns about the host countries; however, they are missing the bigger picture. No nation is perfect, and even those with progressive sustainability policies must recognize that turning their backs on emerging nations struggles delays global action. [In fact, with less than 5% of the worlds population, the United States consumes 16% of the worlds energy and accounts for 16% of world GDP.]

The participation of developing countries in the COP process is not just theoretical; it is crucial to the worldwide mobilization necessary to tackle the issue. These nations, often the most at risk from climate change, are not just participants but key contributors to arriving at inclusive solutions. Their unique perspectives and challenges shape the discussions and decisions made at these Summits, making them an integral part of the global climate action.

In nearly three decades, COP Summits have made remarkable progress. The Paris Agreement, adopted at COP21, was a significant milestone in global climate action. This agreement, signed by 195 countries, aims to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius, with an aspiration to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees. Recognizing such achievements is crucial; it reminds us that these gatherings and collaborations are not in vain but a beacon of hope for a sustainable future.

The Early Days: Building a Framework for Global Action

The first COP meeting in 1995, held in Berlin, marked the beginning of a sustained global effort to address climate change, and it set the tone for what would become an evolving negotiation process. COP1 established the Berlin Mandate, a landmark agreement that recognized the historical responsibility of developed countries, the most significant historical emitters of greenhouse gases, in causing climate change. This mandate laid the groundwork for future discussions and paved the way for the Kyoto Protocol, adopted two years later in 1997 at COP3 in Kyoto, Japan.

The Kyoto Protocol was a watershed moment in global climate policy. For the first time, countries agreed to legally binding emission reduction targets. Although it applied to developed nations, the protocol set a precedent for collective and individual national accountability.

The agreement faced its share of challengesmost notably, the United States' refusal to ratify itbut it still represented a significant step forward. The protocol underscored the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, a concept that remains central to climate negotiations today.

Mid-Course Correction: The Road to Paris

As the COP Summits progressed, it became increasingly evident a more inclusive and flexible approach was needed, as it was recognized that the Kyoto Protocol, focusing on binding targets for a subset of countries, would not be achievable. The realization led to the Bali Action Plan at COP13 in 2007, which initiated a process to negotiate a new global agreement to include all nations, developed and emerging.

This was the Paris Agreement, adopted at COP21 in 2015. The Paris Agreement marked a significant shift in how nations engage in the fight to stem climate change. Unlike the Kyoto Protocol, which imposed top-down targets, the Paris Agreement encourages countries to set their determined contributions (NDCs) based on specific circumstances. This flexibility was vital to securing the participation of nearly every country worldwide. The agreement also established a framework for transparency and accountability, requiring countries to report on their progress regularly.

Yet the Paris Agreements most significant achievement was its commitment to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, intending to limit the increase to 1.5 degrees. Though ambitious, this target reflects the scientific consensus necessary to avoid climate change's most catastrophic impacts. The Paris Agreement was a triumph of collaborative diplomacy, demonstrating that global cooperation is possible despite incredible policy and economic standing differences.

The United States was a late signer of the Paris Agreement. It joined the community in 2016 but withdrew soon after, in 2017; on January 20, 2021, President Biden reaffirmed the US commitment to the Paris Agreement on his first day in office.

New Era of Ambition and Accountability

In the years following the Paris Agreement, the COP Summits have focused on putting the structure needed to implement its goals. COP24 in Katowice, Poland, 2018 formalized the Paris Rulebook, providing detailed guidelines on implementing the agreements provisions. This includes rules for how countries should report their emissions and progress and how to ensure transparency and accountability.

Another significant achievement came at COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland, in 2021 under the theme Together for Our Planet. The Summit saw a wave of new commitments from countries to enhance their NDCs, reflecting a growing recognition that the original Paris pledges were insufficient to meet the 1.5-degree target.

The Glasgow Climate Pact agreed upon at COP26 urged countries to revisit and strengthen their targets by 2022 and included the first-ever explicit mention of phasing down unabated coal power. The pact also emphasized the need for developed countries to fulfill their promise to provide $100 billion per year in climate finance to emerging nations, a commitment that has been a sticking point in negotiations since.

COP26 also saw the launch of several major initiatives aimed at accelerating climate action. The Global Methane Pledge, for instance, committed signatories to reduce methane emissions by 30% by 2030, an action that could significantly slow the rate of global warming. Additionally, more than 130 countries pledged to halt and reverse deforestation by 2030, recognizing forests' critical role in absorbing carbon dioxide.

Addressing the Critics: Why COP Matters

Indeed, the COP process is not without its flaws. Critics often point to the slow pace of negotiations, the gap between promises and action, and the influence of powerful fossil fuel interests in the nations hosting the Summit. All these concerns are valid. However, they should not overshadow the progress made or the world's ticking clock in addressing climate change. The COP Summits are instrumental in creating a framework for addressing a common concernpeople and planet are at risk.

The shift from the Kyoto Protocol to the Paris Agreement reflects a broader understanding that tackling climate change requires global collaboration and local action. COP provides a community setting for bringing together governments, businesses, non-governmental organizations, and thought leaders to share ideas, forge partnerships, and hold each other accountable.

Notably, the COP Summits have played a crucial role in elevating the climate crisis on the global agenda. These meetings' visibility and media coverage have helped build public awareness and pressure governments to act. Climate change is now a central issue in international relations due in no small part to the sustained efforts of the COP process.

Looking Ahead: The Road to COP29 and Beyond

The upcoming COP29 Summit in Baku will be another critical moment as we prepare for the future. The focus will be on assessing the collective progress toward the Paris Agreement goals and scaling up ambition to meet the 1.5-degree target. This will require substantial government commitments and more significant engagement from the private sector and civil society.

The challenges are immense, but the achievements of the past 28 COP Summits provide a good cause for optimism. Each Summit has built on the potential of the previous gathering, gradually moving the world closer to a shared, sustainable future. The road ahead will not be easy, but the COP process has shown that, despite imperfections, it remains our best hope for achieving climate justice. To make noticeable progress, the communication skills we use to mobilize employees, constituents and markets are needed.

The COP gatherings matter because they are the only global forum where every country has a voice in the essential effort to course-correct climate change. They matter because they have led to concrete actions that will make a difference. They matter because they embody the principle that collaborative action can change the course of history, no matter how daunting the challenge. As we approach COP29, remember that these global gatherings are about give and take and building a future where people and the planet can survive  if not thrive - together.

***

Gil Bashe is chair, global health and purpose at FINN Partners.


MI State Wants to Tout Economic Impact Thu., Oct. 3, 2024 Michigan State University wants bids from PR and communications firms to promote its University Research Corridor alliance with the University of Michigan and Wayne State University.
FLEMING  U.S. Rep. Brandon Williams received help from Lee Zeldin, a former candidate for governor and congressman, to make his case against what he described as New York's "pro-criminal" policies.

Williams, R-Sennett, and Zeldin held a press conference at the Springside Inn Wednesday to show their support for law enforcement, while slamming bail reform, the Humane Alternatives to Long-Term Solitary Confinement Act, Raise the Age and other criminal justice reform measures.

Standing with local leaders, including Cayuga County District Attorney Brittany Grome Antonacci and Cayuga County Sheriff Brian Schenck, and members of correction officer unions, Williams told reporters there is "a law enforcement crisis" in New York state.

"We've had a disastrous series of laws coming out of (Gov. Kathy Hochul's) office, from Raise the Age to cashless bail to the HALT Act to these things that are really making it a great time to be a criminal and a challenging time to be in law enforcement and in corrections," he said.

Williams added that the House has passed bills to support law enforcement across the country, but they haven't advanced in the U.S. Senate.

With law enforcement agencies experiencing challenges in recruiting new officers, Williams tied this problem to the laws that have been enacted at the state level.

Zeldin, who ran for governor in 2022 and served in Congress and the state Senate, highlighted three "guiding principles" he thinks should be followed  prioritizing law-abiding New Yorkers over criminals, having prosecutors who prosecute crimes and supporting those in law enforcement.

In some areas of New York, Zeldin said those three principles are being violated.

"We have New Yorkers who are really upset by it and they are demanding more action," he added.

Zeldin, who chairs the Leadership America Needs PAC, spent Wednesday campaigning with Williams in central New York. Before the Auburn-area press conference, he joined Williams for opening day at the New York State Fair.

After the press event, Zeldin headlined a fundraiser for Williams in Skaneateles.

Williams is running for reelection in the 22nd Congressional District, which includes Onondaga and Madison counties, plus parts of Cayuga, Cortland and Oneida counties. His opponent is state Sen. John Mannion, a Democrat.
(L-R) Jessyca Sheehan, Travis Taylor

Lucas Public Affairs, a Sacramento-based public affairs firm and subsidiary of Public Policy Holding Company, names Jessyca Sheehan and Travis Taylor as executive vice presidents. Sheehan, who leads LPAs work in energy and climate, joined the agency in 2019. She was previously a VP at Keadjian Associates and was director and North America lead for APCOs energy and clean tech practice. Taylor, who heads LPAs business development team, has been with the agency since 2018. He was previously an EVP at Fineman PR and served as a senior communications advisor in the office of Hawaiis lieutenant governor. They will now manage the firm alongside CEO Donna Lucas and president Cassandra Pye, with a focus on driving agency growth and innovation to enhance client strategy, business development and talent management. Our corporate, nonprofit and government clients rely on us to help them navigate many of Californias toughest public policy challenges, and Jessyca and Travis have delivered time and again, said Lucas.

Brian Cowart

The Colorectal Cancer Alliance, a nonprofit organization dedicated to ending the disease, brings on USO chief development and marketing officer Brian Cowart as CDO. Before coming on board at the USO, Cowart was CDO at Disabled American Veterans, and he has also held executive marketing positions at St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital and CARE. In his new post, Cowart will spearhead the Alliance's development and fundraising initiatives, cultivating relationships with donors and partners to secure vital resources. The Alliance has also hired Marc Mason, who has 30 years of expertise in data strategy, intelligence, technology, and business operations, to serve as SVP of data intelligence & technology. "Their expertise in their relative fields and shared passion for our mission to eradicate colorectal cancer make them vital assets as we work to expand our impact," saud Colorectal Cancer Alliance CEO Michael Sapienza.

Sheila McAneny

Agital, a digital marketing agency, promotes Sheila McAneney to division president. McAneny was one of the first five employees at Exclusive Concepts, an ecommerce-focused agency that was founded in 1997 and rebranded as Agital when it was acquired by Trinity Hunt Partners in 2023. Sheila was instrumental in scaling Exclusive Concepts into a multimillion-dollar business with over 100 employees. As Agitals division president, she will drive revenue and end-to-end services for ecommerce clients across a variety of channels and platforms, including paid and organic search, paid social, email, SMS, marketplaces, programmatic advertising and more. She will work closely with Exclusive Concepts founder Scott Smigler, who was recently named vice chairman of Agital. Sheila has decades of exceptional leadership experience, deep industry knowledge, and unwavering commitment to our clients and team members. Coupled with her strong business acumen, Sheila was the clear choice to lead this division forward, said Agital CEO Jeff Reynolds.
The baby of a young couple from Portarlington in Laois has been diagnosed with a "one in a billion" rare disorder that needs serious medical intervention.

Little girl Robyn Neville-Quinn is just one year old, the only child of Meagan and Adam, both 25, who now live in Belfast.

Since her birth she has battled serious medical issues and now a diagnosis means she needs a bone marrow transplant.

The operation must be done by the NHS in London so the couple have gone public to reach out for financial support to help them take time off work and stay near their baby.

Robyns grandmother Sabrina Moran who lives in Portarlington, spoke to the Leinster Express / Laois Live.

Robyn keeps her best side out even when sick. It's been a very difficult journey since her birth. She has been in and out of hospital with bleeding problems, severe eczema and to get her weekly blood transfusions to keep her platelets up. She is at risk of picking up serious infections.

Megan and Adam will have to travel to the UK for this life saving treatment. As a result Adam will have to take time off work and Meagan can't resume work either because of Robyns illness and frequent trips to the hospital. Please read her journey, share and donate if you can. We are forever grateful for the kindness so far, Sabrina said.

An online fundraiser has been launched on GoFundMe called 'Robyn's Journey', organised by Pamela Quinn who explains the difficulties facing the young family.

"We are reaching out to you to support the family of Robyn Neville-Quinn.

"Robyn is an adorable one-year-old girl who has unfortunately been diagnosed with Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome (WAS).

"WAS is a rare and life-threatening genetic disorder that primarily affects boys. For Robyn, a girl, to be diagnosed with this condition is incredibly rare, one in one billion."

"Since birth, Robyn has faced numerous health challenges; within her first few weeks of life, following countless visits to A&E for bleeding and severe eczema, it was discovered that Robyn's platelets were dangerously low, at just 5 (Normal platelet levels range between 150 and 450).

"To manage this, Robyn needed a central line inserted and weekly platelet transfusions to support her immune system. Because Robyn has a compromised immune system, she is at serious risk of developing infections.

"Although a medication introduced after her first birthday has helped her to produce more platelets, this treatment is not a permanent solution. Eventually, it will cease to be effective, making a bone marrow transplant essential to save her life."

Ms Quinn says that, due to the rarity of WAS and the complexity of the transplant, this procedure is not available in Ireland or Northern Ireland.

Therefore, Robyn and her parents, Meagan and Adam, must travel to Great Ormond Street Hospital in London.

"Meagan and Adam are a young couple, both only 25 years of age, who moved from Portarlington, County Laois, to Belfast and started their family. Robyn does not have any siblings.

"Unfortunately, she does not yet have a donor. However, as soon as her match is found, this life-saving operation can go ahead.

"The projected timescale for her operation, treatment, and recovery is six to 12 months, or possibly longer if any complications arise.

"Meagan and Adam will face significant financial pressure over the coming years; Meagan has been unable to return to work due to Robyn's illness, while Adam has needed to (and will continue to) need to take time off from work to travel to England and support his family during Robyn's transplant and recovery.

"Thankfully, Robyn's treatment will be covered by the NHS.

"Any money collected will go towards flights, accommodation, meals, and everyday costs during this time."

Ms Quinn concluded: "We would be so grateful if you could donate to this fundraiser in any way you can, and please share Robyn's Journey."

The fundraiser for Robyn can be accessed here.

As of the time of publication, the fundraiser has raised 3,655 (4,288) of its 50,000 (58,683.75) goal.
250 teenagers from around the world gathered in Maynooth University for Foroiges Leadership for Life Youth Conference. The conference brings together young people to learn the skills and confidence to become leaders in their own lives and communities.

During the week-long conference the teens learn crucial life skills such as empathy, decision making, problem solving, communication skills, critical thinking and team work.

Sean Campbell, CEO of Foroige, said Leadership for Life is a circuit-breaker programme and can truly be life-changing for young people. This conference gives them the chance to not just learn from expert speakers and facilitators, but also to develop themselves and grow with each other in a fun and relaxed environment. Year on year Im amazed by what young people can achieve when given the chance and the support. Every young person deserves to be able to access programmes like this.

As part of the week-long conference, the delegates met inspirational guest speakers including:

Joanne ORiordan, the renowned disability activist, and one of seven living people born with Tetra-amelia syndrome, a disorder characterised by the absence of all four limbs. She was named Young Person of the Year at Ireland's People of the Year Awards 2012 and appears in the 2013 documentary No Limbs No Limits. Joanne is now studying law full time.

Cllr Mark Duffy is an independent county councillor serving as Mayos youngest representative. A former Mayor of Ballina, Mark had the honour of welcoming President Biden during his homecoming visit to the town in front of a 27,000 strong crowd.

As Diversity & Inclusion Lead in RTE, Zbyszek Zalinski helps RTE better reflect the Ireland of today  among those who make the programmes and support our different services, as well as those who appear on them.

Sean Ronayne is an ornithologist, wildlife sound recordist, and environmental activist hailing from Cork, Ireland. He holds degrees in Zoology, Marine Biology, and Ecological Impact Assessment from University College Cork (UCC). His documentary Birdsong recently premiered in Irish cinemas and was shown on RTE1.
Vietnamese electric-vehicle maker VinFast Auto Ltd. is postponing the opening of its Thailand dealership network amid a broad slowdown in passenger car sales in Southeast Asias second-largest economy.

Vietnamese electric-vehicle maker VinFast Auto Ltd. is postponing the opening of its Thailand dealership network amid a broad slowdown in passenger car sales in Southeast Asias second-largest economy.

Vietnamese electric-vehicle maker VinFast Auto Ltd. is postponing the opening of its Thailand dealership network amid a broad slowdown in passenger ca

The company will carefully evaluate" the timing of sales of its EVs in the country, according to an emailed statement to Bloomberg.

The delay comes as the outlook for the global EV market has deteriorated in the past year. Several of the worlds largest manufacturers including Ford Motor Co., General Motors Co., Volkswagen AG and Tesla Inc. have dialed back their ambitions in recent months.

Also check these Vehicles Find more Cars UPCOMING VinFast VF9 123 kwh 123 kwh 531 km 531 km  65 - 67 Lakhs Alert Me When Launched UPCOMING VinFast VF8 87.7 kwh 87.7 kwh 425 km 425 km  40 - 50 Lakhs Alert Me When Launched UPCOMING VinFast VF6 59.6 kwh 59.6 kwh 399 km 399 km  30 - 45 Lakhs Alert Me When Launched UPCOMING VinFast VF3 210 km 210 km  9 - 12 Lakhs Alert Me When Launched UPCOMING VinFast VF7 75.3 kWh 75.3 kWh 450 km 450 km  60 - 65 Lakhs Alert Me When Launched UPCOMING VinFast VF e34 41.9 kWh 41.9 kWh 318 km 318 km  25 - 30 Lakhs Alert Me When Launched

Also Read : VinFast's US factory delay just the latest setback for EV maker

Last month, VinFast said it will delay the opening of a factory in North Carolina by three years to 2028 to manage short-term spending more effectively" and focus resources on near-term growth targets. It also lowered its full-year sales target to 80,000 units from its previous goal of 100,000.

We have postponed the launch of our dealerships in Thailand to ensure that our infrastructure and operations align with VinFasts global standards," the company said.

In March, VinFast signed letters of intent with 15 initial dealers in Thailand with the goal of opening 22 showrooms in the greater Bangkok area. No time frame was given. VinFast has signed formal agreements with several dealers, according to the statement. Thailand remains one of VinFasts key markets and the company has made no changes to its business plans for other markets, according to the statement.

Also Read : After Tamil Nadu, Vietnam's EV startup VinFast aims to set up shop in this state

VinFasts billionaire founder and Chief Executive Officer Pham Nhat Vuong said in an interview with Bloomberg TV in June that he was willing to bet all his money on the companys growth.

The company is targeting expansion to at least 50 countries in 2024. The EV maker expects to open its India factory in the first half of next year and broke ground on its new assembly plant in Indonesia last month.

Check out Upcoming EV Cars in India, Upcoming EV Bikes in India.

First Published Date:
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.

FORVIA HELLA achieves production of 48V battery management system in China

FORVIA HELLA has successfully commenced the global production of its 48V Battery Management System in China. Integrated into 48V lithium battery packs by a leading Chinese battery supplier, the system has been delivered to a well-known European automaker. The production began in April at FORVIA HELLAs electronics plant in Shanghai.

Baojun Yunhai rolls off line, starting presale at 121,800 yuan

The new compact SUV under SAIC-GM-Wulings Baojun brand, the Yunhai, recently rolled off the production line at the automakers LIM factory with smart assembly islands. Available in both plug-in hybrid and all-electric versions, the models presale prices range from 121,800 yuan to 145,800 yuan. The Yunhais official market launch is scheduled for September.

Photo credit: Baojun

China Telecom launches global V2X platform

China Telecom introduced its Global V2X Connectivity Management Platform (name in translation) at a recent conference. The platform covers over 200 regions worldwide, offering customized, efficient, and comprehensive one-stop vehicle connectivity solutions.

AVATR Technology signs strategic deal with Qatars AL ATTIYA Motors

On August 21 in Shanghai, AVATR Technology, the premium new energy vehicle company jointly backed by Changan Automobile, Huawei, and CATL, signed a significant agreement with Qatar's AL ATTIYA Motors.

WeRide launches L4 unmanned Robosweeper in Shantou city

Chinese autonomous driving solution provider WeRide, in collaboration with Guangdong Huadalong City Management Service Co., Ltd. (Huadalong), recently launched Shantou city's first commercial L4 autonomous street-sweeping project. This marks the debut of WeRide's Robosweeper S1 in Shantou and the eastern Guangdong region.

Xiaomis innovative business including Xiaomi EV posts revenue of 6.4 billion yuan in Q2 2024

On August 21, Xiaomi Group released its financial report for the second quarter of 2024 (Q2 2024), showing a revenue of 88.9 billion yuan, which surged 32% year on year from Q2 2023's 67.4 billion yuan. The companys adjusted net profit reached 6.2 billion yuan in the period, marking a 20.1% increase from a year ago, with cash reserves standing at 141 billion yuan.

GMWs WEY puts all-new Blue Mountain model onto market

On August 21, Great Wall Motor's WEY brand officially put the all-new Blue Mountain (named "Lanshan" in Chinese pinyin) onto the market, offering two variants with prices ranging from 299,800 yuan to 326,800 yuan.

NIO unveils county-level deployment ambition for EV charging, battery swap network

On August 20th, during the Power UP 2024 event, NIO announced its county-level charging accessibility plan, marking the beginning of a new chapter for NIO's expansion of electric vehicle charging and battery swapping network.

GAC INTERNATIONAL holds brand launch in Vietnam with two key models introduced

On August 20, GAC INTERNATIONAL made a significant stride in its Southeast Asian market expansion by holding a grand brand launch and product unveiling event in Hanoi, Vietnam. The event marked the official introduction of two flagship models, the All New GS8 and the All New M8, to the Vietnamese market, underscoring GAC INTERNATIONAL's commitment to accelerating its presence in the region.

Desay SVs revenue jumps 34.02% YoY in H1 2024

Desay SV recently released its financial report for the first half of 2024 (H1 2024), showing robust growth. During which, the company achieved a revenue of 11.692 billion yuan, indicating a 34.02% jump year-on-year, and a net profit of 838 million yuan, up 38.11% from a year ago.

Joyson Electronics H1 2024 revenue edges up 0.24% YoY, net profit leaps

On the evening of August 21, Ningbo Joyson Electronic Corp. ("Joyson Electronics") released its semi-annual financial report for 2024, showcasing solid financial performance despite ongoing changes in the global automotive market.

BYD opens new flagship store in Chile

BYD's Chilean distributor, ASTARA Group, recently celebrated the grand opening of its flagship store in Lo Barnechea, Santiago, according to a press release of BYD. This marks BYD's ninth store in Chile, where the company has already introduced nine models of all-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles.
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- BYD's Chilean distributor, ASTARA Group, recently celebrated the grand opening of its flagship store in Lo Barnechea, Santiago, according to a press release of BYD. This marks BYD's ninth store in Chile, where the company has already introduced nine models of all-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles.

Photo credit: BYD

Cristian Garces, Brand Manager of ASTARA Group, expressed enthusiasm about the new launch: "we are happy to open the most important branch in the country of a 100% electric brand. This store is the most representative image of BYD, due to its technology, design and ample space with all our models on display. It is a milestone that allows our customers to experience first-hand the technology and performance of our full range of vehicles."

The BYD Chile flagship store offers a customized car-buying experience, featuring a coffee area, Wi-Fi zone, large screens showcasing BYD's technology, and design elements that reflect the brand's identity. The store's grand opening also showcased the latest model to hit the market, the BYD Yuan Pro (locally named BYD YUAN PRO in Chile). Additionally, BYD introduced a new app specifically designed for Chilean users, offering a variety of remote vehicle control features to enhance the convenience and enjoyment of owning a new energy vehicle.

Cristian Garces added, "In an increasingly competitive market, our priority remains offering the most competitive products, supported by a diverse product lineup, to provide customers with a personalized viewing, purchasing, and ownership experience. The opening of this flagship store underscores our commitment to driving green development in Chile. Moving forward, BYD will continue to offer local users greener, more efficient transportation options."


Police officer crushed in doorway by rioters during Capitol breach (The Guardian)

(Image by The Guardian) Details DMCA



The Republican party has lost touch with the electorate. Voters have soundly rejected its conservative views on abortion and marriage equality. Beholden to lobbyists from the gun industry, Republican politicians have rejected common-sense gun control proposals that enjoy widespread, bipartisan support. While Republican politicians continue to deny that man-made climate change is an issue, "two-thirds of Americans prioritize developing alternative energy sources, like wind and solar." The party advocates repealing Obamacare even though 62% of Americans view the Affordable Care Act favorably.

Instead of using these losses as an opportunity to course correct, the Republican party has doubled down on its unpopular platform resulting in its slow and painful death. The Republican candidate has lost the popular vote in seven of the past eight presidential elections. In the years since Bill Clinton defeated the older Bush to deny him a second term, only the younger Bush has been able to win more votes than the Democrat. While securing the majority in his reelection attempt, The Shrub only secured his first term when the Supreme Court handed him the Presidency with a ruling so partisan that the justices declared it could not be used as precedent by future courts. Trump had fewer votes than Hilary Clinton but won in the antiquated Electoral College, a feat that he was unable to repeat in 2020.

Frustrated by this string of losses the party has increasingly turned towards violence. The last election cycle concluded with an attempted insurrection on January 6, 2021, which resulted in $2.7 million of damage to the Capitol Building, 174 injured police officers, and the deaths of four of their fellow protestors.

Instead of condemning this assault on democracy, Trump has referred to its participants as patriots. The defeated former President calls those convicted for their roles in the violent attempt to overturn an election "hostages" and promises to use his pardon power to free them if he is returned to the White House.

In his third attempt to secure the presidency, Trump has continued to engage in rhetoric that threatens to inject violence into the democratic process. Not only has he continued to spread false claims that the 2020 election was stolen from him, but he regularly tells his followers that the only legitimate outcome for this year's election is one in which he is the victor. Any loss would indicate that it was stolen, an outcome that would justify a "bloodbath for the country" at the hands of his followers.

Should Trump occupy the White House for a second term, he is already promising to be a dictator on "day one". His administration would be guided by the Heritage Foundation's "Project 2025"; a 1,000-page playbook that "calls for far-reaching changes in government, including rolling back protections for the LGBTQ community and infusing Christianity more deeply into society".

The proposals in "Project 2025" are so radical that the leader of the Heritage Foundation considers them to be a "second American Revolution". He promises that this revolution will be bloodless "if the left allows it to be". Stand in their way by voting against Trump and all bets are off.

While introducing VP candidate JD Vance at a pro-Trump rally, Ohio state senator George Lang took the threat one step further. Claiming that this November's election is "the last chance to save our country", the elected official said that if they lose "it's going to take a civil war to save the county". He concluded that in the event of such a war, he was "glad we got [SIC] people like "Bikers for Trump on our side".

With less than a hundred days to the election, one party is asking for your vote while the other is threatening to take control no matter the election's result. It is clear which side deserves the vote of those who support the continuation of democracy in our country.

Carl Petersen is a parent advocate for public education, particularly for students with special education needs, who serves as the Education Chair for the Northridge East Neighborhood Council. As a Green Party candidate in LAUSD's District 2 School Board race, he was endorsed by Network for Public Education (NPE) Action. Dr. Diane Ravitch has called him "a valiant fighter for public schools in Los Angeles." For links to his blogs, please visit www.ChangeTheLAUSD.com. Opinions are his own.
The co-owner of Portland alternative newspaper Willamette Week announced a new statewide initiative this week aimed at filling the gaps created by layoffs and closures at papers in Oregons smaller communities.

The nonprofit Oregon Journalism Project aims to bring investigative reporting to the states small towns and rural counties, starting this fall with a staff of four veteran Oregon journalists. Willamette Week will publish the new outlets work and grant free access to 17 other publications across the state.

The goal is hopefully to build the capacity of small newspapers, said Mark Zusman, Willamette Weeks editor and co-owner. He said OJPs journalists hope to collaborate with journalists in smaller communities who have topics they want to investigate but lack the resources to do so on their own.
Update 11:45 a.m.: Southbound lanes of I-5 south of Wilsonville have reopened. Expect slow traffic through the area as backups ease.

A crash has blocked all southbound lanes of Interstate 5 about five miles north of Woodburn early Thursday.

The Oregon Department of Transportation said in a release that all southbound lanes are blocked at milepost 277 as of 6:40 a.m. Thursday and it unknown when any lanes will reopen. The left northbound lane is also closed and causing a backup to Woodburn.

Southbound drivers out of the metro area may want to use Interstate 205 to Oregon City and south on OR 99E to get around the closure. Some drivers are using OR 551 south by the Aurora Airport. This route is already seeing congestion.

The cause of the crash was not released.

This post may be updated.
Federal prosecutors in New York say an Oregon man made bomb threats against Jewish hospitals on the East Coast.

Domagoj Patkovic, 31, was arrested in Portland and pleaded not guilty Tuesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Youlee Yim You, who ordered that he be transferred to New York.

A federal indictment accuses Patkovic of making violent threats on at least six telephone calls in 2021, including one that forced the partial evacuation of an entire Long Island hospital. Im gonna blow you to bits, he allegedly told one hospital, according to the indictment.

As alleged, the defendant and his coconspirators, motivated by their hatred of Jewish people, targeted Jewish hospitals and care centers in New York City and on Long Island with hoax bomb threats, needlessly endangering patients and staff by creating chaos and alarm, said U.S. Attorney Breon Peace in a written statement. Our highest priority is ensuring all members of our community are protected and we will use all resources possible to prosecute dangerous bomb threats and swatting schemes to the fullest extent of the law.

In Oregon, reports of antisemitism to the states Bias Response Hotline have increased 144% from 2022 to 2023. There were more than 450 such reports to the hotline last year.

 Beth Slovic is a deputy editor on the public safety and breaking news team. Reach her at 503-221-8551 or bslovic@oregonian.com.

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EUGENE  Oregon has ended the camp portion of preseason practice and is shifting to preparing for the season opener against Idaho.

Starting roles likely wont be officially known until game time, particularly along the offensive line, but there was some movement on the depth chart.
When Tillamook High Schools 10th grade honors English class reconvenes this fall, there will be one notable change to the reading list.

After emotionally charged testimony during a recent school board meeting, Julia Alvarezs How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents, a modern coming-of-age classic that traces the complicated journey of four sisters who immigrate to the U.S. from the Dominican Republic, will be off the syllabus.
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- On August 21, Great Wall Motor's WEY brand officially put the all-new Blue Mountain (named " Lanshan " in Chinese pinyin) onto the market, offering two variants with prices ranging from 299,800 yuan to 326,800 yuan.

Photo credit: WEY

The exterior of the all-new Blue Mountain maintains a streamlined design consistent with the brand's signature aesthetics. The front end is characterized by a semi-enclosed design featuring the WEY logo prominently in the center, flanked by sharply contoured split-type headlights that enhance its recognizability. Additionally, the lower part of the front fascia incorporates a trapezoidal air intake grille with a blacked-out finish, adding to the vehicle's imposing presence.

Photo credit: WEY

As for the side profile, the all-new Blue Mountain exhibits a squared-off profile with a slightly upward-sloping waistline, accentuated by chrome trim around the window frames, lending it a modern appeal. The model also includes hidden door handles for a sleek look.

Photo credit: WEY

The rear is distinguished by innovative wraparound tail lights and a broad rear bumper, both contributing to its strong visual identity. The vehicle measures 5,156 mm in length, 1,980 mm in width, and 1,805 mm in height, with a wheelbase of 3,050 mm.

Photo credit: WEY

Inside, the new vehicle continues the minimalist design approach with a tech-forward interior. A 15.6-inch central touchscreen paired with a passenger-side display and a dual-spoke multifunction steering wheel create a high-tech ambiance. The vehicle comes equipped with the Coffee OS 3 intelligent cockpit system, which supports customizable desktop widgets, a DOCK bar, and multi-screen interaction. The system integrates a custom Gaode (AutoNavi) map with features like traffic light countdowns, simplified voice prompts, congestion chat rooms, and EV charging station data.

In terms of intelligent driving, the all-new Blue Mountain is equipped with the Coffee Pilot Ultra system, which supports HD map-free NOA (Navigation on Autopilot). Hardware includes an NVIDIA Orin-X chip, a roof-mounted LiDAR, 3 millimeter-wave radars, 12 ultrasonic radars, and 11 high-definition perception cameras, totaling 27 sensors.

Photo credit: WEY

Powering the all-new Blue Mountain is a DHT-PHEV system combining a 1.5T engine with a P4 electric motor, delivering a maximum combined output of 380 kW and a peak torque of 933 Nm. The vehicle supports three driving modes: pure electric, electric-first, and intelligent hybrid. It offers two range options: 185 km and 220 km in battery power alone, corresponding to a WLTC-rated combined range of 1,307 km and 1,343 km, respectively. Additionally, the model is equipped with a CDC (continuous damping control) system for enhanced ride comfort.
When news broke in October 2023 that an off-duty Alaska Airlines pilot was accused of trying to cut the engines of a plane midflight, forcing it to make an emergency landing at Portland International Airport, reactions came quickly.

What kind of lunatic would do such a thing, many wondered, endangering the lives of more than 80 people on board? When it was reported by The Oregonian/OregonLive and other sources that the accused, Joseph Emerson, told investigators that he had taken magic mushrooms 48 hours before the incident, the story only seemed to get stranger.

A new documentary, The New York Times Presents: Lie To Fly, looks into some of the larger issues raised by the Emerson case. Featuring interviews with Emerson, his wife, aviation and medical experts, and more, Lie To Fly explores how pilots are often reluctant to seek diagnoses and treatment for mental health issues, due to regulations that may prevent them from flying, and making a living.

Emersons case is, without doubt, a dramatic one. As an Alaska Airlines pilot, Emerson was able to hitch a ride in the cockpit jump seat on a Horizon Air flight originating in Everett, Washington, and heading toward San Francisco, California. Horizon is a regional carrier that is owned by Alaska Airlines.

But, as The Oregonian/OregonLive reported, halfway between Astoria and Portland, Emerson said, Im not OK, according to a federal affidavit, and tried to shut off the planes engines.

Crew members were ultimately able to subdue Emerson, and pilots diverted the craft to land at Portland International Airport, where Port of Portland police took Emerson into custody.

Initially, Emerson faced 83 counts of attempted murder and reckless endangerment in state court, and was held in Multnomah Countys downtown Portland jail.

Joseph David Emerson, 44, appeared in Multnomah County Circuit Court for an indictment hearing on Dec. 7, 2023. Emerson, an airline pilot, is accused of attempting to turn off the engines of a plane he was riding in while off-duty in October. The revised indictment includes mostly misdemeanor charges, and Emerson posted bail after the hearing. Dave Killen / The Oregonian

As The Oregonian/OregonLive also reported, according to authorities, Emerson had said he hadnt slept in two days, was depressed by the death of his best friend, and had taken psychedelic mushrooms for the first time two days prior to the flight.

In Lie To Fly, Emerson, who lives in Pleasant Hill, California, talks about growing up loving planes, and how when he was in junior high in Cheney, Washington, he made business cards with his name and the sentiment, soon to be a pilot, printed on them.

Emersons wife, Sarah Stretch, says that her husband was always very devoted to his job with Alaska Airlines, considered the hometown airline because its headquarters are in Seattle.

Emerson and others recall his close friendship with Scott Pinney, a fellow pilot who also served as the best man at Emerson and Stretchs wedding. When Pinney died in 2018, Emerson was deeply shaken.

Joseph Emerson is among those interviewed in the documentary, "The New York Times Presents: Lie To Fly." FX/The New York Times

Theres no right way to grieve, Emerson says in the documentary, and he says he drank a lot of gin and tonics, which he admits wasnt a healthy way to cope. His therapist raised the possibility of Emerson seeing a psychiatrist who could prescribe antidepressant medication, but Emerson said no, believing that if he took such medicine, he wouldnt be able to fly an airplane.

As Lie To Fly explains, Emersons reluctance had to do with the Federal Aviation Administrations policies, which require pilots to disclose medical diagnoses, including depression and anxiety. The FAA process to determine whether a pilot is fit to fly can be very lengthy, as the documentary says, which leads to some pilots opting not to seek treatment, rather than risk losing their medical clearance to fly.

The climax of the documentary comes as Emerson recalls joining a guys trip to rural Washington, in honor of Pinney. It was there he took psychedelic mushrooms, Emerson says. But instead of feeling better, Emerson says, the mushrooms made him fear that people were going to kill him, and he had a feeling of, Am I alive?

The cockpit of the plane Joseph Emerson is accused of trying to bring down, as shown in "The New York Times Presents: Lie To Fly." FX/The New York Times

Emerson talks about taking the jump seat in the cockpit of the plane that was heading to San Francisco, and having recurring thoughts of, Is this real? Video footage from inside the plane reflects some of the aftermath of Emersons alleged attempt to cut the engines, as we hear a pilot say a jump seater went nuts, and witness moments before police take Emerson off the plane, when Emerson seems to be strangely calm, as if in a daze.

Stretch recalls arriving at the Multnomah County Justice Center, and being told her husband had been booked on 83 counts of attempted murder.

There are also images from the Multnomah County Courthouse during Emersons Oct. 24, 2023 arraignment, during which we hear the voice of Nathan Vasquez, who says hes representing the district attorneys office in the state of Oregon.

Video shows Emerson being led into the room, and he says when he saw his wife and met her eyes, I realized it was real.

There were two days of testimony before the grand jury, Emerson recalls. I answered questions as best I could.

In December, 2023, as The Oregonian/OregonLive reported, the grand jury tasked with reviewing the case reduced the charges facing Emerson, and issued an indictment that charged Emerson with 83 misdemeanor counts of recklessly endangering another person, plus one count of first-degree endangering an aircraft, a minor felony.

Those charges are mentioned at the end of Lie To Fly, along with Emerson also being charged at the federal level with one count of interference with flight crew members and attendants.

Emerson has pleaded not guilty to all charges, as the documentary says, and he is expected to go to trial in the fall of 2024.

The New York Times Presents: Lie To Fly, which airs at 10 p.m. Friday, Aug. 23 on FX, and streams the following day on Hulu.

 Kristi Turnquist covers features and entertainment. Reach her at 503-221-8227, kturnquist@oregonian.com or @Kristiturnquist

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A company that sent deceptive calls to New Hampshire voters using artificial intelligence to mimic President Joe Bidens voice agreed Wednesday to pay a $1 million fine, federal regulators said.

Lingo Telecom, the voice service provider that transmitted the robocalls, agreed to the settlement to resolve enforcement action taken by the Federal Communications Commission, which had initially sought a $2 million fine.

The case is seen by many as an unsettling early example of how AI might be used to influence groups of voters and democracy as a whole.

Meanwhile Steve Kramer, a political consultant who orchestrated the calls, still faces a proposed $6 million FCC fine as well as state criminal charges.

The phone messages were sent to thousands of New Hampshire voters on Jan. 21. They featured a voice similar to Bidens falsely suggesting that voting in the states presidential primary would preclude them from casting ballots in the November general election.

Kramer, who paid a magician and self-described digital nomad to create the recording, told The Associated Press earlier this year that he wasnt trying to influence the outcome of the primary, but he rather wanted to highlight the potential dangers of AI and spur lawmakers into action.

If found guilty, Kramer could face a prison sentence of up to seven years on a charge of voter suppression and a sentence of up to one year on a charge of impersonating a candidate.

The FCC said that as well as agreeing to the civil fine, Lingo Telecom had agreed to strict caller ID authentication rules and requirements and to more thoroughly verify the accuracy of the information provided by its customers and upstream providers.

Every one of us deserves to know that the voice on the line is exactly who they claim to be, FCC chairperson Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement. If AI is being used, that should be made clear to any consumer, citizen, and voter who encounters it. The FCC will act when trust in our communications networks is on the line.

Lingo Telecom did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The company had earlier said it strongly disagreed with the FCCs action, calling it an attempt to impose new rules retroactively.

Nonprofit consumer advocacy group Public Citizen commended the FCC on its action. Co-president Robert Weissman said Rosenworcel got it exactly right by saying consumers have a right to know when they are receiving authentic content and when they are receiving AI-generated deepfakes. Weissman said the case illustrates how such deepfakes pose an existential threat to our democracy.

FCC Enforcement Bureau Chief Loyaan Egal said the combination of caller ID spoofing and generative AI voice-cloning technology posed a significant threat whether at the hands of domestic operatives seeking political advantage or sophisticated foreign adversaries conducting malign influence or election interference activities.

 By NICK PERRY Associated Press
Kamala Harris isnt hiding as letter writer Bruce Schade suggested (Readers respond: Harris must stop hiding, Aug. 19). Shes traveling the country speaking to voters, telling us what she has in mind, including her economic policy which she detailed in North Carolina last week.

The primary objective of this election is to defeat former President Donald Trump. Thats why Joe Biden was elected in 2020. As evidenced by the $300 million-plus that Harris raised in July and the enthusiasm she and running mate Tim Walz have generated since then, voters understand and want that.
Whats Portland really like? A Portlandia paradise? Slacker sanctuary? Hippie haven? Or maybe a little of each? With thousands of newcomers arriving in the place we call Rip City each year, its time to find out. If youre just getting here, welcome to Portland: here are some of the tips, tricks and city secrets everyone should know.

Hundreds gathered for the The Milwaukie Umbrella Parade Saturday Dec. 2, 2023, in Milwaukie, Oregon.Mark Graves/The Oregonian

Portlanders hate umbrellas...

...the way Taylor Swift fans hate Matty Healy. Better pick up a jacket at the Columbia store, nerd.

People gathered to sled at Clinton City Park next to Franklin High School in Southeast Portland all day long Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024. Mark Graves/The Oregonian

Snow in Portland is even worse...

... than rain in Los Angeles. But if youve survived Snowpocalypse 2023, youve probably figured that out yourself.

The annual Sunflower Festival at Lee Family Farms in Tualatin, Oregon is underway during the first three weekends of August. Sean Meagher/The Oregonian

You have to start taking vitamin D

Or be sad all winter. Its science.

Snow tops Nandina berries in Lake Oswego, Oregon on Monday, Feb. 26, 2024.Sean Meagher/The Oregonian

Snow disasters aside, the winters not as bad...

... as Portlanders claim. The nosy grocery checker is just trying to get you to move back to California, but its good advice and you should at least, you know, think about it.

Members of the stand during the playing of the national anthem, July 7, 2024. Beth Nakamura

Since Portland doesnt have an MLB team...

... the Portland Pickles have taken over. We hope you like collegiate baseball.

Construction workers build homes in Hillsboro, Oregon.LC- The Oregonian

Wherever you live, theyre building a condo next door

Construction hours are 7 a.m.-6 p.m. six days a week, have fun!

A trendy man walks on the street with a yellow beanie and orange net bag with oranges.Getty Images

When you meet your new neighbors...

... youre going to think thats them out at the bar all the time, but no, its a different bearded guy in a beanie and selvedge denim.

Head chef and owner Greg Denton at Ox Restaurant located at 2225 N.E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Portland.Mark Graves/The Oregonian

If youre into Applebees or Olive Garden...

... good luck getting your chain restaurant fix. This is a city of chef-artisans, thank you very much. But at least theres Subway everywhere.

Lamb, butternut squash and ricotta ravioli in a spinach cream sauce is served at Mingo Italian restaurant in Beaverton.Vickie Connor/The Oregonian

It was cheap here once, but now...

... there are multiple restaurants with $18 ravioli. Food carts are your friend.

Portlandia Season 1 DVD: Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein star in "Portlandia".LC- Scott Green

If you say Portlandia three times in public...

... a U-Haul will arrive at your apartment to drive you back to San Francisco. Mentioning it one time on the phone with your mom is O.K.

Fred Armisen, shown with his "Portlandia" costar, Carrie Brownstein.LC- The Oregonian

Youre probably not going to run into Fred Armisen...

... who doesnt actually live here. But I did just see Carrie Brownstein bandmate Corin Tucker at a coffee shop.

After 10 years, Pip's Original is bringing their famous doughnuts and chai to Beaverton.Chiara Profenna/The Oregonian

Pips is the best donut shop in town...

... Voodoo is for tourists, Blue Star is for rich people. Theyre both good. But go to Pips.

Above Grnd Coffee lounge in Northwest Portland, Oregon, pictured on Tuesday, April 30, 2024Sean Meagher/The Oregonian

The coffee is at least twice as strong as non-Portland coffee...

... and the cold brew will make your brain expand, or explode.

One of Portland's signature dishes, the fried chicken and waffles at Screen Door.Michael Russell | The Oregonian

Sometimes theres no line at Screen Door on Tuesday mornings

We dont really know why.

Fifty Licks started out as a baby blue food cart at Southeast Belmont Street.The Oregonian/file

It will take less time to drive to Fifty Licks for ice cream...

... than wait another 20 minutes at Salt and Straw. Dont sleep on the simple but sublime Thai Rice Pudding.

Oregon is one of five states that don't have sales tax.Getty Images

Theres no sales tax, but...

... the Oregon state income tax is among the nations highest. Which was less of a big deal when people moved here to be broke and live in a punk house.

Portland arts tax form for tax year 2018

Theres also a $35 arts tax you have to pay every year...

... dont forget!

The exterior of the Happy Valley Fred Meyer store on Thurs., March 14, 2024.Dave Killen / The Oregonian

The best price on LaCroix 12-packs...

... might be at Fred Meyer. Its definitely not at New Seasons.

Pink Martini celebrated its 25th anniversary with two special New Year's Eve concerts at Portland's Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.Chris Hornbecker

Modest Mouse is cool, but...

... Pink Martini is probably the most popular band in Portland and have been for over 20 years. Get familiar.

American singer-songwriter Elliott Smith (1969 - 2003), Oxford Street, London, June 1998.Redferns

Before Elliott Smith played the Oscars...

... he was in a band called Heatmiser. Their albums, especially Mic City Sons, still rule.

Everclear performed at the Wonder Ballroom.LC- The Oregonian

Everyone in town apparently hated Art Alexakis in the 90s...

... but Everclear keeps selling out shows here 20 years later.

Earthquake Damage In Oregon in the Klamath Falls area in 1993.The Oregonian/OregonLive.com Staff

At some point, possibly soon, theres going to be a massive Pacific Northwest earthquake...

... that buries the region in an unstoppably destructive tsunami. Oh, you read about that already? And you still moved here? Are you Dwayne The Rock Johnson?!

A La Mota cannabis dispensary is shown in North Portland.Elliot Njus/The Oregonian

You cant smoke that legal weed in the street...

... or in a park, but on the lighter side, it costs less than half whatever you paid your frat brothers dealer in college.

Powell's Books' store on Southeast Hawthorne Boulevard.LC- Mark Graves

Theres another Powells on Southeast Hawthorne...

... so Portland actually has two of the greatest book stores on earth.

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band played the Moda Center on Sat., Feb. 25, 2023. The nearly 3 hour show included a wide variety of songs spanning the legendary performers decades-long career.Dave Killen / The Oregonian

People here love Bruce Springsteen.

When he announced his Portland book tour stop, it melted Powells ticket page.

In this file photo, Terry Currier, owner of Music Millennium, one of the nation's most prominent and independent music stores, stands inside his business on E. Burnside. LC- The Oregonian

Portland is the record store capital of America...

... according to local legend and Music Millennium owner Terry Currier. If it was pressed to vinyl, youll find it hereor listed on Beavertons Discogs app.

After a two-year break, Portlands Waterfront Blues Festival is in full force.Mark Graves/The Oregonian

The annual Waterfront Blues Festival...

... is the biggest such event west of the Mississippi. Its 4th of July fireworks are unbeatable.

Musicians playing in rock bandGetty Images/Tetra images RF

Your cool 100-year-old basement...

... will flood and/or your new neighbors will complain about the noise from band practice. Soundproof, waterproof.

 David Greenwald and Allison Barr
If you've read this far, you are as invested in this city and campus as we are. That's why we are asking you to invest in us.

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OU students pay about $14 in annual fees that help support the Daily. If you find value in our work and are not a student, please consider matching or exceeding that with a one-time or recurring donation. In an era when subscriptions to paywalled news organizations routinely exceed $100 annually, grassroots support from readers like you can collectively make a transformative difference in our organization.
BEIJING - China opposes the European Commission's plan to slap import duties of up to 36.3 percent on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), and will take all necessary measures to defend the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises, a spokesperson with the Ministry of Commerce said Tuesday.

Last month, the commission imposed provisional additional tariffs of up to 37.6 percent on Chinese EV makers, after it launched an anti-subsidy probe on Chinese EVs in October 2023.

On Tuesday, the commission published a draft plan to make those tariffs definitive, at slightly revised rates, subject to approval by EU member states.

The commission's anti-subsidy investigation process on Chinese EVs did not comply with the rules of the World Trade Organization and was an act of "unfair competition" under the guise of "fair competition," according to the spokesperson.

During the investigation process, the Chinese government and EV industry have provided hefty legal documents and evidence materials through various means such as questionnaires, written comments, and statements at hearings. They have comprehensively and thoroughly defended against the unreasonable and non-compliant practices of the European side, the spokesperson said.

The commission's wrong practice will disrupt the stability of the global automotive supply chain and harm the interests of European consumers, said the spokesman, adding that it will also undermine the EU's green transformation and global cooperation in addressing climate change.

Noting that the two sides have conducted more than 10 rounds of technical consultations on this case since the end of June, the spokesperson called on the EU to take practical measures to prevent the escalation of trade disputes.
Beijing (Gasgoo)- On August 21 in Shanghai, AVATR Technology, the premium new energy vehicle company jointly backed by Changan Automobile, Huawei, and CATL, signed a significant agreement with Qatar's AL ATTIYA Motors.

Signing ceremony; photo credit: AVATR Technology

This partnership will facilitate the introduction and expansion of AVATRs "new luxury" concept in the Qatari market, offering customers a unique and futuristic travel and lifestyle experience.

AVATR has positioned 2024 as its inaugural year for global expansion, with a focus on entering over 30 countries across Southeast Asia and the Middle East. The company aims to establish more than 90 official AVATR-authorized stores in these regions.

This follows a similar agreement signed in June with Al Saqer Group in the UAE, marking AVATR's entry into the Emirati market.

Currently, AVATR offers two models, the AVATR 11 and AVATR 12, along with their limited-edition versions, the AVATR 011 and AVATR 012. As part of its broader international strategy, AVATR also plans to expand into the European market, solidifying its presence as a key player in the global premium electric vehicle sector.
Birth rates for women in the United States declined in 2023, marking the second year in a row that the fertility rates have fallen.

The general fertility rate fell 3% last year to 54.5 births for every 1,000 females ages 15 to 44. Throughout 2023, only around 3.5 million babies were born. In comparison, breaking a record set in 2022, when there were 56.0 births for every 1,000 females aged 15 to 44, according to data from the National Center on Health Statistics.

By age, birth rates fell by 4% year-over-year among teens aged 15 to 19. From 2021, that number is down by 6%. Birth rates also fell 2% among teens aged 15 to 17 and declined 5% among those aged 18 and 19.

Prenatal Care Also Fell in 2023

Apart from a decline in birth rate, the percentage of mothers receiving prenatal care in the first trimester of pregnancy also declined by 1% from 2022, which had already been 2% lower than in 2021.

The report said prenatal care starting in the first trimester of pregnancy decreased to 76.1%. However, care in the second trimester of pregnancy increased to 16.9% and care in the third trimester increased to 4.7%. During the same period, roughly 2.3% of pregnant women did not receive prenatal care at all.

READ ALSO : America Continues to Experience Declining Birth Rates

Why the Fertility Rate Fell

The US fertility rate has been declining for decades. Birth rates particularly dipped after the Great Recession of 2008, but there was a sudden uptick in 2021, which experts said was a COVID-19 "baby bump," per the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER). That being said, the increase in birth rates in 2021 was still far below pre-pandemic levels. The birth rate has since returned to a consistent downward trend.

Speaking with CNN, Sarah Hayford, the director of the Institute for Population Research at Ohio State University, said there was no one particular reason why birth rates in the US are falling. But she did note that the study did not account for "a package of demographic changes" such as people getting married later or spending more years in school.

"People are waiting to have children. [And] so as that has become more acceptable, people are more carefully weighing their decision to become parent," she said.
Including Analysis of Catholic Anathemas in Dogmatic Statements / Development of Doctrine and Mary

Dr. Gavin Ortlund is a Reformed Baptist author, speaker, pastor, scholar, and apologist for the Christian faith. He has a Ph.D. from Fuller Theological Seminary in historical theology, and an M.Div from Covenant Theological Seminary. Gavin is the author of seven books as well as numerous academic and popular articles. For a list of publications, see his CV. He runs the very popular YouTube channel Truth Unites, which seeks to provide an irenic voice on theology, apologetics, and the Christian life. See also his website, Truth Unites and his blog.

In my opinion, he is currently the best and most influential popular-level Protestant apologist (see my high praise ), who (especially) interacts with and offers thoughtful critiques of Catholic positions, from a refreshing ecumenical (not anti-Catholic), but nevertheless solidly Protestant perspective. Thats what I want to interact with, so I have issued many replies to Gavin and will continue to do so. I use RSV for all Bible passages unless otherwise specified.

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blue . All of my replies to Gavin are collected on the top of my Calvinism & General Protestantism web page in the section, Replies to Reformed Baptist Gavin Ortlund. Gavins words will be in

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Dave, thanks for engaging my stuff. People often ask to dialogue or engage and then are disappointed when I decline. Unfortunately I have to say no to most things. . . . if you are expecting regular responses, Im afraid that is not realistic right now. Again, thanks for your engagement here. [Im] grateful you give my work so much attention, and I only apologize [that] Im not able to respond more. I think in the past Ive explained a little bit about why. This is my 3oth reply to his material. He has made just one lengthy and substantial reply to my critiques thus far. Why is that? His own explanation is simply lack of time. He wrote on my Facebook page on 17 April 2024 : Again, on 23 August 2024 he commented on my Facebook page: *

*****

This is my response to Gavins video, The Immaculate Conception: A Protestant Evaluation (8-30-23), which at the time of this writing has garnered 31,947 views and 1,742 comments. I think it deserves an in-depth Catholic reply, but likely far less people will ever see this, because were now in the age of videos. Oh well. Truth is truth, I say, and if I convince even one person, and educate many more than that, its well worth my time and effort.

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The disciples turned the world upside down, preaching their gospel message, before the Internet, TV, radio, or mass production of books. Whatever written materials existed were not mass-produced, and few could afford them, and relatively few were literate. But eventually we had the written Bible, read by billions of people. So I think that writing isnt obsolete yet, regardless of how many people still choose to read as opposed to (or in addition to) listening to lectures that almost always have far less substance content than corresponding written material.

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0:13 [This is] basically a very brief overview of an explanation of a Protestant concern and position about the Immaculate Conception, then we can follow up and do more thorough work at some point

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Understood.

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1:56 Im going to be focusing upon the Roman Catholic dogma

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Good.

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3:08 the first thing that I want to say right out of the gate is that in allowing that Mary was not morally perfect, we are not dishonoring her. On the contrary, the biblical portrait of Mary is as a godly and courageous person, so we should speak well of her. We should seek to emulate her faith. Shes one of the great heroes of Christianity, so God bless her.

* Gavin then objects to Catholic dogmatic statements about Mary including anathemas and statements about believing in them in order to be a Christian. He writes: * 4:20 people soften anathemas today and make them nicer than they were, but nonetheless its still clear, however you cash that out in terms of its application, that this is an obligatory part of Christianity. The Roman Catholic Church is making the Immaculate Conception of Mary an obligatory part of the Christian religion. * Ineffabilis Deus : Blessed Pope Pius IXs proclamation of the dogma in 1854 indeed stated:

Hence, if anyone shall dare  which God forbid!  to think otherwise than as has been defined by us, let him know and understand that he is condemned by his own judgment; that he has suffered shipwreck in the faith; that he has separated from the unity of the Church; and that, furthermore, by his own action he incurs the penalties established by law if he should dare to express in words or writing or by any other outward means the errors he thinks in his heart.

I can see how that wouldnt sit well with Protestants, but this is a biblical model, as I have written about: Bible on Authority to Anathematize & Excommunicate [August 2009]. St. Paul wrote, even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to that which we preached to you, let him be accursed (Gal 1:8). See, for example, the article, Anathema in Eastons Bible Dictionary. Our position on this also needs to be much better understood:

*

*

Moreover, were not the only ones who do this. Protestants do, too, all the time. We have a multitude of extraordinarily dogmatic statements from Luther and Calvin, anathematizing all who disagree (fellow Protestants and Catholics alike) with their own judgments (on entirely arbitrary grounds). For example, Martin Luther wrote in July 1522:

Against the Spiritual Estate of the Pope and the Bishops Falsely So-Called , in Luthers Works , Vol. 39; citation from pp. 248-249, my italics; see much more along these lines from Luther). I now let you know that from now on I shall no longer do you the honor of allowing you  or even an angel from heaven  to judge my teaching or to examine it. . . . I shall not have it judged by any man, not even by any angel. For since I am certain of it, I shall be your judge and even the angels judge through this teaching (as St. Paul says [I Cor. 6:3 ]) so that whoever does not accept my teaching may not be saved  for it is Gods and not mine. Therefore, my judgment is also not mine but Gods. (

One of the classic expositions of Calvinism was that set out by the Synod of Dort (1618-1619). In its Conclusion: Rejection of False Accusations, the Synod declares, against Protestant Arminian Christians: . . . the Synod earnestly warns the false accusers themselves to consider how heavy a judgment of God awaits those who give false testimony against so many churches and their confessions, trouble the consciences of the weak, and seek to prejudice the minds of many against the fellowship of true believers.

Note that this is entirely a dispute amongst Protestants. The great majority of Protestants today are Arminian, not Calvinist. They are all condemned by the rhetoric at Dort, and essentially read out of the Christian faith. Catholic dogmatic authority asserts that a person who rejects the Immaculate Conception has been condemned by his own judgment and has suffered shipwreck in the faith. Calvinist dogmatic authority asserts that people who reject predestination to hell of the reprobate and other tenets of five-point Calvinism (which multiple millions of Protestants reject), are wicked, impure, and unstable and do so to their own ruin. They are false accusers who will be subject to a heavy judgment of God if they continue in their ways (Article 6 of Dort).

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Luther casually assumed that Protestant opponents of his like Zwingli, who denied the Real Presence in the Eucharist, were likely damned as a result. Luther and Calvin and Melanchthon approved of drowning Anabaptists as heretics and seditious persons because they believed in adult baptism. Thus they would have approved of Gavin Ortlund and James White (and myself, earlier in life) being executed. The early Protestants were extremely intolerant of each other, with many mutual anathemas exchanged. I could go on at great length about this, but I think my point of comparison and double standards is sufficiently established. If one wants to go after a specific aspect of Catholicism that also occurs in Protestantism, then the criticism ought to be fair and across the board, not cynically selective and one-sided, as if only Catholics ever do this. Whats the difference? In both cases, a teaching which is disagreed with by many many different kinds of Christians is made obligatory on followers of the professed faith, under penalty of the shipwreck of their faith or souls. So why do we always hear about Catholic anathemas, but rarely or never about Protestant ones? There are millions of anti-Catholic Protestants (and not a few Orthodox ones, too) who believe that Catholics arent Christians at all, and hellbound, if they accept all that the Catholic Church teaches. How is that not at least as offensive or objectionable in principles as Catholic anathemas?Luther casually assumed that Protestant opponents of his like Zwingli, who denied the Real Presence in the Eucharist, were likely damned as a result. Luther and Calvin and Melanchthon approved of drowning Anabaptists as heretics and seditious persons because they believed in adult baptism. Thus they would have approved of Gavin Ortlund and James White (and myself, earlier in life) being executed. The early Protestants were extremely intolerant of each other, with many mutual anathemas exchanged. I could go on at great length about this, but I think my point of comparison and double standards is sufficiently established. If one wants to go after a specific aspect of Catholicism that also occurs in Protestantism, then the criticism ought to be fair and across the board, not cynically selective and one-sided, as if only Catholics ever do this.

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So, to use Gavins own words, Calvinists made Calvinist soteriology  an obligatory part of the Christian religion : on pain of being banished or losing ones job as a pastor, etc. in the Netherlands in the 17th century. Luther made belief in the eucharistic Real Presence  an obligatory part of the Christian religion : on pain of being read out of Christianity. Luther and Calvin made belief in infant baptism  an obligatory part of the Christian religion on pain of losing ones life by drowning: in mockery of believers adult baptism. Millions of anti-Catholics today require Catholics to believe like Protestants in many ways, as an obligatory part of the Christian religion : lest they be proclaimed out of the fold and damned and hellbound, as Pelagians, idolaters, etc., etc. (Id love to have a dime for every time Ive heard that myself).

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In the Lutheran Apology of the Augsburg Confession, written in 1531 (Article XXIV: The Mass) it is stated:

In the papal realm the worship of Baal clings  namely, the abuse of the Mass . . . And it seems that this worship of Baal will endure together with the papal realm until Christ comes to judge and by the glory of his coming destroys the kingdom of Antichrist. Meanwhile all those who truly believe the Gospel should reject those wicked services invented against Gods command to obscure the glory of Christ and the righteousness of faith. (in The Book of Concord, translated and edited by Theodore Tappert, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House / Muhlenberg Press, 1959, 268)

Marvelously ecumenical, isnt it? Goose and gander?

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*** Please Hit Subscribe! If you have received benefit from this or any of my other 4,800+ articles, please follow my 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. My blog was rated #1 for Christian sites by leading AI tool, ChatGPT: endorsed by influential Protestant blogger Adrian Warnock. 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! ***

4:48 Protestants in our conscience have a concern about this. The concern is, basically, you cant change Christianity. Its a revealed religion. If the apostles had never heard of it, you cant add it later on, and we think that thats whats going on here. W e think that this wasnt something the apostles or Mary herself ever had the foggiest notion of even imagining. * As to the antiquity of the doctrine. In the first ages original sin was not. formally spoken of in contrast to actual. In the fourth century, Pelagius denied it, and was refuted and denounced by St Augustine. Not till the time of St Augustine could the question be mooted precisely whether our Lady was without original sin or not. Up to his time, and after his time, it was usual to say or to imply that Mary had nothing to do with sin, in vague terms. The earliest Fathers, St Justin, St Irenaeus etc. contrast her with Eve, while they contrast our Lord with Adam. In doing this  1. they, sometimes imply, sometimes insist upon, the point that Eve sinned when tried, and Mary did not sin when tried; and 2. they say that, by not sinning, Mary had a real part in the work of redemption, in a way in which no other creature had a share. This does not go so far as actually to pronounce that she had the grace of God from the first moment of her existence, and never was under the power of original sin, but by comparing her with Eve, who was created of course without original sin, and by giving her so high an office, it implies it. Next, shortly after St Augustine, the 3rd General Council was held against Nestorius, and declared Mary to be the Mother of God. From this time the language of the Fathers is very strong, though vague, about her immaculateness. In the time of Mahomet the precise doctrine seems to have been taught in the East, for I think he mentions it in the Koran. In the middle ages, when everything was subjected to rigid examination of a reasoning character, the question was raised whether the doctrine was consistent with the Blessed Virgins having a human father and mother  and serious objections were felt to it on this score. Men defined the words Immaculate Conception differently from what I have done above, and in consequence denied it. St Bernard and St Thomas, in this way, were opposed to it, and the Dominicans. A long controversy ensued and a hot one  it lasted many centuries. At length, in our time, it has been defined in that sense in which I have explained the words above  a sense, which St Bernard, St Thomas, and the Dominicans did not deny. The same controversy about the sense of a word had occurred in the instance of the first General Council at Nicaea. The Nicene Creed uses the word Consubstantial to protect the doctrine of our Lords divinity against Arius, which the great Council of Antioch some 70 years before had repudiated as a symbol of heresy. In like manner great Saints have repudiated the words Immaculate Conception, from taking them in a different sense from that which the Church has accepted and sanctioned. (Letters & Diaries, Vol. 22; To Lady Chatterton, 2 Oct. 1865) * You will ask perhaps, Why then was there so much controversy about the doctrine or about its definition? . . . I do not see any difficulty in the matter. From the beginning of the Church even good and holy men have got involved in controversies of words. . . . The devotion to her has gradually and slowly extended through the Church; the doctrine about her being always the same from the first. But the gradual growth of the devotion was a cause why that doctrine, in spite of its having been from the first, should have been but slowly recognised, slowly defined. . . . The new devotion was first heard of in the ninth century. Suppose I say, The new doctrine of our Lords immensity, contradicted by all the Ante-nicene Fathers, was first heard of in the creed of St Athanasius? or The Filioque, protested against by the Orthodox Church to this day, was first heard of in the 7th Century? . . . we must recollect that there were at first mistakes among pious and holy men about the attributes of the Holy Spirit. . . . I fully grant that there is not that formal documentary evidence for the doctrine in question which there is for some other doctrines, but I maintain also that, from its character, it does not require it. (Letters & Diaries, Vol. 19; To Arthur Osborne Alleyne, 15 June 1860) * 5:34 with the Immaculate Conception you can at least make a case for it inferentially from other things. So, for example, the typology with Mary and Eve. Mary is the new Eve; or with the Ark of the Covenant. Mary is the Ark of the Covenant or language throughout the church fathers of Mary as holy and pure and the model of virginity and so forth, especially spirals up in the 4th Century

*

True. And we can make a case from the meaning of the Greek in Luke 1:28 (the words of the angel to Mary at her Annunciation).

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6:56 you have people saying Mary is a sinner and theyre saying it without any expectation of pushback, and it doesnt occasion any controversy, and you get enough teachings like this, that does start to become more of a falsification of the idea

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Its true that many fathers thought that Mary sinned. The consensus is not virtually unanimous and overwhelming as in the case of, say, the Eucharist and baptism and the rule of faith and infused justification (Catholic soteriology) and many other things, but there was a strong consensus as to Marys sinlessness (free from actual sin). Some got it wrong and some got it right, which is true about a lot of topics and the Church fathers.

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Gavin cites six Church fathers, saying that Mary sinned. This doesnt disprove the doctrine. It only shows that the patristic consensus was less strong than for several other doctrines. Thus, there is no need for me to analyze all that because I concede the point in the first place, but then immediately note that its not decisive, anyway. Many other Church fathers affirmed her sinlessness, and there is a fairly strong biblical case to be made that she was sinless, which is consistent with her Immaculate Conception. The inspired Bible is what we all agree on. If a good case can be made there, then it meets these Protestant objections from certain Church fathers.

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17:47 we all know people like Thomas Aquinas who rejected it

*

But his reasoning has to be understood. He wasnt far away from it. See my article: Even Aquinas Can Be Wrong (Immaculate Conception) [5-10-24].

*

19:04 here is a doctrine that pretty clearly does not seem to be anywhere close to the apostles

*

In its fullness, it wasnt (I agree), but neither were the canon of the NT, trinitarianism, etc. But the kernel is in the Bible, which means that it wasnt totally foreign to the apostles, as I will shortly demonstrate. Gavin seems unaware of many of these arguments (beyond New Eve and Mary as the new ark), and since he has chosen not to interact with my critiques, he may very well continue to be in the dark, if indeed he isnt familiar with those additional argument. And I think the biblical data is super-relevant to the question. Its not merely a patristic / historical issue.

*

21:14 what is ultimately decisive for us is what is in the Holy Scripture, because we think that that is the uniquely infallible rule: the one that cant err.

*

We agree that it cant err. Its what we have in common. This is why I make many biblical arguments for Marys Immaculate Conception (most supporting the kernel of sinlessness).

*

Now here are my many biblical arguments:

*
Nearly two years ago, ChatGPTs AI writing powers set off a firestorm in classrooms. How would teachers be able to determine which assignments were actually authored by the student? A host of AI-powered services answered the call.

Today, there are even more services promising to catch AI cheaters. But teachers arent necessarily jumping on board. Instead, theyre returning to a more traditional solution: pen and paper. No phones, no laptops, no Chromebooks. Just a student and their (biological, not silicon) memory.

Today is Amazon Prime Big Deal Days! Our editorial team lists the best tech deals here. ]

My own kids  one in a California middle school, the other in high school  arent happy about it. My hand cramped up so much, my eldest son complained about his AP World History course he took last year, and the requirement to handwrite all papers and tests because of AI concerns.

My younger son groaned aloud when I read him his middle-school science requirements for the 2024-25 school year: Write the assignment down on paper and then, if needed, type it up. But his teacher was clear. While AI offers significant potential benefits, middle-school students may not have the maturity or background needed to use it effectively, she wrote in a note to parents.

The AI detectors

So why bother with old-fashioned methods when, as noted, a number of AI detectors exist?

Contentatscale.ai, GPTzero.me, Winston.ai, and more, offer free or subscription-subsidized AI detection services. Upload the content, and theyll tell you whether AI wrote the words. Paid sites, such as Turnitin, offer more sophisticated detection services for larger fees. The services are designed to step in and play the role of a traffic cop, flagging AI-generated essays but letting truly original content through.

If AI-powered tools to detect AI were foolproof, it all might work. But theyre not. To date, the teachers and professors I interviewed said they havent found a totally accurate way of detecting AI-generated content. The lack of certainty undermines the validity of any accusation a teacher might make. And with potentially thousands of dollars of tuition on the line, a charge of plagiarism is a big risk for everyone involved.

Pixabay via Pexels Pixabay via Pexels Pixabay via Pexels

AI checkers arent smart enough, teachers say

AI detection tools never got off to a good start. In 2023, OpenAI released its first AI checker, Classifier. Developed by OpenAI after its release of ChatGPT, Classifier identified 26 percent of AI-authored text as human, and said it could be fooled if AI-authored text was edited or modified. Our Classifier is not fully reliable, OpenAI said, point blank.

Classifier was retired seven months later due to its low rate of accuracy, OpenAI said.

Just a short time ago, OpenAI took another stab at detection, citing two methods  watermarking AI content and labeling it with metadata  as potential solutions. But watermarks can be avoided by simply rewriting the content, the company said. A tool to apply the second method, metadata, has yet to be released.

Such inaccuracy has made some schools gun shy about using AI detection. Bill Vacca, director of instructional technology at Mohonasen Central School District in New York said that he hasnt found any qualified AI checkers. And Ive tried them all, he said.

There are numerous problems, Vacca said. For one, the constant updates to ChatGPT and other AI tools means that AI checkers need to constantly respond. Some sites stay up, then unexpectedly vanish, he said. Furthermore, the sites results dont always instill confidence. Instead of definitively stating that a piece of content is 100 percent AI, the sites can offer a wishy-washy 50 percent or 25 percent recommendation. Thats not good enough.

According to Vacca, those scores arent good enough to justify using an AI checking site. Its too hard to determine. And thats when we realized that its not as simple as we thought it would be.

Winston.ai, an AI checker, delivers an absolutely definitive statement on this passages authorship. And its right! But teachers say this isnt always the case. Winston.ai, an AI checker, delivers an absolutely definitive statement on this passages authorship. And its right! But teachers say this isnt always the case. Winston.ai, an AI checker, delivers an absolutely definitive statement on this passages authorship. And its right! But teachers say this isnt always the case.

John Behrens, the director of the office of digital strategy at the College of Arts and Letters at the University of Notre Dame, agrees. People have to be very clear about the statistical capabilities of those detectors, and Ive seen some of those detectors that are worse than nothing, he said. I mean, statistically worse than not using anything.

Another factor is that uploading a students content without permission can violate school, state, or even federal rules, such as the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, or FERPA.

San Jose State University in California doesnt use AI detection tools, according to Carol-Lynn Perez, a senior lecturer in SJSUs Communication Studies department that PCWorld spoke with. Perez cited a May email sent by Heather Lattimer, the dean of SJSUs College of Education and the interim provost of undergraduate education, which stated that uploading a students work violates two university policies and possibly FERPA. Lattimer also noted the risk of false positives in her email.

The university provides its own AI detection tool within Canvas, SJSUs learning management system, and lets students know that the faculty has access to it. But Canvas can be used only as a jumping-off point to start a conversation with our students about AI usage, and not as definitive proof that they have used AI, Perez said in an email.

Ardea Caviggiola Russo, the director of the office of academic standards at Notre Dame, said that the university looks for red flags, such as sources that dont exist, content not covered in class, advanced terminology, and a general inability of the student to discuss their own work.

Regarding AI detectors, we opted not to turn on Turnitins AI detector when it was made available last year, mostly because of the concern about false positives that you mentioned, Russo said in an email. And also, we just felt like we didnt know enough about the AI detection tools generally to use them responsibly. Now, my office does subscribe to a detector that we use if a professor is suspicious of a students work for whatever reason, but even a 100 percent likelihood isnt enough on its own for an accusation, in my opinion.

In a statement, Turnitin agreed. At Turnitin, our guidance is, and has always been, that there is no substitute for knowing a student, their writing style, and their educational background, the company said in an emailed statement. AI detection tools, like Turnitins AI writing detection feature, are resources, not deciders. Educators should always make final determinations based on all of the information available to them.

Do AI checkers actually work?

To be fair, some of the AI detection services do seem to work.

I copied the text of an editorial I had written about Logitechs concept of a forever mouse, removed the captions and subheadings, and dropped the text into several AI detection services, many of which are free for basic scans. They included Contentatscale.ai, GPTzero.me, Winston.ai, CopyLeaks AI Content Detector, Originality.AI, Writer.coms AI Content Detector, Scribbrs AI Content Detector, Sapling.ais AI Detector, ZeroGPT.com, and ContentDetector.AI. (Thanks to BestColleges.coms list of AI detection tools.)

Of the 11 tools, all but one identified the content as human-authored, and by enormous margins  all gave a less than 10 percent chance that it was generated by AI. The exception: Originality.ai, which returned a 93 percent chance that the copy was AI-authored.

I then asked ChatGPT for a five-paragraph essay on the effects of the French Revolution on world politics. Every single service identified the content as clearly AI-generated, save for Writer.com, which said that ChatGPTs essay had a 71 percent chance of being written by a human.

Some services are trying to split the difference. Grammarlys new Authorship service, for example, tries to identify which words are original, which are AI-generated, and which are edited by AI  with the idea that students may combine elements of each.

Grammarly Grammarly Grammarly

A better way to detect AI: Work with the student

So how do you fight AI? Teachers say that the best way to tell if a student is cheating using AI is to understand the student, and their work. And when in doubt, ask them to prove it.

The simple solution was take out a piece of paper, and ask them to show me how you are solving this, Vacca said. That killed [the issue of] a lot of the students cheating.

Theyve tried things like dumbing down their answers, but its still easy enough to detect that its not their exact writing, Vacca added.

Perez agreed.

When there is concern about unethical usage of AI in the classroom, we should do due diligence in our investigation, she said. First, we need to familiarize ourselves with each individual students writing. Second, we should compare the material we feel is AI generated with their initial writing so we can see if the grammar, sentence structure, and writing style are consistent with the students writing. Third, we need to either chat with the student face to face or through email so we can get their version of what occurred.

Pexels/ Yan Krukau Pexels/ Yan Krukau Pexels/ Yan Krukau

Perez said she read a student paper that an AI tool indicated had a 90 percent probability of being AI-generated content, and that sounded very mechanical. She emailed the student and asked for an explanation, and the student denied using AI. She then followed up via video.

During the video call I asked the student to speak about the content of the paper, and they could not speak about the paper or the content of the course up until that point, which proved to me that the AI detection was correct, Perez added. I requested the student rewrite the paper in their own words, and they were reported to the university for further sanctions.

Teachers that I spoke to said they dont like being placed in an adversarial role, and would rather focus on what they do best: teaching.

Nathaniel Myers, an associate teaching professor at Notre Dame, said hed rather create a space where students feel comfortable being transparent, so that we can think through these things together. SJSUs Perez said a number of professors involved in Facebook groups tailored to AI in the classroom have reported mental health issues, and that it was demoralizing to see so much unethical AI use in the classroom, creating even less job satisfaction.

The pressure, though, falls on both teachers and their students, and both are also turning to AI to ease their burden.

What youre trying to do is pit AI versus AI, Nitesh Chawla, a professor of computer science and engineering at Notre Dame, said. One AI is creating content. The other AI is trying to detect if some other AI created that content. Youre pitting them against each other. I dont even know what that means!
President Nana Addo Danquah Akufo-Addo has been urged not to append his signature to the Ghana Shippers Authority Bill, 2024 into law.



This clarion call was made by the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) with reasons being that, there are some critical concerns that have not been addressed.



A press release signed by the President of GUTA, DR. Joseph Obeng, said the relevant stakeholders were not contacted before the passage of the bill by Parliament on Monday July 29, 2024.



In view of the above concerns and a myriad of others, GUTA has urged President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to withhold his assent to the bill until the critical concerns raised by stakeholders are addressed.



The Ghana Shippers Bill, 2024, aims to regulate the commercial activities of shippers, primarily targeting unfair and excessive charges that burden traders using Ghanas sea and airports, as well as land borders, for international trade.



According to Parliament, the bill will introduce transparency in the determination of port fees, and will by that, ensure that there is accountability in the legal movement of international trade cargo across all of the borders of Ghana.



The bill further aims at making Ghana a preferred transit trade channel for her landlocked neighbours, such as Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger; thereby enhancing the sectors revenue contribution to the national purse.



But clearly opposed the above in a letter dated August 21, 2024.



Below is the full statement.



The Business Community wishes to appeal to the President of the Republic not to assent to the Ghana Shippers Authority Act, 2024 until some critical issues raised on the Act by stakeholders are resolved.



They are as follows:



1. The issue of registration of shippers and shipping service providers were not discussed with us to make our input as stakeholders in the shipping industry.



2. Submission of notice of shipment was also not discussed with stakeholders for their input.



3. The final draft was issued to stakeholders only after Parliament had approved the Bill.



4. Issues raised on the suspension of registration, renewal of certificate of registration, cancellation of registration and outright rejection, which are only related to permits and licenses to operate as importers have not been resolved with stakeholders.



5. The Advance Shipment Information System that had been resisted and withdrawn by the Government in the past is now being reintroduced in the Act. Our position on that has not changed. Moreover, this information sought by the GSA is of no relevance to their operation.



6. For these reasons, the Ghana Shippers Authority had agreed to our concerns and promised that as the Act has already been passed by Parliament, they would use Legislative Instruments (LIs) to correct any defect or anomaly in the operationalization of the Act.



However, our consultations suggest that LIs cannot override an Act, hence our call on the President of the Republic not to assent to the Act until all issues raised are resolved.





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Flagbearer of the NPP, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has expressed strong commitment to improve prison infrastructure and welfare of prisoners under his reign as President.



Speaking during his campaign tour of Akim Oda in the Eastern Region directly following the launch of the NPP 2024 manifesto, Dr. Bawumia, who is noted for his benevolence to the Prisons Service, said his government will prioritize the expansion of prison facilities into a life-changing rehabilitation center.



"My government will improve prison infrastructure to enhance rehabilitation of prisoners, Dr. Bawumia said.



On welfare of prisoners, he announced that his government will significantly increase allowances paid to prisoners currently pegged at GHS 1.80 cedis per day which he views as inadequate.



Dr. Bawumia's announcement may not be a surprise to many considering his special love for supporting them through his personal interventions.



He personally undertook the rewiring of the Ashanti Regional Central Prisons a few years ago after the Service made a direct appeal to him.



He also supported the Prisons Service through the construction of a portable water system in many prison facilities to serve both inmates and officers.



Following his personal interventions, the Prisons Service, through its Ashanti Regional Directorate presented a plaque to Dr. Bawumia in appreciation of his support.



His decision to prioritize expansion of their infrastructure and welfare of inmates therefore comes as a big relief.

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The Organization for Policy and Leadership Development (OPLD) hosted the inaugural Model Commonwealth Summit at the Accra International Conference Center from August 1-3, 2024. This significant event, endorsed by the Commonwealth Secretariat, was a key component of the 2023/24 Year of Youth activities. It brought together about 200 young people, including 150 delegates representing the interests of the 56 Commonwealth member states.



The summit aimed to empower young people by providing them with a platform to understand the work of the Commonwealth and contribute their perspectives on key issues impacting the region. This aligned with the broader goals of the Commonwealth Year of Youth in increasing the visibility of youth work, highlighting their talents and the positive contributions of young people to democracy, sustainable development and peace,



The Commonwealth Year of Youth initiative, declared at the 2022 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Rwanda, emphasizes the critical role of youth in shaping the future of the Commonwealth. This initiative, which initially spanned 2023 and was extended to 2024, promotes youth-led action for sustainable and inclusive development. It commemorates significant milestones, including the 50th Anniversary of the Commonwealth Youth Programme, the 10th Anniversary of the Commonwealth Charter, and the establishment of the Commonwealth Youth Council. With over 60% of the Commonwealth's 2.5 billion population aged 29 or younger, the summit highlighted the critical role of engaging this demographic  a population of 1.5 billion young people  in shaping the future of the Commonwealth.



The summit's opening ceremony featured insightful speeches by prominent figures, including H.E. Ms. Christabel Derby, Chairperson of the Commonwealth Year of Youth Advisory Board and Vice Chairperson of the CYC, and Mr. Nelson Owusu Ansah, Deputy CEO of the NYA. Mrs. Freda Bediako-Puni, Director for the Commonwealth Back Office at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, representing the Foreign Affairs Minister, commended the summit's alignment with the Minister's campaign priorities for the role of the Commonwealth Secretary-General, particularly youth, education, skills, innovation, and start-ups.



Furthermore, Mr. Richard Sandall, Development Director at the British High Commission, emphasized the importance of young people embracing Commonwealth values in building a more resilient future and the opportunities it holds for them. The summit also welcomed Ms Silvia Tizzi, Programme Officer from the European Union Delegation to Ghana, and Mr. Daniel Aryee, Policy Advocacy Lead from the Office of the African Union Chairperson's Youth Envoy, who expressed their solidarity and support for the summit's efforts in amplifying youth voices and contributions.



The Model Commonwealth summit is more than just a simulation; it is a platform for real change. I am confident that the discussions, lobbying, debates, collaborations and networking that will take place here will inspire you to take bold steps towards creating a more inclusive, equitable, and prosperous Commonwealth - H.E. Christabel Derby added.



One of the summit's highlights was the mentorship provided to delegates on diplomacy and networking. These sessions aimed to enhance the participants' skills, preparing them to become responsible leaders capable of contributing to the Commonwealth's development. This part of the summit was particularly significant as it covered youth empowerment activities, fostering stakeholder discussions on developing the potential of the youth in utilising opportunities and initiating sustainable initiatives relevant within the Commonwealth member states and the Commonwealth Community at large.



The summit's core activities centered around three committees: the Committee on Governance, Security, and Internationalization (C.GSI), the Committee on Education, Social, and Environment (C.ESE), and the Committee on Cooperation, Inclusivity, and Development (C.CID). Each committee engaged in comprehensive discussions, tackling critical issues within their respective domains. The resolutions formulated by these committees will be presented to the Commonwealth Secretariat and other key stakeholders, aiming to integrate youth voices and perspectives into policy decisions shaping the future of the Commonwealth. A Mentorship and Diplomacy Dialogue, designed to bridge the gap between experienced professionals and the delegates provided them with valuable insights and facilitated meaningful connections that can shape their future careers in diplomacy and global affairs.



Another significant event in the summit was the Diplomatic Cocktail Reception and Awards Night which recognized outstanding contributions from delegates and officials. Dr. John Apea, Head of Mission for the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC), and Ms. Christabel Derby, Vice Chairperson of the Commonwealth Youth Council (CYC), graced the occasion. Awards were presented to Outstanding Official: Mr. Baidoo Nana Lartey, Best Delegates: Sowah Celestina Naa Ayorkor, Hannah Boakye Ofori, Emmanuel Frimpong, Honourable Mentions: Mavis Narh, Lydia Brempomaa Adonteng-Appiah, Yaa Oguabi Osei-Mensah, and Position Papers: Prince Frimpong Amoah, Mariyam Yussif, Richlove Sarah Benson. Special recognition was also awarded to Mr. Joseph Opey, Ghana Representative for the Commonwealth Student Association, and Ms. Bridget Naa Yaa Wilson for their exceptional contributions to youth development in the Commonwealth.



The summit concluded with a visit to the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park and the Blackstar Square where the delegates were inspired the charismatic and visionary leader who played a pivotal role in Ghana's independence movement and became a leading figure in Pan-Africanism.



The summit provided a platform for young leaders to assemble, share ideas, and develop actionable resolutions. It highlighted the immense potential of youth to drive positive change and instilled a sense of pride and optimism in all those involved. As we reflect on this summit's accomplishments, it is evident that the Commonwealth's future lies in the hands of its youth. The Model Commonwealth Summit has laid a strong foundation for ongoing engagement and development, ensuring that young people remain at the forefront of the Commonwealth's vision for a more inclusive, cooperative, and prosperous future. - Mr. Martinson Yeboah, Executive Director of the Model Commonwealth Summit.













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Shanghai (Gasgoo)- On August 17, 2024, BYD made a grand entrance into the Pakistani passenger car market with a brand launch event at the Expo Centre Lahore. The event marked a significant milestone for BYD as it officially ventured into Pakistan's automotive sector.

Photo credit: BYD

Mr. Liu Xueliang, General Manager of BYD Asia-Pacific Automotive Sales Division, attended the launch and, together with local partner Mega Motor Company, unveiled three new energy vehicle models: the BYD SEALION 6, BYD SEAL, and BYD ATTO 3.

In his address at the event, Liu Xueliang highlighted the importance of BYD's entry into Pakistan during a pivotal time for global sustainability efforts. "As the world transitions towards sustainable development, BYD is proud to be at the forefront of this historic wave. Our entry into the Pakistani market brings not only our latest products and technologies but also a broader green initiative and a vision for technological innovation. We firmly believe that BYD's new energy vehicles will play a crucial role in driving Pakistanand indeed the worldtowards a cleaner and more prosperous green future," Liu stated.

Photo credit: BYD

The event featured various interactive exhibitions and experience zones, including a "Charging Zone," a "Sustainability Zone," and a "Technology Zone," allowing attendees to gain an in-depth understanding of BYD's commitment to sustainability. Visitors had the opportunity to experience firsthand BYD's cutting-edge technologies, such as rapid charging, the DM-i Super Hybrid system, the e-Platform 3.0, and the Blade Battery. BYD said these exhibits not only showcased its technological prowess and innovative spirit but also emphasized the companys relentless efforts to create a greener, more sustainable future for all.
The Ghana Police Service has stated claims that the service is training some militiamen at Bawku in the Upper East Region is untrue.



A statement from the police said an investigation was launched into the claims but no evidence was found.



We wish to state that our investigation has found no evidence of such training in the area or its environs, the statement said.



Adding that: This is the second of such false publications within a week by some unpatriotic individuals intended to create unnecessary alarm and panic among the public.:



The Police are working to bring the perpetrators to book and the public should be assured that we will get them.

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George Mireku Duker, the Deputy Minister of Lands and Natural Resources responsible for Mines, has re-echoed government's commitment to resolving the dispute between the chiefs and people of Tontokrom in the Amansie South District and Asanko Gold Ghana. He stated that it will be one of the legacies of the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo-led government in the mining sector.



The stand-off between the community and the company over the exploitation of gold resources in the area is well documented, with one person losing his life this year following clashes between irate youth of the community and security personnel on duty at the company.



Following a series of meetings held at the Ministry, Hon. Mireku Duker, on Wednesday, August 21, 2024, embarked on a working visit to the area to have face-to-face interactions with the company and community leaders as part of efforts to bring finality to the protracted matter impeding the success of the company and development in the township.



Hon. Duker first made a stop ovver at the office of Asanko Gold Ghana Company, where he acquainted himself with the issues from the companys perspective and proposed some steps the company must take to improve their relationship with the community.



The Deputy Minister re-emphasized the need for a harmonious relationship between the company and the community, stating that unity is the principal ingredient for mutual success for both the company and the community.



Responding to a request by the company for an immediate resolution of the deadlock, He stated that the government, through the Ministry, has been engaging the community to allow the company to operate without conflict and will continue to activate the necessary dialogue and security measures to bring finality to the matter.



He stated that while the community has a responsibility to allow the company to operate in a violence-free environment conducive to their success, it is also imperative that the company is transparent, engaging, and accountable to the communities.



He appealed to the company to take steps to build trust with the community by being open and accountable to them and executing life-changing CSR projects in the area.



Its very critical and important for companies and the communities around these mining companies to co-exist because you cannot, in any way, operate in isolation. It is, therefore, very important to wear kid gloves to have a win-win situation. Just recently, as the VP of Asanko alluded to, Goldfields built a $60 million stadium for the people of Tarkwa because of the cordial relationship between them and the community".



Theyve also constructed about a 30-kilometer stretch of road for their mine. In terms of corporate social responsibilities, I will say they are doing their best. How do they do this? And how have they been able to sit with the people? I think we should synergize and learn from each other, irrespective of what we have, in terms of strategy in dealing with communities.



So once the media is here, I will also use their medium to appeal to the communities to find a way of peacefully sitting down with the various mining companies. There must be that understanding that you are not just here to take our gold away as they perceive you.



So its not a matter of just mining and taking the gold as being speculated out there. The perception is that the companies just take the gold and leave, and that is not true. They pay their royalties. All the tax components are paid. And we also commit them to do corporate social responsibilities. And if we give them that peace of mind, they will be able to do these projects to support their communities, he said.



Dr. Charles Amoah, Executive Vice President of Asanko Gold Ghana, commended the Deputy Minister for the assurance and indicated the willingness of the company to dialogue with the community elders to settle the matter.



He also thanked him for promising to work on the companys request to have the Bank of Ghana grant them special dispensation for the importation of some equipment that will aid their operations.



Hon. Duker later visited Tontokrom where he engaged the chiefs and elders at a durbar in the town.



He stated that the Ministry will give strong consideration to the request for a Community Mining Scheme by the residents.





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It is with profound sadness that the Melcom Group of Companies announces the passing of our esteemed Communications Director, Godwin Avenorgbo, affectionately known as the "Grandmaster," who departed this life on Monday, August 19, 2024.



The late Godwin Avenorgbo joined the Melcom Group in 2013 and quickly became an exemplary leader whose visionary approach to communication left an indelible mark on the organization. Throughout his tenure, the Grandmaster demonstrated unparalleled dedication to directing both internal and external communication affairs. His industrious nature and non-negotiable leadership style set a high standard within the company, earning him admiration and respect from all levels of the organization.



One of his most significant achievements was serving as Chairman of the Melcom Education Scholarship. Under his guidance, the scheme was transformed, earning numerous recommendations and greatly benefiting its recipients.



Beyond his contributions to Melcom, Godwin Avenorgbo was an astute journalist and broadcaster with a distinguished career before joining our company. He was a pivotal member of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) and was recently appointed as Chairman of the Planning Committee for the GJA's 75th Anniversary Celebrations.



His influence in the media landscape was profound; he pioneered morning shows on GBC's platforms, a format that has since been adopted by numerous media houses across the country.



Godwin Avenorgbo's legacy extends beyond his professional achievements. He was a mentor, a visionary, and a leader who believed in the power of ethical communication. His contributions to both Melcom and the broader community will be remembered and cherished by all who had the privilege of knowing him.



The Melcom Group of Companies extends its deepest condolences to Godwin Avenorgbo's family, friends, and colleagues during this difficult time.



Further details regarding memorial services will be shared in due course.

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The U.S. Treasury Department announced sanctions on Tuesday, August 20, against former Haitian President Michel Martelly for his involvement in drug trafficking, including cocaine, destined for the United States.



Martelly, who served as president of Haiti from 2011 to 2016 and was previously a popular musician, has been accused of abusing his political influence to facilitate the trafficking of dangerous drugs. According to the U.S. Treasury, Martelly also engaged in the laundering of illicit drug proceeds and collaborated with local drug traffickers, while supporting multiple gangs based in Haiti.



This action by the U.S. mirrors similar sanctions imposed by the Canadian government in 2022 against Martelly and two former Haitian prime ministers, who were accused of benefiting from the activities of armed gangs. The sanctions reflect a growing international concern over the role of political elites in Haiti's ongoing crisis.



Haiti, the poorest country in the Americas, has been plagued by escalating gang violence, particularly in the capital, Port-au-Prince, where criminal groups now control approximately 80% of the city. Residents have reported widespread violence, including threats of murder, rape, and kidnapping for ransom, as the country grapples with severe political, social, and economic instability.



The situation in Haiti deteriorated further in February, leading to the resignation of then-Prime Minister Ariel Henry under pressure from armed groups. In response to the escalating crisis, hundreds of police officers from Kenya have been deployed to Haiti as part of an international effort to restore stability.



Todays action against Martelly emphasizes the significant and destabilizing role he and other corrupt political elites have played in perpetuating the ongoing crisis in Haiti, said Bradley Smith, the Treasurys acting under-secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence. He added that the sanctions highlight the U.S. governments commitment to holding accountable those who contribute to gang violence and the destabilization of Haiti's political environment.



U.S. State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel reinforced this stance, stating that the sanctions demonstrate the U.S.s unwavering resolve to promote accountability for all individuals whose activities contribute to gang violence and destabilize the political environment in Haiti, regardless of their rank or stature.









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Nana Bafour Owusu, the Omanhene of the Domeabra Traditional Area has disclosed that the NPP governments flagship Free SHS policy has significantly alleviated the financial burdens on chiefs regarding the payment of school fees and the provision of other forms of financial assistance to support the education of their subjects.



According to the Chief, prior to the introduction of the Free SHS policy, chiefs and community leaders were often burdened with supporting members of their respective traditional areas and communities with tuition, library, computer and school fees to support their secondary education. He noted with delight that, these challenges, which had overwhelmed them in the past, have now become a thing of the past following the implementation of the policy.



The Chief, therefore, commended the government and in particular, Hon. Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, who, as Minister of Education, spearheaded the successful implementation of the Free SHS policy. The policy, he said, has not only provided relief to many but has also created opportunities for children from underprivileged homes and communities to access education, thereby securing their future.



Nana Baffour Owusu made these remarks when the former Education Minister and now, Running Mate the NPP Presidential Candidate, Hon. Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, paid a courtesy call on him on at his palace on Tuesday, August 20, 2024, as part of his campaign tour in the Asante Akyem North constituency of the Ashanti Region.



Napo, as he is affectionately called, used the occasion to assure the chiefs that the next NPP government under H.E Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia will prioritize working with traditional leaders to advance the cause of the national development. As part of his tour of the constituency, Napo also visited the Juansa and Agogo Palaces, after which he proceeded to the Presbyterian College of Education, Agogo, where he addressed students.



The NPP Vice Presidential Candidate also addressed a mammoth rally at the forecourt of the NPP Constituency Office in Agogo where he formally introduced the partys Parliamentary Candidate, Hon. Andy Appiah Kubi, and called on the people to vote for him and Dr. Bawumia, the Presidential Candidate. Napos entourage included Danquah Smith (1st National Vice Chairman), Henry Nana Boakye (National Organizer) and Chairman Wontumi (Ashanti Regional Chairman).

Source: Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Bernard Allotey Jacobs has eulogized Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia over his manifesto for Ghanaians prior to the December elections.



The New Patriotic Party led by Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia as their flagbearer, on Sunday, August 18, held their 2024 Manifesto Launch at GSTS in Takoradi, Western Region.



The manifesto covered various sectors of the economy with Dr. Bawumia promising tax reforms, business incentives, credit score system and other riveting policies aimed at developing Ghana and improving the lives of the citizenry.



The manifesto which was themed To Lead Is To Solve has become a topical issue with Ghanaians expressing mixed feelings about whether or not it is realistic and achievable.



Contributing to Peace FMs 'Kokrokoo' show, Allotey Jacobs, a former member of the opposition National Democratic Congress, expressed absolute confidence in Dr. Bawumia to deliver on his promises.



He strongly believed this manifesto is the engine of growth for the nation.



That manifesto is not a political document. For the first time, we are having a technocrat, so when you look at his manifesto, it is very technical and the engine that can move the progress of this countryIts a powerful engine of growth, he said.



He, therefore, implored the populace to believe him (Bawumia) if we want to do well for this country.





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Minority in Parliament has raised concerns over COCOBOD's financial health, claiming that international banks have rejected the organisation's request for a loan to purchase cocoa for the 2024/2025 crop season.



According to the Minority, this development is a significant indicator of the declining confidence that global financial institutions have in COCOBOD under its current management.



The Minority argued that the refusal of the loan request highlights the mismanagement and poor financial decisions that have plagued COCOBOD in recent years.



They noted that COCOBOD has traditionally relied on offshore syndicated loans to finance the purchase of cocoa beans, but the rejection by international banks this time around points to a loss of trust in the organisations ability to manage its finances effectively.



The Chief Executive Officer of COCOBOD, Joseph Boahen Aidoo recently announced that, for the first time in three decades, the organisation will not secure offshore syndicated loans to finance the purchase of cocoa beans for the 2024/2025 crop season.



Targeting the purchase of around 650,000 metric tonnes of cocoa beans, COCOBOD stated that it plans to finance the procurement entirely from its internal operations.



However, the NDC MPs in their statement, the Minority emphasised that this situation could have serious repercussions for the cocoa sector, which is a crucial part of Ghanas economy.



They warned that without the necessary funding, COCOBOD might struggle to meet its cocoa purchasing targets for the upcoming season, potentially leading to a negative impact on cocoa farmers and the broader economy.



The Minority called on the government to address the underlying issues that have led to this loss of confidence in COCOBOD.



They urged for a review of the current management practices and for measures to be put in place to restore the organisations credibility with international financial institutions, ensuring that the cocoa sector remains strong and stable.



"For the first time in 32 years, International Banks have rejected Ghana Cocoa Boards (COCOBOD) request for a prepayment loan to finance the purchase of cocoa."



"In June 2024, COCOBOD issued a Request for Proposal of $1.5 billion loan to purchase up to 650,000 metric tonnes of cocoa for the 2024/2025 crop year. But this request did not attract any interest from the international banks due to the poor health of COCOBOD and the collapse of the cocoa sector under its present management."



"From a production level of 969,000 metric tonnes inherited from the NDC in the 2016/2017 crop year, cocoa production has declined to just a little over 400,000 metric tonnes for the 2023/2024 cocoa season. The significant decline in cocoa production in the last eight years and the mismanagement of the cocoa sector have impacted COCOBODs ability to meet its contractual obligations," an excerpt of the statement said.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Actress Mercy Asiedu is not ready to campaign for any political party. She made this clear during an interview with B Ice on Kumasi-based Agyenkwa FM.



The popular Kumawood actress was asked if she would accept to campaign for the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP). Answering the host, she stated that she wouldnt get the time.



Mercy Asiedu stressed that she is a very busy person, so time wont be on her side to join NPPs campaign trails.



This was after she complained about the Creative Arts sector being ignored by politicians. Oheneyere Asiedu said she is not thinking about her selfish interest but that of future generations.



An improvement in the sector, according to her, would help create jobs for the youth.



While Ghanaians will be going to the polls in a few months, Mercy Asiedu has pleaded with authorities not to neglect the Creative Arts sector.

Source: zionfelix.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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There are still seats available for a watch party that will be held Thursday night during the Democratic National Convention (DNC), which will be highlighted by Vice President Kamala Harris keynote speech.

The party at the Harrisburg Midtown Arts Center, 1110 N. 3rd St., Harrisburg, will start at 7:30 p.m.

The Harris campaign in Pennsylvania has hosted more than 650 events to capitalize on energy surrounding the DNC this week, including 150+ watch parties on Thursday alone.

In just the last week, nearly 12,000 people and counting have signed up to volunteer for the Harris-Walz and Democrats campaign in Pennsylvania, a press release said.
By Jonathan J. Cooper and Ali Swenson, The Associated Press

PHOENIX  Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will speak Friday about the present historical moment and his path forward, his campaign announced Wednesday, fueling growing speculation that Kennedy could drop out and support Republican nominee Donald Trump.

Kennedys running mate openly discussed the possibility on a podcast this week, saying the campaign was considering a move to join forces with Trump to limit the election chance of Kamala Harris, whose Democratic convention winds up Thursday night in Chicago.

The move would have once seemed unthinkable for Kennedy, a Democrat for most of his life and  as the nephew of President John F. Kennedy and the son of Robert F. Kennedy  a member of a beloved Democratic dynasty.

Last month, during the Republican National Convention, Kennedys son posted and then quickly deleted a video showing a phone call between Kennedy and Trump, in which the former president appeared to try to talk Kennedy into siding with him.

Kennedy will give a speech in Phoenix, hours before Trump is scheduled to hold a rally in neighboring Glendale. A spokesperson for Kennedy, Stefanie Spear, declined to say whether he planned to drop out or why he chose Arizona for his speech.

Trump and Kennedy have been in regular contact in recent weeks, including a meeting in Milwaukee as Republicans gathered for their national convention last month.

He told CNN Tuesday that he would love an endorsement from the independent candidate, whom he called a brilliant guy.

He also said he would certainly be open to Kennedy playing a role in his administration if Kennedy drops out and endorses him instead.

Hes a very smart guy. Ive known him for a very long time, Trump told the network. I didnt know he was thinking about getting out, but if he is thinking about getting out, certainly Id be open to it.

Trump, who had previously railed against Kennedy as the most radical left candidate in the race, was also asked by CNN If he would consider appointing Kennedy to a role in his administration if he wins in November,

I like him a lot. I respect him a lot, Trump said. I probably would, if something like that would happen. Hes a very different kind of a guy  a very smart guy. And, yeah, I would be honored by that endorsement, certainly.

After leaving the Democratic primary to run as an independent, Kennedy built an unusually strong base of support for someone running without the backing of a major party. It was unclear exactly where his support was coming from, which worried Republicans and Democrats alike.

But since President Joe Biden ended his re-election campaign and Democrats coalesced around Vice President Harris as their nominee, Kennedys rise has been stunted. It looks increasingly unlikely that he will be able to make the debate stage when Trump and Harris face off next month, a moment Kennedy counted on for momentum and legitimacy. His campaign finances have also been strained.

The news comes a little over a week since a New York judge ruled that Kennedy should not appear on the ballot in the state because he listed a sham address on nominating petitions. Kennedy has appealed, but has faced several similar challenges around the country.

On Wednesday, he was in a courtroom in a suburb of New York City, testifying in a trial for another ballot suit in the state, this one backed by the Democratic National Committee, that challenges the signatures collected by his campaign.

Independent Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. gives witness testimony at the Nassau County Supreme Court in Mineola, N.Y. on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (Stefan Jeremiah/Pool Photo via AP)AP

During a break in the court proceedings, Kennedy declined to answer questions from reporters about whether he was dropping out.

Hes also facing a likely legal challenge in Arizona, where last week he submitted signatures that may have been collected by a super PAC that supports him, which Kennedys critics say is illegal coordination between a candidate and an independent political group.

Swenson reported from New York. Associated Press writers Cedar Attanasio in Mineola, New York and Jill Colvin in New York City contributed.

The Associated Press receives support from several private foundations to enhance its explanatory coverage of elections and democracy. See more about APs democracy initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk told employees the automaker would need to be "absolutely hardcore" about headcount and costs when he laid off 10% of the workforce in April. Richard Bord/Getty Images

Another longtime Tesla worker has quit as Elon Musk's company continues to lose senior employees.

VP Sreela Venkataratnam said working at Tesla was "extraordinary" but "not for the faint of heart."

She is one of several senior employees to quit after the automaker laid off 10% of its workforce in April.

Another longtime Tesla worker has quit, as Elon Musk's company continues to lose senior employees.

Tesla vice president Sreela Venkataratnam, who appears to have worked at the carmaker since 2013, announced her departure in a LinkedIn post this week. In her post, she praised the company but, in comments below, said working there was "not for the faint of heart."

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Venkataratnam described her 11 years at Tesla as "nothing short of extraordinary."

She expressed her pride at the company's growth during that time to become the $700 billion colossus it is today, adding that she would take a break before seeking other opportunities.

In a response to a comment from Jason Wheeler, Tesla's former CFO, Venkataratnam also wrote that working for Tesla is "definitely not for the faint of heart."

Tesla's work culture is notoriously demanding. During the company's grueling production ramps, some employees say they slept in their cars to save commuting time or on the factory floor after long shifts.

Venkataratnam is one of several Tesla senior employees to depart in recent months.

In April, the company cut over 10% of its workforce, with Musk telling employees Tesla needed to be "absolutely hard core about headcount and cost reduction."

Some of the departures have included key figures at the electric carmaker.

Drew Baglino, Tesla's senior vice president of powertrain and electrical engineering, resigned after 18 years at Tesla shortly before the layoffs began, with vice president of public policy and business development Rohan Patel also leaving the company at the same time.

Story continues

Their departures were followed by those of manufacturing engineering director Renjie Zhu  it's unclear if he resigned or was laid off  and head of product Rich Otto, who wrote on LinkedIn that the layoffs had thrown Tesla "out of balance" and that it was "hard to see the long-game" for the company.

Tesla did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, made outside normal working hours.

Read the original article on Business Insider
The death of Richard Simmons, who built his career on a popular line of fitness videos in the 1980s, was accidental, a family spokesperson confirmed to multiple news outlets Wednesday.

Simmons passed away on July 13 at 76 years old due to complications from recent falls and heart disease as a contributing factor, according to a statement provided by his family to People and other news outlets.

A toxicology report determined Simmons did not have any substances or medications in his system that he did not have a prescription for, according to a story published by 6abc Action News.

The Family wishes to thank everyone for their outpouring of love and support during this time of great loss, the statement included.

The County of Los Angeles Department of Medical Examiner told ABC News, The cause of death and report are not yet finalized, and the report has not been released.

FILE - Richard Simmons at St. Patty's Day Slimdown benefiting the Lollipop Theatre Network held at Slimmons on Sunday, Mar., 17, 2013 in Beverly Hills, Calif. Simmons, a fitness guru who urged the overweight to exercise and eat better, died Saturday, July 13, 2024, at the age of 76. (Photo by Eric Charbonneau/Invision for Lollipop Theatre Network/AP Images, File)Eric Charbonneau/Invision/AP

Many of Simmons fitness videos became wildly popular, including his line of Sweatin to the Oldies. Simmons also hosted The Richard Simmons Show from 1980 to 1984, winning four Daytime Emmy Awards.

Simmons celebrated his 76th birthday one day before his death.
Senate Bill 688 got the most attention of the two alcohol bills passed by the Pennsylvania legislature this spring.

Also called Act 86, it allows low alcohol-by-volume (ABV) spirits ready-to-drink cocktails (RTDs) to be sold from certain retail outlets that already sell beer and wine products with the same or lower alcohol contents.

It becomes effective on Sept. 16.

House Bill 829, also Act 57, offers a longer list of changes, from extending happy hours for qualifying retail liquor licensees from a maximum of 14 hours per week to 24 hours per week to allowing Pa. breweries, limited distilleries and distilleries to stay open until 2 a.m. on New Years Day.

It will go into effect Sept. 13.

You can read the details of both bills at this link to a Pa. Liquor Control Board document.

It also permits case discounts to:

Distributors and importing distributors, which can offer case discounts to licensees and retail customers.

Limited wineries, which can offer case discounts only to retail (non-licensee) customers.

For wineries across the state, it removes any shackles the old laws put on providing discounts for customers.

Hannah and Scott Neeley stand in front of Penn Shore Winery, the first to open in the state after the passage of the Limited Winery Act. It opened on April 30, 1970. They became the winery's fourth owners on June 29, 2023.Penn Shore Winery & Vineyards

Scott Neeley, the president of the Pa. Wine Association and the proprietor of Penn Shore Winery & Vineyards and KingView Mead, Wine, Hard Cider, both in western Pa., told PennLive that this eliminated the need for any workarounds.

Now we are able to freely offer discounts [but still not free items] and advertise them, he said. This helps to compete with specials at the PLCB stores as well as any other competitive products. It enhances our ability to draw customers into our locations, which opens the door for limited wineries to show off other items, experiences and education to the consumer.

Several winery owners contacted noted that the PLCB for years has been able to knock down prices on its products.

Among the wines that Setter Ridge Vineyards makes is a Blanc de Blanc.Setter Ridge winery

One was Rich Blair, the founder of Setter Ridge Vineyards in Berks County, which just celebrated its 21st anniversary. As far as the PLCB and discounts, they could do it and we could not, he said, reacting to the change in the law. It wasnt fair.

Tom Carroll along with son Tom Jr. operate Crossing Vineyards & Winery in Washington Crossing, Bucks County. It opened in 2003.

Tom Sr. said the old PLCB law that interprets wine discounts and other promotions as inducing people to drink more wine is not only antiquated but simply ridiculous.

Discounts are a major part of all our lives today. Everything from quantity discounts on food to loyalty discounts on airline reward programs to wine industry programs for wine clubs, frequent buyer programs and case discounts, he told PennLive. Internet discounts combined with free shipping has become standard practice across all industries worldwide. Simply put, these discounts and promotional programs are designed to essentially build customer loyalty, enhance brand recognition and to allow customers to feel like savvy shoppers.

A seating area behind the winery and tasting room at Crossing Vineyards in Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania.Crossing Vineyards

People like discounts for one main reason, he said: They save money.

Think about how popular Amazon Prime is. People actually pay to join so they can get special pricing as well as free shipping, he said. Discounts and promotions are a way of life in 2024. By the way, when was the last time that your family actually ate more cornflakes because it was buy one get one? What you really did was save money.

The PLCB and our state need to rethink the archaic rules that exist surrounding alcohol promotions and discounts so we can properly market and successfully manage our wineries to compete on a state and national level, he said. Hopefully this law change will finally allow us to do just that.
Comedian, actor and podcast host Sebastian Maniscalco is bringing his It Aint Right Tour to Pa. four times this fall.

He will perform on Thursday, Sept. 26, at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh; Friday, Sept. 27 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia; Sunday, Sept. 29 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre; and on Sunday, Oct. 6, at the Giant Center in Hershey.

Maniscalcos fifth special, Is It Me? was released on Netflix in 2022.

His show will roast todays societal absurdities, including non-existent manners, wallet-wincing prices, and the social media circus. The tour started in July in Norfolk, Virginia, and ends in December in Des Moines, Iowa.

Fans can buy tickets here (prices are as of the time of this publication):

Thursday, Sept. 26 - PPG Paints Arena, Pittsburgh

Friday, Sept. 27 - Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia

Sunday, Sept. 29 - Mohegan Sun Arena, Wilkes-Barre

Sunday, Oct. 6 - Giant Center, Hershey

Maniscalco will perform at Madison Square Garden in New York City, Sept. 18-22; and will be at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., on Saturday, Sept. 28.
PORTICELLO, Sicily (AP)  The Italian coast guard said Thursday the body of British tech magnate Mike Lynch is among those recovered off the coast of Sicily from the wreckage of a superyacht whose builders had called it unsinkable.

The bodies of Lynch and four others were recovered by rescue crews. One woman remains missing.

The Bayesian, a 56-meter (184-foot) British-flagged yacht, went down in a storm early Monday as it was moored about a kilometer (half a mile) offshore. Civil protection officials said they believe the ship was struck by a tornado over the water, known as a waterspout, and sank quickly.

Italian Firefighters scuba divers bring ashore in a green bag the body of one of the victims of the UK flag vessel Bayesian, Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Salvatore Cavalli)AP

A boat, top, carrying a dive team passes a fishing boat as it heads out to the site of the Bayesian on the fourth day of the search and recovery operation off the coast of Porticello, Sicily. (Jonathan Brady/PA via AP)AP

Fifteen of the 22 people aboard survived, including a mother who reported holding her 1-year-old baby over the waves to save her.

Lynch had been celebrating his recent acquittal on fraud charges with his family and the people who had defended him at trial in the United States. His former codefendant also died after being hit by a vehicle on Saturday, Reuters reported.

FILE - Former British tech star Mike Lynch during his trial in San Francisco, March 26, 2024. His body has been recovered from the wreckage of a yacht. (AP Photo/Michael Liedtke, File)AP

Divers have struggled to find the bodies.

We would need a crystal ball to know when well be able to find the next body, said Luca Cari, spokesperson for the fire rescue service.

Its very difficult to move inside the wreckage. Moving just one meter can take up to 24 hours, Cari said.
Want a say in the news? Email Claudia at todayinpa@pennlive.com to have your thoughts on the stories covered here or on PennLive heard.

You can listen to the latest episode of Today in Pa on any of your favorite apps including Alexa, Apple, Spotify, Stitcher and YouTube. Episodes are available every weekday on PennLive. Feel free to subscribe, follow or rate Today in Pa. as you see fit!

Today in Pa. Daily Podcast | August 22, 2024

Two companies are merging to form a coal producer valued at about $5 billion. Schools are required to have security this year after a change to a state code. More students will be getting free meals this year. Lastly, Pennsylvania is still a top 15 fun state.

Those are the stories we cover in the latest episode of Today in Pa., a daily weekday podcast from PennLive.com and hosted by Claudia Dimuro. Today in Pa. is dedicated to sharing the most important and interesting stories pertaining to Pennsylvania that lets you know, indeed, whats happening today in Pa.

Todays episode refers to the following articles:

If you enjoy Today in Pa., consider leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or on Amazon. Reviews help others find the show and, besides, wed like to know what you think about the program, too.

As sponsored by Renewal by Anderson of Central PA.
Le Creuset is considered a luxury brand among chefs and those of us who like to pretend we are chefs. But it is known for being a bit pricey, which is why you wont want to miss their Labor Day sale.

Whether youre looking to add their new Signature Round Wide Oven to your kitchen, or you are looking for something more specific like their bestseller Braiser now is the time to take advantage of this sale, with many pieces up to 45% off.

Additionally - shoppers will receive a FREE Oil & Vinegar with a $250 purchase. Just use code: FRESHFLAVOR.

Keep scrolling to see some of our top picks:

Signature Oval Baker $149.99 (originally $210)

The shallow, low-profile design allows heat to circulate around the food for optimal browning and crisping, while the longer, oval shape is perfectly sized for pork roasts, whole chickens, sides of salmon and roasting vegetables.

Signature Sauteuse $199.99 (originally $350)

A cross between a deep saute pan, fry pan and a Dutch Oven, the curved base and lower sides make it ideal for whisking sauces, tossing stir-fries, stirring creamy risottos, and serving bubbling casseroles from stove to oven to table.

Signature SauteuseCourtesy of Le Creuset

Traditional Round Balti Dish $115.99 (originally $183)

Similar to Indian curries, Balti dishes typically include marinated meats, vegetables and spices.

Round Wide Oven with Baker Lid $294.99 (originally $495)

The innovative design of the Round Wide Oven with Baker Lid combines the functionality and versatility of a wide Dutch Oven with a lid that doubles as a sheet pan or baking dish  its essentially two pans in one.

Signature Enameled Cast Iron 5-Piece Cookware Set $574.99 (originally $820)

The Signature Enameled Cast Iron 5-Piece Cookware Set features our best selling enameled cast iron pots and pans, including our iconic Dutch oven and highly-rated signature skillet.

Signature Enameled Cast Iron 5-Piece Cookware SetCourtesy of Le Creuset

Essential Nonstick Ceramic 2-Piece Fry Pan Set $159.99 (originally $219)

The Essential Nonstick Ceramic 2-Piece Fry Pan Set features two sizes of our most popular and versatile fry pans. A trusted cooking companion in the kitchen, theyre ideal for everything from searing fish to sauteing vegetables, making omelets and more.

Signature Enameled Cast Iron 7-Piece Cookware Set $999.99 (originally $1,430)

The Signature Enameled Cast Iron 7-Piece Cookware Set features our best selling pots and pans, including our iconic Dutch Oven and highly-rated Signature Skillet and Braiser. $999.99 (originally $1,430)

Ashley Dill covers the online shopping industry, writing about commerce. She can be reached at adill@pennlive.com.
In this 2016 file photo by the Victoria Times Colonist, Seamus McAlonan, 4, checks out a thermal-imaging camera with firefighter Josh Montgomery after the Victoria Fire Department put out a fire at the boys house.
 Read the full article on Motorious

Four-Door Sedan, Baja Off-Roader, and More.

In a move that could redefine the Mustang legacy, Ford CEO Jim Farley recently revealed a tantalizing glimpse of the brand's future during a private meeting with U.S. dealers in Las Vegas. According to a report by Automotive News, Ford is exploring several new Mustang variants that could expand the iconic muscle cars lineup far beyond its traditional two-door and Mach-E electric SUV forms. These potential new models include a four-door sedan, a Baja 1000-inspired off-roader, and a new convertible hero model that could reshape the Mustang family as we know it.

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One of the most surprising revelations was the concept of a Mustang sedan, reportedly dubbed the Mach 4. This four-door version of the recently-launched Mustang coupe could bring the performance and appeal of the Mustang to a new audience, offering the iconic driving experience in a more practical package. Powered by either the classic 5.0-liter V8 or the 2.3-liter EcoBoost turbocharged four-cylinder engine, this variant would maintain the Mustangs internal combustion legacy while expanding its reach.

In another bold move, Ford is considering a Mustang coupe designed for off-road adventures, inspired by the legendary Baja 1000 race. While details are scarce, the concept suggests a Mustang with a raised suspension, rugged tires, and a design ready to take on rough terrainsmuch like the F-150 and Ranger Raptor models that have made waves in the off-road community. This variant could cater to enthusiasts who want Mustang performance with off-road capabilities, blending the best of both worlds.

The final concept shown to dealers was a new convertible Mustang, featuring the beloved V8 engine and a manual transmission. While it draws inspiration from the iconic Shelby GT350, this model notably lacks any Shelby branding, suggesting it could be a new performance-oriented hero model in the Mustang lineup. With aggressive styling and a focus on driving engagement, this convertible could become a favorite among purists and collectors alike.

Story continues

Fords strategy appears to be aligning the Mustang with the expansive approach seen in Porsches 911 lineup, which offers a wide range of variants catering to different tastes and driving experiences. By introducing these new models, Ford could be setting the stage for a broader, more versatile Mustang family that continues to honor its muscle car roots while appealing to a wider audience.

The potential introduction of models like the Mach 4, a Baja-inspired off-roader, and a new performance convertible shows Fords willingness to innovate and expand the Mustang brand. With the success of the Mach-E and the excitement surrounding the new Dark Horse model, Ford is clearly committed to pushing the boundaries of what a Mustang can be.

While it remains unclear how close these concepts are to production, the idea of a more diverse Mustang lineup is certainly intriguing. Ford has not officially confirmed any of these models, but the mere possibility has already sparked excitement among enthusiasts.

Sign up for the Motorious Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Jonathan Roberts set a benchmark to aim for yesterday. Now its the goal of everyone to match what he pulled off when Day 1b of the 1,100 888poker Live Manchester Main Event begins at 1 p.m. local time.

Roberts built up a massive stack of 376,500 during yesterdays opening flight as he led the three surviving players. David Kingsley and Zhicheng Miao round out the remaining field.

Day 1a Chip Counts

Rank Player Country Chip Count Big Blinds 1 Jonathan Roberts United Kingdom 376,500 126 2 David Kingsley United Kingdom 166,000 55 3 Zhicheng Miao United Kingdom 147,500 49

It will be a tough standard for players to follow today. Players begin with a 30,000 starting stack and will play 14 40-minute levels. There is a 15-minute break after every three levels, with a 40-minute dinner break at the end of Level 6.

This is the second of four starting flights. Day 1c begins tomorrow at noon, while there is also a turbo Day 1d flight at 8 p.m. with 20-minute levels. Late registration remains open until the start of Day 2 at noon on August 24, with unlimited reentries available during the registration period.

Among the players expected to make an appearance today are 888poker Ambassadors Vivian Saliba and Lucia Navarro. They arrived in Manchester yesterday and played the High Roller event. Other players still in on Day 2 of the High Roller are fellow 888poker team member Ian Simpson, as well as Dean Hutchison, Guillermo Sanchez Otero, Andrew Wilson, Andrew Hulme, and Tom Middleton. Expect them to hop into the Main Event field over the next two days.

Stay tuned to PokerNews throughout the day for all the updates live from the Grosvenor Casino.
Trump told his crowd in North Carolina that he will hold future rallies in Venezuela if Kamala Harris wins the election.

Trump said:

They go to Caracas, they take all of their gang members, their killers, their drug dealer, their murderers, and theyre putting them into the united States. And their crime is down 72 president. Next time what well do, well have our next little gathering in Venezuela because it will be much safer than being in our country. If these people win, youre not going to have any meetings or anything, therell be chaos in our country.

Video:

Trump tells North Carolina crowd that future MAGA rallies will be held in Venezuela if Kamala Harris wins, " Next time what we'll do, we'll have our next little gathering in Venezuela because it will be much safer than being in our country." pic.twitter.com/dsRbG8HpaU  Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) August 21, 2024

For someone who keeps threatening to shut down the Southern Border, Trump certainly likes to fantasize about fleeing across it.

Does Trump know that Venezuela has an extradition treaty with the United States? He cant escape his criminal trials by fleeing to Venezuela if that is his plan. I also cant ever see Trump leaving the country.

It is just so happens that when Donald Trump thinks of the worst places on earth, he thinks of places without white people.

Trump keeps threatening to flee the country if he loses, which just gives Democrats more reasons to show up and vote.
MSNBCs Morning Joe hosts discussed the huge changes theyre seeing in the Democratic Party after night 3 of the DNC, pointing out that the party that used to be easy to beat is now on the offense and turning weaknesses into strengths which is hard to beat.

Watch:

WILLIE GEIST: Talking last night about immigration Senator Chris Murphy, who was one of the co-authors of that legislation that Donald Trump killed, along with James Lankford of Oklahoma, the Republican there, he came out and said, We worked hard for months and months and months. We got the deal Republicans said they wanted we presented it to them, and Donald Trump came in and killed the bill. Kamala Harris says, I will sign that bill when I become president. Going hard. Very interesting. This is an issue that Donald Trump thinks he has on Democrats. And the Democrats last night say, no, actually, you killed that bill. We are going to be on the offensive on immigration.

JOE SCARBOROUGH: Yeah. I mean, its a New Democratic Party. Theres a different type of Democratic Party than the type that I ran against. I mean, you know, they were always very easy to go after and that, like, you know, sort of run around in circles. And they were for the war before they were against the war. They were this. They were that. You take an issue that they were nervous about and then run away from it and you just, it would be just easy, easy to run against them.

Now theyre doing exactly what youre supposed to do, take the issue thats your weakness, make it your strength, and go straight at them with it. And its hard to beat that.

Republicans went along with Donald Trump tanking the most conservative bill Republicans were ever going to get on the border because they believed it would be a cudgel they could use against Democrats. But now the shoe is on the other foot.

Not only have southern border crossings plunged 56% recently due to actions taken by President Joe Biden and his administration, but Democratic nominee for President Vice President Kamala Harris has promised to sign that conservative border bill into law if she is elected.

Harris literally took Trumps biggest political fear-mongering tool (remember the caravans? They magically come back every election) and turned it against him.

Its not just the border, either. Its the way this Democratic Party moves, is reclaiming patriotism (sans nationalism, by the way) and love for country and neighbor. The DNC has had several Republicans and Independents making the case to people like them that voting for Harris-Walz is love of country, thereby creating the permission structure for people who might culturally feel obligated to vote for Trump-Vance to reconsider their own personal values.

The Democratic Party has changed  not in its values, but in its messaging. The party that has always been beaten up on the campaign trail by glib bumper sticker slogans often by bad faith actors is finally here to fight tough, fight hard, and win for the people

Just in time to take on encroaching fascism.
Trump attacked Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro with antisemitism after the governor did not praise him at the Democratic convention.

The ex-president posted on Truth Social:

The highly overrated Jewish Governor of the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro, made a really bad and poorly delivered speech talking about freedom and fighting for Comrade Kamala Harris for President, yet she hates Israel and will do nothing but make its journey through the complexities of survival as difficult as possible, hoping in the end that it will fail.

Judge only by her actions! Yet Shapiro, for strictly political reasons, refused to acknowledge that I am the best friend that Israel, and the Jewish people, ever had. I have done more for Israel than any President, and frankly, I have done more for Israel than any person, and its not even close. Shapiro has done nothing for Israel, and never will. Comrade Kamala Harris, the Radical Left Marxist who stole the nomination from Crooked Joe, will do even less. Israel is in BIG trouble!

Trumps insistence on having to label Shapiro and other Jewish Americans as Jewish each time that he talks about them is antisemitic.

It appears that Donald Trump was delusionally believing that Gov. Shapiro was going to take the stage at the Democratic convention and endorse him because Trump believes that being an apparent bigot makes him the best candidate for Jewish voters.

Trump thought that African-Americans, Hispanics, and Jewish voters were going to rush to the polls to vote for him.

The ex-president is clinging to that delusion as he is support crumbles with those groups.

It is telling that the corporate media, which, as a kneejerk reaction, defends Israel at all times, has nothing to say when Donald Trump launches an antisemitic attack on a popular swing-state governor.
CHATSWORTH, Calif.Adult industry mental health nonprofit Pineapple Support will be hosting a three-day online event addressing the growing issue of loneliness and its effects on mental health within the adult industry. The Loneliness  An Epidemic event will take place online from August 27 to 29, with each session running from 2 to 3:30 p.m. ET.

This event, held on Zoom, will feature daily webinars that include expert presentations followed by panel discussions. Each day will focus on a different aspect of loneliness, offering attendees valuable insights and practical strategies for managing and overcoming this pervasive issue:

August 27 at 11 a.m. PT (2 p.m. ET, 8 a.m. CEST)

Loner Wolf or Lonely Wolf?: How to Recognize the Impact of Loneliness on Mental Health

Speaker: Nigel Cook, Certified Sex Therapist

Panelists: Demora Avarice, Josy Black, Laura Desiree, Lotus Lain and Natassia Dreams

August 28 at 11 a.m. PT (2 p.m. ET, 8 a.m. CEST)

Yes, New Friends: Building Healthy Connections

Speaker: Devin Dshae, Sex and Relationship Therapist

Panelists: Emma Martin, Erika Love, Darling Rivas, Rhyheim Shabazz and more to be confirmed

August 29 at 11 a.m. PT (2 p.m. ET, 8 a.m. CEST)

Navigating Neurodivergency & Connection: Building a Path Forward

Speaker: Rainier McCall, Licensed Mental Health Counselor

Panelists: Benny Fox, Eve Batelle, Leya Tanit, Sir Peter and more to be confirmed

These sessions are free for everyone in the adult industry, thanks to the sponsorship of Pornhub, Brazzers, Clips4Sale, Friends2Follow, Chaturbate, SextPanther, ePlay, OTR models, SWAPPZ and DukeDollars.

Pineapple Support was founded by performer Leya Tanit in 2018, after a string of losses in the adult industry from depression and other mental illnesses. The organization, a qualified 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization in the United States, has connected over 14,000 adult performers to mental health services, including free and low-cost therapy, counseling and emotional support.

Loneliness is a significant issue in our increasingly digital world, particularly for those in the adult industry who often work in isolation, said Tanit. Im extremely grateful to the generous sponsors of this event that have made it possible for us to come together, share experiences, and explore ways to foster connections that can improve our mental health and overall well-being.

Those who wish to attend should register for each webinar individually. For more information about the Loneliness - An Epidemic event and to reserve your spot, visit pineapplesupport.org/ loneliness-an-epidemic. To learn more about Pineapple Support and its services, visit Pineapple Support. For information on becoming a sponsor or a member of Pineapples United, visit Pineapple Support Sponsorship.
An Aiken woman has been convicted of blocking access to an abortion clinic for the second time.

A federal jury in Michigan convicted Eva Edl, 87, and other defendants Aug. 20 for violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act.

President Bill Clinton signed the FACE Act into law May 26, 1994. The law was a response to an increase in acts of physical violence, threats and property damage at abortion clinics from the late 1970s to 1993.

A federal district court judge in Tennessee convicted Edl and three other defendants in April for blocking access to a clinic in Nashville on March 5, 2021.

In Michigan, prosecutors alleged Edl and another defendant attempted to stall police officers from ending an Aug. 27, 2020 blockade of an abortion clinic in Sterling Heights, Mich.

They also alleged Edl obstructed access to a clinic in Saginaw, Mich., on April 16, 2021. Specifically, they alleged Edl sat in front of a door and placed a doorstop underneath a door to prevent it from being opened from the inside.

Edl and the other defendants blocked women from seeing their doctors without regard to their medical needs, Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Departments Civil Rights Division said in a news release.

These defendants intentionally broke the law," Clarke said. "One womans fetus experienced fatal abnormalities and the defendants' coordinated campaign of physical obstruction posed a grave and real threat to her health and fertility."

Dawn N. Ison, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan, said her office is committed to protecting all of the legal rights of the districts citizens, including the right to access reproductive health care.

"The defendants convicted today sought to interfere with that right by physically blocking the doors of clinics providing such services," Ison said. "These defendants are entitled to their views, but they are not entitled to prevent others from exercising the rights secured to them by the laws of the United States. This case is about the rule of law, and todays verdict is a victory for that principle."
A legal dispute between a Turkish battery firm and the consulting group that helped bring the company to the Lowcountry is headed to mediation this week even as both sides are fighting over which court will hear the case.

Istanbul-headquartered Kontrolmatik Technologies and its Pomega Energy Storage subsidiary filed a lawsuit in April against Jones Lang LaSalle Americas claiming the Chicago-based real estate and site-selection group known as JLL wants $5 million as its share of more than $127 million in taxpayer-funded incentives tied to the development of a 600-worker factory near Walterboro.

South Carolina  where Kontrolmatik filed its lawsuit  forbids industries from paying consulting fees to third parties for helping to arrange incentives like the property tax breaks, income tax credits, sales tax exemptions and infrastructure grant the battery firm received. Kontrolmatik wants a judge to rule that JLL is not entitled to the $5 million fee.

JLL wants the case moved to Illinois, which doesn't have a prohibition against such fees. JLL said its contract with Kontrolmatik allows the consultant to pick the venue if a legal dispute arises.

JLL said it doesn't comment on pending legal matters, but the firm told the court that most of its witnesses and documents are in Illinois and it "would be substantially inconvenient" if the case remains in South Carolina.

A decision on where the lawsuit will be heard is pending.

Meanwhile, both sides have agreed to put the case on hold as they enter mediation talks starting Aug. 23 to "potentially resolve the issues," according to a court filing.

Kontrolmatik hired JLL about two years ago to help find a site for its first U.S.-based lithium-ion battery manufacturing plant. The real estate firm ultimately led the company to Colleton Industrial Campus off Interstate 95, the lawsuit stated.
LOS ANGELESTheres hardly a person in the adult pleasure products industry that doesnt know Brent Aldon, the fearless road warrior for prostate health company, Aneros. With his active social media posts for both business and pleasure, Brent is a one-person institution, promoting the health and wellness for everyone.

We all know that most of us arent born into the industry and Brent certainly had his twists and turns before arriving in our unique business.

When Brent attended a recent performance of comedian Will Burkart, the entertainer bantered with audience members and Brent was right there with him. Afterwards, the clip was captured and shared on social media. In the clip, Brent briefly explains how he stumbled into our business and can be seen here.

Brent had been an experienced director of marketing for GM (the legacy auto manufacturer), and was a part of a predicted cutback, due the recession. He knew the writing was on the wall regarding his steady employment, so he began searching on Craigslist, which was popular at that time, and saw a posting for a marketing position for a toy company.

Brent shared, Well, I thought I would be the perfect candidate as I used to work for a childrens toy company. Little did I know, I was very wrong when I walked into the office of Evolved! He laughed at the memory. You should have seen my face when I saw all the posters of the movies they produced. Well, I did not get the marketing director position, but the owner of a new lubricant company wanted to take a chance on me to be in sales. The rest is history when he was sucked in (not literally! he adds) by the amazing sexual wellness industry.

That first company was the new brand, System JO, and from there, he wound up at Aneros, where he has been Director of Sales and Marketing for over a dozen years.

Brent feels the same about what he enjoys most about the business. Like many of us, he says its The camaraderie and the people who make up this industry. Even though some are considered competitors, I do not see it that way. We all support each other, we lift each other up during the good times and the bad, and we make sure that everyone succeeds.

He continued, There are enough slices of the pie for everyone. That is why I consider this industry my second family as there are so many that I can always count on. My life is my work (at times), and my work is my life. I always say, it's not work when you have a passion for what you do.

Many times, Brent is questioned by retail store staff members about how they can get on the other side of the business (working for a manufacturer) and he shared his insights and advice. It is not all rainbows and butterflies. This industry is not your typical eight hour shift job. You truly must absorb yourself in this industry and, more importantly, be passionate about the company you work for. I always get comments of wanting to be a part of this industry based on the photos and experiences I share on social media but what you see in my posts are probably 10% of what we do in the business. He continued to share his personal reality check about what it takes to be a road warrior. We really do not go to fancy dinners, dress up to go to award shows, and travel to exotic places all the time. Yes! Those are the perks but most of the time it's a lot of hard work. Account management, selling, marketing, traveling, training, standing on your feet for over 12+ hours at trade shows and forcing yourself to go to events and dinners, when all you want to do is sleep in your own bed.

When Brent gets into his own bed, he not only shares it with his husband, Andrew, but also his five dogs that bring joy to his life. After having a bad day or coming home from a long work trip, to see their happiness, their smiles, and their excitement when I get home, truly warms my heart.

And you warm ours up, too. Thanks for being you, Brent!

Brents exciting life can be followed on these social media pages (hes a lot more active on FB):

Facebook - @/brent.aldon

Instagram - @brentaldon
SULLIVANS ISLAND  Another barrier island is under pressure to review its stance on erosion control measures, like seawalls, bulkheads and revetments.

Eric Dodson has lived on Sullivans Island for over a decade, enjoying the coastal views of the marsh behind his Thompson Avenue home.

Just outside his property line, where the marsh meets the land, is a decades-old revetment, a sloping structure that serves as a barrier from the water.

If an erosion control structure is damaged, it can be repaired with materials similar to what was used to construct it originally, according to the ordinance. In Dodsons case, he said this means he can only use concrete to build the revetment back up.

Dodson said the structure is on town property, but according to a Sullivans Island ordinance, its up to him to repair it when it periodically fails. He described the repair process as essentially never-ending.

Thats why he, along with a handful of neighbors, have been asking the town to amend its law since March.

Let us do something thats more permanent, lasts longer, more cost effective and better that can also be adapted to higher and higher changes in tides as climate change continues to impact, Dodson told The Post and Courier.

Sullivans Island was inundated with rains from Tropical Storm Debby earlier this month, though it was the unexpected noreaster that hit the Lowcountry last December that flooded his yard and prompted him to call for change.

At the state level, South Carolina law has prohibited the construction of seawalls or bulkheads on beaches since the 1980s. The structures have historically been regarded as inefficient ways to mitigate erosion, even worsening land loss in some cases.
COLUMBIA  In a tightly-packed board room at a Statehouse complex office building Aug. 22, a group of 10 South Carolina senators will gather to begin charting their vision of what the next decade of energy will look like for the Palmetto State.

Members of the House of Representatives wont be there: the Republican-dominated chamber already had issued broad support for a plan earlier this year that, in addition to paving the way for a joint venture between state-owned Santee Cooper and Dominion Energy to convert an old coal plant to gas, would roll back numerous regulatory protections implemented in the wake of the failed VC Summer project, and greatly curtail the influence of the states Public Service Commission.

Time was running short. South Carolina, House Republican leadership claimed, was fast approaching crisis, with new residential, commercial and industrial demand and aging (and increasingly untenable) coal-fired power plants unable to keep the lights on for long. The legislation sped through the House and, later, a Senate committee overseen by Myrtle Beach Republican Luke Rankin, who advanced the bill to the full Senate with almost no input from critics.

The Senate, however, didnt go for it, rejecting many of the Houses more aggressive reforms and initiating a weeks-long impasse between the two chambers that ground most major legislation in the general assembly to a halt.

Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey, R-Edgefield, a leading critic of the House reforms and the head of the so-called Special Committee on South Carolinas Energy Future, said he hopes to use the committee to give the sweeping, 34,456-word legislation the time and consideration it did not receive during the 2024 legislative session.
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DATA SUPPORTING FDA APPROVAL PUBLISHED IN HIGH-IMPACT JOURNALPublication of results from ANGLE's Parsortix PC1 system validates use of Parsortix System for CTC isolation and harvest in metastatic breast cancerGUILDFORD, SURREY / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / ANGLE plc (AIM:AGL)(OTCQX:ANPCY), a world-leading liquid biopsy company with innovative circulating tumour cell (CTC) solutions for use in research, drug development and clinical oncology, is pleased to announce the publication of one of the Company's clinical studies that was submitted to the FDA for De Novo regulatory clearance of the Parsortix PC1 system.This study, undertaken at ANGLE's UK laboratory, the University of Rochester, US, and the MD Anderson Cancer Center, US, reports that the Parsortix system successfully captured and harvested CTCs from metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patient blood samples for downstream analysis using immunofluorescence (IF) and cytological evaluation.The study recruited 76 MBC patients whose blood samples were processed using the Parsortix PC1 system. CTCs were identified in 45% of MBC patients, with CTC clusters, known to have high metastatic potential, identified in 56% of the CTC positive patients. Among the MBC patient blood samples with detectable CTCs, 70% of the cells did not express the epithelial marker, EpCAM. This highlights the limitations of EpCAM-based CTC enrichment technologies and further underpins the rationale for the use of ANGLE's Parsortix system which harvests CTCs based on the size and deformability of the cells.The data generated by this study supported ANGLE's FDA De Novo request for the classification of the Parsortix PC1 system as a Class II medical device, for use in MBC patients to capture and harvest CTCs for subsequent, user-validated, downstream analyses. This was granted by the FDA in 2022.Chief Scientific Officer, Karen Miller, added: "We are pleased to share the results of this clinical study, demonstrating the performance of the Parsortix PC1 system in successfully isolating CTCs from MBC patient blood samples. The data from this study contributed to the first-in class FDA De Novo regulatory clearance for the Parsortix PC1 system.As announced in April 2024, we have further enhanced the sensitivity of our immunofluorescent labelling downstream research-use protocols and developed the proprietary CellKeep slide to significantly increase the number of CTCs captured on the slides for this form of analysis." The research has been published as a peer-reviewed publication in the Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research and is available online at https://angleplc.com/resources/publications/ For further information:ANGLE plc+44 (0) 1483 343434Andrew Newland, Chief ExecutiveIan Griffiths, Finance DirectorBerenberg (NOMAD and Broker) Toby Flaux, Ciaran Walsh, Milo Bonser+44 (0) 20 3207 7800FTI Consulting Simon Conway, Ciara MartinMatthew Ventimiglia (US)+44 (0) 203 727 1000+1 (212) 850 5624For Frequently Used Terms, please see the Company's website on https://angleplc.com/investor-relations/glossary/ Notes for editorsAbout ANGLE plc ANGLE is a world-leading liquid biopsy company with innovative circulating tumour cell (CTC) solutions for use in research, drug development and clinical oncology using a simple blood sample. ANGLE's FDA cleared and patent protected circulating tumour cell (CTC) harvesting technology known as the Parsortix PC1 System enables complete downstream analysis of the sample including whole cell imaging and proteomic analysis and full genomic and transcriptomic molecular analysis.ANGLE's commercial businesses are focusing on diagnostic products and clinical services. Diagnostic products include the Parsortix system, associated consumables and assays. The clinical services business is offered through ANGLE's GCLP-compliant laboratories. Services include custom made assay development and clinical trial testing for pharma.Over 90 peer-reviewed publications have demonstrated the performance of the Parsortix system. For more information, visit www.angleplc.com Any reference to regulatory authorisations such as FDA clearance, CE marking or UK MHRA registration shall be read in conjunction with the full intended use of the product:The Parsortix PC1 system is an in vitro diagnostic device intended to enrich circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from peripheral blood collected in K2EDTA tubes from patients diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer. The system employs a microfluidic chamber (a Parsortix cell separation cassette) to capture cells of a certain size and deformability from the population of cells present in blood. The cells retained in the cassette are harvested by the Parsortix PC1 system for use in subsequent downstream assays. The end user is responsible for the validation of any downstream assay. The standalone device, as indicated, does not identify, enumerate or characterize CTCs and cannot be used to make any diagnostic/prognostic claims for CTCs, including monitoring indications or as an aid in any disease management and/or treatment decisions.All results reported in this announcement and any other products and services are for research use only and not for use in diagnostic procedures.This information is provided by Reach, the non-regulatory press release distribution service of RNS, part of the London Stock Exchange. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact rns@ lseg.com or visit www.rns.com SOURCE: ANGLE plc
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NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Levi & Korsinsky notifies investors that it has commenced an investigation of The Chemours Company ("The Chemours Company") (NYSE:CC) concerning possible violations of federal securities laws.Chemours issued a press release on August 1, 2024, reporting its financial results for the second quarter of 2024. Among other items, Chemours reported non-GAAP earnings per share of $0.38, missing consensus estimates by $0.20. The Company advised that it "anticipates a low to mid-single digit sequential decline in Net Sales for the third quarter," citing "[r]esidual impacts from Q2 unplanned downtime at our Altamira, Mexico manufacturing site" in its Titanium Technologies segment; "[r]efrigerant seasonality paired with weaker Freon Refrigerants pricing in its Thermal & Specialized Solutions segment; and "[a] continued modest recovery in" its Advanced Performance Materials segment.Following this news, Chemours's stock price dropped over 11% on August 2, 2024. To obtain additional information, go to:or contact Joseph E. Levi, Esq. either via email at jlevi@ levikorsinsky.com or by telephone at (212)363-7500.WHY LEVI & KORSINSKY: Over the past 20 years, Levi & Korsinsky LLP has established itself as a nationally-recognized securities litigation firm that has secured hundreds of millions of dollars for aggrieved shareholders and built a track record of winning high-stakes cases. The firm has extensive expertise representing investors in complex securities litigation and a team of over 70 employees to serve our clients. For seven years in a row, Levi & Korsinsky has ranked in ISS Securities Class Action Services' Top 50 Report as one of the top securities litigation firms in the United States. Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.CONTACT: Levi & Korsinsky, LLPJoseph E. Levi, Esq.Ed Korsinsky, Esq.33 Whitehall Street, 17th FloorNew York, NY 10004 jlevi@ levikorsinsky.com Tel: (212)363-7500 Fax: (212)363-7171 https://zlk.com/ SOURCE: Levi & Korsinsky, LLP
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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Coppernico Metals Inc. (TSX:COPR) ("Coppernico" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the voting results for the election of its Board of Directors at the Annual General Meeting (the "Meeting") of Shareholders held on August 21, 2024, in Vancouver, British Columbia. The director nominees as listed in the Company's Information Circular dated July 5, 2024, and SEDAR+ filed July 12, 2024, were elected as directors of the Company at the Meeting to serve until the next Meeting.A total of 73,325,930 of the Company's common shares ("Common Shares") were present or represented by proxy at the Meeting, representing 41.37% of the outstanding Common Shares. The voting results for the election of directors are as follows:Election of Directors:Name of NomineeVotes ForVotes For (%)Votes Withheld/AbstainVotes Withheld/Abstain (%)Ivan James Bebek61,619,45899.33413,4280.67Antonio Arribas61,642,29899.37390,5880.63Gordon J. Fretwell61,604,33299.31428,5540.69Keenan Jennings61,637,73299.36395,1540.64Jeffrey R. Mason60,601,51897.691,431,3682.31Mary Jane McQuhae61,590,50599.29442,3810.71Marie Helene Turgeon61,603,12099.31429,7660.69There were 11,293,044 non-votes recorded (but not voted) for each director. Non-votes are discretionary votes given to a broker by a US beneficial holder, but such votes are not allowed under Canadian Securities Regulations.Reappointment of Auditor:Votes ForVotesFor (%)Votes Withheld/AbstainVotes Withheld/Abstain (%)Davidson & Company LLP73,040,15199.61285,7790.39Voting results have been filed on www.sedarplus.ca Ivan Bebek, CEO and Chair of Coppernico, stated, "We are delighted to welcome MJ McQuhae to our Board. As a former BHP executive and currently the Group Head of Project Services at Anglo American, MJ brings a wealth of experience and insight to our team. We also extend our gratitude to our shareholders for their supportive votes. We are actively drilling our fourth hole at our ongoing Sombrero drill and have an excellent cash position which takes the Company and its current plans into 2026. We look forward to providing updates on our exploration activities." ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORSIvan Bebek Chair & CEOFor further information, please contact:Coppernico Metals Inc. Phone: +1 778 729 0600Email: info@ coppernicometals.com Website: www.coppernicometals.com Twitter: @CoppernicoMetal LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/coppernico-metals/ About CoppernicoCoppernico is a mineral exploration company focused on creating value for shareholders and stakeholders through diligent and thoughtful project evaluation and exploration excellence in pursuit of the discovery of world-class copper-gold deposits in South America. The Company's management and technical teams have a successful track record of raising capital, discovery and the monetization of exploration successes. The Company, through its Peruvian subsidiary Sombrero Minerales S.A.C., is currently focused on the Ccascabamba (previously referred to as Sombrero Main) and Nioc areas within the Sombrero Project in Peru, its flagship project, and is reviewing additional premium projects in South America.The Sombrero Project is a land package of approximately 102,000 hectares located in the north-western margins of the world-class Andahuaylas-Yauri trend in Peru. It consists of a number of prospective exploration targets characterized by copper-gold skarn and porphyry systems, and precious metal epithermal deposits. The Company's NI 43-101 technical report, with an effective date of April 17, 2024, and as filed on SEDAR+ on May 23, 2024, focuses on the Ccascabamba and Nioc target areas of the project.Coppernico Metals Inc. is currently listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under symbol "COPR". More information about the Company can be found on the Company's profile on SEDAR+ ( www.sedarplus.ca) Cautionary NoteNo regulatory organization has approved the contents hereof.This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking statements are often identified by terms such as "may", "should", "anticipate", "expect", "intend" and similar expressions and include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to: the Company's drill plans, and its financial position in the future. No certainty can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward-looking statements included in this news release should not be unduly relied upon. Forward-looking statements are based on a number of assumptions and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company's control, which could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those that are disclosed in or implied by such forward-looking statements. Readers should refer to the risks discussed in the Company's AIF and other continuous disclosure filings with the Canadian Securities Administrators, available at www.sedarplus.ca . These factors are not, and should not be construed as being, exhaustive. Accordingly, readers should not place heavy reliance on forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this new release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Any forward-looking information and the assumptions made with respect thereto speaks only as of the date of this news release. The Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking information after the date of this news release to conform such information to actual results or to changes in the Company's expectations except as otherwise required by applicable legislation.SOURCE: Coppernico Metals Inc.
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Forward Water Technologies Corp. (" FWTC ") (TSXV:FWTC), announces that the original news release captioned "Forward Water Technologies Corp. Closes Private Placement of Convertible Debentures" published on August 21, 2024 referred, incorrectly, to the date on which the hold period applicable to the securities issued under the financing expires. The date was referenced as August 19, 2026 and it should have read December 20, 2024.Not for distribution to U.S. news wire services or for dissemination in the United States.TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Forward Water Technologies Corp. (" FWTC ") (TSXV:FWTC) is pleased to announce that it has closed an issuance of $200,000 principal amount of unsecured convertible debentures. The debentures bear interest at a rate of 10% per annum and the principal amount is automatically convert into units ("Units") at a conversion price of $0.1126 (assuming completion of the proposed 10 for 1 consolidation of FWTC common shares (the "Consolidation")) on completion of the proposed business combination with Fraser Mackenzie Accelerator Corp. ("FMAC") (see press releases dated May 14, 2024 and July 22, 2024 announcing the proposed transaction). Each Unit will be comprised of one common share of FWTC and one common share purchase warrant ("Warrant") entitling the holder to purchase one common share of FWTC (a "Warrant Share") at a post-Consolidation exercise price of $0.1579 at any time prior to August 19, 2027. All interest will be paid in cash onlyIn connection with the transaction a finder was paid an 8% finders fee and was issued 142,096 finder warrants that entitle the finder to acquire one common share of FWTC and one half of one Warrant (with the same terms as the Warrants described above) at a price of $0.1126 at any time on or before August 19, 2026.All securities issued pursuant to the financing are subject to a hold period of four months and one day expiring on December 20, 2024.About Forward Water Technologies Corp.Forward Water Technologies Corp. ( TSX.V:FWTC) is a publicly traded Canadian company dedicated to saving the earth's water supply using its patented Forward Osmosis technology. The Company was founded by GreenCentre Canada, a leading technology innovation centre supported by the government of Canada. The Company's technology allows for the reduction of challenging waste streams simultaneously returning fresh water for re-use or surface release. The Company's mandate is to focus on the large-scale implementation of its technology in multiple sectors, including industrial wastewater, oil and gas, DLE, mining, agriculture and ultimately municipal water supply and re-use market sectors.FWTC has immediate plans to treat brine from the direct lithium extraction (DLE) sector using is mobile pilot equipment this summer in conjunction with its partners. This project will establish FWTC's iFOTM technology as a valuable component in producing lithium carbonate from aquifer sourced brines for use in applications such as electric vehicle (EV) battery production.In addition, the Company has initiated early-stage R&D for the treatment of food and beverage process streams.For more information, please visit www.forwardwater.com Contact Information:Forward Water Technologies Corp.C. Howie Honeyman, Chief Executive OfficerE-mail: howie.honeyman@forwardwater.com Telephone: (519) 333-5888Neither 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.Caution Concerning Forward Looking InformationThis press release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information (collectively, "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Any statements that are contained in this press release that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are often identified by terms such as "may", "should", "anticipate", "will", "estimates", "believes", "intends" "expects" and similar expressions which are intended to identify forward-looking statements. More particularly and without limitation, this press release contains forward looking statements concerning the proposed transaction with FMAC, the Consolidation, the ability of FWTC and FMAC to meet the conditions of the proposed transaction in the required timeframes, obtaining the necessary exemptions and approvals from the TSX Venture Exchange or other regulatory bodies, including the business, name and function of the resulting issuer and certain financial information and forecasts. FWTC cautions that all forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain, and that actual performance may be affected by a number of material factors, assumptions and expectations, many of which are beyond the control of FWTC, including expectations and assumptions concerning FWTC, FMAC, the resulting issuer, the proposed transaction, the timely receipt of all required shareholder and regulatory approvals (as applicable), including the acceptance of the TSX Venture Exchange, the satisfaction of other closing conditions in accordance with the terms of the definitive agreement for the proposed transaction, as well as other risks and uncertainties, including those described in FWTC and FMAC's respective disclosure documents available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca . The reader is cautioned that assumptions used in the preparation of any forward-looking statements may prove to be incorrect. Events or circumstances may cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted as a result of numerous known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of FWTC. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Such information, although considered reasonable by management at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect and actual results may differ materially from those anticipated. Forward-looking statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release, and FWTC does not undertake to update publicly or to revise any of the included forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by securities law.This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities in any jurisdiction.SOURCE: Forward Water Technologies Inc.
PR-Inside.com: 2024-08-22 15:00:54

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SUNNY ISLES BEACH, FL / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Elektros (OTC PINK:ELEK) ("Elektros" or "the Company"), an emerging leader in the electric mobility industry, announced today it has signed lease agreement for Lithium mining project in Sierra Leone.On August 15, 2024, the Company entered into a 13-year ground lease agreement for Lithium mine located at Gbu-Gbu village Gawola Town in the Tinkoko chiefdom Bo District in the southern part of Sierra Leone, West Africa.The purpose of the lease is to commence lithium mining operation and management of a multi-family residential apartment for laborers of the mining operation as needed.The Company has already begun initial preparations at the mining site, with the first shipments of lithium-bearing rock aggregate expected to be ready for off-site processing and milling in the coming weeks.The global demand for lithium has been steadily rising, driven primarily by the growing electric vehicle (EV) market and the increasing need for large-scale energy storage solutions. According to a recent industry report, the global lithium-ion battery market is expected to reach $116.6 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 18.0% from 2021 to 2030.Sierra Leone has emerged as an attractive destination for lithium mining due to its investor-friendly policies and abundant natural resources. The country has been actively promoting its mining sector, offering competitive tax incentives and streamlining regulatory processes to attract foreign investment. Additionally, the southern region of Sierra Leone, where the Company's mining operation is located, is known for its rich lithium deposits.Lithium has a wide range of applications beyond EVs, including solar battery storage, data centers, and consumer electronics. As the world continues to transition towards renewable energy and sustainable technologies, the demand for this critical mineral is expected to dramatically increase in the coming years.About Elektros, Inc.Elektros (OTC PINK:ELEK) is a vertically integrated sustainable energy company focused on lithium mining, electric vehicle charging, solar energy storage, and power supply for AI data centers. We are at the forefront of the clean energy transition, driving innovation in mobility and energy technologies to combat the global climate crisis and deliver transformative user experiences. www.elektros.energy Cautionary Language Concerning Forward-Looking StatementsThis release contains "forward-looking statements" that include information relating to future events and future financial and operating performance. The words "may," "would," "will," "expect," "estimate," "can," "believe," "potential," and similar expressions and variations thereof are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements should not be read as a guarantee of future performance or results and will not necessarily be accurate indications of the times at, or by, which that performance or those results will be achieved. Forward-looking statements are based on information available at the time they are made and/or management's good faith belief as of that time with respect to future events and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual performance or results to differ materially from those expressed in or suggested by the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause these differences include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in demand for Elektros, Inc.'s products, the introduction of new products, the Company's ability to maintain customer and strategic business relationships, the impact of competitive products and pricing, growth in targeted markets, the adequacy of the Company's liquidity and financial strength to support its growth, and other information that may be detailed from time to time in Elektros Inc.'s filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Examples of such forward-looking statements in this release include statements regarding future sales, costs, and market acceptance of products as well as regulatory actions at the State or Federal level. For a more detailed description of the risk factors and uncertainties affecting Elektros Inc., please refer to the Company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings, which are available at www.sec.gov . Elektros, Inc. undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.CONTACT:Elektros, Inc. IR and Media InquiriesEmail: ElektrosInc@ gmail.com SOURCE: Elektros, Inc.
PR-Inside.com: 2024-08-22 03:07:03

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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / August 21, 2024 / Faraday Copper Corp. ("Faraday" or the "Company") (TSX:FDY)(OTCQX:CPPKF) is pleased to announce the results of two drill holes from its ongoing Phase III drill program at the Copper Creek Project, located in Arizona, U.S. ("Copper Creek"). The two holes were drilled to continue to evaluate the near-surface mineralization in the American Eagle area.Paul Harbidge, President and CEO, commented "Drilling in the American Eagle Area continues to provide very exciting results, with the discovery of the Banjo breccia, which has returned the best grade-width intercept of this drill campaign to date. The Phase III drilling shows the potential for a large near-surface resource to be defined above the current underground resource. The current interpretation suggests characteristics similar to the Mammoth breccia. Mammoth connects with the Keel underground zone and is the most vertically continuous mineralized system defined so far on the property. Drilling continues with the emphasis on both delineation of the Banjo breccia and testing additional breccias in the American Eagle area." HighlightsDrill hole FCD-24-070 is the discovery hole for the high-grade Banjo breccia and confirms significant mineralization above the American Eagle underground resource.Drill hole FCD-24-070 intersected 117.90 metres ("m") at 1.01% copper and 1.87 grams per tonne ("g/t") silver from 323.52 m, including 15.89 m at 2.15% copper and 2.48 g/t silver from 390.00 m.This intercept is within 269.65 m at 0.64% copper and 1.32 g/t silver from 229.49 m.Mineralization remains open.At the American Eagle breccia, intersected 88.16 m at 0.39% copper and 1.43 g/t silver from 188.34 m in drill hole FCD-24-071, including 15.80 m at 0.93% copper and 3.71 g/t silver from 188.34 m.Confirmed vertical continuity of near surface breccia hosted mineralization to the porphyry mineralization at depth in the American eagle area.(For true width information see Table 1.)The American Eagle area as mapped on surface, covers approximately 800 m by 1,000 m and is host to numerous prospective breccias and porphyries which have strong copper geochemical signatures. These surface expressions locate above the large underground porphyry mineral resource, which is approximately 500 m to 1,100 m depth below surface. Historically, the near-surface mineralization was not adequately tested as previous drilling was vertical to steeply inclined. Mapped geology, isolated historical drill intercepts and historical small-scale mining highlight the potential for near-surface mineralization. The Company has reported assay results for eight drill holes from this area as part of the current program (for drill holes not reported herein, refer to news releases dated June 25, 2024 and July 25, 2024). These results provide a broad framework of the geology, structure, and alteration and confirm the potential for significant near-surface copper mineralization.Drill hole FCD-24-070was collared approximately 240 m southeast of the American Eagle breccia and drilled to the north (Figures 1, 2, 4 and 5). Porphyry and breccia intervals alternate in the first 81 m. From 81 m to 242 m, the hole intersected mainly granodiorite crosscut by up to 20 m wide breccia intervals and porphyry domains. Breccias in this upper part of the hole are pyrite and quartz cemented. From 242 m to 450 m, hydrothermal breccia is characterized by intense sericite alteration. Mineralization occurs as chalcopyrite together with pyrite and quartz breccia cement and to a lesser degree in veinlets. The last 50 m of the hole contain chalcopyrite mineralization associated with early halo veins.Drill hole FCD-24-071was collared approximately 140 m southeast of the American Eagle breccia and drilled to the northwest (Figures 1, 3 and 4). It intersected mostly igneous cemented breccia, variably sericite altered, from surface to 98 m, and granodiorite cross-cut by porphyry until 192 m. Alternating hydrothermal breccia and porphyry domains are present until 244 m, after which the hole enters granodiorite cross-cut by porphyry. Copper mineralization occurs as chalcopyrite in breccia cement and veinlets below 188 m downhole, or 110 m below surface. Chalcocite occurs locally with chalcopyrite. Molybdenite is abundant from 238 m to 241 m. Sericite and tourmaline are dominant alteration minerals associated with hydrothermal breccia domains.Next StepsPhase III drilling continues with the following objectives:Reconnaissance and follow-up drilling on new targets;Expanding the Mineral Resource Estimate ("MRE"); andBetter delineating high-grade mineralized zones.The current focus of drilling is on near-surface mineralization in the American Eagle area.As part of the Phase III program, 36 drill holes have been completed and results for 34 have been released. Thirteen holes were drilled in Area 51, ten in the American Eagle area, five in the Bald area, three in the Copper Prince - Copper Giant area, three near Old Reliable and two in the Titan breccia. The assay results for additional completed drill holes will be released as they are received, analyzed and confirmed by the Company.Figure 1: Plan View Showing Surface Geology and Location of Drill Holes in the American Eagle AreaNote: The open pit shell is based on constraints used in the MRE as presented in the report titled "Copper Creek Project NI 43-101 Technical Report and Preliminary Economic Assessment" with an effective date of May 3, 2023 (the "Technical Report") available on the Company's website at www.faradaycopper.com and on the Company's SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca Figure 2: Cross Section Showing Drill Hole FCD-24-070 at the Banjo BrecciaFigure 3: Cross Section Showing Drill Hole FCD-24-071 at the American Eagle BrecciaFigure 4: Isometric View Showing Phase III Drill Holes in the American Eagle AreaNote: The open pit shells and underground footprint are based on constraints used in the MRE as presented in the Technical Report available on the Company's website at www.faradaycopper.com and on the Company's SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca . For drill holes not reported herein, refer to news releases dated June 25, 2024 and July 25, 2024.Figure 5: A Core Sample from Drill Hole FCD-24-070Table 1: Selected Drill ResultsDrill Hole IDFromToLengthTrue WidthCuAuAgMo(m)(m)(m)(m)(%)(g/t)(g/t)(%)FCD-24-070229.49499.14269.651900.640.021.320.0010including323.52441.42117.90831.010.031.870.0016Also including390.00405.8915.89112.150.052.480.0009FCD-24-071188.34276.5088.16680.39
PR-Inside.com: 2024-08-23 00:01:47

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Innovative Comparative Pricing Technology Delivers Significant Savings for HomeownersDENVER, CO / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / FloodSimple, a highly rated flood insurance agency, proudly announces that its comparative pricing technology has saved customers 3.6 million dollars in flood insurance premium costs in 2023. This milestone highlights FloodSimple's commitment to offering affordable and reliable flood insurance options tailored to meet the needs of homeowners.FloodSimple's innovative approach compares four flood insurance company quotes, ensuring that customers receive the most competitive rates available. This technology not only simplifies the insurance process but also offers substantial financial benefits to homeowners."Our comparative pricing technology has transformed the way homeowners shop for flood insurance," said Stephen Schramke, CEO of FloodSimple. "By providing transparent and competitive pricing, we have empowered our customers to make informed decisions and secure the best possible rates for their flood insurance policies, resulting in significant insurance savings." The $3.6 million saved in premiums is a testament to the efficiency and effectiveness of FloodSimple's technology. As flood insurance rates continue to rise and more homes are classified as high flood risk, FloodSimple remains dedicated to helping customers instantly compare low-cost flood insurance options, maximizing their savings.About FloodSimple:For homeowners looking for cost-effective insurance options, FloodSimple offers a streamlined solution to secure affordable flood insurance. FloodSimple is committed to providing affordable and reliable flood insurance solutions for homeowners. By leveraging advanced comparative pricing technology, FloodSimple ensures that customers receive the most competitive rates available. Visit FloodSimple's website to explore comparison rates and start saving on flood insurance today.Contact InformationHolly LawrencePRhollyl@ floodsimple.com SOURCE: FloodSimpleView the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-08-22 20:45:25

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SAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Hagens Berman urges Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) investors who suffered substantial losses to submit your losses now. The firm also encourages persons with knowledge who may assist the investigation to contact its attorneys.Visit: www.hbsslaw.com/investor-fraud/ben Contact the Firm Now: BEN@ hbsslaw.com 844-916-0895Investigation Into Franklin Resources, Inc. (BEN):The investigation focuses on Franklin's controls over trading-related matters, including without limitation, those related to the marks of treasury derivatives and investment performance of its Western Asset Management Macro Opportunities fund strategy.On July 26, 2024, Franklin revealed that "[f]ollowing the launch of an internal investigation focusing on certain past trade allocations of treasury derivatives in select Western Asset Management (WAM') accounts, WAM received notification of parallel investigations by the SEC and U.S. Department of Justice." This news drove the price of Franklin shares significantly lower.Then, on August 21, 2024, Franklin disclosed that WAM placed co-Chief Investment Officer Ken Leech on leave "effective immediately" and that "[i]n light of Mr. Leech's leave of absence, the Company has determined that closing its Macro Opportunities strategy (approximately $2.0 billion in AUM as of 7/31/2024) is in clients' best interests." Franklin also revealed that Leech received a Wells Notice from the SEC. A Wells Notice is a formal notification that the SEC has concluded an investigation with charges likely to follow.This news drove the price of Franklin shares over 12% lower on August 21, 2024."We are looking into whether Franklin may have misled investors about the firm's Western Asset Management unit's trade practices," said Reed Kathrein, the Hagens Berman partner leading the investigation.If you invested in Franklin and have substantial losses, or have knowledge that may assist the firm's investigation, submit your losses now If you'd like more information and answers to frequently asked questions about the Franklin investigation, read more Whistleblowers: Persons with non-public information regarding Franklin should consider their options to help in the investigation or take advantage of the SEC Whistleblower program. Under the new program, whistleblowers who provide original information may receive rewards totaling up to 30 percent of any successful recovery made by the SEC. For more information, call Reed Kathrein at 844-916-0895 or email BEN@ hbsslaw.com # # #About Hagens Berman Hagens Berman is a global plaintiffs' rights complex litigation firm focusing on corporate accountability. The firm is home to a robust practice and represents investors as well as whistleblowers, workers, consumers and others in cases achieving real results for those harmed by corporate negligence and other wrongdoings. Hagens Berman's team has secured more than $2.9 billion in this area of law. More about the firm and its successes can be found at hbsslaw.com . Follow the firm for updates and news at @ClassActionLaw.Contact:Reed Kathrein, 844-916-0895SOURCE: Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP
PR-Inside.com: 2024-08-22 22:11:58

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NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC is investigating potential claims on behalf of purchasers of Franklin Resources, Inc. ("Franklin" or "the Company") (NYSE:BEN). Investors who purchased Franklin securities are encouraged to obtain additional information and assist the investigation by visiting the firm's site: bgandg.com/BEN Investigation DetailsOn August 21, 2024, Franklin subsidiary Western Asset Management Company issued a press release announcing that co-Chief Investment Officer Ken Leech "is on a leave of absence, effective immediately" after "receiv[ing] a Wells Notice from the Staff of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission". That same day, Bloomberg reported that "[f]ederal prosecutors in New York are investigating whether a Western Asset Management executive allocated winning trades to favored accounts, as part of a criminal probe into a practice known as  cherry-picking.'" On this news, Franklin's stock price fell $2.84 per share, or 12.56%, to close at $19.78 per share on August 21, 2024.What's Next?If you are aware of any facts relating to this investigation or purchased Franklin securities, you can assist this investigation by visiting the firm's site: bgandg.com/BEN . You can also contact Peretz Bronstein or his client relations manager, Nathan Miller, of Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC: 332-239-2660.There is No Cost to YouWe represent investors in class actions on a contingency fee basis. That means we will ask the court to reimburse us for out-of-pocket expenses and attorneys' fees, usually a percentage of the total recovery, only if we are successful.Why Bronstein, Gewirtz & GrossmanBronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC is a nationally recognized firm that represents investors in securities fraud class actions and shareholder derivative suits. Our firm has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors nationwide.Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.CONTACT: Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLCPeretz Bronstein or Nathan Miller,332-239-2660 | info@ bgandg.com SOURCE: Bronstein, Gewirtz and Grossman, LLC
PR-Inside.com: 2024-08-22 03:07:31

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Australian tech entrepreneur and avid adventurer, John-Paul Thorbjornsen (JP), gears up for an extraordinary expedition that will see him travelling over all seven continents in just 300 flight hours. JP Thor will attempt to be the first Helicopter pilot to cross the North and South Poles and circumnavigate the globe longitudinally.LONDON, ENGLAND / ACCESSWIRE / August 21, 2024 / Australian tech entrepreneur and avid adventurer, John-Paul Thorbjornsen (JP), gears up for an extraordinary expedition that will see him travelling over all seven continents in just 300 flight hours.JP's lifelong passion for aviation began at 16 and has only grown stronger over the years. Reflecting on his love for flying, JP shared, "My passion for flying started when I took my first lesson at 16, and I've never looked back. The ACH130 Aston Martin Edition brought me on a cross-globe journey where I experienced different cultures, made new friends, and created many beautiful memories with my family and friends. With this new ACH125, I'm looking forward to exploring the world in a different way." Unveiling his ambitious flight plan, JP described the upcoming journey as "an expedition like no other." The adventure will commence from his hometown in Darwin, where JP will embark on a global circumnavigation in a convoy of two helicopters. The journey will include his ACH130 Aston Martin Edition and an Airbus ACH125, accompanied by another pilot.The expedition will cover 30,000 nautical miles, starting with an 11,000 nautical mile journey to the North Pole, followed by a 12,000 nautical mile trek to the South Pole, and concluding with a final leg of 7,000 nautical miles across to Dubai. The entire expedition is expected to span six months, crossing 50 countries and passing the equator three times.About JP ThorJP, born and homeschooled in rural Northern Territory, excelled academically before joining the Air Force, where he graduated top of his class in Aeronautical Engineering and became a fighter pilot, amassing over 2,000 flight hours worldwide. In 2013, he shifted to crypto, founding THORChain under the pseudonym " Leena." By 2018, THORChain hit a $1 billion market value, and JP eventually revealed his identity in 2024, turning over the platform to the community. Today, it stands as the world's largest decentralized liquidity protocol with a market value exceeding $2 billion.Contact InformationSan SunnerPR Officersan@ accel.co +4407925533947SOURCE: JPThor.com View the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-08-23 00:01:58

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Entrepreneur and co-founder of Altus Power joins market leader Kinect Solar to accelerate growth alongside Founder and Co-CEO Lauren CarsonAUSTIN, TX / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 /Kinect Solar LLC, a leading solar logistics and distribution services provider, today announced the appointment of Tom Athan as co-CEO, effective immediately. Tom will serve alongside Lauren Carson, co-CEO and founder.Tom Athan, co-CEO of Kinect Solar Tom has spent his 30-year career creating, building and operating successful businesses in complicated new markets. He co-founded Altus Power, Inc. in 2009, one of the first solar independent power producers in the United States. Altus Power is now among the largest commercial-scale providers of clean electric power in the U.S. and is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange.Prior to Altus Power, Tom spent 20 years on Wall Street, where he managed a $500 billion portfolio of trading and investment assets. He has held senior management positions at AIG and Societe Generale as well as at multiple start-ups he co-founded. Tom started his career as a fixed-income portfolio manager at MBIA and in derivative sales at Lehman Brothers. He holds a B.S. in Finance from Villanova University and an MBA in Finance from Fordham University."Tom is an outstanding leader with an exceptional background in capital markets, revenue generation and operations," said Kinect Solar Co-CEO Lauren Carson. "He has served as a trusted advisor for several years, and I am thrilled to welcome him as co-CEO. Together, Tom and I will lead Kinect Solar into its next wave of growth." In his new role as co-CEO, Tom will focus on increasing revenue, maximizing profitability, managing risks and improving operational efficiency. Together, Lauren and Tom will operate as a unified team, leveraging their unique strengths to create value for Kinect Solar clients, partners and shareholders."Lauren and the team have grown Kinect Solar into one of the most trusted names in the industry, known to just about every major manufacturer, IPP and developer," said Tom. "I am excited to join this vibrant organization and, together with Lauren, solidify its position as a market leader in the solar logistics and distribution space." Learn more about Kinect Solar at https://www.kinectsolar.com About Kinect SolarKinect Solar specializes in solar distribution and logistics with the aim of helping its partners solve their most complex supply chain challenges. One of Inc.'s 5000 Fastest-Growing Private Companies, Kinect Solar is one of the largest independent solar distributors in North America with more than 43 warehouses nationwide and 1.5 GW of solar projects under contract. Kinect Solar provides integrated logistics services to major solar manufacturers, developers, utilities and independent power producers. Backed by its team of logistics, procurement and technical experts, Kinect Solar partners with solar businesses to identify and implement high-impact solutions that have an immediate return on investment.Founded in 2015 by Lauren Carson, Kinect Solar is a privately held, woman-owned small business headquartered in Austin, Texas.For more information, visit https://www.kinectsolar.com Press ContactsKinect SolarBrian Hunter, Director of MarketingTel: 801-380-3506Email: pr@ kinectsolar.com Contact InformationBrian HunterDirector of Marketingpr@ kinectsolar.com SOURCE: Kinect Solar LLCView the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-08-22 18:16:09

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NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Kootenai Health, including its subsidiaries Kootenai Clinic, Kootenai Outpatient Surgery, and Kootenai Outpatient Imaging, recently disclosed a data breach that compromised the sensitive personal information of over 480,000 employees, employees' dependents, and patients. This breach has led to concerns over the security of private information entrusted to the healthcare provider.WHAT'S THIS ABOUT?On March 2, 2024, Kootenai Health detected unusual activity that disrupted access to certain IT systems. Kootenai Health conducted an investigation which revealed an unauthorized party may have gained access to certain data in its network on or around February 22, 2024. The investigation determined that the following sensitive personal information were compromised in the data breach: full name, Social Security number, driver's license, government-issued ID, medical records number, medical information, health insurance information, and medical diagnoses.On August 12, 2024, Kootenai Health began issuing notice letters to individuals impacted by the data breach. Compensation may be available for Kootenai Health patients, employees, and their dependents who received notice that their personal information had been compromised.WHY AM I ENTITLED TO COMPENSATION?Data breaches are serious matters that can cause long-term damage. Hackers may use stolen information to commit identity theft, financial fraud, or other crimes. Companies that fail to secure your personal data may be held liable for the resulting harm.HOW DO I KNOW IF I WAS AFFECTED?If you received a data breach notification letter from Kootenai Health, you are likely affected. Follow the link below to find out if you may be eligible for compensation.Levi Korsinsky, LLP is investigating whether affected customers are entitled to compensation. If you have received a notice about the data breach, you may be entitled to compensation. There is no cost or obligation to participate. Follow the link below to find out:Levi & Korsinsky is a nationally recognized consumer advocacy law firm that has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars against large corporations. The firm's team of over 70 extraordinary attorneys and professionals have a winning track record going against the most powerful defense attorneys in the world and know how to maximize your compensation. The firm is a 100% contingency firm - we don't get paid unless you get paid! Please visit us at www.zlk.com for more information. Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.CONTACT: Levi & Korsinsky, LLPJoseph E. Levi, Esq.Ed Korsinsky, Esq.33 Whitehall Street, 17th FloorNew York, NY 10004 jlevi@ levikorsinsky.com Tel: (212) 363-7500Fax: (212) 363-7171 https://zlk.com/ SOURCE: Levi & Korsinsky, LLP
PR-Inside.com: 2024-08-22 05:17:09

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NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / August 21, 2024 / Levi & Korsinsky notifies investors that it has commenced an investigation of Globus Medical, Inc. ("Globus Medical, Inc.") (NYSE:GMED) concerning possible violations of federal securities laws.In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on August 13, 2024, Globus disclosed that "[o]n July 16, 2024, Globus Medical, Inc. received a warning letter from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the FDA') following an inspection of our facilities in Audubon, Pennsylvania. In the warning letter, the FDA cited deficiencies in the response letters sent by the Company to the FDA following the Form 483, List of Investigational Observations, which was delivered to the Company in connection with the inspection that occurred from February 15, 2024 until March 7, 2024. The letter describes observed non-conformities in establishing and maintaining product complaint procedures, including complaint investigations, trending, risk reconciliation, and Medical Device Report (MDR) procedures including timely reporting, pertaining to the ExcelsiusGPS robotic system."Following this news, Globus's stock price fell over 7% the same day. To obtain additional information, go to:or contact Joseph E. Levi, Esq. either via email at jlevi@ levikorsinsky.com or by telephone at (212)363-7500.WHY LEVI & KORSINSKY: Over the past 20 years, Levi & Korsinsky LLP has established itself as a nationally-recognized securities litigation firm that has secured hundreds of millions of dollars for aggrieved shareholders and built a track record of winning high-stakes cases. The firm has extensive expertise representing investors in complex securities litigation and a team of over 70 employees to serve our clients. For seven years in a row, Levi & Korsinsky has ranked in ISS Securities Class Action Services' Top 50 Report as one of the top securities litigation firms in the United States. Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.CONTACT: Levi & Korsinsky, LLPJoseph E. Levi, Esq.Ed Korsinsky, Esq.33 Whitehall Street, 17th FloorNew York, NY 10004 jlevi@ levikorsinsky.com Tel: (212)363-7500 Fax: (212)363-7171 https://zlk.com/ SOURCE: Levi & Korsinsky, LLP
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Pioneering Artist Redefines the Intersection of Sculpture and FunctionSAN JOSE, COSTA RICA / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 /Paz Ulloa, also known by the moniker "White Mountain," is steadily earning recognition as a leading figure in contemporary Costa Rican art. Her practice, which challenges the traditional separation between art and utilitarian objects, is currently being spotlighted by MIRAME Fine Art, reflecting her rising influence in the Costa Rican and wider Latin American art scene.Paz Ulloa, Magnet Wood, veneer, lacquerPromoting Costa Rica's rich cultural heritage, MIRAME Fine Art connects artists with art lovers worldwide.From Painting to Sculptural InnovationUlloa began her artistic career as a painter, but her evolution toward sculpture signified a shift in her creative approach. This transition enabled her to explore the physicality of form and space in ways that painting could not fully encapsulate. She uses a diverse range of materials, including steel, glass, and wood, in her pieces. From coffee tables with striking red voids to alien-like decorative sculptures, her creations occupy the intriguing space where art and function intersect.Ulloa's pieces compel viewers to reconsider their relationship with commonplace objects. Whether through large hanging sculptures, surreal canvases, or functional art with a twist, her creations challenge perceptions and demand a deeper engagement with their form and purpose.Exploring Time and the MundaneCentral to Ulloa's work is a meditation on time and the nuances of daily life. "I pay attention to everyday things and dedicate a lot of attention to how I live, and what I think, and how I experience others," she explains. This introspective approach is evident in her art, which invites viewers to pause and reflect on their own lived experiences.Her sculptures-characterized by vivid colors, playful shapes, and unexpected voids-disrupt traditional understandings of objects. By introducing elements of the uncanny or surreal into otherwise familiar forms, Ulloa reveals the profound within the ordinary, inviting viewers to engage with the hidden narratives embedded in her work and within their own spaces.Provoking Thought Through FormIn an art world often defined by rigid classifications, Ulloa's work transcends these boundaries. Her work provokes curiosity and challenges conventional thinking. "When people see things they cannot understand, or grasp quickly, they get curious, and new thought forms appear," she notes. "I want to illuminate these moments through shape, movement, opposition, and material dialogue." MIRAME Fine Art's acknowledgment of Ulloa's work underscores the gallery's commitment to showcasing Costa Rican artists who are continuously pushing the limits of artistic expression.This is a unique opportunity for collectors to learn more about Ulloa (White Mountain), a Costa Rican artist whose international acclaim is rapidly growing. It is also a chance to experience an evolving artistic vision that continually challenges and redefines the boundaries between the familiar and the uncanny.Contact InformationBelinda SeppingsCo-Founderbelinda@ miramefineart.com +447821591397SOURCE: MIRAME Fine ArtView the original press release on newswire.com
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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / (TSX:NANO)(OTC PINK:NNOMF)(Frankfurt:LBMB)Highlights:Accelerate path to revenue.Streamline operations and increase focus on LFP production and licensing.Validate product at existing facilities and plan for capacity expansion to meet demand.Develop, market and license LFP CAM packages.Leverage government support, strategic engagement and partnership channels.Maximize non-dilutive sources of capital and minimize further equity dilution.Nano One Materials Corp. ("Nano One" or the "Company") is a clean technology company with patented processes for the production of lithium-ion battery cathode active materials ("CAM") and is announcing the streamlining of its operations, allowing for increased focus on lithium iron phosphate ("LFP"), joint ventures, contracted projects, accelerated path to revenue generation, and growth through licensing.Nano One's CEO, Dan Blondal, highlighted, "Our strategic plan has an increased focus on LFP with prioritization on third party product validation, future sales, and commercialization opportunities at our production facilities in Candiac, Quebec. Government support and other non-dilutive sources of capital also play a key role in enhancing value for our partners and stakeholders. In parallel, we continue to build on our strategic relationships, advance our technology, plan for capacity expansion, and accelerate for long-term growth through LFP CAM package development and licensing. To align with these elements of our plan, and to accelerate near-term growth opportunities, we have also taken the necessary steps to streamline our operations and right-size our spending." As part of its broader strategic plan, the Company is committed to controlling costs and focusing on near-term commercialization targets. This includes streamlining operational and corporate costs, with a workforce reduction of approximately 20%.Sharpened Focus on LFP and Commercial Operations in Candiac Nano One prioritized LFP in Q4 2022 by acquiring a 10-year-old LFP production facility and integrating a team with a long LFP track record in Candiac, Quebec. The plant was repurposed to pilot and demonstrate the Company's One-Pot LFP process at a commercially valid scale. The waste handling systems at the facility were no longer needed and subsequently decommissioned, freeing up space for the installation and commissioning of the 200 tpa One-Pot reactors in Q4 2023 and for future capacity expansion.The Candiac LFP pilot facility is the launch pad for Nano One's growth strategy and a clear path to first revenue and larger offtakes. It is now being used to facilitate demonstration, sampling and evaluation while also informing FEL design studies and LFP CAM packages. There are plans to further expand the capacity of the existing facility up to 2,000 tpa, as demand for LFP takes hold, leveraging existing full-scale equipment and the balance of plant with further automation. It is expected that production from Candiac could bring in working capital while also supporting customer validation and offtakes for high volume LFP production with potential licensees.Nano One continues to work on its 25,000 tpa LFP development project and is considering various paths forward including the project becoming a separate stand-alone operating company. As such, Nano One would significantly reduce its capital needs and could earn a license fee for the use of its One-Pot technology. This would be in addition to a development fee for its efforts on the 25,000 tpa project which could be settled by either an equity interest in the operating company, cash, or a combination thereof. The FEL3 engineering work-to-date on the 25,000 tpa plant has shown even lower capital costs and operating expenses than its earlier FEL2 pre-feasibility study. This further enhances the One-Pot value proposition, aligns with collaborators and supports the strategy to develop and license process engineering design packages for LFP (LFP CAM package).A Robust Pipeline Nano One has over 20 potential LFP customers at various stages of maturity including evaluations for LFP with two automotive EV manufacturers and others in the pipeline, a number of energy and stationary storage cell manufacturing companies, and several US government supply chain cell and pack contractors. Nano One is also in preliminary discussions with parties interested in LFP CAM package licensing. The Company's piloting facility in Candiac provides a distinct advantage in North America as it is able to produce cathode materials at commercially relevant scale today with the capability of expanding capacity up to 2,000 tpa.Protecting Shareholder Interests and Aligning with Shifting Markets These initiatives are further complemented by recent injections of non-dilutive capital. This includes the recent agreement to sell the vacant lot on its land in Candiac for $5 million in gross proceeds, and last week's award of $2.8 million by Next Generation Manufacturing Canada (NGen) through its Electric Vehicle Manufacturing Program (EVMP). The Company has additional non-dilutive initiatives underway that could bring significant accretive capital to support the Company's business objectives.The global market has seen a decisive shift towards LFP technology, which offers significant advantages in terms of cost, safety, security of supply, and environmental impact compared to traditional lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide ("NMC") cathode materials. LFP is suited to high-volume, heavy-duty applications in energy storage systems ("ESS") and electric vehicles ("EVs") and it has already reached 60-70% market share in China, leading other jurisdictions to prepare for similar levels of demand.Nano One's patented One-Pot process for producing cathode active materials positions it favorably, with a more environmentally friendly and competitive production process, to meet the emerging demand for LFP in North America, Europe and the Indo-Pacific region. NMC remains important for applications in long range, energy dense batteries and Nano One will keep modest efforts on its One-Pot NMC program to support collaborators and stakeholders in developing sustainable process solutions for the future.Going Global Through Licensing Nano One has the goal of global technology adoption and licensing of its One-Pot LFP CAM packages. Licensing will be driven through business and technology development with EV manufacturers, battery producers and chemical companies for the EV and ESS markets. Shareholder value will be created with increased market penetration through the Company's partnership channels, with the low cost of capital from its licensees, and by diversifying revenue exposure to include engineeri
PR-Inside.com: 2024-08-22 18:35:16

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CALGARY, AB AND SAN ANTONIO, TX / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Nexera Energy Inc. (TSX Venture:NGY)(OTC PINK:EMBYF) (the "Corporation", the "Company" or "Nexera") today reported that the Corporation has closed its previously announced non-brokered private placement. Pursuant to this closing, an aggregate 31,000,000 units ("Units") were issued at a price of $0.025 per Unit, for aggregate consideration of $775,000. Each Unit consisted of one (1) Common Share of the Corporation and one (1) share purchase warrant (the "Warrant") (each full Warrant shall entitle the holder thereof to purchase one (1) additional Common Share of the Corporation for a period of 24 months from the issuance of the Units at a price of $0.10) (the "Offering")The Warrants are subject to an acceleration clause whereby if after four months and one day following the date the Warrants are issued, the closing price of the Common Shares of the Corporation on the principal market on which such shares trade is equal to or exceeds $0.15 for 30 consecutive trading days (with the 30th such trading date hereafter referred to as the "Eligible Acceleration Date"), the Warrant expiry date shall accelerate to the date which is 30 calendar days following the date a press release is issued by the Corporation announcing the reduced warrant term, provided, no more than five business days following the Eligible Acceleration Date: (i) the press release is issued; and (ii) notices are sent to all warrant holders.The net proceeds of the Offering will be utilized within the Corporation's wholly owned subsidiary, Production Resources Inc. ("PRI"), to pursue a growing oil and gas services opportunity. PRI is proposing to take advantage of its already owned equipment, along with using net proceeds from the Offering to acquire additional equipment and labour to pursue a cement services branch within PRI. This branch of business would pursue the plugging and abandonment of some of PRI's own wells, along with wells owned by other operators in the South Texas region. This diversified services approach benefits both the Corporation on its own wells owned (through PRI) by not having to pay an external third party to assist with the plugging and abandoning our own wells (saving the Corporation up to $12,000 per well) while at the same time allowing for additional revenues to be potentially generated by assisting other operators in the area with the plugging and abandonment of their wells (of which management of the Corporation believes there to be a high demand for in the area).Specifically, the Corporation anticipates using the net proceeds as follows: (i) equipment purchases - $170,000; (ii) equipment refurbishing - $110,000; (iii) field testing - $120,000; (iv) permitting and commercialization - $85,000; (v) labour - $100,000; and (vi) any balance leftover would go to working capital purposes.All of the Common Shares and Warrants issued pursuant to the private placement are subject to a four-month hold period. The Warrants will not be listed on any stock exchange. Completion of this Offering remains subject to the final approval of the TSX Venture Exchange.For further information, please contact:Nexera Energy Inc. President, Shelby D. Beattie, by telephone at (403) 262-6000Email: info@ nexeraenergy.comwww.nexeraenergy.com About Nexera Energy Inc.Nexera Energy Inc. (TSX Venture: NGY) is an energy company with oil producing properties in Southwest Texas. Nexera is owner and operator of the Lavernia, Wooden Horse and Stockdale Horizon Projects. The Company also now owns 100% of Production Resources Inc., a South Texas oil company.Forward Looking StatementsExcept for statements of historical fact relating to the Company, certain information contained herein relating to the timing of the filing of financial statements constitutes forward-looking statements. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. We cannot guarantee future results, performance or achievements. Consequently, there is no representation that the actual results achieved will be the same, in whole or in part, as those set out in the forward-looking information. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are made, and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.SOURCE: Nexera Energy, Inc.
PR-Inside.com: 2024-08-22 14:00:32

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Teaming Up with Experts to Develop Smarter, Safer, and More Connected Vehicles Using Decentralized AI.NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / OORT, a pioneering cloud platform for decentralized AI, is proud to announce its partnership with theNational Science Foundation's (NSF) eCAT (Electric, Connected, and Autonomous Technologies for Mobility)IUCRC research center .This collaboration marks a significant step forward in the development of next-generation electrification, resilient sensing/perception, real-time edge computing, and smart infrastructure techniques, all aimed at enhancing the safety and efficiency of electric, connected, and autonomous vehicles.As an industrial partner, OORT will collaborate closely with leading institutions in this project, which has officially kicked off on July 10th - includingWayne State University , Clarkson University, the University of North Texas, theUniversity of Delaware , andOakland University . The focus of this partnership will be on "Research Thrust #4: Infrastructure for Connectivity and Safety." OORT's advanced products, such as the OORTDatahuband OORTStorage , will play a pivotal role in supporting the research and development efforts of this initiative.OORT will also work alongside industrial leaders, including leading American Data StorageWestern Digital , to push the boundaries of decentralized AI and data research. This strategic partnership aims to merge cutting-edge technology with industry expertise to explore and expand the potential of mobility and AI innovations."Our team is thrilled to be part of this initiative," said Dr. Max Li, CEO of OORT. "Decentralization technology has immense potential, and we are excited to see it applied in real-world products, with autonomous vehicles being an ideal starting point." Prof. Caisheng Wang, the eCAT Center Director at Wayne State University, echoed this sentiment, stating, "Collaboration with industry partners like OORT is essential for advancing next-generation mobility technologies and maintaining U.S. leadership in this critical field." OORT is dedicated to expanding its collaborative efforts with research centers across the United States and globally, contributing to the decentralized AI industry. By fostering strong relationships with both academic and industrial partners, OORT aims to create a robust ecosystem for research and development, driving the future of decentralized AI and mobility solutions.About OORT OORTis a decentralized verifiable cloud computing platform for AI applications. OORT's network leverages global resources from data centers to local edge devices with a proprietary blockchain-based verification layer to secure all transactions and computations, from data crowdsourcing and labeling to model training and local inference. By harnessing the power of decentralized networks, OORT aims to return value to users while creating a more scalable and equitable future for AGI (Artificial General Intelligence).For more information, please contact:Media contact: Ryan Gormanryan@ babslabs.io Laura Estefania Lopezlaura@ babslabs.io SOURCE: Oortech LLC
PR-Inside.com: 2024-08-22 21:30:14

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Conclusion of insolvency proceedings possible in 2025 with substantial dividend for the creditorsMUNICH, GERMANY / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Following lengthy and difficult negotiations, the insolvency administrator for Qimonda, Dr Michael Jaffe, and Infineon Technologies AG have reached final agreement in the action relating to undervalue and liability for impairment of capital, which had been pending at the Munich Regional Court at first instance since 2010.Qimonda AG emerged from Infineon Technologies AG in 2006 after Infineon Technologies had transferred its memory chip division to Qimonda at the time. At its height, it employed 13,500 people globally and had some of the highest sales among global chip manufacturers. It was listed on the New York Stock Exchange in August 2006. In January 2009, Qimonda AG was obliged to file for insolvency after it was unable to continue to run its business profitably in the previous years and was also unable to obtain state funding.Action relating to undervalue and liability for impairment of capital pending since 2010The carve-out of the memory chip division took place in 2006 by way of two contributions in kind made to Qimonda AG. In the action brought by the insolvency administrator Dr Michael Jaffe in 2010 before the Munich Regional Court, the insolvency administrator asserted that the memory chip business carved off and contributed to by Infineon Technologies AG was not recoverable. The insolvency administrator brought an action for reimbursement of the impairment of capital from the issue amounts of the shares issued to Infineon as part of the process of carving out Qimonda (referred to as the "action relating to undervalue and liability for impairment of capital").In January 2024, the expert appointed by the court submitted an opinion that showed a negative value for the contributed domestic and foreign business units. Both parties raised objections to the expert opinion. Infineon had also cited other aspects, such as the fact that the liquidation value of the assets contributed would reach the values required for the contributions in kind. This was not the subject of the expert opinion.Settlement agreement for 800 million eurosFollowing the submission of the expert opinion, the parties held in-depth settlement talks. The negotiated settlement now provides for a settlement amount of 800 million euros. The actual payment amount is slightly lower, as Infineon is submitting a declaration of subordination for already established schedule claims, among other things, which corresponds to a value of around 26.5 million euros and at the same time increases the insolvency dividend for the creditors. In addition, the partial settlement concluded in 2014 provided for a credit amount of 15 million euros already paid, which must now be taken into account. After deduction of all items, Infineon will therefore pay 753.5 million euros to the insolvency estate of Qimonda AG.In total, Infineon will then have paid an amount of around 1 billion euros to the insolvency estate of Qimonda AG. In 2014, the remaining disputes between Infineon Technologies AG and the insolvency administrator had already been resolved in a partial settlement and all patents of Qimonda AG were sold to Infineon Technologies AG. Infineon had already paid a total of 260 million euros at the time.The creditors' committee of Qimonda AG and the Management Board and Supervisory Board of Infineon Technologies AG have already approved the settlement. It will be implemented without delay, which will then also enable the insolvency proceedings to be concluded and a substantial insolvency dividend to be paid to the creditors."This settlement means that the final matter in dispute in the insolvency proceedings over the assets of Qimonda AG has been resolved. Consequently, preparations can now begin to bring the proceedings to a conclusion and allow the creditors to also benefit from this significant success," said insolvency administrator Dr Michael Jaffe.Proceeds of over 1.2 billion euros realised from disputed transactionsThe insolvency administrator Dr Michael Jaffe has thus realised proceeds of over 1.2 billion euros for the creditors in consistently contentious disputes with various parties. For the creditors, this represents a significant success which could not have been expected at the start of the proceedings. As purely a holding company, Qimonda AG had neither substantial liquid funds nor assets that could have been easily realised when the application was filed. Almost all subsidiaries were themselves involved in insolvency proceedings. The success of the insolvency proceedings therefore depended to a large extent on the ability to enforce claims against third parties and also to realise the intangible assets embodied in the patent portfolio to the best possible extent.At the time, Qimonda AG's patent portfolio comprised thousands of patents and patent applications worldwide. The property rights related to inventions with relevance to the semiconductor, computer and telecommunications industries, most of which had been licensed to major market players prior to the insolvency. Numerous legal disputes were then conducted in Germany and abroad regarding the holding of the licences during the insolvency. In particular, there was a dispute about the effects the German insolvency proceedings had on the licence rights to the US patents of Qimonda AG. The former licence holders, including Samsung, Infineon, IBM, Hynix, Intel, Nanya and Micron, took the position that their licence rights continued to exist despite the insolvency. After the US Bankruptcy Court in Alexandria initially ruled in favour of the insolvency administrator in November 2009, the dispute had to be taken all the way to the US Supreme Court. In the landmark case Jaffe v. Samsung Electronics Co. (135 S.Ct. 66) in October 2014, the US Supreme Court ruled in favour of the licence holders with regard to the US patents.At the same time, the patent portfolio was marketed via a licensing campaign, which also involved patent litigation. This resulted in the realisation of total licence revenues of around 100 million euros. The patent portfolio was finally offered on the market in an international sales process and sold to Infineon Technologies AG as the highest bidder.Further proceeds were generated from legal challenges: In particular, transactions that had taken place shortly before the insolvency application was filed were contested and litigation was also conducted in this regard across several instances, which have since been settled to the benefit of the insolvency estate. Proceeds totalling around 200 million euros were realised from these legal challenges.Positive effects also for creditors of subsidiariesThe conclusion and i
PR-Inside.com: 2024-08-22 05:00:38

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NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / August 21, 2024 / Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Spire Global, Inc. ("Symbotic" or the "Company") (NYSE:SPIR). Such investors are advised to contact Danielle Peyton at newaction@ pomlaw.com or 646-581-9980, (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll-free, Ext. 7980. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and the number of shares purchased.The class action concerns whether Spire and certain of its officers and/or directors have engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices.You have until October 21, 2024, to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class if you are a shareholder who purchased or otherwise acquired Spire securities during the Class Period. A copy of the Complaint can be obtained at www.pomerantzlaw.com [Click here for information about joining the class action]On August 14, 2024, after the market closed, Spire announced that it would be unable to timely file its second quarter 2024 financial report as the Company was "reviewing its accounting practices and procedures with respect to revenue recognition" regarding certain Space Services contracts and "related internal control matters." The Company disclosed that the "type of Contracts that the Company has identified for re-evaluation resulted in recognized revenue of $10 to $15 million on an annual basis" and "additional financial measures such as gross profit could also be impacted." On this news, Spire's stock price fell $3.41 per share, or 33.56%, to close at $6.75 per share on August 15, 2024.Pomerantz LLP, with offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, London, Paris, and Tel Aviv, is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, Pomerantz pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 85 years later, Pomerantz continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered billions of dollars in damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomlaw.com Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.SOURCE: Pomerantz LLP
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LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / August 21, 2024 /The Schall Law Firm, a national shareholder rights litigation firm, announces that it is investigating claims on behalf of investors of Globus Medical, Inc. ("Globus" or "the Company") (NYSE:GMED) 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. Globus disclosed in an August 13, 2024, SEC filing that, "on July 16, 2024, Globus Medical, Inc. received a warning letter from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the FDA') following an inspection of our facilities in Audubon, Pennsylvania. In the warning letter, the FDA cited deficiencies in the response letters sent by the Company to the FDA following the Form 483, List of Investigational Observations, which was delivered to the Company in connection with the inspection that occurred from February 15, 2024 until March 7, 2024. The letter describes observed non-conformities in establishing and maintaining product complaint procedures, including complaint investigations, trending, risk reconciliation, and Medical Device Report (MDR) procedures including timely reporting, pertaining to the ExcelsiusGPS robotic system." 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 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. www.schallfirm.com Office: 310-301-3335 info@ schallfirm.com SOURCE: The Schall Law Firm
PR-Inside.com: 2024-08-22 15:45:24

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The collaboration of these two longstanding Detroit area organizations aims to propel forward-thinking conversations nationally through traditional and digital marketing effortsTROY, MI / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Simons Michelson Zieve (SMZ), a 360-degree agency providing everything from media to creative to performance marketing, announced today that it has been selected by The Henry Ford in Dearborn as its agency of record. The agency will manage a wide variety of services for the multivenue museum, including strategy, brand stewardship, creative and media. The Henry Ford includes Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, Greenfield Village, and the Ford Rouge Factory Tour along with the Benson Ford Research Center, Giant Screen Experience, Henry Ford Academy and offers specialty programs throughout the year and an online presence at thehenryford.org "We are honored to be partnering and collaborating with The Henry Ford, one of the country's most revered cultural institutions, and proud to have a shared history established in Detroit and sustained for nearly a century," said Debbie Michelson, vice chair, client director at SMZ. "The Henry Ford has brought innovation, inspiration, imagination, ingenuity, and insight through its initiatives for 95 years and we are very excited to have this opportunity to magnify and share their mission with the world." SMZ was selected through a competitive review which highlighted its strategic thinking, along with its fully integrated media and creative capabilities. Additionally, the shared values, loyalty, and longevity of the organizations, both started in 1929, contributed to the decision to partner.Through the partnership, SMZ will develop strategic campaigns to amplify The Henry Ford's mission to help shape a better future through unique educational experiences based on authentic objects, stories, and lives from America's traditions of ingenuity, resourcefulness, and innovation."For 95 years, SMZ has amplified the mission and brand of businesses, nonprofits and cultural institutions across the country," said Ellen Hill Zeringue, Vice President of Venues, Programs and Marketing for The Henry Ford. "The mission of this full-service agency clearly parallels that of The Henry Ford and we are thrilled to be working with this team in an effort to introduce this institution and its world-class collections and programs to new audiences." ABOUT SMZ SMZ is Detroit's oldest independent advertising agency and a tight-knit group of listeners, thinkers and doers who have delivered winning ideas for 95 years. Current client partners include The Henry Ford, Michigan Lottery, Broadway in Detroit, Comerica Bank, University of Michigan-Flint, Detroit Tigers, Planet Fitness, Genisys Credit Union, General RV and more. Learn more at smz.com ABOUT THE HENRY FORD Located in Dearborn, Michigan, The Henry Ford is a globally recognized destination that fosters inspiration and learning from hands-on encounters with artifacts representing the most comprehensive collection anywhere focusing on innovation, ingenuity, and resourcefulness. Its unique venues include Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, Greenfield Village, Ford Rouge Factory Tour, Benson Ford Research Center, Giant Screen Experience and Henry Ford Academy, a public charter high school. The Henry Ford inspires every individual to unlock their potential and help shape a better future through a variety of channels, including its online presence thehenryford.org , its Emmy-winning national television series, The Henry Ford's Innovation Nation, and The Henry Ford's Invention Convention Worldwide, a global K-12 invention education curricular program that teaches students problem-solving, entrepreneurship, and creativity skills. With the support of a growing community of affiliates and supporters, The Henry Ford is the home of RTX Invention Convention U.S. Nationals, Invention Convention Americas and Invention Convention Michigan.Contact Information Wendy Metroswendyme@ thehenryford.org Related ImagesSOURCE: Simons Michelson Zieve (SMZ)View the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-08-22 18:02:03

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ST. JOHN'S, NL / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Sokoman Minerals Corp. (TSXV:SIC)(OTCQB:SICNF) ("Sokoman" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that a diamond drill rig has been mobilized to the Fleur de Lys Property, with drilling to commence immediately. The 2,000-m, Phase 1 program will test historical showings and targets generated by Sokoman's 2021-2024 till / prospecting programs, including the Golden Bull prospect discovered in 2023.The program is planned for 20 holes at an average depth of 100 m, with drilling beginning at the southern end of the area to test targets identified, but not tested, by Noranda in the 1980s and ending at the Golden Bull area in the central portion of the six to eight km2 target area with approximately 50% of the program planned for Golden Bull.Timothy Froude, P.Geo., President and CEO of Sokoman Minerals states; "We are very pleased to start our maiden drill program at Fleur de Lys. We have systematically explored the property during the past three years, targeting world-class, Dalradian-type, orogenic gold mineralization in a similar geological environment in Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom. The Curraghinalt deposit in Northern Ireland, hosting more than six million ounces of gold, is currently one of the largest undeveloped gold deposits in the Caledonian-Appalachian Orogen. The program will test at least five distinct target areas highlighted by the Golden Bull Prospect, including targets not tested by Noranda in the late 1980s. Regional exploration will continue to define till and rock sample anomalies to generate more drill targets." The six to eight km2 target area includes several discrete targets highlighted by the Golden Bull Prospect, which is defined by 124 grab samples, with visible gold noted, and with 34 values >500 ppb Au to a maximum of 9,020 ppb (9.02 g/t) Au, in laterally extensive stylolitic quartz float consisting of angular to sub-angular boulders. Approximately 50% of the grab samples from the broader Golden Bull target area have given values >100 ppb Au, suggesting the potential for additional, undiscovered gold zones.Drilling will be conducted by Springdale Forest Resources based in Springdale, NL, utilizing a Duralite tracked rig recovering NQ size drill core. The program will run on a day-shift-only basis with a two-man drill crew working a 12-hour shift. Assaying will be done at Eastern Analytical Ltd., in Springdale, approximately 90 km by Provincial highways from the Fleur de Lys property.Photo 1: Tim Froude with a typical boulder from Golden Bull - Fleur de Lys ProjectQPThis news release has been reviewed and approved by Timothy Froude, P.Geo., a "Qualified Person" under National Instrument 43-101 and President and CEO of Sokoman Minerals Corp.Analytical Techniques / QA/QCSamples, including duplicates, blanks, and standards, are submitted to Eastern Analytical Ltd. in Springdale, Newfoundland for gold analysis. Eastern Analytical Ltd. is an accredited assay lab that conforms to the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025. Samples are delivered in sealed bags directly to the lab by Sokoman personnel. All samples of quartz vein material were submitted for total pulp metallics and gravimetric finish. Total pulp metallic analysis includes: the whole sample is crushed to -10 mesh; and then pulverized to 95% -150 mesh. The total sample is weighed and screened to 150 mesh; the +150 mesh fraction is fire-assayed for Au, and a 30 g subsample of the -150 mesh fraction is fire-assayed for Au; with a calculated weighted average of total Au in the sample reported as well. One blank and one industry-approved standard for every twenty samples submitted is included in the sample stream. Random duplicates of selected samples are analyzed in addition to the in-house standard and duplicate policies of Eastern Analytical Ltd. All reported assays are uncut.About Sokoman Minerals Corp.Sokoman Minerals Corp., based in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, focuses primarily on its gold projects, including the wholly-owned Moosehead, Crippleback Lake, and the extensive Fleur de Lys project near Baie Verte. This latter project aims to discover Dalradian-type orogenic gold mineralization like the Curraghinalt and Cavanacaw deposits in Northern Ireland. The company has also partnered with Benton Resources Inc. on three large-scale joint ventures: Grey River, Killick Lithium formerly Golden Hope, and Kepenkeck, positioning Sokoman as one of the largest landholders in Canada's emerging gold districts.In October 2023, Sokoman and Benton entered into an agreement with Piedmont Lithium Inc. to advance the Killick Lithium Project. Under this deal, Piedmont can acquire up to 62.5% of the project by investing up to $12 million in exploration and issuing $10 million in shares over three phases. The project, previously known as Golden Hope, is now part of Killick Lithium Inc., a subsidiary of Vinland Lithium Inc., in which Piedmont has acquired a 19.9% stake for $2 million. Sokoman and Benton maintain operational control during the earn-in phases and retain a 2% NSR royalty on future production. Additionally, Piedmont holds exclusive marketing and first-refusal rights on the lithium concentrates for the life of the mine.Projects optioned with optionee fully vested:East Alder Project optioned to Canterra Minerals Inc (SIC retains 850,000 shares of CTM plus 1% NSR)Startrek Project optioned to Thunder Gold (SIC retains 1,750,000 shares of TGOL plus 1% NSR)The Company would like to thank the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador for the financial support of the Moosehead and Fleur de Lys Projects through the Junior Exploration Assistance Program during the past few years.For more information, please contact:Timothy Froude, P.Geo., President & CEOCathy Hume, VP Corporate Development, DirectorT: 709-765-1726T: 416-868-1079 x 251E: tim@ sokomanmineralscorp.com E: cathy@ chfir.com Website: www.sokomanmineralscorp.com | Twitter: @SokomanMineralsFacebook: @SokomanMinerals | LinkedIn:@SokomanMineralsCorpNeither 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.Investors are cautioned that trading in the securities of the Corporation should be considered highly speculative. Except for historical information contained herein, this news release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially. Sokoman Minerals Corp. will not update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof. More detailed inf
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SAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / August 21, 2024 / Hagens Berman urges Spire Global, Inc. (NYSE:SPIR) investors who suffered substantial losses to submit your losses now. The firm also encourages persons with knowledge who may assist the investigation to contact its attorneys.Class Period: Mar. 6, 2024 - Aug. 14 2024Lead Plaintiff Deadline: Oct. 21, 2024Visit: www.hbsslaw.com/investor-fraud/SPIR Contact the Firm Now: SPIR@ hbsslaw.com 844-916-0895Class Action Lawsuit Against Spire Global, Inc. (SPIR):Spire, a global provider of space-based data, analytics and Space Services, is the target of an investor class action over the company's assurances that its financial reports complied with applicable accounting rules and that its internal controls over financial reporting were sufficient.The litigation challenges Spire's financial reporting relating to certain Space Services contracts.The complaint alleges that Spire misrepresented and failed to disclose that: (1) there were embedded leases of identifiable assets and pre-space mission activities for certain Space Services contracts; (2) the company lacked sufficient internal controls for revenue recognition for these contracts; and (3) as a result, the company overstated revenue for certain Space Services contracts.Investors began to learn the truth on August 14, 2024, when Spire announced that it would not timely file its Q2 quarterly report as previously planned. The company said that it is in the process of reviewing its accounting practices and procedures with respect to revenue recognition related to certain contracts in its "Space as a Service" business. The company further explained that "[t]he re-evaluation relates to the potential existence of embedded leases of identifiable assets in the Contracts and the related recognition of revenue for pre-space mission activities." Spire also said that it may be required to restate previously filed financial statements and the type of contracts being re-evaluated resulted in recognized revenue of approximately $10 million to $15 million.Further, Spire said that, based on preliminary information, it believes it may be in violation of the maximum debt to EBITDA leverage ratio financial covenant under its financing agreement with Blue Torch Finance. The company said it is attempting to secure waivers or amendments to the financing agreement but could give no assurances of success.At the time of the complaint's filing, Spire had not filed its quarterly report.This news sent the price of Spire shares about 33% lower on August 15, 2024."We are looking into whether Spire Global may have misled investors about financial results and overall health," said Reed Kathrein, the Hagens Berman partner leading the investigation.If you invested in Spire Global and have substantial losses, or have knowledge that may assist the firm's investigation, submit your losses now If you'd like more information and answers to frequently asked questions about the Spire Global case and our investigation, read more Whistleblowers: Persons with non-public information regarding Spire Global should consider their options to help in the investigation or take advantage of the SEC Whistleblower program. Under the new program, whistleblowers who provide original information may receive rewards totaling up to 30 percent of any successful recovery made by the SEC. For more information, call Reed Kathrein at 844-916-0895 or email SPIR@ hbsslaw.com # # #About Hagens Berman Hagens Berman is a global plaintiffs' rights complex litigation firm focusing on corporate accountability. The firm is home to a robust practice and represents investors as well as whistleblowers, workers, consumers and others in cases achieving real results for those harmed by corporate negligence and other wrongdoings. Hagens Berman's team has secured more than $2.9 billion in this area of law. More about the firm and its successes can be found at hbsslaw.com . Follow the firm for updates and news at @ClassActionLaw.Contact: Reed Kathrein, 844-916-0895SOURCE: Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP
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HighlightsSyntheia announces receipt of conditional approval for listing on the Canadian Securities ExchangeFinal approval and commencement of trading is anticipated to occur in the second half of September 2024.VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 /Stock Trend Capital Inc. (CSE:PUMP)(FRA:WCF)(OTC PINK:STOCF) (the "Company" or "Stock Trend") is pleased to provide an update on its investment in Metaworld Corporation (dba Syntheia) ("Syntheia"), a Canadian-based AI technology company operating, developing, and commercializing conversational AI technology.On August 21, 2024, Syntheia issued a news release announcing that the company has received conditional approval to list the common shares of Veta Resources Inc. ("Veta") following the completion of the amalgamation transaction between Veta and Syntheia on the Canadian Securities Exchange ("CSE"). The complete Syntheia press release can be accessed on their website at www.syntheia.ai In a statement, Anthony Durkacz, CEO of Stock Trend Capital, congratulated the Syntheia team on its success. "Congratulations on achieving a significant milestone that reflects the hard work and dedication of your team and we look forward to seeing your continued growth in the future".About Stock TrendStock Trend Capital Inc. is an investment issuer primarily focused on the Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Canadian cannabis industries. The issuer intends to focus on investing in private and public entities with strong intellectual property, exceptional management and high growth potential that may be strategically positioned in the market.On behalf of the Board of Directors of STOCK TREND CAPITAL INC.FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Anthony DurkaczCEO, DirectorTelephone: (416) 720-4360Email: anthony@ stocktrend.com Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking StatementsThis news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. All statements contained herein that are not clearly historical in nature may constitute forward- looking statements.Generally, such forward-looking information or forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or may contain statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "will continue", "will occur" or "will be achieved". The forward-looking information and forward-looking statements are based on certain key expectations and assumptions made by the Company. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward, looking statements and information are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements and information because the Company can give no insurance that they will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking statements and information address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed and actual future results may vary materially. Accordingly, readers are advised not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information.The CSE has not reviewed, approved, or disapproved the content of this press release.SOURCE: Stock Trend Capital Inc.
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Apiture solutions will deliver advanced security, operational efficiency, and a seamless customer experienceWILMINGTON, NC / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / Apiture , a leading provider of digital banking solutions, today announced thatSurety Bank , a Florida-based community bank with customers nationally, has selected the Apiture Digital Banking Platform to power online and mobile banking for its commercial and retail customers.Named one of the top-performing community banks of 2024 by the Independent Community Bankers of America, Surety Bank sought a new digital banking partner to enhance its operational efficiency while bolstering its ability to fight fraud. With the ApitureBusiness BankingandConsumer Bankingsolutions, Surety will benefit from comprehensive back-end capabilities for its employees while providing a modern digital experience to its business and consumer customers. With branches in Lake Mary, Deland, and Pierson, Florida, and customers throughout the United States, Surety will also use the ApitureDigital Account Openingsolution to continue to expand its national customer base."When evaluating digital banking solutions, our goal was to elevate Surety Bank's internal operations to streamline back-office processes and enable our employees to work more efficiently," said Ryan James, CEO, Surety Bank. "Apiture stood out, offering capabilities like robust user entitlements with flexible role definitions. At the same time, Apiture offers best-in-class security features that will provide the guardrails we need to protect against fraud, along with a team of experts giving us confidence that our solutions will remain future-ready." "Apiture is proud to support Surety Bank with a proven platform that will provide its customers with a fully featured digital banking experience alongside back-end capabilities to empower its internal team," said Chris Babcock, CEO, Apiture. "We look forward to supporting the growth goals of this innovative financial institution." About Apiture:Apiture delivers award-winning digital banking solutions to banks and credit unions throughout the U.S. Our flexible, highly configurable solutions meet a wide range of financial institutions' needs, from leveling the playing field with larger institutions to supporting growth through innovative data intelligence and embedded banking strategies. With our API-first approach, our clients can maximize the capabilities of their platform while preserving a seamless user experience. Our exclusive focus on digital banking, and a team with hundreds of years of collective experience working at U.S. financial institutions, means we're dedicated to meeting the unique needs of our clients while providing a level of support that's unmatched in the industry. Apiture is headquartered in Wilmington, North Carolina, with offices in Austin, Texas. To learn more, visit www.apiture.com and follow Apiture on LinkedIn.Media Contact:Heather ValleCaliber Corporate Advisersheather@ calibercorporate.com SOURCE: Apiture
FCMB Group Plc, a leading financial services holding company in Nigerias financial sector, held a Facts Behind the Offer (FBO) session recently at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) as part of its recapitalization drive aimed at raising 110.9 billion. The session highlighted the Groups robust financial performance and underscored why it presents a compelling investment opportunity.

The Group commenced its public offer of 15.197 billion shares at N7.30 per share, amounting to N110.9 billion, on July 29, 2024, and is expected to close on September 4, 2024.

Its presentation at the NGX focused on its strong profitability and strategic growth trajectory. The Group reported a significant increase in earnings, showcasing its diversification, resilience and operational efficiency in a competitive market. This strong financial performance is a testament to its effective management and strategic foresight.

The Group Chief Executive Officer of FCMB Group, Ladi Balogun, said the public offer is part of the banks comprehensive plan to meet the Central Bank of Nigerias (CBN) capitalization requirements, adding that in addition to it, the Group has adopted a phased approach to raise up to N397 billion additional capital to drive its diversification plans.

He stated: FCMB is growing at approximately two million customers a year, and we believe that growth rate will accelerate. In banking, we are about number seven in net assets and among the top five Pension Fund Administrators (PFA) in the country.

Our goal is to sustain and grow earnings per share for our investors despite our additional share issuance. The proceeds from this capital raise will primarily drive business growth, focusing on lending to key sectors such as agriculture, SMEs, and non-oil exports, which we believe are vital for Nigerias development.

Mr. Balogun stressed that the capital would enable the Group to enhance its market position, invest in innovative technologies, and continue delivering substantial value to its stakeholders.

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Key highlights from the session included:

Strong profitability: FCMB Group has demonstrated impressive year-on-year revenue and profit growth, reflecting its unique business model and strategic execution.

Strategic expansion plans: The capital raise will support significant digital transformation investments, expand market reach, and strengthen the Groups competitive edge.

Resilient performance: Despite economic uncertainties, FCMB Group has maintained a robust performance, evidencing its ability to navigate challenges effectively and sustain long-term growth.

Experienced management: The Groups leadership team brings extensive industry expertise and a proven track record, reinforcing investor confidence in the companys strategic direction.

The FBO session provided a transparent view into FCMB Groups strategic objectives, positioning the Group as a viable and lucrative investment opportunity. With a clear focus on profitability and growth, FCMB Group is well-positioned to leverage the capital to drive further success and deliver sustainable returns.

Investors are encouraged to consider FCMB Group for its strong financial performance, strategic growth plans, and the potential for long-term value creation.

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The Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) says the federal government has fined Fidelity Bank Plc. N555.8 million for data breaches.

The National Commissioner of NDPC, Vincent Olatunji, said this at the Nigeria Data Protection (NDP) Act General Application and Implementation Directive (GAID) validation workshop in Abuja.

Mr Olatunji recalled that President Bola Tinubu signed the NDP Act into law on 12 June 2023, thereby empowering the commission to enforce compliance of data protection on organisations by way of fines and other means.

He said that the commission commenced an investigation into Fidelity Bank in April 2023 and, upon conclusion, found that it defaulted.

The penalty is huge if you dont comply; penalties can range from N10 million to even up to two per cent of the organisations annual gross income for the previous year.

Most of the breaches we have treated, we look at the level of the breach, the impact, the number of data subjects affected and the level of cooperation that is involved.

Since we started, the only time we issued a major penalty was yesterday on Fidelity Bank; a fine of N555,800,000 after we observed some breaches.

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We have been working with them since April 2023 on the investigation and, by the time we finalised, we decided to issue a full penalty on them, which is about 0.1 per cent of the gross earnings for 2023.

Mr Olatunji also explained that the commission was engaging with stakeholders across the board and collating their input, which would form the final guide document.

He recalled that a similar workshop was held in Lagos on 19 June for about 70 per cent of data protection organisations in the private sector.

We want to ensure everyone is involved in what we are doing and, by the time the document is out, we will all see that we have been able to make our own input; it is just an extension of the law.

We will look at the relevance of the inputs and use them to develop a standard document that can be of global standard.

He said the commission was deploying a Public Private Partnership model to ensure compliance with data protection.

We have licensed about 194 professionals on data protection.

The licensed data protection professionals go round organisations and take them through compliance in terms of crafting their privacy policy.

They help in creating awareness within the organisations, letting them know their obligations under the law and carrying out data protection impact assessments.

They train the staff, register them with us and submit their annual report to the NDPC; with this, we will know the level of compliance.

The commissioner noted that the successful implementation of the NDP Act required collaborative efforts among all relevant stakeholders, organisations, businesses and data protection professionals.

He, therefore, called for constant dialogue and communication with the Commission in implementing the NDP Act.

Collaborative efforts will foster a data ecosystem that respects privacy and protects personal data subjects, Mr Olatunji said.

(NAN)

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Oando Plc completed the acquisition of Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC), a unit of Italys oil supermajor Eni, the oil driller announced Thursday, barely eleven months after it struck a deal to buy the asset.

The transaction, worth $783 million, comprised of consideration for the asset and reimbursement, Oando said in a regulatory filing in mark of the latest divestment by an international oil company from offshore operations in Africas oil producer, which are seen to be increasingly fraught with risks.

Oando, which is listed in Lagos as well as in Johannesburg, considers the acquisition as a cornerstone of its long-term strategy to scale its upstream operations and beef up its position in the Nigerian oil & gas industry.

The purchase lifts the companys stakes in oil mining leases (OMLs) 60, 61, 62 and 63 to 40 per cent from 20 per cent.

It increases Oandos ownership stake in all NEPL/NAOC/OOL joint venture assets and infrastructure which include forty discovered oil fandango gas fields, of which twenty-four are currently producing, approximately forty identified prospects and leads, twelve production stations, 1,490 km of pipelines, the statement said.

The energy company will also take ownership of three gas-processing plants, the Brass River Oil Terminal, the Kwale-Okpai phases 1&2 power plants (with a total nameplate capacity of 960MW) and associated infrastructure.

Oandos total reserves, by 2022 reserves estimates, equal 505.6MMboe, meaning the acquisition will raise the reserves by 98 per cent to 1.0Bnboe.

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The company stated that the transaction is instantly cash-generative and is upbeat which would boost its cash flows considerably.

In July, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission sanctioned the sale of 100 per cent of Enis shares in NAOC to Oando.

The deal extends the list of international oil companies in Nigeria that are selling off their offshore and shallow-water stakes to concentrate on onshore operations, citing constraints like oil theft and pipeline vandalism, which have tempered output.

Norways Equinor and Chinas Addax have entered an agreement to sell their offshore assets in the country, while Shell has struck a pact to sell its local subsidiary to a consortium of five firms, most of them indigenous.

ExxonMobil is also on course to conclude the transaction of selling its shallow-water oil assets to Seplat, a deal in the neighbourhood of $1.3 billion.

It is a win for Oando and every indigenous energy player, as we take our destiny in our hands and play a pivotal role in this next phase of the nations upstream evolution, said Wale Tinubu, Oandos CEO.

With our assumption of the role of operator, our immediate focus is on optimising the assets immense potential, advancing production, and contributing to our strategic objectives, he added.

The deal excludes Enis 5 per cent participating interest in SPDC (Shell Production Development Company Joint Venture), Eni said in a website statement.

The Italian oil firm said it would continue to operate in Nigeria via investment in deep-water projects and Nigeria LNG while exploring fresh opportunities related to the agri-feedstock sector.

Oando has returned 314 per cent since the start of the year, making it Nigerias second-best-performing stock.

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Nigerias First Lady and chair of the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI), Oluremi Tinubu, has flagged off the Renewed Hope Initiative Economic Empowerment Programme for women petty traders nationwide with the disbursement of N50,000 business recapitalisation grant to 37,000 beneficiaries across the country.

She flagged off the disbursement of the grant in Asaba, thecapital, where 1,000 petty traders benefited from the scheme.

As one of the interventions under the economic empowerment programme of RHI, the grant, she says, is targeted at helping petty traders overcome some of their business challenges, create more jobs and expand the contributions of the informal sector to the national economy.

As we are all aware of the challenges faced by Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), especially the petty traders, who form the backbone of our local economies, these challenges, however, have not deterred the strength of our women. I salute you all and celebrate your courage and resilience that keep you going, to put food on the table for your families.

Today, through the Renewed Hope Initiative Economic Empowerment Programme, we are providing 1,000 pre-selected women petty traders per state with a grant of N50,000 each to recapitalize and grow their businesses. A total of One Billion, Eight Hundred and Fifty Million Naira (N1,850,000,000.00) will be disbursed to 37,000 women petty traders across the nation.

While identifying economic empowerment as a core objective that the Renewed Hope Initiative has consistently delivered on for both women and youth across the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria to support the economic reforms of President Bola Ahmed Tinubus administration, the First Lady noted that empowering women economically is not just a moral imperative but a strategic one.

We recognise that empowering women economically is not just a moral imperative but a strategic one. When women thrive, their families thrive, and by extension, our communities and nation prosper. We recognise that empowering women economically is not just a moral imperative but a strategic one. When women thrive, their families thrive, and by extension, our communities and nation prosper.

To the 1000 women petty traders who are the beneficiaries of this programme, I say, You are the heart of our local economies, the foundation of our communities, and the unsung heroes of our nation.

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You have shown incredible resilience in overcoming countless challenges to build your businesses. Today, we celebrate your hard work and determination.

Applauding the intervention of the First Lady and for choosing the state for the flag-off of the grant, Delta State Governor Sherriff Oborevwori, represented by his wife, Tobore Oborevwori, announced the donation of an additional N50,000.00 grant by his administration to further empower the beneficiaries.

He noted that Mrs Tinubu has demonstrated true motherhood by the various contributions of her Initiative, RHI, especially in the areas of Agriculture, Education, Economic Empowerment and Social Investment.

The RHI Economic Empowerment for 1000 Women Petty Traders per state held simultaneously nationwide. Each beneficiary received N50,000 as a capitalisation grant from the Renewed Hope Initiative, RHI.

SIGNED

Busola Kukoyi

SSA Media to the First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria

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A final year student of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State was on Thursday knocked down to death by a car.

The student, Esu Ema of the Department of Foreign Languages, was said to be on her way to submit her final year project to her supervisor when the tragic incident occurred.

According to the university spokesperson, Abiodun Olarewaju, the student was crossing the Ife  Ibadan axis road at the campus gate when a reckless driver in a Lexus Car hit and killed her.

The student, identified as ESU RITA EMA with Matriculation Number FRM/2019/041 was knocked down and killed by a Lexus car with Abuja Registration Number ABJ 427 LQ driven by one LASISI Sodiq Segun, Mr Olarewaju wrote in a statement.

He said members of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) recovered the corpse and took it to the mortuary of the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital Complex at about 12:35 p.m.

He added that officers of the Nigerian Police have arrested the driver for investigation and further necessary action.

Meanwhile, the Vice-Chancellor of the University, Adebayo Bamire, a professor, has sent a condolence message to the parents of the deceased through the Dean, Students Affairs, Adeolu Odedire, also a professor.

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READ ALSO: Reps probe killing of university worker by lion in OAU

If it is very sad to lose a domestic animal, how can anyone quantify the loss of a child, especially a grown up child who was a young, promising adult with a lot of potential? A final year student for that matter, Mr Bamire was quoted as saying.

He, therefore, appealed to the parents, siblings, family, friends and classmates to take solace in God, adding that the Lord will give us all the fortitude to bear this irreparable loss.

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The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has confirmed the identity of a male crossdresser found dead on 8 August along the Katampe-Mabushi expressway, Abuja.

The deceased, popularly known as Area Mama of Abuja, was a well-known crossdresser and TikTok personality whose gruesome death sparked widespread reactions online.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that the Police Public Relations Officer, SP Josephine Adeh, confirmed that detectives swiftly responded and were immediately sent to the scene after receiving a distress call about the discovery of Area Mamas lifeless body.

Before his death, the crossdressers real identity was largely unknown, as he was widely recognised only by his nickname, Area Mama.

However, in a statement released on Wednesday by Josephine Adeh for the FCT Commissioner of Police, Benneth Igweh, the deceased was officially identified as 33-year-old Ifeanyi Chukwu-Agah Benedict.

According to the commissioner, preliminary investigations also revealed the Abuja-born hails from the Afikpo North Local Government Area of Ebonyi State and resided in the Dape area of Karmo, Abuja.

The police confirmed that a discreet investigation is currently underway to uncover the circumstances surrounding the crossdressers death. Mr Igweh added that the late Benedicts family has been contacted and is cooperating with the investigation by providing relevant information.

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Although the individuals responsible for the killing have not yet been identified or apprehended, the police have assured the public that further developments will be communicated as the investigation progresses.

Area Mama

Witnesses and social media posts suggested that Area Mama, the slain crossdresser, suffered severe bruises, pointing to possible physical assault.

Before being pronounced dead by doctors at Maitama District Hospital, police revealed that a closer inspection identified the Abuja-born as a man dressed in female clothing.

Social media was filled with tributes from his fans and followers, with many expressing shock and grief over his untimely death. However, there were mixed reactions, with some describing it as an avoidable tragedy, attributing it to Nigerias harsh stance towards gays, homosexuals, and crossdressers.

The late crossdressers social media activity offered a glimpse into his life. A day before his death, the Abuja-based TikTok personality shared a video on Instagram showing himself adjusting his black dress with white petals outfit and applying perfume in preparation to meet his boyfriend (name unknown).

In a March interview on the Living in Abuja podcast, Benedict revealed that he was born and raised in Gwagwa, a community in Abuja, and turned gay at age ten as a means of survival.

The 33-year-old crossdresser described his TikTok content as a reflection of his life experiences aimed at educating his followers. Despite acknowledging the risks involved in his lifestyle, he expressed a desire to embrace Christianity and eventually marry a man.

Benedict also disclosed that he had faced multiple near-death encounters with ritual killers in Lagos and Abuja. He mentioned being stabbed by an unknown individual, whom he considered a threat to his life.

The Abuja-based crossdresser claimed to have been intimate with business people, celebrities, and politicians. The crossdresser said he had aspirations of making significant changes, including considering surgery to enhance his feminine appearance.

Reflecting on his life challenges, Benedict admitted that if he had received adequate care and provision from his parents, he might not have turned to prostitution.

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Chidimma Adetshina has arrived in Lagos ahead of the 2024 Miss Universe Nigeria competition.

The 23-year-old law student touched down on Wednesday afternoon following her acceptance of the pageants invitation after her controversial withdrawal from Miss South Africa 2024 due to xenophobic backlash over her nationality.

Upon arrival, she expressed her excitement: Im so thrilled. I was excited throughout the flight and cant wait to explore more of Nigeria. I look forward to meeting the other contestants. Im grateful for the opportunity to compete. I believe dreams are valid when action is taken, and I feel this is my time to manifest that. This is the first step towards what I want to achieve.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that Ms Adetshina, representing Taraba State as the 25th contestant, will join others at the competition, which is already underway. According to the organisers president, Guy Murray-Bruce, the former Miss SA finalist will not receive preferential treatment and will participate in all activities like the other contestants, despite public sympathy and her large fan base.

The contestants will gather at camp starting Friday for a week-long series of events leading to the grand finale on 31 August at the Eko Convention Centre, Lagos.

The candidates representing various states across Nigeria have been introduced, and public voting is ongoing to support their favourites. The winner will receive 10 million and represent Nigeria at the Miss Universe competition in Mexico this November.

Meet the 25 contestants

Chioma Nkumeh

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Representing Abia State, Nkumeh is 20 years old model, 59 and wants to empower women to become the best versions of themselves. As someone who has stepped forward, I want to help others do the same.

Lucille Oputa

Representing Abuja, Oputa is a 25-year-old Delta State University graduate. She plans to use her crown to empower others.

I stand for every voice that wants to be heard and every dream that wants to flourish.

Happiness Enetak

Representing Akwa Ibom State, Enetak is a broadcaster, model, altruist, host, and beautician. She says if she wins, she will work to improve peoples lives through what she calls the Rise Female Project.Enetak also believes in designing peoples lives.

Paula Ezendu

Representing Anambra State, Ezendus main focus is quality healthcare for everyone.

They say the universe listens to the stubborn-hearted, but I believe the resilient-hearted command the universe to listen.

Fortune Kurobo

Representing Bayelsa State, Kurobo is passionate about improving the quality of life for women and girls. She says she is passionate about womens reproductive health issues.

Joy Omanibe

Representing Benue State, Omanibe is a strong advocate for education and health. She says she will amplify my advocacy focusing on education and healthcare for children in rural areas.

Emmanuella Igbodor

Representing Cross River State, Igbodor is passionate about humanitarian work.

Im committed to making a difference and offering a unique perspective beyond just beauty.

Sarah Olotu

She is representing Delta State. Olotus dreams of representing Nigeria on the world stage.

Her vision is to humbly represent our beloved country on the global stage as Miss Universe.

Mother Theresa OrjiXw

Representing Ebonyi State, Orji believes she has a strong chance of winning the crown.

Im confident that Ill win and use my platform to advocate for causes that are personal and close to my heart.

Edeifo Aikhuele

Representing Edo State, Aikhuele was the Miss Diaspora Nigeria USA 2023. She is focused on child healthcare and education.

I promise to continue serving our great nation through advocacy for childrens health care and education.

Esther Gabriel

Representing Ekiti State, Gabriel is passionate about girl child education.

I want to use the Miss Universe platform to campaign for causes Im passionate about, especially those related to girl child education.

Uchechi Uchenna

Representing Enugu State, Uchenna wants to focus on mental health and education for underprivileged children. If I win, Ill focus on my personal advocacy for mental health and education for underprivileged children.

Queeneth Igbokwe

Representing Imo State, Igbokwe wants to help women suffering from domestic violence leave their relationships. She says My vision is to help women who are victims of domestic violence leave the relationship before it becomes fatal by providing financial and mental support to regain their confidence.

Sophia Nelson

Representing Kaduna State, Nelson is a licensed cabin Crew and a beauty entrepreneur. She is passionate about helping women gain employment through skill acquisition. With the crown, Ill be able to push my plans on a larger scale.

Zuleihat Oyarazi

Representing Kogi State, Oyarazi hopes to fulfill her dream if she wins Miss Universe Nigeria.

Ill fulfill my dream of becoming an ambassador of strength for the upcoming generation and bring back the Miss Universe crown home.

Ufa Dania

Representing Kwara State, Dania is a photographer, creative director, stylist, filmmaker. She plans to create a positive impact among young people if she wins. Im here to champion what matters, empower others, and create a ripple effect of positive change beyond the pageant and into the community.

Favour John

Representing Lagos State, John wants to inspire people through her journey.

I want to inspire peoples minds, impact lives, and remind young people to believe in themselves and their abilities.

Priscillia Umehea

Representing Niger State, Umehea speaks about her mindset going into the competition.

Im here to make a positive impact on the world.

Deborah Anosike

Representing Ogun State, Anosike is an Architecture graduate and wants to focus on projects that improve peoples quality of life. Ill create a platform that makes schools accessible for children and provides empowerment for women in Nigeria.

Peace Ayegbidun

Representing Ondo State, Ayegbidun is a fashion designer who wants to inspire women to dream big. Im living proof that women can be strong, beautiful, resilient, and run successful businesses too.

Ifunanya Nledo

Representing Osun State, Nledos main focus is representing Nigeria internationally.

I want to represent Nigeria on the global stage.

Elizabeth Salawu

Representing Oyo State, Salawu plans to campaign for mental health if she wins.

Ill use fitness and technology to create a society where we prioritise mental health.

Chioma Ogbona

Representing Plateau State, Ogbona plans to use the Miss Universe Nigeria organisation to give back and impact as many lives as possible.I plan to give back through my foundation, COCF.

Nyekachi Douglas

Representing Rivers State, Douglas wants to restore the glory that pageants once had in Nigeria. I want to bring back the focus of pageants in Nigeria to what its supposed to be aboutadvocacy.

Chidimma Adetshina

Representing Taraba State, Adetshina plans to campaign for diversity if she wins.

As a woman who has faced adversity, I want to use my voice and the Miss Universe Nigeria platform to promote inclusion and acceptance, and educate people on the power of diversity to build a strong community that benefits everyone.

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Ihensekhien Samuel, Prophet Jeremiah Fufeyins lawyer, has alleged that social critic VeryDarkMan overstepped his boundaries to attack the prophet and challenge the authenticity of his (Fufeyins) spiritual products.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that Mr Fufeyin, founder of Christ Mercyland Deliverance Ministry (CMDM) in Warri, Delta State, sued VeryDarkMan for N1 billion for publicly questioning the legitimacy of his faith-based products and demanding NAFDAC certification.

Mr Samuel, in an exclusive interview with this newspaper on Thursday evening, also alleged that the spiritual products VeryDarkMan claimed he got and administered to people with disabilities were not authentic.

Earlier, this newspaper reported that VeryDarkMan showcased the effectiveness of Prophet Fufeyins miracle products in a 24-minute YouTube video. The video featured the administration of these products to individuals with disabilities.

VeryDarkMan conducted the experiments at an undisclosed disability home in Abuja, which houses approximately 1,500 persons with disabilities.

Mr Fufeyins lawyer said, Supposedly, through a proxy of himself, went to get the water which is not from the church and took to a Muslim population to administer it on them, to cause hatred, threats to life, bullying to the personality of Prophet Jeremiah Fufeyin, contrary to section 24 of the Cybercrime Prohibition Act. He doesnt know what he has done. That is purely the mother of the new Cybercrime Prohibition Act. So, the evidence he supposedly is relying on is all contrary and their matters are prohibited. There is no privity of contracts between Prophet Jeremiah and VeryDarkMan; for you to say you have contracts, you must have had the relationship by inference or that with the person. Where has he ever gone to the church? Is there any evidence anywhere when he went to buy anything from the church? There is no evidence. So, these are just cock and bull stories.

More importantly, there is clear evidence that he has forged some church receipts to claim that he has a contract with Prophet Jeremiah falsely. An intensive investigation has been conducted, and those items do not originate from the registry or inventory of the court; we have a letter from the court to that effect. The purported receipts he used to buy those materials do not come from the church, and we have a disclaimer letter from the church to that effect. He claims to have obtained these items from the Christ Mercyland Deliverance Ministry (CMDM) in Warri, where the church headquarters is based, which he never did. He got them (spiritual products) from the roadside. We will address this further. The police are already investigating the matter, and he will be invited, allowing the law to take its course. VeryDarkMan, being a person of questionable character, continues to engage in cyberbullying and cyberstalking in complete violation of Section 24 of the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act.

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Ongoing lawsuit

The case, which is ongoing at the Federal Capital Territory High Court, was adjourned for hearing on 6 September by Justice Nwosu Iheme last Friday.

Justice Iheme further ordered a status quo injunction, preventing Mr Fufeyin and VeryDarkMan from altering the current situation while the case is ongoing. A status quo injunction maintains the existing conditions until a final ruling.

Furthermore, Mr Samuel stated that VeryDarkMan is not authorised under the Nigerian Constitution to demand any product authenticity or NAFDAC certification.

He said: Nigerians have the right to freedom of religion; VeryDarkMan does not have the right to interfere with the expression of Nigerians religious beliefs in any manner, provided they (Nigerians) dont commit a crime in the expression of their religious beliefs. VeryDarkMan lacks the capacity and oversteps his bounds by attacking the prophet about his spiritual products because social media is not a place for taking legal steps. He (VeryDarkMan) is not part of any Nigerian regulatory agency, nor is he a staff member, ambassador, or the Attorney General of the Federation to institute cases on behalf of the government.

What he does is purely cyber-bullying, cyber-stalking, meddlesome behaviour, and the law will take its course. If he has issues, there are law enforcement agencies and courts he can resort to, and its not recognised in the Nigerian constitution to come to social media to cyberbully and defameits never done anywhere. You write to the authorities if you feel someone has committed criminal infractions. What VeryDarkMan did constitutes infractions under the Cybercrime Prohibition Act and many other laws. The truth is that the law will take its course.

Status quo, contempt of court

Additionally, Mr Fufeyins legal counsel alleged that VeryDarkMan disregarded court orders for continuous defaming, cyberbullying, and cyberstalking of his client.

Mr Samuel emphasised the potential legal consequences, stating that the social media influencer could face imprisonment for his reckless behaviour and false claims against Mr Fufeyin.

There is an order to maintain the status quo because as soon as the court precedent of the FCT was served, it became an automatic injunctive order of status quo, meaning no steps should be taken to undermine the court proceedings and the matter before the court. VeryDarkMan, in defiance of that, came on social media, called the man names again, and said, Papa, dont sue me; the soap is fake. The soap in question has a NAFDAC number. Its just a soap like any other but in the form of a spiritual material, where a pastor or prophet blesses it and says the member can apply it. So, that is not a crime.

Thats not for VeryDarkMan to start labelling and cyberstalking. Subsequently, we returned to court later and informed the court about the atrocious act of several defamatory videos continuously made by VeryDarkMan against our client. The court looked at it and found merit in our oral application. We had a pending application, written summons, and filed a motion, which the court asked VeryDarkMan to respond to. We had a motion for an injunction, and the court found merit in what we were saying, so the court officially granted an injunctive order of status quo, he added.

Mr Fufeyins attorney stated that his client remains steadfast in the legal proceedings against VeryDarkMan, noting that complete machinery will be enforced against him.

Debunking VeryDarkMans allegation of the miracle products being removed from the church website, he noted, No, the said products are on the church website, and they are not illegal. They are all in the church. It is a false story he cooked up that theyre removed. That is not to what is even before the court; what is before the court is whether VeryDarkMan cyberbullied, labelled and slandered Prophet Jeremiah.

Legal action stage

Mr Samuel maintained that the ongoing case is at the stage of hearing the preliminary applications.

We have several motions for an injunction, and VeryDarkMan said he has a motion for a proposed bridge or whatever. VeryDarkMan should understand that he lacks the local standing to initiate matters on behalf of NAFDAC. He is not the Attorney General. When the time comes, we will prove that in court.

VDM lawyer reacts

Meanwhile, VeryDarkMan lawyer Ademola Adedokun told this newspaper in an interview that his client didnt violate contempt of courtcourt status quo orderin the ongoing legal battle against Prophet Fufeyin.

He said: He has not violated any order made by the court in whatever respect. He continues to maintain his status quo, and thats what we stand for. They (Mr Fufeyin and his lawyer) said on the 17 of July, he (VeryDarkMan) made a defamatory post, and that his 17 of July post, which, if you go to his page, is still there, and that is maintaining the status quo, and we are maintaining it.

What is the thing afterwards? If you go to the pages of their (Jeremiah Fufeyin) website now, it is an issue because we also have our case; we have a contract with them, and the court said we should maintain the status quo. All the products they advertise on their website have been removed. Are they maintaining the status quo by removing all those items?

Restrain

Furthermore, VeryDarkMans counsel stated that the court denied Mr Fufeyins request for an injunction to prevent his client from further defaming him.

He said: Prophet Jeremiah Omoto Fufeyin, through his client, applied to court after filing his writ of summons on 22 of July, according to the date on the writ. They appeared in court on 25 July asking for another ex parte that the court should restrain the defendant, that is, my client, from continuing to defame him (Jeremiah Fufeyin), and you will agree with me that for a court to now make such an order that he (VeryDarkMan) should stop defaming him (Jeremiah Fufeyin) when the court has not heard from the other side.

When the court has not heard the main case, it is statically luring the court to conclude that the defamation had never occurred. So the court declined to make that order on the 25 of July that Vincent Martins Otse should stop defaming him because saying that would mean that the court would be biased; the court would have said, you have defamed him, then stop defaming him. The court refused the order and asked us to come and show cause, asking why what they were asking for should not be made.

Additionally, Mr Adedokun also stated that on 30 July, during their (his and VeryDarkMans) court appearance, they confirmed receiving the court documents.

When we were in court on the 30th of July, we acknowledged that the court process had been served on us and that ordinarily, when the court process has been served on parties, both parties usually maintain the status quo.

So another status quo is not relative to either of the parties; it is relative to both of them and then that order relates to the dispute. So, if it is a building over land in dispute, both parties will leave the structure where it is, as they went to court. So I told the court that ordinarily law lawyers know, and our clients also know, that if the case is in court, the status quo should be maintained, he noted.

Product removal battle

This newspaper reported that the 53-year-old clergyman announced on Sunday via his Facebook page that the church would take legal action against VeryDarkMan for making false accusations about him and his products.

In a statement signed by Sophia Lloyd, the church alleged that VeryDarkMan, in a recent video, claimed the church had removed all approved spiritual items from its official website.

The church denied the allegations and labelled them unfounded lies and cheap propaganda. It announced it had instructed its legal team to take action against the social media influencer.

Responding to the churchs legal threat, VeryDarkMans lawyer claimed they hadnt received a formal court notice, saying, We are waiting for whatever action they want to take. Its a legal battle, and it has started, and the substance of the case is still before the court.

Ordinarily, I would not comment on the substance of the case, apart from all these peripherals and the issue that relates to public curiosity. All these peripheral issues that relate to the issue of public curiosity are the only things we can respond to. But so far, we have not heard anything from them. And we are waiting.

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The technology ride-hailing company Bolt has been significantly affected by the recent surge in fake ride requests between Nigeria and South Africa.

In response, the company has suspended several accounts and restricted inter-country ride requests, a move that has directly impacted its operations.

Nigerians woke up on Thursday morning to find themselves at the centre of a massive online rivalry. The rivalry quickly gained momentum and was initiated by South Africans, who began a viral challenge involving Bolt rides.

Despite the different geography, the digital provocation was intended to irritate Nigerian drivers by making them wait unnecessarily at pickup locations.

Bolt has, however, taken swift action to address the issue. The company stated, Bolt is aware of the recent fake ride requests between individuals in Nigeria and South Africa. Weve swiftly implemented measures to resolve the issue, including restricting inter-country ride requests, and have blocked those responsible from the Bolt app.

Those responsible have been blocked from the Bolt app. We prioritise the safety and integrity of our platform and are committed to supporting our driver-partners.

Request ride challenge

Recall the two African countries have had a long-standing feud history, just like the 2024 Afcon and the recent Miss South Africa pageant featuring Chidimma Adetshina, the embattled finalist who withdrew over backlash row of her Nigerian heritage.

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This time, the aim was to order rides from Nigerian drivers and then cancel them, allegedly to waste their time and fuel.

PREMIUM TIMES checks show that the challenge started as a conversation by South Africans on X. According to the netizens, Nigerias currency is weak, so they believe its citizens cant afford to pay cancellation fees.

The first trend was labelled Request in Nigeria Challenge. Hours later, South Africans started giving updates to the challenge. They were ordering rides in Nigeria from their own country, leaving the drivers stranded.

A trending video on X shows a South African man, among others, mocking a Nigerian Bolt driver named Kotoro-Ola after cancelling a ride he booked. Alongside the video, several screenshots emerged online, showing South Africans ordering Bolt rides in Nigeria from their own country purely to cause frustration and financial loss for Nigerian drivers.

This was seen as a petty feud, provoking Nigerians to vow to respond with the same energy in more folds.

By Thursday noon, South Africans topped the trend with over 24,000 tweets. But within hours, the hashtag #BoltforBolt emerged in response, with over 30,000 tweets reflecting Nigerias counter-challenge.

By Thursday afternoon, the Bolt hashtag had garnered significant traction, trending with 33,000 mentions, while #SouthAfricans accumulated 84,000 mentions and counting.

According to Statista, Nigeria has approximately 5.75 million users on X, while South Africa has over 3 million. While South Africans were engaging in online banter, Nigerians proudly highlighted their countrys large population and strong online presence, reminding South Africa of their trolling capabilities in matters like this.

Other users mocked South Africans for starting a war they couldnt win, knowing that Nigerians, with their estimated 200 million population, have the numbers to mobilise effectively.

Clap back

Nigerians began ordering Bolt and Uber rides in South Africa in retaliation, replicating the same disruptive tactic. This counteraction led to a further surge in the challenge, with citizens from both countries using social media to either show their support or express their dissatisfaction.

Nigerians reportedly triggered a significant Bolt surge in Cape Town and Johannesburg, causing ride shortages and high prices, leaving many South Africans stranded and frustrated. There were also reports of Bolt services being disrupted in South Africa.

A video shared by an X influencer showed over 40 Bolt rides ordered by Nigerians to the same street in Johannesburg, where drivers ended up together.

More hashtags emerged, such as Aura for Aura, Nigerians vs. South Africans, Soweto, Uber for Uber, and Johannesburg.

As of the time of this report, #SouthAfricans stands at 126,000 tweets.

Mixed reactions from both sides have varied significantly. Many Nigerians have taken a proactive stance, intensifying their efforts in response to the challenge. They have actively mobilised on social media to demonstrate their numbers and support, with some users reporting multiple bookings of Uber and Bolt rides in South Africa.

Commentators highlighted the disparity in cancellation policies between the two countries, emphasising that while South Africans incur costs for cancellations, Nigerians have an advantage because their cancellation is free.

On the other hand, some South Africans conceded defeat, recognising the challenges negative impact on their drivers and the broader economy. Prominent voices have called for a separation of the groups to avoid further damage, and some users have expressed regret over the situation.

Given Bolts policy of not reimbursing drivers for fuel spent on cancelled rides, some drivers have reportedly begun to reject long-distance requests until the situation calms down.

The challenge once more highlighted broader tensions between the two nations.

See more reactions below.

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Israels outgoing head of military intelligence, Aharon Haliva, has apologised and accepted full responsibility for the intelligence failures that allowed the deadly October 7, Hamas attack on Israel.

Mr Haliva, a major-general said he bore full responsibility for the failure of the intelligence department as he handed over office to his successor, Shlomi Binder.

He said those in leadership positions were expected to take responsibility.

According to him, the military intelligence service has conducted a thorough investigation into the Hamas terrorist attack to enable Israel to tackle future challenges better.

He also warned against the expansion of the Gaza war to the wider region and again called for the establishment of a state commission of inquiry.

He said doing so would ensure the security of Israel and its people in the future.

His successor, Binder, said that the events of Oct. 7 and the unbearable price we had to pay will stay with me forever.

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 Haliva officially announced his resignation in April.

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant and the chief of the domestic security service, Ronen Bar, have previously admitted responsibility for the attack.

However, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not yet accepted personal responsibility.

On October 7, Hamas and other groups from the Gaza Strip raided southern Israel, killing more than 1,200 people and abducting another 250 as hostages.

Israel responded to the massacre with massive airstrikes and a ground offensive in the Gaza Strip.

The Hamas-controlled health authority said the number of people killed in the territory since the beginning of the war stands at 40,223, with at least 92,981 other Palestinians injured in the same period.

(dpa/NAN)

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The candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the last election and former vice president of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar, on Wednesday alleged that the future of Nigerians is being mortgaged by President Bola Tinubu, his family, and associates.

Atiku, in a statement signed by his Media Adviser, Paul Ibe, on Wednesday, said he believes that even after Mr Tinubu leaves office, breaking these shackles will be nearly impossible.

Atiku compares Mr Tinubus integration of his business interests into Lagoss public enterprises to his efforts at the federal level.

Just as Alpha Beta, Primero, and others act as Tinubus proxies in Lagos, managing critical sectors and generating revenue for him and his family, he has begun to replicate this at the federal level, he said.

He expressed astonishment at the operations of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) and how the government-owned oil company had put its retail arm under the control of OVH, a company in which Oando, led by Wale Tinubu, a relative of the president, owns 49 per cent.

The statement said Atiku regretted that his intention to privatise the NNPC and increase its transparency has been overshadowed by what he describes as the criminal hijacking of the NNPC by corporate cabals around the current president.

In October 2022, just five months before the elections, the NNPC Retail controversially announced it had acquired OVH and all its filling stations. NNPCL already had about 550 filling stations across the country but claimed it was enhancing its capacity by acquiring OVH, which had only 94 stations and 100 others leased.

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The NNPC did not disclose the purchase price of OVH or the terms of the acquisition. A Freedom of Information request by Premium Times was also rejected by the NNPC, which claimed to be a private company despite still being government-owned, he said.

Following this controversial deal, he said Mele Kyari, the NNOC boss, was controversially retained as NNPC group managing director despite his incompetence.

Tinubu then appointed his former boss at Mobil, turned ally, Pius Akinyelure, as NNPC Chairman, while he took on the role of Minister of Petroleum.

In a move that defies economic logic, OVH, previously owned by NNPC Retail, has now acquired NNPC Retail. This absurd situation means that Wale Tinubus Oando now owns 49 per cent of NNPC Retail, he said.

Atiku said Nigeria paid Wale Tinubu a significant sum to facilitate the Tinubu familys acquisition of the national oil company.

He said this represents a clear case of illogical business transactions and abuse of office by Mr Tinubu, who has prevented NNPC from becoming a public liability company as stipulated by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).

PREMIUM TIMES reported how OVH Energy effectively took control of NNPC Retails management, prompting an NNPC insider to describe the deal as the most ridiculous business acquisition in the world.

The former vice president acknowledged that the NNPC and its leadership are under legislative investigation but expressed scepticism about the processs credibility due to the vested interests of those conducting the investigation.

Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, who is heading the National Assembly panel, is a known supporter of Tinubu. He served as a commissioner under Tinubu in Lagos State and publicly called him his godfather, Atiku said.

He said that since Tinubu is the Petroleum Minister, he should be held responsible for the sectors issues.

I doubt Bamidele will conduct a thorough investigation that might implicate his patron, he added.

Commenting on the recent revelation that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project is under litigation, Atiku explained that the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), a global network of investigative journalists, reported that the coastal highway project has been taken to court and revealed a close relationship between Tinubus son, Seyi, and Gilbert Chagoury, who was awarded the contract without competitive bidding.

I had earlier claimed that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project was fraudulent, but the government denied it. Now, the matter is in court. It is also concerning that Chagoury and Tinubu have a business relationship, and their children are business partners, as revealed by the OCCRP.

This, he said, indicates a conflict of interest.

It is no surprise that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway and the Sokoto-Badagry Coastal Highway, which together will cost over $24 billion, were approved without competitive bidding. It seems that whatever Tinubu wants, he gets, he said.

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An agriculture expert, Akin Olotu, has warned that given the unfavourable climatic conditions that have lingered for some time, the current food crisis in Nigeria could last longer than anticipated.

Mr Olotu, who served as Senior Special Assistant on Agriculture and Agribusiness to the late Ondo State Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, spoke in Akure at the annual lecture series of the Correspondents Chapel of the Ondo State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ).

He said the only way out of the situation was for the government to tackle climate change, pest infestations, and other threats to agricultural productivity.

In the months ahead, there will be more food crisis, Mr Olotu said.

The present climatic condition is not favourable to farming activities. Something has to be done. Food crisis is still ahead. President Bola Tinubu has to set targets for the state and local councils. Presently, Nigerias poultry industry has collapsed.

He noted that Nigeria faces significant food security challenges exacerbated by escalating conflicts, economic instability, and a typical staple food price crisis.

He further urged the Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, to dedicate 24 per cent of the states 2025 budget to agriculture to enhance food production.

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Mr Olotu also spoke on the investment made in agriculture by the late Akeredolu, noting that the administration cultivated 87,000 hectares of oil palm out of a target of 100,000 hectares in pursuit of the Red gold revolution.

He submitted that the initiative created over 30,000 jobs.

Ondo State has a comparative advantage in tree crops. We targeted 100,000 hectares for oil palm, but we did 87,000 hectares, he said.

We also succeeded in tomato cultivation in Ondo. Nigeria is importing oil palm heavily. We need a concerted effort to tackle food shortage. We need to a plan; we need to know where we are and where we are going to.

The former aide to Akeredolu, who said his previous warning on the food crisis was ignored, said this years climatic condition was not favourable to farming, stressing that the earlier prediction by the United Nations that 82 million Nigerians, about 64 per cent of the countrys population, may go hungry by 2030 was true.

Besides, he berated agricultural research institutes for not meeting Nigerians expectations in tackling the food crisis and bridging the gap between research and knowledge.

Ondo State Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Tayo Oluwatuyi, said his administration had embarked on several initiatives to boost food production and improve the welfare of the citizens.

He also charged journalists in the state to bear in mind that they owe it a duty to report only the truth at all times and avoid giving out false and misleading information that might disrupt the peace of the society, as the state could not afford any electoral crisis again.

The media should not shy away from the duty of amplifying the voices of the oppressed and the marginalised in the society so as to live up to expectation as the mouthpiece and watchdog of the society, he said.

Earlier, the Chairman of the Chapel, Tosin Ajuwon, said the Correspondents Week was an important event in the calendar of the chapel, which features a lecture and award ceremony to celebrate excellence, impact, greatness, commitment, and dedication to the course of humanity.

This years event is unique, given that it is a year we are witnessing an off-cycle governorship election in Ondo state. This has also influenced the choice of the theme for this years event, which is Electioneering: The roles and responsibilities of the media, he said

To us as journalists, an election is not just about casting the ballots, its also about ensuring a transparent process that holds the leaders accountable and to guarantee the rights of the people to be heard. We must ensure they have the right to promote the values they hold dearly, the issues that matter most to them and the kind of society they want the leaders to build.

The guest lecturer and Head, Department of Mass Communication, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko, Olugbenga Abimbola, while speaking on the theme, stressed the need for journalists to be well-versed in election timelines, processes and laws to ensure a successful outcome.

He also urged them to prioritise their safety during elections and play their roles effectively to help preserve the states peace and democracy.

Meanwhile, the colourful event featured the presentation of awards to the state Commander of Amotekun, Adetunji Adeleye; Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Olamide Oladiji; and the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Ebenezer Adeniyan; while Mr Aiyedatiwa and Iresi of Osi kingdom, Oba Olajide Okunato, were decorated as grand patron and patron, respectively.

Other awardees were Akindele Omole, John Alamu, Akinola Olotu, Oluseto Abidemi, Olamide Falana and Soji Gbadebo.

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The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) FCT Commandant, Olusola Odumosu, says the territory has 460 operationally licensed Private Guard Companies (PGCs).

Mr Odumosu said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja.

He said that the 460 PGCs had been legally operating from August 2023 to the present, while three were sealed for operating illegally within the period under review.

According to the commandant, the 460 licensed PGCs have a record of 42,645 registered private security operatives.

Mr Odumosu said that since his assumption of office on 15 August 2023, the command had conducted training and re-training for guards of 20 PGCs.

He, however, urged PGCs owners to inculcate the habit of continuous training and re-training of their operatives as security trends evolve regularly.

There are emerging security tips and technological advancement that will be beneficial to these private security outfits.

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The same way they can learn from us, it will also be an avenue to ensure that there are no gaps between the Corps and the companies which it regulates.

One of the responsibilities of the NSCDC is to regulate, license and monitor the operations of private security companies as they form a part of the security architecture of the country, he said.

The NSCDC boss said that plans were underway to inspect PGCs in the territory to ensure compliance, and would not hesitate to seal, sanction or penalise anyone found guilty.

Those due for license renewal should go and renew their licenses.

Those using uniforms similar to other government security agencies should ensure they abide with what the law prescribed for proper identification and to prevent misrepresentation, he said .

In a separate interview, Shehu Abdulkadir, chairman of the Association of Licensed Private Security Practitioners of Nigeria (ALPSPN) FCT Zone, said that from the 460 licensed PGCs, only 150 PGCs were registered with the association.

Mr Abdulkadir urged the remaining PGCs to register with the association as members for operational ease and recognition.

(NAN)

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Justice Sylvanus Oriji of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court has adjourned till 4 September, the hearing on the FCT ministers motion on the restriction order on participants of the hunger protest.

The adjournment came after Moses Ebute, counsel to the FCT minister (claimant), told the court that he had served the motion on notice on the respondents.

The counsel to the 1st to 4th respondents, S.M. Oyeghe, did not oppose but asked for the motion to be served on them in the court.

The other respondents were not present in court nor legally represented.

Justice Oriji directed the claimants counsel to serve all the respondents, then adjourned until 4 September for the motion.

The respondents in the suit are Omoyele Sowore, Damilare Adenola, Adama Ukpabi, Tosin Harsogba, persons unknown, Inspector General IG of Police, and Commissioner of Police.

Others are the Director-General of the State Security Service, Director-General of the Nigeria Civil Defense Corps, Chief of Army Staff, Chief of Air Staff, and Chief of Naval Staff as 1st to 12th respondents.

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In a ruling on 31 July, Justice Oriji recognised the rights of the protesters to embark on the protest. He, however, restricted them to the stadium in view of the genuine fears expressed by the minister.

In the light of the above, the court considers it appropriate and expedient to grant an order under the omnibus or general prayer to ensure that the rights of the protesters are guaranteed.

He added that the protest must not negatively or adversely affect the rights of other citizens to move about and protesters must ensure that properties and other public facilities are not destroyed.

Therefore, he ordered the first to fifth respondents to use the Moshood Abiola Stadium only for the protest.

The court also ordered the service of processes in the suit as well as the confinement order on the respondents by placing the same in the newspapers.

The judge gave the order following an application to that effect filed by Ogwu Onoja on behalf of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, (FCT)

.

At the sitting on 13 August, the FCT minister, through his lawyer, drew the judges attention to a statement issued by Damilare Adenola, in which she threatened that the nationwide protests may be extended beyond the initial 10 days.

Mr Onoja argued that since the matter was not in court and no one know the next plan of the protesters;

It would be in order to extend the order to ensure that peace of the FCT was not unjustly disrupted.

In a brief ruling, the judge granted the request and affirmed that the order of 31 July remained valid and in force.

Mr Oriji further ordered that the respondents should be served with the hearing notice before the next adjourned date.

He subsequently adjourned until 22 August for a hearing of the motion on notice.

(NAN)

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A Minna chief magistrate has remanded a 20-year-old man, Philip Jonathan, in prison for alleged sexual molestation of a four-year-old girl.

The anti-gender and violence against child squad of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID) of the police headed by Olubunmi Duyilemi arraigned Mr Jonathan on a one count of unlawful sexual intercourse with a child.

According to the Police First Information Report (FIR), the alleged offence is punishable under section 26 (2) of the Niger State Child Right and Protection law 2021 as amended.

The police prosecutor, Emmanuel Bassa, told the court that one Habibat Yakubu of Gwanzunu area of Suleja local government area reported to the police that on the 28th June, her neighbour, Mr Jonathan, lured her four years old daughter to his room and had sexual intercourse with her.

As a result, she sustained injuries all over her private parts. Police detectives swung into action and arrested you, Philip Jonathan, and during the police investigation, the victim identified you as the person who had sexual intercourse with her inside your room.

When the charge was read to him by the magistrate, Halima Yusuf, the defendant pleaded not guilty.

The defendants lawyer, Ochegene Victor, applied for bail for Mr Jonathan but the prosecutor objected to the application on the ground that the alleged offence is not bailable under section 26(2) of the Niger State Child Right and Protection law 2021.

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He then prayed the court to remand the defendant in correctional custody for hearing into the case.

Granting the prayers of the prosecutor, the magistrate ordered for his remand and adjourned the case to 4 September for the commencement of the hearing.

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The police in Anambra State have detained a 38-year-old woman, Amarachukwu Nzekwe, over alleged abuse and molestation of a 13-year-old boy.

Ms Nzekwe, a nurse, is alleged to have burnt the child, her nephew, with a heated laundry iron following accusation of stealing.

Ify Obinabo, the commissioner for women affairs and social development, told reporters in Awka, on Thursday, that officials of the ministry handed the woman over to the police.

Mrs Obinabo said that the attention of the ministry was drawn to a viral social media video of the incident on 18 August.

Officials of the ministry swung into action knowing Governor Charles Soludos zero tolerance posture on child abuse.

We went in search of the alleged child abuser, found her and handed her over to the police for further investigation, she said.

The commissioner said the alleged abuser, an indigene of Ezinifite in Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra, would be prosecuted as soon as investigations were concluded.

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She expressed worry over the injury inflicted on the boy, and described it as barbaric and unfair.

We shall follow the matter to the end. Justice must be done so that it will act as a deterrent to others who may want to indulge in similar acts, she said.

(NAN)

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Tragedy struck on Thursday in Ile-Ife, Osun State, as the driver of a Toyota Lexus Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) crushed a final year student of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) to death some metres away from the main gate of the institution.

The victim, identified as Esu Rita Ema, with matriculation number FRM/2019/041 of the Department of Foreign Languages, was knocked down around 11:45 a.m. while attempting to cross the Ife-Ibadan expressway.

Ms Ema, who was said to be coming to the campus to submit her final year project to her supervisor, was crossing the Ife  Ibadan road axis at the campus gate when the accident happened.

Confirming the incident in a press statement, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the institution, Abiodun Olanrewaju, said, The entire Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, has been thrown into mourning as a result of the tragic incident.

According to him, the student was knocked down and killed by a Lexus car with Abuja Registration Number ABJ 427 LQ driven by one Lasisi Sodiq Segun.

The members of the Federal Road Safety Corps came to recover the corpse of the student and deposited same at the mortuary of the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital Complex (OAUTHC) at about 12:35 pm while the officers of the Nigeria Police have arrested the driver for investigation and further necessary action, Mr Olanrewaju said.

Meanwhile, the Vice Chancellor of the University, Adebayo Bamire, has sent a condolence message to the parents of the deceased through the Dean, Students Affairs, Adeolu Odedire.

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READ ALSO: Reps probe killing of university worker by lion in OAU

Mr Bamire said: If it is very sad to lose a domestic animal, how can anyone quantify the loss of a child, most especially a grown-up child who was a young, promising adult with a lot of potential. A final year student, for that matter.

He appealed to the parents, siblings, family, friends and classmates to take solace in God, adding that the Lord will give us all the fortitude to bear this irreparable loss.

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The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, have pledged to give special consideration to Ekiti State during the passage of the 2025 budget in capital allocations.

They promised to facilitate this to complement the giant strides made by the State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji, in implementing his six-point policy thrust to raise the bar of development in the state.

The federal lawmakers made the promise in Ado Ekiti during the 2024 edition of the annual Udiroko Festival held at the palace of Ewi of Ado Ekiti, Oba Rufus Adeyemo Adejugbe.

Mr Akpabio, represented by the Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, described Mr Oyebanji as one of the committed patriots who deserves support from federal lawmakers for the state to develop better.

We are assuring you that the Senators will work hard to give Ekiti favourable attention in terms of project allotments in the 2025 budgetary provision. The mission is to support Governor Biodun Oyebanji, who is today one of the respected leaders of this country because he maintains cordial relationships with all the people.

The Ewi of Ado Ekiti, His Royal Majesty, Oba Adeyemo Adejugbe, Aladesanmi III, is one of the foremost traditional rulers in Nigeria. With what I have seen here today, the Udiroko festival is a wonderful event. Is a wonderful tourism virtue. We will draw the attention of other prominent Nigerians to this festival, he said.

Mr Akpabio commended the Ekiti Central Senatorial District electorate for electing Mr Bamidele, saying: We are proud of him because he is doing well at the National level. We are going to do everything possible to join him in attracting federal projects to Ekiti State through favourable budgetary allocations.

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In his remarks, the Senate Leader promised not to disappoint the states people by making meaningful contributions to the National Assembly and joining other patriots to project the states image.

Mr Bamidele described Udiroko as a huge cultural carnival, promising to join the state government in expanding the scope of the cultural fiesta and making it a veritable source of tourism in the State.

He also announced the donation of N110 million by himself and three other colleagues, including Mr Akpabio, to the development of Ado Ekiti, the capital city.

I am happy with the development I am seeing today. Udiroko has become a household name in Ekiti. We have Odun Oba in Ikere and Ita Ijero festival in Ijero Ekiti. Kabiyesi, you have been blazing the trail, God will help you to succeed.

I dont joke with the promotion of Ekitis cultural heritage. I appreciate your support for Governor Biodun Oyebanji and President Bola Tinubu. With all of us working together, Nigeria and Ekiti shall be great.

Those of us who are your representatives in Abuja wont disappoint you. We value your support and we wont take it for granted. I will personally ask the Senate President and other committed Senators to tell me the projects they will sponsor and bring to Ekiti in the 2025 budget, Mr Bamidele said.

The Ewi of Ado Ekiti, Oba Adejugbe, appreciated the Senators for their commitment to nation-building and strengthening the cord of unity among diverse ethnic groups in the country, saying their donations will be deployed to upscale community-driven development in his kingdom.

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In recent years, an increasing number of high-quality Chinese films and TV dramas have been broadcast in Africa, sparking enthusiastic responses. During the 6th Forum on China-Africa Media Cooperation and China-Africa Think Tank High-Level Dialogue, Ayanda Hollow, president of TV BRICS AFRICA, spoke highly of the production quality of Chinese TV dramas and their significant role in fostering mutual understanding between China and Africa.

Hollow further expressed his expectation for China and South Africa to deepen their collaboration in film and television, transitioning from content sharing to joint development and production. He also called for increased people-to-people exchanges between the two nations, encouraging more young people to participate in China-Africa film and television cooperation, and infusing cultural exchange with youthful energy.
Wildfires burning in Northeastern Wyoming on Thursday forced the closure of highway connecting rural Montana towns to Gillette.

Nearly all of Highway 59 has been closed from Broadus to where it connects to U.S. Highway 14-16 just north of Gillette. Officials have yet to confirm when the artery will reopen, but as of Thursday afternoon crews were still assessing the damage from wildfires sparked the previous day, according to the Campbell County Fire Department in Wyoming. Wildfires burning in Wyoming have also closed Interstate 90 between Gillette and Buffalo.

On Thursday, the National Weather Service placed much of the northeast corner of Wyoming under a red flag warning. Such a warning is spurred by hot temperatures, low humidity and high winds. Lighting is suspected to have caused two fires assigned to the Campbell County Fire Department.

Firefighting crews in Campbell County fought to control the fires through Wednesday night and into Thursday morning, according reporting from the Cowboy State Daily, and several communities surrounding Gillette received pre-evacuation notices. The Constitution fire, burning north of Gillette, was estimated to be at about 3,000 acres, per an update from the Campbell County Fire Department posted to social media Wednesday.

In Montana, Northern Cheyenne firefighters joined other crews in responding to several fires in the past 24 hours. About 20 miles south of Lame Deer, the Bull fire had burned 700 acres before crews started to have the blaze contained. The Barber fire in Big Horn County had reached over 6,700 acres by late Thursday morning.

Statewide, there were 66 active wildfires in Montana on Thursday. The most recent update to the U.S. Drought Monitor map showed conditions for all of Eastern Montana ranging from abnormally to severely dry.
The university lecturers union, ASUU, has given the federal and state governments a fresh 21-day ultimatum to meet its demands or it will commence a nationwide strike.

ASUU asked the governments to address all the outstanding issues hindering the development of the nations universities for which it last went on strike in 2022.

The ASUU National President, Emmanuel Osodeke, announced the ultimatum at a press conference held at the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike in Abia, on Wednesday.

Mr Osodeke said the press conference was to inform the public about the outcome of the unions National Executive Council (NEC) meeting, which was held between 17 and 18 August at the University of Ibadan.

He said that the union would reconvene at the expiration of the 21 days notice to take appropriate decision(s) as deemed necessary.

He said that the NEC condemned in strong terms the seeming refusal by the federal and state governments to decisively address all the issues raised by the union.

Mr Osodeke also said that the union rejected the slow pace of the intervention by the Minister of Education in resolving those issues.

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According to him, the issues involve reviewing and signing the renegotiated 2009 FGN-ASUU Agreement and impactful funding, including the Emergency Revitalisation Fund for public universities.

They also include the payment of outstanding earned academic allowances, release of withheld salaries, promotion arrears and third-party deductions of its members.

Other issues include stoppage of illegal recruitments, proliferation of public universities and abuse of universities laws, regulations and processes.

There is also an issue of removal of the universities from the Treasury Single Account and new IPPIS vis-a-vis to herald the autonomy of our universities, he said.

The ASUU boss also said that the NEC received alarming reports on the failed promises of the government in addressing the lingering issues that forced the union to embark on the nationwide strike of February to October 2022.

Mr Osodeke also said the union has declared Tuesday, 10 September as Victimised Lecturers Day.

He said, the day would be used to solidarise with its members unjustly persecuted across the nations universities.

He also said that the union would use the day to register its displeasure with the avoidable labour-management crises at the Lagos State University, Kogi State University, Federal University of Technology Owerri and others.

Mr Osodeke said that the union rejected the federal governments recent move to divert the Tertiary Education Trust Funds (TETFund) intervention grants to the Students Education Loan Scheme.

He said that the move was antithetical to the original intent of the law establishing the Education Tax Fund, which now operates as TETFund.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the press conference was attended by the Zonal Coordinator, ASUU Owerri Zone, Dennis Aribodor, among other ASUU officials and members.

Incessant Strikes

ASUU has been criticised by many Nigerians, including fellow academics, for its incessant strikes.

The last nationwide strike by the union lasted for about eight months in 2022.

However, ASUU has always maintained that its demands are to protect public universities and the interests of lecturers.

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The Acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Umar Damagun, says he is not quitting his position but will work to keep it safe and stable.

Mr Damagun said this on Wednesday in Abuja during the inauguration of the reconciliation and disciplinary committees to resolve internal crises and address misconduct within the party.

The committee, chaired by a former governor of Osun State, Olagunsoye Oyinlola, was constituted on 9 August.

While responding to allegations by some members of the party, including a former Federal Commissioner for Information and Ijaw National Leader, Edwin Clark, that he was destroying the PDP, Mr Damagun said he was ready to pay the price of leadership and encouraged criticisms within and outside his party.

Mr Clark had, in a letter to the chairman on Tuesday, accused him of conniving with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, and other detractors to ruin the party.

From all indications, you are conniving with detractors of PDP to ruin the party for the All Progressives Congress. Allow Nigerians to decide what party they want through the ballot box.

Stop colluding with Barr. Nyesom Wike to destroy the party. A day of reckoning will come for all of mans activities.

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I wish and pray that you will not sell your soul and conscience for pecuniary and worldly gains, otherwise you, Barr Wike and your cohorts will be consumed by the Rivers State crisis, he said.

Mr Damagun said Mr Clark was engaging in sentimental politics and urged him to desist from such politics.

I will borrow Olisa Metuhs remarks from 2015 when Edwin Clark left the party. There is no doubt that he is an elder statesman. But I thought that when you reach that age, God has given you the opportunity and wisdom to be a father to all, not to engage in public arguments.

He has all it takes to do the needful, not by taking a sentimental approach to the situation. I was not raised to be disrespectful to elders, so I dont intend to dwell on this further.

Task to keep party stable

Mr Damagun said he has a responsibility to the PDP to keep it safe and stable.

He said he would not be distracted from repositioning the party despite the criticisms from those who probably do not want him.

And to my detractors, let me tell you, youll see more of that later. Because I will not abdicate my responsibility. But I will act within the confines of the law, as stipulated by the constitution.

So Im not distracted. You can try to bring me down, but importantly, while doing so, please remember that we have NEC.

So, for those interested in seeing Damagun go, this is a buildup to undermine me before we have NEC. But if you bring Damagun down and lose the party, what have you achieved? Because in trying to bring me down, you are also bringing down your party.

 I intend to take all necessary actions to ensure the party remains stable. But Ive reached a point where I have to speak out, he said.

The chairman said he had avoided speaking out since because he knew so many things, warning that it would not be pleasant if he decided to open up.

Ive avoided talking because I know so many things. When I open my mouth, I know it will not be pleasant, but thats the price of leadership. Im ready to take that bashing, more bashing, he stated.

Run for president

Mr Damagun said that because of the constant bashing, he had become so popular in the media that he had contemplated running for president.

I thank God. People are making me very popular lately. Anytime you open social media or television, it is Damagun, Damagun.

Honestly speaking, I have started contemplating throwing myself into the ring and vying for the presidency of this country. Because I have become popular, even though the negative publicity is meant to bring me down, Im not deterred, he said.

Mr Damagun became the acting chairman of Nigerias main opposition party on 28 March 2023 following a court order restraining Iyorchia Ayu from parading himself as the national chairman.

Mr Ayu, a former senate president, had earlier been suspended by his ward in Benue State.

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A university don, Monsuru Adeleke, has said the battle against the malaria scourge in Nigeria could only be won if the government and policymakers adopt integrated vector control strategies to combat vector-borne diseases.

Mr Adeleke, a professor who is an expert in public health entomology and parasitology, also contended that existing laws on environmental sanitation and pollution need to be strengthened and strictly enforced.

He noted, Mosquitoes breed in our surroundings, and preventing their breeding grounds solves 80 per cent of the danger posed by malaria fever.

Mr Adeleke spoke on Wednesday in Osogbo while delivering the inaugural lecture series 20 of Osun State University (UNIOSUN), titled Unending War of Man Against Mosquitoes and Blackflies: A Tale of Two Sacrificial Lambs Searching for Survival.

According to him, The government and policymakers must adopt integrated vector control strategies to combat vector-borne diseases. The mono-policy being implemented over the years is not yielding satisfactory results. It will give the vectors a free way to devise means of escaping the onslaught.

Mr Adeleke canvassed for attitudinal change in Africa, and Nigeria in particular must win the war against vector-borne diseases. He said this was because many of our activities in Nigeria inadvertently create environments conducive to vectors.

For instance, our habit of turning gutters into dumping sites during the wet season blocks river flow, creating stagnant water ideal for mosquito breeding. Let us stop the indiscriminate use of insecticides. Let us stop habits that create opportunities for the vectors to breed and thrive, he said.

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Also speaking on the sideline of the inaugural lecture, the Vice Chancellor of UNIOSUN, Odunayo Adebooye, observed that the lecturer had provided clues as to how we can adequately and appropriately manage mosquitoes so that the scourge of malaria can be reduced in our society.

We need to establish a public health safety mechanism through the use of health inspectors, who will be going round communities, especially rural areas. There is a need to remove all bad and expired tyres from our environment. These tyres house water where mosquitoes breed. Public hygiene is key to this war against mosquitoes.

Public hygiene department is critical to the battle against mosquitoes. I am sure that by strengthening that sector of health delivery mechanisms of the government, the scourge of malaria will be reduced in our society.

Just as this inaugural lecturer had done, scientists are to identify what the problems are and then tackle the problem headlong. In the same way, we can work on yellow fever, dengue fever, monkeypox and other diseases. Diseases should have specialists that will deal with them for prevention rather than looking for a cure, Mr Adebooye said.

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President Bola Tinubu has strongly condemned the tragic circumstances leading to the passing of Isa Bawa, the District Head of Gatawa District in Sabon Birni Local Government Area of Sokoto State.

Mr Bawa was killed on Tuesday by bandits after about three weeks in captivity.

Tinubu, in a statement by his media aide, Ajuri Ngelale, on Wednesday, described the savage attack on the traditional ruler as deeply disturbing and a heinous act that will not go without a decisive response.

The president extended his profound condolences to the bereaved family, the Gobir Emirate, and the government of Sokoto State.

He prayed for the repose of the soul of the traditional ruler and comfort to his family at this difficult time.

President Tinubu assured Nigerians that his administration is aggressively removing threats to ensure the security of the nation and that these desperate acts of terror will be effectively countered.

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Former Kaduna State Governor Nasiru El-Rufai led the family of Kashim Imam to the residence of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar in Abuja on Wednesday.

Dressed in a blue babanriga and matching kufi, Mr El-Rufai visited Atikus residence in Asokoro, Abuja, to formally request the hand of his daughter, Hafsat, in marriage on behalf of the Imam family.

The occasion brought together prominent political figures from Nigerias two leading political partiesthe ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Beyond differences in party loyalty, many attendees also belonged to various camps within their own parties. Thus, the meeting represented a handshake across multiple forms of political divides.

The dignitaries in attendance included the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, former PDP Sule Lamido, former Sokoto State Governor and ex-Speaker of the House of Representatives Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State and others.

One of the pictures from the event showed Mr El-Rufai, squatting while having a conversation with Atiku seated on a couch. Atiku was the PDPs presidential candidate of the PDP for the 2023 election.

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The abducted son of the Emir of Sabon Birni in Sokoto State, Isa Bawa, has been released by his abductors after the payment of a ransom.

The son identified as Kabiru was kidnapped alongside his father, Isah Bawa, who was killed and buried by the abductors in the forest.

An official of the Sabon Birni Emirate, Shuaibu Gwanda, told reporters that Mr Kabiru was released on Wednesday.

He said the bandits collected N60 million and five motorcycles as ransom before releasing Mr Kabiru.

He said Mr Kabitu was taken to a medical facility in Sokoto town for treatment after his release.

He said the bandits killed and buried the emir in the forest.

READ ALSO: Sokoto govt mum as residents observe funeral prayer for emir murdered by kidnappers

Mr Bawa and his son were ambushed in the Kwanar Maharba area while travelling from Sokoto to Sabon Birni, the headquarters of Sabon Birni Local Government Area of Sokoto State.

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Sabon Birni residents on Thursday performed a funeral prayer, known as Salat al-Ghaib, for the deceased emir.

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The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has declared 10 September as Victimised Lecturers Day to solidarise with its persecuted members in Nigerian public universities.

The National President of ASUU, Emmanuel Osodeke, made the declaration on Wednesday at the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, during a press conference on the outcome of the unions National Executive Council (NEC) meeting.

The NEC meeting was held between 17 and 18 August at the University of Ibadan (UI), Oyo State.

According to Mr Osodeke, several lecturers in different Nigerian universities are being victimised through such avenues as illegal termination of appointments, withholding of salaries, and denial of promotion.

He listed the Kogi State University (KSU), Anyingba, the Ebonyi State University (EBSU), Abakaliki, the Lagos State Universities (LASU), Ojoo, the Ambrose Alli University (AAU), Ekpoma, the Federal University of Technology Owerri (FUTO), the Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University (COOU), Igbariam, and others as institutions where lecturers are being victimised.

Listed cases in some universities

Mr Osodeke noted that the union is particularly disturbed at the travesty of justice in the judgement delivered against their members at the Kogi State University, Anyigba, after seven years of waiting.

He added that the union is also worried by the extended period of court proceedings regarding their member who was illegally sacked at Lagos State University for more than five years.

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He expressed the unions disappointment in the refusal of the Lagos State Government to release the White Paper on the Visitation Panel to LASU more than two years after the exercise.

He said, The seeming conspiracy of silence on this matter is unbecoming of a democratically elected government. Without a doubt, the undue elongation of court proceedings in matters of life and livelihood has created untold hardship for our affected members. It is a typical instance of justice delayed being justice denied.

We therefore call on the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, to redeem his pledge to do the right thing at LASU and ensure the recall of our unjustly sacked colleagues.

Speaking on the case at the Federal University of Technology, Owerri, he further expressed displeasure at the continued victimisation of its members at the institution for rejecting the conferment of a professorship title on former Minister of Communication and Digital Technology, Isa Pantami.

He equally expressed dissatisfaction with developments at the Ebonyi State University (EBSU) whose authorities, he alleged, are buying time by going on appeal rather than implement a court judgement and reinstate their sacked colleague.

While appreciating the intervention efforts of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Ebonyi, NEC calls on Visitors to the Ebonyi State University and other state universities where ASUU members are being persecuted to take decisive steps to resolve all lingering matters and give their universities a new breath of life, he stated.

The union, therefore, urged the Governing Councils and Visitors to state universities to take special interest in the application of the Laws governing their respective institutions and ensure that tyrannical tendencies of certain Vice-Chancellors are curbed.

PREMIUM TIMES reported extensively the prolonged victimisation of a 73-year-old associate professor of theatre arts, Inih Ebong, at the University of Uyo, who was unlawfully terminated in 2002.

The reports added that Mr Ebong, despite winning several court cases, including a National Industrial Court judgement ordering his reinstatement and compensation, the university refused to comply.

The associate professors ordeal began when he was falsely accused of abandoning his duty while on approved annual leave. The university suspended him indefinitely, stopped his salary and eventually terminated his appointment.

Another case involves a senior female lecturer at the University of Ibadan, Adenike Ogunshe, whose appointment was terminated seven years ago, as reported by Oyo Affairs. She has also obtained a court judgement reinstating her but has not been reabsorbed.

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The Sokoto State Government is yet to speak on the reported killing of the kidnapped Emir of Sabon Birni, Isa Bawa, who recently begged for his rescue in a video shared by his kidnappers.

Residents of Sabon Birni on Thursday performed a funeral prayer, known as Salat al-Ghaib, for the murdered emir.

The prayer is usually performed in absentia for a Muslim who died where there are no Muslims to pray for them.

The prayer was performed after a report that the emir had been killed and buried by his abductors in the bush.

The state government has neither confirmed nor denied the report that the emir was killed Wednesday afternoon by the bandits.

The states commissioner for information, Sambo Danchadi, did not respond to multiple phone calls and text messages from PREMIUM TIMES on Wednesday and Thursday morning for comment on the incident.

The police spokesperson in the state, Ahmad Rufai, said he was yet to be briefed on the incident and declined further comments.

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But Sabon Birni Emirate officials said they were told about the killing on Wednesday while they were preparing to deliver a N60 million and five motorcycles as demanded by the abductors as ransom .

The bandits released a video last Wednesday with Mr Bawa begging the authorities in Sokoto to secure his release.

He said the time set by the bandits for his release or execution elapsed on that day.

Mr Bawa and his son were kidnapped on 18 July while travelling from the state capital to Sabon Birni after a private visit.

Kidnapped son released

Meanwhile, the emirs abducted son has been released by his abductors after the payment of a ransom.

The son, identified as Kabiru, was kidnapped alongside his father, who was killed and buried by the abductors in the forest.

An official of the Sabon Birni Emirate, Shuaibu Gwanda, told reporters that Mr Kabiru was released on Wednesday.

He said the bandits collected N60 million and five motorcycles as ransom before releasing Mr Kabiru.

He said Mr Kabiru was taken to a medical facility in Sokoto town for treatment after his release.

PDP, Wamakko mourn late emir

The Sokoto State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has mourned the deceased emir.

The PDP in a statement signed by its publicity secretary, Hassan Sahabi, described the emir as a distinguished gentleman and respected traditional ruler, who contributed immensely to the development of the Sokoto Caliphate and Nigeria.

Sokoto Caliphate has indeed lost a father and a respected leader, who lived a life of service to the Caliphate, Nigeria and humanity, especially in the effort to combat insecurity in the state and the nation as a whole.

The PDP Sokoto State chapter, prays Almighty Allah to forgive his shortcomings and reward his good deeds with Aljannat Firdaus and to give his household and the entire state the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.

Late Sarkin Gobir was kidnapped, along with his biological son some weeks ago, a regrettable incident that PDP views as part of the unfortunate and condemnable insecurity situation bedeviling the nation, our dear state and the Sokoto Eastern Zone in particular, the PDP said in the statement.

The senator for Sokoto North, Aliyu Wamakko, also described the death of the emir as shocking and unfortunate.

Mr Wamakkos spokesperson, Bashar Abubakar, said the lawmaker described the killing as a cowardly act of the bandits.

The shocking news of the passing away of the traditional ruler in the area on Wednesday, said the unfortunate incident that occurred was a barbaric and cowardly act of the bandits which must not go unpunished

Senator Wamakko described the deceased as a leader with a good heart for his subjects and also a peace-loving gentleman even as he added that he will continue to be remembered for his good works.

Senator Wamakko prayed to Almighty Allah to forgive the late traditional ruler Isah Muhammadu Bawa and give his family the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.

The senator said they will continue to advise the government at all levels to intensify more efforts towards bringing an end to the banditry menace that is bedeviling the Northern religion and the country as a whole, the statement said.

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A former National Legal Adviser of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mark Jacob, has asked the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, to take the honourable decision of leaving the party.

Mr Jacob called out Mr Wike on Arise Newss Morning Show on Thursday morning.

He accused Mr Wike, who holds a key cabinet position in the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led government, of fueling the PDPs internal crisis and criticised him for lacking integrity.

I see him as a coward who is not bold enough to leave the PDP and go to the APC. Having taken a stance against the PDP, a gentleman who wants to be respected should have resigned from the PDP. You cannot be blowing hot and cold at the same time. You cannot be kicking against the PDP and still claim you are still PDP, Mr Jacob said.

He continued, It is completely ungentlemanly. Anybody with a good conscience who wants to be respected even by his children should be ashamed when he does things like these because it is (a) complete irony.

Mr Jacob said, It is time people tell him the truth.

You cannot in good conscience say you are a member of the PDP and you are fighting PDP; it is not done anywhere, he added.

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Mr Jacobs comment comes on the heels of a call by the Ijaw national leader, Edwin Clark, in an open letter to the leadership of the PDP to investigate Mr Wike over allegations of anti-party activities and expel him from the party if found guilty.

Alleged anti-party activities of Wike

Mr Wike, who was governor of the oil-rich Rivers State for eight years, has been critical of the leadership of the PDP after losing the partys presidential ticket for the 2023 presidential election to Atiku Abubakar.

He refused to support Atiku in the lead-up to the 2023 general election and chose to back the APC candidate, Bola Tinubu, who emerged as the winner.

His appointment as the Minister of FCT, a key cabinet position, is believed to be the reward for the support he gave Mr Tinubu during the election.

Since becoming minister, Mr Wike has been locked in a supremacy battle over the PDP structure in the state with Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State, whom he backed to succeed him as governor.

Many have accused him of anti-party activities, given his crucial position in the APC-led government.

During a media briefing on Wednesday to mark his one year in office as minister, Mr Wike rebuffed calls to leave the PDP. He said he had no intention of leaving the party.

He also defended his decision to support President Tinubu during the 2023 election, saying it was the turn of the South to produce the president after eight years of Muhammadu Buhari as president.

Wake up to your responsibility, PDP leadership told

The PDP, which held on to the presidency for 16 years before losing the 2015 election to the APC, is facing diverse internal crises at both the state and national levels.

The Acting National Chairman of the PDP, Umar Damagun, has been accused of conniving with Mr Wike to ruin the party.

Mr Jacob said Thursday that the partys leadership had lost its ability to rein in characters bent on destroying the party.

He said that the party had lost its structure.

The party leadership must wake up to its responsibility. The party leadership must leave all this sensationalism, abandon all these selfish and individual issues and look at what the party should be doing, Mr Jacob said.

He expressed hope that things would soon take shape within the party.

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An Ikeja Chief Magistrates Court on Thursday convicted but freed six men charged with breach of public peace during the 2020 #EndSARS protest.

They are Daniel Joyinbo, 31; Adigun Sodiq, 28; Kehinde Shola, 32; Salaudeen Kamilu, 29; Sodiq Usseni, 33 and Azeez Isiaka, 34.

The defendants had in a plea bargain agreement, pleaded guilty to a count charge of breach of the public peace preferred against them by the Lagos State Government.

After listening to the plea bargain agreement, the magistrate, Bola Osunsanmi, found the defendants guilty and convicted them of the offence.

She, however, cautioned and freed them, adding that they had spent almost four years in custody.

Earlier, the Director for Public Prosecutions (DPP), Babajide Martins, told the court that he had an amended charge.

He said that the defendants committed the offence on 23 November 2020, at 12:00 p.m., at Ebutte Metta, Lagos.

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According to him, the defendants conducted themselves in a manner likely to cause a breach of public peace.

He said that the offence contravenes Section 168(d) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

(NAN)

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Montanas senior U.S. Sen. Jon Tester took the stage in Missoula on Wednesday night with his own personal rock star sidekick to launch a string of events rallying around the incumbent in the nations most consequential Senate race.

The conversation between Tester, Pearl Jam bass player Jeff Ament and moderator Hank Green, a YouTube personality and author, took place as Democrats nationally gathered for the third night more than 1,300 miles to the east in Chicago to nominate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as the partys vice presidential nominee.

Though he only made a passing mention to the Democratic National Convention, the presidential race was on Testers mind when asked whats up for grabs in this falls election, though he didnt hesitate to emphasize the importance of his own contest against Republican and political newcomer Tim Sheehy, a former Navy SEAL and founder of an aerial firefighting company. The race is expected to determine the balance of power in the U.S. Senate, and Tester is the lone statewide Democrat in Montana running in a state that's become increasingly red in recent years.

Mine isnt the important one, its the one at the top, Tester said. Theres a lot at stake here. Theres democracy at stake, theres rural America at stake, theres how we treat one another at stake. Theres a lot at stake.

Tester has not offered an endorsement for Vice President Kamala Harris, the partys nominee to run for president who will ceremonially be nominated again Thursday. His campaign clarified Wednesday night his comments on the presidential race did not amount to an endorsement. When President Joe Biden dropped out of the race last month, Tester said he wanted an open nomination process.

As for the importance of the election, Tester said the country is at its most dangerous precipice since the Cuban missile crisis.

Theres a lot of things going on in this world. Youve got to have leadership that knows how to bring people together so that people can work together to find solutions, Tester said. That doesn't mean you compromise your values, that doesnt mean you do stupid (stuff). That means you bring people together, to get people on the same page to solve problems.

As for his own race, Tester said this year is a watershed cycle for the Big Sky State.

The truth is in this election  Montana is on the line. Im blessed. Ive basically lived my whole life 100 miles from where I was born.  The truth is you get to learn Montana that way.  The truth is knowing this state and knowing what people value in this state is really important.

Tester then turned to his opponent, Sheehy, though he didnt reference him by name.

For a guy to say that were going to turn our public lands over to the state of Montana is somebody that doesn't know Montana, Tester said. I mean Jesus Christ, its fundamental to who we are.

Tester was referencing a Huffington Post story from 2023 that quotes Sheehy on the Working Ranch Radio Show as saying, "Local control has to be returned." He went on to say: Whether that means, you know, some of these public lands get turned over to state agencies, or even counties, or whether those decisions are made by a local landlord instead of by, you know, federal fiat a few thousand miles away. Local control will almost always produce better results than a federal mandate from bureaucrats who are unaccountable to the people that are ultimately subject to these regulations.

Sheehys campaign has countered the claim about land transfers, however, and his platform says, I will oppose any federal transfer or sale of our public lands.

Tester also hit Sheehy on health care. When he said, Were going to purely privatize health care, do you know what that means for the Big Sandy Medical Center? That means it closes. Do you know what that means to the Liberty County Medical Center in Chester, Montana? It means it closes. It doesnt mean its going to struggle, it means its gonna close its doors, plus all the VA (Veterans Affairs) facilities, Tester said. That person doesn't know Montana.

That references a Semafor article that cited an audio recording of Sheehy in Glasgow saying "Our hospitals have been built around federal health care subsidies. In my opinion we need to return health care to pure privatization."

Sheehy in statements through a spokesperson to the Montana State News Bureau has said meaningful health care reform is needed along with protections for people with preexisting conditions and protections for rural hospitals and access to rural health care.

We should be rewarding outcomes and innovation to help drive down costs," the spokesperson said.

Asked about Medicare and Social Security, the spokesperson said, Tim believes we must keep our commitment to every Montana senior to protect their Social Security and Medicare benefits.

Wednesday nights discussion, in advance of a Pearl Jam concert here Thursday, was billed as a conversation between "two sons of Big Sandy," where both Tester and Ament are from. Testers running the family farm plays a large role in his identity as the only working farmer in the U.S. Senate, and his son Shon took the stage at the end of the night to tell the crowd his dad was on a tractor harvesting until it was time to leave for Missoula.

Much of the conversation touched on life in the states rural communities, with Ament saying that to a young family thats lived the last several years in a place like San Francisco, Missoulas probably looking pretty good right now.

Tester said the roots a family can grow is what makes a place like Big Sandy special, as he called out a childhood friend in the audience he met in 1962 as he started first grade.

I dont know if that happens anywhere but in rural America, Tester said.   I really value those relationships that you build, whether its the kid you met in first grade or your wife you marry whose folks live 35 miles from your farm.

In the policy realm, Tester was asked about the lack of affordable housing in the state. He said the issue is one of supply and demand and for some reason theres not enough supply right now.

He cited Harris idea of offering $25,000 for down payments for first-time homebuyers  that could work  but said to him the best option is a tax credit to empower the private sector to build more and make sure those are affordable workforce housing so people can afford to get into them.

It will put more houses on the market, Tester said. He acknowledged that lower home prices could cause consternation for people who bought at the peak of the market and could see their home value lower, but then shifted the conversation to the affordability of college, saying that students coming out of school saddled with debt was also part of the problem.

Weve got to not only focus on housing, but also have to focus on ways to make higher education more affordable, too, and Im not just talking about four-year college, Tester said.

When Green asked Tester if life in public service had become harder during his tenure, Tester said it had because of the U.S. Supreme Courts Citizens United decision that allowed for unlimited political spending by corporations, certain nonprofits and more.

The truth is that I cant even tell you how much money will be spent in this race, Tester said of his contest. I cant even tell you. You guys turn on the TV. I watch auto shows on Roku on the Torque network, for Gods sake, and theres Jon Tester and Sheehy commercials on that. You cant get away from it.

The website Open Secrets, which tracks spending in politics, reported that Tester has raised nearly $43 million so far in this race and spent about $32.4 million to Sheehy's $13.9 million raised and $10.6 million spent. Outside spending has reached $35.5 million.

Tester said that the advertising has not made the electorate better informed, and that the ads do their damn level best to try to make me into something Im not. We have to push back.

Tester referenced what will be record-breaking spending in his race, which is estimated to reach $250 million.

A quarter of a billion dollars, are you (kidding) me? Thats crazy, Tester said. We need to fix it. It can be fixed pretty easily; it just takes the right members of Congress.

 Reporter Carly Graf contributed to this story.
President Bola Tinubu has congratulated Olukayode Ariwoola, as he retires as Chief Justice of Nigeria after a successful public service career.

Mr Ariwoola had served as Justice of the Court of Appeal in Kaduna, Enugu, and Lagos divisions before his elevation to the Supreme Court in 2011.

He was sworn in as Chief Justice of Nigeria in 2022 and had also served the nation in diverse capacities as a judicial officer.

President Tinubu commended the eminent jurist for his services to the nation, noting his impactful leadership of the judiciary and his efforts in enriching Nigerian jurisprudence, as well as in strengthening the fibre of the law.

The president thanked Mr Ariwoola and wished him the very best for the future.

READ ALSO: CJN Ariwoola set to retire

President Tinubu will swear in Mr Ariwoolas successor, Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, at the State House Council Chambers on 23 August.

Ajuri Ngelale

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Special Adviser to the President

(Media & Publicity)

August 22, 2024

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The Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto (UDUS) has ordered the suspension of the operations of a campus-based news publication, Pen Press, for allegedly publishing a story to tarnish the institutions reputation.

The suspension order dated 14 August was contained in a letter from the Dean of Students Affairs to the editor-in-chief of the campus-based publication.

I am writing to formally notify you of the suspension of Pen Presss activities, effective immediately, due to concerns related to a recent publication. Pen Press published an article titled UDUS Students Face Wrath of Poor Drainage, the letter signed by the secretary to the dean, Mahmud Isah, read in part.

The letter noted that though the intention behind the article may have been to address important issues, the manner in which it was presented has raised significant concerns within the university administration.

Without providing details, the institution accused the publication of not adhering to journalistic standards and university policies. It also alleged that the publication contained factual inaccuracies or misleading information capable of causing potential harm to the universitys reputation.

In view of the above, Pen Presss activities are hereby suspended until further notice. During this suspension period, Pen Press is required to cease all publications and distribution of content and to refrain from conducting interviews or gathering news, the letter declared.

When contacted by PREMIUM TIMES on Thursday, the university spokesperson, Samaila Yauri, said he was not aware of the development. He said he would not be able to comment on the issue until Monday.

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Meanwhile, the institutions Deputy Dean of the Students Affairs, Mukhtar Tukur, asked our reporter to write to the deans office for a formal response.

It is not advisable to just respond to anybody anyhow. It may be right; you are a journalist, and it may not be right. So please put a formal request to that effect, he told our reporter on Thursday.

The contentious story

The platforms editor, Abdulrasheed Akere, told PREMIUM TIMES the story referred to in the letter was published on 2 August. The story, reviewed by our reporter, detailed the unsanitary condition of the drainage and water systems in Zamfara Hostel, one of the hostels at the university.

In a copy of the now-deleted story obtained by this newspaper, students were quoted lamenting the unhygienic conditions and the passage of water from the upper floors, affecting students living on the lower floors of the hostel.

The situation has bred enmity among the students. Numerous complaints about the poor water drainage have been reported to the security unit, parts of the story read.

The story noted that a fight broke out among students living in Block A and Block C hostels because of the improper movement of wastewater. It also quoted students seeking long-lasting solutions to address the issue.

In the story reviewed by this newspaper, the hall governor, Happiness Benjamin, contacted by the reporter, said the fault came from the way the building was constructed. The chairperson of the Students Union, Abdullahi Sanusi, also contacted by the reporter, said the university management would be notified.

Mr Akere told this newspaper that the author texted Mr Tukur requesting comments for the story but did not get a response, although the published story did not indicate the efforts made to reach out to Mr Tukur.

Meanwhile, Mr Akere said Mr Tukur later explained that he saw the text message but refused to reply because he called the matron of the hostel and the matron told him there was no such issue.

Pressed on Thursday evening to comment on the claim that he ignored the authors text message, Mr Tukur insisted that our reporter should write to the Dean of Students Affair for a formal response.

The summons and aftermath

Days after the publication, Mr Akere, the editor, was summoned by Mr Tukur, the Deputy Dean of the Students Affairs. Mr Akere said Mr Tukur questioned the publications use of the picture of the hostels veranda in the story.

He asked me what the meaning of drainage is. I said it is any structure that collects water from one place to another. Then he asked me if a corridor or veranda of any building is drainage. I said no. Then he asked why we used the picture in our report, Mr Akere narrated to our reporter.

I explained to him that the water collected by a drainage pipe drops in the front doors of the students staying downstairs where the water stays stagnant, and we showed it so that the public can see what we are referring to as the stagnant water causing problems. It caused a fight last semester, and some students injured each other.

Mr Akere said he, the reporter who authored the story, Aishat Mustapha, and the publications principal editor met with Mr Tukur the following day to plead with him and explain the story. He said the official asked them to leave his office.

READ ALSO: Sokoto govt mum as residents observe funeral prayer for emir murdered by kidnappers

After that, I went to meet him again. He said, This is the third time Pen Press is tarnishing the image of the school and that he was going to punish us, he said.

Mr Akere said he also pleaded with him on the third day, but that Mr Tukur insisted that they must be punished. He added that he had informed the dean and that the dean would withdraw the publications licence.

On Tuesday, Mr Akere received a text message from the secretary of the deans office inviting him to receive a letter addressed to him.

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The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Olukayode Ariwoola, retired on Thursday after reaching the mandatory age of 70.

A valedictory court session was held at the Supreme Court in Abuja to honour him.

Sixty-six-year-old Kudirat Kekere-Ekun will succeed him as the 18th CJN.

During the event on Thursday, Mr Ariwoola expressed concerns about the overwhelming number of cases before the Supreme Court.

He noted that many cases could have been resolved at the appellate level, contributing to significant delays.

The sheer volume of pending cases is a significant impediment to timely justice, he said.

He noted that prolonged delays have hindered access to justice, impacting litigants and lawyers who often wait years for case adjudication.

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He also called for more judicial officers to address the backlog and ensure timely resolutions.

The valedictory ceremony included the public presentation of a book titled Judging With Justice, celebrating Mr Ariwoolas contributions to the judiciary.

The event was attended by notable figures, including Vice President Kashim Shettima, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, Ms Kekere-Ekun, judges of the Supreme Court and other courts, among others.

AGF promises judicial reforms

In his address at the valedictory court session, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, said that President Bola Tinubus administration is committed to judicial reform.

He called for increasing the number of judicial officers to manage the growing caseload effectively and expedite case resolution.

Timely adjudication is crucial for guaranteeing the right to a fair hearing, Mr Fagbemi asserted.

The AGF highlighted recent developments in the judicial sector, including a 300 per cent increase in judicial officers salaries.

He also commended the Supreme Court for its recent judgement affirming the financial autonomy of local governments and urged state Attorneys General to ensure compliance with these reforms.

This increase reflects our commitment to strengthening the judiciary and reinforcing its role as the last hope of the common man, Mr Fagbemi stated.

Exit

Mr Ariwoola, who is passing the mantle of leadership of the Nigerian judiciary to Ms Kekere-Ekun, took office as the acting CJN about two years ago on 27 June 2022.

Coming earlier than expected, Mr Ariwoolas appointment, initially as the acting CJN, followed the abrupt resignation of his predecessor, Tanko Muhammad, on health grounds.

He leaves office when the judiciary faces an unabated confidence crisis fuelled by conflicting court orders, delays, and perceived irrational court decisions.

In June, Mr Ariwoola denounced the conflicting court decisions issued by some judges, describing the situation as an attempt to make a mockery of our judicial system and flagrantly desecrate the revered Temple of Justice.

He vowed that any judge found to be culpable would be sanctioned, but nothing has been heard about it ever since.

Before becoming the CJN, Mr Ariwoola, as the second-most senior judge of the Supreme Court, led the list of 13 colleagues who protested the then CJN over the poor handling of their welfare and the courts operations.

The ripples created by the leaked memo had yet to die down when Mr Muhammad resigned.

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Emmanuel Ayoola, a former Justice of Nigerias Supreme Court and an ex-chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), has died at the age of 90.

The family announced Mr Ayoolas death in a statement on Wednesday.

Mr Ayoola, born in Ilesa, Osun State, on 27 October 1933, retired from the Supreme Court bench on clocking the retirement age of 70 in 2003.

He rose to become the Chief Justice of the Gambia while on secondment to the country before returning to Nigeria in 1992.

Mr Ayoola, who served on Nigerias Supreme Court bench between 1998 and 2003, was appointed by then-President Olusegun Obasanjo as the chairperson of the ICPC in September 2005. He held the position until 2010 when he completed his tenure.

President Bola Tinubu extolled Mr Ayoolas steadfast dedication to justice, integrity, and courage throughout his remarkable career on Wednesday.

Justice Ayoola will always be remembered for his rare principles, discipline, brilliance, and impeccable jurisprudential knowledge, the president was quoted as saying in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale.

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He also extended his sympathies to the associates of the late jurist and members of the Nigerian judiciary, acknowledging the significant loss the jurists death meant to the legal community.

Great loss to Osun

On Thursday, Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun State described Mr Ayoolas death as a profound loss not only to the jurists family but also to the state and the entire nation.

Justice Ayoola made Osun and Nigeria proud everywhere he went, Governor Adeleke said in a statement by his spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed.

He hailed Mr Ayoola as a true patriot and a hero of anti-corruption whose legacy will endure.

Governor Adeleke prayed for the Ayoola family, asking for divine strength to bear their loss, and assured them they were alone in their grief.

Indelible mark

Also, the incumbent ICPC chair, Musa Aliyu, described his predecessor as a leader with exceptional integrity, a sharp legal mind, and an unwavering commitment to justice, which set him apart as a towering figure in the legal profession.

Mr Aliyu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), noted Mr Ayoolas international influence, his service as Chief Judge of The Gambia and his pivotal role at the Special Court for Sierra Leone. The ICPC chair said these roles confirmed the jurists global dedication to upholding the rule of law.

Justice Ayoolas life and work have left an indelible mark on the legal profession, inspiring generations of lawyers and public servants, Mr Aliyu said.

unwavering in his commitment to the fight against corruptiona cause he championed with vigour and a deep sense of duty.

Mr Aliyu noted that Mr Ayoolas legacy will continue to guide and inspire the war against corruption, offering hope for a more just and fair society.

The ICPC and the entire nation have lost a venerable elder statesman, he said, adding that his legacy will live on, providing a beacon for those committed to justice and the betterment of society.

Profile

Born about 90 years ago, Mr Ayoola studied as an external student of the University of London and was a full-time undergraduate at Oxford University London from 1957 to 1959.

He obtained a Bachelor of Laws degree, LLB, from the University of London in 1957 and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Oxford with Honours in Jurisprudence. In May 1957, he passed the Bar Final Examination of the Council of Legal Education, London and was called to the English Bar at the Lincolns Inn, London, on 25 November 1958.

He was admitted to the Nigerian bar on 4 September 1959 and started a private legal practice that same year.

After 17 eventful years as a legal practitioner, Mr Ayoola was appointed a judge of the High Court in the defunct Western Nigeria on 1 February 1976. Three months later, he became a judge of the High Court of Oyo State following the creation of 19 states by the regime of the then Head of State, Yakubu Gowon.

He was seconded by the Federal Government of Nigeria to the Gambia in 1980 as a Justice of the Court of Appeal of Gambia.

In 1983, he became the Chief Justice of the Gambia, a position he held until 1992 when his 12-year secondment to that country ended. His service to the country earned him the Gambian National Honour of the Commander of the National Order of the Republic of the Gambia (CRG) in 1990.

He returned to Nigeria in 1992 and was appointed a Justice of the Court of Appeal on 8 July 1992.

In 1998, he was elevated to the Supreme Court bench.

He was on the Supreme Court bench until he retired in October 2003.

Shortly after retiring from the Supreme Court, he was appointed chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and served in that capacity until he was appointed chair of the ICPC in September. He remained chair of the ICPC until 2010.

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UNESCO recalls that all authorities concerned have the duty and responsibility to ensure the safety of journalists covering protests around the world, in accordance with international norms and human rights obligations.

In times of crisis, as in times of peace, journalists are crucial lifelines to verified information for citizens. They facilitate public debate and dialogue that are pathways to democratic solutions. Authorities must guarantee the safety of journalists covering protests, in line with international freedom of expression standards.

Within the UNESCO Series World Trends in Freedom of Expression and Media Development, UNESCO has previously highlighted the growing risks to the safety of journalists covering protests (Issue Briefs in 2020, in 2021 and 2023).

A UNESCO report on the safety of journalists covering environmental issues, published for World Press Freedom Day in May 2024, revealed that 194 journalists, groups of journalists and media houses have been attacked in the context of environmental protests in the past 15 years.

UNESCO is monitoring attacks and threats against journalists that undermine their legitimate role of informing populations with accurate and verified information. UNESCO promotes the safety of journalists through global awareness-raising and capacity building and by coordinating the implementation of the UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity.

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Jigawa State Governor, Mallam Umar Namadi has reiterated the state governments firm commitment to revitalizing the educational sector through the power of digital transformation.

Speaking at the launching of Training of Teachers on the JIGAWA COMPETE Initiative in Dutse, Governor Namadi highlighted the progress made since the launch of the initiative, a comprehensive digital transformation programme aimed at enhancing the delivery of educational services in the state.

Launched in January 2024, the JIGAWA COMPETE (Jigawa Comprehensive Mastery, Proficiency, Excellence, and Technological Empowerment) initiative aims to equip teachers and students with the tools and skills necessary to thrive in the digital economy.

Governor Namadi emphasised that this programme is a key component of the broader State ICT Strategy, which aims to promote e-governance and position Jigawa State as a leading digital hub in Northern Nigeria.

A statement by Hamisu Mohammed Gumel, spokesperson to the governor of listed key achievements of the JIGAWA COMPETE Initiative to include the following areas:

Development of EMIS Software: The state has successfully developed and deployed a comprehensive Educational Management Information System (EMIS) software. This system houses all baseline data on schools, infrastructure, staff, and students, streamlining educational management across the state.

Teacher Engagement: Over 3,000 secondary school teachers have been enrolled in the initiative and have downloaded the Jigawa EMIS Application, now available on the Google Play Store.

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UNICEF Partnership: The initiative has secured significant support from UNICEF, which has provided internet routers and free online access to the EMIS software. UNICEF has committed to supporting internet data services for the programme until 2027.

Training of EMIS Officers: EMIS Officers have been recruited and trained to serve as master trainers in each secondary school, ensuring the effective rollout and sustainability of the initiative.

NIN Enrolment: The government has provided 50 National Identity Management Enrolment devices to register all Senior Secondary School Students into the National Identity Management Database. This effort will support tracking student progress and addressing issues such as learning poverty and school deprivation.

Speaking on the initiative, Governor Namadi expressed his satisfaction with the progress made so far and reiterated the governments dedication to leveraging technology to transform education in Jigawa State. He highlighted the ongoing efforts to integrate e-learning into the curriculum and ensure that students have access to cutting-edge digital resources.

The JIGAWA COMPETE initiative symbolises our vision of a future where every student in Jigawa has equal educational opportunities to master essential skills, achieve proficiency, excel academically, and embrace technology as a tool for sustainable development, said Mr Namadi.

He also commended the Ministry of Higher Education, the ICT and Digital Economy team, and all collaborating partners for their efforts in revolutionizing the states educational system. The governor urged all stakeholders to double their efforts in increasing student enrollment and retention rates in both secondary and tertiary institutions.

He further emphasised the broader implications of the governments digital transformation agenda, noting that it presents significant empowerment and employment opportunities for the states youth. He called on the youth to take full advantage of the opportunities provided by the JIGAWA COMPETE initiative and other similar programmes.

Mr Namadi also announced plans to roll out additional ICT training opportunities through the newly established Jigawa State ICT & Digital Economy Agency. He said the state government would take over, renovate, and upgrade 15 ICT centres initially established by NITDA to provide regular ICT training for thousands of youths across the state.

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At least 13 people were killed when terrorists attacked the Anguwan Mai-Giro community in Niger State on Wednesday night, the News Agency of Nigeria reported.

The Niger State Government confirmed the attack but did not say the exact number of people killed.

Acting Governor Yakubu Garba described the attack as satanic, insensible, atrocious and callous, according to a statement by Ibrahim Bologi, the chief press secretary to the Niger governor.

Mr Garba said the attack led to the death of many villagers.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack but various terror groups, locally called bandits, operate in the state.

The Anguwan Mai-Giro community is a border community between Shiroro and Rafi Local Government Areas of the state.

It is very disheartening and disturbing for fellow humans to carry out such a barbaric and vicious act on their fellow humans, Mr Garba was quoted as saying.

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He commiserated with the victims families, community members, and the entire people of the council areas over the unfortunate incident.

He also reiterated the Mohammed Bago administrations unwavering determination and commitment to address insecurity in the state.

The acting governor urged security agencies to redouble their efforts in the fight against insecurity and pledged the state governments continuous support in all aspects to win the fight.

He, however, prayed for the repose of souls of those who lost their lives and Allahs succour to those who sustained injuries.

Niger, in north-central Nigeria, is one of the most terrorised states in the country. Terrorists, locally called bandits, randomly attack communities, killing and kidnapping residents.

Other states that suffer from similar attacks include Benue, Kaduna, Zamfara and Katsina.

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The Emir of Ilorin, Ibrahim Sulu-Gambarim, has said the ongoing urban renewal projects of the Kwara State Government enjoy his full support.

The traditional ruler said the projects are necessary for socio-economic development and a sustainable environment and, therefore, urged the governor to push through the massive infrastructural works.

He said this while receiving a government delegation led by the Commissioner for Works, Abdulquawiy Olododo, and the Special Adviser on Special Duties, Abdulrazaq Jiddah.

I am pleased with the foresight of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq with the ongoing expansion and reconstruction of roads across the state, particularly within the Ilorin metropolis. What the government is doing is necessary for the development of the capital city and the state at large, Mr Sulu-Gambari said.

Massive development

I am aware of the massive road projects going on, and as a traditional institution, we will continue to support the administration with prayers to succeed. You are doing the right thing. As I said before, the performance of the governor is res ipsa loquitur (self-evident). When one embarks on such projects, you dont listen to the naysayers. They will later appreciate it once you do it. So, I urge you to continue with the good job, he said.

Also in the delegation were the Commissioner for Business, Innovation and Technology Damilola Yusuf-Adelodun; Commissioner for Environment Nafisat Buge; Executive Chairman, Kwara State Geographical Information Service, Abdulkareem Suleiman; Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Rafiu Ajakaye; Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Infrastructure, Ladi Yusuf; and some senior bureaucrats.

The team visited the emir to seek further support for the road project from the Works Roundabout to the Post Office, through the Emirs Road down to Isale Oja and other areas in Ilorin, the state capital.

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Full support

The emir urged the government to continue with its expansion programme.

It is good that you employ a traditional approach for your advocacy and I want to assure you of maximum support to succeed. Dont be distracted. It is normal for a few individuals to say negative things about what you do. Your projects are visible for all to see. You should continue with your infrastructural renewal and expansion programmes without further delay, the emir said.

Mr Jiddah explained that the delegation visited the emir to seek his support and that of the larger community for the projects within the Ilorin metropolis.

This advocacy visit tour becomes important for us in line with the urban renewal agenda of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq. The homage to the Emir is to seek more cooperation and support for all our projects, especially road expansion and urban renewal initiatives, he said.

Speaking with journalists on the sidelines of the visit, Mr Olododo also sought public support for the extensive construction works in the city.

READ ALSO: Governor commissions N250 million facility donated to University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital

From the Ministry of Works Roundabout to Isale-Oja Junction and from Adifa to Gambari and Balogun-Fulani back to Emirs Road is about 5.8km. This will be completed within four months, he said.

The traditional approach remains the best approach because as the leader of the Emirate, we believe that once the Emir speaks to our people through the Alanguas, Daodus, and Magajis, effective communication would have been established and compliance would be a lot easier.

We need the support and collaboration of the Emir on the setbacks that the projects will reclaim. This will affect the temporary structures built on the governments setbacks along the routes. We also talked about the illegal refuse dump by some people, which endangers everyone.

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The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has described Adolphus Wabara, the chairperson of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Board of Trustees (BOT), as being inconsistent in character after the latter waded into the political crisis in Rivers State.

Mr Wike, a former governor of Rivers State, spoke on Wednesday during a media chat to mark his first anniversary as the FCT minister.

A video clip which showed the minister making the remark has been circulating on various WhatsApp groups.

Mr Wike and his successor, Governor Simi Fubara of Rivers State, have been engaged in a protracted political feud over the control of the political structure in the state.

The FCT ministers criticism of Mr Wabara is apparently because the chairperson led other members of the PDP BOT to visit Governor Fubara in Port Harcourt over the political crisis in the state.

During Tuesdays visit, Mr Wabara expressed worry over the possibility of Governor Fubara exiting the PDP because of the ongoing fight with his predecessor, Mr Wike.

During the visit, the chairperson said they were concerned that the crisis could result in the PDP losing the oil-rich state to the All Progressives Congress.

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The Rivers governor, however, assured the BOT chairperson and other PDP leaders that he had no plans to exit the party.

Wikes grouse

Mr Wike, during his Wednesday media chat, tackled Mr Wabara.

The FCT minister said Mr Wabara is an inconsistent character because the BOT chairperson endorsed Governor Alex Otti of Abia State for a second term less than one year into his (Otti) administration.

Mr Otti was elected governor under the Labour Party platform in 2023. His first term will end in May 2027.

Mr Wabara, a former president of the Nigerian Senate, hails from Abia State.

The governor (Otti) is reliable and a true man of honour. With this feat alone, his second term in office is already well assured. He is a master strategist. He wasnt a top banker for nothing, Mr Wabara said in October 2023 during the flag-off ceremony for the reconstruction of the Port Harcourt Road in Aba, Abia State.

Governor Otti had spent only six months (about 182 days) in office when Mr Wabara, who was present at the ceremony, made the remark.

He (Wabara) is the PDP BOT chairman. The Governor of his state, Alex Otti, had not stayed one year when Wabara told Otti Your second tenure is guaranteed. (Thats) second tenure of another political party. And this is a man who said he has the conscience of the party, Mr Wike said during the media chat.

In another instance, the FCT minister said Mr Wabara was among those who called for the then PDP National Chairperson, Iyorchia Ayus resignation in 2023, but later backtracked, after which he was compensated with the BOT chairmanship position.

Do you know how he (Wabara) became the chairman of the PDP BOT? Ask him. In 2023, he led a team to visit me when the crisis in PDP was about the presidential candidate (Atiku Abubakar).

That was the team he led. He said they were going to submit a report (about the call for southerners to produce the national chairperson of the party since Atiku emerged presidential candidate), Mr Wike said.

Continuing, the minister said: Even in the meeting, he (Wabara) was telling me about the problem (and) that they would not budge, and I said that the right thing must be done. Ask him about the report.

The next day they made him acting chairman of the PDP BOT to compensate him.

Background on the Rivers crisis

The political rift between Messrs Fubara and Wike has battered the Rivers House of Assembly, splitting lawmakers into two factions  one loyal to Mr Wike and the other to Mr Fubara.

Apart from the state assembly, the feud has also divided the ruling PDP in the state into two camps and has disrupted governance in the state.

Before Mr Wabaras visit to Governor Fubara, Mr Wike appeared to be enjoying the support of the PDP at the national level, with his loyalists making the list of the party caretaker committees against Mr Fubaras wishes.

Recently, a court barred the PDP from conducting party congresses in the state but the national leadership of the party released voting materials for Mr Wikes loyalists, who went ahead to conduct the congress in a violation of the court order.

Governor Fubara and his supporters boycotted the congress.

Amidst the support enjoyed by Mr Wike from the national leadership of the party, Governor Fubara, two months ago, told some National Assembly members, who visited him in Port Harcourt, that the PDP has failed him and his supporters.

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The legal team of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), has asked President Bola Tinubu to hold a private meeting with the IPOB leader to find solution to the frequent agitations in the South-east.

In a statement signed by its Head, Nnaemeka Ejiofor, the legal team urged Mr Tinubu to show statesmanship in the handling of Mr Kanus continued detention.

The legal team sent the statement, dated 21 August 2024, to PREMIUM TIMES.

The lawyers argued that Messrs Tinubu and Kanu share similar characteristics as democrats and freedom fighters, citing roles played by the president during the annulment of 12 June 1993 presidential election by the Nigerian military regime.

It is imperative that President Tinubu holds a private meeting with Kanu so that he can hear from the man his theories of how Nigeria can forge ahead, Mr Ejiofor said.

Dont silence IPOB, find the root cause of agitation

IPOB is a group agitating for the independent state of Biafra which it wants carved out from the South-east and some parts of South-south Nigeria.

The group emerged after Ralph Uwazulikes Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra, a similar pro-Biafra group, became inactive.

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Mr Kanus lawyers said Mr Tinubu should investigate the root cause of the agitations and find a solution.

Silencing IPOB now is sweeping the dirt under the carpet. Find the root cause, Mr President, and solve it in collaboration with Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, they stated.

Why Tinubu should release Nnamdi Kanu

The legal team also appealed to Mr Tinubu to release the IPOB leader.

They argued that Mr Kanu is perceived from the prism of being a separatist, but inwardly he is a detribalised Nigerian who had helped to pay the fines of prisoners of various tribes, especially northerners while he was detained at Kuje Correctional Centre, Abuja.

This amiable humanity in him is what many people are not unaccustomed to because of the persona built up around him, some of which are wide off the mark, they stated.

According to them, the IPOB leader has a stunning intellectual mind and is zealous about ensuring that Nigeria functions well.

Anybody who has had a one-on-one encounter with him will see that he has a great passion for the turnaround of Nigerias fortune as well as the fight against corruption and other forms of social ills in the country so that Nigerians can have a better future.

Failed pleas for Nnamdi Kanus release

The legal team recalled how several Igbo leaders, such as the late President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, and a First Republic minister, Mbazuluike Amaechi, unsuccessfully appealed to the then President Muhammadu Buhari to release Mr Kanu.

They contended that the call for Mr Kanus release gained traction after Mr Tinubus government freed other agitators like Omoyele Sowore, Sunday Igboho and Miyetti Allahs Kautal Hore, Bello Bodejo, who were charged with similar offences.

The conciliatory attitude of the government to Boko Haram terrorists who killed, kidnapped and raped Nigerians during Kanus incarceration, coupled with the fact that several courts had ordered his release, all make a compelling case for a reconsideration of Kanus case, the legal team argued.

However, while it is true that the Court of Appeal, Abuja, discharged and acquitted Mr Kanu of all charges on 13 October 2022, the Supreme Court overturned the ruling in December 2023 and ordered the continuation of his trial.

Solving insecurity in South-east

The legal team, like many Igbo leaders, argued that Mr Kanus release will help to end insecurity in the South-east.

With peace in the South-east, the military deployed there can then be redeployed to face down the bandits and terrorists wreaking havoc in the North-east, North-west and parts of North-central, leading to the food insecurity that is now causing protests in Nigeria, they said.

Background

Mr Kanu was first arrested in 2015 under the administration of President Buhari.

The Court of Appeal, Abuja, held on 13 October 2022 that the IPOB leader was extraordinarily renditioned to Nigeria.

The court said the action was a flagrant violation of the countrys extradition treaty and a breach of his fundamental human rights.

The court, therefore, struck out the terrorism charges filed against Mr Kanu by the Nigerian government and ordered his release from the facility of the State Security Service.

But the government refused to release the IPOB leader, insisting that he (Kanu) could be unavailable in subsequent court proceedings if released and that his release would cause insecurity in the South-east, where he comes from.

READ ALSO: Reps minority caucus calls for release of Nnamdi Kanu

The government, through the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation, later appealed the court ruling and subsequently obtained an order staying the execution of the court judgement at the Supreme Court.

Delivering judgement on the appeal on 15 December 2023, the Supreme Court reversed the acquittal granted to Mr Kanu by the Court of Appeal and consequently ordered the continuation of his trial at the Federal High Court Abuja.

The court has repeatedly dismissed Mr Kanus applications for bail.

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The diversion stops both fish and floaters.

Trout attempting to swim upstream in this reach of the Clark Fork River are stymied by the irrigation dam.

The diversion structure stretches across the rivers full width. It is an anachronism of sorts, a relic of an era when human beings viewed nature as a force to harness with little thought about environmental consequences.

Just upstream from the diversion dam that parallels Sager Lane, an innovative contraption pulls water from the Clark Fork River for irrigation upstream of Deer Lodge.

A spinning drum collects water, which is then pumped and piped to a pivot irrigation system. The Riverscreen-brand water retrieval setup occupies a small recess in the river, allowing flow to continue. Trout seeking a spawning tributary or cooler water in summer can pass by without obstruction.

In the arid West, ranchers and the captains of industry, including the Copper Kings, relied on brawn, brains, water rights and political sway to capture and channel water in flumes, pipes and ditches.

Generations passed. Words and concepts like ecosystem and endangered species and native fish entered the lexicon and began to accumulate both a groundswell of popular and judicial support and a measure of legislative power.

People began to recognize that manipulating creeks and rivers to serve agricultural and industrial needs affects aquatic life.

The Anaconda Company ambitiously diverted Twin Lakes Creek and Storm Lake Creek into Silver Lake west of Anaconda. Developed in the late 1800s, the Silver Lake Water System supplied water for the copper smelter in Anaconda.

The dams and diversions blocked the passage of migrating and spawning fish, including bull trout. And fish sometimes ended up trapped in irrigation ditches.

Strategies and design concepts for remedies emerged long before the funds needed to realize them.

In recent years, that has begun to change. The federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law of 2021 has been one game changer.

At this writing, a host of projects are underway in the Warm Springs Creek drainage west of Anaconda and at points in the upper Clark Fork River.

Casey Hackathorn, Montana director of Trout Unlimited, has been among those shepherding the endeavors.

This is a huge partnership effort, he said during a recent tour of the fish passage projects, (including) federal, state and local governments, private water users, private landowners and nonprofits.

Tour participants on Aug. 12 included representatives from Trout Unlimited, the Clark Fork Coalition, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Forest Service, the states Natural Resource Damage Program, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, the George Grant Chapter of Trout Unlimited and Butte-Silver Bow Countys water department.

An associate editor from Field & Stream also joined the throng.

The first stop was Myers Dam on Warm Springs Creek west of Anaconda. Existing structures there divert water from the creek and send it east to the NorthWestern Energy facility east of Anaconda, the Montana Connections Business Development Park and the Montana Resources mine in Butte.

A new concrete structure is designed to trap bull trout  a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act  currently blocked from swimming upstream for spawning. Fisheries staff from Montana FWP will then capture the trout and physically tote them upstream for release.

Were seeing whats possible when youre adding money to a system thats had needs for a number of years, Hackathorn said.

The Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest has added money to the effort through its Collaborative Aquatic Landscape Restoration Program and the Forest Services National Fish Passage Program.

In sum, project partners anticipate investing about $3 million during the next three years to complete the remaining fish passage work in the Warm Springs Creek watershed.

Tour participant Ray Vinkey, of the Natural Resource Damage Program, said bull trout need five conditions to thrive: cold water, clear water, connectivity, habitat complexity and a low ratio of nonnative fish.

A new concrete structure at the diversion of Twin Lakes Creek, a locale that has historic links to the Anaconda Company, is designed to both capture native fish for physical transport upstream and to allow volitional passage of native fish when seasonal conditions are ideal. Volitional passage means no trapping or transport is required.

Caleb Uerling, a fisheries biologist for FWP, said the projects enhancing fish passage provide significant support for genetic diversity.

Genetics is a huge benefit, he said.

Dan Brewer, a fish and wildlife biologist for the Fish and Wildlife Service, specializes in efforts to boost bull trout recovery. Brewer said projects in the Warm Springs Creek drainage offer real potential to help the species.

Around 1:30 p.m., the tour shifted to the Clark Fork River at its confluence with Dry Cottonwood Creek. Andy Fischer of the Clark Fork Coalition led the group to a fish passage and irrigation diversion project that employed a manmade riffle to help channel water into the diversion while allowing floaters and fish to pass.

Recreation is a pretty critical component, Fischer said. Its not just about fish. Its also about people enjoying the river.

The project also added a fish screen in the irrigation ditch to direct fish stuck in the ditch back into the Clark Fork.

Meanwhile, Superfund remedial work on the river will begin again this fall. For reasons that arent entirely clear, the upper Clark Fork Rivers once abundant population of brown trout has declined dramatically.

Brutally low flows and warm temperatures this summer havent helped.

With climate change bearing down, the fisherys recovery will likely benefit from fish passage projects, fish screens, efficient irrigation and more  along with the funding to support the work.

This stuff isnt cheap, Hackathorn said.
The Nigerian army has dismissed as false a report that its troops invaded churches and dispersed worshippers from churches in Anambra State, Nigerias South-east.

A report surfaced last Sunday alleging that some soldiers invaded some Catholic churches and dispersed worshippers at Umunze, a community in Orumba South Local Government Area of the state.

Army speaks

But responding to an enquiry by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the army spokesperson, Onyema Nwachukwu, refuted the report.

Mr Nwachukwu, a major general, said the soldiers only conducted a cordon and search operation in the area and did not invade churches.

He said the operation was conducted by troops of the 82 Division of the Nigerian Army.

The army spokesperson explained that the operation followed a tip-off that the assailants who attacked and killed some troops earlier were receiving medical treatment in a house close to a Catholic church in the area.

During the operation, the troops evacuated the people who were considered vulnerable if a shootout ensued to avoid collateral damage.

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 cordon and search on the community was to enable the troops to arrest some accomplices who escaped with gunshot wounds and blood stains from the attack that killed two of our troops, Mr Nwachukwu said.

He pointed out that although the tip-off they got was that the assailants were receiving treatment within the house, the soldiers later realised that the suspects had already left the building before the operation.

It is most unfortunate that the operation took place on a Sunday, he said.

The army spokesperson claimed that the deployment of the troops in the area was expedient because of increased cases of kidnapping and ransom collection by criminals in Umunze.

He claimed that the deployment of troops in the Umunze Community has helped to reduce kidnap attacks in the area.

The troops will continue to ensure the safety of all the citizens, he assured.

Background

Umunze, like other communities in Anambra State, has witnessed frequent attacks by gunmen said to be part of Biafra agitation in the region.

The Biafra agitation has caused many casualties on the side of the agitators and the Nigerian security agencies, including the army.

In September 2022, for instance, gunmen killed five soldiers in Umunze Community in one of the brutal attacks in the area.

In May last year, some armed persons killed three police operatives at a checkpoint in the community.

READ ALSO: UK donates training facility to Nigerian Army

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 any involvement in the attacks.

IPOB is leading the agitation for an independent state of Biafra which it wants carved out from the south-east and some parts of the south-south Nigeria.

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The United Kingdom (UK) and the Abia State Government have held talks for a partnership deal to drive investments and economic development in Abia State.

The British High Commissioner, Richard Montgomery, revealed this when he

visited Umuahia, Abia State between 20 and 21 August.

Details of the discussions were provided in a statement forwarded to PREMIUM TIMES by the spokesperson of the British High Commission, Atinuke Akande-Alegbe, on Thursday.

Governor Alex Otti of Abia State and the British High Commissioner, Mr Montgomery, held the talks alongside key government officials and business leaders in the state, according to the statement.

The discussions by the two leaders focused on prosperity opportunities and future priorities that could be beneficial to Abia State and the UK.

The leaders said the efforts, among others, are geared towards advancing the UK investment in the state while Abia State Government will partner with the UK businesses.

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 delegation

The UK delegation included the Countrys Director for the Department for Business and Trade, Mark Smithson, and the British High Commissions Political Counsellor, Tom Burge.

Visiting Abia State for the first time was a great opportunity to engage and interact with key stakeholders.

Abia state is key to boosting Nigerias economic prosperity and the UK is committed to driving that growth, Mr Montgomery said after the talks.

We very much want to develop our partnership  both with the state government and the good people of Abia State  to enhance prosperity in the region, he added.

Like the High Commissioner, the UKs Country Director for the Department for Business and Trade, Mr Smithson, expressed excitement over the discussions.

The UKs Department for Business and Trade in Nigeria is well placed to support the Abia State government and the private sector to drive trade in the state.

We look forward to building on discussions we had, strengthening our ties and exploring areas of collaboration and partnerships to boost trade, and deliver prosperity to both our countries, he said.

Facility visits

The statement indicated that the officials visited various facilities in the state.

The National War Museum in Umuahia, Abia State capital, which showcases the history of Nigeria was among the facilities visited by the leaders.

Messrs Montgomery and Otti, during the two-day visit, attended the graduation ceremony of the State-Level Inclusive Digital Transformation Programme funded through the UKs Digital Access Programme.

The programme is designed to bridge the digital skills gap by delivering relevant and applicable digital skills for the states civil servants.

The high commissioner also visited the Geometric Power Company recently commissioned in Abia State.

The UK leader met with the team developing the Abia Innovation Industrial Park, and the Aba Chamber of Commerce.

He also toured an industrial fair showcasing small and medium-scale manufacturers in the state.

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COLUMBIA, S.C., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ --

WHAT:

This groundbreaking event brings free STEM learning to Columbia! This big, tradeshow-like festival will feature more than 60 stations where kids and their parents engage in unique and fun activities like operating a robot, building motorized model cars and flying drones, watching live animal dissections, riding a hovercraft, and much more. These activities are designed to be both educational and entertaining, providing a unique learning experience for students and parents. Students, grades K12, learn and have fun. They work with college volunteers and STEM professionals. Our children need role models - scientists, doctors, and engineers  who look like them and come from their neighborhoods and communities.

Parents register your kid's grades K-12 at www.clemson.edu/stem-sc

College students are needed from 7:45 AM to 1 PM to assist in managing the stations, interact with students, and inspire the next generation of STEM achievers. Undergraduate volunteers receive a $50 stipend. COLLEGE VOLUNTEERS REGISTER HERE: www.clemson.edu/stem-sc.

Since 2013, STEM Global Action (SGA) and its leading affiliate, STEM NOLA, have made a significant impact, reaching more than 160,000 students, 22,000 families, and 5,150 schools. This STEM Fest, which is sponsored by Clemson University, is a gateway to new opportunities and learning. Their proven track record of success makes them a trusted source for STEM education. Seeking to make STEM education available in ALL communities, SGA is a campaign and network of affiliates, including STEM South Carolina, that pursues STEM education for children, parents, and communities across the U.S. and abroad. By participating in the STEM Fest, students and volunteers will contribute to this impactful mission, growing their appreciation and love for STEM, while receiving a valuable educational experience.

WHO:

STEM Global Action

Clemson University

WHERE:

Spring Valley High School

120 Sparkleberry Lane, Columbia, SC 29229

WHEN:

Saturday, August 24, 2024

9 AM to Noon ET

Media Contact:

Jim Pittman, 504-583-5862, [email protected]

SOURCE STEM Global Action
NEW YORK, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The global intravenous (IV) fluid monitoring devices market size is estimated to grow by USD 2184.2 mn from 2024-2028, according to Technavio. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 8.09% during the forecast period. Increase in number of hospitalizations. is driving market growth, with a trend towards increasing incidence of diseases. However, technical limitations of iv fluid monitoring systems poses a challenge. Key market players include B.Braun SE, Baxter International Inc., BC Group International Inc., Becton Dickinson and Co., Cole Parmer Instrument Co. LLC, Datrend Systems Inc., EVELABS TECHNOLOGIES Pvt. Ltd., Fortive Corp., Gossen Metrawatt GmbH, ICU Medical Inc., IRadimed Corp., ivWatch LLC, Micrel Medical Devices SA, MONIDOR Oy Ltd., NETECH Corp., Pentland Medical Ltd., Pronk Technologies Inc., Seaward Electronic Ltd., Shift Labs Inc., and Sino Medical Device Technology Co. Ltd..

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global intravenous (IV) fluid monitoring devices market 2024-2028

Get a detailed analysis on regions, market segments, customer landscape, and companies - Click for the snapshot of this report

Forecast period 2024-2028 Base Year 2023 Historic Data 2018 - 2022 Segment Covered End-user (Hospitals and clinics, ASCs, and Home care), Type (Desktop and Portable), and Geography (North America, Europe, Asia, and Rest of World (ROW)) Region Covered North America, Europe, Asia, and Rest of World (ROW) Key companies profiled B.Braun SE, Baxter International Inc., BC Group International Inc., Becton Dickinson and Co., Cole Parmer Instrument Co. LLC, Datrend Systems Inc., EVELABS TECHNOLOGIES Pvt. Ltd., Fortive Corp., Gossen Metrawatt GmbH, ICU Medical Inc., IRadimed Corp., ivWatch LLC, Micrel Medical Devices SA, MONIDOR Oy Ltd., NETECH Corp., Pentland Medical Ltd., Pronk Technologies Inc., Seaward Electronic Ltd., Shift Labs Inc., and Sino Medical Device Technology Co. Ltd.

Key Market Trends Fueling Growth

The global IV fluid monitoring devices market is experiencing significant growth due to several factors. Chronic diseases and conditions, such as diabetes, colorectal cancer, bladder cancer, inflammatory bowel diseases, and diverticular disease, are on the rise, leading to an increased demand for IV fluid monitoring devices. According to The World Bank Group, the global diabetic population is projected to reach 700 million by 2045, increasing the risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end-stage renal disease (ESRD). The aging population, which is more susceptible to chronic diseases, is also growing rapidly, with approximately 910 million people aged 65 and above expected by 2030. Obesity is another factor contributing to the increasing incidence of chronic diseases and the subsequent demand for IV fluid monitoring devices. As the global population ages and the prevalence of chronic diseases continues to rise, the market for IV fluid monitoring devices is expected to grow steadily during the forecast period.

The Intravenous (IV) Fluid Monitoring Devices market is witnessing significant growth in the acute care hospitals due to the rising prevalence of hospital-acquired and healthcare-associated infections. Cutting-edge technologies like sensors and electronic devices are being integrated into infusion systems to ensure efficacy, safety, and efficiency. Biodegradable materials are gaining popularity to reduce medical and electronic waste, and minimize the carbon footprint. Pharmaceutical companies are investing in these devices to prevent overdoses and underdoses, while biomedical technology advances continue to improve patient care. Telemedicine systems, including remote consultation, videoconferencing, and continuous monitoring, are enhancing patient education and convenience in home care for chronic diseases like cancer. Wireless IV fluid transfer systems and desktop or portable devices are improving healthcare infrastructure in hospitals and clinics, as well as Ambulatory Surgery Centers (ASCs).

Discover a Comprehensive 360 Market Analysis: Understand the Impact of AI. For detailed information- Request Sample!

Market Challenges

The Intravenous (IV) Fluid Monitoring Devices market encompasses Class II medical devices, as categorized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). These devices include subcutaneous, implanted, infusion port catheters, infusion pumps, percutaneous, and long-term IV catheters. Due to the greater risk they pose compared to Class I devices, manufacturers face stringent regulations. The FDA implements special controls, requiring special labeling, adherence to international and mandatory performance standards, and post-market surveillance. Pre-market notification via 510(k) clearance submission and FDA review is mandatory. Non-compliance with regulations may result in product recalls, negatively impacting market growth. Approximately 56,000 adverse events related to infusion systems were reported between 2005 and 2009, including injuries and deaths. Common causes were software defects, user interface issues, and mechanical or electrical failure. Software errors led to over- or under-infusion of medication, while improper programming resulted in inappropriate dosing. Mechanical or electrical failures included pump housing breakage, premature battery failure, and sparks or pump fires. These complications pose risks, such as over- and under-administration of critical fluids, negatively affecting market growth. In December 2022 , Teleflex Inc and Arrow International LLC recalled Arrow MAC Two-Lumen Central Venous Access and Pressure Injectable Arrowg+ard Blue Plus Three-Lumen Central Venous Catheter (CVC) Kits due to serious injury or death risks. This Class I recall underscores the importance of adhering to regulations to mitigate risks and ensure patient safety.

, Teleflex Inc and Arrow International LLC recalled Arrow MAC Two-Lumen Central Venous Access and Pressure Injectable Arrowg+ard Blue Plus Three-Lumen Central Venous Catheter (CVC) Kits due to serious injury or death risks. This Class I recall underscores the importance of adhering to regulations to mitigate risks and ensure patient safety. The Iv Fluid Monitoring Devices market is witnessing significant growth due to increasing demand from intensive care units, cardiology, surgery, and hospitals. However, high therapy costs remain a challenge. Historic growth analysis reveals a steady increase in demand, driven by developments in infusion solutions, consumables, cleaning supplies, suture materials, surgical tools, ostomy care, anesthesia, and dialysis. Strategic actions like contractual agreements, investments, and partnerships with medical products companies, clinics, nursing homes, rehab centers, and alternative sites are key developmental strategies. Affordable products made of materials like natural rubber latex are essential to expand the global footprint. Direct sales teams and independent distributors, along with drug wholesalers and specialty pharmacies, are crucial channels for reaching customers. In summary, the Iv Fluid Monitoring Devices market presents actionable insights for stakeholders in the medical supplies industry.

For more insights on driver and challenges - Download a Sample Report

Segment Overview

This intravenous (iv) fluid monitoring devices market report extensively covers market segmentation by

End-user

1.1 Hospitals and clinics

1.2 ASCs

1.3 Home care

Type

2.1 Desktop

2.2 Portable

Geography

3.1 North America

3.2 Europe

3.3 Asia

3.4 Rest of World (ROW)

1.1 Hospitals and clinics- The IV fluid monitoring devices market is primarily driven by the demand from hospitals and clinics. Large hospitals, with over 500 beds, are significant buyers due to their high patient volume and advanced medical infrastructure. These hospitals generate substantial revenue and procure medical products in bulk. The increasing number of hospital admissions will gradually boost sales of infusion pumps and monitoring devices. Medium-sized hospitals and clinics, with a limited number of beds and decentralized administration, also contribute to market growth. With the trend of clinics collaborating with hospitals, the adoption of IV fluid monitoring devices is increasing in this segment due to improved patient care, favorable reimbursement scenarios, and the conversion of clinics into hospital-based outpatient departments. Despite limited reimbursements, hospitals' technical fees have increased, making the investment in IV fluid monitoring devices more worthwhile. Overall, the growing number of patients in hospitals and clinics will fuel the demand for IV fluid monitoring devices in the global market during the forecast period.

For more information on market segmentation with geographical analysis including forecast (2024-2028) and historic data (2018 - 2022) - Download a Sample Report

Research Analysis

The Iv Fluid Monitoring Devices market encompasses advanced infusion systems designed to ensure the safe and efficient administration of intravenous fluids in acute care hospitals. These devices address the critical issues of hospital-acquired and healthcare-associated infections, which pose significant risks to patient safety. Cutting-edge technologies, such as sensors and electronic devices, play a pivotal role in enhancing the efficacy and safety of iv fluid transfer. The market caters to potential customers in various businesses, including pharmaceutical and healthcare, by addressing concerns of overdose and underdose, contamination issues, and chronic inflammatory conditions. Biodegradable materials and wireless homecare infusion systems are emerging trends in the market, aimed at reducing healthcare spending and improving patient convenience. Infusion therapy devices are essential for infusion treatment and contribute significantly to medical costs during hospital visits.

Market Research Overview

The Intravenous (IV) Fluid Monitoring Devices market is a significant segment of the healthcare industry, focusing on ensuring the efficacy, safety, and efficiency of IV fluid administration in various healthcare settings. These devices play a crucial role in preventing Hospital-Acquired Infections (HAIs) and Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs) in Acute Care Hospitals. Cutting-edge technologies, such as sensors and electronic devices, are revolutionizing IV fluid monitoring, enabling continuous monitoring and remote consultation through telemedicine systems. Biodegradable materials are also gaining popularity to reduce medical and electronic waste, minimizing the carbon footprint. IV Fluid Monitoring Devices are essential in chronic disease management, including cancer treatment, and are increasingly being adopted for home care. New technologies, such as wireless and portable devices, offer accessibility and convenience, enhancing healthcare delivery. However, challenges such as contamination issues, overdose or underdose risks, and potential costs for businesses and patients require ongoing developmental strategies, including contractual agreements, investments, and strategic actions to expand the global footprint and offer affordable products to potential customers. Historic growth analysis reveals a current scenario of significant market expansion, with actionable insights indicating continued growth in the coming years. Healthcare professionals and businesses alike are investing in infusion solutions, consumables, cleaning supplies, suture materials, surgical tools, ostomy care, anesthesia, intensive care, and cardiology applications to improve patient care and reduce healthcare spending.

Table of Contents:

1 Executive Summary

2 Market Landscape

3 Market Sizing

4 Historic Market Size

5 Five Forces Analysis

6 Market Segmentation

End-user

Hospitals And Clinics



ASCs



Home Care

Type

Desktop



Portable

Geography

North America



Europe



Asia



Rest Of World (ROW)

7 Customer Landscape

8 Geographic Landscape

9 Drivers, Challenges, and Trends

10 Company Landscape

11 Company Analysis

12 Appendix

About Technavio

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focuses on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions.

With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

Contacts

Technavio Research

Jesse Maida

Media & Marketing Executive

US: +1 844 364 1100

UK: +44 203 893 3200

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.technavio.com/

SOURCE Technavio
The North Dakota Ethics Commission is investigating whether a Bismarck filmmaker broke lobbying rules before securing grant money from the North Dakota Department of Commerce.

The complaint alleges that Daniel Bielinski, founder of Canticle Productions, acted as an unregistered lobbyist when he hosted Sen. Brad Bekkedahl, R-Williston, at a private dinner and screening of his film End of the Rope on April 14, 2023  a claim Bekkedahl disputes.

The complaint was filed by Matt Fern, also a Bismarck filmmaker, in February.

I want people to know what happened, Fern told the North Dakota Monitor.

Bielinski did not return phone calls or emails seeking comment by publication.

The complaint notes that, on April 29, 2023, Bekkedahl alluded on the Senate floor that a $600,000 grant included in the Department of Commerces budget bill was intended to go to Canticle Productions. Bekkedahl did not mention the company by name.

Theres added funding for a motion picture production and recruitment grant to a production company for another motion picture thats being made in North Dakota, he told fellow lawmakers during a presentation of the bill. Many of the productions from this company have been North Dakota-centrist productions, and this is another one they are bringing online.

Bekkedahl said Thursday he was merely explaining the changes to the bill to the rest of the chamber. He wasnt responsible for adding the motion picture grant to the budget, he said.

It was my job as the chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee to bring that bill to the floor of the Senate on the final day of the session and explain all the 63 amendments that were placed into that bill, he said.

He said he did attend a screening of the film for the legislative assembly, but only because other lawmakers asked him to tag along.

Ferns complaint claims there was a VIP dinner and showing of End of the Rope in Williston on April 14, 2023. It was not clear who was at the dinner and film screening in Williston.

I can tell you that I never had a private dinner with this Daniel Bielinski person, Bekkedahl told the North Dakota Monitor.

Legislative Council records suggest that lawmakers wanted the grant to go to Canticle Productions.

A summary of the 2023-2025 Department of Commerce budget states that the $600,000 grant Adds funding for a motion picture production and recruitment grant to be provided directly to Canticle Productions.

Its not clear who originally introduced the amendment to the budget bill setting aside funding for the grant.

The Department of Commerce budget was signed into law by Gov. Doug Burgum on May 18, 2023.

After a 10-day application window in July, the Department of Commerce awarded the full $600,000 grant to Canticle Productions.

A recent report by the Auditors Office noted that this application period was much shorter than normal for the Department of Commerce, which may have harmed the ability of other companies to compete for the award. The agency, in a statement included in the report, disagreed with that conclusion.

That August, Fern and two dozen other North Dakota filmmakers sent a letter to Burgum criticizing the Legislature and Department of Commerces handling of the grants. The letter questioned whether Canticle Productions had received special treatment from the state government.

Department of Commerce communications manager Kim Schmidt later told Rob Port, an opinion columnist for The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead, that regardless of lawmakers intent the bidding process was authentic and not fixed in Canticles favor.

Bielinski received another $100,000 film grant from the agency in 2021. That grant was not open for a public bid.

Ethics Commission staff began officially investigating the complaint earlier this month, according to a letter obtained by the North Dakota Monitor. Ethics complaints are confidential unless a complaint is found substantiated and the accused has an opportunity to appeal the decision.

Many of us in the North Dakota film community are shocked at the lack of transparency weve seen over the past few years, Fern said in a Wednesday announcement about the complaint. Were relieved that the North Dakota Ethics Commission and Auditor are asking deeper questions about how film and TV grant funds are awarded and hope that the result will be more opportunity for the many talented filmmakers in North Dakota.

Fern said he met with representatives from the governors office and Department of Commerce on Monday to discuss the grants.

Mike Nowatzki, spokesperson for the governors office, said in an email that the purpose of the meeting was to ensure an open dialogue and discuss potential ways to improve the process for awarding future grant funding should it become available.

The state also expressed an eagerness to hear filmmakers ideas for growing the film industry in North Dakota, Nowatzki added. He said the meeting was scheduled three weeks prior.

The Department of Commerce did not respond to a request for comment by publication time.
CHICAGO, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Alzheimer's Association welcomes today's decision by the United Kingdom's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to approve Leqembi (lecanemab) for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. However, while celebrating this milestone  the first Alzheimer's disease modifying treatment approved in the U.K.  the decision by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to deny access through the National Health Service (NHS) will deepen global health inequity.

"Today is a day of mixed emotions for many in the U.K.," said Joanne Pike, DrPH, Alzheimer's Association president and CEO. "Today's approval decision could provide people living with this fatal and devastating disease the possibility of more time, but this is only possible if people have access to this treatment."

In its decision, MHRA confirms what the scientific community and multiple other health regulatory agencies have long known  lecanemab is safe, effective and beneficial for people in the early stages of Alzheimer's or living with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). The U.K. joins the U.S., China, South Korea, Israel, Hong Kong and Japan in its approval of Leqembi.

"It is baffling that the NICE has decided to deny its taxpayers the option of treatment. It is out-of-step with the science, it is in contrast to the decisions of other regulatory agencies, including here in the U.S., and it is just plain wrong," said Pike. "We strongly urge the NICE to change its decision immediately."

Leqembi works by targeting amyloid beta, the primary component of amyloid plaques, which are a disease-defining hallmark in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease. Well-conducted clinical trials clearly demonstrate that removing amyloid from the brain provides measurable, meaningful benefit in people with early Alzheimer's.

"Despite the setback of lack of coverage, today's approval is an important milestone for Alzheimer's treatment that should be celebrated. Still, more therapies that target the disease from all angles are needed," Pike added. "We just heard many exciting advancements in Alzheimer's and dementia therapies and diagnostic tools at a record breaking Alzheimer's Association International Conference  (AAIC) and know the future of Alzheimer's and dementia treatment is promising."

About the Alzheimer's Association

The Alzheimer's Association is a worldwide voluntary health organization dedicated to Alzheimer's care, support and research. Our mission is to lead the way to end Alzheimer's and all other dementia  by accelerating global research, driving risk reduction and early detection, and maximizing quality care and support. Our vision is a world without Alzheimer's and all other dementia. Visit alz.org or call 800.272.3900.

SOURCE Alzheimer's Association
Making What You're Craving, the Fast-Growing, Fast-Casual Middle Eastern Eatery OSMOW'S Shawarma Opens Three New Locations in Florida, Virginia and Michigan

TORONTO, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - Shawarma lovers will want to be among the first 200 guests in line at the three newest OSMOW'S Shawarma locations opening in the coming weeks:

Sawgrass Mills Mall West Dining Pavilion, 12801 West Sunrise Blvd., Sunrise, Florida , 33323

, 33323 9685 Liberia Ave., Suite 105, Manassas, Virginia , 20110

, 20110 3927 28th St. S.E., Grand Rapids, Michigan , 49512, in the East Paris Shoppes Shopping Center

Making what you're craving, Osmow's Shawarma (CNW Group/Osmows Shawarma)

OSMOW'S Shawarma will treat the first 200 customers to a FREE Regular Chicken ON THE ROX, a signature dish featuring finely carved chicken shawarma from the rotisserie and grilled to perfection and served on a bed of seasoned rice, topped off with famous Garlic Sauce, Tahini and Sumac.

Experience the bold, flavorful dishes that have made OSMOW'S Shawarma a favorite choice across North America. Opening day celebrations offer a chance to meet the Franchisee owners, be featured on OSMOW'S Shawarma popular social channels, win prizes and join the fast food feeding frenzy driving OSMOW'S rapid expansion across the continent!

Celebrated for its shawarma specialties, the upbeat, casual eatery is North America's largest Middle Eastern restaurant chain, loved by loyal fans that look for either meat or vegetarian/vegan-based protein options. OSMOW'S Shawarma brings its modern take on classic Middle Eastern/Mediterranean dishes for vibrant communities ready to be served!

OSMOW'S Shawarma chooses locations where its unique spin on shawarma and Middle Eastern street food will be loved. A fresh, vibrant atmosphere means guests can enjoy a wide variety of dishes, including the famous Chicken Shawarma, which is marinated to perfection and served in pita wraps, salads, ON THE ROX (rice) or ON THE STIX (fries). The menu also includes keto-friendly options, protein choices and customizable meals, ensuring there's something for everyone.

"We are thrilled to bring OSMOW'S Shawarma to three great new locations in the coming days and weeks," said Ben Osmow, CEO & Head of Franchising. "Our grand openings are about sharing our food, our stories and our excitement for new beginnings in great locations."

OSMOW'S Shawarma has grown to almost 180 locations and counting across North America by offering fresh, flavorful Middle Eastern cuisine that appeals to a wide audience, from food enthusiasts to families and athletes.

View the extensive and flexible OSMOW'S Shawarma menu at osmows.com/menu/ . For more information about OSMOW'S Shawarma, visit osmows.com and follow @osmowsus and @osmowsshawarma on all popular social media channels.

About OSMOW'S

Founded in 2001 by Sam Osmow, the first OSMOW'S restaurant was located in Streetsville, Ontario, Canada and remains a successful family-led franchise operation to this day. Sam saw an opportunity to bring his Egyptian roots to the North American landscape blending traditional Egyptian cuisine balanced with a modern palate. Filling a void in the current fast-casual culinary marketplace, OSMOW'S flavorful dishes with signature sauces such as the fan-favorite garlic sauce keeps bringing customers back to satisfy their cravings. OSMOW'S has grown to 180 locations and continues to expand across North America.

SOURCE Osmows Shawarma
ALPHARETTA, Ga., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Arclin will expand its North American production capacity for methylamines and dimethylformamide (DMF) with a major investment at its West Virginia manufacturing facility.

Arclin Amines, based in Belle, W.Va., is the sole producer of methylamides in North America and has experienced increased demand as industries shift toward domestic production. In response, planning commenced in late 2023 to boost methylamine production capacity by 35% and DMF capacity by 100%. Additionally, the company is considering the installation of formamide production capabilities to meet new demand in the United States.

"This investment speaks to Arclin's excitement and commitment to the methylamines and derivatives business," said Jake Elston, Senior Vice President of Diversified Materials. "The additional capacity will allow us to meet growing demand across a variety of critical industries including pharmaceuticals, nutrition, water treatment, and electronics and further promote our company goal to diversify our product offerings to the market."

Asset installation is slated to begin in 2025, with all new production capacities expected to be operational by the end of 2026

"We are proud to play a pivotal role in expanding the production of methylamine and methylamide products for our customers," said Alicha Hunt, Plant Manager at Arclin Amines. "This expansion not only reflects our dedication to meeting the growing needs of our customers but also showcases the exceptional work and commitment of our Belle facility workforce. We're excited to enhance our production capacity and continue delivering high-quality products that support critical sectors in North America."

Arclin Amines Facility

Arclin Amines production is located in Belle, West Virginia. We are a key producer of methylamines -monomethylamine (MMA), dimethylamine (DMA) and trimethylamine (TMA) - and the sole North American producer of methylamides - dimethylformamide (DMF) and dimethylacetamide (DMAc). Found in a wide array of industries, from agriculture to electronics, our chemical intermediates help create many products used across the globe every day.

About Arclin

Arclin is a leading materials science and manufacturer of polymer technologies and engineered products for the construction, agriculture, transportation infrastructure, weather & fire protection, pharmaceutical, nutrition, electronics, design, and other industries. Headquartered in Alpharetta, Georgia, Arclin has offices and manufacturing facilities throughout the U.S., Canada, and U.K. and manufactures for customers worldwide. More information at www.arclin.com.

SOURCE Arclin
VANCOUVER, BC, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - Aris Mining Corporation (Aris Mining or the Company) (TSX: ARIS) (NYSE-A: ARMN) announces that it has published its 2023 Sustainability Report, which has been prepared in accordance with the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) for the metals and mining industry.

Neil Woodyer, CEO of Aris Mining, commented, "We are pleased to present Aris Mining's 2023 Sustainability Report. In 2023, we made significant progress in our Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) initiatives, adhering to industry best practices for the benefit of our stakeholders. Of particular importance in this regard is our Contract Mining Partners (CMP) program, which contributes over 40% of our current gold production and is vital to our success in Colombia.

By partnering with CMPs, we develop a shared value initiative that not only generates profitability for both parties, but also presents a solution to the environmental and social complexities arising from informal and illegal mining that has historically been an issue in Colombia. By helping to formalize more than 3,000 miners to date and planning to formalize an additional 500 to 1,000 miners in 2024, we are driving responsible and safety focused mining practices that align with government policies, promote economic development, and strengthen the social fabric in the regions in which we operate while exercising due care for the environment. These partnerships represent the future of mining in Colombia and offer sustainable solutions to the challenges associated with informal and illegal mining."

2023 Sustainability Report Highlights

We established a Management Sustainability Committee, reporting directly to the CEO and the Sustainability Committee of the Board, which has facilitated transparent decision-making and oversight of our sustainability initiatives.

Our participation in the SASB Standards and the Towards Sustainable Mining (TSM) protocols reflect our commitment to rigorous ESG performance standards.

In 2023, we became a member of the United Nations Global Compact, endorsed the United Nations Women's Empowerment Principles and increased the inclusion rate of women in our workforce.

We updated our materiality analysis in 2023 to cover both the Marmato Mine and the Segovia Operations.

We have created an $11 million trust fund dedicated to the environmental rehabilitation of Marmato, which includes the construction of a water treatment plant to treat industrial wastewater from our operation.

trust fund dedicated to the environmental rehabilitation of Marmato, which includes the construction of a water treatment plant to treat industrial wastewater from our operation. We have invested $10.2 million in social and environmental projects, highlighting our commitment to creating shared value in the communities in which we operate and aligning with the United Nations' Sustainability Development Goals. These investments prioritize education, socioeconomic development, infrastructure, environmental conservation, and gender equity and inclusion.

in social and environmental projects, highlighting our commitment to creating shared value in the communities in which we operate and aligning with the United Nations' Sustainability Development Goals. These investments prioritize education, socioeconomic development, infrastructure, environmental conservation, and gender equity and inclusion. Following the adoption of the Vision Zer000 safety program in 2022, we achieved a 75% reduction in Lost Time Injuries.

Continuing with our commitment to academic excellence, we awarded 875 Colibri scholarships at the Spanish / English bilingual school in Segovia, La Salada. The school recently celebrated its first graduation class of over 50 students.

Aris Mining's 2023 Sustainability Report can be found in the Sustainability section of our website at Sustainability Reports - Aris Mining Corporation (aris-mining.com). We welcome feedback from all stakeholders. Please direct communications or requests for further information to [email protected].

About Aris Mining

Aris Mining is a gold producer in the Americas, currently operating two mines with expansions underway in Colombia. The Segovia Operations and the Marmato Upper Mine produced 226,000 ounces of gold in 2023. Aris Mining is targeting a production rate of approximately 500,000 ounces of gold per year in the second half of 2026, following a ramp-up period after the Segovia mill expansion, scheduled for completion in Q1 2025, and the Marmato Lower Mine's first gold pour in late 2025. Aris Mining also operates the 51% owned Soto Norte joint venture, where Feasibility level studies are underway on a new, smaller scale development plan, with results expected in early 2025. In Guyana, Aris Mining is advancing Toroparu, a gold/copper project.

Aris Mining intends to pursue acquisitions and other growth opportunities to unlock value through scale and diversification. Aris Mining promotes the formalization of traditional miners into contract mining partners as this process enables all miners to operate in a legal, safe and responsible manner that protects them and the environment.

Additional information on Aris Mining can be found at www.aris-mining.com, www.sedarplus.ca, and on www.sec.gov.

Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains "forward-looking information" or forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian and U.S. securities legislation. All statements included herein, other than statements of historical fact, including, without limitation, statements relating to formalizing miners and our partnerships with CMPs representing the future of mining in Colombia are forward-looking. When used herein, forward looking terminology such as "expect", "plan", "anticipate", "estimate", "may", "will", "should", "intend", "believe", and similar expressions, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on estimates and assumptions made by the Company in light of its experience and its perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments, as well as other factors that the Company believes are appropriate in the circumstances. Many factors could cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including those described in the "Risk Factors" section of the Company's most recent AIF and in the Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three and six months ended June 30, 2023, which are available on the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and in its filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission at www.sec.gov. These factors should be considered carefully, and readers should not place undue reliance on the Company's forward-looking statements. The Company has no intention and undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE Aris Mining Corporation
Brady and the Ad Council's new "End Family Fire" campaign offers critical education on safe storage at a moment when increased rates of new gun ownership meets alarmingly high numbers of injury and death from firearms

NEW YORK, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, as a part of the national, award-winning End Family Fire program, Brady: United Against Gun Violence and the Ad Council have released a new public service advertisement (PSA) developed by advertising agency, Pereira O'Dell, in an effort to raise awareness among the millions of new gun owners in the U.S. about the importance of secure firearm storage to prevent gun-related deaths and injuries. This comes at a critical moment as firearms have become the number one killer of children and teens in the U.S. and secure gun storage is proven to help protect our loved ones and communities.

According to recent data, approximately 7.5 million adults in America acquired their first firearm between 2019-2021, with 5.4 million adults bringing firearms into homes that were previously gun free. This spike in first-time gun ownership tracks with record high gun deaths with more Americans dying from gun violence in 2020 and 2021 than in any prior year on record. What many individuals don't know is that simply storing a firearm securely is a proven method of preventing gun-related deaths and injuries, including unintentional shootings, gun suicide, and intentional shootings. For example, in 75% of youth firearm suicides for which the gun storage method could be identified, the gun was stored loaded and unlocked. Additionally, 76% of school shooters under the age of 18 accessed the gun from the home of family or friends. Tragedies like these could be prevented by limiting firearm access through secure storage.

The new PSA campaign is focused on reaching audiences of new gun owners (defined as U.S. adults who acquired their first firearm in 2020 or later) who, according to a 2023 survey fielded by C+R Research on behalf of the Ad Council, overwhelmingly acquire firearms for personal protection. This same study also revealed that only 54% of first-time gun owners report storing all firearms in the home locked and unloaded, demonstrating a critical need for targeted messaging for these audiences on the importance of safe storage.

Developed pro bono by full-service advertising agency, Pereira O'Dell, the new campaign illustrates the kinds of safety threats that improperly stored firearms can pose within the home, especially to children. Filmed from the point of view of unsecured firearms in common places where many new gun owners keep their firearms, the video demonstrates that gun owners seeking to protect their loved ones might overlook the threat of family fire, or a shooting that results from someone misusing an unsecured firearm from the home.

WATCH THE PSA HERE

However, it's not only this rise in firearm ownership and devastating impact of gun violence that is notable, but also the demographics of those more recently acquiring firearms. According to a 2021 survey from the Annals of Internal Medicine, nearly half of new gun owners are female (47 percent); 4 in 10 first time gun owners were between the ages of 30-44; and 20 percent of new gun owners were Black and 20 percent were Hispanic between 2019-2021. This is a significant shift from historical demographics of gun owners which have been majority white and male. The new PSA intentionally speaks directly to these audiences of new gun owners, encouraging them to keep their homes and communities safe.

"Gun violence has deeply affected communities across the country, becoming a national public health crisis that needs urgent action," said the Ad Council's Chief Campaign Development Officer Michelle Hillman. "Ensuring firearms are stored safely and securely in the home is a proven solution in helping to reduce potential injuries and deaths from a gun. And with a recent surge in first time gun ownership, it's critical that these audiences are reminded of best practices to store their firearms responsibly. Together with Brady and Pereira O'Dell, we're proud to be launching this powerful new work that will inspire millions across the nation and help save lives."

"Gun owners want to put their family and safety first, and that is admirable," said Brady President Kris Brown. "Our polling shows that nearly 80% of people who recently bought their first firearm did so for personal safety and often a conviction to protect their family and loved ones. But given our country's record-level spikes in gun-related deaths and injuries from with the home  including unintentional shootings of children and firearm suicide  it is crucial that first-time gun owners learn how to store their weapons safely. By sharing messages on safe firearm storage, we can prevent tragedies of family fire."

"With the rise in first-time gun ownership across the U.S., it's more important than ever to ensure that these new gun owners understand the life-saving importance of secure storage," said Pereira O'Dell's Chief Creative Officer Jason Apaliski. "Creativity can be a powerful force for change, especially when it comes to critical issues like gun safety. Through this campaign, we aim to address the potential dangers of improperly stored firearms and to inspire responsible gun ownership that protects families and communities. We're proud to partner with Brady and the Ad Council to help make a real impact on reducing gun-related tragedies."

For the last six years, End Family Fire has educated gun owners around the importance of securely storing firearms. According to an Ad Council study, respondents who are aware of End Family Fire are three times more likely to report seeking information on secure gun storage in the past 12 months, compared to those not aware (36% aware vs. 11% not aware; Source: Ad Council online survey of 1,815 U.S. adults who reside in gun-owning households, fielded by Ipsos April 1, 2024 - June 30, 2024). The End Family Fire program brings gun owners into the conversation about gun violence in the U.S. and makes them part of the solution -- driving a culture of responsible gun ownership.

To date, End Family Fire has garnered over $124 million in donated media and over 5.3 billion impressions. This new creative aimed at reaching first-time gun owners will run across broadcast TV, social, digital, online video, radio, out of home and print media nationwide, in time and space donated by the media. Additional forthcoming audio assets will be produced by SiriusXM Media's Studio Resonate and supported by donated inventory. To learn more about End Family Fire and how to promote responsible gun ownership, visit EndFamilyFire.org.

About End Family Fire

End Family Fire, a joint effort from Brady and the Ad Council, encourages safe gun storage by putting a name to the preventable tragedies that occur when guns in the home are misused. "Family fire," a term developed for the campaign, refers to a shooting that results from someone misusing an unsecured firearm from the home. This includes children as well as those who display behavior that indicates they could harm themselves or others. The national public education program brings awareness to the issue of family fire, gives gun owners a role in preventing firearm death and injuries, and encourages a national dialogue around safe storage practicesall of which can help prevent tragedies of family fire.

End Family Fire (born out of the ASKing Saves Kids, or ASK, campaign) was rated the only effective national safe storage education effort by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) in an analysis that included programs from notable gun organizations across the country.

About Brady

In America, there are more guns than there are people. And that's matched with a gun homicide rate that is 26 times greater than that of other high-income countries. Brady  the nation's oldest gun violence prevention organization  works to enact reasonable solutions to free America from gun violence. We tackle three critical areas: change the laws, change the industry, and change the culture. This three-point strategy is unique in the movement and follows the roadmap behind other successful public health campaigns, like those around youth smoking, seatbelt use, and drunk driving. By changing hearts and minds and fostering a culture of responsible gun use and ownership, we can free America from gun violence. Join the movement at bradyunited.org.

About 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 X, and view campaign creative on YouTube.

SOURCE The Ad Council
Private Groups Offered a Head Start on Booking Adventures in Portugal, Croatia to Montenegro, Basque Country, Dolomites, Scottish Highlands and More

BERKELEY, Calif., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Backroads, the leader in active travel, today announced the release of Private Reserve, a collection of trips and dates available exclusively for private bookings for a limited time, through December 31. These hand-picked Biking, Walking & Hiking and Multi-Adventure trips offer departures for the company's most sought-after European locations during the highly requested travel months in the fall. Destinations include Portugal's Algarve & Alentejo, Spanish Pyrenees to Costa Brava, German & Austrian Alps, Scottish Highlands, the Dolomites and Basque Country.

Backroads guests enjoying a private bike tour in Croatia.

Backroads Private Reserve caters to the unique needs of private groups, giving them first access to some of the company's most popular European trips before opening the dates to the public. With competition for travel datesespecially in Septemberat an all-time high, Backroads decided to offer a block of departures solely for private bookings. The company has been running trips for private groups for over four decades and recognizes the logistics involved in coordinating and booking a trip for multiple people with different schedules. Private Reserve gives private groups more options for active travel and more time to get members onboard, and offers a remarkable experience for groups, including smaller parties. While Backroads has over 6,000 dates available for booking, more people than ever are choosing to go private and these new dates are expected to fill fast.

Private Reserve trips for 2025 are available for booking now through December 31, 2024; on January 1, 2025, any unreserved dates will open to the general public.

Biking

Walking & Hiking

Multi-Adventure

"We know the effort it takes to corral your private group, choose a destination and settle on a workable date. We also know what it feels like when everything finally comes together, only to fall apart when you discover that trip has been booked by someone else in the meantime," said Backroads Founder, President and CEO, Tom Hale. "We created Private Reserve to give private groups first crack at those hard-to-get locations and datesespecially those coveted September departuresgiving organizers a little more breathing room and less competition for preferred dates. And with our online private trips search tool, reserving that ideal date for your group is a snap."

For more information on Backroads' Private Reserve trips, visit Backroads.com or call 800-GO-ACTIVE.

About Backroads

Backroads was founded in 1979 by Tom Hale and has been a leading innovator in active and adventure travel for over 45 years. Guests join Backroads to bike, hike and so much moreon expertly planned active adventures highlighting the unique character of each destination. The company offers multiple ways to go active: Biking, Walking & Hiking and Multi-Adventure tours; Private Trips, Women's Adventures and Family Trips designed for three distinct age groups: Families with Kids & Teens (best for ages 717; all kids 4+ welcome); Families with Older Teens & 20s (for ages 17+; younger siblings 14+ welcome); and Families with Young Adults 20s & Beyond (for ages 20+; younger siblings 17+ welcome), plus Active Ocean & River Cruises and Dolce Tempo trips for travel at a more relaxed pace but still decidedly active. Backroads also offers Safari, Culinary, Home Base and Snow Adventures. Repeat guests and referrals from past guests make up many of the travelers that Backroads hosts each year in hundreds of locations across the globe. For more information, please visit backroads.com or call 800-462-2848.

Backroads Media Contact

Liz Einbinder

[email protected]

510-292-2753

SOURCE Backroads
Emphasizes Value of Domestic Production of Critical Medical Devices

FRANKLIN LAKES, N.J., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company) (NYSE: BDX), a leading global medical technology company, today celebrated the 75th anniversary of its manufacturing operations in Columbus, Neb., and reinforced the need for and value of domestic production for critical medical devices.

BD first opened its doors in Columbus, Nebraska in 1949 with 15 employees in this 25,000 sq. ft. facility, manufacturing glass fever thermometers.

The milestone was celebrated in a ceremony recognizing the achievements of the site and its 2,100 employees. Alongside BD business leaders were Nebraska state and federal officials, including Gov. Jim Pillen, Sen. Pete Ricketts, U.S. Rep. Mike Flood, Mayor Jim Bulkley, the Columbus Chamber of Commerce and others.

"It's critical we support domestic manufacturing like BD's facility in Columbus in order to have a resilient domestic supply chain for critical medical products," said Sen. Ricketts. "BD's commitment to the state of Nebraska is providing jobs for generations of Nebraskans and playing an important role in protecting our national security and public health. I appreciate BD's continued support of local businesses and their investments in its Columbus operations, which includes $200 million in capital investment over the last four years."

"We are incredibly proud of the people of Columbus and Platte County on the great impact they have made the last 75 years helping BD become a global leader developing and making medical devices," said Gov. Pillen. "From my seat, it is clear BD's 75 years of success is traced to the people of Columbus and Nebraska."

BD Columbus opened in 1949 with 25,000 square feet and a staff of 15 employees manufacturing glass fever thermometers. Today, the company employs 2,100 associates in Columbus across three locations and one million square feet. It is one of largest plants in BD's network and is one of only two remaining large-scale syringe manufacturing sites in the U.S., the other being BD's site in Canaan, Conn.

"For 75 years, Columbus has been serving a critical role in BD's global supply chain producing billions of vital medical supplies each year to ensure health care systems can operate efficiently and take care of their patients," said Eric Borin, president of BD Medication Delivery Solutions. "BD has risen to the occasion time and again to meet demand for these essential products. We saw this in the 1950s with the polio vaccine trials, H1N1, COVID-19 and most recently with market disruptions caused by other foreign suppliers. BD's U.S. manufacturing teams right here in Columbus, along with our site in Canaan, have answered the call yet again by boosting domestic syringe production by 50% for the first nine months of 2024 to help improve supply continuity to U.S. health care providers and their patients."

The company's rich history in Columbus started after World War II when the U.S. government requested that the company diversify the geography of where goods were produced and help strengthen the resiliency of the medical supply chain, which still holds true to this day. Henry Becton and Fairleigh Dickinson Jr. traveled to 30 states before deciding on Platte County and the town of Columbus, after being impressed by the people's work ethic and state's eagerness to diversify from its agricultural base.

As part of the celebration, BD recognized their longest tenured associates in Columbus, including two employees who have been with the company for 47 and 48 years, and 164 who have been with the company for over 25 years. Learn more about these associates and their stories here.

About BD

BD is one of the largest global medical technology companies in the world and is advancing the world of health by improving medical discovery, diagnostics and the delivery of care. The company supports the heroes on the frontlines of health care by developing innovative technology, services and solutions that help advance both clinical therapy for patients and clinical process for health care providers. BD and its more than 70,000 employees have a passion and commitment to help enhance the safety and efficiency of clinicians' care delivery process, enable laboratory scientists to accurately detect disease and advance researchers' capabilities to develop the next generation of diagnostics and therapeutics. BD has a presence in virtually every country and partners with organizations around the world to address some of the most challenging global health issues. By working in close collaboration with customers, BD can help enhance outcomes, lower costs, increase efficiencies, improve safety and expand access to health care. For more information on BD, please visit bd.com or connect with us on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/bd1/, X (formerly Twitter) @BDandCo or Instagram @becton_dickinson.

Contacts:





Media : Investors : Fallon McLoughlin Adam Reiffe BD Public Relations BD Investor Relations 201.258.0361 201.847.6927 [email protected] [email protected]

SOURCE BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company)
DUBAI, UAE, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Ben Zhou, co-founder and CEO of Bybit , the world's second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, shared his vision on the evolution of the blockchain landscape at the recent Asia Blockchain Summit. Attendees at the summit, a premier gathering of industry leaders and enthusiasts, listened closely to Zhou's reflections on the future of crypto.

Zhou, a veteran in the industry, recounted his entry into the blockchain space during the 2017 ICO boom. "When I first joined the industry, it was a whirlwind of decentralized innovations," Zhou remarked. "We saw proposals for everything from decentralized KYC to cell phones. It was chaotic, yet it laid the foundation for a vision of a decentralized future."

Reflecting on Bybit's early days, Zhou highlighted the challenges of building a platform amid the rapid changes in the market. "Starting an exchange in 2018 was like navigating a storm. Our goal was to build a robust infrastructure that could handle the market's volatility," Zhou explained. "The real breakthrough came when we expanded our offerings and evolved into a super app. This pivot allowed us to meet the diverse needs of our clients."

Zhou emphasized Bybit's commitment to remaining at the forefront of industry innovation. "Our philosophy is to act as the backbone of the industry," he stated. "We are dedicated to predicting and adapting to new trends, whether integrating decentralized exchanges or advanced options trading. We want to be the first to offer solutions that our clients need."

On regulatory landscapes, Zhou shared Bybit's approach to compliance. "We aim to be transparent and legally compliant. Our work with local regulators is crucial to ensure that we build a sustainable and responsible platform," Zhou noted. "For instance, with our new offices in the Netherlands, we've navigated a complex regulatory environment to ensure that we meet local requirements while maintaining global standards."

Looking ahead, Zhou expressed optimism about the future of Bybit and the broader crypto ecosystem. "Our mission is to empower our users with the tools they need to succeed in the evolving world of crypto," he said. "Whether through advanced trading or new accessible features, we are committed to paving the way for a more inclusive and innovative future."

The Asia Blockchain Summit, known for fostering collaboration and knowledge sharing, was ideal for Zhou's discussion. As Bybit continues to grow and adapt, Zhou's insights underscore the company's dedication to shaping the future of blockchain technology.

#Bybit / #TheCryptoArk

About Bybit

Bybit is the world's second-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, serving over 40 million users. Established in 2018, Bybit provides a professional platform where crypto investors and traders can find an ultra-fast matching engine, 24/7 customer service, and multilingual community support. Bybit is a proud partner of Formula One's reigning Constructors' and Drivers' champions: the Oracle Red Bull Racing team.

For more details about Bybit, please visit Bybit Press .

For media inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

For more information, please visit: https://www.bybit.com

For updates, please follow: Bybit's Communities and Social Media

Discord | Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Reddit | Telegram | TikTok | X | Youtube

SOURCE Bybit
Legendary veteran performer is recognized as one of the most streamed creators in SoundExchange history

WASHINGTON, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- SoundExchange, the premier music tech organization powering the future of music, announced today that Billy Joel has been honored with the SoundExchange Hall of Fame Award, recognizing his stature as one of the most streamed creators in the organization's 20+ year history of administering digital performance royalties.

Photo: Billy Joel receives the SoundExchange Hall of Fame Award.

"Billy Joel is an American musical icon, a performer with an unrivaled catalog of hits and beloved deep cuts. He has not only maintained, but increased his popularity over time, winning new generations of fans with his indelible songs and performances," said Michael Huppe, President and CEO of SoundExchange. "Billy has not only been a significant presence through nearly every major shift in physical musical formats, but he is also one of the digital era's most streamed artists. We are thrilled and honored to present Billy Joel with the SoundExchange Hall of Fame Award."

Joel has been a SoundExchange member since SoundExchange's inception in 2003. In addition to his substantial United States streaming history, Joel is an international superstar and entrusts SoundExchange to collect his neighboring rights royalties worldwide through more than 65 agreements with counterpart organizations, covering 88% of the global neighboring rights market.

About Billy Joel

Billy Joel is one of the world's most iconic musicians, having received The Kennedy Center Honors, one of the United States' top cultural awards, in December 2013. He is also the recipient of six GRAMMY Awards, including the prestigious Grammy Legend Award. Joel has been inducted into the Songwriter's Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and has received numerous industry awards including a Tony Award for Movin' Out, a Broadway musical based on Joel's music. For his accomplishments as a musician and as a humanitarian, Joel was honored as the 2002 MusiCares Person of the Year by the MusiCares Foundation and the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences.

In November 2014, Billy Joel received both The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song which honors living musical artists' lifetime achievement in promoting the genre of song as a vehicle of cultural understanding; entertaining and informing audiences; and inspiring new generations, and the once-in-a-century ASCAP Centennial Award, which is presented to American music icons in recognition of their incomparable accomplishments in their respective music genres and beyond. In 2016, the Library of Congress selected "Piano Man" for preservation in the National Recording Registry for its "cultural, historic, and artistic significance."

About SoundExchange

SoundExchange is the premier music tech organization on a mission to power the future of music. It was independently formed in 2003 to build a fairer, simpler, and more efficient music industry through technology, data, and advocacy. The only organization designated by the U.S. government to administer the Section 114 sound recording license, SoundExchange collects and distributes digital performance royalties on behalf of 700,000 music creators and growing. Through proprietary music tech solutions that turn data into accurate revenue, SoundExchange has paid more than $11 billion in distributions to date. For more information, visit soundexchange.com.

SOURCE SoundExchange
The portfolio features five projects across the state which allow for uninterrupted farming operations and animal grazing

BOSTON, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- BlueWave, a leading solar developer and owner in the Northeast U.S., today celebrated five projects across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts that incorporate the company's innovative dual-use solar design and operate under the Solar Massachusetts Renewable Target (SMART) Program. The projects, which BlueWave owns and operates, are located in Palmer, Haverhill, Dighton and Douglas, and are adding 19.8 MWDC of generation and 29.7 MWhr of storage to the power grid, the equivalent of 13,000 tons of carbon emissions avoided annually.

"As a Boston-based company and certified B Corp, serving our surrounding communities is in our DNA and continues to be the driving force behind the solar development decisions we make," said Trevor Hardy, CEO and Co-Founder of BlueWave. "The amount of energy that is being generated by these projects is meaningful, ensuring greater access to community solar projects and farmers' continued success with their land."

With a statewide goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2050 underway, renewable energy, including BlueWave's solar and solar-plus-storage projects, will play a critical role in helping the Commonwealth and local communities reach net-zero.

"We're excited to see new and innovative clean energy projects being constructed across Massachusetts. Agrivoltaic projects like these are a creative way we can balance our clean energy targets with protecting our agricultural traditions. Congratulations to BlueWave on the launch of this initiative and to Dighton, Douglas, Haverhill, and Palmer for doing their part to fight climate change and lower energy costs for their residents," said Governor Maura Healey.

BlueWave worked directly with farmers to implement innovative dual-use practices that offer real benefits to all parties impacted by the projects, including landowners, farmers, and surrounding community members. A large focus for BlueWave was ensuring that farmers could continue to use their land to the fullest extent. Each of the solar projects are uniquely designed to allow for uninterrupted farming operations beneath the solar arrays with sites featuring a varied selection of crops and pollinator-friendly livestock grazing operations.

"Agrivoltaics provides a pathway for a clean, just energy transition, providing renewable energy in a way that uplifts agricultural operations, creates new opportunities for farmers, and enhances the resilience of rural communities," said Nathan L'Etoile, from American Farmland Trust (AFT). "AFT is proud to be working with an elite few of energy developers, including BlueWave, who are investing in this solution, supporting farmers and landowners, and keeping Massachusetts's precious farmland under production."

Lowell General Hospital has also joined forces with BlueWave for the portfolio, serving as an anchor customer for two project sites in Palmer and Haverhill. Lowell General Hospital's participation as an anchor customer enables low-income residents to engage in clean energy opportunities  specifically, eliminating a financial barrier to support in-state clean energy generation and, in turn, lowering utility bills. As an anchor customer, Lowell General Hospital will receive 50% of the project's energy capacity in the form of community solar bill credits, which can be applied to offset their operation's costs and invest in sustainability projects and will ensure the solar farm remains operational for the intended lifespan.

"Since 1891 when renewable hydropower was helping to grow Lowell into the advanced city that it is today Lowell General Hospital has served the Greater Lowell and surrounding communities with the mission of empowering people to live their best lives," said Kevin Foley, Director of Plant Operations and Property at Lowell General Hospital. "As the anchor customer of a community solar project in partnership with BlueWave, we're able to support our community while lowering costs by utilizing the latest in state-of-the-art renewable solar energy technology, both on and off our campuses.

By signing up for a community solar subscription, residents are lowering their electricity costs and supporting a local solar farm. As the solar farm generates electricity, utilities measure the amount produced and assign that energy a dollar value in the form of a solar credit, which is applied to subscribers' monthly electricity bills, reducing what residents owe.

The projects within the new portfolio are all expected to be operational by the end of 2024. BlueWave is also actively working to further develop projects both within the Commonwealth and in surrounding states. Currently, BlueWave has secured future solar project sites in 11 states with nearly 500 MWDC solar in active development.

To learn more about BlueWave, visit https://bluewave.energy/.

About BlueWave: BlueWave's vision is to protect our planet by transforming access to renewable energy. As a pioneering renewable energy company that develops and owns solar and battery storage projects, BlueWave has developed and built more than 150 MW of solar projects to date and is actively developing battery storage projects to ensure our grid is reliable and efficient in a clean energy future. As built, these projects collectively generate enough solar energy to avoid more than 144,000 metric tons of carbon emissions annually. Our approach to development incorporates land management strategies rooted in conservation and agriculture to create multifunctional systems with a variety of ecological, agricultural and energy benefits.

BlueWave is proud to be a certified B Corp, recognized by B Lab as "Best for the World" in Governance.

About Tufts Medicine Lowell General Hospital: Lowell General Hospital has delivered high-quality and compassionate care since 1891. Our two inpatient hospital campuses, Cancer Center, Heart and Vascular Center, four urgent care locations, affiliated physicians and outpatient facilities provide state-of-the-art technology and a full range of specialty services in the Merrimack Valley.

About American Farmland Trust: American Farmland Trust is the only national organization that takes a holistic approach to agriculture, focusing on the land itself, the agricultural practices used on that land, and the farmers and ranchers who do the work. AFT launched the conservation agriculture movement and continues to raise public awareness through our No Farms, No Food message. Since our founding in 1980, AFT has helped permanently protect over 8 million acres of agricultural lands, advanced environmentally-sound farming practices on millions of additional acres and supported thousands of farm families.

SOURCE BlueWave
Bridge Biotherapeutics Enters into a joint research agreement with the Chinese drug discovery platform company "HitGen" to accelerate the discovery of new drug candidates for a FIC novel cancer therapeutics program

Aims to strengthen its oncology portfolio with a novel drug candidate for newly identified hits from HitGen's proprietary DEL that are expected to exhibit potent anticancer activity

CHENGDU, China, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Bridge Biotherapeutics ("Bridge", KQ288330), a clinical-stage biotech company, announced that it has entered into a joint research agreement with HitGen Inc. ("HitGen", SSE: 688222.SH), a Chinese drug discovery platform company. This collaboration builds on successful initial hit finding and identification work from HitGen's DNA-encoded library (DEL), aiming to further develop the novel hits as promising drug candidates for cancer.

Bridge plans to strengthen its existing oncology portfolio, which is centered on EGFR inhibitors for lung cancer treatment, through new anticancer drug candidates targeting undisclosed targets. Over the past year, the company has established its own analytical methods through preliminary research to discover new targeted anticancer drugs that are expected to show high anticancer effects across various cancer types. With the launch of this joint research with HitGen, it is anticipated that the derivation of effective substances, optimization, and securing of lead compounds will progress rapidly within the next year.

HitGen is a world leader in the development of DEL technology and applications to early-stage small molecule drug discovery. Its platform includes over 1.2 trillion small molecules generated by the DEL technology, and the efficiency of the screening process has made it possible for HitGen to enable drug discovery projects for many organizations around the world. The company has made tremendous improvements over the last few years, making it an integrated drug discovery company focusing on DEL, synthetic therapeutic oligonucleotide (STO), targeted protein degradation (TPD), fragment-based drug discovery and structure-based drug design (FBDD/SBDD).

James Lee, CEO of Bridge Biotherapeutics stated, "By collaborating with HitGen, we will accelerate the discovery of new targeted anticancer drugs." He added, "We will challenge ourselves to develop drugs that can provide anticancer treatment effects even for genetically mutated cancers, which have been difficult to develop until now."

Dr. Jin Li, Chairman of the Board and CEO of HitGen Inc., expressed, " We are pleased to collaborate with Bridge Biotherapeutics team in generating novel drug candidates based on the screening platform we possess," and stated, "We will contribute to the acceleration of new anticancer drug discovery based on the expertise of both companies."

Bridge Biotherapeutics has initiated the fourth cohort in the Phase 1 clinical trial for its leading candidate drug BBT-207 for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer. Through this collaboration with HitGen, the company is embarking on the discovery of new anticancer drugs as part of its efforts to strengthen its cancer portfolio.

About Bridge Biotherapeutics, Inc.

Bridge Biotherapeutics Inc., based in the Republic of Korea and the U.S., is a publicly traded, clinical-stage biotech company founded in 2015. Bridge Biotherapeutics is engaged in the discovery and development of novel therapeutics, focusing on therapeutic areas with high unmet needs, including fibrotic diseases and cancers. The company is developing BBT-877, a novel autotaxin inhibitor for the treatment of fibrotic diseases including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), and BBT-207, a potent targeted cancer therapy for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with EGFR C797S mutations. Learn more at https://www.bridgebiorx.com/en/.

About HitGen Inc.

HitGen Inc. (SSE: 688222.SH), is a drug discovery research company with headquarters in Chengdu, China, and subsidiaries in Cambridge, UK and Houston, USA. HitGen has established leading technology platforms to enable the discovery and optimization of small molecules and nucleic acid drugs. Our key technology platforms include world-leading DNA-encoded library technology (DEL), fragment-based drug discovery and structure-based drug design technologies (FBDD/SBDD), as well as the emerging technology platforms for synthetic therapeutic oligonucleotide technology (STO), and targeted protein degradation technology (TPD). Through our diverse and flexible business models, we have built up collaboration partnership with several hundred biopharmaceutical research organizations worldwide. HitGen has multiple programmes from early discovery to clinical trial stage. For more information about HitGen, please visit www.hitgen.com.

SOURCE HitGen Inc.
The partnership will bring state-of-the-art guest engagement solutions to BWH Hotels across the globe, catering to the expectations of today's modern travelers.

NEW YORK, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- BWH Hotels, a leading global hospitality powerhouse with 19 distinct brands, has chosen Canary Technologies to power its AI-driven Guest Management System. The all-in-one platform will elevate the guest experience and streamline hotel operations across BWH Hotels' portfolio.

This strategic partnership marks a significant milestone by integrating Canary's industry-leading platform and AI-powered solutions with BWH Hotels' renowned hospitality. From Canary's Mobile Check-In to Smart Checkout to Dynamic Upsells, Digital Compendium and Guest Messaging, the guest journey at BWH Hotels is set to become more personalized and efficient.

The partnership will bring state-of-the-art guest engagement solutions to BWH Hotels across the globe. Post this

"Modernizing the guest experience with digital touchpoints is no longer a nice-to-have; it's a necessity," said Harman Singh Narula, CEO and co-founder of Canary Technologies. "We're excited to partner with BWH Hotels to propel hospitality into the digital age and engage guests in more seamless, personalized and delightful ways. This partnership strengthens our commitment to evolving the guest journey."

Under the agreement, BWH Hotels will utilize Canary's industry-leading Guest Engagement Platform, which includes Canary AI, Mobile Check-In, Smart Checkout, Dynamic Upsells, Guest Messaging, Digital Tipping and Digital Compendium. BWH Hotels will be able to manage guest engagement across multiple touch points in one platform that unlocks better guest experiences, increases revenue, and provides smoother staff operations.

"We are excited to partner with Canary to streamline hotel operations and create an elevated, modern and customized guest experience," said Larry Cuculic, President and CEO for BWH Hotels. "This partnership aligns with our commitment to catering to the evolving needs of today's travelers, who increasingly seek technology-driven guest services. We selected Canary after a comprehensive evaluation and believe this collaboration will position BWH Hotels at the forefront of hospitality innovation."

About Canary Technologies

Canary Technologies is modernizing the hotel tech stack with its award-winning end-to-end Guest Management System. Digitizing everything from post-booking through checkout, Canary is trusted by more than 20,000 hoteliers in 80 countries, including leading global brands, such as Marriott International, Four Seasons, Choice Hotels, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, and Intercontinental Hotel Group. Canary is the #1 rated solution on HotelTechReport and was the sole hotel technology company named to Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies in 2023. Canary's solutions eliminate paper processes, boost revenue, increase staff efficiency, improve the guest experience, and reduce chargebacks and payment fraud. Canary's Hotel Management Software includes Mobile Check-In, Smart Checkout, Tablet Registration, Dynamic Upsells, Guest Messaging, Canary AI, and Digital Tipping. Learn more at canarytechnologies.com.

About BWH Hotels

BWH Hotels is a leading, global hospitality enterprise comprised of three hotel companies, including WorldHotels, Best Western Hotels & Resorts and SureStay Hotels. The global enterprise boasts approximately 4,300 hotels in over 100 countries and territories worldwide*. With 19 brands across every chain scale segment, from economy to luxury, BWH Hotels suits the needs of developers and guests in every market.

*Numbers are approximate, may fluctuate, and include hotels currently in the development pipeline.

SOURCE Canary Technologies
Odom succeeds Maria Friedman, who will transition to a senior advisory position

ATLANTA, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cox Enterprises announced that Charles Odom has been named executive vice president of Finance, effective immediately. Odom succeeds Maria Friedman who will transition to a senior advisory position within Cox.

Charles Odom, EVP of Finance, Cox Enterprises

In this role, Odom will add to his Corporate Finance & Treasury responsibilities by also leading Assurance & Enablement and Tax & Accounting Services. His responsibilities will now include oversight of the Cox Enterprises finance function including accounting, tax, audit, treasury, and financial reporting, planning and analysis. He will also be responsible for managing the company's risk management programs and pension investments for Cox Enterprises and all its subsidiaries.

"Maria and Charles have closely collaborated for nearly two decades and share a common vision for the Cox Finance team and its priorities," said Dallas Clement, president and chief financial officer, Cox Enterprises. "Charles' leadership has been pivotal to our success over the past few years, and I have no doubt he will continue to deliver the same level of excellence moving forward. I'm deeply excited for both of them as they step into their new roles."

Odom has been part of the Cox family since 1996 in various finance roles including SVP and CFO for Cox Media Group (CMG). Most recently he has led a team spanning multiple functions, including enterprise finance, retirement investments, corporate financial planning and analysis, finance systems, treasury operations and capital markets. Prior to Cox, Odom worked for Deloitte as a senior accountant.

"I want to thank Maria for her leadership and guidance over the past decade," said Charles Odom, EVP, Finance, Cox Enterprises. "I'm excited about taking this next step with Cox as we continue to expand our current businesses while diversifying into new ones. This is an important time for our company and I'm happy to support this work going forward."

Odom earned a bachelor's degree in accounting from Mercer University and completed the Kellogg Management Institute program at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management.

About Cox Enterprises

Cox Enterprises is dedicated to empowering people to build a better future for the next generation. Cox is a leader in the broadband, automotive, and media industries, as well as a leading investment platform with strategic positions in emerging technologies driving the future of agriculture, renewable energy, healthtech, and public sector software. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Cox is a global company with $23 billion in annual revenues and a proud history spanning more than 125 years. To learn more about Cox and its commitment to its people, planet and communities, visit coxenterprises.com.

SOURCE Cox Enterprises
CIEE adds 4,700 ASU Online courses to global network of Study Abroad Programs in 40 Cities

BOSTON, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE) and Arizona State University (ASU) have joined forces to ensure that every student can study abroad wherever they most desire and still complete the coursework needed to stay on track for graduation by augmenting their coursework through ASU Online.

CIEE and ASU are breaking down curriculum barriers so that every student, regardless of major, can study abroad. Post this Students in over 200 of CIEE's global study abroad programs will now have the opportunity to take courses through ASU Online, opening a vast new world of academic options for students who previously thought they couldnt study abroad because the courses they needed to graduate were not available overseas.

Beginning in January 2025, students will be able to enroll in over 200 of CIEE's global study abroad programs as currently offered at 40 international locations, with courses delivered at highly respected international universities or by CIEE faculty, and they will also have the option to include courses from ASU Online. This additional online option will eliminate curriculum barriers for students whose home university accepts online credit while providing more options and flexibility for students. The goal of the partnership is to eliminate curriculum barriers and provide additional opportunities for students to study abroad.

"Research has shown that study abroad is one of the most transformational college experiences a student can have," said ASU executive vice president and university provost Nancy Gonzales. "For this reason, ASU has made it our priority to expand access to study abroad opportunities by reducing barriers like cost and curriculum requirements  both of which have prevented students from participating in international study. We are proud to partner with a leader in international study abroad that aligns with our goal of providing an excellent and impactful education that is accessible to all."

ASU Online offers over 4,700 college courses that support more than 300 online degree programs of study and are taught online by the same ASU faculty who teach in-person. The ASU Online course catalogue includes thousands of high-demand courses in engineering, technology, science, business, entrepreneurship, healthcare, education, social sciences, environmental science and sustainability, and more.

CIEE will offer ASU Online courses to students at no additional cost, keeping CIEE programs the most affordable study abroad programs available. By providing open access to ASU's world-leading portfolio of online courses at no additional cost, CIEE will help students overcome the two biggest barriers to studying abroad  high program costs and curriculum limitations.

The partnership between CIEE and ASU Online will transform international learning opportunities for students from hundreds of America's leading colleges and universities by ensuring that every student, regardless of academic major, will be able to study abroad anywhere in the world and enroll in courses that ensure on-time graduation at their home institution.

"It's an honor to partner with ASU, the recognized leader in higher ed innovation, on our shared goal to expand access to global education for all," said James P. Pellow, President and CEO of CIEE. "Together, ASU and CIEE are leading change in study abroad to ensure that all students, regardless of their academic course requirements, have the opportunity to embrace the transformational experience of study abroad, which is widely known to be a high impact experience for undergraduates, helping them perform better academically, retain at higher rates, and prepare them for future career success in today's globally interconnected world."

About CIEE

CIEE builds bridges between different people, different countries, and different cultures. For 75 years, we have helped young people participate in high-quality international exchange and study abroad programs that bring the world together. We change lives, our alumni change the world. Learn more at ciee.org.

About Arizona State University

Arizona State University has developed a new model for the American Research University, creating an institution that is committed to access, excellence and impact. ASU measures itself by those it includes, not by those it excludes. As the prototype for a New American University, ASU pursues research that contributes to the public good, and ASU assumes major responsibility for the economic, social and cultural vitality of the communities that surround it.

Media contact: Leslie Taylor, [email protected], (207) 553-4274

SOURCE Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE)
DALLAS and LAS VEGAS, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cloud 10 Studios, a trailblazing creative agency proudly announces that it has been awarded the highly coveted Woman Owned Small Business (WOSB) Certification by the Small Business Administration (SBA). This certification is a significant milestone for Cloud 10, validating their commitment to excellence and leadership in a competitive market.

Cloud 10 Studios, a creative agency, announces it has been awarded the Woman Owned Small Business (WOSB) Certification Post this Tracey Dispensa, Founder and Executive Director for Cloud 10 Studios LLC. Prior to opening Cloud 10 Studios in 2017, Dispensa worked for leading companies such as DreamWorks, Industrial Light & Magic, and Reel FX to name a few. Since 2012, she has also been an active member of the Producers Guild of America.

Beyond the film industry, Cloud 10 is using their expertise in animation and visual effects to support companies and projects in the healthcare, biotechnology, construction, and technology industries. For example, they partnered with the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and the National Park Service (NPS) to use a hybrid approach of 360 survey data, fluid simulations, and Unreal Engine to create "Rise Up: Ocracoke," a 1:1 immersive experience visualizing the impact of rising sea levels on the North Caroline coastline.

"We are thrilled to finally have our WOSB certification in place. It will provide great opportunity for us when bidding on federal contracts that are set aside for certified women-owned businesses," shares Tracey Dispensa, founder and executive director for Cloud 10 Studios.

The journey to obtain the WOSB Certification was a rigorous and demanding process that took an entire year for Dispensa. She obtained the Women's Business Enterprise National Certification (WBENC) with the Women's Business Enterprise Council  West (WBEC-West) who was instrumental in assisting Cloud 10 apply for the WOSB Certification.

To learn more about CLOUD 10 STUDIOS, please visit www.cloud10studios.com

About Cloud 10 Studios:

Cloud 10 Studios is a visionary woman-owned and operated creative agency merging disruptive innovation with extensive feature film experience. With top-tier talent linked globally and armed with cutting-edge technology, Cloud 10 delivers elevated creative solutions from its Dallas, Texas, and Las Vegas, Nevada hubs. They are known for forging new paths as a visualization studio with experience in VR, AR, XR, and metaverses using real time technologies.

About WBENC:

Founded in 1997, WBENC is the nation's leader in women's business development and the leading third-party certifier of businesses owned and operated by women, with more than 18,000 certified Women's Business Enterprises, 14 national Regional Partner Organizations, and more than 500 Corporate Members, most of which are Fortune 500. Thousands of corporations representing America's most prestigious brands, as well as many states, cities, and other entities, look for and accept WBENC Certification. For more information, visit www.wbenc.org.

Contact: David Bates  David L. Bates Creative, [email protected], 214-803-4524

SOURCE Cloud 10 Studios
IRVING, Texas, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Commercial Metals Company (NYSE: CMC) has earned recognition on TIME's inaugural list of America's Best Mid-Size Companies 2024. This prestigious award is presented by TIME and Statista Inc., the leading statistics portal and industry ranking provider.

America's Best Mid-Size Companies 2024 were identified based on employee satisfaction, revenue growth and sustainability transparency for companies that operate in the United States and generated at least $100M in revenue but less than $10 billion in 2022 or 2023. The list can be viewed on TIME's website.

"CMC is proud to receive this award from TIME and Statista, Inc. in recognition of our investment in our employees. We strive to provide our over 13,000 employees an environment where safety is our top concern, and where they have the opportunity for both personal and professional growth," commented Peter R. Matt, President and Chief Executive Officer. "Since our founding in 1915, CMC has consistently focused on being a responsible company while providing value for all our stakeholders including our employees, customers, communities, financial partners and our shareholders."

To learn more about CMC or our environmental stewardship and sustainability efforts, please visit cmc.com or esg.cmc.com.

About CMC

CMC is an innovative solutions provider helping build a stronger, safer and more sustainable world. Through an extensive manufacturing network principally located in the United States and Central Europe, CMC offers products and technologies to meet the critical reinforcement needs of the global construction sector. CMC's solutions support construction across a wide variety of applications, including infrastructure, non-residential, residential, industrial and energy generation and transmission.

SOURCE Commercial Metals Company
The expansion is being led by husband-and-wife team, Savas and Victoria Alkoc. The Alkocs began franchising with CML in 2019 and now own nine food trucks and one restaurant across Delaware, New Jersey, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. This Ohio-based truck will be the fourth in Ohio, complementing their existing presence in Columbus, Cleveland and Cincinnati, set to launch this Friday, August 23rd at New Towne Mall in New Philadelphia, OH.

Known for drawing big crowds, Cousins Maine Lobster is a premier food truck partner for breweries and wineries, and can often be found at fairs and festivals, retail centers and more. The Alkoc's are excited to be serving the Ohio community. Savas shared, "We're thrilled to introduce another CML truck to our Ohio community, expanding our ability to deliver exceptional service with even greater efficiency. This new addition will allow us to reach more areas and provide faster support to our valued clients. With the enhanced capability of this truck, we'll continue serving cities like Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and expanding into the Northwest region of the state. We look forward to strengthening our connections and continuing to support the growth and success of businesses throughout the state!"

The local community is invited to attend the grand opening celebration at New Towne Mall, chosen for its family-friendly environment and unique shopping options. Cousins Maine Lobster will also have a prize wheel set up for customers to win CML apparel, free food, and other fun prizes.

Join Cousins Maine Lobster Ohio Truck Four Grand Opening

Friday August 23th, 2024

12:00 - 7:00 PM

New Towne Mall

400 Mill Ave SE, New Philadelphia, OH 44663

Cleveland, OH Cousins Maine Lobster Facebook Page

Columbus, OH Cousins Maine Lobster Facebook Page

Cincinnati, OH Cousins Maine Lobster Facebook Page

Cousins Maine Lobster is seeking new franchisees nationwide. More franchising information can be found here https://www.cousinsmainelobster.com/franchise/.

DISCLAIMER: This news is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy a franchise. Any actual offer or solicitation can only be made through a Franchise Disclosure Document. If you reside in California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Virginia, Washington, or Wisconsin, we may not be able to offer you a franchise until it has been registered in your state.

For more information, please contact: Lindsay Herberger: [email protected]

SOURCE Cousins Maine Lobster
MAUMEE, Ohio, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Dana Incorporated (NYSE: DAN) recently announced its 2023 Supplier Awards recipients. Eight companies representing five countries were recognized for displaying excellence in supporting Dana's strategy.

A special ceremony was held on August 14 at the company's world headquarters in Maumee to honor the winners.

This year's award winners include:

Leveraging the Core Award: Hanil Forging Ind. Co, Ltd.

Drive Customer Centricity Award: Shandong Haoxin Co., Ltd

Deliver Innovative Solutions Award: Ramkrishna Forgings Limited

Expand Global Markets Award: MFC Netform LLC

Lead Electric Propulsion Award: StarPower Semiconductor LTD.

Diverse Supplier of the Year: Global Capital, Ltd.

Indirect Supplier of the Year: Energy Savings Management Consultants SPA

Sustainability Supplier of the Year: Aapico Forging Public Company Limited

"To be successful, you must have a world-class supply base, which is why it is an honor to recognize this exceptional group of suppliers who go above and beyond every day to ensure Dana's success," said Craig Price, Senior Vice President of Purchasing and Supplier Development. "We truly appreciate their outstanding effort to partner with us. Despite ongoing challenges around the world, their dedication to safely delivering on their commitments supported Dana's efforts to provide the quality and service our customers deserve."

About Dana Incorporated

Dana is a leader in the design and manufacture of highly efficient propulsion and energy-management solutions that power vehicles and machines in all mobility markets across the globe. The company is shaping sustainable progress through its conventional and clean-energy solutions that support nearly every vehicle manufacturer with drive and motion systems; electrodynamic technologies, including software and controls; and thermal, sealing, and digital solutions.

Based in Maumee, Ohio, USA, the company reported sales of $10.6 billion in 2023 with 42,000 people in 31 countries across six continents. With a history dating to 1904, Dana was named among the "World's Most Ethical Companies" for 2023 and 2024 by Ethisphere and as one of "America's Most Responsible Companies 2023" by Newsweek. The company is driven by a high-performance culture that focuses on valuing others, inspiring innovation, growing responsibly, and winning together, earning it global recognition as a top employer. Learn more at dana.com.

SOURCE Dana Incorporated
NEW YORK, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- In a landmark victory for Chrome users, a unanimous Ninth Circuit panel reinstated a nationwide data privacy class action that challenges Google's intentional collection of Chrome users' personal information, including sensitive web browsing information, without their consent.

In an August 20 opinion written by Judge Milan D. Smith Jr., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reversed the Northern District of California's summary judgment in favor of Google, finding that "the district court failed to apply the correct standard" by not considering whether a "reasonable user" would have consented to Google's data collection practices.

This decision sends the case back to the district court for trial, pending plaintiff class certification, and requires a jury to determine how a reasonable Chrome user with ordinary computer skills would have understood Google's disclosures and promises.

The lawsuit was first filed by attorneys at DiCello Levitt and co-counsel Simmons Hanly and Bleichmar Fonti in July 2020, following an expert inspection of HTTP traffic on Chrome web browsers. The inspection revealed that Chrome sent vast amounts of users' personal information to Google regardless of whether those users chose to sync their browsers with their Google accounts. Google had promised, however, that Chrome would not send personal information to Google unless the Chrome user elected to sync the browser with a Google account.

Google did not deny the results of the expert investigation but argued that Google's Chrome-specific privacy promises did not apply when the company-wide privacy policy generally describes data collection when visiting Google partner websites. Google argued that the general policy should govern any browser-agnostic data collectioni.e., that the Chrome-specific privacy promises should only apply to Chrome functions that are unique to Chrome.

The Ninth Circuit fully rejected Google's argument, finding that Google's disclosures and promises must be interpreted based on how a "reasonable user" with ordinary computer skills would interpret them, instead of focusing on "browser agnosticism," a standard that required more than seven hours of expert testimony in the district court to figure out. But as the Ninth Circuit wrote, "browser agnosticism is irrelevant because nothing in Google's disclosures is tied to what other browsers do."

Immediately following the ruling, reporters Xu Yuan and Mike Swift of MLex wrote that the decision is "likely to reverberate widely" and "to have significant implications for ongoing litigation." The authors also noted that the court's adoption of an "objective standard" will be relevant to class certification.

Google Chrome users are represented by David Straite and Adam Prom, assisted by Amy Keller and Corban Rhodes, of DiCello Levitt LLP; Lesley Weaver, Anne Davis, and Joshua Samra of Bleichmar Fonti & Auld LLP; Jason 'Jay' Barnes and An Truong of Simmons Hanly Conroy LLP; and, on appeal, by Matt Wessler of Gupta Wessler LLP.

DiCello Levitt is grateful for the amicus support from a bipartisan coalition of 19 states, led by the State of Texas; the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC); the American Association for Justice; and the Consumer Attorneys of California.

About DiCello Levitt

At DiCello Levitt, we're dedicated to achieving justice for our clients through class action, data privacy, civil and human rights, business-to-business, public client, whistleblower, personal injury, and mass tort litigation. Our lawyers are highly respected for their ability to litigate and win caseswhether by trial, settlement, or otherwisefor people who have suffered harm, global corporations that have sustained significant economic losses, and public clients seeking to protect their citizens' rights and interests. Every day, we put our reputationsand our capitalon the line for our clients.

DiCello Levitt has achieved top recognition as 2023 Plaintiffs Firm of the Year and 2023 Trial Innovation Firm of the Year by The National Law Journal, in addition to being the only law firm to be recognized by Law360 for three consecutive years as Cybersecurity and Data Privacy Practice Group of the Year. In 2022, David Straite was recognized as a Law360 Cybersecurity and Data Privacy MVP. For more information about the firm, including recent trial victories and case resolutions, please visit www.dicellolevitt.com .

Contact

David Straite: (646) 933-1000 or [email protected]

SOURCE DiCello Levitt LLP
Science-Based Nutrition Made For Women, From Women

TUSTIN, Calif., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Doctor's Best Inc., a leading nutritional supplement company, announced the launch of its new Women's Collection, a line of science-backed supplements designed to support women's specific health needs at key life stages. The collection includes Women's Menopause Support, Beauty Sleep, Digestive Probiotic Prebiotic, Heart Complex and Hair, Skin & Nails formulas. In alignment with the Women's Collection launch, the company has modernized its brand identity across its website, social media, labeling, and retail presence.

Doctors Best Introduces New Womens Collection. Science-Based Nutrition Made For Women, From Women. The collection includes formulas for Womens Menopause Support, Women's Beauty Sleep, Women's Digestive Probiotic Prebiotic, Women's Heart Complex, and Women's Hair, Skin & Nails.

The Women's Collection is tailored for women, from women. Recognizing the need for proven formulas made specifically for women, the company's team of experts delved into the science and listened to customer feedback, focusing on creating supplements they would use personally or recommend to their loved ones.

"This new Women's Collection is an exciting step forward in our mission of empowering families to live a healthy lifestyle and thrive outside of the doctor's office," said Gale Bensussen, CEO of Doctor's Best. "I am so proud of the team for their dedication to innovation and delivering upon that mission in service of our female customers."

The products in the collection aim to support women with essential health needs and transitions, including perimenopause and menopause, by providing them with premium yet accessible supplements.

"Generic formulas do not make the cut when supporting a woman's health throughout important phases in her life," said Katie Lucas, Vice President of Marketing for Doctor's Best. "Women spend more than a third of their lives in a menopausal state.1 We need to increase awareness of these health milestones and ensure that women can access effective supplements that fit into their daily routine."

The Women's Collection includes:

- Women's Digestive Probiotic Prebiotic: Formulated to support digestive, vaginal, and urinary tract health and balance gut flora.* This formula combines the digestive efficacy of the branded ingredients DE111 Probiotics, PreforPro Prebiotics, and cranberry.

- Women's Heart Complex: A unique blend featuring heart-energizing CoQ10, artery-supporting Vitamin K2, blood vessel-maintaining Grape Seed antioxidants, and Flaxseed Omega-3s for overall cardiovascular and heart health.*

- Women's Hair, Skin, & Nails: A comprehensive blend featuring key ingredients to support skin elasticity, hair strength, and nail health, unlocking the secret to a natural glow from the inside out.* This formula includes vitamins A, C, D3, E, niacin, biotin, activated folate (L-5-Methyltetrahydrofolate), and zinc. It boasts branded ingredients, including OptiMSM and KeraGLO, as well as hyaluronic acid, horsetail herb extract, L-Glutathione, and grape extract.

- Women's Beauty Sleep: A distinctive formula designed to support restful relaxation and promote a healthy sleep cycle, featuring a blend of high-absorption, stomach-friendly magnesium, hyaluronic acid, L-Theanine, melatonin, hops, and lemon balm.*

- Women's Menopause Support: A unique formula featuring the branded ingredient Novasoy, Black Cohosh powder, and Chasteberry extract to help manage hot flashes and night sweats during the perimenopause and menopausal journey.*

In addition to launching the new Women's Collection, the brand refresh signifies Doctor's Best's dedication to providing an increasing consumer base with evidence-based information to support healthy living. The website features new imagery reflecting the brand's focus on promoting a healthy lifestyle and improved functionality to help consumers access valuable scientific information on supplements, branded ingredients, and health categories that cater to their needs. The brand update encompasses new logos, label designs, website revamp, social media content strategy, and retail presence.

Doctor's Best packaging will continue to include the distinctive white bottles with easy-open orange lids and the new Women's Collection will feature a purple color palette.

The new Women's Collection will be available on www.doctorsbest.com , www.iHerb.com , and Amazon. For more information about Doctor's Best and to meet their new website, please visit www.doctorsbest.com .

1Rostami-Moez M, Masoumi SZ, Otogara M, Farahani F, Alimohammadi S, Oshvandi K. Examining the Health-Related Needs of Females during Menopause: A Systematic Review Study. J Menopausal Med. 2023 Apr;29(1):1-20. doi: 10.6118/jmm.22033. PMID: 37160298; PMCID: PMC10183767.

*These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

About Doctor's Best

Doctor's Best is a leading, science-based nutritional supplement company driven by a mission to empower families to lead a healthy lifestyle and thrive outside the doctor's office. Founded by a physician more than 30 years ago, Doctor's Best offers more than 200 products. It has built a stellar reputation in the nutritional supplement industry for utilizing branded ingredients, demonstrating proven potency, safety, and clinically studied efficacy. All Doctor's Best products are manufactured and rigorously tested exclusively at Current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) certified facilities in the United States. Based in Tustin, California, Doctor's Best products are found on retail sites such as Amazon and iHerb, as well as major retailers and specialty chains, including Walmart.com and Sprouts. For more information, please visit www.doctorsbest.com .

Media Contact: Marissa Buntz,

[email protected]

SOURCE Doctor's Best
BOSTON, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Dotmatics, a leader in R&D scientific software connecting science, data, and decision-making, today announced the appointment of Michael Swartz as Chief Strategy Officer, reporting to CEO Thomas Swalla. Previously Swartz was Senior Vice President of Enterprise Product Strategy closely involved in the development of Dotmatics Luma, a Scientific Intelligence Platform.

Dotmatics appoints life sciences R&D veteran Michael Swartz as Chief Strategy Officer to guide the company's groundbreaking work in AI/ML and accelerated computing alongside the various new modalities of life-changing therapeutics.

Swartz was an early pioneer in the digital transformation of today's life sciences R&D labs. And now he will play a vital role in driving Dotmatics' long-term strategic initiatives to continue to enhance the company's value to its customers.

Dotmatics provides solutions to scientists that improve the speed and efficiency of the R&D process. It recently introduced Luma , the first multimodal Scientific Intelligence Platform to help scientists unify workflows and dataflows and then analyze diverse data at scale for better decision-making. Built on Databricks, Dotmatics Luma will help researchers pull data into the platform from scientific applications , databases, and lab instruments, an important development for scientists who typically struggle with critical data trapped in silos. Luma can handle both the volume and complexity of data at a nearly exponential scale, and it's built to do so in an intuitive way that scientists can easily manage.

"Michael's experience over the past 25 years allows him to understand our customers' challenges with extreme empathy," said Thomas Swalla, Chief Executive Officer of Dotmatics. "He deeply understands science and software and his extensive experience marrying these two into transformative solutions will be crucial as he partners with our product teams and our broader organization to combine our mission-critical applications together with Luma to drive an AI-powered Lab-in-a-Loop for our customers."

Prior to joining Dotmatics, Michael was the Vice President of Software Solutions and Strategy at PerkinElmer Informatics (Revvity), where he led strategic planning and execution for the overall product portfolio including the Signals platform, ChemDraw, and Spotfire. Michael has also served as Vice President of Knowledge Management at CambridgeSoft, a pioneer in the Electronic Lab Notebook market.

"I joined Dotmatics at a transformational moment in our industry. The advancements in AI/ML and accelerated computing alongside the various new modalities of therapeutics will have an enormous positive impact on our industry and our society," said Swartz. "It's not very often in a career that you can see such concrete progress toward such a goal in such a short time frame. But Dotmatics has built and acquired best-in-class scientific applications that are key components of scientist and researcher multimodal workflows and we're now unifying those with Luma to power AI discovery in science."

About Dotmatics

Dotmatics is a leader in R&D scientific software connecting science, data, and decision-making. Its enterprise R&D platform and scientists' favorite applications drive efficiency and accelerate innovation. More than 2 million scientists and 10,000 customers trust Dotmatics to help them create a healthier, cleaner, safer world. Dotmatics is a global team of more than 800 people dedicated to supporting its customers in over 180 countries. Dotmatics has made 14 acquisitions since 2017. The company's principal office is in Boston, with 14 offices and R&D teams located around the world.

Dotmatics is backed by Insight Partners , a leading global venture capital and private equity firm investing in high-growth technology and software scaleup companies. Learn more about Dotmatics, its platform, and applications including GraphPad Prism, Geneious, SnapGene, Protein Metrics, and LabArchives at https://www.dotmatics.com .

SOURCE Dotmatics Inc
Klingel will focus on growth and capability development in consulting unit's core areas - customer engagement, smart infrastructure, utility operations, and enterprise performance management. He takes over from industry veteran Mike Bassignani, who will now move into a strategic advisory role.

BOULDER, Colo., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- E Source, a utilities-focused consulting, research, and data science company, has announced the appointment of Jeremy Klingel as President, Solution Services. Klingel arrives at E Source with over 20 years of experience in the energy and utility industry, building and scaling consulting, engineering, and technology-led practices.

Jeremy previously served as a Senior Partner with West Monroe's Energy & Utility practice and founded the firm's Clean Energy & Infrastructure Investment Advisory offering. Before West Monroe, he was Head of U.S. Energy and Utility Advisory at PA Consulting and in multiple executive positions at Black & Veatch, leading global business lines in management consulting, engineering, and construction.

Klingel takes over from industry veteran Mike Bassignani, who will transition to a strategic advisory role, ensuring a smooth leadership transition while supporting key clients and planning efforts.

"Jeremy's industry knowledge, business acumen, and leadership are a great addition to our leadership team as we continue to successfully grow our capabilities organically and through acquisition. I am delighted to welcome him to E Source and look forward to partnering with him to continue to deliver value to our client base," said E Source CEO Dave Perotti. "I also want to thank Mike for his exceptional leadership in helping establish E Source's consulting business and congratulate him on a fantastic career. Mike has a wealth of industry knowledge and experience, and we're lucky to continue working with him in his strategic advisory role."

Solution Services, E Source's consulting unit, serves some of the largest investor-owned utilities in North America, providing advisory focused on customer engagement, smart infrastructure, utility operations, and enterprise performance management. E Source also supports municipal clients of all sizes, with experience advising public utilities in cities like Los Angeles, San Antonio, and New York. In his new role, Klingel will focus on growing the unit and adding new capabilities that deliver tangible results across E Source's client base in the utility industry.

"E Source's combination of in-depth domain knowledge and data-enabled solutions allows us to help clients address some of the industry's most compelling and unstructured problems," said Klingel. "I'm excited to work with such a stellar team of highly regarded experts to build on an incredible utility-centric brand that offers clients a true alternative to the Big 4. E Source's pedigree in infrastructure, emerging technologies, and customer experience has the potential to provide significant value to utilities seeking to proactively address decarbonization, electrification, and energy equity."

E Source's transformation as a utilities-focused solutions provider furthers the company's goal of helping clients address their complex and interconnected priorities in environmental responsibility, grid reliability, customer equity, and financial stability.

"Whether it's the clean energy transition or increased need for resiliency, our goal is to create focused, effective, and scalable solutions that equip utilities to make the best decisions for their customers, stakeholders, and communities they serve," added Klingel.

To learn more about E Source's offerings visit www.esource.com/consulting.

About E Source

E Source combines industry-leading research, data science, and consulting to help utilities make and implement better data-driven decisions that positively impact their customers, their bottom line, and our planet. Headquartered in Boulder, Colorado, E Source has teams across the US and Canada. Learn more at www.esource.com.

Media contact:

Adarsh Nalam, Director, Solutions Marketing and Communications

[email protected]

SOURCE E Source Companies LLC
NEW YORK, Aug. 21, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, reminds purchasers of securities of Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) between April 27, 2022 and July 24, 2024, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"), of the important October 7, 2024 lead plaintiff deadline.

If you purchased Ford securities during the Class Period you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement.

To join the Ford class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=27891 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] for information on the class action. A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than October 7, 2024. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation.

Details of the case: According to the lawsuit, during the Class Period, defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) Ford had deficiencies in its quality assurance of vehicle models since 2022; (2) as a result, Ford was experiencing higher warranty costs; (3) Ford's warranty reserves did not accurately reflect the quality issues in vehicles sold since 2022; (4) as a result, Ford's profitability was reasonably likely to suffer; and (5) as a result of the foregoing, defendants' positive statements about Ford's business, operations, and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages.

About Rosen Law: Some law firms issuing releases about this matter do not actually litigate securities class actions; Rosen Law Firm does. A recognized leader in shareholder rights litigation, the attorneys and staff of Rosen Law Firm have been dedicated to helping shareholders recover losses, improve corporate governance structures, and hold company executives accountable for their wrongdoing. Since our inception, we have obtained over $1 billion for shareholders.

To join the Ford class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=27891 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] for information on the class action.

No Class Has Been Certified. Until a class is certified, you are not represented by counsel unless you retain one. You may select counsel of your choice. You may also remain an absent class member and do nothing at this point. An investor's ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff.

Follow us for updates on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm/.

Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Contact Information:

Laurence Rosen, Esq.

Phillip Kim, Esq.

The Rosen Law Firm, P.A.

275 Madison Avenue, 40th Floor

New York, NY 10016

Tel: (212) 686-1060

Toll Free: (866) 767-3653

Fax: (212) 202-3827

[email protected]

www.rosenlegal.com

SOURCE THE ROSEN LAW FIRM, P. A.
OCALA, Fla., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- FaverGray is honored to announce the successful delivery of The Grove at Ocala project, a luxury apartment community located on approximately 36 acres in Ocala, Florida.

The Grove at Ocala encompasses an impressive 448,645 square feet and features seven buildings. The development consists of 329 apartment units spread across two 3-story Type A apartment buildings, as well as five 3-story Type B apartment buildings.

The Grove at Ocala - FaverGray

Residents of The Grove at Ocala will enjoy an array of upscale amenities, including a clubhouse with a pool, fitness center, yoga room, two pickleball courts, and two bocce ball courts. The community also includes a pet spa, bark park and walking trails.

The construction of this community showcases FaverGray's expertise, consisting of wood frame construction with stone and fiber cement trim on the exterior facade. Roofing features architectural-style shingles and standing seam metal roofing.

"With great honor, we unveil the completion of The Grove at Ocala," stated Ben Hinson, FaverGray's Executive Vice President. "This achievement underscores our steadfast commitment to delivering superior construction projects, tailored to meet the precise needs of developers and owner/operators, while establishing new standards for quality and innovation within the industry," added Hinson.

"We take immense pride in the diligent efforts of our team, culminating in the realization of this project," remarked Mark Higby, FaverGray's Division Leader. "Their unwavering dedication to excellence and meticulous attention to detail have not only ensured the timely delivery of this project but also symbolize our enduring commitment to surpassing the expectations of developers and owner/operators, thus setting a definitive standard of quality and reliability in the construction sector," shared Higby.

The Grove at Ocala highlights FaverGray's dedication to delivering top-quality construction projects that exceed developer and owner/operator expectations and elevate the standard of living.

Visit www.favergray.com for more information.

About FaverGray: FaverGray, an award-winning general contractor, focuses on creating exceptional multifamily and student housing communities. With decades of expertise in this niche, we bring a deep understanding of the unique needs and dynamics of these specialized projects.

Media Contact:

Paige Rosenberger

Director of Marketing

FaverGray

[email protected]



SOURCE FaverGray
BOSTON, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Fortman Cline Capital Markets has clinched the Best M&A Boutique Firm - Southeast Asia, 2024 award at the Global Brand Frontier Awards 2024 hosted by Boston Brand Research & Media. The recognition underscores the firm's exceptional ability to deliver innovative and impactful M&A solutions across Southeast Asia. Known for its sharp execution and strategic advisory services, Fortman Cline has established itself as a go-to partner in navigating complex transactions and driving significant value for its diverse client base.

"Fortman Cline Capital Markets exemplifies the qualities we look for in a Global Brand Frontier Award winner," said Shivakumar Vijay Shankar, President & CEO of Boston Brand Research & Media. "Their dedication to innovation, strategic thinking, and client-centricity sets them apart in the highly competitive M&A landscape. The firm's ability to consistently deliver transformative solutions, particularly in the fast-evolving Southeast Asian market, speaks volumes about their leadership and expertise. Fortman Cline's recent achievements not only demonstrate their capacity to handle complex, high-impact transactions but also their vision in shaping the future of the industries they engage with. It is this blend of foresight and execution that makes them truly deserving of the Best M&A Boutique Firm award."

Mr. Daniel Ibasco, President of Fortman Cline Capital Markets said, "This recognition underscores FCCM's unwavering commitment to excellence in customer service and our dedication to empowering entrepreneurs. Our advocacy for the entrepreneurial segment of the market, combined with the transformative and impactful nature of our transactions, is a true differentiator for us. We collaborate with industry thought leaders and executives to provide our clients not just with standard financial advice, but with commercial insights that are integral to every strategic deal we undertake."

He continued, "This year, Fortman Cline has achieved significant milestones, further cementing our position as an industry leader. Notable transactions include raising close to US$100 million in debt and equity for Buskowitz Energy Inc., a leading solar rooftop player in the Philippines, which will transform into a 200MW company within a few years. FCCM is also driving consolidation in the logistics, healthcare, and retail industries, where offline and online platforms are beginning to converge. Additionally, FCCM has been very active in the infrastructure space, recently serving as the financial advisor to San Miguel Holdings Corporation on its successful bid for the 25-year concession contract to rehabilitate and operate the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA). FCCM also has a significant pipeline of transactions involving renewable energy and hyperscale data centers, and we are beginning to see more cross-border transactions within ASEAN."

This accolade highlights Fortman Cline's critical role in the Southeast Asian M&A landscape, where it has consistently leveraged its deep market knowledge, strategic insights, and robust relationships to deliver successful outcomes for clients.

About Fortman Cline Capital Markets (FCCM)

Fortman Cline Capital Markets (FCCM), with offices in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Manila, specializes in providing strategic advisory services to emerging conglomerates and owner-managers across Southeast Asia. With expertise in sectors such as power and energy, healthcare, transport infrastructure, logistics, consumer products, natural resources, and technology, Fortman Cline has closed over US$20 billion in M&A and fundraising transactions. The firm is renowned for its deep industry knowledge, exceptional client service, and cross-border capabilities.

Recently, FCCM established a management consulting arm, Fortman Cline Management Services (FCMS), to offer strategic guidance and industry expertise to clients both pre-and post-transaction. This includes post-integration work after an acquisition and strategic planning.

About Boston Brand Research & Media

Boston Brand Research & Media is a premier global consulting and media organization, renowned for its innovative research and comprehensive branding solutions. The company has also established itself as a leader in delivering insightful news, perspectives, and analyses on brands that are shaping the future of their industries. The organization provides its audience with up-to-date information on the world's top brands, highlighting those that set the standard in innovation, service excellence, and consumer-centric solutions. Each year, Boston Brand Research & Media honors companies that excel through their visionary leadership, exceptional offerings, and industry-defining innovations, reinforcing its reputation as a trusted authority in recognizing global excellence across diverse sectors.

About the Global Brand Frontier Awards

The Global Brand Frontier Awards, established by Boston Brand Research & Media, recognizes and celebrates the world's most dynamic brands across various industries. The awards highlight companies that demonstrate extraordinary innovation, leadership, and a commitment to delivering excellence globally. The awards are a benchmark for global success, identifying brands that are setting the standard in their industries.

This year's awards saw a competitive field of nominees, with Fortman Cline emerging as the standout in the M&A boutique category for Southeast Asia. Other prominent winners from Southeast Asia include Krungthai Bank PLC, Alveo Land, and more, showcasing the region's thriving business landscape and commitment to excellence.

To nominate your company or business leader for the Global Brand Frontier Awards 2024, please visit this link.

For more information, please contact:

Email: [email protected]

Phone: +1 (617) 383 7999

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2487784/Boston_Brand_Media.jpg

SOURCE Boston Brand Research & Media
MIAMI, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Dive into the inspiring world of global entrepreneurship with "How to Build a Billion Dollar Brand," a full feature documentary that chronicles the remarkable journey of Naked Diablo, a premium tequila brand. The film follows the Fitzpatrick family and their strategic partners as they navigate the complex global markets, from Dubai to the Bahamas, revealing the relentless spirit and dedication required to create a billion-dollar brand.

"How to Build a Billion Dollar Brand" chronicles the inspiring journey of Naked Diablo, a premium tequila brand, as the Fitzpatrick family and their partners navigate global markets from Dubai to the Bahamas, unveiling the unwavering spirit needed to create a billion-dollar brand.

From the opulent settings of Dubai and the pristine beaches of the Bahamas to the vibrant scenes of Mykonos, Santorini and the dynamic U.S. market, the Fitzpatrick family works tirelessly to spread brand awareness, secure distribution opportunities, and establish new partnerships. The film also explores their efforts to penetrate whisky-dominated Scotland and the cultural markets of Spain, all while maintaining their commitment to quality and innovation.

Through a blend of stunning, intimate interviews, and behind-the-scenes footage visuals produced by the international award-winning producer Nathan Taupez Scinto "How to Build a Billion Dollar Brand" reveals the challenges and rewards of balancing family dynamics and Christian faith with ambitious business goals. It offers an inspiring narrative of perseverance, strategic acumen, and the unwavering pursuit of excellence.

Key Characters in the documentary include:

Rob Fitzpatrick : The visionary founder and driving force behind Naked Diablo.

: The visionary founder and driving force behind Naked Diablo. Simon Tolan : Strategic partner and business strategist.

: Strategic partner and business strategist. Lee Fitzpatrick : Co-founder, pivotal in global expansion efforts.

: Co-founder, pivotal in global expansion efforts. Dion Fitzpatrick : Head of Brand Development & Global Expansion.

: Head of Brand Development & Global Expansion. Carla Fitzpatrick : Public relations and communications specialist.

: Public relations and communications specialist. Claudia Fitzpatrick : Operations and logistics expert.

: Operations and logistics expert. Mia Fitzpatrick : Emerging talent and future face of the brand.

: Emerging talent and future face of the brand. Michelle Fitzpatrick: Mother of five, the glue that holds the family together.

Film Locations include:

Dubai : Penetrating the luxury market.

: Penetrating the luxury market. Bahamas : Leveraging tourism for brand visibility.

: Leveraging tourism for brand visibility. Santorini: Tapping into luxury travel and tourism.

Mykonos: Exploring brand presence in a vibrant nightlife destination.

United States : Establishing a strong distribution network.

: Establishing a strong distribution network. UK: Strengthening the home market.

Scotland : Spending time with extended family and business partners

: Spending time with extended family and business partners Spain : Exploring new markets and cultural synergies.

The documentary's themes of entrepreneurship, luxury travel, global expansion, innovation, and cultural adaptation are visually emphasized through dynamic aerial shots, intimate interviews, and vibrant on-location footage. The film offers valuable insights into the dedication, innovation, and strategic planning necessary to build a billion-dollar brand from the ground up.

"How to Build a Billion Dollar Brand" is a must-watch for entrepreneurs, business students, those who love high end lifestyle, luxury travel, and anyone interested in the tequila and alcohol industry. It provides an inspirational and educational look at the strategies, challenges, and triumphs involved in taking a family-owned brand to global prominence.

Production by:

Think Global Media Group

Dba Global Filmz

Producer: Nathan Taupez Scinto

Camera: Geoffrey "Tokyo" Benston

For media inquiries, please contact:

Dan Hannay

President of Logistics Naked Diablo International

Phone: 973-270-3111

[email protected]

Press Release  Naked Diablo Tequila

SOURCE Naked Diablo
Study measures how well automakers integrate new technologies into their vehicles and gauges user satisfaction

2024 Santa Fe wins mass-market Infotainment and Connectivity Award for phone-based Digital Key technology

FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- For the fifth year in a row, Hyundai is being recognized as the top mass-market brand in the J.D. Power 2024 U.S. Tech Experience Index (TXI) StudySM. The study focuses on evaluating users' experience with advanced vehicle technologies over a model's first 90 days of ownership. It assesses how much owners enjoy their vehicles' technologies and how many problems they have while operating them.

The 2024 Hyundai Santa Fe is photographed in California City, Calif., on November 9, 2023. Hyundai Digital Key is photographed in Irvine, Calif., on April 17, 2019.

The 2024 Santa Fe also earned the J.D. Power Mass Market Infotainment and Connectivity award for its phone-based Digital Key. This recognition highlights the added convenience and peace of mind the technology offers users. Beyond this user-friendly feature, the Santa Fe reflects Hyundai's dedication to advancing vehicle innovations and ensuring customer satisfaction.

"We appreciate this recognition for cutting-edge tech because we work hard to put the customer at the center and work to make sure the tech viscerally connects," says Olabisi Boyle, senior vice president, product planning and mobility strategy, Hyundai Motor North America. "It is important that the tech is innovative and enhances safety and provides a driving experience that is safer, smoother, and more satisfying."

Hyundai Digital Key i

Hyundai Digital Key is an available feature on 2024 Santa Fe, enabling drivers to start the vehicle using a smartphone app and Near-Field Communication (NFC) technology instead of a physical key.

Hyundai Motor America

Hyundai Motor America offers U.S. consumers a technology-rich lineup of cars, SUVs, and electrified vehicles, while supporting Hyundai Motor Company's Progress for Humanity vision. Hyundai has significant operations in the U.S., including its North American headquarters in California, the Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama assembly plant, the all-new Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (in development in Georgia), and several cutting-edge R&D facilities. These operations, combined with those of Hyundai's 835 independent dealers, contribute $20.1 billion annually and 190,000 jobs to the U.S. economy, according to a recent economic impact report. For more information, visit www.hyundainews.com.

Hyundai Motor America on Twitter | YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | TikTok

i Near Field Communication (NFC) digital smartphone key requires a compatible Android smartphone and an appropriately equipped 2024 Santa Fe vehicle. Not all Android devices are compatible. Santa Fe vehicle must be equipped with smart key with push button start, wireless device charging, and Audio Video Navigation System 5.0 (or newer) or Display Audio 2.0. Lock/unlock functionality works on front doors only. Features and specifications subject to change. See your Owner's Manual for additional details and limitations.

SOURCE Hyundai Motor America
The 2024 IONIQ 5 N is Hyundai's first electrified model to wear an N badge. The vehicle has been received with great acclaim by automotive media and driving enthusiasts since its launch earlier this year, setting a new benchmark for engaging, all-electric high performance. The IONIQ 5 N SUV is offered in a single, fully equipped trim that delivers innovative performance along with unmatched driver engagement and configurability, all paired with a full complement of convenience, driver-assistance, and safety features. Capable of delivering scintillating, prolonged racetrack performance without sacrificing day-to-day livability, IONIQ 5 N represents N brand's electrification vision and a fresh opportunity for enthusiasts to satisfy their driving passion on both road and track.

"We are incredibly thrilled that our segment-disrupting IONIQ 5 N has won Car and Driver's impressive 2024 EV of the Year honor," said Olabisi Boyle, senior vice president, Product Planning and Mobility Strategy, Hyundai Motor North America. "With industry-shaping new EV features like N e-shift and N Grin Boost transforming EV driving engagement like never before, it's rewarding to be acknowledged by Car and Driver with this significant award."

State-of-the-art technology delivers shift feeling and engaging fun in an Everyday Sportscar

Fulfilling the N brand pillar of Everyday Sportscar, IONIQ 5 N delivers an engaging shift feeling and exhilarating driving through its novel integrated N e-shift and N Active Sound+ functions. N e-shift provides unprecedented control over power delivery, replicating the natural, familiar gear-change sensation of a dual-clutch paddle-shift transmission. N Active Sound+ works to underpin this feeling with manually selectable powertrain soundtracks, including the driver's choice of an ICE-like engine and exhaust or more futuristic sounds for a uniquely immersive enthusiast experience. Together, these features greatly enhance the joy of driving by viscerally and audibly simulating the attributes of a high-performance ICE vehicle.

N e-shift simulates the eight-speed dual-clutch transmission (DCT) found in N's internal combustion engine (ICE) cars. This technology replicates gearshifts by controlling motor torque output and simulating the power-shift feeling between gear changes, including synchronized audible cues. There's even a synthetic redline. As a result, IONIQ 5 N delivers a more entertaining and interactive driving experience that feels far closer to a high-performance ICE model than any other EV.

N Active Sound+ is paired with N e-shift to enhance the driving experience by creating a more visceral and exciting sensory experience. This driver-selectable technology incorporates a 10-speaker system (eight internal, two external) that offers three distinct soundtracks. The 'Ignition' theme simulates the sound of an exciting internal-combustion 4-cylinder engine. 'Evolution' provides a signature high-performance sound inspired by the RN22e rolling lab prototype, featuring variable volume that is synchronized with lateral g-forces while cornering. The 'Supersonic' theme is a unique aural concept inspired by twin-engine fighter jets. The objective of N Active Sound+ isn't just added sonic excitement; this technology provides the driver with an acoustic reference point to help gauge the power utilized and available during cornering. This capability was borne from thousands of kilometers of vehicle development and testing at the Nurburgring.

Hyundai Motor America

Hyundai Motor America offers U.S. consumers a technology-rich lineup of cars, SUVs, and electrified vehicles, while supporting Hyundai Motor Company's Progress for Humanity vision. Hyundai has significant operations in the U.S., including its North American headquarters in California, the Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama assembly plant, the all-new Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (in development in Georgia), and several cutting-edge R&D facilities. These operations, combined with those of Hyundai's 835 independent dealers, contribute $20.1 billion annually and 190,000 jobs to the U.S. economy, according to a recent economic impact report. For more information, visit www.hyundainews.com.

Hyundai Motor America on Twitter | YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | TikTok

SOURCE Hyundai Motor America
NACD 2024 Blue Ribbon Commissioners and Co-chairs Nora Denzel and David Kenny to Release Report on Emerging Technology and Data Governance

WASHINGTON, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD), the authority on boardroom practices representing more than 24,000 board members, will host a top-notch lineup of keynote speakers and panelists for the 2024 NACD Directors Summit, October 69, 2024, at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center just outside Washington, DC.

NACD Directors Summit is the largest gathering of corporate directors and governance experts. More than 1,100 leaders will attend to hear insights on AI and emerging technologies, succession planning, human capital oversight, the US Presidential transition and more. (View the agenda).

NACD will also hold a media roundtable to launch its 2024 Blue Ribbon Commission report, "Technology Leadership in the Boardroom: Driving Trust and Value," with Commission co-chairs Nora Denzel and David Kenny. The report examines board oversight of technology and data, prompted by disruptive technologies  including AI  and the rapid pace of technological change.

Media interested in a press pass to attend NACD Directors Summit, attend the media roundtable (in person or virtually) or interview a speaker should email [email protected] by September 27. Note: all breakout sessions are held under Chatham House Rule.

Keynote speakers for the 2024 NACD Directors Summit include these thought leaders:

Monday, October 7

Ian Bremmer , President and Founder Eurasia Group and GZERO Media  "Managing Risk in an Unstable World"

, President and Founder Eurasia Group and GZERO Media  "Managing Risk in an Unstable World" Vilas Dhar President and Trustee, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation; Member, UN High-Level Advisory Board on Artificial Intelligence; Director, AccessLex Institute; "AI and Humanity: A Vision for a Beautiful Future"

BRC Cochairs Nora Denzel (Director, NACD and Gen Digital; Lead Independent Director, Advanced Micro Devices) and David Kenny (Director, Best Buy; Chair, Teach for America; Executive Chair, Nielsen)

(Director, NACD and Gen Digital; Lead Independent Director, Advanced Micro Devices) and (Director, Best Buy; Chair, Teach for America; Executive Chair, Nielsen) Wayne Peacock , Director, USAA; Vice Chair, USAA's Federal Savings Bank Board of Directors; President and CEO, USAA

Tuesday, October 8

Anima Anandkumar, Former Senior Director of AI Research, NVIDIA; Former Principal Scientist, Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Bren Professor, Caltech - "The Transformative Impacts of Generative AI"

James Gorman , Director, The Walt Disney Company and the Council on Foreign Relations; Executive Chair, Morgan Stanley - "Succession Planning and Strategy Making in the Age of Uncertainty"

, Director, The Walt Disney Company and the Council on Foreign Relations; Executive Chair, Morgan Stanley - "Succession Planning and Strategy Making in the Age of Uncertainty" Maggie Wilderotter Director, Costco Wholesale Corporation, Sana Biotechnology, Tanium and Sonoma Biotherapeutics - "Navigating Transformation: Insights from Maggie Wilderotter "

Wednesday, October 9

Juan Enriquez Cofounder, Synthetic Genomics Inc. and Managing Director, Excel Venture Management

Additional speakers:

Chris Liddell , White House deputy chief of staff in the Trump administration and author of "Year Zero," and David Marchick , Dean Kogod School of Business, American University and former member of the Biden administration, will host an in-depth conversation on executing one of the world's most complicated leadership transitions  that of the US presidency: "What Can Board Members Learn from Presidential Transitions?"

, White House deputy chief of staff in the Trump administration and author of "Year Zero," and , of Business, and former member of the Biden administration, will host an in-depth conversation on executing one of the world's most complicated leadership transitions  that of the US presidency: "What Can Board Members Learn from Presidential Transitions?" Jonathan Wiggins , US SEC Deputy Chief Accountant, will discuss robust disclosures and the quality of corporate reporting. The session will cover the SEC's agenda and key enforcement priorities and their implications for audit committee oversight.

"This year's event brings together impressive speakers and a diverse group of attendees to foster meaningful discussion and a future-focused perspective on some of the most challenging issues impacting boardrooms today," said Peter Gleason, NACD president and CEO. "Amid the rapid transformations across the landscape of board governance, we are eager to explore topics ranging from AI governance and emerging technologies to workforce well-being, innovation and risk oversight for long-term resilience."

For more information on the NACD Summit, including how to register, click here.

NACD

The National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) is the leading member organization for corporate directors who want to expand their knowledge, grow their network and maximize their potential. For more than 47 years, NACD has helped boards and the business community elevate their performance and create long-term value. Our leadership continues to raise standards of excellence and advance board effectiveness at thousands of member companies.

NACD's valuable insights, professional development events and resources, such as the NACD Directors Summit and the NACD Directorship Certification program, support boards in navigating complex challenges. With a growing network of more than 24,000 members across more than 20 Chapters, boards are better equipped to make well-informed decisions on the critical, strategic issues facing their businesses today. Learn more at www.nacdonline.org.

Media Contact:

Shannon Bernauer

[email protected]

571-367-3688

SOURCE National Association of Corporate Directors
NASHVILLE, Tenn., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Integrated Oncology Network (ION) and California Cancer Associates for Research & Excellence (cCARE) are excited to announce the addition of Dr. Dawood Findakly, a board-certified and highly skilled Hematologist and Medical Oncologist, to our exceptional team of medical professionals.

ION and cCARE are proud to bring esteemed oncologist, Dr. Dawood Findakly to the greater San Diego and Murrieta communities.

Dr. Findakly brings a wealth of experience and expertise to our practice. He earned his medical degree from Al-Nahrain University College of Medicine in Baghdad, Iraq, and completed his Internal Medicine residency at Creighton University School of Medicine, where he was honored as 'Outstanding Scholar of the Year'.

Dr. Findakly's dedication to advancing the field of oncology is evident through his membership and engagement in several prestigious medical societies, including the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American Society of Hematology, the American Association for Cancer Research, and the American College of Physicians, as well as dual board-certification.

In recognition of his significant contributions, Dr. Findakly was named an ASCO Ally in 2024 and has held leadership roles within the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). His research, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, focuses on improving cancer treatments and outcomes, showcasing his commitment to enhancing patient care.

"As a hematologist and oncologist, I understand how challenging facing illness can be. My commitment is to provide compassionate, patient-centered care tailored to my patients' unique needs," said Dr. Findalkly.

"Dr. Findakley's expertise and dedication to patient care will be invaluable as we continue expanding to provide the highest quality oncology care to our communities," said Dr. Jedidiah Monson, President of cCARE.

"We are excited to welcome Dr. Dawood Findakly to our growing team in California," said Barry Tanner, CEO of Integrated Oncology Network. "His impressive background, dedication to patient care, and commitment to advancing oncology care make him an invaluable addition to our network."

Dr. Findakly is now accepting new patients in greater San Diego and Murrieta. Contact cCARE to learn more about his services and schedule an appointment.

About Integrated Oncology Network

Integrated Oncology Network partners directly with physicians, hospitals and other healthcare providers to offer the latest services and technologies to their patients. Founded in 2008, ION has grown to more than 55 centers across the country, providing a complete and integrated continuum of care  diagnostic testing, radiation oncology, medical oncology, urology and other ancillary services. For more information, visit www.ionetwork.com .

About cCARE

California Cancer Associates for Research & Excellence, cCARE, is the largest full-service private oncology and hematology practice in California. Affiliated with Integrated Oncology Network (ION), cCARE delivers the highest quality medical oncology, chemotherapy and radiation treatments, supplemented by a large research and clinical trials program. With eight clinical and business offices in the San Diego and Fresno areas, cCARE provides patients with care beyond treatment no matter where they call home. For more information, visit www.ccare.com .

SOURCE Integrated Oncology Network
Recent years have seen an astronomical rise in the evaluation of the private networking industry.

In this live chat webcast, Ericsson EMEA Channel Acceleration Sales Director, William Hamber, and Ericsson UK and Ireland Enterprise Sales Director, Mike Barlow, sit down together to discuss the private networking landscape and the Ericsson Private 5G Solution.

Tune in to the webcast now to witness the full conversation and learn more about private networking.
Pasadena's Premier Destination for Evidence-Based Mental Health Care

PASADENA, Calif., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The vibrant community of Pasadena has welcomed an innovative addition to its wellness landscape with the grand opening of Neuro Wellness Spa. This comprehensive mental health clinic is co-founded by Dr. Martha Koo, a distinguished leader in psychiatry and a driving force in the advancement of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) therapy. Pasadena is the 10th Neuro Wellness Spa location throughout Greater Los Angeles, expanding the brand's mission to increase access to affordable, exceptional mental health care to all Angelenos.

Dr. Martha Koo, the current President and board member of the Clinical TMS Society (CTMSS) and a board member of the Foundation for the Advancement of Clinical TMS (FACTMS), brings unparalleled expertise and passion to addressing mental health solutions through Neuro Wellness Spa. With a reputation for excellence and a commitment to innovation in mental health treatment, the newest location will offer Pasadena, and its neighboring residents, access to compassionate care and expert clinicians in a serene, spa-like environment.

"Neuro Wellness Spa is not just a medical clinic; it's a sanctuary for those seeking the most advanced, non-invasive mental health treatments delivered with personalized care in a welcoming, compassionate setting," says Dr. Koo. "Our goal is to provide a comprehensive approach to psychiatry that combines the latest evidence-based advancements with a focus on holistic wellness and individualized care."

Joining Dr. Koo's team as the Medical Director of Neuro Wellness Spa Pasadena is Dr. Jahanzeb Khan, a board-certified Psychiatrist, and Marissa Chantorn, a board-certified Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP). Dr. Khan earned his MD from Windsor University School of Medicine before attending University Hospitals, Case Western Reserve University, where he completed fellowships in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry as well as Community and Public Mental Health Psychiatry. He has served in various leadership roles, including Medical Director of Psychiatric Emergency Services and Division Chief of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, providing the best interventions for those in need.

"I am so excited to have joined NWS as a Medical Director," says Dr. Khan. "With training in child, adolescent and adult psychiatry, and leadership experience in public health, I am eager to join a company focused on innovative, transformative, patient-centered care that is accessible to the entire community."

Neuro Wellness Spa's newest location will support community wellbeing by offering an array of mental health services, including:

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) Therapy : A non-invasive, non-drug, and FDA-cleared neuromodulation treatment, for adults and adolescents ages 15 and older, that uses gentle magnetic pulses to treat depression, anxiety, OCD, and more.

A non-invasive, non-drug, and FDA-cleared neuromodulation treatment, for adults and adolescents ages 15 and older, that uses gentle magnetic pulses to treat depression, anxiety, OCD, and more. Comprehensive Psychiatric Assessments : Accurate diagnoses and tailored treatment plans for adults and adolescents, ages 12 and older.

Accurate diagnoses and tailored treatment plans for adults and adolescents, ages 12 and older. Psychotherapy : Evidence-based talk therapy program for adults, available online and in-person, led by expert clinicians who specialize in a variety of mental health treatment modalities, including cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), exposure and response prevention (ERP), mindfulness, psychodynamic and narrative therapy, and more.

Evidence-based talk therapy program for adults, available online and in-person, led by expert clinicians who specialize in a variety of mental health treatment modalities, including cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), exposure and response prevention (ERP), mindfulness, psychodynamic and narrative therapy, and more. Medication Management : Safe and effective pharmacological treatment options for adults and adolescents, ages 12 and older.

In addition to offering the full range of outpatient mental health treatments, Neuro Wellness Spa provides a tranquil environment designed to enhance relaxation and promote healing. The clinic's amenities include private treatment rooms, aromatherapy, calming spaces for TMS sessions, and a dedicated team of professionals committed to delivering exceptional care.

Neuro Wellness Spa's newest clinic joins Clear Behavioral Health, whose Pasadena site opened in May, in providing a full continuum of in-network behavioral health treatment in Pasadena. Both brands are aligned under their parent company, Your Behavioral Health, to offer a clear path to sustained well-being that is delivered by licensed and credentialed experts and is available online and in-person across California. Your Behavioral Health's family of brands  including Clear Behavioral Health, New Life House, and Neuro Wellness Spa  delivers specialized programs for depression, anxiety, trauma-related issues, addiction, and other mental health conditions through a range of services, including detox, outpatient (PHP/IOP), interventional psychiatry, and residential care. Co-founders Mike Joly, Chief Executive Officer, and Dr. Martha Koo, Chief Medical Director, lead Your Behavioral Health alongside an expert team of clinicians located across Southern California.

For more information about Neuro Wellness Spa, and to schedule an appointment, please visit our website at www.neurowellnessspa.com or call us at 877-644-8434.

About Dr. Martha Koo

Dr. Martha Koo is a leading expert in neurotherapy and an influential advocate for the advancement of mental health treatments. As the Co-Founder/Supervising Medical Director of Neuro Wellness Spa and clinical supervisor at Clear Behavioral Health, Dr. Koo is Board Certified in Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine. She is passionate about using psychopharmacology, Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, and is certified in the application of Neurostar rTMS, Brainsway Deep TMS and MagVenture rTMS Therapy. As President of the Clinical TMS Society (CTMSS), and a board member of the Foundation for the Advancement of Clinical TMS (FACTMS), she has made significant contributions to the field of TMS therapy. She is also a guest lecturer at the New Center for Psychoanalysis and the Los Angeles Psychoanalytic Society and Institute, and she is an active member of the American Psychiatric Association, the New Center for Psychoanalysis, American Society of Addiction Medicine, the California Psychiatric Society, and the Southern California Psychiatric Society. Her dedication to improving mental health care has earned her recognition as a top provider and innovator in the industry.

About Neuro Wellness Spa

Neuro Wellness Spa enhances mental wellbeing through compassionate, evidence-based care. As Southern California's first private TMS center, we combine advanced neurotechnology with a comprehensive approach to wellbeing across 12 locations and growing. Our services include Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS), psychopharmacology, and integrative psychotherapy, delivered by expert clinicians committed to personalized care. We aim to transform mental health care, providing a supportive environment for patients to achieve optimal cognitive and emotional health. For more information about our services, and to schedule a consultation, please visit www.neurowellnessspa.com.

About Clear Behavioral Health

Clear Behavioral Health, formerly Clear Recovery Center, is a leading Los Angeles-based provider of comprehensive, in-network behavioral health treatment programs. Our mission is simple: to help those struggling with mental health and addiction live healthy and purposeful lives. Our unique story started with a vision to make clinically excellent, highly individualized mental health services accessible to all. For a list of our 14 locations, visit www.clearbehavioralhealth.com .

About Your Behavioral Health

Your Behavioral Health is a leading regional behavioral health services platform that provides comprehensive, best-in-class services for adults and teens across the continuum of mental health and addiction treatment. With state-of-the-art facilities across Southern California, expert clinical teams, and pioneering evidence-based and patient-centric approach to care, Your Behavioral Health offers specialized residential, inpatient and outpatient programs for depression, anxiety, trauma-related issues, substance abuse and other mental health conditions. Its family of brands includes Clear Behavioral Health, New Life House, and Neuro Wellness Spa. For more information, please visit www.yourbehavioralhealth.com .

For more information, press only:

Stephanie Paz Townsend

(310) 295-0429

[email protected]

SOURCE Neuro Wellness Spa
CHARLOTTE, N.C., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- JELD-WEN Holding, Inc. ("JELD-WEN") (NYSE: JELD) today announced the completion of its offering of $350 million of 7.000% senior unsecured notes due 2032 (the "Notes") in a private placement exempt from registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"). The Notes are guaranteed by JELD-WEN, Inc., the main operating subsidiary of JELD-WEN ("JWI"), and by each of JWI's domestic subsidiaries that guarantee indebtedness under JWI's term loan facility. The Notes will mature on September 1, 2032, unless earlier redeemed in accordance with their terms.

The Notes were offered and sold in a private placement to qualified institutional buyers pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act, and to certain non-U.S. persons in transactions outside of the United States in reliance on Regulation S under the Securities Act. The Notes have not been registered under the Securities Act or the securities laws of any state or jurisdiction. The Notes may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to purchase the Notes, nor shall there be any sale of the Notes in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction.

About JELD-WEN

JELD-WEN Holding, Inc. (NYSE: JELD) is a leading global designer, manufacturer and distributor of high-performance interior and exterior doors, windows, and related building products serving the new construction and repair and remodeling sectors. Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, the company operates facilities in 15 countries in North America and Europe and employs approximately 18,000 associates dedicated to bringing beauty and security to the spaces that touch our lives. The JELD-WEN family of brands includes JELD-WEN worldwide, LaCantina and VPI in North America, and Swedoor and DANA in Europe. For more information, visit corporate.JELD-WEN.com or follow LinkedIn.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact contained in this press release are forward-looking statements, including all statements regarding the offering of the Notes. Forward-looking statements are generally identified by our use of forward-looking terminology such as "anticipate", "believe", "continue", "could", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "may", "might", "plan", "potential", "predict", "seek", or "should", or the negative thereof or other variations thereon or comparable terminology. Where, in any forward-looking statement, we express an expectation or belief as to future results or events, such expectation or belief is based on the current plans, expectations, assumptions, estimates, and projections of our management. Although we believe that these statements are based on reasonable expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections, they are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks, many of which are beyond our control, that could cause actual outcomes and results to be materially different from those indicated in such statements.

Our actual results could differ materially from the results contemplated by these forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including, but not limited to, the factors discussed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 and our other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The forward-looking statements included in this press release are made as of the date hereof, and except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update, amend or clarify any forward-looking statements to reflect events, new information or circumstances occurring after the date of this release.

Media Contact:

Melissa Farrington

Vice President, Enterprise Communications

262-350-6021

[email protected]

Investor Relations Contact:

James Armstrong

Vice President, Investor Relations

704-378-5731

[email protected]

SOURCE JELD-WEN Holding, Inc.
WASHINGTON, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- NASA Administrator Bill Nelson and leadership will hold an internal Agency Test Flight Readiness Review on Saturday, Aug. 24, for NASA's Boeing Crew Flight Test. About an hour later, NASA will host a live news conference at 1 p.m. EDT from the agency's Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Watch the media event on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency's website. Learn how to stream NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.

Boeings Starliner spacecraft that launched NASAs Crew Flight Test astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to the International Space Station is pictured docked to the Harmony modules forward port.

Media interested in attending the news conference must contact the newsroom at NASA Johnson no later than 1 p.m., Friday, Aug. 23, at 281-483-5111 or [email protected]. Media participating by phone must RSVP no later than one hour prior to the start of the event. A copy of NASA's media accreditation policy is online.

NASA and Boeing have gathered data, both in space and on the ground, regarding the Starliner spacecraft's propulsion and helium systems to better understand the ongoing technical challenges. The review will include a mission status update, review of technical data and closeout actions, as well as certify flight rationale to proceed with undocking and return from the space station.

NASA's Boeing Crew Flight Test launched on June 5 on a ULA (United Launch Alliance) Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. It is an end-to-end test of the Starliner system as part of the agency's Commercial Crew Program. Through partnership with American private industry, NASA is opening access to low Earth orbit and the space station to more people, science, and commercial opportunities.

For NASA's blog and more information about the mission, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/commercialcrew

SOURCE NASA
DENVER, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Liquid Core Gum Company (Liquid Core) this week introduced the newest brand configuration in the nearly 20-year history of the functional chewing gum manufacturer. Known as EDGE, this latest addition to the Liquid Core family of brands aggregates everything the company has developed into a new direction that better aligns with the superior Liquid Core Brand functional ingredient delivery system.

The new EDGE packaging format was developed using sustainable cardboard tubes that are similar in size to the iconic "slim can" energy drinks, the pieces inside individually flow-wrapped for stability, freshness & portability, adding value to every piece. "Red Bull started the revolution of the functional beverage sector with their slim-can design which became synonymous with energy drinks in the mind of the consumer," said Founder and CEO Troy Widgery. "Nearly 20 years ago we set out on this functional gum journey and now that the market & consumer are finally ready, we couldn't think of a better way to launch EDGE than to package it in a format that is familiar to the energy consumer," stated Widgery, a veteran of the energy drink business.

The new closable slim-can format fits perfectly in a gym bag, backpack, or jacket and provides superior branding and more space for consumer education compared to a small pack of gum. The unique container protects and enhances the value of every piece of gum. "We decided to take the same approach with our packaging that we've been taking with our Liquid Core delivery system. It needed to be unique and a category game changer," said Widgery. Liquid Core designed the slim-can tube to stand out and break away from the gum and candy aisle into the spaces where the energy and health-minded consumers are shopping. The company created unique POS countertop display racks for EDGE.

Non-liquid center functional gums have proliferated in recent years, but they do not approach the efficacy of the Liquid Core system, or the unique Flavor Wave resulting from the release of the liquid center of EDGE brands. Thanks to the Liquid Core delivery advantage, EDGE gums are more effective and deliver faster than other functional gums, functional beverages, gummies, mints or pills. Liquid Core only uses natural, non-encapsulated caffeine in its performance and energy brands in order to be more efficient than other energy gums.

The Initial lineup consists of four EDGE Performance formulations, all packaged using the EDGE Tubes: EDGE Extreme, EDGE Java, and EDGE Energy in three flavors. There are also three EDGE Wellness formulations  EDGE Pro containing Probiotics; EDGE Health with a vitamin and immunity formulation; and EDGE Lean with its thermogenic formula.

About: Liquid Core Gum Company manufactures liquid center functional Performance, Health and Wellness chewing gums at its factory in Denver, Colorado USA. The company is also developing a European factory and distribution center in Portugal as Liquid Core Portugal, Unipessoal LDA, to service its rapidly expanding European network. For more information visit LiquidCoreGum.com.

Contact:

Liquid Core Gum Company

***@liquidcoregum.com

Photos:

https://www.prlog.org/13034816

Press release distributed by PRLog

SOURCE Liquid Core Gum Company
HOUSTON, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Lopez Negrete Communications, one of the nation's premier Hispanic-owned and operated full-service agencies, unveiled its innovative proprietary tool, the Latino Network of Creators (LNC) with a call to action for all Hispanic content creators across the United States to join. The tool currently houses over 600 Latino U.S.-based content creators.

The tool is available and recommended for any agency client looking to expand its reach and awareness into the Hispanic community through influencer marketing. And, in turn, Latino influencers who join the LNC have a chance to work with Lopez Negrete Communications' roster of clients.

"This tool is the result of more than a decade of partnerships between our clients, the best and brightest Latino influencers in the U.S., and our team," said Julie Jameson Grayum, Director of Social Media & Public Relations for the agency. "Influencer marketing has become a key part of our channel strategy, especially as research shows that Hispanics are 1.7 times more likely to follow influencers and 23% say influencers impact the brands they buy, compared to 15% of non-Hispanics. I'm overjoyed to open our proprietary database to the wider Latino creator community."

Clients who currently or have previously leveraged the database include Hyundai Motor America, Bank of America, McDonald's, Motiva Enterprises and the 76 Brand, Unilever, Realtor.com, Riviana Rice (Mahatma and Carolina Brands), Mattress Firm, Walmart, the City of Houston, Houston Health Department and Harris County, Verizon FiOS, and Verizon Wireless, among others.

The influencer creator database traces its roots to Lopez Negrete Communications' first influencer marketing program for Verizon FiOS when Lance Rios of Being Latino was provided the first Insertion Order of its kind in the Hispanic market. Since then, it has evolved to cater to an expanding list of diverse clients and has been adapted to the changing world of marketing and advertising.

"Influencers and influencer marketing have become integral to the marketing mix, and it's not hard to see why," said Alex Lopez Negrete, president and CEO of Lopez Negrete Communications. "Establishing brand trust is key for businesses, for building awareness, engagement, relevance, and ultimately, business results. Our experience shows us that this begins by establishing relationships with people and their communities, and influencers are key to making that connection."

To become a part of the list, influencers must fulfill the following requirements:

Live in the United States

Have at least 50% of their followers in the U.S.

Create content or discuss topics that are in-culture

Be bilingual or speak Spanish, but English with cultural cues is also welcome

Upon signing up to be part of the Latino Network of Creators, influencers will be added to the agency's vetted list of high-quality creators. From there, Lopez Negrete Communications will work with agency clients to establish relationships and influencer marketing campaigns with the right creators, all based on the client's needs.

Influencers can join the Latino Network of Creators by visiting https://www.lopeznegrete.com/creators/join.

Brands wishing to leverage the LNC are encouraged to contact Lopez Negrete Communications through their website by visiting https://www.lopeznegrete.com/contact.

Lopez Negrete Communications

Lopez Negrete Communications stands as one of the premier and longest-standing Hispanic-owned and -operated, full-service agencies in the United States. The agency specializes in providing marketing services to corporations wishing to reach and engage with America's large and influential Hispanic consumer segment. Founded in 1985 by Alex and Cathy Lopez Negrete, the agency offers thought leadership and a full range of marketing, advertising, and communications services. The wide array of services includes strategic planning, brand strategy, creative and production, research and consumer insights, media planning and buying, digital/social/mobile marketing services, public relations, and promotions. Award-winning throughout a rich 39-year history, Lopez Negrete counts as clients some of the nation's largest corporations and their prestigious brands, such as Bank of America, McDonald's, Hyundai Motor America, Baylor College of Medicine, Mattress Firm, Phillips 66 Company, Motiva Enterprises LLC, and Total Wine & More. With headquarters in Houston, Texas, Lopez Negrete employs nearly 100 professionals who are dedicated to delivering the promise of Maximum Return on Cultural Intelligence and is a founding agency member of the Hispanic Marketing Council and the ANA's Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing (AIMM).

Media contact: Julie Grayum, [email protected]

SOURCE Lopez Negrete Communications
"Our study shows a superior profile with the combination of fostrox and Lenvima in advanced liver cancer"

STOCKHOLM, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ --

April  June

Financial summary for the quarter

Net turnover amounted to SEK 1.1 (2.0) million.

(2.0) million. The loss before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounted to SEK -36.7 (-26.3) million. Basic and diluted earnings per share amounted to SEK -0.32 (-0.47).

(-26.3) million. Basic and diluted earnings per share amounted to (-0.47). Cash flow from operating activities amounted to SEK -26.3 (-17.9) million.

(-17.9) million. Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period amounted to SEK 126.7 (82.8) million.

Significant events during the quarter

In April it was announced that Medivir's partner Vetbiolix, a veterinary biotechnology company based in France , reported positive results from a proof-of-concept clinical trial in canine periodontitis with its drug candidate VBX-1000, formerly known as MIV-701.

, reported positive results from a proof-of-concept clinical trial in canine periodontitis with its drug candidate VBX-1000, formerly known as MIV-701. In April it was announced that Medivir completed a so-called Type C meeting with the FDA and that the company's preparations for the planned phase 2b study in the fostrox program are progressing according to plan, with a few adjustments in study design that have limited impact on timeline and study size.

study in the fostrox program are progressing according to plan, with a few adjustments in study design that have limited impact on timeline and study size. In April, MIV-711 was granted Rare Pediatric Disease Designation (RPDD) as well as Orphan Drug Designation (ODD) from the FDA for the treatment of Legg-Calve-Perthes Disease (LCPD), an unusual hip disease that affects children between the ages 2 and 12.

The AGM in May re-elected board members Uli Hacksell, Lennart Hansson , Bengt Westermark and Yilmaz Mahshid, and elected Angelica Loskog and Anna Torner as new board members. Uli Hacksell was re-elected as Chairman of the Board.

, and Yilmaz Mahshid, and elected Angelica Loskog and Anna Torner as new board members. Uli Hacksell was re-elected as Chairman of the Board. In June it was announced that Medivir has selected a global CRO partner for the planned phase 2b study evaluating fostrox+ Lenvima compared to Lenvima alone in second-line liver cancer/hepatocellular cancer (HCC).

study evaluating fostrox+ Lenvima compared to Lenvima alone in second-line liver cancer/hepatocellular cancer (HCC). On June 26 new positive data showing further improved effect with longer time to progression in Medivir's ongoing phase 1b /2a trial of fostrox + Lenvima in advanced HCC, were presented at the ESMO GI Cancer Congress in Munich .

January  June

Financial summary for the period

Net turnover amounted to SEK 1.6 (2.4) million.

(2.4) million. The loss before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounted to SEK -63.3 (-45.2) million. Basic and diluted earnings per share amounted to SEK -0.55 (-0.81).

(-45.2) million. Basic and diluted earnings per share amounted to (-0.81). Cash flow from operating activities amounted to SEK -61.3 (-34.1) million.

(-34.1) million. Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period amounted to SEK 126.7 (82.8) million.

Events after the end of the period

In July it was announced that Medivir will present updated clinical data from the phase 1b /2a study with fostrox in advanced HCC, at the ESMO Cancer Congress in Barcelona in September

Conference call for investors, analysts and the media

The Interim Report January - June 2024 will be presented by Medivir's CEO, Jens Lindberg.

Time: Thursday, August 22, 2024, at 14.00 (CET).

To access the webcast and find information about the teleconference, please klick HERE!

The conference call will also be streamed via a link on the website: www.medivir.com/investors/calendar .

The presentation will be available on Medivir's website after completion of the conference.

CEO's message

Medivir is working decisively to ensure that the combination of fostrox and Lenvima becomes the first approved treatment alternative after first line standard-of-care in advanced liver cancer. At the ESMO-GI congress in Munich in June, we presented new data from the ongoing phase 1b/2a study. These data indicate that fostrox + Lenvima provides a substantially better effect than previously shown in second-line liver cancer treatment, which generated significant positive attention, both from analysts and clinical experts.

Our ongoing phase 1b/2a study with fostrox + Lenvima continues to show increasingly promising data and we see the opportunity to become the first approved medical treatment in a market worth ~$2.5 billion annually.

The data presented at the ESMO-GI congress in Munich at the end of June showed good tolerability during longer treatment and that the clinical effect has continued to improve. The Objective Response Rate (ORR) was 24%, higher than the 510% ORR seen in other published studies in second-line HCC. The estimated median time to progression at the time of ESMO-GI was 10.8 months, which is substantially better than what's been shown in other studies in second-line HCC. It is tremendously encouraging that the patient in the study who has benefited the longest is still responding to treatment after 2 years.

We now look forward to presenting detailed and mature data highlighting the combination's clinical value in second-line liver cancer at the ESMO Congress in Barcelona in mid-September.

The strong and continuously improving data strengthen our belief in the combination's potential as the first approved treatment option in second-line liver cancer. Preparations for our planned phase 2b study continue based on the feedback we received at our Type C meeting with the FDA.

For the phase 2b study, we have recently chosen a CRO partner with a global presence and a strong track record in oncology studies and in particular HCC studies. We are now initiating the next study phase to identify investigators and hospitals for the study and to complete the study protocol. This will lead us to opening an IND in the US, which is expected to take place in H2 2024.

Regarding the projects out-licensed to collaborators, our partner Vetbiolix, a veterinary biotechnology company based in France, was in April able to report positive results from a clinical Proof-of-Concept study in periodontitis (tooth loss) in dogs with its candidate drug VBX-1000 (MIV-701), which was out-licensed to Vetbiolix in 2019. Vetbiolix is now preparing to evaluate VBX-1000 in a phase 2/3 study in dogs. Tooth loss is an immense problem for dogs and today there is no approved treatment. Vetbiolix estimates that the global market for oral care in pets amounts to approximately SEK 3 billion.

Our project for partnership MIV-711 received Rare Pediatric Disease Designation and Orphan Drug Designation for the treatment of Legg-Calve-Perthes Disease from the FDA. It creates new opportunities for collaborations and future income.

At the annual general meeting, our board of directors was strengthened with two new members, Angelica Loskog and Anna Torner. Their competence and experience will contribute strongly to Medivir's success, where the clinical development of fostrox is our focus.

We are convinced of the potential of fostrox to become a valuable treatment option that makes a real difference to patients with liver cancer. There is a clear need and an obvious place for fostrox in the treatment landscape. Our goal is to become the first approved treatment alternative in second-line for patients with primary liver cancer. I look forward to keeping you informed of Medivir's continued development.

Jens Lindberg

Chief Executive Officer

For further information, please contact

Magnus Christensen, CFO

Phone: +46 (0)8 5468 3100

E-mail: [email protected]

This report has not been subject to auditors' review.

The information was submitted for publication at 08.30 CET on August 22, 2024.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

https://news.cision.com/medivir/r/medivir-ab---interim-report-january---june-2024,c4027140

The following files are available for download:

https://mb.cision.com/Main/652/4027140/2956543.pdf The full report (PDF)

SOURCE Medivir
MEMPHIS, Tenn., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Methodist Healthcare Foundation recently welcomed two long-time Memphians to its board of directors - Chirag Chauhan, financial advisor and managing partner with Bluff City Advisory Group, and Lori Patton, co-owner of Roadshow BMW/MINI and trustee of the Jerry and Nina Patton Family Foundation.

"Lori and Chirag are both incredible leaders and health advocates in our community, and they truly exude our Foundation's mission to enhance the health of the communities we serve through a vision of healing and hope," said Zach Pretzer, President of the Methodist Healthcare Foundation.

Chauhan, a Rhodes College graduate, is involved with the Financial Planning Association of the Mid-South, Society of Financial Service Professionals, National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, Medical Group Management Association and the Memphis Estate Planning Council. He earned a master's degree from the University of Memphis and received his Retirement Planning Specialist designation from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.

He is a member of the Methodist Germantown Hospital Advisory Council and serves on the Board of Directors of the Orpheum Theater Group. In addition, the Chauhan family has supported Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare for more than 15 years through annual giving and special projects like the Germantown Historic Church Restoration, and a memorial to Dr. Dinesh N. Chauhan with an update to the Mothers Room at The Women's Pavilion at Methodist Germantown.

Patton is a Christian Brothers University alumna, receiving the Distinguished Alumni Award in 2010. She currently serves as chair of the Girl Scouts Heart of the South Board and serves on the Tennessee Nonprofit Network and Memphis Child Advocacy Center Boards. In 2010, she completed the Leadership Memphis Executive Program.

Through Roadshow BMW, the Patton Family has supported Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare for a decade through Roadshow BMW's Ride For A Cause for breast cancer prevention and Bowl n Bash and Sips for Sickle Cell to raise awareness and funds for the Methodist Comprehensive Sickle Cell Center.

About Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare

Based in Memphis, Tennessee, Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare has been caring for patients and families regardless of their ability to pay for more than 100 years. Guided by roots in the United Methodist Church and founded in 1918 to help meet the growing need for quality healthcare in the greater Memphis area, MLH has grown from one hospital into a comprehensive healthcare system with 13,000 Associates supporting six hospitals, including nationally ranked Le Bonheur Children's Hospital, ambulatory surgery centers, outpatient facilities, a hospice residence and physician and specialty practices serving communities across the Mid-South. From transplants and advanced heart procedures to expert neurology services and compassionate cancer care, Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare offers clinical expertise with a focus on improving every life we touch.

SOURCE Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare
ST. PAUL, Minn., Aug. 21, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Rachel Visser (Viss-er), a 19-year-old college student from Hutchinson, representing McLeod County, was crowned the 71st Princess Kay of the Milky Way in an evening ceremony Aug. 21 at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds.

Visser will serve as the official goodwill ambassador for the nearly 1,800 Minnesota dairy farm families. She is the daughter of Barry and Shannon Visser and attends the University of Minnesota.

Nine county dairy princesses from throughout Minnesota competed for the Princess Kay of the Milky Way title. Katie Ketchum (Ket-chum) of Altura, representing Winona County, and Grace Woitalla (Why-tall-uh) of Avon, representing Stearns County, were selected as runners-up.

Visser, Ketchum and Woitalla were also named scholarship winners. Mackenzie Moline (Mo-lean) of Saint Peter, representing Nicollet County, was named Miss Congeniality.

Throughout her year-long reign as Princess Kay of the Milky Way, Visser will make public appearances to help connect consumers to Minnesota's dairy farm families. She will work to bring dairy to life through conversations, classroom visits and various speaking engagements about the nutritional benefits of dairy and dairy farmers' continual commitment to environmental sustainability.

Visser's first official duty as Princess Kay will be to sit in a rotating cooler in the Dairy Building (located at the corner of Judson Avenue and Underwood Street) to have her likeness sculpted in a 90-pound block of butter the first two days of the Minnesota State Fair  Thursday, Aug. 22, and Friday, Aug. 23. Minnesota artist and butter sculptor Gerry Kulzer will be carving Princess Kay and the finalists.

Other finalists are scheduled to have their likenesses sculpted as follows:

Saturday, Aug. 24 : Miranda Schroeder , Caledonia , representing Houston County

, , representing Sunday, Aug. 25: Grace Woitalla , Avon , representing Stearns County

, , representing Monday, Aug. 26: McKenna Wright , Hutchinson , representing McLeod County

, , representing Wednesday, Aug. 28: Selena Corona, Saint Joseph , representing Stearns County

Selena Corona, , representing Thursday, Aug. 29: Katie Ketchum , Altura , representing Winona County

, , representing Friday, Aug. 30: Katelyn Welgraven , Ruthton , representing Pipestone County

, , representing Saturday, Aug. 31: Mackenzie Moline , Saint Peter , representing Nicollet County

, , representing Nicollet County Sunday, Sept. 1: Afton Nelson , Owatonna , representing Steele County

Throughout the fair, Princess Kay and the other finalists will make appearances near the Butter Sculpture Booth in the Dairy Building. Princess Kay's Facebook page and Instagram will provide regular updates and photos of each completed butter sculpture.

Princess Kay candidates are judged on their general knowledge of the dairy industry, communication skills and enthusiasm for dairy. Midwest Dairy sponsors the Princess Kay program, which is funded by dairy farmers through their promotion checkoff.

About Midwest Dairy

Midwest Dairy represents 4,000 dairy farm families and works on their behalf to build dairy demand by inspiring consumer confidence in our products and production practices. We are committed to Bringing Dairy to Life! by giving Consumers an Excellent Dairy Experience and are funded by farmers across a 10-state region, including Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma. For more information, visit MidwestDairy.com, and follow us on Facebook and YouTube.

CONTACT

Sara Grasmon

Bellmont Partners Public Relations

[email protected]

320-522-0483

SOURCE Midwest Dairy
SALEM, Ore., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- This Saturday, the Oregon Century Farm and Ranch Program will honor a prominent Oregon farm family with the Century Farm Award, commemorating 100 years of farming and contributions to Oregon agriculture. This milestone coincides with the unveiling of a modern three-level farmhouse on the original farmland, a testament to both the pioneering spirit of Oregon's early settlers and the innovative design that marries history with contemporary aesthetics. This project was a collaborative effort between Joanna Darling Design and Nathan Good Architects, celebrating a unique synergy between design and architecture.

A Modern Tribute to a Century of Farming

Joanna Darling Design and Nathan Good Architects, celebrating a unique synergy between design and architecture. Post this

The newly designed farmhouse embodies the essence of a modern farm, blending minimalist design with functional elegance. One of the owners is a fourth-generation family member and envisioned this home as a tribute to her ancestors' resilience and ingenuity. The architecture of the home is a contemporary interpretation of the region's agricultural structures. The exterior features striking bronze metal siding, and wood siding that is color-matched to the original barn still standing on the property, paying homage to the past while embracing the present. The innovative home utilizes energy-efficient building techniques and produces more energy than it annually consumes.

An attached silo also reads as "farm" but contains an ultra-modern glass elevator that is surrounded by a metal spiral staircase with each step laser-cut including dates and events significant to the family's 100-year history. The staircase spirals to a glass observatory above the third floor offering breathtaking views of the family's extensive hazelnut orchards, Mount Hood, and the Willamette River.

An imposing 17-foot black reflective granite monolith stands on the north side of the house engraved with the dates and levels of the Willamette River floods since 1861 at the location of the house. This unique feature braids geological, agricultural, and historical lines into contemporary home and landscape design. The monument stands as a reminder of nature's power while also illustrating the impact of planning that has minimized flood risks in the Willamette Valley in recent history.

Designing with Purpose and History

Joanna Darling Design played a pivotal role in maintaining the cohesiveness and elegance throughout the farmhouse. The first floor provides a working business and meeting center and also showcases vintage artifacts that illustrate farming innovations that have provided the raw material for progress in the past century. Warm tan leather lounge chairs, a teak coffee table, and a modern kitchen equipped with Miele appliances, enhances the unique mingling of traditional home business, modern comfort, and eloquent design. The original wood-burning stove from the century homestead is also featured on the floor as a nod to the past and a contrast with state-of-the art high speed internet technology that seamlessly integrates the old and the new.

Visitors are greeted by a 10-foot solid walnut conference table on an authentic machinery base, illuminated by a custom two-story chandelier from Apparatus Lighting Studio. The walls, lined with charcoal felt cabinets, house documents and artifacts from the early years of farming, while vintage photographs throughout the house capture the realities of 100 years of farm life.

The second floor features a library dedicated to the family's lineage and history, complete with a guest suite and an open-air porch offering vistas of the expansive valley. This space, open to researchers and family members alike, continues the theme of integration of roots contemporary living.

A Private Retreat and Vision Realized

The third floor, designed as a serene retreat, serves as the private residence for the owners. With natural Oregon white oak floors, contrasting white and black walls, and a pitched ceiling clad in white oak, this space exudes a cozy yet sophisticated ambiance. The minimalist design continues here, offering a peaceful sanctuary amidst the expanse of farmland.

Celebrating a Unique Collaboration and a Novel Trend in Design and Architecture

Joanna Darling Design and the owners have a long-standing creative partnership, and this farmhouse is one of several collective projects. The project was brought to life through the team efforts of Nathan Good Architects lead by Forrest Good AIA, with every element thoughtfully curated to honor the family's legacy with creative design.

The creation of this family farmhouse incorporates a deep reverence for heritage and modern design shared by both Nathan Good Architects and Joanna Darling Design. The interior and exterior of this unique farmhouse together embody the journey of one family's 100-year commitment to preserving Oregon's rich historical legacy. Their thoughtful collaboration shaped an inspiring space that honors early beginnings and sets a precedent for integrating cultural heritage with contemporary and modern design.

CONTACT INFORMATION: For further details, please contact:

Joanna Darling Design

[email protected]

joannadarling.design

Nathan Good Architects

[email protected]

www.nathangoodarchitects.com

Photos:

Matt Swain Photography

www.mattswainphoto.com

@mattswainphoto

SOURCE Joanna Darling Design
WASHINGTON, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- NASA has selected three additional companies to provide launch services for future agency missions through its VADR (Venture-Class Acquisition of Dedicated and Rideshare) contract.

The companies awarded are:

Arrow Science and Technology LLC of Webster, Texas

Impulse Space Inc. of Redondo Beach, California

Momentus Space LLC of San Jose, California

The VADR contract is a firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity instrument with an ordering period through Feb. 3, 2027 and a maximum total value of $300 million across all VADR contracts. NASA selected the new launch providers in accordance with VADR's on-ramp provision, allowing the agency to add new capabilities not available or identified at the time of the initial award. NASA will issue firm-fixed-price task orders for launch services as needed for future agency and agency-sponsored missions.

The VADR contract builds on NASA's previous procurement efforts, such as the VCLS (Venture Class Launch Services) and VCLS Demo 2, providing a broad range of Federal Aviation Administration-licensed commercial launch services capable of delivering Class D, CubeSats, and higher risk-tolerant payloads to a variety of orbits. By using a lower level of mission assurance and commercial best practices for launching rockets, these highly flexible contracts help broaden access to space through lower launch costs and serve as an ideal platform for contributing to NASA's science research and technology development.

NASA's Launch Services Program, based at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, manages the VADR contracts. The program also works with private industry, spacecraft projects, and international partners to launch science payloads ranging from small satellites with colleges and universities to NASA's highest priority missions.

For more information about NASA's launch services, visit:

https://go.nasa.gov/46SorXk

SOURCE NASA
BALTIMORE, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) Dean Mark T. Gladwin, MD, announced today the appointment of Kelly Dunn, PhD, MBA, one of the nation's leading researchers on opioid use disorder, as the inaugural Director of the School's Kahlert Institute for Addiction Medicine. She will also serve as a Professor in the Department of Psychiatry with a secondary appointment in the Department of Neurobiology at UMSOM.

Dr. Dunn is currently a Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine with a joint appointment in Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health.

Dr. Dunn has been the Principal Investigator on projects totaling more than $21 million in awards from the National Institutes of Health. She has authored more than 130 peer-reviewed publications in the area of substance use and opioid use disorder.

The Kahlert Institute for Addiction Medicine, launched in 2023 with a major gift from the Kahlert Foundation, is uniquely positioned to bring together leading addiction experts from across basic science and clinical care to transform the prevention, treatment, education, and research of addiction.

"With addiction, substance use disorder, and overdose deaths reaching epidemic proportions here in Maryland and in the U.S., we are extremely pleased to attract a top academician and leader in this field to move the Institute forward with a long-term impact," said Dean Gladwin.

Growing up in rural Central New York in the late 1990's, Dr. Dunn watched several close friends become dependent on opioids, after first being exposed through prescription medications, and eventually go on to develop opioid use disorder (OUD). "This prompted my life-long passion for understanding motivations for opioid use, identifying methods to prevent the onset of OUD, and helping to improve treatments for OUD," said Dr. Dunn. "I'm honored and thrilled to take the helm of the Kahlert Institute and to work together with all of the stellar faculty who are world-class leaders in addiction research to advance the science of addiction medicine."

Since 2012, Dr. Dunn has been a faculty member in the Johns Hopkins University Behavioral Pharmacology Research Unit (BPRU) located within the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. Her current work focuses on the conduct of Phase II/III randomized controlled assessments of medications, mainly those targeted for opioid use disorder.

She has also managed trials focused on treatments for cigarette smoking and alcohol use disorder and has conducted several basic science human laboratory examinations of drug effects, which is complemented by a body of work focused on epidemiological and machine-learning analyses of publicly available datasets.

She has held multiple leadership roles in the substance use field, including serving as President for the American Psychological Association's Society for Psychopharmacology and Substance Use and the College on the Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD) as well as Co-Editor of the Journal of Addiction Medicine and Editor-in-Chief of the journal Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology.

"Dr. Dunn's current work in the field is impressive," said Greg Kahlert, President of The Kahlert Foundation. "I am confident with her experience, passion and collaborative spirit, she will help find treatments and cures for those suffering from addiction. I could not be more excited that she is the first director of the Kahlert Institute for Addiction Medicine."

Dr. Dunn is currently the principal investigator on a multisite examination of a treatment for co-morbid pain in people with opioid use disorder. She is also an investigator on a Phase II trial examining the use of the drug suvorexant to treat sleep disorders, withdrawal, and craving in people initiating treatment with buprenorphine for opioid use disorder.

Other studies include a combination laboratory/clinical trial examining phenotypes of opioid withdrawal and a pilot trial examination of suvorexant for cocaine use in people being treated for OUD. Dr. Dunn recently completed a series of human laboratory trials examining genetic contributions to opioid sensitivity and opioid-cannabinoid interactions for pain treatment in healthy and clinical populations.

In addition to her numerous peer-reviewed original and review publications, Dr. Dunn edited the Oxford Handbook on Opioids and Opioid Use Disorder. She received her PhD Degree from the University of Vermont in 2009 and earned an MBA Degree from Johns Hopkins University Carey School of Business in 2019.

This news release was issued on behalf of Newswise. For more information, visit www.newswise.com

SOURCE University of Maryland School of Medicine
78% of Parents Believe That When Children Don't Get the Proper Support in School, It Impacts Other Aspects of Their Lives

NEW YORK, Aug. 21, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Understood.org, a leading nonprofit dedicated to providing resources and support to the more than 70 million people in the United States who have learning and thinking differences (LTD), such as ADHD and dyslexia, today released findings from its "2024 Back-to-School Survey" conducted online by The Harris Poll. The survey found that nine in 10 of all parents with a child in school (89%) are stressed about back-to-school season. Among those with a child who has an LTD, that number is much higher (96%). Moreover, the vast majority of those parents agree that neurodivergent students are often misunderstood by their peers (82%) and their teachers (76%), but more than half (53%) also agree that they are less worried about stigmas this year compared to previous years.

"More and more kids and adults are being evaluated and identified as neurodivergent, which is a good thing," said Dr. Andrew Kahn, Understood.org's associate director of behavior change, and expertise. "Social media platforms, such as TikTok and Instagram, have amplified the voices of neurodivergent individuals and their advocates, fostering greater understanding and support."

While there is greater acceptance and openness to discuss LTDs such as ADHD and dyslexia, the new survey found that four in five parents (81%) agree that not all parents are excited to send their kids back to school  a sentiment shared among parents both with (82%) and without (80%) children who have any LTDs. Notably, parents who have a child with LTDs are more likely than parents who do not have children with LTDs to feel stressed (36% vs. 19%), overwhelmed (33% vs. 17%), unprepared (29% vs. 14%), and scared (14% vs. 4%).

In addition, more than three-quarters (78%) of parents agree that when their child doesn't get the support they need in school, it impacts other aspects of their lives beyond their progress in school. This ripple effect is felt even more by parents of children with LTDs, who reported being significantly more stressed than other parents about their child's social life (49% vs. 31%).

Parents of children with LTDs also reported feeling more stressed about whether their child's school will be able to meet their needs (37% vs. 25%), and whether their child will have access to adequate resources to set them up for success at school (35% vs. 18%) compared to parents who do not have children with LTDs.

"Back to School continues to be one of the most stressful times of the year. However, we know that when children have the right support in school, there is a positive ripple effect that extends from childhood into adulthood. Our goal is to equip parents with resources and confidence to start the school year strong and help their child thrive," added Kahn.





To learn more about Understood.org's back-to-school support guide, visit: u.org/backtoschool . This guide can help you navigate everything from school anxiety and back-to-school routines to IEPs and 504 plans.

Survey Methodology

This survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Understood.org from July 25-29, 2024, among 2,073 U.S. adults ages 18+, of whom 656 are parents to children under 18 ("parents") and 336 are parents to children with any learning or thinking differences (LTDs). The sampling precision of Harris online polls is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval. For this study, the full sample data is accurate to within +/- 2.5 percentage points using a 95% confidence level.

About Understood

Understood is a nonprofit focused on shaping the world for difference. We raise awareness of the challenges, skills, and strengths of people who learn and think differently. Our resources help people navigate challenges, gain confidence, and find support and community so they can thrive. Together, we can build a world where everyone can reach their full potential. Understood is a 501(c)(3) organization headquartered in New York. For more information, to donate, or to partner, visit u.org/media and follow us @UnderstoodOrg.

SOURCE Understood
Nominations are now open for The Jerusalem Post's "Top 25 Young Vizionaries" to coincide with the release of the paper's "50 Most Influential Jews" on Rosh Hashanah  the Jewish New Year.

NEW YORK, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- In partnership with Jewish National Fund-USA, the Jerusalem Post will again honor 25 young people who have stood up for Israel over the past year through its "Top 25 Young Vizionaries" awards. Nominations can be submitted at jnf.org/top25 until Sunday, September 8, 2024, at 11.59 US ET and are open to Zionists (including Jews and those beyond the Jewish faith) from around the world who are under the age of 45. Last year's winners can be viewed at jpost.com/influencers/visionaries.

Top 25 Young Vizionaries JNFuture members gather at JNF House

Nominees will be judged on how they inspired others to stand up for the land and people of Israel, publicly celebrated their Zionism, and the initiatives they supported or created to help Israel during this year of unprecedented challenges where the stakes have never been higher.

"This year, young Zionists everywhere realized that we can't wait for others to stand up and defend our homeland," said National JNFuture Chair, Ian Sachs. "Our future is entirely in our hands, and as representatives of our community's next generation of leaders, we hold the key to our People's future."

Winners of last year's Top 25 Young Vizionaries included U.S. Congressman Ritchie Torres, South African Zionist activist Olga Meshoe Washington, Co-Founder of Space IL Yonatan Weintraub, Digital activist Hallel Zilverman, Sinai Temple (LA) Rabbi Erez Sherman, and others.

"The Jerusalem Post is excited to honor and highlight young Zionist changemakers," said the Jerusalem Post's Editor-in-Chief, Zvika Klein. "Our paper has a proud tradition of providing a platform for individuals who positively impact the future of the land and people of Israel. While we have many challenges ahead of us, our community should feel confident that we have a new generation of Zionist changemakers who are more passionate and engaged than ever."

To nominate yourself or others, visit jnf.org/top25.

About Jewish National Fund-USA

Jewish National Fund-USA builds a strong, vibrant future for the land and people of Israel through bold initiatives and Zionist education. As a leading philanthropic movement, the organization supports critical environmental and nation-building activities in Israel's north and south as it develops new communities in the Negev and Galilee, connects the next generation to Israel, and creates infrastructure and programs that support ecology, people with disabilities, and heritage site preservation, all while running a fully accredited study abroad experience through its Alexander Muss High School in Israel. Learn more at jnf.org.

MEDIA CONTACT

Stefan Oberman

212.879.9305 x 222

[email protected]

SOURCE Jewish National Fund-USA
LONDON, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Nord Anglia Education (NAE) has announced its A level results for the 2023/24 academic year, with students globally achieving 49.4% of grades at A*-A along with 71.9% at A*-B. These results are significantly higher than England's overall A*-A average of 27.6% this year.

More than 900 Nord Anglia Education students sat the exam across 19 of its schools this year, making it Nord Anglia's largest A levels cohort ever.

This year's results are also a year-over-year improvement for Nord Anglia globally, up from 48.1% A*-A grades in the 2022/2023 academic year.

Leading the results for Nord Anglia was Oxford International College Brighton, which saw 80% of entries at A*-A, while 100% achieved A*-B.

Nord Anglia's other schools offering A levels achieved impressive results, including:

Elise Ecoff, Group Education Director, Nord Anglia Education, said: "We're thrilled to see our largest-ever A levels cohort excel with this set of fantastic results as they're a real testament to the hard work and determination of our students and teachers alike. We're so excited to watch them continue their academic journeys at the world's top universities, carrying forward the lessons of a Nord Anglia education."

These results follow Nord Anglia publishing an average International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme score of 34 for the 2023/2024 academic year, well above the global average of 30.3.

Graduates from Nord Anglia Education schools continue to go on to attend the world's top 100 universities, including Oxford University, Cambridge University, University College London, Harvard University, Stanford University, Imperial College London, King's College London, and the London School of Economics and Political Science, amongst many others.

Media enquiries:

David Bates

Communications Manager

+44 (0) 7787 135223

[email protected]

About Nord Anglia Education:

As a leading international schools organisation, we're shaping a generation of creative and resilient global citizens who graduate from our schools with everything they need for success, whatever they choose to be or do in life.

Our strong academic foundations combine world-class teaching and curricula with cutting-edge technology and facilities, creating learning experiences like no other. Inside and outside of the classroom, we inspire our students to achieve more than they ever thought possible.

No two children learn the same way, which is why our schools around the world personalise learning to what works best for every student. Inspired by our high-quality teachers, our students achieve outstanding academic results and go on to study at the world's top universities.

To learn more or apply for a place for your child, go to nordangliaeducation.com.

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1503193/4873177/Nord_Anglia_Education_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Nord Anglia Education
NEW YORK, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- GoTopless, a leading advocate for women's rights, is gearing up for its 17th annual GoTopless Day Parade on August 24, celebrating the pursuit of topless gender equality in New York Citya global beacon of topless rights since 1992.

"We warmly invite all women, irrespective of age, shape, or size, to join us this Saturday in asserting their right to top-freedom," announced Nadine Gary, President of GoTopless and Raelian Happiness Guide.

"'Free your breasts, free your minds' is more than just a mottoit's a call to liberation," Gary continued. "Women who bravely expose their breasts in public experience an empowering surge of freedom and gender equality. This bold act not only strengthens the mind but also delivers an immediate boost in self-esteem."

Gary further emphasized that the freedom to go topless also benefits men: "Since the early 20th century, society has gradually adapted to seeing women's legs, backs, navels, bellies, buttocks, and other previously concealed body parts. Over time, the initial obsession fades. The law stands ready to address any disrespectful behavior."

The annual GoTopless Day is symbolically timed around August 26, commemorating the historic ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920, which granted women the right to vote, affirming constitutional gender equality. A century later, these principles are equally pertinent to topless rights, as highlighted by Maitreya Rael, the visionary founder of GoTopless and spiritual leader of the Raelian Movement: "As long as men are allowed to be topless in public, women should have the same constitutional right. Otherwise, men should be required to cover their chests."

Gary affirmed that GoTopless Day serves as a crucial platform for protests in cities across the United States and globally, including Paris and Geneva, where gender-discriminatory laws continue to deny women equal topless rights.

The NYC GoTopless Parade, starting at 1 PM on West 58th Street between 8th and 9th Avenues, promises to be a vibrant celebration of equality and freedom, brimming with joy, fun, and live music from the NYC New Orleans Renaissance Jazz Band. In a powerful symbol of the movement, a gigantic balloon shaped like a pair of breasts will float above the New York City skyline. The event will culminate at Bryant Park at 1:30 PM with speeches from inspirational figures.

SOURCE GoTopless
Info-Tech Research Group has published new insights for IT leaders navigating core system replacements in government. The firm's comprehensive resource highlights the importance of adopting a holistic approach and a strategic shift-left mindset to address the unique challenges the public sector faces. Info-Tech's data-driven blueprint outlines forward-thinking strategies that can streamline IT transformations, improve operational efficiency, and foster sustainable innovation in the public sector.

TORONTO, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - Government organizations face significant challenges when replacing their core systems, including cost overruns, governance issues, resistance to change, and a lack of technical expertise. Unlike the private sector, these challenges require specialized approaches tailored to the unique needs of government projects. Info-Tech Research Group's latest blueprint, Core Systems Replacement in Government, identifies five critical distinctions between the public and private sectors in core system replacement, highlighting the need for customized strategies. The research-backed resource details the importance of a holistic approach, combined with a strategic shift-left mindset, in significantly improving success rates, enhancing project outcomes, and elevating stakeholder satisfaction.

Info-Tech Research Group's "Core Systems Replacement in Government" blueprint details five key distinctions between the public and private sectors when replacing core systems, highlighting the need for a unique approach. (CNW Group/Info-Tech Research Group)

Info-Tech's blueprint provides insights for IT leaders in the public sector, emphasizing the importance of understanding the full tools and packages they are acquiring when replacing core systems. Outdated core systems can pose significant challenges for governments by limiting agility, hindering innovation, increasing operating costs, and creating incompatibilities within the technology stack and applications. The firm advises that addressing these limitations is critical to enabling government organizations to respond quickly to events, adopt new technologies, and meet customer expectations.

In its newly published resource, Info-Tech outlines the benefits of adopting a strategic shift-left mindset for core system replacements in government. The "shift-left" approach focuses on identifying and resolving issues early in the development process. By prioritizing early testing, feedback, and collaboration, potential problems can be addressed before they escalate into costly disruptions.

"While a holistic strategy provides a solid foundation for core system replacement projects, it may not address all potential challenges that can arise during the implementation process," says Patrick Spencer, research fellow at Info-Tech Research Group. "This is where the strategic shift-left mindset becomes crucial. This proactive approach requires involving key collaborators from the outset, conducting thorough risk assessments, and implementing agile project management practices to adapt to changing requirements and circumstances."

In the Core Systems Replacement in Government blueprint, Info-Tech details five key distinctions between the public and private sectors when it comes to replacing core systems, highlighting the need for a unique approach.

Objectives: While private sector organizations primarily focus on economic goals, public sector projects must balance both economic and policy objectives. Public sector projects often face challenges in aligning stakeholders on strategy and prioritization, especially over long periods. Policy volatility, particularly during government changes, can disrupt alignment and cause conflicts with the original project goals, undermining previous efforts. Lower success rate of public sector IT projects: Public sector IT projects are at greater risk of exceeding their initial cost and time estimates due to several factors. These include a more complex landscape of decision-makers, less effective risk management practices, difficulties in attracting and retaining skilled personnel, slower governance processes, and less pressure to deliver minimum viable products. As a result, public sector projects tend to have a lower success rate compared to private sector initiatives. Handling of cost overruns: A major distinction between the two sectors is how they manage projects that go over budget. Private sector companies often have established procedures for terminating unsuccessful projects, whereas the public sector may lack such processes, leading to projects continuing despite cost overruns. Risk of overruns: Public-sector IT projects are more prone to budget and timeline overruns than private-sector projects. Research shows that eight out of ten public sector IT projects exceed their timelines, with nearly half experiencing cost overruns. In contrast, only one in three private sector projects face such challenges. On average, public sector IT projects incur cost overruns nearly three times higher than those in the private sector. Decision-making: Decision-making in the private sector is typically handled internally, while public institutions must take public opinion into account, adding layers of complexity to the decision-making process.

By prioritizing early stakeholder involvement, proactive risk management, and alignment with organizational goals, Info-Tech's blueprint offers IT leaders a framework to ensure smoother transitions and more successful outcomes in core system replacement in the public sector. This approach provides several benefits, including increased efficiency, reliability, and scalability, which lead to superior system performance and responsiveness. Additionally, streamlined processes, reduced maintenance costs, and optimized resource use contribute to significant long-term cost savings for governments.

For exclusive and timely commentary from Patrick Spencer, an expert in the public sector, and access to the complete Core Systems Replacement in Government blueprint, please contact [email protected].

Info-Tech LIVE 2024 Conference

Registration is now open for Info-Tech Research Group's annual IT conference, Info-Tech LIVE 2024, taking place September 17 to 19, 2024, at the iconic Bellagio in Las Vegas. This premier event offers journalists, podcasters, and media influencers access to exclusive content, the latest IT research and trends, and the opportunity to interview industry experts, analysts, and speakers. To apply for media passes to attend the event or gain access to research and expert insights on trending topics, please contact [email protected].

About Info-Tech Research Group

Info-Tech Research Group is one of the world's leading research and advisory firms, proudly serving over 30,000 IT and HR professionals. The company produces unbiased, highly relevant research and provides advisory services to help leaders make strategic, timely, and well-informed decisions. For nearly 30 years, Info-Tech has partnered closely with teams to provide them with everything they need, from actionable tools to analyst guidance, ensuring they deliver measurable results for their organizations.

To learn more about Info-Tech's divisions, visit McLean & Company for HR research and advisory services and SoftwareReviews for software buying insights.

Media professionals can register for unrestricted access to research across IT, HR, and software and hundreds of industry analysts through the firm's Media Insiders program. To gain access, contact [email protected].

For information about Info-Tech Research Group or to access the latest research, visit infotech.com and connect via LinkedIn and X.

SOURCE Info-Tech Research Group
27% of multifamily properties report they are holding back from deploying smart home solutions

DALLAS, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Parks Associates' second annual Smart Spaces: Apartments, Hospitality, and Community Living addresses the new challenges property owners and operators face due to shifts in pricing, housing availability, regulatory issues, and new technologies. The executive conference will be held September 24-25 at the Renaissance Dallas Richardson Hotel in Richardson, Texas, and features speakers from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Parks Associates Parks Associates

Parks Associates research shows that 41 million households rent their homes and estimates the total addressable US MDU market as nearly 29 million apartments and 10 million condominiums. Smart Spaces provides attendees with research from Parks Associates and insights from tech leaders on how to deliver profitable and cost-effective solutions in today's market.

Event sponsors include by ADT Multifamily, Cox Communities, Nice, Vantiva, Xfinity Communities, Kwikset, Calix, Homebase, a Quext Company, SkyBell, Dojo Networks, WireStar Networks, Zentra Access, Alocity, and SALTO.

"Our study Smart Properties: The Value of IoT for MDUs shows that 27% of multifamily properties report they are holding back from deploying smart home solution until they have more information on the implications of the FCC proposed rule on bulk internet," said Elizabeth Parks, President and CMO, Parks Associates. "We look forward to this event to hear more from the industry and regulatory bodies."

Parks Associates will host the research workshop "Transforming Smart Spaces: Research & Market Insights" on September 24, which includes the featured session "Navigating Changing Regulations" at 11:30 am CT. In addition, Smart Spaces features the session "What Works? Understanding Solution Value, ROI, and NOI" on Wednesday, September 25, 8:45 am CT. Speakers include:

Michele Levy Berlove, Assistant Division Chief, Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

Adam Hepworth, President, Della Connect

Kyle Johnson , Director, Smart Building Technology, Greystar

, Director, Smart Building Technology, Greystar Cris Kimbrough , Chief Strategy Officer, SKBM Smart Technology

, Chief Strategy Officer, SKBM Smart Technology Jeffrey Kok, CEO, Aerwave

Savin Ven Johnson, Regional Director, Office of Community Planning and Development, U.S . Department of Housing and Urban Development, Region VI (TX, NM, LA, OK, AR)

Event Keynote speakers:

Kaushik Mani , Director, Amazon Key

, Director, Amazon Key Thomas Stanchak, Managing Director of Sustainability, Stoneweg US

Event registration is open. To request data or an interview, please contact Mindi Sue Sternblitz-Rubenstein at [email protected], 972-490-1113.

About Smart Spaces

Smart Spaces, hosted by international research firm Parks Associates, brings together property owners, building managers, and technology leaders to discuss the innovations in the multidwelling and hospitality environments. Building on a high-performing broadband backbone, MDU property managers can leverage connected devices and smart platforms that integrate connected solutions to streamline property management tasks and lower operating costs, attract and retain residents, and increase rental revenues. The event features consumer research, informative session, and networking opportunities for building executives, service providers, and hardware, middleware, and software providers enabling the next generation of solutions for the consumer, MDU, and public spaces.

Throughout each Smart Spaces event, Parks Associates shares its research on bulk broadband, managed Wi-Fi, smart home, and IoT technologies, including access controls, energy management, and network support, setting the stage for conversations to understand the current and future opportunities in smart apartments and hospitality. www.smartspacesconference.com

Mindi Sue Sternblitz-Rubenstein

Parks Associates

972.490.1113

[email protected]

SOURCE Parks Associates
Life & Health NBV jumps 11.0% YoY, demonstrating significant positive results in high-quality business development

HONG KONG and SHANGHAI, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. (hereafter "Ping An" or the "Group", HKEX: 2318; SSE: 601318) today announced its 2024 interim results for the six month period ended 30 June 2024.

In the first half of 2024, China's economy was generally stable despite a complex external environment. Facing opportunities and challenges, Ping An focused on its core financial businesses, strengthened its "integrated finance + health and senior care" strategy, and improved the business quality and efficiency by providing customers with "worry-free, time-saving, and money-saving" service experience. The overall operating results remained solid, demonstrating resilience. In the first half of 2024, Ping An delivered a 16.4% annualized operating ROE, with operating profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company reaching RMB78,482 million. Net profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company rose 6.8% year on year to RMB74,619 million. The Group's total assets grew to nearly RMB12.23 trillion as of June 30, 2024. Attaching importance to shareholder returns, Ping An will pay an interim dividend of RMB0.93 per share in cash, maintaining stable cash dividends.

Ping An delivered significant positive results in high-quality business development. Three core businesses, namely life and health insurance ("Life & Health"), property and casualty insurance ("Ping An P&C"), and banking, achieved growth and delivered RMB79,565 million in operating profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company, up 1.7% year on year. Life & Health's new business value ("NBV") grew 11.0% year on year to RMB22,320 million. Agent productivity continued to increase with NBV of the agent channel up 10.8% and NBV per agent up 36.0% year on year. Business quality improved steadily as Ping An Life recorded a material improvement in its persistency ratios with the 13-month persistency ratio rising 2.8 pps year on year. Ping An delivered excellent results in insurance funds investment, with the portfolio achieving an annualized comprehensive investment yield of 4.2% in the first half of 2024. Ping An continued to develop its "integrated finance + health and senior care" strategy. Retail customers increased to 236 million as of June 30, 2024; 24.9% of them held four or more contracts within the Group, with a retention rate of 97.8%. Over 87.92 million retail customers held multiple contracts with different subsidiaries. Customers entitled to service benefits in the health and senior care ecosystem accounted for over 68% of Ping An Life's NBV in the first half of 2024.

Top nine business highlights in 1H2024

1. Stable cash dividends amid steady business results. The Group delivered a 16.4% annualized operating ROE, with operating profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company reaching RMB78,482 million in the first half of 2024. Three core businesses, namely Life & Health, Ping An P&C, and banking, achieved growth and delivered RMB79,565 million in operating profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company, up 1.7% year on year. Attaching importance to shareholder returns, Ping An will pay an interim dividend of RMB0.93 per share in cash.

2. Life & Health grew continuously and achieved high-quality development in its agent channel. NBV amounted to RMB22,320 million in the first half of 2024, up 11.0% year on year. Agent productivity continued to increase with NBV of the agent channel up 10.8% and NBV per agent up 36.0% year on year. The number of Ping An Life's individual life insurance sales agents reached about 340,000 as of June 30, 2024.

3. Ping An P&C maintained good business quality with steady revenue growth. Ping An P&C's insurance revenue rose 3.9% year on year to RMB161,910 million in the first half of 2024. The company maintained a healthy overall combined ratio at 97.8% through enhanced business management and risk screening.

4. Ping An Bank maintained steady business performance as well as adequate capital and risk provisions. Net profit grew 1.9% year on year to RMB25,879 million in the first half of 2024. Core tier 1 capital adequacy ratio rose to 9.33% and provision coverage ratio was 264.26% as of June 30, 2024.

5. Ping An delivered excellent results in insurance funds investment. In a complex and volatile market environment, Ping An's insurance funds investment portfolio achieved an annualized comprehensive investment yield of 4.2% in the first half of 2024, up 0.1 pps year on year. The portfolio achieved a 5.4% average comprehensive investment yield over the past decade.

6. Ping An continued to develop integrated finance. Retail customers increased to 236 million as of June 30, 2024; 24.9% of them held four or more contracts within the Group, with a retention rate of 97.8%.

7. Ping An continued to implement its health and senior care ecosystem strategy, achieving significant positive results with differential advantages. By integrating providers, Ping An partnered with all top 100 hospitals and 3A hospitals, and accumulated about 50,000 in-house doctors and contracted external doctors in China as of June 30, 2024. Ping An partnered with approximately 233,000 pharmacies as of June 30, 2024, up by over 2,500 from the beginning of the year. Customers entitled to service benefits in the health and senior care ecosystem accounted for over 68% of Ping An Life's NBV in the first half of 2024.

8. Ping An actively fulfilled its social responsibilities and supported the real economy. Ping An cumulatively invested nearly RMB9.46 trillion as of June 30, 2024 to bolster the real economy. Green investment of insurance funds and green loan balance reached RMB124,877 million and RMB164,634 million respectively as of June 30, 2024. Ping An's green insurance premium income amounted to RMB23,605 million, and funds provided for rural industrial vitalization via "Ping An Rural Communities Support" totaled RMB17,024 million in the first half of 2024. Ping An made its debut in the Fortune China ESG Impact List in 2024.

9. Ping An further increased its brand value. In 2024, Ping An ranked 53rd on the Fortune Global 500 list and remained first in the global "Insurance: life and health" industry; 29th on the Forbes Global 2000 list and remained 1st among Chinese insurers; 1st on the Brand Finance Insurance 100 list for the 8th consecutive year.

Deepened integrated finance model drove the stable growth in three core businesses.

Life insurance operating results grew continuously, and the business quality continued to improve. Ping An Life continued to enhance its channels and improve business quality under the "4 channels + 3 products" strategy in the first half of 2024. By upgrading "insurance + service" solutions, Ping An Life continuously strengthened its presence in health and senior care sectors to empower high-quality business development. Life & Health NBV grew 11.0% year on year to RMB22,320 million in the first half of 2024. Ping An Life recorded a material improvement in its persistency ratios with the 13-month persistency ratio rising 2.8 pps year on year and 25-month persistency ratio rising 3.3 pps year on year in the first half of 2024.

Ping An Life continued to enhance channel development. In the agent channel, the company continued to deepen the transformation and improve the team structure, focusing on recruiting high-quality new agents with the support of existing high-quality agents. Agent channel NBV grew 10.8% year on year in the first half of 2024. NBV per agent grew 36.0% year on year. The proportion of "Talent+" new agents increased by 10.2 pps year on year. The number of Ping An Life's individual life insurance sales agents reached about 340,000 as of June 30, 2024. In the bancassurance channel, Ping An Life adhered to its value-oriented transformation strategy. Bancassurance channel NBV rose 17.3% year on year in the first half of 2024. In Community Grid and other channels, Ping An Life focused on retained customers and set up 126 Community Grid outlets in 90 cities as of June 30, 2024, an increase of 39 cities from the beginning of the year. Ping An Life built a team of approximately 15,000 highly competent specialists who perform effective service operations. Community Grid's 13-month policy persistency ratio of retained customers improved by 5.8 pps year on year in the first half of 2024, and FYP was 2.6 times that for the same period last year. In the lower-tier channel, Ping An Life continuously promoted sales in 7 provinces, gradually building robust sales channels in the first half of 2024.

"Insurance + service" offerings have gained traction. Ping An Life provided health management services to nearly 16 million customers in the first half of 2024. More than 120,000 customers qualified for home-based senior care services, which covered 64 cities across China as of June 30, 2024. Ping An has unveiled premium health and senior care communities in 5 cities.

Ping An P&C maintained stable business growth and good business quality. The company grew its insurance revenue by 3.9% year on year and improved its overall combined ratio ("COR") by 0.2 pps to 97.8% in the first half of 2024. In auto insurance, overall operations are steady and in good order. Auto insurance premium income rose 3.4% year on year to RMB104,824 million, and vehicles insured increased 5.9% year on year in the first half of 2024. As a one-stop service platform for auto owners, the "Ping An Auto Owner" app had more than 218 million registered users as of June 30, 2024, with over 142 million vehicles linked to it. Ping An P&C offers leading online claims services and scored 90.87 in the Auto Insurance Service Quality Index evaluation by CBIT (China Banking and Insurance Information Technology Management Co., Ltd.), positioning the company among the leading players in the property and casualty insurance industry.

Ping An Bank maintained steady business performance and adequate risk provisions. The bank adheres to its strategy of "strong retail banking, selective corporate banking, and specialized interbank business." Net profit grew 1.9% year on year to RMB25,879 million in the first half of 2024. Core tier 1 capital adequacy ratio increased to 9.33% as of June 30, 2024. Ping An Bank continuously strengthened risk management and maintained adequate risk provisions. Non-performing loan ratio and provision coverage ratio were 1.07% and 264.26% respectively as of June 30, 2024. The bank promoted the high-quality sustainable development of its retail business. Retail assets under management ("AUM") rose 2.2% from the beginning of the year to RMB4,120,630 million, and retail deposit balance grew 6.9% from the beginning of the year to RMB1,290,345 million as of June 30, 2024. In corporate business, Ping An Bank closely follows national strategies to serve the real economy. Corporate loan balance grew 11.4% from the beginning of the year to RMB1,592,139 million as of June 30, 2024. Corporate deposit balance grew 3.7% from the beginning of the year to RMB2,280,467 million.

Ping An delivered excellent results in insurance funds investment. The Group's insurance funds investment portfolio grew 10.2% from the beginning of the year to more than RMB5.20 trillion as of June 30, 2024. The Group upheld a balanced and prudent approach to its insurance funds investment portfolio under the guidance of long-term strategic asset allocation in the first half of 2024. The portfolio achieved an annualized comprehensive investment yield of 4.2% in the first half of 2024, up by 0.1 pps year on year. The portfolio achieved a 5.4% average comprehensive investment yield over the past decade.

Ping An advanced its integrated finance strategy under a customer-centric philosophy. The Group focused on the development of retail customers, building a brand of heartwarming financial services by providing "worry-free, time-saving, and money-saving" one-stop integrated financial solutions. Integrated finance brought Ping An higher operational efficiency, lower operating and risk costs, and higher customer retention rates. The Group's retail customers increased 1.9% from the beginning of the year to 236 million as of June 30, 2024; 24.9% of retail customers held four or more contracts within the Group, with a retention rate of 97.8%. Contracts per retail customer reached 2.93. Over 87.92 million retail customers held multiple contracts with different subsidiaries. Thanks to Ping An's diverse integrated finance products and channels, as well as the enhanced "worry-free, time-saving, and money-saving" services, new customers acquired in the first half of 2024 totaled 13.92 million. Retail cross-selling deepens as Ping An adheres to long-term customer development and continuously gains customer insights. Middle-class and above customers accounted for approximately 77.7% of the Group's total retail customers, and high net-worth individuals ("HNWIs") held about 20.13 contracts per customer as of June 30, 2024.

Ping An launched a Chinese "managed care model" as a new driver of value growth. Ping An actively promoted the Chinese "managed care model" by seamlessly combining its online/offline health and senior care ecosystem with financial businesses in which Ping An acted as a payer. The Group built a health and senior care ecosystem in China with differential advantages, including "online, in-store and home-delivered" service capabilities, extensive coverage of health and senior care service resources, and access to high-quality proprietary resources.

Ping An empowered core financial businesses through differentiated "Product + Service" offerings. 28.6% of the Group's new retail customers were acquired from its health and senior care ecosystem in the first half of 2024. Customers entitled to service benefits in the Group's health and senior care ecosystem accounted for over 68% of Ping An Life's NBV in the first half of 2024. More than 63% of Ping An's 236 million retail customers used services from the health and senior care ecosystem as of June 30, 2024. They held approximately 3.36 contracts and RMB57,500 in AUM per capita, 1.6 times and 3.8 times those held by non-users of these services respectively. Nearly 16 million customers of Ping An Life used services from the health and senior care ecosystem in the first half of 2024. Notably, nearly 70% of Ping An Life's newly-enrolled customers used health management services in the first half of 2024.

Ping An made significant progress in retail and corporate customer development by effectively integrating insurance with health and senior care services. The Group's health and senior care ecosystem had more than 67,000 paying corporate clients and their nearly 27 million employees were served in the first half of 2024. Ping An Health had approximately 40 million paying users over the 12 months ended June 30, 2024. PKU Healthcare Group's revenue continued to grow to approximately RMB2.52 billion in the first half of 2024, driven by its robust operations and faster development since its takeover by Ping An in 2021. Ping An had about 50,000 in-house doctors and contracted external doctors as well as 34 general hospitals, health management centers, and children's rehabilitation centers in China as of June 30, 2024. The Group also partnered with more than 36,000 hospitals, over 104,000 health care management institutions, and approximately 233,000 pharmacies in China as of June 30, 2024. Overseas, Ping An partnered with more than 1,300 health care institutions in 35 countries as of June 30, 2024, including 8 of the global top10 on the Newsweek's World's Best Hospitals List.

Ping An continued to build world-leading AI capabilities. The Group focused on developing core technologies and securing proprietary intellectual property rights. According to the latest ranking released by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in 2024, Ping An ranked second globally with 1,564 generative AI patent applications. The Group's patent applications led most international financial institutions, totaling 52,185 as of June 30, 2024. Ping An had a first-class technology team of more than 20,000 technology developers and over 3,000 scientists as of June 30, 2024. From the perspective of transforming and upgrading Ping An's core businesses, technology benefits are reflected in higher sales, better business efficiency, and stronger risk management. The volume of services provided by Ping An's AI service representatives reached about 870 million times, accounting for 80% of Ping An's total customer service volume in the first half of 2024. It took an average of 7.4 minutes to close a claim with Smart Quick Claim. Moreover, claims savings via smart fraud risk identification grew 4.3% year on year to RMB6.1 billion in the first half of 2024 as Ping An continuously strengthened risk management.

In the second half of 2024, China's economic recovery will be further bolstered as the government deepens reform comprehensively and household consumption and public expectations continuously improve. Ping An will thoroughly study and implement the spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (the "CPC"), uphold the CPC Central Committee's centralized, unified leadership over financial work, adhere to a people-centered value orientation, relentlessly pursue high-quality development, and strive for sustainable, well-structured and high-quality resilient growth. Ping An will continue to implement its business policy of "focusing on core businesses, boosting revenue and cutting costs, optimizing structure, and enhancing quality and efficiency," and advance its technology-driven "integrated finance + health and senior care" strategy. Taking the "worry-free, time-saving, and money-saving" value proposition as its business guidance, service standard, and long-term commitment, the Group strives to create long-term, stable and sustainable value for customers, employees, shareholders and society.

 End 
Complementing Recent Strategic Additions, Luke Kipfer Named Managing Director, Patrick Pline Elevated to Senior Vice President of Acquisitions and Development, AWS Alum Pete McGrath Joins Exemplary Team

MCLEAN, Va., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- PowerHouse Data Centers , a leading real estate partner for next-generation hyperscale data centers and division of American Real Estate Partners ( AREP ), today announces a trifecta of strategic leadership changes to fuel its commitment to innovation and growth. Luke Kipfer has been named PowerHouse's Managing Director of Development and Construction, Patrick Pline has been elevated to Senior Vice President of Acquisitions and Development, and Pete McGrath has joined as Vice President of Development and Construction. With this announcement, PowerHouse continues its operational momentum and its role as a visionary partner for the world's most advanced hyperscale data center deployments.

A trifecta of strategic leadership changes fuels PowerHouse's commitment to innovation and growth. Post this Complementing recent strategic additions, Luke Kipfer named Managing Director, Patrick Pline elevated to Senior Vice President of Acquisitions and Development, AWS Alum Pete McGrath joins exemplary team

"In this industry, there is a monumental difference between delivering an outcome that meets requirements and an outcome that truly outperforms. At PowerHouse, we know that difference is built from the ground up. Luke's exceptional leadership and deep expertise have been invaluable to PowerHouse's growth; his guidance is instrumental for our data center development over the coming decade. I am equally excited to elevate Patrick to oversee site selection and master planning of our sites, and to welcome Pete McGrath, whose extensive experience with hyperscale customers and innovative mindset will greatly enhance PowerHouse's ethos and capabilities," states Doug Fleit, co-founder and CEO of PowerHouse and AREP.

As managing director, Kipfer oversees PowerHouse Data Centers' development and construction operations. Kipfer previously served as PowerHouse's executive vice president of development and construction, demonstrating exceptional leadership in planning and executing PowerHouse's projects, advancing its data center construction across five markets, and developing a multi-disciplined team of experts.

Pline's promotion to the acquisitions and development role highlights his multi-disciplined expertise in managing approximately $2 billion in construction projects and spearheading some of AREP's most complex, mission-critical developments, such as PowerHouse's ABX-1 data center and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection headquarters in Ashburn, Virginia

McGrath joins PowerHouse as development and construction vice president, bringing over three decades of data center construction experience, including managing Northeast U.S. construction for AWS, delivering billions in data center capacity. His addition strengthens PowerHouse's ability to stay ahead of industry growth and meet evolving technical demands.

"With more announcements coming up, these team promotions and additions represent the highest level of expertise and real estate acumen, which will pay dividends for our customers and further demonstrate why PowerHouse is one of the leading data center development firms in the country," added Fleit.

The promotions of Kipfer and Pline, along with the addition of McGrath, come on the heels of the company's recently announced strategic new hires , SVP of Asset Management and Development Matt Monaco , as well as its new Director of Data Center Utilities, Will McCausland. As PowerHouse continues to thoughtfully expand its portfolio of next-generation data centers, redefining the landscape of precision hyperscale infrastructure, its proven real estate leadership and cadre of technical design, construction, and development experts remain its most valuable asset. Most recently, its team has empowered expansion activity in five new markets across four different states in the span of a year, bringing the company's portfolio to a total of 10.4+ million square feet and 2.3+ GW of utility power.

With dozens of new projects on the horizon, PowerHouse shows no signs of slowing its pace of prolific growth  or its ascension to the top of the data center industry. For all the latest news about PowerHouse Data Centers' new hires follow them on Linkedin here .

About PowerHouse Data Centers

PowerHouse Data Centers, a wholly owned division of American Real Estate Partners (AREP), is a developer and owner of next-generation data centers and provides technical real estate solutions for hyperscalers nationwide. Starting in Northern Virginia's Data Center Alley, the world's largest data center market, before strategically expanding to key markets across the United States, PowerHouse owns its land sites, offering unparalleled fast-track approvals and zoning approvals in its full suite of development services.

As an industry disruptor, PowerHouse provides flexible next-generation data center models with the quickest speed to market of any data center while meeting hyperscalers' growing market, data, utility, and space demands. The company has 30 buildings currently in planning or underway, representing over 2.3 GW of power in six major US markets. Operating as the data center division of AREP, PowerHouse is uniquely positioned as a leader in world-class data center development. With some of the industry's deepest real estate relationships, PowerHouse leverages its strategic joint venture partnerships, proven leadership, and best-in-class technical expertise to deliver innovative real estate solutions nationwide. Visit our newsroom for more information, and follow us on LinkedIn , YouTube, and X .

SOURCE PowerHouse Data Centers
First Choice clients can access Reins' dynamic custom solutions to maximize value and retain key employees during business sales or exits

LAS VEGAS, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Reins, a pioneering technology firm dedicated to empowering small businesses through modern equity solutions, announces a partnership with First Choice Business Brokers (FCBB), a premier business brokerage and M&A firm facilitating successful business transactions by connecting qualified buyers and sellers. Reins chose to partner with FCBB because of their clear leadership and unmatched expertise in the business brokerage and lower-middle market M&A industry.

"We're excited to join with Reins to enhance the value we offer customers," said Linda Nyman, co-founder of FCBB. "This partnership gives First Choice clients a powerful new tool in addition to our expert team of trained brokers."

Through the partnership, FCBB clients can access Reins' dynamic, technology-driven custom equity incentives programs, including the unique Modern Agreement for Rewards & Equity (MARE).

Reins' personalized plans and advanced software empower small business owners to give employees a stake in the business through owner-like benefits or profit-sharing initiatives. Implementing an equity and profit-sharing program through the MARE not only incentivizes key employees but also paves the way for smooth succession planning. By offering a stake in the company's success, employees are more deeply invested in the long-term growth and stability of the company.

"Connecting with First Choice Business Brokers allows us to help more small businesses prepare for major transitions," said Chris Buttenham, co-founder of Reins. "A sale or acquisition may be followed by key employee turnover, which can impact the value of a business. Setting up a strategic exit plan can help retain key team members and mitigate potential disruption. We're partnering with FCBB to advise their customers on plans for incentivizing retention and streamlining the transition period."

Reins delivers innovative equity-sharing plans to underserved small businesses across America. The company's customized programs incentivize long-term retention of key employees so owners can reduce turnover, streamline operations and effectively develop and implement a successful exit strategy. Reins also empowers employees of small businesses with transparent, merit-based incentives, from performance bonuses to phantom stock and profit-sharing plans.

Guided by thoughtful prompts, owners can create custom equity agreements and seamlessly manage and sign all documents electronically. The app includes a robust vesting schedule tracker and a communication portal that keeps employees informed about their equity status and milestones.

Founded in 1994, First Choice Business Brokers (FCBB) is a premier business brokerage and M&A firm, dedicated to facilitating successful business transactions by connecting qualified buyers and sellers. With a strong foundation of expertise and integrity, FCBB provides unparalleled confidentiality and professionalism to their clients. FCBB has grown into one of the nation's leading business sales organizations, operating in 34 states and covering 110 territories. FCBB specializes in empowering entrepreneurs and helping them achieve the American Dream. For more information, visit https://fcbb.com/.

Reins is focused on helping small businesses in America incentivize their most valuable contributors and to help provide key staff with a reason to stay for the long haul.

For more information about Reins and the MARE, visit https://www.myreins.com.

About Reins

Reins is an innovative platform that empowers small businesses to retain key employees effectively by offering owner-like benefits that incentivize employees to contribute to the long-term success of the business. Founded in 2023, Reins' mission is to help small businesses remain productive and growing. Reins' proprietary solution, the Modern Agreement for Rewards and Equity (MARE) program was built by attorneys and is customizable to meet each business owner's needs. Every plan is legally binding and regularly monitored for legislative and regulatory changes. Using the MARE program, business owners can create and execute the documents within minutes. For more information about Reins and the MARE program, please visit https://myreins.com/.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Heather Ripley

Ripley PR

(865) 977-1973

[email protected]

SOURCE Reins
EL SEGUNDO, Calif., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Rockpoint Legal Funding is proud to announce their team has been honored as a "Top Litigation Finance Company 2024" by Financial Services Review. This prestigious recognition reflects Rockpoint's unwavering commitment to supporting plaintiffs and law firms with critical funding solutions that facilitate optimal case outcomes. As a leader in the litigation finance industry, Rockpoint's focus on ethical principles, innovative technology, and superior customer service has set the company apart in a competitive marketplace.

Rockpoint Legal Funding's mission is to empower plaintiffs and law firms by providing essential financial resources during the litigation process. Whether it's helping plaintiffs access the resources they need or offering law firms the operational efficiencies and capital they need to effectively manage their cases, Rockpoint's solutions have consistently enabled clients to navigate the legal landscape with confidence and success.

Honoring Rockpoint's Achievements

Financial Services Review recognized Rockpoint Legal Funding for its excellence in litigation finance, citing the company's dedication to customer service, its use of cutting-edge technology, and its uncompromising ethical standards. The honor highlights Rockpoint's impact on both individual plaintiffs and the broader legal community, making the company a standout in the rapidly growing litigation finance sector.

"We are incredibly honored to be named as a 'Top Litigation Finance Company 2024' by Financial Services Review," said Maz Ghorban, President of Rockpoint Legal Funding. "This recognition is a testament to our team's hard work, dedication, and relentless pursuit of excellence. We are committed to providing our clients with the financial support they need, while maintaining the highest ethical standards in the industry. At Rockpoint, we believe in empowering our clients to achieve the best possible outcomes, and this award reflects our ongoing commitment to that mission."

Why Rockpoint Stands Out

Rockpoint Legal Funding has earned a reputation as a trusted partner for plaintiffs and law firms alike. The company's client-centric approach is grounded in the belief that access to justice should not be hindered by financial constraints. Rockpoint's commitment to ethical practices ensures that plaintiffs receive the funds they need without being burdened by excessive fees or hidden terms.

One of the key factors contributing to Rockpoint's success is its focus on technology-driven efficiencies. The company utilizes advanced technology to streamline the funding process, making it faster and more transparent for clients. This tech-forward approach has enabled Rockpoint to provide timely and accurate funding solutions, allowing plaintiffs to access essential resources when they need them most.

Client testimonials further reinforce Rockpoint's standing as a leader in the litigation finance industry:

Edward S., praised Rockpoint's services: "My experience was great! The representative on the phone was a big help to me. I want to give him five stars if there were any more stars to give he should get it! Thank you so much. I appreciate his help!"





Tracy H., shared his experience: "Rockpoint is amazing. I needed a cash advance on my lawsuit due to not being able to work. I'm behind on bills and rent. They helped me no problem, Thank you so much Rockpoint. I appreciate you guys so much! You guys are lifesavers!"





Matthew C., knows he can count on Rockpoint: "Choosing Rockpoint Legal Funding was the best decision I've made! During my time of need, they were there to help me in a timely manner, customer service went above and beyond my expectations!"





Chesty P., can hardly contain her enthusiasm: "OMG!!! You guys are the best!! I have nothing but great things to say about the service I received!! Thank you Rockpoint, I felt valued!!!"





Leon B., Is grateful for being guided to Rockpoint, "Rockpoint Legal Funding helped me and my new wife right when things were getting pretty bad financially and now we have no worries! Thank you Lord for guiding me to Rockpoint."





Anthony M., couldn't be more satisfied with Rockpoint's service, "Thank you Rockpoint for making the process fast and easy. Would recommend to anyone who needs funding. Everyone was helpful and if I ever need funding again I'll do it with Rockpoint Legal Funding!"

Looking Ahead: Expansion and Innovation

As Rockpoint Legal Funding continues to grow and innovate, the company is poised to make even greater strides in the industry. With the recent launch of Rockpoint Probate Funding, the company is expanding its services to provide financial support for beneficiaries during the probate process. This new initiative reflects Rockpoint's commitment to addressing the evolving needs of its clients and the legal community.

"We are always looking for new ways to support our clients and provide them with the resources they need to succeed," added Ghorban. "Our expansion into probate funding is just one example of how we're continuing to innovate and lead in the legal funding space. We're excited about the future and look forward to continuing to serve our clients with the same level of excellence that earned us this recognition."

For more information about Rockpoint Legal Funding and its services, please visit www.rockpointlegalfunding.com or contact the company's customer service team.

Media Contact:

Rockpoint Legal Funding

Dan Burks-Goodman

Marketing Director

Rockpoint Legal Funding

424-502-4645

[email protected]

www.rockpointlegalfunding.com

SOURCE Rockpoint Legal Funding
NEW YORK, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Rosa Mexicano, the iconic Mexican restaurant brand, is excited to announce its "Back to School" initiative, offering a special thank-you to teachers nationwide. From August 19 through September 2, 2024, educators can enjoy a complimentary queso and chips with any food or drink purchase at any Rosa Mexicano location by simply showing their School ID.

Rosa Mexicano Free Queso and Chips for Educators

"We cannot appreciate enough the crucial role that teachers play in our communities." said Amber Clemente, Marketing Director of Rosa Mexicano. "It's a small gesture to show our support for the educators who inspire future generations."

Founded in 1984, Rosa Mexicano has been at the forefront of bringing traditional Mexican flavors to the modern dining scene, blending rich cultural heritage with contemporary culinary techniques. With locations across the United States, Rosa Mexicano is dedicated to delivering upscale dining that honors the rich heritage, and culinary techniques of Mexican cuisine

For more information, please visit www.rosamexicano.com or follow Rosa Mexicano on Instagram -https://www.instagram.com/rosamexicano/

For all interviews, please call Ryan McCormick of Goldman McCormick Public Relations (www.goldmanmccormick.com) at 516-901-1103 / 919-377-1200 or [email protected]

SOURCE Rosa Mexicano
NEW YORK, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Pomerantz LLP is investigating claims on behalf of investors of Franklin Resources, Inc. ("Franklin" or the "Company") (NYSE: BEN). Such investors are advised to contact Danielle Peyton at [email protected] or 646-581-9980, ext. 7980.

The investigation concerns whether Franklin and certain of its officers and/or directors have engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices.

[Click here for information about joining the class action]

On August 21, 2024, Franklin subsidiary Western Asset Management Company issued a press release announcing that co-Chief Investment Officer Ken Leech "is on a leave of absence, effective immediately" after "receiv[ing] a Wells Notice from the Staff of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission". That same day, Bloomberg reported that "[f]ederal prosecutors in New York are investigating whether a Western Asset Management executive allocated winning trades to favored accounts, as part of a criminal probe into a practice known as 'cherry-picking.'"

On this news, Franklin's stock price fell $2.84 per share, or 12.56%, to close at $19.78 per share on August 21, 2024.

Pomerantz LLP, with offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, London, Paris, and Tel Aviv, is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, Pomerantz pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 85 years later, Pomerantz continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered billions of dollars in damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomlaw.com.

Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.

CONTACT:

Danielle Peyton

Pomerantz LLP

[email protected]

646-581-9980 ext. 7980

SOURCE Pomerantz LLP
Forbes America's Best Employers by State ranks Tampa General among the top 50 out of 100 companies in more than 20 industry sectors in Florida.

TAMPA, Fla., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Tampa General Hospital (TGH) has been recognized by Forbes as one of America's Best-in-State Employers for 2024, marking the fourth consecutive time the academic health system has made the list. Tampa General was recognized as No. 42 out of 100 companies across more than 20 industry sectors statewide, earning its spot as the region's top-ranking health system on this year's list.

Driven by its mission to heal, teach, innovate and care for everyone every day in Tampa Bay and beyond, Tampa General prioritizes investment in the academic health system's 14,000 team members. By fostering a culture built on the principles of authentic leadership, Tampa General empowers its workforce to thrive. This supportive environment, focused on meeting personal and professional needs, enables team members to deliver the highest quality of care, ultimately improving patient outcomes and experiences as Tampa General strives to be one of the most innovative academic health systems in America.

"The Tampa General team is incredibly proud of the care we provide as the region's only university-affiliated academic health system," said John Couris, president and CEO of Tampa General Hospital. "But we know excellence stems from a supportive and inclusive working environment, and we strive to foster a culture where individual perspectives, experiences and needs are not only acknowledged but celebrated, and everyone has access to the resources and opportunities they need to excel in their personal and professional lives."

Tampa General provides comprehensive benefits packages to team members, including wellness programs, discounts and an array of professional development programs, which are informed by feedback directly from the team members. Based on the unique needs expressed through multiple feedback sessions and forums facilitated by leadership, the health system was able to redesign a comprehensive compensation plan. Tampa General updated benefits offerings to include free mental health support through an innovative solution enabling team members and their dependents to access an appointment with a licensed mental health professional within 72 hours.

Tampa General's investment in its "AKTiVe" leadership model, emphasizing authenticity, kindness, transparency and vulnerability, has yielded impressive results. Press Ganey team member engagement surveys revealed a significant increase in team member trust in leadership year over year, with most leaders achieving moderate to high index scores. This organization-wide commitment to the AKTiVe framework has boosted both team member and physician engagement scores and propelled Tampa General beyond national academic health system benchmarks for several consecutive years.

As the organization continues to grow its footprint and impact statewide, including integrating TGH North in Hernando and Citrus counties, Tampa General has doubled its workforce to over 14,000 while maintaining high retention rates and reducing reliance on temporary and contract staff. Recent Press Ganey surveys demonstrate continued growth in psychological safety, trust and engagement, with scores surpassing national health care benchmarks.

"This recognition by Forbes for the fourth consecutive year is a testament to our continued commitment to curating a culture of support and belonging at Tampa General," said Qualenta Kivett, executive vice president and chief people and talent officer. "People want to work for an organization that reflects their values, respects their unique perspectives and lived experiences and genuinely cares about their wellbeing, meeting people where they are, and creating a safe space for people to seek opportunity and growth. We are proud of the work we've done to ensure a career at Tampa General is synonymous with so much more than collecting a paycheck, and, in turn, we've created an environment that not only attracts world-class talent but inspires them to recommend our health system as a great place to work."

This recognition comes on the heels of Tampa General's fifth consecutive Magnet designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center's (ANCC) Magnet Recognition Program as well as well as its inclusion on the Becker's Hospital Review 2024 list of "Great Hospitals in America." Within the last several months, Tampa General earned several workplace and team member experience-centered accolades, including:

Newsweek's "Greatest Workplaces for Women 2024"

"Greatest Workplaces for Women 2024" Newsweek's "Greatest Workplaces for Diversity 2024"

"Greatest Workplaces for Diversity 2024" Becker's Hospital Review's "150 Top Places to Work in Healthcare"

"150 Top Places to Work in Healthcare" Forbes' "Americas Best Large Employers 2024"

Forbes partnered with Statista, a leading research and statistics company, to identify America's Best-in-State Employers through a comprehensive survey of over 160,000 employees working for U.S. companies with 500-plus employees in any sector. Around 4.4 million employer evaluations were analyzed. The independent study also included data analysis spanning the past three years, allowing for a nuanced understanding of consistent high performers versus companies experiencing a single positive year.

Employer scores were determined at the state level based on two key evaluations:

Personal Evaluations , reflecting employees' willingness to recommend their employer to family and friends.

, reflecting employees' willingness to recommend their employer to family and friends. Public Evaluations, capturing recommendations from friends, family and industry peers.

Forbes is a leading global media publication known for delivering the top business, technology, leadership and finance news. The complete list of Forbes' 2024 America's Best-in-State Employers is available here.

ABOUT TAMPA GENERAL HOSPITAL

Tampa General Hospital, a 981-bed, not-for-profit, academic health system, is one of the largest hospitals in America and delivers world-class care as the region's only center for Level l trauma and comprehensive burn care. Tampa General Hospital is the highest-ranked hospital in the market in U.S. News & World Report's 2024-2025 Best Hospitals, with two medical specialties ranking among the top 20 in the nation and eight medical specialties ranking among the top 50 best hospital programs in the United States. Tampa General Hospital has been designated as a model of excellence by the 2022 Fortune/Merative 100 Top Hospitals list. The academic health system's commitment to growing and developing its team members is recognized by three prestigious Forbes magazine rankings  in the top 100 nationally in the 2024 America's Best Large Employers, the top 50 in Florida in the 2024 America's Best Employer's by State and the 2023 America's Best Employers for Women, Tampa General is the safety net hospital for the region, caring for everyone regardless of their ability to pay, and in fiscal year 2022, provided a net community benefit of approximately $240.3 million in the form of health care for underinsured patients, community education, and financial support to community health organizations in Tampa Bay. It is one of the nation's busiest adult solid organ transplant centers and is the primary teaching hospital for the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. With five medical helicopters, Tampa General Hospital transports critically injured or ill patients from 23 surrounding counties to receive the advanced care they need. Tampa General houses a nationally accredited comprehensive stroke center, and its 32-bed Neuroscience, Intensive Care Unit is the largest on the West Coast of Florida. It also is home to the Muma Children's Hospital at TGH, the Jennifer Leigh Muma 82-bed neonatal intensive care unit, and a nationally accredited rehabilitation center. Tampa General Hospital's footprint includes TGH North which is comprised of three hospitals and several outpatient locations in Citrus and Hernando counties, 17 Tampa General Medical Group Primary Care offices, TGH Family Care Center Kennedy, TGH Outpatient Center, TGH Virtual Health, and 21 TGH Imaging outpatient radiology centers throughout Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas and Palm Beach counties. Tampa Bay area residents also receive world-class care from the TGH Urgent Care powered by Fast Track network of clinics. To see a medical care professional live anytime, anywhere on a smartphone, tablet or computer, visit Virtual Health | Tampa General Hospital (tgh.org). As one of the largest hospitals in the country, Tampa General Hospital is the first in Florida to partner with GE Healthcare and open a clinical command center that provides real-time situational awareness to improve and better coordinate patient care at a lower cost. For more information, go to www.tgh.org.

Media Contact: Beth Hardy, APR

Assistant Manager

Publications & Physician Communications

(727) 510-6363 (cell)

[email protected]

SOURCE Tampa General Hospital
NEW YORK, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- As the holiday season approaches, there's no better way to get into the festive spirit than with some culinary inspiration from the hottest names in the food world. Chef Genevieve LaMonaca (3.2 million total followers), Chef Brandon Dearden (598,000 total followers), Chef Kelly Scott (2.2 million total followers), and Chef Evan Martin (760,000 total followerseach bringing their own unique flair to holiday cooking, and transform holiday celebrations with their innovative recipes and expert tips.

Chef Genevieve LaMonaca, Chef Brandon Dearden, Chef Kelly Scott, and Chef Evan Martin

Chef Genevieve LaMonaca is an icon in the food space, and when it comes to the holidays, she does not mess around. She is so creative that her content continues to break through social media clutter and has huge and lasting impacts on the engagement and awareness of the brands she partners with. As complex as her recipes may seem, they are all satisfying, delicious, and ultimately designed for anyone to replicate. Chef Geneveive's Holiday Series have gone extremely viral on various occasions. People are constantly begging for more, and she is giving them just that. Chef Genevieve is best known for her Halloween Series, where she creates everything from "Edible Amputated Hands"made out of prosciutto, to "Edible Bloody Bandaids,"made out of vanilla wafers. Both of these recipe videos in particular, have received over five million views, with extensive comments on how real they look and how creative she is. She truly has a unique talent and her dedication to her audience shines through all of her content.

Chef Brandon Dearden is known for his innovative approach to traditional dishes. He has the best recipes for the juiciest meats, flavor packed baked beans, and the best pumpkin bread you can find. Chef Brandon's approach to typical comfort foods takes every holiday to the next level, and will likely leave your family staying over longer than you anticipated. His holiday menu is designed to impress, and with his festive recipes and expert tips, you're all set to make this holiday season truly special.

To Chef Kelly Scott, it is important to always celebrate with her favorite sweet treats, while also staying on track with her health goals. She has created a number of recipes for the holidays, including everything from a whole turkey, to Thanksgiving salad, and her viral chocolate budino with over 2.5 million views total. She has been able to find that happy medium by incorporating more protein into her desserts, while still maintaining rich flavors, and delicious tastes. Chef Kelly has grown a community that not only supports her in everything she does, but also one that is constantly recreating her recipes, and trying out her favorite products. Her chocolate budino was in collaboration with Isopure, which has opened so many doors for her, and has led her to create even more protein infused sweet treats like her creme brulee, and flourless chocolate cake, that her followers rave about.

Chef Evan Martin has a knack for presentation, and during the holiday season, he is making the dishes you dream about. With everything from cinnamon rolls to Italian sausage stuffing, and mashed potatoes with his specialty gravy, there is always something for everyone on the table. Chef Evan receives countless comments asking for his recipes, and others such as "I need that," and "I'm definitely making this." As the Executive Chef at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Boston, MA, as well as a previous star on Food Networks, Supermarket Steakout, Evan has gained a tremendous amount of knowledge about food. The holidays call for family time, celebration, and of course good food. With Chef Evan's recipes, prepare for everyday to feel like a special occasion.

This holiday season, let the culinary magic of Chef Genevieve Lamonaca, Chef Brandon Dearden, Chef Kelly Scott, and Chef Evan Martin elevate your celebrations. To work with any of these top chefs, please contact President and Influencer Manager, Christina Brennan: [email protected] .

SOURCE CelebExperts
How a 33-year-old wildlife artist is amassing millions in sales while inspiring collectors

MISSOULA, Mont., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- "What do you do for a living?" is a common question we get asked during introductions and casual conversations. But when James Corwin responds, "I am an artist!" the familiar archetype of the starving artist is brought to mind. "Do you make a living from that?" is the next question, and Corwin humbly nods yes.

A James Corwin - Wildlife Artist - Grizzly Bear painting that sold for $32,000. James Corwin wildlife artist based in Montana who is a young multimillionaire from his art sales.

In truth, Montana-based wildlife artist James Corwin makes a very good living from the sales of his artwork. At age 33, with a net worth of over 10 million dollars, collectors have already purchased millions of dollars worth of his artworka feat not easily achieved by a living artist, certainly not by someone his age. Last month, he sold over $100,000 of his original oil paintings, including a $32,000 grizzly bear. After successfully selling a previous bear painting for the same amount less than a year ago, Corwin decided to create another, which ultimately sold in less than 24 hours.

"People are noticing and eager to collect," says Corwin. Artwork is considered a luxury purchase, but it can be an essential part of an investment portfolio. It is less volatile than the stock market, and one can see tremendous gains during a living artist's career. For example, had a collector purchased the grizzly bear painting three years ago, it would have been half the price, garnering the collector a 100% ROI today. Corwin aims to increase the value of his artwork over the longevity of his career to earn a positive ROI for his collectors.

It is challenging for an artist to reach such an echelon in their career. Corwin's secret is reinvesting the profits into his business and building relationships with his collectors. He has two galleries under his brand name, Corwin Galleries, in Hamilton, Montana, and Aspen, Colorado, and plans to open more. Additionally, his work is represented in other galleries throughout the country.

Corwin's paintings are realistic renderings of wildlife. He uses traditional painting methods to bring the beauty of his travels and his home state of Montana to life on canvas. The emotional dynamism of his paintings, as if infused with life, is what draws people to his work. It's not just a painting; it's a connection to the wild, a piece of nature brought into our homes.

With nearly a sold-out body of work, Corwin paints many hours daily. "I am very grateful for the demand my artwork has garnered and my incredible collectors, who anxiously await the next piece." He says he would like to do an exhibition one day, but the paintings often sell within a day of completion, so getting a display of work together in one place is challenging. He encourages new collectors interested in his work to get on his email list and be notified when a new piece is complete and available for collection.

Corwin is mindful of his market and creates artwork at various prices so any burgeoning collector can afford his paintings. His limited edition prints are a gateway into the world of James Corwin. Many of his original oil paintings are available as limited edition prints in small print runs. They are printed on canvas, with finished edges, and ready to hang. Made locally in Montana, he ships them all over the world. Different finishing options are also available, such as textured and embellished, where Corwin adds a transparent medium over the canvas to create the appearance of brush strokes and adds oil paint to the canvas, so the print looks and feels like an original.

Undoubtedly, James Corwin is an entrepreneur at heartone might say, a not-so-starving artist. Corwin affirms he is just getting started. The first ten years were spent learning how to paint and how the business works. The next ten years are dedicated to his collectors, with a goal of bringing tremendous value to their investments in his artwork.

See more of James Corwin's artwork at www.jamescorwin.com.

Contact: James Corwin

Phone: (406) 471-7518

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE James Corwin
SEATTLE, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- In The Soil of Leadership, Dr. Britt Yamamoto presents a unique and memorable perspective on leadership that challenges conventional wisdom for guiding others. Drawing from his extensive global leadership experienceworking closely with leaders and organizations from all over Africa, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, and North AmericaDr. Yamamoto introduces a timely framework that places paramount importance on holistic wellbeing and a profound understanding of the intricate systems critical for effective and sustainable leadership.

"The Soil of Leadership" by Dr. Britt Yamamoto is out today!

Inviting us to "dig where we stand," The Soil of Leadership seamlessly weaves evocative metaphors and captivating narratives from Dr. Yamamoto's life as both a sustainable farmer and organizational leader. Through these vivid examples, he illuminates the profound notion that genuine leadership doesn't solely emerge from visible accomplishments; rather, it thrives within the hidden roots that allow our true potential to flourish.

The Soil of Leadership serves as a compelling call to action, encouraging us to reevaluate our connections, not only with ourselves, but also with others. It inspires a transformative shift in our perception of time and space, fostering continuous reflection on our assumptions, perspectives, and purposes. This journey guides us toward a leadership ethos that unifies rather than divides, marking a significant milestone on the path to a brighter and more interconnected future.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Dr. Britt Yamamoto is a visionary leader, entrepreneur, and educator with over two decades of experience shaping inclusive and generative learning environments across diverse sectors. As a clinical associate professor at the University of Washington's Department of Global Health, and the founding force behind international leadership organizations such as Perennial, RootSpring, and SOIL, he has ignited the leadership potential within hundreds of thousands of individuals worldwide, from India to Iraq, Malawi to Mexico, and Cambodia to Canada. His transformative influence extends to nurturing deeper connections with one's work, partnerships, and self.

THE SOIL OF LEADERSHIP is on sale now from Amazon , Barnes & Noble , and Amplify Publishing . To learn more, visit https://thesoilofleadership.org/ !

SOURCE Amplify Publishing Group
LONDON, ON, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - Trudell Medical Limited has reached an agreement to purchase the RDx business unit of Vyaire Medical.

RDx manufactures respiratory diagnostic products that are used in hospitals and private clinics worldwide and are trusted by specialists in the respiratory community.

The purchase is subject to court approval and is expected to close in 8-12 weeks. The acquisition will expand Trudell Medical's already strong market position in aerosol drug delivery and lung health devices to include respiratory diagnostics.

Trudell Medical intends to operate RDx as a separate business unit and maintain operations in Germany and California.

The acquisition would ensure the continuation of service to RDx customers. Earlier this year, Vyaire Medical filed for Chapter 11 Protection and announced the company was focused on selling its business units to stable, well-capitalized buyers.

Vyaire's Repiratory Diagnostics and Ventilation solutions are currently distributed by Trudell Healthcare Solutions (THS) within the Canadian healthcare system.

Quotes

"We welcome the opportunity to add Vyaire RDx's people, products, and passion to our Trudell Medical family. Respiratory Diagnostics help to enhance and extend lives. This is in perfect alignment with our 'Patient First' Core Value across the Trudell Medical Group. Every day, we're focused on designing and manufacturing products and services that improve patients' lives."

-George Baran, Executive Chair, Trudell Medical Limited

Since establishing the market 70 years ago under Eric Jaeger's leadership, Vyaire RDx has been a global leader in the Pulmonary Function Testing space. As part of this legacy, Trudell have been an outstanding distribution partner for Vyaire RDx in Canada. This well-established relationship serves as a firm foundation for Vyaire RDx to become part of the Trudell family, which has clearly aligned values and shared business objectives built on placing the customer and our employees at the heart of all we do. The entire RDx team are excited about the next stage of our journey as we continue to deliver innovative, market leading products to our customers around the world.

-Will Throp, CEO, Vyaire RDx

About Trudell Medical Limited

Our focus is on respiratory care, select areas of the hospital operating room and providing pathways for virtual care. Through our six operating companies, we provide patients throughout the world with medical devices and services that make their lives better.

Visit TrudellMedicalGroup.com.

SOURCE Trudell Medical Limited
HERNDON, Va., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Ultatel, a leading provider of cloud communication solutions, proudly announces its inclusion in the prestigious Inc. 5000 Fastest-Growing Private Companies in America list for 2024. This accolade underscores Ultatel's rapid growth and its commitment to delivering innovative communication services that empower businesses to streamline their operations on a single, affordable platform.

"Being named to the Inc. 5000 list is a testament to our team's dedication and the trust our clients place in our solutions," said Amr Ibrahim, CEO of Ultatel. "Our growth reflects the increasing demand for reliable and cost-effective communication services in today's digital landscape."

The Inc. 5000 list, compiled annually by Inc. magazine, celebrates the fastest-growing privately held companies in the United States. Ultatel's impressive ranking at No. 1709, with a remarkable 305% growth over the past three years, highlights its significant impact within the hyper-competitive telecommunications industry. This recognition follows Ultatel's previous appearance on the list in 2023, where it was ranked No. 1868, further demonstrating the company's sustained growth trajectory.

Headquartered in Herndon, Virginia, Ultatel has quickly established itself as a key player in the cloud communication sector. The company's comprehensive suite of services enables businesses to consolidate their communication needs, offering everything from voice and video calling to messaging and collaboration tools, all integrated into a single, user-friendly platform.

This approach not only simplifies communication but also enhances productivity and reduces operational costs for businesses of all sizes. Their partnership with Microsoft includes a certified direct routing SBC solution where you can transform Teams in your phone system, as well as a certified MS Teams contact center.

Ultatel's success can be attributed to its unwavering focus on customer satisfaction and continuous innovation. The company leverages cutting-edge technology to develop solutions that meet the evolving needs of its clients, ensuring they stay ahead in a competitive marketplace. By providing scalable and customizable communication solutions, Ultatel empowers businesses to adapt quickly to changing demands, fostering growth and efficiency.

As a recognized leader in cloud communications, Ultatel remains committed to driving the industry forward. The company plans to expand its service offerings and explore new markets, further solidifying its position as a trusted partner for businesses seeking reliable and affordable communication solutions.

About Ultatel

Ultatel is a leading provider of cloud communication solutions, dedicated to helping businesses streamline their communication services on one affordable system. Based in Herndon, Virginia, Ultatel offers a comprehensive suite of services, including voice and video calling, messaging, and collaboration tools, all integrated into a single platform. The company's innovative solutions enable businesses to enhance productivity, reduce operational costs, and stay competitive in today's digital landscape. For more information on the company and how they can enhance your business communications, visit Ultatel's website.

SOURCE Ultatel
WESTBOROUGH, Mass., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- United Site Services (the "Company"), the largest provider of portable sanitation services and complementary site solutions in the United States, announced today the closing of a series of financing transactions (the "Transactions"). The Transactions were supported by a vast majority of the capital structure including 100% of ABL and RCF lenders and an ad hoc group of lenders (the "Ad Hoc Group") comprising approximately 90% of existing term loans and approximately 55% of existing unsecured notes. The Transactions provide material benefits to the Company including (i) raising $300 million of new money to boost liquidity, (ii) amending financial covenants to increase revolving credit facility access, (iii) capturing discount on participating debt of approximately $154mm, and (iv) extending maturities. Subsequent to the Transactions, the Company expects to make one or more offers to non-Ad Hoc Group holders of existing terms loans and existing notes, including an exchange offer to holders of existing notes.

On August 22, 2024, the Company caused its newly formed subsidiary Vortex Opco, LLC, a Cayman Islands limited liability company (the "Cayman Borrower"), to enter into a new senior secured revolving credit facility (the "New Revolver") and term loan facility (together, the "Cayman Credit Facilities") and issue (or commit to issue) approximately $431 million principal amount of new first-lien first-out debt, primarily in the form of term loans (the "First-Out Term Loan") and approximately $1,657 million principal amount of new first-lien second-out term loans (the "Second-Out Term Loan" and together with the First-Out Term Loan, the "New Term Loans"). The Cayman Borrower also issued (or committed to issue) approximately $125 million of first-lien third-out 8.000% senior secured notes due 2030 under a new indenture (the "New Notes" and collectively with the New Term Loans, the "New Debt").

Pursuant to an open market purchase agreement with the Ad Hoc Group, the Company, through an intercompany facility (the "Intercompany Loan") entered into between the existing borrower and existing issuer entity PECF USS Intermediate Holding III Corporation, a Delaware corporation (the "Existing Borrower") and the Cayman Borrower, used the proceeds of the New Debt to purchase (or commit to purchase) $1,744 million in aggregate principal amount of existing term loans from participating lenders and $307 million in aggregate principal amount of existing notes from participating noteholders, and repaid its existing $60 million bridge facility in full.

The New Revolver, the First-Out Term Loan and the New Notes have a maturity of April 30, 2030. The Second-Out Term Loan has a maturity of December 17, 2028 and may be extended by the Company to April 30, 2030 subject to the payment of an extension fee and rate increase. The New Debt is guaranteed on a senior secured basis by the Existing Borrower and all the U.S. guarantors of the existing debt as well as the Cayman parent company of the Cayman Borrower. The New Debt is secured on a first lien basis by substantially all of the Company's assets that currently secure the existing term loans, on a pari passu basis with the existing term loans and among the New Debt, with a second priority lien on ABL collateral. In addition, the New Debt is also secured by amounts owed under the Intercompany Loan and by equity interests in the Cayman Borrower and its Cayman parent. The existing term loans will not receive a lien on such intercompany interests or a guarantee from the Cayman Borrower, and the existing notes will remain unsecured and will not receive a guarantee from the Cayman Borrower.

In connection with the Transactions, the Ad Hoc Group consented to the adoption of certain amendments to the existing term loan facility and the existing indenture, each of which became effective immediately prior to the closing of the transactions. Among other modifications, the amendments eliminated restrictive covenants in the existing debt.

The Company also entered into an amendment to its existing ABL credit facility extending the maturity to April 30, 2030 (or August 22, 2029 if certain net leverage ratio tests are not satisfied on such date). The Company's existing cash-flow revolver was rolled over into the New Revolver on a cashless dollar-for-dollar basis.

As a result of the Transactions, the Company increased its liquidity by approximately $300 million (before giving effect to the use of proceeds thereof) and reduced its pre-transaction debt obligations by more than $150 million through the Transactions.

"This transaction positions the Company for long-term success and benefits our key stakeholders," said James Hyman, CEO of United Site Services. "The transaction deleverages our balance sheet through discount capture, provides critical liquidity for our operational needs through $300mm of new money, and extends maturities to 2030."

PJT Partners LP served as financial advisor and Milbank LLP served as legal counsel to United Site Services. Moelis served as financial advisor and Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP served as legal counsel to the Ad Hoc Group.

The New Notes have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), or any other securities laws, and the New Notes cannot be offered or sold except pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act and any other applicable securities laws.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such state.

About United Site Services

With over 140 locations coast-to-coast, United Site Services is the nation's largest provider of portable sanitation services and complementary site solutions in the United States, including portable restrooms and trailers, hand hygiene stations, temporary fence and more. Learn more at www.unitedsiteservices.com.

Media Contacts

Andrew Merrill / John Perilli

Prosek Partners for United Site Services

[email protected]

SOURCE United Site Services Inc.
This marks the third time Veterans United has ranked in the top five

COLUMBIA, Mo., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Great Place To Work and PEOPLE magazine have honored Veterans United Home Loans with the nation's number five ranking on the 2024 PEOPLE Companies That Care list. This is Veterans United's sixth time being named to this prestigious list since 2017, and is the company's third time landing in the top five of the rankings (No. 2 in 2022; No. 3 in 2017). Earning a spot in the rankings means that Veterans United has once again surpassed rigorous benchmarks, establishing itself as one of the best companies to work for in the country.

PEOPLE Magazine's Companies That Care list is based on over 1.3 million employee survey responses and data from companies representing the experience of more than 8.2 million employees. These rankings are based on that feedback.

The Companies That Care list is highly competitive, and Veterans United is the highest-rated mortgage company in 2024 and is the highest-rated Missouri-based company to make the rankings (out of three total).

"We are very honored to receive this recognition," said Chief Executive Officer Nate Long. "I believe the reputation we've developed is a direct reflection of our core values that we try to base our practices around  be passionate and have fun, enhance lives every day and deliver results with integrity. Our amazing people make this company go, and I can't say enough about how I'm blown away every day by the love and care they display when serving our Veterans and military families, as well as each other. Veterans United Home Loans is a special place with special people doing extraordinary work," he added.

Survey responses reflect a comprehensive picture of the workplace experience. Honorees were selected based on their ability to offer positive outcomes for employees regardless of job role, race, gender, sexual orientation, work status, or other demographic identifier.

Companies also submit essays which are validated by employee survey data to give a complete picture of the way an organization cares for its employees, its community, and the planet. To be considered for the list, companies must be Great Place To Work Certified and have at least 10 U.S. employees. Veterans United, founded in Columbia in 2002, has grown to include nearly 4,200 employees nationwide, including offices in 20 states. Nearly 3,500 people work at Veterans United offices in Columbia and Jefferson City.

"Each year, we look forward to highlighting the innovative ways these companies give back to their employees, communities and the world," said Wendy Naugle, Editor-in-Chief, PEOPLE. "Celebrating the care and kindness they show is a natural extension of our editorial mission  to show what's possible when ordinary people commit to extraordinary endeavors."

"What these companies prove is that taking care of your workforce is an investment  not a cost," says Michael C. Bush, CEO, Great Place To Work. "And companies that do it the right way will reap the benefits: more engagement, faster innovation, and a healthy bottom line."

About Veterans United Home Loans

Based in Columbia, Missouri, the full-service national lender financed $18 billion in loans in 2023 and is the country's largest VA lender, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs Lender Statistics. The company's mission is to help Veterans and service members take advantage of the home loan benefits earned by their service.

VeteransUnited.com | 1-800-884-5560 | 550 Veterans United Drive, Columbia, MO 65201 | Veterans United Home Loans NMLS # 1907 (www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org). A VA approved lender; Not endorsed or sponsored by the Dept. of Veterans Affairs or any government agency. Licensed in all 50 states. For State Licensing information, please visit https://www.veteransunited.com/licenses/. Equal Opportunity Lender.

About the PEOPLE Companies that Care List

Great Place To Work selected the 2024 PEOPLE Companies that Care List by gathering and analyzing over 1.3 million confidential survey responses from companies representing more than 8.2 million U.S. employees at Great Place To Work Certified organizations. Of those, more than a million responses came from employees at companies eligible for the list and these rankings are based on that feedback. Company rankings are derived from 60 employee experience questions within the Great Place To Work Trust Index Survey. Read the full methodology. To get on this list next year, start here.

About Great Place To Work

As the global authority on workplace culture, Great Place To Work brings 30 years of groundbreaking research and data to help every place become a great place to work for all. Their proprietary platform and For All Model help companies evaluate the experience of every employee, with exemplary workplaces becoming Great Place To Work Certified or receiving recognition on a coveted Best Workplaces List. Follow Great Place To Work on LinkedIn, X, and Instagram or visit greatplacetowork.com and sign up for the newsletter to learn more.

About PEOPLE

PEOPLE delivers the most trustworthy celebrity news and captivating human interest stories, connecting you to the pulse of American culture. Since our first issue hit stands in 1974, we have been striving to tell compelling stories about the people behind the issues, as opposed to just the issues themselves. We are your everyday escape, taking you inside the lives of intriguing stars, newsmakers, up-and-comers, and ordinary people doing extraordinary things. We serve and delight you by providing ideas about beauty, food, and style through the lens of the people influencing the trends. And we are a force for good by telling stories of hope, optimism, and kindness that drive conversation and inspire action.

SOURCE Veterans United Home Loans
Hosted by Carolyn Ryan and presenting Special Guest Roseanne Barr who will deliver the keynote address

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The America Project and voteyourvision.org have partnered with Armed Forces Brewing Company to present the National Borders and Elections Matter Town Hall series, designed to empower citizens with the knowledge and tools needed to help protect and preserve our nation's borders and elections. This Town Hall takes place in Palm Beach, Florida on August 31st, 2024, and will feature a series of expert-led panels followed by Q & A. The event will take place at the Palm Beach Hilton Airport in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Event Highlights:

Whistleblower Panel  Exposing Corruption at the Highest Levels

Moderated by Sonya Hightower LaBosco

This panel will delve into the stories of real-world whistleblowers who have played key roles in exposing corruption and safeguarding public trust.

This panel will delve into the stories of real-world whistleblowers who have played key roles in exposing corruption and safeguarding public trust. Legislative Panel  Cartel Influence and the effects of Human Trafficking in Florida

Moderated by Victor Avila

Join Victor Avila as he guides a discussion on the ongoing effects of Cartel influence in Florida .

Join as he guides a discussion on the ongoing effects of Cartel influence in . Election Integrity Panel  Safeguarding the Election Season

Moderated by "Typhoon" Lou Marin

This expert panel will explain the latest developments and challenges in ensuring fair and transparent elections in Florida and across the US, providing attendees with actionable insights. The panel will discuss some of the successes Florida enjoys safeguarding its elections, as well as needs for improvement.

Special Guest Speaker:

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Iconic comedienne and outspoken advocate. Roseanne Barr will deliver a powerful keynote address, sharing her thoughts on the current socio-political climate and the importance of civic engagement.

Event Details:

Date: August 31st, 2024

August 31st, 2024 Time: Doors open at 5:00 PM EST ; Event begins at 5:30 PM EST

Doors open at ; Event begins at Location: Palm Beach Hilton Airport, 150 Australian Ave, West Palm Beach, FL 33406

Palm Beach Hilton Airport, 150 Australian Ave, 33406 Tickets: $15 for one, $25 for two

$15 for one, for two Includes 1 drink ticket per person, free hors d'oeuvres, and access to a cash bar

Hosted By: Carolyn Ryan

All media Inquiries contact: [email protected] cc [email protected]

Sponsors:

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This Town Hall is a must-attend for anyone passionate about safeguarding our Borders and Elections. Whether you're looking to gain knowledge or take action within your community, Operation Restore Freedom offers an unparalleled opportunity to engage with thought leaders and like-minded individuals.

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For media inquiries, please contact Amanda Freytes at [email protected].

About The America Project:

The America Project is a 501c4 nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting the constitutional rights of all Americans by advocating for Election Integrity, Border Security and Rights & Freedoms.

SOURCE VoteYourVision.org
NEW YORK, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The wall decor market size in Europe is estimated to grow by USD 14.71 billion from 2024-2028, according to Technavio. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of over 10.43% during the forecast period. Increasing sales of wall decor is driving market growth, with a trend towards increasing adoption of digital printing. However, price wars due to low product differentiation poses a challenge. Key market players include Amazon.com Inc., Artemest s.r.l., Bed Bath and Beyond Inc., Carrefour SA, Costco Wholesale Corp., Debenhams Plc, Dunelm Group Plc, Home24 SE, Inter IKEA Holding BV, JUNIQE GmbH, Kingfisher Plc, Maisons du Monde, Matalan Retail Ltd., Next Retail Ltd., Oliver Bonas Ltd., Otto GmbH and Co. KG, The Range, Walmart Inc., Wayfair Inc., and Williams Sonoma Inc..

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled wall decor market in Europe 2024-2028

Get a detailed analysis on regions, market segments, customer landscape, and companies- View the snapshot of this report

Wall Decor Market In Europe Scope Report Coverage Details Base year 2023 Historic period 2018 - 2022 Forecast period 2024-2028 Growth momentum & CAGR Accelerate at a CAGR of 10.43% Market growth 2024-2028 USD 14712.5 million Market structure Fragmented YoY growth 2022-2023 (%) 8.64 Regional analysis Europe Performing market contribution Europe at 100% Key countries Germany, UK, France, Italy, and Rest of Europe Key companies profiled Amazon.com Inc., Artemest s.r.l., Bed Bath and Beyond Inc., Carrefour SA, Costco Wholesale Corp., Debenhams Plc, Dunelm Group Plc, Home24 SE, Inter IKEA Holding BV, JUNIQE GmbH, Kingfisher Plc, Maisons du Monde, Matalan Retail Ltd., Next Retail Ltd., Oliver Bonas Ltd., Otto GmbH and Co. KG, The Range, Walmart Inc., Wayfair Inc., and Williams Sonoma Inc.

Market Driver

The European wall decor market is experiencing significant growth due to the adoption of digitalization in the production of wall decor items. Digital printing is a key technology driving this trend, particularly in the wall art segment. This technology allows for the creation of various styles, including ancient and classic art, contemporary art, folk art, impressionism and post-impressionism, modern art, realism, regional art, and romanticism. Two primary methods of digital printing are used: fine art inkjet printing and digital laser exposure onto traditional photographic paper. The former, which has evolved from digital proofing technology, is commonly used in the wall decor industry. Digital printing is applied to various wall decor categories, such as fine art prints, wall sculptures, posters and prints, decorative plaques, decorative signs, wall stickers and murals, and wallpaper. This integration of digital technology is anticipated to boost the demand for wall decor in Europe, contributing to the market's expansion during the forecast period.

Europe's wall decor market is thriving with trends such as smart home technology and art collections. Public places and household sectors are embracing digital printing technology for custom murals and wall arts. Nature-inspired approaches with earthen luxury components like wall-mounted shelves, earthy colors, and decals are popular. Educational institutes opt for digital wallpaper printing and digital displays for interactive learning. Wall decor vendors offer personalized prints, photo collages, and simple designs in neutral colors for a modern look. Recycled materials and foldable desks add sustainability. Handmade pieces, paintings, wall sculptures, and clocks in various designs and patterns are in demand for interior design. Festive times bring unique lighting and interactive displays. Digital alternatives like virtual reality and non-fungible tokens are emerging. Smart technology integrates with wall decor through lighting, shelves, and clocks.

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Market Challenges

The European wall decor market is highly competitive, with many retailers offering similar products at various price points. This lack of product differentiation poses a significant challenge for shops looking to gain a competitive edge. Pricing is a primary method used to attract customers, but it also leads to reduced profit margins, especially for e-retailers. The market is fragmented, with both global and local players, making it difficult for new entities to compete. Established players must update their brand portfolios regularly and effectively manage production, demand-supply, shipping, and customer retention to remain competitive. Ensuring quality and timely delivery are essential, but these fundamentals can be challenging for start-ups. The intense competition and price wars can significantly impact a company's profitability if expenses are not managed properly. Therefore, the low differentiation of products within the segment is expected to limit the growth of the wall decor market in Europe during the forecast period.

during the forecast period. The European wall decor market faces several challenges in 2023. Traditional wall decor items like paintings, wall sculptures, decals, and wallpaper continue to be popular. However, digital alternatives such as virtual reality, digital displays, and non- fungible tokens are gaining traction. Festive times bring a surge in demand for personalized prints, photo collages, and simple designs. Vendors must keep up with interior design trends, home decor fads, and the DIY trend. Recycled materials and sustainable practices are essential for eco-conscious consumers. Smart technology integrations like lighting, interactive displays, shelves, clocks, and frameworks add value. Wall art, mirror works, and handmade pieces remain desirable. E-commerce sales dominate residential construction, while minimalism and social media platforms influence DIY projects. Artisans and sustainable materials are key differentiators.

For more insights on driver and challenges - Request a sample report!

Segment Overview

This wall decor market in Europe report extensively covers market segmentation by

Product

1.1 Wall art

1.2 Picture frames

1.3 Wall clocks

1.4 Wall storage/shelves/hanging cabinets

1.5 Others

Distribution Channel

2.1 Offline

2.2 Online

Geography

3.1 Europe

1.1 Wall art- The European wall decor market is a significant sector, showcasing various trends and offerings. Key players include Ikea, Home Depot, and Kingfisher. Consumers prefer personalized and eco-friendly options. Digital technologies, such as augmented reality apps, enhance the shopping experience. Market growth is driven by increasing disposable income, urbanization, and a focus on home improvement. The market size was valued at 25 billion in 2020 and is projected to expand at a steady pace.

For more information on market segmentation with geographical analysis including forecast (2024-2028) and historic data (2017-2021) - Download a Sample Report

Research Analysis

The Wall Decor Market in Europe is thriving, with a focus on innovation and style. Smart home technology integration is transforming traditional wall decor into interactive and automated pieces. Art collections, both classic and contemporary, adorn public places and private homes, adding character and personality. Nature-inspired approaches, from wallpaper to sculptures, bring the outdoors in. Wall decor products range from paintings and decals to wallpaper and wall sculptures, catering to various tastes and budgets. Online shopping platforms and wall decor vendors make it easy to browse and purchase designs, with e-commerce sales on the rise. Minimalism and DIY trends continue to influence the market, with social media platforms showcasing inspiring DIY projects and unique creations. Wall art, in all its forms, remains a popular choice for personalizing spaces and expressing individuality.

Market Research Overview

Europe's Wall Decor Market is thriving with innovative trends and diverse offerings. Smart home technology integration is transforming traditional wall decor, allowing for digital displays, interactive wall arts, and even virtual reality experiences. Art collections continue to be a popular choice, with public places and household sectors investing in custom murals and wall sculptures. Nature-inspired approaches are gaining traction, with earthen luxury components, earthy colors, and wall-mounted shelves. Digital printing technology is revolutionizing wallpaper and decal production, enabling personalized prints, photo collages, and even digital art. Educational institutes and high-end showrooms showcase the latest wall decor products, from paintings and wallpaper to foldable desks and handmade pieces. Sustainable materials and minimalist designs are on-trend, with recycled materials, neutral colors, and simple designs dominating the market. Wall decor vendors offer a wide range of designs, patterns, and interior design trends, catering to the DIY trend and social media platforms. Smart technology, lighting, and mirror works are also gaining popularity, with e-commerce sales and residential construction driving growth in the market.

Table of Contents:

1 Executive Summary

2 Market Landscape

3 Market Sizing

4 Historic Market Size

5 Five Forces Analysis

6 Market Segmentation

Product

Wall Art



Picture Frames



Wall Clocks



Wall Storage/shelves/hanging Cabinets



Others

Distribution Channel

Offline



Online

Geography

Europe

7 Customer Landscape

8 Geographic Landscape

9 Drivers, Challenges, and Trends

10 Company Landscape

11 Company Analysis

12 Appendix

About Technavio

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focuses on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions.

With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

Contacts

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Jesse Maida

Media & Marketing Executive

US: +1 844 364 1100

UK: +44 203 893 3200

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.technavio.com/

SOURCE Technavio
West Hollywood Makes It Easy To Discover What's New and Next in Wellness This September With More Than 50 Venues Offering Something Special

WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif., Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Nestled at the heart of cutting-edge wellness and fitness innovation, West Hollywood proudly announces the launch of West Hollywood Mind + Body Month, 30-days of special offers during September 2024. West Hollywood Mind + Body Month marks a perfect opportunity to book your next visit to West Hollywood to experience special offers surrounding fitness studios, rest + recovery amenities, mindfulness, and wellness retail.

West Hollywood Mind + Body Month To Celebrate 30-Days of Wellness, West Hollywood-Style in September

The month-long program aims to not only attract attention from wellness-seeking travelers but also to reacquaint local and regional markets to the variety of West Hollywood's dynamic wellness offerings, packed within the city's 1.9 square miles and available year-round. West Hollywood Mind + Body Month solidifies the city's established reputation as the epicenter for tried and true wellness, as well as new experiences, where fitness brands are often launched and tested before hitting the mainstream. West Hollywood stands as a leader among United States destinations able to offer such a densely packed punch of wellness offerings, and where health and overall well-being are a priority for both visitors and locals.

West Hollywood Mind + Body Month will have something for everyone. Participating businesses range from luxurious West Hollywood hotels and serene spas to energetic yoga studios and state-of-the-art fitness centers. All special offers featured during September 2024 are aimed to entice wellness-seeking newcomers and welcome back locals, many of which turn to many signature West Hollywood wellness offerings for the same benefits of rejuvenation, beauty, fitness and clarity of mind.

Create your own journey through West Hollywood Mind + Body Month promotional offers, events and special wellness packages wrapped in signature West Hollywood-fashion, including fitness classes, mindfulness sessions, rest & relaxation in California's most walkable city and the ultimate destination for mind and body rejuvenation.

"We are thrilled to launch West Hollywood Mind + Body Month, highlighting West Hollywood as the premier destination for wellness and fitness," states Tom Kiely, President and CEO of West Hollywood Travel + Tourism. "West Hollywood Mind + Body Month not only celebrates our community's commitment to health but also showcases West Hollywood's vibrant spirit and innovative offerings in the wellness industry."

For more information on participating in West Hollywood Mind + Body Month visit WehoWellness.com. Join in celebrating wellness, fitness, and the vibrant spirit of West Hollywood throughout September 2024.

About West Hollywood Travel + Tourism Board

West Hollywood Travel + Tourism Board is the official marketing organization that invites visitors to West Hollywood, California, a walkable, 1.9-square-mile city in the heart of Los Angeles. Located at the base of the Hollywood Hills and adjacent to Beverly Hills, West Hollywood is a creative and progressive city that embodies the quintessential L.A. lifestyle. West Hollywood is home to 20 hotels and comprises three main districts: the world-famous Sunset Strip with unparalleled nightlife, eclectic and LGBTQ-friendly Santa Monica Boulevard, and the Design District known for its sought-after shopping and dining. West Hollywood enjoys a year-round moderate climate and thanks to its prime location and hip atmosphere, West Hollywood serves as home and playground to many celebrities. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram (@visitweho). For more information, please visit www.visitwesthollywood.com.

Media Contact:

Ballantines PR

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SOURCE Visit West Hollywood
Almost every morning, the coastline of Sanya in Hainan province transforms into a shimmering spectacle, with a flotilla of yachts moored at bustling ports poised to set sail on their maritime adventures. Sanya, with its abundant aquatic resources and favorable tropical climate, has emerged as a magnet for international and domestic visitors eager to embark on yachting trips and enjoy blue skies and sparkling waters. "Except for occasional typhoons, Sanya can almost achieve more than 350 seagoing days throughout the year," said Gao Yongning, deputy director of the cruise and yacht department of the Sanya Central Business District Administration. Hainan is home to over 13,000 yacht-related enterprises, and boasts 14 operational marinas and 2,511 yacht berths. Sanya, a southern coastal city of the province, has emerged as a standout destination for the leisure activity. More than 7,300 yacht enterprises, making up 22.7 percent of China's total yacht-related businesses, were located there as of June, according to a report by Hainan Daily. The city also accommodates a registered yacht fleet exceeding 1,400 vessels, according to the Sanya Maritime Safety Administration, with the number exceeding its reputation as the "city of a 1,000 yachts". In the first half of the year, yachts made around 58,000 port entries and exits in Sanya, which received about 367,000 visitors. During the 40-day Spring Festival travel season, 30,944 port entries and exits were recorded and 212,154 visitors welcomed. The numbers were a record for the holiday period, the administration said. Free trade benefits The establishment of the Hainan Free Trade Port has emerged as a catalyst to propel Sanya's yacht tourism. In 2021, Hainan introduced a zero-tariff policy on vehicle and yacht imports, exempting registered enterprises in the province's transportation and tourism sectors from import duties on vehicles, aircraft, ships, and yachts. In July 2022, the government in Hainan issued regulations aimed at accelerating the growth of the yacht industry in the free trade port. These regulations enable overseas residents working in Hainan and holding a residence permit to apply for yacht registration in Hainan, bolstering efforts to boost yacht sales. On Feb 5, 2024, the Sanya Central Business District Special Fund Incentive Measures for Cruise And Yacht Industry Development was announced. The fund provides incentives and support for the development of the yacht industry in five aspects: operational rewards; operational space subsidies; scientific and technological innovation support; fixed asset investment incentives; and incentives for the sale of new energy yachts. "Following the introduction of regulations and policies, the yacht-leasing sector has entered a period of rapid growth," said Liu Yangliu, general manager of Hainan Visun Yacht Industry Development (Investment) Group. Wakesurfing, a favorite water activity among younger people, is also gaining greater attention. Chen Xiaoyu, executive director of Sanya Serenity Marina, said there has been an influx of wakesurfing clubs in the area in recent years, with over 50 wave-making boats mooring at the marina. The development of the yacht industry has also dovetailed with sectors such as wedding photography, catering, event hosting and provision of accommodation, which have also enjoyed notable success. Captain's choice Despite the surging success of the yacht industry, the scene was vastly different three decades ago. Back then, there were just over 1,000 households on Xidao Island off Sanya, with the majority earning a living from fishing. "I always envisioned a life as a fisherman," said Mai Shineng, while reminiscing about his previous life spent fishing beside his father. With the transformation of the picturesque small island into a tourist hot spot, Mai left the unpredictable life of a fisherman for a more secure livelihood as a ferry captain. In 2010, he become captain of a yacht and a pioneering helmsman in Sanya. Mai was not alone in abandoning his old fishing job. Scores of long-term inhabitants of Xidao Island chose the regular work and stable income provided by the yacht industry over the uncertain returns from fishing, Mai said. Fishermen are limited to the waters around Sanya due to the capacity and range of their boats. They are also restricted by annual fishing moratoriums, which are imposed to ensure healthy fish stocks. Since he became a yacht captain, Mai has sailed to nearly all the coastal provinces of China, which has broadened his perspective, he said. His new occupation has also given him the opportunity to compete in, and win, sailing regattas. During these events, he keeps a watchful eye out for yachts and sailboats that appear to be in trouble. In 2022, Mai spotted a sailboat over 1 kilometer away drifting aimlessly on the waves. He quickly reported the situation to the race organizers and joined the rescue mission. "At sea, unity, friendship, and mutual assistance are essential for achieving better outcomes," said Cui Xiaojin, head of marketing at Hainan Hongzhou Marine Tourism Co. Cui praised Mai's leadership in nurturing the skills and cooperative spirit of yacht captains, and helping provide talent for Sanya's yacht industry. A little luxury Hongzhou Yacht Marina, the largest commercial yacht base in Hainan province, has undergone a major transformation in recent years. "A decade ago, Hongzhou Yacht Marina was a bustling fishing harbor  with a multitude of boats moored  that an unpleasant odor emanated from that greatly inconvenienced residents and visitors," said Cui, whose company later repurposed it into the yacht marina. Yachting, once a luxury pastime for the affluent due to the high purchase price of the boats and maintenance costs, is now accessible for more people, he said. "Initially, yachts were predominantly used for commercial services," Cui said. "However, owners soon realized they could lease their vessels during downtimes to help defray maintenance expenses." This shift gave rise to yacht chartering and pooling in 2014, a flourishing business that has advantages for both owners and tourists who want to experience opulence on the seas. The implementation of hourly yacht rentals has increased the affordability of yacht tourism, said Gao Yongning, deputy director of the cruise and yacht department of the Sanya Central Business District Administration. With the increasing availability of yachts and the maturation of the market, rental prices have plummeted from over 10,000 yuan ($1,400) to less than 1,000 yuan, making yachting increasingly accessible and boosting its popularity. "For a three-hour yachting escapade for my family of four, the cost is now under 1,000 yuan," said Zhang, a visitor from Sichuan province. Sanya is now home to five yacht marinas, with the Hongzhou Yacht Marina having a capacity of 450 berths and hosting around 420 yachts year-round. Changing tack However, a series of challenges and obstacles, which experts say need urgent attention, are testing the yacht industry in Hainan. The upstream aspect of the industry involves design and manufacturing, the midstream sales and consumption, while the downstream covers maintenance, repairs, and financial services, said Hu Xiaoming, a special adviser to the Sanya Central Business District Administration and general manager at Hainan Marine Trade Exchange Services. Zuo Zhiyong, secretary-general of the Sanya Cruise and Yacht Association, said "even within the midstream segment, where Hainan's yacht industry shines, there are shortcomings". Despite flourishing yacht tourism in Sanya, operational costs have been hampered by high berthing fees, Zuo said. For instance, one well-known yacht club in Sanya pays an annual fee of around 1 million yuan to berth nine yachts. Sanya has nearly 1,000 yacht berths, and more than 90 percent are privately owned. This has led to a shortage of affordable public berths, Zuo said. Another critical part of the industry that needs attention is the upstream design segment, experts said. Hu believes there is an urgent need to accelerate recruitment and training of yacht designers as well as specialists in construction, woodworking, plumbing, fiberglass work, sheet metal painting, electromechanical installation, and technical evaluation. After setting up operations in the Lingao Jinpai Port Development Zone, Lingao Haiquan Yacht Co has boosted its manufacturing capacity, resulting in an uptick in orders. "The growth potential of the yacht industry within the Hainan Free Trade Port is substantial," said Wu Yanfeng, assistant to the company's general manager. In order to attract more yacht manufacturers to the province, facilities to support the industry need to be expanded and better access to land and marine resources guaranteed, Wu said. "We hope that raw materials such as steel plates and paint can be supplied locally. Additionally, the construction of suitable sheltered harbors and yacht berthing areas are essential to alleviate the concerns of businesses," Wu added. The company has secured orders worth about 25 million yuan this year, coming from countries including Singapore and the United Arab Emirates. It is aiming to produce 20 vessels this year, with a total output value of 80 million yuan. "Under the Hainan Free Trade Port, we want to explore international markets and promote China's 'smart manufacturing' new energy yachts on a global scale," he said. Showcase event The Haikou Boat Show, a support event of the China International Consumer Products Expo since 2021, has also played a major role in driving the yacht economy in Hainan. The exhibition aims to not only showcase vessels and businesses, but also offer a space to foster cross-industry growth and advance Hainan's yacht sector. "Featuring sleek and innovative designs, the showcased yachts offer a fusion of novel features and experiences," Du Hongyu said while visiting the consumer expo. This year's Haikou Boat Show was held from April 13 to 18. Visitor turnout on April 15 was double that of the previous year, underscoring the event's growing appeal and popularity. Wang Min, chairman of the Haikou Tourism and Culture Group, said this year's focus on high-quality and new products, had enhanced the exhibition's appeal. A total of 250 yachts were featured at the event, a 14 percent increase from the previous year. The vessels included 120 from 80 international companies. At a seminar on development of the yacht industry held during the expo, experts and observers highlighted China's huge consumption potential in the sector. Liao Minsheng, a maritime economy expert and vice president of Hainan Tropical Ocean University, said as people's living standards rise, the consumer base for yacht tourism is gradually expanding. The yacht tourism market has been experiencing rapid growth in recent years, emerging as a new hot spot for consumer spending, as exemplified by Sanya's success, Liao added. chenbowen@chinadaily.com.cn
Guwahati, Aug 22 : Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday said that the influence of the anti-talks faction of the ULFA led by Paresh Baruah in the state "is very much there, although it has considerably declined over the years", asserting that the outfit has as many as 400 cadres in its camp in the neighbouring nation of Myanmar.

The Chief Minister said that though the banned militant group -- United Liberation Front of Asom (Independent) -- has its influence in Assam, but its impact has been gradually diminishing.

"Who has said that the influence is not there? Has the Union Home Minister said this or the Assam Chief Minister said it? It is a fact that in comparison to 1990s and 1996, its influence has decreased," Sarma told the media here.

Claiming that he had been talking to Paresh Baruah every 10 to 15 days, he said : "He (Paresh Baruah) calls me up, and I generally respond to his call."

However, after the Lok Sabha election, Sarma said he did not talk with the ULFA-I leader.

The Chief Minister said that Baruah wants discussion on asovereigntya, but there cannot be discussion on 'sovereignty'.

"ULFA must decide when there will be talks. I am ready to sit for talks the moment they desire to have peace talks."

The Paresh Baruah-led ULFA faction is a proscribed outfit and manifested itself with a new name (ULFA-I) in 2012.

Meanwhile, Assam Police urged the people to provide information in the ongoing investigation on explosives planted by anti-talk ULFA-I in 24 locations in Assam as a mark of protest against the Independence Day celebrations on Thursday.

Sarma, who holds the home portfolio, said that two cases would be given to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), remaining cases would be investigated by the Assam Police.

Police have done something to prevent these bombs from exploding, he said, adding: "Such a blast must not take place for Assam. Such incidents have been happening in Assam for the last 30 years. Until the day we do not have discussion with ULFA, we would have to remain concerned and cautious."
Bhubaneswar, Aug 22 : Following the death of two persons in Odisha's Ganjam district allegedly due to the consumption of spurious country liquor, state Excise Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan has directed the officials to take all necessary steps to stop the illegal trade of liquor in the state.

The minister on Wednesday held discussions with Principal Secretary (Excise) Sushil Kumar Lohani and Excise Commissioner Narasingha Bhol on the hooch tragedy in Chikiti block of Ganjam and sought all the details regarding the incident.

At least 23 persons from Moundpur, Jenapur and Karabalua village of Chikiti block had consumed country liquor from a local unlicensed shop on Monday evening. They later fell ill and were admitted to a nearby hospital in the Chikiti area.

As many as 15 victims were later shifted to MKCG Medical College and Hospital in Berhampur for better treatment. Of them, two died on Wednesday while 13 are still undergoing treatment at the hospital.

The deceased were identified as Jura Behera and Loknath Behera of Jenapur village in the Chikita area of the district.

The minister said that illegal liquor trade in the state is not acceptable and directed the officials to keep strict vigil and conduct raids on illegal liquor manufacturing units and shops across the state. He also ordered the immediate removal of the Excise Superintendent of Berhampur from the post.

Minister Harichandan directed authorities to make special arrangements for the treatment of those admitted to the hospital after falling ill due to the consumption of spurious liquor.

So far, eight persons including a woman have been arrested in connection with the tragedy.

The opposition BJD and Congress on Wednesday raised the hooch tragedy issue in the Odisha Assembly demanding a probe by the Revenue Divisional Commissioner.

The BJD also announced that a fact-finding team of the party will visit Chikiti soon.
Prague, Aug 22 : The Czech police have evacuated 582 people from the vicinity of a chemical plant in the country's northwest region due to "a high risk of explosion" after the discovery of an unexploded bomb.

"An unexploded aerial bomb from World War II" was found during excavation work in a remote part of the Orlen Unipetrol plant near Litvinov, Most District, the Czech refining and petrochemical company said in a statement on its website on Wednesday.

Experts from the police and the regional fire rescue department intervened, and a partial evacuation was ordered in the refinery part of the plant, Xinhua news agency reported.

"The bomb weighing 250 kg will remain in place until August 27. A crisis team is now meeting to decide on the next course of action," said the police.

Unexploded munitions from World War II have been found repeatedly in the Most District in the past, according to the Czech News Agency. In May 2021, 5,400 people had to be evacuated after an aerial bomb was found on the premises of a chemical plant.
Jerusalem, Aug 22 : Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has denied that he agreed to withdraw military forces from the Gaza-Egypt border as part of a potential ceasefire deal with Hamas, according to a statement from his office.

The current US-backed bridging proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages -- which US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced on Monday that Israel has accepted -- includes a withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Philadelphi Corridor, a key border area between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, Israel's state-owned Kan TV previously claimed.

Both Hamas and Egypt, a critical mediator in the negotiations, reportedly oppose Israeli control over the corridor.

Netanyahu called the reports "incorrect" and emphasised that Israel has not agreed to relinquish control over the area, Xinhua news agency reported, citing the statement issued by his office on Wednesday.

"Israel will insist on achieving all of its war objectives as defined by the Security Cabinet, including ensuring that Gaza never again poses a security threat to Israel," the statement said.

"This requires securing the southern border," it added.

Also on Wednesday, Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden spoke by phone to discuss advancing the ceasefire-for-hostages deal, the White House said in a statement, without elaborating.

Israeli military officials have repeatedly stated that Israel could meet its security needs without maintaining control over the Philadelphi Corridor.

The Israeli Ynet news website quoted anonymous Israeli security officials accusing Netanyahu of hampering efforts to reach an agreement, arguing that his insistence on control over the corridor could jeopardise the deal.
Warsaw, Aug 22 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to hold a bilateral meeting with his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk on Thursday.

He will also call on Poland's President Andrzej Duda, and thereafter hold a meeting with business leaders.

Later in the day, Prime Minister Modi will meet Indologists and some kabaddi players to see what is there that attracts India and Poland at the people-to-people level together, stated Randhir Jaiswal, Spokesperson, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

Prime Minister Modi arrived in Warsaw on Wednesday on a two-day visit to Poland, becoming the first Indian leader to visit the central European nation in 45 years.

On Wednesday, he paid tributes at The Dobry Maharaja Memorial, Kolhapur Memorial, and the Monument to the Battle of Monte Cassino; and later addressed the Indian community in Warsaw.

After his two-day visit to Poland, Prime Minister Modi will leave for Ukraine. This will be the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Ukraine after the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1992.

"From Poland, I will be visiting Ukraine at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. This is the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Ukraine. I look forward to the opportunity to build upon earlier conversations with President Zelenskyy on strengthening bilateral cooperation and share perspectives on the peaceful resolution of the ongoing Ukraine conflict. As a friend and partner, we hope for an early return of peace and stability in the region," Prime Minister Modi said in a statement released by the MEA before his departure on Wednesday.

According to MEA, the aPrime Minister's engagements in Kyiv will touch a range of aspects of bilateral ties including political, trade, economic, investments, education, cultural, people-to-people exchanges, humanitarian assistance and others. Prime Minister Modi will also interact with the Indian community, including students during the visit. The Prime Minister's landmark visit to Ukraine will help further consolidation and expansion of bilateral ties.
United Nations, Aug 22 : India has called for discrediting those opposing the expansion of the permanent membership of the Security Council and denying Africa's "rightful place".

United Nations, Aug 22 (IANS) India has called for discrediting those opposing the expansion of the permanent membership of the Security Council and denying Africa's "rightful place".

"Those who continue to deny the expansion of permanent category and Africa's rightful place in it must be called out," R. Ravindra, the charge d'affaires of India's UN Mission said on Wednesday.

"Africa's continued denial of representation in the permanent category of membership is a blot on the collective credibility of this council," he said at the High-Level Open Debate on Peacebuilding and Sustaining Peace convened by Sierra Leone, the Council's president.

India has always called for permanent African representation in an expanded Council and supports the African consensus demanding two permanent seats and increasing the elected seats for the continent from three to five, Ravindra said.

He pointed out that nearly 70 per cent of the Council's mandates for peacekeeping are for Africa.

Reforming the Council, an endeavour blocked for nearly a couple of decades is seeing a renewed push from African nations demanding action in time for the 80th anniversary of the UN's founding next year.

A 12-member group, Uniting for Consensus, has used procedural manoeuvres to prevent the reform process from advancing because of opposition to certain countries getting permanent seats.

The group is led by Italy and includes Pakistan and Canada.

Ravindra dismissed with contempt an attempt by Pakistan's Permanent Representative Munir Akram to raise the Kashmir issue and tie it to the Palestine issue.

"We earlier heard a delegation repeating again its falsehood about my country. I will not dignify this falsehood with a response in the interest of time. Such remarks deserve nothing but contemptuous dismissal," he said.

Ravindra did not mention Pakistan by name as that would have given it an opportunity to turn its right of reply into a megaphone for propaganda.

But the message was clear that he was referring to Akram, who had said, "The consequences of foreign occupation are nowhere as clear as in occupied Jammu and Kashmir and in Palestine".

Having failed to get any international attention for its line on Kashmir, Islamabad now tries -- so far unsuccessfully -- to tie it to the Palestine issue which has wider support.

Ravindra said that "terrorism is a global threat, not only to peace and security but also to development" and reiterated India's call for a comprehensive international anti-terrorism convention.

A global conflict prevention mechanism cannot be complete without a comprehensive approach to counter-terrorism, he added.

Preventing conflicts and promoting peace and security requires resources for socio-economic development and reforming the international financial institutions to provide more representation from the Global South on governing bodies.

Given the importance of development for peace-building, India has extensive development partnerships with countries in the Global South and the cumulative value of its developmental projects now exceeds $40 billion, he said.

At the third Voice of the Global South virtual Summit hosted last week by India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposed a comprehensive global development compact, he said.

Sierra Leone's Foreign Minister Alhaji Musa Timothy Kabba, who presided over the meeting, warned the "world remains on fire from both national and international conflicts" and it was "fueled by a complex interplay of geopolitical tensions, economic disparities, climate change, and the proliferation of weapons".

He said that a multi-pronged effort, including on the development front, by all countries was needed to face the challenges.

(Arul Louis can be contacted at arul.l@ians.in and followed at @arulouis)
Moscow, Aug 22 : Moscow is closely monitoring Tokyo's naval presence near Russia's borders and is concerned over a potential shift in Japan's non-nuclear policy, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova said.

Japan's plans to erode its non-nuclear status by joining US nuclear missions, holding multilateral exercises with the involvement of strategic aircraft for nuclear missions, and considering the deployment of US medium-range missiles on its territory are particularly concerning, Zakharova said during a weekly briefing on Wednesday.

She said that Moscow was closely monitoring Tokyo's increased naval activities near Russia's borders in the Fast East with the involvement of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) members from outside the region, reports Xinhua news agency.

Japan's policy ultimately poses concrete risks to regional stability and security, she added.

This reaction is followed by the Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) exercise, an annually-staged summertime South Korea-US-Japan military exercise featuring field manoeuvers, computer-simulated command post exercise and civil defence drills, which kicked off on Monday and is scheduled to continue until August 29.

During the 11-day exercise, the combined forces planned to expand field training and live-fire drills across multiple domains to strengthen interoperability and showcase their combined capabilities, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said in a statement.

The JCS noted that the combined forces will further strengthen capability and posture to deter and defend against weapons of mass destruction.
Tel Aviv, Aug 22 : Israel's national security cabinet will meet on Thursday to discuss the ceasefire possibilities in its ongoing war against the militant Palestinian outfit, Hamas.

The meeting will be held at the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) headquarters in Kirya, Tel Aviv.

Israeli media have reported that the meeting is scheduled to discuss the future of indirect ceasefire talks.

The Cairo mediatory talks, which were scheduled for this week, seem to be a non-starter after Israel insisted that it will retain its Army in the Philadelphi and Netzarim Corridors.

It may be recalled that the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken was in the Middle East from Sunday till Tuesday (This is the ninth visit of the top US official to the Middle East since October 7).

Blinken had a series of meetings with top Israeli leadership, including President Issac Herzog, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant. He also met the President of Egypt, Abdel Fattah El Sissi and Qatar Prime Minister, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim

The US State secretary after his 3-hour long meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on August 19 said that the Israel side had agreed to the "bridging proposal" put forward by America to achieve peace.

However, Netanyahu while meeting with families of slain soldiers categorically stated that the Israeli Army would be stationed at the Philadelphi Corridor and Netzarim Corridor.

Hamas has in a joint statement with the Palestinian Islamic Jihad on late Wednesday night confirmed that it would not accept anything less than an agreement that includes a comprehensive ceasefire and complete withdrawal of the Israel Army from the Gaza Strip.

Hamas also said that Israel was squarely responsible for the collapse of the talks by continuing the aggression and denying what was agreed upon in the earlier stages.

It may be recalled that the recent indirect ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas have been based on an outline laid out by the US President, Joe Biden at the end of May.

However, with the Israeli insistence on retaining its troops in both the Philadelphi Corridor and Netzarim Corridor, the indirect peace talks are likely to fall apart.

The media in the region has reported that according to senior Israeli officials, the talks are on the brink of collapse and chances for a hostage deal are also very remote.
Chicago, Aug 22 : On the third day of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, the chants of "Om Shanti, Shanti" echoed in the hall and the priest conducting the prayers urged Americans to choose a leader who believes in the concept of 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam'.

Chicago, Aug 22 (IANS) On the third day of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, the chants of "Om Shanti, Shanti" echoed in the hall and the priest conducting the prayers urged Americans to choose a leader who believes in the concept of 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakama.

In an example of inclusivity in the US and growing influence of the Indian community there, a senior Hindu priest from the Sri Siva Vishnu Temple in Maryland, Rakesh Bhatt conducted Vedic prayers on Thursday, seeking blessings for unity across the nation.

At the Convention, Rakesh Bhatt remarked, "Even if we have differences, when it comes to the nation, we have to be united."

"Let our minds think together. Let our hearts beat as one. All for the betterment of society. May this make us powerful so we can unite and make our nation proud," he added.

Bhatt also urged America to choose a leader who believes in the Vedic concept of 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (the whole world is one family).a

He further mentioned, "We are one universal family. Truth is our foundation and always prevails. Lead us from unreal to real, from darkness to the light, and from death to immortality. Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti."

Replying to the prayer conducted by Bhatt, Ajay Bhutoria, Deputy National Finance Chair of the Democratic Party stated, "Rakesh Bhatt's Hindu prayer at the DNC today is a significant moment, showcasing the Democratic Party's commitment to inclusivity and diversity."

"It is heartening to see the rich cultural and spiritual traditions of the Indian American community being honoured on such a prominent stage. This moment reflects the growing influence and recognition of our community within the fabric of American society," he added.

Bhatt is a Madhwa priest from Bengaluru who has trained in Rig Veda and Tantrasaara (Maadhva) Agama, under his guru, Pejavar Swamiji of Udupi Ashta Matha, Karnataka.

He received his English and Kannada degrees from Osteen College, Bengaluru, and his Sanskrit degree from Jayachamarajendra College.

To acquire Vedic knowledge he later joined Udupi Ashta Matha and worked at the Badrinath and Raghavendra Swami Koil, Salem, before joining Sri Sri Vishnu Temple in July 2013.

Also, the Governor of Minnesota Tim Walz accepted his party's nomination for vice president at the Democratic National Convention and expressed gratitude.
Seoul, Aug 22 : A senior South Korean diplomat has asked Laos for support in sending a stern and unified message to North Korea against its military and other provocations at upcoming summits involving major Southeast Asian countries, Seoul officials said Thursday.

Seoul, Aug 22 (IANS) A senior South Korean diplomat has asked Laos for support in sending a stern and unified message to North Korea against its military and other provocations at upcoming summits involving major Southeast Asian countries, Seoul officials said Thursday.

Deputy Foreign Minister Chung Byung-won made the request during his courtesy call on Wednesday on Saleumxay Kommasith, Laos' deputy prime minister and foreign minister, said the foreign ministry, Yonhap news agency reported.

Chung was visiting Laos this week to attend a senior officials' meeting for a series of multilateral conferences with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), including the Korea-Mekong business forum, the East Asia Summit, and the ASEAN and its three Northeast Asian dialogue partners -- South Korea, China and Japan.

At the meeting, Chung expressed concerns over the North's continued ballistic missile launches and the sending of trash-carrying balloons across the border into the South, as well as the illegal military cooperation with Russia.

Chung asked Laos, the chair of the upcoming ASEAN-related summits set for October, to "play an active role in ensuring that a clear and resolute message will be sent to North Korea," the ministry said.

Saleumxay, in response, said that Laos supports Korea's denuclearisation efforts and the international commitment to implementing the UN Security Council resolutions against Pyongyang's nuclear and missile programs.

He added that Laos will make every effort as the chair to help drive these efforts.

Chung also proposed that Korea and Laos work closely to elevate bilateral relations to a "comprehensive strategic partnership" on the occasion of the upcoming ASEAN summits, the ministry said.
Mumbai, Aug 22 : As "Mardaani" turned a decade old in Hindi cinema on Thursday, the makers of the film have teased the next chapter of the Rani Mukerji-starrer while celebrating the Mumbai, Aug 22 (IANS) As "Mardaani" turned a decade old in Hindi cinema on Thursday, the makers of the film have teased the next chapter of the Rani Mukerji-starrer while celebrating the

Production Yash Raj Films banner took to YouTube, where they dropped a teaser of sorts, which begins from the first installment, which first released in 2014. The teaser shows moments from the first film and then switches to "Mardaani 2", which hits the big screen in 2019. It showcased highlights from the second installment and some iconic dialogues.

The production company captioned it: "10 years of #Mardaani and the next chapter awaits... Celebrating the feisty, daredevil cop #ShivaniShivajiRoy and the spirit of #Mardaani today. Thank you for a decade of love and appreciation for our beloved franchise. We are inspired... again... thanks to you. #RaniMukerji #10YearsOfMardaani."

Directed by Pradeep Sarkar, the first installment of the action thriller revolved around

around a stern police officer named Shivani Shivaji Roy, whose interest in the case of a kidnapped teenage girl leads her to uncover the secrets of human trafficking by the Indian mafia. The film also stars Jisshu Sengupta, Tahir Raj Bhasin and Saanand Verma in supporting roles

In "Mardaani 2", the 46-year-old star reprised her role as Shivani and this time her character was after a 21-year-old rapist and murderer, played by newcomer Vishal Jethwa. The film was directed by Gopi Puthran.

Rani was last seen in the film "Mrs. Chatterjee vs Norway". Directed by Ashima Chibber, the legal drama also stars Anirban Bhattacharya, Neena Gupta, and Jim Sarbh. "Mrs. Chatterjee vs Norway" was inspired by the real-life story of an Indian couple Anurup Bhattacharya and Sagarika Chakraborty whose children were taken away by Norwegian authorities in 2011. Rani was seen portraying the role of Sagarika, who fought with authorities and society to bring her children back to India.
Patna Aug 22 : Six policemen and excise officials were injured in an attack by a liquor mafia in Bihar's West Champaran district on Thursday.

The incident occurred in ward number 8 of Shivrajpur Panchayat, which falls under the jurisdiction of the Nautan police station. The officers arrived in the village to conduct a raid however they were assaulted by the liquor mafia.

The injured officers were immediately taken to the Government Medical College and Hospital Bettiah, where their conditions were reported to be critical. The circumstances leading to the raid and the subsequent attack are being investigated by the authorities.

Manoj Kumar Singh, the Excise Superintendent of Bettiah said: "The raid was conducted in response to reports of liquor smuggling in the village. A combined team of police and excise department officers went to the village with the intent of arresting the suspects. However, as soon as the team arrived, they were attacked by the mafia."

"Six officials of police and excise department have been assaulted in the attack," he said.

Singh emphasised that the authorities are determined to put an end to illegal activities in the region.

He said that the suspects fled the scene but efforts are underway to apprehend them and their identities have already been established.

"The investigation continues as authorities work to bring those responsible to justice," Singh said.

An FIR has been registered at the Nautan police station in connection.

Due to the liquor ban, the mafias are active in every district of Bihar. Many cases of makeshift liquor manufacturing units as well as smuggling of liquor have also appeared publically.
New Delhi, Aug 22 : As the first meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill got underway on Thursday, the Chairperson of the panel Jagdambika Pal sought to allay apprehensions of the minority community and said that the 'reform' was aimed at improving and 'bringing more value' to the lives of Muslims.

New Delhi, Aug 22 (IANS) As the first meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill got underway on Thursday, the Chairperson of the panel Jagdambika Pal sought to allay apprehensions of the minority community and said that the areforma was aimed at improving and abringing more valuea to the lives of Muslims.

Speaking to media persons ahead of the JPC meeting, BJP MP Pal said, "The Bill aims to provide extensive opportunities to as many people as possible from minority organisations. Its purpose is to allocate resources for religious or charitable activities. By embracing this noble intention, it will benefit ordinary Muslims and women, and contribute to enhancing their education."

Explaining the need and purpose of the Bill, he told IANS, "The government has a specific purpose for bringing this Bill, which is that the properties handed to the Waqf should help the backward Muslims and women. The government presented the Bill and it has been referred to the JPC. All the members of our JPC will discuss this Bill. We will discuss all the concerns of the Muslim community with the members of the JPC."

"We should not limit our discussions about the Waqf Bill to just stakeholders. It's important to also discuss it with the chairpersons of the State Waqf Boards and key organisations within the minority community, such as the All India Muslim Personal Law Board and Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind. By doing so, we can ensure we provide opportunities to the maximum number of people," he added.

The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, the first significant piece of legislation introduced by the Modi 3.0 government, has also sparked considerable controversy among Muslim organisations and Opposition parties.

The new Bill proposes to rename the Waqf Act of 1995 as the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency, and Development Act.

Waqf refers to property dedicated exclusively to religious or charitable purposes under Islamic law. Once declared Waqf, the order cannot be revoked. The amendments included in the Bill seek to address this issue.

There are around 30 Waqf Boards in India, managing properties that cover over 9 lakh acres, with an estimated value of Rs 1.2 lakh crore, making them the third-largest landowners in the country after the Indian Railways and the Defence Ministry.
As the digital landscape continues to evolve, becoming more interconnected and complex, the need for robust online security has never been more critical. Every click, search, and interaction leaves a trace, making users vulnerable to prying eyes and potential cyber threats. In this age of constant connectivity, maintaining privacy, secure access, and reliable connectivity is no longer a luxury  it's a necessity. This is where a Virtual Private Network, or VPN, comes into play. VPNs have become indispensable tools for safeguarding online activities, ensuring that your data remains private, your browsing anonymous, and your connection secure, even on the most public of networks.

A Promise of Privacy and Security

Many users choose to employ a VPN while scrolling online, knowing that privacy and security are worth the extra cost. But for those unfamiliar with the concept, what exactly is a VPN?

Simply put, a VPN is a service that masks a devices IP address when using the internet in both private and public settings, helping to keep your identity and online activity safe from prying eyes. Any data that a device using a VPN sends or receives is encrypted, helping ensure that your personal information cant be intercepted and that your device is not infected by malicious spyware. While you can easily connect to public WiFi without using a VPN, commonly in coffee shops, airports, public libraries, and restaurants, few realize that simply connecting to an unsecured WiFi could open your device up to potential attacks and security breaches.

Origins of the VPN, How It Has Evolved

The idea of the VPN was developed nearly thirty years ago to combat these issues, though during a time when there were practically no online protections. Additionally, users were not as aware of the many methods that hackers use to attack devices.

These first VPNs were purely an online security tool for anonymity, with some reportedly even recording users online activity. Current VPNs promise a logless service, meaning no information should be recorded from users. Encryption is always improving, with the first VPNs relying on basic methods and the newest featuring 256-bit AES encryption. For some, the additional feature of private networks has become the primary reason to use a VPN. One of the most popular features in modern VPNs is the ability to bypass geo-restrictions, enabling full access to streaming catalogs.

Today, the VPN is one of the most easily available and effective tools for protecting yourself online. However useful your device may be, its modern capabilities can enable outside hackers to track you and your data, watching or potentially even listening in on your personal activities. Government agencies, marketers, and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are all known to track personal data, but a trustworthy VPN can help you avoid that.

How a VPN Works

A VPN works by connecting to a remote server, owned by the VPN provider, and your personal device, rerouting the devices internet connection and encrypting any data through the server. Without a VPN, data goes directly to the ISP without being encrypted, leaving that data and the associated IP address vulnerable.

Four Reasons to Get a VPN

Now that the purpose of a VPN and how it works to provide safety and security has been established, what are the main reasons for an average person to get a VPN?

Cyber Security

Many people feel that their personal data isn't all that valuable when it comes to security. No one would be interested in what you have on your device, right? On the contrary, information pertaining to personal health, transactions, and other identifying information are some of the most important aspects of cyber security, alongside maintaining the general health of your device. A VPN helps ensure that this information is processed online in the most secure manner possible, making it an incredible tool for maintaining safety during general online activity.

Protect Data from Your ISP

VPNs also help ensure privacy when dealing with your ISP. Due to the fact that your information is processed through your ISP, it can easily track what you do online. That terms of service agreement many sign without reading may even allow the company to sell your personal data to advertisers.

In fact, the United States actually requires that ISPs maintain a log of your browsing history for 90 days so that the government can request a record of it should the need arise. A VPN prevents your ISP from gathering this information in the first place, keeping your search history away from advertisers and the government.

Privacy on Public WiFi

Protection on public WiFi is one of the biggest draws for VPN users. As it is generally not password protected, public WiFi often leaves devices vulnerable to hackers and other forms of interception without a VPN for security. Beyond the concern of individual hackers, many businesses offer public WiFi specifically to collect valuable data about your personal interests. Though public WiFi has become safer in recent years, it will hardly have the same security as your home network, let alone a secure VPN.

Accessing Restricted and Geo-Locked Content

Because VPNs host servers all across the world, they have the added benefit of skirting region-locked and geo-locked content. Streaming services tend to offer different content libraries based on location, meaning what isnt available in the US might be available in the UK, or vice versa. By connecting to a server elsewhere, a VPN makes it seem like you are in another country, allowing you to access region-locked content. A VPN also allows impressive freedoms for citizens in countries with otherwise strict governments. Political forces may restrict certain news sources or viewpoints depending on the country, but a VPN can make those sites accessible while hiding a users location by masking their IP.

Because of this freedom, a VPN can be a great tool for travel. WiFi and region-based concerns surrounding internet accessibility are largely eliminated by using a VPN, ensuring safe travels both online and while abroad.

How to Use a VPN

The benefits are clear, even for someone who isnt particularly worried about their online security. Fortunately, modern VPNs are very easy to use. The process consists of creating an account with the provider and downloading the VPN app to your device. After logging in, you can choose from any number of servers in locations throughout the world. Once youve chosen a server, the VPN provider should automatically connect your device to it. From there your VPN is working, and you can choose to change servers or disconnect from the same app.

This content is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. The views, thoughts and opinions expressed in this contributor content belong solely to the contributor.

Lee Enterprises newsroom and editorial were not involved in the creation of this content.
New Delhi, Aug 22 : In a tragic incident a three-year-old girl died on Thursday after falling from the third floor of an apartment building in the Sagarpur area of West Delhi.

The entire incident was captured on CCTVs installed in the area.

The CCTV footage shows the child suddenly falling onto the street below.

After that, a woman is seen panicking and raising an alarm upon discovering the child covered in blood lying there. Shortly after that the girl's family can be seen arriving at the scene.

The girl was immediately rushed to hospital, but the doctors were unable to save her and she passed away during treatment.

The police have started an investigation to determine the circumstances under which the girl fell from the third floor.

According to the initial investigation by the police, it appears that the girl might have accidentally fallen while playing alone in the balcony.

The police are also reviewing additional CCTV footage from the area to gather more details about the incident.

In a similar incident last December in Noida, a three-year-old girl fell from the third floor of her building while playing and died during treatment.

In yet another incident, a child in Delhi's Jafrabad area died after falling from the third floor while playing near a window at home.

The boy lost his balance and fell, and despite all efforts to save him he was declared dead by the doctors treating him.
Srinagar, Aug 22 : Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said that the representation of the people of J&K and giving back the statehood is most important for the Congress.

"As soon as we (Congress) got to know that elections are going to be held we decided to come here because we want to give a message to the people of every state that for us the representation of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and their statehood is the most important thing," said Rahul Gandhi while addressing party workers in Srinagar.

He said that in the history of India, after independence, many union territories have become states however there is only one example (J&K) when statehood was taken away and a union territory was created.

"This has never happened before and we want to give this message that the representation of the people of Jammu and Kashmir is important, it is important for us and it is important for the country," the LoP said.

Addressing the workers, the LoP said that each one of them is a member of the Congress family. "You are not workers, you are family," the LoP said.

Tariq Hamid Karra, President of J&K Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC), Vikar Rasool Wani, former president of JKPCC, G.A. Mir, member of Congress working committee, senior J&K Congress leaders, Peerzada Sayeed, Tara Chand, Raman Bhalla and others were present during the meeting.

Former JKPCC President, Vikar Rasool told the workers that in the past two years, Congress faced a big storm as the party's 70 per cent structure was dismantled, but he along with his team worked hard to restructure the party again and today JKPCC is a strong and vibrant force.

"I as a disciplined soldier of the party along with my team worked hard to restructure the party and today the result is before you," he said adding that he was ready to shoulder any responsibility in the party.

"If AICC leadership would assign me the charge of a 'Chaprasi' (peon), I would accept the post with great honour and pride," he said.

Former J&K Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand said in the past 10 years, J&K lost its identity and special status.

"Today, I want to say that Rahulji is playing Indiraji. Late Indiraji would give a personal touch to the party and people of J&K whenever there were clouds of uncertainty. Rahulji has come with the same ideology and thinking," Chand said.

Former JKPCC President and AICC member Ghulam Ahmed Mir said that it is a great pleasure to see AICC chief and Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi in J&K.

"Your visit is a real morale booster for all the workers of JKPCC. You have come at a time when the poll bugle has already been sounded. This will give a new impetus to the party indeed," Mir said.

On Wednesday, Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge and K.C. Venugopal arrived on a two-day visit to J&K.

Rahul Gandhi is also meeting the National Conference (NC) President Dr Farooq Abdullah to finalise the seat-sharing arrangement between the NC and the Congress for the upcoming Assembly elections.

Three senior Congress leaders are leaving for Jammu in the afternoon.
Amaravati, Aug 22 : Voicing concern over recurring industrial accidents, Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan on Thursday announced that an action plan for industrial safety in the state would be prepared in the next three months.

He termed 'unfortunate' the reactor blast at a pharma company at Atchutapuram near Visakhapatnam which claimed 17 lives and left many others injured.

The Deputy Chief Minister told media persons that negligence by the company management appears to have led to the disaster.

Pawan Kalyan, who holds the portfolios of Environment and Forests, Panchayat Raj and Rural Development, Science and Technology, and Rural Water Supply, mentioned that while pollution control comes under him, industrial safety comes under another department.

The Jana Sena Party leader recalled that on many occasions, he called for safety audits in industries. He announced that he would hold a special meeting on industrial safety in Visakhapatnam next month.

"Some accident is happening every week. Expressing condolences and paying compensation is not the solution," he said while stressing the need to put in place measures for industrial safety.

Earlier, Pawan Kalyan spoke to officials about who is responsible for the reactor blast at Escientia Advance Sciences at Atchutapuram Special Economic Zone. It was noted that the director of factories, labour and fire departments, and the Central government's Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation look after safety in such plants while the Pollution Control Board only monitors adherence to rules.

The officials also told the Deputy Chief Minister that the company has two owners, who have differences between themselves.

Meanwhile, Pawan Kalyan has urged youth and women to participate in gram sabhas (village meetings) scheduled to be held on August 23.

The Panchayat Raj and Rural Development Department will hold village meetings in 13,326 gram panchayats in a single day to identify the development works to be taken up.

He said the NDA was taking steps to strengthen the Panchayat Raj system as promised by it in elections. The state government has initiated the next phase of reforms in the Panchayat Raj department.

He added the government has enhanced funds for the celebration of Independence Day and Republic Day in all villages.

Pawan Kalyan said steps were also being taken to improve sanitation and increase greenery in villages.
Srinagar, Aug 22 : As part of incarcerated Lok Sabha member Engineer Rashid's plan for his party's participation in the Assembly elections, his younger brother, Sheikh Khursheed Ahmad, on Thursday, resigned from his government service to contest the polls.

Srinagar, Aug 22 (IANS) As part of incarcerated Lok Sabha member Engineer Rashidas plan for his party's participation in the Assembly elections, his younger brother, Sheikh Khursheed Ahmad, on Thursday, resigned from his government service to contest the polls.

Awami Itihad Party (AIP) sources said Khursheed will fight the Assembly elections from the Langate seat in the Kupwara district.

Engineer Rashid has represented the Langate Assembly constituency twice in 2008 and 2014 by winning elections from there.

Rashid surprised everybody by filing nomination papers from Tihar Jail in Delhi for the Baramulla Lok Sabha seat. He defeated former Chief Minister and National Conference (NC), vice president, Omar Abdullah by a margin of over two lakh votes. Sajad Gani Lone of the Peoples Conference (PC) finished third in the Baramulla Lok Sabha elections.

What came as a rude shock to the otherwise well-entrenched NC in Baramulla Lok Sabha is that Engineer Rashid polled a majority of votes in 15 out of the total 18 Assembly segments which form the voting segments of Baramulla Lok Sabha constituency.

Rashid was granted custody parole by the court to be able to take oath as a Lok Sabha member.

He has filed an application for regular bail in the Patiala House Court in Delhi. The court has issued notice to NIA to file objections in the matter. The case is listed for August 28.

Engineer Rashid was originally a worker of the PC formed by Sajad Loneas father, the late Abdul Gani Lone. Engineer Rashid later grew personal political ambitions and parted ways with PC after which he stood for elections from the Langate Assembly constituency after forming his own party, the AIP.

Votersa sympathy for Engineer Rashid stemmed basically from the fact that he had remained in jail without being charge-sheeted in a court of law.

His elderly parents also marched during the Lok Sabha campaign pitching basically for the release of their son.

Rashid's son spearheaded the poll campaign along with his young friends who ran an emotionally surcharged poll campaign without making any electoral promises or showing lofty dreams to the voters.

They asked for votes to garner moral and political support for the release of Engineer Rashid from prison.
Bengaluru, Aug 22 : Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Thursday stated that the actions of the BJP in the state had compelled Governor Thaawar Chand Gehlot to switch to a bulletproof car.

Answering a question by the media in this regard, Home Minister Parameshwara stated, "We do not know about any threat to him. The Governor has shared his threat perception and security has been given to him as per his entitlement."

When asked about the BJP's charge that the government had failed to ensure security for the Governor, HM Parameshwara maintained that the government had provided him adequate security.

"The BJP has created a situation in the state. The actions of the BJP leaders have brought about this situation where the Governor has to move around in a bulletproof vehicle," he stated.

Commenting on the statewide protests by the BJP on Thursday condemning the Congress leaders' derogatory statements and demanding the resignation of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, HM Parameshwara underlined, "There is no question of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah tendering his resignation and there is no need for it."

When asked about allegations regarding tampering with the CM's wife's letter to the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) allegedly by Minister of Urban Development Byrathi Suresh, he said that a statement had already been made in this regard and if necessary, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) would look into it.

"The SIT will look into the various statements being made with regards to the MUDA case. The single Bench Commission headed by retired Justice PN Desai has begun its investigation. Any information in this direction should be handed over to the Commission. Instead of issuing statements in the media and creating confusion let them approach the Commission. Anyone can approach the commission to make submissions," he stated.

When asked about Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy's challenge that even if hundred CM Siddaramaiah's emerge they can't arrest him, HM Parameshwara said, "There are provisions in the law to arrest any person. There is no need for 100 or 200 people."

Answering a question, HM Parameshwara stated that the government would look into the recommendations of the Justice John Michael Cunha Commission formed to look into the irregularities by the then BJP government in the state during the Covid pandemic.

"If there is a recommendation of initiation of criminal proceedings, the government will look into it," HM Parameshwara concluded.
Mumbai, Aug 22 : Wealth management firm, Nuvama, on Thursday, said India has emerged as the sixth-largest manufacturing economy globally while the stage is set for a new era of growth fuelled by recent reforms and strategic initiatives such as the Make in India.

"Over the past decade, key reforms such as the Make in India initiative, the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA), the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), the Goods and Services Tax (GST), the Production Linked Incentives (PLI) scheme, and the China + 1 strategy have collectively laid a robust foundation for India's manufacturing sector," said the Nuvama report.

It said that these reforms have resulted in stronger balance sheets, increased capital availability, and reduced receivable days, creating a fertile ground for investment opportunities.

"India's manufacturing landscape has thrown up investment opportunities stretching across a broad spectrum of sectors. Infrastructure projects encompassing roads, airports, railways, and ports are at the forefront, alongside burgeoning sectors such as Defence, Electronics Manufacturing, the Electric Vehicle (EV) ecosystem, Energy Transition, and Data Centres," said the report.

It added that these sectors are propelling India's manufacturing.

It also states that the current capex cycle is being driven by over 400 corporates and 600 unlisted entities spread across 35-plus industries, representing a sharp contrast to the previous cycle, which was led by 80-plus corporates across five to six industries.

"With more diversified funding sources, this cycle is poised for sustained growth, offering numerous avenues for investment," the report adds.

It said that the power sector, for instance, is seeing significant investments with a market size of Rs 6,500 crore for power transformers and Rs 6,300 crore for distribution transformers.

"Capacitors and switchgear (HV & LT) markets are also substantial, valued at Rs 7 billion and Rs 49/326 billion, respectively," the report added.

Meanwhile, the market for cables (LV & HV) stands at Rs 66,200 crore, with insulators, energy meters, transmission towers, and conductors also drawing significant investments.

As per the Nuvama report, the government's Make in India initiative has been a game-changer for the defence sector, particularly through the Defence Acquisition Council's Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) and capital acquisition proposals aimed at modernising the armed forces.

The Indian defence ecosystem is undergoing a complete transformation, with a focus on catering to domestic requirements while also boosting exports. Key initiatives include the establishment of two defence corridors in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, aimed at reducing imports and promoting exports, the report states.

The government has also released four indigenisation lists for platforms, weapons, systems, and equipment, alongside three lists for sub-systems and assemblies. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the sector has been enhanced to 74 per cent through the automatic route and up to 100 per cent through the government route.

Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs) contribute approximately 60 per cent of India's overall defence production, underpinning the country's self-reliance in defence.

The indigenisation drive has gained momentum with the release of positive indigenisation lists of sub-systems, assemblies, and major equipment, ensuring a steady increase in domestically produced defence items.

The offset policy, requiring foreign vendors to reinvest at least 30 per cent of their contracts in the Indian defence sector, further strengthens India's self-reliance journey, the report adds.
New Delhi, Aug 22 : The Delhi High Court on Thursday referred a dispute between BharatPe, an online money transaction platform, and its former managing director Ashneer Grover to a sole arbitrator.

In its plea filed before the Delhi High Court, the fintech company alleged that Grover disclosed confidential information relating to BharatPe on social media platforms, in violation of the employment agreement.

Before the issue reached Delhi HC, responding to BharatPeas notice to refer the matter to arbitration, Grover agreed on the formation of an arbitral tribunal but disagreed on the name of sole arbitrator.

In an earlier round of litigation, the Delhi High Court imposed a fine of Rs 2 lakh on Grover over blatant violation of earlier orders and assurances made by him to not post on social media defamatory posts against BharatPe.

It had asked Ashneer Grover as well as the officials of the fintech company not to speak in a "unparliamentary" or "defamatory" manner against one another.

The Delhi High Court issued an order restraining Grover from making defamatory and derogatory statements against BharatPe, its office bearers, or officials, and asked Grover to remove his posts, including one calling the SBI Chairperson "petty".

Ashneer and his wife allegedly committed financial irregularities when they were at the helm of the fintech platform.

BharatPe terminated the services of Madhuri Jain, head of controls, after an internal probe found misappropriation of funds that ran into crores during her tenure.

The fintech platform claimed that Grover, his wife, and their relatives were engaged in extensive misappropriation of company funds and grossly abused company money to fund their lavish lifestyles.

Grover had already moved an arbitration plea with the Singapore International Arbitration Centre pleading that the investigation launched against him was illegal because it violated the shareholder agreement and articles of association.
Phnom Penh, Aug 22 : Cambodia and Indonesia have vowed to bolster bilateral relations and cooperation for mutual benefit, said a Cambodian Foreign Ministry's news statement on Thursday.

The commitment was made during the fifth meeting of the Cambodia-Indonesia Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC) held in Phnom Penh on Tuesday and Wednesday, which was co-chaired by Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sok Chenda Sophea and Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi.

Both sides noted with satisfaction the steady growth of bilateral trade, which exceeded $1 billion in 2023, and agreed to expedite the conclusion of a bilateral memorandum of understanding on rice trade, Xinhua news agency reported.

"The Ministers emphasised the importance of food security, and affirmed commitment to expedite the implementation of the MoU on agricultural cooperation, signed in September 2023, and the signing of the MoU on cooperation on small and medium enterprises," the news statement said.

"To improve connectivity and facilitate economic and cultural exchanges, both sides concurred to endeavour for more direct flights between tourist cities of the two countries," it added.

The two sides had an extensive deliberation on other key areas of cooperation including energy, ICT, health, cooperation in river basin management, industrial cooperation, cooperation on digitalisation, and labour and vocational training.

The two Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to enhance the existing good cooperation in fighting transnational crimes, particularly trafficking in persons by effectively and fully implementing relevant instruments under bilateral and ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) frameworks.

They also underscored the importance of strengthening the ASEAN centrality and unity in engaging with external partners through ASEAN-led mechanisms.

According to the news statement, the sixth meeting of the JCBC will be held in Indonesia in 2026.
Visakhapatnam, Aug 22 : Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday announced Rs 1 crore ex-gratia each for the families of those killed in a reactor blast in pharma company in Atchutapuram Special Economic Zone near here.

He called on the injured at Medicover and KGH hospitals here and assured them that the government would bear expenses of their treatment.

The Chief Minister announced Rs 50 lakh compensation each for the critically injured and Rs 25 lakh each for those who sustained simple injuries. He promised the injured that if required, the government would get their plastic surgeries done.

CM Naidu spoke to some of the injured and enquired about their condition. He advised them not to lose heart and promised all possible assistance from the government.

Later, he told media persons that the incident pained him a lot. He said the reactor blast resulted in the death of 17 people and left 36 others injured. While 10 employees sustained critical injuries, 26 received simple injuries.

The Chief Minister spoke to doctors and officials and directed them to ensure the injured get the best possible treatment.

He also had a word with the family members of the victims and consoled them. He assured them that the government would stand by them.

CM Naidu said the government would ensure that such incidents do not recur. Alleging that all systems were "destroyed" under the "rule of the previous government" which resulted in such disasters, he said his government would set things right and prevent such incidents.

The families of the victims demanded action against the company's management. They alleged that the company did not give them any information after the accident.

A reactor exploded at Escientia Advanced Sciences Private Limited on Wednesday afternoon, resulting in a huge fire.

The accident occurred when employees of a new shift were relieving their colleagues of their duties in the afternoon.

Visakhapatnam District Collector M. N. Harendhira Prasad said a comprehensive probe was underway into the incident.

He said preliminary investigation revealed that leakage of solvent led to the tragedy.

Twelve bodies were brought to KGH for autopsy while the remaining five bodies were shifted to the government hospital at Anakapalli.
Kolkata, Aug 22 : Sex workers from the Sonagachi area in Kolkata, the country's biggest red light area, have refused to give soil from their courtyards which is used for making idols for Bengal's biggest festival Durga Puja.

The refusal comes as a protest to the rape and murder of a junior doctor in the state-run R.G. Kar Medical College & Hospital in Kolkata within the hospital premises earlier this month, according to an office bearer of the Durbar Mahila Samanwaya Committee, an association of sex workers in the state.

As per tradition, for making idols of Goddess Durga, soil from a brothel is mixed with clay.

The soil from the brothels is considered sacred as it is believed that a person sheds all his good qualities when he enters the sex workers' houses.

According to the office bearer, the sex workers had been demanding legal sanctity for the profession for quite some time.

"This year we are not offering the courtyard soil as a mark of protest against the rape and murder of the woman doctor. Often the victims of rape do not get justice. It is high time that we raise our voices of protest in the matter and hence we decided to refuse to provide our courtyard soil," the office bearer said.

During the last few days, the sex workers from different red-light areas in the state had brought out rallies in protest against the heinous crime. The common slogan in all their protests was - "If necessary, come to us, but do not rape a woman."

Already some community Durga Puja committees in Kolkata have refused the annual donations offered by the state government to them. This year, the donation amount has been increased to Rs 85,000 from the previous year's figure of Rs 70,000.

The body of a female doctor was found under suspicious circumstances in the seminar hall of the R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9.
When Ashley Dolsons son was a baby, he suffered from severe eczema that caused his hair to fall out and his skin to be inflamed and itchy.

Dolson discovered her son was allergic to shea butter, a common ingredient in store-bought skin care products, so she set out to create a product that would heal his skin.

She came up with what she calls Jujus Hair Serum, which helped with the eczema and dryness in his scalp.

When family and friends saw that her sons skin was healing, they asked Dolson if she could make products for them, too.

From there, Dolson turned her skin care hobby into a business that strives to empower people of all skin colors and types to feel confident in their skin: Melanin Skyn Co.

I saw the need of other people who either themselves suffer from eczema or had children and they just couldnt find products in stores, she said.

Born in Niagara Falls and raised in Buffalo, Dolson graduated from McKinley High School and then went to Canisius University, where she received a bachelors degree in communication and media studies. She also has a diploma from Continental School of Beauty and is a licensed massage therapist.

As a young girl, she always wanted to open a day spa, which is what led her to pursue beauty school and massage therapy. At the same time, she personally struggled with eczema throughout her life.

Dolson said she had a hard time finding products at the store that worked for her skin. When she did find something that worked, the company would eventually change the formula or stop selling it and she would be back to square one.

I first started making products for myself just because of this reason, she said.

The first product she made for someone else is called Dylans Butter, which she still sells.

After Dolsons best friend had a baby, a little girl named Dylan, she wasnt sure what to use to take care of her skin and hair. Dolson made a versatile, moisturizing and nourishing product to use on Dylans hair and skin.

Dolson uses ingredients like safflower, grapeseed and avocado oils in her products. The base of the majority of her products is kokum butter, a shea butter alternative that is anti-inflammatory, rich in antioxidants and absorbs quickly into the skin, she said.

The name of Dolsons business, Melanin Skyn Co., comes from the substance in the human body that gives color to skin, hair and eyes. Everyone has melanin, but the more of it a person has, the darker their features are.

Melanin Skyn Co.s products can be used by people of any skin color, but they do address the unique needs of melanin-rich skin because there arent a lot of products out there that address our needs, Dolson said.

Earlier this year, Dolson hosted her first self-love workshop called Loving My Melanin at a Buffalo public school to teach children not just about caring for their skin, but feeling comfortable in their skin.

Growing up, I struggled with not just my outer skin  with eczema and things that I had with sensitive skin  but also with being a person of color and having melanin-rich skin and being in certain spaces, Dolson said. I struggled from a mental aspect and not necessarily being comfortable in my skin or feeling confident all the time in my skin.

Workshop participants learn to make their own body butters, scrubs and lip products. While theyre doing that, they learn about positive affirmations and come up with their own to use while theyre practicing their self-care routine with the products they made.

Im very passionate about doing what you need to do to feel good about your authentic self, she said. And studies show that if you have some form of self-care routine that it contributes to your overall well being and increases the amount of dopamine, which is the happy hormone in your system, and it contributes to good mental health.

Dolson sells around 20 products, all of which she formulates and makes herself. They are only available online at melaninskynco.com, but Dolsons goal is to get her products in local and national stores someday.

The biggest obstacle Dolson has faced while growing her business has been funding it, she said. Dolson has won some money through local small business programs, such as IC Success!, but she has primarily funded the business herself.

Dolson works full time at General Motors, but she said she hopes that one day, running Melanin Skyn Co. can be her full-time job.
Agartala, Aug 22 : The flood situation in Tripura remained grim on Thursday and the India Meteorological Department (IMD) continued its red alert for all eight districts, officials said, adding that more NDRF teams have been deployed.

Disaster Management Department officials said that though there were no fresh casualties due to the rain, landslides and floods, around 40,000 people are taking shelter in 335 relief camps in all eight districts.

Till Wednesday, 10 deaths, including a 12-year-old girl and a woman, and one person missing were reported from South Tripura, Gomati, and Khowai districts.

Chief Minister Manik Saha, who is supervising the flood situation and disaster management, spoke to Union Home Minister Amit Shah for the second day on Thursday and apprised him of the prevailing scenario.

Home Minister Shah said in a post on the X, "Spoke with CM Tripura, Dr Manik Saha Ji, and took stock of the flood situation in the state. The Centre is rushing teams of NDRF, apart from boats and helicopters, to the state to assist the local government in relief and rescue operations. Assured of all possible assistance from the Centre as and when required. The Modi government firmly stands with our sisters and brothers in Tripura during this hour of crisis."

Later the Chief Minister expressing his gratitude to the Home Minister said that HM Shah informed him that 11 NDRF teams would be sent to Tripura from different locations in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.

He said arrangements would also be made for choppers to airlift the stranded people in the flood-affected areas.

"More number of boats would also be sent along with the NDRF teams. The entire state government machinery has been working round the clock to tackle the unprecedented natural calamity. I thank public representatives, social workers and the people at large for cooperating with the state government at this hour of crisis," CM Saha said.

Following the directions of the state government, due to the heavy rain and flooding, all educational institutions remained closed since Wednesday.

An India Meteorological Department (IMD) official said that though a heavy to very heavy rainfall alert has been continued and a red alert has been sounded in all eight districts, the rainfall is likely to reduce slightly from Thursday evening.

"The low pressure area over north Bangladesh and neighbourhood persisted over the same region on Thursday. The associated cyclonic circulation now extends up to 9.4 km above mean sea level. It is likely to move nearly westwards across West Bengal during the next 48 hours. Additionally, a cyclonic circulation is likely to form over North Bay of Bengal and neighbourhood on August 24," the official said.

The IMD recorded 233 mm rainfall from 8.30 a.m. on August 21 to till 8.30 a.m. on Thursday.

According to Disaster Management Department officials over 1,055 houses were damaged either fully or partially and hundreds of trees were uprooted blocking many important highways.

Water Resource Department officials said that most of the prominent rivers in Tripura are either flowing above critical or danger levels while the state's main river Gomati has crossed the 'extreme danger level' in many places of Gomati and Sepahijala districts, as rainfall has continued.

A large number of human habitations, urban and rural areas and many important highways have been inundated due to the floods while crops and other important assets were damaged in huge areas in all eight districts.

The Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) has cancelled 10 local trains in Tripura.

An NFR spokesman said that due to heavy rain railway tracks were damaged in Gomati district, forcing the authorities to cancel these trains.

A defence spokesman said that following the requisition from state administrations, four columns of Assam Rifles were deployed in different districts and they are working in close coordination with civil administration to rescue civilians stranded due to floods.

First aid and essential items have been distributed by the Assam Rifles to hundreds of stranded people and those in relief camps.
Vientiane, Aug 22 : Representatives from the member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) met in northern Laos' Luang Prabang province to discuss enhancing regional connectivity and resilience, Lao Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Thursday.

The representatives gathered on Wednesday for the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting (SOM), hosted by the Lao Ministry of Foreign Affairs, reports Xinhua news agency.

The meeting reviewed the implementation of the decisions made at the 57th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting and related meetings, especially the implementation of the nine priorities under Laos' ASEAN chairmanship in 2024 under the theme of "ASEAN: Enhancing Connectivity and Resilience".

The officials concluded at the meeting that the overall work in this regard is progressing well.

The meeting also discussed implementing an action plan for Timor-Leste to become a full member of ASEAN, and applications by countries outside the region to become a party to ASEAN's Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia.
Bengaluru, Aug 22 : Karnataka Police have submitted a chargesheet to the local court in the superintendent suicide case related to the Tribal Welfare Board case, sources confirmed on Thursday.

Karnataka Police, attached to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), is investigating the case of the suicide of Accounts Superintendent P. Chandrasekaran (52), which brought to light the alleged multi-crore Tribal Welfare Board case.

The 300-page chargesheet does not mention the names of any politicians from the ruling Congress. Chandrasekaran's death note, however, indicated the involvement of a minister from the Congress government in the Tribal Welfare case and held him responsible for his death.

Sources said that the chargesheet states that Chandrasekaran committed suicide due to pressure from officials of the tribal board. The chargesheet names the Board's Managing Director Padmanabha and accountant Parashuram as those who pressured Chandrasekaran. Both officials are also jailed in connection with the case.

Chandrasekaran was working with the board and earned a good name as an upright officer.

His suicide exposed the case, leading to significant developments that compelled the state government to obtain the resignation of Minister B. Nagendra and to hand over the case to the CID.

Nagendra is currently jailed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the case.

The case was initially lodged at the Vinobanagar police station in Shivamogga city. Based on a complaint by Chandrasekaran's wife, the local police conducted the preliminary probe and later CID took over the investigation.

Chandrasekaran, who hailed from the Dalit community, ended his life at his residence in Shivamogga. In his note, he mentioned the involvement of a sitting minister - though he did not name him specifically - as a factor in his decision to take his own life.

Earlier, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) had submitted a 3,072-page chargesheet against 12 accused individuals. However, the chargesheet did not mention the names of former minister B. Nagendra, who is jailed by the ED in connection with the case, or MLA and Tribal Welfare Board Chairman Basanagouda Daddal.

The BJP has alleged that this is a Rs 187 crore scam perpetrated by the state government. They further claimed that the money was transferred to various bank accounts in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and other states to fund the Congress party in elections.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah stated on the floor of the house: "We have not claimed that there was no wrongdoing in the Tribal Welfare Development Corporation. The opposition has repeatedly accused us of misusing Rs 187.33 crore. Out of this, Rs 89.63 crore was transferred from the Union Bank of India, MG Road Branch, to Telangana."

The BJP has demanded that the scam be handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). They have also called for the resignation of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who holds the Finance portfolio.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah claimed that ED officials threatened the former Tribal Welfare Development Board Managing Director B. Kallesh to implicate him in the alleged case during interrogation.

Three investigative agencies are currently probing the irregularities in the Tribal Welfare Board case. The SIT was formed on May 31, 2024, and a complaint was filed with the CBI on June 3, 2024, by the Union Bank of India. Meanwhile, the ED is conducting its own independent investigation.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has stated that it is unprecedented in his experience for three investigative agencies to investigate the same case. He also accused the Union government of adopting unfair means to destabilise the state government and to tarnish both his and the government's reputation.
Mumbai, Aug 22 : More than 8 in 10 (83 per cent) of employees are more likely to stay with companies that adopt a skills-first approach, a report said on Thursday, as the ability to harness 'skills intelligence' has become a decisive factor in achieving sustainable growth for companies.

The report by EY and leading skills intelligence and skills assessment platform iMocha said that 63 per cent of HR leaders observed a positive impact on talent retention and 58 per cent saw improvements in employee performance due to the skills first transformation (SFT) initiatives.

However, 87 per cent of the employees believe their organisations do not fully use their skills.

According to the findings, typical accuracy rates for current hiring, training and attrition processes are at 70-80 per cent, which can be further improved by 10-20 per cent through skills intelligence.

"Companies should monitor their accuracy rates in hiring, training, and attrition to gauge their true costs and the improvements possible with SFT," said Priyanka Gupta, Partner, People Advisory Services, EY India.

Regardless of the transformation type, an uplift in accuracy rates with skills intelligence can deliver 1.5 to 5 times higher transformation efficiency.

According to Amit Mishra, CEO of iMocha a skills-first approach not only addresses the pressing challenge of the skills gap but also unlocks significant economic value by improving the accuracy and efficiency of workforce transformations.

With increased accuracy from skill-intelligence in hiring, training and employee attrition across organisations, the economic loss due to friction in workforce transformations can potentially be reduced significantly, while improving employee engagement from its low global average of 23 per cent, the report noted.

With the integration of skills intelligence and SFT 2.0, there is a collective effort to significantly reduce the anticipated $8.5 trillion in lost annual revenues by 2030, it added.
New Delhi, Aug 22 : The Network Planning Group (NPG) has evaluated two projects of the Ministry of Civil Aviation for the construction of new civil enclaves at Bagdogra Airport in West Bengal's Siliguri and Bihta Airport in Bihar's Patna for their alignment under the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan initiative, the Commerce and Industry Ministry said on Thursday.

New Delhi, Aug 22 (IANS) The Network Planning Group (NPG) has evaluated two projects of the Ministry of Civil Aviation for the construction of new civil enclaves at Bagdogra Airport in West Bengalas Siliguri and Bihta Airport in Biharas Patna for their alignment under the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan initiative, the Commerce and Industry Ministry said on Thursday.

The two projects, to come up at a total cost of Rs 2,962 crore, were approved at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee of Economic Affairs last week.

The brownfield project at Bagdogra Airport, in the Darjeeling district of West Bengal involves the development of a new civil enclave with an investment of Rs1,549 crore. The expansion includes constructing a new terminal building with a capacity to handle 10 million passengers annually and an apron for 10 aircraft. Located strategically in the "chicken neck" area, Bagdogra Airport serves as a critical gateway to the northeastern region of the country, and this expansion is essential for meeting the regionas growing connectivity needs.

Similarly, the brownfield project in Bihar involves the development of a new civil enclave at Bihta Airfield, 28 km from Jay Prakash Narayan International Airport in Patna for Rs1,413 crore. This project addresses capacity constraints at Patna Airport and includes a new terminal building capable of handling 5 million passengers annually. The project also involves a 10-bay apron for A-321 aircraft, with the aim of accommodating growing passenger traffic and improving connectivity in the region.

The NPG also took up for discussion the project of the development of a Multi-Modal Logistics Park (MMLP) in Maharashtraas Nashik to be built across an area of 109.97 acres. This greenfield project is designed to integrate road and rail transport, improving logistics efficiency, reducing costs, and supporting regional industries by providing facilities such as cargo consolidation, storage, and customs clearance. The project is anticipated to handle 3.11 million metric tons of cargo annually from 2029 onwards.

Besides, the NPG meeting evaluated the proposal for a strategic road upgrade in Assam to a 4-lane NH-17, covering a 44.56 km stretch between Chirakuta (Bilasipara) and Tulungia was also evaluated at the NPG meeting. This project will enhance regional connectivity, linking Assam to West Bengal, Meghalaya, and important infrastructure such as the Multi-Modal Logistics Park at Jogighopa and Rupsi and Guwahati Airports. It is expected to significantly boost economic activities, reduce travel time, and alleviate congestion in the region.

NPG evaluated the projects from the perspective of the principles of PM GatiShakti: integrated development of multimodal infrastructure, last-mile connectivity to economic and social nodes, intermodal connectivity, and synchronised implementation of projects. The projects are expected to play pivotal roles in nation-building, integrating various modes of transport, and providing substantial socio-economic benefits and ease of living, thereby contributing to the overall development of the regions, the official statement added.
Bengaluru, Aug 22 : Karnataka BJP on Thursday staged a statewide protest in connection with Congress leaders allegedly issuing derogatory remarks against Governor Thaawar Chand Gehlot for giving sanction for prosecution against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) case.

Protesting against the alleged injustice meted out to Dalits by the party, Chalavadi Narayanaswamy, Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council, demanded that Dalit leaders and representatives within the Congress should resign.

Speaking at the massive BJP protest held at Freedom Park in Bengaluru on Thursday, he said, "Shame on all the Dalit leaders within the Congress party. We demand that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who has wronged Dalits, should resign."

"Chief Minister Siddaramaiah claims that he is being harassed by the BJP because he belongs to the Backward Classes. If that's the case, then who is the Prime Minister of this country? He is also from a Backward Class. But unlike you, he is not corrupt. He is spotless," Narayanaswamy professed.

"We will not rest until Chief Minister Siddaramaiah resigns," he declared, adding that they will not stop fighting until the stain of corruption is erased and CM Siddaramaiah is sent home.

Narayanaswamy questioned the Chief Minister, asking, "Didn't you purchase government land? Do you have any sense? You have no sense. Once you were proud to be called a tiger, but now you sit here in disgrace. No matter how much whitener you apply, you won't become clean. Please resign and leave."

"The entire state is against CM Siddaramaiah. The issues surrounding the funds reserved for Dalits, the Valmiki Tribal Board scam, and the MUDA case all pertain to the Dalit community. If the Congress party is digging a grave for Dalits, is it right for the religious leaders to sit on that grave and support them?" he asked, indirectly targeting community seers for supporting CM Siddaramaiah.

Former Deputy Chief Minister, CN Ashwath Narayan demanded that CM Siddaramaiah immediately resign for the welfare of the people and the state.

"We must raise awareness among the public against this corrupt government. It is our duty to fight every day," he stated.

Criticising the government, he said, "Looting is the policy of the Congress government. Even if they are caught red-handed, they won't resign. They don't respect the sentiments of the people. They cling to power in an outrageous manner."

"They hold the Constitution in their hands and talk about rights, but they don't talk about their duties and responsibilities. They don't respect the spirit of the Constitution," Narayan asserted.

"These people have become arrogant; their obstinacy has increased. They talk about creating a Bangladesh-like situation, call the Governor unworthy, and threaten to storm Raj Bhavan and attack," he condemned.

BJP MLC, N Ravikumar said that if CM Siddaramaiah has any courage or strength, he should hand over the investigation of the cases to the CBI.

"White ink was applied to the request for alternative plots in Vijayanagara locality in Mysuru. If the white ink wasn't applied during your government's tenure, you should swear to this in the presence of Lord Manjunatha at Dharmasthala," he challenged CM Siddaramaiah.

BJP MLC Bharathi Shetty remarked sarcastically, "Congress leaders, the Chief Minister of the Congress government, are thieves and corrupt. But, who would ever admit to being a thief?"

Bengaluru MLAs and MLCs participated in the BJP's protest.
Canberra, Aug 22 : A Senate inquiry has been established to investigate the dangers posed by "forever chemicals" to the Australian public.

The governing Labour Party on Thursday agreed to support independent Senator Lidia Thorpe's proposal for a parliamentary inquiry into the health and environmental impacts of per-and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) chemicals, Xinhua news agency reported.

Also known as "forever chemicals" due to their persistence in the environment and human body, PFAS encompasses more than 10,000 synthetic chemicals used in products including firefighting foam, food packaging, non-stick pans, cosmetics and clothing.

According to Australia's Department of Health, exposure to certain PFAS chemicals including perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) has been linked to an increased risk of testicular and kidney cancer.

The inquiry will be chaired by Thorpe, who said it would examine the sources that expose Australians to PFAS, the extent of their presence in the environment, consumer goods and food systems, their health, environmental, social, cultural and economic impact and how regulation can be strengthened to protect Australians.

"These chemicals already affect every single person in the world, yet not enough is being done to manage our exposure to them and reduce the risks," she said in the Senate.

"We've already seen worrying instances of cancer clusters with suspected links to PFAS chemicals. We cannot take them seriously enough."

Sydney Water on Tuesday confirmed that testing conducted in June and July detected PFAS at several drinking water catchments across the city for the first time.

The highest levels were found in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney at Cascade Dam, which supplies water to nearly 30,000 people, where the chemical PFOS was found at a concentration of 0.0164 micrograms per litre.

Japan's Food Safety Commission in June assessed the allowable daily intake of PFOS for a person as 20 nanograms per 1 kg of body weight after the US Environmental Protection Agency in April found there was no safe level of exposure to the chemical.
New Delhi, Aug 22 : The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the West Bengal Police not to disrupt the peaceful protests in the wake of the horrific incident at Kolkata's R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital, where a trainee doctor was raped and murdered earlier this month.

"We categorically reaffirm that peaceful protests shall not be disturbed and disrupted. The state shall not take any action against those who are peacefully protesting against the incident at state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital," a bench presided over by CJI D.Y. Chandrachud said.

The Bench, also comprising Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, told senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the West Bengal government, that the apex court has not injuncted the state police from exercising such lawful powers as entrusted in terms of law, clarifying that the protestors should also comply with the requirements of the law.

"Let the investigation continue," it remarked, taking on record the status report filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as well by the Kolkata Police in relation to the vandalisation of the hospital premises on the night of August 14.

The Supreme Court also asked the jurisdictional court to decide, by 5 p.m. on Friday, the application of the investigative agency seeking permission for a polygraph test of the accused.

Further, it asked the National Task Force (NTF), set up by the government on its direction, to give a hearing to diverse medical associations while formulating effective recommendations relating to the safety, working conditions and well-being of doctors and medical professionals.

"To facilitate filing of suggestions before the NTF, we direct the Secretary in the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to open a specific portal on the website of the ministry on which associations and different stakeholders may submit their suggestions for consideration before the committee," the SC ordered.

Urging medical professionals across the country to return to work, the apex court assured the resident doctors and interns that no adverse action would be taken against them for participating in protests.

During the hearing, the CJI-led Bench observed: "Ask them (doctors) first to return to work. Once they return to work, nobody is going to take adverse action against the doctors. Let them first come back to work and then, if there is any difficulty, we will make sure that no adverse action is taken against the doctors."

It added that "the poor people coming to hospital cannot be left behind in the lurch" and raised concerns about how public health infrastructure would run if doctors did not resume work.

The SC reiterated: "Let all doctors resume work. Please rest assured that once the doctors resume duty, then we will prevail upon the authorities to not take any adverse action."

Asking all the state governments to address the safety concerns of doctors and medical professionals, the apex court directed the Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare to convene a meeting with all the Chief Secretaries and Director Generals of Police within a period of one week.
Srinagar, Aug 22 : Former J&K Chief Minister and president of National Conference Dr Farooq Abdullah said on Thursday that a pre-poll alliance between the Congress and the NC has been finalised and paperwork was being finalised.

"Alliance on all 90 Assembly seats between the two parties has been formed. Paperwork to be finalised by tonight. Congress, NC and CPI(M) are together. We will work together and fight the elections. We are hopeful that statehood will be returned. No doors are closed for anyone," said Dr Abdullah.

He told reporters that an alliance has been made and the parties will issue mandates to their candidates in a phased manner.

Earlier, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge called on Dr Farooq Abdullah at his high-security Gupkar Road residence here.

Former chief minister and NC vice president Omar Abdullah was also present during the meeting at his father's residence.

After the meeting, Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge and K.C. Venugopal met the Congress leaders and workers at a local hotel in Srinagar.

Addressing the Congress workers, Rahul Gandhi said, "You are not workers, you are family. As soon as we got to know that elections were going to be held, we first decided to come here to Jammu and Kashmir because we wanted to give a message to the people that for us the representation of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and their statehood is the most important thing."

"In the history of India, after Independence, many union territories have been converted into states, but there is only one example when statehood was taken away and a union territory was created. This has never happened before and we want to give this message that the representation of the people of Jammu and Kashmir is important, it is important for us and it is important for the country," Gandhi said.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge told the workers, "We want to take the entire opposition along." He said that Congress is committed to ensuring the return of Statehood.

He said that in J&K, BJP couldn't ensure elections. "BJP announced polls under pressure in the wake of Supreme Court directions. I want to put it on record that the BJP can't suppress the peoples' voices anymore in J&K. Congress is committed to working for the welfare of the people of J&K. The UT has witnessed unprecedented unemployment. Tall claims of BJP that post Article 370, terrorism has been wiped out in J&K, have fallen flat. Infiltration has gone up and terrorism incidents have also witnessed a spike," he said.

Rahul Gandhi later left for the Jammu division where he will address workers and interact with party workers and leaders regarding the upcoming Assembly elections.
Patna, Aug 22 : Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who inspected the ongoing construction of Muzaffarpur bypass road on Thursday, instructed the NHAI officials to complete the project at the earliest.

"Complete the project quickly," said Chief Minister Nitish Kumar during the inspection.

The 17 km bypass under construction in Muzaffarpur is set to significantly improve connectivity for commuters heading from Patna to Uttar Pradesh via Gopalganj and for those travelling to Darbhanga, Madhubani, Araria, Purnea, and Kishanganj districts in the Seemanchal region.

The bypass will also provide a smoother connection to Sonvarsha in Sitamarhi district. Additionally, the road linking Majhauli to Nepal, NH 527 C, will facilitate easier travel for vehicles coming to Patna.

This bypass is part of the Hajipur-Muzaffarpur four-lane national highway 77, and the cost of the project is Rs 180 crore.

The decision to build this bypass was made in 2010, and land acquisition began in 2012. However, the project faced several delays over the years. It wasn't until the Patna High Court intervened in 2019 that the construction work started progressing more rapidly.

This infrastructure development is expected to streamline travel routes to both Nepal and Uttar Pradesh from Patna.

The bypass project is likely to be completed this year. His visit is intended to expedite the construction work, ensuring that the project stays on track for completion.

During his visit, Kumar travelled to Muzaffarpur by road and also inaugurated the new buildings of the Turki, Jajuar and SC/ST police stations.

Nitish Kumar has been actively overseeing various road projects across Bihar, including the JP Ganga Pathway, which currently operates from Digha to Kangan Ghat, with construction ongoing to extend it to Didarganj. This extension is also expected to be completed by December this year.

Additionally, Kumar recently inspected the Bakhtiyarpur-Mokama four-lane road, underscoring his commitment to enhancing Bihar's infrastructure.
New Delhi, Aug 22 : The excessive use of gadgets among individuals aged 20 to 55 is leading to a significant increase in back and spine problems, doctors warn.

Many are experiencing severe and debilitating symptoms, including sharp, stabbing, or dull pain in the back or neck, muscle spasms, tingling, loss of sensation, and even weakness or limited mobility.

Prolonged screen time is increasing musculoskeletal disorders, particularly affecting the spine, with severe pain, tingling, and functional weakness being reported.

"In this digital era, prolonged screen time is causing a rise in musculoskeletal disorders (MSD), particularly affecting the spine. There has been a 60 per cent surge in back and spine issues. Individuals aged 20-55 are reporting severe pain, sometimes accompanied by loss of urinary or bowel control, tingling in the extremities, and functional weakness. Seven in ten patients I see daily suffer from back and neck pain," Mohit Muttha, Orthopaedic & Spine Surgeon at Apollo Spectra, Pune told IANS.

"Poor posture, especially forward head posture (FHP), due to excessive gadget use, leads to muscle imbalances and tightened hip flexors, making daily activities stressful and painful," added Muttha.

"A 60 per cent increase in low back and neck issues among 20-45-year-olds is linked to gadget addiction, causing discomfort in the neck and cervical spine. If neglected, this can lead to more severe issues, including neck pain, shoulder stiffness, headaches, and restricted mobility. Out of 10-12 patients who visit me daily, around 4-5 have neck and lower back pain related to gadget misuse," Ram Chaddha, Spine Surgeon at Lilavati Hospital, Mumbai told IANS.

Regular breaks, posture, and daily exercises like yoga and stretching are crucial for preventing back and spine issues among 20-50-year-olds.

"There is a concerning 50 per cent surge in back and spine issues among people aged 20-50. Out of five patients, at least 2-3 suffer from back pain and are advised to rest for prompt recovery," Burhan Salim Siamwala, Consultant Spine Surgeon at Medicover Hospitals, Navi Mumbai told IANS.
Warsaw, Aug 22 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday invited companies from Poland to join the 'Make in India, Make for the World' initiative as both countries decided to transform the bilateral relationship into a strategic partnership during his landmark Warsaw visit.

Addressing the media after holding talks with his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk at the Federal Chancellery, PM Modi highlighted that it was a significant day for India-Poland relations as the last visit of an Indian Prime Minister to Poland took place in 1979.

Tusk, on the other hand, termed it as a "great privilege" to host Prime Minister Modi on the eve of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

"This is a sufficient illustration of the significance of this visit and your presence today. This is undoubtedly proof of the increasingly good relations between our countries, of the significance for the entire region, I will not exaggerate if I say for the entire world between India and Poland," said the Polish PM.

He mentioned that the whole world admires India for the consistently democratic nature of its governance, which is "not common in that part of the world".

Identifying several areas for mutual cooperation, PM Modi remarked that Poland is a world leader in the field of food processing and Polish companies can join the mega food parks being set up in India.

He also touched on the issue of the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia, saying that it remains a "matter of deep concern" for everyone.

"India firmly believes that no problem can be solved on the battlefield. The loss of lives of innocent people in any crisis has become the biggest challenge for the entire humanity. We support dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability. For this, India, along with its friendly countries, is ready to provide all possible support," said Prime Minister Modi.

Emphasising that there is "no conflict of interests" between India and Poland, Tusk stated that both countries have always understood each other well, despite the distance, different traditions and history.

"But it is history that has taught us, as the Prime Minister and I emphasised today during our face-to-face conversation, how important it is to respect rules, borders, territorial integrity, sovereignty of states, the rule of law," he said.

Earlier, PM Modi was accorded a ceremonial welcome as he reached the Federal Chancellery in Warsaw.

The meeting between the two leaders was followed by delegation-level talks. Before Thursday, PM Modi had met Tusk on four occasions in the latter's earlier capacity as the President of the European Council.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the bilateral trade between India and Poland remains substantial, in the order of US$6 billion, making Poland India's largest trading partner in Central and Eastern Europe.

Indian investments into Poland are estimated at around US$3 billion. And the Polish investments into India are around US$1 billion.

Poland has the sixth largest economy within the European Union and will hold the next Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

PM Modi is scheduled to call on Poland's President Andrzej Sebastian Duda later today and will also interact with select Polish business leaders and prominent Indologists.

From Poland, PM Modi will be visiting Ukraine at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelensky which will be the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Ukraine.
Chandigarh, Aug 22 : In a major breakthrough, Punjab Police have solved the sensational Khanna Shiv Mandir theft case in less than a week by busting an interstate theft gang targeting religious places with the arrest of its four members, said Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav here on Thursday.

The operation was accomplished with the cooperation from Chandigarh Police, Uttarakhand Police and Uttar Pradesh Police.

Those arrested have been identified as Resham Singh of Udham Singh Nagar in Uttarakhand; Ravi Kumar of Ropar; Honey of Mahindpur in Ropar; and Rajeev Kumar of Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh.

As per the information, on August 15 at around 4.30 a.m., unknown persons entered the Shivpuri Temple in Khanna through window panes on roof of temple and stole various gold and silver ornaments, including silver gagar (which was placed above Shivling Maharaj), silver garland around Shivling Maharaj, silver flute of Krishna Maharaj, silver crowns and gold ornaments of all the idols in the temple, besides desecrating the Shivling Maharaj.

DGP Yadav said police teams from Khanna have successfully arrested four accused involved in this case and recovered the 3.63 kg silver, which was stolen from the temple, from their possession.

He said preliminary investigations have revealed that the gang was planning robberies in temples of Tamil Nadu and Telangana, which have been thwarted.

Further investigations are underway and more arrests are expected, he added.

Sharing operation details, Senior Superintendent of Police (Khanna) Ashwini Gotyal, while addressing the media, said acting swiftly, special teams were formed under the supervision of SP Investigation Saurav Jindal to trace the case and investigation of the case was carried out by scientific-technical means and using human intelligence.

She said during the investigation of the case, inputs were received that an interstate gang of thieves carry out thefts in temples and other religious places. Acting swiftly on the inputs, special police teams conducted raids in different districts of Punjab and other states and, with the help of Uttarakhand Police, managed to trace and arrest the first accused, identified as Resham Singh, she said.

She said apart from this, with the help of Chandigarh Police, the accused Ravi Kumar was arrested from Chandigarh and accused Honey was arrested from Ropar.

She said the police have identified one more accused, Mohit of Utawal in Aligarh of Uttar Pradesh, an associate of this gang, who is yet to be arrested.

During investigation of the case, it has also come to light that this gang of thieves used to sell the stolen silver and gold ornaments to jeweller Rajeev Kumar, alias Soni, who was nominated as accused in this case and was arrested from Lucknow and the stolen jewellery was recovered from his possession, she said, adding the accused is being interrogated in-depth, from which more theft incidents are likely to be revealed.

Notably, the jeweller has already been facing 12 criminal cases of theft.

Gotyal said from the investigation conducted so far in the case, it has come to light that this gang has committed theft at many religious places in different states and there are various cases registered against these persons in different states for stealing from religious places.
Wayanad, Aug 22 : Kerala BJP on Thursday said that the state government is only interested in photo shoots and not in the rehabilitation of Wayand victims.

"The enthusiasm and the efforts of Kerala government which we saw during first few days has now vanished. It appears that the state government is interested in photo shoots only and not in the rehabilitation of the Wayanad victims," state BJP chief K. Surendran said.

He said that the Wayand victims have been left to fend for themselves which is criminal negligence on the part of the state government.

"Things are in bad shape in Wayanad. People continue to be in camps and no serious efforts have been undertaken by the government for their rehabilitation," he said.

He said that five years back a landslide hit Puthumala. "I also met victims there. They informed me that the Kerala government's promises continue to remain on paper only. I am worried that the same may happen with the Wayanad victims as well," said Surendran.

On July 30, four villages in the Wayanad district were wiped out after a landslide hit the area in which 416 people died while 120 people still remain missing.

"It's been two weeks since Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the affected areas and the Vijayan government is yet to come out with a memorandum as instructed by the PM Modi. Giving a temporary memorandum is not what is needed," said Surendran.

He said that the Cabinet committee formed soon after the disaster took place seems to be not working properly as there is just one Minister (State SC/ST Minister O.R.Kelu) who working around.

"Rs 600 crores was given by the Centre in the past two years for disaster work. However, these funds have not been utilised yet. We spoke to the cabinet sub-committee and informed it that the BJP can help them, but they have not given a clear answer," said Surendran.

He said it's strange that the Vijayan government has not called an all-party meeting to discuss the rehabilitation programme for Wayanad.
New Delhi, Aug 22 : The Supreme Court on Thursday said that it will constitute, within a week, a committee to amicably resolve the grievances of the farmers protesting at the Punjab-Haryana border.

A bench headed by Justice Surya Kant asked the states of Haryana and Punjab to suggest within three days the terms of reference that the expert panel should deal with.

The bench, also comprising Justices Dipankar Datta and Ujjal Bhuyan, was considering the pleas moved by the Haryana government against the decision of the Punjab and Haryana High Court ordering the removal of barricades at the Shambhu border.

The apex court clarified that it has not precluded the state governments from holding meetings with the protesting farmers in the meantime.

The matter will be heard next on September 2.

In an earlier hearing, the Supreme Court mulled the formation of an independent committee to reach out to the agitating farmers to find out "some viable solution of the issues to the extent they are found to be just, fair, feasible and most importantly in the interest of one and all".

It had asked the Union and state governments to take some steps to reach out to the farmers and suggested sending a neutral umpire. Observing that there exists a trust deficit between the stakeholders, the Supreme Court had sought suggestions for names of individuals who can be included in the expert panel. In the meantime, it ordered the state governments to maintain a status quo at the site of protests.

On July 10, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had directed to "at least" open the Shambhu border between Punjab and Haryana within a week. In its order, a division bench of Justices G.S. Sandhawalia and Vikas Bahl asked the Punjab as well as the Haryana governments to ensure that the highway is restored to its original glory and open to one and all for the convenience of the public.

"The State of Punjab shall also ensure that the demonstrators gathered in their territory are also duly controlled as and when the situation so requires," ordered the high court, asking all the Kisan Unions to maintain law and order. It noted that the diversion which has been made to avoid the blockage was causing great inconvenience to the general public.

The decision came on a public interest litigation (PIL) against the barricading amid increasing concerns over the disruption of traffic and its impact on daily commuters and the transportation of goods. The interstate border was sealed to prevent protesting farmers from entering Haryana.
Vientiane, Aug 22 : India on Thursday reiterated its strong support to Laos for its ongoing chairship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as Vientiane continues preparation for the upcoming East Asia Summit (EAS).

As he participated in the EAS Preparatory Senior Officials' Meeting in Luang Prabang, the Ministry of External Affairs' Secretary (East) Jaideep Mazumder expressed India's robust support to Laos for the big event scheduled to be held in October.

During the meeting, which focused on preparations for the upcoming summit, Mazumder underscored the importance New Delhi attaches to ASEAN centrality and unity that remains a cornerstone of India's 'Act East' policy. He also highlighted India's initiatives in the East Asia Summit context and touched upon regional issues of concern.

The ASEAN Secretariat delegation at the meeting was led by Deputy Secretary-General Astanah Abdul Aziz, with Timor-Leste attending as an Observer.

The MEA Secretary also held a series of bilateral discussions on the sidelines of the event. In his meeting with Laos' Deputy Foreign Minister Thongphan Savanphet, the senior diplomat highlighted the issue of Indians being lured into cyber scam centres and discussed measures to combat such activities.

In a separate bilateral meeting with Brunei's Permanent Secretary Johariah Wahab, Mazumder discussed joint activities to commemorate the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between India and Brunei.

The two diplomats also explored ways to enhance people-to-people ties and discussed other bilateral and regional issues of mutual interest.

Mazumder's meeting with the Australian Deputy Secretary Michelle Chan focused on regional issues of mutual concern.

ASEAN countries remain a crucial element of India's 'Act East' policy and a key partner in its Indo-Pacific Vision, as outlined by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Security and Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR) initiative.

Last month, External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar emphasised India's commitment to ASEAN unity and centrality through its 'Act East' Policy, which has now completed 10 years.

EAM Jaishankar also reaffirmed India's support for the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP) and its convergence with the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI).

He encouraged participation of more EAS members in the IPOI, highlighting India's active contributions towards the EAS' Plan of Action, including the recent summit on Maritime Security and Cooperation held in Mumbai on July 4-5.

Additionally, the EAM mentioned the realisation of the Nalanda University resolution as an "important commitment" to the EAS.
Beirut, Aug 22 : Two Hezbollah members were killed and two civilians injured on Thursday in Israeli airstrikes on southern Lebanese sites, Lebanese military sources told the media.

The sources, who spoke anonymously, said one of the airstrikes targeted a house in the village of Aita al-Shaab, killing two Hezbollah members.

They added that the casualties had been transported to Bint Jbeil Governmental Hospital, Xinhua news agency reported.

In a separate attack, "an Israeli warplane fired two air-to-ground missiles at the town of Mhaibib, east of southern Lebanon, wounding two civilians," said the sources.

Israeli warplanes and drones carried out 12 airstrikes on 10 Lebanese border towns and villages during the dawn and morning hours, destroying about 20 homes and damaging more than 60 others, they added.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah said in a statement that its fighters launched an air attack with a squadron of suicide drones on the positions of Israeli soldiers in the Kiryat Shmona settlement, adding the drones "hit their targets accurately".

During the past 24 hours, the Lebanese army monitored the launch of about eight drones and about 150 surface-to-surface missiles from southern Lebanon toward northern Israel.

Israeli Iron Dome missiles intercepted some of them in the airspace of the border area in southern Lebanon, and Israeli warplanes also participated in intercepting these drones, according to the army.

Tensions along the Lebanon-Israel border escalated on October 8, 2023, following a barrage of rockets launched by Hezbollah toward Israel in solidarity with Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7. Israel then retaliated by firing heavy artillery toward southeastern Lebanon.
New Delhi, Aug 22 : Sheikh Hasina ruled Bangladesh for over 15 years, securing four consecutive electoral victories. However, it took just 35 days of student-led protests, supported by a significant portion of the population disillusioned by the country's struggling economy and rising unemployment, to force her out of office.

The ability of the student movement to effect such a political change without plunging Bangladesh into military rule demonstrates that democracy, however fragile, has taken root in the country.

In stark contrast, Pakistan, from which Bangladesh emerged after a bloody war in 1971, faces an even worse economic and unemployment crisis.

Despite year-long student protests and political campaigns advocating for constitutional supremacy, the de facto ruling military dominated hybrid regime of Pakistan has successfully suppressed every cent of dissent from Balochistan to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to Sindh to Punjab.

This fundamental difference highlights how deeply entrenched the Pakistan Army remains within civilian institutions, reducing its democracy to nothing but a mere illusion.

Yet, the success of the Bangladeshi student's movement appears to have inspired the Pakistan Students Federation (PSF), a nationwide student organisation, to issue an ultimatum to the government: fulfil their demands by August 30, or face a countrywide agitation.

Among their prominent demands are the restoration of constitutional rule of law, the release of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has emerged as a symbol of resistance against the status quo, and the military's decades-long dominant control over the country's civilian institutions.

Imran Khan has been imprisoned since August 6, 2023, facing multiple charges including corruption. His wife, Bushra Bibi, who is co-accused in several corruption cases, is also in custody.

While the student calls for democratic revival in Pakistan are encouraging, the situations in Bangladesh and Pakistan are fundamentally different.

In Bangladesh, an elected prime minister, though having concentrated much of power over years, exercised authority over the political system, including the armed forces of the country.

In contrast, in Pakistan, the military retains unassailable power, overseeing a system that functions as an authoritarian hybrid, with only a facade of civilian government.

That should perhaps explain why the protests in Pakistan have largely failed to make any mark with the military establishing using every state resource curb the opposition to its misdeeds.

While the divergent outcome of protest movements in Bangladesh and Pakistan may be intriguing, it requires a deeper examination of their democratic trajectories since 1971, when Bangladesh, then East Pakistan, emerged as an independent state following a bloody military campaign by the Pakistan Army killing thousands of people.

Initially though, both countries exhibited similar tendencies toward military rule.

Bangladesh, for example, has witnessed at least 21 military coup attempts since 1971.

There were three coups in a single year of 1975, beginning with the assassination of its founding President, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, on August 15, 1975.

During the late 1970s and 1980s, the line between military and civilian bureaucracy was blurred, particularly under Ziaur Rehman's rule who appointed dozens of retired officers to prominent civilian posts besides offering lucrative jobs across other sectors to hundreds of other officers.

However, since 2008 when Bangladesh Army handed over power to popularly elected Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government following its two-year rule, the military's role in political affairs has significantly diminished.

This shift was evident during the recent student-led movement when Army Chief General Waker-uz-Zaman informed PM Sheikh Hasina that his forces would not use violence against civilians, ultimately leading to her resignation on August 5, 2024, thereby bringing end to her 15 years of rule.

Though many expected that the military might usurp power, in reality it has facilitated takeover by a civilian interim government.

Additionally, several senior government officials, including Supreme Court judges perceived close to Hasina's administration, have since resigned to allow the interim government to take shape, restore the rule of law and oversee new elections as soon as possible.

A decade ago, such developments would have been unexpected, as the military was often poised to seize any opportunity to reclaim political power. This distancing of the military from politics marks a significant democratic gain for Bangladesh.

Unlike Bangladesh, where democracy appears to have taken root, Pakistan has struggled to achieve similar progress. The civilian executive in Pakistan has been largely rendered powerless, with the Pakistan Army dominating the country's political landscape, either through direct military rule or by manipulating governance from behind the scenes.

The Army has strategically infiltrated Pakistan's institutions through key appointments, while maintaining the appearance of civilian control.

For instance, Lt. Gen. Sajjad Ghani (retd) heads the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA), Lt. Gen. Munir Afsar leads the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), and Maj. Gen. Amer Nadeem (retd) oversees the Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO), among many other significant state institutions.

These appointments allow the military establishment the bandwidth to control every aspect of the Pakistani lives.

As such, the Pakistan Army's political interference and dominance of national institutions have directly impacted the country's democratic trajectory, hindering the development of strong and stable civilian democratic institutions in Pakistan.

The Pakistan Military, particularly Pak Army's institutional hold is such that any civilian leader who dares to challenge its status quo faces severe consequences, as is seen with Imran Khan in the current context.

As James Schwemlein (2023) observes, "Pakistan's political scene has generally been characterized by one rule: where the Pakistan Army's will exists, it carries, and typically persists no matter the consequences".

Pakistan's military has ensured its political relevance by establishing a vast economic empire, weakening civilian institutions, and fostering internal security challenges. Consider, for instance, its extensive economic empire encompassing almost every economic sector from agriculture, manufacturing, education, and construction to real estate.

These commercial ventures are managed by entities like the Fauji Foundation (FF), Army Welfare Trust (AWT), Shaheen Foundation (SF) and Bahria Foundation (BF), interestingly all designated as services welfare organisations. This economic network has vested the Pakistan Army's officer class with significant financial interests, compelling the military establishment to maintain its dominance over the country's establishment.

Pakistani analyst Ayesha Siddiqa (2017) highlights, Pakistan Army uses the capital generated from these enterprises "for the personal benefit of the military fraternity, especially the officer cadre, but is neither recorded nor part of the defence budget".

As such, Pakistan's so-called democracy, dominated by the military, is nothing but a mere facade.

It is akin to an arcade game of snakes and ladders, where the Pakistan Army sits at the top, ready to strike anyone who dares to challenge its supremacy or questions its political role. The military's control is reinforced by collaborators within the judiciary, executive, and civilian bureaucracy, enabling it to maintain near-total control of the country.

Therefore, in such a facade of democracy, while it is commendable that the Pakistan Student Federation has issued an ultimatum to the government to fulfil its demands for upholding constitution and releasing political detainees, led by Imran Khan, however, forcing the military to retreat from the political arena will require more than mere rhetoric. Whether Pakistani students can rise to the occasion like their Bangladeshi counterparts or this is just a glib, only the time will reveal.

[Lt Col JS Sodhi (Retd) is Editor, Global Strategic & Defence News, and the Author of 'China's War Clouds: The Great Chinese Checkmate']
New Delhi, Aug 22 : The deadly new strain of Mpox, often called monkeypox, first appeared in Central Africa and has since spread throughout the continent and beyond, posing a serious threat to public health worldwide.

The virus, which was previously limited to isolated areas, is now approaching India as Pakistan has already reported initial cases. The unanswered question is: Is India well equipped to handle one more possible pandemic?

"It is evident that Mpox is highly transmissible through close human contact, particularly during intimacy or through sexual fluids. This includes actions such as touching, hugging, kissing, or even sharing utensils or clothing of an infected person," Dr. Prashant Sinha, Head- Emergency, PSRI Hospital told IANS.

He said that the virus can also spread through contact with contaminated materials like bedding, towels, or surfaces that have been exposed to the virus.

"We need to be highly alert in terms of coming close to an infected person or a potential carrier who has a history of travel particularly to any African nation," Dr. Sinha added.

On Wednesday, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced a global health emergency due to the rapid spread of malaria in 13 African nations, including the Congo, where there have been documented cases of 14,000 and 524 deaths.

"Mpox affects the functioning of the brain and a headache is just one manifestation of it. The virus can cause inflammation in brain tissues, leading to more serious conditions such as encephalitis. We need to be vigilant and monitor patients closely, particularly those who present with neurological symptoms, to ensure timely intervention," Dr. Praveen Gupta, Principal Director & Chief of Neurology, Fortis Hospital told IANS.

He added that the neurological impact of Mpox calls for the need for a multidisciplinary approach to managing the disease.

Experts suggest a multi-pronged approach to prevent Mpox spread in India, including public awareness campaigns, vaccination drives, and strengthening healthcare infrastructure.

Early detection and isolation of cases are crucial, and WHO recommends contact tracing and quarantine measures.

Public awareness campaigns and preparedness are essential to prevent Mpox from becoming a widespread epidemic. The COVID-19 pandemic lessons should serve as a wake-up call for India.

Previously referred to as monkeypox, Mpox is an infectious disease brought on by the MPXV virus, which belongs to the Orthopoxvirus genus.

This virus belongs to two different genetic clades: Clade I and Clade II. The illness mainly spreads by direct contact with infected people, animals, or contaminated objects. Symptoms include severe rashes, fever, and enlarged lymph nodes.

The virus was originally discovered in 1958 in Danish research monkeys and the first case of humans was documented in Congo in 1970. Following smallpox's elimination in 1980, Mpox started to emerge in Central, Eastern and Western Africa.
New Delhi, Aug 22 : The Centre on Thursday informed that 21.67 lakh new employees were enrolled under the ESIC scheme in June, ensuring social security to more workers.

The year-on-year (YoY) analysis showed a growth of 7 per cent in net registrations compared to June 2023.

As per provisional payroll data of ESIC (Employees' State Insurance Corporation), 10.58 lakh young employees up to the age group of 25 years constitute new registrations.

According to the data, 13,483 new establishments were registered under the ESIC scheme in June.

"Through the data, it is noticeable that out of the total 21.67 lakh employees added during the month, 10.58 lakh employees amounting to around 49 per cent of the total registrations belong to the age group of up to 25 years," according to the government.

The gender-wise analysis of the payroll data indicates that net enrolment of female members has been 4.32 lakh in June.

Besides, a total of 55 transgender employees have also got registered under the ESI scheme in June "which attests the commitment of ESIC to deliver its benefits to every section of the society".

In May, 23.05 lakh new employees were added in the ESIC scheme, which represented a growth of 14 per cent in net registrations compared to the same month last year.

The data showed that out of the total 23.05 lakh employees added during the month, 11.15 lakh employees amounting to around 48.37 per cent of the total registrations belong to the age group of up to 25 years.

The net enrolment of female members was 4.47 lakh in May. In April, 16.47 lakh new employees were added out of which close to half are youngsters aged up to 25 years.

A total of 60 transgender employees were registered under the ESIC scheme during the month of May.
Agartala, Aug 22 : The flood situation in Tripura, which has been lashed by heavy rains for the last four days, remained grim on Thursday and the India Meteorological Department (IMD) retained its 'Red alert' for all eight districts, officials said.

They added that more National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams have been deployed as the rains and floods continue to play havoc.

Till Thursday, 12 deaths, including that of a 12-year-old girl and a woman were reported from South Tripura, Gomati, and Khowai districts and two persons were also said to be missing.

A Disaster Management Department official said that two more fresh casualties due to the floods were reported from south Tripura and Gomati districts, while around 65,500 people are taking shelter in 450 relief camps in all eight districts.

He said that 17 lakh people were affected in the entire state, which witnessed the monsoon flood in such a catastrophic manner for the first time in several decades.

Chief Minister Manik Saha, who is supervising the disaster management work, spoke to Union Home Minister Amit Shah for the second day on Thursday and apprised him of the prevailing scenario.

Home Minister Shah said in a post on X, "Spoke with CM Tripura, Dr Manik Saha, and took stock of the flood situation in the state. The Centre is rushing teams of NDRF, apart from boats and helicopters, to the state to assist the local government in relief and rescue operations. Assured of all possible assistance from the Centre as and when required. The Modi government firmly stands with our sisters and brothers in Tripura during this hour of crisis."

Later, the Chief Minister while expressing gratitude to the Home Minister said that HM Shah informed him that 11 NDRF teams would be sent to Tripura from different locations in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.

He said arrangements would also be made for choppers to airlift stranded people in the flood-affected areas.

"More number of boats would also be sent along with the NDRF teams. The entire state government machinery has been working round the clock to tackle the unprecedented natural calamity. I thank public representatives, social workers and the people at large for cooperating with the state government in this hour of crisis," CM Saha said.

The central government has provided two helicopters for airlifting stranded people in Gomati and South Tripura districts.

Following the directions of the state government, due to the heavy rain and flooding, all educational institutions remained closed.

An India Meteorological Department (IMD) official said that though a 'heavy' to 'very heavy' rainfall alert has been continued and a 'Red alert' has been sounded in all eight districts, the rain is likely to reduce slightly from Thursday evening.

"The low pressure area over north Bangladesh and neighbourhood persisted over the same region on Thursday. The associated cyclonic circulation now extends up to 9.4 km above mean sea level. It is likely to move nearly westwards across West Bengal during the next 48 hours. Additionally, a cyclonic circulation is likely to form over North Bay of Bengal and neighbourhood on August 24," the official said.

The IMD recorded 233 mm rainfall in Agartala from 8.30 A.M. on August 21 to till 8.30 A.M. on Thursday.

According to Disaster Management Department officials over 1,055 houses were damaged either fully or partially and hundreds of trees were uprooted blocking many important highways.

Landslides occurred in 2,032 places across the state, out of which 1,789 locations were cleared by Thursday evening.

As per preliminary estimates, around 5,000 hectares of vegetable farms and 1.20 lakh hectares of other crop lands are still submerged.

Water Resource Department officials said that most of the prominent rivers in Tripura were either flowing above 'critical' or 'danger' levels while the state's main river Gomati has crossed the 'extreme danger' level in many places of Gomati and Sepahijala districts, as rainfall has continued.

The Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) has cancelled 10 local trains in Tripura.

An NFR spokesman said that due to heavy rain railway tracks were damaged in Gomati district, forcing the authorities to cancel these trains.

A Defence spokesman said that following the requisition from state administrations, four columns of Assam Rifles were deployed in different districts and they were working in close coordination with the civil administration to rescue civilians stranded due to floods.

First aid and essential items have been distributed by the Assam Rifles to hundreds of stranded people and those in relief camps.
Bengaluru, Aug 22 : Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel H.D. Kumaraswamy on Thursday asked Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah not to divert the attention from his involvement in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) land scam by levelling false allegations of corruption against him.

Taking to X on Thursday, Kumaraswamy said, "I understand your attempt to divert attention from the MUDA scam against you. I also very well understand your desperate thirst for power and wealth, as you strive to cling to authority by any means necessary."

"If I reveal your involvement with the Belekeri mining scam criminals, police constables will have to line up in front of your house. Be careful," he warned Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

"I see how low you've stooped, standing in a thief's place and preaching to the village. But you are a master of all trades, and such filthy work comes naturally to you!" the Union Minister said.

"You (CM Siddaramaiah) alleged that I approved 550 acres for Sai Venkateshwara Minerals company for mining illegally. My signature has been forged. However, I will respond to the allegations against me to the press; running away is not my style. But why are you in such a pathetic state, clinging to that report against me like it's your lifeline? You claim to have no blemish in your 40-year political career, yet you resorted to futile attempts to remove the blackspot by a whitener?" Kumaraswamy asked the Chief Minister.

He was referring to allegations of tampering with land records to hide his role by CM Siddaramaiah cropped up recently.

It is alleged that the letter written to MUDA by Siddaramaiah's wife requesting alternative land is forged.

"There is a mountain of records showing how you and your family devoured government land in MUDA. Are the records you smuggled in a helicopter false? Can your ploy of using whitener to erase those stains, Mr. Siddaramaiah be successful?" Kumaraswamy alleged.

"You (CM Siddaramaiah) say there is no signature or note from you, or an order. But, your note suggested asking for Rs 62 crore in compensation for 14 sites. Is your tongue without any control? It stretches towards my plate, eager to taste the flavour of dead flesh," he said.

"Mr. Siddaramaiah, you claim to be a legal expert, a lawyer. Don't you know what the Supreme Court's order to the SIT in 2011 was? I had already advised you not to repeatedly proclaim that you are a lawyer. Wisdom doesn't appeal to the foolish," Kumaraswamy chided.

"You are running around waving the letter that the SIT sent to the Governor. Watching a moth fly is a sight to behold, but it's unaware of the flames below. I feel pity for you. Your joy is only temporary, Mr. Siddaramaiah," he said.

"I am not in your pathetic situation, where you surround yourself with stooges, manipulate the high command, stab those who trusted you in the back, and play politics for the sake of power. My politics is not like yours, driven by money or authority. With or without power, I am still myself. If one must lose, lose like a warrior. That great ascetic is my ideal. Even when I renounced 20 months of power and a 14-month government, I remained unfazed. Is this possible for you?" Kumaraswamy asked.

"I would never do anything to compromise the honour of the esteemed Prime Minister. I know how to protect myself and how to safeguard against your malicious schemes," he said.

"Mr Siddaramaiah, you claim my cases will be presented as episodes. I hold hundreds of your episodes that will determine your fate. I could make a pan-India movie with thousands of chapters," he slammed the Chief Minister.
New Delhi, Aug 22 : The Muslim organisation on Thursday criticised the Union government over the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024, calling it unconstitutional, undemocratic and unfair as it goes against the freedom of religion guaranteed by the Constitution.

"Amendment bill being brought to Waqf is unconstitutional, undemocratic and unfair. The proposed amendments to the Waqf Act are also against the freedom of religion provided by the Constitution and also violates articles 14-15 and 25 of the Constitution," said Jamiat-i-Ulama Hind, President, Maulana Arshad Madani while addressing a joint press conference of Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind and Muslim Personal Law Board at the Constitution Club in New Delhi.

He added that the amendment bill is also the government's interference in religious matters which Muslims will not accept.

"Under the guise of the amending bill, an attempt is being made to deprive the Muslims of this great country and of its heritage which our forefathers have left in the form of Waqf for the betterment of the poor, destitute and needy people of the country," said Maulana Arshad Madani.

He said that amendments have been made in the bill without consulting the Muslim religious figures and taking the Muslims into confidence while Waqf is a purely religious and Shariah matter because once the Waqf is applied.

"The donor does not remain the owner of the property rather that property is transferred to the ownership of Allah," he explained.

Maulana Madani said that while presenting the Amendment Bill in the parliament, it was claimed that it would bring transparency to the work and would benefit the weak and needy people of the Muslim society.

"This bill is proof of the malicious intent of the government and its dangerous plans. If this bill is passed not only the protection of Waqf properties across the country may be in danger but also a door of new conflicts will be opened and the status of those mosques, tombs, buildings, imam badas and lands which are Waqf properties or which are located on Waqf land will be made doubtful," Maulana Madani said.

He added that instead of the Waqf Tribunal and Waqf Commissioners, all powers under this bill will be transferred to District Collectors.

"By increasing the number of members of the Central Waqf Council and Waqf Boards, their status is also being changed and the door is being opened to appoint non-Muslims in it as well. This bill will also remove the requirement of being Muslim for officers and members," he said.

Maulana Madani said that this is not a Hindu-Muslim issue but a constitutional problem and this bill is also against Muslim religious freedom.

He said that the Shrine Board, which was formed for the maintenance and protection of Hindu religious places, had a clear explanation that Jains, Sikhs or Buddhists would not be its members.

He questioned that if Jains, Sikhs and Buddhists cannot be members of the Shrine Board, how can the nomination and appointment of non-Muslims be justified in the Waqf Board?

"While Jainism and Buddhism are not considered separate from Hinduism, they are considered a separate sect. If they cannot participate in the shrine board even if they are Hindus on the basis of being a sect, then why is the nomination and appointment of non-Muslims in the Waqf boards made mandatory?" Maulana Madani asked.

He said that there are laws in Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh etc. that those who manage the affairs of the Hindu religion's property must be Hindus.

"Just as no other religious group can interfere in the religious affairs of Hindus, Sikhs and Christians in the same way, the management of Waqf properties should also be done only by Muslims. We do not accept any such proposal in the endowment system," he added.

He said that it is clear that the intention of the government is not pure and through this bill, its purpose is not to bring transparency in the work and to benefit the Muslim community but to deprive Muslims of their Waqf properties and to weaken the claim of Muslims from the Waqf properties.

Maulana Madani said that an endless series of new conflicts can start in this way and taking advantage of the weak legal status of Muslims in the amendment bill may make it easier to occupy Waqf properties.

He added that we are not talking about one or two amendments but most of the amendments in the bill are unconstitutional and dangerous and destructive for the Waqf.

"This bill is also an attack on the constitutional powers given to Muslims. If the Constitution has given religious freedom and equal rights to every citizen then some special powers have also been given to the minorities living in the country. And the amendment bill negates all these powers completely," he said.

Maulana Madani added that under the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024, it has been suggested that Section 40 of the current Act should be removed while the 2006 Joint Parliamentary Committee on Waqf and Justice Sachar Committee reported that a large number of Waqf properties are illegally occupied while the incumbent government is also referring to the same Sachar Committee report.

"Despite this, it has been suggested in the 2024 bill that the State Waqf Board shall not be empowered to identify properties which are illegally occupied and to try to recover them. This proposal of the government is very harmful to the existence of endowments," he said.

He added that during the last ten years, the minorities of the country, especially the Muslims, were put on the margins, and to make them believe that now, as citizens, they have no rights and powers, many laws have been forcibly brought and implemented.

"This Waqf Amendment Bill is also one of them by passing it in any way there is a conspiracy to forcefully apply it on Muslims, which we cannot accept," he said.
New Delhi, Aug 22 : The Supreme Court is slated to hear on Friday the plea filed by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal challenging his arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the excise policy scam matter.

As per the causelist published on the website of the apex court, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan will hear the matter on August 23.

Last week, issuing notice on Kejriwal's plea challenging his arrest in the corruption case as well as on his distinct petition seeking bail, the top court asked the CBI to file its reply by August 23.

The office report prepared on Thursday by the Assistant Registrar recorded that though advocate M.K. Maroria has filed Vakalatnama/appearance on behalf of CBI, but "he has not filed a counter affidavit".

The office report added that notice has been issued to CBI through special messenger, in addition to 'dasti'.

In his special leave petition filed before the apex court, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convenor has challenged his arrest and subsequent remand orders, while also pressing for bail in the corruption case.

He assailed the Delhi High Court's August 5 judgment, which ruled that his arrest was neither illegal nor without justifiable grounds because the CBI presented "evidently enough evidence" to warrant his detention and remand.

In its impugned decision, the bench of Justice Neena Bansal Krishna of the Delhi High Court asked Kejriwal to approach the trial court for interim bail.

On July 29, the CBI had filed its chargesheet before a special court here against the Delhi CM and other accused persons in the excise policy case.

The ED has already filed its prosecution complaint in the money laundering case, naming AAP and its national convenor Kejriwal as accused.

Meanwhile, a court here on Tuesday extended the judicial custody of the Delhi Chief Minister till August 27 in connection with the excise policy scam.

The AAP supremo was presented before Special Judge Kaveri Baweja of the Rouse Avenue Court through video conferencing from the Tihar Jail upon the expiry of his previously granted custody.
Dhaka, Aug 22 : Bangladesh's interim government has sought $1 billion from the World Bank as budgetary support.

The call came from the country's Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan's meeting with Abdoulaye Seck, the World Bank's Country Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan, in Dhaka on Wednesday.

He made the plea as the ministry owes more than 2 billion dollars to suppliers in import costs of power and energy, Xinhua news agency reported.

Khan mentioned that the interim government, which was formed with many pressing mandates, is due to settle a $2 billion debt left by the previous government in the power sector.

He said they have already suspended activities under the much-criticized Quick Enhancement of Electricity and Energy Supply Act 2010 and abolished the government's power to set energy prices without any public hearing.

On August 5, the former Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina, was ousted from her country and power, ending her rule since January 2009.

This event was seen as a massive escalation, with what initially started as studentas protests and resulted in a major crisis in Bangladesh.

Earlier on August 8, Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus took oath as the head of Bangladesh's interim government.
Belgrade, Aug 22 : Serbian police are still searching for seven missing migrants in the Drina River after their boat capsized when crossing from Serbia to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia's Interior Ministry confirmed in a press release issued on Thursday.

According to testimonies of the migrants who managed to reach the shore, there were approximately 25 people on board. So far, police and rescue teams have found 18 individuals, including three children, on the riverbank, Xinhua news agency reported.

Serbian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior Ivica Dacic said police and the Emergency Situations Sector responded promptly after being alerted by the Bosnian border authorities early Thursday morning.

An intensive search is underway in the Drina River and its surrounding area.

The European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex, reported a significant decrease in illegal border crossings in the Western Balkans during the first half of 2024.

The illegal crossings towards EU borders reached 12,407 between January and July 2024, a 75 per cent drop compared to the same period last year.
Kolhapur : , Aug 22 (IANS) In another shocker, a 10-year-old girl, the daughter of migrant labourers from Bihar, was allegedly raped and killed, and her body dumped in a sugarcane field early near Maharashtra's Kolhapur on Thursday, sparking outrage in this erstwhile royal city.

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis were in Kolhapur attending a aLadki Bahina programme when the news erupted and they immediately called for details of the incident.

Speaking to the media later, Fadnavis said that the girl had gone missing on Wednesday afternoon after she was allegedly punished by her uncle, and subsequently the family began a search for her.

aAs she remained untraced till 10 p.m., the family lodged a police complaint and search teams found her body early today in a sugarcane field. The police have detained some suspects and further investigations are on. We shall provide all necessary help to the victimas family," he assured.

According to Kolhapur Superintendent of Police Mahendra Pandit, the incident happened in the Ramnagar locality of Shiye village and the police have detained a couple of persons for questioning.

Pandit said that the family had come to work here from Bihar around three years ago and resided in the Ramnagar area in the jurisdiction of the Shiroli MIDC.

The girl's father Guddu Singh Agrahari and his wife work as labourers in a private company in MIDC and had gone to the factory as usual at 8 a.m. on Wednesday, while their daughter, along with her 2 sisters and 2 brothers, lived with her maternal uncle.

When they returned home from work last evening, they did not see the daughter anywhere and made enquiries in the neighbourhood, but failed to find her.

The uncle said that after having lunch, he was resting and the girl was playing on the mobile phone, and probably left home later to play outside.

The police teams and locals launched a massive hunt for her last night, scanned CCTV footage in the vicinity, inspected streams, wells, and farms and later deployed a dog squad which helped locate her body this morning.

aSo far, we have detained three to four suspects for questioning and are waiting for the autopsy report. Till then, I cannot comment more," Shiroli MIDC Police Station in-charge Pankaj Giri told IANS.

The incident surfaced as the Badlapur alleged rape of two nursery girls is still raging in public minds and could further embarrass the ruling MahaYuti.

Taking serious note of the series of similar incidents in Badlapur, Thane, Akola, Pune, and now Kolhapur, Maharashtra Womenas Congress President Sandhya Savvalakhe demanded the resignation of CM Shinde and Deputy CM Fadnavis.

"Instead of ensuring the safety and security of the women in their own state of Maharashtra, they keep talking about West Bengal, and don't have the time to even visit the victimsa families," said Savvalakhe.
Kolkata, Aug 22 : The Calcutta High Court on Thursday questioned the decision of the West Bengal government to set up a special investigation team to probe the alleged financial irregularities at the state-run R.G. Kar Medical College & Hospital in Kolkata when the controversial former principal Sandip Ghosh was in charge of the institution, even as the state health department was informed about the irregularities last year.

A single-judge bench of Justice Rajarshi Bhardwaj made this observation while hearing a petition by the whistle-blower in the matter -- former deputy medical superintendent of RG Kar -- Akhtar Ali, who had sought the High Court's intervention to seek protection in anticipation of security threat for being vocal against Sandip Ghosh.

On Wednesday, Ali also filed a public interest litigation seeking a probe by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) probe into the alleged financial irregularities at RG Kar.

During the hearing, Justice Bhardwaj observed that "from the inclusion of senior police officers in the special investigation team, it is evident that the matter is serious, and wondered why the team was constituted a year after the matter was brought to the notice of the state government".

The state government counsel argued that the petition has been deliberately filed at this moment amid the recent incident of the rape and murder of a woman doctor in the R.G. Kar Medical College & Hospital.

The state government counsel also questioned why the petitioner remained silent for one year after the complaint was not acted upon as claimed by him.

The Calcutta High Court also directed the state government counsel to present a detailed argument on the formation of SIT on Friday.

The West Bengal government earlier this week announced the formation of a special investigation team comprising four senior IPS officers and headed by an officer of the rank of Inspector General of Police to prove the allegation of financial irregularities at RG Kar since 2021, when Sandip Ghosh was the principal there.

Opposition parties have already claimed that the formation of SIT by the state government was nothing but an eyewash, and it had been created not with the intention of revealing the truth behind the financial irregularities, but rather with the motive of destroying evidence in the matter.
New Delhi, Aug 22 : The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has suspended the maintenance organisation approval of M/s International Aircraft Sales Pvt. Ltd. with immediate effect over "significant safety concerns", according to a statement issued by the regulator on Thursday.

The action has been taken after the DGCAas investigation into the crash landing of a Cessna 152 aircraft VT-BBB of M/s Belagavi Aviation and Sport Enterprises, Guna (Madhya Pradesh) due to engine failure during a test flight on August 11.

The aircraft was on its first flight after having gone through maintenance with overhauled engine. The engine was overhauled at the DGCA-approved facility of M/s International Aircraft Sales Pvt. Ltd., Bhopal.

After the crash landing occurred, a special audit of M/s International Aircraft Sales Pvt. Ltd. was conducted by DGCA. "The findings of the audit have raised serious concerns on the maintenance standards being followed by the organization," the DGCA said.

Last year, after a series of serious incidents involving aircraft of M/s Red Bird Flight Training Academy Pvt. Ltd, the DGCA had suspended its operations at all its bases and there were restored only after a complete recertification of their maintenance facilities.

The two-seater aircraft, Cessna 152, crashed at the Guna airstrip on Sunday afternoon injuring two pilots. The aircraft had taken off for a test flight around 1 pm and crashed approximately 40 minutes later at the same premises. Preliminary reports suggested that engine failure may have been the cause of the crash. An investigation was then launched into the crash by the DGCA. The two injured pilots have been admitted to a hospital.

On March 6, a similar incident took place when a trainer aircraft crashed while landing at the Guna airstrip in Madhya Pradesh, in which a woman pilot suffered injuries. The aircraft, which suffered a technical snag, skidded off the runway while making an emergency landing at the Guna airstrip, and veered into rough terrain.
New Delhi, Aug 22 : Union Minister for Rural Development and Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will give certificates to 11 lakh new 'Lakhpati Didis' at a special function to be held at Jalgaon in Maharashtra on August 25 (Sunday).

The programme will have nationwide participation through the virtual mode.

The Prime Minister will release a revolving Community Investment Fund of Rs 2,500 crore, which will benefit about 48 lakh members of 4.3 lakh women Self Help Groups (SHGs), Shivraj Singh Chouhan said.

PM Modi will also release a bank loan of Rs 5,000 crore, which will benefit 25.8 lakh members of 2,35,400 Self Help Groups (SHGs).

Shivraj Singh Chouhan also said that people from about 30,000 places across 34 states and union territories including state capitals and district headquarters will join this program through the virtual route.

He said that Lakhpati Didis are women who earn Rs 1 lakh or more per annum. These Lakhpati Didis have not only pulled their families out of poverty but are also becoming role models for the rest of society, the Union Minister said.

"The Rural Development Ministry has already created 1 crore Lakhpati Didis. Now our target is to create 3 crore Lakhpati Didis in the next 3 years. It is heartening to note that one of these community resource persons has created 95 Lakhpati Didis," Shivraj Singh Chouhan said.

He further explained that the Ministry has adopted a structured process to enable the SHG families to earn an annual income of Rs 1 lakh or more.

This includes capacitating National Resource Persons and developing Master Trainers in each state.

These Master Trainers further train the Community Resource Persons on business planning, financing and convergence process.

The cadre of 3 lakh Community Resource Persons, who have been specially trained in business planning and the skilling of SHG members, are doing a great service in this regard, the minister added.

Some of these community resource persons will also be facilitated.

As of now, the Ministry of Rural Development has formed 15 lakh Lakhpati Didis during the first 100 days which has succeeded the 11 lakh target for the period, Shivraj Singh Chouhan said.
Washington, Aug 22 : Defence Minister Rajnath Singh arrived in Washington Thursday evening on a four-day visit to the United States at the invitation of the US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin.

During the visit, Defence Minister Singh will hold a bilateral meeting with his US counterpart and also meet the US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.

"The visit comes in the backdrop of the growing momentum in India-US relations and defence engagements at multiple levels. The visit is expected to further deepen and broaden the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership," the Ministry of Defence stated before Singh's departure.

The Defence Minister will also chair a high-level roundtable meeting with the US defence industry on the ongoing and future defence collaborations.

He is scheduled to interact with the Indian community later on Thursday, US time.

India and the United States have hailed progress on bilateral defence initiatives following the fifth annual India-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue in November 2023.

Washington has committed support for India's military modernization, initiatives to drive forward the US-India Roadmap for Defence Industrial Cooperation, strengthening maritime domain awareness in the Indian Ocean Region, and India's support for the rule of law in the Arabian Sea and adjacent waterways.

At the same time, the India-US Defence Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X) continues to facilitate joint defence technology innovation and co-production of advanced defence technology between the windustries of the two countries.

Sullivan visited India in June this year as both countries took next steps in strategic technology and defence cooperation during the third term of the NDA government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

New Delhi and Washington have had regular discussions and high-level visits on a range of strategic, regional, and bilateral issues, including the Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET).

Both countries have acknowledged that the iCET, launched by PM Modi and US President Joe Biden in January 2023, will play a defining role in deepening the strategic partnership between the two countries.
New Delhi, Aug 22 : Senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister of Haryana Bhupinder Singh Hooda, on Thursday unequivocally expressed his desire to be considered for the Chief Minister's position if the party wins the state Assembly elections in October.

In an exclusive interview with IANS, Hooda expressed his strong desire to be a leading candidate for the role.

His statement is notable given the ongoing speculation about various prominent figures within the party vying for the chief ministerial post should Congress secure victory.

Asked if his son, Deepender Singh Hooda, might be given leadership of Haryana after the Assembly elections, Bhupinder Singh Hooda quickly responded, "Why? Am I retiring? I'm not retired yet." He quickly added, "Whatever the party decides will happen."

"I am not retired yet, which is why I am actively participating in the elections," he argued.

When asked about whether Kumari Selja or Hooda would be the party's Chief Ministerial candidate, the veteran Congress leader explained: "The Congress party has a set process for selecting the Chief Minister. After the election, the elected MLAs meet, and observers gather their preferences. A report is then submitted to the high command, which makes the final decision. We will accept whatever decision the high command makes."

Asked again if Selja could be the Chief Ministerial candidate, Hooda replied: "Everyone has their own aspirations. Anyone could potentially hold that position. The MLAs will make their choice, and then the high command will make the final decision."

In response to another question, Hooda criticised the state of affairs in Haryana over the past decade. "Nothing positive has happened. What we've seen is rising unemployment, a lack of law and order, an unsafe environment, rising prices, and neglect of farmers and sportspersons. There are two lakh vacancies, but no efforts have been made to fill them," he said.

"Haryana also has a poor record in per capita income," he added.

Hooda also slammed what he called the lack of justice for Haryana's sportspersons, recalling wrestler Vinesh Phogat's protest at Jantar Mantar and noting that she has not received justice. The former Chief Minister also mentioned that the Congress party is preparing diligently for the upcoming elections and will finalise its first list of candidates by September 1.
Hyderabad, Aug 22 : Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) Working President K.T. Rama Rao on Thursday said that the BRS would continue fighting at all levels until the Congress government fulfills its crop loan waiver commitment.

The main opposition party staged protests across Telangana on Thursday against what it called cheating of farmers by the Congress government.

Rama Rao, who led the protest at Chevella, attended the Farmers' Protest at Chevella, criticised the Congress government, particularly targeting Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, over the unfulfilled promises of farm loan waivers and other issues faced by farmers across Telangana.

He recalled how Revanth Reddy, during his campaign, swore to Sonia Gandhi that the first signature he would make as Chief Minister would be to waive off Rs 2 lakh in farm loans. However, KTR pointed out, that this promise has turned out to be hollow, with Revanth Reddy later backtracking on his words.

KTR emphasised the irony of the situation, explaining how the Congress leader initially claimed that Rs 49,000 crore was needed for the loan waiver. But after realising the impracticality of this, he reduced the amount to Rs 40,000 crore, and eventually slashed it further to Rs 7,500 crore, misleading the public at every step.

He also criticised Revanth Reddy for his failure to fulfill the loan waiver by August 15, despite making repeated promises, including swearing at deities.

"He has not only deceived the people but has also committed a grave sin by lying in the name of God," KTR stated.

The BRS leader further lambasted the Congress government for disrespecting women leaders and journalists. He specifically mentioned the humiliation of Sabitha Indra Reddy, a respected leader, who was insulted in the Legislative Assembly by Revanth Reddy.

He condemned the mistreatment of two women journalists in Kondareddy Palli, questioning the integrity of the Chief Minister who allowed such incidents under his watch.

The BRS leader also highlighted the dire state of farmers under the Congress regime, drawing attention to the meager Rs 7,500 crore disbursed so far for loan waivers.

KTR called on the farmers to hold the Congress government accountable, urging them not to let go of this issue until the promised 2 lakh loan waiver is fully implemented. He assured the farmers that BRS would continue to fight for their rights and would not rest until justice was served.

He warned Revanth Reddy that his failure to deliver on promises would lead to his downfall.

"Running a government is not as easy as making promises," KTR remarked, stating that if the Congress government continues to fail the farmers, they will face the consequences in the next elections.

KTR announced that BRS would soon unveil its next course of action regarding the loan waiver issue.

He emphasised that the fight would continue at all levels, including village-level protests, until the Congress government fulfills its commitments.

He urged everyone to stay united in the struggle against the Congress government's betrayal and to demand accountability for the unfulfilled promises.
Chandigarh, Aug 22 : Punjab Police have secured the extradition of 2016 Nabha jailbreak mastermind Ramanjit Singh, also known as Romy, who was in touch with ISI, from Hong Kong. He was brought back to India by the team of Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF) of the Punjab Police on Thursday.

The accused was behind the 2016 Nabha jailbreak incident in which six wanted criminals, including two terrorists, escaped from the high-security jail as it was attacked by 10 to 12 armed men.

Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said after continuous efforts by the police, Romy was brought back to India to face trial.

Romy was in contact with the ISI and other escaped prisoners, including Harminder Singh Mintu and Kashmir Singh Galwaddi of the Khalistan Liberation Force.

The DGP added that the efforts of the police led to the issuance of the Look Out Circular and Red Corner Notice against Romy.

The extradition process was started in 2018 under a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty with the Hong Kong government.

Yadav said that the robust presentation of evidence to Hong Kong's Department of Justice and courts led to Romy's extradition.

"We thank the Hong Kong authorities, the CBI, the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of External Affairs and all other central agencies as part of this international cooperation," DGP Yadav added.

Romy was arrested in Hong Kong for his involvement in a Rs 30-crore robbery in February 2018.

According to the police, Romy, the point man between the terrorists and gangsters, hatched the jailbreak conspiracy sitting abroad.

He had provided money, weapons and other logistical support for the jailbreak.

On November 27, 2016, a group of gangsters in police uniforms opened fire at security guards in the high-security Nabha jail in Patiala district and freed four gangsters and two terrorists.

Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo, who escaped during the jailbreak, was arrested in a joint operation by the Punjab Police and the Delhi Police Special Cell within 24 hours of the crime.

The main accused in the case, gangster Vicky Gounder, was killed in a police encounter.

As per the police, Romy, a key member of the Shera Khuban and Vicky Gaunder gang, had provided logistical in the form of financial aid, weapons used in the jailbreak, fake IDs used to gain access in the jail and financial support to the gang members in the preparation to execute the crime, besides providing safe houses and hideouts to the prisoners, who had escaped from the jail.

DGP Yadav said through investigation and meticulous operations, 26 accused of the jailbreak were arrested and chargesheeted.

However, Romy, the foreign handler, was declared a proclaimed offender.

"The extradition process was set in motion in 2018 as per the mutual legal assistance treaty with the government of Special Administrative Region (SAR) Hong Kong, where the case was robustly presented to the Department of Justice and the courts of Hong Kong," said the DGP, adding following which the Chief Executive Officer of Hong Kong issued the order for Romy's surrender on August 6, 2024.

Yadav commended the efforts of the entire team of AGTF headed by ADGP Pramod Ban for marking the culmination of an extraordinary international operation with the cooperation of the Indian Ministry of External Affairs that demonstrated the resolve and competence of the Punjab Police.
Mumbai, Aug 22 : After the numbing incidents of sexual atrocities on women, girls and even toddlers, the Maharashtra Congress has come up with certain initiatives to ensure justice for victims of rape and preventive measures to arrest similar incidents in future in all educational institutional institutions, party leaders said here on Thursday.

Maharashtra Mahila Congress President Sandhya Savvalakhe and Congress General Secretary Sachin Sawant put forth their proposals for Women's Justice Committees and security audit of all schools as the state continued to seethe over the Badlapur horror.

Savvalakhe said that the state Mahila Congress will set up a five-member Women's Justice Committee (WJC) in all districts of the state, plus one woman lawyer to handle all similar cases of molestation, atrocities and rape in the remotest parts of the state.

"Most people lack knowledge of the POCSO and other laws dealing with such heinous crimes. That is the reason they were made to sit for 12 hours in the police station in the Badlapur incident. This is the reason why people are not coming forward to lodge their complaint. Now, the WJCs will help overcome this lacuna," Savvalakhe said.

Accordingly, the WJCs would extend all possible help to the victim(s), make them aware of their rights under the POCSO and other laws, assist them to lodge proper police complaints with the help of the lawyer-member on the panel, she said.

The WCJs shall also help the victim women or girls with medical tests and also counselling as they would be in severe trauma after such physical violations, she added.

"If the concerned persons, both authorities and accused, fail to cooperate, then the women panel members will also wield a stick to bring them on track," warned Savvalakhe.

In a similar vein, Sawant said the police and other concerned authorities must carry out a full security audit of all the schools in the state, whether private, government, at all levels from the villages to the metropolitan cities.

"Crimes against women have increased in a big way under this government in the state, and now even toddler girls are not spared, as has been proved in the Badlapur cases. The criminals have lost the fear of the law," said Sawant.

Accompanied by Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders, social workers and NGOs, Sawant met the Bandra Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Dixit Kumar Gedam and submitted a memorandum.

In the memo, he has urged the Bandra Police to initiate the full security audit of all schools in their jurisdiction, then extend it to the rest of Mumbai and later all over Maharashtra.

"The Badlapur horror has instilled fear in the minds of the people, particularly parents of small children in kindergartens or primary schools. A proper security audit by the police will help dispel their apprehensions and put the schools on high alert," Sawant told IANS later.

While the state government has issued certain guidelines on Wednesday, Sawant said it was too little and too late, and most schools still lack adequate security and other facilities though they do not compromise on charging fees and other payments.

Sawant urged that the security audit must cover infrastructure and human resources -- like provision of CCTVs especially in vulnerable areas, strictly women support staff for girlsa toilets, changing rooms, etc.

"The security check must cover other aspects whether the schools have carried out a proper character on all their staffers, including teaching and non-teaching staff, canteen helpers, bus drivers, and vigil outside to monitor evils-like clandestine sale of liquor or drugs to the students," Sawant said.

Savvalakhe and Sawant have slammed the MahaYuti government for the serious lapses that have led to the spate of incidents in Badlapur (Thane), Pune, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Akola, and the shocker from Kolhapur where the body of a 10-year-old girl from Bihar was found in a suspected case of rape-cum-murder.

(Quaid Najmi can be contacted at: q.najmi@ians.in)
Warsaw, Aug 22 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Andrzej Sebastian Duda, President of Poland, held discussions on deepening the India-Poland partnership across a wide range of sectors - including food processing, Artificial Intelligence, energy, and infrastructure - during their meeting at the Belweder Palace in Warsaw on Thursday.

"They welcomed the upgradation of India-Poland ties to a Strategic Partnership. They also discussed regional and global issues including conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia. Prime Minister expressed sincere gratitude for Polandas invaluable and timely assistance in evacuating Indian citizens from Ukraine during Operation Ganga," the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) stated after the meeting.

The ministry revealed that both nations have also agreed on a social security agreement, ensuring greater benefits for citizens.

"India greatly values the warm relations with Poland. We look forward to boosting commercial and cultural linkages between our nations in the times to come," PM Modi posted on X after the meeting.

President Duda's office said one of the key topics discussed between the two leaders was the ongoing war in Ukraine and its global consequences.

Mieszko Pawlak, the head of the International Policy Bureau of the President of Poland, announced before the meeting that an important topic of talks between the President Duda and PM Modi will be "security issues and Russian aggression against Ukraine, in the context of Prime Minister Modi's recent visit to Moscow, but also talks during the peace summit in Switzerland , in which India participated, and its role in the peace process".

In an interview with Polish web portal Interia, Pawlak said that "an additional dimension of the discussion will be President Duda's recent visit to China".

The visit of PM Modi to Poland takes place on the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. The last visit of an Indian Prime Minister to Poland took place in 1979.

Earlier, while addressing the media after holding talks with his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk at the Federal Chancellery, Prime Minister Modi invited companies from Poland to join the 'Make in India, Make for the World' initiative as both countries decided to transform the bilateral relationship into a strategic partnership.

Tusk termed it as a "great privilege" to host PM Modi Modi on the eve of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

"This is a sufficient illustration of the significance of this visit and your presence today. This is undoubtedly proof of the increasingly good relations between our countries, of the significance for the entire region, I will not exaggerate if I say for the entire world between India and Poland," said the Polish PM.

He mentioned that the whole world admires India for the consistently democratic nature of its governance, which is "not common in that part of the world".

Identifying several areas for mutual cooperation, PM Modi remarked that Poland is a world leader in the field of food processing and Polish companies can join the mega food parks being set up in India.

He also touched on the issue of the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia, saying that it remains a "matter of deep concern" for everyone.

"India firmly believes that no problem can be solved on the battlefield. The loss of lives of innocent people in any crisis has become the biggest challenge for the entire humanity. We support dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability. For this, India, along with its friendly countries, is ready to provide all possible support," said Prime Minister Modi.

From Poland, PM Modi will be visiting Ukraine at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelensky which will be the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Ukraine.
New Delhi, Aug 22 : At the first meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, on Thursday, several opposition members of the panel claimed that provisions of the Bill violate the laws of freedom of expression, religious freedom, and equality.

The opposition members raised questions over various clauses mentioned in the Bill, in particular the proposal to empower District Collectors to decide on the ownership of a disputed property, as well as including non-Muslims as members of the Waqf boards.

The Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) met for the first time on Thursday to discuss the Waqf (Amendment) Bill introduced by the Modi government during the recently concluded Parliament session on August 8.

The joint panel under the chairmanship of BJP MP Jagdambika Pal includes 31 MPs -- 21 from the Lok Sabha and 10 from the Rajya Sabha.

The opposition members present at Thursday's meeting included Naseer Hussain and Gourav Gogoi from the Congress; Trinamool's Kalyan Banerjee; V. Vijaysai Reddy from the YSR Congress Party; AIMIM's Asaduddin Owaisi; A. Raja from the DMK; Arun Bharti from the LJP; AAP's Sanjay Singh; and Lavu Srikrishna Devarayalu from the TDP.

According to Jagadambika Pal, the Bill is being discussed in detail, especially the 44 amendments mentioned in it.

At the meeting, the opposition members raised several questions regarding the Bill, claiming that it would violate the religious freedom as provided in the Indian Constitution, sources said.

The JPC, which will meet next on August 30, will submit its report during the Winter Session of the Parliament.

After the meeting, Vijaysai Reddy from the YSRCP said in a post on X: "In line with the decision of our party president Sri@ysjagan (Jagan Mohan Reddy), and the partyas official stand, the Waqf Board Amendment Bill was opposed by me in todayas meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) with a rationale.

"This Bill has many concerns of various stakeholders and is not acceptable in its current form. As a member of the JPC, I would like to hear from all the stakeholders and be your voice in the committee. If there are any concerns, or objections that you have, you can email me at venumbaka.vr@sansad.nic.in.

"I will put forth the concerns before the committee by way of a 'dissenting note' which will form part of a permanent record in the annals of History."

While the Centre claims the Bill does not interfere with the functioning of mosques, the opposition parties are calling it a move to interfere with the religious freedom of the Muslim community.

There are around 30 Waqf boards in India, managing properties that cover over 9 lakh acres of land, with an estimated value of Rs 1.2 lakh crore, making them the third-largest landowners in the country after the Indian Railways and the Defence Ministry.
Mumbai, Aug 22 : Deputy Maharashtra Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Thursday downplayed the state bandh (shutdown) call on Saturday (August 24) given by the opposition parties to protest the Badlapur sexual assault episode against minor girls, saying that the government will go ahead with the public function to promote the ambitious Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana at Yavatmal in the state's Vidarbha region.

Pawar added that the Maharashtra Cabinet meeting will also take place on Saturday.

"Even the court has repeatedly warned against bandhs. We cannot support any wrongdoing. Necessary strict action will be taken in every case. Our public programme in Yavatmal will focus on the Majhi Ladki Bahin scheme and other government initiatives," Pawar at a press conference.

Responding to a question about whether the bandh was an attempt to undermine the Ladki Bahin scheme, Pawar said: "We will ensure that no false narratives are created against the government."

The Deputy CM's response came hours after Shiv Sena-UBT chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday appealed not just to political parties but to members of the public to participate in the bandh on Saturday to express unity to ensure severe punishment for crimes against women and girls.

"We all need to unite to ensure strict punishment for wrongdoers. There should be a fear of strict punishment in the minds of the culprits," he said.

Earlier, Pawar launched the Maharashtrawadi Helpline number -- 9861717171 -- to ensure that government schemes reach the people of Maharashtra efficiently.

The helpline will provide information on schemes including the Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana and Annapurna Yojana.

A dedicated desk has also been set up at Pawar's office to review feedback from across the state every evening.

Pawar emphasised that his work is focused on benefiting all people of Maharashtra, regardless of caste or community.

"Our schemes are intended for everyone in this state. The only category is beneficiary, nothing else," the Deputy CM said.

Pawar said that the state government is addressing the technical problems faced by the eligible women beneficiaries in the Ladki Bahin scheme.

He added that the government has asked the nationalised banks not to deduct money from the financial aid of Rs 1,500 deposited through DBT mode in the bank accounts of eligible women beneficiaries, citing zero balance or other related issues.
Moscow, Aug 22 : Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday said that Ukrainian forces had attempted to strike the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant, during their ongoing incursion into the Kursk Region.

"Last night, the enemy attempted to strike the atomic power plant," Putin said at a cabinet meeting on Thursday afternoon, RT reported.

"The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been informed. They promised to come themselves and send specialists to assess the situation. I hope they actually do so," he added.

Thousands of troops entered the Kursk Region earlier this month, attempting to reach the town of Kurchatov, where the nuclear facility is located. Moscow has declared the incursion an act of terrorism and has deployed additional troops to repel the invaders.

The IAEA already has observers working at the Zaporozhye NPP, Europe's largest such facility. The mission was deployed in the summer of 2023, as Ukrainian troops attempted to seize the plant. Earlier this month, a Ukrainian drone attack set one of the cooling towers at the plant on fire, as per Russian.

Rosatom CEO Alexey Likhachev has discussed the situation at both power plants with IAEA chief Rafael Grossi, and invited him to visit Kursk to personally assess the situation, according to Russian media.

As per reports, Grossi has accepted the invitation and is planning to visit Kursk next week. Afterwards, he will go to Ukraine to speak to Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky.

According to Grossi, the IAEA is very concerned about any combat operations near the Kursk NPP, since it operates the same kind of reactors as the accident-struck Chernobyl NPP with the core "pretty exposed".

The presence of troops within artillery range "is a source of enormous concern to me and the agency," he added, without specifying which forces he meant.

Moscow has repeatedly criticized the international agency for never identifying the perpetrator of the attacks on nuclear facilities, claiming the IAEA staff knows perfectly well that Ukraine is to blame.
Chennai, Aug 22 : Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) President Anbumani Ramadoss on Thursday demanded the DMK government to release a white paper over the details of investment proposals received since it came to power in Tamil Nadu.

The former Union Health Minister said in a statement that the DMK government had received Rs 9.74 lakh crore investments in the last three years since it came to power in the state.

The PMK leader asked the DMK government about how many of the development projects have begun operations as well as the quantum of the investments.

Anbumani in the statement asked, "Foundation stone has been laid for how many development projects. What is the possibility of the remaining investments getting operationalised."

The PMK leader called upon the state government to release a detailed white paper on these issues.

He also asked about the status of investment received through Chief Minister M K Stalin's visit to Dubai and Spain and sought an explanation from the state government.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. K. Stalin will be leaving for the US on August 27 to invite investments for the state.

The Tamil Nadu Global Investors Meet (GIM), 2024, was hosted by the DMK government in Chennai on January 7 and 8 this year.

Chief Minister Stalin has revealed plans to transform Tamil Nadu into a trillion-dollar economy by 2030.

Industries and business establishments from the US, the UK, Japan, Australia, France, Germany, Denmark, Singapore and South Korea participated in the GIM-2024.

State Industries Minister, T. T. B. Raaja, had said that the investments assured during the GIM and the Chief Minister's business trips were being fulfilled.

The Minister said that a total of Rs 68,000 crore worth of development projects and the capacity to create more than one lakh jobs have been fulfilled.

He said that the difference between the Dravidian model of government led by CM Stalin and other governments was the continuous follow-up on the investment received through a committee and ensuring the creation of more jobs.

--IANS

aal/khz
New Delhi, Aug 22 : Swiss conglomerate Nestle S.A. on Thursday appointed veteran executive Laurent Freixe as the CEO of the company, effective September 1, as Mark Schneider leaves the food and beverages multinational.

The company has also nominated Freixe as a candidate for the Board of Directors at the 2025 annual general meeting.

The leadership change came as its rivals like Unilever and Danone have driven sales volumes in the past couple of years. After a strong post-pandemic performance, Nestle has struggled and last month slashed its full-year sales outlook.

According to Paul Bulcke, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Freixe has demonstrated his ability to deliver results in challenging market conditions.

"His curiosity fuels his passion for innovation and positive change. Laurent is the perfect fit for Nestle at this time," said Bulcke.

Meanwhile, Schneider has decided to relinquish his roles as CEO and member of the Board of Directors, said Nestle.

Over his eight years with the company, he actively shaped the company's portfolio, in line with Nestle's strategy and with a focus on high-growth categories like coffee, pet care and nutritional health products, according to the company.

"I am grateful for what we have achieved, having transformed Nestle into a future-proofed, innovative and sustainable business," said Schneider.

Freixe joined Nestle in France in 1986. Since then, he has continuously progressed within the company, assuming various positions of increasing responsibility across different businesses, markets and zones.

He has been a member of the Executive Board for 16 years and, as such, has played an important role in strengthening the strategic direction of the company and its portfolio.

"There will always be challenges, but we have unparalleled strengths, such as iconic brands and products, an unmatched global presence, leading innovation and execution capabilities, and above all, exceptional people and teams," said Freixe.
Imphal, Aug 22 : Ten Kuki-Zo tribal MLAs, who, along with all the leading organisations of the community, have been demanding a separate administration or a Union Territory for the tribals in Manipur, on Thursday urged the Central government to ask the judicial commission to expedite its probe of the ethnic violence in the northeastern state.

The Ministry of Home Affairs, in June last year, constituted the three-member Commission of Inquiry headed by Gauhati High Court's former Chief Justice Ajai Lamba (retd) to probe the ethnic violence in Manipur, which has been devastated by the ethnic riot between Meitei and Kuki-Zo tribals since May 3 last year.

The 10 Kuki-Zo tribal legislators, seven of them belonging to the ruling BJP, in a joint statement said that the judicial commission must expedite its investigation process and identify the guilty.

Demanding debarring Chief Minister N Biren Singh from his post, the MLAs, including two ministers, said: "We once again appeal to the government of India to expedite our demand for separate administration in the form of UT with a legislature, as that alone is the path to lasting peace in the region."

Meanwhile, the Manipur government, in a statement, said that except for some very low-scale sporadic incidents, the law and order situation in the state has improved in the last 3-4 months with relentless efforts of the state and Central governments and there is no large-scale confrontation.

In this regard, the state government appreciates the efforts by security agencies including both Central and state forces, it said.

The statement said that unfortunately, the state government had to issue a press release on August 7 on the viral doctored audio clips, claimed to be of the Chief Minister and meant to incite communal violence and derail various peace initiatives being started by both state and Central governments at multiple levels.

Accordingly, an FIR was registered at the Cyber Crime police station on August 7 in this regard and an investigation is going on. The contents of the doctored clips have been found widely circulating through social media and a section of media, the statement said, urging the people not to rely on such "unfounded contents circulating in social media and news reports and also to refrain from involvement in spreading such false and fabricated information through any media".

"Anybody without exception shall be prosecuted under relevant provisions of laws of the land, if found involved in spreading such unfounded and baseless contents through any media or posting and sharing of such contents, which will escalate law and order issues in the state and derail the efforts put so far toward bring normalcy and peace in the state," the statement said.
Mumbai, Aug 22 : Amid nationwide protests over the rape and murder of a woman doctor at the state-run R.G. Kar Medical College & Hospital in Kolkata, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Thursday directed the administration to hold a comprehensive review regarding the safety of resident medical officers in government medical colleges and hospitals across the state.

Police officers should be appointed for coordination at the state level as well as for colleges in Mumbai city, CM Shinde said, adding that efforts should be made on priority to provide accommodation and hostels for the resident medical officers.

He also directed the administration to do proper planning so that the medical officers get their educational stipend regularly.

Shinde gave these directives at the meeting which took place to discuss various demands of the Resident Medical Officers' Association (MARD) as well as BMC-MARD, an association of Medical Colleges of BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC)

In response to the Chief Minister's positive stand on their demands, both the units announced their decision to withdraw the ongoing strike.

The representatives of these unions said that they will call off the strike by donating blood at a blood donation camp on Friday.

Shinde acknowledged the services of the resident medical officers from the government college-affiliated hospitals.

"Keeping in mind the importance of patient care, it is necessary to take measures regarding their safety and accommodation. We expect good work and service from them. So, they should also be given good facilities. For this, the Home Department, Public Works Department and other relevant agencies are expected to work in coordination. These agencies and departments will have to maintain coordination consistently," the CM said.

For availability of hostels, Shinde asked the Public Works Department (PWD) and the BMC to provide buildings under their jurisdiction on rent.

"Renovation of hostels should be reviewed to provide facilities like toilets, CCTV and electricity. The security of the premises attached to the Government Medical College-Hospital in the state should be reviewed again. The police department should provide effective security training to the security guards recruited from various agencies for security. Senior police officers should be appointed as coordination officers to coordinate with PWD and BMC. The senior officers of the police stations in Mumbai and the rest of Maharashtra should coordinate with the medical colleges and plan to strengthen the security arrangements," Shinde said.

He directed measures like management of the crowd of relatives in the hospitals, strict adherence to appointment times, as well as putting up legal action boards in case of attacks on medical officers and health workers.
Gurugram, Aug 23 : A 32-year-old man has allegedly killed his wife for frequently objecting to his alcohol consumption habit, the police said on Thursday.

Police said that the accused has been identified as Biltu Sarkar -- a resident of Malda in West Bengal.

He killed his wife, Shafali Sarkar (27), by strangulating her to death, using a pillow.

"The couple always argued over this issue. On August 17, they entered a heated argument, and in a drunken condition, Biltu, strangulated to death his wife by using a pillow and stuffed her body in a plastic bag and dumped that in the Sector 52 area," Assistant Commissioner of Police (crime) Varun Dahiya said.

On August 18, the police received information regarding a body lying stuffed inside a plastic bag in the Sector-52 area.

A police team, along with a forensic team and a fingerprint print expert team, rushed to the spot to collect evidence. The body was then shifted to the mortuary for further investigation, the police said.

The deceased's body was later identified by her mother on August 21, who informed the police that the victim's husband used to beat her for objecting to his drinking habits.

She suspects before the police that her husband killed him and is absconding.

Based on a complaint, the police started an investigation and nabbed the accused from Vrindavan in Uttar Pradesh.

To conceal his identity, the accused had shaved off his hair but was nabbed by the police on Wednesday from Vrindavan in Uttar Pradesh, Dahiya said.

Police had registered a case under the section of murder at the Sector-53 police station here in Gurugram.

In just five days, the city witnessed two murder cases.

On Tuesday, a man, his wife, and a friend were arrested for allegedly murdering his sister's husband at their rented accommodation in Bas Khusla village in Manesar.

According to the police, the victim was killed over his illicit relationship with the accused's wife. The body was reportedly dumped in a drain in Manesar.
Kolkata, Aug 23 : The ghastly rape and murder of a junior doctor at the R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata resonated at the condolence meeting for former Chief Minister of West Bengal and prominent Left leader Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, who passed away after prolonged illness on August 8 at the age of 80.

The meeting held at the Netaji Indoor Stadium here even ended with the slogan -- 'Ei Sharanshobhar Ektai Shwor, Justice for RG Kar' (This commemoration gathering had just one voice -- Justice for RG Kar).

Addressing the gathering as the last speaker, CPI-M politburo member and state Secretary Md Salim said, "Our late leader last addressed a public rally at the Brigade Parade Ground in Kolkata in 2015 when he emphasised that we need to fight and win the battle. Similarly, we are saying today that we will have to fight the battle and win. And what is our battle today?"

In reply, hundreds of party workers who assembled for the memorial meet said in unison: "Justice for RG Kar."

Salim also said that Bhattacharjee's dream for industrial rejuvenation of West Bengal was set in the right direction.

"His dream was to build a new Bengal. His dream was to make the next generation of the state self-reliant," said Salim.

Speaking on the occasion, former minister in the Bhattacharjee-led Left Front Cabinet, Surjya Kanta Mishra, recalled how the late leader during his frequent hospitalisations in the last couple of years always insisted on his early release.

"His logic was that after all, it was his life. I used to counter him by saying his life also belonged to the party. He sometimes accepted my point," Mishra recalled.

Bhattacharjee's wife Meera Bhattacharjee was also present on the occasion though despite requests from the CPI-M leadership, she didn't sit on the main dais and preferred to be part of the audience.

The veteran leader was unwell for a while, suffering from respiratory problems that led to frequent hospitalisations. He was put on life support last year after he contracted pneumonia.

An alumnus of Presidency College, Bhattacharjee was a school teacher before he joined politics full-time. After serving as an MLA and a state minister, he was elevated to the post of Deputy Chief Minister before Jyoti Basu stepped down as the Chief Minister in 2000. As the Chief Minister, Bhattacharjee led the Left Front to Assembly poll victories in 2001 and 2006.
United Nations, Aug 23 : UN Secretary-General hopes that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Ukraine will contribute to ending the war, his Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Thursday.

Asked for a reaction to Prime Minister Modi's visit to Ukraine amid the war, Dujarric said, "We've seen a lot of heads of state and government travel to the region (and) we hope that all of these visits will bring us closer to an end of the conflict in line with General Assembly resolutions, international law, and the territorial integrity."

The General Assembly has demanded an end to the Russian invasion in at least three resolutions and in another to stop attacks on Ukraine's infrastructure. India has abstained on the resolutions.

Prime Minister Modi is scheduled to go to Ukraine on Friday where he is to meet President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The Kyiv visit follows his trip to Russia last month, where he discussed the Ukraine situation with Russia's President Vladimir Putin.

According to reports, he will convey messages between Ukraine and Russia.

An India-Russia joint statement at the end of Prime Minister Modi's Moscow visit said that the two leaders "highlighted the imperative of peaceful resolution of the conflict around Ukraine through dialogue and diplomacy including engagement between both parties".

The statement added cryptically, "They noted with appreciation relevant proposals of mediation and good offices aimed at peaceful resolution of the conflict in accordance with international law and on the basis of the UN Charter in its entirety and totality".

While India has kept up a veneer of neutrality by not voting for the condemnation of Russia's invasion at the UN, Prime Minister Modi has criticised it.

He told Putin at a 2022 meeting in Samarkand in Uzbekistan, "I know that today's era is not of war and we have talked to you many times over the phone on the subject that democracy and diplomacy and dialogue are all these things that touch the world".

On the day of Prime Minister Modi's arrival in Moscow in July, Russia's missile attack hit a children's hospital in Ukraine.

Reacting to it, Prime Minister Modi said, "Whether it is war, conflict or a terrorist attack, any person who believes in humanity is pained when there is loss of lives. But even in that, when innocent children are killed, the heart bleeds and that pain is very terrifying."

Prime Minister Modi and President Zelensky have spoken by phone several times since Russia's invasion began in February 2022.

After a conversation in March, the Prime Minister posted on X that he "conveyed India's consistent support for all efforts for peace and bringing an early end to the ongoing conflict. India will continue to provide humanitarian assistance guided by our people-centric approach".

Zelensky said in his X post that "Ukraine is interested in strengthening our trade and economic ties with India, particularly in agricultural exports, aviation cooperation, and pharmaceutical and industrial product trade".

(Arul Louis can be contacted at arul.l@ians.in and followed at @arulouis)
Baghdad, Aug 23 : Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani and visiting Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud have discussed regional developments and jointly urged a ceasefire in Gaza.

The two sides on Thursday reviewed key developments in the Middle East, including the ongoing aggression in the Gaza Strip, and emphasized the importance of continued joint efforts and coordination of Arab and international actions to halt the aggression, Xinhua news agency reported, citing a statement released by al-Sudani's media office.

Al-Sudani urged the international community to fully play its role in preventing the ongoing "genocide" inflicted on the Palestinian people for over 10 months, the statement said.

The two sides also discussed prospects for further development in various fields, particularly in political and economic cooperation, and the activation of the Iraqi-Saudi Coordination Council to achieve mutual benefits and shared interests for both nations, the statement added.
United Nations, Aug 23 : The UN Security Council reform process has "made substantive progress" and come up with a framework that could get the support of the world body's members, according to General Assembly President Dennis Francis.

"I'm pleased to see that the process has, thus far pretty much, delivered what I consider to be a framework that could, on balance, attract the support of the membership as a solid basis for continuing to work," he said on Thursday introducing a note of optimism about the long-stalled discussions.

"There is considerable appetite in the house for Security Council reform to be effective," he said about the reform process formally known as the Inter-Governmental Negotiations (IGN).

He was responding to a question about the structural reforms that could make the UN more effective in meeting its future challenges.

The reform process started in 1993 with a working group that morphed into the IGN by 2007 has not been able to start formal negotiations because of opposition from some countries to the adoption of a formal negotiating document.

This is mainly because of a group of 12 countries calling themselves Uniting for Consensus have used procedural gambits to block it.

"Substantive progress has been made," Francis said, but acknowledging this hurdle, he added, "At the moment, and I must emphasise this, there are no formal negotiations for Security Council".

"When to commence formal negotiations," he said, "is a decision that the members will take".

"Much time and effort has gone into examining the various formulas that are on the table, establishing clarity," Francis added.

Francis was participating in a media briefing with two high school students who were "General Assembly Presidents for a Day", an outreach programme to create awareness of the organisation among youth.

One of them, Fariha Akter, 15, is a Bangladeshi immigrant.

(Arul Louis can be contacted at arul.l@ians.in and followed at @arulouis)
The Independent Book Publishers Association and EveryLibrary Institute have teamed up for We Are Stronger Than Censorship, a program to supply diverse books to young readers and counteract book banning efforts. Cocreated by IBPA chief content officer Lee Wind and EveryLibrary fellow Tasslyn Magnusson, the program has begun fundraising and bringing publisher and bookstore partners on board. It launches publicly on September 9, in anticipation of Banned Books Week, September 2228.

We Are Stronger Than Censorship operates on what Wind called an offset model, putting books into circulation in response to banning efforts. For every book banned or challenged between September 1 and September 30, 2024, We Are Stronger Than Censorship will buy two or more books from independent publishers and donate them via regional freedom to read organizations, IBPA and EveryLibrary said in an announcement. Since WASTC estimates more than 830 bans per month, this means providing around 2,000 books per month to states Freedom to Read Projects.

Were actually thinking of this as a yearlong program, but right now, were doing a count for September, Wind said. I would love to see this get bigger, to the point where people so quick to ban books are reluctant because it will fuel donations of books that feed diversity. Id like to make them realize theyre having the opposite impact of what they intend.

In addition, as WASTC grows, Wind and Magnusson plan to post weekly shopping lists of the most recently banned or challenged titles for children, for teens, and for adult, Wind added. That way, people can directly buy copies of those books for themselves or donate books that have been tagged.

Wind and Magnusson are in the process of signing up indie stakeholders, identifying inclusive titles for WASTCs book list, purchasing those titles in bulk, and coordinating with organizationspresently the Florida, Texas, and Wisconsin Freedom to Read Projectsto distribute the books at community fairs, Pride events, and other venues. So far, Candlewick Press, Charlesbridge, the Collective Book Studio, Just Us Books, Lerner, Levine Querido, and Microcosm Publishing have each named a title to the list, and WASTC hopes to enlist 20 indie publishers to nominate books for their September set.

Not every one of the books the publishers gave us, that we chose, is their most banned title, Wind said. We ask them for some options so that the math works for them, and some publishers are willing to donate the shipping costs, because then there is more that can go into a pool for authors.

WASTC must cover the overhead for the EveryLibrary Institute, which is the projects fiscal sponsor, while setting aside a fund for authors, who earn lower royalties on bulk sales. Public and private supporters can also buy merchandise, including branded shirts, to support the project.

Wind is the author of multiple books on LGBTQ themes and history, including The Gender Binary Is a Big Lie (Lerner/Zest) and the YA novel A Different Kind of Brave (Chicago Review Press), and a member of Authors Against Book Bans. Magnusson, a writer and right to read advocate, is a senior independent researcher with PEN America. As WASTCs public launch nears, they are creating content around book banning and planning virtual author panels for September related to the books theyre featuring for the program.

Wind thinks a battle against censorship can be waged with a change in mindset. People feel powerless, yet there is a ton they can do, he said. We always play defense, and what Tasslynn and I are trying to do is ask, How do we play offense? Weve given so much power to book banners, yet we have been making progress, and a lot of it is through indie presses.

As examples of indie change makers, Wind named Just Us Books, founded by Wade Hudson and Cheryl Willis Hudson to better represent Black children, and Levine Querido, whose sales to schools and libraries dipped due to banning efforts, and whose aim is to spotlight underrepresented identities. Theres an educational piece to We Are Stronger Than Censorship, Wind said. We want people to understand that indie publishers are drivers of diversity.
News / National

by Staff reporter

An "alarming number" of 400 dogs are thought to have died over the past month in Zambia after eating contaminated maize and humans could be at risk too, the country's health minister has said.Elijah Muchima announced that approximately half of the 25 samples taken from milling companies were found to contain exceedingly high levels of aflatoxins, a poisonous substance produced by fungi.Maize is the staple food in Zambia and Mr Muchima said the test results were "of great concern due to the several health implications for [the] population".The World Health Organization (WHO) says there is evidence aflatoxins can cause liver cancer in humans.Authorities launched an investigation into the nation's maize supply after Diamond TV, a Zambian broadcaster, found dozens of dogs had died from aflatoxin poisoning.It was suspected they died after eating dog food containing contaminated maize.In their investigation, the authorities took samples from 10 milling companies that make maize-based dog food and also process the grain to make maize meal, which is consumed by humans.The health ministry has not reported any human deaths resulting from contaminated maize. However sources at the Zambia National Public Health Institute say they are currently trying to ascertain if the spoiled grains have had on impact on the general public.Following the authorities' investigation, "affected batches" of maize meal have been recalled and seizure notices have been issued to "affected companies", Mr Muchima said. He did not name these companies or any specific maize meal brands.Prior to Diamond TV's report, only Farmfeed, a dog-food processing company, had recalled its products.In his press briefing on Tuesday, Mr Muchima said climate change and the impact of Zambia's recent drought had "exacerbated the occurrence of aflatoxin this season".Like much of southern Africa, Zambia was hit by a severe drought earlier this year. An estimated one million subsistence farmers experienced damaged crops and maize supplies in the country are still critically low.Maize provides around 60% of the population's daily calorie intake, according to the US agriculture department, causing politicians and the public to worry about the contaminated batches."Govt says 400 dogs have died due to toxins in some brands of [maize] meal. Im a victim too. I lost over 6 big dogs over a period of 1 week," Sunday Chanda, an opposition member of parliament, wrote on social media platform X."Govt says 'its still investigating how wide the toxic maize has spread'. Listen, the bad [maize] meal is still out there being consumed!"Another Zambian X user questioned why the health minister had not named the maize meal brands that were being recalled.We have the right to know what were feeding our families, they wrote.The Millers Association of Zambia, which represents milling companies across the country, said its businesses were working hard to ensure that the problem is resolved and the public is safe.We are still investigating the source of this contaminated grain and have heightened our surveillance of the product on the market," Andrew Chintala, president of the association, said."We have not been testing much for aflatoxin previously because this is the first time were experiencing this case of high aflatoxin, for which we are still investigating the cause."Mr Muchima said the government had also extended surveillance throughout the country and stepped up sampling efforts.
With book bans hitting record highs, the American Booksellers Association is releasing a book to help freedom to read advocates stand up to the challenge. The ABA Right to Read Handbook: Fighting Book Bans and Why It Matters, written by Philomena Polefrone, the ABAs advocacy associate manager and point person for the American Booksellers for Free Expression (ABFE), is scheduled for a September 16 publication. All profits will support ABFEs efforts against book bans.

In a release, ABA officials called the book a practical guide for resisting book censorship, aimed at the average reader who might only have a few hours each month to spare. It features more than a dozen interviews and profiles, and includes a brief history of book censorship, a deep dive into the current book ban crisis, and how-to guides for organizing at the community level.

It is inconceivable that in the United States of America citizens need to know how to defend their right to read, ABAs CEO Allison Hill said of the book, in a release, calling the surge in book bans a crisis. But the future of literacy, access to books, the inclusion of diverse voices, and democracy in this country depends on it.

ABA reps said that Polefrone will launch the handbook with a series of appearances, including stops at Politics & Prose in Washington, DC (Sept. 15); Books Are Magic at the Brooklyn Public Library, in Brooklyn Heights, N.Y. (Sept. 26); Powells City of Books at Burnside in Portland, Ore. (Sept. 28); and the Lions Tooth in Milwaukee, Wisc. (Oct. 10).

The book ban crisis has been out of control since 2021 and gets worse every year, said Polefrone, in a release. Book challenges are inspired by disinformation targeting authors, booksellers, librarians, and educators, and theyre happening in every state in America. I was looking for a practical guide that had everything a would-be activist needs to start resisting book censorship, but I couldnt find one. I realized wed need to create it.
News / National

by Staff reporter

A tragic incident occurred at the Beitbridge border post on Wednesday night, resulting in the death of a woman who was struck by a Swiss Express bus.The bus, traveling from Bulawayo to Johannesburg, had stopped on the Zimbabwean side of the border to allow passengers to complete passport formalities. However, at around 7:30 PM, the bus unexpectedly rolled forward, according to a witness.As the bus moved, it ran over a security guard stationed at the boom gate, dragging her with its rear wheels before coming to a halt after colliding with a concrete shade.Despite being alive for several minutes, there were no emergency services available, and bystanders could only watch helplessly as the victim succumbed to her injuries.A passenger on the bus explained that the vehicle had only the driver and one elderly male passenger aboard at the time, as everyone else had disembarked for passport checks.The cause of the incident is unclear, with some speculating that the bus's air brakes might have failed, while others suspect that the driver, either through fatigue or negligence, failed to apply the handbrake.The bus was later moved by an officer from the Vehicle Inspection Department, suggesting it was still operational.The body was recovered after a recovery truck lifted the bus, and the Swiss Express passengers were transferred to other buses to continue their journey.The bus was subsequently impounded by the VID for further investigation.Swiss Express, known for its customer service and modern fleet, is owned by Johannesburg-based Zimbabwean entrepreneur Qhubani Moyo.
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By Elizabeth Kwiatkowski, 08/21/2024



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Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade.

couple Steven Frend and Olga Koshimbetova have confirmed that their relationship is over and they're both starting a new chapter.fans have been wondering for months if Steven, 26, and Olga, 27, are still together because they haven't posted photos of each other on Instagram and appear to be living separate lives.Both Steven and Olga recently conducted Q&A sessions via Instagram Stories, and fans asked about the current status of their relationship.In screenshots of the Q&A obtained by @90DayFianceUpdate earlier this week, Steven and Olga revealed they're no longer an item.A fan asked Olga, "Are you and Steven still together?"Olga replied, "I know you have been asking this question a lot. Here is the answer: No, we are not together. New chapter."Meanwhile, an Instagram user asked Steven, "Are you separated from Olga?"Steven responded, "That was fast. But yes, I've decided to put an end to our relationship and put our children first."Steven therefore implied he had been the one to break up with Olga."She's a great mom but I couldn't be [in] our relationship anymore," Steven continued in his answer."There's obviously more context and I'll share it in time when I'm ready. You all ask this so often and deserve an answer."Steven concluded, "I appreciate everyone who supported us."Steven and Olga starred on Season 6 of in 2018. The pair welcomed a baby boy, Richie Aleksandr "Alex" Frend, in April 2018 and then got married on August 30, 2019.Just three months after exchanging vows, Olga was spotted without her wedding ring on and she told her social media followers in November 2019 that their relationship was "too complicated" to publicly discuss.After only one year of marriage, Steven confirmed in October 2020 that he and Olga had a "civil" and "no drama" split . Steven went on to delete all photos of his wife from his Instagram account.Steven said at the time co-parenting their son Alex, now 6, would remain his top priority.However, Steven and Olga later reconciled and agreed to work on their relationship. They got off to a fresh start by moving to New York City in 2021.Olga and Steven then announced in March 2022 that they were expecting their second child together.Steven told In Touch Weekly that the pregnancy was "not expected" and it threw off the couple "completely."As the couple tried to settle into their new life in New York, they apparently continued to struggle with marital issues."We were really surprised when we found out [about Baby No. 2] because our relationship has been kind of rocky and will require attention so we're considering therapy for an outside opinion, but I know we will get through this!" Steven told In Touch in 2022."With having a new baby, we most likely will stay in New York for maybe two more years, then move to the Bay Area in California to be closer to Olga's family that lives in the states -- get a nice house there and settle down ."On September 23, 2022, Steven and Olga announced via Instagram Stories they had welcomed another baby boy into the world.Steven had met Olga in Summer 2017 in Maryland when she was on a work/travel visa, and they had a six-week fling.Just a few days before Olga's visa was about to expire, Olga found out she was pregnant with Baby No. 1.Steven said learning he was going to be a father was "a holy sh-t moment" for him.Olga had to return to Russia about a week after learning she was pregnant, but Steven suggested they should get married and have her return to America on a K-1 visa.When Olga was waiting for her K-1 visa to be approved, Steven claimed he had applied for it and the paperwork must have been delayed.However, viewers witnessed Steven eventually admit to Olga that he had lied to her. Steven didn't actually apply for the K-1 visa until after traveling to Russia to witness Alex's birth.Once Steven confessed the truth to Olga on Season 6 of , she appeared to take the news surprisingly well and quickly forgave him.In April 2019, Steven announced Olga's visa had been approved and she would be arriving in the United States shortly."Now we only need the plane tickets. I had to leave Russia without Olga early or I was going to lose my job," Steven explained on Instagram at the time.Olga hinted she was finally in the United States on Instagram in June 2019 when she complained about not being used to the humidity, and Steven subsequently confirmed she had arrived on June 24 of that year by posting a family photo at the Annapolis City Dock in Maryland.Olga's visa gave her 90 days to wed Steven or else she would have to return to Russia.The couple therefore got married in a Maryland courthouse ceremony late August 2019, and they showed off their marriage certificate on social media.The couple lived at Steven's grandparents' house for about two years, and then they moved to New York City, where the couple struggled with finances and communication.Steven apparently moved out for a little bit, but their separation didn't last once Olga discovered she was pregnant again. Steven therefore moved back in with his wife."We realized that we love each other and we really want to work on us," Olga noted during a June 2022 episode of 90 Day Diaries.Steven was about to start a new job as a floor manager at a new hotel restaurant, and Olga just hoped Steven was really serious about being committed to her and going to therapy as a couple.Meanwhile, Steven told his friend Dom how things were "awkward" at home sometimes and maybe he and Olga were trying too hard and forcing things."I think if we can get through this, our relationship is going to be stronger than it's ever been. But a part of me does feel like I need to be more realistic and start preparing for all possibilities," Steven explained in a confessional.Want more spoilers or couples updates? Click here to visit our homepage!
Since the beginning of this year, with the continuous optimization and upgrading of the industrial and supply chains across the province, the vitality of various market entities has been enhanced. Anhui continues to introduce new supplies that meet international market demands, with the import and export of mechanical and electronic products showing impressive performance and the structure of foreign trade development in the province continuously improving. Mechanical and electrical products have always been the main exports of Anhui. Relying on technological innovation, Anhui's foreign trade industry is accelerating its transformation towards high-end, intelligent, and green development, continuously expanding into overseas markets. In the first seven months, the province exported mechanical and electrical products worth 223.94 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 12%, accounting for nearly 70% of the total exports. Among them, there was rapid growth in automobiles and auto parts, automatic data processing equipment and its components, household appliances, etc. The combined exports of "new trio" products such as electric passenger vehicles, lithium-ion batteries, and photovoltaic products amounted to 27.34 billion yuan, up by 7.3% year-on-year. The "new trio" and "old trio" products continue to refresh globally, and Anhui's "old friends and new friends" are also constantly expanding across the world map. Since the beginning of this year, Anhui has seen an increase in imports and exports to its top three trading partners: the European Union, the United States, and ASEAN. In the first seven months, imports and exports to countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative reached 237.09 billion yuan, up by 4.2% year-on-year. In the first seven months of this year, Anhui's total import and export value of goods trade reached 475.89 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 7.4%. In July alone, Anhui's imports and exports amounted to 78.63 billion yuan, up by 7.1% year-on-year, setting a new historical record. In the first seven months and in July, Anhui's import and export volume ranked 9th nationwide and 1st in Central China.

Source: ANHUI NEWS


News / National

by Staff reporter

The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education has announced the school calendar for 2025.The First Term will begin on Tuesday, January 14, and conclude on Thursday, April 10.The Second Term is set to start on Tuesday, May 13, and end on Thursday, August 7.The Third Term will commence on Tuesday, September 9, and close on Thursday, December 1.
The University of Georgia is home to many avenues of student involvement, whether it be clubs, classes or Greek life. For Greek life, one of the biggest days of the year is sorority Bid Day. At the end of the week-long process, the girls rushing open a bid from one of the sororities they visited during the Preference Round and run home to a sorority awaiting them with themed festivities.
About 1.2 trillion tax evasion cases have been detected and as many as 59,000 entities identified for verification in order to ascertain whether they are fake.

The investigation arm of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) authority has issued over 20,000 notices pan-India for assessment year (AY) 2017-2018 to AY2021-2022, involving tax demand of over Rs 80,000 crore (Rs 800 billion), according to an initial estimation.

The Directorate General of GST Intelligence has shot the notices for a wide range of issues, including alleged shortfalls in tax payment, reversal of input tax credit (ITC), and interpretation of certain legal provision affecting a large number of taxpayers and businesses.

Maximum number of show-cause notices were time-barred for August 5, for AY2017-2018.

The investigation agency was mandated to issue notices at least six months before to the end of the five years. Consequently, notices were sent out before August 5 and final orders are anticipated by February 5, 2025.

"These involves pre-GST notices which may or may not be converted into GST notices, depending on the response of the companies," an official privy to the matter said. Notably, deadline for AY2018-19 is June 30, 2025.

The notices were served under Section 74 of the Central GST Act, seeking response on the alleged mismatch in the sales data reported in the GST returns with that in the annual financial statements.

"GST show-cause notices have been issued across businesses, pursuant to both audits and investigations, making it essential for businesses to respond in a time-bound manner," said M S Mani, partner, Deloitte.

"Such responses will require collation of previous period data, reconciliations with accounting records and other tax data and appropriate interpretations -- all of these need significant time and efforts from businesses," explained Mani.

Section 74 of the CGST Act provides that a notice can be issued by the relevant authorities to recover tax potentially underpaid or unpaid, or refunded in error, for reasons of fraud, wilful misstatement, or suppression of facts to evade tax, under the extended period of limitation.

Over the years, stricter disclosure requirements, such as e-invoices for business-to-business transactions, enhanced data collection, and digitised payment system, aided tax sleuths to improve compliance.

Some of the sectors that have been served notices include foreign airlines, shipping companies, insurance firms, online gaming companies, information technology entities and many more.

However, time and again, the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) intervened and issued guidelines to promote uniformity in GST notices as well as for audit exercise.

The instruction mandates zonal chief commissioners to consult GST policy experts when facing interpretative challenges.

"This move aims to create a more predictable business environment by reducing inconsistencies in audit findings, minimizing litigation, and streamlining the overall audit process," said Saurabh Agarwal, tax partner, EY.

The CBIC's emphasis on standardized interpretation underscores its commitment to fair business practices while ensuring robust GST compliance," added Agarwal.

However, majority of notices have been served for fraud ITC. To tackle the menace, the department has undertaken a special drive to weed out fake registrations.

So far, about 1.2 trillion tax evasion cases have been detected and as many as 59,000 entities identified for verification in order to ascertain whether they are fake.

Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com
Home-grown FMCG major Dabur India on Thursday said it will set up a Rs 400-crore manufacturing plant in Tamil Nadu's Villupuram district, marking the company's maiden foray into the South.

State Industries Minister TRB Rajaa said, Dabur has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the state government to this effect on Thursday.

The MoU outlines an approved Phase 1 investment of Rs 135 crore, scaling up to Rs 400 crore over five years, Dabur India said in a statement.

The new plant set up in SIPCOT Tindivanam at Viluppuram district of Tamil Nadu would help Dabur to scale up its business from South India further, which currently accounts for around 18-20 per cent of its domestic business.

The MoU was signed between Guidance Tamil Nadu, the investment promotion agency of the state represented by its managing director Vishnu and Dabur India CEO Mohit Malhotra in the presence of Chief Minister M K Stalin, Industries Minister TRB Rajaa, Chief Secretary N Muruganandam.

"Welcome to Tamil Nadu, @DaburIndia! In fact, welcome to South India!

"In the presence of Honourable @CMOTamilNadu Thiru. @MKStalin avargal, @Guidance_TN today signed an MoU with Dabur for the establishment of a world-class manufacturing plant, their FIRST EVER in South India, at the SIPCOT Food Park in #Tindivanam, Villupuram district," Rajaa said in a post on 'X.'

He said the company will invest Rs 400 crore in this facility which will create over 250 jobs.

"More importantly, it will open up new opportunities for farmers in the nearby #Delta region to sell #AgroProduce to be processed in this facility," he added.

Dabur's decision to choose Tamil Nadu is a testament to the state's thriving industrial ecosystem and availability of a work-ready labour force, Rajaa added.

"This investment will allow us to better serve the growing demand for our products in South India and strengthen our market presence in the region.

"We look forward to contributing to Tamil Nadu's economic development by creating jobs and working closely with local vendors and supplier partners," Dabur India chief executive officer Mohit Malhotra said.

On January 31, Dabur India's board had approved an investment of Rs 135 crore for setting up a new facility in South India, which will manufacture a range of its Ayurvedic Healthcare, Personal care and Home Care products like Dabur Honey, Dabur Red Paste and Odonil air fresheners.

The new facility will be designed with a focus on energy conservation in both its construction and operations, the statement said.

Dabur India is one of India's leading FMCG Companies and its portfolio includes Power Brands such as Dabur Chyawanprash, Dabur Honey, Dabur Honitus, Dabur Pudin Hara and Dabur Lal Tail, Dabur Amla and Dabur Red Paste and Real.
Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) will migrate to a new information technology (IT) system within the next three months, Union labour minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Wednesday.

In July last year, a clutch of officers at the retirement fund body had written a letter to the Central government complaining about archaic and collapsing software systems. Subscribers too were facing problems due to it.

Union minister Mandaviya made the assurance while reviewing the social security organisations modernisation initiatives.

The review by the union minister is part of a series of meetings undertaken to revamp the EPFOs IT system and ensure that the transition to the new platform is smooth and timely.

The introduction of EPFO IT System 2.01 is part of the governments broader commitment to enhancing ease of living for members and ease of compliance for employers.

Over the next few months, implementation of the EPFO 2.01 Project will ease the processes and turn-around time for various member and employers transactions, development of re-engineered & rationalised centralised payments & claims settlement will be taken up in mission-mode.

This will result in Centralized Claim Settlement including end-to-end auto processing of claims, centralised monthly pension disbursements, Universal Account Number (UAN)  based EPF accounting, Restructured Electronic Challan-cum-Receipt (ECR) with due statement and remittance challan and doing away with the requirements of transfer of member ID (MIDs) on change of jobs.

In FY 2024-25, EPFO has introduced simplified IT processes-auto-mode processing of all types of EPF advance claims up to Rs 100,000 leading to around 40 per cent of advance claims getting processed in auto-mode.
Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyals recent comments on large e-commerce players have reignited the debate about their impact on smaller offline retailers.

Photograph: Babu/Reuters

On Wednesday, Goyal said that the rapid growth of e-commerce in India is a cause for concern and is diminishing the market share of small, mom-and-pop stores by offering high-margin products such as consumer electronics and apparel at discounted rates.

His remarks have polarised opinions among retailers.

Small retailers have largely supported Goyals statements, while industry bodies argue that e-commerce has actually benefited smaller retailers.

The Forum for Internet Retailers, Sellers, and Traders (FIRST), India, claims its members have benefited immensely from e-commerce.

Small and medium enterprises are able to reach a nationwide and global customer base by leveraging e-commerce platforms, without needing to invest in distribution channels.

"Without Amazon, Flipkart, Zomato, or Swiggy, many of our members would have struggled to do business, let alone grow it, said Vinod Kumar, president of FIRST.

A report from the Pahle India Foundation, where the minister spoke, noted that e-commerce currently represents a small fraction of the overall retail market, accounting for just 7.8 per cent of total retail sales in 2022.

The sector is growing at a compound annual growth rate of 27 per cent from 2018 to 2030.

Narendra Kumar Gupta, owner of Kirti Collection, an apparel store in New Delhis Laxmi Nagar market, reported a nearly 30-35 per cent drop in sales over the past four years.

We have observed that consumers are increasingly leaning towards online retailers, which negatively impacts our sales, he said.

The commerce minister also suggested that large retailers have an advantage when competing with e-commerce.

How many mobile stores do you see now in the corner? And how many were there 10 years ago?

"Where are those mobile stores? Will only Apple or the large retailers sell mobile phones and their accessories?" Goyal questioned.

For consumer electronics retailer Lotus Electronics, while e-commerce websites have impacted sales of smartphones and laptops, the effect on home appliance sales has been relatively lower.

According to Gaurav Pahwa, director of Lotus Electronics, e-commerce sites have captured 45-50 per cent of the smartphone market and over 25 per cent of the laptop market.

However, for big-ticket items like refrigerators, washing machines, and televisions, their market share remains under 15 per cent and 25 per cent respectively.

"Consumers prefer to experience these products before purchasing, and we are now able to match the discounts offered by these websites, he said.

Queries sent to Amazon and Flipkart did not receive an immediate response.

However, sources from a large e-commerce firm said the ministers comments were unexpected.

The ministers comments are unexpected and completely contrary to what we are hearing from our small sellers, said a source from a large e-commerce company.

For example, last June, Amazon chief executive officer (CEO) Andy Jassy announced that the company would invest $26 billion in India by 2030.

The firm also plans to digitise 10 million small businesses, enable $20 billion in exports, and create 2 million jobs in the country by 2025.

To date, Amazon has digitised over 6.2 million micro, small, and medium enterprises, facilitated nearly $8 billion in exports, and created over 1.3 million jobs in India, according to the companys website.

Meanwhile, industry bodies such as the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) argue that foreign companies like Amazon, through their investments, are seeking to capture the Indian market by creating unhealthy competition.

Foreign investments should be scrutinised to ensure they positively contribute to the local economy and do not merely sustain operations that are not yet profitable.

"Global companies like Amazon often invest heavily to establish a strong market presence through predatory pricing, loss funding, and holding inventory, which violates the governments foreign direct investment policy, said Praveen Khandelwal, secretary-general of CAIT.

This debate also coincides with the rapidly growing quick commerce sector, which is accused of drawing customers away from kirana stores.

Quick-commerce, a subset of e-commerce focused on delivering items within 10 minutes, is seen by some as a threat to traditional retailers.

Executives of major quick-commerce platforms, including Zomato-owned Blinkits CEO Albinder Dhindsa, Swiggys CEO Shriharsha Majety, and Zepto CEO Aadit Palicha, have denied that they are taking market share from mom-and-pop stores.

We know that we are not taking share away from kiranas or from value-focused large retailers like DMart.

"This was also mentioned in their recent conference call.

"The value-focused items available in these formats are hard to replicate in our business, said Dhindsa in a recent letter to shareholders.

However, some investors believe that quick-commerce firms have little incentive to admit otherwise.

Quick-commerce firms are likely to face regulatory backlash if they admit they are growing at the expense of kirana stores.

"These small sellers make up a large vote bank for the government.

"Admitting to taking away market share from small sellers could backfire on them, said an e-commerce investor.

Ear to the ground
Dumping by Chinese producers and lower prices led to the fall as compared to gross margins of 39.7 per cent in the year ago quarter and 39.6 per cent in March quarter.

IMAGE: Kindly note the image has been posted only for representational purposes. Photograph: Kind courtesy Alana Jordan/Pixabay.com

The stock of specialty chemicals maker Aarti Industries was down over 15.5 per cent in trade on Tuesday after its June quarter results and management commentary.

While the results were in line with Street expectations, the lack of margin guidance given multiple uncertainties and headwinds turned investors cautious.

It also led to a cut in earnings expectations for FY25 and FY26.

Prior to the price correction, the stock has been a major outperformer over the past year, gaining 61 per cent as compared to 34 per cent gains of BSE 500.

While the operating profit margin in Q1FY25 was the highest over the last six quarters, the company held back from issuing an outlook on profits/margins.

The earlier guidance was for an operating profit of Rs 1,450 crore to Rs 1,700 crore.

The reason for the cautious approach by the management was aggressive Chinese exports and dumping (70-80 per cent of Aarti's products) which is expected to derail the price recovery process and it is not clear how long this will last.

Furthermore, about 40 per cent of the company revenues are derived from the energy sector where margin volatility is high and long term growth potential may be hit by global trend towards electrification, says Kotak Institutional Equities.

Abhijit Akella and Sumit Kumar of the brokerage have a sell rating on the stock given limited visibility amid an uncertain demand environment (with spreading economic weakness worldwide), intense competition from China, low return on capital employed, high financial leverage and slippages on project ramp-up in the past.

Though there were pricing pressures and supply chain issues, revenues for the June quarter were strong and rose 31.2 per cent over the year ago quarter and were boosted by volume-led recovery in core products and those that were on contract.

There was a recovery in select export products with domestic volumes remaining stable.

Gross margins were under pressure and fell by 190 basis points on a sequential basis to 37.7 per cent.

Dumping by Chinese producers and lower prices led to the fall as compared to gross margins of 39.7 per cent in the year ago quarter and 39.6 per cent in March quarter.

Increases in the prices of key raw materials, such as benzene and aniline, also impacted profits at the gross level.

Anand Rathi Research has trimmed its operating profit considering multiple challenges and maintained its hold recommendation.

Bhawana Israni and Bhavin Soni of the brokerage identify margin trajectory, capex execution and timely recovery in the global agrochemical industry as key triggers in the near term.

The Street will thus keep an eye on the operating profit margins over the next couple of quarters.

Operating profit margins at 15.1 per cent were up 240 basis points over the year ago quarter and 70 basis points sequentially despite the competitive pricing environment due to aggressive supply from China.

While PhillipCapital Research has cut its FY25/26 operating profit estimates by 3-4 per cent, it believes that there would be an imminent price recovery in chemicals in the subsequent quarters and incremental sales from downstream products which could surprise estimates positively.

Surya Patra of the brokerage is optimistic about the outlook and has a 'buy' rating on the stock.

Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com
Voltas saw strong growth in both UCP (Unitary Cooling product) and EMPS (electro mechanical projects) segments.

IMAGE: Kindly note the image has been posted only for representational purposes.

Monkeys sit near an air conditioner on a hot summer day at a government office at Shastri Bhawan in New Delhi. Photograph: R Raveendran/ANI Photo

Voltas delivered excellent results in the April-June quarter of 2024-25 (FY25), which may have been partially driven by seasonal factors.

Other refrigeration plays like Blue Star also did well. Apart from seasonal demand, there was growth from projects which indicates more general revival.

Voltas saw strong growth in both UCP (Unitary Cooling product) and EMPS (electro mechanical projects) segments. It reported a profit in EMPS versus expectations of loss.

Revenue stood at Rs 4,920 crore well above consensus.

The Ebitda was Rs 420 crore again beating Street estimates.

The Ebitda margin was up 310 basis point (bp) year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to 8.6 per cent.

The adjusted PAT jumped 159 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 330 crore.

The management indicated that UCP volume grew 67 per cent Y-o-Y, and Voltas maintained leadership position in the RAC segment (Room AC) with market share of 21.2 per cent as of June 2024.

Voltas sold 1 million units of ACs and the market share is a gain over 18.7 per cent in FY24-end. The UCP margin improved 35bp Y-o-Y to 8.6 per cent in Q1FY25.

In EMPS, domestic project demand grew and outlook remains positive.

In international projects, UAE and Saudi Arabia led in terms of revenue growth, and strong execution and cost control led to profits, after losses in the last six quarters.

All this has led to earnings upgrades by analysts.

The maintenance of profits in EMPS is a key monitorable.

The consolidated revenue grew 46 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 4,920 crore, while Ebitda grew 129 per cent to Rs 420 crore, and Adjusted PAT was up 159 per cent to Rs 330 crore.

All this was well above expected levels.

But the gross margin dipped 20bp Y-o-Y to 20.9 per cent.

Segment by segment, UCP revenue was up 51 per cent Y-o-Y at Rs 3,800 crore and earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) rose 58 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 330 crore with an EBIT margin up 35bp to 8.6 per cent.

The EMPS revenue grew 40 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 950 crore with an EBIT of Rs 67.5 crore versus an EBIT loss of Rs 51.9 crore in Q1FY24.

In PES (Planned Environmental Services), revenue grew by 13 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 160 crore, while EBIT declined 17 per cent to Rs 44.8 crore and the EBIT margin was down sharply from 37 per cent to 28 per cent.

In the projects business, strong execution, good assessment of cost and profitability have led to a turnaround after challenges for many quarters.

The project order book continues to grow, and the division has a positive outlook given increased infrastructure spend.

In comparison, Blue Star posted revenue growth of 29 per cent Y-o-Y in Q1FY25, with gro wth in UCP segment of 44 per cent Y-o-Y, led by strong dem and for RAC.

The EMPS business grew 9 per cent Y-o-Y, led by orders from factories and data centres.

The professional electronics and industrial systems (PE & IS) business grew 23 per cent Y-o-Y, due to traction in data security. Industry and company-specific prospects seem good.

Voltas could see an Ebitda CAGR of 50 per cent during FY24-27 along with adjusted PAT CAGR of 75 per cent due to a low base.

The return on equity (RoE) may rise to 15 per cent or more from a low of 4 per cent in FY24.

The UCP margin has room for improvement.

There's visibility of high demand for ACs which could drive 15-20 per cent volume growth till FY26 at least.

Inventory has been mopped up and PLI incentives could push up margins.

Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com
Modi can abandon the path of Hindutva only at risk to his position within his own fraternity.

But if he pursues a hard line, he faces the risk of being hauled up by his coalition partners.

For the first time in a decade, Modi is not in an enviable situation, observes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.

The Bharatiya Janata Party and affiliated organisations of the Sangh Parivar made a transition in the late 1980s from being a peripheral political party to the 'government in waiting' as L K Advani worded it in 1991, courtesy advocacy of no-holds-barred Hindutva.

The BJP accomplished this feat by normalising the latent sentiment among large number of Hindu Indians that Muslim Indian were 'foreigners' whose 'forefathers' had 'usurped' countless Hindu temples and these should be 'returned' to the majority community.

The 1991 Lok Sabha election was the first occasion when a large number of Hindus voted for the BJP on the basis of religious identity and support for the Ram temple agitation. In time, it became the prototype of numerous agitations with similar demands in different towns and cities.

I consider 1991 as the BJP's come-of-age poll and not 1989 because the latter was contested after making seat adjustments with other non-Congress parties, whereas in 1991, the BJP was totally on its own.

Its tally may even have been greater than 120, which it bagged, had Rajiv Gandhi not been assassinated midway through polling.

The BJP performed more creditably on its own because it demarcated a Hindu majoritarian electoral constituency by vitiating social harmony.

This was done by taking out the Somnath to Ayodhya Rath Yatra in September-October 1990, with Advani as lead 'charioteer'.

This Rath Yatra was the response of a panic-stricken party after Prime Minister VP Singh's announcement to implement recommendations of the Mandal Commission report making 27% reservations for the Other Backward Castes in educational institutions and government jobs.

IMAGE: Narendra D Modi at the Vivekananda Rock Memorial in Kanyakumari. Photograph: ANI Photo

The unscheduled declaration was opposed mainly by upper caste Hindus and led to the tragic incident of Delhi University graduate student Rajiv Goswami's attempted self-immolation.

Advani's decision to embark on a motorised yatra was his last-ditch effort to reunite Hindus across castes as was done through the Ram temple agitation.

As Singh's announcement had caused vertical cleavages among Hindus, Advani felt that their reunification was possible on basis of an issue that every Hindu caste group supported.

Advani's chariot left blood and gore in its wake. Between September 1 and November 20, 1990 there were 116 communal riots leaving 564 people dead.

Although Advani was not allowed to complete his Yatra which was terminated with his arrest in Samastipur, Bihar by then chief minister Lalu Yadav's government, the campaign succeeded in its objectives.

Singh resigned and mid-term polls were called in early 1991 and the BJP became the second largest party in Lok Sabha, with Advani becoming Leader of the Opposition.

Since then, hard-nosed Hindutva has been the BJP's 'go-to' agenda. Whenever the party faltered in its march towards political power, it revived the aggressive Hindu supremacist politics.

Following the collapse of the BJP's first government at the Centre in May 1996 due to failure to secure support of other parties, the party relegated contentious demands on the back seat.

The two coalition governments headed by Atal Bihari Vajpayee from March 1998 to May 2004 did not raise three most-debatable objectives of the BJP: construction of Ram temple, abrogation of Article 370 and introduction of the Uniform Civil Code.

Individual leaders of the BJP continued to voice the language of the extreme fringe. Narendra Modi, then Gujarat chief minister was one of them.

IMAGE: Narendra Modi offers prayers at the Kaal Bhairav temple in Varanasi. Photograph: ANI Photo

In 2002, in the course of the first assembly election which he successfully led, Modi took recourse to intemperate language in his speeches.

In September, in the temple town of Becharji, Mehsana district, he referred to riot-relief camps for Muslims which his government was shutting down.

He claimed, the Congress criticised every action of his government if Hindus were benefited, like redevelopment of temples. 'What brother?' Modi asked mockingly, and added, 'Should I start baby producing centres there??

The chief minister did not stop there and maintained this pitch throughout the campaign. He won those elections as also those in 2007 and 2012 before moving centre stage in 2014.

Many party leaders, including Vajpayee, attributed the defeat in 2004 to failure to take decisive action against perpetrators of the Gujarat riots.

In 2005, Advani spoke glowingly about M A Jinnah during his visit to Pakistan. Only Modi remained firm on advocacy of hard Hindutva.

After 2014, there are countless examples of the BJP resorting to extreme positions whenever the government, Modi or party was in a spot.

IMAGE: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu with Prime Minister Narendra D Modi, July 4, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls too, when it became clear that the euphoria over the Ram temple's construction had faded and when turnout in the first phase of polls was fairly low, Modi delivered the contentious speech in Banswara, Rajasthan wherein he spoke in the same pitch as in 2002.

This speech was layered in anti-Muslim rhetoric. He said the Congress will snatch people's wealth and 'distribute it to those who have more children and infiltrators'.

Despite the failure of the hardline narrative to secure a parliamentary majority for the BJP, the party and the government continue resorting to such divisive politics.

Without mentioning the issue in its elections manifestos for the Lok Sabha elections in 2024 and 2019, the Centre, without adequate consultation with any representative Muslim body, hastily introduced the Waqf Bill.

The BJP, had stated in its election manifesto in 2009 that the party would 'examine the recommendations of the Joint Parliamentary Committee regarding Waqf properties headed by Shri K Rahman Khan, Deputy Chairman, Rajya Sabha, and would, in consultation with Muslim religious leaders, take steps to remove encroachments from and unauthorised occupation of waqf properties.'

This promise was repeated in 2014. On both occasions, the promise was to: 'Empower Waqf Boards in consultation with religious leaders; taking steps to remove encroachments from and unauthorized occupation of Waqf properties.'

Two pledges on the issue of Waqf properties were noteworthy: One, that prior to any amendments in existing law, the government shall hold consultations with (Muslim) religious leaders; and two, the government shall take steps to remove encroachments from and prevent unauthorized occupation of Waqf properties.

It is evident that the Centre reneged on previous promise for wide consultation before introducing amendments to existing law.

Although the party was forced to refer the Bill to a Joint Parliamentary Committee, it has set a short deadline for the 31-member body to submit its report by the end of the first week of the Winter session of Parliament.

This underscores the government's malafide intentions. The short deadline has been set with the intention of securing its passage almost immediately after the BJP secures a majority in the Rajya Sabha that is expected after next month's bye-elections to 12 seats.

The other improper proposal in the Bill is the inclusion of non-Muslims in Waqf boards.

It is undeniable that Waqfs are Muslim properties and their administration must remain in the hands of fellow religionists just as Hindu, Sikh, Christian and Parsi Trusts are controlled by citizens of those religious communities.

IMAGE: Modi with Janata Dal-United President Nitish Kumar and Telugu Desam Party President Nara Chandrababu Naidu during the National Democratic Alliance meeting in New Delhi, June 5, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

Like most majoritarian decisions of the government, the primary intention in this case too has been to blow a dog-whistle to the BJP's supporters in the Hindu community.

The intention of this new Waqf Bill or numerous other steps and statements of BJP leaders is simple: broadcasting the message that this government is not giving Muslims any leeway and instead, strictly regulating their existence.

Since 2014, the BJP has adroitly communicated to its principal Hindu supremacist voter base, that the rights and liberties of the Muslims have been curtailed.

The BJP faces another problem -- reduced hegemony of the party's central leadership over the state units and satraps.

As a result, several leaders in the states are keen on projecting a distinctive public image of their own by adopting an equally hard Hindutva stance.

Already, the chief ministers of Uttar Pradesh and Assam, Yogi Adityanath and Himanta Biswa Sarma, have since the Lok Sabha results gone ballistic.

While the former hastily issued the order making it mandatory for food stall owners on the Kanwar Yatra route to prominently display the name of the owner, strengthened the anti-conversion law and revived the 'Romeo' squads, Sarma is regularly making provocative statements targeting Muslims.

Sarma currently is not caught in rivalry with the party's central leadership but is clearly carving his distinctive image, and does not wish to remain dependent on the party brass. The strategy reflects less confidence in Modi's vote-drawing capacity.

Adityanath however, has been locked in a game of one-upmanship with the central leadership from 2017 after becoming chief minister.

Following the party's poor performance in UP in the parliamentary polls, the effort of both camps is to hold the other responsible for this debacle.

This is being done by underscoring oneself as the truer Hindutva champion. This explains why the central and state leaderships are trying to establish themselves as the 'real' Hinduva enthusiasts.

Adityanath only faces a threat to his position from within his own party. This is because the Opposition's numbers do not stack up to his disadvantage in the state assembly.

But Modi has to take care of two fronts simultaneously. He can abandon the path of Hindutva only at risk to his position within his own fraternity.

But if he pursues a hard line, he faces the risk of being hauled up by his coalition partners. For the first time in a decade, Modi is not in an enviable situation.

Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay is an author and journalist based in Delhi-NCR.

His latest book is The Demolition, The Verdict and The Temple: The Definitive Book on the Ram Mandir Project.

He is also the author of Narendra Modi: The Man, The Times.

Feature Presentation: Rajesh Alva/Rediff.com
The compulsion behind India and Japan to deepen security cooperation is in response to China's growing political and economic clout and its assertive behaviour in disputed areas.

This has been the key driver for bringing both India and Japan closer in the domain of security cooperation, explains Dr Rajaram Panda.

IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra D Modi, External Affairs Minister Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh with Japanese Defence Minister Kihara Minoru, extreme left and Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoko in New Delhi, August 20, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

On August 20, 2024, India and Japan held the 2+2 dialogue in New Delhi.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar held the dialogue with their Japanese counterparts Minoru Kihara and Yoko Kamikawa and reviewed the bilateral ties besides exploring new initiatives to further strengthen the engagements between the two countries.

This was the third edition of the 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue between the two countries.

The broader objective of this initiative is to further deepen bilateral security and defence cooperation and bring greater depth to the special strategic and global partnership between the two countries.

A press release by the Japanese foreign ministry rightly observed that this high-level meeting underscored the deepening ties between the two nations amidst a complex global and regional environment.

They also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest and agreed on an open Indo-Pacific region.

Jaishankar said that in the last decade, the relationship between the two countries has assumed the form of a special strategic and global partnership.

He remarked: 'The logic of this evolution is our expanding interest and growing activities. As we both step forward into a more volatile and unpredictable world, there is a need for reliable partners with whom there are substantial convergences. As a result, we have consciously sought to facilitate each other's endeavours, comprehend each others' objectives...'

the strategic partnership between India and Japan will continue to grow as both the countries embrace mutuality and display sensitivity, Jaishankar added.

The India-Japan 2+2 ministerial dialogue reaffirmed the commitment to a free, open, and rules-based Indo-Pacific.

The talks, which came against the backdrop of increasing military assertiveness by China in the region, were a natural extrapolation from India's Act East Policy.

Echoing Jaishankar's sentiment, Rajnath Singh said that the bilateral relations between the two nations have increased in all areas.

He underlined that the defence sector has emerged as an important pillar in the relationship between the two countries.

The defence minister reminded his Japanese counterpart that India has taken a policy decision to make India a developed and transformed nation, Vikshit Bharat, by 2047, on the completion of 100 years of India's independence.

To achieve this goal, building domestic defence infrastructure to enhance capabilities is a very important part of this vision.

The defence minister underlined that partnership with Japan in the field of defence technology and industry will play an important role in the completion of this vision of India.

IMAGE: Dr Jaishankar meets Kamikawa Yoko. Photograph: ANI Photo

The first edition of the India-Japan 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue was held in India in 2019 while the second one took place in Japan in 2022.

The 2+2 dialogue with Japan was initiated to further deepen bilateral security and defence cooperation and bring greater depth to the special strategic and global partnership between the two countries.

India has the 2+2 ministerial format of dialogue with very few countries including the US, Australia and Russia.

As regards Japan, it has similar dialogue arrangement with the US and the Philippines, besides defence trilateral with the US and South Korea.

By aligning with their respective key allies, both India and Japan are expanding their strategic outreach through 2+2 dialogues, Quad, East Asia Summit and pushing the geoeconomic agenda with the launch of the Crisis Response Network under the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF).

So, what did the third edition of the 2+2 dialogue achieve in concrete terms, at least from India's point of view?

It allowed India to sharpen its understanding of Japan's regional threat assessment and provided an opportunity to assess the future trajectory of India-Japan ties after Prime Minister Kishida Fumio departs the scene and Japan shall have a new prime minister at the helm.

IMAGE: Dr Jaishankar in discussion with Kamikawa Yoko. Photograph: ANI Photo

In a separate meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, besides underlining the need to strengthen the strategic partnership between the countries, discussion also focused on potential areas for closer cooperation, including critical minerals, semiconductors, and defence manufacturing.

Besides reviewing progress on various bilateral projects, notably the Mumbai-Ahmedabad high-speed rail project, the leaders exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest.

The needs to enhance economic cooperation and strengthen people-to-people ties were also stressed.

Modi expressed optimism about a productive visit to Japan for the next summit between the two prime ministers later in 2024.

As regards the response from the Japanese side, Kamikawa emphasised the importance of the 10-year-old Japan-India Special Strategic and Global Partnership and stressed the need to strengthen security cooperation, a key pillar of the partnership.

On his part, Kihara acknowledged the steady progress in bilateral security cooperation and requested continued collaboration.

The highlight of the discussion was on deepening cooperation in technical fields, including the defence industry and semiconductors.

The discussions reinforced the commitment to a robust and mutually beneficial partnership, setting the stage for future collaboration on regional and global challenges.

Overall, the discussion showcased the enduring and expanding strategic alignment between the two countries.

As it transpired, the 2+2 ministerial format of dialogue that India has with Japan is in addition to similar dialogues with the US, Australia and Russia.

India has felt the need for reliable partners with whom there are substantial convergences in the volatile and unpredictable world.

For India, partnering with Japan is crucial to ensure freedom, inclusivity and transparency in the Indo-Pacific.

As expected, defence emerged as one of the most important pillars in the India-Japan relationship.

IMAGE: The Indian and the Japanese delegations during the meeting. Photograph: ANI Photo

The most striking aspect to note in the 2+2 dialogue was that keeping China in mind, both India and Japan decided to upgrade pact to counter security challenges.

This included laying the groundwork for providing New Delhi with advanced naval antennae and exploring the repair of Japanese warships in India.

This was in continuation with the 2008 Joint Declaration on Security Cooperation 'to reflect contemporary priorities and be responsive to contemporary security challenges facing them'.

Both Jaishankar and Kamikawa underlined the 'increasingly severe' international security environment as a key factor in updating the document and reaffirmed a 'strong determination' to work toward 'creating new solutions together'.

The earlier security declaration has acted as a roadmap for building up security ties and the updates were to focus on deepened bilateral cooperation in the fields of space and cybersecurity.

It will likely be formalised to coincide with a visit to Japan by Prime Minister Modi by the end of the year.

Both sides agreed to upscale their defence industrial collaborations.

Both lauded progress toward a long-rumoured Japanese "transfer" to India of the Unified Complex Radio Antenna (UNICORN) and related technologies.

The cutting edge radar antennas, part of the Nora-50 integration mast, are being installed on some of the Maritime Self-Defense Forces' advanced Mogami-class frigates. Their shape is designed to reduce the radar cross section, which gives it stealth capability.

However, it is unclear whether the antennae would be sold or donated but by supplying them, Japan hopes to open the door to more defence collaboration, including potential exports.

This may be read in the light of Tokyo's recent decision to ease its strict defense export guidelines as part of a bid to build up its domestic defence industry.

There were some ambiguities in the actual plan of execution, however.

Though both sides agreed to accelerate 'future cooperation in defense equipment and technology', no details were available on what this would entail.

Kihara's statement at the press conference that Japan would deepen defence equipment and technical cooperation with India by using the transfer of the latest type of radar left much to speculation.

IMAGE: Minoru Kihara received by Rajnath Singh at the South Block lawns in New Delhi. Photograph: ANI Photo

Both sides also explored future cooperation in the area of ship maintenance in India between the MSDF and the Indian Navy.

India will soon serve as a maintenance hub for US warships in the Indo-Pacific.

Three Iocal shipyards have signed deals with the US navy, which, unlike the MSDF, operates globally.

A similar Japan-India deal would suggest that the MSDF shall be positioned for missions farther afield.

It remains unclear however if this would mean a greater naval presence in the Indian Ocean.

The compulsion behind India and Japan to deepen security cooperation is in response to China's growing political and economic clout and its assertive behaviour in disputed areas.

This has been the key driver for bringing both India and Japan closer in the domain of security cooperation.

The common strategic vision of both India and Japan with Tokyo's FOIP strategy was clearly a message that both sides have common strategy to counter Beijing.

This was epitomised on the stress on open and rules-based Indo-Pacific as the top priority of both sides.

Thus it transpires that the interests of both India and Japan are aligned when it comes to the China threat.

IMAGE: Minoru Kihara inspects a tri-services guard of honour. Photograph: Jitender Gupta/ANI Photo

But one thing is clear. Tokyo would not expect India's direct support in emergencies over the Senkaku Islands or Taiwan and New Delhi would not expect intervention by the Self-Defense Forces in its Himalayan border disputes with China.

Both however believe that they can impose costs on Beijing and thus deter adventurism.

Both can deter China's aggressive posture by joint military activities, including exercises such as the Malabar naval drills, to be conducted closer in waters closer to China.

As both members of the Quad security grouping, they hope to keep China in check.

There is however a coveat. India remains committed to its own strategic autonomy and would be unwilling to undo its friendly relations with Russia while aligning its interests with either the US or Japan.

Russia continues to be India's main arms supplier though arms imports by India from India has shown a decline in recent times.

However, the time-tested friendship between India and Russia remain unaffected by any political intervention.

Since India's arms imports from Russia have fallen in recent times, Japan could be the right candidate to to fill the gap with its nascent industry following the export rules' revision. That would not be easy, however.

IMAGE: Modi meets Kamikawa Yoko and Kihara Minoru ahead of the 3rd India-Japan 2+2 foreign and defence ministerial meeting in New Delhi. Photograph: ANI Photo

There is yet another possible hurdle in the arms import-export business.

Since New Delhi is expected to ask for an 'offset' deal, this could be a bottleneck in making successful military sales by Japan in India.

These offsets often come with several potentially unpalatable conditions such as technology transfer, production in India and hiring Indian engineers.

It remains unclear if the conditions put by either side would be acceptable to both or consensus would be eluding.

India remembers Japan's failed efforts to sell ShinMywa US-21 amphibious search-and-rescue aircraft more than a decade ago.

Therefore, to overcome this difficulty, defence industrial cooperation could be the right route to realise this dream.

India already agreed in 2023 to a landmark defense-industrial cooperation roadmap with the US that allows New Delhi to fast-track high-priority co-development and co-production defense projects.

A similar trust-based collaboration in emerging technologies between India and Japan, including in the field of defence, could always be a win-win situation for both.

In view of the mutual trust between the two sides, both can agree to be partners in cooperation in high-tech defence equipment, particularly in naval capabilities.

Dr Rajaram Panda is a former senior fellow at the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi.

Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com
News / National

by Staff reporter

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) Zimbabwe has urged citizens to rally behind President Mnangagwa in his new role as the Southern African Development Community (SADC) chairman.EFF Zimbabwe's Innocent Ndibali emphasized that, despite being an opposition party, they recognize Mnangagwa's leadership as a national responsibility rather than a partisan one.Ndibali called for unity among Zimbabweans, highlighting that the SADC chairmanship is a source of national pride and can bring significant benefits to both the country and the region.Ndibali underscored the importance of regional integration for economic development, noting that Mnangagwa's chairmanship places him in a strategic position to advance this goal. He also advocated for enhanced economic cooperation within the SADC region, including initiatives like facilitating the free movement of people, as seen in recent efforts between Zimbabwe and Botswana to ease travel restrictions.Acknowledging Zimbabwe's ongoing economic and social challenges, Ndibali called for homegrown solutions and collaboration among SADC countries and all political parties within Zimbabwe. He expressed optimism that with collective effort, the lives of the people in the region could improve, and commended SADC for entrusting Zimbabwe with its chairmanship.
'We have been threatened. We have felt violated.'

'Everything is in danger if you don't give safe spaces to women.'

IMAGE: Students of Patna Women's College stage a protest demanding justice for the sexual assault and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor at the RG Kar Hospital, August 21, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

Priyanka Chaturvedi, the Rajya Sabha MP from the Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray party, wrote to President Droupadi Murmu on August 19 to expedite her assent to the Shakti Bill [Shakti Criminal Laws (Maharashtra Amendment) Bill, 2020 and the Special Court & Machinery for Implementation of Maharashtra Shakti Criminal Law, 2020], so that it becomes a law.

Chaturvedi explains to Prasanna D Zore/Rediff.com why she wrote to the President and why she believes that once the Shakti Bill becomes law it may deter rapists from indulging in sexual violence against women.

Why did you write to President Droupadi Murmu asking her to give her assent to the Shakti Bill passed by the Maharashtra government then led by Uddhav Thackeray?

I wrote this letter out of concern with regards to the growing crimes against women in Maharashtra and considering it was Uddhav Balasaheb Thackerayji's dream and the Mahavikas Aghadi government's commitment to the women of Maharashtra to prioritise their safety and security.

The Shakti Bill [Shakti Criminal Laws (Maharashtra Amendment) Bill, 2020 and the Special Court & Machinery for Implementation of Maharashtra Shakti Criminal Law, 2020], which was enacted after a joint committee comprising elected representatives from across political parties, had come up with stringent laws that would safeguard the interests of women and it was discussed, deliberated and debated thoroughly in the Maharashtra legislature.

After the clearance, Bhagat Singh Koshyari as the then governor of the state, handed it over to the President of India and it was to return back to Maharashtra.

This Bill ensures separate police investigating teams, focused investigation teams, separate fast track courts, and a commitment from the state government that the investigation would take place within 15 days and within 30 days the case would go into a trial.

As far as prosecution is concerned, the Shakti Bill introduces hefty fines regards to acid attack victims, social media trolling, etc, and also ensures stringent punishment with regards to crimes against women and children, taking it up to the death penalty.

In the context of what we are witnessing currently, I thought it is imperative that such a stringent law which has been pending for a long time only for a basic Constitutional nod from the President should get that assent.

It is simply a reminder to this (Maharashtra) government that despite Devendra Fadnavis's express commitment as Maharashtra's home minister to ensure to get the President's assent speedily, none of them took it on a priority because they fear probably the political mileage would be taken by the Mahavikas Aghadi government (led by Uddhav Thackeray which enacted this law).

Unfortunately, the collateral damage has been the women of Maharashtra and we are seeing this in what happened in Badlapur (where two girls, aged 4, were sexually molested by a member of the cleaning staff of a school); the public outcry came a day after I wrote this letter because I knew that we are not doing anything with regards to women's safety.

I had written out of concern that as a woman, and being the first woman tribal President, maybe she would understand where I'm coming from and give her speedy assent.

Has the President taken cognisance of your letter? What was the response from her office?

Unfortunately, I haven't received any response from her office. Because the President's office is a Constitutional body, I don't want to comment on that. But I have observed in the past as a parliamentarian that this (Modi) government, whether we write to the ministers on various issues if we do not get a chance to take it up in the Zero Hour, I personally make it a point to communicate with the concerned minister via a letter to bring the issues to the minister's notice.

I haven't seen any response coming from any minister or even acknowledgement of receiving the letter which I have written to even the Chairman of the House, the honourable Vice President (Jagdeep Dhankhar) without getting any response).

In terms of Rashtrapati Bhavan, I hoped that they would take cognisance of this issue, and considering what happened the day after (the Badlapur sexual molestation case came to light on August 20, A day after Chaturvedi WROTE to the President) my writing a letter and the spontaneous public outcry led by women, I'm hoping that this Bill would come into action (soon after getting the Presidential assent the Shakti law would become effective).

What has been surprising to me is that I heard an argument coming from the Mindhe Sena (the Shiv Sena after its takeover by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has been referred to as Mindhe [meaning slaves] Sena by members of the Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray party) that all the provisions of the Shakti Bill had been incorporated in the BNS (Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita which came into force from July 1, 2024, and which was enacted by the Narendra Modi government) Act.

Such claims are incorrect, rubbish, ridiculous, and baseless. This is no excuse to defend this government's inability to get a very stringent law in place.

I challenge spokespersons from the Mindhe Sena to show me one provision that has been incorporated (in the BNS Act) that came from Shakti. So the spirit of federal structure is totally shattered by defense like this.

The Shakti Criminal (Maharashtra Amendment) Bill, 2020 and the Special Court & Machinery for Implementation of Maharashtra Shakti Criminal Law, 2020, on crimes against women and children were passed by both Houses of the Maharashtra legislature in December 2021.

What efforts were made by the then MVA government and later the Mahayuti government to get the President's assent since then?

The MVA led by Uddhav Thackeray was in power in the state till June 2022, a full six months after the passage of the law in the Maharashtra legislature before it was toppled by the BJP and Eknath Shinde.

We were embattled by a very hostile governor (Koshyari), about which we have spoken multiple times from every fora. The governor should have willingly cooperated and ensured that the President gave her prompt nod to something as important as this.

The Supreme Court has taken cognisance of how Mr Bhagat Singh Koshyari played an active role in bringing down our government. Those were the issues why we could not get the Presidential nod because there was no cooperation coming from the governor.

We thought we would be able to complete our term and we'll be able to bring it as soon as possible and were trying to navigate the entire constitutionally-mandated positions via the governor, via the President.

But then our government was pulled down with active connivance of the governor. I have no qualms in saying this because the Supreme Court has said it. Mr Devendra Fadnavis, who went on to become the deputy chief minister of Maharashtra and as home minister, publicly stated that their Double Engine Sarkar (BJP government in the state and BJP government at the Centre is often described as Double Engine Sarkar) will speedily work to get the President's assent (for the Shakti Bill).

I have asked the home minister (Fadnavis) now after this entire outreach, how many letters did he write to the President of India to get this law passed?

How many letters has Eknath Shinde written to get this law passed?

How many people have pursued it through the governor to get it passed?

How many times was the governor approached to expedite the approval from the President?

These questions are now lying in their domain and they are obligated to answer them. That it is already in the BNS and the good provisions have been taken into account is a shameless defence.

After the Badlapur sexual molestation incident came to light Maharashtra Home Minister Fadnavis appealed to all the political parties to refrain from politicising the sexual molestation of the children.

And yet, the Opposition MVA has called for a state bandh on August 24. Is not the MVA politicising this issue to gain votes in the forthcoming assembly election?

IMAGE: A massive protest at the Badlapur railway station in Thane district on Tuesday, August 20, 2024, against the sexual assault of two four year olds at a school. Photograph: ANI Photo

Why has no one from the state government spoken a word about it? It was only when the women and people of Badlapur spontaneously came out in the streets that the government took cognisance of it.

My simple point here is that people led protest needs a voice to articulate it. It needs a voice to emphasise to the government to act. It (the protesters) cannot be lathi-charged into submission, which we saw (on August 20).

FIRs are filed against citizens (protesters staged a rail roko at Badlapur for the whole day on August 20 disrupting rail services) who came out of concern.

It's a clear tactic to instill fear in the minds of the residents that if you come and outrage, we will go after you. So it becomes the bounden duty of the Opposition to raise their voices and say we need to prioritise women safety in the country and in the state. These are four year old girls (who were sexually molested).

See what happened in Akola: Six minor girls were sexually assaulted by a professor (this case came to light a day after the Badlapur case).

This is not politicisation; politics also engages in policy-making. Politics also engages in decision making. Politics is seeking votes in the name of the Ladki Bahin Yojana (a scheme launched by the Maharashtra government in which poor women in the state get Rs 1,500 per month if they fulfill certain criteria); politics is when the chief minister (Eknath Shinde) calls the Badlapur public outrage a political protest to derail the Ladki Bahin Yojana. Isn't that shameful?

The Opposition's job is to hold the government accountable, and we are doing just that so that we can provide a voice to the people who have been wronged.

As far as the Maharashtra bandh is concerned, let me tell you something.

Over the years women have been conditioned to believe that 'Your silence is important. What will outrage do? If you want to talk about your safety, you do it in a particular fashion'.

If women don't follow such patriarchal diktats they are called aggressive, assertive and various other names. Our (women's) characters have been assassinated.

We have been mocked. We have been questioned. We have been threatened. We have felt violated. It is time women said enough is enough. Everything else comes later.

Everything is in danger if you don't give safe spaces to women. Every time you say if you don't empower women you lose 2 per cent of your GDP and they you pay such lip service to women empowerment.

So shouldn't we prioritise and say 'Yes, let's shut down Maharashtra and send out a message to this government that you will have to prioritise women's safety and security'?
The protests by resident doctors at government hospitals in several states across the country ended on Thursday as major doctors' associations called off their 11-day strike over the rape-murder of a trainee medic in Kolkata after the Supreme Court made an appeal to them to resume work.

IMAGE: Doctors raise slogans as they stage a protest demanding justice against the alleged sexual assault and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor of the Kolkata RG Kar Hospital, at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. Photograph: Ritik Jain/ANI Photo

However, in West Bengal, the epicentre of the protests, healthcare services remained affected at state-run hospitals as agitating junior doctors said they would continue their ceasework.

"We have decided to continue our ceasework because justice is yet to be delivered. The Supreme Court has avoided the justice part. We must not forget that getting justice for our sister is our prime goal," one of the protesting doctors told PTI.

In the national capital, doctors at major hospitals, including AIIMS, RML, LNJP and Maulana Azad Medical College, ended their strike that commenced on August 12.

Following the apex court's appeal and directions about safety of doctors, the Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA), a major body of RDAs across the country, announced its decision to call off the strike, asking the resident doctors to resume their duty.

'We are thankful to all RDAs, media personnel, various medical and non-medical associations and above all, our patients, for their support and understanding,' it said in a post on X.

The Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA), an umbrella body of doctors, also announced their decision to call off the protest.

'#FAIMA has decided to call off the strike following positive directions from the #Chief Justice of India. We welcome the acceptance of our prayers for interim protections and the necessary steps to enhance security in hospitals. United, we will continue to fight legally,' FAIMA said in a post on X.

The decision to call off the strike comes as a major relief to patients who were struggling to get regular medical care due to the closure of outpatient department (OPD) in government hospitals even as emergency services were functioning as usual.

In Uttar Pradesh, junior doctors ended their stir.

'Resident doctors of Uttar Pradesh are resuming work due to assurances given by Honorable Supreme Court of India,' the UP RDA said in a post on X.

However, the state doctors' body said their commitment to advocate for justice for the victim and safety of healthcare workers remains steadfast throughout symbolic protest.

In Chandigarh too, doctors at the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) ended their protest over the Kolkata incident.

Following the ending of strike by the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD), the PGIMER authorities said it will resume all the elective services with immediate effect.

In Rajasthan, Jaipur resident doctors have decided to call off the ongoing strike.

Dr Manohar Siyol, president of Jaipur Association of Resident Doctors (JARD), said a meeting held on Thursday evening decided to call off the strike following the Supreme Court's appeal during the hearing in the case.

Earlier in the day, a tough-talking apex court termed 'extremely disturbing' the Kolkata Police's delay in registering the unnatural death of the woman doctor raped and killed at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

However, the apex court appealed to the doctors protesting over the incident to resume work and directed no coercive action against them.

The court said judges and doctors cannot go on a strike since they deal with matters involving life and liberty.

"Justice and medicine cannot afford to be stopped. Can we (judges) go and sit outside the Supreme Court now?" the bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud asked.

The apex court, while directing the Central and state governments to take immediate measures to ensure the safety of healthcare professionals nationwide, questioned the 14-hour delay in filing the FIR, as well as the reasons behind it, and scrutinised the sequence of events and timing of procedural formalities.

While hearing a suo motu case regarding the doctor's unnatural death, the bench, also comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, issued several directives concerning the safety of doctors, the rights of protesters, and the responsibilities of the West Bengal government.

Meanwhile, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wrote to PM Narendra Modi demanding stringent central legislation with exemplary punishment for perpetrators of rape.

On August 9, the body of the postgraduate trainee doctor was found in the seminar hall of state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata. A civic volunteer was arrested in connection with the crime the next day.

Later, the Calcutta high court handed over the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
The parents of the accused in the Badlapur sexual assault case on Thursday claimed that their son was innocent and he had been framed.

IMAGE: Members of the Vidarbha Lady Lawyers' Association hold placards as they stage a protest against the alleged sexual assault of two minors in Thane's Badlapur, in front of District Session Court in Nagpur. Photograph: ANI Photo

Speaking to a Marathi news channel, the parents said there is no truth in the allegations against their son.

The accused, who worked as an attendant, has been arrested for allegedly sexually molesting two 4-year-old girl students inside the toilet of a school in Badlapur town in Maharashtra's Thane district. A local court on Wednesday sent him to police custody till August 26.

Our son had been doing the job for the past 15 days. He used to go to the school by 11 am daily to clean the bathroom. He would then proceed to another place for similar work, his mother claimed.

The mother said they learnt on August 13 that such an incident had happened in the school. Their son was detained on August 17, she said.

A woman working with the school told me about the incident and about my son being taken to the police chowki (on August 17). I rushed there and saw police thrashing him. They also beat my younger son, said the mother.

At the police station, officials told them about the crime committed by him, she claimed.

The arrested attendant's mother said she and her husband also used to go to the Badlapur school every day to clean the premises. We used to go to the school at 5.30 pm daily for the cleaning work and come out around 8.30 pm, she said.

The mother claimed that the accused had some medical issues in his childhood and was mentally weak. But he has taken medicines for that, she said.

Some people came to our house on Tuesday and beat up all the family members and threw out our belongings, claimed the father of the accused.

Our house was vandalised by the people. They did not allow us to utter a single word. They just told us not to stay in the village as he (accused) is our son, the father claimed.

Internet services in Badlapur were suspended on Wednesday, a day after the massive protest over the alleged sexual abuse of the two kindergarten girls, and 72 persons had been arrested in connection with the violence during the stir, officials had said earlier.

At least 25 police personnel were injured in the incidents of stone-pelting at the railway station and other parts of Badlapur during the protest as thousands of protesters blocked railway tracks at the station and stormed the school building on Tuesday.
The Bombay high court on Thursday expressed outrage over the police's handling of the case related to sexual assault of two kindergarten girls at a school in Badlapur near Mumbai, while describing the crime as 'absolutely shocking'.

Photograph: Sahil Salvi for Rediff.com IMAGE: Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray workers protest against the alleged sexual assault of two four-year-old girls at a school in Badlapur, near Sena Bhavan in Dadar, Mumbai.

Taking suo motu (on its own) cognisance of the case which has triggered widespread protests, the high court lashed out at the local police for the delay in the registration of a first information report (FIR), and also the school authorities who failed to report the crime to the police promptly.

There can be no compromise on the safety and security of children, particularly girls, said a division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Prithviraj Chavan.

A male attendant allegedly sexually assaulted two kindergarten girls, aged around 4, in the school's washroom on August 12 and 13.

The FIR was, however, registered on August 16, and the accused was arrested the following day, according to police documents presented in court.

"Unless there is a strong public outburst, the machinery won't move," the court remarked.

"The sexual assault of the two girls was "not only heinous, but also shocks the conscience of one and all," it added.

The bench directed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed to probe the case to submit on August 27 the original case diary maintained by the Badlapur police, a copy of the FIR, and other papers related to the case.

It was not at all 'happy' with the manner in which the Badlapur police handled the case, the judges remarked.

"Such serious matters where girls as young as three and four years old have been sexually assaulted....how can the police take it so lightly," the court questioned.

"If schools are not a safe place, what is a child supposed to do? What did a three and four-year-old child do? This is absolutely shocking," the court said.

The bench directed the police to ensure that all support was given to the victims and their families, adding that the victims should not be victimised further.

"In this case, the girls complained, (but) there might be so many cases which may have gone unnoticed," the court said.

Police should have offered support to the families of the two girls, but it did not happen, said the judges.

"First thing, the police should have filed FIR. School authorities were silent. This discourages people from coming forward," the judges observed.

"People should not lose faith in the police system or the judicial system. If public had to come to the streets then think about the future," the HC said.

The police department should take some steps to sensitise its officials and staff, the judges said, while directing the SIT to file a report by August 27 on what steps it had taken regarding recording of the statements of the girls and their families.

The report should also explain why there was a delay in registering the FIR by the Badlapur police and recording the statement of the second victim, the court said.

"We are appalled that the Badlapur police has not taken any steps to take the statement of the second girl to date," the HC said.

If it found that there was an attempt to hush up the case, it would not hesitate to take action against the concerned police officer, the high court stated.

"Also tell us what steps the state government is taking to ensure the safety and security of girls. There can be no compromise on this," said the judges.

The bench noted that the school authorities were aware of the incident, but kept silent and did not inform the police.

Under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, non-reporting of a sexual assault is also an offence, the court observed.

Maharashtra Advocate General Birendra Saraf assured the court that action would be taken against the school authorities on Thursday itself.

"You will be taking action against school for not reporting. School authorities had not come forward. Whosoever is responsible for the delay, action will be taken. No one will be spared," the court said.

Saraf informed the bench that the statement of one of the girls was recorded before a magistrate, and that of the second girl would be recorded on Thursday.

The HC sought to know why there was a delay.

Saraf informed that the errant police officials at the Badlapur police station have been suspended.

The bench said mere suspension was not enough.

The accused school attendant, arrested on August 17, has been remanded in police custody till August 26

Earlier, leader of opposition in the Maharashtra assembly Vijay Wadettiwar had alleged that the parents of one of the victim girls were made to sit in the Badlapur police station for 11 hours before the FIR was registered.
India on Thursday described as factually incorrect reports in Bangladesh that the current flood situation in certain parts of the country has been caused by the opening of a dam on the Gumti river in Tripura.

Image used for representational purposes only. Photograph: ANI Photo

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said floods in the common rivers between the two countries are a "shared" problem inflicting sufferings to people on both sides, and requires close mutual cooperation towards resolving it.

"We have seen concerns being expressed in Bangladesh that the current situation of flood in districts on the eastern borders of Bangladesh has been caused by opening of the Dumbur dam upstream of the Gumti river in Tripura. This is factually not correct," the ministry said.

"We would like to point out that the catchment areas of the Gumti river that flows through India and Bangladesh have witnessed heaviest rains of this year over the last few days," it added.

The MEA said the flood in Bangladesh has been caused primarily due to waters from these large catchments downstream of the dam.

The Dumbur dam is located quite far from the border -- more than 120 km upstream of Bangladesh -- the ministry said in a statement.

"It is a low-height (about 30 metre) dam that generates power that feeds into a grid and from which Bangladesh also draws 40MW power from Tripura," the MEA noted.

"Along the about 120-km river course, we have three water-level observation sites at Amarpur, Sonamura and Sonamura 2," it said.

Heavy rainfall has been continuing since August 21 in the whole of Tripura and the adjoining districts of Bangladesh.

In the event of heavy inflow, automatic releases have been observed, the MEA said, adding that the Amarpur station is part of a bilateral protocol under which India transmits real-time flood data to Bangladesh.

"Data showing rising trend has been supplied to Bangladesh up to 1500 hours on August 21. At 1800 hours, due to flooding, there was power outage, leading to problems of communication," it said.

"Still, we have tried to maintain communication through other means created for urgent transmission of data," it noted.

The MEA said the two countries share 54 common cross-border rivers and river-water cooperation is an important part of the bilateral engagement.

"We remain committed to resolving issues and mutual concerns in water resources and river water management through bilateral consultations and technical discussions," it said.
The Delhi high court on Thursday directed an 'X' user to apologise to AltNews co-founder Mohammad Zubair for his "offensive" comment against him on the social media platform.

IMAGE: AltNews founder Mohammad Zubair.



Observing that people should be temperate on the social media and apologise if they get "carried away", Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani asked the user to publish his apology on his handle on 'X', formerly called 'Twitter', in one week while "giving context of the offensive tweet" and retain the post for two months.

The court, which was dealing with Zubair's petition to quash an FIR registered against him following his online spat with this social media user, noted that the user has expressed regret before the city police for calling the petitioner "offensive communal names" and claimed that there was no malice to hurt or offend Zubair.

"He has chosen the unfortunate words. Let him put it (apology) out on his Twitter handle...We want people to be temperate on social media and if you get carried away then first thing you have to do is at least apologise," Justice Bhambhani said.

"If he has expressed regret and said 'niyat nahi thi', let him atone for that," he added.

In 2020, the Delhi police had registered the FIR against Zubair for allegedly threatening and torturing a girl child on the social media platform after he responded to the Twitter user who was using a picture with his minor daughter as a display picture on the platform.

Zubair described the allegation levelled against him in the FIR as "an absolutely frivolous complaint". Subsequently, while the police closed the case against Zubair, the court directed the investigating agency to state what action it took against the Twitter user for his offensive tweet, which amounted to hate speech", against the journalist.

During the hearing, the counsel for the police said the investigating officer found "no real basis" to register a case against the user in light of his statement and has left the matter to court.

The user told the police in his statement that he has respect for all religions and he has good relations with members of all religious communities.

The court perused certain other posts made by the user and said "this type of person should be barred from social media".

It, however, considered his statement expressing regret made to the police and closed the proceedings in the case.

"When you make a mistake on a platform, you apologise on the platform. I am trying to put a Twitter war to end," the court stated, adding that "social media was an anarchic medium" and Zubair will not retweet the apology or use it to sue the user over the offensive tweet.

The high court had in September 2020 directed the Delhi police not to take any coercive steps against Zubair in the case. It had also directed Twitter India to cooperate with the police in the investigation of the matter.

The NCPCR has earlier contended before the high court that the submission of the city police that no cognisable offence was made out against Zubair was "incorrect" and that the agency's stand indicates the casual attitude of the authorities.
The third day of the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday kicked off with a first-of-its-kind Vedic prayer where the priest sought blessings for a united country.

IMAGE: Rakesh Bhatt, a priest at the Sri Siva Vishnu Temple in Maryland, chanted a Vedic prayer seeking blessings for a united country. Photograph: Screen grab/X

Even if we have differences, when it comes to the nation, we have to be united and it moves us towards justice for all, said Indian-American priest Rakesh Bhatt as he formally started the third days' proceedings of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago.

We should be in unison. Let our minds think together. Let our hearts beat as one. All for the betterment of society. May this make us powerful so we can unite and make our nation proud, the senior Hindu priest said.

A priest at the Sri Siva Vishnu Temple in Maryland, Bhatt hails from Bengaluru. He is a Madhwa priest trained in Rig Veda and Tantrasaara (Maadhva) Agama, under his guru, Pejavar Swamiji of Udupi Ashta Matha.

We are one universal family. Truth is our foundation and always prevails. Lead us from unreal to real. from darkness to the light, and from death to immortality. Om Shanti Shanti Shanti, Bhatt said.

Bhatt, who is fluent in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Hindi, English, Tulu and Sanskrit, has a Bachelors and Masters degree in three languages: Sanskrit, English and Kannada. He obtained his English and Kannada degrees from Osteen College, Bengaluru and the Sanskrit degree from Jaychamarajendra College.

After working in Udupi Ashta Matha for a few years, he worked for a short period in Badrinath and Raghavendra Swami Koil, Salem and joined Sri Sri Vishnu Temple in July 2013.

Deputy National Finance Chair of the Democratic Party, Ajay Bhutoria, said, "Rakesh Bhatt's Hindu prayer at the DNC today is a significant moment, showcasing the Democratic Party's commitment to inclusivity and diversity."

"It is heartening to see the rich cultural and spiritual traditions of the Indian American community being honoured on such a prominent stage. This moment reflects the growing influence and recognition of our community within the fabric of American society," Bhutoria said.
Ahead of his much-anticipated visit to conflict-torn Ukraine, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said India firmly believes that no problem can be solved on the battlefield and it is ready to extend all possible cooperation for the restoration of peace and stability in the region.

IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses a joint press statement with Poland PM Donald Tusk, in Warsaw on Thursday. Photograph: ANI Photo

Modi made the remarks after holding wide-ranging talks with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk that saw the elevation of India-Poland ties to the level of strategic partnership and firming up of a social security pact to promote the mobility of skilled workers.

The two leaders underscored the importance of upholding international law and reiterated that all states must refrain from the threat of or use of force against the territorial integrity and sovereignty or political independence of any state, according to a joint statement.

Modi told the media that the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia are a matter of 'deep concern for all of us'.

"This is India's firm belief that no problem can be solved on the battlefield. In any crisis, the loss of lives of innocent people has become the biggest challenge for the whole of humanity," he said.

"We support dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability. For this, India, along with its friendly countries, is ready to provide all possible support," he said in his statement to the media.

Modi on Thursday left for a historic visit to Ukraine after concluding his two-day 'productive' trip to Poland during which he held wide-ranging talks with the Polish leadership.

'PM @narendramodi concludes a productive visit to Poland, setting a new milestone in bilateral relations. This high-level Prime Ministerial visit after four decades will widen and deepen India-Poland relations,' Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal posted on X.

Modi, who is visiting Ukraine at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has said that he will share with the Ukrainian leader perspectives on peaceful resolution of the ongoing conflict.

His visit to Kyiv comes nearly six weeks after his high-profile trip to Moscow which triggered criticism from the US and some of its Western allies.

This is the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Ukraine since the country became independent in 1991.

The prime minister will travel to Kyiv from Poland in a 'Rail Force One' train that will take around 10 hours.

The return trip will also be of the same duration.

India has not yet condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine and has been calling for resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy.

Before leaving Warsaw, Modi said that his Poland visit has been "special".

'It is after decades that an Indian PM set foot on Polish soil,' Modi said in a post on X at the end of his visit to Warsaw.

In his nearly seven-hour stay in Kyiv on Friday, Modi will hold one-on-one and delegation-level talks with President Zelenskyy and the conversation is expected to largely focus on finding ways to resolve the conflict in Ukraine.

In his remarks to the media, Tusk said: "I am very pleased that the Prime Minister confirmed the readiness of his personal commitment to a peaceful, just, quick end to the war. We are both convinced that India can play a very serious role here, and a positive role."

"We are united in our conviction that India is capable of playing an important and positive role in this matter," he said.

Modi's visit to Ukraine comes six weeks after he travelled to Moscow.

Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Tanmaya Lal said at a media briefing that there was a discussion on the situation in Ukraine at the talks between the two prime ministers and Modi said India stands ready to work with friends and stakeholders to contribute to resolving the situation

A joint statement on Modi-Tusk talks said the two leaders expressed their 'deepest concern' over the war raging in Ukraine including its terrible and tragic humanitarian consequences.

'They reiterated the need for a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace in line with international law, consistent with the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, including respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity,' it said.

Modi and Tusk also noted the "negative impacts" of the war in Ukraine with regard to global food and energy security, especially for the Global South.

'In the context of this war, they shared the view that the use, or threat of use, of nuclear weapons is unacceptable,' the statement said.

'In the context of this war, they shared the view that the use, or threat of use, of nuclear weapons is unacceptable.'

'They underscored the importance of upholding international law, and in line with the UN Charter, reiterated that all states must refrain from the threat of or use of force against the territorial integrity and sovereignty or political independence of any state,' it said.

The two leaders underscored that as the world's two largest democracies, the EU and India have a common interest in ensuring security, prosperity and sustainable development in a multi-polar world, it said.

'They reaffirmed their commitment to deepen India-EU Strategic Partnership, which would not only benefit both sides but also have a far-reaching positive impact globally,' it added.

Modi and Tusk reinforced their commitment to a free, open and rules-based Indo-Pacific in accordance with the international law of the sea as reflected in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and with full respect for the sovereignty, territorial integrity and freedom of navigation to the benefit of the maritime security and international peace and stability.

"This year, we are celebrating the 70th anniversary of our diplomatic relations. On this occasion, we have decided to transform the relations into a strategic partnership," Modi said.

Modi also thanked Poland for facilitating the evacuation of Indian students from Ukraine after the conflict began in 2022.

In his remarks, Tusk said Poland wants to expand its defence cooperation with India and that it would like to support New Delhi's efforts to modernise its military.

"We are ready to take part in the modernisation of military equipment," he said.

Modi too referred to India-Poland defence ties.

"Close cooperation in the field of defence is a symbol of our deep mutual trust. Mutual cooperation in this area will be strengthened," he said.

Modi said both sides agreed that reform in the United Nations and other international institutions is the need of the hour to face various global challenges.

"Terrorism is a big challenge for us. More such cooperation is necessary between countries like India and Poland which believe in humanity," he said.

"Similarly, climate change is a matter of shared priority for us. We both will work for a green future by combining our capabilities," he said.

"Poland will assume the presidency of the European Union in January 2025. I am confident that your cooperation will strengthen the relations between India and the EU," he added.
A special court in Kolkata on Thursday allowed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to conduct a polygraph test on former RG Kar Medical College principal Sandip Ghosh and four other doctors in connection with the alleged rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee at the hospital, officials said.

IMAGE: CBI brings former principal of the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, Dr Sandip Ghosh to CBI Special Crime Branch at CGO complex, Salt Lake in Kolkata on Thursday. Photograph: ANI Photo

The CBI took Ghosh and four other doctors, who were on duty on the date of the incident on August 9, to a special court for seeking its permission to conduct the lie detection test on them, they said.

The lie detection test can only be conducted after a permission from the court and the consent of the suspect, they said.

The CBI application was granted by the Special court. The agency has also sought the polygraph test on main accused Sanjay Roy.

Earlier in the day, the CBI alleged in the Supreme Court that there was an attempt by the local police to cover up the rape and killing of the postgraduate medic as the crime scene was altered by the time the federal agency took over the probe.

The rape and killing of the junior doctor in a seminar hall of the hospital has sparked widespread protests.

The medic's body with severe injury marks was found inside the seminar hall of the hospital's chest department in the morning of August 9.

A civic volunteer of the Kolkata Police was arrested the following day.

On August 13, the Calcutta High Court ordered the transfer of the probe from the Kolkata Police to the CBI, which started its investigation on August 14.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) alleged in the Supreme Court on Thursday that there was an attempt to cover up the rape and killing of a post-graduate medic at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital by the local police as the crime scene was altered by the time the federal agency took over the probe.

IMAGE: Advocate Kapil Sibal speaks in the presence of a three-judge Constitution bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Justice D Y Chandrachud, Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra during the hearing on Kolkata RG Kar Medical College and Hospital doctor rape-murder case and related issues, at the Supreme Court, in New Delhi on Thursday. Photograph: ANI Photo

Appearing in the court on behalf of the CBI, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told a bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud that senior doctors of the hospital as well as the victim's colleagues had asked for videography, which means even they had felt that there was a cover-up.

"We entered the probe on the fifth day. Before that, whatever was collected by the local police was given to us. The investigation itself was a challenge because the scene of offence was altered. The FIR was registered only after the (victim's) cremation at 11.45 pm.

"First, the parents of the victim were informed by the deputy superintendent (of the hospital) that she was not well. When they reached the hospital, they were told that she had committed suicide..... Fortunately, the colleagues of the deceased insisted for videography. This suggests that they were suspecting a cover-up," Mehta told the bench, also comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra.

The solicitor general further submitted that when a call was made to the Tala police station in the morning of August 9, the doctors told the cops that the victim was unconscious, although she was already dead.

Appearing in the court on behalf of the West Bengal government, senior advocate Kapil Sibal opposed Mehta's submissions, saying everything was video-graphed and nothing was altered at the crime scene.

Sibal said the Kolkata Police followed the procedure scrupulously and the CBI's status report only attempts to muddy the waters.

He said the CBI must inform the court what progress it has made in the case in the last one week.

During the hearing, Mehta criticised Sibal for allegedly laughing while he was pointing out the gaps in the registration of the first information report (FIR) by the police.

"A girl has lost her life in the most inhuman and undignified manner. Somebody has died. Do not at least laugh," Mehta told Sibal.

The solicitor general said this is not an attempt to muddy the waters but to remove mud from the waters because the situation involved is delicate.

Sibal said everybody acknowledges that the incident is 'tragic and barbaric'.

*****

Don't politicise, law will take its course: SC

The Supreme Court asked political parties not to politicise the rape and murder incident, and said 'law will take its course'.

The bench told Mehta and Sibal that across the political spectrum, parties have to realise that law will take its course.

Submitting that statements should not be made, Mehta said, "A sitting minister of the State of West Bengal has made a statement that if anybody talks anything against our leader (Mamata Banerjee), his fingers will be chopped off."

Retorting to his submission, Sibal said that 'leader of opposition Suvendu Adhikari has said bullets will be fired'.

The bench said, "Do not politicise the situation. Across the political spectrum, parties have to realise that law will take its course. We are ensuring that law does take its course after quick investigation."

The top court said it is concerned with safety and welfare of doctors and will pass enforceable directions on the issue.

TMC minister Udayan Guha has sparked controversy by claiming that fingers of those blaming West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and demanding her resignation over the RG Kar hospital incident would be broken.

While talking to a news channel, Adhikari had allegedly said, "Resign by Monday or you (Mamata Banerjee) will be held responsible or bullets are fired on Tuesday."

*****

TMC backs Supreme Court's remarks, criticises CBI

The ruling TMC, meanwhile, welcomed the Supreme Court's remark not to politicise the rape-murder and accused the CBI of presenting 'misleading facts'.

"We don't want to comment on what the apex court has said as the matter is sub-judice. However, we welcome the Supreme Court's observation asking political parties not to politicise the matter and directing the protesting doctors to get back to work. Some political parties are trying to politicise the incident, and the CBI is attempting to mislead the public with distorted facts," TMC leader Kunal Ghosh said.

The TMC leader also said the state government will adhere to the court's instructions.

"Political parties that have been attempting to politicise the incident for their vested interests should now learn their lesson," he added.

The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, which has been calling for the resignation of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the incident, also welcomed the SC's observations.

The BJP claimed that the state administration and Kolkata Police's alleged efforts to protect the culprits have been exposed.

"The West Bengal government and Kolkata Police have been trying to protect the culprits and conceal the truth from the beginning. They have also used brute force against protesters. The TMC government was exposed in the Supreme Court today," said Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Renatho Ndou, a Beitbridge-based politician from the Citizens Coalition For Change (CCC), claims that Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) officers, accompanied by other security agents, raided his home, falsely accusing him of involvement in a protest during the recent Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) Summit.Ndou, who ran as a CCC candidate in the Beitbridge East national assembly election last year, was awakened at 3 a.m. on Saturday by "dozens" of state security officials surrounding his home. They accused him of providing a vehicle used to transport tyres that were burned near the Mashavire shopping complex as part of a demonstration during the summit.In an interview, Ndou denied any involvement, stating, "I had no part in that, I don't know anything about it. I cooperated with them and showed them all they were looking for, including details of the movement of my car, which fortunately had been parked well before the time they alleged." He also took the police to see his truck and asked them to interview the security guard, who confirmed with a log book that the vehicle had been parked during the time of the alleged protest, contradicting the accusations. Ndou noted that the officers, realizing their mistake, apologized for the misunderstanding.More than 160 opposition activists and human rights defenders were arrested and denied bail leading up to the summit, as the government accused them of planning protests during the high-level meeting of SADC Heads of State. Efforts to get comments from the police in Gwanda Province were unsuccessful.
Shiv Sena-UBT chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday targeted Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, saying those who feel there is politics behind Badlapur protest over the alleged sexual assault on two minor girls are either abnormal or protectors of the culprits.

IMAGE: Shiv Sena-UBT chief Uddhav Thackeray addresses a press conference in Mumbai. Photograph: @OfficeofUT/X

Thackeray was referring to CM Shinde's claim that the protest was politically motivated and most of the protesters had come from outside.

He said there is no political motive behind the bandh called by the opposition bloc Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) on August 24. The bandh is aimed at creating awareness that the security of women should be a priority and also awakening the government.

He said the protest was not like the much-publicised Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana, which he claimed has been rolled out keeping the upcoming assembly polls in mind. It is the manifestation of anger, he said.

Thackeray wondered what the use of Ladki Bahin Yojana is when sisters in the state are not safe.

"Those who feel there is politics behind the Badlapur protest are either abnormal or protectors of the culprits," the Sena-UBT chief said at a news conference. He also slammed the government for registering cases against the protesters.

A massive protest rocked Badlapur town in Thane district on Tuesday after thousands of people hit the streets and spilled onto railway tracks to protest the alleged sexual assault on two four-year-old girls by a male attendant on the premises of a local school.

At least 25 police personnel were injured in the incidents of stone-pelting at the railway station and other parts of Badlapur during the protest. Police have arrested 72 persons in connection with the violence during the stir.

CM Eknath Shinde on Wednesday said that the protests at Badlapur were politically motivated and most of the protesters were outsiders.

The MVA has called for a Maharashtra bandh on August 24 to protest against the alleged sexual assault on the two girls.

Accusing the government of behaving in a very insensitive way while handling the sexual assault case, Thackeray flayed the government over the delay in registering the FIR. He said the pregnant mother of one of the girls was made to wait for hours.

He also asked where CM Shinde was when the protests took place.
Ghaziabad Police on Thursday arrested a doctor, who married a colleague at an Arya Samaj temple six years ago after the woman's family claimed that he 'converted' to Hinduism just to 'deceive' her.

Image only for representation.

The police have charged the doctor Abdur Rahman (42) under Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021, which bars conversion through force or deception.

Usually, it has been applied in cases where the Muslim men are accused of attempts to convert women to Islam on the pretext of marriage.

Rahman is also accused of causing burn injuries to the woman Harsha Sarangi. He has, however, claimed that she burnt herself while making tea.

The couple married in 2018 and have a son together, the officials said, adding the first information report (FIR) was registered at the Kotwali Police Station here on the complaint of the woman's mother on August 13.

Abdur Rahman and the complainant's daughter Harsha Sarangi had come to know each other while working at a private hospital in Noida, police said.

The accused also acted of adopting Hinduism in order to convince her for marriage, which took place at an Arya Samaj temple on October 15, 2018. But he continued to follow Islam and even gave their son, born in June 2021, a Muslim name, they said.

"After 11 months of his acquaintance with the lady doctor, Rahman converted his religion and became Hindu with an intention to deceive her and tied knot with her at Arya Samaj temple of Noida," DCP (Ghaziabad City) Rajesh Kumar Singh said.

"The FIR in the case was lodged at the Kotwali police station on August 13. Sangvika Sarangi, the mother of lady doctor, also alleged that her daughter was burnt by Rahman for which was treated at a hospital in Delhi," he added.

"However, during the investigation, the police found that Rahman had adopted the Hindu religion for marriage. He never followed the Hindu religion full heartedly. In June 2021, the couple was blessed with a male child. Rahman gave him a name on the Muslim religion and got the child circumcised," the DCP said.

Sarangi alleged in her complaint that Rahman had befriended her daughter as part of 'love jihad', the police officer added.

Right-wing Hindu activists often use the term 'love jihad' to describe a 'conspiracy' to convert Hindu women to Islam by luring them into relationships or marriages.

The accused also has been booked under Indian Penal Code sections 326 (causing grievous hurt) and 420 (cheating).
Dr T V Somanathan is the first finance secretary to be appointed Cabinet secretary since 1985.

His appointment at this juncture seems to carry much meaning for the forthcoming trajectory of reforms and restructuring of India's steel frame.

IMAGE: Finance Secretary Dr T V Somanathan interacts with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman during the pre-Budget meeting with state finance ministers at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, June 22, 2204. Photograph: Jitender Gupta/ANI Photo

Since India's Independence, T V Somanathan will be the second finance secretary to have become Cabinet secretary, the senior-most position in the civil services, also known as India's steel frame.

The first finance secretary to have been elevated to this position was P K Kaul, in February 1985.

It has taken almost four decades before another finance secretary is taking charge of the Cabinet secretariat in Raisina Hill.

So, where did finance secretaries in the past several years disappear after they completed their tenure?

Well, one of them became finance minister (we are referring to H M Patel and not Manmohan Singh, who was economic affairs secretary!), and a few of them joined the Election Commission or the Finance Commission.

And one of them initially became a member of the Planning Commission and later its deputy chairman.

But the largest number of finance secretaries, about half a dozen, moved to Mint Road in Mumbai to head the Reserve Bank of India.

Therefore, a question that is being asked in knowledgeable circles today is why Somanathan was not retained in his current job for a couple of more months and later named the next governor of the RBI.

His move to Mumbai was widely speculated, given his academic background (a PhD in economics), two World Bank stints for about nine years, two years of economic policy making at the prime minister's office, his reputation as a competent as well as trusted civil servant and the fact that at least six of his predecessors over the years headed the central bank.

Remember also that the current governor, Shaktikanta Das, who joined the RBI in December 2018 on a three-year tenure, will complete his extended term in less than four months.

Understandably, the naming of Somanathan as Cabinet secretary at this juncture seems to carry as much meaning for the forthcoming trajectory of reforms and restructuring of India's steel frame as for Das' future.

For Somanathan, a civil servant who has used his strong academic credentials to frame as well as implement the government's economic policies, his elevation as the top bureaucrat will be the fulfilment of a goal that he, like most civil servants, must have cherished all through his career.

His promotion, therefore, must have also been endorsed by his own desire to see himself at the top of the civil service.

Over the years, Somanathan also acquired the reputation of being a civil servant who could work with leaders of different political parties with equal ease and effectiveness.

Not surprisingly, till he joined the finance ministry in December 2019 as expenditure secretary, his career at home swung between working on economic policies for Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the PMO and for Tamil Nadu chief ministers M Karunanidhi and E K Palaniswami.

He joined the Union finance ministry amid minor turmoil.

Within a couple of weeks of the presentation of the Budget for 2019-20 in July, then finance secretary Subhash C Garg was shifted to the power ministry over his reported differences with the finance minister.

A new secretarial team in the finance ministry was in the making, and of that Somanathan soon became the central pivot.

IMAGE: Dr T V Somanathan, standing, extreme left, as Nirmala Sitharaman assumes charge as India's finance minister, June 12, 2024. Photograph: Rahul Singh/ANI Photo

When the pandemic broke out, it was Somanathan who played a critical role in pushing the government's capital expenditure strategy to overcome the challenges.

Coupled with his focus on plugging leakages in expenditure flows and the push for removing off-Budget borrowing to make the government's fiscal deficit real and more transparent, Somanathan became a strong proponent of fiscal prudence and responsibility.

As the head of the committee to reform the new pension scheme to address concerns from sections of employees and some state governments, he has played a significant role in coming close to a resolution.

As Cabinet secretary, Somanathan will have a slightly different role in the government, even as his status in the Warrant of Precedence goes up from 23rd as finance secretary to 11th along with that of the attorney general of India.

IMAGE: Finance Secretary Dr T V Somanathan, third from left, at the meeting Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman chaired with economists in connection with the Budget 2024-2025. Photograph: Rahul Singh/ANI Photo

In 2022, Somanathan had co-authored, along with Gulzar Natarajan, a widely acclaimed book on governance -- State Capability in India, published by Oxford University Press.

The book has several brilliant suggestions on strengthening the civil services framework in the country along with changes in the transfer policy for bureaucrats and steps to make civil servants better policymakers.

Expect many of those suggestions to be implemented by the new Cabinet secretary!

Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com
'General Paddy was amongst the last line of generals who stood by his convictions and brooked no interference in matters which were his domain.'

Lieutenant General Zameer Uddin Shah (retd) salutes his former chief who passed away on August 19.

IMAGE: General Sundararajan Padmanabhan takes over as Chief of the Army Staff in New Delhi, September 30, 2000. Photograph: Pawel Kopczynski/Reuters

General Padmanabhan was affectionately called 'General Paddy'.

He had led a quiet life after retirement, in literary pursuits, as he had maintained that his last appointment was above all sinecures offered.

He declined them all, for good reasons.

He was amongst the last line of generals who stood by his convictions and brooked no interference in matters which were his domain.

He was deeply religious, honest, professionally competent; a man of few words with a subtle sense of humour.

He meant what he said.

The first time we met was when he came on promotion in 1992 as General Officer-Commanding, Golden Arrow Division, in Punjab.

As Colonel (General Staff) I worked closely with him for more than a year. Punjab, at that time, was in turmoil and militancy was at its peak.

I remember an incident when the police armoury at the railway station was raided by militants, at night. They tied up the policemen and escaped with nine weapons.

I woke up General Paddy, who remained unruffled. He gave me directions and said, 'Let the Quick Reaction Teams handle it'.

He delegated responsibility, had trust in his subordinates and never breathed down their necks as long as action was within the broad frame work of orders.

The 'Kharkgus' (insurgents) were very active during that time and the formation had frequent skirmishes with them.

The Arrow Division carried out many successful operations and the situation was brought under control in Southern Punjab.

General Paddy's calm composure and dynamic leadership had a lot to do with it.

IMAGE: Then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee with then army chief General Padmanabhan, Admiral Madhvendra Singh, centre, then chief of the naval staff, and Air Chief Marshal S Krishnaswamy, then chief of the air staff, June 2, 2002. Photograph: B Mathur/Reuters

Subsequently as GOC XV Corps, when insurgents were holed up in the Hazratbal shrine in Srinagar, General Paddy resisted the temptation to bludgeon them out.

The mistakes from Operation Blue Star were not repeated.

He was army chief during Operation Parakram [2001-2002] in response to the terrorist attack on Parliament. I remember his visit to the Bison Division which I was commanding. I projected several problems. The major one was reorganisation and redistribution of the Division's integral resources.

I emphasised that the training and cohesion we had built up would be severely compromised. My point was accepted and problems were speedily resolved.

IMAGE: General Padmanabhan, left, the then new Chief of Army Staff, with outgoing COAS General V P Malik in New Delhi, September 30, 2000. Photograph: Pawel Kopczynski/Reuters

The confidence reposed in me by General Paddy was a source of strength when my formation was air lifted to Gujarat in January 2002 to quell the riots.

On the successful completion of the task I took the liberty of visiting his office and handed him a copy of my report on the Gujarat riots (Operation Aman).

He told me, later, that he had personally handed over the same to the then prime minister.

IMAGE: An army officer presents the National Flag to General Sundararajan Padmanabhan's wife Roopa at a sombre event marking his funeral, in Chennai, August 20, 2024. General Officer Commanding Dakshin Bharat Area Lieutenant General Karanbir Singh Brar also seen. Photograph: ANI Photo

I retired in August 2008 and wrote my memoirs in 2016. I requested General Paddy to pen a note. He magnanimously agreed. It is the best endorsement I have ever received and is printed on the jacket of my book.

In subsequent years, whenever I visited Chennai, I looked up General and Mrs Padmanabhan. They were always warm and hospitable.

Mrs Padmanabhan is the epitome of what an Army wife should be -- supportive, caring and non-interfering.

She has taken her bereavement bravely. We will always stand by her side.

Lieutenant General Zameer Uddin Shah was commissioned in the Regiment of the Artillery in 1968. He served the Indian Army for more than forty years, retiring as the Deputy Chief of Army Staff in 2008. He is popularly known as 'Zoom' by his batchmates and army colleagues.

He spoke to Rediff.com's Archana Masih.

Postscript

Gen Paddy's note on the back cover of General Shah's memoirs:

Many eyebrows were raised when I nominated 'Zoom' to lead the Army complement to Gujarat. Some seniors told me of their misgivings. I told them in no uncertain terms that the choice of troops and their leader was a military decision and not open to debate.

The Army moved into Gujarat led by Zoom whose ability, impartiality and pragmatic decision making soon brought the situation under control.

Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com
Two sons return to their dead father's village to keep alive memories, and are the only ones living in the crumbling hamlet, discovers A Ganesh Nadar.

All photographs: A Ganesh Nadar for Rediff.com IMAGE: A crumbling structure in Meenakshipuram village, Tamil Nadu.

Sekkarakkudi panchayat in the Thoothukudi district of southern Tamil Nadu takes in the villages of north, south and central Sekkarakkudi. And beyond these three hamlets is Meenakshipuram.

The road weaves slowly as it loses texture and soon collapses to a muddy trail. At the end of the trail you see abandoned homes that are slowly collapsing thanks to the relentless Sun and termites who are having a field day.

None of the houses is inhabited except one, which has two brothers.

"We had left this village years ago," says Ravi, 48, the elder brother. "My stubborn father lived here all alone for decades after our mother passed away. He used to cook his own meals and sometimes visit us in Thoothukudi. Last month he passed away so we decided to keep his dream alive and have moved back to the village."

The two brothers have moved back with 22 heads of cattle. A pair of cows to give them milk and 20 bulls for rekla, or bull racing, in Tamil Nadu. It is usually a part of the village temple festival.

Rekla bulls are highly prized and one that wins races can sell for anything between Rs 200,000 and Rs 500,000. Bulls otherwise sell for around Rs 50,000.

There is no water in the village and so the bulls walk five km every day to the nearby Sekkarakkudi village to drink water and graze.

"My family is still in Thoothukudi, they didn't want to come back with me," says Ravi.

Ganapathy, 40, the younger brother, says he had studied up to the 10th standard while the elder one had studied up to the 7th standard. Ganapathy worked as a driver in Thoothukudi and his family still lives there.

Surprisingly there is a water tank with a capacity of 50,000 litres -- unsurprisingly there was no water in it. Water is pumped here from a well in a village five km away.

The writing on the tank was not legible. We could not make out when the tank was built. "The year 2000, I think, not sure," says Ravi.

Their father Kandasamy Naicker, 73, passed away last month. He had been living here all alone while the rest of the villagers left one by one. Lack of water, undependable rains and the sweltering heat had driven the villagers away.

The villagers could not sell their land as there was no one to buy it. A few lucky ones sold out to wind farm companies, literally making a windfall in the process.

The rekla bulls are tied up in the sun. "Tying them in the shade makes them lazy," explains Ganapathy as he gets ready to walk them to drink water and graze. "We will be back before sunset," he says as he sets off.

"I will cook the meals and wait for him," says his elder brother. There is no television or radio in the house. Ravi owns a simple mobile phone, not a smart phone. "My children have smartphones," he says.

Termites are taking over and there is no vegetation as the heat and lack of water discourages plants except the very stubborn ones.

"Sometimes water comes in the tank but the last two days there has been no water and so I will have to get drinking water for myself and my cows from five km away," says Ravi.

A scattering of giant fans that generate electricity from the wind dot the landscape in place of trees.

They turn slowly but relentlessly, unaffected by the harsh climate, and supply electricity to villages far away who are unaware of the plight of the place where they stand.

Though there is no water in the village, there is electricity. "I pay my bills and so there is power, even if it is in only one house. The wires were put up when the village was full of people, with children playing in the mud," Ravi says with a smile.;

"There is a Perumal and Amman temple here which has its own priests. Villagers from this village and neighbouring villages come here to pray on Tuesdays and Fridays," he says. As it is a Friday there are a couple of cars outside the temple.
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
Brattleboro, VT (05301)

Today

Some clouds. Low near 40F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Some clouds. Low near 40F. Winds light and variable.
News / National

by Simbarashe Sithole

A cheeky 27-year-old Plumtree man who bashed his wife all over the body with an axe handle in a domestic dispute was convicted on Thursday by a Plumtree magistrate.Edson Ndlovu was sentenced to three months in jail by Magistrate Joshua Nembaware.Ndlovu was lucky to escape jail after the magistrate conditionally suspended the sentence to 210 hours of community service.The court heard that on August 8 Ndlovu came home drunk and very late.Upon arrival, he accused his 17-year-old wife of cheating and started assaulting her with open hands before picking an axe handle to further assault her and injure her.
BRATTLEBORO  Several recommendations in the community safety review report commissioned in 2020 aren't seen as appropriate, lawful or practic
Langdon, N.H. residents Alex Andrews, 12, Dria Andrews, 10, Raeleigh Walker, 9, and Kristen MacKinnon, 5, look at some of the tadpoles swimming around at the bottom of Hamilton Falls in Jamaica.
Chiles Juntos Films and two of Colombias more renowned actors, Angie Cepeda (Rebellion) and Juan Pablo Raba (Narcos), are boarding drama Domestic Animals by Colombian director Rafael Martinez Moreno, which participates in the Santiago Film Festivals Sanfic Fiction Lab.

Juntos Films joins Ivan Luna and Diana Perez Mejia of Colombias Ferviente Films in adapting the eponymous original story by Antonio Garcia Angel, who co-wrote the screenplay with Diego Canizal (Spain) and Juliana Ospina (Colombia).

More from Variety

In Domestic Animals, Felicidad, a 55-year-old domestic worker in Miami, works for the Ibarra family, who appear perfect but harbor dark secrets. As she becomes part of their luxurious world, she witnesses the collapse of the marriage between Guillermo (Raba), an investor, and Claudia (Cepeda), a former beauty queen. Feeling increasingly distant from her love interest, Luis, Felicidad realizes shes trapped in a facade, much like the neglected fish she cares for in the glass mansion.

When we read Domestic Animals, we recognized it as a quintessentially Latin American story. The journey of its protagonist, Felicidad, is one of immigration, marked by the challenges of inequality and classism, yet navigated with dignity and optimism. Rafaels vision made it clear that his goal was not to romanticize migration but to explore the human experience in all its complexities and contradictions. Its what inspired us to become co-producers on the project, said Francisco Herve and Felipe Egana of Juntos Films.

Our decision also reaffirms our strong partnership with Ferviente Films, with whom weve collaborated closely on this and other ongoing projects, they added, in reference to the upcoming Reina Japonesa, now in development and slated to shoot in April next year.

For Luna, the story explores complex and universal themes, including the pursuit of upper-class status, the ambiguous nature of the American Dream, and the challenges of forming deep connections amid the self-imposed cultural barriers of class. These barriers often confine the characters, leaving them isolated within their own social fishbowls, Luna noted.

Theyre hoping to tap the film funds of Colombia, Chile, and hopefully two other partners, ideally from Mexico and Europe, he said. Principal photography will take place primarily in Colombia, with at least a week in Miami for exteriors. They hope to finish the financing phase next year and shoot by the first semester of 2026, he added.

What captivated me most about this story is that, even though we may seem to come from different worlds, vulnerability unites us, Cepeda remarked.

Pointing to Martinezs debut film El Piedra as proof of his ability to direct actors with great skill, talent and sensitivity, Perez Mejia also noted that having writer Juliana Ospina on board has been vital. Her involvement ensures a crucial feminine perspective in shaping the main characters and the complex relationship between Felicidad and Claudia, which is the focus of the current script revision. This is particularly important to me as a woman, creative producer, and project leader, she told Variety.

Sanfic kicked off on August 18 and wraps on the 25th.

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Lewis Hamilton says the time is right for Formula One to return to Africa as he revealed behind-the-scenes work with Rwanda and South Africa to try to make it happen.

The seven-time F1 world champion spoke ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix after visiting Africa during the sport's August break.

The time's 100 per cent right, he told reporters.

We can't be adding races in other locations and continue to ignore Africa, which the rest of the world just takes from. No one gives anything to Africa.

I think having a grand prix there will really be able to highlight just how great the place is and bring in tourism and all sorts of things. Why are we not on that continent?

There is at least one track that's ready. In the short-term, we should just get on that track and have that part of the calendar, and then work on building out something really cool.

F1 has long wanted to return to Africa for the first time since South Africa's Kyalami circuit last hosted a race in 1993, but financial issues have been a major obstacle.

F1 chief executive Stefano Domenicali said this month that Rwanda wanted to host a race at a permanent circuit, yet to be built, and there would be further discussions in September. Hamilton, F1's first and only black driver, said he would also be speaking with Domenicali.

Rwanda is one of my favourite places I've been to actually, I've been doing a lot of work in the background on it, said the Briton.

I've spoken to people in Rwanda, I've spoken to people in South Africa. That's a longer project, Rwanda, but it's amazing that they're so keen to get a part of it.

Hamilton, 39, has made several visits to Africa with the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR and his latest trip took him to Morocco, Senegal, Benin, Mozambique and Madagascar.

I'm still digesting the trip to be honest, going to a refugee camp and seeing the work that is being done there and how people who are displaced are affected, he said.

It's one thing reading about it, or hearing on the news, but actually seeing and speaking to kids who are walking 10km to get to school just to have an education and then 10k back and not having school meals and being able to eat during the day.

That was really heavy to see and experience and then the history of Senegal and seeing the slave areas was really heavy as well. Through all those experiences I feel it's just adding to my compass of what I want to do moving forwards.
Israel has claimed that the successor to slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has likely been "eliminated," while U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris called Tehran the greatest adversary of the United States.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on October 8 said that Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed militant group and political party that controls much of southern Lebanon, was an "organization without a head."

"Nasrallah was eliminated -- his replacement was probably also eliminated," Gallant told officers at the military's northern command center without providing details.

"There's no one to make decisions, no one to act," he added.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin 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.

Hezbollah is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, while the European Union blacklists its armed wing but not its political party. Hezbollahs political party has seats in the Lebanese parliament.

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 are a mystery since an Israeli strike hit a suspected Hezbollah leadership meeting on October 2.

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.

Meanwhile, Harris told CBS TV's 60 Minutes program in an interview that she considered Iran to be the greatest adversary of the United States.

"Iran has American blood on their hands," she said. "And what we saw in terms of just this attack on Israel, 200 ballistic missiles, what we need to do to ensure that Iran never achieves the ability to be a nuclear power -- that is one of my highest priorities."

Harris -- the Democratic presidential nominee who will face Republican Donald Trump in the November 5 election -- declined to speculate on whether the United States would take military action itself should proof be uncovered that Iran is building a nuclear weapon.

Tehran has denied it is building such weapons and says its nuclear program is for civilian purposes.

The comments came as the battered and bloodied leadership of Hezbollah suggested it might be ready to negotiate a cease-fire with Israel

Deputy leader Naim Qassem, in a televised speech, for the first time did not suggest that ending the war in Gaza was a precondition to reaching a truce with Israel in Lebanon.

Qassem said the group backed an effort by Lebanese parliament speaker Nabih Berri, an ally of Hezbollah, to reach a deal to halt the fighting.

Late on October 8, the Syrian government said that seven civilians were killed in an Israeli air strike in Damascus. A war monitor said the strike targeted a building used by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and Hezbollah.

Israel did not immediately comment and the reports could not be verified.



The Israeli military said earlier on October 8 that it had killed another senior Hezbollah commander, a day after marking the somber anniversary of a Hamas attack on Israel that killed some 1,200 people.

Suhail Husseini, who was responsible for overseeing the logistics, budget, and management of Hezbollah, was killed in a targeted attack on October 7, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement.

"Husseini played a crucial role in weapon transfers between Iran and Hezbollah," the statement said, adding that he was also in charge of distributing advanced weapons to the group's members and for its "most sensitive projects" that included operations against Israel.

The IDF said Husseini was also a member of the Jihad Council, the supreme military body of Hezbollah.

There was no immediate confirmation from Hezbollah.

The Israeli announcement came after Palestinian militants in Gaza fired a barrage of rockets on October 7 into Israel, where President Isaac Herzog led a national moment of silence to mark the start of last year's Hamas attack, which started at Kibbutz Reim in the south of the country.

Hamas has been designated a terrorist organization by both the United States and the European Union.

In Washington on October 7, President Joe Biden condemned Hamas on the anniversary, while also stating again the U.S. administration's commitment to reaching cease-fire agreements to end fighting in both Gaza and Lebanon.

"On this solemn anniversary, let us bear witness to the unspeakable brutality of the October 7 attacks but also to the beauty of the lives that were stolen that day," Biden said in a statement.

In Jerusalem, relatives of the some 100 hostages still in Hamas captivity, out of a total of 250, gathered outside Netanyahu's residence and stood in silence as a siren wailed in a gesture of protest against what relatives say is the failure of the government to secure their loved ones' release.

The conflict in Gaza is still raging while Israel is now fighting on a second front in southern Lebanon against Hezbollah.



Following the October 7 attack, Israel launched a military assault on Gaza that has killed nearly 42,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which is run by Hamas. Some 90 percent of the population of Gaza has been displaced and large areas have been destroyed by Israeli bombardments.



The Israeli military said on October 7 that over the past year it has bombed more than 40,000 targets in Gaza, found 4,700 tunnel shafts and destroyed 1,000 rocket launcher sites.

Israel in recent weeks has been carrying out air strikes across Lebanon, including Beirut, and has staged a ground invasion into south Lebanon in its drive to wipe out Hezbollah's capabilities and leadership.

In the attacks, Israel killed Hezbollah leader Nasrallah and dozens of other leaders of the group.

On October 6, two senior Iranian security officials told Reuters that Ismail Qaani, commander of the Quds Force -- the overseas arm of the IRGC -- had also not been heard from in recent days since traveling to Lebanon.

Tel Avivs campaign against Hezbollah prompted Iran to respond by attacking Israel with a large wave of rockets that were largely shot down by Israeli air defenses without causing substantial damage, but the attack renewed fears of a larger regional conflict.

Gallant on October 6 threatened Iran that it might eventually find itself looking like Beirut or Gaza -- which has also been battered over the past year -- if Tehran attempts to further harm Israel.

With reporting by CBS and AP
One year ago, Hamas -- the U.S.- and EU-designated Palestinian terrorist group that controls the Gaza Strip -- carried out an unprecedented attack on Israel, the deadliest in the countrys history.

In response, Israel launched an aerial bombardment and ground invasion of the Palestinian enclave to destroy Hamas and rescue the 251 hostages taken by the group.

Israel has expanded its war in recent weeks by invading Lebanon and launching air strikes targeting Hezbollah, the armed group and political party that controls much of southern Lebanon.

RFE/RL spoke to Lior Yohanani, manager of quantitative research at the Israel Democracy Institute, a Jerusalem-based independent research center, which on October 7 released a wide-ranging survey of Israeli public opinion after one year of war.

RFE/RL: Can you explain what your study found as to how Israelis view the past year since Hamas's October 7 attack?



Lior Yohanani: Well, I think Israelis still don't see October 7 as an event that's over. Sure, the actual horrific events of that day ended, but Israelis are still living with the consequences.

There are two main aspects to this. First, since October 7, Israel has been in this multifront war that doesn't seem to have an end in sight. And then, of course, there is the issue of the hostages still being held in Gaza. So, we're seeing a sharp drop in people's sense of personal security. Almost three quarters of the public feel less safe compared to before October 7, and that's despite a year of war and some significant military achievements. On the flip side, we're also seeing that most people say their lives have returned to normal when it comes to things like work, media consumption, and family and social gatherings.

Another thing we're noticing is that the Israeli public is giving pretty low marks to all the political and military leaders for the performance since October 7. For example, almost two-thirds of Israelis are rating Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu's performance since then as poor or not good.

RFE/RL: How has Israel's involvement in a two-front conflict, in both Gaza and Lebanon, as well as a confrontation with Iran affected public opinion among Israelis?



Yohanani: It's tough to answer that question, because we're at the point where things could go in a few different directions. In the last few weeks, we've seen a major escalation in the conflict with Hezbollah in Lebanon, and just last week, Iran launched nearly 200 ballistic missiles at Israel, which Israel is expected to respond to. In a survey we just did recently, we asked whether Israeli society and the military could handle fighting on two or more fronts for an extended period of time, and the results were pretty striking. Over 70 percent believe that yes, both Israeli society and the military can handle that kind of prolonged fighting. So, while the situation is complex and evolving, there seems to be a strong sense of resilience and capability among Israelis, even in the face of these multiple threats. But of course, public opinion could shift depending on how events unfold in the coming weeks or months.



RFE/RL: Is there support for Netanyahus response to October 7? Is there debate in Israeli society, as well as political circles, over Netanyahus strategic choices?



Yohanani: First of all, it's important to say that the Israeli public has largely supported significant military operation against Hamas in Gaza. That said, the Israeli discourse around the October 7 events, the ongoing war, and especially toward Prime Minister Netanyahu, is very polarized between right-wing supporters on the one hand and left and center supporters on the other.

People are hoping for a future where Israel can exist without constant threats, rather than expecting a harmonious relationship with its neighbors in the near-term."

So, on the left and the center, there is a high level of distrust and suspicion toward Netanyahu and his government. For instance, Netanyahu's apparent reluctance to pursue a deal for returning the hostages in exchange for ending the fighting in Gaza is seen by large parts of the public, even on the right, as resulting from Netanyahu's dependence on far-right, ultranationalist members of his government who refuse any compromise or ceasefire.

Now for a long time, Netanyahu and his ministers argued that only significant military force would lead Hamas to compromise and release the hostages. Now, with military attention and resources shifting to the north, people are asking, where is this massive military force that was supposed to bring the hostages home?

One question we have asked several times since October 7 in our polls is what should be the main goal in Gaza: Dismantling Hamas or bringing back the hostages? And as time goes on, public opinion is increasingly supporting the return of hostages. In our current survey, 62 percent saw bringing the bringing back the hostages as Israel's main goal, while only 29 percent pointed to dismantling Hamas as the primary objective.

RFE/RL: How do ordinary Israelis see the question of the remaining hostages amid the continued protests by the hostages' families?



Yohanani: As I mentioned before, most of the public supports a deal to release the hostages, even if it means ending the war and withdrawing the military forces from Gaza. There's this widespread feeling that we've left the hostages behind, and that's really hitting at our sense of solidarity, which is a deep and fundamental value, I think, in Jewish history in general and in Israel society in particular.

At the same time, the campaign run by the Hostages And Missing Families Forum has become very politicized. Many right-wing supporters see it as weakening Israel. As time goes on, we're seeing more and more harassment of protesters who support bringing the hostages back. There are cases of passersby cursing, even hitting and throwing eggs, at hostages' families. In our latest survey, we asked about the effectiveness of the protests and actions taken by the hostages' families.

Despite most of the public feeling empathetic toward the hostage issue, only less than a third think these actions are actually helping to advance a deal for the hostages' release, while almost 40 percent think they're actually hurting the cause. So, you've got this complex situation where people want the hostages back, but there is disagreement and some backlash about how to make that happen.

RFE/RL: Can you explain the reasons behind the apparent contradiction in views regarding prioritizing a negotiated return of the hostages, or destroying Hamas?

Yohanani: You're right to point out that apparent contradiction. Let me break it down a bit. As I mentioned earlier, a clear majority of the public sees a deal to release the hostages as the main goal. But there is a big gap between political camps on this issue. In the center and left, about 80 percent support the deal for the hostages' release, while the opinions on the right are evenly split. So, for most of the left and center, the fighting in Gaza has run its course. They feel most military objectives have been achieved, and Hamas's military power has been significantly weakened. From their perspective, continuing the fight now only puts the hostages at greater risk.

It's important to know that about half of the right-wing also shares this view of prioritizing the hostages' release, but the other half of those on the far-right thinks dismantling Hamas is more important.

Why? For a couple of reasons.

First, there's a security stance that Hamas must be wiped out and not allowed to recover. There is also a very strong sentiment of revenge, with minimal consideration for the cost, whether it's the lives of the hostages, soldiers, let alone innocent civilians in Gaza. Another significant component openly discussed in religious nationalist circles is the return of Jewish settlement to the Gaza Strip after Israel evacuated Jewish settlements from there in 2005.

RFE/RL: Is there public confidence that Israel will ultimately be able to remove the threat of Hamas and Hezbollah and come out of this conflict with greater prospects for a peaceful and stable near-term future?



Yohanani: Right now, the Israeli public isn't showing a lot of optimism. In our current survey, when we asked people if they're optimistic or pessimistic about Israel's future, we found more pessimists, 48 percent, than optimists, 45 percent.

I also think it's important to note that a peaceful future, as you put it, or peace in general, isn't really a common concept in the current Israeli discourse. I would say the hope of Israelis is that the military actions against Hezbollah and Iran will lead to a situation where Israel's existence isn't in question, and that Israeli military superiority will prevent events like October 7 from happening again. So, it's less about peace in the traditional sense, and more about security and deterrence. People are hoping for a future where Israel can exist without constant threats, rather than expecting a harmonious relationship with its neighbors in the near-term.
Ukrainian forces sank a Russian ferry carrying fuel tanks in a missile strike on a port in Russia's southern Krasnodar region on August 22, Russian officials said.

"As a result of the damage, the ferry sank in the waters of the Kavkaz port," the Krasnodar region's operational headquarters said on Telegram.

The headquarters reported earlier that "a railroad ferry with fuel tanks in the Kavkaz port was attacked" and that emergency services had been dispatched. Images circulating on social media showed a plume of dark smoke rising in the area of the ferry crossing.

The port sits in the Kerch Strait separating Russia from Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula that Moscow illegally annexed in 2014. Ukraine has issued no official comment on the incident, but Darya Zarivna, a communications adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, posted a photo on Telegram showing a large fire at the port and the word "Beautiful."

Fyodor Babenkov, the district head of the Russian town of Temryuk, was quoted by Reuters as saying the ferry was carrying 30 fuel tanks. The vessel sustained significant damage as a result of the attack, which caused a fire, Babenkov said.

The Russian state-run news agency RIA Novosti said five people were on the vessel at the time of the attack and were unaccounted for. The Russian online news channel Baza reported that the number of people on board was 15 and all were missing.

All port employees were evacuated, TASS reported citing the Transport Ministry.

Ukraine in recent weeks has taken bold steps, including a surprise incursion into Russia's Kursk region and attacks on fuel storage facilities and airfields inside Russia used to conduct attacks on Ukraine's civilian infrastructure, in an effort to turn the tide of the war.

A drone strike earlier on August 22 on an airfield hundreds of kilometers inside Russia was the work of Ukraine's military intelligence, security sources told RFE/RL.

Zelenskiy, meanwhile, traveled to Ukraine's Sumy region that borders Kursk for the first time since the start of Ukraine's invasion there on August 6.

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) together with the Special Operations Forces early on August 22 struck the Marinovka airfield in Russia's Volgograd region, located 275 kilometers east of the Ukrainian border, SBU sources told RFE/RL on the condition of anonymity.

After the impact, "plumes of black smoke and a powerful detonation" occurred on the airfield surface, the SBU source said.

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 strike targeted a storage site for fuel, antitank missiles, and glide bombs, the security source said.

Earlier, Russian Telegram channels, citing eyewitnesses, reported a series of explosions at Marinovka, and the Astra channel on Telegram posted a video showing what appeared to be a large explosion and plumes of black smoke rising above the airfield.

Volgograd Governor Andrei Bocharov said drone strikes ignited a fire at a military facility in the region but claimed the attack had been repelled.

"As a result of the UAV crash, a fire broke out on the territory of a ministry facility. Fire and rescue services quickly began extinguishing the fire," Bocharov said on Telegram, adding that there were no casualties.

Meanwhile, the airport of regional capital Volgograd, a city of some 1 million people 55 kilometers east of Marinovka, restricted the arrivals and departures of commercial aircraft.

Volgograd is the current name of Tsaritsyn, which from 1925 to 1961 bore the name Stalingrad, after Soviet dictator Josef Stalin. Stalingrad became famous for its repelling a monthslong Nazi siege in 1942-1943 during World War II.

The General Staff of the Ukrainian military said late on August 22 that 135 combat clashes had taken place at the front during the day, and that Russia continues to concentrate its main efforts in the Pokrovsk area, where it attacked Ukrainian positions 53 times.

A Russian military strike killed a 56-year-old man and injured eight others in the Kharkiv region of northeastern Ukraine, the Ukrainian Prosecutor-General's Office said .The injured included a 15-year-old boy, while residential buildings were also damaged.

After Zelenskiy met with Ukraine's top military commander, Oleksandr Syrskiy, in Sumy, a Russian drone attack killed two civilians and wounded a third.



During his visit to Sumy, Zelenskiy was briefed by Syrskiy on the operational situation in the area controlled by Ukrainian forces in Russia's Kursk, Ukraine's presidential administration said in a statement.

Sumy Governor Volodymyr Artyukh told Zelenskiy that following the start of Ukraine's operation in Kursk, the number of cross-border shellings and the casualties among civilians had dropped drastically, also allowing the start of infrastructure repairs badly needed after months of incessant Russian bombardments, the statement said.

Ukraine's leadership has repeatedly stated that its bold move into Kursk aims to establish a buffer zone inside Russia meant to protect Ukrainian civilians from cross-border Russian shelling.

Ukraine has also said it is not pursuing territorial gains from Russia.
YEREVAN -- Following a historic prisoner swap between Russia and the West this month, Armine, an ethnic Armenian displaced from the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, watched footage of the exchanged Russians disembarking from their plane and being greeted on the tarmac by Russian President Vladimir Putin -- rewinding and replaying it in disbelief. Among those returning home were convicted Russian spies and one convicted assassin. But Armine, whom RFE/RL is identifying with a pseudonym due to security concerns, recognized another one: a Spanish journalist who had been a frequent visitor to Nagorno-Karabakh -- particularly during times of escalating tensions there. "I met Pablo about 10 years ago. He introduced himself as a Spanish journalist and was eager to interview Karabakh officials, visit the seven districts around Karabakh, and talk to the locals," Armine told RFE/RL's Armenian Service. "He made many contacts in Karabakh and was warmly received. Strangely enough, the Karabakh authorities -- who were typically suspicious of outsiders -- had no doubts about Pablo," she added. The man Armine recognized is Pablo Gonzalez, Spanish-Russian freelance journalist who is identified in his Russian passport as Pavel Rubtsov. He was arrested in Poland in 2022 on charges of spying for Russian military intelligence, known as the GRU.

Armine is one of more than a dozen people who spoke to RFE/RL's Armenian Service about their encounters with Gonzalez in Nagorno-Karabakh, which was a predominantly ethnic Armenian region before it was recaptured by Azerbaijan after the attack on September 19, 2023. Most said they found nothing suspicious about the visitor, who in addition to reporting about hostilities in the region wrote about Armenia's nuclear power plant and used his status as a journalist to interview Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and snap photographs inside the ruling Civil Contract party headquarters. They did note that Gonzalez, 42, demonstrated an appetite for covering conflict. "He was not afraid of war at all," said Sergey Shahverdian, the former director of Stepanakert's Hotel Europe, where Gonzalez stayed.

Just days after Putin launched Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Polish authorities arrested Gonzalez in the border town of Przemysl, through which hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war have passed. Following the arrest, Poland's counterintelligence agency alleged Gonzalez had "carried out his activities for Russia using his journalistic status." Richard Moore, the head of Britain's MI6 foreign spy service, said later in 2022 that Gonzales was a deep-cover spy who was "trying to go into Ukraine to be part of their destabilizing efforts there." Polish prosecutors last week formally indicted Gonzalez, accusing him of supplying the GRU with information that was potentially "harmful" to Poland and NATO, though after the prisoner swap he is now beyond Warsaw's reach. While Polish authorities have not officially disclosed further details, journalistic investigations have previously found that Gonzalez had ingratiated himself with Russian opposition activists and compiled reports on them. Karo Sahakian, an Armenian photographer who says he first met Gonzalez during the 2020 war over Nagorno-Karabakh, told RFE/RL's Armenian Service that he "didn't notice anything suspicious" about him. "I'm still not 100 percent sure," Sahakian said. 'He Did Not Hide' During the 2020 war, Gonzalez checked into the Hotel Europe in Stepanakert -- now called Xankendi under Azerbaijani rule -- several hundred miles from what would later become the Russian-Ukrainian front. "You couldn't mistake him for anyone else," Shahverdian, the former director of the hotel who was displaced from the region along with tens of thousands of other ethnic Armenians, told RFE/RL's Armenian Service. Shahverdian says Gonzalez registered locally as a Spanish citizen and an independent journalist, and that unlike many journalists he would rush to the battlefronts like a trained soldier. "He did not hide in bomb shelters or fear bombings," Shahverdian said. "We appreciated his resilience a lot."

Shahverdian noted that the alleged spy "spoke Russian very well." "He would explain that he was born and raised in Russia, and that his grandparents were communists," Shahverdian said. A profile of Gonzalez by U.S.-funded broadcaster VOA, for which he had contributed reporting as a freelancer, cited his wife and a friend as saying that his late grandfather, Andres Gonzalez, fled with his family as a child from Spain to the Soviet Union during the Spanish Civil War. He moved to Spain with his mother at age 9, VOA reported. Both Armenian and foreign journalists who knew Gonzalez described him as cheerful, humorous, and quick to make friends -- a person who loved noisy gatherings where he often showed off his tattoos. "He had a tattoo of Tatik-Papik ("Grandmother and Grandfather"), a statue widely regarded as a symbol of Karabakh," the photographer Sahakian told RFE/RL's Armenian Service. "He would say that the Karabakh war was close to his heart, which is why he got the tattoo."

Gonzalez introduced himself as Basque and an independent journalist, Sahakian recalled. He spoke with Sahakian only in English and worked alone, never with accompaniment, the photographer added.

Probing Armenian Domestic Politics Gonzalez also took a keen interest in Armenia's domestic political affairs, particularly in Yerevan's relations with its neighbors. During the 2020 war, he managed to secure an interview with Pashinian on behalf of the Spanish news agency EFE -- Gonzalez's only known face-to-face interview with a head of government. According to a transcript of the October 2020 interview released by Pashinian's office, Gonzalez asked him about the course of the war and whether Moscow was doing everything it could to fulfill its obligations under its strategic alliance with Yerevan. "We do feel Russia's support as a strategic partner of Armenia, and we do feel Russia's mediation efforts," Pashinian said. "We see these mediation efforts for establishing stability in the region and achieving a peaceful resolution." Gonzalez also asked Pashinian why Russian border guards had been deployed along the border between Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia, according to reports published by Russian state media outlets. His questioning of Pashinian on that issue was not included in either the EFE report or in the transcript released by the Armenian leader's office. Russia's state-run RIA Novosti noted the absence of this part of the interview in the official transcript and the EFE report, explaining that Gonzalez had shown its reporter this part of the interview.

A year after the war over Nagorno-Karabakh, Gonzalez wrote about the conflict on his Spanish-language website, and he continued to visit Armenia, including during the 2021 snap parliamentary elections. Following the war, the Armenian opposition along with high-ranking military officials demanded Pashinian's resignation. Gonzalez covered Armenia's political landscape at the time, taking photographs in the offices of Pashinian's ruling Civil Contract party and attending a press conference held by the country's second president, Robert Kocharian. RFE/RL's Armenian Service spoke with people both from the pro-government and opposition circles about Gonzalez, but in stark contrast to those he encountered in Nagorno-Karabakh, none seems to remember him. During this period, Gonzalez also focused on another issue of strategic importance: Armenia's Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant and its energy cooperation with Russia. On his Spanish-language website, Gonzalez published an article featuring information about the nuclear power plant's location, the capacity of its reactors, the number of reactors in operation, and Russian fuel supplies for the facility. The article also addressed whether Armenia would build a new nuclear power plant and, if so, whether Yerevan would award the contract to Russia once again. Getting 'Back To Work' After Gonzalez descended onto the tarmac following the August 1 prisoner exchange, Putin greeted him on a red carpet with a warm handshake. His fellow returnees included Vadim Krasikov, a former Russian FSB officer convicted of the 2019 murder of ex-Chechen field commander Zelimkhan Khangoshvili in Berlin. Gonzalez was wearing a Star Wars T-shirt that read: "Your Empire Needs You."
Ukraine's military said its forces came under repeated attack on August 21 around the town of Pokrovsk in the Donetsk region, where Russian forces are pressing for a breakthrough.

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 statement, the General Staff of the Ukrainian military said there were 46 Russian attacks in the Pokrovsk area over the course of day. Of these, 44 were repelled and two were ongoing into the evening hours local time.

It also said 238 Russian troops were killed or wounded in the same area on August 21. It did not disclose Ukrainian losses, and it was not possible to verify the number of Russian soldiers killed.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukraine's military was responding to the Russian push by strengthening its forces around Pokrovsk, one of the hottest areas of the front.

The Ministry of Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine has ordered a forced evacuation of children with their parents or legal representatives from certain districts of the Donetsk region, including Pokrovsk.

There were dozens of other clashes across the front line on August 21. Most of them were repelled, according to the General Staff, but some continued into the late evening hours.

The governor of the Bryansk region of Russia, Aleksandr Bogomaz, said Russian forces prevented an attempted incursion into the region by Ukrainian troops. Bogomaz said the attempted breakthrough occurred in the Klimovo district of the region, which borders the Chernihiv region of Ukraine.

"The enemy has been hit by fire. Currently, the situation at the site of the clash has stabilized," Bogomaz said on Telegram.

Ukraine said separately that it had destroyed a Russian pontoon bridges with U.S.-made weapons in Russia's Kursk region. A video posted by Ukrainian special forces showed strikes on several pontoon crossings after Russia reported that Ukraine has destroyed at least three bridges over the Seym River.

"Where do Russian pontoon bridges 'disappear' in the Kursk region? Operators...accurately destroy them," Ukraine's Special Operations Forces said on Telegram.

Claims of battlefield success could not be independently verified.

The Kremlin believes the fighting to repel Ukraine's incursion into the Kursk region will last for months and is trying to prepare the public for this "new normal," sources close to the Russian presidential administration and the government have told the Meduza and Verstka news websites.

The reports came as Russia is battling to repel the two-week-old Ukrainian incursion into its region bordering Ukraine, where Kyiv's forces say they control more than 1,260 square kilometers and 92 settlements.

The news outlets said the Ukrainian incursion "shocked" Russian elites, but now that the initial shock has passed, "they've gotten used to it."

'New Reality'

At the same time, the Kremlin is using its propaganda machine to try and prepare Russians for life in the conditions of a "new reality" and "new normality," said the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

"The Kremlin proposes convincing Russians that an enemy that breaks through to Russian territory will face 'inevitable defeat,' but 'the return of territories will take time and Russians need to wait,'" one of the sources said.

Russian elites are expecting the resignations of those responsible for the Ukrainian breakthrough, a source told Meduza.

Ukraine's leadership has repeatedly clarified that its bold move into Kursk is meant to establish a buffer zone inside Russia meant to protect Ukrainian civilians from cross-border Russian shelling.

The American Institute for the Study of War said Ukrainian forces continued to advance along the entire front line in Kursk.

Earlier on August 21, Ukrainian naval forces struck a Russian S-300 antiaircraft complex in Russia's Rostov region, Ukraine's General Staff reported, while Russia said it was subjected to one of the most intense waves of Ukrainian drone strikes that ever targeted the capital, Moscow.

Ukraine's General Staff said the strike against the S-300 missile complex near the settlement of Novoshakhtinsk in the Rostov region was carried out by naval force units and the consequences of the strike are still being evaluated.

"Russian invaders also use S-300 missiles to attack peaceful Ukrainian cities, destroying residential buildings and terrorizing the civilian population," the General Staff said.

Rostov regional Governor Vasily Golubev separately said a Ukrainian missile had been shot down in the region, without giving details.

Meanwhile, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said Ukrainian drones targeted the Russian capital in one of the largest such attacks, adding that air defenses shot down 10 of the drones.



"This is one of the largest attempts to attack Moscow with drones of all time," Sobyanin wrote, adding no casualties or material damage were reported.

Russia's Defense Ministry separately said its air defense systems shot down 45 Ukrainian drones.

"Eleven drones were destroyed over the Moscow region, 23 over the Bryansk region, six over the Belgorod region, three over the Kaluga region, and two over the Kursk region," it said.
In the days immediately after Ukraine's audacious August 6 cross-border invasion into Russia's Kursk region, the message dominating the airwaves on state-run TV and sympathetic media was this: Russian President Vladimir Putin is in charge. Russia's military will repel the Ukrainian incursion. The war against Ukraine itself, now in its 30th month, will continue to victory.

Now, as the Ukrainian successes continue more than two weeks in, cracks are spreading in the message that the Kremlin wants the Russian public to hear.

On the talk show hosted on state TV by Vladimir Solovyov -- an influential media personality known for occasionally outlandish propaganda -- some commentators have spoken openly about the Russian military's failures in Kursk and have warned that things are likely to get worse.

"We must proceed from the fact that we can lose," Karen Shakhnazarov, a prominent film director, said on August 13. "If there are more mistakes like this, we may lose. And this is not defeatism, this is not alarmism. This is an absolute understanding of the price that we and our homeland will have to pay."

"[We must] prepare for the worst-case scenario: these territories -- God willing, without people -- will have to be sacrificed," Maksim Yusin, a commentator known for his pro-government views, said on August 12 on the talk show Meeting Place, hosted on the Gazprom-owned channel NTV.

For the overwhelming majority of Russians, television -- dominated by state-controlled channels -- is the medium where they consume news. Coverage of the entire war against Ukraine has extolled the heroics of Russian soldiers and highlighted the grinding progress Russian troops have made -- even while downplaying, or ignoring, the eye-watering number casualties suffered since February 2022.

Dispelling A Myth

If nothing else, Ukraine's incursion dispels the myth of the might of the Russian armed forces, said Rustem Adagamov, a widely read liberal blogger who now lives outside of Russia.

"Not only does the Russian Federation not have an army to reach the English Channel or to capture something in Latvia or Estonia, the Russian Federation does not have an army to simply defend its own territory, to protect Russians," he wrote in a post on his blog. "It turns out that it is not capable of this at all."

Aleksandr Morozov, a political scientist who also now lives outside the country, said the way the Kremlin has responded publicly to the Ukraine invasion is damning.

"Let's imagine any other country: The president makes an address to the nation; there is an emergency meeting of parliament, etc.," he wrote on his blog. Instead, "we are historical witnesses of something amazing: the president holds some working meetings, parliament goes on vacation."

"There is deafening silence; neither the heads of the upper and lower houses nor the head of government, nor any state council, that is, not a single similar institution that might exist in other countries, has addressed the population with anything," Morozov said.

"For the most part, neither the authorities nor the people perceive this as an enemy invasion; rather it's viewed as a natural disaster," Aleksandr Plyushchev, a liberal-leaning journalist, said in a commentary on his YouTube channel.

The Kremlin and its various power centers -- the presidential administration, the Federal Security Service, and the Security Council -- are famously difficult to pry information from, particularly in times of crisis.

More Russians Anxious Or Concerned

However, a survey conducted by a government-linked pollster, the Public Opinion Foundation, known as FOM, found Russians are not entirely happy with what is happening. The pollster found a sharp jump in the number of Russians saying they were anxious or concerned. The survey, however, also found a slight increase in the level of trust in Putin.

Citing unnamed officials in the presidential administration and elsewhere, Meduza, the exiled Russian-language online publication, said the Kremlin is trying to find a way to level with the Russian public, but without causing panic.

"The Kremlin, with the help of propaganda, is trying to prepare Russians for life in the conditions of a new reality' or a new normal,'" the Riga-based outlet said.

The idea that the authorities might be trying to prepare the population for an extended fight on Russian territory, rather than working to defeat the Ukrainian troops, angered some commentators.

"What are you preparing people for, experts?! For the surrender of Shebekino, Bryansk, and, finally, Crimea?" Platon Besedin, a pro-government publicist wrote in a post to Telegram, referring to a Russian border town, a western regional capital, and the Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula that was seized by Russia in 2014.

"Yes, in normal times, they would give you a helmet and send you to the front for this, but instead here we have only miracles!" he wrote.

'Putin's Next Moves Are All Bad'

Dmitry Gudkov, a liberal politician who was famously kicked out of parliament and now lives outside of Russia, said the Kursk invasion has brought the Russian authorities to a dead end.

"Putin's next moves are all bad," he wrote on Telegram. "But the further you go, the higher the risk of the people's muted discontent morphing into mass unrest."

Also telling is the label that the Kremlin has bestowed upon the invasion itself. The entire 30-month war on Ukraine is officially called a "special military operation," according to government regulations, not a "war."

Similarly, said Dmitry Kolezev, the former editor of the online magazine Republic, the Russian response to the Ukrainian invasion is described with the euphemism -- "counterterrorism operation."

"Perhaps the whole point is that the Russian authorities are avoiding calling a spade a spade," Kolezev wrote.

"Firstly, with all its might, the Russian state is showing that it does not need this: It does not declare war, does not impose martial law, but activates a counterterrorism operation," he said. "Should civilians take up arms here? And where can I get a weapon anyway?"

"By this logic, a civilian should move away [from the invasion] since this is a professional battle against terrorists,'" he said.
Ukrainian authorities scrambled to evacuate residents from the town of Myrnohrad in the eastern Donetsk region as Russian troops advance. Located only a few kilometers from Pokrovsk, which local authorities fear could soon fall, about 1,500 residents of Myrnohrad were evacuated on August 20. Authorities say some 50,000 people still live in Pokrovsk and the surrounding areas, including some 16,000 in Myrnohrad.
1 Children huddle up for warmth as they try to sleep on the pavement with their belongings in the Hungarian town of Kocs, about 70 kilometers west of Budapest, on August 22. They were evicted from a privately owned shelter after a Hungarian government directive limited free shelter to refugees from conflict-affected regions of Ukraine.
A charity cycle in memory of a 21-month-old boy will pass through his native Ballaghaderreen on Friday (tomorrow).

CJs Rainbow Charity Cycle commenced in Malin Head earlier today (Thursday) and will travel down the country to Mizen Head, County Cork, over the coming days.

I wanted to do something that was a real challenge, so I chose the Malin to Mizen route, as opposed to Mizen to Malin, as its against the prevailing winds. The way I saw it, CJ didnt get to decide on the mammoth challenge that was put before him, explained CJs father Joe, from Ballaghaderreen.

CJ passed away, aged just 21 months, last October, when he lost his battle with an aggressive brain cancer, ATRT (Atypical Teratoid Rhabdoid Tumour).

Now, 21 cyclists, one for each month of his life, will be led on a nationwide adventure by his Dad Joe as they take on a gruelling Malin Head to Mizen Head challenge to raise money for two of the charities  Hand-in-Hand and Oscars Kids  who both supported the McCann family during their childhood cancer journey.

Joe and his team are looking for the people on the west coast of Ireland to colour the route in memory of CJ, so towns and villages are being urged to get their flags, balloons and bunting out to support the cycle and raise awareness of childhood cancer.

CJ McCann who passed away at just 21 months old.

As part of the gruelling 630km cycle, there is sure to be a huge crowd in Ballaghaderreen on Friday afternoon at approximately 12.30 p.m. to welcome Joe and his entourage before the cycle meanders down the country in the hope of reaching Mizen Head on Sunday next.

Hand-in-Hand is a national childhood cancer charity, based in Loughrea, which supports families all over Ireland, helping them to cope with the impact of treatment on family life. For the McCann family, this has included play therapy for CJs sisters, Roisin (8) and Clodagh (6), which is immensely beneficial to them in coping with the loss of their little brother, and was also a vital outlet for them during CJs treatment.

The second charity to benefit from the fundraising cycle is Oscars Kids, who support families coping with a child's terminal cancer diagnosis. The charity aims to create moments of magic during the toughest of times. Their incredible support enabled the McCann family to plan CJs Magical Christmas last September  the only Christmas spent with CJ at home. A public appeal saw 40,000 Christmas cards delivered to the familys door.

The cyclists are dedicating the cycle to CJ and other children who are currently battling cancer, or those who have left this world too soon.

Those children  they are the real heroes. What they endure, how they get through it, how they keep smiling. Its just incredible, concluded Joe.

To donate, please click here
SGPC President Demands 'Anti-Sikh film 'Emergency' should be banned immediately'

FIR should be filed against Kangana Ranaut for character assasinating Sikhs: Advocate Dhami

Emergency Film Controversy: The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) President Advocate Harjinder Singh Dhami has demanded an immediate ban on the film 'Emergency', which portrays the character of Sikhs in a wrong way. He said that this film has been made by actress Kangana Ranaut, who remains in controversy due to her anti-Sikh and anti-Punjab expressions, with the intention of deliberately character assassinating Sikhs, which the Sikh community cannot tolerate.

Harjinder Singh Dhami said that by creating an anti-Sikh narrative about the great martyrs of June 1984, is a despicable act of disrespecting the community. He said that the community can never forget the anti-Sikh brutality of June 1984 and Sant Jarnail Singh Khalsa Bhindranwale has been declared a Qaumi Shaheed (communitys martyr) by Sri Akal Takht Sahib, while Kangana Ranaut's film is trying to character assassinate him. He said that Kangana Ranaut has often deliberately made expressions that provoke the sentiments of Sikhs, but instead of taking action against her, the government is protecting her. He said that the government should file a case against Kangana Ranaut for inciting the religious sentiments of Sikhs for her act through the film Emergency.

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Expressing strong objection, Harjinder Singh Dhami said that it is clear from the released excerpts of the Emergency film that it has deliberately misrepresented the character of Sikhs as separatists, which is part of a deep conspiracy.

The SGPC president said that on the one hand, the release of the film 'Punjab '95', made on the life of human rights Sikh activist Bhai Jaswant Singh Khalra, was not approved even after 85 cuts, while this Emergency film presented false facts about Sikh community has been given clearance immediately. He said these double standards are not in the interest of the country, so the government needs to seriously discuss this issue.

Harjinder Singh Dhami said that there have been many such cases related to films in the past when Sikh sentiments have been hurt due to the misrepresentation of Sikh characters and the religious concerns of Sikhs. He demanded an immediate ban on the Emergency film of Kangana Ranaut from Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting Shri Ashwini Vaishnav and said that it should be ensured from now on that no film with anti-Sikh sentiments is released. Harjinder Singh Dhami called for the inclusion of Sikh members in the Central Board of Film Certification, as biased decisions are being taken due to the absence of a Sikh member.

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He said that the SGPC has earlier passed resolutions in its general meeting several times and demanded that a representative of Sikhs must be included in the Central Board of Film Certification, but it is sad that the government is not implementing the same. The SGPC President said that it is very important to ban this film because it is natural that the release of this film will cause a lot of anger and resentment in the Sikh community.

(For more news apart from Emergency Film Controversy, stay tuned to Rozana Spokesman)
Zirakpur Rape Case: School bus driver rapes Class 12 student

The accused has been identified as a Manimajra resident.

Zirakpur Class 12 Student Rape By School Bus Driver Case Latest News: While the Kolkata horror recently shocked the entire country, another shocking case has been reported from Zirakpur wherein a Class 12 student was raped by the school bus driver.

In the meanwhile, a case has been registered against the school bus driver for editing the photo of a Class 12 student of a private school in Chandigarh, and threatening to kill her younger sister. The accused has been identified as a Manimajra resident.

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Zirakpur police station in-charge Jaskanwal Singh Sekhon said that he had received a complaint from the victim, on which the police has registered an FIR by taking immediate action.

The victim who complained to the police said that she is a student at a private school in Chandigarh. The School bus driver often chased her and one day the accused forcibly stopped her in the school parking lot and asked her to be friends. The student protested and refused after which the driver started blackmailing her by editing her photo.

The police said that the accused did not stop stalking her and edited a photo of her from a function to make her naked and threatened to make it viral on social media. On May 18, when the family was not at home, he forced his way in. He threatened to kill her younger sister if she did not have sexual relations.

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The victim got scared and the accused forced sexual relations with her. The accused forced her to have physical relations with her several times by threatening to make her morphed pictures go viral and to kill her sister. One day when her health deteriorated, her family asked the reason and she told the whole story.

(For more news apart from Zirakpur Rape Case School bus driver rapes Class 12 student Latest News, stay tuned to Rozana Spokesman)
Badlapur Case: If schools are unsafe, whats use of right to education, says Bombay HC

The matter will now be heard next on August 27.

Bombay High Court on Badlapur alleged sexual assault case latest news: In a major development, the Bombay High Court Thursday raised serious concerns about school safety, stating that if schools arent safe, discussions on the right to education lose significance.

Even four-year-old girls are not being spared. This situation is extremely shocking, said Justice Mohite-Dere, as the Bench heard matters related to the alleged sexual assault of two minors at a school in Badlpur.

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The court slammed the Badlapur police and asked why there was a delay in the recording of statements.

Advocate General Birendra Saraf, appearing for the state government, assured the court that all necessary steps would be taken to protect children, and a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been set up for the investigation.

The court has also asked for an affidavit from the state government regarding the details of the actions taken by Badlapur Police before the case was transferred to the SIT.

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The matter will now be heard next on August 27.

(For more news apart from Bombay High Court on Badlapur alleged sexual assault case latest news, stay tuned to Rozana Spokesman)
Kolkata rape-murder case: AIIMS Doctors Call Off 11-Day Strike Following Supreme Court's Assurance

Recently, the Supreme Court urged the protesting doctors to resume their duties.

Kolkata rape-murder case: The Resident Doctors' Association (RDA), AIIMS, New Delhi, on Thursday called off the 11-day strike after an assurance from the Hon'ble Supreme Court.

RDA, in a press communique, stated that "In the interest of the nation and in the spirit of public service, the RDA, AIIMS, New Delhi, has decided to call off 11-day strike. This decision comes in response to the appeal and direction of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India. We extend our sincere appreciation to the Supreme Court for taking cognizance of the RG Kar Medical College incident and addressing the broader issue of safety and security for healthcare workers across the country."

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"We also commend the formation of the National Task Force to ensure that these concerns are addressed promptly and effectively. We strongly urge the authorities to strictly adhere to the directives issued by the Supreme Court. Furthermore, we appreciate the court's directive that no punitive action be taken against the protesting doctors," it added.

Furthermore, they wrote: "We thank everyone who supported us in our pursuit of justice. Our commitment to our responsibilities remains steadfast, and we will continue to advocate for the rights and safety of healthcare workers through engagement with various authorities, ministries, institutional heads, members of the National Task Force, and the Honourable Supreme Court and our demand for CPA."

"Our primary responsibility- "patient care" remains our utmost priority, and we are dedicated to upholding it. We stand united in our mission. We will continue our struggle through symbolic protest after duty hours till justice is served and implementation of safety guidelines," it concluded.
Flash composite Purchasing Managers' survey results from the euro area and the UK are due on Thursday, headlining a busy day for the European economic news.

At 2.00 am ET, Statistics Norway publishes GDP data for the second quarter. The mainland Norway is forecast to grow 0.2 percent sequentially, the same as in the first quarter.

In the meantime, new orders and industrial inventories figures are due from Sweden.

At 3.15 am ET, S&P Global publishes France's flash HCOB composite PMI data. Economists expect the composite index to remain unchanged at 49.1 in August.

At 3.30 am ET, flash composite PMI survey results are due from Germany. The composite indicator is seen at 49.2 in August compared to 49.1 a month ago.

At 4.00 am ET, Eurozone flash composite PMI survey data is due. Economists forecast the composite indicator to edge down to 50.1 in August from 50.2 in July.

At 4.30 am ET, S&P Global publishes the UK PMI survey results for August. The composite index is forecast to rise to 52.9 from 52.8 in the previous month.

At 7.30 am ET, the European Central Bank publishes the account of the monetary policy meeting of the governing council held on July 17 and 18.

At 10.00 am ET, flash consumer confidence survey data is due from the euro area. The sentiment index is expected to rise to -12.6 in August from -13 in July.

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

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What parts of the world are seeing the best (and worst) economic performances lately? Click here to check out our Econ Scorecard and find out! See up-to-the-moment rankings for the best and worst performers in GDP, unemployment rate, inflation and much more.
In a speech accepting the nomination to be Kamala Harris' running mate, Tim Walz called on voters to 'turn the page' on Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.

"Leaders don't spend all day insulting people and blaming others. Leaders do the work. So I don't know about you, I'm ready to turn the page on these guys. We'll turn the page on Donald Trump," Walz said in a keynote speech delivered on the third night of Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday.

The 60-year-old Walz also promoted Harris as a defender of freedom and patriotism, and touted the Democratic campaign's stance on reproductive rights and gun control.

"When we Democrats talk about freedom, we mean freedom to make a better life for yourself and the people that you love, freedom to make your own healthcare decisions. Your kids' freedom to go to school without worrying about being shot dead in the hall."

"We made sure that every kid in our state gets breakfast and lunch every day. While other states were banning books from their schools, we were banishing kids' hunger from ours," the Minnesota Governor said, evoking thunderous applauses from the crowd.

He described Project 2025, a policy "wish list" for the next GOP president that would expand presidential powers and impose a conservative social vision, as "weird, wrong and dangerous."

Tim Walz concluded his 16-minutes-long powerful speech by saying, "You might not know it, but I haven't given a lot of big speeches like this."

Gus Walz, Tim Walz' 17-year-old son with learning disorder, broke down in tears during his father's moving speech.

Former President Bill Clinton, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and talk show legend Oprah Winfrey, who made a surprise appearance on stage, spoke for Harris and Walz.

Musicians John Legend, Sheila E. and Stevie Wonder performed at the United Center.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

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Taylor Scamehorn Deanna Bush, instructor in the WMU music therapy program, leads a communication activity with Phoebe Ryckbost, and Thomas Valentine, both undergrad students in the WMU music therapy program playing the xylophone.

Courtesy Jennifer Fiore Jennifer Fiore, associate professor and director of music therapy, Western Michigan University

Taylor Scamehorn Thomas Valentine, an undergrad student in the WMU music therapy program plays a shekere.

Courtesy Louie Morand Louie Morand, board certified music therapist, right, speaks to a court-involved youth participant of Morands music therapy class at the Kalamazoo County Juvenile Home.

Courtesy Louie Morand Under the guidance of music therapist Loie Morand, a teen plays an electric guitar during a group therapy session at the Kalamazoo County Juvenile Home.

Taylor Scamehorn Hannah Joseph, music therapist and social worker at Kalamazoo Child and Family Counseling Plays instruments and sings for her patients.

Taylor Scamehorn Playing the tubano can help therapy patients feel heard. Phoebe Ryckbost, and Thomas Valentine, both undergrad students in the WMU music therapy program demonstrate a rhythm-copying activity.

Taylor Scamehorn Deanna Bush, instructor in the WMU music therapy program, Phoebe Ryckbost, and Thomas Valentine, both undergrad students in the WMU music therapy program, discuss and demonstrate activities that can be done with therapy patients.
Brian Boyle, Issue Media Group Co-founder

Paul Schutt, Issue Media Group Co-founder

John Montgomery, new owner of Issue Media Group

Nearly 20 years after founding Issue Media Group (IMG), founders Brian Boyle and Paul Schutt will be welcoming new ownership. IMG is a Michigan-based network of digital publications serving 20 communities in five states.John Montgomery, president of Fourth Estate Inc., will serve as the new CEO. IMG co-founders Brian Boyle and Paul Schutt will remain with the company to support the transition as well as the sales and client services departments. The rest of the IMG team, along with the business model and brand, will stay in place.A longtime media executive, Montgomerys unique background includes experience as a journalist and publisher as well as in technology, sales, philanthropy, and community development.Brian and Paul were ahead of their time when they founded IMG, taking a solutions-journalism approach and concentrating on digital media channels, Montgomery said. The model they developed is even more relevant today, and I am thrilled and honored they have entrusted me to carry forward with the important work of IMG."It has been a remarkable 20-year journey," said Boyle. "We are incredibly proud of what we have built and how communities across the country have embraced our approach to storytelling and solutions journalism as an important element of strengthening communities.We were fortunate to connect with John, who has the ideal blend of experience as well as shared values to carry forward the IMG spirit, said Schutt. We look forward to working with him to advance IMGs mission of strengthening local media."IMG was founded by Boyle and Schutt in 2005, who launched Model D to cover small-scale, grassroots initiatives in Detroit. In a time of rapidly eroding local media capacity, IMG partners with local institutions across the nonprofit, government, and private sectors to support community-driven, solutions-oriented reporting on priority community issues. Most IMG publications cover topics such as economic development, neighborhood revitalization, entrepreneurship, health, sustainability, transportation, arts and culture, and social innovation.Today, IMGs stable includes digital media outlets in communities across Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Tennessee, and Florida.Especially with the decline of legacy media such as local newspapers, communities have identified voids in important coverage, challenges to be solved and stories to be told, Montgomery said. The focus of the company will be to continue to partner with community stakeholders and to fulfill the vital need for substantive local journalism.John Montgomery comes from a family going back five generations in community journalism. He has 25 years of experience in newspapers, including 20 as an editor, publisher, and group executive. He was vice president of the Kansas-based, family-owned Harris Enterprises when it was acquired by GateHouse Media, now Gannett. He led the merger and integration of properties, and as senior group publisher was responsible for newspapers, websites, and digital marketing services in 16 markets across central and western Kansas and southeastern Colorado. For the past seven years, Montgomery has worked in sales and consulting for a technology company primarily serving the media industry.Montgomery holds both a bachelors degree in journalism and an MBA from the University of Kansas. His deep commitment to community service and industry advancement is evident through his extensive board experience, including leadership roles on multiple foundation boards and as chairman of a community foundation. He currently serves on the board of the Porter County Community Foundation in Indiana.Montgomery and his wife, Dia, also own The Press, a retail bookstore and coffee shop in Valparaiso, Indiana, where they live.Incorporated in 2005 in Detroit, Michigan, Issue Media Group (IMG) operates a network of online media outlets leveraging the power of solutions-based and narrative journalism to enhance attachment to place and inspire community change. IMG publications connect readers to their communities most visionary and innovative people, projects, businesses, and organizations, fostering civic engagement, improving understanding of key issues, amplifying underserved voices, and building community attachment during a time of local media decline.IMG works with like-minded stakeholders across public, private, nonprofit, and grassroots organizations whose values and missions align with ours through an underwriting model of publishing. Our journalists connect with community stakeholders through regular listening sessions designed to build trust and shape authentic community stories.IMG's work has been recognized and supported by leading journalism organizations nationally including INC Magazine, Knight Foundation, Columbia Journalism Review, Facebook, Lenfest Institute, Google, Solutions Journalism Network, Ground Source, and Society for Professional Journalists.
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r. Caelan Soma, Chief Clinical Officer with Starr

Starr Commonwealth offers clinical to support to over 300 families and youth.

Starr Commonwealth offers clinical to support to over 300 families and youth.

r. Caelan Soma, Chief Clinical Officer with Starr

Kara Van Dam, Vice President and Chief Executive of GVSU Omni
"Hindustani pianist" should be an oxymoron, but pianist Utsav Lal has forged an unexpected musical path, developing a brilliant, unique piano technique in order to play Hindustani classical music on this most ill-suited of instruments. His performances are breathtaking and after releasing three beautiful "Raga Shorts" in the past three years, I asked him if he would be releasing a "Raga Long". Ask and you shall receive! He has just released "Raga Bhimpalasi", which is a full, hour-long, recording of Rag Bhimpalasi with alap-jod-jhala followed by two compositions. This album is a dream!

Raga Bhimpalasi: Alap

Utsav Lal & Tejas Tope - Raga Bhimpalasi - Independent - Raga Bhimpalasi - Raga Bhimpalasi: Jod, Jhala

Utsav Lal & Tejas Tope - Raga Bhimpalasi - Independent - Raga Bhimpalasi - Raga Bhimpalasi: Gat in vilambit teental

Utsav Lal & Tejas Tope - Raga Bhimpalasi - Independent - Raga Bhimpalasi - Raga Bhimpalasi: Gat in drut teental

Utsav Lal & Tejas Tope - Raga Bhimpalasi - Independent - Raga Bhimpalasi - Koortjie

Derek Gripper & Ballake Sissoko - Derek Gripper & Ballake Sissoko - Matsuli - Derek Gripper & Ballake Sissoko - Threads

Amy Brandon/Chartreuse Trio - Lysis - New Focus Recordings - Lysis - Koye Ye Yan

Derek Gripper & Ballake Sissoko - Derek Gripper & Ballake Sissoko - Matsuli - Derek Gripper & Ballake Sissoko -
Telecommunications test and measurement and cloud computing specialist Calnex Solutions reported significant advancements in product development and strategic initiatives in an update on Thursday, despite ongoing challenges in the telecoms sector.

The AIM-traded firm, which was holding its annual general meeting, said the launch of its major Paragon-Neo release was on track for the second half of the 2025 financial year.

It said the release, focussed on 800 gigabits-per-second synchronisation testing for next-generation high-speed ethernet, had received positive initial feedback from customers during pre-production testing.

The company was optimistic about the level of customer interest in the new technology.

In the first half of the 2025 period, Calnex successfully launched the SNE-X, featuring 400GbE interfaces, designed to meet growing demand in the cloud computing and data centre markets.

The product was the first network emulator specifically tailored for AI infrastructure and other high-performance computing networks, positioning Calnex to capitalise on emerging trends in the sectors.

Calnex said it also completed a significant overhaul of its sales channels and channel partner network.

After ending its reseller agreement with Spirent, Calnex said it had established a new channel partner network that was now fully operational across key territories, including North America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and the Asia-Pacific region.

The transition to the new multi-channel arrangement was expected to be earnings-enhancing, with the company now working to establish direct supplier agreements with key customers to further strengthen its relationships.

Despite a challenging telecoms market, Calnex said it was confident in its outlook for the full financial year.

The company said it maintained tight cost controls, benefitting from a healthy balance sheet.

Its board anticipated that the company's performance for the full year would align with market expectations, with growth expected to resume in the second half of the year, supported by the successful launch of new products.

At 1141 BST, shares in Calnex Solutions were down 0.23% at 52.38p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.
Bank of Georgia has announced a 21m share buyback programme as it unveiled its results for the second quarter, in which it delivered an 11% increase in profits as it incorporated Armenian bank Ameriabank into its P&L for the first time post-acquisition.

The bank said the board has approved to repurchase GEL73.4m of shares consistent with its capital distribution policy to return 30% to 50% of annual profits to shareholders.

Consolidated adjusted profit in the second quarter ended 30 June totalled GEL430m (121m), up from GEL409m the year before, despite the company being hit with a GEL49m charge related to the takeover of Ameriabank which completed in April.

Excluding this charge, adjusted profits would have been 23.7% higher than last year at GEL480m.

Net interest income swelled to GEL618m during the period, up from GEL396m a year earlier.

Chief executive Archil Gachechiladze said that the Georgian economy has been resilient despite ongoing political turmoil ahead of national elections, with real GDP growing 9.5% in the second quarter.

"With the upcoming Parliamentary elections in October 2024 in Georgia, political uncertainty will continue. We will monitor the situation as it unfolds and will keep managing the business prudently," Gachechiladze said.

"We remain committed and well-positioned to continue delivering strong growth and profitability in our core markets and delivering value to our shareholders in the coming quarters," he added.
In a significant step towards enhancing India's defense capabilities and furthering the Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative, BEML Ltd., the country's leading manufacturer of defense and heavy engineering equipment, has signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Directorate of Marine Engineering, Indian Navy. The MoU was signed at the Naval Headquarters in Delhi by Ajit Kumar Srivastav, Director of Defence at BEML, and Rear Admiral K. Srinivas, ACOM (D&R) of the Indian Navy, with BEML's Chairman & Managing Director, Shantanu Roy, and other top defense dignitaries in attendance.

This agreement represents a crucial milestone in strengthening the collaboration between BEML and the Indian Navy for the indigenous design, development, manufacturing, testing, and product support of essential marine equipment and systems. The partnership aligns with the Government of India's Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative, focused on enhancing self-reliance in defense production and reducing reliance on foreign imports.

Under the terms of the MoU, BEML will leverage its extensive expertise in heavy engineering, structural fabrication, hydraulics, diesel engines, manufacturing, testing, and R&D to develop state-of-the-art marine equipment for the Indian Navy. The collaboration is set to significantly enhance indigenous marine engineering capabilities, ensuring that both current and future naval projects are equipped with cutting-edge, domestically produced technology.

Shantanu Roy, Chairman & Managing Director at BEML Ltd., emphasized the importance of this partnership, stating, "This MoU signifies a historic partnership that will not only strengthen India's maritime defence capabilities but also make a substantial contribution to the Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative. BEML is committed to delivering advanced, cost-effective, and reliable solutions to the Indian Navy. We are confident that our combined efforts will lead to significant advancements in indigenous marine technology".

The partnership between BEML and the Indian Navy extends beyond addressing immediate operational needs; it seeks to strengthen long-term defense infrastructure, establishing a solid foundation for a more resilient and robust maritime defense sector. BEML will develop detailed design and manufacturing blueprints for the program and its components, ensuring on-time delivery according to the agreed schedule. Leveraging its advanced engineering and production capabilities, BEML will take the lead in manufacturing the program's equipment.

BEML will carry out rigorous testing and trials of the developed systems to meet the stringent standards set by the Indian Navy. The company will also oversee the installation and commissioning of the equipment on naval vessels, offering comprehensive support throughout the process. This MoU is a key component of BEML's broader strategy to expand its footprint in the maritime sector. Recently, the company established 11 strategic business units, including one specifically focused on the "Maritime" domain, dedicated to product development and services within this sector.
Hyundai Motor India has announced plans to set up a Hydrogen Innovation Centre at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras Thaiyur campus, with an investment of Rs 180 crore. The new facility, set to be constructed on a 65,000 sq ft plot of land, will focus on advancing hydrogen technology research and development.

The foundation stone for the Hydrogen Innovation Centre was laid by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. K. Stalin during the Tamil Nadu Investment Conclave held in Chennai. The initiative underscores Hyundai Motor Indias commitment to boosting Tamil Nadus status as a hub for automotive innovation and pioneering alternative fuel technologies.

The partnership involves Hyundai Motor India Ltd., the state-backed investment promotion agency Guidance Tamil Nadu, and IIT Madras. This collaboration aims to accelerate the development and adoption of hydrogen technology in India, aligning with the broader vision of creating a sustainable and technologically advanced automotive ecosystem.

Professor V. Kamakoti, Director of IIT Madras, emphasized the institutes role in driving Indias transformation into a technology and innovation powerhouse. "IIT Madras is honored to collaborate with Hyundai Motor India Ltd and Guidance Tamil Nadu on this venture. The Hydrogen Innovation Centre will play a pivotal role in fostering breakthroughs in hydrogen mobility and creating a vibrant research ecosystem", Kamakoti said.

The centre is expected to be a catalyst for innovation in hydrogen technology, supporting startups and researchers in the field. It will focus on several key areas, including the development of electrolysis technology for green hydrogen production, localization of manufacturing processes, and supply chain advancements. The facility will also feature a fuel cell test station and pilot demonstrators to advance the practical application of electrolyzers and fuel cells.

Hyundai Motor India Ltds Whole-time Director and Chief Manufacturing Officer, Gopalakrishnan Chathapuram Sivaramakrishnan, expressed the companys commitment to supporting Tamil Nadus vision for a sustainable future. "Hyundai Motor India Ltd is dedicated to contributing to the state's transition towards alternative fuels. We believe the Hydrogen Innovation Centre will significantly accelerate the adoption of hydrogen mobility in Tamil Nadu", Sivaramakrishnan stated.
Indian cities such as Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, and Bengaluru have demonstrated stable rental growth in the first half of 2024, despite a general slowdown across the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. According to a report by Knight Frank, these cities have maintained strong demand driven by the manufacturing and third-party logistics (3PL) sectors, with private equity inflows expected to sustain market momentum.

In H1 2024, the APAC region experienced a year-over-year (YoY) rental growth of 2.4%, a significant decline from the 6.2% increase recorded in H1 2023. Despite this regional downturn, Indian cities have shown resilience, with Delhi-NCR leading with a 3.0% YoY rental growth, surpassing the regional average. Mumbai and Bengaluru followed with a YoY growth of 2.3%, ranking 11th and 12th in the APAC logistics market, respectively.

warehousing and logistics spaces is expected to keep rental rates stable through the remainder of 2024. Although vacancy levels remain high, the continued demand foris expected to keep rental rates stable through the remainder of 2024.

Shishir Baijal, Chairman and Managing Director of Knight Frank India, emphasized the role of the manufacturing sector in driving demand within the Indian logistics market. Mumbai and Delhi-NCR have been significant contributors to the total warehousing volume, fueled by the 3PL and manufacturing sectors. Christine Li, Head of Research for APAC at Knight Frank, noted that while challenges persist in Mainland China, the long-term fundamentals supporting the APAC logistics market remain robust.
Seven fluffy white Chilean flamingo chicks are on display at a zoo in southwest England for the first time since 2018  and one is particularly notable for the way it made its entrance. Two male flamingos named Arthur and Curtis successfully hatched an egg together  a first for the Paignton Zoo.

The zoo has had several all-male pairings during past breeding seasons, so the same-sex couple is not an unexpected turn of events, said Pete Smallbones, the zoos curator of birds. But the zoo is not sure exactly how the couple acquired the egg.

Its likely that this egg became available  unprotected, kind of just left (in a nest)  and then theyve taken the opportunity, said Pete Smallbones, the zoos curator of birds. As a bird department, were more than aware of how its a known thing for flamingos, penguins and other species to have same sex pairings. So, it wasnt a shock  I suppose it was a slight surprise, just because it wasnt quite the expected (male and female pairing).

During breeding season, the couples usually spend more time together and follow each other around the enclosure, but a pairing is confirmed when two birds pick a nest to share, where they will take turns sitting on the mud mound with or without an egg. This year, however, a same-sex pair had an egg to sit on. While two male birds hatching an egg together is notably rare, it has happened a handful of times at other zoos.

The successful hatching between two males highlights the social birds innate parental instincts and flexibility, experts say. It also underscores the need for conversation about the near-threatened Chilean flamingos that are declining in the wild and their native home of South America, according to the zoos news release. And experts have some theories as to how and why their pairing came to be.

Birds of a feather

Chilean flamingos can be finicky when it comes to breeding. In the wild, observations have shown the species to avoid breeding for up to nine years as the birds wait for weather and environmental conditions to be just right, Smallbones said. But even at the zoo, which provides their preferred mud nests, they often dont breed every year.

One year at the Paignton Zoo, flamingo eggs laid several weeks too late had to be taken away as the chicks would likely not have thrived in the colder weather conditions, Smallbones said. Avian influenza concerns disrupted another prior breeding season, since the birds were removed from their enclosure as a safety precaution, he added.

Curtis and Arthurs chick, which does not have a name yet, is almost a month old and appears to be thriving, Smallbones said. The parents are obviously doing a great job. The chick has been observed exploring the exhibit with another chick roughly the same age but will still return to Curtis and Arthur for food.

While the two males are the only same-sex pairing the zoo is aware of this breeding season, the zoo could potentially welcome more chicks this year as several eggs are still incubating, according to the news release.

Urge to nest

A number of other zoos have observed same-sex pairings among certain bird species. There are even several egg-hatching success stories, such as in 2007 when the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust in Gloucestershire entrusted an abandoned egg to two male flamingos, and in 2018 when two male penguins at Sydneys Sea Life Aquarium also became adopted parents to a chick.

Being in a same sex pair is a relatively common occurrence in captive flamingos, because of small flock sizes, said Paul Rose, a biologist and senior lecturer on animal behavior at the University of Exeter. Actually hatching an egg is more unusual. These two male flamingos were likely very keen to nest but could not attract a female partner and so the same urge to nest brought them together.

Sometimes, same-sex flamingo pairs have been observed disrupting other nests  as Chilean flamingos nest as a flock  in an attempt to obtain eggs of their own, Rose said.

In the wild, Chilean flamingo flock sizes can be in the hundreds during breeding season, according to Rose. The Paignton Zoo currently has 26 female flamingos and 25 male flamingos in the exhibit, which suggests there are enough females for the males to pair with, Smallbones said. While more research is needed to determine why same-sex bird pairings occur, it is possible that Arthur and Curtis found an egg from a male and female couple that wasnt being cared for and jumped at the opportunity to tend to it, or they took over another couples nest, Smallbones said.

It takes two

Flamingos often have non-breeding partnerships that consist of same-sex associations, according to a June 2020 study led by Rose. The birds tend to be very particular in who they like to spend their time with, and will actively seek out some birds in a flock and avoid others, Rose added in an email. I am not surprised that two male flamingos are successful in raising a chick because of their social flexibility, but I dont believe it would have been their first choice of breeding partner.

While same-sex bird couples are recorded more in captivity than in the wild, according to Rose, a number of albatross species  types of seabirds  have more females than males in the population, and occasionally, females will pair together to raise one egg, or both will lay eggs and care for them together, said Kevin McGowan, an ornithologist at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Similar to flamingos, hatching an egg and taking care of an albatross chick requires two dedicated parents, as egg incubation takes as long as 60 days  about 28 days for flamingos  and both parents need to provide food for the chick.

You cant do it on your own. So, these birds have figured out how to make it work. Its in their instincts to want to take care of an egg, however the circumstances, McGowan said. For Arthur and Curtis, the strong natural instinct to breed was likely the driver for the same-sex pairing. There is a grand desire to have kids, and these two guys (Arthur and Curtis) figured out how to do it, McGowan added.

Research on the occurrence of same-sex pairing in the wild could provide more information on the possible adaptive benefits of the behavior, such as if a wild flamingo lost its partner but had an egg to look after, Rose said. This demonstrates how resourceful animals can be when they are driven to do something a specific time of the year or season.

___

Which airline is the best to travel with an emotional support animal? See how policies vary. Which airline is the best to travel with an emotional support animal? See how policies vary. United Airlines American Airlines Delta Air Lines Southwest Airlines Alaska Airlines
With the lifestyle we are following, a vast majority of the American population is obese. What if I say that a scoop of powder is all you need to get rid of it? Nagano Lean Body Tonic is an all-new formula recently launched in the market. The nutritional support helps you throughout your weight management journey targeting stubborn fat you have been dreading to get rid of. Take a closer look at this detailed Nagano Lean Body Tonic review.

MUST READ: Latest Consumer Report Reveals Important Information About Nagano Lean Body Tonic!

Nagano Lean Body Tonic Reviews: How Can Nagano Tonic Help Reduce Oxidative Stress And Fatigue?

Formulated using a strong blend of over 10 ingredients combined with 8 super antioxidants, the Nagano Tonic natural fat burner not only claims rapid weight loss support but also ensures sufficient nutritional benefits. However, is the supplement capable enough?

With a whole lot of supplements afloat in the market, it is normal to get confused. Therefore, in this Nagano Lean Body Tonic review, let me address all your concerns. I will try to analyze anything and everything concerning the supplement and finally help you make an informed decision.

Now, what are we waiting for? Let's get started.

Nagano Lean Body Tonic - Facts Overview

Supplement Name Nagano Lean Body Tonic Type Weight loss supplement Form Powder Ingredients Camu Camu

EGCG

Mangosteen

Panax Ginseng

Momordica Charantia

Ashwagandha

Cinnamon Cassia

Acerola

Eleuthero Root

Alfalfa Leaf Dosage One scoop daily in the morning Quantity 4.23 ounces (120 grams) Benefits Increased fat burn

Reduced insulin sensitivity

Improved energy levels

Appetite suppression

Reduced oxidative stress Side Effects None reported Pros Natural ingredients

Easy-to-use powder

Made in FDA and GMP-certified facilities

Free of harmful substances

Positive customer feedback

180-day money-back guarantee Cons Only available on the official website

Results may vary among individuals Customer Reviews Mostly positive feedback Price $69 per bottle Bonuses #1: Anti-aging blueprint

#2: Sleep the Fat Off eBook

#3: Energy Boosting Smoothies recipe book Refund Policy 180 days Availability Only on the official website Official Website Click Here

What Is Nagano Lean Body Tonic?

Nagano Lean Body Tonic is an all-natural weight loss aid formulated using a potent blend of 10 ingredients in combination with 8 super antioxidants. With each of them carefully picked for its profound benefits, the supplement aids with natural weight loss.

With strict quality checks along with this fat burner manufactured in an FDA registered GMP certified manufacturing unit, safety, and quality appear prioritized by the manufacturers. Now, the Nagano Lean Body Tonic fat burner contains no harmful chemicals or additives with the presence of no GMOs.

Again the powdered formula can be taken by people above 18 years of age irrespective of their gender. The Nagano Tonic supplement comes backed by a lot of claimed benefits including enhanced energy levels, boosted fat and calorie burning, reduced oxidative stress, and so on.

Let's get into detail, and find out for ourselves if all that is said is true.

How Does Nagano Lean Body Tonic Work?

Now let's see how the formula works. Nagano Lean Body Tonic is formulated using a potent blend of 10 ingredients along with a combination of 8 super antioxidants. Mixed in the exact ratios, this powerful elixir is designed to work by targeting the dormant metabolism. Unlike other similar supplements, the herbal weight loss formula supports healthy metabolism resulting in enhanced energy and reduced weight.

When taken into consideration, all the ingredients of the Nagano Lean Body Tonic weight management formula are carefully picked for their profound benefit. Although the focus of this nutritional support is fat loss and weight loss, as per the claims made several other benefits can be achieved as well.

By increasing the metabolic rate, Nagano Tonic aids with magnified calorie and fat burning resulting in an energy release. Other claimed benefits include appetite suppression, enhanced skin health, improved mood and energy levels, etc. Some ingredients may also aid with cardiovascular health as well.

Nagano Lean Body Tonic Ingredients List

The Nagano Lean Body Tonic weight loss supplement is formulated using clinically researched natural ingredients. Lets look at the ingredients added to the formula.

Camu Camu

Camu Camu or Camo Camo is a small bushy tree that bears a small cherry-like fruit. This plant comes under the species of the family Myrtaceae. Recent studies provide insights into its weight loss capacity. Other than that it may also support reducing inflammation, promoting cardiovascular health as well as fighting viral fatigue.

EGCG

EGCG is a catechin found in green tea. Studies point out that taking green tea can help with calorie burning even while at rest. This Nagano Lean Body Tonic ingredient contains many potential benefits including reduced weight gain and adipose tissue weight.

Mangosteen

This edible fruit native to Island Southeast Asia contains less amount of calories and fat, which makes it preferable if trying to shed weight. With its rich fiber content along with its antioxidant properties, this Nagano Lean Body Tonic ingredient may aid with boosting weight loss and metabolism.

Panax

Panax also called Panax Ginseng shows effects on weight loss along with slight effects on gut microbiota as well. Other benefits include improved cognitive skills, and arithmetic skills in middle-aged individuals but not in young adults.

Momordica Charantia

This widely grown in Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean is popular for its weight loss and insulin resistance features. Little evidence can be found on its capacity to alleviate adipose tissue inflammation caused by obesity.

Other ingredients used in the Nagano Lean Body Tonic weight loss support include Cinnamon Cassia, Ashwagandha, Acerola, Eleuthero root, and Alfalfa leaf, along with an additional proprietary blend of 8 super antioxidants which are Beetroot, Wheat Grass, pomegranate, Blueberry, Cranberry, Reishi Mushroom, Spirulina, and Coconut Juice Powder.

What Are The Benefits Of Nagano Lean Body Tonic?

You might be wondering why you should go for Nagano Tonic and not other supplements. So let's delve into its claimed benefits and find out what makes it different from other such supplements available in the market.

1. Increased fat burn

With its main components including EGCG, the supplement stimulates thermogenesis, which is a natural process that works by burning up calories and producing heat.

2. Reduced insulin sensitivity

Components like apple fiber used in the Nagano Lean Body Tonic formula synergistically work slowing down the digestive process, thus preventing sudden spikes of glucose in the blood. It also helps with reduced fat build-up along with the preservation of cellular energy.

3. Improved energy levels

With ingredients such as Camu Camu in the formula to fight off fatigue, the supplement may aid with enhanced mood and energy levels. Other ingredients like Panax also support the restoration of youthful energy and vitality.

4. Appetite suppression

Appetite suppression can be considered a phase of initiation of your weight management journey. Mangosteen is a well-known ingredient known for its ability to suppress appetite.

5. Reduced oxidative stress

With potent antioxidants included in the ingredients, the Nagano Lean Body Tonic formula helps fight off the free radicals in cells resulting in minimizing oxidative stress. Ingredients like EGCG contain strong antioxidant properties.

Check The Availability Of Nagano Tonic On Its Official Website

Various Nagano Lean Body Tonic Pros And Cons

In the previous sections, we discussed all the major aspects of the Nagano Lean Body Tonic natural weight management formula. Here, we will look at the advantages and disadvantages of this supplement. So, the pros and cons of Nagano Lean Body Tonic are listed below.

Pros of Nagano Lean Body Tonic

Easy to take powdered formula

Made under strict quality controls in a registered GMP-certified facility

100% natural ingredients

Affordably priced formula

Assured 100% 180-day money-back guarantee

Cons of Nagano Lean Body Tonic

Results can vary among individuals

Cannot be purchased from anywhere other than their official website

How To Use Nagano Lean Body Tonic Effectively?

Each white tub of Nagano Lean Body Tonic comes with a net quantity of 120g sufficient for a month of use if taken consistently. As per the product label, the serving size of this effective weight loss is 1 scoop a day, which can be around 4g a scoop considering the net quantity.

Unlike other supplements, the powdered formula of Nagano Lean Body Tonic allows you to take it with any beverage you like. All you have to do is just take a scoop of the formula and mix it well. It's all under your freedom as to when to take the supplement.

You can either take it before your breakfast or with your breakfast smoothie. However, the only thing you need to take care of is to make sure that you are taking the supplement consistently.

Any Reported Nagano Lean Body Tonic Side Effects?

Speaking of side effects, there appear almost no reported issues concerning Nagano Lean Body Tonic. As per their official website, the supplement can even be taken with your ongoing medications considering its 100% natural ingredients. Also, it contains the presence of no harmful substances or any GMOs making it even more safer to consume.

Also, a thorough analysis of the available Nagano Lean Body Tonic customer reviews, along with real-world testimonials speaks highly of the supplement. Now with the supplement manufactured in an FDA registered GMP certified facility, there is no need for you to worry about its quality or safety standards. However, it is advised to consult a physician if necessary.

Nagano Tonic Customer Reviews And Complaints

As per the Nagano Lean Body Tonic reviews shared by existing customers, the supplement has successfully helped them burn excess fat as well as help keep weight under control. Although most of them were able to achieve optimal results, variations were there with the time taken among them.

Some of them have mentioned that the fact that the formula can be taken with any drink of their choice that too as per their preference helped them to easily integrate it into their daily routine. The delicious taste of the Nagano Tonic formula also seems appraised by some users.

Few of them mention achieving better skin health along with improvement in cognitive functioning as well. With that said, some Nagano Lean Body Tonic reviews raise issues regarding delayed results. But again, they might not have given enough time for the supplement to work or might not be consistent enough.

Where To Order Nagano Lean Body Tonic? And Pricing

With all the benefits provided by the supplement, want to know more about its pricing? Come let's take a look at it.

Nagano Lean Body Tonic is exclusively available for purchase through their official website. With such exclusivity and direct purchases from the manufacturers, you can be sure of the supplement's genuineness. Again, you might come across scammed Nagano Lean Body Tonic on other third-party websites- make sure that you steer clear of it.

Now, the natural formula is available for purchase in three different options:

BASIC: 30-day supply for $69 per bottle

POPULAR: 90-day supply for $59 per bottle

BEST VALUE: 180-day supply for $39 per bottle

Adding more to it, with every 3 and 6-bottle Nagano Lean Body Tonic combo you are eligible for free shipping along with an assured 180-day 100% money-back guarantee with every purchase.

List Of Nagano Lean Body Tonic Bonuses

When a person orders the multi-bottle package of the Nagano Tonic natural formula, they will receive two free bonuses and they are the following:

Bonus #1: Anti-aging blueprint

This bonus includes at-home methods that you can practice to restore your youthful energy along with improving sleep quality.

Bonus #2: Sleep the fat off

This e-book helps you discover unique meal timing methods specially curated for enhancing your weight loss journey.

Bonus #3: Energy-boosting smoothies

This smoothie recipe book will help you boost your energy all through the day. The smoothies rich in herbs and spices will help you control your cravings without harming any nutrient or vitamin absorption in your body.

Final Verdict - Nagano Lean Body Tonic Reviews

In summary, Nagano Lean Body Tonic appears to have stayed true to all its claims. The supplement helps with weight loss by targeting dormant metabolism along with boosting fat and calorie burning.

Apart from that the supplement was able to provide some other benefits including reduced oxidative stress, appetite suppression, reduced oxidative stress, increased sex drive, and so on.

The powdered formula is manufactured in an FDA registered GMP certified facility following strict guidelines. To add more to it, the manufacturers are providing bonuses along with the purchase of 3 and 6-bottle combos, along with the 100% money-back guarantee backed by every purchase of Nagano Lean Body Tonic.

With all that said confirmed from the customer reviews and testimonials, the Nagano Lean Body Tonic weight loss supplement appears legitimate. Now it's your turn to try it. What are waiting for?

FAQs About Nagano Tonic Supplement

What if I don't like the taste of Nagano Lean Body Tonic?

Don't worry, you can opt for the money-back guarantee even for any minor concerns you may have with Nagano Lean Body Tonic.

Who do I connect with to have my concerns addressed?

The manufacturers are providing an active customer care service. For more information, just go through the Nagano Tonic official website.

How many days are there before I run out of my money-back policy?

Every purchase of Nagano Lean Body Tonic comes backed by an assured 100% money-back guarantee valid for 180 days from the day of purchase.

How long should I wait to get optimal Nagano Tonic results?

If taken consistently, results may start showing within a month of usage. However, it can vary from person to person. Therefore it is advised to use for at least for maximum efficiency.

Is there something I need to be cautious of apart from the basics?

With the natural ingredients put to use, there is nothing for you to worry about. But again, don't hesitate to consult a physician if the situation demands.
In a significant move toward advancing next-generation wireless technologies, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has recommended the introduction of the Tera Hertz Experimental Authorisation (THEA) to the government. This initiative is designed to stimulate research and development in the high-potential Tera Hertz frequency band, a critical element for future wireless communication technologies, including 6G.

TRAI released its recommendations for the Tera Hertz Spectrum in response to a December 2022 request from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT). The DoT sought advice on utilizing underused or sparsely used spectrum bands in the Tera Hertz range for limited periods to drive innovation and demand. THEA aims to facilitate R&D, indoor and outdoor testing, technology trials, experimentation, and demonstrations in the 95 GHz to 3 THz range.

The unique properties of the Tera Hertz frequency band make it particularly valuable for emerging technologies. By enabling faster data transmission speeds, improved connectivity, and enhanced reliability, these frequencies could play a transformative role in sectors ranging from telecommunications to automotive and healthcare.

The purpose of THEA should be to promote R&D, indoor and outdoor testing, technology trial, experimentation, and demonstration in the 95 GHz to 3 THz range, TRAI stated in its recommendations. The plan is expected to empower entrepreneurs, startups, and academic institutions to explore the untapped potential within this high-frequency spectrum.

1,000, making the program accessible to a broad range of stakeholders. Eligible applicants include academic institutions, R&D labs, government entities, telecom service providers, original equipment manufacturers, and more. TRAI has proposed a five-year authorisation period for THEA, with the possibility of extending it for an additional five years. Innovators can obtain this authorisation by paying a nominal fee of1,000, making the program accessible to a broad range of stakeholders. Eligible applicants include academic institutions, R&D labs, government entities, telecom service providers, original equipment manufacturers, and more.

The authorisation covers multiple frequency bands, including 116-123 GHz, 174.8-182 GHz, 185-190 GHz, and 244-246 GHz. Specific provisions are also included for automotive radar systems within the 77-81 GHz range, demonstrating the broad applicability of THEA across various industries.

Experts anticipate that THEA will substantially enhance Indias technological landscape by enabling hands-on experimentation, critical for assessing product viability and performance during early development phases. TRAI noted that this initiative will also complement the governments Make in India initiative, driving domestic innovation and manufacturing.

Upon implementation, the new experimental authorisation regime recommended by the Authority will provide a boost to the 'Make in India' initiatives of the Government, TRAI added. The initiative aligns with the governments broader vision of nurturing a culture of innovation and research across the nation.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Avon Products filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this month, a move made by the company in an effort to address debt triggered by a string of recent lawsuits.

Todays action and the proposed sale of Avons non-U.S. operations will maximize the value of our assets and enable us to address our obligations in an orderly manner, Avon Products Chair John Dubel said in a press release.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Avon Products - a U.S.-based non-operational holding company of the iconic Avon beauty brand - has spent more than $225 million defending itself and making settlement payments in hundreds of talc lawsuits which argue that many of the companys powder products contain carcinogens.

The company denies those claims, noting in several reports that it only uses cosmetic grade talc which has been tested to confirm that it does not contain asbestos. However, juries have disagreed in some key cases.

The 138-year-old beauty brand is well-known for selling cosmetics, skin care, personal care products and perfume, as well as for pioneering social selling. And while Avon Products Inc. has not sold products in the United States since it divested its North America business in 2016, it remains the holding company of the brands non-U.S. operating entities, which are not included in the legal proceedings and will operate as usual.

According to the press release, the Avon Company, which is the U.S. version of the Avon brand owned by LG Household & Health Care Ltd., is also not affiliated with the lawsuits or Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings.
A human bone was discovered washed up along the downtown Brooklyn waterfront Wednesday, days after other human remains were found in the same location, the New York Post is reporting.

What is reportedly believed to be a leg bone was found at around 12:20 p.m. near the Brooklyn Bridge Park carousel on Water Street in DUMBO amongst rocks along the East River shoreline, police told the outlet.

On Monday, police were contacted when a city parks enforcement officer discovered a skull and bones wrapped in clothing, the report said.

While the City Medical Examiners Office investigates, police said it was too soon to know if the two bone findings are related, the report said.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. A 50-year-old Staten Island man charged with shooting a man in his neighborhood was sentenced Monday by a Staten Island judge to six years in prison.

Troy Hairston, of Netherland Avenue in Mariners Harbor, pleaded guilty last month to second-degree criminal possession of a weapon in connection with the March 16 incident.
A 55-year-old woman was allegedly beaten to death with a broom by her nephew inside her Queens home Tuesday morning, police said.

Juanita Dallas and Alexander Fleming, 29, were reportedly engaged in a verbal dispute at around 10:30 a.m. in the vicinity of 164 Street and 108 Avenue, when Fleming allegedly struck Dallas in the head with the broom, a spokesperson for the NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Public Information said in a statement.

Dallas was rushed by EMS to North Shore University Hospital, where she died of her injuries, police said.

Fleming, a Queens resident, was taken into custody and faces charges of murder, depraved indifference, assault with intent to cause physical injury with a weapon and criminal possession of a weapon, authorities said.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Theyre Bennifer no more!

The on again off again rocky road relationship between super star Jennifer Lopez and Academy Award winning actor Ben Affleck has finally come to a screeching halt and resulting in the  D word.

The high-profile couple  dripping with Hollywood glamour and intrigue  are calling it splitsville after just two years of marriage  and two decades after they first fell in love.

Lopez has filed for divorce in a Los Angeles court.

According to a story on nbcnews.com, the couple began dating when they worked on the legendary Hollywood bust Gigli and were engaged in a steamy relationship that first introduced the term Bennifer to tabloids.

They were originally slated to marry in September of 2003 but postponed the ceremony and broke up months later.

A report in the New York Post, stated that Lopez, 54 and Affleck, 52, ended their first engagement in 2004, and went on to marry and have kids with other people, before rekindling their flame in 2021.

However, they managed to remain friendly over the years through it all and rekindled their romance more than a decade and a half later, culminating in a Las Vegas wedding on July 17, 2022.

So in essence this is the second breakup for the legendary couple whove made headlines time and again during their torrid love affair  but their first real divorce.

Rumors started to swirl that their relationship was on the rocks began when Lopez attended the 2024 Met Gala solo.

Then, it was reported that Affleck was staying at a separate house from Lopez.

Lopez was also spotted going house hunting without Affleck, implying that she wasnt planning to live with him moving forward.

And sources close to Lopez say they wed without signing a real prenuptial agreement, which could complicate their impending California divorce.

If thats the case, realistically speaking everything theyve made from their short-lived marriage would be deemed community property.

Lopez shares twins Emme and Max, 16, with ex-husband Marc Anthony, while Affleck is dad to three kids with ex-wife Jennifer Garner: Violet, 18, Seraphina, 15, and Samuel, 12.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Gov. Kathy Hochul has signed a bill that will allow small craft manufacturers of spirits, cider and mead to ship directly to their customers.

The newly signed law opens opportunities for the states growing craft beverage industry by allowing brewers to ship their products directly to consumers within New York and across state lines.

New Yorks craft manufacturers create distinctive, world-class products that deserve a broader audience, Hochul said in a release. This legislation levels the playing field, allowing these small producers to reach new markets and foster economic growth across the state. With this new law, we are ensuring that New York remains a national leader in craft beverages, continuing to support our local businesses, tourism and agriculture.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, New York craft manufacturers of spirits and cider were granted temporary shipping privileges to help them deal with the sudden economic downturn.

According to the release, New York is home to the largest number of craft cideries in the country and ranks second in the U.S. for the number of distilleries. With the new bill, the state strengthens its position as a leader in the craft beverage industry while supporting the states agricultural economy.

The bill is said to be part of Hochuls efforts to modernize the states Alcoholic Beverage Control laws, including creating temporary permits to get new manufacturers open quickly; adding spirits, beer and wine at one-day special events; expanding outdoor dining; and extending drinks-to-go, the release said.

This legislation will hopefully support the long-term survival and create another growth spurt of New Yorks vibrant craft and farm alcohol producers, said New York State Liquor Authority Chair Lily Fan. I am immensely proud that our agency is able to support our manufacturing licensees in obtaining this long-sought change, which would allow them to directly touch their consumers and build brand loyalty in a meaningful manner.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Lane closures on the West Shore Expressway are stalling traffic Thursday morning.

The left-most lanes of both the northbound side headed toward Bayonne, New Jersey, and southbound side headed toward Richmond Valley are closed to traffic through 2 p.m. Thursday afternoon, according to 511NY.

The closures are credited by 511NY to pothole repairs taking place between Englewood Avenue and the exit for the Staten Island Expressway. These closures have been ongoing since 8:30 a.m., as reported by 511NY.

Traffic is delayed on the West Shore Expressway in the vicinity of Bloomfield Avenue on the morning of Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (Courtesy of 511NY)(Courtesy of 511NY)

As of 11:25 a.m. traffic in the northbound lanes of the West Shore Expressway is backed up to beyond Victory Boulevard, as shown by 511NY traffic cameras.

These traffic delays come in the minutes after the official account of the Goethals Bridge advised that delays on the bridge due to heavy truck traffic in the vicinity of Forest Avenue and Gulf Avenue had been cleared.

The earlier delays at the Goethals Bridge to NY due to heavy truck traffic in the area of Forest and Gulf Ave exit has cleared.  Goethals Bridge (@PANYNJ_GB) August 22, 2024

On Wednesday, major delays were experienced at Forest Avenue and Gulf Avenue, as well as the surrounding area, as a result of heavy truck traffic.

According to a Department of Transportation spokesperson, critical pothole repair work took place earlier Wednesday afternoon between the bridges on the Staten Island Expressway.

It wasnt immediately clear if the roadwork contributed to those delays.

According to a source, the traffic may have been caused by increased traffic on the Goethals Bridge due to higher container volumes at the Howland Hook Container Terminal.
We sometimes dont agree and occasionally come from different political perspectives, but on this we agree: Randy Mastro should become the Citys next Corporation Counsel.

Mayor Adams has nominated him for this important legal position, and it is now up to the City Council to confirm his appointment. We had the honor of serving on the Council and offer this advice.

We know Randy and what he has done, both in public service as a former Deputy Mayor and federal prosecutor, and in private practice as a nationally renowned litigator. He is a person of impeccable character and credentials. And he is exceptionally well-qualified to serve as the Citys top lawyer, heading its 800-attorney Law Department.

When word leaked of his potential nomination, there were strong reservations at the onset because he worked in the Giuliani administration and has handled high-profile, controversial matters in private practice, some against the government.

But Mastro served with distinction when he was in City Hall. He was known for keeping an open door and reaching across the aisle. And he had a particular appreciation for the interests of Staten Island. After all, his mother grew up here, and as a boy, he spent most Sundays visiting his grandparents here. Moreover, Randy was the architect of the Fresh Kills landfill closure plan, and the administration he served brought us the free Staten Island Ferry and a safer city. Thats a legacy to be proud of.

Randy Mastro explains plans to close the Fresh Kills Landfill in 1996.Staten Island Advance

Since then, he has done what lawyers in private practice do for their firms clients, zealously represent them, only more successfully than most. That speaks well of him and what he can do for our city as our lawyer.

And Mastros fiercely independent. As his high-profile matters prove, hes stood up to the Mob, elected officials at every level of government, and even Donald Trump. And lived to fight another day, even after receiving La Cosa Nostra death threats for cleaning up organized crime corruption in the Fulton Fish Market and private carting industry. So now, hes ready to fight for all of us.

We were proud to serve on the City Council and respect its role on this confirmation process. The lodestar of any confirmation should be to act in the best interests of the city.

The mayor has nominated one of the most respected lawyers in the country to lead our citys Law Department. That lawyer wants to return to city government to do this job, despite the personal sacrifices. And Mastro knows city government well from his past service, so he can hit the ground running, now representing the entire City, including the City Council. The best interests of the city should therefore guide this process to conclusion:

Randy Mastro should become Corporation Counsel.

James Oddo, left, and Andrew Lanza at City Hall in 2002. (Irving Silverstein/Staten Island Advance)

(James Oddo was a member of Staten Islands City Council delegation from 1999 to 2013, its minority leader, and former Staten Islsand borough president from 2014 to 2021. He is now commissioner of the citys Department of Buildings. Andrew Lanza has been state senator representing most of Staten Island since 2007. He served in the City Council from 2002 to 2006. Both are Republicans.)
Gov. Kathy Hochul gave the deep six to some deep dish.

Hochul flatly turned down a chance to sample traditional deep-dish Chicago pizza at the Democratic National Convention in the Windy City, the New York Post reported.

Hochul shook her head when NY1 Washington correspondent Kevin Frey asked her to take a bite of Chicagos finest on live TV. With a fork, no less.

Its kind of funny looking, was the govs verdict on the pie.

"It's kind of funny looking."



A lighter moment here at the #DNC. Wrapping up an interview here in Chicago, we asked NY Gov @KathyHochul if she'd like to try some deep dish pizza.



She passed.



"It takes like an hour to make ... we want our pizza done in a New York minute." pic.twitter.com/KbeeWpsvlo  Kevin Frey (@KevinFreyTV) August 22, 2024

Im not sure what to make of this. Like, why is it so high? I dont get it, she continued, as she poked her finger along the thick crust, the Post said.

Hochul then pointed out how long it takes to cook a Chicago pie, saying an hour is simply too long for New Yorkers to wait for pizza.

We get hungry, she said. Were not waiting an hour. We want our pizza done in a New York minute, so I may just pass on this and I may just wait until I get back home for some good old, made-in-a-minute New York pizza.

Frey laughed at Hochuls demurral and again asked her to take just one bite.

Nothing doing.

No, Im not sure Im going to do that, Hochul said. I have very high standards. I spent five years making pizza in high school.

She said, Im a pizza connoisseur. Thats the size of about three pizzas I would have made.

Hochul had one more parting zinger: If you want to know about pizzas, talk to me.

Staten Islanders will recall their horror when then-Mayor Bill de Blasio ate pizza with a fork during a 2014 visit to the borough.
After serving for 18 years as the chief justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court, Mike Heavican will retire this fall, the state's judicial branch announced in a news release Wednesday.

Appointed to head Nebraska's high court by Gov. Dave Heineman in 2006 and approved by voters to continue in the role three times in the years since, Heavican will end his nearly two-decade tenure as the court's chief justice Oct. 31.

In a letter to Gov. Jim Pillen informing the governor of his decision, Heavican said he is "proud of the many accomplishments of Nebraska's judges, court staff, probation officers, public guardians and other Judicial Branch employees these past 18 years."

"And although there have been many changes and challenges during my term, the basic principles of Justice for All and Equality Before the Law have not changed," wrote Heavican, who served as the U.S. Attorney for the District of Nebraska for five years before he was named to the high court and was the Lancaster County Attorney from 1981 to 1991.

In his letter to Pillen, Heavican thanked court and probation employees he worked with throughout his tenure before signing off: "My best to you and the Great State of Nebraska."

In his own statement Wednesday, Pillen congratulated Heavican on his retirement and thanked him "for his amazing public service to the state of Nebraska."

"He has served Nebraska's Supreme Court with professionalism, rooted in deep regard for the rule of law," Pillen said in the statement. "I have enjoyed getting to know Chief Justice Heavican and I often repeat to others the observation he made to me about walking into the Supreme Court Chamber.

"He noted that each time felt like the very first  conveying a wonderment, love and appreciation for a career that has resulted in immense satisfaction and fulfilment. I wish Mike the very best in all his future endeavors."

Lt. Gov. Joe Kelly, a former prosecutor who, like Heavican, previously served as the Lancaster County Attorney and the U.S. Attorney for the District of Nebraska, called Heavican "the perfect example of all that a public servant should be.

A 1974 graduate of the University of Nebraska's College of Law, Heavican spent the early years of his career as a prosecutor, joining the Lancaster County Attorney's office in 1975. He was named the chief deputy county attorney in 1981 and held that role for less than a year before becoming the county's top prosecutor.

Heavican led the office until 1991, when he became an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Nebraska, serving as a federal prosecutor until Heineman appointed him to the state's high court in 2006.

Nebraskans voted to retain Heavican as the court's justice three times, doing so in 2010, 2016 and 2022, when 71.3% of those who cast a ballot voted to retain him.

Pillen will ultimately name Heavican's replacement on the court after Nebraska's Judicial Nominating Commission fields applications and presents potential nominees to the governor.

Photos: Gov. Tim Walz returns to Nebraska to campaign in Omaha
Super Retail Group surged 6.2 per cent after the Supercheap Auto and Rebel Sport owner posted record sales of $3.9 billion  2 per cent higher year-on-year. The laggards At the other end of the tech spectrum, IT service management company Megaport plunged 21 per cent after its results disappointed the market. Medibank was the biggest large-cap decliner, down 2.3 per cent, on a weak day for larger healthcare stocks. Its decline came even as the health insurer reported a 14 per cent rise in net profit to $570.4 million for the year to June. Penfolds maker Treasury Wine Estates and Meridian Energy both ended the day 1.9 per cent lower. Collins Foods, which operates KFC outlets in Australia, plummeted 12.9 per cent after it warned that rising labour and other operational costs would hurt its profit margins this year.

The lowdown IG Australia market analyst Tony Sycamore said the ASX 200s perfect 10 days of growth  coming after a month of record highs that abruptly ended with a $90 billion two-day wipeout  had been characterised by a gritty grind higher. Sycamore said while the rally may not have showcased the explosive springboard-type moves expected after dramatic market sell-offs, it suggested it was more sustainable than previous rallies built on shaky foundations. Looking at the market stalwarts, the big four banks all tracked up slightly at the end of the session, apart from Westpac, which shrank 0.8 per cent. Among the mining heavyweights, Rio Tinto and BHP edged up 0.2 per cent, while Fortescue jumped 2 per cent. Pilbara Minerals grew 2 per cent, while Mineral Resources added 0.8 per cent.

Sycamore said that while the big miners had guided the index higher in a tentative rebound, leading to expectations the ASX could break its all-time high of 8148.70, he wouldnt be surprised to see a return to lows in the 7600 region before the end of the year. Loading The Australian dollar was buying US67.32. On Wall Street, the S&P 500 rose 0.4 per cent a day after breaking an eight-day winning streak  its longest of the year. The index is back to within 0.8 per cent of its all-time high set last month. The Dow Jones added 55 points, or 0.1 per cent, while the Nasdaq composite gained 0.6 per cent.

Treasury yields eased a bit in the bond market as investors waited for the weeks main event, which will arrive on Friday. Thats when Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will give a speech at an annual economic symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The hope is hell offer clues about how deeply and quickly the Fed will begin cutting interest rates next month after it jacked them to a two-decade high to beat inflation. Tweet of the day Quote of the day
One of Melbournes most important arts spaces, an incubator for photographic talent for almost 40 years, has lost its government funding, putting its future in doubt.

Since 1986 the Centre for Contemporary Photography (CCP) has staged exhibitions and artist talks and held workshops for professionals as well as school students and publishing. It serves as both a launching pad for emerging artists and a place to showcase the work of established photographers.

Daniel Boetker-Smith (left), director of the Centre for Contemporary Photography, with artist Patrick Pound at the centres recently closed building in Fitzroy.

Award-winning photographer Hoda Afshar has work held in permanent gallery collections across Australia. CCP has been a place we can share our work, where our work can be seen and taken seriously. Theres no other space for it, she says.

Over the years of living and working here, Ive witnessed the closure of many photographic galleries around the country. CCP remains one of the only places for photographers to dream of showing at  as an emerging artist, for me that was my biggest dream, to exhibit at the CCP.
A new trailer for Francis Ford Coppolas self-funded epic Megalopolis has been pulled by US studio Lionsgate following claims that the derisive quotes from critics it contained were fakes.

The trailer appeared online on Wednesday, but within 24 hours had disappeared from Lionsgates website and YouTube channel, though it could still be found on secondary sites.

Adam Driver as Cesar in Francis Ford Coppolas extravagant Megalopolis.

Crafted in response to the negative reviews that have greeted the film since its debut at Cannes in May, the trailer opened with the sonorous voice of Laurence Fishburne, who also appears in and narrates the film itself, saying true genius is often misunderstood.

To illustrate the point, the screen is then filled with a cascade of quotes from film critics in response to Coppolas earlier works.
He came to believe that the scientific data was being played down, minimised or misunderstood. Even the UNs review protocols watered down its analysis, he believed. Science communicators suggesting that the world still had time to arrest climate change were either plain wrong or for some reason unable to speak a truth he saw clearly. Large scale societal collapse was not just likely, but inevitable. Loading In 2017, Bendell took a year off to properly investigate his folder of horrors and wrote a paper, Deep Adaptation: A Map for Navigating Climate Tragedy. In dry academic language it laid out his case that near-term social collapse was locked in, and that there was a need within his field to address the end of the idea that we can either solve or cope with climate change. It explored what he called the semi-censorship he attributed to the academic community, and the various types of denialism that he believed had taken hold within it. Drawing on the work of the sociologist Stanley Cohen, he described two distinct forms of denialism, interpretive and implicative. If we accept certain facts but interpret them in a way that makes them safer to our personal psychology, it is a form of interpretative denial. If we recognise the troubling implications of these facts but respond by busying ourselves on activities that do not arise from a full assessment of the situation, then that is implicative denial. Bendell submitted the paper to the journal Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy, whose reviewers demanded significant revisions that he was unwilling to make. Instead, he published it as an unreviewed paper on a university website, where it came to take on its own life.

Over the years, a million people downloaded the paper, which evolved into a movement known as Deep Adaptation, with Bendell at its heart. He left teaching  and the Lake District  and moved to Ubud in Bali, where he teaches permaculture and contributes to the growing online Deep Adaptation movement. The paper heavily influenced the founders of the Extinction Rebellion movement, and Bendell addressed one of its early rallies in London in 2019. We gather and rebel not with a vision of a fairytale future where we have fixed the climate, but because it is right to do what we can, he said. To slow the change. To reduce the harm. To save what we can. To invite us back to sanity and love. The truth is we are scared, and we are brave enough to say so. The truth is we are grieving, and we are proud enough to say so. The truth is we are traumatised, and we are open enough to say so. We are angry, and we are calm enough to say so and invite others to join us. Many did, but many others rejected Bendells view, for reasons both scientific and political.

Michael Mann, distinguished professor of atmospheric science at Penn State University, one of the worlds best known climate scientists, dismisses the movements adherents as doomers, and describes them as dangerous and misguided. In his 2021 book The New Climate War, he writes of doomism as another arm of climate denialism. After all, if collapse is inevitable, what is the point of taking action at all? With many on the political right already opposed for ideological and tribal reasons, doomism provides a means for co-opting those on the left, wrote Mann. It is a brilliant strategy for building a truly bipartisan coalition for inaction. Even some of those scientists in XR circles rejected Bendells argument.

Bendells brand of doomism relies heavily on misinterpreted climate science that undermines the credibility of his claims, wrote three of them in a critical paper. In fact, Deep Adaptation consistently cherry-picks data, cites false experts, puts forward logical fallacies, and disregards robust scientific consensus. Bendell defends himself by offering unsupported reasons for activists and the public to distrust mainstream climate science. In all of these regards, Deep Adaptation mimics the practices that deniers of global warming have wielded for decades. To this day, it is the common view of climate scientists that warming will continue at a gradual though increasing pace until greenhouse gas emissions are stabilised and then cut, and that each 10th of a degree of warming that is avoided will have profound positive implications for the climate. Bendell remains unrepentant. Indeed, in 2020 he updated his paper to assert that not only was societal collapse inevitable, but that it had already begun and was the cause of recent reductions in life expectancy in some Western nations and degradation in the quality of our lives and the institutions meant to serve us. This is the message he will be presenting in Sydney this weekend, though he disagrees that it is paralysing in effect.

Loading Rather, he says that expecting some great leader or new technology to swoop in and save humankind from the mess it has made of the planet and its climate impedes action. The belief in endless progress, that the world will somehow be better in the future than it was in the past, is a juvenile artefact of modernity. So what to do if you accept he is right? Bendell suggests you take a deep breath and then time to grieve. He is an advocate for the COVID-era trend of quiet quitting for the desk-bound practitioner of deep adaptation. With that done, says Bendell, many will want to leave their work and refocus their lives on simpler things. I found I didnt want to try and pitch for research funding, he says. I didnt want to try and recruit more students to a new MBA program. You know, it just it felt yucky to me.
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Review Eating outFitzroy North Like a general store in a country town: This 13-year-old local favourite finally gets a hat Charming neighbourhood bistro Pinotta is experiencing a golden period under chef Philippa Sibley. Dani Valent August 23, 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 September 2024 hit list. See all stories .

1 / 7 Chef Philippa Sibleys drawings (left) decorate the walls of the bistro. Bonnie Savage 2 / 7 Go-to dish: Tonnarelli Nero with nettle and prawn. Bonnie Savage 3 / 7 Fennel salad with blood orange. Bonnie Savage 4 / 7 Tiramisu with a layer of hazelnut sponge. Bonnie Savage 5 / 7 Pinotta is a charming neighbourhood bistro with a bright energy. Bonnie Savage 6 / 7 Confit duck with one of the best duck sauces in town. Bonnie Savage 7 / 7 A selection of winter ices. Bonnie Savage Previous Slide Next Slide Good Food hat 15 / 20 How we score European$$$$ Theres only one chef in Australia who would speak of a salad as over-friendly, humping your leg on the way to the table. Ive never been loved in that way by lettuce, but I get what Philippa Sibley is saying as she describes greens gone wrong. A salad can be slovenly or haggard, and it can also be too keen, like a lolling, slobbery Labrador. Her Friendly Salad ($12) at Pinotta does not hump. Every leaf has been selected for its pert curl and bright crispness; its sassy but not domineering. The fond, stern attention given to a side dish is a sign of this great chefs relationship with the craft of preparing food. Sibley has been cooking professionally since 1989, a little bit in Europe, but basically in Melbourne, where she has worked at (and occasionally owned) restaurants including Tansys, Est Est Est, Luxe, Ondine, Circa the Prince, Prix Fixe, Albert Street Food & Wine, Syracuse and most recently Hero at Federation Square.

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She hasnt built an empire. You wouldnt call her moves strategic. You might wonder how she got pigeonholed as a pastry chef when she makes one of the best duck sauces in town. But you could be sure of one thing: wherever it is, people feel happy eating her food. Tiramisu with a layer of hazelnut sponge. Bonnie Savage Charming bistro Pinotta is a great fit for the peripatetic Pip Sibley. Heidi Modras restaurant opened 13 years ago, and she runs it like a general store in a country town, maybe a bit like Cummins on SAs Eyre Peninsula, where she grew up. People walk by with their shopping and stop for a hug. Local kids draw her pictures. Her sense of community is a magnet and salve. A former graphic designer who sought work that offered more human connection, shes battled through hospitalitys hard times, anchoring herself in this 50-seat restaurant with its chatty front bar and small central kitchen that squeezes diners past it to the rear dining room. The neighbourhood restaurateur was intimidated when Sibley was suggested as her next chef, but the women connected over a belief in the honour inherent in looking after people in restaurants. And music. Modra played a record during the job chat, Where Are You Baby? by the English rapper Betty Boo. But instead of playing it at 45rpm I keep it on 33rpm, Modra told me. So its like a slowed-down, hypnotic version of a very 90s song.

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Its a wonder how Sibley got pigeonholed as a pastry chef when she makes one of the best duck sauces in town. Sibley started last spring and the pairing has turned into a golden period for Pinotta. Theres a bright energy in the room, the service has lifted, the wine list is zippy and fun, and the kitchen has identity. Each afternoon, Sibley tells Modra whats cooking, and the latter sits down to handwrite a menu, ephemera that turns into a wine-splotched archive of Sibleys repertoire. The food is provincial French and Italian, full of details that feed into the delight. Focaccia ($8) is made Pugliese-style with hot potato in the dough. Oysters ($6 each) are shucked with precision and respect. There will be arancini ($8), maybe with pumpkin roasted twice to concentrate its sweetness. Blood oranges for a fennel salad ($26) will be segmented as though by laser. Confit duck with one of the best duck sauces in town. Bonnie Savage

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Confit duck ($48) is spiced and judiciously salted with a fragrant jus. If some meat sauces are like getting stuck in a bog, this one is like splashing joyfully in a shallow puddle of spring rain. Tiramisu ($18) is a little jazzed up: mine had a layer of hazelnut sponge that turns a nonna staple into a fine dining dessert. Youd expect such an experienced chef to be a master of her instrument; the true luck is that she still loves playing it. Go-to dish: Tonnarelli Nero with nettle and prawn. Bonnie Savage Take the tonnarelli ($45), a long pasta, here dyed black with squid ink. The strands are tumbled with nettle butter thats also flavoured with roasted prawn shells. Nubbins of prawns are tossed through, too. The shellfish should be the hero but its the nettle that startles, the verdant green on the dark pasta, bold, humble, deeply delicious.

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We could have a conversation about whether cooking is craft or art but theres something else here that makes the distinction easy. A few years ago, Sibley wanted a hobby that created less mess than cooking. She bought pencils from Coles, started drawing and was unable to deny she was good at it. Her large, detailed depictions of oysters, artichokes and grapes are astonishing: some of her art is on the walls here. Is it a stretch to wonder about the meeting place between sauteing and sketching? Theres something in restraint, knowing when a piece is done, the use of basic tools  heat, salt, green, grey  to turn the everyday into the sublime. The low-down Vibe: Warm neighbourhood bistro Go-to dish: Tonnarelli Nero ($45) Drinks: Quirky, joyful wine list: do as regulars do and ask owner Heidi Modra whats good. Non-alcohol cocktails are taken seriously. Cost: About $160 for 2 people, excluding drinks This review was originally published in Good Weekend magazine

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Promises of more police are paving the path to power on election eve in the Northern Territory.

Almost 74,000 Territorians have cast their vote and with turnout usually lower in the NT, this could account for almost two-thirds of the overall vote heading into polling day.

Northern Territory Opposition Leader Lia Finocchiaro. Credit: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

Margins were extremely tight in nine of the 25 seats at the 2020 election and despite Labors victory, eight seats were won by less than 120 votes. Of those, four were won by less than 50 votes.

One day out from polling day, Opposition Leader Lia Finocchiaro opened the Northern Territory Police Association members conference with a direct appeal to the constabulary.

We know that under eight years of Labor, our police have been ignored. They feel abandoned, the Country Liberal Party leader told media outside the conference on Friday.

Theyre leaving in droves, and crime is through the roof, and so a focus on community safety is not only important for our police, its important for the future of the Northern Territory.

Finocchiaro said successive police surveys show 90 per cent of the rank-and-file felt unsupported by the Labor government.

The NT is Australias most policed jurisdiction, however successive employment surveys have revealed low morale and trust in the government following the trial of former constable Zachary Rolfe.

Rolfe shot and killed teen Kumanjayi Walker during a bungled arrest in the remote Northern Territory community of Yuendumu in November 2019.

He was charged with murder and acquitted after a Supreme Court trial.

The impact of the ongoing inquest has placed significant pressure on the police department, with an independent review by a former police union boss and a commitment by both major parties to increase funding.

On the hustings on Friday, Chief Minister Eva Lawler spoke outside Palmerston police station about the tough decisions she has made.

Weve seen the really tough decisions that Ive had to make ... tough decisions like the curfew in Alice Springs, she told reporters on Friday.

Tough decisions like ... supporting a gas deal for Territorians to make sure that the first gas out of the Beetaloo is gas for Territorians.

I think I was the first member of parliament in the whole of Australia to give the CFMEU a bit of a boot as well.

Voting closes at 6pm on August 24.

AAP
The NSW government must create a system across the public, independent and Catholic sectors to ensure more students with a disability can access mainstream schools and teachers are better equipped to meet the learning needs of all students, a parliamentary inquiry has found.

The findings of the inquiry into disability education also called for an increase in funding for distance education as data shows demand for places in the public system for children with disabilities has been steadily growing over the past decade.

Valentina Borbone and her daughter Angelique, who attends the support unit at Moss Vale High. Credit: James Brickwood

Accreditation of initial teacher education courses should also be expanded to ensure educators are better equipped to meet the learning needs of students with disability, particularly students with autism spectrum disorder, the inquiry found.

NSW Greens MP Abigail Boyd, who chaired the inquiry, said that disability education is a false choice for parents who must choose between an unfit mainstream setting, or a segregated setting.
Miles Harvey of Newtown and his wife watch SBS World News at 6.30 every night. On Monday at 6.29pm while watching ABC TV, a message came on the screen telling us to Switch to SBS World News, the program you usually watch at this time. Just who is watching us while we are watching TV? George Donikian?

Scaring birds may be legal, Barry Brown (C8), but it can make them sick, and then they would need tweetment, advises Judy Archer of Nelson Bay.

My Dad was one of the original Rats of Tobruk (C8), writes Caz Willis of Bowral. He was with the 2/6th Cavalry Commandos, they left here on the first ship as Light Horse/Lancers, became mechanised overseas onto Sunbeam motorcycles, and then served in every theatre of war except the fall of Singapore. John Curtin stood up to England and said we needed those men at home to defend Australia. They came back to Australia, did a few weeks of jungle training, and then hit Kokoda and Papua New Guinea. Theirs is a generation that will never be repeated. If not for John Curtins strength of decision, a lot of us wouldnt be here. Caz also points out that her father was a firm advocate of wigwams for gooses bridles.

According to my copy of More Curious Questions by Max Cryer, A wigwam for a gooses bridle never existed! claims Allan Gibson of Cherrybrook. Max says the phrase means nothing and has no defined origin. He adds its a cover-up for anything else. Its just an amusing invented nonsense. Sounds like some of the punishment inflicted in this column of late.

Theres another parental retort doing the rounds of Column 8 this week. Wheres the (whatever)? was usually answered by my mother with Up in Annies room, behind the clock, recalls Michael Britt of MacMasters Beach. Origins sought, please. Other valued contributors spruiking for Annie include Adrian Bell of Davistown, Coral Button of North Epping (who replaces the clock with a looking glass), Marli Davies of Wentworth Falls, John McIntyre of Port Macquarie and a glutton for punishment from Cherrybrook.
A Sydney teacher has been accused of having sex with a 17-year-old student, the second criminal case in as many weeks to involve a woman accused of improper conduct with schoolboys.

Monique Nguyen, 28, a teacher from the citys north-west, was arrested by detectives in late May.

Monique Nguyen worked with students both inside and outside the classroom.

She was charged with sexual intercourse with a young person under her special care.

The charge document alleges Nguyen had sex with the teenager in mid-April at Baulkham Hills, the suburb in which she lives.
As the new metro line opens under the heart of Sydney, we take a look at how it became a reality.

When Adrian Bryan arrived for his first early morning shift at Mister Minit in North Sydney station this week, he was immediately struck by the drop in customers in what was normally his busiest time. It was completely dead, he said.

Bryan, who lives in Mount Druitt and hasnt had a reason to use the new metro himself, was hopeful sales would be steady as customers would come during the day instead.

Adrian Bryan works at Mister Minit in Greenwood Plaza. He says foot traffic has been completely dead since the Metro opening. Credit: Dominic Lorrimer

But hes not alone in noticing the drop in people. Businesses in older train stations near Sydneys new metro stations say foot traffic and sales are noticeably down after the $21.6 billion metro rail lines opening on Monday, with faster travel times and buzz around the project drawing morning and evening commuters away from established stores.

Shop staff in the Greenwood Plaza shopping centre, which commuters walk through as they exit North Sydney train station, said travellers favouring the new Victoria Cross metro station had affected the peak trading hours before 9am and after 5pm, with a knock-on effect for the lunchtime rush.
Winter weather has brought a flood of new problems for homeowners tangled in Western Australias BGC housing construction dispute as leaking homes experience an explosion of mould.

Leaks first became a problem in May as the first rains of the season revealed improperly sealed roofs and roof fittings in many of the construction giants new builds, some owners say.

Josh Hickey is waiting for a resolution to mould growing in the pantry of his new BGC-built home. Credit: Josh Hickey

A poll of 1200 BGC Housing Group clients  most of whom have joined a $100 million class action suit against the builder  revealed roughly half of respondents have experienced leaks after rain and/or a mould issue.

WAtoday has spoken with eight homeowners who built with BGC and say they have mould problems, but do not want to speak publicly at this time.
Its looking like a rough evening is on the way with strong gusty winds hitting the city so please take care.

It has been a busy day of local news, with plenty happening in court during the Linda Reynolds/Brittany Higgins defamation trial. Reporter Jesinta Burton brought us all the big developments of the day, finishing with a story reporting that Reynolds lawyers lost a bid to grill Brittany Higgins doctor after claiming to have uncovered two materially different psychiatric reports inked on the same day, one of which underpinned the former staffers multimillion-dollar payout.

Rebecca Peppiatt wrote about how plans for a fifth Exclusive Brethren church for the Perth Hills will go ahead, despite overwhelming opposition from the community.

Locals largely opposed the application because they believed it was not inclusive of the wider community and questioned why a fifth place of worship was necessary in the area when one is currently under construction in neighbouring Parkerville and three other smaller churches are already in use in nearby Mundaring, Kalamunda and Darlington.

And Sarah Brookes confirmed the pest attacking Perths trees is spreading across the metropolitan area with confirmed cases now detected in 145 suburbs including the Perth Hills suburb of Lesmurdie, Bedfordale and Ellenbrook in the City of Swan. Thats almost half of Perth.

As we close the blog, Perth man Shane Ramsey is on his way home from Bali, where he was seriously injured in a scooter accident and left in a coma. He is due to land in the next couple of hours, and we wish him well.

Good night.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers had a sharp line in parliament this week when he ridiculed the Opposition Leader for asking so many questions about Palestinians. Chalmers had good cause for some targeted mockery: while Australians are caught in an economic crunch, Peter Dutton spends all his time talking about a foreign war.

All we get from those opposite is another day of doubling down on divisiveness and diversion, Chalmers said at the end of question time on Tuesday. The treasurer highlighted a demonstrable truth: that shadow treasurer Angus Taylor had been mostly silent while Dutton had made every question about people fleeing the war in Gaza. That followed an earlier jibe from Chalmers  that Dutton will not even give Taylor a turn on the dog whistle.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton Credit: Sydney Morning Herald

Every single question was on the Middle East and not one single question was on middle Australia, Chalmers said on Tuesday. He was right. The Coalition has barely mentioned the cost of living in parliament this week.

We know Chalmers got under Duttons skin because the Opposition Leader tried to shut the treasurer down. He moved that Chalmers be no longer heard  a motion used to silence someone. Dutton lost the vote, 53 to 92, and drew derision from the Labor ranks for being so sensitive. After a few minutes for the vote, Chalmers played for laughs. That break was actually useful, he said. It was a good opportunity to clean up the little shards of the Opposition Leaders glass jaw over there.
Jewish groups are demanding the government bar extremist US provocateur Candace Owens from holding a speaking tour across Australia because of her conspiracy-tinged attacks on Jews and trans people.

Owens rose to prominence as a Donald Trump-aligned influencer and has claimed that Israel was founded by a cult, secret Jewish gangs operate in Hollywood and minimised Nazi atrocities. She told her 18 million online followers she is selling tickets to electrifying evenings in Australia in November.

Extreme right influencer Candace Owens is planning a speaking tour of Australia. Credit: Bloomberg

After questions from this masthead, the government said it could block her entry to Australia.

Owens, who recently said Trump was too moderate, has also made claims about a range of minority groups including trans people who she falsely said suffered clinical insanity and suggested could be responsible for a rise in mass shootings.
A rebel board member has called for a spill of the Melbourne Racing Club committee following scathing criticism of Caulfield Racecourses new $160 million facilities and plans to demolish the glass-fronted Rupert Clarke Grandstand.

Sitting committee member John Kanga announced on Thursday night he had created the Save Our MRC group and has called a special general meeting.

Caufields new-look mounting yard was unveiled in February. Credit: Getty Images

In a statement to announce the challenge, Kangas group called for the removal of MRC executive committee members Matt Cain, Nick Hassett, Mark Pratt, Brooke Dawson and Scott Davidson. They have also asked for a representative of the Mornington advisory group to replace Jill Monk on the eight-person MRC board.

The statement was released late on Thursday, hours after a MRC committee meeting.
Located five hours north-west of Oslo in Norways Jotunheimen National Park, Northern Europes tallest peak  the 2469-metre-high Galdhopiggen  is a popular hike because of its accessibility. After driving to the 1850-metre-high Galdhopiggen Summer Ski Resort, its only a 5.5-kilometre trek to the summit with an elevation gain of just 619 metres. The tricky part? Avoiding the 30-metre-deep crevasses that lurk beneath the Styggebreen glacier surrounding it  hence why you need to be led by an experienced guide. Reach the top and youll be rewarded with spectacular views of the regions dramatic glacial valleys and mountains. See fiftydegreesnorth.com Larapinta Trail, Northern Territory Ellery Creek Big Hole in the West MacDonnell Ranges. Credit: Getty Images Staying in tented eco-camps, this five-night trip with Australian Walking Holidays showcases the best bits of the Larapinta Trail, an epic 221-kilometre trek that winds its way through the Northern Territorys rust-red West MacDonnell Ranges. Highlights include summiting Mount Sonder at sunrise, exploring the dramatic Ormiston Gorge and gaining a deeper understanding of the regions Indigenous culture from traditional owners. Australian Walking Holidays is the only operator that includes a bush tucker lesson with Rayleen Brown, founder of Kungkas Can Cook, and has a guided tour through Standley Chasm with local Indigenous mob. See australianwalkingholidays.com.au The Balkans, Via Dinarica

Intrepid Travels 10-day Split to Tirana itinerary showcases some of the Via Dinarica trails highlights. Stretching from Italy through the western Balkans (Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro and Albania), the Via Dinarica is the long-distance European hiking route almost no one has heard of. Launched in 2010, the trail aims to encourage tourism to the western Balkans and lure visitors from the regions celebrated coastline to its lesser-known mountainous interior. Intrepid Travels 10-day trip from Split to Tirana showcases some of the trails most spectacular portions via six scenically stunning hikes, together with visits to the cities of Split, Sarajevo and Tirana. See intrepidtravel.com Waterfall season, the Kimberley True North  one of the Kimberleys cruising pioneers. Credit: True North Thundering waterfalls, spectacular sunsets and very few people are just some of the advantages of visiting the Kimberley at the tail end of the wet season. True North, one of the pioneers of expedition cruising in the region, now has two vessels (True North and True North II) offering departures in March and April, which is the best time to see the Kimberleys famed waterfalls. It also means youll probably be the only ones at most of the rock art and swim sites youll visit. The price for this exclusive access? Hair-ruining humidity. Thankfully, both vessels are air-conditioned. See truenorth.com.au

Antarctic snorkelling, Aurora Expeditions Polar plunge  a signature experience of Aurora Expeditions. Obviously Antarctic vistas are incredible above the water, but what about below? This is a signature experience offered by Australian-based company Aurora Expeditions. Passengers don dry suits, masks, snorkels and fins and plunge into the water. On show are playful penguins and other marine life such as crustaceans and starfish along with icebergs and subaquatic rock formations. All this, and you dont even have to navigate the most difficult part of Antarctic exploration to get there: crossing the Drake Passage. Aurora offers flights from Punta Arenas to King George Island, meaning less time at sea and more time in the sea. See auroraexpeditions.com.au Coral Expeditions Coral Expeditions compact ships can access bays and coastlines the bigger ships cant.

This small Aussie-founded company celebrated its 40th anniversary last year and is an unsung minnow amid the cruise company whales. It pioneered the use of knowledgeable guides onboard and all-inclusive shore excursions, and has remained true to its mission of providing expedition cruises in remote Australia locations and now in South-East Asia and Japan. Its compact, purpose-built ships can penetrate small bays and convoluted coastlines, while tenders and Zodiacs enable guests to visit gorges and land on the tiniest of islands. Dont expect on-board diversions and luxuries. Instead, enjoy exploring with enthusiastic leaders dedicated to passing on their impressive learning. See coralexpeditions.com Le Soleal, Ponant The finest of dining onboard the French-flagged Le Soleal. If you like creature comforts, Beaujolais and plump pillows and yet want to see tricky-to-reach places such as Antarctica, Alaska or Papua New Guinea, then this stylish French-flagged ship keeps you in billionaire style while sailing gently through ice-encrusted coastlines or remote atolls. Le Soleal, near-identical to three other Ponant ships (LAustral, Le Boreal and Le Lyrial), carries 264 guests, looks like a boutique hotel and has small bar-lounges, a theatre and spa. Particularly outstanding is the restaurant for the finest of dining in the most out-of-the-way places. See ponant.com Celebrity Flora, Galapagos, Celebrity Cruises
Carbon offsets seem futile when airlines continue to package meals and amenities in throwaway plastic. So its encouraging to see Qantas taking decisive action by replacing plastic utensils, packaging and amenities with responsibly-sourced wood, recycled plastic, bamboo and compostable material. And with vegan meals the most frequently requested dietary choice on Qantas flights, plant-based options are now standard on menus alongside meaty fare. See qantas.com Virgin Voyages Blinged-up casual diner, Razzle Dazzle, on board Virgin ships. Youll find almost every aspect of the cruise experience has been tweaked, blinged-up and drizzled in double entendre when you board a Virgin Voyages ship. For a start, you wont hear announcements or see paper itineraries; instead, each days schedule is accessed via an app. Theres also no ship-wide muster drill; passengers watch a safety video then join a small-group lifejacket demonstration. And say farewell to the cruise director; that role has been replaced by an energetic cast of onboard personalities. Naturally, theres an equally eclectic range of activities: from karaoke and 80s workouts to drag queen bingo and BDSM workshops. Although we wont see a Virgin ship cruising Australian waters this summer, we hope to see its ships returning in the near future. See virginvoyages.com 1 Hotels

Resort-style pool at 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge. Credit: 1 Hotels/James Baigrie Proving that luxury and sustainability arent mutually exclusive, 1 Hotels has 11 high-end, eco-friendly properties in some of the globes most sought-after hot spots, including New York, London and Paris with Melbourne on the way. Commendable sustainability initiatives include wooden key cards, chalkboards instead of notepads and hangers made from recycled greeting cards. Outside, each property features a verdant living plant wall, while inside theres copious greenery and extensive use of recycled materials. Impressively, none of these initiatives feel finger-waggy or preachy and the vibe is still unashamedly upscale, with plush robes, artisanal minibars, upscale amenities and collaborations with award-winning chefs. See 1hotels.com Sierra Grande, New Mexico The rustic, 17-room Sierra Grande Lodge has an extensive conservation program. Located in the quirky New Mexican town of Truth or Consequences, Sierra Grande is one of several resorts owned by Ted Turner, the former CNN media mogul who has devoted the remainder of his life (and fortune) to species and wilderness preservation. In the process, he has become the second-biggest private landowner in the US. From the rustic, 17-room resort, guests can take guided jeep safaris into nearby Ladder reserve (one of three vast properties he owns in New Mexico), which has active programs to conserve vulnerable species such as the Mexican wolf, Chiricahua leopard frog and Bolson tortoise. See tedturnerreserves.com

Luxury Escapes Luxury Escapes dreamy holiday products now include tours and experiences. The Melbourne-based business winning formula of cooking up tasty travel packages that are win-win deals for both providers and customers has become a true travel force to be reckoned with. Not content to let a tried and tested formula do all the work, the company, owned by entrepreneur Adam Schwab, has embraced the age of influencers to showcase its dreamy holiday products and has even created its own tours. A special food-focused tour of Sri Lanka designed and hosted by former MasterChef judges Matt Preston and Gary Mehigan is one of its newest Signature Series offerings. See luxuryescapes.com ANI ANI Private Resorts run four-year sponsorship programs for young local artists.

Setting the pace for luxury hospitality giving back to the community in a truly meaningful way, British arts patron and philanthropist Tim Reynolds, founder of ANI Private Resorts, established ANI Art Academies in 2010, a non-profit organisation dedicated to providing a free education to students of fine art. Each of ANIs four ravishing resorts in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Anguilla and the Dominican Republic host an academy where aspiring young local artists are given a rigorous four-year education at no personal cost, benefiting students families and communities alike. See aniprivateresorts.com Marriott Guests take part in mangrove planting at Fiji Marriott Resort Momi Bay. Credit: Marriott Bonvoy Global hotel chain Marriott encompasses a network of 8900 hotels and more than 30 brands in 141 countries, so ensuring sustainable practices across the group is a huge challenge. By implanting green teams in individual hotels, partnering with innovative thinkers such as chef Josh Niland and diversity champions Dylan Alcott and Ash Barty, and encouraging fresh ideas from hotel staff, Marriott is making headway with ambitious environmental and social responsibility goals, including reducing carbon emissions by 30 per cent by next year. From coral and mangrove planting activities for kids at Fiji Marriott Resort Momi Bay, to the ground-up sustainable design of The Singapore Edition, Marriott is focused on making a difference. See marriott.com AndBeyond
I would like to go on a tour of food and arts in Japan. Is there a company or small-tour group that specialises in these two interests?

D. Gliksman, Cedar Brush Creek, NSW

A tuna sushi set at the famous Tsukiji seafood market. Credit: Getty

Wayfarer Travel has a two-week food and art cultural tour of Japan. Starting from Tokyo, the tour visits Takayama, Kyoto, Osaka and Naoshima Island, Japans art Island. Along the way youll have several cooking and tasting sessions with Japanese chefs and an Osaka street food safari. However this is a tailor-made tour, which means it will be you alone. Responsible Travel also has a 15-day food and art tour, but this too is a private itinerary and the price is steep.

You might be better off taking a group tour that focuses on either art or food, and Queensland-based Inside Japan has a small-group art and architecture tour that encompasses sculpture, textiles, ink painting, calligraphy, woodblock printing, gardens, temples, shrines, samurai residences and castles. Although the emphasis is on art, it would be impossible to visit Japan on any tour and not sample the refined delights of the Japanese kitchen. For more depth, what you might do is arrive in Tokyo a couple of days before your tour begins and take some short food tours. Secret Food Tours and Food Tours Japan are two options.

I am visiting Slovakia in September, 2025, joining a hiking tour starting from Krakow airport. Where could I visit for a few days that has a direct flight to Krakow? Finnair flies to Krakow via Helsinki so that is one option.

J. Fanos, Preston, Vic


Jerusalem: The outgoing head of Israeli military intelligence says responsibility for the intelligence breakdowns that allowed Hamas to carry out the deadliest attack in Israeli history on October 7 and sparked Israels ongoing war in Gaza rests with him.

At his handover ceremony on Thursday (AEST), Major-General Aharon Haliva said the failures would haunt him for the rest of his life.

Speaking alongside his successor, Haliva said the bitter memories of that day weighed on his conscience day and night and will do so for the rest of my days.

The head of Israels military intelligence directorate Aharon Haliva has left his post. Credit: Twitter

We did not fulfil our most important mission, giving a warning of war, he added, breaking down in tears at one point while he spoke about his family. The ultimate responsibility for the failure of the intelligence division rests with me.
Outside this weeks Democratic National Convention, beyond the lights and delirium, the Chicago venue was emblazoned with a curious sign: A New Way Forward it boomed, echoing a pledge Kamala Harris has taken to offering on the trail. Together we will chart a new way forward, is how she put it at a Milwaukee rally during the Convention.

By the time Barack Obama took to the stage and inspired the crowd to chant yes she can! you could have been forgiven for reviving all the hits in your own mind. Kamala Harris: change you can believe in. It kind of fits the fervour.

Donald Trump is struggling in the US election race as Kamala Harris leads in the polls. Credit: Artwork: Monique Westermann

But new? We should recall, because its easy to forget in these heady days, that Harris is, in fact, the vice president of the current administration. By the time the next president is inaugurated, 12 of the past 16 years will have passed under a Democratic White House. This is not Obama 2008, which was so clearly a response to eight years of George W. Bush. Its not even Biden 2020, which sought to terminate Trumpism after a term and render it an aberration. Its a vice president seeking a promotion. And yet, we have one senior adviser, formerly a Biden White House official, telling The New York Times that Harris is absolutely the change candidate.

I must confess I didnt see this coming. I take my place among the countless political observers who felt Harris posed no particular threat to Trump: that she would never have won the Democratic nomination in a normal primary contest, and that a Californian lawyer would have little hope of winning over the working-class voters so pivotal to Trumps electoral success. All that might still turn out to be true. But for now, theres no denying the momentum.
PHILIPSBURG(DCOMM):--- The Emergency Operations Center (EOC) met at the Government Administration Building on Wednesday to debrief on the national response to the passing of Tropical Storm Ernesto, the fifth named storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season.



The meeting was chaired by the honorable Prime Minister, Dr. Luc Mercelina.



Each Emergency Support Function (ESF), which makes up the essential core of the countrys national disaster system, was presented for the meeting gave a presentation.



Fire Chief/Disaster Coordinator Clive Richardson said that the passing of Tropical Storm Ernesto tested all areas and levels of emergency response.



Richardson said the passing of the storm allowed the individual ESFs to fine-tune their emergency response mechanisms in preparation for the next system.



The 10 ESFs are: ESF-1 NV GEBE (Water & Energy), ESF-2 Bureau Telecommunication and Post (BTP), ESF-3 Ministry of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure (Public Works, Transport & Logistics), ESF-4 Fire Department, ESF-5 Police, ESF-6 Ministry of Public Health, Social Development and Labour, ESF-7 Department of Social Development (Evacuation, Shelters, Relief & Mass Care), ESF-8 Department of Communication, ESF-9 Governmental Affairs, and ESF-10 Ministry of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Telecommunication and Transport (Airport, Port & Hotels).



The Office of Disaster Management (ODM) which falls under the Fire Department (Ministry of General Affairs) headed by Fire Chief/Disaster Coordinator Clive Richardson, is appealing to all residents and businesses to remain vigilant and to maintain a state of readiness as the nation is now in the peak period of the hurricane season.



The remaining storm names for the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season are Francine, Gordon, Helene, Isaac, Joyce, Kirk, Leslie, Milton, Nadine, Oscar, Patty, Rafael, Sara, Tony, Valerie, and William.



The community is urged to learn more about hurricane hazards and how to prepare for a storm/hurricane strike by visiting the Government website: www.sintmaartengov.org/hurricane where you will be able to download your Hurricane Season Readiness Guide and Hurricane Tracking Chart.



Listen to the Government Radio station  SXMGOV 107.9FM - for official information and news before, during and after a hurricane. You can also follow weather related news and information as well as national addresses by the Prime Minister, chairperson of the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) by going to @SXMGOV Facebook Page.



For official weather-related information, check out the website of the Meteorological Department of St. Maarten (MDS): www.meteosxm.com or visit their social media page Facebook.com/sxmweather/



Remember, it only takes one hurricane to make it a bad season. Be prepared!
WILLEMSTAD:--- Dutch Navy ship HNLMS Tromp on coming August 26 will be mooring in Willemstad. It has been 12 years since the air defense and command frigate has been in Willemstad for a harbor visit. It is the last harbor which the naval ship visits before returning home after a journey of more than 6 months. It will be the last harbor which the naval ship visits before returning home after a journey of more than 6 months.

On coming Monday August 26, the public can watch the ceremonial arrival of HNLMS Tromp from 09:30 at St. Anna Bay. Hereby HNLMS Tromp will fire a 21 gun salute in honor of the Kingdom flag and the Lieutenant Governor of Curacao. This salute will be answered with 21 gun salutes from Fort Krommelijn, after which the ship will sail into St. Anna Bay and fire another 21 gun salutes.

Pacific Archer

The six months journey called Pacific Archer is dedicated to promoting security and stability in the Pacific Ocean, strengthening international cooperation, promoting maritime safety and supporting compliance with international laws and regulations at sea. During this voyage, the naval vessel worked closely with allies and partners and participated in various international exercises, such as the largest maritime exercise RIMPAC near Hawaii. Besides exercises the ship was also deployed for a free passage in the South China Sea and in Bab-El-Mandeb against attacks from the Houthis. The journey started in Den Helder, via the Mediterranean Sea, they navigated to the Indo-Pacific and through the Caribbean Region the vessel will return home.

HNLMS Tromp

HNLMS Tromp is one of the four air defense and command frigates from the Royal Navy. Besides the 200 crew members on board is also a NH-90 helicopter. The navy vessel is equipped with advanced radar and weapon systems. This enables the ship to recognize, track and neutralize air threats, making it a crucial part of the Navy's air defense tasks
A new leader stands at the helm of Carlisle-based nonprofit Hope Station, the organization announced Thursday.

South Central Pennsylvania native Rogette Harris will take on the agencys executive director role beginning Sept. 3.

Harris has nearly 20 years of experience in government affairs, public policy and legislative advocacy and has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to furthering social justice and racial equity, according to a Hope Station news release.

She worked in the Dauphin County Clerk of Courts office prior to joining Hope Stations team, Interim Executive Director Heather Maneval said. Other experience includes roles in the finance department at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center and in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.

Harris also has masters degrees in public administration and business, and her involvement with advocacy organizations has included work with DC Vote, the Academy of Hope, the Democratic National Committee and the NAACP, Maneval said.

Having worked both in government and nonprofit settings, her background includes leading project management and crafting strategic initiatives that drive social change, according to Hope Station.

Rogette Harris exceptional leadership skills and profound understanding of advocacy and social justice make her the ideal person to lead Hope Station, Board President Tavares Tyler said. We are excited about the fresh perspectives and strategic acumen she will bring to our organization and we look forward to the positive impact she will make in advancing our mission.

Hope Stations selection of a new executive director comes after the organization launched a strategic planning process earlier this year.

Former Executive Director Safronia Perry stepped down from the role in December, and the entity has operated under Maneval since February.

Maneval helped oversee the months-long planning process that included input from community leaders and neighbors, culminating with a vision to address the social and economic mobility of Black and Brown individuals in Cumberland County, according to the nonprofit.

The full strategic plan is available on Hope Stations website.

Harris responsibilities will include overseeing the shift from human services to advocacy, fostering social change and ensuring the implementation of innovated solutions, organization officials said.

I am honored to join Hope Station and to work alongside such a dedicated team, Harris said. I am eager to leverage my experience and passion for social justice to further the organizations goals and to help create lasting, positive change in our community.

Photos: Carlisle's Hope Station 2024 Juneteenth celebration Juneteenth 2.JPG Juneteenth 3.JPG Juneteenth 1.JPG Juneteenth 4.JPG Juneteenth 5.JPG Juneteenth 6.JPG Juneteenth 7.JPG Juneteenth 8.JPG Juneteenth 9.JPG Juneteenth 10.JPG Juneteenth 11.JPG Juneteenth 12.JPG Juneteenth 13.JPG
Microsoft cuts revenue expectations from cloud



San Francisco, Aug 21 (AFP) Aug 21, 2024



Microsoft on Monday said it would rake in less revenue than expected from its cloud computing unit, which could risk breaking investor confidence that it can reap quick benefits from investments in AI.

In an update to investors, the tech giant said that it now expects intelligent cloud revenue to be between $23.80 billion and $24.10 billion in the current quarter that runs from July through September.

This was compared with its prior expectations of $28.6 billion and $28.9 billion.

The Intelligent Cloud business is one of Microsoft's fastest growing and most profitable segments, generating significant revenue from the rapid adoption of Azure and other cloud services.

It competes primarily with cloud platforms like Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, and IBM Cloud which are all offering generative AI services to attract customers and juice revenues.

Microsoft is among the major contenders in the race to build out artificial intelligence systems, pouring billions of dollars into the technology in the hope it will pay off.

The company founded by Bill Gates is keen to monetize generative AI, having moved the fastest to implement it across all its products, and investing $13 billion into OpenAI, the start-up stalwart behind ChatGPT.

After the revenue update, shares in Microsoft were only moving slightly lower in after-hours trading.

Microsoft last month reported strong quarterly earnings but saw its shares slip on figures showing its crucial cloud computing unit did not grow as strongly as expected.

Money brought in from cloud computing has driven blockbuster earnings quarter after quarter, and a hint that stellar growth may be slowing was enough to give investors pause.

arp/mdl
South Korean pet care goes high-tech with AI diagnostics



Yongin, South Korea, Aug 22 (AFP) Aug 22, 2024



When five-year-old goldendoodle Mozzi started walking "unnaturally", his concerned owner rushed him to the vet in South Korea, where the problem was diagnosed not by humans but by AI.

South Korea, a global leader in the production of chips that power generative AI, has been quick to embrace novel uses of the technology.

One such application, "X Caliber", is helping vets pinpoint X-ray abnormalities in seconds, making diagnostics both quicker and easier to explain.

The AI reading of Mozzi's X-rays showed the curly-haired goldendoodle had a 22 percent chance of knee dislocation. While not an emergency, his condition needed careful management to head off surgery.

"I wouldn't have understood the results if I didn't look at the numbers," said Mo Jae-hyun, Mozzi's owner, adding that the AI program helped him understand his pet's woes.

"Of course, I trust my vet, but looking at the results myself, it seems more credible."

The software's developer, South Korean telecom provider SK Telecom, said X Caliber has a disease detection rate of up to 86 percent.

Vets say it has transformed their ability to diagnose.

"Dogs with heart disease, for example, tend to have enlarged hearts. We use a method called VHS (vertebral heart size), which used to require measuring one by one, manually," Oh I-se, CEO of Sky Animal Medical Group, told AFP.

But now AI can reveal the result in 15 seconds, so it is "much more convenient," Oh said.



- Global aims -



SK Telecom considers X Caliber "the beginning of AI healthcare", said Joo Ye-seul, manager of the software's global team. "We plan further expansion into additional domains based on this."

The service is already available in the United States, Australia and some Southeast Asian countries.

In Indonesia, veterinary hospital owner Kristanya Oen says X Caliber is helping to overcome a lack of expertise and trained staff.

"There is a shortage of radiologists in Indonesian animal hospitals and it is not easy to receive radiology education in Indonesia, so we needed X Caliber to help with our diagnostics," Oen told AFP.

SK Telecom is part of the same conglomerate as SK Hynix, which launched the first high-bandwidth memory chips -- cutting-edge semiconductors that enable faster data processing and the more complex tasks of generative AI.

While many experts are questioning the payoff of lavish AI investments following a recent fall in technology stocks, the conglomerate's CEO Chey Tae-won remains committed.

SK Group must "think fiercely about next-generation products," he told employees this month.

In June, SK Group announced plans to invest 80 trillion won ($60 billion) in AI chips, services and data centres.



- Pet nation -



In South Korea, where more and more people are turning to "pet parenthood" instead of having children, it is not necessarily surprising that AI healthcare would begin with animals.

In a country with one of the world's lowest birth rates, pet ownership has roughly doubled in the last decade, official figures show.

One in four households now have at least one furry friend, and last year more strollers were sold for pets than for human babies on popular e-commerce platform, Gmarket.

The pet care industry was worth an estimated eight trillion won ($6 billion) in 2022, a fourfold increase compared with five years earlier.

The government aims to double the industry's value by 2027 and is helping support pet food and healthcare businesses through various loans and tax incentives.

Jumping on the trend, South Korean companies are working on new ways of integrating AI into pet care, including "smart toilets" for early detection of urinary diseases and "smart leashes" that monitor pulse and body temperature.

"Devices that can monitor mild to severe diseases in the daily life of pets are expected to expand," said Kim Soo-kyung, a senior manager at the Economic Research Institute in KPMG Korea.

hs/ceb/lb/cwl
Trump promotes family-run crypto platform



Washington, Aug 22 (AFP) Aug 22, 2024



Donald Trump on Thursday announced the upcoming launch of a cryptocurrency platform, presenting it as an alternative to banks and financial institutions.

"For too long, the average American has been squeezed by the big banks and financial elites," wrote the Republican candidate in the US presidential election on his Truth Social network.

"It's time we take a stand - together."

Trump provided no details as to the exact content of the project, called "The DeFiant Ones."

His post featured the now iconic picture of the former president, fist clenched, just moments after an assassination attempt last month at a rally in Pennsylvania.

Two of his sons, Eric and Donald Jr, who head the Trump Organization family conglomerate, have described the project in recent weeks as "digital real estate."

This could refer to the trading of assets in the virtual worlds of the metaverse or a method to make real world assets available to be bought and sold in bitcoin-like tokens.

During his presidency Trump referred to cryptocurrencies as a scam, but has since radically changed his position, presenting himself as a "pro-bitcoin president" if elected in November.

In so doing, he is standing in opposition to the Biden administration, which is seen as a proponent of regulating the sector.

Trump's White House rival Kamala Harris, who is also Biden's vice president, has not taken a clear stance either way since launching her campaign last month.

Documents published in mid-August showed that Trump held between one and five million dollars' worth of ether, the world's second-largest cryptocurrency.

The platform promised by Trump will be based on so-called decentralized finance, a mechanism that makes it possible to no longer go through an intermediary such as a bank to carry out transactions with a third party.

Decentralized finance, or DeFi, is based on so-called blockchain technology, which keeps a theoretically open but tamper-proof record of transactions.
Apple to let iPhone users in Europe delete its App Store



San Francisco, Aug 22 (AFP) Aug 22, 2024



Apple will allow iPhone and iPad users in the European Union delete the App Store or its Safari browser, the tech giant told developers on Thursday.

Apple had long fiercely protected the App Store as the lone gateway for digital content to get onto its popular mobile devices. The change comes as the company loosens its grip on devices in the EU due to the bloc's landmark new digital rules.

"The App Store, Messages, Camera, Photos, and Safari apps will be deletable for users in the EU," Apple said on a support page for developers.

"Only Settings and Phone will not be deletable."

Also being added is a special section where iPhone or iPad users will be able to manage default settings for browsers, messaging, phone calls and other features, according to Apple.

"As browser engines are constantly exposed to untrusted and potentially malicious content and have visibility into sensitive user data, they're one of the most common attack vectors for malicious actors," the iPhone maker said.

"To help keep users safe online, Apple will only authorize developers to implement alternative browser engines after meeting specific criteria and committing to a number of ongoing privacy and security requirements, including timely security updates to address emerging threats and vulnerabilities."

App makers had previously needed to use Apple's payment system on the App Store, with the tech titan getting a piece of transactions.

But the EU said the terms prevented app developers from freely steering consumers to alternative ways to pay, making Apple the first ever tech firm to face accusations of breaching a new law known as the Digital Markets Act (DMA).

Apple last month promised changes to comply with the DMA and address the findings of the European Commission, the EU's powerful antitrust regulator.

From the autumn, Apple said developers in the EU "can communicate and promote offers for purchases" wherever they want, for example, via an alternative app marketplace.

The change includes a new fee structure for customers linking out of an app for offers and content.

The commission has told AFP it "will assess Apple's eventual changes to the compliance measures, also taking into account any feedback from the market, notably developers."

The DMA gives Big Tech a list of what they can and can't do in a bid to increase competition in the digital sphere. For example, they must offer choice screens for web browsers and search engines to give users more options.

The law gives the EU the power to impose hefty fines.

Apple is not the only company targeted by the DMA. Google parent Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft and TikTok owner ByteDance must also comply.

Online travel giant Booking.com will need to later this year, while the commission is also evaluating whether tech billionaire Elon Musk's X should also face the rules.
Israel kills top Palestinian militant as Gaza truce talks stumble



Sidon, Lebanon, Aug 21 (AFP) Aug 21, 2024



The Israeli military killed a senior Palestinian militant in a strike Wednesday on Lebanon, leading to accusations from the Fatah movement that Israel was trying to ignite a regional war.

The strike that killed Khalil Maqdah, described by Fatah as "one of the leaders" of its armed wing in Lebanon, came hours after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken ended a tour of the Middle East aimed at reaching a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

On Wednesday, US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss "the ceasefire and hostage release deal and diplomatic efforts to de-escalate regional tensions," the White House said.

Fatah, which is based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and rivals the Gaza Strip's Islamist rulers Hamas, said Maqdah was killed near the southern Lebanese city of Sidon.

Israel accused him of "directing attacks and smuggling weapons" to the West Bank and collaborating with Iranian forces.

His killing marked the first time Israel has targeted a senior Fatah member in more than 10 months of cross-border clashes with Lebanese militants, mostly from Hezbollah, during the Gaza war.

Tawfiq Tirawy, a member of Fatah's central committee, told AFP that the "assassination... is further proof that Israel wants to ignite a full-scale war in the region".

Blinken, who left Qatar late Tuesday apparently empty-handed, appealed to Hamas to urgently accept a US-drafted truce proposal, while also publicly disagreeing with Israel over its future presence in the besieged Gaza Strip.

"Time is of the essence," Blinken said before flying out of Doha after stops in Egypt and Israel.

A ceasefire "needs to get done, and it needs to get done in the days ahead," he said.



- Father mourns -



On the ground, Gaza was again rocked by air strikes, according to AFP reporters, first responders, witnesses and the Israeli military, which also issued fresh evacuation orders.

The civil defence agency in the Hamas-run territory said at least three people were killed and 10 children wounded in an Israeli strike on a school-turned-shelter in Gaza City.

Israel's military said the "precise strike" targeted Hamas militants based in the school compound.

A father told AFP his child was killed in the strike while playing in the schoolyard.

"What did this child do to deserve this?" he said, declining to give his name.

Israeli bombardment elsewhere in Gaza killed at least 24 people on Wednesday, the civil defence agency said.

Israel and Hamas have blamed each other for delays in agreeing a deal to end fighting, triggered by Hamas's October 7 attack, as well as freeing Israeli hostages and allowing vital humanitarian aid into Gaza.

The United States has presented ideas to bridge gaps and, through mediators Qatar and Egypt, pressed Hamas to return to talks this week in Cairo.

But a day after Blinken said US ally Israel was on board, Netanyahu was quoted by Israeli media as disagreeing on a key sticking point.

Netanyahu insisted Israel maintain control of the Philadelphi Corridor, the border between Gaza and Egypt that Israeli forces seized from Hamas, which Israel says relies on tunnels to bring in weapons.

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant toured Philpadelphi on Wednesday, his office said.

Since the war began, it was made "very clear that the United States does not accept any long-term occupation of Gaza by Israel", Blinken said when asked about Netanyahu's remarks.

But he added that Israel had already agreed on the "schedule and location" of troop withdrawals from Gaza in the talks. Details have not been made public.

Hamas said it was "keen to reach a ceasefire" but protested "new conditions" from Israel in the latest US proposal.



- 'Bring them all back' -



The October 7 attack on southern Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,199 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.

Israel's retaliatory military campaign has killed 40,223 Palestinians in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry, which does not give details of civilian and militant deaths. The UN rights office says most dead are women and children.

Palestinian militants also seized 251 hostages, of whom 105 remain in Gaza including 34 the military says are dead.

The military's latest evacuation orders, including for parts of central and southern Gaza previously designated "safe" by Israel, affect some 150,000 displaced Palestinians who had sought shelter there, the United Nations' humanitarian agency OCHA said.

"Today's orders have also made three water wells... inaccessible. Those wells serve tens of thousands of people," it said.

A UN official said death "seems to be the only certainty" for Gaza's 2.4 million people, with no way to escape Israel's bombardment.

"Absolutely nowhere is safe," Louise Wateridge, a spokeswoman for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), told AFP from Gaza.

In Lebanon, Hamas ally Hezbollah claimed attacks on Israeli military positions across the border including in the annexed Golan Heights, after several Israeli strikes that the health ministry said had killed five people.

Fears of a wider regional conflagration soared after the late July killings, blamed on Israel, of Iran-aligned militant leaders in Tehran and in Beirut.

Netanyahu, at an airbase in northern Israel, said "we are ready for any scenario."

Mourners meanwhile gathered in southern Israel to bury one of six dead hostages recovered from Gaza by Israeli forces this week.

Yagev Buchshtab's mother Esther, echoing calls for Netanyahu to secure a hostage release deal, said: "In what world must families beg, scream and cry for the return of their loved ones, alive or murdered? Bring them all back."

burs-dv-ami/dr
UN nuclear agency head to visit Russia's Kursk plant next week



Vienna, Aug 22 (AFP) Aug 22, 2024



UN nuclear agency head Rafael Grossi is planning to visit Russia's Kursk nuclear power plant next week, an agency spokesperson said Thursday, weeks after Ukraine launched a surprise counteroffensive in the region.

"We can confirm (it's planned for) next week," a spokesperson for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said, without giving further details.

The UN nuclear agency on August 9 urged Russia and Ukraine to exercise "maximum restraint" to "avoid a nuclear accident with the potential for serious radiological consequences" as fighting approached the power plant.

Grossi had said he was "personally in contact with the relevant authorities of both countries" and would "continue to update the international community as appropriate".

The power plant has six units -- two are in shutdown, two are fully operational and two are under construction, according to the IAEA.

Two and a half years into the war, Ukraine mounted an unprecedented cross-border assault on August 6, catching Russia off guard and even surprising its close allies.

Kyiv claims to have captured dozens of settlements and tens of thousands of Russian civilians have fled.

The IAEA regularly warns of the risk Russia's invasion of Ukraine since February 2022 poses to nuclear plants.

On Saturday, it warned that the safety situation at Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant was "deteriorating" following a nearby drone strike.

The plant, which was seized by Russia's forces early in the war, has come under repeated attacks that both sides have accused each other of carrying out.
US warship sails through sensitive Taiwan Strait



Taipei, Aug 22 (AFP) Aug 22, 2024



A US warship sailed through a sensitive waterway separating Taiwan from China on Thursday, the US Navy said, as a way to demonstrate Washington's "commitment to upholding freedom of navigation".

China claims democratic Taiwan as part of its territory, and has in recent years upped military pressures by sending in increasing numbers of fighter jets, drones and naval vessels around the island.

Thursday's transit of the 180-kilometre (110-mile) Taiwan Strait comes as the United States and its allies have increased crossings to reinforce its status as an international waterway, angering Beijing.

The voyage by the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson showed Washington's "commitment to upholding freedom of navigation for all nations as a principle", the US Navy's Seventh Fleet said in a statement Thursday.

"No member of the international community should be intimidated or coerced into giving up their rights and freedoms."

Taiwan's defence ministry confirmed that the warship sailed south to north, and that "no anomaly was detected in our surroundings".

Beijing's People's Liberation Army dismissed the transit as "a public hype" and said its Eastern Theatre Command "organised naval and air forces to tail and stand guard against the US ship's passage throughout the entire process".

Chinese troops "are on constant high alert to resolutely defend national sovereignty," it said in a statement.

A Canadian Halifax-class frigate conducted last month "a routine transit through the Taiwan Strait", a move condemned by the Chinese military.

Beijing has said it would never renounce the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control, with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in recent years, upping the rhetoric of "unification" being "inevitable".

In response, Taiwan has strengthened economic and political ties with its partners -- most notably the United States, its biggest weapons provider -- while increasing its defence budget.

On Thursday, the island's cabinet approved a record-high defence budget of NT$647 billion (US$20.2 billion) for next year, an increase of six percent compared to 2024.

President Lai Ching-te said this month that the budget reflected Taiwan's "determination to improve our self-defense capabilities... to ensure peace and prosperity".

The amount would still need to be scrutinised and approved by Taiwan's fractious parliament, where Lai's Democratic Progressive Party no longer holds a majority.
French court dismisses appeal in Agent Orange case



Paris, Aug 22 (AFP) Aug 22, 2024



A Paris court Thursday rejected an appeal by a French-Vietnamese woman who has been trying to sue Monsanto and other makers of Agent Orange for the chemical's use in the Vietnam war.

Tran To Nga, who was born in what was then French Indochina, accused 14 agrochemicals firms of causing grievous harm to her and others by selling Agent Orange to the American military, which used the herbicide to devastating effect in Vietnam.

She lost her initial case in 2021, when a French court ruled that the companies enjoyed legal immunity from prosecution because they worked for a sovereign government.

The Paris Court of Appeal used the same argument in rejecting Nga's claim.

Her demands "come up against the companies' immunity status," the court said in its written ruling, seen by AFP.

Nga will now take her case to France's highest appeals court for a final ruling, her lawyers said.

The 82-year-old, who covered the 1955-1975 war as a reporter and has lived in France for the past three decades, also accused the companies of environmental damage.

Campaign groups estimate that four million people in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia were exposed to the 76 million litres (20 million gallons) of Agent Orange sprayed by US forces to destroy ground cover and food sources in its battle with communist North Vietnamese troops between 1962 and 1971.

Vietnam blames the chemical for severe birth defects in 150,000 children.

But so far, only military veterans -- from the United States, Australia and Korea -- have won compensation for the aftereffects of the highly toxic chemical.

Nga suffers from Type 2 diabetes and an extremely rare insulin allergy, which she linked to exposure to Agent Orange.

She said she also contracted tuberculosis twice and developed cancer, and one of her daughters died of a heart malformation.

Monsanto, which was taken over by German chemicals giant Bayer in 2018, argued the French courts did not have jurisdiction in the case due to the issue of sovereign immunity.

bur/jh/fg

Monsanto

Orange
Shots fired in Iraq security forces clash during pilgrimage



Baghdad, Aug 22 (AFP) Aug 22, 2024



Iraqi security forces fired shots in the air during a clash among themselves Thursday in the holy Shiite Muslim city of Karbala ahead of one of the world's biggest religious gatherings, security officials said.

The incident involved the Iraqi army and members of the Hashed al-Shaabi, mainly pro-Iran Shiite former paramilitaries integrated into the Iraqi security forces, an interior ministry official told AFP under cover of anonymity due to the issue's sensitivity.

The pre-dawn clash occurred about five kilometres (three miles) from Karbala's old city when four Hashed vehicles attempted to go through an Iraqi army roadblock on a street reserved for pedestrian pilgrims, the official said.

The army prevented the vehicles from passing although both sides fired weapons into the air without causing injuries, the official added.

At the time of the standoff and gunfire, hundreds of thousands of Shiite pilgrims marking Arbaeen were converging on Karbala and the mausoleum of Imam Hussein, a founding figure of Shiite Islam and the grandson of the Prophet Mohammed.

Arbaeen marks the end of the 40-day mourning period for the killing of Imam Hussein by the forces of the caliph Yazid in 680 AD.

Last year 22 million pilgrims -- many from Iran -- attended Arbaeen, according to official figures.

The interior ministry official said six Hashed members were arrested by a security unit of their own institution after the incident.

A Hashed official confirmed the arrests.

"An investigation is ongoing to identify who was responsible for opening fire in the middle of pilgrims," said the official, who asked not to be named because of the matter's sensitivity.

The Hashed were created in 2014 to fight Islamic State group jihadists whose advance the regular army failed to stop.

They remain a politically and militarily powerful group, some of whose fighters -- despite their integration into Iraq's security forces -- periodically clash with other security institutions.

Since August 6 around 2.9 million pilgrims have entered Iraq for Arbaeen, according to official figures. Commemorations reach their peak on Sunday.
French court dismisses appeal in Agent Orange case



Paris, Aug 22 (AFP) Aug 22, 2024



A Paris court Thursday rejected an appeal by a French-Vietnamese woman who has been trying to sue Monsanto and other makers of Agent Orange for the chemical's use in the Vietnam war.

Tran To Nga, who was born in what was then French Indochina, accused 14 agrochemicals firms of causing grievous harm to her and others by selling Agent Orange to the American military, which used the herbicide to devastating effect in Vietnam.

She lost her initial case in 2021, when a French court ruled that the companies enjoyed legal immunity from prosecution because they worked for a sovereign government.

The Paris Court of Appeal used the same argument in rejecting Nga's claim.

Her demands "come up against the companies' immunity status," the court said in its written ruling, seen by AFP.

Nga will now take her case to France's highest appeals court for a final ruling, her lawyers said.

The 82-year-old, who covered the 1955-1975 war as a reporter and has lived in France for the past three decades, also accused the companies of environmental damage.

Campaign groups estimate that four million people in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia were exposed to the 76 million litres (20 million gallons) of Agent Orange sprayed by US forces to destroy ground cover and food sources in its battle with communist North Vietnamese troops between 1962 and 1971.



- 'Long and difficult' -



Vietnam blames the chemical for severe birth defects in 150,000 children.

But so far, only military veterans -- from the United States, Australia and Korea -- have won compensation for the after-effects of the highly toxic chemical.

Nga's French lawyers told AFP that she was "disappointed" by Thursday's verdict. "But she is somebody full of wisdom, she knows that this battle is long and difficult."

Vietnam's government called the French court ruling "very regretful". Foreign ministry spokeswoman Pham Thu Hang told reporters that "although the war is over, its effects on the country and the people of Vietnam are still felt".

Companies that made Agent Orange or supplied it to the US army should be made to "take responsibility and address relevant consequences", she said.

Vietnam Dioxine, a French NGO, accused the court of "denying justice to the victims of Agent Orange".

Nga suffers from Type 2 diabetes and an extremely rare insulin allergy, which she linked to exposure to Agent Orange.

She said she also contracted tuberculosis twice and developed cancer, and one of her daughters died of a heart malformation.

Monsanto, which was taken over by German chemicals giant Bayer in 2018, argued the French courts did not have jurisdiction in the case due to the issue of sovereign immunity.

bur-jh/fg

Monsanto

Orange
Putin accuses Ukraine of trying to attack Kursk nuclear plant



Moscow, Aug 22 (AFP) Aug 22, 2024



Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday accused Kyiv of trying to attack the Kursk nuclear power station, some 50 kilometres (30 miles) from where Ukrainian forces are mounting a major cross-border offensive.

The Kremlin leader did not present any evidence for his claims or provide further details on the alleged attack.

The claim comes hours after the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said its chief would visit the facility next week, with Russia having repeatedly sounded the alarm over a possible hit since Ukrainian troops and tanks stormed into its western Kursk region on August 6.

That offensive has now dragged into its third week, with Kyiv laying claim to dozens of Russian border settlements and Russia scrambling to fight off the most serious attack by a foreign army on its territory since World War II.

"The enemy tried to strike the nuclear power plant at night, the IAEA has been informed," Putin said in a televised government meeting on Thursday.

There were no previous reports of the attempted strike on the facility in Russian media.

Kursk region Governor Alexei Smirnov told Putin the facility was working as usual.

There was no immediate reaction from officials in Kyiv to Putin's claim.



- 'Maximum restraint' -



Ukraine and Russia have traded accusations of threatening nuclear safety throughout the 2.5-year conflict.

Russian troops seized the abandoned Chernobyl power plant in northern Ukraine and the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant -- Europe's largest -- in the first days of its full-scale military offensive.

It still controls the Zaporizhzhia site, and has been accused of "nuclear blackmail" by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Moscow, in turn, claims Ukrainian forces have tried to strike the plant on multiple occasions with drones.

Earlier this month a fire broke out in one of the Zaporizhzhia plant's cooling towers.

Russia said it was the result of a Ukrainian attack, while Kyiv said Russia had purposefully started the blaze.

After Ukraine launched its armed incursion into the Kursk region, the IAEA urged both Russia and Ukraine to exercise "maximum restraint" to "avoid a nuclear accident with the potential for serious radiological consequences".



- 'Strengthen defence' -



Ukraine's shock assault on Russian territory has upended the course of the conflict, reinvigorating Ukrainian morale two and a half years into the conflict.

Zelensky on Thursday visited his commander-in-chief in the Sumy border region, from where Ukraine is pouring troops and military hardware into Russia.

But Kyiv's troops are still facing grinding setbacks in the eastern Donetsk region, where they have been under pressure for months.

On Thursday, Russia claimed to have captured another small village there.

In Russia, Putin has been accused of publicly downplaying the seriousness of the Ukrainian incursion.

Kursk Governor Smirnov said Thursday 133,000 people have fled or been evacuated from border districts since Ukraine launched the attack.

Concrete air-raid shelters were being installed in cities across the region on Thursday, including Kurchatov, next to the Kursk nuclear power plant.

And more than 110 Russian schools located close to the border will teach classes remotely when the academic year starts in September, the education minister said Thursday.

Russia's FSB security service said on Thursday that it had launched a criminal case against several journalists, including CNN correspondent Nick Paton Walsh, for having "illegally" crossed the border after they reported from the Kursk region.

The offensive has further knocked already minimal hopes that the two sides could be prepared to start discussing a possible peace settlement.

Moscow has ruled out direct talks with Kyiv amid the Kursk attack, while Zelensky had already said he will not deal directly with Putin and demands Moscow pull its troops completely out of Ukraine, including Crimea, and pay reparations.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Ukraine on Friday in a bid to kick-start stalled diplomacy over the conflict.

"It is India's strong belief that no problem can be resolved on a battlefield," Modi said in Warsaw on Thursday, adding that his country supports "dialogue and diplomacy for restoration of peace and stability as soon as possible".
Kenya aims to build nuclear power plant by 2034: minister



Nairobi, Aug 22 (AFP) Aug 22, 2024



Kenya aims to build its first nuclear power plant by 2034, a government minister said on Thursday, as the country prepares to host a US-Africa summit on nuclear energy.

The plant is to be located on the Indian Ocean coast and has already raised objections among activists and local residents over safety and environmental concerns.

Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi said Kenya planned to construct the plant by 2034, while a research reactor would be commissioned by the early 2030s, according to a statement from his office.

Media reports have put the cost of the 1,000-megawatt plant at around 500 billion Kenyan shillings ($3.9 billion).

Mudavadi said the project aimed to increase Kenya's energy capacity, reduce CO2 emissions and create new job opportunities.

"Kenya is committed to leading in clean energy. Kenya (is) focused on advancing nuclear technology as part of Kenya's sustainable energy strategy," he said.

The East African nation currently generates about 90 percent of its energy from renewable sources, mainly geothermal but also hydro-electric, wind and solar power.

President William Ruto, who has positioned himself at the forefront of African efforts to combat climate change, has said Kenya had the potential to increase that figure to 100 percent by 2030.

Kenya is hosting the second US-Africa Nuclear Energy Summit next week, which aims to address the continent's readiness for nuclear power.

South Africa is currently the only country in Africa to have a civil nuclear programme, with two reactors in service for more than 30 years.

Rwanda last year signed a deal with a Canadian-German startup to build an "experimental" nuclear reactor, saying it would help reduce its use of fossil fuels.

And earlier this month it announced an agreement with a US company to construct mini-reactors.

But Kenya's nuclear project has already run into opposition.

"Instead of pursuing a nuclear programme that puts the lives and livelihoods of our people at risk, we urge the government to invest in renewable energy sources that are safer, cleaner, and more sustainable," the Kenya Anti-Nuclear Alliance said earlier this year.
Putin accuses Ukraine of trying to attack Kursk nuclear plant



Moscow, Aug 22 (AFP) Aug 22, 2024



Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday accused Ukraine of trying to attack the Kursk nuclear power station, some 50 kilometres (30 miles) from where Kyiv's forces are mounting a major cross-border offensive.

Moscow meanwhile said it was gaining ground in east Ukraine, while Russian officials accused Kyiv of attacking and sinking a cargo ship moored at a port near the annexed Crimean peninsula.

"The enemy tried to strike the nuclear power plant at night. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been informed," Putin said during a televised government meeting on Thursday.

Putin did not present any evidence for his claims or provide further details on the alleged attack.

The IAEA released a statement saying it had been told by Moscow drone fragments were found roughly 100 metres from the Kursk plant's spent fuel nuclear storage facility.

The nuclear watchdog said its chief would visit the facility next week, with Russia having repeatedly sounded the alarm over a possible hit since Ukrainian troops and tanks stormed into its western Kursk region on August 6.

That offensive is now into its third week, with Kyiv laying claim to dozens of Russian border settlements and Russia scrambling to fight off the most serious attack by a foreign army on its territory since World War II.

There were no previous reports of the attempted strike on the facility in Russian media.

Kursk regional governor Alexei Smirnov told Putin the facility was working as usual.

There was no immediate reaction from officials in Kyiv to Putin's claim.



- 'Maximum restraint' -



Ukraine and Russia have traded accusations of threatening nuclear safety throughout the two-and-a-half-year conflict.

Russian troops seized the abandoned Chernobyl power plant in northern Ukraine and the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant -- Europe's largest -- in the first days of its full-scale military offensive.

It still controls the Zaporizhzhia plant, and has been accused of "nuclear blackmail" by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Moscow, in turn, claims Ukrainian forces have tried to strike the plant with drones on multiple occasions.

Earlier this month a fire broke out in one of the Zaporizhzhia plant's cooling towers.

Russia said it was the result of a Ukrainian attack, while Kyiv said Russia had purposefully started the blaze.

After Ukraine launched its armed incursion into the Kursk region, the IAEA urged both Russia and Ukraine to exercise "maximum restraint" to "avoid a nuclear accident with the potential for serious radiological consequences".

Separately, a Ukrainian aerial attack sank a cargo ferry in southern Russia on Thursday, Russian officials said.

The ferry was carrying fuel tanks and was docked at the port of Kavkaz, which sits in the Kerch Strait that separates Russia from the annexed Crimean Peninsula.

Officials in Kyiv posted cryptic comments after the attack.

"Beautiful," Daria Zarivna, a communications adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said in a post on Telegram, attaching a photo of a large fire at the port.



- 'Strengthen defence' -



Zelensky on Thursday visited his commander-in-chief in the Sumy border region, from where Ukraine is pouring troops and military hardware into Russia.

Kyiv's troops are still facing grinding setbacks in the eastern Donetsk region, where they have been under pressure for months.

On Thursday, Russia claimed to have captured another small village there.

In Russia, Putin has been accused of publicly downplaying the seriousness of the Ukrainian incursion.

Kursk governor Smirnov said on Thursday that 133,000 people have fled or been evacuated from border districts since Ukraine launched the attack.

Concrete air-raid shelters were being installed in cities across the region on Thursday, including Kurchatov, next to the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant.

And more than 110 Russian schools located close to the border will teach classes remotely when the academic year starts in September, the education minister said on Thursday.

Russia's FSB security service said on Thursday that it had launched a criminal case against several journalists, including CNN correspondent Nick Paton Walsh, for having "illegally" crossed the border after they reported from the Kursk region.
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Russia has the depth of resources to sustain a far longer campaign than Ukraine  in theory, at least. However, there are reports of poor equipment, corruption in the defence industries, and chaotic logistics  emphasised by the Ukrainian air force destroying three bridges over the Seym river, vital for resupply convoys. Numerous social media channels report firsthand that totally untrained conscripts are being brought to the front in both the Kursk and Donbas sectors.
The financial blessing also turned out to be a curse for some recipient. Half of the first-time buyers who received help reported that their parents interfered with the home purchase, and one in five of those who felt meddled with said they wished they never accepted it. As for Child, shes grateful her parents didnt try to get too involved. I did do all of the viewings and everything else on my own, she says. But I think if they were still living in Essex rather than Dorset they would have wanted to come along, and maybe would have tried to have more of a say, including on the furniture.
Wow. History has stopped on a dime and changed course. All of a sudden, the narrative is completely different. Kamala Harris and her pick for vice president, Tim Walz, have quickly passed Donald Trump and have even opened up a slight lead. I think it is like what happened in 2008. Then people were sick of the Bush presidency and George W. Bush himself. The Iraq War, privatizing Social Security, Bubba had worn out his welcome and the people were looking for something new, and in steps Barack Obama.

And although he was defeated in 2020, the last eight years (2016 to the present) have been the Trump years. And people are sick of him. Even Republicans are sick of him, just ask Bob Good. And now Harris has landed the role of something new. And her pick for vice president is somebody who didnt go to law school and owns no stock, securities or real estate. About as far as being a member of any elite as you could possibly get. Whats not to love.

The truth of the matter is that Trump is now losing. Going from one grievance to the next, he does not have the discipline to mount a real campaign for the White House. How do I know? The Wall Street Journal just said so. Trump is certainly insufferable when he is winning, but he could be quite dangerous if he is losing. Although I have a vision that if he loses, he turns to his supporters and says follow me only to turn around and see nobody behind him. What do you mean we, kemosabe. And if he loses, the Republican Party is going to say, "Donald Trump, who?"

Although not everybody might see Trump as the bogeyman, the American people for the most part want to see him defeated. They are tired of hearing about him. In short, they would like a little optimism and not a dystopian nightmare. Onward.
Ultimately we just want our young people to do well. We want them to be happy and we want to provide them a place in Northern Ireland where they can succeed, and we have an education system that is doing that.
He looks at me as if I were a piece of meat. I have an ultra-tight dress, he pulls me closer to him by the waist, then he runs his hand over my hips, over my bum.
The letter, signed by representatives from organisations including the Centre for Contemporary Arts in Glasgow, the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh, Aberdeen Arts Centre, the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra, Youth Theatre Arts Scotland, Dundee Contemporary Arts and the Dumfries and Galloway Arts Festival, adds that in the same month as the global spotlight is on Scotland during the Edinburgh festival, the cessation of support for local artists is particularly devastating.
I read Hillbilly Elegy twice so you dont have to.

I found J.D. Vances memoir of growing up Appalachian-adjacent unimpressive when I first read it shortly after it was first published in 2016. Reading the book again with Vance as the Republican vice presidential nominee, I am about as disgusted with Vance as he is with the region he claims as his home.

In the early days of the Donald Trump administration, Hillbilly Elegy was repeatedly touted as an explanation of Trump Country, one mans experience meant to show why the region supported Trump so fervently.

From low social mobility to poverty to divorce and drug addiction, my home is a hub of misery, Vance writes early in the book. This is a curious choice of words, given that Vance was born and raised in Middletown, Ohio, a Midwestern city situated about halfway between Dayton and Cincinnati, and nowhere near the Appalachian Mountains.

He writes that he is the abandoned son of a man I hardly knew and a woman I wish I didnt. He was, however, mostly raised by his beloved Mamaw, a woman who moved from Kentucky to Ohio in her youth. He spent a couple of summers with family in Kentucky, and in Vances eyes, this qualifies him to speak to the intricacies of the region despite not having lived there himself.

For nearly 300 pages, Vance drones on about the plight of Appalachians and a culture that, he says, increasingly encourages social decay instead of counteracting it. He writes repeatedly of poverty and drug abuse, but little else.

There is a cultural movement in the white working class to blame problems on society or the government, and that movement gains adherents by the day, Vance writes.

Elizabeth Catte, a writer and historian from Tennessee who now lives in Staunton, disputes and disproves many of Vances arguments in her 2018 book What You Are Getting Wrong About Appalachia.

Many Appalachians are poor, but their poverty is a deep and coherent history rooted in economic exploitation, she writes. The coal industry is no longer a significant employment sector in Appalachia, but the dominance of coals extractive logic has permanently ruined people and land in ways with which we must still contend.

Vance places the blame for poverty squarely on the shoulders of the impoverished, without considering the impact of industry on the region, an argument Catte calls stunningly ahistorical.

Catte also accuses Vance of flattening all of Appalachian history to fit his own narrative.

His use of the word we transforms the personal reality of his difficult childhood into a universal experience, she writes.

Vance, along with other authors of the now ubiquitous Trump Country think pieces, ignores the presence of diversity in the region. At the time of her books publishing, Catte says Appalachia was 80% White, but with most of the regions population growth coming from Black and Hispanic communities. She points to several poignant examples of racial unity in resistance to unfair working conditions within the coal industry.

Conservatives believed that Elegy would make their intellectual platforming about the moral failures of the poor colorblind in a way that would retroactively vindicate them for viciously deploying the same stereotypes against nonwhite people for decades, Catte writes.

Indeed, Hillbilly Elegy espouses several conflicting ideals that I find especially alarming, especially in a vice presidential candidate.

Vance acknowledges there were many thumbs put on [his] scale, but remains antagonistic toward social programming that would allow others to be similarly enabled. He poopoos what he calls the bizarre sexism of Appalachian culture, but is no friend of womens rights. He says his Mamaw taught him that there were more important things for a Christian to worry about than promoting homophobia, yet as a senator he has an abysmal track record on LGBTQ policies. He brags about his familys alleged history of political violence. He calls those who questioned former President Barack Obamas ancestry fringe lunatics, and now runs alongside one.

Mamaw always had two gods: Jesus Christ and the USA. I was no different, and neither was anyone else I knew, Vance writes.

Perhaps the contradiction that bothers me the most, however, is Vances willingness to air his own familys dirty laundry while belittling a whole region of people.

He recalls watching a 2009 ABC News report on childhood poverty in Appalachia with utter scorn.

The consistent reaction: This is none of your business, Vance says on behalf of Appalachians everywhere.

I dont give a damn about geography, but Ill note that Vance has transcended one of the most authentically Appalachian experiences of them all: watching someone with tired ideas about race and culture get famous by selling cheap stereotypes about the region, Catte writes in the powerful conclusion to her book.

I do not recommend Hillbilly Elegy to readers hoping to learn more about Appalachian history and culture, but I cannot think of a better way to acquaint yourself with the man seeking our nations second-highest office. I know Ill be thinking of this book when I vote in November.
Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) prosecutors are asking the court to remand in custody brothers Andrew and Tristan Tate, with dual citizenship - British and American - accused of forming an organised criminal group, trafficking in persons, trafficking in minors, sexual intercourse with a minor, money laundering, influencing statements and aiding and abetting a perpetrator.

The Tate brothers were detained on Wednesday night along four other accomplices: Alex Stanciu, Alex Donea, Georgiana Naghel and Luana Radu.

Prosecutors are asking judges to remand only the British and Georgiana Naghel, while for Luana Radu investigators are asking for house arrest.

Investigators allege that the Tate brothers recruited 34 victims using the loverboy method and taking advantage of their state of vulnerability, and with the support of other members of the group, they transported and sheltered them in different locations, where they supervised and coordinated them, forcing them to produce pornographic material, which they then distributed for a fee on dedicated platforms. The profits thus obtained from the sexual exploitation of the victims were estimated at over 2,800,000 US dollars and 887,000 tokens.

It was also found that between 2014 and December 2021, one of the Tate brothers, by misleading (loverboy method) and taking advantage of the obvious vulnerability of a minor (17 years old, foreign citizen), transported and placed her in several locations in the United Kingdom and Romania, where he forced her to engage in sexual acts in order to produce pornographic material and distribute it on various websites. From the criminal activity material benefits estimated at over 1.5 million US dollars were obtained, which the defendant appropriated in full.

It was also found that, since December 2020, he repeatedly engaged in sexual intercourse and sexual acts with a minor victim, aged 15.

Investigators carried out several searches on Wednesday, including at the Tate brothers' home, and seized EUR 26,000, RON 81,000, GBP 5,800 and USD 6,400, as well as two luxury watches, laptops, data storage units, documents and other evidence.

Also seized were 16 luxury cars and a motorcycle.

The Tate brothers and their two accomplices - Alexandra-Luana Radu and Georgiana Manuela Naghel - were indicted in another case on 20 June 2023, accused of setting up an organised criminal group for the purpose of soliciting, accommodating and exploiting women by forcing them to create pornographic material for distribution for a fee on pornographic websites. The trial is still at the preliminary chamber stage.
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The exhibition titled "Li-ber-ta-te! Svo-bo-da! Free-dom!" that raises to attention Romania and Bulgaria's recent historical past, against the backdrop of the approaching 35th anniversary of the fall of communism in Eastern Europe, will open on September 2 in Sofia, a release informs.

The concept exhibition presents for the first time in Sofia about 20 established or young Romanian artists representative for various stages of contemporary Romanian art. The featured group of artists includes Sabin Balasa, Felix Aftene, Andrei Chintila, Irina Dragomir, Ondine Slimovschi, Georges Mazilu, Mihai Muresan and Robert Lorincz.

The exhibition is a visual approach to Romania's recent past, proposing artistic representations that aptly express the way in which the acknowledgement of history, the issue of freedom and the understanding of personal experiences in a world of transition are focal points for the Romanian artistic milieu. With expectations that the Bulgarian public will find familiar visual motifs embedded in a common spectrum, the exhibition is an invitation to intercultural dialogue aimed at bringing the two cultural spaces closer together, the release states.

According to the organizers, the idea of freedom is addressed from multiple perspectives, raising fundamental questions that probe the meaning of freedom 35 years after the fall of the Soviet Bloc. The concept of boundless manifestation is approached by the selected artists from various angles, with focus on various themes such as intimacy, the dream world, revolt, anguish, lyricism or solitude.

Many of the exhibited works take to metaphor and symbols as a means of creative interpretation, but sometimes, as in the case of George Anghelescu, the references to real historical events or characters anchor the viewer in the dramas of the more recent or distant past.

On the other hand, freedom understood as an inner experience that defies all constraints, or that perceived as a form of escapism in a world of imagination and dreams is reflected in the works signed by Felix Aftene, Irina Dragomir, Georges Mazilu and Ondine Slimovschi. The theme of privacy as a space of inviolable yet fragile freedom can be found at Sabin Balasa, Andrei Chintila and Marcel Guguianu, whereas the works of Petre Velicu, Heidi Tradnik, Octavian Ioan Penda, Mihai Muresan and Robert Lorincz delve into aspects such as anguish, suffering, alienation and solitude, raising the issue of the limits of individual freedom, but also of the difficulty of finding meaning in a world in full transformation.

The exhibition can be visited at the Sofia Press Gallery between September 2 - 29.
The renegotiation of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), with the request for a 10% reduction in the loan component, as well as the future agreement with the Commission regarding the reduction of the budget deficit were among the topics addressed on Thursday in Brussels by premier Marcel Ciolacu in his talks with the European Commission's head, Ursula von der Leyen.

The prime minister specified, in a press conference, at the headquarters of the Permanent Representation of Romania to the EU, at the end of the meeting with the head of the European Commission, that he obviously also addressed the subject of the name of the future European Commissioner from Romania.

Ciolacu added that there was also a more technical discussion with the EC president about the payment request number 3 of the PNRR.

The Prime Minister stated that he submitted the proposal of a new agreement regarding Romania's deficit, which should extend over 7 years, during the discussions, as "I explained very clearly why we want this, because the biggest investments will follow in 2025 and 2026. As we well know, the PNRR has a deadline of the end of 2026 in terms of investment."

The prime minister mentioned that he also presented a stage of investments in the road and railway infrastructure.

"Road infrastructure, the first proposal was from Romania to have an amount allocated of approximately 13.7 billion euros. The final approval was around 7 billion euros. The difference represents the co-financing from the Romanian state. Naturally, if we want to complete, I understood from (Transport minister, ed. n.) Sorin Grindeanu, today, that we reached 900 km in work and in the tender of express road and motorways, then the budgetary effort from the Romanian state is approximately 60% as co-financing. It is normal that these investments bring Mr. Bolos at the Ministry of Finance, higher taxes and fees, and that's why this quarter shows that it has overruns - due to these major investments in infrastructure in Romania, much awaited by Romanians," Marcel Ciolacu stressed.
Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu has announced that next Monday he will have a meeting with business executives on possible fiscal measures in 2025, as well as a technical discussion on the collection of arrears, currently amounting to RON 175 billion.

"I don't think we will come up with tax increase measures, as we did not come in 2024. I believe that through organisation and more honesty and through digital transformation and closing the sometimes-legal fiscal optimisation loopholes we can overcome this moment without making major changes," Ciolacu told a news conference in Brussels.

He added that the measures to be taken into account for the recovery of arrears should not be aimed primarily at putting people in jail.

"It is not possible to have fair people, who pay their taxes, and people who always find loopholes to not pay taxes and to evade taxes. I want to tell you, in the United States of America, the Tax Office is the strongest. If an Americans are afraid of something, they are afraid of the tax authorities. We can't live like that anymore. We cannot make some pay and others not pay. I cannot ask to come up with new taxes as long as I have arrears of almost 8% of GDP to collect. I cannot ask to come up with new taxes as long as tax evasion is 10% of GDP. I cannot ask to come up with new taxes when I have the largest VAT gap."

According to Ciolacu, in the medium term in Romania, a tax reform has to be Carried out along with sorting out payments.
Brothers Andrew and Tristan Tate were detained Wednesday night by the Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) prosecutors in a case in which they are accused of forming an organized criminal group, trafficking in minors, trafficking in persons, sexual intercourse with a minor, influencing statements and money laundering.

After several hours of questioning, Andrew and Tristan Tate were handcuffed and taken out of the DIICOT headquarters and put into a police van.

Before being put in the van, the Tate brothers were outraged by the charges against them, claiming there was no evidence against them.

In the same case, four other people have been detained, DIICOT representatives say.

On Wednesday morning, the Romanian Police General Inspectorate (IGPR) and DIICOT carried out four raids in Ilfov county and in the capital, including at the Tate brothers' residence.

The Tate brothers, with dual British and American citizenship, were indicted in another case on June 20, 2023, on charges of constituting an organized criminal group for the purpose of solicitation, accommodation and exploitation, by forcing women to create pornographic material for distribution for a fee on pornographic websites. The defendants allegedly obtained large amounts of money from these activities.
Alliance for Romanians' Union (AUR) Chairman George Simion says Romania must ensure that its next European commissioner "will be a true patriot, a professional who will put the interests of the country above all else," and in his opinion Victor Negrescu "does not fit this profile."

"Until now, the appointment of Romania's European commissioners has often been the result of internal political calculations, dictated by the interests of PSD and PNL [the National Liberal Party]. This way of looking at the post of European commissioner must come to an end. The post of commissioner is not a political trophy, but Romania's voice among the great European nations," added George Simion.
ST. LOUIS COUNTY  The innocence hearing for a man on death row Wednesday morning was delayed for hours as attorneys privately discussed a legal resolution to the case.

The hearing, which was slated to begin at 8:30 a.m., comes about five weeks before Marcellus Williams is set to be executed for the murder of former Post-Dispatch reporter Lisha Gayle, who was stabbed 43 times in her suburban home in August 1998.

Dozens of people packed Judge Bruce Hilton's courtroom for those three hours, as bailiffs mingled and occasionally attorneys for both sides walked through the courtroom and back into the judge's chambers.

Hilton came out just before 9:30 a.m. to tell attendees that the attorneys were talking and had until 10 a.m. to reach an agreement. He said the innocence hearing would continue as scheduled if they hadn't.

About two hours later, at 11:20 a.m., Hilton came out again.

He said the lawyers had been "diligently working" on this "emotional issue." They had presented him with a consent decree, an agreement to resolve a dispute without admitting liability or guilt.

Hilton then recessed the court until 1 p.m. to review the proposed decree and make a ruling.

Williams was set to die in August 2017, but hours before his execution, then-Gov. Eric Greitens halted the process and ordered an investigation into the DNA evidence that could not be tested at the time of the murder. That evidence showed there was DNA on the knife used to stab Gayle that matched someone else, not Williams.

Greitens appointed five retired judges to investigate.

Six years later, Gov. Mike Parson disbanded the group of judges in June 2023. Its unclear whether they ever reached a conclusion.

Williams sued, and the Missouri Supreme Court set his Sept. 24 execution date hours after it ruled Parson was within his rights to break up the board and move forward with the execution.

St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell filed a motion in January to vacate the murder conviction.

Attorney General Andrew Baileys office last month filed a motion to block the innocence hearing. His lawyers argued that the St. Louis County Circuit Court judge does not have the authority to reverse or overrule Williams first-degree murder conviction because a higher court has already issued a ruling in the case and set an execution date.

The Missouri Supreme Court denied the state attorney generals request but did not provide its reasoning.

Williams' case has unfolded alongside another high-profile wrongful conviction case in the region.

Christopher Dunn, 52, was found innocent by a judge in a 1990 St. Louis murder he was serving a life sentence for.

Dunn in late July was released from prison after nearly 34 years.
ST. LOUIS  The city may have lost much of St. Augustine to a fire, but the bell tower of the 125-year-old historic church survived the flames, and this week, the wrecking ball.

Alderman Rasheen Aldridge said Wednesday that St. Louis Development Corporation President and CEO Neal Richardson, whose office manages the citys land bank that owns the remnants of the abandoned north side church, agreed to let the bell tower remain standing for now.

We dont make buildings like that anymore, said Aldridge, who represents the neighborhood north of downtown where the church sat.

After the third fire in two years broke out in March, demo crews began taking down what remained of the Gothic Revival-style church built in 1896 near Parnell Street and Natural Bridge Avenue for the areas then large German Catholic population.

The city hired Premier Demolition, which worked slowly to preserve bricks and the stained glass crafted by Emil Frei Sr., the German-born and trained artisan who settled in St. Louis in the 1890s. Then, the companys engineering firm told them the nearly 200-foot bell tower was structurally sound.

Aldridge saw the report and toured the bell tower on Monday.

Its not going to fall down, not going to tip over, Aldridge said.

But the demolition company and the city faced a deadline this week. Premier had to move the crane it has at the site on Hebert Street to another job. Bringing it back to knock down the tower later would cost the city thousands of dollars more.

Preservationists, including Amanda Clark, a public historian at the Missouri History Museum, sprang into action late last week to try and convince the city to hold off on knocking the tower down.

Its gorgeous, she said of the steeple. It can still serve as a landmark.

Similar to the Grand Avenue and Bissell Street water towers, the steeple of St. Augustines stands tall over the cityscape of the near north side, offering a view to commuters heading north on Jefferson Avenue, including those who will soon be working at the new National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency offices.

Shelton Anderson, who heads the St. Louis Land Reutilization Authority that owns the structure, confirmed in a statement via an SLDC spokeswoman that the contractors structural assessment determined the steeple was of sound structural integrity.

LRA is currently exploring ways to protect the property from further damage and maintain safety for the surrounding community while exploring near future development opportunities on the property, Andersons statement said.

But in a neighborhood that has not seen much development interest in recent years, the city could end up holding the real estate for the foreseeable future  not unlike its water towers.
LONDON  A superyacht that sank Monday off the Sicilian coast during a storm left at least six people dead and one passenger missing. Among that list is British tech kingpin Mike Lynch and some of his inner circle, who were gathered to celebrate his victory in a long-running legal trial.

Lynch was acquitted in June in a U.S. fraud case and was apparently aboard the Bayesian with some of the people who stood by him throughout the ordeal. Another member of Lynch's legal team who wasn't aboard, Reid Weingarten, said the outing was intended in part as a celebration of the acquittal.

Here's a look at the people who are dead or missing, as well as details on the recent death of an associate of Lynch who was not on the yacht.

Mike Lynch

Software entrepreneur Mike Lynch, along with his daughter, Hannah, are among those that police divers are searching for after the yacht was struck by a waterspout off of Porticello, near Palermo.

A spokesperson for Lynch said there were no updates Tuesday.

Lynch had been trying to move past a Silicon Valley debacle that had tarnished his legacy as an icon of British ingenuity.

A Cambridge-educated mathematician, Lynch made his mark with Autonomy, which made a search engine that could pore through emails and other internal business documents to help companies find vital information more quickly. Autonomy's steady growth in its first decade resulted in Lynch being dubbed Britain's Bill Gates and earning him one of the U.K's highest honors, the Office of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in 2006.

Lynch, 59, sold Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard for $11 billion in 2011. But the deal quickly turned sour after he was accused of cooking the books to make the sale.

The fraud allegations resulting in Lynch being fired by HP's then-CEO Meg Whitman and a decade-long legal battle. It culminated with him being extradited from the U.K. to face criminal charges of masterminding a multibillion-dollar fraud.

Lynch steadfastly denied any wrongdoing, asserting that he was being made a scapegoat for HP's own bungling  a position he maintained while testifying before a jury during a 2 1/2 month trial in San Francisco earlier this year. U.S. Justice Department prosecutors called more than 30 witnesses in an attempt to prove their allegations against Lynch.

Lynch was vindicated at trial in June after being cleared of all charges. Lynch pledged to return to the U.K. and explore new ways to innovate.

Although he avoided a possible prison sentence, Lynch still faced a potentially huge bill stemming from a civil cased in London that HP mostly won in 2022. Damages haven't been determined in that case, but HP is seeking $4 billion. Lynch made more than $800 million from the Autonomy sale.

Lynch later went on to set up technology investment firm Invoke Capital.

Christopher Morvillo

One of Lynch's U.S. lawyers, Christopher Morvillo of the firm Clifford Chance, and his wife Neda were also on the yacht and are among those unaccounted for.

Morvillo is regarded as an elite defense attorney specializing in fraud and corruption cases. He was previously a federal prosecutor in New York who worked on the criminal investigation of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. His father, Robert Morvillo, was also a lawyer who represented high-profile clients, including Martha Stewart.

In a LinkedIn post soon after Lynch's acquittal, Morvillo paid tribute to the team of lawyers who worked on the case and also his wife and two daughters.

"None of this would have been possible without your love and support. I am so glad to be home," he wrote. The post ended with the words: "And they all lived happily ever after."

In a legal podcast released last week, Morvillo recounted his involvement with Lynch's case, starting from when his firm was hired in November 2012.

He flew to London to meet Lynch on Thanksgiving weekend that year and assumed he would be gone for a week, Morvillo told the For the Defense podcast. Instead, Morvillo said he "spent a significant portion of the rest of my life bouncing back and forth between London and New York."

The case has "covered one third of my career," he said. "It has been a constant presence in my life for the last 12 years."

Clifford Chance said it was "in shock and deeply saddened by this tragic incident" and that its thoughts are with Morvillo and his wife. "Our utmost priority is providing support to the family," the firm said.

Jonathan Bloomer

The chairman of Morgan Stanley's London-based investment banking subsidiary, Jonathan Bloomer, and his wife, Judy, were also among the yacht's missing.

Bloomer is non-executive chairman of both Morgan Stanley International, which covers markets outside the U.S., and the Hiscox Group, an insurer that does business on the Lloyd's of London insurance marketplace.

Lynch appointed Bloomer to Autonomy's board of directors in 2010, where he served as chairman of the audit committee at the time of the HP deal. Bloomer testified for the defense at Lynch's trial.

Both Morgan Stanley and Hiscox said they were "deeply shocked and saddened" by the tragedy.

"Our thoughts are with all those affected, in particular the Bloomer family, as we all wait for further news from this terrible situation," the bank said.

Aki Hussain, the group chief executive of Hiscox, said "our thoughts are with all those affected, in particular our chair, Jonathan Bloomer, and his wife Judy, who are among the missing, and with their family as they await further news from this terrible situation."

Stephen Chamberlain

In a strange coincidence, another former Autonomy executive who was acquitted alongside Lynch of the fraud charges died days before the sinking of the Bayesian.

Stephen Chamberlain "was fatally struck by a car on Saturday while out running," his lawyer Gary Lincenberg said in a statement.

Chamberlain, formerly a vice-president of finance at the company, was accused of artificially inflating Autonomy's revenues and making false and misleading statements to auditors, analysts and regulators.

He stood trial with Lynch, and was also found not guilty.

"He was a courageous man with unparalleled integrity. We deeply miss him," Lincenberg said. "Steve fought successfully to clear his good name at trial earlier this year, and his good name now lives on through his wonderful family."

Chamberlain "was a much-loved husband, father, son, brother and friend," his family said in statement released through Cambridgeshire Police. "He was an amazing individual whose only goal in life was to help others in any way possible."

Police said the driver, a 49-year-old woman, remained at the scene in the village of Stretham, England, and was assisting with the investigation.

Recaldo Thomas

The chef with Antiguan roots was the first confirmed death from the accident. Cooking for Lynch was supposed to be one of his last jobs before retiring, his cousin, David Isaac, told The Associated Press.

Thomas was born in Canada but he would visit his parents' homeland of Antigua as a child, moving permanently to the tiny eastern Caribbean island in his early 20s.

"He was a free spirit," Isaac recalled. "Nothing rattled him. I've never seen him upset."

Upon moving to Antigua, Thomas, best known as "Rick," started working as a bartender in Jolly Harbor so he could be close to the sea, his second love after cooking, Isaac said.

Thomas also picked up jobs on small boats and eventually went to culinary school and started working on bigger ships.

Isaac recalled how Thomas would be gone for several months at a time and then unexpectedly show up in Antigua between jobs.

"This particular incident was hard," Isaac said. "He was just ready to tie up the end of his journey in his career."

Isaac recalled Thomas' "big, infectious" laugh and said he found some solace in that "Rick did exactly what he was meant to do and what he loved doing."

___

AP writers Eric Tucker in Washington and Anika Kentish in St. John's, Antigua, contributed to this report.

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PHOENIX  Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will speak Friday "about the present historical moment and his path forward," his campaign announced Wednesday, fueling growing speculation that Kennedy could drop out and support Republican nominee Donald Trump.

Kennedy's running mate openly discussed the possibility on a podcast this week, saying the campaign was considering a move to "join forces" with Trump to limit the election chance of Kamala Harris, whose Democratic convention winds up Thursday night in Chicago.

The move would have once seemed unthinkable for Kennedy, a Democrat for most of his life and  as the nephew of President John F. Kennedy and the son of Robert F. Kennedy  a member of a beloved Democratic dynasty.

Last month, during the Republican National Convention, Kennedy's son posted and then quickly deleted a video showing a phone call between Kennedy and Trump, in which the former president appeared to try to talk Kennedy into siding with him.

Kennedy will give a speech in Phoenix, hours before Trump is scheduled to hold a rally in neighboring Glendale. A spokesperson for Kennedy, Stefanie Spear, declined to say whether he planned to drop out or why he chose Arizona for his speech.

After leaving the Democratic primary to run as an independent, Kennedy built an unusually strong base of support for someone running without the backing of a major party. It was unclear exactly where his support was coming from, which worried Republicans and Democrats alike.

But since President Joe Biden ended his re-election campaign and Democrats coalesced around Vice President Harris as their nominee, Kennedy's rise has been stunted. It looks increasingly unlikely that he will be able to make the debate stage when Trump and Harris face off next month, a moment Kennedy counted on for momentum and legitimacy. His campaign finances have also been strained.

The news comes a little over a week since a New York judge ruled that Kennedy should not appear on the ballot in the state because he listed a "sham" address on nominating petitions. Kennedy has appealed, but has faced several similar challenges around the country.

On Wednesday, he was in a courtroom in a suburb of New York City, testifying in a trial for another ballot suit in the state, this one backed by the Democratic National Committee, that challenges the signatures collected by his campaign.

During a break in the court proceedings, Kennedy declined to answer questions from reporters about whether he was dropping out.

He's also facing a likely legal challenge in Arizona, where last week he submitted signatures that may have been collected by a super PAC that supports him, which Kennedy's critics say is illegal coordination between a candidate and an independent political group.

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Swenson reported from New York. Associated Press writer Cedar Attanasio contributed from Mineola, New York.

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The Associated Press receives support from several private foundations to enhance its explanatory coverage of elections and democracy. See more about AP's democracy initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

___

Photos: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. through the years
Of all the many ways that Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey abuses his office for partisan ideological ends, the most disturbing by far is his penchant for racial dog whistles aimed at the most extreme edges of the Republican base.

The latest example is Baileys unilateral move to fuzzy up a metric of police traffic-stop data that has, for years, clearly highlighted the fact that Missouri law enforcement pulls over Black and Hispanic drivers at far higher rates than it does white drivers.

Baileys office is required by state law to produce an annual Vehicle Stops Report, compiling racial data and other information regarding each traffic stop conducted by police officers around the state. The long-running annual report requirement was in response to clear evidence that police were disproportionately targeting minority drivers in stops and searches. Only by collecting and analyzing such data can reform follow.

Since 2000, the annual report has included whats called a Disparity Index  a presentation of the collected data as a ratio, taking into account the racial makeup of the jurisdiction where the driver was pulled over. That ratio approach gives context to raw traffic-stop numbers that might otherwise mean little to the average reader.

For example, the Disparity Index confirmed that, in 2018, Black drivers in St. Louis city were pulled over at a rate six times higher than their representation in the citys population, while whites were pulled over at rates less than their ratio of the population.

It also showed Blacks were subjected to vehicle searches at higher rates than whites  but that the white vehicle searches more often yielded contraband.

The Disparity Index is a crucial tool but one that, unfortunately, isnt required by state law to be part of the mandated Vehicle Stops Report.

So Baileys office has simply stopped including a context that all of his predecessors over more than the past two decades, Republican and Democrat, have recognized as necessary.

As the Post-Dispatchs Jack Suntrup reports, Baileys office includes an explanation for this omission in the new Vehicle Stops Report. It cites problems with the Disparity Index, such as the fact that its driver-to-resident racial ratios dont take into account whether the driver who was pulled over was from outside the community. That and other factors, it says, may artificially inflate the disparity index in a given community.

No data analysis method is perfect and there are certainly ways the methodology of the index could be updated to account for those issues. But simply throwing out a whole metric that clearly illuminates the scope of racial disparity in traffic stops isnt the solution. Unless, of course, youve already decided that theres no value in that kind of illumination.

Nothing required Bailey to do this. Just like nothing required him to side in court with a white Kansas City police officer convicted of manslaughter in the shooting death of an unarmed Black man, a shocking reversal of his offices usual role as an ally to local prosecutors.

Nothing required him to improperly insert his office into controversy over the horrific beating of a white Hazelwood East High School student by a Black classmate  a tragedy Bailey baselessly blamed on the districts racial diversity policies.

And, certainly, nothing required him to take up the banner of three right-wing state senators being sued by a Hispanic man for falsely accusing him on social media of carrying out the mass shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl celebration. The mans life was turned upside down by that toxic slander, but Missouris lawyer nonetheless offered up a taxpayer-funded legal defense for his tormentors.

Bailey, a Republican appointed as attorney general to fill a vacancy last year, is seeking election to the post this year. As we have charted in our Bailey Tally  an ongoing compilation of his worst abuses of authority  he has clearly decided that performative culture-war stunts are the best way to stoke up his base.

Race certainly isnt the only issue on which Bailey shamelessly demagogues, but its a core part of his strategy. He never misses a chance to remind his partys most intolerant voters that, as the states top legal official, he will steadfastly refuse to acknowledge the existence of systemic racism at any level. Let alone confront it.
EQS-Ad-hoc: Infineon Technologies AG / Key word(s): Legal Matter/Scheme of Arrangement

Infineon Technologies AG: Infineon Technologies AG and Qimonda insolvency administrator reach settlement to bring legal dispute to an end by mutual agreement



22-Aug-2024 / 20:50 CET/CEST

Disclosure of an inside information acc.



The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.



Neubiberg, 22 August 2024  Infineon Technologies AG and Qimonda insolvency administrator reach settlement to bring legal dispute to an end by mutual agreement



Infineon Technologies AG (ISIN: DE0006231004) and the insolvency administrator of Qimonda AG have agreed on a settlement. This brings to an end the legal dispute pending at Munich Regional Court I since the end of 2010, in which the insolvency administrator had claimed an amount of around EUR 3.4 billion plus interest.



The settlement agreement provides for a payment of EUR 753.5 million. The amount consists of a nominal settlement amount of EUR 800 million less set-off amounts from previous agreements with the insolvency administrator.



The Supervisory Board of Infineon has approved the settlement today; the creditors' committee of Qimonda AG and the Management Board of Infineon had already given their approval beforehand. The parties have agreed to have the settlement determined by the court.



With the settlement agreement, all legal disputes and claims of the insolvency administrator against Infineon are settled.



As a result of the payments, Infineon will utilize the provisions set aside for the legal dispute. The amount in excess of this will have a negative impact on earnings and cash flow from discontinued operations. The payment will be made from available funds. The above amounts are before deduction of taxes.





Contact:

Alexander Foltin, Investor Relations, phone: +49 89 234-23766, fax: +49 89 234-9559847



End of Inside Information

22-Aug-2024 CET/CEST The EQS Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases.

Archive at www.eqs-news.com


Caz Craffy, 42, was sentenced to over 12 years in prison for defrauding Gold Star families of nearly $4 million in survivor benefits. Craffy, an Army Reserve major, used his position as a financial counselor to prey on grieving military families, prosecutors said. (X)

An Army Reserve major and financial counselor who defrauded grieving military families out of nearly $4 million in survivor benefits has been sentenced to over 12 years in prison.

Caz Craffy, 42, of Colts Neck, N.J., admitted in April to stealing from Gold Star families and committing related crimes.

On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Georgette Castner ordered him to serve a 151-month sentence, the Justice Department said in a statement.

Caz Craffy was sentenced to prison today for brazenly taking advantage of his role as an Army financial counselor to prey upon families of our fallen service members, at their most vulnerable moment, when they were dealing with a tragedy born out of their loved ones patriotism, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said in the statement.

From November 2017 to January 2023, Craffy, who was also known as Carz Craffey, held a civilian post at the Armys Casualty Assistance Office, where he provided general financial education to beneficiaries of fallen service members.

Unbeknownst to the Army, Craffy simultaneously worked with two different financial investment firms and encouraged beneficiaries to invest their survivor benefits in accounts he managed.

When service members die during active duty, their next of kin are entitled to a $100,000 payment and the service members life insurance of up to $400,000.

The families of the fallen troops are known as Gold Star families. The military provides a range of services for them, including the assistance of a financial counselor.

In this screenshot from a Defense Department video, then-1st Lt. Carz Craffey sends Thanksgiving greetings from Baghdad in 2009. Also known as Caz Craffy, the Army Reserve major and financial counselor was sentenced to 151 months in prison for defrauding Gold Star families out of millions of dollars in survivor benefits. (Defense Department)

Many of the families that got advice from Craffy mistakenly thought he was investing their money with the Armys authorization, according to court documents.

From May 2018 to November 2022, Craffy obtained nearly $10 million from Gold Star families to invest in accounts he managed privately, the Justice Department said.

He earned more than $1.4 million in commissions from executing trades  often without families authorization  while the family accounts lost more than $3.7 million, according to the departments statement.

Craffy made a conscious decision to defraud Gold Star families suffering from losing their loved ones who paid the ultimate sacrifice serving this country, FBI  Newark Special Agent in Charge James E. Dennehy, who helped with the investigation, said in the statement.

He added that the money families receive is meant to ease financial burdens like mortgages and putting children through college.

Heartless and despicable dont even begin to sum up his crimes, Dennehy said.

Craffy, who joined the Army Reserve in 2003, pleaded guilty in April to six counts of wire fraud and one count each of securities fraud, making false statements in a loan application, committing acts affecting a personal financial interest and making false statements to a federal agency.

In addition to the prison term, Craffy was sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to forfeit the $1.4 million he made in commissions. Restitution to the families he defrauded will be determined later, the statement said.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has a pending civil complaint against Craffy based on the same and additional conduct.

Special agents with the Army Criminal Investigation Division, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the FBI and the Homeland Security Department conducted the probe that resulted in Craffys indictment.

The Justice Department statement indicated that Craffy is still a reservist. Typically, an administrative or judicial process ends with the eventual removal from service of a soldier convicted of felonies.
Anti-base protesters walk slowly to obstruct construction vehicles at the exit of Awa port in Nago city, Okinawa, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (Keishi Koja/Stars and Stripes)

NAGO CITY, Okinawa  Quarried material for a new U.S. military airfield is once again being shipped to a northern port after a nearly two-month pause spurred by a fatal truck accident.

Trucks began hauling loads of material to Awa port again on Thursday, a spokesman for Okinawa prefectures Seashore Disaster Prevention Division said by phone that day. The Okinawa Defense Bureau  an arm of Japans Defense Ministry  notified the division on Wednesday that shipments would resume.

The material, used to reclaim a portion of Oura Bay for the Marine Corps airfield under construction at Camp Schwab, is quarried on Okinawa, trucked to the port and moved by ships to the airfield site.

Work at Awa and Motobu ports stopped in July after a security guard was killed and a protester injured in a June 28 accident at Awa port. A date to restart work in Motobu has not been decided, the spokesman said.

Security guard Yoshikazu Usami, 47, and an unidentified 72-year-old woman for some reason stepped into the path of a truck turning left from the port, according to Okinawa Prefectural Police that day. Usami suffered severe head injuries and was declared dead at a hospital, a police spokesman said.

More than 40 security guards and police officials block protesters at the entrance to Awa port in Nago city, Okinawa, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (Keishi Koja/Stars and Stripes)

In a July 9 letter, the division asked the defense bureau to explain measures that will be taken to prevent another accident before restarting operations, the division spokesman said. But we havent heard anything from the bureau yet, he said.

Some government officials in Japan are required to speak to the media only on condition of anonymity.

We could visually confirm that the bureau installed a lamp with a siren at the entrance of the pier, and that the security guards will shut the sidewalks with net fences when trucks will be going in and out, the spokesman said.

About 25 security guards and five protesters were at the exit to the port Thursday afternoon, with another 40 guards and five more protesters at the entrance. Prefectural police and the guards blocked the road at 1 p.m., and would not let protesters through until all the trucks are in, a police official said

Look at the amount of security guards, said protestor Hideko Yamada of Uruma city. Its ridiculous. The government took two months just to think of this as a security measure?

Earlier this month the defense bureau asked the prefectural government to install guard rails at Awa port and clarify that it is prohibited to enter the facilities at Motobu port. Protesters opposed to the U.S. military presence on the island are a regular presence outside both ports.

We cannot think or consider what we can do as a prefecture until the defense bureau explains what safety measures it will take at the port, Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki said at a press conference Wednesday, the division spokesman said.

Workers on Tuesday began driving piles into the soft seabed at Oura Bay to begin the land reclamation process, according to the seashore division spokesman. The ministry drove test piles into the bay in July.

The division asked again that construction be delayed until design discussions with the defense bureau concluded.

As the prefecture, we are planning to send a request to the bureau to continue discussions and stop constructions while these discussions are ongoing, the spokesman said.
U.S. Consul General Andrew Ou, second from left, meets with Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki, right, at the prefectural office in Naha, Okinawa, Aug. 21, 2024. (Okinawa prefecture)

CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa  The new U.S. consul general on Okinawa, meeting with the prefectures governor this week, said he takes very seriously the indictments this year of U.S. service members for alleged sexual assaults, according to a prefectural spokesman.

U.S. Consul General Andrew Ou met Wednesday with Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki, said Nicole Lima Nucelli, spokeswoman for the U.S. Consulate General on Okinawa, by phone Thursday.

I appreciated the positive and forward-looking nature of the conversation with Governor Tamaki and was heartened to hear him reiterate the importance of the U.S.-Japan Alliance, Ou told Stars and Stripes by email Thursday. In addition to continued cooperation between the United States and Okinawa on economic, social, and cultural issues, we discussed exploring new areas of collaboration such as humanitarian assistance/disaster relief.

The two met at 10 a.m. at the prefectural office, a spokesman from Okinawas Peace and Subnational Diplomacy Promotion Division said by phone Thursday. Ou took over as consul general on Aug. 7 from Matthew Dolbow.

There are complex, heavy issues here, Ou said at the meeting, according to the spokesman. So, the issues you raised, I take them very seriously  we all do, the U.S. government. What I can pledge to you is that I will always be honest, always be communicative with you on any issue, even if its difficult.

Tamaki stressed that he wanted to cooperate to communicate in a daily manner with the U.S. government, according to the spokesman. He said not all Okinawans are against U.S. bases, and that some service members live off base close to the local community.

Many locals are aware of that, so thats why we think that it is extremely important to communicate with the U.S. military or local police to protect the safety and security of the citizens, he said, according to the spokesman. At the same time, we think that this is extremely important to keep the security system of Japan and the U.S.

Some government officials in Japan are required to speak to the media only on condition of anonymity.

Senior Airman Brennon R.E. Washington pleaded not guilty July 12 in Naha District Court to charges of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a minor in December. His trial is scheduled to continue Friday.

Marine Lance Cpl. Jamel Clayton was charged in May with attempting to sexually assault a woman in Yomitan.

The indictments led to formal complaints from the prefecture and the Japanese government to the U.S. Embassy and military commands on the island, and a call for changes to the status of forces agreement governing the U.S. military population in Japan.

U.S. Forces Japan commander Lt. Gen. Ricky Rupp announced last month a new forum of cooperation with the Japanese and Okinawan governments and community members.

The Marine Corps has increased courtesy patrols in Okinawas popular nightlife spots and instituted near-100% outbound sobriety checks at all its Japan installations on weekends in response to the incidents.

Rupp, U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel and III Marine Expeditionary Force commander Lt. Gen. Roger Turner have called for consistent liberty policies for all U.S. troops in Japan. But there was no update to those policies as of Thursday, a USFJ spokesman, Air Force Capt. Danny Rangel, said by phone.

Ou has been with the State Department since 2001 and previously served in consulates in Jamaica, South Korea, Hong Kong and China; as political officer at U.S. Embassy Tokyo; and as deputy foreign policy adviser at U.S. Indo-Pacific Command.
Students are greeted by Marines during a back-to-school celebration at the Quantico Middle/High School on Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va., Aug. 21, 2024. (David Brandes/U.S. Marine Corps )

Its back to school on Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia.

U.S. Marines welcomed DODEA students and staff back to the classrooms with motivational high-fives and cheers at Quantico Middle/High School and Crossroads Elementary School on Wednesday.

Col. Jenny Colegate, commanding officer of MCBQ, and Sgt. Maj. Michael R. Brown, sergeant major of MCBQ, made an appearance at Quantico/Middle High School and applauded the students return from summer break. The Quantico Marine Brass Band performed during a back-to-school celebration at Crossroads Elementary School as students arrived to the entrance, also being greeted by the Crossroads Eagle mascot, Freedom.

DODEA expects to welcome nearly 65,000 students across 160 schools worldwide.
The amphibious transport dock ship USS San Diego leaves San Diego, Aug. 14, 2024, for its new homeport in Sasebo, Japan. (Mark Faram/U.S. Navy)

The amphibious transport dock ship USS San Diego is on its way to Japan, where it will take the place of its sister ship USS Green Bay.

The San Diego sailed away from its namesake city on Aug. 14, U.S. Pacific Fleet announced Tuesday. The warship was homeported for 12 years at the naval base there.

The ship will make its way to Sasebo Naval Base on Kyushu, the southernmost of Japans four main islands, as part of a swap announced last month by the U.S. 7th Fleet.

Task Force 76 spokesman Lt. Cmdr. John Mike declined in a Thursday email to Stars and Stripes to comment on the ships arrival date, citing security concerns.

The base is home to the America Amphibious Ready Group, led by the amphibious assault ship USS America, which routinely deployed with the Green Bay over the past decade.

The San Diego, commissioned in 2012, is three years younger than the Green Bay. The Navy in 2021 awarded BAE Systems a $90.2 million contract for a yearlong modernization period for the San Diego. The work included hull maintenance, ballast tank repairs and refurbished living spaces.

The Green Bay underwent a similar, yearlong maintenance period prior to its deployment to Sasebo in 2015, U.S. Pacific Fleet said in a press release that year.

The San Diego will join the group to support a variety of missions by transporting personnel, equipment and vehicles that would be used as part of a landing force, and aircraft like the MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor or Navy and Marine Corps helicopters, Mike said.

Wherever San Diego operates, it provides naval power projection capabilities that allow the Navy and Marine Corps team to rapidly insert and support forces ashore, he wrote.

The new assignment will be very rewarding for the crew and families, and the San Diego is prepared for the move, according to the ships skipper, Capt. David Walton.

We appreciate all the support and fond memories of the City of San Diego, but its time for the citys namesake USS San Diego to lead the charge. America is counting on us to deter aggression, defend our national security interests, and preserve our way of life, he said in the release.

Meanwhile, the Green Bay will make its way to San Diego, concluding a decade-long assignment at Sasebo. Its currently conducting routine operations somewhere in the 7th Fleets area of operations, Mike said.

He declined to comment on when the Green Bay will leave for San Diego or whether the ship will undergo maintenance when it arrives there.

U.S. warships may not spend more than 10 years at a time in Japan. Congress set the limit in the fiscal year 2019 defense budget following back-to-back collisions involving the destroyers USS John S. McCain and USS Fitzgerald. Both vessels were based in Japan for more than a decade when they separately collided with commercial vessels in 2017.
The guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson steams through the Taiwan Strait, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (Jamaal Liddell/U.S. Navy)

A U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer steamed through the Taiwan Strait on Thursday, the Navys first transit of the waterway in months and the fourth this year.

The USS Ralph Johnson went northeast through the strait, entering from the South China Sea and exiting in the East China Sea to demonstrate the United States commitment to upholding lawful use of the sea for all nations as a principle, U.S. 7th Fleet spokeswoman Lt. j.g. Sarah Merrill told Stars and Stripes by email Thursday.

The U.S. routinely sends warships, and, less frequently, aircraft through the 110-mile-wide channel that separates mainland China from the island of Taiwan.

Ralph Johnsons transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the U.S. commitment to a stable, free and open Indo-Pacific, Merrill wrote. The U.S. military flies, sails and operates anywhere international law allows.

The guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson steams through the Taiwan Strait, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (Jamaal Liddell/U.S. Navy)

Beijing views Taiwan, a functional democracy, as a breakaway province that does not qualify for sovereign status, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said July 31, and that must be reunified with the mainland, by force if necessary.

While the Navy typically says the trips are intended to uphold freedom of navigation for all nations as a principle, Beijing views them as provocative.

Chinas Eastern Theater Command said it organized naval and air forces to monitor the Ralph Johnsons trip, which was publicly hyped up by the U.S., spokesman Col. Xi Li wrote on the Weibo social media website.

The theater troops are always on high alert and resolutely defend national sovereignty and security and regional peace and stability, he wrote.

Merrill did not specify whether the Ralph Johnson encountered any Chinese forces in the strait but said U.S. military vessels and aircraft routinely interact with foreign warships and aircraft while operating throughout the region.

The Canadian frigate HMCS Montreal made a similar passage July 31, according to a post that day by Canadian Joint Operations Command on social platform X.

Our activities promote peace, resilience, and security in the #IndoPacific, the post states.

The U.S. Navy last sent a warship, the guided-missile destroyer USS Halsey, through the strait on May 8. Beijing at the time issued its own statement within an hour of the 7th Fleets announcement and again alleged the U.S. had publicly hyped the situation. China also scrambled naval and air forces to monitor the vessel, it said.

A P-8A Poseidon flew over the strait in May, while the guided-missile destroyer USS John Finn made two additional transits on March 5 and Jan. 24.
(Carlos Bongioanni/Stars and Stripes)

Manila Bay, Philippines, May 7, 2001: Capt. Aaron Keenan grimaces while getting blasted by rotor wash from a CH-53 helicopter, as a second helicopter approaches to land and offload U.S. Marines. Keenan, an F-18 pilot who was acting as a forward air controller during an amphibious assault at Ternate beach at the southern end of Manila Bay, is part of the 3rd Batallion, 7th Marines from Twentynine Palms, Calif. The unit is deployed to Camp Schwaab, Okinawa, and is participating in Balikatan 2001 in the Philippines.
Ecletic pottery works are displayed in the window of Pascal Stechers tiny workshop in Betschdorf, France. Stecher is fascinated by witches and dragons and often includes their images on his pottery. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)

In the northeast of Frances clay-rich Alsace region is the village of Betschdorf, which has been producing its signature salt-glazed, gray-and-blue pottery for hundreds of years.

But only a handful of local artisans remain, making this a good time to go see how the pottery is made and pick up a few pieces while theres still an opportunity.

A ceramic plate hangs on a wooden post outside Pascal Stechers pottery studio on a quiet street in Betschdorf, France. The village is famous for its Alsatian potters, who for generations have created gray stoneware with cobalt blue patterns. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)

When I stopped at Stecher pottery shop, it was hard to tell whether the place was closed for lunch or shuttered for good. The storefront of the ramshackle half-timbered house on the main street displayed pretty pots and stoneware mugs  along with a few cobwebs.

The side-entrance door was locked, so I decided to check back in the afternoon.

On the outskirts of Betschdorf, I met Marie-Line Remmy at Les Gres de Remmy, which is run by her and her husband, Vincent.

Vincent and Marie-Line Remmy welcome customers to their pottery shop and studio on the outskirts of Betschdorf, France, six days a week. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)

Remmy showed me the couples large workshop stacked with unfinished pots of various shapes and sizes and a wood-burning kiln, where they bake their handmade designs.

They add salt to the oven, which, when combined with temperatures higher than 2,200 degrees Fahrenheit, produces a strong, durable glaze.

Its why the traditional pottery from Alsace is good for storing and keeping items fresh, everything from wine to mustard and vinegar.

Marie-Line Remmy etches a horse into the soft clay of a pot in the familys pottery workshop in Betschdorf, France, a small village in the Alsace region known for its gray-blue pottery. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)

Remmy invited me to watch as she picked up an unfinished piece and etched a horse into the soft clay. She then filled in cobalt oxide to the design with water and a brush.

She gave me a brochure with a dated map that listed a total of eight pottery houses in Betschdorf, noting that the number now was fewer and circled which ones she thought might still be open.

Poterie Fortune Schmitter was one, and it looked to be thriving. The family has been making pottery for seven generations, said a business card. A boutique in a half-timbered house next to an even larger workshop sold a nice variety of pieces, from clay animals to stunning vases with bright blue flourishes, flowers and other designs.

Ceramic cats, storks and owl faces carved into mugs are among some of the unique works found at Fortune Schmitter, a family of potters that has been making gray and blue pottery for seven generations in Betschdorf, France. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)

Some of the pottery houses dont keep regular hours, as I discovered when stopping again at Stecher. The door was still locked, but a shirtless older man was in a back lot doing yardwork. He motioned that he would be right there.

A few minutes later, a shirt-wearing Pascal Stecher opened his tiny, one-artist operation and donned an apron as he went back to his workshop. Customers can call or message him ahead of time about opening his shop.

He loves witches and dragons, he said in English, and paints them on bowls and molds their images with exaggerated features into mugs. Hes sculpting a large dragon that he doesnt plan to sell.

Potter Pascal Stecher holds one of his prized creations, a dragon he created in his tiny workshop in Betschdorf, France. Stecher often incorporates the themes of fantasy and sorcery into his work. (Jennifer H. Svan/Stars and Stripes)

I asked about a strangely shaped bowl with a lid and odd-angled handles. Its meant to look like a witchs pot, he said, and its the only one in the shop.

I ended up buying something at each place, including Stechers sorcery bowl. Prices werent flea market cheap, but some of the smaller pieces that I encountered cost between 25 and 35 euros.

Each item has an artist signature or stamp etched on the bottom, certifying its authenticity as a unique Betschdorf piece.

If you want to fill up your cupboards even more, head eight minutes down the road to Soufflenheim, which is known for its more colorful crockery used in baking. Expect to wander there too: The village has more pottery shops than Betschdorf, but they are more spread out.

Also, be sure to bring cash. Some places in Betschdorf took credit cards, but I had to scrape together my last coins to buy Stechers witchs pot, which now makes for a great kitchen conversation piece.

On the QT

Directions: The village is about 56 miles south of Kaiserslautern in France. The GPS addresses for two pottery shops with regular hours: Les Gres de Remmy, Rue de Soufflenheim 8, Betschdorf; Poterie Fortune Schmitter, Rue des Potiers 47, Betschdorf. Pascal Stechers shop is a few houses away from Schmitter at Rue des Potiers 43.

Costs: Parking is free.

Food: There is one convenience store in Betschdorf serving sandwiches, drinks and a few pastries. Theres also a cafe open Wednesday through Sunday. Otherwise, food options are limited.

Hours: Les Gres de Remmy, Monday to Saturday, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. and 2-6 p.m.; closed on Sunday. Poterie Fortune Schmitter, Monday to Friday 9 a.m.-noon and 2-6 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m.- noon and 2 p.m.-5 p.m.; closed on Sunday.

Information: Online: potiersalsace.com; poterie-schmitter.com. Call or text Pascal Stecher in advance at +33 641-575002 about opening his shop.
The pad thai at Mekong Thai, a family-run restaurant in Heroldsberg, Germany, a village outside of Nuremberg. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)

Thai food is likely not the first thought for hungry visitors to rural Bavaria.

But after a few months of living in this part of Germany, plenty of exposure to bratwurst and a persistent craving for Asian food, I took a chance on what I thought was Thai Imbiss Mekong in the village of Heroldsberg.

The restaurant had few, albeit positive, reviews and a single picture of a hut-like structure on Yelp and Google.

Using my phone as a guide, the photo I saw and my below-average land navigation skills, I circled a building attempting to find this mysterious hut, only to find that the photo was a red herring.

Mekong Thai, a family-run restaurant in Heroldsberg, Germany, has grown from its original carnation as an imbiss, a German term for a kiosk-style restaurant. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)

The replacement to what I found on Yelp is a full building, far from the usual size of a German imbiss, which is typically like a kiosk.

The rebranded Thai Mekong, sans imbiss, wasnt busy on a Friday evening at peak dinner hours. A few patrons were nestled on the shaded patio with a curtain of trees that dampened the sound of Heroldsbergs primary road, giving the patio a calm atmosphere.

Assuming I would have to stumble my way through my minimal knowledge of German, I tried to ask for a table, to no avail, then resorted to asking whether the waitstaff spoke English, to which they excitedly stated that they did.

The kind and friendly host explained the German menu while giving her personal recommendations for dishes.

Thai Mekong in Heroldsberg, Germany, offers an extensive menu. The restaurant also has an English-speaking waitstaff. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)

The offerings test the taste buds with varying degrees of spice from an array of curries, noodles, rice plates and specialty items.

As an avid fan of Thai food, I ordered a couple of plates, not wanting to review the restaurant based on a single dish.

The pad thai felt like a good place to start. For 14 euros, I was pleased with the portion. As hungry as I was, this dish could easily have been shared.

Unfortunately, there was nothing special that stuck out to me. The sweet sauce, lemon and peanuts on the side added flavor, but the dish was ultimately average.

I held out hope for the curry and I wasnt disappointed.

The massaman curry at Thai Mekong in Heroldsberg, Germany, is sweet and spicy, with a hefty portion size. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)

The massaman curry was the best meal Ive had in a while. It was sweet with a hint of spice. The potatoes and chicken were tender, and it was all accented by the slight crunch of the sliced carrots. While this dish also could have been a shared plate, I savored every bite of the curry and rice and wished for more.

I did have to wait a while for the food to arrive, but good food should take time. Overall, Mekong is a charming, family-owned restaurant with affordable prices and large portions. Next time I head toward Nuremberg, I may have to stop off in Heroldsberg for another plate of curry.

Thai Mekong in Heroldsberg, Germany, is a family-run restaurant that developed from an imbiss. Its menu features traditional staples such as pad thai and curries. (Lydia Gordon/Stars and Stripes)

Thai Mekong

Address: Hauptstrasse 94, Heroldsberg, Germany

Hours: Tuesdays-Sundays, 11 a.m.-9 p.m.

Prices: Main dishes are between 10 and 17 euros; cards and cash are accepted

Information: Phone: 0911-1496-6715, Online: thai-mekong.jimdofree.com/speisekarte
The guard tower of Area 1 near Ludwigswinkel, Germany, framed through foliage on Aug. 9, 2024. The structure once watched over one of the largest U.S. Army ordnance depots in Germany. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes)

Southwestern Germanys Palatinate Forest can seem like a blur of green uniformity to car and rail travelers, but hidden adventure spots abound just beyond the hills.

The town of Ludwigswinkel, near the French border and an hours drive from Kaiserslautern, is among them. Its a gateway to a hike with a fascinating blend of history, nature and outdoor relaxation.

For military families and history buffs, walking through the forests here is a journey through time, from Cold War relics to stunning sandstone formations.

A convenient place to park is the Landgrafen Restaurant. The hike begins at a large map near the old schoolhouse, leading onto a fine gravel path where the surroundings quickly transition from village to forest.

Just as you find yourself enveloped by towering trees, the trail again opens into a clearing, and there it is: a remnant of a not-so-distant past.

A signpost along the trail points the way to Area 1 and the Rumberg sandstone columns, leading hikers through a journey of history and nature. The trail is well-marked and easy to follow. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes) The guard tower of Area 1 stands in the evening light on Aug. 9, 2024, near Ludwigswinkel, Germany. The structure once watched over one of the largest U.S. Army ordnance depots in Germany. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes)

The guard tower of Area 1 stands as a concrete reminder of Americas Cold War past in the region. Once part of the U.S. Armys large Fischbach Ordnance Depot, this now-abandoned historic site was fortified with the kind of security that could rival Fort Knox.

Signposts placed by a local historical society guide visitors to 13 sights on 32 acres of the Palatinates youngest castle.

Between guard bunkers and checkpoints, roads meander through the clearing, past a pond where frogs croak, a surprisingly peaceful contrast to the sites once-ominous purpose.

This was where nuclear weapons were stored, ready for rapid deployment should the Cold War have turned hot. Today, the sites graffiti-riddled remnants offer a sobering reminder of that era.

A row of structures on bunker alley still exhibits some of the security features of the weapon access delay system, including steel cages and barbed wire. The encroaching vegetation and forest now cover an area that was once completely cleared to allow guards a clear shot at intruders.

A reinforced bunker door with its cage still intact in the former Area 1 near Ludwigswinkel, Germany. These doors once secured the entry to bunkers storing nuclear weapons during the Cold War. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes)

After absorbing the history of Area 1, follow the trail onward through the dense forest and up the Rumbergsteig trail. As you climb, you may notice your phone switching to a French provider, a subtle reminder of just how close you are to the border.

Soon, the first sandstone formations come into view, with the highlight being the five spectacular Rumberg towers. These colorful columns evoke the scenery of the American West. Lizards bask on sun-warmed stones and the scent of pine fills the air.

Pausing here for a break is a must. The sandstone formations are not just visually stunning. The rocks texture, eroded over millennia, creates a striking scene that feels almost otherworldly.

A close-up of tafoni, small cavelike formations on a sandstone wall in the Rumberg formation near Ludwigswinkel, Germany. These geological features form on rock surfaces, especially in sandstone, granite and other porous rocks as a result of weathering processes. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes) A slender sandstone tower rises dramatically from the forest floor, part of the stunning Rumberg formation near Ludwigswinkel, Germany. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes) A lizard basks in the sun on a sandstone rock in the Rumberg formation on Aug. 10, 2024. The warm, dry environment of the sandstone is a perfect habitat for these reptiles. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes) A path winds between two colorful sandstone walls near Ludwigswinkel, Germany. The Rumbergsteig hiking trail offers easy access to hikers of all skill levels. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes)

Descending from the Rumberg, the trail gently guides you back toward Ludwigswinkel. A refreshing stop awaits at the Rosselquelle, where icy spring water bubbles up, offering a cool respite for weary hikers.

For those not yet ready to call it a day, the Wasgau Lake Tour provides an extended adventure. This 10-mile loop first leads to the Lindelskopf mount, where a short climb rewards you with panoramic views of the village below.

Continuing the journey, youll encounter the idyllic Pfalzerwoog, a lake that in summer is adorned with pink water lilies that reflect beautifully in the still waters. Approaching Fischbach-bei-Dahn, you catch sight of the White Madonna, a 13-foot-tall concrete statue of the Virgin Mary that serves as a poignant symbol of peace.

The trail eventually loops back through dense forest and past more than five serene bodies of water, leading to the perfect way to end a summer day: a swim in the cool waters of the Saarbacherhammer Lake near Ludwigswinkel.

Water lilies float serenely on the Pfalzerwoog, their pink blooms adding a splash of color to the tranquil lake. The large pond is a popular stop for hikers seeking a moment of peace. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes) The White Madonna statue stands atop a hill near Fischbach-bei-Dahn, Germany, symbolizing peace. The statue was erected in 1959 as a World War II memorial and an anti-war symbol. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes) The view from the Lindelskopf platform offers a breathtaking panorama of Ludwigswinkel, Germany. The climb up is short but steep, with a rewarding view at the top. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes)

There is no fee to use the lake, which is a popular summer destination for nearby residents but was not too crowded even on a sweltering weekend day.

For those needing a final treat, the Ludwigswinkel barefoot path offers a fun, tactile experience that challenges your feet with a variety of textures from warm, soothing sand to a knee-high mud bath followed by cold river rocks.

A couple of hikers make their way toward the Saarbacherhammer swimming area near Ludwigswinkel, Germany, on Aug. 11, 2024. The lake is a refreshing end to a day of exploring the area, which borders France. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes) The Wasgau Lake Tour trail near Fischbach-bei-Dahn, Germany, has stops at assorted ponds and lakes, such as this one as seen on Aug. 11, 2024. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes) Children enjoy the barefoot path in Ludwigswinkel, Germany, experiencing different textures underfoot. The path offers a fun way to connect with nature and recover from a day's hike. (Alexander Riedel/Stars and Stripes)

Completing both trails in a single day is ambitious but realistic. For families with young children or those who prefer a slower pace, tackling just the Rumbergsteig and cooling off in the Muhlweiher is a perfect summer outing.

Area 1, Rumbergsteig and Wasgau Lake Hike

Address: Landgrafenstrasse 33, Ludwigswinkel, Germany

Hours: Open year-round, but best visited in spring and summer

Cost: The trails are free, only the barefoot path visit costs 2 euros.

Information: Online: sites.google.com/view/ig-area-1-e-v/startseite
U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., exits Manhattan federal court on July 16, 2024, in New York. (Adam Gray/Getty Images/TNS)

WASHINGTON (Tribune News Service)  Former New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendezs resignation from the Senate this week will leave a noticeable gap behind on several foreign policy issues, but nowhere more so than on Cuba matters.

For years, Menendez had been the highest-ranking Democrat to favor hard-line sanctions measures toward Havana at a time when more members of his party favored an approach that focuses more on engagement.

The son of Cuban political exiles, Menendez throughout his more than 30-year congressional career had been adamant that there should be no relaxing of the 1962 embargo against Cuba, which critics argue has done little to shake the hold on power of the Castro regime while leaving the Cuban people economically poor and isolated.

Philip Brenner, a foreign policy professor at American University who specializes in U.S.-Cuba relations, said Menendez has been a very sophisticated player at preventing change in U.S. policy toward Cuba.

Theres no question that with respect to the Biden administration, he has been the major influence on a tough line on Cuba, Brenner said.

Michael Galant, senior research associate with the international team at the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington, said Menendez was uniquely committed to the Cuba embargo and his departure is surely a good thing for those who want it to end.

While there are plenty of other Democrats in both the House and Senate who are wedded to economic sanctions despite their impacts on human rights, its unlikely that someone with that degree of power, unwavering ideological commitment to the embargo, and willingness to break ranks with the rest of the party will emerge from within the caucus any time soon, Galant said.

Menendez announced he would resign on Tuesday under the threat of a possible expulsion vote, after he was convicted earlier this summer on 16 federal charges, including for bribery, extortion and acting as a foreign agent.

As he fought the charges, Menendez relinquished his high-profile position as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which he was accused of corruptly abusing to benefit the Egyptian government.

Shaping Cuba policy

Prior to that, he used his clout to shape U.S.-Cuba policy. Brenner pointed to Menendezs willingness early in the Obama administration to threaten to withhold his vote from the must-pass fiscal 2009 omnibus spending measure because it proposed easing travel restrictions for Cuban Americans and allowing some food and medicine exports to the Caribbean country. The senator ultimately agreed to back the bill after extracting a promise from the administration to only narrowly implement the Cuba-related provisions.

When President Barack Obama in 2014 announced that the U.S. would normalize diplomatic relations with Havana, allow some limited travel and commerce with the island nation and remove it from the State Departments list of state sponsors of terrorism, Menendez lambasted the president for conducting negotiations for the detente behind his back and for compromising bedrock principles for virtually no concessions.

And Menendez supported a move from President Donald Trump to reverse most of Obamas policies of engagement toward Cuba, as well as a move from then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to place Cuba back on the state sponsors of terrorism list in 2021.

The senior senator from New Jerseys steadfast opposition to any relaxing of sanctions on Cuba is likely the biggest reason that President Joe Biden hasnt removed Havana from the state sponsors of terrorism list despite promising during the 2020 presidential campaign to reinstate the Obama-era detente policies, Brenner said.

When the Senate was split 50-50 in the last Congress, with Democrats in control because Vice President Kamala Harris was able to cast the tie-breaking vote, Menendez could threaten to withhold his vote on key legislation such as the 2021 infrastructure law should Biden move to delist Cuba or otherwise relax sanctions. Menendez could make a credible threat because he had already shown during the Obama administration how far he was willing to take his threats, Brenner said.

Menendezs personal relationship with Biden, which went back to their years serving together on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, also helped in his influence over Cuba policy. It was well-known that Biden was listening to Menendez on Cuba policy, and the fact is that President Biden has done very little in changing Cuba policy, Brenner said.

Potential changes

Although Biden has a slightly better Senate majority now than he did in the last Congress, the administration may see little upside in reengaging with Havana ahead of the November elections, as that could hurt Democratic prospects in down-ballot races in Florida, which has the countrys largest population of Cuban Americans.

Florida is also home to a significant and growing community of refugees and asylum-seekers from Venezuela. Havana has been a key ally of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in his autocratic and oppressive rule of the South American country.

Other Democrats have said the Trump administrations rationale for putting Cuba back on the state sponsor list was specious when it happened in 2021 and now no longer even exists.

The State Department says Havana was re-listed for harboring leaders of the National Liberation Army, known as ELN, designated since the 1990s as a foreign terrorist organization by the State Department. The ELN leaders traveled to Havana in 2017 for peace talks with the Colombian government, which were derailed after a deadly 2019 bombing of a Bogota police academy for which ELN claimed responsibility. Havana refused Colombias extradition demands, citing peace negotiation protocols.

But with the election of left-wing Colombian President Gustavo Petro, Bogota has reversed course on its demands for extradition of the ELN leaders. Colombia has repeatedly called for Cuba to be de-listed as a state sponsor of terrorism and argued that Havana was adhering to international protocols when it refused the extradition request from the predecessor Colombian government.

At the end of July, 46 House Democrats wrote to Biden and Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken to urge the administration to support the Petro governments peace talks with ELN and to de-list Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism in order to advance peace efforts.

The letter was signed by multiple senior Democrats, including House Rules ranking member Jim McGovern of Massachusetts, Appropriations ranking member Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, Appropriations State-Foreign Operations ranking member Barbara Lee of California, and high-profile progressives such as Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Pramila Jayapal of Washington.

Brenner speculated that Biden might de-list Cuba after the November elections.

The president could reasonably take Cuba off that list. That would have an enormous impact on Cubas ability to engage in international trade, Brenner said. And it is conceivable he might do that after the election. It would have been less conceivable if Sen. Menendez was still in the Senate.

Opposition remains

But to push through more substantive alterations to U.S.-Cuba policy would take an act of Congress. And still standing in that way are the Senates other Cuban American members: Sens. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and Ted Cruz, R-Texas. Together with Menendez, they have been a small but effective bipartisan group thwarting for years any chance of the Senate relaxing the long-standing trade embargo and travel ban on the Caribbean country despite noteworthy interest in doing so from both Democratic progressives as well as libertarian and business-minded Republicans.

Cruz and Rubio are both expected to maintain their vociferous and vigilant opposition against any legislative measures to soften policy toward Cuba. But their opposition will also be more partisan than in the past, unless another Democrat who shares their hard-line views toward Havana joins the chamber.

In the Republican-led House, there is also strong ideological opposition to engagement with Cuba, led by a handful of lawmakers with Cuban heritage. Chief among them is Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla., who chairs the Appropriations Committees panel on foreign aid.

And Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., a senior House appropriator, is a Democratic torchbearer for freedom in Cuba, said John Suarez, executive director of the Center for a Free Cuba, a nonprofit pushing for regime change in Cuba.

Suarez pointed out that a November 2021 vote on a House resolution offering solidarity with Cuban protesters drew support from 175 House Democrats, while just 40 Democrats voted against it.

The bipartisan nature of advocating freedom abroad will continue, Suarez said.

2024 CQ-Roll Call, Inc., All Rights Reserved.

Visit cqrollcall.com.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Airmens children watch as the Patriot Express touches down in front of the temporary passenger terminal at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, on May 30, 2023. The regular terminal was significantly damaged by Typhoon Mawar. (Pedro Tenorio/U.S. Air Force)

A Guam-based general contractor has secured a $21.4 million deal to completely overhaul Andersen Air Force Bases passenger terminal, with work expected to conclude in two years.

The Department of Defense on Aug. 5 awarded the contract to Fargo Pacific Inc., of Tamuning, to demolish and renovate the interior of the approximately 21,400-square-foot space.

Work is expected to be completed by July 26, 2026, according to the DOD contract announcement on Aug. 5.

The terminal  a stopping point for the government-contracted Patriot Express air service that transports U.S. service members and their families  has been under repair for more than a year after the Category 4-equivalent Typhoon Mawar significantly damaged the building in May 2023.

Since then, the terminal has operated out of a temporary space that includes six portable offices that 734th Air Mobility Squadron commander Lt. Col. Michael Sadler has called the Most Extraordinary Expeditionary Passenger Terminal, according to an email Tuesday to Stars and Stripes from a squadron spokesperson. The spokesperson did not identify themselves in the email.

The temporary terminal plays a vital role for active-duty and retired service members through the Patriot Express and other services like Space-Available and Space-Required travel opportunities, according to the email.

Outbound airmen and their families are transported to a hangar serving as a temporary passenger terminal at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, on May 30, 2023. The regular terminal was significantly damaged by Typhoon Mawar. (Pedro Tenorio/U.S. Air Force)

While the repairs and renovations are in response to the Mawar damage, renovations have been in the works since at least 2020 because the base required more robust facilities to meet the challenges and strategic focus of the Indo-Pacific theater, the email states.

Designs for the new facility began in September 2020 and were approved in April 2023, a month before the eye of Mawar passed just north of the U.S. territory, bringing heavy rain, flooding and wind gusts up to 167 mph.

The temporary facility was always planned to be a part of the renovations, but storm damage led the 734th to expedite its setup, according to the email.

The renovations are planned to modernize the terminal through an enhanced ergonomical design that maximizes the areas square footage while creating a more efficient terminal experience, the email states.

Those changes include an expanded, covered front entrance; ramp access; improved security measures; a larger lobby; and a streamlined service center and passenger check-in. The terminals inbound and outbound gates will also be larger, and a third gate will be added to accommodate larger passenger loads.

Overall, the changes are expected to increase the terminals capacity from 150 to 280 people, according to the squadrons email.
Firefighters work to extinguish a fire at a hotel in Bucheon, South Korea, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (Lee Lu-bee, Newsis via AP)

A fire broke out at a hotel in the South Korean city of Bucheon on Thursday, killing at least seven people and injuring 12 others, officials said.

Kim In-jae, the director of Bucheons public health department, said at a briefing that three of the injured people were in serious condition. The injured were being treated at six nearby hospitals.

Lee Sang-don, an official with the Bucheon Fire Station, said the nine-story hotel had 23 guests when the fire broke out Thursday evening.

Lee said the fire, which began on the eighth floor, was extinguished as of Thursday night. The cause was being investigated, he said.

The victims were found scattered in halls and stairways, and the number could increase as emergency workers search the building, Lee said.

More than 150 firefighters and 46 vehicles were deployed to put out the fire.
A hospital corpsman processes biological samples during a U.S. Naval Medical Research Unit Indo Pacific study on natural- and vaccine-derived immunity of respiratory diseases in U.S. sailors and Marines in September 2023. (U.S. Navy)

TOKYO  Four years after the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in the United States, a Navy research lab is recruiting active-duty volunteers at two bases in Japan for a follow-up study on vaccines.

Singapore-based U.S. Naval Medical Research Unit Indo Pacific will collect blood and saliva samples at Yokosuka Naval Base and Naval Air Facility Atsugi, both south of Tokyo, later this month.

The study is a follow-up to a similar one last year that showed the XBB.1.5 booster is likely to decrease the number of duty days a sailor might lose to COVID-19 by hindering the transmission of the virus behind the respiratory disease, according to a Navy Medicine news release from Dec. 18.

Although other elements in the U.S., including the Department of Defense, have done similar studies, as well as militaries outside of the U.S., Naval Medical Research Unit Indo Pacifics study is the largest and most in-depth that has been conducted, Capt. Andrew Letizia, the units science director, said in a statement emailed by Tommy Lamkin, spokesman for Naval Medical Research Command.

The commands COVID-19 research is focused on the active-duty population, with almost all participants in the range of 20 to 45 years old, Letizia said.

Each participant will provide 1.2 ounces of blood and 0.06 ounces of saliva, Lamkin said. They will also answer a questionnaire about past COVID-19 exposures, vaccination history and infections.

The collection will take place at Yokosuka from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Aug. 27 to Sept. 20 at the second-floor lab of the naval hospital, and at NAF Atsugi from 8 a.m. to noon Aug. 28 at the base health clinic, according to a news release Aug. 6 from the medical research unit.

Volunteers do not need to sign up beforehand and can show up to the respective labs during the hours listed, Lt. Huy Nguyen, a principal investigator for the study, said in an email Wednesday.

The samples will be processed within four hours at Yokosuka Naval Hospitals lab and then shipped to Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Command Diagnostics Surveillance Division and Walter Reed Army Institute of Research B Cell Biology, two DOD labs in Silver Spring, Md., for analysis.

Most other researchers in academia are not studying this demographic of young adults whose immune systems are much different than children or older Americans, Letizia said. Therefore, we cant rely on other researchers to answer this specific scientific question. Instead, we have designed the entire study around DoD members.

The command conducts infectious disease research and studies viruses, microbes and insects in the Indo-Pacific to protect the medical readiness and health of service members, their families and partner nations, according to the research units website.

The units first COVID-19 study, the Survey Immune Response to Coronavirus Disease, took place last year at Yokosuka Naval Base with support from 7th Fleet, Lamkin said.

SARS-CoV-2, the respiratory virus that causes COVID-19, will continue to mutate, producing new variants that are more transmissible, immune-evasive and possibly capable of causing a more severe disease, Nguyen said.

Also, immunity against infection, whether from a natural infection or a vaccination, usually decreases within three to four months, Nguyen said.

It is important to gather the most up-to-date immunologic data of our troops against the latest circulating variants to see where we stand to inform future booster recommendations, Nguyen said.
Members of Taiwans 564th Armored Brigade hold a flag after demonstrating their ability to repel an airborne attack near Kaohsiung, Taiwan, in January 2023. (Seth Robson/Stars and Stripes)

(Tribune News Service)  Taiwans high court convicted eight people, including active-duty and retired military personnel, of collecting state secrets on behalf of China, the official Central News Agency reported, in one of the largest espionage cases in years.

The verdict on Thursday handed down sentences ranging from 1.5 to 13 years in prison. The ruling is eligible for appeal. One person who was previously indicted as part of the same investigation was found innocent, with another suspect still listed as wanted, the report said.

The Ministry of Justices Investigation Bureau said in a statement it determined the people were recruited by the Chinese Communist Party to collect secrets including military intelligence. Beijing also used virtual currency to make payments, it added.

Several of the defendants denied all or some of the accusations.

The case exposed what Taiwan describes as Beijings efforts to infiltrate the islands army. Prosecutors earlier accused some of the people on trial of building a spy ring for China and alleged others were paid to film a video saying they would surrender to Chinas military, as part of what was seen as Beijings psychological warfare.

The U.S.  Taiwans biggest military backer  has long been worried about the self-ruled islands ability to keep tech and other secrets out of Beijings hands. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has vowed to bring it under control.

Taiwans Defense Ministry warned in 2022 that Chinas spying posed a serious threat. Months later, Taiwanese officials detained three active-duty personnel and a retired Air Force officer on suspicion of spying.

The Defense Ministry said in a statement on Thursday it will continue to conduct strict and confidential probes in the future to root out suspicious activity.

With assistance from Cindy Wang.

2024 Bloomberg L.P.

Visit bloomberg.com.

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Defence Ministry Press Office, a strategically important bridge over the river Seym is destroyed by Ukrainian troops as they continue their incursion into the Kursk region, Russia, Friday, Aug. 16, 2024. The bridge was used by the Kremlin to supply its troops and its destruction could hamper their efforts. (Ukrainian Defence Ministry Press Office via AP)

Russias security service, the FSB, launched criminal cases against several foreign journalists on Thursday, accusing them of illegally entering Russia to report on the Ukrainian incursion into the Kursk region.

In a statement Thursday, the service named Nick Paton Walsh, a British citizen and CNNs chief international security correspondent, as well as two Ukrainian reporters with independent news outlet Hromadske, Olesya Borovik and Diana Butsko.

The FSB said they would be placed on Russias wanted list. Under Russian law, the maximum penalty for illegally crossing the border is five years in prison.

The CNN report, showing journalists traveling with a Ukrainian military convoy from Ukraine into a nearly deserted Sudzha with a few dozen residents remaining, aired Aug. 16.

CNN described the trip as important and justifiable and part of its mission.

Throughout this conflict our team has delivered factual, impartial reporting covering both the Ukrainian and Russian perspectives on the war, a CNN spokesperson told The Washington Post in a statement. Our team was invited by the Ukrainian government, along with other international journalists, and escorted by the Ukrainian military to view territory it had recently occupied. This is protected activity in accordance with the rights afforded to journalists under the Geneva Conventions and international law.

In addition to CNN, The Post and several other news organizations have made reporting trips into Ukrainian-held territory in Kursk in recent days. The FSB statement referred only to CNNs actions.

Earlier this week, Russia summoned U.S. Charge dAffaires Stephanie Holmes to protest the provocative actions of American media reporting from the Kursk region.

The U.S. Embassy in Moscow rejected Russian accusations, saying in a statement Wednesday that independent news organizations make their own operational and personnel decisions. The U.S. government plays no role.

The statement added that it actively discourages U.S. citizens from even traveling to Russia.

Last week, the FSB initiated similar cases against Italian TV network RAI journalists Simone Traini and Stefania Battistini, who published the first report from Sudzha as part of a military embed with Ukrainian forces.

RAI news agency CEO Roberto Sergio said in an earlier statement that the two reporters will return to Italy for safety reasons.

The Russian Foreign Ministry on Saturday summoned Cecilia Piccioni, Italys ambassador in Moscow, to protest the journalists using their stay in the territory of our country to whitewash the propaganda support for the crimes of the Kyiv regime.

RAI also stressed that its reporters complied with the norms of international law when covering the situation in Kursk Oblast.

Journalism is not a crime, RAI union Usigrai and Italys national press union FNSI said in a joint statement. Reporting is not done with prior authorizations  Journalists worldwide have always asked for guarantees of access to conflict zones, in Ukraine as in Gaza and in every war zone, where the need to know what is happening is urgent.

A surprise Ukrainian operation in early August caught Russian soldiers manning the border, many of whom are young conscripts, off guard, allowing Ukrainian forces to capture dozens of settlements and take hundreds of prisoners.

According to Russian authorities, more than 120,000 civilians have been evacuated from the area. The incursion is unlikely to dent Russias overall advantage in numbers, but it served as a major morale boost for Ukrainian troops and a potential leverage for Kyiv in any future negotiations.

President Vladimir Putin held a second meeting Thursday to address what Russian officials refer to as the situation in Kursk.

Governors of two border regions neighboring Kursk asked the Russian leader for additional funding to supply units of territorial defense and pay them salaries. The governor of Belgorod, which has seen continuous hostilities throughout the war, said that the region has two territorial defense regiments totaling about 6,000 men.

Russia has so far downplayed the incursion into its territory, with state media covering it as a limited and contained operation, while actively juxtaposing it with Russian advances inside Ukraine.

Independent Russian-language outlet Meduza reported that the Kremlin aims to condition the Russian public to accept the presence of Ukrainian forces on its territory as the new normal in case Kyiv manages to hold its positions there for weeks to come, while prioritizing the drive to control all of Donetsk region in Ukraine. Russian forces are bearing down on the logistical hub of Pokrovsk.

The Kremlin may be using this messaging campaign to afford itself time and space to respond to the Ukrainian incursion into Kursk Oblast after achieving its offensive objectives in eastern Ukraine, the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, said in recent analysis.

On Wednesday, Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov sent a congratulatory note to units that seized the village of Zhelanne southeast of Pokrovsk.
A vehicle is driven through a destroyed border post at the border between Ukraine and Russia in Ukraines Sumy region on Aug. 15. (Ed Ram/The Washington Post)

KYIV, Ukraine  As Ukraines surprise incursion into Russia stretches into its third week and increasingly looks like a prolonged operation, ordinary Ukrainians are becoming conflicted over the possible cost of the cross-border offensive.

On the one hand, the assault has brought the war to Russian territory, turning the tables more than two years after Russia invaded Ukraine  displacing millions, destroying towns and forcing many people to live under an oppressive occupation. But as Moscows forces continue to gain ground in Ukraines eastern Donetsk region around the strategic town of Pokrovsk, some are questioning why Kyiv is devoting so many resources to taking Russian land rather than defending its own.

Its a dilemma President Volodymyr Zelensky is facing as he and his military command have committed precious personnel and weaponry, including some of Ukraines crack assault brigades and Western-supplied fighting vehicles, to the Kursk operation.

Moscow has so far resisted diverting its troops from its main thrust in eastern Ukraine near Pokrovsk, forcing a delicate choice on Zelensky: stick to the plan to take Russian land that could be a powerful bargaining chip for future peace talks or pull back to reinforce a key city inside Ukraine.

I believe that we are not being protected, said 77-year-old Raisa Makarova, a retired police officer living in Pokrovsk. Ukrainian forces are going somewhere else, she said. Its very hurtful. We thought that such a thing wouldnt reach Pokrovsk, that they would defend Pokrovsk. Well, I guess well have to die here.

Ukrainians reaction to the attack across the border into the Kursk region was gleeful at first. As Ukrainian troops advanced quickly, capturing hundreds of Russian prisoners of war, the offensive was a morale boost in the country after a dearth of good news from the front line over the past year. Kyivs highly touted counteroffensive last summer largely failed, and Moscow had regained the initiative since then, especially in the Donetsk region.

A recent mobilization campaign to conscript tens of thousands of Ukrainian men a month for the militarys depleted ranks has created tension in society, with many anxious about fighting. Two years of rolling blackouts caused by Russias missile and drone strikes on the power grid have also taken their toll on the economy and disrupted everyday life even for those far from the battlefield.

There was a certain fatigue with regard to news from the front, said Sevgil Musaieva, the chief editor of Ukrainska Pravda, one of the countrys largest independent news outlets.

People see a certain hope in these actions, that this might be a turning point, she added. Its important for a nation thats fighting a full-scale war for three years already. It influences morale a lot.

Some considered it fitting that after Ukrainian civilians across the country often sheltered in basements from bombardments, regular Russians were now also feeling the consequences of a war their government started.

Let them experience what its like and understand what it means to live under occupation, said 66-year-old Lyubov Yemets. I think that [the Russians] will start to reconsider things a bit. They need to make some decisions, they need to think about something. Maybe the people will rise up?

The Ukrainians that Washington Post journalists interviewed differentiated between their militarys grab of Russian territory in Kursk with Moscows occupation of Ukrainian land. Unlike Russia, Ukrainian officials havent signaled any desire to annex the territory or establish an occupation government. Reporting in Ukrainian-controlled Russian territory has been limited and typically with Ukrainian soldiers present, but there has so far not been any evidence of Kyivs forces mistreating Russian civilians.

There are occupations that are done by the aggressor country, that impede on someone elses territory, and there are occupations like the one we are doing now, which take place in order to defend and to get our territory back, said Mykola Khanatov, mayor of the occupied Ukrainian city of Popasna.

I support it completely, he added. We understand that civilians are suffering as well. But on the other hand, I do have to say that two-thirds of the air attacks on Ukraine came from the Kursk region, and these people didnt exclaim any disagreement with the Russian authorities. They didnt come out in protest.

Ukrainian officials have said the seized territory could be used as leverage in future negotiations to end the war, but those appear far off after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that Moscow wouldnt consider cease-fire discussions now.

Zelensky has also said that one of the goals of the offensive was to create a buffer zone to protect Ukraines Sumy region by pushing Russian forces back from the border, limiting Moscows ability to shell the area. Some people living in Sumy region villages close to the border said they indeed feel safer now. Others said they are more nervous that the increased Ukrainian military presence in the area could lead to more missile strikes.

More soldiers are coming in for coffee and are walking around in the city, said Oleskandr Miazin, a 19-year-old barista working in a Sumy coffee shop. Its a little bit scary because the Russians might make more airstrikes or bomb the city. It could make us more of a target.

But the murkiness over the Ukrainian leaderships endgame in Kursk has also added to the unease in society as the Russians continue to bear down on Ukrainian land in the east. Kyiv hasnt said how long the incursion might last or what Ukraine would want in exchange from the Kremlin to withdraw its forces from Kursk.

People expressed worry for the soldiers still defending the front line in the Donetsk region - now with less ammunition, because much of it has been devoted to the Kursk offensive. If Russia continues to close in on Pokrovsk, some asked, would Ukraine really choose to hold Russian territory over its own?

I might have an unpopular opinion, but I think that on the one side, sure, its cool and good and of course that it kind of revives the spirit of our people, said Viktoria Kalashnyk, a 34-year-old artist and volunteer living in Kyiv. But on the other hand, in the Donetsk and Kharkiv areas, there is heavy fighting. And I dont know, maybe it would be better to send reinforcements there?

Morgunov reported from Kyiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Dnipro and Pokrovsk, Ukraine. Siobhan OGrady in Sumy and Pokrovsk contributed to this report.
Amoon Gadra, a Syrian who works sorting plastic waste across from the building that was hit in Nabatiyeh, says she expects the violence in Lebanon to intensify. (Lorenzo Tugnoli/The Washington Post)

NABATIYEH, Lebanon  For weeks, the Middle East has been on edge, waiting for a retaliatory Iranian attack on Israel that many fear could trigger an all-out war. While a nervous calm prevails, and Tehran has signaled it will bide its time, daily violence continues to rage along the Israel-Lebanon border.

Israel has targeted what it says are Hezbollah weapons caches along the border and in Lebanons east, as deep as 50 miles inside the country. Hezbollah has responded with deeper attacks inside Israel, and on Wednesday released a wave of more than 50 rockets and drones at the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

The center of gravity of Israeli military operations is shifting away from Gaza and toward the border with Lebanon, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said this week. Recent strikes on alleged weapons stockpiles were preparation for anything that might happen.

In Lebanon, already suffering through political paralysis and a protracted economic collapse, people say they feel trapped between the warring parties  and fear there is no way out. In the impoverished south, where Hezbollah holds sway and attacks have been most intense, Syrian refugees have borne the brunt of the recent violence.

Israel and Hezbollah have been nemeses for decades, and have fought two costly and indecisive wars. Hezbollah ignited the latest round of hostilities the day after the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, launching strikes inside Israel in support of Hamas, its ideological ally and fellow member of the self-styled axis of resistance, a collection of Iranian-backed militant groups across the region.

Over more than 10 months of attacks and counterattacks - which have displaced tens of thousands of civilians on both sides of the border  each side has steadily broadened its reach and sharpened its rhetoric, while avoiding a full-scale confrontation. Analysts and officials fear that the brinkmanship cannot go on much longer.

Last month, a rocket from Lebanon killed 12 children in a village in the Golan Heights. Israel and the United States blamed Hezbollah for the strike; the militant group denied responsibility. The Israeli military responded by assassinating Fuad Shukr, a high-level Hezbollah commander who was close to the groups leader, Hasan Nasrallah. A day later, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed in Tehran; while Israel has not commented on the attack, it told U.S. officials immediately afterward that it was responsible.

The region has held its breath ever since. In a speech this month, Nasrallah said that his fighters would respond regardless of the consequences, but that keeping Israel waiting was part of the punishment.

While a new U.S.-backed push to revive Gaza cease-fire talks appears to have influenced Irans and Hezbollahs calculations, they cannot indefinitely forestall escalation on the Israel-Lebanon border, according to David Hale, who served as the U.S. ambassador in Beirut from 2013 to 2015.

Theres definitely in Israel this feeling of never again and they cant go back to the pre-October 7 status quo where their opponents have a hand on the spigot, where the other side sets the pace, he said. Without a clear diplomatic path to removing Hezbollah from the border, he said, Israel will probably expand its military operations.

On Saturday, an Israeli airstrike in the southern city of Nabatiyeh killed 10 civilians, according to Lebanese authorities, the deadliest attack in the country since October. The Israel Defense Forces described the building hit as a Hezbollah weapons storage facility; it did not respond to a request for comment on the reported civilian deaths.

The strike hit an industrial area on the edge of the city, a run-down district where most of the workers are Syrian, many war refugees already. Most eke out a living as manual laborers and sleep where they work.

Hussain Tahmaz, the buildings owner, denied having weapons on the premises. Construction materials were stored on the first floor, he said, while his workers stayed on the second floor. Nine of his employees were killed, he said.

Tahmaz said he has no connections to Hezbollah or other militants, and isnt even a conservative Muslim.

Im a womanizer and I drink, he said with a frustrated laugh. I have nothing to do with any group. Inside his office, he pulled up CCTV footage from the night of the strike, showing plastic roofing and metal bars being loaded into an otherwise empty warehouse.

Do you see any weapons here? he asked.

Laborers at a worksite next door said the strike shook them out of bed, shattering windows and littering the roof with shrapnel. The force of the blast was so strong, one man said, that two people were thrown into the street. But there were no secondary explosions, witnesses said, which would be expected if the warehouse was storing munitions.

Amoon Gadra, 33, who works sorting plastic waste across the street, said that she expected the violence to intensify in Lebanon but that nothing would make her consider returning home.

In Syria it was much worse  there they used barrel bombs, she said, referring to large indiscriminate attacks by the Syrian regime during the countrys civil war.

Lebanon says it is constantly updating the emergency plan developed in October to prepare hospitals and other government services in the event of broader conflict. But this is a country that is already unable to provide basic services.

Lebanons state electricity company said this week its last operational power plant had run out of fuel, forcing the countrys airport, ports and prisons to rely on backup power sources. Most Lebanese households receive only a few hours a day of government electricity, relying on costly private generators to make up the difference.

Lebanons minister of health, Firass Abiad, said the nationwide blackout made it difficult to prepare hospitals for a worst-case scenario.

When you have no extra capacity, every resource has to be used wisely, he said. This is the main challenge for us now.

Two of the people wounded in the Nabatiyeh strike remain in intensive care in southern Lebanon. Hassan Mousa, 19, suffered severe injuries to a leg, his stomach and a hand. Hussein Hussein, 21, lost a leg in the blast and suffered injuries to his back and face. They were taken to nearby hospital run by Hezbollah, which has retained support in its strongholds by offering services the state does not provide.

The well-appointed facilities were busy, but orderly. Doctors in scrubs wore pins depicting Hezbollah fighters killed in battle. Above the information desk was a colorful mosaic of Irans supreme leader.

Doctors have put the injured men into medically induced comas. Keeping vigil beside them was Hassan Ahmed Mousa, 51, of Aleppo, Syria, who now lives in Beirut. Hassan is his nephew and Hussein is his cousin, he explained, so he is the next of kin for both men. Two other members of his family were killed in the strike.

Relatives back in Syria have messaged him for updates. My brother keeps asking me to send a photo of Hassan, but I cant, Mousa said. Tubes and wires crisscrossed his nephews hospital bed, connecting him to a respirator. I havent told them everything.

After the attack, he said, Hezbollah sent a car to Beirut to ferry him south and gave him a place to sleep at the hospital.

Two hospital officials sat beside him as he answered questions from journalists in a cramped office. On the desk, a coffee mug that read I heart CPR sat beside a yellow Hezbollah flag. Mousa thanked the group repeatedly, eyeing the officials as he spoke.

Between us, there is a mutual respect he said.
Taliban fighters celebrate the third anniversary of the withdrawal of US-led troops from Afghanistan, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Aug. 14, 2024. (Siddiqullah Alizai/AP)

ISLAMABAD  Afghanistans Taliban rulers have issued a ban on womens voices and bare faces in public under new laws approved by the supreme leader in efforts to combat vice and promote virtue.

The laws were issued Wednesday after they were approved by supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, a government spokesman said. The Taliban had set up a ministry for the propagation of virtue and the prevention of vice after seizing power in 2021.

The ministry published its vice and virtue laws on Wednesday that cover aspects of everyday life like public transportation, music, shaving and celebrations.

They are set out in a 114-page, 35-article document seen by The Associated Press and are the first formal declaration of vice and virtue laws in Afghanistan since the takeover.

Inshallah we assure you that this Islamic law will be of great help in the promotion of virtue and the elimination of vice, said ministry spokesman Maulvi Abdul Ghafar Farooq on Thursday.

The laws empower the ministry to be at the frontline of regulating personal conduct, administering punishments like warnings or arrest if enforcers allege that Afghans have broken the laws.

Article 13 relates to women. It says it is mandatory for a woman to veil her body at all times in public and that a face covering is essential to avoid temptation and tempting others. Clothing should not be thin, tight or short.

Women should veil themselves in front of all male strangers, including Muslims, and in front of all non-Muslims to avoid being corrupted. A womans voice is deemed intimate and so should not be heard singing, reciting, or reading aloud in public. It is forbidden for women to look at men they are not related to by blood or marriage and vice versa.

Article 17 bans the publication of images of living beings, threatening an already fragile Afghan media landscape.

Article 19 bans the playing of music, the transportation of solo female travelers, and the mixing of men and women who are not related to each other. The law also obliges passengers and drivers to perform prayers at designated times.

According to the ministry website, the promotion of virtue includes prayer, aligning the character and behavior of Muslims with Islamic law, encouraging women to wear hijab, and inviting people to comply with the five pillars of Islam. It also says the elimination of vice involves prohibiting people from doing things forbidden by Islamic law.

Last month, a U.N. report said the ministry was contributing to a climate of fear and intimidation among Afghans through edicts and the methods used to enforce them.

It said the ministrys role was expanding into other areas of public life, including media monitoring and eradicating drug addiction.

Given the multiple issues outlined in the report, the position expressed by the de facto authorities that this oversight will be increasing and expanding gives cause for significant concern for all Afghans, especially women and girls, said Fiona Frazer, the head of the human rights service at the U.N. mission in Afghanistan.

The Taliban rejected the U.N. report.

This story was first published on Aug. 22, 2024. It was updated on Aug. 23, 2024 to make clear that the Taliban vice and virtue laws say that women should veil themselves in front of all male strangers, including Muslims, and in front of all non-Muslims.
Water flows from a water fountain in Concord, N.H., on Friday, Jan. 7, 2011. (Jim Cole/AP)

NEW YORK  A U.S. government report expected to stir debate concluded that fluoride in drinking water at twice the recommended limit is linked with lower IQ in children.

The report, based on an analysis of previously published research, marks the first time a federal agency has determined  with moderate confidence  that there is a link between higher levels of fluoride exposure and lower IQ in kids. While the report was not designed to evaluate the health effects of fluoride in drinking water alone, it is a striking acknowledgment of a potential neurological risk from high levels of fluoride.

Fluoride strengthens teeth and reduces cavities by replacing minerals lost during normal wear and tear, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The addition of low levels of fluoride to drinking water has long been considered one of the greatest public health achievements of the last century.

I think this (report) is crucial in our understanding of this risk, said Ashley Malin, a University of Florida researcher who has studied the affect of higher fluoride levels in pregnant women on their children. She called it the most rigorously conducted report of its kind.

The long-awaited report released Wednesday comes from the National Toxicology Program, part of the Department of Health and Human Services. It summarizes a review of studies, conducted in Canada, China, India, Iran, Pakistan, and Mexico, that concludes that drinking water containing more than 1.5 milligrams of fluoride per liter is consistently associated with lower IQs in kids.

The report did not try to quantify exactly how many IQ points might be lost at different levels of fluoride exposure. But some of the studies reviewed in the report suggested IQ was 2 to 5 points lower in children whod had higher exposures.

Since 2015, federal health officials have recommended a fluoridation level of 0.7 milligrams per liter of water, and for five decades before the recommended upper range was 1.2. The World Health Organization has set a safe limit for fluoride in drinking water of 1.5.

The report said that about 0.6% of the U.S. population  about 1.9 million people  are on water systems with naturally occurring fluoride levels of 1.5 milligrams or higher.

The findings from this report raise the questions about how these people can be protected and what makes the most sense, Malin said.

The 324-page report did not reach a conclusion about the risks of lower levels of fluoride, saying more study is needed. It also did not answer what high levels of fluoride might do to adults.

The American Dental Association, which champions water fluoridation, had been critical of earlier versions of the new analysis and Malins research. Asked for comment, a spokeswoman late Wednesday afternoon emailed that the organizations experts were still reviewing the report.

Fluoride is a mineral that exists naturally in water and soil. About 80 years ago, scientists discovered that people whose supplies naturally had more fluoride also had fewer cavities, triggering a push to get more Americans to use fluoride for better dental health.

In 1945, Grand Rapids, Michigan became the first U.S. city to start adding fluoride to tap water. In 1950, federal officials endorsed water fluoridation to prevent tooth decay, and continued to promote it even after fluoride toothpaste brands hit the market several years later. Though fluoride can come from a number of sources, drinking water is the main source for Americans, researchers say.

Officials lowered their recommendation for drinking water fluoride levels in 2015 to address a tooth condition called fluorosis, that can cause splotches on teeth and was becoming more common in U.S. kids.

Separately, the Environmental Protection Agency has maintained a longstanding requirement that water systems cannot have more than 4 milligrams of fluoride per liter. That standard is designed to prevent skeletal fluorosis, a potentially crippling disorder which causes weaker bones, stiffness and pain.

But more and more studies have increasingly pointed to a different problem, suggesting a link between higher levels of fluoride and brain development. Researchers wondered about the impact on developing fetuses and very young children who might ingest water with baby formula. Studies in animals showed fluoride could impact neurochemistry cell function in brain regions responsible for learning, memory, executive function and behavior.

In 2006, the National Research Council, a private nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C., said limited evidence from China pointed to neurological effects in people exposed to high levels of fluoride. It called for more research into the effect of fluoride on intelligence.

After more research continued to raise questions, the National Toxicology Program in 2016 started working on a review of the available studies that could provide guidance on whether new fluoride-limiting measures were needed.

There were earlier drafts but the final document has repeatedly been held up. At one point, a committee of experts said available research did not support an earlier drafts conclusions.

Since fluoride is such an important topic to the public and to public health officials, it was imperative that we made every effort to get the science right, said Rick Woychik, director of the National Toxicology Program, in a statement.

Malin said it makes sense for pregnant women to lower their fluoride intake, not only from water but also from certain types of tea. It might also make sense to have policy discussions about whether to require fluoride-content on beverage labels, she said.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institutes Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Arnold Gonzales (46), of Marlborough Road, Donnybrook, Dublin 4, is charged with assault causing harm to a man

A kitchen porter pushed a man over during an incident on board a boat, causing him to hit his head and lose consciousness in the fall, it is alleged.

Gardai claimed the alleged victim woke to find the accused, Arnold Gonzales (46), had his neck in an arm lock.

The case was adjourned at Dublin District Court after the defence raised the issue of prosecutorial delay.

Mr Gonzales, of Marlborough Road, Donnybrook, Dublin 4, is charged with assault causing harm to a man on August 19, 2021.

The court heard the incident was alleged to have happened on board a boat in Howth Harbour. Mr Gonzales was alleged to have pushed the man with both hands to the chest, causing him to fall and hit his head.

According to the prosecution, the alleged victim lost consciousness and when he awoke, the accused had him in an arm lock around his neck.

Crew members intervened. The court heard the man suffered a wound which required sutures. There was no medical report before the court.

Defence solicitor Matthew de Courcy said the case was of some antiquity and had been struck previously but Mr Gonzales was recharged a year later. He said he wanted to hear a timeline for the delay in the case and would be raising it as an issue.

A garda sergeant said the alleged victim had changed address and it had been difficult for gardai to contact him but he was found again.

The Director of Public Prosecutions was consenting to the charge being dealt with in the District Court, subject to a judge accepting jurisdiction.

This will determine whether the ultimate venue for the case will be the District or Circuit Court, which has tougher sentencing powers on conviction.

Judge Bryan Smyth deferred a decision on jurisdiction and adjourned the case for a medical report. The accused was remanded on continuing bail.

The charge is under Section 3 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act.
What does the future hold for Dowdall?

The home of State Witness Jonathan Dowdall has sold for almost 800,000 as he prepares to finish his prison sentence and start a new life abroad.

But what does the future hold for Dowdall whose evidence in the trial of Gerry The Monk Hutch for the Regency Hotel murder was not accepted by the courts.

Nicola speaks to Niall Donald about the next chapter for Dowdall - the witness who couldnt stop talking.

MORE EPISODES 
The confrontation occurred after the men had carried out a sting operation in North Dublin

Screenshot from the COPE NI Facebook livestream following an arrest at Coolock Garda Station

Two members of a so-called online paedophile hunter group have been arrested following a confrontation with gardai in a station in North Dublin.

Gardai said the men  who are members of an online group called Child Online Protection Enforcers N.I (COPE NI)  were arrested for alleged public order offences following the incident at Coolock Garda Station on Tuesday.

The confrontation occurred hours after the men had travelled to Dublin to carry out a sting operation on a man living in the area.

COPE NI regularly film themselves confronting men who are accused of sending sexualised messages to underage children.

The group typically used a decoy who poses as a child in their early teens while exchanging messages with the men. Cope NI are based in Northern ireland but have carried out a number of stings on both side of the border.

After confronting an alleged offender in North Dublin on Tuesday, the group then phoned gardai and sought to have their target arrested.

However when gardai did not take the man into custody, the online vigilantes then drove the individual to Coolock Garda Station where a confrontation occurred between officers and members of the group.

The leader of COPE NI, who calls himself Jay Hunter, can be heard on a livestream posted on Facebook from outside Coolock Garda Station complaining about gardai failing to take the suspect into custody.

This is way were treated down here. The gardai drove past us in the street. Unbelievable, he says.

Screenshot from a livestream on COPE NI Facebook page

Later in a separate livestream shot inside the station, the online vigilante can be heard angrily questioning why the suspect has not been arrested by gardai

What you are saying is that you are refusing to arrest this guy? I have all the evidence here.

However, a garda then asks the so-called paedophile hunter how he knows there is evidence on the suspects phone and tells him he cant arrest anyone without gathering evidence.

The gardai then tell the online vigilantes that it is an offence to record video without permission in a police station. Moments later, a member of the paedo hunter team is then arrested.

After the row moves to outside the station, another member of the team has his phone taken by gardai after they confront him about recording a clip earlier.

A garda spokesman told the Sunday World the two men are due to appear before the courts at a later date.

He said: "Gardai arrested two males yesterday afternoon, Tuesday 20th August 2024, in Coolock Garda Station for public order offences.

The males, aged in their 50s and 60s, have both since been charged in relation to this incident and are expected to appear before the Criminal Courts of Justice District Court at a later date.

In a statement on their Facebook page, COPE NI asked their followers to make a complaint to the Garda Ombudsman about the arrests.

"Good afternoon everyone, this is the link to make a complaint to the Garda Ombudsman about what happened to the team yesterday while on a sting in Coolock, Dublin on behalf of another team.

We would be so grateful if everyone could click on it and log their complaints as the guards who treated Jay and Mark with such brutality need to be held accountable for their actions.

"Coolock Garda station have removed their Facebook page, twitter page and can no longer leave reviews for them on google, to us this just screams guilt!

Jay is injured and is currently sitting in hospital awaiting X-rays and other examinations and we will update as soon as we know how he has got on.
The Rooneys, who are estimated to have made 4 million from their driveway business, beat the man, fed him scraps and left him to live in a filthy caravan

HORROR TREATMENT: Bridget, John and Patrick Rooney were accused of exploiting 18 victims and treating the vulnerable men as slaves

A victim who suffered brain damage and PTSD after being rescued from an Irish gang who forced vulnerable men to work as slaves has been paid compensation.

The victim, forced to work for the Rooney family for 26 years, received 325,000 from the UK government last week despite previously being refused any damages.

The Rooneys, who are estimated to have made 4 million from their driveway business, beat the man, fed him scraps and left him to live in a filthy caravan. Eleven members of the gang were jailed in 2017 for exploiting 18 victims, many of whom were homeless people or men with learning disabilities.

The convicted gang members were released from prison having served their sentences before the victim got any compensation, while 15 other of the men held as slaves have since died.

The Sunday World revealed at the time how members of the Rooney clan, who have links to Kildare and Armagh, have a reputation for violence.

Twin brothers John and Patrick Rooney were at the scene of a violent confrontation in Surrey in 2005 in which Paul Cash was shot dead.

Bridget Rooney

Patrick Rooney was accused of exploiting 18 victims and treating the vulnerable men as slaves

John Rooney was accused of exploiting 18 victims and treating the vulnerable men as slaves

The brothers were cleared of murder and firearms charges after a trial during which Patrick admitted firing the fatal shot.

John and Patrick were sentenced to 15 years for the slavery charges.

Eighteen men had to work and live in terrible conditions amid constant threats of violence.

The compensation paid to their surviving victim, who was rescued in 2014, will go towards paying for the 24-hour care that he needs.

His sister said the lack of initial compensation meant her vulnerable brother could not pay for rehabilitation for injuries he suffered at the hands of the Rooney clan.

The victims hands show the effects of manual labour

Lawyer Liam Symons appealed the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authoritys offered level of compensation.

He said in a statement that the result will enable other survivors of modern slavery and human trafficking to obtain fairer criminal injuries compensation awards.

The victims initial application for compensation had been rejected in 2020. After one appeal he was offered 1,600, prompting another appeal.

Law firm Freshfields said the eventual payout is one of the highest so far made to a victim of modern-day slavery.

During a 26-year period of enslavement, the client sustained significant psychological injuries including brain damage and post-traumatic stress disorder (due to persistent mental and emotional abuse), as well as extensive physical injuries, it was said.

The trial judge in Nottingham pointed out several times during the hearings in 2017 that the Rooneys lived a millionaire lifestyle while the men they enslaved lived in abject squalor.

It was their extravagant spending which spelled disaster for them and attracted the attention of Revenue officers who then called in the police.

An aerial view of Drinsey Nook, where the men were held

The sadistic nature of the violence meted out to the hapless slaves also emerged during the court case.

Many of their victims were extremely vulnerable people with addiction and mental health issues who lived in constant fear of violence.

One man was forced to dig a hole and told it would be his grave and another had his teeth smashed with a concrete block.

The slaves, aged 18 to 63, were freed after raids by Lincolnshire Police and the National Crime Agency in 2014.

Some gang members also targeted four elderly home-owners, getting them to sign over properties to their names and selling three on for profit  one for 250,000.

Martin Rooney Snr and Bridget Rooney were described as the patriarch and the matriarch of the enterprise.

Labourers were forced to live in shabby, run-down caravans or in stables next to kennels, with little or no access to basics such as heating, water and toilets.

The police said victims often went hungry or were given the familys leftovers, even though they were worked for hours on hard, manual tasks.

The gang members enjoyed luxurious holidays, high-performance cars, spa days and cosmetic surgery.
It was not widely known in Sligo that Ms Murray had been working on the yacht, and her escape from drowning has been warmly welcomed

Mike Lynch among dead in yacht disaster as his daughter remains missing

A Sligo woman has survived the tragedy of a luxury yacht which sank off the coast of Italy, resulting the deaths of six people with a seventh still missing.

Sasha Murray (29) escaped the sinking of the Bayesian, owned by entrepreneur Mike Lynch, which went down off the coast of Sicily on Monday.

The British-flagged Bayesian, a 56-metre-long (184-ft) superyacht carrying 22 passengers and crew, was anchored off the port of Porticello, near Palermo, when it disappeared beneath the waves in a matter of minutes after a fierce storm struck off the Italian island on Monday.

Twenty-two people were on board, 12 passengers and a crew of ten, with fifteen rescued. The yacht sank in as little as a minute.

It was not widely known in Sligo that Ms Murray had been working on the yacht, and her escape from drowning has been warmly welcomed.

Ms Murray was one of 15 people who were rescued when the luxury yacht sank on Monday in what has been described as a freak weather event.

She is understood to be staying with other survivors at a resort in Santa Flavia, where she recovers from the ordeal.

Reports state that the Sligo woman has sustained an injury to her right leg.

Ms Murrays grandparents Holger and Erika Schiller came to Co Sligo on holidays in the 1970s, and fell in love with the county.

They moved from Germany, buying and renovating Ardtarmon Castle, close to Raghly. The Schiller family run an estate agents.

Ms Murray has already experienced tragedy in her family. When she was a very young child, she lost her father Fionn Murray and grandfather Holger Schiller when their light aircraft crashed after taking off from Sligo Airport in Strandhill.

Her father Fionn was well known in motor racing circles. He was just 33 when he died in 1998.

Welcoming the good news, local councillor Donal Gilroy said he knew Sasha Murrays family and said it was always good news when somebody emerges safely from such a major tragedy.

I know the family and her mother Jessica is Schiller, and the family are highly regarded in the area and operate a property business called Schiller and Schiller from Ard Tarmon Castle.

Her father Fionn Murray was sadly killed in a plane crash along with her grandfather Holger Schiller in a plane crash some years ago.

It is great to see that Sasha will be returning to her family safely and I knew her grandfather when he came here in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

I also know her mother Jessica and her father helped developed Schiller auctioneers.

The family still live there and Jessica and her mother live in Maugherow.

It is great that Sasha has come safely from the tragedy but our thoughts with the other families who have been bereaved around the world after the terrible incident.

But it is good that there isnt darkness being brought to north Sligo from the tragedy?

They are a private family, he said.

Meanwhile, the body of British tech magnate Mike Lynch has been recovered but his 18-year-old daughter Hannah remains missing.

The other people who did not survive the tragedy were Judy and Jonathan Bloomer, a non-executive chair of Morgan Stanley International; and Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife, Neda Morvillo.

The body of the onboard chef, Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, was found near the wreck hours after the disaster.
Alex Ryzhuk (20), an Irish citizen who grew up in Dublin and has Ukrainian parents, joined the Ukrainian Foreign Legion as a volunteer when he turned 18

An Irish man serving in the Ukrainian military is missing in action and is presumed dead, it has been reported.

Alex Ryzhuk (20), an Irish citizen who grew up in Dublin and has Ukrainian parents, joined the Ukrainian Foreign Legion as a volunteer when he turned 18.

It has been reported that Mr Ryzhuk officially deemed missing in action and presumed dead while serving on the frontline last month.

"The Department of Foreign Affairs is aware of the case and is providing consular assistance, a spokesperson said. "As with all consular cases, the department does not comment on the details of individual cases.

Mr Ryzhuk was a member of a drone unit in the Ukrainian army and went under the name Irlandets (Irish man) in the Ukrainian army.

His parents and girlfriend in Ireland have been informed that he is missing, presumed dead, it has been reported.

In a YouTube video shared to the channel of a high-profile military blogger earlier this year, Mr Ryzhuk said he was just 17 when the conflict escalated in February 2022 but was eager to serve in the Ukrainian military forces.

He said his parents confiscated his passport to prevent him from travelling but that he applied for a new passport when he turned 18 and used his savings to make the trip to Ukraine.

"I tricked my parents a bit. I hope they will forgive me, he said, adding that he remained in touch with his family and friends.

A teacher at Mr Ryzhuks secondary school in Dublin has described the missing Ukrainian as a good role model who showed other students how to embrace all aspects of school life.

Mr Ryzhuk attended Synge Street CBS in Portobello from 2016 to 2021.

He was a student who always had a smile on his face. He always wanted to help others, it was a very strong trait that he had, Head Teacher Claire Catterson said.

Ms Catterson told RTE's Morning Ireland that Mr Ryzhuk was involved in the judo and basketball teams at the school and he loved both volleyball and Halloween.

Every year we would do the Trick or Treat for Temple Street, where students would dress up and every year he came in decked out from head to toe.

Everyone would have been waiting to see what he would be dressed up in, she said.

She described him as one of those all-rounders who was a very dedicated student.

He loved the business subjects, accountancy, economics, he took them all for his Leaving Certificate. He often spoke of going on to study law when he was here

He would have been known throughout all the years here, she added.

A Ukrainian soldier walks through the Russian town of Sudzha, in the Kursk region. Photo: AP

Mr Ryzhuk was very proud of his Ukrainian heritage, and was bilingual.

You would have heard him speaking in the corridors to other Ukrainians in his own language, Ms Catterson said, adding that he spoke of visiting relatives at home during summer holidays.

She said his close friends knew he joined the war against Russia in 2023.

On news that he is missing and presumed dead, she said there was "great shock" within the school community.

An awful lot of teachers are contacting me yesterday evening and there is great shock and sadness because they remember the young man who was just three short years ago walking these school corridors in his uniform with a smile on his face, she said.

And wanting to help any way that he could.

Speaking to The Irish Times in May, Mr Ryzhuk told how he had been deployed to battlezones in Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Kharkiv after volunteering to join a unit of international volunteers.

He entered Ukraine through Poland, calling his parents when he was in Kyiv and they argued for something like three months but his family had come to accept his decision.

Mr Ryzhuk, who was speaking in May after a week-long visit home, said he was just as patriotic towards Ireland, adding that he would like to go back to Ireland and live peacefully there.

"But Ukraine is also on the table  in war and in (civilian) life, you need to always have multiple plans, he said.

Mr Ryzhuk is among a number of Irish men who travelled to Ukraine to serve in the military there shortly after Russia invaded the country.

Graham Dale (45), who was originally from Raheny in north Dublin but moved to the US in 2000, died in December while fighting for the Ukrainian Army.

He previously fought with the US Marines during the Iraq war.

In April 2023, Finbar Cafferky (40s), from Achill Island, died while fighting on the frontline in the east of the country. Mr Cafferky had previously fought with an arm of the Syrian Democratic Forces against ISIS.

In September 2022, Rory Mason (25), from Co Meath, died while fighting with the International Legion for the Defence of Ukraine in the Kharkiv region.
The ex-Taoiseach also got to see the Obamas urge attendees at the convention to put their full weight behind the Kamala-Walz team

Leo Varadkar flew into Chicago to attend the Democratic Convention where he has been feted as a VIP guest by senior US politicians.

The former Taoiseach can be seen here with Democratic heavyweight and former House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi at last nights convention.

They cheered on as Tim Walz, who is the Vice Presidential nominee on the Democratic ticket with Kamala Harris, gave a colourful speech to 20,000 delegates at the United Center in the Windy City.

Pelosi herself was warmly greeted be delegates when she took to the stage to endorse Walz and Harris.

Varadkar also got to see Barack and Michelle Obama urge attendees at the convention to put their full weight behind the Kamala-Walz team in a bid to thwart Donald Trumps bid to become re-elected President of the U.S.

Back in April 2019 Pelosi was hosted by Varadkar when he was Taoiseach and she addressed Dail Eireann, an occasion which saw Bono among others watch from the gallery.

Now a plain TD for Dublin West, the 45-year-old is expected to also attend tonights session of the convention, which is due to hear a rousing speech by Harris, at which the Vice President will be rubber-stamped be delegates to become the partys Presidential nomination in Novembers election.

Harris was parachuted in as the partys candidate after Joe Biden was forced to pull out of the race following a number of gaffes.

Biden had been urged by prominent Democratic Party members that he was trailing in the polls behind Trump and was going to lose the election.

Varadkars appearance at last nights convention was his first time he has been photographed at a major foreign event since his shock resignation as Taoiseach earlier this year.

He has close links with Chicago, as his partner Matt Barrett has spent time working and training in the city in hospitals there in the past through his profession as a cardiac doctor.

The Irish politician also shares with a heritage link with Harris - as both have parents from India. Varadkars father and Harriss mother were both born in India.

Leo posted several videos on his Stories section on Instagram of his time at the convention last night, including images of Walz and his family taking to the podium and his snap with Pelosi.

He has still to decide whether to run in the next General Election, but observers expect he will step down from national politics and seek a top job elsewhere, possibly in Europe.
Today it emerged a second Irish youngster, this time a six-year-old, had been taken to hospital after an incident yesterday afternoon

THE same Majorcan hotel pool has been the scene of a second near-drowning incident involving an Irish youngster in just over 24 hours.

A 14-year-old remained in intensive care late yesterday in the islands Manacor Hospital after being rescued from the water and revived at the poolside at an all-inclusive hotel called Globales Bouganvilla in Sa Coma around 2pm on Tuesday.

Today it emerged a second Irish youngster, this time a six-year-old, had been taken to hospital after an incident yesterday afternoon around 4.20pm at the same hotel.

A lifeguard is understood to have pulled the child out of the water and revived him before emergency responders took over in a repeat of Tuesdays drama, although the youngster was already conscious when they arrived and his condition is not thought to be as serious as the teenagers.

Like the older boy, the six-year-old, who was also on holiday with his family, was taken to Manacor Hospital in the east of the island.

Hospital sources confirmed yesterday the teenager, who they clarified was 14 and not 16 as initially reported, remained in intensive care.

The source said: The outlook for this patient is unclear at the moment. He was admitted to the hospital just after 4.15pm on Tuesday and is still in intensive care.

He was described as being in a very serious condition when he was rushed to hospital.

The hotel has not yet commented on either incident.

In June 2022 a six-year-old boy from north Belfast died following a pool incident while he was on holiday in Majorca.

Corey Aughey was treated in intensive care at a hospital in the island capital Palma for three days before losing his fight for life.

He had also been staying at a hotel in Sa Coma which was not named at the time.

The Aughey family had only touched down in Majorca a few hours before the tragedy struck.

Later the same month an Irish seven-year-old died in hospital after being pulled out of the pool at HYB Eurocalas Hotel in the east coast Majorcan resort of Calas de Mallorca.
Mr Burke arrived at the Wilson's Hospital school premises near Multyfarnham this morning and spent the working day there, leaving just after 3pm at the same time as other staff and pupils.

Enoch Burke at the High Court in Dublin for a previous hearing. Photo: Collins Courts

Teacher Enoch Burke has defied a court order for him to stay away from his former job in a Westmeath school and turned up as it opened for its first day of term today.

Mr Burke arrived at the Wilson's Hospital school premises near Multyfarnham this morning and spent the working day there, leaving just after 3pm at the same time as other staff and pupils.

The school has declined to comment on the matter.

Mr Burke was released from Mountjoy prison in June when the last school term and State exams had ended, having been jailed last September for contempt of court by continually turning up at the school despite a court order to stay away.

He lost a High Court action last month aimed at quashing an order of May 2023 which barred him from the premises.

Mr Burke spent more than 400 days behind bars for breaching the order, made by Mr Justice Alexander Owens in the High Court last year, and similar other previous orders requiring him to stay away from the Co Westmeath school.

He was finally released in June despite not purging his contempt.

At the time of his release he had been trying to get a hearing of his application to have Mr Justice Owens order set aside.

Rather than appeal the order in the Court of Appeal, Mr Burke took the unusual step of seeking to have it set aside by the High Court.

He argued that a High Court judge had the jurisdiction to set aside unsound judgments made by another High Court judge, describing the order of Mr Justice Owens as gravely flawed and unconstitutional.

But in a ruling on July 19, Mr Justice Mark Sanfey said Mr Burkes application fell far short of the truly exceptional circumstances in which the court might entertain it.

He said a lawyer for the school was justified in describing the application as an abuse of process.

The judge said Mr Burke had provided no reasonable or plausible explanation as to why he did not avail of his right to go to the Court of Appeal.

The decision was the second significant legal blow to Mr Burke in the space of two days.

To add to his financial woes, Mr Justice Sanfey indicated on June 19 that his preliminary view was that Mr Burke should pay the legal costs of the schools board of management in his latest failed application.

Mr Burke was previously a teacher of German and history at Wilsons Hospital, but was suspended in August 2022 after publicly clashing with management.

An evangelical Christian, he took exception to a request that staff use they/them pronouns in connection with a transgender pupil and call them by a new name.

Despite being suspended pending a disciplinary process, Mr Burke continued to show up for work.

This behaviour continued even after he was sacked by the school. He is appealing his dismissal.

The board of management secured orders restraining him from the premises, but he defied these and was twice jailed for contempt of court. He refused on multiple occasions to purge his contempt.

He was warned by the court he could face imprisonment again if he goes to the school when it reopened this month, and now seems set to test that warning.

During recent hearings he denied being in contempt and claimed he had been wrongfully imprisoned because of his objections to transgenderism.

Mr Justice Sanfey said Mr Burke was of the view the order of Mr Justice Owens was made in breach of his constitutional rights.

However, it is a valid order of this court, and Mr Burke will comply with it, or face the consequences, Mr Justice Sanfey said.
The Italian Coastguard confirmed to the PA news agency that the sixth and final person yet to be found was a woman

Five bodies were found in the wreck of the sunken Bayesian yacht on Wednesday (Jonathan Brady/PA)

The body of technology tycoon Mike Lynch has been recovered after a luxury yacht sank off the coast of Sicily, as his 18-year-old daughter reportedly remains missing.

The Italian Coastguard confirmed to the PA news agency that the sixth and final person yet to be found was a woman.

Mr Lynch, his daughter, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer; his wife, Judy Bloomer; Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo; and his wife, Neda Morvillo, were lost when the Bayesian sank at around 5am on Monday.

The body of the fifth missing person in the yachts wreckage was returned in a blue body bag to the port of Porticello on Thursday morning.

The search will resume for Hannah, authorities said.

Six people, including technology tycoon Mike Lynch, were unaccounted for after the vessel  named Bayesian  sank at around 5am on Monday.

Salvatore Cocina, the head of Sicilys civil protection agency, confirmed that of the five bodies found on Wednesday, only four had been recovered, and the whereabouts of the missing sixth person remain unknown.

Identities of the recovered bodies have not been confirmed by authorities, despite local and international media reporting some had been identified.

Body bags were seen being taken to the port of Porticello on Wednesday afternoon, with the process of bringing the fifth body to shore being described by Mr Cocina as ongoing.

He said searches will resume on Thursday morning, and that there will be an investigation in due course, but the priority is finding the missing.

As the body bags were taken back to the port, dozens of emergency services staff were waiting, and one bag was seen being put in the back of an ambulance.

Among those also previously named as missing were Mr Lynchs 18-year-old daughter Hannah; Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer; his wife, Judy Bloomer; Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo; and his wife, Neda Morvillo.

The body of Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, who was working as a chef on the Bayesian superyacht, was recovered at the scene of the sinking on Monday.

Of the 22 passengers and crew on board, 15  including Mr Lynchs wife, Angela Bacares  were rescued after escaping onto a lifeboat.

The captain of a yacht, the Sir Robert BP, who helped to rescue them, described how those aboard his vessel spotted the distress flare set off from a life raft.

Karsten Borner said his crew noticed the Bayesian had disappeared before a passenger spotted the flare.

He told Sky News: We couldnt see them any more and they disappeared from the radar, we were busy keeping our own ship sailing.

We couldnt see the ship again so we were aware something was very wrong.

He said it was only when the tender set out that they found the life raft.

Mr Borner continued: It turned out to be the life raft, a 12-person life raft with 15 people inside including one baby.

They stepped over to our tender and we brought them back to our ship. There we took good care of them, gave them dry clothes, towels, blankets, tea and coffee and so on and took care of them.

Inspections of the yachts internal hull took place on Wednesday morning.

A team of four British inspectors from the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) also arrived in Porticello to look at the site of the sinking.

The MAIB is looking into what happened because the yacht Bayesian was flying a British flag, it is understood.

(PA Graphics)

The Italian Coastguard said the MAIB is not involved in the search for the missing people, and that it has not been requested to assist.

The ships captain, James Cutfield, was reportedly quizzed by authorities for two hours as they began questioning all crew members.

Speaking to New Zealand media, Mr Cutfields brother Mark said his sibling was a very good sailor with eight years of experience working abroad on luxury yachts.

A helicopter was drafted in to help the search effort, as divers from the local fire service were seen entering the water with torches attached to their headgear.

A police boat and divers were also seen entering the water on Wednesday afternoon.

Fire crews from the Vigili del Fuoco said they have been accessing the vessel through natural entrances, without making openings.

Remotely controlled underwater vehicles are being used, with naval units and cave divers also taking part in the search, the Italian Coastguard has said.

Bayesian was moored around half a mile off the coast of Porticello when it sank at about 5am local time on Monday as the area was hit by a storm.

Vincenzo Zagarola, of the Italian Coastguard, previously said the missing tourists were feared dead.

The wreckage of the Bayesian is resting on the seabed off the coast at a depth of 50 metres (164ft).

Members of the public and media watch as a body bag is brought ashore at the harbour in Porticello by rescue workers (Jonathan Brady/PA)

Fire crews described the operation as complex, with divers limited to 12-minute underwater shifts.

Survivors have been recuperating at a hotel complex in Porticello, where authorities were gathering witness statements.

The boat trip was a celebration of Mr Lynchs acquittal in a fraud case in the US.

The businessman, who founded software giant Autonomy in 1996, was cleared in June of carrying out a massive fraud relating to its 11 billion US dollar (8.64 billion) sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

The Financial Times reported that Mr Bloomer appeared at trial as a defence witness for Mr Lynch, while media reports suggest the pair are close friends.

In a separate incident, Mr Lynchs co-defendant in his US fraud trial, Stephen Chamberlain, died after being hit by a car while out running in Cambridgeshire on Saturday.
Its like a cheeseboard in a sandwich, Johns explains (it goes very nicely with a glass of red wine), saying it was a one-and-done creation whipped up the day before entries closed.

And theres that all-important crunch too, with more McClures pickles (a mandatory ingredient), streaky bacon by Vandys and toasted walnuts.

Talking the Herald through the winning entry, he explains they started with incredible sourdough from Rotorua bakery Pantry Dor; theres a structurally critical layer of Swiss cheese, which acts as a buffer for all the wet ingredients - things like dill-pickle cheesecake whip, sliced figs, rocket, blue cheese and a drizzle of chili honey, which just makes it all pop.

The competition is a chance to be creative, but they thought their 2024 entry was too polarising to have a chance. However, Figgy In The Middle ultimately beat 169 other sandwiches from around New Zealand to win the big prize.

I was like, man, were - were not going to even get close.

They are blown away by the calibre of entries this year.

Youll find the best toasted sandwich in the country 25 minutes out of Rotorua.

Okere Falls has been awarded the 2024 Supreme Winner with its polarising entry, and another eatery taking home the Peoples Choice Award.

The Bay of Plenty region has trumped the nation in the hotly contested Great NZ Toastie Takeover competition again.

Okere Falls Store has won before, breaking the South Islands winning streak with its 2022 entry, a house-smoked, beer-brined brisket sandwich.

Johns says the lakeside eatery was overwhelmingly busy after that; they went from selling around 20 toasties a day to 200, and they had to work around the clock with the smoker running 24 hours a day to have enough brisket to meet demand for the sandwich.

This time theyre more prepared, and while the 2024 entry is much more simple to prep for, its quite a mission to put together because its got so many more components.

Rotorua chef Rich Johns with his 2024 Great New Zealand Toastie Takeover entry "Figgie In The Middle".

Also prepared is Rotoruas Capers Cafe & Store; another of the regions establishments to be acknowledged in the competition, winning the 2024s Peoples Choice Award with its Brotha Mmmm toastie

It was awesome to take out the peoples choice and to have the support of the community, Philly Angus, Capers marketing manager, tells the Herald.

Theyre super-proud of Zion Te Kowhai, 19, and Jesse Stewart, 17, who created the Peoples Choice-winning toastie Brotha Mmmm (named after a viral social media trend).

It started as a challenge from the Capers executive chef, who encouraged them to think about what makes a good toasted sandwich and would be something their customers would love.

Te Kowhai and Stewart - apprentice chefs who started as kitchen hands - teamed up to create the toastie, sampling and testing iteration after iteration. It just keep on getting better and better as they added different elements to it.

The Brotha Mmmm combines hoisin-glazed pork belly, crispy fried shallots, mozzarella and tasty cheese, spring onion, red onion, with sweet chili and garlic, miso mayonnaise and McClures Sweet & Spicy Pickles, all between two slices of toasted garlic-buttered Turkish sesame bread.

Capers Cafe & Store's entry in Rotorua's 2024 Great New Zealand Toastie Takeover: "Brotha Mmmm".

After a week of it being on the menu it was clear they were on to something special, and Capers was making so many it installed a second sandwich press.

It has been phenomenal, she says.

They sold nearly 300 last week, and plan to keep it on the menu a little bit longer, especially now its won the Peoples Choice Award.

Its awesome to see everyone coming in, telling us that they voted for us and that they really enjoy the sandwich.

The two toasties were among the 170 sandwiches entered in this years competition.

Rules were firm. Toasties have to be able to be eaten by hand, must have two slices of bread, cheese (or a vegan substitute) and McClures Pickles.

Over 30 judges helped whittle the playing field down to 14 finalists.

Alongside Okere Falls Store and Capers Cafe & Store, the North Island contingent included Hamilton Easts Hayes Common, Jimmy Coops Lakehouse in Taupo and Palmerston Norths Brew Union. Wellingtons The Tasting Room, Petones Small Batch Coffee and The Offering in Greytown were among the finalists too, and Aucklands Cheese On Toast and Cazador, which made the shortlist for the second year in a row.

South Island finalists were Nelsons Street Food, Beers Craft Brewery in Christchurch, Queenstowns Johnny Cream and Arrowtowns Fergbutcher.

Kerry Tack, the head judge, told media the calibre of entries this year was high.

Our judges have felt the passion in the toasties they have tried around the motu this year and are mightily impressed with the imagination, the skill and, in some cases, the bravery of the cooks and chefs who entered this year.

Okeres win means the Great NZ Toastie Takeover Supreme Award will stay in the region for its third year straight; the 2023 winner was Mount Maunganui chef Brooke Moore from Freeport with Cleaver & Co.

People make an effort to drive out to us, which kind of blows our mind, he says.

Theyll drive all the way up to us.

Whether youre an out-of-towner wanting to sample the winning toastie or already an Okere Falls regular, Johns reveals it will be on the menu until sometime in the summer.

-NZ Herald.
Black residue seen along Papamoa Beach this week is not oil, or ash from Whakaari/White Island, according to Bay of Plenty Regional Council.

Bay of Plenty Regional Council staff have completed an inspection and concluded that it was not oil on the beach, says BOPRC compliance team leader Trudy Richards.

Papamoa resident Anne Tapper went for a walk along Papamoa Beach near Simpson Road at 10am on Monday morning and saw black residue stretching in both directions along the sand.

I touched it, and it felt a bit oily, but I wasnt sure if it was oil, she says.

Its widespread right along the beach and it wasnt there on Sunday.

It washed up overnight.



The black substance on Papamoa Beach earlier this week. Photo: Anne Tapper.

The Bay of Plenty experienced stormy weather overnight on Sunday night with debris, slips and tree damage in the region.

Bay of Plenty Regional Council staff went to check the residue to see if it was oil or ash. Volcanic activity has increased on Whakaari recently, with some flights being cancelled today due to ash being emitted into flight paths around the Bay of Plenty.

This was a natural occurrence where the wave action has eroded the top layer of sand below the tide mark, exposing the black sand below, which contains decomposing organic matter natural to the beach environment, says Trudy Richards.
In March, RNZ reported the Waitangi Tribunal had approved an application for an urgent inquiry into coalition Government policies impacting te reo Maori.

This included introducing policies ensuring public service departments had their primary name in English and requiring public service departments and Crown entities to communicate primarily in English , except for entities specifically related to Maori.

In December, Ngai Te Rangi Settlements Trust filed a claim to the Waitangi Tribunal, alleging the coalition Government was breaching the Treaty of Waitangi by failing to protect te reo Maori.

Ngai Te Rangi chief executive Paora Stanley says it's not right that small tribes have to pay to fight to protect their rights and language.

A Tauranga Moana iwi leader says the crippling costs associated with lodging claims with the Waitangi Tribunal are limiting access to justice and holding Maori to ransom.

The tribunal heard Ngai Te Rangis application in June.

Irreversible harm to te reo Maori

A Ngai Te Rangi statement claims the Government prioritising English will cause irreversible harm to te reo Maori and breaches Treaty of Waitangi principles.

Paora estimates the tribe has spent almost $100,000 on legal bills preparing the claim and additional costs associated with the process could see total spending reach $300,000.

The iwi has also lodged a claim to recover costs from the tribunal.

Paora says Ngai Te Rangis money is urgently needed elsewhere.

It could be used for our employment programmes and housing social and health initiatives.

However, he says: Fighting for your language is a good fight.

As soon as the urgent case was granted, the iwi achieved its goal of slowing the Government down and allowing other iwi to follow suit, he said.

Maori imagery, the Olympics and Kiwitanga

Ngai Te Rangi chairman Charlie Tawhiao  who lodged the iwis initial claim  says te reo Maori is important as it's not just about Maoritanga but Kiwitanga.

He says the Government prioritising English also appears to contradict the celebration of Maori culture by the New Zealand team at the Olympics by many athletes who may or may not be Maori.

When I watched the Olympics, I saw how much Maori imagery in the culture was reflected. The most common theme amongst them all was their relationship to this place  whether it was a greenstone taonga or korowai they wore, or a Maori greeting they used, or the haka.

The statement says Ngai Te Rangi has already had funding cuts to some of its kaupapa Maori initiatives, having a detrimental effect on its effort to revitalise te reo  which remained fragile.

RNZ reported counsel for the Crown advised the tribunal in May the Government is committed to upholding its legal obligations under the Maori Language Act and recognised te reo Maori as a taonga of iwi and Maori.

The tribunal wi expected to release its findings in the coming months.

The offices of Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Minister for Maori Development Tama Potaka were approached for comment.

-Bay of Plenty Times.
It said last week a new vent detected on Whakaari/White Island, which has been experiencing a minor eruption , was emitting an increase in volcanic ash .

At least 10 flights were cancelled and three delayed from the Tauranga and Rotorua airports on Thursday morning after an eruption at Whakaari.

Flights in and out of Tauranga have resumed after volcanic ash from Whakaari/White Island caused problems.

Images show the column of smoke emitted from Whakaari growing considerably in size in the two hours to 8am.

Air New Zealand says volcanic ash has been across the flight path for both airports.

At 11.30am, it says flights had resumed and are operating as normal in and out of Tauranga.

We are continuing to monitor the situation to determine whether any further flights in or out of Rotorua will be impacted and advise customers travelling today to check the Air NZ app or our website for the latest information on their flight.

The decision to cancel or delay flights this morning was a proactive safety measure.

Air Chathams says it will be monitoring conditions for flights to Whakatane on Thursday afternoon due to volcanic activity at Whakaari/White Island.

Its chief commercial officer Duane Emeny says one of its aircraft was able to make a return trip to Whakatane this morning.

GNS volcanic duty officer Brad Scott says the volcano has been in a state of minor eruption for several weeks now - but GNS is not aware of any significant change in the volcanos activity.

Brad says experts were out near the island on Wednesday afternoon and saw ash falling within 1km of the volcano, with the plume drifting off to sea.

MetService meteorologist Mathapelo Makgabutlane says the wind direction has been mostly pushing ash away from the mainland but that was not the case overnight.

A northerly wind pushed ash towards the Eastern Bay of Plenty, and high levels of that ash start to pose a risk to aviation.

Mathapelo says MetServices advisory centre is keeping an eye on this and is in communication with the aviation industry.

Ash cloud up to 1200 metres above sea level has been observed.

Emergency authorities say people on the mainland don't need to be concerned about the volcanic activity.

Bay of Plenty Emergency Managements Lisa Glass says the volcano is going through an extended active period, but nothing particularly different was happening there today.

She says it's highly unlikely ash will reach the mainland.

Anyone out on the water should stay two nautical miles from the island.

* An earlier version of this story said black ash was washing up on Papamoa Beach, it was not ash but a natural occurrence where sand has eroded.

-RNZ
The Bay of Plenty Symphonias string players are looking forward to working with a leading New Zealand violinist in their Tauranga concert this Saturday, August 24.

The symphonia is performing a concert of glorious string music called Strings Attached  and will be joined by violinist Martin Riseley.

Martin studied with Dorothy DeLay at the prestigious Juilliard School in New York and today is Head of Strings at the New Zealand School of Music in Wellington.

Hes held notable concertmaster positions in Canada and New Zealand, and has played chamber music with some of the leading musicians of our time, including Pinchas Zukerman and Yo Yo Ma.

Symphonia concertmaster Rebecka Beetz says Tauranga audiences will remember his mesmerising performance of the Sibelius violin concerto with BOP Symphonia in 2021.

We are really excited to work with Martin for an intense weekend of rehearsals and performances, says Rebecka.

He will be our tutor, conductor and also soloist in Winter, one of the famous Four Seasons by Vivaldi. It is bound to be a wonderful learning experience for our mostly adult players, and were thrilled to share it with the audience.

BOP Symphonia will also perform Holberg Suite by Grieg and Tchaikovskys Serenade for Strings. A repeat performance will be held in Rotorua on Sunday afternoon.

Strings Attached is Saturday, August 24, from 7.30pm at St Peters, 15 Victoria Rd, Mount Maunganui. Tickets are adults $15 and Under-18s $10 from Eventfinda or the iSite on The Strand. Booking fees apply. Limited door sales may be available.
Lorena Cadiz Mijas Pueblo Thursday, 22 August 2024, 18:08 | Updated 19:42h. Opciones para compartir Copiar enlace

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At one oclock this Thursday afternoon the latest demonstration calling for an end to the donkey taxis in Mijas Pueblo began. The gathering took place in front of the statue dedicated to the donkeys above the large car park in the village, right in front of the place where the donkey taxis and horse drawn carriages wait for business, together with their drivers and handlers.

With participants dressed in white and with ropes around their necks, protest banners in hand and one even sporting a donkey mask, the protest was going according to plan, with just over a hundred people taking part. That was before a large group of people arrived, made up of the donkey owners, their families and some of the villagers, and stood in front of them.

Police reinforcements

A round of applause for the donkeys, the new arrivals called out. And the tension in Plaza Virgen de la Pena rose several notches in a matter of seconds. The security cordon made up of mostly Local Police was promptly reinforced with officers from the National Police and Guardia Civil.

The demonstrators began to complain about the presence of this other, parallel demonstration. We have our permits, they dont and you are allowing them to be here, some of them yelled at police.

Enough of animal abuse, shouted the protest participants, many of whom had come together over social media groups set up to demand the release of the Mijas donkeys.

This is our pueblo, the donkey owners and their families replied. One of them even took a donkey and planted it between one group and the other.

We are only asking for an end to a medieval activity, we dont want more tourists riding on donkeys. Mijas receives European funds and therefore should follow the recommendations of Europe on the subject. They say that the donkey taxi is something cultural; in Africa genital mutilation is also cultural and that does not mean it should continue, defended the organiser of the animal protest, French-born local resident Anne Blitz.

Blitz explained that what the group is proposing is that the council replace the animals with tuk tuk bike taxis and that these should be offered to the current donkey owners so that they can continue to work on the tourist rides. We are looking for something fair for everyone.

The group also suggests that the local authorities could also buy the donkeys and set up sanctuaries where they could live in the wild.

Not in their best interests

In reply to this, the donkey owners themselves explained there were around twenty families depending on this business. Alvaro Jimenez from the Asociacion del Asno de Pura Raza Andaluza donkey association said that what the animal rights demonstrators are demanding is not in the best interests of the animals. If they take away these families livelihoods, they will eventually sell the animals to a dealer, who in turn will slaughter them, because if an animal loses its function, it is useless. It is not logical what they are asking for, he said.

He added that in recent decades, since more machinery has been used in the countryside, thousands of donkeys have been slaughtered in Spain, while in Mijas there are still 61 donkeys thanks to the activity they carry out.

Punching accusation

The atmosphere in Mijas Pueblo has been more charged in recent weeks after animal rights supporters accused the donkey owners of mistreatment in recent particularly hot weather. The owners denied this, however earlier this month Mijas council adapted its bylaws to prevent the animals being used from 12pm to 6pm when a yellow or amber hot weather warning is in place.

Last Sunday a British tourist reported a donkey keeper to police after allegedly being punched in the face for videoing donkeys in a street in Mijas Pueblo. Mijas town hall said it would prefer not to comment on the matter pending police inquiries..
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Syracuse, N.Y.  A border agent in Jefferson County was arrested Thursday, accused of telling four women to expose themselves while processing their entry into the United States, prosecutors said.

Shane Millan, 53, of Hounsfield, was charged with depriving four different women of their constitutional right to be free from unreasonable searches, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Northern District of New York.

Millan is accused of ordering three women to show their bare chests to him during virtual processing for their admission into the United States last August, prosecutors said. A fourth woman also exposed her chest to him over webcam, but her bra remained on.

Millan told the women that viewing their body was legitimate and part of the admission process, prosecutors said. But he was asking them to do that only for his own gratification.

Millan was charged with four counts of deprivation of rights and arraigned Thursday in federal court in Syracuse.

He was released while his case is prosecuted.

Staff writer Timia Cobb covers breaking news. Have a tip, a story idea, a question or a comment? You can reach her at tcobb@syracuse.com.
Utica, N.Y.  A Utica elementary school principal was murdered by her boyfriend, Oneida County Sheriffs deputies said Thursday.

Elizabeth A. Gerling, 50, of Marcy, was found dead in her bed Tuesday at her home at 9111 Birch Circle, deputies said. The medical examiners office ruled her death homicide due to strangulation.

Gerling was the principal at Columbus Elementary School in Utica.

Ms. Gerling was not just an exceptional educator and leader but also a dear friend and colleague to many, Utica schools Superintendent Christopher Spence wrote in a letter to the district community. Her dedication to education and her unwavering commitment to our students will not be forgotten.

Gerlings boyfriend, Jeremy J. Kirch, 45, of Camden, has been arrested in her death, deputies said.

Deputies determined that Kirch had been at her home the night before her death. Afterward, he was found by Rome police and taken for a mental health evaluation. Kirch had previously been seen running around Rome while naked, deputies confirmed.

Deputies went to the hospital and spoke with Kirch and then took him into custody for more questioning, deputies said. He was later charged with second-degree murder and is being held in the Oneida County Jail without bail, deputies said.

Deputies are asking anyone who saw a gray 2019 Ford F350 towing a 2021 R-Pod camper on Tuesday between 6 a.m. and 8 a.m. to contact them at (315) 765-2226.

Professionals from the Oneida County Department of Mental Health are available to speak to anyone at (315) 768-3660, deputies said.

The schools superintendent said additional help is available at (315) 368-6869.

Deputies are asking anyone who saw this truck and trailer on Tuesday, August 20 2024 to call them.Oneida County

Staff writer Rylee Kirk covers breaking news, crime and public safety. Have a tip, story idea, photo, question or comment? Reach her at 315-396-5961, on Twitter @kirk_rylee, or rkirk@syracuse.com.
By Jillian McCarthy | The Daily Star, Oneonta

A new horror movie that was shot partially in Cooperstown premiered Wednesday, Aug. 21, and it featured some legends of the genre.

Stream, a slasher film from Fuzz on the Lens Productions  the production company behind the Terrifier film series  features beloved horror actors like Jeffrey Combs from the Re-Animator film series, Deanna Wallace from E.T., The Hills Have Eyes and Cujo and Tony Todd from the Candyman film series.

The biggest star, announced on the films opening day, is Tim Curry, star of the cult classic The Rocky Horror Picture Show and the original Pennywise in the It film.

Producer, writer and actor Jason Leavy said Wednesday that working alongside the people he grew up watching was a special experience.

Ive been doing this for a really long time, he said. It just started with my brother and I running around with my mothers camcorder when I was a kid. Looking at the path to get here is crazy, it was a whirlwind.

He said the film is a slasher about a distant family who tries to reunite by going on vacation to a remote hotel. The filmmakers tried to be creative with its direction.

There is some thought behind the kills, he said. Theyre not just going around hacking people for no reason.

He said that filming started right after Terrifier 2 in 2021, with many of the same crew members making up the team which he called a well-oiled machine.

Leavy said that he and his brother, director Michael Leavy, always wanted to a make a movie with the big horror icons that people grew up watching.

He said that he had met Curry at multiple conventions, and they had a mutual connection. When the script was finished, he took the opportunity to see if he would play the part.

Leavy said that he was immediately on board.

That brought a smile to me and my brothers face because we grew up idolizing him, he said. Having him in this movie with all these great actors and actresses, it was just the cherry on top of the sundae.

Leavy said that when he was young, he visited Cooperstown often. He said he met his wife there, Cooperstown native Alexandria Johnson, and it felt like the right place to shoot some of the film.

It has so many great places that look really nice on camera, he said.

He said that while filming in Cooperstown, people were often coming up to the set curious about what they were doing and asking how they could help out.

It was just overall a great experience for us filming this type of movie in those types of settings, he said.

Leavy said that some locations were found with the help of locals like Autumn Cafe owners Rebecca and Wayne Carrington, and former Otsego County Board of Representatives member Jim Johnson.

Johnson said Wednesday that viewers from Cooperstown might recognize Chestnut Street and Main Street while watching the film.

The film is scheduled to be screened Thursday through Friday at Southside Cinema in Oneonta. Leavy said he will be in the audience and hosting a Q&A at the 8 p.m. screening Friday.

___

(c)2024 The Daily Star (Oneonta, N.Y.)

Visit The Daily Star (Oneonta, N.Y.) at www.thedailystar.com
British rock band Deep Purple is celebrating more than 50 years of their hit song Smoke on the Water with the = 1 More Time tour with fellow English rock band Yes.

They will be shaking the walls of U.S. amphitheatres this summer with an explosive lineup of unforgettable hits taken from their repertoire of rock, spanning half a century, the tour description reads.

The tour, in support of the bands latest album =1, kicked off on August 14 in Hollywood, Florida, and will include two stops in Upstate New York as part of the final four stops.

Deep Purple and Yes will perform at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) in Saratoga Springs on Wednesday, September 4, at 7:30 p.m. and at the Bethel Woods Center for the Arts in Bethel on Friday, September 6, at 6:30 p.m.

Heres a look at the best ticket prices available (including fees):

Wednesday, September 4 - SPAC

Friday, September 6 - Bethel Woods Center for the Arts

Prices and availability are noted at the time of publishing and are subject to change.

A complete list of Deep Purples = 1 More Time tour dates is available here.

Deep Purple, formed in 1968, is one of the pioneers of hard rock and heavy metal. Their iconic track Smoke on the Water, released in 1972 on their groundbreaking Machine Head album, tells the story of a fire at the Montreux Casino that nearly derailed their recording session. The song has cemented itself as a defining element of rock history. Listen to it below:

The = 1 More Time tour not only honors this seminal song but also supports Deep Purples 23rd studio album, =1, which was released on July 19 and features the lead singles, Portable Door, Pictures of You and Lazy Sod. Listen to it now on Apple Music (limited time three-month free trial).

What is the setlist for Deep Purples = 1 More Time tour?

The average setlist for Deep Purples = 1 More Time tour from setlist.fm:

Highway Star A Bit on the Side Hard Lovin Man Into the Fire Guitar Solo Uncommon Man Lazy Sod Lazy Portable Door Anya Keyboard Solo Bleeding Obvious Space Truckin Smoke on the Water Hush (Joe South cover) Black Night

Cant get enough live music? Check out these other rock bands coming to Upstate New York, including Creed, O.A.R., Tesla and Rob Zombie & Alice Cooper.
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Indosat Ooredoo Hutchisons ICT arm Lintasarta announced on Wednesday the launch of GPU Merdeka, its new GPU-as-a-Service (GPUaaS) that offers a sovereign AI cloud running on Nvidia GPUs and software.

Lintasarta says GPU Merdeka will provide AI cloud infrastructure and platforms for Indonesian businesses, offering access to Nvidias GPUs and AI software with a configuration of 8x Nvidia H100 SXM Tensor Core GPUs in one server.

Lintasarta says this configuration provides capabilities for generative AI and accelerated computing. Meanwhile, the H100 GPU features third-generation RT Cores, which Lintasarta says is ideal for rendering, 3D modelling, and CAD applications.

All of this will be hosted in what Lintasarta claims is one of the highest-density data centers in the market. GPU Merdekas AI data centre infrastructure supports up to 20 KW per rack, data centre connectivity with up to 3.2 Tbps Infiniband RDMA per server, and Nvidia GPUDirect access to storage, which enhances overall service performance. GPU Merdeka customers will get free access to internet traffic up to 100 Gbps with integrated DDoS protection.

Lintasarta also said it will introduce an AI Nation Program, which aims to build a sustainable AI ecosystem to accelerate adoption and development of AI technology.

Bayu Hanantasena, president director and CEO of Lintasarta, said at the launch event in Jakarta on Wednesday that GPU Merdeka is a step towards empowering Indonesia through advanced technology solutions to help companies from various industrial sectors accelerate digital transformation.

This new service launch helps propel Indonesia to the forefront of the global AI cloud community, he said.

The launch of GPU Merdaka has been in the works since February, when Indosat signed an MoU with Nvidia at Mobile World Congress 2024 in Barcelona to collaborate on establishing Indonesia as a leading player in the AI sector. The MoU included plans for Lintasarta to launch a GPUaaS offering.

The GPU Merdaka launch also comes two days after the Bridge Alliance said that it will extend SingTels GPUaaS offering to enterprises across Southeast Asia via its alliance member operators. Indosats rival telco Telkomsel is one of three alliance members who will be first to offer the service (the other two being Thailands AIS and Malaysias Maxis).
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re: Son uses Tata Safari as a weapon; crashes repeatedly into father's Toyota Fortuner Quote: jomyboy Originally Posted by On second thoughts, seeing no one else taking the kid from him, I wonder if it was his own kid????

Think so. Some of the other media reports say that Father came to help solve dispute between son and daughter in law. Son was not there, so father was taking daughter in law and grand kid to his home. Son chased the father's car and did what he did.



Even if he is showing decency to take the kid away, I personally don't have any sympathy for him. Father's car was carrying father, wife, his own child, brother and driver and possibly his mother also, but he still dashed that car which was parked. He has critically injured his father's driver and an unknown passer by. Irrespective of how much decency he shows this is not acceptable. Because if it is, there will be more such cases and many more. Even if you want to take custody of you child (just assuming here) this is not even an option. Think so. Some of the other media reports say that Father came to help solve dispute between son and daughter in law. Son was not there, so father was taking daughter in law and grand kid to his home. Son chased the father's car and did what he did.Even if he is showing decency to take the kid away, I personally don't have any sympathy for him. Father's car was carrying father, wife, his own child, brother and driver and possibly his mother also, but he still dashed that car which was parked. He has critically injured his father's driver and an unknown passer by. Irrespective of how much decency he shows this is not acceptable. Because if it is, there will be more such cases and many more. Even if you want to take custody of you child (just assuming here) this is not even an option.
Governments seek to create security safeguards around artificial intelligence, but roadblocks and indecision are delaying cross-nation agreements on priorities and obstacles to avoid.

In November 2023, Great Britain published its Bletchley Declaration, agreeing to boost global efforts to cooperate on artificial intelligence safety with 28 countries, including the United States, China, and the European Union.

Efforts continued to pursue AI safety regulations in May with the second Global AI Summit, during which the U.K. and the Republic of Korea secured a commitment from 16 global AI tech companies to a set of safety outcomes building on that agreement.

The Declaration fulfills key summit objectives by establishing shared agreement and responsibility on the risks, opportunities, and a forward process for international collaboration on frontier AI safety and research, particularly through greater scientific collaboration, Britain said in a separate statement accompanying the declaration.

The European Unions AI Act, adopted in May, became the worlds first major law regulating AI. It includes enforcement powers and penalties, such as fines of $38 million or 7% of their annual global revenues if companies breach the Act.

Following that, in a Johnny-come-lately response, a bipartisan group of U.S. senators recommended that Congress draft $32 billion in emergency spending legislation for AI and published a report saying the U.S. needs to harness AI opportunities and address the risks.

Governments absolutely need to be involved in AI, particularly when it comes to issues of national security. We need to harness the opportunities of AI but also be wary of the risks. The only way for governments to do that is to be informed, and being informed requires a lot of time and money, Joseph Thacker, principal AI engineer and security researcher at SaaS security company AppOmni, told TechNewsWorld.

AI Safety Essential for SaaS Platforms

AI safety is growing in importance daily. Nearly every software product, including AI applications, is now built as a software-as-a-service (SaaS) application, noted Thacker. As a result, ensuring the security and integrity of these SaaS platforms will be critical.

We need robust security measures for SaaS applications. Investing in SaaS security should be a top priority for any company developing or deploying AI, he offered.

Existing SaaS vendors are adding AI into everything, introducing more risk. Government agencies should take this into account, he maintained.

US Response to AI Safety Needs

Thacker wants the U.S. government to take a faster and more deliberate approach to confronting the realities of missing AI safety standards. However, he praised the commitment of 16 major AI companies to prioritize the safety and responsible deployment of frontier AI models.

It shows growing awareness of the AI risks and a willingness to commit to mitigating them. However, the real test will be how well these companies follow through on their commitments and how transparent they are in their safety practices, he said.

Still, his praise fell short in two key areas. He did not see any mention of consequences or aligning incentives. Both are extremely important, he added.

According to Thacker, requiring AI companies to publish safety frameworks shows accountability, which will provide insight into the quality and depth of their testing. Transparency will allow for public scrutiny.

It may also force knowledge sharing and the development of best practices across the industry, he observed.

Thacker also wants quicker legislative action in this space. However, he thinks that a significant movement will be challenging for the U.S. government in the near future, given how slowly U.S. officials usually move.

A bipartisan group coming together to make these recommendations will hopefully kickstart a lot of conversations, he said.

Still Navigating Unknowns in AI Regulations

The Global AI Summit was a great step forward in safeguarding AIs evolution, agreed Melissa Ruzzi, director of artificial intelligence at AppOmni. Regulations are key.

But before we can even think about setting regulations, a lot more exploration needs to be done, she told TechNewsWorld.

This is where cooperation among companies in the AI industry to join initiatives around AI safety voluntarily is so crucial, she added.

Setting thresholds and objective measures is the first challenge to be explored. I dont think we are ready to set those yet for the AI field as a whole, said Ruzzi.

It will take more investigation and data to consider what these may be. Ruzzi added that one of the biggest challenges is for AI regulations to keep pace with technology developments without hindering them.

Start by Defining AI Harm

According to David Brauchler, principal security consultant at NCC Group, governments should consider looking into definitions of harm as a starting point in setting AI guidelines.

As AI technology becomes more commonplace, a shift may develop from classifying AIs risk from its training computational capacity. That standard was part of the recent U.S. executive order.

Instead, the shift might turn toward the tangible harm AI may inflict in its execution context. He noted that various pieces of legislation hint at this possibility.

For example, an AI system that controls traffic lights ought to incorporate far more safety measures than a shopping assistant, even if the latter required more computational power to train, Brauchler told TechNewsWorld.

So far, a clear view of regulation priorities for AI development and usage is lacking. Governments should prioritize the real impact on people in how these technologies are implemented. Legislation should not attempt to predict the long-term future of a rapidly changing technology, he observed.

If a present danger emerges from AI technologies, governments can respond accordingly once that information is concrete. Attempts to pre-legislate those threats are likely to be a shot in the dark, clarified Brauchler.

But if we look toward preventing harm to individuals via impact-targeted legislation, we dont have to predict how AI will change in form or fashion in the future, he said.

Balancing Governmental Control, Legislative Oversight

Thacker sees a tricky balance between control and oversight when regulating AI. The result should not be stifling innovation with heavy-handed laws or relying solely on company self-regulation.

I believe a light-touch regulatory framework combined with high-quality oversight mechanisms is the way to go. Governments should set guardrails and enforce compliance while allowing responsible development to continue, he reasoned.

Thacker sees some analogies between the push for AI regulations and the dynamics around nuclear weapons. He warned that countries that achieve AI dominance could gain significant economic and military advantages.

This creates incentives for nations to rapidly develop AI capabilities. However, global cooperation on AI safety is more feasible than it was with nuclear weapons, as we have greater network effects with the internet and social media, he observed.
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Access Denied: According to the Pakistan Software Houses Association, local IT ventures are the country's fastest-growing export sector. However, after a government-led censorship attempt, the Asian nation could now experience a devastating blow to its nascent technology industry.

The Pakistan Software Houses Association (P@SHA) was established in 1992 as a lobbying initiative to promote the development of Pakistan's IT industry with the Islamabad government. In a recent press release, the organization accused the government of forcing the "booming" technology industry to face a disaster after authorities implemented a "censorship firewall."

Government actions brought "unprecedented" operational disruptions to the Pakistani internet with a perfect storm of technological challenges. The alleged state-backed firewall caused prolonged issues with internet connectivity, erratic VPN performance, and, generally speaking, a complete "meltdown" of business operations.

Reuters notes that the firewall could lead to an estimated financial loss of $300 million, higher than the $298 million in Pakistani exports recorded in June. The situation could escalate further as companies cannot fulfill their contractual obligations with international partners.

"The government's inexplicable opacity and ambiguity surrounding the firewall's design and objectives have ignited a firestorm of distrust among global clients," P@SHA stated. "They fear their proprietary data and privacy will be compromised, which only serves to erode the hard earned trust and confidence in Pakistan's IT capabilities."

The organization fears technology companies will exit trade with Pakistan unless the government backtracks from its internet censorship attempt. It has asked the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority and the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecom (MoITT) to restore full internet access to everyone or face the consequences.

Judging from the faltering reactions by MoITT representative Shaza Fatima Khawaja, the Pakistani government is likely feeling the pressure brought by P@SHA and other representatives from the local IT industry. Khawaja first acknowledged the government-led action, explaining that P@SHA blew the issue out of proportion after a web-management system upgrade.

However, in a subsequent press conference, Khawaja stated that Pakistan's internet was neither shut down nor slowed down by authorities. A few services and apps were experiencing connectivity issues, the minister said. The situation led to the widespread use of VPN services, which put unprecedented pressure on servers.

Despite Khawaja's efforts to reassure IT industry representatives, a nationwide censorship effort isn't wholly unreasonable. Pakistan is well known for meddling with international services in recent years. The censorship draws correlations to China's infamous internet firewall. However, China effectively preserves local connectivity while blocking access to external servers.
What just happened? Elon Musk's X received a boost this week when a California federal judge dismissed a lawsuit accusing the platform of discriminating against employees with disabilities following the billionaire's return-to-office mandate. The ruling is in contrast to a similar case at another company in the UK, where an employee was awarded $34,200.

Musk famously hates the idea of work-from-home or even hybrid work, demanding that all employees at his companies spend a minimum of 40 hours a week in the office or leave.

In 2022, Dmitry Borodaenko, a former engineering manager and cancer survivor, claimed he was fired from X for refusing to return to the office during the Covid pandemic. This mandate was introduced by Musk soon after he acquired the company.

Borodaenko's lawsuit claims X violated a federal law that requires employees to provide reasonable accommodations for workers with disabilities.

In November, Musk emailed staff giving them an ultimatum: they could either agree to the new, extremely hardcore "Twitter 2.0," with its 40-hour-minimum (in-office) weeks  which could average 60 hours or more  and intense workloads, or leave the company. Musk later tweeted that working from home was "morally wrong."

US District Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin disagreed with Borodaenko's view, ruling that the ban on remote work did not amount to disability discrimination.

"Borodaenko's theory improperly relies on the assumption that all employees with disabilities necessarily required remote work as a reasonable accommodation," Martinez-Olguin wrote.

The dismissal doesn't spell the end of Borodaenko's case against X. The judge gave him four weeks to file an amended lawsuit that includes more detailed claims.

This isn't the first case X and Musk have faced regarding the latter's "hardcore" email. Earlier this month, a one-time senior executive at the company's Ireland office was found to have been dismissed unfairly after he failed to click "yes" on the email, which would have confirmed that he was willing to be part of the new extreme work culture. He was awarded more than 550,000 ($602,640) following an unfair dismissal complaint.

The Borodaenko case is similar to a recent incident in the UK. Star Citizen developer Cloud Imperium Games was ordered to pay more than 27,000 ($34,200) to a former employee in compensation after he filed a discrimination complaint over the company's return-to-office policy. Paul Ah-Thion requested to continue working remotely in light of his disability after CIG called workers back to its headquarters. However, the firm refused, and he was eventually fired.
What just happened? The Control Panel has been an essential component of Microsoft Windows for decades, and was originally introduced in Windows 1.0 in the mid-80s. However, its days are numbered as Microsoft has confirmed that it will deprecate the tool in favor of the Settings app, which was introduced as part of Windows 8 in 2012.

In a blog post this week, Microsoft announced that "the Control Panel is in the process of being deprecated in favor of the Settings app, which offers a more modern and streamlined experience." The company noted that the legacy tool is still part of modern Windows versions for compatibility reasons and to allow users to change settings that are not yet accessible through the Settings app.

Update (8/27): After numerous stories circulated about the demise of the legacy Control Panel, it seems that Microsoft has either backtracked or, at the very least, softened its stance on the matter. They have rephrased the above statement as follows: "Many of the settings in Control Panel are in the process of being migrated to the Settings app, which offers a more modern and streamlined experience." So, the Control Panel may live on for another day  or even another few years  as the Settings app continues to absorb most of the settings, while the Control Panel remains in the background as a backup tool.

Microsoft plans to migrate all remaining tools, applets, and menu options to the Settings app before officially sunsetting the Control Panel. In the latest stable version of Windows 11, some settings can be adjusted from both the Control Panel and the Settings app, but the former still offers more granular control in certain cases, making it essential for power users.

As part of Microsoft's plan to fully deprecate the Control Panel, the company recently added new Power Mode options to the Settings app in Windows 11 Build 27686, released to the Canary channel last week. However, the 'Power Options' applet in the Control Panel still offers more advanced options, so it remains to be seen when Microsoft will migrate those menus to the Settings app.

While longtime Windows users may feel nostalgic about the Control Panel, its deprecation has been anticipated for some time. The company has been gradually migrating various elements of the Control Panel to the Settings app over the years as part of its plan to consolidate all settings in one place, so this move doesn't come as a major surprise.

Senior Microsoft officials had previously hinted that the Control Panel might be retired in favor of the Settings app, though it's only now that the company has officially confirmed the move. Microsoft hasn't announced a specific timeline for when it will remove the Control Panel from Windows, but it's likely to happen once the remaining settings are migrated to the Settings app in the coming months.
In brief: Bad actors continue to devise new ways to make staying safe online more challenging. The latest method is particularly innovative, as it bypasses the built-in security protections of iOS and Android by using Progressive Web Apps. These PWAs mimic legitimate apps on your phone, tricking users into handing over bank credentials and other sensitive data.

Installing apps from unofficial channels on both iOS and Android is now more difficult than ever. While iOS outright forbids it, Android is more lenient, allowing you to "sideload" apps from other sources if you choose. However, the process isn't straightforward  you need to check a couple of boxes in prompts that warn you about the risks involved.

Unauthorized app installations are no easy feat for hackers either. So, clever phishers have devised a sneaky workaround. Security firm ESET has highlighted how bad actors are using a special type of app called a Progressive Web App to bypass security measures. PWAs run entirely in your browser using web standards, with no native code required. You might have encountered them when a website or browser prompts you to install a site as an app.

Here's how the attack unfolds: you receive a sketchy text or see an ad on Facebook or Instagram with a link. If you click it or any attached links, it launches a page mimicking the legitimate app store for your platform. Then, it prompts you to install an "update" for your bank's mobile app.

For Android users, clicking the install button triggers a WebAPK installation  bypassing any warnings about unknown apps due to some Chrome functionality that the phishers are exploiting. On iOS, you get an animated popup styled just like Apple's system prompts, instructing you on how to add the PWA to your home screen.

Once the phishing PWA is installed and added to your home screen, looking completely legitimate, it prompts you to enter your online banking credentials to access your account via this new "mobile banking app." In reality, it's just relaying that sensitive information directly to the scammers' servers.

A savvy user might be able to distinguish a PWA from a regular app and realize that apps can't be installed directly from a web browser. But for the average person, it's easy to fall for the ruse.

ESET's researchers have observed this tactic being used to target bank customers primarily in Czechia, with some victims in Hungary and Georgia as well. While the company has successfully negotiated the takedown of multiple phishing domains involved in this scam, it remains unclear what actions Apple and Google will take to address the issue.
PULLMAN POLICE

Friday

9:55 a.m.  Drugs were reportedly found on the 1300 block of Harvey Road.

2 p.m.  Fraud was reported on the 1200 block of Sunny Mead Way.

Saturday

9:45 a.m.  Officers arrested a 55-year-old man for harassment on the 1500 block of Mermand Drive.

10:50 a.m.  An injury crash was reported on the 1400 block of Panorama Drive.

11:46 a.m.  A rape was reported in Pullman.

1:18 p.m.  A phone was reportedly stolen from the 600 block of Reaney Way.

4:15 p.m.  Police responded to a domestic dispute on the 1600 block of Baldwin Drive.

Two reports of drugs being found in Pullman were made Saturday.

Sunday

9:04 a.m.  A burglary was reported on the 1500 block of Brandi Way.

9:55 a.m.  Theft was reported at Walmart.

Monday

6:52 a.m.  Officers, fire and EMS responded to an assault on the 500 block of Benewah Street.

12:22 p.m.  Police responded to a two-vehicle noninjury crash reported on the 1400 block of Grand Avenue.

5:06 p.m.  A vehicle prowl was reported on Creston Lane.

Trespassing was reported twice in Pullman Monday.

Two burglaries were reported in Pullman Monday.

Multiple people were taken to the hospital after three injury crashes were reported in Pullman Monday.

Tuesday

3:03 p.m.  Drugs were reported on the 1600 block of Valley Road.

3:09 p.m.  Officers arrested a 33-year-old woman for suspicion of fourth-degree assault on the 300 block of Terre View Drive.

6:03 p.m.  Police arrested a 45-year-old man on a warrant on the 500 block of State Street.

10:43 p.m.  A domestic dispute was reported on the 1500 block of Northwood Drive.

Three non-injury collisions were reported in Pullman Tuesday.

Wednesday

1:08 p.m.  An outside fire was reported on Stadium Way.

WSU POLICE

Friday

3:17 p.m.  Theft was reported on the 1100 block of North Fairway Road.

Saturday

10 p.m.  An unconscious person was taken to the hospital from the 1300 block of Cougar Way.

Tuesday

3 p.m.  Fraud was reported on the 1200 block of Stadium Way.

4:51 p.m.  A patient experiencing breathing problems was taken to the hospital from the 1600 block of Cougar Way.

5:38 p.m.  A traumatic injury was reported on the 700 block of Thatuna Street. The patient was transported to the hospital.

WHITMAN COUNTY SHERIFF

Friday

6:36 a.m.  A patient was taken to the hospital from Main Street in Garfield.

Saturday

12:54 p.m.  Deputies, fire and EMS responded to a one-vehicle rollover injury crash on Washington State Route 26 in Colfax. A patient was transported to the hospital.

4:40 p.m.  A patient was taken to the hospital from High Street in Uniontown.

8:31 p.m.  Deputies responded to a domestic dispute on Altergott Road in Palouse.
A hot potato: Controversial billionaire Elon Musk is once again facing legal troubles following his acquisition of Twitter, which he rebranded as X. The social network has allegedly failed to pay for custom server hardware and now an Asian supplier is seeking a jury trial to recover the costs.

Infrastructure manufacturer Wiwynn has filed a lawsuit against X for $120 million in unpaid hardware bills. The Taiwanese company provided custom hardware solutions for the social network over an 8-year period under a "Master Purchase Agreement" signed with Twitter in September 2014. However, following Elon Musk's acquisition of Twitter in 2022, Wiwynn has not received any payments since November 2022.

According to the complaint, Wiwynn collaborates directly with customers to design and deliver customized data center and computing solutions. Under the Master Purchase Agreement with Twitter, Wiwynn would submit a list of required hardware parts for approval. After receiving approval, the company would purchase the components, and Twitter would make regular payments for the final products.

Following Musk's takeover, however, Twitter "abruptly stopped" making payments and ceased responding to Wiwynn's attempts to reach out. Wiwynn managed to cancel planned purchases for $40 million worth of components before delivery and resell or repurpose already acquired components to recover an additional $19 million. The company is now seeking compensation from X and Musk for the remaining unsold components.

The custom hardware setups Wiwynn built for Twitter are not easily marketable, so the company is asking a jury to determine how much X should pay in compensation. Wiwynn is seeking to recover at least $61 million in damages plus interest.

Wiwynn's lawsuit adds to the mounting legal troubles Musk has faced since acquiring Twitter. The businessman is accused of halting payments to suppliers and landlords following the controversial deal. According to a lawsuit filed by a Twitter investor, Musk allegedly stated he would pay rent for the company's office "over his dead body."

Earlier this month, X was ordered to pay around $600,000 to a former Twitter executive who failed to respond to an email from Musk. Additionally, former Twitter chairman Omid Kordestani has sued X for over $20 million, and former CEO Parag Agrawal is seeking more than $128 million in unpaid severance.

With these ongoing issues, X appears increasingly like a bottomless money pit, while Musk remains preoccupied with his efforts to sue advertising companies for their reluctance to do business with X again.
Facepalm: A federal court has sentenced a deadbeat dad to 81 months in prison for hacking government systems to fake his death. A grand jury indicted the man in July 2023 on multiple charges of computer fraud, aggravated identity theft, and bank fraud. He admitted to accessing government systems and registering a fraudulent death certificate to avoid paying his back child support.

The US Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Kentucky prosecuted Somerset resident Jesse Kipf for cybercrimes targeting private and governmental networks. It began when he manipulated death records in Hawaii's death registry system, falsely listing himself as deceased using a forged digital signature to evade paying child support. He also sold access to these networks on the dark web. The US Attorney said Kipf's crimes resulted in nearly $200,000 in damages, disrupted critical operations, and compromised personal information.

"This scheme was a cynical and destructive effort, based in part on the inexcusable goal of avoiding his child support obligations," said United States Attorney Carlton S. Shier, IV. "Fortunately, through the excellent work of our law enforcement partners, this case will serve as a warning to other cyber criminals, and he will face the consequences of his disgraceful conduct."

An FBI investigation revealed that Kipf accessed and attempted to sell data from networks that included a private company and a state government registry. Kipf planned to use the stolen data, which included personal identification information, for further identity theft and fraud. His scheme's magnitude and sophistication indicated he has significant technical skills.

Authorities also charged Kipf with aggravated identity theft, which carries severe penalties because of the far-reaching consequences for victims. The indictment additionally alleged that Kipf attempted to use the stolen identities to fill out several bank loan applications. According to a US Attorney's Office press release, his actions posed significant risks to individual victims and the integrity of financial and governmental networks.

"Working in collaboration with our law enforcement partners, this defendant who hacked a variety of computer systems and maliciously stole the identity of others for his own personal gain, will now pay the price," said FBI Special Agent in Charge Michael E. Stansbury for the Louisville Field Office. "Victims of identity theft face lifelong impact and for that reason, the FBI will pursue anyone foolish enough to engage in this cowardly behavior."

The court sentenced Kipf to 81 months in federal prison, adding that he must complete at least 85 percent of his time before becoming eligible for release. Following his incarceration, Kipf faces three years of closely supervised parole. His consequences could have been much higher had he not copped a plea.

Assistant US Attorney Kate K. Smith reiterated her office's commitment to pursuing justice in cybercrime and identity theft cases, highlighting the importance of safeguarding digital and personal information in an increasingly interconnected world.
The current technology used for inventory management is outdated and has begun to show its age, an issue small business owners know all too well. They often feel neglected by today's inventory management and enterprise resource planning (ERP) software, and their small businesses struggle as a result. This is where Kaizntree, an AI-powered inventory management software that helps solopreneurs streamline production and sales, comes in.

Brushing a Layer of Dust from Inventory Management

Marcos Brisson, co-founder and CEO of Kaizntree, recognized that small businesses' inventory management problems were largely rooted in the lack of a centralized overview of their operations. There are existing systems that attempt to do this; however, they remain largely unchanged and have failed to keep up with the pace at which e-commerce has developed. On top of this, Marcos realized that there's a big population of business owners who are searching for a way to automate their business but are put off by the complexity of existing solutions, so they continue using spreadsheets for as long as possible.

"My co-founder, Benoit, and I just started to explore the space," Marcos said in an interview. "We looked at the existing solutions out there, and we just saw that they looked like there was dust on them; they are very cumbersome. It didn't seem like they were even helping people save time but actually just adding more complexity to their existing workflows."

Three Issues, Solved with Innovation

Kaizntree addresses the three main aspects of the inventory management problem: first, keeping up with demand, specifically losing sales due to poor inventory planning errors; second, manual data entry, such as reconciling orders from sales channels that don't connect; and third, not having an accurate point of truth.

Initial reactions to Kaizntree have been extremely positive. "[Businesses] will have some data on Shopify, some data on spreadsheets," Benoit explains, "some data on their accounting software, some data on other sales channels... It's completely disconnected, so each platform serves as a partial point of truth that business owners have to piece together... It's very refreshing when they're like, 'Okay, wow, I can log in here, and I see my entire business with real time sales data.'"

The Company's Goal for Small Business Success

Kaizntree aims to reduce inventory management workload by consolidating data into one easy-to-use platform and avoiding the confusion that results from huge amounts of diverse data. When Kazintree first started, Marcos could tell it was helping immediately, but he lacked the necessary funding to get it off the ground. He attributes the company's participation in the NYU Summer Launchpad and the NYU Yale pitch-off to the start-up's growth. Getting to pitch Kaizntree to a big audience was vital to spreading awareness of its mission.

Marcos' pitch for Kaizntree involved the story of one of his earliest customers, someone who was pouring everything into her business. He explained how this woman made him realize that inventory management is one of the last things you want to deal with while running a business. Kaizntree solves this problem by managing inventory without the need for manual input.

"Solo entrepreneurs wear many hats and then have to deal with the nightmare of inventory management and getting orders from different sales channels...That really resonated with people," Marcos states.

The pitch proved successful, winning Audience Choice at both the NYU Yale pitch-off and then later at the NYU start-up demo day last year.

Kaizntree's Continued Innovation

One of Kaizntree's key innovations is the introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) tools into its inventory management software. Where traditional methods rely on manual input, Kaizntree's AI takes existing data, whether from spreadsheets or sales channels, and incorporates it all into a single resource that accounts for what needs to be made, what product components need to be reordered to keep manufacturing steady, and what orders need to be fulfilled for various sales channels. The AI can onboard this information in less than 30 minutes and fits seamlessly into existing workflows, making integration with Kaizntree incredibly simple and intuitive.

Kaizntree promises to recover up to 30 hours each month that would otherwise have been spent on the complexities of inventory management. This is valuable time that a small business owner can instead direct toward efforts to grow their companywithout inventory headaches!

Streamlined Operations and AI Assistance

Kaizntree continues to innovate in an otherwise stagnant field. Their ultimate goal is to become the operating system for small business owners around the world. "Our focus is on the actual essential things," Benoit said, "not just the nice-to-haves that you never use, and to do it in a way that's very easy to use."

The company also uses two distinct AI components to run its services, both of which they continually innovate. The first is forecasting AI, which anticipates product demand and says what orders must be placed and when. The second handles the onboarding side of the Kaizntree software, automatically inputting business data to consolidate and streamline the process of inventory data tracking. Their innovative AI continues to improve, making Kaizntree all the more promising for small business owners.

A Promising Future for Kaizntree

The company is currently in 500 Global's Flagship Accelerator program, promising to garner even greater attention for its services to small business owners who previously relied on antiquated technology.

Kaizntree is more than just inventory management software; it's changing how small businesses operate. The software helps entrepreneurs handle their stock by using AI, freeing up valuable time and resources to focus on growth. With its ability to forecast demand, streamline operations, and eliminate manual data entry, Kaizntree is positioned to become an important operating system for small businesses looking to optimize efficiency and profitability. As the company continues to evolve and expand, the future of inventory management for small business owners is exciting.
The Pirate Bay is an integral part of the memory of people who used the internet during the 2000s.

People who have used this indexing Torrent site to download content can take a trip down memory lane on November 8 when a TV series portraying the story of The Pirate Bay premiers in Sweden.

STV, the Swedish public broadcaster, published the official teaser of the show, The Pirate Bay, on YouTube.

This show will be a dramatized version of the websites history. It is being written by Piotr Marciniak and directed by Jens Sjogren.

While the series has been in development for a few years, the official teaser was published only six days ago.

Dynamic Television, an American distribution company, has already bagged the rights to distribute the show worldwide, but it has not mentioned the international release dates yet.

While dramatized, the show is expected to focus on some of the actual incidents from the history of the site.

For instance, Anakata is known for picking a fight with DMCA and many big names in Hollywood when there were requests to take down content from The Pirate Bay.

Arvid Swedrup, Simon Greger Carlsson and Willjam Lempling will be playing Anakata, Brokep, and Tiamo, respectively. These three founders and the CEO of the ISP responsible for hosting The Pirate Bay were arrested and found guilty.

They ended up serving a one-year sentence in prison and paying hefty fines before getting released in 2015.

All these incidents are expected to be portrayed in the series, which has fast-paced storytelling, as one can find from the official teaser.

Even though the story of The Pirate Bay has been featured in many documentaries, this TV series will be one of the first to show a dramatized version of the same.

However, given that the Swedish public broadcasting network is pushing this, one needs to see how the portrayals turn out. It, however, means that people in Sweden can watch this production free of cost.

It is yet unclear whether the founders of The Pirate Bay have been involved with this production.

Quite ironically, this show about one of the most significant anti-copyright movements has already been copyrighted internationally.

But, unsurprisingly, people will witness fresh torrents of The Pirate Bay on one of its proxy sites and other content-sharing platforms.
Five killed as flooding hits northern Thailand



Bangkok, Aug 22 (AFP) Aug 22, 2024



Floods caused by seasonal heavy rains in northern Thailand have killed five people and inundated more than 2,000 hectares of farmland, government officials said Thursday, with thousands of homes affected.

New Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has asked for help to be sent to the worst affected areas in Chiang Rai, Nan and Phayao provinces.

The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation said 2,052 hectares of farmland had been destroyed and 12,777 households had been affected by the floods, without specifying how many people that represented.

The health ministry said that five people were killed and 32 injured in flooding over the past month.

The kingdom's north has been hit by heavy monsoon rains over the last week and the department said it was monitoring water levels in 43 provinces, warning of possible further flash floods, landslides and rivers bursting their banks.

While Thailand experiences annual monsoon rains in the last quarter of the year, man-made climate change is causing more intense weather patterns that can make destructive floods more likely.

Widespread flooding across Thailand in 2011 killed more than 500 people and damaged millions of homes around the country.
Resurrecting the Bull of Nimrud

It isn't hard to see why the Assyrians considered the massive and monumental Bull of Nimrud sculpture to be a guardian deity. Towering at an awe-inspiring 16 feet tall, this stone carving featured an imposing supernatural creature known as the lamassu. Bearing the face of a man, the body of a bull, and the wings of a bird, scholars argue that these features represented intelligence, strength, and freedom.

This mythical being, often represented in ancient Mesopotamian reliefs, was a divine protector god, and its statue would frequently be seen standing guard outside the gates of Assyrian cities. This was the case in the city of Nimrud -- an ancient city built over 3,000 years ago, which featured in the Book of Genesis.

However, after surviving for three millennia, the Bull of Nimrud met its end in 2014 when Islamic State terrorists seized parts of northern Iraq and declared war on the city. Denouncing its historic sculptures as pagan, idolatrous, and worthy of destruction, ISIS militants filmed themselves defacing the site's carvings with sledgehammers and drills before reducing the UNESCO site to rubble with explosives.

In 2016, in an act of symbolic defiance, a group of archaeologists and art historians in Italy used large 3D printers to reconstruct the Bull of Nimrud in full and to scale, as part of an exhibition--entitled Rising from Destruction: Ebla, Nimrod, Palmyra--which was designed to spark a debate around the importance of preserving historical and cultural monuments.

Find out how this curious replica was created, and where it is now, in the Artifact World article 'Resurrecting the Bull of Nimrud: 3D-Printing Defies Iconoclastic Destruction' available in the July -- August 2024 51th Issue New Technology Uncovering the Past. (AINA maga-zi-ne)
Could the secret to sustainable AI lie in the workings of the human mind? Researchers are exploring this possibility by studying how the brains efficiency can be applied to AI algorithms.

Understanding the Challenge

Large language models (LLMs) are revolutionizing artificial intelligence with their impressive capabilities. However, this progress comes with a considerable energy cost. Data centers, which are essential for running these models, contribute significantly to global energy consumption. Reports indicate that data centers account for approximately 2% of the total energy use in the United States and 1% in Australia, with projections suggesting this could rise to 8% by 2030. Advanced LLMs like OpenAIs ChatGPT can consume as much electricity as up to 17,000 households, and future models may require even more energy.

The human brain offers a compelling contrast to the energy demands of artificial intelligence. It operates on just 20 watts of power, demonstrating remarkable efficiency by selectively activating only the necessary neurons. This selective activation stands in sharp contrast to AI systems, which often engage large portions of their network for each task, leading to excessive energy use.

The Algorithm

Researchers at the University of Sydney, led by Associate Professor Chang Xu and his team at the Net Zero Institute, are developing ground-breaking algorithms inspired by the brains energy-efficient operations. These algorithms aim to mimic the brains selective activation, activating only the parts of the model necessary for a specific task. This approach could significantly reduce computational overhead and energy consumption.

Key Components of the Algorithm

Task-Based Activation: This component of the algorithm identifies the specific parts of the model required for a given task, reducing the need for full network activation. Dynamic Resource Allocation: The algorithm allocates computational resources only to the active components, enhancing efficiency and reducing waste. Redundancy Reduction: By identifying and eliminating redundant computations, the algorithm further optimizes energy use and computational performance. Significant Energy Savings: The algorithms ability to reduce unnecessary computations could lead to substantial reductions in energy consumption, addressing the environmental impact of data centers. Improved Sustainability: This reduction aligns with broader sustainability goals, making AI development more environmentally responsible. Hardware Efficiency: The algorithm could drive advancements in hardware design, leading to more energy-efficient systems that support its operational needs. Scalability: Researchers are working to ensure the algorithm can handle increasingly complex AI models while maintaining efficiency. Real-World Applications: Integration into practical AI applications will be crucial for demonstrating the algorithms effectiveness and benefits. Collaboration: Collaborations with hardware manufacturers are being sought to optimize hardware for the algorithms requirements.

Associate Professor Chang Xu, from the Universitys Net Zero Institute, emphasizes the need for energy-efficient computing in light of the rising energy demands of large language models. Were meant to be scaling back our energy use, but the advent of large language models has been a shot in the arm for energy consumption, Xu said.

He highlights that current AI models, despite being queried for simple tasks, use extensive energy resources due to their non-selective activation. Professor Deanna DAlessandro, Director of the Net Zero Institute, underscores the importance of addressing the energy impact of AI in the broader context of climate change. While AI helps in understanding and solving climate change issues, we must ensure that new technologies do not exacerbate the problem by becoming significant sources of emissions, she noted.

The Net Zero Institute at the University of Sydney is dedicated to accelerating research and solutions towards achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050. With over 150 researchers, the institute focuses on a range of disciplines, including green computing, greenhouse gas removals, and critical mineral extraction from waste.

By drawing inspiration from the human brains energy-efficient operations, researchers are poised to make significant strides in developing algorithms that enhance the sustainability of AI. These advancements have the potential to reshape the energy landscape of artificial intelligence, making it both more powerful and environmentally responsible.

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The SEEK Employment Report for July 2024 highlights a modest recovery in the Australian job market, with job ads rising by 1.7% month-on-month (m/m), marking the first increase since March.

Despite this positive shift, the overall job market remains competitive, with applications per job ad continuing their upward trend, rising by 2.5% m/m in June, and remaining significantly elevated compared to pre-COVID levels. Leigh Broderick, Head of Employment Analytics said: After three months of consecutive decline, job ads rose in July. Hospitality & Tourism jobs posted a strong month, rising for the first time this year, by 17.7%.Job ad volumes in Queensland have now surpassed those in Victoria, thanks to driving demand for workers in Construction, Community Services & Development and Real Estate & Property.

Applications per job ad have risen consistently for over two years and are very elevated compared to pre-COVID norms. For candidates, this means significant competition for open roles, and for hirers, it means plenty of choice, and demonstrates the power of a well-defined recruitment process.

National Insights

Leigh Broderick, Head of Employment Analytics at SEEK, commented on the report: After three months of consecutive decline, the increase in job ads in July is a welcome change. However, the rise in applications per job ad underscores the fierce competition candidates are facing in the current job market.

The year-on-year (y/y) decline in job ad volumes has slowed to 15.3%, down from 16.8% in June, indicating a gradual stabilization in the job market. Most industries saw an increase in job ad volumes, with Hospitality & Tourism showing a notable recovery after months of decline, posting a 17.7% rise.

State and Territory Trends

Job ad volumes rose in most states, with New South Wales (2.2%) and Queensland (2.6%) leading the way. Queenslands strong performance was driven by demand in sectors such as Construction, Community Services & Development, and Real Estate & Property. Notably, Queenslands job ad volumes have now surpassed those in Victoria.

However, Victoria (-1.0%), the Australian Capital Territory (-0.5%), and Tasmania (-0.5%) experienced slight declines in job ad volumes. The Northern Territory recorded the largest m/m increase at 10.3%, its most significant rise in over two years, driven primarily by spikes in Hospitality & Tourism (46.4%) and Education & Training (40.9%).

Industry Insights

July saw broad-based gains across most industries, with only five sectors experiencing a decline in job ad volumes. Hospitality & Tourism, which had been on a downward trend since January, saw a strong rebound. Additionally, there was notable candidate interest in Government & Defence roles, with applications per job ad in this sector surging by 27% m/m.

Broderick noted, For candidates, the rising applications per job ad mean tougher competition for available roles, while for employers, it highlights the importance of a well-defined recruitment process to attract the right talent. As the job market begins to show signs of recovery, the sustained high level of competition underscores the importance for both job seekers and employers to remain strategic. The slight uptick in job ads offers some hope, but the environment remains challenging, with ongoing economic uncertainties likely to influence future trends.

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The Fair Work Commission has rejected an ANZ employees plea to permanently work from home because she feared contracting coronavirus, in a further test for workers and employers still battling over edicts to return to the office.

Deborah Lloyd took ANZ to the tribunal after it earlier this year refused her request to work from home five days a week, saying there was no medical reason preventing the project business analyst from returning to the banks Docklands headquarters in Melbourne.

The Fair Work Commission ruled an ANZ employees request to permanently work from home was unreasonable. Credit: Eamon Gallagher

In a decision given this week, Fair Work Commission deputy president Ian Masson sided with ANZ and described Lloyds requests as unreasonable.

At its higher end, the premise of Ms Lloyds case appears to be that ANZ is required to accommodate her fears about attending the workplace due to the risk of contracting COVID, Masson said in his judgment. That ANZ should be expected to accommodate those fears, no matter how disproportionate those fears may be to the risk, is simply unreasonable.
Red Red Wine, Gin and Juice, Champagne Supernova. There are plenty of great songs about drinks, but none have had a stranglehold on culture like Milkshake, the hip-shaking, yard-breaking pop banger released by Kelis in 2003.

Milkshake became the soundtrack for a generation who never entirely understood why (or how) a milkshake brought so many boys to the yard, but we didnt really care. Ahead of her trip to Australia as a keynote speaker at BigSound, we caught up with Kelis, 44, to discuss milk-based drinks, becoming a farmer, and the size of her actual yard.

If you ever find boys in your yard, its safe to assume Kelis milkshake is to blame. Credit: Sydney Morning Herald

Straight up, Ive got an 18-month-old son who weirdly loves Milkshake. It has this magic effect on him every time it comes on. It was on my Spotify playlist last year because he likes it so much. Does the song still have a magic effect on you?

I dont know if a magic effect is the term I would use. But its interesting to me, right? I love the fact that its lasted so long. I go through phases, though. It has been so long, so its got these ebbs and flows for me where sometimes Im over it, and sometimes I think its pretty cool I was able to create something thats lasted throughout, like, decades at this point.
Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Save articles for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. Got it Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size Rightfully considered one of the finest television series of the 21st century, Mad Men was a period drama set in 1960s New York that applied a scrupulous level of detail to both its characters and the production design. Revolving around the advertising agency Sterling Cooper and its charismatic creative director, Don Draper (Jon Hamm), the shows seven seasons depicted people in their most telling of moments  good and definitely bad  while capturing underlying truths without resorting to judgment. It could be revelatory, heartbreaking, or darkly hilarious. The show concluded in 2015, but to mark it coming to Netflix (its also available on Stan and AMC+) here is a guide to the 10 best episodes. Whether youre viewing for the first time or undertaking a rewatch, these are the instalments to savour above all. The cast of Mad Men, clockwise from left, Aaron Staton, Rich Sommer, Michael Gladis, Robert Morse (seated), Bryan Batt, Christina Hendricks, John Slattery, Vincent Kartheiser, Elisabeth Moss, January Jones, Jon Hamm (seated) Smoke Gets in Your Eyes (season one, episode one) There are a few tonal discrepancies, but its notable how compelling the very first episode of Mad Men was, and how it staked out so much about the shows guiding philosophy: the looming upheavals of the 1960s will influence Sterling Coopers disparate staff, but never define them. Even as he ponders a pitch for a huge cigarette account, Don distinguishes himself as someone who struggles to look back, and is willing to grasp the moment. Watching him then play the family man is deeply unnerving. The Wheel (season one, episode 13) Dons marriage to Betty (January Jones) was a union of two dissatisfied people who couldnt be honest with each other. The first seasons finale, co-written and directed by Mad Mens exacting creator, Matthew Weiner, gave each a powerful, mesmeric monologue, but they were delivered to comparative strangers: Betty to the psychiatrist who was reporting back to her husband, Don to the Kodak executives he was pitching to. This episode was the culmination of a remarkable first season  rarely had so much seemed possible in a television drama.

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January Jones and Jon Hamm as Betty and Don Draper. Credit: AP Guy Walks into an Advertising Agency (season three, episode six) All I can say, workplace safety was a very different matter in the 1960s. Shut the Door. Have a Seat (season three, episode 13) The fortunes of Sterling Cooper were truly erratic  the company added partners, lost clients, and was bought out by a British advertising giant. This is one of the episodes where the professional comes to the fore, as the agencys main players attempt to escape their overseers. Theres an almost giddy energy to their machinations, as once more they leave an uncomfortable past behind, while the personal is reflected through the definitive end of Don and Bettys marriage. Christina Hendricks and Elisabeth Moss: Mad Men tracked the looming upheavals of the 1960s. The Suitcase (season four, episode seven)

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The two core protagonists on Mad Men were Don and Peggy Olson (Elisabeth Moss), who went from naive secretary to gifted copywriter. It was a twisted version of the mentor and protege relationship, as they educated each other about personal failings and delivered cutting truths. This two-hander, where they pull an all-nighter in the office, is rife with bittersweet realisations and indelible images. This is the most vulnerable and honest Don ever allowed himself to be, and you believe that no one but Peggy could make that happen. Signal 30 (season five, episode five) Honestly, part of this episodes appeal is that one of the shows most horrible characters, Pete Campbell (Vincent Kartheiser), gets punched out in the office by an unlikely colleague. Petes an entitled hypocrite, a terrible husband, and possibly a rapist, but because this is Mad Men his bruised nadir is also the moment where his humanity is at its most palpable. The show never apologised for the failings of these people, but they were always more than the sum of those flaws. John Slattery as Roger Sterling in Mad Men: wild lines. Far Away Places (season five, episode six) Roger Sterling (John Slattery) delivered, without the slightest hesitation, some of the wildest lines on the show; have a drink, it will make me look younger, comes to mind. His blitheness extended to crucial decisions such as marriage, and this episode revolved around a dinner party turned LSD trip with his much younger second wife, Dons former secretary Jane (Peyton List), that ends the next morning with the two calmly discussing their divorce. Psychedelics are a 1960s plot staple, but Mad Men had its own use for them. The Other Woman (season five, episode 11)

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Office manager Joan Holloway (Christine Hendricks) was a bombshell redhead who understood the effect she could have on men, and both the advantages and limits that bestowed upon her in a misogynistic era. Joan exemplified the shows refusal to look at characters through a contemporary lens, especially in this episode where the companys male partners learn that a prospective client will sign up if Joan sleeps with him. The back and forth is telling before she decides, and it opens up an unexpected dynamic: Don and Joan. Loading In Care Of (season six, episode 13) Don and Bettys oldest daughter, Sally (Kiernan Shipka) grew up across Mad Mens run  she was a six-year-old in the first season, 16 years old in the final season. As she got older her relationships with both parents were strained, for different reasons, but Don at least belatedly reached out to her. In this episode, having failed spectacularly at work, Don impulsively takes his children to see the unconventional place he grew up. The look of understanding exchanged between father and daughter is something else. Waterloo (season seven, episode seven) Mad Men was so good at taking in the behaviour  often inexplicable, yet always plausible  of its leading players, that the final season strained a little as it readied us for the shows conclusion. Summing anything or anyone up wasnt its natural setting. This episode, set against the Apollo Moon landing, shone through as it scoped business intrigue and highlighted an ever-present but inscrutable supporting character, ageing senior partner Bert Cooper (Robert Morse). The episode makes fine use of a quality the series rarely used: the otherworldly. Mad Men is on Netflix, Stan and AMC+

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In the end, the final moments of the long chase around Sydney Harbour were oddly abrupt.

Chris Borrow-Jones, a national parks officer who can more often be found fighting fires than freeing whales, leant forward over the bow of an inflatable outboard dwarfed by the humpback that was about 13 metres long.

The rescue workers cut the whale free of nylon cord just after 11am. Credit: Janie Barrett

While bobbing off Washaway Beach, across the water from Balmoral, Borrow-Jones made a few deft cuts with a knife attached to a long pole, and suddenly the nylon fishing cord that had been tangled around the whales tail fluke for at least 22 hours was gone.

The animal made a beeline out of the Sydney Heads and started swimming south, breaching once or twice more before it disappeared. Humpbacks migrate to Antarctica in spring to feed on krill.
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Heartlands Eating outFood Bamiyan, the southside Afghan restaurant thats become a Brisbane icon In the 10 years since it opened, the eatery has won hearts with its fragrant curries, seekh kebabs, dumplings and enormous naan breads. Matt Shea August 22, 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

In Brisbane Times Heartlands series, Food and Culture Editor Matt Shea seeks out the migrant restaurants, cafes and stores that give the citys scene its rich texture. This month, a Camp Hill restaurant that serves fragrant Afghan food. Driving lessons. Studying English. Looking for a paying job. For a Hazara Afghan woman like Zahra Ali Askary, Australia felt like an entirely different world. The Hazaras, one of Afghanistans largest ethnic groups, have a long history of persecution in that country, most recently under the Taliban when it came to power in 1996. Infamously, in 2001, the Taliban destroyed two monumental Buddhist statues in the Bamiyan Valley, the Hazaras traditional home in Afghanistan, 130 kilometres north-west of Kabul. Bamiyan occupies an unassuming shop on Camp Hills Bennetts Road. Markus Ravik By then, Ali Askary and her husband, Nawab Ali Askary, were in Australia, having arrived in 2000 as refugees.

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We were on a temporary protection visa for three years, not knowing what was going to happen to us, Zahra says. I think it was 2004 that we got our permanent visas, and in 2006 we became citizens. Heartlands Is this Brisbanes most iconic banh mi shop? It was very hard, not knowing what was going to happen, but it worked out very well for us in the end. The Ali Askarys made hay in those early years. Zahra worked as an interpreter before landing an administration job with the Brisbane City Council. Nawab drove a taxi but, ever since arriving from Afghanistan, had thoughts of opening a restaurant. Bamiyan serves generously portioned plates of dumplings, fried eggplant and seekh kebabs, and enormous naan breads. Markus Ravik

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We started food testing with my fellow council employees, Zahra says. I invited them to my house, put on a lot of food, just to see how they enjoyed it. Because Australian people know the taste of Chinese and Italian food. But they dont know the taste of Afghanistan, not at all. Turns out, the food was a hit. The Ali Askarys found an Indian restaurant for sale in Camp Hill, bought it and reopened it in 2014 as Bamiyan, naming the venue after their traditional home. In the 10 years since its become a southside icon, winning hearts with its fragrant, generously portioned curries, dumplings and breads. Mantu beef dumplings  the go-to dish at Bamiyan in Camp Hill. Markus Ravik I remember we opened in August of that year, Zahra says. We had a big pre-opening. We called our friends and everybody, and that led to a wider circle finding out. There were people of Afghan background, but also a lot of Indians and people from Saudi Arabia who knew the taste of our food. So for the first month we were a little bit quiet on Monday and Tuesday nights, but then we started picking up on the weekend and by December we were spilling out onto the street.

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There are a lot of fresh tomatoes, fresh ginger and garlic. Its the freshness of the food. Thats why people love it. Bamiyan co-owner Zahra Ali Askary What were people coming back for? Dishes such as the banjan borani, with fried eggplant lathered in a tomato-based sauce, and finished with yoghurt and coriander; marinated lamb mince and chicken seekh kebabs cooked in the tandoor; and what might be some of the most enormous naan breads Brisbane has ever encountered. Theres also the kabuli palaw, with lamb or chicken served in steaming piles of cumin-flavoured rice and topped with carrots, sultanas, almonds and nuts. And perhaps the restaurants most essential dish: house-made mantu  or beef dumplings  steamed and served with yellow lentils, yoghurt and coriander. Kingsfood, an iconic Chinese restaurant in Brisbanes south Its all about the fresh ingredients in Afghan food, Zahra says. We dont use a lot of canned food. There are a lot of fresh tomatoes, fresh ginger and garlic. Its the freshness of the food. Thats why people love it.

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That formula hasnt changed much over the years. The Ali Askarys opened a second restaurant in New Farm (which featured an enormous photographed mural of Bamiyan Valley, minus the destroyed statues, on one wall  it has been reproduced in a smaller format and mounted on the Camp Hill restaurants wall), but decided to shutter it after the challenges of the pandemic and the family being stretched between two suburbs. A photo of Bamiyan Valley in Afghanistan takes pride of place on the restaurants red walls. Markus Ravik The Camp Hill restaurant, meanwhile, has moved to a neighbouring tenancy  a former Thai restaurant  with more space. Its still just BYO booze, but that means the restaurant forms a neat two-hander with a bottle shop in the same strip of shops. We were making customers for them as well, Zahra says. But when people come, and theyre happy with the food, that makes us very proud. So we always try to make the food as fresh as possible and everything is made that day, so we keep our guests happy. 3/82 Bennetts Road, Camp Hill, (07) 3172 2912

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Exclusive Eating outMelbourne icon We want to replicate that spirit: Fitzroys legendary Punters Club reopens after 22 years  and it still rocks The Brunswick Street icon relaunches today with a menu that plays on pub classics, affordable drinks and a cracking line-up of free gigs from musicians old and new. Tomas Telegramma August 22, 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 September 2024 hit list. See all stories .

From the late 80s to the early noughties, the Punters Club  on Fitzroys Brunswick Street  was a linchpin of Melbournes live music scene. The grit and grunge were as bona fide as the carpets were beer-soaked, and gigs ran the genre gamut, making it a launchpad for such bands as Something for Kate, Spiderbait, Magic Dirt and You Am I. 1 / 9 The Punters Club is back where it belongs in Brunswick Street. Justin McManus 2 / 9 The beers are ready to be poured at Punters Club. Justin McManus 3 / 9 The stairway to rock heaven at Punters Club. Justin McManus 4 / 9 The new main bar at Punters Club. Justin McManus 5 / 9 The horseshoe bar will be serving classic pub drinks. Justin McManus 6 / 9 Inside the new Punters Club. Justin McManus 7 / 9 The booths are sure to be prime spots for punters. Justin McManus 8 / 9 The tuna tartare in a bag of Smiths chips. Justin McManus 9 / 9 Kangaroo schnitzel with mash and pepper sauce at Punters Club. Justin McManus Previous Slide Next Slide It left a gaping hole when it closed in 2002. Fast-forward 22 years and a framed photo of the Punters final night hangs on the wall of a new incarnation of the pub, which reopens today with a new team but the same name. The anticipation has been mounting since they announced the news a few months ago. You cant replicate something thats 22 years gone, co-owner Nathan Farrell tells Good Food. We want to replicate that spirit ... And hopefully be open for another 20 years.

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The booths are sure to be prime spots for punters. Justin McManus Leading the charge is Jason Cameron, owner of Near & Fear Bar across the road, whos recruited a multi-talented team: drinks whiz Matthew Francis and chef Dylan Marshall (both Marquis of Lorne) and branding expert Britt King. Spearheading the music side of things is Mark Wilson, bassist in enduring Melbourne band Jet, as well as Farrell and Adam Booth, founders of music-management agency Calibre. I dont think this pub should be called anything else. Its a love letter. Matthew Francis, co-owner For most of the years since the Punters closure, the site traded as good-times bar Bimbo Deluxe before transitioning to Kewpie, under Australian Venue Co, in 2021.

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Its been completely stripped back, with a frontage that convincingly replicates the original Punters, timber panelling throughout the interior and a nostalgic poolroom. I dont think this pub should be called anything else, says Francis. Its a love letter. What made the Punters was the music. So, reimagining the programming approach  with a 2024 audience in mind  was a delicate process for the team. Its about understanding and respecting the legacy, trying to enhance it, but moving forward [with] contemporary acts and really diverse Melbourne-leaning stuff, says Farrell. The easy-drinking house Punters Draught made by The Mill Brewery in Collingwood. Justin McManus

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Both free and unticketed, the inaugural line-up kicks off tonight with the funk-forward Harvey Sutherland, but also features homecoming gigs of sorts for the likes of indie-pop duo Frente! and Aussie music royalty Dave Graney, who played the Punters in its heyday. Meanwhile, the kitchen that once churned out Bimbos famous $5 pizzas now does pub grub with a bit of extra panache. Yes, theres a classic chicken (or eggplant) parma. But also a fancified Filet-o-Fish, South Melbourne Market dim sims with Lao Gan Ma chilli oil, and a minute steak served British-style  with brown sauce, chips and a fried egg. Tuna tartare in a bag of Smiths crisps is on the menu at Punters Club. Justin McManus And as an ode to the Scenic, the Adelaide Hills pub where chef Marshall made his mark, there are spins on two signatures: tuna tartare in a slashed-open packet of Smiths salt-and-vinegar chips, and a kangaroo schnitzel with mash and pepper sauce. Booze is accessible and affordable, with the easy-drinking house Punters Draught made by The Mill Brewery in Collingwood, and a handful of tap wines  by small local producers like the Yarra Valleys Fin and SAs Alpha Box & Dice  from $12 a glass. And with late-night fun part of the play, itll trade until 3am on Friday and Saturday nights.

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Kangaroo schnitzel with mash and pepper sauce at Punters Club. Justin McManus Once downstairs is running smoothly, the focus will shift to phase two: opening upstairs. The centrepiece of the darts room will be a jukebox full of CDs of artists from the original Punters era, while the old rooftop will get a refresh before reopening in spring. But most exciting will be the 100-person ticketed band room, clad in timber so you feel like youre in a recording studio, says Farrell. Downstairs [programming] needs to be curated really well because whoevers on stage commands the pub. Up here, we can have a bit more fun ... with up-and-coming [artists] and more genre-diverse bills. Punters Club reopens Thursday, August 22, at 4pm. Open Tue-Thu 4pm-late; Fri-Sat noon-3am; Sun noon-late 376 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy, puntersclubfitzroy.com

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Review Eating outWest Leederville This contemporary bar and bottle shop is committed to thinking global, but serving local A menu of modern pub dishes and a focus on smaller, emerging producers ensures Besk remains one of the citys key neighbourhood pubs. Max Veenhuyzen August 22, 2024 Save Log in , register or subscribe to save recipes for later. You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add more. Save this article for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them anytime. Got it Share

1 / 4 Supplied 2 / 4 Oysters and pan con tomate finished with anchovies. Supplied 3 / 4 Amaro flan. Supplied 4 / 4 Supplied Previous Slide Next Slide 14 / 20 How we score Australian$$$$ Pop quiz: what dining establishment is it impossible to get into on a Tuesday night in Perth? A clandestine, incy-wincy reservations-only Japanese dining room in the suburbs where guests eat what theyre given? A western suburbs pasta bar that counts legendary chef Marco Pierre White as a fan? The queue for the weekly Big Dons Smoked Meats ticket drop? As it turns out, the place in question was none of the above but West Leedervilles sharply designed Besk. Opened in 2019 by Elliott Moore of specialist bottle shop Mane Liquor and architect Ben Braham, Besk is  to quote the website  a proud tribute to the public houses of the world. Also known as a pub. Just dont expect one of those quaint, tiny pubs with carpets, Guinness mirrors and weathered patinas you see in the movies.

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Pan con tomate finished with anchovies. Supplied For starters, Besk is big. On paper, the idea of a cavernous, 200-person fortress of exposed brick could be too much, but subdividing the room into smaller spaces makes it feel less beer barn and more like a well-planned theme park made up of intimate venues serviced by the same open bar and kitchen. Like any pub, guests can make camp in a range of spaces  the public bar, a courtyard warmed by heat lamps, on tables set on the street  but the restaurant is the place to be. Or at least it is on a chilly August weeknight. When was the last time an online booking system broke the news to you that you couldnt get a Tuesday night table at the pub after 7pm? Besk is unapologetic about its pubby-ness. Initially, I assumed that this lack of tables was just a mid-week safety measure that management had implemented so that they could close the kitchen early once things inevitably got quiet. Further assumptions included that wed simply rock up, find the place deserted, then take our pick of the countless empty tables around us. I assumed wrong. Turns out Besks dining room really was full of couples and groups. And if it werent for two mates choosing to sit in the bar area (walk-ins only) and give away their table, we wouldnt have nabbed the last spot in the restaurant. Like I was saying, Besk is unapologetic about its pubby-ness. In addition to the aforementioned bar and dining room, the room also houses one of Perths better bottle shops: a happy hunting ground for anyone restocking a drinks fridge or who feels like opening something special to share with mates. (Every bottle of wine or beer can, with a corkage fee added to its takeaway price, can be drunk in-house.) Then again, considering how fun Besks drinks list is, most guests should have little reason to seek out the bottle-o.

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Just as sommelier Trent Everitt and bar manager Jack Turnbull-Goggins have assembled a formidable line-up of wines, beers, cocktails and non-alcoholic options, chef Tom Harpers cooking also covers lots of ground, starting with the pub must-haves. So naturally, theres a steak (black Angus sirloin, $44). There are chips with aioli ($12). Theres also a wood-grilled cheeseburger ($20) whose MVP is a patty of (naturally) grass-fed beef blessed with a succulence and controlled char seldom found in Publandia. If the kitchen rights the wrongs of stingy salad and unfortunate shrinkage  I pity the burger where the bread dwarfs the beef  P-Town could have a new contender in its burger wars discussions. Amaro flan. Supplied Are punters ready to embrace tacos as an Aussie pub grub staple? Im not sure. But I do know that if the Mexican government joined forces with Harper and rolled out his crispy prawn taco ($10) across the country, it would fast-track the naturalisation process. The name made me think we were getting into some sort of prawn tempura and soft tortilla situation. Instead, the taco was a hard-shelled tortilla crammed with sweet, barely cooked seafood. To the side: a bitey cocktail sauce that tastes like the apprentice got the bottles for the sriracha and Thousand Island dressing mixed up. In a good way. But maybe well-seasoned dishes and a fondness for spice are just how this kitchen rolls. Saucy steak tartare ($24) electrified by a jolt of briny, Big Mac-ish acidity supports this theory, as do flaky snapper fillets in green curry ($38). Served with rice, the currys uncompromising heat levels  its rich and oily rather than sweet and creamy  would be perfect. Here, sadly, it suffocates such a delicate fish. Thankfully, a prawn and lobster bun special ($28) wisely highlights the seafood. Just as Besks riff on the Catalan classic of pan con tomate ($8) celebrates the affinity that bread, garlic, and tomato (de-skinned, finely diced, very bruschetta-like) have with each other. Typically, pan con tomate doesnt get finished with Oligasti anchovies, but this is one departure from tradition that works.

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Photo: Supplied By way of warning, not every decision works or is a slam dunk. As encouraging as it is to note the robust vegetable section on the menu, I hope the other dishes are more compelling than a tart consisting of a baked filo pastry shell filled with lukewarm roasted cauliflower ($28). Unless youre doing the $75 set menu, your meal may unfold according to the kitchens whims (plates are sent as they are ready) rather than a logical dining sequence where the snackier items arrive before bigger plates. Some of Besks systems  you order at the bar and get given a table number holder  do little to allay any cog-in-a-machine feelings, nor does curt service from disinterested staff. But then, the next time you head to the bar, youre greeted by a smiling face that understands the meaning of hospitality. And that as cool as it might be to pour little-known wines, mix clever cocktails, and stand behind assured desserts such as luscious flans with a bitter caramel ($15), the measure of a pub isnt (just) the drinks and food that it serves, but how it serves its guests. Besk, like any hospitality operation, isnt infallible. But over the past five years, Ive had more good nights here than bad ones. And in the context of the current hospitality climate, the venue is tracking nicely. As it has from the start, team Besk works hard to build a sense of community. Not just in terms of guests but also as far as the producers and organisations that Besk supports. Yes, the venue may occasionally be hard to get into, but the party is one that everyone is invited to. The low-down Vibe: A modern pub and bottle shop helping Perth drink better Go-to dish: Crispy prawn taco Drinks: A hedonistic joyride through the wide world of alcohol; tell your credit card to brace for impact Cost: About $145 for two, excluding drinks

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Almost 30 years after a heritage-listed government office building reopened as a 24-hour entertainment venue, Brisbanes Treasury Casino will close its doors at the stroke of midnight on Sunday.

The closure will leave Brisbane without a casino until 2pm on Thursday, when The Star will open as the main gambling venue in the $4 billion Queens Wharf precinct.

Daniel Finch, The Star Entertainment Groups Brisbane CEO, said Treasury Casino patrons would be farewelled politely at 11.59pm on Sunday.

Brisbanes Treasury Casino will close at midnight on August 25, ahead of the opening of Queens Wharf. Credit: Rhett Hammerton

The companys Queensland licence only allows for one Brisbane casino and moving its operations to Queens Wharf is a complex and costly operation. In 2023-24, Treasury Casino generated $177.6 million in revenue for the company  almost $500,000 a day.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo wants to lower drug prices in his country, the largest economy in Southeast Asia, to a level comparable to that of its neighbor.

Tarruna Ikrar, president of the countrys Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM), said the leader has instructed the agency to adjust drug prices so that they at least match the prices of generic drugs or those in neighboring countries such as Malaysia, the Philippines, or Singapore. He said that the agency will work with the ministries of Health and Commerce to address the issue.

The official said that medicine prices in Indonesia are up to 400% higher than those abroad as pharmaceutical companies have to pay high promotion and advertising.

Besides, high cost of raw materials, with 80-90% of finished product ingredients being imported, is a significant factor driving up the price of medicines.

Another factor contributing to higher drug prices is the lack of alternative drugs with the same active ingredients for certain original medications.

To solve the challenges, Tarruna Ikrar suggested that the government regulate drug prices by implementing a more balanced price ceiling, ensuring prices that consumers can afford while also ensuring fairness for the pharmaceutical industry.

Earlier, Indonesias Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin acknowledged that drug prices in the country are 3-5 times higher than in neighboring countries. One of the reasons for this is the inefficient distribution channels and lack of transparency in management.
A man who forced open the emergency exit door of a Jetstar plane moments after it landed at Melbourne Airport on Thursday morning has been arrested.

A Jetstar spokesperson said the JQ507 flight from Sydney had just landed in Melbourne about 10am when the passenger jumped up and opened the emergency exit door.

An emergency slide was automatically deployed.

We can confirm that a passenger opened the emergency exit door after arrival into Melbourne, which automatically deployed the slide, the Jetstar spokesperson said in a statement.
The 18-year-old survivor of a fatal car crash says he cant remember the night his friend and South Fremantle Football Club teammate Nick Campo died.

Tyler Rowe was a passenger in the ute that crashed, rolled and collided with an SUV on Farrington Road last month, telling Nine News Perth he wishes he could deliver Campo a final message.

I wouldve definitely told [Nick] not to hop in that car, because Id still have one of my mates here, Rowe said.

Campo died at the scene, while the 17-year-old male driver, Rowe and two other male teenage passengers of the ute were rushed to hospital with various injuries.
Liberal Senator Linda Reynolds lawyers have lost a bid to grill Brittany Higgins doctor after claiming to have uncovered two materially different psychiatric reports inked on the same day, one of which underpinned the former staffers multimillion-dollar payout.

In a shock move on Thursday, the former defence ministers lawyer Martin Bennett applied to call Higgins Queensland doctor Julio Clavijo to give evidence in Reynolds defamation trial against her.

WA Senator Linda Reynolds (right) and former staffer Brittany Higgins (centre) faced off again in court today. Higgins partner David Sharaz (left) did not have the financial means to take the matter to trial. Credit: Composite image by Aresna Villanueva

The final witness had just concluded sworn testimony when Bennett told the court Clavijo had produced a bundle of documents on subpoena overnight, including two psychiatric reports of Higgins he claimed had been penned and signed on the same date but in materially different terms.

He branded the documents from January 2022 significant because one was relied upon to support Higgins personal injury claim against Reynolds and the Commonwealth over her alleged rape at Parliament House.
Kilkenny said: If the development proposed meets the building envelope  and remember, we have only arrived at the building envelope, having gone through a very methodical process to work out exactly what is site-specific and appropriate for that area. If the development meets all of that and the building envelope, then the notice and review period can be switched off. It will create a more streamlined planning approvals process to enable more homes to be built more quickly. This is about clarity and certainty, providing clear rules across these 10 activity centres so that everyone here, all of the councils, all of the communities can see what their neighbourhoods could look like over the decades ahead. The government hopes to encourage the construction of 60,000 homes in the 10 activity centres by 2051, which were identified in the housing statement released in September. In Broadmeadows, the government proposed loosening rules to encourage residential development of up to 12 storeys to the west of the station at Pascoe Vale Road.

Chadstone Shopping Centre could go up to 12 storeys, and a fringe precinct along Dandenong Road could allow six-storey development. In Epping, the activity centre would have various heights ranging between three and 12 storeys from Cooper and High streets. Next to the Nepean Highway and the Frankston railway station, the streamlined planning process would apply to residential developments between three and 16 storeys. Some blocks beside South Road and the Nepean Highway in Moorabbin could go between eight and 12 storeys high. However, some blocks would be limited to six or eight storeys. A residential precinct could also make way for five storeys before height limits taper off for the broader catchment.

Keilor Road in Niddrie could have pockets of 10 storeys fast-tracked, though this activity centre would also have six and eight-storey limitations under the proposal. In Preston, land surrounding the market has already been allowed to reach 14 storeys. The activity centre, which begins at Bell Street at the south end and follows High Street up to Regent Station, would allow various heights between four and 10 storeys. On Thursday, The Age revealed that residential developments up to 12 storeys would be fast-tracked in the Camberwell activity centre, and that apartments up to 20 storeys would be streamlined between the Ringwood Bypass and Maroondah Highway.

The Department of Transport and Planning released early maps in March showing where the centres would be focused  but did not detail building heights or how planning controls would speed up development. The government has a broader target of 800,000 new homes being constructed over the decade. Hume City Council welcomed additional homes and residents targeted for its community, but was disappointed the plan had progressed without formal consultation with councils.

The council said a thriving activity centre will require more than just bricks and mortar, and that new homes would have to be supported with a boost to local infrastructure, such as a redevelopment of the Broadmeadows station. Before we see investment in houses in the air  more work needs to be done on the ground, Hume Mayor Naim Kurt said. Opposition Leader John Pesutto questioned how the government proposed to fund the additional infrastructure that would be required to support the extra residents. Todays announcement, if you can call it that, is simply a media stunt with no real detail and no actual solution to Victorias housing crisis, Pesutto said on Thursday.
The estimated travel time on Melbournes Metro Tunnel has more than doubled between Parkville and the new Arden precinct, despite years of state government promises that trains would not be slowed due to nearby medical facilities.

The Age on Wednesday revealed trains would have to run slower near the new Parkville station to limit interference with sensitive cancer and medical scanning equipment.

The new Parkville station. Credit: Penny Stephens

A government spokesman on Wednesday insisted that minimising [electromagnetic interference] has had no impact on travel times between stations.

But the estimated journey between the new Parkville and Arden stations has quietly doubled.
The family of the late Alain Delon has defied the French actors dying wish for his pet dog to be euthanised and buried alongside him.

The 88-year-old star, who died on Sunday, asked that upon his death, his 10-year-old Belgian Malinois, called Loubo, be humanely killed and laid alongside him in his village cemetery in Douchy.

Alain Delon in 2019. Credit: Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP

However, the request was met with dismay from animal rights activists across France, who condemned the request and offered to find the dog a new home instead.

The Brigitte Bardot Foundation has now announced that Delons daughter Anouchka said the dog would stay with the family.
SHENYANG, China, Aug. 20, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- On August 17, the 4th Shenyang Intelligent Connected Vehicles Conference opened in Shenyang, Liaoning province. The conference, themed "Vehicle-Road Collaboration Empowers New Quality Productive Forces", brought together government leaders, academic experts, and representatives from 19 pilot cities for "Vehicle-Road-Cloud Integration", including Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou, along with representatives from vehicle manufacturers and solution suppliers, as well as leaders from companies in communications and road infrastructure, to discuss the latest development trends and future directions of the intelligent connected vehicle industry.



The conference witnessed the signing of several strategic cooperation agreements. During the unveiling ceremony of the strategic partnership between the Shenyang Municipal Government and China Unicom in the area of "Vehicle-Road-Cloud Integration", both parties announced the first outcome of their collaboration - the establishment of the China Unicom (Shenyang) Intelligent Connected Vehicles Research Institute, which will serve as an important platform for promoting the development of intelligent connected vehicles. Meanwhile, the Shenyang Municipal Government reached strategic cooperation agreements with BMW Brilliance, Neusoft Reach, and Beijing Yizhuang Investment Holdings Limited for the application of intelligent connected vehicles and "Vehicle-Road-Cloud Integration". All parties will leverage their respective strengths to deepen cooperation in areas such as cloud control platform construction, road-cloud network infrastructure development, and joint operations, aiming to achieve deep integration of the automotive industry and information communication technology with smart cities and intelligent transportation.

During the signing session, Shenyang City reached a consensus on cooperation with 48 enterprises, covering multiple key areas of the intelligent connected vehicle industry. This collaboration will inject strong momentum into the development of Shenyang's intelligent connected vehicle industry and further promote the construction of intelligent connected road networks, the planning for autonomous driving scenarios, and the aggregation of the industry.

This conference not only injects strong momentum into the development of the intelligent connected vehicle industry in Shenyang and across the country but also provides a platform for the communication and cooperation among people from all walks of life inside and outside the industry
Eighth annual Saratoga Motorcar Auction in September







SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. (Aug. 21, 2024)  The eighth annual Saratoga Motorcar Auction, to benefit the Saratoga Automobile Museum, will take place on Friday, Sept. 20 and Saturday, Sept. 21 on the grounds of the Saratoga Casino.

This years spotlight will be on three collections that have chosen the Saratoga Motorcar Auction as their auction house. Collections are from philanthropists Ed and Lisa Mitzen as well as Harry Enea. Additionally, five select vehicles from federal court-approved lots from Kris Roglieri to benefit the debtors.

The Roglieri Collection will feature some of the most exotic vehicles in the world, including a 2014 Novitec Ferrari F12 N-Largo  which is one of 11 worldwide to have been manufactured.

Each year, the trust our consignor community places with our auction grows and these collections are a testament to that fact, said Bill Windham, auction director.

The auction, taking place over two days, will feature classic and exotic automobiles alongside automotive memorabilia. The Friday run list will take place from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday run list will be from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Earlier on Friday, there will be a public preview from noon to 3 p.m. Following the auction, there will be a post-sale on Sunday, Sept. 22 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The auction, taking place over two days, will feature classic and exotic automobiles alongside automotive memorabilia. The Friday run list will take place from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday run list will be from 10a.m. to 4 p.m. There will be a public preview on Thursday from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. Following the auction, there will be a post-sale on Sunday, Sept. 22 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The auction serves as the museums largest fundraiser for the year. Proceeds from the auction support the museums exhibits, community events, and educational programs, said Megan Hennessey, executive director of the Saratoga Automobile Museum.

Spectator tickets are available, starting at $25, and Bidder registration is $200. Interested bidders can register online at saratogaautoauction.org or in-person.

For more information about the Saratoga Automobile Museum, visit saratogaautomuseum.org.

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About the Saratoga Automobile Museum: The Saratoga Automobile Museum was organized in 1999, and opened to the public in 2002. The Museums mission is to preserve, interpret and exhibit automobiles and automotive artifacts. We celebrate the automobile and educate the general public, students and enthusiasts regarding the role of the automobile in New York State and in the wider world. In addition to technical and design aspects, our educational focus is on the past, present and future social and economic impact of the automobile.

The Museum is located within the 2,500 acre Saratoga Spa State Park, in the heart of historic Saratoga Springs, New York, world famous for its legendary, much honored one-mile thoroughbred track. The museums facility is the totally restored and renovated Saratoga Bottling Plant, a beautiful neo-classic structure built in 1934. The Museum is adjacent to the Saratoga Performing Arts Center and near the landmark Gideon Putnam Hotel. Within walking distance in the Park are the National Museum of Dance, the Spa Little Theatre and the lavish Hall of Springs banquet facility. saratogaautomuseum.org
Tran To Nga (back) holds an Agent Orange victim in Vietnam, in a photo released in August 2023. Photo courtesy of Collectif Vietnam-Dioxine

Vietnam is regretful that the Paris Court of Appeal had rejected an appeal by Tran To Nga, who had been suing 14 companies that supplied Agent Orange during the Vietnam War, the foreign ministry said.

"We strongly support Agent Orange victims to urge any company in charge of producing and supplying Agent Orange, or dioxin, to the U.S. in the war against Vietnam, which has caused millions of Vietnamese people to become victims, to take responsibility and address the relevant consequences," spokeswoman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pham Thu Hang said at a press meet on Thursday.

Hang said Vietnam is "regretful" for the verdict made by the Paris Court of Appeal on Thursday.

"While the war had concluded, its implications have continued to linger on the country and the people of Vietnam, including the long-term severe consequences of Agent Orange, or dioxin," she added.

Nga was a journalist in the then French Indochina and activist around 60 years ago. She has been living in France for three decades, and began suing the companies in 2014, demanding them to take responsibility for harming her health, her children's, and many others'.

However, she lost her case for the first time in 2021, when the French court ruled that the companies had "legal immunity from prosecution because they worked for a sovereign government".

Nga filed an appeal, which was rejected by the Paris Court of Appeal on Thursday using the same argument. Ngas French lawyer said they would take her case to France's highest appeals court for a final ruling.

For over a decade during the Vietnam War, the U.S. army had sprayed around 76 million liters of Agent Orange, making over 4 million people in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia be exposed to the chemical. So far, only U.S., Australian and South Korean veterans had received compensation from companies related to Agent Orange.

Nga suffers from Type 2 diabetes and an extremely rare insulin allergy, which she linked to exposure to Agent Orange. She said she also contracted tuberculosis twice and developed cancer, and one of her daughters died of a heart malformation.

Monsanto, which was taken over by German chemicals giant Bayer in 2018, argued the French courts did not have jurisdiction in the case due to the issue of sovereign immunity.
Libya is divided between two rival governments: Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibehs internationally recognized Government of National Unity, which is based in Tripoli, and the Government of National Stability, led by Osama Hamada and supported by the Libyan House of Representatives and the Libyan National Army, which controls the eastern half of the country.

The countrys political crisis stems from the failure to hold elections on Dec. 24, 2021, and the refusal of Prime Minister Dbeibeh to step down. Since then, despite a general agreement regarding the necessity of elections, the parties disagree on proposed electoral legislation that would enable such elections which could unify the government.

Furthermore, both sides continue to take hostile unilateral actions that only serve to increase tension and insecurity even as they exacerbate the countrys rapid deterioration of political and economic stability.



The status quo is not sustainable, said Stephanie Koury, Deputy Special Representative and Officer-in-Charge of the UN Support Mission in Libya during her recent presentation of the Secretary-Generals report on Libya. In the absence of renewed political talks leading to a unified government and elections, you see where this is heading - greater political financial and security instability, entrenched political and territorial divisions, and greater domestic and regional instability.

We echo the Secretary-Generals deep concern in his latest report about the political stalemate and risk of further political division sowing the seeds of possible conflict in Libya, said Robert Wood, U.S. Alternative Representative for Special Political Affairs at the U.N.

Recent unilateral political actions are not conducive to the dialogue required for a peaceful compromise that can reunify the country. Rather, it is imperative the parties negotiate their differences in the interest of national unity. We urge redoubled efforts towards this end.

Ambassador Wood called for all actors within and outside Libya to support the UN Secretary-Generals efforts to define a credible roadmap toward free and fair national elections. These, in turn, should lead to a representative and accountable government that the Libyan people need and deserve, he said.

Rising instability along Libyas southern borders is a reminder of the importance of supporting the reunification of Libyan military and security institutions. Progress toward military unification would reaffirm Libyan sovereignty and help prevent Libya from becoming enmeshed in regional conflict.

We call on all Member States to adhere to Security Council resolutions urging full respect for the sovereignty, independence, territorial

integrity, and national unity of Libya.
On his most recent trip to the Middle East, Secretary of State Blinken came with a simple but urgent message: We need to get the ceasefire and hostage agreement over the finish line, and we need to do it now.

Time is of the essence because with every passing day the well-being and lives of the hostages are in jeopardy, stressed Secretary Blinken in remarks to the press in Qatar:

Time is of the essence because every single day women, children, men in Gaza are suffering without access to adequate food, medicine, and at risk of being wounded or dying in fighting that they didnt start and they cannot stop. And time is of the essence because with every passing day theres the danger of escalation in the region.

The United Sates is working with Egypt and with Qatar to prevent escalation by sending the necessary messages to all of the potential actors, including Iran and Hezbollah, to avoid taking any steps that could escalate the conflict or spread it. And Qatar and Egypt in particular are in direct contact with Hamas, working to conclude this peace agreement.

President Joe Biden put out a detailed plan for a ceasefire and the release of hostages in May, which was endorsed by the UN Security Council. Israel has now accepted that proposal and we hope and expect that Hamas will do the same, said Secretary Blinken.

This [ceasefire] needs to get done and it needs to get done in the days ahead, and we will do everything possible to get it across the finish line, stressed Secretary Blinken.

Its the key to helping make sure that we can take down the temperature in the Red Sea with the Houthis. Its the key to seeing if we can pursue a normalization agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia, which both countries remain very interested in. Its the key to actually putting everyone, starting with Israel, on a path to greater peace and security. And of course, its key to getting the hostages home.

There are Americans who remain hostage in Gaza, said Secretary Blinken. And I was very clear about the American interest in making sure that our people come home to their families and that the remains of those who perished are brought back.
On August 19, the Peoples Republic of China yet again sought to enforce its illegal attempts at annexing portions of another sovereign countrys coastal waters. Chinese and Philippine coast guard vessels collided near the Sabina Shoal, a part of the Spratly Islands. The Spratlys lie about 140 kilometers from the Philippine island of Palawan, and therefore easily within the 320 kilometer Philippine Exclusive Economic Zone. Each country accuses the other of ramming the others vessel.

The PRCs unilateral and ludicrous claims to 90 percent of the South China Sea, one of the worlds busiest waterways, as well as its uninhabited reefs, have alarmed and outraged its neighbors. Chinas aggressive enforcement of its claims has caused an increasing number of similar incidents, particularly with the Philippines, which has so far this year filed over 40 diplomatic protests to Beijing for violating its sovereignty.

China has no legal claim to most of the territory it covets, including the Spratly Islands archipelago, which lies more than 1,300 kilometers [808 miles] from Hainan Island, Chinas most southerly outpost. In 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague ruled that China has no basis for its territorial claims, and declared illegal its aggressive attempts to prevent other nations from fishing or other activities in the region. China has scoffed at the Courts declaration and continues to enforce its illegal claims.

The United States stands with its ally the Philippines and condemns the dangerous actions by the Peoples Republic of China against lawful Philippine maritime operations in the South China Sea on August 19. PRC ships employed reckless maneuvers, deliberately colliding with two Philippine Coast Guard ships, causing structural damage and jeopardizing the safety of the crew onboard, said the State Departments Principal Deputy Spokesperson, Vedant Patel, in a written statement.

These actions are the latest examples of the PRC using dangerous and escalatory measures to enforce its expansive and unlawful South China Sea maritime claims. The United States calls upon the PRC to abide by international law and desist from its dangerous and destabilizing conduct, he said.

The United States reaffirms that Article IV of the 1951 U.S.-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty extends to armed attacks on Philippine armed forces, public vessels, or aircraft  including those of its Coast Guard  anywhere in the South China Sea.
Gem, jewellery exportsdrop 23.28 per cent toUSD 1,665.4 mn in July





THE overall gem and jewellery exports witnessed a 23.28 per cent year-on-year decline in July to USD 1,665.4 million on account of dampening of consumerdem and following global unrest, Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) has said. According to data released by GJEPC -- the apex body for the gems and jewellery industry in India -- the overall exports in the category in July2023stoodatUSD2,170.71 million. The exports are mainly affected due to decline in demand following geopolitical disturbance in keymarketslike the US and China.

The demand in the China market has drastically slowed down due to a struggling economy, GJEPC Chairman Vipul Shah told PTI. Theoverall export ofcut and polished diamonds (CPD) declined 22.71 per cent in July to USD 907.67 million from USD 1,174.41 million in the year-ago period. Gold jewellery exports also witnessed a 12.06 per cent decline in July to USD 530.38 million from USD 603.12 million in the same period of last year. Meanwhile, the apex trade bodysaidduring therecentsixday India International Jewellery Show (IIJS) Premiere 2024, held from August 9-13, business worth about USD 12 billion (approximatelyRs1lakh crore) was generated.
Bharat bandh evokes MIXED response





NEW DELHI :

THE day-long Bharat Bandh, called by certain Dalit and Adivasi groups against the Supreme Courts verdict on sub-classification of Scheduled Castes, evoked a mixed response in country on Wednesday. The Bandh was called by 21 organisations across the country in response to the Supreme Courts August 1 ruling allowing States to sub-classify Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes for granting quotas within these groups. The apex courts majority verdict held that such sub-classifications are permissible to benefit more underprivileged castes within these categories. BIHAR: Police lathi-charged and used water cannons to disperse protesters who put up rail and road blockades in support of Bharat Bandh over community-based reservation. Protesters disrupted train services at Darbhanga and Buxar railway stations and blocked traffic in Patna, Hajipur, Darbhanga, Jehanabad, and Begusarai districts following which police baton-charged to quell them. In Patna, police chased away crowds who blocked traffic at Dak Bungalow Chowk.

The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and other partners of the INDIA bloc extended their support to the bandh. CHHATTISGARH: Several shops and commercial establishments remained closed in parts of Bastar and Surguja divisions, largely inhabited by tribals, and Mohla-ManpurAmbagarh Chowki and Dhamtari districts. Shutdown evoked a mixed response in Raipur, Bilaspur, Durg, Rajnandgaon and Korba. Transport services largely remained unaffected. Schools, hospitals and other essential services were kept out of the bandh ambit. In Dantewada district headquarters,ahugemotorcycle rally was organised by members of Sarva Adivasi Samaj (SAS), an umbrella body of tribal organisations. The Opposition Congress extendeditsmoralsupport to the shutdown and called for addressing concerns of members of ST and SC communities. GUJARAT: Protesters blockedagoods train and roads as the daylongBharat Bandh evoked mixed reactions across Gujarat.
Ex-Brahmos engineer Agrawal stole infoon critical component of Russian missile





Staff Reporter :

The information emerged during hearing on the suspension of Nishant Agrawals sentence and his potential bail; High Court reserves judgement

EX-BRAHMOS Aerospace engineer Nishant Agrawal had copied 19 confidential files from the BrahMos facility, with file number 11 being classified as top secret.This file contained vital information about a critical component used in Russian missiles. This information emerged during a hearing on the suspension of Agrawals sentence and his potential bail. Agrawal was convicted for leaking official secrets to Pakistani intelligence operatives and was sentenced to life imprisonment. Justice Vinay Joshi and JusticeVrushali Joshi at the High Court here heard the final arguments in the case on Wednesday.

The court has reserved the judgement. Agrawal was sentenced to life imprisonment by Additional Sessions Judge-1 M V Deshpande for espionage on behalf of Pakistans InterServices Intelligence (ISI) on June 3 of this year. He was arrested in 2018 in Nagpur on charges of leaking information about the BrahMos missile to the ISI. At the time, he was a senior system engineer at BrahMos Aerospace, a joint venture between DRDO andRussias Military Industrial Consortium (NPOMashinostroyenia), whichfocuses on Indias supersoniccruise missile capable of beinglaunched from land, air, sea, and underwater platforms. During the arguments, AdvAnup Badar, representing theState, informed the court that Agrawal had copied a topsecret file about a critical component of the missile developed by Russia. This information could potentially helpanti-Indian governmentscounter the missile. After copying the file fromthe computers, Agrawal storedit on a laptop, which was laterseized from his residence. Adv Badar informed thecourt that during searches, thepolice had seized a laptop a pendrive, a Nokia phone, and hard disks.

The prosecution has also recorded statements from senior officials, including the Chief General Manager of HR (Retd.) and the former Director of BrahMos Hyderabad. According to the prosecution, Agrawal was in contact with a Facebook account under the name Shejal Kapoor. The police have obtained the IP address of this account and phone numbers associated with it. The account was created in Pakistan and was operated by an ISI spy. The defense counsel, Senior Adv Siddhartha Dave, argued that the information was not stored on Agrawals laptop and challenged the prosecutions claims. After hearing arguments from both sides, the court has closed the matter for judgement.
FLIPPANT





MANY watchers of international scene had anticipated earlier that a demand may come from Bangladesh asking for extradition of ousted Prime Minister Mrs. Sheikh Hasina Wajed back to the country so that she could be tried for different reasons. That fear appears to have come true with the demand coming from the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), now a dominant political force there. But because the demand has not come officially from the Government of Bangladesh, India need not pay much attention to it. Secondly, the reason for the demand at this point of time is that Mrs. Sheikh Hasina Wajed would be prosecuted because she tried to thwart the current revolution. Though the BNP has a grudge against the ousted Prime Minister, that cannot be the reason for extradition. The extradition, thus, should come officially, and will have to be fully convincing. India, then, will weigh the substance and then make the decision whether to extradite Mrs. Sheikh Hasina Wajed back to Bangladesh or not. Just because the two countries have an extradition treaty signed between them, is not a sufficient reason for India to agree to hand over the Bangladesh leader currently residing in the country.

The process of extradition does not operate on simple, straight lines, so to say. It is complex and engenders a detailed consideration which, too, must pass through a strict judicial scrutiny. There are reasons also for India to suspect that the new power-play in Bangladesh may turn to be an unjust and unfair affair. In that case, the new regime may have some dangerous plans for the ousted Prime Minister -- as has been the way of doing things in some countries. India, therefore, will have to play its cards extremely carefully -- so that it does not allow villainous tendencies to rule the roost and thwart all the gains Mrs. Sheikh Hasina Wajed had earned through a patient, democratic process. Seen from these angles, India has a moral responsibility to treat the Bangladesh issue with utmost caution. Going by the nature of demand from the BNP, it can be understood that the country will find itself trapped in throes of political vendetta of the worst order. For, the manner in which hordes of goons thronged the Prime Ministers official residence, and manner in which they prevailed upon the Prime Minister to resign. If she had not fled the place in just a few minutes, the throngs would have captured her physically and then tortured her -- possibly physically and surely mentally .Such has been the nature of politics in many Islamic countries -- including Indias western neighbour Pakistan. Almost each of its rulers faced trouble on fanatic front.

The rulers in such countries have certain style of vengefulness that pushes them to eliminate the rivals physically. If India agrees to hand over Mrs. Sheikh Hasina Wajed to Bangladesh, the political hordes there may go berserk -- just because she supposedly thwarted the revolution (as per the allegation of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party). Of course, in its fifty-year life until now, Bangladesh has seen many a moments such as this one. It has seen its rulers alternating between themselves to occupy the throne and indulge in all sorts of wrong practices -- that included a direct, summary prosecution and hounding of all her associates no matter their position. Standing on that point, India has every reason to suspect that things would turn out to be also similarly. This happens because both sides, no matter what side of the divide they are, have behaved in such a manner over time. And that makes Indias Desh-watch a very serious affair.
From a remote villageto the classroom Inspiring journey of Chhatkunwar, the Pahadi Korwa teacher





By Mukesh S Singh

RAIPUR/KORBA,

Inspiring journey of Chhatkunwar, the Pahadi Korwa teacher iIim really overwhelmed to see my small effort make such a big differencei - P Dayanand

EIGHT years ago, on an ordinary Friday morning, a quiet village in the Korba district of Chhattisgarh witnessed an event that would alter the course of one young womans life. The then-Collector, P Dayanand, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of Chhattisgarh cadre, made an unannounced visit to the small village of Anchimaar, nestled within the Korba block. His visit, however, was anything but ordinary for the villagers, especially for a young girl named Chhatkunwar, a member of the Pahadi Korwa tribe, one of the most vulnerable tribal groups (PVTG) in India. As the Collector, dressed in his crisp white shirt and khaki trousers, sat on a modest charpoy in a thatched-roof hut, he listened intently to the struggles faced by the Pahadi Korwas. Amidst discussions on government schemes and development plans, Dayanands attention was drawn to Chhatkunwar, a bright young woman who had already surpassed the educational achievements of her peers in the village. She was on the verge of entering college a rare feat in a community where education, especially for women, was often a distant dream. Intrigued and inspired, Dayanand made his way to Chhatkunwars humble home. For a moment, the family could hardly believe that the districts highest official had come to visit them. But as he greeted Chhatkunwar with a warm handshake and encouraging words, the young woman felt a surge of pride and determination. Hello, Sir, you are the Collector? she asked, her voice filled with a mixture of awe and respect. In that simple exchange, a spark was igniteda spark that would drive her to pursue her education against all odds. The Collectors words of encouragement that day left an indelible mark on Chhatkunwar. He urged her to continue her studies, to become the most educated individual in her community, and to inspire others to follow in her footsteps. He promised her that with perseverance, a job would surely come her way. His words resonated deeply with her, leading her to set aside her immediate aspirations for employment and focus instead on her academic journey.

Over the next few years, Chhatkunwar not only completed her graduation but also went on to earn a postgraduate degree, becoming a beacon of hope for her community. Today, Chhatkunwar stands at the front of a classroom in the government-run middle school in Nonbirra, Kartala Block. As she chalks lessons on the blackboard, she embodies the resilience and determination of her tribe, now serving as an Assistant Teachera position she secured through the District Mineral Foundation (DMF) on the directives of Chief Minister Mr Vishnu Deo Sai and the current Collector, Ajit Vasant. Reflecting on her journey, Chhatkunwar often finds herself overwhelmed with emotion. The girl who once dreamed of education now imparts knowledge to the next generation, transforming the lives of the children in her village. I am grateful, she says, her voice steady yet soft with emotion. One Collector came to my home and inspired me to study, and another entrusted me with the responsibility of teaching. Chhatkunwars story is one of triumph over adversity, a testament to the power of education and the profound impact that encouragement can have on a young mind. In her own words, she acknowledges that while the Pahadi Korwa community remains significantly underprivileged, her achievement is a source of inspiration for others. Few in our society have had the chance to study. But now, seeing me, more children are attending school. It gives me hope that one day, our entire community will rise through education.

Chhatkunwars personal life also reflects her commitment to education. After her marriage, she not only completed her own studiesearning a graduate degree, a masters degree, and a diploma holder in computer applicationsbut also encouraged her husband, who had dropped out after the eighth grade, to pursue his education. With her support, he completed his twelfth grade and secured a job as a peon. Their story is one of mutual support, resilience, and transformative power of education, even in most challenging circumstances. Today, as Chhatkunwars family moves towards a better future, she remains deeply connected to her roots. She is acutely aware of the ongoing struggles faced by many in her community, where poverty and lack of opportunities continue to hinder progress. Life is still not easy for many in the Pahadi Korwa community, she says. But I am thankful that I chose the path of education. It has brought me here, and I hope that it will bring others out of the darkness too.

Chhatkunwars journey from a small village in Korba to a classroom teacher is more than just a personal success story; it is a symbol of hope for her community. Through her, the Pahadi Korwa tribe sees a future where education can break the chains of poverty and bring about lasting change. And while there is still much work to be done, Chhatkunwars story is powerful reminders that even the smallest of sparks can light up the darkest of paths. Today, as P Dayanand sits at the very epicentre of power as Secretary to the Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh, overseeing crucial decisions within the states BJP-led government under the leadership of Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai, his legacy is a testament to the lasting impact of compassionate leadership. Now one of the three top bureaucrats steering the Chief Ministers Office (CMO), Dayanands influence has grown exponentially since his days in Korba. His rise through the ranks of the bureaucracy reflects not only his administrative acumen but also his deep commitment to the people he serves.

Despite the weight of his current responsibilities, Dayanand remains unfazed by the trappings of power, retaining the humility and grounded ness that characterised his early career. When The Hitavada asked him about the inspiring journey of Chhatkunwar, the Pahadi Korwa teacher whose life he helped change with just a few words of encouragement, Dayanands response is marked by sincere humility. Im really overwhelmed to see my small effort make such a big difference, he said, reflecting on how a simple visit and a heartfelt conversation had sown the seeds of a brighter future for Chhatkunwar and her community. I wish her all the best and many more successes ahead! His words echo the wisdom of the ancient proverb, A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
HC forms JIC to FACT CHECK action by NMC, cops





Staff Reporter :

CIVIC ISSUES IN DHANTOLI

8 new hospitals in Dhantoli Compounding the situation, it was revealed in the court that dhantoli is set to welcome eight new hospitals. This surge in healthcare facilities is expected to further strain the already overburdened residential area. With numerous hospitals already operational, the addition of these new facilities is anticipated to worsen the ongoing parking and traffic problems for the local residents

THE Nagpur Bench of the Bombay High Court has formed a Joint Inspection Committee (J IC). The committee will oversee actions by the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) and the City Police related to parking spaces, hospitals, and various public issues in the area. The move is aimed to ease life of Dhantoli residents from hapazard parking, illegal vendors, and civic issues. The newly established Joint Inspection Committee will be chaired by Devendra Pradhan (61), the Secretary of Dhantoli Nagrik Mandal, Architect Paramjeet Singh Ahuja as a member, along with representatives from the NMC and the City Police. Justice Nitin Sambre and Justice Abhay Mantri have directed both the NMC and the City Police to suggest suitable members for the committee and their respective roles. The committees inaugural meeting is scheduled for August 26, where they will finalise their agenda and operational model. Additionally, the court has mandated that the minutes of each meeting be formally recorded and submitted. During the hearing on Wednesday, Advocate Ashwin Deshpande raised serious concerns about the ongoing inefficacy of the NMCs efforts.

He underliend that despite the NMCs affidavit stating they are taking action, the problems persist. Specifically, he noted that hawkers often return to the same areas after NMC operations conclude, and that hospital parking spaces are inadequate. Adv Deshpande also reported that hawkers have occupied parking spaces meant for hospital use which create traffic disruptions. The court expressed frustration over what it perceived as the NMCs lack of action and orally instructed the NMCs counsel to file an affidavit from the Municipal Commissioner addressing gross violations of building plans. Justice Sambre orally demanded that the NMC provide names of officials responsible for oversight and specify the actions that would be taken against those failing to address these issues.

This is not the first time these issues have been brought to the courts attention. During a hearing in June, the court was shocked to learn about encroachments by hospitals on parking spaces in Dhantoli, with encroachments spanning between 3,000 and 5,000 square feet. Despite claims from the NMCs counsel that these encroachments had been addressed in 2015, the court was concerned that these structures might have been rebuilt or that new issues had emerged. Complaints also were raised about some doctors locking parking spaces and making the spaces inaccessible to patients and hospital staff.
NEEDLESS





THE Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) cancelling its advertisement for lateral entry to bureaucracy, sends out a message that the Central Government has buckled under political pressure from certain quarters over reservation in the posts advertised. Despite the Government citing the precedence about lateral entry into bureaucracy without following the principle of reservations, the latest UPSC advertisement stands cancelled. The basic objective of lateral entry scheme was to get industry expertise for certain responsibilities so that policy implementation could be made more effective. This is not the first time that the Centre has buckled under pressure. Previously, despite the agitators sullying own image owing to vandalism displayed on the Republic Day, the Government later withdrew the crucial farm laws that would have benefited farmers. Such a backtracking is needless and projects the Government as meek. This is not in the interest of the country. Given the situation, such buckling under pressure will only embolden the elements that are attempting to stoke the sentiments of different segments to frustrate the reforms process. In the long run frustrated reforms will create a situation wherein every segment suffers.

BEST IN BUSINESS!

GOING by his b o w l i n g action and style in the initial days, Jasprit Bumrah was marked by experts and a few former players as a limited overs material who can restrict run flow with his deadly yorkers. A vote of confidence from the then selection committee changed the picture on its head as Bumrah was picked for the South Africa tour six years ago. He created an immediate impact and carried it ahead in subsequent tours to prove that his abilities are no fluke. Now, despite the injury lay-offs, Bumrah is Indias best bet in all formats of the game, something which is extremely rare in these days for a fast bowler. Former Australian skipper Ricky Pontings high praise for Bumrah for being the best in the business in all formats for almost six years is not a misplaced encomium. It is a tribute to the Gujarat pacers mental make-up and physical attributes that he has sustained the rigours of modern day cricket. It is a combination of skill-set and consistency that has kept Bumrah on top of the game in every format. This longevity is what separates pacers like Bumrah, James Anderson or Glenn McGrath from the rest.
PM MODI ARRIVES IN POLANDS WARSAW





WARSAW :

Visit will add momentum to bilateral relationship WARSAW,

PRIME Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said his maiden visit to Poland will add momentum to the bilateral friendship and benefit the people of the two countries as he arrived here on the first leg of his two-nation visit during which he will also travel to the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. Modi, who will meet Poland's President Andrzej Sebastian Duda and hold bilateral talks with Prime Minister Donald Tusk, said he was looking forward to the various programmes in the Polish capital here. "Landed in Poland. Looking forward to the various programmes here. This visit will add momentum to the India-Poland friendship and benefit the people of our nations," Modi said in a post on X soon after his arrival at the Warsaw military airport here. Prime Minister Modi's visit to Poland is the first trip by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in the past 45 years.

The Indian community members in Poland gave a warm welcome to Prime Minister Modi when he arrived at the hotel where Polish and Indian artists performed the vibrant cultural dance from Gujarat. Deeply touched by the warm welcome from the Indian community in Poland!Theirenergyembodies the strong ties that bind our nations, Modi said in another post on X. MinistryofExternalAffairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the prime minister was accorded a ceremonial welcome at the airport. This visit holds special significance as India & Poland arecommemorating 70 years of diplomatic relations this year. Earlier todayin his departure statement, Modi said his visit to Poland comes as we mark 70 years of our diplomaticrelations.Poland is a key economic partner in Central Europe. Ourmutualcommitment to democracy and pluralism further reinforces our relationship.

I look forward to meeting my friend Prime Minister Donald Tusk and President Andrzej Duda to further advance our partnership, he said. PrimeMinisterModi'sdiscussionswith thePolishleadership during his two-day visit will allow the two sides to exchange views at the top level on a variety of subjects and it will be a kind of real useful exchange of views, Indian Ambassador to Poland Nagma Mohamed Mallick toldPTIVideoshere. From Warsaw, Modi will travel toKyiv on the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Ukraine since the country became independent in 1991. FromPoland,Iwillbe visiting Ukraine at the invitation of PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy. This is the first-ever visitbyanIndian Prime Minister to Ukraine, he said.
Trust and confidence, key to revival of Bdesh





Sir,

Following the outbreak of a massive violence that has caused a colossal loss of men and material wealth; Bangladesh has plunged into a deeper economic crisis. Rebuilding the economy must begin with re-instilling trust and confidence in the minds of people with simultaneous focus on initiating corrective measures for economic revival. A leader at the helm must at the same time also refrain from making any loose statement or criticising anybody, as that can do no good. Instead it can needlessly complicate the situations, furthermore. Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled to India on August 5 following massive protests by students and others against her Government over a controversial quota system in government jobs.

Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus was named as Chief Advisor. Nevertheless, the microfinance man Yunus has huge challenges to confront and the tasks on hand are big. How quickly he will be able to make a turnaround of this crisis ridden country, is to be seen? The immediate priority is to ensure law and order followed by restoring peace, stability, and democracy in Bangladesh. Who is responsible for fomenting trouble in Bangladesh that snowballed into a big crisis is another serious matter to be examined expeditiously? Some vested interests with ill conceived designs may also utilise this crisis in Bangladesh to expand their influence and cause destabilisation in the region. India hence has to be on the guard and constantly monitor the evolving situations both in terms of safeguarding the interests of the religious minorities in Bangladesh and also for protecting its own safety and security.

Srinivasan Umashankar, Nagpur
In 2023, the market size of China's freshly brewed coffee market reached roughly 162.35 billion yuan (about 22.76 billion U.S. dollars), indicating a significant growth from the previous year and the value was forecast to exceed 193 billion yuan (about 27 billion dollars) by 2024, said German statistics platform Statista.

Fast delivery in China makes it easier for consumers to order coffee online. In major cities, it usually takes less than an hour for coffee to be brewed and then delivered.

Between 2010 and 2022, coffee consumption per person in China rose fourfold, said the International Coffee Organization. More than half of Chinese coffee drinkers consume at least three cups a week, according to Statista.

BEIJING, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Here is some good news for coffee lovers in China: Chinese coffee giant Luckin Coffee recently opened its landmark 20,000th outlet, and German coffee brand Neumann Kaffee Gruppe (NKG), one of the world's largest coffee merchants, launched a subsidiary in Shanghai in August.

The World Coffee Portal reported that China surpassed the United States last year to become the country with the most coffee outlets in the world.

Traditionally a tea-drinking nation, China has now emerged as East Asia's fastest-growing market for coffee consumption, carving out a unique position in the global coffee landscape.

People enjoy their leisure time at Heyin Cafe in Shangwangyu Village of Huairou District, Beijing, capital of China, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Zhang Chenlin)

NEW TREND

Chinese coffee drinkers have become more discerning in their tastes. Instant coffee once dominated the Chinese market. Yet, statistics show a surge in the freshly ground coffee market.

In 2023, the market size of China's freshly brewed coffee market reached roughly 162.35 billion yuan (about 22.76 billion U.S. dollars), indicating a significant growth from the previous year and the value was forecast to exceed 193 billion yuan (about 27 billion dollars) by 2024, said German statistics platform Statista.

Chinese consumers are looking for high-quality coffee with special offerings. They consider "coffee origin" to be an important factor when purchasing freshly brewed coffee, and many white collar workers are willing to pay premium prices for premium coffee.

Coffee companies in China are making efforts to cater to local tastes. One innovation has been tea coffee and fruit coffee, a concoction that blends the two drinks.

"Just like Chinese tea, which can be made in different ways in other countries, a foreign product like coffee can also have a local taste," said Long Ye, founder of a coffee shop called Wuyinmen in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

Oolong Latte and Orange Juice Americano are among the popular choices. Last year, the "Sauce-flavored Latte" from Luckin quickly became a sensation on social media, with alcohol from China's premium liquor maker Kweichow Moutai. On the first day of its launch, it sold over 5.42 million cups and generated sales exceeding 100 million yuan (about 14 million dollars).

For major coffee companies in China, the competition on how to make the best coffee that caters to the needs of Chinese customers is very fierce between the leading brands.

"This expansion allows us to be closer to our customers, understand their needs better, and deliver tailored coffee solutions," said Emily Chua, chief operating officer of NKG Shanghai, in a statement.

A staff member works at the Starbucks Reserve Roastery in east China's Shanghai, Nov. 24, 2023. (Xinhua/Wang Xiang)

GROWING DEMAND

Coffee became a widely served beverage in China after the arrival of foreign coffee brands, starting with Starbucks, the first major Western coffee chain entering the market in 1999, followed by Costa Coffee in 2006 and Tim Hortons in 2019.

More and more customers are developing a love for coffee and know a lot about coffee quality. "To me, coffee is a beverage that can make you physically and mentally comfortable. Thus, I hope my customers can also find a moment of peace while they are drinking my coffee," Long said.

In the past, it was primarily fashionable white-collar workers who frequented coffee shops in China, drawn by the trendy atmosphere and the allure of international coffee culture. However, this has changed in recent years.

The sight of ordinary Chinese carrying a cup of coffee has become increasingly common. Whether it is grabbing a coffee on the way to work, sipping while shopping, or enjoying a leisurely cup on the weekend, coffee has become an integral part of the daily routine for many people in China.

Fast delivery in China makes it easier for consumers to order coffee online. In major cities, it usually takes less than an hour for coffee to be brewed and then delivered.

More than 90 percent of 4,000 Chinese coffee shop consumers surveyed drink hot coffee weekly, while 64 percent consume iced coffee at least once a week, the World Coffee Portal said in a report last year.

China has become the fastest-growing market in East Asia, it said.

"When I traveled to China, I found that in recent years, China's beverage brands have developed rapidly, and the number of stores and beverage categories are increasing rapidly," a young man named Hong Seong-bin from Seoul told Xinhua, adding that he loves the coconut series in Chinese coffee shops.

A staff member of Luckin Coffee makes coffee for a customer in Xiong'an New Area, Hebei Province, north China, Jan. 16, 2024. (Xinhua/Qin Jing)

MARKET POTENTIAL

South Korean coffee brands including "Caffe Bene" have opened branches in China and some are increasingly interested in the ever-growing Chinese market, Hong said.

"As the Chinese market is so huge and the demand is high, I believe that South Korean high-quality brand coffee shops can win the hearts of Chinese consumers," he said.

Chua shared this enthusiasm. "We are thrilled to establish NKG Shanghai as our first office in China," said Chua. "We are excited about the opportunities this vibrant market presents and are committed to contributing to the growth and development of the coffee industry in China."

Between 2010 and 2022, coffee consumption per person in China rose fourfold, said the International Coffee Organization. More than half of Chinese coffee drinkers consume at least three cups a week, according to Statista.

Shanghai leads the world in the number of cafes, with 9,553 coffee shops by the end of 2023, according to the China urban coffee development report 2024.

China has been an attractive potential market for international coffee chains, with Starbucks leading the way. However, its CEO, Laxman Narasimhan, was quoted by CNN as saying that the company is "still in our early days in China."

As more Chinese people are stepping into coffee shops to savor coffee from around the world, their coffee consumption and spending are expected to rise.

Tims China, the exclusive operator of Tim Hortons coffee shops in China, celebrated its fifth anniversary this February, marking a milestone with over 900 stores across more than 60 cities in China. Yongchen Lu, CEO of Tims China, is confident that "it will continue to integrate deeply into China's budding coffee-loving market."

For a traditional tea-loving country, coffee could become China's new cup of tea. The growing popularity of coffee culture across China and its vast market potential for the beans present a great opportunity that foreign brands are eager to seize.

by Xinhua writers Lyu Yanhao and Wang Zongnan

Xinhua correspondents Chen Qingbing, Li Xiaoting, and Li Sibo also contribute to the story.

Editor: ZAD
This photo shows an exterior view of the venue for the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

A humanoid robot is pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

A humanoid robot is pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

Visitors watch as a robot makes Jian Bing, or the Chinese crepe, during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Chen Zhonghao)

A robot is pictured at the booth of Tesla during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Chen Zhonghao)

Humanoid robots are pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

Visitors watch as a robot plays ping-pong during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Chen Zhonghao)

Visitors watch as a robot writes Chinese calligraphy during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Zhang Chenlin)

Visitors watch as a robot writes Chinese calligraphy during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

Robots greet each other during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

A biped robot demonstrates climbing skills during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Zhang Chenlin)

A humanoid robot demonstrates cooking skills during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Zhang Chenlin)

A robot plays ping-pong during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

People visit the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

This photo shows an exterior view of the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

A humanoid robot is pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

A robot makes Jian Bing, or the Chinese crepe, during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

A humanoid robot is pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

Humanoid robots of the "Q Family" are pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

A visitor plays Go game, known as Weiqi in Chinese, with a robot during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Zhang Chenlin)

Visitors examine an educational robot during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

People visit the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

An intelligent electroencephalogram (EEG) device is pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

People visit the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

People visit the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Intelligent robotic hands are pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

People visit the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

A humanoid robot is pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Humanoid robots are pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Intelligent robotic hands are pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

A visitor interacts with a medical robot during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Humanoid robots are pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

People visit the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Editor: ZAD
Tourists visit the ancient city of Ephesus at night in Izmir, Trkiye, Aug. 14, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Lei)

Istanbul, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- As twilight descends on Ephesus, founded in the 10th century B.C. in Trkiye's Izmir province, lights will cast a captivating glow over the ancient city, offering a mesmerizing cultural experience for visitors until midnight.

The light show is part of the Night Museum project promoted by the Turkish Culture and Tourism Ministry, which aims to attract more tourists and promote the country's historical sites during summer, Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy announced earlier.

The initiative brings some of the Aegean and Mediterranean coasts' most extraordinary ancient sites, such as Ephesus, Hierapolis, Aspendos, Patara, Side, Phaselis, and Olympos, to life after sunset.

Mustafa Cevik, a first-time visitor, was profoundly impressed by Ephesus's nighttime illumination.

"When I was a child, we saw pictures of Ephesus's columns in our books. Seeing them in person, under the combined lighting and moonlight, was beautiful. It's truly a place worth seeing," Cevik told Xinhua.

He was particularly moved by the ancient library, stating, "Its existence underscores the profound importance of valuing literature from that era," and noted that the illumination made it even more magnificent at night.

Ephesus's grand structures, including the theater and library, were primarily built during the Roman period, particularly from the 1st century B.C. onward.

While the Night Museums project attracts more tourists, it has also boosted the number of visitors to the digital museums in the ancient cities.

DEM Museums, a visual art design company, has transformed an old gendarmerie building into a stunning digital museum that brings Ephesus's history to life through projections and holograms.

"Looking around now, we truly enjoy the ambiance of the nighttime museum experience. The lighting and the way people experience the night here are unique," Eda Bildiricioglu, CEO of the DEM, told Xinhua after a show.

According to Bildiricioglu, the project has resulted in at least a 10 percent increase in visitors compared to last year. "This rise has certainly been reflected in the museum's attendance," she noted.

Bildiricioglu also highlighted that exploring historical sites in the evening provides a refreshing experience, allowing visitors to enjoy the comfort of the cool night air rather than the heat of the summer sun. 

Tourists visit the ancient city of Ephesus at night in Izmir, Trkiye, Aug. 14, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Lei)

Tourists visit the ancient city of Ephesus at night in Izmir, Trkiye, Aug. 14, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Lei)

Editor: JYZ
Altice USA, Inc. (NYSE:ATUS  Get Free Report) shot up 5.1% on Monday . The company traded as high as $1.68 and last traded at $1.65. 726,514 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 3,471,780 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1.57.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on ATUS. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Altice USA from $3.00 to $2.00 and set an in-line rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. UBS Group cut Altice USA from a buy rating to a neutral rating and lowered their target price for the company from $4.00 to $2.00 in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Altice USA in a research report on Monday, July 1st. They set a sell rating and a $2.00 target price for the company. Loop Capital decreased their price target on Altice USA from $3.00 to $2.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on Altice USA in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. They set an underperform rating and a $1.50 price objective for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Altice USA presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $1.97.

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Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on Altice USA

Altice USA Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $837.13 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 186.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.48. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $1.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $2.17.

Altice USA (NYSE:ATUS  Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $0.08 by ($0.05). Altice USA had a negative net margin of 0.62% and a negative return on equity of 1.54%. The company had revenue of $2.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.25 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.17 earnings per share. The businesss revenue was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Altice USA, Inc. will post 0.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Altice USA

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. King Street Capital Management L.P. acquired a new position in Altice USA in the second quarter valued at about $5,100,000. Empyrean Capital Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Altice USA in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,080,000. CastleKnight Management LP increased its stake in Altice USA by 676.6% during the 4th quarter. CastleKnight Management LP now owns 1,459,685 shares of the companys stock worth $4,744,000 after purchasing an additional 1,271,734 shares in the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Altice USA during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,914,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Altice USA by 16.6% during the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,528,572 shares of the companys stock worth $11,820,000 after buying an additional 643,731 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.85% of the companys stock.

Altice USA Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Altice USA, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides broadband communications and video services in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. It offers broadband, video, telephony, and mobile services to residential and business customers. The company's video services include delivery of broadcast stations and cable networks; over the top services; video-on-demand, high-definition channels, digital video recorder, and pay-per-view services; and platforms for video programming through mobile applications.

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Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST  Free Report) by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 10,462 shares of the medical instruments suppliers stock after purchasing an additional 303 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorps holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services were worth $3,446,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of WST. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter worth about $300,250,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 23.2% during the 4th quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 1,961,063 shares of the medical instruments suppliers stock worth $690,530,000 after acquiring an additional 369,792 shares during the period. APG Asset Management US Inc. acquired a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter worth about $88,227,000. TD Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 38.4% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 659,560 shares of the medical instruments suppliers stock worth $232,244,000 after acquiring an additional 183,153 shares during the period. Finally, Findlay Park Partners LLP grew its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 65.2% during the 4th quarter. Findlay Park Partners LLP now owns 457,306 shares of the medical instruments suppliers stock worth $161,027,000 after acquiring an additional 180,415 shares during the period. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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West Pharmaceutical Services Trading Up 1.7 %

West Pharmaceutical Services stock traded up $5.19 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $304.31. 195,462 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 567,375. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firms 50 day simple moving average is $313.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $348.63. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $265.00 and a twelve month high of $415.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.07 billion, a PE ratio of 40.15, a PEG ratio of 10.68 and a beta of 1.00.

Insider Activity

West Pharmaceutical Services ( NYSE:WST Get Free Report ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $1.74 by ($0.22). The business had revenue of $702.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $729.36 million. West Pharmaceutical Services had a return on equity of 19.17% and a net margin of 18.25%. The businesss revenue was down 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.11 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.44 earnings per share for the current year.

In other news, SVP Silji Abraham sold 1,800 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.78, for a total value of $595,404.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,860 shares in the company, valued at approximately $946,030.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other West Pharmaceutical Services news, SVP Silji Abraham sold 1,800 shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.78, for a total transaction of $595,404.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,860 shares in the company, valued at approximately $946,030.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Charles Witherspoon sold 1,029 shares of West Pharmaceutical Services stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $308,700.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,478 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $443,400. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About West Pharmaceutical Services

(Free Report)

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc designs, manufactures, and sells containment and delivery systems for injectable drugs and healthcare products in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. It operates in two segments, Proprietary Products and Contract-Manufactured Products.

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Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO  Free Report) by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,060 shares of the oil and gas companys stock after purchasing an additional 347 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorps holdings in Valero Energy were worth $2,204,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Valero Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $570,428,000. Putnam Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 3,445,821 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $447,957,000 after purchasing an additional 122,207 shares in the last quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. grew its position in Valero Energy by 18.7% in the 4th quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 2,389,654 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $310,655,000 after purchasing an additional 376,449 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Valero Energy by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,063,923 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $352,292,000 after purchasing an additional 65,632 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Valero Energy by 37.6% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,558,750 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $266,040,000 after buying an additional 426,093 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.69% of the companys stock.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

VLO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Argus cut shares of Valero Energy from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Thursday, May 16th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on Valero Energy from $187.00 to $169.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 14th. StockNews.com lowered Valero Energy from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Mizuho upgraded Valero Energy from a neutral rating to an outperform rating and upped their price target for the stock from $165.00 to $175.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Valero Energy from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Valero Energy currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $174.00.

Valero Energy Stock Performance

Shares of VLO traded up $2.61 on Wednesday, reaching $143.87. 2,685,295 shares of the companys stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,016,404. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market cap of $46.09 billion, a PE ratio of 7.00, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.42. The stocks 50 day simple moving average is $151.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $155.59. Valero Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $119.88 and a 52-week high of $184.79.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO  Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $2.60 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $34.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.97 billion. Valero Energy had a return on equity of 21.01% and a net margin of 4.25%. Valero Energys revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.40 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Valero Energy Co. will post 13.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Valero Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.07 per share. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.97%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 1st. Valero Energys dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.20%.

About Valero Energy

(Free Report)

Valero Energy Corporation manufactures, markets, and sells petroleum-based and low-carbon liquid transportation fuels and petrochemical products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latin America, Mexico, Peru, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Refining, Renewable Diesel, and Ethanol.

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Bay Rivers Group increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH  Free Report) by 2.2% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 6,503 shares of the healthcare conglomerates stock after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the quarter. UnitedHealth Group accounts for approximately 1.7% of Bay Rivers Groups portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Bay Rivers Groups holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $3,312,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 40.0% during the 2nd quarter. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the healthcare conglomerates stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 0.6% during the second quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 3,410 shares of the healthcare conglomerates stock valued at $1,737,000 after buying an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Veracity Capital LLC grew its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Veracity Capital LLC now owns 1,335 shares of the healthcare conglomerates stock worth $660,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Rodgers Brothers Inc. raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Rodgers Brothers Inc. now owns 842 shares of the healthcare conglomerates stock valued at $417,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aprio Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 2.1% during the second quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 975 shares of the healthcare conglomerates stock valued at $497,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on UNH. StockNews.com raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Wednesday. Barclays increased their price objective on UnitedHealth Group from $560.00 to $604.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $555.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Argus lifted their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, HSBC lifted their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $580.00 to $610.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Buy and an average price target of $614.17.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Down 0.4 %

UnitedHealth Group stock traded down $2.56 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $578.09. The company had a trading volume of 2,844,357 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,186,487. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $436.38 and a fifty-two week high of $591.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $533.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.59. The firms fifty day moving average is $534.45 and its 200-day moving average is $508.91.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH  Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.66 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $98.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $98.73 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.55% and a net margin of 3.66%. The firms revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $6.14 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.69 earnings per share for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. UnitedHealth Groups payout ratio is 51.34%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other UnitedHealth Group news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total transaction of $868,545.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 7,785 shares in the company, valued at $4,507,748.55. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other UnitedHealth Group news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,500 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $579.03, for a total transaction of $868,545.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,785 shares in the company, valued at $4,507,748.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 2,851 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.88, for a total value of $1,624,727.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 29,501 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,812,029.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the companys stock.

UnitedHealth Group Company Profile

(Free Report)

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated operates as a diversified health care company in the United States. The company operates through four segments: UnitedHealthcare, Optum Health, Optum Insight, and Optum Rx. The UnitedHealthcare segment offers consumer-oriented health benefit plans and services for national employers, public sector employers, mid-sized employers, small businesses, and individuals; health care coverage, and health and well-being services to individuals age 50 and older addressing their needs; Medicaid plans, children's health insurance and health care programs; and health and dental benefits, and hospital and clinical services, as well as health care benefits products and services to state programs caring for the economically disadvantaged, medically underserved, and those without the benefit of employer-funded health care coverage.

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Crescent Grove Advisors LLC cut its position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY  Free Report) by 53.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 5,090 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock after selling 5,785 shares during the quarter. Crescent Grove Advisors LLCs holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb were worth $211,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. RTD Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,579,000. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC increased its position in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 4.1% during the second quarter. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC now owns 16,292 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock worth $677,000 after buying an additional 640 shares in the last quarter. Investment House LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 39.4% in the second quarter. Investment House LLC now owns 45,395 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock worth $1,885,000 after acquiring an additional 12,825 shares during the last quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI lifted its position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 9.1% in the second quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 6,613 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $275,000 after acquiring an additional 551 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Capital Group California Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 76.7% during the second quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. now owns 6,733 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $280,000 after acquiring an additional 2,922 shares during the last quarter. 76.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $53.00 to $45.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Barclays lowered shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating and set a $41.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a neutral rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $45.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Bristol-Myers Squibb presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $54.86.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Stock Down 1.1 %

NYSE BMY traded down $0.54 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $48.44. The company had a trading volume of 7,779,499 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,766,904. The firms 50 day moving average is $44.12 and its 200 day moving average is $46.59. The company has a market capitalization of $98.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -15.63, a P/E/G ratio of 12.51 and a beta of 0.44. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a fifty-two week low of $39.35 and a fifty-two week high of $63.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.86, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY  Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.64 by $0.43. The business had revenue of $12.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.54 billion. Bristol-Myers Squibb had a positive return on equity of 12.51% and a negative net margin of 14.06%. The companys revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.75 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Bristol-Myers Squibb will post 0.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 5th were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 5th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.95%. Bristol-Myers Squibbs payout ratio is currently -77.42%.

About Bristol-Myers Squibb

(Free Report)

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company discovers, develops, licenses, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells biopharmaceutical products worldwide. It offers products for hematology, oncology, cardiovascular, immunology, fibrotic, and neuroscience diseases. The company's products include Eliquis for reduction in risk of stroke/systemic embolism in non-valvular atrial fibrillation, and for the treatment of DVT/PE; Opdivo for various anti-cancer indications, including bladder, blood, CRC, head and neck, RCC, HCC, lung, melanoma, MPM, stomach and esophageal cancer; Pomalyst/Imnovid for multiple myeloma; Orencia for active rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis; and Sprycel for the treatment of Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia.

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Crescent Grove Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB  Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 5,417 shares of the oil and gas companys stock, valued at approximately $257,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oak Harvest Investment Services increased its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 8.0% in the 2nd quarter. Oak Harvest Investment Services now owns 244,763 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $11,548,000 after acquiring an additional 18,231 shares during the last quarter. Reliant Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Schlumberger by 1.2% during the second quarter. Reliant Investment Management LLC now owns 126,493 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $5,968,000 after purchasing an additional 1,450 shares during the last quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI raised its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 542.4% during the second quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 75,498 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $3,562,000 after purchasing an additional 63,746 shares during the period. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Schlumberger in the 2nd quarter worth about $103,000. Finally, Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Schlumberger by 9.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 205,877 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $9,713,000 after buying an additional 18,540 shares during the period. 81.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Insider Buying and Selling

In other Schlumberger news, insider Bejar Carmen Rando sold 4,980 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Friday, June 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.43, for a total transaction of $216,281.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,518 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $977,956.74. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Mogharbel Khaled Al sold 120,668 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.19, for a total transaction of $6,056,326.92. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 247,699 shares in the company, valued at $12,432,012.81. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Bejar Carmen Rando sold 4,980 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.43, for a total transaction of $216,281.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 22,518 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $977,956.74. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 185,696 shares of company stock valued at $9,264,905. Company insiders own 0.26% of the companys stock.

Schlumberger Price Performance

Shares of SLB traded up $0.16 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $44.20. 5,528,098 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,718,373. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $46.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $48.34. The company has a market capitalization of $62.75 billion, a PE ratio of 14.68, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.49 and a quick ratio of 1.13. Schlumberger Limited has a one year low of $42.61 and a one year high of $62.12.

Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB  Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.02. Schlumberger had a return on equity of 21.92% and a net margin of 12.56%. The firm had revenue of $9.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $9.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.72 EPS. Schlumbergers revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Schlumberger Limited will post 3.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Schlumberger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 4th will be given a $0.275 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 4th. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.49%. Schlumbergers dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on SLB shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Schlumberger from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating and cut their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $53.00 in a report on Monday, April 29th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Schlumberger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Citigroup dropped their target price on Schlumberger from $65.00 to $62.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an outperform rating and set a $69.00 target price on shares of Schlumberger in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on Schlumberger from $67.00 to $63.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $67.00.

View Our Latest Analysis on SLB

Schlumberger Company Profile

(Free Report)

Schlumberger Limited engages in the provision of technology for the energy industry worldwide. The company operates through four divisions: Digital & Integration, Reservoir Performance, Well Construction, and Production Systems. The company provides field development and hydrocarbon production, carbon management, and integration of adjacent energy systems; reservoir interpretation and data processing services for exploration data; and well construction and production improvement services and products.

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McEwen Mining Inc (NYSE:MUX  Get Free Report) (TSE:MUX) shares shot up 8.9% during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $9.85 and last traded at $9.81. 714,207 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 3% from the average session volume of 695,113 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.01.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Roth Mkm restated a buy rating and set a $12.00 target price (up previously from $11.00) on shares of McEwen Mining in a research note on Friday, May 10th. StockNews.com cut shares of McEwen Mining from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, HC Wainwright increased their target price on shares of McEwen Mining from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th.

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McEwen Mining Stock Up 1.0 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The business has a 50 day moving average of $9.39 and a 200-day moving average of $9.57. The stock has a market cap of $502.27 million, a PE ratio of 6.00 and a beta of 1.40.

McEwen Mining (NYSE:MUX  Get Free Report) (TSE:MUX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The basic materials company reported ($0.26) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.22) by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $47.48 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $43.90 million. McEwen Mining had a return on equity of 18.08% and a net margin of 46.32%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.46) EPS. Equities research analysts predict that McEwen Mining Inc will post -0.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other McEwen Mining news, CFO Perry Ing sold 23,332 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.76, for a total value of $227,720.32. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 15,551 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $151,777.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other McEwen Mining news, CFO Perry Ing sold 23,332 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.76, for a total transaction of $227,720.32. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 15,551 shares in the company, valued at approximately $151,777.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Carmen L. Diges sold 17,066 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.44, for a total value of $161,103.04. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 10,982 shares of the companys stock, valued at $103,670.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 42,901 shares of company stock valued at $413,353. Company insiders own 17.11% of the companys stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On McEwen Mining

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Polunin Capital Partners Ltd purchased a new position in McEwen Mining in the first quarter valued at about $6,730,000. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new stake in McEwen Mining during the first quarter worth $1,348,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in McEwen Mining in the first quarter valued at $1,023,000. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of McEwen Mining by 3.3% in the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,118,520 shares of the basic materials companys stock valued at $19,448,000 after buying an additional 67,885 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its stake in shares of McEwen Mining by 41.3% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 196,910 shares of the basic materials companys stock worth $1,808,000 after buying an additional 57,600 shares during the last quarter. 17.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About McEwen Mining

(Get Free Report)

McEwen Mining Inc engages in the exploration, development, production, and sale of gold and silver. It also explores for copper deposits. The company owns 100% interests in the El Gallo and Fenix projects located in Mexico; and the Black Fox Mine and Stock Mill, Grey Fox, and Froome and Tamarack properties in Canada.

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Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of ORIX Co. (NYSE:IX  Free Report) by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,660 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLCs holdings in ORIX were worth $407,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in IX. CWM LLC boosted its position in ORIX by 10.8% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 956 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $106,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of ORIX by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 4,244 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $468,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of ORIX by 44.7% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 453 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE grew its stake in shares of ORIX by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 6,530 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $610,000 after buying an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in ORIX by 27.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 840 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $93,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 1.73% of the companys stock.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of ORIX from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th.

ORIX Stock Up 1.2 %

NYSE IX traded up $1.46 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $120.00. 12,603 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,783. ORIX Co. has a 12 month low of $86.05 and a 12 month high of $120.99. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $113.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $108.44. The company has a market capitalization of $27.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.54 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

ORIX Company Profile

(Free Report)

ORIX Corporation provides diversified financial services in Japan, the United States, Asia, Europe, Australasia, and the Middle East. The company's Corporate Financial Services and Maintenance Leasing segment is involved in the finance and fee; leasing and rental of automobiles, electronic measuring instruments, and ICT-related equipment businesses; and provision of life insurance and environment and energy-related products and services.

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Rio Tinto Group (LON:RIO  Get Free Report)s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as GBX 4,522.57 ($58.77) and last traded at GBX 4,824.50 ($62.69), with a volume of 1516440 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at GBX 4,742 ($61.62).

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup reaffirmed a neutral rating on shares of Rio Tinto Group in a research note on Monday, June 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Rio Tinto Group from GBX 6,500 ($84.46) to GBX 6,430 ($83.55) and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Bank of America reiterated a buy rating and set a GBX 7,700 ($100.05) price objective on shares of Rio Tinto Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a buy rating and issued a GBX 6,200 ($80.56) target price on shares of Rio Tinto Group in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, Berenberg Bank cut shares of Rio Tinto Group from a buy rating to a hold rating and decreased their target price for the company from GBX 5,900 ($76.66) to GBX 5,800 ($75.36) in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of GBX 6,305 ($81.93).

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Rio Tinto Group Price Performance

Rio Tinto Group Cuts Dividend

The stocks 50-day simple moving average is GBX 5,068.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is GBX 5,210.90. The firm has a market cap of 60.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 944.43, a PEG ratio of -0.64 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 25.01, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a $1.77 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 15th. Rio Tinto Groups dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6,660.16%.

Rio Tinto Group Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Rio Tinto Group engages in exploring, mining, and processing mineral resources worldwide. The company operates through Iron Ore, Aluminium, Copper, and Minerals Segments. The Iron Ore segment engages in the iron ore mining, and salt and gypsum production in Western Australia. The Aluminum segment is involved in bauxite mining; alumina refining; and aluminium smelting.

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Do you know how long the entire stretch of the Badaling Great Wall is? Currently, less than one-fifth of it is open to the public. After 40 years of restoration work, 90% of the Badaling Great Wall has been restored, and it is expected to be fully accessible by 2025. Once completed, visitors will be able to hike from beacon tower No.1 to Shixia Village, experiencing nearly 23 kilometers of the Great Wall's majestic scenery.

In this episode, we follow the footsteps of Melissa, a Russian international student, as she explores the newly restored western section of the Badaling Great Wall. There, she engages in an in-depth discussion with Yu Haikuan, head of the Cultural Relics Management Office of the Yanqing District Cultural Relics Bureau in Beijing, about the restoration process and its historical significance. Melissa shares that this visit not only allowed her to once again appreciate the grandeur of the Great Wall but also gave her a deeper understanding of the complexities involved in preserving China's cultural heritage. She hopes that more international friends will visit the Great Wall to personally experience its beauty.

Editor: WRX
Kenyan police who are part of a UN-backed multinational force sing and dance on the tarmac after landing at Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, July 16, 2024. Another 200 police officers from Kenya arrived for a U.N.- backed mission led by the East African country to battle violent gangs that have taken

over parts of the Caribbean country. AP
Suspected terrorists locally dubbed as bandits have attacked Unguwar Magero village in Gurmana ward of Shiroro Local Government Area, Niger State, killing no fewer than 12 people at a local mining site.

The gunmen reportedly found the miners at the site and immediately opened fire, leaving a trail of death.

Unguwar Magero, a community close to Madaka and Magami communities that has been ravaged by the bandits was the scene of this tragic incident.

Sources told newsmen that the bandits shot indiscriminately, killing the miners.

Other sources suggest the number of deaths could be higher, saying, There are more than 12 people killed.

Similarly, in Bassa community, also within Shiroro Local Government Area, bandits kidnapped an unspecified number of people on Tuesday.

The back-to-back attacks have left residents in fear, as the bandits continue their violent activities in the region.

Niger State Acting Governor, Comrade Yakubu Garba condemns the attack on Rafi and Shiroro local government areas of the State that led to the loss of some lives.

The Acting Governor in a statement by the Chief Press Secretary, Bologi Ibrahim, describes the attack as satanic, insensible, atrocious and callous.

He says it is very disheartening and disturbing for fellow humans to carry out such a barbaric and vicious act on their fellow humans.

The Acting Governor, while commiserating with the affected families, community members and the entire people of Shiroro local government area over the unfortunate incident, prays Allah to repose the souls of the departed, comfort their loved ones and grant quick healing to those injured.

He restated the Bago-led administration's unwavering determination and commitment to taming the tide of insecurity in the State even as he encourages the Security Agencies not to be discouraged by the attacks on communities by the men of the underworld, assuring them of every support that would lead them to victory over evil.
Benin August 22, 2024: The NEPL/Seplat Energy Joint Venture (JV) has launched the 5th edition of its transformative Seplat Teachers Empowerment Programme (STEP), marking a significant milestone in its commitment to education. Since its inception, STEP has empowered 1,373 individuals, including 1,264 secondary school teachers and 109 Chief Inspectors of Education (CIEs) across Edo, Delta states and host communities, equipping them with essential skills in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM). This initiative has not only enhanced the quality of education but has also ignited creativity and innovation within classrooms.

The 2024 edition was officially flagged off on August 22, 2024 in Benin, Edo State, bringing together 359 teachers and 22 Chief Inspectors of Education (CIEs) from across Edo, Delta States and supporting communities. This continued investment by the NEPL/Seplat JV underscores its unwavering commitment to elevating education in its host states and communities.

In her address, the Director, External Affairs & Social Performance, Seplat Energy, Chioma Afe, highlighted the strategic vision behind STEP, stating, "Five years ago, we conducted a thorough assessment of our host communities in Edo and Delta states to identify their most pressing needs. Education emerged as the top priority, not only for the children but also for the teachers who are instrumental in shaping the future of the students. Through STEP, we are creating a comprehensive educational ecosystemimpacting teachers, students, school infrastructure, and even the Ministries of Education. This approach ensures that our investment in education will yield long-lasting benefits for the entire community."

Afe further emphasized the comprehensive nature of the programme, noting that participating teachers undergo a rigorous four-day workshop covering leadership, digital skills, STEAM, and essential life skills. "We have provided each teacher with a tablet equipped with the STEP app, granting them access to a wealth of teacher-focused resources from Microsoft, as well as ongoing support from facilitators. This programme is an ongoing journey of professional growth and empowerment. We will return in six months for the graduation ceremony, where the teachers will share their success stories and be recognized for their achievements," she added.

The Commissioner, Ministry of Education, Edo State, Joan Osa Oviawe, represented by a Permanent Secretary in the Edo State Public Service, Mr Ojo Akin-Longe, expressed the state government's deep appreciation for the partnership with the Seplat JV, stating, "Initiatives like STEP are a testament to NEPL/Seplat Energy JVs deep commitment to the communities in which they operate. By partnering with us to enhance the capacity of our teachers, NEPL/Seplat Energy JV is playing a crucial role in developing the potential of our children and, by extension, the future of Edo State. We are grateful for their continued support and pledge our full cooperation to ensure the success of this programme."

The Commissioner, Ministry of Secondary Education, Delta State, Mrs. Rose Ezewu, represented by Deputy Director (Schools), Delta State Ministry of Secondary Education, Mrs Justina Ishaka, echoed these sentiments, praising STEP as a catalyst for educational reform. "STEP is more than just a training initiative; it represents a comprehensive approach to improving the quality of education in Delta State. Over 500 teachers in our state have already benefited from this programme, and its positive impact will continue to ripple through our communities for years to come. We commend the NEPL/Seplat JV for their unwavering commitment to education and their partnership in this noble endeavour."

Representing NNPC Exploration & Production Limited (NEPL) at the event, Managing Director Nicolas Foucart represented by Deputy Manager, Operations Management Seplat, NEPL, Uzoma Ezulu, emphasized the vital role of teachers in society, saying "The NEPL/Seplat JV STEP Programme is one of our key contributions to the communities we serve. We all recognize the indispensable role teachers play in shaping the future, and through STEP, we express our gratitude for their tireless efforts. We are committed to continuing our support for teachers and ensuring they have the resources they need to succeed."

The impact of the STEP programme is evident in the testimonials of participating teachers. Oloye Funmilayo from Itohan Girls Grammar School, Benin City, shared: "The STEP programme has significantly boosted my self-awareness and confidence as an educator. I now feel empowered to inspire my students to achieve greatness, knowing that I am equipped with the tools to make a difference in their lives."

Charity Okpue from Ethiope Mixed Secondary School, Sapele, Delta added, Since joining the STEP programme, I have gained invaluable insights into emotional intelligence and effective classroom management. This training has exceeded my expectations and has provided me with the skills to better handle challenging situations and foster a positive learning environment for my students."

The 2024 STEP edition began with an intensive four-day residential workshop and will be followed by six months of online training, providing participants with ongoing leadership and self-improvement opportunities. Equipped with state-of-the-art STEAM gadgets and apps, these educators are now better prepared to deliver high-quality education that meets the demands of a rapidly evolving world.

As NEPL/Seplat JV continues to invest in educational development through STEP, the programme's success highlights the critical importance of empowering educators to drive meaningful change in their classrooms and communities. This commitment to education will undoubtedly contribute to the long-term prosperity of Edo and Delta states and, by extension, Nigeria as a whole.
Junior doctors from various medical colleges and hospitals across West Bengal on Wednesday staged a dharna in front of the Swasthya Bhaban, demanding justice for the rape and murder and increased security in their workplaces.

A rally of doctors both seniors and juniors belonging to the West Bengal Junior Doctors Front, under the banner of We Want Justice reached the CBI office at CGO Complex at Salt Lake first and then marched towards the Swasthya Bhaban.

The protesters also demanded the presence of the newly-appointed principal of R G Kar Medical College Hospital Prof (Dr) Suhrita Paul alleging that she had not been present at her office.

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Doctors belonging to around 21 state-run teaching hospitals in West Bengal took part in the agitation today. Main gate of the Swasthya Bhaban was locked from inside amidst strong police arrangements.

A delegation of around 35 doctors were allowed to meet senior health department officials to submit their charters of demands.
The Union home ministry has written to state chief secretary regarding the deployment of Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel at the R G Kar Medical College in Kolkata, where the rape and murder of the trainee doctor took place.

According to sources, it was following the Supreme Court order regarding security of the medical institution by the CAPF, the home ministry on Wednesday wrote to the states chief secretary.

On Tuesday, the apex court had directed, on a suggestion by the central government, the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) to take over the security of the R G Kar Medical College and Hospital.

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The apex court had set up a high-powered National Task Force (NTF) to look into the issues of safety of doctors, nurses and other medical professions in the hospitals and medical colleges.

A team of the CAPF-led by a senior officer did a survey of the said hospital where the alleged incident of rape and murder of the trainee doctor took place.

For the security of the hospital and the resident doctors, an armed team of the central armed police force will soon be deployed at the campus.

The incident has triggered protests across the country, while Kolkata has also been witnessing strong protests in wake of the incident that has shaken everyone.
If one could pen down his or her fleeting thoughts about this, that and the other, and turn them into a little booklet, it could make for a potentially delightful read. And that is exactly what Samir Kumar Das Gupta has done in Random Thoughts, Problems and Possible Solutions. But make no mistake. In spite of what the title would ostensibly suggest, the subjects which the author has delved into for his reflections, discussions and subsequent analyses transcend the problems of day-to-day life or the just mundane and touch upon issues of significant political, developmental, economic and even cultural importance, prerequisite of which discussions is a vast and in-depth knowledge of the subjects.

A retired technocrat, Das Guptas topics of ruminations range from local civic problems which the township of Salt Lake City, in the outskirts of Calcutta, is deeply mired in to issues of national interest like taxation to international concerns like the Kashmir issue.

The author brings up the topics, introducing the latent problems lurking within and discusses the reasons for why he thinks the problems exist before going onto delineating possible solutions.

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For instance, in the first two chapters, he discusses the issues which impact the residents of Salt Lake. Before providing an example, it must be pointed out that while Das Gupta himself is a resident, the discussion is not at all only an empirical one but one which delves into the history and evolution of the township and the process of gradual decline of the original intent for the creation of the township. He gives us glimpses into little known facts about the way that land was initially allotted in Salt Lake by way of lease from the government.

Das Gupta writes, BC Roy did not conceive this township for the middleclass only. Other criteria also governed the grant of leases for land/flat. The size and distributions of plots to be leased out were to be governed by socio-economic parameters. For instance, the lower middle class only were to get two to three cottahs, so that an even social fabric could be maintained in each block. The basic object was to provide homes rather than opportunities for real estate investment. Co-operative societies with members of similar socio-economic backgrounds were encouraged to construct residencies in seven to eight cottah plots. In order to maintain the desired social environment, restrictive clauses on the use of land and buildings were incorporated in the lease deeds barring sub-letting, part or full transfer of the lease holding, non-residential or commercial use of the residential holdings without the written consent of the Lessor, the Government. As penalty for infringement leases could be terminated with six months notice.

The problems Das Gupta goes on to delineate include the violations of these original lease agreements by those who were granted these leases by the Government and the lackadaisical attitude of subsequent Governments in implementing the regulations strictly or even taking punitive, decisive actions against violators. The violations by those who were granted leases, enumerated by the author, include, not just sub-letting their plots, holdings and other occupancies for residential use without prior permission but also the selling or letting out of the properties for commercial or even real estate use. He suggests a number of solutions including tighter control by the municipal corporation entrusted with the civic workings of the township and others. As an expert in the subject of civic administration, Das Guptas suggestions reflect extensive thought and reasoning, not to mention in-depth understanding of the issues, though he laments that implementation of his recommendations have not been fully taken into consideration.

Interestingly, though published this year (the book is copyrighted 2024), clearly the manuscript was written over a period of decades because some of the issues the author raises date back to the time of the former state government, that is the CPIM-led Left Front government. The suggestions he makes too seem to address old regimes like the Left Front government (1977 to 2011) or the UPA government of the 1990s. For instance, he urges the Left Front government to do more than just raise concerns about taxation of fuel or oil for domestic consumption and advocates that the (then) state government outright demand abolition of such taxation from the (then) central government. Das Guptas take on liberalisation of the economy of the 1990a too reads as though these are current issues and not those of two decades ago.

As for the perspicacious reader, the times and dates which do not occur in any chronological order in the book, would unlikely to pose problems. However, for the uninitiated it could take away from the ease of understanding which the author is attempting to induce in his readers judging by the way he argues his points.

For instance, the way he draws up a list of possible solutions to the complex problems of political conflict between neighbouring countries in the Indian subcontinent is done with a charming simplicity. Though one could also argue against the authors suggestions as somewhat simplistic and even naive, there is no denying that Das Gupta has a heartfelt idealism and dream of an ideal society which is endearing and is conveyed through this enumeration. However, once again, the time lag poses issues (this section was obviously written when Imran Khan was Pakistan president).

In fact, that brings us to the shortfalls of this otherwise intelligently crafted, interesting and engaging book. The editors would have done well to not just introduce transitional phrases to tie together and bring in clarity about dates and time frames but also to focus a little attention on ensuring that the content is arranged cogently and more methodically. The proofreading errors too take away from the easy flow of reading.

However, if one can get past these shortcomings, this is an excellent read, if not for a lazy summer afternoon, definitely on a weekday, as a between meals snack. Crammed with little known information and knowledge on a vast range of topics, the book will provide insights into things that we would otherwise rarely contemplate.

I think an introduction of the author, Das Gupta, is mandated in order to get an idea about the richness of insights and knowledge that the readers can expect from this tiny tome.

We read, Throughout his working life as a technocrat he came in touch with people ranging from blue collared workers to highly talented engineers, bureaucrats and politicians in India and abroad. After retirement from active professional services, he settled in the planned township called Salt Lake City in Kolkata as one of the Lessees of the Governor of West Bengal. As a Lessee, he wondered how he and others like him could be involved in the socio-economic affairs of the (Salt Lake City) Society. He gave advice to many top-ranking politicians on matters of governance.

While his expertise shines through, I am sure the sensitivity of the authors idealism can be attributed to his humble beginnings in a village in undivided India and the wisdom of his age. Born in January 1929, Dacca, the then district capital of British India, Samir Kumar Das Gupta spent his early childhood in a village named Binauti in the western banks of the Titas river.

Random Thoughts, Problems and Possible Solutions

By Dr Samir Kumar Das Gupta

Crown Publishing, 2024

78 pages, Rs 168/-
A special meeting of the Standing Scientific Research Committee (SSRC) was convened with exclusive focus on Research and Development (R&D) projects within the coal sector on advancing exploration techniques, enhancing coal production, improving safety measures, & safeguarding the environment.

At the meeting, the Ministry of Coal sought suggestions for shaping the future course of R&D in the coal sector.

The meeting was held under the chairmanship of Secretary, Ministry of Coal, Amrit Lal Meena, in hybrid mode.

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The participants engaged in detailed discussions and made several key suggestions, including frequent reviews of high-impact R&D projects to ensure alignment with sectoral goals; provide incentives for participating mines and researchers from institutes/organisations that demonstrate impactful outcomes; organise a national seminar annually to highlight the outcomes of beneficial R&D projects.

They also suggested formation of an advisory committee comprising IITs, NITs, and other reputed government and private mining institutes to sensitise students and researchers to ongoing R&D activities and challenges in the coal and energy sector.

They said that the Central Mine Planning and Design Institute (CMPDI) should visit mining institutes and research organisations across the country to raise awareness about R&D activities in the coal and energy sector.

The participants emphasised on research in areas related to energy transition and achieving net-zero emissions, as well as promote the success of R&D projects and activities through digital platforms and social media.

Also, establishment of a single platform for all R&D activities in the coal and lignite sector to avoid duplication of research efforts was discussed.

During the meeting, the CMPDI delivered a comprehensive presentation on various aspects of R&D in the coal sector, highlighting the challenges, actions taken, and the way forward.

It was noted that Phase-1 of the National Centre for Coal and Energy Research (NaCCER) is currently being established at CMPDI, Ranchi, to advance research in various domains within the coal and energy sectors.

Additionally, several high-impact projects, both completed and ongoing under the R&D/S&T scheme of CIL/MoC, were presented.

The SSRC includes representatives from multiple ministries and departments such as the Department of Science and Technology (DST), NITI Aayog, and the Directorate General of Mines Safety (DGMS), as well as industry representatives from Coal India Limited (CIL), NLC India Limited (NLCIL), Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL), and Central Mine Planning and Design Institute (CMPDI).

Notable academic institutions such as IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, IIT (BHU) Varanasi, and IIT Kanpur, along with research organizations like Central Institute of Mining and Fuel Research (CIMFR) and Central Mechanical Engineering Research Institute (CMERI), also participated.
Delhi Police said it has dismantled an Al-Qaeda-inspired terror module following raids in multiple states while in coordination with the local police.

In the significant intelligence-driven operation, the Special Cell of Delhi Police, in collaboration with state police forces from Jharkhand, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh, made multiple arrests, according to the police on Wednesday.

According to the Delhi Police, the module was allegedly led by Dr Ishtiyaq from Ranchi, who was reportedly planning to declare a Khilafat and carry out serious terrorist activities within India.

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Intelligence reports indicate that members of the module had undergone indoctrination and weapons training at various undisclosed locations.

The cops said that as part of the operation, six individuals were detained in Bhiwadi, Rajasthan, where they were actively engaged in weapons-handling training.

Additionally, eight suspects from Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh were taken into custody for questioning. The coordinated efforts have resulted in raids at 15 locations in Ranchi, one in Rajasthan, and one in Aligarh, added cops.

It further asserted that the ongoing investigations have led to the recovery of arms, ammunition, and incriminating literature from multiple locations. The authorities anticipate further arrests as interrogations continue.

The police asserted that the operation is ongoing to further investigate other suspected individuals involved in such activities.
The Resident Doctors Association (RDA) of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) called off their strike on Thursday in response to the appeal and direction of the Supreme Court.

The RDA has been protesting, demanding justice for the woman postgraduate trainee (PGT) doctor, who was brutally raped and murdered in West Bengal, and Central Protection Act (CPA) for healthcare professionals to ensure their safety.

The RDA, Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) also called off the strike.

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In a statement, the RDA AIIMS, New Delhi said, In the interest of the nation and in the spirit of public service, the RDA, AIIMS, New Delhi, has decided to call off 11-day strike. This decision comes in response to the appeal and direction of the Supreme Court. 

We extend our sincere appreciation to the Supreme Court for taking cognizance of the RG Kar Medical College incident and addressing the broader issue of safety and security for healthcare workers across the country. We also commend the formation of the National Task Force (NTF) to ensure that these concerns are addressed promptly and effectively, it said.

The RDA AIIMS also urged the authorities to strictly adhere to the directives issued by the apex court.

We appreciate the courts directive that no punitive action be taken against the protesting doctors. We thank everyone who supported us in our pursuit of justice. Our commitment to our responsibilities remains steadfast, and we will continue to advocate for the rights and safety of healthcare workers through engagement with various authorities, ministries, institutional heads, members of the NTF, and the Supreme Court and our demand for CPA, the statement said.

The AIIMS RDA further said, Our primary responsibility- patient care remains our utmost priority, and we are dedicated to upholding it. We stand united in our mission. We will continue our struggle through symbolic protest after duty hours till justice is served and implementation of safety guidelines.

Notably, the AIIMS on Thursday urged the protesting resident doctors to resume their duties in the interest of patient care.

In a statement, the RDA, RML said, In view of the developments with respect to our demands, and our concerns being addressed by the SC, we hereby declare the strike to be withheld.We hereby have decided to resume all our duties.

We have requested residents to resume services from 23rd August, 8 am onwards. However, we emphasise that our solidarity for the cause remains unwavering, and we will continue to support ongoing efforts to improve the safety and rights of our residents, it said.

Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) has decided to call off the strike following positive directions from the Chief Justice of India. We welcome the acceptance of our prayers for interim protections & the necessary steps to enhance security in hospitals. United, We will continue to fight legally, it said in a statement.
The teaser for actor and BJP MP Kangana Ranauts upcoming film Emergency, which she has also backed and directed, has attracted controversy. The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) has objected to the depiction of Sikhs in the film and has demanded a ban on it in the state. Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leaders have also voiced similar concerns. They have opposed the films release and asked Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to clarify his stance on the matter.

The backlash began after the films trailer was released, sparking controversy over the portrayal of Sikhs. The trailer includes a Sikh character delivering a controversial line.

On Wednesday, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal demanded that a criminal case be filed against Kangana Ranaut for allegedly hurting the religious sentiments of Sikhs through her film Emergency. Sukhbir, who was in Gidderbaha to meet party workers, stated: It is unfortunate that Kangana is deliberately working to provoke sentiments against patriotic Sikhs and destroy communal harmony.

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View this post on Instagram A post shared by Kangana Ranaut (@kanganaranaut)

Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal has called for the film to be reviewed by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) before its release. Responding to the trailer, Harsimrat expressed concern about the potential defamation of the Sikh community. In a media interaction, she said, I havent seen the film, but if any party fought the hardest during the Emergency, it was the Shiromani Akali Dal. The late Parkash Singh Badal was the first to lead the movement and was arrested along with others. She added that the Akali Dal endured significant hardships and arrests during the Emergency. Harsimrat argued that if Sikhs are not portrayed fairly in the film, it could be due to Kanganas role not allowing for a fair depiction of Sikhs. History shows Kangana has used derogatory language against Punjabis, especially during the farmers protests, which indicates her bias.

SGPC president Advocate Harjinder Singh Dhami has also demanded an immediate ban on Emergency, alleging it misrepresents Sikhs. He criticized the inconsistency in film censorship, noting that Punjab 95, a film about human rights activist Bhai Jaswant Singh Kalra, was not approved even after 85 cuts, while Emergency was cleared despite its alleged contentious portrayal of the Sikh community.

Sarabjit Singh Khalsa, an independent MP elected from Faridkot this year and the son of Beant Singh, one of the assassins of Indira Gandhi, was the first to object to the films trailer. Khalsa stated, The film is part of a larger conspiracy to defame the Sikh community among other communities in the country. It is an attack on the Sikhs, and the state government should take action. Hate crimes against Sikhs are on the rise in India, and this film contributes to that.

In response to the growing agitation against the film, Jagmohan Singh Raju, the BJPs state general secretary and advisor to the National Commission for Minorities, wrote a letter to Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. In his letter, he requested that the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) be doubly diligent before awarding a certificate to the movie.

Kangana Ranauts Emergency was initially scheduled for release in November of last year but was delayed. It was then set to hit theaters in June but was postponed again due to the Lok Sabha elections.
On Thursday, legendary actor Chiranjeevi marked his 69th birthday with a spiritual visit to the Venkateswara Swamy Temple in Tirumala. The superstar, known for his significant impact on Telugu, Hindi, Tamil, and Kannada cinema, made the pilgrimage to seek blessings from Lord Balaji.

Accompanied by his wife, Surekha Konidela, Chiranjeevi appeared serene and devout, dressed in a traditional off-white silk mundu and kurta, complemented by a kasavu-bordered shawl. His presence at the temple met with warmth and admiration from fellow devotees.

The day before his birthday, Chiranjeevi and his family arrived in Tirumala. Initially spotted in a casual t-shirt and jeans, the star received a hearty welcome at the local hotel, setting the tone for a day filled with reverence and celebration. His mother and wife were by his side throughout this spiritual journey.

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Chiranjeevis illustrious film career began in 1978 with the movie Punadhirallu. Over the decades, he has become a household name with memorable performances in hits like Vijetha, Indra, Shankar Dada M.B.B.S., and more recently, Bholaa Shankar. His contributions to Indian cinema have earned him widespread acclaim and a special place in the hearts of audiences across the country.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Chiranjeevi Konidela (@chiranjeevikonidela)

In May 2024, the Padma Vibhushan, Indias second-highest civilian honor, recognized Chiranjeevis extraordinary achievements. The prestigious award was presented by President Droupadi Murmu at a grand ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah in attendance.

The celebrations in Tirumala not only reflected Chiranjeevis spiritual devotion but also highlighted his continued influence and celebrated legacy in the world of cinema. As he marked another year, his presence and accomplishments resonated deeply with fans and admirers, reaffirming his status as a revered figure in Indian film history.
After generating heightened anticipation with script reading snippets, the makers of the upcoming SBS drama featuring Heirs star Park Shin Hye and Love in Contract star Kim Jae Young have announced that The Judge from Hell will premiere on Disney+ on September 21 for global K-drama fans.

On August 21, Disney+ revealed that the anticipated action-fantasy drama The Judge from Hell will be available for streaming on the platform starting September 21. The drama will feature Park Shin Hye as Kang Bit Na, a demon from hell who inhabits the body of a judge. Kim Jae Young will play Han Da On, a compassionate and warm detective dealing with criminals in a world even more ruthless than hell.

Advertisement View this post on Instagram A post shared by +  (@disneypluskr)

The drama centers on an elite judge (Park Shin Hye) with a cold demeanor who is secretly a demon. Her hidden job is to send culprits who refuse to introspect to hell. She encounters a warm and friendly detective (Kim Jae Young) who, despite his sharpness, is burdened with personal pain. Their paths cross, leading to significant changes in their lives. This romantic action fantasy explores the coexistence of good and evil and charts Bit Nas journey toward becoming a true judge dedicated to delivering justice.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by SBS   (@sbsdrama.official)

The Judge from Hell is directorial of Park Jin Pyo, known for films such as Brave Citizen, Love Forecast, and Closer to Heaven, marking his first K-drama project. Jo Yi Soo is the screenwriter. The drama also stars Kim In Kwon, Kim Ah Young, Lee Kyu Han, Kim Jae Hwa, and Kim Hye Hwa, among others.

The series will consist of 14 episodes, with new episodes airing every Friday and Saturday at 10 p.m. KST (6:30 p.m. IST). With its talented cast and creative team, expectations are high for The Judge from Hell, which is ready to captivate audiences with its compelling and engaging narrative while showcasing the chemistry between the lead actors.
The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal against the Karnataka High Courts December 7, 2023 order granting bail to Mohan Nayak N, an accused in the 2017 murder case of journalist-turned-activist Gauri Lankesh.

Dismissing the plea by the Karnataka government and Gauri Lankeshs sister Kavitha Lankesh seeking the cancellation of bail to Mohan Nayak, a bench of Justice Bela M Trivedi and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma on Tuesday (August 20, 2024) noted that he has cooperated with the trial and has not sought any adjournment so far and was in custody since July 18, 2018.

Directing the trial court to conduct the trial expeditiously, the court ordered that all the parties shall cooperate with the trial court in concluding the trial.

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Under the circumstances, we are not inclined to interfere with the impugned orders passed by the High Court. However, it is directed that the trial court shall expeditiously conduct the trial and all the parties shall cooperate with the trial court in concluding the trial, the court said in its order.

The court, in its order, said if the accused doesnt cooperate or seeks unnecessary adjournments in the case, an application can be filed to cancel his bail.

It goes without saying that if the respondent accused does not cooperate or asks for unnecessary adjournment(s) or commits breach of any condition, the State of Karnataka or the complainant shall be at liberty to apply for cancellation of bail, and if any such application is filed, the same shall be decided on its own merits and in accordance with law. The Special Leave Petitions are dismissed accordingly, the order added.

The Karnataka government and Gauri Lankeshs sister Kavitha Lankesh had approached the apex court challenging the Karnataka High Court order dated December 7, 2023, against the grant of bail to Nayak, one of the accused in the case.

Gauri Lankesh was shot dead outside her home in Bengaluru on September 5, 2017. The police had arrested 18 persons in the case.
Six persons were killed and 22 others injured when a school bus on Thursday plunged into a deep gorge near Durbuk in the Leh district of Ladakh, officials said.

According to the doctors, the condition of the two injured was critical.

The bus carrying staff members of a school to a marriage ceremony rolled into the gorge about 5 km away from the Durbuk TCP.

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Army teams evacuated the injured and shifted them to the Armys field hospital and the civil hospital at Thangste where they were given first aid.

Army helicopters were later used to shift the injured to the civil and military hospitals.

Further details are awaited.
Seven persons were killed and 20 others injured on Thursday when a school bus plunged into a gorge near Durbuk in the Leh district of Ladakh.

Among the injured were three children and 17 women, said a defence spokesman.

Indian Army personnel swiftly started a rescue operation evacuating the victims from the deep gorge.

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The driver of the bus carrying 27 passengers lost control of the vehicle and plunged into the gorge approximately 5 kilometers from Durbuk. The accident was promptly noticed by the Indian Army troops in the vicinity, who immediately rushed to the scene and initiated the evacuation of the victims.

Demonstrating remarkable efficiency and care, the soldiers quickly transported all 27 casualties to nearby medical facilities. The injured were initially shifted to the Military Hospital and Primary Health Centre at Tangste, where they received urgent medical attention, said the spokesman.

Recognising the severity of the injuries, the Indian Army employed its aviation assets, conducting 14 sorties using Advanced Light Helicopters (ALH) and Cheetal Helicopters to airlift the casualties to the Military Hospital in Leh.

Following an initial examination and treatment, 20 of the injured were transferred to Sonam Norbu Memorial (SNM) Hospital in Leh for specialised care.

One casualty, suffering from a spinal injury, was retained at the Military Hospital in Leh for an MRI and further treatment.

The prompt action reinforces the unwavering commitment of the Indian Army to supporting civilian authorities and providing immediate, life-saving assistance in times of crisis. The humane actions of the Army personnel undoubtedly saved lives and provided much-needed relief to those affected by this tragic accident, the spokesman added.
The Assam government has introduced a bill aimed at repealing a pre-independence law that governs the registration of Muslim marriages and divorces in the state.

The bill, titled The Assam Repealing Bill, 2024, was tabled in the assembly by Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Jogen Mohan.

It seeks to abolish The Assam Moslem Marriages and Divorces Registration Act, 1935, along with The Assam Repealing Ordinance, 2024.

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In the Statement of Object and Reasons accompanying the Repealing Bill, Minister Mohan highlighted concerns that the 1935 Act could inadvertently facilitate the registration of marriages involving minors.

Specifically, the law allows for the registration of marriages where the groom is under 21 or the bride is under 18, which is below the legal age for marriage in India.

The minister further pointed out that the 1935 Act lacks effective provisions for statewide monitoring and enforcement, resulting in significant litigation. He expressed concerns about the potential misuse of the Act by authorised Muslim marriage registrars and citizens, leading to underage and forced marriages without the consent of the parties involved.

The registration of marriages and divorces under this Act was not mandatory, and the process itself was informal, Mohan stated. This informality, he argued, created numerous opportunities for non-compliance with the legal norms intended to protect the rights and welfare of those involved.

Mohan also emphasised the historical context of the Act, noting that it was a colonial-era law enacted by the British government for the then-province of Assam, specifically to address Muslim religious and social customs.

In a related development, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced that the state government would introduce new legislation during the ongoing Autumn Session.

This forthcoming bill aims to make the registration of marriages and divorces among Muslim communities compulsory and regulated by the government, thereby ensuring greater oversight and compliance with the law.
The blast at the pharma company in Anakapalli district of Andhra Pradesh, which left 17 people dead and 36 others injured, was caused by a solvent which had leaked and started fire in the electric panel leading to the blast.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday met the workers who were injured today as the state government announced a compensation of Rs 1 crore for the next of kin of the 17 workers who died in a reactor blast in a pharmaceutical company in Anakapalli district. The Prime Ministers office (PMO) has also announced Rs two lakh compensation for the next of kin of the dead and Rs50,000 for the injured.

After meeting the injured workers the chief minister said  The incident at the pharma company was deeply disturbing. Seventeen people were killed and 36 were injured and among them 10 people have serious injuries while the rest 26 have minor injuries.

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Ex gratia amount of Rs one crore will be paid to the next kin of the dead while a compensation amount of Rs 50 lakh will be given to those seriously injured and those with minor injuries will receive Rs25 lakh. Action will be taken to prevent the recurrence of such incidents in future. We will support the victims in every way.

The chief minister also visited the mortuary. The Prime Ministers office (PMO) also wrote on X  Pained by loss of lives due to a mishap at a factory in Anakapalle. Condolences to those who lost their near and dear ones. May the injured recover soon.

The state home minister V Anitha said the blast had occurred at Escientia Advanced Science Private Limited, a pharma company when the workers were trying to the stop the leakage of a solvent Methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE), a volatile, highly flammable liquid.

Before the workers could plug the leak the solvent fell on an electric panel causing fire which led to the blast, said Anitha. The initial FIR also mentioned the cause of the blast as solvent chemical exploded.

The entire third floor had been engulfed by gas making it difficult for rescuers to retrieve the bodies which were under the rubble. The rescue operation could be completed only by midnight. A probe was ordered by the state government.

Deputy chief minister Pawan Kalyan said there was ownership tussle going on in the pharma unit leading to negligence and lack of supervision. In the name of ease of business what the previous government has done we dont know. My thought is whether for ease of business we are ignoring safety norms? I would like to look into it personally, said Kalyan, adding that he will hold a meeting with stakeholders and ensure such accidents do not recur again.

He also said industrialists say imposing conditions will disrupt the investment atmosphere while promising safety audits.

Former chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy will be visiting families of victims tomorrow though senior YSRCP leaders visited today. Meanwhile, the heartbroken families gathered outside the mortuary at King George Hospital to receive the bodies as doctors raced to complete post mortem by afternoon.
Telling both the ruling TMC and the opposition in West Bengal not to politicize the R G Kar Hospital rape and murder of a doctor on August 9, the Supreme Court on Thursday asked the agitating doctors to get back to work while assuring that no coercive action will be taken against those who participated in the protest.

Taking exception to the CBI and the State of West Bengal trading barbs in the course of the hearing today over the statements made by a Minister in the State government and the leader of the opposition Suvendu Adhikari, a bench of Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, Justice J.B. Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra said, Do not politicise the situation. Law will take its course.

The top court counsel to both the ruling TMC and the BJP came as Solicitor General Tushar Mehta appearing for the CBI said, A sitting minister of the State of West Bengal says fingers pointing towards their leader (Mamata Banerjee) will be chopped off.

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Getting back, senior advocate Kapil Sibal appearing for the State of West Bengal said, And leader of opposition Suvendu Adhikari has said bullets will be fired.

The top court insisted that agitating doctors will have to get back to their work while assuring that no coercive action will be taken against them for participating in the protest that was sparked following the rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor in Kolkatas state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

Exhorting the agitating doctors to get back to work now, Chief Justice Chandrachud said, Investigation is going on, we are looking into the matter,  we will issue not just the guidelines but issue enforceable directions to institutionalise the safety of the doctors, nurses and para-medical staff.

Underlining the importance of doctors in the health care system and the judges dispensing justice, Chief Justice Chandrachud told the agitating doctors, Justice and medicine cannot go on strike. Can we (judges) go and sit outside the Supreme Court now.

As lawyers representing different bodies of the doctors complained about the victimisation including deduction of their casual leaves, they were facing for joining the protest including from AIIMS, Nagpur and PGI, Chandigarh, CJI Chandrachud said that these institutions are headed by seasoned directors who will never do something like this.

On a note of assurance, the CJI Chandrachud said, Once they get back to duty, we will prevail upon authorities to not take adverse action, else how will the public health infrastructure run if the doctors do not work.

On applications by different associations of doctors, particularly resident doctors seeking to be included in the and heard by the National Task Force set-up by the Supreme Court on August 20, the CJI in the order said, The reason for this broad-based National Task Force is that all stakeholders will be consulted including the resident doctors. So, they will be heard. If we start asking representatives of various stakeholders to be part of the committee then work of the committee gets dislocated. We know that the committee has senior women doctors and they have dedicated life to public health infrastructure.

The committee will hear everyone  interns, residents, senior residents, nurses, paramedical staff. Committee will ensure that all representatives are heard.
Soon after a meeting, Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, National Conference (NC) chief Dr Farooq Abdullah on Thursday said that the pre-poll alliance for the Jammu and Kashmir assembly election is on the track and the seat sharing document for all 90 seats will be signed by this evening.

Gandhi and Kharge drove to Abdullahs Gupkar Road residence in Srinagar after addressing a meeting of Congress workers, and discussed the seat sharing formula.

Former chief minister Omar Abdullah, Congress general secretary KC Venugopal and PCC chief Tariq Hameed Karra were among those present in the meeting.

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Farooq Abdullah told media persons, The meeting was held in a very cordial atmosphere. The alliance is on track and it will go on well with Gods grace. It is final, it will be approved by this evening. This alliance has been done on all 90 seats.

When asked if there are chances for National Conference and PDP to come together for the assembly elections, Farooq Abdullah remained silent on PDP and said, Congress and NC are together. CPI(M) leader Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami is also with us. I hope that our people are with us so that we can win and do better for the people

When asked if he will contest the elections, Farooq Abdullah candidly said, Its better if you dont ask me this question. I will not answer it.

On pre or poll alliance with PDP, Farooq Abdullah said, We do not know. Let us first go through the poll, then we will look into these things. No doors are closed for anyone.

On the common minimum programme for alliance with Congress, Farooq Abdullah said, Our common programme is to fight the election, to defeat the divisive forces that exist in the country.

On Rahul Gandhis remarks on restoring the statehood of J&K, Farooq Abdullah said, I told you that Statehood is important for all of us. We have promised this. This state has seen bad days. We hope that the state gets all its autonomy and we stand with INDIA Alliance in every manner regarding that.

Meanwhile, the PDP has already announced its candidates on eight assembly seats of south Kashmir. Party chief Mehbooba Muftis daughter has been fielded from the Bijbehara constituency.

PDP had been kept out of the alliance also in the recently held Lok Sabha elections when the NC and the Congress shared the five seats. CPI(M) supported candidates of the two parties.
The Bombay High Court on Thursday made strong remarks over the alleged sexual assault of two 4-year-old girls inside their school toilet in Maharashtras Badlapur, wondering the importance of right to education if the schools are not safe.

A division bench, comprising Justice Revati Mohite-Dere and Justice Prithviraj K Chavan, raised serious concerns over the safety of children, especially girls, inside schools.

If the school is not a safe place, what is the use of speaking about right to education? Even 4-year-old girls are not being spared. What is this situation? It is extremely shocking, Justice Mohite-Dere remarked.

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The bench also expressed strong disapproval of the manner in which the Badlapur Police handled the investigation into the gruesome incident.

Why were statements of parents of the victims not recorded earlier? The duty of a police officer is to record the statements as per procedures. We want the victims to get justice, the bench remarked.

The court also expressed its dismay over the delay in the recording of the statement of the second victim, stating that it was done only after a suo motu PIL was registered.

We are appalled by the fact that the Badlapur police did not record the statement of the second victim girl under Section 164. Only after the suo motu PIL was registered on Wednesday, the statement of the father of one of the victims was recorded belatedly post-midnight, the bench observed.

The bench also criticized the Badlapur school authorities for failing to report the incident to the police despite being aware of the abuse.

The court asked the state government to file an affidavit, detailing the steps taken by the Badlapur Police before the case was transferred to the Special Investigation Team (SIT).

It said counseling for the victims and their families be conducted as mandated by law, stressing that no stone should be left unturned in the pursuit of justice.

Since this is a suo motu PIL, the security and safety of the girls cannot be compromised. Unfortunately, unless there is a strong public outburst, the machinery does not work, the bench remarked.

The court added that it would closely monitor the investigation and posted the matter for further hearing on August 27.
India and the United States Thursday underscored the importance of their partnership in driving the global clean energy transition with both sides expressing their commitment to deepening cooperation in this critical area.

Union Minister for Power Manohar Lal held a productive discussion with a visiting US delegation led by Mr. John Podesta, Senior Advisor to the President for International Climate Policy.

During the discussions, Mr. Manohar Lal emphasised the longstanding bilateral partnership between India and the US, highlighting the shared commitment to a clean energy future that fosters economic growth and development. The union minister further stated that the Ministry of Power is committed to strengthening this partnership.

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He also stated that India-US engagements under the Power & Energy Efficiency Pillar under the Strategic Clean Energy Partnership (SCEP), are important to realise their joint goal of achieving the energy transition.

Mr. John Podesta, in his remarks, said India is a valuable partner and both countries support each other in building resilient supply chains and investment-led partnership strategy. He also remarked that India and the US can collaborate on areas like clean energy, energy storage systems, and energy efficiency. He further said the US can support India in enhancing its manufacturing capacity.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday night addressed the Indian diaspora in Warsaw and said for years India followed a policy of keeping equal distance from all nations, but todays India wants to connect with everyone, and believes in progress of all.

He said that a visit to Poland by an Indian Prime Minister was happening after 45 years and he was eagerly looking forward to meeting President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Donald Tusk to strengthen India-Poland ties.

Responding to the warmth and exuberance of the Indians, he said todays India stands with everyone, and thinks of everyones welfare. We are proud that the world today respects India as a Vishwabandhu (friend of the world). I am sure you must be experiencing this here, my information must be correct, he said.

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For us, this is not a matter of geo-politics, but of values and traditions, Mr Modi said. Those who did not get a place anywhere, India has given them a place both in its heart and on its land.

This is our heritage, which every Indian is proud of. Poland has been a witness to this eternal feeling of India. Even today, everyone in Poland knows our Jam Saheb by the name of Dobre i.e. Good Maharaja, he said.

During World War-II, when Poland was surrounded by difficulties, when thousands of women and children of Poland were wandering from place to place in search of shelter, then Jam Saheb, Digvijay Singh Ranjit Singh Jadeja ji came forward, Mr Modi recalled.

He built a special camp for the Polish women and children. Jam Saheb had told the Polish children of the camp that just as the people of Nawanagar call me Bapu, I am your Bapu too.

Two decades ago, when a massive earthquake struck Gujarat, Jamnagar was also hit by it, the Prime Minister said. Then Poland was one of the first countries to reach for help. Here in Poland too, people have given a lot of respect to Jam Saheb and his family.

This love is clearly visible in the Good Maharaja Square in Warsaw. A while ago, Mr Modi said he got the privilege of visiting the Dobre Maharaja Memorial and the Kolhapur Memorial.

In this unforgettable moment, I also want to give you some information. India is going to start the Jam Saheb Memorial Youth Exchange Program. Under this, India will invite 20 Polish youth to visit India every year. This will give the youth of Poland an opportunity to know more about India, the Prime Minister said.

Mr Modi said the Kolhapur Memorial is also a tribute to the devotion of the Polish people to the great royal family of Kolhapur. In Marathi culture, humanitarianism is given the highest priority, he said.

Today, I also got the opportunity to pay tribute at the Monte Cassino Memorial. This memorial also reminds us of the sacrifices of thousands of Indian soldiers. It is also a proof of how Indians have performed their duty in every corner of the world, the Prime Minister said.

Empathy is an identity of Indians, he said. Whenever any country in the world faces a crisis, India is the first country to extend a helping hand. When Covid came, the biggest calamity of 100 years, India said  Humanity First. We sent medicines and vaccines to more than 150 countries of the world, the Prime Minister said.

India is the land of Buddhas legacy. And when it comes to Buddha, he believes in peace, not war, Mr Modi said. Therefore, India is a big advocate of lasting peace in this region as well.

Indias view is very clear  this is not the era of war. This is the time to unite to deal with the challenges that pose the greatest threat to humanity. Therefore, India is emphasising on diplomacy and dialogue, the Prime Minister said.

We have all seen the way you helped our children trapped in Ukraine. You served them a lot. You arranged langars, you opened the doors of your house, your restaurants. The Polish government even removed restrictions like visas for our students, the Prime Minister said.

On behalf of 140 crore Indians, I congratulate all of you, the people of Poland, I salute you, he said.

There are many similarities between the societies of India and Poland. One big similarity is democracy. India is not only the mother of democracy, but also a participative and vibrant democracy, he said.

Today, Indias entire focus is on quality manufacturing and quality manpower. Today I have come among you with very good news. Both India and Poland have agreed on a Social Security Agreement. All friends like you will benefit from this, he said.

The Prime Minister told the diaspora You too have to connect as much as possible with Indias growth story. And you also have to become the brand ambassador of Indias tourism.
The Election Commission of India (EC) on Thursday directed the Observers to be deployed in Jammu and Kashmir and Haryana for the forthcoming Assembly polls, to remain accessible to all parties, candidates and voters for timely redressal of their grievances.

The poll panel said any complaints in this regard will be viewed seriously by it.

The direction of the EC came in the meeting chaired by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar along with Election Commissioners (ECs) Gyanesh Kumar and SS Sandhu to brief the Observers on their critical and important role in their allotted constituencies.

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Around 200 General Observers, 100 Police Observers and 100 Expenditure Observers are to be deployed in Jammu and Kashmir and Haryana.

Reminding the Observers of their crucial role, the CEC emphasised that the Observers as representatives of the Commission are expected to conduct themselves professionally and be accessible to all stakeholders including candidates and public at large.

He also advised them to overcome language barriers and ensure that there are no gaps in communication.

Stating that the Observers will also be observed by the watchful gaze of the parties, candidates, voters and the Commission alike, Kumar added that their inputs will be critical in ensuring the smooth conduct of the elections.

He also advised them to be vigilant towards false narratives trying to derail the election process, for timely action.

EC Kumar in his address said that Observers should observe the complete election ecosystem for a free and fair elections.

Noting that the Assembly elections are keenly contested, he said that the role of Observers becomes all the more critical in these elections.

EC Sandhu said that accessibility, visibility and responsiveness are essential to develop a virtuous spiral enhancing the conduct of the elections.

The Observers were also directed to observe the meetings of Candidates/ political parties being convened by DEOs/ ROs and see that their grievances are properly listened to and acted upon.

As the eyes and ears of the Commission on the ground, the Observers were asked to exercise constant vigilance with utmost sincerity. As a guide, the Observers will have to understand each and every instruction and process clearly, the poll panel said.

The Observers were also directed to ensure that the Acts, rules, procedures, instructions, and guidelines related to elections are strictly and impartially complied with by all the concerned.

Among others, the Observers should visit polling stations and ensure availability of assured minimum facilities, especially ramps and wheelchairs to make elections accessible to Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) and elderly voters.

The officers were given comprehensive and thorough inputs about the various aspects of election management by the Senior Deputy Election Commissioner, DECs and DGs of ECI.

The Observers were also acquainted with the various IT initiatives and mobile applications of the Commission for voter facilitation as well as effective and efficient management of election processes on the field.

Last week, the poll panel announced that Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir will be held in three phases with first phase voting on 18 September, second phase on 25th September and third phase on 1st October, while in Haryana in a single phase on 1st October.

Counting of votes in Jammu and Kashmir and Haryana will take place on 4th October.
The Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2024 held its first meeting on Thursday, during which officials from the Ministries of Law and Justice and Minority Affairs briefed committee members on the amendments to the law.

The 31-member committee, headed by BJP MP Jagdambika Pal, includes 21 members from the Lok Sabha and 10 members from the Rajya Sabha.

The committee has been tasked by the Lok Sabha to scrutinise the Bill. Speaking to the media ahead of the meeting, Mr Pal said they will give maximum opportunities to the maximum number of people from minority organisations while discussing the provisions of the Bill.

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He said the government aims to ensure that the Waqf properties benefit backward Muslims and women. Mr Pal added that the committee will discuss all 44 amendments and bring a good and comprehensive legislation by the next session of Parliament.

The Joint Parliamentary Committee has been asked to submit its report to the Lok Sabha by the last day of the first week of the next session of Parliament. The committee will need to reconcile government and opposition views on the Bill while considering suggestions from stakeholders.

The Joint Committee was constituted as the Opposition maintained that the Bill violated the constitutional provisions on fundamental rights and would not withstand judicial scrutiny.

The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, is intended to overcome the shortcomings and enhance the efficiency of the administration and management of the Waqf properties. The Bill has provisions for renaming the Waqf Act, 1995, as the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency, and Development Act, 1995.

It also provides the functions of the Survey Commissioner to the Collector or any other officer not below the rank of Deputy Collector duly nominated by the Collector for the survey of waqf properties. It also has provisions for a broad-based composition of the Central Waqf Council and the State Waqf Boards and ensuring the representation of Muslim women and non-Muslims.

It also provides for the establishment of a separate Board of Auqaf for Bohras and Agakhanis and representation of Shia, Sunni, Bohra, Agakhani, and other backward classes among Muslim communities.

The Bill also has provisions for reforming the Tribunal structure with two members and providing for appeals against the orders of the Tribunal to the High Court within a specified period of ninety days.
The Supreme Court on Thursday urged doctors, currently on strike, to return to their duties, while assuring them that no punitive measures would be taken against them.

The apex court resumed the hearing related to the alleged rape and murder of a woman doctor at R G Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata.

The horrific incident has sparked widespread protests among medical professionals.

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The bench, led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud, reviewed the status reports submitted by both the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Kolkata Police regarding the ongoing investigation.

Addressing the concerns of striking doctors, CJI Chandrachud emphasised the importance of dialogue and engagement with all relevant parties.

We have specifically said committees shall engage with whole stakeholders. Please assure the resident doctors that they will be heard by The primary concerns of doctors, paramedical staff need to be taken by the committee There are women senior doctors in the committee. They will hear interns, residents, senior doctors, paramedicals, CJI Chandrachud stated.

He further underscored the impact of the strike on patients, particularly those from economically weaker sections, saying the poor people cant be left behind in lurch.

Poor people who come to these organizations cannot be left behind in the lurch. There are people who take appointments two years before the date and suddenly you are told you cannot be attended to. Let them all resume work, the Chief Justice said.

During the last hearing, the Supreme Court slammed the actions of the Kolkata police and asked critical questions about their handling of the case.

The bench expressed concern over the delay in handing over the victims body to her parents and the failure to prevent vandalism at the hospital. We are unable to comprehend how the state was not able to handle the issue of vandalism at the hospital, CJI Chandrachud had asked.

In a pointed observation, the bench, which also included Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, noted, It appears the crime was detected in the early hours, and the medical college principal tried to pass it off as suicide.

The Supreme Court also cautioned the West Bengal government against using excessive force on protestors, describing this moment as one of national catharsis.

In a significant move, the top court has also ordered the formation of a National Task Force to address the safety and security concerns of medical professionals across the country.
Congress leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said on Thursday that the alliance for the assembly elections in Jammu & Kashmir wont be at the cost of the self-esteem of the party workers.

Addressing a meeting of the Congress workers in Srinagar, Rahul Gandhi said there would be an alliance for the upcoming assembly elections. Still, it would be done while maintaining the respect of the Congress party. All party workers should rest assured that there would be no compromise on their interests and respect, he said.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, General Secretary KC Venugopal, and PCC Chief Tariq Hameed Karra were among the leaders present at the meeting. Rahul and Kharge arrived at Srinagar on Wednesday to prepare the party workers for the assembly elections.

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Both leaders went out for dinner in a famous restaurant in the city where Rahul obliged many locals by letting them take selfies with him. Later, he walked to an ice cream parlour and interacted with people.

Talking to media persons, Rahul said, It is our priority in the Congress party and the INDIA coalition to restore statehood to Jammu & Kashmir as soon as possible. We had expected that this would be done before the elections but elections have been declared. It is a step forward and we are hoping that statehood will be restored as soon as possible and the democratic rights will be restored to the people.

We are very clear in our national manifesto as well that it is a priority for us that the people of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh get their democratic rights back. My message to the people of Jammu & Kashmir is, however, we can help you. The Congress party is always there for you. We understand that youre going through a very difficult period, a tough period, and we want to remove violence, said Rahul.

Addressing the party workers, he said he was pained to see the sufferings of the people under the current regime. It is the moral responsibility of Congress to pull Jammu & Kashmir out of this mess. During the recent Lok Sabha elections the INDIA bloc destroyed Narendra Modis confidence. He was not defeated by Rahul Gandhi but by the ideology of the Congress party, INDIA, love, unity and respect. We did not use foul language during the election campaign.

I want to tell the people of Jammu & Kashmir and the youth that we have to open shop of love in the market of hatred. Hatred can be defeated by love. And together we will defeat hatred with love, he said.

You are not workers, you are family. As soon as we got to know that elections were going to be held, we first decided to come here to Jammu & Kashmir because we want to give a message to the people of every state that for us the representation of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and their statehood is the most important thing, Rahul said.

He pointed out that in the history of India, after independence, many Union territories were converted into states but J&K is the only example where statehood has been snatched and the full-fledged state downgraded as a Union territory. This never happened before and we want to give this message that the representation of the people of Jammu and Kashmir is important, it is important for us and it is important for the country.

Striking a chord with Kashmiris, Rahul said, Every time I come here, I realise even more that I share an old and blood relation with you all. If theres someone who has worked in Jammu & Kashmir with confidence and bravery, it is the Congress workers. I know what you all go through.

Kharge said Rahul Gandhi was interested that in Jammu & Kashmir, we all should fight together and we want to move forward by taking the Opposition along as well.

Today, the BJP is worried and that is why you must have seen that they wanted to pass 2-3 Bills but due to the opposition withdrew or sent them to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC). When everyone strongly opposed the Waqf Board Amendment Bill, it was sent to the JPC, Kharge added.

Taking a jibe at PM Narendra Modi, Kharge said, Modi ji talks a lot and does not do anything. We have shown how to work. Sonia Gandhi ji did many things, Manmohan Singh ji talked less but did many things for the people, but BJP leaders speak a lot and do nothing.
Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, who arrived in Srinagar on Wednesday, is scheduled to hold two meetings with the Congress workers ahead of the Assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir to be held in three phases on September 18, September 25, and October 1.

Rahul Gandhi will hold the first workers meeting at Mumtaz, Radisson Collection Hotel, in Srinagar on Thursday which will be followed by a media interaction at Zewar, Radisson Collection Hotel.

The Congress leader, who is being accompanied by party President Mallikarjun Kharge, will hold another meeting with the party workers at the Celebration Banquet Resort in Jammu division.

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The two leaders are staying at Hotel Lalit Palace on the banks of Dal Lake in Srinagar.

Security has been beefed up in and around the hotel. Both leaders will meet J&K Congress leaders and workers to strengthen the party and improve its poll prospects ahead of the upcoming elections in the Union Territory.

Sources said that the senior Congress leaders are expected to meet National Conference (NC) President Farooq Abdullah and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti to forge a pre-poll alliance against the BJP.

Congress and National Conference had an alliance during the Lok Sabha polls held earlier this year as well. Two seats in the Jammu division and the lone Lok Sabha seat in Ladakh went to the Congress, while three seats in the Valley were won by the National Conference.

J&K has been without an elected government since June 2018 after the BJP pulled out of the Mehbooba Mufti-led PDP-BJP coalition government.

Voting will be held for the first phase on September 18, for the second phase on September 28, and for the third phase on October 1.

Counting is scheduled on October 4 and the poll process would be over by October 6.
Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Thursday led the Congress protests in front of the office of the Enforcement Directorate demanding the resignation of SEBI chief Madhabi Buch and a joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the Adani issue.

The chief minister who is also the president of the partys state unit has come under fire from the Opposition BRS for signing memoranda of understanding with the Adani group at Davos this year for investments worth Rs12400 crore and protesting against the industrialist at the same time.

Meanwhile, two women journalists complained that they were attacked by groups of men allegedly Congress workers when they went to find out about implementation of loan waiver scheme in the chief ministers own village Kondareddypalle.

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The chief minister held a placard Truth shall prevail as he joined senior Congress leader Salman Khurseed and ministerial colleagues in a dharna outside the office of ED in Hyderabad. Addressing the gathering Reddy said when the party gave a call, everyone, irrespective of their position should obey. Thats why even though I am the chief minister I have come to participate in the protest as a party worker.

Slamming Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah he said they were pursuing the policy of Hum do, humare do in a reference to their alleged proximity to the industrialists Ambani and Adani. He accused them of looting the country.

While Reddy demanded the resignation of the SEBI chairperson he also wondered about the stand taken by the BRS on the issue of JPC.

Why are BRS leaders not questioning the BJP on Adani scam? He also accused the BRS of spreading false propaganda on farmer loan waiver and urged the farmers not to get carried away by the canard. He accused BRS leaders of staging dharnas under the guise of farmers. He said he was ready to debate what BRS achieved in ten years and what his government did in ten months. Reddy predicted in the next elections BRS will not even get 9 seats out of the current 39.

Meanwhile, the BRS which held protests against the poor implementation of loan waiver scheme in the Assembly constituencies mocked the chief minister for protesting against Adani after signing deals with the industrialists.

BRS working president KT Rama Rao said irony just committed suicide and that the Congress suffers from split personality disorder over the chief ministers decision to join the protests.

Accusing the Congress of double standards over Adani he said Galli mein dosti Delhi mein kusti. Yehi hain Congress (Friendly in the neighbourhood, wrestling in Delhi. This is Congress, while asking Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi to explain their stand.

Condemning the attack on women journalists he asked, If loan waiver was implemented for everyone why was Revanth Reddy afraid of journalists?
The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Punjab and Haryana governments to continue engaging with the agitating farmers to persuade them to remove tractors and trollies and clear the highway, which has been barricaded by the Haryana government since February this year.

Farmers from Punjab have been agitating at the Shambhu border between the two states at Ambala since February 13, 2024, seeking statutory backing for the Minimum Support Price for their agricultural produce, mainly wheat and rice.

Posting the matter for further consideration on September 2, a bench of Justices Surya Kant, Dipankar Datta, and Ujjal Bhuyan asked both the state governments to continue their meetings with farmers and report the outcomes at the next hearing.

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The court also directed the Haryana and Punjab governments to submit the issues that will be referred to the committee it plans to constitute for negotiations with both the agitating farmers and the government.

However, the court made it clear that the reference to the committee will be a wider mandate so that the issues that are time and again causing law and order problems can be amicably resolved in a fair and just manner.

Continuing its July 24 status quo order at the Shambhu border, the court also granted liberty to the Punjab government to suggest more names for the composition of the committee within three days.

In the earlier hearing, the court had asked the authorities in both states to explore the possibility of partially opening the highway at the Shambhu border, initially for ambulances, essential services, and daily commuters of the nearby area.

The top court is hearing an appeal by the Haryana government against the July 10, 2024, Punjab and Haryana High Court order directing it to open the highway and clear the barricading within seven days on an experimental basis.

In February, the Haryana government set up barricades on the Ambala-New Delhi national highway after farmers bodies announced plans to march to Delhi in support of various demands, including a legal guarantee for the Minimum Support Price for crops.
The death toll from the severe flooding in Tripura has increased to 10, with more than 34,000 residents now seeking refuge in 331 relief camps spread across eight districts of the state.

The devastating floods, triggered by record rainfall, have led Tripura Chief Minister Dr. Manik Saha to urgently seek assistance from the central government, including the deployment of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams.

Chief Minister Saha personally briefed Union Home Minister Amit Shah on the dire situation, leading to immediate central intervention.

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In a message shared on X , Home Minister Shah assured Tripura of the Centres unwavering support. Spoke with CM Tripura @DrManikSaha2 Ji, and took stock of the flood situation in the state. The Centre is rushing teams of NDRF, apart from boats and helicopters, to the state to assist the local government in relief and rescue operations. Assured of all possible assistance from the Centre as and when required. The Modi government firmly stands with our sisters and brothers in Tripura during this hour of crisis, Shah wrote.

Responding to the situation, Chief Minister Saha confirmed that eleven NDRF teams from neighbouring Assam and Arunachal Pradesh are en route to Tripura.

Additionally, helicopters are being deployed to airlift residents stranded in flood-affected areas.

Relief materials and disaster management equipment have already landed at Maharaja Bir Bikram Manikya Bahadur Airport in Agartala and are being swiftly dispatched to flood-affected areas, Saha announced.

The state has experienced unprecedented rainfall over the past two days, with South Tripura receiving more than 375 mm of rain. Some regions recorded as much as 350 mm, while Agartala alone saw 180 mm of rain on Wednesday. The ongoing deluge led to two more fatalities in the Sepahijala district, pushing the overall death toll to 10.

Earlier, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued an orange alert for Tripura, Nagaland, and Mizoram, warning of isolated heavy rainfall due to a low-pressure area developing over the Bay of Bengal.

In light of the worsening situation, Chief Minister Saha has urged the people of Tripura to remain vigilant and closely follow the authorities instructions as the state prepares for further challenges in the days ahead.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said on Thursday that the state government will provide government jobs to two lakh youth in the next two years.

He said that earlier, when jobs were available, the youth of Western UP were deprived of opportunities. However, today, the youth and daughters of this region are getting jobs. CM Yogi said the recruitment process for more than 60,000 police positions in the state will begin on Friday.

The Chief Minister urged the youth here to participate enthusiastically in the government jobs available in the state. He emphasised that no one will be able to question the abilities of the youth. He also warned that if anyone tries to play with the future of the youth, he will be sent to jail and his properties will be confiscated and distributed among the poor.

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CM Yogi participated in the district-level mega employment and loan fair organised at BIT College here on Thursday. On the occasion, appointment letters were handed over to more than 5,000 youth, and loans totalling Rs 30 crore were distributed among selected eligible candidates and MSME entrepreneurs under various schemes.

In the presence of the Chief Minister, tablets were also distributed to more than one thousand students under the Swami Vivekananda Youth Empowerment Scheme. He informed that employment fairs would be organised every three months in the districts across the state.

The Chief Minister began his address by paying tribute to former Prime Minister Bharat Ratna Chaudhary Charan Singh. He said Muzaffarnagar is receiving projects worth hundreds of crores of rupees, with the Meerapur assembly constituency set to benefit the most. The by-election for the Meerapur assembly seat will be held soon, he added.

He remarked that Muzaffarnagar, once plagued by riots, is now riot-free, with the Kanwar Yatra starting here with great enthusiasm. The CM said that the states new identity is being shaped by development, security, work for youth, and government jobs.

The Chief Minister assured that the state government is committed to expanding the Mawana Sugar Mill, with a concrete action plan already in progress. He noted that few regions have the privilege of being associated with mythological sites, highlighting the work done to connect Shuktirtha with the stream of the Mother Ganga. He added that the sweetness of the jaggery here is now reaching markets worldwide. India has become a world power under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi.

Taking aim at the opposition, CM Yogi questioned what happened to the bond in which they pledged to pay Rs 1 lakh. Regarding the SP chief, he accused him of standing with those who commit crimes against the daughters of the state, stating that this reflects the SPs model. The Chief Minister assured that anyone who threatens the safety of daughters will find Yamraj waiting for them at the next intersection.

The CM said that the government has provided jobs to 500 athletes from the state and assured that any youth who wins a medal for the country will have a government job waiting for him in UP.

The Chief Minister noted that in the past, no one wanted to come to UP. People used to run away from here, and migration from Kairana was common. Today, industries do not run away from here and invest in the state on a large scale. Airports are being built in Saharanpur and Jewar. The highway network is being strengthened, reflecting efforts to provide a better future. He warned against those who aim to ignite riots and spread anarchy by dividing people on caste lines or siding with rapists when the safety of daughters is at risk. We should not allow such people to move forward. Youth, poor, women, and food providers are the four castes in the country. It is our governments resolve to give new flight to their aspirations and expectations, he remarked.
In a significant endorsement of traditional medicine, Renogrit, an Ayurvedic formulation, has gained recognition from a leading U.S. research journal, Scientific Reports. This acknowledgment is a boost for Ayurvedic medicine, especially in the face of recent skepticism surrounding its safety and efficacy.

Acharya Balkrishna, a prominent figure in the Ayurvedic community, has reinforced the validity of Ayurveda, asserting that its practices are grounded in both historical tradition and modern scientific evidence. Balkrishnas comments come in response to unfounded rumors suggesting that Ayurvedic treatments could be harmful to the kidneysa claim recently debunked by Patanjali, a leading Ayurvedic company.

The research featured in Scientific Reports highlights Renogrits potential as a powerful remedy for kidney damage caused by the anti-cancer drug Cisplatin. Cisplatin, while effective in treating cancer, is known to have severe side effects, including kidney toxicity. The study reveals that Renogrit not only helps in repairing kidney damage but also mitigates oxidative stress on kidney cells, showcasing its dual action as both a protective and therapeutic agent.

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Renogrit is a blend of seven herbsApamarg, Pashanbhed, Palash, Varun, Punarnavamool, Kasni, and Gokharu. These herbs are celebrated in Ayurvedic medicine for their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-apoptotic (cell-protective) properties. This combination has long been used in India for treating kidney disorders and now stands validated by contemporary scientific scrutiny.

Balkrishna emphasizes that Ayurvedic texts have long described effective treatments for kidney diseases, and these ancient remedies have proven their worth over centuries. He argues that the latest research only reinforces Ayurvedas status as a legitimate and effective system of medicine.

The findings suggest that plant-based medicines like Renogrit offer a promising alternative to conventional treatments, especially considering their safety, efficacy, and cost-effectiveness. This aligns with the growing trend of integrating traditional remedies with modern scientific approaches, potentially paving the way for new therapeutic strategies in managing complex health issues.

As interest in holistic and integrative health solutions continues to rise, the validation of Ayurvedic treatments like Renogrit by rigorous scientific research marks a significant milestone, bridging the gap between traditional wisdom and modern medicine.
Chinas economy, once lauded for its rapid growth, now faces a critical juncture as it struggles to maintain momentum. Recent indicators point to a slowing industrial output, a steep decline in new home prices, and rising unemployment, all of which paint a concerning picture for the worlds second-largest economy. In response, the Chinese government, under Premier Li Qiang, is placing renewed emphasis on stimulating consumption as a means to rejuvenate growth. But can this strategy deliver the desired results, or does it merely serve as a temporary fix to deeper structural issues?

The Chinese leaderships focus on boosting household income and stimulating domestic demand is a necessary pivot, given the waning effectiveness of traditional growth drivers like infrastructure investment and manufacturing. For decades, China relied on large-scale infrastructure projects to fuel its economy, but the diminishing returns from these investments are becoming increasingly apparent.

With much of the countrys infrastructure already developed, additional spending in this sector offers little in terms of new growth. Moreover, the focus on advanced manufacturing, while strategically sound in the context of global trade tensions, does not address the immediate need to bolster domestic consumption. One of the more controversial ideas resurfacing in policy discussions is the distribution of consumption vouchers. This approach, reminiscent of measures taken by other nations during the Covid-19 pandemic, is being considered as a way to directly stimulate consumer spending. Proponents argue that injecting cash or vouchers into the economy could provide a much-needed boost to domestic demand, especially as consumers have become increasingly cautious amid economic uncertainty. However, this strategy is not without its risks.

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Critics of the voucher system point out that such measures may only provide a short-term boost to consumption without addressing the underlying issues plaguing the economy. The fact that Chinas property market, a key source of household wealth, has seen a significant decline is particularly troubling. When people feel poorer, they tend to spend less, regardless of short term incentives like vouchers. Thus, the effectiveness of this strategy hinges on whether it can be coupled with broader efforts to stabilise and revive the property market and other wealth-generating sectors. Furthermore, expanding the budget deficit to fund these vouchers could have long-term implications for Chinas fiscal health. While immediate intervention is necessary to prevent a further slowdown, policymakers must tread carefully to avoid creating a situation where short-term fixes lead to long-term financial instability. Chinas focus on boosting consumption as a means to revitalise its economy is both timely and necessary.

However, this strategy alone may not be sufficient to address the deeper structural challenges that the country faces. A comprehensive approach that includes measures to stabilise the property market, restore consumer confidence, and ensure sustainable growth is crucial. Without such a balanced strategy, China risks falling short of its growth targets, with broader implications for both the domestic and global economy.
Cyprus was conquered and integrated with the Ottoman empire in 1571 and remained its part until 1878 after which it came under British rule. Both the Muslim and Turkish populations and the Greek orthodox had a peaceful and harmonious existence in spite of differences in ethnicity, religion, language, culture and tradition as religious toleration was the accepted state policy within the British empire. Though there were occasional conflicts of a minor nature there was a larger economic cooperation between the two parts. The Ottoman empire was spread over a large canvas incorporating many races, faiths and was secular.

The leading power of Europe in the nineteenth century was Great Britain but with the advantage of being an island nation with all-weather ports, its interest was beyond Continental Europe. British strategy, according to James Joll was dominated by the fact that she ruled India and needed to protect the routes to India and the security of Indias frontiers. It was suspicious of Russian power and intent, and with increasing concerns about the declining Ottoman Empire dubbed as the sick man of Europe. Accentuated by the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, Britain was compelled to consider increased safeguards for its sea routes and that led to its attention to Cyprus.

In 1875, in the Balkans, the Serbian and Bulgarian Christians revolted against Turkish rule and Russia declared war against Turkey in support of Slavic fellow orthodox Christians, threatening Turkeys European possessions and even Constantinople, now Istanbul. The Benjamin Disraeli led British Conservative government considered supporting the Turks but was forced to follow a moderate policy due to formidable opposition by a liberal William Gladstone supporting Christians. In this background, the June 1878 Berlin Congress took place. Disraeli agreed to discuss the Eastern Question with Bismarck. The British demand of limiting Russian gains helped the Turks to retain Istanbul but they had to concede an independent Bulgaria.

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The Austro-Hungarian Hapsburg em  p ire took control over Bosnia and Herzegovina. Turkey conceded the island of Cyprus to Britain though Gladstone suggested it should come under Greek control. But it was a proposal by a leader of the opposition rather than a serious policy. Ironically Gladstone did not attempt to reverse it after reclaiming power in 1880. The post Second World War scenario of the decolonization process reflected in Cyprus as in many others the problem for a disputed solution between the Greeks and the Turks. The island was granted independence in 1960 in an unsettled situation leading to a civil war in 1963 between an overwhelming Greek majority of 80 percent and a Turkish minority of 20 per cent. An uneasy peace was restored in March 1964 with the arrival and stationing of 3,000 UN peace-keeping forces. But this step proved ineffective and in 1974, the Greek Cypriots tried to unite the island with Greece which was under the rule of a military junta and which aided and supported it.

The Turkish retaliation was immediate with direct intervention of the Turkish army which seized the northern section of the island. All the Greek settlers were expelled. The Turks in the Greek areas faced the same fate. Ever since, the de facto partition continued, though Turkish Cyprus lives in total isolation being recognized only by Turkey. The British Labour Government (1945-51) which spearheaded Indian independence considered the same for Cyprus. But the major problem was the existence of a mixed population. The Greek Cypriots wanted unity with Greece which was unacceptable to the Turkish minority. But the subsequent Conservative government led by Winston Churchill wanted to dilute the demand for self-determination.

This led to massive resentment and protests which the British troops suppressed. The successor of Churchill, Anthony Eden mov  ed away from Cyprian independence as the island was indispensable for protecting British interests in the Middle East (West Asia) and North Africa using it as a permanent military base. This infuriated the Cypriots as the Greeks were willing to permit the continued use of the island for military purposes by Britain. The Greeks Cypriots led by Archbishop Makarios (1913-77) formed a secret terrorist organization to free Cyprus. Many freedom fighters were tortured and killed and Makarios deported. Further complications developed in 1958 when the Turkish Cypriots set up a rival organization for the division of the island. To avoid further complications and a civil war, Harold Macmillan who succeeded Eden negotiated a settlement with Makarios. The agreement stipulated

(1) Cyprus will be an independent nation and will not become part of Greece and

(2) Britain will guarantee its independence by maintaining two military bases. Turkey and Greece were additional guarantors. Turkish interests would be protected as well. It was supposed to be a satisfactory solution with a Greek president and a Turkish vice president. But the arrangement collapsed and a civil war broke out between the Greeks and Turks in 1963 leading ultimately to the establishment of a separate Turkish enclave. Ever since many peace and reunification attempts were made by the UN including a federation but nothing has succeeded till now. In the initial years, a workable power sharing arrangement seemed to be achievable but Makarios scuttled all such moves expecting with his majoritarian support to extract major concessions for the Greeks.

He did not seem to imbibe the Gandhian approach of beauty of compromise. What aggravated the problem was that in 1974 the Greek military led by Dimitrios Ioannidis wanted to remove Makarios from power, integrate the island with Greece and negotiate with a weak Turkey which would be forced to cease control of the island. He expected, like Eden in the 1956 Suez Crisis, support from the US which did not happen. The rise of the USA as a world power made it more cautious as it avoided brinkmanship both in the Suez Crisis and Cyprus spoiling the British game in Suez and that of Greece in Cyprus. Turkey intervened as it did in 1964 and 1967 and the partition took place which continues till date. A solution to the problem is unlikely in the near future. Partitions are normally never annulled except in the case of Germany, which was an exception being a symbol of the Cold War.

Recent efforts in 2004 and 2017 of a bi-zo  nal and bi-communal federation failed and there is no other sign of an international mediation process. This year the UN initiated another mediation process, the fate of which is unknown. Cyprus is an interesting case as it is difficult to solve the problem but relatively easy to maintain as there are no restrictions of movement of people between the two sides. The buffer zone can be crossed easily. Pedestrian crossing is like crossing an intersection, though vehicles take a longer time. It is a win-win situation for either side; the Turkish side people work in the richer South and freely buy international brands denied in the Turkish sector.

The Greek Cypriots visit the Turkish side to buy cheaper petrol, common on the US-Mexico border and make use of cheaper medical and other services. The situation was described as comfortable conflict by two academics, Constantinos Adamides of the University of Nicosia and Costas Constantinou of the University of Cyprus in 2012. The border is peaceful with no conflict in this century. The Greek South is a member of the EU which enables many Turkish Cypriots to obtain a passport enabling them to be a part of the EU. The eligibility depends on birth before the partition and a large number has taken advantage of this offer. The most important outcome is the astonishing fact that the need for re-unification is felt only by a few as the present arrangement is mutually advantageous.

The status quo is favoured as the Greeks have a per capita income twice that of the Turkish and are sceptical of a new power sharing arrangement and a possible federation as unworkable with failures of such initiatives in the past. This provides an example to emulate other post-colonial countries which have seen bloodshed and mutual suspicion for decades. Managed conflict is better than a solution which would be worse than the present conflict situation. As the Cold War never became hot in Europe, Cyprus has become a living example of a peaceful frozen conflict

(The writer is a retired Professor of Political Science, University of Delhi)
Irans stance toward Israel has long been marked by aggressive rhetoric and proxy warfare, but the likelihood of a direct confrontation remains low. The reasons behind this calculated restraint lie in Irans broader strategic goals, which prioritise regional influence and ideological propagation over the Palestinian cause. Despite its fiery anti-Israel rhetoric, Iran is acutely aware of the costs of a direct war with Israel, both in terms of military engagement and the potential destabilisation of its fragile economy. Historically, Irans approach to Israel has been fluid, shifting dramatically after the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Prior to this, Iran maintained diplomatic relations with Israel, reflecting a more pragmatic foreign policy that distanced itself from Arab-Israeli conflicts. However, the revolution brought a seismic change, with the new leadership adopting a vehemently anti-Israel stance as part of its broader rejection of Western influence in the region. This shift was not necessarily about the Palestinian cause but more about positioning Iran as a leader of the Islamic world, countering both American influence and the Sunni-dominated Arab states. In recent years, Irans support for groups like Hamas and Hezbollah has been a cornerstone of its regional strategy.

By backing these groups, Iran can exert influence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict without directly engaging in it. This ap proach allows Tehran to maintain its anti-Israel credentials while avoiding the devastating consequences of a full-scale war. The recent assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran has escalated tensions, but Irans response has been measured, relying on threats and proxy actions rather than direct military engagement. The logic behind this restraint is clear. A direct war with Israel would not only strain Irans military capabilities but also divert attention from its primary objective: the spread of the Shia revolution and the consolidation of its influence in the region.

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Moreover, Irans economy, already weakened by years of sanctions and mismanagement, would be ill-equipped to handle the additional burden of war. For Tehran, the Palestinian cause serves more as a tool to rally support and justify its anti-American and anti-Israel stance than a genuine priority. Irans strategic patience is evident in its approach to Israel. While it continues to issue threats and engage in proxy warfare, it has so far avoided crossing the line into open conflict. This calculated approach allows Iran to maintain pressure on Israel without risking a direct confrontation that could spiral out of control. Tehrans leaders are well aware that a war with Israel would not only be costly but also counter-productive to their long-term goals.

Irans anti-Israel rhetoric and support for Palestinian groups like Hamas should be seen in the context of its broader regional strategy. Iran will continue to leverage its influence through proxies and strategic patience, keeping the conflict alive without fully committing to it. This approach allows Iran to maintain its ideological stance while avoiding the catastrophic consequences of a direct confrontation with Israel.
Sheikh Hasinas 15-year rule ended on 5 August when she left her country for temporary refuge in India. The progeny of Bangladeshs founding patriarch Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, she was once heralded as a transformative figure whose leadership ushered in an era of unprecedented economic prosperity for her nation. Under her aegis, Bangladesh experienced a remarkable surge in economic performance, characterised by a dramatic enhancement in export activity and an impressive elevation in the GDP growth rate.

The taka gained considerable strength, and Bangladesh emerged as a rising economic titan within South Asia. These advancements, largely attributed to Hasinas policies aimed at job creation and economic stimulation, particularly for women, signified a period of remarkable progress. Despite these early successes, Hasinas governance has increasingly drawn criticism and scrutiny, with her leadership increasingly termed dictatorial. This change can be attributed to three critical missteps that had not only overshadowed her earlier accomplishments but have also profoundly marred her legacy. One of Hasinas most consequential errors was her disregard for democratic principles. Although she initially espoused a commitment to democratic governance, her approach to handling political opposition starkly contradicted these principles.

Hasina systematically marginalised opposition parties, ensuring that her party, the Awami League, maintained an unchallenged monopoly on power. This strategic sidelining of political rivals, coupled with the suppression of dissent, undermined the democratic fabric of Bangladesh. Hasinas administration implemented a series of restrictive measures on media freedom, curtailing the ability of journalists and critics to openly challenge the government. The imposition of stringent censorship and the frequent shutdown of the internet were part of a broader strategy to stifle dissent and control the narrative.

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The lack of a robust opposition and unchecked power led to a governance style that increasingly resembled authoritarianism, rather than the democratic ideals Hasina once championed. The second significant blunder in Hasinas tenure was her unwavering defence of the controversial quota system in government jobs. Initially introduced by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1972 as a means to reward those who contributed to the countrys liberation, the system was intended to be a temporary measure. However, its continued application and expansion to subsequent generations became a source of widespread discontent. Hasinas administrations refusal to reform or abolish this system, despite mounting protests and demands for change, highlighted a troubling disconnect between the government and the needs of the populace.

The persistence of the quota system fueled widespread resentment, particularly among the youth. Hasinas defence of the system, framed in terms of upholding her fathers legacy, was perceived as a failure to address the evolving sociopolitical landscape. Hasinas rigid adherence to an outdated policy reluctance to acknowledge and address the grievances related to the quota system demonstrated a lack of adaptability and responsiveness to the legitimate concerns of the younger generation. The most egregious mistake of Hasinas administration was the brutal suppression of student protests.

In recent years, demonstrations by students and young activists against various issues, including the quota system, were met with excessive force by state security apparatus, highlighting a severe breach of human rights. The sight of students being targeted and killed for protesting against perceived injustices was a stark contrast to the democratic values Hasina initially espoused. The cumulative effect of these critical errors  undermining democratic norms, defending an outdated and discriminatory quota system, and resorting to violent suppression of dissent has profoundly impacted Hasinas legacy. While her early achievements in economic development were notable, these subsequent actions have overshadowed her successes and contributed to a perception of her leadership as increasingly authoritarian.

It is pertinent to mention that violent agitation and power vacuums are very unpredictable. They happen because of economic inequality, political repression, cultural tensions, and public discontent. These things build up over time to overthrow the established order. The specific triggers for change of government are often impossible to predict, as they can be something as innocent as the public self- immolation of a street vendor or the killing of innocent students. When an agitation starts, it doesnt follow a set path. Instead, it is unpredictable and chaotic. Different groups form and vie for power, making the outcome uncertain.

Throughout history, weve seen that popular uprisings like in Bangladesh can swiftly overthrow stable governments. The concept that ordinary people should feel grateful for the rulers kindness is flawed and self-serving. Those in power often promote it. Good governance is not a special privilege granted to the masses but a fundamental duty and responsibility of those in authority. The people do not owe their leaders gratitude for simply fulfilling their essential obligations, such as maintaining public order, providing services, and protecting the rights and well-being of citizens. These are the minimum expectations of any competent government, not some generous gesture deserving of endless appreciation.

In this case the anti-quota protest agitation that finally brought her down is a classic case of mishandling that, some say, was rooted in her growing imperiousness. In 2018, following student protests against the unusually high quotas in government jobs, Hasinas government decided to scrap the quotas. However, on June 5, Bangladeshs High Court reinstated the quotas, sparking renewed protests. Instead of addressing the students concerns, Hasina unleashed a verbal tirade against them, suggesting she supported the quotas. The movement gained momentum, and Hasina ordered a police crackdown, with the pro-government Chhatra League also attacking the students.

Around 300 people, mostly students, died over the course of the agitation. The ensuing groundswell became a mass movement led by students, reminiscent of historical student-led agitations in Bangladesh. The more violent the crackdown, the fiercer the resistance leading to her downfall nay removal from office on 5 August. It was Marshal Joseph Stalin who used to say that History is written by the victors. But in the present case Sheikh Hasina Wajed has lost. (The writer is a retired senior IAS officer of the Punjab cadre and can be reached at Kaushikiaspunjab@gmail.com)
The thrust of local telecom manufacturing, driven by the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme, will provide more job opportunities at entry level and help in building up skilled manpower resources, the Centre has said.

During a meeting with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the telecom sector, Union Minister of Communications Jyotiraditya Scindia said this is in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modis vision of fostering inclusive and collaborative policy decision-making.

The minister said that government is focused on resolving issues in time-bound manner and create industry-friendly process.

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The meeting was part of the recently-constituted Stakeholders Advisory Committee (SAC) with telecom sector OEMs. The minister discussed ways to spur indigenous manufacturing, adopting pragmatic implementation approach, furthering ease of doing business and review of issues taken up in an earlier meeting.

The industry leaders presented the challenging yet feasible growth target set upon by themselves for the telecom sector. The SAC expressed confidence that developed telecom manufacturing will provide more job opportunities not only at entry level but also help in building up skilled manpower resources.

The initiative will be critical in engaging industry leaders in expanding and shaping the future of Indias telecommunication ecosystem, said the Ministry of Communications.

The industry members also assured to work hand-in-hand with the government for telecom sector growth  both domestic and international.

Minister Scindia assured them of full government support in resolving issues raised by them, adding that OEMs are expected to present the best practices followed in other countries.

The telecom equipment manufacturing sales in the country have crossed Rs 50,000 crore under the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme, creating more than 17,800 direct jobs and many more indirect jobs. The telecom equipment production exceeded the milestone of Rs 50,000 crore with exports at about Rs 10,500 crore, according to the Ministry.

The Minister has constituted six distinct SACs to provide valuable insights to the DoT on various matters pertaining to it. They are aimed at facilitating a consistent two-way dialogue with government on matters related to telecommunication sector.
Jamsaheb Shatrusalyasinhji Jadeja, scion of the Jamnagar royal family, on Wednesday thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for interacting with his extended family in Poland and paying tribute at the Jamsaheb of Nawanagar Memorial in Warsaw.

PM Modis thoughtful gesture, he said in a written statement, reflects the spirit and humanity that mirrors the Good Maharaja Digvijaysinhji Ranjitsinhji Jadeja.

Prime Minister Modi, who arrived in Warsaw on Wednesday, paid tribute at The Dobry Maharaja Memorial in Warsaw that honours the Jamsaheb of Nawanagar Digvijaysinhji Ranjitsinhji Jadejas remarkable act of kindness during World War-II.

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The statue was built in recognition of Dobry (Good) Maharajas compassionate gesture of providing hundreds of Polish children refuge during the Second World War which remains as one of the most evocative chapters in the relations between India and Poland and has had a lasting impact on ties between the two countries.

In his message, Jamsaheb Shatrusalyasinhji Jadeja mentioned the deep reverence of the unimaginable trials and enduring hardships that were endured by the Polish people.

He also mentioned that in order to build on the legacy and further strengthen the historical connect between the people of India and Poland, he has requested the Prime Minister to consider setting up a youth, student and cultural exchange between the two countries.

As PM Modi arrived in Warsaw, the Indian Poles are commemorating a historic facet of India-Poland relations which has been bedrock of the people-to-people ties between the two countries since the Second World War.

One of the unique bonds between our countries relates to the time in the 1940s, during World War II, when more than 6,000 Polish women and children found refuge in two princely states in India, Jamnagar and Kolhapur. As you may be aware, Jam Sahib of Navanagar had provided shelter to more than 1,000 Polish children, and others were offered refuge in Kolhapur, Tanmaya Lal, Secretary (West) at the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said earlier this week while announcing PM Modis August 21-22 visit  the first by an Indian Prime Minister to Poland in the past 45 years.

While Digvijaysinhji Ranjitsinhji Jadeja, the Jamsaheb of Nawanagar who is known in Poland as the Good Maharaja, gave refuge to over 1,000 Polish children in the famous Balachadi camp, the Royal Family of Kolhapur provided safe haven to more than 5,000 Polish women and children in the equally-famous Valivade camp.

A monument, commemorating Jam Saheb Digvijaysinhji Ranjitsinhji Jadeja, was unveiled in October 2014 at the Square of the Good Maharaja, Ochota District in Warsaw. Another plaque commemorating the Valivade-Kolhapur camp near the Monte Casino War Memorial was inaugurated in November 2017 in Warsaw. As many as eight Polish primary and secondary schools are also named after Jam Saheb.

A large number of Polish refugees and their descendants have, over the last many decades, expressed their gratitude towards the two royal families of India by building memorials in Warsaw and organising annual events to keep the memories alive.

The Association of Poles in India, which reunites all the Polish who lived between 1942 and 1948 in the two camps set up by the Maharajas of Jamnagar and Kolhapur, meets once in two years to recall and reiterate their gratitude and affection for the two royal families and the people of India.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Polish capital Warsaw on Wednesday paid homage at the Kolhapur Memorial that was constructed as a tribute to the royal family of Kolhapur, which played an instrumental role in providing shelter to the women and children from Poland in India who were displaced during the Second World War.

Taking to X, PM Modi, while sharing pictures of his visit to the Kolhapur Memorial in the Polish capital, wrote: Paid homage at the Kolhapur Memorial in Warsaw. This Memorial is a tribute to the great Royal Family of Kolhapur. This Royal Family was at the forefront of giving shelter to Polish women and children displaced due to the horrors of World War II. Inspired by the ideals of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, the great Royal Family of Kolhapur put humanity above everything else and ensured a life of dignity for the Polish women and children. This act of compassion will keep inspiring generations.

According to some historical anecdotes, approximately 5,000 Polish refugees are believed to have lived in India between 1942 and 1948. The exact numbers of Poles who resided in India, however, are not established.

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A number of transit camps were set up across the country for the Polish refugees.

Earlier on Wednesday, PM Modi also paid tribute at The Dobry Maharaja Memorial in Warsaw that honours Jamsaheb of Nawanagar Digvijaysinhji Ranjitsinhji Jadejas act of kindness during World War-II.

The statue was built in recognition of Dobry (Good) Maharajas compassionate gesture of providing hundreds of Polish children refuge during the Second World War which remains one of the most evocative chapters in the relations between India and Poland and has had a lasting impact on ties between the two countries.

Many Polish elderlies as well as their kin even today fondly remember Indias act of kindness in assisting and providing shelter to the refugees, even as the country, which was under British rule back then, was sailing through rough waters.

Also, icons like Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru were known for being in support of Polands struggle against the invasion by Germany, the erstwhile Soviet Union, and a small Slovak contingent that marked the start of the Second World War in September 1939.

PM Modis visit to Poland is the first-ever by an Indian leader to the central European nation in 45 years.
Turkish police on Wednesday busted 32 illegal migrants in the northwest province of Kirklareli near the Bulgarian border, reported a state-run broadcaster.

They were detained during an enforcement operation near the Pinarhisar district when police signalled a truck to stop, which ignored the warning and fled, leading to a chase towards the Derekoy border gate to Bulgaria, reports Xinhua news agency, quoting state-run broadcaster TRT.

After the chase, the police stopped the truck and discovered 32 migrants of various nationalities hiding in the back. The migrants were transported to the provincial security directorates anti-migrant smuggling department.

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The local media reports also suggest that the truck driver, who was detained, is wanted for two separate offences.

Kirklareli has recently become a preferred route for irregular migrants attempting to enter Europe illegally via Bulgaria by land. To combat human trafficking, police frequently conduct checks at key points along this route.
A fire broke out at a military facility in Russias Volgograd region early Thursday morning following a Ukrainian drone attack, local authorities said.

Russian air defence forces repelled the assault, destroying most of the Ukrainian drones, Volgograd Governor Andrei Bocharov was quoted by the regional administrations Telegram channel, Xinhua news agency reported.

As a result of a drone crash, a fire broke out on a Defence Ministry facility, Bocharov wrote on Telegram.

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Fire and rescue services promptly started firefighting efforts. There were no casualties.

Russias Defence Ministry did not immediately comment on the reported fire, saying only that its forces destroyed 13 drones over the Volgograd region as part of wider Ukrainian drone attacks across the country overnight.

Flight operations at Volgograd Airport have been disrupted.

There has been no official confirmation regarding restrictions on airspace usage in the region.

Eyewitness videos published by the independent Telegram news channel Astra showed thick smoke and explosions at what was claimed to be the Marinovka airbase. Several fires at the Marinovka base were later recorded by NASA observation satellites.

Open-source intelligence bloggers said at least 14 Su-24 and 15 Su-34 bomber aircraft were housed at Marinovka earlier this week.

Russias investigative news outlet iStories, citing state media, reported that Marinkas Su-34s may have been used to bomb Ukrainian targets in southwestern Russias Kursk region earlier on Thursday.
Job Title: IT Lab Intern  Internship Paid (No Experience Paid Internship Jobs)

Organisation: Uganda Christian University (UCU)

Duty Station: Mukono, Uganda

About the Company:

Uganda Christian University (UCU) is an authentic Christian institution established by the Church of Uganda in 1997 in response to a call for quality university education with a Christian perspective. Uganda Christian University replaced the historic Bishop Tucker Theological College which trained clergy and educators during its 84-year history from 1913-1997. The local chief, Hamu Mukasa, granted land for the college to operate in Mukono.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:

To provide operational and technical support for IT Computer Lab facilities.

Under the supervision of the Senior Network and Senior System Administrators, install equipment & software required in the IT Computer abs.

To arrange for the required servicing and repair of IT Computer Lab equipment.

To perform routine audits of systems and software.

To answer user queries relating to use of the IT Computer Lab.

To document the configuration of Computer lab equipment and any changes.

To ensure optimum operation of the Computer Lab facilities.

To ensure the efficient flow of information between the Computer Lab owner department and UIS technical team leaders.

To carry out any other work as assigned by the supervisor from time to time.









Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

Should have a Bachelors Degree or Diploma in Information Technology.

Must have graduated from Uganda Christian University not later that 2021 with a 1st Class or 2nd Class Upper.

Should be a quick learner and acquire knowledge on computer software used for teaching, learning e.g. accounting software, video editing software etc.

Should have excellent communication and interpersonal skills.

Should be able to work beyond conventional working hours and on weekends.

Should be a committed Christian of high integrity.

How to Apply:

All candidates should apply online at the link below

Click Here

Deadline: 26th August 2024 by 5:00pm

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 2024-08-22T09:06 Valid Through 2024-08-26T17:00 Employment Type FULL_TIME Hiring Organization Uganda Christian University Job Location Mukono, Mukono, Mukono, 0256, Uganda

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With the Kerala High Court admitting a writ petition seeking a directive for the Director General of Police to initiate criminal proceedings based on the Justice Hema Committee Report, the state government's claim of having "taken all possible action" faces a significant setback. The court directed the Pinarayi Vijayan government to submit the entire Justice Hema Committee Report, including the redacted portions, in a sealed cover. The Court questioned what actions could be taken based on the report and emphasized that the report would be meaningless if no action followed.

Although released in a redacted form to protect respondents' privacy, the Hema Committee's report revealed alarming details about the prevalence of sexual harassment, exploitation, and the casting couch culture in the Malayalam film industry. The report highlighted that Malayalam cinema is largely controlled by an all-male "power group" with significant influence over casting and production decisions, leaving most women in the industry fearful of retaliation or blacklisting if they speak out.

The petitioner argued that the state government has a responsibility to prosecute individuals who committed cognizable offenses based on the testimonies in the Hema Committee Report. Meanwhile, the governments counsel argued that they lacked details of witnesses or victims because the report was made confidential by the State Information Commission. This is similar to the blame-shifting the government has engaged in since the report's release. In his first press conference after the report's release, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan placed the responsibility on a letter from Justice Hema in February 2020 and an order by the State Information Commission chairman in October 2020, as the reason for keeping the report untouched and shelved for more than four years.

ALSO READ: Pay disparity, online harassment, torture... Hema Committee highlights 17 key issues faced by women in Malayalam cinema

"Justice Hema has repeatedly insisted in her letter that the committee's report should not be released under any circumstances, as the testimonies provided by women in the cinema sector are highly confidential," the Chief Minister explained a day after the report's release. Interestingly, the CM highlighted this excerpt from the letter: We have been following the principles laid down by the Supreme Court in various decisions, in keeping the matter extra confidential. It would also take the liberty to alert you to follow these principles, before parting with the report to anybody in a routine manner. This clearly shows that Justice Hema was stressing the importance of protecting respondents' privacy according to Supreme Court guidelines, not that the report should never be released.

Regarding the Kerala Police's inaction on the report, the CM gave a peculiar response, stating that the police received a document from the Culture department emphasizing the need for confidentiality. He also added that Justice Hema did not recommend filing a case or conducting an investigation based on the report. "Moreover, there is a need to protect the privacy of those who testified. However, there hasnt been a single instance, including the 2017 actor abduction case, where legal action has been spared," the CM said in defence of his ministry.

Notably, the CM made the odd argument that the government would take legal action if any actor comes forward with a complaint and listed several instances where the police acted upon receiving formal complaints. However, legal experts point out that the police do not need to wait for a formal complaint to register an FIR if they become aware of a cognizable offense. In fact, the Supreme Court, in Lalita Kumari v. Government of Uttar Pradesh (2014), observed that the police are duty-bound to register an FIR if they receive information disclosing the commission of a cognizable offense, regardless of the source.

Despite the government's rhetoric about its "commitment" to protecting women in cinema, the weakness of its stance is clear. Paragraph 53 of the Hema Committee Report lists 17 types of issues that women in cinema commonly face, many of which constitute cognizable offenses.

ALSO READ: Sexual exploitation, abuse, no equal pay...: What is wrong with Malayalam film industry?

T. Asaf Ali, former Director General of Prosecution of the state, told THE WEEK that the government committed criminal negligence and an unpardonable sin by remaining mum and failing to act on the report submitted in 2019. He emphasized that, for the purpose of initiating a criminal investigation, mere information is sufficient. According to Section 176 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 ( or CrPC Section 157), when a police officer suspects an offense has been committed he has to set the law in motion for investigation..

"Imagine the police receive an anonymous call about a large-scale gang riot in a village. When they arrive, they find the report is true, but no one comes forward to lodge a complaint, either orally or in writing. Can the police simply say, 'Since there is no complaint, we cannot proceed'? In such a situation, the police are required to file a suo moto FIR," Ali explained.

Notably, the opposition leader criticized the government for not filing a single FIR based on the Hema Committee report. "The government had all the testimonies and evidence in hand, yet took no action," he said. "The Chief Minister, who also holds the home ministry portfolio, should read Section 199 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Samhita. If such [cognizable] incidents are not investigated and action isn't taken, it constitutes a criminal offense. The government has been protecting perpetrators of crime for four and a half years."

Interestingly, state finance minister K.N. Balagopals statement today that a case could be registered for cognizable offenses even without a complaint was interpreted by the opposition as support for their stance. The Leader of Opposition emphasized that this issue is not political for them, though it is evident that the controversial report is becoming a significant political flashpoint.
The doctor accused of taking advantage of 'Friends' star Matthew Perry's addiction issues and supplying him with ketamine is set to resume his practice this week.

Dr Salvador Plasencia is among the five people charged in connection with the death of the actor.

According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiners Office autopsy report, Perry (54), who starred as Chandler Bing on 'Friends', died in October last year from 'acute effects of ketamine' and subsequent drowning.

The attorney of Plasencia said that his client will return to his practice at Malibu Canyon Care "anytime this week".

Plasencia had pleaded not guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine, seven counts of distribution of ketamine and two counts of altering and falsifying documents or records related to the federal investigation.

Meanwhile, three of the five people charged in connection with Perrys death have reached plea agreements.

After posting a $100,000 bond and surrendering his passport and DEA license, which allowed him to prescribe controlled substances, Plasencia was released last week. His trial is set for October 8.

According to the Medical Board of California, Plasencias medical license is active through October 2024. Reportedly, the medical board has started investigating the doctors practices.

As Plasencia is all set to resume his practice, the judges order stated that his patients are required to sign a consent form acknowledging the pending federal case against him and that he cannot prescribe any controlled substances.

According to court documents, learning Perry had an interest in purchasing Palsencia was accused of purchasing ketamine through another physician- Dr Mark Chavez.

The documents also highlighted that Chavez provided Plasencia with the ketamine, which was given to Perry, through a fraudulent prescription.

Prosecutors also claimed that over the next several weeks, Plasencia purchased ketamine from Chavez, sold vials of the drug to Perrys assistant and taught the assistant how to administer the drug.

It was also alleged that Plasencia went to Perrys house to drop off ketamine and even injected the drug for Perry in the back of a vehicle in a parking lot.

Prosecutors also alleged that on October 12, more than two weeks before Perrys death, Plasencia administered a large dose to Perry that caused Perrys systolic blood pressure to spike and he froze up, unable to speak or move.
The Kerala High Court has directed the state government to submit the complete Justice Hema Committee report in a sealed envelope. On August 19, the abridged versioncomprising 233 pagesof the report was made public.

The court passed the order while hearing a PIL seeking to initiate criminal proceedings against the offenders named in the full report. The Pinarayi Vijayan-led Kerala government had constituted the Justice Hema Committee based on the request of the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC), in 2017, post the actress assault case involving actor Dileep. The panel had submitted its report in 2019.

ALSO READ: Pay disparity, online harassment, torture... Hema Committee highlights 17 key issues faced by women in Malayalam cinema

"If any cognizable offence is disclosed in the committee, whether a criminal action is necessary or not is to be decided by this court, the division bench comprising Acting Chief Justice A. Muhamed Mustaque and Justice S. Manu said.

The government is as of now unable to proceed in this matter for the simple reason that no one has come forward with a complaint. But the fact remains that the report discloses sexual exploitation and harassment of women. How to protect these vulnerable women and what action can be taken against the perpetrators of the crime is something that the Court needs to address.

Accordingly, we admit this writ petition and await government's stand on this. we also implead Kerala State Women's Commission suo moto in this matter. We also direct the government to make available the entire committee report in a sealed cover before this Court, only one copy."

ALSO READ: Sexual exploitation, abuse, no equal pay...: What is wrong with Malayalam film industry?

According to Bar & Bench, Advocate General Gopalakrishna Kurup said that the Hema committee is not a judicial committee and was constituted to study and report the problems faced by women in the Malayalam film industry.

He also stated that the state government does not have the details of witnesses or victims since the report was made confidential by the State Information Commission. The counsel also said that the victims and witnesses disclosed details before the Hema Committee based on the promise of confidentiality, and that they could approach the police or authorities with complaints for action to be taken.

Further hearing has been posted to September 10.

On Wednesday, Kerala CM Vijayan had said that the government can initiate action against the offenders mentioned in the Hema Committee report, only if any woman who testified before the panel came forward with a complaint.

Vijayan had also dismissed claims that his government was sitting on the report since 2019, saying that Justice Hema herself requested the report be kept confidential due to the sensitive nature of the testimonies.
Actor Vijay unveiled his party Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagams flag and symbol at an event held in Chennai on Thursday. The flag was later hoisted at his party headquarters in Panaiyur near here.

The red and yellow flag features two elephants and a a 'vakai flower' (Albizia Lebbeck) surrounded by stars at the centre.

#WATCH | Chennai, Tamil Nadu: Actor and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) chief Vijay arrives at the party office in Chennai



He will unveil the party's flag and symbol today.



(Source: ANI/TVK) https://t.co/1Nb3Ax8mv5 pic.twitter.com/eJCp3QHSbd  ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2024 VIDEO | Actor Vijay (@actorvijay) launches his party's - Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) - symbol and flag during an event in #Chennai.



(Full video available on PTI Videos - https://t.co/n147TvqRQz) pic.twitter.com/JgUEwlzuzF  Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) August 22, 2024

The actor also read a pledge before unveiling the party flag in which he said he would uphold the principle of equality for all living beings. He also vowed to appreciate the fighters who fought and sacrificed their life for the liberation of our country and countless soldiers who fought tirelessly for the rights of our people from Tamil soil.

"I will remove the differences in the name of caste, religion, gender, and place of birth, create awareness among the people and strive for equal opportunities and equal rights for all. I solemnly affirm that I will uphold the principle of equality for all living beings," Vijay took the pledge.

The actor-turned-politician also promised to hold the first state conference soon. "Preparations are on for it and very soon I will announce it," he said adding that he "feels very proud" and would work together for the development of Tamil Nadu.

The TVK will also hold a massive rally in the last week of September to formally launch the party in the eyes of the public in Vikravandi in northern Tamil Nadu. The registration of the party under the Election Commission is at an advanced stage and will soon be complete.

With the entry of Vijay into the political arena, a new chapter has been unveiled in Tamil Nadu politics. The Tamizhaga Vetri Kazhagam (TVK) is all set to face the 2026 Assembly elections in the state.

The rally and political developments come as His The Greatest Of All Time (GOAT) is scheduled to release on September 5. Vijay has also signed yet another political film with director H Vinoth which will hit the screens in 2025.
Following the public outcry and protests in Mumbai's Badlapur on Tuesday, which came on the heels of a distressing incident where two four-year-old girls were sexually assaulted inside school premises by a male cleaning staff, the state education minister Deepak Kesarkar has issued new safety guidelines for school students. It was formalized through a government resolution (GR) released on Wednesday evening.



The GR mandates all private schools to install CCTV cameras as part of a broader effort to tighten security and safety measures inside academic institutions. Shockingly, barely two days after the Badlapur incident, another incident on similar lines came to light from Akola in Maharashtra, where six school girls complained of being sexually harassed by their male teacher inside school premises. The girls charged their teacher would force them to watch porn and sexually abuse them repetitively.

The schools, both in Badlapur and Akola, lacked basic security measures, including the installation of CCTV cameras inside school premises. It is against this backdrop that we ask the question whether schools should be charged under the stringent POCSO (Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences) Act if such incidents take place inside school premises.

" Yes", says cyber expert Debarati Halder. "In a way, schools are already under the POCSO Act, because the Act very clearly mentions about institutional rape. That means, if within school premises anybody including the teacher or a caregiver commits sexual assault or rape, not only the person committing the crime, but the principal and the school management will also be held responsible because they function as quasi-guardians."

It is the primary responsibility of any school, be it private or public, to install CCTV cameras inside its premises, its non-teaching staff must undergo mandatory and regular background checks and committees must be formed to address issues of sexual assault, sexual harassment and others pertaining to the safety and security of students.

Kesarkar announced the mandatory establishment of Vishakha Committees in all schools and the creation of Sakhi Savitri Committees dedicated to student safety. But how do parents of kids who have undergone the trauma find redressal? What are their options? What do they do next after finding out that the school covered up the incident before it came to light?

Halder says, "First and foremost, parents should immediately opt for medical and legal aid as per both the POCSO Act and Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita. Second, do not terminate the child's academic year by taking him or her out of the school. Rather, as parents, make sure that the people from the school responsible for causing harm to the child, have been immediately suspended/expelled from the school.

Parents will not be wrong to demand this. If the threatening from the school continue, and the child continues to feel unsafe in the school and if the child's identity is revealed outside the school in any way, parents can take legal action against the school by approaching the district magistrate; they can also file a writ petition, seek an injunction that neither should the child's identity be revealed nor his or her education by hampered in any way. I would never advise the parents to send the child abroad or change his or her school within India, because that will add further trauma to the youngster. It should be done only if the child feels extremely uncomfortable in his or her present school, Halder said.

POCSO Act

The Government of India enacted The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act in 2012. It is a special law that treats everyone under the age of 18 as a child and lays down stringent punishment for anybody who commits sexual abuse or sexual assault against a child.

As per the POCSO Act, any form of sexual abuse or sexual assault ranging from usage or storage of pornographic material involving a child to non-physical sexual activities, aggravated sexual assault and aggravated penetrative sexual assault are criminal offences. The punishment can range from three years of imprisonment. A notable provision of the law is that it considers failure to report a case punishable. Punishment for this is six months of imprisonment or fine or both.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said the Congress is committed to restoring statehood to Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) as soon as possible.



In a brief statement to the media in Srinagar, he said that restoring statehood is a priority for the Congress party and the INDIA alliance.

Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, expressed hope that statehood would be reinstated before the Assembly polls.

The announcement of elections is a positive step forward, he said. J&K is the first state to be downgraded to a Union Territory since independence.

He highlighted the party's election manifesto, which prioritises restoring the democratic rights of the people of J&K and Ladakh.

The Congress is ready to assist them in any way possible, he said. As I have been saying, Nafrat ke bazaar mein mohabbat ki dukaan kholna chahte hain, izzat se, bhaichare se' (We wish to open a shop of love in the market of hatred, with respect and brotherhood)."

All India Congress Committee (AICC) chief Mallikarjun Kharge also spoke on the occasion. He said that efforts are underway to form an alliance based on feedback from local leaders and added Congress aims to include the entire opposition.

He criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party for failing to ensure elections in J&K and claimed that the party only announced polls under pressure from the Supreme Court.

The BJP can no longer suppress the voices of the people in J&K, and Congress is committed to working for their welfare, he said. There are high unemployment rates in J&K, and the BJP's claims of eradicating terrorism after the abrogation of Article 370 have proven false, given the increased incidents of infiltration.

Gandhi and Kharge arrived on a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir to meet Congress leaders and workers.

After talking to the media, Gandhi and Kharge left to meet National Conference President Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah to discuss a pre-poll alliance against the BJP.

They will be travelling to Jammu later, where they are scheduled to meet Congress leaders and workers.

The Congress wants to stitch an alliance with the regional parties to join forces against the BJP. However, the NC has refused to be part of an alliance that includes the PDP.
The National Conference and the Congress have finalised an alliance for the upcoming assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir. This was announced by the NC president and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah in Srinagar.

Abdullah announced the formation of an alliance after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and AICC president Malikarjun Kharge met him at his residence at Gupkar Road in Srinagar,

We met in a cordial atmosphere and this alliance will work well, he said.  This alliance is for all the 90s seats and signatures on the agreement will be done in the evening and everything will be in front of you.

Gandhi and Kharge arrived in Jammu and Kashmir on a two-day visit for a meeting with leaders and the workers of the party and finalised an alliance with the NC.

On Wednesday, the Congress leaders met with the NC leaders and held discussions on the formation of an alliance.

As per sources, there was some disagreement on certain seats, especially in Jammus Muslim majority areas of Chenab Valley comprising the districts of Doda, Ramban and Kishtwar.

However, the differences were ironed out before Abdullah made the announcement about the alliance.

This morning Gandhi and Kharge addressed Congress workers and assured them that the Congress seeks an alliance but the interests of the workers will not be compromised.

We want to send a clear message that the representation and statehood of J&K are of utmost importance to us, he said. Later, the two leaders issued a statement to the press.

Gandhi said the Congress is committed to restoring statehood to Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) as soon as possible. The restoration of statehood is a priority for the Congress party and the INDIA alliance, Gandhi said.

He hoped that statehood would be reinstated before the Assembly polls. The announcement of the elections is a positive step forward, he said. J&K is the first state to be downgraded to a Union Territory since independence.

He highlighted the party's election manifesto, which prioritises restoring the democratic rights of the people of J&K and Ladakh.

The Congress is ready to assist them in any way possible, he said. As I have been saying, We wish to open a shop of love in the market of hatred, with respect and brotherhood."

Kharge criticised the BJP for failing to ensure elections in J&K and claimed that the party only announced polls under pressure from the Supreme Court.

The BJP can no longer suppress the voices of the people in J&K, and Congress is committed to working for their welfare, he said. There are high unemployment rates in J&K, and the BJP's claims of eradicating terrorism after the abrogation of Article 370 have proven false, given the increased incidents of infiltration.

After meeting Abdullah, the Congress left for Jammu where they will be meeting the party leaders and workers apprise them about the formation of an alliance with the NC.

The coming together of the NC and the Congress will strengthen the opposition against the BJP.

In the Lok Sabha polls, the NC and Congress had jointly fought the polls against the BJP. Both the NC and the BJP won two seats each in Kashmir and Jammu regions respectively.

The Congress lost both the seats to the BJP, but the party witnessed a huge jump in the vote share, boosting the morale of the party for the assembly polls.






In its first meeting, the Joint Committee of Parliament (JPC) on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill met for six hours amidst objections by the Opposition MPs.

Senior officials of the law and minority affairs ministries also made presentations before the committee members explaining them the key provisions of the bill.

The primary objection by the Opposition parties is over the handing of the power to decide on properties to the district collector and taking away the rights of the states.

Reportedly, there were some sharp exchanges during the meeting as the MPs from the non-BJP parties and allies questioned the government over excessive control being exerted on boards.

The Opposition MPs are learnt to have voiced concerns over the bill in its current form. They argued that the bill was against the Muslims and not in tune with the constitutional values.

YSRCP MP Vijaysai Reddy stuck to his partys official stance in opposing the bill. This bill has many concerns of various stakeholders and is not acceptable in its current form. As a member of JPC, I would like to hear from all the stakeholders and be your voice in the committee, said Reddy adding he would give a dissenting note to the report.

Even the NDA allies like TDP and LJP (Rajvilas) MPs called for wider discussions. The BJP members are learnt to have spoken in favour the bill. The next meeting of the JPC panel will be on August 30.

JPC chairman and BJP MP Jagdambika Pal assured the members that views of all the stakeholders will be heard. He said the report has to be presented on the last day of first week of the next parliament session.

The government had formed a 31-member panel to scrutinise the bill which seeks to amend the Waqf properties act.

Meanwhile, the Muslim organisations and All India Muslim Personal Law Board termed the Waqf Amendment Bill as a heinous conspiracy to usurp and destroy the Waqf properties in the name of protection and transparency.

The proposed bill not only tampers with the definition of Waqf, the status of custodians and the powers of waqf boards, but for the first time in the name of increasing the number of members of the Central Waqf Council and the Waqf Board, it has also made non-Muslims representation mandatory, AIMPLB said in a release.

The AIMPLB said when it was mandatory for the management and maintenance of Hindu endowments that its members and trustees adhere to the Hindu faith - similarly, the members of the Gurudwara Parbandhak Committee must also be from the Sikh community and this discrimination and targeting Muslims is unconstitutional and illegal and calls for strong criticism.

Among other objections includes the dispute resolution delegated to the collector, while earlier the dispute had to be brought before the Waqf Tribunal within one year, after.

The new bill also gives power to the government to take over the Waqf properties if the collector so decides if the property is used by the government. It also provides for the establishment of a separate Board of Auqaf for Boharas and Aghakhanis and representation of Shia, Sunni, Bohra, Agakhani, and other backward classes among Muslim communities.
The hostility between the governor and the state government is nothing new. In 2011, then Karnataka Governor Hansraj Bharadwaj had sanctioned prosecution of former Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa in a land denotification case triggering protests across the state by the ruling BJP. Cut to 2024, the ruling Congress has launched a campaign against Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot after the latter sanctioned prosecution against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the MUDA scam on August 16.

Siddaramaiah has moved the Karnataka High Court challenging the sanction order. Also, the high court deferred the proceedings in the trial court that is hearing two separate private complaints in the case till August 29, the next date of hearing in the high court.

Meanwhile, the submissions made by Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who represented the chief minister and the statement made by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who appeared for the governor has caused intrigue.

Singhvi called the governors decision as "legally unsustainable, procedurally flawed, and motivated by extraneous considerations" and contended that the impugned order of sanction was "tainted with malafides" and was part of a concerted effort to destabilise the duly elected government of Karnataka for political reasons.

The counsel also claimed that several applications for sanction made by investigating agencies were long pending before the governor and some of the applications were made after carrying out investigation seeking sanction under Section 19 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, while some seeking prior approval under Section 17A of the PC Act.

Singhvi said the Lokayukta police had sought approval against former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy in November last year in an illegal mining lease case. Also, applications for sanction were made against former ministers and BJP leaders Shashikala Jolle (on December 9, 2021) in the egg tender scam, Murugesh Nirani (February 26, 2024) and G. Janardhan Reddy (May 13, 2024) in mining matters.

Mehta submitted that no such applications were pending before the governor. Mehta, while countering Abhishek's remarks that a "friendly governor" had picked only Siddaramaiah's case out of the many pending applications to sanction prosecution, said it would be wrong to use such words.

Even as the governor's counsel placed on record that there were no pending applications seeking transfer, the Lokayukta on August 19 made a fresh appeal - sanction to chargesheet Kumaraswamy in an alleged illegal mining lease case.

In November last year, the SIT (Lokayukta police) in its application stated that in 2007, Kumaraswamy, who was the mines and geology minister, had granted a mining lease (for 550 acres in Sandur, Ballari) to Sri Sai Venkateshwara Minerals company against the existing rules. The SIT claimed that Kumaraswamy had entered into a "criminal conspiracy" with the mining company as he had made a file note with his signature on October 6, 2007.

The governor sought clarification from the SIT on July 29, while the SIT made a fresh plea seeking sanction to file the chargesheet in the case.

Siddaramaiah, alleging discrimination by the governor, said, "He has taken no action even after 10 months in Kumaraswamy's case. But he wasted no time in my case. He issued a showcase notice within 10 hours after T.J. Abraham's petition against me," charged the CM.

Kumaraswamy, who held an emergency press meet alleged that the file notes and signature has been forged to frame him. "I dare the government to get the file notes and signature examined at any forensic lab. The Congress is trying to revive a dead case to tarnish my image," said Kumaraswamy.

"I had approached the court in 2014 and the court had directed the SIT to complete the investigation within three months. They failed to do it and are now seeking sanction for filing the chargesheet. Is this not contempt of court?" asked Kumaraswamy, hinting that the case was kept alive for political reasons.

The sanction order against Siddaramaiah has led to the Congress government expediting the cases against the opposition leaders, even as the BJP and JDS are accusing the ruling party of indulging in vindictive politics.

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has petitioned the high court seeking clarity on whether Yediyurappa (and three others) can be prosecuted in a Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act case.

It may be recalled that on March 14, an FIR was filed by the minor's mother, who accused Yediyurappa of molesting her daughter when they visited his house in connection with a case.

On June 14 this year, the high court had ruled that Yediyurappa, 81, should not be arrested in the POCSO case. The police had filed the chargesheet on June 27 and a special court for POCSO cases issued summons on July 6. But the high court, on July 12, exempted the former chief minister and three others from appearing in court.

Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara said the government was seeking the nod from the high court to start the proceedings in the POCSO court. We have instructed the advocate general and our advocates to get the stay, if any, vacated. Once it is vacated at the earliest. We will fight the case legally."

Interestingly, the Congress government, annoyed over the BJP and JDS highlighting the alleged MUDA and Valmiki corporation scams during the "Mysore chalo" padayatra last month, threatened to expose the opposition leaders. The ruling Congress has listed 21 scams allegedly involving the previous BJP government. As all eyes are on the high court, the sanction order against Siddaramaiah has certainly stirred a political storm in Karnataka.
The Supreme Court resumed hearing in the suo motu case taken in connection with the Kolkata trainee doctor rape and murder case and questioned the timeline of events presented by the state police in the case diary.



A bench comprising Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra questioned the timeline of the probe presented by Kolkata police and asked whether a case of unnatural death was registered after post-mortem. Following a delay from the state counsel Kapil Sibal in clarifying the timeline of events, the bench asked the state to ensure the presence of a responsible police officer during the hearing.

Referring to the timeline, the bench asked whether a case of unnatural death was registered after post-mortem was done. This is very surprising, post mortem precedes registration of the UD! expressed Justice Pardiwala, Live Law reported.

The entire procedure followed by your State is something which I have not come across in the 30 years of my career, Justice Pardiwala observed. The bench also said the conduct of superintendent (non-medical) was doubtful.

The bench directed the state to present a proper timeline when hearing resume post lunch. It also directed the protesting doctors to resume work and said a general order would be passed, directing administrations not to take any action against them. The bench said the National Task Force constituted by it will hear the concerns of resident doctors and sought a list of associations from the counsel.

Hearing the suo motu case on Tuesday, the bench came down heavily on the state government and directed the Central Bureau of Investigation to submit a status report on Thursday. The bench had also directed the CISF to take over security at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. The apex court also formed the National Task Force to suggest an action plan for doctors safety and to ensure better working conditions for medical professionals.

The trainee doctor's body with severe injury marks was found inside the seminar hall of the hospital's chest department on August 9. A civic volunteer was arrested by the Kolkata Police the following day for his alleged involvement in the incident. Thousands have been protesting against the police apathy and the state government's handling of the probe.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team probing the alleged rape and murder of a doctor at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College Hospital got court permission to conduct a polygraph test on Dr Sandip Ghosh, former principal of the state-run hospital.

Along with Dr Ghosh, four other doctors will also undergo the polygraph test in connection with the case that shocked the country, news agency ANI quoted CBI sources as saying. It was reported earlier today that the CBI team had approached a court seeking permission to conduct a polygraph test on the five doctors.

RG Kar Medical College and Hospital rape-murder case | CBI approaches court for permission to conduct a polygraph test on former RG Kar Medical College and Hospital Principal Dr Sandip Ghosh and four doctors: CBI Sources  ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2024

ALSO READ | Kolkata rape-murder: SC urges doctors to resume work; protects them from coercive action

The other four doctors named by the central agency were on duty on the day of the crime -- August 9.

Dr Sandip Ghosh had resigned as RG Kar Medical College Hospital principal following the crime at the hospital campus. He is being probed by the West Bengal government over the alleged disclosure of the rape-murder victim's identity.

Meanwhile, Akhtar Ali, a former state health recruitment board deputy superintendent accused Dr Sandip Ghosh of leading several unethical and criminal activities. Apart from selling unclaimed corpses, the principal took money from students for the illegal trafficking of medical waste. The whistleblowing last year saw Akhtar Ali being transferred.

ALSO READ | Kolkata rape-murder: Accused Sanjay Roy has 'animal-like instincts', unflustered while detailing crime

On August 13, the Calcutta High Court ordered the transfer of the probe from the Kolkata Police to the CBI, which started its investigation on August 14.

The West Bengal government on Wednesday night removed three senior officials of the Kar Medical College and Hospital, bowing to the demand of junior doctors who have been protesting against the alleged rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor in the state-run health facility.

As per their demand, Kar Medical College and Hospital's former principal doctor Sandip Ghosh, who was shifted to Calcutta National Medical College and Hospital as its principal, was also removed from that position, Health Secretary NS Nigam said.

He said the three senior officials of the Kar Medical College and Hospital (RGKMCH) were transferred to various state-run health facilities.
Doctors at Delhi's All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on Thursday announced that they were calling off their 11-day strike, to protest the rape and murder of a Kolkata doctor, following an appeal from the Supreme Court.



The apex court earlier in the day asked protesting doctors to resume work and assured them that no adverse action would be taken after they rejoin.

"We are resuming duties following the Supreme Court's appeal and assurances and intervention in the RG Kar incident and safety for doctors. We commend the Court's action and call for adherence to its directives. Patient care remains our top priority," the AIIMS Resident Doctors' Association said in a post on X.

On August 12, doctor associations started a nationwide protest, halting OPD services. Emergency services continued as usual.

The brutal assault and murder of the junior doctor sparked nationwide protests. Her body was found on August 9 with severe injury marks inside the seminar hall of the state-run hospital's chest department. A civic volunteer was arrested by the Kolkata Police in connection with the case the following day.

Meanwhile, tough talking Supreme Court on Thursday termed "extremely disturbing" the Kolkata Police's delay in registering the unnatural death of the woman doctor raped and killed at the RG Kar Hospital, and also asked protesting doctors to get back to work.

Justice and medicine cannot be stopped, the court said while hearing a suo-motu case on the Kolkata doctor's horrific end and directed the Centre and the states to take urgent steps to institutionalise the safety of medics across the country.

A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud issued a slew of directions on the safety of doctors, norms for protests, rights of protesters as well as the West Bengal government.

It said the National Task Force (NTF) formed by the apex court will take note of the suggestions of all the stakeholders while formulating a national protocol for the safety of healthcare professionals, including the associations representing resident doctors.

"We direct the secretary of the Union Ministry of Health to engage with the chief secretaries of the states and directors general of police to ensure the safety of healthcare professionals," the bench said, while ordering that the exercise be completed in a week.
The Supreme Court, resuming hearing in the Kolkata trainee doctor rape and murder case on Thursday urged protesting medical professionals to return to work and assured no coercive action will be taken against them by respective state governments for the protest.



Resuming hearing in the afternoon in the suo motu case, a bench led by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misraurged the protesting doctors to return to work. Justice and medicine cannot go on strike, Chief Justice said while dictating the order, Bar and Bench reported. Hearing mentions of various medical associations, the bench said no coercive action will be taken against doctors provided there is no protest after Thursdays order.

The bench also observed political parties must not politicise the situation. The apex court said it will pass enforceable directions to union and state governments once the National Task Force submits its recommendations.

The Court directed the union health ministry to open a portal for anonymous submission of suggestions to the NTF. It also asked the union health secretary to meet with chief secretaries and DGPs of the states and ensure necessary safety measures are in place at hospitals. The meeting should be held within a week and States take remedial measures within a period of two weeks the bench ordered. The bench will next hear the case on September 5.

The trainee doctor's body with severe injury marks was found inside the seminar hall of the hospital's chest department on August 9. A civic volunteer was arrested by the Kolkata Police the following day for his alleged involvement in the incident. Thousands have been protesting against the police apathy and the state government's handling of the probe.
The Congress Legislature Party (CLP) on Thursday resolved to condemn Governor Thawar Chand Gehlots move to sanction the prosecution of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the MUDA scam and to unanimously extend support to the chief minister.

Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, who addressed a press meet at Vidhana Soudha following the CLP meeting said, The CLP has resolved to condemn the governors move to allow prosecution of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah under Section 17(a) without any preliminary investigation. Senior legislator R.V. Deshpande proposed the motion, while MLA Tanveer Sait seconded it.

The CLP meeting was attended by all the legislators of both houses and party MPs except for six MLAs who are in Delhi for a training programme mandated by the Assembly speaker U.T. Khader, informed Shivakumar.

We appeal to the governor to withdraw his sanction. It would help restore the Constitution. The governor must withdraw the sanction in order to save the dignity of the chair," added Shivakumar.

The meeting ahead of the CM and DCM's visit to Delhi on Friday seemed to send a strong message to the party high command that the Siddaramaiah continued to enjoy the confidence of all the legislators at a time when the opposition parties - BJP and JDS are demanding his resignation over his alleged involvement in the MUDA site allotment scam.

Also, the chief minister and the party have been facing huge embarrassment after the governor sanctioned the prosecution of the CM, who has now challenged the sanction order before the High Court.

Siddaramaiah who got a breather after the HC deferred all proceedings in the MUDA case in the trial court till August 29, the next date of hearing in the high court, is preparing for a long legal battle with three separate private complainants petitioning the special court for elected representatives on the issue. But the real battle lies in holding the flock together as a weak leadership would not only destabilise the government but also lose the confidence of party workers and the voters alike.

The people of Karnataka have supported us by giving us 136 seats. The BJP and JDS are trying to destabilise a democratically elected government. They will not be able to unseat the government, as everyone in the party stands with the CM today, said Shivakumar, who is also the state party chief.

Drawing a parallel between Rahul Gandhi's disqualification from Parliament and the BJP's bid to oust Siddaramaiah, Shivakumar said, "We have faith that the courts will give us justice. The BJP had conspired to remove our leader Rahul Gandhi from the Parliament citing a breach of rules in a speech. Now, they are conspiring to unseat Siddaramaiah."

Asked if the INDIA bloc supported the Congress party on this matter, Shivakumar said that the INDIA bloc took birth in Bengaluru and had secured 234 seats in the country.
The Supreme Court strongly criticized the West Bengal government and police over their actions in the aftermath of the alleged rape and murder of a trainee doctor at Kolkatas RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud, persistently inquired about the 14-hour delay in filing the FIR on August 9.

Observing that the local police recorded the general diary entry of the case at 10:10 am and registered the FIR at 11:45 pm, the court tried to understand the timing and sequence of the events that unfolded on August 9.

Judges asked if the post-mortem was over by 7:10 pm why then a case of unnatural death was filed at 11:30 pm when the cause of the death was already revealed. The court also couldnt make sense how could the FIR then be registered in the next 15 minutes.

The state government, represented by senior counsel Kapil Sibal, informed the court that the complaint of unnatural death was noted in the GD at 1:30 pm.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the CBI, informed the court that the general diary was recorded first, followed by the registration of an unnatural death case at 11:30 am. The FIR was then filed at 11:45 am.

The court questioned how the police could determine it was an unnatural death before conducting the post-mortem.

Justice Pardiwala made a scathing observation, saying in his 30-year-long career, he hadnt seen an investigation such as this. Describing the entire process as extremely disturbing, the court ordered a senior official from Kolkata Police to be present at the next hearing.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court once again urged the medical community to resume their duties. However, protesting doctors at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital would continue with their strike.

The new administration at the hospital also took charge on Thursday with the aim to restore normalcy as soon as possible.

New principal Professor Dr. Manas Kumar Bandyopadhyay and Medical Superintendent-cum Vice Principal Professor Dr. Saptarshi Chatterjee, who were appointed on Wednesday, visited the institution on Thursday.

We will meet the protesting students and address all their demands. Our primary target is to ensure the safety of all students, staff and patients and their families, Chatterjee told the media.

He continued, We are hopeful that things will become normal very soon and the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital will return to its past glory.

The CISF, which has assumed security responsibilities of the hospital, also said all required arrangements are being put together.

CISF DIG K. Pratap Singh, who held a series of meetings with senior officials from Kolkata Police, West Bengal government and RG Kar Medical College and Hospital administration on Thursday, told the media, We are making all arrangements to ensure safety and security of everyone.

The CBI, on the other hand, produced ex-principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, Dr. Sandip Ghosh before the local Sealdah (ACJM) Court.

The central agency appealed for the polygraph test of the former head of the administration of the institution along with four students and one close aide of the prime suspect, Sanjoy Ray, in the case.

The Supreme Court also urged the National Task Force to consider about institutionalisation of distress call system, regulation of duty hours of doctors and constitution of a compensation distress fund.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, meanwhile, wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. She appealed for the setting up of Fast Track Special Courts for completion of trials in rape cases within 15 days.

West Bengal BJPs march to Swasthya Bhawan, the headquarters of West Bengal health department, was stopped by the police much ahead of the destination. The police detained senior leaders like Suvendu Adhikari and others and released them later.
The highly anticpated sequel to Robert Pattinson's 'The Batman', 'The Penguin', created by Lauren LeFranc and season two of 'The Great Indian Kapil Show' are ready to grace the OTT platforms this week.
The Delhi Police on Thursday busted an Al Qaeda-inspired terror module which reportedly wanted to establish a 'Khilafat' in India. 14 people were arrested for their link with the module and police personnel from Jharkhand, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh were involved in the



effort to nab them, a news report added. Arms, ammunition, and literature linked to terrorist activities were confiscated from their possession.

The terror module wanted to execute terror activities in order to establish a 'Khilafat' within the country. According to Delhi Police, the module's members received combat and weapon training. It was led by Dr Ishtiyaq of Ranchi, NDTV said in a report.

Six men caught during the operation from Bhiwadi of Rajasthan were undergoing arms training, the report said. The eight others were arrested from parts of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan and are being interrogated.

The operation to bust the terror module began on the basis of intel on its activities and extremist objectives. The joint effort between the state police units was crucial in the successful completion of the mission.

During the crackdown, six suspects were caught in Bhiwadi, Rajasthan, where they were undergoing weapons training. Additionally, eight individuals were arrested from Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh for further questioning. The police have recovered various arms, ammunition, and literature linked to terrorist activities.

More raids and arrests are likely to happen in connection with the development, Delhi Police officials have reportedly said. Founded by Osama bin Laden, Al-Qaeda is a global terror organisation that wants to bring about an Islamist revolution to unite the Muslim world under a supra-national Islamic caliphate.
India is gearing up to celebrate its first National Space Day on August 23, the date on which Chandrayaan-3s Vikram Lander successfully landed at the Shiv Shakti point on the Moons south polar region last year.



This day was officially announced by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a tribute to the scientists, engineers, and researchers who have driven India's space program to international prominence. The celebration aims to inspire future generations to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), while also highlighting the societal benefits of space technology.

For India, National Space Day symbolises a significant milestone in its space exploration journey. It marks India's status as the fourth country to successfully land on the Moon and the first to reach its southern polar region. This achievement not only enhances India's reputation in the global space community but also serves as a catalyst for increased interest in space science among the youth. The day is an opportunity to showcase the impact of space missions on daily life, emphasising how advancements in space technology can lead to improvements in various sectors, including agriculture, communication, and disaster management, remarked Srimathy Kesan, founder and CEO of Space Kidz India, which is into design, fabrication and launch of small satellites, spacecraft and ground systems.

ISRO Chairman S Somanath, had announced plans for 70 launches over the next five years. This ambitious goal aligns with India's growing capabilities in space technology and reflects its commitment to expanding its space exploration agenda. Given ISRO's track record of successful missions and increasing technological advancements, this target is deemed feasible. The planned launches will likely include a mix of satellite deployments, interplanetary missions, and international collaborations, contributing to India's strategic objectives in space. In addition to this the construction of a new launch pad at Kulasekarapatnam is anticipated to begin before the next National Space Day in 2025. This facility is expected to enhance India's launch capabilities.

Interestingly India's space startup ecosystem is rapidly evolving, with several notable companies making significant contributions to the industry. Some of the top Indian space startups include, Agnikul Cosmos that is known for its innovative launch vehicle solutions. Skyroot Aerospace that focuses on developing small satellite launch vehicles and Pixxel that specialises in satellite imagery and data analytics etc.

Various stake holders in the space ecosystem feel that the celebration of National Space Day is expected to foster greater awareness of space science and technology among rural populations. Through various outreach programs, including educational workshops and mobile exhibitions, ISRO aims to engage students and communities in rural areas. These efforts are designed to demystify space technology and illustrate its relevance to everyday life, thereby inspiring interest and participation in the field of space science among youth in these regions. National Space Day serves as a pivotal platform for celebrating India's achievements in space exploration while inspiring future generations to engage with science, added Kesan.

Involving private companies in space exploration is comparatively new for ISRO. The shift has been made possible under the stewardship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Modi has uniquely encouraged the private sector to participate, which is uncommon for Indian government programmes. In 2020, the government reformed the space sector to encourage private companies involvement. On June 20, 2024, Jitendra Singh, Union Minister for Science and Technology, mentioned that space startups in India had grown from just one in 2022 to nearly 200 in 2024. He credited this increase to the sectors reforms.

These applications from Indian companies requested help with authorisations, guidance, facility access, technology transfers and consultancy. By January 1 this year, various private entities had signed 51 memorandums of understanding (MoUs) and 34 joint project plans to assist with space activities.

India has effectively gathered technologies from various countries. It has combined them to create something uniquely Indian. Chandrayaan-3 is a great example of this approach. ISRO said the mission cost just $74 million (about Rs 610 crore), which is less than a commercial airplane and surprisingly low for a spacecraft. This was partly achieved by using affordable off-the-shelf parts along with custom-made ones and by partnering with private companies for some development and manufacturing, remarked space expert Girish Linganna.

The Centre is planning to launch a month-long campaign starting on Friday, August 23, to celebrate the first-ever National Space Day. This special day will celebrate Indias outstanding space missions and inspire the countrys youths with a theme that embodies the spirit of exploration: Touching Lives while Touching the Moon: Indias Space Saga. This theme highlights how Indias space missions not only achieve incredible milestones, such as reaching the Moon, but also make a positive impact on everyday life.

The National Space Day is meant to celebrate key achievements in space exploration, showcase progress in space technology and spark greater interest in space science among students. It also aims to increase public awareness about the benefits of space exploration while promoting national pride and unity. This day will be celebrated with a series of exciting events across the country, aimed at honouring Indias space achievements and inspiring future generations.

With Chandrayaan-3, India has demonstrated its dominant role in growing global space market and aims to have 10 percent share of the global space economy in the next 10 years from $9 billion to $45 billion. Indian Space Policy 2023, ISRO and IN-SPACe have created a framework that provides the opportunity for startups to build critical technologies including small rockets, multi-sensor (fusion) satellite constellations, optical space communication, in-orbit maintenance & manufacturing. As India looks to the future ISRO carries the vision to build human space flight, space station and sending an Indian to the moon by 2040, said Vishesh Rajaram, Managing Partner at Speciale Invest a seed-stage venture capital firm that invests in founders building technologies of tomorrow.

Interestingly the Indian space technology startup ecosystem has experienced remarkable growth over the past decade, especially post the sectors liberalization, the government has significantly enabled the private sector's development through multiple initiatives. Key measures such as the Indian Space Policy, 2023, the National Geospatial Policy, 2022, as well as amendments to the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy highlight the support ISRO and In-SPACe have taken for the private space sector.

Recently, the announcement of allocation of a Rs 1,000 crore venture capital fund during the Union Budget 2024 and the announcement of a Public-Private Partnership to develop a comprehensive Earth Observation System, are very positive indicators of the belief of the Government to substantially enhance the sector's progress. As an ecosystem, we still look up to the government for the creation of pathways for commercialisation via the private sector, streamlining and accelerating FDI applications and regulatory processes, and exploring updates to taxation policies on intellectual property in the deep tech sector. These efforts will support innovation and drive continued growth and success, remarked Akash Yalagach, CTO and Co-Founder, KaleidEO.
Many political scientists argue that the military, often the only organised institution in nations with fledgling political infrastructures, can supplant ill-trained politicians and ensure stability. But history is also replete with examples of the military's dismal failures in building lasting governing structures. Politicians, on the contrary, offer credible alternatives, even though many of them carry autocratic genes in their bones.



In Bangladesh's case, the nation's first chief justice, Abusadat Mohammad Sayem, who became the first chief martial law administrator in 1975 trampling upon the very constitution he had sworn to uphold, acknowledged this truism. When General Ziaur Rahman, who became Bangladesh's first military president, pushed him out of the Bangabhavan, the presidential palace, the frail bespectacled jurist whom a U.S. diplomat once described as timid to boot, found no legs to stand on.

If you are a politician, Sayem explained to me during an interview, your source of power is people; if you are a general, your source of power is the military. What was I? Neither a politician nor a military man. So when the military wanted their man in power, I had to leave.

Even though Zia, as General Ziaur Rahman was popularly called, rode the black horse of the military to enter the presidential palace through the back door, he too soon realised that his future lay with people, not with the soldiers. As an instrument of politics, he quickly learned, the military was treacherous and unreliable. Still, the Bangladeshi military again felt an inner urge to appear as the nation's saviour just a decade after General H.M. Ershad was forced out by a popular upsurge. General Nooruddin Khan's attempt in 2004 failed in the face of stiff opposition, especially from U.S. Ambassador Harry Thomas. But in their adventure in 2007, the generals found a group of civilians waiting eagerly to extend a helping hand.

Misguided Civil Society

In early 2006, [Muhammad] Yunus started a campaign for honest and clean candidates in national elections. He did this with support from members of the so-called civil society clique, including Professor Rehman Sobhan, former Justice Habibur Rahman, former Foreign Minister Kamal Hossain, journalists Matiur Rahman of Prothom Alo and Mahfuz Anam of The Daily Star as well as economist Debapriya Bhattchariya of the Centre for Policy Dialogue, a policy research group in Dhaka.

Despite having considerable knowledge of General Ayub Khan's failed experiment in the 1960s with his top-down political setup in Pakistan, this misguided clique embarked upon reinventing the wheel using the Nobel laureate. This gang ignored the truism that military-backed regimes never provided a durable solution. Every attempt, from Ayub to Ershad, who ruled Bangladesh during 1980s and early 1990s, ended in dismal failures, with disastrous consequences for the country. Still, they encouraged Yunus to plunge into politics with blessings from the cantonment.

On February 4, 2006, the microfinance pioneer proposed that political parties chose a respected citizen to resolve the deadlock over holding the next general elections.

Speaking at a dinner marking the birthday of The Daily Star, Bangladesh's leading English daily edited by Mahfuz Anam, Yunus noted that even though the interim administration was not constitutionally obliged to meet opposition demands to change the Election Commission and transitional caretaker government set-ups, there was a national interest in ending the controversy and focusing constructively on the next election. Yunus revealed he would consider entering politics in the latter part of that year.

Political has-beens in Bangladesh talked about a solution based on the formula adopted by former Pakistani military ruler General Parvez Musharraf in the hope of riding the military's coattails to power. Some Awami League supporters muttered about a military takeover to hype the extremist threat and because of their obsession with ousting Zia at any cost. However, there was no evidence that such talk was anything more than motivated tea-time chatter.

Neither the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, led by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia nor the Awami League, headed by just-ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, had formally reacted to Yunuss proposal. However, media and civil society members responded positively. The proposal recognised the need to find a new formula to ensure fair elections and thus went against the government assertion that the existing institutions were adequate to ensure fair polls. Awami League leaders would not publicly endorse Yunuss proposal before ensuring that it would benefit them. Leaders of smaller parties, including Gono Forum, led by Kamal Hossain, a former foreign minister, and Bikalpa Dhara Bangladesh, headed by former President Badruddoza Chowhdhury, hailed the plan.

The Awami League finally decided to hit back. Two weeks after the president imposed the emergency rule, retired Major General Tarique Ahmed Siddique, head of Hasina's security, prepared a one-page interim government work schedule. He created the document after his military contacts, who were opposed to a prolonged military involvement in the government, showed him a three-page strategy paper. The military strategy outlined lofty goals and a long-term government of national unity. The existence of the military strategy paper proposing a long-term interim government was consistent with mounting evidence that the military, the clear power behind the throne, envisaged a much broader agenda and time-frame than just preparing the country for elections as soon as possible. This path clearly went against the Awami League's idea. Countering the military blueprint, Hasina demanded early parliamentary elections. She wanted the interim administration to finish updating the voter list to hold elections on April 3, 2007.

Chiefs in Tight Spot

The three military service chiefs were anxious about their role behind the throne. They did not wish to overstay their welcome. They were uncomfortable in the situation in which they found themselves. There were differences between the military and the civilian advisers on several matters, especially on press controls and whether to grant bail to detained corruption suspects.

To implement the regime's goal to get rid of corrupt politicians, during the night of March 7, 2007 police made near simultaneous midnight arrests of Tarique Rahman, Zia's son, her former Health Minister Dr Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, and Awami League-allied Chittagong City Mayor ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury. Also arrested were Jamaat-e-Islami former parliament member Dr Syed Abdullah Mohammad Taher and Atiquallah Khan Masud, editor of the daily Bangla language newspaper Janakantha.

Later, joint military and police forces went twice to Hasina's house to search for Awami League members, including some relatives of Hasina. Hasina's security chief, Tarique Siddique, refused entrance of the joint forces who were dressed in civilian clothes, after conferring with the Army's 9th Division's commander. The commander, General Masud Chowdhury, professed ignorance about the raid on Hasina's house. An hour later, the forces returned, threatened to break the doors and Siddique let them in. He, in the meantime, heard that Tarique, Khaleda Zia's elder son and BNP de facto chief, had been arrested and took the Sudha Sadan, Hasina's private residence, raid as balancing things for the arrest of Tarique. The joint forces left Sudha Sadan without arresting anyone.

On March 8, local news media published a list of fifty political leaders and businessmen who would be the subject of the second phase of the government's anti-corruption drive. The list included Sigma Huda, former Communications Minister Nazmul Huda's wife, garment factory owner A.K. Azad, who was also president of the Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industries, Awami League Religion Adviser Sheikh Abdullah, and Zia's younger brother, Biman airlines flight engineer Shamim Eskander.

One of the listed individuals, Jatiya Party chief Anwar Hossain Monju, owner of the Bengali Daily Ittefaq, told a U.S. diplomat that after police raided his house asking for his whereabouts, he did not return home fearing arrest. He was willing to have his representative file any statement of his assets the Anti-Corruption Commission wanted, but afraid to file it personally. He claimed that in February several prominent businessmen were arrested immediately after they had filed their statements to the commission.

Initial public reaction to the arrest of Tarique was overwhelmingly positive. Nonetheless, the government's continued targeting of high profile political and business leaders alarmed elites. Anisul Haque, former president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Export Association, expressed concern over the arrests. He told the government that the fear of arrest of businessmen undermined business confidence among businessmen, a fallout that would ultimately hurt the economy.

While the regime pursued corruption allegations against the two ladies, the nation's military spy agency DGFI's boss General Fazlul Bari continued to recruit for a new political organisation  the King's Party. As many as 100 BNP leaders, mostly members of the past parliament, had given him undated letters of resignation to position themselves for joining the new party. The government orchestrated a three-pronged assault  court cases, a new party, and party reform initiatives  to force the two grand dames of Bangladeshi politics to step aside. BNP's Mannan Bhuiyan would not act without a military nod, so the military intelligence unit got intimately tied to the new party.

The regime's initial ban on political demonstrations and outdoor political gatherings or protests was later expanded to include all political activity. The ban prevented the parties from beginning the process of internal political reform and had stifled consultations on election reforms.

Move to Oust Khaleda

Within in less than three months, after the military-backed government came to power, dissidents in both parties went public with reform proposals. BNP's Mannan Bhuiyan cooked up a coup against Zia. He spearheaded a move for her to resign and inject more collective decision-making into the party. He began an ambitious plan to take over the leadership of his party once the military forced Zia to leave Bangladesh.

Soon after the promulgation of the state of emergency, the military asked Zia to send her son Tarique abroad and clean up her party, so she could still lead the country. Zia initially agreed, but later shifted her stand. She became angry when Bhuiyan advised her to comply with the military's request. By the time she finally figured out no countercoup was in sight to save her, the military's stance had hardened.

Bhuiyan envisioned a national government with representatives from different political parties to replace the interim regime. Kamal Hossain and Yunus could be part of this government. The military, on the contrary, wanted to create the King's Party with deserters from various political organisations, including the BNP and the Awami League. Bhuiyan opposed the military's idea to create a new party. Instead, he wanted the military to help the parties reform themselves and allow the one that won a free and fair election to form the government. Although he opposed the military idea to give birth to a new political group, Bhuiyan kept mum about Army chief General Moeen's desire to become president after his term expired.

Zia's critics within the BNP, despite their unhappiness with the boss, differed on whether Bhuiyan was the person to lead the party after her departure. His reluctance to challenge Zia face to face, leaving it to others to clean up the field for him, underscored why internal reform for the BNP, or the Awami League for that matter, had always been so difficult.

Meanwhile, Hasina left Bangladesh for the United States. The timing of Hasina's departure, just days before her father's high-profile birthday anniversary, fuelled speculation that she was forced by the military to go into exile and increased the pressure on Zia to follow suit. Zia was ready to leave Bangladesh, provided her exile, probably in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, was guaranteed to be comfortable.

If Zia left and Hasina, who was already in the United States purportedly for medical treatment, stayed away, the era of the two ladies would finally end. As speculation mounted that Hasina's visit to America would turn out to be much longer than advertised, BNP leaders told U.S. diplomats that Zia was finished and must leave Bangladesh. Four former ministers separately reported that her departure was imminent, and two claimed to be involved with or privy to the DGFI negotiations with Zia.

Zia had agreed to leave, provided her sons, Tarique and Koko, and perhaps other relatives, were allowed to go with her. Tarique was in custody. He already faced one extortion charge relating to a party nomination for the last election. Koko  the lower profile younger brother of Tarique  was free, but on an unofficial list of 50 corrupt persons facing government scrutiny pressure. Former Home State Minister Babar told the U.S. ambassador that the deal called for Zia to travel without Tarique, but Tarique would be released to seek medical treatment abroad and would not return.

Zia preferred Jeddah as a refuge. She sought assurances she would live there in appropriate comfort. Under virtual house arrest in her cantonment residence, with the landlines cut off and visitors having to secure military permission to enter the premises, she occasionally ventured out, but rarely made a public appearance.

Even Zia loyalists, such as former Finance Minister Saifur Rahman, wanted Zia to go. They had all along warned her to act against corruption and party thugs associated with Tarique. As many as one quarter of the party's former parliament members were ready to support Bhuiyan as new party leader. He, however, was unable or unwilling to openly challenge Zia. Bhuiyan wanted to wait until Zia left Bangladesh. Because of the anti-corruption campaign's wide net, he had no serious rival within the party.

In contrast to their BNP opposites, Awami League officials continued to toe the party line that she would soon return home. They appreciated that the military-backed regime's reform agenda found its roots in long-standing opposition demands. They insisted that prolonged criticism of Hasina at a party forum constituted reform and signalled openness to change. However, they equivocated if she would submit her leadership to the vote of the appropriate party council.

BNP sources with good military and intelligence contacts claimed that Hasina was being blackmailed with evidence that she took money from both Indian and Pakistani intelligence agencies; even if Hasina was a free actor, it took great courage for her to return to Bangladesh from the United States under these circumstances. The incentive for the military to send Tarique overseas was tremendous because, as General Zia's son, he retained the ability to rally support among Zia loyalists as long as he was alive or in the country.

(This is an excerpt from B.Z. Khasru's upcoming book, One Eleven, Minus Two, Prime Minister Hasina's War on Yunus and America, which will be published shortly by Rupa Publications, New Delhi.)

B. Z. Khasru, a U.S.-based journalist, is the author of Myths and Facts Bangladesh Liberation War: How India, U.S., China and USSR Shaped the Outcome, and The Bangladesh Military Coup and the CIA Link
Ahead of Narendra Modi's much-anticipated Ukraine visit, the prime minister confidently asserted that no problem can be solved on the battlefield. Extending support to the war-torn region, Modi said India is ready to extend cooperation in all possible ways to restore peace and stability in West Asia.

Modi, who arrived in Warsaw on Wednesday, held wide-ranging talks with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. Topics including strengthening of strategic partnerships, social security pact to promote mobility of skilled workers and key sectors of defence, trade, renewable energy, food processing, artificial intelligence and space were discussed.

While referring to the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine, Modi expressed deep concern. "The ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia are a matter of deep concern for all of us. India firmly believes that no problem can be solved on the battlefield," he said.

Modi will be reaching Ukraine on Friday.

#WATCH | Kyiv, Ukraine: On PM Modi's visit to Ukraine, Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko says "Prime Minister Modi is a legendary person for us. We know how many good things he did under his leadership for the people of India, that India developed economically so pic.twitter.com/jxcqJ7dybM  ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2024

Addressing a joint press briefing, Polish PM Tusk said both are convinced that India can play a serious and positive role in ending the war. "I am very pleased that the Prime Minister confirmed the readiness of his personal commitment to a peaceful, just, quick end to the war," said Tusk.

Modi also thanked Poland for facilitating the evacuation of Indian students from Ukraine after the conflict began in 2022.

In his remarks, Tusk said Poland wants to expand its defence cooperation with India and that it would like to support New Delhi's efforts to modernise its military.

#WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds a delegation-level talk with Poland President Andrzej Duda, in Warsaw.



(Video: ANI/DD News) pic.twitter.com/qpVDgnqHXT  ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2024

"We are ready to take part in the modernisation of military equipment," he said.

While referring to the defence ties, Modi said close cooperation in the field of defence is a symbol of our deep mutual trust and cooperation in this area will be strengthened.

Modi also said both sides agreed that reform in the United Nations and other international institutions is the need of the hour to face various global challenges.

"Terrorism is a big challenge for us. More such cooperation is necessary between countries like India and Poland which believe in humanity," he said.
The Centre has dismissed allegations that the latest floods in Bangladesh were caused by onrush of water from upstream after India opened the gates of a dam on Gumti River in Tripura.



At least three lakh people impacted by floods in the neighbouring country, with parts of the Dhaka-Chittagong highway in Comilla getting submerged under water. Residents of Moulvibazar district was the worst affected as water level of four rivers -- Manu, Juri, Dhalai and Kushiara -- were above the danger level. Other affected districts include Sunamganj, Habiganj, Feni, Chittagong, Noakhali and Khagrachari

Besides 34,000 people have been displaced in Tripura due the floods caused by heavy rainfall since August 21.

The Ministry of External Affairs Ministry said the catchment areas of Gumti River passing through India and Bangladesh witnessed heaviest rains over the last few days. However, it clarified that the floods in the neighbouring country were mainly due to waters from downstream catchments areas.

Flood situation in Bangladesh not due to release of waters from Indian dam on Gumti River, Tripura:https://t.co/8hcnRkoBF1 pic.twitter.com/p5zY0LII7D  Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) August 22, 2024

It pointed out that the dam is located more that 120 km away from the Bangladesh border and that the low-height Dumbur dam is only 30 metre high. Bangladesh also draws 40MW power from Tripura, the ministry added.

Bangladesh also alleged that the Tripura government has not given an official notification regarding opening the dam and the data showing rising level of water was sent to Bangladesh till 3 pm on Wednesday. But the ministry said due to flooding, there was power outage leading to problems of communication and at 6 pm, the government tried to maintain communication through other means created tor urgent transmission of data.

"Floods on the common rivers between India and Bangladesh are a shared problem inflicting sufferings to people on both sides, and requires close mutual cooperation towards resolving them," the ministry stated, pointing out that the two countries share 54 common cross-border rivers.

"River water cooperation is an important part of our bilateral engagement. We remain committed to resolving issues and mutual concerns in water resources and river water management through bilateral consultations and technical discussions," it added.
At least two girls were killed and six others, including five children, were injured when unidentified gunmen opened fire on a school van in northwest Pakistan on Thursday.

The attack took place in the Dheri Kot area, bordering Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab provinces, in Attock district. The children, aged between 10 and 11 were killed in the attack.

The kids were on their way to school when the gunmen opened fire on the school van. According to police, five children and the van driver were critically injured.

Regional Police Officer (RPO) Babar Sarfraz Alpa said the incident occurred due to "personal enmity". A case had been registered against a person for his alleged involvement in the attack.

The gunfire was aimed at the driver but also caused harm to the children, the RPO said. He said that a search is underway to arrest the suspects.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attack, calling it a cruel and gruesome act, and expressed solidarity with the bereaved families. He directed the authorities concerned to take stern action against the culprits and to provide the best treatment facilities to the injured children.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has also conveyed his sympathies to the bereaved families.

President Asif Ali Zardari also strongly condemned the incident and assured strict action against those responsible. "Targeting innocent children is a cruel and shameful act," he said.
Aizawl, Aug 22 (PTI) The National Highway-306, which links Mizoram with Assam, wore a deserted look on Thursday following a call for blockade by a few organisations of vehicle owners and drivers in protest against the alleged poor condition of the road.

The NH-306 is the lifeline of the state as all supplies come from outside through it.

The associations based on Kolasib bordering Assam claimed that they had requested the Mizoram government and others to take steps to repair the highway, but no action was taken.

Sate government officials could not be contacted for comments.

Kolasib unit of Mizoram Tipper Association Secretary F Lalbiakliana said that all vehicles, including private and those carrying essential commodities and oil were not allowed to ply on the National Highway within Kolasib district.

Vehicles on medical emergency and essential services were, however, exempted, he said.

Lalbiakliana claimed that the NH-306 between Vairengte in Kolasib district and Sairang in Aizawl district is in such a dilapidated condition that it is almost non-motorable for a long time especially during monsoon.

He claimed that the associations and state government along with National Highway Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL), which monitors and manages a long stretch of the highway, had discussed the matter on at least five occasions in the past, but to no avail.

"We are compelled to enforce the blockade to mount pressure on the government and concerned construction companies," Lalbiakliana said.

Meanwhile, the Mizoram Merchants' Association (MIMA) has expressed solidarity to the Kolasib vehicle owner and driver associations for the strike.

The merchant body also urged all traders in the state not to hike prices of commodities during the blockade.

Officials could not be contacted for comments on the ongoing strike.
KOCHI, India, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Star Health and Allied Insurance (Star Health Insurance), India's largest retail health insurance provider, made a contribution of Rs. 50 lacs to the Kerala Chief Minister's Relief Fund in support of those affected by the recent landslide in Wayanad. The Company is focused on enabling extensive measures to ensure swift, compassionate assistance for affected individuals and families. This donation was presented by Mr. Anand Roy, Managing Director and CEO of Star Health Insurance, to the Honourable Chief Minister, Shri. Pinarayi Vijayan, in a meeting held today.



Mr. Anand Roy, MD & CEO of Star Health Insurance, said, "At Star Health Insurance, our commitment to the people of Kerala goes far beyond providing insurance  we are dedicated to being a pillar of strength for our communities especially in times of crisis. The recent Wayanad landslide has brought unimaginable hardship to many families. Our goal is not just to offer financial aid but to provide a comprehensive support system that makes a significant difference in people's lives during this challenging time."



To achieve this, Star Health Insurance has implemented several key initiatives in the Kerala region, particularly in Wayanad, to streamline the insurance claims process and offer timely support:



 24/7 Helplines: Dedicated helplines are established to assist claimants around the clock. For assistance, please contact the 24/7 helpline at 18004252255



 Special Claim Desk: A special claims desk has been set up at the district level with delegated claims settlement authority, to expedite the processing of claims



 Electronic Claims: Policyholders are encouraged to initiate claims electronically and submit relevant documents online for faster processing



 Quick Processing: Claims are processed based on just essential documentation and pre-authorization is granted within one hour for over 90% of cases, with a focus on expediting final settlements



Furthermore, Star Health Insurance has introduced specific relaxations for claims arising from the Wayanad landslide disaster:



 Preliminary Authorization: A significant portion of the claim amount is authorized in advance



 Enhanced Empathy in Claims Handling: Processing doctors are sensitized to handle claims with the utmost empathy, ensuring that the affected individuals receive the support without stress



 Anywhere Cashless Facility: Identified private hospitals in the affected area offer cashless treatment, even if they are not part of the Star Health Insurance network



 Specialist Guidance: Senior medical professionals are available to provide specialist guidance, to ensure the best possible care for claimants



 Help Desks and Nodal Officer: Star Health Insurance has established help desks in key locations for assistance. Dr. Azeez, Joint Vice President, is appointed as the nodal officer for all claims in the Wayanad landslide.



About Star Health and Allied Insurance



Star Health and Allied Insurance Co. Ltd. (BSE: 543412) (NSE: STARHEALTH) is a market leader in standalone health insurance in India. The Company commenced operations in 2006 and is India's first Standalone Health Insurance Company. Star Health Insurance provides Health, Personal Accident and Travel Insurance to customers. The Company has grown to emerge as one of the preferred private health insurance companies in India with several pioneering products and services to its credit. With customer-centricity at its core, the Company has superior and innovative product offerings, service capabilities and a seamless claims management process. Star Health offers tailor-made products to cater to the needs of customers across cancer, diabetes, cardiac illnesses and senior citizen, women and children specialized suite of health insurance offerings. Star Health is India's first health insurance Company to settle over 1 crore claims. Star Health Insurance has a strong multi-channel distribution network with 887 offices, with 30,000+ healthcare provider network, 7,18,000 licensed agents, robust bancassurance and financial institution partners, and 17000+ employees. In FY24, Star Health's gross written premium stood at Rs 15,254 Cr with its net worth at Rs 6,339 Cr.



For more information visit www.starhealth.in



Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2487548/AnandRoyCMSTARHEALTH.jpg



Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2401495/4679927/StarAllied_Logo.jpg



(Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with PRNewswire and PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.). PTI PWR

PWR
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], August 22: Rajnish Wellness Limited (BSE: 541601) has made a significant advancement in the Ayurvedic wellness sector by securing an exclusive deal with Indian Railways. The agreement grants Rajnish Wellness the rights to set up Ayurvedic product stores at 315 railway stations nationwide. This strategic partnership is set to transform the Ayurvedic industry by greatly increasing the accessibility and visibility of Ayurvedic products to a vast consumer base.



Several factors contribute to the optimistic outlook for Rajnish Wellness:



Major Deal: The exclusive agreement with Indian Railways is a game-changer for Rajnish Wellness. It is anticipated to substantially boost the companys revenue and enhance its presence in the Indian wellness market.



Strong Performance: Rajnish Wellness has demonstrated robust financial performance, consistently delivering strong returns and outperforming key market indices over the past three years. The companys financial health reflects its ability to capitalize on new opportunities and deliver value to shareholders.



Growing Market: The Ayurvedic market in India is expanding rapidly, driven by increasing consumer interest in natural and holistic health solutions. Rajnish Wellnesss strategic move to tap into the railway passenger base aligns well with this trend, positioning the company at the forefront of this growth.



Attractive Valuation: Trading at just 4, Rajnish Wellnesss stock is considered undervalued compared to its potential market impact. This presents a significant opportunity for investors, especially as the company expands its footprint in the Ayurvedic sector.



Strategic Partnership: The collaboration with Indian Railways is not only expected to elevate Rajnish Wellnesss brand but also contribute to the broader growth of the Ayurvedic industry in India.



Consumer Base Expansion: With Indian Railways serving millions of passengers daily, this deal opens up new avenues for Rajnish Wellness to reach a diverse and extensive consumer base, driving increased awareness and adoption of Ayurvedic products.



Market Potential: The growing trend towards natural wellness solutions aligns with Rajnish Wellnesss offerings, making the company well-positioned to benefit from the expanding Ayurvedic market.



Rajnish Wellness presents an attractive investment opportunity with a major new deal, strong financial performance, and favorable market conditions. The partnership with Indian Railways is expected to drive significant growth and enhance the companys market position. Investors should monitor the companys progress and consider the stock as a potential growth opportunity in the expanding Ayurvedic market.



(Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with PNN and PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.). PTI PWR

PWR
BENGALURU, India, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Stockify Fintech, a leading customer-oriented platform specializing in Unlisted and Pre-IPO shares in India, is excited to announce the expansion of its operations to Kolkata. This move aims to serve the rapidly growing business community in Eastern India, particularly in Tier 2 cities like Ranchi, Patna, Guwahati, Siliguri, Asansol, and Dhanbad.



Founded by Piyush Jhunjhunwala and Rahul Khatuwala, Stockify Fintech is committed to helping High Net-Worth Individuals (HNIs) and Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) gain access to multiple unlisted shares via the pre-IPO route, maximizing investors' wealth. With offices already in Bangalore and Dubai, Stockify is now expanding to Kolkata to reach more investors in this growing region.



"Kolkata is a strategic step in our growth plan. By expanding to this vibrant city, we're not only reaching a new and dynamic business community but also empowering investors in Eastern India with unique investment opportunities. Our goal is to make high-potential unlisted shares accessible to everyone, and Kolkata is key to that vision," said Piyush Jhunjhunwala, CEO of Stockify Fintech.



The new office in Kolkata reflects the company's vision to cater to the growing demand for unlisted shares and startup funding in Eastern India. With a dedicated team of 10-15 members, this office marks a significant step in further solidifying the company's footprint in the region. Kolkata's rich history in finance and its emerging role as a fintech hub made it the ideal location for the company's next phase of growth.



Stockify Fintech offers a diverse range of investment products beyond unlisted shares, including startup funding, mutual funds, bonds, non-convertible debentures (NCDs), and insurance-linked investments. The company's unique proposition lies in providing access to Blue-Chip Stocks before their listing on the Indian Stock Market (BSE/NSE), allowing investors to maximize returns by investing early.



With a target of achieving $20 million in revenue this year, Stockify is not only focused on expanding within India but also has plans for global outreach. The company plans to host a series of events for top HNIs in Dubai and key cities in India to educate them on the vast investment opportunities in India, including startups, Pre-IPO, and listed stocks.



About Stockify



Stockify Fintech is a leading platform offering unlisted or Pre-IPO shares in India, helping investors maximize their wealth through early investments. The company also provides startup funding, mutual funds, bonds, NCDs, and insurance-linked investments.



To learn more about Stockify Fintech and its innovative financial solutions, visit https:tockify.net.in/ and https:tockify.net.in/buy-unlisted-shares/



For more information, Call Rahul Khatuwala on +91-9591810391 (Bengaluru, India), Email: rahulkhatuwala@stockify.net.in or Piyush Jhunjhunwala on +97-1502344662 (Dubai, UAE). Office Address: Office no 715, Abacus by PS group, Rajarhat, Kolkata.



Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2221118/4770942/Stockify_Logo.jpg



(Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with PRNewswire and PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.). PTI PWR

PWR
Udaipur, Aug 22 (PTI) Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday urged regional rural banks (RRB) to ensure credit to the MSME sector and generate awareness of government schemes, especially in aspirational districts, to achieve the goal of 'Vikshit Bharat' by 2047.

Sitharaman held a meeting here to review the performance of nine RRBs of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan.

The review meeting focused on business performance, upgrading digital technology services, fostering business growth in MSME clusters, and deepening of financial inclusion in rural areas.

The finance minister urged RRBs to generate awareness of Government schemes, especially in aspirational districts.

She also appealed to the officials of RRBs to work in coordination to benefit the common people through government schemes.

Sitharaman emphasised active outreach by RRB branches located in MSME clusters to ensure credit to small and micro enterprises. She also asked RRBs to become more customer friendly and leverage its local connect to further improve performance.

In the meeting, discussions were held on making effective action plans to deal with the challenges being faced in the banking sector, a release said.

The minister acknowledged the improvement in technology upgradation of nine RRBs of Western Central region since 2022, it said.

The annual action plan and progress of the banks for the last financial year was also reviewed in the meeting.

Officials of NABARD, SIDBI, Bank of Baroda, State Bank of India, Bank of Maharashtra, nine Regional Rural Banks participated in the meeting and apprised the minister of the progress report of their respective banks.
Mumbai, Aug 22 (PTI) A day after lambasting e-commerce players for predatory pricing, Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday said he is not against online platforms but India wants such entities to be "fair and honest" in their conduct.

Speaking with reporters in the financial capital, the outspoken Union minister said the rule of the law should be followed in letter and spirit, and made it clear that consumer preferences should not be influenced by algorithms.

Drawing from his concerns expressed earlier on protecting local businesses, Goyal stressed on small businesses being given a fair chance to compete by the e-commerce giants.

"We are very clear that we want to invite FDI (foreign direct investment), we want to invite technology, we want to have the best of the world, and we are not against online at all," Goyal said at an event here.

"What the country always desires is fair play, is honesty - for the customer, honesty to the supplier of goods and services and to ensure that other people also have a fair chance to compete against such online business," the Union minister, a member of Parliament from the Mumbai North constituency, said.

Goyal on Wednesday voiced concerns over predatory pricing by the e-commerce firms and feared about the impact their operations have on small retailers in the country. He also went public with his fears, warning of the "huge social disruption" with the massive growth of the e-commerce sector.

The Minister questioned Amazon's announcement of USD 1 billion investment in India, saying the US retailer was not doing any great service to the Indian economy but filling up for the losses it had suffered in the country.

He said that their huge losses in India "smells of predatory pricing", which is not good for the country as it impacts crores of small retailers.

Goyal, a chartered accountant, lambasted the e-commerce companies on Wednesday, questioning their business model that has been impacting small retailers in the country.

"When Amazon says that we are going to invest a billion dollars in India and we all celebrate, and we forget the underlying story that the billion dollars are not coming in for great service or any great investment to support the Indian economy. They made a billion-dollar loss in their balance sheet that year, they had to fill in that loss.

"And how did that loss get caused, they paid Rs 1,000 crores to professionals. I do not know who these professionals are...I would love to know, which chartered accountants, professionals or lawyers get Rs 1,000 crores unless you are paying all the top lawyers to block them so that nobody can fight a case against you," the minister said.

On Thursday, he said the government wants to encourage online firms and is also in favour of such entities, which possess "tremendous benefits" like speed and convenience.

Later, speaking to reporters, he said the business should be based on the law of the land in letter and spirit.

"Algorithm should not be used to force consumer preferences. The ratings that are given on these sites should be honest," he said.

Without naming the entities, Goyal said the Consumer Affairs Ministry has "pulled up" some organizations for manipulating the ratings.

The government is desirous that the FDI policy on e-commerce which allows B2B in a marketplace model is followed "scrupulously by all foreign e-commerce companies" sticking to the law of the land, he said.

"We want to ensure that our consumers get choice, business practices are honest and within the law of the land," he added.

Meanwhile, Goyal also said that he is Hoping to come out with the new e-commerce policy soon.

He also said that every free trade agreement will be on the "strength of fair, equitable and balanced benefits for India."

The country will ensure that any FTA protects the interest of our farmers, animal husbandry, dairy, fishermen, MSMEs, and domestic manufacturing and will be crafted in a manner which is in the best interest of India and also gives equal opportunity to our counterparties, the Minister assured.

"We do not do agreements in a hurry and are finalized based on India's interests," Goyal said.
Lahore, Aug 22 (PTI) A staunch critic of the Pakistan Army and YouTuber has been arrested here in Punjab province for allegedly fanning religious hatred and defaming institutions especially the military on social media, authorities said here on Thursday.

The arrest of Orya Maqbool Jan, a known political commentator, comes a week after intelligence agencies allegedly abducted another YouTuber and comedian for criticising the Shehbaz Sharif-led government.

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) cybercrime wing said it raided Jan's residence in Lahore on Thursday and arrested him for stoking religious hatred against an important personality and institutions.

Jan, a columnist, poet, playwright and former civil servant, has a following of over one million subscribers to his YouTube channel. Last year he was detained by intelligence agencies for several days for openly criticising the role of the powerful military in politics and for supporting jailed former prime minister Imran Khan.

Following the arrest of Khan, the founder supremo of the Pakistan-Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party last August, a number of journalists and YouTubers in the country faced arrests, violence, and threats amid mass protests.

Earlier last week, another Pakistani YouTuber and comedian Aun Ali Khosa was allegedly abducted by intelligence agencies for singing a song critical of the Shehbaz Sharif government and its backers. He, however, had returned home to Punjab province, his lawyer said on Monday.

Khosa was among the three other social media activists from Khan's PTI, who had recently been picked up allegedly by intelligence agencies. The other two were Naeem Ahmad Yasin and Arsalan Akbar and their families have maintained them as missing.
Peshawar, Aug 22 (PTI) Two girls were killed and six others, including five children, critically injured when unknown gunmen opened indiscriminate fire on a school van in northwest Pakistan on Thursday, police said.

The attack took place in the Dheri Kot area, which borders both Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab provinces, in the Attock district.

The children were on their way to school when the gunmen indiscriminately opened fire on the school van. While two girls aged between 10 and 11 were killed in the attack, five children and the van driver were critically injured, police said.

Initial findings suggest personal enmity of the driver of the school van as the main reason behind the brutal attack, they said. A case had been registered against a person for his alleged involvement in the attack.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has condemned the attack, calling it a cruel and gruesome act, and expressed solidarity with the bereaved families. He directed the authorities concerned to take stern action against the culprits and to provide the best treatment facilities to the injured children.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has also conveyed his sympathies to the bereaved families.
Chicago, Aug 22 (PTI) Kamala Harris has received unprecedented support from three top leaders of the party -- former president Bill Clinton, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi -- in her bid to break the last glass ceiling of the United States.

All three leaders, who have nationwide appeal, in prime-time speeches on Wednesday described Harris as the best individual who can lead the country right now.

Clinton said Harris is the only candidate in this race with the vision, the experience, the temperament and the will.

"And yes - the sheer joy - to do that on good and bad days. To be our voice, said Clinton in his address to the Democratic National Convention here.

Harris, 59, is scheduled to formally accept the Democratic Party's presidential nomination on Thursday to take on Republican rival Donald Trump, 78, in the November 5 election.

If elected, Harris, who is of Indian and African heritage, would break one of the highest glass ceilings left for women in the United States -- that of occupying the country's top office.

Last month, President Biden selflessly passed the torch to Vice President Kamala Harris, who is "ready, willing, and able to fight for the people, Jeffries said.

"Kamala Harris is a courageous leader, a compassionate leader, and a commonsense leader who will deliver real results for everyday Americans. Kamala Harris is fighting for our freedom. Kamala Harris is fighting for our families. Kamala Harris is fighting for our future. Together, let's make Kamala Harris the 47th president of the United States of America," Jeffries said.

The House Minority Leader said nothing can stop Kamala Harris from becoming the 47th President of the United States of America.

Pelosi said she has known Harris for decades. "Personally, I know her as a person of deep faith, reflected in her community, care, and service, she said.

"Officially, she is a leader of strength, with wisdom and eloquence on policy - most recently, fighting for women's right to choose. Politically, she is astute and strategic in winning difficult elections-quickly securing the nomination with dignity and grace and choosing Tim Walz as our vice president," Pelosi said.

Clinton said Harris is the only candidate in this race with the vision, the experience, the temperament, the will. And yesthe sheer joyto do that on good and bad days. To be our voice, said the former president of the United States.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro said that Kamala Harris has spent her entire career making progress.
*Ahead of Ukraine visit, PM Narendra Modi says India supports peace in this region.



Harris receives support from top Democratic leaders in her bid to White House.



Choice is clear between Kamala Harris and 'the other guy': Bill Clinton tells DNC



Stories from Bangladesh's latest political developments.



Day three of Democratic National Convention begins with Vedic prayer.



Stories on political developments in Pakistan.



Stories on West Asia tensions.



Stories on Russia Ukraine war. *
Dhaka, Aug 22 (PTI) A team of UN experts is set to arrive in Dhaka on Thursday to set a framework for the fact-finding mission that will investigate the killings of at least 650 protesters ahead of and in the aftermath of Sheikh Hasinas resignation as the prime minister earlier this month.

"This is the primary UN team of experts before the UN fact-finding mission comes and investigates (the atrocities). We are expecting to sign an agreement of framework for the probe," The Daily Star newspaper quoted a UN official based in Dhaka as saying on Wednesday.

The UN team is expected to discuss detailed terms and conditions for investigating all the human rights violations that took place between July 1 and August 15, the official said.

The delegation will stay here for at least a week and meet the civil society groups, victims of human rights violations, students and government officials and any other actors concerned, the official added.

Foreign ministry officials also confirmed the arrival of the three-member UN team.

Bangladesh descended into chaos after Hasina's government collapsed and she fled to India on August 5 amid violent protests over quota reforms for government jobs, while the Army stepped in to fill the power vacuum on August 5. Before that, the anti-government protests had killed more than 500 people since mid-July. Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus took oath as the Chief Adviser of the interim government on August 8.

According to a primary report of the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights published on August 16, between July 16 and August 11, as many as 650 people were killed in Bangladesh during the student-led protests and after the fall of the Awami League regime. Of these, nearly 400 deaths were reported from July 16 to August 4, while around 250 people were reportedly killed following the ouster of the Awami League-led government on August 5 and 6.

The reported death toll is likely an underestimation, as information collection has been hindered by restrictions on movement due to the curfew and the internet shutdown, the OHCHR said.

The UN human rights body further says that the number of reported killings in revenge attacks since August 5 remains to be determined. Those killed include protesters, bystanders, journalists covering the events and several members of the security forces.

Thousands of protesters and bystanders have been injured, with hospitals overwhelmed by the influx of patients. The majority of deaths and injuries have been attributed to the security forces and the student wing affiliated with the Awami League.

This will be the first time the UN is sending a fact-finding mission to Bangladesh since its independence in 1971 to investigate widespread human rights abuses in the country, the Chief Adviser of the Government of Bangladesh said in a post on X last week, the handle for which is run by Yunus office.

UN human rights chief Volker Turk last week assured his support and said an inclusive, human rights-centred approach will ensure the transition in Bangladesh succeeds. Turk had underlined the need for accountability for all those responsible for human rights violations and violence, including against religious minorities, in Bangladesh.

A complaint was also filed on Wednesday with the investigation agency of Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal against Hasina and eight others, accusing them of committing genocide and crimes against humanity during the mass movement of the students against her government.

Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal has already started an investigation against Hasina and nine others on charges of genocide and crimes against humanity that took place from July 15 to August 5 during the students' mass movement against her government.
Warsaw, Aug 22 (PTI) External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday said he held a good conversation with his Polish counterpart Radosaw Sikorski on several topics like the Ukraine conflict, the situation in the Indo-Pacific and bilateral cooperation.

Jaishankar is here as part of visiting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's delegation.

"A good conversation this morning with FM @sikorskiradek of Poland. Discussed the Ukraine conflict, Indo-Pacific situation and bilateral cooperation," Jaishankar posted on X.

He expressed confidence that Prime Minister Modi's visit will give a fresh impetus to bilateral ties with Poland.

Modi's visit to Poland is the first trip by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in the past 45 years.
Chicago, Aug 22 (PTI) Indian-American Mini Timmaraju, who is the president and CEO a reproductive rights advocacy group, on Wednesday urged US voters to elect Vice President Kamala Harris as the next president to protect womens rights, which she said is under threat from her rival Donald Trump.

When abortion is on the ballot, we win, said Timmaraju during her address on the third day of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

In California, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Montana, Ohio, and Vermont, voters sent a message: Come for our rights, and well come roaring back, said the CEO of Reproductive Freedom for All, Timmaraju.

And it seems like every day, another state gets added to that list. Let's hear it for Arizona and Montana- the latest states to announce that the people will get to have their say this November! Because voters who support reproductive freedom aren't the minority. We're the majority, she said.

Trump and his running mate JD Vance should understand that Americans' private lives are nobody's business, Timmaraju said.

"Instead, Trump brags about overturning Roe v. Wade. And if you want to know what he'll do in office, Google Project 2025, she told the thousands of participants at the DNC.

Kamala Harris, she said, has her own project for 2025: restoring reproductive freedom.

It's simple: Do we want a president who said women should be punished for having abortions, or a president who trusts women? A vice president who voted against protecting fertility treatment, or a vice president who used fertility treatment to start a family? A president who created the crisis we're in, or a president who will fix it? This election will decide America's future. So let's elect Kamala Harris and Tim Walz! the Indian-American leader said.
Kyiv, Aug 22 (AP) President Voldymyr Zelenskyy toured the northeastern Ukrainian region of Sumy on Thursday in his first visit to the border area since his forces entered Russian territory more than two weeks ago.

During a meeting with Ukraine's military commander, Zelenskyy said Ukrainian forces have claimed control of another settlement in the Russian region of Kursk and taken more Russian prisoners of war whom he hopes to exchange for captured Ukrainians.

But the gains there come as Ukraine continues to lose ground in its eastern Donetsk region. The Russian Defence Ministry announced Thursday that its military has claimed control of the village of Mezhove. (AP) SCY

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Kyiv, Aug 22 (AP) President Volodymyr Zelenskyy toured the northeastern Ukrainian region of Sumy on Thursday in his first visit to the border area since his forces entered Russian territory more than two weeks ago.

After a meeting with Ukraine's military commander, Zelenskyy said Ukrainian forces have claimed control of another settlement in the Russian region of Kursk and taken more Russian prisoners of war whom he hopes to exchange for captured Ukrainians. He referred to that as Ukraine's exchange fund.

Another settlement in the Kursk region is now under Ukrainian control, and we have replenished the exchange fund, Zelenskyy wrote on the social media platform X after hearing a report from the military commander, Col Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi.

But the gains there come as Ukraine continues to lose ground in its eastern Donetsk region. The Russian Defence Ministry announced Thursday that its military has claimed control of the village of Mezhove.

Ukraine's push into Russia marks the first capture of Russian territory since World War II.

It comes as both sides in the war use drones to attack far within enemy lines.

A Ukrainian drone attack Thursday sparked a fire at a military facility in southern Russia as Kyiv pushes its offensive in the Kursk region and struck key infrastructure including bridges.

Andrei Bocharov, governor of the Volgograd region, said Thursday that a defence ministry facility was on fire after being attacked by drones in the area of Marinovka, in a sign that Ukraine is not letting up on its attacks. He did not specify what was damaged.

Ukraine attacked Russia overnight with 28 drones, Russia's Ministry of Defence said. Thirteen were shot down over the Volgograd region, seven over the Rostov region, four over the Belgorod region, two over the Voronezh region, and one each over the Bryansk and Kursk regions, the ministry said.

Russian Telegram channels said drones attempted to attack a military air base near Marinovka in the village of Oktyabrsky. Videos shared on Russian social media showed an explosion in the night sky, reportedly near the base. Marinovka is about 300 km (185 miles) east of the Ukrainian border and about the same distance west from the border with Kazakhstan.

Ukraine claimed responsibility for the attack.

Ukraine's Security Service and the Special Operation Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine conducted the drone attack Wednesday night striking the Marinovka airfield in Russia, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak publicly.

The attack came as the ground offensive in Russia's Kursk region rattles the Kremlin. The daring operation could involve as many as 10,000 Ukrainian troops backed by armour and artillery, military analysts say.

The Baza Telegram channel, which is close to Russian law enforcement, said one drone was taken down several km (miles) from the airfield near Marinovka and that wreckage from another fell on a trailer near the air base, causing it to catch fire.

Data from NASA fire satellites, which monitor Earth for forest blazes, showed fires breaking out around the air base's apron, where fighter jets were previously seen parked.

Another fire burned Thursday in Russia's Rostov region, where firefighters struggled for the fifth day to put out a fire at an oil depot in the town of Proletarsk caused by a Ukrainian drone attack Sunday.

Russian state television channels have largely avoided covering the attack. Russian Orthodox priests visited Proletarsk to pray for injured firefighters.

Independent Russian Telegram channels said another powerful explosion was heard Wednesday evening and shared videos of a fireball burning in the night sky. State news agency Tass said 47 people were injured while putting out the blaze, but firefighters succeeded in stopping fires in six fuel tanks.

Satellite photos from Planet Labs PBC analysed Thursday by The Associated Press showed the fire at the oil depot still intensely burning as of Wednesday. Storage tanks at the facility appeared engulfed in flames. Visible flames could be seen in the images, with a thick black smoke cloud drifting west over the city of Proletarsk.

Kursk's acting governor, Alexei Smirnov, said authorities began putting up concrete shelters at bus stops and other locations around the city Thursday to protect from shelling.

He said similar work will be done in Zheleznogorsk and Kurchatov, where the Kursk nuclear power plant is located. (AP) SCY

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Chicago, Aug 22 (PTI) The country's progress would continue if Vice President Kamala Harris is elected president, Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval said on Wednesday.

Under Kamala Harris, the progress will only continue, Pureval, who is of Tibetan and Indian origin, told thousands of members of the Democratic Party at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

Pureval is the first Asian-American mayor in Cincinnati, Ohio.

As a Tibetan refugee, my mom believed deeply in the promise of America. And when I was up, she and my dad, who is from India, taught me that when you make a promise, you keep it, he said.

For years, politicians came through my city and promised to fix the Brent Spence Bridge, which connects Ohio to Kentucky. Donald Trump was one of them. He did what they all do, press conference here, photo op there, but nothing changed, until Kamala Harris and Joe Biden, Pureval said.

Joe Biden told Cincinnatians, we're going to fix that damn bridge," he added.

And four months later, Biden signed the bipartisan infrastructure law, which gave our city the biggest infrastructure investment in history. "It will stitch our communities back together. And it will fix that damn bridge once and for all, he said.

"That's what leadership looks like. Not hollow promises, but solid progress. Not lip service, but true, honest-to-God public service," Pureval said.
Lahore, Aug 22 (AP) A court in Pakistan on Thursday allowed investigators to question a man in their custody for four more days about his role in spreading misinformation that sparked widespread rioting in the UK earlier this month, officials said.

The court's decision came a day after authorities charged the suspect Farhan Asif, 32, with cyber terrorism following his arrest from his home in Lahore, the capital of eastern Punjab province.

Asif, who is a freelance web developer, was produced before the court amid tight security. He was not allowed to talk to the media.

Kiran Muqeem, a prosecutor for the Federal Investigation Agency, told the court that Asif did not cooperate with officers after the same court the previous day allowed them to question him for a day. They demanded his custody for two weeks but the court said it would only allow it for four more days.

Muqeem later told reporters that Asif disseminated fake news and caused riots in England.

Asif was handcuffed and wearing blue shalwar kameez garments when brought to the court.

His lawyer Rana Rizwan told reporters that the court remanded his client into the custody of the federal agency in a hurry and without hearing him.

We were informed by the court that the case of Asif would be taken up after lunch break. But the court took up the matter before the lunch break, and allowed FIA to keep him in their custody, Rizwan said.

Asif is accused of spreading misinformation from YouTube and Facebook about the British teenage suspect in a stabbing attack that killed three girls and injured 10 other people on July 29 at a dance class in Northwest England.

The false information claimed that the suspect was a recently arrived asylum-seeker and had a name that suggested he was Muslim. After the misinformation led to a violent mob attacking a mosque near the site of the stabbing the next day, police took the unusual step of clarifying that the suspect was born in the UK.

British media has widely reported that his parents are from Rwanda and are said to have Christian beliefs. Channel3 Now, an account on the X social media platform that purports to be a news channel, was one of the first outlets to report the false name, Ali Al-Shakati.

A Facebook account for the channel said it is managed by people in Pakistan and the US. But, officials say Asif was solely running the Channel3 Now, and he spread misinformation to gain more viewers. (AP) NPK

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Dhaka, Aug 22 (PTI) A case was filed on Thursday against Bangladesh's deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina and 46 others over the killing of a hawker in the national capital during the recent mass protests, taking the number of cases against her after her ouster to 45.

The case was filed in Ashulia Police Station following a court order, the state-run BSS news agency reported.

Md Mojibul Hossain, a relative of the victim, Shaon, filed the complaint with the court of Dhaka Senior Judicial Magistrate Rabeya Sultana. The court, after recording the statement of the complainant, asked the officer in charge of Ashulia Police Station to accept the matter as a first information report (FIR), the report said.

According to the case document, Shaon joined the anti-discrimination street protest on July 4 during which he got shot at and succumbed to his injuries the same day.

With this case, Hasina is now facing 45 cases against her, including 28 for murder, four for crimes against humanity and genocide, and one for abduction. Besides, she is also facing seven other cases filed against her with the International Crimes Tribunal.

Hasina fled to India on August 5 after resigning from her post amidst unprecedented anti-government student-led protests.

The Hasina-led government was replaced by an interim government, and 84-year-old Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus was named its Chief Adviser.

Over 230 people were killed in Bangladesh in the incidents of violence that erupted across the country following the fall of the Hasina government, taking the death toll to more than 600 since the massive protest by students against a controversial quota system in government jobs first started in mid-July.
Warsaw, Aug 22 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on an official visit to Poland, paid his respects on Thursday at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Warsaw.

Modi arrived here on Wednesday, on the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Poland in 45 years. Modi will be in Ukraine for around seven hours on Friday in the second leg of his two-nation trip.

"PM @narendramodi paid his respects at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Warsaw. PM honoured the memory of brave soldiers who sacrificed their lives for their country. A solemn moment of respect and solidarity," the Ministry of External Affairs posted on X along with some photographs.

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is a monument dedicated to the unknown soldiers who have given their lives for Poland. It is one of many such national tombs of unknowns erected after World War I, and the most important monument in Poland.
London, Aug 22 (PTI) Indians may continue to top the tally of student visa grants but they are beginning to show signs of being put off applying to UK universities amid greater migration curbs, the latest Home Office statistics revealed on Thursday.

The Home Office data for the past year until June 2024 shows a 23 per cent fall in Indian students coming to the UK for higher studies, even as they continue to represent the largest group granted leave to remain on the Graduate Route visa which allows foreign students to work in Britain for two years after their degree.

This fall in Indian student numbers is the first indication of the impact of tighter curbs on the right of most student visa holders to bring along dependent family members, which came into effect earlier this year.

There were 110,006 sponsored study visa grants to main applicants who were Indian nationals in the year ending June 2024 (25 per cent of the total), 32,687 fewer than the previous year, the Home Office statistics reveal.

Most of the increase in foreign students between 2019 and 2023 were from Indian and Nigerian nationals, but numbers for these nationalities have fallen in the latest year (by 23 per cent and 46 per cent respectively), it notes.

The India-UK Young Professionals Scheme, which involves a two-way flow of young graduates to live and work in either country for up to two years, brought in 2,234 Indian nationals since the first ballot was held in February last year  well below the annual 3,000 visa cap.

In the year ending June 2024, Indian nationals represented the largest group of students granted leave to remain on the Graduate Route (67,529), representing almost half (46 per cent) of grants of Graduate Route extensions to main applicants, the data reveals.

However, a gradual decline in student numbers will cause concern among UK universities as they struggle through financial pressures and rely on the much higher fees paid by overseas students.

The National Indian Students and Alumni Union (NISAU) UK fears a review launched into the Graduate Route visa last year, which concluded only in May to confirm it would not be abandoned, put many Indians off applying.

It is critical that we ensure that the chaos and uncertainty that the review of the Graduate Route had led to is now fully put to rest. NISAU has engaged with millions of students in India to spread the message that the UK remains a warm and welcoming destination for Indian students, said NISAU UK chair Sanam Arora.

Meanwhile, Indians continued to top the travel charts for the past year, with 25 per cent of UK Visitor Visas granted followed by Chinese nationals accounting for 24 per cent.

Under other work visa categories, the previous Conservative Party government raising the minimum annual income thresholds and clamping down on dependents under the Health and Care Visa  changes retained by the new Labour government  has led to a decline in foreign workers, including Indians, coming to the UK.

The data reveals: The number of grants for Health and Care Worker main applicants fell by 81 per cent to 6,564 grants between April and June 2024, compared with the same period in 2023 when there were 35,470 grants.

The number of grants to main applicants on other routes in the Worker category (which includes Skilled Worker visas) has increased by 79 per cent since 2021, but in the latest year has fallen by 3 per cent.

It comes as the Home Office had earlier announced an independent review by its Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) into two specific job sectors of IT and engineering to reduce the UKs reliance on foreign workers. Indian IT professionals, who make up a large chunk of these visas, are likely to be impacted once the MAC review is tabled in the coming months.

These sectors are vital to the UKs economic growth and national infrastructure. They should be drawing from a growing pool of homegrown talent, Seema Malhotra, Indian-origin minister for migration and citizenship in the Home Office, wrote in The Daily Telegraph this week.

Lack of domestic training for occupations ranging from healthcare to IT meant employers having to increase their dependence on overseas recruits instead, she notes, criticising the previous Tory regimes handling of immigration  an issue which dominates the cross-party agenda amid pledges to bring down soaring numbers.
Kathmandu, Aug 22 (PTI) Nepal's Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba on Thursday said she discussed ways to boost cooperation and deepen bilateral ties with India's top leadership during her recent visit to New Delhi.

Deuba was on a five-day official visit to India from August 18 at the invitation of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. She returned home earlier in the day. It was Deuba's first official visit to a foreign country after assuming charge following the formation of a new Nepal government last month.

During the visit, Deuba held a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and her Indian counterpart Jaishankar.

"We exchange views on expanding collaboration and further strengthening bilateral relations during my high-level meetings in New Delhi," Deuba told reporters at the Tribhuvan International Airport on her arrival from India.

"I have got the opportunity to call on Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi in New Delhi during my official visit to India. During the meeting we discussed matters relating to further strengthening friendly relations existing between Nepal and India, and exchanged views on expanding collaborations between our two countries," she said.

"During my meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, we reviewed the overall aspects of Nepal-India relations including matters relating to trade and transit, energy, connectivity, investment, air routes, flood and inundation, Pancheshwor Multipurpose Project, sports, border infrastructures among others," she said.

Deuba said during her talks with Modi, matters relating to hydropower cooperation, flood control and the Pancheshwar Development Project mainly came up.

"Prime Minister Modi very carefully listened to the issues I raised during the meeting," she said, adding, "He (Modi) loves Nepal very much."
Colombo, Aug 22 (PTI) Slamming the Sri Lankan government led by President Ranil Wickremesinghe for violating the fundamental rights of citizens, the Supreme Court on Thursday ordered it to hold the long-postponed local council elections as soon as possible.

The ruling by a five-member bench of the apex court came in response to four fundamental rights petitions filed by the Opposition and civil society groups. Elections for over 340 local councils were postponed since early last year.

The court found that the members of the independent election commission and President Ranil Wickremesinghe, in his capacity as finance minister, had violated the fundamental rights of citizens by failing to hold the elections.

The local elections, initially scheduled for March 9 last year, were not held due to the Treasury's claim that it couldn't fund the election expenditure amidst the ongoing economic crisis. However, the court rejected the argument, stating that the Treasury had not provided sufficient evidence to support its claim of a total inability to hold the election.

"Other than referring to the economic crisis and difficulties faced, the affidavit of the secretary to the Treasury and Ministry of Finance has not averred sufficient material to indicate a total inability to hold the election," the court said.

In an interim order, the court directed the Treasury to allocate the necessary funds for the local council election, which had already been budgeted for. The court emphasised that the local council election must be conducted by the elections commission without disrupting the preparations for other elections, including the presidential election scheduled for September 21.

Meanwhile, President Wickremesinghe said he does not regret his decision to postpone the election.

Addressing a public gathering at a Colombo suburb, Wickremesinghe said there was no time to get involved in holding the local election as every hour was crucial to him for steering the islands bankrupt economys turnaround.

Inability to hold the election due to dedicating that time to ensure the right to live is not regretted. I respect the peoples right to live as much as I respect the right to vote, he said.

Without cooking gas, medicine, food and fuel, people were unable to have day-to-day living. Over the last two years I dedicated myself to that task, Wickremesinghe, who is contesting the September 21 election, emphasised.
Toronto, Aug 22 (AP) Business and consumers throughout Canada and the US were in danger of suffering significant economic harm after Canada's major freight railroads came to a full stop Thursday because of a contract dispute with their workers.

Canadian government officials met urgently to discuss the shutdown. Canadian National and CPKC railroads both locked out their employees after the 12:01 am EDT deadline Thursday passed without new agreements with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, which represents about 10,000 engineers, conductors and dispatchers.

All rail traffic in Canada and all shipments crossing the US border have stopped, although CPKC and CN's trains will continue to operate in the US and Mexico.

Billions of dollars of goods each month move between Canada and the US via rail, according to the US Department of Transportation. Many companies across all industries rely on railroads to deliver their raw materials and finished products, so without regular rail service they may have to cut back or even close.

Both railroads have said they would end the lockout if the union agreed to binding arbitration, while unions indicated that they were still at the bargaining table.

Business groups have urged the government to intervene, but Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has declined to force the parties into binding arbitration for fear of offending the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference and other unions.

Canadian Minister of Public Services and Procurement Jean-Yves Duclos urged both sides to resolve their differences.

"They need to do their job to come to an agreement quickly," he said at a news conference.

Canadian Labor Minister Steven MacKinnon had meetings scheduled "all day on this extremely important matter, according to a statement from MacKinnon's office.

Business leaders fumed over the lack of government intervention.

When you completely shut down the coast-to-coast supply chain, nothing good can come from that, said John Corey, president of the Freight Management Association of Canada. This is infuriating. People are going to lose their jobs. There is going to be a real hardship to the economy."

Most businesses will probably have enough supplies on hand and enough room to store their finished products to withstand a brief disruption. But ports and other railroads will quickly become clogged with stranded shipments that Canadian National and CPKC won't pick up.

For Union Pacific, one of the US rails that regularly hands off shipments to and from the Canadians, the rail stoppage "means thousands of cars per day will not move across the border, the company said in a statement Thursday.

Everything from grain and fertiliser during the critical summer season, and lumber for building homes could be impacted," the company said.

More than 30,000 commuters in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal were the first to feel the pain of the lockouts. They had to scramble Thursday morning to find a new way to work because their commuter trains aren't able to operate while CPKC is shut down.

CN had been negotiating with the Teamsters for nine months while CPKC had been trying to reach an agreement for a year, the unions said.

The US faced the same widespread shutdown of rail services two years ago over a labour dispute, but the government forced the union to accept a contract, despite the labour group's concerns about demanding schedules and the lack of paid sick time.

Canada's railroads have sometimes shut down briefly in the past during contract negotiations  most recently CPKC was offline for a couple days in March 2022  but it is rare for both railroads to stop at the same time. The impact on businesses will be magnified because both CN and CPKC have stopped.

Both railroads had been gradually shutting down since last week ahead of the contract deadline. Shipments of hazardous chemicals and perishable goods were the first to stop, so they wouldn't be stranded somewhere on the tracks.

The negotiations are stuck on issues related to the way rail workers are scheduled and concerns about rules designed to prevent fatigue and provide adequate rest to train crews. Both railroads had proposed shifting away from the existing system, which pays workers based on the miles in a trip, to an hourly system that they said would make it easier to provide predictable time off.

The railroads said their contract offers have included raises consistent with recent deals in the industry. Engineers make about $150,000 a year on Canadian National while conductors earn $120,000, and CPKC says its wages are comparable. (AP) SCY

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Beijing, Aug 22 (PTI) China on Thursday lodged a serious protest with the US after a top Biden administration official met the Dalai Lama and reaffirmed Washington's commitment to advancing the human rights of Tibetans and supporting efforts to preserve their distinct historical, linguistic, cultural, and religious heritage.

The Dalai Lama, 89, is recuperating in New York since he underwent a successful knee replacement surgery on June 28.

Uzra Zeya, the US Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights and Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues, travelled to New York for an audience with the Dalai Lama and conveyed Biden's message to the Tibetan spiritual leader, a State Department statement said.

The Tibetan spiritual leader's meeting with the top US State Department official comes months after Biden signed into law a bill which enhanced US support for Tibet to promote dialogue between China and the Dalai Lama towards a peaceful resolution of the dispute over the status and governance of the remote Himalayan region.

Reacting to UZra Zeyas meeting with the Dalai Lama, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Mao Ning, told a media briefing here that the 14th Dalai Lama is not a pure religious figure, still less a figure promoting non-violence and peace, but a political exile engaged in anti-China separatist activities under the cloak of religion.

China firmly opposes any country allowing the Dalai Lama to make visits under any pretext and opposes government officials of any country meeting with the Dalai Lama in any form," she said.

Weve made a serious protest with the US. The appointment of the so-called US Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues constitutes an interference in Chinas internal affairs. China has never recognised it," Mao said of the region, which China refers to as "Xizang".

We urge the US to fully understand the gravity and sensitivity of Xizang-related issues, be fully aware of the Dalai groups anti-China and separatist nature, honour the commitments the US has made to China on issues related to Xizang, truly respect Chinas core interests and major concerns, not allow the Dalai Lama to engage in political separatist activities in the US, have no contact with the Dalai Lama in any form, and stop sending the wrong message to the world," she said.

China had opposed the "Resolve Tibet Act" passed by the House of Representatives last February and cleared by the Senate in May and described it as "destabilising".

"Honoured to meet with His Holiness the @DalaiLama, a global figure for compassion and nonviolence. I conveyed greetings from @POTUS, wishing a smooth recovery and reaffirming the United States' unwavering support for the Tibetan community," Zeya, an Indian-origin-American diplomat, said in a post on X through her official handle.

Earlier in May 2022, Zeya had called on the Dalai Lama at his residence in Dharamsala, the seat of power of the Tibetan government in exile, during her official visit to India and Nepal.
Chicago, Aug 22 (PTI) Popular Indian-American actress and producer Mindy Kaling Wednesday hosted the primetime portion of the third day of the Democratic National Convention here.

Top Democratic leaders, including House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, former president Bill Clinton and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi addressed the DNC in Chicago.

Amid cheers and applause from the audience, Kaling joked with the audience that they might recognise her as "the woman who courageously outed Kamala Harris as Indian in an Instagram cooking video.

The masala dosa cooking video of 2019 with Kamala Harris has been watched more than 6.5 million times. At the time, Harris was the US senator from California.

After her brief speech, the Indian-American host introduced Jeffries, Bill Clinton and Pelosi for them to deliver their remarks.
Kathmandu, Aug 22 (PTI) Nepal on Thursday lifted the ban imposed on Tiktok, a popular social networking site, with some pre-conditions.

A Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli decided to lift the ban on Tiktok with certain conditions, including signing an agreement with the Ministry of Information Technology and Communication, according to sources.

"It was lifted as a matter of policy. However, the company has to fulfil our conditions to implement the decision, Minister for Communication and Information Technology Prithvi Subba Gurung said.

Gurung, also a government spokesperson, said every social network should now be listed in the ministry under Section 3 of the "Social Network Operation Guideline 2080". After that, a point of contract should be specified as per clause 6.

Tiktok's representatives agreed to be listed in Nepal and set the point of contract, he said.

In addition, four more conditions have been set by the government, the minister told the media.

The conditions set by the government aim at supporting tourism promotion, digital security and literacy and to make public education based on information technology, Gurung said.

Nepal banned Tiktok on November 12 last year, saying the social networking site was responsible for disturbing social harmony in the Himalayan nation, a move that invited widespread criticism from the general public.
Islamabad, Aug 22 (AP) Afghanistan's Taliban rulers have issued a ban on women's voices and bare faces in public under new laws approved by the supreme leader in efforts to combat vice and promote virtue.

The laws were issued Wednesday after they were approved by supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, a government spokesman said. The Taliban had set up a ministry for the propagation of virtue and the prevention of vice after seizing power in 2021.

The ministry published its vice and virtue laws on Wednesday that cover aspects of everyday life like public transportation, music, shaving and celebrations.

They are set out in a 114-page, 35-article document seen by The Associated Press and are the first formal declaration of vice and virtue laws in Afghanistan since the takeover.

Inshallah we assure you that this Islamic law will be of great help in the promotion of virtue and the elimination of vice, said ministry spokesman Maulvi Abdul Ghafar Farooq on Thursday.

The laws empower the ministry to be at the frontline of regulating personal conduct, administering punishments like warnings or arrest if enforcers allege that Afghans have broken the laws.

Article 13 relates to women. It says it is mandatory for a woman to veil her body at all times in public and that a face covering is essential to avoid temptation and tempting others. Clothing should not be thin, tight or short.

Women are obliged to cover themselves in front of non-Muslim males and females to avoid being corrupted. A woman's voice is deemed intimate and so should not be heard singing, reciting, or reading aloud in public. It is forbidden for women to look at men they are not related to by blood or marriage and vice versa.

Article 17 bans the publication of images of living beings, threatening an already fragile Afghan media landscape.

Article 19 bans the playing of music, the transportation of solo female travellers, and the mixing of men and women who are not related to each other. The law also obliges passengers and drivers to perform prayers at designated times.

According to the ministry website, the promotion of virtue includes prayer, aligning the character and behaviour of Muslims with Islamic law, encouraging women to wear hijab, and inviting people to comply with the five pillars of Islam. It also says the elimination of vice involves prohibiting people from doing things forbidden by Islamic law.

Last month, a UN report said the ministry was contributing to a climate of fear and intimidation among Afghans through edicts and the methods used to enforce them.

It said the ministry's role was expanding into other areas of public life, including media monitoring and eradicating drug addiction.

Given the multiple issues outlined in the report, the position expressed by the de facto authorities that this oversight will be increasing and expanding gives cause for significant concern for all Afghans, especially women and girls, said Fiona Frazer, the head of the human rights service at the UN mission in Afghanistan.

The Taliban rejected the UN report. (AP) PY

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Mumbai, Aug 21 (PTI) A history-sheeter was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly committing thefts at 15 houses in Mahim Police Colony here, an official said.

Kamaruddin Shaikh, the accused, gained entry by breaking the locks of police quarters between 1 to 4 am on Saturday and stole silver idols worth Rs 13,000, he said.

He was arrested on the basis of CCTV footage.

He was also wanted in at least eight cases of house break-in in Kurla, Antop Hill and Dindoshi, the official said.
Mumbai, Aug 22 (PTI) Two persons died on Thursday after their car rammed into a tree along Eastern Express Highway in Mumbai's Vikhroli area, a police official said.

The incident happened in the early hours of the day and the deceased have been identified as Siddharth Dhage (23) and Rohit Nikam (29), both residents of Kannamwar Nagar in Vikhroli East, he said.

"Dhage was driving the car allegedly in a rash and negligent manner and lost control of the vehicle. He crashed into a tree on the footpath along the arterial road near a hotel. Passersby alerted police and the duo was rushed to a hospital," the official said.

"Dhage and Nikam were declared dead on arrival at the hospital. A case has been registered and further probe is underway," he added.
Mumbai, Aug 22 (PTI) A war of words took place on Thursday in Maharashtra after Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said his government ensured death penalty for a rape accused by expediting the trial, and the Opposition accused him of telling a lie.

The Shiv Sena, Shinde's party, claimed the trial in the case was completed in little more than a year, and the accused was awarded death penalty in March this year.

Amid the outrage and protests over the sexual assault of two kindergarten girls at a school in Badlapur, Shinde said his government has always taken strict action in such cases.

Speaking at an event in Ratnagiri on Wednesday, he said, "There was a similar case of sexual assault (in the past). We expedited the trial in a fast-track court, and the culprit was given death penalty within two months after the crime was committed."

This prompted leader of opposition in the state assembly Vijay Wadettiwar to accuse Shinde of spreading a fake narrative.

"How can one speak lies at a public rally? CM Shinde should clarify who was hanged in two months during the Mahayuti rule," the Congress leader said.

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray said there should be a "special investigation team" to find out who was hanged and what the incident was.

Manisha Kayande, spokesperson of the Shinde-led Shiv Sena, said the chief minister was referring to a case of rape and murder of a six-year-old girl at Kamshet in Pune district.

The offence took place on August 2, 2022, and the FIR was registered the same day. Accused Tejas Dalvi was arrested on August 3, investigation was completed in 40 days, and the chargesheet was filed on September 12, 2022, Kayande said.

The charges were framed against the accused on March 16, 2023, and the accused was awarded death penalty on March 22, 2024, a little after a year, she said.

"Wadettiwar's comments show a lack of understanding and preparation....The rape case has seen justice served with a fast-track court sentencing the convict to death. It is disappointing that someone in his position is not aware of this development," Kayande added.
Pune, Aug 22 (PTI) A teacher is on the run after being booked in Daund in Pune district for allegedly sexually harassing a 13-year-old schoolgirl and sending her obscene messages, a police official said on Thursday.

The headmaster of the school has been held for failing to report the matter to the police after the girl's father approached him with a complaint against the teacher, he added.

A case under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act was registered at Daund police station, the official said.

"The incident took place in a school in Daund tehsil. The father of the girl had complained that a teacher from the school had allegedly outraged the modesty of his daughter by sending her an obscene message. The message was sent before August 15. The headmaster did not pay heed to the father's complaint," the official said.

"After we came to know about the incident today, we went to school and got the father to register a case. The teacher also allegedly touched the girl inappropriately. The teacher is on the run after having an argument with the girl's father on Wednesday," the official informed.
Ahmedabad, Aug 22 (PTI) The Gujarat Congress' 'Nyay Yatra', a foot march which began from Morbi town on August 9 to highlight the opposition party's demand for justice for the victims of four major tragedies, reached Ahmedabad on Thursday after covering a distance of nearly 300 kilometres.

Several senior leaders, including general secretary and Gujarat in-charge Mukul Wasnik, Congress Legislative Party (CLP) leader Amit Chavda and All India Mahila Congress president Alka Lamba, took part in the foot march from Ahmedabad's Paldi area till Sabarmati Ashram, said a party release.

The Congress leaders along with family members of the victims of these tragedies later attended a prayer meet at the historic ashram established by Mahatma Gandhi nearly 100 years ago.

Family members of those killed in four major tragedies in Gujarat in the recent past -- the 2019 Takshashila fire incident in Surat, the Morbi bridge collapse of 2022, a boat tragedy in Vadodara and the TRP game zone blaze in Rajkot (both in 2024) -- are taking part in the yatra.

The yatra will resume from the RTO Circle on Friday morning and culminate at the city's Chandkheda area, where Congress leaders will address a gathering.
Kolkata, Aug 22 (PTI) The West Bengal BJP unit on Thursday conducted a march in the eastern fringes of the city to protest against the alleged murder and rape of a woman doctor at R G Kar Medical College and hospital earlier this month.

The BJP's march to Swasthya Bhawan - the headquarters of the state health department in Salt Lake - began from Hudco crossing this afternoon.

"We want the truth to come out and we want justice. The state government and the state health department are trying to hide the truth. The state health department and R G Kar Hospital has tried to wipe out the evidence," BJP leader Dilip Ghosh said.

The streets buzzed with chants of "We want justice," echoing the collective anger and sorrow of women from every cornerparty activists including womenmarching together to demand accountability and an end to violence against women.

The rally which marched towards Swasthya Bhawan, is being led by top state BJP leadership.

The police have put up barricades near Indira Bhawan in Salt Lake to stop the protestors from marching to Swasthya Bhawan.

The young woman doctor, whose body was found on August 9, was allegedly raped and murdered while on duty, leading to the arrest of a civic volunteer by Kolkata police the next day, and the Calcutta High Court subsequently ordered the transfer of the investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on August 13, with the CBI starting its probe on August 14.
Jamshedpur, Aug 22 (PTI) A team of the Indian Navy was set to join the search for the trainer aircraft that went missing with a pilot and a trainee shortly after it took off from an aerodrome in Jharkhand's Jamshedpur, officials said on Thursday.

As the search continued in the reservoir of the Chandil dam, where it was suspected to have crashed on Tuesday, a body was found floating this morning, they said.

The 19-member Navy team along with equipment reached Ranchi around 12.50 am.

"The Navy team from Visakhapatnam landed in Ranchi to extend help for the search operation of the trainer aircraft. It has reached Jamshedpur and is set to join the search operation," an official said.

Another official of the Seraikela-Kharsawan administration, who did not wish to be identified, told PTI, "A body was found floating in the dam in the morning. His identification is being done."

From the uniform on the body, it was suspected to be of one of the two persons on board the aircraft, he said.

It was suspected that the plane, which had pilot Captain Jeetu Sutaru and trainee pilot Subrodeep on board, crashed into the dam's reservoir.

On Wednesday, a six-member team of NDRF searched the reservoir for hours.



The aircraft, a Cessna 152 owned by Alchemist Aviation, took off from the Sonari aerodrome around 11 am on Tuesday.



The reservoir was being searched after villagers claimed the aircraft crashed into it, Superintendent of Police (Seraikela-Kharsawan) Mukesh Kumar Lunayat said.

East Singhbhum's Deputy Commissioner Ananya Mittal had said the last location of the aircraft was near Nimdih in Chandil sub-division as per the Air Traffic Control.

Searches were also being conducted in areas near Nimdih, and the adjacent Purulia district of West Bengal to locate the aircraft.
Kolkata, Aug 21 (PTI) The West Bengal government on Wednesday removed three senior officials of the RG Kar hospital, bowing to the demand of junior doctors who have been protesting against the alleged rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee in the state-run health facility.

As per their demand, RG Kar hospital's former principal Dr Sandip Ghosh, who was shifted to Calcutta National Medical College and Hospital as its principal, was also removed from that position, state Health Secretary NS Nigam said.

The three senior officials of the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital (RGKMCH) were transferred to various state-run health facilities, he said.

According to an order issued on Wednesday evening, Prof (Dr) Bulbul Mukhopadhyay, the Medical Superintendent and Vice Principal of the RG Kar hospital was replaced by Saptarshi Chatterjee with immediate effect.

Manas Kumar Bandyopadhyay was named as the new principal of RGKMCH, replacing Suhrita Paul, who was made the principal of the Barasat Government Medical College and Hospital, it said.

RGKMCH's chest medicine department head Arunabha Datta Chaudhuri was transferred to the Malda Medical College and Hospital, according to the order.

"As per demands of the junior doctors, we are bringing in some changes for which we have no objection. We want normalcy to be back and healthcare services to be regularised. Security arrangements have also been enhanced," Nigam told reporters.

The junior doctors of RGKMCH have been continuing ceasework since August 9 evening, protesting against the alleged rape and murder of the woman medic and demanding justice for her.
Jaipur, Aug 22 (PTI) Ajmer Sharif Dargah hereditary cleric Syed Sarwar Chishti on Thursday labelled the Waqf (Amendment) Bill a "severe threat" to the fundamental rights of Muslims to manage their religious affairs and protect their religious properties.

Chishti, the hereditary khadim (cleric) of Ajmer Sharif Dargah and secretary of the Anjuman Moinia Fakria Khuddam-E-Khawaja (body of khadims), described the Bill as "a sheer interference in the religious matters of Muslims" and accused the government of seeking to "acquire control over properties under Waqf".

The Bill is the first major initiative from the BJP-led NDA government aimed at reforming the registration process for Waqf properties through a centralised portal.

It proposes several reforms, including establishing a Central Waqf Council alongside state Waqf boards with representation for Muslim women and non-Muslim representatives.

During a press conference, Chishti expressed deep concern over the provision allowing the appointment of non-Muslims in Waqf boards.

"Waqf boards are religious bodies governed by Islamic principles and the inclusion of non-Muslim members and leadership would compromise the religious integrity and autonomy of these institutions," he said.

He said the Anjuman warned that this could result in genuine Waqf properties becoming disputed, disrupting their religious and charitable practices.

Chishti also dismissed as "BJP sympathisers" Muslim bodies that extended support to the Bill.

He termed the Bill's supporters as "Mir Jafars" who backed "anti-Muslim Bills" such as the law against triple talaq and the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.

He also warned that the community would "treat with them accordingly".

Regarding the Joint Parliamentary Committee formed to review the Bill, Chishti said, "The Muslim community has faith only in All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi to fight against it. Our faith in other parties such as the Congress diminished long ago in matters related to our faith."

The 31-member committee has been tasked by the Lok Sabha to scrutinise the contentious Bill, which has drawn protests from the opposition parties and Muslim organisations.

A contentious provision of the Bill is the proposal to designate the district collector as the primary authority in determining whether a property is classified as Waqf or government land.

The Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on August 8 and referred to a Joint Committee of Parliament after a heated debate, with the government asserting that the proposed law did not intend to interfere with the functioning of mosques and the opposition claiming it targeted Muslims and an attack on the Constitution.
Jammu, Aug 22 (PTI) Calling upon his party's cadres to work hard to ensure victory in the upcoming Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections with the goal of restoring statehood and further marginalizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday said that Rahul Gandhi would have become the prime minister if some states had given the party 25 more seats.

Kharge criticized Prime Minister Modi for downgrading Jammu and Kashmir to a Union Territory and said he shows arrogance despite the setbacks in the recently concluded parliamentary elections.

"We may not have won seats from here in the parliamentary elections, but the INDIA alliance secured many seats from here. If Jammu and Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and other states had given us five seats each  a total of 25 seats  our leader Rahul Gandhi would have been the prime minister," he told the party workers here.

Urging the party cadres to work hard on the ground, Kharge said, "This is why we must work hard. It is important to win. Victory cannot be achieved by words alone. If we keep talking without doing the groundwork, it won't materialize."

The Congress president emphasized the importance of winning in Jammu and Kashmir to restore statehood and said that a huge responsibility rests on the party workers.

"The upcoming election is crucial because it concerns your very existence. If you win, statehood will be restored. If you win, the legislative council will return. If you win, elections for district, panchayats and municipalities will be held," he said.

Kharge said that Modi's dictatorship, marked by arrogance, will not continue if the party wins this election.

"It is your responsibility. Rahul ji said that you are working for us. My meaning is a bit different. We are doing this for you. Rahul ji, Sonia ji and Priyanka ji are doing this for you. Are they coming here to stay? What I am saying is that together, we are working hard to save democracy and the Constitution in this country," he added.

Kharge stressed it is a battle to keep all the democratic bodies in Jammu and Kashmir intact, adding it should not be forgotten that no one is doing anyone any favours.

"Together we are working to save democracy and the Constitution. This is a huge responsibility for you. You may have broken Modi ji's arrogance. Now, by winning the elections in Jammu and Kashmir, you will further marginalize Modi and the BJP," he said.

Lambasting the prime minister for his claims of development and progress in Jammu and Kashmir post the abrogation of Article 370, Kharge said Modi has done nothing but boasts about his work with utter arrogance.

"His destiny has changed. Just see, there is no democratic setup here. Neither an assembly, panchayats, councils, nor municipalities exist. Who is responsible for all this?" Kharge asked.

"But you have taught him a good lesson. Rahul Gandhis yatra showed them their place in the 2024 elections. He does not have a majority but continues to harp on his victory," he added.

Hitting out at Union Home Minister Amit Shah's remarks on the restoration of statehood, Kharge questioned how long it would take to restore it.

"Why didnt you restore statehood before the elections? You had promised the people here. Why didn't you keep your promise? Because you intend to keep Kashmir under your occupation and continue your rule under the lieutenant governor, who has become a maharaja or king here," he said.

Kharge further said Jammu and Kashmir does not have the rule of law but is run through dictatorship.

"Modi and Shah continue to show a high degree of arrogance. But this wont continue for long. We are bringing a big cyclone, and you will be consumed by it. They will have no existence in the days to come," he said.
New Delhi, Aug 22 (PTI) Students at the Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi observed a complete university strike on Thursday, marking the 12th day of their hunger strike as they continued to demand action on various unresolved issues.

Scores of students boycotted classes to put pressure on the university administration, the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU), which led the protest, said.

Only a small section of students in a few schools, particularly the School of Sanskrit and Indic Studies (SSIS), attended the classes, while all the other classes remained suspended.

According to Rajeshwar Kant Dubey, president, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) JNU unit, the organisation did not participate in the university strike.

The RSS-affiliated student body has, however, been sitting on a separate strike on the campus since the past 31 days regarding various student-related issues.

The JNUSU has called for the strike to continue until Friday, after which they plan to lead a long march to the Ministry of Education.

They have urged the ministry to intervene in the matter and address their concerns.

The JNUSU's indefinite hunger strike started on August 11 near the Sabarmati T Point against the university's alleged unresponsive attitude to their various demands, including increasing scholarship amounts.

Their demands also include a caste census, lifting ban on protests on campus and withdrawal of proctorial inquiries initiated against students for participating in protests on campus.

Student organisations from various other educational institutions, including Jamia Millia Islamia, Film and Television Institute of India, Pune, have expressed solidarity with those participating in the hunger strike.

On Wednesday, Vice-Chancellor Santishree D Pandit met the protesting students and urged them to end their hunger strike. The students, however, continued the strike and have called for a march to the Ministry of Education on August 23.

Several students had to end their hunger strike after their health deteriorated, with two students being referred to AIIMS by JNU's health centre on Monday. Despite their condition, the two students refused treatment to continue their protest.
New Delhi, Aug 22 (PTI) More than 1,100 people registered in two housing schemes of the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) on the first day of the registration on Thursday, officials said.

They said 414 people registered through e-auction in the DDA Dwarka Housing Scheme 2024 in the first two days. The registration for this scheme was started on Wednesday.

On August 6, three housing schemes were announced at a meeting of the DDA which was chaired by Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena.

According to the officials, 750 people registered in Sasta Ghar Housing Scheme 2024, and 405 registered in DDA Madhyam Vargiya Housing Scheme 2024 on the first day of the registration on Thursday.

It is further stated that around 30,000 registered customers of first come first serve (FCFS) Phase-IV and Diwali FCFS scheme are not required to register again in Sasta Ghar and Madhyam Vargiya Housing Scheme. They can directly participate in the flat booking process, the officials added.

The Sasta Ghar Housing Scheme 2024 would offer low-income group (LIG) and Economically Weaker Section (EWS) flats at discounted rates in Ramgarh Colony, Siraspur, Loknayakpuram, Rohini, and Narela through FCFS mode. Under the scheme, around 34,000 flats are to be offered, with a starting price of around Rs 11.5 lakh.

The DDA Madhyam Vargiya Housing Scheme 2024 provides flats of all categories, including high-income group (HIG), medium-income group (MIG), LIG and EWS at different localities, including Jasola, Loknayakpuram, and Narela, will be offered at 2023 prices without any price escalation. The starting price of flats is around Rs 29 lakh and around 5,400 flats are to be offered under this scheme.

The DDA Dwarka Housing Scheme 2024 will offer MIG, HIG and higher category flats in Sector 14, 16B and 19B through an e-auction process. This will provide an opportunity to people to own a house in the upscale area of Dwarka. About 173 flats are being offered under the scheme.
(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)
New Delhi, Aug 22 (PTI) The Delhi Police has termed the alleged physical assault of AAP Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal at chief minister's residence as "brutal" and urged the Supreme Court to dismiss the bail plea of accused Bibhav Kumar in the case.

The Delhi Police, in its reply to the bail plea of Kumar, an aide of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, also told the top court to hear Maliwal too in the case.

Kumar, who is currently in judicial custody, is accused of assaulting Maliwal on May 13 at Kejriwal's official residence and has challenged the July 12 order of the Delhi High Court denying him bail.

"The present case is a case pertaining to a brutal assault on a sitting Member of Parliament by influential ex-officer pertaining to the Chief Minister's residence wherein the occurrence of incidence is also at the residence of the Chief Minister of Delhi...and such an incident has had a grave impact on the minds of general public and any adjudication in the said case will have cascading effect on the minds of general public," said an affidavit filed by Deputy Commissioner of Police Manoj Kumar Meena.

The affidavit said that the accused is an "influential person" in comparison to the victim and "the present case requires the complainant to be heard as any liberty granted to the accused petitioner herein directly affects her safety and wellbeing and also of her family members".

It said the victim corroborated her complaint in her statement recorded before a judicial magistrate as well.

"It is important to note that the victim was deeply traumatized by the harassment and assault she experienced. Furthermore, the victim is an esteemed sitting Member of Parliament from a ruling party in Delhi, and she was brutally assaulted at a highly sensitive location, the Hon'ble Chief Minister's residence.

"This severe incident significantly impacted her mental state, causing her to remain confined to her home for four days following the assault," the affidavit said.

A bench headed by Justice Surya Kant is hearing the case. On August 1, the bench had made some strong observations about the alleged offence and the accused.

An FIR was registered against Kumar on May 16 under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code, including those related to criminal intimidation, assault or using criminal force on a woman with the intent to disrobe, and attempt to commit culpable homicide. He was arrested on May 18.

While denying him bail, the high court had said that the accused enjoys "considerable influence" and no ground was made out to grant him the relief. It cannot be ruled out that witnesses may be influenced or evidence tampered with in case the petitioner is released on bail, the high court had said.
Bengaluru, Aug 22 (PTI) Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Thursday appeared before the Lokayukta police for a probe in connection with a disproportionate assets (DA) case against him.

The Lokayukta police had in February registered a case against Shivakumar, following the Congress government withdrawing consent to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe the DA case against him on November 23, 2023, and referring the case to it.

Speaking to reporters after appearing before the Lokayukta, Shivakumar said: "Lokayukta had issued summons yesterday, I couldn't appear as I was on a visit to Almatti. So I had requested it for today and they had given me time today. For about three hours they have questioned me, they have inquired. I have answered them. They have sought for more documents, so I will submit them."

"After studying things", the Lokayukta will once again issue him a notice to appear, he said. "One thing is that CBI is better than them (Lokayukta). They are asking a number of questions and on different things. The CBI has not asked me anything yet, they haven't called me yet. But they (Lokayukta) have called me and are troubling me."

Noting that the case has been transferred by the State government from CBI to Lokayukta, Shivakumar said Lokayukta has been probing the case since the last six months.

"...CBI should have stopped the investigation, but they have not stopped. They are harassing all my people. They have still not summoned me, but they are harassing a lot of my friends and relatives. More than hundred people have been harassed. Now these people (Lokayukta) have also started in the same way," he added.

The Supreme Court on July 15 dismissed a petition filed by Shivakumar challenging the CBI's FIR against him in the DA case.

The Supreme Court bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and S C Sharma had said it was not inclined to interfere with the Karnataka High Court order.

The top court was hearing a plea filed by Shivakumar against the October 19, 2023 order of the High Court which rejected his plea.

The HC had also directed the CBI to conclude the investigation and file the report within three months.

The CBI has alleged that Shivakumar amassed assets disproportionate to his known sources of income between 2013 and 2018. He was a minister in the then Congress government during this period.

The FIR was filed by the CBI on September 3, 2020. Shivakumar challenged the FIR in the High Court in 2021.

The previous BJP government had granted sanction to the CBI to prosecute Shivakumar, following which an FIR was lodged against him and investigation undertaken on alleged charges of disproportionate assets.

The current Karnataka cabinet headed by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on November 23 last year held that the previous BJP government's move to give consent to the CBI to investigate the DA case against Shivakumar was not in accordance with law and decided to withdraw the sanction. Subsequently a government order was issued in this regard.

Based on the Income Tax Department's search operations in Shivakumar's home and offices in 2017, the Enforcement Directorate started its own probe against him.

Based on the ED investigation, the CBI sought sanction from the state government to file an FIR against Shivakumar.
New Delhi, Aug 22 (PTI) The body of a 35-year-old security guard of a factory was recovered in West Delhi's Khayala area, following which four juveniles were nabbed on the charge of killing the man, police said on Thursday.

Police suspect the security guard, a native of Bihar, was killed since one of the four juveniles had lost his job in the factory after he flagged the unruly behaviour of the accused to the owner of the factory.

The body of Vinod, with multiple stab wounds, was recovered on Wednesday night, officials said.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) Vichitra Veer said that during the course of investigation into the case, four juveniles involved in the incident were apprehended.

To avenge the job loss the four accused stabbed Vinod to death, the police said, adding the security guard is survived by his wife and children.
A man wanted on murder and armed robbery charges was taken into custody Wednesday after a 15-hour standoff with police at a Chicago restaurant just blocks from the Democratic National Convention, authorities said.

Joshua Zimmerman had been sought by the U.S. Marshals Service since his escape from a Mississippi courthouse in June. He was located Tuesday at the restaurant, according to Justin Smith, chief deputy with the DeSoto County Sheriffs Office in Mississippi.

After marshals learned that Zimmerman was in Chicago, an agency task force concluded that he was at a seafood restaurant, where investigators believed he was working.

During the arrest attempt, Zimmerman retreated into the ceiling and barricaded himself, the agency said in a statement. A Chicago police SWAT team was then called to the scene.

The restaurant is about a half-mile from the United Center, where the political convention is being held. The Marshals Service said there was no connection or threat to the event or those attending.

Without using Zimmermans name, the Chicago Police Department said a person was taken into custody about 7:20 a.m. and that the SWAT action that began about 4 p.m. Tuesday had ended.

The Marshals Service said Zimmerman escaped from the circuit court building in Hernando, Mississippi, where he was being held on attempted murder and armed robbery charges. He was also awaiting extradition to Houston, Texas, where hes charged with murder, the Marshals Service said.

Zimmerman was wearing street clothes, not a jail jumpsuit, when he escaped. A screenshot from a courthouse security video showed him wearing khaki pants and a white shirt and no handcuffs.

Smith told reporters that the sheriffs department and other agencies have been investigating why Zimmerman was not wearing handcuffs and how he escaped. He said authorities want to bring him back to Mississippi.

Thats why were excited to actually get a chance to sit down with Zimmerman and get some more facts, Smith said.

According to court records in Harris County, Texas, Zimmerman is accused of fatally shooting a woman, Keyanna Mercer, at a Houston motel on Sept. 2, 2023.

The two were asked to leave the motel after multiple complaints of fighting, and when staff members checked the room to see if they had left, they found Mercers body with a gunshot wound to the head, police said.

Court records also show Zimmerman was arrested in Connecticut in 2022 on a felony sexual assault charge. He pleaded not guilty and was freed on a $200,000 bond, but a warrant was later issued for his re-arrest. Connecticut State Police did not immediately provide details on the case.

(AP)
Former President Donald Trump took to his social media platform, Truth Social, on Wednesday morning to express outrage over New York Governor Kathy Hochuls remarks at the Democratic National Convention (DNC). Trump labeled Hochul as the nastiest speaker at the event, singling out her criticism of him during her address on Monday evening.

Kathy Hochul, the very unpopular Governor of New York, was the nastiest speaker on Monday evening (at the Democrat National Convention) as it pertains to your favorite President, me, Trump posted. He further complained about Hochuls total hatred for him, writing that her statements had no bounds.

Trump defended his record in New York, claiming, I did a GREAT job in New York, employed thousands of people, built some of the most beautiful and successful buildings, and paid billions of dollars in taxes. He also questioned the wisdom of Hochuls criticism, noting that if he were to win the presidency again, it would be in New Yorks interest to have a governor who cooperates with the President. Adversarial relationships are not good in politics! he added.

The former president went on to denounce what he described as an unfair and biased judicial system in New York, which he claims is largely controlled by Hochul. He argued that the negative treatment he has received from judges in the state is a direct result of the governors animosity. The whole system is RIGGED, and companies are leaving because of it!!! Trump wrote.

Governor Hochuls speech was one of the more prominent addresses at the DNC, with The New York Times calling it one of the biggest moments of her political career. Described as a political journeywoman for her unconventional rise to power, Hochul used her platform to attack Trump directly, highlighting his numerous legal battles and calling him a fraud.

Trust me, America, Hochul said during her speech. If you think youre tired of Donald Trump, talk to a New Yorker. She went on to emphasize her Irish-Catholic upbringing in Buffalo, which instilled values of grit, determination, and compassion, contrasting those traits with Trumps conduct.

Hochul didnt hold back in her critique of the former president, calling him a fraud, a philanderer, and a felon, before quipping, Its no wonder he had to flee to Mar-a-Lago. Sorry about that, Florida.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
On Tuesday, Pro-Hamas agitators attempted to disrupt an Agudath Israel event on the sidelines of the Democratic National Convention. The gathering was intended in part to bring awareness to growing antisemitism in the U.S., in particular aimed at Orthodox Jews.

The irony of the fact that the mindless slogan-chanters chose to trail Orthodox Jews and try to disrupt a gathering about antisemitism cannot be understated. It demonstrates the societal evil better than any speech or chart.

Those who wish to silence us will not succeed, as our Chairman of the Board Mr. Shlomo Werdiger said in his opening remarks, They thought they could intimidate us so that we would not be here, so that our voices would be silenced. And thats exactly why we are here. We are the children and grandchildren of Holocaust survivors, and we will never cower or be silenced. On the contrary, we intend to stand up for our rights and for our freedoms, and we need you to stand with us now against this hate and antisemitism.

Agudath Israel engages with elected officials and candidates so that they can better understand our community and its priorities and acts as a liaison between our community and all levels of government. That is especially important now, with the explosion of antisemitism in America, much of it directed at those who are most visibly Jewish  the Orthodox.

The Agudath Israel event was an opportunity for prominent elected officials and party leaders to address this issue by showing solidarity with the Orthodox community and detailing how they intend to combat antisemitism and protect Jewish citizens, including students, from the scourge of Jew-hatred.

Orna and Ronen Neutra, whose son Omer is being held hostage in Gaza addressed those gathered. Orna delivered a moving address saying, The issue of the hostages is in the heart and soul of the Jewish people We must make sure that the hostages are not forgotten that their stories are being told, followed by Ronen reciting Psalm 130.

Chairman of the DNC Host Committee Michael Sacks spoke about the work Agudath Israel does on behalf of the community, stating, Agudath clearly punches above its collective weight. Agudath organizes. Agudath turns out voters. Agudath plays nice in the sandbox with others, builds powerful coalitions. They are trusted advisors to many elected officials, helping them pass legislation, not seeking to take credit for the legislation. And when Agudath does that for the Orthodox community, they advance the ball for all Jews.

Speakers included New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, Michigan Senator Debbie Stabenow, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, New Jersey Congressman Josh Gottheimer, Illinois Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, Illinois State Senator Ram Villivalam, New Jersey Assemblyman Avi Schnall, Westchester County Executive George Latimer, and Mr. Gary Torgow, Detroit philanthropist.

Over 150 individuals including dozens of elected officials from local state and federal government attended the event including NJ Senator designee George Helmy, NY Congressman Pat Ryan.
More than 100 Jewish institutions across Canada were targeted with bomb threats in a series of emails early Wednesday morning, prompting police investigations. Community groups reported that the threatening emails claimed bombs had been planted at various Jewish premises and would be detonated later in the day.

By Wednesday afternoon, no bombs had been found, though investigations remained ongoing. This was a threat that we took very seriously, a spokesperson for Bnai Brith Canada told CP24. Were very grateful for the swift response from law enforcement.

Eta Yudin, Quebec vice-president of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), reassured the public that the threats appeared to be nuisance emails designed to disrupt lives and posed no imminent threat.

Montreal police responded to an emergency call from a shul at 7:10 a.m. and conducted sweeps of several threatened locations. Similar actions were taken by police in Toronto and Ottawa. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) confirmed it was working with local authorities and engaging with community leaders to provide information and support.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau condemned the threats on social media, calling the incident blatant antisemitism. He assured Canadians that the RCMP was coordinating with local law enforcement to ensure the safety of Jewish communities across the country. Jewish Canadians will not be intimidated, he added.

Despite the alarming nature of the threats, Rabbi Reuven Poupko of the Beth Israel Beth Aaron Congregation in Montreal said, The purpose of that email is really an assault on the psyche of a community. But if that was the intent, it certainly failed. Every synagogue [in Montreal] was open.

This incident follows a disturbing rise in antisemitic attacks in Canada. Last month, Prime Minister Trudeau appointed Anthony Housefather as an adviser on combating antisemitism after violent incidents at shuls and Jewish schools in Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver earlier this year.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
Domagoj Patkovic, 31, was arrested in Portland, Oregon, on Tuesday and charged with making multiple bomb threats against Jewish hospitals in New York, dating back to May 2021. According to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of New York, one of the threats in September 2021 led to a partial evacuation and lockdown of a hospital on Long Island. No explosive devices were found.

The indictment, filed in August and recently unsealed, accuses Patkovic of threatening several Jewish hospitals in New York City and Long Island. On May 18, 2021, he allegedly called a hospital and claimed, bombs are all over your facility, and said that Jews are gonna go skyrocket up into the sky for Allah. Patkovic is also accused of live-streaming six calls to six different hospitals, prompting police bomb sweeps.

Patkovic faces up to 155 years in prison if convicted.

U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said Patkovic and his co-conspirators were motivated by their hatred of Jewish people and therefore targeted Jewish hospitals and care centers in New York City and on Long Island with hoax bomb threats, needlessly endangering patients and staff by creating chaos and alarm.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
Tomiko Itooka, a Japanese woman, became the worlds oldest living person at age 116, following the death of 117-year-old Maria Branyas, according to the Guinness World Records.

Her age and birthdate  May 23, 1908  were confirmed by the Gerontology Research Group, which validates details of people thought to be 110 or older, and put her at the top of its World Supercentenarian Rankings List.

Itooka lives in a nursing home in the city of Ashiya, a city in Hyogo Prefecture that also confirmed her birthdate. She assumed the title of worlds oldest person after Branyas family announced the 117-year-olds death Tuesday. Guinness confirmed Itookas new status on Thursday.

When told about her becoming the oldest person, she replied, Thank you, a phrase she also relays often to the caretakers at her home.

Itooka celebrated her birthday three months ago, receiving flowers, a cake and a card from the mayor. Every morning, she has a popular yogurt-flavored drink called Calpis. Her favorite food is bananas.

Born in Osaka, Itooka was a volleyball player in high school. She married at 20, and had two daughters and two sons, according to Guinness.

Itooka managed the office of her husbands textile factory during World War II. She lived alone in Nara after her husband died in 1979, before entering the nursing home. She climbed the 3,067-meter (10,062-foot) Mount Ontake twice, and enjoyed long hikes even after she turned 100.

(AP)
BREAKING UPDATE 2:18 PM: Tzion Maron, the 8-year-old boy who went missing on a family trip to the area of Lava River Cave in Coconino National Forest in Flagstaff, Arizona, has just been found by Rockland Chaveirim members who were flown in by Hatzolah Air early this morning to join the frantic search, sources confirm to YWN.

Bchasdei Hashem, Tzion is in good condition, and is currently being checked out by Hatzolah Air paramedics and Hatzalah of Los Angeles members at the scene before being transported to a local hospital for evaluation, out of an abundance of caution.

Tens of thousands of Jews around the world have been waiting with baited breath for a positive update on the missing childs whereabouts, with massive amounts of tefillos and tzedaka given over the last number of hours in his zechus.



        

Chaverim Of Rockland volunteers along with Hatzolah Air, Hatzolah of Los Angeles Members, and others who participated in the search dancing when the boy was found.

CEO and Chief Pilot of Hatzalah Air thanks Rockland Chaveirim and local law enforcement for their incredible work on finding missing 8-year-old Tzion Maron in Flagstaff Arizona.

Tzions grandfather, who was davening at the kever of the Ribnitzer Rebbe, speaks after finding out grandson was rescued.

Original story continues below.

___________________________________________________________________

An 8-year-old Jewish boy went missing near a cave located inside a forested area in Flagstaff, Arizona, on Wednesday afternoon, prompting a large-scale search effort. At around 6 PM, Tzion Maron of Baltimore was with his family at the Lava River Cave in Flagstaff when he walked in an unknown direction from the entrance to the cave. He has not been seen since.

Hatzolah Air has joined the effort and has flown a plane piloted by its CEO Eli Rowe with a team of highly trained search-and-rescue professionals from Rockland Chaveirim and advanced equipment. The aircraft landed in Arizona just before 10:15 AM, with the team expected to join the ongoing search within the hour.

Sheriff Louis Falco of Rockland County Sheriff personally called the Coconino County Sheriffs Department to apprise local law enforcement what Rockland Chaveirim is and does so that the process of incorporating them into the search mission goes smoothly.

In addition, Rockland Police Liaison Hershy Margaretten and Rockland Chaveirim Coordinator Yossi Margaretten have been intimately involved with the efforts, coordinating between law enforcement in Rockland and Arizona to ensure the success of the search teams emergency deployment.

Additionally, Hatzolah of Los Angeles is driving a mobile command center to the scene, and numerous volunteers are heading to the scene. Rabbi Dovi Shapiro from Chabad of Flagstaff and Rabbi Moshe Lobal, a rav in Scottsdale, are at the scene as well, assisting the family and coordinating with law enforcement.

A team of volunteers from various Baltimore organizations has been assembled to head out to Arizona to join the search. An urgent fundraiser has been launched to assist with associated expenses. Click here to donate.

The search for Tzion was hampered by heavy rains on Wednesday night in the area, with full-scale operations resuming early Thursday.

Chabad of Flagstaff is taking care of all the food for the search and rescue teams and organizations that have joined the effort. Donation to support their work can be made here.

As of 1:45 PM, the first Rockland Chaveirim search and rescue personnel had begun their operations at the scene, including the deployment of a drone to search for the young missing boy, and Hatzalah of Los Angeles had set up their command center at the scene.

Please daven for the safe return of Tzion ben Chaya Rivka.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
by Rabbi Yair Hoffman

Tonight, the 19th of Av, is the 7th Yartzeit of one of the tzaddikim of the Five Towns /Far Rockaway community, Rav Aharon Brafman zatzal. and the Five Towns/ Far Rockaway community is now a different place now that he has passed away. It is a community that was visibly changed by his presence for close to five decades.

Rabbi Brafman was one of those rare, rare individuals that combined profound erudition in his Torah knowledge, deep humility in his character and deportment, and a heart whose remarkable compassion for others knew no bounds.

Rav Brafman, as the Menahel, worked very closely with Rabbi Perr ztl, the Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva of Far Rockaway, for close to fifty years. He attended the shiurim and the shmuessim of the Rosh Yeshiva as a talmid would attend. The manner in which they got along with each other was unprecedented. There was never a single machlokes. The parents, the Talmidim, the Baal HaBatim all witnessed this, and this was a reason for the Yeshivas tremendous success over the years.

LOVING PARENT TO ALL

Rabbi Brafman was an individual who, like a loving parent, would look out for people, and these people were aware of his constant love and concern for them. His ahavas yisroel was legendary.

When a bochur in Yeshiva told him that he had difficulty waking up in the morning, Rav Brafman would call him at home in the morning. Now this bochur wakes up early and arrives very early to Shacharis each morning.

Rabbi Brafmans only brother, the well-known lawyer, Ben Brafman once told this author:

My brother never told anyone in need, No. Somehow, he always knew the people who had the parnassah issues, the health issues, serious family issues. but he always wanted to maintain the privacy and dignity of the people involved.

I once asked him, How come these people always come to you with all this? He answered, Because I just cannot say, no.

Sometimes he was up until 2 or 3 AM working with families trying to resolve matters. Others have off on Shabbos. He worked on Shabbos. He always knew what to do, who to call, how to solve the problem.

HELPING AGUNOS

It is remarkable that despite all he undertook for the community and his own great devotion to Torah, he never lost sight of the individual and always made time for others. This last sentence was actually written by Rav Brafman in his assessment of the Chazon Ish (See November 1970 Jewish Observer), but it very well applied to Rav Brafman as well.

A few months before he passed away, he convened a meeting in his home as to what could be done to help a particular Agunah who lived in the community. He would be happy to know that finally, finally, she received her get, and finally  she is to remarry.

This young woman relates: As a terrified young mother in a difficult situation, we arrived in the community eight years ago Rabbi Brafman took my son into his amazing camp right away, no questions asked, free of charge.. Rabbi Brafman was there by my babys upsherin giving brachos, cutting his first hairs, he was there by my eldest sons Bar Mitzvah, dancing with him, gifting him with a special book about Gedolei Yisroel writing a beautiful inscription about his hopes for his bright future.

Rabbi Brafman was there.. trying so hard to get me a get.. And now we are orphaned of this great man. There is no one to take his place. I sit here and mourn for his family, for the community, for us.

This was not just one case. There were many Agunos that he had helped. Rav Brafman felt that there was a great need for a global solution to the Agunah problem and was a strong supporter of Rav Perrs idea that Rav Moshe Feinstein ztl had approved.

ALL COMMUNAL NEEDS

He was there for every communal need.

Rabbi Brafman ran a camp in the summer times which helped support him financially. And yet he would often take in young boys free of charge or at a deeply discounted rate. Rabbi Dovid Greenblatt, head of the Davis Memorial Fund, remarked, With Rabbi Brafman it was never a question of not taking in a child. His whole purpose was to meet the needs of kids who needed a wholesome Torah experience. Other camps used the camp, and justifiably so, to fund their Yeshivos or to make a living. Rabbi Brafman ran his camp in a manner that even the most kiruv oriented Yeshiva did not do. He and his wife ylct ran it with utter tzidkus.

Rabbi Brafmans assistance and help for those who were in a dysfunctional home atmosphere was remarkable. He was on top of dozens of situations and would call and demonstrate concern and action. He didnt just stop at showing concern. When there was a drug problem in one family  he was one of the few that took steps to help resolve it, remarked one anonymous neighbor who knew what Rav Brafman had organized.

CONCERN FOR OTHERS

His care for all others was palpable. A student once came to Rabbi Brafmans office to ask a hashkafa question about why the Yeshiva does not march in the Israeli Day Parade. When he came to ask the question, he encountered Rabbi Brafman sobbing in tears. The young man asked him what was wrong. Rav Brafman responded, I just heard a report that an Israeli soldier was killed by a terrorist. This created a very lasting impression upon the young student.

Just a few months ago, Rav Brafman ran a Shavuos hasmada program for the lower grades in the high school. He announced the winners of the grand prize of a raffle. And he announced the names of the three winners. The only problem was that he had made an error. There were only two grand prizes and only two winners. The third name was announced by mistake. Instead of back tracking, Rav Brafman immediately went out and purchased a brand new bicycle  out of his own funds. He would not have it any other way.

Dr. Moshe Katz taught a holocaust class in the Yeshiva of Far Rockaway. He relates, There was one young man who did not do well in class and at graduation he would not receive any awards. Rabbi Brafman asked Dr. Katz if he could recommend him for excellence in his class. Dr. Katz agreed right away, and was visibly moved at how concerned Rabbi Brafman was for each and every bochur.

Another student relates:

I remember as a 9th grader that, for some reason, Rabbi Brafman decided to ask me if I wanted to learn with him. As I look back on it now it showed tremendous anivus, that a talmid chacham of his caliber asks a 14 year old kid for a chavrusashaft., getting to see such a tzadik so up close, completely changed my life. I was zoche to learn with him for seven years.

When I left to eretz yisrael, I was not leaving without saying goodbye to Rebbe. Like a grandfather he gave me a kiss, shliach mitzvah money, and told me not to forget to call.

Eventually, I returned from eretz yisrael to yeshiva and would begin shidduchim. He would pull me to the side and ask me how things were going. When I began dating my wife, Rabbi Brafman was obviously involved. Despite the toll his illness had taken on his body recently, he still greeted me with his warmth, a big smile and a kiss. The last time I saw him was two weeks ago at mincha. I told Rebbe that we were leaving New York to spend time with the in laws, he wished me a good trip and kissed me on the hand. Little did I know that this would be good bye.

Ben Brafman related, I have just heard in just one day  over 20 Rabbi Brafman stories. He never did anything for glory, or any type of reward or even for praise. There were so many issues he was involved in and very few people even knew he was involved.

Reb Ben continued, He advised people who had difficulties in their marriage. He actively made phone calls to help people find employment and would make sure that they had money to cover their expenses during their search.

THE WAY IN WHICH HE DID IT

There was one out of town talmid, a grandchild of a local philanthropist, who applied to the Yeshiva but was rejected. The rejection was because even local children could not necessarily be accepted and to take someone from out of town would not be in line with the mission of the yeshiva.

Now, a few years later, this student took special care to hear the funeral held in Eretz Yisroel on line. When asked why he did so, in light of the fact that he was actually rejected by Rav Brafman, the young man, responded, I have never had such a remarkable, respectful, loving rejection.

Even Rav Brafmans rejections built up a persons self-esteem.

Rav Brafman would at times give mussar to others as well. The manner in which he delivered it, however, left the person with a sense of self-worth that was far greater than before the mussar was given.

HASHKAFOS

Rav Brafman authored a number of articles in the pages of the Jewish Observer  espousing Torah true Hashkafos that were remarkably prescient. He foresaw trends and problems that became serious issues. Indeed, Professor Aharon Twerski once theorized that a malach Hashem had written them  they were so prescient!

In an October 1970 Jewish Observer article, he wrote of the need to implement a halacha and Chumash track in Mesivta High Schools along the lines of a survey program for those bochurim that dont necessarily have the patience for full time Gemorah study. He advocated bochurim learning Rav Dessler, Rav Hirsch, the Maharal, and the ideas of Rav Yisroel Salanter. This was to keep them on the derech and to foster Torah true Hashkafos. He ended the article with the words, We must make the Mesivta bochur feel that he can look to Torah for the answers to his problems. We must show him the wealth and depth of Torah. Then we can at least say that we tried.

In a February 1973 Jewish Observer article, Rav Brafman proposed that Torah families begin to invite unaffiliated Jews to their homes for Shabbos. The article described the far reaching effects and the benefits to the host families as well. He gave instructions as to which organizations to reach out to in order to obtain such guests.

In a May 1976 JO article, Rav Brafman predicted that the trend in medicine was heading toward Living Wills and DNRs  based upon the subjective thinking of some that an elderly persons life was no longer worth living. How right he was, for that is where we stand now.

In an April 1977 JO article, addressing the crisis in parent/ children relations he recommended a reboot in the apperception of Kivud Av vAim. He recommended that parents not overburden children with directives (and make sure that they make requests that will be listened to), and he also recommended that the Mitzvah of Kivud Av Vaim should become as Jewish an idea as Shabbos and Kashrus. In other words, it should not just be observed because we love our parents  it should be part of the obligations of Kashrus and Shabbos. He writes that imbuing our children with this attitude that it is not an intellectual idea, but rather a chok  just like kashrus would go a long way toward easing tensions in the teen and post teen years.

Rav Brafman addressed what he saw as an impending inner crisis that the Torah community would soon be facing in a December 1982 JO article. To address it he recommended teaching our children of their responsibility to Klal Yisroel and to Torah continuity. He urged families to emphasize the bain adam lchaveiro aspects of Mitzvos and to shy away from materialism and consumerism. Other articles included Dealing With Doomsday (1984, shades of the North Korea crisis?); re-examing the nature of the yetzer Horah (1985); Understanding that we are still in Golus (1987); The Pursuit of Happiness and Social Decay (1989); Builders and Destroyers (1995); The Crisis is Now Part II (1997); Our Latest Encounters with Western Culture (1998); Freedoms Versus Limits (2000) and two more articles (2002, and 2003) dealing with how we are and should be different than the society around us.

Rav Brafman was a hashkafah giant and was able to powerfully convey, in a modern intellectual lingua franca, the haskafic ideals of the Gedolim of yesterday. This was all aside from his love of people and his profound grasp of Torah.

THE MAKING OF A TZADDIK

But how is it that such neshamos come about?

In his formative years at Yeshiva Torah VDaas  he became close  very close to his Rebbeim  Rebbeim who were not only Talmudic geniuses, but geniuses of character and of Ahavas Yisroel.

Rav Brafman was very close with Rav Eliyahu Moshe Shisgal ztl, Rav Moshe Feinsteins son-in-law, Rav Gedaliah Schorr ztl, Rav Avrohom Pam ztl and Rav Yaakov Kamenetsky ztl. These Rebbeim had a profound influence upon him.

But there was more as well.

His brother Ben explains: When he was born, my father was drafted in the Philippines as a staff seargent. Aharon was raised by my grandfather  Reb Avrohom Boruch Brafman who had a tremendous influence upon him. He had tremendous yiras shamayim and he would always see him learning. Aharon saw this and picked it all up from his zayde. And Aharon too loved Torah  he loved to teach Torah. He really had nachas when he saw progress. His talmidim would tell you that he knew everything about them. He had a sixth sense about him that allowed him to take a personal interest in every one of the talmidim that he had.. When you hear all this it is really quite remarkable.

When he came directly out of Kollel, Rav Brafman was given an eleventh grade Gemorah shiur  of the more difficult shiurim. It was right after the Six Day War. Reb Isser Kaplan was in that first class. We did forty blatt in Meseches Kiddushin. He succeeded enormously. He always related what the Torah had to say to current events. Here was a man who grew up in America and knew the struggles that American youth had faced, had overcame many of them himself, and served as a beacon of Torah and what could be achieved. He kept a relationship with us for years to come.

Reb Isser continued, He showed us that it was Toras Chaim. It was the first time that I saw the Torah was relevant.

As a youth he was a serious student, continued Ben Brafman. Not many people knew that he had a degree in history and that he had perfect grades. He could have done anything and would have been very successful at it  and he chose teaching Torah.

Rav Nosson Sherman remarked, He was interested in machshava, mussar, and hashkafa.

His study and knowledge of history, however, gave him a historical perspective about Klal Yisroels role in the world and what needed to be done in order to perfect the world. He saw events from the perspective of history. How do events in Israel fit into the role of Jewish tradition historically  he looked at things that way.

We spoke frequently. We didnt cross paths in Torah VDaas. We became close in Rav Bicks shul in Boro Park. He was close to Rav Gedaliah Shorr. They both lived in Crown Heights. And he would spend time with him.

He was quite a tolerant person  much more than is common. That helped frame his relationship with talmidim. There was no such thing as, hes bad lets get rid of him. When there was no choice he always tried setting them up someplace else.

His wife was a very important factor in his relationship with others. She is idealistic like him.

He loved Sfas Emes. He was also familiar with Nesivos Shalom, Rav Dessler, Mesilas Yesharim, Shaarei teshuvah. He inspired others with his quotes of these famous seforim, with his davening and even with his blowing of the shofar which he did every yomim norim in yeshiva for close to five decades.

His brother Ben Brafman added, He had the right sense of balance. He knew what kids were supposed to be like and he also knew about individualism. He would tell people to do math when there was math class. Recess for recess and lunch was for lunch. There is an internist who learns five hours each day  because of his influence. He was a real, real, honest to G-d, pure, rebbe whose primary concerns were his talmidim, his family, Klal Yisroel, and eretz yisroel. He helped me realize my achrayus to use my advocacy skills toward Eretz Yisroel.

Chillul Hashem hurt him deeply. He was emotional when even people who meant well violated Chillul Hashem.

Reb Menachem Leff attended his chaburah at night. He treated us all like peers and like part of the Yeshiva. We were not second class citizens at all. They actually tried to build our ruchniyus. We were the Yeshiva.

Ben Brafman continued, He was so disturbed and distressed by the intellectual dishonesty when the media distorted news about eretz Yisroel.

He was a smart, savvy man.. He got it  very quickly. He understood important issues facing klal yisroel.. He was distressed that people turned their kids to public school rather than yeshiva tuitions. He was afraid for future generations.

There are thousands who owe their commitment to eretz yisroel and yiddishkeit to Aharon Brafman. They are frum, they are honest, running all types of businesses according to halacha.. My brothers passing has created a void that the yeshiva will be hard pressed to fill. His absence is still a shock to a lot of people. It will hit home even more as soon as the new zman begins.

My brothers son in law is a sofer. I commissioned him to start writing a sefer torah in his name.. whether it will end up here in Yeshiva of Far Rockaway or in the cheder that my son is building in eretz yisroel. The point is that we will have a Torah written in his name.

Ben Brafman continues, He helped out all sorts of people  kallahs in need of assistance, Unemployed people in need of chizuk and advice, and so many more. His hand reached in so many places and his knowledge of everything that was going on was almost omniscient.

IMPACT

Rav Brafman came to the Far Rockaway community in 1970, when he accepted an invitation by Rav Yechiel Perr to serve as the assistant Menahel of the Yeshiva of Far Rockaway. Within two years he became the menahel and he impacted the lives of the Talmidim and the Baal HaBattim.

Rav Brafman would give shiurim in many areas in Shas and halacha. He would give Vaadim in one of his favorite Seforim, the Nefesh haChaim of Rav Chaim Volozhin. He was fully versed in the most esoteric parts of it, and knew this sefer through and through  including the more kabbalistic elements of it. He not only knew the sefer, he had a full grasp of its internal structure as well. He also wrote passionate articles about matters that he felt endangered the community.

At the shiva, Dr. Freddie Martin remarked, Every single person present at the levaya on Erev Shabbos in the yeshiva could have delivered a hesped and a powerful one at that. Rabbi Brafman was so involved with people, with the community, that everyone is aware of stories and incidents that are deeply inspiring.

He was a very big Talmid Chochom. He would finish mesechtah after mesechta  and would learn them in depth. He was a kol bo who knew shas, tosfosim, mussar and even chassidus, Rav Kalish continued.

HIS LEGACY

Rabbi Brafman is survived by his wife, Rebbetzin Susie Brafman; his brother, Mr. Benjamin Brafman; his sisters, Mrs. Malky Aaron and Mrs. Shevy Kooperberg; his son, Rabbi Avrohom Boruch Brafman; and his daughters, Mrs. Naomi Ullman, Mrs. Esther Braun, Mrs. Sima Rottenberg, Mrs. Rina Bloch, Mrs. Aviva Guzik, Mrs. Shoshana Friedman and Mrs. Batsheva Feldman.

Rabbi Brafman ztls children follow in his footsteps in their sense of communal responsibility. They take in guests, advise others, and show heartfelt concern for others.

Rav Brafman ztl was dedicated heart and soul to the Yeshiva and to the growth of its Talmidim. Indeed, as of this writing, this writer just received a text message that the talmidim are trying to organize a siyum hashas for the shloshim of their beloved menahel. And that everyone who learned by him should take on something  even if it is just one blatt in his memory.

Having Talmidim of such a caliber, is one of the most beautiful legacies that a Rebbe can leave. The greatest legacy, however, is the vivid example of genuine, unadulterated ahavas yisroel. As his son mentioned at the levaya in America, Chazal tell us that at a persons petira (passing) the midos that he valued and exemplified for others are there for the taking. This is something that we all should and can aspire to possess. Yehe zichro boruch.

The author can be reached at [email protected].
Anti-Israel Ireland is considering purchasing Israeli drones for its army, the Irish Times reported on Wednesday.

Ireland, which has always been hostile to Israel, increased its hostility to new heights since October 7th, joining South Africas absurd claim against Israel at the Hague, recognizing a Palestinian state as a reward for terrorism, and urging the EU to rescind its trade agreements with Israel. Its Prime Minister even referred to an Irish-Israeli hostage who was released from captivity in Gaza as a child who was lost and was now found.

However, when it comes to its self-interests, all its supposed views are scattered to the winds. It has no qualms about using Israeli arms, purchasing over $9.45 million of Israeli-manufactured arms in the past ten years. And now despite Israels so-called genocide in Gaza, the Irish military is allowing Israeli companies to submit bids for a tender for a fleet of drones, the Times reported. According to the report, Israel, which is a world leader in drone technology is well-positioned to secure the contract.

Ireland was joined by Spain and Norway when it recognized a Palestinian state in May. However, Spain also put its self-interests ahead of its so-called affinity for the Palestinians. Its plan to open an embassy in Ramallah failed because Spanish diplomats refused to relocate from Israel due to concerns about quality of life and security.

Its absurd to recognize Palestine without opening an embassy to formalize it, sources from the Spanish Foreign Ministry who spoke with the Spanish digital newspaper Ok Diario said at the time.

Of course, the Spanish diplomats concerns are valid. In April, German Ambassador to the Palestinian Authority Oliver Owcza was attacked by a mob of enraged Palestinian students at Birzeit University over Germanys support for Israel.

(YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)
Delta Air Lines announced on Wednesday that it has temporarily halted flights between John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York and Tel Aviv through October 31, a week after Sukkos concludes, due to the ongoing conflict in the region.

Delta said that passengers can still book seats on partner airlines like Air France and El Al through their website. The airline said that it is continuously monitoring the evolving security environment and will update passengers as necessary.

The airline also warned of potential additional cancellations on a rolling basis and issued a travel waiver for customers who booked trips to or from Tel Aviv before October 31. The waiver covers fare differences and must be used for travel starting by December 15.

With Delta and United Airlines suspending flights, El Al remains the only airline offering direct service between the U.S. and Israel. American Airlines has not resumed flights to Tel Aviv since halting them after the October 7 Hamas attack, and announced on Wednesday that it will not resume them until at least March 29, 2025.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier arrived in the Middle East on Wednesday.

USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), equipped with F-35C and F/A-18 Block III fighters, entered the U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) area of responsibility, a statement from the US Central Command said.

The USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), the flagship of Carrier Strike Group 3, is accompanied by Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 21 and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 9.

Last week, as an Iranian attack on Israel seemed imminent, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group to speed its deployment to the area from its post in the Asian Pacific as well as the deployment of the USS Georgia guided missile submarine to the Middle East.

(YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)
Iranian officials are signaling this week that their promised retaliatory attack on Israel may not be imminent, The Washington Post reported.

Following Israels elimination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, Iran vowed to punish Israel. However, on Wednesday, the Iranian mission to the United Nations stated that a response must be carefully calibrated to avoid a possible ceasefire in Gaza.

Perhaps when their eyes are fixed on the skies and their radar screens, they will be taken by surprise from the ground  or perhaps even by a combination of both, the mission said in its statement. The timing, conditions, and manner of Irans response will be meticulously orchestrated to ensure that it occurs at a moment of maximum surprise.

A day earlier, Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps spokesperson said, time is at our disposal. The waiting period for this response could be long.

The talk about a possible ceasefire in Gaza is a cover for Irans fear of sparking an all-out war with Israel, especially as it deals with growing domestic discontent amid a faltering economy.

Their dilemma is that they dont know how to respond without starting a war, said Gregory Brew, an Iran analyst at the Eurasia Group, adding that doing something that everyone sees as symbolic doesnt solve the problem of restoring deterrence with Israel.

According to another Washington Post report, one way Iran is trying to punish Israel without sparking an all-out war is its customary cowardly behavior of hiding behind in its proxies  in this case by pushing its proxy Hezbollah to attack.

US officials believe that Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has backtracked from his vow to fire at Tel Aviv, which would trigger a massive Israeli retaliation.

However, he remains determined to avenge Israels elimination of Hezbollah command Fuad Shukr and as the report says, he has many Israeli targets to choose from.

(YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)
Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, who is hiding in tunnels surrounded by Israeli hostages, has added a new demand for a ceasefire deal: his own survival.

The stipulation was communicated to US negotiators by an Egyptian official who said that Sinwar insists that Israel must commit not to assassinate him after the agreement.

Sinwar, who has stated that the tens of thousands of Gazans killed in the war are necessary sacrifices, is apparently not willing to risk his own hide. He values his life more than those of his own children, saying that his slain sons would only infuse life into the veins of this nation, prompting it to rise to its glory and honor, according to leaked messages obtained by the Wall Street Journal in June.

US officials believe that Sinwar favors a deal with Israel as he is stuck in tunnels with his stock of ammunition and supplies dwindling, according to Washington Post journalist David Ignatius.

But Sinwar is also playing a waiting game  in the hope that Iran or Hezbollah will attack Israel.

However, a deal seems elusive as Hamas refuses to tolerate any Israeli presence along the Philadephi Corridor. Israel cannot cede on this point as it must prevent Hamas from rearming itself and carrying out another October 7 style attack.

(YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)
Former member of the war cabinet MK Gadi Eisenkot called on Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to replace Mossad chief Dedi Barnea, who is serving as the head of the negotiations team for a hostage release deal, and replace him with someone who understands the Arab mentality.

In an interview with Ynet, Eisenkot said: Dedi is an excellent person but he doesnt understand the Arab mentality, adding that after ten months of negotiations, Barnea has not yet delivered the goods. Eisenkot also feels that Barnea, as the head of the Mossad, must utilize all of his time to focus on the Iranian threat. Barnea and Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar need to deal with their own challenges  and they are big enough, he said.

Eisenkot noted that he and the chairman of his party, Benny Gantz, already told Netanyahu these views six months ago, when they were members of the war cabinet  more than once.

In an interview with Army Radio on Thursday morning, Eisenkot said that all IDF commanders who were responsible for the October 7 debacle should resign as soon as there is a lull in the war, without waiting for Netanyahus resignation.

These are excellent people who are committed to the State of Israel, but they are responsible for the greatest failure of the State since its establishment, he said. Therefore, everyone from the level of the division commander to the prime minister should resign.

(YWN Israel Desk  Jerusalem)
Bullets have been found in the bodies of all of the hostages recovered by the IDF from Gaza earlier this week. This discovery has led the IDF to assess that the hostages were likely murdered by Hamas while in captivity.

The victimsidentified as Alex Dancyg, Yagev Buchshtav, Chaim Peri, Yoram Metzger, Nadav Popplewell, and Avraham Munderwere recovered from a hidden tunnel complex during a military operation between Monday and Tuesday. The IDF representatives presented the autopsy results to the families of the deceased, which were conducted at the Abu Kabir Forensic Institute. While the initial findings suggest gunfire as the cause of death, health and military officials have yet to determine the exact circumstances.

During the recovery operation, IDF forces discovered four additional bodies near the hostages. These bodies, believed to belong to terrorists, displayed no signs of gunfire, according to the forensic institute.

The operation occurred amid intensified military actions in Khan Younis, with the IDF locating the bodies in a concealed tunnel shaft approximately 10 meters deep. No resistance was encountered within the tunnel itself, though forces clashed with armed militants nearby. Several terror operatives were killed, while others fled as the IDF established control over the area.

In response to the autopsy findings, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum condemned the brutality of the hostage-takers. The discovery of bullets in the hostages bodies is further proof of the cruelty of the terrorists who have held 109 hostages for 321 days, the group said in a statement. They called for urgent action, warning that any further delay could result in more hostage deaths.

The forum criticized the lack of progress in securing the hostages release, describing the recovery of the six bodies as a testimony of the complete failure to reach a deal in time.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
The red hot rental market appears to be cooling after three years of soaring prices, according to Zoopla.

The property website has revealed that rental growth has slowed to its lowest level in 33 months.

While average rents for newly-let properties are 5.7 per cent higher than a year ago, rents have risen by just 1.2 per cent in the first six months of 2024.

Easing off: Rent rises have been smaller in the first six months of 2024

The average rented home is now 1,232 per month, which means prices have increased by 66 per month compared to this time last year.

In some major cities rents have actually fallen during the first half of this year, including Nottingham, London, Brighton and Glasgow.

In London, rents are falling in inner areas led by Tower Hamlets, Newham and Greenwich.

Over one-third of London boroughs (12 of 33) have recorded rents falling in the first half of 2024, well below the levels recorded a year ago.

However, in outer London where rents are cheaper, there have been above-average rates of rental growth in the first half of the year.

Rents continue to rise at an above-average rate in more affordable markets adjacent to large cities and where renting remains better value for money.

Tenants in Rochdale have seen rents rise by 6.9 per cent during the first half of the year while average rents have also risen 5 per cent in Doncaster and Southend.

What is causing the rental market to cool?

The rising rents recorded in recent years have occurred because there are not enough available properties to satisfy demand.

The supply of homes available for rent per estate agent is rising slowly, according to Zoopla, which could be taking some heat out of the market.

However, while agents have 17 per cent more homes for rent than a year ago, the average letting agent still has a third fewer homes to rent compared to the pre-pandemic average recorded by Zoopla between 2017 and 2019.

The modest improvement in supply is being driven by two factors, according to Zoopla.

Lower mortgage rates have made it a little easier for first-time buyers to buy homes and leave renting, while more new homes are being sold to corporate landlords for renting.

A small but not insignificant number of private landlords are continuing to sell rented homes in the face of higher mortgage rates and heavier restrictions, and this is acting as a drag on the total number of properties available to rent.

How much can you afford? Find out how much you can afford to borrow for a monthly payment amount with This is Money's mortgage affordability calculator.

Richard Donnell, executive director at Zoopla said: 'Renters will welcome the fact that rents for new lets are rising at their slowest pace for three years.

'Rents have risen so fast they have over-shot in some cities and we are seeing modest falls in rents in some cities as rents adjust to weaker demand and modest increases in the availability of homes for rent.

'Rents continue to rise more quickly in more affordable areas adjacent to large cities as renters seek better value for money.

'Rents are on track to be 3-4 per cent higher over 2024 which is more than half the level recorded last year and below earnings growth providing some modest relief for the UK's private renters.'

However, Tom Bill, head of UK residential research at property firm Knight Frank warns that if the government is seen to penalise landlords with tax changes and legislation, more could sell up leading to further supply side pressures.

'Rental value growth remains high by historical standards after a number of landlords sold up in recent years due to a proliferation of red tape and tax,' said Bill.

'Just as there are signs that supply is recovering and the upwards pressure on rents is easing, there is renewed uncertainty surrounding further legislative changes by the new government.

'If any new rules are too punitive for landlords, it could push rents higher as more sell up.'
Tech entrepreneurs last night paid tribute to Mike Lynch who has died after his superyacht sank in Italy.

Friends and industry colleagues mourned the loss of an inspiring titan who was known as the British Bill Gates after divers confirmed that his body was found in the wreck of the Bayesian.

The body of Lynchs daughter Hannah, 18, was also found in the vessel off the coast of Sicily, as well as two others who had not been identified last night.

Tech entrepreneurs last night paid tribute to Mike Lynch who has died after his superyacht sank in Italy

Two months ago, Lynch, 59, won a 13- year legal battle to clear his name after being accused of fraud.

Brent Hoberman, the founder of online travel retailer Lastminute.com last night paid tribute to his friend of 28 years.

He said: What a figurehead he was for so many decades for UK entrepreneurs.

Software billionaires tale of triumph and controversy Mike Lynch is one of the best known names in British tech. He was born in Ilford, East London in 1965 to an Irish immigrant family. A bright pupil, he won a scholarship to private secondary school, Bancrofts. He then gained a place at Cambridge University to study natural sciences. In 1996, he founded Autonomy. The firm used complicated analysis to help businesses manage their data. The company made its public market debut on the New York Stock Exchange in May 2000. It listed in London six months later. Autonomy was sold for 9billion to US giant Hewlett Packard in 2011 in what was then the biggest tech takeover of a FTSE 100 firm. Lynch said the deal would be a positive thing for Cambridge and the UK. But HP accused Autonomys team of misleading it over the financial details. This would trigger a legal dispute. After the sale, Lynch launched venture capital firm Invoke. An early investment was cyber-security firm Darktrace. Lynch and his wife Angela Bacares owned just under 7 per cent of the firm. This year it agreed to be taken over by US private equity firm Thoma Bravo  putting Lynch and Bacares in line for 290million.

He was an inspiring titan of technology and pioneer for many that went after him, Hoberman said.

He was a real patriot, who supported UK tech entrepreneurs, he added.

Russ Shaw, the founder of Tech London Advocates, said Lynch would be remembered as a true visionary. And Rob Moffat, a partner at venture capital firm Balderton Capital, said it was a tragic day.

He has inspired many tech entrepreneurs, Moffat said.

Lynch founded software firm Autonomy in 1996 before selling it to American computing giant Hewlett-Packard (HP) for 9billion in 2011.

But the deal turned sour when HP accused Lynch of falsely inflating Autonomys revenues before the sale.

That sparked a lengthy legal saga that saw Lynch extradited to the US in 2022 to face criminal charges where he faced two decades in prison if convicted.

But a jury cleared him of fraud allegations in June and after his acquittal, he said he was ready to get back to doing what I love doing, which is innovating.

The yacht trip had been intended as a celebration after the case but in the early hours of Monday, a waterspout tornado caused the boat to sink in minutes.

Eileen Burbidge, founder of Passion Capital, said it was a shocking tragedy and the same for Stephen Chamberlain, Lynchs co-defendant in the US trial, who died after being hit by a car at the weekend.

Lynchs wife Angela Bacares was rescued, but among the guests still not formally identified last night were Morgan Stanley boss Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy and American couple Chris and Neda Morvillo.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. Baku has hosted an international conference on combating neo-colonialism, focusing on the island of Bonaire, which is under Dutch colonial rule, Trend reports.

The event was organized by the Baku Initiative Group and the Movement for Human Rights and Change on Bonaire Island.

Speaking at the event, Vice President of the Bonaire Human Rights Organization James Finies expressed gratitude to the Baku Initiative Group for their support.

This is our reality, our daily struggle. We are confronting democratic changes, population shifts, and the significant impact of Dutch immigration on our demographics and governance, he said.

President of the Bonaire Human Rights Organization Davika Bissessar emphasized that the people of Bonaire rely on global support and understanding.

The rights to self-determination, cultural preservation, identity, and ethical development are central to our mission. However, these rights cannot be fully embodied in isolation. We depend on the support and understanding of the global community to amplify our voices and ensure that justice is not merely an ideal but a reality for all, she added.

Abbas Abbasov, head of the Baku Initiative Group, emphasized his commitment to supporting the just struggle of colonized regions for independence despite any external pressure.

Our organization has achieved significant results in raising global awareness about the impact of France's colonial policies in New Caledonia, French Polynesia, Martinique, Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Wallis and Futuna, Mayotte, and Corsica, he stated.

UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent June Soomer noted that the Baku Initiative Group has established a safe space for colonial peoples.

Azerbaijan, as an independent country, deserves praise on behalf of the peoples of the colonial countries of the world, and especially on behalf of Caribbean colonies like Bonaire. I would like to express my gratitude for your courage to come forward and join us in this struggle, she said.

Carlos Fuller, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Belize to the UN in New York, also expressed gratitude to the Baku Initiative Group for its efforts regarding Bonaires colonization issue.

Our struggle for independence has long been guided by the principles of self-determination and territorial integrity, which are central to our foreign policy. This message is conveyed at all forums, whether addressing small countries or superpowers, he added.

At the end of the event, a final statement was signed between the Baku Initiative Group and Bonaire. The signing occurred during an international conference organized by the Baku Initiative Group and the Movement for Human Rights and Change on Bonaire.

Bonaire seeks international support to advocate for its recognition as a non-self-governing territory to protect and ensure the right of its people to self-determination and self-government, Abbasov concluded.

The Path to Bonaire's Self-Determination at the UN General Assembly through Baku Initiative Group conference brought together representatives from Bonaire, who are fighting against colonialism, along with officials and delegates from Belize, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, St. Lucia, the UK, Mexico, the Netherlands, the UN, and other international and regional organizations. Human rights activists, NGO leaders, experts, and researchers in the field of decolonization will also participate in the conference.

High-level attendees will include special representatives from the Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the Permanent Representative of Belize to the UN, UNICEF Youth Advocates, CARICOM Youth Ambassadors Corps, and the Chair of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in Africa, among others.

The conference addressed Bonaire's struggle for liberation from colonialism and discussed actions taken to bring this issue to the forefront of relevant international organizations, as well as explore international legal avenues for decolonization.

This event was held at a significant time for the Bonaire people, as a few weeks after the conference, several states planned to submit a draft resolution to the UN General Assembly to re-list Bonaire as a territory subject to decolonization. One of the conference's primary goals is to garner international support for this resolution.

Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. I am grateful to the Baku Initiative Group for supporting the people of Bonaire, Vice President of the Bonaire Human Rights Organization James Finies said during the international conference in Baku, Trend reports.

"Today, you will hear the voices of those who have been silenced and cannot speak for themselves. We do not live in a post-colonial world or a post-colonial Caribbean," he stated.

He added that Bonaire's representatives have committed to advocating for human rights for all.

"This is our reality, our daily struggle. We are confronting democratic changes, population shifts, and the significant impact of Dutch immigration on our demographics and governance," he said.

Baku is hosting an international conference focused on Bonaire, an island that is under Dutch colonial rule. The event is organized by the Baku Initiative Group and the Movement for Human Rights and Change on Bonaire Island.

The Path to Bonaire's Self-Determination at the UN General Assembly through Baku Initiative Group conference has brought together representatives from Bonaire, who are fighting against colonialism, along with officials and delegates from Belize, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, St. Lucia, the UK, Mexico, the Netherlands, the UN, and other international and regional organizations. Human rights activists, NGO leaders, experts, and researchers in the field of decolonization will also participate in the conference.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. We depend on the support and understanding of the world community, President of the Bonaire Human Rights Organization Davika Bissessar said during the international conference in Baku, Trend reports.

Today marks a historic moment not only for the people of Bonaire but for all who value the fundamental principles of human rights, she stated.

Bissessar highlighted that Bonaire is a small island with a rich cultural heritage, but like many other communities around the world, faces challenges that test the resolve and determination of the people.

The rights to self-determination, cultural preservation, identity, and ethical development are central to our mission. However, these rights cannot be fully embodied in isolation. We depend on the support and understanding of the global community to amplify our voices and ensure that justice is not merely an ideal or ethos but a reality for all, she added.

Baku is hosting an international conference focused on Bonaire, an island that is under Dutch colonial rule. The event is organized by the Baku Initiative Group and the Movement for Human Rights and Change on Bonaire Island.

The Path to Bonaire's Self-Determination at the UN General Assembly through Baku Initiative Group conference has brought together representatives from Bonaire, who are fighting against colonialism, along with officials and delegates from Belize, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, St. Lucia, the UK, Mexico, the Netherlands, the UN, and other international and regional organizations. Human rights activists, NGO leaders, experts, and researchers in the field of decolonization will also participate in the conference.
Photo: Press Service of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan

BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has signed a decree on awarding servicemen of the Special State Protection Service of the president, Trend reports.

According to the decree, servicemen of the Special State Protection Service are being recognized for their distinguished performance in their duties.

The full text of the decree is available at the link.

Will be updated
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. President Ilham Aliyev has signed a decree awarding servicemen of the State Agency for the Protection of Strategic Objects of Azerbaijan with the 'For Military Merit' medal, Trend reports.

According to the decree, servicemen of the agency were awarded the 'For Military Merit' medal for their distinguished performance of duties.

The full text of the decree is available at the link.

Will be updated
Photo: Press Service of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan

BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. President Ilham Aliyev has signed a decree on awarding servicemen of the State Service for Special Communication and Information Security of Azerbaijan, Trend reports.

The decree awards servicemen of the state security service for exceptional performance of their official duties.

The full text of the decree is available at the link.

Will be updated
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. Several Western circles, including the European Union's representative in the South Caucasus, Toivo Klaar, have recently intensified contacts with elements trying to revive separatist tendencies sent to the dustbin of history, the statement of Western Azerbaijan Community said, Trend reports.

According to the information circulated, former Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian recently held meetings with Toivo Klaar and some other representatives of Western circles. Meanwhile, it should be recalled that Oskanian chairs a certain "commission" created by the non-existent "parliament" of the fictitious "Nagorno-Karabakh Republic" to carry out activities against the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. The contacts of Western circles with Oskanian and his likes, being a vivid example of political hypocrisy, serve to create a new anti-Azerbaijani source of tension.

How is it that Toivo Klaar avoids contact with the Western Azerbaijan Community, which does not oppose the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Armenia, but meets with populist Vardan Oskanian, who openly threatens the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, is a Khojaly murderer, was Foreign Minister in the government of racist Robert Kocharian and is completely detached from reality?

The fact that Toivo Klaar and others deny the right of return of Western Azerbaijanis, attributing this right only to Armenians, proves that those who talk incessantly about democracy and human rights actually approach the issues from the point of view of religious and ethnic bigotry.

Judging by the fact that fictitious structures with a militaristic agenda, a sort of commission headed by the likes of Vardan Oskanian are quietly functioning on the territory of Armenia, this rapidly arming country is not interested in peace with Azerbaijan and advocates revanchism.

Armenia must stop ranting about peace and refuse contact with elements like Ocampo and Oskanian and the path aimed at escalating the situation, the statement reads.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. Baku initiative group has created a safe space for colonial peoples to dignify their views on self-determination and remove themselves from classification, the representative of the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent June Soomer said during an international conference on Bonaire Island in Baku, Trend reports.

Azerbaijan, as an independent country, deserves praise on behalf of the peoples of the colonial countries of the world, and especially on behalf of Caribbean colonies like Bonaire. I would like to express my gratitude for your courage to come forward and join us in this struggle, she stated.

Soomer noted that the colonies are treated like cranky children who misbehave, and the voices of their liberation movements are treated with disdain.

The struggle against colonialism is a struggle for justice and dignity, for the return of identity, and a struggle for all our humanity. It is our unity on fundamental issues such as self-determination, she added.

To note, Baku is hosting an international conference on the island of Bonaire, which was under the colonial rule of the Netherlands. The event is organized by the Baku Initiative Group (BIG) and the Movement for Human Rights and Change on Bonaire Island.

The conference, entitled Bonaire Island's Path to Self-Determination through the Baku Initiative Group at the UN General Assembly, is attended by representatives of the Bonaire people fighting colonialism and seeking liberation, as well as officials and representatives from Belize, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, St. Lucia, the UK, Mexico, the Netherlands, the UN and other international and regional organizations. Furthermore, human rights activists, leaders of non-governmental organizations, experts, and researchers in the field of decolonization are participating in the conference.

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Chinese business leaders and investors explored new opportunities in the emirate at the first international edition of the Dubai Business Forum  China, which took place in Beijing from August 21-22.

Organised by Dubai Chambers, the event attracted 800 prominent Chinese business leaders and investors, who learned more about the promising opportunities available for the Chinese business community in the emirate as a result of the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33), and featured high-level participation from key government entities and private companies from the emirate.

The forum, which was held under the theme China, Dubai and Beyond: Igniting Global Trade and Investment, showcased the emirates thriving economy and competitive advantages, as well as the key strategic initiatives and projects in Dubai that provide quality investment opportunities for the Chinese and global business communities.

Mohammad Ali Rashed Lootah, President and CEO of Dubai Chambers, said at the forum: The Dubai Economic Agenda (D33) is an integrated roadmap for economic development that enhances the emirates competitiveness and places us firmly on track to achieve our goals of doubling the size of Dubais economy over the coming decade and consolidating its position among the top three cities globally.

Close partnerships and constructive cooperation between the public and private sectors create an exceptional investment environment for the global business community.

The total number of active Chinese companies registered as members of Dubai Chamber of Commerce increased to around 5,400 at the end of H1 2024, while the cumulative value of foreign direct investments from China to Dubai reached AED 19.85 billion between 2015  2023.

Strengthening Connections

Dubai Chambers organised a series of bilateral business meetings between members of the delegation from Dubai, which included government entities and private sector companies, and Chinese investors and business leaders.

The discussions created a platform to explore opportunities for cooperation and forge partnerships across a range of sectors.

Strategic MoU

On the sidelines of the forum, Dubai Chambers signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Beijing Subcouncil (CCPIT Beijing). The agreement is aimed at supporting CCPIT Beijings member companies in establishing and expanding their investments in Dubai, and promote the mutual interests of businesses in Dubai and China.

A Leading Hub for Innovation

The forum featured a total of 18 insightful sessions addressing a range of topics and sectors including trade and logistics, artificial intelligence, FDI, renewable energy and healthcare.

E-Commerce Prospects

The forums agenda included a panel discussion exploring emerging opportunities in the e-commerce sector. The session examined effective strategies to meet the evolving needs of consumers, as well as the latest developments in support services and the infrastructure and technologies required to thrive in the fast-growing world of e-commerce.

During the session, speakers highlighted the importance of Dubais strategic location and advanced logistics infrastructure in expanding the business of Chinese e-commerce companies and increasing their share in this highly competitive market.

Role of Free Zones

The forum also showcased the unique benefits of Dubais free zones, which offer numerous competitive advantages and are tailored to the needs of specific sectors. Discussions highlighted their role in supporting economic diversification and enabling investors and companies to achieve sustainable growth.

Leveraging Advanced Technologies

Artificial Intelligence (AI) formed a key pillar of the forums agenda, with a dedicated panel session addressing the shared visions of Dubai and China in this important field. Participants explored the synergies between China's advanced research and development capabilities and the importance Dubai attaches to promoting AI applications.

Advancing Sustainability

Sustainability and green technologies featured prominently on the agenda, with strategies to promote sustainable business forming the main focus of a panel discussion highlighting mutually beneficial opportunities in the field between Dubai and China.

The session examined the development of private sector joint ventures in the clean energy sector, with the goal of promoting the sharing of knowledge, experience, and best practices to meet the growing global demand for innovative and sustainable solutions.

Healthcare was also in the spotlight during an interactive dialogue that highlighted the strong emphasis Dubai places on medical data analysis and telehealth services to enhance the infrastructure and services within the industry and create a conducive environment for the private sector to develop innovative healthcare solutions.  TradeArabia News Service
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. Baku is hosting an international conference on combating neo-colonialism, focusing on the island of Bonaire, which is under Dutch colonial rule, Trend reports.

The event is organized by the Baku Initiative Group and the Movement for Human Rights and Change on Bonaire Island.

Speaking at the event, Vice President of the Bonaire Human Rights Organization James Finies expressed gratitude to the Baku Initiative Group for their support.

This is our reality, our daily struggle. We are confronting democratic changes, population shifts, and the significant impact of Dutch immigration on our demographics and governance, he said.

President of the Bonaire Human Rights Organization Davika Bissessar emphasized that the people of Bonaire rely on global support and understanding.

The rights to self-determination, cultural preservation, identity, and ethical development are central to our mission. However, these rights cannot be fully embodied in isolation. We depend on the support and understanding of the global community to amplify our voices and ensure that justice is not merely an ideal but a reality for all, she added.

The Path to Bonaire's Self-Determination at the UN General Assembly through Baku Initiative Group conference will bring together representatives from Bonaire, who are fighting against colonialism, along with officials and delegates from Belize, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, St. Lucia, the UK, Mexico, the Netherlands, the UN, and other international and regional organizations. Human rights activists, NGO leaders, experts, and researchers in the field of decolonization will also participate in the conference.

High-level attendees will include special representatives from the Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the Permanent Representative of Belize to the UN, UNICEF Youth Advocates, CARICOM Youth Ambassadors Corps, and the Chair of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in Africa, among others.

The conference will address Bonaire's struggle for liberation from colonialism and discuss actions taken to bring this issue to the forefront of relevant international organizations, as well as explore international legal avenues for decolonization.

This event comes at a significant time for the Bonaire people, as a few weeks after the conference, several states plan to submit a draft resolution to the UN General Assembly to re-list Bonaire as a territory subject to decolonization. One of the conference's primary goals is to garner international support for this resolution.

Will be updated

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The Kremlin appears to have launched an intricate messaging campaign aimed at justifying to its domestic audience why Russia is prioritizing maintaining the initiative in eastern Ukraine over immediately expelling Ukrainian forces from the Kursk region.

That is according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) think tank, Ukrinform reports.

Russian government sources close to the Russian Presidential Administration told local media that the Kremlin is actively trying to condition Russian society to accept the limited Ukrainian presence in the Kursk region as a "new normal" and downplay the significance of the incursion.

The sources noted that the Kremlin will use propaganda to encourage Russians to wait for Russian forces to retake these territories after an "inevitable" Ukrainian defeat in eastern Ukraine.

The sources also added that the Kremlin is redirecting Russians' concerns over the Kursk region by preoccupying domestic society with humanitarian assistance drives to assist the affected residents of the Kursk region and noted that the Kremlin decided against canceling the upcoming Kursk region gubernatorial elections scheduled for September to minimize panic in the region.

The Russian Central Election Commission, however, decided to postpone local elections in the seven districts in the Kursk region that are impacted by the Ukrainian incursion due to security risks.

ISW experts believe that such a protracted occupation of Russian territory undermines the Kremlin's longstanding narratives about why Russia is at war in the first place. The Kremlin had been justifying its war in Ukraine as a defensive war that aims to protect Russian sovereignty and territorial integrity.

According to ISW analysts, the Kremlin's relaxed approach to the temporal aspect implies that the Kremlin has decided to prioritize tactical advances in Ukraine over rapidly restoring Russia's territorial integrity in Kursk, and this apparent decision undermines a series of long-standing narratives about Russian "red lines."

As of August 20, the Ukrainian Armed Forces were in control of more than 1,260 square kilometers of territory and 93 towns and villages in Russia's Kursk region.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. I would like to express my gratitude to the Baku Initiative Group for its contribution to the issue of colonization of Bonaire, the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Belize to the UN Carlos Fuller said at an international conference on the island of Bonaire being held in Baku, Trend reports.

Over the years, our struggle for independence has been conducted based on two principles - the right to self-determination of the people and territorial integrity. These are the are the same principles we formulate in our foreign policy. It is with this message that we speak in all forums, whether we are dealing with small countries or superpowers, he stated.

Fuller brought up the importance of safeguarding and promoting the cultural, political, economic, social, and educational advancement, as well as the equitable treatment and protection, of the people in question.

It is necessary to develop self-government, to take into account the political aspirations of peoples properly and help them in the progressive development of their free political institutions under the specific circumstances of each territory and its people, he added.

To note, Baku is hosting an international conference on the island of Bonaire, which was under Dutch colonial rule. The event is organized by the Baku Initiative Group (BIG) and the Movement for Human Rights and Change on Bonaire Island.

The conference, entitled Bonaire Island's Path to Self-Determination through the Baku Initiative Group at the UN General Assembly, is attended by representatives of the Bonaire people fighting colonialism and seeking liberation, as well as officials and representatives from Belize, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, St. Lucia, the United Kingdom, Mexico, the Netherlands, the United Nations and other international and regional organizations. Moreover, human rights activists, leaders of non-governmental organizations, experts, and researchers in the field of decolonization are also participating in the conference.

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The Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Mariano Grossi, plans to visit the Kursk nuclear power plant in Russia, as well as Ukraine, in the coming days.

The official reported this in an interview with Bloomberg, Ukrinform saw.

Grossi plans to visit the nuclear power plant in Kursk region in the coming days before continuing his trip to Kyiv, where he expects to speak with the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky.

According to the IAEA boss, the agency is extremely concerned about hostilities going on close to the Russian nuclear power plant because the obsolete Soviet reactors have no special protective dome above them, which leaves the reactor core rather exposed.

Given that the Ukrainian troops are advancing in the area, coming close to the NPP, within the artillery range, this poses a major concern for agency, Grossi said.

The head of the IAEA also touched on the topic of the Zaporizhzhia NPP, occupied by Russia, noting that his inspectors found no convincing evidence of who exactly is behind the drone attacks on Europes largest nuclear plant.

Whoever stands behind these incidents must stop, Grossi stressed, noting that a nuclear power plant must never be a military target.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, Ukraines military intelligence obtained evidence of Russia flying kamikaze drones over the nuclear reactors at the temporarily captured Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. More than 90 percent of Azerbaijanis really value the efforts toward Karabakh's liberation, Trend reports, referring to the social survey by the Italian SWG analytical agency ahead of Azerbaijan's parliamentary election.

The study revealed that a whopping 91 percent of respondents gave a thumbs up to the work done in the direction of freeing Karabakh and the surrounding regions from occupation.

Founded in Trieste, Italy, in 1981, SWG specializes in market surveys, opinion and institutional group surveys, sectoral studies, and monitoring centers that analyze market, political, and social trends and dynamics.

On June 28, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev signed a decree dissolving the sixth convocation of the Azerbaijani Parliament and scheduling a snap election for September 1.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. The issue of ballot papers from the Central Election Commission (CEC) to district election commissions in connection with the extraordinary parliamentary election starts on 23 August, the chairperson of the Central Election Commission (CEC) Mazahir Panahov said at today's meeting, Trend reports.

Meanwhile, under the Calendar plan of main actions and measures on preparation and holding of extraordinary election to Azerbaijani Parliament, the process of preparation of ballot papers should have been completed by August 22. The process has been completed. According to the calendar plan, issuance of ballot papers from CEC to DECs should be completed by August 27.

On June 28, President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree dissolving the sixth convocation of the Azerbaijani Parliament and calling for an extraordinary election.

The snap parliamentary election in Azerbaijan is scheduled for September 1, 2024.
Country Director of Asian Development Bank (ADB) Yong Ye Thursday called on President Asif Ali Zardari

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Aug, 2024) Country Director of Asian Development Bank (ADB) Yong Ye Thursday called on President Asif Ali Zardari.

In the meeting, the ADB country director briefed the president about the role of the Bank in the socio-economic development of Pakistan.

The president appreciated the assistance provided by the Asian Development Bank to Pakistan during the floods.

He also highlighted Pakistan's measures to deal with climate change, saying that Pakistan had planted mangrove forests on millions of acres of land.

President Zardari also appreciated the bank's services to Pakistan in the fields of agriculture, irrigation and education.

Meanwhile, the outgoing Ambassador of Greece to Pakistan Konstantinos Moatsos paid a farewell call on President Asif Ali Zardari.

He emphasized the need to further strengthen bilateral relations with Greece.

The president also expressed his best wishes for the outgoing Ambassador of Greece.
The chairperson Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) Rubina Khalid, on Thursday, emphasized carrying out a need assessment of the industrial sector while designing a skill development program so that students could be able to get employment instantly after completion of their training

KARACHI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Aug, 2024) The chairperson Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) Rubina Khalid, on Thursday, emphasized carrying out a need assessment of the industrial sector while designing a skill development program so that students could be able to get employment instantly after completion of their training.

She expressed the views while chairing a review meeting and addressing a ceremony held at Lasbela Industrial Estates Development Authority (LIEDA) in Hub town of Balochistan on the occasion of handing over of 4 Mobile Registrations Vans (MRVs) to BISP Balochistan Zone to facilitate registration process in far-flung areas.

Advisor to Chief Minister Balochistan for Industries and Commerce Mir Ali Hassan Zehri, Directors Generals of BISP, Managing Director LIEDA Fareed Muhammad Hasni, local leaders of Pakistan Peoples Party, and others were also present at the occasion.

Senator Rubina Khalid terming BISP as a ray of hope for the deserving and destitute segments of society said that Shaheed Benazir Bhutto envisioned the social security program aimed at economic empowerment of women folk and later President Asif Ali Zardari has transformed the dream into a reality.

The BISP has given identity to millions of women around the country who earlier were deprived of their fundamental right of recognition, she said adding that PPP has always taken the lead in initiatives for the development and economic empowerment of women as well as elevating dignity and status of women in the society.

Underscoring the significance of reaching remote areas to address the issues of backwardness and a sense of deprivation in Balochistan, the BISP chairperson said that her organization was working on different projects to extend its outreach to the uncovered population.

We are taking various measures for the registration of deserving women, the opening of bank accounts of the beneficiaries, the issuance of ATM cards, and ensuring timely disbursements while maintaining transparency and good governance in the BISP.

She said that it was made clear to all staffers that there was zero tolerance for corruption in the organization and uncivilized and ill-mannered behavior toward any beneficiary woman would not be tolerated at any cost.

She said that BISP is going to open more offices in Balochistan while 4 new Mobile Registration Vans were provided to extend registration services to those females of far-flung areas who were left unregistered due to lack of accessibility or other issues.

Mir Ali Hassan Zehri, addressing the ceremony, highlighted the measures taken by the government for the development of the area and facilitation of the people. He said that PPP believes in the service of people and it was various steps for their welfare.

He said that the provincial government was ready to work with BISP across the province for the betterment of the citizens and it will extend fullest cooperation to BISP for the achievement of the set objectives.

The BISP chairperson, while chairing the review meeting, stressed on imparting training of employment-oriented skills and said that LIEDA was a big industrial zone of Balochistan.

She directed that a need assessment of the zone should be carried out and the skill development program must be aligned with the requirements of industries locally as well as abroad so that students completing their training could get employment at the earliest.

She also emphasized the participation of local government representatives in the registration process employing local people to get better results and spreading awareness among the masses particularly beneficiary women about the disbursement procedure of BISP that does not require any fee or charges.

Director General BISP Islamabad Naveed Akber and Director South Zone Munir Sasoli, briefing at the occasion informed that BISP centers were operational in 43 tehsils and 158 sub-tehsils of Balochistan while 2 million beneficiaries in Balochistan were taking benefit of income support initiatives of BISP.

Later, Senator Rubina Khalid and the ACM Mir Ali Hasan Zahri cut the ribbon to make the handed-over MRVs operational. They planted a sapling at LIEDA and also visited a food manufacturing factory in the industrial zone.
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Aug, 2024) Deputy Commissioner Sarah Rehman has lauded the services of Rescue 1122, as it always provided services to the people during difficult times.

She expressed these views during a meeting with District Emergency Officer Rescue 1122 Engineer Fasihullah who called on her here on Thursday.

She said that whether it was 2022 floods or any other emergency the Rescue 1122 effectively helped the victims.

She assured that all issues faced by Rescue 1122 would be resolved on a priority basis, enabling the organization to perform its duties even more effectively.

During the meeting they had a detailed discussion on the performance of Rescue 1122 and other important matters.

The district emergency officer provided a comprehensive briefing on the services provided by Rescue 1122 in Dera Ismail Khan and the overall performance of the organization.

He also highlighted the provision of modern equipment to Dera by the Director General of Rescue 1122, Dr. Ayaz Khan, to enhance the rescue services.

District Emergency Officer Engineer Fasihullah also thanked the DC and expressed his commitment to further improving the performance of the organization.

APP/slm
ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Aug, 2024) The EU-supported programme have initiated collaboration among the stake holders to combat malnutrition in Sindh as the high rates of malnutrition continue to impact the province adversely.

The situation is dire, with nearly half of the children under the age of five suffering from stunting, wasting or being underweight. The consequences of malnutrition are far-reaching and have long-lasting impact, not just on the directly affected individuals but also on the rest of the family and the nations development.

Amid these challenges, Strengthening Participatory Organization (SPO), in collaboration with consortium lead International Rescue Committee (IRC) and partner Medical Emergency Resilience Foundation (MERF), organized a day-long Provincial Networking Workshop, a news release said.

This event brought together stake holders such as relevant departments of the Government of Sindh, including the Planning and Development Department, the Accelerated Action Plan Task Force Secretariat, and the Sindh Social Protection Authority. Moreover, representatives from the World Health Organization, PPHI Sindh, Nutrition International, HANDS, CSO networks such as the Scaling Up Nutrition Civil Society Alliance (SUNCSA) Pakistan and Sindh Climate Action Network (SCAN), and local organizations were also part of a concerted effort to combat malnutrition and address its severe impacts on the region.

There is a dire need to bridge the gap between public policies and their effective implementation at the grassroots level. With decades of learning, experience, and awareness of best practices, there is ample potential to enhance developmental projects by adopting a more collaborative approach. By integrating insights from sector experts, local communities and embracing a more inclusive strategy, we can ensure the progress.

The International Rescue Committee has been working in Pakistan for over four decades and among other projects across Sindh, is also implementing a European Union funded project to combat malnutrition in Sindh with its local partners and stake holders.

Through this event, 15 local Civil Society Organizations from across Sindh were also provided a platform to explore opportunities, build alliances, share knowledge, and enhance collaborative efforts. The proceeding of the event featured a contextual landscape of Malnutrition in Sindh, insights and reflections from local organizations, and sharing and endorsing a provincial-level policy advocacy plan.

Dr. Nadeem Mir Bahar, Planning Officer at the Planning and Development Department Sindh, and Dr. Sahib Jan Badar, Nutrition consultant at the AAP Task Force, appreciated the initiative and acknowledged the efforts of IRC and its partners in combating malnutrition through the support of the European Union. They highlighted the importance of multisectoral approach and assured support for the project interventions.

Dr. Ranomal Lohano, Program Coordinator at IRC, emphasized the need for networking and coordinated efforts in policy advocacy, social behavior change communication, outreach and facility-based nutrition care services, and capacity building to effectively address malnutrition in Sindh. SUNCSA and SCAN ensured support by working together with the 15 local organizations for positive policy outcomes.

The Provincial Networking Workshop is part of a larger two-year initiative to enhance local organizations capacities and building alliances for improved nutrition outcomes in Sindh. With the financial support of 5.5 million Euros by the European Union in Pakistan, IRC alongside partner organizations, MERF and SPO, is enhancing the capacity of 15 local organizations and facilitating productive sectoral networking. The project also entails improving facility-based treatments, and increasing community outreach of nutrition programmes. These interventions are carried out in five adversely affected districts of Sindh, (Kashmore, Ghotki, Sukkur, Khairpur, and Naushahro Feroze) providing nutritional support to more than 245,000 women and 415,000 children.
(@FahadShabbir)

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Thursday strongly condemned the attack on police vehicles by outlaws in the Katcha area of Machka, Rahim Yar Khan district, Punjab, resulting in the killing of 11 police personnel

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Aug, 2024) Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Thursday strongly condemned the attack on police vehicles by outlaws in the Katcha area of Machka, Rahim Yar Khan district, Punjab, resulting in the killing of 11 police personnel.

In a statement, Minister Naqvi expressed deep sorrow and regret over the loss of lives and paid tribute to the martyred police personnel.

He also prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured police personnel.

The Minister extended heartfelt sympathy and condolences to the families of the martyred police personnel and stood in solidarity with them.

He also saluted the police officers who have achieved the highest rank of martyrdom.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Aug, 2024) Member National Assembly (MNA) Javaid Iqbal on Thursday got unanimously elected as Chairman Standing Committee on Defence Production of the National Assembly.

The Standing Committee on Defence Production in a meeting held here in the Parliament House elected MNA Javaid Iqbal as its Chairman, a news release said.

The election was conducted by Acting Secretary, Muhammad Mushtaq, Additional Secretary (Committees), Syed Jawad Murtaza Naqvi, and Joint Secretary (Committees), Syed Haseen Raza Zaidi.

The Acting Secretary, the National Assembly Secretariat welcomed the Committee Members and briefed them about the procedure for the election of the Chairman.

MNA, Asad Alam Niazi who is a member of the committee, proposed the name of MNA, Javaid Iqbal, Chairman of the Committee while MNA, Ali Zahid, a Member seconded his candidature.

The Acting Secretary congratulated the newly elected Chairman on behalf of the Honorable Speaker, Deputy Speaker, Secretary National Assembly and assured him of full support from the Secretariat for the effective and efficient functioning of the Committee.

The Chairman expressed his gratitude to the members for posing confidence in him and assured them to run the business of the Committee with consensus.

The members while appreciating the views of the Chairman assured him their fullest support in the process of legislation.

Malik Muhammad Aamir Dogar, MNA/Chief Whip congratulated the newly elected Chairman and extended his support for the Committee.
PATTOKI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Aug, 2024) The police on Thursday arrested three dacoits and recovered cash, two motorcycles, and other valuables from their custody.

The police spokesman said a team of Sarai Mughal police station in an operation nabbed the culprits.

Meanwhile, the police in another operation arrested an absconder by using modern technology, he added.

The police registered cases against the accused and launched further investigations.

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The Punjab government has intensified its crackdown on kite flying, declaring kite making, flying, and transportation as non-bailable offences

LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Aug, 2024) The Punjab government has intensified its crackdown on kite flying, declaring kite making, flying, and transportation as non-bailable offences.

This decision comes with amendments to the Punjab Prohibition of Kite Flying Act 2007, which now imposes stricter penalties, says a press release issued here on Thursday.

According to the spokesperson of the Punjab Home Department, the new regulations also criminalize the production, use, and distribution of metallic string, wire, and sharp-coated string, which are used in kite flying.

As per the amendments, individuals caught flying kites will face 3 to 5 years in prison, a fine of Rs 2 million, or both. Failure to pay the fine could result in an additional year of imprisonment. Kite makers and transporters will face even harsher penalties, with 5 to 7 years in prison, a fine of Rs 5 million, or both. Failure to pay this fine could lead to an additional 2 years of imprisonment, added the spokesperson.

The amended law also outlines specific penalties for minors caught kite flying. On the first offence, they will receive a warning; on the second, a fine of Rs 50,000; and on the third, a fine of Rs 100,000. If the child is unable to pay, the fine will be collected from their parents or guardians. A fourth offence will result in punishment under the Juvenile Justice System Act 2018, which includes imprisonment.

The spokesperson for the Punjab Home Department stated that these measures are crucial to preventing this dangerous practice, which poses a serious threat to human lives. The increased penalties are expected to deter individuals from participating in this deadly activity, said the spokesperson. The amendments have been approved by the Provincial Cabinet and will now be presented before the Punjab Assembly for approval.
The Supreme Court of Pakistan has issued a detailed order regarding the shifting of Monal Restaurant from Margalla Hills National Park

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Aug, 2024) The Supreme Court of Pakistan has issued a detailed order regarding the shifting of Monal Restaurant from Margalla Hills National Park.

A 25-page judgment is authored by Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa.

It said, The fundamental right to life, and to live it with dignity (respectively Articles 9 and 14 of the Constitution) is to live in a world which has an abundance of all species. It has by now been scientifically well established that if the earth becomes bereft of birds, animals, insects, trees, plants, clean rivers, unpolluted air, soil it will be the Civil Petition No. 304 of 2022 etc. 25 precursor of our destruction, and scientific research establishes that nothing in nature is without value and purpose.

The order read, That on 11 September 2024 the Wildlife board will take over the possession of the said restaurants, that is, Monal, La Montana and Gloria Jeans, with the full assistance of CDA and the Islamabad Capital Territory Police, and the entrances to said area shall be barricaded. Thereafter the same shall be demolished with minimal disturbance to the wildlife and by avoiding damage to the trees of the National Park. The debris shall be removed and disposed of properly, and not within the precincts of the National Park.

The Wildlife Board shall then determine how best to utilize the mountain ridge on which stood the said restaurants, and it may consult experts and environmentalists to examine whether the foundations of the said structures should also be removed or the same be left in and used to make an artificial lake to collect rainwater which can be used to put out fires that erupt in the National Park.

The judgment said, However, under no circumstances should the building be left abandoned/derelict nor leave any debris on the said site. Every effort should be made to ensure that the said land again becomes an integral part of the National Park.

It said that the lease agreement of the Monal Restaurant with Capital Development Authority (CDA) has already ended.

It said, The Secretary, Ministry of Climate Change and the Director General, Environmental Protection Agency shall jointly conduct a survey of Monal Restaurant and other buildings constructed in the area to assess the damage caused to the environment and thereafter take such measures and actions as may be necessary to avoid further environmental degradation.

The Chairman of the Development Authority Capital shall forthwith advise the Secretary, Ministry of Defence regarding the enforced and applicable laws.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

The Senate Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication convened on Thursday to review the operations and performance of the Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB) and the Electronic Certification Accreditation Council (ECAC)

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Aug, 2024) The Senate Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication convened on Thursday to review the operations and performance of the Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB) and the Electronic Certification Accreditation Council (ECAC).

The meeting was chaired by Senator Palwasha Mohammad Zai Khan.

The committee was informed that the PSEB, initially established as a Private Software Export Board in 1995, operates under a seven-member Board of Directors. Presently, 26,000 IT companies are registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP).

Despite the global IT market's staggering value of $5 trillion, Pakistan's share remains less than 0.04%. This year, IT products accounted for 24% of the sector's growth, matching last years growth rate.

Pakistans IT exports are distributed across several regions: 54% to US, 21% to Europe, 10% to Gulf countries, and 14% to the Asia Pacific region.

The country is home to 2,124 web design services companies, 452 network security firms, and 616 data storage and management companies.

There are 3,463 IT consulting firms, 870 social media consulting companies, 465 email marketing firms, 664 IT help desk companies, 940 cloud service providers, and 81 repair service companies operating in Pakistan.

Senator Palwasha Mohammad Zai Khan expressed concern over the opaque nature of the training programs, particularly questioning the HR-ICT Internship Program, which has trained 3,500 interns over six months with a monthly stipend of Rs. 20,000.

The committee demanded detailed information about the interns who completed the program, including their names, provinces, and the selection criteria.

Questions were raised about the revenue generated by these programs and its utilization.

The committee directed the preparation of a comprehensive report on the training programs, including quality control measures and funding sources.

Senator Anusha Rehman criticized the Pakistan Software Export Board's data, pointing out discrepancies in the reporting years and demanding complete data for previous years.

The committee also reviewed the Karachi IT Park project, which is estimated to cost $187 million and is being financed by Exim Bank. While the design is complete, there have been delays in the Islamabad IT Park project, which was expected to be completed by February 2025.

The delay has been attributed to issues with Korean funding and late land allocation by the Capital Development Authority (CDA).

The committee raised concerns about the hiring of the Secretary of the Ministry of IT and Telecommunication on a contractual basis, rather than from the Federal Service Pool.

Frequent changes in secretaries and the suitability of candidates from grades 21 and 22 were also discussed.

Senator Afnanullah criticized the lack of qualified officers and questioned the rationale behind hiring a contractual secretary.

The committee requested that the Secretary of the Establishment Division attend the next meeting with full details on this matter.

The committee was also briefed by Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) officials on the nationwide internet service disruptions caused by faults in submarine cables and the increasing payload through VPN traffic.

The committee questioned the ban on Twitter, which was reportedly implemented under the directive of the Ministry of Interior.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. The final statement has been signed between the Baku Initiative Group and Bonaire, Trend reports.

The signing took place during an international conference organized by the Baku Initiative Group (BIG) and the Movement for Human Rights and Change on Bonaire.

Bonaire is seeking support from the international community to advocate for its registration as a non-self-governing territory to protect and ensure the right of the people of Bonaire to self-determination and self-governance, the head of the Baku Initiative Group Abbas Abbasov said.

Baku hosted an international conference dedicated to the island of Bonaire, which is under the colonial rule of the Netherlands. The event was organized by the Baku Initiative Group (BIG) and the Movement for Human Rights and Change on Bonaire Island.

The conference titled Path to Bonaire's Self-Determination at the UN General Assembly through Baku Initiative Group was attended by representatives of the Bonaire people fighting colonialism and seeking liberation, as well as officials and representatives from Belize, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, St. Lucia, Great Britain, Mexico, the Netherlands, the UN, and other international and regional organizations. Moreover, the conference was attended by human rights activists, leaders of non-governmental organizations, experts, and researchers in the field of decolonization.
LAHORE, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Aug, 2024) The 356th meeting of the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) was held on Thursday, under the leadership of Chairman Syed Attaur Rahman.

The session, held at the boards headquarters, was marked by a comprehensive briefing delivered by Secretary Farid Iqbal, and attended by a diverse group of members, including Brigadier (retd) Akhtar Nawaz Janjua, Dr. Jawaria Ghazanfar Shahwardi, and other notable figures from the Hindu and Sikh communities across Pakistan.

In his address, Chairman Attaur Rahman emphasised the board's commitment to maximising the potential of Trust lands and properties through development and leasing, in line with established regulations. He highlighted the role of the Land Property business Development Committee in facilitating these efforts. He also underscored the board's stance against encroachment, describing it as a serious offence that would be met with stringent legal measures.

A significant focus of the meeting was protection and enhancement of religious sites for minorities.

Attaur Rahman announced completion of a new accommodation complex in Katas Raj, designed to improve facilities for pilgrims. The board also discussed and approved several key projects, including security upgrades for Gudwara Dera Sahib Lahore, electrical system installations at Gurudwara Sacha Sauda Farooqabad, room constructions at Gurudwara Bhai Joga Singh Peshawar, and renovations at Gurudwara Janam Asthan Nankana Sahib.

Financial matters were also addressed, with the board approving the budget for the fiscal year 2024-2025. This budget, pending final approval from the ministry, includes allocations for acquiring heavy machinery to support operations against encroachers. Additionally, various agenda items were reviewed, including investments, amendments to service rules, and the hiring of IT officials for the Mufti Abdul Shakoor Data Centre.

The meeting concluded with members praising the boards performance and its ongoing efforts to safeguard and develop Trust properties.
Moscow, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Aug, 2024) Ukraine sank a Russian ferry carrying fuel tanks in an aerial attack on a southern Russian port on Thursday, Russian officials said.

"As a result of the damage, the ferry sank in the waters of the Kavkaz port," in Russia's southern Krasnodar region, just across from the annexed Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea, the region's operational headquarters said in a statement on Telegram.

It had earlier reported that "a railroad ferry with fuel tanks in the Kavkaz port was attacked" and that emergency services had been dispatched.

Images on social media had earlier shown a fire and plume of smoke after Russian officials reported a Ukrainian attack on the port.

The Kavkaz port sits in the Kerch Strait that separates Russia from Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula it annexed in 2014.

Ukrainian aerial attacks have targeted Crimea and the road and rail bridge connecting it to the Russian mainland throughout the conflict.

Officials in Kyiv posted cryptic comments after the attack.

"Beautiful," Daria Zarivna, a communications advisor to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said in a post on Telegram, attaching a photo of a large fire at the port.

Speaking at an event for army veterans earlier on Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky appeared to call for his troops to step up attacks on Russian territory.

"In order to throw the occupier out of our land, we have to create as many problems as possible for the Russian state on its territory," he said.

Russian officials did not say what weapon Ukraine used to strike the ship.

The Russian state-run news agency RIA Novosti said five people on the vessel at the time of the attack were unaccounted for.

Ukraine has hit multiple Russian vessels around the Black Sea throughout the 2.5-year conflict.

A spate of attacks earlier in the fighting caused Russia to relocate its Black Sea Fleet from its historic base at Sevastopol, on the southern coast of Crimea, further east to Novorossiisk, on the Russian mainland.
Yongin, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Aug, 2024) When five-year-old goldendoodle Mozzi started walking "unnaturally", his concerned owner rushed him to the vet in South Korea, where the problem was diagnosed not by humans but by AI.

South Korea, a global leader in the production of chips that power generative AI, has been quick to embrace novel uses of the technology.

One such application, "X Caliber", is helping vets pinpoint X-ray abnormalities in seconds, making diagnostics both quicker and easier to explain.

The AI reading of Mozzi's X-rays showed the curly-haired goldendoodle had a 22 percent chance of knee dislocation. While not an emergency, his condition needed careful management to head off surgery.

"I wouldn't have understood the results if I didn't look at the numbers," said Mo Jae-hyun, Mozzi's owner, adding that the AI program helped him understand his pet's woes.

"Of course, I trust my vet, but looking at the results myself, it seems more credible."

The software's developer, South Korean telecom provider SK Telecom, said X Caliber has a disease detection rate of up to 86 percent.

Vets say it has transformed their ability to diagnose.

"Dogs with heart disease, for example, tend to have enlarged hearts. We use a method called VHS (vertebral heart size), which used to require measuring one by one, manually," Oh I-se, CEO of Sky Animal Medical Group, told AFP.

But now AI can reveal the result in 15 seconds, so it is "much more convenient," Oh said.

SK Telecom considers X Caliber "the beginning of AI healthcare", said Joo Ye-seul, manager of the software's global team. "We plan further expansion into additional domains based on this."

The service is already available in the United States, Australia and some Southeast Asian countries.

In Indonesia, veterinary hospital owner Kristanya Oen says X Caliber is helping to overcome a lack of expertise and trained staff.

"There is a shortage of radiologists in Indonesian animal hospitals and it is not easy to receive radiology education in Indonesia, so we needed X Caliber to help with our diagnostics," Oen told AFP.

SK Telecom is part of the same conglomerate as SK Hynix, which launched the first high-bandwidth memory chips -- cutting-edge semiconductors that enable faster data processing and the more complex tasks of generative AI.

While many experts are questioning the payoff of lavish AI investments following a recent fall in technology stocks, the conglomerate's CEO Chey Tae-won remains committed.

SK Group must "think fiercely about next-generation products," he told employees this month.

In June, SK Group announced plans to invest 80 trillion won ($60 billion) in AI chips, services and data centres.

In South Korea, where more and more people are turning to "pet parenthood" instead of having children, it is not necessarily surprising that AI healthcare would begin with animals.

In a country with one of the world's lowest birth rates, pet ownership has roughly doubled in the last decade, official figures show.

One in four households now have at least one furry friend, and last year more strollers were sold for pets than for human babies on popular e-commerce platform, Gmarket.

The pet care industry was worth an estimated eight trillion won ($6 billion) in 2022, a fourfold increase compared with five years earlier.

The government aims to double the industry's value by 2027 and is helping support pet food and healthcare businesses through various loans and tax incentives.

Jumping on the trend, South Korean companies are working on new ways of integrating AI into pet care, including "smart toilets" for early detection of urinary diseases and "smart leashes" that monitor pulse and body temperature.

"Devices that can monitor mild to severe diseases in the daily life of pets are expected to expand," said Kim Soo-kyung, a senior manager at the Economic Research Institute in KPMG Korea.
Vienna, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Aug, 2024) UN nuclear agency head Rafael Grossi is planning to visit Russia's Kursk nuclear power plant next week, an agency spokesperson said Thursday, weeks after Ukraine launched a surprise counteroffensive in the region.

"We can confirm (it's planned for) next week," a spokesperson for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said, without giving further details.

The UN nuclear agency on August 9 urged Russia and Ukraine to exercise "maximum restraint" to "avoid a nuclear accident with the potential for serious radiological consequences" as fighting approached the power plant.

Grossi had said he was "personally in contact with the relevant authorities of both countries" and would "continue to update the international community as appropriate".

The power plant has six units -- two are in shutdown, two are fully operational and two are under construction, according to the IAEA.

Two and a half years into the war, Ukraine mounted an unprecedented cross-border assault on August 6, catching Russia off guard and even surprising its close allies.

Kyiv claims to have captured dozens of settlements and tens of thousands of Russian civilians have fled.

The IAEA regularly warns of the risk Russia's invasion of Ukraine since February 2022 poses to nuclear plants.

On Saturday, it warned that the safety situation at Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant was "deteriorating" following a nearby drone strike.

The plant, which was seized by Russia's forces early in the war, has come under repeated attacks that both sides have accused each other of carrying out.
NEW YORK, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 22nd Aug, 2024) A group of delegates at the Democratic National Convention started a sit-in protest outside the convention hall in Chicago Wednesday night, saying they will stay put until US Vice President Kamala Devi Harris, who is set to be nominated the party's presidential nominee, allows a Palestinian to speak on the main stage, according to media reports.

It is unacceptable for a Palestinian person to not be accepted on stage, Abbas Alaweih, a Palestinian activist who is a delegate from Michigan, was quoted as saying.

Approximately 30 uncommitted delegates are attending the convention this week. The group has hosted daily events, pleading with the Biden-Harris administration to end the Gaza war and stop U.S. arms shipments to Israel.

On Wednesday night, the convention featured a speech by Jonathan Dekel-Chen, whose son Sagui is a hostage in Gaza. "The time is long past due to end this war," Dekel-Chen said in an interview with USA TODAY, a daily newspaper.

But no Palestinian-American was permitted to make the same case, it was pointed out.

Alawieh and other uncommitted delegates held a press conference on the sidewalk outside of the convention center not long after the parents of American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin addressed the crowd.

Alawieh said he would remain in front of the convention center until Vice President Harris and party leaders change their minds and allow for Palestinian voices to speak about Gaza in the same way the Goldberg-Polin's were given the opportunity to speak about Hersh and call for a hostage deal.

Alawieh said that the group of uncommitted delegates strongly supports Israeli families on the convention programme, but he criticized the Democratic Party for not showing that Palestinian and Israeli lives were of equal value.

We are the most powerful nation supplying billions of Dollars to a country that is waging genocide against people who have been occupied, who have faced apartheid, who have been displaced, Congresswoman Ilhan Omar of Minnesota at a press conference Wednesday afternoon. I beg Vice President Harris to not lose our democracy by not changing our policy towards Israel because the people behind me are not undemocratic.

More than 40,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been reported killed in relentless Israeli bombing since Oct. 7.

As protesters outside the convention hall struggled to make their voices heard, Alawieh said it was wrong that not a single Palestinian anti-war voice was heard on the floor."

Alawieh and a few other of the 30 uncommitted delegates then sat down outside on the street, where they were later joined by Congresswoman Ilhan Omar.

Were not going anywhere. Our movement is winning, Alawieh said. People see their humanity in the children whose limbs are being blown off in Gaza.

APP/ift
Vietnam Briefing has developed into a premium source for insight on doing business in Vietnam. It publishes business news concerning foreign direct investment into Vietnam, including the most important tax, legal and accounting issues. The Vietnam Briefing Magazine was first published in 2009, and is contributed to by investment professionals based in Vietnam.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. About 2,471 ramps for the disabled have been installed at 2,471 polling stations, the chairperson of the CEC Mazahir Panahov said at a meeting on August 22, Trend reports.

We invite all our voters from this category to the polling station. At the polling places designated for their vote, we have made specific arrangements according to their list. At the same time, ballots for all constituencies include a Braille stencil for those who have specific visual impairments. Every single voting location will receive one of the 125 stencils that have been made.," Panahov added.

On June 28, President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree dissolving the sixth convocation of the Azerbaijani Parliament and calling for an extraordinary election.

The snap parliamentary election in Azerbaijan is scheduled for September 1, 2024.
An Arizona man is wanted after threatening over social media to kill former President Donald Trump, the Cochise County Sheriff's Office said Thursday.

Donald Trump, the Republican nominee for president, is in Cochise County as he visits the U.S. border with Mexico as part of his campaign.

The man, Ronald Lee Syvrud, 66, has multiple outstanding warrants from Wisconsin, the sheriff's office said.

This is the latest in a series of threats against candidates ahead of the November 5 general election.

In early August, a Virginia man was charged with threatening Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump's Democratic rival, and a New Hampshire man was arrested in December for threatening to kill Republican presidential candidates.

In July, Trump was wounded in his ear in an attempted assassination that left two others injured and one man dead.

The U.S. Secret Service came under widespread scrutiny following the shooting. It resulted in the resignation of the agency's director.
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The International Atomic Energy Agency said on August 12 that its representatives inspected a damaged cooling tower at the Russia-controlled Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant in Ukraine. But the question remains: Who did the damage? Mariia Prus has the story.
Australian employees will from Monday have the right to ignore their bosses outside working hours thanks to a new law which enshrines the "right to disconnect."

The law, which passed in February, protects employees who refuse to monitor, read or respond to contact from their employers outside work hours.

Similar laws giving employees a right to switch off their mobile devices are already in place in France, Germany and other countries in the European Union.

As the law moved through parliament earlier this year it drew criticism from employer groups who called the legislation rushed and flawed.

The law allows for certain circumstances where an employee's right to refuse is unreasonable, depending on their role, the reason for the contact, and how it is made, among other factors.
A court in Bangladeshs capital, Dhaka, on Thursday permitted police to interrogate two journalists in their custody for four days in connection to the killing of a garment worker.

The garment worker had joined recent student protests against longtime Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, which forced her to resign and abscond to India in early August.

This development comes as heightened threats face journalists in Bangladesh amid ongoing protests. Since the protests broke out, dozens of journalists have been injured, and at least five have been killed.

The journalist couple  Ekattor TVs former head of news Shakil Ahmed and former Ekattor TV correspondent Farzana Rupa  were arrested on Wednesday when they and their daughter went to the capitals main airport to travel to Paris via Istanbul.

Ekattor TV is considered to be a pro-Hasina channel. Authorities fired the two journalists after Hasinas government fell.

Police claimed on Thursday that the journalist couple had incited Hasinas former government to kill protesters. The reporters were arrested in connection to a murder case involving a garment worker who died during a demonstration on August 5 in Dhaka.

The New York-based Human Rights Watch has expressed concern about the journalist couples arrest.

The United Nations has affirmed the importance of journalist safety amid ongoing chaos in Bangladesh.

"The safety and well-being of journalists anywhere in the world is of critical importance for any country, especially for countries going through a transition. It is important that journalists be allowed to do their work, and that those who commit violence against journalists be held to account," U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said Wednesday.

Bangladeshs Washington Embassy did not immediately reply to VOAs email requesting comment.

Some information in this report came from Agence France-Presse and the Associated Press.
Talks on forming a Belgian coalition government were thrown into turmoil Thursday when the chief negotiator handed his resignation to King Philippe, threatening further political limbo for the country two months after elections.

With its linguistic divide between French and Dutch and a highly complex political system, Belgium has a record of painfully protracted coalition discussions, reaching 541 days back in 2010-11.

Five groups had agreed in mid-July to formal coalition talks led by Flemish conservative Bart De Wever, in the wake of June legislative polls that boosted right-leaning parties.

Usually, the person forming the coalition goes on to become prime minister.

But De Wever, the mayor of Antwerp and head of the N-VA party that holds sway over the Dutch-speaking Flanders region, informed the king during a meeting late Thursday that the talks had fallen apart, largely over taxation.

A palace statement said the king had accepted De Wever's resignation and would pursue negotiations with the five party leaders himself starting Friday "with a view to forming a government."

Alongside the N-VA, the other parties involved are the Reformist Movement and Les Engages (The Committed Ones) in French-speaking Wallonia, and the Christian-Democrats and the leftist Vooruit (Onward, formerly the Socialist Party) in Flanders.

Together, the five hold an 81-seat majority in Belgium's 150-seat parliament.

The difficult talks finally hit a wall after the Reformist Movement apparently rejected a capital gains tax proposed by De Wever as a way to plug the country's budget deficit  4.4% of gross domestic product in 2023  while winning over the left-wing Vooruit.

In a statement, the N-VA acknowledged the failure to win agreement on a budgetary framework for the new coalition including labor market, pension and tax reforms.

"Bart De Wever remains convinced of the need for a government of recovery and reforms in order to protect Flemish prosperity and avoid European sanctions over the excesses of the federal budget," it said.

Belgium is one of seven European Union countries facing disciplinary action for running a deficit above 3% of GDP, in violation of the bloc's fiscal rules.

The country's June 9 elections, conducted the same day as a European Parliament vote across the EU, saw the right and center-right triumphant.

The result was the loss of a parliamentary majority for the outgoing government of Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, a Flemish liberal who fronted a seven-party coalition formed after an arduous 493 days back in 2019.

With center-right parties in prime positions across the country, analysts had predicted that finding a deal could take less time than usual, but still at least six months.

For the time being, De Croo remains as a caretaker leader until his successor is named.
Chinese Premier Li Qiangs four-day visit to Russia and Belarus this week is aimed, analysts say, at deepening coordination with both countries and reaffirming ties between Beijing and Moscow as trade relations are showing signs of strain.

They say Beijing hopes to use Lis trip to reassure Moscow that the bilateral relationship remains positive and urge Russia to prevent further escalation in the war against Ukraine, even as both announced gains on the battlefield in recent days.

China wants to reassure Russia that issues in the bilateral economic and trade relationship are merely logistical issues while conveying the message that Bejing doesnt want to see an escalation in the Ukraine-Russia conflict, Philipp Ivanov, a nonresident Asia Society Policy Institute senior fellow, told VOA in a video interview.

Li arrived in Moscow on Tuesday and wraps up his trip Friday, following a stop in Belarus.

During his meeting with Li Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin praised the growing trade relations between China and Russia, and said bilateral efforts have yielded positive results.

Our countries have developed large-scale joint plans and projects in the economic and humanitarian spheres, which are set to continue for many years, Putin said, adding that bilateral trade relations are not only developing but also flourishing.

In response, Li said China is ready to empower bilateral cooperation through scientific and industrial innovation while urging both sides to deepen cultural, tourism, and education exchanges.

In addition to meeting Putin, Li also met with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and both sides agreed to advance ties in areas such as economy and trade while exploring cooperation in emerging sectors including digital economy and green development.

Despite the optimism expressed by top officials from both sides, bilateral trade relations between China and Russia have been complicated in recent months, as many Chinese banks reportedly rejected direct Chinese yuan payments from Russian entities and raised the yuan-ruble exchange rate.

Meanwhile, media reports suggest Chinese exports to Russia have had to go through third countries, such as Kazakhstan or Kyrgyzstan, to avoid international sanctions imposed on Russia. This has caused a significant drop in Chinese exports to Russia since the start of this year.

Ivanov said these trade complications have caused serious issues for Russia as Moscow has become almost exclusively dependent on Chinese imports, such as automotive and manufacturing equipment, to sustain its economy and war efforts since the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

I expect economic problems in bilateral relationships to dominate the discussion [between Li and Russian officials] and while there may be some progress, I dont expect them to be substantial since some of the issues are not easy to solve, he told VOA.

Political and strategic ties

Lis visit also comes amid efforts to strengthen strategic cooperation between the two countries. While Russia continues to fight Ukrainian troops on the battlefield, China and Russia have recently conducted joint patrols in areas near Alaska and Japan and held a joint naval exercise in the South China Sea.

During Putins visit to China in May, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Putin issued a statement that they had agreed to deepen the comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination between both countries.

Putin and Xis statements in May indicate that there will be more security and military cooperation between Russia and China and Lis trip is part of the efforts to elevate their comprehensive strategic partnership, Sari Arho Havren, an associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, told VOA by phone.

Despite the agreement to further deepen bilateral strategic ties, Ivanov said the trajectory of the Ukraine war and Russias elevated ties with North Korea remain factors that could complicate relations between China and Russia.

Li will likely highlight the need for Russia to avoid escalation, especially when it comes to the use of tactical nuclear weapons and any attacks on nuclear power stations during his trip, he said.

Improved relations between Moscow and Pyongyang are a concern but manageable, Ivanov added.

China understands that the relationship between Russia and North Korea is a predominantly military-industrial relationship and since Beijing has direct channels of communication with both countries, they think the risks of that relationship are manageable, he said.

Countering NATO

Apart from maintaining ties with Russia, some analysts say China will also seek to demonstrate its ability to push back against what it views as increased NATO pressure through Lis visit to Belarus.

Given the increased concern China has about NATO, I think aligning more closely with Belarus helps to demonstrate that Beijing can push back against NATO in certain ways, Elizabeth Wishnick, a senior research scholar at Columbia Universitys Weatherhead East Asian Institute, told VOA by phone.

In July, Belarus became the latest member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and Minsk and Beijing organized a joint antiterrorism exercise with China near the Polish and Ukrainian borders, which Wishnick said was a demonstration to NATO that Beijing has friends in Europe.

Despite the challenges that exist in the bilateral relationship, Ivanov said Chinas and Russias mutual interest in strengthening their diplomatic coordination globally, such as working to expand organizations such as BRICS, and their joint efforts to address current global conflicts such as the war in Gaza, will ensure that their ties remain strong.

The pace of diplomacy and the level of engagement demonstrate that this is a partnership that China and Russia are pursuing very seriously, he told VOA.
The largest dam removal project in U.S. history was completed Wednesday, marking a major victory for tribes in the region who fought for decades to free hundreds of miles of the Klamath River near the California-Oregon border.

Through protests, testimony and lawsuits, local tribes showcased the environmental devastation due to the four towering hydroelectric dams, especially to salmon, which are culturally and spiritually significant to tribes in the region. The dams cut salmon off from their historic habitat and caused them to die in alarming numbers because of bad water-quality conditions.

Without the tribes' work "to point out the damage that these dams were doing, not only to the environment, but to the social and cultural fabric of these tribal nations, there would be no dam removal," said Mark Bransom, chief executive of the Klamath River Renewal Corporation, the nonprofit entity created to oversee the project.

Power company PacifiCorp built the dams to generate electricity between 1918 and 1962. But the structures halted the natural flow of the waterway that was once known as the third-largest salmon-producing river on the West Coast. They disrupted the life cycle of the region's salmon, which spend most of their life in the Pacific Ocean but return to the chilly mountain streams to lay eggs.

At the same time, the dams produced only a small fraction of PacifiCorp's energy at full capacity  enough to power about 70,000 homes. They also didn't provide irrigation, drinking water or flood control, according to Klamath River Renewal Corporation.

Since breaching the dams, salmon regained access to their habitat, water temperature decreased and its quality improved, said Michael Belchik, senior water policy analyst for the Yurok Tribe.

But tribal advocates and activists see their work as far from finished, with some already refocusing their efforts on revegetation and other restoration work on the Klamath River and the surrounding land.

Here's a look at just a few of the many tribal members at the center of this struggle for dam removal:

'I really felt an urgency'

When Karuk tribal member Molli Myers took her first major step into the fight for Klamath dam removal, she was six months pregnant, had a toddler in tow and was in a foreign country for the first time. It was 2004 and she had organized a group of about 25 tribal members to fly to Scotland for the annual general stockholders meeting for Scottish Power, PacifiCorp's parent company at the time.

For hours, they protested outside with signs, sang and played drums. They cooked fish on Calton Hill over a fire of scotch barrels and gave it out to locals as they explained why they were there.

"I really felt an urgency because I was having babies," said Myers, who was born and raised in the middle Klamath in a traditional fishing family. "And so for me I was internalizing the responsibility to take care of their future."

The initial trigger for her to act came two years before that when she saw some of the tens of thousands of salmon die in the river from a bacterial outbreak caused by low water and warm temperatures.

"Looking back on it now I wonder where would we be if that hadn't happened," said Myers, 41. "Looking back on it now I can say, 'Was this our creator's call to action?' "

She spent the next two decades protesting and flooding state and federal meetings with tribal testimony, including waiting with other tribal members at the doors of a Berkshire Hathaway shareholder meeting at 4 a.m. in 2007 to ask Warren Buffett what he was going to do about the dams. PacifiCorp was at that point part of Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. conglomerate.

Today, those same children with her in Scotland are 21 and 19, and with the dams gone Myers said she sees the hope they and her other three children have about the future.

"They can do whatever needs to get done because they saw it happen, they lived it, so now there's no impossible for them," she said.

'His vision became reality'

For Yurok elder Jacqueline Winter, her feelings on the newly free-flowing river are more complicated. The 89-year-old's son, Troy Fletcher, was the tribe's point person for dam removal for two decades, testifying in front of the U.S. Congress and presenting to state and federal regulatory committees.

But his true power came through his ability to bring people with radically conflicting viewpoints  from farmers to commercial fishers to tribal members  together. Winter said that came from his belief that everyone living along the river are relatives and deserve to be heard.

"We're all family. None of us can be left hurting and all of us have to give a little," she said was his message.

But at 53, the former executive director for the Yurok Tribe died unexpectedly from a heart attack, nearly a decade before that vision of a free-flowing river would finally be realized. Winter said when she saw the dams breached last month, it felt like his spirit was there through those he touched and she could finally let him go.

"His vision became reality and I think he never doubted it," she said. "He never doubted it. And those who worked closely with him never doubted it."

'Protect those fish'

Former Klamath Tribes Chairman Jeff Mitchell's work since the 1970s for dam removal came out of the belief that the salmon are their relatives.

"They were gifted to us by our creator and given to us to preserve and to protect and also to help give us life," said Mitchell, chair of the tribe's Culture and Heritage Committee. "As such, the creator also instructed us to make sure that we do everything in our power to protect those fish."

The Klamath River's headwaters lie on the tribe's homelands in Oregon, and members once depended on salmon for 25% of their food. But for more than a century their waters have not held any salmon, he said.

Mitchell and other tribal members' fight to bring them back has cycled through several forms. There were the years of protesting, even gathering carcasses of fish after the 2002 fish kill and leaving them on the doorsteps of federal office buildings. There were his days of walking the halls of the state Legislature in Salem, Oregon, meeting with lawmakers about the millions in funding needed to make dam removal happen.

Today, he said he feels like they achieved the impossible, but there's still more work to do.

"I'm happy that the dams are gone and we have passage," he said. "But now I'm thinking about what are those fish coming home to. And that's really the focus now, is how do we get the parties to start taking restoration actions and making that the top priority in all of this?"
Police in Pakistan said Thursday two school children were killed and six others were wounded when gunmen opened fire on van taking the children to school in the eastern province of Punjab.

Police and rescue service personnel said the attack occurred early Thursday in the city of Attock's Dheri Kot district. They said driver of the van, who was among the injured, was apparently the target of the attack. They believe the gunmen, who fled the scene, had "personal enmity" with the driver.

Police have launched a manhunt for the suspects.

The officials said the two killed were both girls, between 10 and 11, and the five others injured were all children of the about the same age.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attack in a statement, calling an attack on children cruel and brutal.

The Pakistan office of U.N. children's agency, UNICEF, issued a statement expressing shock and sadness at the shooting and deep condolences to the families of the victims.

The shooting comes amid a surge in targeted attacks in Pakistan in recent months.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Agence France-Presse.
Gunmen armed with rocket-propelled grenades ambushed a police convoy in eastern Punjab province on Thursday, killing at least 11 officers and wounding seven others, authorities said.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack in the Rahim Yar Khan district. The officers were ambushed while patrolling a deserted area in search of robbers who operate in the region.

Punjabi police said the gunmen were likely robbers. The victims were taken to a nearby hospital.

Pakistan has witnessed a surge in violence and attacks in recent years, but such a high number of police casualties in a single attack is rare.

Security forces often carry out operations against bandits in Punjab and in the southern Sindh province, where criminals hide in rural, forested areas and where they have killed several police officers in attacks over the past months.

Thursday's attack was in the district of Rahim Yar Khan's area of Kacha, known for robbers' hideouts along the Indus River, where hundreds of heavily armed bandits evade police.

Police said dozens of bandits launched the attack after one of the police vehicles had apparently broken down while passing through accumulated rainwater along farm fields. Pakistan has been lashed by monsoon rains since July.

Authorities swiftly condemned the Kacha attack, one of the deadliest on police in recent years. President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi released statements denouncing the violence, expressing sorrow and describing the slain officers as martyrs.

Police were ordered to take immediate action against the attackers, and Sharif demanded the best medical care for the wounded officers.

Earlier on Thursday, gunmen opened fire on a school van in Punjab, killing two children and wounding six other people, police said. No one claimed responsibility for that attack.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine during a visit to Poland on Thursday, pledging India's support and saying that no conflict can be solved on a battlefield.

"We support dialogue and diplomatic effort" for the restoration of peace and stability "as soon as possible," Modi said following talks with Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

Tusk said that India could play an important role in bringing an end to the war being waged on Ukraine by India's strategic partner, Russia, on the other side of Poland's eastern border.

"I am very glad that the prime minister has confirmed his readiness to personally engage in bringing about a peaceful, just and speedy end to the war," Tusk said.

He added that "history has taught our nations how important it is to respect rules, borders, territorial integrity, sovereignty of states and the rule of law."

Sitting on the eastern flank of NATO and the European Union, Poland has a high level of concern about the two-year-old war across its eastern border, and has offered political, humanitarian and defense support to Ukraine.

Modi and Tusk met for talks on security, the war and invigorating bilateral ties. The two leaders said that the visit, which marks 70 years of official bilateral relations, opened doors to cooperation in the IT, security and defense industries.

Later, the Indian leader met with Poland's President Andrzej Duda.

Ahead of his visit, Modi said Poland was India's key economic partner in Central Europe.

An agreement was signed to facilitate the mobility of specialized workers between the two countries.

According to figures cited by the Embassy of India, the total value of bilateral trade increased from $1.95 billion to $5.72 billion from 2013-2023, with India's exports accounting for a majority.

Then-Indian President Pratibha Patil visited Poland in 2009, and Tusk, during his first term as prime minister, paid a visit to India in 2010.

On Friday, Modi travels to Kyiv to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Kyiv chastised Modi for a visit to Moscow last month, during which he met and hugged President Vladimir Putin. Modi has avoided condemning Russia while emphasizing a peaceful settlement to the war in Ukraine.

Zelenskyy described the meeting as a "huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts."
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.
Israeli forces carried out airstrikes Thursday in the Gaza Strip and in southern Lebanon, while uncertainty remained about the latest push to achieve a cease-fire in Gaza as negotiators worked to resolve differences between Israel and the Hamas militant group.

The official Palestinian news agency WAFA said Thursday an Israeli strike in Beit Lahiya, in northern Gaza, killed at least 11 people.

Israels military reported an airstrike hitting a weapons warehouse near a Hamas military site in Gaza City, as well as strikes that killed militants in central Gaza.

Another round of airstrikes targeted more than 10 areas in southern Lebanon overnight, the Israel Defense Forces said Thursday. Those attacks were aimed at locations used by the Hezbollah militant group, the IDF said.

As tensions remain high in the region, the U.S. now has two aircraft carrier strike groups in the Middle East. The USS Abraham Lincoln arrived in the region with accompanying destroyers on Wednesday, the U.S. military announced. The USS Theodore Roosevelt is the other.

"We've moved capabilities into the region that, I think it's fair to say, have gotten into the headspace of Iran and will influence their calculation on how and if they choose to respond. We don't want to see that happen, Deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters Thursday.

U.S. President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke Wednesday about efforts by the United States to support Israel "against all threats from Iran, including its proxy terrorist groups Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, to include ongoing defensive U.S. military deployments," according to a White House statement.

Biden also "stressed the urgency of bringing the cease-fire and hostage release deal to closure and discussed upcoming talks in Cairo to remove any remaining obstacles," the statement said.

Iranian-backed Houthi militants in Yemen on Wednesday attacked a Greek-flagged oil tanker in the Red Sea that was carrying about 1 million barrels of crude oil, setting the ship ablaze and potentially creating an environmental disaster, Singh said.

The 25-person crew was rescued by a vessel with the European Unions naval force after the attack.

Houthi militants have carried out a continuous assault campaign on ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden that has disrupted commercial shipping through the important corridor. The campaign began after Israel launched a retaliatory attack against Hamas in Gaza following the October 7 terror attack, and the Houthis claim they are acting in solidarity with Palestinian amid the war.

"I'm not exactly sure how hitting a ship carrying over a million barrels of crude oil and creating a spill in your backyard helps people in Gaza who you said you're trying to help, Singh said Thursday in response to a question about the attack.

The United Nations warned Wednesday that Israeli evacuation orders in Gaza are pushing Palestinian civilians into overcrowded areas along the Gaza Coast.

Israels latest order was for people to leave a residential area in Deir al-Balah, near the main hospital in central Gaza, and in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, which combined affect more than 150,000 people, the U.N. said.

The war began with a Hamas attack on Israel that killed about 1,200 people and led to the capture of about 250 hostages. Israeli airstrikes and ground operations have killed more than 40,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, according to Gaza health officials. The Israeli military says the death toll includes thousands of Hamas fighters.

Negotiators from the United States, Egypt, Qatar and Israel are expected to meet in the coming days in Cairo to try to push forward the process of achieving a cease-fire that would include a halt in fighting and the release of hostages still held by Hamas.

Netanyahus office said Wednesday that Israel insists on achieving all of its goals for the war, including ensuring that Hamas cannot pose a security threat to Israel.

Hamas on Wednesday reiterated its core demands, which include Israel fully withdrawing from Gaza.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who traveled to the region for talks about the cease-fire earlier this week, has spoken with diplomats and leaders from Jordan and Qatar to stress the urgent need to finalize the cease-fire deal that would alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian people and secure the release of hostages, according to the State Department.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
Vietnamese President To Lams first state visit to China since taking office underscores the strategic importance Hanoi attaches to Beijing as it balances a supply chain reshuffle by both the U.S. and China, according to analysts.

Lam and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to "promote an equal and orderly multipolar world and a universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization" during their meeting, said Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning on Wednesday's press briefing in Beijing.

Lam wrapped up his three-day visit to China on Tuesday after meeting Xi and issuing a joint statement agreeing to expand their bilateral ties including trade. On Monday, they signed 14 documents including ones on industrial and financial cooperation.

Mark Kenney, director of the Wahba Institute for Strategic Competition at the Wilson Center in Washington, said Lams choice to visit China first after taking office earlier this month is significant as the U.S. and China are both at the highest level of Vietnams diplomatic relations.

The U.S. and Vietnam elevated their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership last September. China and Vietnam upgraded their relations to that level in 2009.

China is Vietnams largest trading partner, with their trade last year totaling $172 billion; whereas trade between the U.S. and Vietnam accounted for about $125 billion.

Investment from China and Hong Kong in Vietnam exceeded $8.2 billion in 2023 for more than 6,600 projects. In contrast, investment from the U.S. accounted for $500 million the same year.

That figure may change as Vietnam in recent years has become a premium site for U.S. companies seeking to expand their businesses or relocate their manufacturing supply chains from China.

In March of last year, Hanoi welcomed several U.S. companies, including Boeing, SpaceX, Pfizer and Amazon. Retail giants Zara and H&M, as well as Nike and Adidas, relocated their production factories from China to Vietnam.

U.S. companies have been acting to guard against supply chain disruption, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic, and to protect against Beijings coercive economic practices that G7 countries vowed to counter for the past two years.

But the U.S. and Western supply chain shift has stimulated China to reshuffle its manufacturing supply chain networks to Vietnam as well.

The PRC is sidestepping U.S. tariffs by shipping intermediate goods from the PRC to countries in Southeast Asia, including Vietnam, to be repackaged for export to the U.S. after various degrees of in-country processing, the Wilson Centers Kennedy said.

In May, the U.S. increased tariffs on $18 billion worth of goods imported from China to protect American industry.

Hanois strategy centers on securing its position as a key player in global supply chain while maximizing its economic and security benefits, said Shay Wester, the director of Asian Economic Affairs at the Asia Society Policy Institute.

As China seeks to solidify relationships across the developing world, Vietnam is becoming increasingly strategic in the broader U.S.-China economic rivalry and essential for ensuring that Vietnam remains a critical partner amidst the ongoing reconfiguration of global supply chains.

However, Vietnamese made products containing parts imported from China have increasingly been under U.S. scrutiny.

In August of last year, the U.S. determined that solar panel manufacturers in Southeast Asian countries, including Vietnam, have circumvented U.S. trade rules by exporting products containing Chinese-sourced materials subject to U.S. tariffs.

This example shows how deepening economic ties between Vietnam and China can bring additional risk to economic ties with the U.S., said Robert Walker, research associate at the Lowy Institutes Indo-Pacific Development Center.

It is plausible in the future [that] economic ties could become more strained due to the growing presence of Chinese companies in Vietnam, but this is not a major concern at this time, Walker said.

Vietnams heavy reliance on Chinese imports, such as steel, plastic and electronic parts critical for manufacturing finished products, could pose risks to its economy, analysts said.

This trade dynamic has widened Vietnams trade deficit with China to $50 billion in 2023, a nearly 50% increase over the last five years, Wester said. This highlights the complexities of Vietnams rapid industrialization, where its integration into global supply chains has been fueled by, and remains tightly linked to, Chinese imports.

Kennedy said, A sounder path for Vietnam is to develop its own manufacturing capabilities that rely on supply chains from a diversified group of nations other than China.

According to Alice Ba, acting chair of the political science and international relations department at the University of Delaware, Vietnam may have doubts over U.S. economic commitments.

There are questions about how future domestic politics and also U.S. human rights concerns might affect U.S. economic commitment to Vietnam, Ba said. Human rights concerns, for example, may have factored into the U.S. decision rejecting Vietnams request to be designated as market economy by the U.S.

The U.S. earlier this month denied the request, saying the Vietnamese governments involvement in its economy distorts prices and costs in ways that are unfavorable to the U.S.
Namibias minister of agriculture has urged farmers in the Southern African country to look at alternative markets for its charcoal and beef products since the European Union, one of its largest trading partners, has implemented nontariff barriers that came into force in 2023.

A unilateral decision by the European Union to impose regulations on agricultural products from Namibia that come from areas that have been deforested has raised concerns regarding market access for products such as beef and charcoal.

These products will no longer have access to the European market unless they comply with the new rules that Namibian Minister of Agriculture Calle Schlettwein describes as stringent and prohibitive.

When you want to conduct agriculture, you have to clear lands. We have [the] charcoal industry. We have a number of industries in the agricultural sector where we do have an impact on deforestation. And I said that farmers must be careful that if they do that, they must be in compliance with these regulations.

The chairperson of the Namibia Biomass Industry Group, which represents over 150 members in the sector, Colin Lindeque, says the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) will not negatively impact exports to the EU.

He said the EU is only asking for additional information. It wants geographic location tags that show that the charcoal they are exporting does not come from areas that have been deforested, but rather areas that are regarded as savannah, an argument with which Schlettwein disagrees.

Lindeque told VOA the regulations are fair, and the members of the Bio-mass Industry Group are compliant and meet the new EU requirements.

There was a consultant here recently from the EU looking at EUDR, and they specifically said Namibias bush encroachment is definitely not a forest in their opinion. But one of the challenges is our government hasnt made the distinction, and that is actually the bigger point of interest, because we in the current Forest Act of 2001 do not even define what a forest is.

Director of Forestry at Namibias Ministry of Environment, Johnson Ndokosho, says the ambiguities in the countrys law regarding what is considered a forest, woodlands and savannah are being dealt with in the new Forestry Act, which is being revised.

He cautioned that Namibia is at the mercy of the EU when it comes to whether Namibias beef and charcoal will still be able to enter their market.

If they found that maybe this beef is coming out of an area where deforestation is occurring, then that may affect our exports.

Last year, Namibia exported 270,000 tons of charcoal worth $72 billion (1.3 billon NAD) mainly to South Africa, which then exports it to other markets, including Europe. Europe is the top destination for Namibias beef, with the union consuming about 80 percent of the countrys total exports valued at roughly $23.5 million (420 million NAD).

Namibia is not the only country affected by the new EU regulations. Other countries include Brazil, Cameroon and Nigeria.

Products that are affected by the new EU regulations include cocoa, soy, palm oil and coffee.
A New York man was charged on Wednesday with operating as an illegal agent of the Chinese government in the United States, accusing him of spying on Chinese pro-Democracy activists and dissidents, the Justice Department said.

The DOJ alleges that Yuanjun Tang, 67, acted as a Chinese agent between 2018 and 2023 at the direction of China's Ministry of State Security, its principal intelligence agency.

Tang gave to MSS intelligence officers information about individuals and groups viewed by China "as potentially adverse" to its interests, including prominent U.S.-based Chinese dissidents, the DOJ said.

He helped MSS infiltrate a group chat on an encrypted messaging application used by numerous Chinese dissidents, the DOJ said.

Tang is also accused of making false statements to the FBI when he claimed he was no longer able to access an email account used to communicate with his MSS handler, the department said.

Tang is a former Chinese citizen who was imprisoned for his activities as a dissident, according to the department. He was granted political asylum in the U.S. and later became a citizen.

The Chinese Embassy did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Reuters was unable to contact Tang.
More than 2,000 pro-Palestinian protesters marched Wednesday past a park where pro-Israel demonstrators had gathered earlier and toward the arena hosting the third night of the Democratic National Convention.

The demonstration, which stayed largely peaceful, came a day after violent clashes between police and protesters led to 56 arrests at a much smaller unsanctioned protest outside the Israeli Consulate.

Organizers of Wednesday's demonstration drew on the Chicago area's Palestinian community, one of the largest in the country, by bringing buses from suburban mosques.

Raed Shuk, 48, came with his children from the suburbs, including his 2-year-old son, who sat on Shuk's shoulders ahead of the march. Shuk, whose parents are Palestinian, said they have come to so many rallies that his son knows the chants by heart.

"Everybody's humanity needs to be equally addressed here and there," he said of Gaza. "I want to help my children learn from this experience that you always like to stand up for your rights and always peacefully protest."

The march, one of the largest anticipated demonstrations of the week, took on a festive tone at times as a drum line led marchers and a sea of Palestinian flags waved above the crowds. Some kids ate popsicles as they walked, and others were pushed in strollers or rode in wagons.

The crowd stopped outside a park that is roughly a block from the United Center and used megaphones and air horns to call out elected leaders, including Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, for being "complicit" in the war in Gaza. The two-term Democrat, who was under consideration as Vice President Kamala Harris' running mate, criticized a cease-fire resolution Chicago approved in January.

The crowds of pro-Palestinian protesters included many families and people of different faiths. Small groups of Muslims gathered in prayer at a park just ahead of the march's kickoff, using keffiyeh as prayer rugs. Rabbis were among the leaders of the march, and a small group marched through in the crowd holding a sign that said, "Christians for Ceasefire."

Rabbi Brant Rosen, a founder of the Jewish Voice for Peace Rabbinical Council, condemned Democrats for not speaking out about the war in Gaza at the convention.

"The word Palestine is not allowed inside the Democratic National Convention. The word cease-fire has barely been uttered," he said. "This is a Hollywood-style coronation of a candidate. They assume they are entitled to our votes, but they are not entitled to our votes."

Earlier in the day, police escorted pro-Israel demonstrators out of a park near the United Center as the area was blocked off ahead of the march of activists heading there.

The rally near the United Center was organized by the U.S. Palestinian Community Network, a Palestinian and Arab community-based organization. It was in stark contrast to the protest Tuesday night outside the Israeli Consulate. Protesters not affiliated with a coalition of more than 200 groups that have the city's permission for demonstrations ended up in an intense standoff with Chicago police.

Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling said those arrested Tuesday night outside the Israeli Consulate, about 3.2 kilometers from the United Center, "showed up with the intention of committing acts of violence, vandalism." Snelling called the police response "proportionate."

Thirty of the people detained by police were issued citations for disorderly conduct, according to Chicago police. One person was arrested on a felony charge of resisting police, while nine were charged with misdemeanors including disorderly conduct, resisting officers, battery, assault and criminal damage to property, police said.

Snelling said that two people were taken to the hospital with minor injuries, one for knee pain and one with a finger injury. Two officers were injured, but they refused medical attention because they did not want to leave fellow officers, Snelling said. He said three journalists were among those arrested, but he did not have details on charges.

Hatem Abudayyeh, co-founder of the U.S. Palestinian Community Network, put the onus on police to keep the peace when asked about the clashes between pro-Palestinian protesters and police. The police "only have one responsibility here," he said. "They have the responsibility of not infringing on our First Amendment rights."

The Israeli Consulate has been the site of numerous demonstrations since the war in Gaza began in October, and protests during the DNC have largely focused on opposing the Israel-Hamas war.

The largest protest so far, which attracted about 3,500 people on Monday, was largely peaceful and resulted in 13 arrests, most related to a breach of security fencing. Two were arrested Sunday night during another mostly peaceful march.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. The international conference on Bonaires Pathway from Baku through the UN General Assembly to Self-Determination," held in Azerbaijan by the Baku Initiative Group in collaboration with the Bonaire Human Rights Organization and Movement for Change, has concluded with the release of the final statement on Bonaire, Trend reports.

"As participants of the conference, we express our sincere gratitude to the Baku Initiative Group for the organization of the Conference and to the people of Azerbaijan for their genuine and friendly hospitality.

Dedicated to the colonized Bonaire people, the event allowed all interested parties the opportunity to exchange views on the consequences of the colonial policy of the Netherlands, which threatens the future and even the survival of the Bonaire people in the long term:

Historical Background - Bonaire's Status:

Bonaire, once a constituent state of the Netherlands Antilles, was part of a Dutch colonial entity with significant internal self-government. Following the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles on October 10, 2010, Bonaire was unilaterally incorporated by the Dutch Government as a "public body/entity without autonomy, entrenched in the Dutch Constitution under unequal rights.

Demographic Changes - Population Shift:

Between 2010 and 2024, Bonaire's population doubled from 11,000 to 25,000, primarily due to an influx of Dutch European immigrants. Native Bonaireans have consequently become a demographic minority and reduced in 2024 to less than 32 percent of the population on their own island.

Fight for Self-Determination - Referendum of 2015:

A referendum on December 18, 2015, saw 66 percent of voters reject Bonaire's constitutional status imposed since 2010. These results were unanimously ratified by the representatives of the island parliament as a legitimate and legal democratic decision of the people of Bonaire. The Dutch government disregarded the referendum results, maintaining the status quo.

As well as to discuss the undertaking of effective and efficient steps according to international law on the decolonization process in order to get rid of Dutch colonial oppression:

 UN Involvement:

Civil society groups in Bonaire, led by James Finies, brought their case to the UN Special Committee on Decolonization (C24) in 2016, highlighting Dutch violations of Bonaireans' rights. C24 Ambassadors recommended actions to re-list Bonaire as a Non-Self-Governing Territory and also to seek support from the regional neighbors from Caribbean and Latin American governments and initiate an independent inquiry into Bonaire's self-governance.

The participants in the conference took this opportunity to welcome the participation of the Republic of Azerbaijan at the 2024 Caribbean regional seminar on the implementation of the Fourth International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism, Pursuing Goals, and Addressing Needs of the Non-Self-Governing Territories," organized, on May 1416, 2024, by the Special Committee on Decolonization in Caracas, Venezuela.

 Independent Report:

The "Assessment of the Adequacy of Self-Government in Accordance with Internationally Recognized Standards: Report of the 'Country of Bonaire'" by the Dependency Studies Project by Senior Analyst Dr. Carlyle G. Corbin United Nations expert in 2021, concluded that the 'public body/entity' imposed and renamed 'territorial public body' in Bonaire is a colonial reform of dependency governance, perpetuating inequality that is deficient through all measures of democratic governance that circumvents the inalienable right to genuine self-determination under international law. This report is endorsed and accredited by the UN General Assembly as independent, as it contains Self-Governance indicators accepted by the UN General Assembly.

 UN obligations:

Inclusion in the Non-Self-Governing Territories list would necessitate the Dutch Government's annual reporting to the General Assembly on Bonaires social, economic, and political progress under Article 73 of the UN Charter, Articles 1 and 55 of the Charter of the United Nations, Resolution 1514 (XV) of 1960 (United Nations Declaration of Decolonization), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, the International Covenant on All Forms of Racial Discrimination, and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This designation enables UN bodies to assess, intervene, and assist Bonaire as required.

 Conclusion - Call for International Support to the Resolution on Re-Registration of Bonaire as a Non-Self-Governing Territory:

Bonaire seeks backing from the international community to advocate for its re-registration as a Non-Self-Governing Territory to protect and ensure the right of the people of Bonaire to self-determination and self-government, whereas a resolution is scheduled to be submitted directly by seven (7) islands of the Caribbean under the leadership of the Prime Minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and former President of CELAC, His Excellency Ralph Gonsalves to the General Assembly of the UN in early October 2024 under the agenda item of decolonization.

We appeal for solidarity and call on the UN Secretary-General and UN countries to support this noble struggle of great humanitarian significance, in the General Assembly and to join seven Caribbean islands as co-sponsors of the Resolution on the Case of Bonaire. This resolution calls for Bonaire's inclusion in the List of Non-Self-Governing Territories of the UN, placing it under the scrutiny of the UN Special Committee on Decolonization.

We, the Bonaire Peoples kindly ask H.E. Ilham Aliyev, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, member of the Troika of the Non-Aligned Movement, to convene the NAM countries to raise the critical issue of Bonaire's right to self-determination according to the international law on decolonization and to support its inclusion in the List of Non-Self-Governing Territories of the United Nations.

We urge the Netherlands Government to renounce its colonial policy and not to impede the re-inclusion of Bonaire in the List of Non-Self-Governing Territories of the United Nations," the statement reads.

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At least 55 governments in the past decade have restricted the freedom of movement for people they deem as threats, including journalists, according to a Freedom House report published Thursday.

Governments control freedom of movement via travel bans, revoking citizenship, document control and denial of consular services, the report found. All the tactics are designed to coerce and punish government critics, according to Jessica White, the reports London-based co-author.

"This is a type of tactic that really shows the vindictive and punitive nature of some countries," White said. This form of repression "is an attempt to really stifle peoples ability to speak out freely from wherever they are."

Belarus, China, India, Nicaragua, Russia, Rwanda and Saudi Arabia are among the countries that engage in this form of repression, the report found. Freedom House based its findings in part on interviews with more than 30 people affected by mobility controls.

Travel bans are the most common tactic, according to White, with Freedom House identifying at least 40 governments who prevent citizens leaving or returning to the country.

Revoking citizenship is another strategy, despite being prohibited by international law. The Nicaraguan government in 2023 stripped more than 200 political prisoners of their citizenship shortly after deporting them to the United States.

Among them were Juan Lorenzo Holmann, head of Nicaraguas oldest newspaper, La Prensa.

"It is as if I do not exist anymore. It is another attack on my human rights," he told VOA after being freed. "But you cannot do away with the persons personality. In the Nicaraguan constitution, it says that you cannot wipe out a persons personal records or take away their nationality. I feel Nicaraguan, and they cannot take that away from me."

Before being expelled from his own country, Lorenzo had spent 545 days in prison, in what was widely viewed as a politically motivated case.

Blocking access to passports and other travel documents is another tactic. In one example, Hong Kong in June canceled the passports of six pro-democracy activists who were living in exile in Britain.

In some cases, governments refuse to issue people passports to trap them in the country. And in cases where the individual is already abroad, embassies deny passport renewals to block the individual from traveling anywhere, including back home.

Myanmars embassy in Berlin, for instance, has refused to renew the passport of Ma Thida, a Burmese writer in exile in Germany. Ma Thida told VOA earlier this year she believes the refusal is in retaliation for her writing.

White said Ma Thidas case was a classic example of mobility restrictions. For now, the German government has issued a passport reserved for people who are unable to obtain a passport from their home country  which White applauded but said is still rare.

"Our ability to freely leave and return to our home country is something that in democratic societies, people often take for granted. Its one of our fundamental human rights, but its one that is being undermined and violated across many parts of the world," White said.

Mobility restrictions can have devastating consequences, including making it difficult to work, travel and visit family. What makes matters even worse is the emotional toll, according to White.

"There is a huge psychological impact," White said. "A lot of our interviewees mention especially the pain of being separated from family members and not being able to return to their country."

In the report, Freedom House called on democratic governments to impose sanctions on actors that engage in mobility controls.

White said that democratic governments should do more to help dissidents, including by providing them with alternative travel documents if they cant obtain them from their home countries.
The unfounded conspiracy theory that the United States orchestrated the ouster of Bangladeshs former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina dominates Russian disinformation narrative. The propaganda campaign involves top state officials and news media.

The narrative is nothing new: For decades, Russia has sought to discredit democratic and popular protests around the world as U.S.-fomented color revolutions, ignoring the reality of domestic politics and local grievances.

Commentary and analysis in Russias state-run Sputnik news agency repeatedly described the events that led Hasina to resign and leave Bangladesh for India on August 5 as a U.S.-led color revolution.

Critics say Hasina, once an advocate for democratic governance, had become increasingly authoritarian, securing a fourth term in office in January.

The U.S. had expressed concerns about the systematic crackdown on the opposition, critics, human rights activists and journalists, which greatly hampered the ability for Bangladesh to hold a free and fair election.

But the events that led to Hasinas resignation began in mid-June, when student protests against a quota system for government jobs kicked off.

A preliminary U.N. report said those initially peaceful protests reflected deeper economic frustrations among young people in Bangladesh, punctuated by high youth unemployment.

The report noted the democratic and civic space has become increasingly restricted in Bangladesh.

The government responded by violently suppressing the demonstrations, leading to hundreds of deaths. That crackdown only fueled public unrest, prompting Hasina to eventually resign and flee.

Conspiracy theories, which Russian media amplified, followed.

'Resignation statement'

On August 11, Indias Economic Times newspaper reported on an undelivered speech, conveyed to it by Hasinas close associates.

In that speech, Hasina allegedly said she would have remained in power had she surrendered sovereignty of Bangladeshs Saint Martin Island and allowed America to hold sway over the Bay of Bengal.

On August 11, Hasinas son Sajeeb Wazed said the alleged resignation statement attributed to his mother was completely false and fabricated.

The White House called the claim simply false.

Russian state-owned media Sputnik India has repeatedly used the discredited resignation letter to claim the U.S. toppled Hasinas government, repeatedly failing to acknowledge Wazeds rebuttal.

In June 2023, Hasina claimed, without evidence, that her domestic opponents and outside forces were threatening Bangladeshs sovereignty over Saint Martin.

U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller responded that Washington had never engaged in any conversations about taking over St. Martins Island.

Nikolai Patrushev, a top aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin, also claimed that U.S. and Western allies orchestrated chaos in Bangladesh because Hasina refused to let the U.S. establish a military presence there.

Other commentary published by Sputnik alleged the U.S. wants to turn Saint Martin into another Okinawa, a Japanese island housing the U.S. military bases.

Because of a number of factors, including its size, location and terrain, Saint Martin is not a viable option for a U.S. naval or air base.

Tender for gas field

Sputnik India also insinuated that the U.S. orchestrated Hasinas ouster to take control of Bangladeshs energy resources.

In an August 18 X post, Sputnik India claimed Hasina had announced a tender for an offshore gas field Bangladesh discovered in May, attracting interest from major U.S. firms like Exxon Mobil.

That post, which included a GIF image of U.S. President Joe Biden, questioned whether the discovery of those resources and the resignation of Hasina were a coincidence.

Bangladesh did discover reserves in a state-controlled gas field in May, but a local firm is handling extraction of that gas.

The Russian speculation about connection between Exxon Mobils interests with Hasinas ousting has no merit. Exxon Mobil had expressed interest in exploring energy reservoirs in the Bay of Bengal in March 2023, and in March 2024, a licensing round was announced to explore 24 oil and gas blocks.

There is no indication that process affected Hasinas resignation.

Russian media further attempted to leverage the events in Bangladesh to sow distrust of the U.S. in India.

Sputnik India reported that intelligence is keeping an eye on meetings between U.S. diplomats and the opposition, even though U.S. diplomats also routinely meet with members of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

Indias The Hindu newspaper reported the Indian government is concerned about repeated messages spread by Russian media, misleading the public about meetings between foreign diplomats and political figures, which it called a legitimate part of their duty.

Russias claims that the U.S. would topple Hasinas government stretch back months.

Prior to Bangladeshs general election on January 7, which the evidence suggests was neither free nor fair, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused the U.S. of planning to stage an Arab Spring type of uprising and further destabilize the situation, if the outcome wasnt to Washingtons liking.

White House national security spokesman John Kirby called the allegationclassic Russian propaganda.
Senior US officials met with the Dalai Lama in New York on Wednesday, according to the State Department, in a rare high-level direct meeting between Washington and the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader.

The Dalai Lama, who is denounced by Beijing as a separatist, met with senior State Department official Uzra Zeya and White House National Security Council official Kelly Razzouk in New York, where he is visiting to receive medical treatment.

During the meeting, Zeya "reaffirmed the US commitment to advancing the human rights of Tibetans and supporting efforts to preserve their distinct historical, linguistic, cultural, and religious heritage."

Beijing imposes strict controls on Tibet, which it considers an inalienable part of its territory, and denounces the Dalai Lama -- who advocates for greater Tibetan autonomy -- as a rebel.

During the meeting on Wednesday, Zeya also discussed US "support for resuming dialogue between the PRC and His Holiness and his representatives," the statement said, using an abbreviation for the People's Republic of China.

Talks between Beijing and Tibetan leaders have been frozen since 2010.

Beijing on Thursday condemned the meeting, accusing the Dalai Lama of being "a political exile engaged in anti-China separatist activities under the guise of religion."

"China firmly opposes any country allowing the Dalai Lama to visit under any pretext and strongly opposes any form of meetings between government officials of any country and the Dalai Lama," foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said.

Beijing had "lodged a strong protest" with Washington, she added.

The Dalai Lama, 89, received knee surgery in New York this year, and said he was recovering well in a statement released in July.

He stepped down as his people's political head in 2011, passing the baton of secular power to a government chosen democratically by some 130,000 Tibetans around the world.

In July, China sanctioned a US lawmaker for "interference" over his support for Tibetans, a month after the US Congress passed a law strengthening support for Tibet and senior US lawmakers met with the Dalai Lama in India.

China took control of Tibet in 1951, and the Dalai Lama fled into exile in 1959.

Tibet had previously been largely autonomous following the fall of the Qing dynasty, which lasted three centuries.
Taiwan President Lai Ching-te will on Friday make his first visit since taking office in May to the sensitive Kinmen islands that sit next to the Chinese coast and have been the scene of stepped up tensions between Taipei and Beijing.

Taiwan has controlled Kinmen, and the Matsu islands further up the Chinese coast, since the defeated Republic of China government fled to Taipei in 1949 after losing a civil war with Mao Zedong's communists. No peace treaty or armistice has ever been signed.

The scene of on-off fighting during the height of the Cold War, China's coast guard has since February conducted regular patrols around Kinmen following the death of two Chinese people on a speedboat which Beijing blamed on Taipei.

Lai's office said on Thursday that he would travel to Kinmen on Friday for events marking the 66th anniversary of a key military clash with Chinese forces, better known internationally as the start of the second Taiwan Strait crisis.

"Located in the first island chain, Taiwan faces the immediate threat of China. But Taiwan will not be intimidated," Lai told a security forum in Taipei on Wednesday.

China views democratically-governed Taiwan as its own territory and has repeatedly denounced Lai as a "separatist." He rejects Beijing's sovereignty saying only Taiwan's people can decide their future, but has also offered talks with China.

Kinmen faces the Chinese cities of Xiamen and Quanzhou and at its closest is less than two kilometers away from Chinese-controlled territory.

The 1958 crisis was the last time Taiwanese forces battled China on a large scale.

In August of that year, Chinese forces began more than a month of bombardment of Kinmen, along with Matsu, including naval and air battles, seeking to force them into submission.

Taiwan fought back at the time with support from the United States, which sent military equipment like advanced Sidewinder anti-aircraft missiles, giving Taiwan a technological edge.

The crisis ended in a stalemate, and Taiwan observes Aug. 23 every year as the date it fended off the Chinese attack.

Late Wednesday, Taiwan's defense ministry held a concert in Taipei that celebrated the "glorious" anniversary, with songs about shooting down Chinese MiG fighter jets and bemoaning the "red catastrophe" of communism.

Formerly called Quemoy in English, Kinmen today is a popular tourist destination, though Taiwan maintains a significant military presence.
Taliban leaders in Afghanistan have ordered fresh limitations on women, forbidding them from singing, reciting poetry or speaking aloud in public and mandating them to keep their faces and bodies covered at all times.

The restrictions are part of a new so-called Vice and Virtue decree published by the Taliban's Justice Ministry on Wednesday after approval from their reclusive supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, said a ministry spokesman in a video message.

The 35-article document is the first formal declaration of the vice and virtue laws under the Taliban's strict interpretation of Islamic Sharia law since they regained power in Afghanistan three years ago.

The decree greatly restricts personal freedoms and religious practices, covering aspects of everyday life such as transportation, music, shaving, celebrations, and women's behavior and appearance in public.

The rules targeting female members of the Afghan society explained that a woman's voice is deemed intimate and should not be heard singing, reciting poetry or reading aloud in public. Women also are not allowed to look at men they are not related to by blood or marriage and vice versa.

Under the new law, females must cover their bodies and faces at all times in public to avoid temptation and to avoid tempting others. Their clothing should not be thin, short or tight, it emphasized.

The legal document empowers the Taliban's Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice to enforce these rules across the impoverished, war-torn South Asian country. It can give warnings before imprisoning offenders for durations from one hour to three days, and it also may seize properties as a penalty if considered appropriate.

The actions of the Vice and Virtue Ministry are already under international scrutiny.

The United Nations reported last month that the ministry's ever-expanding policing of public morality was contributing to a climate of fear and intimidation among Afghans through edicts and the methods used to enforce them.

One of the articles in the legal document released Wednesday bans the publication of images of living beings, which critics fear could further shrink media in Afghanistan, forcing the closure of television channels, digital media and print newspapers. Media outlets are already suffering from Taliban-ordered censorship.

Another article prohibits playing music in public transport, the travel of female passengers unless accompanied by a male guardian, and the mingling of unrelated men and women. Additionally, passengers and drivers are required by law to observe designated prayer times. Men cannot shave beards or trim them to less than a fistful, although the law does not define what qualifies as an "Islamic" hairstyle.

Human rights activists feared the latest restrictions underscore a significant increase in the Taliban's attempts to enforce their version of Islamic law, especially in suppressing and removing women from public life.

The fundamentalist Taliban have already barred Afghan girls ages 12 and older from attending school and many women from public and private sector jobs, including United Nations agencies. No country has officially recognized the Taliban as the legitimate government of Afghanistan, mainly over their harsh treatment of women.

On Wednesday, Richard Bennett, the U.N.-appointed special rapporteur on Afghan human rights, confirmed that the Taliban had barred him from visiting the country, calling it a "step backward" and urging the de facto Afghan government to lift the travel ban.

Bennett has taken several trips to Kabul and highlighted in his subsequent reports the Taliban's sweeping curbs on Afghan women's access to education, employment and public life at large. He alleged that women and girls under Taliban rule "are being persecuted" based on gender, which he called a crime against humanity.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid has defended their travel ban on the U.N. envoy, alleging that Bennett was "spreading propaganda" by providing "misleading" information to the international community.
Thai health officials are reporting the suspected first case of the new, more dangerous strain of mpox in the country, in a European traveler who arrived in Thailand from Africa last week.

In a statement on its website Thursday, Thailands Department of Disease Control reported that a 66-year-old man who arrived in the country on August 14 was hospitalized with symptoms the following day and has since been quarantined. They said his symptoms are not severe.

Testing showed the man did not have the clade 2 variant, the previous strain of the virus, but tests for the new, more dangerous clade 1b strain were inconclusive.

At a news conference in Bangkok, Department of Disease Control chief Thongchai Keeratihattayakorn told reporters they expect to have results of additional testing by Friday.

We are convinced the person has the clade 1b variant, Thongchai told French news agency Agence France-Presse.

Last week, the World Health Organization declared the new mpox variant outbreak a public health emergency of international concern after a surge in cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo and outbreaks in other central African nations, including Burundi, Uganda, Rwanda and Kenya.

In Thailand, the Department of Disease Control said it is monitoring 43 people who had close contact with the patient before he traveled to Thailand. Thonchai said that although the people currently have no symptoms, they will be monitored for 21 days from August 14  the day they came in contact with the patient.

Mpox, formerly known as monkey pox, is a viral infection with symptoms that can include rash or lesions, fever, muscle aches and swollen lymph glands. Most patients fully recover, but some get very sick and die. It is most commonly transmitted through close, physical contact with someone who is infectious.

The new clade 1b variant is believed to be transmitted more easily. WHO said there are two recommended vaccines in use to prevent mpox, and it has triggered the process for emergency use listing for mpox vaccines, which will accelerate vaccine access for lower-income countries.

Some information for this report was provided by Reuters and Agence France-Presse.
On a dirt road below the shrub-dotted hills of Arizona, Donald Trump used a stretch of wall and a pile of steel beams to draw a visual contrast between his approach to securing the border and that of his Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris.

Trump brought along grieving mothers, the sheriff of Cochise County and the head of the Border Patrol union to echo his tough-on-border-security message at Thursday's visit, which was themed "Make America Safe Again."

"To my right is what we call Trump wall. This was wall that was built under President Trump," said Paul Perez, president of the Border Patrol union. "To my left, we have what we call Kamala wall. It's just sitting there doing nothing, lying down."

The Biden administration did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the wall construction.

The visit was the fourth in a series of events held in battleground states this week to try to draw the focus away from Democrats' celebration of Harris' presidential nomination in Chicago. Speakers at the convention on Wednesday night accused Trump of using the border to stir up his base by demonizing immigrants.

Joining Thursday's border visit were the mothers of children who were killed during the Biden administration in cases where the suspects are immigrants in the country illegally. Trump frequently highlights attacks involving immigrants to fuel concerns about the Biden administration policies, though some studies have found that people living in the U.S. illegally are less likely than native-born Americans to have been arrested for violent, drug and property crimes.

"I just really, really, really want everybody to please take into consideration how important border control is, because we're losing very innocent people to heinous crimes," said Alexis Nungaray, the mother of 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray, who was strangled to death in Houston in June.

At the Arizona event, snipers stood nearby at an elevated position, their eyes and weapons pointed toward Mexico, a day after Trump held his first outdoor rally since an assassination attempt last month. Security forces were also visible on the Mexican side of the border, including several men with rifles and tactical gear. Others wore uniforms identifying them as members of the Mexican state police.

"What Biden and Kamala have done to the families here with me and so many others, thousands and thousands of others, not only killed, but also really badly hurt, badly hurt to a point where they'll never lead a normal life again. It's shameful, and it's evil," Trump said.

In his tour of battleground states this week, Trump has traveled to Pennsylvania, Michigan and North Carolina and will hold events in Las Vegas and the Phoenix suburb of Glendale on Friday. His running mate, Senator JD Vance, spoke at the same location near the border a few weeks ago.

Elected Democratic officials argued Wednesday night at the convention that their party is the one offering real leadership on border issues.

"When it comes to the border, hear me when I say, 'You know nothing, Donald Trump,' " said U.S. Representative Veronica Escobar, who represents the border city of El Paso, Texas. "He and his Republican imitators see the border and immigration as a political opportunity to exploit instead of an issue to address."

U.S. Democratic Senator Chris Murphy spoke after a video played showing Republican opposition to a bipartisan border deal earlier this year. Murphy was the top Democrat negotiating the proposal with conservative senators and said the bill would have had unanimous support if it weren't for Trump.

Trump was asked about the deal, and he called it "weak" and "ineffective."
Turkey has been mediating between Ethiopia and Somalia, which are locked in a dispute, mainly over sea access for Ethiopia. At issue is a deal that Ethiopia signed earlier this year with the self-proclaimed, breakaway region of Somaliland. Ankaras mediation efforts are seen as underlying its growing influence in the strategic Horn of Africa region. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul.
A new Ukrainian law aimed at removing the influence of the pro-Moscow Russian Orthodox Church enjoys broad popular support in Ukraine but is being viewed with reservations by international advocates for religious freedom.

Passed on Tuesday by Ukraines parliament, the law banning religious organizations that maintain ties to Moscow follows years of controversy over ties between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

The law empowers a government office, the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience, to scrutinize religious organizations for possible connections with Russia. If connections are found, the SSU will first issue a prescription to eliminate the violations. If the ties remain, the office will go to court to stop the religious organization's activities.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to sign the law. He congratulated lawmakers for passing the legislation "regarding our spiritual independence," saying that they will "continue strengthening Ukraine and our society."

The Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations, which represents more than 90% of Ukrainian religious communities, welcomed the law's adoption.

"We categorically condemn activities of the Russian Orthodox Church, which has become an accomplice to the Russian invaders' bloody crimes against humanity, which sanctifies weapons of mass destruction and openly declares the need to destroy Ukrainian statehood, culture, identity, and, more recently, Ukrainians themselves," it said in a statement.

The Russian Orthodox Church operates only in Russia-occupied parts of Ukraine and in some monasteries directly subordinated to it. So, the ban will mostly apply to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which, according to the Ukrainian authorities, still maintains its ties to the ROC. After the Russian invasion in 2022, the UOC claimed that it broke those ties.

According to a survey by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology conducted in May, 83% of Ukrainian citizens believe that the state should intervene in the activities of the UOC; 63% of respondents want it to be banned.

Religious freedom critics

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, an independent agency responsible for reviewing possible violations of religious freedom abroad and making policy recommendations to the U.S. administration and Congress, has expressed concern about the law's impact on Ukraines regular faithful.

"The most recent version of the law does not fully address prior concerns about the law's potential to impose collective punishments on entire religious communities. It also introduced new problematic aspects that could compromise the protection of freedom of religion or belief and freedom of expression," says a statement that USCIRF Chair Stephen Schneck sent to VOA.

The commission said it will monitor the law's implementation after it goes into effect and urged Ukrainian authorities "to ensure that the legislation complies with Ukraine's commitments under international law."

Monika Palotai, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Religious Freedom Institute, called the legislation "divisive."

"It divides people. It divides the international community. There will be questions about what will happen to those people who belong to this church. What choices do they have?"

Viktor Yelensky, head of the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience, told VOA that Ukraine will adhere to its laws and international obligations.

"Ukraine is not North Korea," Yelensky said. "The procedure established by this law is quite democratic. The organization in question can challenge our demands in court at various stages. Only the court can stop the activities of the structures of the UOC if it does not want to sever ties with the Russian Orthodox Church."

Most Ukrainian Orthodox Christians belong to parishes with no affiliation with the Russian Orthodox Church.

After centuries in which the Russian Orthodox Church was the predominant Christian denomination in Ukraine, represented by the Ukrainian Exarchate, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church established itself as a separate entity in 1990 while maintaining relations with the Russian church.

In May 2022, its leaders announced their complete independence from the Moscow-based church, which has been a strong supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin's strategy of conquering Ukraine.

According to a survey conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology, only 4% of Ukraine's population identifies with the UOC. UOC claims that the true number is higher.

There is another Orthodox Christian church in the country  the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, which was granted independence by the Patriarchate of Constantinople in 2019. Since then, many parishes and individuals have switched their affiliation from UOC to OCU, and the process continues.

The UOC spokesperson, Metropolitan Kliment, insisted that the new law will deny Ukrainian citizens and UOC believers the freedom of conscience and religious beliefs. He said that lawmakers ignored appeals from Ukrainian soldiers faithful to this church and targeted the UOC for ties with Moscow that do not exist.

"There are no Moscow churches in Ukraine. Our Church has been operating in Ukraine since time immemorial, and its priests and millions of believers are conscious citizens of Ukraine, not imported from abroad. We did not elect this Verkhovna Rada [parliament] so that it would take away our churches during the war, as the Russians do in the occupied territories," he wrote to VOA.

In March 2024, the Moscow Patriarchate officially declared the war in Ukraine "holy." The "World Russian People's Council" issued a decree which said that "the entire territory of modern Ukraine should fall under the exclusive influence of Russia."

The UOC, in its statement published the next day categorically rejected and condemned that declaration: "Instead of providing ideological support and justification for Russia's military aggression and intervention in Ukraine, we believe that the Orthodox Church in Russia should have raised her voice against this war of aggression."

However, since the beginning of the Russian invasion, Ukrainian authorities have opened criminal cases against more than 100 clergy members of the UOC for such crimes as treason, collaborationism, aiding and abetting the aggressor country and the sale of firearms.

Ukrainian MP Mykyta Poturaiev, the chairman of the Committee on Humanitarian and Information Policy, which worked on this legislation, told VOA that the law doesn't ban the UOC. Its latest version, adopted this week, established an extended grace period of nine months for Ukrainian organizations that still have ties with Russia to sever them and decide on their future.

"They can establish a dialogue with Istanbul, with the Patriarch of Constantinople, or they can establish a dialogue with the Orthodox Church of Ukraine," he said.

He insisted that the law doesn't target religious customs or beliefs but only collaboration with the enemy. "It would be strange if we allowed the FSB or another Russian state body to operate in Ukraine now because they are enemies," he said.

Archimandrite Cyril Hovorun, a Ukrainian theologian and professor at University College Stockholm, says the challenge posed by the Russian Orthodox Church is not unique to Ukraine but is more urgent there than elsewhere.

"All European countries with a sizeable presence of the Moscow Patriarchate face the same dilemma: how to neutralize its influence without violating human rights."

He said no single country, including Ukraine, has come up with an ideal solution.

"Nevertheless, the adopted law features mechanisms that help contain the damaging Russian influence without damaging the freedom of religion in the country," he told VOA.
Ukraine said Wednesday that it had destroyed Russian pontoon bridges with U.S.-made weapons to defend its incursion into Russia's Kursk region, while Moscow said its forces had halted Kyiv's advance there and had gained ground in eastern Ukraine.

Kyiv has announced a string of battlefield successes since it crossed unexpectedly into the Kursk region on August 6. Moscow has steadily inched forward in eastern Ukraine, pressuring troops worn down by 2 years of fighting.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine's military was responding to the Russian push by strengthening its forces around Pokrovsk, the focus of Russian advances in eastern Ukraine.

Speaking in one of his regular televised addresses, he also urged Kyiv's allies to honor commitments to send munitions for use by the Ukrainian armed forces.

"This is fundamental for defense," he said.

Ukraine has closely guarded its overarching aims in the Kursk region but said it had carved out a buffer zone from an area Russia has used to pound targets in Ukraine with cross-border strikes.

A video posted by Ukrainian special forces showed strikes on several pontoon crossings in the Kursk region, where Russia has reported that Ukraine has destroyed at least three bridges over the Seym River as it seeks to hold the captured land.

"Where do Russian pontoon bridges 'disappear' in the Kursk region? Operators ... accurately destroy them," Ukraine's Special Operations Forces said on the Telegram messenger.

Ukraine's Foreign Ministry has said Kyiv has made bigger territorial gains in the Kursk region than Moscow has made in Ukraine this year. Russia has called the incursion an escalation.

Ukraine smashed through the Russian border in the Kursk region on August 6 in an attempt to force Moscow to divert troops from the rest of the front, though Russian forces have continued to advance in recent days.

Russia took the settlement of Zhelanne, which lies less than 20 km to the east of the transport hub Pokrovsk, according to the Russian defense ministry.

Both sides reported being targeted by major drone attacks. Ukraine said it intercepted 50 of 69 drones launched by Russia; Moscow said its air defenses destroyed 45 drones over Russian territory, including 11 over the Moscow region.

Reporting back to Moscow, Major General Apti Alaudinov, commander of Chechnya's Akhmat special forces and the deputy head of the defense ministry's military-political department, said Russia had stalled the Ukrainian incursion.

"We halted them and started pushing them back," Alaudinov told Rossiya state television. He said Ukrainian forces were regrouping and could soon launch a new attack, though he gave no further details.

Russia has repeatedly said the Ukrainian offensive has been halted. Ukraine has kept touting gains, saying it has captured 92 settlements over an area of more than 1,250 square km.

The Ukrainian military, which has not made significant gains on its own soil since late 2022, has gotten a much needed morale boost from the incursion.

Roman Kostenko, secretary of the Ukrainian parliament's national defense committee, said Russia's priority remained to capture the Donetsk region despite the incursion and that it was not pulling forces from near Pokrovsk to act as reinforcements.

Mykola Bielieskov, a research fellow at the Ukrainian National Institute for Strategic Studies, a think tank in Kyiv, said attacks on bridges and pontoons would help Ukraine build a defensive line along the river.

"This is an opportunity to make it more stable, systemic, ready to repel Russian attacks," he said in remarks on national television.

Reuters confirmed that all of the strike locations of pontoon bridges shown in the video were on or near the Seym River in the Kursk region.

The video also showed drone strikes on military trucks and other locations described as a Russian munitions warehouse and an electronic warfare complex in the region. Other locations or the date when the video was filmed could not be independently verified.

Separately, Reuters was able to verify that at least one pontoon crossing was apparently destroyed.

The Ukrainian statement said U.S.-manufactured HIMARS rocket systems had been used as part of operations to disrupt Russian logistics in the Kursk region, Kyiv's first official statement acknowledging its use of the weapon during its incursion.

Washington has not commented directly on the use of U.S.-made weapons in the Kursk region, while saying U.S. policies have not changed and Ukraine was defending itself from Russia's ongoing all-out invasion.

While allies have barred Ukraine from conducting long-range strikes with Western weapons inside Russia, they have allowed Kyiv to use them to hit border areas since Russia's new offensive on Kharkiv region this spring.
Photo: Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Azerbaijan

BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. An Azerbaijani and Kazakh combined tactical-special exercise called Altyn Kyran-2024 (Golden Eagle-2024) has begun in the highlands of Dzungaria Alatau, Trend reports, referring to the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry.

As planned, servicemen from the participating countries hit the ground running, tackling reconnaissance tasks in the challenging mountainous terrain.

On the first day of the exercise, participants were given the lowdown on the ins and outs of using mountaineering equipment, tackling challenging terrain, administering first aid at high altitude, and getting the injured out of harm's way.

The exercise primarily focuses on sharpening personnel's skills of the trade for carrying out combat missions and taking the combat capability of the units to the next level.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited his countrys northeastern Sumy region on Thursday, his first trip to a location near the border with Russia since Kyivs troops staged a secretive incursion into Russias Kursk region in early August.

Zelenskyy met with Ukraine's military commander, Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, and then declared that Ukrainian forces have taken control of another settlement in Kursk and captured more Russian prisoners of war whom he hopes to exchange for captured Ukrainians. He referred to that as Ukraine's "exchange fund."

But Kyivs gains there  the first foreign capture of Russian territory since World War II  have come as Ukraine continues to lose ground in its eastern Donetsk region. The Russian Defense Ministry announced Thursday that its military has captured control of the village of Mezhove.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday accused Ukraine of trying to attack the Kursk nuclear power station, about 50 kilometers from the fighting in the Russian border region. But the Kremlin leader did not present any evidence for his claims or provide further details on the alleged attack.

The offensive into Russia was a first for Ukraine in the 2  year war. Ukraine and Russia for months have relied on drones to go after targets deep behind enemy battle lines. Ukraine has often targeted Russian military sites that are used to direct drone and missile attacks against Ukraine.

Officials in southern Russias Volgograd region said Thursday a Ukrainian drone hit a military facility and sparked a fire.

Andrei Bocharov, the regional governor, said on Telegram the attack happened in the Marinovka area, but no injuries were reported. A Russian air base is in the area.

Videos shared on Russian social media showed an explosion in the night sky, reportedly near the base. Marinovka is about 300 kilometers east of the Ukrainian border and about the same distance west from the border with Kazakhstan.

Ukraine claimed responsibility for the attack.

Drone warfare rages on in the war. Russias Defense Ministry said Thursday that Ukrainian forces attacked overnight with a total of 28 drones, with 13 targeting Volgograd. The Rostov, Belgorod, Voronezh, Bryansk and Kursk regions were also targeted.

Ukraines military said Thursday it shot down two Russian drones overnight after Russia launched an aerial attack from Kursk.

Alexei Smirnov, the regional governor of Kursk, said Thursday that authorities were installing concrete air-raid shelters in the regional capital.

In Russias Bryansk region, which borders Kursk, officials said Russian forces thwarted an attempt by Ukrainian fighters to cross the border Wednesday.

Russias FSB security service said Thursday it opened criminal cases against several journalists, accusing them of illegally crossing the Russian border to report on the Ukrainian incursion in Kursk.

The FSB named CNN correspondent Nick Paton Walsh among those who had reported from Sudzha, along with two Ukrainian journalists.

Some information for this report came from Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
The United Nations said Thursday it is working with governments and health officials in Eastern and Southern Africa to contain the outbreak of mpox there.

UNICEF, the World Health Organization and the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, along with local partners, are responding to the spread of the new mpox clade 1b variant, said Etleva Kadilli, UNICEFs regional director for Eastern and Southern Africa.

Kadilli said in a statement that more than 200 confirmed cases have been detected in five countries: Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa and Uganda.

Dr. Francis Kasolo, director and head of the WHO at the African Union and U.N. Economic Commission for Africa, told a joint WHO-Africa CDC meeting, Our collaboration has been instrumental in enhancing surveillance, laboratory capacity and effective deployment of technical capacity to countries. Together we are making progress.

But, he said, there is still much to be done.

It is imperative that we remain vigilant and proactive in our efforts to combat mpox. This means not only addressing it in the immediate needs, but also investing in long-term strategies that will build resilient health systems capable of withstanding future outbreaks and shocks, Kasolo said.

Last week, the WHO declared mpox a public health emergency of international concern following a surge of mpox in the Democratic Republic of Congo and a growing number of other African countries.

An earlier emergency was declared in 2022. The U.N. agency said that one was declared over in May 2023.

Botswana and Zimbabwe are now screening for mpox after their neighbor, South Africa, recorded three deaths from the new strain. Zimbabwe is screening for the viral ailment at all ports of entry.

We have said all those who present [high fever] and rash should be thoroughly investigated  where they are coming from and for how long they have been there and possible contact with people who have monkey pox, Zimbabwean Health Minister Douglas Mombeshora said, referring to mpoxs previous name.

"We have kits to do tests for monkey pox, he said. So yes, we are on a very high alert. ... I know there was a scare a few days ago. Some people were reporting on social media that there were people who had presented with some rash. They thought it was monkey pox. We did not take it for granted. The patient was said to have tested negative.

Dr. Norman Matara of Zimbabwe Doctors for Human Rights said that given the countrys poor health care system, keeping mpox out is better than trying to contain it after cases appear.

It saves the nation a lot of money because treatment is always expensive, he said. It also prevents us from unnecessary lockdown restrictions of movements ... like what we saw with COVID-19.

For now, he said, there is no need to panic.

At the moment we have not recorded any case of mpox. ... We just need to increase our health surveillance so that anyone with symptoms can be isolated and they can be screened and any case can be easily identified and minimize the virus spreading in the country, Matara said.

Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, the WHO regional director for Africa, told VOA this week that the Democratic Republic of Congo was the epicenter of mpox. She said front-line health workers in affected areas should be given priority on vaccinations against the ailment.

The issue of access to vaccines is something which we are working on collectively at the international level, she said. "This is really a case of negotiating with pharmaceutical companies that are able to produce the vaccine to ensure they scale up their production and increase availability of vaccines.

Besides a rash, other symptoms of the viral infection can include lesions, muscle aches and swollen lymph glands. Most people fully recover, but some become very ill and die.
The United Nations Human Rights Office on Thursday said basic freedoms in Sri Lanka were under threat, as the country gears up to elect a new president in September.

A report published Thursday by the UN agency stressed that Sri Lanka, which will hold its first presidential vote since recovering from a deep economic crisis, has not reformed its human rights protection system despite vowing to do so.

Instead, laws and bills introduced since 2023 have given "broad powers to the security forces" and expanded "restrictions on freedom of expression and opinion and association," OHCHR said.

"This trend is particularly concerning as the country is in an important pre-election period," UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk said in a statement.

OHCHR also highlighted the "erosion of democratic checks and balances, ongoing threats and intimidation against civil society and journalists, and recurrence" of past rights violations.

The state has continued to arbitrarily arrest and detain people, the report said, citing recent cases including "torture and deaths in custody."

Sri Lanka has maintained a large military relative to its population of 22 million since the end in 2009 of a decades-long civil war against the separatist Tamil Tigers.

Turk urged the South Asian country to "recognize victims' suffering" and "acknowledge security forces' role" in committing "gross human rights violations" as the report blamed impunity and a persisting lack of accountability.

A lightning military offensive killed at least 40,000 civilians in the final months of the fighting, according to UN estimates. Sri Lankan forces were accused of indiscriminately shelling civilians.

"Crimes and violations committed during and after the civil war... must not go unpunished," the High Commissioner said.

Sri Lanka has been cash-strapped and in April 2022 defaulted on its $46-billion foreign debt when it ran out of foreign exchange for essential imports.

An unprecedented economic crisis in 2022 caused months of food, fuel and medicine shortages across the island nation, spurring widespread unrest.

Austerity measures followed, heavily impacting women and the poor, in particular, the report noted.

Local elections were due to be held last year but were postponed indefinitely after the government insisted it had no money to conduct a nationwide vote.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz took the stage to introduce himself to Americans Wednesday night during the third day of the Democratic Convention. The event closes out Thursday when Kamala Harris accepts her historic nomination. President Biden in a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stressed the urgent need to seal a deal for a Gaza ceasefire. Protests in Indonesia and flooding in Bangladesh. Plus, a look at how AI is being used to give real-time alerts to swimmers about polluted water.
The helicopter crash in which Iran's late President Ebrahim Raisi was killed in May was caused by weather conditions and the aircraft's inability to handle the weight it was carrying, Iran's semiofficial news agency reported Wednesday, citing a security source informed of the final investigation results.

The communications center of the Armed Forces General Staff, responsible for publishing information on the crash investigation, said the report was "completely false," state media reported.

A preliminary report by Iran's military had said in May that no evidence of foul play or an attack had been found during the investigation.

"The investigation in the case of Ayatollah Raisi's helicopter crash have been completed ... there is complete certainty that what happened was an accident," the security source, who was not named, told Fars.

Two reasons for the accident were identified: the weather was unsuitable, and the helicopter was unable to handle the weight, leading to it crash into a mountain, the source added, according to Fars.

The investigation indicated that the helicopter was carrying two people more than the capacity that security protocols allow, the source told Fars.

Raisi, once a potential successor to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in the crash in mountainous terrain near the Azerbaijan border.
World Food Program trucks carrying urgently needed food and nutrition supplies have entered Sudans Darfur region, the United Nations agency said Wednesday.

The first trucks entered the region Tuesday evening from Chad via the Adre crossing, which had been closed for six months by Sudanese authorities. The first trucks carried food for about 13,000 people in West Darfur, but WFP has supplies for about 500,000 people ready to enter through the crossing.

We urgently need to reach every corner of Sudan with food assistance  and this requires humanitarian corridors and all border crossings to be open so aid agencies can bring in supplies every single day, WFP Director Cindy McCain said in a statement. This is the only way to avoid widespread starvation.

The countrys dire humanitarian crisis is a result of a war started more than a year ago between the countrys military and a rival paramilitary group. Since mid-April 2023, more than 18,800 people have been killed in the conflict and more than 33,000 have been injured, according to the U.N.

McCain said the re-opening of the Adre crossing is critical for the effort to prevent famine from spreading across Sudan, and it must now stay in use. I want to acknowledge all parties for taking this vital step to help WFP get lifesaving aid to millions of people in desperate need.

Adre was closed in February, but WFP was able to send two convoys through in March and April.

Without Adre, WFP was forced to use a longer route into North Darfur through the Tine crossing in Chad. To reach people in Darfur, WFP had to use long, dangerous routes from Port Sudan that required the agencys convoys to cross the front lines of the war and locations under the control of various militias.

The U.N. has called Sudan the worlds worst humanitarian crisis. In addition to the disastrous hunger levels, the International Organization for Migration reports more than 10.7 million people, nearly half of them children, are displaced inside Sudan and more than 2 million people have fled as refugees into neighboring countries.

Mohamed Refaat, the head of the IOM mission in Sudan said earlier this month, Almost all people displaced across Sudan  97%  are in areas with acute food insecurity or worse.

Over the next three months, an estimated 25.6 million people will face severe food insecurity as the conflict spreads and coping mechanisms are exhausted. One out of two are struggling to put food on the table every single day, he said.

VOAs Lisa Schlein contributed to this report.
A Little Trim, 2024. Photo: Courtesy of Hashimoto Contemporary and Abigail Goldman

Abigail Goldmans micro-renderings of scenes of carnage, created at 1:87 scale, are a testament to the pull of the small, especially at a time when art is getting bigger and more elaborately produced. In one tableau that could have come out of Breaking Bad, a shipping storage container in a gravel field contains a bloody corpse and a woman with her hands up as two gunmen nearby take aim. Another features a powder-blue van in a desert and two men warming their hands over an oil-drum fire, a mutilated corpse splayed between them. A third features a machine-gun-toting Queen Elizabeth and her two corgis standing over a dead man. Behind her, the paintings, the china in the cabinet, the upholstered chairs, the patterned wallpaper  all are perfect.

Goldman calls her works Die-o-ramas. I call them a cross between nightmares, documentary, and horror. In her day job, she is an investigator for a public defender outside Seattle, researching horrendous incidents of death, murder, and suicide. She started making the Die-o-ramas in 2012. One day, her husband posted images of her work on social media, where it attracted 15,000 comments. While shes not well known in the art world, her work is now widely collected (one of her Die-o-rama snow globes is priced at only $700), and shes been featured in the New York Times and even a short documentary about her practice.

Her new show, State of Nature, at the Hashimoto Contemporary gallery, is reminiscent of science-fair displays and natural-history exhibitions. I love miniature, mad-scientist worlds like these and follow scores of Instagram accounts devoted to teeny record albums, dolls, and cars, and tiny foods being prepared in tiny kitchens with tiny tools. All this exists at a remove from the art world. When I told a close friend I was reviewing Goldmans show, she said, Why?

But, of course, there is a long lineage of artists working in wee spaces. Lori Nix creates mad slum scenes, destroyed libraries, and postapocalyptic living rooms. Joe Fig has done small replicas of the studios of Jackson Pollock, April Gornik, Chuck Close, and other artists. Janet Cardiff has included models of haunted houses in her elaborate exhibitions. A masterpiece of the genre is Hell, by Jake and Dinos Chapman, a series of containers configured in the shape of a swastika depicting thousands of Nazis being impaled, tortured, and torn apart by tiny demons.

Goldmans grotesque scenes are often set in subtle locations. The window of a suburban home reveals a naked woman in a chair and, in the darkness beyond her, a dead man on the floor. One Die-o-rama features a man taking a picture of a woman posing topless in disheveled woods. Im skeptical when things get really bloody. These pieces spill over into farce, melodrama, parody. A restaurant shows a batch of happy diners while in the kitchen, someone is cutting up a dead body. Its like the movie The Menu. There are decapitations, buried bodies, pools of blood everywhere. I also dont love the way the viewer is held at a distance by plexiglass encasements.

But the best of her ghoulish work has the feeling of films like Fargo or The Florida Project, a nether zone where everything is intricately suspended in its own atmosphere and restrained to the point that it comes across as fiction in the guise of documentary. These are works that make us feel a true American horror story.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. The chairperson of the State Committee for Work with Diaspora Fuad Muradov has met with the leadership of the Congress of Azerbaijanis of Benelux (CAB), operating in the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Trend reports.

According to the information, the meeting was attended by CAB chairman Elsever Mammadov, deputy chairman Sima Jafarova, head of press service Gulnara Aliyeva, and representative for Azerbaijan Majid Mammadov.

Greeting the guests, the Committee Chairman recalled with satisfaction the participation of Diaspora youth from Benelux countries, including the Netherlands, in the 5th Summer Camp of Diaspora Youth, Youth for a Green World," which concluded recently, and expressed his opinion on further deepening of Diaspora activities.

Referring to the activities of CAB in the current year, the leadership of the structure stated that by the end of the year, the next congress will be held and the 5th anniversary of the children's musical theater group Korpa fidanlar will be celebrated. It was also emphasized that drawing and dancing lessons for children will be organized under CAB.

The meeting concluded with an exchange of views on issues of mutual interest.

To note, the Congress of Benelux Azerbaijanis was founded on November 18, 2006, in the capital of the Netherlands, Amsterdam, by 15 diaspora organizations.
A new bombshell has entered the villa. Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos: Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images, Gary Gershoff/WireImage

For most of the year, Paramount and its parent company, National Amusements, have been trying to couple up with a new buyer. It seemed like Skydance had finally won the bid until a new bombshell dropped in the competition to own Paramount. Edgar Bronfman Jr., chairman of FuboTV, raised his competing bid for National Amusements on August 21. According to The Wall Street Journal, Paramount extended the go-shop period by 15 days. However, Bronfman Jr and co. mustve gotten cold feet, and on August 26, they dropped their bid. You probably have questions. Who is Edgar Bronfman Jr.? Whats a go-shop period? Is Skydance winning again? Furthermore, what is a FuboTV? Dont worry, we have answers including the latest development.

Why did he drop the bid?

There isnt a specific reason cited but he does mention some differences that may have led to the withdrawal. Tonight, our bidding group informed the special committee that we will be exiting the go-shop process. It was a privilege to have the opportunity to participate, Bronfman Jr. said on Monday to The Wrap. We continue to believe that Paramount Global is an extraordinary company, with an unrivaled collection of marquee brands, assets and people. While there may have been differences, we believe that everyone involved in the sale process is united in the belief that Paramounts best days are ahead. We congratulate the Skydance team and thank the special committee and the Redstone family for their engagement during the go-shop process.

So does that mean Skydance won?

Yes, David Ellison and Skydance Medias bid of $8 billion is seemingly full steam ahead.

Why is Paramount up for sale?

Technically, its National Amusements thats on the auction block. The company most famously headed by Sumner Redstone bought Viacom in 1987 and Paramount in 1993. Shari Redstone took over National Amusements when Sumner died in 2020.

Of course, its a lot more complicated than that. The shell game of CBS/Viacom/Gulf+Western/Paramount goes back decades, and was made the more complicated when all these entities re-merged in 2019 as Paramount Global. Read Unscripted by James B. Stewart and Rachel Abrams for the whole sordid story. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the combined worth of Viacom and CBS in 2019 at the time of their merger was $30 billion. By the end of that year, it was just below $10 billion. Shari Redstone is now selling her familys controlling interest in Paramount Global. Analysts theorize shes doing so to (1) recoup financially and (2) finally get out from under her fathers shadow.

Wait, didnt Skydance already win this?

Yep, they technically did win the bid twice. National Amusements did accept David Ellison and Skydance Medias bid of $8 billion for National Amusements and a merger with Paramount back in July. That kicked off a 45-day go-shop period, during which competitors could try to match or outdo Skydances offer. Enter Edgar Bronfman Jr. on August 19 with a $4.3 billion offer hes since upped to $6 billion.

Famously, $6 billion is less than $8 billion. But the Bronfman deal did have some upsides. It wouldnt require Paramount to merge with another company, and Bronfman argued it has more value to shareholders. Ellisons deal required Paramount to buy his company in an all-stock transaction, which could lessen shareholder value.

So  who is Edgar Bronfman Jr.?

Would you be shocked to learn hes the son of Edgar Bronfman Sr.? Hes also the grandson of Samuel Bronfman, former owner of Seagrams. Seagrams was, for a time, the worlds largest liquor-distilling firm. It stopped being the largest liquor distilling firm when it merged with Groupe Canal+ and French media firm Vivendi (in an all-stock buyout), something Edgar Bronfman Sr. called a disaster.

Any relation to other famous Bronfmans?

Indeed! Influencer Hannah Bronfman is his daughter. And former NXIVM member Clare Bronfman, who was sentenced to 81 months in prison for her involvement in the cult, is his half-sister.

Which streaming service is FuboTV again?

FuboTV focuses primarily on live sports. On August 17, the company won an injunction against Venu, the joint sports-streaming venture by Fox, Warner Bros. Discovery, and the Walt Disney Company. Lots going on.

Whats next for Paramount?

THR reports that the deal is scheduled to close by next year, with a merged Skydance-Paramount to be valued at $28 billion.
Photo: Gareth Cattermole/TAS24/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management

Taylor Swift has spoken for the first time on the cancelation of her Vienna stops on the Eras Tour, and the foiled terror plot that could have happened. Having our Vienna shows cancelled was devastating, she wrote on Instagram. The reason for the cancellations filled me with a new sense of fear, and a tremendous amount of guilt because so many people had planned on coming to those shows. Swift said she was grateful to authorities because thanks to them, we were grieving concerts and not lives. She also shouted out fans who gathered to swap friendship bracelets and sing songs in Vienna, saying she was heartened by the love and unity I saw.

Swift then discussed what safety measures were put in place for her London shows, as well as explaining why she hadnt made a public statement until now. Let me be very clear: I am not going to speak about something publicly if I think doing so might provoke those who would want to harm the fans who come to my shows, she wrote. In cases like this one, silence is actually showing restraint, and waiting to express yourself at a time when its right to. My priority was finishing our European tour safely, and it is with great relief that I can say we did that. The Eras Tour will resume in October at the Hard Rock Stadium in Florida!!!
Victor Erices fourth feature is a stirring tale about memory, identity, and friendship, and it feels deeply, almost alarmingly personal. Photo: Manolo Pavon

This review was originally published on May 25, 2023 out of the Cannes Film Festival. We are recirculating it now timed to Close Your Eyess theatrical release.

Before this years Cannes, the Spanish director Victor Erice had made only three features in a 50-plus-year career. These happen to be three of the greatest films ever made. The Spirit of the Beehive (1973) is one of Spanish cinemas most beloved treasures. El Sur (1983) had its production cut short and thus is considered something of a film maudit, but to my eyes, its even better than Spirit of the Beehive. And his 1992 documentary, Dream of Light, which won the Jury Prize at Cannes that year, is one of the most mesmerizing meditations on the elusive nature of art that anyone has ever made, anywhere.

That was 31 years ago, and the premiere of a new feature by the now-82-year-old Erice, a three-hour drama called Cerrar los Ojos (Close Your Eyes), was one of the most notable news items in this years Cannes lineup. The director was not present, however, for the Tuesday premiere of his film at the festival. Some suggested it was because he was too ill to make the trip, while others speculated that after so many years out of the limelight, he had taken on a Terrence Malickstyle reticence. (Its worth noting, however, that Erice has continued to make shorts and produce other work over the years; he also served on the Cannes jury in 2010.)

Two days ago, Erice published an op-ed in the Spanish paper El Pais explaining his absence. Turns out, he was just pissed. The directors first feature in 31 years was playing out of competition, a fact Erice apparently learned only at the press conference announcing this years lineup. At Cannes, its generally understood that the main competition is where the best films are screened, though in truth the negotiations over who does and doesnt get to compete are often filled with petty politics and starfuckery. (For example, youre clearly guaranteed a competition slot if your film either stars or was directed by Sean Penn.)

Its in others gazes that we know ourselves. Thats something a filmmaker understands.

To be clear, Erice wasnt annoyed because he wasnt in competition. He felt disrespected by the way the festival had communicated with him, keeping him in the dark about its intentions. This matters because other festivals  including Venice and Canness own parallel fest, Directors Fortnight, which has in the past premiered many major movies from major directors  had offered Erice choice slots. These other venues all effectively got screwed over by Canness inability to communicate properly with the filmmaker.

The good news is that one day all this nonsense will be forgotten but Close Your Eyes will remain. Erices fourth feature is a stirring tale about memory, identity, and friendship, and it feels deeply, almost alarmingly personal. It opens with tantalizing images from what turns out to be an abandoned project called The Farewell Gaze. That picture, we learn, was left unfinished when its star, Julio Arenas (Jose Coronado), disappeared under mysterious circumstances, seemingly walking away from the movie and from his whole life, never to be heard from again. The director, Miguel Garay (Manolo Solo), never shot another roll of film. Indeed, he now lives off the grid, in a trailer by a beach, growing his own tomatoes and catching fish. A TV investigation into Julios disappearance lures Miguel (who sometimes likes to be called Mike) back into the world, and he begins to make inquiries into what might have happened back then.

Theres enough of a mystery in Close Your Eyes that it makes sense to keep the rest of the story secret for now. The film proceeds in stylistically distinct movements. That opening scene, with its lush images of footage allegedly shot long ago, even looks like it could have been a part of a real movie called The Shanghai Spell that Erice spent three years preparing back in the late 1990s, only to have it fall apart. Some have speculated that this actually is footage Erice shot for that project, but that production appears to have stopped well before cameras started rolling.

Erice, however, remains heartbroken over the experience, and its clear that he sees a lot of himself in Miguel, an artist whos withdrawn from the world. At one point, Miguel visits his old projectionist friend Max (Mario Pardo), who has a large, dusty archive full of film reels. Max talks about the fact that 90 percent of cinema history still exists only in celluloid form, even though almost nobody screens 35-mm. anymore. There is a sense throughout Close Your Eyes that everything Miguel knows is being taken away from him. The almost idyllically austere seaside abode where he lives is on the verge of being sold, meaning hell have to leave. Julio might have withdrawn from the world years ago  either by dying or walking away  but now, with his own world slipping away, Miguel understands something about vanishing.

This is a film made by a man who has been unable to direct the films hes wanted to for decades. You feel his frustration and regret in every frame.

Close Your Eyes soon settles into a very deliberate, matter-of-fact cadence, at first built around two-person dialogue scenes. The director even seems to be toying with the viewers patience here, with each scene ending on an almost excruciatingly long fade to black. (I definitely heard some gripes.) But the almost bland textures of this section feel relevant to the whole project, as Erice sets up a stark contrast between the magic world of cinematic make-believe and the humdrum nature of base reality.

Close Your Eyes is about cinema, too, though not in the way that weve become used to in recent years; its not a love letter or a poison-pen missive, but rather an exploration of cinema as memory and of the relative value of that memory. This is a film made by a man who has been unable to direct the films hes wanted to for decades. You feel his frustration and regret in every frame, but you also sense a sort of acceptance. At one point, Miguel types out on a keyboard a statement about an artist who had decided that his masterpiece would not be his work, but his life. Is that an aspirational thought or a desperate one?

The final section of the picture asks, in mesmerizing and unbearably touching fashion, what really makes a life. Is it memory and identity, the cumulative power of all our experiences, the knowledge of our friends and family? Or is it simply the ability to be happy and present? Those opening scenes of that film abandoned long ago feature a man who talks about how often his name has changed over the years, and he laments the fact that his estranged daughter, who is half-Chinese, has been given a different name by her mother. Everybodys name seems to undergo multiple changes in this movie. Whats in a name? Why does who we are even matter in the grand scheme of things?

As Miguels search goes on, we might begin to wonder if hes really looking for Julio or for himself. The man in the unfinished movie longs for one last glance from his daughter  that farewell gaze of the title  before he dies. Miguel needs Julios memory more than Julio needs his own. Its in others gazes that we know ourselves. Thats something a filmmaker understands. And its something that a filmmaker who hasnt been able to make a film really understands.
Search continues for final missing body on Bayesian

Divers searching for six missing people following the sinking of a superyacht off Sicily's coast have recovered five bodies, Italian authorities said on Thursday.

There were four Britons and two Americans left missing after the luxury Bayesian yacht sank during a violent storm at dawn on Monday.

They were UK tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch, his teenage daughter Hannah, Morgan Stanley International bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy, and Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda.

Italian news agency ANSA and state broadcaster RAI News report that the four bodies recovered on Wednesday belonged to Bloomer and Morvillo and their respective wives, however authorities have yet to confirm the identities.

Italian media reported that the fifth body brought ashore on Thursday morning belonged to Mike Lynch, with the body of his 18-year-old daughter Hannah still unaccounted for.

There were 10 crew members and 12 passengers onboard the British-flagged yacht when it was hit by a waterspout, similar to a tornado, as it lay anchored just off Porticello, east of Palermo.

There were 15 survivors who were thrown from the deck into the sea before the luxury yacht sank to a depth of about 50 metres. The body of the yacht's chef, Recaldo Thomas, was recovered on Monday.

As prosecutors investigate whether the captain and crew took all the necessary safety measures to prevent the disaster, questions remain over how the luxury yacht sank.

Giovanni Costantino, founder and CEO of The Italian Sea Group, the parent company of Perini Navi which built the Bayesian in Viareggio in 2008, told Corriere della Sera that the yacht was "unsinkable" and suggested that human error might be to blame.

The Bayesian was owned by Revtom, a firm controlled by Mike Lynch's wife Angela Bacares who was among the 15 survivors of the tragedy.

Known as the "British Bill Gates", Lynch was reportedly celebrating his recent acquittal in a high-profile US court case when the Bayesian sank.

Lynch, 59, had been accused by Hewlett-Packard (HP) of inflating the value of his software company Autonomy which he sold to the tech giant for $11 billion in 2011.

The entrepreneur, who always denied any wrongdoing, was acquitted in the US in June on multiple fraud charges, over which he had faced two decades in jail.

In a strange coincidence, Stephen Chamberlain, Autonomy's former vice-president and Lynch's co-defendant in the US fraud case, died after being hit by a car while out running on Saturday.
Rome police investigate cause of wildfire.

One firefighter and three civil protection volunteers were hospitalised with severe burns sustained while battling a vast wildfire in the eastern outskirts of Rome on Wednesday.

Police have launched an investigation into the blaze which broke out between the Torre Spaccata and Cinecitta districts and saw the deployment of all available units of Rome's fire brigade and civil protection units.

The four injured emergency responders suffered serious burns after the winds changed and they became encircled by flames, with a civil protection vehicle also destroyed in the fire.

The firefighter, 51, is in a critical condition with burns to 54 per cent of his body, reports La Repubblica, while the three civil protection voluteers were also very seriously injured.

Maxi #incendio a #Roma: in codice rosso per le ustioni 4 soccorritori. Le fiamme si sono sviluppate nel cosiddetto #pratone tra Cinecitta est, Torre Spaccata, Lamaro, Don Bosco e Cecafumo. Le operazioni di spegnimento sono ancora in corsopic.twitter.com/4Wt1ozyH0Y  Rai Radio1 (@Radio1Rai) August 21, 2024

In a statement, Rome mayor Roberto Gualtieri offered his sincere thanks and best wishes for a speedy recovery to the four people injured in the blaze.

Separately, the city is undertaking a clear-up operation at the Monte Mario nature reserve, on a hill in a northern suburb of the capital, which was devastated by a recent wildfire.

The blaze is believed to have started at an illegal campsite, one of several makeshift camps that the city is working to dismantle and remove from the slopes of Monte Mario.

Photo Roma Capitale - Nova
Agrigento outlaws souvenirs that glorify Mafia.

The mayor of the Sicilian city of Agrigento has banned the sale of Mafia-themed souvenirs in an effort to promote legality and avoid negative stereotypes of the Italian island.

The ban was announced after some shops in the city centre displayed souvenir figures portraying Sicilians dressed in traditional clothes and carrying the lupara sawn-off shotgun, complete with the words "u mafiusu".

The ordinance introduced by mayor Francesco Micciche prohibits tourist souvenir shops from selling "objects and representations reminiscent of the mafia and mafiosi" or items that "praise, or refer in any way or form, to the mafia and organised crime".

The prohibition order states that the sale of such souvenirs "mortifies the Agrigento community, which has been engaged for years in spreading the culture of legality".

The ban comes as the city on Sicily's southern coast prepares to assume the prestigious role of Italy's Capital of Culture 2025.

In 2019 authorities at Agrigento's archaeological park at the Valley of the Temples banned the sale of Mafia souvenir items in its vicinity.

Photo credit: lindasky76 / Shutterstock.com.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. As Azerbaijanis living abroad, we highly appreciate the upcoming parliamentary elections on September 1, the chairperson of the Eskisehir Azerbaijanis Association and deputy chairman of the Federation of Turkish-Azerbaijani Associations Javid Aydin told the Independent Media Center Sehki 2024, Trend reports.

''These elections are a historic event for Azerbaijan. For a long time, no voting has been held in our occupied lands in connection with the elections to Milli Majlis. Now polling stations have been established in Shusha, Khankendi, and our other historical lands, and our people will vote in their native lands. As Azerbaijanis living abroad, we are very happy and proud of this,'' he said.

He noted that Azerbaijan has already stepped into a new stage.

The new parliament will take steps to flexibly address issues related to the further development of our country. I wish that this election will benefit our people, our motherland, he added.
Tidy Towns

Stradbally Tidy Towns Committee would like to say a big thank you to our Stradbally XL Stores proprietor Robert Gough and his staff for his support of our situation during a recent burglary. Robert placed a donation bucket in his shop and has now handed over the wonderful contents of that bucket 330 to our committee to help with replacing equipment. Our sincere thanks to Robert and to all who donated to the bucket for our benefit. We appreciate your support and generosity.

Community Climate Action

Stradbally Tidy Towns Committee is delighted to be included as one of the 17 groups announced last week to receive Climate Action Grant Funding. We had entered specific projects towards Climate Action earlier this year. How it works is, we raise the money to complete each specific project, then when complete, we can apply to the overseer of the scheme for reimbursement up to the value of 5,334. We do not get this money until we actually have the amount spent.

Bally News

A night is being held for Fr Michael Enright in the Community Hall in Ballylaneen, Kilmacthomas to celebrate his 60 years in the priesthood and all the great work he did while a priest here in Bally. The event will take place on Friday, August 23, at 7.30pm. Please come and join us on the night.

Charity Tractor Run

The Irish Wheelchair Association annual Tractor Run - with vintage cars and motorbikes also welcome - takes place in Stradbally on Sunday, September 22, at the local GAA grounds. Registration will take place from 11am and the run will begin at 12 noon.

For further details contact Caroline on 087 2556835. Proceeds from the run will go towards the Waterford City & County Branch of the Irish Wheelchair Association.

Stradbally Market

There was a lovely open air market on the Square on Saturday morning where everyone enjoyed the sunshine.

The stalls were filled with new potatoes, carrots, lettuce, tomatoes, strawberries, oven-fresh bread, scones tarts, Eabha's fancy buns and millionaire shortbread was back. Some visitors mingled with the local shoppers, admiring the local cards and prints, while others enjoyed tea and scones at the Cove Bar. Brigid was trying to keep her jams and relish in the shade from the warm sun. You can preorder any product for sale by calling Margaret on 087 6337215 just drop by and pick up. They will be back to do it all again next Saturday.
A team of dedicated paramedics from Waterford braved the grueling Hell and Back challenge earlier this year to raise money for charity.

The event itself took place on June 8.

The Waterford ambulance service members were delighted to be able to raise much-needed funds for the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust (KBRT), which is an organisation that resonates with them on a personal level.

However, the event also served a dual purpose as it enabled them to boost their team morale and reinforce and enhance their strong bond of camaraderie.

Pictured are Colin Bell (founder of the charity) and Caroline Donnelly

'Hell and Back' is widely regarded as one of Ireland's toughest, physical and mental endurance events.

However, the Waterford crew were very happy to rise to the challenge.

It saw the paramedics tackle mud-soaked obstacles, freezing water, and grueling terrain at Kilruddery Estate in County Wicklow.

While the team is very accustomed to handling high-pressure situations in their daily work, they admitted to finding the challenge of the course both demanding and rewarding.

We faced it as a team, just as we do in our daily duties, and that made all the difference," said one of the paramedics, Rosie Somers.

The paramedics chose to participate in the event not only to push their limits but also to support KBRT, a charity close to their hearts.

The Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust assists families in bringing home loved ones who have tragically passed away abroad.

Pictured (l-to-r) are: Paul Malone, Rosie Somers, Clodagh Murphy, Colin Bell, Jessica O'Shea, Stephen Thul and Caroline Donnelly.

The cause resonated deeply with the paramedics, who often witness firsthand the pain and challenges families face during such difficult times.

KBRT is also a cause very close to their hearts as there colleague, Caroline Donnelly had to use the charity herself to bring her beloved son Cormac home to his family.

All of the paramedics enjoyed the experience of participating in the challenge and they took great satisfaction from being able to help support such a very worthy organisation.

The team raised a total of 1,925 for what they themselves described as "this amazing charity".
People gathered at Ferrybank Library last week in support of the most recent exhibition carried out by the Ferrybank Women's Shed, which highlighted the skills and talent of the women in our midst.

The ladies involved in the Ferrybank Women's Shed had been working on their embroidery skills most recently, however, it was much more than following a pattern.

The Roses from the Heart exhibition took place in Ferrybank Library last week.

This project, which is supported by the Roses from the Heart Waterford group and funded by the WWETB, was linked with the history of some 350 Waterford women who were convicted of petty crimes between the years of 1778 and 1853.

The women's colourful crafty work was on display, some of whom had many years of experience in embroidering, and others had begun to learn at the commencement of the project. However, it was difficult to distinguish who the newcomers were as the bonnets were absolutely beautiful.

The time and detail that went into the bonnets signified a lovely memorial to the Roses from the Heart Tribute - to which the exhibition was linked.

The Roses from the Heart Tribute was originally founded by Tasmanian artist Dr. Christina Henri.

Overall, the exhibition is a unique memorial to more than 25,500 women who were forced to travel because of their social class and poverty.

Speaking about the exhibition to the Waterford News & Star, facilitator of the Bonnet Project, Anne Quinlan said: "I think it's very special, because these women, they're forgotten in history, so this is a way of really remembering them."

"It's a memorial for them, in a sense. And I just think it's a very special statement, you know, for the women," explained Ms Quinlan.

"We don't learn about this in school, and it should be part of our history in school.

"But by having this exhibition now, as small as it is, we hope to expand and create awareness for these women who aren't in our history books," she added.

Ms Quinlan then spoke of the impact of the project on the members of the group.

She described the social side of the project as "just beautiful".

"The personal development is very important, and this project links in massively and resonated with our members because we want to try and fight isolation, and that's what a lot of women are coming from," said Ms Quinlan.

"When they come here, to the Women's Shed, they're making friends, I mean, lifelong friends, and they'll attest to that.

"We're such a close little bunch, it's like a family in a sense, because we've laughed together, we've cried together, we've been shocked by history together and we've learned so much," she continued.

"Some people might come in with different skills and it's just been a whirlwind of knowledge and fun," said Ms Quinlan.

With the success of the project in creating awareness and the positive aspect of personal development, Ms Quinlan said the women involved are looking forward to taking part again next year, "and we hope that we'll get other people to come as well," she said.

Ms Quinlan concluded by thanking everyone who dedicated their time to the project.
The St Joseph & St Benildus and St Mary's Parish in Waterford has revived a long-standing city and county tradition of assisting families in developing countries by forging a partnership with a poor parish in Kenya.

Parish priest Fr Liam Power, who is a columnist with Waterford News & Star, said the aim of the partnership is to assist the Good Shepherd Parish in Ishiara, which is a semi-arid region where the year-round growing of crops and raising of livestock is not possible due to lack of resources to harvest sufficient water during the rainy seasons.

St Joseph & St Benildus and St Mary's Parish is assisting the Kenyan parish in the area of water security and education at present.

Through donations, the parish is currently putting three students through secondary education and the organising committee is hoping that other families, groups or small companies will come forward to help other students.

The program is called 'Support a student in Ishiara' (SASI for short). However, the committee would also welcome with open arms any help from larger companies and their employees.

Secondary education in Kenya is not free - it costs about 600 per annum to put a child through school. Such a sum is impossible for most local people and the St Joseph & St Benildus and St Mary's committee is seeking a commitment to sponsor a child for the full six years which, it is estimated, will cost about 50 a month for the duration.

It is a significant commitment, said Fr Power.

"But for a group of people, a small business or even some families, it would be possible and would be a wonderful, generous thing to do as it would totally transform the life of a boy or girl in Kenya, enabling them to earn their own living after school and to then contribute to their own community," he added.

"We in Ireland learned long ago that education was the way forward out of poverty. We understand the enormous benefits it brings and, hopefully, we will be able to change the lives of more boys and girls in Ishiara by sending them to secondary school.

Fr Power went on to comment: "We appreciate that there are numerous calls on peoples money today but, if we can think of children who have no chance of progress if not assisted by the likes of us, we will be doing a noble and Christian service to those with very little hope.

Fr Power added that sponsors will receive profiles and updates on the child's progress over the years. He also pointed out that a few years ago, Waterford City was in a partnership with the Kenyan district of Kitui.

While being a very successful partnership, it ran its course and was eventually wound up. The remaining cash fund of 7,000 was recently transferred by the Kitui trustees to the new Ishiara Partnership.

St Benildus and St Joseph Parish is also, currently, working on one water project to help alleviate water harvesting deficiencies in the Good Shepherd Parish with the groundworks commencing on August 12.
In a letter of 25th March 2024, then Taoiseach Leo Varadkar informed Waterford TD Matt Shanahan that 100 major third-level capital projects had been built since 2011 when the proposed WIT new engineering and business school buildings were cancelled.

Much has been made of the 3/4million spent on buying the old glass site as distinct from actually building anything for SETU, but the state spending nationally on new third-level buildings from 2016 to 2023 was 645,924,766.23.

The small change at the end of that sum is 23 cent more than the entire amount spent on new teaching buildings at WIT/SETU in that period, because nothing has been spent here on new third-level teaching facilities in almost 20 years.

This is the educational crime of the century, unequalled in Ireland, the suppression of WIT, a fine institution... for political purposes?

The people of Waterford know that buildings, which were the subject of a PPP in 2009 and for which a vacant, weed-covered site was prepared at a cost of 2.9 million in 2008 and is now surrounded by rusty fences on the Cork Road in Waterford, were cancelled by the 2011 Fine Gael-led government.

The last new teaching building on the Cork Road campus, the humanities building at the junction of the Cork Road and Brownes Road, was started in 1998.

Waiting for Godot, the play by Samuel Beckett, has two characters, Vladimir and Estragon who engage in a variety of discussions while awaiting the titular Godot, who never arrives. As our long, hot (not) summer drifts into autumn and the expiry date of 17th December 2024 for planning permission number 19669 of November 2019, which allows for the construction of the proposed new engineering building at SETU Waterford, looms ever closer, the Beckettian conversations now inevitably ask, will it go ahead?

Our present Taoiseach Simon Harris, formerly Minister for Further Education, pulled the proposed new Waterford engineering building from PPP Bundle 1 in 2020 to force WIT to merge with Carlow IT, to create SETU. While the WIT and Carlow merger has happened, and five new buildings have been constructed at Carlow IT in recent years (risibly described as from their own resources by the Fine Gael faithful), nothing has been built in Waterford.

As the number of PPP contractors seeking to build the new engineering building has shrunk to a single tender, the costs have escalated. Mr Harris has been, if not hoist, then at least damaged financially, with his own petard. The extent of collateral damage to SETU Waterford will only be assessable when 2024 CAO applicant numbers become available.

Mr Harriss public pledge last month, to get the job done for Waterford on cardiology, airport and university, has yet to see action. Irish Times political columnist Pat Leahy predicts a General Election on November 15 next. Time is short and who could vote for Mr Harris if construction has not started on this project?

Construction has started on a major new extension to Newtown School in the city, adding grist to the election rumour, as does the story in last weeks paper that Health Minister Donnelly will be here mid-September for the commencement of a new surgical hub at UHW. This development is very much a rescue parachute for local minister Mary Butler whose tenure in the Dept. of Health has been characterized by a bizarre failure to ensure UHW received a proportionate share of acute capital investment as a Model 4 hospital.

It is now rumoured (crocodile tears not backed by money?) that HSE management fully acknowledges that UHW has been neglected in terms of capital development.

Anyone looking at the HSE reply to our reporter Darragh Murphy, carried in last weeks paper, would eye roll at the delays and lack of progress affecting Waterford health projects. The impenetrable bureau-speak that accompanies HSE responses testifies to the sweets in a jar nature of its capital development process. Talk of strategic assessment reports, preliminary business cases, design team appointment, scoping exercises, refurbishment reviews, capital estates reviews etc, are summarised: Project currently at the initiation stage and no exact commencement date is known.

Only those with political power can have a sweet from the capital development jar. Is Minister Butler, who failed to have any acute capital resources delivered to UHW in 2023, in that category? Many HSE Model 3 hospitals around the country have had more capital investment under this government since 2020 than UHW.

Expansion of manpower and budget at UHW is certainly welcome, but the same level of expansion, give or take, has happened at every other hospital in the country, bar none.

UHWs last major development was the Dunmore Wing in 2018. No other Model 4 hospital has been so denied capital investment, yet no other Model 4 hospital has delivered such results and efficiencies with such relatively slender resources. Excellence has gone un-rewarded.

In house HSE reports are adamant that UHW is defined and nationally accepted as a Model 4 hospital. So wheres the equity?

During the recent UHW transfer from Cork-based SSWHG to the new Slaintecare Dublin and South East region, there are whispers that Waterford HSE projects were deliberately allowed wither on the vine.

As a corollary, Emmet Malones article in last Thursdays Irish Times can only be read with a sense of bewilderment. 40% of 19,328 doctors working in Ireland last year received their qualifications outside Ireland. The government has even invested in medical schools in Derry and Belfast, yet the possibility of a medical school, for many the very essence of what a university is, has not been prioritised by SETU.

Even nursing school numbers are capped in comparison to other institutions.

Between SETU and UHW, Waterford has all the requirements for a graduate medical school. UPMC has expressed interest in such a development without response. One suspects, as ever, that maintenance of the Cork/Dublin status quo is at fault.

If Taoiseach Harris really wants to deliver a university of scale and quality in Waterford and the South East as he has stated, a new engineering school building would start, new courses in veterinary medicine and ophthalmology would be granted, and the development of a medical school with UHW would be front and centre on his agenda.
Improving Australias biggest pizza chain from the inside out will be the legacy of Dominos Pizzas new chief executive officer Kerri Hayman, as the business hopes to convince investors it is firmly back on a path of growth.

Hayman, who started with the business 36 years ago as a pizza maker and last week took over the top job from her brother, group CEO and managing director Don Meij, signalled her intention to invest in training store workers to instil a culture of obsession with quality and boost pizza sales.

Don Meijs sister Kerri Hayman is the new chief executive of Dominos Pizza, Australia and New Zealand.

When you have an obsession with the basics on making a great product, youre going to do well. When you focus on your team members and get them to fall in love with the job, youre going to do well, she said.

We get really nerdy with the things that we do in store. A simple thing like putting sauce on a pizza, how hard can that be? Well, looking at the tool we use to do that and making it easy for the team member to use, make it a training tool  Theres a lot that goes into it, more than what you probably think.
It all started with a seemingly innocuous joke.

During a dinner to celebrate the Rural Womens Awards in Parliament House on Tuesday night, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese dropped an off-script remark about a discussion with Indonesian president-elect Prabowo Subianto concerning beef exports.

When we had dinner  beautiful Australian beef  not the live export  we made sure it was dead.

Its fair to say the rather limp gag failed to land.

Despite the joke not making it into the version of the speech distributed to media, it was quickly swooped on by the federal opposition, and some farmers groups, who are very upset about the governments decision to ban live sheep exports.
It all started with a seemingly innocuous joke.

During a dinner to celebrate the Rural Womens Awards in Parliament House on Tuesday night, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese dropped in an off-script remark about a discussion with Indonesian president-elect Prabowo Subianto about beef exports.

The opposition swooped on Prime Minister Anthony Albaneses comments. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

When we had dinner, beautiful Australian beef  not the live export  we made sure it was dead.

Its fair to say that the rather limp gag failed to land.
Microplastics made up 0.5 per cent of the average weight of human brain samples tested in a US study, and alarmed researchers said levels of plastic in brain tissue have increased by 50 per cent since 2016.

Off the back of his preliminary results, toxicologist Dr Matthew Campen from the University of New Mexico suggested plastic may have been acting for decades as an unrecognised dark matter driver of global health issues including dementia and plunging male fertility.

Microplastics and nanoplastics have been discovered at alarmingly high levels in human brain tissue. Credit: Justin McManus

Campen previously made news when he discovered microplastics laced every single placenta and testicle sample he tested.

But his latest study  which has been released as a pre-print, meaning its not yet peer-reviewed by a journal  found 24 human brain samples contained micro- and nanoplastics (MNPs) at levels seven to 30 times higher than other tissues in the body.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 23. These elections are held at a crucial juncture for the future and progress of Azerbaijan, and this election is a golden chance to lend an ear to the people's voice in these times of change, and heed the desires of the people, head of the Aberdeen Student Society operating in the UK Ibrahim Khasiyev told the Independent Media Center Sechki 2024, Trend reports.

''Holding fair and transparent elections at such a time will also have a positive impact on the image of the country in the international arena,'' he added.

Although I am abroad, these elections for me are a manifestation of my civic duty and my commitment to my country. I highly appreciate this election as an opportunity to contribute to the further development of Azerbaijan and to take part in strengthening democratic values. It also demonstrates how important it is to actively involve Azerbaijani youth living abroad in the country's political processes, he emphasized.
A new front in the war over e-scooters for hire has opened with an alliance of inner northern councils vowing to support the alternative transport mode in the face of a ban from the City of Melbourne.

The mayors of Merri-bek, Darebin and Moonee Valley signalled their support for a rental e-scooter scheme by rolling through suburban streets in their mayoral robes, with one urging Melbourne City Council to reverse the short-sighted ban.

Merri-bek Mayor Adam Pulford, Darebin Mayor Susanne Newton and Moonee Valley Mayor Pierce Tyson support e-scooters. Credit: Jason South

Merri-beks Adam Pulford and Darebins Susanne Newton, from the Greens, and Labors Moonee Valley Mayor Pierce Tyson have banded together declaring their intention to explore trialling a shared mobility zone to help curb road congestion, reduce pollution and provide their growing population with cheap and sustainable transport options.

[There are] critical gaps in travelling east to west across our municipalities, and e-scooters and e-bikes could save people time by avoiding a long public transport trip in and out of the city, they said in a joint statement.
A man who repeatedly punched a woman in her own home, demanding that she hand over money, was on a court supervision order at the time of the offence that left the woman with horrific facial injuries.

Heath Thomas Wynne, 29, was sentenced to six years in prison on Thursday after the court heard he and Jamy Ryan Addison, 33, drove to a property on Halcyon Way in Atwell at around 9am on June 14 2022.

WA Police Detective First Class Constable Alastair McDonald said the assault was incredibly severe. Credit: Nine News Perth

Addison remained outside the home in a white BMW while Wynne scaled the propertys fence and entered through a side door.

The court heard a woman in her 30s was at home in her bed when she heard someone enter and thought it was her husband.
Teal MP Kylea Tink wants to take a complaint about offensive and degrading personal comments to the new parliamentary watchdog the government wants to introduce  but other MPs are worried political parties could weaponise its powers.

Incidents of bullying, assault and sexual assault in Canberras parliament could be punished if the much-delayed Independent Parliamentary Standards Commission comes into law after it was tabled in the House on Wednesday.

Independent member for North Sydney Kylea Tink will take a bullying complaint to the new watchdog if it passes into law. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

Tink said she will explore the possibility of making a complaint about Coalition MPs sending out electronic direct mail she said is inflammatory.

Its a piece of marketing they send far and wide and sometimes theyre very offensive and degrading things written about me, she said.
Porticello: Divers searching the wreck of a super yacht that sank off Sicily have found the bodies of five passengers, leaving one still missing as questions intensified about why the vessel sank so quickly when a nearby sailboat remained largely unscathed.

Rescue crews brought four body bags ashore at Porticello. Salvatore Cocina, head of the Sicily civil protection agency, said a fifth body had been located. Divers on-scene said they would try to recover while continuing the search for the sixth.

Italian Firefighters scuba divers bring ashore in a blue bag the body of one of the victims of the UK flag vessel Bayesian. Credit: AP

The discovery made clear the operation to search the hull on the seabed 50 metres underwater had quickly turned into a recovery one, not a rescue, with no signs of life over three days of searching.

The Bayesian, a 56-metre British-flagged yacht, went down in a storm early on Monday. It was moored about a kilometre offshore. Civil protection officials said they believed the ship was struck by a tornado over the water, known as a waterspout.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. A business trip to Southeast Asia is being conducted by Elchin Amirbayov, Representative of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, on special assignments, with the goal of expanding cooperation and exchanging experiences with international organizations that specialize in mine action, Trend reports via ANAMA.

During the trip, the Azerbaijani delegation held a meeting with Lieutenant General Nattawut Sabyeroop, the Director General of the Thailand Mine Action Center (TMAC).

A variety of topics were covered during the meeting, including humanitarian demining expertise sharing, collaborative training programs, new ways of conducting demining operations, capacity development, and technical assistance.

Amirbayov detailed the scope of Azerbaijan's landmine problem and stressed the need for more international attention and funding to find a solution. He made it clear that the meeting would be a huge step forward in fostering collaboration in this area.

Chairman of the Board of the Mine Action Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan (ANAMA) Vugar Suleymanov, , highlighted the necessity of establishing close and direct communication between the two organizations, considering their extensive experience in humanitarian demining. He also invited representatives of the Thailand Mine Action Center to participate in an international conference on mine action planned to be held in Azerbaijan.

During the meeting, representatives from both ANAMA and TMAC shared information about their activities in mine action and their achievements in this field. There was also an exchange of experiences and discussion of future potential cooperation regarding the organization of the ANAMA-UNDP International Centre of Excellence and Training for Mine Action, which is planned to be established in Azerbaijan.

Rotna Buth, Executive Director of the ASEAN Regional Mine Action Center (ARMAC), underscored the importance of expanding cooperation between the demining agencies of ARMAC member countries and ANAMA.

Additionally, the Director General of the TMAC expressed readiness for experience and training exchanges with Azerbaijan in the field of mine action.

The meeting at the Thailand Mine Action Center was organized by ARMAC, the regional demining organization for member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Meetings are in full swing as part of the visit, with a keen focus on getting the lowdown on international practices in mine action, swapping stories, and shining a spotlight on the landmine problem in Azerbaijan for the international community.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Press Release

August 22, 2024 CHIZ RENEWS CALL FOR AVIATION TERMINAL AMID ALICE GUO'S DEPARTURE Senate President Francis "Chiz" G. Escudero on Wednesday renewed his call for the establishment of a general aviation terminal in the Philippines, pointing to the ease with which individuals, like dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo, can slip in and out of the country without undergoing the standard inspections by customs and immigration officials. In an interview on the sidelines of the 30th Defense and Sporting Arms Show at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City, Escudero expressed his long-standing frustration over the country's aviation infrastructure, a concern he has repeatedly highlighted during budget deliberations. "Matagal ko nang sinisingil ang CAAP [Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines] at DOTr [Department of Transportation] kaugnay sa kawalan natin ng general aviation terminal mula nang inimbento ang airport sa Pilipinas," Escudero said, underscoring the gap in the system that allows the wealthy to bypass the usual checks that ordinary citizens face. He explained that without a general aviation terminal, individuals with private planes can bypass standard procedures, including inspections by customs and immigration, making it easier for them to travel in and out of the country undetected. Escudero pointed out that currently, those with private planes simply go to their hangars, have their passports stamped, and proceed to their private lounges before boarding their planes. "Sa ngayon, sinumang may private plane, iyong mga mayayaman, ay pupunta lamang sa hangar nila, ipapadala ang passport nila, papatatakan, pupunta sila sa lounge nila at sasakay na sa eroplano para umalis. Pag-landing pabalik ng Pilipinas ganun ulit," Escudero lamented, illustrating how the absence of a general aviation terminal creates a privileged escape route for those who can afford it. With San Miguel Corporation (SMC) set to play a significant role in the country's aviation industry starting September 20, Escudero is set to seek the establishment of a general aviation terminal. He noted that SMC plans to convert the nation's oldest airport terminal into this much-needed facility, a move that Escudero believes could finally close the loophole. The urgency of Escudero's call was further underscored by the recent departure of Guo, who managed to leave the country despite her controversial status. Without a dedicated terminal for private flights, law enforcement agencies are left in a difficult position, struggling to monitor and prevent the departure of individuals who can easily evade detection. "Madaling lusutan dahil wala nga tayong general aviation terminal. So, ang napakadaling lusutan basta may pera ka madali kang makakalabas ng bansa at makakabalik din," Escudero noted. When asked about holding law enforcement agencies accountable for Guo's exit, Escudero pointed to President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.'s recent statement that he would hold these agencies to account, with heads expected to roll. "Sabi ng Pangulo mismo ay kanyang sisingilin ang mga law enforcement agencies. Ayon mismo sa Pangulo, heads will roll," Escudero pointed out. Escudero also speculated that Guo likely used a chartered plane to escape, though he acknowledged the myriad ways someone with means could leave the Philippines, given its archipelagic nature. "Malamang iyon ang ginawa niya. Maliban na lang kung nagbarko rin siya," he mused, noting the various escape routes available to the well-connected. As the situation unfolds, Escudero's renewed push for a general aviation terminal serves as a stark reminder of the need for tighter controls and enhanced oversight in the country's aviation sector to prevent future abuses of privilege and power.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. The project Opera and Fashion of 7 Beauties will be presented at the Heydar Aliyev Center on September 22, Trend reports.

This project of the SULTAN COUTURE&Co brand conveys the idea of the unity of two leading art directions - music and fashion.

Opera and fashion have always been closely related to each other. Opera attires has always penetrated the world of fashion, and vice versa, fashion trends have always penetrated the opera stage. Opera and Fashion 7 Beauties stage will combine ornaments of Azerbaijani kelaghayi and elements of national costumes in modern evening dresses in the performance of fashion designer Orkhan Sultan.

The repertoire of the concert will consist of a synthesis of arias from Azerbaijani operas, operettas, romances, and duets with world works.

Vocalists invited from the world's leading operas and performing at major music venues will perform at the Heydar Aliyev Center on this day: soloist of the Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Moscow Academic Musical Theater Anastasia Chernovolos, Honored Artist of Azerbaijan, guest soloist of the Helikon-Opera Moscow Musical Theater Elnara Mammadova, soloist of the Bolshoi Theater of Russia Jala Ismayilova, Honored Artist of Uzbekistan, guest soloist of the St. Petersburg State Academic Mariinsky Theater, guest soloist of the St. Petersburg State Academic Mariinsky Theater, guest soloist of the St. Petersburg State Academic Mariinsky Theater, guest soloist of the St. Petersburg State Academic Mariinsky Theater, guest soloist of the St. Petersburg State Academic Mariinsky Theater, guest soloist of the St. Petersburg State Academic Mariinsky Theater. Honored Artist of Azerbaijan Ramil Gasimov will also perform as a guest.

The performers will be accompanied by the Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra, named after Uzeyir Hajibeyli under the direction of conductor Mustafa Mehmandarov.

Throughout the night, the images of performers on the stage of the Heydar Aliyev Center will change several times. The unique and original evening attire created on the motives of the national costumes of Azerbaijan by Orkhan Sultan, which the opera divas will wear, will be complemented with jewelry of the famous LEO PIZZO brand.

The concert program will end with a joint performance by the artists of the eternal song Azerbaijan by Muslim Magomayev.

The exhibition will be presented at the Heydar Aliyev Center on the same day. Various attires by SULTAN COUTURE will be presented at the exhibition.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. First Deputy Chairman of the Board of the Azerbaijan Republic Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA) Bahruz Mammadov held a meeting with a delegation headed by former Finnish Defense Minister Jan-Erik Enestam, Trend reports via ANAMA.

The meeting covered a lot of ground, including the severity of the mine problem in Azerbaijan, the areas mined by Armenians without following military protocol, the contamination of civilian areas, and the locations of mines and booby traps along the former contact line. The delegation was also briefed on the demining efforts in our country and the large-scale humanitarian operations to remove mine hazards.

Enestam expressed gratitude for the information provided, noting that Azerbaijan's achievements in combating the mine threat are praiseworthy and that the report to be prepared based on the data provided during the visit to Azerbaijan will be submitted to the relevant structures in Finland.

Mammadov emphasized the importance of expanding international partnerships and providing support towards overcoming the mine problem faced by the country.

Furthermore, it was noted that the meeting was organized by the "Finland-Azerbaijan Friendship Society" based on an appeal sent to the State Committee for Diaspora Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
By Grainne Ni Aodha, PA

A 61-year-old man has appeared in court in relation to the murder of three Northern Ireland policemen in an IRA bomb attack in 1982.

Martin John McCauley, with an address at Esmondale, Naas, Co Kildare, appeared before the High Court in Dublin after being arrested on foot of an extradition warrant.

Detective Sergeant Adrian Murray told the court that he arrested McCauley in Naas at 6.41pm on Wednesday after asking him several questions to establish his identity.

Mr Murray also said he showed him a copy of the EU-UK Trade and Co-operation Agreement in the English language.

He identified McCauley to the court on Thursday as the man at the back of the room in an orange top.

He said the warrant related to the PSNI investigation into the murder of Royal Ulster Constabulary Sergeant Sean Quinn and constables Allan McCloy and Paul Hamilton.

The three RUC officers were killed in an IRA blast at Kinnego Embankment in Co Armagh on October 27 1982.

Royal Ulster Constabulary Sergeant Sean Quinn and constables Allan McCloy and Paul Hamilton (Family handouts/PA)

Mr Murray told the court that a bomb was placed on a culvert and detonated remotely from a van overlooking the road.

He said the detonation site was on a raised embankment and a plastic sheeting was placed on the embankment.

He added that it is believed the car bomb was detonated by two members of the IRA and described the attack as carefully planned.

The detective also referred to forensic evidence in the case against McCauley.

The court heard that McCauleys role in the incident has not yet been determined, but he will be charged with the murder of the three RUC officers on October 27th, 1982.

The detective said when he asked McCauley if he knew what the charges were about, he answered no.

Mr Murray objected to bail due to the serious nature of the incident.

Andrew Moriarty, representing McCauley in court, said they would be applying for bail and that McCauley was entirely anchored to this jurisdiction.

He also told the court that McCauley has indicated his preparedness to be interviewed by PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boutcher.

Ms Justice Miriam ORegan said she was satisfied that the man in court was the man named in the warrant, Martin John McCauley.

Im satisfied that the correct person is before the court, she said.

She adjourned the matter until next Wednesday when it will appear before the Criminal Courts of Justice and remanded McCauley in custody.

The Public Prosecution Service (PPS) confirmed an individual is to be prosecuted for the murder of three RUC officers.

It said the decision was taken in April, before controversial new legacy laws came into effect, which prevent new cases being mounted.

A PPS spokesperson said: Following careful consideration of all the available evidence in a file submitted by Operation Kenova, the PPS took a decision to prosecute one individual in relation to the 1982 murders of Sergeant Sean Quinn and Constables Allan McCloy and Paul Hamilton.

As proceedings are live it would not be appropriate to comment further.
Ireland West Airport Knock welcomed home Colette and Pat Lavelle (Westport) on Wednesday.

They arrived all the way from Singapore via London Heathrow with Aer Lingus.

It was a 13-hour journey for the pair which was made easier by arriving in their home county.

Knock Airport said it was "just one of the many lovely stories weve heard from people using our Heathrow service which provides connectivity from all over the world."
Im in a mildly reminiscent mood this week as I reflect on the recent death of the writer, Edna OBrien, and the memories it evokes. I recall my student years in Maynooth College, and the memory of priest-professor, Peter Connolly (or Pete as he was known to students) who was the Professor of English in a Maynooth struggling to make peace with a changing world.

Connolly, who was a breath of fresh air among the musty corridors (if not dreary steeples) of Maynooth, stood head and shoulders over his colleagues  and not just in the English Department. He reflected an expansive view of the world  in part the result of his Oxford education, and in particular, the role universities (and even seminaries) could play in introducing future priests to the rich possibilities of the modern world.

His wider project, if such it can be described, was what Fr Michael Conway of Killala described in a contribution to I Remember Maynooth, as "waging a quiet war on the literary censorship introduced by the Irish Free State" and in particular how it was misused by "zealots with a very narrow view of the canons of literary expression".

When my classmates and I arrived in Maynooth in 1966 and, swathed in the then-prescribed uniforms of long, black cassocks topped by Roman collars, trooped into Connollys lectures we must have presented a dismal prospect to the fastidious Connolly, ever the demanding don who had a lifelong habit (red pen in hand) of annotating everything he read, even his copy of The Irish Times.

Connolly, bursting with ideas and characteristically hopping on his seat, was given to holding forth on occasion about what the future might look like  as with the prediction he made to Declan Kiberd, a fellow academic: "The Irish people are not sentimental. See how quickly they abandoned the Gaelic language when they saw it as no longer of practical use. Religion will go in the next generation and when it goes it will go so fast that nobody will even know it is happening."

In the lecture hall, Connolly was less direct but the sometimes oblique messages he sent had the same punch  Ireland was changing and the future for Catholicism was going to be different from what it was then.

In that same year, 1966, at a public meeting in Limerick, Connolly (as part of his campaign against literary censorship in Ireland) publicly defended Edna OBrien, a young novelist from Clare whose early books had been denounced by the Catholic Church and banned by the Irish State. Connolly praised the "high spirits and cheerful natural ribaldry in her writing", though his supportive comments werent universally appreciated, not least by the hostile response from some of the panel and of the audience. OBrien herself, also in 1966, wrote in The Irish Times that a "fear of sin" made her think of her body as "a sort of tabernacle of sin".

In 1960, when OBriens first novel The Country Girls appeared, telling the story of two young women going through adolescence, it was banned, and two years later, when The Lonely Girl was published, Archbishop John Charles McQuaid of Dublin sent a copy to Charles Haughey, the then Minister for Justice, enclosing a letter expressing his alarm that "such stuff" could be printed. As Fintan OToole writes in We Dont Know Ourselves, Haughey, then "a young rising princeling of Fianna Fail", visited McQuaid the next day formally "to express his disgust and revulsion".

In 1966, Connollys defence of OBrien was an astonishing stance, widely publicised in the media and it is unknown how the Irish Catholic bishops or the Maynooth authorities responded but it can be taken as somewhat less than an unambivalent welcome. The long arm of the Catholic Church was then dictating a series of interventions in public life that today would be unthinkable and unacceptable.

It was a time, for example, when it was a reserved sin for Catholics in most dioceses to attend a service in the Protestant Church. (I remember my aunt, Bridie McDonnell, the most gentle of women, explaining to us at home in the kitchen how she told the priest in Confession that she had attended the funeral of a Protestant neighbour and how she "wouldnt let it go with him" when he demanded that she promise never "to repeat the offence".) This requirement on Catholics was evidenced too in 1949 at the funeral of Douglas Hyde, a Protestant and the first President of Ireland, when members of the Irish government of the day preferred the option of sitting in their State cars outside St Patricks (Protestant) Cathedral rather than risk the salvation of their souls by drawing the ire of Archbishop McQuaid. Officially, the government was represented by Erskine Childers, whose suitability was determined by the fact that he was a Protestant and thereby not committing any sin by attending.

When Edna OBrien died a few weeks ago, her well-laid plans for a Catholic funeral and for burial on Holy Island, Co Clare, were followed to the letter  in her parish church where she was baptised and where she had been denounced from the altar. Fr Donagh OMeara, the priest whom she had asked some years ago to say her funeral Mass, described her as "a speaker of the truth who held up a mirror for us in a very narrow time in Ireland". Edna OBrien, he told the congregation, had described "the hardships that women faced in a silent way".

"But she paid the price," Fr O'Meara added. "Because when you stand out at any moment, at any time, you find yourself isolated quite quickly. And we did that. And that is to our shame as a society and as a church."

He further added: "Maybe she has discovered now, that in Gods eyes, she was infinitely loved."

The congregation, which included a bishop and three priests, applauded. It was a fitting tribute and apology from an oppressive, patriarchal Church, so often so reluctant (as we are) to own our shame.
ZANGILAN, Azerbaijan, August 22. The length of the tunnel built at the 106th km of Horadiz Agband railway line is 1,071 meters, the head of department of Azerbaijan Railways CJSC Fayaz Rustamov told reporters, Trend reports.

He made the statement at the media tour on the construction of the Horadiz-Agband railroad line organized by Azerbaijan Railways CJSC in the territory.

Rustamov pointed out that the tunnel's dimensions are wide enough to leave room for electrifying the railway line down the road.

The construction of the tunnel is carried out using a new Austrian method. In this method, the tunnel design is tailored to fit the rocky soil's bearing capacity, resulting in cost optimization.

The borings are carried out by drilling and blasting. Drilling in the tunnel is carried out both on the entrance and exit sides, he concluded.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. The session of the AFFA Court of Appeal Arbitration has been held, Trend reports via Idman.biz.

According to the information, the session reviewed the appeal of Neftchi FC.

The appeal was partially satisfied. Following the match of the second round of the Azerbaijani Premier League between FC Sabayil and Neftchi, the punishment for Ervin Coffey, who threw a foreign object at the fans, was mitigated.

The unplayed part of the disqualification applied to the disqualified legionnaire for two games, i.e., one match, will be suspended. He was given three months of probation. The decision to fine Neftchi 2,000 manat ($1,176) remained unchanged.
ZANGILAN, Azerbaijan, August 22. The gallery built on the 75th km of the Horadiz-Agband railroad line is designed to protect the railroad from rock fragments that may fall from the mountains, head of the Azerbaijan Railways Press Secretariat Department Sanuber Nazarova said during the media tour of the Horadiz-Agband railroad, Trend reports.

She noted that the length of the gallery is 144 meters.

The dimensions of the constructed gallery also allow electrification of the railroad line in the future. The gallery is designed on piles, and its structure is monolithic reinforced concrete. The mentioned gallery is the first railroad gallery built during the independence of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Nazarova added.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. Uzbekistan's Minister of Investment, Industry, and Trade Laziz Kudratov has engaged in a roundtable discussion with leading US companies, focusing on expanding mutually beneficial cooperation in various sectors, Trend reports.

The meeting, held via videoconference, was organized in collaboration with the Business Council for International Understanding (BCIU) and the Embassy of Uzbekistan in Washington, D.C.

The discussions centered on potential joint investment projects in food and pharmaceutical production, transportation and logistics, and IT technologies. Additionally, both sides explored new opportunities to boost bilateral trade between Uzbekistan and the US.

Following the roundtable, Kudratov invited US companies to visit Uzbekistan to further develop the initiatives discussed during the meeting.

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Photo: Ministry of Investment, Industry and Trade of Uzbekistan

BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. Azerbaijani entrepreneurs are showing a strong interest in exporting products to Uzbekistan, executive director of the Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO) Yusif Abdullayev said at the Uzbek-Azerbaijani business forum in Tashkent, Trend reports.

Abdullayev noted that 67 Azerbaijani companies and representatives from about 10 state institutions participated in the forum, highlighting the significant interest of Azerbaijani businesses in Uzbekistan. He added that the Main Directions of Economy - a Step to Joint Prosperity exhibition showcasing Azerbaijani products would begin today.

The Uzbek-Azerbaijani business forum, which kicked off in Tashkent today, aims to strengthen economic ties between the two countries, enhance cooperation, attract investments, and realize joint projects.

The forum will serve as a platform for discussing ways to increase trade, share experiences, and establish new business partnerships.

Currently, a total of 236 Azerbaijani-capital enterprises operate in Uzbekistan, including 62 joint ventures and 174 fully foreign-owned enterprises. Additionally, 70 Uzbek companies are active in Azerbaijan.

The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan surpassed $118.2 million from January to July 2024.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan will implement a joint roadmap for business development, Uzbek Minister of Investment, Industry and Trade Laziz Kudratov said at the Uzbek-Azerbaijani business forum in Tashkent, Trend reports.

"The trade turnover between the two countries has tripled over the past five years. Since the beginning of this year, mutual trade volume has increased by another 20 percent. While the absolute figures are still modest, he stated that the goal is to reach one billion dollars within the next year or two. The necessary conditions for this achievement have been established," Kudratov said.

The Uzbeki minister highlighted that a joint investment company has been set up with support from the Azerbaijani government. This company is actively working and has already built a substantial portfolio of investment projects, which are expected to yield results soon.

"Today, we are actively collaborating in various sectors, including energy, urban development, machine building, textiles, the silk industry, and agriculture. Major Azerbaijani companies have already commenced operations in Uzbekistan. We aim to further enhance dialogue, create more opportunities for entrepreneurs from both countries to meet, exchange ideas, and foster business partnerships, ultimately leading to tangible trade agreements and industrial projects," he said.

The Uzbek-Azerbaijani business forum, which kicked off in Tashkent today, aims to strengthen economic ties between the two countries, enhance cooperation, attract investments, and realize joint projects. The forum will serve as a platform for discussing ways to increase trade, share experiences, and establish new business partnerships. Currently, a total of 236 Azerbaijani-capital enterprises operate in Uzbekistan, including 62 joint ventures and 174 fully foreign-owned enterprises. Additionally, 70 Uzbek companies are active in Azerbaijan.

The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan surpassed $118.2 million from January to July 2024.

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Photo: Ministry of Investment, Industry and Trade of Uzbekistan

BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. Textile production is set to begin in Khankendi soon, Azerbaijani Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov said at the Uzbek-Azerbaijani business forum in Tashkent, Trend reports.

The opening of textile production in Khankendi is expected in the near future. This investment project is implemented by an Uzbek company, he said.

The Azerbaijani minister also noted the rapid development of the economies of Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan.

We are witnessing growing interest from Azerbaijani businesses in operating in Uzbekistan. Similarly, Uzbek entrepreneurs are increasingly interested in Azerbaijan, which is very encouraging. As we have mentioned before, our joint initiatives are showing positive results, and I am confident this trend will continue, he added.

The Uzbek-Azerbaijani business forum, which kicked off in Tashkent today, aims to strengthen economic ties between the two countries, enhance cooperation, attract investments, and realize joint projects. The forum will serve as a platform for discussing ways to increase trade, share experiences, and establish new business partnerships.

Currently, a total of 236 Azerbaijani-capital enterprises operate in Uzbekistan, including 62 joint ventures and 174 fully foreign-owned enterprises. Additionally, 70 Uzbek companies are active in Azerbaijan.

The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan surpassed $118.2 million from January to July 2024.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. Governor of Russia's Perm territory Dmitry Makhonin met with Uzbek Prime Minister Abdulla Aripov to evaluate recent business missions and explore industrial collaboration, Trend reports via the governor's social media.

The roadmap for enhanced industrial cooperation, including advanced technological solutions and support for science and higher education, is expected to be signed at the St. Petersburg International Gas Forum in October, said Governor Dmitry Makhonin following his meeting with Prime Minister Abdulla Aripov.

The meeting reviewed recent Russian business missions to Uzbekistans Bukhara and Qashqadaryo regions. During the visit, the missions explored various industries such as petrochemicals, gas processing, mining, and textiles, leading to new agreements for exporting high-demand products and establishing production facilities in Uzbekistan.

Additionally, plans were kicked around to beef up cooperation in training personnel for Uzbekistan's machine-building sector.
STATEMENT OF SEN. WIN GATCHALIAN ON APPREHENSION OF SHEILA GUO, CASSANDRA ONG

I am confident that with the apprehension of Sheila Guo and Cassandra Li Ong by authorities in Indonesia today, it is only a matter of time before Guo Hua Ping, a.k.a Alice Guo, is brought to justice.

I firmly believe that Guo Hua Ping would not be able to evade accountability for the numerous crimes she has committed. The long arm of the law will eventually catch up with her.

When Sheila Guo and Cassandra Ong arrive in the Philippines, they will be compelled to face a Senate investigation. Sheila Guo is subject to an outstanding arrest order issued by the Senate, while Cassandra Ong has been cited for contempt. Their return is not just a procedural matter, it represents a critical turning point in our pursuit of justice.
Photo: Ministry of Investment, Industry and Trade of Uzbekistan

BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan have opportunities to expand joint activities in third countries, Azerbaijani Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov said at an Uzbek-Azerbaijani business forum in Tashkent, Trend reports.

Opportunities to expand joint activities of entrepreneurs exist not only in Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan but also in third countries, he stated.

The minister recalled that a week ago, representatives of relevant ministries and companies of Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan made a joint trip to Afghanistan.

This direction seems promising for joint activity and it is not the only jurisdiction in which both countries can successfully work and realize their plans, he stressed.

In addition, Jabbarov stated that the anticipated outcomes are being produced by the previously defined transportation and logistics cooperation.

There is a stable growth of cargo transportation in both directions, with an annual increase of about 2030 percent, Jabbarov added.

The minister drove home the importance of the meetings and events held in this context.

To note, currently, Uzbekistan is playing host to a whopping 236 enterprises with Azerbaijani capital. Among them, there are 62 joint ventures and a staggering 174 enterprises that are completely owned by foreigners. Furthermore, Azerbaijan is a hotbed for 70 Uzbek companies that are hitting the ground running.

Overall, the trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan exceeded $118.2 million from January through July 2024.

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Participants of a cross-Strait journalism camp visit Inner Mongolia Museum in Hohhot, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Aug. 21, 2024. A cross-Strait journalism camp for university students opened on Tuesday in the city of Hohhot, with approximately 200 students from both the mainland and Taiwan in attendance. The students are from 10 universities on the mainland and eight universities in Taiwan. [Xinhua/Lian Zhen]

HOHHOT, Aug. 20 (Xinhua)  A cross-Strait journalism camp for university students opened on Tuesday in the city of Hohhot, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, with approximately 200 students from both the mainland and Taiwan in attendance.

The students are from 10 universities on the mainland and eight universities in Taiwan.

The camp, the 30th of its kind, will focus on opportunities and challenges for future journalists on both sides of the Strait in the era of all-encompassing media.

The 11-day event will be held in Inner Mongolia and Beijing, and the students will live, study and take part in various activities, including cultural research, lectures, media organization visits and short video production.

First held in 2004, the location of the journalism camp has alternated between the two sides of the Strait, covering most of the major journalism schools on the mainland and in Taiwan. It has become an important platform for exchange and communication between journalism students from both sides of the Strait.

Participants of a cross-Strait journalism camp visit Inner Mongolia Museum in Hohhot, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Aug. 21, 2024. A cross-Strait journalism camp for university students opened on Tuesday in the city of Hohhot, with approximately 200 students from both the mainland and Taiwan in attendance.

The students are from 10 universities on the mainland and eight universities in Taiwan. [Xinhua/Lian Zhen]

A student attending a cross-Strait journalism camp visits Inner Mongolia Art Museum in Hohhot, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Aug. 21, 2024. A cross-Strait journalism camp for university students opened on Tuesday in the city of Hohhot, with approximately 200 students from both the mainland and Taiwan in attendance.

The students are from 10 universities on the mainland and eight universities in Taiwan. [Xinhua/Lian Zhen]

Students attending a cross-Strait journalism camp visit Inner Mongolia Museum in Hohhot, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Aug. 21, 2024. A cross-Strait journalism camp for university students opened on Tuesday in the city of Hohhot, with approximately 200 students from both the mainland and Taiwan in attendance.

The students are from 10 universities on the mainland and eight universities in Taiwan. [Xinhua/Lian Zhen]

Participants of a cross-Strait journalism camp visit Inner Mongolia Museum in Hohhot, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Aug. 21, 2024. A cross-Strait journalism camp for university students opened on Tuesday in the city of Hohhot, with approximately 200 students from both the mainland and Taiwan in attendance.

The students are from 10 universities on the mainland and eight universities in Taiwan. [Xinhua/Lian Zhen]

Students attending a cross-Strait journalism camp learn to play the horsehead fiddle, a traditional bowed stringed instrument, in Hohhot, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Aug. 21, 2024. A cross-Strait journalism camp for university students opened on Tuesday in the city of Hohhot, with approximately 200 students from both the mainland and Taiwan in attendance.

The students are from 10 universities on the mainland and eight universities in Taiwan. [Xinhua/Lian Zhen]

(Source: Xinhua)

Editor: Wang Shasha
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan have exchanged signed agreements in various sectors, the Azerbaijani Economy Minister Mikail Jabbarov wrote on X, Trend reports.

The Uzbek-Azerbaijani business forum hosted a ceremony of exchange of signed agreements in various sectors, including energy, education, logistics, and construction, expanding cooperation between Baku and Tashkent, as well as the twinning of the Azerbaijani city of Guba with the Uzbek city of Jizak and the city of Beylagan with the city of Shakhrisabz. These agreements are crucial for deepening relations and strengthening the multifaceted partnership between our countries, the publication reads.

To note, currently, Uzbekistan is playing host to a whopping 236 enterprises with Azerbaijani capital. Among them, there are 62 joint ventures and a staggering 174 enterprises that are completely owned by foreigners. Furthermore, Azerbaijan is a hotbed for 70 Uzbek companies that are hitting the ground running.

Overall, the trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan exceeded $118.2 million from January through July 2024.
This week the Home Office of Labour government Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced a major surge in immigration enforcement and returns activity, to make sure that immigration and asylum rules are respected and enforced.

This includes new plans for the next 6 months to achieve the highest rate of removals of those with no right to be here, including failed asylum seekers, for 5 years.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper at the National Police Chiefs' Council gathering, July 11, 2024 [Photo by Andy Taylor - Home Office/Flickr / CC BY 2.0

With Sir Keir Starmers Labour pledged to be a government of war, anti-immigration, and austerity in the service of big business, Cooper announced within two days of taking office the creation of a Gestapo-like Border Security Command. Central to it was setting up a Returns and Enforcement Unit to swiftly deport anyone deemed a failed asylum seeker.

On Wednesday, the Home Office issued its progress report as it announced a raft of further anti-immigration measures befitting the most right-wing government in British history.

In the next six months the government plans to deport around 14,500 people deemed to be illegal migrants, topping the two previous six-month highs set during Conservative government rule of 13,410 in 2018 and 14,389 last year. The Home Office said meeting this target was required in reversing the damaging drop in enforcement over recent years.

It stated, This enforcement surge, overseen by Bas Javid, the Home Offices Director General for Immigration Enforcement, is part of the governments plans to transform the asylum system and secure UK borders.

Bas Javid is the brother of Sajid Javid, the former Tory home secretary who played a major role in revoking the British citizenship of a 15-year-old girl, Shamima Begum.

Cooper is already overseeing a summer blitz of illegal immigration raids involving over 1,000 Immigrant Enforcement officials. The mass round-up, said the Home Office, necessitates, increasing detention spaces to support the higher pace of removals including reopening Immigration Removal Centres (IRCs) at Campsfield and Haslar and adding 290 beds there. This increase will ensure there is additional capacity to facilitate higher levels of enforcement and returns so that rules are properly respected.

The Immigration Removal Centre detention camps have been widely condemned by human rights groups as inhumane, with detainees brutalised by a sadistic regime. When the Hampshire-located Haslar IRC closed in 2015, this was partially due to a 2015 parliamentary review of IRCs which Rob McNeil, Deputy Director of the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, said had found that immigration detention had been expensive and damaging to detainees.

Campsfield House in Oxfordshire, closed in 2018 after years of atrocious conditions under successive Labour and Conservative governments that resulted in multiple complaints, protests including sit-ins, hunger strikes, and stand-offs in which detainees were confronted by specialised riot squads.

The Socialist Equality Party, in opposing support for Labour in the general election, insisted that Starmers party had no fundamental differences with the Tories. In reopening Campsfield and Haslar, Labour is implementing plans to bring them back into operation previously advanced by the Johnson/Truss Tory governments in 2022.

What is different from the Tories is the speed at which Labour is enforcing its pledge to remove illegal migrants and secure the borders. Labour has ditched the Tories policy of attempting to deport asylum seekers to Rwandawhich it denounced as an ineffective and expensive gimmickand has switched the resources earmarked for the Rwanda scheme to ensure swift deportations to other countries.

The Home Office statement announced, Staff are being redeployed to increase removal of failed asylum seekers, which had dropped by 40% since 2010. Three hundred caseworkers have already been reassigned to progress thousands of failed asylum and returns cases, including enforced and voluntary returns.

Flights that had been primed for Rwanda deportations have been repurposed to deport immigrants to a host of countries. The Home Office boasted that the further deportations would be Building on 9 successful returns flights in the last six weeks, including the largest-ever chartered return flight, the government is redeploying personnel and resources to support further activity. The largest-ever chartered return flight was the deportation of more than 200 people to Brazil earlier this month.

The Telegraph had the Home Office plans as their second main front page story in Wednesdays edition, under the inflammatory headline, Ill lock up and deport more migrants, vows Cooper. It referred approvingly to New returns agreements signed with Vietnam, which has accounted for the biggest rise in Channel migrants, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Nigeria, Serbia and Georgia following the fast-track removal deal with Albania.

Much of Labours anti-immigrant policy is being formulated in discussion with key European leaders as part of their overall Fortress Europe policy, including the fascist Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, with whom Starmer has developed a close relationship.

The Home Office statement noted, This work builds on the Prime Ministers meeting at the European Political Community last month, where he held discussions with the migration working group alongside Italy, Albania, Germany, Malta, Denmark, Hungary, The Netherlands, and Slovakia. The European leaders discussed border security, their joint efforts to tackle people-smuggling, and the ambition to work collectively with other countries to deliver solutions.

Labour is enforcing mass deportations under the guise of smashing the criminal smuggling gangs organising the perilous cross-Channel sailing to the UK. The Home Office announced up to 100 new specialist intelligence and investigations officers deployed to the National Crime Agency (NCA) to tackle the gangs.

Far more personnel, including the 300 reassigned caseworkers, and resources are going towards removals and persecutions of asylum seekers and immigrants, beyond anything carried out by previous Conservative governments, including that of Theresa May, which boasted of creating a hostile environment for asylum seekers and refugees.

Cooper announced a new intelligence-driven illegal working programme will be rolled out to target, investigate and take down unscrupulous employers who illegally employ those with no right to work here Those caught working illegally and eligible for removal will be detained, pending their swift removal.

The acceleration of Labours anti-immigration drive comes just days after a week of riots by fascists demanding further clampdowns against asylum seekers. While the government was forced to arrest and sentence many of those involved to bring the situation under control, the far-right were only able to organise in any number because of the frenzied anti-immigration atmosphere whipped up by Labour and the Tories as they competed over who was best placed to Stop the Boats.

The SEP noted the response of the Sun newspaper in the aftermath of the riots. After demanding Starmer, in terms of arrests and prosecutions, throw the book at far-right thugs, it insisted that the new government had to deal with the twin problems of violent crime and illegal migration.

We warned that the Suns editorial can be read as the Labour governments playbook in the coming weeks.

These developments are a political indictment of all those such as Stand Up To Racism and groups such as the Socialist Workers Party, who insisted that stopping the fascists grouped around Tommy Robinson and within Nigel Farages Reform UK could be isolated from a political struggle against the Starmer government, so that alliances could be formed with various trade union bureaucrats and Labour lefts.

Labour is already proving to be a greater danger to asylum seekers than the fascist mobs which it encouraged through its use of vile xenophobic and nationalist rhetoric to legitimise war and austerity. And it will use the strengthened powers for the police, including setting up of a national riot force targeting extremism, against the working class.
Royal Mail workers are invited to attend an online meeting called by the Postal Workers Rank-and-File Committee (PWRFC) on Sunday September 15 to discuss a collective fightback against plans by Royal Mail and EP Group for a major assault on jobs, wages and conditions.

Communication Workers Union (CWU) officials have been in closed-door talks for months with EP Group and owner Daniel Kretinsky over their 3.5 billion takeover bid of Royal Mail and parent company International Distribution Service (IDS). CWU officials Dave Ward and Martin Walsh claim the talks have been constructive.

Daniel Kretinsky, Dave Ward, Royal Mail workers on a demonstration in London [Photo: Top left: EP Holding-CC BY 2.0/Top right: WSWS/Bottom right: WSWS]

This secrecy has continued in collaboration with a Labour government making good on its pledge to be the most pro-business in history. Kretinskys bid is being reviewed under the National Security Investment Act, but Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has given Labours in-principle support for Royal Mails takeover by the billionaire oligarch.

Postal workers are being kept in the dark by the CWU about plans to carve up Royal Mail.

As the Telegraph reported last month: Kretinskys swoop for the postal service is just one step in a far larger strategy, using his companys retail and logistics assets to create the Amazon of Europe. He already has a top-three ownership stake at Sainsburys and investments in Currys and Marks & Spencers. Analysts discern plans for a vertically integrated online retail and logistics company that would compete with Amazon.

Kretinskys assurances to protect the service and the workforce will be ditched at the first opportunity. He has already described the Universal Service Obligation (USO) as a death grip and announced plans to invest 400 million in a network of 20,000 drop boxes as part of an out-of-home parcel delivery service.

These plans confirm the warnings by the PWRFC against last years sellout national agreement co-authored by the CWU Postal Executive. This has produced the biggest attacks on jobs and conditions in Royal Mails history. Meanwhile, IDS executives and shareholders will make millions from handing the mail service to private equity investors and asset strippers.

The claims made by Walsh that the pro-company agreement mitigated attacks on jobs and conditions are an insult. CWU officials have colluded with the company to enforce:

Mass job losses : 10,000 redundancies were rammed through even while last years dispute was live. A union-endorsed redeployment scheme has since fast-tracked postal workers out of mail centre jobs, making way for two automated Super Hubs. In April, the CWU agreed to trial Royal Mails reduced USO, with deliveries slashed to alternate weekdays, and no Saturday delivery other than for First class items, threatening thousands of jobs.

: 10,000 redundancies were rammed through even while last years dispute was live. A union-endorsed redeployment scheme has since fast-tracked postal workers out of mail centre jobs, making way for two automated Super Hubs. In April, the CWU agreed to trial Royal Mails reduced USO, with deliveries slashed to alternate weekdays, and no Saturday delivery other than for First class items, threatening thousands of jobs. Gig economy-style working times : Later start and finish times of up to 90 minutes  more in some cases  have upended postal workers lives along with the constant changes to Seasonal Variation shift patterns moulding postal workers lives exclusively around the demands of the business with no life outside the job. This is only phase 1 of the network changes creating a fully flexible parcel-delivery workforce.

: Later start and finish times of up to 90 minutes  more in some cases  have upended postal workers lives along with the constant changes to Seasonal Variation shift patterns moulding postal workers lives exclusively around the demands of the business with no life outside the job. This is only phase 1 of the network changes creating a fully flexible parcel-delivery workforce. Two-tier workforce : Senior postal workers on legacy terms have been driven out in their thousands through impossible workloads and cost-cutting revisions imposed via the national agreement. New entrants doing the same job are paid a lower hourly rate, just 57 pence more than the National Living Wage. They receive no paid meal breaks and Sunday working is mandatory.

: Senior postal workers on legacy terms have been driven out in their thousands through impossible workloads and cost-cutting revisions imposed via the national agreement. New entrants doing the same job are paid a lower hourly rate, just 57 pence more than the National Living Wage. They receive no paid meal breaks and Sunday working is mandatory. Management bullying: A regime of intimidation and harassment reigns supreme, sanctified by the Falconer Review that oversaw the stitch-up of 400 reps and workers victimised during the dispute.

The CWU postal executive cynically used our industrial action to cement their role as corporate partners and enforcers. They have forfeited any claim to represent us, responding to criticism from the ranks with either ridicule or censorship.

Royal Mail, EP Group and the CWU have a strategy, and are working with the Starmer government to implement it. The rank-and-file must develop a strategy to challenge this and fight back.

That is the purpose of the Zoom meeting called by the PWRFC.

Royal Mails regressive attacks are part of a global offensive by corporations across the post and logistics sector. This is not a sectional issue. In the car industry, new technology and the shift to electric vehicles is being weaponised across Europe and North America to throw tens of thousands out of work and ramp up exploitation.

We cannot fight this simply through trade union politics. A network of rank-and-file committees must be created to link workers together in a global fightback. AI and digital technology must be used to lessen the burden of work, freeing up time for leisure and family. This means freeing technology from the selfish control of the corporate oligarchy and placing it under workers democratic control. Society must be reorganised along socialist lines, to meet human need, not private profit.

Register to join the Zoom meeting. Hear reports from postal workers across Royal Mail and Parcelforce, and send a delegation from your mail centre or delivery office to join the discussion. For copies of this flyer to distribute to colleagues please email rmpw.rfc@gmail.com
Independent Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. walks outside the courtroom at the Nassau County Supreme Court in Mineola, N.Y. on Wednesday, Aug., 21, 2024. [AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah]

On Friday, the Thurston County Superior Court in Washington state will hear arguments from Democratic Party officials attempting to remove presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. from the ballot in the state. The Democratic Party is advancing an arbitrary reinterpretation of state rules that would inflate the requirement for collecting signatures to gain ballot access, applying that reinterpretation retroactively against candidates who followed the existing requirements.

The case against Kennedys campaign was filed on August 16 by Washington State Democratic Chair Shasti Conrad, and, according to the Washington State Standard news service, is being funded by the Democratic National Committee.

To successfully get on the ballot in Washington state, a party must identify 12 electors and collect 1,000 signatures. State law dictates that the signatures must be collected at nominating conventions which are announced in advance in a newspaper ad at least 10 days before each convention is held. At least 100 signatures must be collected at each convention.

According to the Secretary of States guidelines, a nominating convention is an organized meeting of registered Washington voters. They also make clear that, Multiple meetings may be held at different times and locations and still qualify as a single convention.

Under these guidelines, the Kennedy campaign submitted 4,181 signatures on June 14.

In an August 9 letter written to Secretary of State Steve Hobbs, the Democrats argued for a new interpretation of this requirement that would overturn decades of precedent. The Standard reported that Stephen Reed, state communications director for the Democrats, said, We believe that the Robert F. Kennedy Jr. campaign did not follow the rules. We do not believe they can prove that they did.

Underscoring the legally baseless character of the Democrats challenge, the state government issued a press release on August 13 rejecting the Democrats position and announcing that nine presidential nominations by minor parties and independent candidates have qualified to appear on Washingtons Nov. 5 General Election ballot.

One state official told the WSWS that they plan to certify all the campaigns on August 23 unless the court rules otherwise. According to that official, the states position is, Were not the convention police. In other words, it is up to the candidate and his or her party, not the state, to decide what convention means under the rules.

In addition to Kennedys We The People Party, several other independent and third party campaigns, including the Socialist Equality Party ticket of Joseph Kishore for president and Jerry White for vice president, are also currently qualified to be on the Washington ballot.

According to the Secretary of State, Ballots will be mailed to registered voters statewide by October 18.

In attacking the right to ballot access, the Democrats are doubtless concerned that in addition to mailing out ballots, the state will also be required under state law to mail out voter pamphlets to the states 5 million registered voters that include campaign statements from each of the candidates, including the Socialist Equality Party.

The anti-democratic attack against Kennedys campaign in Washington has the potential to affect other third-parties in the state, if the Democrats reinterpretation of state law is accepted.

This attack is part of the broader nationwide effort by the Democratic Party to keep independent and third-party candidates from appearing on the ballot. Other attacks by the Democratic Party on ballot access include kicking Kennedys campaign off the ballot in New York, removing Cornel West from the Michigan ballot, and challenging multiple campaigns in Georgia.

Earlier this year, NBC reported that the Democratic Party had set up a well-funded, high-level task force specifically to attack ballot access for third parties. The Democratic National Committee is building its first team to counter third-party and independent presidential candidates, NBC reported in March, as the party and its allies prepare for a potential all-out war on candidates they view as spoilers.

More legal challenges are almost guaranteed, NBC added at the time, with attorneys actively monitoring third-party ballot access attempts across the country to look for any slip-up that could be exploited. The attack on ballot access rights in Washington is doubtless bears the fingerprints of this team of attorneys and operatives.

For his part, Kennedy, a right-wing anti-vaccine figure, reportedly made an appeal to Vice President Kamala Harris recently for a cabinet position if she wins the November election, presumably in exchange for his endorsement and withdrawal from the race.

The Democratic Party is waging its campaign to block ballot access for third parties with renewed intensity at the same time that it conducts this weeks Democratic National Convention. In his speech to the convention Monday, President Joe Biden claimed that, during his presidency, democracy has prevailed ... and must be preserved. The theme was echoed by speakers both before and after the current American head of state.

In fact, American ballot access laws make it all but impossible for third-party candidates to appear on the ballot in all 50 states. Where a party or candidate manages to satisfy the arbitrary and inflated requirements, they inevitably face dirty tricks, resource-draining legal challenges, and procedural maneuvers from the Democrats, who are exempt from these rules and who wield the enormous financial resources they possess to block access to the ballot.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. The office of a joint Azerbaijan-Uzbek investment company has been opened in Tashkent, Azerbaijani Minister of Economy Mikayil Jabbarov wrote on X, Trend reports.

The activity of the company based on joint investment will raise cooperation in the sphere of mutual investments to a new level, the publication reads.

The minister also pointed out that in the early stages, the company, which has its fingers in up to 15 projects, will ramp up its efforts to spread its wings and foster mutually beneficial investments, boost the private sector, and ignite the entrepreneurial spirit.

Successful investments will lead to the launch of innovative ventures, the creation of new jobs, and the long-term expansion of our economies, Jabbarov added.

To note, an Uzbek-Azerbaijani business forum was held in Tashkent on 22 August.
We are publishing here the report to the Eighth Congress of the Socialist Equality Party (US) given by Eric London. The congress was held from August 4 to August 9, 2024. It unanimously adopted two resolutions, The 2024 US elections and the tasks of the Socialist Equality Party and Free Bogdan Syrotiuk!

The strategic necessity of uniting the working class against political xenophobia

Introduction

In the recent period, the ruling class in every imperialist country has adopted a strategy of unrestrained anti-immigrant chauvinism as the spearhead of domestic political reaction. Today, in Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Canada and the United States it is the mechanism through which the ruling class justifies the massive expansion of the police powers of the state, divides the increasingly interconnected, globalized working class, scapegoats the oppressed for the crimes of capitalism, and contributes to the generation of a cultural climate of national backwardness necessary for imperialist war. For this reason, the Immigration Question can no longer be considered as a mere issue among others in the bourgeois political landscape.

This flowering of bourgeois counterrevolutionary strategy arises in response to changes in objective conditions that massively undermine the global position of the capitalist class. The globalization of the process of production has irreversibly changed the social physiognomy of the human race. The working class has grown in size and degrees of interconnectivity more in the last 30 years than at any time in world history. There are 8 billion people on earth, hundreds of millions of transnational families and 5.3 billion internet users. According to the depraved logic of capitalist self-preservationist politics, the increased facility of goods and products to move freely across national boundaries is met with greater restrictions on the movement of people, who are made the target of right-wing vitriol.

In the United States, the threat posed by Donald Trump cannot be overstated. He has made anti-immigrant xenophobia the ideological glue of his 2024 campaign. Claiming immigrants will poison the blood of the nation, Trump plans to initiate Project 2025, a set of Heritage Foundation proposals for the attack on immigrants. As one think tank reports, Project 2025 isnt simply a refresh of first-term ideas, dusted off and ready to be re-implemented. Rather, it reflects a meticulously orchestrated, comprehensive plan to drive immigration levels to unprecedented lows These proposals circumvent Congress and the courts and are specifically engineered to dismantle the foundations of our immigration system. [ 1 ]

The proposal would involve martial law in major cities, police-state round-ups of immigrants at schools, workplaces and in homes. It would turn immigrant areas into ghettos by barring immigrant children from attending public school and prohibiting even citizen family members of undocumented people from applying for housing benefits. It would require states to turn over residency information on all undocumented people to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Border Patrol or else lose federal funding for social programs.

While the 70 million votes cast for Trump in 2020 did not each represent a full-throated endorsement of the attack on immigrants, and while it is correct to note that the ruling class has not yet built the type of popular support for mass violence that existed in the 1920s and 1930s, the danger is extremely great. The events this week in England testify to this danger.

In the US, the Democratic Party has adapted itself entirely to Trump on immigration in terms of both policy and tone. It is not only that the Democrats seek an accommodation with the Republicans on all domestic questions to win their support for imperialist war abroad, though that is a significant factor. More than this, the very logic of their wars drives the Democrats to a policy of total intolerance for all democratic rights at home, the fortifying of the nation state and its borders, and the enclosure of the country behind a wall of bayonets, to borrow Trotskys phrase. Biden has imposed unprecedented restrictions on immigration at the southern border and banned the right to asylum by parroting Trumps baseless claims about asylum fraud. Nor has opposition to the attack on immigrants been waged by any of the parties of the affluent middle class. On the contrary, in Spain and Greece, Podemos and Syriza have led attacks on immigrants, treating inflatable rafts full of refugees escaping US imperialisms wars in the Middle East and North Africa as though they were enemy frigates.

Therefore, we must clarify here that politically blocking the ruling class from developing a fascist movement against immigrants means distinguishing ourselves totally from pathetic liberal humanitarian appeals or moral condemnations of those workers who voted for Trump. The Socialist Equality Party (US) is fighting to connect the defense of immigrants with a revolutionary economic program capable of addressing the urgent needs of workers of all backgrounds. Only in this way can workers be won from the lowest common denominator politics of anti-immigrant chauvinism, which is all the more absurd and reactionary given the international character of global production and a degree of social and technological interconnectivity that would have been shocking to the man on the street even 30 years ago.

Counterposing a policy of social division and state repression with a policy of working class unity and socialist internationalism is a programmatic and practical necessity of socialism in the 21st century. This is not as a tactical question but a strategic one. The development of socialist consciousness in the working class today requires confronting and exposing the nationalist conceptions many workers have about immigrants and fighting in all the schools and workplaces for a defense of immigrant coworkers as a means to develop class consciousness and forge the unity of the working class.

To wage this political struggle, we must better understand the long experience the ruling class has accumulated in using political xenophobia as a bludgeon against the working class, against democratic rights and against socialism. Nowhere is this history clearer than in the United States, where 98 percent of the population is non-indigenous.

Immigration in the period of bourgeois revolution

In the historical period associated with its emergence as a revolutionary class, the bourgeoisie established the issue of the right to immigrate and the related right to asylum as a matter of natural rights.

Many of the revolutionary ideas popularized in the course of the American Revolution were brought and fought for by immigrants arriving in what was then an unprecedented wave of migration to the North American colonies. In his book Voyagers to the West, Bernard Bailyn notes that In the years after 1760 transatlantic migration reached levels beyond anything seen before in British America, which is to say, beyond anything seen in the entire history of Europes and Africas connections with the Western hemisphere. [ 2 ] Bailyn estimates that 700,000 people immigrated to the US from the beginning of British settlement to 1760, and that another 221,500 came during the 15-year span from 1760 to 1775. [ 3 ]

[Photo: Knopf Press]

Emigration from Scotland and Ireland, in particular, posed a great problem to the British crown. As the colonial crisis intensified, the crown reacted with increasing hostility to efforts by the colonies to induce immigration from the British Isles.

In 1767, the British government vetoed an act by the colony of Georgia to increase immigration from Europe, and in 1771, the Earl of Hillsborough, then the crowns secretary of state for the colonies, vetoed a similar act from North Carolina. In April 1773, as the colonial crisis was intensifying, the Privy Council prohibited crown officers from making land grants in the American colonies until the crown had sufficiently blocked emigration. [ 4 ] In September 1773, Benjamin Franklin attacked a proposal in Parliament to block immigration to the American colonies, explaining that the bulk of emigrants were fleeing feudal despotism and denouncing the absentee landlords for raising rents and driving paupers off their land: If the poor folks are happier at home than they can be abroad, he said, they will not lightly be prevailed with to cross the ocean. But can their lord blame them for leaving home in search of better living when he first sets them the example? [ 5 ]

The monarchys efforts to suppress land sales in the colonies and depress immigration led Jefferson and the signatories to list immigration restrictions as the seventh grievance against the king in the Declaration of Independence:

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

Text of the Alien Friend Act of 1798.

George Washington wrote at the wars conclusion in 1783 that in the new nation, America is open to receive not only the Opulent and respectable Stranger, but the oppressed and persecuted of all Nations and Religions. [ 6 ] The Constitutional Convention of 1787 broke with Britains conception of fixed gradations between denizen and citizen and instead established a uniform rule of naturalization allowing immigrants to become citizens. At the same time, the convention rejected calls for a requirement that all officeholders be born in the United States, limiting such restrictions only to the offices of president and vice president.

During the debate on this question, James Madison expressed a desire not to discourage the most desirable class of people from emigrating to the US, and at the convention Franklin challenged the claim that those not born in the US could not be sufficiently loyal to serve in government, saying:

When foreigners after looking about for some other Country in which they can obtain more happiness, give a preference to ours, it is a proof of attachment which ought to excite our confidence and affection.

The first attempt to expel immigrants, the 1798 Alien and Sedition Act, was a short-lived and broadly hated act advocated by the monarchist elements in the Adams administration, which gave the executive the power to jail critics and deport French citizens on the grounds that they were supporters of the French Revolution and would sow revolutionary fervor in the United States. Thus, the first post-revolutionary effort to restrict immigration was inseparable from the attack on democratic rights and the suppression of revolutionary ideas. The new ruling class was acquiring valuable experience.

There was a clear class component to the Federalist anti-immigrant policy that became a substantial political liability in the coming decades. Reactionary Congressman Harrison Gray Otis expressed the Federalist desire to exclude those immigrants more inclined toward egalitarian views, explaining that the United States did not wish to invite hordes of wild Irishmen to enter the country. [ 7 ] The Hartford Convention of 1814, an aristocratic reaction against Jeffersonianism, advocated barring citizens not born in the US from serving in office in order to minimize the influence of the Irish on the American political system. [ 8 ]

Immigration, Know-Nothingism and the American Civil War

The emergence of a domestic working class marked the end of the bourgeois Era of Good Feelings that followed the Revolution. Class tensions were erupting to the fore. Emerging American manufacturing required cheap labor, which the agricultural crisis in Europe, especially in Ireland, Scotland and Germany, could provide.

Before there were any federal restrictions on immigration, corporatist political combinations, especially in New York and Massachusetts, began restricting the immigration of paupers, or poor immigrants, primarily targeting the Irish, as an effort to divide the working class and prevent the development of strikes. In the South, slaveowners fought to restrict immigration to southern ports over fear of the spread of abolitionist ideas.

State immigration restrictions were developed as an explicit attack on the international working class. The legal basis of immigration law can be found in feudal relations. Hidetaka Hirota explains in his book Expelling the Poor:

The roots of immigration law in America dated to the British poor laws, a seventeenth-century set of laws that established each parishs financial obligation to support the local poor and its right to refuse to relieve the transient poor who did not belong to the parish. [ 9 ]

[Photo: Oxford University Press]

The emergence of a manufacturing-based working class led the ruling class organically to treat immigration as an opportunity to divide and conquer. From Massachusetts, where an entrenched Protestant Brahmin elite ruled, a political strategy emerged. Attacks on the Irish were justified with chauvinism directed against both the immigrants poverty and their Catholicism. Attacks against Catholic workingmen took place in 1823, 1826 and 1828. In 1834, a mob of Protestant workers whipped up into a hysteria burned down an Ursuline convent for girls in Charlestown, Massachusetts.

A deliberate effort was made to address economic anxieties and redirect social tensions. In these years, substantial portions of previously middling types were being sent by the early capitalists into the new manufactories and being introduced to wage slavery. In the social dislocation that naturally ensued, the ruling class blamed the Irish. Hirota writes:

The introduction of a cheap foreign labor in the form of destitute Irish immigrants provided a convenient scapegoat on which to blame the deterioration of the social and economic conditions of American workers. [ 10 ]

It is notable that at a recent campaign event in Milwaukee, Trumps vice presidential candidate, J.D. Vance, blamed crime in the mid-19th century on ethnic enclaves populated by German and Irish immigrants. This was not a slip-up. It was an appeal to this reactionary political tradition.

1850s anti-German and anti-Irish cartoon [Photo: New York Public Library Research Collections]

In the South, efforts to restrict immigration were bound up with attempts to suppress the arrival of abolitionist views. Anything remotely foreign was politically suspect. States barred the migration of freed blacks from the North in the aftermath of the 1822 slave rebellion organized by Denmark Vesey, due in large part to reports that Veseys raid was prepared through the dissemination of abolitionist pamphlets transported by boat and distributed through the port of Charleston. Hirota explains, After the Vesey conspiracy, South Carolina passed the so-called Negro Seaman Act, which required black seamen arriving on a vessel to be detained in jail until the ships departure, a policy followed by other southern states, such as Georgia and Louisiana. [ 11 ] The governor of South Carolina stated in 1824 that the states have the right to interdict the entrance of such persons into her ports whose organization of minds, habits, associations, render them peculiarly calculated to disturb the peace and tranquility of the state. [ 12 ] Again, the attack on migration emerges as a police method for curtailing the spread of revolutionary ideas.

The scale of immigration changed from 1850 to 1860, when the number of foreign-born living in the US almost doubled from 2.25 million foreign-born in 1850 to 4 million in 1860, including 1.5 million Irish and 1.25 million Germans. [ 13 ]

This period of mass migration coincided with the emergence of slavery as the dominant issue of American politics. The post-revolutionary party system based on Jacksonian Democracy and the Whigs was breaking up. In this vacuum came the Know-Nothings, so-called because they purported to originate as a secret society whose members had to claim they knew nothing of the organization, if subjected to questioning. The movement emerged rapidly in the 1854 election and represented the attempt by a section of the ruling class to utilize nativism as a means of redirecting sectional and class tensions against foreign immigrants.

Immigration historian Daniel Tichenor writes of the Know-Nothings that their meteoric rise in 1854-55 more specifically reflected a nativist agenda that promised to unify native-born citizens polarized by slavery and sectional discord. Prevailing hostilities between fellow citizens could be redirected by political nativists against Catholics, immigrants, and other groups whose presumed foreign connections corrupted the nation. [ 14 ]

The Know-Nothings won 51 seats in the 1854 election and 20 percent of the vote, eclipsing the Whigs, who would cease to exist as a party in the coming years as the Republicans mounted their first national presidential campaign in 1856. Know-Nothingism was a flash-in-the-pan formation that won support from a wide array of figures, ranging from John Wilkes Booth and Sam Houston to then-dissatisfied Whig and soon-to-be Radical Republican Thaddeus Stevens, who flirted with Know-Nothingism for a time. Darrel Overdyke, in his book The Know Nothing Party in the South, says Known Nothingism was in a sense an ideal solution to be able to berate, to let off steam and resentment on non-Americans rather than fellow citizens. [ 15 ]

There was a self-conscious class basis to Know-Nothingism. It was directed against the most desperate Irish fleeing the genocidal famine wrought by British occupation, and the movement deliberately stoked up anger over the issue of Irish poverty. According to Hirota:

The Know-Nothings built upon earlier nativists economic critique of impoverished foreigners to aggravate native-born workers fear of pauper labor, or cheap labor of poor immigrants who would work for lower wages than Americans At a time when industrialization had already brought about the sharp deterioration of working-class Americans living conditions, the agitation for pauper labor increased native-born workers anxiety about the potential loss of economic independence. [ 16 ]

Though the relationship of the Jacksonian Democratic Party to immigration in this period is complex, the more reactionary section of the Democratic Party was equally xenophobic. New York Mayor Fernando Wood, a vicious defender of slavery and later among Lincolns most reactionary opponents, denounced immigrant workers. He said, If it be necessary to call out the forces within the power of the city government to fire on and sink every emigrant vessel coming into this harbor with pauper and criminal emigrants, I shall do so. [ 17 ]

Fernando Wood

Abraham Lincoln had a different response. When anti-Catholic Know-Nothings in Massachusetts in 1855 attempted to restrict the franchise to individuals with seven years residency, including two as a US citizen, he wrote to his friend Joshua Speed:

I am not a Know-Nothing. That is certain. How could I be? How can anyone who abhors the oppression of negroes be in favor of degrading classes of white people? Our progress in degeneracy appears to me to be pretty rapid. As a nation, we began by declaring that all men are created equal. We now practically read it all men are created equal except negroes. When the Know-Nothings get control, it will read all men are created equal, except negroes, and foreigners, and Catholics. When it comes to this I should prefer emigrating to some country where they make no pretense of loving libertyto Russia, for instance, where despotism can be taken pure, and without the base alloy of hypocrisy. [ 18 ]

Nevertheless, even Lincoln was coy for a time about his opposition to the Know-Nothings, and the thoughts he conveyed privately to Josh Speed he did not convey publicly until somewhat later.

Ultimately, the Know-Nothings ignominiously collapseda casualty of the shift in the party system to the axis of the slavery question. Its electoral support fell from 51 seats and 20 percent of the vote in 1854 to 14 seats and 15 percent in 1856 and 3 percent and 5 seats in 1858. Unlike its right-wing progeny, in this bourgeois revolutionary period the movement enacted no federal restrictions on immigration. As would also happen in later generations, the revolutionary social struggles of the Civil War brought together disparate immigrant populations with the non-immigrant and cut the legs out from under political xenophobia. The German population, consisting of many political refugees from the revolutionary struggles of 1848, served as a major source of support for the Republican Party and Lincoln, while the 450,000 Germans and 150,000 Irish fighting in the Union Army politically detonated the lie that immigrants were disloyal.

With the end of the Civil War, the freeing of the slaves and the 1868 ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment defining all born in the US as citizens, the American ruling class had exhausted its revolutionary role. The Democratic Party, in its effort to rebuild and resuscitate its image and divert the emerging working class movement away from socialist politics, turned toward a strategy combining anti-black violence in the south with anti-Native American and anti-Chinese violence in the West. The immigration issue emerged as a key element of this initiative.

Chinese Exclusion and the rebirth of the Democratic Party

The Anti-Coolie Association of California, as it was called, using a derogatory term for cheap Chinese labor, was initiated in 1867 by a leadership consisting of 51 officers of Californias craft trade unions in collaboration with the California Democratic Party, which voted that year not to run candidates in many parts of the state and dissolved itself into an anti-Chinese society.

The year 1867 saw post-war recession in the local economies in the West, which led to a depression of wages that weakened the nascent trade union movement there. Organizations like the Shoemakers and Cigarmakers unions, whose leadership was prominently involved in the anti-Coolie clubs, had been transformed by the depression into professional associations.

Referring to the Democrats and trade unions, historian Alexander Saxton explains:

What both groups in effect became were anti-coolie clubs. Since white workers were being forced out, the base of activity in each trade was reduced to a scattering of white wage earners and to a small but influential group of marginal manufacturers. These were the masters of small shops who lacked capital necessary for large-scale enterprise with Chinese labor the main thrust of trade-based anti-coolieism was turned to the preservation of a noncompetitive niche for a differentiated product. [ 19 ]

A statement of the California Democracy in the San Francisco Examiner quoted by Saxon laid out the program emerging from this corporatist alliance of small producers and skilled craft workers:

We have stated before and we repeat it again, that the self-styled Union or Mongrel party [i.e., the Republicans] have but one principle, if it may be so called, distinguishing them as an organization, and that is the doctrine of universal equality for all races, in all things The war is now past and there can be no living issue connected with its conduct. The charge of disloyalty, so flippantly preferred against the Democracy, is an atrocious lie The Democracy are, and have ever been, the party of the Constitution, the party of the people. They are for a white mans government, constitutionally administered, against a great Mongrel military despotism, upheld by a union of the purse and the sword, and sought to be perpetuated through Negro and Chinese votes.[ 20 ]

Four events paved the way for transforming Chinese Exclusion from a far-right extra-parliamentary regionalist movement into a national campaign with both a parliamentary and extra-parliamentary element. First was the Paris Commune of 1871, which created the first genuine anti-communist hysteria in the United States. The second was the depression of 1873, which generated widespread unemployment throughout the country. Third was the election of 1876, the end of Reconstruction and the revitalization of the Democratic Party on a national scale, and fourth was the Railroad Rebellion of July 1877.

Albert Maver Winn, a prominent and affluent leader of the carpenters craft union, expresses clearly how the Democratic Party and craft union bureaucracy began to direct class tensions against the Chinese. In a speech at an anti-Chinese convention in April 1876, Winn argued to California workingmen that wealthy Americans were not the enemy, rather, they were an ally in the struggle against the Chinese invasion. While in the old days The complainants were poor, wealth was against them, now it was not a question of rich against poor:

There is a new element now in charge of the agitation; it is no longer the men who work by the day, but the property holders, who seewhat we told them years agothat little by little the Chinese would encroach upon their real estate and prevent it from increasing in value. I think it is policy for all classes of people to unite in the movement, and to show Congress how much they feel upon the subject, and tell how much they suffer by the introduction of Chinese cheap labor. [ 21 ]

Indeed, with the completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1867, the west was opened to the national labor market, making the Chinese less necessary and more useful as a target for working-class vitriol.

In 1876, the Democrats added a Chinese Exclusion plank and established a joint special committee in Congress to investigate the deleterious effects of Chinese immigration. One Republican in Congress called the Democrats an alliance forming between those opposed on general principles to the Negro, the Chinese and the Indian, to make common cause for the purpose of razing these tribes from the face of the earth. [ 22 ]

The 1876 election between the Republican Rutherford Hayes and the Democrat Samuel Tilden resulted in a contested race. The ruling class brokered a deal the following year giving Hayes the presidency in exchange for ending Reconstruction, pulling federal troops out of the occupied South, and revitalizing the Democrats as a national institution of bourgeois politics. With the notable exception of Charles Sumner and George Frisbie Hoar, Republicans overwhelmingly adapted to the Democrats anti-Chinese chauvinism.

The intense political crisis caused by the contested 1876 election presaged by only a few weeks the greatest explosion in the class struggle in American history up until that point, and probably since. In July 1877, with the impact of the 1873 economic panic unabated, efforts to cut railroad wages triggered a strike that spread from Martinsburg, West Virginia throughout the entire country, touching every railway station within a matter of days. There were concerned reports that America was experiencing the beginning of a national version of the Paris Commune. Thousands of workers and young people flocked to rail yards across the country to support the strike. The response of the Democratic Party and ruling class in San Francisco is particularly revealing.

On July 23, 1877, a crowd gathered in an empty lot near San Francisco City Hall comprised of workers, women and young people in support of the strike. The First International-affiliated Workingmans Party addressed the crowd. As Saxton explains, the event was hijacked by the anti-Chinese clubs and before the evening was over, the socialists had lost control of the movement they had initiated. He continues:

Hecklers infiltrated the crowd. A band from an anti-coolie club marched by. Swirls of young men, breaking away from the main gathering, set off to hunt for victims. That night, 20 or 30 Chinese wash houses were broken into. On the night following, there were murders of Chinese, incendiary fires, clashes between rioters and police. [ 23 ]

Local business elites established a Vigilante Committee which set out to attack the Chinese and what Californias Democratic Governor William Irwin called a small sprinkling of Communists or Internationalists who hope to usher in the millennium by a judicious use of the torch. After a series of rampages, the ruling class grew concerned that mob violence was getting out of control. The state reached a deal with the Vigilante Committee whereby the committee would halt its mob attacks if the federal government passed laws excluding the Chinese. Several years later, the Chinese Exclusion Acts became law and were expanded to close loopholes time and time again throughout the next 15 years.

Kearneyism: A proto-fascist America First movement

A critical role in this movement was played by an opportunist middling business owner and former Hayes supporter named Denis Kearney. Appropriating the name of the First International, his so-called Workingmens Party of California became a proto-fascist ward organization supporting the Democrats and committing acts of systematic violence against the Chinese, while denouncing corporate monopoly. Kearney asked a crowd in a speech on San Franciscos Nob Hill in October 1877:

Are you ready to march down to the wharf and stop the leprous Chinamen from landing? Judge Lynch is the judge wanted by the workingmen of California. I advise all to own a musket and a hundred rounds of ammunition. The dignity of labor must be sustained, even if we have to kill every wretch that opposes it. [ 24 ]

Denis Kearney

This anti-Chinese movement was not a bottom-up movement of the rank-and-file. While Kearneyism drew some support from the unemployed and itinerant workers, especially those from the rural mining regions of Eastern California, Kearneys main base was from a combination of professional organizations supported by local business. Saxton explains that the trade union movement had been transformed into largely associations of journeymen and small proprietors rather than trade unions. The remainder were neighborhood or language-association anticoolie clubs. In this lies the key to the political meaning behind the official acts of repression and oratorical pyrotechnics. What Kearney was leading was a struggle for control of the clubs which largely comprised the Democratic Partys city machinery. [ 25 ]

Kearneyites and the anti-Coolie clubs organized or created the kindling for a series of pogroms against the Chinese. In 1885, this culminated in the Expulsion Movement that spread across California and the Pacific Northwest. Tens of thousands of Chinese were frog-marched out of their homes and businesses in towns like Tacoma, Seattle, Eureka and others and forced onto steamships and transported to China or San Francisco. Those who refused to leave were beaten or killed. In the span of three months in 1885, San Franciscos Chinatown became an overcrowded ghetto as terrified Chinese fled the violence of the anti-Coolie clubs, fighting in the alleys over scarce scraps of food. Repeated efforts to burn down the Chinatown somehow failed. Dozens of Chinese workers were murdered and lynched throughout the West, including 34 Chinese miners in Rock Springs, Wyoming in September 1885.

Depiction of Kearney speaking

These efforts to direct the anger of the working class against immigrants helped pave the way for the explosion of social inequality in what became known as the Gilded Age. In the decades that ensued, immigration policy was federalized by the Supreme Court, which upheld the constitutionality of Chinese Exclusion on the grounds that it was required as a quasi-wartime measure to halt the invading horde, and soon exclusion was expanded to include the Japanese. American imperialism exploded on the scene of world history with its victory over Spain in the Spanish-American war, and this was accompanied by a stultifying explosion of national jingoism, which found expression in the promotion of a formally constituted national immigration restriction movement.

The American Federation of Labor and the defense of immigrants in the Second International

The American trade union bureaucracies integrated themselves into American imperialism and co-led the political attack on immigrant workers at home. The American Federation of Labor (AFL) under Samuel Gompers, himself an immigrant born in England, entered into a formal alliance with the Immigration Restriction League, a bourgeois group linking progressives with eugenicists in pushing for restriction.

Samuel Gompers

For a time its chief political aim was the establishment of a literacy requirement for immigration, paralleling literacy tests for voting in the South. Daniel Tichenor notes that Throughout the Progressive Era, the AFLs Washington office made literacy test/immigration restriction a centerpiece of its legislative agenda. [ 26 ]

Gompers and the AFL overrode substantial rank-and-file opposition and forced through support for literacy test legislation and restriction. Gompers argued that freedom for workers across the world required those devoted to the cause to remain within their own countries and help in national struggles. Gompers position, Tichenor explains, was that national labor movements were the only means of protecting domestic workers from low wages and bad working conditions. In 1902, the AFL published a pamphlet titled Some Reasons for Chinese Exclusion filled with racist claims about Asian immigrants. Notably, the Industrial Workers of the World took an explicitly pro-immigrant position and attracted substantial support among non-immigrant workers in precisely the same areas where Kearneyism had sought to mobilize workers against the Yellow Peril.

[Photo: California State University]

The nationalist position taken by the AFL was supported by the right wing of the Socialist Party and its leadership, including Morris Hillquit, an emigre from modern-day Latvia. Along with the Australian and British sections of the Second International, the Socialist Party in the United States advocated that the International take anti-immigrant positions at conventions at the Amsterdam and Stuttgart Congresses of 1904 and 1907, respectively. The debate directly presaged the struggle between the nationalism of Stalins socialism in one country and the internationalism of the theory of permanent revolution.

Speaking during the plenary debate in Amsterdam in 1904, Hillquit had likewise said immigrants were being imported by the tens of thousands in order to destroy trade union organizations: That is why American unions promulgated a ban on importing Chinese. This measure can be called reactionary, but it is absolutely necessary to keep the coolies away if we do not want to destroy the trade unions. [ 27 ]

In Stuttgart in 1907, Hillquit argued against immigration in the following way:

The basis of the class struggle within every country is the organization of the native working class. Within each country we make a distinction between the organized working class and strikebreakers. We cannot tolerate strikebreakers from our own country, nor can we allow them to come from other countries. That is why we Americans have up to now been opposed to the immigration of strikebreakers. [ 28 ]

Morris Hillquit

This view was supported in 1907 by Victor Kroemer of the Australian delegation, who said:

White immigrant workers are easily organized while dark-skinned workers are resistant to organization. This is what has led the Australian Labor Party to impose a White Australia policy against the yellow invasion. Asians are the only ones excluded as they are unable to become part of the organized working class. [ 29 ]

The Second International overwhelmingly rejected these positions.

American delegate Nicholas Klein, speaking against Hillquit in Amsterdam in 1904, said the anti-immigrant position will bring discord into the working class, contradicting the slogan Workers of the World, Unite! The coolies are people tooworkersand they have the same rights as anyone else. [ 30 ]

Kato Tokijiro, representing the Japanese delegation at the 1907 Stuttgart conference, said to enthusiastic applause:

When the Americans excluded us from California they gave two reasons: first, that Japanese workers were depressing the wages and living standards of the indigenous workers, and second, that we were taking away their opportunity to work by talking up the dangers of Japanese immigration, the American capitalists want to appeal to certain instincts among the workers. The Japanese are under the heel of capitalism just as much as other peoples. It is only dire need that drives them from their homeland to earn their livelihood in a foreign land. It is the duty of socialists to welcome these poor brothers, to defend them, and together with them to fight capitalism. Proletarians of all countries, unite! The founders of socialism, above all Karl Marx, did not address themselves to one single country but to all humanity. Internationalism is inscribed on our banner. [ 31 ]

The resolutions that were passed demanded unrestricted admission of immigrant workers including to the trade unions, and for trade union control of immigration from point of departure to point of arrival, to protect immigrants during passage from exploitation by the steamship companies and the danger of fraud on arrival. [ 32 ]

The Russian Revolution and the xenophobic core of American anti-communism

In 1917, the US entered World War One, the Bolsheviks took power in Russia and the American ruling class launched an unprecedented attack on the rights of immigrants and the cultivation of an extreme climate of jingoism, nationalism and xenophobia. As the historian William Bernard notes, for the first time important sections of Big Business, as a result of the fear that immigrants might propagate the ideas of the Russian Revolution, took a stand for the restriction of immigration. [ 33 ]

"Got a Match?" 1919 cartoon depicted in introduction to New Immigrants and the Radicalization of American Labor.

Attacks on immigrants were increasingly linked to the attack on the countrys democratic traditions. On May 16, Congress passed the Sedition Act of 1918, and on May 22 it passed an Immigration Act authorizing the president to shut immigration and deport immigrants whose presence was contrary to public safety. Throughout the war, Germans, Italians and Southern and Eastern Europeans were subject to routine brutalization and the teaching of foreign languages was banned in a number of states.

The year 1919 saw the largest strike wave in American history. David Saposs writes that the national steel strike of that year was an immigrant rebellion in which hunkies from Eastern Europe were most willing to strike, joining their non-immigrant colleagues. [ 34 ] Philip Foner notes that in response to the unity of immigrant and non-immigrant workers, the steel companies ran full-page newspaper advertisements that attacked the strike as un-American, and charged that the foreign workers were planning to turn the steel mills into Soviets. [ 35 ]

During a strike by 6,000 autoworkers at the Toledo Overland plant, a judge ruled that all picketers had to be US citizens. [ 36 ]

On November 7, 1919, a date chosen because it marked the second anniversary of the Russian Revolution, the Wilson administration launched the Palmer Raids, named for Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer, who, with J. Edgar Hoover, led police and immigration authorities on a violent, nationally coordinated series of raids continuing into January 1920. In total, over 10,000 immigrants with socialist, communist and anarchist sympathies were arrested, and many were beaten and even tortured in detention. Public outcry over the raids grew as it became clear the event was essentially an extra-constitutional police riot. In June 1920, federal judge George Anderson ordered the discharge of 17 immigrants who had been arrested without a warrant. Anderson condemned the raids, ruling, a mob is a mob, whether made up of Government officials acting under instructions from the Department of Justice, or of criminals and loafers and the vicious classes.

Aftermath of a Palmer raid.

In response, Congress legalized the worst excesses of the raids. Congress passed an Immigration Act in 1920 that the chair of the Senate Committee on Immigration, Sen. Thomas Hardwick, said was a means of keeping out Bolshevism. Arch-reactionary Sen. Henry Cabot Lodge, who found it amusing that he was now allied with the trade unions, said, We must be now and forever for Americanism and Nationalism, and against Internationalism. [ 37 ]

The rebirth of the KKK at this time was formally encouraged and directed primarily against immigrants, particularly Jews and Catholics. Restrictionist and eugenicist Harry Laughlin summed up the ethos of the times when he said in 1923:

We in this country have been so imbued with the idea of democracy, or the equality of all men, that we have left out of consideration the matter of blood or natural inborn hereditary mental and moral differences. No man who breeds pedigreed plants and animals can afford to neglect this thing. [ 38 ]

In 1924, with the active support of eugenicists and many progressives, Democrats and Republicans passed the National Origins Quota Act, aka, the Johnson-Reed bill, which restricted immigration based on race and national origin.

The communist movement in the US vociferously opposed the attack on immigrants. In a 1923 pamphlet, the Workers Party stated that it denounces laws directed against the foreign-born and called on workers everywhere to organize local councils for the protection of foreign born workers, appealing to native workers to wage an active campaign to uproot the prejudices fostered by the capitalist class against the foreign born. [ 39 ]

Comrade Tom Mackaman refers to the passage of Johnson-Reed as a watershed moment in US history in his book New Immigrants and the Radicalization of American Labor, 1914-1924. He writes:

Not only did it repudiate the long-standing open immigration policy which had been progressively eroded after decades of singling out Asians, anarchists and the infirm, it also initiated a sharp change in the composition of the working class and the advent of a new approach in labor-industrial relations that favored stability and employee loyalty over labor market flexibility. [ 40 ]

As Comrade Tom explains in his book, the mass immigration of 1890 to 1920, the role of immigrants and non-immigrants in the struggles of 1917-1919, and the reaction of the American ruling class spoke to how mass migration undermined the capitalist order and nation-state system:

The mass worker mobility across national boundaries in the period preceding WWI, though economically indispensable, had proven to be a profoundly destabilizing factor for nation-states in the old world and new. In both the US and the sending countries, due to its disruption of established cultural norms, immigration had called into question social order. It is not incidental that reactionary political currents in America and Europe that emerged in the 1920s took as their first task shoring up national identity. Meanwhile at the level of political economy, the US effort to limit European migration was a manifestation of a general attempt to refortify the nation-state against destabilizing global pressuresin this case the essentially international essence of its labor force. [ 41 ]

The bipartisan re-birth of modern anti-immigrant politics

It is not possible here to treat in great detail the development of American immigration policy from 1924 to today. The campaign against Sacco and Vanzetti represented the dovetailing of anti-immigrant chauvinism with anti-communism and ruthless state murder. In the 1930s, the US State Department, led by open antisemites like Wilbur Carr, systematically blocked the immigration of hundreds of thousands of European Jews, including an estimated 100,000 who later died in Hitlers gas chambers, including the passengers on the SS St. Louis, which Franklin Roosevelt denied the right to land in the US in 1939.

Chinese Exclusion remained on the books until 1943, when US solicitation of Chinas support for the imperialist war against Japan required a quiet re-writing of the immigration code. At the same time, the Roosevelt administration had interned 120,000 Japanese immigrants and Japanese-American citizens, refusing to release many until over a year after the fighting in Asia had ended. In 1965, Congress lifted the national origins quota due to widespread concerns that the racial aspect was extremely damaging to American imperialism and generated support for the Soviet Union across the third world. As a result of the 1965 Act, the foreign-born population of the US began to slowly rise from its nadir of 5 percent in 1970.

The dissolution of the Soviet Union produced a dramatic shift in American immigration policy, led by the Democratic Party in alliance with far-right sections of the Republican right. A 1990 immigration act created a Commission on Immigration Reform, and the Clinton administration picked former congresswoman and civil rights icon Barbara Jordan to lead the commission. Jordan and the bipartisan commissioncomprised of an equal number of Democrats and Republicansproposed a dramatic shift back to extreme restriction. During a 1994 speech, Jordan laid out this vision:

Weve got to have the strength to say no to the people who are not supposed to get in we need to make deportation a part of a credible immigration policy weve got to do that balancing act. The most urgent immigration problem we face today is the unauthorized entry of 100,000s of illegals although the illegal alien may be generally law abiding their entry in violation of the law is a violation of our national interest. [ 42 ]

Barbara Jordan speaking at the 1976 DNC [Photo: Warren K. Leffler, U.S. News & World Report Magazine]

This representative of the ruling class proposed three prongs to stop immigration. First: border management, through which the borders in urban centers were militarized, forcing immigrants to make the deadly crossing in the desert. Second: work site enforcement: Employment continues to be the principal magnet for illegal immigrants coming into the country, Jordan said. Third: shutting off public benefits to immigrants and their families.

Jordan said:

If a person is here unlawfully, he should be entitled to no benefits. No benefits. Why the distinction between the eligibility of legal aliens and illegals? Illegal aliens dont have the right to be here, they broke the law to get here, they never intended to become a part of our social community, and they are not entitled to benefits. They have no intention to integrate. [ 43 ]

Based on the Jordan Commissions recommendation, Congress passed an extremely restrictive Act in 1996, just weeks before that years presidential election, with support from figures like Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer and Bernie Sanders. In the lead-up to the bills passage, the Jordan Commission blamed immigrants for undermining social security, accusing them of robbing from the elderly, claimed Latin American immigrants were stealing jobs from blacks in the inner cities, and said immigrants themselves were undermining working conditions and reducing wages and undoing the gains of the trade union bureaucracies. The call to kick undocumented workers off of public benefits led to Californias Proposition 187, which voters ratified by a wide margin in 1996 and which would have barred undocumented children from attending public school, were it not struck down as unconstitutional by a federal judge in Los Angeles named Mariana Pfaelzer. In 2018, Trump issued a statement honoring Barbara Jordan for paving the way for his onslaught against immigrants.

Time constraints require me to skim over the addition of a slew of national security restrictions on immigration carried out through the war on terror in the 2000s and 2010s. Barack Obama declared that the 11 million who broke [immigration] laws should be held accountable and deported more immigrants than all previous presidents combined. The path for the emergence of Trump was paved by two decades of bipartisan attacks on immigrants.

[Photo: US Census]

This has taken place alongside the increasing internationalization of the United States. America has always been a land of immigration, but this has never been as true as it is today. The foreign-born population is 14 percent, equal to the peaks of the 1890s and triple the rate of the early 1970s. The so-called American working class is more cosmopolitan and less organically disposed to nationalism than ever before. Consider the international character of the working class in the city of Los Angeles, where 40 percent of the population is foreign-born and well over a majority is either foreign-born or first generation US citizen.

[Photo: International Organization for Migration]

Los Angeles is home to over 1.4 million citizens of Mexico, 450,000 citizens of El Salvador, 1.2 million Filipinos, 150,000 Guatemalans and 200,000 Armenians. The city has the largest population of Druze outside of Lebanon, Belizeans outside Belize, and Thai outside Thailand. Immigrant workers make up substantial portions of critical industries, including a third of hospitality workers, 30 percent of construction workers, and 25 percent of agricultural and manufacturing workers.

The urgent danger of Trumps second term

Trump has made clear he plans to establish a dictatorship, using immigrants and socialists as his chief targets, as part of a full-frontal assault on the working class. The record of Trumps first term marked a qualitative break from bourgeois legal norms. He banned travel from predominantly Muslim countries in January-February 2017, conducted high-profile, mass workplace raids, unleashed ruthless physical and sexual assaults of detained immigrants, banned immigration from the southern border, imposed a Zero tolerance policy stripping immigrant children from their parents and relatives (many, as it turns out, permanently), and expanded a network of concentration camps, including the tent cities in Texas. As mentioned earlier, he plans to end birthright citizenship, prohibit undocumented children from attending schools, and impose martial law to deport millions from the cities.

Throughout Trumps term and after, the Democrats have acceded to or even carried out the bulk of Trumps immigration policies, in some cases going even further than Trumpfor example, the imposition of an asylum ban this year and in their decision to petition in Department of State v. Munoz, appealing to the Roberts-Alito-Thomas wing of the US Supreme Court for a rule that will permanently separate thousands of families of mixed immigration status. From the standpoint of the historical traditions upon which Trump now relies, it is significant that the Supreme Court opinion in Munoz, made possible by Bidens petition, referred positively to the 1798 Alien and Sedition Acts, the 1875 Page Act barring immigration of Chinese women on the grounds that they were prostitutes, and the 1924 National Origins Quota Act.

The Democratic Party, which, as we have seen, helped write the playbook from which Trump now draws, not only adapts to his attacks on immigrants, but is politically reliant on the attack on immigrants and democratic rights to wage imperialist war abroad.

There is no constituency for the defense of immigrants within the ruling class of any country, and in not a single country has any serious political opposition been waged in defense of immigrants, including from the middle class pseudo-left.

Nor is this a phenomenon limited to the major imperialist powers. In countries like South Africa, India, Costa Rica, Chile and elsewhere in the global South, governments of various left and right stripes increasingly borrow from the imperialist playbook. Chiles Kast and Brazils Bolsonaro use demands for the expulsion of Venezuelan immigrants as a battering ram for dictatorship. Costa Rica demands the removal of Nicaraguans. Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador transformed Mexico, which once could present itself the worlds last refuge for asylum seekers, into a prison for immigrants, at the behest of US imperialism.

[Photo: Migration Policy Institute]

Some conclusions can be drawn from a review of this historical material. 1) The American ruling class today is turning back to the darkest pages of its old playbook, with Trump riffing on themes developed by the Democrats with greater intensity than ever before. 2) The social basis for nationalist xenophobia historically comes from above, in alliance with a section of the petty-bourgeoisie, and not chiefly from below. 3) This does not mean workers are immune from nationalist propaganda, and there is no tendency but ours with a program to challenge the far-right. For these reasons the party must realize theoretically, programmatically and practically the centrality of the defense of immigration as the key to the defense of democratic rights and the fight for the political unity of the working class.

Ours is not a humanitarian appeal to the ruling class for kinder policies, it is a Marxist appeal to the working class for international unity. This means: 1) The defense of immigrants must be the spearhead of the defense of democratic rights of the entire working class in the global counter-offensive against social counterrevolution. 2) There can be no defense of immigrants without opposing imperialist war and the reactionary nationalist climate it inevitably fosters. 3) It is not only possible but also necessary to win over non-immigrant workers through a class appeal based on a common fight for a revolutionary economic program. 4) The defense of immigrants is not only a democratic question, it is also a question of strategic importance for the revolutionary movement. It is a necessary prerequisite for revitalizing socialist internationalism in the working class and forging the political unity of the 21st century international working class.
Work at Dakkota, Ford or in the auto industry? Fill out the form below to get involved with the Autoworkers Rank-and-File Committee Network at your plant.

The International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees (IWA-RFC) is holding a meeting this Sunday, August 25, at 3:00 p.m. US Eastern Time, For global action to defend jobs at Warren Truck and around the world! To register, click here.

Striking Dakkota parts workers on the picket lines on the Chicago South Side, near the Ford Chicago Assembly Plant. Photo taken on August 9, 2024.

Striking Dakkota Integrated Systems auto parts workers in Chicago voted by 61 percent Tuesday and Wednesday to reject a second pro-company tentative agreement brought back by the United Auto Workers.

Around 450 Dakkota workers have been striking for more than two weeks for far higher wages and improved working conditions, after rejecting the UAWs first pro-company contract proposal by 87 percent the previous weekend.

The rebellion by Dakkota workers against the sellout deal is a major rebuke to the UAW bureaucracy, which tried to ram it through in a snap vote. It further exposes the fraudulent claims of UAW President Shawn Fain to be leading a struggle for workers interests.

But as recent history has repeatedly shown, the UAW apparatus will not respond to Dakkota workers no vote by seeking to negotiate a better deal. Instead, they will seek to starve and wear workers down on the picket line, while planning to force workers to keep voting on essentially the same contract until it comes out the right way, as they did at Lear Hammond, Clarios, and elsewhere.

If there is going to be a real fight to win the strike, workers themselves must organize it. Dakkota workers should organize discussions on the picket lines today and tomorrow and move quickly to develop the Dakkota Workers Rank-and-File Committee.

The urgent task is to expand the strike throughout the region, connecting it with the struggle to defend jobs at Stellantis and across the auto industry. In particular, they must link up with workers at Ford Chicago, who should refuse to handle scab parts, and with Stellantis workers at Warren Truck near Detroit, who are fighting against mass layoffs and the threatened closure of their plant.

Rank-and-file Dakkota workers should discuss a set of fighting demands based on what workers actually need, such as a 50 percent wage increase, two full weeks of vacation, and more.

Now that we voted, we need to stand even stronger, a veteran Dakkota worker told the WSWS late Wednesday. We need to go big.

The fight is on, another striking worker said.

The Dakkota factory supplies the nearby Ford Chicago Assembly Plant. The UAW bureaucracy has ordered workers at Ford to continue working and handling parts made by scabs during the strike, despite increasingly angry calls by Ford workers to take solidarity action. Last week, rank-and-file committees of workers at Ford Chicago and Dakkota issued a joint statement calling for a ban on scab parts.

The UAW bureaucracy is already seeking to sow demoralization and pass the blame from itself onto workers, claiming some workers have begun crossing the picket lines.

If that is the case, responsibility lies entirely with the UAW apparatus, which is starving workers on the picket lines on just $500 a week, not to mention placing workers in extreme financial precariousness by agreeing to poverty wages in earlier contracts.

Along with the demand for a ban on scab parts, rank-and-file workers at Dakkota and Ford Chicago should insist that strike pay is raised to $1,000 a week. The UAW apparatus controls a strike fund valued at over $800 million, which has been built from workers dues money and must be used to provide them with the resources needed to win their struggle.

We can barely afford to pay our bills

Both contract proposals brought back by the UAW would have imposed poverty wages, forcing workers to continue working two or even three jobs to survive, as is often the case currently. Wages would have started at $16.80 for new-hires and ended at $18 by 2028. Senior workers would have made $21 to start and $25 by the end of the contract.

I have been working for this company for 17 years, a Dakkota worker told the WSWS Wednesday. He continued:

All I have received is change from this company. Never have we ever gotten a dollar raise from the company when times are hard. Now everything has gotten so expensive we can barely afford to pay our bills or buy groceries to feed our family, which is ridiculous. It takes gas to get to work, and gas prices have also gone up. Everything is outrageous now, so with that being said we need more money. We have only one paid time off, two weeks of vacation, when we have to give one week back to Ford Motor Company, so actually we are only getting one week off for vacation, when some people in this company are barely getting that.

While the UAW apparatus and corporate media have virtually blacked out information about the strike, workers who have learned about it through the WSWS have written in to voice their support.

A Dakkota worker at the companys Lansing, Michigan plant told the WSWS:

As a fellow Dakkota worker, Chicago, I share your pain and anger. For four years that Ive been at Dakkota we have been royally screwed over. I had worked here previously in the past, nine years ago, I am also a second generation Dakkota worker, and I can tell you its a night and day difference.

Dakkota workers are a battalion in a class war

The strike at Dakkota is taking place as Fain and the UAW apparatus are desperately trying to head off a rebellion by workers at Stellantis over mass job cuts. At the same time, the bureaucracy is going all-out (in its own words) to promote Kamala Harris and Tim Walz, the candidates of the big business, pro-war Democratic Party.

Stellantis has announced it is permanently cutting 2,450 positions at its Warren Truck Assembly Plant near Detroit. The cuts are part of a growing jobs bloodbath in the global auto industry, as the companies seek to shed workers and ruthlessly cut costs as they transition to electric vehicle production.

In the US, Stellantis, Ford and GM have all cut thousands of jobs this year, contradicting the claims by Fain and the media that last years Big Three contracts were historic. In reality, the agreements have given the companies a free hand to carry out mass layoffs, which UAW officials, such as Vice President Rich Boyer, have admitted they knew were coming during the contract talks last year.

Will Lehman, a rank-and-file worker at Mack Trucks and socialist candidate for UAW president in the 2022-2023 elections, told the WSWS Thursday:

The Dakkota workers are standing up for their interests, and in doing so, theyre having to defy the UAW bureaucracy. They join a long line now of workers who have rebelled against UAW sellouts, including Volvo Trucks, Deere, Dana, Lear, and Mack Trucks, where I work. The critical issue is for Dakkota workers to understand that theyre fighting not just one particularly greedy company. Dakkota workers are a battalion in a class war. On the one side are the corporate executives, the major banks, and the union bureaucracies, who are trying squeeze even more profit out of workers. On the other side is the global working class. Whether youre an autoworker in Chicago, Mexico, Italy, or China, youre fighting against the giant corporations, and for the same common class interests.

Lehman concluded:

Dakkota workers have taken an important step forward. Now that momentum has to be developed. I encourage workers to get involved with the Dakkota and Ford Chicago rank-and-file committees. Join the International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees, a global movement of workers.

Were fighting for a better life

Were fighting for a better life, a veteran Dakkota worker said.

The cost of living has gone up. Everything. They want to pay us peanuts while they dont have to struggle for mortgages, groceries, car bills. Theyre not being fair. Im in it for the long haul. The more they want to play this game. The angrier Im becoming. Ive been following all the articles you guys have been publishing. Im very pleased with them. Theyre very factual. Theyre giving us the truth in the reporting. Its showing a side to the people of whats really going on. And how the union leaders are betraying the workforce. The problem with this strike is there is no strategy. Theres no game plan. This needs to be bigger.
Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of the UKs most profitable corporations are being paid more than ever before. According to the High Pay Centre (HPC), the CEOs of the most valuable firms listed on the London Stock Exchange (the Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) 100 index) enjoy a median pay of 4.19 million.

This is the highest sum ever recorded by UK CEOs. The pay for a FTSE 100 CEO is over 25 times the amount necessary to put the recipient in the top 1 percent of UK earners. The HPC point out that opaque corporate structures mean there is the possibility these huge remuneration packages are underestimations of their full value.

A view from the south of Paternoster Square in London, England from the top viewing deck of St. Paul's Cathedral. Paternoster Square, City of London, England. The home of the London Stock Exchange [Photo: Self-published work by gren]

Top CEO pay is 120 times higher than the median earnings of a UK full-time worker, 34,963 in 2023.

Average CEO pay is calculated by adding all the pay and dividing by the number of executives but the median is the midpoint between the highest and lowest payment. According to the HP, when average pay from 2023 is looked at the figure is much higher at almost 5 million (4.98 million), up 12.2 percent from 2022 and equating per CEO to a more than 500,000 increase.

Working full-time, it would take the average paid UK worker approximately a decade and a half just to earn the same amount UK CEOs have enjoyed as their yearly increase.

According to Luke Hildyard, director at the HPC, the sharp increase in CEO pay is the result of a small number of companies making really large pay awards rather than big increases across the board.

The number of companies on the FTSE blue-chip index paying their CEOs more than 10 million annually more than doubled from four in 2022 to nine in 2023. FTSE 100 companies spent 755 million paying just 222 executives in 2023, according to the HPC.

UK CEOs are pushing for even higher payouts to compete with their international peers, particularly in the US. Earlier this year Dame Julia Hoggett, CEO of the London Stock Exchange plc, said UK pay rates for CEOs was significantly below global benchmarks, making it harder to attract the top executives. London Stock Exchange Group chief executive David Schwimmer insisted in February this year, If London has an ambition to be a globally leading financial centre and to attract world-class companies, that means it has to attract world-class talent.

Low and behold, just two months later in April nearly 90 percent of LSEG shareholders supported a proposal to more than double Schwimmers pay to a potential maximum of 13.1 million. This makes Schwimmer one of the very highest paid FTSE 100 bosses. He will receive potential incentive payments of up to 550 percent of his salary and a 300 percent bonus this year.

AstraZeneca shareholders recently approved an enormous pay rise for chief executive Pascal Soriot to 18.7 million, claiming their main rivals are based in the US. In their annual report, AstraZeneca claimed Soriots pay ought to be measured against large financial data providers such as US-based S&P Global.

The HPC met claims of supposedly underpaid UK CEOs with some scepticism. The number of UK-headquartered companies considered globally significant is lowonly a third of FTSE 100 companies would be large enough to qualify for the S&P 500 in the US. Little beyond anecdotes exist of UK business concerns failing to attract executives and they also question an easy connection between higher executive pay and better business performance.

The think tank also argues that the more that is paid to CEOs the less goes towards workers pay or into business investment, noting the negative impact pay inequality has on employee engagement, productivity and wellbeing. It cites the weakening of trade unions, an adversarial approach to labour relationsthe UK ranks 27th out of 29 European countries for worker participation in business decision making, to account for the cult of the superstar CEO as the key driver of business performance. This is exacerbated by the increased ownership of shareholdings in UK firms by overseas investors, particularly from the US and the primacy of shareholders dividends above all other considerations.

The HPC nevertheless claims that its much too early to describe this as a trend, noting that while 10 million plus is awarded to the CEOs of the very largest UK companies, 3/4 million is the going rate for the remainder of the FTSE 100 and 1/2 million for the FTSE 250.

Along with soaring CEO pay, there is the rocketing of wealth among that layer who make the CEOs look like paupersthe billionaires. The Socialist Equality Party noted in our general election manifesto this year that, UK billionaire wealth is up by more than 1,000 percent since 1989, the year it started. In 2000, some 20 years after the financial deregulation of the City of London, the STRL counted 26 billionaires. That figure took a further decade to double to 52 in 2010. But in the years from 2010 until 2019, the number of billionaires tripled to 151.

Social inequality is not driven by the greedy subjective intentions of CEOs but by the nature of the capitalist system. The popular truism The rich get richer and the poor get poorer is attributed to poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. But it was Karl Marx who wrote in 1867 in proportion as capital accumulates, the situation of the worker, be his payment high or low, must grow worse. Accumulation of wealth at one pole is, therefore, at the same time accumulation of misery, the torment of labour, slavery, ignorance, brutalization and moral degradation at the opposite pole, i.e. on the side of the class that produces its own product as capital.

Today whilst UK CEOs are paid more than they have ever received, one-fifth of people in the UK suffer poverty, including a quarter of all children. For the poorest 10 percent of UK households, living standards have fallen by 20 percent compared with 2019/20a drop in income of 4,600. Approaching 3 million rely on food banks to eat.
A section of the Colombo election meeting on August 16, 2024.

The Socialist Equality Party (SEP) and the International Youth and Students for Social Equality in Sri Lanka held a powerful meeting to launch SEPs presidential election campaign on Friday, August 16 at the Public Library Auditorium in Colombo. About 60 people, including party members and supporters, attended the event.

This was the first of several meetings organised by the SEP throughout the country including in the Southern and Northern provinces. The Sri Lankan presidential election is scheduled for Saturday, September 21.

Deepal Jayasekera, the SEP general secretary chaired the meeting. Introducing Wijesiriwardena, he said that the SEP candidate had about a 50-year record of fighting for the partys Trotskyist principles of international socialism among workers and youth.

SEP general secretary Deepal Jayasekera chairing the presidential election meeting on August 16, 2024.

Explaining the purpose of the SEPs intervention into the election, Jayasekera said that the party was campaigning to broaden the independent political mobilisation of the working class on a socialist perspective against imperialist war and the turn by the ruling class to austerity and dictatorial forms of rule.

The SEP is the only party in the election that tells truth to the workers and oppressed masses contrary to all parties of the political establishment and their trade union and pseudo-left agencies, he said. None of the burning issues facing the masses, including deepening poverty, unemployment and other social problems can be solved within the capitalist profit system or on a national basis. What is required is a struggle for an international socialist program and perspective to bring the working class to power and overthrow bourgeois rule globally.

SEP Political Committee member Vilani Peiris told the meeting that the SEP was fighting to mobilise and guide the working class on a global strategy of abolishing capitalism and replacing it with socialism.

SEP political committee member Vilani Peris addressing the presidential election meeting on August 16, 2024.

The same contradictions of capitalism that drive the ruling class to war and destruction, also drive the working class toward social revolution, she said. But the working class cannot spontaneously achieve the necessary consciousness. There has to be a revolutionary party to provide the necessary perspective and leadership to the working class. In the election campaign, we are deepening our struggle to build the SEP as the mass revolutionary party of the working class.

International Youth and Students for Social Equality (IYSSE) convenor Kapila Fernando drew attention to the bloody record of the ruling class towards the countrys youth. He pointed to the massacre of tens of thousands of Sinhala youth in 1971 and again in 1988-90 to suppress rural unrest in the South, then of Tamil youth during the communal war by successive governments against the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

Fernando explained that successive governments had slashed essential public services like free education and healthcare won in struggles of the working class during 1940s under the leadership then Trotskyist Bolshevik Leninist Party of India (BLPI). He said that successive attacks on workers and youth demonstrated in the negative the correctness of Trotskys Theory of Permanent Revolution. The bourgeoisie in backward countries are utterly incapable of securing basic social and democratic rights of the working people. Only the working class rallying around it the poor peasantry and fighting for socialism is able to achieve these rights, Fernando said.

IYSSE convener Kapila Fernando addressing Colombo election meeting on August 16, 2024.

Delivering the main speech, SEP presidential candidate Pani Wijesiriwardena pointed out the main differences between the campaigns of the SEP and other candidates. The SEP does not have a separate election program. During our election campaign, we present the working people the international socialist program and perspective of our world party, International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI).

Wijesiriwardena said that the SEP was the only party warning of the growing danger of world war by the US and other imperialist powers. None of the other candidates even raise this issue before the masses. He explained that the intensifying assault on social and democratic rights of working people flowed from the global crisis of capitalism.

After handing in their nominations, all the bourgeois candidates talk about building up the country. What does this country consist of? There are two major classes in the country: the bourgeoisie and the working class. They all mean propping up profits of the bourgeoisie in expense of the working class, he said. In opposition to all of them, the SEP is fighting for the interests of the working class.

SEP presidential candidate Pani Wijesiriwardena addressing Colombo election meeting, August 16, 2024

President Ranil Wickremesinghe claims to be resolving the countrys problems, Wijesiriwardena said, but the latest statistics show that the poverty rate in Sri Lanka has skyrocketed from 11 percent in 2019 to 26 percent in 2024. The top 1 percent of the population now owns 31 percent of the countrys wealth while the bottom 50 percent owns less than 4 percent. These figures show which class Wickremesinghe is resolving problems for.

The speaker drew the political lessons of the mass uprising in 2022 in which millions of workers, youth and rural masses joined strikes and protests all over the country, demanding the ouster of president Gotabhaya Rajapakse. Rajapakse was forced to flee the country and resign. But the trade union bureaucracies and fake lefts such as the Frontline Socialist Party (SEP) worked to block an independent political movement of the working class by channeling the mass movement into interim government trap promoted by the opposition partiesthe Samagi Jana Balawegaya and JVP. This paved by the way for the installation of Wickremesinghe, who has implemented the harsh austerity measures dictated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Wijesiriwardena explained that during 2022 the SEP fought among struggling workers, youths and rural poor for an alternative revolutionary socialist program. Against all the parties of the political establishment and their trade union and fake left accomplices, the SEP called on workers to form their own independent action committees in every workplace, factory, plantation and neighborhoods. It advanced the political initiative for a Democratic and Socialist Conference of Workers and Rural Masses (DSC) based on democratically-elected delegates from Action Committees to advance the struggle for a government of workers and peasants, based on socialist policies.

Without having a revolutionary party rooted in the working class, mass movements cannot win. This is the greatest lesson of Egyptian uprising in 2011, the popular uprising in Sri Lanka and the struggle now taking place in Bangladesh. We will utilise our election campaign to bring this lesson to the masses, the SEP candidate said.

Wijesiriwardena said that Anura Kumara Dissanayake, the candidate of the JVP-led National Peoples Power (NPP), claimed to have an agreement with the people. However, Dissanayake himself has told Lankadeepa that his government would continue the agreement with the IMF. This shows that JVP/NPP leaders talk about an agreement with people is an outright lie and they have actually sided with international finance capital against working people.

The SEP candidate explained that the partys campaign for a Sri Lanka-Eelam Socialist Republic was part of the broader international struggle for socialism. The SEP calls for workers in Sri Lanka to unify with their class brothers and sisters in South Asia and internationally and for action committees on the island to join the International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees (IWA-RFC) initiated by the ICFI.

Wijesiriwardena concluded by calling workers, youth and rural poor to vote for the SEP in the election, support and participated in the partys election campaign and most importantly to join the SEP to build it as the mass revolutionary party of the working class.
CP rail workers picketing the St. Luc Yard in Montreal during their 2022 strike, which was abruptly called off by the Teamsters soon after it began. (Source: Teamsters Canada) [Photo: Teamsters Canada/Facebook]

Some 9,300 engineers, conductors, yard workers, and rail controllers at Canadian National (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) were locked out at 12:01am Thursday by Canadas two freight railroads, which are determined to impose sweeping concessions.

The overwhelming support among rail workers for a struggle to put an end to dangerous working conditions must be organized into a political fight against the rail barons, who are backed to the hilt by corporate Canada and the pro-war, pro-austerity Trudeau Liberal government.

Demonstrating the immense social power exercised by the rail workers, they would have brought freight rail services across Canada to a standstill if they had walked out on strike as planned.

The fact that the companies had the opportunity to lock workers out on their terms and organize a planned shutdown of the rail network was above all due to the hostility of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) to organizing any genuine struggle. The TCRC issued a 72-hour strike notice at CPKC on Sunday, but only after both railroads served notice that they would lock out the workers at 12:01 am August 22.

The lockout has also halted passenger services in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver that rely on CPKC controllers and tracks to operate. In addition, shipments to the US have been hit.

In a replay of contract talks in 2022, the TCRC has sat on massive strike votes without offering any strategy to beat back the railroads concessions demands. In so doing, they have allowed the bosses to go on the offensive, while smearing the workers in the pro-corporate press as the real problem. Whats more, the TCRC underscored its determination to divide the workers with its decision to only file a strike notice at CPKC.

Corporate Canada is demanding with one voice that the Trudeau government intervene to enforce a contract settlement. They view the railroads as a critical network stretching across North America for the supply of raw materials and finished goods for industry and food processing, the transportation of exports, and delivery of military equipment for the waging of imperialist war around the world. Business associations denounced the prospect of a strike as a threat to economic stability, national security and Canadas global reputation as a trading partner.

A joint statement by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Business Council of Canada, Canadian Federation of Independent Business and Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters issued Wednesday declared, The government of Canada has a responsibility to protect the Canadian public and maintain national security, and it is time to act decisively to fulfill that obligation.

The associations demanded the invocation of Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code, a provision used last year against West Coast dock workers to block their strike. Section 107 allows the government to order the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB), an unelected body of government appointees who invariably rule in favour of the employers, to illegalize a strike and impose binding arbitration. In the event of binding arbitration, workers are stripped of any right to determine their own working conditions and lose any legal right to carry out a job action until the future arbitration-imposed contract expires. The business associations also indicated they would support a back-to-work law passed by parliament, which the government would need to recall from its summer recess.

The Trudeau government has thus far rejected open and direct intervention, although Labour Minister Steven MacInnon has participated in the contract talks with both companies this week. MacInnon issued an August 15 statement rejecting an appeal from CN for him to impose binding arbitration.

This initial reluctance in no way implies any principled opposition by the union- and New Democratic Party-backed Trudeau government to openly intervening on the side of the bosses and robbing rail workers of their legal rights to strike and bargain collectively.

In fact, in their almost nine years in power, the Liberals have time and again used the full force of the state to crush workers struggles. Some examples include the banning of rotating strikes by 50,000 postal workers in 2018, the criminalization of a Port of Montreal work stoppage by 1,100 dockers in 2021, and the banning of last years dockworkers strike. The government would prefer to rely on the services of its allies in the Teamsters bureaucracy to ram a concessions-filled deal down the workers throats, but it will act ruthlessly should this prove impossible.

CNs continent-wide network connects Newfoundland & Labrador in the east with Vancouver on the Pacific coast, while CPKCs tracks stretch across Canada, through the United States, and down into southern Mexico. The Biden administration is heavily involved behind the scenes due to the impact a strike would have on the North American economy and the ruling elites fear that a stand by railway workers could rapidly spread across the border, acting as a catalyst to unite Canadian and American workers in a joint fight against capitalist austerity and war. US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg wrote on X Wednesday, We are engaging with our Canadian counterparts and tracking the flow of vital goods to U.S. consumers and businesses.

Earlier this year, leaders of Canadas major unions, including Teamsters Canada President Francois Laporte, met with the US ambassador to Canada, David Cohen, and then-Labour Minister Seamus ORegan to discuss the strengths and opportunities of labor relations in the United States and Canada. In other words, they were conspiring on how best to suppress the class struggle under conditions in which workers across North America, irrespective of the economic sector in which they operate, are objectively united by the process of production more than ever before.

This is especially true of the rail industry, where profit-hungry rail companies rampage across the entire North American continent in search of the biggest returns for their shareholders. Conditions in Canada and the US for rail workers are notorious, with frequent derailments claiming the lives of rail workers and local residents and causing environmental calamities. One can recall in this regard the horrific destruction of downtown Lac-Megantic in 2013, the Field derailment in British Columbia in February 2019, and last years derailment of a Norfolk Southern train carrying a toxic cargo in East Palestine, Ohio.

The railroads are making demands that ensure the continuation and increased frequency of similarly terrible, but entirely preventable, accidents in the years to come. TCRC President Paul Boucher stated that CN wants to extend already notoriously long workdays for rail workers in provinces west of Ontario and impose a relocation policy to meet labour shortages that could force workers to move away from their homes for up to 90 days. Paying workers by scheduled shift rather than miles travelled could result in rail workers being assigned to other tasks if they reach their destination ahead of time, rather than being able to clock out as they can currently. These concessions, he acknowledged, would drag working conditions back to another era.

Demands from CPKC include more flexible working arrangements that would make it harder for workers to know when they will be called to work, producing, in Bouchers words, a fatigue-related safety risk, and would loosen restrictions on how long workers can be held away from home. CPKC also wants to delay the start of held-away pay, payments that workers receive when they spend time away from home between shifts. The change would be in line with extended breaks mandated by a May 2023 law that requires a minimum rest period between shifts when rail workers are away from home for 12 hours.

The TCRC offers no way forward for workers to resist these outrageous demands. It has presided over massive concessions in every recent bargaining round, and it intends to do the same again this time. The very fact that the companies are in a position to lock out the workers as they take strike action is primarily the result of the Teamsters foot-dragging and their refusal to challenge the anti-worker collective bargaining regime enforced by their allies in the Liberal government.

In 2022, the Teamsters waited until Canadian Pacific locked out the workforce before calling a strike. And no sooner did the strike begin than the union caved in and, at the governments urging, agreed to a binding arbitration process that resulted in virtually all of the companies demands being written into the contact.

The Teamsters bureaucracy has no desire to lead a struggle at a time when the prices of commodities are high and the shipping of war materials to the US/NATO-instigated war on Russia is in full swing. This is because the union apparatus in the Teamsters and all other major unions is fully committed to Canadian and US imperialisms wars through their corporatist alliance with big business and the government.

Workers must take matters into their own hands by forming rank-and-file strike committees to broaden their struggle. It must be broadened to rail workers in the US and Mexico to bring the entire North American railroad network to a halt. It must also be broadened to other sections of the working class across Canada, including autoworkers, resource workers, and workers in the public sector, all of whom confront sweeping attacks on their pay and conditions from the same forces seeking to impose concessions on railroaders.

In opposition to the nationalist and pro-capitalist Teamsters bureaucracy, whose main concern is defending the interests of the corporations and government against the workers, rank-and-file CN and CPKC workers must fight for a socialist and internationalist program to secure safe and secure jobs for all, an end to public spending austerity, and a halt to imperialist war.

On this basis, the railroads can be deployed to serve the needs of the vast majority of society, the working class, not the profiteering and warmongering of a tiny few at the top.
The International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees (IWA-RFC) is holding a meeting this Sunday, August 25, at 3:00 p.m. US Eastern Time, For global action to defend jobs at Warren Truck and around the world! To register, click here.

A 53-year-old worker at the Toledo Jeep Assembly Complex was crushed to death on the assembly line at the Ohio factory Wednesday afternoon. Antonio Gaston was a father of four children who was forced to move to the Toledo plant after Stellantis closed his plant in Belvidere, Illinois in 2022.

Antonio Gaston [Photo: Gofundme]

A gofundme page has been set up to raise money for Gastons wife and children.

Just hours after the deadly incident, a quality inspector on the Jeep Gladiator line told local news station WTOL 11 that Gaston was killed where the chassis and the body comes down together, where all the parts from all the plants come together. He was doing his job on break, and he just apparently happened to be in the wrong spot at the wrong time. The conveyor turned on; its just terrible, he said.

As far as we know, the worker who was killed drove a tugger and was a stock worker, another Jeep worker told the World Socialist Web Site. The line started moving while he was near the robot. There was no safety mechanism that would prevent the robot from moving if someone is near it, from what Im aware of at least. If there is, obviously it wasnt working.

Pointing to the impact of job cuts at the plant, the worker added, Stellantis has been eliminating hundreds of jobs within the plant. It started by eliminating team leaders and combining teams. They also eliminated a lot of quality jobs, and jobs they considered too easy. But the same amount of work is required to build the vehicles. The additional work was added on to other jobs, which, of course, isnt good for safety.

There is also immense pressure to eliminate down time and line stoppages, so people have to work faster to keep up. Ive worked on that side before, and the jobs are extremely over cycled.

The worker who was killed was in stock, and they have eliminated jobs in stock also. Its a sad situation, he had a wife and children. Now they are without a husband and father. The company doesnt care about safety, only cranking out numbers.

It was a very terrible, tragic, sad, accident, a veteran worker told the WSWS. He may have seen something not right about the chassis, and tried to fix the situation, and got trapped. Asked if job cuts and pressure to meet production quotas have undermined safety in the plant, the worker stated yes emphatically.

A WSWS reporter called United Auto Workers Local 12 President Bruce Baumhowers office for more information about the workers death and the impact of job cuts on safety conditions. Although the local union presidents secretary took down the questions, Baumhower has not returned the call.

Location in plant where Gladiator body is "married" to chassis [Photo by Stellantis]

The UAW bureaucracy is complicit in the deadly conditions facing workers. Stellantis and the other automakers have used the pro-company labor agreements signed by the UAW last fall to launch a savage job- and cost-cutting campaign. This has been spearheaded by Stellantis, which is seeking to shift the cost of its transition to electric vehicles by slashing thousands of jobs in Toledo, Detroit, Kokomo and other cities. Most recently, the company announced the layoff of 2,500 workers at its suburban Detroit Warren Truck plant.

It is well known among autoworkers and other workers in dangerous manufacturing facilities that no one dies on the companys property. This is because employers could face wrongful death lawsuits from surviving family members if such fatalities are connected to dangerous conditions of work and corporate negligence.

A Warren Truck worker told the WSWS, Whatever happened in Toledo, theyre going to solely blame it on the victim. If someone dies in the plant, the company is supposed to pay the family triple the benefits. My coworker died here last year. They told us they were working on him. He still had a pulse. He was cold before the ambulance arrived or even knew where he was.

They didnt pronounce him dead until he left this property. Thats just plain wicked and disgusting behavior on the part of the company.

In a statement posted on his X/Twitter account, Jerry White, the Socialist Equality Party candidate for US vice president, stated:

Socialist Equality Party presidential candidate Joseph Kishore and I express our deepest condolences to the wife and children of Antonio Gaston, who was killed at the Toledo Jeep Complex Wednesday. We demand a full investigation of his death, carried out by a committee of trusted rank-and-file workers themselves.

There is no doubt, however, that Antonio is the latest victim of Americas industrial slaughterhouse, which subordinates workers lives to capitalist profit. This is the brutal system that Harris and Trump, both corporate controlled parties and the UAW bureaucracy defend.

Since the signing of the 2023 UAW labor agreements, hailed by UAW President Shawn Fain and US President Joe Biden, as historic and life-changing, autoworkers have been subjected to a savage attack on their jobs and working conditions. Thousands of part-time and full-time workers have lost their jobs and those remaining face increasingly deadly conditions in the factories.

At Ford, 46-year-old Tywaun Long Jr. died of a heart attack on April 17 because of exhausting hours and speedup. Now, Antonio Gastons name has been added to the long list of autoworkers, including Steven Dierkes, Danny Walters, Catherine Pace and Daulton Simmers, who have been sacrificed on the altar of corporate profit. This is not limited to the auto industry. Just a few miles from the Jeep plant, the two young brothers, Ben and Max Morrissey, were killed in an entirely preventable explosion at the nearby BP Husky oil refinery in September 2022.

Now, Fain and his PR department think they can fool workers with their phony grievance writing campaign to enforce the contract and force Stellantis to keep their promise to reopen the Belvidere plant. But it was precisely the sellout agreement backed by Fain & Co. that has given the auto corporations the green light to destroy tens of thousands of jobs.

Workers cannot rely on the UAW bureaucracy, let alone Harris and Trump, to protect them. Instead, workers must expand the network of rank-and-file committees in the factories so they can assert the power of workers on the shop floor over job safety and conditions. In March 2022, workers at Jeep, Warren Truck, Sterling Heights and other Stellantis plants shut down the industry with wildcat strikes because the UAW and management kept production running as Covid was spreading throughout the factories.

Striking Jeep workers with Will Lehman (third from right) on the picket lines in Toledo in 2023.

As Will Lehman, the Mack Trucks worker who ran as a socialist candidate for UAW president against Fain, said, the right to a safe job, and the right to a secure and good-paying job, can only be won through the collective action of the rank-and-file in opposition to the UAW apparatus. This struggle must be guided by the principle that workers social rights take precedence over corporate profit and private capitalist ownership of the giant corporations, which have been built up through labor of generations of workers.

The SEP calls for the unity of autoworkers around the world in a common fight against job-cutting and deadly conditions, and for Stellantis, Ford, GM, VW and other giant corporations to be transformed into public industries, collectively owned and democratically controlled by the working class.

The International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees (IWA-RFC) is holding a meeting this Sunday, August 25, at 3:00 p.m. US Eastern Time, For global action to defend jobs at Warren Truck and around the world! To register, click here.
Former President Barack Obama speaks during the Democratic National Convention Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, in Chicago. [AP Photo/Brynn Anderson]

The most striking aspect of the Democratic National Convention, which is currently underway in Chicago, is the absence of any discussion of the foreign policy of either the Biden administration or a future Harris administration, despite the fact that the United States is currently engaged in a war against Russia and preparing for a potential war with China.

The Democratic Party, and not just Genocide Joe, is fully culpable in the genocide in Gaza, which has officially killed 40,000 people, and could have killed as many as 200,000 people. Aside from a few insincere and hypocritical references to a ceasefire, the genocide has not been mentioned by the various officials who are dripping in the blood of the Palestinian people.

So too with the escalating US-NATO war against Russia and the preparations for war against China. Neither former President Barack Obama, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, nor vice presidential candidate Tim Walz made any reference to US policy regarding Russia or China. Biden briefly alluded to the US war with Russia and trade war with China in just a single paragraph.

But as the Democratic National Convention was taking place, US armored vehicles were crossing over Russias border as part of a NATO-backed offensive by Ukraine inside Russian territory. On Wednesday, Ukraine launched a salvo of drones at the Russian capital of Moscow, one of the largest direct attacks on Moscow since the war began.

On Tuesday, the day Obama addressed the convention, the New York Times reported that the Biden administration has adopted a new nuclear strategy document that would significantly expand the number of deployed US nuclear weapons, further driving up the already exorbitant costs of a nuclear modernization program estimated at $6 trillion.

Biden Approved Secret Nuclear Strategy Refocusing on Chinese Threat ran the headline of the Times article. Behind the backs of the American people, the Biden administration has authorized a new strategy that directs US forces to prepare for possible coordinated nuclear confrontations with Russia, China and North Korea, according to the Times.

The complete lack of discussion of US foreign policy at the Democratic convention is even more striking considering that the platform adopted on the first day of the convention includes major changes in language related to nuclear policy compared to that adopted four years ago.

The 2020 platform condemned the Trump administration for building new nuclear weapons and pledged to expand nuclear non-proliferation treaties. It also stated:

Democrats are committed to strengthening the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, maintaining the moratorium on explosive nuclear weapons testing, advocating for the ratification of the UN Arms Trade Treaty and Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, and extending New START.

However, all of this language is absent from the 2024 platform, which instead pledges to vastly expand the US nuclear arsenal. It states:

The administration is modernizing each leg of our nuclear triad, updating our command, control, and communication systems, and investing in our nuclear enterpriseto ensure that we can sustain and enhance capabilities and posture if necessary.

The platform goes on to state, in a passage which has not been edited since Biden dropped out and was replaced by Harris:

President Biden has never and will never turn his back on our military. In his second term, he will continue to invest in upgrading to next-generation weapon systems, cutting-edge training opportunities, and deterrence capabilities such as our submarine force and the nuclear triad.

Nowhere in the convention speeches was the demand to massively expand the US nuclear arsenal even hinted at, much less argued for. With no explanation, the Democratic Party platform has gone from declaring that building new nuclear weapons is indefensible to instead asserting that every single US nuclear weapons system must be modernized, invested in and upgraded, at the cost of trillions of dollars.

In reality, the platform reflects a sea change in official US nuclear doctrine under the Biden administration, rejecting the concept of mutually assured destruction and instead proclaiming a new nuclear age, in which the US must not be deterred from waging war against nuclear-armed states by the threat of nuclear retaliation.

A Harris administration would seek to significantly expand US warmaking worldwide, including direct US-NATO intervention in the conflict in Ukraine and a potential war with China, both of which carry the risk of nuclear war. This will be accompanied by a massive assault on the working class, who will be told that they must sacrifice for the sake of the war effort.

In a statement posted on X Wednesday, Socialist Equality Party presidential candidate Joseph Kishore wrote:

The claims by Bernie Sanders, Ocasio-Cortez (a member of the Democratic Socialists of America) and others that Harris will implement major social reforms are lies, and they know they are lies. Everything is to be subordinated to the ruling class agenda of war abroad, of global plunder, which requires a massive escalation of the war on the working class at home.

Kishore added:

The trade union apparatus is to play a central roleBiden referred to the AFL-CIO as his domestic NATO. This is what he and UAW President Shawn Fain, a featured speaker at the convention, mean when they talk about an arsenal of democracy.

Trump, for his part, is no less committed to escalating global war. He has pledged to further expand the size of the US military and impose 100 percent tariffs on Chinese goods, a move that would have devastating consequences for the living standards of working people and massively intensify the likelihood of a US war with China.

The bipartisan escalation of global war reflects the fundamental interests of American imperialism, which is determined to offset the decline of its world hegemony through military violence. For this reason, the struggle against war is the fight for socialism.
On Thursday, August 22, the newly rebuilt tower of the Garnisonkirche (Garrison Church) in Potsdam will be inaugurated. Among the speakers will be Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who took over the patronage of the project initiated by right-wing extremists seven years ago.

The Garnisonkirche, like few other buildings, embodies the criminal traditions of German militarism. Built in the 1730s on the orders of the Soldier King Friedrich Wilhelm I, it served for over 200 years to indoctrinate soldiers who were sworn to unconditional obedience and received blessings before they put down the revolutions of 1848 and 1918, slaughtered rebellious Boxers in China and Herero and Nama in Namibia, or were sent into the machine-gun fire of the First World War.

Potsdam Day 1933: Hitler and Hindenburg shaking hands [Photo by Bundesarchiv Bild 183-S38324 / CC BY-SA 3.0

During the Weimar Republic, the church became a place of pilgrimage for anti-democratic and right-wing extremist forces. This culminated on March 21, 1933 in the infamous Potsdam Day, when the Nazi dictatorship was enthroned with a symbolic handshake between Adolf Hitler and Reich President Paul von Hindenburg. The church became a place of worship in the political cult of the Nazi regime.

In 1968, the church, which had been severely damaged during the war, was blown up by the regime of the German Democratic Republic (GDR, East Germany).

The campaign for its reconstruction began long before the end of the GDR in right-wing extremist circles in the Federal Republic (West Germany). After German reunification in 1991, this campaign was continued with redoubled effort. In addition to ultra-conservatives and right-wing extremists, such as the later chairman of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), Alexander Gauland, the Protestant Bishop of Berlin-Brandenburg, Wolfgang Huber, and several Social Democrats, including the Brandenburg state prime ministers Manfred Stolpe and Matthias Platzeck, also participated.

There was hardly any support from the population, however. Donations were scarce, so that in the end the largest part of the construction costs of 42 million was financed by the federal government. The 30-metre-high dome, which is to raise the tower from 60 to 90 metres, is still missing.

The more overtly the reactionary character of the project became known and the more criticism it receivedin 2019, over 100 architects, academics and cultural figures called for it to be abandoned in the Ruf aus Potsdam (Call from Potsdam)the more openly the highest state authorities supported it. Seven years ago, Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier (Social Democratic Party, SPD) personally took over the patronage of the project.

Now, an attempt has been made to repackage the undertaking. The tower was both an architectural memorial for the city of Potsdam and a building that has been given a new purpose, one that is directed towards peace, justice and democracy, claims former Bishop Huber, who is one of the oldest supporters of the Garnisonkirche, in numerous interviews. A permanent exhibition titled Faith, Power and the Military is even to be set up within its walls, which will deal with the difficult history of the church.

This is, of course, absurd. Why should a symbol of crime be rebuilt with millions in state funds, only to be used to commemorate these crimes afterwards? Even the German news magazine Der Spiegel asks the question, Why should we bring back an architecture only to warn against the ideology it represents?

The answer is obvious. A place of pilgrimage for right-wing extremists and militarists is being built herewith the obligatory cautionary footnotesbecause the ruling class needs them.

Defence Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) has said he wants to make Germany war-ready again. Last week, German tanks crossed the border from Ukraine into Russia near Kursk for the first time since 1941. The German government is financing the war in Ukraine with billions of euros with the aim of making Ukraine completely dependent and crushing Russia in order to gain control of its gigantic resources. In Gaza, Berlin is supporting a genocide that is becoming more and more reminiscent of the crimes of the Nazis.

This return to the most brutal forms of militarism requires a revision of history and a revival of the cult of the military hero. The crimes of Hitlers army, the Wehrmacht, which have been remembered with horror for generations, must be trivialised and rehabilitated. That is why barracks are once again being named after Wehrmacht generals and the responsibility for the Second World War is being shifted from Hitler to Stalin. The rebuilding of the Garnisonkirche also serves this purpose.

Steinmeier is an expert at using unctuous words to promote the return to militarism. He will provide the inauguration of this reactionary building with a state-sanctioned significance. There is hardly a memorial act marking Nazi crimes in Poland or the Baltic states at which Steinmeier does not appear, using confessional gestures to fuel the war against Russia.

In 2014, when he was still foreign minister, Steinmeier was one of the architects of the right-wing coup in Ukraine that set the course for todays war. He was personally in Kiev when the elected president Viktor Yanukovych was overthrown, working together with, among others, the leader of the fascist Svoboda party, Oleh Tyahnybok.

Prior to this, Steinmeiertogether with the then-Federal President Joachim Gauck and Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyenhad announced that the time was over when Germany only commented on world politics from the sidelines. Germany was too big and too important to stay out of the worlds crisis areas and hotspots any longer.

His patronage of the Garnisonkirche project must be seen in this context. We recommend that our readers read the detailed article about the Garnisonkirche which the WSWS published in December 2022. It can be accessed here: Garnisonkirche Potsdam: A Symbol of German Militarism is Being Rebuilt
Protest by members of the National Education Association Staff Organization [Photo: NEASO]

After locking out its employees for over six weeks, the National Education Association (NEA) bureaucracy has reached a deal with the 300 employees of the National Education Association Staff Organization (NEASO).

The details of the new tentative agreement (TA) have yet to be disclosed and will only go into effect once it is ratified by both sides. The two organizations ended the strike before the opening of the Democratic National Convention, in order to prevent the dispute from impacting the unions electioneering efforts for Democrats and Kamala Harris.

A contract could help [the] NEA get back to election-related activities, stated University of Nevada Associate Professor on Education Policy Bradley Marianno in a comment cited by Edweek. Its going to help Kamala Harris that she is soon able to better interface with the NEA again, without crossing picket lines, he said.

According to the publication, teachers unions historically have proven critical for Democratic funding and turnout, with both the NEA and American Federation of Teachers (AFT) having increased political contributions in the past 20 years and have proven to be one of the most consistently blue labor groups, with 94 percent of their contributions going to Democrats.

The NEAs actions demonstrate the national trade union apparatus functions as a strikebreaking institution in support of the two-party capitalist system. It is organically hostile to any movement of the working class. That it treats its own functionariesthe average NEASO member is a lower-level trade union officialwith such ruthlessness only hints at the ferocity with which it deals with its members.

From 2012 to 2021, NEASO employees had their pay frozen and make around $124,000 a year, while the unions top brass bring in upwards of $300,000 to $600,000. Both parties, however, make far more than the teachers who pay their salaries. Average teacher pay, according to the NEA, is $45,000 a year.

The strike began on July 7, as 300 NEASO members walked out midway through the NEAs Representative Assembly convention in Philadelphia. It started over a dispute in pay, working from home, hiring outside contractors without employee advice and the NEAs retaliation against its workforce.

The NEA sabotaged its own convention, where many local delegates had submitted motions for new policies, including in some cases opposing the Israeli governments genocide in Gaza and withholding support for the Biden campaign unless it responded to a ceasefire demand, rather than cave in to the staffers basic demands. President Biden was scheduled to speak at the NEA convention but backed out so as not to create the negative optics of crossing a picket line.

To break the strike, the NEA leadership rummaged through the playbook of corporations for tactics. The NEA employees took to social media detailing the unions strong arming tactics, saying NEA bureaucrats canceled employees hotel rooms and flights, forcing them to foot the bill. It also suspended their pay.

Families had been stranded in Philadelphia and workers phones and computers had been cut off, despite the fact that some are traveling across the United States and internationally. The NEA even called the cops on protesters outside its headquarters in Washington D.C.

Kim Anderson, the executive director of the NEA, called the NEASO strike illegal, the lockout defensive and threatened to terminate employees healthcare:

All pay and benefits associated with employment with NEA cease with this protective lockout. Bargaining-unit employees will receive notices related to COBRA and any other benefit information. Your NEA Medical, Dental, and Healthcare FSA coverage under the Plan will end on July 31, 2024.

The NEA, the largest teachers union in the United States, will now attempt to marshal its millions of working class members to get out the vote for a capitalist political party which has, together with Republicans, been the spearhead and organizer of the destruction of public education in the United States.

In fact, Biden, Harris and the NEA itself fully endorse attacks on teachers and support scab labor in general. In regards to educators, Biden has overseen a nearly $500 million cut in education spending in his most recent budget for the 2024-2025 fiscal year. Experts expect this cutback and the expiration of billions in COVID emergency relief spending to lead to the axing of nearly 384,000 education jobs.

Biden and Congress illegalized a threatened strike of 120,000 railroad workers in late 2022 after its members voted to strike against the exploitation and abuse they faced. His administration has regularly intervened in various contract negotiations in order to force workers to accept substandard contracts or to force them to remain at work (even to endure speedups and other intolerable conditions) after contracts have expired.

During the strike, the NEASO leaders sought to work out a deal as quickly as possible with their peers at the NEA to avoid the negative impact on the Democratic Party machine.

The main fear of both organizations is a movement of rank-and-file teachers in opposition to the NEA and the Democratic Party.

With its attempt to break the strike, the NEA bureaucracy revealed itself as no different than school administrations and management in any district across the country. This is a warning to educators who are determined to fight for their own demands and defend their students in order to reverse the abysmal state of public education.

Only through a rebellion by rank-and-file teachers in opposition to the trade union bureaucracy and the Democratic and Republican parties will it be possible to create an organized movement to fight for the defense of public education.
Documents recently released in connection with the lawsuit filed against Saudi Arabia by families of the victims of the 9/11 terror attacks have revealed important details about the relationship of the Al Qaeda hijackers to the kingdoms intelligence apparatus, as well as the suppression of this evidence by the FBI for more than two decades.

This evidencewhich includes two important videos and a drawing of a passenger jetwas originally seized by UK officials 10 days after the 2001 terror attacks from the Birmingham, England home of Omar al-Bayoumi, an operative of Saudi intelligence, and turned over to the FBI.

However, this evidence was never reviewed or analyzed during any of the official US government investigations into the events of 9/11 or included in the material subsequently released by the FBI in 2016 and 2021.

The new evidence has come to light because it was provided directly by Londons Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) to the plaintiffs through discovery in their $100 billion lawsuit against Saudi Arabia, which has been in litigation since 2002. It is described in detail in the familys filing in opposition to a motion by the Saudi government to dismiss the case. The plaintiffs motion was filed on December 20, 2023, and released by the court to the public after redaction on May 5, 2024.

Based on the previously declassified FBI documents from July 2016 and September 2021, it was established that al-Bayoumis meeting with two of the September 11 hijackers shortly after they arrived in Los Angeles in January 2000 was a pre-planned and well-orchestrated rendezvous at a restaurant and not a chance contact, as maintained in the official 9/11 Commission Report of 2004.

Al-Bayoumi provided significant support to the Saudi terrorists Nawaf al-Hazmi and Khalid al-Mihdhar, including signing an apartment lease for them in San Diego across the street from where he lived. Al-Bayoumi also transferred nearly $10,000 into their bank account, bought them a car, helped them obtain drivers licenses, set up Internet service and their email accounts and provided information about flight schools where they could be trained as pilots.

Al-Hazmi and al-Mihdhar eventually became two of the muscle hijackers aboard American Airlines Flight 77 when it crashed into the Pentagon.

Among the new evidence to emerge from the families lawsuit is two videos, one that further substantiates al-Bayoumi role as both a Saudi intelligence operative and a key facilitator for the two hijackers after their arrival in the US, and one in which he is casing the US Capitol with two associates in June 1999.

The court filing by the 9/11 victims families states, Two weeks after helping the hijackers settle in San Diego by securing them housing, bank accounts and other assistance, Bayoumi held a welcome party for the hijackers at their apartment, which was videotaped by an associate of al-Bayoumi at his instruction.

The document further states:

The MPS seized the complete party video in the raid of Bayoumis residence, and produced it in this litigation. The complete version produced by the MPS (after jurisdictional fact depositions concluded) is different from the version the FBI produced to Plaintiffs, and the duration and content of the complete video show that it is also different from and more complete than the one the FBI provided to the 9/11 Commission.

An analysis of the video confirms that the party on February 17, 2000 was organized by Bayoumi and his collaborators to introduce the hijackers to a carefully curated group of like-minded community members and religious leaders who could be trusted to look after the hijackers and cocoon them in a protective support network. Contrary to the 9/11 Commissions understanding based on the incomplete video it reviewed, the complete video confirms that the hijackers attended and participated in the party throughout, and they held special status at the event, the motion says.

In other words, the versions of the video previously provided by the FBI to the US governments 9/11 Commission and to the plaintiffs were edited and concealed the fact that the party coordinated by al-Bayoumi was to welcome the hijackers and introduce them to others in the community. Instead, the FBIs edited versions corresponded to al-Bayoumis claims that the party was held to honor a visiting sheikh who was departing the US, as part of his effort to deceive investigators, according to the plaintiffs motion.

A second casing video taken by al-Bayoumi himself at the US Capitol includes his narration and references to a plan. According to the plaintiffs motion, A new video, was seized from Bayoumis residence after 9/11 and produced just days ago by the MPS and shows al-Bayoumi conducting a classic casing of the US Capitol for an attack. The twelve-and-a-half minute video details the structural features, entrances and security posts at the US Capitol.

Another piece of evidence seized by the London MPS from al-Bayoumis apartment in September 2001 is a pad on which he had sketched an airplane in blue ink and written a mathematical equation next to the drawing. According to the plaintiffs document, the equation is a calculation used to discern the distance at which a target on the ground will be visible from a certain altitude.

An expert witness for the plaintiffs testified that the equation allows a pilot to calculate at what altitude he would be able to see [an] airport from a certain distance and that the sketch and equation are consistent with preparations made as part of the planning for the 9/11 attacks and were made to assist the 9/11 hijackers in carrying out those attacks, by providing them with the visual cues needed to fly the hijacked jetliners into their targets.

Even though this evidence was turned over to the FBI 10 days after September 11, 2001, Al-Bayoumis notepad, drawing and equation were never reviewed by the US governments 9/11 Commission.

According to a report in the New York Times, during testimony in Manhattan federal court on July 31, one of the plaintiffs lawyers disclosed for the first time that al-Bayoumi admitted during a deposition in 2021 that the drawing and equation on the notepad belonged to him.

Michael J. Morell, a former deputy director of the CIA, was interviewed by the Times for its report. He said Congress or the Justice Department should investigate the failure of the FBI to disclose the evidence when it was originally turned over by the MPS in 2001. Morell asked, What happened to this stuff after it was turned over to the F.B.I.?

US District Judge George B. Daniels is presiding over the lawsuit and is expected to rule shortly on the dismissal motion filed on March 4 by lawyers for Saudi Arabia. The new evidence directly undermines the defense claim that al-Bayoumi did not knowingly assist the terrorists, and his work for the Saudi government had nothing to do with helping terrorists.

In 2015, Judge Daniels ruled in favor of a Saudi motion for dismissal. However, the bipartisan passage of the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA) in May 2016 overrode the judges decisionand Congress overrode a veto of the act by then-President Barack Obamaenabling the families to revive their lawsuit in March 2017.

The lawsuit stated that Saudi Arabia knowingly provided material support and resources to the al Qaeda terrorist organization ... facilitating the September 11th Attacks. The actions of the FBI for more than 20 years have served to block the families of the victims of the terror attacks from proving their allegation.

Even though Judge Daniels has allowed the plaintiffs discovery to proceedwhich has resulted in the surfacing of critical evidence to prove their casehe has restricted it to al-Bayoumi and his activities in Southern California and blocked any discovery related to the other hijackers and their relationships with the Saudi government in other locations, including Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Sarasota counties in Florida; Phoenix, Arizona; suburban Washington, D.C.; northern New Jersey; Boston, Massachusetts and Portland, Maine.

Commenting on the new evidence in a press statement, Terry Strada, national chair of 9/11 Families United, said:

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and its army of lawyers and lobbyists have long sought to keep evidence of its role in the 9/11 attacks hidden from the American public. With the public release of this new evidence, which was not made available to the 9/11 Commission, it is critical that the American people be allowed to finally see all the evidence and for our ongoing legal battle against the Kingdom to no longer be sealed behind closed doors in federal court.

The suppression of critical evidence by the FBI about the role of Saudi intelligence in the establishment of a network of terrorists in the US is no doubt connected to efforts to conceal the relationship the US government had with the hijackers prior to 9/11. As explained by the WSWS on July 16, 2016:

If the government is determined to continue to shield such Saudi connections, it is undoubtedly because they would expose the involvement of the US intelligence agencies themselves in the events of 9/11. If such whitewashes are required, it is because elements within the US government were aware that Al Qaeda was preparing an operation on US soil, turned a blind eye to it and even facilitated it because they knew it could be used as a pretext to carry out longstanding plans for aggressive war in the Middle East.

The recent hearings, the upcoming federal court decision and news reports in corporate media outlets such as the New York Times about the case are themselves connected with strategic political objectives and the desire of the White House to resolve the $100 billion lawsuit against Saudi Arabia.

A report in Reuters on May 21 cited an unnamed senior US official as saying the Biden administration and Saudi Arabia had reached a near final set of arrangements for a defense pact that would normalize relations between Israel and Riyadh. The official reportedly said the deal was more or less complete, but cautioned that certain elements, including a pathway to Palestinian statehood arrangements and stabilizing Gaza, still needed to be completed.

The information published by Reuters also reveals that the US-sponsored Gaza genocide by Israel serves the global hegemonic aims of Washington. A component of the US strategy is a grand bargain in the Middle East involving the deal with the Saudi Arabian monarchy in exchange for military weaponry and civilian nuclear support. According to the anonymous US official who spoke to Reuters, the Saudi deal is in return for halting Chinese arms purchases and restricting Beijings investment in the country.
ASTANA, Kazakhstan, August 22. The governments of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan are ready to kick the bucket on permits for road transportation across their borders, aiming to grease the wheels of trade and economic cooperation between the two nations, Trend reports, referring to the amendments published by Kazakhstan's Ministry of Transport.

The new regulations, currently up for grabs until September 5, 2024, will give the green light for the transportation of goods between the countries or through their territories without batting an eye. Once finalized, the protocol will take 30 days to come into force.

The move reflects a shared commitment to facilitating cross-border trade. This decision comes as part of broader efforts to improve trade ties, with Kazakhstan's First Deputy Prime Minister Roman Sklyar meeting Turkmenistans Deputy Chairmen of the Cabinet of Ministers, Batyr Atdaev and Baymyrat Annamammedov, on August 9 to discuss cooperation in various sectors, including energy.

At the 6th Consultative Meeting of Heads of State of Central Asia, President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedowv underscored the importance of close economic collaboration as a key element in the region's successful development. The ongoing efforts to remove barriers and enhance trade are seen as pivotal in further strengthening the economic partnership between Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan.

Over the past five years, trade between the two nations has quadrupled, and in the first six months of this year alone, bilateral trade reached $237.2 million.

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The rightward, anti-working-class shift of the federal Labor government in response to a deepening political crisis was on display in parliament this week.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (centre) following cabinet reshuffle July 29, 2024. [Photo: Facebook/@AlboMP]

To satisfy the demands of the ruling class, and overcome what the corporate media has described as a disturbing legislative logjam of stalled bills, Labor teamed up with the right-wing Liberal-National Coalition to push through key anti-working class legislation.

While Labor holds a slender majority in the lower house, neither party has a majority in the upper house or Senate.

After backroom negotiations, the government struck a deal with the Coalition to effectively impose state control, via a government-appointed administrator, over the Construction Forestry Manufacturing and Energy Union (CFMEU) for up to five years.

Under the false banner of fighting corruption in the building industry, this legislation follows an orchestrated witch hunt by the media, corporate and political establishment, essentially directed against the wages, conditions and basic workplace and democratic rights of construction workers and the entire working class.

A similar agreement has been reached with the Coalition to push though systemic and cruel cuts to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), which are a spearhead of wider austerity measures in public health, education and housing.

Such deals with the openly right-wing Coalition underscore the governments political trajectory. They are of a piece with last weeks response by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his ministers to Coalition leader Peter Duttons call for a complete ban on visas for Palestinian refugees trying to flee the US-backed Israeli genocide in Gaza.

Labor ministers insisted that the government had already effectively achieved the same outcomefirst by rejecting the majority of applications, even for 12-month visitor visas, and then by relying on the Israeli and Egyptian regimes to shut Gazas borders so that no refugees can escape the ongoing slaughter.

Amid signs of an economic slowdown, the Labor governments increasing recourse to agreements with the Coalition to get legislation through parliament signals a definite trend towards bipartisan partnership to prosecute the agenda of big business.

Moreover, after the next election due by May, not only will the Senate remain fragmented, but there is the distinct possibility of a fragile minority government, amid widespread opposition to both major parties of big business.

Continuing anti-war demonstrations against the Israeli genocide in Gaza are just one indication of a political radicalization among workers and youth and opposition to Labors program of war and austerity. Like the Coalition, the Labor government has backed the Israeli onslaught, along with the US-NATO war against Russia and escalating the commitment to US-led preparations for war against China. At the same time, it has imposed the burden of the economic and cost-of-living crisis on working-class households.

Media polls continue to show a resulting implosion in electoral support for Labor, below the near-record low of 32.5 percent it obtained at the May 2022 election. Labor only scraped into office on voting preferences because of the disintegration of voting support for the widely-detested Coalition after nine years in office.

Yesterdays latest Australian Financial Review/Freshwater Strategy poll showed the Coalition leading Labor by 51 percent to 49 percent on a nominal two-party-preferred basis for the second successive month. If repeated at the next election, the newspaper concluded, the likely result would be a minority Labor government, dependent on the Greens and independents for survival.

This would mean a highly unstable minority government, facing even greater difficulty in suppressing working-class unrest and opposition, with the help of the trade union apparatuses, to the drive to war and massive military spending, accompanied by ongoing cuts to real wages and essential public programs, including health, education and disability services.

The Coalition is in no better position than Labor, and both are wracked by factional infighting. The poll results provide a limited picture of the hostility to both the major parties of capitalist rule. The widely-reviled Coalition leader Peter Duttons net approval rating was minus 3. That of Prime Minister Albanese was even worseminus 10.

There is deep concern in the ruling class that the Labor government, and the parliamentary order itself, is becoming paralysed and therefore unable to sufficiently aggressively prosecute the agenda of big business.

Before the Labor-Coalition CFMEU deal, the AFR counted at least 19 promised pieces of legislation either stuck in the parliament or not yet introduced. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation commented: Government faces legislative logjam as election deadline crunch looms.

The various stalled bills includes ones that the financial elite regard as crucial, such as those offering faster environmental approvals for mining projects, subsidies for housing developers (Build to Rent and Help to Buy bills) and multi-billion-dollar handouts for big business through Labors Future Made in Australia legislation.

Also on the list are bills to slash international student numbers and introduce draconian powers to forcibly deport non-citizens. The government initially tried to ram the mass deportation bill through earlier this year in less than a day, triggering deep concern and opposition in Australias many immigrant communities.

Political calculations contribute to the parliamentary gridlock, which often involves both the Coalition and the Greens, as well as Teal climate members of parliament. Sniffing political blood as the election looms, all are trying to distance themselves, in one way or the other, from the beleaguered government.

The Coalition is more belligerently prosecuting the demands of big business for even sharper attacks on working-class conditions, hoping to convince the financial elite that it could be a more reliable enforcer of their interests. The Greens are generally posturing, for electoral advantage, as more progressive, while still hoping to join or support a minority Labor government after the impending election.

But the Labor leadership has already indicated its political direction by collaborating with the Coalition and refusing to accede to Greens proposals on key issues. Finance Minister Katy Gallagher said the government favoured working in the national interest with the Coalition because both parties recognised the significant budget impacts of failing to deliver reform in those areas.

In other words, whatever their tactical and electoral differences, the Labor and the Coalition are both intent on seeking to impose the dictates of the financial markets for deeper cuts to social spending.

Underlying the political quagmire is the worsening economic outlook produced by the global slump and the intensifying US economic warfare measures against China, Australias largest export market. A halving of prices for Australian iron ore exports, due to Chinas economic slowdown, is impacting heavily on the Australian economy and budget revenues.

Mondays AFR editorial, a voice of the financial elite, sounded the alarm about the developing political impasse. It demanded far greater measures to boost productivity, saying both Labor and the Coalition had failed to engage with ambitious tax, industrial relations and regulatory reform agendas.

These are code words for the further gutting of working-class conditions and jobs, and cutting corporate and high-income tax rates, in order to boost profits and the staggering accumulation of wealth in the hands of the billionaires.

Referring to the AFRs latest poll results, the editorial concluded on an ominous note: Todays poll sounds a warning for Australias key economic challenge. A gridlock of minority governments would mean that Canberras productivity policy problem, which is already partly to blame for prolonging the cost-of-living pain, will only get worse after the next election.

The comment must also be a warning to workers that next government, whether Labor or Coalition will seek to make even deeper inroads into their social conditions, while ratcheting up military spending and other preparations for war.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. Tashkent has hosted the Uzbek-Azerbaijani business forum, Trend reports.

Azerbaijani Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov and Uzbek Minister of Investment, Industry, and Trade Laziz Kudratov delivered speeches at the opening ceremony.

In his opening speech, the Azerbaijani minister highlighted the potential for Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan to expand their joint activities in third countries.

He recalled that a week ago, representatives from relevant ministries and companies of both nations conducted a joint visit to Afghanistan.

"This direction appears promising for joint endeavors, and it is not the only region where both countries can successfully work and realize their plans," he emphasized.

Jabbarov also mentioned the upcoming launch of textile production in Khankendi, noting that the investment project is being carried out by an Uzbek company.

In response, Kudratov emphasized that Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan will soon adopt a joint roadmap for business development.

"We are actively collaborating across various sectors, including energy, urban development, machine building, textiles, the silk industry, and agriculture. The largest Azerbaijani companies have already begun operations in Uzbekistan. We aim to further encourage active dialogue, create opportunities for entrepreneurs from both countries to meet more frequently, exchange ideas, and establish business partnerships, which we hope will lead to concrete trade contracts and industrial cooperation projects," the Uzbek minister added.

Kudratov also noted that Uzbekistan and the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) have initiated geological exploration on the Ustyurt plateau in Uzbekistan.

"We are implementing a project for the production of green energy, with plans to export it through Azerbaijan to European countries. Together with SOCAR, we have started exploration activities on the Ustyurt plateau in Uzbekistan. I am confident this marks the beginning of our comprehensive strategic cooperation in the energy sector," he said.

He further highlighted plans to process minerals in Azerbaijan.

"We intend to develop and process minerals in Azerbaijan, including the production of construction materials for use in reconstruction projects in Karabakh. Additionally, we invite Azerbaijani companies to participate in developing non-ferrous metal deposits, including copper," he emphasized.

The minister also announced that Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan plan to open trade houses and showrooms in Baku, Shusha, Tashkent, and Samarkand.

Moreover, Executive Director of the Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO) Yusif Abdullayev, while at the forum, stated that Azerbaijani entrepreneurs are keen on exporting products to Uzbekistan.

"A total of 67 companies from Azerbaijan, along with representatives from about 10 state institutions, attended the forum. This clearly demonstrates the strong interest of Azerbaijani businesses in Uzbekistan, export opportunities, and support for Uzbek partners. Additionally, an exhibition of Azerbaijani products titled 'Main Directions of Economy - a Step to Joint Prosperity' will commence today," he said.

Moreover, the joint roadmap for expanding trade, economic, and investment cooperation for 2024-2025 includes plans for projects in agriculture, tourism, construction, pharmaceuticals, and the automotive industry.

The importance of the Azerbaijan-Uzbekistan Investment company, with an authorized capital of $500 million, was highlighted. The company is currently analyzing the financing of 15 joint projects and entrepreneurs were encouraged to take advantage of its opportunities.

During the business forum, documents were exchanged on cooperation in energy, education, logistics, and construction. Agreements were also made to strengthen ties between the countries and to establish twinning relations between the cities of Jizzakh (Uzbekistan) and Guba (Azerbaijan), as well as Shahrisabz (Uzbekistan) and Beylagan (Azerbaijan).

Additionally, SOCAR and Uzbekneftegaz signed an "Agreement on the Basic Principles of the Geological Exploration Project in Investment Blocks of Uzbekistan" during the forum.

The forum aimed to strengthen economic ties between the two countries, foster cooperation, attract investments, and realize joint projects. It served as a platform for discussing ways to boost trade, exchange experiences, and establish new business partnerships.

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ASTANA, Kazakhstan, August 22. Kazakhstan has updated its plan to offset excess oil production, including overproduction in July, and has submitted it to the OPEC Secretariat, says the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan, Trend reports.

'Kazakhstan reaffirms its commitment to the OPEC+ agreement and fully supports the decisions made jointly with OPEC+ member countries. Kazakhstan will make every effort to meet its obligations and compensate for overproduction in line with the compensation plan,' the statement said.

Earlier, the OPEC Secretariat announced that Kazakhstan, Iran, and Russia had submitted plans to compensate for excess oil production in the first half of 2024.

Meanwhile, OPEC estimated Kazakhstan's crude production in July 2024 at 1.545 mb/d. In the reporting period, the country's oil output decreased by 34,000 b/d month-on-month (1.57 million b/d in June 2024).
A #MeToo nightmare whose censure is dull, surprises are predictable, and ugliness is tame, Blink Twice, in theaters August 23, proves a wan thriller in an overtly Get Out mold.

Actress Zoe Kravitz directorial debut boasts an enchantingly malevolent lead performance from Channing Tatum as a Jeffrey Epstein-esque tech titan with a penchant for having a good time, as well as a slick, inviting sheen that portends promising scares. Alas, theres nothing very unsettling about its eventual horrors, in large part because the film is too infatuated with its sleek style to get its hands dirty.

Sitting on the toilet flipping through her Instagram reels, Frida (Naomi Ackie) is transfixed by a video of tech billionaire Slater King (Tatum) publicly apologizing for the umpteenth time for inappropriate sexual behavior thats compelled him to step down as CEO of his company. As it turns out, Frida and her roommate/best friend Jess (Alia Shawkat) work for a catering company thats handling Slaters latest gala event, and after performing their duties, the two don swanky cocktail dresses and crash the party, where Frida catches Slaters eye by wiping out in front of everyone.

This isnt the sole momentous fall suffered by Frida, and it gains her and Jess an unofficial invite into Slaters inner circle of hangers-on, who include pinky-less shutterbug Vic (Christian Slater), chef Cody (Simon Rex), Survivor legend Sarah (Adria Arjona), nerdy Tom (Haley Joel Osment), and beauties Camilla (Liz Caribel) and Heather (Trew Mullen).

At the end of the evening, Slater invites Frida and Jess to accompany them to his private island, where the food is local, the champagne is bottomless, the psychotropic drugs are plentiful, and cell phones arent allowed. Arriving at his expansive compound, Frida is dazzled, and she and Jess swiftly slip into everyones daily routine of wearing matching white island wear, smoking fat blunts poolside, and eating gourmet meals prepared by Cody.

Doing as the rich and famous do, Frida habitually wears the perfume found in her swanky villa, and when she discovers an old, used mascara tube in her bathroom drawer, she throws it away with triumphant dismissiveness, embracing her role as Slaters new object of affection.

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Sarah also has eyes for the hunky mogul, but Blink Twice doesnt seriously develop her and Fridas rivalry, nor does it do much with Stacy (Geena Davis), Slaters attentive right-hand woman. Instead, it immerses itself in the lap of luxury, which is so enticing thatalong with the nightly narcotized revelry that leaves everyone scrambled and hungover in the morningFrida and company quickly lose track of their days.

For Frida, this is too good to be true, and of course it is, as Kravitz drops numerous clues that theres more to this perfection than meets the eye. An elderly groundskeeper with a snake tattoo on her arm repeats the phrase red robin whenever she sees Frida. Slater informs Frida that hes trying to exterminate the pesky vipers that populate the island. And conversations are peppered with comments about making memories, remembering and forgetting, and the first rule of Fight Cluball of which suggest dark buried secrets.

Liz Caribel and Trew Mullen Amazon MGM Studios

Blink Twices first half is full of such hints, and theyre tantalizing enough to elicit at least moderate curiosity about the true nature of this paradise. Kravitz and co-writer E.T. Feigenbaums script augments its mystery by refusing to properly delineate most of its players and their relationship to Slater; theyre just some of the seemingly innumerable friends and acquaintances that drift into a playboy billionaires party-hard orbit. Unfortunately, though, that makes them frustratingly opaque and negates any reaction to their heroism or villainy, and contributes to the storys lack of concrete details. Suggestion may be good at the outset, but a lack of definitive answers ultimately negates any climactic shocks.

Blink Twice infers rather than outright states to the point of exasperation, and that goes double for its refusal to depict the wannabe-shocking nastiness at its core. At the moment of truth, Kravitz pulls her punches, depicting her protagonists agony in vague terms that undercut her critique of entitled wealth and vicious misogyny. Her film doesnt eat the rich so much as halfheartedly nibble them, in the process squandering Tatums deft turn as an affluent 21st-century Adonis whose charm and power are not to be trusted, and whose success grants him license to do as he pleases.

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Slater is most alarming when hes charismatic, but the material lets him down, saddling him with an ambiguously traumatic backstory and sketchy therapy-speak about the benefits of analysis (which he receives from Kyle MacLachlans doc) and his belief in consuming liquid psilocybin with intention.

Frida and Jess boss tells them to smile more and be invisible, and Frida counsels her BFF (who has an unpleasant ex-boyfriend) to stop giving away your power. Such remarks speak to the sexism faced by women on a daily basis, the importance of countering it with staunch sisterhood, and the terrifying ordeal the duo will swiftly endure. Blink Twice, however, never formulates more than a generic denunciation of privileged chauvinism and public displays of celebrity apologia, the latter of which seems ripe for ridicule and yet (like Slaters, ahem, pussy posse ways) is only sketchily mocked.

Zoe Kravitz and Channing Tatum at a Blink Twice photocall in London Nicky J Sims/Getty Images

Worse, the sagas lack of specifics means that its revelations land with a shrug; its difficult to feel much of anything about bad behavior thats imagined this hazily. Its as if the film assumed that everyone would be on its socio-political side (correct) and, therefore, that it didnt need to flesh out its monstrousness (incorrect).

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Kravitzs stewardship is sinister and Chanda Dancys score is ominous, yet Blink Twice is run of the mill and its resemblance to Get Out doesnt do it any favors. Its simply too easy to get out ahead of these proceedings, and that problem is exacerbated by the fact that the film barely cares to explicate the nuts and bolts of its madness. With a more polished screenplay, the actress-turned-director might have generated real menace. As it stands, though, her maiden behind-the-camera outing is the sort of late summer throwaway thats now normally reserved for streaming.

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Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan may be far from home, but they are keeping their kidsfive-year-old Archie Harrison and three-year-old Lilibet Dianaclose to their hearts.

This morning, the couple started their final day in Colombia by attending the Afro-Descendant Women and Power: Voices of Equity summit, where Meghan got onstage for a powerful conversation on the importance of uplifting women. During her appearance, the duchess also opened up about how her daughter is continually inspiring her and Harrys work as they run their charitable nonprofit, the Archewell Foundation.

I find inspiration in the strong women around me, of course my mother being one of them, Meghan said, referencing mom Doria Ragland. So much of how I approach things is less about the fight, and more about how do we show up in a space and wash things over with love and kindness and generosity. She continued, Those are the elements that inspire me. I know how it feels when you dont utilize your voice when you need to be heard or have something to say.

These tenets are also how she and Harry raise Lili. I encourage our daughter to do sowho, at three, has absolutely found her voice, and we are so proud of that, Meghan revealed.

All the Photos of Duchess Meghan and Prince Harrys Trip to Colombia

Photo credit: Eric Charbonneau

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Inside the Sussexes Warm Welcome to Colombia

Photo credit: The Office of Vice President Francia Marquez

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All About Duchess Meghans New Brand, American Riviera Orchard

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Meghan recently talked about her children during an interview about online safety with CBS News Sunday Mornings Jane Pauley. Our kids are young. Theyre three and five. Theyre amazing, the duchess said at the time. But all you wanna do as parents is protect them. So, as we can see whats happening in the online space, we know that theres a lot of work to be done there and were just happy to be able to be a part of change for good.

The Sussexes arrived in Colombia earlier this week at the invitation of the nations vice president, Francia Marquez. Their trip has taken them through the cities of Bogota, Cartagena, and Cali, where they met with local students, attended musical performances, and trained with Invictus Games Team Colombia.

Harpers Bazaar is on the ground with the Sussexes as they embark on their four-day visit to Colombia. Watch this space for all the exclusive details.

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Keeley Hawes and Freddie Highmore will lead a new Amazon Prime Video series entitled The Assassin.

Written by Harry and Jack Williams, the six-episode series has commenced filming in Greece. It follows a retired assassin called Julie, played by Hawes (Bodyguard, Scoop) who, while living a secluded life on a remote Greek island, has a somewhat thorny reunion with Highmore (The Good Doctor, Bates Motel), portraying her estranged son Edward.

More from The Hollywood Reporter

Armed with questions around new information on his paternity, Edward battles to find the right time to speak to his frustratingly distant mother, a plot synopsis reads. But, when the moment finally presents itself, things take a deadly turn as Julies dangerous past catches up with her and they are forced to flee the island and go on the run together.

The series is produced by award-winning production company Two Brothers Pictures (The Tourist, Boat Story, Fleabag) in association with ZDF who is the German co-production partner, All3Media International, and Stan in Australia.

From the moment Harry and Jack shared their vision for The Assassin, we knew that it would resonate perfectly with our audience, said, Hannah Blyth, head of TV for Prime Video U.K. Its been a true pleasure to watch their scripts come to life with our fantastic cast, led by Keeley and Freddie. The Assassin promises to deliver a high-stakes thriller with a dynamic mother-son relationship at its core, packed with twists and turns that will keep our audience hooked from start to finish. We cant wait for our customers to immerse themselves in this gripping new series.

Both Hawes and Highmore serve as executive producers on the project, alongside Gina Gershon (Riverdale, New Amsterdam), Shalom Brune-Franklin (The Tourist, Baby Reindeer), Jack Davenport (The Morning Show, Pirates of the Caribbean), Alan Dale (Dynasty, Lost) Gerald Kyd (The Swarm, The Split), Devon Terrell (Totally Completely Fine, Cursed), Richard Dormer (Blue Lights, Game of Thrones) and David Dencik (The Ipcress File, No Time To Die).

Further cast members will be unveiled in due course.

Best of The Hollywood Reporter
On Monday, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry celebrated the end of their trip to Colombia with some fun on the dance floor. The couple have been on a whirlwind tour throughthe country and managed to enjoy a visit to the Jovenes en Cali youth center. In photos, they can be seen salsa dancing before leaning in for a sweet kiss.

Eric Charbonneau - Getty Images

In the pictures, Meghan is wearing a white skirt by Juan de Dios with embroidered leaf motifs in subtle cream. She paired it with a white T-shirt and brown Stuart Weitzman sandals. She left her hair down and had on several gold bracelets and a watch. Prince Harry wore a blue button-down shirt and white pants.

Eric Charbonneau - Getty Images

Upon their arrival, the couple received a warm and enthusiastic welcome, as their visit opened with various salsa and hip hop performances, read a press release about the night on their website. The Duke and Duchess joined the student dancers on the floor towards the end of the musical segment.

That night at the Petronio Music Festival, Meghan changed into a spaghetti strap green and white patterned Andres Otalora dress and a pair of Felix hoop earrings by Tres Almas jewelry.

Eric Charbonneau - Getty Images

On Sunday, the couple attended a womens empowerment forum titled Afro-Descendant Women and Power: Voice of Equity with Colombian Vice President Francia Marquez. The Duchess spoke to the audience about her own experiences, and even mentioned her daughter, Lilibet.

I know how it feels when you dont utilize your voice when you need to be heard or have something to say, Meghan reportedly told the crowd. I encourage our daughter to do sowho at 3 has absolutely found her voice, and we are so proud of that.

She also mentioned her own mother, Doria Ragland.

I find inspiration in the strong women around me, of course my mother being one of them, she said. So much of how I approach things is less about the fight and more about how do we show up in a space and wash things over with love and kindness and generosity. Those are the elements that inspire me.

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Former President Barack Obamas suggestive hand gesture when talking about Donald Trumps obsession with crowd size at the DNC was improvised in the moment according to his former speechwriters, who took a break from hosting their podcast Pod Save America, to work with him on it, they revealed on Wednesday.

I should disclose, once a staffer, always a staffer, I volunteered to help a little, look at the speech a couple of times, Jon Favreau said during a podcast episode recorded just after his longtime boss left the stage Tuesday night before Dan Pfeiffer, former communications director for Obama, confessed that he helped out as well.

Dan included the d--- joke, Favreau then joked, before clarifying that the hand gesture, which most viewers seemed to believe was a not-so-subtle reference to Trumps manhood, was not in the script.

Just so you all know, that was just in the moment, Favreau continued. He just put his hands on the podium.

Or maybe he knew all along that that was a d--- joke and nobody else did but him, Jon Lovett, Obamas go-to joke writer during his time in the White House, added.

On a more serious note, the hosts said they found Obamas address to be among the most persuasive of the speeches at the DNC so far, because it didnt operate from the assumption that the only thing that keeps people from voting for us is ignorance, as Pfeiffer put it.

Everyone is someone we have to persuade. And if they dont agree with usand they dont have to agree with us on everythingbut the reason they dont agree with us is not because theyre wrong, or theyre stupid, or they dont follow the news, or theyre ignorant, or theyve been hoodwinked, but because something in their lives has not worked out the way they wanted.

Favreau also praised both Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama for treating Trump like a clown and a fool in their speeches. The way to go after the supposed strength of an autocrat or a strong man is to just make them seem foolish he said, because they hate getting made fun of.

For more, listen to Jon Lovett on The Last Laugh podcast.

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Queen Mary of Denmark Marries Neutral Tones and Florals in Ralph Lauren Blazer and Zimmermann Dress During Summer Tour

Queen Mary of Denmark added a touch of sophistication to her seasonal wardrobe during her summer tour of Denmark on Wednesday. The royal arrived at Assens harbor alongside her husband, King Frederik.

For the daytime occasion, Queen Mary opted for a blazer by Ralph Lauren and linen midi dress by Zimmermann. The Ralph Lauren blazer featured a neutral tone with long sleeves, sharp lapels and two front pockets. Queen Mary opted for an Etro belt to create a defined waist on the blazer, as well.

More from WWD

Queen Mary of Denmark arrives in Assens, Denmark, on Aug. 21.

Queen Mary wore the blazer over a strapless Zimmermann dress, which featured a soft red hue with a gold floral design cascading down the linen fabric. The royal continued her soft summertime color palette with a pink top-handle bag by Max Mara and pink pumps courtesy of Gianvito Rossi.

As for her accessories, Queen Mary favored brands and designers native to Denmark. She wore pieces by Dulong Fine Jewelry and Halberstadt. Queen Mary pulled her hair back into a tight chignon and added feathers as an accent to her hairstyle.

Queen Mary of Denmark arrives in Assens, Denmark, on Aug. 21.

During her summer tour of Denmark, Queen Mary has demonstrated the versatility of her royal wardrobe. On Tuesday, the royal, who ascended the throne alongside her husband, King Frederik, in January 2024, styled a look evocative of the quiet luxury trend.

While touring the Baltic Sea island of r, Queen Mary wore a white, airy long-sleeve shirt by Bagutta, which she paired with a flowing linen and cotton maxiskirt courtesy of British brand Joseph. The completed ensemble featured neutral tones and a tailored finish, key elements of the quiet luxury trend. Other notable royals whove styled the quiet luxury trend include Meghan Markle. The Duchess of Sussex has worn quiet luxury-inspired pieces by Heidi Merrick and Ralph Lauren.

Queen Mary of Denmark arrives in Assens, Denmark, on Aug. 21.

While Queen Mary of Denmarks style often favors classic silhouettes and traditional styles, her summer tour wardrobe artfully highlights her versatility and appreciation for trends like quiet luxury and seasonal pieces with a whimsical edge.

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Launch Gallery: Queen Mary of Denmark's Style Through the Years: Formal Gowns, Monochrome Looks & More [PHOTOS]

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Donald Trump was extremely interested in learning about cocaine during a podcast appearance on Tuesday.

Speaking with comedian Theo Von on his This Past Weekend show, the former president spoke about the scourge of addiction and how it affected his own brother, Fred Trump Jr. The two were discussing opioids specifically when Trump asked Vonwho is in recovery from cocaine, not opioid, addictionabout how hed gotten addicted to drugs himself. I would just do cocaine, Von answered.

Theo Von teaching Donald Trump about cocaine is the funniest thing Ive seen all year pic.twitter.com/OVPHLENcZx  Adam Foster (@AdamFostermusic) August 20, 2024

Trump laughed and remarked: Thats down and dirty, right? He also asked if Von still takes cocaine or if it became too much to handle.

Some of the stuff started to get a real rattle in it too, Von replied. I dont know where we were even getting it from in this country, but yeah, it started to make me feel like I was a mechanic or something.

So the thing you go back to then is alcohol, for the most part? Trump asked.

Right, yeah, but what I want probably is cocaine, Von said. But I know that if I have a drink, then itll give me, itll be like, OK, well, I had a drink, then I can do this.

Is cocaine a stronger up? Trump asked, presumably meaning high.

Cocaine will turn you into a damn owl, homie, Von answered. You know what Im saying? Youll be out on your own porch. Youll be your own street lamp. Youre frickin...

And is that a good feeling? Trump asked, cutting in.

No, its horrible, Von said. But you do it anyway.

So its not even good during what would be normally the good time, in other words? Trump summarized. So why would you do it?

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The wild exchange came after Trump had spoken about his own teetotalism, saying hed never had a glass of alcohol in his life. He also asked Von if he thought quitting drugs or alcohol is harder.

You think youre controlling it, Trump said, with Von adding: And then youre go-kart racing with hookers and stuff. It gets bad.

During the interview, Trump attributed his own aversion to alcohol to some sage advice hed received decades ago. I had a great brother who taught me a lesson: Dont drink, Trump said.

Trumps older brother, Fred Jr., died in 1981 at the age of 42 from a heart attack that his family said stemmed from alcoholism. Their father, Fred Sr., had disapproved of his eldest sons drinking.

He was a great guy. He was a handsome, very handsome guy, Trump told Von of his older sibling. I admired so much about him. He had so much going. He had the look, he had unbelievable personality.

Trump said he could see his brothers issues, which he thought may have originated during his college days. Somewhere along the line it happened and all of a suddenyou know, this is not unique, he explained. This is a very common story, unfortunately. And then the family would see it and start to notice it. It didnt get better.

The Republican nominee also speculated that he too could have ended up like his brother. I would say that if I did drink, I could conceivably be the type of personality that would havelike youthat would have a problem, he said.

He was wise, in a sense, Trump added of his brother. Think of it: Hes got this problem, and it was very important for him to convey to me not to have this problem. And I couldnt have been successful if I had that problem.

Von asked Trump if he and Fred Jr. had fun together. He had a great talent for flying, he was a pilot, Trump said. He added that Fred had been a really talented aviator. But ultimately he had to give that [up] because of the alcohol. He had to give that up, which was a hard thing for him to do, but he had to give that up.

Trump has previously spoken about his regret at pressuring Fred Jr. to abandon his dream of becoming a TWA pilot and join the family businessa move for which their father had also pushed. Trump told The Washington Post in 2019 the biggest mistake was the double pressure that he and his father put on Fred Jr.

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Donald Trump seemed to be trying to start a feud with a dead woman Thursday after he said reports the late Queen Elizabeth II found him very rude were totally false and added for good measure the highly questionable claim that he was her favorite president.

While technically his outrage was aimed at sleazebag journalist Craig Brown, who has claimed in a new book that the queen disliked Trump and cast aspersions on his marriage, Trump appeared to come dangerously close to picking a fight with the ghost of Elizabeth.

Trumps claim that he was Her Majestys favorite seems a very unlikely boast.

While the queen was careful never to express a preference in public, her close relationships with Trumps predecessors date back to the 1950s. She met 13 of the 14 presidents who were in office during her reign. She invited President Dwight D. Eisenhower to stay at her beloved Scottish retreat, Balmoral, and stayed in Eisenhowers private White House quarters when visiting America.

She was also said to have bonded personally with President Ronald Reagan over a shared love of horses and President Barack Obama was invited to visit her for her 90th birthday.

Queen Elizabeth Said Trump Was Very Rude, and Had an Arrangement With Melania

Trump was interviewed about the book by the DailyMail.com after a campaign rally in Asheboro, North Carolina. It was totally false. I have no idea who the writer is, but it was really just the opposite, Trump said. I had a great relationship with the queen. She liked me and I liked her.

Incredibly Trump then implied he spoke with the queen on a regular basis, saying: I spoke to her often, and I spoke to her in particular when I was there. We spent hours together at a state dinner. She was a fantastic woman. I think its a shame that a sleazebag can write an article thats totally false.

In his book, Brown says the queen made the comments about Trump being rude to a friend over lunch a few days after one of his two visits, which were made in 2018 and 2019. She also speculated witheringly that Trump must have some sort of arrangement with his wife, Melania, the book said.

However, Trump claimed to the Daily Mail to have his own sources close to the queen, telling the outlet: She said to friends of mine that, President Trump was my favorite president. And then you have this guy looking for some publicity for a book that probably is phony, and a lot of other ways too.

Now I know nothing about him. I have no idea who he is.

We had an unbelievable relationship. She was an amazing woman.

The new biography of the late queen, serialized in the Daily Mail, was written by the well-connected society journalist Craig Brown. The new account of the queens life, heavily reliant on anecdotes, is entitled A Voyage Around the Queen.

Brown also reported that British politician David Blunkett, who was blind, told him that his assistance dog barked angrily at Vladimir Putin when the Russian tyrant arrived late for a 2003 state event.

Blunkett said that he apologized to the queen, who smoothly replied, Dogs have interesting instincts, dont they?

One former Buckingham Palace staffer, however, has dismissed the claim made about Trump.

Speaking on GB News former royal household member Jack Stooks said: We know what the queen was like as a person. We know that in her reign, she never put a foot wrong. Its not something she would do. Its just ridiculous.

There are so many ways that these kinds of rumors can come about, but I just cant see why the queen would have done anything like that or even be inclined to do.

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It's Very, Very Funny How These 31 Extremely American Things Confuse The Bloody Hell Out Of British People

There was some drama between the US and UK last week!

Microstockhub / Getty Images/iStockphoto

An American professor suggested adding a pinch of salt to a cup of tea, and Brits lost their minds.

People were pissed.

The US Embassy even had to issue a statement condemning the recipe.

An important statement on the latest tea controversy.  pic.twitter.com/HZFfSCl9sD  U.S. Embassy London (@USAinUK) January 24, 2024

Twitter: @USAinUK

They said, "We want to ensure the good people of the UK that the unthinkable notion of adding salt to Britain's national drink is not official United States policy. And never will be."

Zerbor / Getty Images/iStockphoto

Because I love a good "US vs. UK" moment, here are some American things that confuse the hell out of British people.

1. When Americans say what grade they are in to describe how old they are.

Why do Americans answer "How old were you?" With a grade....I'm British mate. Just say your fucking age  Ryan (@Ryanjw7699) August 6, 2018

Twitter: @Ryanjw7699

2. Beans on toast.

quick question from a brit, why do americans hate beans on toast so much ????? that shit is DELICIOUS  emmy (@promiiseok) September 12, 2020

Twitter: @promiiseok

3. Sweet potato casserole.

Question to all you lovely Americans on this fine giving of thanks day: Is sweet potato casserole a side dish or a dessert? As a Brit I am so confused  Cat  Trash Cat VTuber (@CatsReturn) November 23, 2023

Twitter: @CatsReturn

4. The way Americans heat up water in microwaves.

do americans actually make tea in the microwave or is that just a british conspiracy made to scare us  @ commandercodys (@poedxmerons) July 23, 2015

Twitter: @poedxmerons

5. The national anthem.

why do americans always sing their national anthem i dont think ive ever heard the British one  leah  (@BEJEWELEDLEAH) January 20, 2021

Twitter: @BEJEWELEDLEAH

6. The fact that Americans call it "math" instead of "maths."

Why do Americans abbreviate mathematics to math, but for the British its maths?  Grant Faulkner (@GrrrantFaulkner) November 19, 2020

Twitter: @GrrrantFaulkner

7. When Americans say, "Wanna grab a coffee?"

Why do americans say "wanna grab a coffee" so often? As a Brit should I say "wanna grab a cup of tea"?  Ri (@Fazerella) September 3, 2011

Twitter: @Fazerella

8. Why Americans call it gas when it's a liquid.

You won't mind if I make fun of Americans right? Gas! They call a liquid gas! (Though I'm pretty sure us brits are the only ones to not call it gas)  Uncanny Scout (@AnotherGuest55) September 1, 2023

Twitter: @AnotherGuest55

9. Why Americans are so friendly and chatty in general.

Wtf why are Americans so friendly and chatty?? As a brit it baffles me.  Midnight Madman Vtuber  (@M1dnight_madman) October 3, 2023

Twitter: @M1dnight_madman

10. Why Americans always joke about marmite.

Why do Americans think marmite is so funny? I don't get it.  Joe The Brit (@Joe_The_Brit) January 13, 2013

Twitter: @Joe_The_Brit

11. Why Americans care about the royal family.

do americans genuinely believe brits like the royal family?? bc i can assure you 90% of the country would rather have no monarch  maya  (@seongfilms) September 8, 2022

Twitter: @seongfilms

12. Summer camp.

Do Americans still send kids away to camp for the summer? Why dont we Brits do this?   Naomi Rovnick  (@naomi_rovnick) August 4, 2022

Twitter: @naomi_rovnick

13. The fact that Americans wear things that say "London" and "Oxford," and Brits wear things that say "New York" and "Chicago."

Why do Americans wear sweatshirts that say London or Oxford and us Brits wear ones that say New York or Chicago etc? Something I do but will never understand   Georgia (@_Georgia_Owen) December 28, 2023

Twitter: @_Georgia_Owen

14. Halloween.

Why do Americans like #Halloween so much more than Brits? Like theyre so into it??  Stefan Rhys-Williams (@stefanrw1) October 14, 2023

Twitter: @stefanrw1

15. The way Americans call pizza "pie."

Why do Americans call pizza, pie??  confuses the fuck outta my British ass  Roch (@ferreroroch96) February 12, 2022

Twitter: @ferreroroch96

16. The fact that Americans find British accents sexy.

Do Americans really finds the British accent sexy ?? ???  mk (@valenthusiast) January 19, 2019

Twitter: @valenthusiast

17. The use of "xx."

why do americans not use x like the brits? its so fucking cute xxxx like little forehead smooches for all of u xxxx  juju  (@jujujupiterr) January 3, 2022

Twitter: @jujujupiterr

18. The whole kettle vs. teapot conundrum.

Do Americans not have kettles or something? Or do they not have teapots? The two terms are not interchangeable and as a brit it riles me.  Victoria (@djin_and_tonic) January 12, 2016

Twitter: @djin_and_tonic

19. The legal drinking age.

do americans really not drink until 21?? its like british culture to get drunk on wkd vodka at 15 here   mal (@everqlows) January 13, 2021

Twitter: @everqlows

20. Wee vs. pee.

Do Americans say the word wee for the word pee as us Brits do??  kerrabella  (@chipzkii) July 14, 2022

Twitter: @chipzkii

21. School dances.

do americans actually have dances at their high schools ? imagine that at british schools  all piled in your school gym gurning ya face off to macky gee and skepta loooool  rhi (@Rhianna_Jayyy) June 18, 2020

Twitter: @Rhianna_Jayyy

22. The way Americans struggle to understand British accents.

wait do americans actually struggle to understand british accents  fin  (@hadalshark) October 4, 2021

Twitter: @hadalshark

23. "Chip chip."

Why do americans always say 'chip chip' when impersonating the british? I've never heard a brit say that in my life lol  KnickersInATwist (@MsBramble) November 10, 2013

Twitter: @MsBramble

24. The fact that Americans call it "horseback riding" instead of "horse riding."

WHY DO AMERICANS CALL HORSE RIDING, HORSE BACK RIDING luv from a brit  xx  finn (@GWSFINN) February 19, 2021

Twitter: @GWSFINN

25. Clapping and cheering at movie theaters.

ok but why do americans clap and cheer in cinemas british people get annoyed if someone coughs  eddie/ani  ADRIANS BF (@corrieguard) April 7, 2020

Twitter: @corrieguard

26. The way Americans carry shopping bags.

Why do Americans carry shopping bags this way instead of using the handles like us Brits? Weird. pic.twitter.com/tIgELOakqg  Paul Chantler (@PaulChantler) March 14, 2020

Twitter: @PaulChantler

27. The way Americans think talking in British accents is funny.

why do americans think talking in a british accent is the peak of comedy?  ben parvin (@bennysweatpants) August 27, 2020

Twitter: @bennysweatpants

28. The way Americans tell non-Americans what specific state they're from, as if the non-American has any idea where that is.

why do americans say what specific state theyre from like i dont know every state... what if british people started saying what city they were from we should confuse the americans back  taylor  (@havesomeblue) January 5, 2021

Twitter: @havesomeblue

29. "Lovers' lanes."

why do americans have "lovers' lanes" while us brits just have "dogging sites"?  PT (@VisionsOfJack) January 17, 2019

Twitter: @VisionsOfJack

30. "On line" vs. "In line."

Why do Americans stand on line when Brits would stand in line?  Richard Jeffries (@Richthekeeper) January 20, 2021

Twitter: @Richthekeeper

31. And lastly, toasting marshmallows.

As a Brit I have to ask why do Americans toast marshmallows? Is it a taste thing or what?  Gareth Maybank (@Maybank1970) June 5, 2016

Twitter: @Maybank1970
How to watch F1 live streams online for free in the U.S.

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TL;DR: Live stream F1 for free on ORF, ServusTV, RTBF, or RTL ZWEE. Access these free streaming services from the U.S. with ExpressVPN.

F1 brings together the very best drivers in the world, competing in unbelievably fast cars in front of passionate fans. What's not to love? Everyone wants to witness wheel-to-wheel racing from the best of the best, and that's exactly what F1 delivers.

The problem is that it's not easy to watch F1 for free. It's not easy, but it's not impossible. If you are interested in watching F1 for free from the U.S., we've got all the information you need.

What is F1?

Formula One (or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars. A season consists of a series of races (Grands Prix) that take place in multiple countries and continents on either purpose-built circuits or closed public roads.

When is F1 in 2024?

The 2024 F1 season features 24 races held all over the world between March and December. China, Miami, Austria, USA, Brazil, and Qatar will each host a sprint weekend this season.

How to watch F1 for free in the U.S.

Fans can live stream F1 for free on the following platforms:

Austria  ORF or ServusTV (12 races each)

Belgium  RTBF (every race)

Luxembourg  RTL ZWEE (every race)

These free streaming platforms are geo-restricted, meaning you'll be blocked if you attempt to connect from the U.S. Fortunately, you can bypass these restrictions with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to secure servers in other countries, meaning you can access these streaming services to watch F1 for free from the U.S.

Follow these simple steps to unblock these free streaming services from the U.S.:

Sign up for a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN) Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more) Open up the app and connect to a server in Austria, Belgium, or Luxembourg Connect to ORF, ServusTV, RTBF, or RTL ZWEE Watch F1 for free from the U.S.

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Credit: ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN (1-Year Subscription + 3 Months Free)

$99.95 at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee)

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The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but they do tend to offer money-back guarantees or free trials. By taking advantage of these offers, you can watch F1 live streams without actually spending anything. This obviously isn't a long-term solution, but it does mean you can watch select races for free.

If you want to retain access to free streaming platforms from around the world, you'll need to subscribe. But do not fear, because the best VPN for streaming live sport is on sale for a limited time.

What is the best VPN for F1?

There are a number of streaming-friendly VPNs that can reliably unblock free streaming sites from around the world, including the likes of NordVPN and ProtonVPN. Those are both solid options, but ExpressVPN is the top choice for live streaming F1 in the U.S., for a number of reasons:

Servers in 105 countries including Austria, Belgium, and Luxembourg

Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

Strict no-logging policy so your data is protected

Fast streaming speeds

Up to eight simultaneous connections

30-day money-back guarantee

A one-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $99.95 and includes an extra three months for free  49% off for a limited time. This plan also includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a 30-day money-back guarantee. By using the guarantee, you can watch F1 races for free.

Watch F1 for free with ExpressVPN.
Its back-to-school season again, which means theres no shortage of commentary about the essential work that teachers do and the sacrifices they make. Veteran teachers are accustomed to being told  by administrators, parents, politicians or simply members of the general public  how to do their jobs.

Maybe its because teachers salaries are funded by taxpayers, or simply because we all have our own classroom experiences as students to reflect back on, but few other career professionals are subject to so much public dialogue about how they should approach their work, and what they should and should not say.

Increasingly, teachers are held accountable not only to school administrators, parents and students (their most critical audience), but also policies like book bans and laws like Floridas Dont Say Gay bill, that restrict what teachers are allowed to include in their curriculum.

When we asked teachers in the HuffPost Facebook community to tell us which phrases they are sick of hearing, few mentioned things that they hear from students. Mostly, it seems, teachers are tired of adults who feel entitled to air opinions about their vocation.

One phrase mentioned several times was, Teachers do it for the outcome, not the income.

Jess Parish, a teacher in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, explained why, although there is truth to it, this phrase still stings: While I appreciate the intent behind it, deep down this is toxic for teachers. Teaching is absolutely a heart job. You cannot be a successful teacher if your heart isnt all in. But teaching is a job performed by highly trained and skilled professionals. We deserve to be paid like the assets we are, because when it comes down to it, it is a job. In no other sector do we pay employees with such significant job entry requirements and uniquely specialized skills the way we pay teachers. All teachers should be compensated, at minimum, with a living wage and benefits. We are absolutely in it for the outcome, but we deserve the income too.

Here are some other comments that teachers wouldnt miss hearing if people stopped saying them:

Lip service

Teachers deserve a raise, but no one ever does anything to make it happen.  Sara Kristen

Thanks for being flexible, even though its not an option.  Mel Pilchard, Illinois

Teachers arent here for the money.  Marissa Whited, Wisconsin

You do it because you love the kids.  Adrienne Anderson

Helpful advice

Build relationships with your students and you will have no problems.  Nancy Marino

Build a relationship with your students, it helps with discipline.  Milana Boss

Relationships are so important  yes, but that requires 1) respect that goes both ways, 2) time, and 3) smaller classes. My day breaks down to under two minutes per student. I am trying.  Chelsea W. Alsberg, Illinois

Remember your why and Remember to take care of yourself, while simultaneously being handed more unsustainable work to do.  Jennifer Osyk Ziegler, North Carolina

Deep dive into the data and Have you tried a behavior plan?  Adrienne Anderson

Children are resilient.  Rachel Humphreys

Add this to your teacher toolbox.  Amy Donner

Straight-up resentment

Must be nice to have summers off.  Karen Hackett Villalobos

Teachers should stop complaining about their pay! They work less than 8 hours a day, get holidays off, and they get vacation breaks!  Alli Lampshire, Nevada

Questions parents and students have actually asked

My child has a 4.2. What do we need to get into Stanford? Colleen Martin, California

How is ________ rude?  Laura Beth, California

Student: I was absent yesterday. Did I miss anything? Me: No, we did absolutely nothing because you werent here.  April Najjaj, North Carolina

Indecipherable student slang

What the sigma? Thats so Ohio, and level 10 Gyatt  Nicole Laib Rutledge, Washington

Bruh.  Ashley Aberle, Iowa

Merch, No bars, You thought that was a banger, Do your big one. Tyeisha Cox, Michigan

Related...
6 Golden Retriever Puppies Abandoned on Texas Beach Find Homes in Less Than 4 Hours

"The power of community is amazing," Nueces County Animal Services wrote in response to the rapid adoption of the dumped dogs

Nueces County, TX/Facebook Six abandoned golden retriever puppies Nueces County Animal Services rescued from a remote beach area

Nueces County, Texas, is basking in the power of community.

On Aug. 21, the Facebook page for Nueces County posted that animal services officers were looking after six golden retriever puppies found abandoned on a beach.

The post added that the puppies appeared healthy and were 3-4 months old. The county also asked animal lovers interested in adopting the pups to contact Nueces County Animal Services to learn more. Nueces County included several photos of the puppies relaxing in a vehicle after officials picked them up from the beach.

Nueces County officials didn't have to wait long to find a loving home for the recently discovered golden retrievers. Scott Cross, a Nueces County coastal parks director, told 3News that all six puppies had adopters lined up less than four hours after the dogs were found abandoned on the beach.

Nueces County Animal Services/Facebook One of the abandoned golden retriever puppies rescued by Nueces County Animal Services

Nueces County Animal Services shared their appreciation on social media for this quick response to the dogs' needs.

Related: Rescue Dog with 7-Lb. Tumor on His Face Gets Mass Removed and Finds an 'Amazing' Forever Home

"The power of community is amazing," the agency wrote on Facebook in a post commenting on the puppies' adoptions.

The Nueces County Animal Services post also provided more information about the golden retrievers' rescue.

Nueces County Animal Services/Facebook An abandoned puppy rescued by Nueces County Animal Services

According to the agency, Nueces County's Coastal Parks Department found the abandoned pups first in a "very remote area of the beach" and contacted Nueces County Animal Services for assistance.

Related: Vote For the 2024 World's Cutest Rescue Dog Contest Winner!

"Multiple Nueces County employees immediately wanted to help and posted that the puppies were in need of homes. We have been absolutely blown away by the overwhelming response from the community," Nueces County Animal Services shared, adding that, because of this early outreach, several puppies found homes before animal services officers arrived at the scene.

The puppies that didn't find homes through Nueces County employees quickly acquired adopters after Nueces County Animal Services posted about the golden retrievers online.

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.

While the six abandoned golden retrievers are all on their way to loving homes, Nueces County Animal Services still has plenty of pets looking for families.

Nueces County Animal Services officials told 3News that they had identified the individual responsible for dumping the six puppies on the beach. According to the agency, abandonment of animals is a Class A misdemeanor in Texas.

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Read the original article on People.
I love road trips, mostly because seeing things that I have never encountered reminds me that there is so much outside the bubble I tend to live in within 150 miles of Augusta.

I was able to make a fun road trip happen last week with a buddy of mine because of the need to get a car back to Augusta from Denver, Colorado. We each traveled to Denver separately. While I visited with some old college friends, Jeff rode up to southern Wyoming to pick up said vehicle. When we finally got together, we had not a single plan on how long we were going to take to return or which route we would take.

I did have one thing on my list that I wanted to do and that was to spend the night in Kansas. (On a side note, I am trying to spend the night in all 50 states and Kansas was my 41st state.)

We started our journey from the Denver airport and headed east. We didnt have much expectation for the drive across the heartland of America, but I can tell you eastern Colorado and western Kansas are beautiful; long expanses of rolling farms and ranch land with views for miles. And then came the windmills.

You start seeing something that looks like a weirdly shaped skyscraper in the distance until you get close enough to see what it is that is taking up so much room on the horizon. When you finally get close enough, there are hundreds of them. And they are not the little ones you imagine Don Quixote fighting. These things are massive.

Being the curious fellow that I am, I had to find out what was the deal with all these windmills, and I found out a lot.

Kansas is the No. 2 producer of wind-powered electricity in the U.S., next to Texas. Kansas has approximately 4,000 to 5,000 wind turbines spread across various wind farms. (In comparison, Texas has about three times as many spread across most of the northern part of the state and into the panhandle.)

Campbell Vaughn: The culprits attacking the bark on your trees could be European hornets

Kansas wind farms produce a substantial amount of electricity with an annual production of approximately 40 million megawatt-hours (MWh). This output is enough to power around 4 million homes each year. For Kansass total electricity generated, wind accounts for 40-45%. This amount of electricity is significant for the state and for sharing power nationwide.

The mast or tower of the windmill wind turbine typically stands between 260 to 330 feet tall from the base to the nacelle, which is the housing at the top. According to energy.gov, the nacelle is considered the turbine's "heart" because it converts wind energy into electricity.

The nacelle's drivetrain converts the rotor's low-speed rotation into the high-speed rotation needed by the generator to produce electricity. The nacelle can rotate 360 degrees on its axis to face the wind, and some nacelles can be as large as a small house and weigh more than 4.5 tons.

The rotor, which consists of the three blades and the central hub, has a diameter ranging from 250 to 400 feet with the most common rotor diameter being around 300 feet. Each of the blades is between 120 to 200 feet long.

This means that the total height of the turbine, from the ground to the tip of an upright blade can reach 500 feet.

I love chances to travel and see new things. In a few weeks I will have to tell you about all the rice fields we saw in Arkansas. The statistics of the amount of rice produced there are staggering.

Keep an eye out for fall army worms. They got ahold of my Bermuda lawn while I was out of town looking at windmills in Kansas. They ate me up. I sprayed them with permethrin which seemed to have stopped them, but it will be a few weeks before I have a nice lawn again.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Campbell Vaughn: Kansas runs on wind energy from windmills
Your college student may be paying thousands in fees for a service they don't need

If you have a child heading off to college this month, you may faintly recall an email from the school about student health insurance.

Most elite private colleges, and many public institutions, automatically enroll students in Student Health Insurance Plans. The coverage costs $2,924 a year at public colleges and $3,874 a year at private schools, on average, according to an industry survey of prominent schools in the 2023-24 academic year.

And heres the thing: Many students dont need it.

Colleges often require students to carry comprehensive health insurance. Student health insurance exists, in essence, to cover those who arrive on campus without it.

Some students benefit enormously from campus health insurance, including international students, people from underinsured families, and students with chronic medical or mental health struggles.

For many others, experts say, campus health insurance is duplicative, costly and unnecessary.

Florida State students walk around campus between Azalea and Magnolia Hall Wednesday, August 21 2024.

'It's not a few hundred dollars. We're talking about thousands.'

Its not a few hundred dollars. Were talking about thousands, said Julian Treves, an investment adviser and college specialist at Creative Financial Designs.

Stanford University charged $7,128 for student health insurance in 2023-24, according to a survey by Hodgkins Beckley & Lyon, a higher education consultancy. The annual fee totaled $5,144 at Northwestern University, $4,636 at Brown, $4,210 at Penn and $4,762 at Emory, all elite private campuses.

Among public flagships, the tab was $3,093 at the University of Florida, $3,592 at Ohio State, $3,858 at Berkeley and $3,900 at the University of Iowa.

To avoid the four-figure fee, you generally must persuade your student to go online and complete a waiver documenting that you have comprehensive health insurance for your family.

When my kids went off to college, we waived the student health insurance every time, said Steven Bloom, assistant vice president for government relations at the American Council on Education, which represents colleges and universities. It doesnt make a lot of sense, if somebody comes from a family where they have good health insurance.

Few colleges, if any, actually require students to carry student health insurance, said Stephen Beckley, a consultant at Hodgkins Beckley: They merely require that students be adequately insured.

Yet, roughly 90% of major four-year private colleges and universities enroll students automatically in campus health insurance plans, along with 35% of major public institutions, Beckley said. If you dont want the coverage, its on you to opt out.

More: College students are going viral on TikTok for luxury dorm room makeovers. You won't believe it.

Utica University welcomed 595 first-year and transfer students to campus for the upcoming fall 2024 semester on Wednesday, August 21, 2024. New students got their belongings moved to their dorm rooms with the help of orientation mentors and "MooseMover" volunteers.

Want to opt out of student health insurance? Don't wait.

And you would be wise to do it soon. Colleges generally require students to submit the waiver not long after classes start in fall.

Student health insurance is probably the biggest discretionary expense colleges charge, said Bobbi Rebell, a personal finance expert at CardRates.com, the consumer site.

And the expense is significant, she said, at a time when the priciest private colleges charge about $70,000 in tuition and fees.

Treves said his clients spend many fretful hours searching for ways to save even a few hundred dollars in college costs. Waiving student health insurance is a no-brainer, he said, if you already have solid insurance for your family: Its an easy way to avoid spending thousands of dollars double-insuring your kids.

Colleges usually make a conscientious effort to alert students and their families that they have been auto-enrolled in health insurance they may not need.

Most colleges really promote the waiver process, so it shouldnt be something (families) have to find, Beckley said. There should be numerous emails.

But many families dont notice the emails. Others wrongly assume they have no choice about purchasing the insurance.

The check-in desk sits Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, at the River Crossing housing complex on the Indiana University South Bend campus. Classes for the fall academic year begin on Monday.

Many parents assume campus health insurance is mandatory

I would guess that most parents believe it is mandatory, Rebell said. They get a bill that has the word mandatory on it.

Even when parents divine that they may not need student health insurance, there remains the complicated business of persuading your child to find and complete a potentially complicated insurance form.

In behavioral terms, autoenrollment is a powerful force, financial experts say. Its a matter of simple inertia: When consumers have to go through hoops to waive an optional charge, its that much less likely they will do it.

When youre opted into something, you just stick with it, said Kimberly Palmer, a personal finance expert at NerdWallet.

Still, if you have good insurance for yourself and your children, you might want to take the time to opt out of student health insurance.

Is your student covered? From cars to off-campus housing, insurance needs for college students

Most campus health centers accept outside insurance, Beckley said. And your student will have access to all the same medical and dental coverage at school that they would get while traveling or staying with out-of-town relatives.

Student volunteers help freshmen unload cars during Walsh University move in on the North Canton campus. Friday, August 16, 2024.

Do the math on student health insurance, experts say

If you opt out of student health insurance, however, bear in mind that your student could end up paying more for health care at school than they would at home.

Colleges are putting more bills on the students for visiting their health centers, raising fees to cover their own rising costs, Beckley said.

Some health insurance policies dont work so well when you are out of town. If you belong to a regional HMO in Virginia and send your kid off to college in Colorado, experts say, the student may struggle to find health care within easy reach. If your child is attending college in state, finding a doctor in your network might be a lot easier.

College students who fall ill often wind up at local urgent care centers, where medical care typically costs more out of pocket than it would at the family doctor.

Indeed, some urgent care centers near colleges market themselves to students as if they were the only health care option, which usually isnt so.

Sometimes theyre set up to really gouge students, Beckley said.

Graphic explainer: How are college costs adding up these days and how much has tuition risen?

When is student health insurance a good deal?

Anyone with chronic medical problems or mental health needs might find it cheaper in the end to pay for student health insurance. For example, many colleges persuade local psychotherapists to accept student health insurance even when they dont take insurance for their other patents.

There are many circumstances where this is going to save you money, and its going to be a better insurance program, Beckley said.

So, if you are bundling your child off to college, take a few minutes to look at the breakdown of tuition and fees. Google the college name and student health insurance to find and read the school rules. And take a fresh look at your own insurance policy.

If you choose to waive student health insurance, experts say, spend some time reviewing the available options for your child to seek healthcare at college, on campus or off.

Its just a logical step, Treves said. Believe me, arriving freshmen, the last thing on their minds is, Wheres the nearest ER?

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Is your college student spending thousands on health insurance?
It's a happy day for the Dakota Zoo in Bismarck, North Dakota and one of their donkeys. The mama donk has given birth to the perfect newborn  a baby boy named Roger.

Zoo officials say they've been waiting for months for Roger's arrival. A new baby is always something to celebrate.

Speaking with KXNET, zoo employee Brent Weston told them that they'd been anxiously awaiting for the birth to happen.

"This is probably the most anticipated event of the summer," Weston explained on August 19. "Our mom, Patty, has made us wait, but there is a new baby donkey, a boy named Roger. Roger was just born a couple of days ago."

Mom Patty was in labor for hours before little Roger entered the world  finally.

"Its been very busy over here," Weston said. "I mean, its always busy in this petting zoo area, but the donkeys have definitely been getting more attention."

"Like I said, its been very anticipated," he added. "Shes made us wait. She started showing signs that the baby could be coming any time now a month or two ago. And yeah, we just come in every morning and asked, Is it here yet?'"

Thankfully, Roger didn't make his mama wait any longer and he was eventually born. According to the zoo's website, Roger and Patty are both miniature Donkeys. These Donks are native to the Mediterranean islands of Sicily and Sardinia.

"While these animals are quite common in the United States, they are extremely rare in their native lands, even being on the verge of becoming extinct," they note. Making Roger's birth all the more special.

Most mini Donkeys are 36 inches tall at their withers (that's the spot between their shoulders). And they have a pretty long lifespan too. Most of these animals can live to at least 30 years old. One mini Donkey even lived until it was 47 years old.

Many mini Donkeys live on farms in the United States where they act as "watch Donkeys" for the property. This means they keep an eye out for predators who target sheep and goats. This is usually because Donkeys naturally don't like dogs or their much scarier relatives  wolves and coyotes.

As for Roger, it seems as if the newborn is adjusting to life at the Dakota Zoo easily. Although Weston said that the baby has been known to get a case of the "zoomies" every now and then. Guests can visit Roger, and the zoo's many other residents, from 10 to 6 daily at the Dakota Zoo.

Looking for more PetHelpful updates? Follow us on YouTube for more entertaining videos. Or, share your own adorable pet by submitting a video, and sign up for our newsletter for the latest pet updates and tips.
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Almost 25 years after creating what would become the billion-dollar Spanx business, entrepreneur Sara Blakely has introduced her latest innovationSneex. The Atlanta-based business woman announced her new venture this week, a stiletto-sneaker hybrid aimed at comfort, and she already has a celebrity fan in Gayle King.

While sneakers-turned-stilettos are not newin addition to brands like Balenciaga showing variations on recent runways, there was a considerable trend towards sneaker-styled stilettos in the early 2000s. But for Blakely, the idea is more than about aesthetics. Sneex are my love letter to every woman who has taken her shoes off at a party, who wears flats to work with heels in her bag, who thought her days of wearing heels were over, she says in a statement on the Sneex site.

Now King is throwing all of her support toward Blakelys latest creation, and invited her to talk about the shoe on her show CBS Mornings. The talk show host then shared posts on Instagram where she raved about the shoe, including a video of her pushing a suitcase through the airport while rocking a pair of green Sneex saying people stopped her to ask where she purchased them.

I got a pair of Sneex and Ive been waiting for them, King said in a meeting with Blakely backstage of CBS Mornings. Ever since Sara told me top secret, Ive been wanting to tell people. King suggested she might wear the hy-heels to the Democratic National Convention this week.

Sneex, The Tepper

Buy Now at sneex

After a development process of almost a decade, Blakely has created a shoe aimed at addressing key pain points with stiletto pump styles. While many boast pointed toe boxes, Sneex provides ample space so as to not pinch toes.

While pumps often require wearers to balance with the middle of the foot not quite supported by the shoe, but Sneex is designed to come into contact with the entire sole. And while the lions share of stilettos mandate wearers to balance most of their weight on the ball of the foot with only about 20 percent of the pressure on the heel, Sneex has a 50/50 split.

With pricing that ranges from $395 to $595, the Spain-made lightweight shoe pulls its aesthetics directly from sneakers. They are made of Napa leather as well as suedes from Italy and France. In place of laces, the three inch stilettos feature straps.









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Mmm, Seattles favorite bakery is coming to Boise. Order now for local pickup

At this point, theres little doubt that Boise loves Piroshky Piroshky.

But its becoming clear that Piroshky Piroshky has a serious thing for Boise, too.

Making its third trip to the City of Trees in less than nine months, Seattles favorite bakery (as it likes to call itself) will be back Tuesday, Sept. 17, for a preorder pickup event  this time from 5 to 7 p.m. at the same place: Barbarian Brewing, 114 E. 32nd St., Garden City.

Customers have from now until 3 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 15, to order their favorite pies, rolls, cookies and other delicacies at piroshkybakery.com.

Goods will be frozen and shipped from Seattle on an air cargo plane. Piroshky Piroshky team members will distribute them to Idaho customers at the brewery pop-up event.

Piroshky Piroshky offers an array of delicious baked goods.

Piroshky Piroshkys menu includes temptations such as Smoked Salmon Pate Piroshky ($8), Chocolate Cream Hazelnut Roll ($6), Cinnamon Cardamom Braid ($6) and the vegan-friendly Veggie Chipotle Piroshky ($7).

A one-of-a-kind, Eastern European-influenced bakery, Piroshky Piroshky has run its flagship Pike Place Market location for more than three decades, serving more than 10 million tourists and locals, according to a press release.

In 2021, owner Olga Sagan told the Idaho Statesman that she started doing Washington pop-up events the year before to keep employees working during COVID-19 shutdowns. Selling goods online and expanding the idea to other states, Piroshky Piroshky suddenly had a new revenue stream.

Idaho has been a steady market. Before it made Barbarian Brewing its Idaho home away from home, Piroshky Piroshky handed out orders at Clairvoyant Brewing Company in Boise in fall of 2022.

Through the years, the press release says, our bakery has received recognition far and wide, graced by the spotlight on Anthony Bourdains No Reservations and the Zimmern List on the Travel Channel. By recognizing the immigrant journey embedded in our creations, Smithsonian Magazine honored us as one of The 20 Most Iconic Food Destinations Across America. Each accolade is a testament to the flavors woven into our storys fabric.
Old U.S. 27 Motor Tour brings business to Coldwater before heading north

COLDWATER  After a buffet lunch at Broadway Grill Wednesday at noon, over 60 cars and trucks caravanned behind a police escort north on the 18th annual Old U.S. 27 Motor Tour rolling car show and cruise.

By the time the tour reaches Cheboygan on Saturday, over 300 cars, trucks, and motorbikes are expected to have joined the tour, escorted along the way by law enforcement.

Local cars joined those from the Old U.S. 27 Motor Tour Tuesday night for a cruise in.

Debra Prater, executive director of Coldwater Country Conference and Visitors Bureau, said the tour began in Coldwater on Monday, and participants gathered for two days from around the country.

On Wednesday night, the tour stopped in Dewitt. It's also scheduled to stop on Thursday in Clare, and Friday in Grayling before heading to Cheboygan on Saturday. In between, stops are scheduled in eight other communities.

New people join each year. Deborah Shannon, from Nashville, Tennessee, joined two years ago after she saw pictures of the tour at Cops and Donuts and Clare.

A friend from North Carolina joined her in the 2009 Nissan Z-350. After Saturday, they plan a Canadian trip.

Deborah Shannon, from Nashville, Tennessee, joined two years ago with a friend from North Carolina in her 2009 Nissan Z-350.

The bureau plans events before the rolloff Wednesday after lunch. These include a poker run and scavenger hunt that attracts significant local and corporate participation with gifts and contributions for prizes.

Kilgore International on West Chicago hosted a cruise Monday night.

Tuesday night, Performance Plus Quick Oil Change saw over 100 tour and local cars spill over into Willowbrook Plaza.

Branch County business lends to car-crazy crowds.

On Tuesday nights, many head to Short's Drive Inn for curbside meals and to show off cars. Some went to Capri Drive in the past years, but because school began this week, there were no weekday movies.

Prater said, "Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, we try to get them into the businesses. That's the whole premise because we're a destination marketer." Based on the community's contributions, she said it works. "They're spending money when they're here."

Craig Parrish in Coldwater at an early Old U.S. 27 tour start.

Lansing-area resident Craig Parrish created the idea and put together the first tour in 2005. Parrish pushed the legislature to designate Old U.S. 27 in Michigan as a historic highway, which was approved in 2010,

His partner Kim Davis kept the tour going after his death in 2021 from cancer.

Prater would like the tour to reverse the tour, starting in Cheboygan and ending in Coldwater. "We could throw one heck of a party."

Contact Don Reid: dReid@Gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Old U.S. 27 Motor Tour 2024 Coldwater to Cheboygan classic cars trucks
If someone hit you in the head (hard) just before the pandemic, and youre only waking up now, in the middle of 2024, youll have noticed some changes. For instance, the global proliferation of Six Senses hotels and resorts.

Once a relatively quiet group of wellness-focused Asian resorts for in-the-know Europeans, Six Senses is now in the midst of a breakneck opening spree with the U.S. square in its sights. Since 2019when hotel giant IHG dropped $300 million in cash to acquire the operators then 16 hotels and resorts from private equity group Pegasus Capital Advisorsits grown to 26 urban hotels and destination resorts in 21 countries across four continents. (Its Vana resort in India is one of Robb Reports 50 best luxury hotels in the world).

More from Robb Report

Blink again and that number may have doubled. By 2026, Six Senses, now the flagship brand of IHGs luxury and lifestyle portfolio, hopes to have a shingle hanging in London, Bangkok, Dubai, Lisbon, Napa, and Tel Aviv. There are currently 43 Six Senses in the pipeline, which will extend Six Senses footprint from the Carolinas to Victoria Falls. Many of those new properties will come packed with branded residences.

So is Six Senses trying to conquer the world via ayurvedic medicine, longevity spa treatments, and mindfulness exercises?

Its been a hell of a ride, admits CEO Neil Jacobs. But the answer is no, and we have a real point of view on that.

Spirituality is a growth area for the brand, say CEO Neil Jacobs.

More on that point of view momentarily, but its worth pausing to note that despite his protestations, Jacobs comes to Six Senses with 14 years of experience with a hotel group that is arguable much more overtly interested in turning planet Earth into one massive 5-star hotel lobby: namely, the Four Seasons. As senior vice president of operations for the Four Seasonss Asia Pacific region, he witnessed the company expand from roughly two dozen hotels into the 130-ish-address, Bill Gates and Prince Al-Waleed bin Talalowned leviathan of luxury it is today. The Four Seasonss stated goal is 200 hotels. But Jacobs tells Robb Report its neither his or IHGs intention to turn Six Senses into the Michael Kors of opulent wellness resorts.

We think less is more, he says of that aforementioned point of view. Our competitors are all about growth. With Six Senses the conversation is very much the opposite of that. Youve got to be really careful about what you do and where you go. I mean, we started with eight resorts in 2012. Then there were 11, and we got rid of two or three. Today, there are 26. So weve only opened 18 in nearly 12 years, really.

Still, the Bangkok-based company is hurtling toward 60-plus properties, a number Jacobs says he is comfortable with. What happens beyond that is stickier.

We have four projects in Italy. We could do another five, but why? says Jacobs. Instead, lets move to another country and spread, rather than just inundate the brand in one country, even though theres places to do it. Its a continual argument internally. We have some great places coming to Italy, but we dont have Venice. So then my team says, If we have a Venice deal, are you going to say, Dont do it? Good question. But the answer is, maybe.

The brand has expanded into urban centers like Rome.

Whether its Six Senses, the Four Seasons, or Auberge (another brand that has seen a similarly rapid expansion), the answer to the question When does quantity extinguish the spark of quality? is worth at least a billion. But its also a problem that highlights the welcome fact that, despite the current slump, luxury is winning; it may have already won.

From fashion to travel, a growing share of businesses have repositioned themselves to serve the high-end consumer, as growing global wealth supports superior margins realized through the relative simplicity of a luxury rebrand. The affordable family resort of yesterday becomes the aspirational seaside playpen of today. As long as demand for luxury everything is here, deep-pocketed hotel groups will grow to meet it.

At the same time, the success of luxury creates a clear existential dilemma: If luxury becomes the standard setting, it is by definition no longer an indulgence, no longer a luxury. And as luxury becomes more gray and undifferentiated, the vague, eye-of-the-beholder quality that was once its strength, is now its liability.

Its a problem that Jacobs feels that Six Senses was uniquely designed to address.

Jacobs says that not any old location will do. Its about finding the perfect spot.

That sixth sense in our name, we see it as intuition, he says. Its interesting because one of our initiatives for this year in wellness is spiritual wellness. In the past, weve done a lot of yoga, weve done a lot of meditation, but we havent done a lot of overtly spiritual programs. We think the time is right.

Those programs serving up, non-religious, lightly-woo spirituality on a silver platter roll out later this year and offer a key differentiator for the brands fastest growing customer base: Americans.

Back in 2012, it was predominately a European customer, Id say 85 percent, says Jacobs. There was no business coming from the U.S. Today, the U.S. is our number market, even though we dont have anything open in the U.S.

Its not for lack of trying. Six Senses planned to open in Manhattan along the High Line in a doomed Bjarke Inglesdesigned tower that was crushed by a Gambino crime family construction bribery scandal and the subsequent bankruptcy of its developer. Six Senses has since found a new site on 23rd St. between Seventh and Eighth Aves. in Chelsea, but is at least three years out.

Its having a better, if not altogether easier, time with the 236-acre farm in Hudson Valley in Upstate New York. The site of a failed secret hotel project, Six Senses snatched up the land for $13.7 million in 2022, making it some of the only real estate the brand owns (as with many brands, outside investors typically carry the deeds). Although it would be the first five-star flag in the region, the project has faced community opposition that could scuttle yet another attempt to create a footprint in the U.S.

I dont think its going to work, Del LaMagna, whose property shares a border with the site, told the Hudson Valley Pilot. [IHG] decided they wanted to be here, they started hiring good local people to figure it out, but this whole idea of exclusive resorts for rich people just doesnt work up here.

From Bhutan to Napa, Six Senses has exploded onto the scene as few others could.

Thats a matter of opinion, but Six Senses plans for the U.S. extend far beyond the town of Clinton. Besides urban hotels in New York, L.A., and Miami, it will open a series of resorts, starting with a 500-acre estate on the edge of Napa and a multi-island project off the coast of South Carolina spanning Hilton Head, Daufuskie, and Bay Point. The gargantuan scale of those properties will eventually facilitate the festivals and retreats that the brand has been recently investing in.

Its a lot of yoga, a lot of spirituality, a lot of fun, a dance, a lot of movement, he says. Those kinds of festivals resonate with people.

So if youre just waking up, welcome to a world where Six Senses is everywhere all at once. But Jacobs hopes that by selecting extraordinary properties and by demonstrating our values in a highly meaningful way that the resorts will fit into the ecosystem like redwoods in a pine forest. Call it a sixth sense.

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The soon-to-be family of four visited the grocery yacht together in the fun, viral Instagram Reel

Brooke DeVard/Instagram (2) Migros supermarket on the sea (left), aisles at the store

Brooke DeVard shared an Instagram Reel showing her visiting the Migros location on a yacht

Located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, the floating grocery store has everything for the casual shopper, plus those who need to stock up on provisions for extended time at sea

DeVard, a native New Yorker, recalls how fun it was to explore her first time there and why it's a must-stop for every trip now

A mom who enjoyed a family vacation to Turkey is giving her followers a look at something most people don't know about.

Brooke DeVard and her family were traveling to Turkey on an annual trip that began when she and her husband were married nearly a decade ago. A native New Yorker, DeVard's yearly trip with her husband has become a family affair since welcoming their now 3-year-old son.

"One of the very first trips we took was called the Mavi Yolculuk, or the Blue Voyage. Basically you go from Istanbul all the way to Bojram and stop at little bays along the way. Families and people across Turkey have been doing it for forever," DeVard tells PEOPLE.

"After my first time experiencing it with him, we've continued to do it and now we bring our son. It's one of the things we really look forward to every year as a family."

Traveling by boat involves long stretches at sea. "I think there's something really nice about specifically the boat part of our journey. We did six nights, five days. There's something really nice about not having to deal with logistics," she says.

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Related: Veteran Sells His Farm to Travel the World Hunting for Rare Sea Glass: 'A Whole New Appreciation' (Exclusive)

One of the logistics DeVard was delighted to discover more about was how food and supplies were stocked on boats that spend extended periods of time on the water.



"My first visit [to the supermarket] was three years ago. It was the first time that I saw this floating grocery store and I was amazed. I couldn't even wrap my mind around it. My family explains how all of the boats get their provisions when you're out at sea for a long time," she says.

"Some of my other family members have done this very often and aren't as fazed by it. They'll have the crew go to the grocery store, but I'm always like, 'Oh my gosh, no, I'm going.' Even if I have to buy two things, I have to go. I'm not going to miss out on the opportunity to go grocery shopping at sea.'"

DeVard's recent tour of the Migros grocery store on the Mediterranean Sea has gone viral as people find themselves mesmerized by everything there is to offer.



Brooke DeVard/Instagram Oreo display on the Migros at sea

"The biggest surprise, I think, is the fact that it wasn't a scaled-down version of a grocery store. The fact that they have fish and poultry and produce, ice cream and snacks ... everything from feminine care products and baby formula to toys and sunscreen," DeVard says.

"They have everything that you would find in a grocery store on land. So you might think it was a reduced, only essentials type thing, but really they have everything."

While some commenters thought the prices in DeVard's video seemed unreasonable, she noted that they are in Turkish lira. Converted to USD, her family finds the prices to be "really reasonable."

"I think that's interesting because you'd think because you don't have many options at sea, there would be a big price increase. But the prices are very reasonable and very comparable to what you'd see on land for the same items," the soon-to-be mom of two shares.

Brooke DeVard/Instagram Ice cream at floating Migros

Seeing other people as captivated as she was during her first trip to the grocery store on the sea has been fun for DeVard.

"For me, it's people's excitement and being like, 'I never knew this existed.' One of the things I say in the voiceover is that there are things in the world that exist that you have no idea exist until you experience them," she notes.

"The first time I saw it, it seemed so incredible to me, so to see so many people blown away by the fact that something like this exists is cool. I saw someone say, 'This is a bucket list item for me,' or 'I want to experience it.' "



Brooke DeVard/Instagram Brooke's husband getting simit

The family has favorites they look forward to picking up on each trip.

"I get really excited about the peaches, which in Turkish, they say seftaliler. They're perfectly ripe and incredible. As a pregnancy craving, I get the white chocolate-dipped Oreos," she shares.

"My son was very excited about being able to get pomegranate juice. We don't usually let him drink a lot of juice since he's only 3, but we allowed him to get pomegranate juice at the grocery store, which is great," DeVard continues.

"The other thing I picked up at the grocery store is Vogue Turkiye. Of course, we can get everything online on the tablet, but there's something nice about getting a magazine. My husband loves when we buy simit, which is a baked bread similar to a bagel. It is a staple in all Turkish breakfasts, which are a huge part of their culture. So, to be able to have freshly baked simit on the sea is incredible."

Courtesy of Brooke DeVard Brooke DeVard and family enjoying their travels

These trips, and family travel in general, have become important to DeVard and her family.

"I'm 5 months pregnant, so I had some concerns about how I'd feel, but I was great the whole time. I'm African-American, my husband is Turkish and so our son is half Black American, half Turkish. It was always very important that he, because we live in the States and he goes to school there, to make sure he has these summers to be exposed to Turkish culture, to eat Turkish foods, to be with his Turkish side of the family and hear the language being spoken. It was always important that he grows up equally connected to both sides of his heritage," she says.

"One of the things I'm so grateful for is that he really likes being on the sea. He really likes being on the water. His favorite part is the little boat that takes you from your boat to the grocery store boat. That's what he gets most excited about. It feels like a little adventure for him, but we're happy that he really loves being on a boat."



DeVard hopes the glimpses she shares of her family's travel inspire others to pursue unique travel experiences.



"I'd say just go for it. It creates these long-lasting memories. It's a really special way to bond with your family. You're all together in a very small space, but I think if you have the courage to do it, it'll create really unique memories."



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DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN)  The Boonshoft School of Medicine recently received a large estate gift that will be put toward scholarships.

The late William Bernie, M.D., has left $1.7 million through an estate gift to Wright State Universitys Boonshoft School of Medicine. The money will be used to support scholarships for medical students.

3-day move-in event kicks off at Wright State with freshmen on Wednesday

Originating from Dayton and graduating from Miami University and the University of Cincinnati, Bernie was a lifelong leader in surgery and medical research. He was a founding member of Wright States Department of Surgery, and worked as a volunteer faculty member for over three decades.

Bernie donated generously to the Boonshoft School of Medicine throughout his life and in 1993, established the Helen K. and David Bernie Scholarship Fund in honor of his parents. The scholarship awards high-achieving medical students following their first year of studies.

WSU President Sue Edwards says the $1.7 million estate gift will go toward funding the scholarship for years to come.

While Dr. Bernie may not be here to see the impact he makes in the lives of our students, they will proudly carry on his long legacy of excellence in medical care and surgical innovation, said Edwards. Dr. Bernies generosity will allow us to continue graduating highly trained professionals who will serve patients throughout our region, state and nation.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WDTN.com.
1 seriously injured after motorcycle accident in Buffalo

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)  A Williamsville man was seriously injured following a motorcycle accident Tuesday night in Buffalo, Buffalo police announced.

Around 9 p.m., police responded to the inbound Kensington at the Route 198 exit ramp, where a motorcyclist had exited from Route 33 to Route 198 and apparently lost control, striking the cement median, officials said.

Authorities said the 26-year-old was transported by ambulance to ECMC to be treated for injuries that appear serious in nature.

The cause of the accident 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.
At the height of the Black Lives Matter movement  after George Floyds murder at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer in 2020 prompted nationwide outrage over police brutality  education leaders in Montgomery County, Maryland, removed campus cops from schools.

Similar actions swept the country: Dozens of districts cut ties with the police, satisfying advocates who argued the officers did more harm than good. But the decision in this suburban Washington, D.C., school system was short lived. A year later, in April 2022, the district and the police department quietly signed an agreement to bring back the officers.

The reversal, which followed multiple campus safety incidents including a shooting inside a high school, came amid a national shift in the sentiment around school safety. As students returned to classrooms following pandemic-induced campus closures, educators reported that children brought with them newfound behavioral and mental health challenges that put teachers and other youth at risk.

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New federal data, however, complicate that narrative: In the immediate aftermath of the pandemic, the latest figures from 2022 show, campus violence continued a decades-long plunge.

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In a national survey of youth ages 12 to 18, students reported that they were the victims of campus violence  including rape, robbery and assault  at a rate of 15.6 incidents per 1,000 students in 2022, the first year that students nationwide returned to in-person learning. Thats a decline from pre-pandemic levels: In 2018, for example, students reported a campus violence victimization rate of 24 incidents per 1,000. A decade ago, the rate was nearly double that.

The data, which reflect an ongoing national drop in violent crime as well, were detailed in a new report by the U.S. Departments of Education and Justice, which includes information on a host of indicators related to campus safety and security. In total, the figures suggest that campus violence has decreased since the pandemic with one notable exception. School shootings, while statistically rare compared to other forms of campus disorder, were once again at an all-time high.

Related

New Data: School Shootings Surge to a Record High  Two Years in a Row

School safety expert Deborah Temkin Cahill, the chief research officer at the nonprofit Child Trends, said the data are part of a larger, promising trajectory. In the last decade, school violence has declined precipitously, she said, as schools double down on their efforts to improve school climate and to implement social-emotional learning. During the pandemic, student well-being became a key focus for educators nationally.

That emphasis was not necessarily a priority for schools in the previous days when much of the focus was on improving reading and math scores, she said while adding that the latest figures should be interpreted with caution. With just one year of data from when students were back in classrooms full scale, she said its too early to reach definitive conclusions about the pandemics effects.

We dont know if those trends are an anomaly or if they are going to continue over time, she told The 74. So we are really going to want to keep track of what those look like in future data collections.

These 10 charts show how violence in schools  with a few important caveats  has continued a decade-long decline, one that counters widely held perceptions about a post-COVID bump in campus disorder.

Violence against students has plummeted

In the last decade, schools nationally have seen marked declines in campus violence  according to students themselves. In 2022, students ages 12 to 18 reported that they were the victims of violence at school at a rate of 15.6 incidents per 1,000 students.

In fact, the federal data suggest that 2022 was the safest year for students in the last decade. Leading up to the pandemic, in 2018, the nations students were the victims of violence at school at a rate of 24 per 1,000 students.

The data suggest that the decline in school violence can be attributed in large part to a drop in simple assaults, which include campus fights and account for the majority of student victimizations. Excluding simple assault, students were the victims of violent incidents at a rate of 3.3 per 1,000 in 2022, relatively unchanged from a decade ago and a slight drop from pre-pandemic levels.

Data from 2016 were excluded from the charts above because the methodology used that year wasnt directly comparable to that used in other studies.

Temkin Cahill noted a new youth survey administered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that students mental health challenges that surged since the pandemic have begun to wane but remain elevated from pre-pandemic levels.

Related

5 Updates on Teens from the CDC: Declining Sadness, But More Bullying & Violence

She said theres an important distinction between behaviors that may be the result of heightened emotional needs and ones that are truly violent or school safety related.

A kid acting out in school may not rise to the level that one would perceive as violence but it may still be causing a disruption in school, she said. I think thats where were getting these anecdotal narratives of kids being much more on edge, in part because they have heightened emotional needs.

Student bullying has grown less frequent  with a caveat

In the years leading up to the pandemic, and immediately after school closures ended, reported rates of school bullying have remained relatively consistent. In 2018-19, 20% of students ages 12 to 18 reported being bullied at school, similar to the 19.2% of young people who reported the abuse in the 2021-22 academic year.

Compared to a decade ago, bullying is down significantly: 27.8% of students said they were victims in 2010-11.

Computers have taken on a bigger role in the way students learn  and how they harass their peers. While bullying has declined overall, the prevalence of cyberbullying has grown, the data show.

Among the students who reported experiencing bullying in 2021-22, three-quarters of those incidents took place inside classrooms or in school hallways while about a fifth occurred online or via text messaging. Thats nearly double the 11.5% of cyberbullying incidents reported in 2014-15.

Temkin Cahill said the shift highlights how the pandemic, which forced students to spend more time online than ever before, has fundamentally changed the ways that our youth are interacting with one another.

School-based thefts are down

Thefts reported in schools have also been on the decline over the last decade. Such incidents were  perhaps predictably  at a low point during COVID-era school closures. Still, in 2024 after students returned in person, student thefts were below those in the years leading up to the pandemic.

In 2022, students reported thefts at school at a rate of 6.1 incidents per 1,000 students  a slight decline from 9.4 in 2019 and 8.9 in 2018.

The data show a marked shift from a decade ago, when 23.6 students per 1,000 reported that they had been the victims of theft on campus in 2012.

The reduction in reported student criminality, Temkin Cahill theorized, could be influenced at least in part by another lingering pandemic byproduct: The heightened number of parents who work from home.

There is a link between delinquency and youth engaging in violent behavior and the presence of an adult at home when they return home from school, she told The 74. That has been a significant preventative factor for engaging in gang behaviors, etc.

Indeed, gangs have lost steam

The federal data suggest an ongoing decline in student-reported gang activity inside schools over the last decade, a trend that has continued since the pandemic.

During the 2021-22 school year, 5.5% of students said they observed the presence of gangs in their schools, a slight drop from 2018-19 when 9% of students observed gang activity at school. Since 2000, student gang reports peaked in 2004-05, when nearly a quarter of young people said the crews had a presence in their schools.

Violent teacher injuries were way down last year

In the pandemics wake, teachers reported heightened fears for their physical safety. Although the latest federal data dont offer new data on the number of teachers who were injured on the job, privately collected data on educator insurance claims offer new insight.

During the 2023-24 school year, the number of educators who filed health insurance claims after getting injured by a student behaving violently fell significantly.

That year, the company Gallagher Bassett identified 868 insurance claims from educators who reported injuries on the job after getting assaulted by one of their students. The data were collected from about 2,000 schools nationally that serve some 1.25 million students, according to the company. Compared to a year earlier, such insurance claims were down 39%.

In the two years immediately after the pandemic, the number of insurance claims was relatively consistent with those prior to the public health emergency, according to the data, which Gallagher Bassett provided to The 74.

In the two years preceding the pandemic, however, the incurred costs of student-on-teacher injuries surged, from about $6 million during the 2018-19 academic year to $9.7 million in 2022-23.

Greg McKenna, the national practice leader focused on the public sector for Gallagher Bassett, told The 74 the data suggest that violent incidents were more severe immediately after the pandemic than those in previous years. During the 2023-24 school year, the incurred costs tanked, dropping below pre-pandemic levels to about $4.9 million.

Were happy to report that were seeing a downturn, McKenna said about the most recent decline. Perhaps we did reach a bit of a high water mark in 22-23 and were hoping that this is a continued downward trend as we go in through 24 and beyond.

Campus weapons possession is down

The latest federal data suggest that fewer kids are bringing guns, knives and other weapons to class. In a 2021 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey, 3.1% of students reported bringing a weapon to school at least once in the previous 30 days, a slight decline from a decade earlier: In 2011, 5.4% of students said they came to school with a weapon. The latest figures represent a slight increase from 2019, when 2.8% reported bringing a weapon to school.

Students access to a loaded gun without adult permission has similarly waned  dropping from 6.7% in 2007 to 2.7% in 2021.

David Riedman, the founder of the K-12 School Shooting Database, said the latest figures should be taken with a degree of caution. For starters, the survey was released in 2021 when some campuses remained closed from the pandemic. He also questioned the accuracy and methodology of the survey.

Still, even if just a small percentage of high schoolers report bringing guns to school, the tally suggests that hundreds of thousands of kids nationally who are regularly coming to school armed.

Its not nothing, he told The 74, adding that his own analysis of available datasets on campus weapons possessions  including news reports  suggest the number has shot up in recent years.

I think that kids are carrying guns in school more frequently than they have at any other time in recent history under a fear that they could become victims of violence at school, he said. During the pandemic, the country saw record gun sales and firearm thefts. Its a way to feel that they can protect themselves which, interestingly, is the same way that guns are marketed to adults.

Despite all the progress, student gun deaths and injuries at school remain at record highs.

In recent years, the number of students who have been killed or wounded by school shootings has surged, reaching all-time highs that persisted once COVID-era campus closures came to an end. In 2022, 23 students were wounded and 29 were killed in active shootings, where gunmen fire indiscriminately at people on a large scale.

Active shooting injuries and deaths in 2022 were the second highest on record, trailing only 2018, the year of high-profile school shootings in Parkland, Florida, and Santa Fe, Texas. That year, 52 students and adults were injured and 29 were killed.

Research published last week by the nonprofit Everytown for Gun Safety show that reported campus gunfire incidents  a far broader range than the active shootings tracked in the federal data  peaked in the immediate aftermath of COVID, reaching a record high of 192 incident since the group began to track them in 2013. Though the numbers have come down since then, 2023-24 had the second-highest number of reported K-12 gunfire incidents on record at 144.

Reidman, who was one of the authors of the Everytown report, said the spike in gunfire incidents is being driven primarily by fights that are escalating into shootings.

For somebody to fire shots during a fight, it means that they need to be carrying a gun with them all day, he said. The chances that the kid is carrying a gun for the first time on the day that a fight happens seems pretty low to me, which must mean that there are a lot of kids who are habitually carrying guns in schools every day.

Students perception of safety has remained consistent.

Despite the progress in recent years  including the decline in student victimization rates, reports of campus gang activity and bullying  students perception of safety has hardly budged over the last decade. The number of students who said they skipped school due to fears of violence has also held relatively consistent.

During the 2021-22 school year, fewer than 5% of students said they were afraid of being attacked at school or avoided educational activities outright due to fears that someone might harm them. That rate is similar to the number from a decade ago, and a slight decline from academic years leading up to  and during  COVID.

The COVID years really were an anomaly and understanding the trends over that full course of time is really important, Temkin Cahill said of the latest school safety data. We see that the 2022 data really are a continuation of the trend we saw in prior years. We will really only understand the effects of the pandemic once we collect a couple more years of data.
11-year-old in park is grabbed by man mistaking her for his own daughter, WA cops say

An 11-year-old was playing alone at a Washington park when a man grabbed her, thinking she was his daughter, police said.

The girl was swinging at Lieser Crest Park in Vancouver on Aug. 18, police said in a probable cause statement.

She then saw a 36-year-old man appear from the bushes and walk toward her, police said.

Thats when she told police she got off the swing and started walking away because she felt uncomfortable, according to the probable cause statement

He grabbed her from behind and said youre my daughter, police said in the report.

She screamed until he let her go, and the man ran back to a vehicle and drove off, police said.

The child ran to a woman in the park, who police said later yelled at the man.

He told authorities he has a 13-year-old daughter who lives near the same park with that woman, but he hadnt seen his daughter since 2023, police said.

He told police he believed his daughter was who he was approaching at the park and tried to hug.

Police arrested him two days later on suspicion of fourth-degree assault and unlawful imprisonment, but official charges havent been filed.

Police said there was not probable cause to charge him with kidnapping.

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13 of the best hard seltzers, ranked by alcohol content

13 of the best hard seltzers, ranked by alcohol content

Several brands have introduced spiked seltzers at varying alcohol by volume (ABV) percentages.

Mighty Swell and Aldi's Vista Bay seltzers have the highest ABV at 5% a can.

Michelob Ultra and Press spiked seltzer are both 4% ABV.

Michelob Ultra has a line of organic hard seltzers.

Michelob Ultra has two different variety packs of hard seltzer. Target

ABV: 4%

Michelob Ultra is largely a light-beer brand, but it also has several flavors of spiked seltzer.

It comes in 12 flavors across three different multipacks: the coconut-water collection, the classic collection, and the signature collection.

Press has a variety of seltzers in sophisticated flavors.

Press spiked seltzer has some unique flavors. Target

ABV: 4%

Press is a woman-owned hard-seltzer brand with some unique blends.

It offers several flavors, including pineapple basil, lingonberry elderflower, blackberry hibiscus, pomegranate ginger, lime lemongrass, grapefruit cardamon, pear chamomile, and apple cinnamon.

Smirnoff Spiked Sparkling Seltzer comes in fruit- and rose-themed flavors.

Smirnoff seltzers are sold in 12-ounce cans. Meijer

ABV: 4.5%

You might think of Smirnoff for its vodka, but the brand also has a line of hard seltzers.

Some of the brand's flavor options include pink lemonade and peach lemonade.

Corona Hard Seltzer comes in eight tropical flavors.

Corona is a popular beer brand, but it also sells hard seltzers. Target

ABV: 4.5%

Corona is a popular Mexican beer brand, and it now sells 12-ounce hard seltzers.

The seltzers come in several flavors, like blackberry citrus, strawberry kiwi, blueberry acai, and raspberry lemon.

High Noon offers a vodka-based hard seltzer in a variety of flavors.

High Noon has a few different variety packs. Target

ABV: 4.5%

High Noon sells vodka-based "Sun Sips" that are advertised as being made with real juice and no added sugar.

Flavors include lemon, kiwi, guava, passion fruit, mango, peach, lime, pineapple, watermelon, black cherry, and grapefruit.

The brand has also expanded to include a line of tequila-based seltzers in flavors like lime, strawberry, grapefruit, passion fruit, prickly pear, and blood orange.

SunnyD also released a vodka-based seltzer flavored like the nostalgic juice.

SunnyD seltzer only comes in the original flavor. CURICH|WEISS

ABV: 4.5%

SunnyD, the juice brand that became widely popular in the 1990s, created its own vodka-based hard seltzer.

It started with the brand's signature tangy orange flavor but has since expanded to include orange strawberry and orange pineapple.

Truly sells over a dozen different flavors.

You can purchase berry or citrus Truly variety packs. TRULY

ABV: 5%

Truly was one of the early seltzer brands on the market and is known for having a wide variety of flavors.

You can choose from basic flavors like wild berry, blueberry and acai, raspberry lime, black cherry, grapefruit, lemon, and lime, or fun twists like raspberry lime, citrus squeeze, pineapple, mango, passion fruit, watermelon, or kiwi.

The brand also has a Truly Unruly line with 8% ABV.

White Claw also comes in a bunch of flavors.

White Claw has expanded its flavor selection. Target

ABV: 5%

White Claw offers a variety of hard-seltzer flavors in 12-ounce cans.

The different variety and single-flavor packs include raspberry, mango, black cherry, natural lime, ruby grapefruit, watermelon, tangerine, lemon, strawberry, blackberry, passion fruit, and pineapple.

The brand also offers other flavors in its surf and lemonade lines, as well as seltzer surge flavors with 8% ABV.

Wild Basin Boozy Sparkling Water comes in some unique flavors.

Wild Basin makes craft seltzers. MyBeerWine

ABV: 5%

Wild Basin Boozy Sparkling Water comes from the craft-brewery Oskar Blues.

You can choose from watermelon, peach, grapefruit, lemon, black cherry, raspberry lemonade, strawberry, berry sorbet, watermelon mojito, blue Hawaiian, passion orange guava, and lime coconut.

Bud Light is known for its beer, but its spiked seltzers come in several flavors.

Bud Light Seltzer's come in several flavor varieties. Target

ABV: 5%

Bud Light may be known for its beer, but the brand has also thrown its hat in the hard-seltzer ring.

Bud Light Seltzer currently comes in a few variety packs, with flavors like black cherry, watermelon, orange soda, cherry limeade, pink lemonade, blue raspberry, and twisted berry.

The brand also has a hard soda line and platinum seltzers with 8% ABV.

Vizzy Hard Seltzer comes in eight fruit-combining flavors.

Vizzy markets its product as an antioxidant and vitamin C booster. Target

ABV: 5%

Vizzy advertises hard seltzers with antioxidants and vitamin C.

Its 12-ounce seltzer cans come in fun mash-up flavors, like pineapple mango, black cherry lime, blueberry pomegranate, strawberry kiwi, watermelon strawberry, raspberry tangerine, papaya passion fruit, and blackberry lemon.

The brand also offers sparkling-mimosa and tangy-lemonade lines as well as newer orange-cream-pop seltzer.

Aldi's Vista Bay hard seltzers come in single and variety packs.

Aldi has its own brand of spiked seltzers. Aldi

ABV: 5%

Vista Bay is Aldi's hard-seltzer brand, and it comes in single-flavor and variety packs.

One multipack comes with raspberry, ruby grapefruit, natural lime, and black cherry. The other has lemon, passion fruit, tangerine, and watermelon.

In past years, Aldi released a hard-seltzer advent calendar that had other specialty flavors, like green apple and blueberry.

Mighty Swell is a Texas-based seltzer brand.

Mighty Swell seltzer comes in eight different flavors. Courtesy of Mighty Swell

ABV: 5%

Mighty Swell is a hard-seltzer brand that started in Austin, Texas.

The brand has offered unique flavors like rocket pop, tiger's blood, purple magic, pink colada, cherry lime, blackberry, watermelon mint, peach, grapefruit, pineapple, blood orange, and mango raspberry.

It also released a Techniflavor Pack with bluepeary, cantaloupe, dragon, and kiwidew flavors.

This story was originally published in August 2018 and most recently updated on August 22, 2024.

Read more:

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Read the original article on Business Insider
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a meeting on the situation in the Kursk border region, where Ukrainian troops launched a counteroffensive about two weeks ago. -/Kremlin/dpa

Approximately 133,000 people have left their homes so far due to the Ukrainian offensive in the Russian region of Kursk, the acting governor of the region, Alexei Smirnov, said during a videoconference with President Vladimir Putin on Thursday.

Nearly 20,000 people still remain in the eight districts for which evacuation had been ordered, the state news agency TASS reported, citing Smirnov.

"I urge you to pay particular attention to preparations for the new school year," Putin, who was holding a meeting on the Kursk situation in Moscow, ordered.

Education Minister Sergei Kravtsov said that pupils from 114 schools in the border area should be taught online from September 2. Others would be educated at their evacuation locations or in children's holiday camps.

Putin's reaction to incursion

After the Ukrainian advance that started on August 6, Putin ordered his security forces to expel the Ukrainians from Russia. However, the Russian counteraction is only slowly getting under way.

The plans for schools starting in September can be seen as evidence that the Russian leadership does not expect a quick victory over the Ukrainian troops, observers have said.

The online Russian-exile news site Meduza reported, citing sources close to the Kremlin, that Moscow is less concerned about a rapid recapture: After the initial shock, it was important to get the Russian population accustomed to what officials called a "new normal," the presence of attacking foreign troops, who would inevitably be driven out once again, Meduza said.

Russian officials reported on Thursday that reinforced concrete structures are being installed at bus stops in the Kursk region to provide citizens with better protection from the shelling.

Governor Smirnov said on his Telegram channel that there are plans to reinforce 60 bus-stop shelters in the city of Kursk.

Similar structures will also be installed in two other towns within the region. Previously, bus stops in nearby border areas had been fortified with sandbags and concrete blocks, officials said.

For the first time in almost two and a half years of the full-scale Russian war, Ukraine is conducting ground battles on enemy territory. Recently, the Ukrainian army's commander-in-chief, Olexander Syrskyi, stated that more than 1,260 square kilometres and 93 villages had been captured, but military observers consider the area actually controlled by Ukraine to be somewhat smaller.

Putin accuses Ukraine of attempted nuclear attack without evidence

Putin accused Ukraine on Thursday of attempting an attack on the Kursk nuclear power plant, without providing evidence.

"The enemy attempted to carry out strikes at the nuclear power plant today," Putin said in Moscow, according to TASS. Putin added that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) had been informed and was preparing a mission to Kursk.

The nuclear power plant in the town of Kurchatov is around 30 kilometres away from the furthest Ukrainian advance.

A spokesman for Rafael Grossi, the IAEA director general, has confirmed a planned visit to the Kursk nuclear power plant next week.

After the Ukrainian advance began, the IAEA warned that the safety of nuclear power plants must not be jeopardized. The same applies to Kursk as to the Russian-occupied Ukrainian nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhya, it said.

Russian forces press toward Toretsk

The Ukrainian military appeared to acknowledge on Thursday that the small town of Niu-York has fallen to Russia's advance in the east, as the embattled town of Toretsk now comes under greater threat.

Niu-York's status changed in the Thursday situation report issued by the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

The town was no longer referred to as contested, an apparent acknowledgement that it has fallen to Russia's advance in Ukraine's Donetsk region.

Ukrainian war bloggers and Russian Defence Minister Andrey Belousov said on Wednesday that Russian forces were in complete control of Niu-York.

The industrial town of Toretsk, which has long been the target of fierce Russian attacks, is now at even greater risk.

The Ukrainian general staff said that fighting was continuing in Pivnichne and Zalizne, two towns to the east of Toretsk, and also in the town itself.

Drone attack causes fire at Russian military base

An overnight Ukrainian drone attack caused a fire to erupt at a military base in southern Russia, the regional governor said on Thursday.

Andrey Bocharov, the governor of the Volgograd region, said air defences had repelled most of the unmanned aircraft but that a downed drone had crashed and sparked the blaze.

The governor said that the premises of a military site were hit, without offering further details.

Russian war bloggers said the target was the Marinovka Air Base, located about 45 kilometres from the regional capital Volgograd.

In Moscow, the Russian Defence Ministry said that 28 Ukrainian drones had been intercepted overnight, 13 of which were over the Volgograd region alone.
15-year-old arrested after turning himself in for shooting another teen Tuesday night

PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD)  A 15-year-old boy turned himself in Wednesday for shooting a 16-year-old on Tuesday and now he is facing attempted murder charges.

According to Peoria police spokeswoman Semone Roth, the boy has been arrested. Police announced charges against him for attempted murder, aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, not having a FOID and possession of a handgun under the age of 21.

Officers initially responded to the area near Wyoming and Oregon streets after a report of a person shot and found a 16-year-old lying in an alley with multiple gunshot wounds. The teen was taken to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries.

Teenage boy shot in South Peoria, police say

While investigating, detectives identified the 15-year-old as a suspect. After turning himself in, he was taken to the Peoria County Juvenile Detention Center.

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact Peoria police at (309) 673-4521, tip411 (anonymously), or Crime Stoppers (anonymously) at (309) 673-9000.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to CIProud.com.
OWENSBORO, Ky. (WEHT)  Daviess County law enforcement providing new information on a series of drug raids involving several agencies. The drug raids began on Aug. 13, near Farmview Drive, with one man dying in the hospital after what police call a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

37 people are indicted on drug trafficking charges; 19 of them are from Daviess County.

I want to send a message to drug trafficking organizations individuals that may think that they want to push this product for money and power in our community locally. Were not going to stop, says J.D. Winkler, the Owensboro Police Departments Deputy Chief.

Accident in Owensboro causes power outage for hundreds

OPD says the investigation into a multi-level drug trafficking operation began in early 2023.

Thousands of hours of hard work and street level undercover work later, almost 40 people have been indicted through a Louisville Grand Jury on Tuesday.

34 are in custody at this moment.Theres a few fugitives that were collaborating with the [U.S.] Marshals to arrest, says Special Agent Michael Gannon of the Indianapolis Drug Enforcement Agency.

Deputy Chief Winkler says they were able to stop and seize a shipment of over 250 pounds of methamphetamine and over 25 pounds of cocaine set to be distributed throughout Western Kentucky and Southern Indiana.

We, determined that the primary source of supply, was suspected to be operating in Louisville, Ky.. Furthermore, detectives identified the source of supply to Louisville was suspected to be operating in California, says Deputy Winkler.

For the past week, DEA agents, OPD and the IRS have filled the streets in various parts of Owensboro, Louisville and Ohio County. Many people have been awaiting answers on what was happening in their neighborhoods.



OPD says in order to reach a place where they could safely share the information with the community. They carried out 25 search warrants and seized 30 firearms.

Officials say the IRS helped them explore financial investigative leads.

Deputy Winkler says the drug trade has advanced over the past decade, and hes spent the past 4 years working with the DEA to learn more.

Its not good business to have any contacts or any operation in Owensboro. I want everybody to understand that you run the risk of compromising your freedom, if you deal with anybody in Owensboro. We will come. We will use every resource available to dismantle your organization from the top to the bottom,  says Deputy Winkler.

For the other people that are out there and think theyre going to step up and continue to distribute drugs in our community. Your day will come as well, say Special Agent Gannon.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Eyewitness News (WEHT/WTVW).
CHICAGO  A 19-year-old UIC student is hosting his second annual Back-to-School Bash Saturday in Chatham.

Jaqueza Thomas mission is help mentor Chicagos youth and has put words into action even before turning 20.

He knows first-hand how gun violence and a lack of a positive mentor can affect young people.

Thomas lost his cousin Kentray to a shooting and started a clothing company called Vapetray to honor him.

He wanted me to be a rapper like him and the rap name he gave me was Lil Vape. Obviously I couldnt rap, so I wanted to start something to build a legacy in his honor, Thomas said.

Thomas, who is studying political science at UIC, knew from a young age he wanted to help younger people in his community be able to realize their full potential and started getting involved.

After joining a youth program ran by CPD and CFD, Thomas became a Chicago Police Department cadet. He works with a liaison officer to go into schools for mentorships.

I learned some of them wanted to be a judge, a chef and a DJ, Thomas said. So we brought in a judge, a successful chef and a DJ to learn theres a variety of careers out there. I love being a police cadet because Im doing nothing but following my passion.

That passion will be on full display Saturday from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Nat King Cole Park, located at 361 E. 85th St., for his second annual Back-to-School Bash.

Last year, the Chicago Architecture Center answered Thomas call for help and donated over 100 backpacks for the bash.

The event is free and Thomas goal is to give away 500 backpacks for the second year plus school supplies. He said while at his church, he met employees of the Witherite Law Group who paid the park districts permit fee.

The 2024 edition will have musical guests, including Fendi Da Rappa, free food, a DJ, free haircuts and something that Thomas is extra proud to include  a resource fair.

I want to expose teens and families to a variety of different careers, Thomas said.

City Colleges of Chicago, the Black Fire Brigade, the US Army and the YMCA are some of the organizations who will be at the resource fair.

I want this to become an annual event, Thomas said. Every Saturday right before school starts.

Visit here to register. The bash will also have an on-site registration. Students must be present to receive a backpack.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
2 Dead, 1 Hospitalized After Private Plane Crashes into Texas Mobile Home Park and Sets It Ablaze

The plane crash caused "a large fire after some explosions" and the damage extended to an entire block," officials said

City of Odessa/Facebook One of buildings damaged by the plane crash in Odessa, Texas

Two people have died and one person has been hospitalized after a plane crashed into a Texas mobile home park in Odessa, Texas.

Officials in Odessa shared on social media that on Tuesday, Aug. 20 at around 7 a.m., Odessa Fire Rescue responded to reports of an aircraft incident, and when they arrived on the scene found heavy smoke and fire to a few mobile homes and some shop buildings.

Witnesses told police that a small aircraft" took off from Odessa-Schlemeyer Field Airport before it crashed, officials said. The initial damage shows the aircraft hit power lines on Yukon and traveled almost an entire block before going down in the alley near 68th between Alderfer Ave. & Stevenson Ave," they added.

The crash sparked a fire, which lit up two vehicles and a carport, according to photos shared by Odessa officials. Odessa Fire Rescue firefighters could be seen putting out the large blaze.

City of Odessa/Facebook Firefighters putting out flames from the plane crash

Ector County Sheriff Michael Griffis confirmed in a news conference that two people, who were on board the plane, died as a result of the incident. Odessa Fire Rescue Chief Jason Cotton also shared that a woman was rescued by firefighters from a burning trailer house and transported to the hospital, though he did not share any details about her injuries.

The Texas Department of Public Safety identified the passengers of the plane to The New York Times as pilot Joseph Vincent Summa, 48, of Bellaire, Texas, and passenger Joleen Cavaretta Weatherly, 49, of Orange, Texas.

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According to the outlet, the plane was a private aircraft and it crashed into a mobile home park.

Griffis said that a witness told officers that he saw the plane struggle to gain altitude before the aircraft crashed in an alleyway. He said that "there was a large fire after some explosions, and Cotton added that the damage extended to an entire block.

City of Odessa/Facebook A photo of the fire that started after the plane crash shared by the City of Odessa

A photo shared by Odessa officials showed the damage the aircraft did to a portion of the restaurant named Deweys. The restaurant confirmed in a Facebook post that no one was injured due to the crash.

Its obvious the pilot attempted to avoid the houses, Griffis noted.

He said during the news conference that they did not have any information about what kind of plane crashed. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) told USA Today that the plane had been a Cessna Citation business jet.

The NTSB and Texas Department of Public Safety did not immediately respond to PEOPLEs request for comment.

The NTSB and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will be investigating the cause of the crash, USA Today reported.



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Read the original article on People.
STORM LAKE, Iowa (KCAU)  Two people were killed in a crash in Buena Vista County on Tuesday.

According to the Buena Vista County Sheriffs Office, the crash occurred at around 4:09 p.m. in rural Buena Vista County.

Rural Plymouth County man killed in lawnmower rollover

The sheriffs office said that a vehicle driven by Ellen Stevens, 76, of Alta, was heading south on 60th Avenue when she pulled out from a stop sign and turned east onto C63. At that time, a vehicle driven by Stephen Baxter, 59, of the rural Alta area, was headed west. Baxters vehicle crashed into Stevens vehicle.

Officials declared Baxter dead at the scene. Stevens and a passenger, Leroy Stevens, 79, of Alta, were both taken to a local hospital. Leroy had to be transferred to a Sioux City hospital where he passed away from his injuries.

The crash is still under investigation.

The Buena Vista County Sheriffs Office was assisted by the Iowa State Patrol, the Alta Fire Department, STorm Lake Police Department, Storm Lake Ambulance, and the Buena Vista County Medical Examiners Office.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to SiouxlandProud | Sioux City, IA | News, Weather, and Sports.
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD)  A 17-year-old boy and a 14-year-old girl face potential life sentences after being accused of plotting to kill the girls mother.

The Macomb County Prosecutors Office announced Thursday that the two teenagers were arraigned earlier this month on multiple charges related to an incident that happened on July 14 in Eastpointe.

Prosecutors say the 17-year-old entered the womans home and strangled her before being confronted and fleeing. The victim survived the attack and is expected to recover.

After an extensive investigation by the Eastpointe Police Department, it was determined that the 14-year-old daughter of the victim planned the murder with the 17-year-old male, the Prosecutors Office said in a statement.

Both minors face one count of conspiracy to commit first-degree premeditated murder, a felony charge with a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole. The 14-year-old was also charged with solicitation of murder and the 17-year-old was charged with assault with intent to murder. Both charges carry the possibility of a life sentence.

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The 17-year-old was given a $2.5 million bond, while the girl was given a $1 million bond. Both were remanded to the custody of the countys Juvenile Justice Center. If released, both defendants must wear a GPS tether, be restricted to home confinement, have no access to the internet and have no contact with the victim.

In a statement, Macomb County Prosecutor Peter Lucido will seek to charge them as adults.

The alleged actions of these juveniles are not just illegal but also incredibly dangerous. This level of criminal activity is unacceptable, and we intend to treat it with the severity it deserves, Lucido stated. Thats why we are seeking to charge these juveniles as adults  because when you commit adult crimes, you face adult consequences.

Both defendants are scheduled to return to court Tuesday for a probable cause hearing.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com.
DAKOTA CITY, Neb. (KCAU)  Two misdemeanor charges have been dropped for a woman accused of helping her estranged husband, who is charged with first-degree murder, evade authorities.

Reyna Castellanos, 36, of South Sioux City, was previously charged with compounding a felony and false reporting, both class 1 misdemeanors. Both of those charges were dismissed without prejudice according to a recent court filing. She is still charged with two counts of accessory to a felony.

Meanwhile, Castellanos has waived her right to a preliminary hearing on Wednesday and will appear in Dakota County District Court on Oct. 4, 2024 at 9 a.m. She is being held on a $1 million bond.

Castellanos was arrested in July for aiding her estranged husband, Alfredo Castellanos-Rosales, after he allegedly killed Jordan Beardshear in Dakota Dunes, S.D. on April 25, 2023. He is charged with first-degree murder, child neglect, and child abuse.

Sioux City man found guilty of first-degree murder

The news of her involvement came after South Dakota Deputy Attorney Ernest Thompson filed a motion in Union County Court asking to admit a confession Alfredo Castellanos-Rosales allegedly made to Castellanos. A judge has not yet ruled on that motion.

Castellanos allegedly told officials she received a phone call from Castellanos-Rosales on April 26, 2023, as he asked her to drive him to different locations. She claimed she didnt know he had any involvement in Beardshears death, and left him on a Sioux City highway.

Castellanos provided officials with her phone. They later found an audio file of call she received from Castellanos-Rosales where he allegedly admitted to killing Beardshear.

When asked about her involvement again, Castellanos allegedly admitted that she took her husband to a residence in Jackson and brought him food. She then later took him to a Sioux City residence when he tried to flee the area.

2 dead after rural Buena Vista County crash

Castellanos-Rosales was later apprehended in Mexico and turned over to the U.S. Marshals Service. He awaits trial in Union County, S.D.

To view previous coverage of this case by KCAU 9, click here.

Wesley Thoene contributed to this report.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to SiouxlandProud | Sioux City, IA | News, Weather, and Sports.
Lt. Gov. Mark Robinsons gubernatorial campaign released his public safety plan at a news conference in Statesville Tuesday, and in short order.

The 11-minute press conference, which featured Robinson flanked by 30 sheriffs from across the state, explained how he would fight crime in North Carolina. He spent much of that time criticizing Attorney General Josh Stein, his Democratic opponent for governor. His plan mentions the death penalty, immigration and cash bail.

Unfortunately, there are elected officials out there who have let law enforcement down, Robinson said, lumping Stein into the group.

He ended the news conference to go to former President Donald Trumps rally in Asheboro, his spokesperson Mike Lonergan said.

Two August polls on the race, from the New York Times and the Carolina Journal, both show Stein with several-point leads outside the margin of error in North Carolinas gubernatorial race. And the Real Clear Politics average of polls gives Stein a 5.5% lead.

We pay attention to the polls, of course, but weve got our ear to the ground, Robinson said when asked about him trailing. And our ear to the ground tells us that we are going to win this race hands down. We have a wide swath of support across this state.

Whats in the public safety plan?

A news release about Robinsons public safety platform is a little over a page in length  much of it criticizing Stein and Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee for president.

The platform is laid out in very thorough manner, Lonergan said when a Charlotte Observer reporter asked over text for a policy document.

The release says that Robinson will stand with law enforcement, secure the border to fight drugs and crack down on violent criminals.

More specifically, it says that Robinson will:

Reject once and for all extremist groups that want to defund the police.

Prioritize raises for law enforcement officers in state budgets.

Reinstate the death penalty for those that kill police and corrections officers.

Ask the legislature to pass a bill that bans sanctuary cities once and for all and that makes law enforcement cooperate with federal immigration authorities like ICE.

Reject proposals to end the cash bail system.

Appoint judges who will follow the law and stop letting violent criminals out on the street with a slap on the wrist.

Immigration laws in NC

The states General Assembly has tried to pass bills that would require sheriffs to cooperate with ICE  including in 2022 when such a bill passed the legislature and received Gov. Roy Coopers veto. Cooper said the bill was only about scoring political points and that current law already allows the state to jail and prosecute criminals regardless of immigration status. The legislature didnt override Coopers veto.

Another bill passed the Senate this year along party lines, but the legislatures two chambers havent finished working out differences between the two passed versions. Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden and other sheriffs previously said those bills would make counties less safe.

This year, Republicans seized on two particular cases involving immigrants.

In one Gates County case, an Eritrean national, Awet Hagos, entered the United States as a nonimmigrant in 2016 and violated terms of admission, The News & Observer reported in March. He was arrested after a four-hour police standoff outside at a place where he previously worked, the Roanoke-Chowan News-Herald reported.

In another Charlotte case, 18-year-old Carlos Roberto-Diaz allegedly drove around the city shooting people at random. The Observers news partner WSOC-TV reported the man, then 14, and his father were released into the U.S. after a border encounter likely because of a lack of bedspace at the time. He was ordered to be removed from the U.S. in a September 2022 immigration court hearing in Charlotte, WSOC-TV reported.

Juvenile crime

Asked about juvenile crime in Charlotte, something Police Chief Johnny Jennings has raised concerns about, the lieutenant governor said gangs are a big part of the problem.

We have to stop these gangs, and we have to come up with ways to break these gangs up before they can get into our schools, before they can get onto our streets and recruit these young people, Robinson said.

He also said its important that the right age range can be charged with felonies.

In June, Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed a bill to require more teenagers facing criminal charges to be tried initially as adults. Jennings called it a disappointing development. But lawmakers overrode Coopers veto. The change will go into effect in December, the bill says.

North Carolinians wont be fooled by Mark Robinsons press stunt today, Steins campaign said in its own news release. His long and well-reported history of promoting violence and stoking division proves just how unsafe he will make North Carolina.

Stein has protected kids from child sex abuse, cleared the states backlog of rape kits and cracked down on the states fentanyl crisis, among other things, Steins campaign said in a news release.

Actions prove what words cannot, Mecklenburg County District Attorney Spencer Merriweather said in a statement. Theres one candidate for Governor who has a history of standing up for victims of crime and families, a proven record of supporting law enforcement officers, and a reputation for the kind of responsible leadership in public safety worthy of our state. And thats Josh Stein.

Crime is up, Robinson says. Stats disagree.

Robinsons main claim during his news conference: Crime is up.

Under the current administration  under Harris and Biden and Stein  we see metrics in crime rising across the board, he said.

Nationally, the Biden administration celebrated a historic drop in crime this year. The murder rate fell dramatically, as did other crimes.

Statewide, property and violent crime rates declined from 2021 to 2022, the most recent year with State Bureau of Investigation data. In 2022, rapes, robberies, aggravated assaults, burglaries and arson incidents all dropped.

There are exceptions. Charlotte has bucked the national trend so far this year. 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, The Charlotte Observer previously reported.

And a report from the SBI says that, statewide, there was a 17.4% increase in domestic violence-related homicides in 2023.

In our Reality Check stories, Charlotte Observer journalists dig deeper into questions over facts, consequences and accountability. Read more. Story idea? RealityCheck@charlotteobserver.com.
Lt. Gov. Mark Robinsons gubernatorial campaign released his public safety plan at a news conference in Statesville Tuesday, and in short order.

The 11-minute press conference, which featured Robinson flanked by 30 sheriffs from across the state, explained how he would fight crime in North Carolina. He spent much of that time criticizing Attorney General Josh Stein, his Democratic opponent for governor. His plan mentions the death penalty, immigration and cash bail.

Unfortunately, there are elected officials out there who have let law enforcement down, Robinson said, lumping Stein into the group.

He ended the news conference to go to former President Donald Trumps rally in Asheboro, his spokesperson Mike Lonergan said.

Two August polls on the race, from the New York Times and the Carolina Journal, both show Stein with several-point leads outside the margin of error in North Carolinas gubernatorial race. And the Real Clear Politics average of polls gives Stein a 5.5% lead.

We pay attention to the polls, of course, but weve got our ear to the ground, Robinson said when asked about him trailing. And our ear to the ground tells us that we are going to win this race hands down. We have a wide swath of support across this state.

Whats in the public safety plan?

A news release about Robinsons public safety platform is a little over a page in length  much of it criticizing Stein and Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee for president.

The platform is laid out in very thorough manner, Lonergan said when a Charlotte Observer reporter asked over text for a policy document.

The release says that Robinson will stand with law enforcement, secure the border to fight drugs and crack down on violent criminals.

More specifically, it says that Robinson will:

Reject once and for all extremist groups that want to defund the police.

Prioritize raises for law enforcement officers in state budgets.

Reinstate the death penalty for those that kill police and corrections officers.

Ask the legislature to pass a bill that bans sanctuary cities once and for all and that makes law enforcement cooperate with federal immigration authorities like ICE.

Reject proposals to end the cash bail system.

Appoint judges who will follow the law and stop letting violent criminals out on the street with a slap on the wrist.

Immigration laws in NC

The states General Assembly has tried to pass bills that would require sheriffs to cooperate with ICE  including in 2022 when such a bill passed the legislature and received Gov. Roy Coopers veto. Cooper said the bill was only about scoring political points and that current law already allows the state to jail and prosecute criminals regardless of immigration status. The legislature didnt override Coopers veto.

Another similar bill passed this year along party lines, but the legislatures two chambers havent finished working out differences between the two versions. Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden and other sheriffs previously said those bills would make counties less safe.

This year, Republicans seized on two particular cases involving immigrants.

In one Gates County case, an Eritrean national, Awet Hagos, entered the United States as a nonimmigrant in 2016 and violated terms of admission, The News & Observer reported in March. He was arrested after a four-hour police standoff outside at a place where he previously worked, the Roanoke-Chowan News-Herald reported.

In another Charlotte case, 18-year-old Carlos Roberto-Diaz allegedly drove around the city shooting people at random. The Observers news partner WSOC-TV reported the man, then 14, and his father were released into the U.S. after a border encounter likely because of a lack of bedspace at the time. He was ordered to be removed from the U.S. in a September 2022 immigration court hearing in Charlotte, WSOC-TV reported.

Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, a Republican running for governor, speaks in Statesville about his public safety plan if elected.

Juvenile crime

Asked about juvenile crime in Charlotte, something Police Chief Johnny Jennings has raised concerns about, the lieutenant governor said gangs are a big part of the problem.

We have to stop these gangs, and we have to come up with ways to break these gangs up before they can get into our schools, before they can get onto our streets and recruit these young people, Robinson said.

He also said its important that the right age range can be charged with felonies.

In June, Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed a bill to require more teenagers facing criminal charges to be tried initially as adults. Jennings called it a disappointing development. But lawmakers overrode Coopers veto. The change will go into effect in December, the bill says.

North Carolinians wont be fooled by Mark Robinsons press stunt today, Steins campaign said in its own news release. His long and well-reported history of promoting violence and stoking division proves just how unsafe he will make North Carolina.

Stein has protected kids from child sex abuse, cleared the states backlog of rape kits and cracked down on the states fentanyl crisis, among other things, Steins campaign said in a news release.

Actions prove what words cannot, Mecklenburg County District Attorney Spencer Merriweather said in a statement. Theres one candidate for Governor who has a history of standing up for victims of crime and families, a proven record of supporting law enforcement officers, and a reputation for the kind of responsible leadership in public safety worthy of our state. And thats Josh Stein.

Crime is up, Robinson says. Stats disagree.

Robinsons main claim during his news conference: Crime is up.

Under the current administration  under Harris and Biden and Stein  we see metrics in crime rising across the board, he said.

Nationally, the Biden administration celebrated a historic drop in crime this year. The murder rate fell dramatically, as did other crimes.

Statewide, property and violent crime rates declined from 2021 to 2022, the most recent year with State Bureau of Investigation data. In 2022, rapes, robberies, aggravated assaults, burglaries and arson incidents all dropped.

There are exceptions. Charlotte has bucked the national trend so far this year. 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, the Observer previously reported.

And a report from the SBI says that, statewide, there was a 17.4% increase in domestic violence-related homicides in 2023.

In our Reality Check stories, Charlotte Observer journalists dig deeper into questions over facts, consequences and accountability. Read more. Story idea? RealityCheck@charlotteobserver.com.
DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN)  2 people were taken to the hospital after a crash overnight.

According to Dayton OSP, the crash occurred on I-75 at the Miami/Montgomery County Line, with troopers responding around 1:20 a.m.

As crews addressed the crash, only the right lane was open to normal traffic for a time. All lanes are back open according to OHGO cameras.

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DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN)  The three-day Operation Move-In at Wright State University began Wednesday, and it is set to be the busiest in years.

This year, there will be a record number of students moving in. The plan is for 2,300 students to reside on the Wright State campus, which is said to be the most in at least 10 years.

By comparison, only 900 students moved in in 2019. Going back even further: Only 242 students lived on campus in 1970 when the first dorms opened their doors.

Amazon robotics facility in Union celebrating 1-year, 2800+ jobs

Wednesdays arrivals comprise freshmen just out of high school. College officials at Wright State and at other institutions advise these new students to take advantage of the opportunity to start fresh.

Youre really starting over, said Sara Klein of the Stevens Institute of Technology. You dont know anybody in most cases, so it takes a long time to build up a friend network.

I also think new students come in and they usually make an initial set of friends at orientation who serve a purpose of being those connection points during a difficult time during the first few weeks.

The Miami Valley is also home to both Central State and Wilberforce University, two HBCUs that welcomed students to campus as early as late July. Classes for both schools have already begun.

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TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  Three men are facing federal charges for a drive-by shooting that happened nearly one year ago in St. Johns, Florida, the Department of Justice announced Wednesday.

U.S. Attorney Roger B. Handberg said Nathaniel Thomas Hatcher, III, 28, and James Toney, 20, both from Jacksonville, participated in a drive-by shooting that occurred on I-95 on October 17, 2023.

Both men are facing charges of committing a drive-by shooting and discharging a firearm in connection with a crime of violence.

Hatcher also faces charges of conspiring to distribute 1,000 kilograms or more of marijuana, conspiring to straw-purchase firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, making materially false statements during the purchases of firearms, conspiring to commit money laundering, witness tampering, and obstruction of justice. Hatcher faces a minimum mandatory penalty of 20 years with a maximum penalty of two life sentences plus 115 years in prison.

Toney is also facing charges of conspiring to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana. Toney faces a minimum mandatory penalty of 15 years with a maximum penalty of life imprisonment plus 45 years.

The indictment also includes charges for a third individual, AlDonta Easterling, 26, Jacksonville, for conspiring to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana, possession with the intent to distribute a controlled substance, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Easterling faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years imprisonment with a maximum penalty of up to life plus 60 years.

All three men are being held pending trial, which is set for Nov. 4, 2024.

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Vice President Kamala Harris is setting out to achieve three key objectives in her highly anticipated Democratic National Convention speech Thursday night, according to a campaign official.

The vice president will tell her story of being raised by a working mother in a middle-class neighborhood. Sharing how her background means she knows the everyday joys and challenges experienced by middle-class families like hers, explaining how she shares those values, the official said.

She will also discuss how she became a prosecutor in order to protect others, be they survivors of sexual abuse or homeowners impacted by the foreclosure crisis, a Harris-Walz official told ABC News.

PHOTO: Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and her running mate Minnesota Governor Tim Walz hold a campaign rally in Milwaukee, Aug. 20, 2024. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

She will point out the dangers posed by former President Donald Trump's campaign, specifically, the Project 2025 agenda, which will rip away people's freedoms, increase the cost of living, and take the country backward, the official said.

In contrast, the official told ABC News Harris will present a New Way Forward - an optimistic agenda that provides economic opportunity and protects fundamental freedoms for all Americans.

Harris will root her optimism about the future in her faith in the American people. She will work to make a stark contrast with Trump, sharing her belief in the promise of America, according to the campaign official.

And she knows that loving your country means being willing to fight for its fundamental ideals. She is driven by a deep sense of patriotism and a desire to be a President for all Americans, the official told ABC News.

3 key objectives Harris is expected to touch on during DNC speech originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
3 people displaced after fire broke out at townhome in Woodbridge

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. (DC News Now)  Officials said three adults are without a place to live after their home in Woodbridge caught fire on Wednesday afternoon.

The Prince William County Fire and Rescue System (PWCFRS) said that, around 4:40 p.m. on Aug. 21, crews were called to the 2200 block of William Harris Way after several reports of smoke coming from a townhouse had been received.

Once crews were on the scene, they learned everyone safely escaped the blaze.

PHOTOS: SUV partially hangs off Whole Foods parking garage after crash in DC

During their search, firefighters discovered the blaze in the basement and quickly put the fire out.

According to the PWCFRS, the Building Official determined the townhouse was unsafe and three people were displaced.

The Fire Marshals Office discovered multiple accidental possible ignition sources where the fire started, officials said.

At this time, it is unclear how much the damages will cost.

The American Red Cross is assisting the residents.

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Tolentino backs bill commemorating the introduction of Islam, establishment of first mosque in PH

"The history of the Philippines cannot be told without acknowledging the sacrifices and contributions of our Muslim brethren."

Thus emphasized Senate Majority Leader Francis 'Tol' Tolentino, as he conveyed his full support for the passage of Senate Bill No. 1616, which seeks to declare the seventh day of November every year as a special working holiday to mark 'Sheikh Karim'ul Makhdum Day.'

Tolentino is a co-author of the measure originally filed by former Senator Sonny Angara, and which was sponsored by Senator Robinhood Padilla in plenary on Tuesday (August 21).

Muslim Filipinos have long observed the arrival of Islam in the country more than six centuries ago on November 7, 1380, when the Arab missionary Sheikh Karim'ul Makhdum landed in Sinumul Island in Tawi-Tawi, and initiated the establishment of the very first mosque in the country.

Acknowledging the important role that Muslim Filipinos have played in forging the country's history and present-day society, Tolentino said: "Their participation in the fight for independence, their efforts in peace-building, and their leadership in upholding justice have all played an essential role in shaping our nation."

"The story of our country is in many ways a story of unity in diversity, where different cultures, beliefs, and traditions come together to form a stronger, more vibrant nation," concluded the senator.
ASTANA, Kazakhstan, August 22. Chairman of the Management Board of KazMunayGas (KMG) Askhat Khassenov has met with leaders from China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) and Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) to discuss significant joint projects in oil and gas chemistry, geological exploration, and oil refining during his visit to China, Trend reports via KMG.

During the meeting with CNPC President Hou Qijun, the Urea project at Kazakhstan's Zhanazhol oil and gas field took center stage. The project, which is a game-changer for Kazakhstan's gas chemical industry and agriculture, aims to hit the ground running and produce up to 1.2 million tons of urea annually, with a hefty price tag of about $1.5 billion. The project is expected to create a whopping 3,000 jobs during construction and approximately 400 during operation. Everything is set in stone with technology licensors and a bigwig global fertilizer trader for exporting urea.

The talks with CNPC extended to collaborative efforts in geological exploration, gas processing at the Urikhtau field, and the expansion of key infrastructure, including the Shymkent Refinery and critical pipelines like Kenkiyak-Atyrau and Kenkiyak-Kumkol.

In Beijing, Khassenov also held discussions with Sinopec Chairman Ma Yongsheng, focusing on joint projects that aim to produce polyethylene, terephthalic acid (TPA), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), with investments exceeding $8 billion. The sides are progressing from preliminary studies to the FEED stage, with additional geological exploration projects also under consideration.

These strategic engagements strengthen the ties between Kazakhstan and China, underscoring the substantial advantages these projects are anticipated to bring to the table.

Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
4 former Milwaukee hotel workers plead not guilty to felony murder in DVontaye Mitchells death

Four former hotel workers pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges of felony murder in connection with the case of DVontaye Mitchell, a 43-year-old Black man who died this summer after he was pinned to the ground outside a downtown Milwaukee hotel in an encounter partially captured on video.

Former security manager Todd Alan Erickson, desk agent Devin W. Johnson-Carson, security guard Brandon LaDaniel Turner and bellman Herbert T. Williamson each entered not guilty pleas on Thursday in state court in Wisconsin.

The then-hotel workers June 30 encounter with Mitchell unfolded as use of force  particularly against people of color  by police and others in authority roles remains under scrutiny nearly four years after protests flared nationwide following the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer.

Erickson was granted bail Thursday after requesting a reduction from $50,000 to $5,000. The judge granted the reduction over the protest of Mitchells mother, Brenda L Giles, who made a statement in court asking the judge to deny bond reduction. Bail was also granted for Turner after the judge reduced the amount from $30,000 to $5,000.

Johnson-Carson and Williamson had previously been released from jail on cash bond.

Craig R. Johnson, an attorney for Johnson-Carson, called Mitchells death a tragedy, but said his client did not commit a crime.

This situation was a tragedy, but not every tragedy has a villain, and not every tragedy is a crime  Mr. Johnson-Carson was responding to a volatile and potentially dangerous situation that could have threatened the safety of hotel staff and guests, the attorney said Thursday. His actions were not criminal and did not contribute to the death of Mr. Mitchell.

CNN has reached out attorneys for Erickson, Turner and Williamson for comment.

All four defendants are due back in court on October 15. If convicted, they could be sentenced to up to 15 years and nine months in prison.

Devin Johnson-Carson, Todd Erickson, Brandon LaDaniel Turner and Herbert Williamson are charged with felony murder for the death of DVontaye Mitchell. - Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office

While the four defendants tackled Mitchell to the ground outside the hotel, one of them struck Mitchell multiple times; another hit him once; and another kicked him in the torso, the charging documents state.

Mitchell died from restraint asphyxia and toxic effects of cocaine and methamphetamine, and the manner of death is homicide, according to the autopsy report.

At a preliminary hearing on Monday, prosecutors called Dr. Lauren Decker, a forensic pathologist from the medical examiners office as a witness to go over the findings of Mitchells autopsy.

Attorneys for the workers questioned whether obesity and drug use could have caused his death, regardless of the restraint.

I cant extrapolate to other situations, Decker said. In this case, he not only was held by multiple individuals, but also was in this position.

Milwaukee Police Det. Martin Saavedra was also called to the stand Monday. The detective described the altercation between Mitchell and the defendants, as seen on hotel security video.

All four workers have been fired by Aimbridge Hospitality, which operates the Hyatt Regency hotel, according to a source familiar with the situation.

CNNs Sara Smart and Steve Almasy contributed to this report.

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DENVER (KDVR)  Federal prosecutors announced four indictments in a violent Denver jewelry store heist that law enforcement has said was linked to the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang.

A federal grand jury handed up the indictment this week, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Colorado.

Former Los Angeles police commander announced as next Aurora police chief

The four defendants are all Venezuelan nationals:

Oswaldo Lozada-Solis, 23

Jesus Daniel Lara Del Toro, 20

Jean Franco Torres-Roman, 21

Edwuimar Nazareth Colina-Romero, 18

They appeared in court on Tuesday and Wednesday, the U.S. Attorneys Office said.

The family-owned Joyeria El Ruby was targeted on the afternoon of June 24 in an armed robbery captured on video. Several people wiped out the store and violently attacked the family members inside, threatening to kill them and even ripping off their personal jewelry, they told FOX31 at the time.

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Family members told FOX31 that Joyeria El Ruby was cleaned out in three minutes. Surveillance cameras captured clear images of the suspects.

Torres-Roman was arrested a few days later in a federal law enforcement operation in El Paso, Texas.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver.
Rome  Divers recovered the body of a fifth victim of the Bayesian superyacht wreck Thursday morning, Sicily Civil Protection Chief Salvo Cocina confirmed to CBS News, and the Reuters news agency cited Italian Interior Ministry official Massimo Mariani as saying it was the body of Mike Lynch, the British tech magnate whose wife owned the vessel.

Italian Coast Guard spokesperson Vincenzo Zagarola told CBS News that teams were still working to recover the body of the sixth and final person left missing when the boat went down. The six bodies had remained stuck inside the 184-foot luxury yacht for days after it sank early Monday morning off the coast of Palermo, Sicily in a severe thunderstorm.

Four bodies were retrieved Wednesday from the Bayesian, which was resting on the seafloor at a 90 degree angle at a depth of over 160 feet. The vessel's position and items that moved around inside the ill-fated yacht made recovery efforts slow and hazardous.

Italian authorities have not officially identified the remains recovered from the Bayesian, which belonged to Lynch's wife Angela Bacares. She was among the 15 people who managed to escape from the boat as it sank quickly on Monday morning, but Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah were among those left missing.

Divers of the Vigili del Fuoco, the Italian Corps. of Firefighters arrive in Porticello harbor near Palermo, with a body bag at the back of the boat on Aug. 22, 2024, three days after the British-flagged luxury yacht Bayesian sank. / Credit: ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP/Getty

Another victim, the Bayesian superyacht's chef, was found dead soon after the boat capsized.

Along with Lynch and his daughter, the technology mogul's American lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda, and British banker Jonathan Bloomer and his wife, were believed to have been trapped in the yacht when it sank.

Questions as to how the state-of-the-art boat could have gone down so quickly have mounted steadily since the accident.

Italian media were reporting Thursday that, after questioning survivors and witnesses, Italian prosecutors had opened an official investigation into a possible "culpable shipwreck." No individuals had been named as potential suspects.

On Thursday, Giovanni Costantino, head of the Italian Sea Group, which owns the company Perini Navi, which built the Bayesian in 2008, blamed human error.

"A Perini ship resisted Hurricane Katrina, a Category 5 [hurricane]. Does it seem to you that it can't resist a tornado from here?" he remarked to the newspaper Corriere della Sera. "It is good practice when the ship is at anchor to have a guard on the bridge, and if there was one he could not have failed to see the storm coming. Instead, it took on water with the guests still in the cabin. ... They ended up in a trap, those poor people ended up like mice."

The 184-foot sailing yacht Bayesian is seen in an undated file photo provided by SuperYacht Times. / Credit: SuperYacht Times

One possible factor could have been that the ship's keel  a fin-like structure that sticks out from the bottom of the boat, designed to provide stability and counterweight to the huge mast  was not fully deployed. The yacht had a retractable keel that could be raised for entry into shallow harbors. But a raised keel at sea would have made the ship much more vulnerable to instability in the strong winds that struck early Monday morning.

When asked whether divers had seen the ship's keel in a raised position, a spokesman for the Italian Coast Guard told CBS News that only the prosecutor investigating the incident could confirm such information but that the Coast Guard "was not denying" it.

The ship's captain, 51-year-old New Zealand national James Cutfileld, was questioned for two hours by prosecutors on Thursday, according to Italian media.

How Kamala Harris is preparing for her DNC keynote address

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5 memorable moments from an emotional night at the DNC

(The Hill)  The third night of the Democratic National Convention did not disappoint when it came to emotional moments.

From a charged plea to bring home Israeli hostages to a tearful response to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walzs speech, the night was filled with headline-grabbing moments.

Here are the five most memorable.

Israeli American hostages parents deliver emotional plea

The parents of Israeli-American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin took the stage at the beginning of the night to plea for the return of the Israeli hostages held by Hamas and the end of the humanitarian crisis caused by the Israel-Hamas War in Gaza.

Rachel Goldberg-Polin and Jon Polin received a warm welcome from the audience, with the crowd chanting bring them home! at one point.

In an emotional response to the chants, Goldberg-Polin closed her eyes and put her hand on heart. Goldberg-Polin wore a piece of tape with 320 written on it, marking the number of days her son has been held hostage.

Hersh Goldberg-Polin was abducted by Hamas militants on Oct. 7, 2023 while attending the Nova music festival in Israel.

That was 320 days ago. Since then, we live on another planet, Rachel Goldberg-Polin said. Anyone who is a parent or has had a parent can try to imagine the anguish and misery that John and I and all the hostage families are enduring.

The Israel-Hamas War loomed over the convention throughout the evening. The DNCs uncommitted delegates held a press conference revealing that the DNC rejected a request for a Palestinian speaker at the convention.

Clinton forgoes teleprompter

Clinton strayed from the teleprompter during his remarks in an unsurprising move from the former president, who has a history of going off script.

Earlier on Wednesday, reports surfaced that Clinton scrapped his original speech earlier this week after watching the first night of the convention.

During his remarks, Clinton joked that Harris, who worked at McDonalds in college, has spent more time in the fast food chain than he has.

Ill be so happy when she actually enters the White House as president, because she will break my record as the president who spent the most time at McDonalds, he said.

He also made fun of Trump, saying he talks about himself too much.

What does her opponent do with his voice.? He mostly talks about himself. The next time you hear him dont count the lies, count the Is, Clinton said.

His vendettas, his vengeances, his complaints, his conspiracies. Hes like one of those tenors opening up before he walks out on stage trying to get his lungs opening by saying, me, me, me, me, the former president added.

When Kamala Harris is president, every day will begin with you, you, you, you, he said.

Oprah jabs at Vance over childless cat ladies

Oprah Winfrey slammed Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance over a past comment he made about the country being run by childless cat ladies.

When a house is on fire, we dont ask about the homeowners race or religion. We dont wonder who their partner is or how they voted. No, Winfrey said. We just try to do the best we can to save them.

If the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady, Winfrey said, well, we try to get that cat out, too.

Winfrey endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris in her remarks, saying that decenecy and respect are on the ballot in November.

Common sense tells you that Kamala Harris and Tim Walz can give us decency and respect, she said.

Let us choose loyalty to the Constitution over loyalty to any individual because thats the best of America. And let us choose optimism over cynicism and let us include inclusion over retribution,

Video played at convention shows footage of Jan. 6 violence at Capitol

A video played at the convention showed disturbing footage of the violence that took place during the Jan, 6 attacks on the Capitol. The footage also included recordings of Trump encouraging protesters during his rally that took place prior to the attack.

A number of speakers, including former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), referenced Trumps denial of the 2020 election results and the subsequent attack on the Capitol.

Jan. 6 was a perilous moment for our democracy, Pelosi said. Never before had a president of the United States so brazenly assaulted the bedrock of our democracy, so gleefully embraced political violence, so willfully betrayed his oath of office.

Let us not forget who assaulted our democracy on Jan. 6, she continued. He did!

Gus Walz sobs throughout fathers speech

Gus Walz was visibly emotional throughout his fathers address to the convention, continuously sobbing while sitting with his mother Gwen Walz and sister Hope Walz.

The younger Walz was sobbing as he took the stage to deliver his speech and as the governor gave his family a shoutout.

Hope, Gus, and Gwen: you are my entire world and I love you, the governor said, prompting a still tearful Gus Walz to stand up and point at his dad.

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Thursday will be the 50th birthday of an effort by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to support affordable housing. HUDs Community Development Block Grant program has just sent $500,000 to Rutland.

Among other locations, the grant money will be put to work at a house just down Park Street from the Vermont State Fairgrounds. The property has been vacant for approximately five years.

It was called the Mandala House, Housing Trust of Rutland County and NeighborWorks of Western Vermont executive director Mary Cohen said. And that was a facility that would welcome women coming out of corrections for transitional living while they re-acclimated to the community.

The housing trust will build an addition onto Mandala House with six new affordable apartments and will renovate the house into three more. These nine units are among 35 in Rutland and Castleton that a $500,000 Community Development Block Grant will help pay for in a wide-ranging project. Its one of three projects the trust has in the pipeline.

One is fully funded and has broken ground in West Rutland, Cohen said. This is a second one, and a third one on Forest Street in Rutland City, and theyll bring a total of about 80 units to the community in the next 24 months. That is super exciting.

Cohen expects the work at Mandala House to begin early next year. Itll likely be complete in the spring of 2026.

Altogether, a round of Community Development Block Grants announced Wednesday has sent more than $2.1 million to Vermont.

St. George, with less than 800 residents  as well as Rutland City, one of Vermonts iconic communities  are benefiting from this, Vermont Department of Housing and Community Development commissioner Alex Farrell said. So, I want to please encourage communities across the state: seek out this program.

Gov. Phil Scotts administration analyzed the scope of Vermonts housing crisis in 2023. It found that the Green Mountain State needs 6,800 more housing units, immediately, just to meet current demand.

Its not that we need just housing for the homeless, the governor said. Its not just that we need housing for those of middle income. We need it for all; its a full range.

On August 22, 1974, President Gerald Ford signed the federal law that created the Community Development Block Grant program. Gov. Scott said that over the last half-century, HUD has invested $365 million in Vermont through the program.

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The 550-acre project that could be coming for a town outside Columbus

The 550-acre project that could be coming for a town outside Columbus

PLAIN CITY, Ohio (WCMH)  Plain City could soon annex about 550 acres for a business park that aims to increase economic development and job opportunities for the area.

Columbus-based Highland Real Estates proposal calls for the mixed-use district to be named Creekview Commerce Park, and built off of U.S. 42 between Rickard and Converse roads. In early stages, the development was reviewed earlier this month by Plain Citys council and planning and zoning commission.

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Plans call for Creekview to be developed in two phases, with the first spanning about 330 acres and the second roughly 215 acres. The park would provide shovel-ready sites for business development, ample job opportunities for Plain City residents, substantial income tax revenue for the village and allow for commercial uses to serve the areas growing population.

Highland Real Estates proposal calls for the 550-acre district to be named Creekview Commerce Park. (Plain City Planning and Zoning Commission)

The developers proposal lists a number of businesses that could call Creekview home, like auto and home supply stores, banks and credit unions, child day care services, convenience retail, gas stations, grocery stores, hotels, manufacturing, restaurants and more.

Creekviews aesthetic would mirror a campus-like setting with trails, boulevards, streetlights, decorative fencing, gateway signage and ponds, Highlands proposal states. Still, the design would be consistent with the standards and rural aesthetic of Plain City, with no uninspiring big box industrial development.

The developers proposal emphasizes that the park would be dedicated to commercial and industrial purposes, with no residential units planned for Creekview. The park would be designed for higher intensity uses toward the center of the property to allow for ample buffering that protects residential neighbors near Creekview.

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Plain Citys business park is being proposed as the village is also constructing a new public square that will be anchored by a historic railroad depot. The depot was dismantled and shipped to the village from Upper Arlington earlier this summer and will open to the public in 2025 as the first phase of the larger public square project.

Future phases of the public square will include a park with a railroad-themed play area, splash pad, seating and fire pit, trailhead and green space for outdoor community events. The village will also repurpose an existing building into a marketplace that will provide all-season event and vendor space for a year-round farmers market.

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ZION, Ill.  Six people were taken to the hospital Wednesday following an accident in Zion involving a Pace bus.

According to the Zion Fire Department, rescue crews were called to the area of 22nd Street and Joppa Avenue around 2:30 p.m. for reports of an accident.

Upon arrival, first responders determined six people required transport to area hospitals.

Witnesses said the accident involved an SUV and a Pace bus.

Emergency crews from several neighboring communities including Waukegan and Pleasant Prairie Wisconsin assisted in the response.

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SAN LEANDRO, Calif. (KRON)  A 7-Eleven employee was shot in the stomach during a store robbery early Wednesday morning. The San Leandro Police Department said the robbery occurred at a 7-Eleven store on Williams Street and San Leandro Boulevard at about 5:15 a.m.

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San Leandro police received calls of shots fired and that a 7-Eleven store clerk had been shot. Responding police officers arrived to find the store clerk suffering from a gunshot wound to the stomach.

Initial investigations allowed police to assume the shooting happened following an attempted robbery. Police said the alleged robber tried to rob the store clerk and that he and the store clerk got into a brief struggle before the suspect shot the clerk in the stomach.

SPD said the store clerk was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment and is now in stable condition.

KRON4 has reached out to 7-Eleven for a statement and has not heard back as of the publishing of this report.

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FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE)  Californias Attorney General Rob Bonta announced on Thursday that 700 jobs were secured ahead of the planned purchase of a meat processing plant in Fresno.

According to state officials, concerns about jobs being lost were raised when Western Valley Meat Company, an affiliate of Central Valley Meat, planned to purchase Cargill Inc.s culled cattle slaughter and processing plant in Fresno.

Officials say that upon the acquisition of Cargill, Western Valley Meat Company must keep the Fresno plant for 12 months and retain at least 700 workers during that time.

For dairy farmers, the loss of the Fresno Cargill plant could have meant lower cattle prices and fewer options when selling their cattle, Bonta said.

Congressman Jim Costa commented on Bontas effort to secure the 700 jobs and said hes grateful that Bonta found a path forward.

By combining resources and expertise, this acquisition will not only support local dairy farmers but also meet market demand and keep our supply chain intact, Costa said.

Officials say that Cargill and Central Valley Meat are two of the largest meat facilities in the San Joaquin Valley that slaughter and process non-milk producing or cull cows.

In spring 2024, Western Valley Meat agreed to purchase the Cargill facility. Officials say the purchase sparked concerns because with less market pressure processors could suppress prices offered to dairy farmers, or the plant capacity could have disappeared altogether.

According to officials, there was a risk that the Fresno plant could be shut down altogether. If the plant were to close, then local dairy farmers would have fewer options to sell their cattle, and over 700 local jobs associated with the plant would be lost.

Officials say during the 12 months that Western Valley Meat continues to operate the Fresno plant the existing employees will be offered wages and benefits equal to or better than those offered before the merger.

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Eight students and the bus driver were injured in a school bus crash in Washington County on Thursday.

According to witnesses, the bus was full of high school-aged Western Area Career and Technology Center students from the Fort Cherry School District when it ran off Westland Road near Second Street in the Westland area of Mt. Pleasant Township around 2:30 Thursday afternoon.

A Washington County school bus crash sent nine people to the hospital Thursday afternoon.

Two students were flown by helicopter in serious conditionone to Childrens Hospital in Pittsburgh and the other to UPMC Presbyterian.

I hope to God the two that were life-flighted are okay, said neighbor Lisa Widener.

Six other students were hospitalized with minor injuries, along with the driver of the Fort Cherry school bus.

Just seeing how hard the bus nosedived when it came across the road, I know the kids have to be seriously hurt from jarring around, said witness Danae Ruschell.

I heard a loud metal crash bang and my daughter my screamed and I looked out the window and saw a bus smashing across the road into the grass, slammed down, and just kept rolling, Ruschell said.

According to witnesses, the bus hit a fence before splitting the gap between a pair of trees and careening into a field.

She [the driver] had, for whatever reason, lost control and came off the road where that squad is at, came into the field, into the hill, the bus violently bounced up and down several times creating injuries to the students that they sustained, said Chief Tom Bruce, with Fort Cherry Ambulance.

Its still unclear what caused the driver to lose control.

The Pennsylvania State Police crash unit is investigating.

Some of the bus seats had to be cut out so injured students could be removed.

Neighbors are hoping they are all okay.

I can just imagine what the parents or grandparents are going through knowing that their kids were in an accident, especially the two that were life-flighted, Widener said.

In a statement, Fort Cherrys superintendent, Thomas Samosky, said, in part, We can report that all students and the driver have been assessed, and at this time, we are monitoring their condition closely. We want to extend our deepest gratitude to the first responders who arrived quickly at the scene and provided immediate care and assistance.

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NELSON COUNTY, Va. (WFXR)  Virginia State Police are investigating after a two-vehicle crash that occurred August 21 on Route 29 near Thomas Nelson Highway killed a woman from Milford.

VSP says around 2:14 p.m. on Wednesday, 86-year-old Marette L. Legeer of Milford was driving south on Route 29 in a 2010 Ford Escape near Jackson Lane. Legeer stopped her vehicle to speak with VDOT employees in the median when a 2009 Honda Accord driven by a 21-year-old man from Lynchburg hit her from behind.

The collision caused Legeers Escapse to spin into the eastbound right lane of Route 29.

Moped crash seriously injures man in Lynchburg, police say

The Accord went off of the left side of the highway and hit a guardrail.

Marette Legeer was pronounced dead at the scene. She was wearing a seatbelt.

The driver of the Accord suffered minor injuries.

Charges are currently pending, and the investigation is still ongoing.

WFXR News will update you with more information as it becomes available.

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9-month-old dead after being found strapped into safety seat by grandmother in hot car for 8 hours

9-month-old dead after being found strapped into safety seat by grandmother in hot car for 8 hours

A 9-month-old child has died after being left in a car by the childs grandmother for nearly eight hours in what authorities are investigating as a heat-related death.

The incident occurred in Beeville, Texas, some 100 miles southeast of San Antonio, on Wednesday when the Beeville Police Department said a child was found unresponsive at approximately 4 p.m. in the child safety seat of their grandmothers car, according to a statement from the Beeville Police Department.

MORE: Sphen, one half of world-famous gay 'penguin power couple,' dies at age 11

Beeville police detectives are currently on the scene of what appears to be a temperature related death of a 9-month-old child, authorities said in their statement on Wednesday. A preliminary investigation has determined that the childs grandmother had left the child in the rear seat of her car in the child safety seat since approximately 8:30 this morning. The child was found at approximately 4pm non-responsive by the grandmother.

This comes just one day after a 22-month-old toddler was found dead in another alleged heat-related hot car incident in Corpus Christi.

The incident is being worked as a criminal homicide, police said. The Beeville police are being assisted by the Department of Public Safety Texas Rangers. No charges have been filed in connection to this case at this time, but such charges are expected to be filed.

MORE: Over 600 pounds of methamphetamine found inside celery shipment

According to Kids and Car Safety, there have been at least 25 other cases in which children in the United States have died in hot cars in 2024. Texas has the most child deaths caused by hot cars from 1990 to 2023 with a total of 156 deaths.

The investigation into this case remains open.

9-month-old dead after being found strapped into safety seat by grandmother in hot car for 8 hours originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
HONOLULU (KHON2)  The windward areas of the Hawaiian islands can expect showers over the next couple days as a storm system works its way west, bringing with it the possibility of a tropical cyclone.

Get Hawaiis latest morning news delivered to your inbox, sign up for News 2 You

Currently, the system is moving westward toward Hawaii at 10 to 15 miles per hour and is expected to strengthen as it moves into the central Pacific basin.

The showers and thunderstorms are unorganized currently but the National Weather Service said a tropical depression or storm could develop with just a little improvement in organization.

What Hawaii needs to know about Japans megaquake warnings

The system is expected to develop into a depression far east-southeast of the islands later Thursday.

The NWS said there is a 90% chance of cyclone formation in the next 48 hours.

It is too early to determine the magnitude or exact location, according to the NWS.

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A Michigan teen says she was handcuffed in court after falling asleep during a field trip. Now her mother is suing.

The family of a 15-year-old girl who was ordered handcuffed after falling asleep in a courtroom during a field trip earlier this month filed a lawsuit Wednesday against a judge who they say humiliated her during the ordeal.

According to the lawsuit, Eva Goodman was in Kings courtroom in Detroit as part of a field trip on Aug. 13 when she fell asleep. The lawsuit argued that King felt personally disrespected and decided to enact his own version of the reality show Scared Straight, threatening to send her to Wayne Countys juvenile detention center. All of this was broadcast on a courtroom livestream.

He berated the minor on a live platform, ordered her jailed, caused her to be handcuffed, demanded that she take off her clothes and change into jail garb, imprisoned her for hours, and then conducted a fake trial with her classmates (and possibly his internet followers) as her jurors and his audience, the lawsuit read.

Now Goodmans mother, Latoreya Till, is seeking more than $75,000 in punitive damages and additional compensation for alleged injuries from being detained. They are also suing the courts private security services, as well as the two court officers.

What happened?

Goodman attended a field trip to Detroits 36th District Court with the Greening of Detroit, a nonprofit environmental group she worked for as part of a vocational program. Goodman and her peers watched the video of a past hearing King had presided over related to a homicide charge.

The lawsuit claims that the girl relived a traumatic experience without her mothers consent while watching the proceeding, which caused her to "shut down" and nod off to sleep a day after a rough nights sleep.

King then noticed Goodman sleeping and berated her, according to the lawsuit.

Her mother said Goodman had not known about the trip ahead of time and the visit had been her first time in a courtroom. Till told a local Detroit outlet that her family has had to move around because they dont have a permanent home, and suggested this is why Goodman may have been tired.

The suit said that the teen apologized, but nodded off again, prompting King to send her to go to the restroom and drink some water.

When she returned to the courtroom, the lawsuit said that a court officer accused the girl of disrespecting the judge and locked her in a detention cell. About 10 minutes later, another court officer went into the cell, handcuffed her and directed her to go into another cell. Goodman told her mother that she was told to remove her clothes and put on a jail jumpsuit. The teen only removed her sweatshirt.

The lawsuit alleges she was held in the cell for hours, before she was re-cuffed and brought into the courtroom for what the lawsuit called sham proceedings.

The lawsuit says King had an attorney pose as her counsel, and had her disclose her name and other personal information. The suit argued the proceeding was to teach Goodman a lesson because King had felt disrespected.

Till told the local Detroit outlet that the ordeal has left her daughter suffering from emotional distress and mental anguish.

Subjecting a minor to such public humiliation and violating her rights is unconscionable, said Tills lawyer, James Harrington. Our legal system is built on principles of fairness and respect for all individual rights, and those who violate those rights should be held accountable for their actions.

What happened to Judge King?

King was removed from the district courts docket with pay a couple of days after the incident. The district courts chief judge, William McConico, said that King could not return to the bench until he underwent training to address underlying issues that contributed to what happened that day.

"We sincerely hope that this incident does not undermine our longstanding relationships with local schools, McConico said in a statement to the Detroit Free Press. Our thoughts and actions are now with the student and her family, and we are committed to taking these corrective measures to demonstrate that this incident is an isolated occurrence."

Kings lawyer, Todd Perkins, told Yahoo News that King is remorseful and sorry if Goodman was hurt.

He believes that if any of our young people are hurting, we all hurt, Perkins said in a statement. He has sought to protect them, nurture them, mentor them and educate them  any actions by Judge King would never seek to have that as an intended consequence. He only wants the best outcome for this young person and all young people.
ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC)  From Hurricane Beryl to the wildfires in the Panhandle, Texas has experienced the impact of natural disasters in 2024. During large-scale incidents in the Big Country and beyond, the Abilene Fire Department has the right vehicle for the job.

An ambulance bus known as an Ambus has been stationed at Station 4 since 2021. The Ambus is 43 feet long and 11 feet high, and it can accommodate 20 to 27 people. Aaron Maxwell, AFD EMS Coordinator, said the bus is particularly useful in rural areas like Abilene.

Theres a limited number of ambulances here in Abilene as well as in other counties, and then the other jurisdictions around here are all small and may only have one ambulance available, Maxwell said.

Big Country residents on the coast following Tropical Storm Beryl

The Abilene Ambus service operates alone within a 100-mile radius, with the next closest vehicle located in Fort Worth, Lubbock, or El Paso. The bus recently assisted with Hurricane Beryl in June, and prior to that, it was involved in responding to a crash in Taylor County that affected ten people.

The last time we used the bus was Hurricane Beryl. We responded on a state mission assignment down there for almost two weeks, Maxwell said. Locally in June, we had a wreck out into South Quarter Taylor County that had ten patients, and we transported three patients from that wreck in the same bus back here in Abilene.

How Big Country residents are assisting fire efforts in the Panhandle

The state pays for all bus costs, and the city benefits every time the bus is used outside of county limits.

The city is paid by the state for the use of this equipment any time were gone. The state reimburses all of our salaries, any overtime used to backfill our positions, as well as paying for the bus itself and any chase vehicle we have with it, Maxwell explained.

From the deployment to the Houston area, the city was paid $30,492, not including the spent cost of fuel, salary, and repairs.

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ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC)  An Abilene ISD music instructor is accused of having an improper relationship with a student.

Lawrence Grigg, 54, was taken into custody Wednesday on a warrant for Improper Relationship Between Educator and Student in connection to an investigation that began in July.

A press release states police began investigating Grigg after receiving notification from Abilene ISD that he may possibly be engaged in an improper relationship with a student.

Documents: Abilene music teacher allegedly met student at Redbud park, local hotels for sex

During the investigation, detectives found electronic evidence and other information that led to his arrest, according to the press release.

The district immediately placed Grigg on administrative leave to assist with the investigation and ensure the safety of students, the press release states.

Detectives believe that because Grigg is involved with children as a music instructor at Cooper High School, there could be additional victims.

Anyone with information on Grigg is asked to contact the Abilene Police Department at (325)673-8331.

Griggs now remains held in the Taylor County Jail on a $1 million bond.

Abilene ISD released the following statement regarding Griggs arrest:

Abilene ISD is aware of the arrest of Fred Grigg on Wednesday, August 21. On Tuesday, July 30, Abilene ISD received a report of an alleged improper relationship involving Fred Grigg and a former student. The district immediately notified the Abilene Police Department, Child Protective Services, and the State Board for Educator Certification after receiving this report and placed Mr. Grigg on administrative leave to ensure that he had no access to our students or facilities. The AISD Board of Trustees has now accepted our superintendents recommendation for the proposed termination of Mr. Grigg, and AISD will continue to cooperate with law enforcement in their ongoing investigation.

We are thankful for the diligent efforts of our staff and the collaborative work of the Abilene Police Department to keep our students safe and pursue justice in this matter. We take every allegation of employee misconduct extremely seriously, and we have zero tolerance for any behavior that could harm any of our students. Our teachers and staff are expected to follow the highest standards of conduct to protect the best interests of our children and provide a safe place for every AISD student to learn.

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SAN JOSE, Calif. (KRON)  An accused South Bay child molester who was nearly shot by the alleged victims father is still out of jail on bail.

Harry Eugene Goularte, 45, is charged with molesting a 4-year-old child inside a San Martin daycare. The childs father, former UFC champion Cain Velasquez, was convicted last week of attempting to murder Goularte.

A Santa Clara County judge will set a date for Goulartes child molestation trial during his next court appearance on November 13. His defense attorney unsuccessfully attempted to have the entire case thrown out earlier this year.

Harry Goulartes 2022 mugshot was released by the Santa Clara County Sheriffs Office.

Defense attorney Steve DeFilippis accused a judge of sleeping during some parts of his clients 2023 preliminary hearing while the alleged victim testified on the stand.

Judge Alcala at times was asleep and not focused on the proceedings taking place before him. His determination may have missed important, yet subtle parts of the testimony that lend to the minors credibility, the attorney wrote in court documents.

The judges lack of focus also calls into question whether the influence of the minors parents non-verbal cues  during the minors testimony were even observed, the defense attorney wrote.

The 4-year-old child did not like going to daycare, and preferred to spend time with his dad instead, DeFilippis wrote. The court ultimately rejected the defenses request to drop the case.

Cain Velasquez, left, fights in a UFC mixed martial arts match in Anaheim, Calif., on Oct. 23, 2010. Velasquez won by TKO in the first round. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Goularte was first reported to the Santa Clara County District Attorneys Office on Feb. 23, 2022 by the childs parents.

A certified child forensic interviewer and detectives determined that a crime occurred in the daycares bathroom, Det. Hakeem Lee wrote in a police report. The child victim said the suspect told him not to tell anyone, Lee wrote.

Goularte lived at the home daycare, Pattys Daycare, on Powder Horn Court in San Martin. The suspect has continuous access to children, Lee wrote.

Goularte told police conflicting information about how he interacted with children at Pattys Daycare, the detective said. First he told police that he had no involvement with the children. The suspect then changed his statement and said he sometimes wrestled and played with some of the children. The suspect denied any wrongdoing, Lee wrote.

Prosecutors charged Goularte with committing lewd acts against a child.

Pattys Daycare was owned and operated by Goulartes mother, Patricia. On Feb. 28, 2022, Patricia, her husband, and her son were inside a pickup truck together in Morgan Hill where Velasquez spotted the trio and pulled out a gun. A wild high-speed chase ensued along Highway 101 as Velasquez opened fire multiple times, prosecutors said. Patricia Goulartes husband was shot and survived. The mixed martial arts fighter surrendered to police officers who pulled his vehicle over in San Jose.

Velasquez will be sentenced in October for attempted murder, court records show. Judge Arthur Bocanegra has wide discretion for deciding Velasquezs punishment. The MMA stars sentence could be as light as probation. If the judge hands down a maximum sentence, Velasquez be sentenced to 40 years-to-life in prison.

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Jessica Mackler, the newly appointed president of EMILY's List, delivered an address at the 2024 Democratic National Convention on Wednesday, focusing on reproductive rights.

Mackler, who stepped into her role following Laphonza Butlers appointment to the U.S. Senate, highlighted the ongoing struggle over abortion rights, intensified by the Supreme Courts overturning of Roe v. Wade. She called out Project 2025, a Republican-supported initiative she described as a dangerous framework for nationwide abortion restrictions.

Donald Trump took away our rights, but he can never take away our power, Mackler declared to the crowd.

More: DNC live updates: Parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was kidnapped by Hamas, speak

What to know about Jessica Mackler:

Who is she? Mackler is the new president of EMILYs List, an organization dedicated to supporting pro-choice Democratic women.

What role does she play? Leading EMILYs List, Mackler focuses on advancing reproductive rights and defending against restrictive policies.

Key quote: The threat of Project 2025 is very real, but so is our ability to stop it.

Sign-up for Your Vote: Text with the USA TODAY elections team.

Watch Jessica Macklers full DNC Convention speech here

Download USA TODAYs app for comprehensive news coverage

When and where is the DNC:

The Democratic National Convention runs from August 19-22 in Chicago, Illinois.

The United Center, home of the Chicago Bulls and Blackhawks, will be the main venue for the DNC.

Chicago has hosted the Democratic Convention 11 times, most recently in 1996 when the United Center saw President Bill Clinton nominated for a second time.

How to watch and stream the 2024 DNC:

The convention will air live on its website from the United Center in Chicago between 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern (6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Central) from Tuesday through Thursday.

USA TODAY will provide livestream coverage on YouTube each night of the DNC, Monday through Thursday.

What are the themes for each night of the DNC?

The DNC has announced nightly themes for the convention. Wednesdays theme is A Fight for our Freedoms.

Here are the themes for each night:

Monday: For the People

Tuesday: A Bold Vision for Americas Future

Wednesday: A Fight for our Freedoms

Thursday: For our Future

Jeremy Yurow is a politics reporting fellow based in Hawaii for the USA TODAY Network. You can reach him at JYurow@gannett.com or on X, formerly Twitter @JeremyYurow

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: EMILY's List president takes aim at GOP abortion restrictions at DNC
African health officials hopeful mpox shots will start within days as WHO says outbreak is not the new Covid

African nations could begin vaccinations against mpox within days, according to the continents top public health agency, as a World Health Organization official said the spread of a deadlier strain of the virus could be controlled and was not the new Covid.

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is at the epicenter of an mpox outbreak declared a global health emergency last week by WHO, with the deadlier clade Ib strain that is spreading quickly in the country detected in at least four other African nations.

We didnt start vaccinations yet. Well start in a few days if we are sure that everything is in place. End of next week, vaccines will start to arrive in DRC and other countries, Africa CDC Director General Jean Kaseya told a briefing on Tuesday.

The viral disease, formerly known as monkeypox, can spread easily between people and from infected animals through close contact such as touching, kissing or sex, as well as through contaminated materials like sheets, clothing and needles, according to WHO. Symptoms include a fever, a painful rash, headache, muscle and back pain, low energy and enlarged lymph nodes.

Around 1,400 mpox infections have been reported across Africa over the past week, bringing the total number of cases on the continent to nearly 19,000 since the start of the year  up more than 100% on the same period last year, according to the Africa CDC. The latest outbreak has killed more than 500 people, the agencys latest available data shows.

Thats prompted a scramble for vaccines as health officials in Africa work with overseas partners to meet a massive shortfall of doses.

We need to have vaccines, Kaseya told NPR last week. Today, we are just talking about almost 200,000 doses (becoming) available. We need at least 10 million doses. The vaccine is so expensive  we can put it around $100 per dose. There are not so many countries in Africa that can afford the cost of this vaccine.

The European Union and Danish vaccine maker Bavarian Nordic have so far pledged support, the European Commission said last week. Japan and the United States have also offered doses, Reuters reported, citing the DRCs health minister.

A health worker attends to an mpox patient in Munigi, eastern Congo, on August 19, 2024. - Moses Sawasawa/AP

Not the new Covid

WHOs declaration of a global health emergency is the second time in two years that the United Nations health agency has raised the alarm over the spread of mpox, which for decades had been found largely in central and western Africa.

Mpox is characterized by two genetic clades, I and II. A clade is a broad grouping of viruses that has evolved over decades that has distinct genetic and clinical differences.

Clade II was responsible for a global outbreak that was also declared to be a global health emergency from July 2022 to May 2023. But the new outbreak is driven by clade I, which causes more severe disease. The subtype thats responsible for most of the ongoing spread, clade Ib, is relatively new.

Last week, the first clade lb case outside Africa was confirmed in Sweden in a patient who had recently traveled to the continent.

But with nations worldwide on high alert for the virus, a WHO official on Tuesday played down fears of a new pandemic as he called for a coordinated response to the outbreak.

Mpox is not the new Covid, WHO Europe Director Hans Kluge told a press briefing.

While more research is needed on the clade Ib strain, its spread can be controlled, he said.

We know how to control mpox. And, in the European region, the steps needed to eliminate its transmission altogether, Kluge said.

The need for a coordinated response is now greatest in the African region, he said. We can, and must, tackle mpox together  across regions and continents.

Kluges comments came as the Philippines and Thailand reported cases of mpox in travelers who had been to Africa. Meanwhile, Argentinas health ministry said Wednesday that tests carried out on a crew member of a cargo ship that was placed in quarantine were negative for mpox.

This story has been updated with additional information.

CNN en Espanols Federico Jofre and Mauricio Torres, and CNNs Maya Davis and Kocha Olarn contributed to this report.

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ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC)  The New York State Attorney Generals Office determined no charges will be filed against the New York State Trooper who shot a teenager to death in East Bloomfield.

The 17-year-old was shot by a New York State Trooper on November 15 and did not survive.

According to a report released Thursday by the AGs office, troopers were called to the home on State Route 64 in East Bloomfield after someone anonymously told police, My friend is talking about killing someone next week he is 100% serious about this and he will act on it.

The report said police spoke to a woman, who then called her grandson to the door. When police told the grandson to take his hands out of his pockets, he allegedly held a folding tool-style knife open and charged.

Video of the encounter released in February shows the trooper speaking to someone before the teen comes to the door. He appears to pull an object out of his sleeve before running at the trooper, who falls to the ground. The 17-year-old appears to charge at the trooper again, and the trooper shoots six times.

According to the report, five of those bullets struck the 17-year-old.

Watch the body camera video

The AGs office decided not to pursue criminal charges against the trooper who shot the teen, saying, upon reviewing the video and witness statements, a prosecutor would not be able to disprove beyond a reasonable doubt at trial that the officers actions were justified under New York law.

The full report is available below:

osi-c-w-reportDownload

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NEW ORLEANS (WGNO)  Residents in South Louisiana should be on alert Thursday as air quality is expected to deteriorate.

A high-pressure system over Louisiana is limiting how much air mixes in the atmosphere, while light winds are preventing ozone from dispersing effectively. Combined with some wildfire smoke pushing into the region, this situation is keeping air pollution levels elevated.

As a result, the Air Quality Index (AQI) on Thursday is projected to reach levels that are Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups in the New Orleans and Baton Rouge metros. Sensitive groups include children, the elderly, and those with respiratory or heart conditions.

The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality has issued an Air Quality Alert for several parishes, including Orleans, Jefferson, St. Bernard, Plaquemines, St. John the Baptist, and St. Tammany, effective until midnight.

By Friday, conditions should improve somewhat in western Louisiana as increasing southerly winds help disperse pollutants. However, southeastern Louisiana will continue to experience light winds and lingering smoke, keeping air quality in the higher end of the Moderate range.

The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality is encouraging residents to take voluntary steps to reduce emissions. Suggestions include driving less, ensuring vehicles are well-maintained, tightening gas caps, and postponing refueling and using gas-powered lawn equipment until after 6 PM.

Stay up to date with the latest news, weather and sports by downloading the WGNO app on the Apple or Google Play stores and by subscribing to the WGNO newsletter.

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Canvassers process mail-in election ballots at a sorting facility in Gaithersburg, Maryland on Thursday, October 29, 2020. The workers check for authenticity and errors before tabulating the vote. Voting by mail has soared in the run up to the November 3rd 2020 presidential election due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI

Aug. 22 (UPI) -- Voters in Alabama may face up to 20 years in prison for offering or receiving compensation for assistance turning in a mail-in ballot, according to a new state law.

SB1 makes it a Class B felony to pay or give a gift to a third party to order or deliver an absentee ballot. A Class B felony is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $30,000 fine.

Likewise, it is a Class C felony for a third party -- with some exceptions -- to accept payment or gifts for these purposes. The maximum penalty for this is 10 years in prison.

The state legislature passed the law in March in an attempt to curb "ballot harvesting." Ballot harvesting is another term used for ballot collecting; third parties gathering and submitting completed absentee or mail-in ballots.

The term is also used by opponents to absentee and mail-in voting.

"Here in Alabama, we are committed to ensuring our elections are free and fair," Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey, a Republican, said in a statement. "I commend Secretary of State Wes Allen, as well as members of the Alabama Legislature for making election security a priority, and I am proud to officially sign Senate Bill 1 into law. Under my watch, there will be no funny business in Alabama elections."

There is no evidence of widespread ballot collecting leading to voter fraud in the United States. It is legal in more than 30 states with varying restrictions.

"We've had no documented cases of widespread fraud related to absentee ballot collection," Rep. Jeremy Gray, D-Opelika, told UPI. "This bill is a solution in search of a problem."

Gray expects the law to disproportionately affect the elderly, rural voters and those with mobility issues.

There are exceptions to the law. Family members to the second degree like parents, siblings, aunts, uncles and grandparents can offer assistance ordering, collecting or submitting ballots.

Roommates who have lived in the home for more than six months prior to the voter submitting their ballot can also help. Assistance is also allowed if the voter is blind, disabled or unable to read or write.

A coalition of organizations, including the Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Program and the state conference of the NAACP, has filed a federal lawsuit against the state's district attorneys and Secretary of State Wes Allen. It describes the law as a "sweeping statute that turns civic and neighborly voter engagement into a serious crime."

"In doing so, SB 1 criminalizes constitutionally protected speech and expressive conduct and disenfranchises disabled voters, senior citizen voters, voters of color, eligible incarcerated voters, and many other Alabamians who depend on assistance to vote," the lawsuit reads.

Voters in Alabama vote absentee at very low rates. According to data from the secretary of state's office, about 3% of votes cast in the 2018 midterms were by absentee ballot. About 13% voted absentee in 2020, compared to 43% nationwide, according to research by Richard Fording, a political science professor at the University of Alabama. In 2022, absentee voting fell back to about 3% in Alabama.

Fording told UPI that this is because the state has some of the strictest requirements for absentee voting. These restrictions were not loosened during the COVID-19 pandemic, as they were in other states.

"The state did very little to make voting by mail easier during the pandemic," Fording said. "In fact, in a state report card on voting by mail accommodations during the pandemic published by Brookings, Alabama was the only state to receive a grade of 'F.'"

SB1 follows a long history of voter suppression, according to Fording. These efforts have largely targeted Black voters.

"When the sponsor of SB1 claimed that absentee voting rates were unusually high in some counties, he was referring to majority-Black -- and majority-Democrat -- Black Belt counties," Fording said.

"This increase in absentee voting was most likely facilitated to some degree by nonprofit groups that provided much-needed assistance with voting during the pandemic. This has nothing to do with fraud. It is simply an effort by the majority party to maintain its monopoly of power in this state."

Organizations like the Alabama Election Protection Network work to educate voters and promote resources that may help them participate in elections. Melissa Gilliland, project manager of AEPN, told UPI the law was presented in the legislature without justification. She echoed Fording's observation that it was crafted to disproportionately disenfranchise Black voters.

Gilliland said Alabama's redistricting plan that was shot down by the Supreme Court last year sought to do the same.

"If you examine the legislature, it is crafting legislation that is making it more challenging to vote," she said. "They quantify it as 'protection.'"

Gilliland advises that voters check their registration and polling place. States may remove voters from the rolls up to 90 days before the election but not later than that, according to the National Voter Registration Act.

The AEPN, founded in 2020, links users to official state portals where they can check their registration and polling location. The organization also arranges rides to bring voters to the polls.
SEIB CEO William Ashmore and Chair Faye Nelson discuss health insurance changes for state employees on Aug. 22, 2023 at the SEIB executive meeting in Montgomery. (Alander Rocha/Alabama Reflector)

The CEO of the state board overseeing Alabama state employee insurance Wednesday reiterated his concerns about rising costs and potential funding shortfalls.

The State Employee Insurance Board (SEIB) awarded contracts for medical and dental plans; the Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug Plan and a pharmacy benefit manager. The contract for the Medicare drug plan will only last a year, with potential for renewal, due to volatility in the space. SEIB CEO William Ashmore said that the contract would cost $30 million more than it did last year.

Just be aware that were doing our budgets and all in September, this is going to be a huge increase in cost that were seeing, said SEIB CEO William Ashmore.

SEIB officials told lawmakers in July that they have a projected loss of around $20 million for fiscal year 2025, which they said was due in part to a growing number of retirees and a shrinking workforce paying less into the retirement system.

The board said they can cover the losses with reserves. But officials expect reserves to be depleted in 2026, when losses are projected to reach $37 to $38 million.

RSA CEO David Bronner said Wednesday that the costs associated with the Medicare Advantage used to be much higher, around $400 per month per person. He said Medicare Advantage costs had come down to $65 but are beginning to rise again.

Now you blame me and you blame William and I mean, weve made a big deal about it in the Legislature, he said. We know well make a big deal of it going way up, but theres a big but here, and the big but is that the last 10 years weve had the advantage of that sliding price, which is big dollars, if you think of it.

After the meeting, Ashmore said the costs associated with the change in the Medicare Advantage program are contributing to SEIBs financial concerns. He said the federal government was reducing some of the funding.

Were seeing our costs double, not (increasing) 10%, not 20%, were talking about doubling, he said.

Ashmore said the major concerns are three years in the future. He said what theyre doing right now is using reserves to make up for shortfalls.

Its kind of a wait and see, wait and see what happens but, you know, weve got to be prepared for the worst case scenario should it happen, he said.

In the meeting, Bronner said that they could pump up the finance director, Bill Poole, for gambling.

I bet on it and lost, said Poole.

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FILE - Campaign buttons urging Alaskans to repeal ranked choice voting sit on a picnic table at the home of Phil Izon, a backer of the initiative, in Wasilla, Alaska, on May 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Mark Thiessen, File)

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP)  The Alaska Supreme Court cleared the way Thursday for a measure aimed at repealing the states new open primary and ranked choice general election system to remain on the November ballot.

The court heard arguments earlier in the day in a case appealing Superior Court Judge Christina Rankins decision in June that the state Division of Elections complied with deadlines and acted within its authority when it allowed sponsors of the repeal measure to fix errors with petition booklets after they were turned in.

The short, written order simply said it affirmed Rankin's decision and said an opinion explaining the high court's reasoning would be issued later.

The measure seeks to repeal provisions of a 2020 voter initiative that replaced party primaries with open primaries and instituted ranked choice general elections. Under the open primary system, voters are asked to pick one candidate per race, with the top four vote-getters, regardless of party affiliation, advancing to the general election.

The new system was first used in 2022 and is being used again for this years elections. Many of this years legislative races had fewer than four candidates in the primary.

Supporters of ranked choice voting say it gives voters more choice and rewards candidates who appeal to a broader portion of the electorate. Opponents say its confusing and pushes voters to rank candidates they might not support.

In this case, the Division of Elections found problems with more than 60 petition booklets  most of which involved a person whose notary commission had expired  and began notifying the initiative sponsors of the problems on Jan. 18, six days after the petition was turned in, attorneys for the state and plaintiffs have said. People who circulate petition booklets as part of the signature-gathering process for initiatives must attest to meeting certain requirements and have their affidavits notarized or certified.

Ultimately, the repeal measure sponsors returned 62 corrected booklets before the division completed its signature count in March. Attorneys on both sides have said the measure would not meet the signature requirements to qualify for the ballot if those 62 booklets were thrown out.

Scott Kendall, an attorney representing the three voters who sought to disqualify the measure from the ballot, told the court Thursday the division acted arbitrarily in its treatment of booklets with errors, including rejecting some outright, releasing some back to the sponsors without taking scans of them first and deciding not to return one it found had a notary error because it had discovered that later in the signature-review process.

We can't allow a Division of Elections to have that kind of latitude, he said.

Kimber Rodgers, an attorney for the state representing the division, said the division acted diligently and allowed for corrections to be made within the 60-day signature review window. She said given the number of booklets with notary errors, the division told sponsors that election officials would like to get the booklets back 10 days before the end of the review period to allow time to verify those signatures. But she said the actual deadline was the end of the 60-day period.

Rodgers said the division made a reasonable decision on the booklet with a notary error found later in the process, since the initiative already was going to have enough other signatures to qualify for the ballot without it.

Kendall in a text message after the Supreme Court's ruling said that despite demonstrated irregularities in the division's handling of the initiative, the justices were obviously unwilling to reverse the superior court.

Kevin Clarkson, a former state attorney general who represented the repeal measure sponsors, said by email: It was very rewarding to have the court so quickly see through the smoke the other side was putting out.

Lael Harrison, a senior assistant attorney general, said the Department of Law was grateful for the court's quick decision, which Harrison said came in plenty of time for the division to meet ballot printing deadlines.
Bank robber threatened employees at bank in South Land Park, Sacramento police say

The Sacramento Police Department is searching for a suspect who investigators said robbed Chase Bank in South Land Park while threatening employees on Wednesday and fleeing with money.

Investigators were called just before 5 p.m. to Chase Bank at 1331 Florin Road, said Officer Cody Tapley, a spokesman for the Police Department.

The robber made threats toward employees while demanding money, Tapley said. There were no injuries, but the male suspect fled the scene before officers arrived, Tapley said.

The investigation was ongoing, police said.

Tapley said it wasnt immediately clear how much money was taken.
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a meeting on the situation in the Kursk border region, where Ukrainian troops launched a counteroffensive about two weeks ago. -/Kremlin/dpa

Approximately 133,000 people have left their homes so far due to the Ukrainian offensive in the Russian region of Kursk, the acting governor of the region, Alexei Smirnov, said during a videoconference with President Vladimir Putin on Thursday.

Nearly 20,000 people still remain in the eight districts for which evacuation had been ordered, the state news agency TASS reported, citing Smirnov.

Putin and the Russian government were on Thursday once again dealing with the consequences of the Ukrainian advance, which began just over two weeks ago.

For the first time in almost two and a half years of the full-scale Russian war, Ukraine is conducting ground battles on enemy territory and, according to its own assertions, controls more than 1,000 square kilometres of land.

"I urge you to pay particular attention to preparations for the new school year," Putin ordered. Education Minister Sergei Kravtsov said that pupils from 114 schools in the border area should be taught online from September 2. Others would be educated at their evacuation locations or in children's holiday camps.

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a meeting on the situation in the Kursk border region, where Ukrainian troops launched a counteroffensive about two weeks ago. -/Kremlin/dpa
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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.
(FOX40.COM)  Amazon Fresh has officially opened its first Northern California location in Roseville on Thursday.

The store will be open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily and be located at 6780 Stanford Ranch Road, Roseville.

Were thrilled to open our newest Amazon Fresh grocery store right here in the heart of Placer County, Amazon Fresh wrote in a news release.

The Roseville locations layout will be based on Amazon Freshs newest designs that were launched in Southern California and Chicago in 2023.

New coffee shop opens in Sacramento, replaces old Starbucks location

A ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held at 7:45 a.m. before doors officially open at 8 a.m. to the 42,000 square-foot store.

Amazon Fresh features well-known name brands as well as their own in-house brands like Aplenty, Fresh Brand and 365 by Whole Foods.

As part of the opening day celebration, the first customer in line will receive a $100 Amazon gift card and the next 99 customers will receive either $5, $10 or $15 gift cards.

Roseville is not the only Sacramento area city welcoming Amazon Fresh as Elk Grove will open its location on Sept. 12. This will be the grocery store chains second Northern California 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 FOX40.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) The All-American Dairy Show is returning to the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg this September.

The Farm Show Complex will host 21 dairy shows over five days, from Sept. 14 through 18, says the All-American Dairy Show. The shows will feature nearly 2,000 of the top dairy cattle from over 1,000 exhibitors in the U.S. and Canada.

The Dairy Show will also dedicate three days to youth shows, contests, and programs.

The All-American Dairy Show has a full event schedule on its website.

Individuals interested in entering this years show can submit a form online. The show says its important to note that dairy cattles health requirements could potentially change before the event.

No entries will be accepted between Sept. 5 and 4:300 p.m. on Sept. 13. Visit here for more details on entering the event.

According to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, this year marks 60 years of hosting the All-American Dairy Show in Harrisburg.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Viktoria Spokojna/Unsplash

Do you need a visa to go to Europe? Its a question most American travelers dont even think to ask, with United States passport holders having long traveled throughout most of the world without worrying about visa applications. But thats set to change next year, as the European Union prepares new travel document requirements for American tourists.

The European Unions new visa waiver scheme, known as the European Travel Information and Authorization System (ETIAS), was previously set to roll out in early 2024, but is now anticipated to launch starting in the first half of 2025, per the official ETIAS website. A European Commission spokesperson has confirmed with Conde Nast Traveler via email that as of August 2024, everything is on track to hit the target timeline of spring 2025.

ETIAS is not a visa in the traditional sense; it only requires a quick online application, with approval delivered via email. Once it launches in 2025, ETIAS authorization will be required for all Americans traveling to all ETIAS member countries, which fall into one of four categories: full Schengen members like Spain, France, and Italy; European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries like Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland; future Schengen members such as Cyprus; plus European microstates like Andorra and Monaco.

The European Commission first introduced the idea of a new pre-entry requirement to tighten border security in 2016. Since then, the timeline has been adjusted on multiple occasions due to technological needs required to roll out the new system, according to the EUs Justice and Home Affairs Council.

So whats the hold up? The postponement is due, in large part, to setbacks in the building of another new IT infrastructure in Europe: the Entry/Exit System (EES), which will replace manual passport stamping with electronic registration. According to Anitta Hipper, another European Commission Spokesperson, ETIAS cannot launch until EES is fully operational as the traveler authorization system will rely on EES data to identify potential risks.

The contractor in charge of creating these IT systems, eu-LISA, is working towards launching EES on November 10, 2024, with ETIAS launching in the following months. The revised timeline is linked to several factors, including delays in developing the system at the central level by the contractor, but also in [EU] Member States when it comes to delays in preparation for the necessary equipment to use the EES at the border crossing points, Hipper tells Traveler. The Commission will continue working very closely with Member States and eu-LISA to minimize the impact of the delays and deliver interoperability under this mandate.

Do you need a visa to go to Europe in 2025?

While many have compared ETIAS to a visa, Conde Nast Traveler travel specialist Nathan Cripps says the distinction between a visa and an Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) is an important one to temper any stress travelers may have in regards to the new requirement.

ETAs have been in use in various countries for many years and are considered simple, easy, and cost-effective, Cripps says, pointing to countries like Canada and Australia that have made use of ETAs for decades. The system is designed to make travel to Europe safer and easier, and once up and running it will soon become just another part of the routine.

How will ETIAS work?

When Europes new authorization system is eventually implemented, travelers with passports from visa-exempt countries will have to apply for ETIAS online prior to their arrival on the continent. This requirement will affect citizens from the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, among dozens of other countries. Unlike traditional visas, the application process for ETIAS is relatively quick and easyits also inexpensive, costing only 7 (about $8) for a three-year approval. All travelers will need to fill out an ETIAS application regardless of their age. However, children under 18 and adults over 70 years old can apply for free.

Travelers will simply fill out an online form with their basic biographical data and travel history. Theyll also respond to several security questions, and if everything checks out, theyll receive approval via email within an hour. This will be the case for most travelers, although some may require additional security checks that prolong the process to up to 96 hours.

The most important piece of advice I can give travelers is to make sure to apply for your ETIAS at least 96 hours before your flight departs, Cripps says. Airlines will likely require proof of an ETIAS in order to board your flight, and while most travelers are expected to receive their approval quickly, you dont want any surprises before your big trip.

Cripps also recommends that travelers set a reminder in their calendars ahead of when their three-year ETIAS approval expires to avoid future hiccups.

I do not see [ETIAS] as a big deal considering I am from the US and have a lot of passport privilege, says Sojourner White, a remote social worker and travel content creator who has previously lived in Europe and plans to travel back there in the near future. We are just not used to having travel restrictions, so people are freaking out, but honestly paying $8 is so much cheaper than what other people have to pay in order to travel in Europe.

She does, however, believe that the many delays are only going to further confuse travelers, especially when ETIAS is eventually implemented. The constant rescheduling of the launch reminds me of the Real ID issues in the US. When you put out information prematurely people make plans with that information, White says. I foresee some problems, at least in the beginning, with people being confused as to what they need to do, especially if they are not seasoned travelers or its their first trip to Europe.

Her best advice for newer travelers so they dont get caught off-guard? Be in tune with the US Department of State website. They have the Smart Travelers Enrollment Program (STEP) that I recommend everybody sign up for, too, so that you can be notified of changes that may be happening as you are traveling.

For Jody Bear, Conde Nast Traveler travel specialist and founder of Bear & Bear Travel, this is also a good time to remind travelers of some basic rules of thumb they should follow before packing their bags for Europeor anywhere around the world.

Be mindful of when your passport expires. [Typically] the expiration date must be at least six months beyond your return trip date, she says. As a general rule, you should always have at least two to four blank pages in your passport, but it can vary depending on the country you are visiting, so it is recommended you check your passport as far in advance as possible.

Originally Appeared on Conde Nast Traveler

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AMERICUS, Ga. (WRBL)  An aggravated assault investigation is underway after a man was injured in a shooting on Wednesday evening, according to the Americus Police Department.

Police were dispatched to the 200 block of Brookdale Drive at about 9:10 p.m.

At the scene, officers found a 19-year-old man had been shot. First aid was given until he was taken to the hospital.

The investigation by Americus police and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to call the Americus Police Department at (229) 924-3677. The after hours line is (229) 937-9011.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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 Hill)  Popular depictions of prehistoric hunts tend to show ancient humans hurling their spears into mammoths and mastodons.

But such a technique would have been less than useless  leaving a hunter with no spear and an angry mammoth, a new study argues.

Instead, Ice Age hunters may have used a sophisticated hunting tool to kill prey like mammoths  or predators like saber-toothed cats  using the animals own power and weight, according to findings published Wednesday in PLOS ONE.

Thirteen thousand years ago, people were living among saber tooths and giant bears that are twice the size of grizzlies, mastodons and bison, Scott Byram, a stone tool specialist at the University of California, Berkeley and co-author of the study, told The Hill

To survive in those circumstances, Byram and his co-authors hypothesized, prehistoric hunters probably needed a weapon that could actually be used a little bit more defensively than just as an offensive throwing spear.

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Why? Because in addition to the risks involved in throwing away ones weapon in the face of a charging mammoth, the components that went into those spears could be both brittle and expensive. Proper trees to make spear shafts might be found only every few hundred miles, making them particularly valuable.

The larger question the study considered concerns the blades Byrams team hypothesized to have been on those spears. Prehistoric hunters, Byram said, would have had to face a serious shortcoming in their most deadly weapon.

Stone tools can be very sharp, but theyre often very brittle, right? Byram said. Their razor-sharp edges can go through softer tissue. It can go for a deep wound  if it doesnt strike anything really hard.

But if it hits bone, he added, its going to shatter.

That design challenge is at the center of modern controversy over a famous type of fluted stone blade known as Clovis points. First discovered in the 1920s amid the ribs of mammoths in Clovis, N.M. and typically made of obsidian or jasper, the blades have since been found across North America  a region once dominated by enormous mammals.

Recent scholarship has seen fierce debate over the use of those blades, which gave their name to an entire culture of mammoth hunters.

A 2021 study in the Journal of Archeological Science found that, contrary to widespread belief they had been used as spear points, they likely were used as hand knives rather than to kill mammoths  a finding based on the lack of breakage patterns that would be characteristic of their being repeatedly jammed into big animals.

But in 2022, a competing study in the same journal countered that archeological evidence from mammoth bones showed evidence of deep penetration wounds of the sort that Clovis point-tipped spears might inflict.

The new study from Byram and his co-authors helps bridge the two perspectives by hypothesizing that the Clovis-era spear was a far more sophisticated tool  and wielded in a very different way  than previously imagined.

Byram and his co-author Jun Sunseri built a rig that let them propel a replica Clovis spear into an oak plank under different levels of force  which allowed them to show that neither a thrown nor thrust spear could easily kill a mammoth.

While such a weapon might get through the creatures protective hide, it doesnt do much more than that, Byram said. The impact just dies.

Thats why modern spear-armed big game hunters instead rely on making the animal come to them  and, the study suggests, why their historic counterparts did the same.

In Southern Africa, where Sunseri did his fieldwork, his mentors among the VhaVenda people taught him that the engineering of a spears base was just as critical as the construction of its blade.

By conducting research into the ethnographic record, Byram and Sunseri found copious evidence that human hunters  from Russians killing bears to southern Africans hunting lions  used their spears like pikes, with their butts firmly thrust into the ground as the hunters faced down an animal that impaled itself on the blade.

Byram theorized they would do this for the same reason premodern armies  whose infantry faced deadly attacks from enemies mounted on a more familiar megafauna, the horse  relied on corps of pikemen to fend off charging horses.

You can actually stop the animal before you get killed, Byram said. The momentum of the charging animal keeps it moving so it gets stuck through the hide.

But what about the brittleness problem? Byram and Sunseri suggested that might be addressed by an as-yet-unexplained feature of the Clovis point: the fact that it was sharpened not only on the front, but on the back as well.

That led them to propose an alternate use for an artifact found across Clovis-era campsites, a foreshaft made of wood or bone that scientists had long assumed the spear point was bound onto as a means of connecting to the longer wooden shaft.

In their PLOS paper, Byram and Sunseri proposed that this artifact was actually used for something else  which would help explain both why there are so many mammoth bones showing evidence of Clovis points, and so few Clovis points broken by impact with mammoth bones.

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They hypothesized that the spear point was lashed to the shaft, with the sharpened foreshaft bound across it as a sort of splint.

As hunters approached a mammoth from the sides  its deadly tusks swinging  they would allow it to swing its weight onto the blade, the study theorized.

Then, as the impact of the mammoth forced the spear through its hide, the force would also perpetuate through the point to cut the bindings attaching the spearhead to the shaft and foreshaft  pushing the Clovis point back out of the way and snapping the weapon open like the back of a drywall anchor.

Byram described this as a hollow point bullet effect fueled by the animals own momentum, which would create a zone of expanding force that ripped through flesh and brought an animal down.

This is not how prehistoric hunting is generally imagined, Byram acknowledged. People tend to glorify traditional hunting techniques a little bit, he said. They tend to talk about hunting spears as though [hunters] are using their own force to kill the animal  as opposed to getting the animal to kill itself.

This bias, Byram suggested, may underestimate the amount of inner strength required to keep a spear level in the face of an enraged mammoth or charging cave bear.

Theres a lot of courage involved in this for sure, 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 Queen City News.
Political conventions are all about image. But sometimes, when you least expect it, reality intrudes.

That happened Wednesday night at the Democratic National Convention.

And the couple who brought it was Rachel Goldberg and Jon Polin, whose son Hersh was taken hostage by Hamas in the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks on Israel.

The conventioneers responded with tears and chants of Bring Them Home.

At the time he was abducted, Hersh was attending a music festival to celebrate his 23rd birthday with his friend Aner Shapiro, a 22-year-old soldier in the Israel Defense Forces. Of the approximately 1,200 killed in the Hamas attack, 367 were at the festival.

As rockets began to fall, Hersh, Aner and 27 other young festival goers took refuge in a 5-by-8-foot bomb shelter, Goldberg recounted in a tearful address at the convention podium. Terrorists began to throw grenades into the bunker. Aner stood in the doorway and repelled seven of those grenades before the eighth one killed him. Hershs left forearm, his dominant arm, was blown off before he was loaded into a pickup truck and stolen from his life, and me and John, into Gaza. And that was 320 days ago.

Polin thanked President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris for meeting regularly with the hostages families. He also thanked Republicans who have worked with the administration, seeking to negotiate a deal that would end the Gaza war, bring the hostages home, and relieve suffering for the Palestinian civilians in the crossfire between Israel and Hamas.

Biden and Harris have taken fire from both sides in the Middle East conflict.

Donald Trump, Harris opponent for president, criticized Biden at the presidential debate for not expanding the bloodshed, urging him to back away and let Israel finish the job.

Hes become like a Palestinian, but they dont like him because hes a very bad Palestinian. Hes a weak one, Trump said.

Meanwhile, in the streets around the Democratic convention in Chicago, pro-Palestinian demonstrators are at this moment waving signs and flags and chanting that the president and vice president are facilitating genocide.

Theres plenty of pain and anguish on both sides. Those taking extreme positions are not helping.

Anyone who does ought to be forced to watch Goldbergs and Polins convention remarks.

Goldberg ended her speech with a message for her hostage son: Hersh, if you can hear us, we love you. Stay strong. Survive.

It was a political convention speech, but there was nothing political about it.

It was the cry of an anguished mother, an ordinary woman whose precious child has been stolen from her.

It was real.

Wichita Eagle Opinion Editor Dion Lefler is part of McClatchys team at the Democratic National Convention.
'The answer is no': Pro-Palestinian delegates say their request for a speaker at DNC was shut down

CHICAGO (AP)  Leaders of an Uncommitted movement, which garnered hundreds of thousands of votes in Democratic primaries across the nation in protest of the Israel-Hamas war, have been negotiating for weeks to secure a speaking slot for a Palestinian American at the Democratic National Convention this week.

The negotiations stalled late Wednesday when leaders with the Uncommitted National Movement say a Democratic National Committee official called and delivered a firm response: The answer is no.

The leader, Abbas Alawieh, an Uncommitted delegate to the convention and co-founder of the movement, described the call as shocking after weeks of talks that he felt were positive. In response, he and other delegates decided to stage a sit-in outside Chicagos United Center, where the convention is being held. They spent the night on the sidewalk on Wednesday, and vowed to remain until their request was granted or the convention ended Thursday night.

When we ran out of options  doing everything we can and working from the inside, when we ran out of options as uncommitted delegates, we just sat down, Alawieh said in an interview Thursday.

The Harris campaign declined to comment.

The sit-in outside the United Center has exposed cracks in a Democratic Party that otherwise has rallied around the Harris campaign that has energized the vast majority of party members this week.

The news that the DNC had denied the request of a Palestinian American speaker, just a day after featuring the parents of an Israeli American hostage held by Hamas, ignited fresh criticism from some on the left. The politically powerful United Autoworkers Union, which has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris' presidential campaign, said the party must allow a Palestinian American speaker to be heard from the DNC stage tonight.

Cook County, where Chicago and the convention is located, holds the largest population of Palestinian Americans in the country.

The party, however, has not budged. The Senates top Democrat shrugged off the potential political impact of the sit-in outside the convention. New York Sen. Chuck Schumer recalled Harris saying when protesters interrupted her at a recent rally in Michigan that their disruptions might be benefiting Republican Donald Trump.

She said, Be quiet unless you want to elect Trump, Schumer told a small group of reporters on Thursday, ahead of the conventions final evening.

We believe we need unity, and theres overwhelming  I have never seen such unity, he said. A small handful of people does not represent close to even a sliver of where the Democratic Party is right now.

Tensions over the war in Gaza have at times escalated outside the convention center this week, as thousands marched through Chicago demanding a cease-fire. A smaller group of activists clashed with police outside the Israeli Consulate on Tuesday night, leading to 56 arrests.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, a Muslim Democrat, spoke Wednesday at the convention and praised Harris for saying we need a cease-fire and an end to the loss of innocent lives in Gaza and to bring hostages home." In an interview Thursday, he said that not only is the content of the message important, the messenger is also important.

A Palestinian-American sharing his or her story, calling for cease-fire and release of all hostages, and calling everyone to support the ticket against fascism would be powerful, Ellison said on social media Thursday.

Many other Democratic leaders urged the party to reconsider the request. In a statement, California Rep. Ro Khanna said that the Democratic Party, which aspires to be the party of human rights, must not in 2024 perpetuate this erasure of the Palestinian story.

When asked at a roundtable discussion Thursday whether he agreed with the Uncommitted delegates demand to add a Palestinian American speaker to the DNC lineup, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said, Yes, of course.

Were talking about thousands of babies and elderly people being brutalized by an act of war, said Johnson. You have to have a voice that can call for peace as well as the releasing of hostages.

According to Alawieh, the Uncommitted movement provided a number of potential Palestinian Americans who could speak at the convention, including Georgia State Rep. Ruwa Romman.

Romman on Thursday released a draft of the speech she said she planned to deliver if asked. In it, she calls for electing Harris, defeating Donald Trump  and outlines demands for a cease-fire and to "end the killing of Palestinians, free all the Israeli and Palestinian hostages."

Earlier this week, activists were granted unprecedented space at the convention to hold a forum addressing the plight of Gaza residents, who have been under Israeli bombardment since Hamas Oct. 7 attack and its taking of hostages, as well as to share deeply personal stories about family members lost in the conflict. The panel was viewed as an olive branch from the Harris campaign, with hopes that other requests might be fulfilled later in the week.

The convention has officially made Harris the Democratic Partys presidential nominee, with the vast majority of the nearly 4,000 delegates enthusiastically casting their votes for her.

But those calling for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war  among other demands, such as an arms embargo on Israel  believe they will have an outsized influence in the November election, now just over 70 days away.

Michigan, one of the key swing states, has the largest percentage of Arab Americans in the country. The UAW, which hosted Harris at a union hall event earlier this month, also has its largest membership base in Michigan. In a statement, the leader of the state Democratic Party, Lavora Barnes, said a Palestinian American should have a speaking role Thursday night so that their voices can be heard  all of our delegates are part of our Michigan Democratic Party family."

Through Thursday, Democrats on their way into the convention stopped by the sit-in. Rep. Cori Bush, a member of the progressive congressional group known as the Squad, who lost her primary earlier this month, stopped to mingle with Uncommitted delegates.

We are Democrats. We are a part of this party. And we are just saying, hear us because it matters, said Bush.

___

Associated Press writers Will Weissert and Lea Skene in Chicago and Steve Karnowski in Minneapolis contributed to this report.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. COP29 Executive Director Elnur Soltanov and UN COP29 High-Level Climate Leader Nigar Arpadarai met with representatives of the World Economic Forum's (WEF) Donation for Enhanced Action on Climate Change (GAEA) initiative, the COP 29's X social media publication said, Trend reports.

Fruitful discussions were held today with representatives of the World Economic Forum's GAEA (Giving to Amplify Earth Action) initiative. The talks covered the issue of how philanthropy can be a game-changer in luring more investment in climate action, the publication reads.

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 70,00080,000 foreign guests.

The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Rio Earth Summit in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference in the climate system. The acronym COP (Conference of Parties) stands for Conference of Parties, which is the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change.

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 Bonn.

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A federal appeals court this week upheld a lower courts ruling that dismissed a lawsuit filed by a downstate Republican congressman and two GOP officials who wanted to block Illinois election authority from counting mail-in ballots cast on or before Election Day, but received up to two weeks afterward.

The 2-1 decision from the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago affirms a ruling from U.S. District Judge John Kness last year that five-term U.S. Rep. Mike Bost of Murphysboro and two GOP presidential electors lacked standing to sue the State Board of Elections over a state law allowing mail-in ballots to be counted in the 14 days after Election Day as long as they were postmarked or certified on or before that day.

The suit was filed by the conservative legal organization Judicial Watch on behalf of Bost, Laura Pollastrini, a member of the Republican State Central Committee from Kane County, and Susan Sweeney of Park Ridge, who was appointed a Trump elector from Illinois in 2020. Pollastrini and Sweeney were also Trump delegates during Julys Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where Trump was officially nominated as the GOP presidential candidate in November.

The suit, filed in 2022, contended the state law violated the federally established date for federal elections. It also alleged Bost was subjected to harm, including expenses for post-Election Day poll watchers and the possibility that mail-in ballots counted during the 14-day period dilutes votes timely cast up to and including Election Day.

But, in a decision filed Wednesday, the Court of Appeals rejected that argument.

If we were to accept Plaintiffs premise that inclusion of these ballots would cause vote dilution, their votes would be diluted in the same way that every other vote cast in Illinois prior to Election Day would be diluted, appellate judges John Lee and Michael Brennan said in affirming Kness ruling. Thus, to the extent Plaintiffs would suffer any injury, it would be in a generalized manner and not personal and individual to Plaintiffs, as the Supreme Court requires.

Judge Michael Scudder dissented, defending Bosts contention that the mail-in ballot law forced him to spend significant resources on his campaign.

This change in law had an immediate impact on candidates election-monitoring operations. To ensure that all mail-in ballots were accurately tallied, Congressman Bost had to recruit, train, assign, and coordinate poll watchers and keep his headquarters open for an additional two weeks, Scudder wrote. This took substantial time, money, and resources, as Bost explained in his complaint and sworn declaration.

Bosts challenge to the law was somewhat ironic since he touts his past service in the Marines and the law was designed in part to meet federal voting requirements for military members serving overseas.

Aided in part by Trumps endorsement, Bost in March defeated unsuccessful 2022 GOP gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey of Xenia in a close race in the 34-county 12th Congressional District. Records show Bost has a Democratic opponent in the November election, though hes almost assured victory in a solidly Republican district.

The lawsuit played out as Republicans have done an about-face on mail-in voting. Trump as a 2020 presidential candidate told voters not to trust mail-in voting. And Republican-aligned groups have been filing similar lawsuits to the one filed against Illinois elections board in other states.

But Illinois Republicans sought to encourage mail-in voting in the 2022 statewide elections in an effort to cut into Democratic numbers. And in 2024, the national Republican Party is embracing mail-in voting and Trump has endorsed the effort.
Under New Hampshires statewide education property tax system, the Department of Revenue Administration applies a set percentage property tax rate to each town and city in the state. (Getty Images)

After months of preparation, lawyers have submitted their first filings in the lawsuits concerning New Hampshires school funding system.

The New Hampshire Attorney Generals Office is taking to the Supreme Court to argue that two groundbreaking decisions by a lower court finding the states school funding laws are unconstitutional were wrongly decided.

In a court filing Monday, the state officially appealed a November Rockingham County Superior Court decision that found that the states base $4,100 per pupil yearly payments to schools are unconstitutionally low. That decision found that the payments  known as adequacy grants  should be at least $7,356.01 per student per year in order to meet the states obligation to provide an adequate education.

In its appeal, the state argued the court had no authority to tell the Legislature exactly how much the state should spend per child due to separation of powers. And it contended the Rockingham County judge, David Ruoff, wrongly relied on superintendents estimates of how much it costs to provide an adequate education, when he should have stuck to state statutes and guidelines.

The trial courts approach completely untethers the right to an adequate education from any objective, definitional standard, the states appeal reads. This threatens to embroil the judicial branch in a perpetual cycle of school-funding litigation.

The filing is the second appeal in two weeks made by the state against Ruoffs decisions in two school funding lawsuits. Last week, the state and a collection of property-wealthy towns known as the Coalition 2.0 sought to overturn Ruoffs other decision finding that New Hampshires statewide education property tax (SWEPT) is also unconstitutional.

Those lawsuits  Contoocook Valley School District et al v. State of New Hampshire and Steven Rand et al v. State of New Hampshire  are likely to receive oral arguments in the coming months. The plaintiffs now have until the end of September to respond to the state in their own briefings to the Supreme Court, according to John Tobin, an attorney helping represent plaintiffs in the Rand case.

The lawsuits are rooted in allegations that New Hampshires school funding system is not equitable, more than two decades after the state Supreme Court held that the state is required to provide an adequate education.

A battle over adequacy payments

In the first lawsuit, Contoocook Valley School District, known as ConVal, and other school districts have argued the state is not providing sufficient funding to allow the districts to adequately run their schools, requiring those districts to rely on local property taxes to make up the difference.

Currently all property-tax payers must pay a statewide tax on their property that is meant to help cover their school budgets. But if that tax doesnt raise enough money, the state must provide adequacy funding for the district. Those school districts receive $4,100 per year for every pupil, plus an additional $2,300 for lower-income students eligible for free and reduced-price lunch; $800 for each English language learner; and $2,100 for each student receiving special education services.

ConVal and others say $4,100 is insufficient and that it and other school districts must resort to raising property taxes, a situation they say goes against the two Supreme Court rulings from the 1990s known as the Claremont decisions.

The lawsuit reached the Supreme Court in 2021, but the court declined to move quickly on it, instead remanding it back down to superior court for a trial to determine the actual cost of an adequate education. That trial is at the heart of the states current appeal to the high court.

Plaintiffs in the trial, held last summer, used the testimony of superintendents to paint a portrait of the spending requirements they say are necessary for an adequate education. ConVal Superintendent Kimberly Rizzo testified that she believed the adequacy funds should be at least $9,929 per pupil to cover actual costs. Ruoff used her and others testimony to arrive at the $7,356.01 figure in his November decision.

But the state argues those calculations are wrong. When determining what counts as an adequate education, lawmakers should not rely on school district reports, but should instead stick to the written minimum requirements for schools outlined in RSA 193-E:2-a  as well as the minimum standards laid out in the Department of Educations rules, known as Ed 306, the state contends.

That state statute requires that schools provide instruction in English language arts and reading; mathematics; science; social studies; arts education; world languages; health and wellness; physical education; engineering and technology; personal finance literacy; computer science; and logic and rhetoric. The state rules go into further detail of expectations for school districts.

The state argues that lawmakers should be beholden only to their own statutes when determining how much state money to send to schools  not the courts. Plaintiffs say the statute itself is unconstitutional and must be overridden by a court.

The return of donor towns?

In the Rand lawsuit, filed in 2021, a group of residents are suing the state arguing that the school funding system is unfair to property-tax payers.

In their legal filings to the Supreme Court last week, the Attorney Generals Office and the Coalition 2.0 argued that Ruoff was wrong to rule that the SWEPT tax is unconstitutional.

The tax  and the ability for wealthy towns to keep any SWEPT revenue they dont spend on schools, rather than redistributing it to poorer towns  is constitutional, the Attorney Generals Office argued.

The SWEPT rate is proportional and reasonable, equal in valuation and uniform in rate across the State, and just, the state said.

Currently, under New Hampshires statewide education property tax system, the Department of Revenue Administration applies a set percentage property tax rate to each town and city in the state  an amount they determine is necessary to raise $263 million per year. That flat rate must be applied to all property owners equally.

But the amount that rate actually raises varies in each city and town, depending on the value of properties. In towns with high-value properties, the percentage will net high amounts of revenue; towns with low-value properties will raise less. Some wealthy towns raise more than enough to cover the cost of their local schools, while some poorer towns dont raise enough.

While the SWEPT initially required wealthier towns to give up any revenue not needed for their schools, and allowed the state to redistribute that revenue, that changed in 2011 when Gov. John Lynch and Republican lawmakers allowed wealthier towns to keep their excess and use it for other town expenses.

The result: Poorer towns no longer receive extra infusions of revenue, and must instead rely on the states adequacy fund and additional local property taxes to pay for their schools.

Ruoff ruled that even though the SWEPT technically applies the same percentage tax rate to every property-tax payer, the lack of redistribution meant that in effect, towns are required to set different property tax rates for their schools, a violation of the constitutional requirement for taxes to be proportional and reasonable upon all inhabitants and residents.

Accordingly, the Court concludes that allowing some communities to retain excess SWEPT funds impermissibly results in a disproportionate tax rate, in violation of Part II, Article 5, Ruoff wrote. He ordered that the state return to the donor town system and redistribute the revenue immediately; that ruling was later stayed by the Supreme Court.

But the state  and the wealthy towns themselves  disagree with Ruoffs decision. SWEPT is a fair and equal tax for all property-tax payers, and whether the Legislature requires that it be redistributed is merely a spending decision by the Legislature, they argued in their appeal to the Supreme Court last week.

What the plaintiffs and the trial court call excess SWEPT is nothing more than lawfully raised tax revenue, the Attorney Generals Office wrote in its pleadings.  Part II, Article 5 does not apply to how the legislature chooses to appropriate lawfully raised SWEPT revenue.

The state also argues Ruoff was citing the state constitution too expansively, and was improperly applying the earlier Supreme Court Claremont decisions in the 1990s that first established that the state should provide for an adequate education.

If the Supreme Court cannot reconcile the states position with the earlier Claremont decisions, it should overturn or correct those decisions so that they align with the current statutes, the state continued.

The Coalition 2.0 filed its own briefing arguing the Legislature was acting constitutionally when it ended the donor town model of SWEPT taxes in 2011. Towns in that group include Bridgewater, Carroll, Center Harbor, Franconia, Gilford, Hampton, Hebron, Holderness, Hollis, Jackson, Lincoln, Lebanon, Meredith, Moultonborough, Newbury, New Castle, Newington, New London, Portsmouth, Rye, Sandwich, Sugar Hill, Sunapee, Tuftonboro, Waterville Valley, and Wolfeboro.

In an interview, Tobin, the plaintiffs attorney in the Rand case, countered that the SWEPT is not free revenue for the Legislature to distribute. And whether extra SWEPT can be kept by the towns is not a spending decision by lawmakers, but rather a question of how the tax itself functions, Tobin argued.

Most of the SWEPT gets allocated the right way, but in these wealthy towns, it doesnt, he said. 
(COLORADO SPRINGS)  The Colorado Springs Police Department (CSPD) is offering a unique opportunity for Colorado Springs high school students to discuss their thoughts and concerns directly with the Chief of Police.

The Chiefs Youth Advisory Council for the 2024/2025 school year will meet on the third Wednesday of every month from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. CSPD said the meetings are based on open dialogue and allow Chief Adrian Vasquez to hear directly from teens across the city and how they view the role of CSPD in keeping the city safe.

Courtesy: Colorado Springs Police Department

Courtesy: Colorado Springs Police Department

Courtesy: Colorado Springs Police Department

Courtesy: Colorado Springs Police Department

Applications are open on Colorado Springs website, applications are open to all high school youth in the community who are enrolled in public school, charter school, online school, alternative school, home school, or private school. Students under the age of 18 must have permission from a parent or legal guardian.

CSPD is offering an information meeting for interested students and parents/guardians on Wednesday, Sept. 4 at 6 p.m. at the Police Operations Center at 705 South Nevada Avenue.

Applications are due by Sept. 10 and students will be notified by Sept. 13 if they have been chosen for the council.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX21 News Colorado.
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (WBOY)  A ribbon-cutting event was held on Wednesday to welcome the new Appalachian Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub (ARCH2) to West Virginia with a special appearance from U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV).

During the event, which took place inside the WVU Innovation Corporation, the $30-million dollar award announcement that made this launch possible was celebrated. ARCH2s new program office was also officially opened.

The first major step has been crossed successfully, Senator Capito said. And so, 30 million dollars coming to the second phase, which should be about 18 months.

Capito said that one of the best things about this project coming to fruition is the partnerships that have begun since it first kicked off. She said that non-profit science and technology company Battelle has been in the lead, adding that WVU and Marshall University are critical aspects of this project.

Upshur Parish House opens new food pantry in Rock Cave

But all the private sector partners and then of course the government partners, you cant do something like this alone, its too massive, said Capito. And I think technologys moving along too so, Im excited that we are not just at the beginning of the packthat were leading the way.

Capito believes that ARCH2 will impact West Virginians in a couple of ways, adding that hydrogen is a fuel of the future. She said that some of the uses for hydrogen hubs include power generation, construction and development, which will create jobs in West Virginia.

Thats using the great graduates at WVU and the labor community to increase our economic benefits from using hydrogen in all the different ways that it can be used, Capito added.

We talk a lot about how much power are we gonna need to run AI and data centers and Bitcoin mining, said Capito. Its unimaginable and thats where I think hydrogen will have the best and brightest future, and its gonna be right here in Appalachia.

You can learn more about ARCH2 by visiting its website.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WBOY.com.
Its been a year since a deadly school bus crash on the first day of class and were going district by district to learn the changes theyve made or have not made to keep students safe.

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At Northwestern Local Schools, theyve painted a rock in Aiden Clarks memory. Clark was killed in the crash on the way to the first day of school.

Days after the tragedy within the Northwestern Local Schools district, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced a task force that later released a list of school bus safety recommendations.

On Thursday, we reached out to 15 Miami Valley districts. Five of them got back to us and we found some common threads in their responses about safety reform since Clarks death.

Four districts told us theyve either been adding bus safety features from the Ohio School Bus Safety Working Groups list over the last few years or have adopted some of them since the groups recommendations came out in January.

As reported on News Center 7 at 6:00, Springfield, Beavercreek, and Kettering schools all mentioned a focus on training for transportation employees.

Springfield, Kettering, and Fairborn schools all mentioned some type of on-board bus cameras, including on the stop arms.

A lot of people dont really seem to want to stop for busses, Ashley St. Pierre, of New Carlisle, said.

Kettering City Schools said every bus theyve ordered in the last six years had LED lights to help with potential distracted drivers.

As previously reported, some recommendations from the state task force need action from state lawmakers, such as approving money to fund a needs-based grant program to help districts pay for school bus safety features, approving to offer advanced bus driver training to districts at no cost, and changing Ohio law to stiffen penalties for drivers who break traffic laws in school zones or around school buses.

So far, none of that has been finalized.

State Representative Bernie Willis (R-Springfield) told News Center 7 that the talks have been ongoing.

Willis also said lawmakers are trying to change that with bills by the end of the year. Hes been frustrated by the pace of change in Columbus.

Government moves at, you know, a very slow speed, Willis said. Doesnt move as fast as I would like.

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Former President Bill Clinton took to the stage at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago Tuesday night to help pass the party's torch Wednesday night and endorse the Harris-Walz ticket.

After the former president took the stage to a rapturous ovation and recognized the notable change of energy surrounding the party after President Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race saying, "aren't you proud to be a Democrat."

Clinton took multiple shots at Republican's economic record, saying that 50 million jobs had been created under Democrats since the end of the Cold War compared to one million jobs under Republicans.

Clinton also took swipes at Republican nominee Donald Trump, including his propensity to mention fictional characters in his speeches.

"When you send a signal to other countries you want them to know, whether they agree with you or not, that you're on the level about what you say and what you believe," Clinton said. "What are they supposed to think about the endless tributes to the late great Hannibal Lecter?"

Clinton's appearance was a reminder that the convention at the United Center served as a transition from the party away from triangulation and NAFTA to a party of infrastructure spending and child tax credits.

"I love seeing all these young leaders," Clinton said. "They look better, they sound better and they'll be exciting."

Watch President Bill Clinton's full speech at the 2024 DNC

Democratic convention live updates: What time does the DNC start? What's the speaker lineup?

What to know about Bill Clinton at the DNC convention

Who are they : 42nd President of the United States

What role they play : Party elder, convention speaker

Key quote: "Will this president take us backwards or forwards? Will this president give our kids a better future?"

Former President Bill Clinton speaks during the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center Wednesday.

When and where is the DNC

The Democratic National Convention will take place from August 19-22 in Chicago, Illinois.

The United Center, home of the Chicago Bulls and Blackhawks, will be the main venue for the DNC.

Chicago has hosted the Democratic Convention 11 times, most recently in 1996 when the United Center saw President Bill Clinton was nominated for a second time.

How to watch and stream the 2024 DNC

USA TODAY will provide livestream coverage on YouTube each night of the DNC, Monday through Thursday.

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The convention will air live on its website, from the United Center in Chicago between 6:15 p.m. and 11 p.m. Eastern (5:15 p.m. to 10 p.m Central) on Monday, and 7 p.m to 11 p.m. Eastern (6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Central) the other days.

What are the themes for each night of the DNC?

The DNC announced nightly themes for the convention. The title of the convention is "For the People, For Our Future."

Here are the themes for each night:

Monday: "For the People"

Tuesday: "A Bold Vision for America's Future"

Wednesday: "A Fight for our Freedoms"

Thursday: "For our Future"

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Watch: Bill Clinton passes torch to Kamala Harris at 2024 DNC
Photo by Ariana Figueroa | States Newsroom

CHICAGO  Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, fresh from Kamala Harris vice presidential short list, kicked off the morning for Wisconsin Democrats on Tuesday with a plea to avoid complacency and get voters to the polls.

We cannot allow Donald Trump to get within a mile of the White House again, the former astronaut told the breakfast crowd on Day 2 of the Democratic National Convention. This is not rocket science. It isnt. If it was, I could help you with that.

Kellys remarks were aired on C-Span and open to journalists, as state delegation breakfasts typically are at the parties conventions every four years.

But in 2024, the Arizona Democrats and Republicans both denied access to journalists, puzzling some delegates who said there was nothing sensitive  just the usual speechifying and daily pep rally.

Its a good way for the Democrats from Arizona to see who else is there and meet each other because in a venue like this, people are from all over the country, said Ellen Ferreira, one of the Arizona Democratic Partys 91 delegates in Chicago and president of the Sedona-area Democrats of the Red Rocks. Nothing high level or secretive went on. I dont see any reason why the press wasnt (there).

Other delegates also had no explanation for excluding news media from the Arizona delegations breakfast meetings.

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The state Democratic Partys spokeswoman, Patricia Socarras, said by email that while delegates would be available for interviews, the breakfast was not open to the press. She provided no explanation, or speaker lists.

Arizona Republicans similarly refused to let in reporters at the GOP convention in Milwaukee in June.

For both Arizona parties, barring news media from delegation breakfasts is a departure from previous national conventions  and from the tradition of openness continued by other state delegations this year. These morning gatherings are a major focus on the delegates day, an opportunity to hear from state and national party luminaries and size up future contenders.

New York delegates, for instance, heard Monday morning from Empire State VIPs  Gov. Kathy Hochul, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries  and from Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, according to the American Prospect and other news reports.

The Georgia delegation heard from Sen. Raphael Warnock.

Donald Trump tried to steal Georgias votes, he said, according to Politico, referring to a call pressuring the states top elections official to somehow find enough votes to tip the 2020 election his way. Kamala Harris is trying everything she can to earn our votes.

Wisconsin delegates heard not only from Kelly but also from Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz  Harris choice for running mate.

Walz also made a surprise appearance at the Pennsylvania breakfast, according to MinnPost, though Minnesotans had to make do on Monday with Klobuchar and the states lieutenant governor.

The Illinois delegation heard from Walzs wife, Gwen Walz, according to Axios, plus their own governor, JB Pritzker, and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker.

Thats a sampling of the breakfast events open to the press in Chicago this week.

On Wednesday, Gov. Katie Hobbs headlined the Arizona breakfast, along with Booker and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

On Tuesday, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, a rising Democratic star, spoke to the Arizona delegation along with Education Secretary Miguel Cardona and Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, the first Native American to serve as a cabinet secretary.

Thats all according to delegates in the room who provided that information to Cronkite News; the state party itself has declined even to identify speakers.

At the Arizona breakfast on Monday, delegates heard from Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, Tucson Mayor Regina Romero and Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego  and they were amazing, according to a social media post by delegate Stephen Roe Lewis, governor of the Gila River Indian Community.

It was nice, kind of building up the energy because everyone is tired and it was early, said Llama Habern, a first-time delegate and co-founder of the Rural Organizing Initiative. It was fun that we all have the Arizona shirts.

Habern said the state party chair, Yolanda Bejarano, also addressed delegates, that Fontes was really good at getting a room going, and that delegates rallied around the goal of taking back the Senate.

Asked later why the event wasnt open to reporters, Gallego said she was happy to share anything I said.

We have had reporters around all the time, Gallego said. When Arizona landed, most of our delegation did interviews at the baggage claim. So I feel like its been great representation for the Arizona media.

Tom Morrissey, a former chair of the Arizona Republicans, said he allowed reporters into the delegate breakfasts at the 2012 convention, but times have changed.

I dont recall my keeping the press out because I believe in open discussion, but the temperature of the country and the landscape has shifted substantially, he said by phone. Its a judgment call. I guess if I were chairman today, there might be times or circumstances where I wouldnt allow somebody in that I thought might compromise the integrity of the meeting.

Kansas Democrats closed their Monday breakfast to the media but said that was an isolated decision.

Some folks do not want press there for various reasons, whether its to protect their identity, job security, that kind of stuff, but they might have really compelling stories or history that is motivating to our delegation, so we still want them there, said Matthew Lang, communications director for Kansas Democrats. Otherwise, we open up the space to the press.

In 2016, Arizona Democrat and Republican delegation breakfasts provided insights into how the conventions intersected with Arizona issues and campaigns, as documented by Arizona news outlets.

Black Lives Matter discussions stood out in the Democrats meeting that year, soon after Dalvin Hollins, a Black robbery suspect in Tempe, was shot and killed by police.

That year, Arizona GOP leaders called for party unity after the divisive primaries that led to Trumps nomination. They discussed outreach to independent voters and previewed campaign strategies.

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Parents-to-be from Haiti stand at a gap in the U.S.-Mexico border wall after having traveled from South America to the United States on Dec. 10, 2021 in Yuma. Photo by John Moore | Getty Images

Arizona Democrats are calling former President Donald Trumps planned visit to the Arizona border as nothing more than a photo op, after he blew up a bipartisan border security bill earlier this year.

Trump is set to make a campaign stop in Cochise County, to visit the states border with Mexico.

He likes to make a trip (to the border), it seems, about once a year to get his picture taken by the fence, U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly said during an Aug. 21 call with journalists.

And Kelly said he believes that Americans see through Trumps posturing.

They know that theres only one person who is actually interested in finding some real solutions to solving the issues at our border, and that is Vice President (Kamala) Harris, Kelly said.

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Ahead of his visit to Arizona, Trumps campaign blamed Harris for the border crisis, including crime and chaos caused by illegal immigrants and overdoses of the opioid fentanyl that has been trafficked into the country from Mexico.

According to the United States Sentencing Commission, 86% of people sentenced for trafficking fentanyl from 2017 through 2021 were U.S. citizens.

President Donald J. Trump knows that the people of Arizona and the rest of the country cannot take another four years of a missing-in-action border Czar who refuses to act to secure our border and protect our country, the Trump campaign wrote in an email. President Trump will Make America Great Again by stopping the migrant invasion and carrying out the largest deportation operation in American history.

But Kelly and Bisbee Mayor Ken Budge, both Democrats, castigated Trump for running on a promise to secure the border after he told Republicans in the U.S. Senate not to vote for a bipartisan border security bill earlier this year.

Trump urged Senate Republicans not to support the proposed legislation because he wanted to campaign on the issue, and didnt want to hand a win to President Joe Biden. Some progressive Democrats and members of the Hispanic Caucus also criticized the bill for providing too many concessions to Republicans.

The bill was aimed at reducing border crossings, bolstering restrictions for asylum seekers and would have allowed the government to sanction and seize the assets of those involved in the fentanyl supply chain.

Kelly characterized Trumps ordering Republicans to kill the bill as one of the most hypocritical things Ive seen.

He added that, if Harris is elected president, she has promised to sign a bipartisan border security bill, which will include higher pay for border patrol agents as well as funding to hire more agents.

Kelly accused Trump and Vance of wanting to campaign on the issue of border security, without a desire to actually address the issues.

When that border bill blew up, I just couldnt stand it any longer, Budge said, acknowledging that the bill wasnt perfect but that he believed it would have produced results.

Budge said that its important to keep the flow of commerce open between border cities like Bisbee and sister cities in Mexico, and that the mass deportations that Trump has promised if hes elected would make Latinos feel targeted and separate families.

Both Kelly and Budge avoided directly answering a question from a reporter about whether Harris would visit the border. Trump has repeatedly criticized Harris for failing to make the trip.

Just to have your picture taken with a big, rusty wall behind you, I dont think accomplishes anything, Budge said.

Instead, Harris is hearing  through surrogates  from the people and leaders of border cities, which Budge said was more important.

In late July, mayors of some left-leaning Arizona border cities  Bisbee, Nogales, Somerton and San Luis  endorsed Harris.

Those mayoral positions are nonpartisan, but Jorge Maldonado, the mayor of Nogales, spoke alongside Trump-backed Republican candidate for U.S. Senate Kari Lake during her Mama Bear Border Tour last November.

After speakers last night at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago called out Trump for the part he played in blowing up the border security bill, he lashed out at Harris via social media.

Tomorrow, I will be going to the Southern Border to address the plague of Migrant Crime and Migrant Rape that so-called Border Czar, Comrade Kamala Harris, has unleashed on America, Trump wrote on Truth Social, a social media site that he founded. This nightmare ends, and ends immediately, with our VICTORY in November!

The Trump campaign also sent out emails placing the blame on Harris for a porous border and for releasing criminals and terrorists into the country.

Its true that unauthorized border crossings spiked during Bidens first three years as president, before seeing a steep drop this year. But those numbers were influenced by many factors, including the end of COVID-19 lockdowns and turmoil in multiple Latin American countries.

In June, Biden issued an executive order that barred most immigrants who entered the country illegally from seeking asylum, a move that was criticized by Republicans as too little, too late and by progressives as a betrayal of Bidens promises of humane action at the border.

Unaccompanied children are exempt, along with victims of human trafficking, people with visas, people with medical emergencies or those who report serious threats to their lives.

After his visit to the border today, Trump is hosting a campaign rally at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale on Friday, the same venue where Harris drew a crowd of approximately 15,000 supporters on Aug. 9.

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Arizona man sought in connection to threats against former President Donald Trump is arrested, law enforcement says

An Arizona man who was being sought for allegedly making threats against former President Donald Trump has been arrested, according to law enforcement.

Ronald Syvrud, who is accused of threatening to kill Trump in multiple social media posts over the past couple of weeks, was taken into custody Thursday afternoon in Cochise County, according to county public information officer Carol Capas. Trump was in the county Thursday delivering remarks at the United States-Mexico border.

The Cochise County Sheriffs Office said they were made aware of a threatening social media message directed at Trump on Tuesday. This message contained language that indicated bodily harm to the candidate, the sheriffs office said on Facebook.

A second social media post with threats against Trump was found Wednesday, according to authorities. Capas previously declined to name which platform the threats were made on.

The sheriffs office said locating this subject was a priority due to Trumps visit to the area. Intelligence developed led to a possible location in the St. David area and multiple units deployed to the location, the sheriffs office said.

Syvrud was taken into custody without incident and booked on suspicion of two counts of threatening related to the social media posts, and a felony warrant from a neighboring county for failing to register as a sex offender, the sheriffs office said.

The former presidents team was briefed by law enforcement about the search for the man before he arrived at the border, a source familiar with the matter told CNN.

US Secret Service spokesperson Alexandria Worley told CNN the agency is investigating the man. The U.S. Secret Service investigates all threats against our protectees. As this is an ongoing investigation, we cannot comment further at this time, Worley said.

The 66-year-old was wanted on several outstanding warrants stemming from DUI charges, felony hit and run, and failing to register as a sex offender, the sheriffs office said in the Facebook news release. Syvrud is a resident of Benson, Arizona, the release said, a city about 50 miles southeast of Tucson.

In addition to supporting state and federal law enforcement in securing the area for Trumps border visit, the sheriffs office had added extra investigative resources to search for Syvrud.

When asked about the man who allegedly made threats against him during his speech at the border, Trump said he was unaware the Secret Service was investigating the man but was not that surprised.

Ive heard its dangerous, but I also have a job to do I havent heard about that. They probably want to keep it from me, Trump said. I have heard it was very unsafe to make this trip, there were some people that really didnt want me to make it.

The Secret Service started bolstering Trumps security detail and planned to surround the former president with bulletproof glass at campaign rallies after an assassination attempt on Trump at his rally last month in Butler, Pennsylvania, a senior official told CNN last week.

Syvrud is in custody pending further court adjudication, the sheriffs office said. CNN could not immediately identify an attorney for Syvrud.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

CNNs Holmes Lybrand, Kate Sullivan and Kristen Holmes contributed to this report.

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Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump holds a campaign rally in Wilkes-Barre

By Jasper Ward and Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An Arizona man is wanted after threatening over social media to kill former President Donald Trump, the Cochise County Sheriff's Office said on Thursday.

Donald Trump, the Republican nominee for president, is in Cochise County as he visits the U.S. border with Mexico as part of his campaign.

The man, Ronald Lee Syvrud, 66, has multiple outstanding warrants from Wisconsin, the sheriff's office said.

"No, I have not heard that but I am not that surprised and the reason is because I want to do things that are very bad for the bad guys," Trump said when asked about that threat against him in Arizona.

This is the latest in a series of threats against candidates ahead of the Nov. 5 general election.

In early August, a Virginia man was charged with threatening Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump's Democratic rival, and a New Hampshire man was arrested in December for threatening to kill Republican presidential candidates.

In July, Trump was shot in his ear in an attempted assassination that left two others injured and one man dead.

The U.S. Secret Service came under widespread scrutiny following the shooting. It resulted in the resignation of the agency's director.

Despite this and new threats, Trump said he has "great respect" for the Secret Service and "the job they do," while adding they made mistakes from which they will learn.

(Reporting by Jasper Ward and Kanishka Singh; Editing by David Gregorio)
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. In the face of global climate change, countries around the world have joined forces to tackle this uphill battle, which not only puts the environment at stake but also hangs humanity by a thread. Over the past decades, the international community has jumped on the bandwagon and embraced several key documents aimed at cutting down on greenhouse gas emissions and putting the brakes on global warming.

The first big leap forward was the Kyoto Protocol, which was given the green light in 1997 under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). This document put the ball in the court of industrialized countries to cut down on their greenhouse gas emissions by an average of 5.2 percent from 1990 levels between 2008 and 2012.

Despite considerable efforts, the Kyoto Protocol fell short in fully addressing climate change, as it did not include developing countries and lacked long-term mechanisms to achieve sustainable results.

Paris Agreement: a new phase in the fight against climate change

In 2015, the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris saw the adoption of the Paris Agreement, a landmark document that marked a new milestone in international climate negotiations. Unlike the Kyoto Protocol, the Paris Agreement commits all countries, regardless of their economic development, to reducing emissions and adapting to climate change.

The primary goal of the Paris Agreement is to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, with aspirations to limit it to 1.5 degrees Celsius. To achieve this, countries have committed to developing and implementing Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), which include specific measures to reduce emissions and adapt to climate change. These plans are to be updated every five years, reflecting countries' progress and capabilities.

Furthermore, the Paris Agreement emphasizes the mobilization of financial resources to combat climate change, with a target of allocating $100 billion annually to developing countries starting in 2020. These funds are intended to support actions in climate change mitigation and adaptation.

Implementation and follow-up of the Paris Agreement

Following the adoption of the Paris Agreement, countries began actively developing and implementing national programs to reduce emissions and adapt to climate change. Annual conferences of the parties to the UNFCCC, such as COP26 in Glasgow, review the progress made and outline new steps to achieve the goals. In 2021, COP26 resolved to update nationally determined contributions to incorporate new evidence on climate risks and progress.

A crucial aspect of the Paris Agreement has been the active involvement of the private sector, which has also committed to reducing emissions and investing in clean technologies. Companies worldwide are adopting sustainable practices, developing new solutions for transitioning to a carbon-neutral economy, and providing financial support for climate initiatives.

However, despite pulling out all the stops, tackling climate change is still an uphill battle. The rate of global warming is still off the charts, and the global community will need to kick it up a notch to meet the Paris Agreement's goals.

In this context, at the forthcoming climate summits, nations will need to show concrete outcomes and figure out how to end the global catastrophe.

The good news is that during COP29 in Baku, the topic of ponying up $150 billion will be on the table.

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. 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.

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LITTLE ROCK, Ark.  Supporters and challengers to an amendment to add abortion access to the Arkansas constitution are responding after Thursdays 4-3 decision by the state Supreme Court to block the measure from the November ballot.

The majority of justices ruled that Arkansans For Limited Government (AFLG), the group behind the ballot measure, had not properly turned in paperwork about paid canvasser training, which in turn disqualified some of the signatures gathered, pushing the groups total below required numbers.

That ruling supported a decision by Secretary of State John Thurston that Attorney General Tim Griffin had defended.

Arkansas Supreme Court rules abortion amendment supporters did not meet signature requirements, wont be on ballot

In a statement, an AFLG spokesperson said the narrow decision was a dark day in Arkansas and cited Justice Karen Bakers dissenting opinion.

As Justice Bakers dissent explains, the majority opinion supports Secretary Thurstons decision to make up out of whole cloth statutory requirements that do not exist, the spokesperson said. Justice Bakers dissent also highlights the alarming nature of Secretary Thurstons treatment of the Arkansas Abortion Amendment.

The statement continued to cite Bakers strongly worded dissent, quoting: The majority has succeeded in its efforts to change the law in order to deprive the voters of the opportunity to vote on this issue, which is not the proper role of this court.

The AFLG spokesperson added that the group would continue its work.

Arkansas abortion amendment organizers claim secretary of state failed to fulfill his duty in rejecting signatures

Others were in favor of the Thursday ruling. Griffin, whose office maintained that insufficient signatures were turned in, issued a statement supporting the decisions legal basis.

Changing the Arkansas Constitution involves a rigorous process requiring strict adherence to the law, Griffin said. The Arkansas Supreme Court confirmed today that the abortion advocates failed to follow the law that other ballot committees had successfully followed for over a decade since Governor Mike Beebe signed the law governing paid canvassers in 2013.

The attorney general added the ruling was a win for the rule of law in Arkansas.

Thurston released his own statement, stating the ballot petition would not be certified or verified for the November election and commending the professionalism of his staff.

During the electoral process, my staff maintained the highest professional standards and did not allow partisan politics or misinformation to deter them from their duty to comply with the law, he wrote. I am dedicated to my calling to serve Arkansans and will continue to do so.

There was also a number of responses from other groups who were vocal in their opposition to the ballot measure since its inception.

Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders made a brief statement on social media supporting the ruling and taking some credit for it.

Proud I helped build the first conservative Supreme Court majority in the history of Arkansas and today that court upheld the rule of law, and with it, the right to life, Sanders said.

Arkansas attorney general files motion with Supreme Court to dismiss abortion ballot question case

Arkansas Right to Life executive director Rose Mimms issued a statement supporting the ruling shortly after it was made.

Arkansas has dodged a deadly assault on our women and children with the disqualification of the amendment for the 2024 ballot and we are extremely grateful to the court for their rejection of the amendment as the law required and for the reprieve that Arkansas women and their babies will enjoy for at least the next two years until they try again, Mimms said.

Arkansas Family Council spokesperson Jerry Cox also issued a statement shortly after the courts ruling was announced, saying it proved Arkansans position on abortion.

This radical abortion amendment might have made the ballot had it not been for all of the pro-life Arkansans who spread the word about it and had it not been for the Arkansans Secretary of State and Arkansas Attorney General being willing to enforce Arkansas ballot initiative laws, Cox said. This campaign has revealed that Arkansas is home to a strong, pro-life community.

Attorney General Tim Griffin certifies Arkansas Abortion Amendment ballot language

Cox continued to thank Thurston and Griffin, pro-life groups, churches, ministers, elected officials such as Governor Sanders, and many volunteers for coming together to win this great victory.

Arkansas Democrats party chair Grant Tennille released a statement expressing the groups frustration and disappointment with the court ruling.

The MAGA Republicans total abortion ban has brought to light countless stories of women and girls who have been harmed by this extreme policy, which makes no exceptions for rape, incest, child victims, or mothers in danger, Tennille said. This no-exceptions ban is too extreme, and voters deserved the opportunity to vote for common-sense access and exceptions.

Tennille added that Republicans, knowing their views were unpopular, used their power to cheat Arkansas voters of the opportunity to have their voices heard.

Holly Dickson, executive director of ACLU of Arkansas said the court decision proved the need for vigilance.

This is further proof that Arkansans must be ever vigilant to oppose politicians grabs of power from the people by voting our values and raising our voices, Dickson said.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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LITTLE ROCK, Ark.  Crude oil prices have seen a continuous decline, and AAA officials said that gas prices in Arkansas are following the same trend weeks before Labor Day.

According to AAA, the statewide gas price average is $3.06 per gallon of regular unleaded fuel, which is six cents lower than last week.

How does a gas pump know when to shut off?

Throughout the state, drivers in Lafayette County are paying the states highest gas average of $3.76. Drivers in Randolph County are paying the least at the pumps with an average of $3.11.

In central Arkansas, gas in Pine Bluff is averaging at $3.06 per gallon and $3.04 in Hot Springs. Drivers in the Little Rock-North Little Rock area are paying the least, with a gas average of $3.03.

Costco vs. Sams Club: Who has better gas?

Officials said that oil prices have dropped for five consecutive days, with prices around $72 per barrel. AAA spokesperson Nick Chabarria informed Labor Day travelers that they may see lower prices than last year.

Arkansans planning Labor Day road trips will be paying less at the pump than last year, Chabarria said. AAA encourages drivers to save even more on fuel costs by packing all luggage inside the vehicle rather than using overhead luggage racks, obey speed limits and make sure tires are properly inflated before hitting the road.

Whats the cheapest day of the week to buy gas? Heres when to fill up

Figures show that drivers in Arkansas are paying the 8th lowest gas price average in the country. The national gas price average is $3.38.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Arkansas Coalition of Marshallese founder Melisa Laelan discusses a new report that recommends using legislation to extend SNAP benefits to Marshallese migrants during a press conference on Aug. 31, 2023. (Antoinette Grajeda/Arkansas Advocate)

A legislative subcommittee on Thursday approved an emergency rule to comply with a new federal law that extends certain public assistance program benefits to migrants from the Marshall Islands.

Arkansas is home to the largest Marshallese community in the country, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates.

The emergency rule the Department of Human Services presented to the Arkansas Legislative Councils Executive Subcommittee Thursday afternoon updates eligibility provisions contained in the DHS Division of County Operations (DCO) rules to comply with the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2024.

The Act, which President Joe Biden signed into law on March 9, contains changes to the renegotiated Compacts of Free Association (COFA), which extend Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Transitional Employment Assistance (TEA) eligibility to citizens from the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Palau.

COFA allows the United States to operate military bases in these Pacific Island nations in exchange for guarantees and economic assistance. Migrants from these Freely Associated States can live and work in the U.S. as lawful non-immigrants.

According to documents submitted to the committee, an emergency rule is required because the Pacific Islander community has the highest poverty rate in Arkansas and there exists imminent peril to the public health, safety and welfare of the state.

More than 32% of the states Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander population live below the poverty rate, according to American Community Survey census data.

Weve just now received the guidance from [USDA Food and Nutrition Service] and we have been asked repeatedly by some of the Marshallese for the need of this, so we bring it to you as an emergency rule to have it implemented, said Janet Mann, DHS deputy secretary for programs and the state Medicaid director.

With no discussion from members, the committee quickly approved the rule, which co-chair Rep. Jeff Wardlaw, R-Hermitage, said would become effective upon adjournment of the Arkansas Legislative Councils meeting Friday.

A permanent rule will be promulgated to be effective by Dec. 1, according to documents submitted by DHS.

A report released last year by Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families and the Arkansas Coalition of Marshallese recommended granting Marshallese migrants SNAP eligibility through legislation like the Compact Impact Fairness Act to address the communitys struggles with food insecurity.

Co-sponsored by Arkansas U.S. Rep. Steve Womack and Sen. John Boozman, the Compact Impact Fairness Act proposed allowing COFA migrants to qualify for most safety net programs, including SNAP. Language from that bill was incorporated into the amended compact with the Marshall Islands, which was agreed to last October.

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Compensation for past nuclear weapons testing by the U.S. was a sticking point in COFA negotiations and it delayed the renewal process. From 1946 to 1958, the U.S. conducted 67 nuclear weapons tests on and near the Marshall Islands, including the largest bomb ever detonated by the United States.

The original compact with the Republic of the Marshall Islands became effective in 1986, with economic assistance beginning in 1987. The RMI signed agreements in 2003 to renew compact assistance, and Congress passed legislation amending the compacts and extending economic assistance for 20 years.

But Marshallese migrants lost access to programs like Medicaid and SNAP two decades ago when their unique immigration status was not accounted for in the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, a 1996 welfare reform law. Congress restored Medicaid access in 2020, and the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2024 amended the 1996 law to restore SNAP access this year.

Under the updated compact, COFA citizens are not subject to a waiting period and are immediately eligible for benefits as long as they meet all other SNAP requirements, according to guidance issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in July.

COFA citizens who applied on or after March 9, 2024, and were denied SNAP benefits prior to the USDA issuing guidance may reapply or request a fair hearing within 90 days of the denial date. If an official determines the household was eligible for SNAP at the time of application, the state agency should issue retroactive benefits from the date of application, according to the guidance.

The USDA also encouraged state agencies to track COFA citizens who have been denied SNAP benefits since March and encourage them to reapply or request a fair hearing.

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Opponents and supporters of the Arkansas Abortion Amendment gather at the state Capitol on Friday, July 5, 2024. (Tess Vrbin/Arkansas Advocate)

This story was updated at 3:05 p.m. and again at 6:09 p.m. on Aug. 22, 2024.

A proposed abortion-rights amendment to the Arkansas Constitution will not be on the statewide November ballot, the state Supreme Court ruled in a 4-3 decision Thursday.

Supporters of the amendment, which would have created a limited right to abortion, did not submit the correct paperwork to Secretary of State John Thurstons office at the right time, the courts majority said.

The courts opinion concludes a five-week legal dispute over the signatures collected by paid canvassers for the proposed amendment. The decision also comes on the deadline for Thurstons office to distribute certified election ballots to county election officials.

As the facts are undisputed, we hold that AFLG, by its own admission, failed to submit the required paid canvasser training certification.

 Arkansas Supreme Court majority opinion, CV-24-455

The ballot question committee Arkansans for Limited Government said in a statement that Thursday was a dark day in Arkansas and that Thurston and the court silenced the over 102,000 supporters of the amendment.

Despite this infuriating result, our fight isnt over, the group stated. We cant  and wont  rest until Arkansas women have access to safe, standard health care and the autonomy to make decisions about their bodies free from governmental interference.

Proposed constitutional amendments require 90,704 signatures from 50 counties to qualify for the ballot. Supporters of the Arkansas Abortion Amendment gathered in the Capitol and cheered as AFLG submitted 102,730 signatures to Thurstons office on the deadline of July 5.

Thurston said July 10 that the 14,143 signatures collected by paid canvassers were invalid and that he would not count the remaining signatures because they would fall below the required minimum.

State law requires ballot question committees to submit an affidavit identifying paid canvassers by name and provide proof that the committee explained to canvassers the states laws for soliciting signatures and gave them the Secretary of States initiatives and referenda handbook before they started canvassing.

AFLG repeatedly insisted that it did submit the required documents. The group submitted a Sponsor Affidavit signed by Allison Clark to Thurstons office June 27, testifying to the signature collection education portion of the law, and court filings state it was the seventeenth time the document was submitted.

The group also said it routinely submitted lists of paid canvassers to Thurston, including on July 4 and 5, and did not include another sponsor affidavit on those days because Thurstons staff said it was not necessary and all the correct paperwork had been filed.

We have explained that even in election matters, the burden of determining what the law requires falls on the filernot office staff, Associate Justice Rhonda Wood wrote in the majority opinion. Thus, as the facts are undisputed, we hold that AFLG, by its own admission, failed to submit the required paid canvasser training certification.

AFLG submitted the certification on July 11 and argued that Thurston should accept it, but the court disagreed.

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The committee initially asked the Supreme Court July 16 to order Thurston to count the remaining signatures, and the court granted the request July 23. Thurstons office counted 87,675 signatures from registered voters that were collected by unpaid canvassers.

The court reiterated its decision to grant this request Thursday, but it denied the remaining petition, which asked for Thurston to certify the proposed amendment for the ballot.

We order that the 87,675 signatures be counted for purposes of the initial facial count because there is no constitutional or statutory authority to support not counting them, the opinion states. We find that the Secretary correctly refused to count the signatures collected by paid canvassers AFLG needed 90,704 signatures to complete the first stage of the initial facial count to proceed to the verification stage. As it failed to obtain this number of signatures, AFLG is not entitled to any further relief.

CV-24-455 majority opinion

Alleged discrimination

AFLG told the court earlier this month that Thurstons rejection of the amendment was viewpoint discrimination, citing his 2022 endorsement from Arkansas Right to Life and his donation to the group earlier this year.

Associate Justice Karen Baker agreed in her dissent Thursday that Thurston and the four justices who ruled in his favor have treated [the proposed amendment] differently for the sole purpose of preventing the people from voting on this issue.

Baker agreed with AFLG that state law does not require ballot measure petitions and paid canvasser certifications to be filed simultaneously.

On the contrary, this requirement was made up out of whole cloth by the respondent and inexplicably ratified by the majority of this court, Baker wrote.

Associate Justice Courtney Hudson co-signed Bakers dissent, which states she would prefer to advance all the signatures to the verification stage, appoint a special master to make findings of fact, grant a thirty-day provisional cure period, and order conditional certification of the proposed amendment.

Chief Justice John Dan Kemp said in his own dissent that he would have made the same orders.

Baker dissent

Additionally, Baker noted that the majority  Associate Justices Barbara Webb, Shawn Womack, Cody Hiland and Wood  did not address the concerns of another ballot question committee.

On July 31, Thurston gave supporters of changes to the states medical marijuana industry until Aug. 30 to collect more signatures for another proposed amendment. State law allows this cure period if a ballot question committees initial submission contains valid signatures equal to at least 75% of the overall required number of signatures and 75% of the required number from at least 50 counties.

The ballot question committee Arkansans for Patient Access intervened in the abortion amendment case last week, arguing that Thurstons reasons for rejecting the proposed amendment relied on an erroneous and out-of-the-ether interpretation of the law and threatened to keep the medical marijuana proposal off the ballot.

Thurston told APA on Aug. 8 that his office would not count signatures collected during the cure period by paid canvassers because a company that hired paid canvassers had signed legally required paperwork instead of the sponsor of the amendment. Thurston used this same argument against AFLG, and APA criticized Thurston in court documents for making the same eleventh-hour about-face.

Disqualifying signatures should be a high bar for the state to clear, APA member Bill Paschall said in a Thursday statement after the Supreme Court ruled against the abortion amendment. We believe when Arkansans take the time and make the effort to sign a petition that those signatures should be counted. Disqualifying based on a new interpretation of the canvasser registration filing process in midstream does not meet that high bar.

Baker expressed concern in her dissent that Thurston told APA that the thousands of signatures gathered by paid canvassers that he had previously deemed valid will remain so, despite any alleged statutory violationa courtesy that the respondent chose not to extend to the petitioners in the present case.

She called the differing treatment of the two measures alarming.

Why are the respondent and the majority determined to keep this particular vote from the people? Baker wrote. The majority has succeeded in its efforts to change the law in order to deprive the voters of the opportunity to vote on this issue, which is not the proper role of this court.

AFLGs statement praised Bakers assessment of the majority opinion and declared, Democracy demands better.

Supporters struggles

The Arkansas Abortion Amendment would have disallowed government entities to prohibit, penalize, delay or restrict abortion services within 18 weeks of fertilization.

The proposal would also have permitted abortion services in cases of rape, incest, a fatal fetal anomaly or to protect the pregnant females life or physical health, and it would have nullified any of the states existing provisions of the Constitution, statutes and common law that conflict with it.

Abortion has been illegal in Arkansas, except to save the pregnant persons life, since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. State Rep. Mary Bentley, R-Perryville, and former Republican state Sen. Jason Rapert of Conway sponsored the 2019 trigger law.

In Thursdays statement, AFLG praised the hundreds of volunteers who worked tirelessly to educate voters, coordinate signing opportunities, and collect signatures.

They were fearless in the face of misinformation, intimidation, and harassment, the statement reads. And their work will leave an indelible mark on Arkansas politics.

The group referred to a range of hurdles the amendments supporters faced in the months before the submission deadline. The anti-abortion groups Arkansas Right to Life and the Family Council led a Decline to Sign effort encouraging voters not to sign petitions for the amendment, and protesters targeted canvassing sites throughout the state.

In May, Little Rock police told supporters of the abortion amendment that they could be arrested for obstructing traffic while canvassing from a public sidewalk at a busy intersection.

We cant  and wont  rest until Arkansas women have access to safe, standard health care and the autonomy to make decisions about their bodies free from governmental interference.

 Arkansans for Limited Government

In June, the Family Council posted on its website a list of 79 people paid by AFLG to collect signatures. AFLG called the post attempted intimidation; the Family Council has since removed the list from the post but has kept a longer, more recent list publicly available on its political action committee website. Acquiring and publishing the list is legal under the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act.

On Independence Day, the day before the deadline to submit signatures to Thurston, an email claiming to be from AFLG caused confusion by stating no more signatures for the Arkansas Abortion Amendment were needed. AFLG quickly alerted supporters that the misleading email was not from them and encouraged people to continue signing petitions.

Bentley and Rapert have both broadcast their opposition to the amendment on social media.

Praise the Lord these cold-blooded baby killers lost their appeal to get their unholy abortion amendment on the ballot in #Arkansas, Rapert said Thursday on X, reposting a July 5 video from a supporter of the amendment celebrating the submission of signatures. Thanks to the 4 justices on the Arkansas Supreme Court for following the law. Just look at the way the abortion supporters cheered for death. Its crazy.

A unique challenge to the Arkansas Abortion Amendment was a lack of national support. While several states have approved citizen-led abortion-rights initiatives over the past two years and more have pursued similar efforts  including in neighboring Missouri, where abortion will be on the November ballot  Arkansas proposal has been controversial among reproductive justice advocates because it would reinstate an abortion policy more restrictive than the one in place under Roe v. Wade. For this reason, major national abortion-rights groups were not involved in promoting or funding the campaign, Slate reported.

https://southdakotasearchlight.com/2024/08/02/state-supreme-court-revives-legal-challenge-to-abortion-rights-ballot-measure/

In South Dakota, a proposed abortion-rights ballot measure faced a court challenge from an anti-abortion group alleging that supporters did not follow state canvassing laws. The measure remains likely to appear on the ballot, but the timing and outcome of the lawsuit could change that.

Like Arkansas, South Dakota bans abortion except to save the pregnant persons life.

Responses to courts ruling

Attorney General Tim Griffin, representing Thurston, asked the Arkansas Supreme Court on July 19 to dismiss AFLGs case. The courts Thursday decision denied the motion.

Griffin praised the courts decision in a statement, calling it a win for the rule of law in Arkansas.

The people rule in Arkansas, through the law, Griffin said, referring to the state motto, Regnat Populus, Latin for the people rule.

Changing the Arkansas Constitution involves a rigorous process requiring strict adherence to the law, Griffin continued. The Arkansas Supreme Court confirmed today that the abortion advocates failed to follow the law that other ballot committees had successfully followed for over a decade since Governor Mike Beebe signed the law governing paid canvassers in 2013.

Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders wrote on X in July that the far left pro-abortion crowd in Arkansas showed they are both immoral and incompetent in response to Thurstons initial rejection of the amendment.

Proud I helped build the first conservative Supreme Court majority in the history of Arkansas and today that court upheld the rule of law, and with it, the right to life, Sanders posted Thursday, referring to her appointment last year of Hiland, the former chairman of the state Republican Party.

The Democratic Party of Arkansas denounced the courts ruling in a news release.

The MAGA Republicans total abortion ban has brought to light countless stories of women and girls who have been harmed by this extreme policy, which makes no exceptions for rape, incest, child victims, or mothers in danger, party chairman Grant Tennille said. This no-exceptions ban is too extreme, and voters deserved the opportunity to vote for common-sense access and exceptions. Republicans know their extreme views are unpopular; thats why they repeatedly used their power to cheat Arkansans out of the opportunity to let their voices be heard.

The majority has succeeded in its efforts to change the law in order to deprive the voters of the opportunity to vote on this issue, which is not the proper role of this court.

 Arkansas Supreme Court Associate Justice Karen Baker, dissenting from the majority opinion in CV-24-455

Family Council President Jerry Cox called the proposed amendment deceptively worded in a statement praising the ruling.

This radical abortion amendment might have made the ballot had it not been for all of the pro-life Arkansans who spread the word about it and had it not been for the Arkansas Secretary of State and Arkansas Attorney General being willing to enforce Arkansas ballot initiative laws, Cox said. Arkansas women and unborn children will be protected from unrestricted abortion as a result. Arkansas remains the most pro-life state in America. Thats something to celebrate.

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An abortion rights amendment will not be on the ballot in Arkansas this fall, after the state Supreme Court ruled in favor of state officials in deciding organizers failed to submit the required paperwork, making the measure ineligible.

The 4-3 ruling Thursday means a long-shot bid by Arkansans for Limited Government (AFLG) to put abortion on the ballot in the ruby-red state will fall short.

The initiative would have protected abortion through the first 18 weeks of pregnancy, as well as in instances of rape, incest, threats to the womans health or life, or if the fetus would be unlikely to survive birth.

Abortion is banned in Arkansas at any stage of pregnancy, with an exception for a medical emergency only. Unlike other state initiatives, the amendment would not have created a constitutional right to abortion.

The measure did not go as far as in other states because organizers wanted to appeal to the more conservative voters in Arkansas. But as a result, leading national groups that back other measures did not support Arkansass initiative.

Organizers last month announced they had submitted more than 101,000 signatures in favor of the ballot initiative, well above the 90,704 needed for placing the amendment to the state constitution on the ballot.

But Secretary of State John Thurston (R) subsequently disqualified the signatures over what he said was essentially a paperwork error related to paid canvassers. Thurston said the group did not submit a sworn statement confirming that the paid canvassers had been instructed on how to collect signatures.

AFLG filed a lawsuit asking the state Supreme Court to vacate the disqualification.

We find that the Secretary correctly refused to count the signatures collected by paid canvassers because the sponsor failed to file the paid canvasser training certification, the court said.

As a result, the court found the initiative collected only 87,675 signatures, which was not enough for the measure to move forward.

In a statement, AFLG decried the ruling, saying the majority seemed determined to keep the initiative from being put to voters.

More than 102,000 Arkansas voters exercised their constitutionally protected right to engage in direct democracy by signing the petition to get the Arkansas Abortion Amendment on the ballot. The Courts majority ratifies Secretary Thurstons decision to silence those voices, Rebecca Bobrow, AFLGs director of strategy, said in a statement.

Despite this infuriating result, our fight isnt over. We cant  and wont  rest until Arkansas women have access to safe, standard health care and the autonomy to make decisions about their bodies free from governmental interference.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
LITTLE ROCK, Ark.  A ruling issued Thursday by the Arkansas Supreme Court looks to end the effort to put an abortion amendment in front of voters in November.

The court ruling states that the group Arkansans For Limited Government (AFLG) failed to meet the stated guidelines for submitting documentation that paid canvassers had been trained on state election laws, meaning signatures gathered by those canvassers could not be considered for the total required.

Arkansans for Limited Government sues Secretary of State Thurston over abortion amendment petition rejection

AFLG leaders had stated that while a document was not submitted with the petition signatures they turned in to the state on July 5, they had submitted partial lists earlier. In the decision, the justices said that these partial submissions did not meet state law, which required a single full list.

The justices added that the total number of signatures submitted by the ALFG that came from volunteer canvassers was 87,675, which falls below the amount that would trigger a curing period that would have allowed for additional signature gathering time.

Arkansas abortion amendment organizers claim secretary of state failed to fulfill his duty in rejecting signatures

The court was split 4-3 in its decision, and Chief Justice John Dan Kemp & Associate Justice Karen R. Baker filed dissenting opinions in the case, with Associate Justice Courtney Hudson joining in Bakers dissent.

Kemp wrote that he believes that the secretary of states office should have continued to count the full submission of signatures turned in by AFLG, completed a signature verification process, allowed for a cure period and then submitted its findings.

At that point, Kemp said he believed a special master should have been appointed to determine the questions about the paid canvasser documentation, the communications between AFLG & the secretary of states office, actions by both parties and the status of AFLGs Allison Clark on having the authority to sign a required sponsor statement.

Arkansas Supreme Court orders Secretary of State to count petition signatures for proposed abortion amendment

In her dissent, Baker took aim at the notion that state law required a single submission of the documentation of the paid canvasser training at the same time of the signatures submission, claiming this requirement was made up out of whole cloth by the secretary of states office then ratified by the majority of the justices.

Baker also contended that she believes the majority decision characterized her position in their language referring to partial credit for the partial attempt to comply to the filing laws.

Instead, Baker wrote, she believes that AFLG should be given full credit for the documentation for the 191 paid canvassers that the group had submitted and have signatures gathered from those canvassers included in the count.

Arkansas attorney general files motion with Supreme Court to dismiss abortion ballot question case

Baker also contends that Thurston taking issue with documentation being signed by Clark on behalf of AFLG would turn basic agency law on its head.

She also intimated that the secretary of state seemed to be following different protocols for this particular measure compared to a pair of others going before voters, one addressing medical marijuana and a second tied to the attempt to put a casino in Pope County.

Arkansas Supreme Court approves two groups to join abortion amendment lawsuit

A motion from the Arkansas attorney generals office, which was representing Arkansas Secretary of State John Thurston in this case, was denied.

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Around 900 signatures on two petitions sealed fate of this proposed Columbus development

A rezoning request for a proposed development on Macon Road was denied by the Planning Advisory Commission Wednesday after hundreds of residents petitioned against it.

Over 900 residents in the area signed two petitions that were submitted to the planning department. The residents, representing several subdivisions near the 5201 Macon Road site, organized to stop the development because they were concerned about increased traffic and a high number of rental units.

This just shows that if people will speak up for a common cause, our government will listen, said resident Karen Gaskins. Hopefully, this will encourage and empower people to get involved.

A controversial rezoning request for a proposed development on Macon Road was denied by the Planning Advisory Commission Wednesday after hundreds of residents petitioned against it. Over 900 residents in the area signed two petitions that were submitted to the planning department. The residents, representing several subdivisions near the 5201 Macon Rd. site, organized to stop the development because of concerns about increased traffic and a high number of rental units.

Who was planning this Columbus development?

Proterra Development, an Atlanta-based company, brought this development forward previously. But the firm delayed rezoning after a community meeting in March and reworked the site plan to try to address problems raised at that meeting.

The new plan decreased housing units from 670 to 476, developer Carlos Arenas told the Ledger-Enquirer, reducing the density by around 35%.

Other changes to the plan converted most of the housing into single-family homes and townhouses. A planned senior apartment building and all the commercial space previously planned were completely removed.

Proterra listened to the residents concerns and believed they were addressed in the new site plan, Arenas previously told the Ledger-Enquirer.

But Keith Parker, a resident representing the Farmington neighborhood at the Planning Advisory Commission meeting, disagreed.

Proterra Development has created a new site plan for the proposed development along Macon Road in Columbus, Georgia.

They listened, Parker said during the meeting. But they did not hear us. We are opposed to the rezoning.

Residents remained concerned about the increased traffic in their neighborhoods and that changing the zoning from single family residential to planned unit development would allow for commercial space in the future.

A planned unit development built directly across the street from his community of Chatham Woods would have a severe impact, resident Greg Foster said during Wednesdays meeting.

And I will tell you why, Foster said. (Planned unit developments) grow.

He presented information from the National Association of Realtors detailing how these developments can become small cities unto themselves.

Foster learned about planned unit developments while researching online, and it made him firmly opposed to changing the zoning, he told the Ledger-Enquirer.

I dont think it helps the neighborhoods at all, Foster said. I think it harms them.

The organization of the neighborhoods worked well over the past few months, Foster said, and he looks forward to seeing more collaboration in the future.

Before the planning meeting, some of his neighbors were worried the commissions decision wouldnt go their way, he said. They informed him they would move out of the neighborhood if the zoning was changed, Foster said.

But there was a feeling that we could win this if we stay vigilant and work together, he said.

After representatives from the neighborhoods spoke out against the rezoning request during the PAC meeting, Ralph King, who sits on the commission, made a motion to deny the request.

The room, which was standing room only, broke out in cheers and the crowd gave a standing ovation even before the commission officially voted to deny the request.

It was electric, Gaskins said.

Their organizing isnt expected to end here, Gaskins and Foster said.

Fosters neighborhood is already planning to host a yard sale to raise money to create an official homeowners association and secure legal representation to help residents with other issues. He also hopes to see the creation of a greater neighborhood association, with all of the areas neighborhoods represented.

The community is close-knit, Gaskins said, and regularly comes together to help one another. Neighbors worked together following last weeks storm to get a fallen tree out of a local road, ensured that their elderly neighbors were checked on, and made sure others who needed help were assisted.

We help each other, Gaskins said. We do life together.
LUDLOW, Mass. (WWLP)  The police in Ludlow made 50 arrests and summons, including 10 domestic assault-related arrests, within 32 days.

According to a release from the Ludlow Police Department, officers were called to 1,453 calls for service from July 18th through August 18th. Police arrested 50 individuals, including summons/warrant arrests, 10 domestic assault-related arrests, three mental health warrants, and four juvenile arrests/summons.

Vandalism at the Cathedral of Life Church in Ludlow

The following information was released by Ludlow police and does not include those with summons or names of those arrested for domestic violence charges:

July 20:

3:37 a.m.  Nickolas Forknot (26) of Winsor, Connecticut was arrested on Carmelinas Circle for: B&E Building Nighttime for Felony



3:37 a.m.  Robert Burns (29) of Hartford, Connecticut was arrested on Carmelinas Circle for: B&E Building Nighttime for Felony



July 22:

9:00 p.m.  Wayne William Olsen (57) of Ludlow was arrested on West Ave for: Oui-Liquor Or .08% (3rd Offense) License Suspended, Operate Motor Vehicle With Alcohol In Motor Vehicle, Possess Open Container Of Unregistered Motor Vehicle Uninsured Motor Vehicle Ammunition Without FID Card, Possess



July 23:

11:17 a.m.  A 36-year-old man from Chicopee  Criminal Complaint: Registration Suspended, Operate Motor Vehicle With Uninsured Motor Vehicle Unregistered Motor Vehicle



July 24:

4:09 a.m.  A 28-year-old man from Three Rivers  Criminal Complaint for: Vandalize Property



12:08 p.m.  Christopher Michael Corbin (51) of Ludlow was arrested on Cherry Street: Shoplifting By Asportation



10:18 p.m.  Andres Junior Moret (40) of Ludlow was arrested on Laconia Street for: Warrant Arrest



July 25:

8:58 a.m.  A 21-year-old woman from Ludlow  Criminal Complaint: Unlicensed Operation Of A Motor Vehicle Electronic Device, Use While Operating Motor Vehicle (1st



10:25 a.m.  A 48-year-old man from Springfield  Criminal Complaint: Abuse Prevention Order, Violate



10:55 a.m.  A 68-year-old woman from Ludlow  Criminal Complaint: Unlicensed Operation Of A Motor Vehicle Electronic Device, Use While Operating Motor Vehicle (1st Offense)



5:56 p.m.  A 26-year-old man from Springfield  Criminal Complaint: Unregistered Motor Vehicle Attaching Plates To A Motor Vehicle Speeding Stop for Police, Fail



July 26:

7:03 p.m.  A 48-year-old man from Springfield  Criminal Complaint: Abuse Prevention Order, Violate



10:23 p.m.  Lavonta Williams (28) of New Jersey was arrested on Chestnut Place for: Fugitive From Justice On Govs Warrant Warrant Arrest



July 27:

2:28 a.m.  Hasan Capkin (57) of Ludlow was arrested on Munsing Avenue for: Oui-Liquor Or .08% Marked Lanes Violation



July 28:

8:10 p.m.  A 39-year-old man from Chicopee was arrested off of West Street: Courtesy Booking for Another Agency



July 29:

5:14 p.m.  A 34-year-old man from Ludlow  Criminal Complaint: License Suspended, Operate Motor Vehicle With Registration Suspended, Operate Motor Vehicle With Uninsured Motor Vehicle



July 30:

1:51 p.m.  A 34-year-old woman from Ludlow  Criminal Complaint: Registration Suspended, Operate Motor Vehicle With Uninsured Motor Vehicle Unregistered Motor Vehicle



3:03 p.m.  A 31-year-old man from Springfield  Criminal Complaint: Abuse Prevention Order, Violate Abuse Prevention Order, Violate Abuse Prevention Order, Violate Abuse Prevention Order, Violate



6:26 p.m.  Kaitlyn Melissa Dowd, Kaitlyn Melissa (36) of Chicopee was arrested on Center Street for: Warrant Arrest



July 31:

11:59 a.m.  Michael Darryn Beaudry (33) of Belchertown was arrested on Church Street for: License Suspended, Operate Motor Vehicle With -Speeding



7:47 p.m.  A 14-year-old boy from Ludlow- Criminal Complaint: Vandalize Property



7:47 p.m.  A 14-year-old boy from Ludlow- Criminal Complaint: Vandalize Property



7:47 p.m.  A 15-year-old boy from Ludlow- Criminal Complaint: Vandalize Property



August 1:

6:26 p.m.  A 37-year-old man from Ludlow was arrested on Chapin Street for: Assault And Battery (Domestic) Attempt To Commit Crime Vandalize Property Vandalize Property



August 2:

3:39 a.m.  Sokah Lynn Vazquez (30) of Ludlow was arrested on Barna Street for: A&B On Police Officer Disorderly Conduct



3:39 a.m.  A 17-year-old girl from Springfield was arrested on Barna Street for: A&B On Police Officer A&B On Police Officer Vandalize Property Vandalize Property Vandalize Property



7:19 p.m.  Tyler Michael Ritchie-Forkey (30) of Ludlow was arrested on Winsor Street for: Warrant Arrest



August 3:

6:46 p.m.  A 59-year-old man from Hamden, Connecticut  Criminal Complaint: Unlicensed Operation Of A Motor Vehicle Speeding



August 4:

5:34 a.m.  A 20-year-old man from Ludlow  Criminal Complaint: Negligent Operation Of A Motor Vehicle Marked Lanes Violation Speeding



4:42 p.m.  A 42-year-old man from Ludlow was arrested off of West Avenue for: A&B On Family Household Member



10:25 p.m.  A 40-year-old woman from Springfield  Criminal Complaint: License Suspended, Operate Motor Vehicle With



August 6:

11:27 a.m.  A 28-year-old man from Ludlow was arrested on West Avenue for: Abuse Prevention Order, Violate Registration Suspended, Operate Motor Vehicle With Uninsured Motor Vehicle Unregistered Motor Vehicle Unlicensed Operation Of A Motor Vehicle



4:35 p.m.  A 28-year-old man from Ludlow was arrested off of Center Street for: Abuse Prevention Order, Violate



August 7:

7:23 p.m.  Madison Olivia Barber (20) of Springfield was arrested on Center Street for: Oui-Liquor Or .08% Negligent Operation Of A Motor Vehicle Marked Lanes



August 8:

5:09 a.m.  A 60-year-old man from Chicopee  Criminal Complaint: License Suspended, Operate Motor Vehicle With



10:24 a.m.  A 28-year-old man from Ludlow was arrested off of Chapin Street for: Warrant Of Apprehension



August 9:

9:20 p.m.  Sandra J. Fidalgo (65) of Florida was arrested on Summer Street for: Oui-Liquor Or .08% Negligent Operation Of A Motor Vehicle Leave Scene Of Property Damage Resist Arrest



10:17 p.m.  Emily Linn Desper (23) of New Hampshire was arrested on Chestnut Place for: Disorderly Conduct A&B On Police Officer A&B



August 10:

7:11 a.m.  Afonso J. Antonio (64) of Ludlow was arrested on Lakeview Avenue for: Arson Of Dwelling House Disorderly Conduct Resist Arrest



August 11:

1:16 p.m.  Gamalier Gonzalez (48) of Holyoke was arrested on East Street for: License Suspended for Oui/Cdl/Mvh, Operate Motor Vehicle With -License Revoked As Hto, Operate Motor Vehicle With



August 13:

12:22 a.m.- A 66-year-old man from Springfield  Criminal Complaint: A&B On Family/Household Member



9:55 a.m.  A 34-year-old man from Springfield  Criminal Complaint: Registration Suspended, Operate Motor Vehicle With Uninsured Motor Vehicle Unregistered Motor Vehicle



August 14:

1:45 p.m.  A 27-year-old from Ludlow  Criminal Complaint: Trespass



August 15:

11:18 a.m.  A 39-year-old man from Ludlow was arrested off of Cady Street for: Warrant Of Apprehension



August 16:

2:40 a.m.  A 28-year-old man from Ludlow  Criminal Complaint: Abuse Prevention Order, Violate



11:41 a.m.  A 23-year-old woman from Wilbraham was arrested off of Holyoke Street for: Warrant Of Apprehension



2:20 p.m.  Diogo Victor Ribeiro (28) of Ludlow was arrested on Birch Street for: Warrant Arrest



7:44 p.m.  A 28-year-old man from Springfield  Criminal Complaint: Unlicensed Operation Of A Motor Vehicle Uninsured Motor Vehicle Unregistered Motor Vehicle



10:25 p.m.  A 44-year-old man from Ludlow  Criminal Complaint: Number Plate Violation To Conceal Id Uninsured Motor Vehicle License Suspended, Operate Motor Vehicle With



August 17:

12:56 a.m.  A 25-year-old man from Ludlow was arrested off of East Street for: A&B On Family Household Member



2:21 p.m.  A 69-year-old man from Ludlow  Criminal Complaint: Registration Suspended, Operate Motor Vehicle With Speeding



2:27 p.m.  Kermit Jordan Sotomayor (24) of Ludlow was arrested on Center Street for: License Suspended for Oui/Cdl/Mvh, Operate Motor Vehicle With Number Plate Violation



Latest Local News Headlines

WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on WWLP.com.

Latest Local News Headlines

WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on WWLP.com.

Latest Local News Headlines

WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on WWLP.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 WWLP.
(KRON)  A man was arrested for the brutal 1973 murder of Nina Fischer, investigators said on Wednesday. Fischer lived in San Rafael with her husband and two-year-old daughter.

On August 14, Michael Eugene Mullen, 75, of Idaho, was apprehended by Marin County investigators and Idaho State Police.



I am incredibly proud of the endless hours of behind the scenes work our Bureau of Forensic Services put into this case, California Attorney General Rob Bonta said. We are hopeful that this arrest will bring justice and closure to this devastating case.



Fischer, 31, was raped and murdered in her San Rafael home in November 1973 while her husband was away at work.

The husband found his wifes body when he returned home. She had been shot three times. Their 2-year-old child was found unharmed in another room.

The murder case went cold for 50 years without an arrest.

Cold Case: San Jose boys killer gunned down by FBI in Ohio

In 2021, the Marin County Sheriffs Office sent the case to the California Department of Justices Familial Search Program. The program compares DNA from crime scenes to a DNA database in an effort to try to find relatives of a potential suspect.

If a potential relative is identified  an investigative lead is provided to law enforcement, Bontas office wrote. After a DNA match was found, cold case investigators arrested Mullen on suspicion of murder.

Mullen was booked into a Lemhi County Jail and he will be extradited to California to face charges.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.



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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4.
HONOLULU (KHON2)  An arrest has been made in the shooting of a 16-year-old who was on a bus in Kalihi when he was shot.

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HPD said a 19-year-old male was located and arrested around 11:30 a.m. Wednesday by SED and CRU units.

According to HPD, two males approached the back door of a bus on a moped around 3:30 p.m. on Aug. 9. Suspect 1, as identified by HPD, got off the moped and shot the victim. He then got back on the moped where Suspect 2 was waiting and drove away from the scene.

Parents raise concerns after teen shot on city bus

Evidence and surveillance video were recovered at the scene and witnesses were interviewed, leading to the eventual identification of Suspect 1.

Suspect 1 was arrested on suspicion of Attempted murder in the Second Degree and firearms violations. Charges will be sought with the prosecutors office, according to HPD.

The victim was hospitalized but has since been released.

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ASTANA, Kazakhstan, August 22. Kazakhstan and Tajikistan will sign a document on allied relations, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said during limited-format talks with President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, Trend reports.

Relations between Kazakhstan and Tajikistan are progressing successfully across nearly all areas. We are steadfast allies and value Tajikistan's support. However, we must continue advancing. The purpose of this visit is to significantly boost our cooperation. Today, we will sign the Treaty on Allied Relations, a document of historical significance. I believe this will lead to a productive exchange of views on all matters of mutual interest, Tokayev stated.

President Rahmon expressed optimism that the talks would invigorate the relationship between the two countries.

Our relations are growing dynamically in political, trade and economic, cultural, humanitarian, and security dimensions. I am ready to discuss the state and future of our cooperation, as well as international and regional issues, the Tajik president said.

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev is on a two-day visit to Tajikistan during which he will hold talks and sign several agreements.

Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
MEMPHIS, Tenn.  An arrest has been made after a man was accused of shooting at least four people at Railgarten in Midtown last Friday night.

Detawn Gunn, 30, is charged with five counts of criminal attempt second-degree murder, five counts of possession of a firearm/dangerous felony, and two counts of vandalism $1,000-2,500.

Report: 3 people hit by gunfire over parking spot at Railgarten

On August 16, Memphis Police officers say they responded to a shooting at Railgarten at 2166 Central Avenue where they found four victims suffering from gunshot wounds.

Corey Coleman is one of the shooting victims who say the shooting sparked from an argument over a parking spot.

Coleman says he and his family are from Dallas, Texas, and were in town for work. They went to Railgarten to enjoy a family night.

When Colemans son was parking in the parking spot that they had paid for, the suspect was trying to get in the same spot. He said when he tried to tell the suspect the spots were taken, the suspect got upset and threatened to kill him. Then someone yelled out that he [the suspect] had a gun.

Coleman says he was then shot several times and that everyone else who was shot was either an innocent bystander or trying to stop the suspect.

(Photo by: WREG Staff)

(Photo by: WREG Staff)

Police say the fifth victim, who was Colemans son, followed the suspect, who was driving a gray Lexus SC, to E. E.H. Crump Boulevard and S. Camilla Street. That is when the suspect allegedly fired a shot at the victim.

While on the scene, officers say two vehicles had been struck by birdshot rounds and the total cost of the damage was $2,000.

MPD camera in the area captured the suspects vehicle leaving the scene with Arkansas dealer tags. Investigators say the same tags had been used on multiple cars since the shooting but it was mostly used on a two-door dark-colored Lexus and a gray Acura sedan.

After further investigation, investigators say they discovered that a traffic citation was issued to a man identified as Detawn Gunn who was driving a gray Honda Accord with the same Arkansas tags on June 28.

 See more breaking news, local news and weather from WREG.com for Memphis and the Mid-South.

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On August 21, Violent Crime Unit Investigators interviewed Gunn and he admitted that he was a mechanic and swapped the tags between vehicles. However, he denied using the tags on the Lexus that was used in the shooting and says the tags were stolen between late May  early June.

The tags were captured on the Lexus and the Acura multiple times before the day of the shooting, investigators say, but they were seen last on the Lexus at 5:27 p.m. and 8:03 p.m. the day of the shooting.

Investigators then executed a search warrant on Gunns house where they say they found the vehicle paperwork and keys to the Lexus.

Detawn Gunn is now set to face a judge on Friday morning.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com.
FILE - Mourners visit a make-shift memorial to honor the victims and survivors of a human smuggling tragedy in which dozens of migrants were found dead or dying in a tractor-trailer a week prior, July 6, 2022, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)

A suspect arrested in Guatemala has been charged with helping coordinate the 2022 smuggling attempt that ended in the deaths of 53 migrants in Texas, the Justice Department announced Thursday, marking what U.S. officials called a significant expansion of their investigation into the horrific discovery inside an abandoned tractor-trailer on a back road.

U.S. authorities they will seek the extradition of Rigoberto Roman Miranda Orozco, who is charged with six counts of migrant smuggling resulting in death or serious injury in the deadliest human smuggling attempt across the U.S.-Mexico border. Authorities alleged he can be connected to four Guatemalan migrants in the trailer, three of whom died, and faces up to life in prison if convicted.

We will pursue you, whether you are hiding in the United States or youre hiding elsewhere, U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza said at a news conference in San Antonio.

Miranda Orozco, 47, is the first person arrested outside of the country to face charges in the U.S. in connection with the investigation. Esparza said seven people have been arrested in the U.S. Guatemalan officials announced the arrests of Miranda Orozco and six more people accused of helping smuggle the migrants Wednesday. Of those, only Miranda Orozco faces extradition to the U.S. and the others will be tried in Guatemala, Esparza said.

Carlos Merida, a lawyer for Miranda Orozco in Guatemala, said his client did not accept the charges, instead saying he was a regular citizen who was a migrant in the north (U.S.) for 15 years.

Those who were charged previously include Homero Zamorano Jr., who authorities say drove the truck, and Christian Martinez. Both are from Texas and were arrested shortly after the migrants were found. Martinez has since pleaded guilty to smuggling-related charges, while Zamorano pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial.

Four Mexican nationals were also arrested in 2023.

Authorities say the men were aware that the trailers air-conditioning unit was malfunctioning and would not blow cool air to the migrants trapped inside during the sweltering, three-hour ride from the border city of Laredo to San Antonio. Temperatures reached 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius) while migrants screamed and banged the walls of the trailer for help or tried to claw their way out, investigators said.

According to the indictment against Miranda Orozco that was unsealed Wednesday, the smugglers had forced the migrants to give up their cellphones before getting inside the trailer, leaving them no way to call for help. An unknown powder was spread around the trailer to prevent the smell of human cargo from being detected by patrol dogs at border inspection stations.

When the trailer was opened in San Antonio, 48 migrants were already dead. Another 16 were taken to hospitals, where five more died. The dead included 27 people from Mexico, 14 from Honduras, seven from Guatemala and two from El Salvador. President Joe Biden called the tragedy "horrifying and heartbreaking.

Authorities allege that the men worked with human smuggling operations in Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico, and shared routes, guides, stash houses, trucks and trailers, some of which were stored at a private parking lot in San Antonio.

Migrants paid the organization up to $15,000 each to be taken across the border. The fee would cover up to three attempts to get into the country.

Guatemalan officials accuse the group of housing and transferring hundreds of migrants to the United States over several years.

Guatemala Interior Minister Francisco Jimenez told The Associated Press the arrests were made after 13 raids in three of the countrys departments. Police also seized vehicles and cash and rescued other migrants during the operations, Guatemalan officials said in a statement.

Santiago Palomo, spokesman for Guatemalas presidency, said the arrest "reflects the commitment of the Guatemalan government to the fight against organized crime" and collaborate with international agencies.

___

Vertuno reported from Austin, Texas, and Perez from Guatemala City.
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP)  Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who ran for the Republican presidential nomination, is joining the University of Arkansas School of Law next year, the school announced Thursday.

Hutchinson will join the faculty at his alma mater as executive in residence during the spring 2025 spring semester, according to the university. He will teach a course on leadership in state and federal government, and participate in continuing legal education and moot court programs.

This is where it all began for me, Hutchinson said in a statement. To be here is an honor and exhilarating. To see the excitement of the students and their dedication to make a difference and pursue justice is inspiring.

Hutchinson served two terms as Arkansas governor and ran for the Republican presidential nomination before dropping out in January. He was an outspoken critic of former President Donald Trump.

Hutchinson, 73, served as U.S. attorney in Arkansas in the 1980s, appointed to the post by President Ronald Reagan. He is also a former congressman who served as one of the House managers prosecuting the impeachment case against then-President Bill Clinton.

Hutchinson, 73, served in President George W. Bushs White House as the head of the Drug Enforcement Administration and as an undersecretary of the Department of Homeland Security.

Governor Hutchinsons professional career as an accomplished attorney and his political career as a United States representative, governor and presidential candidate make him an excellent addition to the law school community," Cynthia Nance, the law school's dean, said in a statement. "We are thrilled for him to teach and to engage with the next generation of lawyers.

Since dropping out of the presidential race earlier this year, Hutchinson joined Scripps News as a political analyst.
The Democratic National Convention is meeting in Chicago through Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (Shaun Griswold | Source New Mexico)

CHICAGO  Actor B.D. Wong told the AAPI caucus at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday what he said to his multiracial son at his bar mitzvah.

I told him, in front of everybody, You are not half of anything. You are all of everything, Wong said. And with the first-ever Asian American nominee of a major political party set to accept her partys nomination on Thursday, Wong said AAPI people should be proud of that part of Kamala Harris identity.

It is astonishing to me that we characterize her easily as the first Black woman president. A lot of times, the South Asian part, the Asian American part, gets left off the list, Wong said. And we really need to own it, and we need to be really proud of it, and we need to perpetuate it and remind people that that is  an incredible thing. And I think in our kind of non-confrontational Asian Americanness, we kind of like let it slide a little bit, but lets really lean into it.

Angela Alsobrooks, candidate for U.S. Senate in Maryland, U.S. Reps. Ro Khanna of California and Andy Kim of New Jersey  also a candidate for U.S. Senate  were among the elected Democrats who spoke to the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) caucus on Wednesday, as they celebrated Harris and what her ascension to the top of the Democratic ticket means for their communities.

We are in a joyous time where Kamala Harris is bringing us together, reintroducing joy into our country, Alsobrooks said. I love what was just said a moment ago about being half of anything, but all of everything. Isnt that true of all of us?

But they also spoke about the challenges facing Asian American politicians, describing how they are still stereotyped in their attempts to have a seat at the table.

Kim, D-New Jersey, the Democrats candidate to replace Bob Menendez in the U.S. Senate, told the gathering that Asian Americans are the fastest-growing demographic in New Jersey, but when he started running for Congress six years ago he was told an Asian American candidate could not win in his district.

My congressional district was 85% white, less than 3% Asian, that voted for Trump, Kim said. They said, Look, if you want to win a seat in Congress, why dont you move up to North Jersey, where there are a lot more people that look like you. Thats what they said to me. But I said, I want to run in my district because its my home. Im not just shopping for a district I can win.

Kim said he told people who were telling him that  some of whom were Democrats, he added  not to define him by his name and the color of his skin.

I am as American as anybody is. My story is not just an Asian American story, a Korean American story, it is fundamentally an American story, he told the gathering, to applause. And Im proud that this 85% white district, less than 3% Asian that voted for Trump twice, has now three times elected a Korean American Democrat to be their voice.

He hears the same naysayers as he runs his campaign for Senate, Kim added.

And I said, `Look again, dont think that I am only a voice for Asian Americans. Dont just think that I can only speak to those issues, he said. Hes tired of only being called on for help when there are instances of Asian American hate, he added. Yes, thats important. Yes, its important about affirmative action and other issues that are out there, but what Ill say is: We have something to say about everything, not just about Asian American issues. We deserve a seat at the table for every single decision being made about this country.

Khanna, D-California, spoke about Harris, whom he has worked with since her time in California government.

Shes had to break the barriers, and so she knows that we need to break barriers to have other people have a shot, Khanna said.

He said that the politics of authenticity that Kim spoke about have been used by the Republican candidate for vice president, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, in speaking about his own wife, Usha. In his speech at the Republican National Convention, Vance described how his family had held a cemetery plot of land in eastern Kentucky for seven generations, Khanna said, suggesting that Usha Vance would also be buried there.

And Im thinking, you know, Usha Vance is Hindu American like me. Is she going to have a choice in the matter? Khanna mused. What upset me about that speech is that Vance was basically implying that the longer you could trace your heritage back, the amount of generations you could trace your heritage that somehow defined what it means to be an American.

When we elect Kamala Harris as president of the United States, were going to show that this country is a multiracial democracy where it doesnt matter how long your lineage is, you can be American. Everyone can be American.

This story was originally published by the Pennsylvania Capital-Star which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network, including the Daily Montanan, supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.
San Juan Cottage for youth aged 15 to 17 at Child Study Treatment Center in Lakewood. (Department of Social and Health Services)

Washingtons only behavioral health hospital for children is seeing a dramatic rise in assaults on staff this year.

Thats according to early 2024 data from the Department of Social and Health Services. The figures show the rate of assaults has more than doubled compared to all of 2023.

Last year at the Child Study Treatment Center in Lakewood, the state recorded 32.8 assaults per 10,000 patient days  defined by the department of Social and Health Services as the number of days all patients spend at the center combined. From the start of this year to April, the state recorded 84 assaults per 10,000 patient days.

Thats despite the rate of assaults decreasing at the states two adult behavioral health hospitals, particularly Eastern State Hospital, which saw reported assaults on staff decrease from 7.91 per 10,000 patient days in 2023 to 4.27 per 10,000 patient days for the first three months of this year. Western State Hospital saw rates decrease slightly, from 8.68 per 10,000 patient days to 8.58 assaults per 10,000 patient days.

There were 51 reported assaults on staff at Western State Hospital during the first three months of the year and 15 reported at Eastern State Hospital.

Violence at the adult behavioral health hospitals surged last year, and employees at the states behavioral health hospitals have raised safety concerns for years for both patients and staff.

The states report did not provide data on the number of assaults happening at the Child Study Treatment Center. The report attributes an increase in reported injuries from assaults to a small number of patients admitted in 2023 who still reside at the center in this year.

One patient has been reported for some form of aggression on nearly a daily occurrence, the report notes.

A growing population of patients with intellectual and developmental disabilities may also be contributing to increased assaults on staff, the report says, as well as significant staffing challenges, increased overtime and difficulties retaining workers.

According to the report, the vacancy rate is 25.2% for psychiatric care counselors and 23.1% for registered nurses. As of May 2024, 14 staff are out due to injuries.

The report highlights a number of projects to improve safety at all three behavioral health hospitals, including building additional seclusion rooms, new staff training and expanding use of evidence-based behavior therapy.

A spokesperson for the Department of Social and Health Services, Tyler Hemstreet, said the agency is also incorporating more verbal de-escalation training into daily operations as well as continuing work to reduce vacancy rates across the facility.

The safety of our staff and patients at Child Study and Treatment Center and all of our 24/7 facilities is one of our highest priorities, and we continue to focus our efforts in this area, Hemstreet said.
(Reuters) - AstraZeneca has warned it could relocate its vaccine manufacturing site from the UK to the United States as talks with the new Labour government over plans to cut state aid have become deadlocked, the Financial Times reported on Thursday.

British finance minister Rachel Reeves wants to reduce state provisions to the company's vaccine centre, which will cut the pledge made by the previous administration from about 90 million pounds to 40 million pounds, the report said, citing sources.

The previous offer included up to 70 million in grants to develop a facility in Speke, Liverpool and 20 million pounds in research and development support from the UK Health Security Agency, the Financial Times report said.

Manufacturing could take place in India, where the company has produced vaccines in the past, people briefed on the discussions told the newspaper.

An AztraZeneca spokesperson said: "We are committed to pursuing the opportunity at Speke and are in constructive discussions with the UK government."

"We have no idea where the comments in some media come from and they do not seem to be based on facts. As an example, there are no discussions in the US or India," the spokesperson said.

"We are in positive discussions with AstraZeneca to support the delivery of this planned investment in Speke," a UK Treasury spokesperson said.

The Sunak administration in March planned to invest 650 million pounds in the Anglo-Swedish drugmaker to boost research, development and manufacturing of vaccines.

(Reporting by Urvi Dugar in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Chandni Shah and Rhea Rose Abraham in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur and Jane Merriman)
The City of Atlanta will pay $17 million to cover and support the affordable housing needs of low-income city residents.

The City Council announced on Monday that the resolution allocating the funding had been approved in a unanimous move on the meetings consent agenda.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

Going forward, the resolution from the City Council, now approved, will spend the $17 million in three main portions.

$8 million for affordable housing production

$5 million for programs to support housing security

$4 million for contingency reserves, debt service and related transfers to Invest Atlanta, non-profit partners

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In addition to portioning out those funds, the resolution also requires that funds from Atlantas Affordable Housing Trust Fund, where the $17 million was withdrawn from, must be used to directly benefit low and moderate-income Atlanta households earning up to 80% of the area median income for rental housing, or up to 120% of the AMI for purchasing a house.

Additionally, the fund must be prioritized for households making no more than 50% of the AMI if renting and must be prioritized for households earning no more than 80% of the AMI if purchasing a home.

As directed by the City Council, heres how those income levels shake out for a family of four, according to Invest Atlanta:

50% of AMI: $53,750 per year

80% of AMI: $86,000 per year

120% of AMI: $129,000 per year

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IN OTHER NEWS:
Attorney general issues new rules on use of force, weeks after death of Victoria Lee

New Jersey will change how police officers deal with barricaded subjects, Attorney General Matthew Platkin said Thursday, weeks after the high-profile death of Victoria Lee in Fort Lee.

A statement from the Attorney General's Office said the revisions are designed to "increase the likelihood of peaceful resolutions to encounters between police and barricaded individuals, who are frequently in a behavioral or mental health crisis."

Lee, 25, of Fort Lee was fatally shot by a borough police officer while she was experiencing a mental health crisis and refusing to open the door.

"Encounters involving barricaded individuals are often difficult and high-risk, regularly involving individuals in the midst of crisis who are armed," Platkin said. "Our goal is to provide first responders with the tools to slow and stabilize these standoffs, empowering officers to navigate the dangerous first minutes of these encounters, so proper resources can be deployed to intervene and resolve the situations safely without force, significant injuries, or death."

This is the first statewide policy of its kind in the country, he said.

What changes are being implemented?

The Attorney General's Office's statement said the revisions were drafted with law enforcement, mental health professionals, community stakeholders and faith leaders.

With the implementation of the revisions, tactical and crisis negotiation teams will now be required to identify and enter into agreements with qualified mental health professionals who will be able to respond to incidents involving a hostage situation or a barricaded individual.

The aim is for a mental health provider to assist with negotiations by offering guidance and information to law enforcement or by communicating with the barricaded individual, the statement said.

Responding officers will now be advised to wait for appropriate resources in a barricade situation. They are not to try to force a resolution unless it would be "immediately necessary to prevent injury or death."

Another revision will allow law enforcement officers, in certain situations, to consider tactical disengagement. This could include a decision to leave, delay contact, delay custody, or plan to make contact at a different time and under different circumstances, Platkin's statement said.

Law enforcement will now be directed to consider whether community-based groups such as crisis response teams or mental health providers through the ARRIVE Together program can be components of a disengagement strategy.

Other mandates include an immediate response by an on-duty supervisor in the case of a barricade situation.

Finally, tactical response teams must be a Tier 1 or Tier 2 SWAT team, among other requirements. They must also be equipped with less lethal weapons.

Expanding the ARRIVE Together program

In addition to the attorney general's announcement of the revisions, he said that using part of the recent budget allocation by the state Legislature and Gov. Phil Murphy to expand the ARRIVE Together program, funds will be made available to support the provision of "critical incident tactical and negotiation teams with experienced mental health professionals."

The mental health professionals will train with law enforcement and will be available around the clock to assist and, when appropriate, respond in cases of barricaded individuals.

The grant funds will be available to agencies in all counties.

Law enforcement officers are often expected to be mental and behavioral health experts at times when actual experts are what is needed, said Tiffany Wilson, director of the Office of Alternative and Community Responses. "With these updates and the funding of this newest ARRIVE Together model, we are arming the officers tasked with addressing the most delicate and high-risk situations with much-needed tools and resources, namely a blueprint and a mental health expert.

Addressing how police respond to mental health crises

The discussion of how police handle calls involving mental health crises in New Jersey has gone on over the past couple of years.

In 2023, the deaths of Najee Seabrooks of Paterson and Andrew Washington of Jersey City led to a widespread conversation about whether police officers are the right people to respond to such calls.

Now, since the fatal shooting of Lee on July 28, the conversation has been reignited, with Lee's family and several advocacy groups echoing a call for change and criticizing the way the Fort Lee police officers handled the situation.

On Thursday, the Lee family released a statement, its first since the Attorney General's Office released the body camera footage on Friday.

"Last Friday, we went through the nightmare again watching multiple body-cam video recordings of our daughter being shot and killed by police," said the Lee family's statement. "Our entire family has been and remains in shock and grief following these events."

The statement refers to the officers' response to this mental health emergency as "hasty and brutal," and insists that if police awaited the arrival of medics, who are trained to handle patients experiencing mental health episodes, Lee would be alive today.

"Unfortunately, Victoria's death is but the latest example of New Jersey police using deadly force when compassion and clinical treatment was necessary," said Yannick Wood, director of the Criminal Justice Reform Program at the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice, at a rally for justice for Lee on Aug. 15. He compared Lee's death to those of Seabrooks, Washington, and Major Gulia Dale in Newton, expressing the need for mental health responders who are not police.

With Thursday's release of revisions to the Use of Force Policy in New Jersey, it appears that the Attorney General's Office has heard the calls for change.

Brian Higgins, a retired officer who served with the Bergen County police for nearly three decades, said he is seeing much more change to use-of-force policies today than in the past.

"Use-of-force guidelines for the AG when I was a young cop didnt change much. It was at least a decade, and very little changes," Higgins said. "Maybe there would be a change based on the addition of tasers, other less than lethal. But when officers can shoot, when they can use deadly force, stayed pretty much unchanged. Now it seems like it's changing pretty regularly."

Higgins attributes the increase in changes to the level of attention that such incidents receive, particularly due to the presence of social media.

"I think we, at least the people I speak to, there has been so much conversation, so much focus on mental health, police use of force, I think people are surprised that these situations still occur at the rate they are occurring," Higgins said. "I dont know that they're happening faster, but there is definitely more attention on them with social media; the news allows these situations to be known across the country much more quickly."

When was the Use of Force Policy last revised?

In December 2020, the attorney general announced the first revisions to the statewide Use of Force Policy in two decades, the Attorney General's Office website says.

The 2020 revisions prohibited all forms of physical and deadly force against a civilian, except as an absolute last resort, and prohibited officers from firing weapons at a moving vehicle or engaging in a high-speed car chase, except under "narrowly limited circumstances."

They also provided new guidance on the use of less-lethal force.

Additionally, the 2020 revisions established an affirmative "duty to intervene," requiring officers to intercede if they see another officer engage in illegal or excessive force against a civilian, and an affirmative "duty to provide medical assistance," requiring officers to request and, where appropriate, personally provide medical assistance after any use of force against a civilian.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NJ revises policy on use of force weeks after Fort Lee shooting
JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV)  An aerosystems manufacturing company will expand in Columbus, Mississippi.

Aurora Flight Sciences will invest $43,794,998 into the project, as well as create 63 new jobs.

Aurora is proud to bring this investment to the community. Since coming to Mississippi in 2005, our manufacturing business has grown exponentially. This success would not be possible without the hard work and dedication of Auroras team members here in Columbus. We are thankful for our incredible employees and for the continued support of local organizations such as the Mississippi Development Authority and Golden Triangle Development LINK, said Luke Colville, Aurora Flight Sciences Vice President of Manufacturing.

MSU, MC partner for accelerated law degree program

The company is adding 50,000 square feet of new manufacturing space onto its existing aerosystems production facility. The company will also refurbish 40,000 square feet, adding new equipment and machining and improving its automated fiber placement technology.

The Golden Triangle Region is a hotspot for aerospace excellence, and its skilled pipeline of experienced workers ensures companies like Aurora Flight Sciences remain at the forefront of the industry, said Gov. Tate Reeves (R-Miss.).

The Mississippi Development Authority (MDA) is providing assistance through the Mississippi Flexible Tax Incentive, or MFLEX, program. AccelerateMS and Lowndes County also are assisting with the project.

Aurora Flight Sciences plans to fill the 63 new jobs by the end of 2025.

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AUSTIN (KXAN)  The Austin Independent School District Central Office is closed for the day Thursday after the building lost power overnight.

A release from AISD said the power to the entire building went out around 11:30 p.m. Wednesday night and the backup generator failed.

Badging services and employee onboarding set for Thursday have been rescheduled, the district said.

If any families need enrollment support, they should go to their campus for assistance. In-person enrollment support will also be offered on school buses in the Central Office parking lot from 9 a.m.2 p.m.

AISD said employees are unable to take calls to central services including the district main line or the enrollment support line until further notice.

The Austin ISD Board Voting meeting will be relocated to the Austin ISD Performing Arts Center at 1500 Barbara Jordan Boulevard on an emergency basis. Public testimony sign-up will be available on the normal schedule by calling 512-414-0130 between 7:45 a.m.4:30 p.m.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin.
ASTANA, Kazakhstan, August 22. The volume of trade turnover between Kazakhstan and China amounted to $14.1 billion from January through June 2024, Trend reports.

Data from the country's Bureau of National Statistics shows that the volume of trade turnover increased by 3.8 percent compared to the same period in 2023 ($13.6 billion).

At the same time, exports to China for the above period amounted to $7.32 billion, which is 16.6 percent more year-on-year ($6.3 billion).

In addition, imports from China from January through June 2024 decreased by 7.2 percent and amounted to $6.8 billion. From January through June 2023, imports amounted to $7.3 billion.

Meanwhile, China took the crown as Kazakhstan's top trading buddy in 2023. The trade turnover between Kazakhstan and China was $31.4 billion in 2023. The volume of trade turnover increased by 30 percent from the same period in 2022 ($24.2 billion).

At the same time, in terms of trade turnover, exports to China during the aforementioned period totaled $14.7 billion, 14.7 percent greater than from January through December 2022 ($13 billion).

In addition, imports from China surged by 50.5 percent from January through December 2023, totaling $16.7 billion. In 2022, imports totaled $11.1 billion.
The Virginia class submarine USS Hawaii is in port in Australia for routine maintenance, with that countrys navy set to help out with that work in a first-of-its-kind team-up. This is a new and important step forward in plans to start rotational deployments of U.S. and British nuclear-powered submarines to Australia. That is part of a broader trilateral effort between all three countries to help the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) form its own nuclear-powered, but conventional-armed submarine force with a mixture of Virginia class boats and examples of an all-new design.

USS Hawaii arrived at the HMAS Stirling naval base on the western coast of Australia yesterday. The U.S. Navys submarine tender USS Emory S. Land, the crew of which will lead the forthcoming maintenance work, has been at Stirling since August 16.

US Navy and Royal Australian Navy personnel pose at HMAS Stirling, with the submarine tender USS Emory S. Land seen in the background. USN Petty Officer 2nd Class Darek Leary

The Emory S. Land crew will execute planned and emergent maintenance activities including the removal and reinstallation of an antenna located in Hawaiis sail, divers visually inspecting the underwater towed array and torpedo tube muzzles, and simulating the removal and installation of a trim pump, to include full rigging and preparations, according to a Navy release. This is the first time Australians have participated in a U.S. submarine maintenance period in Australia. More than 30 Australian personnel who participated in a knowledge exchange period that began in January 2024 aboard Emory S. Land will execute the majority of planned maintenance work with U.S. support and oversight.

This is an important moment for the Royal Australian Navy, RAN Rear Adm. Matthew Buckley, the Australian Submarine Agencys Head of Submarine Capability, said in a statement. For the first time, we have Australians who were trained and certified aboard Emory S. Land using their skills on a U.S. SSN [nuclear-powered attack submarine] in Australian waters.

The RAN has been steadily sending more and more officers and enlisted personnel to the United States and the United Kingdom for training on nuclear submarine operations and maintenance. In June, Australias state-owned ASC Pty Ltd naval shipbuilding enterprise also sent 30 engineers and other shipyard workers to the U.S. Navys base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii to learn how to maintain Virginia class submarines. The total number of ASC Pty Ltd workers to have gone to Pearl Harbor for training is expected to rise to 100 by the middle of next year.

The USS Hawaii undergoing maintenance at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard in 2010. USN

This is all part of what is known as Pillar 1 of the trilateral Australia-United Kingdom-United States (AUKUS) defense cooperation agreement, which was first announced in 2021. Pillar 1s end goal is the aforementioned creation of the RANs first-ever nuclear-powered, conventionally armed submarine force. To get there, the AUKUS partners have laid out a multi-phased roadmap, the next major step in which is new rotational forward-deployments of American and British nuclear-powered submarines to Australia.

What is referred to as Submarine Rotational Force-West (SRF-W) is currently expected to come to HMAS Stirling in 2027. The Australian base is set to get new and improved infrastructure to better support the nuclear-powered submarine deployments. Australian personnel trained and certified performance maintenance on those boats will be critical to SRF-Ws operations, as well.

Getting the SRF-W up and running will also lay the groundwork for the RANs own nuclear submarine fleet. The current plan is to begin delivering Virginia class submarines to Australia in the early 2030s. These are expected to be a mixture of ex-U.S. Navy and new-production boats. These will be followed by examples of a new design referred to now as SSN-AUKUS, which the United Kingdom is leading the development of, but is also expected to incorporate U.S. technology, as you can read more about here. SSN-AUKUS is understood to have evolved from existing work on a successor to the Royal Navys Astute class nuclear-powered attack submarines.

A rendering of the future SSN-AUKUS design. U.K. Ministry of Defense

Serious questions have been raised about how realistic the schedule might be for the latter phases of AUKUS Pillar 1, especially given the U.S. Navys own demands for Virginia class submarines and concerns about American capacity to build those boats. The U.S. military is broadly looking at what could be charitably called a complex budget environment in the coming years amid expectations of defense spending remaining largely flat, at best, while the costs of top-priority projects grow.

Nuclear power in general continues to be a hot-button issue domestically in Australia and there has been opposition to AUKUS Pillar 1 based just around the reactors that are set to power the RANs future submarines. Australian authorities have been very public about the AUKUS agreement including terms under which the submarine plans could be terminated should a new government in the country decide to do so. Proliferation concerns have been raised, including whether Australias plans might expose a loophole that bad actors could exploit to pursue nuclear weapons programs.

The STMP [Submarine Tendered Maintenance Period] will support Australias nuclear stewardship growth through the planning and execution of simulated radiological training evolutions that will not involve the use of radiological material, the U.S. Navys release on the planned maintenance of USS Hawaii at HMAS Stirling pointed notes. These training evolutions will allow Australian radiological controls policy makers to observe how the U.S. Navy safely handles simulated low-level radiological material as a means to increase their knowledge and develop Australian policy and radiation safety practices that are protective of the workforce, the public, and the environment.

The current Australian government remains bullish on the AUKUS submarine plans, which would give it a significant boost in naval capabilities and the ability to project them in the Western Pacific. Key advantages of nuclear-powered submarines are their virtually unlimited range and ability to remain submerged and out of sight for months at a time. For the RAN, the planned acquisition of the Virginias and SSN-AUKUSs will also bring all-new submarine-launched strike capabilities, including the ability to employ American-made Tomahawk cruise missiles. Australian authorities considered integrating Tomahawk onto the countrys six existing Collins class diesel-electric attack submarines, but ultimately decided against it for reasons of cost and complexity.

Four of Australias six Collins class submarines. Royal Australian Navy

Australias aging Collins class boats are increasingly in need of replacement as it is. AUKUS Pillar 1 controversially supplanted a previous plan to acquire new advanced conventionally-powered submarines from France, a program that had been much delayed and seen ballooning costs.

All of this comes as Australia and many of its allies, especially the United States, are preparing for the prospect of a major conflict with China in the Pacific, potentially over Taiwan. The Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) has been working to expand the capabilities and overall size of its own submarine fleets, and undersea warfare would be a major component of any high-end fight in the region.

With all this in mind, Australia just being able to better support forward-deployed allied nuclear submarines would be a major boon for future coalition operations. HMAS Stirling is set to be a valuable additional location where U.S. and British nuclear-powered submarines can go for maintenance and other support in the event of future crises or other contingencies.

As such, no matter how the RANs own nuclear-powered submarine plans might evolve going forward, U.S. and Australian personnel working together on the USS Hawaii at HMAS Stirling for the first time is a significant development and a sign of things to come.

Contact the author: joe@twz.com
(Bloomberg) -- Australia will invest up to A$850 million ($573 million) in partnership with Kongsberg Gruppen ASA to manufacture long-range missiles in the city of Newcastle, north of Sydney.

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The new plant will build and service Naval Strike Missiles and Joint Strike Missiles for the Australian military, Pat Conroy, minister for defense industry, said in a statement on Thursday.

The Joint Strike Missile  which can be fitted to the F-35A aircraft  and Naval Strike Missiles are modern anti-ship cruise missiles designed to attack enemy warships. Both can also be deployed against land-based targets, Conroy said.

This is about investing in our advanced, high-tech manufacturing industry and developing our sovereign defense industrial base in areas which have been identified as strategic priorities, he said in the statement.

Australia has been retooling its defense capabilities in recent years and integrating more closely with the US and other allies as the Asia-Pacific region turns more contested with the rise of China.

Construction of the missile factory is due to start later this year in the Newcastle Airport precinct and once complete is expected to employ about 100 people, according to the government.

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2024 Bloomberg L.P.
By Kirsty Needham

SYDNEY (Reuters) -Australia said it would jointly manufacture long-range Naval Strike Missiles and Joint Strike Missiles with Norway's Kongsberg Defence in the city of Newcastle on Australia's eastern coast, the only site outside of Norway.

Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said the Australian government will contribute A$850 million ($574 million) to establish a manufacturing facility with Kongsberg at the Newcastle Airport precinct later this year, with production to start in 2027.

The anti-ship cruise missiles would be used by the Australian Defence Force and also exported by the U.S. security ally, he said. It will be one of only two facilities in the world capable of producing the missiles, and the only site outside Kongsberg, Norway.

Australia has said it will establish guided weapons manufacturing under a defence overhaul to boost the Australian Defence Force's long-range precision strike ability, amid rising tensions in the Indo-Pacific.

"There is huge global demand and constraints on the supply chain around the world. So not only is it cost-competitive to build them here, it will actually deliver the missiles faster than if we were relying on a production line overseas," Conroy said at a press conference in Newcastle. "There is huge export opportunities for these missiles as well."

The Naval Strike Missile is being used by the U.S. Marines to equip land-based trucks for anti-ship capability, Conroy said.

"We will have the capacity not just to sustain and refurbish our missiles; we can potentially do that for United States forces who might be positioned in the Indo-Pacific," he said.

Around 2,000 U.S. Marines have a rotational presence in northern Australia for six months of the year.

The Joint Strike Missile is the only strike missile able to be carried in the weapons bay of the F-35 fighter jet.

Australia has two F-35 stealth fighter squadrons, based at Williamtown near Newcastle and at RAAF Base Tindal in northern Australia, which is being upgraded by the United States to also host U.S. bomber aircraft.

In the Indo Pacific region, Japan and South Korea have F-35 squadrons while Singapore has ordered the fighter jet.

Australia is also developing a hypersonic missile with the United States, and will start co-manufacturing guided missiles with the United States next year.

($1=1.4815 Australian dollars)

(Reporting by Kirsty Needham in Sydney; Editing by Stephen Coates and Lincoln Feast)
Australia's 'right to disconnect' law set to come into force

Commuters arrive to the Central Business District at the morning rush hour in Sydney

By Lewis Jackson

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian employees will from Monday have the right to ignore their bosses outside working hours thanks to a new law which enshrines the "right to disconnect."

The law, which passed in February, protects employees who refuse to monitor, read or respond to contact from their employers outside work hours.

Similar laws giving employees a right to switch off their mobile devices are already in place in France, Germany and other countries in the European Union.

As the law moved through parliament earlier this year it drew criticism from employer groups who called the legislation rushed and flawed.

The law allows for certain circumstances where an employee's right to refuse is unreasonable, depending on their role, the reason for the contact, and how it is made, among other factors.

(Reporting by Lewis Jackson; Editing by David Holmes)
Just when new vehicle inventory was improving in the United States and prices for new and used vehicles were easing, the auto industry faced a potential new crisis as Canadas two major freight railroads on Thursday locked out nearly 9,000 Teamster members who run the trains, thereby, halting the rails in Canada.

The worst case apparently was averted by the Canadian government stepping in to demand arbitration, but the rail lines still may be down a few days.

It might seem to be Canada's problem on the surface, but vehicles and auto parts are the top commodity transported by rail between the U.S. and Canada, to the tune of $4 billion worth of goods in the month of June alone, according to U.S. Department of Transportation.

In fact, in June 2023, the Detroit Free Press reported that some 70,000 new vehicles were stuck at carmakers' factories due to a rail car shortage. So this new railroad shutdown could seriously disrupt automotive production and delivery of vehicles depending on how long it lasts.

A freight train with a Kansas City Southern and Canadian Pacific locomotives pulls freight in 2022 near Kansas City, Missouri.

Put simply: If it goes on for more than three to four weeks, itll be a major, major problem. Parts will have run out and production lines will be stopped and workers will be laid off," said Nick Little, director of Railway Education at the Eli Broad College of Business at Michigan State University.

But in a late-breaking report from CBC Thursday evening, Canada's Minister of Labour Steven MacKinnon said the railroads could resume operations within days because he is sending the two labor disputes to binding arbitration. The report noted that MacKinnon said he directed the Canada Industrial Relations Board "to extend the term of the current collective agreements until new agreements have been signed and for operations on both railways to resume forthwith."

In a statement late Thursday, Canadian National spokesperson Ashley Michnowski told the Free Press that the company remains at the table and its U.S. operations are not affected, but its cross-border trains remain parked at the border.

"We know too well the deeply integrated nature of the North American automotive supply chain, and how automakers across the industry are uniquely exposed to the impacts associated with this labour stoppage," Michnowski said in an email. "We have tried to avoid this very situation by proposing serious offers over the last nine months."

The situation is so serious that the American Automotive Policy Council has reached out to the White House.

A prolonged railroad strike would severely disrupt the North American automotive supply chain, which is critical to the U.S. auto sector, its domestic manufacturing supply chain, and the hundreds of thousands of people employed in the industry," former Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt, president of American Automotive Policy Council, said in a statement to the Free Press Thursday morning. "AAPC has been in contact with the Biden administration on behalf of our member companies regarding the potential impact on the U.S. auto industry and its employees."

The American Automotive Policy Council is a trade group formed in 2009 by then-Chrysler (now Stellantis), Ford Motor and General Motors to represent the three on public policy matters.

Michael Booth, spokesman for the U.S. Surface Transportation Board, told the Detroit Free Press on Thursday morning that the board is monitoring the situation. He did not have an update beyond the statement the board issued last week that said, "If a strike occurs, the U.S. rail network and supply chain could be affected."

The auto industry on high alert

John Bozzella, CEO of Alliance for Automotive Innovation, the auto industry's lobbying group, said Thursday that the rail stoppage is "a concern," given that freight rail moves three-fourths of all new vehicles purchased in the U.S. and carries 1.8 million carloads of vehicles and parts. The group is "closely monitoring" the rail situation in Canada and will have more to say as the situation develops, he said.

In a statement to the Free Press Thursday morning, GM spokesman Kevin Kelly said the automaker has been monitoring the status of the labor talks between the railroads and the Teamsters since earlier this week.

"We have contingency plans in place and do not expect our operations to be significantly affected in the short term," Kelly said. "We are watching closely to gauge potential impact on our plants and suppliers.

Reaction to the lockout from Ford Motor was not immediately available.

Stellantis  the automaker that makes Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram and Fiat vehicles  provided a statement late Thursday: "Stellantis is closely monitoring the situation with the Canadian railroads. There is currently no impact to our operations. As a precaution, the Company is taking the necessary actions to mitigate any potential impact to production or our ability to deliver vehicles to our customers."

A delicate interconnectivity

The railroad stoppage highlights the important interconnectivity with the Canadian and U.S. automotive industry, said Joe McCabe, CEO of AutoForecast Solutions. He noted that with the just-in-time nature of the supply chain, "even a one-day disruption could have a negative impact on vehicle assembly on both sides."

The action affects Canada's two big freight haulers  Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Kansas City Southern.

The just-in-time process means a supplier delivers exactly the amount of parts needed at the time the auto manufacturers need them. It eliminates stocking big inventories and promotes an efficient manufacturing process.

General Motors full-sized SUVs built at its plant in Arlington, Texas are loaded onto a rail cars auto rack in March 2023.

Canadian Pacific connects key automotive manufacturing cities such as Toronto, Detroit, Chicago, San Luis Potosi, Mexico, and Toluca, Mexico, by shipping parts and vehicles, added Sam Fiorani, vice president of Global Vehicle Forecasting at AutoForecast Solutions. Some of those lines will likely be replaced by alternate methods of moving product, he said, but a prolonged shutdown will hurt many carmakers' sales.

"Aside from the significant impact of shipping components to these plants, moving across North America, especially those shipped from Mexico, will cause headaches for dealers as they await new model replenishment for the fall," Fiorani said.

More cost for carmakers

MSU's Little said the automakers have known about the possibility of this work stoppage for several weeks as labor negotiations between the railroads and the Teamsters appeared to be approaching a stalemate. The car companies should have been making contingency plans and stocking up on inventory, Little said.

Theres not a lot of spare inventory because of the just-in-time principles, so they will have moved away from that to a point, Little said of plans to prepare for a rail stoppage. The problem is the further you go into the supply chain, the less inventory that will be available.

Nick Little, director of Railway Education Center at Eli Broad College of Business at Michigan State University.

It means final assembly may not be possible if some key components from Canada are not available. Automakers might have to partly assemble a vehicle and park it for completion later, when they get the missing parts. That creates more cost for car companies because they have to pay people to assemble those parts later and if they run out of parking, pay to use vacant lots, Little said.

About 82% of all finished automobiles travel by train to their destination, Little said. A limited number of trucks is available to haul those vehicles to dealerships, meaning the price to ship by truck will soar if demand rises. Also, many trucks are driven by Teamsters.

A shipment of vehicles arrived May 3, 2021 at Matick Chevrolet in Redford. A shortage of semiconductor chips used in car parts has created inventory constraints. Nearly half the vehicles coming off this hauler is already sold from customers pre-orders.

"Theres the question of the fact that Teamster drivers may not cross the picket line or violate any principles the union has in this situation," Little said.

The grain farmers may hold the key

Canadian Pacific Kansas City confirmed Thursday that it has locked out members of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference Train and Engine division effective just after midnight Thursday. Canadian National also confirmed a similar lockout. A lockout is different from a strike, in which the workforce refuses to work. In this case, management is telling the union members they cannot work.

Canadian Pacific spokesman Patrick Waldron told the Free Press that the union represents CPKCs roughly 3,200 locomotive engineers, conductors and train and yard workers and 80 rail traffic controllers, all in Canada. Canadian National did not provided a number of how many workers are impacted, but CNN reported it to be nearly 9,000 between the two railroads. According to CNN, this is the first time that both major Canadian railroads have simultaneously shut down because of a labor dispute. The most recent work stoppage was a 60-hour strike at Canadian Pacific two years ago and a nine-day strike at Canadian National in 2019.

In a media statement, Canadian Pacific wrote: "Throughout nearly a year of negotiations, CPKC has remained committed to doing its part to avoid this work stoppage. CPKC has bargained in good faith, but despite our best efforts, it is clear that a negotiated outcome with the TCRC is not within reach. The TCRC leadership continues to make unrealistic demands that would fundamentally impair the railways ability to serve our customers with a reliable and cost-competitive transportation service."

Similarly CN provided a media statement that said it made an offer for improved wages and more days of rest. It said it proposed $75 Canadian ($55.10 in U.S. currency) an hour for locomotive engineers and $65 Canadian ($47.75) an hour for conductors. It also proposed a pilot project to provide more predictable pay and scheduling.

"The Teamsters have not shown any urgency or desire to reach a deal that is good for employees, the company and the economy," CN's statement read. "We urge the Teamsters to engage in these negotiations with the urgency and importance that this situation requires."

CN's statement read that without an agreement or binding arbitration, it had no choice but to proceed with a lockout.

The Teamster Canada Rail Conference posted a blog Thursday that said it made multiple offers, which neither company seriously considered. The roadblock to a contract has been the companies' demands, it said.

Throughout this process, CN and CPKC have shown themselves willing to compromise rail safety and tear families apart to earn an extra buck. The railroads dont care about farmers, small businesses, supply chains or their own employees. Their sole focus is boosting their bottom line, even if it means jeopardizing the entire economy, Paul Boucher, president of Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, said in a statement.

More: UAW warns of national strike possibility over Stellantis commitments in Belvidere

More: Stellantis CEO Tavares visiting Detroit to fix company's North American operations

There is one bright spot: The work stoppage is likely to not last long, Little said.

In Canada, the government will step in very strongly because one of the most important things shipped in Canada is grain and the Canadian Farmers lobby is very powerful," Little said. "They will force the government to do something and the government will probably try to broker a deal.

Contact Jamie L. LaReau: jlareau@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @jlareauan. Read more on General Motors and sign up for our autos newsletter. Become a subscriber.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Auto industry on high alert as 2 major Canadian railroads shut down
Babysitter pleads guilty to manslaughter for death of a Florida man she injured when he was a baby in 1984

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP)  A former babysitter pleaded guilty to manslaughter Wednesday for the 2019 death of a man she was accused of disabling as an infant 40 years ago and was sentenced to three years in prison, finally admitting that she hit him numerous times.

Terry McKirchy, 62, accepted a plea deal for the death of Benjamin Dowling, who died at 35 after a life of severe disabilities caused by a brain hemorrhage he suffered in 1984 when he was 5 months old while at McKirchys suburban Fort Lauderdale home.

Babysitter set to accept deal for 2019 death of Florida man she allegedly injured as a baby in 1984

Investigators have long believed she caused the injury by shaking him, but she had always denied hurting him even after pleading guilty in 1985 to injuring him.

Rae and Joe Dowling said after the hearing that they are glad McKirchy admitted to hurting their son, but nothing will bring him back or get him the life he would have had if she hadnt. He never walked, talked or ate on his own and spent his life in a wheelchair.

She will have to live with this, Rae Dowling said.

We just have to be strong and move forward, Joe Dowling said.

In a letter of apology read to Dowlings parents by her attorney, assistant public defender David Fry, McKirchy said she was feeling overwhelmed and exhausted by taking care of numerous children and struck him, causing his injuries. But she provided no details.

Before the plea deal, she had been charged with first-degree murder and faced a possible life sentence.

It was in a state of impulse and anger that I struck Benjamin while he and other children were crying, she wrote. Your life and Benjamins life were truly harmed by me and I am truly sorry.

Shackled and dressed in an orange jail jumpsuit, McKirchy never showed any emotion during the 90-minute hearing while her letter was read, as Dowlings mother and sister talked about his life or during a photo montage showing him through the years with his family.

Benjamin taught us all many valuable lessons, and everyone who knew Benjamin was better because they did know him, Rae Dowling told Circuit Judge George Odom Jr. during the hearing.

Man bleeding from head after hair transplant, wife arrested for refusing to get off Florida flight

Pam Chestnutt, her former best friend and Benjamins cousin, told the court she knew McKirchy had a bad temper but would not have not believed her capable of hurting an infant like that, though eventually came to the realization she could. She said what especially hurt is that in the days after Benjamin was injured, McKirchy repeatedly told her she had not hurt him.

You sat with me face to face and you denied doing anything to that baby. You told me Benjamin fell off the couch, she told McKirchy. You lied straight to my face.

A Broward County grand jury indicted McKirchy, who now lives in Sugar Land, Texas, with first-degree murder in 2021 after an autopsy concluded Dowling died from his decades-old injuries. She had voluntarily entered the Broward County Jail in May to begin her sentence after the deal was close to being finalized. Prosecutor Pascale Achille said the case took three years because McKirchys attorneys had to do their own investigation and then a plea had to be negotiated.

This isnt the first time McKirchy has taken a deal in connection with Dowlings injuries, receiving an exceptionally light sentence after pleading no contest to attempted murder in 1985. Then six months pregnant with her third child and facing 12 to 17 years in prison, she was sentenced to weekends in jail until giving birth. She was then freed and put on probation for three years.

At the time, she insisted she was innocent, telling reporters that her conscience is clear. She said then that she took the deal because wanted to put the case behind her and be with her children.

Prosecutors called the sentence therapeutic but didnt explain at the time. Ryal Gaudiosi, then McKirchys public defender, said the sentence was fair under the circumstances. He died in 2009.

Achille said she cant explain why McKirchy was given such a light sentence 40 years ago except to say it was a different time.

Rae and Joe Dowling had been married four years when Benjamin was born Jan. 13, 1984. Both Dowlings worked, so they hired McKirchy, then 22, to babysit him at her home.

Rae Dowling told investigators that when she picked up Benjamin from McKirchy on July 3, 1984, his body was limp and his fists were clenched. She rushed him to the hospital, where doctors concluded he had suffered a brain hemorrhage from severe shaking. McKirchy was arrested within days.

The Dowlings told reporters in 1985 they were stunned when prosecutors told them minutes before a court hearing of the plea deal McKirchy would receive. They said Wednesday that they are still stunned by that sentence.

The Dowlings had two more children and would take Benjamin to their games and performances as they grew up. The photo montage during the hearing showed his family worked hard to make him part of school and family outings, weddings, vacations and other milestones.

Growing up, Benjamin taught me and countless others invaluable lessons about compassion, empathy, patience and understanding, said his younger sister, Melissa Dowling. Benjamins presence was a constant source of inspiration. He never walked or talked or got the chance to say, I love you.

The family moved to Floridas Gulf Coast in the late 1990s. Benjamin died at their home on Sept. 16, 2019.

He was so strong. We thought he would live forever, his mother said.

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SIOUX FALLS SD (KELO)  Heres a look at this mornings top stories with KELOLAND On the Go.

While today is the first day of school in the Sioux Falls School District, students in Baltic kicked off the school year this week in a brand new high school.

Baltic students react to new high school

Patrick Henry Middle School is ready for students to see the newly remodeled library. Over the summer, the library underwent an 800-thousand dollar remodel with new paint, lights and carpet.

Patrick Henry library gets $800k facelift

Less than one week from today the South Dakota State Fair will kick off its six day run. This years fair will have 300 vendors with 55 of them serving food.

South Dakota State Fair: Discounts, 55 food vendors, free stages

The city of Madison is celebrating the completion of their Lewis and Clark water system. As of now, the water will supply about 30-percent of the citys clean water.

Madison gets water system after 34-year wait

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Ban on Missouri hemp-THC products delayed in dust up between governor, secretary of state

A spokesman for Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcrofts office told The Independent that the rules were rejected because they didnt meet the state laws criteria(Rudi Keller/Missouri Independent).

The governors ban on intoxicating hemp products hit a delay Wednesday after Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft rejected the emergency rules detailing how it would have been enforced.

Gov. Mike Parson signed an executive order earlier this month to remove all hemp-derived THC edibles and beverages from store shelves and threatening penalties to any establishment with a Missouri liquor license or that sells food products for selling them.

It was supposed to take effect on Sept. 1, pending Ashcrofts approval of the emergency rules. And now that will likely be delayed until for at least six months, Parson said in a strongly-worded letter to Ashcroft on Thursday.

As best I can tell, you denied this emergency rulemaking because you believe hurt feelings are more important than protecting children, Parson said.

The governor seemed to be implying the decision was inspired by Parsons support for another candidate besides Ashcroft in the GOP gubernatorial primary.

Ashcroft finished third in the primary, with Parsons pick  Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe  winning the nomination.

This is a personal matter for thousands of parents and grandparents across the state, and denying the rulemaking is your attempt at retribution for my endorsement of another candidate, Parson said. Safety of kids is not a political issue. I am disgusted that you are making it one.

JoDonn Chaney, spokesman for Ashcrofts office, told The Independent Wednesday that the rules were rejected because they didnt meet the state laws criteria. The secretary reached out to the Parson administration to provide an opportunity to explain how the rules met the requirements and got not response, he said.

Secretary Ashcroft has a discretion to determine what constitutes an emergency rule and theres guidelines in statute that dictate, Chaney said.

If Ashcroft would have approved the emergency rules, they wouldve been implemented after 10 business days, since there would be no public-comment period, Chaney said.

However, now the rules will have to go through the standard rules procedure, which will take several months.

It opens it up for a 30- or a 60-day comment period, Chaney said, where individuals on both sides can comment on the rule.

From there, it will be debated among the members of the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, a 10-member body of both state representatives and senators.

However, the rules actually dont need to be approved for the ban to go into effect, said Lisa Cox, spokeswoman for the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.

The proposed rules include one sentence: No retailer shall sell, or deliver, hold or offer for sale any food, drug, device or cosmetic that has been embargoed by the Department of Health and Senior Services pursuant to [state statute.]

It refers to the state law that gives DHSS the authority to embargo products without any administrative rule in place. It means that DHSS regulators would have to go to each retailer individually and put an embargo tag on the products theyve deemed adulterated, or so misbranded as to be dangerous or fraudulent.

Then the department would have to go before a circuit court judge to petition that the products need to be embargoed. If the judge sides with the retailer, then the tag is removed.

The governor has directed DHSS to use our current authority to enforce these products under the Missouri Food Code, which would not require the emergency rule, Cox said. We can begin enforcement (embargo of products) on Sept. 1.

However, without the approval of emergency rules, Cox said DHSS would be acting without the enforcement authority and support of the Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Control.

It does not appear to me that the government has really thought through this plan very well, said Chuck Hatfield, an attorney representing the Missouri Hemp Trade Association. And now the Secretary of State has rejected a rule. And, I hope that theyll reconsider the whole thing.

Hatfield said regulation of the hemp industry should be handled through a bill thats debated and voted on by the legislature. For the last two years, the marijuana-industry  which has been a major political donor to Parson  has led an unsuccessful effort to convince the legislature to ban hemp-derived THC products outright.

Trying to do it through executive order and bureaucratic action is just not good government, Hatfield said. And I think the Secretary of State today, in part, recognized that.

At his Aug. 1 press conference, Parson pointed to products that mimic trademarked candy but contain hemp-derived THC as a big reason why he issued his executive order banning all intoxicating hemp products.

These products have been allowed to be sold in Missouri outside of licensed cannabis dispensaries because the 2018 Farm Bill legalized hemp.

Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services Director Paula Nicholson warned families about the fact that these hemp products on the shelves are not regulated by any state or federal authority during the same press conference. So theres no way to ensure theyre safe, she said.

We have seen the negative impacts first hand, she said. Disturbingly, children in Missouri and across the nation have been hospitalized after ingesting these substances. This is unacceptable.

However, Parson did not address the fact that thousands of retailers statewide are currently selling hemp-derived beverages in bars and liquor stores and require people to be 21 to purchase them.

Steven Busch, owner of Krey Distributing, said everyone in the hemp industry agrees that those bad actors that Parson mentioned should be taken off the shelves.

But the governor failing to address the impact it would have on thousands of bars, liquor stores and grocery stores was disingenuous and bordering unethical, said Busch, whose company distributes 11 different hemp beverages in eastern Missouri.

This executive order singled out any retailers that have a liquor license and said that they cannot sell the products, Busch said. So thats pretty much all of my customers that are currently selling.

Since March, Busch has led an effort to establish regulations for these beverages and edibles by working with various lawmakers to write legislation. Its set to be filed in December.

This story was updated at 2:44 p.m.
BISHKEK, Kyrzgystan, August 21. Deputies of the Zhogorku Kenesh (Parliament) of Kyrgyzstan Gulsharkan Kultaeva and Daniyar Tolonov today held a meeting with a delegation of the Korea Wheel company, headed by CEO Jin Soo Park, the press service of the Kyrgyz parliament said, Trend reports.

According to the information, during the meeting, the possibilities of strengthening trade and economic ties between Kyrgyzstan and South Korea were discussed, including an exchange of views on the prospects for cooperation in the field of agriculture and processing of agricultural products.

Korea Wheel CEO Jin Soo Park introduced the company's activities, especially emphasizing the benefits of using smart farms based on advanced technology in agriculture.

Deputies Gulsharkan Kultaeva and Daniyar Tolonov noted that Korea is widely known for its innovative solutions in production, and expressed Kyrgyzstans interest in their experience and investment projects in the agricultural sector.
Mike Lynch, the British tech entrepreneur, died when his yacht, the Bayesian, sank off the coast of Sicily on Monday

The Bayesian superyacht was virtually unsinkable, the chief executive of the firm that built it has claimed.

Prosecutors in the town of Termini Imerese, close to Porticello, where the vessel went down in the early hours of Monday, have opened an investigation into the disaster.

They will seek to establish what caused the yacht to sink and whether any of the crew are criminally liable.

They are expected to investigate the keel on Mike Lynchs superyacht after it was found partially elevated, and also examine whether the yachts crew had failed to close access hatches into the vessel before it was hit by a tornado.

Giovanni Costantino, the founder and chief executive of The Italian Sea Group, which owns the Perini Navi shipyard where the superyacht was built, has defended the boats construction and blamed human error for the sinking.

He claimed the Bayesian was one of the safest boats in the world and was virtually unsinkable, telling Corriere della Sera: The passengers reported something absurd, that the storm came unexpectedly, suddenly. That is not true. Everything was predictable.

Ask yourself  why were none of the Porticello fishermen out that night? A fisherman checks the conditions and a ship doesnt? The disturbance was completely readable on all the weather maps. It was impossible not to know.

A Perini vessel survived Hurricane Katrina. You dont think it could survive a tornado like this?

Mr Costantino said the strong winds had pushed the boat for four minutes, in what he called drifting. He claimed the boat then rotated and had begun taking on water before it sank.

When divers searched the Bayesian 165ft underwater, it was reported that they found the vessels retractable keel was partially raised, sparking questions about the boats stability at the time of the sinking.

The fin-like structure under the hull helped to stabilise the yacht  acting as a counterweight to the mast  and stretched to 9.83 metres when the vessels centreboard was fully extended, according to a brochure about its performance.

Experts have suggested the keel would normally be fully extended for extra stability during bad weather.

It has also been reported that the space housing the boats tender was not fully closed when it went down.

From photos and video images of the sinking that have been published, Mr Costantino said it was clear the boat had a blackout that had been caused by a surge of water inside it.

He said there was no doubt the aft hatch had been left open, adding: It tilted 90 degrees for only one reason  because the water kept coming in. From the time it started coming in to the time it went down was six minutes. Those who say it disappeared in a few seconds are speaking rubbish.

Giovanni Costantino, the founder and chief executive of The Italian Sea Group, has blamed human error for the sinking

Mr Constantino said the crew should have closed all the doors and portholes and gathered all guests on deck in preparation for an emergency evacuation.

James Cutfield, the 51-year-old captain of the yacht was questioned by prosecutors from the Termini Imerese Public Prosecutors Office on Tuesday after the vessel sank, Corriere della Sera reported.

Mr Cutfield, originally from North Shore, Auckland, New Zealand, was described as a well-respected lifelong seafarer by his brother Mark. He told The New Zealand Herald that his brother was recovering in hospital, but that his injuries were not too dramatic.

Four British inspectors from the Marine Accident Investigation Branch also arrived in Porticello to look at the site of the sinking. It is understood they are looking into what happened because the yacht was flying the British flag, and are not involved in the search for the remaining missing passenger.

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BAY COUNTY, FL. (WMBB)  Wednesday is National Fentanyl Prevention and Awareness Day, designated to educate the public on the dangers of the drug.

Fentanyl was originally designed for use by doctors for their patients.

Drug bust leads to four arrested in Holmes County

Its primary use was for cancer patients to relieve them of pain, Bay County Lt. David Higgins said.

But just like oxycontin once was, fentanyl is now the drug of choice for abusers and addicts.

Opioids and painkillers are hard to get now, so fentanyl is out there and its cheap and theyre buying it. Unfortunately, the people who theyre getting it from, theyre not chemists. They dont know how much fentanyl to put in with the other things theyre doing, and people are dying from taking it, Higgins said.

Higgins said the sheriffs office is targeting traffickers who are endangering the community.

If someone dies from a fentanyl overdose death or an overdose death that you caused by giving them the narcotic or pill or whatever it may be, we are charging them with homicide, Higgins said.

Alabama man arrested in Bay County hotel facing trafficking charges

Higgins said theyre doing their best to keep fentanyl off of the streets. While fentanyl deaths have been skyrocketing over the last 5 years, Bay County has seen overdose deaths drop in the last year or so.

We decreased the overdose deaths here in Bay County by 65%. I attribute that to taking drugs off the street, Narcan being readily available, and peoples awareness to not do this because it could hurt them. Its your life youre gambling with when you try it. No, dont do it, Higgins added.

Fentanyl is often mixed with other drugs, like heroin, to enhance the reaction, but it is powerful and easy to misjudge and overuse. Many overdose deaths are recreational drug users who dont even know theyre taking fentanyl.

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Beaufort County Sheriffs Office asks for publics help in unsolved cases

BEAUFORT, S.C. (WSAV)  The Beaufort County Sheriffs Office (BCSO) is requesting the help of the general public in solving several unsolved criminal cases.

In a Wednesday evening Facebook post, BCSO highlighted four cases:

May 1995 murder of Maria Telles-Gonzalez

October 2021 murder of Marlon Lyons Jr.

March 2022 murder of Malcolm Donaldson

July 2023 murder of Candido Timmy Montantez Jr.

Included in the post was a link to a YouTube playlist featuring detailed videos regarding the cases. That playlist can be seen here.

Anyone with information regarding these cases or any other suspicious or criminal activity in Beaufort County is encouraged to call the BCSO non-emergency dispatch line at 843-524-2777.

Tips can also be submitted through their website at BCSO.NET.

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BERLIN  Construction has commenced on Germanys first permanent military base abroad, which will be located in Lithuania. Berlin is set to move a brigade to the Baltic country by the end of the decade.

Lithuania and Germany agreed in December 2023 on the plan to station the 4,800 military and 200 civilian German personnel. Now, just over half a year later, construction has started on what will be the largest military installation in Lithuanian history, according to the Ministry of Defense in Vilnius. The plan is to put the brigade in service next year and to reach full operational ability by 2027, according to the Bundeswehr, Germanys armed forces. In addition to the personnel, it will house 2,000 vehicles, an infographic released by the German Ministry of Defense shows.

While Germany will provide the troops, Lithuania will build the physical infrastructure. It will be located in the Rudninkai Training Area in the countrys southeast and cost Vilnius 125 million ($139 million).

Politico, citing a German defense ministry speaker, previously reported that Berlin expects the brigade to require a one-time investment of 6 to 9 billion, mostly for the purchase of weapons systems, and annual operating expenses of 800 million thereafter.

Lithuania eases red tape for defense firms looking to set up shop

The German military is already present in Lithuania. Berlin has been leading NATOs enhanced forward presence in the country for six years. According to the Bundeswehr, 800 German military personnel already serve in Lithuania on a rotational basis.

The Bundeswehr has called the decision to deploy the 5,000-strong, combat-ready, heavy maneuver brigade a beacon project of the watershed era in security policy.

Deployment in the long term and on this scale is also new for the German armed forces, reads the services website.

Shortly after Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz had declared a Zeitenwende  a fundamentally new era  when it came to security on the European continent and how Germany views its military. German defense spending was boosted significantly, and the country has taken on a more active role internationally. Berlin is the numerically second-largest supporter of Kyiv after only the United States and has worked to position itself as a key NATO partner, especially at the alliances eastern flank.

In the past, German policymakers have often been reserved about flexing Germanys military or even diplomatic muscle on the world stage. Russias actions in Ukraine, especially its 2022 invasion, have changed this.

In the other Baltic states, Canada and the U.K. have taken the lead. Two Canadian battalions are expected to arrive in Latvia by 2025, while Britain has vowed to maintain a rapid deployment force to move to the region if needed.

The decision to permanently station German soldiers so close to Russia brings the Zeitenwende into life, said German state secretary for defense Nils Hilmer at this weeks ceremony marking the official start of construction work. We know the value of reliable support and solidarity, he added.

Our aim is not to threaten or intimidate, said Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte. But the country must have the confidence to know that if an outside force chose to test its defenses, it would be able to make them regret this decision, she said.
In February 1979, President Spencer W. Kimball sent two emissaries to Independence, Missouri, to ask if The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints could acquire the Kirtland (Ohio) Temple from the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

RLDS President Wallace B. Smith  the great-grandson of Joseph Smith  told Bishop H. Burke Peterson, then first counselor in the Latter-day Saint presiding bishopric, that he could think of no reason why the RLDS church would relinquish the temple, according to an entry in the journal of Elder Graham W. Doxey, a General Authority Seventy, who accompanied Bishop Peterson.

That position endured for 40 years, according to a BYU Education Week presentation on Tuesday by David Channer, associate general counsel for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

He revealed that the two churches signed a letter of intent in 2019 to transfer ownership of the Kirtland Temple, but the attempt faltered.

In his Education Week presentation, Channer described some of the behind-the-scenes legal work done after the effort was rebooted in 2023, finalized and then announced in March, when the Church of Jesus Christ acquired the temple and other assets for $192.5 million from the Community of Christ (the modern name for the RLDS church).

President Russell M. Nelson of the Church of Jesus Christ directed the Latter-day Saint efforts to acquire the temple. Those efforts involved the Presiding Bishopric, church historians and many others. Channer shared a part of the legal work done.

Elder Kyle S. McKay, the Latter-day Saint Church Historian and Recorder, and other historians described in March how the heavenly visitations to the Kirtland Temple by Jesus Christ, Moses, Elijah and Elias in 1836 provided priesthood authority that became the underpinnings for the Church of Jesus Christs doctrines about eternal families, beliefs not shared by the Community of Christ.

The Kirtland Temple, then, and the authority provided there, is part of what gives us hope, those of our faith, of eternal life and family life, Channer said.

For that reason, he added, This is the greatest thing Ive ever done in my life as a lawyer.

David Channer, associate legal counsel for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, talks about the acquisition of the Kirtland Temple from the Community of Christ during a BYU Education Week presentation in the Clyde Building on the BYU campus in Provo, Utah, on Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024. | Tad Walch/Deseret News

The murky property title to the Kirtland Temple

The Latter-day Saints and the Community of Christ share a common history from the legal formation of the Church of Jesus Christ in 1830 to a year after the murder of Joseph Smith in 1844. The Kirtland Temple, completed in 1836, is the first temple in the history of both churches.

Ownership of the Kirtland Temple became an issue almost from the start. The title was broken more than once in the 1830s, Spencer McBride said in a Joseph Smith Papers Project podcast. For example, he said title to the temple once was conveyed to Joseph Smith and his wife, Emma Smith, but it was unclear if it was to them as individuals or as trustee-in-trust for the church.

Its a murky title, Channer said.

Other experts have described the problems. Elizabeth Kuehn, a historian and editor on the Joseph Smith Papers Project, described in a separate Education Week session this year how Joseph Smith was deeply in debt due to construction costs for the temple and the 1837 failure of the Kirtland Safety Society, a bank formed by Latter-day Saint leaders at the start of that year.

Church leaders secured a five-year mortgage on the temple from Mead Stafford and Co., which agreed to forgive a $16,000 debt, Kuehn said. Joseph Smith and the majority of the Latter-day Saints left Kirtland in 1838, but in 1839, he assumed all the debts on the temple in his own name.

After Joseph was murdered in 1844, the temples ownership was increasingly unclear and many groups used the building. A BYU Studies article said it wasnt until 1860 that the probate court in Lake County, Ohio, decided the Kirtland Temple property should be sold to pay those debts.

Various transactions occurred in the years that followed with the president of the The Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints acquiring ownership in 1873 and made attempts to satisfy claims. By 1901 the RLDS Church believed it had settled the ownership matter.

How the churches handled the title in the transfer of the Kirtland Temple

Channer said he approached Bishop W. Christopher Waddell, first counselor in the Presiding Bishopric, in early 2023 to check the status of the Kirtland Temple only to learn that the churches had scheduled talks on April 3. Negotiations continued until November 2023, when an agreement was reached.

The deal was signed by the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ on Dec. 20, 2023.

The Community of Christ offered a quit-claim deed, but the Latter-day Saints had concerns about the title, said Channer, who said helping the Church of Jesus Christ ensure purchases are clear of ownership claims is one reason it has lawyers.

Eventually, each church agreed to pay a premium to a title company that agreed to assume the risks of possible future claims against the title. That way, the Latter-day Saints received a special warranty deed for the Kirtland Temple, which is better than a quit-claim deed.

We believe the title issues vesting title in the Community of Christ were resolved years ago. Old Republic as a title company did an extensive review of the title issues and was comfortable the Community of Christ does hold legal title and as a result it was willing to stand behind the title, so they are the ones who facilitated the transaction. Old Republic Title agreed to step in and provide insurance and protect both sides from any other claims. Theyre taking whatever risk exists, but all parties believe that is minimal. They took our premiums, and they issued policies to us and the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Missouri Corp., so we were both protected should anyone come out of the woodwork claiming they owned the temple.

Securing the materials to the Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible

The two churches also finalized the transfer of many additional assets in March, including the materials Joseph Smith used in his translation of the Bible.

Those materials included the 1828 Phinney Bible, three Old Testament manuscripts, two New Testament manuscripts and documents from the 1867 RLDS Publication Committee.

That transfer was complicated because the Community of Christ had optioned those materials to someone else, granting that party the right to buy them for $25 million. The option had not expired in March, and the Latter-day Saints would not purchase them until that option was settled.

It went right down to the wire, Channer said, maybe two weeks or a week before we closed, that the option resolution came through.

The legal work to finalize the transfer

Channer also described how the transfer was finalized on March 4 and 5. On the first day, he and another Latter-day Saint attorney met in Missouri with the general counsel for the Community of Christ and representatives of the title company and reviewed all of the documents. The review took six hours.

When the meeting ended, the title company representatives left to prepare to file the titles for the exchanges of real property in Lake County, Ohio, and Hancock County, Illinois. The timing was crucial. Community of Christ had a meeting scheduled at 1:30 p.m. ET on March 5, and its leadership wanted to disclose the transfer then without it leaking beforehand.

We had to have the deeds filed, not later than (the timely issuance of the press release), Channer said, but not so early in the day that the transfer would leak. So we didnt want to file them at 8 a.m. or 8:30 a.m. when the offices first opened, because that would allow for too much time. If you walked in and handed to the Hancock County Recorder the deeds on approximately 30 different properties, we were afraid that word could get out, so we held them.

When the titles were filed, Channer sent a note to President Nelson and his counselors in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:

Dear Brethren, Im pleased to let you know the deeds have been recorded in both Kirtland and Nauvoo. The transaction is now complete. Let the hearts of all your brethren rejoice, and let the hearts of all my people rejoice, who have, with their might, built this house to my name. (Doctrine & Covenants 110:6).

I give heartfelt thanks to Heavenly Father and to the Savior that I have lived to see this day and to have been a small part of the larger team that has operated under the keys of apostles and prophets to bring this about.

Channer said, as an aside, I should mention that the title issues were only one set of legal issues the parties faced in nearly a years worth of negotiations. The legal team from Community of Christ were nothing short of complete and total professionals in every way. On the day of closing, we prayed together as legal teams before approving the final legal instruments and authorizing the transfer of funds.

Channer said Tuesday, It was the singular project of a lifetime for a Latter-day Saint lawyer.
Political consistency

Realizing consistency is not always a valued attribute for politicians, I recognize former President Donald Trumps thinking that several totalitarian communists, most notably Russian President Vladimir Putin, are great leaders of their countries to be emulated. Yet, at the same time, according to Trump, many Democratic leaders and their positions are bad for Americans because they are characterized as communist. You might think Trump would be more pleased to see his sympathy and esteem for communist regimes gaining a foothold in America. Surely someone with such a great brain as Trump would know better than to try to have it both ways.

As a side note, perhaps the most overlooked qualification of one of the candidates, Tim Walz, may be his experience as a school lunchroom monitor. Having also had this experience, I can attest to the skills and temperament necessary for success: communicating clearly in a timely manner; watching and listening closely and carefully; negotiating disagreements over fault and blame fairly and impartially; educating about the value of community and responsibility; and last, but certainly not least, a sense of humor.

Charles Myers, Lexington

Incompetence

When former President Donald Trump calls anyone incompetent, the first thing I remember is how he didnt take COVID-19 seriously until March 16, 2020. Im reminded of the cognitive test he took and how he bragged about it. Im reminded of him altering Hurricane Dorians trajectory with a Sharpie in 2019, and then suggesting nuking it. Im reminded of him looking up at the solar eclipse. I remember about the scandals and self-inflicted political and criminal scandals, including misogynistic, racist, white supremacist dog whistling, and his admiration for autocrats, like Russian President Vladimir Putin.

I remember he is twice impeached. I remember the chaos. I remember he is a felon. I remember his incessant lies.

He now says things like the Medal of Freedom is better than the Medal of Honor - after calling our Veterans suckers and losers.

I remember how he tried to use the military against civilians, how he held a bible upside down in front of a church for a photo op, and how January 6ths riots were all directed by him.

Yes, lets do talk about incompetence, please!

Robert Moreland, Lexington

Describing elephants

Theres an Indian parable about blind men describing an elephant based on only the part they can feel. As each describes the animal based on his experience, arguments and condemnation begin as differing perspectives emerge.

Washington politics is similar. Only in place of physical blindness there is a political equivalent, partisanship. Politicians who are unwilling to see the whole issue or listen to alternative descriptions/solutions accomplish little in Washington. Lack of solutions to gun violence, immigration, voter issues, deficits and abortion, result from Congressmembers who never see or are willing to work beyond partisan divides.

U.S. Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.) is up for re-election this year. In 12 years, Barr has sponsored just 4 bills signed into law, 3 of them having little significance. Most of the legislation Barr writes and co-sponsors is partisan in nature. Consequently, Barr consistently receives negative bipartisanship scores by the Lugar Center which tracks the legislative cooperation of Congressional members.

If we really want a Representative solving problems instead of contributing to the continued failures in Washington, isnt it time to vote Barr out of office this November?

Peter Wedlund, Lexington

Domestic abuse

Kentucky has the inauspicious reputation of having a high level of domestic abuse and femicide among the 50 states. The Ky. Secretary of State has announced both his office and the General Assembly are supporting an initiative called Safe at Home. This is to protect the personal information of abuse victims from public records. Emergency Protective Orders (EPOs) do not offer enough protection for the abused women and this Safe at Home is untested. Is this to prove that our state government really cares for the safety and welfare of the women and girls?

As long as there are no exceptions for rape or incest in Kentuckys abortion laws, this proves nothing. The offspring resulting from rape or incest have more rights in our state than the crime victim. At this point, the state government is the abuser.

Cheryl Keenan, Lexington

UK student behavior

I live near the University of Kentucky campus. Recently, we had student streaking up our street. Literally naked as a jay bird. Then at 3:30 in the morning students woke me up again drunk, partying on the front porch. We have been through this before. We call the police, and the college kids hide in their houses, refusing to answer the door until the police leave. The last bunch egged my home because I kept calling the police on them. What more can I do? Literally, I am at my wits end and the school year has just started.

We, the home owners, suffer the damage and sleepless nights. How much does the University of Kentucky expect old home owners to deal with? If this was happening in their neighborhoods it would end. Im thinking the next time maybe I should go to the dean of student affairs house at 3:00 a.m. and stand on the sidewalk in front of his house to beat some pots and pans, then take off when I see lights come on. Thats what their students do. Maybe a little hair of the dog would be good for the dean of student affairs!

Evelyn Griffin, Lexington

School choice

Vote NO on Amendment 2. This amendment would put many, and perhaps eventually all, of our children in religious schools. When the state moved to place foster children in privatized care, most of our children in foster care wound up in religious programs where they were often told they were going to hell for various normal childhood behaviors. As an employee of the state, I witnessed abusive actions by most of these religious programs. Dont fool yourself. As loving as Christ wants us to be, these programs were punitive, had horrible food, and hired unskilled teachers and therapists who lacked basic education for their roles.

Once we start on this path, the state can start contracting out education wholesale to these churches, who offer discounted services with their minimum wage teachers. It sounds great; get your kid into private school at the taxpayers expense, but that is not where this train is headed.

Susan Bell, Lexington

Light Pollution

Kudos to the Lexington Fayette Urban County Government council for passing an ordinance governing outdoor light pollution.

A private school expansion abutting my property has put up a hideously blinding security light that hits me in the face when I go into my kitchen at night. I can no longer sit on my deck in the dark without shading my face. This in spite of the heavy tree canopy I allowed to grow so I could have a peaceful, dark yard. A well-lit space could have easily been achieved with a series of traditional canopied street lights. Do people really think they are in danger from extraterrestrial aliens? Is that why they use lights that can be seen from outer space? Many of my neighbors supplement traditional back door lights with these monstrosities. LFUCG please enforce this new enlightened policy.

Sally Wasielewski, Lexington

Compiled by Liz Carey
FILE PHOTO: N-VA President De Wever arrives for a meeting with King Philippe at the Royal Palace in Brussels

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Belgian politician Bart De Wever, appointed by King Philippe to lead coalition talks following the country's June election, resigned on Thursday, the palace said.

"The King has accepted his resignation and will start consultations tomorrow with the chairmen of the five parties participating in the government negotiations," the palace said in a post on X.

De Wever, whose Flemish nationalist N-VA became the largest party in Flanders and in Belgium as a whole, has tried to form a government with liberal Francophone party MR, Flemish Christian Democrat party CD&V, Flemish socialist party Vooruit and Francophone centrist party Les Engages.

Talks were extended this week after negotiations stalled over MR's opposition against a capital gains tax, party spokespeople have told Belgian media.

The talks hinge on a major package of social-economic reforms proposed by De Wever, notably labour market, pension and tax changes, as well as spending cuts.

Belgium needs to clean up its government finances as it is one of seven EU countries for which the European Commission has proposed disciplinary measures for excessive budget deficits.

"We laboured for weeks on the major reforms this country needs...we had an opportunity to put together an ambitious government. This is sour, and the centre is not to blame, we do not give up," CD&V president Say Mahdi said on Instagram.

With the Flemish liberals and francophone socialists in the outgoing coalition having taken a beating in the election, and cooperation with far-right Vlaams Belang ruled out by centrist parties, De Wever's proposed coalition is one of the few that would guarantee a solid majority in the 150-seat national parliament.

While the talks continue, the government of outgoing Prime Minister Alexander De Croo - whose Flemish liberal party slumped in the June poll - will stay on in a caretaker capacity.

(Reporting by Geert De Clercq; Additional reporting by Maria Ponnezhath; Editing by William Maclean and Josie Kao)
TechCrunch

Last year, Sound Ventures, the 9-year-old, Beverly Hills, California-based venture firm led by general partners Ashton Kutcher, Guy Oseary, and Effie Epstein, announced a new $265 million AI fund that was betting big on large language model companies, including OpenAI, Anthropic, and Hugging Face. It also appears to have stuck to its mission, judging by the few deals it has publicly disclosed in 2024, and were thrilled to be hosting all three at TechCrunch Disrupt 2024 to dish about their strategy  along with the trends they are tracking right now. Kutcher has perhaps made the transition between the worlds of acting and investing more seamlessly than anyone else in Hollywood, starting on his venture path in 2010 with the launch of A-Grade Investments with talent manager and business partner Guy Oseary, whose early bets on Airbnb and Uber helped cement their reputation for getting into the right deals at the right time.
So far, the Democratic National Convention has been filled with era-marking oratory. The first night served as a valedictory for 81-year-old Joe Biden; CNN hailed Barack Obamas Tuesday speech as a capstone of the 20-year period in Democratic politics, marked best by the man himself and his smooth, noncombative style, since his coming-out party at the 2004 DNC. And there was another significant address that rounded off a legacy that night, though it lasted only 12 minutes and was received with much less fanfare: that of independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.

You wouldnt necessarily know it just by reviewing Sanders remarks. The draft text was almost indistinguishable from his 2016 DNC remarks, with some reputational boosterism for the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act and a cease-fire call thrown in. If youve ever heard Bernie on the stump, you yourself could probably sing the notes he hit. Lionizing the working class. Demanding a higher minimum wage and the expansion of Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. Celebrating organized labor and calling to expand its ranks. Condemning millionaires and billionaires, Republicans, and big money in politics.

Thats not because the party has steadfastly refused Sanders influence, forcing him to repeat the same old points to no availits the opposite. Since Sanders rocketed to national prominence with his 2016 presidential primary challenge to Hillary Clinton, the wild-haired senator has remained stubbornly dedicated to the policies he has championed, and the entire Democratic Party has moved toward him.

Despite that signature Bernie locutionthe short, familiar phrases, the elevated volume, the iconic Brooklyn accentlittle in Sanders speech felt uncommon (aside from a call to keep big money out of primary elections, a thinly veiled reference to the American Israel Public Affairs Committees multimillion-dollar spending spree to knock progressive House reps out of Congress). When, on Tuesday night, Sanders said his vision was not a radical agenda, he was absolutely correct. Much of it has become the actual agenda of the Democratic Party.

There were very few themes in Sanders speech that other Democratic speakers hadnt already covered on Monday and Tuesday. Senators and governors and members of Congress alike made explicit mentions of class-driven policy designed to help the working and middle classes. Multiple union members, of both rank and file and leadership, took the stage, advocating for organized labor.

The PRO Act, which would drastically expand union density, is now a core Democratic policy. Kamala Harris has vocally embraced programs cracking down on corporate greed and has called for tax increases on the wealthy and corporations. Biden embraced a number of Sanders-backed plans for medical and student-debt cancellation. The 2024 DNC platform features a commitment to the expansion of Social Security and the especially Sandersian addition of dental care to Medicare.

Its an astounding amount of influence for a man who has never won the Democratic presidential nomination and doesnt possess once-in-a-generation oratorical skills. Still, in the eight years since Sanders failed to become the nominee the first time, and the four years since he failed the second time, he has managed to push the party toward dramatic policy and rhetorical changes. The substance of the 2024 DNC is a testament as much to his political legacy as to the partys actual presidents.

And Sanders, whose presence at the 2016 DNC was controversial and contentious, now looks like a figure of party unity, one who has even helped bridge the gap from Biden to Harris. He got a heros welcome from the convention Tuesday night, with Democratic delegates chanting his name.

On the convention floor, I spoke with Keith Ellison, a prominent Bernie 2016 proxy and now the attorney general of Minnesota, about how he views Sanders legacy eight years on.

Kamala and Joe Biden have walked picket lines, and Tim is a union member. Thats who the ticket is, Ellison told me. This, he said, pointing to a student-debt-cancellation pin, used to be a pipe dream. Now its reality.

I always believed it was possible. I always thought we would end up somewhere in this neighborhood, Ellison added. Its remarkable, but it had to come.

Its not inconceivable that well one day look back on Sanders not-altogether-memorable 2024 DNC remarks as a valedictory as well. Hes about to turn 83, older than Joe Biden. Hes running for reelection in the Senate, which would give him another six years, at which point he would be pushing 90. Congress may be full of old-timers, but there arent many nonagenarians.

Nothing about his time slot in the 8 p.m. bloc indicated that Sanders was getting the star treatment. No single line of his remarks got the headline-grabbing attention of that of Michelle Obama or Barack Obama or even Biden. But, looking back eight years, its clear that this event has been a testament to Sanders legacy too.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan plan to establish trade houses and showrooms in Baku, Shusha, Tashkent, and Samarkand, Uzbek Minister of Investment, Industry and Trade Laziz Kudratov said at the Uzbek-Azerbaijani business forum in Tashkent, Trend reports.

"Regarding priority areas of cooperation, I would like to highlight the aim to increase and diversify our mutual trade. The governments of both countries are discussing the implementation of import substitution programs and the development of infrastructure to enhance the sale of domestically produced goods and establish dedicated spaces for these products.

This also includes plans to open trade houses and showrooms in national pavilions in Azerbaijan's Baku and Shusha, with reciprocation in Uzbekistan's Tashkent and Samarkand," the minister said.

The Uzbek-Azerbaijani business forum, which kicked off in Tashkent today, aims to strengthen economic ties between the two countries, enhance cooperation, attract investments, and realize joint projects. The forum will serve as a platform for discussing ways to increase trade, share experiences, and establish new business partnerships.

Currently, a total of 236 Azerbaijani-capital enterprises operate in Uzbekistan, including 62 joint ventures and 174 fully foreign-owned enterprises. Additionally, 70 Uzbek companies are active in Azerbaijan.

The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan surpassed $118.2 million from January to July 2024.

Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Cole Witter

LGBTQ+ advocates and reproductive justice organizers are coming together for an unprecedented demonstration next month in support of bodily autonomy for everyone. Scheduled for September 14 in Washington, D.C., Gender Liberation March is intended to call attention to threats against the right to make decisions about ones own body, whether in the form of gender-affirming care or getting an abortion. The event will begin at 12pm with a march, followed by a series of speeches and performances at Columbus Circle.

The demonstration is certainly well-timed. Nearly nine months into 2024, more than 640 bills have been introduced in the U.S. seeking to deny basic rights and protections to trans Americans, the largest number put forward in any single year in history. According to Trans Legislative Tracker, at least 165 of those bills target the rights of trans people to access medical care that meets their specific needs. Many states have already severely restricted gender-affirming care: To date, 26 states have enacted at least some limitations on the kinds of transition treatments that can be offered to minors. Those policies have increasingly begun targeting adults, with states like Florida, Missouri, and Ohio all attempting to limit adult transition care.

In the midst of the many political vulnerabilities that queer people face, co-organizer Raquel Willis says the Gender Liberation March is about centering the radical power of trans joy. She says the event is a moment to resist the multiplicities of oppression but that its also about celebrating the strength of community. Joy is the thing that helps us sustain our energy in this lifelong commitment to collective liberation, she tells Them. Its something that we have to put just as much energy into as we do the rage and the sadness that animates us toward this work.

These challenges will only continue to escalate in the coming months, with the Supreme Court scheduled to hear a monumental case regarding the constitutionality of trans youth health care restrictions later this year. The hearing wont take place until December or January and a ruling isnt expected until next summer, but Eliel Cruz, a member of the diverse team of organizers behind the event, hopes that the Gender Liberation March can help educate the public about the high stakes of the case. Considering that the Supreme Court potentially could effectively ban health care for countless trans youth living in conservative states, Cruz hopes the demonstration shows that the public is paying attention to the outcome. We have a short window to show up, Cruz tells Them.

Many of the Gender Liberation March organizers were involved in putting together the 2020 Brooklyn Liberation March, which called attention to the ongoing epidemic of homicides targeting Black trans people. That event saw an estimated 15,000 people gather outside the Brooklyn Museum to help raise greater awareness about the historic anti-trans violence recorded the year prior: In 2020, 45 trans individuals had their lives taken from them, and the vast majority of victims were Black women. That figure is still the largest number of any single year in history.

We understand gender liberation as a framework to address both those immediate issues around medical access to abortion and gender-affirming care, but also as a larger lens to look at our democracy, understanding that theres a throughline around gender.

As trans people continue to grapple with these escalating attacks on both their human rights and their everyday safety, the Gender Liberation March recognizes that their ability to move through the world is also being restricted in other ways. Following the 2022 repeal of Roe v. Wade by the Supreme Court, at least 14 states now have a total abortion ban in place, according to the Guttmacher Institute. Access to safe abortions is a major concern for trans and nonbinary people who can become pregnant, and to center this conversion, organizers brought in Sarah Sophie Flicker, a co-founder of the Womens March, as a member of the organizing team. Cruz says the goal in bridging the movements for trans equality and reproductive justice is to create some solidarity between groups who may have in the past been siloed.

We understand gender liberation as a framework to address both those immediate issues around medical access to abortion and gender-affirming care, but also as a larger lens to look at our democracy, understanding that theres a throughline around gender, Cruz explains. We know that the Heritage Foundations and Alliance Defending Freedoms are making these connections between abortion and gender-affirming care. Its really important for us to do that, both as movements and as individuals in community with each other.

The Gender Liberation March intends to create conversation regarding bodily autonomy by inviting speakers with We Testify, an advocacy group that engages in storytelling efforts around reproductive justice, to address the crowd. What is often neglected in mainstream conversations on these issues is that abortion care is gender affirming care, says Ash Orr, a communications lead with the event. Both involve the rights of people to choose what happens to their bodies and access to the resources necessary to live long, full, and happy lives, Orr adds. Those privileges are being taken away even in states where abortion is still technically legal: Just nine states in the entire country allow fully unrestricted access to abortion care without gestational limits, per the Kaiser Family Foundation.

As both a former abortion patient and a queer Appalachian, Orr is pleased to see rural communities being included in discussions regarding bodily autonomy. Orr, who also serves as the press relations manager for Advocates for Trans Equality, says that abortion care was widely inaccessible for the vast majority of Appalachians even before the fall of Roe. The region has long been declared a health desert for reproductive medicine, and Orrs state of residence, West Virginia, has the countrys sixth-highest infant mortality rate. An estimated 19.7% of West Virginians lack easy access to medical care that meets their reproductive health needs.

We do not have ways to get to medical appointments because we do not have reliable infrastructure in place to get folks where they need to go, Orr tells Them. People often say, Oh, if its that bad, you can move, but we cant do that. Our region has so much generational poverty. I want to make sure that our voices are being heard because there are so many folks here that have had abortions or need abortions, and we deserve to have access to this life-saving health care.

Other organizations partnering for the Gender Liberation March include Gen Z for Change, a nonprofit that educates younger Americans on issues like climate change and income inequality; Solutions Not Punishment Collaborative, a Black trans and queer-led organization focused on building leadership and political power; Trans Latin@ Coalition, a Los Angeles-based service provider offering resources to trans immigrant women; and Familia: TQLM, which fights for racial justice by advocating for the abolition of immigrant detention.

Trans people and LGBTQ+ immigrants deserve the right to exist, to be here, and to fight for their rights.

Jennicet Gutierrez, the co-executive director of Familia: QTLM, says that bodily autonomy is central to what her organization is fighting for. If LGBTQ+ immigrants do not have freedom of movement or the freedom to determine their own health care, Gutierrez says they are not truly free, pointing to the 2018 death of Roxsana Hernandez. Hernandez, an undocumented trans woman fleeing persecution in Honduras, suffered fatal cardiac arrest in a New Mexico hospital after she was reportedly denied medical treatment at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility where she was being held. At the time of her passing, Hernandez was reportedly experiencing dehydration, as well as complications from being denied HIV medication.

Gutierrez, who made national headlines in 2015 for protesting the Obama administrations policy on immigrant detention during a White House Pride event, has spent years fighting for justice for women like Hernanadez. She is pleased to see the Gender Liberation March be allies in that mission and hopes to continue building these kinds of intentional partnerships. One of the things that really drives me to continue to get involved is that we have to really believe that there is a better world out there, Gutierrez tells Them. Trans people and LGBTQ+ immigrants deserve the right to exist, to be here, and to fight for their rights. I see that driving the Gender Liberation March to understand the importance of intersectionality and make sure that the issues that LGBTQ+ immigrants are facing are not forgotten or erased.

I Believe in My Power\!: Brooklyn Liberation Takes Over the Street for Trans Youth

The rally was a response to the unprecedented number of bills targeting trans youth in state legislatures across the country.

Although the threats facing trans people are as alarming as they are multifarious, organizers hope that the Gender Liberation March will help the LGBTQ+ community find solace in the midst of struggle. Cruz describes the event as an immersive experience akin to a festival, one that will include drag performances, food trucks, and the distribution of free water, masks, morning-after pills, and banned books. He says the intention, as with the Brooklyn Liberation March, is to foster a space that all people, all bodies, and all folks of different abilities, are able to show up and enjoy. Its about creating the world that organizers want to see, he says, one that centers joy as a necessary means of resistance.

In reasserting the inalienable right of trans people to experience euphoria, even in the darkest hours, Willis is looking to the Gender Liberation March as a means of reclaiming the narrative of queerness. Too frequently, she notes, queer lives are defined by those who dont want marginalized people to exist. This is just the start, she says. This is really just the debut of the Gender Liberation Movement, and were working toward a complete paradigm shift. Our agenda is gender liberation, and for us, its a world where everyone is less stifled by gendered expectations.

You can sign up for the Gender Liberation March here and donate here.

Get the best of whats queer. Sign up for Thems weekly newsletter here.

Originally Appeared on them.
Between the GOP speakers, Oprah's call to action, and Bill Clinton's economy brag, the DNC sure seems set on attracting Republicans and independents

Between the GOP speakers, Oprah's call to action, and Bill Clinton's economy brag, the DNC sure seems set on attracting Republicans and independents

The Democratic National Convention has shown Democrats really want to win over Republican and independent voters.

Several Republicans have spoken at the convention, including former Trump White House officials.

Speeches from Bill Clinton and Oprah on night three also seemed aimed at making a broad appeal.

Here's something you don't usually expect: partisans speaking at the convention of the opposing political party.

But that's exactly what's been unfolding at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago this week.

It's just one indication of what Vice President Kamala Harris and the Democrats are really after between now and Election Day: the vote of both independents and disillusioned Republicans.

Even before Harris was the party's nominee, the Biden-Harris campaign was making moves to win over Republicans. In early June, the campaign hired Austin Weatherford, who previously served as chief of staff to GOP Rep. Adam Kinzinger, to help them do exactly that.

The surge in momentum Harris gained since becoming the nominee  including in the polls and in donations  has fired up the Democratic base and opened the door to focusing even more on courting Republicans and independents.

Those efforts have been on full display at the DNC.

Republicans at the DNC say voting for Harris is about democracy

Several Republicans, including former elected officials and former Trump White House aides, have spoken or are scheduled to speak. And these aren't former Republicans  some even chose to mention their Republican status during their DNC remarks  but most have already said they are voting for Harris.

The list of Republican speakers includes Stephanie Grisham, a former aide to President Donald Trump and Melania Trump; Kinzinger, the former representative from Illinois (speaking Thursday); Olivia Troye, a former advisor to Vice President Mike Pence; and Geoff Duncan, a former lieutenant governor of Georgia.

Troye and Duncan, who spoke during night three on Wednesday, emphasized that their vote for Harris wasn't about party or agreeing with all her policies but about defending Democracy.

Bill Clinton mentioned Republicans directly and bragged about the economy

When former President Bill Clinton spoke on Wednesday, one of the first things he said was that he was grateful to the Republicans and independents who'd appeared on the stage before him that night.

He also delivered a big brag about the economy, an issue that Republican voters typically feel strongly about but that's often seen as a weakness for Democrats. Clinton said that since the end of the Cold War, the US had created 51 million jobs  nearly all of which he said Democrats were responsible for.

"I swear I checked this three times. What's the score? Democrats 50, Republicans one," Clinton said.

USA Today fact-checked Clinton's claim and said those numbers were correct. The outlet noted that economists say a variety of factors impact job numbers, not just the president, and that President George W. Bush and Trump's jobs numbers were impacted by the start of the recession in 2007 and the pandemic in 2020, respectively.

Several times in his speech, he also mentioned protecting the rights of every single American, "however they vote." At one point, he said that he'd spoken to a lot of people in rural America and that it was important for Americans to get to know their neighbors and talk to them, even if they disagree with them, another clear attempt to bridge the party gap.

Even Oprah was on message

Oprah, who spoke later Wednesday night, made a direct appeal to independents, saying she counted herself among them.

"You know what? You're looking at a registered independent who's proud to vote again and again and again because I'm an American, and that's what Americans do," she said.

"I'm calling on all you independents, and all you undecideds. You know this is true, you know I'm telling you the truth, that values and character matter most of all," she said, adding that "decency and respect are on the ballot."

Time will tell whether Democrats' efforts to attract independents and Republicans will ultimately work, winning Harris the swing states she needs to beat Trump.

But she's already seeing some wins. Earlier this month she released a list of dozens of Republicans who planned to vote for her.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Beyer Park to become San Ysidros first new public park in over 25 years

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI)  Construction has started on the new public park coming to San Ysidro.

Beyer Park, which is expected to be completed by spring of 2026, will be located along East Beyer Blvd, the City of San Diego said in a news release Tuesday.

The eight-acre parkland will live on a 43-acre undeveloped site featuring a childrens playground area, ball fields, picnic areas, restrooms, a dog park, skate park, walking trails and public art.

Beyer Park will be the first new public park in San Ysidro in over 25 years and serves as an example of our commitment to providing every San Diegan with access to high-quality recreational spaces, Mayor Gloria said. Its also an example of why partnerships matter, and Im grateful to the California Statewide Park Development and Community Revitalization Program and funds secured by Congressmember Juan Vargas, which together provided the millions of dollars in funding to make this vision a reality.

Video shows bluff collapse in La Jolla

Plans to build a park have been talked about since 1974 when an unimproved 6.78-acre site was appointed for future park development, according to the city. Calls for a park also resurfaced in 1990 and 2016.

For over 30 years, City Hall has promised to build Beyer Park for the residents of San Ysidro. Unfortunately, past city leaders failed to keep that promise. I am proud to have worked closely with community members, particularly San Ysidro youth, to finally build Beyer Park and deliver residents with the park space they deserve, said Councilmember Vivian Moreno whose district includes San Ysidro.

The park project is part of the mayors Parks for All of Us initiative, which provides funding to safe, clean and thriving park spaces.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
INDEPENDENCE (KSNT)  Kansas wildlife commissioners are due to gather in Independence for their next meeting on the latest outdoor topics in the state.

Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks (KDWP) commissioners will hold their next public meeting at noon on Thursday, Aug. 29 at the Independence Gun Club Heritage Center. Only one action item is listed for the meeting on fire extinguisher requirements for Class A and Class 1, 2 and 3 vessels.

Commissioners will then have a general discussion on several topics related to invasive species, hunting regulations and more. There are also several items listed as workshop items to be discussed by commissioners which may be voted on in the future. These include the following:

General discussion Five-year review of the threatened, endangered and species in need of conservation lists. Kansas Aquatic Species Recovery Program  returning the alligator snapping turtle to its old range in Kansas. Big game permanent regulations. Independence land and water conservation fund project.

Workshop items Spring turkey regulations. Kansas River invasive carp summary and proposed snagging opportunity. Sportfish vs. non-sportfish regulations. Carcass movement regulations.



New 2024-2025 Kansas hunting atlas released, heres how to download it

You can find the full agenda and download it by clicking here or by checking it out below:

August+29,+2024+Commission+Agenda by Matthew Self on Scribd

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For more Kansas Outdoors, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here.

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Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Clinton, who turned 78 on Aug. 19, joked about his own age during his remarks before turning the tables on Trump

CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Bill Clinton at the 2024 DNC

Former President Bill Clinton had a memorable moment at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday, Aug. 21, while speaking about Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz's vision for the future  and Donald Trump's age.

Clinton, who turned 78 on Aug. 19, joked about his own age during his remarks before adding: "The only personal vanity that I want to assert is that I'm still younger than Donald Trump,"

Trump, also 78, was born in June.



Elsewhere in his remarks, Clinton also alluded to Trump's seeming obsession with crowd size, adding to a joke made by Barack Obama on Tuesday night.



"So, we've got to ask ourselves the question: Do you want to build a strong economy from the bottom, up, and the middle, out  or do you want to spend the next four years talking about crowd size?" Clinton asked.



Related: Obama, Clinton and Biden Reunite for Most Lucrative Political Fundraiser in U.S. History: Photos

The 2024 election, Clinton said, was a choice between Harris  who he said "will ease our fears"  and "the other guy, who's proved, even more than the first go-around, that he's about me, myself and I."

Clinton also urged the audience to listen to Trump's words when he speaks, saying, "The next time you hear him, don't count the lies. Count the I's  his vendettas, his vengeance, his complaints, his conspiracies ... he's like a tenor trying to get his lungs open by singing, 'me, me, me, me, me.' "

"When Kamala Harris is president, every day will begin with you, you, you, you, you," he added.

Related: Barack Obama Praises Joe Biden at the DNC amid Reports of Tension Between Them: 'We Became Brothers'

DREW ANGERER/AFP/Getty Bill and Hillary Clinton attend a Japanese state dinner at the White House on April 10, 2024

Clinton has been helping the Democratic Party rake in cash throughout the 2024 campaign cycle, previously joining Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden for a star-studded New York City fundraiser in March, when Biden was still on track to get re-nominated.

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.

When Biden abandoned his reelection bid and backed Harris to take his place on the Democratic ticket, the Clintons quickly followed suit, offering an endorsement of Harris that same afternoon.

"We've lived through many ups and downs, but nothing has made us more worried for our country than the threat posed by a second Trump term," the former first couple said in a statement. "He has promised to be a dictator on day one, and the recent ruling by his servile Supreme Court will only embolden him to further shred the Constitution."

They continued: "Now is the time to support Kamala Harris and fight with everything we've got to elect her. America's future depends on it."

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It was 1996 when Bill Clinton last set foot on a Democratic convention stage at the United Center, accepting his partys renomination for president and calling on the nation to build a bridge to the 21st century.

He marveled at the prospect of computers in every classroom replacing blackboards and vowed that 12-year-olds would soon be able to easily access the internet, then known colloquially as the information superhighway.

Yes, much has changed in 28 years as Clinton, now 78, prepared Wednesday evening to take the stage again at the Democratic National Convention, this time to voice support for Vice President Kamala Harris presidential nomination.

For one, Clinton still retains a connection to the older white rural voters who have since largely abandoned the Democratic Party in favor of Donald Trump. His acceptance speech in the then two-year-old United Center also was a reminder of more quaint and gentle political times.

He said of rivals Republican Sen. Bob Dole of Kansas and independent billionaire Ross Perot of Texas, I will not attack them personally or permit others to do it in this party if I can prevent it, adding that his was to be a campaign of ideas, not a campaign of insults.

The American people deserve it, he said.

That may still hold true. But much like the then burgeoning dial-up age led to an ever evolving digital world filled with massive changes for business, information, education and social interaction, a simpler and more stable political time back then has given way to todays politics filled with name calling and character attacks fueled by the transitory nature of Trumps Republican campaigns for the White House.

On Wednesday, Clinton said, In 2024, weve got a pretty clear choice, it seems to me: Kamala Harris for the people and the other guy who has proved even more than the first time around that hes about me, myself and I. I know which one I like better for our country.

Even on the darkest days, if you tried hard enough, there was always something good you could do for somebody else, Clinton said of the presidency. Kamala Harris is the only candidate in this race with the vision, the experience, the temperament, the will and, yes, the sheer joy, to get something done.

Clinton lashed out at Trumps actions as president by saying he would dodge what needs to be done by dividing, distracting and diverting us and that he has shown that consistency now as a candidate.

Hes still dividing, hes still blaming. Hes still belittling other people. He creates chaos and then he sort of curates it as if it were precious art, Clinton said. So the next time you hear him, dont count the lies. Count the Is embedded in his vengeance, his complaints, his conspiracies.

Clinton compared Trump to an opera tenor warming up before walking on stage by singing, me, me, me, me.

As the campaign of Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the evenings keynote speaker, pushes to move the party forward and younger after President Joe Bidens decision to drop his reelection bid, do Clintons words and role as an elder statesman of the party hold any relevance?

Walking out of the Hispanic Caucus at McCormick Place, 20-year-old Casey Fitzgerald, a delegate from Aurora who leads the Young Democrats of Kane County, said the genuine energy projected by Harris is resonating with many young people in contrast to older, legacy politicians.

However, he said young Democrats benefit from the perspectives of those who have many years experience and he believes there is room for diverse viewpoints on the DNC stage.

I dont think theres this great divide or tension between the young and the old. I think that we have the new with Kamala and we can stay united as a party by showcasing some of that old as well, Fitzgerald said.

For Illinois state Rep. Marcus Evans, Clintons appearance is nostalgic. Evans, 39, remembers watching Clinton on TV as a child and how he inspired him to become a student council member.

I mean, people love Obama now but really the original Obama was Bill Clinton, said Evans, of Chicagos South Side. I mean the guy who really played the saxophone, who connected with people, who was a great communicator, he said, noting Clintons famed appearance on Arsenio Halls 1992 late-night talk show, which presented the then-presidential candidate to a national largely Black audience.

But Evans acknowledged how the Democratic Party has changed since then.

A lot of Democrats were more conservative. I think white men still controlled the party. I think it was a lock them up, throw away the key mentality. I think you knew there were gay people in the Democratic Party but we didnt really talk about it, said Evans.

But now we believe in womens rights. We believe in gay rights. Black people are in prominent positions. Back then, Black people were a part of the Democratic Party but they were not leaders of the party. Latinos were not leaders.

State Rep. Katie Stuart, of downstate Edwardsville, noted the Clinton-era Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy that prohibited openly LGBTQ members of the military was later repealed during Barack Obamas presidency. She said it was a symbol of how far the Democratic Party has come.

We all believe in this overreaching right to exist as you are, to be who you are, to love who you love, to worship how you worship, to live how you want to be, whether you are a single cat lady, a married dog owner or anything in between, said Stuart, poking fun at GOP vice presidential candidate Ohio Sen. JD Vances controversial remarks claiming many women who are Democrats dont have children.

State Rep. Margaret Croke, who was also a child during Clintons presidency, agrees the Democratic Party has shifted on social issues in the last three decades.

You look at LGBTQ rights. In the 1990s, gay marriage wasnt even on their radar. I feel like people werent talking about that as being something that was going to be in a platform, in a presidential platform. And now, the idea that we would have a candidate that was not pro-LGBTQ  would be unfathomable, said Croke, who worked on former first lady Hillary Clintons presidential campaign.

It would be harder for someone like a (Bill) Clinton in 2024 to hit all of the marks that we would want in our candidate, said Croke.

I think that in maybe the 1990s we were looking for that white male Democrat from a red state and now thats not necessarily the go-to. Not that it wont ever happen again. But there are so many more types of candidates or places, states, whether they be blue, purple, whatever, where we could have a nominee from.

Former Senate President John Cullerton acknowledged Clinton was a centrist and now more progressives are moving into the party.

The big shift now, in my opinion, is that theres now four parties. Theres the MAGA Republicans. Theres what we would call normal Republicans. Theres normal Democrats, moderates. And then theres the progressives, which are farther to the left. And so, the goal is to make sure that the progressives still come out and vote for the Democrat.

State Rep. Jehan Gordon-Booth, of Peoria, also grew up in the 1990s and remembers not caring about politics during the early part of the Clinton presidency. She said her family had a positive impression of Clinton because of his work in strengthening the nations economy. But she too recognizes changes within the Democratic Party since the Clinton years.

The tent has grown bigger. America is more diverse, Gordon-Booth said. If youre going to be a big tent kind of party, you are going to have to operate as a baseline foundation of equality and equity or its not going to work.

Debbie Green, 69, a first-time California delegate, said she has been involved in politics for much longer, mainly in Missouri, where she volunteered to help get Harriett Woods  the first woman in Missouri elected to a statewide office  elected as lieutenant governor in 1984, and later worked for two Democratic congressional candidates in Missouri.

Green said she thinks honoring the past and its key figures  such as Clinton and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, another Wednesday night speaker  is important so long as theres forward movement.

Just like President Biden stepped down  we can learn so much from him passing the torch to Kamala Harris, Green said. I think the other people are looking to find those people to pass the torch to, too. I hope thats where the Democratic Party is going.

Les Thackston, 75, first became a delegate for Florida in 2016 and said that while he recalled Clintons presidency fondly, he only became involved in politics during Barack Obamas presidency.

As the vice chair of the Volusia County Democratic Party, he said even in his local experience, that the wisdom that comes with age is a key part of political organizing and that its important for the Democratic Party to continue tapping into its more experienced members.

You see this white stuff, Thackston said, pointing to his hair as he entered Wednesdays Senior Caucus meeting. Thats institutional knowledge.

In his 1996 renomination speech, Clinton raised a poignant question for the nation that is still relevant today.

The real choice is whether we will build a bridge to the future or a bridge to the past, about whether we believe our best days are still out there or our best days are behind us, the president asked.

A frequent cheer by delegates at the United Center this week has been, Were not going back.

Chicago Tribunes Olivia Olander and Jeremy Gorner contributed.
Deep into day three of the Democratic National Convention, former President Bill Clinton dubbed Kamala Harris the "president of joy," focusing on the happiness and hopefulness that her campaign with Tim Walz has brought about for Democrats from the jump.

Having ripped up the draft of his convention speech after watching opening night to write a new one "with a more fun, youthful, joyful approach," a Clinton aide told CNN, Clinton encouraged those listening to let in a breath of fresh air by voting for Harris, saying, "You'll be proud of it for the rest of your life."

Going on to say that he personally wants an America that's more joyful and inclusive, Clinton got in a few digs at Donald Trump as an example of someone who's made a reputation for himself as being very anti-that, saying that Trump "creates chaos" and "curates it as though it's precious art."

"Kamala Harris is the only candidate in this race who has the vision, the experience, the temperament, the will, and yes, the sheer joy, to get something done," he said. "I mean, look, what does her opponent do with his voice? He mostly talks about himself. So, the next time you hear him, dont count the lies, count the Is."

Watch here:

Bill Clinton on Trump: He mostly talks about himself. So the next time you hear him, don't count the lies -- count the i's ... he tries to get his lungs open by saying 'me me me me me' ... do you want to spend the next four years talking about crowd size? pic.twitter.com/n2VJ6nrNzR  Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 22, 2024
Former President Bill Clinton speaks on stage during the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on Aug. 21, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. (Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images)

CHICAGO  Former President Bill Clinton, a titan in the Democratic Party with a talent for connecting with rural white voters, Wednesday praised Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris for her ability to move the country forward and touted her middle-class roots.

Kamala Harris is the only candidate in this race with the vision, the experience, the temperament, the will, and yes  the sheer joy  to do that on good and bad days. To be our voice, he said.

On the third day of a Democratic National Convention that heavily focused on passing the torch to the next generation, Clinton said he loved seeing all these young leaders.

He highlighted Harris time working at McDonalds and how she picked a running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who got his start as a school teacher.

Ill be so happy when she actually enters the White House as president  she will break my record as the president who spent the most time at McDonalds, said Clinton, who was known for his affection for the Golden Arches during his presidency.

Clinton, who was born in Hope, Arkansas, said as the man from Hope, we need Kamala Harris, the president of joy, to lead us.

The last time Clinton gave a speech during the DNC in Chicago, he was accepting the Democratic presidential nomination in 1996.

Praise for Biden

Clinton gave a tribute to President Joe Biden and commended him for his work on the economy and steering the country during the coronavirus, and his support for Ukraine and working for a cease-fire in Gaza.

And then he did something thats really hard for a politician to do, he voluntarily gave up political power, Clinton said.

Biden suspended his reelection bid last month after a disastrous June 27 debate that sparked fears among Democrats that he couldnt beat Donald Trump this November. After Biden announced he would not seek reelection he endorsed Harris to pick up the mantle and the party has coalesced around her as she and Walz sprint to Election Day.

Clinton likened Bidens decision to quit the race to that of the first president of the United States, George Washington, who stepped down after two terms, setting a precedent for how long a presidency should last.

Democrats hearing this from Clinton erupted in cheers and started a chant, Thank you, Joe.

Its a stark contrast to what goes on in the other party, Clinton said of Republicans.

Clinton said that Trump would not care about Americans, and called the former president selfish. He drew a stark contrast between the two candidates, saying that Trump would only care about himself and when it comes to Harris, every day will begin with You, you, you, you.

Clinton, who turned 78 this week, and now is the same age as Trump, who turned 78 in June, said that the only personal vanity I want to assert is that I am still younger than Donald Trump.

But he warned Democrats to not underestimate your adversaries, and he advised them as somebody who spends a lot of time in rural areas, in Arkansas and New York, to talk to their neighbors.

I urge you not to demean them, but not to pretend you dont disagree with them if you do, Clinton said. Treat them with respect.

He warned against overconfidence, saying there can still be slip ups before Election Day on Nov. 5.

Weve seen more than one election slip away when we thought it couldnt happen, when people got distracted by phony issues or overconfidence, Clinton said.

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(Bloomberg) -- Representative Bill Pascrell Jr., of New Jersey, a senior Democratic member of the powerful House Ways & Means Committee, died Wednesday morning, his office announced.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Pascrell, 87, had recently been released after a lengthy hospital stay for a respiratory infection and fever. He was then hospitalized again early this month. His office did not list a cause of death, or where he died.

He is now at peace after a lifetime devoted to our great nation of America, his office announced in a post on X, pointing out that he had lived his entire life in Paterson, New Jersey, and that he had fought to his last breath to return to the job he cherished and the people he loved.

In November, Pascrell was to face a third challenge from Republican Billy Prempeh, whom he defeated by a dozen percentage points in 2022.

Who Democrats will run in Pascrells place isnt clear. Under New Jersey law, Governor Phil Murphy isnt required to call a special election, which can take as long as six months to arrange. Democrats can replace Pascrell on the Nov. 5 general election ballot if party officials in the district nominate a substitute by Aug. 29.

Pascrell, the grandson of Italian immigrants, served as a state assemblyman and as mayor of Paterson.

He was first elected to Congress in 1996 and through his tenure established a consistent liberal voting record.

President Joe Biden, in a statement late Wednesday night, called Pascrell a dear friend and said he had the privilege of working with him for decades on issues ranging from the Fire Grants and Safety Act for the wellbeing of first responders and their families, to veterans medical care, international trade, tax fairness, labor unions, and so much more.

On the Ways & Means Committee Pascrell rose to become chairman of the subcommittee on oversight when Democrats were in the majority, and he was a key player in pushing through President Joe Bidens legislative agenda. As chairman of the subcommittee on oversight, he also led the fight to gain access to former President Donald Trumps tax returns.

Pascrell was also among lawmakers fighting for a state and local tax deduction on federal taxes, a popular position in tax-heavy New Jersey.

Pascrell is the fourth House member to die while in office this year. Among them was another New Jersey Democrat, Representative Donald Payne Jr., who died in April.

--With assistance from Greg Giroux and Nacha Cattan.

(Updates with Biden statement, in eighth paragraph.)

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2024 Bloomberg L.P.
Press Release

August 22, 2024 ZUBIRI: BETTER INVESTMENT SPIELS WILL ALLOW PH TO COMPETE VS RCEP COUNTRIES As a party to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement, the Philippine government should formulate better investment pitches for prospective foreign investors to successfully land more investments for the country. Former Senate President Juan Miguel "Migz" Zubiri made this statement during the hearing of the Senate Special Oversight Committee on the RCEP Agreement chaired by Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada, saying that the Philippines is competing with 10 other Southeast Asian nations for foreign investments. "Now that we are part of RCEP, we have challenges ... we have countries like Indonesia, Vietnam that are competing with us for investors from all over the world," Zubiri, the chair of the Senate Committee on Economic Affairs, said. "We have to set our sights on coming up with really good investment pitches and opportunities for investing in the country. Kung hindi, maiiwan na tayo. We're part of RCEP, so what? Ten other ASEAN countries are part of RCEP, but they are offering the sun, moon and the stars to these investors," he added. One area that the government can focus on is positioning the country as a defense manufacturer and exporter in Southeast Asia, Zubiri noted, now that the Self-Reliant Defense Posture (SRDP) Act has been ratified by the Senate and awaiting the signature of the President to become law. Zubiri said that coupled with the Special Defense Economic Zone Act (SPEDEZA) that is still being deliberated in the Senate, the Philippines can indeed become a major regional player in defense and military materiel production. He explained that the RCEP has paved the way for the SRDP Act, which provides a framework for a revitalized in-country defense production industry. A corresponding bill, the SPEDEZA, sets up a Special Defense Economic Zone in Limay, Bataan. It has been approved at the committee level. Zubiri, who sponsored the Senate Resolution on the RCEP, says that the Philippines' inclusion in the RCEP agreement is a key point of attraction for investors looking to come into the country, particularly in the defense sector. "Defense investors are not just interested in setting up shop here so they can sell to the Philippines," said Zubiri. "They also want to come here so they can export to other RCEP countries, like Korea, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, among others." With Southeast Asia emerging as the preferred investment hub of multinational corporations, Zubiri sees a lot of opportunities for the Philippines. He is expecting an influx of defense investors once the SRDP Act is signed into law. He cautions, however, that despite being an RCEP country, the Philippines is still a step behind other Southeast Asian countries when it comes to investments. "Vietnam is now giving lease-free land for a certain number of years, to jumpstart investments," he said. "We have to keep up with, if not get ahead, of our neighbors. The RCEP has opened the door for us, but we now have to charge forward on our own too. And I think there is great potential for us in the defense sector if we can make the Philippines a major defense hub in the region."
Photo: Ministry of Investment, Industry and Trade of Uzbekistan

BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. Uzbekistan and State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) have begun geological exploration on the Ustyurt Plateau in Uzbekistan, Uzbek Minister of Investment, Industry and Trade Laziz Kudratov said at the Uzbek-Azerbaijani business forum in Tashkent, Trend reports.

The minister noted that the energy and oil and gas cooperation between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan is showing positive results.

We are working on a project to produce green energy for export through Azerbaijan to European countries. Together with SOCAR, we have started exploration on the Ustyurt Plateau. I believe this marks the beginning of our broader strategic partnership in the energy sector, he said.

The minister also mentioned Uzbekistans plans to process minerals in Azerbaijan.

We intend to develop and process minerals in Azerbaijan, including producing construction materials for use in the reconstruction of Karabakh. We also invite Azerbaijani companies to join in developing non-ferrous metal deposits, including copper, he emphasized.

Additionally, Kudratov highlighted that projects for creating orchards, greenhouse complexes, dried fruit production, hazelnut cultivation, and other ventures have already begun.

The Uzbek-Azerbaijani business forum, which kicked off in Tashkent today, aims to strengthen economic ties between the two countries, enhance cooperation, attract investments, and realize joint projects. The forum will serve as a platform for discussing ways to increase trade, share experiences, and establish new business partnerships.

Currently, a total of 236 Azerbaijani-capital enterprises operate in Uzbekistan, including 62 joint ventures and 174 fully foreign-owned enterprises. Additionally, 70 Uzbek companies are active in Azerbaijan.

The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan surpassed $118.2 million from January to July 2024.

Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
The Bottom of Everything

The search for missing British billionaire Mike Lynch has come to an end after officials recovered his body from the Bayesian, his wife's superyacht that sank off the coast of Sicily earlier this week.

As the Washington Post reports, the body of the late 59-year-old tycoon, who became a tech billionaire when selling his software firm Autonomy to Hewlett Packard in 2011, has been recovered from his wife's 183-foot-long luxury yacht that was struck by a waterspout  a water-bound tornado, essentially  on Monday.

The only other person whose whereabouts are still unknown in the wake of the disaster is Hannah, Lynch's 18-year-old daughter. The billionaire's wife, Angela Bacares, and several others were rescued thanks to the help of another nearby yacht that avoided the waterspout.

Prior to Italian rescue officials' confirmation that the software entrepreneur's body was among those that had been recovered from the Bayesian, reports indicated that four of the other six people who'd been missing following the sinkage had been found dead. As WaPo notes, their numbers included Lynch's attorney Chris Morvillo and his jeweler wife Neda, along with Morgan Stanley International chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife, charity trustee Judy Bloomer.

Strange Tidings

Bizarrely, the accident that led to the billionaire's untimely demise occurred the same day that his former colleague and codefendant Stephen Chamberlain died from his own tragic accident. The one-time finance executive at Autonomy was struck by a car when going for a run in Cambridgeshire, England over the weekend, and died the same day the Bayesian sank.

To make matters even stranger, the pair had also just been acquitted on 11 counts of fraud in the United States that stemmed from the Autonomy sale 13 years prior.

Lynch's right-hand man and Autonomy's former chief financial officer, Sushovan Hussain, did not get off as easy after being convicted of similar fraud charges in the US and sanctioned by the UK government  but then again, he's still alive.

In an interview with The Telegraph, e-commerce entrepreneur and Lynch friend Brent Hoberman likened the billionaire's death to Shakespeare.

"He had just worked hard to clear his name for the last 12 years," Hoberman told the British newspaper, "and was on a celebratory cruise with the people who supported him so much through that really tough time."

More on maritime nightmares: Man Rowing Across Ocean Suddenly Realizes He's Surrounded by Over 1,000 Whales
The bipartisan moment at the Democratic convention that everyone is talking about

Jon Polin, left, and Rachel Goldberg, parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, speak on stage during the Democratic National Convention Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, in Chicago. | J. Scott Applewhite

The moment will be remembered.

Rachel Goldberg and her husband Jon Polin walked across the stage to a standing ovation and then stood at the lectern side by side, their expressions reflecting gratitude, but solemn in obvious reverence for the message they were about to give. Their shirts were adorned with a hastily affixed bit of masking tape with the number 320 written on it as if it were a name tag at a party.

They are the parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, the 23-year-old American held hostage in Gaza. He was grabbed during the infamous concert in Israel interrupted by Hamas terrorists who killed and captured concertgoers 320 days ago.

Rachel bowed her head, put her hand on her heart, composed herself, and then spoke first to the now silent crowd.

At this moment, 109 treasured human beings are being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza. They are Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists. They are from 23 different countries. The youngest hostage is a 1-year-old redheaded baby boy, and the oldest is an 86-year-old mustachioed grandpa. Among the hostages are eight American citizens. One of those Americans is our only son. His name is Hersh.

Tears from those inside Chicagos United Center greeted the remarks from the Jewish couple, even as pro-Palestinian demonstrators continued outside the convention.

Police had clashed with the demonstrators the day before, arresting some, but there was no mention of the protest from the couple who came with a pleading message that they have repeated since the hostages were taken on Oct. 7, 2023.

Since then, we live on another planet, Rachel said. Anyone who is a parent, or has had a parent can try to imagine the anguish and misery that Jon and I and all the hostage families are enduring.

Jon took the stage and said what all  Republican and Democrat  needed to hear:

This is a political convention. But needing our only son and all the precious hostages home is not a political issue.

And with that, the applause broke the silence from the crowd of Democrats nodding in agreement.

Reaction was swift.

Bari Weiss, editor of The Free Press, on X called the speech the most powerful moment of the DNC. She was not alone. Every network commented on its power.

The question now is, will anything come of it?

The State Department has issued the following summary regarding conditions in Israel and Gaza.

Terrorist groups, lone-actor terrorists and other violent extremists continue plotting possible attacks in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza. Terrorists and violent extremists may attack with little or no warning, targeting tourist locations, transportation hubs, markets/shopping malls, and local government facilities. Violence can occur in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza without warning.

A woman reacts to Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, parents of hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin speaking during the Democratic National Convention Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, in Chicago. | Matt Rourke

Secretary of State Antony Blinken has been in Israel and working toward a cease-fire and peaceful solution. This week, he told reporters that a cease-fire proposal remains in play:

Israel has now accepted that proposal  I heard that directly from Prime Minister Netanyahu yesterday, Blinken said Tuesday, adding, and we hope and expect that Hamas will do the same. Thats the critical next step, but once that happens we also have to complete the detailed implementation agreements that go along with putting the cease-fire into effect.

Blinken has since been in Egypt and Qatar, meeting with leaders and intelligence officers.

And with our partners in Egypt and Qatar, our message is simple, its clear, and its urgent: We need to get the cease-fire and hostage agreement over the finish line, and we need to do it now, Blinken said.

Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, parents of hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin walk off the stage after speaking during the Democratic National Convention Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, in Chicago. | Matt Rourke

It is the same message expressed Wednesday night, in the most heartfelt terms, by Rachel and Jon. Their son was born in Oakland, California, but his wanderlust takes him to faraway places; at least, it did before he became a hostage in the war that has taken thousands of Israeli and Palestinian lives.

Were heartened that both Democratic and Republican leaders demonstrate their bipartisan support for our hostages being released, Jon Polin said.

Then, together, he and his wife stood with a final appeal as their nine-minute appearance closed.

Bring them home.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WIAT)  Shell casings riddled the parking lot of the Marion Ridge Apartments Tuesday night in a shooting that left one dead.

Birmingham police say multiple shots were fired following a physical altercation at the apartment complex on Gallant Drive. 21-year-old Asia Poole was pronounced dead at the scene and a man was taken to UAB Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

It is alarming that the amount of people that were present and did not intervene in the fight to keep the situation from happening. Its sad, Sgt. Laquitta Wade with the Birmingham Police Department said.

2 shot in west Birmingham, conditions unknown

Pooles car was also stolen from the scene but has since been recovered by investigators. BPD says the incident was also caught on video.

The videos have been circling around and its just awful, showing the violence, Apple Valley Neighborhood President Willie Goldsmith said. The number of gunshots, I mean it sounds like youre in Beirut or something, and then the screaming and the hollering, its almost like an inhumane condition.

Goldsmith said the apartment complex where the incident took place has been a concern in the neighborhood for several years.

I moved to the neighborhood 24 years ago and in the last three to four years, the things that have been going on  I dont even recognize it, he said.

According to the Birmingham City Attorney Nicole King, a public nuisance lawsuit was filed against the complex in 2021.

Sewage overflow in Tuscaloosa remains while fingers stay pointed

Following Tuesdays incident, the Office of the City Attorneys Drug Nuisance Abatement Team says they are investigating the next steps.

As a city councilor, I think we have to remain vigilant, Birmingham City Councilor Clinton Woods said. We cant give into apathy. We have to continue to fight to find ways to address this in our community.

Woods says steps are being taken to crack down on senseless violence in District 1 and hes calling on the community to come together as one.

For me to just see men gathered around to watch some young ladies fight, its just not what I expect from young men in the community, so weve all got to do a better job, Woods said.

Anyone with information on this case can call Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777. You can remain anonymous.

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CHICAGO: On night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, the one and only Oprah made a surprise appearance in her hometown to endorse Kamala Harris for President. Wearing a pristine purple pantsuit, the media mogul had some choice words for the Trump campaign and for those who who seek to divide and then conquer.



Oprah used the platform to encourage Americans to work together instead of being divided. She also made a point to attendees that we dont ask if our neighbors have citizenship, who theyre married to or if they are childless cat ladies. Oprah aptly pointed out that when the house is on fire, we go ahead and rescue the cat, too.

Oprah!! I just want her to close this speech out with You get a democracy, and you get a democracy, and you get a democracy! pic.twitter.com/WaQPHr154A  Maya May (@mayaonstage) August 22, 2024

Conservatives on X were quick to post old photos of Oprah with Harvey Weinstein and an interview she did with Trump to counter her words. However, Black folks understood the magnitude of her remarks and the moment of the star being on the DNC stage.

X user @mayaonstage tweeted a clip of the speech and captioned it: Oprah!! I just want her to close this speech out with You get a democracy, and you get a democracy, and you get a democracy! which referenced the famous prize giveaways on The Oprah Winfrey Show.

Another X user, @OfficialEJT, was incredulous at the fact that Oprah was at the Democratic National Convention. Oprah??!? Oprah Winfrey?!! Oh its official now. She is winning that election! With how bad the right is panicking, a point was definitely made.

Oprah??!? Oprah Winfrey?!!



Oh its official now. She is winning that election! #DNC2024 pic.twitter.com/0YtFnKWbu3  Existing In Kamalas Context (@OfficialEJT) August 22, 2024

Jerusalem Demsas, who works as a staff writer at The Atlantic, shared the electrifying clip of when the audience erupted into a chant of U-S-A after Oprah says electing the daughter of immigrants would be the best of America.

DNC crowd chanting U-S-A after Oprah says electing the daughter of immigrants would be the best of America pic.twitter.com/ERvb7SKfm4  Jerusalem (@JerusalemDemsas) August 22, 2024

Oprah also quoted Congressman John Lewis at the podium by saying no matter what ship our ancestors arrived on, we are all in the same boat now. She also reiterated that democracy and respect are the ballot and sung Kamalas name at the end of her speech. As @_MissLeandra pointed out, Oprah knows she loves to talk sing.

Oprahs address reminded Democrats of the joy that lies ahead with a White House run by VP Harris and her running mate Tim Walz.

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Black Men Vote PAC is launching a $4 million campaign to boost Vice President Kamala Harris support in several swing states. The initiative targets critical battlegrounds by increasing voter turnout among Black men, a demographic crucial to the 2024 election.

According to Politico, the group plans to use a social media drive to highlight Harris record and achievements and attract more Black male voters in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. They will also employ radio advertising and door-to-door efforts to advance the initiative further.

While Black voters generally lean Democratic, Frank White, co-founder and board chair of Black Men Vote PAC, asserts that Black men are pivotal to determining the outcome of this years presidential election.

Black men can be the difference between winning and losing, White said, noting that Harris is a better investment and things are different now that shes running for president than when President Joe Biden was on the ticket.

In July, Blavity reported that the group Win With Black Men, a campaign inspired by veteran journalist Roland Martin and his Black Star Network, has raised $1.3 million for Harris since her presidential run announcement.

According to The Associated Press, a group in Atlanta known as the Black Man Lab has met weekly for the past 10 years to discuss various topics and provide a safe space for Black men to be themselves. However, with Biden now out of the presidential race, the group has since discussed the prospect of a Harris presidency.

Black men are the target, and we hold the keys to the kingdom. This is our moment, Lance Robertson, executive director of the Black City Councilmen of Georgia, said during a meeting. The Black man has built America. Now its time for the Black man to save America.
Black student numbers fall by two-thirds at MIT after end of affirmative action

The proportion of Asian American students accepted at Massachusetts Institute of Technology jumped from 40 to 47 per cent in 2024 - Alamy

The number of black students accepted to an elite US university plummeted by two-thirds after a Supreme Court ruling banned affirmative action.

Black students made up 5 per cent of this years Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), a significant slump from the 15 per cent who enrolled in 2023.

Meanwhile, the proportion of Asian American students accepted at the university jumped from 40 to 47 per cent year on year.

Americas highest court ruled in 2023 that race-conscious university admissions were unconstitutional, effectively reversing policies to boost diversity on campus.

MIT is the first university to release statistics on the composition of its first intake since the ruling was handed down in June 2023.

The total number of students who identify as black, hispanic and/or Native American and Pacific Islander has dropped from a baseline of around 25 per cent to 16 per cent, according to Stu Schmill, MITs dean of admissions.

We expected that this would result in fewer students from historically under-represented racial and ethnic groups enrolling at MIT. Thats what has happened, Mr Schmill told MIT News.

Sally Kornbluth, president of MIT, said that this year's intake did not have 'the same degree of broad racial and ethnic diversity' that the institution had been working towards - Brian Snyder/Reuters

Compared with 2023, the percentage of Hispanic and Latino students dropped to 11 per cent from 16 per cent, while white students remained at a similar level  37 per cent compared with 38 per cent in 2023.

Sally Kornbluth, president of MIT, said the 2024 class does not bring, as a consequence of last years Supreme Court decision... the same degree of broad racial and ethnic diversity that the MIT community has worked together to achieve over the past several decades.

Edward Blum, the founder of Students for Fair Admissions (SFA), the group which brought legal action against Harvard and the University of North Carolina to overturn affirmative action policies, told the New York Times: Every student admitted to the class of 2028 at MIT will know that they were accepted only based upon their outstanding academic and extracurricular achievements, not the colour of their skin.

SFA had argued that black students were being unfairly boosted in the admissions process to the detriment of Asian applicants.

Peter Arcidiacono, an economist at Duke University, and expert witness for SFA, told the paper: MIT basically just took race out of the equation.

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A Blaine man was being held without bail on suspicion of attempted murder and other charges after he drove his critically injured victim to a Bellingham hospital because he had a change of heart after an attack early Tuesday.

Bellingham Police arrested Clayton E. DuBois, 43, about 3:40 a.m. Tuesday at St. Joseph Medical Center, where he was detained by hospital security personnel after DuBois dropped off an assault victim. Police said that DuBois admitted to using drugs and alcohol, and he was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence.

His victim, who was not identified, was critically injured and flown by helicopter to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, Whatcom County Sheriffs Office spokeswoman Deb Slater said in a statement describing the incident.

The victims condition wasnt released.

DuBois told Bellingham police he had assaulted the victim in an attempt to kill them at a Blaine residence. At some point, he said he had a change of heart and drove the victim to the hospital Emergency Department, Slater said.

Slater said that Whatcom County Sheriffs Office deputies took over the investigation.

Whatcom County sheriffs deputies went to the Blaine address and found evidence of a serious assault. After obtaining search warrants, deputies located a gun safe with two firearms. Deputies learned DuBois was a previously convicted felon, not allowed to have firearms, Slater said in the statement.

DuBois is scheduled for a court hearing Thursday, according to online records. In addition to the attempted murder and DUI charges, he is suspected of two counts of second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.

Anyone who is a victim of domestic violence, or knows someone who is, can get help from the Whatcom County Commission on Domestic Violence.




A Kentucky oil company has been fined $100,000 for illegally discharging polluted water.

Logsdon Valley Oil Inc., also known as Hart Petroleum, also was placed on probation for three years, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

The case started in 2019 when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency received information that Logsdon Valley was improperly disposing of brine water from a well in Hart County, according to the court record.

The water is a waste byproduct of pumping oil out of the ground. It is known to contain chemicals including benzene, a cancer-causing substance, according to the court record.

Oil producers are supposed to inject it into an approved underground storage well, below the drinking water table, or pay someone to haul it to a disposal facility.

However, Logsdon Valley ran pipes from oil storage tanks to dump the wastewater into sinkholes, padding its bottom line at the expense of the environment, prosecutors charged.

The owner, Charles Stinson, instructed one employee to drain the brine water somewhere where it wasnt obvious, Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua Judd said in a sentencing memorandum.

Stinson died while the case was pending.

Prosecutors had a hydrologist from Western Kentucky University analyze the flow of contaminated water from one of Logsdon Valleys leases.

The analysis showed the discharge would go to a spring that emptied into the Green River, according to the prosecution memo.

The discharge contained chemicals that presented potential threats to aquatic species and the water supply, the memo said.

Logsdon Valley, under Stinsons leadership, committed blatant and willful violations of the federal drinking water law, the prosecutor said.

The motive is simple. It is greed, Judd wrote.

The attorney for Logsdon Valley, Brian Butler, sought a fine of $5,000 for the company, saying that Stinsons widow had no involvement in running it when the violations occurred but worked to bring it into compliance with an EPA order after Stinson died.

Logsdon Valley is in compliance and will remain in compliance, Butler said in advocating against a large fine.

The prosecutor pushed for the $100,000 fine, however, noting that Stinson and his company continued to break the law despite pleading guilty in 2013 to similar violations and being fined $45,000.

U.S. District Judge Greg N. Stivers sentenced Logsdon Valley Aug. 15 in federal court in Bowling Green.
The Miami-Dade Elections Department on Wednesday shot down a request from the campaign of losing mayoral candidate Alex Otaola to recount the votes in the race for county mayor after he questioned incumbent Daniella Levine Cavas landslide victory.

Otaola, a pro-Trump social media influencer who finished a distant third in Tuesdays election, told supporters at a watch party that same night that he didnt trust the results and would demand a recount. Otaolas campaign manager Andy Santana wrote in an email to Miami-Dades elections department later that evening that a recount was essential to ensure the accuracy of the outcome given the close nature of the results  though Levine Cava earned nearly three times the votes of her closest competitor.

In a response sent Wednesday afternoon, Vanessa Innocent, an assistant deputy supervisor of elections, declined the Otaola campaigns request, pointing to state laws that trigger a recount only when a candidate is defeated by half a percentage point or less. Levine Cava finished more than 34 percentage points ahead of her closest competitor.

Recounts are not conducted by request, Innocent wrote in her response.

READ MORE: Miami-Dades Democratic mayor won big this week. Is a run for Florida governor next?

Unofficial results show Otaola received 33,252 votes on Tuesday night, amounting to less than 12% of the vote. That put him more than 10 percentage points behind second-place finisher Manny Cid and 46 percentage points behind Levine Cava, who earned a second four-year term in office.

Otaola is widely known as a Republican YouTube host and staunch supporter of former President Donald Trump, whose baseless claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen have sown doubt in the integrity of U.S. elections among a wide swath of his supporters.

At a festival-like election results party at the candidates farm in Homestead on Wednesday night, Otaola questioned the veracity of the Miami-Dade election results. He said he would not accept them until there was a vote-by-vote recount.

Its impossible, impossible that Daniella Levine Cava, who has done an awful job over the last four years, got more votes than when no one knew her, he said, adding that internal exit polls placed him in a runoff and that Miami-Dade Countys electoral health depended on it.

The crowd screamed fraud and it was stolen. Some volunteers cried upon hearing the primarys results. Many supporters in attendance at the rally also echoed their candidates doubts.

Many in the attendance at the party were Cuban supporters who said they supported Otaola because his anti-communist messaging resonated with them. Born in Cuba, Otaola pledged to make Miami-Dade a communist-free zone, one of his main campaign policies. There was also overlap between Trump and Otaola supporters, and many at the election party in Homestead viewed both politicians as wronged by a rigged system that favors mainstream politicians.

By Wednesday evening, Otaolas campaign had not released any further official statements about the election results. However, his campaigns Instagram page amplified messages from supporters alluding to fraud in the county elections and requesting recounts.

Responding to the Otaola campaign Tuesday night, Miami-Dade Deputy Supervisor of Elections Roberto Rodriguez said the results are what they are, adding that the elections office is open to the public for people to come see the tabulation process.
Italian Navy scuba divers work at the scene of the search for a missing boat in Porticello, southern Italy, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. Rescue teams and divers returned to the site of a storm-sunken super yacht to search for one person, who is believed to be still trapped in the hull 50 meters (164 feet) underwater. | Salvatore Cavalli

The bodies of British billionaire Mike Lynch and three others aboard the Bayesian when it sank earlier this week have been found, according to CNN.

The deceased include Lynch, his lawyer, Christopher Morvillo, Morvillos wife, Neda, Morgan Stanley International Chairman Jonathan Bloomer and the ships cook, Recaldo Thomas.

Lynchs daughter, Hannah, is still missing, CNN reported.

According to The New York Times, the Bayesian, Lynchs superyacht, set sail to celebrate Lynchs legal freedom.

He was acquitted of fraud charges in the U.S. earlier this summer, which stemmed from the tech company Hewlett-Packards claim that he inflated the value of a company which he sold them for $11 billion. The charges could have sent Lynch to prison, had he been convicted.

Lynchs co-defendant in the case, Stephen Chamberlain, also died over the weekend, as the Deseret News previously reported.

Chamberlain was reportedly hit by a car while out for a run near his house in the British village of Stretham. Some skeptics have wondered if the two deaths are connected, even though it would be impossible to intentionally cause the violent storm that factored into the yacht tragedy.

The storm of a lifetime

On Sunday night, the strongest winds locals said they had ever felt, according to The New York Times, tore through the coast of Porticello, Italy, capsizing the Bayesian.

Lynchs wife and 14 other passengers escaped the wreck on a lifeboat, but several passengers went missing. CNN reported that the wind caused the ships mast to break, quickly causing the captain to lose control.

It drives me insane, Giovanni Costantino, the chief executive of the Italian Sea Group, which in 2022 bought the company that made the Bayesian, told The New York Times. Following all the proper procedures, that boat is unsinkable.

Costantino went on to say that the mast was the second-tallest in the world in the aluminum variety, and that the boat could have sailed at a 75-degree angle without having any problems. He wonders if some of the hatch doors had been open at the time, allowing water into the hull and causing it to sink.

The Italian Coast Guard is still searching for the remaining missing body.

Italian Navy scuba divers set a hyperbaric chamber as they work at the scene of the search for a missing boat in Porticello, southern Italy, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. Rescue teams and divers returned to the site of a storm-sunken super yacht to search for one person, who is believed to be still trapped in the hull 50 meters (164 feet) underwater. | Salvatore Cavalli
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 21. The General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces has denied the contents of the Fars agency's publication on the reasons for the crash of the helicopter of the President of the Iran Ebrahim Raisi, Trend reports.

"Fars agency's information that one of the factors in the helicopter crash was the presence of two more passengers on board, contrary to safety protocols, which is why the helicopter did not have enough power to gain the required altitude, is false," the Iranian General Staff's public relations department said in a statement.

The department demanded that the media coordinate with it the publication of news on defense and security topics, "not sacrifice accuracy for the sake of speed, and not give enemies a reason for abuse."
Bodies of two women found under rubble in Kozacha Lopan

The bodies of two women have been found under the rubble of the local administration building on the second day of the search and rescue operation in Kozacha Lopan, Kharkiv Oblast.

Source: Viacheslav Zadorenko, Head of Derhachi District Military Administration, on Telegram

Quote: "Throughout the day, rescue workers from the State Emergency Service worked alongside village residents, the head of the city and the employees of the Derhachi City Council to clear the rubble of the damaged local administration building.

Due to the high activity of hostile FPV drones and the possibility of artillery strikes, special equipment could not be involved in the operation. However, during the search and rescue operation, the bodies of two local residents who assisted the district authorities have been found."

Details: Local authorities reported that the main task now is to retrieve them and transfer the bodies of women to their relatives for burial.

Previously:

On 21 August, Russian forces launched an artillery strike on the village of Kozacha Lopan in Kharkiv Oblast, damaging the premises of the village council.

Subsequently, a woman, 56, was rescued from under the rubble. She received minor injuries.

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Body camera footage shows kids left alone in hot house pleading for help

Body camera footage shows kids left alone in hot house pleading for help

MEMPHIS, Tenn.  Body cam footage was released of police visiting an Arkansas home where they say three children were abandoned last month.

New details have come to light regarding a mothers alleged abandonment of her three young children and the desperate call that led to her arrest.

Mom accused of leaving 3 kids alone in hot house

On July 14, a 15-year-old girl called the police fearing for her and her brothers lives.

I got to say something before something else happens. Well end up dead somewhere, she said.

The teenager pleaded with officers to remove her from the home.

In the body camera footage, the girl could be heard saying If yall dont get me out of this house Im running away. Im not staying here sir. If you make me stay here youll have to take me to jail. Im not saying here.

The childrens mother Latisha Davis had been gone overnight, allegedly leaving the teen, a one-year-old, and a three-year-old without food. Body cam footage shows an officer finding only milk in the fridge.

Officers also found the temperature in the home to be over 90 degrees. The teen told police that the central air in the home had been off since the day before.

She revealed this was not the first time her mother had left the children home alone.

I dont feel safe here she does this every single night, said the girl.

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Davis later claimed her car broke down and her phone died.

As you were calling me, my phone went completely dead. Thats what I was telling the lady on the phone. And my truck went completely down, Davis told police.

Davis was arrested on three counts of Endangering the Welfare of a Minor.

She has since bonded out on a $10,000 bond, but police say her children are no longer in her custody.

Davis next court date is scheduled for August 28.

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Boeing said it is pausing test flights of its still-in-development 777X fleet after technicians discovered a structural issue during a post-flight inspection.

During scheduled maintenance, we identified a component that did not perform as designed. Our team is replacing the part and capturing any learnings from the component and will resume flight testing when ready," Boeing told USA TODAY in a statement.

The issue and grounding decision was first reported by The Air Current.

According to Boeing the part was a structural component between the engine and the airplane itself. The company said it is inspecting the rest of the 777X test fleet for this condition and does not have other test flights planned in the near term.

Boeing also said the part is exclusively used on the 777-9, so the issue will not affect any planes currently in service.

A view of the 777-9 test bed's folding wing from inside the aircraft.

Following The Air Current's report, many aviation industry watchers pointed on on social media that this is part of the reason test flights are performed: to identify any possible issues before a plane type enters commercial service. While it's a frustrating setback for Boeing's alread-delayed 777X program, this is the system working as designed.

Boeing's safety record has been under scrutiny recently thanks to a door failure on an in-service Alaska Airlines 737 Max in January. The company says it's making changes to improve things.

Zach Wichter is a travel reporter for USA TODAY based in New York. You can reach him at zwichter@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Boeing 777X test flights paused due to engine structural issue
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WIVT/WBGH)  A Border Patrol Agent has been charged after ordering several women to expose their breasts to him while processing their admission into the United States.

On Wednesday, Attorney Carla Freedman and Vance Kuhner, Special Agent in Charge for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Professional Responsibility announced the arrest of Shane Millan, 53, of Jefferson County. He was charged with four counts of deprivation of rights under color of law.

It is alleged that Millan, while acting under color of law as a Border Patrol Agent, deprived four victims of their constitutional right to be free from unreasonable searches. While virtually processing their admission into the U.S., Milan allegedly instructed three women to expose their bare chests to him over webcam. He instructed the fourth woman to expose her breasts to him while her bra remained on.

During an investigation, it was determined that Millan told the women that these were legitimate searches and were required for admission into the country. However, his demands to see the victims breasts were for his own gratification.

Milan was arraigned in Syracuse and released pending a trial.

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EYEWITNESS NEWS (WBRE/WYOU)  Officials say a man has been indicted on drug trafficking and firearm offenses.

The U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that 32-year-old Jamar McDowell from Columbia Cross Roads was charged in Bradford County with drug trafficking and firearm offenses.

According to officials, on or before May 30, McDowell was found possessing cocaine, fentanyl, methamphetamine, psilocin, and marijuana, with the intent to distribute.

PD: Man assaults woman after he believed she cheated

U.S. Attorney Karam said McDowell was also found in possession of a Glock 37 .45 caliber handgun.

The maximum penalty for the crime is life imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine.

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A person shows passports from Brazil that were found on the banks of the Rio Bravo River,in Ciudad Juarez

By Ricardo Brito

BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazil will tighten up rules to enter the country without a visa starting next week, the government said on Wednesday, after migrants have been increasingly using the South American nation as a stop-over on the way to the United States and Canada.

Starting on Monday, foreign travellers without a Brazilian visa who are headed for another country must travel on to their destination or return to their home country, Brazil's public security ministry told Reuters in a statement.

Brazil has seen a boom in foreign travellers, particularly from Asia, landing in the country for a supposed layover only to then apply for refuge while they are there, the ministry said.

Now, those passengers without a visa will not be allowed to stay in Brazil.

According to two reports from authorities seen by Reuters and a senior police source, investigations have found that those migrants are requesting to stay in Brazil, alleging persecution and threats in their home countries.

Once they are granted refuge in Brazil, many often travel north by land, mainly heading to the United States or Canada through the dangerous Darien Gap, which connects Colombia and Panama, the ministry said, citing police investigations.

"They request refuge (in Brazil) as a guarantee," the senior police source said. "If they are caught at the U.S. border, they are sent back to Brazil, instead of their home country."

From the beginning of 2023 to the end of June this year, more than 8,300 requests for refuge were presented at Brazil's busiest international airport, according to the ministry. Of those requests, only 117 stayed active in Brazil's national migration system.

"That means that 99.59% of the people who requested refuge at the airport - 8,210 - have either left the country or stayed irregularly," one of the reports stated.

More than 70% of the applicants during that period were from India, Vietnam and Nepal, according to the reports, which national Justice Secretary Jean Uema told Reuters bucks historic trends.

Of the refuge requests analyzed, nearly 17% left the country within 30 days, one of the reports showed, the vast majority of them through the state of Arce on the border with Peru.

(Reporting by Ricardo Brito in Brasilia; Writing by Andre Romani; Editing by Kylie Madry and Stephen Coates)
The Republican presidential candidate claims 'net zero lunatics' are destroying UK economy - PETER ZAY/AFP via Getty Images

Donald Trump has blamed Britains self-destructive net zero policies for causing the summer riots in an unusual attack on Americas closest ally.

The Republican presidential candidate posted on his personal social media network, Truth Social, to criticise the green plans of Democratic rival Kamala Harris, before launching an attack on Britain.

He appeared to pin anti-immigration riots and far-Right violence in towns across the UK on attempts to cut down on fossil fuels.

Mr Trump said: Net Zero Lunatics are currently destroying the economies of many other countries, including the UK.

Their radical, self-destructive policy has led the UK to the worst economic growth since 1780, now causing economic chaos, destruction, riots and death in the streets of British cities.

Britain's summer riots have been widely blamed on misinformation, far-Right agitators and criminal opportunists - REUTERS/Hollie Adams

It is not clear what Mr Trump meant by the worst economic growth since 1780. Academics at the University of Sussex and Loughborough University have suggested that the slowdown in productivity growth since the financial crisis is the biggest since the industrial revolution.

Covid lockdowns caused a temporary economic contraction that economists initially feared could be as severe as that suffered during the Great Frost of 1709.

The pandemic hit proved slightly smaller than the worst predictions and output recovered relatively quickly.

Rioting across Britain following a mass stabbing in Southport in July has been widely blamed on misinformation, far-Right agitators and criminal opportunists.

Close to 450 people have been charged in relation to the rioting and disorder, which spread from Southport to London, Liverpool, Manchester and Sunderland.

A number of those charged have been accused of stirring up racial hatred or other racially motivated crimes.

The rioters were egged on by false rumours spread on social media sites, including Telegram and on X.

Hundreds of anti-immigration protesters also gathered outside a Holiday Inn hotel, which housed asylum seekers, in Rotherham on Aug 4.

Attendees were seen attacking police, throwing missiles and smashing windows. Some attempted to start a fire at the hotel.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy has previously said Mr Trump is 'no friend of Britain' - DREW ANGERER/AFP via Getty Images

In his posts on Truth Social, Mr Trump said: Kamala Harris supports the environmental extremists NET-ZERO energy policy  a radical Left agenda to abolish coal, oil, and natural gas, and plunge MILLIONS into poverty.

He added: In the United States, net zero fanatics like Kamala Harris want to shut down power plants, even as the cost of energy and electricity is up 30 to 50pc and climbing.

Many senior Labour politicians have made no secret of their disdain for Mr Trump.

David Lammy, the Foreign Secretary, called Mr Trump a sociopath, when he was a backbench MP in 2018. He later said the Republican leader was no friend of Britain.

Mr Lammy has since sought to build bridges with the Republicans, saying in May that Britain and the US must work together whoever is president.

The Foreign & Commonwealth Office and Department for Energy Security & Net Zero were contacted for comment.

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Pituffik was established during the Cold War to detect intercontinental ballistic missiles flying over the North Pole - RITZAU SCANPIX/via REUTERS

Defence services firm Serco has landed a $320m (250m) contract to build an emergency power station at a top secret nuclear monitoring base in Thule, Greenlands northernmost town.

The deal will see Serco boost the capacity of a backup power plant at a US space base, where an array of sensors are in place to detect nuclear attacks from intercontinental ballistic missiles fired over the North Pole.

The four-year contract, awarded by the US Army Corps of Engineers, starts this month and will see Serco provide what boss Mark Irwin said will be a mission-critical upgrade in a pivotal location.

The Pituffik space base, established during the Cold War, also performs surveillance by tracking satellites and spacecraft as they orbit the planet.

Thule, named after the Latin word for the worlds most far-flung location, has a population of about 650 people, who are mostly military personnel from the US and Denmark.

Serco will undertake the refurbishment of the electrical generator and associated infrastructure together with future maintenance in conjunction with Danish construction company Aarsleff.

Greenland's northernmost-town of Thule is plunged into darkness for half the year - Ida Guldbaek Arentsen/EPA-EFE/REX

The settlement is located just 950 miles from the North Pole and endures darkness for half the year. Temperatures plunge below -20 degrees Celsius for months on end and climbing above freezing for only about 12 weeks. This makes reliable power supplies vital for those living in the area.

Though hemmed in by sea ice for much of the year, Thule also has the worlds northernmost deepwater port and a 10,000-foot runway that handles more than 3,000 flights a year, including military flights, business jets and local Air Greenland services.

The base was the site of a near disaster in 1968 when a B-52 bomber carrying four nuclear weapons crashed nearby.

Explosives in the warheads detonated and the atomic payload ruptured, causing radioactive contamination. The incident became known as the Thule affair.

The US base was renamed Pituffik  meaning the place the dogs are tied  only last year.

American explorer Robert Peary based himself in the area during expeditions in the early 1900s, during which he claimed to become the first person to reach the North Pole.

Sercos defence business also manages military housing, helps move Royal Navy vessels with a fleet of dedicated tugs, provides engineering support for RAF Chinook helicopters and is responsible for applying specialist paint finishes to Eurofighter Typhoon warplanes.

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West Midlands police in Britain Thursday urgently asked the public's help in a search for two dogs that may have been involved in a fatal attack on a man in Rubery. They released this image of one of them. Photo courtesy West Midlands Police

Aug. 22 (UPI) -- West Midlands police in Britain Thursday urgently asked the public's help in a search for two dogs that may have been involved in a fatal attack on a man in Rubery.

Responding to a call of loose dogs, police said arriving officers found the body of a 33-year-old man police believe may have been attacked by at least one of the dogs.

A post-mortem is being done to determine the cause of death.

"We have officers liaising with vets and the local authority and are using our drone capability to scour the wider area," Police Dog Unit Inspector Leanne Chapman said in a statement. "We really need to hear from anyone who has seen these dogs and it's vital that if you see them, you don't approach them but call 999 immediately."

The dogs are believed to be American Bulldog-types, according to police. Two dogs were captured by police but they are looking for two other dogs they believe were at the address at the time the man died.

"This is a really tragic incident, and the family of the man are being supported by officers. The investigation into his death is continuing, and our priority right now is finding the other dogs that we believe may have been involved," Birmingham Police Superintendent Sally Simpson said in a statement.

Police released an image of one of the dogs and they said the other dog they're searching for is a similar type, but with black fur.

The police effort in the case includes house-to-house inquiries, the use of drones and reviewing security camera footage.

Police urged anyone who may know where the dogs are to call them using Britain's 999 service.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. The main goal is to seriously discuss the lifting of unilateral sanctions against Iran with respect for Iran's principles, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said, Trend reports

According to him, Iran's Foreign Ministry will take the bull by the horns and consider ironing out tensions with the US and burying the hatchet with European countries as a make-or-break move towards lifting sanctions against the Iranian economy and getting back on track with trade relations with Iran.

Araghchi stated that the real deal is all about bringing back the 2015 nuclear agreement and giving the boot to those pesky sanctions.

It is noteworthy that Iran's parliament on August 21 gave Abbas Araghchi the green light, as his hat was thrown into the ring for the position of foreign minister, proposed by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. A grand total of 222 deputies gave him the thumbs up.

To recall, 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
Brookfield residents speak in favor of ballot drop boxes, but Common Council says no

The City of Brookfield won't offer voters an absentee ballot drop box option in the Nov. 5 presidential election, even though many residents said they'd only help make elections more accessible.

That was decided by Common Council members in a vote Tuesday night at the recommendation of city staff, making Brookfield the second community in Waukesha County behind New Berlin to vote against utilizing the locked drop box.

City Attorney Jenna Merten submitted to the Common Council a memo outlining the reasons for her recommendation with City Clerk Michelle Luedtke to not offer an absentee ballot drop box. They brought the discussion to city officials since they "knew it was a hot button issue," the city attorney said in Tuesday's meeting.

The Common Council voted 10-4 to pass the resolution to not have drop boxes in the general election. Officials also voted to approve an amendment to allow people to drop off their ballots in-person on Saturday, Oct. 26, at City Hall.

Before the votes, all residents who spoke at the meeting said they were in support of drop boxes, residents told the Journal Sentinel. Prior to the meeting, the city received at least 10 emails from residents asking for the reinstatement of drop boxes, according to emails obtained by the Journal Sentinel.

Heres what to know:

City attorney, clerk recommend Common Council not use absentee ballot box in November election

The Wisconsin Supreme Court restored the use of absentee ballot drop boxes in Wisconsin in July, reversing a past decision from the court. That decision doesn't force municipal clerks to use drop boxes, but left the decision up to clerks and made it once again legal to use the locked, unmanned boxes in time for the Aug. 13 partisan primaries and Nov. 5 presidential election.

As a result, the Wisconsin Election Commission issued guidance to help clerks implement best practices for those drop boxes to ensure voters safely use them and the ballots can be secure and safely retrieved.

When offering an absentee ballot drop box, per WEC's guidance, Brookfield would need a surveillance camera, storage of video footage, decals, extra keys and security seals for the unstaffed box, Merten said in the memo. At least two people would be required to remove ballots and chain of custody logs would have to be completed, she wrote.

City staff will, however, provide drive-up voting for people who can't get out of their car, extended hours for in-person absentee voting early and other options for voters to drop off their absentee ballots, Merten said in the memo.

"With such provisions in place, we do not think a drop box is necessary at this time," she wrote.

Common Council members at odds over the drop boxes before vote to leave them behind in November's election

As the Brookfield Common Council discussed whether to offer absentee ballot drop boxes, some aldermen questioned how the boxes would affect "election integrity."

In an Aug. 21 press release posted to his Facebook page, Alderman Mike Hallquist characterized those claims as "unsubstantiated election denialism-like."

In the release, Hallquist said he received 20 comments in favor of drop boxes and 0 against.

Hallquist and other members in favor of the drop box said it is a secure way for people who can't vote in person to be counted, especially those with disabilities, a lack of transportation or those strapped for time as a parent or caretaker.

Alderwoman Sara Monty, who represents District 1, described how in her experience as an election inspector in past elections she has watched absentee ballots from drop boxes be processed safely.

"There is no proof of any problem with absentee balloting," Monty said. "There are so many people that this will be an encouragement (to) and increase their ability to participate in our process.

Alderman Kris Seals of District 7 argued people can drop their absentee ballots in the mail or take time off to drop off their vote at City Hall.

"It already works, I don't know why we need to change it," Seals said.

Alderman Bill Carnell motioned for an amendment to approve the utilization of a drop box for the November election, but was shot down in an 11-3 vote. Alders Carnell, Hallquist and Monty voted for the boxes.

Alderman Jason Anderson of District 3 then offered an amendment to offer in-person receiving of ballots on Oct. 26 as extra time on a weekend before the election, which passed in a 10-4 vote.

Brookfield residents at the meeting say they want an absentee ballot box

Kayce Deshotels was disheartened that alders voted against offering the ballot boxes despite all residents who attended the meeting speaking in favor of the resource, she said.

Amy Zimmerman, a Brookfield resident and mom of two, sees the decision to not offer a drop box as a lack of empathy and understanding from some Brookfield officials for the situations of voters with disabilities and those who are parents and would find ease in dropping their ballot off in a drop box.

I think that a lot of our aldermen are very far removed from the days of young children or never had those responsibilities themselves, Zimmerman said.

While working the polls in the August primary, Zimmerman saw voters confused by the seemingly ever-changing protocols of absentee ballots over the last five years.

We had a dozen or so individuals come in throughout the day with their absentee ballot in hand, unsure about the best way to return, she said.

She said she sees most election integrity issues brought to the media's attention from people affiliated with the Republican party.

So, it's a bit disingenuous to say there's a public perception of issues with integrity, but oh, hey, I also spend my time supporting those individuals that are pushing those claims, Zimmerman said.

Absentee drop boxes not new, but politicization is, League of Women Voters executive director says

Drop boxes have been used in Wisconsin and other states for years  it's the politicizing of drop boxes that's new, said Debra Cronmiller, executive director of the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin.

Drop boxes became a focal point during the coronavirus pandemic as a way to help voters cast ballots while limiting interaction with other people.

That process, however, was highly criticized in 2020 by former President Donald Trump and Republicans who claimed without evidence that the boxes and absentee voting were rife with fraud.

Cronmiller said drop boxes are an issue of accessibility and removing them can lead to voter disenfranchisement. They're especially important for voters in rural areas, she said.

Voters can contact their municipal clerk to learn how their municipality is handling absentee ballot drop boxes.

How can I submit my absentee ballot in the City of Brookfield?

If you request an absentee ballot, the City of Brookfield will mail it to you on or before September 19, 2024. Requested absentee ballots will be mailed up until the Thursday before the election.

If you submit an absentee ballot request before that first mailing date, you will have at least 30 days to return your ballot by mail and be nearly certain that the clerks office will receive it prior to Election Day, according to Mertens memo.

You can also drop off your ballot at Brookfields City Hall, 2000 N. Calhoun Road during business hours from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

City Hall will be open for extended voting hours during in-person absentee voting for the two weeks prior to the election from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Voters can also drop off their ballots to a clerk at that time, according to Merten.

Voters can also use a drive-up ballot drop-off during in-person absentee voting.

Voters who cannot exit a vehicle can park in a disabled parking space and ring the doorbell next to the space from their vehicle to have a clerk pick up their ballot from the parking lot, the memo said. This doorbell will be available during the entire time that City Hall is open for voting, including extended hours.

Additionally, disabled voters could always call the City Clerks office during its regular business hours to request that the clerk come to the parking lot and take their ballot.

They noted in the memo that their recommendation may change depending on factors like pandemics, poll worker availability, court rulings, and other unforeseen circumstances.

Bridget Fogarty covers Brookfield, Wauwatosa and Elm Grove for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. She can be contacted at bfogarty@gannett.com.

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporters Lawrence Andrea and Molly Beck contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Brookfield won't offer voters a ballot drop box option in November
Ukraine deployed about 50 drones in a recent attack on Moscow and other Russian regions that Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin called one of the largest attacks on the city to date, the War Zone media outlet wrote on Aug. 21, citing comments from Ukraine's military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov.

The attack, which occurred overnight on Aug. 20-21, was captured widely on social media. Russia's Defense Ministry claimed that the drones were allegedly downed in Moscow Oblast as they were heading towards the capital.

Budanov said the drones targeted a signals intelligence center in the Podolsk district on the outskirts of Moscow, as well as the nearby Ostafyevo airport. Drones also targeted the Millerovo military airbase in Rostov Oblast, located some 850 kilometers (530 miles) to the south, just to the east of Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine's Luhansk Oblast.

The extent of the damage caused is unknown, Budanov said.

Russia's Defense Ministry claimed that 45 drones were downed in total, including 11 in Moscow Oblast.

Budanov said that Ostafyevo "was a deceptive target," adding that "It's an airfield for transport aviation."

Read also: Partisans: Russian communication station destroyed in sabotage attack in Moscow Oblast

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BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)  A Buffalo man was killed in a shooting outside a Jamestown bar last Friday, according to the Jamestown Police Department.

Police responded to the Wine Cellar, located at 309 North Main St., just after 2:15 a.m. last Friday. The victim, 25-year-old Corey M. Johnson, was found shot in a parking lot behind the establishment.

Johnson was transported to UPMC Chautauqua and then transferred to UPMC Hamot in Erie, Pennsylvania where he was pronounced dead on Sunday.

Police said that the incident is believed to be a targeted event and that the offender knew the victim.

The shooting is still under investigation. Anyone with information is asked to call the Jamestown Police Department at (716) 483-7537 or its tip line at (716) 483-8477.

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.

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PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  Another popular fast food joint is looking to expand in Southwest Washington.

On Wednesday morning, Shake Shack confirmed its plans to open a location in Vancouver  although a spokesperson told KOIN 6 the burger chain is still a bit away from opening.

Wallet Wednesday: Saving a little extra in tough times

As first reported by The Columbian, the companys sixth Washington restaurant will be found on 2100 SE 164th Ave in the Fishers Landing Marketplace that also holds New Seasons Market.

The chains other Washington locations are spread across Lynnwood, Bellevue, Kirkland and Seattle.

According to officials, Shake Shack first applied for a tenant improvement building permit for the Vancouver space on June 20. City spokesperson Tim Becker said the permit was approved on Tuesday.

Because the business is replacing another restaurant, Sharis Cafe and Pies, Becker explained that no land use review is required outside of the new sign that will be installed.

Shake Shack isnt the only fast food spot working to serve Vancouver residents.

Since Apr. 15, In-N-Out Burger has been in the commercial development pre-application phase for a potential spot in the former Rite Aid space on 13511 SE 3rd Way in the Fircrest neighborhood.

Family-owned real estate firm buys Montgomery Park at 87% discount

The 3,800-square-foot restaurant would be the companys second in Clark County, after the Ridgefield location that is set to open sometime next year.

Additionally, Vancouver welcomed Raising Canes Chicken Fingers on 12601 SE 2nd Circle just last month.

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ASHEVILLE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  A Morganton man was sentenced to 14 years in prison Thursday from his methamphetamine trafficking conviction, the Department of Justice reports.

According to the U.S. Attorneys Office for Western North Carolina, 54-year-old Allen Lee Henson was sentenced to 168 months followed by five years of supervised release.



According to court documents and court proceedings, in March 2021, the Burke County Sheriffs Office initiated an investigation after learning that Henson was acquiring methamphetamine and then re-distributing it to others within the area. During the investigation, BCSO investigators used a confidential source to purchase the drugs from Henson at his residence on at least two occasions.

Burke County man charged for having stolen firearm: Sheriff

On April 23, 2021, records indicate law enforcement executed a search warrant at Hensons home, where deputies reportedly seized distribution quantities of methamphetamine, marijuana, digital scales, drug paraphernalia, and $23,733 in cash.

Court records show that on Feb. 10, 2022, Henson met with an undercover officer (UC) in Caldwell County, where Henson sold the UC more than 71 grams of methamphetamine.

On Nov. 15, 2023, Henson pled guilty to possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. He is currently in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the federal Bureau of Prisons.



The investigation was conducted by the DEA and the Burke County Sheriffs Office, with the assistance of the Lenoir Police Department.



Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Hess in Asheville prosecuted the case.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News.
Burlington, VT.  A 50-year-old Vermont man was arrested in connection to a theft on Thursday after three men assaulted an individual and took their motorbike near City Hall Park.

The theft was reported to BPD at approximately 12:40 a.m. Aldwayne Gadson of Burlington had the individuals stolen motorbike when police located him, along with the two other assault suspects.

Gadson was detained by officers at the scene, while the two unidentified suspects fled. He was taken to Northwest State Correctional Facility and lodged for lack of bail.

This is not Gadsons first criminal charge. Anyone with additional information about the suspects or this incident can call Burlington Police Department at (802) 658-2704.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC22 & FOX44.
A railway ferry carrying fuel that caught fire in the Russian port of Kavkaz, allegedly due to an attack by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, has sunk.

Source: Russian media outlet RBC, citing the operational headquarters of the Krasnodar Krai

Quote: "The ferry attacked by the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the port of Kavkaz sank, the operational headquarters of the Krasnodar Krai reported."

Details: The RBC reported that the ferry was carrying 30 fuel tanks.

Background: A fire broke out on a railway ferry loaded with fuel in the port of Kavkaz in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. Russian media outlets and Telegram channels blame this on a Ukrainian missile strike.

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SPRINGBORO, Ohio (WDTN)  A school bus was hit in front of Springboro High School.

Officers from the Springboro Police Department responded to the southbound lane of S. Main Street in Springboro at 7:46 a.m. for a crash. According to Springboro Schools, district bus number 2 was one of the vehicles involved.

Police seek two Fairfield Commons robbery suspects

District officials and police both confirmed the only individual on the bus at the time of the crash was the driver.

Springboro Police told 2 NEWS the driver of a truck is believed to have been at fault.

Police also confirmed no injuries were reported.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WDTN.com.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 22. US President Joe Biden, in a telephone conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, stressed the urgency of finalizing a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip between the Jewish state and the Palestinian Hamas movement, the White House press service said, Trend reports.

"The president stressed the urgency of reaching a ceasefire and hostage release deal and discussed future talks in Cairo to remove any remaining obstacles," the statement said.

In addition, they discussed the measures taken by the United States to support Israel in its defense against all threats, including Iran and groups that Washington considers to be controlled by Tehran, such as Hamas, the Lebanese Hezbollah party and the Yemeni Houthis from the rebel movement Ansar Allah.
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg speaks on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Hes been a Michigan resident for two years, but on Wednesday night U.S.Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg declared himself a Michigander to the world, touting his family as just one example of the diverse America that would continue to thrive under a Kamala Harris administration.

Speaking at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago between surprise guest Oprah Winfrey and vice presidential nominee, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Buttigieg compared the vision for the future being offered by Vice President Harris versus that of former President Donald Trump and his running mate, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio).

Right now, the other side is appealing to what is smallest within you, said Buttigieg. Theyre telling you that greatness comes from going back to the past. Theyre telling you that anyone different from you is a threat.

Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Ind., moved to Traverse City in July 2022 with his husband, Chasten Buttigieg, who grew up there. Together, they have two young children.

Im thinking of dinner time at our house in Michigan, he told the audience of Democratic faithful. When the dog is barking and the air fryer is beeping and the mac and cheese is boiling over, and it feels like all the political negotiating experience in the world is not enough for me to get our 3-year-old son and our 3-year-old daughter to just wash their hands and sit at the table.

Buttigieg said that while politics seemed the least important thing at that time of the day with his family, he knew it was only made a reality by the hard work of advancing civil rights for all, no matter what they believed or who they loved.

And yet the makeup of our kitchen table, the existence of my family, is just one example of something that was literally impossible as recently as 25 years ago, when an anxious teenager growing up in Indiana wondered if he would ever find belonging in this world, he said. This kind of life went from impossible to possible, from possible to real, from real to almost ordinary in less than half a lifetime.

Buttigieg pivoted during his speech from moments of inspiration to reminding the delegates, and the wider audience watching the convention, the choice for Americas future that voters will make in November.

The choice could not be clearer. Donald Trump rants about law and order as if he wasnt a convicted criminal running against a prosecutor. As if we were going to forget the crime was higher on his watch, said Buttigieg. And dont even get me started on his new running mate. At least [former Vice President] Mike Pence was polite. J.D. Vance is one of those guys who thinks if you dont live the life that he has in mind for you, then you dont count. Someone who said that if you dont have kids, you have no physical commitment to the future of this country.

Buttigieg, who served a tour of duty in Afghanistan in 2014 while mayor of South Bend, said Vances rhetoric wholly dismissed the service that he and many others have made to the nation.

You know, Senator, when I deployed to Afghanistan, I didnt have kids then. Many of the men and women who went outside the wire with me didnt have kids either. But let me tell you, our commitment to the future of this country was pretty damn physical. Choosing a guy like J.D. Vance to be Americas next vice president sends a message. And the message is that they are doubling down on negativity and grievance, said Buttigieg.

In contrast, Buttigieg ended his speech with an optimistic call to voters to make sure which vision would win out.

This November, we get to choose. We get to choose our president. We get to choose our policies. But most of all, we will choose a better politics, a politics that calls us to our better selves and offers us a better every day. That is what Kamala Harris and Tim Walz represents. That is what Democrats represent, said Buttigieg. That is what awaits us. When America decides to end Trumps politics of darkness once and for all. That is what we choose when we embrace the leaders who are out there building bridges and reject the ones who are out there banning books. This is what we will work for every day to November and beyond. So lets go win this.

Buttigieg is just one of the many Michigan leaders to have prominent speaking spots during the DNC, highlighting the states key role as a battleground in November.

Among those from the Great Lakes State who have already addressed the DNC have been U.S. Sen. Gary Peters (D-Bloomfield Twp.), Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, state Sen. Mallory McMorrow (D-Royal Oak), and UAW President Shawn Fain.

Motown legend Stevie Wonder, another native Michigander, also performed Wednesday night.

Both U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly), who is battling former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers (R-White Lake) for Michigans open U.S. Senate seat, and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, are slated to speak Thursday night in the lead up to Harris formally accepting the Democratic nomination.

Stevie Wonder performs on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Stevie Wonder performs on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Stevie Wonder performs on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Stevie Wonder performs on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

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This California beach city just barred people from smoking in their own apartments, condos

A jetty protrudes into the Pacific Ocean in Carlsbad, where the City Council this week voted to ban smoking in multifamily residential properties. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Smokers living in apartments, condos and townhomes in Carlsbad will now have to think twice about lighting up inside their homes.

The beach city Tuesday became the first in San Diego County to expressly ban smoking and vaping of cannabis and nicotine products inside all local multifamily residential buildings.

While the city's ordinance prompted some complaints about government prying into the private lives of residents, others applauded city leaders for prioritizing the health of nonsmokers living in units that are inundated by their neighbors' secondhand smoke.

Read more: Californians will be banned from smoking at state parks and beaches under new law

Advocates of the ban noted that cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States, resulting in more than 480,000 deaths annually, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Secondhand smoke exposure can cause a variety of ailments, including heart disease, stroke and lung cancer, federal health officials say.

"This is more than an annoyance," resident Katrina Preece told the City Council last year about the effects of secondhand smoke. "This is a painful and alarming health hazard."

Officials in Carlsbad began discussing an ordinance prohibiting smoking inside multifamily properties with three or more units roughly a year ago.

Smoking was for decades permitted in locations such as restaurants, shops and even airplanes. But the habit has largely fallen out of fashion in American culture as more people became aware of the potential health effects, the cost of lighting up continued to increase and many cities took steps to ban smoking in most public spaces.

Read more: U.S. adult cigarette smoking rate hits all-time low, but what about vaping?

At least 84 other California municipalities, including Beverly Hills, Culver City, Manhattan Beach and Pasadena, have banned smoking in some multifamily private residences, according to the American Nonsmokers' Rights Foundation.

In addition to barring people from lighting up inside private homes, the Carlsbad ordinance also prohibits smoking on private balconies, porches, decks, patios and common areas that are not designated as smoking locations. The law does not apply to single-family homes, including those with an accessory dwelling unit.

Mayor Keith Blackburn said during a council meeting last August that a ban on smoking would help property managers more easily enforce their anti-smoking policies. Several complexes in Carlsbad already have existing nonsmoking clauses in their leases.

"A lot of times managers don't want to get into a confrontation because it's just a policy or it's just in the lease and [the renter] knows you're not going to evict them for smoking," Blackburn said. "So I looked at this and I thought, at least for the managers, we're going to give them a tool."

Read more: Hefty cigarette taxes cut smoking big-time. But there's a downside for children

But others worried the law would become an unnecessary burden for property owners.

The city, citing limited resources, said police and code enforcement officers will not enforce the law. Instead, landlords and other tenants will be able to take legal action against violators.

Councilmember Melanie Burkholder, who cast the lone dissenting vote on the ban, on Tuesday said she doesn't think local police should be in the business of telling residents whether they can smoke in their homes.

"It just seems like it's kind of out of place," she said during a meeting last year.

Will Creagan, chairman of Southwest Equity Partners  a San Diego County-based property management company  put it more bluntly in a letter this month to city staff: "So you pass an ordinance and then tell the property managers, 'You need to enforce this' ... good luck. This is another clear case of government overreach."

The law will go into effect in January.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
While the risk of contracting mpox in California remains low, health data shows that infection rates have been higher in some cities compared to others after the World Health Organization declared a global health emergency on Aug. 14.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, is caused by infection with the monkeypox virus. The virus is similar to smallpox but unrelated to chickenpox.

Mpox is mainly spread through close contact with bodily fluids, shared bedding, towels and clothing, or through kissing, coughing and hugging.

Los Angeles County is seeing an increase mpox cases: Heres how to avoid it

The virus can also be spread during intimate contact with people or close contact with infected animals.

Symptoms of the virus can include a rash that looks like a pimple or blister but may be painful or itchy, fevers, chills, swollen lymph nodes, exhaustion, muscle aches and backache, and headaches, according to the CDC.

Despite the large number of travelers leaving and returning to California, officials have not seen an increase in mpox cases, according to the most recent data from the California Department of Public Health. The rate was most recently measured in early August at 1.29 new daily infections.

During the peak of the virus in late summer 2002, over 100 new daily infections were recorded daily.

Still, some cities, mainly those with high populations, have seen higher infection rates.

These are the California cities that have reported 10 or more cumulative infections per 100,000 residents:

San Francisco

Long Beach

Los Angeles

Pasadena

Berkeley

Alameda

San Diego

San Mateo

Riverside

Santa Clara

San Benito

Solano

Contra Costa

Sacramento

Sonoma

Orange

Marin

Napa

Fresno

Monterey

San Bernardino

Congo reports more than 1,000 new mpox cases in a week. African authorities ask for vaccines

To avoid catching the virus, local health officials recommend the following:

Getting vaccinated, especially those in at-risk groups

Taking prevention measures during sexual activity

Testing for symptoms

Healthcare providers should report any suspected cases to Public Health.

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LAWTON, Okla. (KFDX/KJTL)  A suspect in a California homicide is now in custody following a traffic stop in Lawton, Oklahoma.

On Wednesday, August 21, 2024, at around 10:45 a.m., officers conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle showing to be connected to a homicide out of Riverside County, California.

The suspect in that investigation, Daniel Ambriz, was apprehended at a different location by the Lawton Police Department SWAT team, assisted by US Marshal Andy Moon and the Marshal Task Force.

This is a developing story. Stick with Texomas Homepage for updates as more information becomes available. All individuals charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

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There are over 1,100 producing oil wells in the McKittrick oil field, just north of the town of McKittrick on Cal. State Route 33. With the falling price of oil, some pumpjacks that need repair are being left idle. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

The California Department of Conservation is facing heavy criticism after it determined a colossal merger of two oil and gas companies is exempt from a state law designed to ensure depleted wells are eventually plugged.

The Orphan Wells Prevention Act  Assembly Bill 1167  was intended to ensure that if fossil fuel companies acquired oil or gas fields, they would have to set aside more money to ensure barren or low-producing wells would be plugged. The law, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in October 2023, was an effort to hold fossil fuel producers accountable for eventually sealing unplugged wells throughout California  and prevent taxpayers from footing the bill if these companies go bankrupt.

The first major test case came soon after.

Traffic on the Ojai Freeway passes Aera Energy wells in Ventura. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

This February, California Resources Corp. announced its intent to buy and merge with Aera Energy in exchange for $2.1 billion in stock  a monumental deal that resulted in the state's undisputed largest oil and gas producer. Environmental leaders initially cheered the deal, because they thought CRC would need to dedicate billions of dollars to ensure Aera's nearly 22,000 wells would be capped.

But the state Department of Conservation's Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM), which regulates oil and gas operations, concluded the law does not apply to stock transfers. David Shabazian, the outgoing director of the Department of Conservation, said the orphan wells law pertains to transactions in which there is a change in operators  not ownership.

"Publicly traded corporations, including CRC, change ownership every day as shareholders buy and sell their shares," Shabazian wrote in a letter to the law's author, Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo (D-Los Angeles). "None of those new corporate owners have any power to control the corporations assets or to operate its wells and facilities."

Environmental groups have denounced CalGEM's interpretation of the law, saying CRC has already discussed new plans for Aera's wells, demonstrating its influence over their operations. They argue CalGEM's determination means CRC must obtain, at most, a $30-million indemnity bond  an agreement in which a financial backer assumes responsibility for plugging the wells if CRC files for bankruptcy. Under the orphan well law, CRC may have had to obtain up to $2.4 billion in bonds, based on the average price to plug wells.

CalGEM "characterized it as simple stock purchase, like the equivalent of you or me buying some Apple stock, which we think is an outrageous and untenable interpretation of the law," said Hollin Kretzmann, senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity. "It's very rigid and narrow and contravening what the author and that legislature intended when they passed it."

Read more: Scrapyard explosion rattles Watts high school on first day of classes

After a century and a half of drilling for oil and gas in California, the state is home to roughly 100,000 unplugged wells, which are known to leak planet-warming gases and toxic chemicals. As the state's once-abundant oil deposits now produce much less crude oil, some fossil fuel companies have become insolvent, leaving plugging costs to taxpayers.

Carrillo drafted the Orphan Wells Prevention Act to remove that economic burden from taxpayers. The law requires oil companies that acquire low-producing wells to obtain a bond (a financial agreement similar to an insurance policy) that would cover the full cost of well-plugging.

"If a company is drilling for oil in California, they should be responsible for cleaning and closing that oil well," she said. "By refusing to enforce the policy, CalGEM is setting up our state for a potential financial catastrophe. A merger of large oil companies is not a minor stock trade.

"Not enforcing this law in the case of this merger would set a terrible precedent."

Gov. Gavin Newsom, shown at a news conference, signed the Orphan Wells Prevention Act in October. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Under her law, Carrillo and others believed CRC would be financially responsible for Aeras 9,200 idle wells and 12,500 low-producing wells. At an average cost of $112,000 per well, CRC would have needed to obtain about $2.4 billion in bonds before closing the deal.

Following the merger, CRC owns more than 40,000 wells, roughly 16,000 of which are idle. Although the wells will boost the company's oil production, critics say they also will inflate its debt and put it at risk of defaulting.

CRC plans to inject planet-warming carbon emissions into some of these depleted wells as a part of its carbon-management business plan, according to spokesperson Richard Venn.

"In the last three years, CRC and Aera have safely plugged more than 5,000 wells and continue to plug idle wells at a faster pace than is required by law," Venn said. "We will continue to invest significantly in our idle well management programs going forward. Importantly, our combination with Aera enhances our financial strength and all well bonding posted by CRC and Aera prior to the combination remains in place."

Read more: Southern California regulators impose pollution limits on the region's rail yards

Environmentalists say other legislative action is necessary to speed up well-plugging. Perhaps most notably, Assembly Bill 1866, introduced by Assemblymember Gregg Hart (D-Santa Barbara), would require Californias largest oil operators, including CRC and Aera, to plug 20% of their idle wells per year.

But some environmental advocates are still calling on Newsom to take action on the laws already on the books, namely enforcing the orphan wells law on the Aera-CRC merger.

"If this is CalGEM acting as a rogue agency, then it's time for Newsom to step in and make sure that the agencies are implementing the laws as they are written, not bending over backwards to please the oil industry," said Kretzmann.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
California lawmakers intend to shelve a bill that would have required big tech companies, like Google and Meta, to pay news outlets for distributing their content. The bill will be replaced by a new public-private partnership between the state and Google to fund programs to research artificial intelligence and bolster local journalism.

Nearly $250 million over the next five years would be used for two new initiatives. One initiative is a fund to distribute millions to California news outlets, while the other is an AI accelerator that would help journalists discover new ways to use the technology, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Newsom signs 10 bills to tackle retail, auto and property theft in CA

One-fourth of the money will come from state taxpayers, while the rest will come from Google and potentially other private donors, according to The Times.

This agreement represents a major breakthrough in ensuring the survival of newsrooms and bolstering local journalism across California  leveraging substantial tech industry resources without imposing new taxes on Californians, Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement to The Times. The deal not only provides funding to support hundreds of new journalists but helps rebuild a robust and dynamic California press corps for years to come, reinforcing the vital role of journalism in our democracy.

The agreement between California and Google ends a two-year battle between the news and tech industries to revitalize local journalism amid changes in how people consume news and how advertisers reach consumers.

Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, who introduced the now-shelved bill, formally known as the California Journalism Preservation Act, argued that California journalism is essential to democracy. As advertisement revenue shrinks, leading to the layoffs of reporters, many communities often go without independent watchdogs.

The CJPA provides a lifeline for news outlets  large, small, and ethnic  by directing a portion of the ad dollars back to the print, digital, and broadcast media that bear the entire cost of gathering and reporting local news while Big Tech bears none, said Wicks. These dominant digital ad companies are enriching their own platforms with local news content without adequately compensating the originators. Its time they start paying market value for the journalism they are aggregating at no cost from local media. Wicks previously said in a statement.

The debate on solving the problem led to friction between the two industries. In April, Google announced it would consider removing news website links from search results for some users.

California bill could force some stores to close self-checkout lanes

In a new statement, Google thanked state leaders for their leadership as news and tech leaders navigated the issue.

We appreciate the thoughtful leadership of Governor Newsom, Assemblymember Wicks, Chair Umberg, and Senator Glazer on these issues. California lawmakers have worked with the tech and news sectors to develop a collaborative framework to accelerate AI innovation and support local and national businesses and nonprofit organizations. This public-private partnership builds on our long history of working with journalism and the local news ecosystem in our home state while developing a national center of excellence on AI policy. Kent Walker, president of Global Affairs for Alphabet, said in a statement.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
California principal on leave after parent posts video of administrator's 'weird' dance with mascot

A principal in Atwater, California, is on leave after a parent posted video of him dancing with a mascot at a rally, leading some to question whether it was inappropriate and unprofessional.

Video of the back-to-school event last week at Buhach Colony High School showed Principal Robert Nunes running his hands down the mascot's chest while the mascot sat in a chair. It appeared to be a Las Vegas-themed rally, with decorations of playing cards on the walls and someone saying, "What happens at Buhach stays at Buhach."

The Merced Union High School District placed Nunes on administrative leave Monday, it said in a statement.

"The District is conducting a comprehensive review of the situation," it said. "While the investigation is ongoing, Mr. Nunes will not be participating in any school-related responsibilities or activities."

Ryan Attebery saw the video on his son's Instagram account and reposted it to Facebook on Saturday, captioning it: "Am I a square or was this weird af for a principal to do?"

The reaction was a mixed, with many community members defending Nunes and others saying it was inappropriate for an educator.

Attebery told NBC affiliate KSEE of Fresno that he felt that there were some red flags in the video and that while others might not agree, "whats weird is weird to me."

"A lot of former students commented and were like, Well, I kind of liked him, what happened? Attebery said. "Im not into cancel culture. Im just like, hey parents, you have the right to know."

NBC News was unable to reach Nunes for comment Thursday after an email bounced back as undeliverable.

People have been commenting for days on Attebery's Facebook page debating whether it was acceptable behavior from a school principal.

Other commenters came to Nunes defense, with one person writing that he was loved in the local community. The person, identified as Justin Rogers, urged Attebery to stop implying Nunes had bad intentions.

"This man is so widely respected and loved by everyone in his community," Rogers wrote. "Teachers love him, students love him and co workers love him."

One person suggested that perhaps a private conversation with Nunes would have been more impactful. Attebery wrote back Thursday that he agreed.

The original intention was asking my friends and family if I was being a Karen it was a mistake not expecting this, he wrote. Could have done it so differently. Lesson learned. That was my mistake.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
California school safety officer pleads no contest in 2021 fatal shooting of 18-year-old near Long Beach high school

A former California school safety officer who fatally shot an 18-year-old girl near a Long Beach high school in 2021 has pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter, prosecutors announced Tuesday.

Eddie Gonzalez had initially been charged with murder in the shooting on Sept. 27, 2021, that killed Manuela Mona Rodriguez, who was the mother of a 5-month-old baby at the time.

The case sparked outrage in the community and played out in court but ended in mistrial this year.

Gonzalez pleaded no contest Tuesday to one count of voluntary manslaughter in a plea agreement, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office said Thursday.

Under the agreement, he will be sentenced Oct. 8 to either a lower term of three years or a mid-term of six years in prison, the DA's office said.

His attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the plea deal.

In the incident Gonzalez, who was employed by the Long Beach Unified School District, was driving a school safety vehicle near Millikan High School when he saw an altercation between Rodriguez and a 15-year-old girl unfolding in the street, Long Beach police said at the time.

Police said Rodriguez initiated the assault. When Rodriguez tried to flee in a sedan, Gonzalez approached the vehicle to prevent her from fleeing and opened fire, police said. She was struck and died from her injuries a week later, on Oct. 6.

The school district fired Gonzalez later in the day. It said its use of force policy states officers should not fire at a fleeing person, at a moving vehicle or through a vehicle window unless circumstances warrant it. Rodriguez was unarmed.

Oscar Rodriguez, left, and Omar Rodriguez hold up a photo of Mona Rodriguez and her mother, Manuela, in Long Beach, Calif., on April 4, 2023.

He was charged with murder on Oct. 27 that year, and he pleaded not guilty in December 2021. His attorney had argued that Gonzalez feared for his life and acted in self-defense, NBC Los Angeles reported.

The case resulted in a mistrial on April 16 this year after jurors were deadlocked 7-5, with the majority favoring convicting Gonzalez of second-degree murder and five others opting for voluntary manslaughter and acquittal on the more serious offense of second-degree murder, NBC Los Angeles reported.

In April 2023, Rodriguezs family was awarded a $13 million settlement from the Long Beach Unified School District in connection with her death. The district said the agreement was "no admission of liability on the districts part."

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
What is Camp Resolution, the Sacramento homeless camp the city plans to shut down Monday?

The city of Sacramento plans to Monday close a tight-knit homeless camp called Camp Resolution. Heres what to know.

What is Camp Resolution?

Camp Resolution is located at a vacant city-owned lot at the corner of Colfax Street and Arden Way. There, 48 homeless people, many of whom seniors with disabilities, live in city-issued trailers.

How did Camp Resolution open?

Dozens of homeless people in 2020 started camping on the property in tents. Many of them had been camping along the American River, where sexual assaults are common and downed trees have killed several people.

The city in 2021 included the lot in a list of sites where it planned to open shelters, cleared the camp off the lot, then spent $617,000 to pave and fence it. After doing that, in 2022, the city dropped plans for a shelter there. So a handful of homeless women broke in to the gate and started camping there again.

Instead of clearing them off the property, as the city had in the past, the city got on board. In 2022 it signed a lease with civil rights attorney Mark Merins nonprofit Safe Ground Sacramento, to allow the camp to stay. The city also delivered trailers, which had long sat vacant, for people to live in.

Camp Resolution residents Joyce Williams and Desiree Pryor embrace in November 2022 after Tammy Myler, right, thanked everyone who spoke at Sacramento City Council meeting where the council passed a motion to postpone removing their encampment.

How is Camp Resolution different?

The city pays the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency $4.6 million a year to operate the 100-bed shelter on X Street and $3.5 million a year to operate the 100-bed shelter in Meadowview, an audit found. Thats not counting the millions it cost to erect the semi-permanent tent-like structures.

Camp Resolution, which does not have a contracted operator, does not cost the city anything to run.

The residents rely on community members and organizations for food, clothing and supplies. The camp is self-governing with the homeless residents making their own rules and key decisions.

Although they are not in permanent housing, they are in an environment thats safer than the streets while they wait for housing. They have doors and gates that lock, bathrooms, water, and a sense of community. The camp had a waiting list of over 800 people, and mostly admitted people with chronic physical disabilities. Although those people collect disability and Social Security checks, they have said those payments are too little to afford market rate rent in Sacramento, where a studio often costs more than $1,500 a month.

There are thousands of people on the waitlist for affordable permanent housing in Sacramento. Some report waiting years for a spot.

Why is the camp closing?

Due to vapor contamination, a state agency allowed people to live in the site in trailers, but not in tents on the ground. The type of contamination thats present is not harmful to people in vehicles because theyre raised off the ground, the California State Water Resources Control Board has said. In an April letter, the city said there were people sleeping in tents and that the camp would close in May.

The city then backed off on that plan after residents begged the City Council for more time, and people stopped camping on the dirt.

On May 15, the homeless union sued the city, seeking a judge order barring the city from closing the camp until all residents are in permanent housing. The judge has so far ruled in the citys favor on that case, but it is still active.

Meanwhile, in July, Merin, the lease holder, sent a notice to the city of plans for lease termination, which is effective Monday.

Safe Ground Sacramento attorney Mark Merin, right, attends a press conference at Camp Resolution in North Sacramento on July 18, where California Homeless Union attorney Anthony Prince, left, called on him to stop a planned city inspection of the site. The inspection did not occur.

Merin has said that although the lease is ending, it is up to the city whether to clear the residents off the site.

The lease states, upon the expiration or termination of this lease, lessee shall peaceably vacate the premises and deliver the premises, vacant of all guests to city.

However since its a city property and city trailers, the city could have let the camp stay.

The council discussed the case behind closed doors Tuesday, but the high-profile decision to close the camp did not get a vote or discussion in an open session of a City Council meeting. Neither City Manager Howard Chan nor Mayor Darrell Steinberg were present at Tuesdays open meeting, where several Camp Resolution residents spoke.

Where will people go?

The citys Department of Community Response is tasked with getting homeless people across the city into shelters and on permanent housing waitlists.

The camps leaders, in discussions with the Sacramento Homeless Union, decided to stop allowing DCR employees through the camps gates.

DCR was offering people beds in the city shelters, but not real-time permanent housing, which often takes months or years to get, said Crystal Sanchez of the Sacramento Homeless Union. In June, Sanchez got credentials to start getting people on the housing waitlists herself. She has not yet been able to submit all their required documents.

In lieu of housing, with the camp closing, the city has offered shelter beds to all 48 residents at the city shelters located on Roseville Road and Auburn Boulevard. But residents are raising concerns with those options.

Both shelters only usually allow guests to have dog, meaning Camp Resolution guests would have to part with their pets. In addition, the Roseville Road trailers and tiny homes do not have electricity or generators, creating issues for Camp Resolution residents on medical devices including oxygen machines.

Camp Resolution leader Sharon Jones takes a break to feed chickens in April. Jones said she wanted chickens for a long time and they wake her up every morning. They are really smart, Jones said.

They need permanent housing, Anthony Prince, homeless union attorney, said during a news conference Wednesday. They arent going to go into these homeless internment camps.

The lease stated the city should not close the camp until all residents are permanently housed, but the lease is now terminated. Prince argued in court that certain terms of the lease still apply.

Will Sacramento ever get another Safe Ground?

The camps messy and public demise could mean the city wont try to open a Safe Ground again.

But with the city facing a projected $77 million deficit for the fiscal year that starts July 1, and state and federal funding not drastically increasing, it may be the only model the city can afford.

There is another Safe Ground in the city, which makes far fewer headlines, at 12th and C streets, which has been open since 2020.

Deena Smith, 71, snuggles with her dog Molly in 2021 at the Safe Ground encampment at 12th and C streets in Sacramento's Alkali Flat neighborhood. This place  its wonderful. It saved my life.

Sacramento Councilwoman Katie Valenzuela said she wants the city to open more Safe Grounds.

A year ago, the council gave Chan authority to open Safe Grounds all over the city, without needing a council vote for each location. In January he announced the opening of the Roseville Road site, which can fit over 200 people. He has not yet announced additional sites. There are about 2,600 individuals and over 840 families on the wait list for one of the citys roughly 1,300 shelter beds, according to city data.
IWC Schaffhausen unveils its 5th special edition Pilots Watch Mark XX Patrouille Suisse for the Swiss Army Aerobatic Teams 60th anniversary

There is nothing more thrilling than watching six red and white supersonic combat jets roar through the Swiss skies. This is the Swiss Patrol, or Patrouille Suisse as it is called in French. It is the official aerobatic team of the Swiss Army, which has been thrilling spectators on both its home soil and abroad for over 60 years. The Patrouille Suisse is a veritable ambassador for the country as it showcases the performance, operational readiness, and precision of the Swiss Army. The pilots originally come from one of the F/A-18 Hornet frontline squadrons and carry out their role as display pilots as a secondary activity to their role in maintaining air sovereignty and ensuring air policing over Switzerland.

Pilots Watch Mark XX Patrouille Suisse  IWC Schaffhausen

It is no wonder that such an organisation would catch the attention of IWC Schaffhausen as timing and precision are at the core of aerobatic formation flying. Philippe Franke, IWCs Brand Director Switzerland explains: Formation flying is pure manual work that requires utmost precision and technical perfection, qualities that are also essential in watchmaking. IWC Schaffhausen has followed the achievements of the Patrouille Suisse for many decades. This new special edition watch pays tribute to the excellence, history, and legacy of the Swiss Air Forces aerobatic team.

This 5th edition Pilots Watch Mark XX Patrouille Suisse is limited to 250 pieces and follows four other special editions: the Pilots Watch Chronograph Edition Patrouille Suisse unveiled in 2011, the Double Chronograph Pilot Patrouille Suisse released in 2014, the Big Pilot Watch Edition Patrouille Suisse launched in 2015, and the Pilot Spitfire Chronograph Patrouille Suisse presented in 2016.

Pilots Watch Mark XX Patrouille Suisse  IWC Schaffhausen

In terms of design, this 5th limited edition comes in a 40mm grade five titanium case that has been sand-blasted to give it a matte grey finish. Titanium has the highest strength-to-density ratio of any metal, making it exceptionally robust. It also weighs about one-third less than steel, making it particularly suitable for extreme flying. In addition to its stealthy look, the cases matte finish avoids any highly polished surfaces reflecting the sun into the pilots eyes when they are in the middle of a high-speed loop-the-loop! IWC has paid particular attention to the case back which is adorned with an engraving of three F-5E Tiger jets in formation with their contrails behind them.

The dial comes in a harmonious dark grey tone and features white luminescent hands and numerals for heightened legibility. The watch is fitted with a black textile strap and comes with IWCs EasX-CHANGE system so it can be easily switched for other strap options without the use of any tools. The functions include hours, minutes, central seconds, and a date at three oclock, all of which are powered by IWCs manufacture automatic Caliber 32111 which comes with an impressive 120-hour power reserve.

Pilots Watch Mark XX Patrouille Suisse  IWC Schaffhausen

This year marks the 60th anniversary of the Patrouille Suisse and what better way to celebrate this exceptional organisation, and the numerous pilots who have been in its service for the last six decades, than with a brand-new IWC Special Edition.
Train cars are seen on the tracks in an aerial view at Canadian National Rail's Thornton Yard as the Port Mann Bridge spans the Fraser River and trucks transport cargo containers on the highway in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)

TORONTO (AP)  Freight trains in Canada could be running again within days after the government forced the countrys two major railroads into arbitration with their labor union Thursday, a move aimed at averting potentially dire economic consequences across the country and in the U.S. if the trains are sidelined for a long period.

The governments action came more than 16 hours after Canadian National and CPKC locked out workers over a labor agreement impasse. Both railroads said they would work to get trains moving again as soon as possible.

The union representing 10,000 engineers, conductors and dispatchers responded angrily to the order, accusing the railroads of intentionally creating a crisis to force the government to intervene. It also said it would keep its picket lines in place while reviewing the decision.

The government ordered the railroads into arbitration with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference to end the lockout that began at 12:01 a.m. Thursday after the two sides were unable to resolve the contract dispute.

Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon announced the decision to order the arbitration at a news conference Thursday. MacKinnon said he expects the trains will resume moving within days. Ending the lockouts is the first step.

The arbitration process was moving quickly, with the railroads meeting with the Canada Industrial Relations Board on Thursday night, according to a person familiar with the schedule who spoke on condition of anonymity because they werent authorized to discuss it. The Teamsters confirmed that the union was also meeting with the board Thursday night.

Throughout the day Thursday, both sides negotiated unsuccessfully while workers picketed outside and business groups urged the government to force the arbitration.

Teamsters Canada Rail Conference President Paul Boucher criticized the governments decision to step in so soon.

The two major railways in Canada manufactured this crisis, took the country hostage, and manipulated the government to once again disregard the rights afforded to working-class Canadians," Boucher said. The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) is deeply disappointed by this shameful decision.

The railroad companies hailed the decision, saying the government had no choice.

The Canadian government has recognized the immense consequences of a railway work stoppage for the Canadian economy, North American supply chains and all Canadians, said Keith Creel, CPKC President and CEO. The government has acted to protect Canadas national interest. We regret that the government had to intervene because we fundamentally believe in and respect collective bargaining; however, given the stakes for all involved, this situation required action.

MacKinnon said the government wanted to give negotiations every chance to succeed, but ultimately the economic risk was too great to allow the lockouts to continue. He had declined to order arbitration a week ago.

Canadas economy cannot wait for an agreement that has been delayed for a very long time and when there is a fundamental disagreement between the parties, he said.

All of Canadas freight handled by rail  worth more than $1 billion Canadian (US$730 million) a day and adding up to more than 375 million tons of freight last year  stopped Thursday along with rail shipments crossing the U.S. border. About 30,000 commuters in Canada were also affected because their trains use CPKCs lines. CPKC and CNs trains continued operating in the U.S. and Mexico during the lockout.

Many companies in both countries and across all industries rely on railroads to deliver their raw materials and finished products, so they were concerned about a crisis without regular rail service. Billions of dollars of goods move between Canada and the U.S. via rail each month, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Trudeau decided not to force the parties into binding arbitration before the deadline passed for fear of offending unions and the leftist NDP party that his government relies on for support to remain in power, but he ultimately decided he didnt have a choice.

Collective bargaining is always the best way forward. When that is no longer a foreseeable option  when we are facing serious consequences to our supply chains and the workers who depend on it  governments must act, Trudeau said.

Most businesses probably have enough supplies on hand and room to store finished products to withstand a brief disruption. But ports and other railroads would have quickly become clogged with stranded shipments that Canadian National and CPKC wont pick up.

Many companies made supply chain changes after the COVID-19 pandemic that can help them withstand a short disruption, said Edward Jones analyst Jeff Windau. The real trouble starts if it drags on, he said.

Most previous Canadian rail stoppages have only lasted a day or two and usually involved only one of the big railroads, but some have stretched as long as eight or nine days. The impact was magnified this time because both railroads had stopped.

They are so integrated and tied into the economy," Windau said. Just the breadth of products that they haul. ... Ultimately, I think we need the rails to continue to be running.

Chemical businesses and food distributors would have been the first to be affected. The railroads stopped accepting new shipments of hazardous materials and perishable goods as they began gradually shutting down last week, but most chemical plants had said they would be OK for about a week.

The auto industry also may have seen problems quickly because it relies on just-in-time shipments, with significant cross-border deliveries of engines, parts and finished vehicles. Flavio Volpe, President of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers Association, posted on X that about four of every five cars made in Canada are exported to the U.S. almost exclusively by rail. He said a prolonged lockout could cause temporary work stoppages similar to the impact of the five-day 2022 Ambassador Bridge blockade.

More than 30,000 commuters in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal were the first to feel the pain of the lockouts and they may be stuck taking the bus again Friday. Their commuter trains arent able to operate while CPKC dispatchers are locked out.

CN had been negotiating with the Teamsters for nine months while CPKC had been trying to reach an agreement for a year, the union said.

The Canadian negotiations are stuck on issues related to the way rail workers are scheduled and concerns about rules designed to prevent fatigue and provide adequate rest to train crews. Both railroads had proposed shifting away from the existing system, which pays workers based on the miles in a trip, to an hourly system that they said would make it easier to provide predictable time off. The union said it doesn't want to lose hard-fought fatigue protections.

The railroads said their contract offers have included raises consistent with recent deals in the industry. Engineers already make about $150,000 a year on Canadian National while conductors earn $120,000, and CPKC says its wages are comparable.

___

Funk reported from Omaha, Nebraska. Associated Press writer Aamer Madhani in Buellton, California, contributed to this report.
The Big Sioux River overflows into a local park on Monday, June 24, 2024, at Chautauqua Park in Canton, South Dakota.

South Dakota residents have been rebuilding this summer after flash floods in June damaged homes, destroyed valuables and displaced families across the tri-state area.

Canton was one of the areas hit hardest in South Dakota, with some areas in the city receiving more than 18 inches of rain between June 20 and 22, almost exactly a decade after a similar flood washed over the community in 2014. Government officials called this a thousand-year flood, and the small community of roughly 3,000 fell within the less than .1% chance of such a rainfall event happening in any given year, according to the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls.

Here's a look at the annual exceedance probability (AEP) of the rainfall event that took place last month.



For reference the <1/1000 year AEP (dark blue shading) has a probability of <0.1% of occurring in any given year. pic.twitter.com/M658G2AKPt  NWS Sioux Falls (@NWSSiouxFalls) July 9, 2024

Yet, without municipal support, the Canton community rallied to stack sandbags against homes and dispose of ruined furniture in June. Now, nearly two months later, residents are still trying to repair damages and return to their normal routines. And they want to see administrative and structural changes in Canton, so that a situation like this doesn't happen again, or at minimum, loss can be proactively mitigated.

Gregg Ulrickson, a landlord on North Cedar Street, said his apartments filled with 2 feet of water during the flood. All the drywall in the building needed to be replaced, along with the cabinets and furniture.

Its everything, he said. Theres just no end to it.

More: Canton residents lambaste mayor, commissioner for lack of emergency flooding response plan

Ulrickson expects to re-paint everything by the end of the week and wants to begin renting out apartments again by Oct. 1, after residents were forced to leave their units. But outside his apartments, large pieces of the street are still missing because of the deluge of water.

That I know of, there was no city resources to help, Ulrickson said. But they said 10 years ago, this would only happen once every 100 years [] Their infrastructure needs help, needs to be redone.

Trintje Nordlie has lived on North Cedar Street for 36 years. She remembers the last flood of this size a decade ago.

Why is it that every 10 years, we get a waterfall down this road? Nordlie asked. Canton is not really wanting a swimming pool, they want these streets fixed.

The city of Canton broke ground on its outdoor swimming pool project in 2023, which has an estimated value of $6.8 million according to Construction Journal.

During the torrential rainfall in June, Nordlie and her husband were up all night trying to get the rainwater and sewage out of their basement. She said she had not received any guidance from the city.

They just tell you, 'Oh, you can do it on your own.' Well, you can't do it on your own, Nordlie said, though she did not specify who told her.

Meanwhile, volunteer firefighters went home to home throughout the city in the immediate days after, using smaller diversion pumps to help residents push water out of their homes to street drains, with at least one instance taking three to five hours alone.

In a City Commission meeting on Aug. 5, 2024, more than a month later, the commissioners passed a motion to have an engineer look at North Cedar Street and determine the best way to avoid flooding during future natural disaster events.

A pile of damaged items from the flooding the citys residents experienced on Monday, June 24, 2024, at Canton Middle and High School in Canton, South Dakota.

Canton resident Miranda Oien said the city had helped residents by allowing damaged belongings to be brought to the high school parking lot to be disposed of by the city.

But even this initiative was originally started by Canton resident Joseph Kumlien, after he found out that the roads to the City of Canton rubble site were flooded with water.

Oien said the city neglected to update its natural disaster emergency plan, which hadnt been updated since 2003. A public letter from Mayor Sandi Lundstrom on June 27 to residents confirmed this, with the understanding the city would be conducting an evaluation of areas where the city fell short and creating an action plan to improve the "community's readiness for future events."

This isn't the first time this kind of flood has happened, Kumlien said. It was really crazy, the amount of non-plan that they had in place for a big flood.

A view of North Cedar Street on August 13th, 2024. When Canton received more than a foot of rain between June 20-22, water rushed down North Cedar Street and damaged the asphalt.

On Holiday Drive, water rushed down the sloped street and into residents' houses, while water from the small lake behind them simultaneously spilled over into their backyards.

Jason Steinmetzs home on Holiday Drive filled with 3 feet of water. His two teenage children had to park their cars on the street during the flood, and both cars were totaled from water damage.

Almost two months later, his two teenagers are still living out of plastic boxes in their basement, where the sheetrock, carpeting and bathroom all needed to be replaced.

Steinmetz and his wife are both teachers, so they have been watching YouTube tutorials and restoring their house at night after work.

We have three kids, so we didn't have, you know, a ton of extra money to be throwing at redoing all that stuff," he said. "Plus, we're replacing cars."

More: 'Not much sleep:' Residents share stories of flooding impact

The Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, offers resources and compensation for survivors of disasters after a major disaster declaration has been declared.

In a Aug. 15 press release, President Joe Biden signed off on a major disaster declaration for South Dakota after Gov. Kristi Noem formally requested one on July 26 for 25 counties in with severe flood damage, including Lincoln County, where Canton is the seat.

Several Canton residents, including Steinmetz, reported that FEMA stopped by to look at their homes in early August, but they havent heard anything more. As of Monday, FEMA inspectors were finally starting to conduct damage inspections in Canton homes, along with other surrounding areas affected.

You didn't really hear much, you know, from the mayor on what's going on, Steinmetz said as of Tuesday. My wife had to get on the Facebook page and be like, 'Hey, did anyone hear that FEMA was in town?'

The current construction project on South Pleasant Street is intended to provide new sewer lines, storm sewers and water mains for the neighborhood.

Amy Bergren lives on South Pleasant Street, where she and her neighbors have had multiple sewage backups in their homes in the past month and a half.

Residents of Pleasant Street cannot drink their tap water, which is often brown and smells like sewage, but they still have to wash their dishes with the water and bathe in it.

After the flooding in June, Bergren said her family had to use the bathroom outside for eight days. The city did not provide any portable toilets or other restroom options for them.

Canton was on wastewater restrictions for about six days following the flooding because of sewer backup and water system issues. And in the time since, the city has experienced at least five or six water main breaks and two or three water service disruptions.

As of Wednesday morning, Canton residents were alerted by the city they may notice a loss of water pressure due to water tower maintenance. Pressure was expected to resume when maintence was complete.

But Bergren said her neighbors dogs are getting sick from the sewage backups. Another neighbor has three kids, who are all starting their school year sleeping on air mattresses upstairs after their basement filled with sewage.

It's just been a nightmare, like one thing after another. We can't leave our homes without wondering if we're gonna come home to a mess, Bergren said. Were tired of the city not taking accountability.

More: Canton, South Dakota mayor promises change after residents criticize flood response

A construction project on Pleasant Street is intended to provide new sewer lines, storm sewers and water mains. Bergren said she was told by city commissioners that the project would be done by Oct. 13.

The sewage backup within the last week on South Pleasant Street was accidentally caused by the construction company working on the street.

However, Bergren said the construction company took accountability for the backup and paid for a cleaning company to clean the basements of those affected.

The city did not provide sanitation resources to the residents on Pleasant Street after the first few sewage backups. In a statement released on Aug. 9 to DakotaNewsNow, Lundstrom said these backups were caused by old infrastructure that couldnt handle the large amounts of water entering its system after the flood.

"This has been an ongoing problem for years," Lundstrom wrote.

Multiple sewage backups on South Pleasant Street in Canton were caused by old infrastructure that couldnt handle the large amounts of water entering its system after the flooding in June.

Bergren said that during the flood, Canton needed a city administrator who would work directly with residents to handle financial and utility issues like this.

City commissioner Paul Garbers echoed this sentiment on June 24 at a City Commission meeting, where Canton residents expressed their anger at the lack of flood planning and resources.

We need an administrator in this town to get the s--t done, Garbers said, to applause from residents in the crowd at the meeting. I am ready to be done (on the commission), because it sure aint worth the $2,000.

Lundstrom responded to this critique via the June letter to the public posted to Cantons website, where she wrote:

Given the current natural disaster, it has become clear to me that our city requires the expertise of a qualified city administrator now instead of later [] I will collaborate with city officials, commissioners, staff and community leaders to create a proposal for hiring a dedicated professional city administrator.

In following Canton City Commission meetings, residents have asked for a better city communication policy so that they don't have to find all their information through social media

I don't know what else they want us to do, Bergren said. We're financially drained. We're exhausted, because we are constantly cleaning up a mess that we shouldn't have to clean up.

Lundstrom declined to comment and city officials have not responded after multiple attempts to reach out.

A message from the mayor

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Canton residents call for city accountability after June flooding
Car almost goes straight through Fresno business after crash, firefighters say

Car almost goes straight through Fresno business after crash, firefighters say

FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE)  A two-vehicle crash sent a car into the side of a Fresno business on Thursday afternoon and it almost went straight through the building, the Fresno Fire Department said.

According to the Fresno Fire Department, the car crashed into the building on the southeast corner of First Street and Olive avenues shortly after lunchtime.

Firefighters say the car almost made its way out through the other side of the business before finally coming to a stop.

According to firefighters, three people were involved in the collision. One minor was injured and treated on the scene. No one is believed to have been inside the business at the time of the crash.

Fire crews say drivers should expect the intersection to be blocked as they work to remove the vehicle from the building.

Rescue teams will also be on the scene to determine whether the structure is safe.

The cause of the crash is being investigated.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to YourCentralValley.com | KSEE24 and CBS47.
Caretakers of our democracy: Rep. Andy Kim on cleaning up after Jan. 6

Caretakers of our democracy: Rep. Andy Kim on cleaning up after Jan. 6

NEW YORK (PIX11)  U.S. Rep. Andy Kim (D-NJ) wanted to show people that lawmakers are meant to be the caretakers of our democracy when he was pictured cleaning up trash following the events on Jan. 6, 2021.

In an interview with Nexstar at the Democratic National Convention, Kim talked about the aftermath of the Capitol riots and how he wants lawmakers to respond.

Republican challenger Mike Sapraicone tells Sen. Gillibrand to wake up

That should be the mentality, though, going forward, Kim said. That were caretakers of our democracy. All of us have a responsibility to do our part we all just have to do whatever it takes to be able to fix these problems.

Kim also discussed Sen. Bob Menendezs resignation in the coming weeks after he was found guilty on federal bribery charges. Gov. Phil Murphy is expected to pick his former chief of staff George Helmy to fill the Senate seat, sources told The Associated Press.

Kim said theres no animosity between him and Murphy after he wasnt selected to fill the seat, and that hes focused on his own campaign for Senate.

Im on the ballot for Nov. 5 to be the next senator for New Jersey, he said. So thats my focus. You know, I want to win it outright, win it for the people.

Kim pointed out that hes a Democrat who was voted for in a district that former President Donald Trump won twice.

Ive shown that I can appeal across the spectrum, he said.

Kim brought his two sons to the DNC to watch his speech.

I want them to have the kind of future that they deserve, he said. I think a lot of thats at stake right now.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz also took the stage during the DNCs third night. Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to accept her partys nomination on Thursday, the final day of the convention.

This story comprises reporting from The Associated Press.

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.

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Cases against American, Italian and Ukrainian journalists who visited Sudzha City were initiated in Russia

A Ukrainian soldier in the Russian city of Sudzha. Screenshot: video report by Olha Kyrylenko, UP

The Federal Security Service of Russia (FSB) has initiated criminal cases against American and Ukrainian journalists who filmed footage near the city of Sudzha in Russias Kursk Oblast after it was captured by Ukrainian forces.

Source: Russian media outlet Interfax with reference to the public relations centre of FSB

Details: The case was initiated under the article about illegal crossing of the border.

Specifically, the persons of interest in the case are CNN correspondent Nick Walsh and Ukrainian journalists Olesia Borovyk and Diana Butsko. They all released footage from the town of Sudzha which is controlled by Ukrainian forces.

Earlier FSB reported that a criminal case had been initiated against Italian journalists Simone Traini and Stefania Battistini who worked in Sudzha. Later Russias Foreign Affairs Ministry expressed its protest to the Italian ambassador in connection with these events.

FSB added that the journalists would be put on an international wanted list shortly.

The maximal sanction provided by the article on the illegal crossing of the Russian border is five years of imprisonment.

Read also: Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi's raid: how the Ukrainian offensive in Russia's Kursk Oblast is progressing and what to expect next

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LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  More than 25 million Americans over the age of 40 have cataracts. While its typically seen in adults 70 and older, younger adults are now having surgery as technology advances.

Mary Jane Boveda is one of those people. At just 52 years old, she was at risk of going blind.

They said, do you know you have really bad cataracts in your right eye?, Boveda shared.

The Pilates and yoga teacher said she had always taken her health seriously and that this was shocking. I was pretty scared actually, Boveda added.

Dr. Raymond Theodosis, an ophthalmologist at Shepherd Eye Center said that cataracts are one of the leading causes of blindness in the world but that it is completely reversible. He also shared that while cataracts most often occur in older adults, family history can also play a big role.

Things like diabetes, taking steroids for asthma or other conditions can predispose you to younger-aged cataracts, Dr. Theodosis said.

Cataracts typically develop slowly. Symptoms can include blurry vision, double vision, halos, or glare.

When Boveda felt something was going on with her vision she was referred to Shepherd Eye Center. Dr. Theodosis removed her cloudy lens and replaced it with an artificial one.

Its a prosthetic lens. You cant shoot lasers out of your eye afterward, but our goal is to improve your quality of vision as much as we can, Dr. Theodosis said.

Boveda opted for a newer procedure, a light-adjustable lens that Dr. Theodosis said allows physicians to customize the patients vision after surgery. The outpatient procedure takes ten minutes.

Boveda wore UV-blocking glasses as her new eyes adjusted and now, shes without glasses and worries.

Its changed my life. Words cant even describe the emotion and the life-changing, everything you can do. Reading, driving, she said.

Cataract surgery has been linked to a 30% decrease in dementia in older patients and improvements in depression as well. Its mostly covered by insurance depending on the lens you choose.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Cats or kids? Women at the DNC react to JD Vance

Speaking to former Fox News host Tucker Carlson in 2021, JD Vance infamously claimed that America was run by childless cat ladies.

Those words have stuck with the now-running mate for Donald Trump. Parents and... cat parents... alike havent forgotten.

So, The Independent took to headed out at the 2024 Democratic National Convention to ask delegates and party members whether they have cats or kids; both or neither; and what they think of the Hillbilly Elegy author.

This not-so-scientific study came to one specific conclusion: These ladies dont much care for JD, or what he has to say about women.
With cease-fire in Gaza looking less likely, officials press for release of hostages

The U.S. is focusing much of its efforts in the ongoing Gaza cease-fire negotiations on one major issue: The release of the remaining hostages.

While the return of hostages from Gaza has always been part of the talks related to a cease-fire in Gaza, it was one point among many that the U.S., Egypt and Qatar have weighed including in a formal agreement. The Biden administration has also long made the need to ramp up the delivery of humanitarian aid a priority.

But in recent weeks, Biden officials have refocused much of their efforts at the negotiating table on fine-tuning details around how and when the hostages will be released under the bridge proposal recently endorsed by Israel, according to two Israeli officials, a U.S. official and a Western aid representative briefed on the negotiations. As in previous discussions, the hostages would be traded for Palestinian prisoners.

Other terms, including the withdrawal of Israeli forces, are still on the table but are viewed by many in the U.S. camp as being contentious and in need of additional, extensive negotiations.



Officials from the U.S. are in Cairo this week to continue to negotiate the cease-fire proposal, yet theres a growing sense among Biden aides that Hamas and Israel may not soon agree to end the fighting.

The cease-fire is dead, said a Western aid representative briefed on the talks, referring to the idea that fighting would subside with a deal. It seems like the war is never going to end  even if a deal is reached. So, they are trying to get the hostages home knowing that the fighting is going to continue anyway.

Others informed on the talks voiced similar sentiments about the chances of the fighting winding down any time soon. Cease-fires have a history of breaking down in Gaza.

POLITICO spoke to six people briefed on the negotiations. All were granted anonymity to speak freely about sensitive diplomatic talks.

The National Security Council declined to comment.

According to the Israeli official and the U.S. official, the U.S. is now fully supporting Israels recent demand that Hamas increase the number of hostages released under the deal  a condition Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu added to the negotiations in the last several weeks.

Its unclear how many hostages Israel is demanding be freed, as Biden officials have refused to detail the contents of the bridge proposal to reporters. But the number is higher than what Hamas had previously agreed to, according to an Israeli official.

The fact that the Biden administration is elevating its hostage demands raises questions about whether Washington thinks it can get anything else out of Hamas in the short term. It also underscores the extent to which the negotiators are still grappling with how to resolve several of the points included in the proposal.



The hostages, Palestinian prisoners, Israeli withdrawal and humanitarian aid distribution are all still being weighed in conversations about a broad cease-fire deal. However, some Israeli and American officials have in recent days advocated that the negotiators try to separate the hostage issue from the rest of the deal. Washington and Jerusalem have pushed back on that idea.

Still, two of the people briefed on the negotiations said there is an increasing belief among Biden officials that the broader proposal on the table may not be immediately viable and that getting the hostages home is the one issue that both parties could potentially agree to in the short term.

Hamas has an incentive to agree to letting the hostages leave, as negotiators have long tied that to the release of perhaps hundreds of Palestinian prisoners from Israel. The bridge proposal has not been made public, but people familiar with it say the hostages would still be exchanged for prisoners.

Its possible Hamas is more willing to agree to the terms of the hostage issue first before negotiating on the presence and potential withdrawal of Israeli forces in two key corridors in the enclave. However, the cease-fire talks are also likely the groups last chance to negotiate other larger political and strategic matters  such as its ability to continue to control the enclave without Israeli military interruption.

Some Israeli officials have grown increasingly frustrated with how Netanyahu has handled the talks, and have privately lamented that he added new conditions to the deal after his July 22 trip to Washington in which he met with the families of the hostages. Those officials claim the ask for additional hostages slowed down the talks.

Hamas has in recent days rebuked Israels request, claiming that some of the hostages it is asking to be released are soldiers  not civilians  and therefore fall into a category that would be released later, a second Israeli official said.

Others question whether any of the hostages remaining in Gaza are still alive. Negotiations have also included Hamas releasing the bodies of hostages who have died.



U.S. officials have said the proposal currently being negotiated bridges several long-standing disagreements between Israel and Hamas and is in line with the deal President Joe Biden laid out in May.

In that announcement, Biden said the deal would roll out in three phases, one of which would focus heavily on increasing access for humanitarian groups and ratcheting up the distribution of aid.

Its not clear if the latest bridge proposal deals with humanitarian aid at all.

While many organizations operating on the ground speak regularly with Lise Grande, the administrations envoy in charge of handling Gaza humanitarian issues, they said the White House has not been directly in touch with them in recent months.

Aid workers in Gaza say the only way to get more food and medical supplies into the enclave is if the fighting were to stop altogether.

They are not optimistic that is going to happen.

Since May, when Israel began its Rafah offensive, thousands of Israeli police have withdrawn from their posts, blunting the aid groups access to Gaza. Now, the majority of aid trucks entering Gaza are looted.

Only half of the people that UNRWA, the main U.N. agency operating in Gaza, is supposed to serve are actually getting food deliveries, according to the groups data.

Aid groups were hoping there would be a cease-fire and that the cease-fire would be a short-term solution to helping get aid in, said one person who is in regular touch with the Biden administration. It doesnt seem like that is going to happen.


During the Street Parade techno music festival in Zurich, one of the largest cities in Switzerland, a man stole 121 phones from visitors to the event. The offender, who managed to steal 71 iPhone and 29 Samsung devices, was stopped at the customs office in the Chiasso district.

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The 40-year-old suspect was detained when he was trying to travel to Milan by train, Sky News reports. The man wrapped the stolen gadgets in foil and hid them in a suitcase.

According to the police, the thief was a Romanian citizen who visited the largest annual music festival in Switzerland on August 10 and robbed techno fans. He was detained immediately after the discovery of material evidence of the crime.

The man placed several phones in packages made of thin sheets of metal, which he additionally wrapped in a thick blanket. However, despite all the manipulations, law enforcement officers found the devices.

ADVERTISIMENT

The Swiss police are currently working to return the phones to their rightful owners.

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
Chad Tucker, daughters smile from Times Square to raise money for childrens cancer research

Chad Tucker, daughters smile from Broadway as part of campaign to raise money for childrens cancer research

Chad Tucker, daughters smile from Broadway as part of campaign to raise money for childrens cancer research

Chad Tucker, daughters smile from Broadway as part of campaign to raise money for childrens cancer research

Chad Tucker, daughters smile from Broadway as part of campaign to raise money for childrens cancer research

NEW YORK (WGHP)  On Wednesday, a familiar face was smiling in Times Square.

Chad Tucker and his daughters could be seen smiling from Broadway as part of the Great Cycle Challenge campaign.

The Challenge raises money for the Childrens Cancer Research Fund throughout September, which is also Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

All September long, people pledge to ride their bikes and raise money to help fund pediatric cancer research.

For the fifth year, Chad is riding with Roe Roes Heroes, which was named in honor of his 8-year-old daughter Pearl Monroe Tucker, who is affectionately known as Roe Roe.

Roe Roe is currently in remission after a two-year battle with leukemia.

Chad and his family have become advocates for childhood cancer. They started Roe Roes Heroes Childhood Cancer Foundation to bring more awareness, increase funding for research and help local families.

Currently, only four percent of federal research dollars are allocated for childhood cancer research with only four new drugs being approved by the FDA in the past 20 years for kids fighting cancer.

17,000 kids are diagnosed each year with one in five of those losing their fight.

Anyone can join Chads team, make a pledge and ride from anywhere.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX8 WGHP.
FRANKLIN COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM)  A Franklin County man who was wanted on rape and other sexual assault charges has died.

Online court documents show that the charges against Victor Vanvranken, 35, of Chambersburg, were dismissed after his death.

Victor was wanted on multiple felony charges of rape forcible compulsion, statutory sexual assault, unlawful contact with a minor, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse with a person less than 16 years of age, aggravated indecent assault, corruption of minors and endangering the welfare of children. He also had misdemeanor charges of indecent assault of a person less than 16 years of age filed against him.

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Also charged is Victors mother, Jane Vanvranken, who is accused of helping him avoid arrest by hiding him in her home, helping him change his phone number and also by getting him a vehicle, according to State Police. Jane was charged with two felony counts of hindering apprehension or prosecution.

Previous Coverage -> Chambersburg mother charged with helping wanted son avoid arrest

Currently, Jane is out on unsecured bail that was set at $25,000. She is scheduled to be formally arraigned in Franklin County Court on Oct. 9.

An arrest warrant for Victor was obtained by Pennsylvania State Police on April 1.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
CHARLESTON, S.C. (WBTW)  A woman accused of lying to federal investigators during their investigation into the death of Brittanee Drexel is set to return to federal court in Charleston on Tuesday.

Angel Vause will have a change-of-plea hearing at 1 p.m. at the J. Waties Waring Judicial Center.

Vause, 56, the longtime girlfriend of Drexels killer was indicted in March for allegedly lying to authorities as they investigated Raymond Moody, who is serving a life sentence after confessing to the rape and murder of Drexel.

Moody was sentenced in October 2020. Drexel, the 17-year-old from Rochester, New York, was last seen while on spring break in Myrtle Beach in 2009.

Vause in July agreed to plead guilty in U.S. District Court in Charleston to two counts of making false statements to federal agents  each carrying a penalty of five years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine. A sentencing hearing was scheduled earlier this month but it was continued after it was determined that the maximum penalties for each could would be eight years.

Moody confessed in October 2022 to killing Drexel. Five months earlier, Vause told an FBI agent she went home to get keys from a truck while Drexel was being assaulted and killed, but the indictments said she was actually going somewhere else.

Authorities also said Vause told the FBI that Drexel had her cellphone the entire time, but it was later proven that Vause had it before tossing it somewhere between Georgetown and Charleston.

Prosecutors said Vause played a critical role in forcing Moodys confession because they initially built a case against her before he claimed responsibility.

* * *

Dennis Bright is the Digital Executive Producer at News13. He joined the team in May 2021. Dennis is a West Virginia native and a graduate of Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia. Follow Dennis on, Facebook, X, formerly Twitter, and read more of his work here.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
New Charges for Wisc. Teacher Accused of 'Making Out' with 11-Year-Old Boy

Madison Bergmann, 24, of Wisconsin, is accused of kissing a fifth grader after school and during lunch, according to a criminal complaint

St. Croix County Madison Bergmann

A Wisconsin teacher who was charged in May after being accused by authorities of kissing one of her fifth grade students is now facing a slew of new charges, according to online court records.

On May 1, Madison Bergmann, 24, of St. Paul, was arrested and charged May 2 with one count of first-degree child sexual assault with a child under age 13, online court records show.

On Thursday, Aug. 15, an amended complaint was filed charging her with nine new counts including five counts of sexual misconduct by school staff, two counts of child enticement and one count each of use of a computer to facilitate a child sex crime and exposing a child to harmful descriptions, online court records show.

The boy's mother first learned about the alleged inappropriate relationship when she heard her son talking on the phone with Bergmann on April 29, according to the initial criminal complaint, the Pioneer Press reported in May.

On Wednesday, May 1, the childs parents went to the boys school, River Crest Elementary School in Hudson, after they found illicit text messages Bergmann had allegedly been exchanging with the child, charging documents claim, CBS News reports.

Related: How Alleged Texts About 'Making Out' Led to Arrest of Minn. Teacher Accused of Sexually Assaulting 11-Year-Old

Police were called and Bergmann was arrested.

She resigned from her job as a fifth grade teacher on May 13, KARE 11 reports.

Bergmann and the boy allegedly texted each other almost daily, charging documents state, KSTP reports.

Bergmann allegedly texted the boy, telling him how much she enjoyed making out" with him and how much she liked him touching her, according to the criminal complaint, KARE 11 reports.

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 boy allegedly told police the two touched each other in the classroom when other students couldnt see them and had kissed during lunch, the complaint claims, KARE 11 reports.

Bergmann was arrested and released on $25,000 cash bond.

As a condition of her bond, the judge ordered Bergmann to have no contact with the boy or anyone under the age of 18, online court records show.

This includes contacting the boy or anyone under 18 in person, by telephone, by way of electronic device, email, facsimile, social media including but not limited to texting, Facebook, Twitter, contact through the mail, and/or through a third person, online court records show.

She was ordered to surrender her passport.

Her lawyer did not immediately respond to PEOPLEs request for comment.

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.



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Read the original article on People.
Charlotte wants an airport fit for a queen. Nearby residents ask: What about us?

For about 34 years, Jerry Gulledge has called the Steele Creek neighborhood home. In the early days on Douglas Drive in his traditional brick ranch home, Gulledge would sit out on the back patio and hear the crickets.

It was just like country. It was all cornfields and things like that, and we had a nice little community, Gulledge, 68, said.

On the quiet block, Gulledge said Steele Creek was where you got to know your neighbors.

Amid the chirping and buzzing, Gulledge said you could always hear from above the biggest neighbor  Charlotte Douglas International Airport.

But as the years passed, Gulledge heard the crickets less often. Now its the chugging of cargo trains, the buzzing of saws cutting down trees and the banging of airport-related construction as it creeps closer and closer to his home.

The foreboding sentiment about impending change triggered by one of the worlds busiest airports is shared by nearby residents.

A rendering of Charlotte Douglas International Airports Destination District Central includes buildings on 39 acres of commercial development along Wilkinson Boulevard.

The airports expansion plans have been in the works for decades, including the addition of a logistics hub south of the facility, right where the modern Steele Creek neighborhood has also stood for decades.

Those plans dont mention the Steele Creek neighborhood. But an airport spokesperson said the plan is to have residents voluntarily sell their properties in the area to the City of Charlotte. Overall, the city owns about 330 parcels south of the airport.

The plan also calls for the demolition of those properties, even those with historical value. The airport said it has been diligent and intentional in its plans to ensure all decisions are in the best interest of our community and the local economy.

But residents said the airport seems more interested in the economy than the community.

The founders of this community have just been plowed under  one by one, Gulledge said. Give us a chance. Give it to the people that have sat here and dealt all these years with all these problems. That have tried to raise a family here.  Be fair.

Steele Creeks early days

In the Colonial era, Scotch-Irish settlers called the Steele Creek area home.

The settlers also brought their religion, building some of the first Presbyterian churches in Mecklenburg County. Those churches became known as the Seven Sisters, with one of them being the Steele Creek Presbyterian Church, which was officially organized in 1760, according to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission.

The church sanctuary was built in 1889 when Benjamin Harrison was in the White House. With the churchs growth, the congregation built the Steele Creek Presbyterian Manse in 1914 to house the pastors.

An airplane flies over the cemetery at Steele Creek Presbyterian Church on Friday.

The church and the manse were a community hub and in the 20th century, the church became the nations largest rural Presbyterian church, according to the commission. The churchs impact led to the sanctuary and the surrounding land becoming a historic landmark in 1991. The manse didnt receive that designation but was still highly regarded.

In the modern era, Steele Creek continued to grow. After World War II, veterans built homes in the area, including Boyd Mullis, the original owner of Gulledges home.

Part of the reason veterans called Steele Creek home was because of the airport. Charlotte Douglas opened in 1936 and became an Air Force base in 1942 during World War II.

And while the neighborhood was flourishing, the airport was doing its own growing.

International operations at Charlotte Douglas began in 1990 and in 2007, it began expanding with new additions such as a third runway through the CLT 2015 development plan. The airport became the second largest hub for American Airlines in 2013.

Since then, the catchphrase has been that CLT is building an airport fit for a queen.

In 2015, the airport launched its Destination CLT project, a 10-year, $2.5- to $3.1-billion construction plan.

That same year, the city of Charlotte began buying property in the Steele Creek neighborhood, including a lot right down the block from Gulledge.

Airport plans for Steele Creek

The airports 2017 development plan calls for the creation of CLT South, a Logistics and Distribution Hub, a combination of warehouses and offices that will encompass the southern region.

The hubs creation requires the airport to acquire property south of the airport to make way for eventual development, according to airport staff.

A rendering of CLT South, the Charlotte Douglas International Airports proposed Logistics and Distribution Hub.

Those acquisitions are occurring in Steele Creek.

Resident Stephanie Lanse has lived on Douglas Drive for about 21 years and, initially, living by the airport didnt feel like a threat. But around 2015, Lanse began noticing that the airport was buying more and more land in the area.

Since 2015, the city has purchased about 100 properties in the region. Overall, the city owns about seven parcels on Douglas Drive alone.

All the while, Lanse said the airport doesnt thoroughly communicate with residents. The city-owned properties are vacant patches and neighbors havent received notice of what will go there, even though the airport said it has been transparent and collaborative with residents.

While the airports development plan paints a picture of how the logistics hub will be spread out, it never mentions the Steele Creek neighborhood or its residents. Thats a problem for Lanse and others.

Lanse said one by one, neighbors were moving away and one by one, the airport was buying the land, creating holes in her community. Its understood that the airport needs to grow and that growth benefits the city, but Lanse said the airport has forgotten that Steele Creek residents are a part of the city.

It feels like we are being squeezed out, Lanse said. They are just diminishing our quality of life and our surroundings and hurting our property value to the point where it feels like you have no choice (but to sell). Why are the residents not being taken into consideration throughout this process?

Since 2015, the city of Charlotte has purchased about 100 properties in the Steele Creek area.

Steele Creek Presbyterian moves on

With residents moving away, the Steele Creek Presbyterian congregation was dwindling. At one point, the church had more than 1,000 members but in 2017 that number had dropped to about 300.

The congregation needed to decide if it would weather the storm or merge with another church and sell the land.

They had an interested buyer in the airport, The Charlotte Observer previously reported, since the churchs 40 acres was one of the largest parcels in the area the airport had not yet purchased.

Some congregation members hesitated on selling the property because typically the airport had been demolishing the sites it purchased. However, the airport told the Observer in 2017 that if the congregation sold the church, the airport would be committed to preserving the historic property.

That year, the congregation sold the sanctuary building, along with the surrounding land and the manse.

The Steele Creek Presbyterian Church property at 7407 Steele Creek Road in Charlotte, NC on Monday, August 5, 2024.

While the airport said it wouldnt demolish the church, it didnt say the manse would be saved. In a 2018 agreement between Charlotte Douglas, the Federal Aviation Administration and the North Carolina Historic Preservation Office, the airport said it intended to demolish the manse and provide $50,000 to the states preservation office as mitigation.

The airport made true on its intentions, demolishing the manse over two weeks ago, as first reported by the Charlotte Ledger.

The decision caused an uproar among residents and the historic commission because they were in the process of attempting to save the manse, according to landmark commission chair Brian Clarke.

Beginning in 2020, the landmark commission tried to work with the airport to save the manse but the airport was not interested, Clarke said.

Prompted by the impending demolition of the manse, the commission decided in December to recommend the manse be designated as a historic site, which put a 180-day hold on demolition plans.

If approved by the Charlotte City Council, the move wouldnt stop the demolition under state law, but it would put an additional 365-day hold on destruction plans.

The Steele Creek Presbyterian Church property at 7407 Steele Creek Road in Charlotte, NC on Monday, August 5, 2024.

Transparency concerns with Charlotte Douglas Airport

However, the recommendation never made it to the City Council. A city spokesperson blamed the commission.

CLT did not learn of the historic designation until the HLC meeting [in December], which is not open to the public, city staff wrote on Aug. 5. Given that the HLC did not follow its standard procedure, CLT was not involved by HLC in the process and the preexisting federal and state agreements were not acknowledged, the item was not brought to council.

The former Steele Creek Presbyterian Manse home sits in a pile of rubble after being demolished along Steele Creek Road in Charlotte, NC.

That statement was inaccurate.

Commission meetings are open to the public, for one. Several days before the December meeting, the airport was informed of the commissions decision to designate the manse, Clarke said. And, the commission did adhere to procedure, Clarke added.

While historic designations are commonly brought forth with the propertys owners blessings, they dont have to be, according to the commissions rulebook.

The commission has done this in the past, most recently with the McCrorey YMCA at 334 S. Caldwell St.

The city and airport corrected their statement to media on Aug. 9, acknowledging that they were notified of the designation. Neither the city nor airport staff has said whether they will look into why the recommendation was never presented to council.

However, the airport and the city hold firm that they had the right to demolish the manse. But that isnt the issue, Lanse said; transparency is.

The former Steele Creek Presbyterian Manse sits in a pile of rubble after being demolished along Steele Creek Road in Charlotte, NC.

Even if the manse were designated as a landmark, the airport would be able to demolish it at some point under state law.

But Lanse asks why the community wasnt given a fair chance to save the manse.

City Council should have had the opportunity to have a conversation about this, to engage the community and that never happened, Lanse said. Ive been in this fight a long time.  This is exhausting just trying to keep up with all of it, to communicate, to advocate for our community.

Whats next for Steele Creek Presbyterian Church?

The manse is gone. But what about the church?

The airport said its been working with real estate investment firm Foundry Commercial on acquiring the sanctuary and redeveloping the surrounding land. In April, Foundry told the historic commission that it plans to reuse the sanctuary and turn it into a headquarters for She Built This City, a nonprofit that trains women for construction and manufacturing jobs.

As for the remaining land, Foundry will build about 900,000 square feet of warehouse space, media outlets previously reported. However, with the land being considered a landmark, Foundry needs a certificate to redevelop.

The commission agreed to amend the historic designation of the Steele Creek Presbyterian Church and surrounding land this month. The amendment will de-designate a portion of the land as a historic landmark, while keeping the churchs sanctuary and cemetery as historic structures, allowing Foundry to move forward with its plans.

The amendment will go before City Council this month.

On Aug. 12 during a commission meeting, Clarke noted that the nearby Steeleberry Acres neighborhood could potentially be considered a historic landmark, according to a preservation consultant hired by the airport. Landmark status would add a layer of protection to the site, Clarke said, adding that if residents were interested in making that move, they could contact him.

The airports development plans dont mention the Steele Creek neighborhood by name, unlike the new River District, which complements CLT South and and the Berewick neighborhood.

The plans do make clear that the Steele Creek neighborhood is in the path of the airports logistical hub.

An airplane from nearby Charlotte Douglas International Airport flies over Steele Creek Presbyterian Church in 2017. The church, founded when North Carolina was still a British colony, is the second oldest house of worship in Mecklenburg County. But to stay alive, this 257-year-old church may soon have to decide to give up its land, maybe even its name. The thoroughly modern reason: Its close proximity to the ever-expanding airport, which has its eye on the property thats been home to the church since Scots-Irish settlers had their first worship service there in 1760.

Whats unclear is the timeline. The report states that plans for CLT South will take between five and 20-plus years to complete.

When asked by The Observer when and if the Steele Creek neighborhood would be purchased and demolished, the airport said that depends on residents.

CLTs development plans to the south are focused on converting properties voluntarily acquired over time, airport officials told The Charlotte Observer in an email. When a homeowner is ready to sell, the airport provides a good faith offer to purchase... but waiting for owners to offer their property for sale slows the ability for redevelopment until all properties in the impacted areas have been acquired.

The hope of having a good neighbor

But money cannot replace neighborly bonds or address the overall exhaustion residents have felt at not knowing whats next for their community, Lanse said.

Shes hoping the airport and the city will sit down with residents and thoroughly explain whats next for Steele Creek.

The airports plan is all about economic growth. Its all about development, logistics, manufacturing and theres nothing about the residents, Lanse said. We need you guys to be a good neighbor.

The Steele Creek Presbyterian Church property at 7407 Steele Creek Road in Charlotte, NC on Monday, August 5, 2024.

Gulledge agreed. The lack of clarity and respect, as he puts it, must end.

The airport casts a shadow over the neighborhood because who would want to move there knowing that one day they may be asked to leave, Gulledge said.

They feel like they own this property and were just a brick laying in the middle of it, Gulledge said. I know that they need an airport, but they need to be respectful of what they have done to this community.

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 example of the LCAC amphibious craft appeared recently with the face of Batmans iconic opponent the Joker rendered in the style of how the late Heath Ledger famously portrayed him in the 2008 film The Dark Knight.

Morale-boosting artwork is something that we have looked at before across the U.S. military, but the host for such artwork on this occasion is something a little more unusual  one of the Navys impressive Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC) hovercraft. An example of the amphibious craft appeared recently with the face of Batmans iconic opponent the Joker rendered in the style of how the late Heath Ledger famously portrayed him in the 2008 film The Dark Knight.

A close-up of the Joker face that adorns one of the bow thrusters on the LCAC operated by Assault Craft Unit 4. U.S. Fleet Forces Command

The video in question was published on X this week by U.S. Fleet Forces Command and it shows an LCAC operated by Assault Craft Unit 4 as it approaches the well deck of the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD-1), one of the nine Gator Navy flattops currently in service with the U.S. Navy. The video was taken in the Mediterranean, back on July 13 of this year.

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MEDITERRANEAN SEA  A landing craft, air cushion assigned to Assault Craft Unit 4 approaches the welldeck aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1), July 13, 2024. pic.twitter.com/YhGZrjcxhq  U.S. Fleet Forces (@USFleetForces) August 20, 2024

As the hovercraft enters the well deck we get a good view of the twin Joker renderings, which are applied on the LCACs bow thrusters, one of which projects up from each side of the hovercraft.

U.S. Fleet Forces Command

A limited number of LCACs are apparently adorned with their own similar paint jobs, similar to nose art on aircraft. Examples, seen below, appear to show a combination of caricatures and slogans, as well as flamboyant unit insignia.

An LCAC prepares to enter the well deck aboard the amphibious transport dock ship USS New York (LPD-21). U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Zane Ecklund MC2 Ecklund

An LCAC approaches the enter the well deck of the amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD-5). U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Bradley Rickard USS Bataan (LHD 5)

USN Petty Officer 2nd Class Lyle Wil

USN

In general, the Joker is a popular motif in unofficial U.S. military artwork, including the following example, where it adorned the nose of an F-15E Strike Eagle on its return to RAF Lakenheath, England, after a six-month rotation at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan.

U.S. Air Force

Artworks applied to U.S. military assets  whether combat jets, tanks, artillery, or whatever else  have a long tradition, helping boost morale and build esprit de corps. Within the Navy specifically, there are examples of named and specially painted deck guns, as well as the eye-catching schemes applied to squadron aircraft.

An F/A-18F Super Hornet from the Diamondbacks of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 102 launches from the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73). The George Washington Carrier Strike Group is on patrol in the U.S. U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility supporting security and stability in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Trevor Welsh/Released) Navy Media Content Services

210717-N-HG846-1702 CORAL SEA (July 17, 2021)  USS Rafael Peralta (DDG 115) fires the 5-inch gun for Naval Surface Fire Support during Exercise Talisman Sabre 21. Australian and U.S. Forces combine biannually for Talisman Sabre, a month-long multi-domain exercise that strengthens allied partner capabilities to respond to the full range of Indo-Pacific security concerts. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Daniel Serianni) Petty Officer 3rd Class Dan Serianni

At this point, its worth returning to the LCAC and specifically looking in a little more detail at how the bow thrusters work, and the part they play in the hovercrafts relatively complex propulsion and control system.

The powerplant of the LCAC comprises four Allied Signal TF40 marine gas turbines, two on each side of the craft. These generate some 16,000 horsepower and are combined with a pair of Solar T62 gas turbine auxiliary power units (APU), with an integrated transmission. The propulsion arrangement provides the hovercraft with thrust, lift, and directional control.

While the APUs deliver power for starting the main engines and shipboard AC power for running other systems, the TF40 gas turbines are used to drive the lift fans as well as the relatively huge pair of shrouded propellers at the rear of the LCAC that operate in much the same way as the rudders on a boat.

A schematic drawing of an LCAC showing the primary parts of the propulsion system. Public Domain

The hovercraft is also equipped with the aforementioned pair of bow thrusters that are used to effect maneuver control, being fed part of the thrust generated by the lift fans, which are otherwise responsible for inflating the airbag cushion on which the hovercraft rides or flies on.

Using the swiveling bow thrusters, the operator can turn the craft and make relatively fine movements in a confined space  like when docking and undocking the LCAC in the well deck. This is an important consideration bearing in mind the fact that the LCAC is roughly 47 feet wide and the well deck on the Wasp class is around 50 feet wide.

Pumping out enough force to maneuver an LCAC weighing more than 100 tons unloaded, rising to close to 200 tons with a full load, the bow thrusters obviously pose a potential safety hazard to personnel and materiel in the vicinity. They can also rotate a full 360 degrees. For this reason, their exhausts sometimes have warning signs applied on them. In this case, however, the grinning face of the Joker certainly ensures that they are not going to be overlooked.

An LCAC of Assault Craft Unit 5, off the coast of Camp Pendleton, California, in June 1997. Note the warning signs on the bow thrusters, reading: BLAST, KEEP CLEAR, 360 ROTATION. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael D. Degner





Its unclear how many of the Navys roughly 90 LCACs wear similar artwork, or have in the past, but its worth noting that the service is currently working to replace these 1980s-vintage hovercraft with similar, but more capable Ship-to-Shore Connectors (SSC).

The Landing Craft, Air Cushion (LCAC) is a high-speed, over-the-beach, fully amphibious landing craft capable of carrying a 60-75 ton payload, according to the Navys official fact sheet on the hovercraft. That payload can include various kinds of vehicles, including cargo trucks, which can drive right onto the beach or onto a dispersal area after the LCAC arrives.

Air cushion technology allows this vehicle to reach more than 70 percent of the worlds coastline, while only about 15 percent of that coastline is accessible by conventional landing craft, the Navys fact sheet adds, highlighting the particular ability of these hovercraft to arrive in beach areas that might otherwise be inaccessible  again, the bow thrusters can be especially useful in these kinds of operations.

In terms of specifications, the LCAC has a top speed of 40 knots and a range up of to 200 miles while traveling at 35 knots with a 50-ton payload.

Hovercraft, of all kinds, have a unique ability to cross very shallow water and conduct operations on soft ground, such as beaches, marshes and swamps, as well as in open water. Their ability to access areas that may be inaccessible to other boats, and to access totally unimproved beaches before rapidly delivering massive loads ashore, is very much at the center of their value to the U.S. military.

The LCACs high speed and over the beach mobility also make it relevant to various other missions beyond amphibious assault, especially humanitarian ones, as we have discussed in the past.

An LCAC, assigned to USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) and Expeditionary Strike Group Five (ESG-5), delivers much-needed materials and supplies to the citizens in the city of Meulaboh, on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia, after the Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami of December 2004. U.S. Navy photo by Photographers Mate 1st Class Bart A. Bauer



In use since 1986, the LCAC is now showing its age somewhat, although a Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) began in 2001, providing a major structural overhaul, improved corrosion resistance, upgraded engines for more reliable operation in very hot weather, and improved communications, navigation, and other mission systems.

The SLEP improvements leave the LCACs in a good place, at least until they are replaced by the SSC, a newer air cushion craft that can also accommodate larger loads than its predecessor.

The Navy expects the SSC program to cost $4 billion for 73 of the new hovercraft, and the first of these craft was delivered in 2020. Notably, while the new craft also has bow thrusters, the area available to apply an artwork is much more restricted than on the LCAC.

Until the LCAC is finally withdrawn from U.S. Navy service, we will be watching closely to see if any more comic book villains  or artwork of other kinds  appear on the venerable hovercrafts bow thrusters.

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com
CHEMUNG COUNTY, N.Y. (WETM)  Chemung County is receiving almost $500,000 in funding for the Southern Tier regions portion of the Youth Employment Program, as announced by Governor Kathy Hochul on Thursday.

$38.8 million was announced to be awarded for the next phase of the Youth Employment Program, which will provide opportunities and training to at-risk youth in communities across the state in an initiative to help New York continue to reduce gun violence.

Montour Falls awarded $175K in clean energy grant funding

This program is part of New York States Gun Involved Violence Elimination (GIVE) Initiative, which applies in 21 counties in the state. The $38.8 million in funding for the Youth Employment Program was broken down by region throughout the state.

Three counties in what the state considers the Southern Tier region were awarded funding that totals $2,090,487. These counties include Chemung, Broome and Tompkins counties. A full breakdown of the funding in the Southern Tier can be found below.

Chemung County $459,538 Broome County $1,254,212 Tompkins County $376,737 Total $2,090,487

For more information about the Youth Employment Program and how the funding breaks down for other regions in the state, visit Governor Hochuls site.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) works the room after speaking to the Georgia delegation to the 2024 Democratic National Convention on Wednesday. Photo by Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder.

CHICAGO  Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D) is hardly anyones idea of an inspiring orator.

The 72-year-old former classroom teacher and principal may be a canny enough politician to have won statewide office in a swing state five times, including two terms as governor. But when he finished his vanilla speech to his home state delegation at the Democratic National Convention earlier this week, the delegates in the room could barely muster a half-hearted chant of Tony! Tony! Tony!

The mood in the room changed dramatically moments later, when Wisconsin Democratic Chair Ben Wikler introduced a visitor.

I can hear the hubbub, Wikler said as the next speaker entered the room.

Our next governor is a dynamic leader  hes one of our partys greatest champions, Wikler said, calling the invited speaker an honorary Badger.

With that, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) strode to the hotel ballroom stage.

WHATS UP, WISCONSIN? he shouted after embracing Wikler, his smile a mile wide, arms waving like one of those guys who runs through the crowd at sporting events to whip up enthusiasm.

Moore went on to describe a recent three-day visit to the Dairy State, where I saw public service at its best. He recounted how, in the hours immediately after the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge outside Baltimore, he received supportive calls with offers of help from my friend and your governor, Tony Evers, from Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D), and from my friend and your former lieutenant governor, Mandela Barnes.

Moore also talked about the importance of Wisconsin in the Electoral College calculus. He exhorted the crowd of Democratic activists to do the work necessary to elect Kamala Harris president. And he vowed to visit Wisconsin again soon, to help them knock on doors and turn out the vote.

When the story of this election is written, its going to be run through Wisconsin, he said.

The crowd went wild. Moore left the stage and was instantly mobbed by well-wishers seeking hugs and selfies and offering praise. When New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) took to the stage to speak to the Cheeseheads  a purple state gets a lot of attention from national pols  Moore was still greeting his admirers.

This scene has been repeated, with small variations, throughout the convention week.

Moore has stopped by at least seven state delegation breakfasts so far, and the ritual each time is very much the same: An enthusiastic introduction from a party leader. A high wattage greeting from Moore. A recollection by the governor of a recent visit and/or a connection to the state  before the Georgia delegation on Wednesday morning, for example, he recounted his basic Army training at the former Fort Benning.

I left a lot of sweat and tears in that soil, he said.

Moore then will recall the generous offers of help from state leaders after the Key Bridge disaster  and hell add that Vice President Harris very quickly made a similar call. Hell remind the Democratic activists to do the work this fall and talk about the political stakes for their states in this election. Thats followed by another swarm of well-wishers.

The energy level, at each of Moores breakfast appearances, on a scale of 1 to 10, is somewhere around a 26  from the governor himself and from the audience.

When they can, the phalanx of Moore aides who are traveling with him throughout the Windy City try to find a space in a nearby hallway and ask his admirers to line up there for greetings and pictures. After he spoke to a joint meeting of the South Carolina and Tennessee delegations Wednesday morning, at least 40 people queued up, the line snaking through the hotel hallway and almost running into the Alaska delegations buffet table.

Im going to marry him! one young woman exclaimed to her friends after she bounded away from Moore following a photo.

Hes great, hes just great, said the woman, Kathryn Winsley, a Memphis resident and a member of the Tennessee Young Democrats, in an interview. He really got the crowd going. He talked about important things in a really relatable way.

Ambitious, young, high-profile Democrats, part of the next generation of possible contenders for national office some day, are all making the scene around Chicago this week  ostensibly as surrogates for Harris, but to boost their own profile as well. Its a time-honored tradition of political conventions. In fact, Moore, 45, ran into Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D), another up-and-comer, making the same rounds in the same hotel Wednesday morning, and the two men embraced. (The hotel, in fact, is owned by Pritzkers family.)

But while Pritzker is also a fiery speaker, and a billionaire who talks like a populist and looks like a beer-swilling blue-collar worker, a few dozen people arent lining up to take his picture at any given time.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) speaks to the Georgia delegation to the 2024 Democratic National Convention on Wednesday. Photo by Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder.

Beyond these delegation appearances, Moore has found time to raise money and do media hits, and he also spoke Tuesday at a forum sponsored by the Black Economic Alliance, where he discussed economic disparities and his desire to expand job opportunities, increase wages, and create more wealth in communities of color. Hes speaking to the Democratic National Committees Veterans and Military Families Council on Thursday. And, of course, hes found time to be with Marylands convention delegation, speaking at the first breakfast of the week and sponsoring the first late-night after-party at a fancy billiard hall.

But all of these activities have largely been geared to political insiders and influencers. On Wednesday night, he delivered a speech on the floor of United Center that millions of TV viewers were expected to watch.

Moores remarks undoubtedly sounded familiar for politically attuned Marylanders. But for the national TV audience, they may have been a revelation.

Moore began his seven-minute speech also talking about the Key Bridge collapse and Harris early call offering assistance. He mentioned his military service and the important lessons he observed.

My training taught me you never learn anything about anybody when times are easy, Moore said. You learn about them when times are hard. And America: Kamala Harris is the right one to lead us in this moment.

Moore is an integral part of the Democrats attempts to reclaim patriotism from the Republicans, who have tried to monopolize the term and the sentiment for decades.

We are a nation of patriots who serve when the mission is hard and the destination is uncertain, he said. And I know our history isnt perfect. The unevenness of the American journey has made some skeptical. Im not asking you to give up your skepticism. I just want that skepticism to be your companion, and not your captor  and Im asking that you join us in the work.

Because making America great doesnt mean telling people: Youre not wanted. Making America great means saying: The ambitions of this country would be incomplete without your help.'

He knows he has a significant role to play

This was not Moores first Democratic convention  or his first convention speech. That occurred in 2008, when he had only recently left the Army.

In an interview this week, he recalled that he had been part of a group of young military veterans who were providing policy advice to both then-Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, the Democratic presidential nominee, and the late Arizona Sen. John McCain, the Republican nominee.

Obama invited Moore to speak at the Democratic convention, and he readily accepted. While McCain came from a long line of Navy commanders, and his time as a prisoner of war in Vietnam was legendary, Moore said he found Obamas desire to dive into policy admirable.

I had a deep respect for the fact that while he hadnt served in the military, he was so unbelievably, intellectually curious about it, Moore said.

During his speech at that 2008 convention, Moore gave both a nod to the historical nature of Obamas campaign and also suggested that his candidacy created historic opportunities to get things done.

This election is not about history, Moore said then. This election is not about making history. This election is about seizing history and forging a proper course for our country for the next century.

The message was remarkably similar to one he delivered during his 2022 campaign for governor  an acknowledgment that while he would be making history if he was elected, thats not the assignment.

Moores experience at that Denver convention mainly involved him hanging out with fellow veterans, he recalled, so as a result, This convention really feels like my first.

If thats the case, its quite a debut.

Its really exciting, Maryland Democratic Chair Ken Ulman said in an interview. Were really proud of him. Hes so focused on being a great governor and being a great leader for Maryland Democrats. But he knows he has a significant role to play in helping elect the next president.

U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse (D-Colo.), who is Black, spoke at one of the Maryland Democrats breakfasts this week and discussed the symbolic importance of Moore. He said he and his 5-year-old daughter were watching Moore on TV the other night and she was amazed to learn that he was only the third elected Black governor in U.S. history.

Having a congressman from Colorado talking about how important Wes Moore is to his daughter reminds us of the role Wes Moore plays in national politics, Ulman said.

Democrats from South Carolina and Tennessee line up to have photos taken with Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) Wednesday in Chicago. Photo by Josh Kurtz.

Moore has talked at length about Harris, and the importance of the partnership the state has forged with her and President Joe Biden since he became governor. But in a conversation with reporters earlier this week, he also discussed the kinship he feels with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D), Harris running mate.

Gov. Walz is just like a real dude and I thought that from the first time I met him, Moore said. He didnt come from that political background. He was an Army guy, the way I was an Army guy. Hes a true patriot, someone who is decent-hearted, of the people.

Moore has also talked at length about the message of hope he believes Harris and Walz are offering the American people, and like every other Democrat in Chicago, said he detects a dramatic shift in tone in the White House campaign. Asked in an interview why he thinks former President Donald Trump is still essentially running even with Harris, Moore replied, I think the country is still deeply divided. I think [Republicans] have done a really good job of infusing misinformation into the campaign.

But Moore remains convinced that undecided voters will respond to the Democrats unique vision of hope.

As for the convention itself, Moore said hes amazed at how quickly and efficiently organizers pivoted after President Biden chose not to seek reelection and Harris immediately emerged as his preferred successor.

Theres going to be such an amazing story to be told about this campaign, Moore said  without acknowledging that hes playing a role in it.
Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden has begun a special officer training course. On August 19, the Royal House of Sweden announced that the 47-year-old crown princess wants to "deepen her commitment to the armed forces and gain a deeper understanding of tactics, military science and military strategy."

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According to People magazine, the training is part of the crown princess' desire to continually expand her knowledge in preparation for her future mission as head of state. In the new photos, Victoria, who will wear the rank of cadet during the course, can be seen wearing a green military uniform.

Spring 2024 Reuters reported that the crown princess will begin special training for officers in the fall, noting that Sweden joined NATO in March as the war in Ukraine continues. It is a historic royal tradition for heirs to gain military experience before ascending the throne.

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In November 2023, she visited Swedish military personnel who are training Ukrainian soldiers as part of the UK-led Operation Interflex during a visit to England with her husband Prince Daniel.

Only verified information from us in Telegram-channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!

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On final night of DNC, Chicago police and determined protesters have differing views of success

On final night of DNC, Chicago police and determined protesters have differing views of success

As Kamala Harris took the stage at the Democratic National Convention on Thursday, police and protesters finished a victory lap with each group proclaiming they had achieved their goals during the events four-day run.

And, like other rallies this past week, the final march  a three-hour processional that took demonstrators within a couple blocks of the United Center remained peaceful as it wound through the West Side.

Of course we expected that, said Hatem Abudayyeh, national chair of the U.S. Palestinian Community Network. Weve always said we dont need them (police officers) to protect us. Weve always said we dont need them to keep us safe. The only responsibility they have is to not infringe upon our First amendment rights.

Earlier Thursday, Chicago police Superintendent Larry Snelling and other law enforcement officials once again credited their unified approach to securing the proceedings while allowing for demonstrators to exercise their free speech rights.

But, even as he applauded the policing, there remained one night to go.

The final demonstration  specifically timed to Harris convention speech  began late Thursday, with more than 2,000 people marching through the citys West Side to protest U.S. aid to Israel. Organizers said the event was smaller than previous demonstrations because many out-of-town participants had gone home.

The protest passed Park 578, where activist several days earlier tore down a metal fence and breached the conventions security perimeter. The demonstrators did not try to enter the park, instead they stopped briefly to chant within sight and sound of the United Center, where delegates awaited Harris acceptance speech.

When the last of the group reached the park, those leading the march once again headed east on Lake Street as trains rumbled overhead.

Stopping at Wolcott Avenue, those assembled chanted, We believe that we will win as someone lit a green smoke bomb and others climbed up CTA tracks support beams to get a better view of the crowd, which by then had swelled to more than 2,000.

Organizers said they would wait in the street for Harris to speak inside the convention.

Are we ready to go home? an organizer asked.

No! The crowd yelled back.

By the time Harris took the stage, however, only a few dozen people were still sitting in the streets. The rest had either entered nearby Union Park or left.

In her speech, Harris said she will always support Israels right to defend itself from attacks like those by Hamas on Oct. 7, but also called what has happened in Gaza since the war there began devastating. She said the time for a ceasefire has come, marking a rare moment the situation has been addressed at the convention.

Shortly after 10 p.m., Snelling stood on the median of Ashland Avenue, with a smile on his face as he kept watch on the demonstrators.

Snelling told the Tribune that CPD officers would let the protesters continue their activities as long as they wanted, provided they remained peaceful, as they had throughout the week. CPD had not issued any dispersal orders, Snelling said.

Following the speech, some attendees leaving the convention were subjected to chants of Shame! from the demonstrators. No one appeared to be detained during the incident.

Nazek Sankari, co-chair of both the Coalition to March on the DNC and the U.S. Palestinian Community Network said she was disappointed that the city hadnt fulfilled protesters requests for a longer marching route and more port-a-potties. However, she said she was thrilled with the turnout throughout the week.

Though the marches primarily focused on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the coalition included more than 270 organizations across the country fighting for the rights of immigrants, minorities, women, workers, LGBTQIA+, the environment and more.

Its been really great to see, you know, people of all different backgrounds, different ages, Sankari said. We had some really, really young children yesterday. We had some elders from our community and from other communities come through. So its been really beautiful and heartwarming.

Kobi Guillory of the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression drew a sharp contrast between those gathered in the park and the Democratic Party officials in the United Center a few blocks away.

Guillory also urged support for any of the people killed or brutalized by the system.

He then invoked Dexter Reed, shot to death by CPD officers in March after he opened fire on a plainclothes officer during a traffic stop, and Sonya Massey, the woman killed in her home by a Sangamon County sheriffs deputy last month.

Power lives in the streets with us right now, he said. Were on the right side of history.

The same small groups of agitators who had been in attendance at rallies all week were again spotted in the crowd Thursday, and Guillory urged demonstrators not to split off during the rally or planned march.

We move as a unit for the rest of the night, he said, warning of people who want to disrupt what were doing here.

Our antidote is our unity and solidarity. he said.

The occasional conservative figure has shown up at the protests, with former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Mike Lindell, the well-known My Pillow founder and Trump supporter, both making appearances at rallies earlier in the week. On Thursday, former GOP presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy  who has voiced opposition to U.S. aid to Israelstopped by to solicit votes for Republican nominee Donald Trump, who offers full-throated support for Israel.

You may not agree with 100% of what I say or what Donald Trump says, but you dont have to agree with 100% of what somebody says to think outside the box and vote a little bit differently, Ramaswamy said.

Some protesters shouted at him to go home.

Several other demonstrators then started attacking each other with the broken ends of signs, which prompted an immediate response from the Chicago Police Department. As dozens of police officers on bikes showed up to de-escalate the situation, Ramaswamy crossed the street still surrounded by swarms of people.

Snelling, who has been a constant presence at the marches, praised the collaborative spirit between the Police Department and other law enforcement agencies assigned to the DNC. Wednesdays demonstrations, the least combative of the week thus far, ended with no arrests or injuries.

The superintendent praised demonstration organizers efforts to curb potential bad actors and for keeping in contact with police.

It shows that when you have some type of contact and collaboration with those who are organizing, that you can have a peaceful First Amendment gathering, and thats what happened yesterday, Snelling said.

CPD officers assigned to the protests  whove seen their days off canceled and their shifts extended  have far outnumbered demonstrators throughout the DNC. One reporter asked Snelling to respond to claims by some pro-Palestinian organizers that the sheer number of CPD officers was an intimidation tactic.

Personal feelings, you know, were concerned about that, but not as concerned as we are for the safety of the city, Snelling said. What we want to do is get people to understand that were out there for their safety, and I do believe that that was proven.

Now they may feel like it was intimidating because they saw so many officers, and that can be intimidating to anybody, but the way that the officers responded is proof that, because they didnt stop anyone from protesting or exercising their First Amendment rights, so its proof that officers were out there for protection, he added.

Smaller, unorthodox acts of protest popped up, as well. Protesters gathered outside a downtown hotel early Thursday in an apparent effort to make enough noise to wake up Harris; no arrests were made and Snelling on Thursday said he was not aware of the action.

If it were something that was serious, obviously we would have that information, he said. There are protesters that show up everywhere all over the city.

Police also are still investigating a report that a DNC delegate was robbed at gunpoint in the West Loop, Snelling said.

Were still looking a little deeper into that, to get more information, he said.

Though the DNC will wrap up Thursday, there is a possibility that the barrier fences erected around the United Center might stay up a little longer.

Well assess whats going on, and as soon as we have the green light, well start breaking things down, Snelling said.

While demonstrations Wednesday were peaceful, there were dozens of arrests over the conventions first three days. Three people in total have faced felony charges during that time.

Most of those arrested were detained Tuesday night during a protest at the Israeli Consulate on west Madison Street. That demonstration ended with a group tussling with police officers.

Still, most of those charged have not appeared before a judge. Most of those detained at the consulate were cited and released. One was hit with a felony count of resisting a police officer.

Police said 44 people were issued citations for disorderly conduct. Three more were cited for resisting.

The three people to be charged with felonies in connection with DNC demonstrations so far included one man who prosecutors said headbutted a police officer causing the officer to suffer a concussion.

Two of the felony arrests occurred following the breach of fencing Monday afternoon at the perimeter of the convention site.

An 18-year-old man was charged with felony resisting arrest and aggravated battery to an officer after prosecutors said he struggled with an officer Monday, causing him to fall and hit his head. He appeared before a judge Tuesday night for the only detention hearing thus far, though the judge denied prosecutors request to hold him in jail and instead ordered electronic monitoring.

His hearing was delayed for hours because he refused to give his name, prosecutors said.

A 31-year-old man was also charged with a felony in connection with the fence breach. Prosecutors said he threw liquid that hit an officer, then threw a crumpled plastic bottle in the officers direction, hitting a fence.

One person was charged with a felony in connection with the protests at the Israeli consulate. The 33-year-old Crystal Lake man was charged with felony count of resisting arrest along with other misdemeanors.

As police tried to detain him, prosecutors said, he lowered his head and shoulders and hit an officer, causing the officer to be injured.

Prosecutors also said he was observed with a stolen police radio and paint can. A judge ordered him released from custody with some supervisory conditions.

Chicago Tribunes Madeline Buckley, Nell Salzman, Stacy St. Clair and Sylvan Lebrun contributed.
The Chicks are set to perform the national anthem at this years Democratic National Convention Thursday (Aug. 22), as originally reported by CNN and confirmed by Billboard.

In support of Kamala Harris and Tim Walzs 2024 White House bid, the country trio will take the stage at Chicagos United Center on the final day of the four-day political gathering. Pink is also slated to perform, while the vice president will close out the convention by formally accepting the Democratic presidential nomination.

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The news follows the first three days of this years DNC, which is back in full force following 2020s pandemic-necessitated virtual conference. So far, its been packed with star performances from Mickey Guyton, Jason Isbell, Patti LaBelle, Common, Maren Morris, Stevie Wonder, John Legend and Sheila E., while Lil Jon made an appearance to deliver Georgias roll call with an energetic rendition of his hit Turn Down for What.

Comprised of Natalie Maines and sisters Martie Maguire and Emily Strayer, The Chicks have long been vocal about their liberal political leanings  at one point disrupting the country music industry in 2003 with their criticism of former president George W. Bush. The trio previously performed at the virtual DNC in 2020.

Overall, the Harris-Walz ticket has seen a remarkable amount of support from A-list musicians, with Ariana Grande, Barbra Streisand, Cardi B, Carole King and dozens more endorsing the Democratic nominee after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race in July. Beyonce has also been quietly involved in the former attorneys campaign, clearing the use of her hit song Freedom in Harris materials while sending Republican opponent Donald Trump a cease-and-desist for using the same track.

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(Bloomberg) -- The promotion of a Chinese official disgraced for abusing Covid controls has sparked a fresh firestorm, prompting claims online that her elevation underscores ingrained institutional injustice.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Zhang Linlin was demoted in 2022 for manipulating pandemic health codes to clip the movements of rural investors, who were trying to return to the central Chinese city of Zhengzhou to vent claims of being swindled out of billions of dollars.

That misuse of apps designed to stop the spread of Covid was met with nationwide outrage. Despite that, Chinese media reported this month that Zhang was now serving as party chief of the manufacturing hubs culture and tourism bureau.

That post matches her old rank and likely paves the way for a government role as head of the department.

READ: Chinas Covid Zero Scars Leave Citizens Fearful of Curbs

A hashtag claiming her appointment undermined the rule of law in the worlds No. 2 economy had been read 1.17 million times by lunchtime Thursday, as Chinese citizens still scarred by years of stringent Covid controls lashed out against the perceived injustice of Zhangs career comeback.

This is a heavy blow to the ordinary people who were victims of the Henan rural banks, one user wrote, referencing the institutions that froze cash withdrawal services. Has the privileged class become so arrogant to the point of lawlessness!!!

President Xi Jinping has made cleaning up government a hallmark of his leadership, with his anti-graft campaign netting a record number of senior cadres last year. However, the latest episode with Zhang shows persisting doubts around accountability within Chinas vast bureaucracy.

After a severe party warning  such as the one Zhang was handed  cadres cannot be promoted for between one-and-a-half to two years, under official regulations.

This actually exposes a cruel fact, which is that our officials are not actually serving the people, another person wrote on Weibo. He is serving his superiors.

--With assistance from Jing Li.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

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BEIJING (Reuters) -China firmly opposes any country allowing the Dalai Lama to make visits under any pretext, a spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry said on Thursday.

Senior officials from the U.S. State Department and the White House met with the Dalai Lama in New York on Wednesday and "reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to advancing the human rights of Tibetans," the State Department said.

The meeting with the 89-year-old exiled spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism was expected to roil China, which considers him a dangerous separatist and opposes contact with him by officials of any country.

"China has made solemn protests with the U.S.", said foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning at a regular press briefing. "We don't allow the Dalai Lama to engage in political separatist activities in the U.S."

Last month, China expressed strong opposition to a U.S. law signed by President Joe Biden that presses Beijing to resolve a dispute over Tibet's demands for greater autonomy, and vowed to "firmly defend" its interests.

The Chinese foreign ministry said the "appointment of a so-called special coordinator of Tibetan issues constitutes interference in internal affairs."

(Reporting by Colleen Howe; Writing by Bernard Orr; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Bernadette Baum)
BOSSIER CITY, La. (KTAL/KMSS)  Cirque Italia is a story about a country boys adventure from farm life to the bustling lights of the big city, says the production company, and it is coming to Bossier City.

Cirque Italia Silver is thrilled to present its new production,  a captivating story about Rafael, a farm boy swept away by a tornado who lands in the heart of the citys chaos.

The news release details Rafael, the clown, embarks on a comedic escapade. During his journey, he encounters many personalities, reflecting the diverse facets of urban life.

Cirque Italia Silver is set to feature trampoline walls; The Straps showcases the intellectual prowess of nerds; Marvel at the Rolls Bolla reflects the citys elite high society, rope acts reveling in juggling, injecting a punk-rock flair; and the swing act features a myriad of characters in an epic country line dance.

Manuel Rebecchi, president and owner of Cirque Italia, is proud of his circus heritage and feels privileged to share it with the public.

Cirque Italia- Silver Unit- Aerial swing- Sergo Belyaev -Daniel- Mailson Morais (Photo Credit: Josh Davis Photographer, Courtesy of CIRQUE ITALIA)

Cirque Italia- Silver Unit- Acrobatic roller skating 2- Morgaine Rosenthal and Danilo Fernandez - Josh Davis Photographer (CIRQUE ITALIA)

CIRQUE ITALIA 2024 Bossier City LA Digital Coupon (CIRQUE ITALIA)



Cirque Italia- Silver Unit- Aerial rope- BY Karina Bueno and Rafael Palandre

Cirque Italia- Silver Unit- Laser Man- Gimmi Fonaciari - Josh Davis Photographer (CIRQUE ITALIA)

Cirque Italia- Silver unit Empty Stage with Water Lid Up



The production company says theyll be performing from September 5th to 8th in the Pierre Bossier Mall parking lot (2950 E Texas Street, Bossier City).

Sept 5  Thursday: 7:30 pm

Sept 6  Friday: 7:30 pm

Sept 7  Saturday: 1:30 pm, 4:30 pm, & 7:30 pm

Sept 8  Sunday: 1:30 pm & 4:30 pm

Tickets can be purchased through their website or by phone (941) 704-8572.

Cirque Italia notes that they continue contributing to the modernization of the performing arts and the circus industry by abiding by a strict animal-free policy.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTALnews.com.
EL PASO, Texas (KTSM)  From the moment smoke was visible on the horizon, two local Ruidoso residents stepped up to inform the community in ways that local news could not  due to their remote area in the New Mexico mountains.

Logan Fle and Jesus Figeroa began broadcasting videos and updates, informing residents whether their homes were still standing and warning people in the path of flash floods.

Fle, a local tattoo artist, was thrust into the position of a modern-day town crier. When internet and cell service went down, Fle utilized Starlink to get updates out for residents who were forced to evacuate. He calls his approach a positive platform, using his Instagram and Facebook accounts to post content to an audience of more than 11,600 followers.

I had Starlink, so I was able to communicate with people in a way that they needed. It was a huge hit, and I started getting requests to check on animals and properties. Now, its continued into a positive platform where were giving back to the community, says Fle.

Since the residents have returned, hes continued his efforts to fundraise more than $200,000 from fundraisers in Ruidoso and a connection of tattoo artists from Texas, New Mexico, and abroad.

Using humor in the form of a mannequin named Ken and silly characters, Fle jokes that he is teasing the tension during a dark time for first responders and residents who have lost everything they own.

The third day it turned into.. Now, were feeding all the first responders. Cold water, nice drinks, and lunches. Wed get em to them because i knew where they were at and those guys were kinda left in the dust, said Fle. Theyd wait for them to come back to their base camps, but never had the chance for someone to just come up and give em some humor and have a mannequin in the back and a high five and a good laugh and life became a little bit not so stressful when I would show up. By the end of the first week, they were like its Ken! and were super excited about that.

Local chainsaw artist and arborist Jesus Figeroa also stepped in to provide a unique perspective of the fire and flood damage. His use of a drone while he operated high above the ground from the tall pines helped give a birds eye view of the damages.

Since the trees are pretty high, people dont know whats happening. Once they see a video of where the fire is, theyll get an idea of which direction to go, Figeroa said.

Figeroa became the eyes on the ground and the sky during the catastrophic flooding that occurred in the village after the fires. News outlets in Albuquerque and El Paso used his videos in their nightly newscasts to inform the people of New Mexico and West Texas of the ongoing threats in the area.

When theres a big rainstorm coming, you better get ready. Two inches of rain on the burn area, it gathers up down the stream. It just takes everything, it doesnt respect nothing it moves boulders. Youd be surprised at the boulders that it moves. Its pretty powerful, explained Figeroa.

Fle and Figeroa agree that Ruidoso is a resilient community and know the Village will return to normal soon.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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 City Hall. (Photo by S. Savanapridi/City of Las Vegas)

Las Vegas city officials are hoping state lawmakers create a definition for medical respite care to help pay for health services for the unhoused, and boost incentives to create more affordable housing.

The Las Vegas City Council on Tuesday approved three bill draft requests for the 2025 Legislative Session. Local governments are allotted bill draft requests before each regular session of the legislature. Clark County approved their requests earlier this week.

One proposal from the city is seeking a statutory definition of medical respite care that would aid the city in paying for medical services at the Recuperative Care Center within the Corridor of Hope, an area near downtown Las Vegas where homeless services are located.

If unhoused individuals are released from the hospital or need a place to recover while undergoing medical care, they are often brought to our place by other entities and we offer care there for as long as they need it to help them heal, said Randy Robinson, the director of government affairs with the city.

While they are there we try to get them connected to other services that will help them on their path back to self sufficiency, he said.

Las Vegas City Councilwoman Nancy Brune said the center is a critical resource but its expensive.

Medical services at the center are paid from from the citys general fund, Robinson said.

The city reached out to the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services on ways to alleviate the costs.

Robinson said the idea of a Medicaid code for medical respite care for this population was proposed as a way to allow for Medicaid reimbursement for medical respite care.

Another bill draft request the city is seeking would tweak the states tax incentive statute in an effort to persuade developers to build more affordable housing.

The city currently can offer developers incentives and offset permit fees if they build affordable housing for households making up to 60% of area median income. The proposal seeks to increase it up to 120% of AMI to target housing for the missing middle, Robinson said.

This is housing generally for folks like teachers, police officers, and health care workers, he said. Those who are making a decent wage but unfortunately with all of the different economic factors in play, housing becomes further and further out of their reach.

The proposal would also encourage compact, infill multifamily, multiuse kinds of development, he said.

The third proposal is to clean up an existing statute regulating the local land use planning process.

There are things in our planning process in state law that arent as clear as they could be, Robinson said.

City Council Victoria Seaman cast the lone vote against the final proposal saying it could have unintended consequences that could negatively impact developers and the city.

The current process, when done right, has worked exceptionally well and managed development and growth in the city, she said. While our master plan is a critical roadmap for the future, it shouldnt overly restrict city council from evaluating projects individually to determine their availability and appropriateness.

The other two proposals passed unanimously.
One person was arrested when a team of city workers escorted by Los Angeles Police Department officers returned Thursday to a Sun Valley property described by neighbors as a hoarder lot and a junkyard.

A spokesperson for the Police Department described the person only as a felony suspect who was taken into custody. There was no word on whether the suspect was involved in the yearslong legal battle over the accumulation of trash, old vehicles and potentially hazardous waste piled up on the 6-acre parcel off La Tuna Canyon Road.

This is a project that has been going on for five years. This has been known to the residents and to the city for five years, area resident Scott told KTLA earlier this week.

Sun Valley hoarder property

Neighborhoods are also concerned that the property is located along a fire road and the debris could block firefighters from accessing the area in the event of an emergency.

Sky5 was overhead at 10 a.m. while city workers and police were on the property.

You see some of those members there being assisted by the LAPD making sure that everyone stays safe while they comb through all the rubbish here, Rich Prickett reported from Sky5.

A unanimous decision during a Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety board meeting on Tuesday to deny the property owner an appeal of a previous inspection has neighbors hopeful officials can finally clear the property.

At one point during the yearslong battle, property owner Mary Ferrera was arrested over the issue and then let go.

When the city attorney actually brought this against Mary Ferrera, I was there when they actually arrested her and put her in jail because she was lying and trying to draw this out as long as possible, Scott said.

Mary Ferreras son David Ferrera is believed to be responsible for using the property as a personal junkyard.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Clingmans Dome name change proposal to be reviewed by US Board on Geographic Names

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE)  The name change proposal for Clingmans Dome to become Kuwohi, the Cherokee word for mulberry place, on a federal level is slated to be reviewed by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names (BGN) in September.

The BGN, which is part of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), is lawfully responsible for standardizing geographic names throughout the federal government. The proposal to change Clingmans Dome, the highest peak in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, to Kuwohi has been an ongoing effort by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) since July 2022.

Work begins on $227M building at UT College of Business

A USGS Office of Communications and Publishing spokesperson said Thursday in an email inquiry response to 6 News that the Clingmans Dome name change proposal is expected to be on the next BGN meeting docket, scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 18.

The EBCI Tribal Council voted unanimously on a resolution to approve its submission of the application to change the name of Clingmans Dome to Kuwohi during a January meeting. The change would apply only to the mountain, not the observation tower constructed in the 1950s.

Names of places, especially in the Smokies, hold importance to visitors, park officials, and residents alike. Some places are sometimes called by their ancient monikers by people who have been here since time immemorial.

MORE | A Tale of Two Mountains: Clingmans Dome and Denali

Kuwohi, as Clingmans Dome is known by the Cherokee, holds a significant meaning to the EBCI, whose leaders today say the place of mulberries is a sacred summit that also served as a refuge for past Cherokee people avoiding forced relocation to Oklahoma, or the Trail of Tears.

The importance of the summit to the Cherokee people is described in their initial July 2022 resolution as holding a special significance to us as Cherokees, as it was visited by medicine people who prayed and sought guidance from the Creator regarding important matters facing our people, and then returned to our towns to give guidance and advice.

As elderly population grows, Tennessee law creates new supportive housing option

In the EBCI Tribal Councils original ordinance in July 2022, the spelling had been Kuwahi but a later update from the EBCI Cherokee Speakers Council clarified that the English spelling should be Kuwohi. The Cherokee Speakers Council is comprised of fluent Cherokee language speakers who meet to discuss language and culture.

County commissions in East Tennessee and western North Carolina have affirmed their support for changing the mountains name to Kuwohi, including Knox and Campbell counties in Tennessee and Buncombe County, NC.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WATE 6 On Your Side.
Russian blogger Maksim Winkler, who bought a ticket to a concert by Ukraine's friend Maksim Galkin and cursed the comedian, will no longer be allowed into Latvia, where the incident took place. Foreign Minister Baiba Braze did not ignore the outrageous quarrel and punished the fan of the terrorist regime.

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In her new post on X (formerly Twitter), she says that the Russian was put on the list of "undesirable persons" after a scandal surrounding his behavior. This was done on a legal basis.

"I have decided to include Max Winkler in the list of persons undesirable for the Republic of Latvia and to impose an entry ban on him. The reason is Article 61 of the Immigration Law," the determined politician wrote.

As a reminder, a fan of the "Russian world" paid 200 euros for a front-row ticket to insult Galkin, and later approached the edge of the stage with a bouquet of carnations, which he placed two at a time. Galkin was not impressed by the performance of one actor.

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He told the problematic spectator: "This is not your performance. Only when you are an honored person and can hold a concert for several thousand people will you be able to perform. Follow the Russian ship."

The Russian media spread the news, making the clumsy fan almost the voice of the entire Russian society, but he will have more problems than moral satisfaction because of his actions.

Earlier, OBOZ.UA wrote that Russians were dreaming about Pugacheva's return and her big concert, but the diva's husband almost immediately denied the propaganda.

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Don't fall for fakes!

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Plattsburgh, NY.  A horse in Mooers has tested positive for Eastern Equine Encephalitis virus, reported the Clinton County Health Department on Wednesday.

EEE virus is transmitted by mosquitoes, infecting people, horses, and more via bites. The infection causes inflammation in the brain, a very rare but serious condition also known as encephalitis.

Four other horses, one horse in Washington County and three in St. Lawrence County, have tested positive for EEE. There have been eight human EEE disease cases between 2003-2022 in New York, and no human cases have been reported in 2024.

The horse in Clinton County that tested positive for EEE was not vaccinated. Owners should vaccinate horses on an annual basis and ask their veterinarian about boosters.

Clinton County Health Department recommends owners also eliminate standing water, place fans inside where horses rest, limit outdoor activity at dawn and dusk, and use equine-safe mosquito repellent.

Additionally, CCHD is working with Clinton County Soil & Water Conservation District to provide free mosquito dunks to county residents. These dunks can control mosquito populations by preventing larvae from growing. Mosquito dunks are also non-chemical, and safe to use in water features where aquatic life reside.

Mosquito dunks will be available for distribution, free for all Clinton County residents on a first-come, first-served basis, at the following locations:

Clinton County Health Department (Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m.  4:00 p.m.)

Clinton County Soil & Water Conservation District (Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m.  4:30 p.m.)

For additional information on EEE prevention, symptoms, and more, individuals can call CCHD at 518-565-4848, read the CCHD North Country Health Effect, visit the NY Department of Healths EEE webpage, or check the CDCs 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 ABC22 & FOX44.
Bill Clinton sends DNC crowd wild with quips about Trumps age, me, me, me, me mentality and Hannibal Lecter

Bill Clinton tore into Donald Trump while touting Kamala Harriss leadership on Wednesday at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago  in a speech seeking to help shepherd his party into a new era.

Clinton leaned heavily into the role of elder statesman in his remarks while describing Trump as self-centered and positioning Harris, the Democratic nominee, as the natural opposite.

He began by referencing his age  notable by the slightly raspy voice and shake in the hands  while still getting in a dig at Trump.

"Two days ago I turned 78  the oldest man in my family, Clinton remarked. And the only personal vanity I want to assert, is that I'm still younger than Donald Trump."

The joke drew laughs before Clinton pushed deeper into his criticism of Harriss rival.

[H]ow does Donald Trump use his voice? Mostly to talk about himselfhis vengeance, vendettas, complaints, conspiracies, he said.

The next time you hear him, dont count the lies, count the Is. Hes like the tenor warming up before the opera: me, me, me, me.

Clinton then delivered rapid-fire remarks, making references to some of Trumps more unique rally themes.

Former president Bill Clinton was one of the primetime speakers on night three of the convention, and delivered a reserved but multi-layered takedown of Donald Trump (Getty Images)

Do you want to build a strong economy from the bottom up and the middle out? Or do you want to spend the next four years talking about crowd sizes? ... Do you want to strengthen our alliances and stand up for freedom and democracy around the world? he said.

Or a tribute to the late great Hannibal Lecter? Do you want to save our country and our world from the calamities of climate change? Or obsess on the vital debate between getting eaten by sharks or electrocuted?

He then reflected on Trumps debate performance. I almost croaked during the first debate when Trump said nobody respect America anymore like they did when he was president, Clinton said.

And with a straight face! Look, you gotta give it [to him]  hes a good actor.

While Clinton didnt echo the chant which Harriss campaign has embraced, were not going back, he did his best to set the vice president apart as the candidate of the future, with Trump representing the past.

I want an America thats more joyful, inclusive, and future-focused. Where we weather the storms and earn the benefits together. Thats the America Kamala Harris will lead, Clinton said.

Donald Trump a paragon of consistency  is still dividing, blaming, and belittling. He creates and curates chaos. Its showmanship, but its not leadership.

Clintons forceful but stoic tone contrasted with the energetic and aggressive message from another former president, Barack Obama on Tuesday. It leaned into painting Harris as the younger candidate representing Americas future in a way that only a symbol of the partys past could really do.

Clintons speech, according to reports, was rewritten after he saw the first day of the convention. Some noticed on Wednesday that he read it off paper, instead of from the teleprompter.

He also delivered perhaps the most somber moment of the night, a recognition of his place in the background of the partys future which Joe Biden had only brushed at during his own passing the torch remarks on Monday night, pushed out of primetime by younger speakers.

I have no idea how many more of these I'll be able to come to, said Clinton, noting that he had started coming to conventions in 1976  no, 1972.

Clinton also thanked Biden directly for choosing to step aside for Harris, something he compared to the decision of George Washington to step down after his second term, which set the two-term precedent followed to the modern era.

[H]e did something that's really hard for a politician to do: he voluntarily gave up political power," said Clinton. George Washington knew that. And he did it, and he set the standard for us serving two terms before it was mandatory. It helped his legacy, and it will enhance Joe Biden's legacy."

His remarks were followed by another symbol of the partys past, Nancy Pelosi, who has actively embraced a shifting role which has included giving up the reins of the House Democratic caucus to Hakeem Jeffries.

Pelosi, who went willingly into her new backbencher position, was seen as a key player involved in pushing Biden towards making the decision to step down from the Democratic ticket last month.

Harriss running mate Tim Walz was the keynote speaker for the next-to-last night of the convention; Harris herself will deliver her address on the final night on Thursday.
Donald Trump had a Freudian slip on live TV Thursday while discussing President Joe Bidens administration.

In the middle of complaining about Biden and Vice President Kamala Harriss foreign policy during a phone interview with Fox News, the Republican presidential nominee accidentally seemed to throw them a huge compliment.

Most importantly, theyve made our country very safe, Trump said. And internationally, theyve made it even more safe!

"Most importantly, they've made our country very safe. And internationally, they've made it ever more safe" -- Trump on the Biden-Harris administration  pic.twitter.com/6v8E72mvsm  Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 22, 2024

But the bombastic populist regained his linguistic footing shortly afterwards.



As bad aswhen you Chicago and the citiesas bad as they are, much worse internationally. Were going to end up in World War III because shes incompetent, Trump continued. Biden sent herRussia would have never happened with Ukraine if I were president. Israel, the attack on Israel, would have never happened. Iran had no money, they had no money to give to Hamas or Hezbollah.

Then, the interview took a turn for the worse.

Let me tell you a little-known fact that the press doesnt want to talk about, Trump told the news outlet. Biden sent, I call her Comrade Kamala, sent comrade Kamala to see Putin in Russia three days before the attack. She went, she said, she gave her case, he attacked three days later.

That last point ushered an immediate fact-check by the station, with Fox News co-host Brian Kilmeade clarifying that there was zero evidence for Trumps story about Harris.

Just as a quick clarification, we dont have confirmation that the vice president went to Russia to meet with Vladimir Putin, Kilmeade said. I know she went over to Europe right before the incursion when Russia invaded Ukraine, and its a war thats still going on right now.

Trump has been panicking since Harris was announced as the Democrats presidential nominee. Since then, he has wavered on backing out of debates against her, attacked her personally, and has completely reprogrammed his campaign strategy, downsizing from large, boisterous rallies to small, supposedly narrowly focused pressers.

All the while, Trumps numbers have plummeted. The Republican nominee has even lost some of his staunchest supporters, including white supremacists, with alt-right political pundit Nick Fuentes pulling his endorsement from Trump earlier this month under the belief that his presidential campaign is headed for a catastrophic loss.
U.S. Rep Colin Allred, D-Dallas, greets supports upon his arrival at a coordinated campaign kickoff hosted by the Travis County Democratic Party on Sunday, July 21, 2024, in Austin. Allred is challenging Republican incumbent Ted Cruz for his seat in the U.S. Senate in the 2024 general election.

CHICAGO  U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, D-Dallas, urged Democrats to elect Vice President Kamala Harris during the final night of the Democratic National Convention on Thursday, giving his most explicit support for the candidate since she took over the Democratic ticket.

Im so proud to be here to support our next president, Kamala Harris, Allred said in brief remarks from the main stage.

Allred, who is challenging U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, this year in one of the Senate Democrats top flip targets this year, has so far run his race largely independently of Democrats outside the state, focusing on Texas issues rather than yoking his candidacy to the presidential ticket. During an address to the Texas delegation on Thursday morning, Allred leaned heavily into attacking Cruz without mentioning Harris.

Allreds remarks Thursday night were brief relative to other convention speakers, and his endorsement remained relatively muted. He focused most of his 3-minute address on beating Cruz and former President Donald Trump, whom he derided as me-guys.

You know, the type to talk a big game, only care about themselves, but you dont want to get stuck with them at a barbecue, Allred said. Weve got a message for the me-guys. We is more powerful than me.

We will restore reproductive freedom. We will secure the border. We will protect Medicare and Social Security, Allred continued. And we will turn the page and write a new chapter for this country and elect Kamala Harris to be the next president and beat Ted Cruz.

Allred garnered sustained chants of Beat Ted Cruz, a senator who himself says he is the most reviled Republican among Democrats behind Trump.

After Allred spoke, a Cruz spokesperson said, "Cant comment Colin showed Texas tonight who he really is" and added, "Colin Allred is a far left radical who wants open borders, boys in girls bathrooms, and our police defunded."

Allred shared the stage with other House Democrats in competitive Senate races, including Michigans Elissa Slotkin and Arizonas Ruben Gallego. Michigan and Arizona are both considered more competitive than Texas. He spoke shortly before Harris was set to take the stage to close out the convention.

U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso, chaired the convention on Thursday. Kim Mata-Rubio, whose daughter was killed in the Robb Elementary School shooting, was included in a group conversation with others impacted by gun violence. Mata-Rubio ran unsuccessfully for Uvalde mayor last year.

Harriss campaign has proven to be something of a double-edged sword for Allred. On the one hand, her historic candidacy appears to be boosting Democratic enthusiasm that could help down-ballot candidates like him. But hes also been reluctant to show too much enthusiasm for the Democrat, as he tries to court independent voters in a red state.

As a result, hes kept her at an arms length. He did not join her for any of her half dozen appearances in Texas in July. And his initial endorsement of her was murky. He has not officially posted a campaign statement endorsing her, but his campaign has told reporters that he is backing the vice president.

"I want to both run for this office the way I plan on serving in it, which is that I'm focused on Texas," Allred said in an interview Thursday morning. We have a very singular choice, which is who's going to serve us for the next six years. It's going to be until 2030, past the  term of the next president.

Allred acknowledged that voters he is trying to court may not be as supportive of Harris, who was a much more progressive lawmaker during her time in the U.S. Senate. Allred has voted against his party on recent messaging bills, including on the administrations handling of the border.

"What I'm trying to do in this campaign is make sure that the Texas I know gets the representation that it deserves, and so yes that, of course, will mean that we're going to try to be reaching out to folks who maybe won't be the same targets as some other campaigns, Allred said.

A poll released Thursday by the University of Houstons Hobby School of Public Affairs showed Allred 2 points behind Cruz. Its a closer margin than Cruzs 2018 reelection against Beto ORourke, where Cruz won by just under 3 points.

The Harris campaign does not consider Texas a battleground and does not plan to invest in the state. The short runway for the campaign, which launched after President Joe Biden stepped down from the ticket last month, has forced the campaign to be laser focused on its most attainable states.

At the end of the day, our responsibility as a presidential campaign is to ensure we get to 270 [electoral votes], Harris campaign manager Jen OMalley Dillon said at a DNC event on Tuesday. I would love to get to a bigger number than that, but that is all we care about."

Allred wasnt concerned Harris campaign wasnt focusing more on Texas. His Senate campaign  like all Democratic statewide campaigns in Texas  largely planned its strategy without expecting an influx of resources from the top of the ticket. Texas Democrats launched last month the first coordinated campaign led by a Senate candidate in decades, bundling resources for candidates across the ballot.

There are important things that will be happening up and down the ballot, especially at the presidential level, Allred said during his interview. "I understand that. But for us, we have a very singular choice, which is who's going to serve us for the next six years.

Disclosure: University of Houston 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.

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TribFest Keynotes Announced! Be there when Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin take the keynote stage at The Texas Tribune Festival! Whitmer will talk with Texas Tribune co-founder Evan Smith about her memoir, her key victories in Michigan and the importance of every vote. Youngkin and Smith will close out TribFest with a conversation about his record, the state of his party and a conservative policy agenda for America. Explore the full program of 300+ speakers and 100+ events. Get tickets today.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis speaks during a news conference about a bipartisan property tax reduction bill on May 6, 2024, at the Colorado Capitol. (Quentin Young/Colorado Newsline)

Democrats at the Colorado Legislature are increasingly hostile to open government, and they have learned that they will pay little or no price for drawing a curtain around their work.

But there is a cost, paid by the people. As elected officials block their view of lawmaking, the peoples value as constituents drops. Public servants in America are supposed to be accountable to the people, but if the people cant see what their government representatives are doing, they have no way to exercise meaningful accountability.

This principle is clearly illustrated as the Legislature prepares to meet next week for a special session on property taxes. During the short session, lawmakers will consider tax cut legislation that was proposed in secret and discussed in the shadows, and it will be debated with the most limited public involvement possible, even though property tax policy affects every resident of the state.

Coloradans might disagree on property tax cuts. But they should be united in demanding transparency.

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Homeowners in recent years have seen their taxes increase with rising property values. In May, lawmakers addressed the problem by passing bipartisan legislation that curbed taxes while protecting local districts, including schools, that rely on property tax revenue.

But deep-pocketed conservative groups, including Advance Colorado and Colorado Concern, have used the threat of extreme ballot measures, which would impose district-debilitating property tax cuts, to extract a ransom from state officials. The hostage-taking tactic worked.

Democratic Gov. Jared Polis, Advance Colorados Michael Fields and a small group of legislative leaders reportedly met behind closed doors and agreed on the basic terms of further tax cuts. If legislation for the cuts passes, Advance would agree to pull the ballot measures. Polis called lawmakers from around the state back to the Capitol, where Democrats enjoy strong majorities in both chambers, to ratify the deal.

Disdain for transparency peaked when Democrats from the House and Senate met to discuss the deal. They held virtual meetings in secret. Newsline requested recordings of the meetings, but the request was denied.

This behavior appears especially contemptuous of Colorado residents in light of how Democrats earlier this year voided for themselves open-meeting rules that Colorado voters had put in place.

In the early 1970s, during another period when powerful people in state government preferred to conduct business out of view of the public, Coloradans took matters into their own hands and passed an open meetings citizen initiative, spearheaded by pro-democracy group Colorado Common Cause. It was the first sunshine law in the country.

The statute and subsequent case law required legislative bodies to hold meetings in public when public business was discussed.

But in March, Democratic lawmakers passed and Polis signed into law a bill that in effect largely exempts the Legislature from open meetings.

One provision of the bill limits the definition of public business to formally drafted or introduced legislation and matters before a committee. Previously, a meeting had to be open to the public if its content was connected to the policy-making responsibilities of the legislative body  a much broader standard. In other words, members of the Democratic majority can now meet, talk through, and find consensus on policy outside the view of the Coloradans it will affect, then push through passage of a bill in a process that has only the false trappings of transparency.

Thats what appears to be happening now.

As a legislator, we were involved in the process, if you can call it a process, very late, so much so that I think there's a sentiment on both sides of the aisle that we're viewed as a rubber stamp.

 Colorado state Rep. Steve Woodrow

Two Democratic representatives who participated in caucus meetings on the new property tax proposal told Newsline that the meetings involved public business as it was understood until this year.

Public business was discussed in the meetings. Period. Full stop, said Democratic state Rep. Elisabeth Epps of Denver, a champion of government transparency. She acknowledged that the new open meetings provisions might have permitted legislative leaders to close the meetings. But she said, Members of the press, members of the public should have absolutely been allowed at those meetings.

Special sessions are usually short, and Epps noted that lawmakers wont have a chance to hear much from people in their communities about the proposed special-session legislation.

Worse, there appears to be a lack of transparency  even for lawmakers.

A lot of this was baked before we got here, Democratic state Rep. Steve Woodrow of Denver said. I think its pretty apparent that some type of negotiation was had, and the Legislature was thought of after the fact, if at all, and not included in the process.

He continued: As a legislator, we were involved in the process, if you can call it a process, very late, so much so that I think theres a sentiment on both sides of the aisle that were viewed as a rubber stamp.

If a legislator in the majority is an afterthought in the lawmaking process, that makes the people of Colorado a neverthought.

Advance Colorado is a dark money group, which doesnt have to disclose its donors. Democratic leaders have matched this secrecy with dark lawmaking. Thats not how democracy is supposed to work.

Members of the community can make informed decisions at the ballot box only if they can see elected officials in action. They must be able to observe whether their representatives speak up for their interests, suggest wise proposals, oppose bad ones, interact constructively with colleagues, and generally advance the values that are important to their families. Little of this is possible in the property tax bill process.

And the secrecy around the special session is only part of the Democratic assault on the publics ability to hold government officials accountable. The majority in recent years has conducted an anonymous survey to prioritize bills that cost money, adopted a provision that permits lawmakers to discuss bills entirely in secret through a series of digital communications, and  as Jeffrey Roberts of the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition has noted  refused to address exorbitant public records fees, which effectively block many Colorado residents from access to documents that by right are theirs to view.

In 1972, Coloradans forced state officials to exercise transparency. The Colorado Sunshine Law ballot measure passed by an overwhelming 20 percentage points. Today, Democrats have dragged back to the shadows much of what voters illuminated more than 50 years ago. But, as it was for a previous generation, the citizen initiative process is available to Coloradans who would ensure sunshine when their representatives block it.

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Rafters float down the Colorado River in Horsethief Canyon near the Colorado-Utah border on May 15, 2023. (Chase Woodruff/Colorado Newsline)

Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials have launched an extensive monitoring and public outreach plan following the detection of invasive zebra mussel larvae in several locations along the Colorado River near Grand Junction last month. But their next steps will depend on what they learn about the extent and the source of the invasive population, which could pose an extreme risk to local ecosystems and water utilities.

If they are in a small pond, as an example, there is a completely different arsenal of tools that we may have in our tool belt to try to address that situation than if they are in an open water system like the Colorado River, Robert Walters, CPWs invasive species program manager, told a committee of state lawmakers on Wednesday. Until we identify the source of the population, its really difficult to say what those control options might be.

Zebra mussels are dangerous to water ecosystems because they strip plankton, an essential food source, from the water. Additionally, they can threaten water supplies and irrigation systems by impeding or stopping water flows and attaching to infrastructure, causing millions of dollars in damages and increased maintenance costs.

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The fingernail-sized mussels, which are native to the Black and Caspian seas, are almost impossible to eradicate once a population is established, CPW officials say. The species has impacted ecosystems in the Great Lakes region since the late 1980s, and has subsequently spread throughout many parts of the United States by attaching to boats and other aquatic equipment.

Walters said that after additional sampling in the last few weeks, the agency now considers the Colorado River to be positive for zebra mussels. CPW previously deemed the river and the Government Highline Canal, a 55-mile-long irrigation project that diverts some of the rivers water to farms in the Grand Valley, suspect after initial testing detected zebra mussel DNA in early July. The total number of locations where the species has been detected is now seven.

Our focus now is really on the monitoring, Walters said. We want to know where these are coming from and how far they have spread here in the state, as that is going to influence our long-term planning.

The agency is coordinating its response with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which owns the Highline Canal, along with the Army Corps of Engineers, which is conducting a west-wide boater movement study to identify how and where contaminated boats may have entered Colorado waterways. Public awareness campaigns and a network of inspection and decontamination stations at popular boating sites are key prevention strategies, Walters said. A 10-second high-pressure spray of hot water is enough to kill and remove zebra mussels that have attached to a boat.

CPW urges anyone using the Colorado River to clean, drain, and dry their vessels and equipment  including boats, rafts, kayaks, paddle boards and fishing equipment  after they leave the water.

So far, no adult zebra mussels have been found in the Colorado River, Walters said  only so-called veligers, the species larval form. Public education and awareness will be critical to minimizing the impacts of what for now is a very low density of veligers that we are detecting, he said.

We have had zero positive detection since those last ones in the middle of July, Walters added. That doesnt mean we arent continuing to look. We are out there every single week collecting additional samples, trying to identify where these are coming from.

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Potential buyers try out guns which are displayed on an exhibitor's table during the Nation's Gun Show. (Photo by Alex Wong, Getty Images)

The cities of Dayton and Columbus as well as Everytown For Gun Safety settled a four years-long court battle this week with the state of Ohio over the criminal background check system. The program is a well-known protection to ensure people with a serious criminal convictions arent able to purchase a firearm, but its also used to ensure they arent hired to a position of trust, like a teacher or police officer.

But that database is only as useful as its data.

In court, the cities argued Ohios Bureau of Criminal Investigation was failing to meet its obligation to collect information and maintain the database. State law requires BCI to collect information for the system from wherever procurable, and designates the agency as the clearinghouse for Ohios criminal records.

The cities initial complaint allows that court clerks have a role, too. After all, who else knows better when a case has been adjudicated? But attorneys for the cities argued many (clerks) complain that BCI rejects that information on technical grounds; and, for the clerks that simply do not report or fail to do so in a timely manner, they do so with apparent impunity from BCI.

Under a settlement agreement approved in court this week, the parties, agreed to a series of steps meant to improve the background check system and make it easier for agencies to upload information.

We all share a responsibility to do everything we can to make sure that those prohibited from purchasing guns are unable to walk out of a gun store with a firearm, Everytown Executive Director Eric Tirschwell argued in a press release announcing the agreement.

This settlement should serve as a model for other states to take the critical steps necessary to ensure that all criminal convictions and other prohibiting records can be accessed when someone tries to buy a gun, he said.

But attorneys for the cities warned that the success of agreed-upon changes hinges in part on cooperation from state lawmakers. And Dayton law director Barbara Doseck added, despite Ohios home rule provisions, local governments remain powerless to pass their own firearm restrictions.

This settlement is a positive step in the right direction, she insisted. However, without action from the General Assembly, Ohio cities cannot pass laws that reduce access to guns or the associated gun violence. Without cooperation, Dayton is left to endure, as we have since the Oregon District shooting, without any real ability to make impactful change in our own community.

The settlement agreement

Under the provisions of the agreement, state officials will continue work on a self-service portal through which local agencies can share new information with BCI and resolve errors or omissions in existing records.

The parties on both sides of the case agreed that an electronic reporting system is best, but that getting agencies information systems on the same page will require funding. To that end, they agreed to seek grant funding to help cover the cost of updating technology and to establish a grant advisory committee to figure out which opportunities they should pursue.

In the interest of transparency, theyre envisioning a public facing dashboard once the reporting system is fully up and running so that the public can see an agencys rate of compliance. They also agree to lobby state lawmakers for legislation holding agencies accountable for mandatory reporting requirements as well as regular auditing.

The AGs office agreed to institute a training program for reporting agencies that runs at least quarterly and to produce quarterly progress reports for the plaintiffs for the next three years.

Columbus city attorney Zach Klein praised the agreement as a commonsense gun safety measure.

For the first time ever, Ohio has a real plan to modernize our criminal background check system to make it work for those who use it every day  to keep deadly weapons out of the hands of violent individuals and ensure employers can access the information they need when hiring, he said. This agreement is a historic win for Ohioans and for public safety.

I urge the legislature to build on this progress, Klein added, and equip reporting agencies with the tools they need to fill the gaps in our system and better protect public safety.

Follow OCJ Reporter Nick Evans on Twitter.

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Columbus fugitive wanted for murder arrested in Sandusky by U.S. Marshals

Columbus fugitive wanted for murder arrested in Sandusky by U.S. Marshals

For a previous report on this story view the video player above.

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH)  A man wanted in connection to a fatal shooting in southeast Columbus was found three weeks later near Lake Erie, as one of three arrests of fugitives made by U.S. Marshals on Wednesday.

According to Columbus police, the U.S. Marshals Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force made arrests in two separate cases, including one involving a shooting that took place outside a Sunoco gas station on Noe Bixby Road.

On Aug. 8, officers responded to the gas station near the Refugee Road intersection and found 28-year-old Michael Simmons suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Simmons was pronounced dead at 7:22 p.m.

Ohio sex offender who spent 2 months on the run receives multiple bonds

At the time of the shooting, police did not have any suspect information, but an investigation revealed that Simmons and 18-year-old Isaiah Wharton-Howard had an altercation before Wharton-Howard shot and killed Simmons.

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The U.S. Marshals Service said Wharton-Howard, who was wanted for murder, was found and arrested Wednesday in the 1400 block of Campbell Street in Sandusky, approximately 120 miles north of Columbus, where he was reportedly hiding with friends. He will have an arraignment hearing scheduled once returned to Franklin County.

Deputies also arrested Santiago Ogando and Juan Carlos Rivera, both 24, who were found at a hotel on Corporate Woods Parkway in Uniontown, Ohio, just south of Akron. Both are facing charges of attempted murder and felonious assault after allegedly being involved in a shooting near an autobody shop in the 4000 block of West Broad Street in Franklin Township.

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Ogando and Rivera and are being held at the Summit County Jail, awaiting extradition back to Franklin County. Ogando may face additional charges as he is an undocumented non-citizen, according to the U.S. Marshals release.

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HARRISON TOWNSHIP, Ohio (WDTN)  An interactive meeting has been scheduled to talk about the redevelopment of the area of Turner Road.

On Aug. 27 from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. at the Meadowdale High School Gym, located at 3873 Whitestone Ct. in Dayton, a community meeting will be held regarding Turner Road.

Oldest Dayton tavern hits the market

During the meeting, community members will have the chance to hear and speak ideas of what they would like to see completed.

Community engagement is a crucial first step in hearing your vision, a vision that will guide the development of the plan and the future of these communities Emily Crow, development director for Harrison Township.

Click here to register to attend.

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TERRE HAUTE, Incs. (WTWO)  Local First Responders gave community members the opportunity to meet with their chiefs and leaders.

Custard with the Chiefs is an event that gives the community the chance to give feedback, ask questions, and enjoy their time with local law enforcement. Those who attended go to meet and chat with Terre Haute Police Chief Kevin Barrett and Terre Haute Fire Chief Darrick Scott while enjoying a free frozen custard treat.

Officials said its a great way to improve relationships with the community.

First phase of Riley Spur Trail completed

Were making it to where were accessible and thats the big thing. We will take feedback. We know were not perfect and we want to improve. We want to help the community. Everybody here is from this community so were invested as well, Sergeant Justin Sears said.

I think it makes it easier for them to come up and talk to us even if they see us out at another restaurant or even on the street or something. They are more active to just come up and say hello to us, Deputy Chief with EMS THFD Diana Ruther said.

The Terre Haute Police Department will also be hosting a First Responder Rally at Fairbanks Park on September 25th.

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The First Lady of Ukraine, Olena Zelenska, has promised to clean the fish from the Dnipro River when Ukrainians expel the occupiers from their lands. For her, this will be a sign that the bloodshed has ended with the victory over Russia.

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The wife of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hates to do this, but is ready to make concessions. The public figure said this in an interview published on YouTube by the Office of the President of Ukraine.

In one of his conversations with journalists, Volodymyr Zelensky revealed that after his victory, he really wants to catch carp in the Dnipro River.

"That's interesting about the carp. I'll answer it like this: I hate cleaning fish. I never do it of my own free will. In our family, my dad is very fond of fishing, but it has long been said that those who love to catch fish should love to clean and fry them," Olena Zelenska said.

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She is ready to support her husband and sacrifice her principles for the joy of Ukraine's victory.

"I'll tell you this: when Volodymyr catches that carp of his on the Dnipro, I promise to clean and cook it, because it will be a sign that everything is over - victory has come. In the meantime, I'll be thinking of recipes to make with it," the first lady joked.

By the way, she and her husband recently visited the Superhero School in their hometown of Kryvyi Rih. There, the couple met Olena Zelenska's best friend, with whom she has been friends since she was 18.

As OBOZ.UA previously reported, the first lady of Ukraine admitted that her relationship with her lover had changed significantly since the outbreak of full-scale war. Over these 2.5 years, their 20-year marriage has become stronger.

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Only verified information on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
SPRINGFIELD, Mass (WWLP)  The Community Music School of Springfield received $75,000 worth of state funding for their adaptive music program.

The universal language is music, said Massachusetts state Senator Adam Gomez.

The Community Music School of Springfield offers many different programs, classes, and lessons, but they also offer an adaptive music program for neuro-divergent youth.

Work with our young people to unlock their brilliance and creativity and to also work with the educators, for the ability for all young people to experience the creativity and beauty of music and the arts, said the executive director of the Community Music School of Springfield, Eileen McCaffery.

The school is one of the few in the country to have an adaptive music program and the only program to offer it for free.

Students of all ages from Springfield and Holyoke public schools are part of the program. Music is something that once, you learn the art, you will have the connection forever.

Coming from the neighborhood where the community music school first started, which is in the North End inside of Gerena School, and then just looking at what they have been able to grow and create. This is something that was paramount, said Senator Gomez.

Back in March, the school experienced a flood damaging 3 out of 4 floors, this state funding, along with the community support brought them back.

The flood was caused by a burst pipe and within a day, State Senator Adam Gomez, State Representative Carlos Gonzalez, and other officials were there to help.

To have only 4 or 5 days where we were shut down before we were able to open back up, but then it became a lot of the fundamental work of restoration, said McCaffery.

With programs and lessons offered for school-aged students and some lessons for adults, the school has around 2,000 students each week, bringing the community together through music.

This summer the school provided free summer camps for the students with an end-of-camp performance at the Jazz and Roots festival.

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WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on WWLP.com.

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SPRINGFIELD TWP., Ohio (WKBN)  Oak Hill Collaboratives Hardware for Homes program has graduated 15 more students at its Springfield location.

Its the most graduates at once from any Oak Hill location.

The program aims to close the digital divide by providing computer education. The classes are free and available to anyone at Fire Station 21 in the township



If youre a Springfield resident, you can also get a free laptop thanks to ARP funds.

Right now about 200 people in the township dont have access to broadband. Trustee Joshua Wiery wants to change that.

What were hoping for is that the residents that dont have that ability and now are getting broadband will be able to use the broadband and not think that was a waste, Wiery said.

The township is working on a deal with Comcast to get internet to over 80 people in the township. It plans on continuing the classes at Fire Station 21.

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(WKBN)  The former law director for the city of Campbell and a practicing attorney in Salem will be allowed to continue his practice after the Ohio Supreme Court Board stayed his suspension.

Brian Macala was charged in May 2023 with professional misconduct in connection to two estate cases that were going through probate court. The Board determined that Macala had signed documents without the authorization of a representative and had filed those papers with the court.

The Mahoning County Bar Association, which filed the complaint against Macala, suggested that he receive a one-year, fully stayed suspension. The Court found Macalas misguided effort to obtain additional time to provide a complete accounting of the estates assets to the probate court warranted a greater sanction than Macala sought, but less than what the bar association proposed.

Macala had asked for a reprimand.

The Ohio Supreme Court ruled Thursday to reduce the sanction to a six-month stayed suspension and allow Macala to continue to practice law as long as he has no further infractions.

Moreover, the parties stipulated and the Board found that Macalas misconduct did not affect the outcome of the probate case or result in any harm to the client or the beneficiaries. While

his conduct fell below the standards we have set for Ohio attorneys, we conclude that it was not as egregious as the misconduct at issue in Niermeyer and Champion (a case referred to as president).

Macala also submitted 34 letters attesting to his good character from judges, attorneys, friends and family members. One panel member described the letters as some of the best (he had) ever seen.

Macala talked with WKBN 27 First News about the allegations when they were filed, and he said that his actions were an attempt to gain time for the administration of the estate.

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On February 7, 2023, a former case manager at the Washington University Transgender Center at St. Louis Childrens Hospital provided a sworn affidavit to the state's attorney general Andrew Bailey claiming that the clinic was rushing children into transition-related care and hiding possible side effects from parents. The staffer, Jamie Reed, also wrote an essay about her claims for The Free Press, the online outlet founded by anti-woke journalist Bari Weiss, detailing her allegations, all of which remain unproven. By the time I departed, I was certain that the way the American medical system is treating these patients is the opposite of the promise we make to do no harm, Reed wrote in the piece.

Reeds essay was immediately lauded by prominent anti-trans and right-wing pundits for providing "proof" that kids were being pushed into transition, as the American Prospect reported. This so-called evidence contained leaked confidential details about individual patients history and care, so intimate that at least one mother, who used only her first name Heidi in interviews for privacy, was able to identify her own childs unique information from the insufficiently redacted material. Even worse, however, was that the nature of her and her husband's communications with their childs healthcare provider was being wildly misrepresented, as she told reporters.

That familys nightmare experience was just one case within a growing trend of trans youths private medical information being leaked, twisted, and used by right-wing media to argue that transition-related healthcare for minors is dangerous. We are aware that there are individuals who possess access to [medical records] and who have been violating HIPAA and leaking to conservative media, Sarah Warbelow, legal director for the LGBTQ+ advocacy group Human Rights Campaign, told Them.

According to Warbelow and other LGBTQ+ advocates, the roots of this issue lie partially in efforts by red-state attorneys generalincluding Bailey as well as Tennessees Jonathan Skrmetti and Texas Ken Paxtonto ban the right to gender-affirming care in their states.

The recent trend of Republican lawmakers trying to get their hands on trans patients records reached such a pitch that in April 2024, a Senate Finance Committee issued a report delving into the issue. It argued that conservative attorneys general are abusing their health oversight authority by requesting wide swaths of private data from transgender children and adults. The report named Indiana, Missouri, Tennessee, and Texas as states in which AGs requested patients private health records with no clear justification for why such data was needed, as part of investigations aimed at furthering ideological and political goals.

Framed as civil investigations seeking to determine if there has been misuse of Medicaid fundsthese campaigns investigate medical providers on their provision of transgender medical care. In their sweeping anti-LGBTQIA+ campaigns, Attorney General offices demand a host of invasive items such as unredacted physical and mental health records, photographs of childrens bodies, correspondence to hospitals general email addresses for LGBTQIA+ patients, and lists of people referred for transgender health care, the report states.

In order to make these requests, AGs have at times used laws intended to combat billing fraud to get their hands on unredacted records. That was the case when Bailey requested unredacted patient records from Washington University Transgender Center at St. Louis Childrens Hospital, citing the claim that the clinic might be engaged in fraudulent billing. Yet a press release from Baileys office about that investigation made clear the true intent: These documents are critical to exposing that children were subject to irreversible, life-altering procedures without full and informed parental consent, the release quotes Bailey as saying. The release makes no mention of potential fraud. In the end, St. Louis Circuit Court Judge Joseph Whyte ruled that Bailey has no right to access the records of trans minors and that the request itself was outside the boundaries of the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act, the states consumer protection law.

Meanwhile, in Texas, the Texas Tribune and ProPublica released an investigation about Paxton in May that found he was stretching the boundaries of consumer protection laws to pursue political targets and detailed the AGs attempts to use such laws to target LGBTQ+ groups, hospitals, and pharmaceutical companies.

In early 2024, Paxton attempted to get the medical records of Texan trans kids who received treatment in other states. As the Georgia telehealth company QueerMed told the Texas Tribune in January, Paxton requested private information about Texas residents that the clinic had treated in Texas before the state banned gender-affirming care as well as patients who received care outside Texas once the ban went into effect. Before that, in November 2023, Paxton also made a similar request of Seattle Childrens Hospital. In that case, both parties eventually reached a settlement that required Paxton to drop his request for information about trans patients from Texas and the hospital to withdraw its business license in Texas.

Its hard not to see this as part and parcel of the AGs scorched-earth approach to persecuting trans kids and their parents who are being forced to undertake travel outside of Texas to get their kids the medically necessary care they need, Lambda Legal attorney Karen Loewy told the Texas Tribune in January.

These privacy breaches arent confined to attorneys general, however. As was the case with Reed, they are also coming from medical professionals. In May 2023, for instance, Texas surgeon Eithan Haim used his relationship with Texas Childrens Hospital to procure records showing that some doctors continued to see their trans youth patients after the hospital had announced that it would pause provision of gender-affirming care. The hospital made the announcement a few weeks after AG Paxton published a non-binding legal opinion stating that gender affirming care could constitute child abuse. (The clinic was forced to shut down entirely in September 2023 when the states gender-affirming care ban went into effect.)

Last month, Haim was indicted in federal court on charges relating to the leaks. Prosecutors allege that he asked for an old login to be reactivated for the sole purpose of accessing private information about pediatric patients and passing that information to a media contact  right-wing culture warrior Chris Rufo, who is a major proponent of grooming rhetoric that equates LGBTQ+ visibility and rights with sexual abuse and indoctrination of children.

But the damage was already long done. On May 23, 2023, Rufo published and promoted the documents online. According to Media Matters, although Rufo insisted that he had made redactions in compliance with HIPAA, some identifiers remained. Three days later, Paxton announced an investigation into Texas Childrens Hospital, and the right-wing media had a new story to tell.

Such is commonly the case. Once the information is made public, the media often runs with it. Stories such as Texas Childrens Hospital Restarts Child Gender Mutilation Procedures or the Daily Mail behemoth Children's gender clinic whistleblower tells Dr Phil patients were begging 'to have breasts put back on' and bosses told medics to 'keep silent' on de-transitioners, which mischaracterize, exaggerate, and distort patient information to frame gender-affirming care as a lurid national scandal are common in the right-wing news ecosystem.

Of course, the use of private medical information as outrage fodder in the culture wars is hardly new. Concerns about privacy have a long history in the LGBTQ+ rights movement. That can be seen in the history of orgs like the Missouri-based LGBTQ+ advocacy group PROMO, which was formed to defend the right to privacy after the Supreme Court upheld laws criminalizing gay sex in 1986.

Personal communications between doctors and patients related to abortion and HIV/AIDS have also been politicized by the Right for decades  and continue to be. Truthfully, its everyone, explained Robert Fischer, the Director of Communications for PROMO. Were not just hearing [concerns about medical privacy] from trans people or parents of trans youth but from the larger LGBTQ+ community, because whats to stop them from coming after all our records? Speaking with Them by phone, Fisher tied breaches of patient privacy in Missouri to wider threats to patient privacy at large, particularly the risks to patients who access abortion care in a post-Roe era.

The U.S. justice system has given some reason for hope in its response to threats to trans patients privacy, including the indictment of Haim in Texas and the decision to bar Bailey from accessing patient records in Missouri. However, experts say that U.S. law is insufficiently protective of Americans privacy, and that the law we do have, HIPAA (the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act), is falling far behind the times.

Those wide gaps in protection are in part because these laws were simply not developed for a political climate in which trans peoples bodies are being used as political currency. In 1996, HIPAA was passed to give you the ability to bring your medical records with you when you changed doctors, not to protect your privacy, said Carmel Shachar, an Assistant Clinical Professor of Law at Harvard Law School and an expert on privacy and healthcare law. Its a relic, its like riding in a Model T. It applies to what happens in your electronic medical records but nothing outside of them. As one example, Professor Shachar said that therapy notes would count as private health information under HIPAA, but only if they were taken electronically. The U.S. has no legal protections for handwritten notes, or other privacy protections for health data outside of electronic medical records.

Sarah Warbelow agrees. Theres a critical need for Americans to have greater privacy protections across the board, she said. Not just in healthcare but all lawful behavior online deserves protection."

Thus far, concerns about the privacy of medical records have flown somewhat under the radar, but as the country contemplates the possible return of Donald Trump to the presidency in 2024, LGBTQ+ organizations say the issue is increasingly becoming among the top community concerns. LGBTQ+ people are clamoring for more protection, from both anti-trans actors and a hostile federal government, if Republicans regain control. Decisions currently being made by the courts in these cases from Missouri, Texas, Tennessee, and other states on whether medical data requested by attorneys general is protected by HIPAA and other laws may have much wider implications than most Americans realize.

An effort to build on the protections in HIPAA and enshrine wider privacy protections in U.S. law has been ongoing for years, says Warbelow. But at the moment, LGBTQ+ community concerns are not among the priorities of lawmakers sponsoring data privacy bills, which are primarily focused on standardizing regulations around commercial collection of consumer data.

No politician should be able to have access to these records without consent, said Fischer. Theyre trying to bend the laws that give them oversight to reach into exam rooms and take control of what you and your doctor decide.

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Originally Appeared on them.
Constitutional protection for abortion to be on November ballot in Montana

Montanans calling on the government to protect abortion in state law and stop other bills they say are targeted at peoples individual health care rights rallied at the state Capitol in Helena on April 7, 2023. (Blair Miller/The Daily Montanan)

Voters will get to decide whether they want abortion protected in the Montana Constitution.

The Montana Secretary of States Office approved and certified Constitutional Initiative 128 on Tuesday, said Montanans Securing Reproductive Rights in a news release.

Were excited that CI-128 will be on the ballot in November, and Montana voters will finally have the opportunity to make their voices heard and protect reproductive rights in November, said Martha Fuller, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Montana and spokesperson for Montanans Securing Reproductive Rights, in a statement. We could not have accomplished this incredible feat without the dedication of our volunteers and supporters who want to protect their freedom and constitutional right to make private medical decisions.

Abortion is protected in Montana through the right of privacy in the state constitution and the Montana Supreme Court has repeatedly upheld it since the 1999 landmark case, Armstrong vs. State of Montana.

But since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, Republican legislators across the country have passed laws to restrict reproductive rights.

Montana Legislature, Republican governor support abortion restrictions

In Montana, legislators have passed bills to restrict abortion, and Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte has signed them, although courts have later deemed many unconstitutional because they violated the right to privacy found in the states constitution.

However, on Wednesday, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America said it is not about to let up on the gas pedal and will fight the initiative, which it described as a California-style abortion measure.

The organization said it is sending canvassers to Helena, Bozeman, Billings and Missoula. The organization said it started its work in April and has a goal to visit 150,000 voters by Election Day.

As we go door-to-door to educate voters, it is clear this measure is far too extreme for Montanans, said SBAs Kelsey Pritchard in a news release. The people of Montana want to see progress in holding the abortion industry more accountable  Our field team is fired up to stop CI-128 and ensure that abortion extremism costs Kamala Harris and Jon Tester on Election Day.

Montanans Securing Reproductive Rights said it submitted more than 117,000 signatures from all 56 counties in support of CI-128, nearly double the number required and the most signatures ever submitted for a single ballot initiative in Montana history.

In a statement, Akilah Deernose, executive director of the ACLU of Montana, said advocates for reproductive rights will continue the quest to secure those rights.

We know extreme anti-abortion politicians in Montana will continue to deceive voters in an attempt to take away our rights, said Deernose, also a spokesperson for Montanans Securing Reproductive Rights. We will continue to fight for the rights of Montanans to participate in their democracy and make their voices heard.

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. Contact Editor Darrell Ehrlick for questions: info@dailymontanan.com. Follow Daily Montanan on Facebook and X.

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The mother suspected of stabbing her baby boy to death before turning the knife on herself in an apparent murder-suicide in North Andover earlier this week had a history of mental health problems and prior arrests, according to her family and court documents.

Officers responding to a 911 call from a home at 201 Turnpike Street just after 5 p.m. on Monday found 35-year-old Jennifer T. Paez and her 9-month-old son, Valentino Paez, suffering from apparent knife wounds, Essex District Attorney Paul Tucker and North Andover Police Chief Charles Gray said in an update on Tuesday.

Jennifer was pronounced dead at the home, while Valentino was rushed to Lawrence General Hospital, where he too was pronounced dead, according to Tucker and Gray.

At the time of her death, Paez was awaiting trial in October for incidents in both North Andover and Lawrence in 2022 including charges of domestic assault and reckless operation of a motor vehicle, documents indicated.

A North Andover police report stemming from an incident at her Turnpike Street home on Dec. 10, 2022, showed Paezs sister, Eileen OConnor, called the police to report that she was acting out of control during an argument involving their mother, Elsa OConnor.

At one point during the argument, Paez said she was going to destroy her mother, asking her to leave the house, the report stated. Family members told police that Paez had been yelling about a DNA test because she didnt believe Elsa was her biological mother, claiming her mom previously sold her in Costa Rica.

Eileen told a responding officer that Paez suffered from bipolar disorder and hadnt been taking her medication, citing erratic and aggressive behavior including her shooting their cat with a NERF gun, police wrote in the report.

Documents revealed the family was then informed that they could seek a restraining order against Paez under Massachusetts Chapter 209A, also known as the abuse prevention law.

When officers ultimately decided to arrest Paez on a charge of assault on a family member, police noted that she resisted arrest by swinging her shoulders and arms.

Five days later, on Dec. 15, 2022, Paez was arrested after she blocked the area of 274 South Broadway in Lawrence with her vehicle, according to a report issued by the Lawrence Police Department.

Responding officers noticed a traffic jam in the area and found Paezs silver SUV parked across the road. Police said that she then suddenly accelerated at a high rate of speed approximately 50 to 60 mph, veering into oncoming traffic multiple times as officers tried to stop her vehicle.

Police ultimately stopped the vehicle but Paez became physically combative and attempted to kick officers, the report stated. After Paez was detained for driving recklessly, a witness told investigators that she had threatened to kill people with her car while she blocked the area of 274 South Broadway.

After officers took Paez in to be booked, she threatened to fight them and started yelling about being God as she awaited transport to a hospital for evaluation, according to police. She also reportedly started speaking in different dialects that didnt make sense to officers.

One officer investigating the motor vehicle arrest noted in the police report that he recognized Paez from a prior incident in which she attempted suicide by jumping in front of a moving vehicle.

People who live and work in the area of Turnpike Street told Boston 25 that they have seen police at the house in recent weeks.

DCF would not say whether or not they responded to the Turnpike Street residence in the past for any incidents. In a statement, a spokesperson said, The Department of Children and Families is investigating in collaboration with law enforcement.

An investigation into Mondays apparent murder-suicide remains ongoing.

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CHICAGO  A Chicago man, already jailed in Cook County on various possession charges, faces an additional felony charge after allegedly being found with dozens of pieces of drug-soaked paper hidden in his pants.

Cook County Sheriffs Office on Wednesday announced a one-count unlawful possession of contraband inside a penal institution charge against 22-year-old Keon Brown. Deputies say a routine pat down of Brown yielded the alleged discovery of 14 homemade envelopes, each containing two strips of suspected drug-soaked paper.

Deputies say Brown is the 38th person charged in connection with possessing or smuggling drug-soaked paper into Cook County Jail this year.

Browns incarceration began in October 2023 for unlawful use of a weapon and possession of a stolen motor vehicle.

Its the second incident of alleged possession of drug-soaked paper at Cook County Jail in as many weeks.

RELATED: Cook County Corrections Deputy allegedly found in possession of drug-soaked paper facing felony charge

Deputies announced last Friday, Aug. 16, that a Cook County Corrections Deputy faced a possession charge after allegedly being found with dozens of drug-soaked sheets of paper.

A judge ordered Shadonna Jones, 54, of Lynwood, to be released pending trial. She is due back in court on Thursday, Sept. 19.

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YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN)  The Mahoning County Coroners Office today released the name of a man who was killed Tuesday in a shooting on Interstate 680 in Youngstown.

Read next: Warren mayor to hold presser on hospital closure

In a news release, the office said the victim is 20-year-old Christian Moretti.

Moretti was killed about 4 p.m. after someone in a passing car fired several shots at the SUV he was driving, which crashed into a concrete barrier a few hundred feet north of the Marshal Street entrance ramp to the freeway.

The road was closed for over an hour as police collected evidence and investigated.

Police had no updates on the case Thursday, only saying the pair of detectives assigned to the case are working around the clock.

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Morettis death is the 15th homicide in Youngstown this year and the second this week. Last year Youngstown had 22 homicides.

Police are asking anyone who may have seen something on the interstate to call the Detective Bureau at 330-742-8911.

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Joe and Kelly Craft admire their $10.5 million country ham held by Miss Kentucky Chapel Tinius. (Kentucky Lantern photo by McKenna Horsley)

LOUISVILLE  Two Republican megadonors once again were the highest bidders at Kentucky Farm Bureaus Country Ham Breakfast charity auction.

Kelly Craft, a former United Nations ambassador and 2023 Republican gubernatorial candidate, and her husband, coal executive Joe Craft, bid a record $10.5 million Thursday morning for the country ham that was crowned champion of the 2024 Kentucky State Fair.

The money will support charities, which Kelly Craft said included the Boys and Girls Club and building new homes in Eastern Kentucky following devastating floods.

The Crafts have repeatedly made the highest bid at the breakfast in recent years. Last year, the couple joined Central Bank in bidding though they were not present. Craft had placed third in the GOP primary months before, behind winner and former Attorney General Daniel Cameron and former Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles  both of whom were also present Thursday.

Im not going to mix politics with charity, Craft told reporters when asked about her future political ambitions. This is a really important day, and I think this is all about the Kentucky Farm Bureau and all about the people that work so hard in our state to make today happen.

With former Republican President Donald Trumps campaign underway this year, the Crafts hosted a Lexington fundraiser for him in May. Before that, the Crafts donated to some of Trumps primary rivals. Trump appointed Kelly Craft as UN ambassador in 2019 but endorsed Cameron in the Republican primary for governor.

The KFB Country Ham Breakfast annually brings together politicos with agriculture leaders and high-profile Kentuckians during the Kentucky State Fair in Louisville. However, this years crowd heard from only a couple politicians as no candidates are campaigning for statewide offices this year.

Republican elected officials in the crowd included Attorney General Russell Coleman, Secretary of State Michael Adams, Auditor Allison Ball and Treasurer Mark Metcalf, as well as dozens of members of the General Assembly. Most Democrats, including Gov. Andy Beshear, had a scheduling conflict this year  the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Thursday was the last day of the DNC.

Kentuckys highest ranking Republican, U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, addressed the breakfast and said it was his 30th time attending the event. He addressed the crowd on issues of foreign policy and agriculture, particularly the farm bill that has been hung up in Congress. The legislation covers agriculture support and nutrition programs.

McConnell said that if his party were in the majority, wed be doing the farm bill. He added that the situation shows a core difference between elected Republicans and Democrats, and that the latter has a more urban focus.

Frankly, there are not many Democratic elected officials left in small town and rural America, McConnell said. And how that impacts an issue like this  theyre just not particularly interested.

Flyers promoting an upcoming McConnell biography, The Price of Power, were also on chairs for the breakfasts attendees before the event began.

Republican Agriculture Commissioner Jonathan Shell also took a moment to highlight farm issues in Kentucky in his remarks.

Ill tell you that when our rural areas of this state prosper, so does the overall economy in the state of Kentucky, he said. We in Kentucky have a $8.1 billion impact for our farms and families and businesses that are the backbone of this commonwealth, and we owe them a debt of gratitude.

Broadbent B&B, of Kuttawa in Lyon County, produced the Crafts 18.2-pound ham. Kelly Craft said the family typically has Critchfield Meats in Lexington cook and slice the ham so it can be served for Christmas dinner.
Scientists may finally have solved the mystery of who or what is regularly sending radio signals from beyond the Milky Way. Fast radio bursts flash across the sky about 10,000 times a day.

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Until now, scientists have been at a loss to know where these strange signals from space come from. However, thanks to a new experiment, scientists from the University of Toronto are one step closer to solving the mysterious phenomenon, Livescience writes.

For years now, scientists from around the world have been puzzling over who sends out intense, short-lived bursts of radio waves called fast radio bursts (FRBs). The amazing thing about them is that they can emit as much energy in a thousandth of a second as the sun emits in three days.

However, despite their power and intensity (about 10,000 flashes per day), these radio wave explosions are still unsolved by scientists. One of the biggest mysteries surrounding FRBs is why most flash once and then disappear, while a minority of them (less than 3%) repeat flashes. So scientists have started looking for the mechanisms that trigger these radio signals.

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Scientists at the University of Toronto used the Canadian Hydrogen Intensity Mapping (Chime) experiment to focus on the properties of polarized light. These experiments showed that single FRBs are most likely to come from distant galaxies that are very similar to our Milky Way, as opposed to unknown extreme environments that trigger repeated signals. It is these research findings that may bring scientists closer to unraveling the mystery of fast cosmic radio bursts.

"Until now, when we thought about FRBs, we only looked at them the way we would look at a star in the sky. That is, we thought about how bright it was and how far away it was," said Ayush Pandey, PhD, lead author of the study.

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However, scientists later changed their position on the study of cosmic radio waves. After all, FRBs are special because they also emit polarized light. Therefore, the key difference of the new study is that it studies polarized light in detail.

Polarized light is made up of waves that are oriented in the same way - vertically, horizontally, or at an angle between these two directions. Changes in polarization can explain the mechanism that triggered the FRB and thus reveal what was its source. Polarization can also reveal details about what media the radio bursts needed to pass through before reaching our detectors on Earth. So the new study is the first large-scale look at the non-repeating 97% of FRBs in polarized light.

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Observing repeating signals is easy because astronomers already know where they will occur and can point any radio telescope at that part of the sky. To find and study non-repeating FRBs, however, scientists need a telescope that can simultaneously view a large area of the sky, because astronomers do not know where the signal will come from.

"They can appear anywhere in the sky. Chime is unique in this sense, because it "looks" at a large area of the sky at once. Other researchers have looked at polarization at the level of 10 non-repeating FRBs. But we looked at more than 100. This allows us to see how repetitive and non-repetitive signals can differ from each other," said scientist Ayush Pandey.

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Although the origins of cosmic radio bursts are shrouded in mystery, scientists speculate that they may act as messengers of the environment they pass through on their way to Earth. However, this information is encoded in their polarization.

Until now, scientists have been most inclined to believe that fast radio bursts are triggered by highly magnetized, rapidly rotating neutron stars, so-called "pulsars." However, new research by Canadian scientists has disproved this. "We know how pulsars work and we know the types of polarized light we expect to see from a pulsar system. However, we don't see any similarities between FRBs and pulsar light, they are different," Pandey emphasized.

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"Even more mysterious than the explosions that occur thousands of times a day across the sky is what causes them? If you're a bit of a detective who likes to solve mysteries, the FRB is a big mystery begging to be solved," summarized the study's lead author Ayush Pandey.

Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
Editor's note: The letters below reflect the views of individual readers. Scroll to the bottom to see how you can add your voice, whether you agree or disagree. We welcome diverse viewpoints.

Focus on musicians sobriety hits the right notes

Re: Some country musicians find clarity with sobriety. Here's their advice for others," Aug. 12.

We read with great interest your Sunday edition of The Tennessean on August 11, 2024, and applaud your comprehensive reporting on how alcohol impacts our community and the heart of what makes Music City great  its professionals in the music industry and the food and beverage industry. These individuals, who often face higher rates of addiction than others in our community, deserve this vital attention.

Marcus King and Zac Brown perform together during the 56th CMA Awards at Bridgestone Arena Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2022, in Nashville, Tenn.

At Meharry Medical College, we recognize the importance of addressing alcohol use in our society, and we are proud to share that the official home for Dry January USA is right here in Music City, located at Meharry.

Our institution has a long history of shining a spotlight on underrecognized and underserved health issues, and we are committed to supporting our musicians, food and beverage professionals, and all those in Music City as they reflect on their relationship with alcohol in a non-judgmental way.

We encourage future reporting to include this important resource, as it serves as a beacon of hope and support for those who are looking to make a change. For more on Meharry Medical College's leadership on this issue, please see Dr. Hildreth's coauthored guest opinion column at Tennessean.com/opinion.

Dr. Michael C. Caldwell, chief medical officer, Dry January USA, Meharry Medical College, Nashville 37214

If you are living with substance use disorder, there is help for you

Devoting an entire Sunday issue to alcohol and drug addiction here in Nashville can only be described as yall are doing Gods work.

We in the trenches of addiction cant thank you enough. Here in Nashvilles programs of recovery, alcoholics and drug addicts need all the understanding, support and unconditional love they can get .

Musician Billy Strings, who cave up drinking alcohol in 2016, worked with Short's Brewing to create Thirst Mutilator hop water. A non-alcoholic beverage he is shown drinking here at the Under the Big Sky festival earlier this year.

We have 100 AA meetings a week right here in town  morning, afternoon and evening, every part of town and many NA and Al-Anon meetings as well as detoxes if you need one. (We dont recommend stopping cold turkey without medical help).

And of course we are lucky to have Cumberland Heights, the premiere rehab in the country.

As we say in Nashville AA: We come from Yale to jail. From Penn State to the state pen. We are totally anonymous. No last names please.

Nashville AA has help for anyone who wants our help, unfortunately we cant help those who need help. The only requirement to join AA is a desire to stop drinking (or drugging).

We are a spiritual group, not a religious one.

Try us for 90 days. If you dont like it, we will gladly refund your misery

Take the first step to a clean and sober life. Just Google AA meetings in Nashville. Or call the AA hotline at 800-934-9518. We have a seat waiting for you.

You dont have to suffer alone. We know what you are going through. Weve all been there before.

Steve Morris (sober for 35 years), Nashville 37205

Agree or disagree? Or have a view on another topic entirely? Send a letter of 250 words or fewer to letters@tennessean.com. Include your full name, city/town, ZIP and contact information for verification. Thanks for adding to the public conversation.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Addiction in country music: Sobriety stories give many people hope
The Defense Department may not prohibit people who are asymptomatic HIV-positive from joining the military, a judge in Virginia ruled this week.

U.S. District Court Judge Leonie Brinkema wrote in a decision filed Tuesday that barring those with undetectable viral loads from serving is irrational, arbitrary, and capricious as it contributes to a stigma about people who are HIV-positive while also actively hampering the militarys own recruitment goals.

Previously, the court ruled that asymptomatic HIV-positive troops with undetectable viral loads who maintained treatment remained capable of doing their military jobs, including deployments, Brinkema noted.

Today, HIV treatment medications often involve little more than taking a daily pill, and that lower viral load from meds also prevents transmission to others.

Modern science has transformed the treatment of HIV, Brinkema wrote.

The move marks what advocates called the end of the last categorical disqualification preventing people living with HIV from joining the U.S. armed forces.

Americans living with HIV no longer face categorical barriers to service careers  discharge, bans on commissioning, bans on deployment and finally bans on enlisting, Gregory Nevins, an attorney for the organization Lambda Legal that helped file the case against the DOD, said in a release.

New policy keeps HIV-positive troops deployable, bars involuntary separation in some cases

One of the plaintiffs in the case, Isaiah Wilkins, 24, described the decision as a victory not only for himself, but also for other people living with HIV who want to serve.

As Ive said before, giving up on my dream to serve my country was never an option, he said in a statement. I am eager to apply to enlist in the Army without the threat of a crippling discriminatory policy.

Wilkins joined the Georgia National Guard as a teen before later voluntarily separating to join the U.S. Military Academy Preparatory School, a step toward enrolling at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, the court ruling states.

He signed an Army Reserve contract and mobilized into active duty when he learned he was HIV-positive during entry processing, a status which ultimately led to his separation.

Today, Wilkins is on a daily single-tablet regimen, which has suppressed his viral load to an undetectable level, the ruling states.

The decision this week in the case Wilkins v. Austin, which was filed on behalf of Wilkins and two other individuals who could not enlist or reenlist based on their HIV status, follows a series of rulings in other cases for people living with HIV.

Judge rules US military cant discharge HIV-positive troops

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin issued a memorandum in June 2022 outlining changes that allowed individuals identified as HIV-positive, asymptomatic and with a clinically confirmed undetectable viral load to stay in uniform and remain deployable.

A 2023 report by the Congressional Research Service found that between January 2017 and June 2022, DODs Armed Forces Health Surveillance Division estimated that 1,581 service members were newly diagnosed with HIV.

Human immunodeficiency virus, commonly known by the acronym HIV, is a virus that attacks the bodys immune system, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which lists details on symptoms, prevention, testing and treatment. There is currently no effective cure, but proper medical care can control it.

The Pentagon declined comment on this weeks ruling.
KENTUCKY (FOX 56)  Should two consenting adults be allowed to marry if they share a family tree? Well, different states say different things.

Consanguineous marriages, or marriages between family members of second cousins or closer, have happened all throughout history and all over the globe, but worries about the risks of inbreeding have led to the topic being a bit of a taboo.

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It is a mostly modern issue; in 1946, Kentucky modified its marriage law, calling marriage between first and second cousins incestuous and void. This puts Kentucky in the majority, with other states banning consanguineous marriages.

Kentucky has one neighbor that currently allows cousin marriages, Virginia, and two others that allow them but with some limitations attached, Illinois and Indiana. Cousin marriages were legal in Tennessee until April 2024.

In Illinois and Indiana, the law is mostly concerned with protecting children from inbreeding and birth defects, and not with the modern social stigma of dating a cousin. Both states will allow marriage between two individuals who have reached a certain age, over 50 years old in Illinois or 65 or older in Indiana, making them unlikely to have children.

Illinois takes it a bit further, allowing a couple where one or both are younger than 50 years old to marry if they can provide a certificate signed by a licensed physician that they are permanently and irreversibly sterile and cannot have children.

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A similar approach was considered by a lawmaker in Tennessee when their legislature was discussing changing the law, according to Nexstar sister station WKRN.

There is an increased risk of birth defects when youve got first cousins marrying. It is in the range of 1.7% to 2.8%, according to the Journal of Genetic Counseling, Rep. Gino Bulso (R-Brentwood) said during the session. So, theres an additional risk, but its not as significant as some might otherwise be led to believe.

Bulso filed an amendment to protect cousin marriage if couples see a genetic counselor, but it wasnt added.

Cousin marriage, a misdemeanor in Kentucky, can result in legal penalties, including jail time or a fine.

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This summer's COVID-19 wave has gotten so bad  even worse than winter peaks in some regions  the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced they are approving two vaccines early, but leaving one out for now. On Thursday, the agency used its emergency use authorization (EUA) to rubber stamp a group of updated mRNA vaccines produced by Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech. They inoculate against the SARS-CoV-2 virus, specifically the KP.2 strain, which has been driving a large proportion of infections this summer.

The vaccines (Pfizer-BioNTech's Comirnaty and Moderna's Spikevax) are recommended for everyone six months and older. Shots will be available in days. To find a vaccination location near you, the Department of Health and Human Services says you can text your zip code to 438829, call 1-800-232-0233 or visit vaccines.gov (though the website is still being updated as of this posting.)

Vaccination continues to be the cornerstone of COVID-19 prevention, Peter Marks, M.D., Ph.D., director of the FDAs Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement. These updated vaccines meet the agencys rigorous, scientific standards for safety, effectiveness and manufacturing quality. Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants.

Last year, the FDA signed off on updated vaccines on September 11. But many regions are experiencing a surge this summer  with wastewater data indicating "very high" virus levels in 32 states and D.C. and an additional 11 states experiencing "high" levels. As such, reports were circulating earlier this week that the FDA may speed up approval.

mRNA vaccines use a nucleic acid known as RNA to prepare the immune system from attacks by specific pathogens. Using a bespoke RNA strand with a "message" (hence the term "messenger RNA"), mRNA vaccines transmit information about potential pathogens from genetic codes in the nucleus to the cytoplasm where pathogen-fighting proteins are manufactured. In the case of the mRNA vaccines manufactured by Pfizer and Moderna to fight COVID-19, the mRNA helps a human's cells fight the SARS-CoV-2 virus through their spike proteins. The spike proteins are the little points that emerge out of the coronavirus, like spines jutting from a sea urchin, and the SARS-CoV-2 virus uses them to infect a patient's cells.

Other COVID vaccines that don't use mRNA technology are in development, such as a new shot from drugmaker Novavax. Though the company filed for EUA, it does not seem to be granted yet as the company continues to work with the FDA as it completes its review. Last year, Novavax's shot was also approved weeks after Pfizer and Moderna were given the green light.

"We expect to have authorization in time for peak vaccination season," Novavax said in a statement. "Our 2024-2025 formula COVID-19 vaccine targets JN.1, the 'parent strain' of currently circulating variants and should provide acceptable coverage and cross-reactivity against JN.1 lineage viruses, including KP.2.3, KP.3, KP.3.1.1 and LB.1.1. Upon authorization, Novavaxs vaccine will be the only protein-based option available in the U.S. for use in individuals aged 12 and older to prevent COVID-19."
New COVID Shots Will Be Available Soon  Here's What You Need To Know

You can expect to start seeing new COVID vaccines in your pharmacy and doctor's office in the coming days. Jasmin Merdan via Getty Images

As COVID-19 cases continue to surge, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved updated COVID vaccines from both Pfizer and Moderna on Thursday.

The new vaccines are an update from last years shots and aim to keep people better protected by targeting a recently dominant COVID-19 subvariant, KP.2, which more closely resembles the subvariants that are currently making people sick.

They now cover the strain that is the most commonly circulating strain in the United States, and thats important because our vaccinations from last year, which, while wonderful, were not targeted to these new strains that were seeing now, said Dr. Jodie Guest, the senior vice chair of the department of epidemiology at Emory Universitys Rollins School of Public Health in Atlanta.

Plus, this years shots are available earlier than last year, which is a good thing.

Having them come out about three weeks earlier than last year is actually better for school. Kids are eligible for them faster, and faculty and staff [are eligible for them] faster as the school year starts, and thats great news, Guest said.

Whats more, COVID-19 is circulating at high levels across the country, which makes the timing that much more opportune.

The shots are an important way to decrease your risk of severe disease and hospitalization. Heres what you need to know about the new shots.

The shots are available to everyone 6 months and older.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends the shots for everyone 6 months and older.

The guidance for people age 5 and up is straightforward  you can get the updated shot as long as youre at least two months out from your last COVID vaccination, Guest said.

For children 6 months to 4 years old, its important to talk to their pediatrician to get guidance on dosage and timing, stated Guest, as it depends on a few factors.

The new shots should be available within days.

Pfizer and Moderna will start shipping out the vaccines ASAP, and the shots are expected to be available at pharmacies and doctors offices within days.

Most people will be eligible as soon as it hits their pharmacies or their doctors offices, which which could be as early as Monday, and that would be the right time to start getting them, said Guest.

Theres zero reason to wait unless youve had a vaccination in the last two months, she added. (If youve recently gotten a COVID vaccine, you need to wait two months since your last COVID shot to get this new shot.)

As for those who recently had COVID, some guidelines say you can wait three months after your infection to get the new COVID booster (but you do not have to).

If you dont know when youre eligible for your COVID vaccine, its best to talk to your primary care doctor. They can look at your health history to determine when you should get the jab.

Lots of people have COVID right now, and if you get sick, its important to take precautions.

If it seems like lots of people are either currently sick with COVID or have been recently infected, youre not wrong. COVID levels are at the highest theyve been since January of this year, according to wastewater surveillance data.

If you do get sick, its important that you follow precautions to keep your loved ones and your community healthy.

Essentially now theyre doing COVID isolation similar to all respiratory viruses ... so, if you have symptoms [or] you have a fever, you should stay home until [the symptoms] are improving and also that youre fever-free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication, Dr. Donald Dumford, an infectious disease physician at Cleveland Clinic Akron General in Ohio, previously told HuffPost.

After isolating, wear a tight-fitting mask for five days when youre out in public so you can keep the virus from spreading.

Washing your hands, wearing a mask in public and gathering in outdoor spaces can help you stay healthy, too, as we head into fall respiratory virus season  as can getting this new shot.

These were approved almost a month earlier than they were last year, and so now is the right time to get it, because being vaccinated is our biggest way to prevent severe illness and death from COVID, Guest said.

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CRANSTON, R.I. (WPRI)  Cranston Mayor Ken Hopkins said police are working to disperse an encampment next to the police station after he signed an executive order Wednesday.

According to the executive order shared with Target 12, Cranston police are allowed to coordinate with the Department of Public Works to break up encampments, though they must first reach out to any social services necessary in an effort to relocate and provide temporary housing.

The ACLU of Rhode Island is calling the new move a dangerous misuse of executive authority.

However, Hopkins said this is about public safety.

Its a terrible quality of life for the neighbors that live around there, he said. And these encampments, especially if theyre doing illegal activities like drugs and prostitution, Im not going to allow it.

Hopkins decision comes after his proposal to address encampments in the city received pushback at a City Council meeting last week.

BACKGROUND: Proposal would ban temporary shelters on city property in Cranston

The original proposal would fine people living in temporary shelters on city property $50 and allow the city to remove any shelter not moved within 24 hours. The ACLU of Rhode Island called that proposal extraordinarily cruel.

Hopkins did not say exactly how many people he expects the new executive order to affect, but said it would be minimal.

Theres a difference between those that are breaking the law, and those that are really homeless, he said. The ones that are homeless, weve got a system in place where we send the police, we send social workers, we give them time  The ones that I dont want in Cranston are the ones that are going to bring blight, bring crime, bring just a total lack of respect for the law into the city.

Hopkins executive order comes after the principal of Stone Hill Elementary sent an email Tuesday to parents that said there were reports of a homeless encampment next to the school.

The mayor said police looked around the school, but did not find any evidence of an encampment there. But out of an abundance of caution, he said police would be stationed at the school until families felt comfortable, and part of the fence would be patched up.

Homeless advocates warn the new executive order issued Wednesday could do more harm than good.

In a statement to Target 12, a spokesperson for the Rhode Island Coalition to End Homelessness wrote, We believe that there are far less intrusive ways to address the encampments than executive orders such as this.

Bill Stein, the clinical director of development and training for House of Hope CDC, an organization that connects homeless people with homes, said efforts to break up encampments make it harder for organizations to do their jobs.

You create a less safe situation for folks, he said. When people are in encampments, we know where they are. Were able to help them. Were able to support them. Were able to keep them alive.

Kate Wilkinson (kwilkinson@wpri.com) is a Target 12 investigative reporter for 12 News. Connect with her on Twitter and Facebook.

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Daily Roundup

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WPRI.com.
LANSING, Mich. (WLNS)  This week on Crime Stoppers, law enforcement needs your help locating two individuals wanted on warrants, and identifying 2 suspects in separate cases of a weapons offense and larceny.

If you have information regarding the cases below, call Crime Stoppers of Mid-Michigan at (517) 483-STOP. You can remain anonymous.

Those who contact Crime Stoppers with information can receive up to a $1,000 award.

Identify suspect in larceny from vehicle

The Lansing Police Department is asking for any information that could identify a suspect who committed larceny from a vehicle. The incident occurred on June 12, 2024, at approximately 4:30 AM on the 6900 block of South Washington Ave.

(Image courtesy LPD)

Identify suspect in weapons offense

(Image courtesy LPD)

The Lansing Police Department is also asking for any information that could identify a suspect who committed a weapons offense. The incident occurred on July 28, 2024, in the south end of Lansing.

Shawn Daniel Eggleston

(Courtesy LPD)

Shawn Daniel Eggleston, 47, is wanted on two felony warrants for assault out of Lansing, Michigan. He is 6 tall and 175 lbs., with blond hair and blue eyes.

Timothy Lee-Shameek Reid Jr.

(Courtesy LPD)

Timothy Lee-Shameek Reid Jr., 32, is wanted on a felony warrant for assault with a dangerous weapon out of Lansing, Michigan. He is 59 and 180 lbs., with brown hair and brown eyes.

(WLNS)

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
A Georgian citizen has been illegally detained by representatives of the occupation regime near the occupied territory of Akhalgori, according to a statement from the State Security Service of Georgia.In response to the incident, the State Security Service immediately activated the hotline operated by the EU Monitoring Mission. The incident was also promptly reported to the co-chairs of the international discussions in Geneva and to other international partners.The State Security Service emphasized that all available mechanisms are being employed to secure the swift release of the detained Georgian citizen. The situation remains under close scrutiny, with ongoing efforts to resolve the matter as quickly as possible.Mamuka Mdinaradze, executive secretary of the Georgian Dream party, spoke at a regional election campaign event in Mtskheta, emphasizing the need for Georgia to maintain its independence and identity."We must survive physically, spiritually, and continue our progress toward Europe with peace, dignity, and the preservation of our Georgian identity and faith," Mdinaradze said.He asserted that it is crucial for external actors to respect Georgia's sovereignty and the choices of its people. "We must show the whole world that it is impossible to rule a patriotic Georgian from outside," he said.Mdinaradze also warned against those who betray their country for personal gain, suggesting they are likely to betray their allies as well. "A man who sells his country will also sell its master, and will do so at the first opportunity," he stated.
On the night of August 22, Russia once again attacked the Kyiv region with kamikaze drones. Air defense forces were operating in the region, and enemy targets were shot down.

ADVERTISIMENT

This was announced by the head of the Kyiv Regional Military Administration Ruslan Kravchenko, the KRMA press service reports. Residents of the region were urged not to ignore the air raid alert.

"The enemy once again tried to attack our region with a UAV. Air defense forces were working in the region! There are targets downed. We are grateful to our defenders for their effective work. There were no hits to critical and residential infrastructure. There were no casualties as a result of the attack. The wreckage of the downed targets is being recorded outside of populated areas. Operational groups continue to work on fixing the consequences of the attack," Kravchenko said.

As a reminder, the army of the aggressor country Russia on the night of Thursday, August 22, again launched Shahed-136 kamikaze drones in Ukraine. The enemy drones flew into the territory of our country from the north.

ADVERTISIMENT

As reported by OBOZ.UA, the terrorist country of the Russian Federation attacked Ukraine with the help of kamikaze drones on the night of August 20-21. According to preliminary information, the enemy launched up to a dozen UAVs toward Kyiv, but they were shot down by air defense forces and means.

Only verified information on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
The new crocodile management plan has caused controversy in Northern Territory - 802290022/iStockphoto

Crocodile pet owners have snapped back over a ban stopping anyone else in an Australian territory from keeping the reptiles.

The move has sparked fear of a widespread cull of creatures that would previously have been given new homes in the Northern Territory (NT).

Under its new crocodile management plan, the NTs Labor government has blocked the granting of new permits for anyone who wants to own one as a pet.

Lets remember they are an apex predator and probably not one thats best kept for captivity, said Kate Worden, the NTs environment minister, who insisted the permit ban resulted from a broad consultation with experts.

But crocodile pet owners are so angry with the decision that it has become an election issue before Saturdays regional vote in the NT.

If the opposition Country Liberal Party wins, it may review and overturn Labors permit policy.

Tom Hayes, a crocodile owner who lives an hour south of Darwin, said that he has been left devastated by the decision.

Owning a croc is something I thought I would be able to do being here and having the appropriate pens and permits, he told Australias ABC News. Now I cant save a crocodile.

The rules could mean crocodiles that would have previously been rehomed safely will now have to be culled - Bill Birtwhistle/Moment RF

Mr Hayes said that he had recently hoped to rehome a crocodile from Queensland, but after he was denied a permit in the NT, he now fears the animal will be killed.

Were not quite sure whats going to happen, Mr Hayes said. I cant help this big old beautiful animal and that breaks my heart a little bit.

Roger Matthews, a crocodile expert who catches and removes problem predators in the NT, disputed the benefits of the permit ban.

He told ABC News that some crocodiles that would have previously been rehomed safely according to stringent rules would instead be culled.

Mr Matthews said: Theres half a dozen people that Ive had to knock back from having a pet crocodile.

Jo Langham, another NT resident, described her and her husbands pet crocodile, Horry, as the easiest animal they have ever looked after.

No pet sitters, no walking, no coochie-cooing required, she told ABC.

Ms Langham advised that a prerequisite for anyone owning a crocodile is a large, secure pen.

Its not really something to be entered into lightly, youre still playing with a wild creature and you need to know what to expect, she added.

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The crypto outbreak in Northern Kentucky has infected at least 16 people, up from a dozen confirmed cases reported Friday, and there have been an additional two cases in Cincinnati.

Most Northern Kentucky cases are in Kenton and Boone counties, though some are also in Campbell County, said Skip Tate, a spokesperson for the Northern Kentucky Health Department.

Two Northern Kentucky swimming pools provided public statements about cooperating with the health department after some of the people who contacted the illness were in the pools. Beechwood Swim Club in Fort Mitchell will be closed until 4 p.m. Friday, its public release stated, adding, "To reopen the pool, we must increase to certain chlorine levels in the baby pool and big pool for 24 hours to kill any potential Crypto contamination." Silverlake Water Park also provided a statement about its cooperation with the health department as the health department had requested.

Concerns about the virus spreading are compounded with kids returning to school, which coincided with the beginning of the outbreak in the three counties last week.

"We're also getting calls from day cares and schools, who are seeing sick children who say they went swimming," Tate said. "Having this happen just as kids are returning to school is really unfortunate timing."

On Wednesday, the Cincinnati Health Department spokesman confirmed to The Enquirer that the city's cases numbered two since the start of August.

Crypto is often associated with swimming pools because it "easily spreads far and wide in water," Tate said, "but you can also get it when changing diapers or dealing with a child in school who has diarrhea."

Here's what you need to know to stay safe.

What is cryptosporidiosis, and where does it come from?

Cryptosporidiosis, also known as crypto, is an infection that causes diarrhea. It comes from a parasite that is found in human or animal stool.

Anything contaminated by the infected stool, including food, drinking water, surfaces or bodies of water where people swim can pass the infection onto other people. The infection can also spread between people.

Once it is in your body, the parasite passes through your digestive tract and infect the intestines. Symptoms that result, including diarrhea, vomiting, weight loss, stomach cramps and fever, last for around two weeks but sometimes longer.

For most healthy people, crypto is not usually a serious disease, but it can lead to a life-threatening illness for those who are immunocompromised, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. Those at risk include people with HIV/AIDS, cancer and transplant patients who are taking immune system-suppressing medication, and anyone with an inherited disease that affects their immune system.

Crypto usually peaks in the summer

Crypto outbreaks in the U.S. that occurred between 2009 and 2017 usually peaked in the summer, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

That's largely driven by recreational water-associated outbreaks. Crypto outbreaks associated with child care also peak during the summer, though a bit later: between July and September. Bodies of water, including pools and lakes, were the number one cause of crypto outbreaks, accounting for 41% of outbreaks during that time period.

How can you protect yourself against crypto?

Appropriate hand washing is key to avoiding crypto, according to Tate, and has been central to the health department's guidance to schools in the area.

Do not rely on alcohol-based hand sanitizers, which are not effective against crypto, according to the CDC. Use soap and water.

Avoid recreational water activities.

The CDC also encourages people to practice safe sex to protect against crypto, which can linger in a patient's stool for up to two weeks after their diarrhea stops.

What should you do if you contract the illness?

Public health officials recommend contacting your physician, especially if you're immunocompromised. Your doctor may ask you to submit a stool sample to confirm the diagnosis.

You can treat the symptoms with over-the-counter medicines such as anti-diarrheals, but your physician may prescribe stronger medicine, Tate said.

The disease resolves itself in most healthy people, Johns Hopkins Medicine notes, but those who are immunocompromised may receive treatment focused on getting their immunity back.

While ill, drink water to avoid dehydration, which can be caused by diarrhea.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Area Crypto outbreak has risen to 18 cases. How to protect your kids
GREEN BAY, Wis. (WFRV)  The owner and operator of the cheese curd vendors at the Farmers Market on Broadway partnered with Feeding My Starving Children Green Bay MobilePack to host a cheese curd fundraiser on Wednesday.

Nick Slupski and his booth, The Dog House, hosted the Curds for a Cause fundraiser. The tips from the purchase of cheese curds were donated to the Feeding My Starving Children Green Bay organization.

Yelp: Wisconsin has seven of the top 100 best pizza spots in the Midwest

Nick let me know that he talked to two additional vendors and got them to also donate all of their proceeds from tonights event to our cause as well, said Vanessa Moran, Feeding My Starving Children Green Bay MobilePacks Media Chair. Thats just amazing to see businesses that would be willing to go ahead, donate the tips, and just see it spread so quickly throughout the market already.

Those who cannot attend the event to help the cause can do so at the upcoming classic cars and hits on Thursday at St. John Lutheran Church along Babcock Road in Ashwaubenon. The event will feature the music of Neil Diamond.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Cutting ties with Moscow  What does Ukraine's church bill really mean

Editor's note: The article was expanded with comments by religious scholar Oleksandr Brodetskyi.

Ukraine's parliament passed on Aug. 20 a much-debated bill banning activities of religious organizations with ties to Russia, a country whose armies are currently occupying large swathes of Ukraine's land.

The legislation  falsely spun by pro-Kremlin actors as a "ban on Christianity"  is primarily a tool to force communities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) to finally sever all ties with the Russian Orthodox Church.

"The church in Ukraine will be free from Moscow's influence," commented Andriy Yermak, President Volodymyr Zelensky's chief of staff, just a few days before the bill was adopted.

"There will be no church split here."

The passing of the bill does not mean a sudden disappearance of the UOC-MP, which is only one of the several churches in Ukraine.

It is likely to be followed by months of inquiries and legal battles that, according to experts, may result in some UOC-MP communities switching allegiance to other churches, while others may find ways to adapt and survive.

What next?

Ukrainian officials have stressed one thing  the bill does not restrict faith. It is not a step against any kind of religious belief but aims to sever all ties between Russia and religious organizations in Ukraine.

Iryna Herashchenko, a lawmaker from the opposition European Solidarity party, called it a "matter of national security, not religion."

"Today, I want to celebrate the work of the Verkhovna Rada. A law was passed regarding our spiritual independence," Zelensky commented.

The core essence of the bill is banning the activities of religious organizations that have administrative centers in Russia. It specifically prohibits the existence of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC)  the leading church in Russia seen as a close ally of Vladimir Putin's regime  as a religious body in Ukraine.

In Ukraine's context, this most directly concerns the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate  even though it is not explicitly mentioned in the bill. Officially formed in 1990 as a local branch of the Russian church, the organization was once the dominant religious institution in the country.

The emergence of new independent churches and years of Russia's aggression saw many UOC-MP believers change allegiance, however.

The UOC-MP has come under heavy scrutiny during the war over purported sympathies and ties to Russia, with suspicions often validated by evidence of the clergy's collaboration with occupying forces, justifying Moscow's aggression.

The bill itself did not appear out of the blue. It was registered in the parliament on Zelensky's initiation in January 2023, shortly after the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) uncovered ample evidence of the UOC-MP's members collaboration, including Russian passports, pro-Kremlin propaganda, and xenophobic literature at the church's premises.

Even so, the passing of the bill does not mean that the UOC-MP's activities are banned outright, as its communities had been given nine months to sever ties with the Russian church.

Following that, a special commission set up by the State Service of Ukraine for Ethno-Politics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) will carry out inspections of individual religious communities. If the said institution refuses to cooperate, DESS can file a lawsuit, after which the court can decide on a ban.

The bill lists several grounds for a possible ban: preachings that encroach on "life, health, freedom, and dignity of individuals," conviction of priests under various crimes ranging from terrorism to war propaganda and fraud, systematic support for the "Russian World" ideology, encouraging citizens to reject "their constitutional duties," or evidence of a governing center based in Russia.

Read also: Opinion: What should Ukraine do about its Russia-linked church?

The reason why each parish will be examined individually is because in legal terms, the UOC-MP does not exist as a single entity but consists of over 8,000 individual churches.

According to the new draft law, Russian-affiliated religious organizations will not be able to use state and communal property. Since some churches are actually in state ownership and on lease to parishes, communities recognized as Moscow-linked will likely be forced to relocate, dissolve, or transition to a different church.

Such property clashes have already arisen, for example, when the state returned the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra  traditionally the center of the UOC-MP in Ukraine  to the state.

Ukrainian Orthodox Church denies links to Moscow

In reaction to the bill, the UOC-MP reiterated its claims that it had already severed all ties with Moscow.

While the bill may have prohibited the UOC-MP, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church does not bear the name of the Moscow Patriarchate in its name, said Metropolitan Kliment, a UOC-MP spokesperson.

"The Ukrainian Orthodox Church will continue to live as a true church, recognized by the overwhelming majority of practicing Ukrainian believers and local churches of the world," the church spokesperson told Hromadske news outlet.

"Any attempts to prohibit (the church) will only serve to discredit  including internationally  those who want to implement it."

Kliment was referring to his church's supposed proclamation of "full autonomy and independence" from the Russian church in the wake of the full-scale invasion in May 2022.

Read also: Trump ally debunked: Ukraine not burning Russian-linked churches

"The Council (of Bishops) adopted relevant amendments and additions to the Statutes on the administration of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, indicating the full autonomy and independence of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church," the church declared on May 27 while condemning Russia's war, the first and only time.

The step, which was taken after strong pressure from some of its own followers, was not recognized in Russia or in Ukraine.

Despite the council's proclamation, the Sobor  the church's supreme legislative and judicial body  reiterated calls for peace but reportedly did not explicitly express the notion of autocephaly (ecclesial autonomy), without which the legal meaning of the phrase "full autonomy and independence" remains unclear.

The declaration continued to be disputed in Ukraine. In December 2022, the Constitutional Court approved the 2018 law mandating the church to indicate its allegiance to the Moscow Patriarchate in its name. The church has always rejected the label, presenting itself as the sole and only representation of Ukrainian Orthodoxy without any additional adjectives.

However, a report released by DESS in February 2023 said that the UOC-MP did not break its connection with the Russian church, basing its conclusion on an analysis of ecclesial documents. The May 2022 declaration will likely provide little cover to UOC-MP parishes.

"In the parishes' statues, there is a provision that they are a part of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (of the Moscow Patriarchate)," religious expert Andrii Smirnov told the Kyiv Independent.

"The conducted religious examination has already established that the Ukrainian Orthodox Church is a structural unit of the Russian Orthodox Church."

In turn, the Russian Orthodox Church also refused to recognize the declaration and continued to include UOC-MP priests in various commissions and working groups, only sometimes prompting protests from the said clergymen.

Furthermore, UOC-MP head, Metropolitan Onufriy, remains a member of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church, while Ukrainian bishops remain members of the synod of bishops of the Russian church.

Momentum for autonomous church

One foreseeable impact of the bill is the desired push for UOC-MP communities to transfer to the independent Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU).

The Orthodox Church of Ukraine was founded in 2018 as an institution representing Ukrainian Orthodoxy fully independent of Moscow.

Soon after its founding, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, the most senior hierarch of the Eastern Orthodox Church, granted it the tomos of autocephalya document signifying a level of canonical independence.

The UOC-MP and the Russian church have long refused to recognize the OCU. In spite of this, some UOC-MP parishes started gradually transferring to the new church, a process that gained new urgency after the outbreak of the full-scale war.

Between the granting of the tomos to the OCU in January 2019 and May 2024, some 1,700 communities announced they are switching allegiance from the Moscow Patriarchate to the autocephalous church.

Although it is not the only option for a transition, the OCU is currently the leading church organization in the country, with some 9,000 communities.

The difference in the number of followers is even more stark  a 2023 poll shows that 69.4% of Ukrainian Orthodox Christians associate themselves with the OCU, while only 9.2% acknowledged allegiance to the UOC-MP. This is a radical change compared to 32.2% for the OCU and 21.9% for the UOC-MP in 2020.

However, this figure does not tell the whole story, as some of the 20.7% of Orthodox Christians who do not openly admit association with any specific institution may still attend UOC-MP churches.

Some 63% of Ukrainians are in favor of banning the UOC-MP, according to surveys.

One of the key reasons why UOC-MP communities may now be more motivated to transition to another church is the loss of property.

"There are many reasons for the parishes to transition, but the danger of losing the church can be an additional incentive for the transition to the OCU," Smirnov told the Kyiv Independent.

Another religious scholar, Oleksandr Brodetskyi, suggested that while some parishes are likely to transition, others may instead continue to "function without official registration, not as legal entities."

"Perhaps they will use some other private premises for service if those they are using now are leased from the state," Brodetskyi said in a comment for the Kyiv Independent.

The head of the OCU, Metropolitan Epiphanius, declared that the new bill provided a chance for believers to cast away the Russian yoke.

"The law enables all religious structures that have not yet done so to completely free themselves from Moscow's control," Epiphanius said on air on national television.

The OCU's primate also said he is ready for a dialogue with his UOC-MP counterpart, Metropolitan Onufriy.

"After all, every community, according to Ukrainian legislation and according to the newly adopted law, has the opportunity to change its jurisdiction... We are ready to unite in this difficult time of trial by war when the aggressor is trying to destroy us."

DESS Head Viktor Yelenskyi even promised to create a model where there would be no one "humiliated and insulted, winners and losers, where everyone will stick to their own" if the UOC-MP decides to merge with the OCU.

"This gesture by the OCU primate (Epiphanius) shows he cares for the unity of Ukrainian Orthodoxy," Brodetskyi commented.

"Will there be a united decision by the UOC-MP to join the OCU? Not under the leadership of Onufriy Berezovskyi and his closest bishops, in my opinion."

Indeed, this call for unification has already encountered a pushback from within the UOC-MP.

Metropolitan Luka of Zaporizhzhia and Melitopol  currently facing charges for inciting religious hatred  wrote a letter to Onufriy warning him against compromises with the OCU.

"Our conscience is clear before God and our people. We have nothing to be ashamed of. No persecution, oppression, and threats from the enemies of our Church will be able to shake our faith and confidence in our righteousness," Luka wrote.

According to BBC sources in the UOC-MP, the reception of the proposal within the church has been lukewarm at best. While some leaders may unite with the OCU, Onufriy and those close to him will likely seek to maintain some kind of a status quo while "lamenting about persecution," the sources said.

"We can hope that in the next nine months, voluntary transitions from UOC parishes to the OCU will become more active," Brodetskyi said.

"The main thing is to prevent confrontations on the ground because that can be very beneficial for Moscow and very dangerous, given the ongoing war."

Read also: Faith under fire: Russias war on religion in Ukraines occupied territories

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
From cybercrime to terrorism, FBI director says America faces many elevated threats 'all at once'

BROOKLYN CENTER, Minn. (AP)  The country is facing heightened threats from many corners at a time when law enforcement agencies are struggling, FBI Director Christopher Wray said in an exclusive interview, adding that he is hard pressed to think of a time in my career where so many different kinds of threats are all elevated at once.

Wray spoke Wednesday with The Associated Press while visiting the Minneapolis field office to talk about partnerships between law enforcement agencies and also with other entities. His remarks come as the FBI confronts heightened concerns over terrorism, both domestic and international, as well as Chinese espionage and intellectual property theft and foreign election interference.

I worry about the combination of that many threats being elevated at once, with the challenges facing the men and women in law enforcement more generally, Wray said at the office in the suburb of Brooklyn Center. And the one thing that I think helps bridge those two challenges is partnerships. Thats how we get through. It is by all working together.

Wrays assessment of an elevated threat landscape is consistent with alarm bells he has sounded for months. Soon after the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas in Israel, Wray began warning that the rampage could serve as an inspiration to militants, the likes of which we havent seen since ISIS launched its so-called caliphate years ago.

The FBI has also scrambled to deal with security concerns related to the United States' southern border, with officials revealing in June that eight people from Tajikistan with suspected ties to the Islamic State group were arrested and were being held on immigration violations.

Officials are also dealing with the specter of foreign election interference. The FBI and other federal agencies announced Monday that Iran was responsible for a hack targeting the Trump campaign and for an attempted breach of the Biden-Harris campaign, part of what officials portrayed as a brazen and aggressive effort to interfere in American politics.

Wray declined to talk about any specific investigation or threat but said investigations into cyberattacks, including against election infrastructure, candidates or campaigns, require help from the private sector.

One of the things that we have been doubling down on with every passing day is, is on partnerships, because ultimately youre talking about the ability to connect the dots, whether its against some kind of election influence threat or some other kind of threat, Wray said. You need to have partners sharing information with each other to put the two pieces together to see the bigger picture.

Law enforcement officers are being killed in the line of duty at a rate of about one every five days, Wray said, noting that four first responders have died in Minnesota alone in 2024. They include a Minneapolis officer killed in May while trying to help someone, and two officers and a paramedic who died in Burnsville in February when a heavily armed man opened fire.

Such violence breaks my heart every single time, the director said.

The FBI has not been spared such attacks: Days after agents searched Donald Trumps Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, to recover classified documents, a gunman who called on social media for federal agents to be killed on sight died in a shootout after trying to get inside the FBIs Cincinnati office.

Wray said the FBI has been working to beef up traditional partnerships with state and local law enforcement, while also creating other ones with business and academia to help counter threats against cybersecurity or intellectual property. In Minneapolis and other offices, he said, authorities are cooperating with the likes of school resource officers and mental health professionals to help at-risk teenagers in hopes of heading off future threats.

Working with industry is important for protecting innovation and artificial intelligence from foreign threats, Wray added.

AI is in many ways the most effective tool against the bad guys' use of AI, he said. So we need to work closely with industry to try to help make sure that American AI can be used to help protect American people from AI-enabled threats coming the other way.

___

Associated Press writer Eric Tucker in Washington contributed to this report.
BAY COUNTY, Fla. (WMBB)  On Wednesday, an accident on Hathaway Bridge led to a D.U.I. and careless driving arrest.

Around 2:00 p.m., Brady Hawkins Mandigo, 35, of Panama City Beach, was driving west on U.S. Highway 98 when he attempted to change lanes and collided with another vehicle. He then struck the concrete wall of the bridge.

Mandigo was arrested and charged with Driving Under the Influence and Careless Driving.

The driver of the second vehicle was a 33-year-old woman from Columbus, Georgia. According to the Florida Highway Patrol, both vehicles were moved from the roadway and no injuries were reported.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to mypanhandle.com.
Dadgum it! Atlanta, South Fulton swear more than most of the country, according to new study

A new study says that Atlantans are some of the most foul-mouthed in the country.

WordTips analyzed 1.7 million posts on X to see the percentage of them that contained profanity across several countries and learned the U.S. swears the most online.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

Among the large cities in the U.S., Atlanta ranks third for the highest number of profanity-laced posts. Atlanta had 66.7 posts swearing per 1,000, according to the study.

The only cities that ranked higher were Baltimore, Maryland and Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

TRENDING STORIES:

But Atlanta didnt have the most foul-mouthed posts in the Peach State. With 71.1 posts per 1,000, the City of South Fulton ranked as the highest in the state and the fourth overall city in the country.

When looking at individual cities across the country, Jurupa Valley, California joined Baltimore and Baton Rouge in the top-ranked spots.

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IN OTHER NEWS:
A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPMs Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version.

The Big Lie Continues  With A Twist

On the same day that the Democratic convention was highlighting Trumps Jan. 6 transgressions, Trump himself was still fomenting election denialism at a rally in North Carolina, telling the crowd: Our primary focus is not to get out the vote  but to make sure they dont cheat.

Trump: "Our primary focus is not to get out the vote. It's to make sure they don't cheat. Because we have all the votes we need." pic.twitter.com/bARtHl9pBM  Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 21, 2024

Stop and consider that particular comment for a moment. Its a more extreme variation of his go-to falsehood that the only way he can lose is if Democrats cheat. In this version, the votes are all there for him, no need to even count them, because no matter the outcome Democrats will have cheated him out of the votes he knows to be there for him. He also declares Democrats cheating to be guaranteed and without a doubt. So a one-two punch: I already have the votes, and Democrats are already cheating me out of them.

Why does this matter?

At this point, I know that you know that his rampant election delegitimization is an authoritarian move, corrosive of democracy, and self-serving to detriment of civic life. But what may not be widely understood yet is how Trump is not pinning his hopes this time on winning more ballots or prevailing in court or muscling his way into office via a mob.

Trumps bid this time is dependent on MAGA-friendly elections officials and boards simply refusing to certify the results (and maybe in a few extreme instances, certifying them in his favor despite him losing the ballot count). The intent is for delayed or rejected certifications to create enough chaos and uncertainty to deny Harris 270 electoral votes and send the matter to the House of Representatives to resolve.

Even if Democrats take the House, Trump could still prevail because the House vote for president is decided by a vote of each states delegation, and the GOPs advantage in small rural states means they could still have the upper hand even if they lack a majority of members overall.

Its such a far-fetched scheme that I feel some hesitation in warning about it. It feels like tinfoil hat territory. But Trumps rhetoric lines up with it and makes a lot more sense in this context. What presidential candidate says publicly that theyre not worried about getting out the vote?

DOJ Pushes Ahead Despite SCOTUS Ruling

In new filings in a Jan. 6 case, the Justice Department indicated it will try to salvage obstruction of Congress charges despite the Supreme Courts ruling in Fischer that narrowed the relevant statute. DOJ has abandoned the obstruction charges in other cases since the Fischer decision and not charged obstruction in some new cases, but it apparently feels like it has sufficient evidence in this particular case to overcome the Supreme Courts higher bar.

Straight Into My Veins

WATCH: A video shown at the Democratic National Convention replayed some of the violence, destruction and chaos unleashed during the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, and included recordings of former President Donald Trump urging protesters on that day and afterward. pic.twitter.com/SGPnuYIZhG  PBS News (@NewsHour) August 22, 2024

Democratic Convention: Night 3 Highlights

It was all about Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who accepted his partys nomination for vice president:

Oprah Winfrey was the surprise speaker on night 3 of the convention.

Tim Walzs son Gus was the surprise hit of night 3 of the convention.

Key parts of the key speeches:

This embedded content is not available in your region.

What TPM Saw

What Makes You Feel Older?

a. Bill Clinton hasnt been president in 23 years.

b. Comments like this about Bill Clinton: (For Gen Zers like myself, apparently this guy used to play the saxophone?)

c. Sheila E. is 66 years old.

d. All of the above

2024 Ephemera

Spoiler alert: RFK Jr. is expected to end his presidential campaign Friday and in talks to throw his meager support to Donald Trump.

Brian Beutler: Why Fact Checkers Mangle Facts To Provide Donald Trump Cover

WSJ: Kamala Harris, the Divine Nine and Their Commitment to Black Excellence

Russia Probe, Part II

The NYT has tied together the recent FBI raids on Dimitri Simes Virginia farm and Scott Ritters upstate New York home, reporting that they are both part of a broad criminal investigation into Americans who have worked with Russias state television networks, citing unnamed U.S. officials.

It is part of U.S. efforts to confront Russian election interference efforts. More FBI searches are expected, and criminal charges could be forthcoming, the NYT reports. The investigation is focused on potential violations of the sanctions regime against Russia and of the Foreign Agents Registration Act, according to the NYT.

Related from the WSJ: How Russian Trolls Are Trying to Go Viral on X

Ooops 

PBS Judy Woodruff got a little over her skis while live on air during night 1 of the Democratic convention:

I want to clarify my remarks on the PBS News special on Monday night about the ongoing cease fire talks in the Middle East. As I said, this was not based on my original reporting; I was referring to reports I had read, in Axios and Reuters, about former President Trump having  Judy Woodruff (@JudyWoodruff) August 21, 2024

Judge Blocks FTCs New Ban On Noncompete Agreements

A federal judge in Texas ruled that the Federal Trade Commission lacks statutory authority to ban most noncompete agreements.

Yall Are Amazing!

I know it may not seem like it, but we actually took a more low-key approach to this years TPM Journalism Fund drive. A little less in your face, and a little less persistent. In return you came through in a big way, lifting us past our $500,000 goal yesterday.

We are deeply grateful for your financial support. It sustains and nourishes not just the work we do at TPM but the community you have helped to create here. A special shout out to the Morning Memo readers who made contributions. Thank you!

Do you like Morning Memo? Let us know!
A new study shows that glaciers in Alaska's vast ice field are melting very quickly. They may reach the point of irreversible shrinkage sooner than scientists had anticipated.

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A study led by researchers from the UK's Newcastle University found that volume loss on the Juneau Glacier, which straddles the border between Alaska and British Columbia (Canada), has increased dramatically since 2010. Experts are sounding the alarm because this is an extremely alarming bell, ScitechDaily writes.

The team, which also included universities in the UK, the US, and Europe, looked at records dating back to 1770 and identified three distinct periods of change in ice field volume. They found that the loss of glacier volume remained fairly constant from 1770 to 1979. However, from 20152019, the rate of ice field area reduction was five times faster compared to 19481979.

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According to the researchers, the increase in the glacier's melting rate was also accompanied by an increase in its fragmentation. The team of scientists found a sharp increase in disconnections, where the lower parts of the glacier separate from the upper parts.

Most worryingly, 100% of the glaciers mapped in 2019 have retreated relative to their position in 1770, and 108 glaciers have disappeared completely.

"Very alarmingly, our study found a rapid acceleration since the beginning of the 21st century in the rate of glacier loss in the Juneau Icefield. Alaska's ice fields  mostly flat, plateau-like  are particularly vulnerable to accelerated melting as the climate warms. After all, ice loss occurs over the entire surface," said Dr. Bethan Davies, author of the study and senior lecturer at the University of Newcastle.

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The scientist also added that as the Juneau Plateau glacier continues to thin and the ice retreats to lower levels and warmer air, the feedback processes that these triggers are likely to prevent future glacial regrowth, "potentially pushing glaciers over the tipping point into irreversible recession."

Alaska is home to some of the world's largest plateau ice fields, and their melting is a major contributor to current sea level rise. The researchers believe that the processes they observed in Juneau are likely to affect other similar ice fields in Alaska and Canada, as well as in Greenland, Norway, and other high Arctic locations.

ADVERTISIMENT

Scientists have suggested that, given the ongoing climate change and global warming, their calculations of future glacial melting may be inaccurate. That is, the rate of glacier shrinkage is likely to become even more rapid.

"This work has shown that various processes can accelerate melting. This means that current glacier projections may even be too low and underestimate glacier melting in the future," Bethan Davies summarized.

Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
MORGAN COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT)  Testimony continued Thursday in the capital murder case of Frederic Rogers who is charged, along with John Legg, with killing seven people in Valhermoso Springs in June 2020.

Rogers, 26, could face the death penalty if he is convicted. Legg does not yet have a trial date. The judge told the jury, who was sworn in on Friday, that the trial was likely to last into mid-September.

Day 2 testimony concludes in Seven Deadly Sins capital murder trial

The victims were, William Zane Hodgin, 18; Jeramy Roberts, 31; James Benford, 22; Roger Jones Jr., 19; Emily Payne, 21; Tammy England Muzzey, 45; and Dakota Green, 17. A dog also was killed at the home, investigators said.

Thursdays testimony began with continuing the cross-examination of Special Agent Christopher Hendon with the FBI.

After he was dismissed, Sergeant John Dixon took the stand. Dixon is an investigator with the Morgan County Sheriffs Office. He worked collecting evidence at the crime scene.

Dixon was shown evidence such as bullet casings, a black Nike hat and wooden pieces. He was dismissed shortly after.

Testimony wraps up on first day of Seven Deadly Sins capital murder trial

Special FBI Agent Ryan Hall from Oregon was called forward. As they prepared to play the interview from Oregon, the jury was walked through the interview process for when they have someone in custody.

Agent Hall conducted the interview on June 21, 2020. Its roughly three hours long, and the jury will not be shown the entire tape because, during some of it, no one is speaking.

The video was taken in Oregon after Rogers and Legg were taken into custody during a traffic stop. The jury was shown the law enforcement agency taking inventory of Rogers clothing and items and exchanging them for jail clothing. The jury can see Rogers scratching his arms.

When law enforcement asked him why, Rogers explained he had eczema and needed medication for it. The Oregon FBI agents explained they were assisting Alabama agents with a murder investigation that involved seven people.

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.

They read Rogers his rights and explained his right to stop talking at any time. Rogers says he doesnt know why he would need a lawyer.

Agents ask him how he ended up in Alabama, and Rogers says he was supposed to be going on vacation but ended up getting married. He said he wound up getting married and it was the worst decision hed ever made. He also tells agents why hes in Oregon and that he has terrible anxiety.

The agents told Rogers that they wanted to give him the option to tell his story because right now it looks really bad. He says he had heard about the murders. His wife told him his friend Jeramy had been shot and killed.

Rogers told agents that John Legg didnt work, he stayed home and played video games. They liked the same music and they were both big car guys. The agents then asked Rogers about his relationship with Legg and Jeramy Roberts. He told them he wasnt sure how Roberts made money but he always had it. Rogers said he was the only one in the house that worked.

John got money from his dad. John and his sister had a bad relationship and a lot of bad memories in that house, so I told him he could stay with me when me and my ex-wife split, Rogers said in the tape.

When asked to give more detail on the 7 Deadly Sins motorcycle club, Rogers told them he didnt know what it was.

They asked Rogers about brotherhoods, and he said that he had friends in high school who claimed they were part of it even though they werent. The agents then asked him about the motorcycle club in his wallet. Rogers told them they were the people who watched him grow up.

I came up here to go to college. It didnt work out. I was going to the Art Institute of Portland. I was up here for about two more years working. I was staying with my grandmother. I was studying culinary, Rogers told them.

He returned to Alabama in December 2017 after he was fired from his job. He met his wife the following May and they were married in August 2018. In the video, Rogers told officers they were married up until about a month before the interview when they separated. They were not divorced.

The FBI agents asked about who was normally over at the house. He said Tammy England Muzzey, her daughter, Emily. He also knew that Jeramy spent time with two men named Roger and James. He told them he believed the house was in Laceys Spring.

They asked Rogers if there was anyone else at the home, including a dog. He said he wasnt sure because he had only been there twice, but he thought she may have had a puppy.

Rogers then told agents Roberts had invited him over for dinner, but he was already out of state. he said he got the call that he had died the next day.

The agents asked Rogers which states he had traveled through to get to Oregon. He told them he and Legg had gotten stuck in Fort Collins for two weeks. Rogers claimed they ran out of money and were sleeping in their car. Rogers had called his mom in Woodville, Ala.

He told them that he and Legg were pulled over once because one of the brake lights was messed up. Agents asked Rogers why Legg came with him.

He just wanted to go with me to make sure I got here safe. I planned to stay here for two weeks, Rogers said. But then I got fired from my job in Alabama.

Rogers said that everyone knew he was going to Oregon on vacation and that he couldnt stop talking about it after he and his wife split up. He mentioned that Legg had always wanted to go, but he wasnt sure if Legg had told anyone he was coming.

Rogers said they had gotten in the night before, and he had gotten to sleep in a bed. He stepped out to get cigarettes and thats when he was taken into custody.

The agents asked how Legg was as a travel partner. Rogers said he was great, and he played great music. They asked about his temperament, which Rogers told them Legg had PTSD and cried uncontrollably sometimes. He mentioned Legg really likes guns and hed shown them to Rogers.

The agents then turn back to the murders, saying they have evidence from their cellphone locations that put Rogers and Legg at the house. Agents pressed him saying that either he went into the house and killed seven people or that Legg did and he got caught up in it.

Rogers pushed back, however.

Im a good person, Im literally here to take care of kids, I came here thinking Im going to be with my kids on Fathers Day, he said. Those were my friends! I dont want to get anyone in trouble. I need you guys to tell me whats going to happen if I tell the truth.

The agents then asked Rogers that if he didnt pull the trigger what was he worried about? They said they knew Legg was involved but needed to know if Rogers pulled the trigger as well.

Then agents asked him what he did and Rogers changed his story.

Things went left really quick, he said. Jeramy showed up at my house and wanted to stay there he started doing bad stuff robbing people, selling drugs.

Rogers said Roberts was going to pin some of this bad stuff on him and Legg.

We found out Jeramy had shot up some Arian dudes house and then came back to our house, he said. This dude was threatening to kill all of us. We thought Jeramy handled it but he was planning to pin it on me and John.

So the two went to confront Roberts about it.

I walked into the door me and Jeramy are talking, Rogers said. Hes arguing with James. This guy who I dont know gets in my face and so does James and it just went left from there. I was feeling threatened so I pulled my gun, Jeramy went reaching for his gun. I popped off a shot.

Rogers said he thought he and Legg were going to die.

John popped shots too. We both thought we were going to die that night, he said. I was taking up for James, hes the slow kid, hes 10 years old in the brain but hes 22.

Rogers said he reacted to Roberts moving first.

I saw Jeramy go for his gun, He said. I shot him. Dude I didnt know came at me I shot him and then James came at me and I shot him.

Rogers said all that happened in the garage and he didnt know what happened in the house but he heard gunshots. He said he had never killed anyone before

He then tells agents he didnt know what to do so he just started dousing the house with gasoline.

Rogers said he found Legg in the middle of the kitchen and Legg said they needed to go.

The agent then suggested that Rogers may have been minimizing his involvement. The agents suggest that Rogers or Legg may have gone into the house angry.

Rogers said he was either going to get the death penalty or spend the rest of his life in prison.

He said Roberts had caused issues with members of the Aryan Brotherhood and was going to pin in on Rogers and Legg. Rogers said they were invited over for dinner and were planning to use it as a chance to confront Roberts about the issues. He said they only took guns just in case.

We were just going to confront people I wasnt going to kill anyone, he said. I heard gunshots popping off and I started popping off.

Roger said he and Legg then went home to get clothes and money and decided to go to Oregon earlier than planned.

The video showed him breaking down as he said his kids would grow up without him.

Then the court took a break and when they returned the video continued. Rogers talked about his and Leggs plans to get away.

Eventually, Rogers thanks the agents he is speaking to in the video for being nice to him.

This is nothing like the First 48 he said. If I ever get out, I want to set up a career in law enforcement.

In response to a few questions, Rogers said he started firing as a knee-jerk reaction to hearing shots.

Then Rogers is asked about the dog being killed. He said that wasnt him and he asked Legg why when he heard about it. Rogers said Legg told him I [explicative] hated that dog.

Testimony wrapped up Thursday with FBI Agent Ryan Hall coming back to the stand for cross-examination by defense attorney Carl Cole.

Hall also said that Legg never gave a statement to authorities

Hall said the interrogation video was about five hours long though the court only saw three.

Cole asked Hall several questions about the interview. Hall said he never promised Rogers anything for his cooperation.

He also said that to his knowledge Legg never gave a statement.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
On Aug. 22, 1922, Michael Collins, a founder of the Irish Republican Army and a key figure in Ireland's independence movement, was assassinated by political opponents. File Photo courtesy of Encyclopedia Britannica

Aug. 22 (UPI) -- On this date in history:

In 1851, the U.S.-built schooner America outran a fleet of Britain's finest ships around England's Isle of Wight in an international race that became known as the America's Cup.

In 1881, American humanitarians Clara Barton and Adolphus Solomons founded the National Red Cross.

In 1922, Michael Collins, a founder of the Irish Republican Army and a key figure in Ireland's independence movement, was assassinated by political opponents.

In 1968, Pope Paul VI arrived in Colombia, becoming the first pontiff to visit South America.

The $120 million memorial to Martin Luther King Jr. opened to the public August 22, 2011, in Washington, D.C. File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI

In 1986, Kerr-McGee Corp. agreed to pay the estate of nuclear industry worker Karen Silkwood more than $1 million, ending a 10-year legal battle waged by her family over her exposure to radioactive materials at the company's Oklahoma plant.

In 2004, two masked robbers stole Edvard Munch's The Scream and another painting from the Munch Museum in Oslo, Norway. They were found about two years later and put back on display in 2008. The Scream had been stolen once before, 10 years earlier, but was recovered within three months.

A tapestry of Pope Paul VI is unveiled during a beatification ceremony at St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City near Rome on October 19, 2014. On Aug. 22, 1968, Pope Paul VI arrived in Colombia, becoming the first pontiff to visit South America. File Photo by David Silpa/UPI

File Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI

In 2005, the last Jewish settlers moved peacefully out of the Gaza Strip after carrying Torah scrolls down the main street of Netzarim, last of 21 settlements to be evacuated.

Israeli heavy equipment destroys a house in the Jewish settlement of Morag, southern Gaza Strip, August 22, 2005. Israeli troops marched unopposed into the Gaza Strip's last Jewish settlement of Netzarim on Monday to complete the evacuation of the territory after nearly four decades of occupation. File Photo by Ismael Mohamad/UPI

In 2006, Pulkovo Airlines Flight 612 crashed near the Russian border in Ukraine, killing 171 people.

In 2011, the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial in Washington opened to the public. The $120 million memorial, 25 years in the making, is on a four-acre site on the National Mall.

In 2017, India's Supreme Court declared the "instant divorce" practice among the nation's Muslim population to be unconstitutional.

In 2021, Vice President Kamala Harris visited Singapore, her first visit to Asia as VP, to discuss issues of climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic and supply chain concerns with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Shien Loong.

Vice President Kamala Harris gives a statement with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in the Vice President's Ceremonial Office in Washington, D.C., on March 29, 2022. File Photo by Joshua Roberts/Bloomberg
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WJHL)  The judge in a sexual assault-related federal lawsuit against Johnson City and several police officers  related to accused sex offender Sean Williams  has dismissed some counts against certain officers while upholding others.

ETSU estimates 20 to 30 students housed in a hotel on move-in day

U.S. District Judge Travis McDonoughs order Wednesday removes former Johnson City Police Department (JCPD) Capt. Kevin Peters and officers Justin Jenkins and Brady Higgins completely from the lawsuit filed by Jane Doe alleged victims of Williams.

On behalf of Justin Jenkins and Brady Higgins, we are certainly happy with the courts ruling, Keith Grant, who is from a firm representing those officers, told News Channel 11 in a statement.

Along with officers Toma Sparks and Jeff Legault, they had filed motions to dismiss the counts against them earlier this year, relying on a so-called Rule 12(c) claim. A judge can dismiss counts if they find factual allegations havent met a plausibility test that requires more than a sheer possibility that a defendant has acted unlawfully.

Along with the City of Johnson City and former JCPD Chief Karl Turner, all five officers had been defendants in the case. First filed in June 2023, it accuses the JCPD of complicity in the alleged victimization of dozens of women by Williams while he lived downtown. Neither the city nor Turner had filed procedural dismissal motions like those filed by the other officers, but the city and all defendants have continually denied any claims of wrongdoing.

Plaintiffs welcome the Courts Order which preserves, at least in part, the causes of action in the Second Amended Complaint that were challenged on the motion to dismiss by some of the individual defendants, Heather Moore Collins, one of the plaintiffs attorneys, wrote in response to a request for comment.

We look forward to presenting the case at trial on the robust evidence they have developed during discovery.

Williams, who JCPD failed to serve an ammunition charge warrant on in May 2021, was arrested in April 2023 on drug charges in Western North Carolina. Officers searched hard drives he had with him and allegedly found thousands of images and videos showing Williams sexually assaulting dozens of women, who appeared to be drugged, in his downtown fifth-floor apartment.

There were also allegedly images of minors being assaulted by Williams, and he now faces criminal charges for those alleged assaults. He has not yet been charged in any rapes of adult women.

FULL COVERAGE OF THE SEAN WILLIAMS CASE

One part of Sparks dismissal motion was denied and the other was granted. Both parts of Legaults motion  of claims he violated victims right to due process and obstructed enforcement of a sex trafficking act  were denied.

As a result, Johnson City, former Chief Turner, Legault and Sparks remain defendants at this stage of the lawsuit, which is currently set for trial in April 2025. Peters, Higgins and Jenkins are no longer defendants.

We are very grateful that the Court found that Kevin Peters did not do anything wrong and dismissed the case against him, Daniel Rader IV, Peters attorney, wrote in response to a request for comment from News Channel 11.

Mixed ruling on obstructing violations of sex trafficking act

Peters, Higgins, Jenkins and Legault all faced claims they obstructed enforcement of what the Jane Doe attorneys allege was a sex trafficking venture by Williams. The plaintiffs have alleged behavior ranging from payoffs to other benefits received in exchange for allowing Williams  whos alleged to have drugged and raped dozens of women in his apartment and filmed the encounters  to continue with impunity from at least 2018 to 2021.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation did open a sex trafficking investigation into Williams starting as early as 2022.

McDonough wrote that the claims made against Peters, Higgins and Jenkins simply werent convincing enough to keep them in the lawsuit at this stage.

In Jenkins case, he wrote that the claims did not show the officer had any reason to know of an investigation into sex trafficking, or even to anticipate the possibility of one when he worked on a case related to Williams in 2020.

Peters knew more about multiple alleged assaults by Williams. But the judge wrote that even if, as claimed, Peters waved off accounts of Williamss abuse by claiming victims lacked credibility, nothing has shown that Peters suspected Williamss actions amounted to something beyond sexual assault such as trafficking.

Higgins, too, even if aware Williams was repeatedly drugging and sexually assaulting women wasnt shown to plausibly have knowledge of a potential sex-trafficking scheme.

Legault, on the other hand, is alleged to have signed off on an arrest report of an alleged victim after she had met with an FBI agent to provide a statement about Williams sexually assaulting her.

McDonough found plausible reasons to conclude the arrest report wasnt sufficient to legitimize the arrests of Female 9 and her companion in April 2023. As an officer in JCPDs special victims unit, Legault knew of or should have known of the existence of an investigation into sex-trafficking conduct at the time he retaliated against a witness in that investigation, McDonough wrote.

Accordingly, Plaintiffs have sufficiently alleged a TVPA (Trafficking Victims Protection Act) obstruction claim against Legault.

Plausible that Sparks, Legault actions shocked the conscience

Sparks had one part of his motion granted, related to a claim he took actions that heightened the risk Williams posed to alleged victims  a so-called state-created danger. But McDonough denied Sparks motion to dismiss a claim alleging that he engaged in behavior that shocks the conscience. Both claims relate to alleged substantive violations of the alleged victims constitutional rights to due process.

Sparks is at the center of the corruption allegations. As McDonough noted, the latest version of the Doe attorneys lawsuit is replete with conduct by Sparks that shocks the conscience: Plaintiffs allege he solicited a bribe from Williams in exchange for insulating his criminal activities, refused to investigate Williamss sex-trafficking crimes, failed to execute Williamss arrest warrant, intimidated and lied to victims, and concealed evidence of Williamss crimes.

Sparks attorney argued that because that behavior was directed toward third parties and not necessarily plaintiffs, it couldnt plausibly meet the conscience-shocking standard. McDonough rejected that argument, leaving Sparks to continue defense against allegations of substantive due process violations.

The judge ruled the same way in Legaults case. He wrote that the likelihood Legault okayed a facially unconstitutional arrest of a witness in the sex trafficking investigation would be an egregious abuse of authority that does not comport with traditional ideas of fair-play and decency.

McDonough rejected shock the conscience claims against Jenkins, Peters and Higgins. He also rejected state-created danger claims against Sparks and Jenkins.

News Channel 11 has also reached out to the City of Johnson City and the attorneys for Jenkins, Higgins and Legault for comment.

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Defense Minsiter Rustem Umerov met with a bipartisan delegation from the United States House of Representatives during their visit to Kyiv on Aug. 21, the Defense Ministry announced.

Republican Rep. Rob Wittman and Democratic Rep. David Trone spoke with Umerov about the situation on Ukraine's front lines and Washington's policy on Ukraine's use of long-range weapons against Russian targets.

"I emphasized the need to obtain prompt permission from our allies to fully use long-range weapons against targets in Russia," Umerov said.

"This is a matter of protecting our peaceful cities and villages."

Current U.S. policy restricts Ukraine from using ATACMS and other American-supplied weapons to strike targets deep within Russia.

The U.S. gave Ukraine permission on June 1 to use some 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.

The lawmakers were also briefed on the situation near Ukraine's front lines, particularly the embattled Sumy Oblast, Umerov said.

"Our goals there are to clear the border from Russian military threats and to prevent enemy shelling and attacks on our cities and villages," he said.

Read also: Opinion: The Wests escalation strategy has failed. Let Ukraine strike Russia.

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Defense rests, closing arguments over in trial of former Houston County prosecutor

DOTHAN, Ala. (WDHN)  The defense has rested its case, and closing arguments are over in the trial of former Houston County Assistant District Attorney Mark Johnson.

Jury deliberations began shortly before 11:00 a.m.

Johnson is facing six ethics violations alleging that he solicited pictures and messages to women with criminal cases for sexual contact as a public official.

During closing arguments, a critical part of the trial, the prosecution reiterated to the jury how Johnson used his power as a prosecutor and Assistant District Attorney to get favors from women in exchange for helping them.

Hes a prosecutor. He knew what he was doing. He just did a bad job of cleaning up his mess, said Kyle Beckman, state prosecutor with the Alabama Attorney Generals Office.

Multiple women took the stand during the week, claiming Johnson messaged them, and those conversations turned flirtatious, including the women sending him pictures of themselves in risque positions.

Johnsons defense argued that everything in the court system was documented, and there is no proof that Johnson helped these women or assisted them with cases.

Attorneys said all Johnson did was message these women and not use his office for personal gain.

Once closing arguments were wrapped, Johnsons team asked for the charges to be dismissed for the third time during the trial. They claim the state has not provided enough evidence for Johnson to be found guilty.

Monday was dedicated to striking a jury, and on Tuesday, two jurors were excused, and multiple women took the stand, three of which had criminal drug histories and were messaged through Facebook or by phone by Johnson. The prosecution rested Wednesday afternoon.

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Johnathon Ervin, owner of Battle-Tested Strategies, a logistics company that delivered Amazon products, inspects a vehicle at Amazon's Palmdale facility in May 2023. Amazon ended its contract with Battle-Tested Strategies last year, effectively terminating some 80 employees. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)

Workers at a company that delivered packages for Amazon are considered employees of the e-commerce giant, the National Labor Relations Board said Thursday, rejecting Amazon's claim that it is not responsible for the subcontractor's staff.

The finding, issued by a regional director of the NLRB in Los Angeles, determined there was merit to accusations by the delivery workers that Amazon unlawfully refused to recognize their decision to unionize and failed to negotiate with the union over workplace issues. The NLRB also found Amazon had threatened employees, inappropriately required workers to attend meetings meant to disparage union activity, and failed to provide information requested by the union.

The delivery company, Battle-Tested Strategies, operated out of Amazon's DAX8 fulfillment center in Palmdale. The company's owner, Johnathon Ervin, voluntarily recognized the decision by drivers to organize and join a local chapter of the Teamsters union. Amazon ended the company's contract last year, effectively terminating the jobs of the 84 drivers who delivered Amazon packages.

The findings marked a win for Teamsters officials who challenged a stance long held by Amazon, that it does not exercise control over its subcontracted drivers and so bears no legal responsibility for their working conditions. It could open the door to delivery drivers elsewhere unionizing and demanding Amazon come to the bargaining table.

Amazon drivers have taken their future into their own hands and won a monumental determination that makes clear Amazon has a legal obligation to bargain with its drivers over their working conditions, Teamsters General President Sean M. OBrien said in a statement Thursday. This strike has paved the way for every other Amazon worker in the country to demand what they deserve and to get Amazon to the bargaining table.

The NLRB did not find merit to all of the Teamsters' allegations, however. It dismissed, for example, a claim that Amazon's decision to end its contract with Battle-Tested Strategies was retaliatory.

Amazon spokesperson Eileen Hards said the NLRB had dismissed "most of the Teamsters more significant claims."

As they have been for over 15 months, the Teamsters continue to misrepresent what is happening here," Hards said. "As we have said all along, there is no merit to the Teamsters claims. If and when the agency decides it wants to litigate the remaining allegations, we expect they will be dismissed as well.

Since the Battle-Tested Strategies drivers were terminated in June 2023, the Teamsters have held protests at the Palmdale facility as well as at other Amazon warehouses across the country.

In a statement released by the union, Jessie Moreno, a driver in Palmdale, said: Amazon can no longer dodge responsibility for our low wages and dangerous working conditions, and it cannot continue to get away with committing unfair labor practices."

"We are uniting Amazon workers across the country like never before," Moreno said.

The NLRB's finding represents a first step in the board's process for litigating allegations of wrongdoing and comes after an investigation into the workers' claims that Amazon was engaging in unfair labor practices, NLRB spokesperson Kayla Blado said in an email.

Blado said that if Amazon and the Teamsters do not now reach a settlement in the case, the labor agency would issue a formal complaint based on its findings. After that, the case would be heard by an administrative law judge, who could order the company to implement remedies. The judge's decision could then be appealed to the labor board in Washington.

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The victim representing Texas had his wallet and hotel room key stolen - Alex Wroblewski/AFP via Getty Images

A Democratic delegate was robbed at gunpoint while attending the partys convention in Chicago this week, police have said.

Masked gunmen approached a member of the Texan delegation in the early hours of Wednesday, stealing his wallet and hotel room key.

Several other people have been victims of armed robbery during the week of the convention, despite a large police presence in the city.

Police said masked gunmen were roaming the streets in a Range Rover, approaching victims and threatening them with a gun.

There have been concerns about violence on the streets from pro-Palestine activists, who have burned American flags and clashed with police.

Donald Trump, the Republican nominee for Novembers presidential election, used a week of counter-programming during the convention to accuse Kamala Harris of presiding over an increase in crime and illegal migration.

He said she was a police defunder and Marxist prosecutor who would worsen crime and implement dangerously liberal policies if she was elected.

Portrayed as tough on crime

Ms Harris has sought to portray herself as tough on crime, pointing to her record as an elected district attorney in California where she also served as a senator before joining Joe Bidens 2020 Democratic ticket.

Police from across the country were drafted in for this weeks convention, which pro-Palestine demonstrators said they would disrupt with 100,000 activists.

The protests caused larger queues than expected for the first two days but did not disturb the keynote speeches at the citys United Centre.

However, Ms Harris did come under fire from Palestinian Democrats who said they had been blocked from speaking at the convention. Muslim Women for Harris, a campaign group, said it would disband over the decision.

This is a terrible message to send to Democrats, the group said. Palestinians have a right to speak about Palestine.

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Democratic elder and former President Clinton, the 'man from Hope,' calls for a president of 'joy'

He wasnt the headliner, as he had been at so many previous Democratic conventions. He didnt close out the program, as he did twice, as the nominee of the party.

But former President Clinton, speaking for the 12th time at a Democratic convention, still managed to fire up the party faithful with a folksy speech Wednesday night, in which he urged Americans to elect Kamala Harris for the people and [not] the other guy, who has proved even more than the first go-round that he is about me, myself and I.

Kamala Harris will work to solve our problems, seize our opportunities, ease our fears and make sure every single American, however they vote, has a chance to chase their dreams, Clinton said during his 27-minute speech.

Clinton, who turned 78 on Monday, gave his imprimatur to a candidate who was a young deputy district attorney in Alameda County when he won the White House in 1992.

Read more: 'Coach' Tim Walz rallies team at DNC, accepts nomination as vice president

Clinton acknowledged what many Democrats have said this week in Chicago: the renewed sense the party can beat Trump with Harris as its nominee.

"We've got energy. We are happy," Clinton said. "We feel like a load's off our shoulders, and we know we're just being asked to fight the same fight that the forces of progress have had to fight for 250 years."

He began his remarks with a tribute to President Biden, comparing him to George Washington in his willingness to leave the presidency, when each had an opportunity to seek another term. He did something that's really hard for a politician to do, Clinton said. He voluntarily gave up political power.

Former President Carter, 99 and ailing, was unable to attend the convention. That left Clinton as the Democrats elder statesman. And he seemed to relish the role, speaking in the slow, conversational style that he rode to power in the 1990s.

Clinton noted that in her youth Harris worked at McDonalds, where she greeted customers with: How can I help you? Now she's at the pinnacle of power, he said, and she's still asking, 'How can I help you?'

He contrasted that with Trump, who he suggested would dodge what needs to be done by dividing, distracting and diverting us.

He's still dividing, he's still blaming, he's still belittling other people, Clinton said. He creates chaos, and then he sort of curates it, as if it were precious art.

Clinton seemed in no hurry to leave the stage. And he ended on a sentimental note, noting his journey from a town call Hope, Ark., and his long career, including attendance at every Democratic convention since 1972.

I have no idea how many more of these I am going to be able to come to, he said.

Take it from a man who once had the honor to be called in this convention 'a man from Hope, he concluded. We need Kamala Harris, the president of joy, to lead us.

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CHICAGO  In the final moments of the final night of the Democratic National Convention here, Vice President Kamala Harris accepted the nomination for president after a week filled with entertainment, political stars and passionate pleas for the future of the United States.

Harris began the historic night by wishing her husband, Second Gentleman of the United States Doug Emhoff a Happy birthday, Dougie.

The theme of the final night  For Our Future  was planned to showcase how Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, aimed to lead America into a brighter, more hopeful era, organizers said ahead of the night.

The Chicks performed the National Anthem. Pink performed her track, What About Us? with her 13-year-old daughter.

Kamala Harris: For the People

Harris spoke of being raised in the Bay Area by her single mother, Shyamala Gopalan Harris. Harris explained that her mothers family helped raise them up through community, faith and the importance of treating others how you would want to be treated.

This further underlined a story Harris has previously told, about her childhood friend Wanda, whom she learned was being sexually abused by her father. As Harris recalls it, Wandas injustice was what inspired her to pursue law.

Harris explained that from the beginning of her career, she took a vow: Kamala Harris: For the People, and that she still considers only the people her boss.

On behalf of the people, on behalf of every American. on behalf of my mother, on behalf of anyone who has ever set out on their own unlikely journey. On behalf of everyone whose story could only be written in the greatest nation on Earth: I accept your nomination to be President of the United States of America.

Harris vowed to be a president for all Americans, regardless of their political party.

An unserious man

Harris followed up the rousing acceptance by turning to her opponent, former Pres. Donald Trump, whom she dubbed an unserious man whose actions have and will have serious consequences on every American life.

Harris argued that Trump only cares about himself and helping enrich his and their pockets. Additionally she underlined Trumps admiration and warm relationship with Russian Pres. Vladimir Putin, in addition to North Koreas Kim Jong Un.

I will not cozy up to dictators like Kim Jong-un who are rooting for Trump, said Harris. They know Trump wont hold autocrats accountable because he wants to be an autocrat himself.

Fire and warmth

Early speakers in the evening included equality advocate Rev. Al Sharpton, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass), Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa), and U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich). At the top of the nights second hour, Sharpton introduced some of the Central Park Five, a group of Black and Latino men who were wrongly imprisoned as teenagers for a 1989 crime they didnt commit.

45 wanted us unalived, said New York City Council member Dr. Yusef Salaam, representing the Five, pointing to former Pres. Donald Trumps role in pushing for the groups punishment, despite lack of evidence.

Scandal actor Kerry Washington later took the stage to promote individual responsibility through the election cycle. You are the Olivia Popes! she pronounced, referencing her iconic character from the hit ABC show. Washington urged people to, like Pope, take charge of their own power for change and to make sure their families and friends understand whats at stake.

A moment of warmth and levity came when Meena Harris, the vice presidents niece, and Ella Emhoff, the vice presidents stepdaughter took the stage with Helena Hudlin, whose mother introduced Doug Emhoff and Harris. The three joked about Harris detractors who act as if they dont understand how to pronounce Harris first name.

Defend truth, democracy and decency

Former U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, an Illinois Republican, spoke Thursday night, with strong words for his party and its head.

Donald Trump is a weak man pretending to be strong. Hes a small man pretending to be big. A faithless man pretending to be righteous. A perpetrator who cant stop playing the victim, said Kinzinger. He puts on quite a show. But theres no real strength there.

Kinzinger touted Harris record, toughness and kindness in his support for the VP. He urged fellow Republicans to understand that Harris is the right choice, and a way to walk the walk of putting country first. The former representative joked about his inclusion (and welcome) from the Democrats, saying that despite its sometimes awkward vibe, hes proud to defend truth, democracy and decency along with the Democratic Party.

Kinzingers final plea: Vote for Kamala Harris!

Former Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan spoke about working with Harris when the vice president was attorney general of California. Madigan touted Harris work during the Great Recession to protect homeowners from foreclosure.

For as long as I have known her, Kamala Harris has always taken principled positions and never wavered. Thanks to Kamalas determination, countless Americans have a home they can call their own, Madigan said.

The next great chapter

Through her acceptance speech, Harris underlined movement forward, not backward.

In her words of the night, Harris said: Lets get out there and lets fight for it. Lets get out there and lets vote for it. And together, let us write the next great chapter in the most extraordinary story ever told. Thank you. God bless you. May God bless the United States of America.

Thousands who could not attend the event at the United Center attended a watch party at Soldier Field.

Ahead of the nights program, some delegates expressed anger and disappointment over what they said were missing voices on the DNC stage. The pro-Palestinian uncommitted delegates previously said they would put their full support behind the Harris ticket if they could speak during the convention.

The group said the vice presidents campaign and convention organizers said they could not.

Night four of the DNC gave Pro-Palestinian protestors a final opportunity to share their message for a global audience. Thousands of demonstrators brought their call for an end to the United States aid to Israel within view of the United Center arena.

The demonstration was the final march that was scheduled in a week that saw protests. Dozens were arrested as protesters clashed with Chicago police Tuesday night in the West Loop. Additional fencing was added on Tuesday as well after a handful or protesters dismantled the barriers during a march Monday night. City officials said 13 people were arrested in that incident.

On Wednesday, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz accepted his partys nomination for vice president, calling it the honor of my life.

The Nexstar Media Wire and Associated Press contributed.

Thursdays Updates:

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(Bloomberg) -- Kamala Harris campaign strategy for confronting the politically charged issue of the war in Gaza at the Democratic National Convention has been mostly to avoid confronting it at all.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Wary of alienating supporters in key swing states  including progressives and pro-Palestinian voters in Michigan and Minnesota, and Jewish voters in Pennsylvania  Democrats on the conventions main stage have kept mention of the war to a minimum.

Thats despite rising pressure from pro-Palestinian voters who want to see Harris push harder for a cease-fire and to let a Palestinian-American address the crowd Thursday on its final night. So far, the only extended discussion of the war came when the parents of an American-Israeli hostage seized by Hamas spoke to the convention but stuck to calls for their son and the others who were taken to be freed.

The balancing act reflects a broader campaign strategy by Harris, whose team is focused on spurring enthusiasm for her candidacy for now and leaving policy positions for later. Thats included maintaining support for Israel in the Gaza war  the most divisive foreign-policy issue of the moment  while declining to contradict speculation that she might, if elected, put more pressure on Israeli leaders to come to a cease-fire than President Joe Biden has.

This idea that shes going to get out there and somehow renounce one side or the other and make a hard policy decision  no, said Joel Rubin, a former deputy assistant secretary of State and a Democratic political strategist. The Democratic political convention is about mobilizing votes for the nominee, not subtracting them.

Earlier: Harris Doesnt Support Halting Arms Flow to Israel, Aide Says

Before Democrats nominated Harris, the 2024 election looked to be the rare instance in which foreign policy might play a key role. The party was bracing for pro-Palestinian protests in Chicago, scenes they feared would turn off swing state voters and usher in a second term for former President Donald Trump.

Criticism of Bidens handling of the war has garnered so much attention that a group from the Uncommitted Movement, representing more than 730,000 voters who selected or wrote in uncommitted during the presidential primaries, sent 30 delegates  of about 4,700 total  to the convention in Chicago.

Trump and Republicans were eager to play up the internal divisions, accusing Harris of antisemitism for passing over Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro as her vice presidential pick, a notion Shapiro has rejected. The GOP dedicated one of its conventions four nights in Milwaukee to national-security themes and portraying the Biden-Harris administration as undermining US leadership in the world.

But Harris campaign has declined to join that fight, and foreign policy has barely featured at all in the first three nights of the DNC. Harris team has engaged the Uncommitted Movement behind the scenes, hoping that the outreach will appeal to pro-Palestinian voters while publicly pledging continued support for Israel.

We will continue to and have unwaveringly stood with Israel, campaign adviser Brian Nelson told a Bloomberg News roundtable. She will continue to talk about those things, a lot of those communications will come in the form of her day job, the thing that she is doing every day. So Im sure it will be a topic shell have the opportunity to talk about over the course of the campaign.

That strategy threatened to backfire on the final day of the convention, with prominent Democrats and their supporters boosting calls for a Palestinian-American speaker on the conventions main stage in the hours before Harris addresses the crowd in her acceptance speech later Thursday.

They made the demand after the parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was taken hostage in the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas, spoke on Wednesday night and called for peace in the region. His father, Jon Polin, said theres a surplus of agony on all sides of the tragic conflict in the Middle East.

Ocasio-Cortez, UAW

In a social media post after Goldberg-Polins parents spoke, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said the humanity of the 40,000 Palestinians killed under Israeli bombardment must be a focus just as we must honor the humanity of hostages.

In her own speech to the convention on Monday, the progressive lawmaker said Harris is working tirelessly to ensure a cease-fire in Gaza and bringing the hostages home.

Margaret DeReus, the executive director of Middle East Understanding, said that a speaker on the main stage would show that the party takes the issue seriously.

I know that the Uncommitted Movement has given multiple names to the campaign, DeReus said in a phone interview. Frankly, even that would be a gesture, but it would be a more meaningful one and would signal that the campaign takes this issue seriously.

For the time being, the campaign was able to point to signs its strategy might be working. The protests that Democratic leaders worried would disrupt the convention have remained mostly calm. Activist groups had promised that tens of thousands of people would show up outside to protest the war in Gaza and disrupt the event, evoking memories of 1968 when Chicago hosted a convention during the Vietnam war. So far the numbers have been fewer than expected and mostly peaceful.

Inside the hall, some convention-goers walked the floor wearing keffiyehs and holding signs in support of Palestinians, but there have been few disruptions.

Young Democrats said the priority was getting Harris into office, and worrying about the Palestinian question later.

What I was noticing a lot online is there are people who are like  After the election, Im back to protesting, but until then Im coconut-pilled, I will do what I can to stop Trump, said Michelle Amor, a 31-year-old from New York who works with Filipinos for Harris, referring to the Internet meme linked to support for the vice presidents candidacy.

--With assistance from Josh Wingrove, Hadriana Lowenkron, Simone Foxman, Natalia Drozdiak and Akayla Gardner.

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2024 Bloomberg L.P.
Chinese car manufacturers are known for copying European and American products. Therefore, it is hardly a shock to say that the updated Chery Tiggo 7 Sport, which turned out to be a literal clone of the Land Rover, came as a shock.

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According to Car News China, the model will go on sale in September and it has already appeared at dealers. Those who have already seen it unanimously compare the Tiggo 7 Sport to a British luxury SUV.

This similarity is especially noticeable in the front. The mesh grille looks almost like a Land Rover. This is due to the design of the air intake, the narrow bumper and the protective plate. The daytime running lights also look like those of the Range Rover Evoque.

Another feature is that although the model is called Chery Tiggo 7, the Sport version is not very related to other cars with the Tiggo 7 name. The car is much closer to the Chery Tansuo 06, which is known abroad as the Jaecoo J7.

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On both sides, both cars have hidden door handles and they are equipped with roof racks. However, the Tiggo 7 Sport is more oriented towards urban users, while the Tansuo 06 is designed for off-road driving

Inside, both cars are almost identical. Chery Tiggo 7 Sport has a floating dashboard and a large screen infotainment system. In addition, it is equipped with a massive drive selector and pass-through air conditioning.

Details about the powertrain of the Chery Tiggo 7 Sport have not yet been disclosed, but it is expected that the car will be equipped in the same way as the Tansuo 06. This means that it will have a turbocharged 1.6 T engine with a maximum power of 145 kW and torque of up to 290 Nm. The engine is mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. Prices for the new model are expected to be around 100,000 yuan (US$14,000).

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It should be noted that Chery is a joint venture partner of Jaguar Land Rover in China. This may be the reason for such a striking resemblance.

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In the month since President Joe Biden suspended his reelection campaign, Novembers election has become a battle of two warring emotions: that of joy, and that of anger.

Thats become particularly clear this week as Democrats gather in Chicago for the Democratic National Convention, an event that has proven to be more jubilant than anyone might have expected if Biden had remained the nominee.

But with Vice President Kamala Harris taking his place at the top of the ticket, the energy is different. The party feels younger, more optimistic.

Its a marked contrast from Donald Trump and Republicans, whose divisiveness and fearmongering was on full display Wednesday in North Carolina at an appearance in Asheboro.

Trumps speech, which was billed as an address about national security issues, carried an ominous tone that at times felt downright apocalyptic. The former president warned that a Harris victory in November could lead to destruction, ruin, danger and even World War III.

Former President Donald Trump interacts with the crowd at a campaign stop in Asheboro, N.C., Wednesday, August 21, 2024.

For example:

The world is on fire and Kamala and Biden have marched us to the brink of World War III.

Were in grave danger of a war, a third world war  Bad things are gonna start to happen, theyre already starting.

If Comrade Kamala wins this November, World War III is virtually guaranteed to happen. Everything she touches she destroys.

Comrade Kamala is Trumps new name for Harris, even as his allies have been imploring him to swap personal attacks for policy on the campaign trail.

Ive been looking for a name, you know my names, theyve all worked, theyve all been very successful, Trump said. ... I call people names. I call Crazy Nancy Pelosi crazy because she is, shes nuts.

Meanwhile, in Chicago, Democrats are suddenly optimistic and enthusiastic about their electoral future. Even the roll call vote, a typically dull affair, carried a palpable energy. Each state and territory cast its votes to the tune of a song that had meaning to the state, a ritual so enjoyable that it inspired viewers to compile Spotify playlists rounding up each states selection. (North Carolinas votes were delivered with Petey Pablos Raise Up playing in the background, as state party chair Anderson Clayton shouted, We represent a new South!)

Something wonderfully magical is in the air, isnt it? former First Lady Michelle Obama said in her speech Tuesday night.

Were feeling it here in this arena, but its spreading all across this country we love, a familiar feeling thats been buried too deep for too long, she continued. You know what Im talking about. Its the contagious power of hope.

That hope might be the worthiest foe to the politics of fear and hate that Trump has become known for. Trump has achieved his political success by making Americans feel like theyre living in a society on the brink of collapse, and turning that fear into anger directed toward the government and their neighbors. He stayed true to form in North Carolina on Wednesday, making baseless claims about immigration and crime to convince his audience that America is facing a dire threat.

[Immigrants] are coming out of jails and prisons and mental institutions and insane asylums, Trump said. We have hundreds and probably thousands of terrorists in our country.

And: They take all of their gang members, their killers, their murderers and they put them in the United States.

Of course, thats not to say that Democrats havent taken the time to eviscerate Donald Trump on the convention stage. They have, and cleverly so. But for the first time in a long time theyve found a way to make an election about something bigger than anti-Trump anger and panic. That sentiment is still there, and it certainly isnt going away, but its intertwined with optimism and  finally  hope. And as effective as Trumps fiery rhetoric might be, at least among his supporters, this newfound positivity might prove to be even more potent.
In 2016, the Democratic Party became the countrys first major political party to formally call for abolishing the death penalty. The partys platform that year, released in the aftermath of a high-profile botched execution, called the punishment cruel and unusual, arbitrary and unjust, expensive to taxpayers and ineffective in deterring crime. The document also nodded to the people exonerated from death row as evidence of the risk that the government will kill innocent people.

During the 2020 campaign, the Democratic platform reiterated support for abolishing the death penalty. When Joe Biden entered office the following year, he became the first president to publicly oppose capital punishment  a dramatic shift from his time in the Senate, when he once bragged that the sweeping crime bill he was pushing did everything but hang people for jaywalking.

However, as his term winds down, Biden has little to show for the partys promise to abolish capital punishment. On Monday, the Democrats approved their 2024 platform, which includes no mention of the death penalty. This years platform marks the first time since 2004 the platform has not mentioned the death penalty (the 2008 and 2012 platforms called for making the punishment less arbitrary).

Public support for the death penalty has been gradually declining. A Gallup poll last year found that 65% of Democrats oppose the punishment.

The Democratic National Committee did not respond to an email asking if the party still supports abolishing the death penalty.

The outcome of this years presidential election has life-or-death stakes for the people on federal death row. During the last six months of Donald Trumps presidency, his administration executed 13 people, ending a 17-year de facto moratorium on federal executions.

At the time, Bidens campaign website pledged to work with Congress to abolish the federal death penalty and incentivize states to put an end to the practice. Once he entered office, the Justice Department reinstated the execution moratorium and launched a review into death penalty policies and procedures.

But little has come from that review, and the DOJ has continued to fight to maintain existing death sentences. In January, the DOJ announced it would pursue the death penalty against Payton Gendron, who has admitted in state court to killing 10 people in a Buffalo supermarket because they were Black.

For years, death penalty abolition bills in the House and Senate have languished. I wouldnt say that the White House has been actively engaging people to support the bill, Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.), the sponsor of one of the death penalty bills, told HuffPost earlier this year.

Meanwhile, Republicans are gearing up for another execution spree if Trump wins reelection. Project 2025, an 887-page document outlining plans for a second Trump presidency released by a coalition of conservative groups, suggests that Trump execute every remaining prisoner on death row. The document also envisions pursuing the death penalty in cases involving violence and sexual abuse of children. In a footnote, the document notes that this would require convincing the Supreme Court to overrule its previous findings on when the death penalty is appropriate, but that the [Justice] department should place a priority on doing so.

Trump reportedly plans to announce his support for expanding the death penalty to non-homicide crimes.

The campaign for Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris did not respond to an email asking if she would specify her own position on the death penalty.

When Harris became San Franciscos district attorney in 2004, she promised to never charge the death penalty. She upheld that promise, even under pressure to pursue capital punishment for a man accused of killing a police officer. When she ran for California attorney general, she said she would enforce the death penalty as the law dictates. After narrowly defeating her Republican opponent, her office defended use of the death penalty in court.

In addition to dropping any mention of the death penalty, this years Democratic platform noticeably backs away from several criminal justice reforms the party embraced in 2020, when the police killing of George Floyd prompted nationwide protests against police brutality. The criminal justice section of the 2020 platform opens by declaring that the system is failing to keep people safe and deliver justice. It contrasts the promise of America as the land of the free with the reality that the U.S. has the highest rate of incarceration in the world and calls for dramatically reducing the number of people held in prisons and jails.

The 2020 platform includes support for several specific policies that are either absent from the 2024 platform or have been considerably toned down, including: ending life-without-parole sentences for people under 21, banning police from using chokeholds, decriminalizing cannabis, eliminating cash bail and repealing mandatory minimum sentences.

This years platform makes no mention of mass incarceration. Instead, it describes the need to fund the police and touts DOJ funding for more police officers. The platform claims Biden took action to enhance public trust by signing a historic executive order directing federal law enforcement agencies to ban chokeholds unless deadly force is authorized  a move described by civil rights groups as only a first step on police reform.

Much of the criminal justice section focuses on the Biden administrations modest reforms on cannabis. In 2022, Biden pardoned every person convicted of simple marijuana possession under federal law  which did not result in anyone being released from prison. The pardons did not apply to people convicted of selling or distributing marijuana, which accounts for the majority of people with federal cannabis-related convictions. And although the Justice Department has moved to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous category of drug, it has stopped short of legalization.

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The Chicago Department of Buildings issued demolition permits last week for a collection of century-old Southwest Side warehouses that historic preservationists are fighting to save. The property owner, Atlanta-based developer IDI Logistics, has proposed replacing the structures with a single, $44 million modern distribution facility.

Whether the company can fulfill that vision isnt clear. IDI was set to formally present its plan to the Chicago Plan Commission earlier this year, but the presentation was delayed after encountering opposition from Ald. Michael Rodriguez, 22nd, who said he prefers to see manufacturing at the 15.5-acre site, located between Pulaski Road and Keeler Avenue along West Ogden Avenue on the border of the North Lawndale and Little Village neighborhoods.

Typically, the truck traffic is much less with manufacturing and the jobs pay much more, and thats what my residents want, he said.

Rodriguez added that his North Lawndale Economic Development Advisory Committee met more than a dozen times with IDI officials since last year and did not reach an agreement.

Theyve come up with nothing new, he said.

The site, purchased by IDI for more than $16 million in late 2022, includes the Western Felt Works at 4115 W. Ogden Ave., a 1916 Prairie School-style structure, and a pair of buildings one block west designed in 1918 by noted architect Alfred Alschuler for Turner Manufacturing Co. Preservation Chicago selected the buildings earlier this year as among Chicagos most endangered historic structures.

But the buildings are not are not officially designated landmarks, and city officials told Rodriguez the owner has the right to clear the site, he said.

An IDI Logistics spokesperson declined to comment on the dispute.

The companys plan called for a single-story warehouse and distribution building stretching from Pulaski Road to Keeler Avenue, along with 26 loading docks and 271 parking spaces, according to a document filed with the Chicago Plan Commission.

Alschuler also designed the London Guarantee Building, now LondonHouse Chicago, a 1920s-era skyscraper on the south side of the Chicago River at the Michigan Avenue Bridge, and the KAM Isaiah Israel synagogue in the South Sides Kenwood neighborhood. Historic preservationists say the city has already allowed too many buildings by its best architects, including Adler and Sullivans Garrick Theater and the Chicago Stock Exchange, to be demolished, and it would be a shame to lose Alschulers early industrial work, especially if its replaced by a bland warehouse.

So many of these buildings are gone, why are we shortchanging ourselves? said Ward Miller, executive director of Preservation Chicago.

Richard Townsell, a member of the advisory committee and executive director of the Lawndale Christian Development Corp., said he does not have an issue with demolishing the buildings, as long as its done safely and does not fill the air with dust or debris like the botched demolition of a Little Village coal-fired power plant in 2020. But he opposes IDIs future plans.

What the community has said is that they dont want an Amazon-type facility and the pollution that comes with it, he said. I cant imagine I could go to Naperville, and build whatever I want to build, and the people there would have no say about it. Residents and homeowners in North Lawndale should have a say in what happens in their community.

Rodriguez said he will continue to oppose a logistics facility.

Im a pro-labor guy, and I want good, career-oriented jobs in my ward, he said. Thats what were going to fight for.
Man accused of killing Charlotte mother, 2 children will not face death penalty

CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  The State announced on Thursday that it will not seek the death penalty against a man accused of killing a Charlotte mother and her two children.

On March 15, Markayla Johnson, 22, and her two young children, Miracle Johnson, 4, and Messiah Johnson, 7 months, were found dead at an apartment on Orchard Trace Lane in Charlotte after they were reported missing on March 3.

Queen City News is tracking CRIME in your area  >> Latest stories here

Markaylas boyfriend, Benjamin Taylor, was captured hiding in a tent in California near the Mexico border on March 16 after a multi-agency manhunt.

Benjamin Joseph Taylor (Image courtesy of the Mecklenburg County Sheriffs Office)

Photos courtesy of CMPD

Taylor is charged with three counts of first-degree murder and concealing/failing to report death. According to toxicology reports, both children had fentanyl in their systems, which is listed as what led to their deaths. 7-month-old Messiah also tested positive for cocaine and 4-ANPP, a chemical often used to illegally make fentanyl. Two drugs used to sedate, diphenhydramine and melatonin, were also found in the infants system.

Taylors case is due back in court on November 7 for an administrative hearing.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News.
Denmark and Sweden vow to hunt down gang leaders who hire minors to kill from abroad

Sweden's Justice Minister Gunnar Strommer, left, and Denmark's Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard provide information at a press conference in the Ministry of Justice in Copenhagen, Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, about the effort against gang crime. (Thomas Traasdahl/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP)  The Danish and Swedish justice ministers vowed Wednesday to go after organized crime leaders abroad, whom they say have been hiring teenagers in Sweden to carry out deadly shootings in Denmark.

Denmarks Peter Hummelgaard has said that gangs have hired young Swedes to commit crimes in Denmark at least 25 times since April, in part because Swedish law imposes lighter penalties for minors who commit serious crimes.

Several of the people who orchestrate this reckless and violent crime are hiding under warmer skies, and of course this is completely unacceptable, Hummelgaard told a press conference Wednesday after a meeting with his Swedish counterpart Gunnar Strommer in Copenhagen. He said they were often in the greater Middle East but didn't name any specific country.

One of Sweden's two major gangs is led by a Swedish-Turkish dual national who lives in Turkey, which refuses to extradite its own citizens.

Swedish and Danish media say that gang is involved in a deadly feud with one of the main criminal gangs in Denmark  Loyal to Familia which was banned in 2021.

Sweden has grappled with gang violence for years, while in Denmark, police have also seen violence between gangs but on a lesser scale.

Last year, Swedish police noted an increase in the number of teenagers under 18 who were recruited to carry out killings for hire because they do not face the same police controls as adults and are often shielded from prosecution.

Strommer said that Sweden would tighten its laws, noting that minors who are convicted of murder in Sweden are placed in juvenile facilities, while they can face up to 16 years in prison in Denmark.

The two also vowed to crack down on online gang activity, with Strommer saying that leading figures in these criminal networks order murders and bombings totally out in the open online.

Earlier, Hummelgaard has said that solutions could include changing Danish law to allow facial recognition technology, and deploying better software to monitor encrypted messages.
The faces of Pueblo City Councilor Dennis Flores and his late wife Evelyn will soon join those of other exemplary individuals on the famous Latino Lifetime Achievement Recognition Wall inside Colorado State University Pueblo's Occhiato Student Center.

Dennis and Evelyn are recipients of the 17th annual Latino Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Latino Chamber Foundation. Awards are given to those who have made "continuous and selfless contributions" to Pueblo's Hispanic community, according to the Latino Chamber Foundation. Previous recipients include Henry Reyes, Ray Aguilera and Petra McCulley, among others.

This year's ceremony is scheduled to take place in the OSC Ballroom on Sept. 19 at 11:30 a.m. Flores told the Chieftain he was "humbled" and "elated" to hear that he and his late wife were selected to receive lifetime achievement awards, but he said he also would have been happy if Evelyn was the only one to receive the award.

IN MEMORIAM Evelyn Flores Gone 1 Year Today Love Lives On Those we love remain with us for love itself lives on, and cherished memories never fade because a loved one's gone. Those we love can never be more than a thought apart, for as long as there is memory, they'll live on in our hearts. Love You Forever! Dennis, Ryan, Jackie, Shanda, Kordell, Jace and Mila

"She was very, very active in the community and very, very focused in especially helping young people," Flores said. "Not many people know but when she was president of the Pueblo Hispanic Education Foundation, over a three-year period, she raised almost three-quarters of a million dollars. It was amazing."

A Pueblo Figure Skating Club board director and president for several years, Evelyn organized the multi-state Mid-Winter Invitational at the Pueblo Ice Arena in the 1990s, which featured more than 400 figure skaters. She also was an executive secretary to local banks and served as the Pueblo Community College Foundation Coordinator.

"This 5 (foot) tall spitfire of a woman had the presence of being 10 (feet) tall," according to Evelyn's nomination form submitted by Sandy Gutierrez. "When she walked into a room, she commanded the attention and respect of all those present. Evelyn passed on November 9, 2016, and while no longer with us, she left a legacy that our community will benefit for years and even decades to come."

Dennis joined Pueblo's Latino Chamber of Commerce in 1989 as a volunteer membership coordinator. It was the same year that he became a certified insurance agent.

Joining the Latino Chamber with an interest in assisting the business community, Flores told the Chieftain the Latino Chamber is where he "got the bug" for civic life.

Dennis Flores celebrates with grandson Jace Flores, daughter Jacque Flores and grandaughter Mila Medina after early voting results gave him a lead in the 2017 Pueblo City Council race.

While president of the Latino Chamber in 1991, Dennis helped increase membership from about 30 to 60 members. Membership increases allowed the Latino Chamber to hire Andrea Aragon as its first full-time director and purchase its current building at 215 S. Victoria Ave.

Flores later served on the Pueblo School District 60 board from 1993 to 2001, was appointed to the CSU Board of Governors in 2011, retired in 2013 from a 42-year career in insurance and briefly filled a Pueblo City Council vacancy in 2014. After taking time off to care for Evelyn, Flores returned to city politics with a 2017 election to council.

"Both Evelyn and Dennis were the impetus behind the Latino Lifetime Achievement recognition after nominating Henry Reyes for the Pueblo Community College Hall of Fame," according to Dennis' nomination form submitted by Gutierrez. "When they were notified that he was not selected, it was in that moment that they knew something had to be done to recognize local Hispanics for their contributions to our community."

Tickets for the Sept. 19 Latino Lifetime Achievement Awards ceremony are $50 for individuals. There's also options to purchase 10-guest tables and sponsorships. Tickets are available at bit.ly/17thlifetimeachievement or by contacting the Pueblo Latino Chamber of Commerce at 719-452-5513.

Pueblo Wings of Pride Air Show: US Air Force Thunderbirds to headline Pueblo Wings of Pride Air Show in September 2025

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: Pueblo's Dennis and Evelyn Flores receive lifetime achievement awards
DENVER (KDVR)  The Denver district attorney plans to drop all charges against a man who was accused in a road rage homicide on Interstate 25 that left two dead.

Stephan Long was facing one count of first-degree murder in the June 2023 death of Damon Lucas. Brothers Damon and Blake Lucas both died, but the murder charge in Blakes death was previously dropped.

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On Wednesday, Denver District Attorney Beth McCann said her office would be asking the court to dismiss the charges against him.

After a careful and comprehensive review of all the evidence in the case  which included numerous consultations with members of my office  and after applying Colorado law to the evidence, I have concluded that we could not prove Mr. Longs guilt to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt, McCann in a statement provided to FOX31. The evidence establishes a strong and valid self-defense claim pursuant to Colorado law. As a result, we will ask the court to dismiss the remaining charges against Mr. Long. This was an extremely difficult and heart-wrenching decision but, ultimately, in my opinion, the correct one.

People with signs including one that says "Justice for Stephan Long"

Police said the brothers and Long were stopped under West 6th Avenue on I-25 when the brothers approached Longs car, and Long opened fire.

In May, family and advocates of Long gathered at the Denver County courthouse to petition for the charge to be dropped. Hundreds of letters were sent to the court from council members, politicians and advocates, along with friends of Longs, calling for the charge to be dropped.

Longs family released a statement to FOX31 on Wednesday evening.

We kindly ask for privacy tonight as we take this time to be with our family and cherish this moment of freedom, the family said.

Longs mother, Stephanie Clifton, said in May that she feels the attack was unprovoked and that her son was acting in self-defense.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver.
Due to international sanctions, large Russian industrial enterprises will be forced to stop production in a few months. Even Russia's biggest ally, China, has refused to save companies from bankruptcy.

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According to the Russian media, this is stated in a collective letter to the Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation Anton Alikhanov from 20 large industrial companies. They include representatives of the automotive and construction industries and manufacturers of household appliances.

In particular, we are talking about polymethylene polyphenylene isocyanate (PPI)  these substances are used in the production of assembly foams, sealants, self-leveling floors, pipes, refrigerator components, and auto parts. The Russian economy was completely dependent on imports of PPI, and there is no substitute for it in most applications.

Due to the 14th package of sanctions imposed by the European Union in response to Russia's full-scale aggression against Ukraine, the supply of this substance has stopped. It is no longer shipped not only by suppliers from the "hostile" United States, Europe, and Japan but also from "friendly" China  earlier, Wanhua Chemical Group, the largest producer of PPI in the country, announced a complete halt to supplies to Russia.

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Russia tried in vain to negotiate supplies with the Saudi company Sadara Chemical. Even though Saudi Arabia has not joined the sanctions regime against Russia, the company has not confirmed the possibility of shipments to Russia.

The situation for the Russians is complicated by the fact that PPI has a very limited shelf life, so importers cannot stockpile this component. The existing stocks will last only two months, and the possibilities to set up gray schemes are very limited.

"This decision has come as a shock to the industry, as given the limited inventory of market participants and the limited shelf life of PPI, maintaining this situation over the next few months will entail risks of shutdown and bankruptcy of existing production facilities," the letter says. Local experts confirm this and say that the market has already started to panic because of what is happening.

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It is worth noting that the Russian Federation has been trying to establish its own PPI production for 10 years  this item was included in the industrial development program back in 2014. As of 2024, not a single full-fledged plant has been built in the country, and the PPI that is still produced in Russia is unsuitable for use in household appliances.

Against this backdrop, representatives of industrial companies are asking the Russian government to urgently resolve the issue with China to resume accepting orders for PPI and to help reach an agreement with Saudi Arabia. They also emphasize the need to resolve the problems with making payments for MDI in Chinese banks.

Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
DENVER (KDVR)  A man was arrested Wednesday when deputies caught him in the act loading allegedly stolen cases of energy drinks into a car.

The Douglas County Sheriffs Office said deputies responded to a Target store in Highlands Ranch after a report of a man leaving the store with a cart full of stolen detergent.

Why the Denvers City and County building will light up blue on Wednesday

The sheriffs office said the suspect left the area before he could load the items in his car.

However, it wasnt long before deputies spotted the suspects car at a King Soopers store nearby. There, the sheriffs office said the suspect stole several cases of energy drinks and was literally loading them into his trunk when we contacted him.

A man was arrested Wednesday when deputies said they caught him in the act loading allegedly stolen energy drink cases into his car. (Douglas County Sheriffs Office)

A man was arrested Wednesday when deputies said they caught him in the act loading allegedly stolen energy drink cases into his car. (Douglas County Sheriffs Office)

A man was arrested Wednesday when deputies said they caught him in the act loading allegedly stolen energy drink cases into his car. (Douglas County Sheriffs Office)

A man was arrested Wednesday when deputies said they caught him in the act loading allegedly stolen energy drink cases into his car. (Douglas County Sheriffs Office)

The suspect, identified as a 52-year-old man from Federal Heights, was arrested and booked on several theft charges as well as a warrant from another jurisdiction, the sheriffs office said.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver.
A Blaine man has been arrested, accused of trying to murder someone, but had a change of heart, and drove them to the hospital, according to the Whatcom County Sheriffs Office.

Bellingham Police officers were called to PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center around 3:40 a.m. Tuesday.

Hospital staff were trying to detain 43-year-old Clayton Dubois after he dropped off a bloodied person and tried to leave, according to the sheriffs office.

Dubois reportedly admitted to Bellingham Police that he had consumed alcohol and drugs and was arrested for driving under the influence.

When questioned about his bloody passenger, the sheriffs office said Dubois told police he assaulted the person with the intent to kill them but changed his mind.

The victim was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center for treatment.

Whatcom County deputies searched the Blaine address where Dubois said he attacked the person and found evidence of a serious assault. They also found a gun safe with two guns inside.

Deputies said Dubois is a felon and is not allowed to have firearms.

He is being held at the Whatcom County Jail on charges of second-degree attempted murder (domestic violence) and two counts of second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm in addition to suspicion of driving under the influence.
CLARENDON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD)  Authorities say a small plane made an emergency landing in a cornfield in Calhoun County.

The Calhoun County Sheriffs Office said it happened around 10:30 a.m. Wednesday on R Drive between 21 Mile and 22 Mile roads in Clarendon Township.

The plane, a 1958 Mooney aircraft, made the emergency landing due to engine failure, according to the sheriffs office.

The pilot, a 54-year-old man from Moab, Utah, told deputies he had already purchased the aircraft in the Grand Rapids area and was on his way to an airfield in Ohio when the engine failed. He was not injured, the sheriffs office said.

The Federal Aviation Administration will be investigating the crash.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com.
DES MOINES, Iowa  The Des Moines Police Department is investigating a shooting that may have been the result of a road rage incident Wednesday night.

DMPD investigating motorcycle crash that injured two

According to a DMPD X post, the shooting occurred near the intersection of 2nd Avenue and University Avenue. Police said there were no injuries, but the victims vehicle did sustain damage.

Theres no indication of any danger to the neighborhood, police said. An investigation into the shooting is ongoing.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to who13.com.
DeSantis awards $5.8M to Space Coast Regional Airport to help with infrastructure projects

A new infrastructure project aimed at making access to the space industry easier is underway in Titusville.

What infrastructure do we need particularly, in this area, to continue to make this part of Florida the #1 place for space anywhere in the entire world, Governor Ron DeSantis said.

Theres no better place to launch than right here in Brevard County anywhere in the United States.

Today, Governor DeSantis awarded $5.8 million from Floridas job growth grant fund to the Space Coast Regional Airport.

The funds will help build roadways connecting the facility to Space Coast Innovation Park.

Read: An engineering marvel: Brevard Public Schools celebrates opening of new Marine-Science lab

The 450-acre industrial park will sit on the west side of the airport and is a project aimed at supporting launch activities.

As part of their phased and planned development, Space Coast Innovation Park will be constructing 5-7 buildings, state of the art industrial class A facilities, for new aerospace companies right here in North Brevard, Kevin Daugherty, the Director of Airports & Spaceport at Titusville-Cocoa Airport Authority, said.

The road, named Challenger Avenue Extension, will connect Tico Road to Grissom Parkway.

Read: Floridians balk at DeSantis administration plan to build golf courses at state parks

DeSantis said the grant will benefit the park, as well as those who want to bring their business to Brevard County.

It will produce jobs, it will produce positive revenue for both the local community and the State of Florida, DeSantis said.

The project is expected to begin sometime next year and will take about 12 months to complete.

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TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  Governor Ron DeSantis announced a $5.8 million investment for roadways, connecting the Space Coast Regional Park and the Space Coast airport.

The funding will given to the Titusville-Coca Airport Auhtority through the Florida Job Growth Grant Fund. It will help expand business opportunities, producing an additional 900 jobs.

Facial recognition software leads to arrest at Tampa International Airport

The governor spoke this morning alongside the Florida Department of Transportation Secretary, Jared Perdue. Lieutenant Governor Jeanette Nunez also joined DeSantis in the press conference, held at Valiant Air Command, Inc. Warbird Museum in Titusville.

It will produce jobs, it will produce revenue, DeSantis said.

The $5.8 million will fund the 3,200-foot roadway in a three-phase development project. According to DeSantis office, the Space Coast Innovation Park will accommodate up to seven commercial buildings, totaling 1.4 million square feet of industrial space.

Desantis discussed the I-4 road expansions and the investments for transportation. He also touched on state income tax, investing in education, and reducing debt.

Florida is the space capital of the country, DeSantis said. Titusville and the surrounding communities will benefit from these high-demand, high-wage jobs that will contribute to a stronger economy for families along the Space Coast.

Family Elder Law closure leaves clients and families shocked, concerned

Nunez said Floridas economy is receiving $1.1 billion for development projects, with a potential value of $4 billion.

Theres a reason so many companies are coming to Florida, Nunez added.

FDOT Secretary Jared Perdue said the space coast is on track for 100 launches this year, continuing the infrastructure investment to grow Floridas economy.

Since 2019, $1.8 billion has been allotted for Floridas economic growth.

Under the Governors leadership, Florida continues to make strategic, targeted investments in aerospace and aviation sectors across our state, Secretary of Commerce J. Alex Kelly, said. Todays award is a great example of how such strategic support helps those sectors get a foothold in communities that have a vision for creating a modern, high-wage, high-demand ecosystem.

WFLA live streamed the event, which can be viewed in the video player above.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA.
Detectives from the Snohomish County Sheriffs Office are investigating the suspicious death of a woman found in Lake Stevens on Monday evening.

Deputies responded around 8 p.m. to reports of a possible death in the 11800 block of 84th Street Northeast, where they discovered the deceased woman.

Given the suspicious nature of the situation, the deputies requested assistance from the Major Crimes Unit (MCU), which has since taken over the investigation.

The Snohomish County Medical Examiner will be responsible for positively identifying the victim and determining the cause and manner of death.

The investigation is ongoing, and no further details have been released.
Just days after the father of Gov. Kevin Stitt and supporters of a boy in the custody of the Oklahoma Department of Human Services held a news conference in Tulsa to criticize the agency, the governor called its executive director into a meeting.

The next day, which was Tuesday, DHS Executive Director Dr. Deborah Shropshire abruptly resigned her post.

The Tulsa protest included the family and friends of 12-year-old Clayton Woolley, the Rev. John Stitt  the governor's father  and two state lawmakers. The gathering was highlighted by calls by the elder Stitt to reform DHS and remove Woolley from the foster family he is currently living with.

Shropshire's announcement caught many state and DHS officials off guard. In a brief resignation letter, she gave no indication of why she was leaving but, instead, praised the agency. Stitt's office has, so far, declined to say whether the Woolley case and his father's concern with it had anything to do with Shropshire's resignation.

Dr. Deborah Shropshire, executive director of Oklahoma Human Services, resigned her post on Tuesday

Previously Stitt had said Shropshire was "a stand up Oklahoman with a heart for servant leadership and a proven track record of success at Oklahoma Human Services."

After the meeting with Stitt on Monday, Shropshire announced her resignation in a short, two-paragraph letter to the governor. Shropshire is also stepping aside as Stitt's chief adviser, according to the governor's spokesperson, Abegail Cave.

"I'm writing this letter to let you know that I'm resigning from my position as Agency Director Oklahoma Human Services effective 9/12/2024," Shropshire wrote. "It has been an incredible honor to serve in this capacity. I fell in love with the team at Oklahoma Human Services more than two decades ago, and having the opportunity to lead them over the last couple of years has been a great pleasure."

More: Deborah Shropshire out as state Human Services chief; resignation follows meeting with governor

Stitt's office has remained quiet about the departure. Emails from The Oklahoman to the governor's communications staff were not answered, nor were telephone calls to the governor's father. Others involved in the protest against DHS have not returned telephone calls seeking comment.

Shropshire previously had served as the agency's director of Child Welfare Services. She was the first woman in state history to serve as DHS director when appointed to the post on Jan. 10, 2023. Shropshire will leave her post on Sept. 13.

What Gov. Kevin Stitt's father said at protest in support of Woolley family

Stitt's father told the Tulsa World he became interested in the Woolley case about four years ago. He told the crowd at the protest that after meeting and visiting with the Woolleys, he believed them to be in the top 10% of those that call themselves Christians.

Woolley's older brother, Gabriel, is running for office. He is currently locked in a primary runoff battle for House District 98. Ethics commission reports show that John Stitt is listed as a financial contributor to Woolley.

The case involving Clayton Woolley, has been ongoing since 2018, after his 1-year-old brother, Elijah, died. Not long after his brother's death, Clayton was removed from the home of his maternal grandparents, Lisa Wooley and William 'Bill' Woolley.

Prosecutors in Wagoner County charged the couple with murder and sex-abuse. Two years later, those charges were dropped, the Tulsa World reported, after defense attorneys cited the statute of limitations and an external review of evidence that concluded the boy died from sudden infant death syndrome.

Since then, the family has protested DHS' actions in the case and asked that Clayton be placed in an approved therapeutic foster home with the goal of reuniting him with his grandparents or an aunt.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma DHS chief resigned days after Clayton Woolley protest
Did Alleged Ketamine Queen Charged in Matthew Perry's Death Refer to Him by Code Name 'Chandler?'

Prosecutors allege Jasveen Sangha referred to Perry by the name of one of his TV characters

Matthew Eisman/Getty Matthew Perry

One of the suspects indicted in connection with the death of Matthew Perry allegedly referred to the actor by the name of one the characters he played on TV.

The revelation is found in the plea agreement of Erik Fleming, an acquaintance of Perrys who pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death.

Perry, who famously played Chandler on Friends, died from acute effects of ketamine at his home on Oct. 28, 2023, at age 54.

In the agreement, federal prosecutors allege that co-defendant Jasveen Sangha, dubbed The Ketamine Queen by prosecutors, referred to Perry using a name of a well-known character that [Perry] portrayed in a television series.

NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Matthew Perry

The agreement does not specify which name Sangha allegedly used for Perry, and a spokesperson for the Department of Justice did not immediately respond to a request for clarification.

Related: Prosecutors Call Her the 'Ketamine Queen': All About Woman at Center of Matthew Perry Death Case

Fleming and Sangha are two of five defendants charged in connection with Perrys death. While Fleming has pleaded guilty, Sangha has not.

Prosecutors accuse Sangha of having distributed the ketamine that caused Perry's death. She faces a slew of charges related to drug distribution and could potentially face life in prison.

In his plea agreement, Fleming said he purchased ketamine from Sangha and distributed it to Kenneth Iwamasa, the Friends stars live-in assistant who admitted to injecting Perry with the drug. Iwamasa has also pleaded guilty to a felony charge related to his role in Perrys death.

After Perrys death, Sangha allegedly texted Fleming, telling him: Delete all our messages.

Two other defendants, Salvador Plasencia and Mark Chavez  both doctors  were also charged with ketamine distribution-related charges in connection with the actor's death. Chavez is expected to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine.

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At a press conference announcing the charges, United States Attorney Martin Estrada alleged that the defendants took advantage of Perry, who has long struggled with addiction.

These defendants cared more about profiting off of Mr. Perry than caring for his well-being, Estrada said in a statement. Drug dealers selling dangerous substances are gambling with other peoples lives over greed. This case, along with our many other prosecutions of drug-dealers who cause death, send a clear message that we will hold drug-dealers accountable for the deaths they cause.

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP

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A Facebook reel thats been shared more than 4,500 times claims that Kamala Harris wants to confiscate patents owned by individuals and companies for their products, and includes a video snippet that shows Harris saying, I will snatch their patent, so that we will take over.

The video is genuine: It was taken from C-SPAN coverage of a Harris event during the now-vice presidents 2020 Democratic primary bid. But the clip is truncated to exclude critical context. Then-Sen. Harris was referring specifically to the potential for seizing some pharmaceutical patents in limited circumstances in an effort to implement price controls for specific drugs.

The video snippet comes from a November 2019 Harris campaign rally in Muscatine, Iowa, where Harris spent one hour at a local brewery talking and taking questions from voters. At one point, Harris responds to a supporter to explain her plan to lower the cost of insulin prescriptions. Essentially what were going to do is set drug prices so that American consumers are charged a price for drugs that is the average price that is being charged around the globe, Harris said. For any drug where they fail to play by our rulesand if that drug came about because of federal funding for what is called R&D, research and developmentI will snatch their patent so that we will take over.

While the government does not have the ability to seize privately owned patents for itself per se, certain conditionsincluding projects developed with the help of federal fundspermit the government to license the patent to a different entity. The Biden-Harris Administration believes taxpayer-funded drugs and other taxpayer-funded inventions should be available and affordable to the public, the White House said in a statement from December 2023. When an invention is made using taxpayer funds, under certain circumstances march-in authority under the Bayh-Dole Act enables the federal government to license the invention to another party.

What is the Bayh-Doyle Actthe law from which the White House derived its march-in authority to distribute patent licensing rights to other groups? As Megan Stewart previously explained in The Dispatch

It allowed the private sector to retain patents for innovations that received federal funding. These recipientswhich include businesses, universities, and nonprofitshad to abide by certain stipulations. Among them, the government retained its right to march-in if a product was not being offered to the market on reasonable terms. Bayh-Dole sought to encourage small business innovation and increase competition. However, it never addressed the government enforcing reasonable prices, and Sens. Birch Bayh and Bob Dole stated in 2002 that reasonable terms was not a euphemism for price controls. Instead, they emphasized the need for price competition.

However, the Biden-Harris administration has sought to change this. In December 2023, the White House proposed a revised rule that would allow the government to invoke its patent march-in authority on the sole basis of pricing, including as a mechanism to enforce price controls for drug products developed with the use of federal funding.

Harris did not outline any other scenarios in which she supported patent confiscation, and mentioned the proposal only within the context of enforcing price controls for American drug consumers.

Harris has moderated or walked back several positions she took during her 2020 run for the Democratic nomination, including her opposition to fracking and support for Medicare for All, but whether she still advocates to use patent forfeiture as a means to control prices is unclear. Last week, Harris issued a statement about lowering prescription drug prices through the Medicare price negotiation program but made no mention of patent confiscation.

The Dispatch Fact Check has reached out to both the vice presidents press office and her campaign requesting a comment. We will update the piece if we receive a response.

If you have a claim you would like to see us fact check, please send us an email at factcheck@thedispatch.com. If you would like to suggest a correction to this piece or any other Dispatch article, please email corrections@thedispatch.com.

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Russian dictator Vladimir Putin complained to the IAEA that the Ukrainian Armed Forces allegedly "tried to strike" the Kursk nuclear power plant. After that, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, said he was "very concerned" about the fighting in the Kursk region.

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Grossi also announced his visit to the Kursk NPP. He said this in an interview with the Financial Times.

According to the IAEA director, he intends to visit the Kursk nuclear power plant next week. He added that he was going to the plant "at the invitation of the Russian authorities".

The head of the agency said that he intends to talk to the managers of the nuclear power plant and assess the condition of the external power supply and access roads. In addition, the IAEA director said that he intends to collect "any evidence that the nuclear power plant was attacked."

At the same time, during the interview, Mr. Grossi said that the nuclear power plant is now within artillery range of the Ukrainian army. However, the IAEA director did not comment on the Russian dictator's words about the alleged attempts of the Ukrainian army to attack the plant.

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"Kursk NPP is technically within the artillery range of Ukrainian positions. And since there is fighting, I am very concerned," the IAEA director said.

Grossi said that the proximity of the Kursk NPP to the fighting is of "particular concern" because the plant has two RBMK reactors, similar to those used at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi said in an interview with Bloomberg that after visiting the Kursk NPP, he would travel to Kyiv and meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

It is worth noting that the Kursk NPP has six power units of two different types of reactors: two of them are RBMK-1000 type and are in a state of shutdown. Two more are operating normally, and two more VVER-510 reactors are under construction.

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As a reminder, Russian troops are trying to "feel" the direction of the main attack of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Kursk region. In particular, the Russians were afraid that the Ukrainian Armed Forces could seize the Kursk NPP in the city of Kurchatov.

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
What Did Oprah Say In Her Surprise DNC Speech? | Photo: Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Oprah Winfrey, making a surprise appearance at the Democratic National Convention Wednesday night, delivered a fiery speech that drew cheers as she urged independent and undecided voters to support Vice President Kamala Harris.

Oprah Winfrey took aim at Trump without mentioning his name.

What were going to do is elect Kamala Harris as the next president of the United States, Winfrey, 70, told a packed audience at Chicagos United Center.

The legendary talk show host received the loudest reception of the night, urging viewers and Democrats to vote according to their values in the upcoming presidential election. Her address echoed the sentiments of Michelle Obama and former President Barack Obamas speeches on Monday, highlighting the stark contrast in leadership between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump, Variety reported.

People who would have you believe that books are dangerous and assault rifles are safe, she said. That theres a right way to worship and a wrong way to love.

Oprah Winfreys full remarks endorsing Kamala Harris: Lets choose common sense over nonsense pic.twitter.com/hXrIlB95Ym  Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) August 22, 2024

She also made references to JD Vance.

Although Winfrey did not mention Trump by name, she made several references to him and his running mate, JD Vance, cautioning against political figures who seek to first to divide and then to conquer, she said. When we stand together it is impossible to conquer us.

ABC News reported that Winfrey also brought up Vances past criticism of women without children, calling them childless cat ladies.

Despite what some would have you think we are not so different from our neighbors, she said. When a house is on fire, we dont ask about a homeowners race or religion. We dont wonder who their partner is or how they voted. No, we just try to do the best we can to save them. And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady, well, we try to get that cat out too.

Who is Tessie Prevost Williams, who Oprah paid homage to in her speech?

Winfrey also paid homage to Tessie Prevost Williams, one of the four Black girls who helped integrate New Orleans public schools in 1960. Williams, who died July 6, was linked to Harris by Winfrey, who noted that Williams paved the way for another young girl who, nine years later, became part of the second class to integrate the public schools in Berkeley, California.

Oprah is a registered independent.

While some Americans remain undecided, Winfrey also had a message for them.

Youre looking at a registered independent who is proud to vote again and again and again because Im a proud America and thats what Americans do, she said, noting Trumps recent comments to his evangelical Christian base, suggesting that they do not need to vote again. Values and character matter most of all in leadership and in life. Decency and respect are on the ballot in 2024.

Winfrey had the crowd on its feet as she emphasized the importance of moving forward with hope for a better tomorrow.

We wont go back. We wont be set back, pushed back, bullied back, kicked back. Were not going back! Winfrey exclaimed as the crowd chanted, Were not going back!
HENDERSON, Ky. (WEHT)  The Small Business Administration and the Indiana Department of Homeland Security are teaming up to run a Disaster Loan Outreach Center in Warrick County.

On Monday the center will open to assist residents in filing claims and answering questions regarding potential assistance to recover from damages.

Businesses and residents in Warrick County and neighboring counties may qualify for low interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration. These loans are for those effected by the July 30 storms in Indiana.

Disaster Loan Outreach Center will be opened Monday from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m..

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Eyewitness News (WEHT/WTVW).
(From left) Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor; Philip IV of Spain; and Charles II, the last of the Spanish Habsburg kings, all have the Habsburg jawline. Public Domain/HowStuffWorks

If you thought that obsessive royal-watching was a pastime established during the days of Princess Diana, you'd be wrong. As long as there have been people who wear crowns, regular folks have loved speculating, gossiping and paying close attention to every move those monarchs make.

Few royal families have drawn more attention than the Habsburgs, who ruled a vast European empire for centuries and sported the distinctive Habsburg jaw.

Before we get into the Habsburg jaw and what caused it, let's explore the family tree and how the Habsburg dynasty came to power.

Who Were the Habsburgs?

The Habsburgs (spelling it Hapsburg is an Americanization) were one of the most successful ruling families in all of Europe, wielding power in a big way from the 13th century to 1918.

At one time, the monarchy's vast empire included Austria, Hungary, Bohemia, Slovenia, Slovakia and Croatia, as well as large parts of Poland, Romania and Italy.

Early Risers

The royal family began its ascent to power in 1273, when Rudolf I became the Roman German king. Ottokar II Premysl, who was the king of Bohemia, refused to recognize Rudolf, which sparked a royal rivalry.

Ottokar became king of Austria, but when he was killed in battle, Rudolf moved in and granted land to his sons.

Expanding via Marriage

The Habsburgs' family members spent the next hundred years or so empire building. They took over the Tyrol, a region in the Alps shared by Austria and Northern Italy, in 1363.

Things really took off in the 1500s, when future emperor Maximilian married Charles the Bold's daughter Mary, uniting two European royal families and gaining control of the desirable Burgundy region. This elevated the family to A-list royal status.

Widespread Power

The Habsburgs came into their full regal power in the 1600s and enjoyed its fruits through the early 1700s. The Habsburg royal clan included:

Leopold Wilhelm, an emperor, bishop and patron of the arts

Reformer Joseph I, whose motto was "by love and fear"

Charles VI, who took the Spanish throne and set up his daughter to take the crown

Rudolf II, who decided to live in Prague, where he promoted science and art.

It was during this era that royal watchers noticed a striking similarity in the jawline of several members of the family tree, and dubbed it the Habsburg jaw.

What Is the Habsburg Jaw?

Habsburgs  including Joseph I, Charles I of Spain, Leopold Wilhelm and King Charles II  were known for having a very prominent lower jaw.

According to a 1988 article in the Journal of Medical Genetics, nine successive generations of the Habsburg dynasty had this pronounced lower jawline along with recessed upper jaw, so it started to be commonly known as the Habsburg jaw.

Medical Implications

The medical term for this kind of jaw is mandibular prognathism, which is when the jaw juts so far forward that it causes an extreme underbite. It doesn't just change the shape of the face; the teeth don't line up as they should.

Researchers believe the Habsburgs also had a mandibular deficiency, which is a pattern of abnormalities, including skeletal, neuromuscular, occlusal and esthetic conditions that can affect a person's speech and their ability to eat.

Describing Charles II

In his book "Spain Under Charles the Second," Alexander Stanhope, an 18th-century British envoy, wrote of 35-year-old Charles II:

"[He] has a ravenous stomach, and swallows all he eats whole, for his nether jaw stands so much out, that his two rows of teeth cannot meet; to compensate which, he has a prodigious wide throat so that a gizzard or liver of a hen passes down whole, and his weak stomach not being able to digest it, he voids in the same manner."

Not Just for Men

The trait showed up more often in Habsburg men, though it affected female Habsburgs too, including Mariana of Austria, who was the queen of the Spanish monarchy.

Sisters (from left) Anne Marie de Orleans, queen of Sardinia, and Maria Luisa de Orleans, queen of Spain also had the Habsburg chin, though it's not quite as prominent as it was in the males. Public Domain/HowStuffWorks

Spanish painter Jose Garcia Hidalgo immortalized royal sisters Maria Luisa de Orleans, queen of Spain, and sister Anne Marie de Orleans, queen of Sardinia. The Habsburg family jaw is unmistakable in the portraits.

What Caused the Habsburg Jaw?

Modern researchers now know that the Habsburg jaw was a result of royal inbreeding, which is when close relatives have children together. A team led by genetics researcher Roman Vilas from the University of Santiago de Compostela in Spain confirmed this in late 2019 in a study published in the journal Annals of Human Biology.

Profiling for Research

They analyzed portraits from 66 members of the Habsburg clan, zeroing in on 15 monarchs who had the family's pronounced jawline and underbite.

The team found 18 different abnormalities in the Habsburgs' faces, and used the portraits to calculate the degree to which different members of the Habsburg dynasty were inbred.

The researchers found that Habsburgs had both mandibular prognathism and mandibular deficiency. The effects of intermarriage caused deformities that followed a recessive pattern and showed up in the lower third of the face.

Scientific Arguments Against Inbreeding

Most societies have long held taboos against incest and inbreeding. These prohibitions often are morally based, but we now know there are vital scientific reasons why inbreeding between first cousins or siblings is a bad idea, says Montgomery Slatkin, a retired genetics professor from University of California, Berkeley.

Each of us has two copies of each chromosome. In order for a recessive trait, like blue eyes or Type O blood to show up, a person needs homozygous alleles. That means you need two sets of chromosomes that both carry the same recessive trait.

"Any condition that's recessive, meaning you need both copies of the allele to have the physical defect, are much more common among inbred children than it is among people who are not inbred," Slatkin says. "It's hundreds of thousands times more common."

When you have children with someone who's not closely related to you, usually most of your genes will be heterozygous, which means they carry different traits. When cousins marry, it raises the odds of similar genetic background  and birth defects.

In the Name of Politics

Royals in the Habsburg era tended to ignore the proscriptions against consanguineous marriages and incest, because they were kings and queens after all. They wanted to consolidate power and property, keeping it in the family.

Unfortunately that intensified familial genetic disorders and flaws too, to the point that Charles II suffered with many maladies like mandibular prognathism.

Now That's Interesting



There are still plenty of descendants of the Habsburg family alive today. A prominent family member is Karl von Habsburg, also known as the Archduke of Austria and the leader of the Habsburg-Lorraine family. The 59-year-old does not have the Habsburg jaw. But he made a splash in March 2020 when he revealed to Hello! that he was the first royal to be diagnosed with COVID-19. Fortunately, it was a mild case that he said felt like the flu.

Original article: Distinctive 'Habsburg Jaw' Came From Centuries of Inbreeding

Copyright  2024 HowStuffWorks, a division of InfoSpace Holdings, LLC, a System1 Company
Disturbance leads to shots fired near McLane High, deputies say. It started near AutoZone

A disturbance Wednesday afternoon led to shots fired near McLane High.

The shots fired were near an AutoZone store at Clinton and Cedar avenues around 3:40 p.m.

Deputies arrived and found no gunshot victims, spokesman Tony Botti said.

Deputies learned there was a disturbance between a large group of students that attend McLane.

A gun was pulled out and several shots were fired, causing everyone to run away.

Bullets struck a parked vehicle and a building, Botti said.

Witnesses helped deputies by giving them descriptions of the people involved, including the gunman.

About 30 minutes after the shooting, deputies detained a person matching the description of the gunman, Botti said.

Deputies are working closely with Fresno Polices School Resource Officer at McLane to learn more about the people involved and what may have led to the initial argument.

Anyone with information or video or photos is asked to contact the Sheriffs Office at 559-600-3111.
Rescue divers are on the hunt for six people potentially trapped when the boat sank on Monday - ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP

Divers are searching for the missing daughter of Mike Lynch after it was suggested that she may not be inside the sunken superyacht.

Specialist cave divers are continuing their search for 18-year-old Hannah Lynch, the last person remaining unaccounted for after the Bayesian sank on Monday.

Jonathan Bloomer, the chairman of Morgan Stanley International bank, and his wife Judy, along with Chris Morvillo, a lawyer at Clifford Chance, and his wife Neda, are also thought to be among the dead.

The group had been invited onboard to celebrate Mr Lynchs court victory, after he was acquitted of fraud in San Francisco. His body is believed to be among the five recovered.

Firefighters and the Italian coastguard continue their operations at the site of the sinking - Shutterstock

Massimo Mariani, an interior ministry official, said Hannah Lynch may still be inside the ship, which lies 165ft underwater, or could have been thrown into the sea when it sank.

On Wednesday, the Italian authorities had said they believed the bodies of Mr Lynch and his daughter were among those found.

But on Thursday morning, a source close to the rescue operation suggested that she may have not yet been located inside the wreckage. Angela Bacares, her mother and Mr Lynchs wife, 57, survived.

Hannah Lynch had just won a place at the University of Oxford to read English after receiving her A-level results last week at Latymer Upper School in West London.

A spokesman for the school told The Telegraph earlier this week that our thoughts are with their family and everyone involved as we await further updates.

The Telegraph understands she receiving an award for outstanding academic achievement last year.

Mr Lynch and his wife were frequent donors to the school, contributing to its bursary fund in 2023, 2022 and 2021.

The Telegraph revealed that the British tech tycoon, 59, had put his 30 million yacht up for sale in March but withdrawn it from the market in July, shortly after being acquitted of fraud.

He planned to spend the summer on board the 56-metre vessel and review the decision to sell in the autumn, industry sources told The Telegraph.

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.
With a lead-up that included speeches from Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, his home state Sen. Amy Klobuchar and none other than Sheila E. and John Legend covering Prince, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz had a huge introduction at the 2024 Democratic National Convention, where he wholeheartedly accepted the partys nomination for vice president on the ticket with Kamala Harris.

That was all before Ben Ingman, who grew up next to the governor, spoke of being coached by Walz with his middle school basketball team, then introduced the high school football team he famously coaches in Minnesota and invited them onto the stage. The wind-up to the potential VPs stage appearance reached a fever pitch with an ad featuring his wife, First Lady of Minnesota Gwen Walz, who shared her husbands story, beginning with his roots in Nebraska and then enlisting in the Army National Guard.

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The spot aired in the stadium and on home screens before Walz appeared to thunderous applause in Chicagos United Arena and spoke of his early life, teaching and segue into politics.

So, there I was, a 40-something high school teacher with little kids, zero political experience, and no money, running in a deep red state, Walz said. But you know what? Never underestimate a public school teacher.

I represented my neighbors in Congress for 12 years, and I learned an awful lot, he added when the roar of applause died. I learned how to work across the aisle on issues like growing the rural economies and taking care of veterans. And I learned how to compromise without compromising my values. Then, I came back to serve as governor, and we got right to work making a difference in our neighbors lives.

Walz, whose booming voice and football coachs motivational attitude can capture most crowds attention, then rattled off some of his achievements in Saint Paul, Minnesota  many of which sound similar to what Harris has so far proposed for her own platform.

We cut taxes for the middle class, he said. We passed paid family and medical leave. We invested in fighting crime and affordable housing. We cut the cost of prescription drugs and help people escape the kind of medical debt that nearly sank my family, and we made sure that every kid in our state gets breakfast and lunch every day.

Walz got one use of the weird descriptor when tying the GOP and former President Donald Trump, along with his running mate, Sen. J.D. Vance, to Project 2025  his crowds still eat up that signature word.

They spend a lot of time pretending they know nothing about this. But look, I coached high school football long enough to know, trust me on this, when somebody takes the time to drop a playbook, they are going to use it, Walz said. It is an agenda that serves nobody except the richest and the most extreme among us. And its an agenda that does nothing for our neighbors in need. Is it weird? Absolutely. Absolutely. But it is also wrong and its dangerous.

He then used another football metaphor to drive his pitch for Harris-Walz home.

Team, it is the fourth quarter, we are down a field goal, but we are on offense and weve got the ball, Walz said. We are driving down the field. And, boy, do we have the right team, Kamala Harris is tough, Kamala Harris is experienced and Kamala Harris is ready. Our job is to get into the trenches and do the blocking and tackling. One inch at a time, one yard at a time, one phone call at a time, one door knock at a time, one $5 donation at a time.

Walz exited the stage, closing out night three as he walked off, to Neil Yougs Rockin in the Free World.

Vice Presidential candidate Tim Walz walks out to Small Town by John Mellencamp at the #DNC pic.twitter.com/KPIrjvVVQa  The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) August 22, 2024

Before Walz took to the stage, Oprah Winfrey surprised a delighted convention crowd, where she gave a fiery speech in support of Harris, as well as touched on the importance of voting. Im calling on all you independents and all you undecideds  you know this is truevalues and character matter most of all, she said. More than anything decency and respect are on the ballot in 2024.

Earlier Wednesday, former President Bill Clinton graced the DNC and showed off his unique charms, emphasizing the legacy of President Joe Biden and his four years in office and comparing him to founding father George Washinton for his decision to give up the massive political power that comes with the U.S. presidency.

Lets cut to the chase. I am too old to gild the lily. Two days ago, I turned 78, Clinton said, his voice hoarse and his frame seemingly thin as ever. He then pointed out that he is still younger than former President Donald Trump, who made age an outsized topic during this election cycle  at least when he was the younger candidate while facing Biden.

After praising the current president, whose name nearly vanished from the convention by the third night, Clinton moved on to Harris, who he said he believes is the clear choice being presented to voters.

Kamala Harris is the only candidate in this race who has the vision, the experience, the temperament, the will, and yes, the sheer joy, to get something done, he said. I mean, look, what does her opponent do with his voice? He mostly talks about himself. So, the next time you hear him, dont count the lies, count the Is.

He went on the attack against Trump for his many vendettas, his vengeance, his complaints, his conspiracies.

He is like the tenors opening up before he goes on stage, like I did, by saying, me, me, me, me, me. When Kamala Harris is president, every day will begin with you, you, you, you, the former president said.

Clinton left the stage to Fleetwood Macs Dont Stop, which for those who were there in 1992, is synonymous with his first presidential campaign.

Midway through night three, a flow of celebrities finally arrived on stage at Chicagos United Arena, with both host Mindy Kaling and SNLs Kenan Thompson bringing some comedic star power to the proceedings. But they were no match for the natural charisma and public speaking abilities of Hakeem Jeffries.

After Kaling joked that she courageously outed Kamala Harris as Indian in an Instagram cooking video and recalled the vice president coming to her home to help her make Indian food during her 2020 run, Thompson, beset with some technical difficulties, video-chatted with Americans of all stripes and then explained to them how they would be impacted by Project 2025.

You ever seen a document that can kill a small animal and end democracy at the same time? he asked. Here it is.

Thompson likened the book, which was for the third night in a row represented by an oversized novelty book held by a speaker, to the terms and conditions of a second Trump administration  but one that voters should not skip and click accept.

Before former President Bill Clintons speech came Jeffriess biggest moment before the party and the nation. The House minority speaker and heir apparent to the speaker position, should the Democrats win a majority, dazzled them all, bringing a roar to the crowd as he listed all of the people and things Kamala Harris cares about  grandparents, children, your rights and so on.

President Biden selflessly passed the torch to Vice President Kamala Harris who was ready, willing and able to fight for the people, Jeffries said Wednesday, adding that the president will go down as one of the most consequential presidents of all time.

Harris, he told the crowd, is a courageous leader, a compassionate leader and a common sense leader who will deliver real results for everyday Americans, while former President Donald Trump is like an old boyfriend who you broke up with, but he just wont go away.

In a moment that may predict a certain pop stars appearance in Chicago, Jeffries said of Trump, There is no reason for us to ever get back together.

Songwriting legend Stevie Wonder also made a surprise appearance in Chicago, where he backed Harris for president and performed his hit song Higher Ground. His hit song, Signed, Sealed, Delivered, Im Yours was a staple of Barack Obamas presidential campaign and the former president honored the singer with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2014.

This is the moment to remember: when you tell your children where you were and what you did. As we stand between historys pain and tomorrows promises, we must choose courage over complacency. It is time to get up and go vote, Wonder told the crowd in Chicago.

Wonders soulful music is right in line with Harris taste and the music she has played on the campaign trail.

The stated theme for the third day of the DNC was set to be A Fight for Our Freedoms and the first rapid-fire batch of speakers brought reproductive and LGBTQ rights to the fore. They then tied the GOP and Trump to the ubiquitous Project 2025, with the first set of speakers, primarily women, who stepped up to the podium discussing the topics, which have become driving issues for the party.

On Wednesday, Emilys List President Jessica Mackler was the first to mention Project 2025, which she quickly tied to the right to abortion care. Under Joe Bidens administration, but resulting from the opinions of three Supreme Court judges appointed by Trump, the constitutional right to abortion care was struck down in 2022.

Project 2025 is a blueprint for banning abortion in all 50 states, Mackler told the crows at the United Center. It would give extremists like Donald Trump and J.D. Vance the power to monitor your pregnancy and even prosecute doctors for prescribing abortion medication. Make no mistake: the threat of Project 2025 is very real. But so is our ability to stop it.

The speakers early in the evening came to the stage fast and furious, with some speaking for around two minutes on issues traditionally important to the Democrats before praising Harris and exiting to applause from the crowd: CEO of Boca Latino Maria Teresa Kumar, Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (bumped from earlier this week), Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and other minor party stars had their moment on Wednesday.

During her time before the massive crowd, Kelly Robertson, the president of the nonprofit Human Rights Campaign, shifted deeper into LGBTQ rights while enthusiastically speaking out against the GOPs platform.

Donald Trump wants to erase us. He would ban our health care, belittle our marriages, and bury our story, she told the crowd. But we are not going anywhere. We are not going back. Kamala Harris is a champion for LGBTQ plus freedom. So tonight, were fighting for lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer and trans freedom without exception. Were fighting for equality for all without exception. Were fighting for joy.

Later in the evening, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel kept the gay rights theme at the podium, galvanizing the crowd as she discussed Harris record as AG of California, which she served from 2011-2017.

Shes held accountable environmental polluters, sexual abusers but what really stands out is when she stood up and protected her constituents freedoms, Nessel said. In 2011, she refused to defend Californias ban on same-sex marriage. She refused to argue that some families should have fewer rights than other families.

By the way, Supreme Court, you can pry this wedding finger from my cold dead hand, she added later to uproar from the crowd.

A potentially conflicting moment came when Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg-Polin, the parents of 23-year-old American-Israeli Hersh Goldberg-Polin, came to the stage. Hersh is a Hamas hostage whose arm was blown off by a grenade on the day he was taken hostage on Oct. 7 at the Reim music festival massacre in Southern Israel. With Israels deadly campaign in Gaza being the key subject of protests surrounding the DNC, the speech from his parents, two of the most vocal family members calling for the release of hostages, might not have gone over well with the audience. Fortunately, the arena fell silent as they told his story.

In a competition of pain, there are no winners, Jon said, referring to the massive death toll in Gaza as compared to that of Israelis. The suffering of innocent civilians in Gaza must end, he declared, along with the release of all hostages and a unilateral ceasefire.

Instead of being booed or heckled, the parents received a sustained standing ovation when they walked to the podium. Bring them home, the crowd chanted, leading Rachel to double over, sobbing.

Find more of The Hollywood Reporters coverage of the 2024 DNC here.

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In a bit thats sure to antagonize a man who cant stop telling people howattractive he is, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries skewered Donald Trump as an annoying ex-boyfriend during his speech at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday.

Donald Trump is like an old boyfriend who you broke up with, but he just wont go away, Jeffries quipped, as the crowd erupted in laughter. He has spent the last four years spinning the block trying to get back into a relationship with the American people. Bro, we broke up with you for a reason.

Donald Trump can spin the block all he wants, but theres no reason for us to ever get back together, he continued. Been there, done that. Were not going back.

Donald Trump is like an old boyfriend who you broke up with but he just won't go away," Rep. Hakeem Jeffries says.



"Bro, we broke up with you for a reason." pic.twitter.com/jeEhqT2Iaw  NBC News (@NBCNews) August 22, 2024

Democrats have spent the convention poking fun at Trump, shirking the now-famous call from former first lady Michelle Obama in 2016 to go high when Republicans turn to low blows. Even Obama abandoned that mantra during her DNC speech Tuesday night, slamming Trump as someone who fail[ed] forward through the affirmative action of generational wealth and knocking him hard on his comments about immigrants coming to steal Black jobs.

Whos going to tell him the job hes currently seeking might just be one of those Black jobs? the former first lady said, to huge applause.

When former President Barack Obama spoke after her, he mocked Trump for his weird obsession with crowd sizes, using a suggestive hand gesture.

Related...
Wisconsin has 72 counties. In the seven presidential elections from 1988 to 2012, Democrats carried an average of 42 of them.

Democrats not only won the statewide vote each time, but they were competitive far and wide in Wisconsin  east, west, north and south.

That is no longer true today.

In 2016, Democrats won only 12 counties.

And in 2020, they won just 14, despite winning the state as a whole.

Lubar Center for Public Policy Research and Civic Education

The Democratic Partys geographic foothold has shrunk in Wisconsin, amid a plunge in support among rural voters in the central, western and northern counties.

The new election map has a lot less blue than the old one.

That hasnt stopped Democrats from winning big elections, which it has done with regularity in the Trump era. Winning statewide races is not about winning the most counties or the greatest acreage, but the most votes.

Democrats have regularly done that by making big gains in a relatively small number of more populous places, especially the suburbs of Milwaukee and Madison.

Tim Walz running mate selection underscores the importance of rural voters

But as Democrats wind up their national convention in Chicago, the selection of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as Vice President Kamala Harris running mate has underscored the importance of the partys performance with rural voters, particularly in the Great Lakes battlegrounds of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Vice presidential candidates have little measurable impact on presidential campaigns, but the addition of Walz is widely seen as a balancing act, an effort to complement a presidential nominee from Californias Bay Area (Harris) with a Midwesterner who grew up in small-town Nebraska and represented a rural Minnesota district in Congress.

Wisconsins election history over the past two decades helps explain the political logic behind that.

This is a state where the partys collapse in rural counties came later than in many parts of the country. And its a state where stemming that erosion is a big key to the partys future success (the same kind of challenge Republicans face in stemming their suburban decline in Wisconsin).

Rural voters make up more than a third of the Wisconsin vote, but the exact share depends on how you define rural, a term with no single agreed-upon meaning.

And in polling by the Marquette Law School, rural voters still make up about 30% of self-identified Democrats in this state, though that number is down from 37% less than a decade ago.

Democrats have shown in recent years they can still win elections in Wisconsin while getting trounced in rural counties, with victories for president in 2020, for governor in 2018 and 2022, and U.S. Senate in 2018.

But their path to victory is different and arguably narrower now than it was before the rural realignment.

Thanks to the gains they have been making among suburban voters, reversing or even stopping their erosion in rural Wisconsin could give Democrats the upper hand in this state.

But if their share of the rural vote continues to decline, that would leave the party increasingly disadvantaged in congressional and legislative races, and on a knifes edge in statewide elections.

Do Democrats, in fact, still have more ground to lose in rural Wisconsin?

To try to answer that question, lets take a closer look at the scale and timing of the GOPs rural surge.

The big rural swing against Democrats began in Wisconsin at the state level with the 2010 red wave that made Scott Walker governor. The turning point at the presidential level was the 2016 election of Donald Trump.

There are several ways to illustrate those shifts, using different barometers of the rural vote.

First, lets look at the town vote. Because Wisconsin is divided into more than 1,800 cities, towns and villages, combining the votes in Wisconsins more than 1,200 towns is a reasonable measure of the rural vote, since towns are where rural voters overwhelmingly live.

Bill Clinton was last Democrat to win the 'town' vote in Wisconsin

Bill Clinton was the last Democrat to win the town vote for president, which he did by 1 point in 1996. Democrats lost the town vote by 12 to 14 points in 2000, 2004 and 2012. Then the bottom fell out in the two Trump elections of 2016 and 2020: Democrats lost the town vote by more than 25 points.

In elections for governor, the big shift occurred six years earlier. Democrats lost the town vote by 8 points in 2002 and less than 6 points in 2006 but that deficit ballooned to 23 points in 2010, 25 in 2014, 23 in 2018 and 24 in 2022.

Another indicator is the shrinking number of counties and municipalities that are voting Democratic, since the majority of states 72 counties and roughly 1,850 municipalities are lightly populated.

Democrats won an average of 55 counties in the two presidential elections won by Bill Clinton (1992 and 1996), an average of 26 counties in the two George W. Bush elections (2000 and 2004) and an average of 46 counties in the two elections that Barack Obama won handily in 2008 and 2012.

But the roster of blue counties shrank dramatically in the two Trump elections, as noted above, with large swaths of central, western and northern Wisconsin turning solid red.

The 14 counties carried by Biden in 2020 were: Milwaukee, the states biggest; Dane County and neighboring Sauk, Iowa and Green; the small and historically blue northwestern counties of Douglas, Ashland and Bayfield; the most populous counties in western Wisconsin, La Crosse and Eau Claire; the southern Wisconsin county of Rock (which includes Janesville and Beloit); the central Wisconsin county of Portage (Stevens Point); the resort county of Door; and the tribal reservation county of Menominee.

The list of blue communities has also shrunk. Democrats won more than 600 Wisconsin municipalities for president in 2000 and 2004, 1,200 in 2008, 800 in 2012. But only 250 voted Democratic for president in 2016 and only 242 did in 2020. Thats about one-eighth of the states municipalities.

In 2016, 536 communities in Wisconsin switched from Obama to Trump, and 509 of them voted for Trump again in 2020. These communities are overwhelmingly small and concentrated in the states less populous western half.

Twenty-three counties switched from Obama to Trump in 2016, most of them small counties in the west or north, and all but two voted for Trump again in 2020.

You can measure this trend at the regional level as well. Democrats won the small Wausau media market in north central Wisconsin in the presidential contests of 1988, 1992, and 1996, then lost it by less than 5 points in 2000, 2004 and 2012. The bottom fell out in 2016 and 2020, when Democrats lost the Wausau market by almost 18 points.

In western Wisconsins La Crosse market, Democrats have gone from winning by almost 10 points in 2012 to losing by more than 5 in 2016 and 2020.

And finally, these shifts are reflected in the polling, too. In 2015-16, Republicans had an eight-point advantage in party identification among rural voters in Wisconsin, according to Marquettes polling.

In 2023-24, that grew to a 22-point advantage.

In short, the rural realignment occurred from 2010 to 2016. Thats when the states election math changed, and thats when the map shrunk for Democrats.

Since then, the Democratic share of the rural vote has continued to decline a little, but these shifts have been more on the margins. The trend lines have flattened.

Joe Biden lost the town vote by 25.3 points in 2020, a tiny bit worse than Hillary Clinton did in 2016 when she lost it by 25.2 points. Democrat Tony Evers lost the town vote for governor by 23.8 points in 2022, slightly worse than his 23-point defect in 2018.

The one major Democrat over the past decade who has been reasonably competitive in rural Wisconsin was Sen. Tammy Baldwin in her one-sided 2018 re-election victory, when she lost the town vote by roughly 15 points.

But in other big partisan races, Democrats now routinely lose rural voters by 24 or 25 points, using this measure. There is no sign in recent years of a rural recovery for the party. Instead, the question is whether the party can limit its losses.

Its worth pointing out here that despite these trends, Democrats are still more competitive with rural voters in Wisconsin than they are in most other states between the coasts. That is especially true in southwestern Wisconsin.

This could be a hopeful sign for the partys ability to stabilize its vote in rural Wisconsin.

But it also could mean Democrats have still more ground to lose.

Craig Gilbert provides Wisconsin political analysis as a fellow with Marquette University Law School's Lubar Center for Public Policy Research and Civic Education. Prior to the fellowship, Gilbert reported on politics for 35 years at the Journal Sentinel, the last 25 in its Washington Bureau. His column continues that independent reporting tradition and goes through the established Journal Sentinel editing process.



Follow him on Twitter: @Wisvoter.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: How much further can Democrats fall with Wisconsin's rural voters?
In July, the Mashko Piro ethnic group, which left the rainforest in Peru for the first time in many years, attacked loggers. The hermits used bows and arrows, according to the regional indigenous organization FENAMAD.

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A representative of 39 indigenous communities in the regions of Cusco and Madre de Dios said that he considers deforestation in the territory of Mashko Piro illegal. It is known that during the attack on July 27, one logger was wounded, the New York Post reports.

According to some experts, this unusual behavior of indigenous tribesmen is due to the increasing number of loggers on their lands. That is, the logging concessions are "dangerously close" to the territory of the tribe.

"This is probably illegal because the area where the incident occurred is a forestry concession owned by Wood Tropical Forest until November 2022, and we are not aware of a concession that claimed or granted permitting rights to the same area," commented a representative of the indigenous peoples' coalition FENAMAD.

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The organization says that the lack of protection measures by the Peruvian government and the increased activity of companies and illegal operators in the Mashko Piro area could lead to "devastating consequences" such as disease transmission and increased violence.

Two loggers were shot with arrows while fishing in 2022, one fatally wounded during a clash with tribal members, and there have been several other previous reports of conflicts.

Peru's Ministry of Culture, which is responsible for protecting indigenous peoples, did not immediately respond to a message on Monday seeking comment on the attack and efforts to protect them.

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Survival International, an indigenous rights group that has been closely following the Mashko Piro's issues, says it is putting pressure on the Peruvian government to move deeper into these areas of the Amazon to help control the situation.

"This is an ongoing emergency. For the last month, we've seen someone from the tribe every two weeks in different locations, and they're all surrounded by loggers," said Teresa Mayo, a researcher with Survival International, in a phone conversation.

"It's really a matter of life and death. And only the government can and must stop it," she added.

Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
CHICAGO  In one of the most moving moments of the Democratic National Convention, on Wednesday night, the parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, a 23-year-old American who was kidnapped by Hamas on October 7, took the stage at the United Center and spoke of the anguish theyve experienced over the 320 days since their son was taken hostage.

They called for the release of the other hostages, including 8 American citizens, and for a cease-fire deal that ends the suffering of the innocent civilians in Gaza.

But the DNCs invitation to the family created an uncomfortable contrast with the partys refusal to provide space on the main stage for a Palestinian-American or doctors who have worked in Gaza. On Wednesday night, following that speech, the DNC informed the leaders of the Uncommitted Movement that they would not be given the opportunity to put a Palestinian speaker on the main stage of the convention, to discuss the Israeli military has inflicted in Gaza, with the backing of the United States.

The Uncommitted Movement  representing the over 700,000 pro-Palestine voters who cast uncommitted votes during the Democratic presidential primary  had requested speaking time at the convention and a meeting with Vice President Kamala Harris campaign.

The DNC gave the movement space to speak at several untelevised forums. On Monday, a doctor shared harrowing stories from Gaza, where the Israeli military has led an unprecedented siege for 10 months, starting after Hamas October 7 attacks. The party refused to meet the Uncommitted Movements larger requests.

I was working on it every day for the past week or more, said James Zogby, who has held leadership positions in the Democratic Party for decades. The campaign made a mistake  an unforced error. This didnt have to happen the way it did and now needs to be fixed.

The decision by the Harris campaign and the DNC threatens to torch the goodwill the campaign has enjoyed since Harris ascended to the top of the ticket. No significant protests have broken out inside the arena yet this week, and demonstrations outside have been smaller than expected. But already on Wednesday night that was starting to change. As delegates and convention attendees filtered out of the United Center, protesters with signs and bullhorns were reading the names of children killed in Gaza and encouraging passersby to turn back and join a 24-hour sit-in the leaders of the Uncommitted delegates had begun earlier that evening outside the arena.

Denied a speaking slot at the DNC, uncommitted delegates are staging a sit in in front of the United Center. pic.twitter.com/n30JDvCxky  Adam Johnson (@adamjohnsonCHI) August 22, 2024

We are waiting for a phone call from Vice President Harris and the DNC to allow a single Palestinian-American speaker from the convention stage, those delegates  Abbas Alawieh, June Rose, Sabrene Odeh  said in a statement. Our partys platform states that every life is valuable: whether American, Palestinian, or Israeli. We will conduct a moral act of sitting in at the convention to push our party to better align our actions, instead of just our words, with the notion that every life is valuable by simply allowing a Palestinian American to speak from the stage.

Progressive Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), one of two Muslim women serving in Congress, joined the Uncommitted sit-in Wednesday evening.

Ilhan Omar has joined the uncommitted delegate sit-in outside the DNC. pic.twitter.com/Pda1XXy6V0  Sarah Lazare (@sarahlazare) August 22, 2024

One Democratic lawmaker on Capitol Hill whos been in Chicago this week tells Rolling Stone bluntly: If we lose Michigan by a hair it will be hard not to conclude that a reason why is because we did not treat these people with respect they deserve and instead just wished theyd go away and stop complaining.

Two representatives for the DNC did not respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for the Harris campaign declined to comment about the decision.

Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) said late Wednesday, The Palestinian right to self determination was erased by the British with the Balfour declaration in 1917 which only mentioned civil and religious rights but not political rights for the Palestinian people. The Democratic Party, which aspires to be the party of human rights, must not in 2024 perpetuate this erasure of the Palestinian story.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who declared onstage at the United Center on Monday that Harris is working tirelessly to secure a cease-fire in Gaza, responded to the DNCs decision to exclude Palestinian voices on Wednesday.

Just as we must honor the humanity of hostages, so too must we center the humanity of the 40,000 Palestinians killed under Israeli bombardment, she wrote on X. To deny that story is to participate in the dehumanization of Palestinians. The @DNC must change course and affirm our shared humanity.

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CHICAGO (NEXSTAR)  Thursday night is the big night. All eyes will be on Vice President Kamala Harris as she takes the stage at the Democratic National Convention.

She will deliver remarks to accept the Democratic nomination for president.

Harris will be the second woman, and first woman of color, to grace the top of a major party ticket for president but were told this will not necessarily be the focal point of her speech tonight.

Her campaign says we can expect to hear Harris talk about her middle-class roots and lay out her optimistic vision for the country.

Were all Americans and together lets all chose Kamala Harris, said Oprah Winfrey.

After another night of enthusiastic star-studded speeches and tender moments Vice President Harris will deliver the most consequential speech of her political career with the entire nation watching.

I know what shes about and I cant wait until America hears from her, said Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.).

New Jersey Senator Cory Booker who served in the Senate with Harris for four years says hes confident Harris will meet the moment.

Joy is coming that is what has me so excited, said Booker.

The Harris campaign says the VP will talk about her upbringing as the daughter of two immigrants, her record as a prosecutor and contrast her optimistic vision for the future against that of former president Donald Trumps.

Also helping to wrap up the final day, Michigans Governor Gretchen Whitmer and

North Carolinas Roy Cooper.

Notably missing from this weeks speaker line up, a Palestinian-American. The exclusion prompted a sit-in near the conventions entrance. A group of uncommitted voters are demanding a ceasefire in Gaza.

The convention has not shied away from including Republican voices. Former Illinois congressman Adam Kinzinger will join the list of high-profile conservatives hitting the stage Thursday night.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
DNC Ratings Blow RNC Out of the Water for Third Night in a Row

The Democratic National Convention garnered better ratings than its Republican counterpart for the third night in a row, according to data from industry research firm Nielsen.

About 20.1 million people tuned in to watch the Democrats conference on Wednesday, Nielsen confirmedthe third night in a row the broadcast reached more than 20 million viewers.

Wednesdays speakers included Treasury Secretary Pete Buttigieg, former President Bill Clinton, and an acceptance speech for the vice presidential nomination from Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

The RNC attracted about 17.9 million viewers on the third night of its broadcasta roughly 11% difference from the DNCs third daywhich featured a primetime speech from vice presidential nominee Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio.

However, the RNCs most successful night was Thursday, July 18when an average of 25.3 million Americans tuned in to the broadcast. The highlight of the night was former President Donald Trumps highly anticipated acceptance speechhis first major address after the attempted assassination in Butler, Pennsylvania. Viewership peaked while Trump was on stage, attracting a whopping 28.4 million viewers.

BeyHive Yourselves! Beyonce Frenzy at DNC Hits Fever Pitch

Privately, Trump has been bragging about his RNC ratings, calling them tremendous, Rolling Stone reported on Monday before the convention began. Two anonymous sources told the magazine the former president has been grilling people in his orbit about whether Harris will top his ratings performance when she takes the stage on Thursday.

Despite the strong ratings from night to night, this years DNC has struggled to reach younger voters, with only 851,000 tuning in on the first night of the conference. In comparison, the first night of the 2016 DNC saw more than 2.4 million voters in the 18-34 demographic.

However, each nights broadcast has steadily added more younger viewers. Wednesday night saw 968,000 viewers in the age rangea 13% increase from the conventions first night.

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It feels like Im in an alternate world, Rima Mohammad, an uncommitted delegate from Michigan, told me of her experience at the Democratic National Convention. She described entering the United Center in Chicago for the convention and encountering giddy attendees after she attended a forum where Dr. Tanya Haj-Hassan, an American pediatric intensive care doctor, recounted harrowing details from her medical mission in Gaza. I was literally bawling at the panel, and then going into the convention where people are excited and celebratingit was the weirdest feeling, Mohammad said.

Mohammad is wearing a black-and-white kaffiyeh imprinted with Democrats for Palestinian Rights every day that she attends the convention. While almost all other attendees are in full Harris gear, celebrating with We heart Joe signs, the uncommitted delegatesaround 30 in total, representing some 700,000 votersclearly stand out among other convention-goers, some of whom have seem wary or guarded around them. Mohammad described a brief encounter with Michigans Gov. Gretchen Whitmer as mostly a photo op. She said the governor was sympathetic but didnt have much to say.

Mohammad is the grandchild of Palestinian Nakba survivors who remain refugees, she said; she is also an outspoken Democrat. She is on the public school board in Ann Arbor, and recently ran for Michigan state representative. Shes been stunned by the partys response to the war in Gaza so far, and was feeling intense whiplash at the DNC. Its disappointing that its taking the uncommitted delegates to advocate for something so simple and humane, she said. The bar is really low. People just want to feel like theyre being taken seriously. This isnt just about a Muslim or Arab vote; its about decency.

Mohammad said her kaffiyeh had earned several positive comments, but also that she has felt the gaze on her in Chicago. At a breakfast organized by the Michigan Democratic Party and attended by politicians including Nancy Pelosi, Mohammad said that she and Abbas Alawieh, another Palestinian American uncommitted delegate, sensed the tension. Some might think Im a potential disruptor, she said. I feel like I have more eyes on me.

Ive talked to roughly half of the uncommitted delegates here, some of whom represent states where the vote in November is expected to be close. They all told me similar stories of the dissonance between a jubilant convention and the cause that defines this election for them. They say theyve had a series of nods and murmurs of support from the party. They kept watching and waiting for signs that the manifest change in the Democrats mood and moment will include them. But the support remains quiet, if not silent.

Alawieh is also from Michigan. Before he helped found the uncommitted voter movement, he worked as a congressional staffer and organized to get Democrats elected in Dearborn. He also survived an Israeli bombardment that used U.S.made weapons in southern Lebanon, and said that he draws from that experience when advocating for a cease-fire. In the crowded and bustling halls of the United Center while the convention was underway, he organized a press briefing to speak directly to reporters about the goals of the uncommitted delegates in attendance at the convention, as well as make a direct appeal to the Kamala Harris campaign. He held up his phone and declared, Im waiting for the call from the DNC.

As reporters huddled around him, Alawieh explained that his movements intended goal is to unite the Democrats by calling for an immediate cease-fire and the release of all Israeli and Palestinian hostages. The people are with us on this, he said, citing a YouGov poll showing more than 80 percent of Democratic voters support a cease-fire. Weve built trust with voters we need to mobilize ahead of November if we want the best chance to beat Donald Trump, he said.

Aymann Ismail

In the halls of the arena, Palestinian kaffiyehs are easy to spot, including many on delegates who are committed to Harris. Some wear them along with Jewish yarmulkes. One delegate from Hawaii accessorized his kaffiyeh with colorful floral leis. Arshia Papari, a Harris delegate from Texas, wore a kaffiyeh and a cowboy hat as he distributed cease-fire delegate fact sheets, trying to recruit more Harris delegates who are sympathetic to the plight of Palestinian civilians. Papari, who is of Iranian heritage, said hes been asked for pictures and selfies numerous times. It gives people who feel voiceless some representation, especially since this issue has been pushed to the side at the DNC, he said.

Papari was excited when he first learned about the cease-fire delegation, which has grown exponentially here. Right now, there are 300 cease-fire Harris delegates who have signed on. Papari is now the national youth delegation lead for the group. He said he hopes that number will expand as more of the 4,000 DNC delegates learn about their position and its popularity among voters.

Its clear not everyone is ready to sign on. Some people find this topic difficult because of political and financial pressures, Papari said. He keeps seeing it himself.

After the press conference, Alawieh and other uncommitted delegates rushed to their seats to participate in the ceremonial roll call. Uncommitted delegates from Minnesota and Hawaii who are refusing to vote for Harris instead wrote in the names of people killed by U.S.supplied weapons in Gaza. During the roll call in the United Center, they intended to hold up printouts with those names to represent their vote.

Their protest was immediately challenged by other delegates in their own state parties. Someone from the Minnesota state party stood on her chair with a Harris sign to block my sign, said Asma Mohammed, an uncommitted delegate who had held up a sign saying Reem Ali Badwan, the name of a 3-year-old who was killed by an Israeli airstrike. It made me really sad. I know the majority of Democrats support a cease-fire and an arms embargo and dont want to see people killed. It felt like they were trying to silence the voices of reason and humanity, she said.

Mohammed persisted in her protest by standing on her chair, trying to cut through the jubilation. Were not here to party. Were here to speak out for the tens of thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands, who have been massacred using our tax dollars. I wont celebrate until I can call my friend in Khan Younis and tell him that his family is safe, she said, referring to the Palestinian city in Gaza.

Mohammed told me that at this point, a shift in Democrats policy is not only a moral imperative but just good political sense. When Senator [Bernie] Sanders talked about a cease-fire, he got the most applause, she said. Like others, she was clear-eyed about her demands. I dont want Donald Trump to win, she said, but I know communities wont show up to vote unless they see an arms embargo and a cease-fire on the ballot.

I later caught up with Dawn Martin, a delegate from Wisconsin who was present during one of these protests and participated in trying to drown them out. This is not the right time, nor is it the right place, she said, adding that she is certain that President Joe Biden and Vice President Harris are already committed to ending the war. If you dont want Donald Trump to win and want some hope for peace in the region, we all have to come together, she said.

On Wednesday, when it was announced that the parents of Israeli American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin would be speaking from the main stage of the convention, Alawieh held another press conference to express his enthusiastic support for it. We know that our partys platform includes specific language that says Israeli lives and Palestinian lives are valued the same. Since that is true, we have made a request that a Palestinian American doctor who had done a medical mission to Gaza speak from this stage, he said, adding that since before the convention began, he has personally been making direct appeals to Harris closest advisers and to leaders at the Democratic National Convention and in Congress. Some told Alawieh the door seemed open. The latest I heard is that someone from the DNC said its not a no, but its not a yes, either. Were just asking that a Palestinian American speak from this stage. Its a very simple request, he said.

However, later that evening, around 8:30 p.m., Alawieh did finally get his answer: Abbas, the answer is no. They offered a private meeting instead.

Alawieh seemed devastated. Were talking about children! Babies! he shouted. You can try to suppress us. Were not going anywhere, he said, announcing a sit-in on the grounds outside of the United Center, where he promised to remain until Harris team reconsidered.

To punctuate his point, in front of a crowd of other delegates, supporters and reporters, he withdrew his phone from his pocket and called his contact inside the DNC. Roger, he began, We tried everything we can. Were just asking to be heard. Roger. Im not going anywhere. Tell the vice president that Im sitting outside.

Aymann Ismail

I noticed Roger Lau, senior adviser for the Harris Victory Fund and deputy executive director of the DNC, nearby making repeated calls on his phone. He declined to comment.

As attendees exited the arena, most ignored the protest outside. Two different attendees raised their fists and shouted Am Yisrael Chai! One woman who identified herself only as a Chicagoan engaged the delegates-turned-protesters and accused them of antisemitism. Every Palestinian protest in this city has been extremely violent. All these encampments have been spewing hate, she said. Someone responded by saying he supported the release of the hostages and the family that addressed the DNC, and was not personally responsible for what other protesters around the country have said. She backed off.

There was also Ruby Chen, a delegate from New York and an Israeli American who lost his son in the Oct. 7 attack. He said he was listening as Alawieh made his appeal, and he wanted to connect with him. He presented a printed portrait of the son he lost to Alawieh, who expressed his sympathy, and they exchanged numbers.

I asked him what he saw when he noticed the sit-in. I see a lot of pain. Theres no competition in pain, Chen said. We, together, need to work on that to free the Palestinian people in Gaza as much as these hostages. Its a humanitarian issue. Were all people of God, he added.

On Thursday, the sit-in was ongoing.
A day after Donald Trumps former White House press secretary urged Republicans to ditch the former president in favor of Kamala Harris, that trend continued Tuesday at the Democratic National Convention with former Trump White House counterterrorism adviser Olivia Troye and a Republican former lieutenant governor of Georgia, Geoff Duncan, telling members of the GOP that voting for Harris wouldnt be betraying their party.

Troye, like Stephanie Grisham did the day prior, explained why she resigned from the Trump administrationa move that was hard as a Republican, she said, but as an American, it was the right one.

I saw how Donald Trump undermined the intelligence community, our military leaders and, ultimately, our democratic process. Now he is doing it againlying and laying the groundwork to undermine this election, said Troye, a member of the coalition of Republicans for Harris.

It is his M.O.to sow doubt and division. That is what Trump wants, because it is the only way he wins, and that is what our foreign adversaries wantbecause it is the only way they win.

Troye, who penned a column Wednesday for MSNBC on her reasons for not supporting Trump, added that she has immense concerns for what Trump would do if given a second term.

Former Trump administration national security official Olivia Troye speaks on the third day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago. SAUL LOEB/Getty Images

The guardrails are gone. The few adults in the room the first time resigned or were fired, she said. To my fellow Republicans, you arent voting for a Democrat. Youre voting for a democracy. You arent betraying our party. You're standing up for our country.

Troye and Duncan both emphasized that they dont agree with Harris on every issue, which is OK.

But you do have to recognize her prosecutor mindset that understands right from wrong, good from evil. She is a steady hand and will bring leadership to the White House that Donald Trump could never do, said Duncan, an outspoken opponent of Trumps efforts to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia.

Attendees cheer following a speech by former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan during the third day of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. BRANDON BELL/Getty Images

If Republicans are being intellectually honest with ourselves, our party is not civil or conservative. It is chaotic and crazy, and the only thing left to do is dump Trump. These days our party acts more like a cult, a cult worshiping a felon thug, Duncan continued.

Let me be clear to my Republican friends at home watching: If you vote for Kamala Harris in 2024, you are not a Democrat. You are a patriot.

In addition to Grisham, Troye and Duncan, the Republican mayor of Mesa, Arizona, told the DNC crowd Tuesday that he too is backing Harris.

Former GOP Rep. Adam Kinzinger is also set to deliver his endorsement on Thursday.

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Five people have been charged in the death of Matthew Perry, the beloved star of the TV comedy "Friends," for allegedly conspiring to distribute ketamine to the actor, The New York Times reports.

The accused include two doctors, Salvador Plasencia and Mark Chavez, and Perry's personal assistant Kenneth Iawamusa, whom prosecutors allege worked together to falsely prescribe, sell, and administer the anesthetic drug to the TV star, leading to his death.

Their communications behind Perry's back, revealed in court documents, paint a picture of their willingness to prey on Perry, and the appallingly flippant attitude the doctors took towards prescribing a potent drug to a man whose lifelong struggle with addiction and depression is well-known to the public.

"I wonder how much this moron will pay," Plasencia told Chavez in text messages cited in the indictment, as quoted by the NYT. "Let's find out."

The actor paid Plasencia at least $55,000 over a month, according to court documents.

Perry died in October 2023, at the age of 54 after being found face-down in his hot tub. An autopsy attributed his cause of death to "the acute effects of ketamine." Drowning, the effects of medications to treat opioid abuse, as well as coronary heart disease were cited as contributing factors.

On the day of his death, Perry had his assistant, Iawamusa, inject him with three doses of ketamine. In the days prior, he was receiving six to eight shots per day, according to the NYT.

These were administered illegally, prosecutors say. Perry had undergone above-board ketamine therapy in the past, but after a local clinic refused to increase his dosage, he asked Iawamusa to find other, illegal means of getting the drug, which is how came to know Plasencia and Chavez. The two doctors supplied Perry by using a fraudulent prescription, prosecutors allege.

As they continued to pump him full of the stuff, there were multiple red flags that Perry's dependence on the drug was dangerous. Iawamusa had found him unconscious at home at least twice, he told law enforcement. He also said that on one occasion, Perry froze up and was unable to speak or move after Plasencia injected him with a "large dose," suffering a spike in blood pressure.

Ketamine is a powerful  and controversial  substance. In recent years, it's seen a surge in popularity for effectively treating substance addictions, chronic pain, and even depression, albeit in much lower doses.

But it also has a reputation as a party drug, due to some of its hallucinogenic effects. As it gets prescribed for mental ailments more often, the risks associated with it being misused or abused can't be overlooked.

In other words, there's a reason that the Food and Drug Administration advises that ketamine patients should be closely monitored and that the drug should only be administered with the direct supervision of doctors. But the ketamine that led to Perry's death wasn't from his official therapy sessions  it was the illegally obtained stuff that was often being injected by his assistant, not a doctor.

Perry's death highlights some of the dangers of the drug. To a greater extent, however, it exposes the slimy network of people trying to exploit celebrities battling lifelong afflictions.

"These defendants took advantage of Mr. Perry's addiction issues to enrich themselves," Martin Estrada, attorney for the Central District of California, said at a news conference Thursday, per the NYT. "They knew what they were doing was wrong... But they did it anyway. In the end, these defendants were more interested in profiting off Mr. Perry than caring for his well-being."

More on ketamine: Ketamine Is Destroying Young People's Bladders
Doctor issues warning after firsthand experience of dangerous disease growing in the US: 'The sickest I've ever been'

A doctor experienced the horror of the West Nile virus firsthand  now, he's warning that the risk of infection is growing as warmer temperatures continue to broaden the disease's transmission zones.

What happened?

Dr. Lyle Petersen of Fort Collins, Colorado, was bitten by a mosquito one evening while standing outside his home. Several days later, he developed debilitating symptoms, the New York Times reported.

The illness included severe headaches, muscle aches, fevers, and a rash. "I was in bed for a week," Dr. Petersen said. "It's the sickest I've ever been."

Fortunately, Dr. Petersen also happened to be the director of the division of vector-borne diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. With his expertise, he suspected  and then confirmed  that he had come down with the West Nile virus.

West Nile is spread by the Culex species of mosquito, which breeds in temperate stagnant water including rainwater barrels, storm drains, septic tanks, and puddles.

Dr. Petersen was less concerned with the severity of the symptoms  although the disease can be fatal in certain cases  and more concerned that, as temperatures continue to rise and heavy rains create more standing water, Culex will have more opportunities to breed.

Why is this so concerning?

Rising atmospheric temperatures, escalated by human-generated emissions, have been linked to an increase in severe rainfall, per Climate Central.

Now, the Times explains, scientists are concerned that the virus will be spread to previously protected areas as both temperature and moisture levels remain high, extending the breeding season and zones for the disease-transmitting mosquitoes.

And while many people recover from West Nile within a few days, some experience extended symptoms for months. Dr. Petersen felt fatigued while walking upstairs for three months after his infection, the Times reports. And in rare cases, the disease can have pronounced neurological effects, including paralysis, meningitis, and brain damage.

The threat of climate-related mosquito-borne disease transmission also extends beyond West Nile. Around the world, rates of severe and deadly diseases such as dengue fever, chikungunya, Zika, and malaria are increasing, which officials worry will place costly strain on healthcare systems.

What can you do to minimize risk of exposure?

Scientists are working on developing vaccines to treat West Nile, but none have yet to be approved for widespread use. Instead, the best approach to prevent mosquito-borne illnesses is to avoid getting bitten in the first place.

Taking care to wear long-sleeved clothing, utilizing bug lotion and spray, and lighting citronella candles can go a long way when spending time outside. Minimizing potential breeding habitats is also effective; covering rain barrels and draining any standing water will prevent mosquitoes from being able to lay eggs.

Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the latest innovations improving our lives and shaping our future, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Six doctors protested at the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday, drawing attention to the escalating public health crisis in Gaza caused by Israel's ongoing military onslaught, which has killed at least 40,000 people, including 16,000 children. The war began after a Hamas-led attack on Israel October 7, 2023, that killed around 1,200 people, including many civilians and children.

The gathered medical professionals met on the fourth floor of the McCormick Place Convention Center and described their experiences in occupied Gaza, hoping to bring attention to the suffering and collapse of medical infrastructure. According to reporting from The Nation, pediatric intensive care doctor Tanya Haj-Hassan said she held the hands of dying children taking their last, final gasps with no family alive able to comfort them. Internal medicine and pediatrics doctor Ahmad Yousaf described a pregnant woman with severe burns all over her body who they knew "was going to die there and her baby would die there, and there was nothing we could do."

Thaer Ahmad, a Palestinian-American emergency medicine doctor who recently worked at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, said that "there is no music that you can play on the main stage during this convention thats going to make us forget the sounds and the tears of all of the children that we saw laid on the hospital floors."

This is not the first time doctors have drawn attention to the crisis in Gaza from a public health perspective. Speaking to Al Jazeera last month, Haj-Hassan raised awareness about the presence of polio virus in Gaza wastewater.

Normally if you have a case of polio, youre going to isolate them, youre going to make sure that they use a bathroom that nobody else uses, make sure that theyre not in close proximity to other people, [but] thats impossible" as the region struggles under a military assault, Taj-Hassan said, adding that "you have everybody clustering in refugee camps at the moment without vaccines for at least the past nine months, including children who would otherwise have been vaccinated for polio and adults who, in the setting of an outbreak, should receive a booster, including healthcare workers."
ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC)  An Abilene ISD music teacher allegedly met a high school student at Redbud park and local hotels for sex over the course of her senior year.

Court documents detail the alleged improper relationship between Lawrence Grigg and a senior at Cooper High School that began in November 2023.

The documents state a family member of the student discovered messages between this student and Grigg while using their home computer in July.

In several of the messages, affectionate terms are used by both Grigg and [the student] in reference to one another and describe acts of sexual contact, the documents state.

Abilene ISD music instructor accused of improper relationship with student

During a subsequent interview with detectives, the documents state this student said she has known Grigg since 2020 and that their relationship became physically intimate when she met him at Redbud Park during her senior year in November 2023.

This student also said they would meet at various hotel rooms in Taylor County for sexual activity throughout her senior year, according to the documents. This student alleged they met at least 10 different times.

Other students at Cooper High School made suggestions that Grigg publicly exhibited a fondness for [this student] and that, at time, was inappropriate given the nature of the physical contact and isolation from supervision, the documents state.

Grigg was arrested on a warrant for Improper Relationship between Educator and Student Wednesday and now remains held in the Taylor County Jail on a $1 million bond.

He was immediately placed on leave at Abilene ISD at the start of this investigation.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Dogs threw up, made crying sound after visiting Sacramento park. City doesnt know why

Dogs started throwing up and feeling sick after taking walks at Frank Seymour Park, leaving Greenhaven pet owners worried.

On NextDoor, a neighborhood-focused social media app, one user said their dog didnt eat or drink all day after visiting the park. The dog made a crying sound, and threw up at night, leading the owner to rush their pet to the emergency room.

The city of Sacramento received three reports of dog sickness in early August and investigated previous maintenance activities.

While the ultimate cause remains unknown, the City cannot attribute any maintenance activities to be the reason, said Gabby Miller, a city spokesperson, in an email.

On NextDoor, neighbors worried about the grass quality. Miller said that weeds were treated most recently on June 5 with glyphosate and glufosinate, herbicides that are used to control weeds. This past spring and summer, the city treated 67 other parks, and it has not received any reports of dog sickness at any of those parks.

The city encourages pet owners to continue reporting concerns at parks to 3-1-1.

We hope that the dog owners can determine the cause, Miller said.
British physicists at the University of Bristol have created the most complex maze resembling the shape of quasicrystals. Felix Flicker, one of the project developers, noted that the principles of fractal geometry and strategic chess were used to create the puzzle.

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A group of scientists created a series of routes with coincident starting and ending points, based on the principle of the Hamiltonian cycle. The intricate paths placed in the Amman-Becker mosaic form a "devil's" maze, ScienceAlert writes.

Felix Flicker said that when creating the research project, they were inspired by the movement of the Knight piece on a chessboard: "During a knight's round, a chess piece (which jumps two squares forward and one to the right) visits each square of the chessboard only once before returning to the original square. This is an example of a Hamiltonian cycle."

The final shape of the maze resembles a quasi-crystal, a matter that is a combination of ordered and disordered crystals. The atoms of the first group are arranged neatly and repeatedly, while those of the second group are chaotic. Due to this structural feature, the smallest particles of quasicrystals form patterns that are similar to each other but not identical.

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Physicists at the University of Bristol have developed a puzzle that requires finding one of the Hamiltonian cycles to solve. Similar to the chess "Knight", when solving the maze, it is possible to visit each atom of the quasicrystal only once, forming a continuous line that does not break from start to finish.

The scientists note that the research project was not just for fun: "Our work also shows that quasicrystals can be better than crystals for some adsorption applications. For example, flexible molecules will find more ways to land on the misaligned atoms of quasicrystals. Quasicrystals are also brittle, meaning they can easily break up into tiny particles. This increases their surface area for adsorption."

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Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
HONOLULU (KHON2)  Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines announced this week that they had reached a significant milestone in the proposed merger, as the Department of Justice antitrust review period expired Monday evening.

Get Hawaiis latest morning news delivered to your inbox, sign up for News 2 You

However, DOJ is staying mum on whether they have approved the deal or if there are any conditions that they expect to be met. Federal regulators can sue to block mergers before and even after sales close.

It is, I think, erroneous to assume that this is a clearance as opposed to a step in a process, explained Bill Baer, the only person to have led antitrust divisions at both the DOJ and the Federal Trade Commission.

Hawaii sheriff vetting faces scrutiny amid recent allegations

It doesnt mean that I think theres necessarily going to be a challenge, but it is also wrong to say this means there wont be a challenge. From my experience, I would not infer approval. I would infer continued uncertainty.

Baer said because the Department of Transportation still has to approve the merger, the DOJ is likely still coordinating with DOT and has plenty of time to file a request for preliminary injunction if antitrust officials lean unfavorably toward the merger.

KHON2 asked Alaska and Hawaiian if they have received any outright DOJ approval or if they made a consent agreement with any conditions.

We are waiting to hear back.

Download the free KHON2 app for iOS or Android to stay informed on the latest news

KHON2 also asked the DOJ if they approved the deal outright or conditionally, and an agency spokesperson said they are declining comment 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 KHON2.
TechCrunch

TikTok is growing fast as a destination for news, but news and politics accounts make up less than one percent of accounts followed by U.S. adults, the Pew Research Center says. Around half of all TikTok accounts followed by U.S. adults are influencers and creators, the study shows. Plus, content related to news and politics is considered rare, with only about 10% of the followed accounts that showed up in the study posting about these topics.
Former President Donald Trump returned to Arizona on Friday for a major rally in Glendale as he tries to build campaign momentum at the conclusion of the Democratic National Convention. Trump spoke at a border security-themed event in Cochise County on Thursday.

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. endorsed Trump on Friday afternoon in downtown Phoenix. Late Thursday, Kennedy filed to withdraw his name from Arizona's Nov. 5 ballot.

Kennedy appeared with Trump at the rally at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale on Friday.

Foo Fighters didnt lend anthem to Trump campaign, band says

Foo Fighters didnt give Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump permission to use 1997 song My Hero at Fridays rally in Glendale, the American Rock band said.

When asked by a user on X if the band let Trump use the song to introduce former presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the band simply replied, No.

Kennedy dropped out of the race earlier in the day, giving his endorsement to Trump after a 16-month campaign.

The band performed the same song at the 2012 Democratic National Convention in honor of former President Barack Obama after he accepted his partys nomination to run for a second term. Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl has publicly spoken against Trump in the past, with the topic coming up in his music.

 Helen Rummel

Republicans still workshopping a Trumpian nickname for Harris

Republicans havent settled on a derisive nickname for Kamala Harris, trying out a number of options during Donald Trumps Arizona campaign swing. Trump referred to Harris as Comrade Kamala on Thursday during a trip to the southern border, trying to cast her as a radical leftist during a news conference. Earlier in the month, his campaign used the term Kamabla to describe her on social media.

Trump allies tried out a few more nicknames Friday. Goya Foods CEO Bob Unanue referred to the vice president as Que Mala when he warmed up the crowd at Trumps rally in Glendale. Tyler Bowyer of Turning Point Action used Harriss first name to make a play on communism, calling it Kamala-unism.

 Stephanie Murray

RFK Jr. siblings call his Trump endorsement sad ending to a sad story

A group of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.s siblings called their brothers endorsement on Friday of Republican former President Donald Trump a betrayal of their fathers and familys values. They are the children of former Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, D-N.Y., who was assassinated while running for president in 1968.

We want an America filled with hope and bound together by a shared vision of a brighter future, a future defined by individual freedom, economic promise and national pride, sister Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, sister Courtney Kennedy, sister Kerry Kennedy, brother Chris Kennedy and sister Rory Kennedy said in a joint written statement posted to the social media platform X.

We believe in (the Democratic ticket of Kamala) Harris and (Tim) Walz. Our brother Bobbys decision to endorse Trump today is a betrayal of the values that our father and our family hold most dear. It is a sad ending to a sad story.

In an appearance at the Renaissance Phoenix Downtown Hotel, RFK Jr. announced that he was suspending his independent presidential campaign and backing Trump. He said he was working to withdraw his name from the ballot in about 10 battleground states where he could potentially be a spoiler who would help the Democrats.

 Dan Nowicki

Fact check: Data shows illegal border crossings into Arizona much lower than Trump claims

Donald Trump claimed during his rally in Glendale that 3 million people have come through the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona.

Trump made the claim while praising former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who was seated in a front row.

Do you remember when Sheriff Joe was at the border. You didnt have people coming in. I think for the one year he had one person come in but they got him, Trump said. Now we have 3 million people coming in through your border, your border.

Maricopa County, however, does not share a border with Mexico, although Arpaio did conduct crime suppression sweeps in predominantly Latino neighborhoods that were aimed at identifying and deporting people in the country illegally. A federal judge later ruled Arpaios immigration actions were unlawful.

Trumps claim that 3 million people have come through the Arizona border with Mexico is also not accurate, based on a review of U.S. Customs and Border Protection data.

Over the past four fiscal years, Border Patrol agents and CBP officers have encountered a total of nearly 2 million people unauthorized to legally enter the U.S. in the Tucson and Yuma sectors.

The number includes unauthorized migrants encountered at official ports of entry and between ports of entry. The Yuma sector straddles both the Arizona and California borders, so not all of the encounters took place in Arizona.

Whats more, the number includes encounters that occurred from Oct. 1, 2020, through July of this year. That period covers the Biden administration as well as the last three months of the Trump administration.

The 2 million number also only includes unauthorized migrants encountered by CBP officers and Border Patrol agents during that period, not the number of asylum seekers allowed to enter the U.S. and remain while asylum claims are pending. Many were deported to Mexico or other countries, either immediately or later. The 2 million encounters also do not represent 2 million individual people since many migrants attempt to cross again after being sent back to Mexico and each apprehension is counted as a separate encounter.

In his 3 million number, Trump may have been including the number of so-called gotaways  unauthorized migrants who entered the U.S. after evading Border Patrol agents in addition to unauthorized migrant encounters. However, data for the estimated number of gotaways by the Border Patrol is not published by CBP.

 Daniel Gonzalez

Trump wraps up remarks after nearly 90 minutes

Former President Donald Trump put a clear focus on immigration during his remarks, which lasted more than an hour.

He bashed Vice President Kamala Harris, his Democratic rival, as a border tsar and called her a flip-flopper who changes her stance on issues. Trump attacked Harris for supporting so-called sanctuary cities when she was the San Francisco district attorney. He also hammered her for praising the defund the police movement in 2020, bringing the president of the Arizona Police Association on stage to make his point.

The Republican former president also relished in making personal attacks, saying that he doesnt listen to his advisers who tell him to talk about policy, not personality.

I have to get personal, Trump said, saying that speakers at the Democratic National Convention such as former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama were nasty.

Trump polled the rally crowd on whether he should refer to Harris as comrade Kamala and at one point did an imitation of her choking. He also attacked Rep. Ruben Gallego, the Arizona Democrat running for Senate against Trump-endorsed Republican Kari Lake, as a fricken loser

 Stephanie Murray

Harris launches new economy-focused ad, billboard blitz

Kamala Harris is airing a new economy-focused TV ad in Arizona and other battleground states, her campaign said Friday. The 30-second spot features a direct-to-camera appeal from Harris, along with press coverage of her campaigns new economic plan.

Middle class families, like the one I grew up in, they want common sense solutions, Harris says in the ad. We must create an opportunity economy where everyone has a chance to get a car loan, buy a home, start a business.

The commercial is part of an eight-figure ad buy across eight battleground states. The campaign did not say how much it is spending to promote the spot in Arizona.

Harris is also using digital billboards around Arizona for an advertising blitz to counter Trumps visit to the state. The billboards feature the slogan A NEW WAY FORWARD and a photo of Harris on a blue background. The Harris campaign billboard ads cover 35% of billboard inventory within a 12-mile radius of Phoenix, Tucson and Mesa, her campaign said.

 Stephanie Murray

Arizona Police Association president joins rally

Justin Harris, the president of the Arizona Police Association, joined Donald Trump on stage in Glendale to voice his support for the Republican presidential nominee.

He always had our backs, Harris said of Trumps relationship with law enforcement.

Harris criticized Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, referencing her comments about "reimagining" public safety made in 2020.

Justin Harris said Trump will provide the funding and support hes looking for, pointing to fears surrounding border issues and drug trafficking which have been common talking points throughout Trump's campaign.

Harris was most recently in public view for denouncing the U.S. Department of Justice's investigation into the Phoenix Police Department, which was released earlier this year.

 Helen Rummel

Trump allies eager to compare his crowd to Harris

Donald Trumps Glendale rally is the perfect opportunity for a crowd size comparison  Kamala Harris drew 15,000 people to the same venue earlier this month. His allies were happy to compare the crowds on Friday.

We have more people than Kamala had  outside, Tyler Bowyer of Turning Point Action said, referencing the long line outside the arena. The arena seats 19,300 people, according to its management company.

There were approximately 12,000-13,000 people inside Desert Diamond Arena as of 3:30 p.m. on Friday, according to a police officer monitoring the crowd. That number will go up, he said, because a long line of Trump supporters were still waiting to get into the building.

Someone who wants to be president had an event here and she had to partition all this off," Turning Point founder Charlie Kirk said. "We draw a bigger crowd than Kamala Harris, dont we?

State Rep. Justin Heap, who is running for Maricopa County recorder, echoed Trump claims that Harris is using artificial intelligence to inflate her crowd sizes.

You dont need to use AI to make it look like the seats are full, Heap said.

 Stephanie Murray

RFK takes the stage; Trump pitches assassination attempts commission

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. received a warm welcome at Donald Trumps rally, coming on stage to pyrotechnics and the Foo Fighters song My Hero.

Kennedy suspended his presidential campaign and endorsed Trump in Phoenix on Friday morning, saying that he would take his name off the ballot in battleground states to avoid being a spoiler in the race.

Kennedy told the Glendale rally crowd that he and Trump dont agree on everything, but they found common ground on having safe food and ending the chronic disease epidemic and each want to end the grip of the neocons on U.S. foreign policy.

"Don't you want a president who is going to get us out of the wars?" Kennedy asked.

Trump praised Kennedy as a phenomenal person as the crowd chanted, Bobby, Bobby, Bobby. The former GOP president told supporters that Kennedy called him after his attempted assassination in Pennsylvania last month.

Upon my election, I will establish a new independent presidential commission on assassination attempts, Trump said, noting that he will release all remaining classified information on President John F. Kennedys assassination.

 Stephanie Murray

Former independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. gestures during Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump's rally in Glendale on Aug. 23, 2024.

Trump takes the stage in Arizona

Donald Trump took the stage Friday in Glendale at around 4:30 p.m.

A very big hello, Arizona. Hello, Phoenix, Trump said.

We are going to win Arizona. Were going to defeat comrade Kamala Harris, he said.

Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, drew a rally crowd of more than 13,000 people to Desert Diamond Arena, the same venue where Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, rallied a crowd of 15,000 earlier in August.

Trump and Harris are locked in a tight battle in battleground Arizona, with statewide polls showing the Democratic nominee slightly ahead. Both campaigns expect Arizona could come down to a small number of ballots  President Joe Biden beat Trump by fewer than 11,000 votes four years ago.

 Stephanie Murray

Former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump gestures as he speaks during a campaign rally at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale on Aug. 23, 2024.

Maricopa County recorder candidate makes pitch to independents, Democrats

Republican Justin Heap used his time on stage to make his first appeal to voters outside his base since winning his primary for Maricopa County recorder last month.

He will face Democrat Tim Stringham for the seat in November. Swing voters are expected to play a key role in the pivotal race, which will determine who controls voter registration and early voting in Arizonas most populous county. Heaps remarks came a little more than 30 minutes before former President Donald Trump was expected to take the stage, a prime time slot for a local race.

To the independents and Democrats in the room today  join me, Heap said. Free and fair and honest elections is not a Republican issue, it is an everyone issue.

Heap said he was running to secure our elections and called for full election results on election night. That isn't possible under current state law and wouldn't be attainable without significant changes to when voters are permitted to return early ballots.

 Sasha Hupka

Arizona State Rep. and Republican candidate for Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap speaks during Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump's rally in Glendale, Ariz., on Aug. 23, 2024.

Officials treat dozens of rally attendees Friday afternoon

The Glendale Fire Department treated more than 100 Trump rally attendees for things such as heat-related illnesses, Assistant Chief Tim Pirtle told The Republic.

Pirtle said the sheer volume of patients delayed Glendale firefighters' ability to treat and transport people to the hospital.

By about 3:20 p.m., nearly all attendees had made their way into air conditioning, according to Pirtle.

On Friday afternoon, the temperature in Glendale was about 104 degrees with partly cloudy skies, according to the National Weather Service.

 Rey Covarrubias Jr.

Voter turnout a big focus at Trump rally

Ahead of Donald Trumps appearance in Glendale, speakers at his rally called on attendees to drive GOP turnout in Arizona. Trump lost Arizona by fewer than 11,000 votes in 2020  the smallest margin of any state in his battle against President Joe Biden four years ago.

We need every vote. We can win Arizona, said Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz. Will you help us get every Republican voter to the ballot?

The rally is co-hosted by Turning Point PAC and Turning Point Action, the Arizona-based conservative group that is helping turn out voters for Trump.

This is our election to lose, said Rep. Eli Crane, R-Ariz., encouraging the crowd to help Turning Point chase ballots this fall. We cant count on Donald Trump to carry this entire load on his back. Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., put it plainly: "Please ask your neighbors to vote  unless theyre Democrats.

 Stephanie Murray

Attendees wear hats in support of Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump during his rally in Glendale on Aug. 23, 2024.

Maricopa superintendent candidate: Students need to be taught the importance of our constitution

Maricopa County School superintendent candidate Shelli Boggs declared schools a battleground while taking the podium in Glendale. She said teachers arent being supported and parents have been disrespected and ignored as their tax dollars fund the destruction of education.

During her campaign, Boggs has portrayed herself as a fierce advocate for depoliticizing American classrooms. At the same time, she has said she does not want schools to teach about racism, transgender students should not use facilities that align with their gender identity and schools should discourage talk of pronouns.

Students need to be taught the importance of our constitution and what it means to be an American. Now more than ever, we must protect and strengthen our schools, Boggs said.

 Nicholas Sullivan

Heat, long lines discourage some Trump fans

Thousands of people stood in line outside Desert Diamond Arena on Friday afternoon in the 104-degree heat, hoping to get a seat inside for Trumps rally. Terrence Feller, 62, came from Casa Grande to see the former president with his daughter. They saw the long line and decided to turn around, especially after speaking with one attendee who arrived at 9 a.m. and was just entering the arena after 1 p.m.

It has to be a mile, he said. After seeing how long the line is, we decided to turn around and go back to Casa Grande.

Feller said hes voting for Trump because hell boost the economy and get us back on the right energy path, where were selling instead of buying.

As someone who works at a migrant detention center, Feller named the border as another top issue and said immigration is a much larger issue than is presented in the media.

 Stephanie Murray

Crowd begins to fill stands at Desert Diamond Arena

More than two hours before former President Donald Trump was scheduled to take the stage in Glendale, thousands of supporters filled in much of Desert Diamond Arenas lower bowl.

The upper section of the arena was not yet occupied as state Sen. Jake Hoffman, R-Queen Creek, fired up the crowd. The venue has a capacity of close to 19,000, according to its website.

 Ray Stern

Rallygoers start to fill the stands at Desert Diamond Arena awaiting the arrival of 2024 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on Aug. 23, 2024, in Glendale.

Harris campaign reaches out to RFK Jr. supporters

Jen OMalley Dillon, Democrat Kamala Harris campaign chair, reacted to independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.s decision to suspend his campaign by reaching out to his supporters.

For any American out there who is tired of Donald Trump and looking for a new way forward, ours is a campaign for you, OMalley Dillon said Friday in a written statement. In order to deliver for working people and those who feel left behind, we need a leader who will fight for you, not just for themselves, and bring us together, not tear us apart. Vice President Harris wants to earn your support.

Even if we do not agree on every issue, Kamala Harris knows there is more that unites us than divides us: respect for our rights, public safety, protecting our freedoms, and opportunity for all.

Speaking Friday in downtown Phoenix, Kennedy announced that he is suspending his campaign and backing Donald Trump. He said he is working to remove his name from the ballot in about 10 battleground states where polling suggests he might play spoiler to the benefit of the Democrats.

 Dan Nowicki

Who else will be speaking at the Trump rally in Glendale?

A number of Republicans running for office were scheduled to speak at the rally, according to Turning Point Action, including Kari Lake, candidate for U.S. Senate; Abe Hamadeh, candidate for Arizonas 8th Congressional District; Jerry Sheridan, candidate for Maricopa County sheriff; Justin Heap, candidate for Maricopa County recorder; and Shelli Boggs, candidate for Maricopa County school superintendent.

Turning Point Action asked people to register for the rally via the Trump campaign website, which allowed people to sign up for two tickets per mobile phone number. Attendance will be first come, first serve, according to the Turning Point Action.

 Stephanie Murray

RFK Jr. suspends his campaign, endorses Trump

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an independent presidential candidate, announced Friday in downtown Phoenix that he is suspending his presidential campaign and backing Republican former President Donald Trump.

I want everyone to know that I'm not terminating my campaign. I am simply suspending it and not ending it, a hoarse-sounding Kennedy said from a ballroom inside the Renaissance Phoenix Downtown Hotel. "My name will remain on the ballot in most states."

In "about 10 battleground states," where he could play spoiler in favor of the Democrats, Kennedy said he is withdrawing his name from the ballots. The Arizona Secretary of State's Office confirmed Thursday to The Arizona Republic that he filed to take his name of the ballot here.

Trump is set headline a rally later Friday at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale. Since Thursday, the Trump campaign has been touting the appearance of an unnamed special guest at the event. Trump said Thursday he would consider an RFK Jr. endorsement

Kennedy, a former Democrat, is the son of slain 1968 presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy and the nephew of assassinated President John F. Kennedy.

Kennedy said Friday that he left the party because the Democrats have abandoned the core values I grew up with. He said he believed he would have won the election "in an honest system."

 Dan Nowicki

What time is Donald Trump's rally in Glendale?

Former president and 2024 Republican nominee Donald Trump has a rally scheduled in Glendale on Friday afternoon, the day after the close of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago and Vice President Kamala Harris' speech accepting the Democratic nomination.

Trump will appear at Desert Diamond Arena, the same venue where Harris held a rally earlier this month. The event will be co-hosted by conservative groups Turning Point PAC and Turning Point Action.

Trump's rally in Glendale was scheduled to begin at 4 p.m., according to the former president's campaign. Doors open for attendees at 11 a.m., and "pre-programming" was expected to start at 2 p.m., according to Turning Point Action.

Arizona is an "emerging problem" for Trump, one longtime political observer said recently, and Trumps own allies have said he should be in the state more often.

Trump visited Arizona's southern border on Thursday. The former president painted a grisly, violent picture of illegal immigration during a tour of the U.S.-Mexico border, using Cochise County as the backdrop for his counterprogramming on the day the vice president accepted her partys presidential nomination.

 Stephanie Murray

Where has Donald Trump been campaigning this week?

Donald Trump hit the campaign trail in several battleground states this week.

On Monday, the former president spoke to a crowd of supporters on a factory floor in the working-class city of York, Pennsylvania, and vowed to end rules created by the Environmental Protection Agency that would limit air and water pollution from power plants.

"It's a disaster for our country," Trump said. "Instead of shutting down power plants, we will open dozens and dozens more, and they'll happen fast."

The Republican presidential candidate and his running mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, are appearing at series of campaign events in Michigan, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Nevada and Georgia in addition to Trumps stop in Arizona.

 Melissa Cruz, USA TODAY

Where is Donald Trump on Friday morning? In Las Vegas

Before his rally in Glendale on Friday afternoon, Donald Trump will speak at a restaurant in Las Vegas about noon to discuss his campaign promise to not tax tips. Trump flew to Las Vegas after his Arizona border visit on Thursday afternoon.

RFK Jr. files to withdraw his name from Arizona's Nov. 5 ballot

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. late Thursday filed to withdraw his name from Arizona's Nov. 5 ballot, the Arizona Secretary of State's Office confirmed to The Arizona Republic.

Kennedy filed to withdraw around 5:30 p.m., according to JP Martin, a spokesperson for Secretary of State Adrian Fontes.

Speculation has swirled about Kennedy considering ending his campaign and endorsing former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee.

Kennedy is scheduled to speak Friday in Phoenix about his "path forward." Later in the day, Trump is holding a rally with an unnamed "special guest" at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale.

 Stephanie Murray

Man suspected of threatening Trump has been arrested

The Cochise County Sheriff's Office said Thursday it arrested a man who authorities say made threats on social media against former President Donald Trump.

"The Cochise County Sheriff's Office was made aware of threatening statements made via social media by the subject Ronald Syvrud towards candidate Trump," Carol Capas, a department spokesperson, told The Arizona Republic. "As a result, additional information was developed confirming outstanding warrants for this subject, and a subsequent public release was issued."

Trump made a stop Thursday at the U.S.-Mexico border in Cochise County. He told the media there that he was unaware of the then-ongoing manhunt for Syvrud.

But no, I havent heard that but Im not that surprised," Trump said. "And the reason is I want to do things that are very bad for the bad guys. I have heard that it's very unsafe to make this trip. There were some people who really didn't want me to make it."

Syvrud, 66, of Benson, had "outstanding warrants from the state of Wisconsin for DUI/Failure to Appear for DUI and from Graham County Arizona for Hit/Run and Felony Failure to Register as a Sex Offender," the Cochise County Sheriff's Office said on Facebook.

 Perry Vandell

Arizona Democrats blast Trump 'border stunt'

Arizona Democrats dismissed former President Donald Trumps appearance Thursday in Cochise County as a border stunt.

The state Democratic Party in a written statement said Trump went to the U.S.-Mexico border to take attention away from Democrats hosting one of the largest political rallies in our state's history and a Democratic Convention where Arizona Democrats solidified our status as the future of the party.

The Democrats also highlighted what they called Trumps long record of demonizing immigrants, promising mass deportations, and killing bipartisan solutions that would help border states like Arizona.

Trumps role in torpedoing a bipartisan Senate border compromise has been a constant line of attack from Democrats. Trump urged Republicans to reject the deal so as not to give President Joe Biden an election-year legislative victory.

The state party also recalled Trumps odd decision to kiss former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio on stage at an event earlier this year at Dream City Church in Phoenix.

"I don't kiss men. But I kissed him," Trump said at the time.

As president, Trump pardoned Arpaio, an anti-immigration hardliner who in 2017 had been convicted of criminal contempt of court as part of a long-running case involving racial profiling by his agency.

 Dan Nowicki

'Special guest' touted to appear Friday at Trump's Glendale rally

President Donald Trump's campaign on Thursday announced that an unnamed "special guest" would join Trump on Friday at his afternoon rally at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale.

The announcement comes amid speculation that independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. intends to bow out of the race and endorse Trump.

Kennedy, the son of slain 1968 Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, is expected to make his own late morning appearance Friday in Phoenix where he will discuss his "path forward."

Asked at an Arizona border stop about the Kennedy speculation, Trump said there were no plans for Kennedy to appear with him in Glendale.

Trump called Kennedy smart and a little bit different but thats OK."

Later, the Trump campaign said in a written statement: "President Trump will be joined by a special guest as he delivers remarks about his America First policies and his vision to lower inflation and the cost of living, secure the border, and make our cities safe again."

Announced guest speakers at the Trump rally include Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk; Senate candidate Kari Lake; U.S. Reps. Andy Biggs, Eli Crane and Paul Gosar; congressional candidate Abe Hamadeh; and Maricopa County sheriff candidate Jerry Sheridan.

 Dan Nowicki and Stephanie Murray

Trump unaware of police search for man suspected of threatening him

Former President Donald Trump, speaking at the Arizona-Mexico border, addressed a Cochise County manhunt for a person suspected of making threats against him.

Responding to a question from the media, Trump said he was unaware of the situation.

"I've heard it's dangerous, but I also have a job to do. I heard it's very dangerous. I haven't heard about that," Trump said. "They probably want to keep it from me. Thank you for telling me."

Trump added that he has "great respect" for the Secret Service, which came under bipartisan fire last month after Trump was wounded in a July 13 assassination attempt.

"Mistakes were made, and they're going to learn from the mistakes," he said.

The Cochise County Sheriff's Office confirmed to The Arizona Republic Thursday that they were searching for Ronald Syvrud, a 66-year-old Benson resident, after it "was made aware of threatening statements made via social media."

But no, I havent heard that but Im not that surprised," Trump said. "And the reason is I want to do things that are very bad for the bad guys. I have heard that it's very unsafe to make this trip. There were some people who really didn't want me to make it."

 Dan Nowicki, Stephanie Murray and Perry Vandell

An RFK Jr. endorsement would be a great honor, Trump says

Trump said he hasnt spoken recently with independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. but acknowledged speculation that Kennedy may drop out of the race Friday. That would be a great honor, Trump said.

Trump noted the pair will both be in Arizona tomorrow but said there are no plans for Kennedy to appear at his rally in Glendale.

Trump called Kennedy smart and a little bit different but thats O.K."

 Stephanie Murray

Trump calls Harris 'a Marxist' who wants open borders

Former President Donald Trump began his remarks at the border by knocking President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. The former president addressed reporters with law enforcement officials and families of victims of crimes committed by people who crossed the border illegally.

Trump referred to Harris as a Marxist and claimed she wants open borders. He gave his speech at an unfinished portion of the border wall in Cochise County, and often gestured to pieces of the wall piled nearby.

It could have been put up in a matter of weeks, Trump said, calling the barrier the Rolls-Royce of walls.

He was joined by the family of Rachel Morin, who was raped and murdered in 2023 in Maryland. An immigrant from El Salvador was arrested and charged in connection with the crimes.

 Stephanie Murray

Trump arrives at the Arizona-Mexico border

Donald Trump arrived at the southern border shortly after noon Thursday. He was joined by campaign advisers Susie Wiles and Chris LaCivita, along with Republican National Committee Chair Michael Whatley.

The former president exited his motorcade and met with Cochise County officials at the border wall.

He was wearing a blue suit and red tie.

 Stephanie Murray

Trump changes tune on the Obamas

Trump, a harsh critic of Obama and his time in office, actually offered some rare praise for his predecessor while speaking to reporters Tuesday. That praise? Trump referred to the 44th president as a nice gentleman whom he happens to like and respect, in an interview with CNN.

I thought he was a terrible president. He didnt do the job. He let people take advantage of us on trade, Trump said while on the campaign trail in Michigan. Especially trade  he was very weak on trade. But I happen to like him. I respect him and his wife.

Trump was not too thrilled with Barack and Michelle Obama's comments at the national convention.

"Did you see Barack Hussein Obama last night take shots? He was taking shots at your president," Trump said at a rally in Asheboro, North Carolina, on Wednesday, the day after the Obamas spoke at the Democratic National Convention.

The use of Obama's full name harkens back to Trump's promotion of the birther conspiracy, a false claim about Obamas birthplace that Trump eventually walked back in 2016.

"He was very nasty last night. I try to be nice to people you know, but it gets a little tough when they get personal," Trump continued.

Trump mentioned that his campaign advisers tried to keep him from getting "personal" and to stick with policy talk. He asked the crowd if he should follow that advice or get personal. The crowd responded wanting him to get personal.

 Joyce Orlando, USA TODAY

Heavy security at Trump border stop

Awaiting Donald Trumps visit to Arizona, Secret Service agents, Cochise County sheriff officers and other law enforcement lined a dirt road leading to the U.S.-Mexico border. The former president was set to arrive at Sierra Vista Municipal Airport on Thursday morning, tour a portion of the border near Coronado National Monument and speak with the press. Stephanie Murray and Sarah Lapidus

Donald Trump to rally at same Glendale arena as Kamala Harris

Donald Trump will hit the campaign trail in Glendale on Friday, holding a rally at the same venue where Kamala Harris drew a crowd of 15,000 people earlier this month.

Its the perfect opportunity for a crowd size comparison.

People gather at the Desert Diamond Arena for Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, during their campaign rally in Glendale on Aug. 9, 2024.

The Republican former president is under pressure to upstage Harris by packing Desert Diamond Arena with a huge crowd. Its a comparison of his own making: Trump has been disputing the size of Harris fired-up campaign crowds lately, even falsely claiming she used artificial intelligence because her sea of supporters was so large at a recent event.

The event marks Trumps first large-scale campaign event in battleground Arizona since Harris became the Democratic nominee. Trump had a comfortable lead over President Joe Biden in the state, but the race has tightened now that Harris is his opponent.

Until Kamala Harris took the top of the ticket, Trump was known for throwing the better party, said Stacey Pearson, a Phoenix Democratic political consultant.

The size of a rally is not an indicator of who will win an election, but a campaign crowd can provide a peek into how enthusiastic voters are about a particular candidate. Thats notable in Arizona, where Biden had struggled to get voters excited to turn out before he left the race.

 Stephanie Murray

Donald Trump has visited Arizona often. Here's the list

For years, Arizona has been one of former President Donald Trump's favorite spots to campaign.

He was a frequent visitor in 2015 and 2016 on his way to the Republican nomination. Trump defeated Democrat Hillary Clinton in Arizona in 2016 to capture the state's 11 electoral votes.

In 2020, despite multiple visits, Trump lost to Democrat Joe Biden in Arizona by fewer than 11,000 votes. He returned for additional rallies after his presidency, often lamenting a "stolen" and "rigged" election.

In 2024, Trump again has ramped up his time in Arizona as he makes another run for the presidency, this time taking on Vice President Kamala Harris.

 Ronald J. Hansen

Who is leading in the polls in Arizona?

Its hard to say which presidential candidate, Republican Donald Trump or Democrat Kamala Harris, is ahead in Arizona, generally regarded as one of the nation's seven swing states in the 2024 election.

Recent public polling has run from Harris ahead by 5 percentage points to Trump leading by 4.

By comparison, Trump led every public poll involving him and Biden in Arizona tracked by the nonpartisan website FiveThirtyEight in June and July, sometimes by double digits.

The reality is the shake-up of the Democratic ticket, followed by the partys national convention, has likely boosted Harris standing in the polls. The convention ends Thursday, and public opinion could be more stable after that, at least until the rivals' Sept. 10 debate in Philadelphia.

Pollsters wont have a clean look at public opinion for at least another week, leaving the states uncertain status unchanged for at least a few more days.

The major political ratings organizations all list Arizona as a toss-up at the moment.

 Ronald J. Hansen

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Donald Trump campaigns in Arizona: Live coverage
Donald Trump says he has more to lose than gain from receiving security briefings during his campaign this time around.

The Republican nominee told the Daily Mail hes refusing to sit down with security agencies this election season because he fears Joe Bidens team will accuse him of leaking confidential information, but also because he claims to just already be in the know.

Its a break from the norm for a presidential hopeful. Non-incumbent nominees of major parties often begin receiving security briefings in late August and receive them occasionally until Election Day.

The briefings are often broad in scope and include classified information, but theyre far less detailed than the briefings provided to the president.

I dont need that briefing, Trump said Wednesday. They come in. They give you a briefing, and then two days later, they leak it. And then they say, You leaked it. The only way to solve that problem is not to take itI dont want it.

Trump says he TURNS DOWN intelligence briefings to avoid accusations of leaks.#trump pic.twitter.com/3J1XBxgmTc  Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) August 22, 2024

The former president also confidently commented, Ill have plenty of them when I get in., referring to briefings. He also justified the rejection by claiming he already knows whats happening in the world.

The sit downs are done, in part, so candidates dont say something on the campaign trail that undermines U.S. national security, explained CIA Director Michael Morell in a Q&A. Theyre also done to familiarize a potential future commander-in-chief with any pressing matters abroad that may not be publicly known.

The objective is to protect national security during the campaign by giving the candidates a deep sense of the national security landscape, Morell said.

Trump is different than any presidential nominee in the 21st century, however. Hes already been president for four years and remained at the helm of the Republican party in the interim, giving him perspective on national security other candidates have not had access to at this point in the race.

Prosecutors said boxes of classified documents swiped from the White House were found inside Mar-a-Lago. U.S. Justice Department via Reuters

Also unlike most candidates before him, Trump allegedly has a shaky history with keeping classified information secure. He was indicted in 2022 on accusations he swiped classified documents from the White House and kept them stored inside his South Florida estate at Mar-a-Lago.

That case has since been tossed over the appointment of special prosecutor Jack Smith to the case, but allegations against Trump were never disproven in court.

Its likely Trump hasnt received a national security briefing since he left office in early 2021. Former presidents are typically offered the courtesy of receiving briefings once they leave office, but Biden broke that precedent to deny Trump information because of what he called erratic behavior from his political rival.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Donald Trump is sharing how he feels about artificial intelligence after re-posting a doctored series of photos to his Truth Social account that falsely showed Taylor Swift appearing to endorse his 2024 presidential run.

I didnt generate them, Trump said during an interview with correspondent Grady Trimble that aired on FOX Business Networks The Evening Edit. Somebody came out. They said, oh, look at this. These were all made up by other people. A.I. is always very dangerous in that way.

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He continued, Its happening with me too. Theyre making  having me speak. I speak perfectly, I mean, absolutely perfectly on A.I., and Im, like, endorsing other products and things. Its a little bit dangerous out there.

Last week, the former president re-posted a series of images that appeared to show smiling Swifties wearing Swifties for Trump T-shirts with the message Swifties Turning to Trump After ISIS Foiled Taylor Swift Concert, seemingly in reference to the terror plot to attack Swifts canceled trio of concerts in Vienna from a since-arrested 19-year-old radicalized man.

In another image meant to mirror the iconic I Want You For U.S. Army recruiting poster, a user doctored up an image of Swift in a patriotic red, white and blue suit and star-spangled top hat with the message, Taylor Wants You to Vote For Donald Trump.

I accept! Trump captioned the photo set.

Swift has yet to endorse anyone in the 2024 presidential race between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, whose nomination is celebrated this week in Chicago during the Democratic National Convention. She previously endorsed President Joe Biden in 2020.

Watch Trumps interview on The Evening Edit below:

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Former President Donald Trump plans to visit Detroit on Monday to address a conference of the National Guard Association of the United States, his campaign announced Thursday.

It will be the seventh visit to Michigan this year by Trump, the Republican nominee for president, who most recently made a campaign stop in Howell Tuesday.

Michigan is one of a handful of states expected to decide what polls show is a close election between Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, and Trump.

Former President Donald Trump greets his supporters at Signature Aviation at the Detroit Metro Airport in Romulus on Tuesday, August 20, 2024.

The National Guard Association of the United States is holding its annual business meeting at Huntington Place in downtown Detroit from Friday through Monday. More than 4,000 Guard officers, spouses and other guests are registered to attend, according to the Trump news release.

Pentagon leaders and lawmakers are expected to address the conference, which invites both presidential nominees when the conference is held during an election year, the news release said. Trump addressed the conference in 2016.

There was no immediate word Thursday on whether Harris planned to address the conference. The association said she was invited.

More: Metro Detroit activists join thousands at DNC to protest US military support for Israel

Members of the National Guard are more than defenders of democracy, were all participants, said retired Maj. Gen. Francis McGinn, the association president. We want to know how the next administration will support the National Guard and whether the Guard will continue its prominent role in the National Defense Strategy.

Contact Paul Egan: 517-372-8660 or pegan@freepress.com. Follow him on X, @paulegan4.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Trump to visit Detroit, address National Guard conference
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN)  Not only were people moving back into International Towers Wednesday but they were also checking into the DoubleTree Hotel for the first time since the Realty Building explosion  which happened right across the street.

The DoubleTree officially reopened at 3 p.m. By 3:05, two people were already checking and 30 people were registered to stay the night after the DoubleTree only found out on Monday that it could reopen.

Before that 3 p.m. opening, RGG Landscaping of Canfield was finishing clean up work around the building.

The DoubleTree retained about 90 percent of its staff. Some new people were hired but not many. Director of Sales Kim Patrone says being shut down was hard.

It has been hard. Its been long. Its been a loss of our neighbors and an unfortunate loss, our partners in the hotel itself Its been hard to not even be able to come to a place we call home everyday, being gone for two and a half months not being able to enter the building, Patrone said.

She said they were receiving calls throughout the day Wednesday asking if they were open and booking reservations.

Ive already had friends and family call and say if the hotel is open, they want to come home for the holiday. So Im excited and looking to the future of what downtown will be, Brown said.

The mayor also said hes planning some type of celebration or an event downtown when the demolition is complete and all the road work is finished.

Im happy to see it. Its another chapter we can open in our downtown, Brown said.

Youngstown Councilman Julius Oliver says the next step is selling downtown.

Hopefully that business flowing into the hotel will spill out into the bars and restaurants who desperately need help, Oliver said. And have an overall plan with events, with DORA, so people are downtown and enjoying Youngstown like they used to.

Plans are being organized for a reopening celebration though nothing is final yet.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WKBN.com.
WACO, Texas (FOX 44)  Douglass Subaru, through its Subaru Loves Learning initiative, donated $5,000 earlier today to support teachers at Kendrick Elementary School.

This is the second consecutive year the dealership has partnered with AdoptAClassroom.org to assist local educators.

The $5,000 donation will be distributed among ten teachers, with each receiving $500 to purchase necessary supplies for their classrooms.

This funding aims to alleviate the financial burden on teachers, who, on average, spend over $800 of their own money annually to support their students needs.

Kristina Munoz, a 17-year veteran teacher at Kendrick Elementary, expressed her gratitude: Im just so overwhelmed with the generosity from Douglass Subaru. Even though Ive been teaching a while, theres still needs every year. This is a Title I school, and so parents do their very best to provide supplies, but theres always so many little extra things that you dont even know you need, said Munoz.

In addition to the monetary donation, each teacher received a handmade goody bag as a token of appreciation from the dealership. The funds will be used through the AdoptAClassroom.org Marketplace, which allows teachers to select and acquire supplies needed for a resourceful school year.

The Subaru Loves Learning initiative continues to make a significant impact in supporting educational resources and acknowledging the dedication of teachers in 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 KWKT - FOX 44.
Downwinders pressure Speaker Mike Johnson on RECA during his New Mexico visit

Don Meaders traveled from Albuquerque to protest in Las Cruces on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (Danielle Prokop/Source NM)

LAS CRUCES  Downwinders had a message for the U.S. House speaker on Wednesday: Youre failing people the federal government exposed to radiation and hurting their chance at some measure of justice.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) attended a private event supporting candidate Yvette Herrell seeking to again represent the 2nd Congressional District in New Mexico, and then for a public event announcing national GOP investment in her campaign and other down-ballot races.

Despite the sun beating down on a stretch of gravel outside Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum, spirits were high for the 30 or so rallying there, many of whom wore shirts bearing slogans directed at Johnson: Pass RECA before we die, or We are the unknowing, unwilling, uncompensated.

RECA is the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, which expired in June after decades of offering financial assistance to people harmed by U.S. nuclear weapons development. People in New Mexico were never included among those who could seek compensation despite having been downwind of the worlds first nuclear blast.

A bipartisan push in Congress to expand the program failed. Some advocates are still holding out hope for a bill on Johnsons desk that could extend and expand RECA.

Bernice Gutierrez, a member of Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium board, said she was frustrated that the years of organizing by her group and others is being thwarted.

One man is holding up this whole process. Hes denying justice to everybody, Gutierrez said.

Gutierrez was 8 days-old in 1945, when the first atomic bomb exploded at the Trinity Site in the Jornada Del Muerto, just 35 miles from her hometown in Carrizozo, New Mexico. Her family has been plagued by aggressive and deadly cancers, which pushed her into the fight.

Gutierrez said Johnson isnt just hurting New Mexicans, hes hurting thousands of people nationwide  in far more Republican House districts than Democratic ones  who would finally receive benefits after radiation exposure from uranium mining and aboveground nuclear tests.

RECA then and now

Johnson has blocked an effort to expand and extend the life of the Radiation Exposure and Compensation Act, over the objections of members of his own party, who represent people exposed to radiation.

S. 3853 would allow thousands of people in Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Montana, Idaho, Colorado, New Mexico, Missouri and Guam  and uranium workers after 1972  who have suffered diseases linked to radiation exposure to be eligible for compensation. The bill passed the Senate in a 69-30 vote in March.

Johnsons publicly expressed concerns start and end with the costs of expanding the program.

U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) addresses a crowd of about 100 people in Las Cruces Wednesday to support Republican candidate for the 2nd Congressional District Yvette Herrell. (Danielle Prokop/Source NM)

Since its start in 1990 until the programs sunset in June, the fund paid out $2.6 billion. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that costs would rise to between $50 billion and $60 billion over the next decade.

While advocates have disagreed on the accuracy of that figure, its also only a portion of the estimated $756 billion in spending for the nuclear weapons program between 2023 and 2032.

RECA is a unique fund that paid out lump-sums to people exposed to radiation from decades of nuclear tests or uranium mining before 1972. The program only compensated downwinders in a handful of counties in Arizona, Utah and Nevada.

However, there is a growing nationwide reckoning that radiation exposure has harmed more communities causing rare cancers, diseases and low birth rates.

Weve sacrificed enough

A call went up among people wearing yellow and black shirts and matching banners  evoking hazmat  as the flashing lights of a motorcade rounded the curve.

Pass RECA now! they chanted, as the motorcade carrying the speaker turned the corner, with escorts from federal, local and state police. The people ensconced in black SUVs in the center, had their heads turned away from the signs as they passed.

Tina Cordova, a founder of the Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium, protests on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (Danielle Prokop/Source NM)

Im a New Mexican. I feel were all Downwinders here, said Joaquin Lujan. He drove from Polvadera, outside of Socorro, to attend.

Lujan, 72, said the failure of the government to expand the program was a shame.

The Republicans, I dont know, theyre just not part of la gente, he said. Thats why we have to be out here. This is so important to our families.

Don Meaders, a retired leader in the United Brotherhood of Carpenters, made a cross as part of the message to Johnson, saying its unconscionable to not help people exposed to radiation.

The cross is a symbol of sacrifice, and weve sacrificed enough, he said.

RECA and the election

Members of the New Mexico Democratic party and supporters of Democratic U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez joined the Downwinders outside the museum. Some held signs about reproductive rights, which have been curtailed by Republican policies.

While RECA did not explicitly come up during a pair of brief speeches delivered by Herrell and Johnson, its become a significant campaign issue in the toss-up of New Mexicos 2nd Congressional District.

Herrell recently told Source NM she supports expanding RECA fully and would address it with Johnson after Downwinders joined Vasquez for a campaign event last week.

Tina Cordova, the founder of the Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium, said that Herrells positions on RECA have changed, and if Herrell wants the support of the Downwinders, she would have to do more to champion the cause.

We requested that she get us a face-to-face meeting  and were on the outside, and theyre on the inside, Cordova said, pointing to the museum up the road.

At a campaign rally for Vasquez in Albuquerque last week, leaders in the Democratic party publicly promised to pass RECA if they take the majority in the House.

For me, thats a safety net, Cordova said.

Both Johnson and Herrell declined to take questions at the campaign event on Wednesday.

Source New Mexico is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Source New Mexico maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Shaun Griswold for questions: info@sourcenm.com. Follow Source New Mexico on Facebook and X.
About 30 people held signs and chanted for expanding compensation for radiation victims outside of the Farm and Ranch Heritage Museaum on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. U.S. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) attended several events in Las Cruces.

LAS CRUCES  Downwinders had a message for the U.S. House speaker on Wednesday: Youre failing people the federal government exposed to radiation and hurting their chance at some measure of justice.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) attended a private event supporting candidate Yvette Herrell seeking to again represent the 2nd Congressional District in New Mexico, and then for a public event announcing national GOP investment in her campaign and other down-ballot races.

Despite the sun beating down on a stretch of gravel outside Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum, spirits were high for the 30 or so rallying there, many of whom wore shirts bearing slogans directed at Johnson: Pass RECA before we die, or We are the unknowing, unwilling, uncompensated.

RECA is the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, which expired in June after decades of offering financial assistance to people harmed by U.S. nuclear weapons development. People in New Mexico were never included among those who could seek compensation despite having been downwind of the worlds first nuclear blast.

A bipartisan push in Congress to expand the program failed. Some advocates are still holding out hope for a bill on Johnsons desk that could extend and expand RECA.

Bernice Gutierrez, a member of Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium board, said she was frustrated that the years of organizing by her group and others is being thwarted.

One man is holding up this whole process. Hes denying justice to everybody, Gutierrez said.

Gutierrez was 8 days-old in 1945, when the first atomic bomb exploded at the Trinity Site in the Jornada Del Muerto, just 35 miles from her hometown in Carrizozo, New Mexico. Her family has been plagued by aggressive and deadly cancers, which pushed her into the fight.

Gutierrez said Johnson isnt just hurting New Mexicans, hes hurting thousands of people nationwide  in far more Republican House districts than Democratic ones  who would finally receive benefits after radiation exposure from uranium mining and aboveground nuclear tests.

RECA then and now

Johnson has blocked an effort to expand and extend the life of the Radiation Exposure and Compensation Act, over the objections of members of his own party, who represent people exposed to radiation.

S. 3853 would allow thousands of people in Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Montana, Idaho, Colorado, New Mexico, Missouri and Guam  and uranium workers after 1972  who have suffered diseases linked to radiation exposure to be eligible for compensation. The bill passed the Senate in a 69-30 vote in March.

Johnsons publicly expressed concerns start and end with the costs of expanding the program.

Since its start in 1990 until the programs sunset in June, the fund paid out $2.6 billion. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that costs would rise to between $50 billion and $60 billion over the next decade.

While advocates have disagreed on the accuracy of that figure, its also only a portion of the estimated $756 billion in spending for the nuclear weapons program between 2023 and 2032.

RECA is a unique fund that paid out lump-sums to people exposed to radiation from decades of nuclear tests or uranium mining before 1972. The program only compensated downwinders in a handful of counties in Arizona, Utah and Nevada.

However, there is a growing nationwide reckoning that radiation exposure has harmed more communities causing rare cancers, diseases and low birth rates.

Weve sacrificed enough

A call went up among people wearing yellow and black shirts and matching banners  evoking hazmat  as the flashing lights of a motorcade rounded the curve.

Pass RECA now! they chanted, as the motorcade carrying the speaker turned the corner, with escorts from federal, local and state police. The people ensconced in black SUVs in the center, had their heads turned away from the signs as they passed.

Im a New Mexican. I feel were all Downwinders here, said Joaquin Lujan. He drove from Polvadera, outside of Socorro, to attend.

Lujan, 72, said the failure of the government to expand the program was a shame.

The Republicans, I dont know, theyre just not part of la gente, he said. Thats why we have to be out here. This is so important to our families.

Don Meaders, a retired leader in the United Brotherhood of Carpenters, made a cross as part of the message to Johnson, saying its unconscionable to not help people exposed to radiation.

The cross is a symbol of sacrifice, and weve sacrificed enough, he said.

RECA and the election

Members of the New Mexico Democratic party and supporters of Democratic U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez joined the Downwinders outside the museum. Some held signs about reproductive rights, which have been curtailed by Republican policies.

While RECA did not explicitly come up during a pair of brief speeches delivered by Herrell and Johnson, its become a significant campaign issue in the toss-up of New Mexicos 2nd Congressional District.

Herrell recently told Source NM she supports expanding RECA fully and would address it with Johnson after Downwinders joined Vasquez for a campaign event last week.

Tina Cordova, the founder of the Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium, said that Herrells positions on RECA have changed, and if Herrell wants the support of the Downwinders, she would have to do more to champion the cause.

We requested that she get us a face-to-face meeting  and were on the outside, and theyre on the inside, Cordova said, pointing to the museum up the road.

At a campaign rally for Vasquez in Albuquerque last week, leaders in the Democratic party publicly promised to pass RECA if they take the majority in the House.

For me, thats a safety net, Cordova said.

Both Johnson and Herrell declined to take questions at the campaign event on Wednesday.
Japanese scientists have solved the eternal mystery of why women live longer than men. Thanks to the latest study, it turned out that the main reason may come down to the smallest and largest cells in the body: sperm and eggs, which are key to human reproduction.

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Scientists have shown for the first time in vertebrates that cells that develop into eggs in females and sperm in males cause sex differences in life expectancy. And removing the cells leads to animals having the same lifespan, The Guardian writes.

The experiments were conducted on small turquoise marine fish, a freshwater species that reaches sexual maturity within two weeks and lives for several months, but researchers suspect that a similar biological mechanism may influence the difference in life expectancy between humans and other species.

"The aging process of marine fish is similar to that of humans, so I don't think it's any different in humans. So this study could be a stepping stone to understanding the control of aging in humans," says Professor Toru Ishitani, senior author of the study at Osaka University.

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On average, women around the world live about 5% longer than men. Numerous factors contribute to the discrepancy: young men are more likely to die from accidents and suicide, and women often lead healthier lifestyles. But the difference is also observed in other species: females of great apes and old-world monkeys live longer than their males.

Ishitani said that the presence of sperm or eggs is one of the most obvious differences between men and women, so it makes sense to investigate whether they affect life expectancy. In a series of experiments, his team showed that stopping the production of germ cells that develop into sperm or eggs resulted in longer lives for males and females that died younger than usual, essentially closing the lifespan gap.

"We expected that germ cell removal would extend the lifespan of both males and females, but it only extends the lifespan of males and shortens the lifespan of females. This was unexpected, but we realized that this discovery could shed light on sex differences in lifespan," commented Ishitani.

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In an article for Science Advances, the researchers describe how blocking sperm and egg production had consequences for fish. Hormonal changes in females stimulated growth by maintaining healthy tissues, while a decrease in estrogen increased the risk of cardiovascular disease. Males, on the other hand, produced more vitamin D in their liver, potentially explaining their better bone, muscle, and skin health.

"Here, the removal of sperm or egg progenitor cells resulted in a shorter lifespan for females, but in males, it was extended, as was height, probably through a mechanism related to increased vitamin D activity. The signals of these cells that modulate lifespan differ between the sexes in these fish, and, in all likelihood, in other animals as well," the study author believes.

Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!

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SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI)  A driver died Tuesday in a rollover crash during a pursuit on state Route 15, authorities said.

The collision occurred around 7:44 p.m. on SR-15 southbound at state Route 94 westbound, Salvador Castro with the California Highway Patrol said in a news release Wednesday.

A 42-year-old San Diego man was fleeing police in a Toyota Prius when for unknown reasons the driver lost control of the vehicle and overturned, according to CHP. He was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.

2 people dead, one person injured in Point Loma shooting

Driving under the influence has yet to be determined as a factor in the crash.

Authorities shut down I-15 southbound to SR-94 westbound and SR-94 westbound at I-15 southbound during the investigation.

The identity of the driver, who was the only person in the vehicle, is pending notification of the next of kin.

Anyone who witnessed the crash is asked to contact the CHP San Diego Area at 858-293-6000.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Driver gets most of her money back after being charged thousands by Peach Pass

A driver faced thousands of dollars in unexpected toll fees despite having already paid them, but she is now seeing a resolution after an investigation by Channel 2 Action News.

April McCargo, who uses the Peach Pass lanes with her Florida Sun Pass, regularly paid around $100 each week to keep her account topped off.

She described her frustration when she initially received a collection notice for over $4,700 in toll violation fees in June.

This is crazy, something needs to be done, McCargo said.

When McCargo reached out to Channel 2 Action News, she showed us Peach Pass statements confirming her consistent payments and notifications from her account.

After the initial report aired, the fees ballooned to $6,000.

This is absurd, McCargo said.

RELATED STORIES:

Channel 2 investigative reporter Ashli Lincoln followed up with the State Road & Tollway Authority, which manages billing for Peach Pass customers.

At the time, the SRTA cited Georgia law, preventing them from discussing specifics about McCargos account.

However, following our investigation, McCargo met with SRTA officials to review her account.

After examining her Sun Pass records, the SRTA determined that McCargo owed only $363.85 and apologized for the oversight.

McCargo has since paid the revised amount.

In July, the SRTA informed Channel 2 Action News that they are working on addressing delayed notifications caused by high volume.

They secured a new contract for technology upgrades this year to improve the system.

RELATED NEWS:




Driver taken to hospital after crash temporarily closes McDowell Road in Phoenix

One driver was taken to the hospital after a car crash closed all lanes of McDowell Road in east Phoenix on Wednesday afternoon, according to the Phoenix Police Department.

At about 2:30 p.m., Phoenix police said officers were investigating a "serious collision" on McDowell Road between 48th Street and State Route 143, according to the police department on the social platform X.

The crash closed both the eastbound and westbound lanes of McDowell Road, according to the Phoenix police, who warned of an extended closure.

At around 3:30 p.m., both directions of McDowell Road were reopened, according to Sgt. Brian Bower.

Bower said the accident occurred around 1:15 p.m. and involved two vehicles. The driver who was taken to the hospital was treated for serious, but non-life-threatening injuries.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Crash sends driver to hospital, closes McDowell Road temporarily
A large fire was burning at a Russian military airfield early on Thursday after it was targeted by drones overnight, officials said.

Videos circulating on Russia social media showed fires and thick black smoke rising from the Marinovka airfield near Volgograd in southern Russia, which the regions governor confirmed was attacked by multiple drones overnight.

Governor Andrey Bocharov claimed the drones were shot down but that one fell causing a fire.

Other videos shared overnight appear to show the moment of the attack, with the sound of gunfire followed by explosions near the air base.

The reported attack comes as Ukraine appears to be intensively targeting Russian airfields amid its incursion into Russia.

PHOTO: Military facility on fire in Russia's Volgograd region after drone attack (Social Media/via Reuters)

MORE: Massive drone attacks exchanged between Moscow, Kyiv: Officials

Last week, Ukraine launched its largest drone attack of the war targeting airfields, striking four in western Russia. On Wednesday, Ukraine even appeared to target an airfield deep in Russias north near Murmansk, inside the Arctic Circle.

A massive fire is also continuing to expand at a major fuel storage facility in Russias southern Rostov region, which has now been burning out of control for five days after a drone strike.

Dramatic videos showed enormous black smoke clouds rising from the facility, where huge fuel tanks have continued to explode. Another video showed firefighters driving away quickly as a tank exploded.

This is a developing story, check back for updates.

Drone attack sets fire at Russian military airfield originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, center, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrsky, right, look at a map during their visit to Sumy, Ukraine, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP)  Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made his first visit Thursday to the border area where his forces launched their surprise offensive into Russia, saying that Kyiv's military had taken control of another Russian village and captured more prisoners of war.

While in Ukraines northern Sumy region, Zelenskyy said the new POWs from the Russian region of Kursk would help build an exchange fund to swap for captured Ukrainians.

Another settlement in the Kursk region is now under Ukrainian control, and we have replenished the exchange fund, Zelenskyy wrote on the social media platform X after hearing a report from his country's top military commander, Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi.

Zelenskyy did not name the newly captured village and did not cross over into Russia, which would been regarded by Moscow as a provocation. He previously has said that Ukraine has no plans to occupy the area long term but wants to create a buffer zone to prevent further attacks from that area into Ukraine.

Zelenskyy said the Kursk operation launched Aug. 6 has reduced Russian shelling and civilian casualties in the Sumy region.

In another example of Ukraine's intensifying attacks on Russia, emergency authorities in Russias Krasnodar region said a Ukrainian strike hit a cargo ferry loaded with fuel tanks at the port of Kavkaz, sparking a blaze. The port is on the Kerch Strait linking the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.

Russian Telegram channels posted videos purportedly showing a huge fire caused by the strike.

The daring Ukrainian foray has rattled the Kremlin, showing Russia's vulnerability and shattering President Vladimir Putin's efforts to pretend that the country has been largely unaffected by the 2 1/2-year war.

Ukraines push into Russia marks the first capture of Russian territory since World War II, but it comes as Kyiv continues to lose ground in eastern Ukraine.

Authorities in the city of Kursk, the capital of the Kursk region, began to put up concrete shelters at bus stops and other locations to protect against shelling. They plan similar work in Zheleznogorsk and Kurchatov, where a nuclear power plant is located, the region's acting Gov. Alexei Smirnov said on his Telegram channel.

The International Atomic Energy Agency said it received a report from Russia that fragments of an intercepted drone were found Thursday on the plant's territory.

Military activity in the vicinity of a nuclear power plant is a serious risk to nuclear safety and security, said IAEA Director Rafael Grossi, who plans to visit the site next week.

Putin has ordered the creation of self-defense units in Russian regions bordering Ukraine, the Russian leader said in a video call with officials.

Smirnov reported to Putin that over 133,000 people have left areas affected by the fighting in the Kursk region, while more than 19,000 have stayed.

The governor of Bryansk, another Russian region bordering Ukraine, said authorities there have conducted training for emergency evacuation as a precaution.

Separately, the Russian Defense Ministry reported repelling Ukrainian attacks near the villages of Komarovka, Malaya Loknya, Korenevka and several other settlements in the Kursk region.

Education Minister Sergey Kravtsov said 114 schools in Russias border regions will start teaching remotely when the school year begins at the start of September.

Elsewhere, the Defense Ministry said Thursday that its military has claimed control of the Ukrainian village of Mezhove in Donetsk, part of the industrial Donbas region that Moscow seeks to take entirely.

Both sides in the war have been using drones to attack deep behind enemy lines.

Ukraine attacked Russia overnight with 28 drones, the Defense Ministry said. Thirteen were shot down over the Volgograd region, seven over the Rostov region, four over the Belgorod region, two over the Voronezh region, and one each over the Bryansk and Kursk regions, the ministry said.

Andrei Bocharov, governor of the Volgograd region, said Thursday that a military facility caught fire after being attacked by drones in the area of Marinovka, where Russia has a military air base. He did not specify what was damaged.

Videos shared on Russian social media showed an explosion in the night sky, reportedly near the base. Marinovka is about 300 kilometers (185 miles) east of the Ukrainian border.

Ukraine claimed responsibility for the attack. Ukraines security service and its special operation forces conducted the drone attack Wednesday night, striking the Marinovka airfield, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.

The Baza Telegram channel, which is close to Russian law enforcement, said one drone was taken down several kilometers (miles) from the airfield near Marinovka and that wreckage from another fell on a trailer near the air base, causing it to catch fire.

Data from NASA fire-watching satellites, which monitor Earth for forest blazes, showed fires breaking out around the air bases apron, where fighter jets were previously seen parked.

Another fire burned Thursday in Russia's Rostov region, where firefighters struggled for a fifth day to put out flames at an oil depot following a Ukrainian attack in the town of Proletarsk. State news agency Tass said 47 firefighters have been injured while putting out the blaze.

Satellite photos from Planet Labs PBC analyzed Thursday by The Associated Press showed the fire at the oil depot still intensely burning as of Wednesday. Storage tanks at the facility appeared engulfed in flames. Flames could be seen in the images, with a thick black smoke cloud drifting west over the city of Proletarsk.

___

Associated Press writers Emma Burrows in London and Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed to this report.
The city of Durham has picked a firm to breathe life into its old police headquarters building with a nearly $300 million redevelopment of the prominent downtown property.

City Council members unanimously selected The Peebles Corp. on Monday night for the ambitious revitalization project, though they still havent decided whether to spend a few million extra to preserve the historic building standing there today.

In its proposals, Peebles shared plans for crafting a beacon at the gateway to downtown Durham.

Apartments: A total of 380 residential units, 92 of them permanently affordable at 60% of the area median income and below. Most are rentals, but 26 will be condos offered for sale.

Commercial space: Labs and retail shops totaling 250,000 square feet, including a grocery anchor tenant, like Fresh Market or Trader Joes.

Parking spots: 791.





Open space: A plaza and outdoor seating at the heart of the three buildings, connected by landscaped walkways and decorated with public art.

Undecided: Whether to preserve the former police HQ. If so, it would be transformed into a 100-room hotel. If not, it would be replaced with a cultural center and museum.

Nicole Thompson, president and CEO of Downtown Durham Inc., said this location was pivotal and could catalyze development downtown like the citys investment in the Durham Bulls Athletic Ballpark did 30 years ago.

A modernist building

The only structure on the 4-acre city-owned property was designed by modernist architect Milton Small in the 1950s to serve as the office for Home Security Life Insurance Co.

Its located at 505 W. Chapel Hill St. and served as police headquarters for a quarter century, beginning in 1992., though its sat vacant since 2018.

George Smart, executive director of NCModernist, argued for preservation.

Its gorgeous, Smart said. Youve got cherry and mahogany along the walls. Youve got terrazzo floors. Youve got floor-to-ceiling windows. Youve got great architectural elements that were put in place by Phil Freelon and Patricia Harris when the building was rehabbed a number of years ago.

Several others, including local pastor James Blake, urged more affordable housing on the site.

The cost to live in our city is continuing to rise, and many who work in our city are unable to afford to live here, Blake said. Our responsibility as citizens of Durham is to ensure that Durham is a city for all and not just a destination for the elite.

Architect Phil Freelon designed the exterior stairs at the former Durham Police Department headquarters at 515 W. Chapel Hill St.

Construction will require city investment

Peebles says construction costs will approach $300 million and work would last three years from groundbreaking.

Financing the deal would require a federal 4% low-income housing tax credit and city investment, the company says. The city will be asked for a loan of at least $57 million, which could be risky. If preserving the building, theyd also request a $3.8 million subsidy and upfront sale of the land for $7.5 million.

The precise terms of the deal will be worked out in the weeks ahead, and the City Council will take another vote.

The plans could also change, the firms vice president Donahue Peebles III said earlier this month, when pressed whether more labs were really necessary in Durham. (He thinks they are.)

These transactions are complicated. We understand that political objectives change over time. Were not wedded to any particular execution. The only thing we are wedded to is a partnership with the city of Durham, he told the City Council.

A rendering of a proposed redevelopment in downtown Durham if the former police headquarters is torn down and replaced with a museum and cultural center, bottom left.

If the site is a success and is eventually resold, the citys return on investment could be around $20 million, though city staff caution many assumptions and caveats come with that figure.

Peebles, which bills itself as the largest Black-owned real estate company, is a national firm whose closest office is in Washington, D.C.

The company beat out two national competitors, Akridge and Conifer, by scoring higher on criteria set by the City Council in the fall. and by its reputation on similar public-private projects underway in Charlotte and Boston.

The Charlotte project has been repeatedly delayed since 2016. Company founder and CEO Don Peebles blamed this on how long it took local leaders to untangle legal development rights, as well as broader economic concerns.

We are working on the site right now. It has been financed, Don Peebles assured Durham leaders Monday night.

A rendering of the proposed redevelopment of Durhams former police headquarters if the historic building, top left, is saved and converted into a hotel.
Allegations about two invoices sent to the Department of Water and Power for a business conference are part of a lawsuit and a complaint filed with the State Bar. (Associated Press)

The exclusive conference at the Beverly Hilton in April 2023 promised speeches from top business leaders, including Earvin "Magic" Johnson, as well as poolside cocktails, canapes and a Mediterranean dinner.

Among the attendees were several Los Angeles Department of Water and Power officials  including then-DWP board President Cynthia McClain-Hill, who opted for a $980 food, drink and gifts package for the three days of the International Utilities and Energy Conference.

Under city ethics rules, McClain-Hill was not allowed to accept substantial gifts from the conference host, Accenture, because the global consulting company holds millions of dollars in contracts with the DWP.

She also couldn't bill the DWP for the $980 package because the amount far exceeded the $60 daily limit that government workers could charge for meals while out working.

Ultimately, some DWP and Accenture staffers found a way for the DWP to pick up the tab, by mislabeling the invoices for McClain-Hill and another DWP official, according to current and former DWP workers.

Read more: A leaked DWP report offers a critical assessment of the utility's culture

The allegations involving the invoices were first made by a former DWP contractor in a California State Bar complaint against McClain-Hill and in a lawsuit against the DWP by employees accusing McClain-Hill of retaliation and harassment.

McClain-Hill denied any wrongdoing. She has also denied wrongdoing in connection with the lawsuit.

"My attendance at the multi-day conference hosted by Accenture for its global clients in the utility sector was related entirely to my responsibilities at DWP and served no personal purpose or objective," she said in an email.

She added that she "requested departmental approval through normal staff channels" to cover the costs of the Beverly Hills conference.

In her 5 years on the DWP board, McClain-Hill joined her colleagues in voting in favor of at least three separate contracts for Accenture, DWP records show.

Accenture representative Joseph Dickie declined to comment. A DWP spokesperson also declined to comment, citing the ongoing litigation.

Attorney Brad Gage, who is representing former DWP employees in the lawsuit, called the department's handling of the invoices "morally wrong."

The DWP has been racked by scandals over the last few years, with two former top officials serving prison sentences for their roles in bribery schemes. A former board commissioner is facing state bar disciplinary charges in connection with an alleged quid pro quo deal.

McClain-Hill, an attorney and former police commissioner, resigned from the DWP board in January after The Times reported on an incident involving private conversations she had with a DWP contractor.

Emails reviewed by The Times show how managers at Accenture, which has billed the DWP more than $5 million in recent years for cybersecurity and technology contracts, closely worked with the DWP to relabel the invoices for the $980 food, beverage and gift packages.

Accenture originally submitted invoices labeled "Food and Beverage" fee for McClain-Hill and Winifred Yancy, a DWP director who attended the conference at McClain-Hill's request.

At the request of a DWP staffer, Accenture later submitted new invoices for both officials, titled "Conference Registration" fee, when in fact the conference was free to attend.

Labeling the invoices as "registration" may have helped ensure that the DWP would reimburse Accenture, because the city covers employees' costs to attend informational conferences.

The "Conference Registration" invoices were submitted only for McClain-Hill and Yancy and not for any other DWP officials who attended the conference, according to records reviewed by the Times.

Read more: DWP board president is out amid ethics questions, power struggle at utility

One conference attendee, who didn't sign up for the $980 package and requested anonymity because he wasn't authorized to talk to the media, told The Times that there was plenty of free food, snacks and water at the event.

In April, during a deposition in the lawsuit against the DWP, attorneys asked McClain-Hill about the Accenture invoices. She declined to answer, saying that the city's Ethics Commission may have launched an investigation.

A representative for the Ethics Commission declined to comment, citing a policy not to confirm or deny any investigations.

According to the internal DWP emails reviewed by The Times, Michelle Smith, Accentures business development director, invited McClain-Hill to the conference on March 16, 2023.

In a follow-up email to DWP staff a few days later, Smith said there was no "conference fee."

And, she said, considering "the importance of compliance regarding government client attendees," there was an option to decline the food, beverage and "small giveaway" package valued at $980.

Under city ethics rules, a city commissioner who votes on contracts can accept a maximum of $100 in gifts annually from a contractor such as Accenture.

McClain-Hill sought advice from DWP General Counsel Julie Riley about going to the conference, the emails show.

"Can I do this or does it implicate gift rules," McClain-Hill emailed Riley on March 16, 2023.

Riley replied that the conference was considered informational, so the free registration was not a gift. However, hospitality did fall in the gift category, Riley wrote.

McClain-Hill could accept up to $100 worth of meals and beverages from Accenture, Riley advised, or she could accept more hospitality and reimburse the company with her own money.

McClain-Hill later sent an email to DWP staff indicating that she wanted to pay for the hospitality package. She also told the staff to invite Yancy, who oversaw energy and electrification business at the utility.

Days before the conference, Accenture's Smith sent a $980 invoice to the DWP, labeled "Food and Beverages" for McClain-Hill.

But McClain-Hill declined to pay, the emails show.

"We have a budget for this ... the Department will be paying for this not me personally," McClain-Hill wrote to an aide.

A handful of DWP staffers exchanged a flurry of emails about how to deal with the situation. At one point, they considered using a DWP credit card.

"May you please provide some guidance on how I can get these invoices paid?" a staffer wrote to her supervisor.

On March 31, 2023, LaTanya Bogin of the DWP emailed Accenture's Smith and asked to speak by phone.

Minutes later, Bogin emailed Smith again.

"Thank you for calling me. Can you send over an invoice to state the following: Conference Registration Fee for Cynthia McClain-Hill/Winifred Yancy @$980 each?" wrote Bogin, then an executive assistant and president of the DWPs retirement board plan.

Amanda Nicolls, Accenture's managing director, sent the invoices a few hours later.

Bogin didn't respond to requests from The Times for comment. Yancy, who has retired from the DWP, declined to comment.

Read more: Former L.A. city official charged by California State Bar in DWP scandal

McClain-Hill stepped down in January after The Times reported on criticism leveled against her and then-DWP board President Mel Levine over a secretly recorded phone call the pair had in 2019 with two cybersecurity executives to walk them through plans to award their company a new contract with the DWP.

The citys ethics law bars commissioners from privately reviewing contracts with vendors. McClain-Hill and a representative for Levine said the call was proper.

Paul Paradis, a former DWP contractor turned cooperating witness, is believed to have recorded the phone call. Paradis also filed the State Bar complaint against McClain-Hill over the Accenture invoices and other allegations.

Although McClain-Hill backed some Accenture contracts, she did not always act in the company's favor. Five months before the conference, McClain-Hill led her board colleagues in delaying an $11-million contract to the company amid questions about whether the agreement had been properly vetted by DWP attorneys.

Jamie York of Unrig LA, which advocates for transparency in government, reviewed the internal emails about the conference at The Times' request. She said that public officials have an obligation to spend money wisely.

"You have a public official who is less focused on their fiduciary duty to the city and more on their personal comfort," York said of McClain-Hill.

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.
SMITH COUNTY, Texas (KETK)  Cam Ray travelled from Smith County to Chicago for the first time to participate as a delegate at the 2024 Democratic National Convention.

New Angelina County Airport hangar to be leased

The energy is so amazing here. I ran into so many people who said that they are so excited to be at the convention this year, Ray said.

Ray is among a crowd of thousands of democrats, all united for the nomination for Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota governor, Tim Walz.

The first night with Hillary Clinton, with her speech definitely shed tears on that one. Of course, again, with the Obamas last night, weve had such great candidates in the past and leaders of the party, Ray said.

The Smith County delegate said shes anticipating Harris speech on Thursday. This will be a chance for democrats and republicans to hear Harris stance on important issues.

Were curious to hear what her plan is with Gaza. Thats a big one for the younger constituents, the 18 to 35 age group really want to know what our plan is to continue with Gaza, Ray said.

Disaster relief trailer for Smith County pets unveiled

According to Ray, she plans to pay close attention to when Harris discusses womens rights.

We really want them to put something in place to repair the damage that was done when Roe v Wade was overturned. Thats been a horrific situation for so many people, Ray said.

Ray is excited to hear more from notable democrats and head into November with confidence.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KETK.com | FOX51.com.
LITTLE ROCK, Ark.  A monumental groundbreaking was held on Wednesday for Easterseals Arkansas.

Students, families, staff and state leaders gathered together  with shovels in hand  to officially kick off the construction of a brand-new K through 12 academy.

Easterseals Arkansas introduces independent living through roommate housing program

The $10 million expansion and renovation are funded in large part by the states restricted reserve fund, which was a contribution facilitated by Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders who was also in attendance.

Im proud that the Education Freedom Accounts created by LEARNS, along with a financial contribution from the state, are helping Easterseals Academy grow and put more students on a path to success than ever before, Sanders said.

Easterseals Arkansas CEO Ron Ekstrand said It will unite two different locations, creating an academy that will accommodate up to 225 kids with special needs.

We have 75 kids who we are currently serving but we have a waitlist, Ekstrand said. There are families who want to be able to attend the academy. Todays funding and groundbreaking will allow them to do that this next Fallnot this coming Fall but the Fall of 2025.

The new space includes five extra classrooms, therapy rooms and a playground.

Easterseals Arkansas part of nationwide grant benefiting Arkansans with disabilities

The new academy is expected to be completed by August of next 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 KARK.
Pro-Palestine protesters rallied in Portland's Monument Square on Aug. 21, 2024 in solidarity with activists at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. (Photo by Eesha Pendharkar/ Maine Morning Star)

Dozens of people gathered in Monument Square in Portland on a windy Wednesday evening to protest for a ceasefire in Palestine, echoing much larger protests in Chicago that have targeted the Democratic National Convention this week.

The protest, organized by Maine Coalition for Palestine, drew about 60 people to downtown, many carrying signs or Palestinian flags. Community activists read poems, led chants and gave speeches about the need to keep up the pressure in the call for a ceasefire and ending U.S. support of Israel.

Mainers have protested the war on Gaza at the State House, on college campuses, and through various communities since last fall.

With death toll in Palestine surpassing 40,000, many of whom are children, activists Fairen Stark and EJ Jenks held up paper mache birds with names of Palestinian children who were killed in the war. It was important to keep putting pressure on the Democratic Party to stop supporting Israel, Stark said.

She hopes that Maines Democratic delegates will advocate for the end of Israels occupation of Palestine at the DNC, and that Maine companies will also stop arming the war against Gaza. General Dynamics, which owns Bath Iron Works as well as a weapons factory in Saco, has been accused of sending arms to Israel.

And I hope that they hear the people of Maine in our continued support for a ceasefire and for peace in the region, Stark said.

Faisal Khan, founder of the Carolina Peace Center in North Carolina, reassured protesters that their actions would make a difference.

Theres a lot of heartache, theres a lot of anger, theres a lot of frustration. We feel we have not done anything, because we continue to see the images every day, he said, referring to videos and photographs of civilian victims of the assault on Gaza. You are making a difference. Youre making a profound difference. Because remember the day you put the seed is not the day you get the fruit.

(Eesha Pendharkar/ Maine Morning Star)

Paper mache birds carrying the names of Palestinian children killed in Israels war on Gaza soar above a protest in Monument Square held in solidarity with activists protesting the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. (Eesha Pendharkar/ Maine Morning Star)

Activists make signs calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and support for Palestine during a rally in Portlands Monument Square. (Eesha Pendharkar/ Maine Morning Star)

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Scientists have reconstructed the face of one of Egypt's most famous and mysterious mummies, the "screaming woman." A recent study proved that the Egyptian woman died screaming in agony 3,500 years ago  before her body was embalmed with her mouth wide open.

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The mysterious ancient Egyptian mummy was found in 1935 in Deir Elbahar, Egypt, in the family tomb of the royal architect Senmut. Thanks to modern equipment, scientists were able to see the real face of the mysterious woman, writes DailyMail.

The author of the reconstruction, Brazilian graphic expert Cicero Moraes, said that behind the frightening mummy with an open mouth was actually a "pleasant face." The reconstruction was created by combining several approaches.

"I used a technique that combines elements of traditional schools of facial reconstruction with new approaches based on CT scans of living people. These projections allow us to identify the spatial boundaries of structures such as the ear, eyes, nose, mouth, etc. In addition, some structures can also be traced in profile, such as the nose and the side of the face," said Cicero Moraes.

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The scientist also emphasized that the data is complemented by the anatomical deformation technique when the head of a virtual digital donor is adjusted to the skull that needs to be approximated.

"As a rule, all the data are compatible, with minor differences, so the final face is an interpolation of all the information," the expert added.

Mr. Moraes created different versions of the face. One is with closed eyes and in grayscale to avoid making judgments about skin tone or eye color. The second one is more subjective, showing the woman as she might have looked in life, colored and wearing the wig she was buried in. And the third is with her mouth open to show how she might have looked when she was first buried.

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Cicero Moraes suggests that his choice of skin tone may cause controversy.

"The question of the skin color of the ancient Egyptian is a source of much controversy, where the discussion shifts from the scientific to the cultural and political. To avoid these problems, I sought an approach based on publications on the subject and data collected through research of local groups and ancient Egyptian art," the reenactor explained.

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Back in 2016, it was the Russians who interfered with the U.S. presidential election, stealing emails and computer files from the Democrats and giving them to WikiLeaks to publish, seeking to embarrass the party and damage nominee Hillary Clinton.

The culprit was the FSB, the Kremlins successor to the KGB, the old Cold War spy agency where Vladimir Putin rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel before he entered politics. Several Russians were prosecuted for this abject violation of American sovereignty.

This time, it is Americas adversaries in Tehran who are meddling in our democratic process. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency jointly conclude that agents of Iran have successfully stolen emails and computer files from the Donald Trump campaign. Most likely they got access through GOP operative Roger Stone, who was pardoned by Trump in the waning weeks of his presidency.

The feds also believe that the Iranians tried to hack into the Democrats campaign, but seem to have been unsuccessful. At least they were bipartisan.

However, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines did go public last month that Iran was successfully manipulating the protests over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, saying: We have observed actors tied to Irans government posing as activists online, seeking to encourage protests, and even providing financial support to protesters.

So Iran arms and funds Hamas (and Hezbollah and the Houthis) and then helps whip up street protests in Americas streets and campuses to support their cause.

Americans have plenty of opinions on presidential politics and the war in Gaza and it shouldnt be the mullahs pulling strings to achieve their aims. It is a federal crime and a very hostile act by a hostile government.

They are not lobbing missiles and setting off bombs like their proxies are doing against Israel, but it is still a premeditated and pernicious attack against this country. It might not meet the definition of an act of war, but it is a war against our open society and our democratic process.

The Trump campaign was properly candid in declaring that it had been victimized by the Iranians, who may be trying to defeat the former president, who promised to get tough with Tehran, or they may just be trying to sow discord and cause division in this country without taking sides in the election.

However, their motives with bolstering the Gaza protests are much clearer. Iran supports Hamas and opposes Israel. Having Americans marching and rallying in agreement serves their needs perfectly. We assume most protesters are not willing dupes of Irans foreign policy and they should object to being used.

The Iranians, like the Russians, are trying to use our strengths of free speech and free assembly and free elections against us for their own purposes  purposes at odds with U.S. national interests.

Terrorists like Hamas look for soft targets to attack, like a music festival for young people. The mullahs see our open society as likewise a soft target. But they are wrong. It is very hard, the foundation that we have built for almost 250 years in this experiment in self government. Iran cant defeat that unless we let them.

___
President Biden and California Gov. Gavin Newsom during a discussion about managing the risks of artificial intelligence at an event in San Francisco in June 2023. (Susan Walsh / Associated Press)

The release of OpenAIs ChatGPT in late 2022 was like the shot of a starter pistol, setting off a race among big tech companies to develop more and more powerful generative AI systems. Giants such as Microsoft, Google and Meta rushed to roll out new artificial intelligence tools, as billions in venture capital rolled in to AI startups.

At the same time, a growing chorus of people working in and researching AI began to sound the alarm: The technology was evolving faster than anyone anticipated. There was fear that, in the rush to dominate the market, companies might release products before they are safe.

In the spring of 2023, more than 1,000 researchers and industry leaders called for a six-month pause in the development of the most advanced artificial intelligence systems, saying AI labs were racing to deploy digital minds that not even their creators could understand, predict or reliably control. The technology presents profound risks to society and humanity, they warned. Tech company leaders urged lawmakers to develop regulations to prevent harm.

Read more: Will this California bill to regulate AI protect consumers or gut tech?

It was in that environment that state Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) began talking to industry experts about developing legislation that would become Senate Bill 1047 , the Safe and Secure Innovation for Frontier Artificial Intelligence Models Act. The bill is an important first step in responsible AI development.

While state lawmakers introduced dozens of bills targeting various AI concerns, including election misinformation and protecting artists work, Wiener took a different approach. His bill focuses on trying to prevent catastrophic damage if AI systems are abused.

SB 1047 would require that developers of the most powerful AI models put testing procedures and safeguards in place to prevent the technology from being used to shut down the power grid, enable the development of biological weapons, carry out major cyberattacks or other grave harms. If developers fail to take reasonable care to prevent catastrophic harm, the state attorney general could sue them. The bill would also protect whistleblowers within AI companies and create CalCompute, a public cloud computing cluster that would be available to help startups, researchers and academics develop AI models.

Read more: Opinion: What's behind the AI boom? Exploited humans

The bill is supported by major AI safety groups, including some of the so-called godfathers of AI who wrote a letter to Gov. Gavin Newsom contending, Relative to the scale of risks we are facing, this is a remarkably light-touch piece of legislation.

But that hasnt stopped a tidal wave of opposition from tech companies, investors and researchers, who have argued the bill wrongly holds model developers liable for anticipating harm that users might cause. They say that liability would make developers less willing to share their models, which will stifle innovation in California.

Last week, eight members of Congress from California chimed in with a letter to Newsom urging him to veto SB 1047 if its passed by the Legislature. The bill, they argued, is premature, with a misplaced emphasis on hypothetical risks and lawmakers should instead focus on regulating uses of AI that are causing harm today, such as the use of deepfakes in election ads and revenge porn.

Read more: Opinion: It's not just hype. AI could revolutionize diagnosis in medicine

There are plenty of good bills that address immediate and specific misuse of AI. That doesn't negate the need to anticipate and try to prevent future harms  especially when experts in the field are calling for action. SB 1047 raises familiar questions for the tech sector and lawmakers. When is the right time to regulate an emerging technology? What is the right balance to encourage innovation while protecting the public that has to live with its effects? And can the genie be put back in the bottle after the technology is rolled out?

There are risks to sitting on the sidelines for too long. Today, lawmakers are still playing catch-up on data privacy and attempting to curb harm on social media platforms. This isn't the first time big tech leaders have publicly professed that they welcome regulation on their products, but then lobbied fiercely to block specific proposals.

Ideally the federal government would lead on AI regulation to avoid a patchwork of state policies. But Congress has proved unable  or unwilling  to regulate big tech. For years, proposed legislation to protect data privacy and reduce online risks to children have stalled out. In the absence of federal action, California, in particular because its the home of Silicon Valley, has chosen to lead with first-of-its-kind regulations on net neutrality, data privacy and online safety for children. AI is no different. Indeed, House Republicans have already said they will not support any new AI regulations.

By passing SB 1047, California can pressure the federal government to set standards and regulations that could supersede state regulation and, until that happens, the law could serve as an important backstop.

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.
In a letter to the state, Apollo Global Management, the landlord of St. Elizabeths Medical Center in Brighton, rejected the states offer to take over the property through eminent domain.

In the letter sent Tuesday, Apollos lawyers said it rejects the Commonwealths proposed offer of $4,500,000 which significantly undervalues the real property underlying St. Elizabeths.

Apollo says the tax-assessed value of the property is over $200 million.

The landlord thinks that what we offered was too low, we dont think it is, but the point is were going to take that property, were going to get that hospital under control there at St. Es, said Gov. Maura Healey Wednesday night. As you know I announced agreements last week that were in the works to save the other community hospitals.

Last week, Governor Healey announced deals to keep five of the seven Steward hospitals open under new ownership, while Carney and Nashoba hospitals still plan on closing by the end of August.

Months ago, we received news that Steward was going bankrupt and hospitals were going to close all over Massachusetts, and were glad weve been able to save the mass majority of these hospitals, said Gov. Healey.

But the legal battle will continue over St. Elizabeths.

While the governor tells Boston 25 News Wednesday night that the state will press on taking it over through eminent domain, the landlord says itll challenge that move in court.

The lawyers for Apollo say St. Elizabeths sits on 14 acres of real estate in a prime location and are looking for fair market value before making a deal.

In a news conference last Friday, Governor Healey said after the state takes over St. Elizabeths, Boston Medical Center would become the new owner to run that hospital.

The bankruptcy hearing to approve the sale of these five remaining Steward hospitals was supposed to be Thursday in Texas, but that hearing has been postponed until August 27th.

Apollo is the parent company of Cox Media Group which owns Boston 25.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

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Russian forces continued targeting Donetsk Oblast on 22 August, with a total of eight people injured in the Kramatorsk, Pokrovsk and Bakhmut districts.

Source: Donetsk Oblast Prosecutor's Office

Quote: "The investigation states that Russian troops fired on the Kramatorsk, Pokrovsk and Bakhmut districts on 22 August 2024. The enemy launched an airstrike, likely using a KAB-250 aerial bomb, on the village of Pleshchiiivka, Illinivka hromada. [A hromada is an administrative unit designating a village, several villages, or a town, and their adjacent territories  ed.]

The occupiers targeted a private residential area, where a couple - a 66-year-old woman and a 63-year-old man, as well as their 85-year-old neighbour - were rescued from under the rubble of two houses. All of them were taken to hospital with head wounds, broken ribs and bruises. A 47-year-old civilian was injured in another house."

Details: In addition, as a result of an artillery attack on Kostiantynivka, two women aged 49 and 31 sustained injuries to their legs and chest.

The Russians also shelled a residential area of Toretsk with artillery, wounding a 70-year-old woman. Another 65-year-old civilian was injured in Novohrodivka during an attack.

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SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP)  A woman involved in a hit-and-run crash two weeks ago wrote a letter to recognize a Springfield officer who helped her.

According to the Springfield Police Department, an 82-year-old from eastern Massachusetts was in Indian Orchard visiting friends when she was a victim in a hit-and-run crash. When Springfield Police Sgt. Evan Donermeyer arrived, he addressed the woman with empathy and kindness, and helped her seek medical attention.

Officers talk man out of jumping off Armory Street bridge in Springfield

This woman wrote a letter to Superintendent Akers in part it reads; When an accident happens in a public space, it is probably the polices duty to clear the road as quickly as possible, while getting an injured person to the hospital. Sgt. Donermeyer accomplished this in a friendly, non-authoritarian manner. With empathy and kindness, he made me see the necessity of a medical assessment. He phoned my daughter, who lives in Needham, to appraise her of the situation. At all times he made sure that I felt secure, taken care of, while he arranged for my car to be towed. I would like to express my gratitude to Sgt. Donermeyer for his exceptional kindness and efficiency, and to the emergency team who took care of me. The Springfield Police Department sent me a Good Samaritan called Sgt. Donermeyer, for which I am most grateful.

Superintendent Akers stated, Being a police officer is a proud profession, as long as you can do it with dignity, decency and respect. This is another example of our officers performing their duties in a way that makes a visitor, who was involved in a terrible incident, want to pen a letter to me to show their gratitude for one of our sworn officers. Thank you Sgt. Donermeyer for making this victim feel comfortable in a traumatic situation. I will continue to reinforce that small acts like this need to be recognized. I want our officers serving our community in the same manner that they bravely protect our community.

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Michael Gauger and Ric Bradshaw, two career law enforcement professionals, worked side-by-side as friends and colleagues at the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office for more than 20 years. Now they will face off against each other in the November general election for sheriff in a race that is showing signs of becoming one of the more contentious elections in South Florida.

Gauger was Bradshaw's Chief Deputy (second in command) for more than 16 years when he resigned in 2021. Before that, he was a colonel, a major and a captain at PBSO, all the while working with and under Bradshaw.

Bradshaw, 76, easily won his primary contest against Alex Freeman, garnering 61% of the vote to 39% for Freeman. Bradshaw collected 57,875 votes; Freeman got 37,327. Bradshaw Tuesday night attributed his strong showing to a belief by voters that he has kept the community safe and will continue to do so.

Sheriff candidates for the November election are (from left): Michael Gauger (GOP) and Ric Bradshaw (DEM).

"It was a way for residents to say thank you for the job we have done and will continue to do," he said.

Gauger's victory against Lauro Diaz was much closer, and it was dependent on a commanding lead in vote-by-mail. He won by 8 points (fewer than 4.000 votes). The margin of victory for Gauger came from those mail-in votes. Diaz was slightly ahead when early votes and election tallies were computed.

Sheriff's race: Gauger saved by mail-in votes in GOP primary

Gauger is already blaming Bradshaw and his political consultant, Rick Asnani of Cornerstone Solutions, for Diaz doing as well as he did.

"If it were not for the (mail)-in votes, who knows what might have happened?" Gauger said. "Bradshaw, Asnani and their Police Benevolent Association (PBA) cronies all helped Diaz because they knew Diaz would be an easier opponent in November. Bradshaw defeated Diaz four years ago. Shame on Diaz for letting the PBA bankroll his campaign. And shame on you, too, Ric."

Click HERE to see Palm Beach County primary results

The county PBA and other PBAs in South Florida contributed to Diaz's campaign.

Bradshaw called the accusation ridiculous, saying he focused solely on his primary race against Freeman and had no involvement at all in the Republican primary. He called his win a vote of confidence in how he has been operating PBSO. His 57,875 votes was far in excess of what any other primary candidate received in Palm Beach County Tuesday.

Rick Asnani

On his website, Gauger posted a blistering five-minute video that accused Bradshaw of getting involved in the GOP primary.

He noted that a political action committee, Keeping Citizens First Inc., has paid for negative ads accusing him of being too liberal to be sheriff because he had partnered with Planned Parenthood and the ACLU while he was Bradshaw's chief deputy. Asnani is the registered agent for the PAC. Gauger claims it has been running a smear campaign against him. An ad that appeared in the closing days of the primary took things totally out of context, Gauger said.

RELATED: Sheriff's deferred costs may mean big hit to taxpayers next year

Asnani acknowledged that Keeping Citizens First has been spending money to discredit Gauger but said it only did so after Gauger went negative and began attacking Bradshaw. The sheriff and Citizens First will not sit by and allow Gauger attacks to go on without a response, Asnani said.

As for any involvement in the GOP primary, Asnani, like Bradshaw, said there was none.

"Gauger has upset a lot of people, including the PBA, the union that he would have to work with should he become sheriff. It should come as no surprise that the PBA is sounding out against him. People within his own party are not supporting him."

Bradshaw will be seeking a sixth term. He already is the county's longest serving sheriff. He has a campaign war chest of $806,000. No sheriff in Florida has raised as much money. As of July 30, Gauger had raised $171,376, but he says he will raise enough money over the next two months to run a competitive campaign.

RELATED: No surprise in Palm Beach County sheriff races - Bradshaw, Gauger win

Gauger said he retired after a 50-year career in law enforcement because he was concerned about the way Bradshaw was running the agency.

Gauger has been criticized for walking away with a $743,000 payout. He acknowledged that it was wrong and when he was told of the amount, he thought it was a mistake. He said he did not want to accept it but was told he had to. Attack ads have criticized him for taking the payout without explaining that he had no choice, he told The Post.

RELATED: In rare move, the police union is giving campaign money to Republican primary candidate

Mike Diamond is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. He covers Palm Beach County government. You can reach him at mdiamond@pbpost.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Palm Beach County Sheriff's race rife with accusations, acrimony
Election skeptics get speaking slots at SC GOP events. Why does the party invite them?

On Saturday night, a Florida man with a gray beard took to the stage at a black-tie optional Republican gathering.

U.S. Rep. Cory Mills, R-Florida, spoke about efforts to rescue Americans overseas and criticisms he had of the federal government.

In 2021, before Mills was elected to Congress, he helped rescue an American family stuck in Afghanistan as the United States withdrew from the country. After the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel, Mills traveled to Israel to help evacuate 255 Americans from the region.

I realized quickly this administration was going to do nothing to take action, Mills said Saturday. You see, weve got, whether its Walz, Harris or Biden, this pattern of abandonment.

When Mills was announced as keynote speaker at the 57th Annual Silver Elephant Gala, the S.C. GOPs largest fundraiser, it was his previous statements that garnered media attention. Mills was an election skeptic in 2020, spoke at a Stop the Steal rally and was among those who questioned the validity of the President Joe Bidens victory over former President Donald Trump.

Its not the first time an election skeptic has spoken at an S.C. GOP event. Trump was the keynote speaker at the 2023 Silver Elephant Gala. In 2021 and 2023, when the S.C. GOP held its First in the South Republican Action Conferences, among the speakers was Cleta Mitchell, a Trump attorney who worked to overturn the 2020 election results.

Trumps own attorney general, Bill Barr, said there was no evidence of widespread fraud in the 2020 election.

S.C. GOP Chairman Drew McKissick said the party is focused on the future, turning out voters in the November election and a speaker such as Mills can help rally the party faithful.

You got a great story to tell about national security-related issues and things hes been involved in, McKissick said in an interview Saturday. Cleta Mitchell, in her capacity, is an election expert. Shes fantastic.

McKissick added Mitchel worked with local organizations and the Republican National Committee in sharing her knowledge.

Cleta Mitchell speaks about election integrity at the South Carolina Republican Partys inaugural First in the South Republican Action Conference in Myrtle Beach in October 2021.

To Mills credit, he touched on the importance of all the elections on the 2024 ballot, not just the presidential race.

In every single election, I will be the first to say that the most important votes that you will take are the down ballot votes, our state legislators, our mayors, our school boards, our justices, our city council, our commissioners, the people who touch our lives day to day are the ones that we should be looking out for, not just the top three who sits on the ticket, Mills said.

In a reliably Republican state, where Trump is popular, some conservatives still questioned whether South Carolinas 2020 results were correct, claiming the former president won by an even bigger margin than the 12-point margin reported by the state election commission.

Although McKissick has defended the work done by the S.C. Election Commission, he has received challenges for his job from those who doubted the 2020 election results.

But he has said hes willing to work with other conservatives if it means winning at the ballot box.

(It) doesnt mean they have to agree all the time, but they know that they need to work together in order to win, McKissick said. Those are people I want to work with. If theyre not okay with that program, they can go over there and do what they want and Im going to go the other way and be productive.

McKissick has defended measures taken in South Carolina to ensure an accurate vote count on election days. The state requires people to provide photo identification. The state carries out hand audits of select precincts around the state to make sure results match what is being reported.

Results also are audited through independent software that looks at images of ballots cast in elections to make sure they match the vote totals being reported.

Still party insiders says giving election deniers an opportunity to speak at marquis state GOP events isnt a way to placate certain factions in the party.

Under Drews leadership, the party has focused on being inclusionary and not exclusionary, said Matt Moore, who served as S.C. GOP chairman from 2013-2017 and now is a managing partner a political consulting firm First Tuesday Strategies.

Having multiple view points in a party is whats needed to help it be successful, Moore said.

If the party is robust and strong, the audience can make up its own mind, Moore said. When the party self selects for exclusion you get a bunch of nodding heads and the party ends up on the losing side of elections.

McKissick faced challenges in 2021 and 2023 when he ran for reelection. In 2021, he faced a challenge from pro-Trump attorney Lin Wood, among others. McKissick easily won reelection.

In 2023 after county party takeovers by hardline conservative factions in Lexington and Greenville counties, McKissick faced a tougher challenge for his chairmanship. He ultimately was reelected but with 51.8% of the vote.

I think Chairman McKissick has a tougher job in some ways than the party chairman before him because he has so many personalities to manage and the personality conflict that defines his role, defines politics across the country, said Rob Godfrey, a longtime South Carolina GOP strategist who previously worked for the state party.

South Carolina Republican Party Chair Drew McKissick speaks during the annual Silver Elephant Gala on Saturday, August 17, 2024.

Jeff Davis, of Greenville County, who has been at odds with McKissick, ran for the S.C. GOP chairmanship in 2023. Davis said he believed unfounded allegations that the 2020 presidential election was stolen.

Davis wasnt alone in his views.

The then-Lexington County GOP Chairwoman Pamela Godwin was also an election denier. Godwin, who was elected to her role in April 2023, later faced backlash from within the Lexington County GOP and was eventually ousted.

I think those factions are having their own fractures and I think a lot of folks are figuring out the fracture doesnt help anybody. I think theres a lot of mending going on honestly, said Chad Connelly who served as party chairman from 2011 to 2013.

Ultimately a political partys job is to work to get their candidates elected by recruiting candidates and helping turn out the vote.

Those efforts require raising money to spend during campaigns, and events such as the S.C. GOP Silver Elephant Gala and the First in the South Republican Action Conference serve as fundraisers for the party. Attendees have to purchase tickets to help cover costs.

High profile speakers, or those with noteworthy stories, help attract people to events.

Money raised by the party is meant to help with voter turnout efforts such as phone banking, door knocking and text messages, as well as overhead costs such as paying staff and utility bills.

All those efforts cost money and even if some tasks are carried out by volunteers, providing them with bottles of water, doughnuts or pizza arent free.

Connelly said McKissicks choice in speakers is part of an effort to sell tickets for an event to make sure its a net gain for the party.

Its a task which is more difficult at this point in the election calendar.

Its a presidential election year, and South Carolina, a reliably Republican state, is not expected to be a battleground state.

Media attention on the state has dropped since the presidential primary as South Carolina this year doesnt have a marquee statewide race outside of the presidential race on the ballot making it difficult to find a speaker, especially in the month of August when people are trying to take off before the final fall election sprint.

I think Drew will wants to find a speaker people will be interested in, Connelly said.
Relatives of Palestinians, who killed after an Israeli attack targeting a house in the Maghzi refugee camp, mourn after their bodies were brought to the al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital for burial in Deir El-Balah. Omar Ashtawy/APA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

An Israeli attack on a residential building in northern Gaza has killed 11 people, with children among the dead, the Palestinian news agency WAFA reported on Thursday.

An Israeli army spokeswoman said the overnight attack in the city of Beit Lahia was aimed at a terrorist target and that the military was not yet aware of any other casualties.

The Israeli military said fighting was continuing in other parts of the Palestinian territory. In the southern city of Rafah, it said more than 50 militants had been killed on Wednesday.

The accounts by both sides could not be independently verified.

The Gaza war was triggered by the worst massacre in Israel's history. More than 1,200 were killed in attacks by Hamas militants and other Palestinian extremist groups on October 7.

More than 40,000 people have been killed in Gaza during Israel's retaliatory military campaign, according to the Hamas-controlled health authority, whose figures do not distinguish between fighters and civilians.

Relatives of Palestinians, who killed after an Israeli attack targeting a house in the Maghzi refugee camp, mourn after their bodies were brought to the al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital for burial in Deir El-Balah. Omar Ashtawy/APA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
An equation by Oxford University's Tom Crawford shows how to get the most out of a hotel breakfast. He argues that you shouldn't sleep late, because breakfast should start at 08:17 sharp.

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In his research, Dr. Crawford also advises against popular belief and to start the morning meal with hot, not cold, food. He also explains what exactly to choose for the buffet, writes the Daily Mail.

Tom Crawford's formula for the perfect breakfast buffet shows exactly what you should eat at a buffet and in what order. According to him, there are six key components of the buffet experience, including the obvious elements (such as the type and amount of food), as well as the time of arrival and the amount of time spent digesting the food. The Oxford University researcher emphasizes that to get a maximum score of 10 according to his criteria, visitors should start breakfast at 8:17 a.m. sharp and eat two plates of food.

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"The first one is a hot plate with one piece of toast, a portion of eggs, a portion of beans, two pieces of bacon, and two sausages. The second plate, which should be eaten 16 minutes after the first to facilitate digestion, should contain two slices of smoked salmon, two servings of fruit, one pastry, one yogurt, and a bowl of cereal," the mathematician described in detail.

Dr. Crawford decided to come up with the formula for the perfect breakfast after researchers found that a quarter of Britons put off their plans for the day after overeating in hotels in the morning.

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Most people choose a hotel based on food. An Asda Travel survey has shown that three out of five Britons choose a vacation spot based on the quality of all-inclusive food.

"Our research has shown that we are fans of buffet breakfast, but we consume it in the wrong way. This leads to a nap after breakfast or disappointment because we could not eat that delicious cupcake that looked so appetizing on the table. And we want to help our customers get the most out of their shopping experience," said Neil Foster, Head of Asda Money.

Foster expressed his hope that Tom Crawford's formula will help every hotel customer get the most out of their breakfast experience.

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Michelle Frankl, a professor of chemistry at Bryn Mawr College in the United States, complemented the Oxford mathematician's research with her own advice on the perfect cup of tea.

The secret of the perfect tea from the American scientist is to use a short and sturdy mug and to give preference to tea leaves in bags. Professor Frankl also advises adding warm milk to tea to reduce the likelihood of curdling. But the most interesting part of this formula is her advice to add a pinch of salt to the tea to "reduce bitterness."

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More than 300 hectares of local woodland have been felled to expand the plant - Google Earth

Elon Musks Tesla felled half a million trees in order to build his giant Berlin electric car factory, satellite analysis shows.

Imaging from environmental intelligence firm Kayrros suggested around 329 hectares of local woodland were felled between March 2020 and May 2023 to expand the plant. This is equivalent to around 500,000 trees.

Work on the plant, which has capacity to produce 500,000 electric vehicles each year, began in 2020 and it officially opened in 2022. It is Teslas only so-called gigafactory in Europe.

The extent to which Tesla has altered the local environment, according to satellite images shared with the Guardian, is likely to reignite controversy surrounding the factory.

The project has already attracted protests from Left-wing environmental groups, which have accused Mr Musk of destroying local wildlife and polluting the drinking water.

Dozens of protesters have occupied the forests outside the perimeter of Teslas site in Brandenburg for months.

The site was the subject of an arson attack in March that forced a halt in production, in which an electricity pylon was set ablaze.

Mr Musk branded the attackers, who called themselves Volcano Group, the dumbest eco-terrorists. At the time the billionaire said: Stopping production of electric vehicles, rather than fossil fuel vehicles, ist extrem dumm [German for extremely stupid].

In July, Tesla received permission from the German government to further expand the Gruenheide plant, on the outskirts of Berlin, doubling its production capacity to around a million vehicles per year.

Environmental activists are occupying the forest surrounding the factory - Cevin Dettlaff/DPA

Antoine Halff, chief analyst at Kayrros, told the Guardian: The Tesla factory in Germany has led to quite a bit of cutting down of trees. Of course, it has to be put in perspective, against the benefit of replacing internal combustion engine cars with electric vehicles.

He said the lost trees would account for around 13,000 tonnes of CO2  the amount emitted by 2,800 internal combustion engines on average.

So thats a fraction of the number of the electric cars that Tesla produces and sells every quarter, he said. You always have trade-offs, so you need to be aware of what the terms of the trade-off are.

Mr Musk has been upfront about the trade-offs involved in net zero during the switch to greener fuels, saying we should not demonise oil and gas in the medium term.

He has also alleged that climate change activists alarm is exaggerated in the short term.

Tesla was contacted for comment.

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Rep. Nima Kulkarni, D-Louisville, prevailed in Franklin Circuit Court on Monday. (LRC Public Information)

Republican Kentucky Secretary of State Michael Adams has opened a path for Democratic state Rep. Nima Kulkarni to appear on the November ballot, although further legal challenges could arise.

Adams declared a vacancy in the nomination process for Louisvilles 40th House District on the heels of legal challenges against Kulkarnis candidacy. However, attorneys on both sides disagree on if Kulkarni is eligible to be nominated.

In a statement issued after the Kentucky Supreme Court finalized its disqualification of Kulkarni Thursday morning, Adams said he interpreted the new opinion to mean that no primary election had occurred since Kulkarnis candidacy was challenged before votes were cast. Therefore, the true and legitimate will of the people has not yet been expressed, Adams said, citing the Supreme Courts opinion.

I take this as a directive to me to certify that a vacancy exists in the nomination for state representative in the 40th District, Adams said. I intend to permit the Democratic and Republican Parties to nominate candidates for this office, and give the people a choice.

The Kentucky Supreme Court in June issued a one-page preliminary order disqualifying Kulkarni as a candidate in the primary election because of problems in her filing papers. On Thursday, the court issued a final 5-1-1 ruling and addressed questions around the nomination process.

The lawsuit against Kulkarni, filed by former Democratic state Rep. Dennis Horlander, whom Kulkarni unseated in 20018, challenged the validity of her candidacy papers.

Kulkarnis attorney, James Craig, said they appreciated Adams swift work, which the voters of District 40 deserved.

Notwithstanding todays Supreme Court decision, Rep. Kulkarni remains eligible to seek her partys nomination after the declaration of a vacancy, and she intends to seek the nomination, Craig added.

Kulkarni won the unofficial primary vote in the district by 78% over challenger William Zeitz. No Republican candidates filed for the election. Kulkarni defeated Horlander in the 2018 and 2020 Democratic primaries in the 40th House District. Kulkarni is seeking a fourth term in office.

However, Horlanders attorney, Steven Megerle, told the Kentucky Lantern that Kulknari cannot be nominated by Democrats in this election. He cited a recent state law that bars disqualified primary candidates from running for the same office.

The Jefferson circuit court judge should issue a final order with directions on next steps to all of the parties on how this should proceed, Megerle said. And we will await his direction, but it is absolutely clear that Ms. Kulkarni has been disqualified, and under the new statute, she cannot be a nominee in the general election.

In contrast, Craig pointed to a previous brief from Megerle in the lawsuit that said disqualifying a first-place finisher after the election does not entitle the second-place finisher to ascend to a nomination he was unable to obtain through the ballot box.

As for Horlander, Megerle said that he believes Zeitz is the qualifying candidate for office and should be certified as such.

If the courts and the secretary of state think otherwise, Mr. Horlander will consider the options that may in the future open up, Megerle said.

Justices weigh in

Horlander filed the lawsuit to challenge the signatures on Kulkarnis candidacy papers. State law says the documents must be signed by two witnesses who are Democratic voters in the 40th District. At the time of signing, one witness was a registered Republican and changed her registration after the filing deadline. Kulkarni previously testified she thought the voter was a registered Democrat and only later became aware of the issue.

State law places the burden on candidates to ensure the accuracy of their election filing papers, the court wrote in its majority opinion, written by Justice Shea Nickell.

It is not unreasonable or unduly harsh to demand strict compliance with clearly enacted legislative mandates for ballot access, the opinion said. Assuring ones required election filings are compliant is among the first duties of anyone intent upon seeking public office.

Justice Kelly Thompson issued an opinion dissenting in part. He wrote that while he agreed with the courts interpretation that the Court of Appeals could determine if Kulkarni was a bona fide candidate, he disagreed with its ultimate resolution of that issue.

Thompson said he was persuaded by arguments from Justice Angela McCormick Bisig that an 1990 update to state law regarding the candidate nomination process created sufficient ambiguity that they should be interpreted as intending to amend previous state law. Thompson called the hypertechnical requirements of the law a trap for unwary candidates who file for office and suggested the Kentucky secretary of state and General Assembly address the issues.

Bisig wrote in a dissenting opinion that the court should uphold the ruling of Jefferson County Circuit Court that would have allowed Kulkarni to remain on the ballot. She wrote about different interpretations of the 1990 changes.

Given the two possible interpretations of the amendment to the filing requirements statute, I would recognize the long-standing principle that uncertainty or doubt in statutory language should be resolved in favor of allowing the candidacy to continue, Bisig said, citing a 2003 case. The idea of liberal construction of election statutes that favors the goal of broad voter participation is deeply embedded in Kentucky law.

Editors note: This story was updated with additional comments.

Read the Supreme Court ruling

2024-SC-0215-DGE
LORDSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN)  Lordstown Local School District held an emergency board meeting Thursday morning to address the threat of a strike given by the Lordstown Teachers Association.

Teachers negotiated for a 3% raise, but the boards offer was 1.5%. Lordstown Superintendent Gregory Bonamase says the current contract has benefits most districts dont offer.

No other district in the tri-county area offers their employees an FSA or HSA plan, Bonamase said. But that was negotiated and because thats what the board at the time could afford. And its still on there. Its like someone said, Its a phenomenal health care plan.'

Weve taken concessions in the past, said teacher Janette McAndrew. What theyre offering is 3%, which were told is higher than state average. But in years past, many years past, weve taken less than that.

Theres currently no date for when negotiations will continue. But both parties say they are confident a deal will be struck.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WKBN.com.
EMS, farmers respond after Sublette man is trapped in grain bin

SUBLETTE, Ill. (WTVO)  A man who fell into a grain bin on Wednesday was rescued and survived the incident, authorities said.

According to the Sublette Fire Department, rescue crews were called to the 1500 block of Sublette Road around noon after a man became trapped inside the 25-foot-deep bin.

When crews arrived, they found the man trapped up to his waist in between 10 to 15 feet of corn.

Officials said it took approximately 2 hours and 48 minutes to extricate him. He was then flown to OSF Saint Anthony in Rockford for evaluation and was released Wednesday evening.

Several agencies and neighboring farmers also responded to the scene, including crews from Amboy, Dixon, Lee/Ogle, and LaSalle/Peru.

We are lucky to live in a small community with so many caring people and neighbors, the Sublette Fire Department said.

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BOSTON (WWLP)  The Massachusetts Energy Efficiency Advisory Council met on Wednesday, announcing their mid-term modifications of the states three-year energy efficiency programs.

This council, created by the Green Communities Act of 2008, oversees the long-term vision for Massachusettss energy future and works to create energy efficiency savings that can benefit both the environment and the economy.

They also develop and implement plans to make investor-owned gas and electric utilities and energy providers as productive and sustainable as possible. The mid-term modifications (MTMs) come from energy companies, who are requesting more funding to carry their projects through 2024the end of this term.

Some council members expressed concern in the meeting that the need for more funding comes from a place of poor planning. I wonder why we were not proactive, and that we have to get to the situation that we have gotten into. Are we about to repeat the same thing next year? Why dont we just do good in the way we plan? said Mary Wambui, Asset Manager of the Planning Office for Urban Development.

Representatives of the companies requesting more money say that they planned as well as they could with the information available to them, but MTMs still may be necessary in the future as consumer demand increases.

The overarching goal of this counciland of the programs the energy companies participate inis to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

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WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on WWLP.com.

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MARBLE HILL, Mo.  A city in Bollinger County is scrambling after the entire police department of Marble Hill, Missouri, resigned.

The Bollinger County Sheriffs Office announced that officers at the Marble Hill Police Department submitted their resignations to the city council on Monday. This will leave the countys largest city without police officers starting Saturday.

The departments police chief, Kristin Nenninger shared a statement on Facebook stating the resignation came after the citys apparent budget constraints on the police department.

According to the sheriffs office, they are currently in communication with the city of Marble Hill and have told the community they will work to negotiate a resolution with the department to ensure daily operations continue.

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Former Attorney General Eric Holder sat down with MSNBC's Symone Sanders-Townsend for his first interview since he was selected to lead Vice President Kamala Harris' vice presidential vetting process.

Wednesday's interview was part of an MSNBC Live event at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Holder joined two-time Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, MSNBC Live co-host and creative director Luke Russert, and co-host of "The Weekend" Symone Sanders-Townsend for a conversation focused on voting and the 2024 election.

Holder pulled back the curtain on Harris' vetting process and explained how it compared to his previous experience screening running mates for former President Barack Obama in 2008: "We had about two and a half, three months to do that. This one took 15 days."

Holder said he convened a team of about 70 lawyers from his firm, Covington & Burling, to help with the effort. According to the former attorney general, they worked around the clock, whittling down a list of about 11 candidates to Harris' final pick, Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota.

Holder said his team's research involved watching hours of videos of the candidates, telling Sanders-Townsend he looked at more videos than he's ever seen in his life. "My YouTube hours are off the charts now," he said.

Holder admitted there were some positives about the accelerated timeline. "It was daunting, but the time was so short that you didnt have time to get too anxious about it," he said. "It was only at the conclusion that you said, 'I hope we got everything.' And I think we did."

Holder said it helped that Harris had "the great ability to pick from a wide range of really qualified people."

When asked why the governor ultimately got the job, Holder explained it came down to Walz's accomplishments and his chemistry with Harris. He said the pair "just kind of clicked." As for his experience, Holder ticked through the governor's resume, noting his time in the military, in Congress and his tenure as a teacher.

In the end, Holder said he was confident Walz would be "a great vice president."

During the conversation, Sanders-Townsend also asked the former attorney general about rumors he could join a possible Harris administration as her chief of staff.

But Holder quickly shut the speculation down, "Ive had a good career in government and I'm pretty satisfied with the things I've done." He then promised to do everything in his power to "make sure that, in fact, Kamala Harris will pick a White House chief of staff."

This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
The crew of the Greek-flagged Sounion oil tanker were rescued by a ship from EUNAVFOR Aspides after the vessel came under attack in the Red Sea on Wednesday. Photo by EUNAVFOR Aspides/X

Aug. 22 (UPI) -- An oil tanker that was attacked in the Red Sea was abandoned and left adrift after the crew was rescued, the European Union's military operation in the area said Thursday.

EUNAVFOR Aspides said on social media that it dispatched a ship to rescue the crew of the Greek-flagged vessel Sounion which came under attack and lost engine power in the Red Sea on Wednesday.

It noted that the ship also destroyed an Unmanned Surface Vessel that "posed an imminent threat" to the Sounion and its crew before everyone on board was rescued and transported to the nearest safe port of call in Djibouti.

"The lives of seafarers and freedom on the high seas are nonnegotiable values and their protection is a key objective of EUNAVFOR ASPIDES," said the military operation, which noted the Sounion had not previously asked for its protection.

On August 21, the MV SOUNION, which had not asked for EUNAFVOR ASPIDES protection, came under an attack in the South Red Sea area and lost its engine power. Following a request from the master, the operation dispatched a ship in order to rescue the crew. While approaching... pic.twitter.com/gdSbTjmzRm EUNAVFOR ASPIDES (@EUNAVFORASPIDES) August 22, 2024

U.K. Maritime Trade Operations said on Wednesday that Sounion was approached by "two small craft" with the first carrying 3-5 people and the second carrying about 10 people that hailed the ship about 77 nautical miles west of the Yemeni port of Hodeidah "leading to a brief exchange of small arms fire."

The ship was then struck by "two unidentified projectiles" and was later hit by a third, sparking a fire and leaving the ship without engine power.

Greek Shipping Minister Christos Stylinides said the ship carried a crew of 25 foreign nationals who were in "good health" although the attack caused "material damage to the ship."

Stylianides called the attack a "flagrant violation of the rules of international law and a serious threat to the safety of international navigation."

While the UKMTO did not identify the suspects behind the attack and no group claimed responsibility but the Hodeidah port is controlled by the Iran-back Houthi rebels.

The militants have been attacking shipping vessels -- both military and non-military -- since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas. The Houthis have said they are targeting ships linked to Israel, the United States and Britain in support of Palestinians but have also targeted ships not related to those nations.

The Sounion tanker was transporting crude oil to Iraq's Port of Basra when it came under attack. Delta Tankers, the ship's operator from Greece, said the damage was being examined before it will continue to Iraq.
A Nasa earth picture shows smoke from forest fires drifting over Madeira Island on 17 August. The natural colour scenes of the OLI (Operational Land Imager) on Landsat 8 are overlaid with an infrared signal in order to better recognize the heat signature of active fires. Nasa Earth/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

The European Commission announced on Thursday that it was sending two firefighting aeroplanes to the island of Madeira to help Portugal battle wildfires that have destroyed about 5,500 hectares of land so far.

The support falls under the EU's Civil Protection Mechanism, which responds to such disasters.

At a press conference in Brussels on Thursday, a commission spokesman said two planes from the European Union's strategic reserve in Spain would step in to help fight the fires on Madeira.

Portugal asked the commission for assistance under the mechanism late on Wednesday, the spokesman said.

The commission is also providing Portuguese authorities with satellite images from the EU's Copernicus Earth observation programme, he added.

According to state broadcaster RTP, the two heavy-duty water-bomber aircraft from the Spanish Air Force arrived in the afternoon and are set to join the firefighting operations.

The wildfire has been raging in the centre of the island since last week. The civil defence said 125 firefighters and civil defence personnel are fighting the blaze.

The extinguishing work has been hampered by strong winds and high temperatures. According to officials, three fronts were recently active, spreading along a mountain range that is difficult to access.

The main aim of the emergency services is to prevent the fire from reaching the laurel forest, which has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and a hydroelectric power station in the Pico Ruivo area.

The regional President Miguel Albuquerque rejected claims from environmentalists that the flames had already engulfed the laurel forest. The fire had not reached the protected area, he assured.

Some 200 people had to leave their homes due to the risk of smoke inhalation but they have been able to return. No injuries or damage to buildings have been reported so far.

However, Albuquerque assured that people and residential areas were not in danger.

The politician also rejected accusations from the Portuguese media that he underestimated the fire and did not interrupt his holiday quickly enough.

The unnecessary "alarmist rhetoric" must stop, Albuquerque was quoted as saying by RTP.

The self-governing Portuguese territory of Madeira, which has a population of about 250,000, lies in the Atlantic Ocean, about 1,000 kilometres south-west of mainland Portugal and roughly 500 kilometres west of the Moroccan coast.
Chinese premier says China ready to join Russia for cooperation in emerging areas

Xinhua) 07:59, August 22, 2024

Chinese Premier Li Qiang meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Aug. 21, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Bin)

MOSCOW, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang said here Wednesday that while consolidating cooperation in traditional areas, China is willing to work with Russia to explore cooperation in emerging areas.

Li made the remarks when meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin after he co-chaired the 29th regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.

Li conveyed Chinese President Xi Jinping's cordial greetings and best wishes to President Putin. He said that the two heads of state have met twice this year, drawing a new blueprint and injecting strong momentum into further deepening bilateral relations and cooperation, especially at the historical juncture of the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Russia.

The steady development of China-Russia relations not only serves the fundamental interests of the two countries and two peoples, but also contributes to regional and world peace, stability and prosperity, Li noted, expressing China's willingness to work with Russia to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, maintain the sound momentum of the development of bilateral relations, expand all-round mutually beneficial cooperation and achieve more practical results.

Li pointed out that the current round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation is deepening, which implies huge development opportunities. China is ready to further highlight the role of scientific, technological and industrial innovation in powering bilateral cooperation with Russia, to constantly foster new economic growth points, he added.

The two sides should continue to deepen cultural, tourism, education, youth and sub-national exchanges and cooperation to promote mutual understanding between the two peoples and pass on the cause of China-Russia friendship from generation to generation, Li said.

Against the backdrop of accelerating changes in the world unseen in a century, China is ready to work with Russia to further strengthen multilateral coordination, deepen mutual trust and cooperation with developing countries, firmly promote a multi-polar world and economic globalization, and better safeguard its legitimate rights and interests and basic norms governing international relations.

Putin asked Li to convey his cordial greetings and best wishes to President Xi. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Russia and China, which is a memorable year in the history of the development of bilateral relations, Putin said.

Noting that Russian and Chinese heads of government held their annual meeting this morning, during which they had in-depth exchanges on economy, trade, people-to-people and cultural cooperation and signed a series of cooperation documents, Putin said this is a strong implementation of the important consensus reached between President Xi and him and has yielded fruitful results.

Russia is willing to further strengthen mutually beneficial cooperation with China, expand cultural and people-to-people exchanges, and step up communication and coordination within BRICS and other multilateral mechanisms, so as to push for greater development of the Russia-China comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for the new era, said Putin.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Aug. 21, 2024. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Public Defender Levan Ioseliani has announced plans to file a friend of the court brief with the Constitutional Court regarding the "Foreign Agents" law. The brief aims to provide additional legal perspectives and insights to assist the court in its deliberations.Ioseliani explained, "What we've really decided at this point is that we're going to file a friend-of-the-court opinion that will be attached to the lawsuits, which I think will further help the court make the right decision." He further elaborated, "A friend of the court opinion applies to absolutely every lawsuit filed in court. This is not an opinion presented in favor of any party; it is a document created in accordance with international standards, which responds to the court in making a more correct decision and makes it easier to find and justify legal arguments."The lawsuits against the "Foreign Agents" law have been filed by the President, 121 non-governmental and media organizations, and opposition deputies. Additionally, Gela Mtivlishvili, founder and editor of Mtis Ambebi, has independently appealed to the Constitutional Court.The plaintiffs are seeking a temporary suspension of the law until the court issues a final decision. On July 29, Constitutional Court Chairman Merab Turava announced that all the lawsuits would be consolidated into one proceeding.On August 11, 2021, President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili awarded the Order of the National Hero of Georgia to the family of Alexander Oniani, who was honored for his role in the 2008 Shindisi battle in the village of Jakhunderi in Lentekhi.Alexander Oniani, a Junior Sergeant in the Armed Forces of Georgia, was recognized with the Order of the National Hero for his exceptional bravery, heroism, and self-sacrifice in defending the nation. During the ceremony, President Zourabichvili visited Oniani's native village, laid a wreath at his grave, and attended a memorial service at St. George's Church. The event was also attended by representatives from the Georgian Defense Forces, including Deputy Commander Major General Zaza Chkhaidze.The award honors Oniani's significant contributions and his enduring legacy as a national hero.
Ufologist and scandalized Mexican journalist Jaime Maussan claims that experts have discovered metals and alloys in "alien mummies" from Peru. One of these substances is a rare metal known as osmium, which can be deadly to humans.

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According to the claims, cell phone-like devices were implanted in the bodies of the mysterious corpses. Maussan suggests that scientists have discovered elements of interstellar communication, writes Mirror.

"I think it's a communication device. I really don't know how it works, but the experts will have to analyze everything to see why it was inside the bodies. I suppose it could have been used for health, to communicate something or as a cell phone," Jaime Maussan stated.

The ufologist also said that the metal found was made of rare osmium, used for telecommunications and satellites in space.

"It is not easy to find and it is very expensive. It is also very toxic to humans if you have it inside. This substance can do a lot of damage to the body or even kill. So it's hard to understand why they did it. If you're going to create a hoax like this, would you put a very rare metal inside?" the scandalized journalist suggested.

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Scientists are testing the bodies Maussan claims he discovered in Peru's Nazca Cave in 2017.

Recall that some experts previously claimed that the "alien" mummies found with elongated skulls have "30 percent unknown" DNA. However, skeptics said that it's all fiction and these mummies were made using parts of different animals to simply fool the public who believe in UFOs.

Maussan, however, firmly emphasizes that the creatures' unique bodily compounds suggest "the possibility that this was created by someone else, extraterrestrial."

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Maussan teamed up with investigative filmmakers Serena D.C. and Michael Mazzolla to document scientific research for an upcoming documentary.

"In my opinion, these bodies are a new species unknown to mankind before. It is absolutely amazing to me that this great discovery has been ignored, dismissed and ridiculed instead of being considered the greatest story in the world of science. People are always eager to invoke some conspiracy theory," said Michael Mazzola.

Despite the long discussions about the authenticity of the "aliens", Jaime Maussan promises to unravel all the mysteries behind his mysterious find.

Only verified information from us in Telegram-channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!

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Former President Bill Clinton cracked a joke about Donald Trumps recent obsession with a certain fictional cannibal during his speech at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday night.

Trump has been invoking the late, great, Hannibal Lecter when invoking conspiracies around immigration and crime. The former president has likened migrants to the Silence of the Lambs character, pushing the conspiracy theory that other countries are sending bloodthirsty terrorists, savage gang members, and child predators to the border to prey on our people, to prey on you, to prey on everybody.

The reference has become a trope in his speeches. But its meaning remains unclear, and Clinton took the opportunity to poke fun at it.

When you send a signal to the other countries, you want them to know, whether they agree with you or not, at least that youre on the level, he told the audience. What are they supposed to make of these endless tributes to the late, great Hannibal Lecter?

President Obama once gave me the great honor of saying I was the explainer in chief, he added. Folks, Ive thought and thought about it, and I dont know what to say.

Related...
An apartment for rent. (Dan Brandenburg/Getty Images)

Richmond residents facing eviction might find walk-in hours at their local library helpful to get a refresher on their rights and tips on navigating the legal process. The Virginia Poverty Law Center (VPLC) has partnered with the Richmond Public Library to host in-person assistance hours at three locations each week.

Eviction Defense Center Drop-Ins Mondays, 9 a.m.-noon  East End Branch Wednesdays, 10 a.m.-1 p.m.  Main Branch Thursdays, 2-4 p.m.  Broad Rock Branch

In addition to the in-person help, the Eviction Defense Center website also has resources that anyone around Virginia can access.

Tools include understanding the steps involved in an eviction, a glossary of legal terms typically used in housing cases, and explainers on the types of documents tenants may receive if they are facing an eviction.

The resources can help people understand the situation they find themselves in, and could also help tenants identify if they have a solid defense against their eviction, said VPLC lawyer Phil Storey.

Residents can double-check if their landlord has taken all the correct steps to proceed with the eviction in the first place. And if not, then the tenant can explain their case to a judge should the eviction proceed.

Sometimes, residents will be armed with enough knowledge of the process and their rights to plead their case in court, Storey said.

But when someone needs an actual lawyer to represent them, the Defense Center also has a search feature to connect people with legal aid centers around Virginia that can help.

Richmond has held the No. 2 spot for the highest eviction filing rate among major cities for nearly a decade. According to an RVA Eviction Lab report through Virginia Commonwealth University, 40% of evictions in the city last less than 60 seconds in court.

VPLC hasnt done a lot of promotion on the walk-in events yet, but we want to get it out there for folks to be able to use, Storey said.

The program could be scalable and a long-term goal is to see about setting it up in other Virginia localities that have high eviction rates. Storey expects his organization will more heavily promote the website and pop-up events in the months ahead and will have coordinated with local libraries in other areas about partnerships by then as well.

We also provided a manual for librarians to be able to help people use this tool as well, Storey said.

The city of Richmond is also expected to spearhead a right-to-counsel pilot program next year. With $500,000 earmarked in the latest city budget, the program is not yet off the ground.

Meanwhile, some state lawmakers have hoped to help find ways to resolve things without needing to go to court. Del. Cia Price, D-Newport News, carried legislation to extend a waiting period for landlords to serve eviction notices from five to 14 days.

In current law, tenants usually have five days to respond to their notice  putting them at about 10 days after missed payments before the next phase of the eviction process may occur.

Prices bill passed Virginias legislature this year before it was vetoed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin.

At the time, Youngkin said he considered the bill unnecessary because current law allows tenants a right to pay amounts due before a court date.

But Annika Schunn, a paralegal with VPLC explained that delaying eviction proceedings under Prices two-week proposal could help prevent a court process altogether in some cases. This is because 43% of employers pay every two weeks, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Since VPLC launched their drop-in times at public libraries this summer, more tenants have dropped by earlier in the month, closer to when theyd have received their eviction notices, Schunn said.

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Former President Clinton speaks during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday. (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times)

So what is former President Trump "like"? Speakers at the Democratic National Convention have some ideas, and this week they've offered up plenty of comparisons  and punchlines.

Neighbor with a leaf blower

Former President Obama, speaking at the convention in Chicago on Tuesday night, likened the 45th president to a noisy neighbor:

"The childish nicknames and crazy conspiracy theories and weird obsession with crowd size. It just goes on and on. The other day, I heard someone compare Trump to the neighbor who keeps running his leaf blower outside your window every minute of every day.

"From a neighbor, thats exhausting. From a president, its just dangerous."

Read more: Obama passes the mantle of hope in fierce, fervent endorsement of Harris

Ex-boyfriend

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York got laughs Wednesday with this comparison:

Donald Trump is like an old boyfriend who you broke up with, but he just wont go away. He has spent the last four years spinning the block trying to get back into a relationship with the American people. Bro, we broke up with you for a reason.

Communist dictator

Republican commentator Ana Navarro, noting on Tuesday that Trump has called Vice President Kamala Harris a communist, said, "I fled communism from Nicaragua when I was 8 years old." The experience, she said, taught her a thing or two about dictators:

"Let me tell you what communist dictators do, and it's never just for one day. They attack the free press, they call them the enemy of the people, like [Daniel] Ortega does in Nicaragua.

"They put their unqualified relatives into cushy government jobs so they can get rich off their positions, like the Castros do in Cuba. And they refuse to accept legitimate elections when they lose and call for violence to stay in power, like [Nicolas] Maduro is doing right now in Venezuela. Now you tell me something: Do any of those things sound familiar?"

Read more: Democratic elder and former President Clinton, the 'man from Hope,' calls for a president of 'joy'

Bad boss

Sen. Richard J. Durbin, of Illinois, on Monday, told the convention that Trump's record was defined by failure:

"To put it another way, Donald Trump is like a bad boss.

"You want time off to take care of your sick parents. Ask Donald Trump: denied. In Donald Trump's America, there is no paid family leave. Want to have a child but need IVF? Too bad. That's shut down, too.

"Want a pay raise? Too bad, the boss just gave himself one, so there's nothing left for you. Trump reminds us of a boss we all had. The guy who thinks he's a very stable genius but is driving the company into the ground."

Operatic tenor

Then on Wednesday night, former President Clinton called Trump a narcissist, evoking the image of a tenor warming up before the opera  "trying to get his lungs open by singing me, me, me, me, me, me."

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
(Bloomberg) -- Former FTX executive Ryan Salames domestic partner was charged with campaign finance violations Thursday, a day after Salame asked a judge to vacate his conviction or block her indictment.

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The indictment against Michelle Bond, the mother of Salames eight-month-old child, was unsealed by federal prosecutors in Manhattan alleging she accepted unlawful contributions in connection with her unsuccessful run for Congress in 2022.

On Wednesday, Salame said in a filing in his case that prosecutors had reneged on a deal to drop any investigation of Bond if he agreed to plead guilty. The government labeled Salames claims false and self-serving.

The latest indictment comes months after FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison for overseeing the multibillion-dollar fraud that preceded the cryptocurrency exchanges collapse. The new charges illustrate the reach of the governments continuing investigation.

According to the indictment, Bond, 45, of Potomac, Maryland, launched a campaign to represent New Yorks 1st Congressional District in May 2022. Prosecutors say that Salame, who was identified in court documents as a high-level executive at a now-defunct cryptocurrency exchange, arranged for a sham consulting agreement with FTX that paid her $400,000.

The government alleges that Bond then used the money to illegally fund her campaign, and that Salame wired hundreds of thousands of dollars more to her personal bank account that she also used to finance her run for Congress. The pair discussed how Salame would pay the expenses for her campaign, prosecutors said.

Bond, the chief executive officer of the Digital Future think tank, launched a project in July to educate and register US voters in key swing states to gain support for pro-cryptocurrency candidates.

Bonds lawyers declined to comment on the indictment. Digital Future didnt immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

She appeared in court in Manhattan on Thursday afternoon and was released on a $1 million personal recognizance bond. Her lawyers, Jason Linder and Gina Parlovecchio, had no comment as she left court, accompanied by Salame.

In April 2023, the Federal Bureau of Investigation searched the Maryland home that Bond shared with Salame. He pleaded guilty in September and was sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison for his role in illegal activities at the cryptocurrency platform before it collapsed.

The case is US v. Bond, 24-cr-494, US District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan).

(Updates with court appearance in eighth paragraph. A previous version of the story was corrected to reflect the age of the couples child.)

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A satellite image shows farmland, buildings and roads in central Gaza before Israel's invasion of the Palestinian enclave

A satellite image shows farmland, buildings and roads in central Gaza before Israel's invasion of the Palestinian enclave

DOHA/BEIRUT (Reuters) - Disagreements over Israel's future military presence in Gaza and over Palestinian prisoner releases are obstructing a ceasefire and hostage deal, according to ten sources familiar with the round of U.S.-mediated talks that concluded last week.

The sources, who include two Hamas officials and three Western diplomats, told Reuters the disagreements stemmed from demands Israel has introduced since Hamas accepted a version of a ceasefire proposal unveiled by U.S. President Joe Biden in May.

All the sources said Hamas was especially concerned about the latest demand to keep troops deployed along the Netzarim Corridor, an east-west strip Israel cleared during the current war that prevents Palestinians' free movement between north and south Gaza, as well as in a narrow border strip between Gaza and Egypt known as the Philadelphi Corridor.

The sources asked not to be named to speak freely about sensitive matters.

Israel's current grip on the Philadelphi Corridor gives it control of Gaza's frontier with Egypt, the enclave's only crossing that does not border Israel.

Hamas sees Israel as having changed its conditions and parameters "last-minute," and worries any concessions it makes would be met by more demands, one of the sources, who is close to the talks, told Reuters.

The media office for the Palestinian militant group did not respond to requests for comment for this story. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's office did not respond to questions about the talks.

In a press statement on Sunday, Hamas said the proposal arising from last week's talks was too close to Netanyahu's recent positions setting new conditions. It urged the mediators to stick to the implementation of a July version of the framework agreement, rather than starting new negotiations.

In a statement prior to the talks last week, Netanyahu's office denied making new demands, saying its position built on the previous proposal.

In the statement, the office said Israel's May proposal stated that only unarmed civilians would be allowed to return to the northern part of Gaza, crossing the Netzarim Corridor.

The office said Israel's new proposal, first presented at a meeting of mediators in Rome on July 27, was that an agreed-upon mechanism should be established to assure this, implying but not specifically mentioning an Israeli military presence at Netzarim to prevent the movement of Hamas fighters.

According to a second source close to the talks, Israel proposed that an agreement for the return of non-combatants to the north half of Gaza would be agreed upon "at a later date".

That was seen by some of the mediators and Hamas as Israel backtracking on a previous commitment to withdraw from the Netzarim corridor and allow free movement inside Gaza, the source said.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken concluded a whirlwind trip to the region on Tuesday, seeking a breakthrough. After meeting Netanyahu, Blinken said Israel had accepted a new U.S. proposal aimed at narrowing differences between Israel and Hamas' latest positions. He urged Hamas to do the same.

"Once that happens we also have to complete the detailed implementation agreements that go along with putting the ceasefire into effect," he said at a news conference on Tuesday.

The sides have not released what Blinken called a bridging proposal, and Reuters has not seen a copy.

One Western diplomat, describing Israel's latest demands in the U.S.-led talks, said it appeared the United States had accepted changes proposed by Netanyahu, including on a continued Israeli military deployment in the two corridors.

One U.S. official disputed that suggestion, saying the negotiations on the "implementation" would aim to hash out disagreements over the Philadelphi and Netzarim corridors, the number of Palestinian prisoners and who to release among other topics.

Blinken also pushed back on any suggestion of Israeli troops occupying Gaza on a long term basis, saying at the press conference that the schedule and location of Israeli military withdrawals were very clear in the agreement.

FRESH TALKS

The next round of talks is expected in Cairo in the coming days, based around the U.S. bridging proposal.

The lead U.S. negotiator, CIA director Bill Burns, his Israeli counterpart, Mossad chief David Barnea, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Egypt's lead negotiator are expected to attend, the source close to the talks said. Qatar's Sheikh Mohammed is expected to visit Tehran before heading to Cairo, the source said. An Iranian source said Sheikh Mohammed was due to visit on Monday.

Iran's foreign ministry did not respond to questions. The CIA declined to comment in line with its policy of not disclosing Burns' travel.

Two of the Hamas officials said the U.S. proposal contained some of the Israeli changes they reject, including allowing "Israel's continued military presence" along the crossings and releasing some Palestinian prisoners into exile, rather than to Gaza or the West Bank, in any swap for hostages.

However, a senior U.S. administration official said there was nothing in the bridging proposal that changed previously agreed commitments on the Netzarim Corridor. The official said any temporary arrangements on the Philadelphi Corridor must be consistent with Israels May 27 text and the outline put forth by Biden, as endorsed by the U.N. Security Council.

The proposal includes "massive and immediate benefits" for the people of Gaza and incorporates a number of Hamas' earlier demands, the official said.

Two of the sources, security officials in Egypt, said Israel and Hamas appeared willing to resolve differences in all areas other than that of the Israeli withdrawal.

Israel's war objectives include "securing the southern border," Netanyahu's office said in a statement on Thursday, referring to the Philadelphi Corridor.

In response to Reuters questions on differences over the latest ceasefire proposal, Egypt's state information service pointed to recent official statements emphasising a continuing push to reach a deal at talks in Cairo and Doha.

Qatar's international media office did not comment, but pointed to a statement issued late Tuesday after the Qatari prime minister spoke to Blinken, which urged efforts to secure a ceasefire in Gaza. In response to questions from Reuters the U.S. State Department referred to Blinken's public statements.

PHILADELPHI CORRIDOR

Control over the Philadelphi Corridor frontier area between Gaza and Egypt, along with the Rafah border crossing, is particularly sensitive for Cairo.

Egypt is prepared to take more security measures in the Philadelphi corridor but rejects the presence of Israeli troops there, the Egyptian security sources said.

Israel seized control of the strategic corridor in May, saying it was used by Hamas to smuggle weapons and banned material into its tunnels to Gaza.

The Israeli advance resulted in the closure of the Rafah crossing, sharply reducing the amount of humanitarian aid entering Gaza, halting most medical evacuations, and potentially depriving Egypt of its role brokering access at the only border crossing into Gaza that had not been directly controlled by Israel.

Egypt says that tunnels used for smuggling into Gaza have been closed or destroyed, that a Palestinian presence at Rafah should be restored, and that the Philadelphi corridor buffer zone is guaranteed by the 1979 Egypt-Israel peace treaty.

An Israeli troop presence along the corridors, the Hamas sources said, would amount to a continued Israeli occupation that would stop the free movement of civilians.

PRISONERS AND PEACE

The two Hamas officials told Reuters the U.S. bridging plan "does not include a permanent ceasefire".

In the May proposal, Biden said a temporary ceasefire would become a permanent cessation of hostilities, "as long as Hamas lives up to its commitments."

The Hamas officials said Israel had also imposed a veto on the release of around 100 Palestinian prisoners whose names Hamas proposed, some elderly and with more than 20 years remaining on their sentences.

The issue of Palestinian prisoners to be released as part of a swap deal for hostages Hamas has held in Gaza since Oct. 7 had previously been seen as less difficult.

A main sticking point at present is an Israeli position that many of the prisoners it releases should be immediately deported and go into exile outside Israel, the West Bank or Gaza, the Western diplomat and the two Hamas officials said.

"In light of this, Hamas refused to accept the American-Israeli paper," one of the officials said.

A three-phase framework for a ceasefire deal has been on the table since late December, but the multiple disputes between Israel and Hamas over key details have made an agreement impossible.

The United States, along with mediators Qatar and Egypt, is trying to keep negotiations alive to end Israel's 10-month-campaign in Gaza and return remaining hostages seized by Hamas and its allies on Oct. 7.

The war began on Oct. 7 when Hamas gunmen stormed into Israeli communities and military bases, killing around 1,200 people and abducting about 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. More than 40,000 people have since been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian health authorities.

(Writing by Andrew Mills and Angus McDowall; Additional reporting by Samia Nakhoul in Beirut, Nidal Al Mughrabi and Ahmed Mohamed Hassan in Cairo. James Mackenzie in Jerusalem and Jonathan Landay in Washington; Editing by Samia Nakhoul and Frank Jack Daniel)
A sign in the reception area of the Google DeepMind headquarters in London, U.K., on May 7, 2024. Credit - Jose Sarmento MatosBloomberg/Getty Images

Nearly 200 workers inside Google DeepMind, the companys AI division, signed a letter calling on the tech giant to drop its contracts with military organizations earlier this year, according to a copy of the document reviewed by TIME and five people with knowledge of the matter. The letter circulated amid growing concerns inside the AI lab that its technology is being sold to militaries engaged in warfare, in what the workers say is a violation of Googles own AI rules.

The letter is a sign of a growing dispute within Google between at least some workers in its AI divisionwhich has pledged to never work on military technologyand its Cloud business, which has contracts to sell Google services, including AI developed inside DeepMind, to several governments and militaries including those of Israel and the United States. The signatures represent some 5% of DeepMinds overall headcounta small portion to be sure, but a significant level of worker unease for an industry where top machine learning talent is in high demand.

The DeepMind letter, dated May 16 of this year, begins by stating that workers are concerned by recent reports of Googles contracts with military organizations. It does not refer to any specific militaries by namesaying we emphasize that this letter is not about the geopolitics of any particular conflict. But it links out to an April report in TIME which revealed that Google has a direct contract to supply cloud computing and AI services to the Israeli Military Defense, under a wider contract with Israel called Project Nimbus. The letter also links to other stories alleging that the Israeli military uses AI to carry out mass surveillance and target selection for its bombing campaign in Gaza, and that Israeli weapons firms are required by the government to buy cloud services from Google and Amazon.

Read More: Exclusive: Google Contract Shows Deal With Israel Defense Ministry

Any involvement with military and weapon manufacturing impacts our position as leaders in ethical and responsible AI, and goes against our mission statement and stated AI Principles, the letter that circulated inside Google DeepMind says. (Those principles state the company will not pursue applications of AI that are likely to cause overall harm, contribute to weapons or other technologies whose principal purpose or implementation is to cause injury, or build technologies whose purpose contravenes widely accepted principles of international law and human rights.) The letter says its signatories are concerned with ensuring that Googles AI Principles are upheld, and adds: We believe [DeepMinds] leadership shares our concerns.

A Google spokesperson told TIME: When developing AI technologies and making them available to customers, we comply with our AI Principles, which outline our commitment to developing technology responsibly. We have been very clear that the Nimbus contract is for workloads running on our commercial cloud by Israeli government ministries, who agree to comply with our Terms of Service and Acceptable Use Policy. This work is not directed at highly sensitive, classified, or military workloads relevant to weapons or intelligence services.

The letter calls on DeepMinds leaders to investigate allegations that militaries and weapons manufacturers are Google Cloud users; terminate access to DeepMind technology for military users; and set up a new governance body responsible for preventing DeepMind technology from being used by military clients in the future. Three months on from the letters circulation, Google has done none of those things, according to four people with knowledge of the matter. We have received no meaningful response from leadership, one said, and we are growing increasingly frustrated.

Shirts read "Drop Project Nimbus" as students set up an encampment in Berkeley, California, on April 25, 2024. Tayfun CoskunAnadolu/ Getty Images

When DeepMind was acquired by Google in 2014, the labs leaders extracted a major promise from the search giant: that their AI technology would never be used for military or surveillance purposes. For many years the London-based lab operated with a high degree of independence from Googles California headquarters. But as the AI race heated up, DeepMind was drawn more tightly into Google proper. A bid by the labs leaders in 2021 to secure more autonomy failed, and in 2023 it merged with Googles other AI teamGoogle Brainbringing it closer to the heart of the tech giant. An independent ethics board that DeepMind leaders hoped would govern the uses of the AI labs technology ultimately met only once, and was soon replaced by an umbrella Google ethics policy: the AI Principles. While those principles promise that Google will not develop AI that is likely to cause overall harm, they explicitly allow the company to develop technologies that may cause harm if it concludes that the benefits substantially outweigh the risks. And they do not rule out selling Googles AI to military clients.

As a result, DeepMind technology has been bundled into Googles Cloud software and sold to militaries and governments, including Israel and its Ministry of Defense. While DeepMind may have been unhappy to work on military AI or defense contracts in the past, I do think this isnt really our decision any more, one DeepMind employee told TIME in April, asking not to be named because they were not authorized to speak publicly. Several Google workers told TIME in April that for privacy reasons, the company has limited insights into government customers use of its infrastructure, meaning that it may be difficult, if not impossible, for Google to check if its acceptable use policywhich forbids users from using its products to engage in violence that can cause death, serious harm, or injuryis being broken.

Read More: Google Workers Revolt Over $1.2 Billion Contract With Israel

Google says that Project Nimbus, its contract with Israel, is not directed at highly sensitive, classified, or military workloads relevant to weapons or intelligence services. But that response does not deny the allegations that its technology enables any form of violence or enables surveillance violating internationally accepted norms, according to the letter that circulated within DeepMind in May. Googles statement on Project Nimbus is so specifically unspecific that we are all none the wiser on what it actually means, one of the letters signatories told TIME.

More from TIME

At a DeepMind town hall event in June, executives were asked to respond to the letter, according to three people with knowledge of the matter. DeepMinds chief operating officer Lila Ibrahim answered the question. She told employees that DeepMind would not design or deploy any AI applications for weaponry or mass surveillance, and that Google Cloud customers were legally bound by the companys terms of service and acceptable use policy, according to a set of notes taken during the meeting that were reviewed by TIME. Ibrahim added that she was proud of Googles track record of advancing safe and responsible AI, and that it was the reason she chose to join, and stay at, the company.

Write to Billy Perrigo at billy.perrigo@time.com.
RIPLEY, N.Y. (WROC)  On April 25, 2024 a significant frost and freeze caused widespread damage across many New York Wine Regions. None were more impacted than the Lake Erie Wine Region which suffered heavy losses of their Concord Grapes. Enough so that according to a press release from the New York State Department of Agriculture, 40% of the Concord Grapes in New York State that were destined to become wine were lost.

For some wineries, the widespread loss of Concord Grapes could lead to them being unable to meet certain requirements of their winemakers license with the New York State Liquor Authority. These wineries, known as Farm Wineries, must have 75% of the grapes involved in the production of their wines grown in New York State. Farm Wineries are the only wineries licensed to label their wine as New York State Wines.

To help alleviate the stress, a one-time exemption is being offered to Farm Wineries to use a higher percentage of grapes from other states by the New York State Department of Agriculture. However, there needs to be reasonable proof provided that theyve made an effort to source grapes from New York State first, according to the State Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball.

In the event of something like this, a catastrophic event where they cant get enough access to grapes, we have the ability to waive that requirement and allow them to purchase grapes from say Pennsylvania or Ohio or something like that, said Commissioner Ball. They need to demonstrate that they tried to get grapes from another grower. We asked them to try to get grapes from at least three other sources.

Before this exemption could be offered the amount of crop loss had to be determined by the state agriculture department. To make the determination, a long and intensive process was carried out by the Cornell Lake Erie Research and Extension Lab to see just how much was lost and where.

It takes several weeks. You got to let the crop heal. You need to count blossoms and evaluate exactly what you got inside each cluster, said Commissioner Ball. They ran around, looked initially, they came back a few days later. They came back a few days after that until the crop has pretty well manifested itself. And then theyre able to count and estimate how much loss there was.

While the overall loss varied from place to place within the Lake Erie Wine Region, the loss was substantial almost across the board.

In areas east of Ripley [NY] it was probably 60 to 85 percent loss in areas to the south, where it was just a couple of degrees warmer. The damage was less. But overall it exceeded 40 percent, said Commissioner Ball.

Further information from a release from the New York State Department of Agriculture provides information on how to apply, as well as an informational webinar and is copied below:

Farm wineries can apply for the exemption here. The deadline to apply for the exemption is October 31, 2024. For the Department to consider your request, farmers must complete and return the application by October 31, 2024.

The Department will be hosting an industry-wide webinar on Tuesday, September 10, 2024, 1:00 pm, to provide information on the application process and to answer any questions farm wineries may have. The webinar can be accessed here.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Small, when it comes to airports, is beautiful, which is why the news that London City has got the go-ahead to expand the capacity of its terminal by nearly 40 per cent  raising the current cap of 6.5 million to nine million passengers a year  may not be welcomed by those who use it.

The best airports are the ones you have to spend the least time in, and the smaller they are, the quicker you get through them. This has always been London Citys great strength compared to its lumbering London rivals like Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted. Even Luton sees nearly three times as many passengers as the docklands gateway.

These airports are sprawling, impersonal travel processors. London City operates on a human scale  it boasts that you can expect to get from the entrance to the gate in less than 10 minutes. The departure lounge and the gates are then (mostly) only a short walk apart, and from there you step virtually straight onto the plane. When you land on your return, your hold bags are delivered with remarkable speed to the belt, which is only a few yards from the airport exit. And if you do get stuck in departures longer than you really want to, there is something about its waterside setting and the views over the old docks which makes the wait more bearable.

Im not the only one to feel this way. A couple of years ago, Telegraph Travels own analysis, based on 16 different categories including average delays, the facilities in the lounge and the speed of processing arrivals, saw London City win out as the countrys best airport.

Click here to view this content.

And last year it came second in a Which? survey comparing its readers experiences of UK airports. It was pipped to top spot by Liverpool John Lennon which is also, surprise surprise, one of our smaller airports.

Click here to view this content.

London Citys short-haul route network and its proximity to the City mean that it has traditionally appealed mostly to those on business, which has also helped it, of course. These passengers tend to travel alone, are experienced travellers and are often pressed for time rather than relaxing in holiday mode. In addition, they arent usually encumbered by children and are less likely to travel with hold baggage. All this has surely aided the smooth operation of the airport, despite the steady increase in the leisure destinations it offers. These include seasonal summer routes to Greece and also year-round services to Portugal and Spain.

But, having used it on and off since the 1990s, I have to say that I have already watched its steady expansion over the last 30 years slowly dilute some of the appeal of the place. Those corridors to the departure gates have been getting longer and the lounges have become more crowded in recent years. Add another 40 per cent to its capacity it will have to cope with an average of 10,000 people a day.

Of course, there have been some upsides. More capacity means a greater choice of destinations and greater frequencies. Fares are unlikely to be the cheapest option compared with, say, Stansted, Luton or Gatwick, but for some passengers who live in London, it is a cheaper and quicker airport to get to. (Though I have to say that given how close it is to the city centre, the DLR is a frustratingly tortuous  and at peak times often very crowded  way of getting there. And if you live in the west of the city it is often quicker to get to Heathrow or Gatwick).

Putting aside environmental concerns and other objections from those living nearby, the risk of expanding London City is that it will dilute its appeal to those who use it still further. Its perfectly understandable why the consortium which owns it would want to make the most of what they have got. But they risk following in the footsteps of so many others to have gone before them. It is not only airports which are vulnerable to the temptation of cashing in on success. Ive seen it in hotels, resorts, restaurants, tour operators, travel agents. Get too big or expand too fast, and you jeopardise the qualities and the human touch which made you stand out in the first place.

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How to explain the border crisis at the DNC? Blame Trump.

Donald Trumps campaign complained that speakers at the Democratic National Convention only mentioned the border a handful of times on Tuesday, while name-checking the former president in 55 instances.

On Wednesday night, Democrats answered that critique, stacking a half hour of speakers who talked about the southern border by laying blame for the ongoing crisis squarely at Trumps feet.

When it comes to the border, hear me when I say: You know nothing, Donald Trump, said Rep. Veronica Escobar, who represents the border town of El Paso. He and his Republican imitators see the border and immigration as a political opportunity to exploit, instead of an issue to address.

Congress hasnt passed a comprehensive immigration reform bill in nearly four decades, dating back to President Ronald Reagans administration. But a bipartisan Senate proposal to dedicate $20 billion to new security measures and enforce restrictions on migrants seeking asylum blew up last winter after Trump instructed GOP lawmakers to reject it.

Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy, the lead Democrat in the bipartisan negotiations, was granted a primetime slot at the United Center to saddle Trump with the culpability.

One Republican said, It wouldve had almost unanimous support if it werent for Donald Trump, Murphy explained. Trump killed that bill.

A Texas sheriff donning a cowboy hat followed Murphy on stage and declared that when Trump visits the border, hes not there to help, hes a self-serving man.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Why Hispanic immigrants who support Trump are embracing his hardline border stance

With polls showing Trump as more trusted to handle immigration issues than Kamala Harris, Democrats knew they couldnt avoid addressing a top concern of voters at their national convention. But given that illegal crossings surged at the beginning of the Biden administration, explaining the incumbents record is seen as politically precarious, particularly given that the Democratic nominee is his vice president.

Harris, who was tasked with pinpointing the root causes of migration from the Northern Triangle, has promised to bring back the border security bill that Donald Trump killed, comments that were included in a video played for delegates on the convention floor.

Illegal border crossings have been consistently dropping this year, according to Customs and Border Protection data. Agents apprehended 56,000 migrants on the southern border in July, the lowest number of the Biden presidency.

But the Trump campaign sees the issue as one of its most salient attacks against Harris, given her past support for the decriminalization of illegal border crossings and the closure of detention centers.

If we give Kamala Harris a promotion and make her the president of the United States, the southern border is going to look like Walmart on Black Friday, said JD Vance, the Ohio senator tapped as Trumps running mate in Asheboro, North Carolina on Wednesday.

Its a vulnerability that Harris and her allies are now trying to paper over.

On the convention stage Wednesday night, speakers sought a delicate balance between acknowledging the problem while showing compassion and empathy towards immigrants seeking legal status.

Rep. Tom Suozzi, who flipped a red seat into the Democratic column in New York, was the lone Democrat to describe the border as broken. Its a line that fell largely flat inside the convention hall.

Carlos Eduardo Espina, an immigration activist boasting 10 million TikTok followers, used his time slot to advocate the benefits of immigrants, including the tax base they contribute to.

He also invoked Reagan as the antithesis to Trump, which generated cheers.

Reagan knew that welcoming immigrants is not a Democratic or Republican value  its an American value, Espina said. To be pro-immigrant is to be pro-America.

The immigration-focused speakers were all scheduled in the 8 p.m. eastern hour. Wednesday nights headliners, including former President Bill Clinton and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, did not mention immigration at all.
Updated: Ukraine hits fuel and bomb warehouses in Russia's Volgograd region airfield, source says

Editor's note: The article was updated with a statement by the Volgograd regional authorities, a report from Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, and a statement from an SBU source.

Explosions were heard in the Russian town of Kalach-na-Donu in Volgograd Oblast overnight on Aug. 22, following what appears to be a drone attack, several Telegram monitoring channels reported.

The incident was reportedly followed by a fire at a nearby airfield. The Volgograd region is located some 900 kilometers (560 miles) southeast of Moscow.

The attack is believed to have targeted the Marinovka airbase in the village of Oktyabrsky, approximately 20 kilometers from Kalach-na-Donu.

A source in the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) confirmed that the agency carried out an attack against the Marinovka airbase together with special forces, hitting a fuel warehouse and a bomb storage.

"(Russia) actively uses the Marinovka airfield in the Volgograd region to bomb front lines in Ukraine," the source told the Kyiv Independent.

Witnesses from nearby areas reported hearing between six and 10 loud explosions during the attack, accompanied by the distinctive sounds of drones, according to several Russian Telegram channels.

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Residents of Kalach-na-Donu began reporting explosions at around 3:30 a.m. local time. The Telegram channel Baza said that one of the drones was allegedly intercepted several kilometers from the airfield, while debris from the second drone fell on a nearby temporary structure, causing a fire.

Andrey Bocharov, the regional governor, claimed later in the day that most of the drones attacking the region near Marinovka had been intercepted.

"As a result of a drone crash, a fire broke out on the territory of a Defense Ministry facility," Bocharov said.

The Kyiv Independent could not immediately verify the claims.

NASA imagery published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty appears to show several fires at the airfield during the night on Aug. 22. Satellite footage from Aug. 19 shows nearly 30 warplanes and eight trucks.

Ukrainian forces regularly conduct drone strikes and sabotage acts on Russian territory, targeting military assets, oil refineries, and industrial facilities.

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Read also: Morning in Sudzha: Inside Ukrainian-occupied Russia as Kursk operation continues

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The new Toyota Crown Signia crossover 2024 model year is ready to go on sale. This is an inexpensive car of its segment with a bright design and modern equipment. But this model surprised the expert with other things.

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Blogger Doug DeMuro, who has been creating professional reviews on new and classic cars for many years, scrutinized the new Toyota Crown Signia model. A few questions about the car came up.

First, the positioning. The company calls the car an SUV. Although the height of the body corresponds to many station wagons.

It is also unclear what kind of buyer audience the manufacturer has defined for the new car. In terms of size and price, the Toyota Crown Signia is between the RAV4 and Highlander models. However, the company has a lot of similar models. For example, in the United States, Toyota sells already 9 crossovers.

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Thirdly, the Crown Signia car replaced the Toyota Venza. The predecessor failed in sales, because it was too similar to other crossovers and was more expensive than RAV4 with similar dimensions. The price of the Toyota Crown Signia 2024 is even higher, starting at $45,000. Although rivals from BMW and Mercedes are about twice as expensive. Toyota positions the novelty as a premium model.
In a disappointing development, the white Washington man who allegedly punched an innocent Black boy in a crazy, racist fit doesnt appear to be heading to trial anymore... but not for the reason you may think.



Paul Jonathan Bittner, 42, was deemed incompetent to stand trial after being charged with a hate crime and second-degree assault of a child, according to The Bellingham Herald. The charges stem from June 12. when Bellingham police say Bittner, a white man, confronted a Black sixth grade boy as he walked back to school with his classmates from a field trip downtown.

While walking by the county courthouse, surveillance footage shows Bittner scoot into the crowd of students and walk in front of the boy as he spoke to his white peer.

Are you gonna talk to a white man like that? police say the man allegedly spat at the boy right before punching him in the face.

The child suffered immense pain and a chipped tooth, per court documents. Bellingham police said they located Bittner and detained him shortly after the incident. Authorities in an interview, the boy told them he believed he was racially targeted by Bittner. The man pleaded not guilty to his charges, per court documents.

However, in a hearing this month, The Herald reports Bittner was cleared from having to stand trial at all following a damning competency evaluation.

Read more from Bellingham Herald:

Bittner was evaluated in the downtown jail on July 25 by Bellingham neuropsychologist Dr. John Neer, according to court records. Bittner told Neer he previously received mental health services beginning in 2009 and that he began receiving disability services around the same time. Bittner said he was diagnosed with schizophrenia. Records reviewed by Neer show that Bittner received mental health treatment from March 2019 to April 2023 at Atascadero State Hospital, a secure forensic state psychiatric hospital in San Luis Obispo County in California. The majority of patients at the hospital are sent there for treatment by county courts or the state department of corrections and rehabilitation, according to the hospitals website. Records show that Bittner was prescribed psychiatric and anxiety-related medications when he was released. He had reportedly struggled with symptoms of delusional thinking, angry hallucinations, negative symptoms, disorganized thoughts and violence, court records state.

If you thought that was rough, Dr. John Neer told the court Bittner appeared manic and verbally abusive during their one-on-one evaluation back in July, per The Herald. The report also says Neer noted Bittner abruptly shifting to spacing off, smiling and laughing in an odd manner. Neer stated he believed Bittner was responding to internal stimuli.

As a result of the findings, Bittner was ordered by Whatcom County Superior Court Judge Lee Grochmal to do 90 days of inpatient competency restoration treatment at Western State Hospital, the report says. It may not be the prison cell and handcuffs some believe he deserved, but it appears the boys family made peace with the outcome.

Were grateful hes getting the help he needs, and we believe the community is safer because of it, said the boys family in a statement to The Herald.

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Former President Donald Trump falsely claimed Wednesday that his Democratic opponent in the presidential election, Vice President Kamala Harris, met with Russian President Vladimir Putin just days before Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

Trump said in a speech in North Carolina: Remember when Biden sent Kamala to Europe to stop the war in Ukraine. She met with Putin, and then three days later, he attacked. How did she do? Do you think she did a good job? She met with Putin to tell him, Dont do it. And three days later, he attacked; thats when the attack started. Did you know that, General? (Retired Army Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg was at the North Carolina event.)

Facts First: Trumps claim is false. Harris has never met with Putin. In reality, she met with US allies, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, at the Munich Security Conference in the days before Russias February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Putin was not at the conference.

Frankly speaking, I cannot recall a single contact between President Putin and Mrs. Harris, a Kremlin spokesperson said last month, according to a state-owned Russian news agency.

The Biden administration was still trying to deter an invasion of Ukraine at the time of Harris 2022 trip to the conference in Germany, but top administration officials, including President Joe Biden himself, made clear that they believed Putin was already moving toward invading. As Harris was on her way to Germany, Biden told reporters that he thought a Russian attack will happen in the next several days.

CNN reported on the day the Munich conference began that a senior administration official said Harris had three key objectives: Focus on the fast-changing situation on the ground, maintain full alignment with partners and send a clear message to Russia that the US prefers diplomacy but is ready in case of Russian aggression.

The Munich conference was held from February 18 to February 20, 2022; Russia began its invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022.

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MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin accused Ukraine on Thursday of trying to strike Russia's Kursk nuclear power station in an overnight attack.

He provided no documentary evidence to back up his assertion and there was no immediate comment from Ukraine.

Here are some details about the plant.

* The Kursk plant is one of Russia's top nuclear power stations. It supplies about half of the electricity used in the Black Earth region of southern Russia.

* It is located on the Seym River near the town of Kurchatov, named after Soviet nuclear physicist Igor Kurchatov, in Russia's western region of Kursk. Ukrainian forces launched a cross-border incursion in the Kursk region on Aug. 6.

* The plant has four Soviet graphite-moderated RBMK-1000 reactors - the same design as those at the Chernobyl nuclear plant which in 1986, when part of the Soviet Union, became the scene of the world's worst nuclear disaster.

* Reactor Number 1, which dates from 1976, was shut down at the Kursk plant in 2021 to operate in non-generation mode. Reactor Number 2, which dates from 1979, was shut down in 2024. Reactor Number 3, from 1983, and Reactor Number 4, from 1985, are both operational.

* Construction of Kursk-2, essentially new reactors of the VVER-TOI type, was begun in 2018. The two reactors are not operational yet.

(Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge, Editing by Timothy Heritage)
Fairview Fire Dept. will receive new fire truck thanks to $450K grant

Fairview firefighters will soon have a new tool in their belt to serve their community.

Wednesday night, Pennsylvania Representative Ryan Bizzarro presented the fire department with a $450,000 grant to help purchase a new truck.

NAMI of Erie Co. to host annual Guns N Hoses event

The new rescue pumper truck will help replace their model, which is 25 years old and has run its service length.

The assistant fire chief noted the new truck would have immediate effects on residents.

New Motors Subaru donates thousands of dollars to teachers for school supplies

This will have new equipment on it, better equipment for our residents and to be able to support the community for any sort of rescue situation that might occur, said Jim Wagner, assistant fire chief at the Fairview Fire Department.

The price tag for the new truck, which will feature more equipment than the current model, os right around $1 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 WJET/WFXP/YourErie.com.
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO)  Minister Mervin Mayo, The Gospel Cop as seen on Americas Got Talent, will headline musical performers at the first ever Faith & Blue Event in Rockford this October.

Faith & Blue is a national outreach organization based on the premise that strong communities are built through mutual respect and understanding. Law enforcement and faith institutions are key pillars of each community, and when they work together, neighborhoods thrive, according to a press release.

The Rockford Police Department, Works of Faith, and Miracle Revival Outreach have teamed for the event.

The Rockford community has seen our share of tragedies in the last year and this is a night for all of us to come together to continue to heal. When law enforcement professionals and community members can relate as ordinary people with shared values, hopes, and dreams, we can find ways to work together around our many commonalities instead of being divided by our differences, the release said.

The Lift Me Up  A Faith & Blue Event will be held on Saturday, October 12th at 6 p.m. at First Covenant Church, at 316 Wood Road.

Rockford Police Chief Carla Redd will be honored at the event, which will also recognize Rockford Park District Police Chief Theo Glover and Winnebago County Sheriff Gary Caruana.

Tickets are available for the general public, first responders and their immediate family get in free.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to MyStateline | WTVO News, Weather and Sports.
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP)  After what has been a very hot and humid summer were finally getting a break.

Over the last couple of days, its felt a little bit like fall with temperatures around 10 to 15 degrees below average.

This summer, western Massachusetts has seen some very hot and humid weather with temperatures making it up into the 90s on quite a few days. But were finally experiencing a cooler and more comfortable change with high temperatures only in the upper 60s and lower 70s and low temperatures dropping down into the 40s.

Our average high temperature for this time of year is usually around 80 degrees and our average low temperatures are usually in the upper 50s. People 22News talked to seemed pretty happy with the cooler weather.

Chris Mengel told us, I like it, yeah especially to run. Theres no humidity and the temperatures are pretty mild, not much wind great for running certainly. Joanne Casey adds, This weather is beautiful its been such a humid summer so its great to have some nice fresh air, it seems like back-to-school weather

At Forest Park in Springfield, people took advantage of the nice and comfortable weather. It was perfect for walking or running or taking the dog for a leisurely walk. Some people even decided to do some fishing and ended up having some pretty good luck, and it really was a nice day to be outside.

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WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on WWLP.com.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WWLP.
Family of Michigan teen sues judge who ordered her handcuffed after she fell asleep in courtroom

The family of a Michigan teenager on Wednesday sued the judge who ordered her handcuffed and jailed after she fell asleep in a Detroit courtroom this month, accusing him of violating her civil rights.

The 56-page complaint, filed in U.S. District Court in Michigan, accuses state District Judge Kenneth King of malicious prosecution, false arrest, false imprisonment and other allegations.

The suit also accuses two unnamed court officers who detained the 15-year-old girl of unlawful seizure and false arrest.

This is a very troubling case, one of the lawyers who filed the suit, James Harrington, told reporters Wednesday. We had a member of our bench denigrate, humiliate, intimidate and essentially incarcerate a 15-year-old kid.

A message left at Kings courtroom Wednesday was not returned.

King, the presiding criminal division judge in Michigans 36th District Court, previously told WXYZ-TV of Detroit that his censure was designed to get through to her after she teenager fell asleep in his courtroom on Aug. 13.

Thats not something that normally happens. But I felt compelled to do it because I didnt like the childs attitude, King told the station. I havent been disrespected like that in a very long time."

"That was my own version of 'Scared Straight,'" he said, referring to the movie and reality show that sought to help troubled teens change their behavior through interactions with the criminal justice system.

After an investigation, court officials said King had been removed from his docket and would undergo mandatory training. Officials at Wayne State University, where King has been a part-time contract faculty member since 2022, said his classes were reassigned to other instructors.

King censured the teen while she was on a summer field trip with a local nonprofit group aimed at helping students interested in becoming lawyers better understand the profession.

The teen's mother has said her daughter was tired because they were in between homes and had arrived at a new place to stay late the night before.

After the group observed a hearing in a homicide case, the teen "unintentionally expressed her disinterest in the proceedings by nodding off after being exposed to a court hearing that forced her to relive a traumatic event, causing her to shut down," according to the suit.

King then "publicly berated and humiliated" the teen and described her as a juvenile delinquent, the suit says, noting that the proceedings were being livestreamed on YouTube.

The teen apologized but fell asleep again, and King told her to use the bathroom "because of what he had in store for her," the suit says.

After the girl returned to the courtroom, a court officer placed her in a detention cell and locked her inside, according to the suit. She was ordered to put on a jail jumpsuit and was handcuffed and taken to a holding cell, where she was left for hours, the suit says.

King later convened a mock trial with a jury that included fellow students and threatened to send the teen to a juvenile detention center, according to the suit.

Speaking at the news conference Wednesday, the teen's mother, Latoreya Till, said her daughter was devastated by the events.

She "doesn't want to come outside," Till said. "It's hard for her to sleep at night. She's asking me, 'Why did the judge do me like this, out of all the kids?'"

The suit, which does not specify damages, seeks compensation for mental anguish, humiliation and medical treatment.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
The family of a Michigan teen filed a lawsuit Wednesday against a Detroit judge who ordered the young girl to be handcuffed and put in jail clothes after she fell asleep during a field trip to the courtroom earlier in August.

The teens mother, Latoreya Till, described Judge Kenneth King, who is Black, as a big bully at a press conference where she announced the federal civil lawsuit against the court official, according to Fox 2 Detroit.

Its been pretty devastating. Eva doesnt want to come outside, Till said, per the outlet. She doesnt want to be involved with no one else but her family, relatives. Its hard for her to sleep at night. Shes asking me, Why the judge do me like this out of all the kids?'

The now-viral incident occurred on Aug. 13 when Eva Goodman, 15, visited the 36th District Court on a field trip. During the event, King was reportedly upset at the teen for falling asleep in the courtroom. When she did it again, he ordered her to be handcuffed and placed in a prison outfit.

MOTHER RESPONDS: Latoreya Till was horrified when she found out her daughter was placed in handcuffs and a jail uniform for sleeping and showing "attitude" during a field trip to 36th District Court Tuesday. She speaks only with us tonight >>>@wxyzdetroit pic.twitter.com/WUXNOiAYdN  Ruta Ulcinaite WXYZ (@RutaUlcinaite) August 15, 2024

He claimed that Goodmans bad attitude led him to issue the order, which was broadcast online via the courts stream, according to The Associated Press.

CBS News reported that the familys legal team called for disciplinary action against King, and the lawsuit alleges he violated Goodmans constitutional rights.

Subjecting a minor to such public humiliation and violating her rights is unconscionable, attorney James Harrington of Fieger Law said, per CBS News. Our legal system is built on principles of fairness and respect for all individual rights, and those who violate those rights should be held accountable for their actions.

Till said the traumatic ordeal affected her daughter and she questioned why King would target only her out of the group of kids on the field trip.

I just want Judge King to take accountability for the way that he humiliated my daughter, Till explained, per the outlet. Its hard for her to sleep at night. Shes asking me, Why did the judge do me like this out of all the kids?'

According to 36th District Court Chief Judge William McConico, King has been temporarily removed from his docket. Additionally, Wayne State University, where he served as an adjunct professor, announced on Friday that the two courses he was scheduled to teach in the fall have been reassigned.

The family is seeking over $75,000 in monetary compensation, according to a copy of the complaint obtained by The Associated Press.

Goodman went on the field trip with nonprofit group The Greening of Detroit, with Till noting that her daughter was tired due to her familys lack of permanent housing.
Michigan Judge Kenneth King is accused of violating the 15-year-old teen's civil rights

Eric Seals / USA TODAY NETWORK LaToreya Till, the mother of a teen who filed a lawsuit against Detroit Judge Kenneth King over an alleged handcuff incident in a courtroom during a class visit

In the complaint, the teen alleged that she was ordered to wear a prison jumpsuit and was held in a cell after Judge Kenneth King felt "he was disrespected"

The teen nodded off after being exposed to a court hearing that forced her to relive a traumatic event," according to the complaint

The complaint alleges King violated the teen's constitutional rights

A Michigan judge has been sued by the family of a 15-year-old girl who was allegedly placed in handcuffs after falling asleep during a courtroom field trip.

The lawsuit against Judge Kenneth King of the 36th District Court was filed by the teen and her mother, Latoreya Till, on Wednesday, Aug. 21, in U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Michigan.

According to the complaint, the incident occurred on Aug. 13 when the teen and her classmates were attending a lecture presented by King in the courtroom as a part of a field trip arranged by a local nonprofit organization.

The complaint alleged that the judge "felt personally disrespected" when the teen nodded off during the lecture, which was streamed live through the courts YouTube platform.

[King] made Ms. ELG an unwitting actor in his improv version of The Star Chamber,  read the complaint. He berated the minor on a live platform, ordered her jailed, caused her to be handcuffed, demanded that she take off her clothes and change into jail garb, imprisoned her for hours, and then conducted fake trial with her classmates (and possibly his internet followers) as her jurors and his audience.

Related: Family of Black Texas Student Suspended by School Over His Locs Is Suing Governor, Attorney General

The complaint added that the purpose of the courthouse field trip, which was held by the nonprofit that employs teens to plant foliage in Detroit, was for students who aspired to become lawyers.

However, the teen was not interested in studying law but rather wanted to become a cardiothoracic surgeon. The teen only found out about the trip when she arrived at her worksite, preparing to plant trees, and was then transported to the courthouse. The complaint also alleged permission for the teens participation in the field trip was not sought from her mother.

The complaint further stated that the students were required to observe a homicide proceeding that was presided over by King. After the proceeding was over, the judge delivered his lecture to the students about the law.

Related: High School Student with Disability Who Had to Sit in Audience for Graduation Files Lawsuit: 'Humiliating'

The teen, whom the complaint said was shy, polite and courteous, had difficulty sleeping the night before and fell asleep during the lecture after being exposed to a court hearing that forced her to relive a traumatic event. The complaint alleged that King publicly berated and humiliated her because he later said "he was disrespected," for which the teen apologized.

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The judge proceeded to move on but then allegedly confronted the teen after she nodded off again, seeking a safe space in her mind.

The complaint alleged that when the teen returned to the gallery after going to the bathroom, a court officer accused the teen of disrespecting the judge, directed her to the side of the bench and ordered her to stand still as a real defendant was escorted out of a detention cell.

The teen was brought into a detention cell and locked inside, according to the complaint. The complaint then alleged that about 10 minutes later, the court officer opened the cell, handcuffed the teen, and brought her to another cell, where she was told to take off her clothing and put on a prison jumpsuit. When the teen refused to strip other than the removal of her hoodie, the court officers allegedly allowed the jumpsuit to be worn over her clothes.

Clarence Tabb Jr./Detroit News via AP Judge Kenneth King listens to testimony during a case on Jan. 23, 2024

She was then brought back to the original holding cell, where she was held captive for hours, before being re-cuffed and brought into the courtroom after the close of the days proceedings, where a fake trial was convened," per the complaint.

As the episode was being streamed online, the complaint added that King threatened to send the teen to a juvenile detention center. He then allegedly asked the teens classmates to serve as a fake jury and decide whether the teen should be sent home to her family or serve time in juvenile prison.

Of course, Defendant JUDGE KING was not going to send Ms. ELG to jail as there was no actual case or controversy and because he admitted to the press that the foregoing was simply his version of Scared Straight, because he was going to teach this teen a lesson for disrespecting him," according to the complaint.

The complaint accused King and the court officers of abusing their power and breaching the teens civil rights.

Defendant Kings extrajudicial actions violated the minors constitutional rights, subjecting him and the other defendants to liability as stated in the balance of this Complaint, read the suit.

As a result of his [Kings] anger, the defendant immaturely decided to teach the girl a lesson in front of her peers and his internet audience, the complaint also stated.

The teens family is seeking monetary damages exceeding $75,000. The complaint also said that the teen has experienced "severe emotional pain and suffering," "mental anguish" and "humiliation and mortification" following the episode.

King was temporarily removed from his docket after the event and was due to be trained "to address the underlying issues that contributed to this incident," said 36th District Court Chief Judge William McConico, per CBS News, USA Today and Newsweek.

PEOPLE has reached out to the 36th District Court for comment.

James Harrington, one of the attorneys representing the family, told PEOPLE in a news release that "subjecting a minor to such public humiliation and violating her rights is unconscionable."

"Our legal system is built on principles of fairness and respect for all individual rights, and those who violate those rights should be held accountable for their actions," he added.

Related: Ex-Police Recruit Files Suit After Losing Legs in Alleged Barbaric' Hazing Ritual: 'No Idea What My Future Holds'

Latoreya Till, the teens mother, described the alleged incident to WXYZ as traumatizing for herself and her daughter, who PEOPLE previously reported was 16.

Till added that her daughter fell asleep because the family currently doesnt have a permanent residence.

"The fact that he was talking about 'you go home and get in your bed', how do you know my baby got a home, how do you know my baby got a bed, her own bed she could sleep in, she dont have that right now, so she was tired," said Till, per WXYZ.

King defended his alleged actions in an earlier interview with ABC affiliate WXYZ.

"Do I have any reservations? he told the station. Do I think I was heavy-handed in what I did? No, I don't, because I'll do whatever it needs to be done to reach these kids and make sure that they don't end up in front of me. That was my own version of scared straight."

In a statement obtained by PEOPLE, a spokesperson for The Greening of Detroit, the organization that held the students' visit to the courthouse, described Kings methods as unacceptable  even if he was trying to teach a lesson. The spokesperson also said, via the family, that the teen was traumatized by the Judges unnecessary disciplinary treatment and scolding."



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Read the original article on People.
In June, the trade turnover between Russia and the European Union (EU) was the lowest since 2000. This means that the Kremlin will not be able to use this money to finance a full-scale aggression against Ukraine.

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This was announced by the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Taxation, and Customs Policy Danylo Hetmantsev (Servant of the People). He noted that trade between Russia and the EU decreased by 10% to 4.9 billion.

The figure was lower only in September 1999 (4.6 billion euros). In addition, this is more than four times less than the average monthly volume in 2021 (20.8 billion euros).

"Compared to the previous month, exports of Russian products to the EU decreased by 14% to 2.5 billion (the lowest since February 1999 and 81% less than the average monthly volume in 2021), while supplies of European products to Russia decreased by 5% to 2.4 billion," Hetmantsev added.

The MP called this good news for Ukraine. At the same time, he reminded that

Asian countries are compensating Russia for the loss of foreign exchange earnings in Europe by buying oil from it (in July, India came out on top with 2.07 million barrels per day, beating China, which was the leader in June with 1.76 million barrels per day);

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in annual terms, even at the current minimums, Russia will receive from European consumers 30 billion euros per year (more than 3 trillion rubles)  this amount is enough to cover almost a third of Russia's annual expenditures on the war against Ukraine;

some European countries, including Ukraine's close neighbors, have increased their trade with Russia, and at double-digit rates;

Russia continues to make money in Europe on gas (1.1 billion euros), oil and oil products (333 million euros), iron and steel (164 million euros)  these products can be replaced with goods from countries with a better reputation if there is a desire and political will.

"I understand that the choice of foreign trade partners is the sovereign right of every state and its business entities, but in the current situation, maintaining or increasing trade relations with Russia means creating additional opportunities for it to continue the largest war on our continent in this century," Danylo Hetmantsev summarized.

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Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party delegate Fanny Hamer speaks out for the meeting of her delegates at a credential meeting prior to the formal meeting of the Democratic National Convention in 1964. Credit - Bettmann Archive/Getty Images

This years Democratic National Convention in Chicago is a historic moment as Vice President Kamala Harris becomes the Democratic presidential nominee. Harris ascent to this position  as the first Black and Asian woman to lead a major political party ticket  would not be possible were it not for the decades-long efforts of Black women activists to assert their political agency even in the most difficult spaces.

The political efforts of civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer are a case in point. Sixty years ago this Aug. 22, Hamer delivered an electrifying speech at the Democratic National Convention in Atlantic City, N.J. It paved the way for Harriss rise and also drew attention to the very challenges still facing many Americans today  especially voter suppression and state-sanctioned violence.

Fannie Lou Hamers path to the 1964 Democratic National Convention began in rural poverty. Born on Oct. 6, 1917, Hamer was the granddaughter of enslaved Black people and worked as a sharecropper for much of her life. At the tender age of 12, she concluded her studies at a local schoolhouse so she could help her family meet their growing financial pressures. Still, Hamers family remained trapped in poverty  the result of the exploitative nature of the sharecropping system and the violence used to maintain it.

Read More: Black Political Rights Cant Be Divorced From Economic Justice. Why Fannie Lou Hamer's Message and Fight Endure Today

The difficulties of Hamers childhood extended well into adulthood when she struggled to make ends meet. Despite her limited material resources and the various challenges she endured as a Black woman living in poverty in Mississippi, Hamer committed herself to making a difference in the lives of others.

On Aug. 27, 1962, at the age of 44, Hamer attended a meeting organized by the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) at the William Chapel Missionary Baptist Church in Ruleville, Miss. At the time, only 5% of Mississippis 450,000 Black residents were registered to vote. In order to ensure that Black Americans did not uproot decades of restrictive and unconstitutional laws and practices, white Southerners had diligently worked to block African Americans from the vote. Those who dared to defy them met the barrel of a gun.

The violent force that white Americans used to prevent the Black vote only served to underscore its immense power. Hamer came to realize the potentially transformative power of her vote and quickly volunteered to travel with the group of SNCC activists to Indianola, Miss., to try to register to vote at the county courthouse. Hamer realized in that moment that she had the ability to shape local, state, and national politics to build an inclusive democracy that lived up to the promise of the ideals that Americans claimed to treasure. The only thing they could do to me was to kill me, she later remarked, and it seemed like theyd been trying to do that a little bit at a time ever since I could remember.

Hamers newfound sense of agency transformed her life. Over the next few months, she became SNCCs oldest field secretary, traveling throughout the South to organize residents around voting rights.

Her political work exposed her to constant harassment and violence. In June 1963, Hamer and several other activists were arrested in Winona, Miss., as they were returning from a voters workshop in South Carolina. The group was taken to the Montgomery County Jail, where they endured four days of torture. Hamer was beaten by police officers  who enlisted prisoners to aid them  resulting in kidney damage, a blood clot in her eye, and a worsened limp.

Yet Hamer refused to back down after these setbacks. She then set her eyes on the 1964 DNC in Atlantic City, where she used the power of public testimony to confront state-sanctioned violence, the deep inequalities facing Black Americans, and Americas failure to live up to its democratic ideals. The timing of the convention was especially significant. Only several weeks prior, the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibited discrimination in public places and banned employment discrimination, was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson.

Read More: Democrats Are Holding Their Own in Kentucky and Mississippi

The primary purpose of Hamers trip to Atlantic City was to address to shortcomings of the Democratic Party and demand equal representation. She arrived with a delegation from the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP), an organization she established with Bob Moses, Annie Devine, Ella Baker, Victoria Gray, and others in April 1964 to challenge the Mississippi Democratic Partys record of excluding Black Americans from participating in the partys meetings.

Several civil rights organizations, including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), advocated for the MFDP to have an opportunity at the DNC to question the validity of Mississippis other all-white delegation to the convention. They hoped that the national party would intervene by giving seats to the MFDP rather than suffer the embarrassment of exposing the Democratic Partys lack of equal representation.

Hamer joined other members of the MFDP who made their case before the DNCs Credentials Committee. Her memorable speech drew on her personal experiences to shed light on the racist violence and intimidation Black people in the Jim Crow South endured on a daily basis.

She first addressed voter suppression. She told the story of how when she went down to the courthouse in Indianola, Miss., to register to vote in 1962, she was confronted by one roadblock after another. When she finally succeeded, she returned home, where the owner of the plantation on which she worked as a sharecropper gave her an ultimatum: If you dont go down and withdraw your registration, you will have to leave. She left that night.

She then recounted how white supremacists shot 16 bullets into a home where Hamer had been staying after she was evicted from the plantation. She also described the brutal attack she suffered in Winona in 1963.

Hamer closed her speech by asking: Is this America, the land of the free and the home of the brave, where we have to sleep with our telephones off of the hooks because our lives be threatened daily, because we want to live as decent human beings, in America?

Read More: Kamala Harris Should Look to 1964Not 1968for Guidance

Those who heard the speech were transformed by its power. She used the opportunity to demand more than recognition by the DNC; she sent the message that silence in the face of degradation and violence was simply not an option. This message was so powerful that President Lyndon B. Johnson intentionally interrupted Hamers testimony by calling an impromptu press conference. However, his efforts were in vain, and the entire speech later aired on the evening news. By televising the speech, Hamers message had an even greater impact, reaching millions of people from diverse communities across the nation. Hamer had pulled back the curtain: the United States could not claim to be a democracy while withholding voting rights from millions of its citizens.

At this years DNC in Chicago, a Black woman will again take center stage  but this time as the Democratic Partys candidate for president. Hamers groundbreaking speech and her tireless fight for civil and human rights paved the way for this historic moment.

And yet despite this progress, the challenges Hamer called out still persist in American society. State-sanctioned violence continues to impact the lives of Black and brown people. And as the recent shooting of Sonya Massey underscores, Black women and girls are especially vulnerable.

State governments are also still engaging in efforts to limit voting access and employing underhanded measures to attempt to alter election results. By advocating, among other things, an aggressive response to voter suppression and state-sanctioned violence, Vice President Kamala Harris, now the Democratic presidential nominee, has a unique opportunity to make real Hamers vision of building an inclusive democracy for all.

Keisha N. Blain is a professor of Africana Studies and history at Brown University. She is the author of several books, including Wake Up America: Black Women on the Future of Democracy (W.W. Norton, 2024).

Made by History takes readers beyond the headlines with articles written and edited by professional historians. Learn more about Made by History at TIME here. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of TIME editors.

Write to Made by History at madebyhistory@time.com.
The Farmers Almanac has released its forecast for the upcoming 2024  2025 winter season. Winter lovers rejoice as they are calling for a wet winter whirlwind that will throw rapid-fire storms bringing rain and snow with little downtime in between.

The almanac is predicting colder-than-normal conditions with close-to-average snowfall and rain for the Ozarks. The publication goes on to highlight the final week of January and into the beginning of February as the timeframe of the coldest outbreak of the winter season. They are red-flagging January 20-27 for copious amounts of snow, rain, sleet, and ice.

While the publication is forecasting a strong winter for us, not everyone will be under the gun of harsh winter conditions. Mild temperatures are expected for the southern portion of the United States.

How accurate is the Farmers Almanac?

Last year the Farmers Almanac missed the mark. They called for a harsh winter with well below-average cold temperatures. The opposite happened.

Last winter was the 5th warmest weve ever experienced. December 2023 was the 7th warmest on record followed by the 2nd warmest February. Snow totals left plenty of people hungry for more as only 3.4 of snowfall was recorded at the Springfield National Airport.

While quite intriguing, take almanac forecasts with a grain of salt. They often use very broad and generic statements to give themselves the best chance of accurately predicting weather.

In regards to the red-flagged days listed in the Farmers Almanac, long-range forecasts are highly inaccurate for specific weather events beyond 2 weeks. Climate models can predict seasonal trends but are inaccurate for specific daily weather events.

I am already seeing signs pointing towards a cooler winter, especially when compared to last year. Ocean temperatures have gradually been cooling in the Pacific as we transition from El Nino to La Nina. This can lead to a mild and wet pattern this winter season.

The full OzarksFirst Winter Outlook will be coming out later this year.

Download our KOLR 10 weather app

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KOLR - OzarksFirst.com.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI)  Theres a fight brewing over a $15 billion contract Rhode Island awarded last month to two health insurance companies to run the states Medicaid program.

Gov. Dan McKee announced in July his administration had awarded the so-called Managed Care Organizations contract to two insurers, Neighborhood Health Plan of Rhode Island and UnitedHealthcare of New England. The five-year contract is worth more than the states entire annual budget.

The states Medicaid program provides health coverage to nearly a third of Rhode Islands population. The insurers earn a profit as part of their administrative fee.

But now, two companies that lost the bid are contesting the states decision, arguing the selection process was fatally flawed and should be revised or redone.

Given the magnitude of the states Medicaid program  serving a third of Rhode Islands population and comprising the expenditure of billions of dollars in public funds  BCBSRI believes it is critical to get this procurement process right, said Richard Salit, spokesperson for Blue Cross & Blue Shield Rhode Island, one of the two companies.

Tufts Health Plan, a subsidiary of Point32Health, was also rejected and submitted a separate bid protest. State documents show both protests were submitted to state officials on July 29.

The [states] scoring assessment did not accurately or consistently score the bidders submissions and failed to conduct a fair, unbiased, and member-focused procurement as required by law, Tufts spokesperson Philip Tracey told Target 12 in a statement.

Insurance giants fighting over state Medicaid contracts is common across the country, as local media reports show similar disputes currently underway in other states, including Arizona, Kansas and Florida.

The contracts are highly lucrative. And for insurers bidding to hold onto contracts they currently maintain, getting rejected  in some instances  means losing entire lines of business.

In Tufts case, the insurer currently has a small share of Rhode Islands Medicaid contract. It now stands to lose its entire Rhode Island Medicaid business when the new contract begin next year.

We believe its important that our 15,000 [Rhode Island] members continue to have access to our high-quality health care services, Tracey said.

Blue Cross and Tufts allege state officials did an abysmal job when assessing which companies to pick for the $15 billion contract, according to documents reviewed by Target 12.

Blue Cross accused state officials of giving UnitedHealthcare and Neighborhood illogically high scores in multiple areas of their bids, even though the insurer alleged its rivals failed to comply with certain procurement laws or submit required documentation in some instances.

[The states] decision to simply ignore these deficiencies and to instead reward these bidders with contracts they were not lawfully eligible to receive was clearly erroneous, arbitrary, capricious, and contrary to the governing laws, wrote a group of attorneys representing Blue Cross, including Christopher Whitney.

Blue Cross also took aim at the state officials who made up the technical panel reviewing the bids, alleging they all worked for the same agency  R.I. Executive Office of Health and Human Services  which runs contrary to state standards.

Panels are supposed to have a diverse set of individuals across agencies that have expertise and experience that complement each other, Whitney wrote.

Blue Cross, which doesnt have a share of the states current Medicaid contract, also accused the panel members of all having professional relationships with UnitedHealth and Neighborhood. Both those companies currently help run the states Medicaid program, along with Tufts, creating at least the perception of bias, Whitney wrote.

Moreover, upon information and belief, one of the individuals that served on the [panel] worked for one of the winning bidders within the past two years, opening the door to conflicts of interest, bias and favoritism, Whitney added.

In its own protest, Tufts took heavy aim at the states scoring methodology, which its president of government markets Urcel Fields characterized as fundamentally unsound.

EOHHS has a critically important task in evaluating a multibillion-dollar procurement that impacts the health care of the states most vulnerable residents, Fields wrote. Yet it failed to use a methodology that was sufficient to meet that challenge.

For example, Fields pointed to one area of scoring for Neighborhood, which he said didnt include an agreement letter with the states largest Medicaid provider, Lifespan. The states largest hospital system controls about 44% of acute care hospital beds in Rhode Island, and its a major player in Medicaid.

Despite the absence of a Lifespan agreement in its bid, Fields said Neighborhood still received high marks in its technical score, demonstrating a failure to properly review the network submissions.

Critically, had EOHHS properly graded [Neighborhood] to reflect the lack of Lifespan in network, it likely would have had to reprocure the entire solicitation, Fields wrote.

The companies all needed to score at least 85 points in their technical reviews to be considered for the $15 billion award. Neighborhood scored the highest with 88.5 points. UnitedHealthcare scored 87.9 points. State officials said Blue Cross and Tufts didnt even qualify, scoring 63.2 points and 54.4 points, respectively.

The two losing insurers are now calling on the state to review the entire bid and take into consideration the issues raised. Blue Cross argues the state should revise the contract and award some part to them. If not, Whitney wrote, the state must cancel the contract and restart the bidding process from scratch.

Based upon an initial assessment of the scoring results, Blue Cross noted multiple instances where compliance with the states procurement regulations was lacking, as well as inconsistencies in how EOHHS applied its own scoring criteria and methodology across bidders, Salit said.

Tufts, meanwhile, is calling on the state to cancel the award to Neighborhood and UnitedHealthcare, restart the bidding process and maintain the current contract under its existing terms until a new one can be awarded.

R.I. Department of Administration spokesperson Karen Greco said the matters are currently under review by DOA, which oversees contract procurements in Rhode Island.

When completed, we will issue a written determination, she added.

This isnt the first time the massive Medicaid contract has come under scrutiny. A similar effort to award the deal in 2022 was riddled with unforced errors, leading the state to eventually cancel the bid process and start again.

Eli Sherman (esherman@wpri.com) is a Target 12 investigative reporter for 12 News. Connect with him on Twitter and on Facebook.

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FBI activity in Bourbon County: Heres what we know

CLARKSVILLE, Ky. (FOX 56)  There was a flurry of activity in Bourbon County on Monday regarding what the FBI called an active investigation.

Katie Anderson, FBI Louisvilles public affairs specialist, told FOX 56 that there was an FBI presence on Russell Cave Road.

Read more of the latest Lexington & central Kentucky news

Anderson said that agents were conducting judicially authorized activity.

Its unclear at this time what brought the FBI to Bourbon County.

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According to Anderson, its part of an ongoing investigation.

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The Department of Justice is reportedly investigating multiple people with ties to Russian state media, weeks after federal officials warned that the Kremlin is attempting to influence the upcoming presidential election through the media.

The FBI has searched multiple individuals this month as part of the probe, including former U.N. weapons inspector and U.S. foreign policy critic Scott Ritter, and foreign policy commentator Dimitri Simes, US officials briefed on the investigation told The New York Times.

Neither are charged with crimes and the FBI told The Independent it has no comment regarding the reported investigation.

Ritter, who has contributed to the state-controlled Russia Today (RT) network since 2020, was the subject of an FBI search on August 7 at his home in New York state.

Agents were seen carrying out boxes of evidence, which reportedly included mobile phones, computers, and hard drives.

The FBI is reportedly probing individuals who worked with Russian state media, including former UN weapons inspector Scott Ritter

Im being targeted because I have made an effort to try to improve relations between the United States and Russia, to try to bring about arms control. To try to bring about peace, Ritter told the Delmar, New York-based Spotlight News site the day of the search. Apparently, someone in the U.S. government takes umbrage at this.

A Virginia home owned by Simes, former head of the Center for the National Interest think tank, was reportedly searched on August 13.

The FBI conducted court-authorized law enforcement activity. We have no further comment as this is an ongoing matter, the FBI told Rappahannock News regarding the search.

Simes, who hosted a talk show on Russias state Channel One network, told Russian channel Sputnik earlier this month he didnt know why he was being targeted either.

It clearly is an attempt to intimidate, not only somebody from Russia, but just anyone who goes against official policies and particularly against the deep state, he said.

The commentator was mentioned in the Mueller report investigating Russian influence operations on the 2016 election, including for passing on what he believed was incriminating information about then-candidate Hillary Clintons husband, former president Bill Clinton, to Jared Kushner, Donald Trumps son-in-law.

Simes was not accused of any wrongdoing in the report.

In his interview with Sputnik, Simes added that he hadnt been in the United States since 2022.

Last month, the office of the US Director of National Intelligence warned that Russian officials were attempting to use the media to influence US politics.

Russian influence actors have undertaken distinct efforts during this election cycle to build and use networks of U.S. and other Western personalities to create and disseminate Russian-friendly narratives, the DNI wrote in a public assessment. These personalities post content on social media, write for various websites with overt and covert ties to the Russian Government, and conduct other media efforts.

Any attempt to investigate alleged Russian influence over US elections is politically fraught, as the 2016 round of probes led to damaging reports about both candidates and accusations from Trump that the justice system was being wielded by his opponents to keep him from power.
By Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The FBI earlier this month searched the homes of two Americans with ties to Russian state media, including a former United Nations weapons inspector and an adviser to Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's 2016 campaign.

The moves follow recent U.S. warnings that the Russian government is attempting to influence the November U.S. presidential election.

One home in Delmar, New York, was linked to Scott Ritter, a former United Nations weapons inspector and critic of U.S. foreign policy, while another in Virginia was tied to Dimitri K. Simes, an adviser to Trump's first presidential campaign in 2016.

Both men separately confirmed the searches in media statements and could not immediately be reached for further comments.

The FBI said on Wednesday it carried out "court authorized law enforcement activity at certain locations" when asked about media reports on the searches.

U.S. intelligence has said that Russia remains the "predominant threat" to U.S. elections and that Moscow is using a complex arsenal of tools to back one of the candidates and sow divisions. Russia dismisses the accusations.

The New York Times reported on Wednesday that the U.S. Justice Department began a broader criminal investigation into Americans who have worked with Russia's state television networks. It cited U.S. officials briefed on the inquiry. The FBI had no further comment on that story.

More searches are expected soon and criminal charges are possible, the Times reported, citing the unnamed officials. Prosecutors have not announced charges against Simes and Ritter.

Simes, who hosts a weekly talk show on Russian state television broadcaster Channel One, told another state-owned media outlet, Sputnik, that he felt the FBI search was "an attempt to frighten me, to discredit me, and to do damage to my ability to live in the United States or even visit the United States, and to do damage to my finances."

Ritter, who was convicted in 2011 by a jury in an online underage sex sting, said the FBI search on his home was related to concerns the U.S. government has about alleged violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act. The law requires Americans to disclose political activities on behalf of foreign governments.

He denies the violations and said he felt the search was retribution for his criticism of U.S. foreign policy, including with respect to Ukraine. He said he cooperated with the search.

Ritter wrote in state media outlet Russia Today this week that he been "an external contributor (i.e., contactor) to RT since April 2020."

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Don Durfee and Michael Perry)
Riley Hotard looks to her mother Stephanie for encouragement while being given a COVID-19 vaccination at the St. Louis County Health Department headquarters in Berkley, Mo., in 2021. On Thursday, the Food and Drug Administration approved updated COVID-19 vaccines for people 6 months and older that target new circulating variants. File Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI

Aug. 22 (UPI) -- The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved updated COVID-19 vaccines for people 6 months and older that target new circulating variants.

The mRNA COVID-19 vaccines are manufactured by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, who plan to have them available in a few days. The formula will "more closely target currently circulating variants and provide better protection against serious consequences of COVID-19, including hospitalization and death," the FDA said in a news release.

On June 5, an FDA advisory panel recommended updating the formula for COVID-19 vaccines. They advised manufacturers they should make monovalent JN.1 vaccines. The lineage for the COVID-19 vaccines is the KP.2 strain, which is a descendant of the Omicron subvariant.

The FDA says vaccines will need to be assessed annually, like for seasonal influenza vaccines.

"Vaccination continues to be the cornerstone of COVID-19 prevention," Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said. "These updated vaccines meet the agency's rigorous, scientific standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality. Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants."

KP.2 was the dominant strain in May and accounts for roughly 3% of all U.S. cases as of Saturday, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.

The CDC no longer tracks cases but examines SARS-CoV-2 levels in sewage, and limited data from hospitals and states. Cases now are hard to track because most people get tests at home and the results are not reported to state health agencies.

In the last cases update from the CDC on May 11, 2023, there were more than 103 million infections with more than 1.1 million deaths.

Pfizer said it plans to begin shipping its new vaccine immediately and expects it to be available in pharmacies, hospitals and clinics throughout the United States "beginning in the coming days," the company said in a statement.

And Moderna also said it expects its vaccines to be available in the coming days, as well.

"Staying up to date with your COVID-19 vaccine remains one of the best ways for people to be protected and prevent severe illness," Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said in a statement. "We appreciate the U.S. FDA's timely review and encourage individuals to speak to their healthcare providers about receiving their updated COVID-19 vaccine alongside their flu shot this fall."

Updated vaccines include Comirnaty and Spikevax, which are approved for individuals 12 years of age and older. They vaccines are authorized for emergency use for individuals 6 months through 11.

The FDA lists vaccines dosages level for age groups.

Like with the other vaccine versions, the FDA said individuals may experience similar side effects as those reported by individuals who previously received mRNA COVID-19 vaccines.

About 22.5% of U.S. adults received the latest round of shots that rolled out last fall, according to the CDC in May.

The FDA issued Emergency Use Authorization for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine on Dec. 11, 2020, and for the Moderna vaccine on Dec. 18, 2020.

In RNA technology, cells are taught to make proteins that trigger an immune response against COVID.

Earlier this month, Health and Human Services announced a national campaign to increase public awareness of common respiratory viruses and available vaccines. Health officials said they hope the campaign, called "Risk Less. Do More," will reduce serious illnesses from the flu, COVID-19, and respiratory syncytial viruses in high-risk populations, as well as limit the spread of the virus in the United States.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced Thursday the approval of both Pfizers and Modernas updated COVID-19 vaccines for the 2024-2025 respiratory viral season.

The updated vaccines are designed to target the KP.2 strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Based on the further evolution of SARS-CoV-2 and a rise in cases of COVID-19, the agency subsequently determined and advised manufacturers that the preferred JN.1-lineage for the COVID-19 vaccines (2024-2025 formula) is the KP.2 strain, if feasible, the agency said in its announcement.

Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants, Peter Marks, director of the FDAs Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement.

The vaccines are approved for people 12 years old and older.

COVID-19 remains a significant health risk and is the leading cause of respiratory illness-related hospitalization, regardless of age or health condition. In the 2023-24 season, we saw more than 600,000 hospitalizations due to COVID in the U.S. Staying up to date with your COVID-19 vaccine remains one of the best ways for people to be protected and prevent severe illness, Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said.

The Hill has reached out to Pfizer for comment.

Emergency use authorization has been granted for three doses of the updated Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine or two doses of the Moderna vaccine to be administered to unvaccinated children aged between six months and 4 years of age. Children in this same cohort whove previously been vaccinated can receive one or two doses of either updated vaccine.

Children between 5 and 11 can receive one dose of either updated vaccine regardless of prior vaccination status. If theyve previously been vaccinated, the FDA advised that they wait at least two months before getting the updated shots.

Moderna said it expects its updated vaccine to be available in the coming days. This approval comes while the U.S. is in the midst of a summer surge in cases. All U.S. regions monitored by the Department of Health and Human Services are currently reporting COVID-19 test positivity rates of 10 percent or higher.

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A Washington, D.C., judge ruled this week that the Environmental Protection Agency must disclose more information than it currently does about chemicals pending review under the Toxic Substances Control Act.

In the ruling, Judge Loren AliKhan of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, a President Biden appointee, sided with a coalition of environmental groups, including the Center for Environmental Health, Defend Our Health, Natural Resources Defense Council, the Sierra Club and the Environmental Defense Fund.

In a November brief, the environmental groups argued that current regulations made it overly complicated for the public to obtain information under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) about such chemicals.

In 2020, the EDF challenged updated regulations, arguing that under them, companies that submitted their chemicals for review have too much leeway in claiming that information about it is confidential

They also alleged the EPA delayed or failed to make public the records associated with more than 250 applications. Under the new rules, EDF argued, the mandatory disclosures were replaced with a system that allowed the agency to use its own discretion when it comes to transparency.

In her ruling, AliKhan largely agreed with the EDF that the TSCA creates a freestanding right to information independent from the risk-determination process.

She ruled that under the law, the EPA is required to make any nonconfidential information contained in an applicants pre-manufacture notice publicly available within five days.

The law, she wrote, vest[s] an enduring right to information that lasts before, during, and after any risk determination in the same way as the Freedom of Information Act or the Federal Advisory Committee Act.

She also disagreed with the EPAs argument that the complaint is moot because it has since altered its policies, writing because there is nothing to prevent the EPA from reverting to its old ways, plaintiffs claims are not moot.

The law mandates timely public access to robust information about new chemicals entering the marketplace to which we may be exposed, Samantha Liskow, Lead Counsel for Healthy Communities at EDF said in a statement to The Hill. Congress created a freestanding right to information submitted by companies who seek federal approval to make new chemicals, the judge ruled. This new ruling will strengthen the publics ability to exercise that right.

Updated at 4:58 pm.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
According to a new study by scientists, men with children seem to be more attractive to women. The researchers confirmed the theory from the movie My Boy with Hugh Grant.

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Scientists from Leiden University in the Netherlands have found that women rate men as much more attractive when they see them with children. After all, a woman is subconsciously looking for a partner with whom she can procreate, the Daily Mail reports.

In the 2002 film "About a Boy," the protagonist Will (played by Grant) pretends to have a child to join single-parent meetings and meet single women. His strategy works. But does this method work in real life?

"From an evolutionary point of view, it makes sense. If you want to raise a child, you need a partner who can help you," said Professor Peter Bos, the lead author of the study.

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To back up their claims and find out if childcare really does increase men's chances of getting a date, Professor Bos and his co-author, Hannah Spencer, PhD, tested 360 women's reactions to various experiments.

First, the women were shown photos of men, either alone or with a child, and then asked to rate their attractiveness on a scale of 1 to 100. Next, they were asked to read information about men who are involved in childcare and those who are not involved in parenting before rating them.

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Women rated men with children significantly higher than hot men without kids. Prof. Bos explains that when a man is seen with children, and especially when he gets along well with them, it "signals an interest in caring and reliability."

Scientists cite an example from the wild, where birds choose males with traits that demonstrate the ability to defend themselves territorially and compete. And because females have a greater biological investment in their offspring through pregnancy, they tend to favor partners who offer resources and protection.

The study may also explain why women are more attracted to men who prove to be good fathers. Because raising a child is difficult, women seek out men who demonstrate traits that indicate suitability to be a good father. "People are designed to have two parents. If one adult is raising them, it's too stressful," says the author of the study.

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Peter Bos says that men often use photos with children to appear more attractive and find a mate, even though they don't want children themselves. "I've heard from women that guys post photos with children on dating sites and Tinder, and I was surprised why they would do that if they weren't looking for a permanent relationship. So I advise you not to trust photos alone! Make sure your man is actually a caring person. And if you want children, make sure he is motivated to invest in being a great father to his children," the scientist advises.

Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Don't fall for fakes!

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The Environmental Protection Agency headquarters in Washington, D.C., in March 2024 (Lyle Muller/Investigate Midwest).

A federal watchdog this month told the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that its regulatory oversight of Seresto flea-and-tick collars, which have been linked to more than 2,000 pet deaths, was not adequate.

Federal scrutiny of the Seresto collars started in 2021, after Investigate Midwest and USA TODAY revealed the collar was linked to tens of thousands of incidents of harm, including rashes on humans. The EPA ultimately allowed Seresto to continue to be sold, but the agency ordered a warning label to be added to the product.

However, in February, the EPAs Office of Inspector General told the EPA it needed to determine whether, Seresto pet collars pose an unreasonable risk to pet health. Despite its review, the EPA has not provided assurance the collar is safe, the inspector general concluded.

To accomplish that goal, the inspector general recommended the agency re-open the review process for the two active ingredients in Seresto  essentially, this would determine whether the pesticides were safe enough to be sold in the U.S. This would also allow for public comment on the collars.

The EPA has declined to follow the watchdogs recommendation. While the review process is the standard way a pesticide makes it to market, the EPA has other mechanisms to address concerns with products, the agency told the inspector generals office in response to its February report.

For instance, in 2023, the agency released the results of an inquiry into the collar. The EPA ultimately decided the collar could stay on the market, with more reporting requirements for Serestos maker. The agency said this inquiry satisfied the recommendations intent.

On Aug. 7, the watchdog published its response.

Overall, the agencys response does not adequately address how it will regulate the Seresto collars, according to the inspector generals office. In particular, not opening Seresto up for public comment is a deficiency that is inconsistent with the EPAs standard practices, it added.

In a statement to Investigate Midwest, the EPA reiterated that the new requirements placed on Serestos maker, Elanco Animal Health, were enough to keep pets safe.

Based on this analysis and in order to continue the registration, Elanco implemented several new labeling and reporting requirements to improve the safety of this product, the EPA said. The goal of these mitigations is to continue to allow products on the market that can protect pets while minimizing risk associated with the use of Seresto collars.

Elanco did not return a request for comment. The company has maintained the collar is safe, and it disputed that incidents of harm reported to the EPA equaled evidence of danger. Bayer, the German conglomerate, sold its entire animal health unit, which originally produced Seresto collars, to Elanco in 2020 for $7.6 billion.

Elanco unequivocally continues to stand behind the safety profile of Seresto as a proven solution to help protect dogs and cats from fleas and ticks, an Elanco spokesperson told Investigate Midwest in 2022. We support all agency review processes.

Internally, the EPA identified incidents related to Seresto collars as a cause for concern years ago. In 2015, agency officials said Serestos incident counts ranked #1 by a wide margin compared to other flea-and-tick collars, Investigate Midwest and USA TODAY reported.

Despite that, the agency did not review the collar until the number of incidents was reported widely in the press in 2021. Once the story was out, an EPA biologist emailed a colleague, Looks like the sh** has hit the fan.  We have been screaming about (Seresto) for many years.

Inspector generals findings

The inspector general started its probe into the EPAs handling of Seresto collars in May 2022. In February of this year, it released its findings.

When the EPA conducted its registration review of Serestos active ingredients, it did not assess whether the pesticides posed a risk to pets. The agency originally committed to do this, but it ultimately did not, according to the inspector generals report. The active ingredients are flumethrin and imidacloprid.

The agency told the inspector generals office it does not have the expertise and resources to assess the toxicity to animals. It also has no standards to assess the risk to pets, it said.

The EPA said its scientific review, released in 2023, was the equivalent of assessing the risks posed to pets.

The protocol the EPA relied on when it originally approved the ingredients in the Seresto collar is not up to international standards. The protocol the EPA follows is from 1998, despite other countries following more recent guidelines.

Staff we interviewed indicated this was not a priority, the inspector generals office wrote. One longtime EPA scientist called using the 1998 protocol a glaring weakness that has become publicly obvious with the Seresto pet collar incidents.

The data the EPA collects on incidents related to pesticide exposure is inadequate to determine unreasonable adverse effects. For instance, it does not capture any narrative information on incidents that would help the agency assess a pesticides toxicity.

EPA staff told the inspector generals office the incident data is unreliable  there is underreporting, and data quality is suspect.

The EPA has already asked Elanco to provide more information than other companies related to incidents involving Seresto. This includes critical details on death incidents, adequate case follow up on any reported deaths, and information on a pets health status before it wore the collar, the EPA said.

The EPA lacks a standard operating procedure for reviewing the risks to pets, and it was unclear to the inspector generals office where the responsibility for reviewing risks to pets resides. One agency official said a lack of veterinary expertise likely contributes to the issue.

Seresto timeline

In early 2021, Investigate Midwest and USA TODAY revealed that the Seresto flea-and-tick collars were linked to tens of thousands of incidents of harm, including almost 1,700 pet deaths over several years. But the product carried no warning.

A month later, the EPA announced it was reviewing the collar. As the review happened, the House Subcommittee on Economic and Consumer Policy launched its own investigation. At the time, the subcommittee was part of the House Oversight Committee, the main investigative body of the U.S. House of Representatives, and was chaired by Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Illinois. (The subcommittee no longer exists.)

In summer 2022, shortly after the EPAs inspector general announced its probe, the House subcommittee released the findings of its investigation. It found other countries require Seresto to come with a warning label, and that Canada banned the collar after authorities there found a high rate of incidents of harm. The subcommittee called on the EPA to ban Seresto.

About a year later, in July 2023, the EPA announced it had completed its inquiry of the Seresto collar. It could still be sold, but the EPA placed mitigation measures in place. Elanco was required to add a warning label, and it was only granted a 5-year registration. Normally, pesticides are approved for 15 years before producers need to apply for their continued use.

This article first appeared on Investigate Midwest and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
FedEx employee injured in Bronx shooting while on the job, police say

FedEx employee injured in Bronx shooting while on the job, police say

CROTONA PARK, the Bronx (PIX11)  A FedEx employee was injured in a shooting in the Bronx on Thursday, according to police.

NYPD officers responded to a moped being stolen near 950 Jennings St. around 12 p.m.

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The shot went inside the wall. It was like several shots, Willy, a witness, said.

Willy said he and other maintenance workers were ambushed. Dodging gunfire as a gang of masked moped riders tried to steal the superintendents moped off the curb.

Was like seven (scooters) blue, white and black one that you saw, Willy added.

Despite coming under fire, they physically fought back, scaring one suspect off, who left his getaway vehicle behind. Now, police have it as evidence.

They left because we pushed him, and then he started running, Willy told PIX11 News.

When police arrived, they found the FedEx employee, 20, with a graze from a bullet on their back, according to officials. The victim was taken to the hospital to be treated for their injuries.

Police said the suspects were described as two people wearing all black with ski masks. They left on foot after failing to steal the moped.

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A spokesperson for FedEx told PIX11, We are grateful our team member was not seriously injured.

These illegal bikes are the number one quality of life issue in the city, Chief of Patrol John Chell said.

Thats why police have been focused on finding the illegal ones menacing New Yorkers and ultimately crushing them. Police said the criminals are more nimble on mopeds, but they expect to seize 30,000 this year.

Not only are they illegally registered, theres murderers, shooters, robbers on these bikes, putting our public in peril, Chell said.

Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, downloading the NYPD Crime Stoppers mobile app, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).

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.

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The FBI and Chicago Police are probing allegations that protesters put maggots and crickets in a breakfast buffet for delegates at the Democratic National Convention.

The bugs were reportedly put in the food at the Fairmont Hotel, where delegates from Indiana, Minnesota, Ohio, Missouri, and South Dakota are staying during the DNC.

The conventions information center said in a statement that several unknown women allegedly went into a building and began placing unknown objects onto tables containing food.

The offenders are believed to have then left the area. One victim was treated and released on-scene, the center added.

A witness told USA Today that it seemed to be crickets while separate reports indicated that maggots were placed in the food.

Karen Tallian, an Indiana delegate, told the paper: We were all coming down to breakfast, and there were these two women who had hidden themselves in the bathroom.

They ran out and threw maggots into the breakfast buffet, she added.

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton waves to the audience on Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 21, 2024 (REUTERS)

The former state senator told USA Today that friends who arrived at the dining room before she had seen the altercation.

No one has so far claimed responsibility for the sabotage, which took place at about 6.45am.

Fairmont confirmed the incident in a statement, saying that a group of individuals caused a disruption at a DNC-related breakfast event at our hotel.

They added that they were grateful for the swift response of law enforcement.

Our team acted immediately to clean and sanitize the area, ensuring that the event could continue without further incident, the hotel officials added.

Carolyn Jackson, an Indiana state representative, told USA Today that an hour after the incident, the food had been replaced.

This has not been the only recent disruption to the convention. There have been several bomb threats at hotels used by delegates and other attendees.

The deputy Secret Service special agent in charge, Derek Mayer, said on Wednesday morning, We ran out every single threat yesterday and they are continuing to come in today.

As recently as last month, bugs were released at the Watergate Hotel where Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was staying at the time. There have been daily protests at the Chicago arena where the convention is being held by protesters arguing for an end to the war in Gaza and US military support for Israel.

Sam Barloga, a spokesperson for the Indiana Democratic Party, said in a statement to USA Today that All Americans have the right to peaceful protest, but ugly attacks like this have no place in our democracy.
ABINGDON, Va. (WJHL)  Feeding Southwest Virginia, Ballad Health and the American Cancer Society are teaming up to help combat food insecurity among cancer patients.

Through the initiative, Feeding Southwest Virginia will provide medically tailored food boxes that Ballad Health will distribute to cancer patients and their families who identify as food insecure during clinic visits.

President and CEO of Feeding Southwest Virginia Pamela Irvine said the initiative is a great opportunity to provide food as medicine.

This is the best example, Irvine said. You cant get any better than this when you have a patient that already struggles with transportation needs and many other needs and they come in to get their treatment and then they get the food box, they dont have to worry about going somewhere else to get a food box.

SOFHA to put $10K grant toward apprenticeship program

The partnership is made possible through a $49,996 grant awarded by the American Cancer Societys Addressing Barriers to Care program, a news release stated.

These grants are really helping address those social determinants of health and really increasing the quality of life for those patients who, like for these patients specifically, who need these healthy food boxes, Annika Dean with the American Cancer Society said. And food is medicine.

Bryan Mullins, Johnston Memorial Hospitals Chief Operating Officer/Administrator, said food insecurities consistently came from patients when asked about needs other than medical.

For oncology, navigators get really an opportunity to talk to those patients to see what their other needs other than medical needs are, Mullins said. One of the things that consistently came up was food, insecurities, just not having enough food. And of course, thats thats hugely important when youre talking about a cancer patient.

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A sheriffs deputy assigned to a correctional facility in Riverside County has been placed on administrative leave after discharging his firearm as a female inmate attempted to escape, officials announced earlier this week.

The Aug. 19 incident unfolded at 10:15 a.m. in the 26000 block of Cactus Avenue in Moreno Valley, according to a news release from the Riverside County Sheriffs Department.

Authorities say Kimberly Gallegos, a 25-year-old inmate from Jurupa Valley, fled through the parking lot as the unidentified correctional deputy attempted to remove her from the vehicle.

The correctional deputy chased Gallegos with his weapon drawn, the release stated. During the foot chase, a round was fired into the ground by the correctional deputy.

Kimberly Gallegos

Additional deputies responded to the attempted escape and the 25-year-old was taken into custody.

No one was injured by the deputy firing his weapon, authorities added.

Dashcam captures teen suspect open fire near Southern California school

The Riverside County Sheriffs Corrections Central Investigations Unit assumed the investigation into the escape attempt and the Riverside County Sheriffs Office Force Investigations Detail assumed the investigation into the discharge of the firearm.

Per department policy, the correctional deputy was placed on administrative leave while the investigation proceeds.

Anyone with information about this case is urged to contact California Highway Patrol Investigator Steve Cuevas or Riverside County Sheriffs Investigator Jason Letterly at 951-955-2777.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA.
LYNNFIELD, Mass. (WWLP)  A man from Lawrence is being charged with trafficking fentanyl after police conducted a traffic stop for extremely dark window tint.

According to the Massachusetts State Police, at around 6 p.m. on August 13, troopers observed a Mercedes SUV with extremely dark window tint traveling on Route 1 in Lynnfield. Massachusetts law indicates that tint is required to meet visible light transmission of 35 percent.

Arrest log: Ludlow police arrested 50 people within 4 weeks

Troopers conducted a traffic stop and spoke to the driver, identified as 40-year-old Melffrin Perez-Fenandez. As he was retrieving the vehicles registration, a trooper observed a substance suspected to be illegal narcotics wrapped in a corner bag, a common way to package narcotics for sale or distribution.

Perez-Fenandez was detained while a search was conducted of the vehicle. Approximately 23 grams of a substance suspected to be fentanyl, packaged in 38 separate bag twists was seized. The window tint was measured and failed to meet the light requirement.

Perez-Fenandez was arrested and set bail at $25,000 for the following charges:

Trafficking in Fentanyl Possession of a Class A Drug with Intent to Distribute Illegal Window Tint Failure to Wear Seatbelt

Latest Local News Headlines

WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on WWLP.com.

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Ferry with fuel on fire in Russian Kavkaz port: Russian media outlets blame Ukraine  video

A burning ferry with fuel. Screenshot from the video

A fire broke out on a railway ferry loaded with fuel in the port of Kavkaz in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. Russian media outlets and Telegram channels blame this on a Ukrainian missile strike.

Source: Krymskiy Veter Telegram channel, Russian media outlets

Quote from Krymskiy Veter: "Our source in the Kerch port reports that the ferry Aquatrader, which had been loaded with railway tankers with fuel, was hit in the Kavkaz port."

It is noted that the information about the area of the fire and casualties is being established.

Meanwhile, videos posted on social media show a thick, high smoke and fire.

It is also reported that since 16:29, "the Crimean Bridge has been temporarily closed to traffic".

The Ukrainian military leadership has not yet commented on the situation.

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(KRON)  A fiery crash involving an electric powered Tesla tractor trailer in Northern California earlier this week is being investigated by federal authorities. The National Transportation Safety Board tweeted that it had opened an investigation into the crash in partnership with the California Highway Patrol.

13 unlicensed contractors busted in South Bay: CSLB

The Tesla big rig crashed and caught fire on Interstate 80 at Emigrant Gap early Monday morning. The highway was shut down in Placer County for most of the day as a result of the crash.

Interstate 80 didnt reopen to traffic in both directions until after 7 p.m. Monday.

Cal Fire called the fire a hazardous materials incident due to the Teslas lithium-ion batteries. Cal Fire personnel were able to prevent the blaze from spreading to a nearby forest.

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The Finnish Border Guard has been granted new powers, specifically to conduct radio monitoring on the border with Russia.

Source: European Pravda, citing Finnish public service media company Yle

This means that after acquiring the necessary equipment, the border guard will be able, for example, to track the movement of mobile phones near the border on both the Finnish and Russian sides.

Quote: "This is an important new capability alongside other means," said Border Guard Commander Juho Vanhatalo.

The Border Guard Service believes that this capability will be helpful in situations involving directed migration. This way, they will be able to assess where and how many people are trying to cross the border.

However, the border guards will not have the right to intercept messages or identify mobile phone users.

With radio monitoring tools, the Finnish Border Guard will also be able to track drones.

Background:

In April, the Finnish government kept the border with Russia closed indefinitely to counter the hybrid migration crisis.

Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen previously stated that the checkpoints on the border with Russia would not be reopened anytime soon.

Valtonen also suggested that this issue might be reconsidered in the autumn.

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PANGUITCH, Utah (ABC4)  Firefighters worked overnight to battle a blaze at a sawmill in Panguitch. Although the sawmill is described to be a total loss, crews were able to successfully keep the fire from spreading to other buildings.

According to the Garfield County Sheriffs Office, a call came in around 10:37 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 20, reporting that the main sawmill at K & D Forest Products was on fire.

Several jurisdictions responded and were able to contain the fire to just the main mill, which was completely engulfed.

(Panguitch Lake Fire Department)

(Panguitch Lake Fire Department)

Earlier that same day, the mill had closed for maintenance at 4:15 p.m. Three hours later, the maintenance crew left for the evening.

Authorities said they dont suspect foul play and that the state fire marshal is investigating the cause of the fire. There were no injuries reported due to the incident.

Garfield County Sheriff Eric Houston said he would like to thank all the first responders who worked to fight the fire quickly, saying they did a terrific job.

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A drone attack on the Marynivka military airfield in the Volgograd region of Russia damaged an airplane parking lot. Fires broke out as a result of several arrivals.

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NASA satellites recorded three fires on the territory of the airfield. RosMedia publishes photos and videos from Marynivka.

Judging by the images, one of the fires broke out at the technical position for aircraft preparation (TPAP), where the airplanes are parked. Another one is to the north, where the tanks are located. The third fire center is on the territory where the taxiway of the airfield runs.

According to media reports, as of August 21, 3-5 Su-30/34 fighters were stationed at the TOT. They had previously been redeployed from the Morozovsk airfield after numerous attacks.

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OBOZ.UA has learned from its own sources that the SBU and the SSU hit warehouses with CABs and fuel at the Marynivka airfield. The enemy is actively using this airfield to bomb the front line in Ukraine.

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Local residents listened to the explosions of warehouses with aviation avionics, ammunition, fuel, and lubricants all night and morning. Pillars of black smoke rose above the airfield and powerful detonations were heard.

As a reminder, on the morning of August 22, the Volgograd region reported an attack by 28 UAVs and explosions near the city of Kalach-on-Don. Afterward, a fire broke out over the nearby Marynivka military airfield, and detonation sounds were heard.

One of the propaganda resources claimed that at least two UAVs were shot down: one of them was destroyed a few kilometers from the airfield, and the wreckage of the second fell on a nearby hut, causing it to catch fire. Residents were allegedly advised to evacuate.

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Volgograd Region Governor Andrey Bocharov confirmed the "repulsion of a drone attack" near the Marynivka airfield and acknowledged that the fire was caused by a drone crash on the territory of the Defense Ministry facility. According to him, most of the UAVs were allegedly shot down, there were no casualties, and firefighters quickly began extinguishing the fire.

As reported by OBOZ.UA:

 Kyrylo Budanov, the head of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, said that on the night of Wednesday, August 21, about 50 UAVs attacked five regions of the Russian Federation. Some of them were flying to the capital of the aggressor country, Moscow, and targeted, in particular, the Ostafievo airport.

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 The Ukrainian Navy reported that the Ukrainian Defense Forces had successfully hit an S-300 air defense system of the Russian Federation near Novoshakhtynsk, Rostov region. This is not the first time such enemy weapons have been destroyed, and we can expect a repeat of this success in the future.

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
Authorities were helping residents in southeastern Sacramento County to evacuate after a grass fire broke out Thursday in Wilton.

The Cosumnes Fire Department said it was assisting the Wilton Fire Department, Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District and other agencies in battling a grass fire that was threatening structures near Walmort Road and Badger Creek Lane, according to a social media post published about 1:30 p.m.

The Sacramento County Sheriffs Office was requested to help evacuate residents of about 20 to 30 homes in the area, said Sgt. Amar Gandhi, a Sheriffs Office spokesman.

Metro Fire in a 2:30 p.m. update said forward progress on the fire had been stopped at 45 acres, and that evacuations had been lifted for an estimated 20 to 30 evacuees. It was not clear at that time how many structures may have been damaged, Metro Fire said.

Firefighters from the Consumes Fire Department, Wilton Fire Protection District and the Herald Fire Protection District all responded to assist at the scene.

Cosumnes Fire units are assisting Wilton Fire with a grass fire threatening structures in the area of Walmort Road and Badger Creek Lane in Wilton. Units from Herald Fire and Sacramento Metro Fire are also at the scene. @metrofirepio  Cosumnes Fire Dept. (@CosumnesFire) August 22, 2024
Wednesday, the Vigo County Commissioners announced the completion of the first phase of the Riley Spur Trail, a 1.61-mile stretch from Louisville Road to Lama Road.

Although final shoulder work is still in progress, the Commissioners held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Wednesday to allow trail enthusiasts to begin enjoying this newly completed section.

This is a milestone moment for our community. The Riley Spur Trail will be a great asset to Vigo County, and Im personally excited to take advantage of this beautiful new trail. I look forward to seeing even more people out here enjoying it. We are also incredibly grateful to the Indiana Department of Natural Resources for funding phase two through the Next Level Trails grant. This support allows us to continue our work on expanding the trail system for everyone to enjoy. Mike Morris  Vigo County Commissioner

The first phase of the Riley Spur Trail was made possible through a $652,247 grant from Vigo Countys American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding. Phase two is currently in the design phase and is expected to break ground next spring. Phase two will be funded by a grant from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources Next Level Trails program, which the county has already been awarded.

When completed, the trail will span seven miles, connecting multiple places in and around Terre Haute.

We are working with the city. We got a nearly $2 million grant, Next Level Trails. We will dig into that now. We are going to go from Seventh and Margaret, all the way down to Canal Road, down to Springhill junction, and link up behind the Idle Creek Golf Couse, hopefully with this. Mike Morris  Vigo County Commissioner

These investments in the community mark the begging of a multi-phase project designed to enhance outdoor recreational opportunities in Vigo county.

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Five men charged for string of 22 burglaries at Illinois video gaming machines

ILLINOIS (WCIA)  Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul charged five men for a series of burglaries at video gaming machines in Central Illinois and the Chicago area.

The men are 35-year-old John Friedrich of Streator, 39-year-old Joseph Montoro of Berwyn, 41-year-old Sebastian Perez of Chicago, 20-year-old Jacob Sickel of Brookfield, and 53-year-old Don Wiley of University Park. All have been charged with at least 4 felonies.

Man arrested for impersonating a police officer in Effingham County

The attorney general said the group of men are linked to a string of 22 burglaries of video gaming machines from last year across 12 counties, including DeWitt, Champaign, McLean, and Peoria Counties.

The thefts allegedly committed by this burglary ring impacted dozens of businesses and counties, targeting gas stations, bars and small video gaming machine parlors, Raoul said. These arrests are the result of countless hours of investigative work and close collaborations between my office and several law enforcement agencies. I would like to thank the Illinois Gaming Board and the agencies that participated in this complex investigation. I look forward to continuing similar partnerships that help us hold criminals accountable across jurisdictions.

The charges for the men are as follows:

For Friedrich:

One count of theft between $10,000 and $100,000

One count of money laundering

Six counts of burglary

For Montoro:

One count of theft between $100,000 and $500,000

One count of money laundering

20 counts of burglary

One count of attempted burglary

For Perez:

One count of theft between $500 and $10,000

Two counts of burglary

One count of attempted burglary

For Sickel:

One count of theft between $10,000 and $100,000

10 counts of burglary

One count of attempted burglary

For Wiley:

One count of theft between $10,000 and $100,000

Eight counts of burglary

One count of attempted burglary

Along with local law enforcement, the attorney generals office worked with the Illinois Gaming Board in prosecuting the men.

WATCH: WCIA drone footage shows cows on the loose after I-57 crash

The IGB was pleased to partner with the Illinois Attorney Generals Office and other local law enforcement agencies in dismantling this video gaming burglary ring and bringing these criminals to justice, IGB Administrator Marcus Fruchter said. The IGB will continue working with our state and local partners on criminal investigations statewide to ensure and uphold the integrity and safety of gaming in Illinois.

All but Friedrich are awaiting their first court appearance in DuPage County. The attorney general asks anyone with knowledge on Friedrichs whereabouts to call their local law enforcement.

The DeWitt County Sheriff confirmed with WCIA the group is not connected to a recent video gaming terminal burglary in DeWitt. No arrests have been made yet in connection to that case, the sheriff said Thursday morning.

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Floods maroon many people in Bangladesh and India and cause at least 15 deaths

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP)  Floodwaters have stranded hundreds of thousands of people in Indias northeast and neighboring Bangladeshs eastern region, causing at least 15 deaths as rescuers struggled to reach those who needed help, officials and media reports said Thursday.

At least 11 people were killed and thousands displaced from homes as floods and mudslides have ravaged Indias northeastern Tripura state, bordering Bangladesh, since Wednesday.

Another four were killed in Bangladesh as upstream India and downstream Bangladesh share common rivers along their border.

Indias Meteorological Department issued a red alert in Tripura on Wednesday, forcing authorities to announce a two-day closure of schools after heavy rains inundated several regions, including the state's capital, Agartala.

Authorities have opened more than 300 relief camps in Tripura, where the number of people shifting to the camps was estimated to run into thousands.

Of the 11 dead since the rains intensified Monday, seven drowned or washed away while four were buried by mudslides.

We are closely monitoring the situation and are focusing on providing relief to those displaced from their homes, Tripuras Chief Minister Manik Saha said.

In Bangladesh, a pregnant woman died after she fell into raging waters at Akhaura in Brahmanbaria district, Bengali-language Kal Bela newspaper reported. Three other people died from drowning and electrocution, it said.

The rains and the rising waters from upstream Tripura state devastated many areas in eastern Bangladesh. Many in the worst-hit districts such as Cumilla, Feni and Noakhali called for rescue as power was cut and road links were disconnected. Travel and communication were severed between the capital, Dhaka, and the southeastern port city of Chattogram as parts of a major highway were under water.

The Bangladesh Flood Forecasting and Warning center said Thursday that the water levels in many rivers in the delta nations eastern, northeastern and southeastern regions were still increasing.

About a dozen volunteers who rushed to the scene with boats and speedboats in the region told The Associated Press by phone that they were struggling to reach many of the affected people as they failed to communicate with them because the victims mobile numbers could not be reached. Many areas have no electricity, the government said.

We are taken shelter at a house where about 35 people need to be rescued soon. The water is still rising and now we are on the rooftop with our small kids and elderly family members, Sonia Akter, a mother of 2-year-old girl, told AP by phone from the scene at Feni. Please send us a boat. Please save us.

The military and other authorities have started rescue operation in the region, the authorities said.

While the both neighbors have been affected in the flood, many Bangladeshis blamed India for the flash floods, saying that India opened a river dam in Tripura, causing sudden floods in Bangladesh. Indias Ministry of External Affairs denied that in a statement.

Monsoon rains in South Asian nations India and Bangladesh typically begin in June. India and Bangladesh share 54 common rivers that flow from the Himalayas to the Bay of Bengal. The countries have contention over the sharing of waters of the common rivers.

___

Associated Press writer Wasbir Hussain contributed to this report from Guwahati, India.
BAY COUNTY, FL. (WMBB)  If youre in the market for a deal on a car, truck, trailer other items, you may want to make plans to attend a special event this weekend.

The Florida Auction network is hosting its latest government surplus auction in Panama City this Saturday at 9 a.m. The auction will take place at the Networks East Business 98 location, right across the street from the Old Paper Mill property. Besides vehicles and trailers, theyll be liquidating boats, lawnmowers, and more.

Florida considering drastic changes to a few Panhandle State Parks

The surplus items are coming from the Bay County and Walton County Sheriffs offices, Bay County Commission, Panama City, Panama City Beach, Talquin Electric Co-op, and others.

Florida Auction Network manager and auctioneer Jon Sewell said this is a great opportunity to get a good deal on what he would call a reliable vehicle.

I drive one every day. I got it almost three years ago. It had been maintained before I got it. Its been maintained while Ive owned it. Its been to Texas, and Ive gone to South Florida several times. I average about 3000 or 4000 miles a month on my vehicle, Swell said.

Sewell said you can preview these items this Friday at the Networks East Business-98 location from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. For the full list of auction items, click here.

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When covering a political convention like Ive been doing this week, we spend a lot of time writing about politicians and what they say.

But we hardly ever pay much attention to the people theyre talking to  and sometimes those people are actually more interesting.

So let me introduce you to three Florida women I met this week at the Democratic National Convention here in Chicago.

A grandmother, a mother and a daughter, theyre representing three generations pitching for the blue team for the past 50-plus years.

The mom, Samantha Hope Herring and her daughter Savannah Atkins, are both delegates, while the grandmother, Pat Dansky, is a party volunteer.

When she (Herring) was a baby, I took her to McGovern headquarters, and thats how it all started, Dansky said. She was a kid for Carter, a college kid for Clinton, a mama for Obama. I thought (Herring) was gonna be a grandma for Biden, but it looks like its gonna be Harris.

Herring is the Democratic chair in Walton County, on the Florida Panhandle adjacent to Alabama. Republicans there outnumber Democrats 66% to 13%.

Her local congressman is Matt Gaetz, a Republican so joined at the hip with Donald Trumps MAGA movement that he even came to court to show his support for the former president, in the case where Trump was later convicted on 34 felony counts in connection with the cover-up of hush money payments he made to porn actress Stormy Daniels.

Herring became the first woman ever elected from West Florida to serve on the Democratic National Committee.

And she passed her love of Democratic politics to her daughter, taking Atkins to a Bill Clinton rally in Baton Rouge while she was still in diapers.

 I did campaign calls for Obama when I was an older kid, recalled Atkins. Now 26, she is a huge fan of President Joe Biden.

Hes the best president of my lifetime, she said. Hes done so much for us, and hes putting everything towards progress, and thats what hes always done for our country, and its wonderful to see him do things with such decency and optimistic values and doing everything he can for the American people. I mean, it really does mean so much to me, especially being a young woman from Florida and everything were dealing with down there with (conservative Republican Gov. Ron) DeSantis.

Like many, they were shocked when Biden stepped down in favor of his vice president, Kamala Harris.

When he made that decision, I said, I trust you, Joe, wherever you go, Im going with you, Herring said. So 100% in for Kamala, and I absolutely love (vice presidential nominee Tim) Walz. I think hes fantastic. I think hes going to help us in a lot of our rural areas. I happen to work in a lot of the red rural areas in our state, and I believe that he could be very, very helpful.

After years of being in the minority, Atkins and Herring might be poised for a win.

Their convention uniform is a pink jacket with light-up lettering #4 WOMEN, and a map of Florida on the back. Its a show of support for Florida Amendment 4, which would insert the right to abortion into the states constitution.

My daughter and son were born two years apart, Herring said. And when they were born, they had the same exact health care rights. But today, in state of Florida, they dont, and theres something fundamentally wrong with that.

Amendment 4 has been polling well and abortion rights have won everyplace the issues been put to voters, including my home state of Kansas, land of the Summer of Mercy and Operation Rescue and a Legislature dominated by the pro-life movement.

I think this is really much more serious than just that one issue, I believe its about eroding rights, Herring said. Its about turning our country back to a place thats very dark and frightening, and some of us are going to stand at the front lines and not allow that to happen, and thats what our jacket says.

Atkins says the convention, her first, has been an inspiring experience. Im just so happy I can be here and share this with my mother and my grandmother, she said. Were watching history being made. I want to do this for the rest of my life.

No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, you have to respect that kind of enthusiasm in the young. It bodes well for democracy, and for America.

Wichita Eagle Opinion editor Dion Lefler is covering the Democratic National Convention on behalf of McClatchys Opinion teams.
Florida man already on probation for drug trafficking arrested again on similar charges

A Seville man already on probation for armed trafficking of fentanyl and methamphetamines was arrested again this week on similar charges.

 WATCH CHANNEL 9 EYEWITNESS NEWS

Deputies took 63-year-old Cecil McCoy into custody at a Circle-K in Deltona Tuesday after an undercover buy-bust operation days earlier, during which they say he sold approximately seven grams of fentanyl to a confidential informant.

Members of the Volusia Sheriffs Office Overdose Task Force partnered with agents from the West Volusia Narcotics Task Force, Deltona Narcotics Enforcement Team, and the Deltona Crime Suppression Team to detain McCoy at the convenience store and found another seven grams of fentanyl in his car as well as approximately $1,000 in cash.

READ: 15-year-old charged with murder of man who was trying to sell AirPods, police say

According to the sheriffs office, a follow-up search of a camper McCoy was living in on Bunnell Road in Seville yielded an additional 120 grams of methamphetamine.

When asked about the drugs in his camper, deputies say McCoy admitted, All of it is mine, along with another approximately 85 grams of methamphetamine and a half-ounce of fentanyl that he said would be all right there together.

In addition to new charges of trafficking in fentanyl and meth, deputies say McCoy was charged with violating his probation from a previous arrest for armed trafficking in fentanyl and meth, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

READ: Body-worn footage shows Stephan Sterns led deputies in wrong direction of Madeline Sotos body

According to the sheriffs office, McCoy was arrested back in November of 2022 and released after serving less than a year in prison.

Deputies say he was also the subject of a Volusia Bureau of Investigation operation earlier this year.

McCoy is being held in the Volusia County jail on no bond for the probation violation.

READ: Man hurt in Altamonte Springs shooting, police say

According to the sheriffs office, hes also the subject of an ongoing Overdose Task Force investigation.

Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the war that Russia brought to Ukraine is now coming back to Russia. Ukrainian defenders in the border area are effectively responding to the Russian invasion.

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He made this statement on Thursday at the VIII Annual International Veterans Forum "Ukraine. Veterans. Unity." The broadcast was organized by the Ministry of Veterans.

"And one more thing: I have just returned from our Sumy region, from those areas bordering the enemy and from where our units are responding to Russia extremely effectively. It is to its invasion. And by sending the war to the place where Russia brought this war to our land," Zelenskyy said.

The President emphasized that Ukrainian troops create problems for Russia on its territory, and this is a fair and effective approach.

"To expel the occupier from our land, we must create as many problems for the Russian state on its territory as possible. And this is the heroic work of our soldiers. And this heroic work is becoming more and more accurate, more and more long-range, more and more effective," the head of state emphasized.

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Zelenskyy also pointed out that the path to ending the war includes defensive operations in Donetsk, Kharkiv, and the south, the liberation of the Black Sea from the Russian fleet, actions in Kursk, and constant strikes on Russian military targets.

"I am confident that we will overcome this path, no matter how difficult it may be," he said, thanking everyone who is defending the state.

As reported by OBOZ.UA, according to the ISW analysts' report for August 21, the Ukrainian Defense Forces continue to advance in the Kursk region. The day before, the Armed Forces of Ukraine conducted an offensive along the entire Kursk salient and achieved additional success. The forces of the Russian aggressor country, in turn, are trying to fight back and withdraw their units from the encirclement.

In addition, Russia reported an alleged attempt by the Ukrainian Armed Forces to break through the border in the Bryansk region on the evening of August 21, when the Russian military allegedly encountered a sabotage and reconnaissance group in the Klimovsky district.

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Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
Floridians who voted by mail in the primary have until 5 p.m. to fix signature problems

Victoria Ferrer, a county judge working with the Miami-Dade County Canvassing Board, uses a magnifying glass to inspect a vote-by-mail ballot for a valid signature at the Miami-Dade County Elections Department on Nov. 3, 2020, in Doral. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

More than 1.4 million Floridians voted by mail in the primary on Tuesday, but those whose ballots have been flagged for signature problems have until 5 p.m. Thursday to ensure their vote counts.

People can check whether their ballot has been counted online and by calling their local supervisor of elections. In case there is a problem relating to the signature on the ballot, voters have to fill out a signed affidavit and submit a copy of an identifying document, such as a drivers license, passport, utility bill, or paycheck.

A local supervisor of elections must receive those documents via email, fax, or in person by 5 p.m.

We need every Floridian to have their voices heard in this election, which is why those who voted by mail should use the ballot tracking tool on their county Supervisor of Elections website to ensure their ballot was received without issue, wrote Amy Keith, Common Cause Floridas executive director, in a press release on Thursday.

Floridas Supervisors of Elections notify vote-by-mail voters if there is a problem with the signature on their ballot, but its important for voters to check their ballot status online in case they missed the notification, she added.

Miami-Dade, Pinellas, and Broward counties received the most vote-by-mail ballots, according to data from the Florida Division of Elections.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV)  The Onondaga County Health Department released its inspection reports for restaurants checked from August 4 through August 10.

Which food services passed or failed their health inspection: July 28  Aug. 3

Three food services received an unsatisfactory inspection:

Limp Lizard Bar & Grill Mobile Unit  4628 Onondaga Boulevard, Syracuse

Oompa Loompyas Mobile Unit  5355 Amalfi Drive, Clay

PB & Js Lunch Box Mobile Unit #2  345 South Edwards Avenue, Syracuse

Two food services received a failure in their inspection:

Dangs Cafe  4106 West Genesee Street, Syracuse

Rens Beijing Chinese Food  4738 Onondaga Boulevard, Syracuse

Limp Lizard Bar & Grill Mobile Unit

This restaurant received two violations, with none in critical condition.

Food protection: The inspector found that a person was serving food, with no accessible hand-washing facilities available. This was corrected by the food service temporarily stopping and the hand wash station was set up and equipped with soap and paper towels. Food workers washed their hands before resuming food handling/service.

Construction/liquid waste and sewage/garbage and refuse: The inspector found the hand wash not set up at the time of inspection. A person was serving food, with no accessible hand-washing facilities available. This was corrected by the food service temporarily stopping and the hand wash station was set up and equipped with soap and paper towels. Food workers washed their hands before resuming food handling/service.

Oompa Loompyas Mobile Unit

This restaurant received two violations, with none in critical condition.

Food protection: The inspector found two food workers involved in food preparation and handling activities had no accessible means of washing their hands. This was corrected by temporarily stopping food preparations and the hand wash station was set up and equipped with soap and paper towels. Food workers washed their hands before resuming food handling/service.

Two food workers were also found preparing and handling food while not wearing adequate hair

restraints.

Construction/liquid waste and sewage/garbage and refuse: The inspector found no means of hand washing available at the time of inspection. The mobile unit hand sink was not operable, and the operator did not have a temporary hand wash station set up or available onsite. The cash drawer was set up in the basin of the hand sink, and other items were stored in the basin and on the counter obstructing access to both the sink and faucet. The operator moved all items in and around the basin and attempted to operate the hand sink, but the water would not turn on and operate could not fix/resolve the issue. The Food service was temporarily suspended until means of hand washing could be made available.

The operator closed the stand and returned later with a purchased container of water equipped with a spigot. The operator set up a temporary hand wash station upon her return, washed her hands, and resumed food service.

PB & Js Lunch Box Mobile Unit #2

This restaurant received two violations, with none in critical condition.

Food protection: The inspector found that the food workers were handling and preparing food without any means of hand washing available.

Construction/liquid waste and sewage/garbage and refuse: The inspector found no means of hand washing available at the time of inspection. This was corrected and the operator set up a temporary hand wash station equipped with water and paper towels. This mobile unit is not equipped with a hand wash sink.

Dangs Cafe

This restaurant received four violations, with one in critical condition.

Food not protected from contamination by other sources (critical): The inspector found a spray bottle containing window cleaner not labeled. This was corrected and the spray bottle was labeled.

Food not protected in general: The inspector found two large boxes of single cups stored on the floor by the left side of display cases in the kitchen.

Improper cleaning, washing and sanitizing of equipment and utensils: The inspector found the automatic dishwasher in the kitchen did not meet the minimum temperatures in the manufacturers instructions. The wash/rinse temp was at 80 degrees Fahrenheit, the minimum temperature needed for proper sanitizing is 120 degrees Fahrenheit.

Miscellaneous, economic violation, choking poster, training: The inspector found the facility was currently operating with a valid 2024 food service permit.

Rens Beijing Chinese Food

This restaurant received 15 violations, with two in critical condition.

Improper cooling and refrigerated storage of potentially hazardous foods (critical): The inspector found at the time of the inspection, the following food items were found on various counters throughout the kitchen:

30 pounds of cooked ribs temping at 94 degrees Fahrenheit on one sheet pan

45 pounds of breaded chicken temping between 89  101 degrees Fahrenheit in three large bowls

The owner states all food was cooked 15 minutes before temping. Food at room temperature storage and below 120 F during the cooling process- not an approved method. This was corrected, and the ribs and cooked breaded chicken were placed into the walk-in cooler in smaller portions to chill rapidly. A cooling curve was calculated and items were now cooling at acceptable rates.

Improper cooling and refrigerated storage of potentially hazardous foods (critical): The inspector found in the three-bay sink, approximately 20 pounds of beef were thawing under running water. Running water temp at 75 degrees Fahrenheit. The meat was temping between 58  73 degrees Fahrenheit. The operator states meat was frozen and placed under the water for 25 minutes before temping.

This was corrected. 20 pounds of beef were placed on baking sheets and placed in the freezer to rapidly cool to below 45 degrees Fahrenheit.

Food not protected in general: The inspector found various food items throughout the kitchen, in the walk-in cooler, in coolers, and in the freezers that were not covered during storage.

A tub of cooked/fried chicken was lined with cardboard, improper storage. Frozen crab ragoons stand-up reach in the freezer noted double stacked and lacking a proper cover, food items were in contact with the bottom of containers, improper storage. Various frozen meats were stored in non-food-grade plastic bags, improper storage.

This violation was found three times.

Food not protected in general: The inspector found scoops stored in various bulk dry goods containers with handles touching the products.

Food not protected in general: The inspector found a single service bowl noted used as a scoop and stored in a chicken container in front prep top cooler, improper use.

Poor sanitary design, construction, installation of equipment and utensils: The inspector found two cutting boards in the kitchen had deep grooves and heavy staining, not a smooth and easily

cleanable surface. This was corrected, the cutting boards were thrown out during the inspection.

Poor sanitary design, construction, installation of equipment and utensils: The inspector found shelving at the cook line between the cook line equipment and the front cooler was lined with cardboard, not a smooth and easily cleanable surface. Wire metal shelving in the walk-in cooler was noted rusted and in poor repair.

This violation was found two times.

Improper cleaning, washing and sanitizing of equipment and utensils: The inspector found several wiping cloths throughout the facility stored on the counter and not in sanitizing solution.

Improper cleaning, washing and sanitizing of equipment and utensils: The inspector found fan guards on the walk-in cooler had mold growth.

Improper sanitary facilities and controls: The inspector found an offensive odor emanating from toilet facilities.

Improper sanitary facilities and controls: The inspector found the hand wash sink in the kitchen was blocked by a rice cooker and large buckets making it inaccessible.

Improper construction and maintenance of physical facilities: The inspector found the walls in the walk-in cooler not clean and the floors in the kitchen were not clean.

Many locations passed their inspections between July 14 through July 20.

You can see the entire list below.

Courtesy of the Onondaga County Health Department.

Aloha Krab 9533 Destiny USA Drive Syracuse 8/5/2024 Average Joes 2119 Downer Street Van Buren 8/6/2024 Birra QuesaTacos SYR Mobile Unit 415 West Onondaga Street Onondaga County 8/10/2024 Bona-Fide-Hiawatha-Solvay OES #567 780 Woods Road Geddes 8/10/2024 Boys & Girls Club of Syracuse 201 Shonnard Street Syracuse 8/6/2024 Chick-Fil-A 3974 Ny-31 Clay 8/6/2024 Collegetown Bagels 726 University Avenue Syracuse 8/10/2024 Cuse Smoothies and Refreshers Catering 359 South Salina Street Syracuse 8/10/2024 Dark Horse Tavern (The) 4312 East Genesee Street Dewitt 8/8/2024 Dewitt Taichi Tea Inc. 3409 Erie Boulevard East Dewitt 8/9/2024 Dip (The) 3021 James Street Syracuse 8/6/2024 Electrik Karma 306 Hiawatha Boulevard West Syracuse 8/8/2024 Five Guys 3179 Erie Boulevard East Dewitt 8/9/2024 Food Bank of CNY @ Syracuse Community Connections 401 South Avenue Syracuse 8/9/2024 Food Consultants at Production Products 6176 East Molloy Road Dewitt 8/6/2024 Moondance Restaurant 203 Sanderson Drive Camillus 8/4/2024 Funk n Waffles Mobile Unit 307 South Clinton Street Syracuse 8/4/2024 Huntington Family Centers 405 Gifford Street Syracuse 8/6/2024 Its A Utica Thing (2) 350 Leland Avenue Onondaga County 8/10/2024 Lake Shore Yacht & Country Club 6777 Lakeshore Road Cicero 8/8/2024 Marriott Syracuse Downtown  10th Floor Kitchen 100 East Onondaga Street Syracuse 8/7/2024 Marriott Syracuse Downtown  Main Kitchen 100 East Onondaga Street Syracuse 8/7/2024 Marriott Syracuse Downtown  Shaughnessys 100 East Onondaga Street Syracuse 8/7/2024 Mi Rancho Mexican Restaurant 6677 Manlius Center Road Dewitt 8/6/2024 Mikes Pizzeria 1388 East Genesee Street Skaneateles 8/5/2024 Mojitos Cantina II LLC 2 Destiny Usa Drive Syracuse 8/5/2024 Moondance Restaurante 2512 Cherry Valley Turnpike Marcellus 8/5/2024 Northside CYO 527 North Salina Street Syracuse 8/9/2024 Pawsitivitea CNY 2100 Park Street Syracuse 8/6/2024 PEACE Sr Nutr @ Huntington Family Center 405 Gifford Street Syracuse 8/6/2024 Phokouttahere 3663 Cobb Hill Road Onondaga County 8/4/2024 Playland Amusements Mobile Unit #2 (Lemonade) 138 Garrow Street Extension Onondaga County 8/10/2024 Playland Amusements Mobile Unit #3 (Fried Dough) 138 Garrow Street Extension Onondaga County 8/10/2024 Playland Amusements Mobile Unit #4 (Popcorn) 138 Garrow Street Extension Onondaga County 8/10/2024 Playland Amusements Mobile Unit #5 (Ribbon Fry) 138 Garrow Street Extension Onondaga County 8/10/2024 Pompey Club (The) 7200 Hamilton Road Pompey 8/8/2024 Raj Saffron House 124 Dell Street Syracuse 8/6/2024 Road Team Pub 7990 Oswego Road Onondaga County 8/4/2024 Roll Roll Ice Cream 2 Destiny USA Drive Syracuse 8/5/2024 Saltin the City 9516 Mt Shannon Drive Onondaga County 8/10/2024 Scotch N Sirloin 3687 Erie Boulevard East Dewitt 8/7/2024 Skippys Ice Cream Truck #5 210 West Terminal Road Salina 8/4/2024 Skippys Ice Cream Truck #6 210 West Terminal Road Salina 8/10/2024 Skippys Ice Cream Truck #8 210 West Terminal Road Salina 8/10/2024 Solvay Scoops & Hot Dogs Too 108 Lamont Avenue Onondaga County 8/10/2024 Solvay Tigers Little League- Woods Woods Road Park Geddes 8/10/2024 SoupR Smash Bros 7591 Lakeport Road Onondaga County 8/10/2024 Theo Petros Commissary 207 Oswego Street Salina 8/5/2024 Toss n Fire Mobile Unit #3 9388 Woodlawn Drive Salina 8/4/2024 Vincent House 500 Seymour Street Syracuse 8/6/2024 Vins @ SRC 7502 Round Pond Road Cicero 8/6/2024 Wings In Cuse LLC 900 Butternut Street Syracuse 8/6/2024 XO Taco Mobile Unit 713 East Fayette Street Syracuse 8/10/2024 Yum Yum Shack 108 Boise Drive Onondaga County 8/10/2024

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FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA)  Former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson announced on Thursday he will join the University of Arkansass School of Law faculty as an executive in residence.

The university said in a news release that Hutchinson will teach a course on leadership in state and federal government and participate in continuing legal education and moot court programs.

This is where it all began for me, Hutchinson said in the release about the School of Law. To be here is an honor and exhilarating. To see the excitement of the students and their dedication to make a difference and pursue justice is inspiring.

On-campus organization discusses sexual violence at the UofA

The former Republican presidential candidate told KNWA/FOX24s Perry Elyaderani that he is grateful for the opportunity to influence the next generation of leaders in Arkansas.

Its an exciting time to join our faculty as we celebrate our centennial year, Cynthia Nance, dean of the School of Law, said. Governor Hutchinsons professional career as an accomplished attorney and his political career as a United States representative, governor and presidential candidate make him an excellent addition to the law school community. We are thrilled for him to teach and to engage with the next generation of lawyers.

He will officially join the faculty in the spring 2025 semester.

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Former Austin City Council Member Don Zimmerman is once again taking the city of Austin to court over its use of public funds to aid Austinites seeking abortions.

A conservative former Austin City Council member is once again taking the city of Austin to court over its use of public funds to aid Austinites seeking abortions, which are banned in Texas except in cases of life-threatening emergencies.

In the city's most recent budget, which the Austin City Council approved last week, the governing body allocated a $400,000 one-time expense to expand the city's "reproductive health grant" to provide logistical support, such as lodging and travel funds, for residents who seek to travel out of state for an abortion. The fiscal year begins Oct. 1 and runs through Sept. 30 of the following year.

A judge is now being asked to decide whether the city is violating state abortion law and the state Constitution's gift clause by spending public dollars on logistical support, which former council member Don Zimmerman claims in an amended petition filed in Travis County's 98th District Court on Tuesday.

The petition names the city of Austin, Austin Mayor Kirk Watson and City Manager T.C. Broadnax as defendants in the case. Additionally, Zimmerman is seeking both temporary and permanent court orders to prohibit the city from using the funds as intended and require the city to claw back "all public funds previously spent" on the matter.

The City is aware of Mr. Zimmermans amended lawsuit in response to the recent budget allocation for logistical support services," Meghan Riley, the city's litigation division chief, said in a written statement to the American-Statesman. "We have successfully litigated this issue in the past and will respond to the recent allegations through the appropriate court channels.

Zimmerman told the Statesman he "will have commentary on this at a later date."

In 2019, Zimmerman first brought suit against the city when it allocated $150,000 for similar logistical support in its 2020 budget on the heels of the state banning local governments from using taxpayer money to fund abortion services, providers or affiliates, the Statesman previously reported.

A Travis County district judge ruled against Zimmerman, and an appeals court later affirmed the decision of the lower court. In 2021, Zimmerman filed for a review with the Texas Supreme Court, which in December 2022 vacated all previous rulings. The state's highest court sent the case back to trial court because Roe v. Wade, the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case that enshrined abortion access in the Constitution, had been overturned, triggering a ban on the procedure in Texas. The court's opinion showed that the case needed to be reconsidered given the new circumstances.

Austin City Council Member Vanessa Fuentes speaks during the national "Ride to Decide" reproductive freedom bus tour's stop in Austin at Wooldridge Square Tuesday, July 23, 2024. Fuentes brought forward a budget amendment to expand the city's "reproductive health grant," which is now the subject of a lawsuit.

"In more recent years, the Citys Reproductive Health Grant funding was significantly constrained, limiting funds to education and outreach for contraception and reproductive health care only," the original 2024 budget amendment proposal document stated. "Austinites seeking abortion care in other states need support from the City. Reestablishing logistical support of abortion access is critical to meet the healthcare gaps of City residents."

"Efforts to obstruct reproductive freedom in Texas are nothing new or surprising," Council Member Vanessa Fuentes, who brought forward the budget amendment this year, told the Statesman in a written statement. "I remain fully committed to defending our reproductive rights here in our home city. As far as Im concerned, our resolve remains unchanged.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Don Zimmerman sues Austin over funding for out-of-state abortion access
Former Dothan doctor charged with sex crimes; accused of filming kids, adults at swim school, hospitals & more

DOTHAN, AL. (WDHN)  A former Dothan doctor is facing several charges for allegedly explicitly filming people in several different areas of hospitals, homes and other places in Michigan.

According to the Oakland County Sheriffs Office in Michigan, Oumair Aejaz, 40, an internal medicine specialist, allegedly used hidden cameras to record women and children as young as 2 in hospital rooms, changing areas, closets, bathrooms, bedrooms, and at a Michigan swim club.

Southeast Health confirmed to WDHN that Aejaz worked at the hospital from December 2015 to December 2018 as a hospitalist. Releasing this statement on the doctors arrest.

We were shocked to hear of the allegations this individual is charged with in Michigan. We have not been contacted by law enforcement at this time and we have no knowledge of these occurrences happening at our facility. Said Mark Stewart, Director of Marketing for Southeast health. During this individuals tenure, we received no patient complaints or concerns of this nature. We take any issue related to patient safety seriously and we will cooperate fully should we be contacted by law enforcement.

This is one of the most disturbing sexual predator cases I have seen in my very long career,

said Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard. He violates literally anyone and everyone he can. From a 2-year-old boy to grown women, no one is immune from his disgusting predatory behavior. Violating children in safe spaces as they change for a fun swim or sexually violating women who are still under sedation from a medical procedure shows his depravity has no limits. At the end of this case, it is my fervent hope he is held fully accountable behind bars.

Aejaz had privileges at Ascension Genesys Hospital and Henry Ford Macomb Hospital but was not an official member of staff. He is an Indian citizen who has been working in the United States on a visa since 2011. He completed his residency at Detroit Sinai Grace Hospital and then moved out of state.

Aejaz returned to Oakland County, Michigan to continue his practice in internal medicine in 2018.

On Aug. 13, Aejaz was arraigned on Aug. 13 in the 52-3 District Court in Rochester Hills. He is charged with 10 counts:

One count of child sexually abusive activity

One count of using a computer to create and or reproduce child sexually abusive

material

Two counts of capturing/recording children under the age of 18 while nude

Two counts of capturing/recording two women over the age of 18 while nude

Four counts of using a computer to commit a crime

These are children and moms at a swim school, said Oakland County Prosecutor Karen D. McDonald. Theyre there to teach their kids to swim. Because that brings their kids joy and because they want their kids to be safe around water. They were victimized by a person of trust in the community  a medical doctor. Its more than an invasion of privacy. It robs these moms and kids, and all of us, of a sense of safety we should have when were with our kids at a place like that.

Detectives claim that Aejaz recorded sexual encounters he had with numerous women, hospital patients who were asleep or unconscious and relatives who were in the bathroom or changing clothes.

Law enforcement received a tip about Aejaz on Aug. 7 and arrested him the following day as they executed a search warrant on his residence. They confiscated six computers, four cell phones, and 15 external storage devices for Aejazs home. One device contained more than 13,000 videos Aejaz recorded during the past six years.

Detectives estimate a full forensic examination of the evidence will take at least six months.

Aejaz is being held on $2 million bond.

Bouchard said he expects the geographic scope of the investigation to increase beyond

Genesee and Macomb counties, where the hospitals are located, and may include other states

or countries, depending on where Aejaz worked.

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Former Florida teacher sentenced to life for sexual battering exchange student he hosted

Former Florida teacher sentenced to life for sexual battering exchange student he hosted

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  A former high school teacher in Florida has been sentenced to life in prison for a sexual battery case on an exchange student, the State Attorneys Office announced Thursday.

In October 2023, the FBI was contacted by Italian authorities about an incident regarding a child at the Mount Dora home of 51-year-old Dmitri Kostyunin, a former Apopka High School teacher.

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Officials said the student reported the sexual abuse to family members in Italy, who reported the crime.

Detectives arrived at Apopka High School to speak with the student, who said they were living with Kostyunin, who had been their foreign exchange provider since August.

The victim said they were given cannabis-infused chocolates and alcohol. According to the SAO, Kostyunin took advantage of the minor while they were under the influence of these substances.

The former teacher told authorities he blacked out and woke up the next day, knowing he made a mistake.

Outraged: Family Elder Law attorney wants license revoked, investigation dropped, petition shows

Kostyunin was arrested on Oct. 3, 2023.

The defendants actions violated the trust placed in him and severely impacted the well-being of a child within our community, Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney, Bill Gladson, said. I am grateful that he now will spend the rest of his life behind bars, unable to harm another child.

Kostyunin was found guilty in April on charges of engaging in an act that constitutes sexual battery on a child over 12, but under 18 by someone in custodial authority, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and delivering cannabis to someone under 18.

He will now spend the rest of his life behind bars without the possibility of parole.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA.
HENDERSON, Ky (WEHT)  A Jasper woman will spend some time in federal prison after being sentenced for embezzling more than $100,000 from likely donations to the Jasper community.

Michele Rose, 62, will serve one year and a day followed by a year of supervised release after pleading guilty to five counts of wire fraud. She was originally facing up to 30 years if convicted.

Jury quickly convicts man of dealing meth, resisting law enforcement

According to court documents, Rose was employed as a Medical Staff Coordinator at a nonprofit health organization where she had responsibilities of including overseeing the medical staff checking account and preparing a monthly financial report of said checking account.

Authorities state the account was funded through dues paid by physicians, and the money contributed by donors was then donated to fund community initiatives including scholarships, food banks and humane societies plus sponsoring events for local students such as after-prom celebrations, with a small portion used for operating expenses.

Officials state between March 2011 and December 2020, Rose abused her position by writing fraudulent checks to herself out of the medical staff checking account, falsely representing that the money was intended to reimburse her for legitimate business expenditures. She would then cash the checks and used the money for personal living expenses.

Officials say Rose got signatures on the fraudulent checks lying to people with signature authority, telling them they were for legitimate business expenses. They further explain once the blank checks were signed, Rose would complete them by writing them to herself and did not account for the fraudulent checks in the monthly financial reports that she prepared for her management.

The total amount that was embezzled was $153,769. Rose was ordered to pay that amount in restitution. Officials say if the money was used for its intended purpose, some, or all, would have been donated to the local community instead.

For nearly a decade, this woman stole from community-minded professionals who trusted her, lining her pockets at the expense of the Jasper community groups the doctors intended to support, said Zachary A. Myers, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. Embezzlement and fraud by trusted insiders can have devastating effects on businesses and ordinary people. Thats why our office will continue to prioritize federal prosecution of economic crimes. I commend the work of the U.S. Secret Service and the Jasper Police Department, alongside our federal prosecutor, to untangle this web of deceit and hold the defendant accountable for her crimes.

The U.S. Secret Service values our partnership with the Jasper Police Department and the United States Attorneys Office  Southern District of Indiana, said Acting Special Agent in Charge Scott McGuckin, of the U.S. Secret Services Indianapolis Field Office. The Secret Service will continue to prioritize these types of investigations to ensure that there are consequences for anyone who violates the publics trust and takes advantage of charitable organizations.

I am proud of our Detectives work on this case, and our close collaboration with the United States Secret Service has been instrumental in successfully investigating cases of this caliber, said Lieutenant Dave Burger of the Jasper Police Department.

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Former Kansas City police officer charged with murder in shooting at Northland Walmart

A man charged with murder in a fatal shooting near a Northland Walmart Wednesday was a former Kansas City police officer for more than a decade, according to a Kansas City police spokesperson.

Taquiza V. Johnson, 47, was charged Thursday with second-degree murder and armed criminal action in the death of 71-year-old Ronald Barnett.

Johnson was an officer with the Kansas City Police Department from December 2003 through February 2014, and was last assigned to the patrol bureau, said Captain Jake Becchina, a spokesperson for the department.

Police said the shooting happened in a parking lot near shops at the Boardwalk Shopping Mall. There, officers found Barnett with a gunshot wound. He was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Surveillance video allegedly showed an interaction between the two men before Johnson shot Barnett, according to court documents. Law enforcement identified a suspect vehicle and arrested Johnson at an apartment complex.

We allege this defendant shot someone in broad daylight in the parking lot of a major retailer, Eric Zahnd, Platte County prosecuting attorney, said in a release. That is equally tragic and disturbing.

The Stars Kendick Calfee contributed.
DENVER (KDVR)  A former Jeffco Public Schools employee who worked as a campus security officer at Lakewood High School was arrested and accused of sexually assaulting a student from 2014 to 2016, according to a release from the Lakewood Police Department.

Rubel Tim Martinez was charged by the First Judicial District Attorneys Office on Tuesday with one count of sexual assault on a child by one in a position of trust  pattern of abuse.

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According to police, a former Lakewood High School student reported that she was the victim of repeated sexual contact by Martinez approximately 10 years ago during her junior and senior years. Police said the alleged contact occurred on and off school grounds.

Court records show a public defender is assigned to Martinezs case. The office does not issue comment on its cases.

Rubel Tim Martinez, was arrested in August 2024 and charged with sexual assault on a child by one in a position of trust-pattern of abuse between 2014 and 2016.

According to an arrest affidavit obtained by FOX31, the accuser agreed to a recorded call with Martinez. The affidavit said she asked questions about their alleged sexual encounters, which Martinez called nonsense repeatedly.

A detective later posed as the accuser in a text conversation with Martinez, and another recorded phone call was conducted on Aug. 16, during which a meetup was proposed.

Woman sentenced for fraudulent insurance payments totaling $268K in 2-year span

Martinez was arrested at that supposed meetup on Aug. 16. When talking with police after his arrest, Martinez denied having an inappropriate relationship with the former student.

He was booked into the Jefferson County Jail on a $20,000 cash-only bond.

Police said Martinez was a campus security officer at Jefferson Junior and Senior High School as well as Lakewood High School from 2006 to 2022.

He also ran an after-school clown club at Lakewood High. According to police, he works as a pastor at Breakthrough Ministries in Dacono.

Police said there may be people who can provide more information on the investigation. People with information can contact Lakewood Police Detective Boyd at 303-987-7229.

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Joaquin Guzman Lopez, one of the sons of Sinaloa Cartel kingpin Joaquin El Chapo Guzman, is the main suspect in the kidnapping that led to the capture of Ismael El Mayo Zambada on U.S. soil in July, the Mexico Federal Attorney Generals Office (FGR) announced Wednesday. The FGR stated that an arrest warrant has been issued against Guzman Lopez for the crimes of kidnapping and treason. In an unexpected twist, the Federal Public Prosecutors Office gave credibility to a letter published by El Mayo regarding his arrest and the murder of Hector Cuen, a Sinaloa politician for the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) while dismissing the version of events provided by state authorities regarding the homicide. The Prosecutors Office itself located the property where the probable crimes of illegal deprivation of liberty, homicides, injuries, and acts linked to forced disappearance were carried out, in which the aggression that led to the death of Hector N [Cuen] is linked, the prosecutors office said in a statement.

On August 10, El Mayo claimed that Guzman Lopez  his godson  had betrayed him with the intention of handing him over to U.S. authorities. The alleged ambush took place after the drug lord was summoned to a meeting with Los Chapitos, the faction of the Sinaloa Cartel led by El Chapos sons, Cuen, and the governor of Sinaloa, Ruben Rocha Moya. Zambada said he greeted Cuen, whom he referred to as a longtime friend, at the Huertos del Pedregal ranch on the outskirts of Culiacan, hours before he was arrested in the United States. They killed him at the same time and in the same place where they kidnapped me, said the co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel. The Sinaloa Attorney Generals Office, on the other hand, maintained that the politician died in an attempted robbery of his pickup truck when he stopped to fill up at a gas station in the state capital. If they said I was going to be there, they lied, and if he believed them, he fell into the trap, said Rocha hours after the letter was published while denying having any links to organized crime.

The FGR stated that the sites where the kidnapping is believed to have taken place had already been secured, as well as the vehicles that were used, and released photographs of the crime scene. The statement does not mention that the place is the Huertos del Pedregal ranch, nor does it detail any specific location. The judicial authorities, however, rejected the version of the state prosecutors office regarding Cuens murder. The federal institution has managed to establish, with precision, that the information about what happened at a gas station in the municipality of Culiacan is not acceptable, nor does it have the reliable elements of proof that allow it to be taken into account in the way it was presented, they stated.

The airplane that is suspected of carrying 'El Mayo' Zambada and Joaquin Guzman Lopez to the U.S. FGR

The Federal Public Prosecutors Office denounced last Thursday that the state Attorney Generals investigation into the murder of Cuen, a former rector of the Autonomous University of Sinaloa and founder of his own political movement, the Sinaloa Party (PAS), was plagued with irregularities. The FGR stated that there were errors in the autopsy, that the crime scene had not been secured, and that there were inconsistencies in the video presented early last week to support the robbery theory as the main motive for the crime. Sinaloas prosecutor, Sara Bruna Quinonez, presented her voluntary resignation last Friday, the day after the statement was released. President Andres Manuel Lepez Obrador has endorsed the findings of the FGR, which took over the case last week.

In another development in the investigations, the FGR said it had identified with complete precision the runway from which the plane on which El Mayo and Guzman Lopez flew to the United States on July 25 took off. The authorities did not reveal the exact location of the site but did share photographs showing the dirt runway and a small plane, although no further context is given for the images. It is known, from information shared by the United States, that it is in Sinaloa and not in Sonora, as initially stated.

Rocha, the state governor, said in an interview that he had already shared information with the Attorney Generals Office about his trip to California, his alibi for the day of El Mayos capture and the murder of Cuen, his main political adversary. Rocha insisted that he was on vacation and delved into the details that motivated his departure from Sinaloa, in a private plane belonging to businessman Jesus Vizcarra, according to the flight log that was leaked to the media. Deputies of the opposition National Action Party have filed a complaint before the FGR against Rocha for hindering the investigations into Cuens death. Rocha dismissed the complaint and said it was politically motivated.

The ranch where the alleged kidnapping of Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada took place. FGR

The federal ministerial and police investigations will continue until the corresponding files are duly integrated, the FGR said. The statement gives the appearance of a drastic change of course in the investigations. El Mayo published his letter the day after the United States provided its official version of events, which stated Guzman Lopez turned himself in and El Mayo was taken against his will. That Zambada was kidnapped by his former partner remains the main hypothesis behind his unexpected capture at a rural New Mexico airport four weeks ago.

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Former NC soldier accused of gun sales, ties to supremacist group due in court Thursday

As a former Fort Liberty soldier prepares for a detention hearing in federal court Thursday, more details are emerging about his alleged connections to a national white supremacist group.

Kai Liam Nix, 20, also known as Kai Brazelton, was arrested last week after a grand jury indicted him on federal charges of selling a stolen firearm, dealing in firearms without a license and making a false statement to the government, according to a news release from U.S. Attorney Michael Easleys office.

The latter charge stems from Nixs security clearance form, on which he allegedly stated he had never been a member of a group dedicated to the use of violence or force to overthrow the U.S. Government, the release said.

Court documents allege Nix sold firearms without a license from Dec. 10 to Feb. 5 throughout the eastern half of the state and elsewhere and sold stolen firearms on Dec. 16 and Jan. 5.

If convicted, he could face up to 30 years in prison, according to the release.

Alleged ties to white supremacist group

Easleys office declined to comment on Nixs alleged affiliation with any groups, but Jeff Tischauser, a researcher with the Southern Poverty Law Center, says he identified Nix as a member of Patriot Front after almost a year of research.

According to the Anti-Defamation League, Patriot Front is a white supremacist group based in Texas. The group spun off from another supremacist group, Vanguard America, in the wake of the deadly 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Tischauser said the project that led to Nix began in the spring of 2023, when he learned of a Patriot Front member known as Patrick NC who would photograph neo-Nazi fight-club events in Nashville, Tennessee. With the help of independent researchers and other local sources in Tennessee, Tischauser discovered the person behind Patrick NC had participated in a number of Patriot Front activities, including:

Suggesting an anarchist bookstore in Asheville as a target for vandalism.

Recruiting at least seven people via Instagram to join Patriot Front.

Attending an anti-vaccine and anti-masking rally in Raleigh on July 24, 2021.

Attending a Patriot Front training session in November 2021.

Attending two rallies protesting vaccine mandates in Raleigh in February 2022.

Tischauser conducted his research as part of Hatewatch, the Southern Poverty Law Centers monitoring program for far-right extremist groups. The program largely relies on tips from sources to identify potential groups, according to Tischauser, who said he came to believe Nix was Patrick NC after reviewing leaked Patriot Front images and messages from the journalism collective Unicorn Riot.

Court documents in Nixs case dont indicate if the alleged firearms sales were tied to any group membership. Tischauser said he had no idea of the alleged firearms trafficking, but had contacted the Army last week with his suspicions of Nixs Patriot Front ties.

I was stunned by the timing of it, he said. Its nice to see some accountability for Kai.

Denies Patriot Front membership, separated from Army

An Aug. 18 piece by The New Yorker on far-right groups also details allegations against Nix, who denied membership in Patriot Front when reached via phone, according to author David D. Kirkpatrick.

Nix will appear in court in Raleigh at 10 a.m. Thursday for a detention hearing. He is currently in federal custody at the Wake County Detention Center, jail records show.

Lt. Col. Cesar Santiago, director of public affairs for the 82nd Airborne Division, said in a written statement Thursday that Nix was a private with the 82nd who arrived in Fort Liberty in 2023. Nix, an infantryman, joined the Army in 2022 and was administratively separated from the Army Tuesday, Santiago said.

NC Reality Check is an N&O series holding those in power accountable and shining a light on public issues that affect the Triangle or North Carolina. Have a suggestion for a future story? Email realitycheck@newsobserver.com
MIAMI, Okla.  A former Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College instructor accused of sexually abusing a 14-year-old girl allegedly used social media apps to send nude photographs to the teen.

Aaron Smith, 44, of Fairland, remains in the Ottawa County jail, held on six complaints of child sexual abuse on a $150,000 bail.

The Ottawa County District Attorneys office said on Wednesday that while charges have not yet been filed, prosecutors are reviewing investigative reports.

According to an arrest affidavit, the teen attended theater and fine arts activities at NEO in Miami.

During a forensic interview at the Childrens Advocacy Center of Ottawa County in Miami, the teen described to investigators being sexually abused by Smith on numerous occasions, the affidavit states. The teen also disclosed she had been asked to send nude pictures of herself to Smith, and he allegedly sent nude photographs of himself to her, the affidavit states.

NEO issued a statement saying Smith had been fired on Tuesday following a preliminary investigation.

We have a strict zero-tolerance for misconduct of this nature, particularly those involving minors. Such behavior is inexcusable and will not be tolerated under any circumstances, according to the statement.

Authorities were alerted to the alleged inappropriate contact between Smith and the teen after the teen was hospitalized at a Tulsa hospital earlier this month for overdosing on 25 muscle relaxers, the affidavit states.

Investigators say the teen and Smith were on the phone together when the teen took the pills and passed out. Smith allegedly stayed on the phone until the teen fell asleep, and he could hear her snoring, the affidavit states.

During her hospitalization, Smith allegedly called the hospital repeatedly, asking if medical personnel had pumped the teens stomach and what they found in her system, the affidavit states.

The former theatre instructor went so far as to make allegations to the Delaware County Sheriffs Office, the Delaware County Childrens Special Advocacy Network, and the Childrens Advocacy Center of Ottawa County that a 14-year-old boy had raped the teen. The teens mother denied any sexual assault by a teenage boy, the affidavit states.

Smith also contacted the teens mother, asking to take her children to the lake before school. The affidavit states that Smith became irritated after the mother refused his request.

Parents and guardians are encouraged to contact Leslie Bissell, Childrens Advocacy Center of Ottawa County executive director at (918) 540-1621 if they suspect any child is a victim of abuse.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Former Norman High School teachers certificate revoked after two years of turmoil, Walters says

State Superintendent Ryan Walters, right, flanked by Oklahoma State Department of Education general counsel Michael Beason, speaks at an Oklahoma State Board of Education meeting on May 23 in Oklahoma City. (Photo by Nuria Martinez-Keel/Oklahoma Voice)

OKLAHOMA CITY  Two years after promising to ban a former Norman High School educator from ever teaching in Oklahoma again, state Superintendent Ryan Walters said that teachers certification is now revoked.

The teacher, Summer Boismier, drew national attention in August 2022 for posting a QR code in her classroom that linked to a library catalog containing banned books.

The Oklahoma State Board of Education voted on Thursday to approve a new order in the states revocation case against Boismier. Walters said the new order, which he hasnt publicly released, formally revoked her teaching certificate.

Walters claimed Boismier violated House Bill 1775, which bans the teaching of certain race and gender-related concepts, and said she is too liberal to teach in Oklahoma.

She broke the law, you know, Walters said after the state board meeting. And I said from the beginning, when you have a teacher that breaks the law, says she broke the law, says shell continue to break the law, that cant stand.

Boismier and Norman Public Schools have maintained that she broke no state laws. She resigned in August 2022 and faced no disciplinary action from her former school district.

A judge presiding over a revocation hearing in June 2023 found that the Oklahoma State Department of Education failed to prove that Boismier deserved to have her license revoked. The state Board of Education voted to reject that judges findings at its meeting this June.

Brady Henderson, attorney for Boismier, said he hasnt seen an order from the Board of Education yet.

Hopefully we will soon so we can finally go to court and get the board action overturned, he said.

Boismier has sued Walters in Oklahoma City federal court, alleging slander, libel, defamation and false representation. She is seeking $75,000 or more in payment from Walters himself.

She is no longer working or living in Oklahoma. Boismier has moved to New York City and works at the Brooklyn Public Library, which curated the online collection of banned books.

Writing on social media Monday, Boismier said she does not regret her actions, only that she didnt do it sooner. Boismier said sharing access to the library catalog was a stand against soft censorship and state-sanctioned bigotry.

1/6: Two years ago I did the most brat thing I could & stood against soft censorship & state-sanctioned bigotry in the least demure way possible. I had substantial privilege in doing what I did. And as lve said before, my only regret is I didnt do it sooner. I stand by that. pic.twitter.com/onVdcBfewI  Ms. Boismier, M.Ed. (@MsBoismier_ELA) August 20, 2024

Walters has accused Boismier of attempting to indoctrinate students and claimed she shared access to pornographic material because some of the books in the library collection have sexual content.

At the same meeting, the state Board of Education advanced proceedings against 19 other teaching certificates.

Many of those teachers, like in most revocation cases, have been accused of serious crimes, ranging from child abuse and exploitation to assault and possession of child pornography. Boismier and at least two other teachers on the list have not been charged with any criminal offenses.

Ardmore teacher Alison Scott and Edmond teacher Regan Killackey are facing revocation proceedings over social media posts disparaging former President Donald Trump, whom Walters has endorsed for reelection. The board referred Scott and Killackeys cases to a revocation hearing before a judge.

You guys saw a list of folks today for different reasons, you know, they had their licenses pulled or suspended, Walters said. And what we want to hear, what we want the people of Oklahoma to be very clear about is were going to continue to hold folks accountable.

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The Oklahoma State Board of Education voted unanimously Thursday to revoke the teaching licenses of one teacher and send the case of two others to a hearing officer during a terse August meeting.

Summer Boismier had her state teaching license pulled while Allison Scott and Regan Killackey had their cases sent to a hearing officer Thursday, setting up what could be an ongoing court fight. Speaking to reporters after the state board's meeting, state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters said Boismier broke the law.

She (Boismier) broke the law, Walters said. And I said from the beginning, when you have a teacher that breaks the law, said she broke the law, (and) said she will continue to break the law  that cant stand.

Walters said he wanted Oklahomans to be very clear that Oklahoma State Department of Education would hold teachers accountable. The Legislature passes laws, we have rules, teacher code of conduct that goes along with those things  those will be enforced. I wanted every parent to know they have the best teacher possible in their kids classroom.

Brady Henderson, Boismiers attorney, said Boismier would fight the revocation in district court. Henderson said there was some confusion about what facts the board based its decision on. We dont know what set of facts they used, he said. We know they had to make up some new alternative facts to base the revocation on to fit the result they wanted, but we dont really know what those are yet.

Summer Boismier is pictured in August 2022, on the University of Oklahoma campus. Boismier, a former English teacher at Norman High School, covered bookshelves in her classroom in response to House Bill 1775, a state law banning certain race and gender concepts from schools.

He said he expected to file a court case in a week or two. Basically, if we get a final order, were going to do a judicial review petition to overturn what they did in throwing about the actual findings of the case and revoking anyway, he said.

Summer Boismier had faced license revocation for years for protesting 'critical race theory' law

Boismier has faced a revocation hearing for almost two years. In 2022, Walters said Boismier was attempting to indoctrinate students with a liberal political agenda" and called for her teaching license be permanently revoked.

Just to clarify, at the June meeting the board voted to modify the hearing officers recommendation and direct me to write the order that relies solely on the written record," Cara Nicklas, the boards attorney, said. That order has been provided to you and it's simply you are authorizing the chair of the board to sign off on it.

Walters took the action because Boismier pushed back against House Bill 1775, a controversial state law that targeted the teaching of critical race theory. In 2022, Boismier covered the bookshelves in her classroom with red butcher paper.

More: State BOE suspends, but doesn't revoke, license of former teacher who pushed back on critical race theory law

On previous occasions, Walter said that Boismier "admittedly was breaking state law to push inappropriate material on kids. We have heard from parents all over the state  they do not want activist teachers in classrooms. I believe it is of the utmost importance that we continue to protect our kids from indoctrination and that we show all parents that the actions of this individual do not align with Oklahoma values and this board will continue to uphold state law and state statute."

Boismier resigned from Norman High School in August 2022 and now lives in New York. She did not attend the Oklahoma board meeting.

What to know about the other Oklahoma teachers facing hearings

According to discussion at the boards July meeting, Scott is facing an inquiry about her license for apparently commenting on a social media post that referred to the assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump, saying, Wish they had a better scope.

In July, the Ardmore district issued a news release saying it was aware that an employee made a statement on a social media platform appearing to condone violence against a political figure. The statement said, Ardmore City Schools strongly condemns acts of physical violence and any words that seek to encourage it, no matter their target."

The district said at that time it had begun a thorough and swift investigation into the matter. However, on Thursday, the district superintendents office said it stood on the earlier statement and had no additional information on the investigations progress.

Walters also commented at the July meeting about a social media post by Killackey in 2019 that included a photo of his children in a store wearing Halloween costumes. One child had on a Trump mask, and Killackey and another child were holding fake swords. Walters was quoted in news accounts as saying the photo was incredibly inappropriate.

Killackey is one of several plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit challenging HB 1775. The measure, passed in 2021, has been challenged by the American Civil Liberties Union and other organizations and individuals.

The Edmond School District declined comment on the board action.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Summer Boismier's Oklahoma teaching license revoked after two years
While state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters is blaming his predecessor for shortcomings listed in a scathing federal report on the Oklahoma State Department of Education, those who formerly worked in the agency under Walters call it a glaring red light that paints a picture of a department in disarray.

The U.S. Department of Education issued its 98-page report on July 25. The report, which addressed the status of fiscal and program monitoring indicators within the state agency for the just-completed fiscal year, was intended to provide oversight of and aid to state agencies as they administer federal formal grant programs for kindergarten through 12th-grade education.

The grading chart for the report ranges from one star  meaning an area requiring urgent attention by the state agency  to four stars, which means the agency met requirements with commendation. Oklahoma received one star in 32 of the 52 categories measured and two stars  met requirements with recommendation  in seven others.

In the majority of the 32 items requiring action, the federal agency gave the state agency 30 or 60 days in which to provide documentation on items, update or develop plans and-or take corrective action.

On the surface, anybody would be concerned if they read it, said state Rep. Mark McBride, R-Moore, the chair of the House Appropriations and Budget subcommittee on education and a frequent critic of Walters. I want a little more time before I make a real definitive statement, but it seems like we always have some kind of issue when it comes to federal funds, or even state-appropriated funds.

State schools Superintendent Ryan Walters blames his predecessor for issues raised in a scathing federal report on the Oklahoma State Department of Education.

The report notes that federal law requires the state agency to establish and maintain effective internal control over Federal awards that provides reasonable assurance it is managing the award in compliance with Federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the award. Such a control, the report said, serves as the first line of defense in safeguarding assets and helps achieve desired results through the effective stewardship of public resources.

Throughout the report, the federal agency cites instances within the state agency of lack of internal financial controls, lack of written procedures, the inability to local pertinent records, timely reporting of data and other issues.

Dan Isett, a spokesman for the agency, blamed Walters' predecessor, Joy Hofmeister, for the issues cited in the federal report, saying they were from the 2022-23 school year. Hofmeister left office in January 2023 and Walters has been the state superintendent ever since. Before becoming superintendent, Walters was the states education secretary, meaning he theoretically would have a working knowledge of the agency.

"The now-dated report from the U.S. Department of Education is the first multi-program performance review in the history of the state, and the first of any kind in seven years," Isett said. "The policies, procedures and documents requested by the USDE were those used or developed in the 22-23 school year. The snapshot of data taken in December 2023 for the USDE report found some areas that needed improvement, the number of which are similar to other states that have undergone this process. The OSDE team has moved swiftly to address these findings, has already resolved many of them, and all will be resolved by the October deadline. Although the full report is not due to USDE until mid-October, the agency has worked quickly and diligently to resolve any remaining issues."

The federal agency, in the report, said its dates of review of the state agency were Dec. 11-14, by which time Walters had been in office about 11 months. On Dec. 15, Walters sent a memo to Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City, and House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka. In the letter, Walters noted he had installed new leadership in the Office of Federal Programs in his agency. That office oversees the administration of federal funds that flow through the agency to individual school districts.

Walters said in that memo, When these experienced employees assumed charge, they discovered several alarming issues with the distribution of federal funds to school districts and with oversight of the office in general that occurred under the previous administration. These issues included: the approval of expenses that are not allowed under federal law, double payment of invoices, payment of claims lacking proper documentation, errors in the Oklahoma Cost Accounting System (OCAS) coding and the Use of Funds coding required in ESSER III claims, manual tampering with the state's Grants Management System, erroneous calculation of district allocations, improper documentation of employee time, and a general lack of training of recent hires. This list is not exhaustive.

Former employees say 'nobody knows what to do' in dealing with federal money at state Education Department

Former employees of the state agency paint a strikingly different picture. Terri Grissom, who wrote applications for competitive federal grants for the agency for five years until she resigned on April 18, said the report shows that nobody knows what to do concerning the handling of federal money at the agency.

Former employees of the Oklahoma State Department of Education say a federal report paints a picture of an agency in disarray.

Just my initial reading of it, most of the things that theyve cited them for, its just basic grant management, what anybody whos in grants should know, Grissom said. It told me that nobody understands how to do the job, because basic things werent done, like equipment inventory or sending an audit to the (federal) clearinghouse. Theres just no idea how to do the job.

Grissom said while she hadnt seen a consolidated performance review report, like the one issued in July, Ive seen audit reports, and on those, there would be two or three findings. There were no audit findings ever about money  it was about something small. I have never seen a performance report like that.

Grissom said she told McBride, The first thing he needs to do is walk over and fire whoevers in charge of federal programs now, because they have no idea how to do their job. There is no feasible way 98 pages of issues can be addressed in 60 days.

On multiple issues raised in the federal report, the state agency blamed a massive turnover of employees. The Oklahoman reported in April that more than 130 people had left the state agency since Walters took over as state superintendent in January 2023. Walters falsely claimed he fired them, when public documents show the vast majority of those people resigned or retired.

Public documents obtained by The Oklahoman showed multiple people who worked in the agencys grants office joined Grissom in resigning.

Grissom said the report clearly shows the state agency didnt follow grant management policies and procedures, but I didnt see blatant evidence they broke the law. They cant go to jail for that. It was just an absolute lack of anybody running the agency.

A possible consequence if the areas of concern arent corrected, Grissom said, would be the withholding of federal funding to Oklahoma education. The report reviewed the handling of about $2.72 billion in federal money.

It is fixable, she said. But theyre not going to fix it with the staff they have now.

Joyce Rock, a longtime school support specialist with the agency, retired in February. School support specialists work with schools with low student test scores, helping to support improvement initiatives often paid for with federal money.

Rock noted that 11 of the 12 categories in the report that concerned the state agencys handling of Title I money  which are funds allocated based on the number of low-income students served by families  needed urgent attention, calling that a glaring red light.

They are totally out of compliance, and I dont think anyone has their eye on the money, Rock said. There are no checks and balances.

Rock said people within the agency with experience dealing with federal grants left, because Ryan Walters wanted us to leave and because we had such adverse working environments. They lost all the people who had experience and hired people who didnt have experience for the jobs they were hired for. That includes Ryan Walters. They dont know how to do their jobs. Its the epitome of the Peter Principle.

We were ethical and followed the rules and had checks and balances. And now look where hes at. Theres not anyone left to train anyone. Its the blind leading the blind.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Ryan Walters blames predecessor for scathing report on OSDE
Former Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger set to round out slate of GOP speakers at DNC supporting Harris

Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger is in a unique position as a Republican: On Thursday, he is set to deliver a prime-time speech on the final day of the Democratic National Convention, speaking in support of Vice President Kamala Harris before she accepts her party's nomination for president.

Kinzinger, who retired from the House in 2023, has been a vocal critic of former President Donald Trump over the years, and although he describes himself as a "proud conservative," he endorsed then-candidate Joe Biden for reelection in June.

"Donald Trump poses a direct threat to every fundamental American value," Kinzinger said in his Biden endorsement video, mentioning Trump's role in the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.

MORE: DNC 2024 Day 4 live updates: Kamala Harris to tell her story to the nation

PHOTO: In this July 27, 2021 file photo, Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., speaks during a hearing for the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (Chip Somodevilla/Bloomberg via Getty Images, FILE)

The former Illinois congressman sat on the House's Jan. 6 select committee that investigated the attack. He was also one of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump on a charge of inciting the Jan. 6 attack.

"To every American of every political party, and those of none: I say now is not the time to watch quietly as Donald Trump threatens the future of America," Kinzinger said in support of the Democratic ticket.

PHOTO: Republican former congressman Adam Kinzinger speaks during a Biden-Harris campaign press conference, June 26, 2024, in Atlanta. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

Since Harris replaced Biden as the Democratic nominee, Kinzinger has supported the vice president, saying she stands for democracy.

"Donald Trump is a clear threat to the future of democracy, the future faith of democracy, and Kamala Harris has made it clear that she supports it even when we disagree on things," he said on CNN earlier this month.

Kinzinger's speech will round out a slate of Republicans who have spoken at the DNC this week, including former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, Mayor John Giles of Mesa, Arizona, former Trump White House national security official Olivia Troye and former Trump White House press secretary Stephania Grisham.

MORE: 3 key objectives Harris is expected to touch on during DNC speech

PHOTO: In this Dec. 19, 2022 file photo, Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., speaks during a hearing of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol, in Washington. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images, FILE)

In what's expected to be a close contest between Harris and Trump in November, the Harris campaign is leaving no stone unturned, targeting Republicans and independents in their messaging and outreach.

GOP speakers at the DNC appear to be doing the same.

"The sometimes awkward alliance between the left, center, and sane right will prevail! We're not going back," Kinzinger posted to X on Wednesday.

Former Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger set to round out slate of GOP speakers at DNC supporting Harris originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Fox & Friends had no choice but to correct Donald Trump just seconds after an interview on the show Thursday morning in which he falsely claimed Kamala Harris met with Vladimir Putin just before Russias invasion of Ukraine.

The Republican nomineewho also used his time on the air to complain that all Democrats do is make up lies about meclaimed President Joe Biden sent comrade Kamala to see Putin in Russia three days before the attack. He described the incident as a little known fact which the press doesnt want to talk about.

The elaborate conspiracy theory he outlined came hours before her keynote address to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago and amid surging poll numbers which have put his campaign on defense in swing states.

Trump said Harris, in the imagined meeting with Putin, gave her case but Putin still attacked three days later anyway. He laughed at her, Trump continued. He thought she was a joke. Now hes really laughing when he sees her. Can you imagine her negotiating with President Xi of China, with Kim Jong Un of North Korea? The whole thing is like were living in a fantasy land.

When the interview ended around 20 minutes later, co-host Brian Kilmeade set the record straight.

Just as a quick clarification, we dont have confirmation that the vice president went to Russia to meet with Vladimir Putin, he said. I know she went over to Europe right before the incursion when Russia invaded Ukraine, and its a war thats still going on right now.

Kilmeades colleague Ainsley Earhardt then chimed in to say that she had repeatedly heard about the meeting, which never happened.

Ive heard that said a lot, she told Kilmeade. You dont have confirmation that thats true?

No, Kilmeade answered. I dont think thatI dont know if the vice president ever met Vladimir Putin.

Trump made a similar claim on Wednesday during a speech in North Carolina, saying Harris met with Putin to tell him, Dont do it, and three days later, he attacked. In that telling, he did not mention that the fictitious meeting took place in Russia.

In truth, Harris traveled to the Munich Security Conference in Germany where she met with U.S. allies in the days before the invasion. The conference, which Putin did not attend, ran from Feb. 18 to Feb. 20, 2022. Russias invasion began four days after the event ended, on Feb. 24, 2022.

Kilmeade was also right to be uncertain if Harris and Putin had ever met. Last month, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, who has worked with Putin since 2000, was asked by reporters if he could recall a time when Putin and Harris met. Frankly speaking, I cannot recall a single contact between President Putin and Mrs. Harris, Peskov answered, according to Russias TASS news agency. The agency noted that there is also no record on the Kremlin website of the pair being in contact.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Fox News was wrong about a foreign takeover of Weatherford. So, Ken Paxton chimed in | Opinion

A friends wife told me you cant trust anything Fox News says.

Not really. But thats how little basis Maria Bartiromo had last weekend when she spun a scare story about how foreigners were supposedly swamping Weatherford to get drivers licenses and register to vote.

It was one of the more ridiculous moments in TV. And it just reminds us how newscasts are for news, and shows are just for show.

Bartiromo wrote on X.com and talked on Mornings With Maria about how a friends wife told her she went to get a drivers license and found the Parker County office in Weatherford had a massive line of immigrants getting licenses and had a tent and table ... registering them to vote!

For one thing, if you see a long line of Hispanic applicants at a Texas drivers license station, that is not because they came from other country.

That is a sign you are in Texas.

Our population is mostly Hispanic. At age 16  the age to get a drivers license  Hispanic applicants outnumber whites 2-to-1.

For another thing, the Texas Department of Public Safety said there was never any tent or table.

Wait. You mean that people can and do just say things on this site that are totally false and cause people to believe things that are fundamentally untrue? Even people on the right??  Konni Burton (@KonniBurton) August 20, 2024

Maybe she saw one at a courthouse or library. A Latino youth advocacy group is out at some locations registering young voters.

But voter registrars can only take applications. They cant turn anyone down.

Thats the job of state and county workers. And the Parker County Republican Party says there hasnt been any surge of applications.

Anyway, if youre hunting non-citizen lawbreakers, is it really likely theyre waiting at the DPS office?

Look, I can absolutely guarantee you there is no mass voting by non-citizens.

If there were, the neighborhoods where more foreign-born residents live would have more voters.

Check out the party primary voting last March 5. The Diamond Hill/Jarvis Library, the Northside Community Center and the Worth Heights Community Center had about 200-300 early votes each.

Keller alone had 5,356.

Naturally, since noncitizen voting isnt a problem at all in Texas, Attorney General Ken Paxton jumped on it.

After his office took phone calls from Fox viewers who dont know Weatherford from Winnipeg, Paxton announced that his office is investigating potential voter registration of noncitizens and that Texans can register when they get a drivers license, anyway.

He also threatened registrars with jail if somebody lies about being a citizen.

According to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, there are currently zero people in prison in Texas for voting illegally.

So I guess he wants to lock up Texas volunteer voter registrars?

This was not the first time Fox has dumped a steaming pile on a deep-red city near Fort Worth.

In summer 2012  also an election year  Fox & Friends Weekend made up a story about Mineral Wells banning American flags.

There is this city council in Texas, then-host Alisyn Camerota began, and theyre saying no more American flags!

What!? No flags?

What kind of leftist socialist commie pinko town is that?

As it turned out, Mineral Wells simply had a new rule for the town cemetery. Flags had to be in a bracket attached to the marker.

The cemetery was looking like a Walmart closeout sale. It had flags, plastic flowers, hanging baskets, wind chimes, birdhouses, birdbaths, squirrel feeders, chaise lounges and cement statues.

CBS Texas did the story. The headline said Mineral Wells was restricting flags near veterans graves.

By the weekend, Fox & Friends Weekend warped that into:

Texas Town Rules To Ban American Flags Displayed at Grave Sites.

Mineral Wells was besieged with emails, online attacks and even threats.

After the story, Fox & Friends Weekend co-host Mike Jerrick sneered in a Tucker Carlson-like tone, Bring in the common-sense police!

Yes. Please.

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Frustrated UAW members call for Stellantis to keep its promises for Belvidere plant

BELVIDERE, Ill. (WTVO)  Local members of the United Auto Workers union expressed their frustration with Stellantis at a rally near the Belvidere Assembly Plant on Thursday.

The automaker notified the union this week that it plans to delay the reopening of the plant, citing market conditions in the industry. The UAW contends the move constitutes reneging on promises it made in contract negotiations last year.

UAW members said Thursday they plan to hold the company to its commitments.

I hope that we can show Stellantis that were for real and that we stand beside each other and we support each other and we are willing to do whatever it takes for them to uphold their end of the bargain of a contract, said autoworker Trentis Brantley.

Brantley said the unions goal is to set a standard now that can remain for years to come.

We still need to feed our families, he said. And not just for the workers that have been here for a long time, but for the workers who are going to be coming in Stellantis to work. Somebody laid down the foundation for us to be here and have the benefits that we have. And we need to do the same thing for the workers thatre coming behind us.

Matt Frantzen, the president of UAW Local 1268, said Stellantis decisions have put Belvidere workers in a tight spot.

Weve got people that are laid off here locally. Weve got people that have been forced to move. They need this to happen as much as we need this to happen. I mean, were talking anywhere from 5,000 to 8,000 jobs for this area, Frantzen said.

The Belvidere Assembly Plant was idled in February 2023.

In October 2023, Stellantis agreed to build a $3.2 billion battery plant in Belvidere and invest $1.5 billion to retool the factory for an all-new mid-sized truck.

Brantley said he has been subject to layoffs before, but said he hopes this will be the last.

When I first started working here, I always feared getting laid off and Ive been laid off so many times. But it can be trying on you, not to know what tomorrow [brings]. So Im glad to be here, glad to be in support of my union brothers and sisters, he said.

On Monday, UAW locals filed grievances with the company over what they said was its failure to honor commitments it made in the latest union contract.

Frantzen said once the grievance procedure is exhausted under the unions national contract, it may authorize a strike at assembly plants in Toledo, Ohio; Warren, Michigan; Sterling Heights, Michigan; Detroit, Michigan; and Kokomo, Indiana.

Stellantis said it stands by its contractual commitments and strongly objects to union allegations that its violating terms of the contract.

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Venezuelan opposition presidential candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia issued a statement on Wednesday, warning that the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) cannot assume functions that correspond to the National Electoral Council (CNE). The statement comes as the TSJ  which is controlled by the ruling party  carries out an audit of the controversial results of the July 28 presidential election, which the CNE claims was won by President Nicolas Maduro.

The TSJ is reviewing the voter tally sheets, but has not released them to the public. The opposition has accused the government of voter fraud, claiming it is refusing to recognize Gonzalez Urrutias victory.

The National Electoral Council must enforce what the people have called for, and comply with and enforce the Constitution and the laws, said Gonzalez Urrutia. The peoples decision cannot be ignored by any person, no matter what position of power they hold, nor by any organ of public power, and much less by those who seek to cling to power.

The Electoral Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice is not authorized under any circumstances to exercise the functions it is exercising, his statement continued. If it were to do so, it would be violating the principle of separation of public powers, as clearly established in form and substance in the National Constitution. The TSJ would be invading an exclusive duty of the Electoral Power and trampling on the decision of the people.

Once the National Electoral Council declared Nicolas Maduro the winner on the night of July 28, the body reported that its systems had been hacked, and subsequently closed its doors, without offering any report of the voting records to the participating candidates, nor detailed information on the results at each polling station, as is the custom. Since then, the president of the CNE, Elvis Amoroso  a close friend of Maduro  and the rest of the electoral council have remained silent.

When the opposition challenged the TSJs announcement, they also published a comprehensive inventory of the tally sheets that they had obtained thanks to observers and anonymous collaborators who carried out a rigorous investigation the very same night of the election. Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado invited the public to scrutinize the digitalized tally sheets, which were posted on the website, circumventing the CNEs lack of transparency. According to the tally sheets, Gonzalez Urrutia won a crushing victory: 67% versus 30% for Maduro.

The announcement sparked widespread protests, with nine statues of Hugo Chavez were torn down on his birthday. The Maduro government responded by violently repressing the protests, while denouncing a new conspiracy of fascism.

Many election observers have been prosecuted and accused of being part of this conspiracy. Chavista leader Jorge Rodriguez said that the voter tallies the opposition has presented have been falsified.

Amid the controversy, Maduro announced that he had all the tally sheets, and asked the TSJ, as the highest court in the Republic, to settle the dispute over the results. These alleged tally sheets  which have not been shown to the public  are now being reviewed by the TSJ.

The president of the TSJ, Caryslia Rodriguez, accepted the case, and promised to provide a detailed examination of each tally sheet, in order to verify its veracity and officially legitimize the winner. The state-owned channel Venezolana de Television offers periodic reports on the counting and verification work of the technicians.

Opposition technicians argue that voting records are very complex difficult to hack  they have electronic signatures, a specific paper and a QR code  and that it would be very easy to verify whether or not they are authentic. There are people who say that they [the Chavistas] are working to show some records, said Maria Corina Machado at an opposition rally in Caracas. I hope they do it. It would be public proof of fraud. I am waiting for them: publish your records.

Meanwhile, the presidential candidate of the Centrados party, Enrique Marquez, has requested that Caryslia Rodriguez, the president of the Supreme Court, be recused from the case, arguing she has not hidden, either in the past or in the present, her political ties with the ruling party. A judge cannot dispense justice if they are not impartial.

Layoffs of public employees

In some sectors of the Venezuelan state  for example, the state-owned Venezolana de Television  there are reports of politically motivated mass layoffs, as the top management became aware of the political positions of many workers who believe the allegations of electoral fraud.

In response, Maria Corina Machado on Wednesday shared a recorded message, urging state employees to support the oppositions call for change. The regime has always treated public employees in a despotic way: it forces you to wear red [...] it pressures you, it threatens you, it checks your phone. That is aberrant, it is humiliating. You are trying to terrorize public employees. You are the majority, and the hierarchs of the regime, are a minority. You also want this change, as much as I do, she told them.

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Uncommitted delegates speak during a sit-in outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Shaun Griswold / Source NM)

CHICAGO  Uncommitted delegates Thursday said they will continue their sit-in protest outside the United Center to advocate for a Palestinian American speaker at the Democratic National Convention, as Vice President Kamala Harris prepares to deliver her keynote address on the conventions final night.

While Harris will aim to galvanize Democrats to aid her meteoric rise to the top of the ticket, the lack of a Palestinian American person speaking to the crowd is part of a larger concern over the massive death toll of Palestinians in Gaza from the Israel-Hamas war.

That first spurred the Uncommitted National Movement, which has about 30 delegates at the DNC. There are 11 from Minnesota, the most of any state and the home state of the vice presidential nominee, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

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Its an inflection point that has fractured Muslims, Arab Americans and anti-war Democrats within the party, as it did with Harris predecessor who dropped out of the race last month, President Joe Biden.

Several progressive Democratic lawmakers speaking at the convention have called for a cease-fire, such as Vermont independent Sen. Bernie Sanders and New York U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Both were met with resounding cheers in the United Center.

On Wednesday, the Uncommitted National Movement said the Harris campaign denied its request to have speaking time for Dr. Tanya Haj-Hassan, an American pediatric intensive care surgeon, to talk about her time treating patients in Gaza amid the Israel-Hamas war.

Weve requested (she) get speaking time from the stage so that she can speak from her perspective as a health care worker whos been on the ground in Gaza treating children whose lives have been obliterated and whose bodies have been destroyed using U.S. weapons, Abbas Alawieh, co-founder of the Uncommitted movement and an uncommitted delegate from Michigan, said Wednesday.

Alawieh said the organization tried for two months before the DNC to get a speaker approved and that Wednesday night they negotiated with DNC officials and the Harris campaign until 2:30 a.m. Central time.

Frustration has mounted after DNC organizers have included speakers who are former Trump administration officials and Republicans who have pledged to vote for Harris.

I do not understand how theres room for an anti choice Republican but not me in our party.

 Georgia state Rep. Ruwa Romman

Ive had some pretty crushing days, but to be honest today took the cake, Georgia state Rep. Ruwa Romman said on social media Wednesday. I do not understand how theres room for an anti choice Republican but not me in our party. I need someone to explain to me what to do now.

Romman is the only Palestinian serving in Georgias state legislature.

Florida U.S. Rep. Maxwell Alejandro Frost, who has a speaking slot Thursday night, advocated on social media for Romman to get a spot as well.

Rep. Ruwa is a Democratic leader who has been working to keep Georgia blue and elect VP Harris, he said. She would be a unifying speaker for peace.

The DNC Wednesday included a speaking slot for the parents of an American held hostage  their son  by Hamas, after the Oct. 7 attack in which hundreds of people were taken hostage and 1,200 people killed. On Tuesday, Israeli officials announced they had recovered six hostages bodies that were taken by Hamas on Oct. 7.

The decision from DNC officials to not include a Palestinian American speaker also caused a coalition group working to support Harris and Walz  Muslim Women for Harris-Walz  to suspend its campaign.

The family of the Israeli Hostage that was on stage tonight, has shown more empathy towards Palestinian Americans and Palestianains, than our candidate or the DNC, the group wrote. This is a terrible message to send Democrats. Palestinians have the right to speak about Palestine.

The Uncommitted movement has also received support from other organizations at the DNC like the United Auto Workers.

If we want the war in Gaza to end, we cant put our heads in the sand or ignore the voices of the Palestinian Americans in the Democratic Party, UAW said in a statement. If we want peace, if we want real democracy, and if we want to win this election, the Democratic Party must allow a Palestinian American speaker to be heard from the DNC stage tonight.

Those uncommitted delegates earned a spot at the DNC after more than 740,000 voters across the United States voted uncommitted in primaries to protest then-presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Bidens support of Israel in the war, where more than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed over the past 10 months, according to health authorities there.

While the movement started in Michigan, it soon went national and uncommitted delegates were sent from Hawaii, Washington, Rhode Island and Minnesota.

With Harris now the new Democratic presidential nominee, those uncommitted delegates said they were hopeful Harris would listen to them in asking for a cease-fire and an arms embargo on Israel. But all they want now is for a Palestinian American to be able to address the party.

The Democratic Partys platform includes specific language that insists that Israeli lives and Palestinian lives are equal in the eyes of this party, Alawieh said. We believe, like our party platform says, that every Israeli life and every Palestinian life is equal. There should also be a Palestinian American to speak from this stage. This is urgent.

Ross Williams contributed to this story.

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Uncommitted delegates speak during a sit-in outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Shaun Griswold / Source NM)

CHICAGO  Uncommitted delegates Thursday said they will continue their sit-in protest outside the United Center to advocate for a Palestinian American speaker at the Democratic National Convention, as Vice President Kamala Harris prepares to deliver her keynote address on the conventions final night.

While Harris will aim to galvanize Democrats to aid her meteoric rise to the top of the ticket, the lack of a Palestinian American person speaking to the crowd is part of a larger concern over the massive death toll of Palestinians in Gaza from the Israel-Hamas war.

That first spurred the Uncommitted National Movement, which has about 30 delegates at the DNC. There are 11 from Minnesota, the most of any state and the home state of the vice presidential nominee, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

Its an inflection point that has fractured Muslims, Arab Americans and anti-war Democrats within the party, as it did with Harris predecessor who dropped out of the race last month, President Joe Biden.

Several progressive Democratic lawmakers speaking at the convention have called for a cease-fire, such as Vermont independent Sen. Bernie Sanders and New York U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Both were met with resounding cheers in the United Center.

On Wednesday, the Uncommitted National Movement said the Harris campaign denied its request to have speaking time for Dr. Tanya Haj-Hassan, an American pediatric intensive care surgeon, to talk about her time treating patients in Gaza amid the Israel-Hamas war.

Weve requested (she) get speaking time from the stage so that she can speak from her perspective as a health care worker whos been on the ground in Gaza treating children whose lives have been obliterated and whose bodies have been destroyed using U.S. weapons, Abbas Alawieh, co-founder of the Uncommitted movement and an uncommitted delegate from Michigan, said Wednesday.

Alawieh said the organization tried for two months before the DNC to get a speaker approved and that Wednesday night they negotiated with DNC officials and the Harris campaign until 2:30 a.m. Central time.

Frustration has mounted after DNC organizers have included speakers who are former Trump administration officials and Republicans who have pledged to vote for Harris.

Ive had some pretty crushing days, but to be honest today took the cake, Georgia state Rep. Ruwa Romman said on social media Wednesday. I do not understand how theres room for an anti choice Republican but not me in our party. I need someone to explain to me what to do now.

Romman is the only Palestinian serving in Georgias state legislature.

Florida U.S. Rep. Maxwell Alejandro Frost, who has a speaking slot Thursday night, advocated on social media for Romman to get a spot as well.

Rep. Ruwa is a Democratic leader who has been working to keep Georgia blue and elect VP Harris, he said. She would be a unifying speaker for peace.

The DNC Wednesday included a speaking slot for the parents of an American held hostage  their son  by Hamas, after the Oct. 7 attack in which hundreds of people were taken hostage and 1,200 people killed. On Tuesday, Israeli officials announced they had recovered six hostages bodies that were taken by Hamas on Oct. 7.

The decision from DNC officials to not include a Palestinian American speaker also caused a coalition group working to support Harris and Walz  Muslim Women for Harris-Walz  to suspend its campaign.

The family of the Israeli Hostage that was on stage tonight, has shown more empathy towards Palestinian Americans and Palestinians, than our candidate or the DNC, the group wrote. This is a terrible message to send Democrats. Palestinians have the right to speak about Palestine.

The Uncommitted movement has also received support from other organizations at the DNC like the United Auto Workers.

If we want the war in Gaza to end, we cant put our heads in the sand or ignore the voices of the Palestinian Americans in the Democratic Party, UAW said in a statement. If we want peace, if we want real democracy, and if we want to win this election, the Democratic Party must allow a Palestinian American speaker to be heard from the DNC stage tonight.

Those uncommitted delegates earned a spot at the DNC after more than 740,000 voters across the United States voted uncommitted in primaries to protest then-presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Bidens support of Israel in the war, where more than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed over the past 10 months, according to health authorities there.

While the movement started in Michigan, it soon went national and uncommitted delegates were sent from Hawaii, Washington, Rhode Island and Minnesota.

With Harris now the new Democratic presidential nominee, those uncommitted delegates said they were hopeful Harris would listen to them in asking for a cease-fire and an arms embargo on Israel. But all they want now is for a Palestinian American to be able to address the party.

The Democratic Partys platform includes specific language that insists that Israeli lives and Palestinian lives are equal in the eyes of this party, Alawieh said. We believe, like our party platform says, that every Israeli life and every Palestinian life is equal. There should also be a Palestinian American to speak from this stage. This is urgent.

Ross Williams contributed to this story.
Eight restaurants in Miami-Dade, Palm Beach and the Keys are on this weeks Sick and Shut Down List, which includes three chain restaurants and a food truck.

There are no Broward restaurants on this weeks list.

Were telling you the results of state inspections. We dont inspect the restaurants nor do we choose which ones get inspected. Three of the inspections on the following list came from complaints filed with the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation.

In alphabetical order:

Bonefish Grill, 1880 N. Congress Ave., Boynton Beach: Routine inspection, 11 total violations, five High Priority violations.

Ten live roaches congregated inside an unused cooler on the cookline.

The flies got a little more social. More than five hung out at the bars wait staff counter. More than six were on the soda dispenser. Two kept landing on a closed ice bin. Four or more circled a drain.

No paper towels or mechanical hand drying device provided at the handwash sinks on the cookline and in the wait station.

Raw red peppers and onions were not washed prior to preparation and cutting.

The cutting board has cut marks and is no longer cleanable.

Also failing to handle its business were the coolers that held cream sauce, spicy cream sauce, seafood stuffing, crab meat, pasta, lobster, ravioli and scallops. All food prepared the previous day, all in the refrigeration units overnight, none of them cooled to 41 degrees or less. A Stop Sale shower sent them all to the garbage.

Bonefish was grilling again after the next days re-inspection.

El Palacios de Los Frijoles, 1736 W. 68 St., Hialeah: Routine inspection, 24 total violations, four High Priority violations.

Establishment does not have enough coolers or space to maintain food at cold temperatures, especially the case when a reach-in cooler measured 55 degrees and a walk-in cooler measured 56. Expecting that cooler to get cooked or otherwise prepared food down to 41 degrees is expecting turtles to fly.

Stop Sales crashed down on soup with pork (95 degrees), chimmichurri (72 degrees), chicarron (68), pork chops (60 degrees), chorizo (60 degrees), eggs (60), raw beef (60), marinated chicken (57), plantains (55), pineapple (55), shredded cheese (55), beef (5) and heavy cream (47).

Then again, the house probably didnt know about this because there was no probe thermometer provided to measure temperature of food products.

Ironically, El Palacios thawed frozen chicken in the three-compartment sink, an unnecessary no-no when it obviously couldve thawed almost as fast in the worthless coolers.

You know why you put washed dishes and pots tilted down as they dry? Washed pots not inverted underneath the stove with water inside of them.

The cutting board was soiled.

El Palacios passed the following days re-inspection.

READ MORE: Attention, Walmart shoppers: An inspection says a South Florida store had mold on meat

Fuddruckers in Westland Mall, 1645 W. 49th St., Hialeah: Complaint inspection, seven total violations, one High Priority violation.

Some of you just said, Theres still a Fuddruckers open? Yep, five of them in South Florida, four in Miami-Dade and one in Broward. This one, in Westland Mall, is owned by Marcelo Montalvans and Berna Montalvans Vitafoods Enterprises III, according to state records.

The website of the once mighty beloved chain declares: Our Fuddruckers commitment to Safely Serving You the Worlds Greatest Hamburgers. The safety, health and well-being of our guests and employees are our highest priority...  but somebody forgot to tell the folks at the Hialeah location.

Otherwise, they might have disposed of the 16 dead roaches in glue rodent traps under the utility sink at the bakery area.

Six live roaches roamed including two inside the bread proffer at the bakery area.

Knives at the front counter prep area also were clean utensils stored between equipment and a wall. You cant stay clean in crevices.

Lot of cutting board problems. The prep area cutting board was soiled.

Fuddruckers passed the next days callback inspection.

Hook Fish & Chicken, 5701 N. Australian Ave., Mangonia Park: Compliant inspection, five total violations, three High Priority violations.

Whats the difference between a Basic violation and a High Priority violation?

A dead roach on the kitchen floor is a Basic violation. The 20 rodent droppings on the kitchen floor under dry storage shelves is a High Priority violation.

A wet towel in the handwash sink says either the staff is lazy or the sink isnt being used for de-dirtying hands very often.

The Hook was off the inspection hook after the following days re-inspection.

Jennifers Cafeteria, 16464 NE 16th Ave., North Miami Beach: Routine inspection, 35 total violations, seven High Priority violations.

Earlier this week, we told you about yet another North Miami Beach restaurant not up to snuff when the inspector dropped by for a once-over.

READ MORE: Mold on food among the 35 violations at a North Miami Beach restaurant

Oh, you wanted to wash your hands in the restroom? No soap for you!

They passed re-inspection the next day with Follow-Up Inspection Required.

Okan Ebi Citrus & Product Corp., Food Truck, 10918 SW 184 St., West Perrine: Complaint inspection, 21 total violations, two High Priority violations.

Bad food truck inspections usually involve water. Case in point...

Establishment operating without an approved sewage system.

No running water at the three-compartment sink.

Water at the employee handwash sink didnt reach 85 degrees.

No soap, paper towels or mechanical hand drying device provided at the handwash sink.

Throw in five flies around the three-compartment sink and 50-plus flies swarming the food truck and its grease receptacle and youve got a food truck thats done for the day.

The re-inspection was passed with Follow-Up Inspection Required.

READ MORE: Inspectors found white mold on green vegetables and other problems at a Broward market

Terra Fiamma in Delray Marketplace, 9169 W. Atlantic Ave., Unincorporated Palm Beach: Routine inspection, nine total violations, three High Priority violations.

Accumulation of roach excrement inside of the four-way electrical outlet box directly next to steam table on the kitchen cookline.

If that didnt tell you they might have a roach problem, the five dead roaches and four live ones in that box could be another indicator. Two dead roaches were on the floor under a salad line flip-top cooler. Another one was under a kitchen prep sink.

Floor heavily soiled under cookline equipment.

Terra Fiamma was back on solid ground after the following days re-inspection.

Viva Saloon, 903 Duval St., Key West: Routine inspection, 16 total violations, four High Priority violations.

It took us to the last restaurant, the first in a while from the Keys, to get to the usually much more common Accumulation of black/green mold-like substance in the interior of the ice machine/bin.

The inspector counted over 50 pieces of rodent regularity in a dry storage area that had single service items and a reach-in freezer with raw beef.

Observed employee engaging in food preparation and not washing hands after changing tasks.

But the cookline handwash sink was not accessible for employee use at all times.

And, workers who got to the handwash sink and washed their hands didnt have a quick way to dry without rubbing them on their shirts or pants.

During the routine inspection, the walk-in cooler was running at 50 degrees.

Which means here comes the Stop Sale rain again, falling on the food for food safety. Cooked steak with corn, cooked pasta, raw beef, cooked risotto, steak empanadas and cooked potatoes ranged from 55 degrees to 58 degrees, and all tossed.

The Saloon passed its second chance inspection on Tuesday.
TOPEKA (KSNT)  Federal health officials are warning Kansas residents to avoid eating a candy product sold in the state which could be contaminated with mold.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a press release on Aug. 22 regarding a recall from Authentik Fudge of Sainte-Julie based out of Quebec, Canada. The company is recalling 840 units of its 5.6 oz. Chocolate Fudge with Nuts branded Montreal Fudge as it could potentially have mold growth on it.

The recalled fudge products were sold at TJ Maxx and Marshalls store locations in multiple states, including Kansas. The products were distributed in June and bear the following expiration dates and lot numbers:

2025/MR/01 with lot number 0241500805.

2025/MR/17 with lot number 0241690105.

2025/MR/17 with lot number 0241690205.

(Photo Courtesy/FDA)

(Photo Courtesy/FDA)

The FDA said the recall was started after a customer complained about finding mold pieces inside the product bag. Follow-up investigations found other unpacked sealed products at the manufacturing location that were showing signs of mold.

Customers who purchased the recalled products are urged to destroy them or return them to the place of purchase for a full refund. You can contact the company at info@authentikfudge.com or call 450-649-1331 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST Monday through Friday.

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Oprah Winfreys surprise appearance at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday night was met with cheers and tears at the Chicago United Center, where she endorsed Kamala Harris and spoke about the values that define the best of America.

Read More: The Best of America: The Biggest Moments From Oprah Winfreys 2024 DNC Speech

The following transcript was prepared by TIME staff.

Who says you cant go home again?

After watching the Obamas last night, that was some epic fire, wasnt it? Some epic fire. Were now so fired up we cant wait to leave here and do something. And what were going to do is to elect Kamala Harris as the next President of the United States.

I am so honored to have been asked to speak on tonights theme about what matters most to me, to you, and all of us Americans: freedom. There are people who want you to see our country as a nation of us against them. People who want to scare you, who want to rule you. People whod have you believe that books are dangerous and assault rifles are safe, that theres a right way to worship and a wrong way to love. People who seek first to divide and then to conquer. But heres the thing: when we stand together, it is impossible to conquer us.

In the words of an extraordinary American, the late Congressman John Lewis, he said, No matter what ship our ancestors arrived on, we are all in the same boat now. Congressman Lewis knew very well how far this country has come, because he was one of the brilliant Americans who helped to get us where we are. But he also knew that the work is not done, the work will never be done, because freedom isnt free. America is an ongoing project. It requires commitment, it requires being open to the hard work and the heart work of democracy. And every now and then, it requires standing up to lifes bullies.

I know this. Ive lived in Mississippi, in Tennessee, in Wisconsin, Maryland, Indiana, Florida, Hawaii, Colorado, California, and sweet home Chicago, Illinois. I have actually traveled this country from the redwood forestlove those redwoodsto the Gulf Stream waters. Ive seen racism and sexism and income inequality and division. Ive not only seen it; at times, Ive been on the receiving end of it.

But more often than not, what Ive witnessed and experienced are human beings, both conservative and liberal, who may not agree with each other, but who would still help you in a heartbeat if you were in trouble. These are the people who make me proud to say that I am an American. They are the best of America.

(Crowd chants: U-S-A!)

And despite what some would have you think, we are not so different from our neighbors. When a house is on fire, we dont ask about the homeowners race or religion. We dont wonder who their partner is or how they voted. No, we just try to do the best we can to save them. And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady, well, we try to get that cat out too.

Read More: Breaking Down the Controversy Over J.D. Vances Childless Cat Ladies Comment

cause we are a country of people who work hard for the money. We wish our brothers and sisters well, and we pray for peace. We know all the old tricks and tropes that are designed to distract us from what actually matters, but we are beyond ridiculous tweets and lies and foolery. These are complicated times, people, and they require adult conversation. And I welcome those conversations because civilized debate is vital to democracy, and it is the best of America.

Now, over the last couple of nights, we have all seen brave people walk onto the stage and share their most private pain. Amanda and Josh, Kaitlyn, Hadleythey told us their stories of rape and incest and near-death experiences from having the state deny them the abortion that their doctor explained was medically necessary. And they told us these things for one reason, and that is to keep what happened to them from happening to anybody else. Because if you do not have autonomy over this(Winfrey gestures to her body) over thisif you cannot control when and how you choose to bring your children into this world and how they are raised and supported, there is no American dream.

The women and men who are battling to keep us from going back to a time of desperation and shame and stone-cold fear, they are the new freedom fighters. And make no mistake: They are the best of America.

I want to talk now about somebody whos not with us tonight: Tessie Prevost Williams. Was born in New Orleans, not long after the Supreme Court ruled that segregated public schools were unconstitutional. That was in 1954, same year I was born. But I didnt have to head to first grade at the all-white McDonogh 19 School with a U.S. Marshal by my side, like Tessie did. And when I got to school, the building wasnt empty like it was for Tessie. You see, rather than allowing McDonogh to be integrated, parents pulled their kids out of the school, leaving only Tessie and two other little black girls, Gail Etienne and Leona Tate, to sit in a classroom with the windows papered over to block snipers from attacking their six-year-old bodies.

Tessie passed away six weeks ago, and I tell this story to honor her tonight, because she, like Ruby Bridges, and her friends, Leona and Gailthe New Orleans Four, they were calledthey broke barriers, and they paid dearly for it. But it was the grace and guts and courage of women like Tessie Prevost Williams that paved the way for another young girl, who nine years later became part of the second class to integrate the public schools in Berkeley, California.

And it seems to me that, at school and at home, somebody did a beautiful job of showing this young girl how to challenge the people at the top and empower the people at the bottom. They showed her how to look at the world and see not just what is, but what can be. They instilled in her a passion for justice and freedom and the glorious fighting spirit necessary to pursue that passion.

And soon and very soonsoon and very soon, were going to be teaching our daughters and sons about how this child of an Indian mother and a Jamaican father, two idealistic, energetic immigrantsimmigrantshow this child grew up to become the 47th President of the United States. That is the best of America.

Let me tell you this: This election isnt about us and them. Its about you and me and what we want our futures to look like. There are choices to be made when we cast our ballot. Now, theres a certain candidate that says, if we just go to the polls this one time, then well never have to do it again. Well, you know what? Youre looking at a registered independent whos proud to vote again and again and again. Because Im an American, and thats what Americans do.

Voting is the best of America. And I have always, since I was eligible to vote, Ive always voted my values. And that is what is needed in this election, now more than ever. So Im calling on all you independents and all you undecideds. You know this is true. You know Im telling you the truth: that values and character matter most of all, in leadership and in life. And more than anythingyou know this is truethat decency and respect are on the ballot in 2024.

And just plain common sense. Common sense tells you that Kamala Harris and Tim Walz can give us decency and respect. Theyre the ones that give it to us.

So, we are Americans. We are Americans. Let us choose loyalty to the Constitution over loyalty to any individual, because thats the best of America. And let us choose optimism over cynicism, because thats the best of America. And let us choose inclusion over retribution. Let us choose common sense over nonsense, because thats the best of America.

And let us choose the sweet promise of tomorrow over the bitter return to yesterday. We wont go back. We wont be sent back, pushed back, bullied back, kicked back. Were not going back.

(Crowd chants: Not going back!) Were not going back. Were not going back.

So, let us choose. Let us choose truth, let us choose honor, and let us choose joy! Because thats the best of America. But more than anything else, let us choose freedom. Why? Because thats the best of America. Were all Americans, and together, lets all choose Kamala Harris!

Contact us at letters@time.com.
Future is bright: Largest ski resort in New England being sold to local investors

Vermonts Killington Mountain Ski Resort, the largest ski area in New England, is being sold to a group of local investors.

POWDR is selling Killington and Pico Mountain to a passionate group of local pass holders, an announcement indicated Thursday.

The investors, led by Phill Gross and Michael Ferri, have a deep connection to Killington and have pledged to continue to grow the community to make it a place visitors continue to call home for generations to come, according to the announcement.

New ownership has promised to evolve Killington as a leader among world-class resorts, while maintaining a strong local presence.

Ferri is a partner in the Valvoline Instant Oil Change franchises and Mr. Sparkle Car Wash locations. Gross, a co-founder at Adage Capital Management, has previously served as a director for the US Ski and Snowboard Board of Trustees.

Ferri has been an active part of the Killington community since 1970 as a skier, homeowner, and parent of Killington Mountain School students. Gross purchased his home in 1986 and raised his family in the shadow of Killington Peak.

Michael Solimano, president and general manager of Killington, affectionately known as the Beast of the East, said the ownership change is all positive for the community. Solimano noted that the staff and management team will all stay the same.

Were expecting a really smooth transition and the future is bright, Solimano said in a video statement.

Killington season pass offerings will have no changes and guests can expect daily operations to be business as usual, according to Solimano.

POWDR, which has been instrumental in Killingtons growth since 2007, will retain a minority ownership stake in the new entity and will have a seat on the board of directors.

The purchase and sale agreement was signed on Wednesday and the deal is expected to be finalized this fall, pending standard closing conditions and necessary approvals.

For more on the sale of Killington, click here.

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GAs former Lt. Governor, a Republican, says the American thing to do is to vote for Kamala Harris

In a fiery speech, Georgias former lieutenant governor, Geoff Duncan, a Republican, spoke at the Democratic National Convention urging any members of his party to vote for Kamala Harris for President in November.

He started the speech off by saying, I am a Republican, but tonight I stand here as an American, an American that cares more about the future of this country than the future of Donald Trump.

Duncan has been an outspoken critic of former President Donald Trump. He told the DNC that his journey to the podium in Chicago started two years ago, when I realized Donald Trump was willing to lie, cheat and steal to try to overturn the 2020 election.

The former lieutenant governor said he came to speak to swaying Republicans and independent voters who had enough of Trump.

Let me be clear to my Republican friends at home watching, if you vote for Kamala Harris in 2024, youre not a Democrat, youre a patriot, Duncan said. If Republicans are being intellectually honest with ourselves, our party is not civil or Conservative. Its chaotic and crazy, and the only thing left to do is dump Trump.

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Duncan was lieutenant governor in Georgia during the 2020 election when Trump and his allies are accused of attempting to overturn the election after Joe Biden won Georgia by nearly 12,000 votes.

Trump and 18 others were ultimately indicted on RICO and other charges over those events, and so far, four people have taken plea deals in the case.

Duncan spoke about having armed guards outside his home after he, Gov. Brian Kemp, and other state officials refused to use their powers to overturn the election.

Donald Trump had targeted us, Duncan said. You dont have to agree with every policy position of Kamala Harris. I dont, but you do have to recognize her prosecutor mindset that understands right from wrong, good from evil. Shes a steady hand and will bring leadership to the White House that Donald Trump could never do.

To my fellow Republicans at home that want to pivot back towards policy, empathy and tone, you know the right thing to do now. Lets have the courage to do it in November, Duncan said.

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Gaetz beats Dimmock, new Loxley industrial center, and Rest In Peace, Mobile Civic Center | Aug. 21, 2024

Editors Note: News 5 Now streams live Monday through Friday at 5:30 p.m. Watch the video above.

MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG)  Welcome to WKRG.coms new streaming show, News 5 Now, where we discuss the days 5 big stories and interact with you, our viewers.

Top 5 Stories

Its time to count down the Big Stories were following for you.

5. Santa Rosa County brush fire

Garcon Point residents have returned to their homes after being told to flee from a brush fire Tuesday.

Firefighters said they are keeping an eye on some hot spots near Mary Kitchens Road in Santa Rosa County.

400 homes were evacuated for a short while as six tractors, airplanes, a helicopter and a bunch of firefighters protected buildings and tightened the circle on the flames.

Florida Forestry officials said nobody was hurt and no buildings were damaged.

They are still trying to figure out exactly how it got started.

4. Prichard teen charged for shooting, killing his 12-year-old brother

A 12-year-old is dead, and his 16-year-old brother faces a manslaughter charge.

Although the teen is charged as an adult, Alabama law protects his identity.

Little brother CleTavion Smoke died at a home on Snyder Drive on Aug. 11.

Older brother surrendered Monday after a week on the run.

Investigators dont know where the teen got the gun they say he used to shoot his little brother.

The accused is to be arraigned on Thursday morning.

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) questions special counsel Robert Hur during a House Judiciary Committee hearing to discuss Hurs investigation into President Bidens handling of classified documents on Tuesday, March 12, 2024.

3. Gaetz beats Dimmock

Congressman Matt Gaetz continues his campaign to represent Northwest Florida for a fifth term.

Gaetz easily beat Republican challenger Aaron Dimmock in Tuesdays primary election.

Gaetz takes on Democratic challenger Gay Valimont in November.

2. Port industrial center coming to Loxley

Big digs are on the way to Baldwin County.

That new industrial center will create hundreds of jobs.

The 12-million square-foot Port Alabama Industrial Center going up in Loxley.

Mobile Port expansion and explosive growth in Baldwin County set the stage for this groundbreaking.

The first phase of construction is to be completed by next fall.

1. Mobile Civic Center demolition begins

The Mobile Civic Center demolition began today.

Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson took control of an excavator and knocked down the civic center sign in front of the arena.

Demolition crews have already fenced off the area.

They are removing asbestos.

Wednesdays ceremonies included a second-line funeral for the facility.

A paper mache civic center was put into the back of a hearse for a parade lap around the venue.

In March 2025, the city announced plans to tear down the 60-year-old building and replace it with a new $300-million facility.

Question of the Day

Oprah Winfrey revealed her one regret in life during an interview with Al Roker for his 70th birthday. We asked, Whats something you would change if you could?

Here are your responses.

Poll of the Day

The feud between former Speaker Kevin McCarthy and Congressman Matt Gaetz climaxed on Tuesday night with the Florida Primary. We asked, Who are you rooting for, Gulf Coast? Gaetz, endorsed by former President Donald Trump, or his challenger, newcomer Aaron Dimmock, who has McCarthys support?

Here are your responses.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Baraa Abol-Alroose, who is 7-years-old, poses in a wheelchair in front of his family members at Union Park in Chicago.

Baraa Abol-Alroose poses for a photo in front of his family members who he started living with in the U.S. after a recent bombing at his school in Rafah. (Photo by Shaun Griswold / Source New Mexico)

CHICAGO  Baraa Abol-Alroose sat in a wheelchair with one arm in a sling from injuries he suffered from a bombing at his school in Rafah several weeks ago.

Abol-Alroose, 7, smiled and waved a Palestinian flag with his other arm, as dozens rallied at Union Park calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, just blocks away from where the Democratic National Convention began its third evening.

Im so happy that there are so many people supporting here, Abol-Alroose said through an older relative who translated his interview. Thank God for everything. Thank God for everything.

The young boy recently arrived in the United States after the bombing to live with relatives who said they previously fled Gaza.

He said he is excited to go to school and wants to learn English.

I want to be an architect. I want to build a home, Abol-Alroose said.

As he spoke, others in the crowd stood in solidarity with a vision of a future without attacks by the Israeli military against Palestinian people like Abol-Alroose. The protest Wednesday evening followed another rally the day before where 72 people were eventually arrested, according to legal observers.

We are going to make sure that the American empire, in all of its bestiality in denying a genocide and enabling a genocide and acting as if it can proceed with business as usual, will not take place, Dr. Cornel West, the academic running for president as an Independent, told the crowd.

As he finished his remarks, the stream of people asking to take a picture with Abol-Alroose grew.

Later in the evening inside the United Center, Democrats heard Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg discuss how their American-Israeli son, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, was taken hostage by Hamas on Oct. 7.

At this moment, 109 treasured human beings are being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza. They are Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists, Goldberg said.

This is the incident that led to a scorched-earth response from the Israeli government over the last 10 months, with daily airstrikes and a ground invasion that have led to more than 40,000 Palestinian deaths and more than 500 schools destroyed, like the one Abol-Alroose attended.

Yesterday, Israel announced that it had recovered six hostages bodies that were taken by Hamas on Oct. 7.

This did not include Goldberg-Polin. His parents told the DNC crowd they have daily briefings with President Joe Biden, along with other families, who are holding onto hope that hostages will be released.

In the Middle East, we know the one thing that can most immediately release pressure and bring calm to the entire region is a deal that brings this diverse group of 109 hostages home and ends the suffering of the innocent civilians in Gaza, Polin said.

As of April, Israel was holding about 9,500 Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza in captivity, according to estimates from Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association.

A flag made by the NDN Collective for the Gaza solidarity protests in Chicago during the Democratic National Convention. The flags were handed out at rallies and events like this one at Union Park on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Shaun Griswold / Source New Mexico)

Back outside at the protest in Union Park, members of the solidarity movement from the NDN Collective handed out red flags that read Land Back. Founder Nick Tilsen (Oglala Lakota Nation) said the Indigenous-led group is active in this protest because of their shared experience of U.S. genocide with Palestiniation people.

The parallels of our struggle are real, he said at the Union Park rally. The same system that committed the Native American genocide is the same system that is fueling the genocide in Gaza.

Tilsen said the group is calling for peace for Palestinians and making sure to hold Democrats accountable if Vice President Kamala Harris wins the presidency.

The DNC cannot continue to ignore the people. They cant continue to ignore the fact that theres an uprising in this country, he said. They dont just automatically get our vote. They got to earn it. So we want them to take stances on these issues. We want them to take a stance on the issues that are a reflection of the real-life struggles that are happening in our country.

Uncommitted delegates speak during a sit-in outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Shaun Griswold / Source NM)

Just after 9:30 p.m., Abbas Alawieh, an Uncommitted delegate from Michigan, said he was told his groups request to have a Palestinian-American speak on the stage inside the DNC was denied. The Uncommitted movement started as a protest vote within the Democratic Party to oppose current U.S. policies on Gaza.

The group petitioned the DNC to allow a speaker to speak on the issue from the Palestinian perspective.

Alawieh told reporters during a sit-in outside the United Center that he spoke with the Harris campaign and was told they would not receive permission for a speaker. The group said it plans to stay outside the venue until the DNC agrees to its request.

This story was published as part of the 2024 Native Vote Desk collaboration between ICT, Source New Mexico, States Newsroom, Native News Online, Native America Calling, National Native News, and Koahnic Broadcast Corporation.

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The Venezuelan Supreme Court (TSJ)  which is controlled by the Chavista ruling party  validated on Thursday President Nicolas Maduros victory at the July 28 presidential election, which the opposition claims it won.

This chamber declares on the basis of the expertise carried out, and based on the report prepared by national and international experts, the unobjectionable validity of the electoral material surveyed and validates the results of the presidential election, said Caryslia Rodriguez, the president of the TSJ.

The courts ruling was anticipated by the opposition, with presidential candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia issuing a statement on Wednesday that warned that the TSJ could not assume the functions of Venezuelas National Electoral Council (CNE).

Another presidential candidate Enrique Marquez also requested that Rodriguez be recused from the case, claiming she has not hidden, either in the past or in the present, her political ties with the ruling party.

After declaring Maduro the winner on July 28, the CNE said it had been the victim of a cyberattack, and since then, the president of the CNE, Elvis Amoroso  a close friend of Maduro  and the rest of the body have not provided any further information about the results. According to the CNE, Maduro won the vote with 51.2% of support, compared to 44.2% for Gonzalez Urrutia.

But the tally sheets collected by the opposition paint a different picture. According to these paper records  which the opposition has digitalized and posted on a website  Gonzalez Urrutia won a crushing victory: 67% versus 30% for Maduro.

In response to the TSJs ruling on Thursday, Gonzalez Urrutia posted: The organs of the state emanate from popular sovereignty and are subject to it. They shall not usurp the truth.

In addition to validating Maduros victory, Rodriguez also held Gonzalez Urrutia in contempt of court for not attending a summons as a witness, and has called on the Public Prosecutions Office to open a case into the politician.

The country and the world know your bias and, therefore, your inability to resolve the conflict; your decision will only aggravate the crisis, said Gonzalez Urrutia on Thursday.

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Baraa Abol-Alroose poses for a photo in front of his family members who he started living with in the U.S. after a recent bombing at his school in Rafah. (Photo by Shaun Griswold/Source New Mexico)

CHICAGO  Baraa Abol-Alroose sat in a wheelchair with one arm in a sling from injuries he suffered from a bombing at his school in Rafah several weeks ago.

Abol-Alroose, 7, smiled and waved a Palestinian flag with his other arm, as dozens rallied at Union Park calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, just blocks away from where the Democratic National Convention began its third evening.

Im so happy that there are so many people supporting here, Abol-Alroose said through an older relative who translated his interview. Thank God for everything. Thank God for everything.

The young boy recently arrived in the United States after the bombing to live with relatives who said they previously fled Gaza.

He said he is excited to go to school and wants to learn English.

I want to be an architect. I want to build a home, Abol-Alroose said.

As he spoke, others in the crowd stood in solidarity with a vision of a future without attacks by the Israeli military against Palestinian people like Abol-Alroose. The protest Wednesday evening followed another rally the day before where 72 people were eventually arrested, according to legal observers.

We are going to make sure that the American empire, in all of its bestiality in denying a genocide and enabling a genocide and acting as if it can proceed with business as usual, will not take place, Dr. Cornel West, the academic running for president as an independent, told the crowd.

As he finished his remarks, the stream of people asking to take a picture with Abol-Alroose grew.

Later in the evening inside the United Center, Democrats heard Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg discuss how their American-Israeli son, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, was taken hostage by Hamas on Oct. 7.

At this moment, 109 treasured human beings are being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza. They are Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists, Goldberg said.

This is the incident that led to a scorched-earth response from the Israeli government over the last 10 months, with daily airstrikes and a ground invasion that have led to more than 40,000 Palestinian deaths and more than 500 schools destroyed, like the one Abol-Alroose attended.

Yesterday, Israel announced that it had recovered six hostages bodies that were taken by Hamas on Oct. 7.

This did not include Goldberg-Polin. His parents told the DNC crowd they have daily briefings with President Joe Biden, along with other families, who are holding onto hope that hostages will be released.

In the Middle East, we know the one thing that can most immediately release pressure and bring calm to the entire region is a deal that brings this diverse group of 109 hostages home and ends the suffering of the innocent civilians in Gaza, Polin said.

As of April, Israel was holding about 9,500 Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza in captivity, according to estimates from Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association.

Back outside at the protest in Union Park, members of the solidarity movement from the NDN Collective handed out red flags that read Land Back. Founder Nick Tilsen (Oglala Lakota Nation) said the Indigenous-led group is active in this protest because of their shared experience of U.S. genocide with Palestinian people.

The parallels of our struggle are real, he said at the Union Park rally. The same system that committed the Native American genocide is the same system that is fueling the genocide in Gaza.

Tilsen said the group is calling for peace for Palestinians and making sure to hold Democrats accountable if Vice President Kamala Harris wins the presidency.

The DNC cannot continue to ignore the people. They cant continue to ignore the fact that theres an uprising in this country, he said. They dont just automatically get our vote. They got to earn it. So we want them to take stances on these issues. We want them to take a stance on the issues that are a reflection of the real-life struggles that are happening in our country.

Just after 9:30 p.m., Abbas Alawieh, an Uncommitted delegate from Michigan, said he was told his groups request to have a Palestinian-American speak on the stage inside the DNC was denied. The Uncommitted movement started as a protest vote within the Democratic Party to oppose current U.S. policies on Gaza.

The group petitioned the DNC to allow a speaker to speak on the issue from the Palestinian perspective.

Alawieh told reporters during a sit-in outside the United Center that he spoke with the Harris campaign and was told they would not receive permission for a speaker. The group said it plans to stay outside the venue until the DNC agrees to its request.

This story was originally published by Source New Mexico, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Source New Mexico maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Shaun Griswold for questions: info@sourcenm.com. Follow Source New Mexico on Facebook and X.
Baraa Abol-Alroose poses for a photo in front of his family members who he started living with in the U.S. after a recent bombing at his school in Rafah. (Photo by Shaun Griswold | Source New Mexico)

CHICAGO  Baraa Abol-Alroose sat in a wheelchair with one arm in a sling from injuries he suffered from a bombing at his school in Rafah several weeks ago.

Abol-Alroose, 7, smiled and waved a Palestinian flag with his other arm, as dozens rallied at Union Park calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, just blocks away from where the Democratic National Convention began its third evening.

Im so happy that there are so many people supporting here, Abol-Alroose said through an older relative who translated his interview. Thank God for everything. Thank God for everything.

The young boy recently arrived in the United States after the bombing to live with relatives who said they previously fled Gaza.

He said he is excited to go to school and wants to learn English.

I want to be an architect. I want to build a home, Abol-Alroose said.

As he spoke, others in the crowd stood in solidarity with a vision of a future without attacks by the Israeli military against Palestinian people like Abol-Alroose. The protest Wednesday evening followed another rally the day before where 72 people were eventually arrested, according to legal observers.

We are going to make sure that the American empire, in all of its bestiality in denying a genocide and enabling a genocide and acting as if it can proceed with business as usual, will not take place, Dr. Cornel West, the academic running for president as an Independent, told the crowd.

As he finished his remarks, the stream of people asking to take a picture with Abol-Alroose grew.

Later in the evening inside the United Center, Democrats heard Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg discuss how their American-Israeli son, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, was taken hostage by Hamas on Oct. 7.

At this moment, 109 treasured human beings are being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza. They are Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists, Goldberg said.

This is the incident that led to a scorched-earth response from the Israeli government over the last 10 months, with daily airstrikes and a ground invasion that have led to more than 40,000 Palestinian deaths and more than 500 schools destroyed, like the one Abol-Alroose attended.

Yesterday, Israel announced that it had recovered six hostages bodies that were taken by Hamas on Oct. 7.

This did not include Goldberg-Polin. His parents told the DNC crowd they have daily briefings with President Joe Biden, along with other families, who are holding onto hope that hostages will be released.

In the Middle East, we know the one thing that can most immediately release pressure and bring calm to the entire region is a deal that brings this diverse group of 109 hostages home and ends the suffering of the innocent civilians in Gaza, Polin said.

As of April, Israel was holding about 9,500 Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza in captivity, according to estimates from Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association.

Back outside at the protest in Union Park, members of the solidarity movement from the NDN Collective handed out red flags that read Land Back. Founder Nick Tilsen (Oglala Lakota Nation) said the Indigenous-led group is active in this protest because of their shared experience of U.S. genocide with Palestinian people.

The parallels of our struggle are real, he said at the Union Park rally. The same system that committed the Native American genocide is the same system that is fueling the genocide in Gaza.

Tilsen said the group is calling for peace for Palestinians and making sure to hold Democrats accountable if Vice President Kamala Harris wins the presidency.

The DNC cannot continue to ignore the people. They cant continue to ignore the fact that theres an uprising in this country, he said. They dont just automatically get our vote. They got to earn it. So we want them to take stances on these issues. We want them to take a stance on the issues that are a reflection of the real-life struggles that are happening in our country.

Just after 9:30 p.m., Abbas Alawieh, an uncommitted delegate from Michigan, said he was told his groups request to have a Palestinian-American speak on the stage inside the DNC was denied. The Uncommitted movement started as a protest vote within the Democratic Party to oppose current U.S. policies on Gaza.

The group petitioned the DNC to allow a speaker to speak on the issue from the Palestinian perspective.

Alawieh told reporters during a sit-in outside the United Center that he spoke with the Harris campaign and was told they would not receive permission for a speaker. The group said it plans to stay outside the venue until the DNC agrees to its request.

This story was originally produced by Source New Mexico which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network, including the Daily Montanan, supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.
BLUEFIELD, WV (WVNS)  Gear Up Southern West Virginia was all over Mercer County the week of Wednesday, August 21, 2024.

Dr. Peterson emphasizes connection and encouragement on his first day as Bluefield University President

They were giving out school supplies in preparation for the new school year.

Gear Up Southern West Virginias main goal as a program is to make sure that the students of southern West Virginia are ready for what comes after high school.

They want these students to have a plan  whether that is to sign up for military service, joining a college or university, or even heading into trade school.

Gail Webb is the Mercer County School Coordinator for Gear Up and she said it is great to be able to provide for the students in this county.

Were giving out backpacks to all eighth and ninth graders. And here at Bluefield High School we have one hundred and sixty-three ninth graders that were providing backpacks and school supplies for, said Webb.

Webb said starting the year with new materials can really help the kids focus on their future studies and not have to worry about not having a crucial supply during classes.

She said those working with Gear Up want to take their assistance further, though.

They want to really get students involved in a higher goal.

We want them to develop resilience. So, if they have obstacles in their way during their high school freshman year or during their eighth-grade year, they know where to turn to for help, explained Webb.

Webb said they would also like every student in the county to miss less than ten days of school this year and for everyone to pass their Algebra 1 classes.

8th and 9th graders in the county will also get to visit college campuses in the area as a way to help them visualize what they can do after high school graduation.

Webb said the Mercer County 9th graders will be going on a special visit this year too.

Were actually going to take all the ninth graders, next week, to the Raleigh County Convention Center to hear a renowned education professor speak. His name is Dr. Adolph Brown. And he talks about the importance of making a commitment to graduate from high school, said Webb. And so, theyll listen to him and then theyre actually gonna sign a banner and commit to graduating from high school, and itll come back and be placed on the walls here in their home schools.

Do school dress codes prepare students for the real world?

Gear Up Southern West Virginia will also be doing family dinners for the Mercer County Schools throughout the fall.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Retired U.S. Lieutenant General Ben Hodges analyzes the early success of Ukraine's Kursk incursion and why Russia did not see it coming. But he shares concerns that the West might still fail Ukraine.

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GEORGETOWN COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW)  Two people were arrested Thursday on drug charges after Georgetown County authorities searched a home on Keever Street in connection with a recent shooting incident, deputies said.

Tiffany Robinson, 34, and Samuel Adam Robinson, 42, were charged with trafficking methamphetamine after deputies found a substance presumed to be methamphetamine and other drug paraphernalia. Samuel Robinson was also charged with possession of ammunition by a prohibited person after deputies found firearm-related items.

Authorities did not release information about the shooting incident that led deputies to search the home. The Robinsons are being held at the Georgetown County Detention Center pending their bond hearings.

No additional information was immediately available.

* * *

Dennis Bright is the Digital Executive Producer at News13. He joined the team in May 2021. Dennis is a West Virginia native and a graduate of Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia. Follow Dennis on, Facebook, X, formerly Twitter, and read more of his work here.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Georgia Republican Spots 'Only Thing' For 'Chaotic And Crazy' GOP To Do About Trump

Former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, a Republican, criticized his own party and its love for former President Donald Trump, calling him a direct threat to democracy in his speech Wednesday at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

Duncan, a frequentTrumpcritic since the then-president tried to overturn Georgias 2020 election count  declared that the Republican nominees actions disqualified him from ever, ever, ever stepping foot into the Oval Office again.

If Republicans are being intellectually honest with ourselves, our party is not civil or conservative. Its chaotic and crazy. And the only thing left to do is dump Trump, said Duncan, a CNN political commentator who has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 race.

Duncan, who likened the GOP to working more like a cult worshipping a felonious thug, noted that his attention was focused on Republicans and independents at home who are sick and tired of making excuses for Trump.

He acknowledged that he doesnt agree with every one of Harris policy positions but praised the former California attorney generals prosecutor mindset along with her potential as a leader in the White House.

Let me be clear to my Republican friends at home watching: If you vote for Kamala Harris in 2024, youre not a Democrat, youre a patriot, said Duncan before the Chicago crowd erupted in a USA chant.

Geoff Duncans full speech at the DNC pic.twitter.com/U2YgLV7XvS  Acyn (@Acyn) August 22, 2024

Related...
Georgias former Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan (R) urged independents and Republicans to support Vice President Harris, saying voting for her means youre a patriot.

I can spend my time revving up this crowd but Im certain I dont have to talk anybody out of voting for Donald Trump here, Duncan said. So Im going to focus my attention on the millions of Republicans and independents at home that are sick and tired of making excuses for Donald Trump.

If Republicans are being intellectually honest with ourselves, our party is not civil or conservative. Its chaotic and crazy. And the only thing left to do is dump Trump, he said to roaring applause.

Duncan received the wrath of his fellow Republicans during the 2020 presidential election when he sided with Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) over Trump in certifying the election results. In his convention address, Duncan noted how he and his family needed security during that time period due to threats following Trumps rhetoric on the election.

These days our party acts more like a cult, a cult worshiping a felonious thug, he said.

Duncan praised Harriss prosecutor mindset, calling her a steady hand who will bring leadership to the White House that Donald Trump could never do.

Let me be clear to my Republican friends at home: If you vote for Kamala Harris in 2024 youre not a Democrat, youre a patriot, he said.

Duncan was not the only Republican who addressed the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday. Olivia Troye, a former aide to former Vice President Mike Pence, spoke before Duncan.

I saw how Donald Trump undermined our intelligence community, our military leaders and ultimately our democratic process. Now, hes doing it again, Troye 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.
Germany investigating possible Russian involvement in drone flights over nuclear power plant in country's north  Bild

An industrial area over which drones were flying. Photo: Picture Alliance

Prosecutors in the northern German city of Brunsbuttel are investigating an incident involving unidentified drones flying over a shutdown nuclear power plant.

Source: European Pravda, citing German tabloid Bild

Details: Bild reports that since at least 8 August, drones have been flying at high speed over the area where the shutdown nuclear power plant, liquefied natural gas terminal and chemical plants are located in Brunsbuttel.

A drone flying at over 100 km/hour was spotted in the sky above the nuclear power plant late on 20 August. An internal police report stated that "the no-fly zone had been violated several times".

The most recent drone incident occurred on 22 August, prompting police in Schleswig-Holstein, the federal state where the city is located, to put some officers on alert.

Special services believe that the drones over Brunsbuttel may have been launched by Russian agents from ships in the North Sea for sabotage purposes. They suspect the drones are Orlan-10 models, capable of a range of 500-600 kilometres and speeds over 100 km/h.

Senior Flensburg prosecutor Bernd Winterfeldt confirmed to Bild that a tentative investigation is underway "on suspicion of sabotage activities linked to multiple drone flights over critical infrastructure in Schleswig-Holstein".

Background:

In recent months, Germany has reported multiple attempts to sabotage its infrastructure and military facilities.

In addition, unidentified drones were spying on Ukrainian soldiers during training in Germany. This year, two German-Russian citizens were detained on suspicion of preparing a sabotage at a US base in Bavaria.

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German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier (L), patron of the reconstruction project, and Peter Leinemann, Chairman of the Garrison Church Potsdam Foundation, visit the viewing platform on the tower of the Garrison Church Potsdam. The military church from 1735 was burnt out during the Second World War and the remains were blown up in 1968. Christoph Soeder/dpa

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier inaugurated the rebuilt tower of a church just outside Berlin whose reconstruction has been controversial because of historic links with Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler.

The Garrison Church in the city of Potsdam, located just west of Berlin, was the site of the first meeting of Germany's parliament after the Nazi takeover of power on March 21, 1933.

An infamous photograph from the occasion shows Hitler, the recently proclaimed Reich chancellor, shaking hands with then-Reich President Paul von Hindenburg in front of the Garrison Church.

The meeting was convened at the Garrison Church days after a fire at the Reichstag, the seat of German parliament. The newly empowered Nazis blamed the fire on Communists and used the incident as the pretext for mass arrests and a crackdown on civic rights.

In his speech on Thursday, Steinmeier proclaimed that the rebuilt church tower - and the troubled history of the site - could serve as a reminder and symbol of democracy.

"Let us work together to ensure that this place becomes something that it was not for long periods of its history: a place of democracy," Steinmeier said at the opening ceremony. "That is the historical responsibility we have. And that is the task we all have here together as a society."

The rebuilt tower will host an exhibition that takes a critical look at the building's history, while a viewing platform 57 metres high is expected to be an attraction for visitors.

About 100 protesters who'd opposed the project again gathered outside the church during Steinmeier's speech. A demonstrator called the newly rebuilt tower a "landmark of terror" and symbol of militarism.

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier (L), patron of the reconstruction project, and Peter Leinemann, Chairman of the Garrison Church Potsdam Foundation, visit the viewing platform on the tower of the Garrison Church Potsdam. The military church from 1735 was burnt out during the Second World War and the remains were blown up in 1968. Christoph Soeder/dpa
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier (L), patron of the reconstruction project, and Peter Leinemann, Chairman of the Garrison Church Potsdam Foundation, visit the viewing platform on the tower of the Garrison Church Potsdam. The military church from 1735 was burnt out during the Second World War and the remains were blown up in 1968. Christoph Soeder/dpa

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier inaugurated the rebuilt tower of a church just outside Berlin whose reconstruction has been controversial because of historic links with Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler.

The Garrison Church in the city of Potsdam, located just west of Berlin, was the site of the first meeting of Germany's parliament after the Nazi takeover of power on March 21, 1933.

An infamous photograph from the occasion shows Hitler, the recently proclaimed Reich chancellor, shaking hands with then-Reich President Paul von Hindenburg in front of the Garrison Church.

The meeting was convened at the Garrison Church days after a fire at the Reichstag, the seat of German parliament. The newly empowered Nazis blamed the fire on Communists and used the incident as the pretext for mass arrests and a crackdown on civic rights.

In his speech on Thursday, Steinmeier proclaimed that the rebuilt church tower - and the troubled history of the site - could serve as a reminder and symbol of democracy.

"Let us work together to ensure that this place becomes something that it was not for long periods of its history: a place of democracy," Steinmeier said at the opening ceremony. "That is the historical responsibility we have. And that is the task we all have here together as a society."

The rebuilt tower will host an exhibition that takes a critical look at the building's history, while a viewing platform 57 metres high is expected to be an attraction for visitors.

About 100 protesters who'd opposed the project again gathered outside the church during Steinmeier's speech. A demonstrator called the newly rebuilt tower a "landmark of terror" and symbol of militarism.

A banner held by protesters read: "Nazi church against the will of the citizens."

The Garrison Church was built in 1735 to serve members of the Prussian military, but burned down and was largely destroyed during World War II.

The remaining ruins of the church were demolished in 1968 by the communist East German government. Work on rebuilding the tower began in 2017 after more than two decades of debate, with the exterior modelled on the original.

According to Steinmeier, the rebuilt tower calls on people to remember, to differentiate - but by no means to forget.

"We firmly oppose any attempt to deny German responsibility, to discredit our culture of remembrance as a cult of guilt. I deliberately say: we!"

Steinmeier, a long-time member of the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD), has been a supporter of the controversial reconstruction project.

According to the Garrison Church Foundation, which is affiliated with the Protestant church, the reconstruction of the tower cost around 42 million ($47 million), the majority of which came from the German government.

Construction is not quite complete. According to the foundation, a 30-metre-high dome will be added to the building in 2026, which will make the tower the tallest building in Potsdam. There are no plans to rebuild the nave.

The tower will open to the public for the first time on Friday.

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier (L), patron of the reconstruction project, and Peter Leinemann, Chairman of the Garrison Church Potsdam Foundation, visit the viewing platform on the tower of the Garrison Church Potsdam. The military church from 1735 was burnt out during the Second World War and the remains were blown up in 1968. Christoph Soeder/dpa
During the golden age of whaling, there was a whaling station in Twofold Bay in south-east Australia. But the fishermen did not have to go far to hunt for the cetaceans; a pod of orcas did the job for them: while some of the orcas rounded up the whale  right whales, the occasional humpback and even blue whales  pushing them towards the shore, others would swim towards the land, jumping and splashing in the water to attract the attention of the whalers, who only had to get into their boats to harpoon the animal. Once caught, they would leave the whale in the water for a day, giving the orcas time to eat the part of the prey that interested them: the tongue. The next morning, they would retrieve the animal to boil it and turn it into oil. In 1930, when oil had long since been replaced by petroleum and the whaling station was abandoned, the last of Twofolds orcas died, and with it one of the rare relationships between humans and animals not based on killing the other.

This story of collaboration and mutual benefit is told by Flinders University professor Danielle Clode in her book Killers In Eden. And it is not the only example of humans and animals working together. While the vast majority of interactions between humans and animals have traditionally been conflictual  if not exploitative, with the former terminating the latter  there are a few cases of mutualism. Dolphins helping fishers in Brazil, birds guiding people to a beehive full of honey in Tanzania or crows locating beetle larvae highly sought after by the Kanaks of New Caledonia.

In the past, there were a few more examples, such as the rare case of wolves and Native Americans collaborating to hunt bison and even mammoths. As well as the Twofold orcas, there was a similar pod in the Kamchatka Peninsula (far east of Russia). The end of the whaling industry put a stop to this collaboration. Now the very few remaining cases in which humans and animals help each other out are also at risk of disappearing.

The Roman historian Pliny the Elder wrote about the collaboration between fishermen and dolphins on the coast of what is now France. Pictured is a fresco from the 6th century BC found in an Etruscan necropolis in Tarquinia, central Italy. Peter Seyfferth (imageBROKER/Getty)

For as long as locals can remember, fishers in Laguna, in southeastern Brazil, have been waiting for dolphins. In almost all seas, the two do not get along. Fishers blame dolphins for depleting their catch and breaking their nets. While dolphins might argue that humans are taking away their food. But in this Brazilian bay, bottlenose dolphins wait for schools of mullet to pass. When they do, they organize to push them towards the coast. Meanwhile, following a strategy similar to that of the Twofolds killer whales, some of the dolphins approach the beach to attract the attention of humans with splashes and specific sounds that they only make on these occasions. It is then that the fishers cast their nets. But what do the animals gain by helping them?

Mauricio Cantor is a researcher of animal behavior at the Marine Mammal Institute at Oregon State University. He has been studying dolphins in Laguna for years and explains what they get out of it: They benefit from easier access to schools of fish. Schools are a great defense against predators, and their fast, coordinated movements make it difficult for a dolphin to catch a fish. But by herding them and driving them towards fishers, dolphins make it easier for them to access the fish, and, by casting nets, fishers end up disturbing that defense, he explains. The nets break up the school, making it easier for dolphins to catch their share. The fishermen profit greatly from this collaboration. A 2023 study by Cantor estimated that the chances of fishers catching something increased 17-fold on days when they were called by the dolphins. And, when they were successful, catches quadrupled.

But with each passing year, dolphins are coming less frequently to warn their old allies. For reasons that remain to be clarified, this collaboration is declining. Our data and predictive models suggest that, with the declining availability of fish and the decreasing number of dolphins and expert fishers, cooperative fishing could disappear, says Cantor. The key seems to be that there is less and less fish. Among the causes of this decline, the researcher highlights the overexploitation of industrial fisheries that can capture most of the migratory fish banks before they reach the estuaries and bays where artisanal fishers with nets interact with dolphins.

Large-scale fishing also appears to be largely to blame for the fall in collaboration between dolphins and humans in Mauritania. Bruno Diaz, chief biologist and director of the Bottlenose Dolphin Research Institute BDRI, recalls that until the mid-1980s, the fishers went to the shore, called the dolphins, they came closer, making noises, the fishermen cast their net and everyone won.

Diaz says there are multiple reasons why this practice is in decline: competition from industrial fishing, pollution, nautical traffic and above all the abandonment of traditional fishing techniques; before the nets were made of cotton, the dolphin could get entangled, but it could break the net and get out. Now, nets are almost indestructible  as seen by the large amount of sea plastic they account for. Dolphins have enormous behavioral plasticity, just like higher primates and humans. In other words, they are animals that have to change when faced with a change in the environment or conditions, it is the only option to survive.

Honey birds

There are very few cases of mutualism between humans and terrestrial species. The most studied is that of the greater honeyguide, a bird related to the woodpeckers, which is native to the savanna of sub-Saharan Africa. Traditional hunter-gatherer groups  such as the Hadza in Tanzania or the Yao of Mozambique  rely on the bird to find honey. The bird can be summoned with a series of calls and whistles. If there is one nearby, they wait for the bird to give the first clue, which is to perch on a tree and flutter while emitting very specific sounds. When the human approaches, the bird moves to the next tree, and if the person does not follow it, it returns to find them. From tree to tree, it leads the human to a hive of honey bees. In this way, humans find honey, while the bird gets easier access to the wax and the larvae of the beehive.

Jessica van der Waal  a researcher at the FitzPatrick Institute for African Ornithology at the University of Cape Town  has been studying the greater honeyguide for years. In an article published in 2022, she warned that this very special interaction was much more widespread in the past. Currently, four different communities in Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique have been recorded interacting with honey birds. However, Van der Waal explains by email that research is being carried out in many more places, and it is being discovered that it occurs in many areas.

Like the relationship between dolphins and fishers, the interaction is under threat for many reasons. The most immediate is that humans now have more alternatives for honey. Whats more, modernization  in addition to pressuring traditional hunter-gatherer groups and destroying bird habitat  is causing unexpected effects, For example, this symbiotic relationship has disappeared in a region of Cameroon as beekeeping has become a more popular business. As a result, honey birds were often leading honey seekers to their own hives or, worse, to those of other beekeepers.

Danielle Clode, the author of the book on the Twofold orcas, argues that modernization also makes humans less interested in collaborating with animals: I think most examples of collaboration between humans and animals come from communities that already have a strong cultural connection to animals. She points to the fact that most of the crew in the Australian bay were Aboriginal people who had a strong spiritual connection to the orcas: They believed that when they died they would come back as orcas, so the orcas were literally their family, and they wouldnt let the European whalers harm them.

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Germany has launched an investigation into repeated drone flights over the country's critical infrastructure, suspecting them of "agent activity for sabotage purposes," Flensburg public prosecutor Bernd Winterfeldt said on Aug. 22, in comments reported by Reuters.

Winterfeldt did not give further details on the nature of the drone flights or who was behind them, but the German tabloid Bild said police suspected they were being carried out using Russian Orlan-10s.

Bild also reported that a no-fly zone over a nuclear power plant in northern Germany had been violated several times during August and may have been launched from ships in the North Sea.

Several European countries have in recent months reported numerous cases of espionage and sabotage suspected of being carried out on the behest of Russia.

Alleged Russian spy rings have been discovered in countries including Ukraine, the U.K., and Slovenia.

It was revealed in May that Russia is recruiting violent right-wing extremists to carry out sabotage attacks in Europe and the U.K., raising concerns among intelligence chiefs.

Read also: Morning in Sudzha: Inside Ukrainian-occupied Russia as Kursk operation continues

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Germany's Scholz visits new synagogue near his home outside Berlin

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (C) stands in the synagogue during a visit to the Potsdam Synagogue Center as part of his summer trip to his constituency. Sebastian Christoph Gollnow/dpa

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz highlighted the importance of Jewish life in Germany during a visit on Thursday to a newly inaugurated synagogue in his constituency just outside of Berlin.

Scholz described the synagogue in Potsdam, which opened several weeks ago, as a symbolically important step for Germany.

It is a "touching moment for me to see that after the terrible history of fascism and National Socialism with the destruction of Jewish life in Germany and throughout Europe" to see that Jewish life is finding a place again and places for it exist, Scholz said.

"That is a sign that gives us hope," he added.

Scholz, who lives just a few hundred metres from the synagogue, walked over for a visit on Thursday, flanked by his bodyguards.

Scholz said that Germany's Jewish community can "rely on us," as they face what Scholz described as political threats.

Potsdam, which is the capital of the eastern German state of Brandenburg, had been the only state capital in Germany without a synagogue. The previous synagogues in the city had been destroyed by the Nazis.

The Jewish community in Potsdam has been using a small space at the local university as a place of worship. The project for the synagogue was difficult and accompanied by years of dispute among different denominations within the religion.

The 17.5 million ($19.5 million) synagogue was inaugurated a few weeks ago under heavy police protection. From September 1, it is to become the religious centre of several Jewish communities in Potsdam and can accommodate 199 people at the same time.

The building is equipped with a security gate and the windows are made of bullet-proof glass.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (R) stands behind Abraham Lehrer, President of the Central Welfare Office of Jews in Germany (ZWST) and Vice President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, during a visit to the Potsdam Synagogue Center as part of a summer trip to his constituency. Sebastian Christoph Gollnow/dpa

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (R) receives an Esther scroll for the congregation from Alexander Kogan during a visit to the Potsdam Synagogue Center. Sebastian Christoph Gollnow/dpa
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An illustration of the TOI-1408 system with its two planets TOI-1408 c and TOI-1408 b. | Credit: Robert Lea (created with Canva)

Scientists have discovered that a distant "hot Jupiter" world has a planetary companion. The two planets are locked in a rhythmic dance around the star TOI-1408, located 455 light-years from Earth.

First discovered just last year using NASA's exoplanet-hunting spacecraft, TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite), TOI-1408 b is a gas giant planet that is over twice the width of Jupiter and almost twice the mass of the solar system gas giant. It orbits its parent star at a distance of 5.3 million miles, about 6% of the distance between Earth and the sun. This means TOI-1408 b completes an orbit in just 4.4 Earth days.

This size and proximity to its star classifies TOI-1408 b as a "hot Jupiter," but remarkably, its newly discovered companion is even closer to the system's parent star. The companion, TOI-1408, c is just 3.3 million miles from its star, meaning it completes an orbit in 2.2 Earth days. Yet this newly found planet isn't a hot Jupiter.

With a width around two times that of our planet and a mass eight times that of Earth, TOI-1408 c is classed as a "super-Earth" or a "sub-Neptune." Unlike TOI-1408 b, which is mostly gas, TOI-1408 c is likely to be composed of a mix of gas and rock.

Related: These nearby star systems could be good targets in the search for alien life (video)

"Both TOI-1408 b and TOI-1408 c are incredibly close to their parent star compared to the planets in our solar system," research lead author Judith Korth of Lund University told Space.com. "Imagine our solar system, but instead, Jupiter is orbiting very close to the sun nearly every four days, one-twentieth of the period of Mercury.

"This is already very close to the star, and still, we detected another planet even closer to the star that interacts strongly with its big neighbor, causing their orbits to wobble in ways we've never seen before."

Korth explained that while it was surprising to find an extrasolar planet or "exoplanet" in the TOI-1408 system closer to its star than TOI-1408 b, finding a gas giant with its orbit being disturbed was even more peculiar.

"Finding a hot Jupiter like TOI-1408 b whose orbit is perturbed is already interesting because it's unusual for such massive planets. But discovering that there's an even smaller planet that moves the big planet in its orbits was even more unexpected," she continued. "This discovery challenges some of our assumptions about how these planetary systems form, as we typically don't find smaller, lower-mass planets inside the orbit of a hot Jupiter."

Rythmically dancing worlds

However, something else makes this system extraordinary: its two planets are engaged in a finely tuned rhythmic dance. That's despite the smaller TOI-1408c tugging on its hot Jupiter dance partner, with the TOI-1408 system seeming to have a stable configuration that allows these two planets to coexist in close orbits.

"The systems dynamics are finely tuned, likely as a result of its formation history. The planets' orbits are near a 2:1 period ratio, meaning for every two orbits of TOI-1408c, TOI-1408b orbits the star once," Korth said. "This might help stabilize their orbits despite their proximity to each other and the star."

She added that the exact reason the TOI-1408 system formed this way is likely the motion of the planets through the disk of gas and dust that surrounded its star in its infancy, the so-called "protoplanetary disc" where the planets formed.

A hypothetical visualization of the TOI-1408 system with TOI-1408 c highlighted

TESS has become an extraordinary exoplanet hunter, discovering over 7,000 possible exoplanets since it launched in 2018. The TOI-1408 planets are two of the latest.



The NASA exoplanet hunter has been studying 200,000 of the brightest stars in the vicinity of the sun, spotting planets as they cross or "transit" the face of their parent stars, causing a tiny dip in the stellar light.

The star TOI-1408 is just such a star. With a mass 1.3 times that of the sun and 1.5 the width of our star, TOI-1408 is slightly hotter and brighter than the sun. While TESS discovered both TOI-1408 b and TOI-1408 c, the smaller planet was a little tougher to spot.

"TOI-1408 c was harder to detect because its transits  when it passes in front of the star from our point of view  are much shallower, meaning it blocks less light from the star compared to TOI-1408 b," Korth said. "Additionally, TOI-1408 c's transits are affected by significant transit timing variations (TTVs), which means the timing of its transits isnt as predictable as TOI-1408 b's."

An artist's illustration that shows the concept of the TESS mission.

Korth added that these TTVs are caused by the gravitational interaction between the two planets, and they meant more sophisticated analysis was required to detect TOI-1408 c.

"We discovered TOI-1408 c by carefully analyzing the light curves from the TESS satellite for TTVs of the larger planet TOI-1408 b," she continued. "These TTVs could be produced by gravitational interaction with another planet, yet no other planet was known to the TESS team."

Detecting a transiting signal that could come from another smaller planet with a shorter orbital period than the known planet, to further characterize the nature of the small planet candidate, the team used photodynamical modeling, which combines both the transit light curves and radial velocity data to account for the complex interactions between the planets.

The team isn't done with the TOI-1408 system yet, with clues that it may possess at least three worlds. However, if there are more planets in the system, they are unlikely to be within the orbit of TOI-1408 c.

"There are hints that there might be a third, more distant planet in the system, based on radial velocity data showing a possible long-period trend. However, as for planets even closer than TOI-1408 c, we havent found any evidence of that so far," Korth said. "TOI-1408 c is already very close to the star, and it would be difficult for another planet to maintain a stable orbit inside of that."

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"The TOI-1408 system is incredibly intriguing, so we certainly plan to continue studying it. We want to better understand the potential third planet and explore the system's long-term stability," Korth concluded. "However, we're also continuing to explore other planetary systems.

"Every new discovery like TOI-1408 c helps refine our models and understanding of how planets form."



The team's research is published on the paper repository arXiv.
Gift card scams generate billions for fraudsters and industry as regulators fail to protect consumers  and how one 83-year-old fell into the fear bubble

Wednesday morning, the day before Thanksgiving, Mae awoke, set her hair in curlers and switched on her laptop. The screen froze and a message appeared. It said her Safari web browser had encountered a problem, and a link offered to connect the 83-year-old to the Apple Computer Company. Mae clicked it.

She didnt know it yet, but Mae, like millions of Americans each year, had fallen into the grip of fraudsters. Over the next 10 hours, the criminals would try several methods to steal her money. The one that worked without a hitch was getting her to buy gift cards. The common cards, from retailers such as Target, Apple and Amazon, are sold on racks in drugstores and supermarkets. Theyre better than cash for a fraudster, more portable and just as anonymous. Once criminals have the gift card numbers, they use them to purchase goods online, at stores around the world, or sell or trade them in illicit marketplaces on the dark web, Telegram or Discord.

The drugstore gift card rack used to steal money from Mae. David P. Weber

An estimated US$8 billion is stolen annually from seniors age 60 and older through stranger-perpetrated frauds, according to AARP. Increasingly, gift cards are a leading fraud payment method reported by older adults, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

Maes story is one of many such cases that prompted us  a fraud and forensic accounting professor who is a former top financial regulator, and a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter  to explore how cracks in the financial regulatory system dating to the Civil War have been exploited by fraudsters and corporations.

[ Why gift cards fall into a gap in the 2-tier banking regulation system  and a brief history of why that gap exists ]

The investigation shows that federal regulators have consistently failed to protect the public from gift card fraud and have failed to give gift cards consumer protections like those afforded to credit and debit cards. Congress, in turn, has largely deferred to these regulators. Meanwhile, efforts to rein in the industry on the state and federal level have been met with successful opposition from lobbyists and gift card trade groups. When fraud does occur, gift card retailers are often less than helpful in assisting law enforcement in helping to track down the criminals.

One of us learned about Maes case in his work as a fraud examiner and has seen dozens of similar cases. Mae, who lives in Maryland, is unwilling to publish her last name for fear of being revictimized, as well as sheer embarrassment, but she still wants people to know the story so they dont make the same mistakes.

In gift card fraud, everybody but the victim makes money: fraudsters, gift card companies and retailers. The criminals exploit a rapidly evolving payments industry thats shrouded in secrecy, designed to ensure easy transactions and lacking in consumer protections.

The technology companies that provide the infrastructure that enables the gift card economy are privately held and release little information publicly. They facilitate payments behind the scenes, out of the view of consumers who see only the brand name of the card and the drugstore or supermarket where they buy it. While retailers who sell gift cards could do more to thwart fraud, the secretive technology companies that set up and manage gift cards are best positioned to stop rampant criminality, but they dont. Theres no legal requirement to do so, and they make money off the crime.

Call this number

When Mae called the number that appeared on her screen, a man answered and identified himself as Mac Morgan, an Apple high security technician. He gave her his employee ID number, which she dutifully wrote down. The problem seemed to originate from her bank, he told her. She volunteered that she banked with M&T, a Northeast bank headquartered in Buffalo, N.Y. Call them, he said, and provided a phone number.

The woman who answered said her name was Alivia, from the M&T Bank Fraud Unit. Alivia told Mae that a European pornographer and scammer had tried to gain access to her account and withdraw $20,000 during the night. A hold had been placed on the withdrawal, but Mae needed to come down to the bank and retrieve the money before the fraudsters did.

Anxiety rising in her voice, Mae told the woman she hadnt even had a cup of coffee yet; she still had curlers in her hair. Alivia advised her to remove the curlers and, soothingly, promised to stay on the phone with Mae through the entire process.

Sophisticated schemes

Gift cards are just the latest in fraudsters seemingly unlimited arsenal of tools that help them steal money from people through deceptions like romance scams, fake IRS notices and phony investment schemes. In addition to consumer swindles like the one that targeted Mae, gift cards, including those that are reloadable, have also been hit with an epidemic of card draining, where criminals either steal barcodes from gift cards on the rack or swap in new barcodes they already control.

When consumers put money on a compromised card, the criminals are alerted because they are monitoring the barcodes using automated online account balance inquiries. They can repeatedly check the balances on thousands of barcodes at a time. As soon as money hits a card, the criminals use the account number to purchase items online or in stores, using runners or mules to physically go into stores.

Criminals can steal or alter gift card barcodes to compromise the card. David P. Weber

The gift card draining problem is widespread enough that it attracted the attention of the Department of Homeland Security and sparked hearings in the U.S. Senate in April 2024. Two months later, Maryland passed the nations first law targeting card draining, which mandates secure packaging aimed at thwarting criminals who steal or tamper with the numbers on gift cards.

People ages 18 to 49 are more likely than older adults to lose money in gift card fraud, but adults over the age of 80 lose three times as much as younger adults. The average reported amount lost is $1,000, but more than 100 consumers have reported gift card fraud losses to the Federal Trade Commission in excess of $400,000 each between 2021 and 2023, according to information provided by the FTC through a public records request.

Falling victim to a financial scam ranks second in American fears about criminality, after identity theft, far exceeding concerns about violent crime, according to Gallup. Despite these fears, there doesnt appear to be an accurate government number on exactly how much financial fraud is taking place. The gift card and reloadable card industry also doesnt keep data on the amount of money consumers lose through the criminal use of its products.

At the same time, many gift card companies are not publicly traded. As such, they arent required to file quarterly or annual financial reports with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which would indicate the size of the industry and might outline the amount of fraud, among other risks. Consequently, nailing down an exact figure for the total amount of fraud involving gift cards and reloadable cards is challenging.

To track trends, regulators rely on victims self-reporting to gauge the scope of the problem.

Yet the vast majority of people who fall victim to financial scams never report their losses to law enforcement. Most victims are too embarrassed or pessimistic about their chances of recouping losses and so dont complain. And often they are concerned that their adult children, caregivers or authorities such as adult protective services might conclude that guardianship or institutionalization is necessary to protect them. While it is extremely difficult to know how many elders report financial fraud, a 12-year-old study thats still commonly cited, including by federal authorities, estimates it at 4.2%.

About $550 billion is added onto gift cards annually in the U.S., according to Jordan Hirschfield, a gift card analyst at Javelin Strategy & Research. He estimates that between 1% and 5% of all gift card sales could be fraudulent in some way, but because no one keeps track, its difficult to arrive at an exact number. If the 1% to 5% figure is correct, the amount of fraud is between $5.5 billion and $27.5 billion per year.

A victims fear bubble

Mae had entered what AARP calls a fear bubble, an induced state of panic that makes rational thought difficult, if not impossible. This is a greater risk for seniors, because as people get older they experience anger and fear more vividly. The fraudsters who manipulate this panic describe putting their victims under the ether. Frightened beyond reason, the victim is manipulated into transferring large sums of money to the fraudster to ward off the conjured danger.

Anyone can fall victim. In February, a former New York Times business columnist wrote about losing $50,000 in a fear-induced scam. Mae had graduated summa cum laude from an elite private university. She is a no-nonsense retired nurse and lives independently. Now she was rushing, panicked, to her bank at the direction of a fraudster.

As Mae drove, Alivia advised her to ready a story in case the teller balked at giving her the money. Mae decided to tell them that she needed the $20,000 to buy a used car and it was a matter of urgency.

Frictionless and anonymous

Gift cards have experienced rapid and immense growth because theyre a win-win, an innovative convenience for shoppers and a threefold boon for retailers. The gift card racks are mini billboards for retailers.

A gift card rack at a Target sells dozens of types of gift cards. Some of the cards resemble credit cards, and even carry their logos, but they all lack the regulatory protections of credit cards. The Conversation, CC BY-ND

Consumers commonly spend one- to two-thirds more than the actual value of the card when they use it, said Ben Jackson, chief operating officer for the Innovative Payments Association, one of several trade groups that represent the industry. And sometimes consumers dont spend the gift cards. Terms and conditions of the gift cards, frequently in small print or available only online, may allow retailers to retain the balance after a minimum of five years. Its a tidy gift to retailers amounting to billions of dollars.

The National Retail Federation routinely ranks gift cards as the No. 1 thing shoppers plan to buy. You dont want friction in your gift giving, Jackson said.

He has traced the first gift card to a glove company in Oregon in 1908. The company extolled the convenience of this new innovation: Gift givers need not worry about picking the right size or color glove; give the recipient a card and let them choose for themselves.

In the modern era, plastic gift cards were created by Neiman Marcus, but movie rental company Blockbuster first displayed the cards for customers. Known as a closed-loop card, it can be spent for goods only from that particular retailer.

In contrast, open-loop gift cards can be spent at multiple retailers and often have a credit card logo from companies such as Visa or Mastercard, but they dont offer the same protections afforded actual credit cards, such as requiring an ID on file for the card. Some open-loop cards identify as debit cards even though they also lack the fraud protections of bank debit cards. If the money is swindled, theres no obligation for the company to reimburse the cardholder.

Open-loop cards work everywhere debit and credit cards do and can sometimes be reloaded with funds. Purchasers can pay by cash to remain anonymous. Criminals love them. In the places where fraudsters lurk  on the dark web, which is made up of sites that resemble ordinary websites but are accessible only using special browsers or authorization codes, and on Telegram and Discord messaging apps  open-loop and closed-loop gift cards are offered as payment for everything from payroll to the purchase of equipment needed to perpetrate more frauds.

The first open-loop card originated with retail malls and foreshadowed how the gift card industry would later game regulators. In 2004, Indianapolis-based Simon Property Group and Bank of America created a stored-value card that could be spent at any store in the 159 Simon malls throughout the U.S.

One of many Telegram ads offering gift cards from many different common providers at a deep discount. SOCRadar

The card activation fee was as much as $6.95. Simon also deducted a fee when a card went unused for six months and charged 50 cents each time a customer checked the card balance after the first inquiry. The fees ran counter to the consumer protection laws of some states where Simon operated, and three states sued Simon. But the mall operator successfully contended that because it was working with a national bank, federal law and regulations, which had no restriction on these fees, preempted state law to allow the fees. While the cards failed to stop online shopping from eclipsing the American mall industry, it eventually roused federal lawmakers into limited action.

Meanwhile, another gift card innovation had launched in California. In 2002, an in-house unit of Safeway supermarkets looking to sell nontraditional goods to Safeway customers created the gift card kiosk. It was so successful that a year later the unit became a Safeway subsidiary called Blackhawk Network. By 2007 there were Blackhawk kiosks in 60,000 retail locations, projecting sales of $100 million that year. Seven years later, Safeway spun off Blackhawk as a stand-alone public company.

And in 2018, with help from Blackhawk insiders, a private equity firm called Silver Lake Partners and a hedge fund named P2 Capital Partners took the company private in a transaction worth $3.5 billion. In 2023, Blackhawk Network Holdings had an estimated annual revenue of $2.8 billion.

Blackhawk and its main competitor, Atlanta-based InComm Payments, put cards in drugstores and supermarket chains throughout the U.S. Each card is a separate, private bespoke agreement negotiated between the card owner and the distributor, according to Jackson.

Typically, the distributor negotiates a small discount, usually under 10%, off the cards face value. The discount is split between the distributor and the store selling the card.

One of many Discord servers offering to buy, sell and trade many brands of gift cards, including Amazon, Apple and Google. SOCRadar

The distributor handles card activation so that a retailer like Target will recognize that the card is active in the available amount. In some cases, the distributor also handles the back-end technology that allows consumers to spend the money loaded on the card.

Starting as a small industry a little more than 20 years ago, the closed- and open-loop gift card business has become a massive enterprise involving hundreds of billions of dollars, a festival of frictionless commerce that is also beloved by criminals for its convenience and anonymity.

Mae gets stubborn

The bank teller tried to dissuade Mae from withdrawing $20,000 in cash. Eventually, the bank manager joined the conversation and suggested she take a cashiers check instead. Mae insisted that the guy selling her the car had demanded cash. After about 15 minutes, she wore them down. They gave her the cash.

The bank manager followed Mae to her car to ensure she was OK and to try one more time to get her to reconsider. Mae waived the manager off. Once she was alone again, Mae picked up the phone. Alivia had remained on the line the entire time but told Mae to leave her cellphone in the car while she went into the bank.

A patchwork system of help

In Maryland, the banker had no option but to hand Mae her money. Thats not the case in other states. In Florida, a state that contends with elevated incidents of fraud on seniors, the Legislature passed a law in May allowing financial institutions to delay disbursements or transactions of funds to people over 65 if there is a well-founded belief that they are being exploited. In return, the banks receive immunity from any resulting administrative or civil liability.

The delay, which expires after 15 business days, requires that the financial institution launch an immediate review and contact those the account holder has designated as people of confidence. A court may shorten or extend the length of the pause. Anecdotal evidence from law enforcement suggests that even a few hours of delay can pop the fear bubble fraudsters create. As soon as the persuasive ether of the fraudster lifts, most people realize theyve been scammed. A delay also makes time for the target to talk to someone they trust who might dissuade them from parting with their money.

In New Jersey in 2021, state Sen. Nellie Pou sponsored a bill that proposed a 48-hour delay before using or validating a gift card worth more than $100 and proposed extending the protections to gift cards that credit cards receive under federal laws and regulations: If a consumer reported fraud, the funds would be frozen, and if the fraud investigation were upheld, the money would be returned to the customer. The bill also proposed a fraud incident hotline for consumers, exempted small businesses and levied a $1,000 civil penalty for card issuers that violated its provisions.

The Innovative Payments Association lobbied against the New Jersey bill. The legislation would harm New Jerseyans, it wrote lawmakers, by discouraging gift card providers to issue and sell such cards in the state. The association argued that the waiting period defeats the purpose of having a gift card, which is to allow the recipient to go out and get what they want/need immediately. The legislation passed the state Senate but died in the Assembly and wasnt reintroduced.

Several states have also passed or are considering laws requiring retailers selling gift cards to post warning signs, including Delaware, Iowa, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and West Virginia, but none go as far as the New Jersey bill.

This gift card display in a Walgreens in Maes neighborhood has a sign warning customers not to give gift card numbers to other people. Some stores display warning signs, but some dont. David P. Weber

Waiting periods and warning signs are not the only tools that gift card companies could use against fraud. The distributors already have a technology in place that would be even more effective: velocity limits.

If unusually large numbers of gift cards are being purchased at a drugstore or supermarket, for instance, a distributor like Blackhawk could freeze the sale and alert the retailer. They have done this on occasion, but our investigation shows this does not happen with consistency. If sale freezes and alerts happened consistently, consumers would be less likely to be reporting on the FTC database large amounts of money lost to gift card scams.

Gift cards could also be required to use geofencing. If a card is purchased in Maryland but redeemed on the same day in California or China, that could be a red flag for fraud because the likelihood that someone like Mae would be able to get gift cards to faraway friends or family so quickly is slim. Geofencing would freeze redemption outside a certain geographical area.

And more simply, retailers could require that gift cards be purchased with a credit or debit card rather than cash to make it easier to reimburse a customer in the event of fraud.

In 2022, around the same time New Jersey was trying to rein in gift card fraud all by itself, Congress passed the Stop Senior Scams Act. The bill created an advisory group of industry members, regulators and law enforcement that is run by the FTC and tasked with studying ways to curtail fraud. Included in the mandate was a focus on technology. The advisory group created a Technology and New Methods Committee subcommittee with about two dozen members, including Blackhawk and the Innovative Payments Association. In the two years since the bill was passed, the main committee has met only twice. Recommendations by federal advisory committees are not binding. Although the Federal Advisory Committee Act requires that committee meetings be open to the public and their records available for public inspection, its not a requirement for subcommittees.

The committee is aiming to disrupt fraud, particularly among older adults, by more efficiently sharing information, data and other intelligence, according to committee member Jilenne Gunther, national director of AARPs BankSafe Initiative.

The industry has pushed consumer education as the best response to the gift card fraud epidemic, even as signage and public service announcements have shown questionable effectiveness. Consumer education  puts the burden of protection on the targets of fraud, Marti DeLiema, assistant professor of social work at the University of Minnesota, testified at an Elder Justice Coordinating Counsel hearing in 2022. At the same time, fraud targets are often in states of emotional distress.

Some retailers are also training their cashiers to be alert to seniors inexplicably buying fistfuls of gift cards, but these efforts are not always standardized across the industry. Expecting a clerk earning minimum wage to prevent a fearful senior from legally buying gift cards is likely unrealistic.

Blackhawk did not respond to multiple requests for interviews and declined to answer emailed questions. InComm Payments declined to make anyone available for an interview and did not answer detailed emailed questions.

In its letter opposing the New Jersey bill the Innovative Payments Association argued that the industry was highly regulated, required to adhere to federal requirements and strict federal anti-money laundering regulations.

In practice, thats not the case.

The criminals direct Mae to crypto

Before sending Mae to buy gift cards, the fraudsters tried another scheme. Alivia directed Mae to a Shell gas station with a Cash2Bitcoin ATM inside and told her that if she put her money into crypto it would be safe. Mae had never before seen a Bitcoin ATM. Alivia talked her through registering for an account, including uploading her drivers license, a know-your-customer requirement that doesnt exist for gift cards.

You can convert cash to cryptocurrency at Bitcoin automated teller machines. AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey

As Mae fed thousands of dollars into the machine, another elderly woman stood behind her impatiently. I need to get money to send to my nephew, she told Mae. Much later, Mae would realize that the woman was probably being scammed, too. At $15,000, the ATM hit its limit on deposits. The money Mae was feeding into the ATM went flying. She jammed the receipts into her purse and hurriedly gathered cash off the floor.

The fraudsters then sent Mae to the areas two other crypto ATMs, but neither worked. It was 5 p.m. and getting dark. Mae hadnt eaten all day. Alivia asked if Cash2Bitcoin had sent her a receipt for the $15,000. No, Mae replied, forgetting she had shoved it into her purse. Alivia told her to call and find out what the holdup was. Maes phone conversation with Cash2Bitcoin was concerning enough that the man at the exchange froze Maes money.

Stymied, Alivia handed the call off to her supervisor, Mike Ross. Faced with a crypto dead end, but unwilling to relinquish a chance at the remaining $5,000, Ross directed Mae to a Rite Aid near her house to buy gift cards.

Loopholes and laggards

Gift card companies can make the claim they are highly regulated because of legislation that occurred after the 2008 financial crisis. The uproar after Simon Property Group flouted state consumer protection laws led Congress to pass the Credit CARD Act in 2009. The law eliminated many of the garbage fees on gift cards and prohibited cards from expiring for at least five years. It also encouraged states to legislate their own reforms by allowing state law to preempt federal law. But the law didnt extend existing credit and debit card consumer fraud protections for gift card purchasers.

As part of the wave of financial reform, Congress also created a single regulator for consumer financial protection: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. It removed regulation-writing authority from the Federal Reserve and gave enforcement and rule writing authority solely to the bureau. It also took away examination and enforcement of all nonbank financial products from the Fed, the FDIC and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. Federal consumer protection  bank or nonbank  would ostensibly now be regulated only by this new single regulator.

In the 15 years since the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was created, there has been a rise in consumer financial products outside of banks, but the new agency hasnt kept up. As part of the rules it issued in 2016 and 2018, it exempted most gift cards, open- and closed-loop alike, from regulation.

While the bureau declined multiple requests to explain why gift cards were exempted from its consumer protection rules for fraud, it did point to resources including a flowchart showing what types of electronic payment methods would be covered under its rules. The chart, a near-incomprehensible tangle of arrows and scenarios, shows how most prepaid gift cards are exempt from the fraud consumer protection regulations common for debit and credit cards, including all gift cards and branded reloadable cards purchased in retail drugstores and supermarkets. This exemption exists even though these prepaid cards rely on electronic activation and maintenance, which is the purpose of existing laws such as the Electronic Fund Transfer Act.

Page 1 of a five-page flowchart explaining the types of gift cards that are covered by Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rules. All gift cards and branded reloadable cards purchased in retail drugstores and supermarkets are exempt. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

The FTCs authority

Aside from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the FTC and the Treasury Department have responsibilities that could protect consumers like Mae from gift card fraud. Yet, to date, their actions concerning gift cards are spotty at best.

The FTC is the original consumer protection agency. It can regulate unfair or deceptive acts or practices in commerce and provides annual statistics of consumer reports of fraud in all products and services. It provides advice about avoiding scammers, and consumers can fill out a form and join other tragic stories in a growing database, but there is little consequence for the companies involved. The FTC contends it has jurisdiction to bring enforcement actions against gift card nonbank entities for unfair or deceptive acts or practices, but the last time it appears to have done so was in 2007.

The FTC provided a background interview and sent a follow-up memo, but it declined to answer questions about the differences between its authority and that of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or confirm which agency is the primary federal regulator of gift cards.

More agencies, little oversight

The Treasury could also get involved. Two agencies of the U.S. Department of Treasury tackle fraud that touches on national security, terrorism and transnational gangs. Increasingly, criminals from China, Iran, North Korea, Russia and the occupied areas of Ukraine target Americans with tacit, and sometimes explicit, state support. These Treasury agencies have also largely given gift cards a pass, exempting them from controls in place to combat these crimes, even though there is evidence that the cards are being used by international criminals.

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, a bureau of the Treasury Department, requires two types of reports that can involve gift cards: currency transaction reports for transactions of $10,000 or more that are made in cash, and confidential suspicious activity reports for a variety of transactions of any value that the filer considers suspicious, including suspected elder financial exploitation.

Financial institutions, including banks and businesses such as car dealerships, casinos, antique dealers and money service providers, are required to file the reports. These include money transmitters  companies such as Western Union and MoneyGram  that work through retail establishments such as supermarkets and Walmart to send money overseas or to another city rather than using a bank wire transfer.

Those businesses must obtain personal identification information, such as a Social Security number and drivers license from the person conducting the transactions, for the report. Financial institutions file millions of reports every year.

In 2011, with gift cards still in their infancy, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network issued a regulation to amend the money service business definition to address prepaid access products such as gift cards.

But despite law enforcement concerns, the agency exempted open-loop cards up to $1,000 that werent used internationally and closed-loop gift cards up to $2,000 from the money-laundering regulation. For closed-loop cards, there was no restriction on international use.

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network also didnt limit aggregation for gift cards. Banks and money service businesses are generally required to aggregate transactions made on the same day from multiple locations and must report if the total amount goes over $10,000 for the day. For gift cards, however, there is no aggregate tracking requirement, so fraudsters can direct seniors to multiple stores in a day  even stores from the same chain  to buy $2,000 worth of gift cards at each, racking up tens of thousands of dollars.

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Networks rule specifies that categories of prepaid access products and services were exempted because they pos[ed] lower risks of money laundering and terrorist financing, despite noting that law enforcement disagreed.

In response to our detailed questions, the Treasurys Financial Crimes Enforcement Network declined to say how many, if any, regulatory examinations it or the IRS on its behalf has conducted of gift card providers. Any information or statistics that we can share publicly are located on our website, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network spokesperson Steve Hudak wrote in an email that also included resource links. FinCEN declines further comment.

The final agency in the gift card regulatory puzzle is Treasurys Office of Foreign Assets Control, which administers and enforces economic sanctions programs against countries and groups of individuals, including foreign hackers and fraudsters targeting the United States.

But because gift card purchasers dont have to show identification and can provide the card number or a text picture of the card to someone overseas, gift card companies cant prevent sanctioned people, groups or nations from using their products.

Only one enforcement action appears to have been taken by the Office of Foreign Assets Control against a gift card provider.

In 2022, when Tango Card products, now a division of Blackhawk, self-reported that cards had been used to purchase goods or services in malign nations, including Iran, North Korea, Syria and Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine, the bureau sanctioned the company $116,048.60.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

Mae sends the police away

At Rite Aid, Ross instructed Mae to purchase three types of gift cards: two $500 Nordstrom cards, two $500 Target cards and one $200 Macys card.

Gift card rack at the Rite Aid where Mae was instructed by a fraudster to buy gift cards and give the fraudster the gift card numbers. David P. Weber

Given the size of the purchase, the Rite Aid cashier called over the manager. Mae lied and said she needed the gift cards for her grandson. Likely due to the $2,000 limit Rite Aid imposed on daily purchases of closed-loop gift cards, the drugstore would sell her only the four Nordstrom and Target cards for a total of $2,000. Back in her car, Mae scratched the back of the cards to reveal the numbers and read them to Ross.

The front and back of a Target gift card. Removing the cardboard tab uncovers a scratch-off area; scratching reveals the card numbers. Once a fraudster has the numbers, the money on the card can be quickly spent online. The Conversation, CC BY-ND

He was about to direct her to the next stop when there was a knock on the car window. It was a police officer. Mae had been scheduled to cook dinner for a gentleman friend who had become worried by her absence and contacted the local police. Theyd tracked down her car. Ross told her to get rid of the cop by inventing a story. Hed stay on the line to listen. She rolled down the window and did as Ross instructed, reassuring the officer that all was well, and shed be home soon.

Gift card rack at the Food Lion where Mae tried to buy gift cards. David P. Weber

When the policeman left, Ross sent Mae to a nearby Food Lion supermarket to buy more gift cards. The Food Lion was close to Maes house, and the store manager knew her. He refused to sell her the gift cards. This is a scam, he told her. It was now almost 8 pm. Resigned, Ross instructed her to go home but not tell anyone what had transpired.

The fear bubble lifts

By the time Mae pulled into her driveway, the ether had lifted and she knew shed been scammed. It was a big fat light bulb: Youve been screwed, she said.

Mae called M&T and learned there was no open fraud case. She called Target. Only 30 minutes had elapsed since she purchased the gift cards at Rite Aid, but theyd already been spent.

Recent prosecutions of Chinese gift card draining rings have revealed that the criminals employ networks of mules. These low-level employees are already positioned to buy goods in person once gift card numbers are obtained. And there are other avenues to monetize the gift cards besides an army of low-level buyers. On the Russian-owned Telegram app, dozens of gift card marketplaces sell illegally obtained cards. The traffic in illicit gift cards appears to be growing in popularity because its possible to move huge sums of money offshore anonymously with little to no regulatory controls.

The reduced fraud protection makes it easy for cybercriminals to find buyers, said Ensar Seker, advisory chief information security officer at SOCRadar, a cybersecurity firm that monitors the channels.

The cards are usually sold for 50% to 75% of face value, based on the risk incurred in obtaining them, according to Seker. If cards need to be moved quickly because they were acquired through hacking and likely to be canceled, theyre worth closer to 50%. Cards obtained by fraud are worth closer to 75%, because there is little risk of being caught for using one.

Retailers arent required to know who their customers are. So the retailer issuing the card has no idea whether the cardholder is the person who bought it, someone who was gifted the card, a fraudster or someone who purchased it from a fraudster on Telegram or the dark web. Sometimes criminals will report the cards stolen and receive a new number to cover their tracks. Because the retailer doesnt know who bought the card, it cant tell that its the fraudster making the call.

Increasingly, cryptocurrencies can be traced and recovered, said Seker, but gift cards cannot.

The most important aspect for the criminal is to stay anonymous and untraceable. Gift cards allow this, he said.

Epilogue

Investigators tried to pursue the criminals responsible for scamming Mae. Her case was referred to a special elder financial exploitation team. Investigators met with Mae less than a week after the fraud.

The phone numbers the fraudsters used in speaking to Mae were internet lines from a service provider that had little information to offer and denied any responsibility. The phone service had been purchased using an open-loop gift card, so there was no record of who purchased the service.

Mae had thrown out the gift cards but gave the investigators the Rite Aid receipts, which had partial numbers of the gift cards, similar to ATM receipts. The investigators subpoenaed Rite Aid for the full gift card numbers using the postal mailing address the store provided for subpoenas.

After a substantial delay, Rite Aid responded to the subpoena, claiming it couldnt provide the full card numbers using its point-of-sale records. Investigators later connected with a regional loss prevention manager at a different store who provided the full gift card numbers that Rite Aid corporate headquarters claimed in its subpoena response it didnt have.

The investigators then subpoenaed Nordstrom and Target. But by that time there was no information left to provide. Store surveillance footage was months gone, overwritten with new footage. The retailers had no records of who had used the cards. So despite immediate action by law enforcement, the criminals had vanished, along with Maes $2,000.

Mae got most of her bitcoin money back, thanks to the compliance efforts and fraud freeze that had been placed on her bitcoin account on the day of the fraud.

Even as fraud against the elderly, including through gift cards, continues to grow, its primed to get only worse. In 2023, Americans 65 and older represented 17.3% of the population, about 57.8 million people. By 2040, they will be 22% of the population, numbering more than 78 million. By 2060, that number is expected to be 88.8 million.

These seniors will be sitting on nest eggs accrued over a lifetime, and fraudsters want a piece of it.

Mae reported her story to the local police, AARP and the FTC database. It can happen to anyone, she said.

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: Dr. David P. Weber, Salisbury University and Jake Bernstein, The Conversation

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Dr. David P. Weber receives funding from the Administration for Community Living (ACL), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to combat elder financial and high tech exploitation on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay, Maryland. The award totals $2.6 million of financial assistance, with 80 percent funded by ACL/HHS and 20 percent funded by Maryland state and local government sources. The contents of this investigative story are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by ACL/HHS, or the U.S. Government.

Jake Bernstein 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.
'It gives us all hope': For the chance to become citizens, they work all day and study at night

Rosalia Navarro, 31, didnt know how to start her U.S. citizenship process on her own. Although she has lived in Milwaukee since she was 13 years old, the 20-page application and multi-part naturalization test intimidated her, she said.

You look at it, and you're like, how am I supposed to learn this? Navarro said.

Her online search eventually led her to Voces De la Fronteras New American Program. Its a free program that helps people through the process to become a citizen, from starting the application to nailing their interview and exam.

After almost a year of classes, Navarro passed her exam, took the oath of allegiance and became a U.S. citizen in March 2023.

Now, as supervisor in the program, she helps guide other students through.

I'm very proud, Navarro said. I never thought that when I came in here, as a student, that I was going to get this far.

Rosalia Navarro teaches two Spanish-speaking students in preparation for their naturalization exam.

Voces' New American Program has helped at least 22 people this year become U.S. citizens. Last year, the nonprofit guided 55 people through the process.

Many barriers stand in the way. Filing a naturalization application can cost up to $710. Thats not including the fees for a permanent resident card, or "green card," which can cost over $1,000.

The exam  which includes both a civics test and a three-part English test  can be challenging. And the wait is long.

One motivation keeps students going: the right to vote.

Lazaro Rodriguez, 43, said he works more than 60 hours a week doing construction in Kenosha, Milwaukee and Sheboygan. Two nights a week for almost a year, he would come to the Voces office to study for the exam.

Rodriguez moved from the city of Guadalajara, Mexico to Milwaukee over a decade ago. He said his time in the program helped him build his confidence in English.

"I wasn't nervous [to take the test]," Rodriguez said. "I knew I could do it."

Rodriguez waited about seven months for his application to be processed and to receive his exam appointment date. After he passed, he waited another two months for his naturalization ceremony.

On July 10, he became a U.S. citizen. Now, he's looking forward to casting his ballot for the first time in November.

"I want to vote in the federal election, the state elections, in every election," Rodriguez said. "My vote is for Democrats."

Janet Zamora, Maria Concepcion Carranza Soto and Lazaro Rodriguez finished the New American Program this summer. Zamora is awaiting her Oath of Allegiance appointment date before she joins the other two as a new U.S. citizen.

Students in Voces program watching presidential election closely

Voces is one of three organizations, along with Centro Hispano Milwaukee and Milwaukee Area Technical College, offering citizenship classes in the city.

Voces offers classes six days a week and can serve 55 students at a time. There are 120 students on the waiting list, Navarro said.

Heidi Sjostrom, a volunteer teacher since 2012, has seen students from Guatemala, Mexico, Venezuela, Somalia, Iran and Cuba pass through the program. They are of all ages, from early twenties to late seventies.

"They are dedicated and so highly motivated to become citizens," Sjostrom said. "Most students work at least one to two jobs, come here at night and study. They take it very seriously."

Like Rodriguez, many in Voces' Monday night class said their motivation for participating was the right to vote.

Cecilia Cordova, 45, has lived in Milwaukee since she was 16. She started taking classes five months ago to ensure she can't be separated from her three children.

"I would like to vote and stay here with my children," she said.

The two presidential candidates have expressed drastically different opinions on immigration.

Vice President Kamala Harris, a daughter of immigrants, has a history of prosecuting cross-border crime as attorney general in California, supporting Dreamers and opposing migrant detention facilities.

On the other hand, former President Donald Trump has repeated false claims about undocumented immigrants and promises to launch the "largest domestic deportation operation" in U.S. history if elected.

Navarro, the program supervisor, is the first in her family to be able to vote in the U.S. For her, voting in the upcoming election is a way to protect immigrants in her family and in her classroom.

"I want to make sure that the person I vote for sees us as equal," Navarro said. "Someone that's going to provide work permits and opportunities for people."

Heidi Sjostrom, a volunteer teacher, practices the naturalization test's 100 civic questions with six Spanish-speaking students.

Path to citizenship includes a civics test

Janet Zamora, 43, used YouTube videos and Voces' Monday night classes to prepare for the exam. Studying the 100 civic questions was the hardest part for her, she said.

"I asked my husband, who was born here, 'Do you remember who was president during World War II?' and he said 'Uh, no,'" Zamora said. "It's not easy. I just kept studying and studying."

Zamora decided to apply for citizenship because the cost of renewing her green card every 10 years was more expensive than the naturalization process, she said. The cost to renew is more than $400.

To become citizens, applicants must pass a U.S. history and government exam, which consists of six to 10 randomly-selected questions. Applicants study a pool of 100 civic questions to prepare.

What are the first three words of the Constitution?

Whats the largest state in the U.S.?

Name a war the U.S. participated in the 1800s.

Then, there's the English test. In this portion of the exam, applicants must write a few sentences and read the sentences aloud. Some students, according to Navarro, start the program without having learned to read or write in their native language.

"If you misspell one word in a sentence, they can mark it wrong," volunteer teacher Pat Kinnew says to a table of nine students.

Kinnew has volunteered with the program for eight years. She says the naturalization test isn't easy.

"Most American citizens couldn't pass this test," she said.

More: Could you pass the test to become a U.S. citizen? Quiz yourself here

Then, there's the waiting. Zamora passed the test in May, then waited another three months for her oath of allegiance appointment, the final step. As of Aug. 9, she is a U.S. citizen.

In 2021, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services reported a backlog of 3,570 citizenship applications in Wisconsin, according to a report by Voces, National Partnership for New Americans and other organizations.

The national average processing time for naturalization applications is more than six months, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. As of February, the agency has a backlog of 4.3 million cases.

Preparing for the naturalization test can take anywhere from two months to 1 1/2 years depending on the person, Navarro said.

Despite these challenges, students in Voces New American Citizen Program continue to cross the finish line.

Although voting and applying for a passport were top of mind for Navarro, the first thing she wanted to do after finishing the process was to share her experience with the class. It's a tradition in the program to share the first-person experience of completing the naturalization process.

"To stand in front of the class and say that I was able to pass, like everybody else, is a big celebration," Navarro said. "It gives us all hope."

Gina Castro is a Public Investigator reporter for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. She can be reached at gcastro@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee program creates pathway to the polls for immigrants
Who is Gloria Johnson of the Tennessee Three? Senate candidate is speaking at the DNC

Three Tennessee state legislators are taking the stage at the Democratic National Convention on a night centered around gun violence prevention. State Reps. Gloria Johnson, Justin Jones and Justin Pearson made national news in 2023 for protesting on the Tennessee House of Representatives floor.

The Democrats demonstrated against Tennessee's GOP supermajority and in favor of new gun safety laws in the aftermath of the 2023 deadly Covenant School shooting. Jones and Pearson, both Black men, were expelled for breaking the rules but Johnson was not.

The expelled lawmakers easily won back their seats in special elections.

Soon after they were expelled, Vice President Kamala Harris met with the trio, nicknamed the Tennessee three, at Frisk University in Nashville.

Voters may be familiar with Johnson for another reason: she's running to unseat U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn, a Republican.

Johnson used the momentum from her "Tennessee Three" activism to fuel the start of her campaign. She told Knox News that Republicans gave her a "gift" by shining a spotlight on their cause of school safety.

Here's what you need to know about the Democrat from Knoxville:

Who is Gloria Johnson?

Johnson, 62, is a retired teacher who taught at Knoxville's Central High School. In 2008, she survived a school shooting there.

Is Gloria Johnson in office?

Johnson represents the 90th District in East Tennessee. She's one of just two Democratic representatives from Knox County. She was first elected to the since-eliminated 13th District in 2012. She lost the seat to a Republican in 2014 and won it back in 2018. She served that district until 2020, when the Republican supermajority redistricted.

She moved to the 90th District, won and has held that seat ever since.

Her district includes neighborhoods north of downtown Knoxville.

What's Gloria Johnson running for?

Johnson is running for the U.S. Senate against Blackburn, but she's also running to keep her seat in the Tennessee State House of Representatives. It's unconventional but legal in Tennessee, though some members of the Republican-led legislature attempted to change that and couldn't get the bill passed.

She faces no opposition in her state House election.

In the event Johnson wins both her state House seat and the U.S. Senate seat, she would almost certainly take the Senate seat and the Knox County Commission would appoint someone to serve in the House until a special election could be held.

What's on Gloria Johnson's platform?

According to her website, Johnson hopes to:

Protect abortion rights across the country and protect access to fertility treatments

Fight for bipartisan commonsense gun safety laws

Work to lower rising costs of housing, groceries and education

Expand quality, affordable health care in rural areas and fight to lower drug costs

Increase funding for public schools

Allie Feinberg reports on politics for Knox News. Email her: allie.feinberg@knoxnews.com and follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @alliefeinberg

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Who is Gloria Johnson of the Tennessee Three?
His work was good, Former LRSD superintendent Mike Poore gives thoughts on resignation of Dr. Jermall Wright

LITTLE ROCK, Ark.  Former Little Rock School District superintendent Mike Poore shared his thoughts following news of Jermall Wrights resignation.

Poore said it came as a surprise when he learned current superintendent Wright had resigned after two years.

I hate that were having to go through this transition at this time, Poore said.

Little Rock School District Superintendent Jermall Wright responds to concerns about his resignation

Poore was superintendent for six years at LRSD, starting in 2016. Poore accomplished getting the LRSD out of state control and praised Wrights many accomplishments.

His work was good, Poore said. The board and him had accomplished a lot.

In May of 2022, after announcing the hire of Wright, LRSD school board member Greg Adams said the district is the second largest and most complex in the state.

Poore agrees that LRSD is a unique district because its in the capital of Arkansas and draws a different level of attention whether theres good things going on or something more challenging.

One of the challenges Poore said he was faced with, thats still an issue for LRSD, is the battle of enrollment.

With the LEARNS Act, it is a much more competitive situation, Poore said. Obviously, youve always had charters, thats been a part of the equation in Little Rock, but they have added a few more since I left.

LRSD Superintendent Jermall Wright shares statement after resignation announcement; parent reacts to resignation

The former superintendent said to compete, LRSD has got to have a great educational delivery that starts with being able to get kids to read. I know that was the focus for Dr. Wright and it was for my team too.

He added that its needed to have a strong career program for when kids transition to post-secondary, which is something he says LRSD has done exceptionally well at.

Poore also said during his time it was a challenge working with the board of directors but added thats not uncommon for any place in this country.

He said LRSDs nine board members versus seven or five like other districts made things a little more complex.

Theres always sometimes a little tension as you try to move forward with people accepting change, Poore said. Certainly, we had some of that during my time and then Dr. Wright has gone through some of that.

Little Rock School District Superintendent Jermall Wright announces resignation

As the board is in the transition process, Poore isnt ruling out a return.

Everyone knows I love Little Rock and love Little Rock School District and would do anything to help the board or Dr. Wright, Poore said.

Poore knows that finding the right replacement can take time but noted that can be a good sign.

When you have something thats this complex and this important, it shouldnt be just like a snap decision, it should be something thats really given a lot of thought, he said.

Little Rock School District kicks off the first day of school

On Monday, the Little Rock School District held a board meeting to discuss Dr. Wrights resignation and transition plan for future leadership. No decision was made. Another meeting will take place on Thursday evening at 5:30 p.m.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KLRT - FOX16.com.
Good news for Wake students: Teacher vacancies are down heading into new school year

The Wake County school system will open the school year next week with fewer vacancies than it has seen in recent years.

Figures released on Thursday show that Wake has 235 vacant teaching positions, which is 59 fewer than last August. Wake will open traditional-calendar schools on Tuesday with 98% of its 11,703 teaching positions filled.

Were not quite at 100%, and for those reasons, we are continuing to hire, Kristi Dye-Rhone, Wakes senior director of talent acquisition, said Thursday. So as students get closer to the first day of school, you will find that our team is working closely with our building administrators as well as our recruitment team and communications team with making sure that were able to staff the schools.

Dye-Rhone said substitute teachers will cover the vacancies until a permanent replacement is found. She said principals may also shift teachers around to help cover those classes.

Wake also has 103 vacant instructional assistant positions, 14 fewer than a year ago. Wake has filled 96% of the 2,872 instructional assistant positions, or what used to be called teacher assistants.

Vacancy rates remain higher in special-education classes for teachers and instructional assistants than in other classes.

Vacancies not at pre-pandemic levels

Wake, like school districts across the nation, have been finding it more challenging to fill teacher vacancies. Dye-Rhone said the vacancy rate at the start of the school year is still higher than it was before the pandemic.

But Dye-Rhone credits aggressive recruitment efforts and using unique ways, such as advertising on social media, with helping improve the hiring numbers.

Weve seen the numbers get better over time, and it is our hope to eventually get to that 100%, Dye-Rhone sad.

Emily Brugler, a first-year pre-kindergarten teacher, talks with Marcie Holland at South Lakes Elementary School on Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Fuquay-Varina, N.C.

Wake, which is North Carolinas largest school district, also offers higher pay than most counties.

This year, the district is offering a 4% raise in the local salary supplement for teachers and a 4% raise to support staff. This includes a higher minimum salary of $20 for bus drivers and $17.75 for other non-certified staff.

Also unlike most North Carolina school districts, Wake pays 10% extra to teachers who have a masters degree. This includes teachers who missed the states 2013 cutoff to continue receiving extra masters degree pay.

Recruiting teachers from within

Wake has helped filled some of its vacant teacher positions by hiring from within through its Future Teachers Program.

The district offers contracts to Wake high school seniors who plan to become teachers after graduating from college. Wake has hired 75 teachers from the program since 2019. It has 118 college students currently in the program.

Emily Brugler, a first-year pre-kindergarten teacher, smiles while preparing supplies in her classroom at South Lakes Elementary School on Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Fuquay-Varina, N.C.

Emily Brugler joined the program after graduating from Fuquay-Varina High School in 2020. Brugler, 22, graduated from Meredith College in May.

Brugler spent Thursday getting her pre-kndergarten classroom ready at South Lakes Elementary School in Fuquay-Varina. Next week she will be visiting the homes of her students to get to know them and their parents.

Im feeling every single emotion, I think, Brugler said. Stress, excited, nervousness, second guessing. But Im just excited to have them in here. I have 18 wonderful kids that Im so excited to meet.

Brugler knows she has both the challenge and the opportunity to give her students a strong foundation.

It makes me want to be in a job that every day is going to be different, Brugler said. I really get to see what they want to learn about and adapt that to them.

So I think knowing that Im kind of making a difference, hopefully, like so many teachers in my life. ... That was a big want for me to be back and be a teacher.
China News Service: Its reported that Japanese Ambassador to China Kenji Kanasugi recently published an article on Japanese media. One of the main points is to make good use of the economic opportunities offered by China. He wrote that China leads the world in electric and smart vehicles, digital economy and green development, and that the economic growth in Japan and the wider world would not be possible without Chinas economic growth. He stressed the need for Japan to make the best use of the economic opportunities offered by China. Whats Chinas comment?

Mao Ning: I noted the reports. Ambassador Kenji Kanasugis view is objective and constructive. Chinas economic growth gives a strong boost to the worlds economic growth and Chinas prosperity offers significant opportunities to global prosperity. We will continue to work for high-quality development and promote high-standard opening up. China will, as always, welcome companies from all countries, including Japanese companies, to seize Chinas development opportunities and share in Chinas development dividends, so as to realize greater development.

Yomiuri Shimbun: It was reported that in mid-August, China indicted a male employee of Astellas who was arrested in October last year. What are the charges and the content of the indictment? Can you share more details?

Mao Ning: Recently Chinese procuratorial authorities filed a public prosecution in accordance with law against relevant Japanese citizen on suspicion of espionage. China is a country that upholds the rule of law. We investigate and handle illegal and criminal activities in accordance with law, protect the lawful rights and interests of the person concerned and provide facilitation for Japanese consular officials in China to perform their consular duties. We hope the Japanese side will help its citizens enhance their awareness of abiding by Chinas laws and regulations and not conducting illegal and criminal activities in our territory. Id refer you to competent authorities on the specifics.

Hubei Media Group: Special Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General on Myanmar Julie Bishop visited China recently. Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with her. Could you share more details with us?

Mao Ning: At the invitation of the Chinese side, Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General on Myanmar Julie Bishop visited China on August 20 and 21. Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and Special Envoy for Asian Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Deng Xijun met with her respectively. They had in-depth exchange of views on the Myanmar issue.

China respects Myanmars sovereignty, independence, national unity and territorial integrity, and stays committed to non-interference in Myanmars internal affairs and the Myanmar-owned and Myanmar-led peace process. China supports ASEANs role as the main channel and hopes that ASEANs five-point consensus on Myanmar and Myanmars new five-point roadmap will create good momentum for each other and be effectively implemented. China supports the UN in playing a constructive role in the political settlement of the Myanmar issue, and stands ready to provide support and assistance to the Special Envoy in performing her duties. We hope the Special Envoy will uphold an objective and just position, handle relations between all parties in a balanced manner, bear in mind the long-term interests of the Myanmar people, and help the Myanmar side find an effective way to bridge differences.

Antara: Both Indonesia and China have been actively engaging with each other this year, and now Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi is set to meet with Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the 5th meeting of the Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperation. What level of relations does China hope to achieve with Indonesia through this meeting?

Mao Ning: Under the strategic guidance of the presidents of the two countries, China-Indonesia relations have maintained a momentum of robust growth, with close high-level exchanges, deepening strategic mutual trust, and continuous progress in building a community with a shared future. The China-Indonesia Joint Foreign and Defense Ministerial Dialogue was officially launched last week. This week, Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi will co-chair the 5th Meeting of the Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation between the two countries. China-Indonesia relations are increasingly growing at a high level with greater strategic significance.

Next year marks the 80th anniversary of Indonesias independence and the 75th anniversary of China-Indonesia diplomatic ties. This presents important opportunities for our two countries respective growth and bilateral relations. China stands ready to work with Indonesia, follow the strategic guidance of the two presidents, focus on building a community with a shared future, and keep deepening strategic cooperation on all fronts. The two countries can set an example of major developing countries pursuing self-strength through unity and engaging in win-win cooperation, so as to bring more benefit to the two peoples and make new contribution to world peace, cooperation and development.

AFP: Senior officials of the US met with the Dalai Lama in New York yesterday. What is Chinas comment on this?

Mao Ning: As many people know, the 14th Dalai Lama is not a pure religious figure, still less a figure promoting non-violence and peace, but a political exile engaged in anti-China separatist activities under the cloak of religion. China firmly opposes any country allowing the Dalai Lama to make visits under any pretext and opposes government officials of any country meeting with the Dalai Lama in any form. Weve made serious protest with the US. The appointment of the so-called US Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues constitutes an interference in Chinas internal affairs. China has never recognized it. We urge the US to fully understand the gravity and sensitivity of Xizang-related issues, 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, truly respect Chinas core interests and major concerns, not allow the Dalai Lama to engage in political separatist activities in the US, have no contact with the Dalai Lama in any form, and stop sending the wrong message to the world.

Shenzhen TV: The European Commission issued a draft decision on imposing import duties on Chinese electric vehicles. Its reported that on August 20, the China Chamber of Commerce to the EU expressed its strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to the European Commissions protectionist practice and said this move will exacerbate trade tensions between China and the EU, sending a profoundly negative signal to global cooperation and green development. Chairman of the German Federal Association for Economic Development and Foreign Trade said in a media post that building up new tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles sent the wrong signal at the wrong time. Whats the Foreign Ministrys comments?

Mao Ning: Yesterday, I made clear Chinas position. This probe is a typical protectionist and politically-motivated move. It disrupts the EUs green transition process and global effort to respond to climate change. The views of the EV industry and business associations need to be paid attention to. We urge the EU to heed the objective and rational views from various sectors, stop pursuing this wrong action at once, and work with China to find a proper way out through discussion and avoid escalating trade frictions. China will also take measures to firmly defend the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies.

AFP: US prosecutors have filed criminal charges against a Chinese living in the US, accusing him of being an agent of Beijings intelligence service. What is Chinas comment on this?

Mao Ning: I am not familiar with the specifics you mentioned.

Xinhua News Agency: Recently, a scientific expedition team set sail to conduct a 45-day marine exploration in the Western Pacific Ocean. One of the highlights of the mission is that the manned submersible Jiaolong for the first time carried eight foreign scientists from five continents for underwater operations. Whats your comment on this? How do you see Chinas progress and prospect of international cooperation on science and technology?

Mao Ning: Over recent years, China has conducted deep-sea scientific exploration and joint scientific expeditions with multiple countries, making positive contribution to global marine biodiversity protection and sustainable development.

China remains committed to carrying out international science and technology cooperation. The submersible Jiaolong had foreign scientists on board for scientific expedition, the Change-6 Mission carried international payloads for lunar exploration, and the Tiangong space station announced it will welcome foreign astronauts. All these are vivid examples of Chinas efforts to seek common development and share the outcomes with the rest of the world in science and technology. China has established scientific and technological cooperation ties with over 160 countries and regions, and signed 118 intergovernmental agreements on such cooperation. China also issued the International Science and Technology Cooperation Initiative, which champions open, fair, equitable and non-discriminatory international science and technology cooperation. Together with all parties, China is committed to jointly exploring a new model for global scientific and technological innovation and cooperation that is win-win for all.

Science and technology know no boundaries. China is ready to deepen cooperation with all parties to better serve the humanity through common development driven by scientific and technological innovation.

Reuters: Paraguay has said recently that it is open to trade deals with China through the trade bloc Mercosur despite maintaining diplomatic ties with Taiwan. Do you have any comment?

Mao Ning: On the normalization of China-Paraguay relations, China made clear its position more than once. We hope the government and leader of Paraguay will follow the trend of history, meet the aspiration of its people, stand on the right side of history as early as possible, join the overwhelming majority of the international community and make the right decision that serves the fundamental and long-term interests of the country.

China values trade and economic cooperation with Mercosur and Latin American countries. I believe with the joint effort of all parties, such cooperation will achieve positive progress.
Migrant children from Ecuador seeking asylum play near the border wall as they wait to be transported by the U.S. Border Patrol, in 2024.

The U.S. government has lost track of more than 32,000 unaccompanied children (UCs) who have arrived in the country. They do not know where they are, what their status is and, what is worse, they could be exposed to dangers such as trafficking of minors for sexual or labor exploitation. This has been acknowledged in a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) report revealing that these minors have failed to keep their immigration court appointments.

Based on our audit work and according to ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] officials, UCs who do not appear for court are considered at higher risk for trafficking, exploitation or forced labor, warned DHS Inspector General Joseph V. Cuffari. In addition, if minors do not show up for their hearings, the risk of being deported is also higher. Cuffari described the situation as urgent and called on ICE to take immediate action to ensure the safety of these minors.

Between 2019 and 2023, a total of 448,000 unaccompanied children were taken into custody and released by the administration. The Department of Homeland Security warns that the number of minors whose whereabouts are unknown may be much higher, with some 290,000 still not having a court date.

A Venezuelan migrant is detained with her child by Border Patrol agents after crossing into the United States, in 2024. Jose Luis Gonzalez (REUTERS)

Ineffectiveness of the Immigration Agency

Sources close to the immigration processes of these minors explain that the problem stems from a lack of communication between the agencies involved, and that ICE does not update the data and does not communicate the court appointments to follow up on their immigration processes to the correct addresses. They state that many agents inherited from the Donald Trump administration work in border control and do not support granting rights to these migrants, thus hindering the process to guarantee them residency in the United States.

It is clear from this report that ICE has not coordinated with other agencies effectively or completed any follow-up to verify childrens location and knowledge of hearing dates after children are released from Office of Refugee Resettlement custody, says Shaina Aber, executive director of Acacia, an organization dedicated to providing legal support to minors. ICE has a history of acting in ways that undermine the rights and due process of migrants, including through paperwork errors that create difficulties for immigration courts and for people trying to understand their hearing dates and appearance obligations, she adds.

The DHS report acknowledges the lack of coordination and communication between government agencies and criticizes the work of ICE  which is responsible for the immigration processing of these minors  for failing to initiate proceedings in most cases. As one example, the brief states that 84% of the 41,000 minors that corresponded to one of the ICE offices reviewed had not been given appointments.

When crossing the border unaccompanied, minors are met by border agents who transfer them to the Office of Refugee Resettlement. Minors spend an average of 27 days in the custody of U.S. authorities before being transferred to their new destination, usually with family members, in many cases distant relatives, who reside in the country and take care of them. Those who do not have relatives in the United States are picked up by sponsors such as foster families or shelters. Previous reports have already shown that the data of the foster families is not always checked, which raises fears for the welfare of the minors and the danger that they may end up in human trafficking networks or be subjected to some type of exploitation, whether sexual or labor.

For their part, ICE officials stated during the investigation that even if they discover that foster homes do not meet the minimum safety conditions for the children, they lack the authority to act. One of the agents expressed concern that he was unable to do anything in one of the monitored cases, in which the woman reported that her husband was having inappropriate relations with the foster child.

A migrant child from Central America boards a U.S. Border Patrol vehicle in Sunland Park in 2024. Jose Luis Gonzalez (REUTERS)

Fear of deportation

Immigration attorney Alex Galvez says that sometimes the reason these minors do not attend court is not because they do not know the date of their hearing, but because they are afraid. They dont show up because the family members dont have the resources to hire lawyers, or simply because they are scared that if they show up in court they will deport the minor and the guardian, because generally those who take in the children are also undocumented, he explains.

An unaccompanied migrant minor is defined as a child under the age of 18 who does not have legal immigration status in the United States and does not have a parent or legal guardian in the country. Statistics show that 70% of unaccompanied minors are aged between 15 and 17, but the percentage of children between the ages of 0 and 12 has increased by 4% since 2018. Many of these children have experienced severe trauma and have been subjected to horrible exploitation on the way to the border, notes Save the Children.

Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador are the countries of origin for the majority of unaccompanied migrant minors crossing the border. These countries have some of the highest child homicide rates in the world. For years, a crisis of violence, gang warfare and corruption has driven children and families to flee Central Americas Northern Triangle and seek safety and protection in the United States.

Legislation grants these minors the possibility of receiving asylum in the United States, but their failure to appear in court on their hearing days jeopardizes their ability to obtain a green card. Whether out of fear, or because they did not receive the notice, their absence also increases the risk of deportation.

It is critical that the government hold ICE accountable for this significant error and focus on protecting the welfare of young people seeking safety, not respond by turning a systemic error in paperwork management into an excuse to rush children into deportation proceedings, Aber argues.

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Googles $250 Million Deal for California Newsrooms Should Pilot How to Bolster Local Journalism, SPJ Says

The Society of Professional Journalists said Thursday that Googles commitment to a $250 million plan supporting California newsrooms should be an example for other states on how to bolster local journalism and called on decision-makers to ensure the deal is a genuine step forward for a struggling news industry.

The Society of Professional Journalists calls on California decision-makers to ensure that yesterdays groundbreaking agreement between California lawmakers and Google to provide new funding for news outlets serves as a genuine step forward in reversing our nations alarming decline in newsroom employment, the organization said in a statement Thursday.

Read it in full below:

SPJ calls on California decision-makers to ensure that yesterdays agreement between California lawmakers and Google serves as a genuine step forward in reversing our nations alarming decline in newsroom employment.



Read our full statement: https://t.co/HyV8b1RITg pic.twitter.com/IAhvzEYDHX  Society of Professional Journalists (@spj_tweets) August 22, 2024

The five-year deal between the state and the tech giant, announced Wednesday, would secure up to $250 million in total funding from Google, taxpayers and potentially additional private sources for eligible local news orgs and also provide newsrooms with a so-called artificial intelligence accelerator to provide journalistic tools for writers and editors. It would notably shelve the proposed California Journalism Preservation Act, which mandates tech companies like Google pay news outlets to distribute their content.

Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) led the deal and posed that it represents a cross-sector commitment to supporting a free and vibrant press. It would see California news publishers be beneficiaries of a News Transformation Fund, as administered by the University of California Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism.

Still seeking legislative approval, some lawmakers questioned the merits of the deal and the Media Guild of the West denounced it as vague and opaque. Others called it disastrous.

But California Gov. Gavin Newsom praised the first-in-the-nation effort.

The deal not only provides funding to support hundreds of new journalists but helps rebuild a robust and dynamic California press corps for years to come, reinforcing the vital role of journalism in our democracy, he said in a statement.

The California News Publishers Association trade group called the agreement a first step toward what we hope will become a comprehensive program to sustain local news in the long term.

SPJ national president Ashanti Blaize-Hopkins echoed other media unions concerns Thursday that the deal did not have journalists at the negotiating table to help guide its terms.

At the very least journalists should be deeply involved in how this plan will be rolled out, as it could potentially impact their livelihoods, Blaize-Hopkins said. As other states study this effort for lessons on how to bolster local journalism, I hope California leaders will set an example that both centers and honors the input of working professionals who fight tirelessly to keep the public informed.

The post Googles $250 Million Deal for California Newsrooms Should Pilot How to Bolster Local Journalism, SPJ Says appeared first on TheWrap.
After days of political wrangling, Big Tech has struck a multimillion-dollar deal with California lawmakers to pay for journalism it uses on its platforms.

Under the arrangement, tech companies led by Google, along with California taxpayers, will spend nearly $250 million over five years in funding for California newsrooms as well as for an artificial intelligence accelerator project.

The agreement, which goes into effect next year, is believed to be the first of its kind in the country.

The deal means that Assembly Bill 886, which sought to force payments by the tech giants to California publishers, is dead, and there are plenty of critics of the agreement.

The office of Assemblywoman Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, who authored AB 886, announced the deal Wednesday afternoon.

As technology and innovation advance, it is critical that California continues to champion the vital role of journalism in our democracy, Wicks said in a prepared statement. This partnership represents a cross-sector commitment to supporting a free and vibrant press, empowering local news outlets up and down the state to continue in their essential work. This is just the beginning. I remain committed to finding even more ways to support journalism in our state for years to come.

The goal is to front-load $100 million in the first year to kick-start the efforts, Wicks said. The total investment could increase over the next several years if additional funding from private or state sources becomes available.

Details on how much the state would contribute were not released. But a draft of the proposal that surfaced over the weekend indicated the state would kick in $30 million the first year, and an additional $10 million each year after that through year five.

Sen. Steve Glazer, D-Orinda, said in a Wednesday news conference that the money being promised has not yet been budgeted and would be subject to next years budget process.

The announcement of the deal did not specify what would happen to the state portion of the funding if California continues to experience large budget deficits.

AB 886 would have required companies like Google and Meta (the parent of Facebook and Instagram) to pay into a media fund for news articles that appear on their platforms. It was opposed by the tech industry, leading to the legislation first being extended into a two-year bill and then being stuck in the Senate Rules Committee for further deliberation.

The Media Guild of the West, which represents hundreds of journalists in Southern California, Arizona and Texas, came out against the deal, saying the figure was too small.

This is not what we signed up for, Media Guild President Matt Pearce said in a Wednesday press conference.

Pearce and several other speakers blasted the arrangement as a backroom deal.

This is not democracy. This is not something that was worked out through hearings, through votes, Pearce said.

Google already had begun experimenting with removing news links in California in response to AB 886, which would have required the tech giants to pay millions a year to publishers in perpetuity.

The tech industry hailed Wednesdays agreement.

Kent Walker, an executive with Googles parent company, Alphabet, said in a prepared statement that California lawmakers have worked with the tech and news sectors to develop a collaborative framework to accelerate AI innovation and support local and national businesses and non-profit organizations.

Jason Kwon, with the company OpenAI, said in a prepared statement, This initiative builds on our longstanding work to help newsrooms and journalists around the world leverage AI to improve workflows, better connect users to quality content, and help news organizations shape the future of this emerging technology.

Gov. Gavin Newsom praised the deal.

This agreement represents a major breakthrough in ensuring the survival of newsrooms and bolstering local journalism across California  leveraging substantial tech industry resources without imposing new taxes on Californians, Newsom said in a prepared statement. The deal not only provides funding to support hundreds of new journalists but helps rebuild a robust and dynamic California press corps for years to come, reinforcing the vital role of journalism in our democracy.

According to Wicks office, the money will go into a News Transformation Fund, which will be administered by the University of California Berkeley School of Journalism. That fund will pay out to California-based state and local news organizations, particularly those serving California local news deserts, under-served and underrepresented communities, and outlets that prioritize California coverage, according to the lawmakers office.

Lee Hepner, senior counsel for the American Economic Liberties Project, said it wasnt hyperbole to say that Google has held the state Legislature hostage.

He added that this is the wrong way to go about enacting AI policy.

The California News Publishers Association, which includes McClatchy and its California-based newspapers  The Sacramento Bee, The Fresno Bee, The Modesto Bee, San Luis Obispo Tribune and Merced Sun-Star  was a sponsor of AB 886. The organization released a statement Wednesday saying that the agreement was an initial step with more work remaining.

A vibrant press is crucial for strong communities and a healthy democracy. This is a first step toward what we hope will become a comprehensive program to sustain local news in the long term, and we will push to see it grow in future years, said CNPA CEO Chuck Champion and Board Chair Julie Makinen. We will work with the state and tech companies to make the most of this initiative.

Another media group that had championed AB 886 said the deal underscored the need for additional action.

Google is a dominant monopoly that reaps significant revenue off scraping and repackaging quality news content, depriving publishers of the opportunity to monetize their content and reinvest in journalists, said News/Media Alliance President & CEO Danielle Coffey in a prepared statement. Todays announcement reinforces the need for federal legislation and potential court remedies to address this broken marketplace.

Alicia Ramirez, publisher of the Riverside Record, echoed Pearce and Hepner while speaking during Wednesdays press conference.

We cannot promise taxpayer dollars in closed backroom deals, she said.

She added that she didnt think the arrangement was a good deal for local news.

Having this bill be done in complete darkness is antithetical to everything that I stand for, she said.

This deal does not affect a similar bill, Senate Bill 1327, which would enact a journalism mitigation fee on Big Tech. That bill sits in the Assembly Revenue and Taxation Committee. Glazer, its author, said he has no control over whether, or if, the committee will take up the bill before the Legislature adjourns Aug. 31.
CHICAGO  Adam Kinzinger, a Republican who spent 12 years representing Illinois in the House of Representatives, said ahead of his address to the Democratic National Convention on Thursday that it feels kind of right.

The conservative, outspoken critic of his partys nominee, Donald Trump, and his decision to serve on the House Select Committee on the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol kneecapped Kinzingers future in the party. Trump supporters have branded him a RINO  Republican in Name Only.

Kinzinger bashes Trump: Suffocated the soul of the Republican Party

Kamala Harris: I accept your nomination

When they call me a RINO, theres not much about me thats changed from what I used to be, he told WGN. The whole Republican party has changed.

So how does a gun-loving guy whose votes on issues aligned with Trump more than 90 percent of the time end up endorsing Kamala Harris?

I look at the Democrats and say, sure theres a lot I disagree with, but theres actually a lot I agree with that my party has abandoned, like foreign policy. I mean, standing with Ukraine in a fight against Russia, if you had told me 10 years ago that my party wouldve abandoned that fight I wouldnt have believed you.

His address to the DNC will be his largest-ever audience, and he has a message he hopes will resonate.

Actually, the Republican party is no longer the conservative party. Theres nothing conservative about it. The conservative choice is to actually vote for Kamala Harris because of things like Ukraine and in defense of our democracy in our country, he said.

Kinzinger and his family have paid a hefty price for going rogue. There are death threats. And despite praise from Democrats, theyre the ones who actually re-districted him out of his seat in Congress.

Stepping into the Democratic convention arena, hell carry hope that there is still a place left for him in his old party.



The reality is, after Trump loses, Id love to see the GOP wake up and come back to its roots and there would be a home for me. If not, Im going to continue saying what Im saying, he said.



The political calculus is that Nikki Haleys strength in the Republican party showed there are 10 to 20 percent of GOP voters who dont want Trump. Those voters are even more meaningful in swing states.



Democrats think many may be like Kinzinger, willing to be persuaded even if they dont agree on some issues.

The Democratic National Convention in Chicago concluded Thursday night with Vice President Kamala Harris accepting the partys nomination to the lands highest office.

DNC Highlights:

Walz accepts Democratic nomination for vice president: Its the honor of my life

Thats my dad! Gus Walz wins over social media with emotion for father

Police and FBI investigate maggot incident at DNC breakfast in Chicago

Chicago authors book inspired by Kamala Harris vice-presidential speech gains new relevance

Sketch artist captures scenes from Democratic National Convention

Why are so many people wearing camo at the DNC?

Illinois student journalists get firsthand experience at the DNC

Blue Carpet: DNC delegates make fashion statements to stand out in the crowd

Photos: Celebs spotted at the DNC

Dozens arrested after protestors clash with Chicago police near Israel Consulate

Chicago has hosted Democrats 12 times, the last being nearly 30 years ago when President Bill Clinton was nominated for a second term.



WGN Cover Story: Why Chicago has hosted more presidential conventions than any other city.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGN-TV.
Gov. Polis in DNC speech says Project 2025 people like Trump and Vance are dangerous

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis speaks on stage during the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 21, 2024, in Chicago, Illinois. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

While speaking at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago Wednesday, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis ripped out a page from a physical copy of Project 2025s Mandate for Leadership.

Project 2025, organized by The Heritage Foundation, is a blueprint to implement conservative policies across the federal government if former President Donald Trump, the Republican candidate for president, wins in November.

Page 451 says the only legitimate family is a married mother and father, where only the father works, Polis said. Im going to take that one out, Im going to put that in my pocket so I can share it with undecided voters so they better understand whats at stake this election.

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Polis became the first openly gay man elected governor in the U.S. in 2018. He said Project 2025 people like Trump and Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, Trumps running mate, are dangerous and want to take the country backwards.

See more of our DNC coverage here.

But we arent going back, like ever, ever, ever, Polis said, referencing a Taylor Swift song.

Speakers on the third day of the DNC  which meets every four years to officially nominate candidates for president and vice president, adopt a party platform, and celebrate and network  rallied around reproductive and LGBTQ rights. Vice President Kamala Harris was already officially nominated through a virtual roll call earlier this month, but the convention still held a ceremonial roll call Tuesday night.

Polis cited passages in the conservative playbook that would allow the president to ban abortion in all states, criminalize doctors who provide reproductive health care, and limit access to contraception and in vitro fertilization. It also says states would be required to report miscarriages to a second Trump administration, Polis said.

As a Redditor, gamer, entrepreneur and Swiftie from the free state of Colorado, Im excited by Kamala Harris vision for protecting and expanding our personal freedom, internet freedom, and economic freedom, Polis said. Democrats welcome weird  but were not weirdos telling families who can and cant have kids, who to marry, or how to live our lives.

Harris running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, has popularized a characterization of Trump and the GOP as weird.

Other Coloradans at the DNC include former Gov. Roy Romer, Attorney General Phil Weiser, U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, U.S. Reps. Diana DeGette and Jason Crow, and state Reps. Leslie Herod and Bob Marshall. The Colorado Democratic Party has 87 delegates at the DNC.

The last day of the DNC is Thursday.

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PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  With the Democratic National Convention underway in Chicago, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek joined a panel led by award-winning actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus on Wednesday.

The panel, hosted by the Democratic Governors Association, featured the eight total Democratic women governors in the country to discuss their rise to leadership and thoughts on the upcoming national election.

Poll shows close race between Salinas, Erickson for Oregons 6th District

During the panel, Louis-Dreyfus touched on Gov. Koteks time as Oregons longest-serving Speaker of the House. She asked whether Kotek could recall the first time she was the only woman in a room or the only woman in a decision-making setting.

Lots of those moments. First when I became Speaker, all the other leadership at the time was male, and you notice when youre the only one in the room  I felt like everyday people werent in the room except for me, she said. People who were like, What do the women think about this? Were having this lovely conversation about this, but what does it mean for real people?

Since then, Gov. Kotek said things have changed for women leaders in her state.

What I think we have all realized is, I need a few more women in this room, and we are doing it every single day by modeling best behavior and showing what is possible, she said.

Rene Gonzalezs office under investigation following Wikipedia spending

Besides Gov. Kotek, the panel included Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs, Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly, Maine Gov. Janet Mills, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul.

In their announcement of the panel earlier this month, the Democratic Governors Association highlighted several of the governors accomplishments, including Koteks efforts to address Oregons housing crisis.

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Big Talk

A UFO whistleblower and ex-Pentagon official who claims that the government is hiding its knowledge of extraterrestrials is doubling down on his claims in a new memoir.

As the Daily Beast and other outlets report, whistleblower Luis Elizondo's new book, "Imminent: Inside the Pentagons Hunt for UFOs," contains in more detail the same kinds of contentions he has long put forth with the help of the New York Times and Blink-182's Tom DeLonge.

In an interview with the Daily Mail, Elizondo said he's finally been cleared by the Pentagon to tell the full truth about his claims, which include his assertion that he'd seen glowing green orbs in his house after he began leading a secretive Army office looking into what the government calls "unidentified anomalous phenomena" or UAPs.

As he said in his interview with the British tabloid, the ex-official was also privy to knowledge of "traps" the government set up to catch and capture UAPs.

"We had a plan to set up a real big nuclear footprint," Elizondo said, "something we knew would be irresistible for these UAP."

Once these unwitting ETs fell for the ruse, "the trap would be sprung," he continued.

Trapped In

As with claims made by other government whistleblowers and true believers, Elizondo's insistence on a widespread US government conspiracy to hide the truth about aliens from the American people seems to fall apart under scrutiny.

In a thread on r/UFOs where his Daily Mail interview was posted, for instance, an incredulous Redditor pointed out just how ridiculous the crux of that claim really is.

"Setting up honey pots for UFOs sounds like a terrible idea," the user commented. "Who knows what type of thing you could end up attracting?"

Indeed, if any members of an extraterrestrial race were sophisticated enough not only to travel untold lightyears to Earth but also to hide themselves from us, it seems almost humorous that our human attempts at deception would work.

As ever, we very much do want to believe  but in the case of Elizondo's new book, the only thing that seems provable is that he's on a book tour, with all the pressure to drive sales that process typically entails.

More on UFOs: New Campaign Urges Presidential Debate Moderators to Ask Candidates About UFOs
GREENVILLE COUNTY, S.C. (WSPA)  Officials with Greenville County Schools announced Thursday morning that the district will be unable to host in-person book fairs this school year.

The school district confirmed with 7NEWS that the book fairs are being paused due to new requirements from the South Carolina State Board of Education for how instructional materials are selected.

District officials released the following statement to the public:

First, we recognize the value in school-sponsored book fairs as a way to promote reading with students while also engaging parents and the community in support of literacy. Additionally, book fairs provide a fundraising opportunity for schools that have a positive impact on students and the community.

Effective August 1, 2024, South Carolinas State Board of Education passed SC Regulation 43-170, which outlines new requirements for how instructional materials provided by schools or made available to students in school are selected. As a result, Greenville County Schools finds it necessary to pause all book fairs for this school year while it works with vendors to find a solution that ensures compliance and avoids a circumstance that may place employees in jeopardy of violating provisions of the regulation. The logistics of book fairs involve large containers of books and other material being delivered to schools, set out, packed up, picked up, restocked, and sent to the next school on a short turnaround time. It is not possible for school personnel to vet all book fair content after it arrives, nor can vendors provide accurate content information far enough in advance for it to be vetted through the District prior to the start of fall book fairs.

The Districts Academics team is actively working with schools and individual book fair vendors to explore ways to continue offering book fairs in the future. During the time needed to ensure full compliance with the new regulation, there are alternatives, such as book clubs and online book fairs, for schools to consider. We will share more information once we have evaluated those other options for this year.

Greenville County Schools understands the importance of book fairs as a way to promote reading while also raising funds for the schools. Please know that the District is committed to finding alternative solutions in the future that comply with Regulation 43-170 and allow us to continue engaging parents and the community in support of literacy within our schools and at home.

Officials said the school district hopes to be able to host the book fairs again in the future.

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GREENVILLE, Ohio (WDTN)  Greenville mayors proposed total ban on marijuana businesses is getting pushback from some city council members.

Last December, Greenville city council members voted to place a temporary ban on adult-use cannabis operations. However, Mayor Jeff Whitaker wants to make the ban permanent, saying its a contradiction of the anti-drug message promoted at school.

Some city council members do not agree.

Student reportedly brought weapon to West Carrollton school

According to our partners at the Daily Advocate, councilman Greg White drew a comparison to education on alcohol use.

White also asked if the city would be better off with regulations to move forward or with an outright ban on dispensaries. Greenville does have regulations for medical marijuana dispensaries, but not for recreational.

Though Issue 2 passed statewide, Whitaker pointed out that 52.88% of voters in Greenville and 62.3% in Darke County voted no on Issue 2.

I believe the citizens locally in Greenville and Darke County have already spoken clearly on this issue in the last election, said Whitaker.

The council voted to send the mayors proposed ban to a committee for further consideration.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WDTN.com.
Authorities were likely prepared for any attacks targeting the Democratic National Convention. However, what theyre investigating isnt a suspected shooter or bag of homemade explosives. The threat was found inside food.



The FBI are working with authorities from the Chicago Police Department to investigate an incident that occurred Wednesday morning at the Fairmont Hotel, where delegates from Indiana, Minnesota, Ohio, Missouri and South Dakota were being hosted.

Police say guests received reports of maggots being found in their breakfast that was prepared for a DNC-related event with an appearance by U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, per WGN Investigates. A hotel spokesperson told reporters the staff worked immediately to clean and sanitize the area.

However, that still leaves the question of how the maggots even got there in the first place.

Now, authorities are investigating the incident as an intentional act. Security for the convention released a statement saying multiple unknown female offenders are alleged to have entered the hotel building on the North Columbus Drive side and began placing unknown objects onto tables containing food, before fleeing the area, the report says.

The incident came hours before the DNC featured speakers who were previously held captive by Hamas back in October. Pro-Palestinian activists nationally have criticized the Democratic Party for supporting President Joe Biden in backing Israels relentless terror on Gaza. Ahead of the convention, up to 20,000 people marched to the conventions location calling for a cease-fire, per AP News.

All Americans have the right to peaceful protest, but ugly attacks like this have no place in our democracy. We thank the security team for responding swiftly, said Indiana Democratic Party spokesperson Sam Barloga.

Its unclear how many people got their grub on before they identified the parasites, but authorities said one person was treated and released on scene.

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An hour and a halfs drive, depending on traffic, separates Milwaukee, Wisconsin, from Chicago, Illinois. In chronological terms in the most dislocated presidential campaign in recent U.S. history, that distance is 34 days; those that have passed between Donald Trumps acceptance speech as candidate on last day of the Republican National Convention, and the one that Vice President Kamala Harris will offer Thursday at the Democratic conclave to seal her ascendancy as leader of a party that, thanks to her, has regained faith in a victory in November.

A gulf that is not only ideological also separates the two speeches. In the Milwaukee perspective, it seemed that nothing would stand in the way of Trump returning to the White House. The Republican candidate had just survived an assassination attempt and presented himself as a new man, sparking a fresh injection of popularity. In another demonstration that nothing should be taken for granted in American politics, Harris is about to give the most important speech of her career on the wave of something that seemed impossible when the Republican Party conclave was being held: the undisguised enthusiasm of her supporters, indications that women and minorities may be propelling her on her way to the White House, and the unity, forged in record time, of the Democrats around an unlikely candidate who almost everyone distrusted not so long ago.

What the Chicago convention would have been like if President Joe Biden had not withdrawn from the race is a now a question entertaining fans of political fiction. The remainder are left with the certainty that at the end of June, this was a party demoralized by the prospect of a candidate sleepwalking toward a disaster at the polls while resurrecting memories of the 1968 convention, the most turbulent in the last half century for Democrats. Against a backdrop of protests over the Vietnam War, that gathering, in which the party was broken in two, produced a disappointing candidate in Hubert Humphrey who was roundly beaten to the White House by Richard Nixon.

No one expected that in the corridors of the Bulls stadium, where the Democratic convention is being held, the memory that prevails after two days of triumphant speeches would be that of the 2008 convention. And it is not only because the Obamas, who began the final stretch of their journey to the White House then, stole the show Tuesday with speeches that confirmed that they are still the partys best orators; nor because another survivor of those heroic times, the artist Shepard Fairey, has decided to lend a hand by adapting Harris face to the iconic three-color poster he created for that occasion with the image of Barack Obama and the word Hope, which he has substituted with another: Forward.

Personally, I feel something very similar to what I felt 16 years ago: it is the feeling that a movement is being generated around the candidate, said strategist Juan Verde in an interview on Wednesday. He has not missed a convention since 1992 and has worked on all Democratic presidential campaigns since Bill Clinton, including this one. However, he added, there is a fundamental difference: she has achieved it in record time  just over a month  when Obama had almost a year.

Those few weeks were also enough, Verde notes, to pacify a coalition that threatened to slide into civil war if Biden stepping down had given way to an open convention. Quite the opposite: there was no trace in Chicago of the behind-the-scenes battles that Bernie Sanders delegates waged in 2016, nor the symbolic gesture of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in 2020, when she spoke for just 90 seconds to express her disagreement with Bidens appointment. Both Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez were among the stars on the speakers platform over the first two days at the United Center.

This shows that the Democratic coalition has many important leaders and not just one, as is the case with the Republican Party with Trump, or at most a group of people who think like him and are like him, said former ambassador to Spain Julissa Reynoso, who worked as Jill Bidens chief of staff and has joined Harris campaign. Ours is a machine with a great capacity for mobilization that knows how to pull in one direction. I know Biden well and I know that he is a man who does things very carefully, and that when he handed over the baton to his vice president, he was well aware of her ability to unify the party.

Biden may have had it all figured out but from the Milwaukee perspective, that didnt seem such an easy fix either. Perhaps thats why Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, her vice-presidential candidate, traveled Tuesday to the stadium where Trump was nominated as his partys candidate in the most populous city in Wisconsin  a state that will once again be decisive at the polls  to stage a rally with two objectives: to reconquer that space and that city, and to show that attendance at Democratic rallies (18,000, according to the campaign) is reaching numbers that were unthinkable just two months ago when Biden was leading the charge.

Barack and Michelle Obama on stage at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Tuesday night. Brandon Bell (Getty Images)

On Tuesday, a crowd gathered outside the stadium in Milwaukee five hours before the vice president took the microphone. From conversations with about 20 people, the following pattern emerged: women and those new to attending a political rally predominated. T-shirts with messages like Proud Lady with Cats and No Kids, a reference to Republican vice-presidential candidate J. D. Vances comments on women who choose not to have children, or The Prosecutor Against the Criminal, a reference to Harris campaign message recalling her past as a lawyer and her rivals status as a convicted felon, were also prevalent.

That served to certify the extension of another strategy of this new Democratic Party: after years in which it was the Republicans who mocked their opponents and gave off the image of having a monopoly on fun at the expense of the opposition, the Democratic campaign has gone on the attack on social networks, in electoral merchandising, and even in convention speeches.

The world has changed a lot since the last election, which the Republicans baselessly claimed had been stolen from them, recalls Verde. In the empire of fake news and half-truths, we can no longer expect voters, and even less so young people, to reflect calmly on proposals or to have the ability to contrast information. That is why  and always without lowering themselves to the same level  the campaign has sharpened its messages around two slogans, Forward and When we fight, we win, and a single idea: to look to the future, while the Republicans remain obsessed with the past.

Overconfidence

These days, in both Midwestern cities, it is easy to get carried away with the impression that this enthusiastic message could work for the Democrats, although its also worth remembering that the conventions of the two major parties in the United States are huge machines for generating and selling positive emotions. Its also possible that all this is, as the other side claims, the enormous sleight of hand of a friendly media (such as CNN, in whose broadcasts from Chicago this week jubilation has been overflowing).

To avoid the unwanted effect of excessive confidence, both Harris and Walz warned those who take victory for granted in their speeches at Tuesdays rally that there is still much to do in the two and a half months remaining until the elections. To begin with, they must trumpet the true personality and electoral proposals of the unexpected candidate beyond the elites of Washington and the West Coast and the devoted hosts of Hollywood. The speech Harris is preparing to deliver Thursday in Chicago, the most important of her political life, will be fundamental to achieving this objective.

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Group drives hours to visit abandoned GA hospital they saw on TikTok. Now theyre facing charges

A group of four north Georgians saw an abandoned hospital in Newnan while scrolling TikTok and decided to pay it a visit.

The old Newnan Hospital was shut down in 2012 and has sat empty since then, according to the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation.

Earlier this week, Newnan police were called to the hospital after a security guard spotted four people inside and saw one of them with a gun.

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They were later identified as Brandon Baird, 19, Atlanta McCure, 18, Madison Perez, 18, and Gavin Shoilekov, 21. McCure is from Jasper and the others have addresses listed in Ellijay.

After they were spotted, all four ran out of the building. Newnan officers found a shirtless Baird and chased him down the street until he was arrested.

The other three were seen walking towards the Coweta County Jail and taken into custody.

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They said that Shoilekov had a gun, but threw it when they were leaving the hospital.

Officers found a window that had been smashed from the inside, which security officers confirmed was not already there.

Perezs car was found near the hospital and towed off.

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A growing number of elected Democrats and activists are calling on the Harris campaign and the Democratic National Committee to allow a Palestinian to speak on the final night of the DNC.

We cannot ignore the Chicagoland Palestinian community as one of the largest in the country, Rep. Chuy Garcia (D-Ill.) wrote in a statement. They too deserve to be reflected on the national stage. Its crucial to recognize the humanity of the Palestinian community tonight with a Palestinian speaker.

A dozen congressional Democrats, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison (D), Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (D), the United Auto Workers, J Street, and a growing number of Democratic Party members have called on the DNC to allow a person of Palestinian heritage to speak during the convention.

The Uncommitted National Movement has been calling for a convention speaker for weeks, saying it would be a clear demonstration by Harris that she was shifting away from Bidens stances on the Israel-Palestinian conflict.

There have been negotiations for much of the week, and on Wednesday night, Harris officials told Abbas Alawieh, one of the leaders of the 30 uncommitted delegates at the DNC, that there would be no speaker.

The Palestinian right to self-determination was erased by the British with the Balfour declaration which mentioned civil & religious but not political rights, California Democrat Rep. Ro Khanna wrote on X. The Dem party is making a tragic mistake in 2024 perpetuating this erasure of the Palestinian story & voice.

Alawieh staged a sit-in Wednesday night alongside other organizers, and he was joined by Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), Summer Lee (D-Pa.) and Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.). Reps. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) and Cori Bush (D-Mo.) FaceTimed in to show support.

I carry with me daily the personal stories of Palestinians raw with grief, fearing for their lives, mourning their loved ones. Babies. Elders. Students. Journalists. Doctors, Pressley wrote. Your stories belong everywhere. On that stage and in the remarks of anyone who asks for your vote.

Just as we must honor the humanity of hostages, so too must we center the humanity of the 40,000 Palestinians killed under Israeli bombardment, Ocasio-Cortez wrote in a statement. To deny that story is to participate in the dehumanization of Palestinians. The DNC must change course and affirm our shared humanity.

Members of the movement had grown hopeful since Harris took over as the nominee that the party would show more support for Palestinians. They have also been calling on Democrats to adopt an end to arms sales to Israel officially. However, over this week, many of those hopes have been dashed.

There was a glimmer of hope, Georgia state Rep. Ruwa Romman told The Hill. Community members just wanted to see they were seen.

[This] was the beginning of something amazing, but it was snuffed, she added.

Romman has been floated by Tlaib and other Democrats as a potential speaker on Thursday night, and she gave her proposed speech to the DNC to Mother Jones on Thursday.

Reps. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.), Maxwell Alejandro Frost (D-Fla.), Greg Casar (D-Texas), Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas), Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) and Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) have also called for the DNC to include a Palestinian speaker.

On Thursday, Muslim Women for Harris-Walz also announced that they cannot in good conscience continue their organization if there was no Palestinian speaker at the DNC.

MSNBC host Chris Hayes weighed in after a speech by Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg-Polin, the parents of hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin.



Was supremely moved by this speech, which was searing and compassionate, he wrote. Also seems essential to include a Palestinian speaker to the convention.

Ta-Nehisi Coates, an award-winning writer, published a column Thursday calling on Democrats to include a Palestinian voice.

This DNC has urged its various constituencies to highlight their identities and the collective pain that animates them. Racism, forced birth, land theft. It has been an exhibition of what the Palestinian scholar Edward Said called the permission to narrate, and it is that permission that Palestinian Americans have been denied, he wrote.

They have heard their names mentioned fleetingly by a handful of speakers but have not been granted the right to speak their names themselves, he added.

The Hill has reached out to the Harris campaign and the DNC.

Updated at 4:58 p.m.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
It was a growl and then an immediate charge: How a man survived being mauled by a bear in the Alaskan wilderness

A man was nearly mauled to death by a brown bear while hiking in the Alaskan wilderness with his father earlier this week.

Tyler Johnson, 32, was hiking off-trail Saturday on the Kenai Peninsula in south-central Alaska on a hunting trip with his father when they encountered a brown bear. Suddenly, they were in an open area  and they were at least two miles from the nearest road, he said.

It was a growl and then an immediate charge, Johnson told CNN on Wednesday, saying it happened in about four seconds.

The bear had been startled by their appearance and initially rushed toward his father, Johnson said.

As the bear slammed Johnson to the ground and bit his leg, he drew his 10mm pistol and emptied the clip into the bear, accidentally shooting a bullet through his own upper leg.

Dad, I shot myself

Johnson vividly described how bears put their all into each move they make and how they continue moving until their last breath.

Every, every move a bear makes is intentional. They dont just go halfway into an action, he said. So when a bear stops, its probably because its dead, or its about to die.

Tyler Johnson and his father Chris Johnson are seasoned hunters and previously have hunted black bears in Alaska. - Courtesy Tyler Johnson

The father and son both shot at the bear, killing it, he said. Immediately after the attack, they tried to get the wound under control.

I looked down my leg, Dad, I shot myself, Johnson said.

His father rigged a tourniquet right below Johnsons knee and wrapped his wound in gauze. After completing the first aid, his father contacted emergency troopers via SOS from the remote area to let them know his son was injured and needed rescue.

Chris Johnson, his father, is an Alaska State Trooper who served with the US Fish and Wildlife Service for more than 30 years. Tyler Johnson said his fathers experience with bear attacks helped save his life.

The adrenaline flowing through Johnsons body kept him from feeling much pain immediately after the incident, he said.

To be honest, getting shot, the bear biting into me, I didnt feel at the time, he said, adding it felt like a pressure or a charley horse in his leg.

As Johnson waited for rescue, he documented the scene after the attack, recording four videos of the aftermath.

The pain hit Johnson like a truck after he recorded the videos. He performed breathing techniques, listened to music and told his dad stories about a previous crazy hunting trip to try and keep his mind off of the gnawing pain in his leg.

But what kept Johnson going was his father encouraging and comforting him right by his side.

Keeping it together while waiting for rescue

Its those little things that try to help you through a hard moment. Realizing that youre there with the only person you would want to be there with was really comforting, he said.

When rescue officials arrived, they loaded Johnson onto a tarp and dragged him to a helicopter, Johnson said. He was transported to a hospital in Anchorage, the Alaska Department of Public Safety said in a news release.

Johnson recalled being administered an IV while being taken to the hospital. Later, he received pain medications when he was settled in his hospital room.

Johnson said he is recovering with a bandaged wound and antibiotics, without undergoing any surgical procedures.

Johnson later learned troopers returned to the location of the attack and discovered a cub in the area, he said officials told him. In the moment, Johnson was confused by why the bear would so aggressively approach him.

Johnson was slated to start a new job in Austin, Texas, as soon as this hiking trip was over. His wife and young son have already made the move and they have been in contact with each other throughout his recovery process.

He is set to complete his recovery in Anchorage next week and return to Austin to start his new job.

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly described the location of Tyler Johnsons gunshot wound. He was wounded in the upper leg.

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Since announcing her historic run for president in July, Vice President Kamala Harriss favorability percentage has skyrocketed on the analysis website 538, her Instagram account has gained more than 2.5 million followers, and her presence on TikTok would make any influencer envious. And with the Democratic National Convention well underwaywhich, it should be noted, included a cameo from Lil JohnHarriss popularity is only expected to swell in the coming days.

Its safe to say shes passed the presidential vibe check. However, one question remains top-of-mind for voters across America: What does Harris stand for as a politician?

To help you stay informed, weve gathered several of her key policy positions so you can get to know Harriss agenda if shes voted into the Oval Office in November.

Harriss Position on Paid Parental Leave

Last Friday, Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz, released their economic platform, which shows that they are hoping to restore the expanded federal child-tax credits to help parents afford everyday necessities. As Harriss campaign team shared with CNBC, this is a year when many familys expenses are highestwith cribs, diapers, car seats and more, which is why she wants to provide a tax credit of up to $6,000 for families with newborns in their first year of life.

In previous statements, Harris has also said, Let us be clear. In America, in the 21st century, every worker should be able to take time off to care for themselves or for the people they love, adding in the caption of her Facebook video, we must ensure paid family and medical leave for every worker.

And on Tuesday, she reiterated those comments at a campaign event, stating, We believe in the futurea future with affordable health care, a future with affordable child care, a future with affordable housing and paid leave, adding, thats the future we believe in. (Learn more about paid leave and why its vital for the economy here.)

Harriss Position on LGBTQ+ Rights

Kamala Harris has been a long-standing advocate for gay marriage, consistently supporting LGBTQ+ rights throughout her career, including during her time as vice president.

For the past four years, the Biden-Harris administration has made LGBTQ rights a cornerstone of its policy agenda, the American Civil Liberties Union wrote about the duo. Among other efforts, the Biden-Harris administration has consistently sued states to block anti-trans laws and policies, including asking the Supreme Court to lift bans on medically necessary health care for trans adolescents.

Harriss advocacy for the LGBTQ+ community dates back to 2004, when, as the district attorney of San Francisco, she performed some of the first same-sex marriages in the United States, which at the time was still technically defying California state law. Harris recently reunited with Bradley Witherspoon and Raymond Cabone, one couple she wed during that period, over a brief call, during which Witherspoon said, I never thought about getting married and what that would mean, but once we got the opportunity to do so, it meant a lot to me. I think that was part of the emotion as well; being denied something for so long, thinking that it would not happen in my lifetime, and to see it happen. (See more about Harriss record on LGBTQ+ rights on GLAADs tracker here.)

Democratic Presidential Candidate Kamala Harris Holds Rally With Running Mate Tim Walz In Arizona Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Harriss Position on Abortion Access

Harris has been a vocal supporter of abortion access and reproductive rights for some timefar more actively than President Biden. During her tenure as the California attorney general, Harris defended the states abortion laws and took legal action against deceptive practices by crisis pregnancy centers.

In 2017, as a senator, Kamala Harris cosponsored the Womens Health Protection Act, which aimed at banning states from imposing restrictive access to abortions, including preventing patients from making medically unnecessary in-person visits to any individual or entity before obtaining an abortion. As vice president, Harris categorically condemned the 2022 Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Our administration has taken action to protect access to emergency medical care, to support women forced to travel out of state for care, and to protect womens privacy, Harris stated at an event in 2023. But we know this fight will not truly be won until we secure this right for every Americanwhich means, ultimately, the United States Congress must put back in place what the Supreme Court took away and have the courage to stand for freedom in every way.

Harriss Position on Immigration

Immigration may be one of Harriss weak points as a presidential candidate due to the controversial decision of President Biden to appoint her to lead the administrations response to the border crisis weeks into his presidencyleading Republicans to nickname her the Border Czar. This led to confusion over what Harriss job actually entailed and how she engaged with the border. However, as the Washington Post noted, Harris, in fact, has never been in charge of the border. The Department of Homeland Security manages migration.

Instead, her role has focused on providing private financial aid to three Central American nationsEl Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemalato discourage migrants from wanting to leave in the first place. The White House says her efforts have raised more than $5.2 billion in investments for the three countries to date.

She feltand I think she was rightthat what she could do the most was help basically lead the effort to draw in investment, using the confidence that a relationship with the White House would give to investors, Ricardo Zuniga, a former State Department official who specialized in the area (known as the Northern Triangle) and traveled with Harris, shared with the Associated Press. Harris even began running ads in August stating she plans to be tough on the border if she wins the election. As vice president, she backed the toughest border-control bill in decades, the ads narrator reads. And as president, she will hire thousands more border agents and crack down on fentanyl and human trafficking. Fixing the border is tough. So is Kamala Harris.

Harris has also voiced her support for the Dreamers under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, stating in June, As the Attorney General of California and as a United States Senator, I fought to defend and protect Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). And as Vice President, I have worked alongside President Biden to preserve and fortify DACA, including by ensuring Dreamers have access to affordable health care, which will improve the health of all communities. However, she added, While President Biden and I will continue fighting to protect Dreamers, only the United States Congress can ensure permanent protections for these young people and their families. Lawmakers must pass legislation that creates a path to citizenship. The time for a lasting solution is long overdue.

Vice President Harris Delivers Remarks Celebrating NCAA Championship Teams Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Harriss Position on AI

As vice president, Harris supported the establishment of guidelines and standards for AI development to ensure it is used both responsibly and transparently.

When it comes to AI, America is a global leader. It is American companies that lead the world in AI innovation, Harris said at the AI Safety Summit in the United Kingdom. It is America that can catalyze global action and build global consensus in a way that no other country can. And under President Joe Biden, it is America that will continue to lead on AI.

In the same statement, Harris also noted AIs potential in health care, education, and the economy, including to develop powerful new medicines to treat and even cure the diseases that have for generations plagued humanity, to dramatically improve agricultural production to help address global food insecurity and to save countless lives in the fight against the climate crisis.

However, she stressed its downsides, including the potential for AI-enabled cyberattacks, AI-formulated bioweapons, and biased coding. But, as Harris added, the future shes building is one where AI is used to advance human rights and human dignity, where privacy is protected, and people have equal access to opportunity, where we make our democracies stronger and our world safer.

Harriss Position on Health Care

Harriss health-care positions as a would-be president are murky at best at this point. During her previous run for office, Harris supported Medicare for All, which would provide all Americans access to health care under a single-payer system. However, her campaign team told the BBC in August that she will no longer push for single payer, so well just have to wait and see what she announces as her new policy position.

However, a campaign officer shared this tidbit with CBS: Harris plans to continue working on bringing down health-care prices, including the cost of certain drugs. Just last week Biden and Harris announced together that they reached agreements with drug manufacturers to lower prices on select drugs used to treat conditions like heart failure and Crohns disease.

Vice President Kamala Harris Campaigns In Philadelphia Drew Hallowell/Getty Images

Harriss Position on the Middle East

Harriss stance on the Israeli/Gaza conflict also remains complex.

In July, Harris stated she has an unwavering commitment to the existence of the state of Israel, to its security, and to the people of Israel. However, she added, I also expressed to [Prime Minister Netanyahu] my serious concern about the scale of human suffering in Gaza, including the death of far too many innocent civilians. And I made clear my serious concern about the dire humanitarian situation there, with over two million people facing high levels of food insecurity and half a million people facing catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity.

She also reiterated her support for a two-state solution: I remain committed to a path forward that can lead to a two-state solution. And I know right now it is hard to conceive of that prospect, but a two-state solution is the only path that ensures Israel remains a secure, Jewish, and democratic state and one that ensures Palestinians can finally realize the freedom, security, and prosperity that they rightly deserve.

Harriss Position on Cannabis Legalization

Harriss history with cannabis is perhaps one of the biggest PR battles she will have to overcome, as her new position can either be seen as flip-flopping or as an evolution of thought, depending on whom you ask and how you choose to look at it.

As the AP reported, in 2010, while running for attorney general of California, Harris stated she opposed the sale of recreational marijuana in the state. And, as the AP noted, previously, as district attorney of the state, the prosecutors under Harris convicted more than 1,900 people for cannabis-related offenses.

However, it appears Harris has pulled a 180 with her thoughts on cannabis.

In early 2024, Harris called the federal classification of cannabis as a Schedule I controlled substance patently unfair.

I cannot emphasize enough that they need to get to it as quickly as possible, and we need to have a resolution based on their findings and their assessment, Harris said of the need to reclassify the drug. But this issue is stark when one considers the fact that on the schedule currently, marijuana is considered as dangerous as heroin. Marijuana is considered as dangerous as heroin and more dangerous than fentanyl, which is absurd. Not to mention patently unfair.

Harriss Position on Home Affordability

One more important policy stance you need to know about is Harriss plan to make homeownership a reality again for Americansespecially young people.

In August, Harris announced that within her first 100 days in office, she would call upon Congress to pass the Stop Predatory Investing Act, introduced by Ohio senator Sherrod Brown in 2023. The act, Quartz reported, removes tax benefits for investors and firms that purchase large numbers of single-family homes, pricing many others out of the market in the process.

Some corporate landlords buy dozens, if not hundreds of houses and apartments, then they turn around and rent them out at extremely high prices, Harris stated at a campaign rally. And it can make it impossible then for regular people to be able to buy or even rent a home.

How big of a buying spree are investors really on? Quartz pointed to MetLife Investment Management data that shows if the trend continues in the same way, investors could control 40% of US single-family rental homes within the next six years. NBC reported that Harris additionally aims to call on Congress to pass the Preventing the Algorithmic Facilitation of Rental Housing Cartels Act, proposed by senators Ron Wyden of Oregon and Peter Welch of Vermont, which would prevent corporate landlords from being able to use price-setting tools to dramatically raise rent prices.

Now, all thats left to do is watch the remainder of the Democratic National Convention and watch the presidential debate on September 10that is, if Trump actually shows up.

Originally Appeared on Glamour

More on Kamala Harris
FILE - A 9mm "ghost gun" pistol build kit with a commercial slide and barrel with a polymer frame is displayed in the Rose Garden of the White House, April 11, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

BOSTON (AP)  No sooner had Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed a sweeping new firearms bill into law last month than gun rights activists filed a lawsuit challenging it, calling the measure an historic attack on our civil rights.

Activists are also hoping to place a question on the 2026 ballot to repeal the law, which expands the states already tough gun restrictions. It was enacted in part as a response to the Supreme Courts 2022 Bruen decision declaring citizens have a right to carry firearms in public for self-defense.

The Massachusetts measure cracks down on privately made, unserialized ghost guns, criminalizes possessing bump stocks and trigger cranks, requires applicants for a gun license to complete live-fire training, updates the state's tests for what makes a firearm an assault-style weapon and requires an advisory board to provide a ongoing list of prohibited weapons.

The measure also expands the states red flag law to let police as well as health care and school officials alert the courts if they believe someone with access to guns is a danger and should have their firearms taken away, at least temporarily.

People looking to suspend the law from taking effect until a potential 2026 referendum on it will need to file at least 49,716 signatures from registered voters, which will also help guarantee the question is placed on the ballot. Healey could block any temporary suspension of the law by pushing for an emergency preamble" putting it into effect immediately.

The federal lawsuit by gun advocates argues the law is unconstitutional, characterizing it as onerous firearms legislation that imposes sweeping arms bans, magazine restrictions, registration requirements, and licensing preconditions that are as burdensome as they are ahistorical.

The suit  which cites the Bruen decision  asks the federal court to issue a temporary restraining order or preliminary injunction barring the state from enforcing the burdensome licensing regimes on the possession and carry of firearms for self defense.

Jim Wallace, executive director of the Massachusetts Gun Owners Action League, a local affiliate of the National Rifle Association, said the group sued in federal court because there is no hope for any help within the Massachusetts court system.

He suggested the lawsuit is just the start of a wider legal effort to peel back elements of the law piece by piece, saying it's too expansive for one court to take it on all at once.

Its not about crime. Its not about accidents. Its not about suicides, he said. Its a bigoted act against 10 percent of the states population, referring to gun owners.

Democratic state Rep. Michael Day, one architect of the legislation, said hes confident it can withstand the legal challenges. He predicted voters would back the law if the choice is put on the 2026 ballot.

Were trying to save lives, he said. One of the reasons people live in Massachusetts is that they can walk down the street without someone coming up on their side and menacing them.

Cody Jacobs, a lecturer at Boston University School of Law, said the measures that deal with increased licensing requirements arent excessively burdensome, don't prevent gun ownership and don't infringe on Second Amendment rights.

Other training requirement for gun owners have been upheld by the courts, he said. Id be pretty surprised if this would be overturned.

The Massachusetts law prohibits people who aren't part of law enforcement from carrying guns at schools, polling locations and government buildings. It also requires those applying for a license to carry firearms to demonstrate a basic understanding of safety principles and provides local licensing authorities with relevant mental health information.

District attorneys would be able to prosecute people who shoot at or near homes, which also seeks to ensure people subject to restraining orders no longer have access to guns.

The new law also expands the definition of assault weapons to include known assault weapons and other weapons that function like them. It bans the possession, transfer or sale of assault-style firearms or large-capacity feeding devices.

The law also bans issuing a license to carry a machine gun except for firearms instructors and bona fide collectors, and criminalizes possessing parts that are intended to make weapons more lethal by adding them to the machine gun statute. Such parts include bump stocks and rapid-fire trigger activators.

The Supreme Court this summer struck down a federal Trump-era ban on bump stocks.
At gunpoint, man forced ride-sharing app driver to travel from Arlington to Florida: FBI

Zero stars.

An armed passenger last week forced a person who was working for a ride-sharing application to drive from Arlington to south Florida, law enforcement authorities said.

Miguel Pastran Hernandez was to be dropped off on Friday night at a gas station in North Texas, but upon arrival insisted on a new destination about 1,300 miles away, according to court documents.

Pastran Hernandez produced a gun, and the driver heard the sound of a round being chambered within it, according to an account of the trip described by an FBI special agent in an affidavit in support of a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Miami.

Pastran Hernandez threatened to tie up and put the driver in the back of the car, authorities said. The victim pleaded with Pastran Hernandez to be allowed to steer the car in order, the driver later told the special agent, to have an opportunity to flee.

Pastran Hernandez ordered the victim to drive toward Florida and maintain the speed limit, according to the affidavit.

The driver felt obliged to follow the passengers direction.

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They drove until about 11 a.m. on Saturday, when Pastran Hernandez demanded that the driver call the drivers children and say that the driver was on a long work trip so that the children would not be suspicious of the absence.

Pastran Hernandez discovered that the driver had an unloaded 9mm handgun in the car. The driver had ammunition stored separately in the car. The passenger took the gun and ammunition.

Pastran Hernandez ordered the victim to continue driving east toward Miami, authorities said.

By Saturday evening, they had arrived in Florida.

Pastran Hernandez ordered the victim to drive to Miami Beach, where Pastran Hernandez watched from a distance a person whom he said he intended to kidnap and hold for a $3 million ransom, according to the affidavit.

On Monday, Pastran Hernandez made the driver travel to a Dollar General store in Hialeah, Florida, to buy supplies for the planned kidnapping, authorities said.

The driver hid in the store bathroom. Pastran Hernandez walked or ran away. About three hours later authorities found Pastran Hernandez in Hollywood, Florida.

Pastran Hernandez admitted in an interview with a law enforcement officer that he had kidnapped the driver at gunpoint, the special agent wrote in the affidavit.

The U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of Florida on Tuesday charged Pastran Hernandez with kidnapping, carjacking with the intent to cause death and serious bodily harm and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.
ELMIRA, N.Y. (WETM)  The Elmira City Council held a workshop meeting to discuss several votes that will be happening Monday, August 26 at 5:30 p.m.

The council will vote on authorizing the purchase of a new gunshot detection system. Police Chief Kristen Thorne told council members the plan is to install a network of 40 microphones around the city. Chief Thorne says the system will cut down on police response times to shooting scenes. Chief Thorne says the system is designed to tell the difference between a gunshot and fireworks, or a car backfiring.

Mayor Mandell told 18 News the system does not pick up any other sounds, like conversations. It strictly picks up sounds relating to gunshots based on the decibel sound that the gunshot makes, to distinguish it between gunshots and possible fireworks. So thats what the actually the program does. Its very beneficial for the police department to pinpoint where these shots are happening so they can respond quicker and catch the perpetrators of that are shooting the guns.

The resolution is for approving a two-year subscription from SHI for a police gun-shot detection system utilizing the Sourcewell Cooperative and using LETECH Grant funds for the purchase of the subscription price of $66,553.85. The LETECH Grant is awarded by the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services.

Last summer, Elmira received a $383,147 New York State grant for the Gun Involved Violence Elimination initiative. The money allowed the Elmira Police Detective Bureau to hire two full-time investigators to focus on gun crimes.

I think its huge for the city to have this, to have the two investigators assigned to the GIVE Unit, and were going to continue it for as long as we can, Chief Kristen Thorne told 18 News in May.

Public records show a 33% year-to-year drop in gunshot calls in the city of Elmira, in the first quarter of 2024. 14 gunshots were reported from January through May. Thats down from 21 reported gunshots during the same time in 2023. 18 News is working to obtain gunshot reports through August of 2024

A public hearing will also be held at Mondays meeting on how to spend more than $1,000,000 in federal funding to improve housing and community development. As a designated HUD City Elmira receives money every year from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The public hearing is a chance for people to weigh in on how the best way to spend the funds.

Thats basically through HUD and Emma Miran, our Director of Community Development, Mayor Mandell said. She sends out a plan every year regarding our HUD plan and how we spend our money.

Is there a ballpark figure how much money HUD is providing?

Its about 1.3 million, I believe, or 1.6 million per year, Mandell said. This year, we took a little bit less. Sometimes we get a little bit more. It just depends.

We also asked Mayor Mandell about a resolution that was tabled last week involving homeless encampments in the city. The new law called for fines and possible jail time for anyone camping on public land, or on private land without permission.

Elmira City Council tables vote on new homeless camping law that includes jail time

Mayor Mandell says the city is reworking the resolution after hearing from a packed room of residents who disagreed with it.

I listened to all the input, the mayor said. A lot of it came from individuals that were concerned about the mental health and the substance abuse, and why are we being punitive in nature, why were, you know, criminalizing these people.

So, we listened to what they had to say, Mayor Mandell continued. Were going to table the resolution. Were going to rework the resolution and the ordinance and put it into, hopefully, an upcoming meeting here shortly.

We have to do something with these unsheltered individuals that refuse the treatment and taking up housing in our city, so we have to address that, and this is one way we can do that. I dont know what the ordinance going to look like when its all said and done, but were going to go back to the drawing board and write it up.

We asked Mayor Mandell if possible jail time for people who are unhoused will be taken off the table. Residents who spoke up against the proposed law said the city was trying to criminalize homelessness.

Do you agree with that description? asked 18 News reporter Nick Dubina.

I dont agree with that at all, the mayor replied. Were not criminalizing homelessness. We know people are homeless. Whats happening with these individuals, again, the non-compliant ones that are becoming a public safety issue, with their trash, urinating and defecating and things like that. We have to deal with these people. So, its not criminalizing homelessness, its criminalizing the behavior.

So, you cannot confirm that if jail will or not be part of the next version of this ordinance Dubina asked.

We have to discuss that. Id be in favor of obviously, still pushing through with something of that nature, the mayor said. But one of my colleagues on the Council brought up a good point. A good point. A lot of times theyre already committing crimes where theyre trespassing. A lot of them possess drugs, and a lot of them are in homes that are basically criminal trespass or even a burglary. So, crimes are already out there on the penal law to address a lot of these concerns.

We also asked Mayor Mandell if the City Council is making any progress on drafting a new law thats needed for Elmira Police to be able to start shutting down unlicensed cannabis shops.

Were almost to the point of getting the law completed, the mayor said. We have just a couple more steps. The Office of Cannabis Management coming down and shutting down these stores, the State Police, we would welcome them here in Elmira if they would like to shut down the few that we have here left in the city. But until that point, were still working on the law. Once that becomes law, we will vote on it, possibly in the next couple of meetings. This has been a process. Its been a lot more details to it than what we originally planned for.

Two illegal cannabis shops raided in Horseheads, Elmira Heights

Another item on Mondays agenda involves a piece of history that was discovered during clock tower renovations at City Hall. Crews found a World War Two air raid siren inside the tower. The city will now vote on donating the siren to the Chemung County Historical Society. We will take a closer look at the siren, and why our area was a possible target for bombing raids during World War Two, in a new report on Friday.

You can view the full agenda for Mondays meeting below.

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Gus Walz broke the internet with his tearful love for his dad. Then the bullying began

CHICAGO  A tearful, unscripted moment between Tim Walz and his 17-year-old son, Gus, has unleashed a flood of praise and admiration  but also prompted ugly online bullying.

Gus Walz, who has a nonverbal learning disorder as well as anxiety and ADHD, watched excitedly from the front row of Chicagos United Center and sobbed openly Wednesday night as his father, the Democratic nominee for vice president, delivered his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention.

The Minnesota governor was recounting the difficult fertility treatment he and his wife, Gwen, went through to conceive their daughter, Hope.

More: Tim Walz's son Gus has a learning disorder. Can his visibility help disabled Americans?

DNC live updates: Kamala Harris to formally accept nomination

Walz followed up by expressing his love for his family from the stage, saying: "Hope, Gus and Gwen, you are my entire world. And I love you."

Gus Walz jumped up from his seat, tears on his face, pointed his index finger and said, I love you, Dad, followed soon after with "That's my dad!"

Gus, the son of U.S. Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, reacts on Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center, in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 21, 2024.

The touching moment between father and son, captured live by television cameras, went viral and has largely been received adoringly on the internet and the airwaves.

Fox News shared a clip of the viral moment on its TikTok page, writing "Gus Walz steals show during dad's acceptance speech." The comments were overwhelmingly positive.

I hope to inspire my kids so much that when they see me speak of the dreams and passion I have for my country they are moved to tears like Gus Walz was, Chasten Buttigieg, husband of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, wrote on X.

@Tim_Walz has dedicated his life to service and has clearly exceeded in being an excellent, supportive, and loving father every step of the way, he wrote. We should all be so lucky to know a love like that.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., who spoke before Walz Wednesday night, praised the love between Walz and his children.

More: Who is Gus Walz and what is a non-verbal learning disorder?

You know youve done well as a parent when your kids are as proud of you as Gus and Hope are of Tim Walz, she wrote on X. Thats my dad. No three words better describe our next Vice President.

Actress Mia Farrow added: Gosh! When young Gus Walz, adorable son of Gwen and Tim Walz, his face streaming tears of pride shouted Thats my dad he won my heart.

Trump supporter and podcaster dismisses Gus Walz as 'puffy beta male'

But the show of affection triggered a swath of snark and ugly comments on social media, many from MAGA supporters of former President Donald Trump, who faces Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and Walz in November.

Conservative columnist and right-wing provocateur Ann Coulter mocked the teenagers tears. Talk about weird, she wrote on X. The message has since been deleted.

Mike Crispi, a Trump supporter and podcaster from New Jersey, mocked Walzs stupid crying son on X and added, You raised your kid to be a puffy beta male. Congrats.

Alec Lace, a Trump supporter who hosts a podcast about fatherhood, took his own swipe at the teenager: Get that kid a tampon already, he wrote, an apparent reference to a Minnesota state law that Walz signed as governor in that required schools to provide free menstrual supplies to students.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that Jay Weber, a conservative Milwaukee radio host, made a now-deleted post on X criticizing the Walz family.

"If the Walzs (sic) represent today's American man, this country is screwed: 'Meet my son, Gus. He's a blubbering b---- boy. His mother and I are very proud'."

After removing the post, Weber apologized and claimed he didn't know Gus had a learning disability.

USA TODAY reached out to the Walz campaign, which declined to comment.

Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung released a statement to USA TODAY that said the campaign "is focused on holding Walz and Harris accountable for their dangerously liberal policies that are bad for America." It didn't address the bullying posts.

Trump came under fire in 2015 after he appeared to mock a New York Times reporter with a disability. Critics said Trump's taunts could encourage others to engage in similar behavior.

Posts reflect bullying kids face constantly, advocates say

Advocates for children with learning disabilities were outraged by the venom directed at the Walz family.

What we're seeing with the bullying of Gus Walz online isn't just cruel  it's a painful reminder of what kids with disabilities face every single day, said Katy Neas, chief executive officer of The Arc of the United States, a Washington-based nonprofit advocacy group for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Children with disabilities are two to three times more likely to be bullied than their peers, Neas said.

That means our society is teaching countless kids with disabilities that they are somehow less than because of factors outside of their control, including emotional expression and disability, she said. What's worse is that bullying can have a direct impact on their academic achievement, which in turn means fewer opportunities as adults. We're failing these kids when we don't understand or value their experiences.

Research shows that bullying behavior often stems from a combination of factors, such as a desire for social dominance, a lack of empathy, or modeling of aggressive behaviors at home, said Kristen Eccleston, a former special education teacher and advocate for children with social-emotional needs.

Aug 21, 2024; Chicago, IL, USA; Vice Presidential nominee Tim Walz hugs son Gus Walz during the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center. Hope Walz is at left, Gwen Walz at right.

Children with learning disabilities are especially vulnerable because bullies may perceive them as easy targets due to their struggles with communication or social skills," said Eccleston, who works for the Weinfeld Education Group, which is based in Bethesda, Maryland, and works with parents to ensure that their children have the supports and services they need.

More: 'That's my dad!': Gus Walz has emotional reaction during Tim Walz's DNC speech

As parents, it's heartbreaking to see our children suffer from such cruelty, Eccleston said. In moments like Gus', where a child is being bullied, it's crucial to surround them with love, validate their emotions, and remind them that the hurtful opinions of others do not determine their worth. Families should use these public experiences to foster open dialogue about emotions, with the goal of helping their child develop strong self-advocacy skills and a healthy sense of self.

Anne Strober, whose son has autism, said the bullying Gus Walz is facing is despicable.

For me, it just represents how a lot of people have lost their humanity, she said. You have a lot of people, now with social media, who feel very emboldened because theyre behind their keyboards and they can just say what they need to say and with a degree of anonymity. Its still hurtful whether its face to face or its online. Theres no place for it.

Public schools often arent able to stop acts of bullying, so parents who fear for their childrens safety often pull them out of school or choose to home-school them, said Strober, who lives in North Potomac, Maryland, and works with parents through the Weinfeld Education Group.

"Children should be off limits to bullying, especially by adults, no matter what political party their parents belong to, she said. "Gus isn't going to see all of their hateful comments, but other kids will. And it will absolutely hurt them and their families.

Contributing: Brianne Pfannenstiel, Des Moines Register

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Gus Walz's tears melted hearts at the DNC. Critics called it unmanly
Almost nobody outside of the Kentucky Department of Corrections has heard about how several hundred prison inmates hacked their state-issued, for-profit computer tablets to create more than $1 million that didnt really exist.

The dollars were used for the purchase of expensive email and video visits with their loved ones, as well as games, music and movies.

By the time state officials learned what was happening  when they got an anonymous tip on Jan. 3, 2023  the prisoners had spent nearly $88,000 on digital media products, according to a review of more than 1,700 pages of internal investigative records the Herald-Leader obtained through the Kentucky Open Records Act.

KY inmates and their families spend millions on for-profit computer tablets

For the next six months, the Department of Corrections and Securus Technologies, the Texas company behind the tablets, struggled to figure out who bought what with stolen money and how it might be recovered.

What a mess, Amanda Sayle, the departments director of information services, emailed a colleague, information systems supervisor Jeremy Shuck, on Jan. 5, 2023.

I know, Shuck replied.

Securus provides computer tablets to prison and jail inmates through for-profit contracts around the country.

This wasnt the first time inmates outfoxed Securus.

In 2018, several hundred Idaho prisoners did much the same thing, hacking tablets provided by JPay, a related company, to transfer roughly $225,000 into their digital media accounts that didnt really exist, then going on a spending spree.

Inmates now face liens

Securus Technologies, headquartered in Plano, Texas, did not respond to requests for comment. The company is owned by Platinum Equity, a private equity firm with over $48 billion in assets.

Kentucky Corrections Commissioner Cookie Crews and other state officials declined to be interviewed for this story.

In a series of email exchanges with the Herald-Leader, a spokeswoman for the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet, which oversees the Department of Corrections, said no taxpayer money was lost in the hacking, which she referred to as a software glitch.

Only Securus can explain what it did to help retrieve the stolen funds, said cabinet spokeswoman Morgan Hall, referring questions to the company.

In some cases, Hall added, the Department of Corrections has placed liens on inmates prison commissary accounts, where loved ones deposit money that inmates use to purchase snacks, toiletries and other tangible items, and it has been deducting funds from these accounts to gradually clear the tablet-related debts.

The debt collection continues today, Hall added.

Prison officials prohibited the inmates involved from accessing their tablets for over three months, and any inmate who still owes money is prohibited from using the phone system until their debt is paid off, Hall said.

How the hack worked

Securus won its first contract in 2006 to sell for-profit inmate telephone service to all Kentucky prisons. Later, it branched out to sell other digital products to this captive audience. It struck similar deals with local jails across the state, including the city of Lexingtons.

Prisoners are a lucrative source of income, Securus told potential investors around the time it entered Kentucky.

The corrections industry has experienced sustained growth over the last decade as a result of societal and political trends, the company said in a public filing. Anti-crime legislation, limitations on parole, and spending authorizations for crime prevention and construction of additional correctional facilities have contributed to this industry growth.

As part of its contract with the Department of Corrections, Securus promises the state a cut of the money it collects from inmates.

Since 2020, the company has paid the state $22.3 million, according to financial data the Herald-Leader obtained under the Open Records Act.

On Dec. 9, 2022, to help this cash flow more smoothly, the Department of Corrections loaded a new app on inmates tablets.

The app let inmates transfer money from their commissary accounts, where loved ones deposit money for them to buy tangible items from the prison canteens, into their Securus accounts, where they can buy digital products from the company on their tablets.

Within 24 hours, the first inmate outsmarted Securus by figuring out how to hack the app.

Luther Luckett Correctional Complex is a medium/maximum security state prison in Oldham County.

LaDaniel Brown, a 30-year-old Bowling Green man, had a commissary account balance of $0 at the 1,200-bed Luther Luckett Correctional Complex in Oldham County, where he was serving 30 years for child sexual abuse.

The lack of funds didnt discourage Brown.

Playing around with the new app, Brown later told investigators, he discovered that if he a put a minus sign in front of a dollar figure as he transferred money from his commissary account, he would actually add that much money to both his commissary account and his Securus account.

Typing in -$500 suddenly credited $500 to both of Browns accounts, money that didnt really exist.

Inmate Brown continued to make deposits by placing a minus sign in front of the amount, investigators wrote in their report on the incident a month later, after interviewing him.

Inmate Brown made a deposit for $100 dollars, $16 dollars, $1 dollar, $294 dollars, $300 dollars, $362.43 and $319.12, they wrote. The total amount of deposits that Inmate Brown made is $1,892.55. Inmate Brown also admitted to how easy it was.

Prison officials didnt notice

Commissary accounts are used to buy real-life items, like toiletries and food. Kentucky inmates drop about $4 million a year at prison canteens, with the money required by law to be spent on programs and services for their own benefit. You cant pass around too much money at a canteen before a guard notices.

In fact, when a Luther Luckett Correctional Complex inmate tried to buy $735 in snacks and drinks using the $2,400 he hacked into his commissary account through the new Securus app, he got caught right away.

But Securus accounts operate entirely in the digital realm, on tablets. Inmates shop and consume digital products from the relative privacy of their own cells.

Word quickly spread among inmates about how the tablets could be hacked. Games, movies and music could be purchased with money that didnt exist an hour ago. So could video visits and email stamps.

Some inmates spent hundreds of fake dollars stocking up on email stamps so they could write home for free.

Over the next few weeks, according to one estimate prepared by internal investigators, 366 inmates collectively added $529,000 both to their commissary accounts and their Securus accounts, for a total of more than $1 million.

They quietly spent $87,959 on Securus digital media products without prison officials noticing.

Prison inmates who want to send an email using Securus computer tablets first have to buy stamps from the company, just as they would if it were a letter carried by the U.S. Postal Service.

In a 72-hour span, for example, inmate Jonce Adams went on a Securus spending spree, buying $250 in email stamps, $37 in games and more than $1,200 in music. Adams, who is serving 10 years for his role in a Bell County meth manufacturing ring, had loaded $1,700 onto his Securus account, investigators wrote in their report.

Most of the inmates were at Luther Luckett Correctional Complex, but a handful of others were at several other prisons around the state.

Their fun ended on Jan. 3, 2023. An anonymous email to prison officials revealed how the hack worked.

By the next morning, officials were frantically emailing each other  ALERT!!!  and making plans to seize the inmates tablets and shut down their accounts indefinitely.

In some cases, prison officials scrambled to get money back as fast as possible from inmates who were scheduled to go home.

I have an inmate that was released today from DOC (the Department of Corrections). He is leaving with approximately $1,700 in arrears with Securus, Michael McKinney, the agencys director of administrative services, emailed to Amy Hewitt, a Securus executive, on March 21, 2023.

If we can give you a list of outliers, we can reduce the loss in the end for both of us, McKinney told Hewitt.

Three months later, on June 9, 2023, Hewitt proposed to McKinney that Securus and the Department of Corrections split between them any financial losses that could not be recovered.

We will absorb the price for all other costs (games, movies, content delivery, stamps, etc.), but we request that KY cover 50% of the stolen music as that will help cover the licensing costs we are unable to get refunded, Hewitt wrote to McKinney.

I believe this sounds fair. Thoughts? McKinney wrote to Shuck, his Department of Corrections colleague.

I agree, Shuck replied. At most the inmates had just under a month to enjoy these purchases. I think if we are able to put a lien on their account to pay back the remainder of the balance, then they would get their tablet back once that is paid.

Who stole from whom?

The Kentucky State Police and the FBI took an interest in the inmate hacking.

They met Feb. 22, 2023, with Luther Luckett Warden Amy Robey to ask her about Securus banking app and its now-obvious vulnerabilities. (Reached by phone recently, Robey declined to comment for this story.)

Amy Robey, warden of the Luther Luckett Correctional Complex

But nobody appears to have been criminally charged. The Department of Corrections ultimately declined to hand down much in the way of administrative penalties to the inmates involved.

In a long series of disciplinary proceedings handled by internal affairs, the inmates were sentenced to 15 days of disciplinary segregation  confinement alone in a cell. But those sentences were suspended for 90 days, provided the inmates committed no further infractions during that time.

Only a few inmates who were identified with stolen funds in their accounts acknowledged actively participating in the tablet hacking, internal investigators said.

The majority of all inmates involved refused to answer questions, and other inmates stated they were not sure how the money got there, it just appeared, investigators wrote in their report.

Bianca Tylek is executive director of Worth Rises, a nonprofit advocacy group thats critical of what it calls the prison industry. Tylek said she would describe the hacking more like a loss of revenue for Securus than a theft of funds.

This is lunacy, what these corporations are allowed to do to people who are incarcerated, and to their loved ones, Tylek said.

These are incredibly cheap services in the year 2024  I mean, were talking about email and video chat  that would not require much of a state agencys budget, and it would tremendously help us to keep an incarcerated persons family relationships stable for when theyre released. But we sell this to incarcerated people at exorbitant prices to make a profit.

At some point you have to ask yourself, whos really committed the crime here? she said.

KY prison guards Tasered inmates who failed drug tests, then lied about it

Herald-Leader investigation: Sex and drug smuggling inside Kentucky prison walls
Hakeem Jeffries Speech Lights Up DNC Night 3 With Trump Digs: Bro, We Broke Up With You For A Reason

Hakeem Jeffries Speech Lights Up DNC Night 3 With Trump Digs: Bro, We Broke Up With You For A Reason | Photo: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

The speech by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries was one of the highlights of the third night of the Democratic National Convention. The New York representative brought the crowd to their feet, made them laugh at old boyfriend Trump and issued a call to action.

Bro, we broke up with you for a reason.

Early in his speech, Jeffries gave one of the conventions funniest moments when he compared the former president to an old boyfriend who you broke up with, but he just wont go away. Jeffries message to Trump: Bro, we broke up with you for a reason.

Donald Trump is like an old boyfriend who you broke up with, but he just won't go away. Bro, we broke up with you for a reason.  Hakeem Jeffries OMGGGG!!!  pic.twitter.com/BrvW5NY9t0  CALL TO ACTIVISM (@CalltoActivism) August 22, 2024

Using one of his signature rhetorical flourishes, Jeffries rapidly rattled a long list of things President Kamala Harris and Democrats in the House of Representatives would protect, ranging from Social Security to the middle class to veterans to womens rights.

Hakeem Jeffries just brought the house down. My favorite part of his speech. pic.twitter.com/oY8zz7rdeQ  Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) August 22, 2024

Quoting Psalm 30:5, Weeping may endure during the long night but joy will come in the morning, Jeffries called on Democrats to work hard to get Harris elected in November. He laid out an alliterative week-long game plan, starting with strategize on Sunday and ending with set it off on Saturday, followed by a few hours of sleep before doing it again.

Jeffries: Strategize on Sunday. Meet the moment on Monday. Take it to them on Tuesday. Work it out on Wednesday. Thank the lord on Thursday. Fight the power on Friday. Set it off on Saturday. Get a few hours of sleep, wake up, and do it again until joy comes pic.twitter.com/BfMX56uziv  Acyn (@Acyn) August 22, 2024

The next Speaker of the House having an Obama moment

Jeffries speech was a hit and added to his rising star power within the Democratic Party. Several people speculated that Jeffries had his Obama moment, referencing Barack Obamas 2004 Democratic National Convention speech that put him on the nations radar and set the stage for his presidential run four years later.

Hakeem Jeffries may have just had his Obama moment. Brooklyn Stand Up.   donisdope (@donisdope) August 22, 2024

One person called Jeffries one of the greatest orators of our time and, like many others online, predicted that the House minority leader would become the next Speaker of the House in January 2025.

Wow! Hakeem Jeffries gave a powerful speech! Hes one of the greatest orators of our time and hell be sworn in as the next Speaker of the House in January 2025. #DNC https://t.co/SwLDDQPeUI  Howard Stevenson (@hlstevenson2) August 22, 2024

Others went even further, deeming Jeffries a future President!!

Were listening to a future President!! #Jeffries  Selamawit Gidey (@BetOnSally) August 22, 2024

Jeffries reposted his speech on behalf of Kamala Harris and House Democrats and added, Were all the way up.

Just finished up my remarks at the DNC on behalf of Kamala Harris and House Democrats. Were all the way up. pic.twitter.com/z7H938nxE5  Hakeem Jeffries (@hakeemjeffries) August 22, 2024

Jeffries continues to assert himself as one of the most vital and compelling voices within the Democratic Party. The following 75 days will determine whether Harris will be elected president and if Democrats can gain control of the House and vote Jeffries in as the next speaker.
Rachel Goldberg-Polin and Jon Polin  whose son Hersh Goldberg-Polin is among the 109 hostages being held by Hamas after the Oct. 7 attack against Israel  delivered an emotional speech on the third day of the Democratic National Convention, urging for a hostage deal.

In an inflamed Middle East, we know the one thing that can most immediately release pressure and bring calm to the entire region  a deal that brings this diverse group of 109 hostages home and ends the suffering of the innocent civilians in Gaza, Polin said in Chicago.

The time is now.

The couple took the stage, taking several moments before addressing the crowd as the DNC attendees cheered. At one point, Goldberg-Polin closed her eyes and placed her hand on her heart as the crowd began to chant bring them home! Some members in the audience wiped away tears.

Goldberg-Polin recounted the story of their son getting kidnapped in Israel while attending a musical festival, where he lost one of his limbs before being taken away.

That was 320 days ago. Since then, we live on another planet, she said. Anyone who is a parent or has had a parent can try to imagine the anguish and misery that John and I and all the hostage families are enduring.

The United States, Egypt and Qatar have worked to shore up a deal involving a cease-fire and the return of hostages held by Hamas, though Israel and Hamas have struggled to reach a compromise. Secretary of State Antony Blinken left the Middle East without a deal secured on Wednesday.

Polin said he was deeply grateful to President Biden and Vice President Harris, who he said were working tirelessly for a hostage and cease-fire deal.

Were also profoundly thankful to you, the millions of people in the United States and all over the world who have been sending love, support and strength to the hostage families, he added. Youve kept us breathing in a world without air.

The Israel-Hamas conflict and the Biden administrations handling of the war has rocked the Democratic Party, particularly as progressives, Arab and Muslim Americans and other voting blocs have voiced frustration over the humanitarian crisis happening in Gaza after Israel answered Hamas attack with its own military offensive.

Ahead of the couples speech at the convention, the Uncommitted Movement said in a string of posts on X that they hoped the DNC would also allow a Palestinian speaker to address the convention as well.

Excluding a Palestinian speaker betrays the partys commitment in our platform to valuing Israelis and Palestinian lives equally. Vice President Harris must unite this party with a vision that fights for everyone, including Palestinians, the group wrote on X.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
John Madore, 33, entered the lobby of the state hospital around 3:38 p.m. on Nov. 17 and began firing his pistol immediately, according to a review of the incident by the Attorney General's Office. Madore fatally shot hospital security officer Bradley Haas and was later shot and killed by a state trooper. (Courtesy | New Hampshire Attorney General's Office.)

This story has been updated.

The man who fatally shot security officer Bradley Haas in the state hospital lobby in November was prohibited under federal law from purchasing a gun because he had been committed to a psychiatric facility in 2016. Mental health concerns also led the police to confiscate guns he had at the time.

But John Madore, 33, told the Barrington gun dealer who sold him the pistol he used to kill Haas that hed never had such a commitment, according to a report released Thursday by the Attorney Generals Office. And the dealer had no other way to know because New Hampshire does not require commitment records to be submitted to the background database.

Legislation that would have reversed that practice passed the House this year but failed when Senate Republicans defeated it at the urging of pro-gun rights groups.

The Attorney Generals Offices 44-page report of the Nov. 17 incident answers some of the biggest questions following the shooting that left two people dead in less than a minute.

In addition to revealing the source of Madores guns, the report gives a step-by-step account of the shooting; discloses that Madore had been diagnosed with schizophrenia; and reveals that a patient unaware of the situation entered the hospital lobby before it was secure and was escorted out.

However, the report does not state Madores motives or say what brought him to the state hospital on Nov. 17, a place he knew from two previous hospitalizations, in 2016 and 2017; the latter lasted nine months. Madores father told investigators that his son held animosity toward the hospital but not particular employees.

Madore previously (expressed) paranoid ideations that the providers at the hospital were trying to harvest his organs, which he continued to periodically discuss even after his discharge, the report said.

The report released Thursday says only that Madore was homeless, out of work, and concerned that his family was going to stop supporting him financially. He had communicated with his family about moving into a temporary assisted living facility but opted not to because he did not want to relinquish his firearms, which included an AR-15 rifle that he brought to the hospital but left in his vehicle.

The report concludes with a finding that Trooper Nathan Sleight, who was on duty at the hospital, was justified in using deadly force against Madore when Madore ignored an order to drop his gun and tried to reload it.

Trooper Sleight described Madore looking straight at him with a dead stare while ignoring his verbal commands, the report said. Knowing that the lobby was a heavily trafficked area of the hospital, Trooper Sleight described his concern that if Madore was able to reload his pistol he would be an imminent deadly threat to him as well as everyone else in the hospital. He then fired his service pistol at Madore.

Sleight fired a second time, the report said, when Madore continued to manipulate the pistol.

Madore was unsettled and suspicious

The report accounts for Madores movements beginning on Nov. 1, when he checked into a Hampton hotel room, reserving it through Nov. 22. His family paid the bill.

Madore said in text messages to his family the night before the shooting that he was concerned his father was not going to continue paying for hotel rooms indefinitely. He told them he felt unsafe at the Hampton hotel and requested money for an Uber ride to another hotel.

Madore relocated to a Concord hotel where he rented a room for a single night. He remained in contact with his family through the morning of the shooting the next day.

The discussions centered around his decision not to live in temporary assisted living which, in his opinion, would require him to surrender his constitutional rights and abandon his weapons,  the report said.

Madore decided to look for a less expensive hotel in Manchester and rented a U-Haul truck to move his belongings. Unable to find a cheaper place, Madore began driving north, reaching Stoddard before turning around and heading back to Concord, where he parked the U-Haul in the state hospital parking lot around 3:38 p.m.

Madore left the engine running and entered the hospital lobby.

Twenty-two seconds later, Madore had killed Haas, fired twice at the windows of the switchboard office in the lobby area, and was shot for the first time by Sleight, whose office is off the lobby.

Sleights shots caused Madore to fall toward the wall, his pistol in his right hand and the magazine in the other. He continued attempting to reload, the report said, prompting Sleight to shoot again.

Less than 20 seconds later, with Haas and Madore on the floor, a patient, unaware of what had happened, walked into the lobby. Madore spoke to him and the patient was escorted out safely.

None of the approximately 150 patients or other staff were injured.

The Concord police arrived about five minutes later and removed Haas body. An autopsy showed that hed been shot six times. Madore had 11 bullet wounds.

While Sleight was armed in his role as a state trooper, Haas was unarmed, per state hospital security policy in place at the time. Thats not unusual among the states other medical hospitals.

The Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Safety have since moved to station private armed security at the hospital. Department of Safety spokesman Tyler Dumont said Thursday that the state is reviewing the proposals it received and expects to sign a contract.

He absolutely would have shot and killed everybody

The hospital remained in lockdown for nearly an hour after the shooting, during which staff did not know if anyone had been killed or whether a shooter was still at large. In urging lawmakers to pass the bill this year that would have added commitment records to background checks, hospital leaders described the shooting and uncertainty afterward as among the worst moments of their lives.

She advised that she was afraid for her life, hoping that the bullet-proof glass in the window would hold up, and thinking that Madore absolutely would have shot and killed everybody if he was able to reload his pistol.

 From Attorney General's report on shooting at the state's psychiatric hospital

Commissioner Lori Weaver told executive councilors earlier this year that some staff have needed to take temporary leave as a result.

A dispatcher who spoke with investigators for the report said she witnessed the shooting incident from the moment Madore walked in and began firing. She called for help.

As she heard Trooper Sleight yelling for Madore to drop the gun, (the dispatcher) saw Madore grabbing for another magazine to reload his pistol, the report said. She advised that she was afraid for her life, hoping that the bullet-proof glass in the window would hold up, and thinking that Madore absolutely would have shot and killed everybody if he was able to reload his pistol.

A switchboard operator, also stationed off the lobby, shared similar concerns about her safety with investigators. She hid under a desk until the police arrived.

When Madore stopped moving, the dispatcher ran from her office, kicked his pistol away from his body, and ran to help Haas.

She stayed there until Trooper Sleight yelled for her to get out of the building and she left through the front doors, the report said. (The dispatcher) was outside when a large number of police officers arrived and dragged (security officer) Haas out to the sidewalk where she began providing him with emergency medical assistance until EMS arrived.

A preventable tragedy

Rep. J.R. Hoell, a Dunbarton Republican and secretary of the New Hampshire Firearms Coalition, helped lead the effort this year to defeat House Bill 1711, which would have required the state to begin submitting commitment records to the background database. New Hampshire is one of a few states that do not provide those records.

After the shooting, there was speculation that Madore may have obtained his guns in a manner that does not require background checks, such as through a private sale or at a gun show. In that case, the bill would not have made a difference, the legislations critics argued.

Confirmation that Madore had purchased his gun from a dealer by lying about his psychiatric commitment did not move Hoell to think differently about the bill. He said it still would not have increased safety and would have instead led to the confiscation of individuals guns.

There is no system that government can run that can keep firearms out of the hands of people who want to commit harm, Hoell said in an interview. There are five million firearms in the United States. If someone wants one, they will go get one.

The better response to the hospital shooting, Hoell said, is arming hospital security staff.

The threat would have been dealt with had Haas been armed and had a bulletproof vest on as he was manning the metal detector, Hoell said. That was asinine. They literally set Haas up to be murdered.

The co-sponsors of HB 1711 said the report confirms their argument that their bill would help save lives.

Its not always a happy occasion when youre right, said Rep. Terry Roy, a Deerfield Republican and Second Amendment advocate in the House, in a text message. I hope to not be again with regard to this. The fact is that the Senate listened to the wrong people on this matter, giving more weight to the local libertarians than the NRA who has supported the efforts for over a decade.

While the gun-rights group has supported some background check measures in the past, it has at other times opposed them. A 2018 poll by Monmouth University Polling Institute, however, showed that 69 percent of NRA members supported comprehensive background checks.

Roys co-sponsor, Rep. David Meuse, a Portsmouth Democrat, said the report shows Haas death is a tragedy that may have been preventable.

Todays confirmation that the New Hampshire Hospital shooter purchased the weapon used to murder Officer Bradley Haas after two extended periods of involuntary commitment illustrates the tragic gap in our law that HB 1711 was intended to close, he said in a text message. The Attorney Generals report is a sad reminder not only of a tragedy that may have been preventable, but also of the failure of New Hampshire Senate Republicans to prevent a similar tragedy from happening again.

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(EL PASO COUNTY, Colo.)  On Saturday, Aug. 24 the Hanover Fire Department will celebrate 50 years of service to southeast El Paso County.

Hanover Fire Department said it was founded in 1974 to provide an organized way for the citizens of the District to protect themselves from the dangers of fire. Since then the fire department has broadened its duties to include fire prevention, medical, non-fire rescue, and responding to a variety of other hazardous situations.

Courtesy: Hanover Fire Station

Courtesy: Hanover Fire Station

Courtesy: Hanover Fire Station

The event will take place on Saturday at Kirk Hanna Park located at 17050 South Peyton Highway from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Hanover Fire Department said past and current members along with the community, surrounding fire and EMS agencies will be in attendance.

After an informal celebration ceremony, a hamburger and hotdog lunch and mingle will be held.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX21 News Colorado.
Its no secret that the Charlotte Douglas International Airport is in the process of expanding its operations and footprint in the western part of the city. But as it expands in the name of economic development, residents in the nearby Steele Creek neighborhood worry that their neighborhood isnt a part of the airports plans.

Why did Charlotte Douglas International Airport begin to expand? Where is Steele Creek and why is the neighborhood vital to the airports expansion? When did residents begin to feel they were being squeezed out?

Heres a timeline of the Steele Creek neighborhoods beginnings, the airports expansion and how the destruction of a potentially historic site increased residents worry on whether their entire neighborhood will be next.

Charlotte Douglas Airport and Steele Creek neighborhood: A history

Scotch-Irish settlers began calling the Steele Creek area home in the late 1600s. The settlers brought their religion to the area, establishing the Steele Creek Presbyterian Church in 1760.

The church was the epicenter of the area and in 1914 the congregation built the manse to house its pastors. The home also became a community hub.

Charlotte Douglas began commercial operations in 1936 and in 1942 it became an air force base during World War II.

The modern-day Steele Creek neighborhood was built in the 1940s, thanks to the veterans who decided to remain in the neighborhood.

Charlotte Douglas current terminal, along with its international operations, opened in 1982.

In 1989, Jerry Orr became the airports aviation director, paving the way for airport expansion. Orr became the face of the airport and is credited with making the facility what it is today.

In 1991, the Steele Creek Presbyterian Church and its surrounding 37 acres were designated as a historic landmark by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission. The manse was not but it was still considered a notable place.

Steele Creek Presbyterian Church, founded when North Carolina was still a British colony, is the second oldest house of worship in Mecklenburg County. But the 257-year-old church is under pressure from the ever-expanding airport. Sunday, the congregation voted to explore merger with another church.

The plans for Charlotte Douglas Airport expansion

That same year, the airport conducted a capacity study in partnership with the Federal Aviation Administration that found that if the airport did not expand, it would suffer from operational delays.

To increase capacity, the airport proposed the creation of a third parallel runway. But the new runway would negatively impact five properties protected by a national preservation act. In a 2000 agreement between the airport, the FAA and the North Carolina Historic Preservation Office, the airport would work with the preservation office to minimize harm to the sites. However, the agreement notes that two of the sites, the Samuel Brown Farm and the Spratt-Grier Farm may need to be demolished if the airport and the preservation office could not find a way to reuse the spaces.

Between 2007 and 2015, the airport completed its CLT 2015 development plan, completing about $1.5 billion worth of improvements including the addition of the third runway and a new roadway entrance.

2015 also marked the start of the airports ongoing $2.5 billion Destination CLT redevelopment plan, which includes a fourth parallel runway and lobby expansion.





In 2017, the airport released its Airport Area Strategic Development Plan, detailing how the airport would expand in all directions. Part of the plan includes CLT South, the airports Logistics and Distribution Hub. That hub is located in the Steele Creek neighborhood but the plan never mentions the community or its residents.





That same year, the City of Charlotte, on behalf of the airport, purchased the Steele Creek Presbyterian Church, as well as the manse.





In 2018, the airport amended its agreement with the FAA and the state preservation office. The airport added four protected properties to its list of impacted sites, including the Steele Creek Presbyterian Manse. The new agreement called for the removal or demolition of all the sites, including the manse. The airport also acknowledged that one previously listed property was vandalized and destroyed, while two other properties were demolished by the airport because they were unsafe. The airport agreed to pay $450,000 to the state office since the sites were not preserved.





An airplane flies over the cemetery at Steele Creek Presbyterian Church on Friday.

Attempts to save historic properties in west Charlotte

In 2020, Historic Landmark Commission Chair Brian Clarke said conversations surrounding the preservation of the manse began with the airport. But as the years progressed, the airport stood firm in its need to demolish the manse.





In October 2023, the airport submitted a permit demolition request for the manse, according to an airport spokesperson.





In December, the landmarks commission decided to recommend that the manse become a historic landmark. The recommendation put a 180-day hold on demolition plans so that the proposal could go before the Charlotte City Council, who would either approve or deny the request. In North Carolina, a historic landmark cannot be changed or demolished without a Certificate of Appropriateness. But under state law, the certificate cannot be denied. What the landmark status can do is delay the start date of the certificate by 365 days, giving the commission more time to potentially move or save the site.





In an April landmark commission meeting, Clarke inquired on the status of the manses designation. Commission executive director Stewart Gray said the city had not scheduled the consideration of the resolution for the Manse.





In that same meeting, real estate investment firm Foundry Commercial said it was working with the airport to acquire the Steele Creek Presbyterian Church and surrounding land. Foundrys plan was to reuse the churchs sanctuary and turn it into a headquarters for She Built This City, a nonprofit that trains women for construction and manufacturing jobs. The remaining land would be turned into warehouses. Foundry was requesting that the commission remove the landmark status from a portion of the land so it could build the warehouses. The church and cemetery would remain historic landmarks.





In June, the 180-day hold on the demolition expired, as the recommendation was still not placed on the City Councils agenda.





In a June commission meeting, Clarke again inquired about the manse to which Gray said city staff [had] explained their opposition to designating the manse as a historic landmark.

The former Steele Creek Presbyterian Manse sits in a pile of rubble after being demolished along Steele Creek Road in Charlotte, NC.

The loss of trust

On Aug. 2, the airport demolished the manse.

On Aug. 5, spokespersons from the airport and the city said the recommendation didnt go before council because the landmark commission did not follow protocol when recommending historic designation for the manse.

That statement was inaccurate and on Aug. 9, the city corrected its statement.

In Augusts commission meeting, members approved the de-designation of a portion of the Steele Creek churchs land. In the same meeting, residents expressed their frustrations with the airport. Every time the airport is allowed to expand, it has a direct negative impact on my neighborhood, said Eric Woods.





Whats next?

An airport spokesperson said the facility will continue purchasing land in the area from voluntary sellers.

The airports plans for the logistics hub will take five to 20-plus years, according to the development report. The timeline for the project, the airport said, depends on how quickly residents sell to Charlotte Douglas.
US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign rally at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. Mark Hertzberg/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

US Vice President Kamala Harris takes to the stage at the Democratic National Convention on Thursday, the culmination of the four-day celebration of the party's candidate in the fight against Republican Donald Trump for the presidency.

Harris, who only entered the race a month ago after President Joe Biden dropped his bid, will have her biggest opportunity yet to sway voters when she delivers her speech in Chicago to formally accept her party's nomination.

While the Democratic faithful are feeling unified and invigorated by her campaign, a chief task for Harris going forward is winning over moderates and other voters who remain on the fence.

Harris' vice presidential running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, gave Wednesday's keynote address. He praised Harris as "tough" and said she would "fight for your freedom to live the life you want to lead."

Harris has made health care - and especially reproductive rights - a central issue of her campaign, saying that a second term for Trump would lead to cuts in access to abortion and birth control.

Trump, whose lead in opinion polls has evaporated, has labelled Harris a "radical left lunatic" and a "failed vice president." He's attacked her positions on immigration and the economy, saying there would be a 1929-style stock market crash if she wins.

Trump has also lobbed a barrage of insults at Harris, calling her a "bum" and falsely suggesting that she had previously downplayed her black heritage.

Harris, the daughter of an Indian-born mother and Jamaican-born father, would be the first female US president if elected.

The most famous names in Democratic politics delivered rousing endorsements of Harris on the first three nights of the convention.

Former president Barack Obama said "the torch had been passed" to Harris and denounced Trump as "dangerous." Former first lady Michelle Obama declared that "hope is making a comeback," in a throwback to the winning message of her husband's 2008 campaign.

US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris (L) and Democratic Vice Presidential nominee Governor Tim Walz hold a campaign rally at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. Mark Hertzberg/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
Vice President Harriss campaign spokesperson says the campaign isnt worried about the possibility that independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will drop out and endorse former President Trump, saying their message isnt for him, but rather for voters who are on the fence about a second Trump term.

I think our message, frankly, isnt for RFK, Michael Tyler said Thursday on MSNBC. Its for the voters who are looking for a place to go in this campaign.

Tyler, speaking from the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, touched on the rumors that Kennedy will drop out of the race Friday and endorse Trump.

Kennedys long-shot campaign is waning after President Biden dropped out of the race, and Harris has surged in the polls since entering it.

I think that him dropping out fully cements  that this election is going to be a choice between Vice President Harris, whos fighting for the American people, [and] Donald Trump, who, as I said earlier, is simply fighting for himself, Tyler said in comments highlighted by Mediaite.

Nicole Shanahan, Kennedys running mate, strongly implied on a podcast earlier this week that the campaign could come to an end and Kennedy would support Trump.

Sources close to the independent candidate told The Hill that Kennedy is inching closer to suspending his presidential bid. He will deliver remarks Friday in Arizona, the same day Trump will also be in the critical battleground state.

The Harris campaign has tried to project confidence. Tyler said that throughout Kennedys campaign, he has been propped up by MAGA donors and been parroting MAGA talking points.

I dont think it would be any surprise if he were to drop out and endorse Donald Trump, he said.

Tyler made a pitch for Harriss campaign to independent voters.

She is the candidate who is actually going to fight for more opportunity for them. She is someone for voters who want government to get the hell out of the way of their own personal decision, he said.

Theres a home for you in Kamala Harriss campaign, Tyler 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.
A top economic adviser to Vice President Kamala Harris campaign for the White House has called for the United States to establish a new federal program to loan foreign countries billions of dollars so they can buy American-made green energy technologies.

In an essay published Tuesday at Foreign Affairs, economist Brian Deese  who led President Joe Bidens National Economic Council until last year  called for a Clean Energy Marshall Plan, modeled and named after the U.S. government program that financed Europes postwar reconstruction and opened new markets for the booming American manufacturing sector.

As after World War II, the United States can be generous as well as pro-American in its approach, Deese wrote. It can promote U.S. interests by scaling its industries to meet global needs while winning greater influence in this new geopolitical landscape. And it can meet developing countries where they are  supplying them with the energy they need to expand their economies and the innovation they need to decarbonize efficiently.

Just one month after Biden dropped out of the race, the nascent Harris campaign has had little time to add new planks to the partys policy platform, with the most high-profile proposals so far focusing on ways to increase production of new housing and cap surging grocery prices. Deeses essay offers a glimpse into how a Harris administration might build on Bidens landmark climate-spending laws, which have spurred droves of new factories to manufacture solar panels, batteries and electric vehicles.

At the core of Deeses proposal is the idea for a new funding agency called the Clean Energy Finance Authority.

White House National Economic Council director Brian Deese speaks during the daily briefing at the White House in Washington, May 31, 2022. via Associated Press

The Marshall Plan had a straightforward aim: subsidize European demand for U.S. products and services needed to rebuild Europe, Deese wrote. Today, the United States should establish a Clean Energy Finance Authority with an updated mission: subsidize foreign demand for clean energy technology and put American innovation and industry at the front of the line.

Current federal financing institutions for overseas deals, he wrote, are constrained by byzantine rules that block U.S. investment that could advance its national interests.

The U.S. Development Finance Corporation only backs projects in lower- and middle-income countries, Deese noted. It doesnt make investments in Chiles world-leading lithium processing industry, since the South American nation is considered high-income. But companies in the low-income Democratic Republic of Congo, the top global producer of cobalt needed for electric vehicle batteries, often find it impossible to meet the DFCs stringent labor standards.

By contrast, Chinese companies last year spent over $200 million on a Chilean lithium plant and embarked on an aggressive expansion of Congolese cobalt-mining ventures, as Beijing looks to increase its already dominant share of the market for most metals needed for making batteries and other green technologies.

The U.S. Export-Import Bank went unmentioned in Deeses roughly 5,100-word essay. While the other leading federal financing authority for overseas deals has funded major clean energy projects such as Polands first nuclear power plant, the Ex-Im Banks charter is set to expire at the end of 2026, and its reauthorization could prove an uphill battle in Congress.

The Department of Energys Loan Programs Office could offer a model for the Clean Energy Finance Authority, Deese suggested. Under current director Jigar Shah, the domestically focused Energy Department lender approved 11 investments totaling $18 billion in the past two fiscal years, rapidly expanding its operations to dole out money from Bidens landmark climate laws.

Geothermal energy, an emerging power source that uses heat from the Earths molten core to make steam to produce 24/7 zero-carbon electricity, offers a notable through line from the original Marshall Plan. After World War II, Italy used U.S. funding to buy American drilling technology, pipes, and other industrial equipment to rebuild its energy sector  including the equipment needed to restart Europes first commercial geothermal plant, powered by steam from lava beds in Tuscany.

By 1950, that region had more than doubled its geothermal capacity and remained a major contributor to Italys total power demand, Deese wrote.

Now that U.S. companies are harnessing the same technology that spurred the American oil and gas boom to expand the potential for geothermal energy, Deese wrote, the country should export equipment to Southeast Asia and Africa. With the Biden administration leading more than a dozen countries in a pledge to triple global nuclear energy output by 2050, Deese suggested that a Clean Energy Finance Authority could also fund new nuclear plants.

Equipment at a drilling site owned by Fervo Energy, a Houston-based company using fracking technology to expand the potential for zero-carbon geothermal energy. via Associated Press

Deese, who headed sustainable investing at BlackRock before Biden tapped him as the top White House economic adviser in December 2020, envisioned the Clean Energy Finance Authority taking a more nimble, market-oriented approach to draw in more private investment.

Ninety percent of the original Marshall Plan was funded through government grants, which dont need to be paid back. But the climate-oriented 2.0 version could easily be the inverse, with less than ten percent of its expenditures in the form of grants and the rest of the capital being deployed as equity, debt, export credit, and other forms of financing, Deese wrote.

The program would also require Washington to level the global playing field through the active yet measured use of trade tools such as tariffs.

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has promised to put such high tariffs in place on Chinese goods that it would effectively end imports within four years  a proposal that Deese called a cynical fantasy playing on populist fears. Instead of using blunt tools to effectuate what amounts to a unilateral retreat, Deese said the U.S. should work with allies to challenge Chinas unfair trade practices.

Another tool, he said, could be a carbon-based tariff like the one the European Union is adopting, charging higher import fees for goods that come from countries with heavily polluting energy systems. Such a policy could be relaxed to complement specific deals the Clean Energy Finance Authority brokers.

In this moment of domestic economic strength  stark against the backdrop of heightened competition, a fracturing world, and a raging climate crisis  the United States can do something generous for people across the globe in a way that benefits Americans, Deese concluded. It should take that leap, not just because it is the morally right thing to do but also because it is the strategically necessary thing to do.

Related...
The News

The share of Americans who hold a favorable view of Vice President Kamala Harris has increased substantially since she replaced President Joe Biden atop the Democratic presidential ticket, new figures from Gallup show.

Harris favorability rating increased 13 percentage points since June to 47%. According to the latest figures, 93% of Democrats hold a favorable opinion of Harris, while 41% of independents and 5% of Republicans said the same. The survey was conducted Aug. 1-20, 2024.

The poll was released hours before Harris was to deliver her speech accepting the Democratic nomination at the partys convention in Chicago.

According to Gallup, Biden has also seen his job approval rating increase to 43%, while former President Donald Trump has seen his favorability rating decline to 41%.

In December 2023, Gallup found that 40% of Americans approved of the way Harris was handling her job, while 58% disapproved. About eight in 10 Democrats, 36% of independents, and 6% of Republicans approved of her handling of her job then.

Harris has seen a bump in how favorably voters view her since Biden endorsed her to replace him on the Democratic ticket across a set of polls averaged by FiveThirtyEight.

Notable

Harris leads Trump in five of seven battlegrounds, according to polling from the British firm Focaldata shared exclusively with Semafor earlier this week.

Both Tim Walz and JD Vance are relatively unknown to Americans, though the former has a higher approval rating, an AP-NORC poll found.
KYODO NEWS - Aug 22, 2024 - 20:11 | All, Japan

The operator of the disaster-stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex was set to attempt to remove a small amount of melted fuel from one of its crippled reactors on Thursday but put the trial extraction on hold due to issues discovered during preparations.

Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. has not said when it will try again after setup errors in the retrieval device forced it in the morning to suspend the first attempt to remove debris since the plant was devastated in the wake of a massive earthquake and tsunami over a decade ago.

"We are now looking into why there was a mistake in the sequence of setting up the pipes," a TEPCO official said at a press conference in the afternoon. Efforts to extract the melted fuel in Fukushima Prefecture will not resume Friday, according to TEPCO.

TEPCO plans to connect five pipes, numbered from one through five and each measuring 1.5 meters long, and use them to push the debris retrieval device into the No. 2 reactor's containment vessel to collect a debris sample.

But the pipes were mistakenly placed in the order of two, three, four, one and five, TEPCO said. Thursday's preparatory work began at 7:24 a.m. but was halted at 8:53 a.m., according to the utility.

The Fukushima prefectural government asked TEPCO to take measures to prevent similar incidents in the future, saying it is an "elementary and man-made error that could make residents anxious."

"It is better to carry on with the work safely and steadily rather than rushing," TEPCO President Tomoaki Kobayakawa told reporters in Niigata Prefecture, where he was visiting to discuss another reactor operated by the company.

The trial will only seek to retrieve up to 3 grams of fuel debris from the No. 2 unit over approximately two weeks. Methods of removing all the melted fuel remaining in the Nos. 1 to 3 reactors have yet to be decided, leaving major challenges in the plant's decades-long decommissioning plan.

There is an estimated 880 tons of fuel debris in the Nos. 1, 2 and 3 reactors.

TEPCO has chosen the No. 2 reactor as the first to start the fuel debris retrieval work, as the situation inside is understood more clearly than the others.

Among the three reactors that experienced core meltdowns in the accident, the reactor building housing the No. 2 unit was the only one not to suffer a hydrogen explosion.

The No. 2 unit was in operation when the emergency began and some fuel is believed to have melted through the reactor pressure vessel that holds the fuel and accumulated at the bottom of the outer primary containment vessel. It is thought to have mixed with materials such as cement from the surrounding area.

According to the plan, TEPCO hopes to retrieve debris using a telescopic device equipped with a gripper tool. The device can extend up to 22 meters and access the debris through a penetration point in the primary containment vessel.

Steps have been taken to limit radiation emissions from the stricken reactor, with a valve system installed as a barrier.

It is expected to take around a week for the device to reach the debris, according to the utility. The collected material will be taken to a facility in Ibaraki Prefecture for analysis.

On March 11, 2011, the six-reactor plant on the Pacific coast was flooded by more than 10-meter-high tsunami waves triggered by the magnitude 9.0 quake, causing the reactor cooling systems to lose their power supply.

Nos. 1 to 3 reactors subsequently suffered core meltdowns, while hydrogen explosions damaged the buildings housing the Nos. 1, 3 and 4 units, making it the world's worst nuclear accident since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.

TEPCO had initially planned to start retrieving debris from the No. 2 unit in 2021 but postponed its plans three times due to the coronavirus pandemic and technical difficulties.

Related coverage:

Fukushima nuclear fuel debris retrieval to begin on Aug. 22

China willing to stabilize ties with Japan even after Kishida quits

Japan regulator blocks plan to restart Tsuruga nuclear unit
CHICAGO  Democrats are barely talking about Gaza on stage at their convention. The most prominent critics of Israel are backing Kamala Harris. And the pro-Palestinian protests that some in the party feared would disrupt their summer joyfest have fizzled out with smaller-than-expected crowds.

At least so far, three days into the convention, Harris has avoided what could have been a major interruption to her coronation that would have exposed deep fissures within the party.

At the Democratic National Convention this week, it has become clear that Harris is not paying the same electoral price for the war in the Middle East as President Joe Biden when he was a candidate. Having shed that baggage, Democrats are doing their best to skirt one of the most divisive issues facing the party.

Harris has served as a faithful member of Bidens administration at a time when it has approved billions of dollars in weapons sales to Israel. Her aides have stressed that, like Biden, she believes in Israels right to defend itself and does not support an arms embargo on the country. But in more than a dozen interviews, top progressives and other pro-Palestinian leaders in Chicago said they anticipate the vice president will forge a different path on foreign policy than Biden if elected president.



For now, Harris is navigating the political tightrope and largely keeping her party unified, a critical task ahead of November.

She has made sure to call out in really strong terms the need for a cease-fire and to really acknowledge the desperation and inhumanity of what's happening to the Palestinian people in Gaza. And I think that is something that people have seen and appreciated, said Rep. Pramila Jayapal, chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, in an interview. There's a sense that there's an opening with her that perhaps wasn't there with President Biden because she doesn't have a long relationship on the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee or with Benjamin Netanyahu.

In a speech at the convention Wednesday, progressive Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, himself a former leader of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, signaled that the partys left flank should feel that their concerns about Gaza are being heard by Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz: When we say we need a cease-fire, and an end to the loss of innocent lives in Gaza, and to bring our hostages homes, theyre listening, friends. They agree with us, he said.

His comments came just a day after progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) also took the stage to validate Harris handling of the war.

Pro-Palestinian activists even point to a small win at the convention: The Democratic National Committee provided space for an official panel on Monday about Palestinian human rights.

The war in Gaza has exposed some of the worst fissures this election cycle within the party, with pro-Israel groups spending vast sums of money to defeat top liberal House members. Biden was repeatedly dogged by pro-Palestinian protesters at campaign events before he dropped out of the race.

Harris has faced protests too, and received blowback from progressives when she quipped Im speaking as pro-Palestinian activists disrupted her at a rally in Michigan. But at the same event, she quietly met with Arab American leaders of the so-called uncommitted movement, which has expressed frustration with the Biden administrations handling of the war, just before her speech.

At the convention, there has still been quiet maneuvering behind the scenes. Progressives and others have pushed the Harris campaign to put a Palestinian American speaker on stage at the convention, including Michigan delegate Abbas Alawieh, who is one of the uncommitted delegates in Gaza. He said Wednesday evening at a news conference he was told there wouldnt be a Palestinian American speaker on the convention stage.

The vice president made a decision  she and her team  that the answer is no, he said.

As he wrapped up his remarks, he took a call from what appeared to be an aide to the vice president and told the person, Tell the vice president that I'm sitting outside. I'm not going anywhere.

He then sat down outside the United Center, where the convention is taking place, in what appeared to be a sit-in with half a dozen other supporters. (It grew slightly larger over the course of the night.) Alawieh and other advocates stressed their goal was not to disrupt the convention, that they were still Democrats and that they opposed Trump.

The Harris campaign declined to comment on whether it would allow a Palestinian American to speak on stage at the convention, but a DNC spokesperson pointed to outreach such as the panel on Palestinian issues and Harris campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez meeting with Arab American leaders in Michigan recently.

The uncommitted delegates picked up support from Ocasio-Cortez who wrote on the social media platform X: The @DNC must change course and affirm our shared humanity. Another member of the Squad, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), who stopped by the sit-in, previously at a news conference in a park earlier Wednesday near the United Center, decried the Biden administration for refusing to recognize the genocidal war that is taking place in Gaza.

Asked afterward by POLITICO about Harris specifically, she softened her tone: She is incredibly empathetic, but empathy goes so far. We need a policy shift.

At the same time that Harris has prevented fallout on her left flank at the convention, pro-Israel Democrats are signaling theyre satisfied with the way speakers have discussed the war on stage, and said they appreciated the speaking slot given to the parents of an American-Israeli hostage on Wednesday evening.



I think the way it's been handled has been good, because what's important to me is the policy. Biden and Harris have been extraordinary in their support of Israel, extraordinary even given the fact that obviously there's a push from a small group of people who, you know, don't want any support for Israel, said Rep. Lois Frankel (D-Fla.), a Jewish lawmaker who left the progressive caucus over the Israel-Hamas war.

In Chicago, pro-Palestinian protests have popped up each day of the Democratic convention across the city, with the largest turning out fewer than 10,000 demonstrators, according to Chicago Police Department  not the tens of thousands that organizers had talked about. Activists also briefly displayed a flag that read Stop Arming Israel during Bidens speech on Monday before convention organizers took it away.

Other, smaller protests have popped up around the city, including in front of the building where the Israeli consulate is located on an upper floor, which led to dozens of arrests nearly two miles from the United Center.

Some pro-Palestinian advocates in Chicago indicated that they were waiting to hear more from Harris herself on the war in Gaza, particularly when she takes the stage Thursday.

I'm hopeful that we will see a shift from Vice President Harris, said Margaret DeReus, the executive director of the Institute for Middle East Understanding. I think she has a real opportunity to turn the page, but I also think that she needs to quickly.

David Seaton, a delegate from Massachusetts who signed up to be a symbolic cease-fire delegate at the convention, said he wants the Harris campaign to lean into the messaging that we need to support a cease-fire in this moment.

But at the same time, he told POLITICO, Im not a one-issue voter and I believe that so much is on the line that I will be supporting Kamala Harris in this election.
CHICAGO  Democrats are doing a tricky two-step on immigration, keeping one foot in the familiar terrain of immigrant rights while putting the other in a newfound restrictionist stance on the border.

The strained choreography was on full display at the Democratic National Convention Wednesday night, as speakers alternately gave paeans to America as a nation of immigrants who deserve a pathway to citizenship and hammered former President Donald Trump for tanking a bipartisan bill to clamp down on border crossings.

Behind the have-it-all approach, though, is an unequivocal lurch to the right. Democrats have backed down from their decades-long insistence that any new border security measures must be paired with a pathway to citizenship and relief for undocumented immigrants. Vice Preisdent Kamala Harris is running ads touting toughness on the border, with a more muted campaign emphasis on the legalization policies that for decades have been their immigration lodestar.

Yet even as Democrats make their rightward turn, the partys left flank is not putting up a fight. The lack of major backlash from progressives has been striking as activists swallow their concerns and dutifully line up behind the vice president. Their calculus is partially rooted in the stark contrast of the presidential match-up: Harris, the daughter of immigrants who hails from a diverse border state, versus Trump, who promises to expand on the draconian policies of his first administration by enacting a massive deportation regime.

Its the fear of Trump, said longtime pro-immigrant advocate Erika Andiola, bluntly summing up the overriding factor compelling progressives to dial down their dissent on a host of issues in the name of party unity.

But beyond the November election is a larger tectonic shift, as Democrats and activists alike wrestle with the political assumptions and longstanding legislative strategy that has defined their approach to immigration for a generation.

We recognize that until we take immigration off the table  off from being used as a political pinata by Republicans  we will not be able to pass comprehensive immigration reform, said Domingo Garcia, chair of League of United Latin American Citizens PAC. The civil rights group endorsed Harris this month, its first formal presidential endorsement in its 95-year history.

In Chicago, immigration activists quietly displayed their desire for a pathway to citizenship on lapel pins, avoiding any visible friction over a policy platform that skews far more toward border security than it did just four years ago. The convention programming not only featured a young influencer telling his personal immigration story, but also the sheriff of a Texas border county who said Harris, not Trump, would get tough on crime at the border.

We do not have to choose between a secure border and building an America for all. Under President Harris, we can and will do both, said Rep. Pete Aguilar of California, illustrating the Democrats needle-threading.



The Harris campaign believes that mix reflects where the electorate stands: Voters dont want to see chaos at the border, but they also support policies to help long-term, undocumented immigrants residing in the U.S. But such a balancing act is exceedingly tricky, as polling shows immigration is a significant vulnerability for Harris and her party.

Gone are the days when Democratic strivers compete to out-flank each other on the left by promising to decriminalize border crossings, as most of the presidential contenders, including Harris, did last cycle. The spike in crossings in the first three years of the Biden-Harris administration has handed Republicans a potent political cudgel, though the numbers are now about where they were when Trump left office.

The first acknowledgment of this liability came when President Joe Biden endorsed a bipartisan border security package that did not include the typical Democratic demands of relief for children who were brought to the country illegally by their parents. When Trump told Republicans to spike the deal, preferring to keep the border as a top campaign issue, Biden followed up with an executive order that clamped down on asylum at the southern border.

It was beyond disappointing and upsetting, because it was the first time that I could recall in my lifetime that it was an enforcement-only approach, not a balanced approach, said Sen. Alex Padilla, the California Democrat who is a leading champion of an overhaul to the immigration system. I feared that we'd end up negotiating against ourselves, and that risked becoming the new position of the Democratic Party.

But Padilla said his reservations have been calmed  both by the GOP reneging on the border deal and his faith that Harris is an ally to his cause.

Were in a different place now, he said.

Padilla and other immigrant advocates were assuaged partly by a second Biden executive order to shield undocumented immigrants who are married to U.S. citizens from deportation. The administration estimates roughly 500,000 people are eligible for the new protections, which includes work authorization and a pathway to legal permanent residency.

That was the more balanced approach that we had been calling for, said Padilla, who noted that Harris stump speech includes a reference to comprehensive immigration reform.

The spousal relief executive order was a tangible win for those championing the pro-immigrant cause. The American Business Immigrant Coalition celebrated it as a hard-fought policy achievement at a reception this week in a Chicago cantina roughly two miles from the convention hall.

But when Biden gave his keynote convention address on Monday  the same day the policy went into effect  he did not speak about the achievement. For some advocates, it was a sign of how efforts to aid immigrants have receded into the background even as Democrats increasingly talk about border security. The policy got a shout-out from the stage later that week from Rep. Pete Aguilar, the highest-ranking Latino in Congress.

To Andiola  the progressive immigrant advocate  the lack of a plug by Biden was such a missed opportunity. They could have had a speaker who had a spouse who was undocumented speaking about how much better their life is going to be because of this program.

For now, however, many pro-immigrant advocates are shrugging off the slights. Much of their enthusiasm is specific to Harris, whose personal backstory is deeply entwined with the immigrant experience.

Her California roots help, too  no Democratic politician from the state can ascend the party ranks without building fluency in the movements policy goals. Harris has long-standing relationships with immigrant activists; her first visit the day after being elected to the Senate in 2016 was with the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, one of the states most prominent advocacy groups.

The thing I hold a lot of hope for is this is not something I have to explain to Kamala Harris, said Angelica Salas, the groups executive director.

As Harris raced to shore up support in the hours and days after Biden dropped out of the presidential race, leaders of the advocacy group UnidosUS had a high spot on her call list.

She took the time, with all the phone calls she was making, to call the organization, said Carmen Feliciano, vice president of policy and advocacy for the group. So it definitely shows that Latinos are top of mind for her and for her future administration.

By tending to those relationships, Harris has earned a considerable grace period from advocacy groups that are accustomed to demanding policy details from Democratic candidates. Feliciano acknowledged Harris hasnt presented a specific immigration plan but signaled a willingness to give her the benefit of the doubt.

We know, based on where shes been in the past, that her policies are probably going to be aligned with UnidosUS policies, Feliciano said.

So far, Harris history on immigration has been fodder for a raft of GOP attack ads. Republicans have quickly worked to make Harris the face of the border chaos that defined the bulk of Bidens term. They have dubbed her the border czar, a misleading title that exaggerates Harris portfolio on the issue. (Biden had tasked the vice president with working with Central American countries to address the root causes of migration.)



In the early days of her campaign, the issue emerged as one of Harris biggest weak spots, moving her team to quickly take an aggressive posture. They emphasized her record as a border state attorney general who prosecuted transnational gangs, drug cartels and human traffickers. Theyve also tried to put Trump on defense, calling out his role in killing the bipartisan border security bill and highlighting unpopular policies during his presidency like family separation. The strategy pulls a page directly from Bidens playbook, as Harris touts the presidents asylum crackdown that has led to a more than 50 percent drop in border crossings. It also evokes the campaign run by Rep. Tom Suozzi, a Long Island Democrat who flipped a red seat in a special election this winter by running as a border hawk.

My consultants and other people in my party were saying, Hey, what are you doing talking about that? That's a Republican issue, Suozzi said. No, its not. This is what people are talking about. And good politicians are the ones that say what people are thinking already.

Suozzi, who has emerged as a top messenger for Democrats on immigration and nabbed a convention speaking slot on Wednesday, told POLITICO that emphasizing border security is a necessity for those who want to see other reforms, such as a pathway to citizenship, further down the line.

Immigration activists  and myself  we still want to do all those things. But the reality is that the people are not necessarily clamoring for that, he said. Its the right policy.  Its the right thing to do. But right now, what the people [are saying] is, Hey, I'm looking at this stuff on TV, and I don't like the way that looks. So we've got to respond to the people.

Democrats are feeling liberated to tack right on the issue in part because there is increasing evidence that being doves on immigration is not necessarily the way to win Latino votes, a crucial constituency for the party. In polling, Latinos consistently rank economic issues higher than immigration as a top concern. Surveys also show that a majority of Latinos support increased border security measures.

There's tons of data saying Latinos aren't where the Democratic advocates are on this, said Mike Madrid, a longtime GOP consultant who specializes in the Latino vote. They are where Joe Biden started to pivot and where Kamala Harris has doubled down. That's where they're at. That's why [Democrats] made the shift.

Some advocates have undergone a shift of their own. UnidosUS on Wednesday released a border policy proposal, marking the first time the group has waded specifically into the debate on enforcement. Acknowledging that Latinos have grown increasingly frustrated with a sense of disorder at the southern border, the group is trying to redirect the enforcement debate away from talk of harsh clampdowns to a policy that is firm, fair and free of cruelty.

Though pro-immigrant groups are giving Harris space to run her tough-talking campaign, they are still laying down an expectation that shell champion their interests if she wins  particularly if Democrats also capture control of Congress.

They should pass an immigration reform bill within the first 100 days, a voting rights act within the first 100 days and take those issues off the table for any future elections, said Garcia, of LULAC.

If Congress remains divided and sweeping legislation is off the table, Salas from CHIRLA said she expects Harris to take every single power she has as an executive to provide freedom for our folks and protections to our undocumented community right now.

One thing advocates say they will not stand for is Democrats passing an enforcement bill  and then letting the issue drop.

Padilla says the partys history means theres no need for them to worry.

We've been talking about border security  for last six [or] nine months, Padilla said. We've been talking about pathways to citizenship for decades.

Myah Ward contributed to this report.
Kamala Harris is beginning to face the consequences of not pushing for a Palestinian American speaker at the Democratic National Convention, amid widespread backlash to Israels deadly U.S.-backed military campaign in Gaza, which has killed more than 40,000 people.

Muslim Women for Harris-Walz announced late Wednesday that it would disband after members of the Uncommitted delegation at the DNC were notified that Harriss team had denied their many requests to have a Palestinian American speaker appear on the main stage.

We cannot in good conscience, continue Muslim Women for Harris-Walz, in light of this new information from the Uncommitted movement that VP Harris team declined their request to have a Palestinian American speaker take the stage at the DNC, the group said in a statement.

The family of the Israeli Hostage that was on the stage tonight, has shown more empathy towards Palestinian American speakers than our candidate or the DNC has, the statement said. This is a terrible message to send to Democrats. Palestinians have a right to speak about Palestine.

Earlier Wednesday, Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, the parents of 23-year-old Israeli American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, had been invited to speak from the main stage, making an emotional plea for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and the safe return of the remaining hostages. There is a surplus of agony on all sides of the tragic conflict in the Middle East and a competition of pain, Polin said. There are no winners.

In a statement posted to X, the Uncommitted Movement, which organized massive uncommitted votes during the Democratic primaries, wrote that they supported the decision to have the family of an Israeli hostage speak, and asked the DNC to reject a hierarchy of human value by ensuring Palestinian voices are heard on the main stage.

Excluding a Palestinian speaker betrays the partys commitment in our platform to valuing Israelis and Palestinian lives equally. Vice President Harris must unite this party with a vision that fights for everyone, including Palestinians, the statement said.

The 30 Uncommitted delegates in attendance at the DNC began a sit-in outside of the convention center Wednesday night, requesting that Harriss team reconsider their decision. Representative Ilhan Omar sat with them, and Representative Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez called in via FaceTime to lend her support, although earlier this week, she had neglected to advocate for Palestinians during her rousing primetime speech.

The United Auto Workers, which has endorsed Harris, posted a statement to X Thursday, urging Harriss team to reverse course on its decision. If we want the war in Gaza to end, we cant put our heads in the sand or ignore the voices of the Palestinian Americans in the Democratic Party, the statement said. If we want peace, if we want real democracy, and if we want to win this election, the Democratic Party must allow a Palestinian American speaker to be heard from the DNC stage tonight.

Earlier this week, the Uncommitted Movement was invited to host a panel discussion about Palestinian human rights at the DNC, the first time such an event has happened. At the time, the group thanked the DNC and reiterated a request that Dr. Tanya Haj-Hassan, a Palestinian American pediatric physician who has been working in Gaza throughout Israels assault, should be invited to speak from the conventions main stage.

Inside the United Center, pro-Palestinian speech has been entirely absent, and attempts to protest have been repeatedly quashed. On Monday, several members of the Florida delegation dropped a banner that read Stop Arming Israel during Joe Bidens speech but were blocked and even hit with signs by others standing around them. The protesters were then escorted out of the main room. Outside the convention center, more than 2,000 pro-Palestinian protesters marched in Chicago for a third day, after violent clashes with the police outside of the Israeli consulate.

The word Palestine is not allowed inside the Democratic National Convention. The word cease-fire has barely been uttered, said Rabbi Brant Rosen, a founder of the Jewish Voice for Peace Rabbinical Council, Wednesday night. This is a Hollywood-style coronation of a candidate. They assume they are entitled to our votes, but they are not entitled to our votes.

As the DNC enters its fourth and final day Thursday, the clock is ticking on Harriss team to reverse its decision to exclude Palestinians from its big tent.
Vice President Kamala Harris prepared for the highest-profile moment of her political life from a hotel suite in downtown Chicago, readying herself for an opportunity to turn the swell of momentum on which she arrived at the Democratic National Convention this week into a movement that propels her into the Oval Office.

The enormous stakes are not lost on Harris, who has been thinking about her speech for several weeks. From nearly the moment President Joe Biden removed himself from the top of the Democratic ticket, she has been formulating in her mind the argument she hopes to make on the final night of the convention.

Harris has never been regarded as one of the partys master speechmakers. Yet her prosecutorial elocution and distillation of policy into understandable terms has helped her galvanize massive crowds since launching her candidacy less than a month ago.

Harris has been vice president for more than three years, but advisers believe Americans are unaware of large parts of her biography. All week in Chicago, pieces of her background have been sprinkled into one speech after another, with her campaign hoping to help define her on its terms  as a prosecutor, a fighter, a daughter of a single middle-class mother and more.

She is expected to hit those touch points and more in her address Thursday.

According to several Democratic aides and others involved in her speech preparation, Harris has refined the text extensively, working in part from the stump speech she delivers, almost verbatim, at her campaign rallies. At the Park Hyatt Chicago, where she is staying this week, she has practiced at length and consulted with aides and family members in refining a speech meant to act as a high-profile introduction to American voters.

Since arriving in Chicago on Sunday evening, Harris has spent the daytime hours behind closed doors, working with her team on the address. She emerged on Monday to attend the first night of the convention and Tuesday evening to fly to Milwaukee for a campaign rally.

On Wednesday, she joined Biden on a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as negotiators in the Middle East worked to salvage talks toward a hostage and ceasefire deal  a reminder of the day job she must now balance as she formally assumes the Democratic nomination.

But mostly, she has been consulting her team, which includes speechwriters but also senior advisers such as her chiefs of staff Lorraine Voles and Sheila Nix, as well as family members such as her husband, Doug Emhoff.

Since the day Biden extinguished his presidential bid a month ago, Harris convention speech has been an almost daily focus, with time built into her schedule to lay out themes of the address to a small circle of advisers.

Adam Frankel, who has worked since 2021 as an adviser to the vice president, has taken a leading role in writing her address. Frankel, 43, was on the speechwriting team for former President Barack Obama and spent years studying the historic speeches of John F. Kennedy while he worked as a researcher for Ted Sorensen, a longtime confidant and wordsmith for the late president.

This notion that eloquence has a real role in public life, that eloquence can mobilize people to bring about real change, is something that obviously is one of his great contributions and something were trying to live up to, Frankel once told an audience at the Kennedy Library.

A guidepost for Harris remarks can be found in several of her major speeches over the years, aides said, including her presidential announcement in 2019. She is not known to dwell on her own history-making potential but rather allow others to tread that ground for her.

If I have the honor of being your president, I will tell you this: I am not perfect. Lord knows, I am not perfect, she told supporters back in January 2019. But I will always speak with decency and moral clarity and treat all people with dignity and respect. I will lead with integrity. And I will speak the truth.

In the final hours before Thursdays prime-time speech, Harris focus has largely been on perfecting her delivery, sources said, by trying to anticipate how the audience will receive and feel each line. This week also provided ample opportunity for Harris to spend time with her family  including members of her husbands family  who have descended on Chicago for the political festivities.

Former Louisiana Rep. Cedric Richmond, a close adviser, said even Harris views her Thursday night speech as her introduction to America in her own voice.

Asked what main message Harris would hope to deliver to Americans with her acceptance speech, Richmond said: That she cares about them and that its not about her and its about them.

Her main goal is to let the American people know she will wake up every day fighting for them, he said.

Brian Brokaw, who managed Harris campaign for California attorney general and has advised her for years, said he sees the vice presidents objective Thursday night as relatively straightforward.

Her task is to show the nation the Kamala Harris that many voters dont yet know, and through her words, make clear as day the stark contrast between the positive, unifying Harris-Walz vision and the doom and gloom of the Trump -Vance ticket, Brokaw said.

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Kamala Harris has helped America see joy and now she needs to make America see a president.

Her speech at the Democratic National Convention on Thursday night will represent her most exacting test yet in a dizzying month that rocketed her to the threshold of an historic presidency that could reshape American politics.

The vice president will offer the country a new beginning and a chance to move to a different place  beyond the prolonged funk brewed by years of Donald Trumps dark rhetoric and public exhaustion after a once-in-a-century pandemic and consequent and punishing high prices.

More broadly, shes proposing to restore the elusive lightness and optimism to American life and to reclaim the concept of freedom from conservatives, encompassing everything from reproductive rights to new economic relief for the working and middle classes, to access to health care and safety from mass shootings.

In this election, we each face a question. And that question is, what kind of country do we want to live in? Harris said at a packed rally in Milwaukee on Tuesday night as the convention partied in Chicago. Do we want to live in a country of chaos, fear, and hate? Or a country of freedom, compassion, and rule of law?

Her party is calling on Harris to ascend to the next level of the political stratosphere after advanced age ended President Joe Bidens reelection bid.

No modern presidential nominee of any major party has faced such a tough assignment in so short a time.

She is the last obstacle to Trumps return to power after he defied four criminal indictments, one conviction, and crushed his primary rivals as he eyes the most stunning presidential comeback in more than a century.

But Harris vice presidential pick, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, told the country on Wednesday night that she could turn the page on Donald Trump  in his plain speaking midwestern way that the campaign believes can appeal to White men in the heartland who may tire of the MAGA creed.

Kamala Harris is tough. Kamala Harris is experienced. And Kamala Harris is ready, Walz roared.

And in another message to independent and undecided Americans, talk show icon and actress Oprah Winfrey led a parade of entertainers and stars in reinforcing a message that has resonated throughout this convention.

Let us choose common sense over nonsense, because thats the best of America, Winfrey said. Let us choose the sweet promise of tomorrow over the bitter return to yesterday. We wont go back. We wont be set back, pushed back, bullied back, kicked back. We are not going back.

A person wears a pin featuring Democratic presidential ticket Kamala Harris and Tim Walz at the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago on August 21, 2024. - Rebecca Wright/CNN

Harris multiple goals on Thursday night

Most presidential nominees spent years on the campaign trail honing their politics and rhetorical appeals. Harris has been forced to build her campaign on the fly.

 She must establish herself in the eyes of voters as a credible potential commander in chief. She has a lot of gaps to fill in. While shes been a loyal supporter of Bidens national security approach, how shed deal with China, Russia, the war in Ukraine and Iran is largely a mystery.

 Harris best bet to beat Trump is to offer herself as the agent of change that voters have told pollsters for many months that they want. Its tough because shes a key member of an unpopular administration. But in her most striking effort to separate herself from Biden, Harris has tried to take the party in a sharply populist direction, vowing to cut down on price gouging by supermarket giants. Shes likely to highlight this on Thursday to signal to voters shes meeting them where they are. Former President Bill Clinton encapsulated this strategy in his convention speech Wednesday. Every four years  people come up to candidates  and they say  Now, here are our problems, solve them. Here are our opportunities, seize them. Here are our fears, ease them. Here are our dreams, help them come true.

 Harris uneven performance as vice president raised doubts about her capacity to ascend to the top job. Her strong debut heading the new presidential ticket has eased some of these Democratic fears. But her capacity to survive the searing examination to come is still a question. Trump is trying to portray her as an extreme liberal outside the mainstream of American politics. Everything Harris says Thursday will be an attempt to neutralize attacks on her record on immigration, on her character and her fitness to lead in a restive world. An even bigger test looms with her debate against Trump on September 10.

 The first month of the Harris campaign has unfolded in a surreal bubble as the Democratic Party has suddenly jumped back to life. But observers will be looking for evidence in her speech that she can turn the joy shes conjured so far into a viable campaign machine to win millions of votes.

 Harris must also disqualify Trump in the minds of enough voters to build her own majority. Shes been less explicit than Biden as framing this election as a battle for the soul of the nation, as key party leaders have shifted from warning about Trumps existential threat to mocking and belittling him. But Harris is warning that a second Trump term could change the country beyond recognition. This is not 2016 or 2020. And in particular, the stakes are higher for a lot of reasons, because we know what he does when hes in office.

Ultimately, Harris must make Americans feel comfortable with the idea of her being president.

In the most intimate portrait of the potential next commander in chief, second gentleman Douglas Emhoff sought to endear her to Americans with details of their romance.

She will lead with joy and toughness, with that laugh and that look, with compassion and conviction. Shell lead from the belief that wherever we come from, whatever we look like, were strongest when we fight for what we believe in, not just against what we fear, Emhoff said Tuesday night. Kamala Harris was exactly the right person for me at an important moment in my life, and at this moment in our nations history, she is exactly the right president.

Although, shes been vice president for four years, Harris remains unknown to many Americans. A recent CBS News poll found that only 64% of Americans knew what she stands for, compared to 86% who said the same of Trump.

This is an opportunity for the vice president to present a new voice to the country. But it also explains the need for her to define herself before Trump does it for her.

Shell never have a better chance.

Presdient Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris on stage at the end of the first night of the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago on August 19. - Austin Steele/CNN

A stunning chance of circumstances

While she has been deeply loyal to Biden, her vice presidency has not been brimming with successes  one reason why there was little pressure on the president to step aside at the beginning of this cycle.

But now, a nominee who has never won a single vote for the presidency (her primary campaign ahead of the 2020 race folded long before the Iowa caucuses) is being asked to conjure victory in a snap election of the highest of stakes.

When politicians secure a party nomination, they must prepare themselves to assume the even greater burdens of the presidency. In Harris case, its not a total leap into the unknown since she was on the ballot as vice president in 2020 and has been a heartbeat away from the top job ever since.

The vice presidents deftness as her boss tried to hold on as the nominee and then bowed to his partys desperation for him to step aside has gilded her reputation. Its raised the possibility that a crisis nurtured the next Democratic Party giant.

But shes not alone. Former Democratic presidents, first ladies and members of Harris inner circle and family have this week united behind her in a stunning shift in a party that was in disarray after Bidens disastrous debate with Trump.

Biden poignantly handed Harris his legacy and the hopes of his party before flying off into lame duck status after his address to the convention on Monday night.

But now only Harris can convince voters that she can be the 47th president.

A biography that could reassemble the Democratic coalition

Harris would be the first Black woman and Indian American President. All week, the Democratic Partys elders have highlighted her heritage, middle class upbringing and journey from a job flipping burgers at McDonalds to putting violent criminals behind bars as Californias attorney general. Theyve argued that her rise to the vice presidency from humble roots epitomizes a life of service that makes her fit to lead the nation.

That diverse biography may be the key to reassembling the kind of Democratic coalition rooted in women, minority and suburban voters that could lead Harris to the Oval Office.

When Democrats arrived in Chicago, they were buzzing with euphoria after Harris and Walz delighted huge crowds at swing state rallies that left Trump grappling for traction  and suddenly saddled, at 78, with the unwelcome reality of being the old candidate in the race.

But as the days passed, the reality of this years still-close election has started to intrude. Its been fueled by warnings from the Democrats who know best what it takes to win power  former Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama  that this election is nowhere near done and that the joy of recent weeks is just a starting point.

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(COLORADO SPRINGS)  The Harrison School District 2 (D2) celebrated 150 years on Tuesday, Aug. 20, and showcased old photos, artifacts, and other historical items during the event.

Courtesy: FOX21 News Photojournalist Lilia Onstott

Courtesy: FOX21 News Photojournalist Lilia Onstott

Courtesy: FOX21 News Photojournalist Lilia Onstott

Courtesy: FOX21 News Photojournalist Lilia Onstott

Courtesy: FOX21 News Photojournalist Lilia Onstott

Courtesy: FOX21 News Photojournalist Lilia Onstott

Harrison D2 was established on Aug. 20, 1874, two years before Colorado became a state, and is the second oldest district in El Paso County. D2 has over 13,300 students enrolled in its 23 schools and boasts an 80% graduation rate.

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HONOLULU (KHON2)  The Hawaii Polo Club has shared the passion and lifestyle of the sport of polo since 1963 and this weekend, they will be putting on a benefit fundraiser to help raise money for the damage from the Lahaina fire.

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Wakeup2days Chris Latronic was joined in studio by Sarah Christian from the Hawaii Polo Club and Josue Aguilar with Hui Homes.

Rebuilding challenges in Lahaina one year after devastating wildfire

The Hawaii Polo Club is holding a Lahaina Fire Benefit Polo Game and Concert on Sunday, Aug. 25, with the proceeds going to Hui Homes, a collective that is building tiny homes as an immediate housing solution for displaced fire survivors. The donations will help supply materials, building equipment and resources to create immediate temporary housing solutions, explained Christian.

In addition to the fundraiser, the Ushijima Cup match will honor the legacy of a prominent member of the Hawaii Polo Family, Clive Ishijima. A big-name musician will also play after the polo matches.

We are very lucky to have reggae, rock n roll, blues musician and surfer Landon McNanama and his band headlining our fundraising party after the polo matches. He just finished a big mainland tour and is a big supporter of Hui Homes. We also have a variety of signed surfboards and other north shore items up for silent auction, Christian added.

A Silent Auction will be held during the polo game showcasing signed surfboards and other captivating items. GA Admission Tickets include the polo matches and concert lawn seating.

VIP Tickets include polo matches & concert seating in the VIP tent!

Check out more news from around Hawaii

Gates will open at 11:30 a.m. and the first match will begin at 2 p.m.

For more information, visit the Hawaii Polo Clubs website or follow their Instagram and Facebook.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KHON2.
HONOLULU (KHON2)  Questions are being raised over the hiring process of sheriffs after the arrest of an off-duty sheriff for allegedly threatening a Waianae fisherman with a weapon on Monday, Aug. 19.

Download the free KHON2 app for iOS or Android to stay informed on the latest news

Court documents showed the deputy has a history in Hawaiis court system.

The Department of Law Enforcement said every one of its officers goes through a multi-part background check before being hired to enforce State law. A House Corrections Committee member added that sheriffs and police officers have to have high standards.

Oahu fisherman shaken by off-duty sheriffs alleged gun threat

They are protecting our communities. And if they cannot maintain those standards based on past acts, then they should not be a recruit and they should not end up serving our communities in that capacity, Rep. Kanani Souza said.

Stanford Hokoana said on Tuesday, Aug. 20 that he will press charges, though court documents regarding the off-duty deputy accused of second-degree terroristic threatening were still not posted on Wednesday, Aug. 21.

Other records filed show two court cases involving the deputy from over 10 years ago  one domestic abuse in 2019 that was terminated and a third-degree assault in 2009 that was heard in district court in 2009 before being dismissed in circuit court in 2010.

Those cases did not end in convictions, however, and the DLE deputy director said through a statement:

Thank you for your inquiry regarding the criminal history of a DLE employee. The DLE cannot comment specifically about the employee or any ongoing criminal and internal administrative investigation. Every DLE law enforcement officer undergoes a multi-part background check before being hired. First, every DLE employee undergoes a criminal history check. When a criminal history check shows some kind of history, a review is conducted to determine whether there is a conviction that would disqualify the applicant from being hired. It is important to note that a criminal history can reflect arrests, however, an arrest is an allegation. While each situation is different, in general, a conviction, rather than an arrest for a crime of violence or moral turpitude, is disqualifying. Second, every DLE law enforcement officer undergoes an initial and recurring firearms background check to determine the officers eligibility to possess a firearm. Among several things, a conviction for a crime of violence, including domestic violence, is disqualifying. Consequently, every DLE law enforcement officer currently in possession of a firearm has passed the recurring firearms background check and meets the federal requirements to possess a firearm. Finally, every DLE law enforcement applicant undergoes a full background and suitability investigation to work in law enforcement. That initial background investigation includes a criminal history check, a check with references, a check with past employers, psychological testing and a truth verification test. Jared Redulla, Department of Law Enforcement deputy director

Hawaii sheriff policies changing amid ongoing harassment cases

Legal experts said a conviction in Mondays terroristic threatening case could lead to a more severe sentence for the deputy.

Because I think the prosecutor would argue, Look, this person knows the laws and they know that theyre not supposed to do this. And theyre also showing, you know, throwing their weight around in a way thats causing people to be afraid for their lives,' Doug Chin said.

DLE officials said pre-employment checks include background and suitability investigations to see if the applicant is a good fit for law enforcement, but Rep. Souza said change may be needed with nine sheriffs arrested on suspicion of harassment earlier in 2024 and another now being charged with terroristic threatening.

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Obviously our standards may not be high enough when were recruiting and retaining and training law enforcement officers in our community, Rep. Souza said.

**Correction: An earlier version of this story stated the deputy had been involved in three court cases over 10 years ago. The error has been corrected.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KHON2.
In our Reality Check stories, Idaho Statesman journalists seek to hold the powerful accountable and find answers to critical questions in our community. Read more. Story idea? Tips@idahostatesman.com.

An animal attraction at the Western Idaho Fair near Boise closed and will be replaced with a different attraction after fair officials were made aware that its federal license had expired.

Otter Adventure, which billed itself on Facebook as a water show that is educational and fun for all ages, was operating without the necessary license to comply with the Animal Welfare Act, a federal law that regulates the care of exotic animals, according to inspection reports from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Idaho Statesman reported on the violation Thursday.

Western Idaho Fair Director Bob Batista told the Statesman on Thursday evening that the otter exhibit is now closed and will be replaced with a different attraction.

While the exhibit met Idaho state requirements, Otter Adventures did not disclose that their USDA license had expired, Batista said in an email. Once discovered, Western Idaho Fair made the decision to shut down the exhibit.

Otter Adventure has held shows daily since the fair opened Aug. 16, according to the fair websites schedule. It was scheduled to run through the end of the fair on Aug. 25.

The attraction was run by Gregg and Karen Woody, Illinois-based animal exhibitors who hosted two daily shows with five Asian small-clawed otters. The Western Idaho Fair website stated that the otters will be on display a minimum of 8 hours per day with breaks to prepare for performances.

Gregg Woody declined to comment on his license status when the Statesman reached him by phone.

Idaho State Department of Agriculture spokesperson Sydney Kennedy told the Statesman the agency does not regulate animal exhibits but was aware of the otter shipment for the exhibit. Kennedy said it met state animal import requirements, which mandate a certificate of veterinary inspection for all animals.

Batista earlier on Thursday had emphasized the exhibits compliance with Idaho import requirements in response to a request for comment. Asked about the Woodys expired USDA exhibit license, Batista said he was only going by what the Idaho Department of Ag requires.

Otter exhibit owners said they would continue without license

According to USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services reports, the Woodys license to exhibit animals expired in early June. Last month, an inspector visited the Otter Adventure exhibit at a fair in Adel, Iowa, where the Woodys told her the exhibit was operating under a different licensee that was unidentified in the report. The agency later received an email from the unidentified licensee that said Otter Adventure was unauthorized to operate under their license, the July 11 report said.

The inspector noted that the Woodys needed to renew their license before continuing with the exhibit.

Continuing to conduct regulated activity without a license is a serious violation of the Animal Welfare Act, she wrote.

In another visit, the same inspector visited the Otter Adventure exhibit at a fair in Cherokee, Iowa, where the otters were being watched by a crowd of people. An employee told the inspector they were unaware of licensing information, the July 24 report said.

The inspector said she spoke with the Woodys by phone the following day. During the call, they stated that they did not have a USDA license and would continue to exhibit animals without one, according to the report.

Both visits were categorized as non-critical compliance violations, according to the USDAs online inspection report database. The Woodys also had critical compliance violations from March, May and June related to missing records on a dingo, mini cows and zebu, a type of Asian cattle distinguishable by a pronounced hump on its shoulders.

Reports said inspectors requested the paperwork multiple times and were told by Gregg Woody that he did not have to produce any records if he tells the USDA that he is only using the animals for agricultural activities. Records must still be produced to confirm that the animals are being used for food, inspectors said. They also said the Woodys were selling the exotic animals at auction, which requires a license.

Inspectors said they told the Woodys that records and licensing were necessary to keep track of exotic animals, ensure regulations were being met and ensure animals are receiving proper care.

The Woodys have USDA animal care violations dating back more than a decade, reports showed. The violations include documentation of a tiger in a too-small cage, a lion cub with leg bowing indicative of malnutrition, an underfed mountain lion and a grizzly bear with a weeping paw wound.

The Woodys are regular recipients of grizzly bears from Yellowstone Bear World, a drive-through wildlife park in Rexburg that has itself been cited for workplace safety violations, according to animal transport records.
By Mohammad Gharebagh, KYODO NEWS - Aug 22, 2024 - 08:08 | All, World

Iran's new foreign minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, said Wednesday that his ministry will boost ties between Tehran and Tokyo in all aspects, based on a comprehensive roadmap built on his deep knowledge of Japan, and will cooperate with Tokyo to address the regional crisis jointly.

"I know the capacity and capabilities of Japan. Japan can be more important in Iran's energy, oil, and economy section," the former ambassador to Japan told Kyodo News, giving his first exclusive interview after being approved by the Iranian parliament on Wednesday to serve as foreign minister for the next four years.

Iran will welcome Japanese companies interested in working in the oil and energy sector, the minister said, adding that Japan can return to Iran's oil fields and contribute to expanding its oil production.

Due to hundreds of unilateral sanctions on Iran's economy, including banking and trade, imposed by the U.S. government in the past decade to curb Iran's nuclear activities, Japan had to abandon the Iranian market.

Araghchi believes that Iran and Japan, with their distinct yet complementary capabilities, hold immense potential for forging a mutually beneficial and stabilizing partnership across Asia.

"In this light, expanding economic and trade ties between Iran and Japan emerges as a natural and logical choice," he said. "We anticipate that this collaboration will continue to flourish on a path of fruitful cooperation."

On Iran's foreign policy priorities going forward, Araghchi said the new government has designated cultivating relations with East Asia a pivotal objective, and emphasized "Japan's prominent position" in this context.

Explaining his strategy to boost ties with Japan while U.S. sanctions impede Iran's ability to have normal relations with the world, the foreign minister said that in the face of global uncertainties and rapid transformations, it is imperative to unlock new avenues for economic and trade cooperation between Iran and Japan.

"We must transcend obstacles hindering our mutual interests and prioritize our vital needs. By comprehensively evaluating the current landscape, we can forge a constructive partnership to drive both nations' progress and prosperity," he said.

Regarding Japan's initiatives to address the hostility between Tehran and Washington in 2019, Araghchi said that Iran and Japan have nurtured a bond characterized by friendship, mutual understanding, respect and trust. The leadership of both nations appreciates this unwavering foundation.

"It enables Iran and Japan to jointly address global and regional challenges with a shared spirit of constructiveness and optimism. I would say there is always a space for contributing initiatives," he said.

Araghchi, known for his friendly ties with Japan, was ambassador to the country from 2008 to 2011. He played a significant role when the late Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited Tehran in 2019 to mediate between the United States and Iran, conveying a message from then U.S. President Donald Trump to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The foreign minister explained that as a crucial step toward lifting the sanctions on Iran's economy and returning it to normal trade relations in the international community, Iran's Foreign Ministry will seek to manage tensions with Washington and rebuild ties with European countries, but only if they abandon their "hostile approach" while aiming to revive the 2015 nuclear deal and lift sanctions.

"In my foreign policy address to the Islamic Consultative Assembly, I highlighted the crucial objective of lifting sanctions, particularly unilateral ones, through earnest, focused, and time-bound negotiations while upholding the nation's fundamental principles," the foreign minister said.

Iran struck a landmark nuclear pact in 2015 with six major powers -- Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States.

However, Trump criticized the deal as flawed and pulled the United States out of it in May 2018. Iran countered the U.S. move by increasing its nuclear activities beyond the limits set in the deal.

Araghchi, a veteran diplomat who has also served as ambassador to Finland and Estonia, played a vital role in finalizing the 2015 nuclear deal as Iran's deputy foreign minister and senior negotiator.

In 2021, then President Hassan Rouhani appointed him as Iran's chief negotiator to run talks aimed at reviving the nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, but the effort remains incomplete due to the presidential election and government change in Iran.

Related coverage:

Iran President Raisi killed in helicopter crash in bad weather

Iran, Pakistan give up on building own pavilions for 2025 World Expo

Taliban treated as "recognized government" in region: top diplomat
Math teacher Desiree Valdez likes to help other people solve problems.

Taking a subject most people hate and getting them to love, at least, like it a little bit more, said Valdez.

But the numbers were not adding up when it came to her own health last year.

So during that particular time, blood pressure was rising, weight was rising, Valdez added.

No matter what she tried, nothing worked.

I committed to 16-hour fast, eight-hour eating, she added.

University of Miamis hypertension specialist Dr. Maria Delgado recommended Valdez try nocturnal fasting to help naturally reset her body.

You eat, eat, eat, eat, eat. And that includes eating before going to bed. That alone is a big problem because it activates your pancreas, it increases your risk for diabetes and your cholesterol is not well metabolized, Delgado explained.

Nocturnal fasting increases metabolism, prevents late-night blood sugar spikes and reduces inflammation.

One study found a fasting window of 14 plus hours actually changed genes linked to longevity, and intermittent fasting for 30 days reduces your risk of cancer, Alzheimers disease and neuropsychiatric disorders.

Nighttime is a time when cells rest, but its also the time of cell regeneration. You get to clean your body during that time when you are not eating, Delgado said.

As part of the fast, Valdez commits to only drinking water, green tea, and black coffee during the 16 hours of fasting. During the other eight, she eats whatever she wants. After six months, she was down almost 50 pounds and her blood pressure was normal.

Whereas before I was just fit, a fit 50-year-old, a little chubby. But now I feel youthful, Valdez said.

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Heavy rain forecast for Oregon's mountains, valleys. How much will it help fire season?

Another round of significant rain is forecast for western Oregons mountains and valleys, helping to further slow the states wildfire season.

This system wont come with as much drama as last weeks, when high winds and more than 3,000 lightning strikes lit up the sky. But it will get quite wet between Thursday and the weekend, with 1-2 inches of rain forecast in the mountains and a half-inch in the Willamette Valley.

Were forecasting it to come in a few rounds, but the heaviest rain is definitely Thursday night into Friday morning, National Weather Service meteorologist Hannah Chandler-Cooley said.

Is it fall already!? 



Widespread soaking rain is becoming likely Wednesday morning to Friday morning as a low pressure system sends several rounds of moisture into the region. Here are forecast rain totals with probabilities for amounts over 0.50 inches. #ORwx #WAwx pic.twitter.com/ZB0HOHgBhV  NWS Portland (@NWSPortland) August 20, 2024

The rest of the days, including Friday and Saturday, should just be showery and overcast before warmer and drier conditions return Sunday and early next week.

The rain will help continue the major slowdown of Oregons wildfire season, which set a record for acres burned earlier this year but has mellowed significantly in August.

Wildfire closures in the Cascades have slowly started to be lifted and many evacuation warnings have been downgraded or eliminated. However, many campfire restrictions remain in place.

Oregons wildfire season typically lasts into mid-September and early October.

Were definitely doing better than we were in July, however, were still still in the middle of fire season and if it did dry back out, we could revert back into higher fire danger, Chandler-Cooley said. I wouldnt consider this ending our fire season, but it does help.

Zach Urness has been an outdoors reporter in Oregon for 16 years and is host of the Explore Oregon Podcast. Urness is the author of Best Hikes with Kids: Oregon and Hiking Southern Oregon. He can be reached at zurness@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6801. Find him on X at @ZachsORoutdoors.

genasys Protect

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Oregon wildfires: Rain forecast for mountains, valleys
Amanda Jones' new memoir, "That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America," is a blunt, angry, searching and redeeming story. (Pablo Isaak Perez / For The Times)

Amanda Jones is a Louisiana middle-school librarian who sleeps with a shotgun under her bed and carries a pistol when she travels the back roads.

Threats against her began two years ago after she spoke out against censorship and was drawn into the culture wars over book banning. She was condemned as a pedophile and a groomer and accused of advocating teaching anal sex to 11-year-olds. The Christian right targeted her, and she found herself in the news warning that conservatives in her state and across much of the country were endangering libraries and intellectual freedom.

I never expected any of this," said Jones, who lives in Livingston Parish. "Its a huge weight to feel all that attention. Im just a school librarian from a two red-light town."

Read more: School librarians vilified as the arm of Satan in book-banning wars

Jones cautionary and disquieting testament to the nation's divisiveness is told in her new memoir, That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America, a blunt, angry, searching and redeeming story about a woman engulfed by forces and designs she never imagined. It is a glimpse into a family and a small town that reads like a chapter out of The Scarlet Letter or The Crucible, narratives whose themes of fear, superstition, rage and religion are again permeating the nations political moment, including Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vances recent comments that Democrats want to put sexually explicit books in toddlers libraries.

Our presidential election will determine how far it goes, Jones said in an interview. If Trump is elected, Project 2025 [a 900-plus-page conservative manifesto] will take root. It will ramp up the hate. Well see a large flight of educators and librarians from their jobs. Trumps made it OK for people to hate and attack. I noticed it right after the George Floyd protests. People started saying the quiet part out loud.

Amid rumors that a Livingston Parish Library board member was questioning the stocking of LGBTQ+ books, Jones stood and spoke against censorship at the July 19, 2022, board meeting. She told the crowd that titles often targeted for banning were about minorities and LGBTQ+ people, or books on sexual health and reproductive rights. She did not mention specific titles, saying that no one portion of the community should dictate what the rest of the citizens have access to.

Students, teachers, parents and others attend a school board meeting in Orlando, Fla., in April 2023, to voice their concerns regarding a move by school boards and the Florida Legislature to remove books from school library shelves and limit education on race and LGBTQ+ issues. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

She added that removing or relocating books on LGBTQ+ themes could be harmful to children and young people seeking to understand their identity. I grew up in this parish being taught that God is love, she said. What Ive come to realize is that what many people mean is that God is love only if you have the same religious and political beliefs as them... no one on the right side of history has ever been on the side of censorship and hiding books.

The attacks were immediate, fierce and confounding. She was labeled a sicko, pig, trash, she writes in the memoir. "The sense of betrayal was overwhelming." One message was particularly alarming: Continue with your LGBT agenda on our children cause we gunna put [you] in the dirt very soon ... You cant hide. We know where you work + live... you have a LARGE target on your back.

All I did was make a statement on censorship, she writes, noting that her comments were made at her parish public library and that she never mentioned her school library, but people were posting like I was handing out copies of Hustler magazine at my school.

Read more: Op-Comic: 3,362 book bans? What year is this, anyway?

Jones fell into depression. She said she cried so hard that her eyes swelled shut; she had panic attacks, and her blood pressure spiked. She wondered how to explain the furor to her teenage daughter. She went to a therapist and took a leave of absence from the middle school for a semester. But Jones found it difficult to escape the vitriol aimed at her, including from friends, who, like her, grew up in Christian homes in a town outside Baton Rouge, where kids swam in the creek and the local branch of the library was once in a room next to a washeteria.

A growing number of librarians, like Jones, have been targeted nationwide, including Martha Hickson in Annandale, N.J., and another in Michigan who received abusive phone calls and was tagged as a pedophile in signs posted around her town. State legislatures have proposed bills that would hold libraries accountable to obscenity laws and would make it a crime for librarians and educators to stock books containing sexually explicit images.

"That Librarian" is an interrogation of self and a community in a deep red state that in June passed a law requiring that the Ten Commandments be posted in every classroom. The book resonates with a rustic knowingness that coveys the intricacies and suspicions of tightly bound lives. The descendant of slave owners, Jones struggles to understand a history of racism and prejudice that still unsettles the country.

"I never expected any of this," Amanda Jones says. "It's a huge weight to feel all that attention. I'm just a school librarian from a two red-light town." (Pablo Isaak Perez / For The Times)

As a white, straight woman, who as a child read Judy Blume  one of Americas most banned authors  to navigate the tricky crosscurrents of youth, Jones said books are a refuge and a map for those wanting to empathize with people different from themselves.

The men instigating the outrage against her, she writes, were Michael Lunsford, executive director of Citizens for a New Louisiana, and Ryan Thames, who runs the Facebook blog Bayou State of Mind. Such organizations, along with Moms for Liberty, which has the support of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, and other groups seeking to ban books in school libraries, have pressured local officials and have been at the center of the nations cultural wars. Some conservative groups have led campaigns to cut library funding and harass board members.

The American Library Assn. reported that more than 4,200 unique titles were targeted for censorship in 2023, a 65% increase from the previous year. Among the most challenged titles were books on race and sexuality, some with explicit images, including Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe and This Book Is Gay by Juno Dawson. Classics such as The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison have also been targeted and removed from circulation.

Jones filed a civil suit against Lunsford and Thames. The case was dismissed after the judge ruled that the online statements about Jones were opinions and not defamatory. In an interview, Lunsford said that the suit was frivolous and that for her to say we damaged her in some way is ridiculous. He said his organizations focus is to prevent libraries statewide from allowing children access to what it considers erotic or pornographic materials.

Nobody is putting pornography in childrens sections of the library, Jones said in the 2022 meeting in Livingston Parish, where she was raised a Southern Baptist and has been a librarian and teacher for more than 22 years. Stop that false narrative.

Read more: Why a San Francisco bookstore is shipping queer books to conservative states  for free

Thames lawyer, Joseph Long, was quoted in the Hill after the dismissal as saying that Jones was part of the radical left and couldnt take the heat of criticism. Jones wrote in her memoir that Lunsford, who questioned what kind of influence the librarian would have over children, peddled conspiracy theories and espoused typical far-right nonsense. She said Thames, whose blog accused her of advocating teaching anal sex to children, was a man who hides behind his keyboard.

That Librarian is a raw and disarming exploration of a writer confronting her own anxieties and wrath  one chapter title reads "Hell Hath No Fury Like a Librarian Scorned." I was very angry when I was writing, said Jones, referring to Lunsford and Thames. I punched away at the keys. This is what your actions have cost me. I know theyre going to read it and listen to the audiobook. This is my way of telling them.

I say I have no regrets, writes Jones, an award-winning former president of the Louisiana Assn. of School Librarians, who during the online bullying against her used an expletive to describe a parish councilman, but I do have one, and that is the fact that, try as I might, I didnt always take the high road.

She has another regret too. She voted for Donald Trump in 2016. I was, she writes, a contributing factor in the growing movement of white nationalism.

A Banned Books Week display at the Mott Haven branch of the New York Public Library in the Bronx in October. (Ted Shaffrey / Associated Press)

Her familys conservatism made it difficult at first for her mother to accept the premise of her daughters book. I just cant finish it, Jones quotes her mother as saying after she gave her an early copy of That Librarian. She took a fit to the term white Christian nationalist. But she did finish it and she said she was proud of me. But we dont talk about politics in my family.

Still, as in many politically divided households across the land, Jones needs answers: "When it comes to my parents," she writes, "I want to ask them this question: Who exactly is the big bad wolf, or is it a mythical creature created in their own heads based on" what Tucker Carlson once told them on Fox? "I know they don't think it's their own child."

Jones received support from many corners. Oprah Winfrey praised her in a speech at the 2023 National Book Awards: Amanda Jones started getting death threats, all for standing up for our right to read. One person wrote: Stay strong sister. An educator told her: You are a brave warrior! A veteran from New York sent an encouraging note: A hell of a lot of children need people like you to help them find the hero within themselves...

Such sentiments, she said, represent a growing push against book banning and censorship as moderate and progressive factions that were slow to mobilize have been winning in recent school board elections. Its not just the books, said Jones, who has stressed that titles should be listed according to age appropriateness. Its a larger agenda about what we can read and whats in our schools. Its an attack on knowledge. ... But people are starting to realize whats happening, and theyre starting to fight back.

Read more: This trans author toured red-state libraries. What she found might surprise you

Jones co-founded the Livingston Parish Library Alliance, a citizens' group that supports the local library, and is a founding member of Louisiana Citizens Against Censorship. She started a Facebook support group for others who have been harassed and intimidated in school districts across the country. Ive personally had conversations with more than 100 librarians, she said. Ive had them cry on my shoulder.

Jones has begun a new year at her school library. She is also preparing for a national book tour. Not long ago, she received an advance copy of her memoir. She turned to the ISBN number beyond the title page; she scanned the copyright line. Im a librarian. Im excited about things like that," she said. "Its not something I ever dreamed about. To write a book. I just wanted to put it on the record.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
CHICAGO - In the story of Kamala Harris life, her mother steals the show.

The vice president would have it no other way.

Mommy, you are the star of this book because you are the reason for everything, Harris wrote in her 2019 memoir The Truths We Hold. There is no title or honor on earth Ill treasure more than to say I am Shyamala Gopalan Harris daughter.

Gopalan, a breast cancer researcher who died in 2009 at age 70 of colon cancer, won't see her daughter accept the Democratic Partys nomination for president on Thursday, but she will be a strong presence.

I think of her all the time, Harris wrote. Sometimes I look up and talk to her.

By all accounts, Harris' mother, though tiny in stature, barely topping 5 feet, was a giant intellectually and through sheer force of will.

Gopalan set out on her own across the world at the age of 19, defying her native culture. She raised two girls to identify both with her own background and one that was totally alien to her. She encouraged them to excel and exceed expectations but not leave others behind. And she did it all while performing important scientific work of her own.

In interviews with friends, colleagues and close family, along with Harris' own memoir, it becomes clear that the vice president's relationship with her mother helped shape her as a person and a politician. Her mother, whom she always called "mommy," provided her with a vision for social justice, a sense of her place in the world and her spirit.

In an undated photo, Vice President Kamala Harris is held by her mother Shyamala Gopalan.

In the book, Harris recalled a time when she had just entered the California attorney general race. Gopalan, who was seriously ill with cancer, wanted to know how it was going.

Mommy, these guys are saying theyre gonna kick my ass, Harris told her.

Gopalan had been lying on her side.

She rolled over, looked at me, and just unveiled the biggest smile, Harris wrote. She knew who she had raised. She knew her fighting spirit was alive and well inside me.

Ahead of her time

Born in 1938, almost a decade before Indias independence from the British empire, to a civil servant father and homemaker mother, Gopalan was the eldest of four.

Her father, P.V. Gopalan was the first in his family to leave southern India for postings in Bombay, Calcutta and Delhi, (three of the countrys four major cities), Gopalan Balachandran, Shyamala Gopalans brother and the sibling closest in age to her, said in an interview with USA TODAY.

Their parents were relatively lax as long as they werent doing anything outwardly bad, the 83-year-old recalled.

She was feisty, and mischievous, he said, adding the two of them would skip classes in school and try other stunts. "We got into trouble."

One bold move by Gopalan, though, would change the trajectory of her life and the course of U.S. history.

At age 19, soon after she had graduated from the University of Delhi, Gopalan revealed to her family that she had applied and secured admittance to a Ph.D. program in nutrition and endocrinology at the University of California, Berkeley. At that time in India, particularly in her conservative Tamil Brahmin community, she would have been considered as being of marriageable age, especially since she had already graduated college.

Because they wouldn't want a girl to be more educated than their husband, said Balachandran.

But their progressive father took a different approach, he said.

My father said, For one year, Ill fully support you, but after that I wont have money, recalled Balachandran. He had limited means.

Shyamala and the girls

In 1958, the diminutive Gopalan landed in the U.S. without knowing anyone.

She arrived eight years before the Immigration and Naturalization Act of 1965 eliminated the quota system that had given preference to people of European descent, limiting the number of Indians in America. Just 12,000 Indian immigrants were living in the entire United States by 1960, according to the Migration Policy Institute.

Shyamala Gopalan steadies Kamala as a toddler. Gopalan gave birth to Kamala the same year she got her doctorate, 1964.

Almost immediately, Gopalan gravitated to the Black community and found common cause in the Civil Rights Movement. At one such meeting in 1962 she met Donald Harris, a student from Jamaica who was pursuing a doctorate in economics.

One year later, the two were married. Gopalan's parents had expected her to return to India for an arranged marriage within her community. She defied tradition by marrying someone not only of her choosing but outside her race and nationality.

Kamala Harris has called her mothers decision an act of self-determination and love.

In 1964, at age 25, Gopalan received her doctorate and gave birth to Kamala. Two years later, she gave birth to Maya, now a civil rights champion.

The marriage didnt last. The couple divorced in 1971.

Gopalan raised her children  Shyamala and the girls as the trio was known  in the highly diverse working-class community in the Berkeley Flats neighborhood. Although Harris and her sister were raised with a strong connection to their Indian roots (starting with their names), Harris wrote that her mother "understood very well that she was raising two Black daughters" in America.

"She knew that her adopted homeland would see Maya and me as Black girls, and she was determined to make sure we would grow into confident, proud Black women," she wrote.

She sent her children to sing in the choir of a local Black church and lived above a nursery school run by a Black woman.

Regina Shelton and Gopalan formed a strong bond, and Harris has referred to her as a second mother with whom she spent time while her mother worked in the lab.

Carole Porter, Kamala Harris' childhood friend

Carole Porter, a childhood friend of Harris' who lived in the neighborhood and attended the same elementary school and daycare said shed often see Gopalan dropping off Harris around the duplex.

Sometimes, shed also see Harris Indian grandparents  her grandmother in a saree is a distinct memory  visiting.

"She would ask me to come and say hello to them," Porter told USA TODAY, talking about how firmly rooted Harris was in her mothers culture.

Gopalan was a strong mother presence throughout her daughters lives, Porter said.

When Harris was running for San Francisco DAs office, her mother would be the one charging around with an ironing board (to use a standup desk) and doing Kinko's runs to copy her flyers, she said.

An intellectual powerhouse

The first time Dr. Robert Cardiff, a professor emeritus of Medicine at the University of California, Davis, saw Gopalan in the 1960s, she cut a striking figure.

Dressed in a saree, the petite woman was holding court at a conference with famous people in mouse mammary biology, he said.

She was leading the band. She was talking and engaging with everybody, he told USA TODAY. She stood out.

Decades later, Gopalan  whose work in the isolation and characterization of the progesterone receptor gene in mice changed research on the hormone-responsiveness of breast tissue  would go on to co-author scientific research papers with Cardiff.

She was a brilliant woman, and she would overcome me in any scientific discussions wed have because she knew the literature more extensively than I did, the 88-year-old retired professor with an M.D. and Ph.D. said.

Kamala Harris, right, poses with her first grade teacher, Frances Wilson, left, and her mother, Shyamala Gopalan, at Harris graduation from University of California, Hastings College of the Law.

She also had a wonderful sense of humor.

She was very verbose, he said. We used to joke that I thought that a single picture was worth a thousand words, and she was convinced that a thousand words is much better than a picture.

Lessons from 'mommy'

In ways big and small, Gopalan was omnipresent in Harris life.

If the sisters were having a bad day or the weather was gloomy, there was the unbirthday gift and unbirthday cake  inspiration apparently drawn from Lewis Carrolls Through the Looking Glass.

Harris wrote about many lessons she learned from her mother.

Dont do anything halfway.

You may be the first to do many things, but make sure youre not the last  in other words, be a mentor.

Dont let any situation get the better of you

If "Shyamala's girls" whined about some injustice, the retort was always a quick: what are you going to do about it? or "Do something!" That catch phrase, often repeated by Harris during her speeches, seems to have resonated with former first lady Michelle Obama who used it as a rallying cry when she spoke at the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday.

Harris wrote and has talked about people making assumptions about Gopalan's intellect based on her heavy accent.

Her lesson? Don't you let anyone tell you who you are. You tell them who you are.

Leaving a legacy

Earlier this year, Mini Timmaraju, a reproductive rights advocate received the Dr. Shyamala Gopalan Harris Award for Allyship and Civil Rights from Indian American Impact, a voting rights and advocacy group.

My mother would love you and your work, Harris wrote in a letter to Timmaraju accompanying the award.

Timmaraju, who worked closely with Maya Harris on Hillary Clintons 2016 presidential campaign, said it was clear that their mother had been a big influence on them both.

In terms of the way that they think about social good and social welfare. It was very obvious to me right off the bat that this was an unusual story because she had to have been a pioneer to not only come here before the 1965 immigration law but also as a teenager, she said.

The mother of two adopted Black sons, Timmaraju, an Indian American whose husband is white, says shes in awe of the way Gopalan raised her children.I think about 'how did she raise these women to be so unabashedly Black and yet have pride in their ethnic origin and yet not be Black herself,' she said.

Deepak Raj, co-founder of Impact, said the organization was moved to create the award in Gopalans name because of her trailblazing leadership in the civil rights movement and mentoring students of color.

Her legacy is a reminder that the immigrant experience is not just about personal achievement," Raj said. "But it's also about public service. It's about giving back to the community, and building a path for the future generations.

Going home

As she neared her death, Gopalans biggest wish was to go back to India for one last visit.

That remained unfulfilled.

Realizing she wouldnt be able to make the trip, Balachandran, whom Harris lovingly calls Uncle Balu got on a plane from Delhi to see her one last time.

I now realize that she waited for his arrival, waited to say goodbye, Harris wrote. She passed away the very next morning.

After her death, Harris traveled to Chennai, India, where she had gone every other year with her mother to see her grandparents. During her visits growing up, shed go on long walks on Elliot's Beach with her grandfather and his friends who lived in Beasant Nagar. She'd return there after her mother's death.

Kamala brought Shyamalas ashes with her, Balachandran told USA TODAY. We went to Elliots Beach in the Bay of Bengal to immerse her ashes.

Gopalan Balachandran, maternal uncle of Vice President Kamala Harris, addressed the media at his home in New Delhi, India, November 8, 2020.

In her memoir, Harris described a moment after her mother's death when she was frantically searching for Gopalan's recipe for chiles rellenos, which she traditionally made around Christmas.

I found a notebook, and as soon as I opened it, the recipe fell right out of the pages and onto the floor, Harris wrote. It was like she was there with me, still responding to my needs."

Taking over

Harris fondly remembers the times shed sit with her mom in the kitchen and watch and smell and eat. She had giant Chinese style cleaver that she chopped and a cupboard full of spices.

Balachandran said his niece has now taken over her mother's role of cooking vegetarian south Indian dishes for him whenever he visits.

He happened to be visiting Harris the night before President Joe Biden dropped his bid for reelection and decided to endorse Harris instead.

She had absolutely no idea. She wouldnt have been sitting and having a long dinner with us, otherwise, he said.

On Thursday, Balachandran and his two younger sisters will have prime seats at the convention as they watch their niece accept her party's nomination for U.S. President.

Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy is a White House correspondent for USA TODAY. You can follow her on X, formerly Twitter, @SwapnaVenugopal

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: How one decision by Shyamala Harris could create American history
In this file photo former Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes is shown at the 2016 Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Kentuckys Executive Branch Ethics Commission is seeking to reverse a judges ruling that cleared former Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes of ethics violation charges.

The commissions request to the Kentucky Court of Appeals is expected to complicate for the time being any decisions that Grimes may have about returning to politics.

Speculation about that intensified this week with Grimes attendance at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. She has been mentioned as a possible candidate in 2026 for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Republican incumbent Mitch McConnell, who defeated her in 2014 to win reelection.

Grimes posted photos of herself on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) at the convention with the message Lets Go! to show her support for Kamala Harris as president and Tim Walz as vice president.

The convention has featured keynote speeches by former President Bill Clinton and his wife, Hillary Clinton, who lost to Republican Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential race. The Clintons are close friends to Grimes father, former state Democratic Party chair and caterer Jerry Lundergan of Lexington. He was convicted of election finance violations in 2020 stemming from his daughters campaign against McConnell and sentenced to 21 months in federal prison.

Repeated calls Wednesday and Thursday to Grimes seeking comment about the appeal and her appearance at the Democratic convention were not returned.

It was not clear who gave Grimes credentials to attend the convention but a Kentucky Democratic political operative said she was not a party delegate or alternate. Party spokesman Jonathan Levin said the party was not releasing the names of any delegate or alternate for security and privacy reasons. Andy Westberry, spokesman for the Kentucky Republican Party, said his party gave a list of names of delegates to its national convention last month in Milwaukee to reporters for planning purposes only and on an embargoed basis.

Would voters care?

Grimes, who was secretary of state from 2012 to 2020, may have success in politics again regardless of the resolution of the appeal to reinstate the ethics charges, said Stephen Voss, associate professor of political science at the University of Kentucky.

Weve seen voters forgive candidates for legal troubles for years. Consider Donald Trump, said Voss.

The political scientist said voters tend to ignore the charges against the candidates unless they are personally affected by the charges. How personally relevant to them is the legal problem? he asked.

Of course, its more advantageous to have a clean, legal slate and you always know your opponents are going to use everything they can to get you.

Dewey Clayton, political science professor at the University of Louisville, said its very possible that Grimes can make a political comeback.

She has held public office. She comes from a political family with high name recognition, he said. Its never good to run for any public office under a cloud of suspicion and that cloud is still there to a degree for her with the appeal, which I was not aware of.

The biggest obstacle for Grimes to run for any national office, said Clayton, is that she is a Democrat in a very red state.

But I think she can have a political future if she wants it, though there are some variables like the appeal that still need to be played out.

Grimes attorney, J. Guthrie True of Frankfort, said, We obviously would have preferred no appeal but we are confident in the circuit court ruling that was a complete vindication for her.

Background on ethics allegations

The five-member Executive Branch Ethics Commission unanimously filed its appeal to the Court of Appeals on June 15, questioning several parts of the circuit courts order.

In April, Franklin Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd cleared Grimes of the commissions charges that she improperly ordered the downloading and distribution of voter registration data from her public office while she was Kentuckys secretary of state.

The commission had been investigating Grimes for several years. As secretary of state, Grimes was the states chief elections officer. In her position, she had access to data from the state Voter Registration System in the State Board of Elections.

Shepherd, in his 33-page order, agreed with Grimes arguments that the commissions charges were barred by the five-year statute of limitations and that the record did not support a finding of any violations of the state executive branchs code of ethics.

The commission had charged that Grimes violated the ethics code by sharing voter information without requiring an Open Records request or other established process of government.

Grimes submitted that all the voter data at issue was information in the public domain, that she had full legal authority and discretion as secretary of state to access and share such information. She claimed no statute or regulation was violated by the sharing of such public information.

Shepherd faulted the Ethics Commission for not conducting an evidentiary hearing in the case to hear testimony from witnesses.

Because the commission acted against Grimes without a hearing, the evidence in the record relied upon by Grimes is not disputed, the judges order said.

He also said the complaint against Grimes was filed outside the applicable statute of limitations.

He noted that the attorney generals office and the Ethics Commission had been investigating for more than eight years allegations of misconduct by Grimes.

After exhaustive investigation by both the attorney general and the Ethics Commission, there was no allegation concerning any substantive violation of any statute or regulation regarding the integrity of the voting roll, the court order said.

There was no allegation of tampering with the voting rolls, no allegation of improper registration or voting, no allegation of any irregularity in any vote count or tabulation, no allegation of altering any identification of any voter, no allegation of any action that could impact the outcome of any election during Secretary Grimes tenure as chief state election officer.

The order added that the attorney generals office never brought any criminal charges against Grimes and that the matter was referred to the Ethics Commission.

The only allegations pursued by the Ethics Commission were that Grimes allegedly acted unethically in accessing public information in the voter registration system by downloading voter information onto a thumb drive when she was a candidate for reelection.

The commission also looked at whether Grimes improperly shared information on new voter registrations for certain House districts in response to a request made informally through the office of the state House speaker without requiring a formal open records request or charging a fee.

The judge noted that the commissions final order did not dispute that Grimes would have lawful access to the voter data but that the crux of its complaint against Grimes was that she downloaded the lists for a private purpose, without paying the mandatory fees or submitting sworn forms required by law.

The court order said the commission failed to expressly allege what private purpose was served by placing voter data on a flash drive.

What that private purpose could have been is entirely unclear to the court, the order said. It further remains unclear what established process of government was violated by Grimes act of downloading VRS data onto a flash drive.

This lack of detail relating to what established government process was violated and how using a flash drive constitutes a violation casts doubt that the commission was proving its allegation by clear and convincing evidence, Shepherds order said.

The commission had said in November 2021 that Grimes must pay $10,000 in fines for two ethical violations pertaining to handling of voter data.

Susan Clary, executive director of the Executive Branch Ethics Commission, said the panel particularly is concerned about the statute of limitations in its daily work.

She said the commission is independent and that Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear had no input on the panels decision to appeal the Grimes case.

The governor is covered by the ethics code so he must let it act independently, she said. No way can he be involved with its decisions.

The Beshears and Lundergans have been involved in a decades-long political family rivalry that stems from state legislative races in the 1970s between the governors father, former Gov. Steve Beshear, and Jerry Lundergan. Both Steve and Andy Beshear, however, supported Grimes in her 2014 race against McConnell.

Steve Beshear lost to McConnell in 1996. His son has been mentioned as a possible candidate in 2026 for McConnells U.S. Senate seat but the younger Beshear has said he wants to serve out the remainder of his term as governor, which ends in 2027. As Harris considered Beshear as a possible running mate, the governor said, I love my job. I love serving the people of Kentucky. The only way I would consider something other than this current job is if I believed I could further help my people and to help this country.

McConnell, who will be 84 in 2026, has not yet said whether he will again seek reelection.

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Here's where you can pay respects to fallen Paulding deputy during processional

Paulding County Deputy Brandon Cunningham was ambushed and killed over the weekend, leading to hundreds of officers responding to the area.

Cunningham will be laid to rest Friday and the community will have the opportunity to pay their respects.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

A public visitation is being held at West Ridge Church on Hiram Acworth Highway in Dallas from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

The funeral service will begin at 2 p.m. and will be livestreamed here.

After that, there will be several outdoor service events until a processional begins to take Cunninghams body to where he will be laid to rest at Kennesaw Memorial Park.

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The public is encouraged to line where its safe along the 11-mile route to the cemetery.

The graveside service will be closed to the public.

Cobb County Schools has announced that they will be releasing middle school and high school early to keep the processional route clear.

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TEL AVIVIn the days after Hamas October 7 attack on Israel, members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus war cabinet narrowly decided against a major preemptive strike against Hezbollah for fear that it would spark an all-out war. But more than 10 months later, as the Iranian-armed proxy continues to fire on Israel in solidarity with its Gazan allies, such a conflict looks increasingly inevitablewhether or not either side wants it.

Since October 8, Hezbollah has launched more than 6,700 rockets, explosive drones, rocket-propelled grenades, and mortars into Israel, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The attacks have killed 26 civilians and 22 soldiers and forced 60,000 people from their homes. Meanwhile, Israeli strikes against Hezbollah targets, including the assassination of the terrorist commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut last month, have decimated the groups ranks and forced the retreat of some of its elite forces. But expect a larger confrontation to be even more painful for both Lebanon and Israel.

The last war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006which lasted 34 days and left more than a thousand soldiers and civilians deadended with a United Nations Security Council resolution requiring the demilitarization of South Lebanon. Yet the terms of the armistice were never implemented by the U.N. or the Lebanese government, allowing Hezbollah to position its fighters and arms along the Israeli border and within the Shiite villages of southern Lebanon.

Today, with a battle-hardened fighting force and a growing arsenal of Iranian-supplied weapons, the group poses a more formidable threat than ever before.

In sheer numbers, Hezbollah now possesses more than 10 times the number of rockets and missiles it did during the Second Lebanon War. But that figure doesnt capture the new qualitative threatmany of the projectiles today are more precise, longer-range, and deadlier than their predecessors. Hezbollah is the most heavily armed terrorist organization in the world, possessing an arsenal of over 200,000 rockets, precision-guided missiles, armed drones, and more, the IDF told The Dispatch.

According to a recent analysis by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the groups arsenal includes more than 60,000 long-range unguided rockets, more than 20,000 unguided ballistic missiles, and at least 150 guided ballistic missiles. Such firepower could enable Hezbollah to launch more than 3,000 missiles a day for up to three weeks, potentially exhausting or overwhelming Israels air defenses. Simultaneous attacks from Iran or its other proxies in the region could tax the Iron Dome system even further, heightening the risk to civilians.

Hezbollah, with the help of its Iranian backers, also has honed its drone capabilities. The unmanned systems, which carry explosives and fly slow and low to evade detection by Israeli radar, already pose a deadly challenge to northern Israel. On Monday morning, a drone attack in northwest Israel killed one IDF soldier and injured several others. They have an impressive array of drones, and theyve been using them quite effectively, Eran Lerman, a former Israeli deputy national security adviser, told The Dispatch. Its a learning curve for the IDF in terms of how to detect, foil, and destroy them.

The weapons are increasingly ubiquitous on the battlefield, and in the event of an all-out war could be deployed in large numbers and in concert with other projectiles to target military sites, critical infrastructure, and urban centers. An Iranian-made drone launched by the Houthis from Yemen successfully evaded Israeli air defenses just last month, hitting central Tel Aviv and killing an Israeli man in his apartment.

If a broader war breaks out, Israel must be prepared for large-scale, coordinated attacks against its cities. Many Israelis across the country have begun stocking their safe rooms with canned food, water, flashlights, portable batteries, and other supplies IDF Home Front Command typically encourages families to have on hand. In Haifaa northern city home to more than 1.1 million people and a likely target in an all-out war, given its economic importancelocal officials are telling residents to be prepared to shelter for four to six days at a time.

A man inspects the damage at the site of a rocket attack, launched from southern Lebanon, in the town of Katzrin in the Israel-annexed Golan Heights on August 21, 2024. (Photo by JALAA MAREY/AFP via Getty Images)

Because of the threat such a conflict would pose to civilians, Israeli defense analysts say a war with Hezbollah would need to be quick and decisiveincluding both ground maneuvers and precision strikes to degrade the groups offensive capabilities early on.

What weve seen in the last 10 months in Gaza is just a preview of what might happen during the first day of a serious war in terms of volume. So I think we should brace ourselves for something very intensive, said Assaf Orion, a defense strategist at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and a retired brigadier general in the IDF. The IDF will seek to destroy the Hezbollah fighting force, to dismantle its units, to hunt down its people. Like in Gaza, I dont think there is an expectation to smoke out the last Hezbollah terrorist, but to deprive it of its systemic capability to threaten and deter Israel.

Yet the battlefield in southern Lebanon is different from Gaza in many key ways. Its less densely populated, depriving Hezbollah of the same cover Hamas enjoys in the urban Stripthough that doesnt stop it from embedding military assets in civilian areas. Hezbollahs tactics include firing from civilian areas in Lebanon, effectively using the Lebanese population as human shields, the IDF told The Dispatch. This mirrors the approach of Hamas, with Hezbollah endangering Lebanese civiliansone in six of its launches have hit Lebanese civilian areaswhile attempting to strike Israel.

Hezbollah can put its supply of anti-tank missiles and IEDs to use in the event of an Israeli ground invasion, as it did in 2006. The group also has some anti-air capabilities, which have downed Israeli drones but could also pose a threat to manned aircraft.

Assaf Orion

Inversely, the IDF must be prepared to fend off attempted ground attacks into Israeli territory by Hezbollah, which has as many as 100,000 fighters and openly states its intention to invade Israels northern Galilee region. For the past 17 years, Hezbollah has been preparing for war with Israel, with its elite Radwan forces specifically trained for the objective of infiltrating into Israel and attempting to conquer the Galilee, similar to the tactics employed on October 7, the IDF said.

And Hezbollah has real-world experience on the battlefield. The militants fought on behalf of the Assad regime during the Syrian War, allowing them to train in combined arms operations. But unlike Hamas on October 7, Hezbollah doesnt have the element of surprise on its side and would come up against a heavily fortified Israeli border.

Its the threat of a ground assault that makes the pre-October 7 status quo particularly intolerable for residents of the north. Without a voluntary withdrawal of Hezbollah away from the borderwhich U.S. special envoy Amos Hochstein has for months been trying to secure through shuttle diplomacymany Israelis increasingly see a third Lebanon war as inevitable.

After October 7, Israels appetite to take the risk in order to remove or greatly reduce or degrade the threats on its borders has grown immensely. People are willing to pay that price, Orion told The Dispatch. Thats the futurewere gazing down the barrel.

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.
As 7 p.m. approached, signs of trouble emerged in what was a virtually glitch-free Election Day in Broward and Palm Beach counties  prompting behind-the-scenes scrambling, frustration from political insiders and concerns that conspiracy theories could erupt.

Shortly before the polls closed in Tuesdays Democratic and Republican primaries and nonpartisan elections, the people most anxious to learn the results  candidates, political operatives, consultants and news reporters  started logging on to county elections offices websites.

When the polls close, ballots already tabulated from early voting and mail voting are normally posted immediately. Results werent showing up.

People started getting error messages as the outside vendor that hosts websites for almost all the 67 county supervisors of elections offices in Florida was overwhelmed. Broward Supervisor of Elections Joe Scott, who has an extensive technology background, said his understanding was that VR Systems servers couldnt handle the onslaught of traffic from so many people trying to see the results at once.

In a memo distributed Wednesday afternoon, Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Wendy Sartory Link said the problem impacted the display of election results across most counties in Florida.

On Wednesday, VR Systems took full responsibility in a statement from its chief operating officer.

Elections secure

The integrity of the elections was never in jeopardy and the counting of ballots was not affected in any way, Scott and Link said in telephone interviews Wednesday.

Tabulation of votes is handled by separate systems that have nothing to do with the posting of results that the public can see, they said.

Theres a separate system that counts the votes, Scott said. The tabulation system is not on the internet.

Link said that the tabulation of the ballots is completely separate from the reporting of the results. So there is no crossover concern  The only thing that affected us was the releasing of the results to the public through our website.

Scott suggested thinking of it as a scoreboard. Results from the tabulation system are transferred to the system that displays the results. Link said that was a good description.

Both elections supervisors underscored the integrity of the voting system. Scott and Link also said theyre concerned about anything that gives anyone misgivings  and about people who intentionally try to spread disinformation and decrease trust in elections and voting. In the hyper-partisan atmosphere of voting conspiracy theories fueled in recent years by former President Donald Trump, some people are inclined to believe the worst, and not accept obvious explanations.

Were always concerned that there is a lot of misinformation and disinformation thats out there all the time. And any time there is something that actually happens that can bolster those concerns is something that were focused on and concerned about, Link said.

Scott said some people will use any type of glitch to undermine elections.

There are people out there who dont believe in democracy. And they want to make people feel like elections cannot be relied upon, and any little hiccup or anything that goes wrong they are going to take advantage of that, Scott said. They are coming from this place where they dont want people to believe in elections.

Related Articles

The inability to access election results on the website Tuesday night created doubts for Deborah Adeimy. She finished third of three candidates in the Republican primary in the Palm Beach County 22nd Congressional District.

Adeimy said Wednesday it didnt make sense to her that she lost, and suspects that something nefarious happened while the results werent being publicly reported.

Hell yes. Im not beating around the bush. Hell yes, thats what Im saying, she said in a phone interview. Im looking at everything and it just didnt add up. Adeimy added that, Its surprising. Its suspicious.

She doesnt accept the explanation of heavy traffic for the failure. I am going to look into it further, she said.

At the elections offices, Link and Scott said, ballot tabulation proceeded, unimpeded by the failure of VR Systems to display the results on the counties websites.

And, Scott said, the official transmitting of results from the county elections office to the state  which has strict legal deadlines on election night  was never impeded. The state received all the results as required, he said.

Link and Scott are Democrats. Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd, a Republican appointee of Gov. Ron DeSantis, said at a news conference Tuesday night in Tallahassee that he was aware of issues with counties websites communicating with VR Systems.

Byrd said that did not impede the legally required transmitting of county results to the state. All of the information and vote tallies were timely reported, Byrd said. This is an issue with their public facing websites. It had nothing to do with the data or the votes being transmitted to the Department of State, and we were able to access it.

On Wednesday, Byrd said the election was smooth and orderly in a statement. Voters cast their ballots with confidence, knowing that their votes were securely and accurately counted, he said.

What went wrong

Scott said he was notified by a VR Systems representative in a 6:49 p.m. phone call that the company was experiencing problems.

He said he was told by the company representative that VR Systems servers were overwhelmed, unable to handle the onslaught of traffic from so many people trying to access the websites at once.

Based on that conversation, Scott said he was led to believe there would be a momentary website interruption that would be over and done with by the time the polls actually closed at 7 p.m. and his office began posting results.

It ended up lasting more than an hour.

Scott has an extensive technology background. He has a bachelors degree in engineering from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, where he studied computer science. After finishing his service as an Army captain, Scott got an MBA and worked in technology roles for several companies.

Theres no evidence whatsoever that there was any kind of foul play involved in this. It was more or less poor infrastructure on the part of the vendor that is the most likely culprit, Scott said, adding he wants to see more information from VR Systems.

Scott said he based his assessment on my knowledge of my interactions Ive had with the company during the past three-and-a-half years and what I know about the company, he said. Scott became elections supervisor in January 2021; he was reelected on Tuesday.

At his Tuesday night news conference, Byrd offered a similar explanation. Its a vendor issue and well be able to get to the bottom of it, the secretary of state said, adding that his office had no credible information that there was any kind of malicious attack.

He said he would have information technology people from the Division of Elections work with the vendor to determine just what happened.

VR Systems hasnt clearly explained what happened.

In an email Wednesday to supervisors of elections and statement to the news media, the company offered what it called a clarification of the website issues from chief operating officer Ben Martin.

All of the customers websites that we host were impacted, and we take full responsibility, he said The websites were down as we took steps to correct issues that were caused by logging that was enabled as a security measure on the sites. Once we resolved this, all of the sites were restored. To ensure this doesnt happen again, we have begun working with external technical experts to assist us with further analyzing and optimizing our system.

In a statement Tuesday night, Martin didnt acknowledge a problem had actually occurred, saying instead people may have experienced problems. Even though he didnt say definitely there were problems, Martin said there is no indication of malicious activity.

This was his explanation: The log-recording action on the content management system serving the websites for elections offices that are VR Systems customers began to grow exponentially due to the increase in traffic to the websites. We believe this put extraordinary stress on the system.

Plan B

The outage lasted more than an hour, Scott said. Early on, people statewide began to post complaints on social media.

In Broward, the elections office began livestreaming an internal feed of the in-house results page on Facebook and Instagram. Scott himself was holding two smartphones to capture what was on the internal display at election headquarters.

If VR systems had given an indication of the length of the outage, Scott said he and his office would have taken more steps to get election results more broadly distributed to the public.

In Palm Beach County, Link said she and her staff realized just after 7 p.m. there was a problem, and began implementing contingency plans.

One step was to feed results directly to Channel 20, the county governments livestream and cable channel. That backup had been planned in advance, but her staff checked first with system operators to make sure that any influx of traffic wouldnt be overwhelming. Link said the county also activated a backup website to post results.

We had contingency plans in place, Link said. Weve spent a lot of time talking about a variety of things that could possibly go wrong from hurricanes to fires to (denial of service) attacks to hacking. We discuss what we would do in various situations, and we have backup plans for all of them.

What is VR Systems?

Founded in 1992 as a family-owned business, Tallahassee-based VR Systems is owned by its employees through a stock ownership plan, which was implemented in 2010.

The company offers several products to election departments, including its EViD electronic pollbook, which stands for Electronic Voter Identification. In 2016, more than 14,000 were in use in Florida, California, Illinois, North Carolina, New York, Virginia and West Virginia.

VR Systems also makes voter registration software, offers online training for election agency workers and provides website services for elections.

One problem, Scott said Tuesday night, is that VR Systems effectively has a monopoly on some services elections offices need to procure. That concerned Broward Mayor Nan Rich, a member of the countys three-person elections Canvassing Board, who said she would like to see competition for what VR Services provides.

Going forward

Scott said he was very unhappy with their performance, and Ive actually been vocal about that in the past. Its not as if theyre going to be surprised that Im very unhappy with their service because theyve heard it before.

Scott said he would seek proposals from other vendors for the Broward elections website, but said it might not be possible to design and test a news system before the November general election.

Link said she was not prepared to dump VR Systems, but said theyve got to focus on making sure its right.

Link, president-elect of the Florida Supervisors of Elections association, said there is frustration in terms of could they, should they have anticipated what occurred. I dont know. Certainly we all count on them to be able to handle the traffic and deliver the product that we have contracted for.

Certainly its been a topic of discussion among supervisors today, Link said.

DeSantis, who has spoken frequently about the need to ensure secure elections, said Wednesday at an event in Sarasota that he was not aware of any issues posting results online.

He referred questions about it to Byrd, adding he was confident his secretary of state would get it fixed in time for the general election. Hopefully it was just a website issue.

Orlando Sentinel staff writer Jeffrey Schweers contributed to this report.

Anthony Man can be reached at aman@sunsentinel.com and can be found @browardpolitics on Bluesky, Threads, Facebook and Mastodon.
High School Principal Placed on Leave After Dancing with Mascot at School Rally, One Father Says 'It Was All Weird' (Exclusive)

For all I know, he's a great guy, but at the same time, it doesn't make it any less weird," Ryan Attebery, the father who shared the video, exclusively tells PEOPLE

recklessmma/Instagram Principal Robert Nunes dancing with mascot

Buhach Colony High School principal Robert Nunes has been put on leave for dancing with the school mascot

Ryan Attebery reposted his son's video of the incident to Facebook, and soon it gained traction

Attebery exclusively tells PEOPLE that "it was all weird"

One high school principal has been placed on administrative leave for conducting an inappropriate dance during a back-to-school rally in Atwater, Calif., on Friday, Aug. 16, Merced Union High School District confirms with PEOPLE.

On Monday, Aug. 19, Buhach Colony High School principal Robert Nunes was put on leave by the Merced Union High School District after a video of the Friday incident circulated, documenting him dancing with the school mascot Thor. Atwater, Calif., is 120 miles east of San Francisco.

Ryan Attebery, father of a 14-year-old son at the school, shared his sons video to his own Facebook profile on Sunday, Aug. 18. Am I a square or was this weird af for a principal to do, he captioned the video.

recklessmma/Instagram

The video appears to show Nunes dancing suggestively in front of the mascot after they switched places. He then took the microphone and shouted to the student body, What happens at Buhach, stays at Buhach. Students have since confirmed via social media that the rally had a Vegas theme.

Related: Mass. Teacher Placed on Leave After Holding Mock Slave Auction and Saying Racial Slur Aloud in Class

Buhach Colony High School

This decision comes as part of our commitment to maintaining a safe and respectful environment," MUHSD district spokesperson Viviana Fuentes said in a statement. The District is conducting a comprehensive review of the situation. While the investigation is ongoing, Mr. Nunes will not be participating in any school-related responsibilities or activities.

During the interim, MUHSD Executive Director Torrin Johnson and Buhach Colony associate principal David Rogers will be acting principals, per the MUHSD statement.

This is Nunes first year as the Buhach Colony principal. He previously worked as an associate principal for MUHSD at El Capitan and Atwater High Schools.

Victor Bjorkland/Flickr.com Stock image of a classroom

Related: High School Teacher on Leave After Yelling Hail Satan, Dressing As Devil, According to Students

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.

Attebery, 33, exclusively tells PEOPLE that he posted the video because he intended to share it with other parents, saying,  Hey, man, like, this is what your kids see. You guys have the right to see it. That's all it was for me.

Attebery explains that he was shocked to learn that Nunes was put on leave. For all I know, he's a great guy, but at the same time, it doesn't make it any less weird.

He adds that a lot of Nunes students from other schools are sticking up for him, noting, There's something to that.

Everybody's saying he is [a good guy]. He probably is, and it's probably just a bad joke, he tells PEOPLE. They're like, Oh, the students, that was all the students idea. And Im like, I know, but the fact that there wasn't a red flag, is a red flag in itself. 

Id rather just make sure these kids are cool, he adds. It was all weird, nonetheless."

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Read the original article on People.
Hiker Has Been Missing for Days After Getting Separated from Group at Montana's Glacier National Park

Grant Marcuccio, 32, was last seen heading towards McPartland Peak on Sunday, Aug. 18

Glacier National Park/Facebook; Getty Grant Marcuccio; Glacier National Park

The search is on for a man has been missing for several days at Glacier National Park in Montana.

Searches are underway for climber Grant Marcuccio, 32, who was hiking from Heavens Peak to McPartland Peak on Sunday, Aug. 18, when he was reported missing, according to a press release from the National Park Service.

Authorities said that Marcuccio "separated from his party" while hiking and was last seen heading towards McPartland Mountain. After he "did not arrive to the rendezvous spot as planned," rangers were notified of his disappearance the same evening.

Both mountains are over 8,000 feet in elevation with Heavens Peak being 8987 feet and McPartland Peak at 8413 feet.

Getty Glacier National Park

Officials say that there have been multiple Bear Air aviation searches for the hiker, as well as searches conducted by rangers and search teams. The aviation team first flew over the Heavens Peak area to search for him on Monday, Aug. 19 and then again on Tuesday, Aug. 20.

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.

Per the release, the United States Forest Service will provide a helicopter for another search on Wednesday, Aug. 21.

Marcuccio is described as a Caucasian male with brown hair and brown eyes whois 6 feet tall and weighs about 175 lbs. He was last seen in brown shorts and a brown and white checkered shirt, per a description in the release.



Related: Woman, 53, Found Alive 4 Days After She Disappeared During 'Spiritual' Colo. Hike Without a Phone

Back in June, a 26-year-old woman from Pennsylvania died after being swept up into a waterfall at the park. She was reportedly washed over the falls and trapped under water for several minutes, per a press release from The National Park Service.

Ambulance personnel arrived and performed CPR on the woman, but she was pronounced deceased after about 40 minutes of assistance.

Glacier National Park encourages anyone with information about Marcuccio to contact the tip line at 406-888-7077.

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Read the original article on People.
KYODO NEWS - Aug 22, 2024 - 21:43 | All, World, Japan

The proposed acquisition of Japanese retail giant Seven & i Holdings Co. by Canadian convenience store giant Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. is subject to review by the Japanese government to assess any potential threats to national security, sources close to the matter said Thursday.

The operator of the Seven-Eleven convenience store chain is covered by the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act, which governs foreign investment in Japanese companies to prevent leaking technologies that could be diverted for military purposes.

Under the law, listed domestic companies and their subsidiaries engaged in designated industries such as aviation, cybersecurity or infrastructure, are required to notify the government if foreign investors acquire a stake of 1 percent or more.

Although convenience store operations, which are Seven & i's core business, are not among the designated industries, the Finance Ministry has applied the rule to the firm. It has not, however, disclosed which of Seven & i's businesses the rule applies to.

The notification to the Japanese government must include details on the scale and timing of the foreign investment, as well as the extent of the foreign investor's involvement in management.

The government can block the investment if it deems the acquisition would cause issues with economic security. Failure to provide notification or providing false information can result in imprisonment or fines.

Numerous corporations sit under Seven & i's umbrella, with the holding company owning shares in firms in industries such as retail, real estate, finance, livestock farming, petroleum product sales and security services, according to its articles of incorporation.

Seven & i said earlier this week that it had received a nonbinding preliminary proposal from Alimentation Couche-Tard, which runs brands including Couche-Tard and Circle K, to acquire all of its outstanding shares.

Related coverage:

Japan 7-Eleven operator to review takeover bid by Canada retail giant
Los Angeles County Beaches and Harbors workers clean up a homeless encampment on Dockweiler State Beach in Playa del Rey on Thursday. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

A homeless encampment that neighbors said had been growing at Dockweiler State Beach in Playa del Rey was taken down on Thursday, city officials said.

The encampment was occupying a large slice of the beach's four-mile shoreline next to Los Angeles International Airport, nearby residents said, and had been ignored by state and local government officials even as its problems grew more noticeable in recent weeks.

The cleanup arrives more than a month after Gov. Gavin Newsom threatened to take away state funding from counties that don't show improvement on tackling the homelessness crisis.

Dockweiler State Beach sits under the LAX flight path and is in an unusual jurisdictional position  it is part of California's state park system, its custodial maintenance and lifeguard services are managed by Los Angeles County, and, through an agreement with the county, policing and code enforcement are handled by the city of Los Angeles, according to a county spokesperson.

This has proven to be a sore issue for Playa del Rey residents who claim that none of the local agencies have taken the initiative to address the encampment.

"It's a little confusing, but everyone's pointing the finger," resident and founder of the nonprofit Friends of the Jungle Lucy Hun told KABC-TV about beach management.

Law enforcement ask Tyler Eyre, 30, to pack up his belongings during a beach cleanup of a homeless encampment on Dockweiler State Beach in Playa del Rey on Thursday. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

Garbage, campfires, hypodermic needles and feces litter the beach, Hun said.

Information on how many people lived in the Dockweiler State Beach encampment or what type of services were offered to those who were displaced by the cleanup was not immediately available. Los Angeles City Councilmember Traci Park, whose office organized the cleanup, said Thursday's operation was carried out with the Coastal CARE+ Team, which is part of the Comprehensive Cleaning and Rapid Engagement program deployed for encampment cleanups.

"We cant do this alone, though, which is why I have called upon the State and County to do their part in addressing this crisis," Park's office said in a statement.

California State Parks said Newsom's executive order complements the agency's existing policies on encampments in state parks, but directed any questions about the Dockweiler camp to the county.

While neighbors said the growing encampment posed health and safety risks for those looking to use the beach, L.A.'s Westside saw a nearly 20% decrease of people experiencing homelessness, according to the latest data from the L.A. County Homeless Services Authority.

Still, the issue of people living on the streets persists as home prices rise and not enough new homes are built.

In June, a Supreme Court ruling offered clarity about how cities and local governments can enforce laws restricting people from sleeping or camping in public spaces. The court decision said it was not "cruel and unusual" punishment to forbid a person from sleeping on the streets or in parks, even if there was no adequate shelter space available.

That ruling has resulted in a more proactive approach from local governments.

In Long Beach, city staff are working to identify encampments that pose a public threat or block access to public services. They are in the process of targeting encampments where people have repeatedly declined to accept services from the city.

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.
JACKSON, S.C. (WJBF)- For decades the Silver Bluff Audubon Sanctuary has been a wildlife refuge in Jackson. But that property has seen centuries of fascinating history.

Kim Vickers explores the background of the Silver Bluffs in this months hometown History.

The Silver Bluffs may have seen Europeans before any other part of the CSRA.

Its said that a famous Spanish explorer visited the Silver Bluff area as he traveled up the Savannah River in what he believed to be a new world.

Portrait of Hernando De Soto. (Photo by The Print Collector via Getty Images)

Hernando de Soto was a Spanish Conquistador who is believed to have led the first European expedition through what is now the South Eastern United States.

He had come through the Florida area and come up through the Carolinas at the time, and this is all very unknown, unclaimed territory. And so, hes negotiated with Native American tribes for supplies. Hes relying upon them for guidance to different areas of exploration, said Lauren Virgo, Executive Director at the Aiken County Historical Museum.

Virgo tells NewsChannel 6 that the legend says that de Soto stopped at the silver bluffs because they sparkled in the sunlight. He believed there was silver or gold there- but he was wrong.

A lot of that is pyrite or mica glinting kind of or glinting in the area, Virgo said.

The Silver Bluffs.

Brandon Heitkamp is the manager at the Silver Bluff Audubon Sanctuary. He said the legend contributed to the bluffs name.

They came through and they saw the mica shining in the left side. They thought it was silver. Its one of the ways it got its name, he explained.

When de Soto arrived, legend claims he was greeted warmly by a Cufitachiqui queen.

And the Queen had luxurious pearls, supposedly had some gold. Things, of course, that Hernando de Soto was very interested in, especially taking back to the Spanish government, explained Virgo.

De Soto, not being known for his kindness, responded to the queens generosity by taking more gold and pearls from the tribes graves. But that wasnt enough for him.

Courtesy: Library of congress.

They kidnapped her and said, Take us to the gold. Take us to the silver. Well, she didnt get to be queen for no reason, laughed Heitkamp. She was a very wise woman, very smart, and she led them up about 80 miles away, up near Clemson and got them turned around and then slipped off and came home. When she was far enough from home that she knew they wouldnt backtrack, she came back and ruled her people.

De Soto moved on from there. While this is a popular legend, many historians disagree if Silver Bluff was actually where it all happened.

Theres some new scholarship that says that maybe he didnt cross near Beech Island, Silver Bluff area. Maybe he crossed a little bit higher up. And theres also some debate that maybe the Cufitachiqui were actually closer to the Saluda River, Congaree River near Columbia, said Virgo.

The Silver Bluffs were a popular trading site for native tribes for a very long time.

They would meet, and even if their languages didnt align perfectly, they could say, Ill meet you on the biggest bluff on the biggest river and well trade. And this was a very easy place to key on back when there were no roads and no subdivisions and no firefighters and, you know, just foot traffic and river traffic, Heitkamp said.

In the 16th century, George Galphin, an Irishman, came to America and found a job working for a trading company. He was extremely successful and in the 1750s he acquired about 400 acres of land at Silver Bluff, which he established as a trading post and his home.

Galphin had a Creek (Native-American) wife and became well respected among the tribes, learning their language and trading with them.

Courtesy: Getty Images.

He ended up being a millionaire of his time. He was owner, at one point, of tens of thousands of acres in Georgia and South Carolina, Heitkamp explained.

In the 1760s, Galphin began to develop Silver Bluff into a plantation, which he continued to do until the start of the American Revolution.

He also continued to trade with the Native Americans and had a massive store of goods at his trading post.

When the American Revolution was coming to the South, Galphin didnt want anything to do with it. But soon it became clear he would have to pick a side.

Its a big gamble, especially when youre talking about as much wealth as George Galphin had. He had a lot to lose and a lot that he wanted to give to his family because again, hes in his later age as the American Revolution is approaching, said Virgo. So he had a lot to think about, not only himself, but his legacy and his family to take care of. He ultimately did decide to go with the Patriots side.

Hometown History: The American Revolution in Augusta

Because of his relationship with the Creeks, Galphin was appointed Indian Commissioner. He transformed his plantation into a base to maintain old and start new alliances with the native Americans. Many of those tribes didnt want to fight for either side, which was good enough for Galphin.

(AP Photo/Josh Reynolds)

And was actually instrumental in keeping the Creek Indians from siding with the British during the American Revolutionary War. And they say, we could have fought the British or the native tribes, but not both at the same time. So, I dont know if we would have been speaking the Queens English or what, but he was one of the people who helped us not lose, Heitkamp smiled.

Galphins plantation was renamed Fort Galphin. Soon Loyalists, who sided with the British, heard about the large store of goods at Fort Galphin and raided it. Galphin sent his family away to keep them safe and stayed to protect his property.

British forces took control in 1779.

When the Patriot cause is coming through South Carolina, this was a major battleground during the American Revolution in South Carolina. And a lot ofeven though they may seem like small skirmishesled to big points of victory in the American Revolution cause, explained Virgo. And one of those was at Fort Galphin. Now, when the British owned it, they changed it from Fort Galphin to Fort Dreadnought, which I just think instills a lot of fear.

The British took Galphin prisoner. He remained a prisoner in his own home until his death in December of 1780.

Before long the Patriots took the fort back.

Its interesting that Light Horse Harry Lee took a troop of Patriots to this area and actually attacked Fort Dreadnought and reclaimed it, renamed it, of course, Fort Galphin, and then went on to the Augusta battle, which was a major siege in 1781, in May, which was a point of victory for the Patriot cause, Virgo said.

Hometown History: Burke Countys two battles of the American Revolution

As a plantation owner in the South, George Galphin used enslaved labor to run it. Galphin allowed those he enslaved to worship as they chose, without his supervision, which was unusual for the time.

He would let them practice their own religion. Thats not a thing that was typically done. They, in most plantation settings, would have to hide that and do it among themselves. But he encouraged them to embrace their religious beliefs and would let people come and talk to them, said Heitkamp.

Courtesy: Getty Images.

But we do know that George Galvin was a gentleman who did allow for his enslaved individuals to have sort of these meetings and these gatherings and to allow these traveling preachers to come on to his plantation lands and preach to the enslaved people, Virgo added.

During and after the war, Galphins enslaved people were freed and the Silver Bluff Plantation Church split up. Some went to Savannah where they founded First African Baptist Church. Some only traveled as far as Augusta, where they started Springfield Baptist Church. And some stayed in the area and continued Silver Bluff Baptist Church.

Hometown History: Springfield Baptist Church

These churches all claim to be THE oldest in the nation but they can all trace their roots back to the same place.

A lot of the earliest African-American, historically black churches can trace their history back to that concept, to that belief that they should be able to practice religion and do their own thing, Heitkamp said.

After Galphins death, his property changed hands over the next 40 years.

In 1822, Christopher Fitzsimmons bought it. Just three years later he died and his daughter, Catherine, inherited it. When she married James Henry Hammond in 1831, he took ownership.

He owned at the time, through her and through marriage, three different plantations, one of them, which was Silver Bluff Plantation. Eventually, through marriage and purchase, James Henry Hammond would acquire around 14,000 acres of plantation lands and around 300 enslaved individuals worked in those plantations, Virgo explained.

Hometown History: Redcliffe Plantation

Hammond began his efforts to increase production at Silver Bluff. When he took ownership of the land in 1831 it was worth $36,100, more than $1.3 million today. By 1840, it was worth $59,500, $2.15 million today.

To make the swampy Carolina Bay on Silver Bluff farmable, he used enslaved labor to dig a grid of ditches to drain them.

And they all drained downhill and they would plunge all that -held water- that stuff that would have been captured through a ditch and it went out into House Lake and then into the Savannah River, Heitkamp said. So they just dug until they got to a creek, a river system, and then all the water would drain and you were left with that fertile soil. So theyd farm it.

Hammond would go on to have a career in politics, becoming a congressman, U.S. senator and Governor of South Carolina.

But scandal followed him.

He was accused of sexually assaulting his nieces by their father Wade Hampton II. He was also exceptionally violent towards his enslaved laborers.

(AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

He was very cruel towards the enslaved individuals who were on his plantations. I remember reading about him in my college years at Clemson University and the medical experiments he did on the enslaved individuals, the non-consensual relationships that he had with his enslaved individuals as well that produced lots of illegitimate children, said Virgo.

Deep in the woods of the Silver Bluff Audubon Sanctuary, there is a cemetery where the bodies of around 250 or so enslaved people rest. Most are believed to have been owned by Hammond.

Only about ten have headstones. The rest are marked by fiberglass stakes in the shallow indentations of each grave.

Heitkamp told NewsChannel 6, the burial site was chosen for a reason.

But the first ones are probably six foot from where it rolls off and becomes a cypress swamp, because farmable land was important. Thats how they made their money. And so they took all of it and squished it as far to the side as they could.

One of the graves is that of Eliza Collick. Her headstone reveals a stunning milestone.

Headstone of Eliza Collick, in Colvin Cemetery.

It says she lived 110 years. She mustve been, maybe a house servant. 110 years, even if they counted wrong, she wasnt out in the sun the whole time. Pretty remarkable age now, let alone in the early 1800s, said Heitkamp.

Descendants of the people buried in Colvin Cemetery are still around. The cemetery is not open to the public, but the Sanctuary makes an exception for them.

Its actually a very serene and beautiful place. And we allow descendants to schedule to come back and see it, Heitkamp said.

After Hammonds death in 1864, the property exchanged hands, mostly within the Hammond family for decades.

Eventually Floyd Starr bought Silver Bluff Plantation from the Hammond family. He lived in Pennsylvania and for decades he used it to hunt quail.

And were talking about an era where a lot of farming and a lot of hedgerows, and so we had a lot of birds. And as things were being taken out of farming and developed, he saw a decrease in the amount of game birds that he was hunting and interested in, Heitkamp said.

Heitkamp added that Starr was so concerned about the decrease in the Northern Bobwhite Quail population, he donated the property to the National Audubon Society.

Gave roughly 3000 acres to Audubon, and we took ownership in 1975. But his charge for us was to build bird habitat and be self-sustaining.

Since 1975, the original purpose of the Silver Bluff Audubon Sanctuary has evolved, with the goal to try to bring the land back to what it was 400 years ago.

My predecessor, Dan, kind of took the move from farmland to forestry. And then I have been here 14 years and I took his vision away from just forestry, into ecological forestry, trying to build forests that were places where these birds that people dont think about, these ecosystems that kind of get pushed aside, can be, said Heitkamp.

Hometown History: The Augusta Canal

The Audubon Sanctuary is open to the public from dawn until dusk 365 days a year. People can hike the trails, look for birds, see the bluffs and even check out the dig site where George Galphins home once stood.

Heitkamp said that if Starr hadnt donated his land- things at Silver Bluff could look very different now.

Just the fact that he would think at the time to protect birds and think about all of the development that was going on. This 3,000 acres could have very well been a subdivision. And now its a its a public place that people can come every hour of the day and hike and bird and see birds that a lot of people dont get to see.

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BUNCOMBE COUNTY, N.C. (WSPA)  A homicide investigation is underway Thursday afternoon in Buncombe County.

The Buncombe County Sheriffs Office announced that deputies are conducting an investigation in the Broad River Community.

Details are limited while the investigation is in its early stages but deputies shared that the homicide was an isolated incident and there is no threat to the community.

No victim identities have been released at this time.

The incident remains under investigation by the Buncombe 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 WSPA 7NEWS.
HONOLULU (KHON2)  Honolulu police chief Joe Logan received a positive annual review from the police commission Wednesday for his annual job review.

Get Hawaiis latest morning news delivered to your inbox, sign up for News 2 You

The commission praised him for meeting expectations in key areas such as training, communication, community relations, management, and budget matters. They also noted that he is surpassing expectations in leadership.

Doug Chin, of the Honolulu Police Commission, said, Chief Logan is trying to change the culture of the department in a positive way. He leads by example with solid values and positivity, while also handling the reality of each situation.

Arrest made in Kalihi bus shooting; 19-year-old in custody

However, there are areas where the commission believes improvements are needed.

They pointed out the need for faster communication, referencing the recent police-involved shooting in Waianae as a case where information could have been released more promptly.

Additionally, they suggested enhancing opportunities for professional development and advancement within the department, although they acknowledged Logans amazing success in recruiting entry-level staff.

KHON2 has reached out to the police union for their comments and to find out how much input their members had in the review process.

Download the free KHON2 app for iOS or Android to stay informed on the latest news

We are currently awaiting their response.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KHON2.
A hospital told family their daughter had checked out. They found out a year later her body was in storage

Jessie Peterson, 31, died at a hospital in April 2023. Her family said it took staff members nearly a year to tell them (Facebook/JessiePeterson)

A California hospital is being sued for allegedly taking 361 days to alert a womans family that she had died, leading them to launch a statewide search for her recovery.

Jessie Peterson, 31, checked herself into Mercy San Juan Medical Center in Carmichael  about 14 miles from Sacramento  on 6 April 2023 after suffering a diabetic episode. She had been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 10.

On 8 April 2023, she called her mother, Ginger Congi, asking her to pick her up from the hospital. About two hours later, Peterson would be dead. The next day, hospital officials transported her body to a storage facility where she remained until the following year.

After days went by without hearing from Peterson, her mom called the hospital on 11 April 2023 to check on her. A member of staff told her that her daughter had discharged herself against medical advice, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Her family launched a wide search trying to find the woman. Relatives reported her missing to the Sacramento County Sheriffs Office and the California Department of Justice so Peterson would be included on their missing persons website.

Jessie Peterson, 31, died at a hospital in April 2023. Her family said it took staff members nearly a year to tell them (Facebook/JessiePeterson)

The family passed out fliers and called police departments and hospitals looking for her. Petersons sister, Angie Rubino, spoke to homeless people in the area where her sister went missing in case anyone knew where she was.

On 12 April 2024, a representative of the Sacramento County Sheriffs Office contacted the family to tell them Peterson had died.

Shed been in a cold storage facility shelf labeled Red 22 A for 361 days.

The sheriffs department said a doctor at the hospital filed a death certificate. State law requires medical professionals to file death certificates 15 hours after a patient passes.

The family is now seeking answers and $25m in damages, including punitive damages for outrageous and inexcusable negligence in handling the womans death.

The family said that inconsistencies with medical records do not shed light on what happened to Peterson or why it took so long to notify her family of her death.

By the time her family located her body, it had decomposed so much that an autopsy could no longer be performed.

A spokesperson for the hospital told the newspaper in a statement: We extend our deepest sympathies to the family during this difficult time. We are unable to comment on pending litigation.
Hovde misses the mark on claim that Baldwin has done absolutely nothing on fentanyl

As both U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, a Democrat, and Eric Hovde, a Republican, advance to the fall election in November, the two arent pulling punches when it comes to criticisms.

After voting in the fall primary on Aug. 13, 2024, Hovde criticized Baldwin for not visiting Wisconsin enough to talk with voters and for not doing enough to address the states growing fentanyl crisis.

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Eric Hovde speaks during a press conference on crime and safety, hosted by Republican vice presidential nominee, Senator JD Vance, in Kenosha, Wisconsin on Tuesday, August 20, 2024.

I have never seen such a disingenuous campaign, making up lies, not only about me, taking things completely out of context, but also embellishing her record and what shes done, like talking about fentanyl and how shes done something about the fentanyl crisis, Hovde said outside his polling place in Shorewood Hills, just outside of Madison. She has done absolutely nothing.

Hovde went on to say that Baldwin was merely one in a long list of co-sponsors on a recent fentanyl bill that was introduced by a Republican lawmaker.

So has Tammy Baldwin done absolutely nothing on fentanyl (a pretty low bar to counter)? And, if not, what kind of work has she done?

Baldwin has been involved in the opioid issue for years

Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid that is used as a pain medication with a doctor's prescription. But it is also made illegally, and can easily cause overdoses with a very small amount of the drug.z

Starting with the 2018 campaign, Baldwin has shared her experience growing up with a mother addicted to prescription drugs, according to a May 1, 2018 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel report.

Since then, Baldwin has been involved in several pieces of legislation regarding fentanyl.

In 2019, she introduced a bill that would have required the U.S. Postal Service to enter into an agreement with U.S. Customs and Border Control to train employees on how to identify illicit packages. The bill did not make it out of the Senate in the 2019-20 session.

Earlier this year, she supported the FEND Off Fentanyl Act, which aims to stop the flow of the drugs into the country by choking off the income source of those who traffic it, according to an April 24, 2024 news release. That bill did make it to the presidents desk and was signed into law the same month.

Asked about its claim, Hovdes campaign noted Baldwin was not a writer of the bill, but instead was one of many co-sponsors.

In reality, she did nothing, said Ben Voelkel, a spokesperson for the Hovde campaign, in an email. She was the 28th co-sponsor out of 68, and not on the committee that advanced the bill and offered 0 amendments.

Baldwin also introduced in September 2023 the Safe Response Act, to ensure first responders can get trained on how to use life-saving overdose reversal drugs.

In May, she voted yes, according to Senate records, though the bill failed to pass.

Voelkel also said Baldwin has voted against border control to stop the flow of drugs from entering the U.S.

But Baldwin voted for a bipartisan border security deal that would have authorized billions in funding for border security, including tools to help detect and stop the flow of fentanyl into the United States, according to a document outlining the senators work on fentanyl from her campaign press secretary, Jackie Rosa. Baldwin did vote yes on May 23, 2024 for the bipartisan deal, according to Senate records, though the bill ultimately failed.

False

Our ruling

Hovde claimed Baldwin has done absolutely nothing to address the fentanyl crisis in Wisconsin.

Of course, nothing, is a pretty stark claim  and it does not take much to have done, well, not nothing.

For years, Baldwin has been outspoken about her work to address the growing number of issues with opioids in the state, including fentanyl. In particular, Baldwin has signed on to, championed or even introduced bills aimed at tackling the issue not just in Wisconsin, but across the country.

Hovdes campaign argued that on the bill that passed, Baldwin was not a major factor. Nevertheless, she did endorse the bill and ultimately supported it.

We rate this claim False.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Hovde wrong on claim that Baldwin has done nothing on fentanyl crisis
BUTLER COUNTY, Ohio (WDTN)  A well-known retired American wrestler is stopping by southwest Ohio.

On Aug. 22, Hulk Hogan will be visiting three stores in Butler County:

New transportation service beginning in downtown Dayton

Hogan is making stops in Ohio to promote Real American Beer, a newly-created alcoholic beverage. According to the companys website, the containers have 4.2 percent ABV beer.

If you would like to learn additional information about the beverage, click here.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WDTN.com.
Hulk Hogan riled up a rowdy crowd on Monday (Aug. 19) when asking if he should body slam Kamala Harris before he began questioning the Vice Presidents racial identity. Hogans bizarre rant came while he was speaking at an event in Ohio to promote his new beer.

In a 90-second clip published by TMZ, the former reality star addressed the crowd with a series of questions before asking, You want me to body slam somebody? You want me to body slam Kamala Harris?

Hogan mispronounced Harris first name when he posed the question, and continued to do so as he repeated said question. I said, Do you want me to body slam Kamala Harris? Do you want me to drop the leg on Kamala?

The WWE star then questioned the Democratic presidential candidates racial identity.

Hogan asked the crowd, Is Kamala a chameleon? Is she Indian, as he made a hand gesture mocking Native Americans and stated, Im gonna get heat for that one, brother. Harris isnt Native American though; her mother is from India and her father is from Jamaica.

The 71-year-old quipped, That wasnt me; that was the beers talking, before chugging a beer as the crowd chanted, USA! USA!

Fellow republicans  including Donald Trump  have attacked Harris multiracial identity in recent weeks. Back in July, Trump spoke on a panel for NABJ and said, I didnt know she was Black until a number of years ago when she happened to turn Black, and now she wants to be known as Black. So I dont know, is she Indian or is she Black?

Co-moderator Rachel Scott swiftly replied, Shes always been Black.

Harris campaign responded via a statement that read, Todays tirade is simply a taste of the chaos and division that has been a hallmark of Trumps MAGA rallies this entire campaign. Its also exactly what the American people will see from across the debate stage as Vice President Harris offers a vision of opportunity and freedom for all Americans. All Donald Trump needs to do is stop playing games and actually show up to the debate on September 10.

Hogan is a known Trump supporter with a lengthy history of making controversial and offensive remarks. Earlier this summer, he was accused of firing one of his beer ambassadors after realizing she was Black. He also was suspended from the WWE in 2015 after a video surfaced of him repeatedly using the N-word. He apologized and was reinstated in the Hall of Fame in 2018.

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SALEM, Ohio (WKBN)  A Human trafficking awareness event will be held Thursday night in Salem.

Its hosted by FreeThree, which stands for Freedom in Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties.

Its from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Salem Community Theater on East State Street.

Local police will discuss whats happening in local communities and how you can help raise awareness and stay safe.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WKBN.com.
Johnstone Chikwanda, chairman of the Energy Institute of Zambia speaks during an interview with Xinhua in Lusaka, Zambia on Aug. 20, 2024. (Photo by Martin Mbangweta/Xinhua)

LUSAKA, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- China, as a leader in the green energy revolution, is an important partner to Zambia and Africa's energy transition, an energy expert said here Tuesday.

Zambia and other African countries have benefited from China's support in green energy, said Johnstone Chikwanda, chairman of the Energy Institute of Zambia.

Africa has a lot to learn from how China has managed to navigate and implement green energy projects, including the development of the electrical vehicle industry, he added.

In particular, African countries will need China's help to meet the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goal of providing universal access to clean, affordable and sustainable energy for all by 2030, the expert said.


CHICAGO (AP)  More than 2,000 pro-Palestinian protesters marched Wednesday past a park where pro-Israel demonstrators had gathered earlier and toward the arena hosting the third night of the Democratic National Convention.

Protesters rally at a demonstration in Union Park during the Democratic National Convention Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

A demonstrators is taken into custody by police near the Israeli Consulate during the Democratic National Convention Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

Demonstrators clash with counter protesters over the flag at a rally in Union Park during the Democratic National Convention Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Protesters rally at a demonstration in Union Park during the Democratic National Convention Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

A protester arrives for a demonstration at Union Park during the Democratic National Convention Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

Demonstrators clash with counter protesters over the flag at a rally in Union Park during the Democratic National Convention Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

A demonstrators is taken into custody by police near the Israeli Consulate during the Democratic National Convention Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

A person with a media ID is taken into custody by police near the Israeli Consulate during the Democratic National Convention Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Demonstrators clash with police near the Israeli Consulate during the Democratic National Convention Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

A police officer watches protesters march during a demonstration outside the Democratic National Convention Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Protesters rally at a demonstration in Union Park during the Democratic National Convention Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

The demonstration, which stayed largely peaceful, came a day after violent clashes between police and protesters led to 56 arrests at a much smaller unsanctioned protest outside the Israeli Consulate.

Organizers of Wednesdays demonstration drew on the Chicago areas Palestinian community, one of the largest in the country, by bringing buses from suburban mosques.

Watch live: Oprah speaks on Day 3 of DNC

Raed Shuk, 48, came with his children from the suburbs, including his 2-year-old son, who sat on Shuks shoulders ahead of the march. Shuk, whose parents are Palestinian, said they have come to so many rallies that his son knows the chants by heart.

Everybodys humanity needs to be equally addressed here and there, he said of Gaza. I want to help my children learn from this experience that you always like to stand up for your rights and always peacefully protest.

The march, one of the largest anticipated demonstrations of the week, took on a festive tone at times as a drum line led marchers and a sea of Palestinian flags waved above the crowds. Some kids ate popsicles as they walked, and others were pushed in strollers or rode in wagons.

The crowd stopped outside a park that is roughly a block from the United Center and used megaphones and air horns to call out elected leaders, including Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, for being complicit in the war in Gaza. The two-term Democrat, who was under consideration as Vice President Kamala Harris running mate, criticized a ceasefire resolution Chicago approved in January.

As marchers passed under a new elevated train station near the United Center that was completed just before the DNC, officers were seen bringing a person to the ground on the platform above. In response, hundreds of protesters pushed against the edge of the station, banging on the glass with their hands and flag poles as they called on police to free the person. The person left through the stations emergency exit moments later, accompanied by officers but not in handcuffs, prompting cheers from the crowd.

The crowds of pro-Palestinian protesters included many families and people of different faiths. Small groups of Muslims gathered in prayer at a park just ahead of the marchs kickoff, using keffiyeh as prayer rugs. Rabbis were among the leaders of the march, and a small group marched through in the crowd holding a sign that said Christians for Ceasefire.

Rabbi Brant Rosen, a founder of the Jewish Voice for Peace Rabbinical Council, condemned Democrats for not speaking out about the war in Gaza at the convention

The word Palestine is not allowed inside the Democratic National Convention. The word ceasefire has barely been uttered, he said. This is a Hollywood-style coronation of a candidate. They assume they are entitled to our votes, but they are not entitled to our votes.

Earlier in the day, police escorted pro-Israel demonstrators out of a park near the United Center as the area was blocked off ahead of the march of activists heading there.

The rally near the United Center was organized by the U.S. Palestinian Community Network, a Palestinian and Arab community-based organization. It was in stark contrast to the protest Tuesday night outside the Israeli Consulate, where protesters not affiliated with a coalition of more than 200 groups that has the citys permission for demonstrations ended up in an intense standoff with Chicago police.

Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling said those arrested Tuesday night outside the Israeli Consulate, about 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) from the United Center, showed up with the intention of committing acts of violence, vandalism. Snelling called police response proportionate.

Thirty of the people detained by police were issued citations for disorderly conduct, according to Chicago police. One person was arrested on a felony charge of resisting police, while nine were charged with misdemeanors including disorderly conduct, resisting officers, battery, assault and criminal damage to property, police said.

Snelling said that two people were taken to the hospital with minor injuries, one for knee pain and one with a finger injury. Two officers were injured but they refused medical attention because they did not want to leave fellow officers, Snelling said. He said three journalists were among those arrested, but he did not have details on charges.

Hatem Abudayyeh, co-founder of the U.S. Palestinian Community Network, put the onus on police to keep the peace when asked about the clashes between pro-Palestinian protesters and police. The police only have one responsibility here, he said. They have the responsibility of not infringing on our First Amendment rights.

The Israeli Consulate has been the site of numerous demonstrations since the war in Gaza began in October, and protests during the DNC have largely focused on opposing the Israel-Hamas war..

The largest protest so far, which attracted about 3,500 people on Monday, was largely peaceful and resulted in 13 arrests, most related to a breach of security fencing. Two were arrested Sunday night during another mostly peaceful march.

Also on Wednesday, a man who escaped from a Mississippi courthouse and is wanted on murder and armed robbery charges was taken into custody following a standoff with police at a restaurant about half a mile from the United Center. There was no indication that he had any connection to the convention.

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(Bloomberg) -- Hungary suggested it might start transporting migrants who show up at its border straight to Brussels unless it can resolve a dispute with the European Union on penalties for its asylum policies.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The European Court of Justice has slapped a 200 million ($223 million) penalty, plus an extra 1 million daily fine, on the country for Prime Minister Viktor Orbans non-compliance with the courts earlier judgment on the protection of asylum seekers. Orban already promised retaliation in June for the ruling, one of several issues clouding the start of his stint in the rotating presidency of the EU in the second half of 2024.

Negotiations with the European Commission will start in September, Gergely Gulyas, the minister in charge of the prime ministers office, told reporters in Budapest Thursday. Should those talks fail, Hungary will start handing migrants one-way tickets to Brussels, Gulyas said.

We should find an agreement as soon as possible because we wouldnt like to pay large amounts on a daily basis, Gulyas said. But if Brussels wants to take in migrants, we can help.

Though Gulyas provided no details on how such a scheme would work, the idea echoes disputes among US states over migrants being bused to New York from the Texas border. In Europe, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has vowed his new Labour government would scrap predecessor Rishi Sunaks plan to deport asylum-seekers to Rwanda.

Spokespeople for commission declined to comment on Gulyass remarks.

Separately, Hungary was criticized by human rights groups this week for withdrawing state-funded shelter from Ukrainian refugees arriving from regions not directly affected by the fighting on the frontlines with Russia. A group of Hungarians from Ukraines western Transcarpathia region temporarily became homeless after the move, though Gulyas said aid groups helped provide accommodations for them.

The EUs executive arm is looking into the decree, according to a spokesperson but said the EU is united in providing protections, including accommodation, for those fleeing the conflict.

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Hungary renews calls for 'ceasefire' in response to Ukraine's incursion into Kursk Oblast

Hungary renewed its calls for a "ceasefire" in response to Ukraine's ongoing incursion into Russia's Kursk Oblast, Prime Minister Viktor Orban's chief of staff, Gergely Gulyas, told reporters on Aug. 22.

Responding to questions on the incursion from reporters, Gulyas said that the country "continues to be pro-peace."

"Ukraine is not only defending itself but also attacking," Gulyas said in at press briefing in Budapest. "We want a ceasefire and peace."

The comments, which appear to be the country's first public reaction on Ukraine's incursion into Kursk Oblast, draw stark contrast with statements from Western allies, including the European Union.

"The EU continues to fully support Ukraine's legitimate right to defense against Russian aggression and its efforts to restore sovereignty and territorial integrity," European Commission spokesperson Peter Stano said on Aug. 7 following the incursion.

Hungary, widely regarded as a key ally of Russia in the EU, had previously called for a ceasefire but insisted that advocating for one does not mean accepting that Russia would keep the Ukrainian territories it currently occupies.

The country's prime minister, Viktor Orban, has repeatedly blocked aid to Ukraine, pushed for negotiations, and frequently spouted Kremlin talking points. Hungary has also condemned the war but has refused to supply Ukraine with weapons.

Since taking the presidency of the European Commission in July, Orban has amped up attempts to stand as a negotiator between Moscow and Kyiv. In July, he embarked on a peace tour and met with Russian dictator Putin, Chinese leader Xi Jinping, and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.

Orban's visits sparked criticism from the EU and President Volodymyr Zelensky. The latter said that NATO and the EU can resolve the war without Orban.

In early July, Hungary quietly changed the rules for its National Card program to allow Russian and Belarusian "guest workers" to enter the country in a streamlined visa-acquisition process that does away with enhanced security checks or other restrictions.

In response to the policy change, European parliamentarians published a letter urging parliament to reconsider Hungary's Schengen membership.

Earlier on Aug. 22, Ukrainian refugees from southwestern Zakarpattia Oblast began being evicted from shelters after in Hungary after the government passed a decree to restrict housing assistance for Ukrainians fleeing their country.

Read also: Hungary reportedly starts evicting some Ukrainian refugees from shelters based on new law

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Hungary reportedly starts evicting some Ukrainian refugees from shelters based on new law

Refugees from Ukraine's southwestern Zakarpattia Oblast are being evicted from shelters after the Hungarian government passed a decree to restrict housing assistance for Ukrainians fleeing their country, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) reported on Aug. 22.

The decree, which entered into force on Aug. 21, limits government-subsidized housing only to those Ukrainians who fled the territories directly affected by active hostilities.

RFE/RL reported that 120 Ukrainian refugees had been evicted on the morning of Aug. 21 in the village of Kocs in the north of Hungary.

Most of these refugees are members of the Roma minority from southwestern Zakarpattia Oblast who lived in a private shelter subsidized by the government. Some of them had to spend the night on the street.

The amendment to the legislation, which significantly changed the procedure for providing housing assistance to refugees from Ukraine, has raised concerns of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, who called on Budapest to review this decision.

According to U.N. estimations, up to 3,000 refugees will lose their right to government-subsidized housing.

This step mainly affects the Roma minority from Zakarpattia Oblast, who are still living in shelters that are about to be closed. Many of them have double Ukrainian-Hungarian citizenship, so they are refused temporary protection in other EU countries.

Hungary is currently hosting over 30,000 refugees from Ukraine.

On July 30, the Hungarian government loosened entry requirements for Russian and Belorussian citizens, who are now included in the National Card program. This allows them to come and work in Hungary for up to two years.

Read also: Orbans arguments crumble in Lukoil spat with Ukraine

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Gergely Gulyas, Chief of Staff of the Hungarian Prime Minister, has called for a ceasefire in the operation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in Kursk Oblast, Russia.

Source: Telex portal, as reported by European Pravda.

Details: Asked to comment on the Ukrainian Armed Forces' operation in Kursk Oblast, Gulyas said that the Hungarian government "remains committed to peace".

"Ukraine is no longer just defending itself but is on the offensive. We want a ceasefire and peace," he said.

The Hungarian government representative also called on Ukraine and Russia not to forget that they are also responsible for Europe's energy security. He was referring to the transportation of Russian oil and gas through Ukrainian territory.

The Hungarian government has consistently advocated for a "truce" and "ceasefire" and against providing military assistance to Ukraine, both at the national and EU level.

In early July, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban went on a self-proclaimed "peace mission" to Ukraine, Russia and China, drawing criticism from the EU.

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Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, will be back in federal court in September to face nine tax-related charges (Getty Images)

While Hunter Biden vacationed with his family in Santa Ynez Valley in California on Wednesday, nearly 100 miles away in Los Angeles his lawyers empathetically defended him in his final pretrial conference before his federal tax case heads to trial.

Mark Geragos, an attorney who joined Bidens legal team recently, was pushing back on the prosecutions plan to bring up embarrassing details of Bidens past, like spending money on drugs, girlfriends and lovers, expensive hotels and more rather than pay his taxes.

They want the character assassination, they want to slime him, that is the whole purpose, Geragos told District Court Judge Mark Scarsi.

It arrived after lead prosecutor Leo Wise said that the personal details of Bidens life, specifically while he was battling addiction, were part of evidence closely related to the nine tax-related charges at the center of the case.

Biden is charged with three felony and six misdemeanor charges that accuse him of avoiding paying at least $1.4 million in taxes while maintaining an extravagant lifestyle between 2016 and 2019.

Mark Geragos, a lawyer who recently joined Hunter Bidens legal team, will defend him in federal court in California (Getty Images)

During that time, Biden had an addiction to crack cocaine and alcohol  something, he has previously said, emerged while he was grieving the death of his older brother, Beau Biden.

Geragos argued that the defense should be allowed to explain to the jury the context behind Bidens addictions, like how the death of his mother and infant sister when he was a young boy and then the death of his brother as an adult triggered his addictions.

[Prosecutors] are creating a portrait for the jury of someone who was plopped down in West Hollywood and decided to just party and do cocaine as if he didnt have a care in the world, Geragos said.

But Judge Scarsi was not convinced that evidence related to why addiction occurs was relevant.

By the end of the pretrial conference hearing, it became clear that the California tax case would echo much of what occurred during Bidens federal gun charges trial in Wilmington, Delaware.

Salacious and embarrassing details of Bidens life took center stage during that trial, like how he spent thousands of dollars on expensive hotel rooms to use crack cocaine, how his ex-wife needed to sweep their car for drugs before allowing their daughters to drive it, and more.

It culminated in emotional testimony from Bidens eldest daughter, Naomi Biden, who tearfully recounted how her fathers addiction impacted her relationship with him. Biden was ultimately found guilty on all three federal gun charges.

Prosecutors will likely revisit some of those personal details in the California tax charges case. They have also signaled in court filings they plan to introduce evidence related to Bidens foreign business dealings that cast a negative shadow on him.
Hunter Biden joined his family onstage this week in Chicago at the Democratic National Convention, where President Biden gave a valedictory address and the crowd roared, Thank you, Joe.

A more grave proceeding came Wednesday in Los Angeles as a federal judge held a final hearing before Hunter Biden's criminal trial on tax evasion and fraud charges, slated to begin Sept. 5.

The president's son, a resident of Malibu, was not present in court. The 54-year-old remained with the rest of the Biden clan, including his father, on a family vacation more than 100 miles north at the Santa Ynez Valley estate of businessman and Democratic Party donor Joe Kiani.

In his absence, prosecutors and his defense team, led by veteran attorney Mark Geragos, argued acrimoniously about what jurors will  and will not  hear about the younger Bidens tumultuous, drug-fueled life from 2016 until he became sober in 2019.

At one point, Geragos accused federal prosecutors of character assassination because of their efforts to limit what the defense could tell jurors about Hunter Bidens addiction and the roots of it.

They want to slime him, Geragos said. Because that is the whole purpose  making him look bad and putting on a salacious, typical independent counsel-style prosecution.

The president's son faced another trial in June, when a jury in Delaware found him guilty of illegally buying a gun. Both prosecutions were set to fuel a barrage of attacks on the Bidens by former President Trump and his allies in the run-up to the November election. But Joe Biden's decision last month to drop out of the race altered that calculus.

The crux of the case now being brought by prosecutors is that the president's son failed to file and timely pay his taxes, and that when he did file in 2020, he committed felony tax evasion, among other violations, by misclassifying personal expenses, including college tuition for his children and $30,000 to a pornographic website, as business expenses.

Hunter Biden, far right, alongside his family as President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris embrace at the Democratic National Convention on Aug. 19, 2024. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

The centerpiece of the defense's case is how trauma has altered Hunter Bidens life, triggered his addictions and led to a particularly out-of-control period when he lived in luxury hotels in L.A. and abused crack cocaine around the clock.

And so Geragos took umbrage at efforts by prosecutors to prevent or limit his team from speaking about the 1972 death of Hunter Bidens mother and sister in a car crash or the 2015 death of his brother due to brain cancer.

They are creating a portrait for the jury of someone who was plopped down in West Hollywood and decided to just party and do cocaine as if he didnt have a care in the world, Geragos said. The lopsided result, he said, would erase key context and was actually a form of character assassination by the prosecution.

Read more: Who would lend millions to Hunter Biden? Meet the Hollywood lawyer who has

U.S. District Judge Mark Scarsi, appointed to the bench by then-President Trump, appeared unswayed.

I dont know if theres any good evidence as to what causes addiction, the judge said, asking, Why is the cause of Mr. Bidens addiction relevant?

Prosecutors agreed, arguing that early life trauma, however awful, was outside the scope of the case.

No matter how many drugs you take, you dont suddenly forget that when you make 11 million dollars, you have to pay taxes, Assistant U.S. Atty. Leo Wise said.

During the more than three-hour hearing, Scarsi mostly sided with the prosecution, prohibiting Hunter Biden's lawyers from calling an addiction specialist to testify and from telling jurors that the president's son eventually paid off his tax debts and penalties, with help from a loan from L.A. lawyer Kevin Morris.

If any lawyer violates the judge's rules about what evidence is barred from trial, Scarsi promised to impose "six-figure sanctions and said he has no qualms about overturning a verdict or declaring a mistrial.

The hearing affirmed how much the trial will be a sequel of sorts to the June court proceedings in Delaware where the younger Biden was found guilty of three felonies for lying about his drug use when he purchased and briefly owned a handgun.

Read more: A hometown jury decides Hunter Biden's fate: 'It's time to end this case'

The tax case looks at a similar time period through a different prism: where Hunter Biden's income came from, how he spent it and, ultimately, how he reported it all to the Internal Revenue Service.

Prosecutors said they plan to call fewer than 30 witnesses, including Hunter Biden's girlfriend from 2018 who was dispatched to clean up hotel rooms littered with his crack cocaine paraphernalia. An employee from Streamray  the porn site where the younger Biden spent $30,000  will also testify, prosecutors said.

Noting that Morris also paid for Hunter Biden's lavish lifestyle, including a rental home, Porsche, security detail and crisis team, Wise said there was no plan to call the Hollywood attorney to the witness stand.

Hunter Biden, center, accompanied by his mother, First Lady Jill Biden, left, and his wife, Melissa Cohen Biden, right, in June outside the J. Caleb Boggs Federal Building in Wilmington, Del. (Matt Rourke / Associated Press)

But the tussling over whether and how the defense could bring up the tragedies that defined the younger Biden's life continued until the end, with Geragos saying it was "fair game" to bring up Hunter Biden's mother's and siblings' deaths if the defendant took the witness stand.

"The accident, I think, is still out of bounds," Wise said, referring to the 1972 car crash. "How the defendant could say that caused it 40 years later is wildly beyond" the scope of the case.

Geragos ripped into the prosecutor: "More power to Mr. Wise that he's never had anyone close to him with substance abuse problems."

Wise, his face visibly reddening, stood up and asked, Can we not talk about me?

Scarsi ultimately ruled that the "causal connection" between Hunter Biden's past traumatic events and addiction could not come into the case, and nor could the deaths of his mother and sister. The death of his brother, Beau, in 2015 could be mentioned but not as a causal aspect of his addiction, the judge said.

The ruling of the court is that its too far afield, Scarsi said, adding that "jury sympathy would be the only reason for introducing it.

Times staff writer Laura Nelson contributed to this report.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Hutchinson Center will be sold to church despite community objections, UMaine says

Frederick Hutchinson Center in Belfast, a building previously used by the University of Maine for classes that served a mix of undergraduate and non-traditional students. (Courtesy of Samantha Warren/ UMaine System)

Despite objections from community organizations, the sale of a former UMaine educational center in Belfast will proceed as planned, to a church.

The bidding for the Frederick Hutchinson Center  which once served thousands of public university students but had been vacant for years  has been open for eight months. Over that time, the university system received three competitive offers and selected Calvary Church Belfast, part of a nationwide association of evangelical churches, as the top bidder, according to news releases by university system spokesperson, Samantha Warren.

This decision drew criticism from some residents and organizations, and a total of 135 comments to the university system. Belfast residents, including members of the other bidding organizations, objected to the university systems decision to sell the building to what some residents called a bigoted church. The other two bidders submitted appeals for reconsideration, but the system will continue with the sale, according to a Thursday press release.

The people of the Belfast area welcome all residents and visitors, regardless of race, age, gender, nationality, and beliefs, and we strive for inclusion, respect and equality for all citizens, said Judy Berk, a Northport resident who was one of the community members who wrote to UMaine expressing objections to the sale.

It is outrageous to consider replacing the University of Maines Hutchinson Center campus with Calvary Chapel  an exclusionary church that teaches bigotry and opposes public education, she said, referring to the sermons by the Belfast chapters that expressed some anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment.

The university system cant discriminate based on religion, according to Warren.

Doing so would be against the law and inconsistent with the universitys commitment to inclusion, according to a statement the system released addressing comments from the public.

Calvary Chapel Belfast did not respond to a request for comment by publication.

On its website, Calvary Chapel clarified some of its goals in purchasing the Hutchinson Center. Those goals include aiding individuals suffering from addiction, building a homeschool co-op, and adding programs for the special needs community, according to the statement.

Our plan also includes a hybrid and 5-day school to give parents a variety of educational options that best fit their lifestyle, the statement said.

While we are a faith-based organization we hope to fill practical needs and desires of the community when mutually beneficial.

The goals of Calvary Belfast Academy, the churchs homeschooling program, would directly contradict UMaines mission of public education, according to a commentary on the sale published in the Bangor Daily News by Belfast resident Lauren Ware Stark.

Rather than offering public higher education for all, it focuses on providing religious education to members of the Calvary community, wrote Stark, who is an assistant professor of education and a member of the Scholars Strategy Network.

Why the church was the top bidder

The Hutchinson Center is latest in the line of buildings the public university system has put up for sale over the past few years. The building was donated to UMaine in 2007. In 2005, it was serving around 16,000 students, according to Warren.

That dropped to 300 students in 2019, and for the past few years, the center has not hosted in-person classes. The sale was part of an effort by the university system to reduce its physical footprint by selling underutilized buildings.

The university system maintained that the request for proposals and scoring criteria to determine top bidders gave organizations plenty of opportunity to seek clarity, learn more about the center and tour the property.

The top two scoring respondents  Calvary Chapel Belfast and the Waldo Community Action Partners, a community service organization  both submitted purchase offers of $1 million, according to the news release.

Calvary Chapels proposal offered the system a better deal to maintain internet connectivity for midcoast schools, libraries and community centers through a NetworkMaine access hub that has historically been located at the center, waived the right to inspect the property despite previously disclosed water damage, and offered $250,000 in earnest money, which was five times that of the second-place bidder, according to the release.

The other organization, Future of Hutchinson Center Committee, argued in its appeal that the offer the organization made  which included a $500,000 cash purchase price, continued use of the existing internet hub within the Hutchinson Center and the possibility of utilizing the center in the future for UMaine purposes  amounted to $1.9 million, and was clearly the most beneficial offer.

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Huw Edwards is due to be sentenced on September 16 for possessing indecent images of children - Getty Images/Wiktor Szymanowicz

Huw Edwards is the villain in the piece, a leading BBC executive has said in the wake of his arrest for possessing indecent images of children.

Charlotte Moore, the corporations chief content officer, said the organisation did everything with the evidence it had at that time about the former presenter.

Asked by broadcaster and host Rhianna Dhillon at the Edinburgh TV Festival if she was confident that a similar situation would not happen at the company again, she said: I think for everybody at the BBC and I think throughout all of the UK it was really shocking.

Hes clearly the villain in the piece and the victims in all of this are those poor children.

She added: So, obviously you know the detail, and hindsight is a wonderful thing but I think the BBC did everything with the evidence it had at that time.

Charlotte Moore said the BBC had taken 'huge strikes' in safeguarding over the past few years - Shutterstock /Anthony Harvey

Her comments come after the corporations board asked Edwards to hand back the salary he was paid after being arrested and the board saying he had brought the BBC into disrepute and behaved in bad faith by continuing to take the money.

The broadcasters former leading presenter, 62, pleaded guilty to possessing 41 indecent images of children, seven of which are category A, the most serious, at court last month. He is due to be sentenced on September 16.

Ms Moore insisted the BBC has made huge strides in safeguarding over the past few years and has got really robust processes in place that deal with bullying and harassment, that deal with power imbalance, that deal with misconduct and misbehaviour.

Were the most trusted media brand in the UK and its incredibly important that we dont take that trust for granted and that were not complacent about the workplace culture, she said.

Changes at Strictly Come Dancing

Speaking at the TV Festival on the issue of safeguarding following the Strictly Come Dancing scandal this summer, Ms Moore reiterated the organisations pledge to include welfare producers in the show going forward.

Weve made sure that theres a welfare producer not just across the whole show but theres one for celebrities and theres one for the dancers, she said.

They will be checking in throughout the process, and weve made sure that theres extra training for the production teams and for the dancers.

Weve also made sure that people feel there really is a way for them to talk and come out about any concerns, Ms Moore added.

It follows an apology from Tim Davie, the BBCs director general, last month to anyone who had a bad experience on the show. He also confirmed that this years series will go ahead as planned, but with increased vigilance around the dancers.

Giovanni Pernice and Graziano Di Prima, both professional dancers, have left the show in the wake of allegations against them.

Pernice is under investigation by the BBC over his alleged behaviour towards Amanda Abbington, the actress with whom he partnered last year. He has vowed to clear his name and has branded the claims against him as false.

Abbington has described Pernice as abusive, cruel and mean towards her in rehearsals. The BBC must have been turning a blind eye and the fact other people have come forward must mean there is something going on that is endemic, she said.

Di Prima admitted to kicking his 2023 partner, reality star Zara McDermott, in an isolated incident, according to his spokesman.

Ms Moore insisted that while she could not discuss the individual cases, because everyone deserves a fair and confidential process, the BBCs duty of care on Strictly is incredibly important this year because of the recent concerns that people have had.

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Rafael Grossi, the director of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said he would visit the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant in Russia due to safety risks associated with Ukraine's ongoing incursion, the Financial Times (FT) reported on Aug. 22.

Russia has already begun fortifying the nuclear plant, which is located roughly 60 kilometers (37 miles) north of the Kyiv-held Russian town of Sudzha.

Grossi said that he is taking the risk that the atomic facility can be damaged during hostilities in Kursk Oblast very seriously. He noted that the Kursk plant is located "technically within artillery range" of Ukrainian positions.

"And since there is combat, Im very concerned," he added.

The IAEA chief said he would visit the power station next week to gather information from its managers on whether it had already been targeted. Kyiv has rejected Russian accusations of planning to attack the nuclear plant.

Grossi added that he also wanted to assess the external power supply and routes to the plant.

Earlier, Russia claimed that Ukraine was planning to attack the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant, as well as the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine, without providing evidence.

"We officially refute these false reports. Ukraine has neither the intention nor the ability to carry out any such actions. Russia must stop spreading dangerous lies," Heorhii Tykhyi, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry's spokesperson, said on Aug. 16.

The Zaporizhzhia plant, Europe's largest nuclear power plant, has been under Russian occupation since March 2022. Kyiv has repeatedly accused Russia of using the plant for nuclear blackmail and endangering its safety.

Kyiv said on Aug. 11 that Russian forces set fire to "a large number of automobile tires in cooling towers" at the nuclear plant in an effort to "create panic in the settlements on the right bank of the former reservoir."

The IAEA said that nuclear safety at the Zaporizhzhia power plant had not been affected.

Read also: Kursk incursion breaks Russias attempts to dictate peace terms, boosts Ukraines leverage

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
ULAN BATOR, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The World Women's Forum themed "Towards a Green Future" kicked off here on Thursday, focusing on women's empowerment, gender equality, climate change, and the effective implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Under the auspices of Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh, the forum was co-organized by Mongolia's presidential office, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the United Nations.

"Despite more than half of the SDGs implementation period having passed, progress on Goal 5, gender equality, remains insufficient. Research by the International Monetary Fund shows that many countries still impose legal barriers to women's economic participation, and women are underrepresented in decision-making roles," Khurelsukh stated at the opening ceremony.

"As of June, women lead 26 countries, hold 26.5 percent of parliamentary seats, and occupy 22 percent of ministerial positions. They are also overrepresented in informal and unpaid work and earn about 12 percent less than men on average," Khurelsukh said, noting that it is estimated that achieving full gender equality could boost the global economy by 23 percent.

"Women's roles and participation are crucial for the harmony, prosperity, and well-being of any nation. Their contributions, especially those of female leaders, are essential for maintaining global peace, achieving the SDGs, and building a just and compassionate society," he added.

Hundreds of Mongolian female leaders from fields such as business, sports, and arts, leaders and representatives from countries and international organizations attended the forum, according to the organizers.

During the two-day event, attendees are expected to hear presentations and engage in discussions on topics including the role of women leaders in environmental initiatives, shaping sustainable food systems, the impact of women entrepreneurs in the e-economy, gender equality in the economy, the influence of education on empowering women and girls, and gender equality in sports, arts, and culture. 
Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, plans to visit the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) in Russia next week.

Source: Financial Times

Details: During his interview with Financial Times, Rafael Grossi announced his intention to visit the Kursk NPP next week at the invitation of the Russian authorities.

Grossi intends to talk to the plant's managers and assess the condition of the external power supply and access roads. He noted that, as a result of the Ukrainian army's advance deeper into Russia, the NPP is now within artillery striking distance of the Ukrainian army.

The IAEA Director General notes that the distance between the plant and the hostilities is of "particular concern" as the plant has two RBMK reactors, similar to the ones that had been used at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant.

Quote from Rafael Grossi: "I've visited a few of these stations. You can walk around and see the fuel cells going down as if it were a gym or something like that."

Background:

On 16 August, Russia accused Ukraine of preparing an attack on the Kursk NPP, and the Russian Ministry of Defence threatened that "tough military and military-technical measures will be taken immediately."

Ukraine denied the accusations. "Ukraine has no intention or ability to take any such actions. Russia must stop spreading dangerous lies," said Heorhii Tykhyi, the spokesman for Ukraines Foreign Ministry.

The Kursk NPP is located 40 kilometres west of the city of Kursk, which has a population of 500,000. It has two operating reactors, two decommissioned reactors, and two partially built reactors.

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Gettysburg, Pennsylvania is synonymous with the American Civil War thanks to the legendary battlefield that remains a popular tourist attraction to this day. But not everyone who visits the area is coming to pay their respects.

On Aug. 21, the U.S. National Park Service shared a statement detailing two separate incidents of vandalism at Gettysburg National Military Park reported in the past week. According to the report, multiple boulders on Little Round Top hill were found on Aug. 15 covered in graffiti carved into the rock. On Aug. 19, visitors noticed that the historic Oak Ridge Observation Tower was similarly spray painted with graffiti. Both were promptly cleaned up by park staff.

"Our hearts sank when these two cases of vandalism were reported within days of each other. We were fearful that the graffiti carved into the rock may be there for future generations," park superintendent Kristina Heister said. "Im so very thankful for our amazing preservation staff who expertly restored these sites quickly so visitors could continue to experience them as they were intended. They truly are the heroes of this hallowed ground!"

"We cant do it alone," she added. "Vandalism of irreplaceable historic objects and structures that belong to all Americans should concern everyone. We all share in the responsibility of protecting and caring for this special place and everyone is a steward of the heritage, history, and resources of Gettysburg during their visit."

If you plan to explore the area for yourself, just make sure you're respectful of the land and its history.
In our Reality Check stories, Idaho Statesman journalists seek to hold the powerful accountable and find answers to critical questions in our community. Read more. Story idea? Tips@idahostatesman.com.

Armed private security officers will soon be stationed at some Caldwell schools after the Caldwell School District eliminated its $300,000 contract with Caldwell police to provide school resource officers.

The districts school board approved a contract with a private security company to have a security officer placed at three of its schools in an effort to deter threats and ensure safety, administrators said. District officials ended their contract with the police agency after the districts supplemental levy failed to garner enough support in the November general election, forcing them to make cuts.

The district was able to redirect federal funds to finance a large part of the private security agreement, which cost a total of about $210,000, and may need to use some money from other funding sources for the remainder, administrators said.

Eric Phillips, the director of student safety and emergency operations in Caldwell, said during the board meeting that having security officers will create a secure environment and help better address threats.

In a world with security threats that are increasingly prevalent, having a strong, reliable defense is more important than ever, he said. With the loss of the school resource officer program due to the failure of the supplemental levy, adding armed uniform security officers is the next best route we can take to keeping our kids safe.

The proposed contract brought before the school board last week with the security company, Eagle Eye Security, initially included four security officers, one at each secondary school in the district. But the board asked to reduce the number of officers to three and eliminate the officer at Jefferson Middle School  which cut costs by $70,000. The company approved the change, Caldwell School District spokesperson Jessica Watts said.

Caldwell isnt the only district in Idaho thats using private security officers. Eagle Eye Security said it has been working in Twin Fall schools for several years. Districts across the country have made safety and security more of a priority in recent decades and put more resources and personnel toward securing schools. Schools are now more likely to have secure entrances, active shooter plans and security staff than they were about a decade ago, according to an analysis from the Pew Research Center in 2022.

Nationally, there has been a rise in school shootings over the past two decades. A Washington Post analysis found there have been 413 school shootings since 1999, including 46 in 2022. But school shootings are still rare events and officers deal far more with behavioral or other security issues, security experts say.

But there are some key distinctions between the capabilities of private security officers and school resource officers, who are employees of the local police department.

We cant replace an SRO. Obviously theyre full law enforcement officers. We still would need their help in certain circumstances, said Rantz Hanchey who works at Eagle Eye Security and presented the details of the contract to the school board. The theory behind it is to make sure, were trying to be hopefully a deterrent for any kind of threat.

How SROs and private security operate

Private security officers and SROs have different responsibilities and different authorities.

SROs are responsible for enforcing state laws, and their authority primarily comes from elected officials, said Mike Munger, the manager of the Idaho Office of School Safety and Security, a state office that performs threat and vulnerability assessments at Idaho schools. Security officers authority comes from the school district.

Unlike SROs, security officers cant write up tickets or arrest people. Their job is to secure the perimeter, walk the hallways, be present during pick-up and drop-off and be a person kids feel they can go to if they have a concern, Caldwell Superintendent N. Shalene French said during the board meeting.

Theyre kind of two different tools working different aspects of the same problem, Munger told the Idaho Statesman.

Under the Eagle Eye Security contract with Caldwell, the company must acquire its own insurance, including professional liability and workers compensation insurance. The employees must also go through background checks.

The agreement also says the company must provide education to security officers on how to do their jobs in a non-discriminatory fashion and to have an understanding of engagement with special populations of students, such as students with disabilities and English language learners. There are no state requirements specifically for private security officers in schools.

Those relationships are negotiated at the school district level, so those are going to be based on what the needs of the school district are, Munger said.

SROs are unique in their specific training, background and experience, and are adept at dealing with stressful situations, Stu Hobson, an SRO support coordinator with the Idaho Office of School Safety and Security, told the Statesman. Last year, 75 Idaho school districts had SROs in their schools, Hobson said.

The school resource officer is trained as a law enforcement officer, informal counselor and public safety educator, he said. The state is also pushing for all SROs go through a 40-hour training class from the National Association of School Resource Officers on developing relationships with students and supporting those with behavioral needs, along with learning more about digital safety and best practices for deescalation, Hobson said.

Youre not going to get that with a school security officer because they dont have that training, the knowledge and background, Hobson said.

SROs can be called away from the school for public safety reasons. For example, if there was a car crash near the school, the officer may need to respond to that  especially in more rural and remote areas where they are a shared resource, Munger said. Private security officers would be at the school all day.

Ultimately, Munger said, it depends on the school districts specific needs what combination of security resources are best.

Federal funds help cover Caldwell private security

The district chose to go with a private security company in part because of the way its funding works, French said.

The district received a grant for its Community Schools Initiative, which gave district officials the ability to redirect some of its federal Title IV funds they used for the initiative to private security instead.

Federal dollars have strict parameters, and the district couldnt use them for school resource officers who would be pulled away from schools often, French said during the school board meeting.

The district said its still trying to get a grant to have an SRO, but its a competitive process.

We still would love to have SROs, French said, but we also know we have these federal dollars we could use for school safety and security.
Due to a new Idaho law, schools will need permission from parents to give students any medical care, all the way down to over-the-counter pain meds for headaches and Band-Aids for scraped knees.

Senate Bill 1329, also known as The Parents Rights in Medical Decision-Making Act, went into effect on July 1 and reads, an individual shall not furnish a health care service or solicit to furnish a health care service to a minor child without obtaining the prior consent of the minor childs parent.

The Idaho law extend even to minor, non-life-threatening injuries like the ones kids get at school all the time and can be cured with a band-aid from the nurses office.

The bills Statement of Purpose sheds more light on what Idaho lawmakers are apparently trying to accomplish with this legislation.

It says that the law ensures that children, who often lack maturity and make choices without considering either immediate or long-term consequences, are protected by the informed decision-making of their parents, who possess the most knowledge and are in the best position to ensure that their children receive adequate medical attention.

This language implies that teachers might provide gender-affirming care to kids who the legislature feels may not know the consequences of said care, therefore the state needed a law to prevent that scenario from happeningdespite how small the chances are of that even happening.

What makes this new law questionable is the fact that Idaho already passed legislation that actually criminalizes gender-affirming care for minors across the state. In 2023, the states legislature banned any and all gender-affirming care for anyone under the age of 18 in Idaho, whether they have parental consent or not. But the ACLU and two parents of trans youth have filed a lawsuit alleging the law is unconstitutional. As a response to that lawsuit, Idahos lawmakers are now making sure schools may not be a place where all kids feel supported.

As the new school year starts up, Idaho districts are preparing to comply with the new law, but said the law likely wont have an effect on schools, as teachers and school employees dont actually administer hormones to kids, and most of them already had policies in place to do their best to get parental consent before giving kids any kind of medicine anyway.

The Boise School District, located in the states capitol, sent this message to parents: While the Boise School District is not a health care provider in general, and does not diagnose medical conditions, we do provide services that are covered by the new law.

Local news outlet KTVB reported that the Boise School district instructed staff to mostly operate the same as they have in the past.

If a child requires non-life threatening medical care, or mental health treatment, and no parent is available to provide consent promptly, please use your best judgment and provide the care as needed.

Another district located in the Boise suburb of Meridian said in a statement, West Ada has been using the same consent to treat protocol for over 15 years. While we maintain our established practices, we are now operating with an increased level of awareness in light of recent legislation.
COALINGA, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE)  The one-year-old boy who was killed in a crash near Coalinga on Thursday morning has been named by the Fresno County Coroners Office.

The coroner says Amante Williams, who was three days shy of his second birthday, was killed in a crash around 5:14 a.m. after CHP says the driver of a car he was riding in failed to maneuver a curve on an off-ramp.

The CHP says the 28-year-old driver, a three-year-old boy, and the one-year-old boy who was killed, were all from Sacramento.

Investigators say the driver was behind the wheel of a 2022 Kia Forte and was going southbound on Interstate 5, approaching the Coalinga Avenal Rest Area, at around 60 miles per hour.

CHP says the driver turned the Kia to the right and exited the freeway onto the off-ramp for the Coalinga Avenal Rest Area. As the off-ramp curved to the right to enter the rest area parking lot, the CHP says the driver failed to maneuver the Kia through the curve of the off-ramp and proceeded straight forward into the dirt shoulder, east of the off-ramp.

Investigators say a witness stopped to assist and began CPR on Williams until medical personnel arrived on the scene and transported him. Amante Williams died while en route to the hospital, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The other two in the vehicle, the 28-year-old driver and a three-year-old boy, were transported to Community Regional Medical Center in Fresno.

CHP says it does not appear that alcohol and/or drugs were a factor in the crash.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to YourCentralValley.com | KSEE24 and CBS47.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA)  Nursing homes across the state have been fined for violating state and federal laws, including some in Central Illinois.

Statewide, the Illinois Department of Public Health found 268 violations reports in the second quarter of the year. Often, the nursing homes were fined for their violations.

With an uptick in illnesses across Central Illinois for the beginning of school, heres how to keep safe

The violations come from the Nursing Home Care Act or Titles XVII and XIX of the Federal Social Security Act.

Some nursing homes in Central Illinois that received violations last quarter include Arcadia of Danville, which was fined $27,200, Aperion Care Capitol in Springfield that was fined $25,000, Loft Rehab of Rock Springs in Decatur which was fined $25,000 twice, Decatur Rehab and Health Care Center which was fined $25,000, and Gibson Community Hospital Annex which was fined $27,200.00.

The full list of all violations can be found on IDPHs website.

To contact IDPH about filing a complaint against an Illinois healthcare facility, 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 WCIA.com.
Is it OK to drive with flip flops on or without shoes in SC? Heres what the law says

Driving without wearing a seat belt has been illegal in the U.S. for decades to help save drivers from serious harm or death in a wreck.

By that same reasoning, it is illegal in South Carolina and other states to text on a smartphone and drive at the same time. So then, what about driving with inappropriate footwear or no footwear at all?

Not wearing proper shoes while driving could potentially lead to mishaps.

Heres what South Carolina law says about footwear while driving.

SC footwear and driving law

Despite popular belief, it is completely legal to drive in South Carolina or any other state without shoes on, according to Beach Automotive Group in Myrtle Beach. The Law Offices of Jared Spingarn, P.A., based in Florida, also states that South Carolina has no law that prohibits driving without footwear.

Many drivers assume that it is illegal to drive barefoot in the US, The Law Offices of Jared Spingarn states on its website. This belief has become somewhat of an urban legend in the country. However, the truth is that there is no federal law prohibiting people from driving without shoes.

Driving in flip flops

There are also no driving laws in South Carolina or other state that prohibits wearing flip flops, according to findlaw.com.

While drivers are required to operate vehicles in a safe and responsible manner, states dont list acceptable and unacceptable footwear in their traffic statutes, findlaw.com states on its website.

What about safety?

Just because something is legal, that does not mean it is an advisable thing to do. Beach Automotive Group states that without proper footwear, theres always the chance that your foot could slip off a pedal, which could lead to an accident. Also, your socks or discarded shoes may get caught under the brake or gas pedal, which again could lead to an accident.

And then there are flip flops, which could slide off while youre driving, an action that would be less than ideal.

SC court problems

While it isnt illegal to drive without proper footwear, you may still face repercussions in an accident. The Law Offices of Jared Spingarn states that getting into an accident while driving without shoes may lead to the other driver suing for damages.

Once you go to court, the judge may decide that by not wearing shoes, you were negligent or reckless and rule against you, the law office states.

Also, many car insurance companies may not cover drivers involved in accidents who didnt have on proper footwear.

This is because car insurance companies believe that barefoot driving is more dangerous than driving with shoes, the law firm states.
When President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 race, Edgar Diaz said his first thought was one of relief.

"Biden did great when he was [Barack] Obama's running mate and then as he became president, he did a great job," Diaz, a 43-year-old moderate Democrat who lives in Chicago, told ABC News. "But now I think he's realized that, 'Hey, you know what? Now it's time to step aside and let somebody like Kamala Harris step in.'"

He wasn't alone in that sentiment.

Four Illinois voters sat down with ABC News at the start of the Democratic National Convention to discuss Biden's bombshell decision, the rise of Harris as the party's nominee and her possible historic path to the presidency.

PHOTO: Illinois voters speak to ABC News about the 2024 election as the Democratic National Convention unfolds in Chicago. (ABC News)

On Biden's exit from the campaign

Valerie Jencks and Grace Walters, who also plan to support Harris in November, described feeling uplifted and reassured when Biden said he wouldn't seek a second term in the White House.

Jencks, 61, recalled watching Biden as a senator during the Reagan administration discuss apartheid and how "vibrant he was and how passionate he was about about these issues."

"Over the years, he has stayed true to the issues and values," she said. "But I feel that the passion that's required to bring us together again just wasn't there. So I was very relieved, actually, when he bowed out."

PHOTO: Illinois voter Valerie Jencks speaks to ABC News about the 2024 election as the Democratic National Convention unfolds in Chicago. (ABC News)

Walters, 25, said she immediately saw more energy and enthusiasm behind Harris and her agenda.

"That was encouraging to see," she said. "It became less about vote for us because we're not them, and more vote for us because we're doing X, Y and Z -- and that is always an easier thing to get behind."

David Spada, a 53-year-old conservative Republican, asked those at the table whether they had any concern with how Harris came to be the nominee. Much of the Democratic Party quickly coalesced around her after Biden quickly endorsed her to take his place, and no challenger to her candidacy emerged.

"But don't you have a problem with the party picking Kamala, where, again, the Democratic voters didnt pick the candidate," Spada asked. "Shouldn't the voters pick who the candidate is for president, not just the party?"

On Harris' rise to the nomination

Before she became Biden's vice president, Harris unsuccessfully ran for the party's nomination in the 2020 Democratic primary. She exited the field before the first votes were cast in the Iowa caucus.

This time, however, she's managed a positive campaign rollout that has her polling better against Trump than Biden did.

"I think Kamala is resonating with the voters this time around much, much better because we're familiar with her work," said Jencks. "And I also believe that she has hit her stride in being able to publicly present herself and her thoughts and her ideas."

PHOTO: Illinois voter Grace Walters speaks to ABC News about the 2024 election as the Democratic National Convention unfolds in Chicago. (ABC News)

Walters said she believed Harris' background as an attorney general may have been too much of a focus in 2020, when protests against racism and police brutality were central to the political landscape.

"I think there's been enough distance since her work as a prosecutor that people aren't really talking about it as much," she said. "There's less Kamala is a cop discourse on Twitter or whatever. I do still think some of that is maybe salient to look at with regards to her political record, but she definitely seems like the younger, more appealing pick, as opposed to Biden."

Diaz, though, said he thought her prosecutorial skills were being portrayed in a different light to present Harris as an overall "fighter."

"She is not afraid to go against big corporations, and sit down at the table with them and try to negotiate something," he said. "I think that brings a lot of joy to a lot of our folks and a lot of passion. And I think that's why she's surging, she resonates with a lot of us."

PHOTO: Illinois voter Edgar Diaz speaks to ABC News about the 2024 election as the Democratic National Convention unfolds in Chicago. (ABC News)

On Harris' historic candidacy

While Harris could make history as the first woman elected president, voters said it wasn't at the center of their support and they're glad to see it's not a focal point for the Harris campaign either.

"I think it's cool that it hasn't been a major thing of note," said Walters. "That she's the first is kind of exciting, but that it's more about her policy than it is about her gender is even more exciting to me.

Diaz said he was glad his daughter, who is 13, is seeing Harris and other women already serving in positions of power.

"At least it shows gender is not going to be an issue, its who's the best person to lead this nation," he said.

PHOTO: Illinois voter David Spada speaks to ABC News about the 2024 election as the Democratic National Convention unfolds in Chicago. (ABC News)

Spada, the lone Republican at the table, agreed.

I just want the best candidate, man or woman," he said.

"If shes Black, she's Indian, she's a woman -- it doesn't matter. You just got to look at her policies, just like I would look at Nikki Haley's policies if she was running, like you got to look at Trump's policies as he's running again," Spada said.

Illinois voters discuss the Harris-Biden switch, her historic candidacy and more originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
I'm a former chef who shops for 2 at Costco. Here are 11 foods I get there that feel gourmet.

I'm a former chef who shops for 2 at Costco. Here are 11 foods I get there that feel gourmet.

I'm a trained chef who loves grocery shopping for my husband and me at Costco.

I stock up on fruit like lemons and cherries to make homemade beverages.

The Kirkland Signature Parmigiano-Reggiano and Foppen Norwegian-smoked-salmon slices feel gourmet.

Even though I no longer work in a professional kitchen, my training at the Culinary Institute of America never fails me.

My background as a chef means I have an eye for quality, value, and versatility when it comes to ingredients. Luckily, Costco typically has the high-quality items I'm looking for.

Though I only shop for two people, I love shopping in bulk at Costco, which is a leading retailer in customer satisfaction.

In addition to the staples we rely on, I always find a few new foods to try, too. Here are 11 gourmet-feeling foods I add to my cart when I go to Costco.

Prices may vary by location.

I love how flavorful the Kerrygold Pure Irish Butter is.

The Kerrygold Pure Irish Butter adds a great flavor to baked goods. James Demmin-De Lise

As any chef will tell you, fat has flavor  and this butter is more flavorful than many other brands I've tried.

Expectations are high when I'm in the kitchen, so I think it's worth splurging a little to get a high-quality, flavorful ingredient. This 2-pound box easily lasts over a month  unless my husband goes on a baking spree.

Kerrygold Pure Irish Butter is quite reasonable at Costco, as a package of four 8-ounce bars costs $14.50 at my store. I find this butter also freezes well, so when it's on sale, I like to stock up.

We divide and freeze the Kirkland Signature boneless and skinless chicken breasts.

The Kirkland Signature boneless and skinless chicken breasts are a staple in my household. James Demmin-De Lise

Though we often have vegetarian meals, we still consider these packs of Kirkland Signature boneless and skinless chicken breasts as a staple item.

These chicken breasts are often quite large, so we freeze them individually and halve them before cooking to keep portion sizes under control.

These versatile chicken breasts are a great value at about $3 per pound at my Costco.

The Kirkland Signature organic large cage-free eggs are a go-to protein in our house.

The Kirkland Signature organic large cage-free eggs can be used for baking or in frittatas. James Demmin-De Lise

There's an old story about how the ripples on a chef's toque represent the 100 ways a proper chef can cook an egg. However, I'm fairly certain there are many more ways.

One of my favorite ways to make eggs is in a large frittata with bits of leftover produce or cheese. It's great to serve at a gathering with friends or keep on hand as an easy, reheatable option for weekday lunches.

Each package of eggs is about $7.60 at my Costco.

The Foppen Norwegian-smoked-salmon slices easily elevate any brunch.

A package of the Foppen Norwegian-smoked-salmon slices includes pepper, traditional, and dill flavors. James Demmin-De Lise

Expectations are high when your friends and family know you're a proper chef. So, for an easy brunch, I get this pack of smoked-salmon slices  it comes with pepper, traditional (plain), and dill flavors.

I serve smoked salmon with capers, creme fraiche, and chopped dill on rye or pumpernickel for a delicious, refined brunch component. I'd also suggest pairing smoked salmon with rose and a frittata  but you might have some trouble getting your guests to go back home.

A 12-ounce package of smoked salmon is $13.50 at my local Costco.

A little squeeze of lemon can go a long way.

I use lemons to make my own refreshing beverages. James Demmin-De Lise

Besides just looking good in a bowl on the counter, lemons pack a lot of punch. If a meal doesn't taste exactly as you hoped, consider adding a bit of acid  just a little squeeze of lemon can lift and brighten even the most stubborn meal.

To me, nothing says summer quite like fresh-squeezed lemonade, and it's pretty easy to make yourself.

At my Costco, a 5-pound bag of lemons costs $6.50. I usually get an extra bag, as I crave more lemonade once I make a fresh batch.

Cherries are a sweet snack and a fun addition to lemonade.

I love how sweet cherries are. James Demmin-De Lise

Beyond cherry pies, this fruit is also tasty as a sweet bite after dinner. Three or four cherries can often satisfy my taste for dessert without adding many calories or extra effort to my meal.

I also use them in a homemade, elevated lemonade (it's a messy but fun project). I use a chopstick to poke out the pits and add the fruit to a blender with simple syrup and lemon juice. Finally, I pour the beverage through a strainer and serve it over ice or mix it with sparkling water.

I pick up a 2-pound box for $6 at my store.

The Muga rosado wine offers a great balance of flavors.

The Muga rosado wine is absolutely delicious. James Demmin-De Lise

This exceptional wine is well-balanced, elegant, and complex. It has notes of peaches, apricots, and white blossoms. It's also pleasantly dry with a long finish (a fruity aftertaste).

This mouthwatering wine is a delightful addition to a summertime picnic or a get-together with friends on the porch.

These bottles are a few dollars cheaper than those I've seen at other stores near me. I like to grab several bottles at Costco, priced at about $12 each.

If you're looking for something different, I recommend getting a Kirkland Signature frenched rack of lamb.

The Kirkland Signature frenched rack of lamb feels very fancy. James Demmin-De Lise

When we have guests over, I often try to cook a meal that feels a bit fancier. One way to hit that note is to serve lamb  just be careful not to overcook this delicate meat.

I cut this frenched lamb into chops, pan-sear the meat, and serve three pieces with greens and potatoes as a flavorful, bold main course. I also like to coat my lamb in a mustard crust when I'm feeling adventurous.

At about $13 per pound, Costco keeps my fancy dinner parties affordable.

The Kirkland Signature Parmigiano-Reggiano adds a lot of depth to pasta dishes and frittatas.

The Kirkland Signature Parmigiano-Reggiano adds so much flavor to my meals. James Demmin-De Lise

In my opinion, this Kirkland Signature Parmigiano-Reggiano is just as good as the stuff you can find at a fancy cheesemonger. Though the size of the blocks can seem overwhelming, when properly stored, they can last quite a while in the refrigerator.

We love shaving some with a vegetable peeler over a salad or grating some to serve with pasta or in a frittata. It adds a wonderful depth of flavor to almost any dish.

My store sells a block for $11.30 per pound, which seems a bit pricey, but a little goes a long way.

This President Brie cheese is best on crusty bread or as part of a fancy appetizer.

The President Brie cheese is flavorful and creamy. James Demmin-De Lise

Admittedly, this isn't Brie de Meaux  a fancy French form of Brie  but it's dependable and flavorful.

It's a wonderful crudite (appetizer) or addition to a fancy cheese spread. Your guests probably wouldn't guess you bought it at Costco, either.

Leftover Brie also makes a delicious, simple lunch when paired with rustic, crusty bread the next day. At my Costco, each round is just $7.

Skip the hot dogs and grill the Aidells smoked chicken-and-apple sausages.

The Aidells smoked chicken-and-apple sausages have a sweet yet smoky flavor. James Demmin-De Lise

It's summertime, and, in my book, that means grilling outdoors. Fortunately, an easy and nearly labor-free take on the standard hot dog is delectable and inexpensive.

These chicken-and-apple sausages are especially tasty. They have a satisfying texture, a hint of sweetness from the apples, and a lightly smoky flavor that becomes more pronounced the longer you leave them on the grill.

I like to serve them on standard hot-dog buns. Add a fun slaw, and you're good to go. A 3-pound package of these sausages is $10.70 at my location.

Click to keep reading Costco diaries like this one.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Cecilia sat in front of her computer repeatedly refreshing the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services webpage on Monday, waiting for the application for the Biden administration's "Keeping Families Together" program to show up on her screen.

Minutes later, she clicked it open and submitted the form in less than 20 minutes.

A little more than 24 hours later, she got an e-mail sharing the news that she had been waiting 20 years to hear.

"I see that I got approved, and I'm like, oh that was quick," she told ABC News in an interview. "I was lost for wordsa whole bunch of emotions were going on."

Cecilia, who asked ABC News not to disclose her full name so she can freely disclose her immigration status, is one of the first immigrants to receive parole in place, a temporary relief from deportation under a new program that allows undocumented spouses and stepchildren of United States citizens to apply for permanent legal residence without having to leave the country.

Noncitizen spouses are already eligible for legal status under current laws but often have to apply from their home countries and face up to a 10-year ban from returning to the U.S.

On June 18, President Joe Biden announced an executive action launching the program, calling it a "commonsense fix" to keep families together.

PHOTO: In this June 18, 2024, file photo, President Joe Biden delivers remarks at an event marking the 12th anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in the East Room at the White House in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images, FILE)

"This action is a better way. It doesn't tear families apart, while requiring every undocumented spouse to fulfill their obligations under the law," Biden said.

It's estimated that half a million noncitizen spouses and 50,000 children could benefit from the program, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

In order to qualify for the program, applicants must be in the country unlawfully and pass background checks. They also have to prove they've lived in the country for at least a decade and must be married to a U.S. citizen on or before June 17, 2024.

Some noncitizen stepchildren under the age of 21 are also eligible.

MORE: Homeland Security proposes change to asylum-seeking process

Cecilia's family brought her to the U.S. from Mexico when she was a 4-year-old, she told ABC News.

After unsuccessfully applying for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which continues to be paused pending a yearlong battle that could permanently end the program, she thought her dreams of finally being able to pursue a career as a chemist were over. For years, she said her parents worked to help her with paying out of state tuition because of her status.

In 2018, she met her future husband when he was studying biology at the same school.

"At the time I didn't really tell him about my status, because I was like, what if he doesn't like me because I'm not here legally," she told ABC News.

However, she said her husband was overwhelmingly supportive of her despite her being undocumented. He has helped her get through school while raising their 3-year-old. He was working when she shared the news that her application was approved.

"He was like, 'Are you not playing with me?'" she recalled. They went to celebrate as soon as he got home.

"We always try to celebrate little moments in our lives, even if they're small, because we never know when one us might not be there and we try to be united as a family, she said.

Cecilia learned about the new policy from American Families United, a nonprofit organization that advocates for legal pathways to citizenship for foreign nationals married to U.S. citizens.

"Countless American families like Cecilia's have endured years of uncertainty, holding onto the hope that one day they could live without fear," said Ashley DeAzevedo, president of American Families United, in a statement. "We are encouraged to see the quick approval of Cecilia's applicationshe is American in every way that counts. Now, she will have the opportunity to contribute even more to her family and this nation that she calls home."

MORE: DHS watchdog warns of 'urgent issue' after immigration officials allegedly lose track of unaccompanied children

Cecilia believes that because she had already submitted biometrics and other information to USCIS as part of her DACA application, her case was expedited.

A USCIS official told ABC News that the agency may prioritize applicants who already have other pending applications and have submitted accurate biographic information.

Cecilia has already applied for her work permit and plans to apply for lawful permanent residence status as soon as she's able to, finally putting the frustration of living in limbo as an undocumented immigrant in the past for good. Her dreams of owning a home, launching her career and raising her child with her husband seem within reach.

She's urging other undocumented immigrants to remain hopeful.

"I feel like people should be more hopeful and that there are people advocating for them," she said. "Everyone deserves an extra opportunity."

Immigrants begin receiving relief from deportation under new Biden administration executive order originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
HANOI, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam will host the eighth International Conference of the UNESCO Global Geoparks Network for the Asia-Pacific Region from Sept. 5 to Sept. 17 in the northern mountainous province of Cao Bang, the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Thursday.

Themed "Local Communities and Sustainable Development in Geopark Region," the event is expected to attract the participation of about 800 to 1,000 domestic and international delegates.

The conference aims to share and exchange experiences, effective models, and useful solutions in the development and management of geoparks according to UNESCO's standard among the members of the UNESCO Global Geoparks Network in the Asia-Pacific region.

It also seeks to raise awareness and responsibility among all levels of government, sectors and the public in preserving and promoting various types of heritage to foster sustainable tourism development.

Sessions of the UNESCO Global Geoparks Council, 20th anniversary celebration of the Global Geoparks Network and signing of cooperation agreements among geoparks in the global UNESCO network of the Asia-Pacific region are scheduled to take place. 
Thursday, with winds from the southeast, well shake off the morning chill a little faster than days past. By the lunchtime hour, more of us hit the 70 degree mark with several lowland counties pushing into the mid & upper 70s by the afternoon. Eastern mountains still struggle but have a good shot at nudging the 70 degree mark. A few fair weather clouds to add variety to the sky, but no rain to speak off which only worsens our drought.

Drought conditions putting pressure on farmers across West Virginia

This is the kind of weather where fire dangers start to climb to worrisome levels. If you dont have to burn, wait until we receive some rain. If you do have too, check with local officials on restrictions and use caution. With clear skies tonight, well drop back into the low 50s for most urban areas while our rural mountain communities enjoy another night in the 40s.

Friday we bring in some humidity and winds from the west-southwest to really help us warm up. Itll certainly feel more like August as highs reach into the low 80s. Mostly sunny skies with only a handful of clouds at times throughout the day, but again, no rain to speak of.

#CommunityCalendar: Take advantage of the summer-like weekend with a local event!

Friday night is looking comfortable no matter what you have planned. Well keep the 60s just past midnight before dropping back into the upper 50s. Southwest winds and a touch of humidity will keep us closer to average.

Saturday we bring the humidity and thermometers up as a nice warm up unfolds across the two-Virginias. Highs in the mid 80s under mostly sunny skies really give us that summer feel weve missed out on so often this year.

Sunday a few more clouds in the mix but nothing that will hurt temps or bring any relief to the drought. Highs push into the mid 80s with a few spots west of Beckley making a solid run at the 90 degree mark. What a change from the beginning of the week!

Monday has a mostly sunny morning but increasing clouds for the afternoon. Heat and humidity pop-up showers are possible but well have to wait until Tuesday for any beneficial rains. Highs push into the upper 80s with more western towns hitting that 90 degree mark.

Tuesday starts with sun & clouds with temps warming up steadily into the mid and upper 80s by the afternoon. A cold front is expected to cross the region so expect clouds to thicken as the afternoon marches on into our evening hours. Scattered showers with imbedded thunderstorms will bring much needed rain but not in an amount to help. With our compacted dry grounds, heavy downpours will need to be monitored for runoff issues leading to flash flooding.

Wednesday a cold front is expected to bring a few scattered showers from time to time. Not enough rain to help ease the last weeks dry spell but something. A rumble of thunder in the afternoon is possible with isolated heavy downpours. With our ground compact and dry, rushing runoff leading to pooling on roads can happen quickly which will be something to watch while traveling.

In your extended forecast, we finally break the cycle of dry weather with a few systems pushing through bringing us some rain chances. For Beckley, were nearly 8 inches of rain off from where we should be this time of the year. The rain well see doesnt come close to making up that difference, but at least it is something to help a few communities out.

THURSDAY

Warming up, still dry. Highs in the upper 70s.

FRIDAY

Sunshine & warm! Highs in the low 80s.

SATURDAY

Feeling like August, Sun & Clouds. Highs in the mid to upper 80s.

SUNDAY

Mild & humid. Sun & clouds. Highs in the upper 80s.

MONDAY

Dry start, increasing clouds. Iso. shower PM. Highs in the upper 80s.

TUESDAY

Sct. showers PM, mostly cloudy. Highs in the mid 80s.

WEDNESDAY

AM Showers, sun & clouds PM. Highs in the mid 80s.

THURSDAY

Mostly sunny, Iso. PM Shower. Highs in the upper 80s.

FRIDAY

AM sprinkles fade, sunshine returns slowly. Highs in the 80s.



Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
DARKE COUNTY, Ohio (WDTN)  Drivers in Darke County can expect to see more patrols in the coming months.

The Darke County Sheriffs Office has announced they will be increasing traffic enforcement throughout the county. The initiative kicked off on Tuesday, Aug. 20.

Bus hit outside of Springboro High School

The sheriffs office says they have received numerous complaints of vehicles driving at excessive speeds, prompting the increase in patrols. Drivers will see extra traffic patrols on roadways across the county.

On the first day of increased enforcement, DCSO says deputies conducted 58 traffic stops. Of those stops, 46 people were cited for speeding, one texting while driving, one driving under suspension, four equipment violations, four traffic violations and two license plate violations.

In a social media post, the sheriffs office asks all drivers in Darke County to be mindful of posted speed limits.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WDTN.com.
(Bloomberg) -- Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said India could play a crucial role in restoring peace in Ukraine following his meeting with Narendra Modi in Warsaw.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Modi, who is scheduled to visit Ukraine on Friday, is attempting to balance ties with the West after facing backlash from the US for his high-profile visit to Russia last month to meet President Vladimir Putin.

Tusk said he was very happy that Modi expressed interest in a peaceful solution to the war in Ukraine. Im convinced that your role in achieving peace will be crucial, the Polish prime minister said.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
India overtook China as the worlds largest importer of Russian oil in July as Chinese refiners bought less due to lower profit margins from fuel production, Reuters reported on Aug. 22, citing a comparison of import data.

Since the beginning of Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, trade between Russia and India has increased. India became one of the chief buyers of Russian oil, although pressure from U.S. sanctions increasingly threatens this trade.

The share of Russian oil in the total volume of Indian imports in July was a record 44%, rising to 2.07 million barrels per day, which is 4.2% higher than in June and 12% more than a year ago, data from Reuters sources in trade and industry showed.

This exceeded China's July oil imports from Russia of 1.76 million barrels per day via pipelines and shipments, according to Chinese customs data.

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"India's requirement for Russian oil is going to go up as long as there are no further tightening of sanctions," an Indian refining source told Reuters.

Iraq reportedly remained India's second largest oil supplier in July, followed by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

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.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi plans to visit Ukraine on Aug. 23, the eve of Ukraines Independence Day, for the first time in the history of bilateral relations between the two nations.

The previous month, Modi visited Russia and held talks with President Vladimir Putin, a meeting that included a widely criticized hug between the two leaders.

Read also: Opinion: Modis Kyiv visit will be a tightrope walk between Washington and Moscow









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PHILADELPHIA, N.Y. (WWTI)  Students at the Indian River Central School District will be riding on buses contracted a new transportation company.

The Indian River Central School District is switching school bus providers after signing a new deal after signing a contract with Durham School Services. The district is making the switch from previous provider, First Student.

When does school begin in NNY?

The new five-year partnership starts this fall and will run through 2029. Durham School Services will run a combination of approximately 70 regular and special education routes for the Indian River Central School District with a fleet of about 95 buses. All buses will be equipped with Zonar Fleet Management technology.

We appreciate the efforts the Durham team is putting into preparing for the new school year. They are working vigorously and have really hit the ground running in recruiting, training, operations, and more to make sure everything is in order and ready for the fall. Weve also been working in tandem with the team to ensure they have the support they need to be successful. Elizabeth Peluso, Business Official, Indian River Central School District

Durham also recently announced two other new partnerships in the East Coast  City School District of Albany in New York and the Columbia Borough School District in Pennsylvania.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WWTI - InformNNY.com.
The News

Indonesian lawmakers scrapped plans to revise the countrys election laws after widespread protests Thursday. Critics said the plan was outgoing President Joko Widodos attempt at consolidating power by blocking a vocal critic from running for the post of Jakartas governor and making it easier for Widodos youngest son to run for local office.

Foreign investors have approved of Widodos handling of the Southeast Asian countrys economy for a decade, but voters have grown increasingly frustrated with his attempts at retaining power, including tapping his eldest son to be vice president in the next administration. The people are angry at the ongoing manipulation of our democratic system, one political scientist told Al Jazeera.
Indonesians try to storm parliament during protest over election bill

Protesters gather outside the West Java Legislative Council building in Bandung to protest against the Constitutional Court's decision to change eligibility rules for candidates in the general election later this year in that would effectively favor the alliance of President Joko Widodo and his incoming successor, Prabowo Subianto. Algi Febri Sugita/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

Street protests erupted across Indonesia on Thursday as citizens vented their anger over a proposed election bill that many fear will bolster President Joko Widodos political dynasty.

A protest outside the parliament building in Jakarta turned violent as more than 2,000 demonstrators set fire to tyres and attempted to force their way into the complex.

Police in riot gear confronted those who managed to breach the metal barricades, while smoke billowed from burning tyres.

In the city of Semarang, police fired tear gas and water cannon to quell a crowd trying to force their way to the local legislative council's building.

Similar rallies took place in several other Indonesian cities.

The cause of the anger was an election bill being debated in parliament.

Lawmakers had taken up the bill a day after the Constitutional Court ordered a revision to the requirements for political parties to nominate candidates in regional elections.

The court's ruling was aimed at preventing large parties from dominating the electoral process at local levels, opening the political landscape to smaller parties and independent candidates.

But the parliament, dominated by parties supporting Joko and his successor Prabowo Subianto, immediately drafted a bill to overturn the court's ruling. Prabowo is currently president-elect and will take office in October.

Protesters hold placards and chant slogans outside the West Java Legislative Council building in Bandung to protest against the Constitutional Court's decision to change eligibility rules for candidates in the general election later this year in that would effectively favor the alliance of President Joko Widodo and his incoming successor, Prabowo Subianto. Algi Febri Sugita/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
A Czech company has unveiled an inflatable decoy of the F-16 fighter, notably wearing Ukrainian Air Force markings. The inflatable fighter, from a firm that is already known to be providing Kyiv with decoys of other items of military equipment, appears only a matter of weeks after it was confirmed that the first real F-16s had arrived in Ukraine.

A Czech company has unveiled an inflatable decoy of the F-16 fighter, notably wearing Ukrainian Air Force markings. The inflatable fighter, from a firm that is already known to be providing Kyiv with decoys of other items of military equipment, appears only a matter of weeks after it was confirmed that the first real F-16s had arrived in Ukraine.

The Ukrainian-marked F-16 decoy from the Czech Inflatech company is currently on show at the Industry Days defense exhibition in Denmark, organized by the Danish Ministry of Defense Acquisition and Logistics Organization (DALO).

Trods vejret er ssonen for badedyr langt fra forbi



Set pa nordens strste forsvarsmesse #Dalo Days i Ballerup #dkforsvar pic.twitter.com/ofZJmaFWIA  Mads Korsager (@MadsKorsager) August 22, 2024

The full-scale inflatable replica of the gray-painted F-16 includes a transparent cockpit canopy, wingtip stores, and a centerline fuel tank.

Its unclear if the F-16 decoys will be heading to Ukraine, or whether the Ukrainian Air Force insignia has been applied to drum up interest in the product.

However, there have been uncofirmed reports of U.S.-supplied F-16 decoys having been procured for Ukraine as well as accounts of decoys of the same aircraft being built in Ukrainian workshops, too.

One of the first Ukrainian Air Force F-16s to arrive in the country, which occurred before the end of last month. Ukrainian Ministry of Defense screencap



Overall, the war in Ukraine is seeing a considerable spike in demand for decoys, with inflatable types being just one solution.

Inflatech is very much a specialist in this area, with a website that now lists more than 30 different inflatable military decoys. Among the various tanks, armored vehicles, and artillery pieces are other aircraft types, including the Russian-made Su-27 and Su-30 Flanker and the U.S.-made UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter. As of March 2023, the company claimed that business was up by more than 30 percent compared with the previous, with the expectation that growth would continue rising in double figures for at least another three to five years.



An Inflatech inflatable decoy of an M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) displayed during a media presentation in Decin, Czech Republic on March 6, 2023. Photo by Michal Cizek / AFP MICHAL CIZEK

Only recently, there were reports that a U.S.-made M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS), which Russia claimed it had destroyed in the Sumy region, was actually an inflatable decoy version from Inflatech, deployed by Ukraine. Those claims cannot be independently verified.

#Ukraine/#Russia :



The #Russians claimed yesterday that they hit and and destroyed a #Ukrainian M270 MLRS in #Sumy oblast. Today it turned out that it was a #Czech-made decoy from Inflatech.



The torso of the decoy is made of synthetic silk, they radiate heat exactly pic.twitter.com/Ct4r98q3DR     (@praisethesteph) August 18, 2024

Whats clear is Ukraines need to protect its F-16s at all costs, an issue we have explored in the past.

At this stage, the first F-16s are in Ukraine, but only in small numbers, reportedly only with six Ukrainian pilots qualified to fly them, and these are likely proficient only in a limited number of missions.

Already, however, Moscow has put a bounty on the Ukrainian F-16s, and this will only reinforce the necessity of protecting the jets. At the most basic level, this will almost certainly involve rotating the jets around different bases within Ukraine, including operating from temporary airstrips, where possible. Its almost inevitable, however, that even with these measures in place, Russia will target them on the ground.

This is where decoys come into play and its a tactic that Ukraine has already used to good effect.

Late last year we reported on how a remarkably accurate (non-inflatable) decoy of a Ukrainian Su-25 Frogfoot ground-attack aircraft was destroyed on the ground by a Russian Lancet loitering munition. So accurate was this decoy that Russia claimed it had successfully hit the real thing.

Close-up of a decoy Ukrainian Su-25, as seen via a Russia Lancet loitering munition. via X

Overall, Ukrainian decoy-makers have revealed themselves to be notably skilled practitioners of this craft, with various mock-ups of armored vehicles, multiple launch rocket systems, air defense systems, and other items of equipment having appeared. On many occasions, these have succeeded in drawing attacks from the Russian side, each of which increases the chances of the real piece of hardware surviving to fight another day.

Subsequent Russian attacks on Ukrainian air bases may well also have claimed unserviceable Soviet-era MiG-29 Fulcrum and Su-27 Flanker fighters, parked out in the open perhaps deliberately to entice attacks. This is much harder to verify, however, although Ukraine has no shortage of out-of-commission aircraft that could be sacrificed in this way.

On 12 August 2024, the Russians carried out a missile attacks on the Myrhorod Air Base, Poltava Oblast. Apparently a Su-27 was at least damaged (possibly beyond repair). https://t.co/mqeIKLhRst pic.twitter.com/zQMTeFkEfl  The Military Watch (@MarcinRogowsk14) August 12, 2024

Whats beyond doubt is the very real threat that Russia poses to Ukrainian F-16s (and other aircraft, for that matter) while they are on the ground. In the last few months, a spate of ballistic missile strikes has targeted Ukrainian air bases and the Soviet-era equipment that makes up the vast majority of its combat fleet.

In fact, the vulnerability of the F-16s and their highly prized status means that Ukraine plans to keep only a portion of the total fleet in the country at any given time, even once more aircraft and pilots are available. On top of the jets being used for training outside of Ukraine, there will be an additional strategic reserve that is kept at readiness in allied countries in Europe. In this way, it will also be possible to swap out F-16s exposed to combat with fresh jets that have undergone more in-depth maintenance outside of the country.

Its also worth noting that Russia, too, has been making strenuous efforts to protect its aircraft on the ground, as its air bases come under repeated attack from Ukrainian long-range one-way attack drones.

So far its not clear that Russia is using decoy aircraft, although a range of other measures have been seen in use on their airfields. These include the bizarre arrangements of tires that are very likely intended to confuse the image-matching algorithms used by certain hostile missile seekers. Another ruse involves Russia painting the silhouettes of aircraft in parking revetments, as you read about here. The effectiveness of these measures is hard to ascertain, although real Russian military aircraft have continued to be targeted, regardless.

Satellite imagery silhouettes of Russian Tu-95MS strategic bombers in parking revetments at Engels Air Base, also known as Engels-2. PHOTO  2023 PLANET LABS INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. REPRINTED BY PERMISSION



Outside of Ukraine and Russia, the lessons of the conflict are being keenly felt by air forces around the world. The survivability of aircraft on the ground during a potential future conflict in the Indo-Pacific theater was already something that the U.S. military had been grappling with. Now it is clear the deception and guile, including decoys, will be critical to keeping forward-deployed forces alive. You can read more about these developing plans here. The prospect of Russian aggression against other countries in Europe means that the same concerns are increasingly relevant there, too.

With that in mind, its very likely that the Czech-made inflatable F-16s will find interest among other customers outside of Ukraine, as part of the gathering efforts to better protect aircraft against attacks on their air bases and infrastructure.

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com
ULAN BATOR, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Eight new cases of measles have been confirmed in the western Mongolian province of Bayan-Ulgii, the country's Health Ministry reported on Thursday.

"Over the past 24 hours, eight cases of measles were reported in Bayan-Ulgii province," said Dagvadorj Ochirbat, the state secretary of the health ministry, during a press conference.

Mongolia declared an outbreak of the disease on Aug. 1, following the confirmation of measles in a 47-year-old Mongolian citizen who had returned from abroad. Since then, the total number of confirmed cases in the Asian country has risen to 12.

The country has been taking measures to fight the spread of measles by organizing trainings for medical staff on differential diagnosis, conducting nationwide vaccinations, and providing relevant recommendations to the public, according to the ministry.

Measles is a highly contagious viral disease transmitted by respiratory droplets and direct contact. Common complications include fever, dry cough, runny nose, sore throat and inflamed eyes. The disease can be prevented by immunization.

There is no specific treatment for measles, and most people recover within two to three weeks. 
Youre an inspiration: Woman honored for giving back to her community

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR)  My dad was always a person who would always serve, Courtney Stampley said.

It is what she grew up watching and learning by example.



Even on the weekends, he was always serving someone else, Stampley said. Its just been instilled in me that service is something that I do, and I love it.

Stampley works for the Oklahoma State Medical Association, but her coworkers see so much more than a colleague.

PAY IT 4WARD: Its hard work, but I enjoy it: Landscaper keeps rolling to Pay It 4ward

Shes such an inspiration and so good in our community and always paying it forward, Deborah Mullinax said. Wed just recently done a drive for giving away backpacks. One hundred fifty backpacks filled with all the supplies that we could, and she worked with a very low budget. She had to dip into her own pocket to get all those supplies and make sure every child had every supply that they needed.

Stampley does not realize her coworkers know she chipped in her own money. She also does not know they nominated her for Pay It 4Ward.



She doesnt know that any of this is going on, and shes in there trying to talk to other coworkers, Mullinax said. They had to make up something for her to look at.



We are just so excited to honor and recognize Courtney, Caitlin Melgar with First Fidelity Bank said. Her heart for the community, for students is so inspiring, and we love celebrating people like that, and were just so thankful that you nominated her. So, on behalf of First Fidelity Bank, heres four hundred dollars.



Thank you. Im so excited to give it to her., Mullinax said.

We find Courtney Stampley inside where her coworkers did a great job stalling her, and Deborah Mullinax pays forward $400  much more than the tight budget Stampley dipped into her own pocket to stretch.



Four hundred dollars. Were paying it forward, and its such a blessing to be able to do this for you because of everything that you do, Courtney, Mullinax said.

PAY IT 4WARD: Volunteer follows Golden Rule to feed hungry Oklahomans

Thank you so much, Deb, Stampley said.

Youre an inspiration, Courtney, and you are always doing good. No matter what the limits, you make it happen, Mullinax said.

Their most recent back to school drive provided 150 backpacks to children in need, paying it forward one backpack at a time.



OSMA had a surplus of bags, and so what Ive been doing is basically going into our basement and finding items we can give away to families, kids, just basically helping them out within our community.

Pay it 4Ward is sponsored by First Fidelity Bank.

Nominate someone for Pay it 4Ward

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City.
AUSTIN (KXAN)  Melody Magallanez made a choice to be a single, foster-to-adopt mother.

Since she started this journey, she has now adopted two children through the foster care system.

I wanted to raise a family. Here, she said, referring to her house in north Austin. It took her two years to get it certified as a foster home.

This one is really haunting, Magallenez combs through photos of the damage. (KXAN Photo/Bri Hollis)

Last year, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), a driver trying to drive away from police crashed into the front bedroom of that very house.

To own a home and working a full-time job, working side jobs, you want to have a safe, loving environment, Magallanez said. And I just cried because its your blood, sweat and tears, all gone in one night because someone made a horrible choice fleeing the police, [destroying] our loving environment and safe place to live.

According to court documents, a trooper who responded to a 911 call about a fight involving weapons outside of a north Austin night club saw a truck speed out of a parking lot with a broken brake light. When the trooper tried to pull the driver over, he sped off, leading the trooper on a chase until he crashed into Magallanezs house.

Photos of the damage are below.

A printed-out photo of the damage in the front yard of Magallanez home. (KXAN Photo/Bri Hollis)

The car crashed through the wall into the front bedroom. (Courtesy: Melody Magallanez)

The car crashed through the wall into the front bedroom. (Courtesy: Melody Magallanez)

The crash killed her son Micahs service dog, a 2-year-old silver labrador named Noah. Micah was born prematurely and got a late start to walking and talking.

He was an emotional therapy dog for my son, Magallanez said.

Insurance policy covers driver

The letter Magallanez got from the drivers insurance company delivered another punch.

Attorney Adam Loewy calls the drivers insurance clause controversial. (KXAN Photo/Bri Hollis)

It said the drivers policy does not afford coverage for a loss arising out of the use or operation by a covered person of any car while it is being used to flee a law enforcement agent. Therefore, we will be unable to consider any claim for damages made by your client as a result of this loss.

Magallanez said she was in shock.

I didnt even know this existed, its truly immoral and should be illegal, she said.

Personal injury attorney Adam Loewy represented Magallanez in this case.

This was a terrible situation, he said. These are very controversial exclusions, but unfortunately Texas courts have held that they are valid.

Magallanez said her home insurance covered most of the damage, but not all of it  and not all of the other costs incurred from the crash.

She did sue the driver and an out-of-court settlement was reached, according to Loewy. He said the family would have ended up with more money if the driver didnt have that clause in his insurance protecting him.

Youre right that money doesnt solve everything but the way our civil justice system works is that money is used to acknowledge a hard that was done and acknowledge a wrong that happened, Loewy said.

More than one year after the crash, the drivers case is still making its way through the court system. He currently faces felony charges, but is out on bond. His attorney did not wish to comment.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin.
RAPID CITY, S.D. (KELO)  The South Dakota National Guard, Ellsworth Air Force Base and other local agencies will respond to a search and rescue training scenario in Meade County.

According to the Meade County Sheriffs office, the training scenario has been designed to test multiple agency communication, equipment usage and applicability in real-world situations. The goal is to refine the servicemens interagency procedures should there ever be an emergency situation that requires it.

Man wanted, accused of sexual misconduct with minor

The Army Aviation Support Facility (AASF) will be providing air support for the training. Blackhawk fighter jets will be present.

The public is encouraged to stay away from the training exercise. Drones or other unmanned aerial equipment is prohibited from use during the training exercises.

No time or areas to avoid were provided.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KELOLAND.com.
Intuit Dome could be site of states only late-night bar

In California, alcohol sales at bars end at 2 a.m., but a bill making its way through the state Legislature could postpone last call until 4 a.m.

The catch? It only applies to the luxury suites at the newly opened Intuit Dome in Inglewood.

As reported by the Los Angeles Times, the bill includes specific criteria that only the new Clippers arena meets.

Furthermore, the bill only applies to specific locations within the arena that are only accessible to those in suites.

The Times added that one such suite costs almost $11,000 for 17 people to watch an upcoming game between the Clippers and the Phoenix Suns.

A local news station based in Sacramento reports that the bill is next headed to Gov. Gavin Newsoms desk for his signature.

A Newsom spokesperson told the outlet that our office does not typically comment on pending legislation.

The Governor will evaluate the Legislatures proposal on its merits if it reaches his desk, the spokesperson added.

If approved by the state government and the Inglewood City Council, the extended hours remain in effect until 2030.



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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA.
The Iowa delegation to the Democratic National Convention listens to Barack Obama on Aug. 20, 2024 at the United Center in Chicago. (Photo by Shaun Griswold/Source New Mexico)

Iowa Democrats say the national convention has motivated state party members leading into the 2024 election  an election that could prove crucial to their chances of regaining an early spot in the presidential nominating process.

Delegates from across the nation have spent the past four days in Chicago at the Democratic National Convention, rallying for Vice President Kamala Harris presidential bid against former President Donald Trump. The convention came after President Joe Bidens decision to leave the race and endorse Harris.

Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart said in a Thursday interview that Harris leading the ticket  and having Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz join her as the vice presidential nominee  has motivated Democrats across the nation, as well as in Iowa.

Iowa Democrats have seen some significant losses in recent election cycles. The states federal delegation is currently entirely Republican, and only one Democrat, Auditor Rob Sand, holds statewide elected office following the 2022 midterm elections. Hart attributed these losses in part to a lack of motivation among Democrats in the state, saying that many felt disillusioned by politics in recent years and have opted not to vote.

But she said that the hope and optimism shown at the convention shows that Democrats are inspired and ready to participate as they prepare for the Nov. 5 election.

The energy here is just so overwhelming, and that hasnt happened for so long, and so people are embracing it and celebrating it, Hart said.  What is also true is that people understand  they understand Michelle Obamas message very clearly, that we that weve got to take that energy and weve got to go back to our home state, and weve got to do something. Weve got to do something to make things happen, that truly are going to make Iowa a better state and going to make the United States a better America.

The upcoming election may also play a significant role for Iowa Democrats looking at future presidential races. The Democratic National Committee approved major changes to the traditional presidential nominating calendar in 2022, booting the Iowa caucuses from its long-held first-in-the-nation position. In 2024, South Carolina kicked off the Democratic presidential nominating process, while Iowa released the results from its first mail-in presidential preference contest on Super Tuesday, March 5.

National Democrats encountered multiple problems with restructuring the calendar leading into the 2024 nominating cycle, as New Hampshire and Georgias Republican secretaries of state said they were unable to comply with the DNCs plans for them to hold early nominating contests. Hart and other Iowa officials have said the DNC plans to revisit the calendar leading up to the 2028 presidential nominating cycle, and that Iowa will have a chance to compete for an early state position again.

Though discussions about the 2028 presidential election cycle  and Iowas role in the Democratic nominating process  have not yet begun, Hart said the states results in the 2024 election may make a difference.

A lot rides on this election cycle, and the better we do here in 2024, the better opportunity we have to to get back into that enviable position again, as first in the nation, Hart said. And so were putting our total concentration into just that, into getting good results here in 2024, and then well have a conversation and see where things are going forward.

Though Iowa lost its coveted spot in the nominating cycle, Hart said high-profile Democrats have emphasized at the convention that Iowa is very vital in elections. U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota were among the politicians who talked to Iowas delegation during the DNC.

Iowa voters will weigh in on races for state lawmakers and U.S. representatives alongside the presidency in November. Republican incumbents are favored by election forecasters to win in Iowas congressional races in the upcoming election. But Hart said the Harris-Walz ticket is a needed push to activate Iowa voters who may have otherwise sat out the election.

Thats what weve been working on all along, is to lay the groundwork to put it in the the time and the energy, into the infrastructure of the party itself, so that we can get the vote out, Hart said. And now having this enthusiasm and excitement at the top of the ticket, its going to make our job that much easier and give us more of an opportunity to get more people to the polls, and get some of these down-ballot races to be more competitive.
SIOUX CITY, Iowa (KCAU)  Previously, Iowans would sometimes have to meet with a doctor and get a prescription to get their wheelchair fixed. Now the middle man can be cut out altogether.

People with disabilities face a lot of barriers in the state of Iowa, and theres a great deal of upgrading that needs to happen, Alex Watters with the Sioux City city council said.

How an app is helping keep Iowa students safe this year

The first step to address that issue was two bills in the 2024 legislative session that were introduced to the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services.

What this bill sought to do is just streamline that process and make sure that people with disabilities, if they require the use of a mobility device, dont have to wait quite as long to get the different prescriptions and all of those necessary procedures in order to get the device that they need to really just perform their day-to-day functions and life, Watters said.

Before the change, disabled Iowans on Medicaid had to jump through hoops to get their wheelchairs fixed.

If I went to a manufacturer, they might require me to have a doctors prescription say, well, no, you in fact need a wheelchair, Watters said. And so then its like, well, then I have to go through them. I have to go through insurance. I have to get this prior authorization and/or how long will it take me to go see a medical professional at that level to write me a prescription? And all that time, Im without the use of my mobility device.

This policy change addresses just one issue people encounter when trying to get their equipment fixed.

Ever since the state went to a privatized form of Medicaid, a lot of these providers are deciding that, look, its not worth it, Watters said. We cant wait the long time that we have to wait in order to be reimbursed for Medicaid in some of these different programs, whether its a recliner, a scooter or what have you. Its not a luxury I have. I need to utilize Medicaid and my other insurances in order to pay for this. So I have to utilize some of those other providers which are sadly out of town.

Howver, Watters says hes still happy to see positive change for disabled Iowans.

Downtown Partners working to keep downtown Sioux City business going during construction

Bills like this give me hope that the state legislature can pick up meaningful policies, look at legislation that actually impacts the people in Iowa, people that have barriers already before them, such as myself, he said. We need to do everything that we can to try to assist them through the system and make sure that they dont have these different barriers, these hoops that people have to jump through.

Watters said he hopes to see more bills and talk about improving disabled Iowans lives in the next legislative session.

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WAPELLO COUNTY, Iowa  A 20-year-old man on the Most Wanted list of the Iowa Sex Offender Registry has been arrested after over year on the run.

On Wednesday the Wapello County Sheriffs Office responded to a tip regarding an unregistered sex offender living in Eddyville. The sheriffs office said as the investigation into the tip unfolded they learned that Jeremiah Laverne Piper, 20, was on the Most Wanted list of the Iowa Sex Offender Registry. Piper also had multiple warrants for his arrest that included escape from the Fort Dodge Half-Way House over a year ago and for a parole violation.

Kyle Ricke sentenced to life in prison for murder of Algona police officer

According to the sheriffs office, deputies located Piper in the 100 block of Mill Street in Eddyville. A foot chase ensued that eventually ended near the intersection of Vance and 3rd Street with Pipers arrest.

Piper is now facing additional charges in Wapello County. Those charges are failing to register as a sex offender and interference with officials acts.

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Iran and Hezbollah vowed revenge against Israel. Why hasn't it come?

After the double assassination last month of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and a high-ranking Hezbollah commander in Beirut, Iran and Hezbollah vowed retaliation against Israel, saying that vengeance was a matter of honor.

Many braced for a response from Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah that might trigger an all-out regional war.

But that hasnt happened.

Almost a month after the killings, the harsh punishment promised by Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with the strong and effective reprisal Hezbollah head Hassan Nasrallah vowed to bring upon Israel, has yet to materialize.

Read more: Europe turns from Trump-proofing to hope as Kamala Harris is anointed Democratic candidate

And this week, Iranian officials hinted that a response is not imminent.

Time is at our disposal, and the waiting period for this answer may be a long one, said Brig. Gen. Ali Mohammad Naeini, spokesman for Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in a news conference Tuesday. He insisted that there was nevertheless a serious determination to respond to the various aggressions of the Zionist regime, a reference to Israel, and that it may not be a repeat of previous operations.

He appeared to be referring to Irans missile barrage against Israel in April, which came after Israel killed a top Iranian commander in the countrys embassy in the Syrian capital, Damascus.

Many airlines have canceled flights into Israel for fear of being caught in the cross fire. Foreign embassies have issued travel and security warnings for Israel, hitting Tel Avivs summer tourist season hard.

The number of travelers to Israel is down 75% in the first six months of the year, according to the countrys Central Bureau of Statistics.

Read more: He went to register the birth of his twins. He returned to find them killed in an Israeli strike

Last week, Fitch downgraded Israels credit rating from A-plus to A in the face of continued conflict in Gaza that could last well into 2025 and the risks of it broadening to other fronts, according to a note from the U.S. credit rating agency.

Iran and Lebanon have experienced similar airline suspensions. For Lebanon, where Israel and Hezbollah have traded fire across the border since Oct. 8, the losses in tourism revenues are estimated to be more than $7 billion, officials say, compounding the malaise of an economy already suffering through a devastating five-year currency crisis.

In the three weeks since the killings, the U.S. has deployed additional forces to the Middle East, dispatching two carrier groups  the second, led by the carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, arrived Wednesday  and a submarine, to serve as a deterrent as well as a means of defense in the event of an attack against Israel.

Concerns are growing that the conflict could next engulf Iran more directly, said Matthew Levitt, a regional expert at the Washington Institute think tank.

Iran has ultimately one single bright red line when it comes to the prospect of regional war, which is that it not spill over into the borders of Iran, Levitt said.

But Iran is aware it would pay a price for attacking Israel, said Ali Vaiz, an Iran analyst at the International Crisis Group think tank.

The simple reality is that Israel and the U.S. have escalation domination, Vaiz said. If Iran wants to retaliate in a way that isnt symbolic, it will invite a much more devastating blow.

Vaiz said it might be smarter for Iranian leaders to avoid escalating tensions.

Read more: At least 55 arrested after clashes with police outside Israeli Consulate in Chicago during DNC

The Iranian leadership has had a few tactical setbacks, but strategically they are winning, in the sense that Israel has not been able to reach its strategic objectives in Gaza, and it has isolated itself internationally, he said.

Aside from the military mobilizations, diplomats have scrambled from one regional capital to another in recent weeks with the aim of quelling tensions. Last week, the U.S. spearheaded a last-ditch effort to forge a cease-fire in Gaza.

That effort appears to have played a role in at least delaying an Iranian retaliation. In a statement Wednesday, Irans mission to the United Nations said the government will meticulously calibrate its response to prevent any potential negative consequences that could affect a possible ceasefire.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Iran's new foreign minister aims to warm ties with the West

Abbas Araghchi, then Deputy Foreign Minister of Iran, giving an interview after the most recent discussions regarding nuclear energy. Iran's new Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is planning a rapprochement with the West in the face of international sanctions and political isolation. Farshid-Motahari Bina/dpa

Iran's new Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is planning a rapprochement with the West in the face of international sanctions and political isolation.

His ministry will endeavour to "overcome tensions with Washington and restore relations with European countries," the 61-year-old diplomat told the state news agency ISNA after being confirmed in office.

However, he called on the West to abandon its "hostile stance" to work towards revitalizing the 2015 Vienna nuclear agreement.

Araghchi made a career as an ambassador to Finland and Japan. He later served as deputy foreign minister under former president Hassan Rowhani and played a key role in the nuclear negotiations.

He is seen as an advocate of better relations with the West and a direct, albeit critical, dialogue with the United States.

Critics have muted expectations of the diplomat, who is likely to continue Iran's support for militant groups in the fight against their long-time rival Israel.

Negotiations to revive the nuclear agreement have stagnated for over two years.

Almost a decade ago, Tehran agreed to curtail its nuclear programme in exchange for the lifting of UN sanctions, which had significant impacts on Iran's oil exports and banking sector.

The primary goal of the pact was to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

However, following the US withdrawal from the agreement under Donald Trump in 2018, Iran began to gradually disregard its commitments.
Fatima Latifova

Today, the Uzbekistan-Azerbaijan business forum has commenced in Tashkent, Azernews reports.

The opening of the event featured speeches by Azerbaijan's Minister of Economy, Mikayil Jabbarov, and Uzbekistan's Minister of Investment, Industry, and Trade, Laziz Kudratov.

The forum, which will last for two days, is attended by representatives from 67 companies and around 10 government organizations from Azerbaijan.

As part of the forum, a Made in Azerbaijan exhibition will also be organized.
This photo taken on Aug. 22, 2024 shows the fire site at a hotel in Bucheon, South Korea. A fire broke out at a hotel in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province of South Korea, leaving one dead and four in cardiac arrest, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported Thursday night, quoting sources with the police. (NEWSIS via Xinhua)

SEOUL, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- A fire broke out at a hotel in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province of South Korea, leaving one dead and four in cardiac arrest, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported Thursday night, quoting sources with the police.

The fire broke out at a nine-story hotel in Bucheon, about 20 km southwest of the capital city Seoul at around 7:39 p.m. (1039 GMT). One hotel guest was killed, and the other four were transferred to the hospital in cardiac arrest.

Up to 46 fire vehicles and more than 150 firefighters were sent to the scene to carry out rescue operations. 

This photo taken on Aug. 22, 2024 shows the fire site at a hotel in Bucheon, South Korea. A fire broke out at a hotel in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province of South Korea, leaving one dead and four in cardiac arrest, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported Thursday night, quoting sources with the police. (NEWSIS via Xinhua)
LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday denied reports suggesting Israel is considering agreeing to the deployment of an international force along a narrow border strip between Gaza and Egypt known as the Philadelphi Corridor.

"Prime Minister Netanyahu insists on the principle that Israel will control the Philadelphi Corridor to prevent the rearmament of Hamas, which would allow them to repeat the atrocities of Oct. 7," his office said in a statement.

(Reporting by Maytaal Angel; editing by Mark Heinrich)
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's military court has extended the house arrest of soldiers accused of sexually abusing a Palestinian detainee until Sept. 4 but will allow the defence to hold a hearing on Sunday to request an alternative to detention, the military said on Thursday.

It specified such an alternative could include 'a place of work and suitable supervisors'.

The soldiers have been accused of sexually abusing a member of an elite Hamas unit at the Sde Teiman detention facility in the Negev desert in southern Israel, according to Israeli press reports.

The United Nations special rapporteur on torture has said the alleged sexual abuse case is "particularly gruesome" and called on Israel's civilian courts to investigate and hold the perpetrators to account.

The U.N. has received multiple reports of alleged torture against Palestinians detained since Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants stormed Israel in a shock assault that killed some 1,200 people.

More than 40,000 people have been killed in Gaza in the 10 months of fighting that have followed, according to health officials in the Palestinian enclave.

(Reporting by Maytaal Angel; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
Israel says it now controls Rafah in southern Gaza

Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant holds an operational situation assessment together with senior Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) officials during a visit to the Philadelphi route. Ariel Hermoni/GPO/dpa

Israel has defeated the Hamas brigade in the Rafah area in the southern Gaza Strip, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said on Wednesday during a visit to the border area between Gaza and Egypt.

"The [Hamas] Rafah brigade has been defeated, and over 150 tunnels have been destroyed in the region," he said. He had instructed the troops to concentrate on destroying the remaining tunnels on the border between the coastal strip and Egypt in the coming period.

Israel had advanced to Rafah in May, despite massive international criticism, in order to destroy the remaining forces of the Palestinian militant organization there. An estimated 1 million refugees had crowded into the city, but have since left.

The Israeli troops also captured the Rafah border crossing to Egypt, known as the Philadelphi Corridor. This 14-kilometres-long area is considered one of the biggest points of contention in the negotiations for a Gaza ceasefire.

Hamas is demanding Israel's complete withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on the other hand, insists that Israel must continue to control the corridor even after a ceasefire in order to prevent weapons smuggling.

Biden urges ceasefire in call with Netanyahu

US President Joe Biden reiterated his calls for a ceasefire in a call with Netanyahu on Wednesday, the White House said.

The US president had "stressed the urgency of bringing the ceasefire and hostage release deal to closure and discussed upcoming talks in Cairo to remove any remaining obstacles," a statement said.

Egypt, Qatar and the US are mediating the talks between Israel and Hamas.

Biden and Netanyahu had also discussed "active and ongoing" US efforts to support Israel's defence.

Israel is bracing itself for an attack following the killings within days of two leading Israeli opponents in recent weeks: a Hezbollah commander in Beirut and the political leader of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran.

Residents in section of Gaza humanitarian zone told to flee

Earlier on Wednesday, the Israeli army called on Palestinians inside a small section of the humanitarian zone in the central Gaza Strip to flee ahead of a new military operation there.

Israeli troops will "act forcefully against the terrorist organizations" in the the humanitarian zone located in Gaza's Deir al-Balah area, Avichay Adraee, an Arabic-language spokesman for the military, wrote on social media.

The Israeli-designated humanitarian zone has already been reduced in size as ground operations by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) against Hamas militants evolve.

Israeli media reports the zone is currently 42 square kilometres in size, which corresponds to a total area of 11% of the Gaza Strip.

Aid organizations describe the living conditions in the area, where the majority of Gaza's population currently resides, as catastrophic.

The Hamas-controlled health authority said on Wednesday that 50 Palestinians had died and 124 others had been injured in the fighting in the Gaza Strip over the previous day.

By its tally, the number of people killed in the territory since the beginning of the war more than 10 months ago stands at 40,223, with at least 92,981 other Palestinians injured in the same period.

The figures cannot be independently verified. They also do not distinguish between fighters and civilians.

Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant holds an operational situation assessment together with senior Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) officials during a visit to the Philadelphi route. Ariel Hermoni/GPO/dpa

Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant holds an operational situation assessment together with senior Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) officials during a visit to the Philadelphi route. Ariel Hermoni/GPO/dpa

Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant holds an operational situation assessment together with senior Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) officials during a visit to the Philadelphi route. Ariel Hermoni/GPO/dpa
Jacksonville man pleads guilty to trying to entice a minor for sex

Amol Chandrashekhar Khedkar, of Jacksonville, has pleaded guilty to trying to entice a minor to engage in sexual activity, according to the State Attorneys Office.

According to a news release, court documents and evidence reveal an undercover FBI agent was conducting an online undercover operation to identify adults attempting to engage in sexual activity with minors.

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On Nov. 28, 2023, the agent posed as the parent of an 11-year-old child and posted a notice in an open forum of an online social messaging app. Minutes later, a user identified as Khedkar sent the undercover agent a private message.

Khedkar was told the childs age. He then said he would love to see the child and asked sexual questions about the child, according to the news release. A meeting for the next day was arranged.

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On Nov. 29, 2023, Khedkar showed up to a predetermined location in St. Johns County. After being arrested by the FBI, he confessed in an interview that he was the one asking sexual questions about the child.

Investigators also found pictures of child sexual abuse on his phone during a search.

Khedkar faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 10 years, up to life, in federal prison and a potential lifetime term of supervised release

His sentencing hearing is scheduled for Dec. 19.

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The third night of the Democratic National Convention will feature a pair of videos produced by TV news veterans who also helped shape the narrative of the Jan. 6 committee hearings.

Melinda Arons, a former Nightline senior producer, Participant Media executive and Hillary Clinton campaign official, and former ABC News chief James Goldston produced the two shorts. One is meant to remind viewers of the horrific images of Jan. 6, 2021, and the other will make the case that Republican nominee Donald Trump is ready to repeat the Big Lie that the 2020 election was stolen.

More from The Hollywood Reporter

The two videos are part of a theme of A Fight for Our Freedoms on the third night of the convention.

Goldston and Arons were tasked with helping make the House Select Committee on January 6s case in a series of televised hearings in 2022. They and their team essentially built a TV operation within the halls of Congress, working with the committees investigators and lawyers to cull thousands of hours of footage from the Capitol riots to craft a compelling case that Trump and others in his administration had committed crimes that day.

Wednesdays video wont be building a legal argument but instead will serve to remind viewers and voters what that day was like. We wanted to bring people back to the gut punch we all felt watching it unfold, Arons told The Hollywood Reporter.

The second video will lay out the case that Trump is ready to repeat his Stop the Steal efforts from 2020 election, where he argued  unsuccessfully in all court challenges  that he lost only because of fraud. The short will serve as a call to action for get-out-the-vote efforts. It will reinforce a message thats been repeated numerous times during the convention, that a potentially close election needs overwhelming turnout by Democrats.

Best of The Hollywood Reporter
The tech billionaire, 41, stepped out from the Crew Dragon spacecraft on Thursday, completing the SpaceX Polaris Dawn spacewalk.

Watch: SpaceX Polaris Dawn: Billionaire Jared Isaacman becomes first person to take part in private spacewalk

US billionaire Jared Isaacman said Earth 'sure looks like a perfect world' as he completed the first private spacewalk and entered the vacuum of space.

The tech entrepreneur, 41, had launched into space on Tuesday from Cape Canaveral in Florida on board a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket for the Polaris Dawn mission, in a bid to venture further than anyone since Nasa's Apollo Moon missions.

At lunchtime on Thursday, Commander Isaacman and SpaceX enginer Sarah Gillis stepped out of their Crew Dragon spacecraft to conduct mobility tests on their suits  causing huge cheers from crowds watching at the SpaceX California HQ as their video stream showed stunning views of Earth outside the open hatch.

After emerging from the Dragon spacecraft, Isaacman was recorded on the SpaceX video livestream saying: 'Back at home we all have a lot of work to do, but from here, Earth sure looks like a perfect world.'

Isaacman  who self-funded a previous orbit of Earth in 2021  is among a crew of four who launched from Florida on Wednesday for the 'really risky' milestone mission, which conducted the first privately managed spacewalk (when astronauts leave a spacecraft). Spacewalks have only ever been performed by government astronauts until now.

The SpaceX crew fully open the hatch of the Dragon spacecraft, giving a stunning view of Earth. (Reuters)

The crew on the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Thursday morning, during preparations for the spacewalk. (Reuters)

The privately funded Polaris Dawn mission flew the highest Earth orbit ever at 870 miles  surpassing a record set in 1966 by Gemini 11. It explored Earths radiation belt and saw two astronauts walk outside the craft.

The crew included Isaacmans friend Scott Poteet, a retired US Air Force lieutenant colonel, and SpaceX lead space operations engineers Gillis and Anna Menon. The crew trained for two years, and donned SpaceXs spacesuits while venturing (tethered) out of the craft. The entire mission  including the spacewalk  is expected to last six days.

Isaacman, the CEO of electronic payment company Shift4, has funded the mission with sums thought to total hundreds of millions of dollars. He previously said of the mission: "Whatever risk associated with it, it is worth it. We have no idea what it could do to really change the trajectory of humankind there has to be some first steps in this direction.

Mission specialist Anna Menon, pilot Scott Poteet, commander Jared Isaacman and mission specialist Sarah Gillis (AP)

SpaceX Falcon 9 Polaris Dawn on a launch attempt last month. (Sipa US/Alamy)

What happened on the spacewalk?

The extravehicular activity (EVA) saw two astronauts  Isaacman and Gillis  float outside the spacecraft.

Crew Dragon has no airlock, so its entire cabin was slowly depressurised ahead of the spacewalk, meaning all four astronauts tested out the new spacesuits.

The Polaris Dawn spacewalk is now complete, marking the first time commercial astronauts have completed a spacewalk from a commercial spacecraft! Congratulations to @rookisaacman, @Gillis_SarahE, @KiddPoteet, @annawmenon, and to all the SpaceX teams!  SpaceX (@SpaceX) September 12, 2024

Isaacman and Gillis then walked outside the cabin. There was cheering and a huge round of applause from spectators and crew at SpaceX's California HQ as Isaacman emerged from the spacecraft, the Earth appearing in front of him.

Gillis also performed the same mobility tests and was applauded as her head popped out of the spacecraft. Once the crew were back inside, the hatch was closed, once again separating the Polaris Dawn crew from space.

Why are spacewalks so dangerous?

Spacewalks are among the most dangerous activities astronauts undertake, due to space radiation and the risk of impacts from space debris or micrometeoroids.

Catherine Heymans, astronomer royal for Scotland, told the BBC on Thursday that it was a really risky expedition.

She explained: Its not something Nasa would do themselves, because they are sending these astronauts out into a very radiation-dense region of our solar system  a place called the Van Allen belt where there are zones of highly energetically charged particles that are dangerous for humans.

Heymans added that the team were also using new spacesuits that had been built by Space X and were designed to be more flexible to enable improved mobility for the astronauts in space.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 lifts off from Launch Pad 39-A at Kennedy Space Center in May 2021. (Orlando Sentinel/TNS)

She said: Any journey into space is risky. Id love to see humans exploring the Solar System, but [the radiation] is incredibly dangerous. Were protected here on Earth by our fantastic magnetic field and the further you get away from that protection the more dangerous it is for our health.

Isaacman has previously said that the astronauts will be surrounded by death.

Only government astronauts from the US, former Soviet Union and Russia, the European Space Agency, Canada and China have conducted spacewalks.

Using US and Russian spacesuits, more than 270 spacewalks have been conducted outside the International Space Station since its inception in 2000.

Bill Gerstenmaier, a SpaceX vice president who was Nasas human spaceflight chief until 2020, said: "EVA is a risky adventure. But again, we did all the work to really get ready for this. We kind of built off of what Nasa's heritage was, but I think we've also extended Nasa's heritage a little bit further.

Whats the point of the mission?

The mission orbited through the Van Allen radiation belt (a region of charged particles around our planet) and aimed to conduct research to further understand the effects of spaceflight and radiation on human health.

The mission was a major first test of SpaceX's new astronaut spacesuits.

It marks the latest risky commercial milestone that Elon Musk's space company is looking to clinch on the billionaire's stated goal of building colonies on Mars.
Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance speaks at a rally Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Valdosta, Georgia. Gary McCullough via Associated Press

Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance seemingly thought he would get a nice on-camera moment Thursday when he visited a doughnut shop in Georgia, but the entire thing was incredibly awkward.

After a worker at Holts Sweet Shop in Valdosta asked to not be filmed, the Ohio senator introduced himself.

Im JD Vance. Im running for vice president. Good to see you, Vance said.

OK, the worker responded.

Vance then attempted to make small talk with the shops employees, asking how long theyve worked there. When they answered since the beginning of July and almost two years, Vance responded, OK, good.

Then he picked the doughnuts he wanted, including a lot of glazed and some sprinkle stuff, as well as cinnamon rolls.

Just whatever makes sense, he said.

He also asked someone at the shop, How long has this place been around?

When the person told him four years, Vance said, OK.

Social media users commented on the cringey moment, calling Vance weird and suggesting that hes completely incapable of having a normal connection with another human being.

This isnt Vances first blunder in what should be a regular interaction. Earlier this month, a reporter in Michigan told Vance that he is sometimes seen as being too serious and a little angry, and asked what makes him happy and what makes him smile. Instead of giving a measured response, Vance ripped into the journalist.

I smile at a lot of things, including bogus questions from the media, man, he said. If you watch a full speech that I give, I actually am having a good time out here and Im enjoying this.

Related...
Doh! JD Vance struggles to order donuts and make small-talk with unimpressed workers in awkward video

Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance turned the joyous task of ordering donuts into a deliciously awkward encounter, a new video reveals.

The Ohio Senator walked into a donut shop in Georgia ahead of his remarks in Valdosta, Georgia on Thursday, where he introduced himself to a server who immediately said she did not want to be filmed, in a stilted exchange that is not helping the Republican candidate divorce himself from the weird label.

Im JD Vance. Im running for vice president, Vance tells the donut shop worker, who simply replies: Okay.

Were gonna do two dozen. Just a random assortment of stuff here, he continues while browsing the donuts in the display cases.

Everything. A lot of glazed here. Sprinkle stuff. A lot of cinnamon rolls. Just whatever makes sense, Vance said.

As the worker fills up his box of donuts, Vance struggles to make small talk by asking workers behind the counter how long they have been working there.

He asked one worker how long the place had been around, and was told it had been in business for four years.

JD Vance struggles to make small talk while ordering donuts (C-Span)

About four years? Okay, Vance said. Well, we selected this place. I didnt know if it had been here for 20 years or four years. You never know.

The clip comes as Vance has strived to combat the weird description that Democrats, including vice president Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, have given him.

A series of resurfaced clips and text messages capturing Vances extreme stances have contributed to this label. Vance called pregnancy resulting from rape inconvenient, branded Harris a childless cat lady, suggested that parents should have more of a vote than childless adults, and drastically flip-flopped on his views about Trump.

Vances cringey donut shop visit is reminiscent of another recent flubbed food stop  which social media users ate up.

Earlier this week, Vance tried to crack a joke when ordering a Philly cheesesteak at the famed Pats King of Steaks, but he wound up being accused of committing a crime against humanity.

I dont like Swiss cheese either, but everybody says its insulting, Vance told a worker at the joint, which is considered the inventor of the cheesesteak and famously only uses American, provolone or cheez whiz in the delicacy. Why do you guys hate Swiss cheese so much?

The employee replied: We dont hate it, we just dont use it. We usually use cheez whiz.

While Vance seemed to have been cleverly referencing John Kerrys 2004 presidential campaign, when he asked for a cheesesteak sandwich with Swiss cheese during a visit to Pats, the internet thought the encounter hurt his campaign chances.

He also recently found himself in a bind when one of his attempts at a joke came back to bite him.

When asked this week how he is preparing to debate Tim Walz in October, Vance replied: Well, I found a good friend from back home who embellishes and lies a lot, Im having him stand in for Tim Walz.

But the insult quickly backfired as several social media users joked Vance was referencing Donald Trump, who has become notorious for lying over everything from election results and crowd sizes to the weather. The Washington Post estimated that during his presidency he made more than 30,000 false or misleading statements.
HILLSBORO, Mo.  A Jefferson County, Missouri, man is due in court on Friday morning for shooting and killing a St. Louis man in a county subdivision.

According to the Jefferson County Sheriffs Offices probable cause statement, the shooting happened Wednesday evening in the 2400 block of Lombard Lane.

Deputies found Timothy Geitz dead behind the wheel of a vehicle because of a gunshot wound. Geitz was 43.

Pevely third grader paralyzed in crash, school offering support

Witnesses and others who were either in or near Geitzs vehicle at the time of the shooting helped investigators identify Chaptur Wagoner, 20, as the alleged shooter.

Investigators believe Wagoner and Geitz knew one another, and the shooting was the result of an unspecified incident.

The Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorneys Office charged Wagoner with first-degree murder, unlawful use of a weapon, and two counts of armed criminal action. Wagoner remains jailed without bond.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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BEIJING, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Continuous decoupling poses one of the greatest risks globally, while for a (foreign) company itself, "it is still a huge risk" without having a presence in China, Maximilian Butek, executive director and board member of the German Chamber of Commerce in China-East China, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

"It's difficult for anyone outside China to understand how innovative China has become and how rapid this development has been achieved in high quality, especially in the last five years," Butek said. "It's also difficult for them to see how interlinked German companies are with Chinese companies here."

Butek noted that many German companies have "a heritage of over 100 years in China, and they have become very Chinese while maintaining their German DNA." He added that for new cooperation to thrive, "it's more about whether you are willing to learn and engage deeply with China."

Butek observed that CEOs from both large German companies and small and medium-sized enterprises visited China this year as part of various government delegations. He also noted that relaxed visa policies are facilitating increased German business travel to China.

"When they come here, they are all surprised at how smooth these corporations work and how efficient R&D innovation can happen here in China," Butek said.

"China has a lot of talents, good infrastructure, and a lot of good innovative suppliers they can use," he said.

"Initially, we brought technology to China. Then, we reached a stage where we innovated in China for the Chinese market. Now, we see more innovations emerging from China that impact the world. So we are shifting a little bit from purely capacity building here toward also tapping into the innovation system of China," Butek added.

According to a report published in July by the German Chamber of Commerce in China, 70 percent of German automotive companies drive innovation by forming strategic partnerships with universities, suppliers and customers in China.

German direct investment in China has been surging, with the total in the first half of the year already surpassing that of the entire previous year, the Financial Times reported recently, highlighting German confidence in the Chinese market's prospects.

In the second quarter of this year, German direct investment in China reached 4.8 billion euros (5.3 billion U.S. dollars), nearly double the amount recorded in the first three months, bringing the total for the first half to 7.3 billion euros. For comparison, total investment stood at 6.5 billion euros in 2023. 
Jeffries on Trump: Bro, we broke up with you for a reason

CHICAGO  House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) stirred the crowd at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday night, delivering a rousing speech that swung between high praise for Vice President Harris as a visionary leader and attacks on former President Trump as a threat to traditional American freedoms.

In his first major appearance since becoming House Democratic leader, Jeffries used his prime-time slot to portray Harris as a fighter for working people, while painting Trump as a danger to the middle class, reproductive rights and the workings of American democracy.

The sweeping speech was part sermon, part pep rally for Harris, and part attack on Trump, whom he characterized as a chaos agent who is focused on himself.

In a moment that drew roars of approval, Jeffries compared Trump to a kind of stalking menace who was rejected by voters in 2020 but just didnt get the message.

Donald Trump is like an old boyfriend, who you broke up with but he just wont go away. He has spent the last four years spinning the block, trying to get back into a relationship with the American people, Jeffries said. Bro, we broke up with you for a reason.

Jeffries then ticked off a series of Trumps top accomplishments in the White House, assailing each one as a step backward for everyday Americans.

The GOPs tax cuts, for instance, was a scam that largely benefited the wealthy, Jeffries said. Trumps response to the COVID pandemic failed the country, he continued. The attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, was an effort by Trump to destroy our democracy, he added. And the three conservative Supreme Court justices seated under Trumps watch destroyed Roe v. Wade at the expense of womens freedoms, he charged.

We broke up with you for a reason, Jeffries said. Donald Trump can spin the block all he wants, but theres no reason for us to ever get back together. Been there, done that, were not going back.

Jeffries ascended to the top of the Democrats leadership ladder at the start of this Congress, filling the void created when Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) stepped out of power after two decades leading her party. Hes fighting now not only to help the party keep the White House, but also to flip control of the House, which would set the stage for Jeffries to become the first Black Speaker in the nations history.

After attacking Trump on Wednesday, Jeffries spent a good portion of his speech vowing close coordination between House Democrats and the future Harris administration on a host of the partys top priorities. That list includes efforts to fight climate change, overhaul immigration laws, bolster Medicare benefits, and reinstate the abortion protections eliminated with the repeal of Roe.

In his signature songful delivery, Jeffries thrilled the crowd again when he laid out a plan for pulling it off, replete with Biblical references.

Strategize on Sunday, he said. Meet the moment on Monday. Take it to em on Tuesday. Work it out on Wednesday. Thank the Lord on Thursday. Fight the power on Friday. Set it off on Saturday. Get a few hours of sleep, wake up the next day, and do it all over again until joy, joy, joy comes in the morning.

Jeffriess oratory style is easily recognizable to those who follow him closely on Capitol Hill, but less familiar to those outside the Beltway, and the audience in the United Center jumped to its feet.

Jeffries also offered glowing words for President Biden, who stepped out of the presidential contest under pressure from a host of Democrats on and off of Capitol Hill. Biden selflessly passed the torch, Jeffries said, and will be remembered by history as among the most successful presidents of all.

We could not have asked for a better leader to partner with than President Joseph Robinette Biden, Jeffries said, who will go down as one of the most consequential presidents of all time.

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New Jersey Congressman Bill Pascrell Jr. remembered as a champion for the working class

New Jersey Congressman Bill Pascrell Jr. remembered as a champion for the working class

PATERSON, N.J. (PIX11)  New Jersey Congressman Bill Pascrell Jr. died Wednesday. He was 87.

The lifelong resident and former Mayor of Paterson had endured several long hospital stays in recent weeks.

If Pascrell had been re-elected this November, he would have become the oldest member of Congress representing NJ-9, which includes parts of Bergen, Passaic and Hudson Counties.

More New Jersey News

Never afraid of throwing big elbows to help the little guy, friends and colleagues remember Pascrell as a Democratic champion for the working-class people of the Ninth District.

Were never going to find another Bill Pascrell, said Congressman Frank Pallone Jr. (D-NJ6).

Pallone spoke fondly about Pascrell Wednesday afternoon from the DNC in Chicago. He called Pascrell his best friend in Congress.

Just had a really moving conversation with @FrankPallone about the late Congressman Bill Pascrell Jr who he describes as his best friend in Congress.

"You're never going to find another Bill Pascrell"

1/3 pic.twitter.com/swksuYuD6T  Henry Rosoff (@HenryRosoff) August 21, 2024

He was unique, what Id call old school, Pallone said. He wanted to help people. It was the only reason he got involved in politics. He didnt care if he was in the limelight or if people loved him or didnt. He just did what he thought was right.

Pascrell was elected to Congress in 1996 but had already earned a reputation in New Jersey as fiercely outspoken.

More US and World News

Before 28 years in Washington, Pascrell was a history teacher who muscled his way to the top of Patersons Democratic establishment. He served in the New Jersey General Assembly and as Mayor of his hometown.

Pallone on his friend's fierce personality and priorities during 28 years in Congress.

"He certainly was the most dedicated person, he never forgot where he came from" pic.twitter.com/jNbQvJjl5C  Henry Rosoff (@HenryRosoff) August 21, 2024

His seat was down in front, recalled former Assemblymember John Wisniewski. When he spoke, you could hear a pin drop because you came to expect the very best.

More Local News

In recent years, Pascrell devoted much of his biting rhetoric to former President Trump.

Pallone said it was because he did not like how Trump treated working people and feared an existential threat to Democracy.

Pallone on why Pascrell felt former President Trump was such a threat and became so outspoken in recent years.

"He didn't tolerate someone who was wealthy not paying people who were working people." pic.twitter.com/M1mD7oCmKW  Henry Rosoff (@HenryRosoff) August 21, 2024

As for replacing Pascrell on the November ballot, per state law, hundreds of country-level Democratic Party committee members must vote by next week. This sets the stage for the old-school, behind-the-scenes arm-twisting at which the pugnacious Pascrell excelled.

Im sure hes looking down with a smirk at the scramble that had to go on to fill his seat, Wisniewski said with a smile.

Pascrell is survived by his wife, Elsie, three children and six grandchildren.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11.
St. Claire HealthCare, the newest arm of UK HealthCare, will welcome three new specialties and 22 new physicians by the end of the year.

The Morehead-based hospital system became part of the UK HealthCare system on July 1. In an interview with the Herald Leader, St. Claire President Don Lloyd detailed the new offerings coming to the system. This is the largest recruiting class the hospital has welcomed since it opened 61 years ago.

One of the reasons we have such a large recruiting class is because its very easy to sell the clinical contributions these physicians will make to the people of Kentucky, and its an environment where physicians are valued and respected, he said.

The community hospital will welcome its first endocrinologist, hand surgeon and orthopedic spine surgeon by the end of the year. While doctors will be coming from across the US to work in Kentucky, many have ties to the commonwealth.

Eleven of the 22 new physicians were students at UK during a point in their academic careers.

Along with the new specialties represented in the incoming recruit class, St. Claire will expand 10 programs, ranging from primary care to podiatry.

Lloyd said hospital leadership cross-examined the medical staff development plan, a comprehensive look at the hospitals physicians performed every three years and the community needs assessment to determine where coverage lacked.

There is an understanding of many of these physicians about the need for greater access to care and to address some of the health disparities that exist in populations throughout not only rural Kentucky, but even urban Kentucky, Lloyd said.

In Kentucky, 107 of 120 counties are considered health professional shortage areas, meaning residents have limited or no access to healthcare. Lloyd said theres no use in bringing great physicians to Kentucky if patients cant get to them.

Some of the new physicians will work in the rural healthcare clinics operated by St Claire to bring care closer to home. Those clinics are in Frenchburg, Morehead, Olive Hill, Owingsville and Sandy Hook.

The community needs assessment, which surveyed 241 people in the St. Claire service area, listed transportation as the largest barrier to care and the most important issue for the hospital to address in the next 3-5 years as improving access to specialty care.

In that same survey, 16% of respondents said there was a time in the last year where they needed medical care, but were unable to get it.

What any good clinician is looking for is to make a difference in a patient population and to be challenged clinically and intellectually, he said.

Unfortunately, because of the health status of much of our population, these clinicians see a tremendous amount of pathology, a lot of disease, a lot of social determinants, that impact their ability to get people to the appropriate health status. For a physician, thats a challenge, and thats an appeal.

The physicians bringing new specialty care to Eastern Kentucky

Dr. Karen Feghali is St. Claires first endocrinology provider, a branch of medicine treating hormone disorders. Feghali specializes in treatment of diabetes, thyroid and parathyroid disease. She comes to St. Claire after finishing her fellowship in endocrinology and metabolism at the University of Texas Southwestern.

Dr. Farbod Rastegar will be the inaugural orthopedic spine surgeon. He completed his fellowship at the Cleveland Clinic, and is coming to St. Claire from Cincinnati Elite Orthopedic & Spine in Middletown, Ohio. He treats operative and non-operative spine cases, including degenerative disc disease, herniated discs, spinal stenosis, scoliosis, revision surgery, disc replacement, spinal trauma and spinal tumors.

Dr. Chris Kubajak will join the existing plastic and reconstructive surgery department as its first hand surgeon, specializing in aesthetic and reconstructive care for hand trauma and degenerative disease, like rheumatoid and osteoarthritis. The existing plastics department focuses on breast reconstruction. A Kentucky native, Kubajak graduated from UKs medical school where he also did his residency. He comes to St. Claire from a fellowship in hand surgery at New York University.
Comedian Jon Stewart labeled former President Trump saying he respects former President Obama and Michelle Obama as bulls.

Stewart said in his The Weekly Show podcast that he could tell in the former first ladys speech to the Democratic National Convention earlier this week that she was wounded by the attacks on her family.

She was really wounded by the, if were being honest, disgusting treatment, which continues to this day, of the Obama family, and just the vile attacks like, not policy, not anything other than just vile, conspiratorial, personal disturbing, the late-night comedian said.

And then you have Trump yesterday, Ive got a lot of respect for the Obamas. Bulls! he added.

Stewarts rebuke comes just two days after the former president offered his White House predecessor rare praise, calling Obama a nice gentleman ahead of his speech before the Democratic National Convention Tuesday.

I like him. I think hes a nice gentleman, but he was very, very weak on trade, Trump said earlier that morning, later adding, But I happen to like him. I respect him, and I respect his wife.

Stewart noted that just because he said it, does not make Trumps claim true, pointing out that the GOP nominee has launched a number of attacks against the Obamas. Trump was one of the stronger promoters of the birther conspiracy theory that falsely claimed Obama was not born in the United States.

Him saying it doesnt make it true. He was the leader of an absolute torrent and river of slime. And I imagine for her, she thought, Weve given our pound of flesh to this endeavor, and I dont want any part of that, Stewart said of Trump and Michelle Obama.

The former first lady ripped into the GOP presidential hopeful throughout her speech Tuesday with her loudest applause coming from referencing the former presidents recent Black jobs comment. Her husband also tore into Trump, warning that he spreads conspiracy theories and has a weird obsession with crowd sizes.

Trump responded to their criticisms Wednesday, questioning if he still needs to stick to policy after the Obamas got personal in their speeches. The comment was in reference to calls from Republicans who urged the GOP hopeful to focus less on personal insults and more on policy differences.

The Hill has reached out to the Trump campaign for comment.

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Hugging the western reach of the Indian River Lagoon, Jonathan Dickinson State Park is a diverse ecosystem that includes ancient sand dunes, habitat for threatened species, magnificent bird watching, Trapper Nelson's old cabin and multiple amenities for humans, such as biking, hiking kayaking and camping.

What it doesn't include is golfing, but environmentalists fear the Florida Department of Environmental Protection is considering the addition of two 18-hole golf courses and one nine-hole golf course to the 10,500-acre park.

Opposition is mounting to the golf course plan. As the proposal is debated, here are five things to know about Jonathan Dickinson State Park.

When was Jonathan Dickinson State Park founded and where is it?

Jonathan Dickinson State Park is in Martin County on land used during World War II for a secret radar training school called Camp Murphy. The camp was named after Col. William Herbert Murphy, who was a pioneer in adding radio equipment to military aircraft. It accommodated about 6,000 men and had nearly 1,000 buildings.

The camp was decommissioned in 1944 and the property was transferred from the U.S. government to the State of Florida. It became a park in 1950.

Who was Jonathan Dickinson?

Jonathan Dickinson was a Quaker merchant from Jamaica who was shipwrecked on Jupiter Island with his family and other passengers in 1696. Dickinson kept a diary of his journey from the shipwreck site to St. Augustine, which included multiple challenges including hostile encounters with local indigenous tribes.

Dickinson and his family eventually reached Philadelphia, which was their original destination. Dickinson served twice as Philadelphia's mayor in in the early 1700s.

Who is Trapper Nelson and how did he die?

Picture of Trapper Nelson. CREDIT: Max Little Famly Collection ORG XMIT: MER0503071701125047 ORG XMIT: MER0705171646271296

Trapper Nelson is a legendary character in South Florida whose life story is a little murky. Born and baptized Vincent Natulkiewicz, he had a homestead far up the Loxahatchee River where he was self-sufficient, living with no electricity or municipal water supply. After World War II, he converted his homestead into a tourist attraction and became known as the "Wildman of the Loxahatchee."

He used his profits to amass about 1,000 acres of riverfront land. His death in 1968 at the age of 59 is surrounded by myth. He was found dead by a friend at his homestead. That part is not disputed. But a relative once wrote to The Palm Beach Post that no one in the family believed that he had committed suicide, which was what the coroner said.

A 2018 article in The Post attempted to clarify parts of the story by asking for more information from Josh Liller, who at the time was the historian and collections manager for the Loxahatchee River Historical Society. Part of what Liller said was that there was no evidence that Trapper Nelson was murdered, and that he had been dead for at least five days when he was found. It is sometimes reported that he was dead two to three days before being found, Liller said.

Bucket list: 55 best must-try things to do, tourist attractions in Palm Beach County

The 90-page transcript of the coroner's jury "makes a very compelling case for suicide as a reasonable ruling. Some people who knew him and some of the longtime park rangers at JDSP (Jonathan Dickinson State Park) were of the opinion the death was an accident (which is what I subscribe to as the most likely explanation)," Liller wrote to The Post at the time.

What is there to do at Jonathan Dickinson State Park?

Jonathan Dickinson is the largest state park in southeast Florida. The park includes multiple habitats, such as coastal sand hills, upland lakes, scrub forests and the Loxahatchee River, one of only two federally designated wild and scenic rivers in Florida. It also has the largest amount of protected scrub jay habitat in southeast Florida.

It has 90 campsites, paved and off-road biking trails and opportunities for boating, fishing, hiking, horseback riding and swimming. There are deluxe safari tents available for a more upscale camping experience. The safari tents include a coffee maker, a mini-refrigerator, rugs, lamps, electrical outlets and air conditioning.

How much does it cost to go to Jonathan Dickinson State Park?

It costs $6 per vehicle with two to eight people. A single-occupant vehicle or a motorcycle costs $4. Pedestrians and bicyclists pay $2.

There is a shop with souvenirs and snacks at the park as well as a food and beverage provider. Palmetto on the Loxahatchee features beer, wine and food in an outdoor setting overlooking the Loxahatchee River.

At the concession, you can rent canoes, kayaks, stand-up paddleboards, motor boats and single-speed cruiser bicycles.

Kimberly Miller is a journalist for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA Today Network of Florida. She covers real estate, weather, and the environment. Subscribe to The Dirt for a weekly real estate roundup. If you have news tips, please send them to kmiller@pbpost.com. Help support our local journalism, subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Five things to know about Jonathan Dickinson State Park in Martin County
JSO: Victim in surgery after suffering gunshot to the stomach in Moncrief

A man who was shot in the stomach on the Northside is in stable condition, recovering at a local hospital.

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The shooting took place at around 3 p.m. at 5500 Moncrief Rd.

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JSO said the victim, a man in his 30s, was standing near a vehicle when someone came up and shot him. The suspect then ran in an unknown direction.

When police arrived at the scene they didnt find the victim, who had driven himself to the hospital.

A JSO detective said during a briefing they hadnt been able to speak to the man since he was still in surgery.

Since its early on in the investigation, police are asking anyone with informaiton to contact JSO at 904-630-0500.

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(The Hill)  A federal judge ruled this week that the U.S. military cannot bar enlistees who have undetectable viral loads of HIV, eliminating the last major barrier in the armed forces for asymptomatic individuals who have the virus.

U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema, in the eastern district of Virginia, said in the ruling Tuesday that none of the arguments the Pentagon made to prevent the recruitment of HIV-positive individuals were supported by the evidence.

Defendants policies prohibiting the accession of asymptomatic HIV-positive individuals with undetectable viral loads are irrational, arbitrary and capricious, the judge wrote. Even worse, they contribute to the ongoing stigma surrounding HIV-positive individuals while actively hampering the militarys own recruitment goals.

The news comes after two previous rulings in the past few years that overturned the militarys policy barring HIV-positive individuals from serving or from being promoted to a commissioned rank.

The case that was decided this week against Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was filed by three Americans or lawful permanent residents seeking to join the Army and the Minority Veterans of America advocacy organization.

The plaintiffs include Isaiah Wilkins, 24, who sought to join the Army after serving in the Georgia National Guard but was denied because he was HIV-positive.

Carol Coe, 33, served in the Army in 2008 and left the service after becoming HIV-positive but seeks to return to duty.

GOP veterans write to Walz criticizing misrepresentations of service

And Natalie Noe, 33, was denied entry into service in 2020 because she tested positive for the virus.

The plaintiffs argued that the militarys prevention of HIV-positive individuals from serving is unlawful because it is not reconcilable with current scientific evidence on the virus, challenging the policy on the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment and the Administrative Procedure Act. They also said the military restriction targets a specific group.

In arguments before the court, the Pentagon said it was rational for the military to bar certain individuals from serving who may present a known risk to the health of the armed forces.

They cited the incurability of the disease; the potential for HIV-positive individuals to not take their daily medications and therefore increase their viral loads; the ability of the virus to spread through blood spatter or transfusions, and the risk of servicemembers struggling with comorbidities.

The Pentagon also argued that HIV-positive individuals require more financial support and that they would struggle to deploy those servicemembers to other countries that have greater restrictions.

Brinkema rejected each of those arguments in the ruling: Modern science has transformed the treatment of HIV, and this court has already ruled that asymptomatic HIV-positive individuals with undetectable viral loads who maintain treatment are capable of performing all of their military duties.

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KENTWOOD, Mich. (WOOD)  A judge has ruled there is enough evidence to send a former Michigan State Police detective sergeant to trial for murder after he hit a man with his cruiser, killing him, during a chase in metro Grand Rapids earlier this year.

The former MSP sergeant, Brian Keely, 50, of Grand Rapids, has been charged with second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter in the death of Samuel Sterling, 25, also of Grand Rapids.

This court finds that there is probable cause to bind the defendant over to the circuit court on both counts charged, Kent County District Court Judge Amanda Sterkenburg announced during a short hearing Thursday.

Sterkenburg heard testimony last week but said she needed time to review evidence, particularly video of the crash that led to Sterlings death, before issuing her decision.

Judge mulls moving former MSP sergeants case to federal court

Family shows News 8 a photo of Samuel Sterling.

On April 17, authorities were working to arrest Sterling on a number of active warrants. They tracked him to a gas station in Kentwood, where he got out of his car and they moved in to get him. Police say Sterling ran away. Officers chased him on foot to a nearby Burger King while Keely pursued in an unmarked cruiser. Video released by MSP shows Sterling being hit by Keelys SUV near the restaurants entrance. Sterling was hospitalized and died hours later.

There is no dispute that defendant Keely was driving a motor vehicle in pursuit of the decedent on April 17, 2024, that he struck the decedent with his vehicle or that the decedents death came as a result of the injuries sustained in that collision, Sterkenburg said.

The Michigan Attorney Generals Office, which is prosecuting the case, argues there is evidence Keely steered his SUV toward Sterling and that he knowingly created a very high risk of death or great bodily harm.

But Keely has said he didnt mean to hit Sterling and instead just meant to block him from getting into the Burger King. His attorneys say the evidence shows he was braking when the crash happened, which they say is evidence he did not mean to kill Sterling.

Inside woodtv.com: Samuel Sterling case

Sterkenburg acknowledged there is conflicting evidence on whether Keely acted with malice.

Malice is a legal term that does not require the defendant to intend the harm that occurred. In the absence of intent to kill or do great bodily harm, the malice element is satisfied where the defendant knowingly created a very high risk of death or great bodily harm, the judge said.

I believe that a person of ordinary prudence might find that the pursuit of an individual on foot by a 4,000-pound automobile creates a strong likelihood of harm, she continued. And then watching the videos and hearing the testimony, other specifics here weigh in favor of this finding. Most notably, there was testimony that the defendant turned the wheel of his vehicle sharply towards the defendant in the last seconds before impact. Further, the angle of approach can be observed in the videos as almost parallel and directly behind the fleeing decedent, such that one could infer that the defendant knew his vehicle could not advance in front of the suspect to block his flight without making contact.

She also pointed out that Keely drove past another officer who stopped chasing Sterling in his cruiser and got out to run after him.

There was testimony that there was no weapon observed on the decedent during the pursuit and no force was used by the decedent, she added. No other officers continued in vehicle pursuit, therefore there does not appear to be justification for the defendants conduct.

Expert: Pros, cons for MSP sgt. if murder case moved to federal court

In reference to the manslaughter charge, she said there was evidence Keely may have acted with negligence, saying he could have made other choices during the pursuit that could have prevented the crash.

But the judge also acknowledged there are arguments to be presented to a jury about the speed of Keelys SUV, braking, the effect of wet pavement on the crash and whether he was warranted in his belief that Sterling could threaten or harm someone in the Burger King.

In a statement, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said she was pleased to see this matter move forward and hope it will proceed expeditiously to trial.

Public integrity is a top priority for my Department and we remain committed to striving for a just resolution in each case we handle, she stated.

Following a Wednesday hearing in Lansing, U.S. District Court Judge Hala Jarbou is mulling whether to grant a motion filed by Keelys defense team to move the case to federal court. The defense argues the case falls under federal jurisdiction because Keely was working as part of a U.S. Marshals task force on the day Sterling died, while prosecutors say he was never a federal agent and the case should be handled in state courts.

STERLING FAMILY: A VICTORY

Samuel Sterlings family gathered at Martin Luther King Park Thursday in Grand Rapids for a joint justice rally.

Andrica Cage, the mother of Samuel Sterling, now has a smile on her face after months of mourning the loss of her son, Samuel Sterling.

I say (today is) a victory because we finally got an officer to at least go towards trial. And that is unlikely to happen, but this was the first step towards victory. And I cant wait until that day when we can actually say victory because he was trialed and he is going to prison, said Cage.

She spoke during the rally along with former county commissioner Robert S. Womack and Sterlings cousin, Jamar Sterling. The family says the fight for justice is just beginning.

You hit your breaks after you had my cousin pent against a building. You had time to think about your actions. But instead you swerved around other officers because you were determined that you were going to catch him no matter what it costs, life or death. You chose death. Were hoping that it will be a swift justice towards a just choosing a guilty verdict, Jamar Sterling said.

 News 8s Amanda Porter contributed to this report.

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PBS NewsHour senior correspondent Judy Woodruff issued an apology Wednesday after her comments about former President Trumps role in Gaza cease-fire talks sparked criticism.

The reporting is that former President Trump is on the phone with the prime minister of Israel urging him not to cut a deal right now because  its believed that would help the Harris campaign, Woodruff said while broadcasting from the Democratic National Convention on Monday.

Woodruff added she thinks Vice President Harris would like President Biden to work on a cease-fire deal quickly so her campaign could benefit from the results.

In a post on social platform X, Woodruff said Wednesday she wanted to clarify her comments.

As I said, this was not based on my original reporting; I was referring to reports I had read, in Axios and Reuters, about former President Trump having spoken to the Israeli Prime Minister, Woodruff wrote. In the live TV moment, I repeated the story because I hadnt seen later reporting that both sides denied it.

This was a mistake and I apologize for it, she said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus office told The Jerusalem Post Wednesday that Woodruffs statements were a complete lie.

Woodruffs comments follow reports by Axios and Reuters about conversations between Trump and Netanyahu.

Axios reported last week that Trump and Netanyahu spoke about a hostage and cease-fire deal, but it later reported that Netanyahus office denied the conversation.

Reuters reported similar information, citing Axios. The stories did not report that Trump urged Netanyahu to not take a deal.

In a statement to The Hill, Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung denied that the former president wanted to delay cease-fire talks.

PBS is making up fake stories. The only thing President Trump has told the Prime Minister previously is to get the war over with. Any assertion otherwise is fake news, Cheung said.

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Jury again recommends death for Jacksonville man who killed 3 in 2002

A jury, for a second time, has recommended death for a Jacksonville man convicted in a 2002 triple murder.

A judge sentenced Pinkney Chip Carter to death in 2005 when a jury found him guilty of killing three people.

He killed his ex-girlfriend, 35-year-old Liz Reed, her 16-year-old daughter Courtney Smith, and 49-year-old Glenn Pafford.

During last weeks hearing, the jury heard testimony from Reeds son, who was 14 at the time and found the bodies, and a retired Jacksonville Sheriffs Officer.

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The defense argued that Carter snapped when he saw Reed with another man and the killings were not premeditated.

Carter was resentenced because of a change in Floridas death penalty law. Originally the jury had to be unanimous, now only 8 people have to agree.

Ultimately, its up to a judge to decide Carters sentence.

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MANILA, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Thursday said it priced a 3.5 billion U.S. dollars 5-year global benchmark bond on Wednesday, proceeds of which will be part of the ADB's ordinary capital resources.

The 5-year bond, with a coupon rate of 3.625 percent per annum payable semi-annually and a maturity date of Aug. 28, 2029, was priced at 99.462 percent to yield 9.8 basis points over the 4.00 percent U.S. Treasury notes due July 2029, the bank said in a press release.

The issue achieved wide primary market distribution, with 58 percent placed in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, 29 percent in the Americas, and 13 percent in Asia.

By investor type, 42 percent went to banks, 41 percent to central banks and official institutions, and 17 percent to fund managers and other types of investors.

The ADB said it plans to raise about 30 billion to 34 billion dollars from the capital markets in 2024.

ADB issued its first 3.5 billion dollars 5-year global bond in February this year. 
Gov. Jim Justice, Babydog and his wife, Cathy, attend the State Fair of West Virginia in Lewisburg on Aug. 10, 2024. (Office of the Gov. Jim Justice | Courtesy photo)

In a new filing this week, attorneys for 23 coal companies owned by Gov. Jim Justice and his family argue that a federal court cannot put the companies in contempt for nonpayment of fines due to them being unable to pay the fines.

The memorandum  filed Tuesday with the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia and first reported by West Virginia MetroNews Brad McElhinny  comes after the federal government moved earlier this month to put the companies in contempt due to them owing nearly $600,000 for mine health and safety fines racked up at the companies coal mines over the last decade.

That debt, at one point, totaled about $5.13 million from hundreds of health and safety violations incurred. Under an agreement made between the companies and the government in 2020, the debt was due to be paid in full by March 31, 2024. A monthly payment plan was set up in 2020 for the companies to honor their debt, but over the last year  and at other periods since the agreement was made  payments have been spotty, wired late and often not made in full.

In Tuesdays filing, attorneys for the Justice companies say the failure to pay came from one simple reason: they are not financially viable.

While the [companies] have not entirely satisfied their obligations under the Consent Judgment, this is not due to a willful violation of the Courts order, the memorandum reads. Instead, the [companies] have an inability to pay the current amounts due.

Because of this inability, the attorneys argue, it would be inappropriate for the federal court to rule in favor of the government and put the companies in contempt as such sanctions should not be used to collect money for delinquent payments.

According to the memorandum, the companies financial troubles have been well-documented and are well known to the government based on other filings. The Justice companies attorneys said that these financial struggles are not self-induced, and as such, putting them in contempt would be a step too far.

Unfortunately, the global coal market, extraneous business factors, and financial constraints constantly frustrate [the companies] business activities and make their primary business  mining coal  almost impossible to do, the memorandum reads. Without active and significant mining operations, [the companies] are not financially viable, and this makes compliance with the payment terms an impossibility.

One company named in the proceedings, Southern Coal Corporation, has been ruled insolvent and has millions of dollars in judgments currently pending against it in other federal cases, according to the memorandum. Another, Kentucky Fuel Corporation, has no assets and has recorded millions of dollars in losses from at least 2015 to 2018.

Other companies that the government is seeking to get payment from, the Justice family attorneys wrote, face similar financial situations.

The Justice-owned coal companies are some of the largest assets in the familys sprawling business conglomeration. The ongoing financial woes at the companies are just one example of recent challenges faced by the familys business empire, as issues have continued to rise against The Greenbrier Hotel Corporation, another Justice-owned company and operator of The Greenbrier Hotel, another large asset held by the family.

On Thursday, the Justice family announced it reached an agreement with Beltway Capital to halt a previously scheduled public auction of The Greenbrier Hotel. A hearing that was scheduled for Friday regarding the auction was canceled, as well as the auction itself. Now, the corporation is obligated to make a payment  the amount of which has not been disclosed  to Beltway by Oct. 24, which will end the proceedings against The Greenbrier.

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Kamala Harris has an ambitious plan to build 3 million new homes. She'll have to get through Congress and local NIMBYs first.

Kamala Harris unveiled a housing plan that includes building three million homes in four years.

Her plan includes tax incentives for builders to construct small and affordable homes.

Harris' supply-boosting policies could get the most traction among Republicans, but it'll be an uphill battle.

Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris unveiled some of her major economic priorities in a speech in North Carolina last week.

Central to her agenda is a plan to make housing more affordable  an issue that's become increasingly urgent for millions of Americans amid a housing supply shortage and skyrocketing prices. Part of Harris' plan involves spurring the construction of lots of new housing through policy changes and subsidies. But barriers to new construction abound  from an often-gridlocked Congress to state and local leaders and communities.

Harris has pledged to build three million homes across the country during her first term as president. She wants to offer tax incentives for home builders to construct starter homes  smaller, more affordable units  for first-time homebuyers. She would also expand a current tax credit for businesses that build affordable rental housing. And Harris says she would double the Biden administration's $20 billion housing innovation fund intended to support local governments and developers looking for new ways of building affordable housing. Last, the campaign called for a reduction in "red tape and needless bureaucracy" that stalls new construction.

These three million new homes would be in addition to the homes developers would otherwise construct, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Jenny Schuetz, an expert in urban economics and housing policy at the Brookings Institute, told Business Insider that while a goal for new home construction is helpful, it's not necessarily an accurate prediction.

"There's no way that the government can guarantee X number of homes are going to get built," Schuetz said. But, she added, "putting the number out there and then marking progress is actually quite helpful."

The Harris campaign's housing proposals focus heavily on boosting the supply of housing as the nation faces a severe shortage of homes. Mario Tama/Getty Images

Aside from incentivizing new housing construction, Harris' plan includes a proposal to crack down on investors buying up homes in bulk and landlords from using rent-setting algorithms "to collude with each other and jack up rents."

The campaign also proposed expanding the Biden administration's assistance for first-time homebuyers, proposing an average of $25,000 in downpayment support for first-time buyers.

A spokesperson for the Harris campaign didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Harris' plan focuses more on boosting the supply of housing than the current administration has. The federal government has traditionally focused its housing policy on demand-side subsidies like housing vouchers. Schuetz and other housing experts are glad to see this shift, noting that a housing shortage is the central cause of the affordability crisis.

There is some bipartisan agreement on housing policy. At the state level, Republican lawmakers have successfully cut red tape to spur home construction. But boosting federal funding and shifting strategies won't be easy in a bitterly divided Capitol.

"Acknowledging that this is a problem isn't the same thing as saying we've got a magic wand that will allow us to solve it," Schuetz said.

Barriers to action

Most of Harris' housing plan would require support  and lots of new funding  from Congress. The WSJ reported that the tax credits for starter homes and affordable housing construction would cost about $80 billion combined. And getting Congress to agree on anything is a serious challenge.

Andy Winkler, director of housing and infrastructure projects at the Bipartisan Policy Center, noted that while there isn't much Republican support for demand-side housing policies like Harris' downpayment assistance program, some of the supply-side measures could get bipartisan backing.

He's most optimistic that expanding the Low Income Housing Tax Credit and other supply-side, tax-based policies could pass Congress as it debates tax reform in 2025. But he's skeptical the reforms Harris could get through would result in three million new homes in four years  a goal he called "pretty ambitious."

"I have trouble foreseeing a sweep election, so if either the House or the Senate has a Republican majority, I think the tax policies are where you could see the most potential," Winkler said.

On top of getting Congress on board, a Harris administration would need states and municipalities to reform many layers of land-use regulations and other housing-related policies to make way for new construction. Many of the policies that restrict housing construction  including land-use laws like zoning  are controlled by local and state governments, meaning the federal government's influence over those policies is limited.

The White House and Congress can use federal subsidies to incentivize local officials to loosen regulations and otherwise spur construction, but they can't force this action. And there is often lots of local opposition that significantly slows down or halts all kinds of development.

While Republicans in Congress might be interested in cutting red tape at the local and state levels, the devil's in the details, Winkler said.

"It's really difficult from the federal level to incentivize those behaviors," he said.

Read the original article on Business Insider
CHICAGO  President Joe Biden is a patriot, in any conventional sense of the word. He ended his valedictory speech at the Democratic National Convention on Monday night with a refrain hes delivered possibly hundreds of times since he began running for president again in 2019: We just have to remember who we are. Were the United States of America. And there is nothing we cannot do when we do it together.

But Bidens rhetoric never made the Democratic Party wave the flag as much as it has in the weeks since Vice President Kamala Harris took over as the partys nominee. And as she prepares to deliver the most important speech of her life on Thursday night, her version of patriotism  based more on individuals and possibilities than on the strength of American institutions  could help save her partys presidential campaign.

The liberal patriotism wave started at the rally, where she introduced Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, when she noted two middle-class kids from the Bay Area and Nebraska could be president and vice president.

Only in America, she said, repeating the phrase three more times.

The story Harris told was not about the strength of American institutions and the need to protect the Constitution, a warning Biden and other Democrats have issued over and over again. It was, as aides previewing Harris convention speech for reporters promised, about her faith in the American people and the promise of America.

This is what seems to separate the patriotism of Harris, and of former President Barack Obama, from the patriotism of Biden. Biden, who has spent more than five decades at the center of the American political establishment and frequently reminisced about the good ol bipartisan U.S. Senate of the 1970s and 1980s, seemed to base his faith in America as much in its unpopular political institutions as in its people.

The Harris-Obama version of patriotism seems to be much more politically effective, at least at this moment. It fits into a long history of arguing that inclusivity, acceptance and helping your neighbor are at the heart of being an American. And its playing a key role in fighting off GOP attacks on Harris, a Black woman and daughter of immigrants, as somehow foreign.

Theres something a little extra about Kamala leaning into it because of the way Republicans try to other her as less than American, and that builds a permission structure for people who might otherwise not be the type of person to chant U-S-A to lean into it, said Sarah Longwell, an anti-Trump Republican strategist.

While most Democrats would inherently bristle at the idea that they are less patriotic than the GOP, a YouGov poll from earlier this year found that 53% of Americans thought Republicans were very or somewhat patriotic, while only 45% said the same of the Democrats. And polling has often shown Democrats are less likely, for instance, to say America is the greatest country in the world.

Republicans often try to claim patriotism as exclusive to themselves, with flag-waving bordering on ostentatious even as Trump runs down the country and its citizens more often and with more ferocity than any other political figure in recent memory.

I use the term, oftentimes in closing, We are a nation in decline. We are a failed nation, Trump said last week at a rally in Pennsylvania. And I think its a beautiful phrase, though I dont like the topic very much.

That provides a clear opening for Harris, Longwell noted: Hes saying America is a bad place, a third-world country, and the like. And so it is both strategic and fundamentally true for her to push back and say: No, Americas a great place, let me tell you a quintessentially American story.

Vice President Kamala Harris routinely inspires chants of U-S-A! U-S-A! at her rallies. John Moore via Getty Images

Parts of the left, of course, have long been harshly critical of the U.S., either for its racism or for what they see as its overly militaristic foreign policy. During Trumps presidency, those critiques grew as liberals searched for explanations for Trumps victory and behavior. Left-wing protesters outside the convention burned at least one American flag this week, though mainstream Democrats  including Harris earlier in the campaign  have typically condemned flag-burning.

Much of the schedule at the Democratic National Convention seems designed to combat the perception that Democrats and the flag-burning protesters could ever be on the same page. Party officials eagerly shared images contrasting the USA signs handed out to convention delegates on Monday night to the Mass Deportation Now! signs handed out at the Republican National Convention last month.

On Wednesday, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) led the delegates in a chant of I believe in America! as he crafted an inclusive image of the country. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) pitched a border safety bill he helped negotiate while also portraying accepting immigration as an essential part of the American character. Republicans Geoff Duncan and Olivia Troye portrayed voting for Harris as a patriotic requirement.

But the peak moment of liberal patriotism may have been when Oprah Winfrey generated thunderous U! S! A! after saying that electing a daughter of immigrants to the presidency would be the best of America.

But if the patriotism pitch from Harris and other Democrats is too cosmopolitan for your tastes, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the partys vice presidential nominee, presented a distinctly provincial vision of loving your country in his acceptance speech when he recalled growing up in a Nebraska town with a population in the hundreds.

Ill tell you what: Growing up in a small town like that, you learn to take care of each other, he said. That family down the road  they may not think like you do, they may not pray like you do, they may not love like you do, but theyre your neighbors. And you look out for them, and they look out for you. Everybody belongs, and everybody has a responsibility to contribute.

Democrats, meanwhile, are eating it up, thrilled they are finally getting a chance to counter what they see as Trumps bastardization of patriotism, as Maryland Gov. Wes Moore put it.

We have not just an appetite, but an eagerness to push back, Moore, a former Army officer who fought in Afghanistan, told HuffPost. I love this flag so much that I was willing to put my life on the line to protect it. And so I just refused to allow someone who is going to wrap themselves in the flag on the idea that the definition of patriotism means telling people who belongs and who does not belong in the American mosaic.

On Wednesday afternoon, I spoke to Virginia House of Delegates Speaker Don Scott, who served seven years in prison in his 20s on a federal drug charge before becoming successful in law and business after getting out. When I asked him about liberal patriotism, his response was more than a bit enthusiastic.

Where else but America can a person like me, raised by a single mom with six kids, who went to federal prison, came out, worked my ass off, took the Virginia Bar 20 years after law school, passed it, became a partner in a large law firm, run for office, win and then freaking become speaker of the House? Scott asked.

Hell yeah, I love America, he said. Id be a fool not to.
By Trevor Hunnicutt

CHICAGO (Reuters) - The daughter of a Jamaican father and Indian mother, both immigrants, Kamala Harris reflects the United States' changing demographics.

When she steps onto the stage Thursday evening in Chicago to accept the Democratic Party's nomination as their presidential candidate, she will represent the country's fastest growing racial category.

Some 42 million Americans now identify as multiracial, or 13% of the country, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. That is up from 2% in 2000 when the census first allowed people to select multiple races.

America has long been a self-styled "melting pot" of people who trace their origins around the world, but in practice some states legally segregated citizens by race until the civil rights laws of the 1960s and laws prohibiting interracial marriage were not overturned until 1967.

Social change since, though, has been rapid. Barack Obama was elected as the country's first Black president in 2008, and Harris would be the first Black woman and South Asian if elected in November.

"We're living in a situation 50 years later where we could be looking at our second mixed-race president, and it's beautiful," said Svante Myrick, president of People for the American Way, an advocacy group, whose father was Black and his mother white.

America's future will look even more diverse. The vast majority of multiracial people are younger than 44 and a third are still children.

The trend has been met by confusion, upset and worse from some of the U.S.'s shrinking white majority. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump drew groans at a gathering of Black journalists last month when he falsely portrayed Harris as pivoting from Indian to Black.

"I don't know, is she Indian or is she Black," Trump said. "But you know what, I respect either one."

Harris has long identified with both her parents' ancestry. In Trump's remarks, some multiracial people saw echoes of their own experience of being asked to choose one or the other.

Harris' upbringing makes her a better leader for America, Democrats in Chicago said.

"When you have individuals who carry multiple experiences in the same person, that's an asset," said Representative Maxwell Frost, who is Lebanese, Puerto Rican and Haitian, speaking at a Politico event on the sidelines of the convention. "That enhances her ability to legislate and advocate" on behalf of a broad range of Americans.

The Harris campaign did not respond to a request for comment, nor did spokespeople for Trump.

As the U.S. becomes more diverse and multicultural, white nationalist groups continue to thrive online, pushing conspiracy theories such as the "The Great Replacement", while some Republican lawmakers have focused on banning books and canceling classes focused on racial history.

Thousands of racial hate crimes are reported yearly, with 232 aimed at people of multiple races in 2022, the most recent year for which FBI data is available.

"Unfortunately, we're really into a period of backlash," said Matthew Delmont, a Dartmouth College history professor who has studied the demographic trend, despite the 2020 election of Harris as vice president and her administration's elevation of racial justice priorities.

"So much of that was push back that really emerged in response to the Obama presidency and it was really stoked among people who are scared by the demographic trends in the United States."

Tara Setmayer, an Afro-Latina and white conservative co-founder of political action committee the Seneca Project, said she was once attracted to the Republican Party in part because of its emphasis on color-blind policies.

"Do Democrats take it too far at times with the racial identity politics? Well, yeah," she said.

Now an independent, Setmayer said some of the Republican Party's recent rhetoric on issues including illegal migration carried undercurrents of racism. Republicans reject those criticisms, saying their focus on border controls are aimed at securing the country for all Americans.

"This is really their last gasp at trying to stop the country from evolving, and I think they're missing out on something that's beautiful," Setmayer said.

(This story has been corrected to fix the names of Matthew Delmont and Tara Setmayer in paragraphs 16 and 18-21)

(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; Editing by Heather Timmons, Kat Stafford and Daniel Wallis)
CHICAGO  During the month-long lifespan of Kamala Harris presidential campaign, she has shown a remarkable buoyancy. Never mind that her opponent, former president Donald Trump, has slammed her with near-daily attacks. Never mind that the press, growing increasingly wary of her refusal to speak with them, has become impatient. She kept bobbing up the polls, turning the insurmountable deficit that plagued President Joe Biden into a glass ceiling above Trump.

This convention was supposed to be the test. As the Democratic Party parachuted into Chicago last weekend, there was a cautious worry  shared by party operatives, observers and delegates themselves  that this convention would be her undoing. Pro-Palestine protesters pledged historic marches across the city. Dozens of uncommitted delegates whispered of trouble on the convention floor. In more than one private conversation, the 1968 convention in Chicago, where Vietnam protests devolved into tragic chaos, was brought up. There was an eerie suspicion that Democrats had met the enemy, and it was them.

But conventions rarely work that way. More commonly, they are a show, a sanitized, made-for-TV infomercial, as the Washington Post called them recently. For a floundering campaign, they offer a boost. For a newlywed ticket still on its honeymoon, as is the Harris-Walz union, they keep it floating. And by the time Harris took the stage Thursday night to accept the partys nomination, there was only one test left: deliver a speech that riles the base and charts a vision for the two-and-a-half months until Election Day.

Second gentleman Doug Emhoff, from left, Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, her running mate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and his wife Gwen Walz wave at the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | J. Scott Applewhite

Harris, by delegates measure, succeeded. It left me feeling determined to get out there and put in the work, said Finn Harkness, a delegate from the Omaha-area swing district. I felt it, added Michelle Porter Norton of Illinois. It was impressive, it was sincere, and it was from the heart.

The speech, it seemed, served as Harris reintroduction to the American people. She walked through her personal story: her two immigrant parents, both with impressive careers, meeting and falling in love; her father teaching her to not be afraid, and her mother, to not complain about injustice but to do something; her path to law stemmed from a desire to protect others; her career as a prosecutor, as California attorney general, as senator.

With her resume unveiled, she took on the role of prosecutor. The stage was set as if she was in a courtroom, the screen behind her showing wood paneling and a pair of American flags. Dressed in a dark blazer, she took up her case against Trump.

In many ways, Donald Trump is an unserious man, she said. But the consequences of putting Donald Trump back in the White House are extremely serious.

She chided Trumps efforts to overturn the 2020 election. She slammed him for his actions on January 6. She painted a bleak picture of a second Trump term: his explicit intent to release those imprisoned for their own actions on January 6, and his desires to seek retribution against his political enemies.

She claimed Trump plans to cut entitlements, which he has denied. She said Trump would curtail abortion rights  something hes also denied  while Harris would trust women and protect reproductive freedom.

But suddenly, as Harris topic turned to the Middle East, the crowd  which had been cheering, applauding and chanting on cue  turned silent. Let me be clear: I will always stand up for Israels right to defend itself and I will always ensure Israel has the ability to defend itself, she said. The crowd applauded. As the audience quieted, she continued, labeling Hamas a terrorist organization and accusing them of unspeakable acts. Scattered chants of free Palestine! began to ring out from the audience, but they were quickly drowned out by applause. Then, as Harris continued, discussing the heartbreaking suffering in Gaza and promising to work to help Palestinians realize their right to dignity, security, freedom and self-determination, applause filled the arena  far louder than the cheers after she spoke of defending Israel.

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Paul Sancya

To her supporters, it will be held up as an example of her deftness in speaking about a polarizing political subject. But it was the most detail she gave on any specific policy topic all night. She touched on many of her positions  on abortion, she promised to restore reproductive freedom, should Congress act; on immigration, to sign the bipartisan border bill that sunk in the Senate in February; on the economy, a middle class tax cut. But details were sparse, and much of it was framed as a rebuttal to Trumps positions.

A convention acceptance speech is not typically the place where policies are unveiled, defenders would say. Very well. But a candidate, at this point, would usually have staked out her detailed positions on key issues. If the expectation is that an incumbent presidency will continue the policies of its first term, that would, assumably, be made clear. Instead, Harris mentioned Biden only thrice during her speech  once in her opening monologue, to briefly express thanks; and twice when discussing Israel-Palestine, to talk about the work she is doing alongside Biden.

She has been in the Oval Office with the president on all of these major issues, Doug Emhoff, the second gentleman, said during a Jewish Democratic Council of America event earlier Thursday. There is no daylight between Harris and Biden, the White House insists. Whether that extends to Harris plan for her potential term, there are crickets.

Delegates dont seem to mind. Asked what their favorites of Harris policy plans are, they point to what she says on reproductive rights or her economic plan, unveiled in part last Friday. Harkness credited the Biden-Harris administrations work to cap insulin costs and cancel student debt as important for his family. Steve Ellison, from Florida, emphasized Harris commitment to NATO.

Trump and his minions are painting an America of doom and gloom, said Glenn Wright, a Democratic candidate in Utahs 3rd Congressional District. Harris, as I saw it, was glass-half-full.

Not just Harris, it seems. I think were going to win this, Diane Lewis, chair of the Utah Democratic Party said, as delegates filed out of the arena, kicking through a sea of red and blue balloons. Honestly, I just feel it.

The balloon drop during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Matt Rourke

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris and First Gentalman Doug Emhoff during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Charles Rex Arbogast

Balloons fall after the nomination of Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris and Democratic vice presidential candidate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Brynn Anderson

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Matt Rourke

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Brynn Anderson

First Gentalman Doug Emhoff during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Charles Rex Arbogast

Eva Longoria speaks during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Erin Hooley

Former Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois speaks during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | J. Scott Applewhite

Maya Harris, sister of Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, speaks during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | J. Scott Applewhite

Pink and her daughter Willow Sage Hart perform during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Brynn Anderson

Demoratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Morry Gash

Former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, of Arizona, right, and her husband Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., appear during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Erin Hooley

Emily Robison, from left, Natalie Maines and Martie Maguire, of The Chicks, sing the national anthem during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Brynn Anderson

Kerry Robertson takes a selfie before the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Charles Rex Arbogast

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer speaks during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Charles Rex Arbogast

Delegates watch a presentation during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Brynn Anderson

Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, center, with his son Gus, left, and daughter Hope, left, claps during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Charles Rex Arbogast

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., speaks during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Erin Hooley

Former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, of Arizona, right, and her husband Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., fist-bump on stage during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | J. Scott Applewhite

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Erin Hooley

Pinks smiles as she leaves the stage with her daughter Willow Sage Hart during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Charles Rex Arbogast

Demoratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during the Democratic National Convention Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. | Morry Gash
CHICAGO, Illinois  Kamala Harris will present herself as a patriotic woman of the people fighting for freedom Thursday night, whenno matter what she saysshell make history at the Democratic National Convention.

First, when she takes the stage around 10:45 ET, expect Harris to introduce herself to the American people, highlighting how shes just like them. Its a theme her campaign has hit over and over, with multiple mentions of her college job working at McDonalds.

The VP will tell her story of being raised by a working mother in a middle-class neighborhood, a Harris-Walz campaign official shared. That background means she knows the everyday joys and challenges experienced by middle-class families like hers, and shares those values.

The first few nights of convention programming have set the stage for the vice presidents second task: calling out the Republican agenda and contrasting it with her focus on freedom. Shell point out the dangers posed by Donald Trumps Project 2025 agenda and seek to contrast her own vision for economic opportunity and fundamental freedoms for all Americans, the official said.

Finally, Harris will emphasize her patriotism and reclaim the American flag that has been hijacked by the MAGA faithful. Like the USA signs and chants that have ricocheted around the arena here this week, the message is meant to counteract the Republican attacks on Harris and other Democratsincluding childless cat ladiesas un-American.

She knows that loving your country means being willing to fight for its fundamental ideals, the campaign official said. She is driven by a deep sense of patriotism and a desire to be a president for all Americans.

Her remarks are expected to be light on policy, heavy on feel-good oratory and attacks on Trumps agenda. That pattern fits with what shes done on the campaign trail so far, where shes waded into policy just oncewhen outlining her economic proposal, which was largely panned. The platform drew more criticism than almost anything else shes said so far, demonstrating the dangers of sharing specifics.

On the one hand, theres little Harris will have to do to win over the hard-core Democrats attending the convention. When she merely stepped on stage Monday night to Beyonces Freedom, the crowd went wild. Some of the biggest applause lines this week from Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, and Oprah Winfreysome of the nations greatest oratorical talentscame when they dropped her name. And the uptempo music and celebrity guests that have kept the energy high all week will continue Thursday night, with scheduled appearances by The Chicks and Pinkand perhaps, even, Beyonce?

But the crowd Harris really has to win over will be the voters watching at home. The notoriously cautious politician and her aides have been tinkering with the speech for the past month, according to Politico, after weeks already spent on the one she planned to give as the vice presidential nominee before President Joe Biden dropped out.

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As Vice President Kamala Harris accepted the Democratic presidential nomination, a bevy of her family members cheered her on from the stands: her husband, Doug Emhoff, stepchildren and her sister, Maya Harris, to name a few.

But the nominee's father, Donald J. Harris, did not appear at the Democratic National Convention hall in Chicago. He is Kamala's only living parent, as her mother, Shyamala Gopalan died in 2009.

Here's what to know about the vice president's father and his involvement (or lack thereof) in her political career.

Who is Donald J. Harris?

Donald Harris is an economist and retired Stanford University professor. Born in Jamaica, he immigrated to the United States to complete a doctorate degree at the University of California in Berkeley. There, he also met Shyamala, and the couple had two children, Kamala and Maya, before divorcing.

After his divorce, Shyamala won primary custody of their children, though Donald continued to see Kamala and Maya during the weekends and summer, according to the vice president's 2019 memoir.

Had they been a little older, a little more emotionally mature, maybe the marriage could have survived. But they were so young, Kamala wrote in "The Truths We Hold."

Donald Harris, whose economic philosophies are often grounded in Marxist theory, has also served as a frequent economic advisor to his home country of Jamaica, according to The Washington Post.

In an undated photo, Vice President Kamala Harris is held by her mother Shyamala Gopalan.

Is Donald J. Harris at the DNC? Is he involved in Kamala's campaign?

Donald Harris was absent from the DNC in Chicago, including when Harris formally accepted the presidential nomination.

In fact, the economist has chosen to stay largely absent from his daughter's political life. He also did not make any public remarks or appearances during her 2020 vice presidential campaign.

It appears the last time Donald Harris weighed in on the vice president's political career was in 2019, when she was in the midst of her first presidential bid.

His comment came after Harris responded to a radio interview question about whether she had smoked marijuana earlier in her life by saying, Half my familys from Jamaica. Are you kidding me?

Donald then responded in a statement to Jamaica Global Online, a news site in his home country, according to POLITICO.

My dear departed grandmothers... as well as my deceased parents, must be turning in their grave right now to see their familys name, reputation and proud Jamaican identity being connected, in any way, jokingly or not with the fraudulent stereotype of a pot-smoking joy seeker and in the pursuit of identity politics, Donald wrote.

Speaking for myself and my immediate Jamaican family, we wish to categorically dissociate ourselves from this travesty, he added.

Kamala's campaign did not issue any comment in response.

Vice President Kamala Harris visits the house she lived in with her parents from age 3 to 5 in Madison, Wis., when her parents worked at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Harris was in Madison on Wednesday, March 6, 2024, to tout the Biden administration's efforts at expanding union jobs.

What is Donald J. Harris's connection to Wisconsin?

Though he ended his university career at Stanford, Donald also taught for several years at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

The family lived in Madison from the time Kamala was 3 to 5 years old. Donald was an associate professor of economics at UW-Madison, while Shyamala worked as a breast cancer researcher in the McArdle Laboratory for Cancer Research.

In her memoir, Harris cited the family's move to Madison as the reason for her parents' separation.

Hope Karnopp contributed to this story.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Is Kamala Harris's father, Donald J. Harris, at the DNC?
A man has been charged with murder in a fatal shooting near a Northland Walmart Supercenter this week, according to court documents filed Thursday.

Taquiza V. Johnson, 47, was charged Thursday with second-degree murder and armed criminal action in the death of 71-year-old Ronald Barnett.

The shooting happened just before 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Kansas City police said, in a parking lot near shops at the Boardwalk Shopping Mall. Officers found Barnett with a gunshot wound and he was transported to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The shooting was the 96th homicide reported in Kansas City this year, according to data collected by The Star. At this time last year, 133 homicides had been reported in the city.

What happened in the shooting near Walmart

Video surveillance from the Walmart allegedly showed an interaction between the two men before Johnson shot Barnett, according to a probable cause affidavit.

We allege this defendant shot someone in broad daylight in the parking lot of a major retailer, Eric Zahnd, Platte County prosecuting attorney, said in a release. That is equally tragic and disturbing.

As Johnson was leaving Walmart, Barnetts vehicle drove past him and Johnson made a motion toward the vehicle, the affidavit said. Barnett backed up, stopped, and then exited his vehicle. Johnson walked up to Barnetts vehicle, then walked away, according to the affidavit.

Barnett then parked his vehicle and was walking toward the Walmart entrance when Johnson drove up beside Barnetts parked vehicle.

Barnett then walked toward Johnson as he stood at the rear of his vehicle with his hands behind his back. Two seconds later, the affidavit said, Johnson allegedly shot Barnett. After Barnett fell to the ground, Johnson left the scene without trying to help Barnett, the affidavit said

Barnett was transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 4:59 p.m.

Witnesses, a shell casing and an arrest

A Speer .40 shell casing was recovered from the scene and investigators found a bullet hole in the hatch of Barnetts vehicle. According to court documents, a bullet was recovered from the rear passenger seat.

Numerous witnesses described the suspect as a Black male driving a black SUV, the affidavit said. After reviewing video surveillance from the Walmart, investigators confirmed the suspect vehicle was a black Jeep with a Missouri license plate registered to Johnson, the affidavit said.

Missouri State Highway Patrol troopers found the Jeep at an apartment complex within eight minutes after the plate information was broadcast, the affidavit said. Johnson was taken into custody, allegedly wearing different clothes than at the time of the shooting.

According to court documents, a search warrant of Johnsons apartment recovered clothing matching the description of what Johnson was wearing at the Walmart and a .40 caliber Glock handgun loaded with Speer .40 caliber rounds.

Police spoke with Johnsons wife outside the apartment, the affidavit said, and she allegedly told officers that when Johnson got home he told her he got into a confrontation at Walmart.

As of Thursday afternoon, Johnson is in custody without bond. No hearings have yet been scheduled for the case.
BEIJING, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- China will work to promote economic and trade cooperation with Vietnam, China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said on Thursday.

China will use the celebration of the 75th anniversary of China-Vietnam diplomatic ties next year as an opportunity, and support enterprises on both sides in expanding trade in agricultural products and manufactured goods by fully leveraging platforms such as the China International Import Expo and the Canton Fair, MOC spokesperson He Yadong told a press conference.

China will also foster new investment cooperation drivers in sectors such as the digital economy and green development, and deepen supply chain cooperation to ensure smooth trade flows between the two countries, according to the spokesperson.

He also stressed the importance of facilitating regional economic integration, saying that China will accelerate negotiations for Version 3.0 of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area, and make greater contributions to regional development and prosperity.

Trade between China and Vietnam has seen rapid expansion in recent years. The annual trade volume between the two sides has exceeded 200 billion U.S. dollars for three consecutive years.

In the first seven months of 2024, China-Vietnam trade surged by 20.9 percent year on year to about 145.07 billion dollars, MOC data showed. 
A Los Angeles court ruled that Katherine Jackson's arguments against a proposed transaction don't hold water

Justin Sullivan/Getty Katherine Jackson and Michael Jackson in 2005.

After nearly two years of legal back-and-forth over Michael Jacksons estate, a Los Angeles court has sided with the King of Pops estate co-executors, effectively shutting down his mother Katherines repeated objections to a proposed catalog sale with a hefty price tag.

Katherine, 94, had filed multiple objections after attorney John Branca and A&R executive John McClain, the co-executors of Michaels estate and trustees of the Michael Jackson Family Trust, received a favorable ruling last year in probate court that allowed them to move forward with a reported $600 million sale of half of Michaels music catalog to Sony.

In court documents filed on Wednesday, Aug. 21 and obtained by PEOPLE, Katherines latest appeal was denied, as her contentions lack merit and were not previously made to the probate court that approved the transaction, and because a review found that the transaction does not violate the terms of the trust.

Attorneys for Katherine declined to comment when reached by PEOPLE.

Related: Inside the Fight over Michael Jackson's $2 Billion Estate  and His Mom's Battle with Her Grandson Bigi

Lester Cohen/WireImage Prince Michael Jackson, Katherine Jackson, Blanket Jackson, and Paris Jackson attend the immortalization of Michael Jackson at Grauman's Chinese Theatre Hand & Footprint ceremony on January 26, 2012 in Los Angeles, California.

The Jackson family matriarch had also argued that before his death in 2009, Michael had told family members that he wanted to keep the estate assets in the family in perpetuity. But according to the new documents, that argument doesnt hold water, as its Michaels intent as expressed in his will that ultimately controls what happens.

Here, the will gave the executors broad powers of sale, with no exception for the specific assets at issue in this case, the court filing says. As such, the probate court did not err in concluding that it was Michaels intent to allow the executors to sell any estate assets, including those at issue in the proposed transaction.

Per Michaels will, his entire estate was to be given to the Michael Jackson Family Trust, the beneficiaries of which are his three children Prince, 27, Paris, 26, and Bigi, 22, as well as unnamed charities.

Pete Still/Redferns Michael Jackson performing on his BAD Tour in 1988.

Related: Michael Jackson's Son Bigi Says Estate Shouldn't Pay Grandmother's Legal Bills in Dispute over $600 Million Catalog Deal

Katherine is a life beneficiary of a portion of a sub-trust, which allows the trustees to distribute as much to the sub-trust as they deem necessary; in Katherines case, shes given money for her care, support, maintenance, comfort and well-being, according to the filing. When she dies, any assets that were set aside for her will be passed to the kids share of the trust.

Though the estate has yet to be distributed to the trust due to disputes with the IRS, per the filing, Branca and McClain were authorized by a probate court in 2019 to continue to operate Michaels businesses.

In November 2022, they filed a petition to approve the proposed Sony transaction, which was ultimately granted  despite Katherines objections. In challenging the sale, she claimed that the assets were valuable, and would appreciate over time, and that the estate didnt need the cash the sale would bring in. She did, however, agree that the probate court could grant Branca and McClain permission to make the sale if they wanted, something noted in Wednesdays filing.



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Read the original article on People.
Distribution worker Barb Creamer sorts the Aug. 16, 2023, edition of the Marion County Record. The previous week, the newspaper had been raided by law enforcement. (Max McCoy/Kansas Reflector)

The public is entitled to investigative files underpinning special prosecutors report issued this month about the Marion County Record raid.

Not only has the Kansas Bureau of Investigation failed to tell the truth in multiple high-profile cases over the years, but the top echelon of law enforcement in this state has also demonstrated a reluctance  and sometimes an inability  to hold officers criminally responsible for misconduct.

This culture of unaccountability leaves Kansans vulnerable to bad cops.

Given the systemic issues plaguing Kansas law enforcement, the only way for the public to be sure the special prosecutors were justified in declining to charge all but one of the officers involved in the Marion raids is to check their work against the raw files.

From Rice to Lowrey

An early example of favoring police suspects was when the attorney general and KBI director held a press conference more than 50 years ago to tell the public it couldnt figure out who killed 18-year-old Nick Rice.

Rice was an innocent bystander shot dead during a demonstration of more than 150 students and residents near the University of Kansas that heralded the end of Lawrences Days of Rage in the summer of 1970.

Only when the KBI released the investigative files in the case in 2021  in response to a request under the Kansas Open Records Act  did the public learn that the agency had overwhelming evidence at the time that a Lawrence police officer killed him and that another Lawrence officer tampered with the only bullet recovered at the scene.

The KBIs urge to absolve officers of criminal liability doesnt appear to have waned in the ensuring decades, given discrepancies between the agencys press release confirming the officer-involved shooting death of Topekan Taylor Lowrey in 2022 and the complaint Lowreys estate filed in federal court this month.

The complaint, based on body camera footage the estate was authorized to view under Kansas law, alleges that Lowery did not raise a knife above his head and charge the responding officers in the moments before they shot him 34 times.

According to the lawsuit, Lowrey was killed while he bent over to pick up (a) wrench that had been dislodged from his hand.

Why, then, did the KBIs press release claim that Lowery was killed only after he advanced toward officers holding the knife?

Risky business

There could be many reasons why the KBI struggles to come clean to the public about officer misconduct. But the agencys disclosures in a 2021 Kansas Open Records Act lawsuit explain how the very officers suspected of wrongdoing can threaten agency investigations.

In that KORA case, the Abilene Reflector-Chronicle sued the KBI for its raw investigative files related to how $72,000 in cash seized by the local sheriffs department disappeared from the evidence room at the Dickinson County Sheriffs Office, then helmed by Gareth Hoffman. Although one of Hoffmans deputies had been convicted in 2018 of stealing more than $22,000 in cash from the evidence room, the paper was concerned that the KBI had closed its investigation without resolving how the rest of the money went missing.

(Editors note: The author represented the Abilene Reflector-Chronicle in its KORA lawsuit against the KBI.)

The KBI admitted in its answer to the lawsuit that two of its investigations into the matter had concluded, allowing the paper to argue under KORA that releasing the records was appropriate because they would not interfere with any prospective law enforcement action, criminal investigation or prosecution.

But the agency claimed under oath during the suits discovery phase that the records the paper sought had led to additional investigations, at least one of which is currently ongoing that may implicate one or more people who were suspects or witnesses in the collective previous cases.

To support its assertion, the KBI disclosed an eye-popping litany of the troubles the agency faced during its investigations into missing or stolen funds from the Dickinson County, Kansas Sheriffs Office Evidence Room and claims of evidence destruction and interference with a law enforcement investigation by former Sheriff Hoffman or his subordinates.

Investigating law enforcement  or a gang?

The KBI made clear through its disclosures in the KORA case that trying to find out what happened to the missing money was particularly dangerous because the suspects were law enforcement officers.

They are or were in an organization whose members are armed and trained to use force, including deadly force, the KBI wrote. When persons believe their participation, or even suspected participation, in a serious crime may become exposed to the public, they may resort to physical harm to those cooperating, or otherwise providing information to investigating KBI agents to exact revenge or retribution against persons who provided information.

The KBI seemed to argue that witnesses would not be forthcoming if they had a reasonable belief that information provided to law enforcement could be disclosed because of a KORA request. But that concern is surely remote compared to the threat posed to the public if KBI investigations alone can trigger retaliation that allows law enforcement suspects to avoid accountability.

In a follow-up interview between KBI agents and a Dickinson County deputy sheriff, the deputy told the KBI that after his initial interview, his relationship with command staff officers has been strained. They get up and leave if he walks in the room.

Threats of retaliation pervaded the Dickinson County investigation: One deputy was advised by commanding officers that he would be fired if he spoke about a theft. That deputy initially refused to speak with the investigating county attorney for fear of losing his job.

At another point in the investigation, one Dickinson County sergeant was asked whether he knew how the case was handled internally. He responded: Yeah, but I better not say. 

Apparently stymied by what can only be described as a cover-up, officials never charged anyone for stealing from the Dickinson County evidence room other than the deputy convicted in 2018.

Balancing the benefits of receiving the KBIs remarkable disclosures in the KORA case against the costs of continuing the open records litigation, the paper decided to end its case.

Insidious fears

One would hope that the way former Sheriff Hoffmans office deterred the KBI in Dickinson County would be an outlier. But the KBIs disclosures in the KORA case described other instances showing how law enforcement suspects are notoriously difficult to investigate, regardless of fears about public access to witness statements through open records requests.

In one instance, where a sheriffs deputy was cooperating with the KBI over allegations against his boss of official misconduct and selling a firearm to a felon, the KBI agent had to schedule an interview out of the county. During that interview, the officer was very concerned about being fired or retaliated against after the agents contacted the suspect-sheriff.

In another case in which the KBI was investigating domestic violence by a former officer, it was very difficult to get the victim to completely disclose the abuse. It was a constant challenge to make sure she would be willing to testify all the way to the moment of trial. The victim was very scared of retaliation from the suspect/husband, concerned that law enforcement officers stick together and that no one would believe her.

But its not just witnesses who face retaliation from law enforcement suspects.

The KBI does, too.

In another case involving the arrest and prosecution of a police chief, the case was riddled with witnesses or people scared to testify against the suspect. The former chief even retaliated against the investigating agent and a person inside the police department that was giving information.

According to the KBI, victims and witnesses are sometimes so afraid of retaliation by law enforcement suspects that the prospect of bringing charges in open court becomes daunting if not impossible. For example, in a case where a subordinate had reported to the KBI concerns of bullying and official misconduct by a police chief, the victim was very concerned that  as soon as the information was in the public and the suspect knew who disclosed it  retaliation and further bullying would occur. The fear of the witness statements and information becoming public made it difficult to investigate the case.

Fear of reprisal on this scale renders the criminal justice system ineffective because no one is willing to come forward. Public safety suffers as a result.

The difficulties described above stand in stark contrast to what the KBIs communications director Melissa Underwood wrote last week when asked for comment: The KBI investigates allegations made against public officials in the same objective manner, by identifying and documenting facts, whether it involves a public official, a homicide suspect, or a crime committed against a child.

Such investigations are a fundamental role of the KBI, Underwood added, and one that we are proud of our agents for navigating with fairness and impartiality.

Restoring public trust

The KBIs claims of objectivity and fairness ring hollow given its willingness to play fast and loose with the facts when officers killed Nick Rice and Taylor Lowery, and the difficulties it faces when it tries to bring bad cops to justice.

Reform is needed for the KBI to overcome its fears about investigating rogue cops. Otherwise, the public cannot reasonably expect to be protected from bad actors in law enforcement.

Until then, the public has little choice but to clamor for the release of the raw investigative files underpinning the Marion investigation. At this point, the documents are the only hope of challenging or verifying special prosecutors conclusions that just one officer deserved to be charged with a single crime for what happened on Aug. 11, 2023.

Max Kautsch focuses his practice on First Amendment rights and open government law. Through its opinion section, the Kansas Reflector works to amplify the voices of people who are affected by public policies or excluded from public debate. Find information, including how to submit your own commentary, here.

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KANSAS CITY, Mo.  A competitive bicyclist continues to recover after a two-week hospital stay.

Nate Prater, 43, is out of the hospital after an August 7 collision with a flatbed truck.

Prater, who rides in various bicycle races in the Kansas City metro, was riding his gravel bike on some trails near Pleasant Hill. Those trails, according to the Cass County Sheriffs Department, have small driveways, which are like side streets meant for farm traffic.

Prater said he never saw the truck that he collided with. The crash left him with a fractured shoulder, broken bones in his face and near his eyes, and a jaw thats still wired shut. Prater said he has at least two more surgeries ahead of him.

Boy under the age of 15 fighting for life after shooting in Kansas City

He said trauma doctors at the University of Kansas Health System were immediately optimistic about his chances to recover.

What they told me was  you are strong. Thats what I remember anyway. You are strong, and were going to get you through this, Prater said on Wednesday, one day after his release from he hospital.

Ironically, Prater knows that hospital well. Hes worked for the University of Kansas Health System as a respiratory therapist for 13 years. He even met his wife there.

I was convinced that my father had passed away, Maddie Prater, Nates daughter, said. My dad is a very strong person and has always been a super strong, God-fearing person.

The Cass County Sheriffs Department indicates the driver of that truck was cooperative with the crash investigation.

See the latest headlines in Kansas City and across Kansas, Missouri

As for Prater, he said he owes his family, his faith in God and his co-workers at the hospital for helping him survive this ordeal.

Friends of the Prater family have started this GoFundMe page to assist with mounting medical costs.

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Keeping the flames at bay when theres just one way out in a wildfire

Smoke from the Taylor Bridge wildfire rises east of Cle Elum, Washington. That 2012 wildfire burned many homes between Cle Elum and Ellensburg. (Jessica Payne/Washington Department of Natural Resources)

Smoke from the Taylor Bridge wildfire rises east of Cle Elum, Washington. That 2012 wildfire burned many homes between Cle Elum and Ellensburg. (Jessica Payne/Washington Department of Natural Resources)

Darren Higashiyama gets paid to dwell on worst-case scenarios.

This time of year, when lightning flashes over tinder-dry forests and canyons dotted with cabins and campgrounds, the thought of a blocked wildfire evacuation route can keep him up at night.

All you need is one jack-knifed trailer and it screws up everything, Higashiyama, emergency management coordinator for the Kittitas County Sheriffs Office, said in an interview from Ellensburg, Washington.

We are in a fire-prone area, he added. We have dodged a lot of bullets, but luck is not a plan.

With this in mind, Kittitas County has embarked on a noteworthy, federally-funded project to thin forests and clear brush along two-lane roads in the Cle Elum, Roslyn and Suncadia area that would be the only escape routes for rural homeowners, hikers and campers were another big wildfire to break out nearby.

Several other Pacific Northwest counties also won competitive federal grants to systematically harden wildfire evacuation routes.

The U.S. Forest Service awarded Kittitas and Ferry counties $10 million each to implement a community wildfire defense plan.

Grant County, Oregon, likewise got $10 million. In its case to reduce flammable vegetation along 308 road miles that serve as evacuation routes.

Adjacent, thinly populated Wheeler County, Oregon, got $1 million to buy a new tractor with a long boom and attachments that can mow and mulch up to 50 feet from the road shoulder. Wheeler County pledged to clean up 250 miles of escape corridors at a pace of 50 miles per year.

The focus on wildfire evacuation routes can be traced back to a 2018 tragedy in northern California where 84 residents died as wind-whipped flames destroyed a mountain town with inadequate egress. Some of the deaths occurred when flames overtook cars attempting to flee the burning town.

It was the fire in Paradise, California, that really put it on our radar, said Mike Starkovich, a former fire management officer for the Cle Elum Ranger District. Its staring you in the face. Oh boy, I see similarities here.

That was the match that ignited things, so to speak, added Starkovich, who now works as a forest fuels specialist for the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest.

Last month, the tense evacuation of Canadas famed Jasper National Park provided another reminder of why to care about this.

There, thousands of workers and visitors were forced to flee west with little notice on a clogged mountain highway through darkness, smoke and falling ash. Multiple fast-growing wildfires bore down on the Jasper townsite and blocked alternate routes to the east and south. Luckily, no one perished.

Its obvious that we have to work on that, Starkovich said in an interview. We want to minimize intense flames up to the roadway to be able to get people moving and then use it as a control line.

Starkovich said the benefits of maintaining a passable road go both ways. Not only do you want evacuees to be able to get out, but responders need to drive toward the emergency safely.

Strengthening an evacuation route against wildfire

Kittitas County Fire District 1 Chief Brandon Schmidt said area fire chiefs collaborated with local, state and federal agencies to prioritize a list of evacuation routes to work on with the federal grant. He would like to see hired crews thin spindly trees and clear brush as far back as landowners will allow, but at least 50 feet from the road edge.

Were not going to clearcut. Some people are worried about that and how it will look, Schmidt said.

He said the prescription, as it is called in the lingo, entails removing and chipping downed limbs and snags. Brush and skinny, sickly saplings, known as ladder fuels, also get cleared out.

Schmidt said live, green trees thicker than 8 inches at chest height would be left standing, but limbed up to about 15 feet off the ground. The ultimate goal is to replace thick, overcrowded forest with an open understory that minimizes fire intensity if a wildfire approaches the road and reduces the potential for a crown fire.

Before and after a wildfire: A thick forest hillside before thinning (top) and (bottom) the view from Forest Service Road 9738 after thinning, near Blewett Pass in Washington. (Mike Starkovich/U.S. Department of Agriculture's Forest Service)

Ranked highest on Kittitas Countys list of evacuation routes to strengthen against wildfire is state Highway 903 from Roslyn to Salmon La Sac. That tree-lined, two-lane paved road is the only way in and out for hundreds of homes and cabins in the Cle Elum Lake vicinity. The road also serves popular national forest campgrounds and trailheads at the head of the lake.

North Cle Elum Ridge and South Cle Elum Ridge are other priority places served by narrow, winding access roads. The county has experienced brisk population growth and heavy recreational use as people move or retire from urban western Washington to their little slice of heaven on the sunny side of the mountains.

The Kittitas County Conservation District is managing the contracting of the wildfire defense work under district manager Anna Lael. She estimated the project would take five years to complete.

Lael said she would strive to coordinate thinning projects with the U.S. Forest Service since many of the prioritized evacuation routes cross federal land. The thought being that the countys grant money would be used on private and local and state government-owned lands and utility rights-of-way while the Forest Service could add its own resources to link up and extend the work onto its land.

Starkovich said fire fuels reduction work along roads that could be needed for evacuations has become a priority over the length of the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest.

Schmidt said one factor that could slow things down is needing to get permission from each private landowner with road frontage before the chippers, weed whackers and chainsaws rev up there.

Thats going to be one of the tougher parts of this, that coordination with landowners, Lael added.

Another wrinkle is the heavy competition for landscaping and thinning crews right now because of the broader emphasis on building fuel breaks in the woods on the outskirts of foothill towns. The long-standing Firewise program continues to work with homeowners groups to modify the landscaping around individual homes to withstand wildfires, too.

Its exciting to see this work rolling out the door, Lael said. We need to build up the momentum because its a lot of work to be completed.

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On Wednesday, comedian and actor Kenan Thompson highlighted some of Project 2025s unjust policies that will affect many Americans nationwide.

When the Saturday Night Live mainstay came on stage during the third night of the Democratic National Convention, the words Stop Project 2025 appeared on the screen behind him. He held a book that symbolized the 920-page proposal drafted by The Heritage Foundation and many people from former President Donald Trumps administration. Thompson referred to the proposition as the Republican blueprint for a second Trump term.

You ever seen a document that can kill a small animal and democracy at the same time? Thompson asked the audience. Here it is. You know how when you download an app and there are hundreds of pages there that you dont read; its just terms and conditions, and you just click Agree right? Well, these are the terms and conditions of a second Trump presidency. You vote for him, you vote for all of this. Lets take a look.

Following this introduction, American citizens joined him virtually to discuss how Project 2025 would impact their lives.

After audio problems with the first person, he spoke with Becky, who said, My wife and I have been together for about eight years.

Thompson said he had some bad news for her: On Page 584, Project 2025 calls for the elimination of protections for LGBTQ+ Americans, he told Becky as the audience booed loudly. So yeah, right back to the Stone Age, he added.

He next spoke with Nirvana, who has diabetes and uses insulin to manage her chronic disease. During her segment, she praised and credited President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris for the $35 charge she pays monthly for the life-saving necessity.

That is great. That is great, but on Page 465, Project 2025 calls for millions of people like yourself to pay more for prescription drugs like insulin, Thompson revealed.

When she asked why, he responded, Well, I guess maybe to help Big Pharma make more money that they can donate to Republican politicians, I assume.

Then, he chatted with an OB-GYN named Anita, who delivers babies.

Uh-oh, Thompson remarked.

Its bad news, isnt it? Anita asked.

It sure is! On Page 459, Project 2025 resurrects a law from the 1800s called the Comstock Act to ban abortion nationwide and throw healthcare providers in jail, to more audience booing.

He lastly spoke with Sharia, a proud civil servant and proud union president who works in the U.S. Department of Education.

Well, unfortunately for you, on Page 78, Project 2025 calls for President Trump to purge the civil service of everyone who isnt a MAGA loyalist, the All That alum shared. Also, Page 319 calls for the complete elimination of the Department of Education, he continued.

Thompson concluded his nearly seven-minute moment on the Democratic National Convention stage by addressing the negative consequences of voting for Trump and JD Vance.

Theres a bunch of stuff in here, but thats all we have time for at the moment, he said. Just remember, everything that we just talked about is very real. It is in this book. You can read it online at kamalaharris.com/project2025 and most importantly you can stop it from ever happening by electing Kamala Harris as the next president of the United States.

Watch Kenan Thompsons Democratic National Convention appearance below.
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)  A Kenmore woman was sentenced to 1 1/3 to 4 years in prison Thursday for selling fentanyl-laced cocaine that led to a fatal overdose, the Erie County District Attorneys Office announced.

Ashley M. Holmes, 36, sold a quantity of fentanyl-laced cocaine to Robert R. Chimera, 47, which caused the victim to fatally overdose on Linden Avenue in Buffalo. Holmes was arrested on Aug. 19, 2023 following an investigation into Chimeras death.

Holmes received the maximum sentence after pleading guilty to one count of criminally negligent homicide in June.

Far too many people in Erie County have died from an opioid overdose, said Acting Erie County District Attorney Mike Keane in a release.

This case highlights the need for the passage of Chelseys Law. This defendant knowingly sold cocaine mixed with a deadly amount of fentanyl to her friend, which resulted in his tragic death. If this legislation had been in effect, we could have charged this defendant with manslaughter, and if convicted she would have faced up to 15 years in prison. I will continue to urge our state legislators to pass Chelseys Law, which will help New York State prosecutors hold drug dealers who sell lethal drugs like fentanyl accountable for these deaths.

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Adam Gorski is a Buffalo native who joined the WIVB News 4 team in 2022. You can find more of his work here.

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Many Kentucky churches are losing members and money, but theyre hoping taxpayers will vote to bail them out of their financial problems.

Church lobbyists pushed Amendment 2 onto the November ballot, and if their scheme passes, hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars will flow into questionable religious schools operated in church basements across the Commonwealth.

Judging by whats happening in other states, Kentucky would likely pay churches at least $8,000 in public money for each child in their schools, but many of the teachers in the schools will be untrained volunteers recruited from church congregations.

Unfortunately, the schools will have no accountability when those teachers fail to teach and students fail to learn.

Paul Prather, the insightful writer who is pastor of Bethesda Church in Montgomery County, recently discussed data showing that only about five percent of Americans regularly attend church. (Regularly means attending services at least three out of four weeks.)

As in the rest of the country, few Kentuckians regularly attend church, and even fewer put their children in church schools. However, if Amendment 2 passes, politicians will force every Kentucky taxpayer to pay for two school systems  one public, and one consisting of schools run by Baptist and Catholic churches.

The churches, which pay no taxes to anybody, would use taxpayer dollars to teach their religious doctrine to students they choose to allow into their schools.

Thats right  the school choice behind Amendment 2 may belong to the church schools, which can choose the children they want and reject the ones they dont want.

Even worse, a church school could accept a childs voucher money, then for reasons real or contrived, they could kick the child out a month or two into the school year and keep the tax dollars they already collected.

Sadly, there are examples of this failed voucher scheme across the river in Indiana and Ohio, and in other states like Arizona, Florida, and Wisconsin.

Indiana and Ohio give tax-funded vouchers to just about anybody, regardless of income, so the vast majority of voucher money is enriching well-off families whose children already attend church schools.

In the 2023-24 school year, Indiana paid $439 million in tax dollars to private schools, with church schools grabbing 98 percent of that amount, and almost 70 percent of it paid for students who previously attended private school without a voucher.

Like Indiana, Ohios spending on private schools grew dramatically after politicians opened the voucher program to everybody, regardless of income. In just four years, overall spending on vouchers nearly doubled, going from $557.5 million to a projected $1.05 billion in FY 2025, and close to 100 percent of the money goes to church schools.

Arizona opened its taxpayer-funded voucher program to everybody in 2022, helping create a $1.4 billion budget hole that caused severe cuts for state universities, cancellation of road projects, school construction, and water infrastructure projects.

As in the other states, more than 70 percent of Arizona voucher recipients were already enrolled in private schools (90 percent in church schools) and had been paying for it without a handout from taxpayers.

Florida spends really big on vouchers  $3 billion in the 2023-24 school year, with 82 percent of voucher recipients attending a church school.

In Wisconsin this year, taxpayers will pay $12,731 for each voucher student in grades 9-12, and 96 percent of the money goes to church schools.

With politicians diverting more than $700 million per year to private schools, Wisconsins local school districts are frequently forced to ask residents to raise their property taxes to make up for lost state contributions.

Seeing these examples of taxpayer dollars flowing into unaccountable and mediocre church schools, Kentucky voters would be financially and morally smart to vote NO on Amendment 2.

John Schaaf is a retired attorney and co-author of Hidden History of Kentucky Political Scandals (The History Press). His email is John.Schaaf1975@gmail.com.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (FOX 56)  After a nearly 18-year journey from beating cancer to a liver transplant, a Kentucky father has returned to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota.

Elijah Taylor was diagnosed with cancer in 2006 and required chemotherapy, radiation, and eventually a liver transplant. According to GoFundMe, Taylors mother was able to be a live donor and both made a full recovery.

Read more of the latest Lexington & central Kentucky news

But on July 4, Taylor began to experience pain in his side. After a trip to the emergency room, Taylors family said doctors discovered a blood clot in the artery of his liver. After unsuccessful treatment attempts in Louisville and Lexington, it was determined that hed need to return to the Mayo Clinic, per the fundraiser. The clinic sent its critical care jet to Lexington and Taylor found himself in a hospital bed until further notice.

Many more tests and many more scary moments later, it was determined that the liver was irreparably damaged and a second transplant was needed, Beth Searcy, the fundraiser organizer, wrote.

On July 26, Taylor received his second liver transplant. But doctors warned that recovery would be harder the second go-round, and that is definitely proving true, Searcy said.

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There have been steps forward and steps backward since then. Hopeful progress and scary setbacks, both. But day by day he is slowly improving, she said.

His wife, Elizabeth, wrote on their Caring Bridge page that theyve experienced feeding tube and stomach complications since the procedure. Shes thankful hes begun to sit up on his own and walk with assistance, but, they still have a long way to go.

According to Searcy, its estimated that Taylor will remain at the Mayo Clinic until at least September. She decided to start a GoFundMe to assist with living and travel expenses so his children could also visit.

For more information on how you can contribute, click here.

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Kentucky Gov. Beshear shows support for Gov. Walz ahead of his DNC debut as Harris running mate

LEXINGTON, Ky. (FOX 56)  Its day three of the Democratic National Convention, and its been a big week for top Democratic leaders.

Gov. Andy Beshears speech on Monday night catapulted him back into the spotlight after he wasnt selected as Kamala Harris possible VP.

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On Wednesday, Beshear watched as a delegate while another governor took the number two spot on the ballot.

Beshear addressed the delegates on Monday night, but Wednesday is all about his friend, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who is expected to accept his bid to run as Vice President with Kamala Harris.

Beshear and Walz have had a very productive friendship over the past few years.

Although Walz is in the spot that Beshear was also being considered for, its clear the Kentucky governor is happy with the current Democratic ticket.

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When youre a guy like Tim, Tim helped me get reelected last year. Hes hes been out there all across the country doing great work, Beshear said. Minnesota has one of the lowest unemployment rates right now ever. So hes proven that hes an effective leader for all the people. Im really excited about it.

As the DNC continues, Beshear looks back on the messaging thats come out of it so far.

Read more of the latest news in politics

I think what youre hearing is not left, not right, but forward. Youre hearing a message of hope, a message of unity, and a message of trying to push politics that can help everyone, Beshear said.

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Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds and her administration have put forth a thorough plan to reduce child hunger. They say the proposal would stretch tax dollars further, serve more children than a federal alternative called Summer EBT, and attack specific shortcomings of Summer EBTs offerings. Its a serious plan, and it deserves serious evaluation.

But that acknowledgment is fully consistent with the response stakeholders have been giving Reynolds in the week since the plans release: Why go to the trouble of the state creating its own food delivery system when the federal government has a program that works well for Iowa families? Why risk the federal government rejecting the state's plan and leaving Iowa kids without needed food for a second straight summer? In this case, the easy thing is the right thing: Please, governor, just take the money.

Summer EBTs premise is simple: The government sends out debit cards so eligible households can have an extra $120 per child to spend on food during the summer months, when kids dont get free or reduced-price breakfast and lunch at school. In Iowas case, about 240,000 children would get almost $29 million. The state contributes a relative pittance to help with administrative costs.

Iowa said no to that assistance this summer, instead investing $900,000 in expanding local projects, which it says has resulted in about 50% more nutritious meals and snacks being served than in 2023. Now the governor has asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture to forgo Summer EBT participation again in summer 2025, but to use the program's money in a completely different way, filling and distributing food boxes instead.

Reynolds is right to recognize that Iowas need is so great that it demands the use of federal resources. She is right to look for ways to innovate and seek efficiency. But she continues to be wrong in declining Summer EBT and depriving low-income children. Period.

More: We spent the day at a Des Moines food pantry amid record demand. Here's what we saw:

Kim Reynolds' moves have cut off needed aid before

Summer EBT did not emerge from nowhere. Work on the program stretches back to 2011. The current version, for practical purposes, took the place of a similar aid initiative that was in place during the COVID-19 pandemic. As recently as September 2023, Iowa families received EBT cards to help with grocery purchases.

Reynolds has consistently failed to recognize how meaningful COVID-related financial assistance was to many Iowans or how prevalent poverty remains the further we get from the start of the pandemic. She ended Iowas state of emergency in winter 2022, months before other states and the federal government, a move that slashed Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for thousands of Iowans. She refused to participate in Summer EBT for this year, unlike dozens of other governors, including Nebraskas Jim Pillen, who yielded to dissent over his initial refusal to participate, saying we have to do better in Nebraska.

People who work in food assistance were among the many lobbying Reynolds to just take the money for 2025. On Aug. 15, the date of an application deadline, Reynolds instead announced the request to USDA for a waiver to use the money on food-box distribution.

More: Kim Reynolds should have taken federal money to help kids eat in the summer

What are the details of Iowa's summer meals proposal?

Assessing the usefulness of various approaches to hunger is far more complex than tallying up spending. Nutrition, efficiency, eligibility and convenience are all relevant quantitative and qualitative measures:

Obesity and nutrition. This has been one of the main friction points between Iowa and USDA: Reynolds explicitly cited Iowa childhood obesity figures in her announcements for 2024 and 2025. Everybody agrees that obesity is hurting the current and future well-being of too many Iowa children. But food assistance experts have said that any plan that results in some food insecure children going hungry isnt acceptable. More pertinently, USDA says its analysis of EBT spending shows more purchases of fruits and vegetables and no meaningful change in sugar consumption. Iowans can be trusted to use the funds responsibly. Finally, nutritious should not be treated as a binary: Nutrient-dense foods could have downsides, and something less than ideal is not synonymous with harmful.

Efficiency and convenience. Reynolds says that by buying at wholesale prices, the state can get much more food for the state boxes for the same amount of money, compared with sending families to grocery stores. This is the most compelling argument in Iowas proposal. A letter to USDA said that wholesale prices can be as little as one-third of store costs. We should absolutely be interested in getting as much food as possible from scarce dollars. The proposal also envisions front-door delivery for families with inconsistent transportation. That idea is a worthy use of state infrastructure and should be explored, but the convenience of the debit cards for most families seems hard to match.

Eligibility. Another selling point of Iowas proposal for next year is that about 25% more children would be eligible for the food boxes than for Summer EBT. That's good, but the state shouldn't require families to opt in or require paperwork to prove eligibility (the state's letter describes an "online, user-friendly enrollment process"). Summer EBT cards generally go to families whose children already are receiving free or reduced-price school lunches.

Whatever happens must help every child who is food insecure

The backdrop for all this is that Iowa food pantries keep setting use records. First-time visitors continue to pour in.

USDA has set up an excellent program in Summer EBT that addresses this precise issue. It could be argued that all of us should be embarrassed that we didnt demand such a service many years earlier, since we know that free and reduced-price school lunches are essential anti-hunger tools and that students continue to need food after school lets out.

In that context, debate of the new proposal shouldnt cause anybody to forget that Reynolds' rejection of Summer EBT completely for 2024 was unconscionable. Nobody was served by this choice. Tax dollars Iowans sent to Washington remained in Washington instead of helping Iowans. No matter what services pilot programs did or did not provide, low-income families had $120 per child less to spend on food.

The new state of affairs could be better, or just as bad. We take Reynolds office and USDA officials at their word that Iowas waiver request will get a fair and detail-intensive hearing. If the answer is yes, Iowa and the USDA are responsible for ensuring that the different approach is beneficial for not just most recipients, but all of them. And if the answer is no, Reynolds must just take the money.

Lucas Grundmeier, on behalf of the Registers editorial board

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Gov. Kim Reynolds should just say yes: Take the Summer EBT food money
BEIJING, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Showing off all kinds of human-like interactions and skills, such as making heart gestures and winking at the audience, as well as cooking meals and performing calligraphy, 27 different humanoid robots have become the most buzz-worthy exhibits at the ongoing 2024 World Robot Conference in Beijing.

Over the years, global powerhouses of technology and innovation have competed fiercely to roll out human-like robot products and accelerated their iteration. The global market for humanoid robots is expected to hit 154 billion U.S. dollars by 2035, investment bank Goldman Sachs predicts.

Leveraging the advantages in its industry chain, consumption scenarios, databases and policy support, China is growing into an active force that cannot be ignored in the global industry of humanoid robots.

For a long time before 2022, China's humanoid robot industry remained at the stage of basic research and technology accumulation, and the leading products were mostly small robots for education, along with a modest number of full-size humanoid robots for experiments, exhibitions or performances.

However, starting in 2023, the industry entered its breakout period, with the industrial scale surging to 3.91 billion yuan (about 549 million U.S. dollars), up 85.7 percent year on year, according to research on the ecological development of the Chinese humanoid robot industry issued this year by the China Center for Information Industry Development (CCID) under China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT).

Early last month, the 5G smart factory of Chinese electric vehicle brand Zeekr welcomed its new "employees" -- the industrial humanoid robot Walker S Lite developed by UBTECH Robotics Corp., Ltd., a leading robotics firm based in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province. With a maximum load of 15 kg, Walker S Lite can assist workers in carrying work bins.

The 5G smart factory is the fourth automobile plant that UBTECH has cooperated with this year. Previously, the company's humanoid robot Walker S had been integrated into industrial operations at the factories of Chinese electric carmaker NIO, Dongfeng Liuzhou Motor and FAW-Volkswagen.

Industry insiders said that 2024 is expected to become a key year for humanoid robots to venture out of labs into workshops.

"China boasts a large enough market and the world's best industrial supply chain, which is very conducive to the large-scale production of cost-effective products," said Jiao Jichao, vice president of UBTECH.

Data from Qichacha, a business data platform in China, shows that the country is now home to nearly 720,000 robot-related businesses. Among them, more than 20 enterprises are now producing complete humanoid robot products.

China has gained a first-mover advantage in the humanoid robot market that is basically consistent with developed countries, said Zhong Xinlong, an AI expert at CCID Consulting, a think tank under the MIIT.

As of July, China had more than 190,000 effective robot-related patents, accounting for about two-thirds of the world's total, Xin Guobin, vice minister of the MIIT, said at the 2024 World Robot Conference. A report released by a research institute under People.cn last year showed that China has taken a lead in humanoid robot technology worldwide, ranking first in the number of patent applications and valid patents.

As enterprises forge ahead on the new track of humanoid robots, the country has beefed up policy support for industrial development. China aims to establish a preliminary innovation system for humanoid robots by 2025, according to a guideline from the MIIT. By 2027, the country will see a secure and reliable industrial and supply chain system, and related products will be deeply integrated into the real economy.

Under policy guidance, various regions across the country are accelerating their efforts in the humanoid robot industry.

At the end of last year, China's first innovation center focused on core technologies, product development and application ecosystems for humanoid robots -- the Beijing Embodied Artificial Intelligence Robotics Innovation Center, or HUMANOID -- was established in the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area.

Platforms like HUMANOID will share common breakthrough achievements with the whole industry, so that more enterprises can "stand on the shoulders of giants," which is conducive to the rapid development of the industry as a whole, said Xiong Youjun, the center's general manager.

Since the beginning of this year, manufacturing provinces such as Zhejiang, Shandong, Anhui and Sichuan have caught up by establishing innovation centers featuring industry-university-research-application integration.

"With the collaborative innovation of all parties, as well as the accelerated gathering of policy, capital and other factors, China's humanoid robot industry will also enter a period of active innovation," said Wang Jianing, a tech investment expert. "On the one hand, breakthroughs in core technologies are being made constantly, and on the other hand, the industry is also actively exploring a commercialization path suited to national conditions."

Experts forecast that the humanoid robot industry may usher in explosive growth in the next decade. According to a report released at the First Chinese Humanoid Robot Industry Conference in April, the market scale of the humanoid robot industry in China is predicted to reach 75 billion yuan by 2029, accounting for 32.7 percent of the world's total.

"With continuous accumulation, iteration and optimization, we are confident that we can accelerate alongside the global humanoid robot industry and excel in the sector," said Jiao. 
The Kremlin has launched a complicated information campaign aimed at justifying to its domestic audience why Russia prefers to hold the initiative in Ukraines east rather than immediately driving out Ukrainian troops from Russias Kursk Oblast.

Source: Institute for the Study of War(ISW)

Quote: "Russian government sources close to the Russian Presidential Administration told Russian independent outlet Meduza that the Kremlin is actively trying to condition Russian society to accept the limited Ukrainian presence in Kursk Oblast as a new normal and downplay the significance of the incursion."

Details: Reports from Meduzas sources suggest that the Kremlin plans to utilise propaganda to convince the Russian public that the recapture of these territories by Russian forces is inevitable following Ukraines eventual defeat in the east.

Sources also revealed that the Kremlin is shifting the focus of fellow Russians away from concerns in Kursk Oblast by rallying domestic efforts towards humanitarian aid for residents affected by the situation. It was also noted that the Kremlin decided against cancelling the upcoming governor elections in Kursk Oblast, set for September, to avoid causing alarm in the region.

Despite this, the Russian Central Election Commission has opted to delay local elections in the seven districts within Kursk Oblast affected by the Ukrainian advance, citing safety concerns.

Russian state-owned media are increasingly framing Kursk Oblast and its inhabitants as strong supporters of the ongoing war against Ukraine, even though they are experiencing some minor disruptions to their usual routines. Notably, Russian state television is characterising the Ukrainian incursion into Kursk Oblast as a contained operation, while emphasising Russian gains on the Pokrovsk front, which are being portrayed as significant victories.

The Kremlins communication strategy may be designed to buy time and create space to address the Ukrainian advance into Kursk Oblast, likely waiting until they have completed their objectives in Ukraines east before responding.

Insiders told Meduza that the Kremlin had been initially caught off guard and concerned by Ukraines incursion into Kursk Oblast. However, within a week, their anxiety had subsided as the Ukrainian forces progress remained distant from densely populated areas such as the city of Kursk.

Meduza further reported that officials interviewed believe the ongoing fighting in Kursk Oblast will continue at its current intensity for several months, implying that the Kremlin may not be in a rush to push Ukrainian forces out of the region and will likely maintain its focus on offensive operations in Ukraines east.

Quote: "Putin notably appears to be demanding that Russia defeat Ukraines incursion into Kursk Oblast without sacrificing the stability of his regime, deprioritising the offensive in Ukraines east, or firing his incompetent but loyal lieutenants.

The results of such a strategy are too early to forecast. Meduzas sources also noted that the Kremlin also considered the need for a new mobilisation wave at the start of the incursion, but that the Russian Cabinet of Ministers and Kremlin-affiliated businessmen immediately opposed general mobilisation due to ongoing labour shortages in Russia  although it is unclear whether Kremlin even considered this argument."

To quote the ISWs Key Takeaways on 21 August:

The Kremlin appears to have launched an intricate messaging campaign aimed at justifying to its domestic audience why Russia is prioritising maintaining the initiative in Ukraines east over immediately expelling Ukrainian forces from Kursk Oblast.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin notably appears to be demanding that Russia defeat Ukraines incursion into Kursk Oblast without sacrificing the stability of his regime, deprioritising the offensive in Ukraines east, or firing his incompetent but loyal lieutenants. The results of such a strategy are too early to forecast.

Ukrainian forces continued offensive operations throughout the Kursk Oblast salient on 21 August and have made additional marginal advances.

Putin visited the Republic of Chechnya for the first time in 13 years on 20 August, likely in an effort to shift domestic focus away from the Ukrainian incursion into Kursk Oblast and posture normalcy and stability.

Recent US intelligence assessments highlight Ukraine's efforts to develop alternative and asymmetric capabilities in the face of Russian manpower and materiel advantages, as well as Ukraine's continued dependence on Western security assistance.

Ukraine continues efforts to attrit Russia's air defence and aircraft capabilities.

Russian authorities may have attempted to block Telegram and other non-Russian internet communications services on 21 August.

The Russian government is reportedly supporting a bill that would allow Russian authorities to draw up administrative protocols against Russian citizens who violate Russian law while living abroad.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin and People's Republic of China (PRC) Premier Li Qiang discussed deepening bilateral economic and trade relations in Moscow on 21 August.

Russian forces recently advanced southeast of Pokrovsk, southwest of the city of Donetsk, and northeast of Robotyne.

Russian occupation authorities continue to create Cossack organisations in occupied Ukraine, likely to build out Russia's military reserves and law enforcement bodies in occupied Ukraine.

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Thursdays Top Stories

Thursdays Five Facts

[1] Report: New Mexico missed out on $405 million from oil and gas revenue  Over the last three years, New Mexico has had more oil production than any other state including Texas, according to the State Land Office. Last year the state earned nearly $14 billion from the industry, according to the NM oil and gas association. The land office says that number should be higher. The land office has tried to pass a bill that would increase the states royalty rates from 20% to 25%. If the bill passes in the next legislative session, New Mexico could see more in oil revenue each year.

[2] BernCo DA pushes for stricter juvenile state code aimed at teens with guns  District Attorney Sam Bregman says the New Mexico childrens code was adopted in the 1970s and not equipped to tackle the crimes teens are committing today. Bregmans office is proposing changes to the code, including tougher penalties for juveniles charged with murder, sexual assault and DWI vehicular homicide. The DAs office says they plan to present their completed proposals to the governor and lawmakers by mid-October.

[3] Rain & cooler air creeping closer to Rio Grande Valley  As temperatures across the region rise from the morning school commute into the 70s, 80s, 90s, and above 100 degrees for some areas by the afternoon, more moisture in the air that is mostly confined to the west, along with plenty of daytime heating, will lead to slightly more areas receiving rainfall.

[4] APS launches reunification cards for school pick-ups after an emergency  APS is rolling out a new way to reunite students with their parents during a crisis. APS is launching reunification cards for when parents have to pick up their kids in a controlled release after an emergency, like extreme weather, power outages or crime. Soon parents will get two reunification cards that are unique to each student, with a name and bar code. In emergency situations, parents will get an alert on where and when to pick up students. They will need to bring their ID and reunification card to the pickup location.

[5] Tourism to New Mexico state parks on the rise  The director of New Mexicos state parks division is giving lawmakers a picture of the economic impact the state parks have on communities. There are 35 state parks in New Mexico, ranging across 25 counties. The director says tourism to the state parks is on the rise, but we still trail behind other southwestern 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 KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos.
As Kwame Kilpatrick campaigns for Republicans, feds accuse him of lying about his address

Just hours before he spoke at a Republican function, former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was accused of being dishonest again  this time about his address.

Specifically, federal prosecutors allege in a new court filing that Kilpatrick  who pleaded guilty to perjury in the text message scandal that drove him from office  is pretending to live in Georgia to thwart efforts to collect nearly $832,000 in restitution owed from his public corruption case.

The allegation surfaced shortly before Kilpatrick took the stage at the Oakland County Republican Party's Lincoln Day dinner in Novi, where, according to GOP organizers, the ex-mayor was to talk about his repentance and redemption.

Federal prosecutors, meanwhile, painted a different picture of Kilpatrick in federal court records, portraying him as an untruthful debt dodger who still owes taxpayers nearly $1 million.

"The Government strongly suspects he simply seeks to delay the inevitable, and only waste time and resources," Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Nathan wrote in a filing that surfaced shortly before Kilpatrick's scheduled speech at the Lincoln Day dinner.

"Although Kilpatrick has claimed a residence in Georgia, the address he claims to be his residence is listed for sale and appears to be staged or vacant," Nathan wrote, maintaining Kilpatrick really lives in Novi, and that his Georgia home is listed for sale at $499,000.

Here's why Kilpatrick's address is important to the government.

Kwame Kilpatrick urges his audience to support Donald Trump for president during a meeting at Lelli's Inn on the Green in Farmington Hills on June 24, 2024.

Earlier this year, investigators discovered roughly $6,700 in cash that it says it found while searching for assets to pay off the ex-mayors debt to taxpayers. The government wants to keep the money, but Kilpatrick says it's not entitled to it.

Moreover, Kilpatrick maintains he doesn't owe any debt to the federal government, and has requested a hearing in Georgia to resolve the matter. That's where the ex-mayor says he has lived since 2021, when former President Donald Trump commuted his 28-year prison sentence and set him free  a favor that Kilpatrick, a lifelong Democrat, appears to be paying back by campaigning for Trump in Michigan.

Prosecutors allege Kilpatrick has been living here for months, and says it has returned mail to prove it. For example, it says mail from the U.S. Attorney's office to Kilpatrick's address in Georgia has either been returned, or forwarded and re-routed back to Michigan.

"In addition, Mr. Kilpatrick was recently photographed in the Detroit area attending public events in March and June, and his address for court mail is directed to Northville, Michigan," wrote Nathan, who included pieces of returned mail in her court filing, along with photos of Kilpatrick's vacant Georgia home and a Metro Times article about Kilpatrick's $807,000 home in Novi, topped with this headline: Kwame Kilpatrick's wife buys enormous house in Novi despite former mayor's unpaid restitution.

Kilpatrick, meanwhile, steadfastly maintains he owes no debt.

"I don't believe I owe the government any monies," Kilpatrick has argued in a past court filing. "I believe treasury funds and other money are exempt from garnishment."

According to the federal government, Kilpatrick still owes $831,913.70 for crimes he was convicted of more than a decade ago, including bribery, extortion and fraud. His last restitution payment of $150 was made in March.

Kilpatrick's restitution matter is before U.S. District Judge Nancy Edmunds, who has not shown him much mercy over the years: She locked him up for 28 years  one of the stiffest public corruption sentences in U.S. history  and has lambasted him multiple times for, as she sees it, living large while ignoring his debts and refusing to acknowledge responsibility for his crimes.

"(Kilpatrick) has a history of spending his money on a lavish lifestyle rather than paying off his obligations. (He) has only made a little over $5,000 in payments towards his restitution obligation in this case. Yet, as recently as 2022, (Kilpatrick) and his wife sought to raise $800,000 to purchase a residence in a gated, luxury community in Orlando, Florida," Edmunds wrote in an order last year, in which she denied Kilpatrick's request to end his supervised release early so he could travel more freely as a pastor.

Kilpatrick was freed 20 years early in 2021 after Trump granted him an early release, concluding he had paid his debt to society. Trump, however, did not erase Kilpatrick's restitution debt, which was once pegged at close to $4.8 million and was later reduced to $1.5 million.

Much of that has been satisfied by Kilpatrick's co-defendant and longtime friend, Bobby Ferguson  though the government is trying to collect it all and has even sought to seize funds held by PayPal and the fundraising website Plumfund to satisfy the debt.

In March, a federal court clerk in Detroit filed a writ of continuing garnishment to enforce the restitution judgment. It requires officials to keep and retain property that Kilpatrick has a "substantial" interest in, though Kilpatrick steadfastly maintains he owes nothing.

And his assets, he argues, are off-limits.

Moreover, he argues the government has failed to give him an accurate accounting of what part of the debt has been satisfied by Ferguson, who also was convicted of helping the mayor run a pay-to-play scheme out of City Hall by rigging bids and steering lucrative contracts his way.

"(T)here has been no accurate accounting  of the forfeiture amount that was taken from (my) co-defendant, Bobby Ferguson," Kilpatrick states in court filings. "And therefore, there has not been an accurate figure presented for 'credits applied' to the already arbitrary restitution amount."

Ferguson was sentenced to 21 years, but also got out early, after Trump commuted the ex-mayor's sentence. Judge Edmunds granted Ferguson a compassionate release, concluding it wouldn't be fair to keep him locked up when his "more culpable" co-defendant had been freed.

Ferguson and Kilpatrick were accused of running a criminal enterprise through the mayor's office by corrupting contracts, steering work to Ferguson and fostering a climate of fear in the contractor world. A main theme argued at trial was that if you wanted to do work in the city of Detroit, you had to include Ferguson or risk losing deals.

Kilpatrick's downfall began in 2008, when the Free Press published text messages that showed he lied during a police whistleblower trial when he testified that he did not have an affair with his chief of staff, Christine Beatty, and gave misleading testimony about the firing of a deputy police chief. The ex-mayor still owes $852,000 in restitution to the city of Detroit stemming from that scandal.

Contact Tresa Baldas: tbaldas@freepress.com

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Feds: Kwame Kilpatrick lying about where he lives to stall paying debt
Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick said the nation is in peril and it's time to move past who is the nicest presidential candidate.

"We have come to a place where this is not about warm and fuzzy feelings anymore," Kilpatrick said, to about 300 people gathered in Novi for a Lincoln Day dinner hosted by the Oakland County Republican Party. "I want Donald Trump in the room when Vladimir Putin shows up."

Kilpatrick said he's impressed with Trump.

"I'm definitely voting for President Trump," Kilpatrick said. "I just think he's the best candidate. I mean, it's not even close to me. I know there's a lot of bright lights and a lot of stuff propping Vice President (Kamala) Harris up, but as a former executive in a political job, it matters who you send into those rooms."

Kilpatrick credited Trump with rescuing him from prison by commuting his sentence and compared the former president to a firefighter who pulled his family out of a burning home. He said he is grateful for his freedom.

Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick speaks during the Oakland County Republican Partys Lincoln Day Dinner at the Suburban Collection Showcase in Novi on Wednesday, August 21, 2024.

Kilpatrick said he became a changed man after a religious conversion on the concrete floor of a solitary confinement cell. That was followed up by a janitor job in the prison chapel that deepened his faith.

Kilpatrick was greeted with polite applause when Michigan GOP Chair Pete Hoekstra first mentioned him.

Hoekstra noted the need to expand the party base, saying Trump did that by inviting the president of the Teamsters Union to the Republican National Convention. He said the Oakland County Republican Party was doing the same thing by inviting Kilpatrick.

"Kwame, thanks for being here," Hoekstra said.

Kilpatrick wore a blue suit with a salmon-colored tie. He skipped the meatloaf and mashed potatoes to spend the dinner hour glad-handing guests and smiling for photos. Some guests came up to introduce themselves while others stood at a distance snapping photos on their phones.

Kilpatrick didn't run from his past but said he was a changed man.

He said he had prayed to God to turn Trump's heart toward him and said it was Alice Johnson, another prisoner freed by Trump, who convinced Trump to commute Kilpatrick's sentence.

Kilpatrick said Johnson was in the Oval Office with Trump in the closing days of his presidency when she suggested the former mayor as a good candidate for commutation. The next morning, Trump signed the paperwork freeing Kilpatrick.

"The president said, 'OK Alice, I'll help the guy,'" Kilpatrick said. "This was six in the evening on Jan. 12. My commutation was signed at 8:41 on January 13."

Kilpatrick said he'd never met Trump or even spoken with him before the commutation but afterward was invited to Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort where the two men met.

"One of the things I love about him is that he never asked me for anything, he was happy to do it," Kilpatrick said.

Kilpatrick said that his release forced him to challenge his old ways of thinking including his stance on abortion and other moral issues. He said he is no longer a Democrat, but he's not a Republican either. He considers himself "radically independent".

He predicted a Trump win in November.

Kilpatrick said that years ago, the late Wayne County Executive Ed McNamara told him: "Politics is about three things; timing, timing and timing and the times that we live in right now, we need somebody with the personality, the vigor, the business acumen and the strength of Donald Trump."

The crowd gave Kilpatrick a standing ovation when he finished speaking and people hurried to shake his hand as he was leaving the room.

Dorothy Day, 71, of Independence Township, said afterward that it was a good speech.

"It was very moving, but I would expect nothing less from somebody as polished a politician as he had been for many years," she said. "I was a little leery. I've seen too many prison conversions that don't really remain but I have hope."

The speech was quite a turnabout from Kilpatrick's exit from the public stage.

In March 2013, a federal jury in Detroit convicted the former mayor of 24 counts, including racketeering, extortion, bribery and fraud. U.S. District Judge Nancy Edmonds sentenced Kilpatrick to 28 years in prison.

But in January 2021, shortly before leaving office, Trump commuted Kilpatrick's sentence to time served. Within 24 hours, Kilpatrick was released from a federal prison in Louisiana.

Trump's grant of clemency noted that "Whereas it has been made to appear that the ends of justice do not require the said Kwame Malik Kilpatrick to remain confined until his currently projected release date of Jan. 18, 2037 and the safety of the community will not be compromised if he is released."

More: Michigan gets 138 delegates at Democratic National Convention: Who they are

Trump left in place the $4.7 million restitution order against Kilpatrick as well as a 3-year term of supervised release.

Detroiters elected Kilpatrick mayor in 2001 and again in 2005. He resigned from office in 2008 in the wake of a text message scandal uncovered by the Free Press that showed he lied under oath in a whistleblower lawsuit about a romance with his chief of staff.

Guests at the dinner were divided on Kilpatrick's presence.

"It's very controversial, some people did stay away," said Aaron Tobin, 63, of Oak Park. "It's not that they didn't want to hear him speak, they just didn't feel like paying $150 or $200 to hear him."

Tobin, an Orthodox Jew who is running for Oakland County Commission was scheduled to speak just before Kilpatrick. He said beforehand that he would listen with an open mind.

"A lot of people think that Kwame Kilpatrick deserves a second chance, but I'm not convinced," Tobin said. "I'm going to be very polite."

Shirley Perryman, 75, of Livonia, is a Black woman who attended the dinner to support the Republican party and because she admires former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Dr. Ben Carson, the keynote speaker.

She said she's heard Kilpatrick speak recently and he's a changed man.

"I truly believe that he is a man of God now," said Perryman.

She said she understands that most Black voters have traditionally voted Democratic but said there is a chance to change that.

"He could potentially bring in those who have a Biblical perspective," she said. "Those who don't have a Biblical perspective, I don't know."

Contact John Wisely: jwisely@freepress.com on X @jwisely

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Kwame Kilpatrick insists he's changed, credits Trump with rescuing him
One of the slides from the presentation by Patrick Bowen, showing the number of needed housing units in each county as a percentage of the existing housing units. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Liam Niemeyer).

LOUISVILLE  A leader of a national real estate research firm says if no action is taken over the next five years on Kentuckys housing shortage, more Kentuckians could be forced to live in substandard housing, live with family or friends in crowded spaces, deal with severe housing costs or become homeless.

Patrick Bowen, the president of Ohio-based Bowen National Research which conducts housing market research across the country, presented findings Wednesday at an affordable housing conference. Bowens report is part of a housing gap study commissioned by the Kentucky Housing Corp., the states independent public corporation that invests in housing projects. It compared Kentuckys current housing needs to projected needs in five years.

Kentucky currently needs about 206,000 housing units, including rentals and homes for sale. Without a push to build or repair more housing, that number is projected to increase by more than 80,000 by 2029 to 287,000-plus housing units, driven significantly by the need for lower-income rentals and higher-income homes for sale.

It can be daunting. You can make it feel like the mountain is so high. How are you going to address this? Bowen said. But Kentucky, youre not alone, right? This is a national crisis were going through.

The estimate of housing needed takes into account whats needed for a healthy housing market, to meet economic growth and to move Kentuckians out of poor-quality housing or from under severe housing cost burdens, meaning they pay 50% or more of their income on housing.

If you care about the economy, care about jobs, when people spend over 50% of their income towards their housing costs, theyre not spending  they dont have disposable income, Bowen said.

Bowen said while the highest need is in the states largest population centers of Louisville, Lexington and Northern Kentucky, rural counties could face a similar housing supply crunch by 2029. The consultant presented a map showing the number of housing units needed in each county as a percentage of the overall number of housing units in the county.

By 2029, the study projected the housing gap in numerous rural counties will rise to more than 18% of their existing housing units. Simpson, Breathitt, Boyle and Carroll counties would all have a housing gap to existing households of more than 20%. Bowen said Carroll County is projected to need only 866 housing units by 2029, but proportionally the county is feeling this impact of the housing gap just as much as other counties.

Employers are feeling it, the citizens are feeling it, and its true for these bigger parts of the state, but rural Kentucky shouldnt be forgotten, Bowen told the audience.

The increasing housing gap for low-income Kentuckians, particularly renters, is projected to substantially worsen across the state. The number of rental housing units needed in each county as a percentage of the countys total existing rental housing units is expected to be more than 30% in nine counties by 2029 including Franklin, Breathitt, Powell, Boone and Boyle counties. The rental housing gap in Simpson County is projected to be 46.5% of its total rental housing stock by that year.

Bowens firm found rental housing demand rising across all income levels but most significantly among households earning at or below 30% of an areas median income. The gap in rental units, the study detailed, was equally driven by the growth in number of households along with those living under severe housing costs.

Bowen told the Lantern that while more housing units need to be built in Kentucky, other solutions such as weatherizing and repairing existing homes or providing financial assistance to those facing severe housing costs could help reduce the housing gap as well. He said encouraging housing developments of all kinds, especially affordable housing, is key.

I think there should be a broad plan that allows people to stay in their homes if thats what they want to do, Bowen said.

The states housing gap, if left unchecked, could worsen the living situations of manyKentuckians, Bowen said. More people could be forced to move into living spaces with family and could be facing severe housing costs.

Some of these people are going to become homeless, Bowen told the Lantern.

Wendy Smith, deputy executive director of the Kentucky Housing Corporation, said the second phase of the corporations housing gap analysis should be made publicly available in September. Smith recently presented the first phase of the corporations analysis before a task force of lawmakers.

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Updated Aug 22, 2024, 1:56pm EDT Europe

The News

The Kremlin is reframing Ukrainian troops control of the Kursk region of eastern Russia as the new normal, Meduza reported. Meanwhile, Moscow postponed local elections due to be held next month in parts of Kursk indefinitely.

In Kyiv, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine wants to hold parts of Russia as a buffer zone, making it harder to launch strikes in Ukraine. To that end, Ukraine has reportedly been building fortifications inside Kursk, signaling that its forces may try to hold Russian territory for a lengthy period.

SIGNALS

Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories.

Russian media mute Kursk incursion

Sources: The Spectator , Meduza, Public Opinion Foundation

Russian outlets have downplayed the incursion, either ignoring it altogether or describing it as doomed to failure, long-time Russia watcher Mark Galleotti wrote in The Spectator. The Kremlins media machine has been instructed to call for patience over Russias efforts to reclaim the territory, sources close to the Kremlin told Meduza. Still, there are signs the spin has had limited success: One recent poll showed a significant uptick in the number of Russians who described the mood in the country as anxious in the week following Ukraines surprise counteroffensive.

Moscow prioritizes advances in Ukraine over taking back Kursk

Sources: Institute for the Study of War, The New York Times

Vladimir Putin appears to be prioritizing an offensive in eastern Ukraine, alongside the stability of his regime, over a full-scale response to the incursion, the Institute for the Study of War argued. This week, Russian forces captured several villages in Eastern Ukraine, putting it within artillery range of a key Ukrainian transit hub in Donetsk, The New York Times reported. While Ukrainian officials have said that one of the motivations for their counteroffensive is to force Russia to redeploy troops away from the front in Ukraine, this seems so far to only have happened on a small scale.

Offensive could worsen Ukraines manpower problem

Sources: War on the Rocks, The Economist

While the offensive into Russia has provided Ukraine with a morale boost, it has also meant deploying troops and equipment that otherwise could have been fighting along Ukraines faltering frontline. Ukraine has big issues with manning, and they have thinned out the lines even further in order to conduct this offensive in Kursk, prominent defense analyst Mike Kofman said on the War on the Rocks podcast. Ukraines great hope was that a surprise Kursk offensive would relieve the pressure. If anything, Russias advance has accelerated, The Economist said, reporting that battle-hardened units had been sent from the frontline in Ukraine into Russia to be replaced by less-experienced recruits.
Each dawn in Russia sees a repeat of the last: in key cities, the hum of drones fills the air, distant oil depots erupt into flames and military convoys explode. Meanwhile, Putin deflects blame on television, visiting sites far removed from the war to distract from the embarrassment. The Russian army has even turned its deadly weapons on itself, bombing its own soil in an attempt to repel the Ukrainian forces who crossed the border into Kursk a fortnight ago.

All this drums home the degree to which the remarkable Kyiv incursion has rattled Moscow. Incredibly, the Kremlin is already preparing the public for this incursion to last months, with President Putin giving orders to liberate the Kursk region by as late as October 1. Those who predicted in these pages that the Ukrainians intended to stay in the region longer than many assumed would appear to have been proven correct.

And yet, it is important to recognise that the success of the operation militarily is still very much in the balance. While there is evidence that some Russian troops are being diverted from Ukraine to counter the incursion, Moscows assault in the Donbas continues unabated; the town of New York  one might say symbolically, given limp American support for Kyiv earlier this year  has fallen. This is a worrying sign, as a strategic diversion is a key goal for Ukraine; another is the encirclement of Russian positions near Kharkiv, which President Zelensky referred to as a buffer zone to prevent relentless attacks on the city.

Pressure by Russia in eastern Ukraine, in short, continues to grow, so time is of the essence for Kyiv to make more progress in Kursk, which will stall Moscow in Ukraine itself.

Politically, much is riding on the success of this operation for Zelensky. Its a high-risk, high-reward gamble. He may seek to use captured Russian conscripts as leverage to secure the release of Ukrainian prisoners of war. More crucially, holding Kursk could play a significant role in the approaching negotiations with Russia. Zelensky has already indicated that a second peace summit, scheduled for the end of this year, will include the Russian side. Early indications of this may emerge during the visit to Kyiv by Indias prime minister Narendra Modi today, who previously visited Moscow this summer and has positioned himself as a potential mediator in the conflict.

All this underlines the urgency for the West to do more. Throughout 2024, with limited Western resources and declining morale at home, Ukraine has relied on ingenuity to stay in the fight. This has led to the deployment of long-range, domestically produced drones and the destruction of Russian supply lines, airfields, and oil depots deep within Russia. Some Ukrainian sources believe this represents the best chance to end the war of attrition  a situation created by Russian recklessness and Western hesitation  and to bring Russia to the negotiating table on Ukraines terms.

Holding Kursk, and potentially even Bryansk or Belgorod in the near future, would serve as crucial bargaining chips were that to happen. Again, these would be gains made despite, rather than because of, Western support. The fact that the incursion has not yet prompted countries like Britain to authorise further weapon transfers, such as Storm Shadow missiles, is perplexing and frustrating given Britains role in setting the tone for other Nato powers. For the Kursk operation has fatally undermined the argument that Russia would use nuclear weapons if certain lines are crossed. But still the West hesitates.

Meanwhile, within Russia, the narrative is shifting, even within its propaganda apparatus, as doubts grow about the regimes strength. Reports of the Russian armys tactics of indiscriminate, chaotic bombings in Kursks most populated areas are causing widespread unrest. It wouldnt be surprising if this Ukrainian incursion triggers the emergence of another figure like Wagners Prigozhin on the stage of Russian military-political theatre at some point.

So the next logical step is obvious: for the West to give more weapons and permissions to Ukraine. If the Kursk operation fails in its objectives, and Moscow continues making progress in Ukraine, their surprise will have achieved little. So much depends on the coming days. Britain and the West must act before the opportunity is lost.

Aliona Hlivco is managing director of the Henry Jackson Society, a trans-Atlantic foreign policy and national security think tank

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Canadas two major railroads fully shut down after midnight Thursday morning, with Canadian National Railway (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) locking out more than 9,300 workers after they failed to come to agreement on a new union contract.

Concerns of a worker strike have been prevalent for months as engineers, conductors and yard workers represented by the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference authorized the threat of a work stoppage in May.

More from Sourcing Journal

With CN and CPKC getting out in front of strike action by locking the union workers out, the movement of goods throughout the country is at a standstill, backing up the supply chain not just on the railroads, but in trucking and at ports in Canada and the U.S.

A Tuesday report from Anderson Economic Group, a Michigan research firm that has expertise estimating the economic impact of work stoppages, said a three-day strike would cause $407 million Canadian dollars ($300 million) of economic damage. A seven-day strike would bring losses of more than 1.4 billion Canadian dollars ($1 billion).

Impacted goods are heavily focused on fertilizer, iron ore, grain, cement, salt, potash, coal, cars and wood/timber, but containers loaded with consumer goods will also be held upconcerning retailers and brands reliant on the rail traffic to move product. Apparel retailers that prepared ahead of time now must deal with potential inventory glut if trucking and warehouse capacity gets worse during the backlogs.

Steve Lamar, president and CEO of the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA), noted that a rail shutdown comes at a critical time for back-to-school and the start of the holiday inventory rush.

Approximately 30 percent of clothes, shoes, and accessories move by rail. Those goods include childrens apparel, backpacks, winter coats and boots, work shoes, uniformsincluding those for essential workers, and many more everyday essentials, said Lamar in a statement provided to Sourcing Journal. Amid numerous supply chain disruptions by sea, companies are already diverting cargo and facing distressed trucking routes. It is imperative that all logistics stakeholders continue to work together to support modern and efficient systems, and ensure there are safe and responsible workplaces that power them.

In anticipation of the potential rail strike, ocean carriers started to divert cargo from Canadas British Columbia ports in Vancouver and Prince Rupert to alternative U.S. ports including Seattle, Tacoma, Los Angeles and Long Beach.

The number of vessel arrivals at container terminals in the Port of Vancouver has dropped from 73 to 61 for the second week of August, the second lowest number of arrivals throughout 2024, said Mirko Woitzik, global director of intelligence for Everstream Analytics, in a statement. Percentage-wise, the number of vessel arrivals in Vancouver has fallen by 22 percent since the middle of July.

And transit times for all rail shipments originating or ending in Canada have already seen an uptick in the past three weeks, according to data from supply chain visibility platform Project44. It is unclear if this is directly related to labor tensions, the company said, but it is expected to continue increasing as the strike commences.

Industry associations and lawmakers alike had called on Canadas federal government and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to intervene in the stalling negotiations. But Trudeau has been steadfast in letting the parties play it out. Government intervention has been a topic of concern since former Labour Minister Seamus ORegan requested that the countrys industrial labor board review whether a rail strike would pose a threat to national safety.

The board ruled that a work stoppage would not pose serious danger, effectively allowing the Teamsters to issue a strike notice.

It is in the best interest of both sides to continue doing the hard work at the table to find a negotiated resolution, the Prime Minister told reporters Wednesday.

According to a statement from CPKC, federal intervention has been required in some form in nine of the 10 rounds of collective bargaining negotiations since 1993.

Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon had met with the parties on Tuesday and Wednesday with the hope of brokering a last-minute deal, but neither union budged ahead of the negotiation deadline. MacKinnon declined a request from CN to impose binding arbitration last week. Both railroads have reiterated that they still want to resolve the contract dispute via the arbitration process.

The Teamsters said in a Thursday statement that the parties are still far apart in negotiations. The union claims it has put forward multiple offers, none of which were seriously considered by either company. 

CN said in an update that it made four offers to the Teamsters, but that the union has an inability or unwilling to negotiate seriously. CPKC said the union makes unrealistic demands that would fundamentally impair the railways ability to serve our customers.

CPKC and CN said their contract offers have included raises consistent with recent deals in the industry. Engineers at CN make about $150,000 a year, whereas conductors earn $120,000, and CPKC says its wages are comparable.

The unions has cited fatigue management, rest periods and scheduling as key sticking points in the negotiations. Both railroads had proposed shifting away from the existing system, which pays workers based on the miles in a trip, to an hourly system they said would make it easier to provide predictable time off.

All rail traffic in Canada and all shipments crossing the U.S. border have stopped, although CPKC and CNs trains will continue to operate in the U.S. and Mexico. American businesses will feel the impact, with the National Association of Manufacturers noting that trade flows between Canada and the U.S. via rail in June 2024 totaled $9.1 billionwith $5.3 billion worth of goods being U.S. imports.
War on landlords worsens as Labour cracks down on short-term lets

A government spokesman says a registration scheme will be introduced 'as quickly as possible' - Xantana/iStockphoto

Labour is accelerating plans for a crackdown on short-term lets in the latest war on landlords, The Telegraph understands.

New rules are planned to give local councils across England power to carve out locations where holiday lets will require planning permission. A new mandatory national register for short-term lets has also been promised.

A Ministry source told The Telegraph that the registration scheme will be introduced as quickly as possible.

In Wales, councils already have a similar register  known as an Article 4 Direction  but the policy extends to second home ownership as well as holiday lets. Northern Ireland has long had a registration scheme in place.

The short-term let rules were first pledged by former Conservative housing secretary Michael Gove in December 2022, as part of a package of measures designed to reassure Tory backbenchers in uproar over his planning changes.

The Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023 paved the way for a national registration scheme. After a consultation in February this year, the previous government under Rishi Sunak said that those letting homes would need planning permission from the summer.

However, experts warned a new registration scheme would pave the way for short-term let controls  a move they say has so far backfired in Edinburgh.

Andy Fenner, the chief executive of the Short Term Accommodation Association (STAA) trade body, warned that a locally run scheme could be a mess.

We are very concerned that the registration scheme is not going to be national. Were concerned that it is going to be introduced either by county, region or council.

Mr Fenner added: We are worried that it [a registration scheme] is one step away from some poorly done licensing scheme, which is not what we want.

Sophie Lang, of ARLA Propertymark, said: Similar measures elsewhere have led to operational issues for landlords regarding the short term lets market, which in turn driven up prices and damaged tourism in some areas that depend on it.

Its vital to have a fair balance that encourages landlords back into the long-term rental market while still supporting local economies that rely on tourism.

Short-term let controls introduced in Scotland last October have been blamed for a surge in blackmarket listings, while industry bodies have warned it could harm long-term tourism.

Under the terms of the scheme, anyone who wants to take bookings and receive guests now needs a licence, and includes self-catered accommodation and B&Bs. This presents an additional barrier to those just looking to rent out a spare room.

Since the schemes introduction, just 290 full secondary letting licences, for those who rent out properties which arent their own home, have been granted since the beginning of the scheme, council figures show.

A Conservative MSP, Miles Briggs, said in Holyrood in May that the implementation of the licensing scheme had been disastrous.

Evidence from the Scottish B&B Association suggests that 67pc of its members say that the cost of the short-term let licensing has impacted their business revenue and affected their viability as businesses, he told MSPs.

I fear that ministers have not taken on board the warnings and lessons from the disastrous implementation of the short-term lets licensing legislation and the negative impact that that continues to have on small businesses.

Mr Briggs added: I am concerned that ministers have failed to develop a robust exemption scheme in the bill.

A Ministry of Housing spokesman said: We are introducing a short term lets registration scheme to help give councils greater oversight and control of housing in their areas.

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SYDNEY, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Three teenage boys aged 16 to 17 have been charged following an alleged assault of a man in Australia's State of New South Wales (NSW).

NSW police said in a statement on Thursday that the three teenagers and a 19-year-old man entered an abandoned building in Inverell, a town in northern NSW, at about 11:30 a.m. local time on Wednesday before the man was allegedly assaulted.

Police said another teenager joined the three teenagers later but no more details are disclosed.

The man was assaulted multiple times with injuries including bruising, lacerations, burns and welts, said the police.

The three boys, one was arrested on Wednesday and two on Thursday after inquiries, were charged with take/detain in company with intent to get advantage occasion actual bodily harm.

Police said inquiries are continuing. 
If the weather this week is good, the number of illegal immigrants arriving across the Channel on small boats could reach 20,000. After the riots earlier this month, immigration has soared back to being the most important issue in the country, according to pollsters. Meanwhile, the government hasnt yet recruited a Border Security Commander, after being turned down by their preferred candidate.

In this tough climate, a series of measures have been announced by the home secretary to crack down on illegal immigration. At the centre of those plans is an ambition to achieve the highest rate of returns of illegal immigrants in any six-month period since 2018. That has already been attacked, with critics pointing out that the 2018 number was already exceeded in 2023. Nonetheless, the intention is there.

Other elements of the plan include recruiting 100 officers to the National Crime Agency who will target smuggling gangs, another 290 beds added to two detention centres, and more sanctions on those who employ illegal immigrants.

The NCA already has around 70 investigations targeting the people smuggling gangs and, with international partners, has seized around 400 boats and engines intended for use as small boats.

There is a problem of scale here, however. The number of those crossing on small boats has decreased since 2023, largely as a result of a returns deal with Albania. But that means that those who are still crossing disproportionately come from countries which are unsafe for us to return to. Recent statistics show that the most common nationality, making up 18 per cent of the total, are Afghans. It is very unlikely they will be returned.

The Rwanda scheme was intended to deal with those difficult cases. The Conservatives had a choice between that and tackling human rights law. They chose the former. By cancelling the Rwanda scheme, Labour has no deterrent against illegal immigrants from those unsafe countries and it seems unlikely they will tackle human rights law. That means the only way to stop the boats is to prevent them launching from France but the smugglers always find ways to circumvent the French police, such as sailing down canals rather than launching from the beaches.

Unless French police lock down every waterway in Northern France, which seems unlikely when French boat-owners are already complaining about restrictions, there is no way to stop them all. Meanwhile, seizing boats has led smugglers to overload their remaining boats, with up to three times as many illegal immigrants shoved onto boats than normal. That has been blamed for an increase in deaths, both from drowning and being crushed.

Whats more, even if returns are increased to 2018 levels, the number of illegal immigrants has soared since then. The record number of enforced removals was achieved under Tony Blair but even that number wouldnt be sufficient to remove all those whose asylum claims were refused or withdrawn this year, let alone all those from prior years who should have been removed but werent.

Those include Brwa Shorsh, a Kurdish immigrant who racked up 12 convictions since arriving in 2019 but was somehow still free to try and murder a Polish postman on the Tube after appealing his deportation.

In this febrile environment, the government will quickly find how few options it has. The new immigration statistics reveal that immigration is down compared to last year but substantially higher than it was before 2019. Many of those who came as workers will get indefinite leave to remain in a few years, allowing them access to social housing and benefits. Although that is due to the previous Conservative government, Labour have failed to curb immigration and will find voters now blame them.

Reports that there are discussions about a youth mobility scheme with the EU suggest that they fail to get that. The EU has already signalled that it must be the same for all members, which means every Bulgarian under 30 would be eligible to come. It would also mean our borders are only as secure as that of the weakest EU nation: a factor in the Leicester riots were newly arrived Indians who had obtained Portuguese citizenship and used it to settle in Britain.

None of these newly announced restrictions are necessarily bad but they fail to tackle the extent of the problem. Labour will have to be much more radical if they want to seriously control immigration or to stop the small boats.

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A worker removes a table during an eviction in the unincorporated community of Galloway, west of Columbus, Ohio, in March 2021. Eviction filings can severely limit future housing options and prolong housing insecurity, and a growing number of states are sealing some eviction records. (Stephen Zenner/Getty Images)

When pandemic-era tenant protections expired, rents immediately soared, and eviction filings surged last year more than 50% over pre-pandemic levels in some U.S. cities.

These filings can cast long shadows. Simply being named in an eviction complaint, regardless of the outcome, can severely limit future housing options and prolong housing insecurity, according to a recent University of Michigan study.

The situation underscores a growing debate across the country: Should eviction records be shielded from public access to offer tenants a cleaner shot at finding another home?

In recent years, more states are saying, yes  at least in some cases.

Eviction filings are public court records. Landlords and property owners can buy databases of the records to screen potential tenants.

Property owners argue that sealing data on eviction filings  most of which are for nonpayment of rent  eliminates crucial insights into rental history. Housing advocates, however, warn that any filing can unfairly block renters from future housing because the outcome may not be an eviction.

An eviction filing doesnt provide enough information to determine a tenants ability to honor their next lease, said Katie Fallon, a principal policy associate with the Urban Institute, a research and advocacy think tank focusing on urban polices.

Given the low quality of this eviction filing data and the lack of outcomes in the filings themselves, it is a very open question of how accurate these filings are and what information they really provide to landlords, she said.

This year, Idaho, Maryland and Massachusetts enacted laws to seal certain eviction records from public scrutiny and from tenant screening companies.

Last year, Connecticut and Rhode Island also enacted laws that allow for the sealing of certain eviction cases. Arizona, meanwhile, enacted a law in 2022 requiring courts to seal eviction records if cases are dismissed, dropped or adjudicated in the tenants favor.

In total, 17 states and Washington, D.C., have measures sealing at least some eviction records, according to PolicyLink, a national research and advocacy group with a focus on housing.

Zafar Shah, assistant director of advocacy for Maryland Legal Aid, said lawmakers are starting to understand how eviction records can prevent tenants from finding another home.

We have clients that know they will lose their eviction case, but they want us to shield the information so that the next potential housing provider is not going to use it against them, said Shah.

That has really been the impetus for shielding and sealing across the country. These filings dont tell us a lot, but they carry so much weight in the search for housing.

An eviction filing could be resolved in a number of ways: A case might be dismissed if the landlord and tenant reach an agreement. The judge might rule in favor of the tenant, allowing them to stay in their home. Or the judge could side with the landlord, evicting the tenant.

Regardless of the outcome, the records live on in online court databases.

Third-party tenant screening companies scan court records for eviction cases, then sell the data to landlords to use in their leasing decisions.

Our members are getting evictions that have merit and werent erroneously filed.

 Alexandra Alvarado, American Apartment Owners Association

Housing advocates say the data is often inaccurate and misleading. In one state  Illinois  less than half of eviction filings led to actual evictions, according to a 2019 review by Housing Action Illinois, an advocacy group.

Alexandra Alvarado, director of education and marketing at the American Apartment Owners Association, a tenant screening provider, told Stateline that the groups database only displays eviction records with a completed judgment that were filed within the past seven years, which is the time limit set by the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act.

It can be a monetary or non-monetary judgment, but there must be a judgment. So, if an eviction case is filed, but the parties settled outside of court or the tenant won, then it wouldnt show up in our reports, even though technically it is public record, Alvarado said. Our members are getting evictions that have merit and werent erroneously filed.

A Scarlet E

According to researchers at the Eviction Lab at Princeton University, of the 3.6 million eviction court records in the 12 states they tracked from 2011 to 2015, more than 1 in 5 eviction cases contained little information on the resolution of a case. Ambiguous data can also falsely represent a tenants eviction history, affecting both renters and scholarly researchers, according to a 2020 study by the group.

While many people think an eviction filing is evidence of late rent payment, nonpayment of rent or a violation of the lease terms, this is not necessarily true, said Fallon, of the Urban Institute. Filings can include inaccurate data, such as the parties named in the eviction filing and inaccurate name spellings.

Alvarado, of the American Apartment Owners Association, said landlords have mixed views about laws that allow courts to seal cases that have been dismissed or ruled in a tenants favor. Whats more important to landlords, she said, is that their screening process can look back the full seven years for problem evictions.

Laws that limit the lookback period  such as in Oregon, where tenants can request an expungement after five years  affect the tenant screening process more, she said.

The system is problematic, Eviction Lab found in a 2020 study of eviction cases filed between 2012 and 2016 in 39 states. In addition to inaccurate information, Black households are overrepresented in eviction filings, Eviction Lab found, as are women  especially Black and Latina women.

When landlords say they need to use eviction filings, which we know arent the most reliable information, to make housing decisions, we need to push back on that, said Jasmine Rangel, senior housing associate for PolicyLink.

She and other advocates want eviction court records to be sealed as soon as a landlord files an eviction notice. Otherwise, she said, third-party services can still scrape that eviction record from online databases and into their tenant screening algorithms.

Advocates point out that eviction records could be made public later if a judge rules in the landlords favor.

Its a Scarlet E. You have this record, you have this thing on your file of an eviction, but theres no understanding of the context or circumstances behind it.

 Shuntera Brown, an Arizona resident whose eviction record hurt her housing search

But Shuntera Brown, who lost her home in Phoenix in 2021, said in an interview that any eviction record hurts single moms like herself.

Brown, who has three children, has struggled to pay rent even with a full-time job. In December 2020, a bout of COVID-19 caused her to miss work shifts, a paycheck disruption that eventually put her over the edge months later.

Its a Scarlet E. You have this record, you have this thing on your file of an eviction, but theres no understanding of the context or circumstances behind it, Brown said. I remember pleading with the judge that Ive usually paid on time and that my kids need a home, but he sided with the landlord in, like, seven minutes, and the eviction immediately was on my credit.

Sealing the records

State by state, the laws differ on the details: Many states allow for eviction records to be sealed almost immediately if the case was dismissed or dropped, or if the tenant won the case. Other states have a waiting period, often several years, during which the tenant must demonstrate good behavior before a record is sealed.

Under Marylands new law, which takes effect in October, courts must shield records within 60 days of a resolution that doesnt end in a tenant losing possession of their home. The state also will increase the eviction filing fee from $8 to $43.

Maryland landlords filed roughly 400,000 failure to pay rent cases in the states 2023 fiscal year, according to housing advocates who testified in favor of the new law. In some cases, landlords would file monthly failure to pay rent cases against tenants prematurely and tack on illegal fees on top of the back rent, according to a report from the Maryland-based advocacy group Public Justice Center.

The low cost and low barrier to entry have driven the massive quantity of filings, with many cases simply being leveraged to get rent money out of tenants quickly, said Shah, of Maryland Legal Aid. I think that the court overall has become more receptive to shielding these cases, recognizing that if a case was dismissed or settled, theres no reason to hold it against the renter.

This attitude has shifted significantly over the past decade, he said.

In California and Colorado, as in Maryland, an eviction lawsuit can be automatically sealed as soon as its been filed unless the landlord wins the case within 60 days. Indiana and Minnesota require a tenant to formally petition for sealing once a court reaches judgment.

Idahos new law shields dismissed eviction cases after three years. And in Massachusetts, tenants can request their case be sealed for a variety of reasons, no matter the outcome, after a period of time ranging from a few months to several years.

In Rhode Island, a tenant can only make a request once every five years.

Researchers at Eviction Lab told Stateline that state laws should still allow data access for scientists. The 2022 eviction-sealing law in Washington, D.C., for example, specifies that records can be unsealed for scholarly, educational, journalistic or governmental purposes.

There is an important public right to know what is going on in the housing market, and this is one of our data points into the eviction crisis, said Carl Gershenson, lab director at Eviction Lab. There is a balance that can be achieved that is in the best interest of tenants and how these filings can be used as datapoints to understand the housing crisis.

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.

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Lansing man admits to damaging nearly 100 trees on neighbors property

KANSAS CITY, Mo.  A Lansing, Kansas man has admitted to illegally removing or damaging nearly 100 trees on a neighbors property to place a hunting stand.

James Dean Cole, 67, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to one count of criminal damage to property.

KC-area bicyclist recovering weeks after Cass County crash

According to court documents, Cole went on private property near North 139th Street and Nottingham Drive between June 1, 2023, and September 30, 2023.

During this time, Cole cut through a barbed wire fence, removed or destroyed approximately 95 trees, and set up a hunting blind on the land.

The Lansing Police Department became aware of the incident after the victim reported it back in January.

Prosecutors disclosed on Wednesday that Coles actions resulted in over $14,000 in damages.

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A lumber and sawmill company that surveyed the property estimated the value of the trees Cole cut down or damaged at $13,200, with an additional $900 in damages to the fencing. According to the estimate, Cole destroyed 80 cherry tree saplings ranging from 4 to 10 feet in height, eight hackberry trees between 6 and 10 feet tall, and seven walnut trees of similar height.

The cherry trees were valued at $138 each, the hackberry trees at $89 each, and the walnut trees at $195 each.

Cole is scheduled to be sentenced on October 2.

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LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  A nightclub bartender allegedly conspired to kill her boss amid his attempts to buy her share of the business, according to documents the 8 News Now Investigators obtained.

Johanna Davila, 50, faces charges of attempted murder and conspiring to commit murder, records said.

Las Vegas Metro police identified Davila as a bartender at the El Firme nightclub and the victim as the businesss owner. A person who worked at the business described Davila as the second in command. The victim was scheduled to meet with Davila the day after the shooting in an attempt to buy Davilas share of the business, documents said.

On July 12, the victim was driving home from the nightclub when he noticed a van tailgating him, documents said. While approaching the intersection of Linn Lane and Owens Avenue, someone in the van fired several gunshots toward him.

The victim was not shot but at least five bullets impacted his car, documents said.

Detectives located surveillance video, which they said showed a car in the area registered to Davila, documents said. Officers later took Davila and another man into custody. While arresting Davila, police said they found a gun in her purse. Bullets from the shooting scene matched the guns unique headstamp, police said.

The man arrested with Davila, who himself did not face charges as of Thursday, told police he did not shoot the victim as he did not even know the guy, documents said. Documents allege police believe the man shot Davilas boss and conspired with Davila.

Davila reportedly told police she was at Disneyland at the time of the shooting, and she was not aware her boss was shot, documents said. Davila later admitted to being in the area at the time of the shooting but denied any involvement.

Police also suspect Davila was surveilling the victim for nearly five hours before the shooting, documents said.

Davila remained in custody Thursday on $35,000 bail. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for Sept. 4.

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LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  A Las Vegas man was allegedly seen sharpening a kitchen knife while threatening to stab someone with it before he stabbed a man and attempted to stab his brother, according to an arrest report.

Javon Clark, 22, faces two counts of attempted murder, battery with the use of a deadly weapon and attempted battery, records showed.

Javon Clark, 22, faces two counts of attempted murder, battery with the use of a deadly weapon and attempted battery, records showed. (KLAS)

On Sunday, Aug. 18 around 7:10 p.m., Metro police responded to a report of a battery in the 6200 block of Coldwater Bay Drive near East Desert Inn Road and South Hollywood Boulevard.

While officers were responding, an officer saw the suspect, later identified as Clark, jumping the wall into the City of Las Vegas Water Treatment Plant. A Metro air unit began to track Clark, who ran into a cul-de-sac and attempted to jump a wall into a neighborhood but failed, police said.

Clark then came back onto the street and was taken into custody, police said. Clark was taken to a local hospital for evaluation and then was transported to the Clark County Detention Center, according to police.

When officers asked Clark why he ran from police he gave an answer the officer could not understand and then said he was done talking to them, the report said.

Police said the initial 911 caller said Clark stabbed her brother-in-law with a knife and could be under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs.

Officers spoke to Clarks brother who said he and the victim were playing video games in his room when Clark ran into the room, jumped on the bed, and stabbed the victim in his side. Clark then tried to stab his brother but he pulled out a machete, which caused Clark to leave, the report said.

Prior to the stabbing, Clark said he was going to stab someone in the house, leave them in a pool of blood, and then leave the house, according to the report.

Clark had been living at the home on and off but arrived the day before the stabbing when a family member brought him. A couple of hours before the stabbing, Clark was heard saying he was going to kill people in the house, the report said.

Clark also said that he loved his prison mindset and was seen sharpening an 8-12 kitchen knife on the tile floor of the bathroom saying he was going to stab someone with it, police said.

A witness also told police that it was possible Clark was under to influence of shrooms and was known to abuse drugs, the report said.

Police learned that in May, Clark attacked another person in the home, leaving her with bruises. The incident stemmed from the woman not giving Clark marijuana, according to police.

Clark is scheduled to appear in court on Sept. 9, records showed.

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The Democratic National Convention's fourth and final night Thursday is crescendoing with a speech from Vice President Kamala Harris.

After a week of Democrats most prominent figures rallying the party faithful, Harris has accepted her partys nomination for president during a speech where she offered her vision and policy agenda to the American people.

The theme of the final night was For Our Future, according to convention organizers.

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Heres the Latest:

Harris hosts an anniversary party for staffers

After her speech, Harris went to another part of the United Center and briefly addressed a group of staffers and supporters at a postconvention speech party.

We just decided that we would celebrate our anniversary with all of you, said Harris who accepted the Democratic presidential nomination on her and her husband Doug Emhoffs 10th wedding anniversary.

The party included former Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin and a former co-host of The View, Desiree Rogers.

Our fight is deeply and truly borne out of love of country, Harris said, adding, celebrate tonight and its been a wonderful convention.

Protestors clash with Chicago police

A few dozen protesters fought briefly with Chicago police on the edge of Union Park.

The small group, leftover from the earlier demonstration, planned to march toward the convention center, but they were blocked by rows of police in riot gear who pushed into the group, shouting, Move back.

Several of the protesters surged forward, with some swinging wooden signs down on the officers. The group has since retreated to the park, where an organizer said they plan to regroup. Police have ordered all media to leave the area, warning over a loudspeaker, If you fail to comply, you will be in violation of the law and we will place you into custody.

Trump is campaigning off Harris speech

Within moments of Harris finishing her speech, the Trump campaign sent out a fundraising email titled Worst speech ever!

Farewell to America if we have President Kamala! it proclaimed.

Fact Focus: Trump previously supported federal abortion legislation

In a letter to anti-abortion leaders during his 2016 campaign, Trump expressed his commitment to this view by vowing to sign the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. The then-Republican president advocated for the bill again in 2018, at that years annual March for Life festival in Washington, saying he strongly supported the House of Representatives Pain-Capable bill, which would end painful, late-term abortions nationwide.

Trump said that he would call upon the Senate to pass this important law and send it to my desk for signing. The bill, which included exceptions for saving the life of a pregnant woman, as well as rape or incest, was passed by the House in 2017 but failed to move forward in the Senate.

Fact Focus: Trumps shifting position on abortion rights

During her DNC acceptance speech, Harris said of Trump that the former president would ban medication abortion and enact a nationwide abortion ban with or without Congress.

While Trump has said in the past that he would support a national ban on abortion, he made clear his changed position on Thursdays Fox & Friends: I would never. There will not be a federal ban. This is now back in the states where it belongs.

In April, he said that he would leave the issue up to the states in a video on his Truth Social platform.

Days later, asked by a reporter upon arriving in Atlanta whether he would sign a national abortion ban, Trump shook his head and said, No.

But just a month earlier Trump suggested that hed support a national ban on abortion around 15 weeks of pregnancy. He also often brags about appointing the Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe v. Wade.

Trump has previously supported a federal ban on abortion at 20 weeks of pregnancy.

Trump told CBS News on Monday that he would not enforce the Comstock Act to restrict the sale of abortion medication by mail. The act, originally passed in 1873, was revived in an effort to block the mailing of mifepristone, the pill used in more than half of U.S. abortions.

Harris blended family is a political first

The image of a mixed-race family joining the candidate on stage as she accepts the nomination to potentially be the first Black and Asian American female president is a political first in many ways.

Donald Trump is accusing Harris of misstating his positions on reproductive rights

I do not limit access to birth control or I.V.F. - THAT IS A LIE, these are all false stories that shes making up, that Ive never even heard of, wrote Trump, who appointed the judges who overturned Roe V. Wade. I TRUST WOMEN, ALSO, AND I WILL KEEP WOMEN SAFE! he wrote.

Trump has been offering commentary on the speech on his social media network.

He has repeatedly questioned why she didnt implement the policies shes proposing while serving as vice president.

Why didnt she do something about the things of which she complains? he asked.

Thats a wrap for Harris

After speaking for about 37 minutes, Harris wrapped up her speech and was joined on stage by her husband, Doug Emhoff, along with running mate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and his wife, Gwen.

Family members began to play with some of the 100,000 red, white and blue balloons that began to cascade from netting where theyd been held in the ceiling all week.

Harris reaffirms her support for Ukraine and NATO

Harris made a forceful defense of Ukraine and NATO in her speech as she lambasted Trumps past comments on the war in Ukraine.

As President, I will stand strong with Ukraine and our NATO allies, Harris said.

Harris touted that five days before Russia invaded Ukraine, I warned President Zelenskyy and helped lead the U.S. diplomatic response in rallying more than 50 countries.

Access to United Center has been restricted

The DNC has restricted access to the United Center, which is at capacity, in the final hours of the convention, according to the Chicago Fire Department.

A fire department spokesperson said on X that the decision was made by the DNC in consultation with Chicago fire officials. He said both city fire and DNC officials would continue to monitor the situation.

Crowds of credentialed journalists were photographed outside the United Center, where they were not allowed entry into the stadium. The United Center can hold about 23,500 people.

The scale of suffering is heartbreaking

In a stunning departure from the Biden campaign, Harris made the U.S.s most forceful message yet on the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.

The vice president said that she would always stand up for Israels right to defend itself, while pushing for the release of the hostages and the implementation of a cease-fire deal.

At the same time, what has happened in Gaza in the last 10 months is devastating, so many innocent lives lost, Harris said. Desperate, hungry people fleeing to safety over and over again. The scale of suffering is heartbreaking.

Harris looks to flip the script on border security

Border security has been a major point of GOP criticism for Harris and her campaign, but the Democrat is drawing big cheers from her arena of delegates for her border plans.

Harris said, I know we can live up to our proud heritage as a nation of immigrants and reform our broken immigration system.

She also criticized Trump for his own actions, saying he ordered his allies in Congress to kill a border bill.

Well, I refuse to play politics with our security, she said, pledging to bring back the bipartisan border security bill and saying shed sign it into law.

Outside the DNC, protestors hold a sit-in

While Harris is in the middle of her nomination acceptance speech inside the Democratic National Convention, protestors outside have staged an impromptu sit-in on Chicagos Ashland Avenue.

The man leading it, who declined to be identified, said he initially sat because he was exhausted from hours of marching. Before long, about 100 others had joined him, singing Which Side Are You On? over bongo players and an electric guitar. While police initially called on the group to disburse, they retreated after the request was ignored.

Signs are a big thing at the convention

For Harris key moment, there are many color-coordinated options around the United Center.

Delegates have vertical blue signs with Kamala written out. Many people have added American flags handed out earlier in the night atop the post holding those blue signs, hoisting the flags further aloft.

Delegates in the seats directly in front of Harris  between the stage and the platform that holds a number of cameras broadcasting the convention  have smaller rectangular signs reading Harris-Walz.

Harris blasts Trump on abortion

In her speech, Harris touched on what has become the central policy issue of her vice presidency and now her campaign: the risk to reproductive rights.

Tonight in America, too many women are not able to make those decisions, she said.

And lets be clear about how we got here: Donald Trump handpicked members of the United States Supreme Court to take away reproductive rights. She added, One must ask why exactly is it that they dont trust women? Well, we trust women.

Harris promises an opportunity economy

The middle class is where I come from, Harris said, describing for delegates how her late mother kept a strict budget and we lived within our means.

She said her mother taught her and her sister, Maya, that opportunity is not available to everyone.

But now Harris promises to create an opportunity economy, where she said, everyone has the chance to compete and a chance to succeed.

She also promised a middle-class tax cut.

Harris charts a new way forward

We are not going back chants broke out in the venue as Harris criticized Trumps record and began outlining her vision for the nation.

We are charting a new way forward, forward to a future with a strong middle class, Harris said. And building that middle class will be a defining goal of my presidency.

Harris lays out her case against Trump

Harris is issuing warnings about how Trumps prior willingness to violate the law indicates a willingness for a reckless second term if hes elected to the White House again.

The former prosecutor listed off Trumps conviction in the New York fraud case, as well as the judgment against him in the E. Jean Carroll case.

Just imagine Donald Trump with no guardrails and how he would use the immense powers of the presidency of the United States, not to improve your life, not to strengthen our national security but to serve the only client that he has ever had: himself, Harris warned.

A president for all Americans

The loudest applause came after Harris made a plea to all across the aisle, saying that she pledges to uphold the rule of law.

I promise to be a president for all Americans, to hold sacred Americas constitutional principles, fundamental principles, from the rule of law and fair elections to the peaceful transfer of power, she said.

Harris said her best friend Wanda is one of the reasons she became a prosecutor

She said Wanda confided in her that she was being sexually abused by her stepfather when they were in high school. Harris invited her friend to come live with her.

This is one of the reasons I became a prosecutor, Harris said. Everyone has a right to safety and to dignity and to justice.

Kamala Harris, for the people

One of the advantages of having run for president before is that Harris has had time to hone parts of the campaign speech that comprises pieces of what shes delivering at the DNC.

In her 2020 presidential bid, Harris often spoke of her role as a prosecutor and the personal experiences that inspired her to take on that career.

She also reflected, verbatim, several lines that date back to least her 2019 campaign launch, saying that she always introduced herself as Kamala Harris, for the people.

Afterward, Harris said that she accepted the Democratic presidential nomination, to a roaring, sign-waving crowd.

Harris reflects on her parents social-justice values

Harris drew a direct line between her current values and politics with her upbringing in a civil rights-oriented household. Harris noted that her parents met amid the civil rights movement and raised her with values of social justice.

My mother was a five-foot-tall, brown woman with an accent, Harris said. And as the eldest child  I saw how the world would sometimes treat her, but my mother never lost her cool, Harris said.

She taught us to never complain about injustice but to do something about it, Harris said to cheers. And she also told us to never do something half-assed. And that is a direct quote, Harris said.

Harris honors her parents

Harris might be a well-known figure as vice president, but, on the biggest stage of her presidential campaign thus far, shes still taking the opportunity to get into some biography.

After a speech by her sister, Maya, who made repeated references to their mothers accomplishments, Harris  who doesnt frequently mention her father  spoke about both of her parents, then her upbringing, primarily at the hands of her mother.

In an emotional tribute to her mother and father, Harris talked about the lessons she learned from both her parents who divorced when she was young. My mother would stay, stay close, she said. But my father would say as he smiled, Run Kamala! Run! Dont be afraid. Dont let anything stop you.

Kamala Harris is on the stage for the fourth and final night of the DNC

Harris was greeted by an ovation that spanned nearly 3 minutes before she was able to begin her speech.

OK, lets get to business, Harris said after thunderous cheers drowned out her attempts to get started.

And happy anniversary, Dougie, she said, marking their 10th wedding anniversary.

Gov. Roy Cooper knows the crowd wants Harris

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper isnt beating around the bush in prime-time programming: He knows delegates are ready to hear from their nominee.

Cooper took the stage Thursday noting that hes the last guy standing between you and the moment were all waiting for  Harris acceptance of the Democratic nomination.

Cooper recalled how he served alongside Harris when both were attorneys general in their respective states.

Coopers name had been floated as a possible VP for Harris after she ascended to the top of Democrats ticket.

Maya Harris honors her and Kamalas mother

Harris sister is, as the VP often does, talking about her mothers support in her daughters growing up to be strong women.

Maya Harris says that her mother was a trailblazer who defied the odds and defied herself.

Kamala Harris often talks about her mothers influence on her understanding of the world and her commitment to fighting for the rights of others.

Kamalas entire life has been about fighting for each of us to have that freedom, Maya Harris said, of her sister.

Getting choked up, Maya Harris said she wished her mother could be present in the hall tonight, saying she could envision seeing her smiling and saying how proud she is of Kamala, before telling all of us to roll up our sleeves and get to work.

You never thought youd see me here, did you?

Rep. Adam Kinzinger was the latest Republican to speak on the DNC stage in support of the Harris-Walz ticket. Kinzinger retired from Congress after he criticized his own party in the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack when a mob of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol in a bid to stop Joe Biden from becoming president. Kinzinger, at the invitation of Democrats, defied his leadership to join Republican Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming as a member of the House committee investigating the attack.

Some have questioned why Ive taken the stand I have, Kinzinger said. The answer is simple, ladies and gentlemen. We must put country first. And tonight, as a Republican speaking before you, Im putting our country first.

He added, I know Kamala Harris shares my allegiance to the rule of law, the constitution and democracy.

Trump changes his tune on Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp

Just weeks ago, the former president delivered a series of blistering attacks at a rally against the Georgia governor.

But in a social media post, Trump thanked Kemp for all of your help and support in Georgia, where a win is so important to the success of our Party and, most importantly, our Country.

I look forward to working with you, your team, and all of my friends in Georgia to help MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! he wrote.

His worlds marked a major departure from his comments at a rally earlier this month, where Trump tore into the governor, blaming him for his narrow 2020 loss in the state.

In a roughly 10-minute tirade, Trump railed against Kemp for not giving into his false theories of election fraud and also blamed the governor for not stopping a local district attorney from prosecuting him and several associates for his efforts to overturn the results.

Hes a bad guy. Hes a disloyal guy. And hes a very average governor, Trump said then. Little Brian, little Brian Kemp. Bad guy.

Eva Longoria also worked at a fast-food restaurant

Actress Eva Longoria says that Harris worked at McDonalds, but I worked at Wendys.

And look at us now, Longoria declared.

Harris has frequently discussed previously working at McDonalds as she works to make her middle-class upbringing more relatable to voters.

Beyonce will not attend the DNC

Beyonce will not be attending Thursdays Democratic National Convention, according to a source involved in the evenings planning. Speculation about a potential surprise appearance by the music superstar spread like wildfire ahead of Vice President Kamala Harris acceptance speech.

Big Gretch thinks Trump is out of touch

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is considered a rising star in the Democratic Party, and thats the sort of welcome she got at the United Center.

The Michigan Democrat took the stage to big cheers, telling the at-capacity crowd that shes known in Detroit as Big Gretch, and, as a woman, knows how to GSD  get stuff done.

Talking about Harris, Whitmer said the Democratic nominee gets us. She sees us. She is us.

But of the GOP nominee, Whitmer went on, Donald Trump doesnt know you, at all.

Hell, you think hes even been to a grocery store? Whitmer asked, implying Trump is out of touch with the needs of everyday Americans.

Whitmers name is often mentioned as a future presidential candidate for Democrats.

Swing state officials get prime speaking (and seating)

Theyll play a big role in the general election, but the swing states are also being well represented at this weeks DNC.

Throughout the week, representatives from the battlegrounds of Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia and Arizona have been making appearances on the United Center stage.

Those speakers, like Arizona Rep. Ruben Gallego and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, havent necessarily spent lots of time talking specifically about why their states would be critical wins for Democrats. But as they take the stage, they get a big welcome from their states delegation  and its no accident that lots of those delegations have prime seating in the arena.

Pink duets protest song with her 12-year-old daughter

Pink dueted with her 12-year-old daughter Willow Sage Hart on her song What About Us at the Democratic convention.

The two, wearing black and accompanied by only a few backup singers and an acoustic guitar, harmonized in sober but heartfelt tones on the 2017 protest song Pink co-wrote.

What about all the broken happy ever afters? the mother and daughter sang. What about all the plans that ended in disaster?

Their performance came after Rep. Gabby Giffords and others affected by gun violence had given emotional presentations to the crowd.

Sen. Mark Kelly stresses the importance of teamwork

The Arizona Democrat said Thursday, Ive flown into space four times. Ive flown into combat nearly 40 times. Not once did I do that by myself.

In a somewhat rare occurrence during the conventions closing night, Kelly invoked Trumps name, saying that the GOP nominee skipped his intelligence briefings because he was too busy sucking up to dictators and dreaming of becoming one himself.

Kelly also quipped that it was tough to follow his wife, former Rep. Gabby Giffords, who got a lengthy ovation Thursday as she appeared and talked about the 2011 shooting that left her gravely wounded.

President Obama had to follow Michelle, Kelly said, recollecting the convention schedule from Tuesday. I had to follow Gabby and Pink.

Shooting survivor and former Rep. Gabby Giffords advocates for firearm legislation

After surviving a mass shooting at a 2011 meet-and-greet event, former Rep. Gabby Giffords was joined by her husband, Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona, to bring light to the issue of gun violence in America.

Kamala can beat the gun lobby and can beat gun trafficking, said Giffords, who opened the Giffords Law Center to track and analyze firearm legislation in all 50 states.

Five people affected by gun violence share their stories

Rep. Lucy McBath of Georgia, who has become one of the top congressional advocates against gun violence, spoke of how she lost her son Jordan to gun violence in 2012.

They should still be here, Newtown, Connecticut, teacher Abbey Clements said of the students and staff killed at her elementary school in 2012.

Kim Rubio of Uvalde, Texas, recalled the 2022 shooting at Robb Elementary School in where her daughter was killed.

Melody McFadden of Charleston, South Carolina, said her niece was 22 when she was shot to death in Myrtle Beach in 2014. Edgar Vilchez of Chicago said he learned how to hide and how to drop in school, to escape violence, but that there are also lessons in writing the story that we choose to when it comes to lessening gun violence.

Joe and Jill Biden wish Harris luck from their vacation in California

This was supposed to be the night when President Biden accepted the Democratic nomination for a second term on stage in Chicago.

Instead, hes on vacation in California as Harris prepares to become the partys nominee.

The White House said Biden and first lady Jill Biden called Harris to wish her luck before her speech.

We cant wait to watch her accept this historic nomination, Biden wrote on social media. Kamala and Tim will inspire a generation and lead us into the future.

An American president must lead the world in tackling climate change

Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, the first Native American to serve as a cabinet secretary, said Vice President Kamala Harris is the best candidate to confront the climate crisis.

An American president must lead the world in tackling climate change, Haaland told delegates at the DNC. We need a president who understands that assignment. Thats Kamala Harris. I know her record. She held polluters accountable for spilling oil into the San Francisco Bay. She defended President Obamas Clean Power Plan in court. And as vice president, she cast a tie-breaking vote for the most ambitious climate action plan in our nations history, the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act.

Kamala Harris and Tim Walz will fight for a future where we all have clean air, clean water and healthy communities, Haaland said to thunderous cheers.

Democrats get some help on pronouncing Harris name correctly

How to correctly pronounce Harris first name has come up repeatedly. At the DNCs closing night, prime-time emcee Kerry Washington brought the nominees great nieces on stage to help.

Its come to my attention that there are some folks who struggle, or pretend to struggle, with the proper pronunciation of our future presidents name, the Scandal actor said to kick off prime-time speeches. Confusion is understandable. Disrespect is not. So tonight we are going to help everyone get it right.

Washington then brought up Amara, 8, and Leela, 6  daughters of Harris niece Meena Harris  to lead the United Center crowd in a call-and-response chat about putting together comma and then la.

Some Republicans, including Trump, regularly pronounce Harris first name incorrectly as Kah-MAH-la. When asked why, Trump said last month that he had heard Harris first name said about seven different ways.

At the DNC, some speakers have pronounced Harris name incorrectly, including former President Bill Clinton and Rev. Al Sharpton.

Fact Focus: Trumps connection to Project 2025

Many speakers at the convention have linked Trump to Project 2025, but Trump has repeatedly disavowed the conservative initiative, saying on social media he hasnt read it and doesnt know anything about it. At a rally in Michigan, he said Project 2025 was written by people on the severe right and that some of the things in it are seriously extreme. He has also denied knowing who is behind the plan.

Project 2025 has also said that it is not tied to a specific candidate or campaign, yet it is connected to many in Trumps orbit. Some of the people involved in Project 2025 are former senior officials from the Trump administration. The projects director is Paul Dans, who served as chief of staff at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management under Trump.

Trumps campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt was featured in one of Project 2025s videos. John McEntee, a former director of the White House Presidential Personnel Office in the Trump administration, is a senior adviser. McEntee told the conservative website The Daily Wire earlier this year that Project 2025s team would integrate a lot of its work with the campaign after the summer when Trump would announce his transition team.

Trumps running mate, Sen. JD Vance, penned the forward of an as yet unreleased book written by Kevin Roberts, president of The Heritage Foundation, which created Project 2025.

Kerry Washington: You are the Olivia Popes!

Actor Kerry Washington told the audience, You are the fixers, you are the Olivia Popes! as she opened the prime-time hours as host of the final night of the Democratic convention.

Washington has been best known in recent years for the ABC TV series Scandal, on which she plays Olivia Pope, crisis manager to a U.S. president, played by Monday nights DNC host Tony Goldwyn. Goldwyn appeared on stage, hugged her, and helped her shoot a video of the arena.

Washington has been among the most vocal Hollywood supporters of Harris since she became a presidential candidate last month.

She was also a big supporter of President Biden, playing a virtual hosting role at the 2020 COVID-19-limited convention that brought his nomination.

The Chicks kept it a capella for the national anthem

The Chicks, the Texas trio of Natalie Maines, Martie Maguire and Emily Strayer were minus their banjos, fiddle and guitar as they sang in three-part harmony (with no audible effects) at the United Center.

They sang The Star-Spangled Banner in the same style at the 2020 convention, but that rendition was remote and prerecorded for the COVID-19-limited convention.

Little-known names performed the anthem to open the first three nights of the Chicago convection, but The Star-Spangled Banner was moved to prime time Thursday night, not long before Harris is scheduled to speak.

The Chicks have never been shy about getting into the political mix.

They dropped the Dixie from the front of their name  timed to the release of March, March, a song about social justice  amid the nationwide George Floyd protests and a surge in Black Lives Matter sentiment.

In 2003 during the run-up to the Iraq War, Maines said on stage in London that they were ashamed that President George W. Bush was from Texas.

That led to a big backlash and exile from many country circles. They turned the negative attention into one of their biggest hits, 2006s Not Ready to Make Nice.

Chicago drumline continues convention tradition

The Democratic primary is over, but remnants of one of its mainstays made an appearance at the United Center: a drumline.

On Thursday night, several white-clad drummers played an energetic set, including a moment where one of them played the drums while being held upside down.

Especially at Democratic presidential primary events, drumlines are a frequent fixture of many political events. During the 2020 cycle, Harris appeared at a Charleston, South Carolina, event where drumlines from several local colleges performed.

Beyonce rumors buzz in the bathroom

The vibe inside the stadium has been palpable since rumors began to swirl earlier that Beyonce could be the special guest on the DNCs final night. That energy spiked when DJ Metro decided to play Beyonces song Texas Hold Em during an intermission, with many getting on their feet in anticipation.

An AP reporter overheard United Center bathroom attendants as well as security guards whispering about the possibility that Queen Bee herself could make an appearance Thursday night.

NBA all-star Steph Curry endorses Harris over video at DNC

He wasnt on the schedule, but NBA star and Olympic gold medal winner Stephen Curry just popped up on the big screens at the DNC to lend his support to Harris campaign.

Welcomed by big cheers from the thousands packed into the United Center for the conventions closing night, Curry said his amped-up feeling of patriotism during the recent Olympics drove home for him that Kamala Harris as president will bring that unity back.

Curry, who plays for the Golden State Warriors, who said last month that he supported Harris, closed by saying, The Oval Office would suit her well. In the words of Michelle Obama, do something. Go vote.

Earlier this week, Currys Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr took the DNC stage to endorse Harris as well.

Rep. Colin Allred draws contrast between me and we

Rep. Colin Allred, D-Texas, who is campaigning to unseat Sen. Ted Cruz, talked about how the Republican senator and others in the party are me guys.

Guys who talk a big game and only care about themselves, he said. But you know what has stuck with, is that America has never been about me.

He added, President Obama said I think the most powerful word in our democracy is the word we.

Rep. Maxwell Frost: Our patriotism is more than some slogan on a hat

Rep. Maxwell Frost, the youngest and first Gen Z member of Congress, used his convention speech to talk about climate change.

This election is about every drop of water that we consume and every breath we breathe, Frost said. Fighting the climate crisis is patriotic.

He added, And unlike Trump, our patriotism is more than some slogan on a hat.

Its a major issue for a lot of young voters, but climate change hasnt been a dominant theme at this weeks convention. Several speakers and prepackaged videos played throughout the arena have aimed to make the case for preserving resources for future generations.

Officials are restricting movement inside Union Center

With hours still to go in the DNCs closing night program, movements are being restricted for some of those inside the convention hall.

Journalists seated in sections just off the arena floor have been told that they wont be allowed to return to those seats if they leave for any reason, starting at around 7:20 p.m.

Officials with the House Press Gallery said DNC officials had issued the policy, citing restrictions put in place by the fire marshal.

Trump revives Pocahontas insult against Elizabeth Warren

Donald Trump is reviving a widely denounced insult against Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren as he responds to the DNC on his Truth Social network.

Pocahontas is now speaking at the DNC, Trump wrote, returning to an attack line Native American leaders have called offensive and distasteful.

Questions about Warrens heritage surfaced during her 2012 Senate race challenging incumbent Republican Sen. Scott Brown.

In a 2012 interview with The Associated Press, Warren said she and her brothers were told of the familys Native American heritage by their parents but never sought proof of ancestry because she didnt think it was necessary.

Members of the Exonerated 5 take the DNC stage

Rev. Al Sharpton is being joined onstage by members of the Exonerated Five, also referred to as the Central Park Five  five men who were falsely accused of beating and raping a woman in New Yorks Central Park when they were youths in the late 80s. Antron McCray is the only member of the group not on stage.

At the time they were accused, Donald Trump took out ads in four New York newspapers calling for the state to reinstate the death penalty.

The boys were charged and convicted  and later exonerated after serving time in prison. But the ads paid for by Trump drew a lot of attention and helped build his celebrity.

Our youth was stolen from us, said Korey Wise, who blamed Trump for some of the harsh treatment they received from the public. He spent $85,000 on an ad ... calling for my execution.

Gavin Newsom just wants to deliver for California

California Gov. Gavin Newsom is conspicuously steering around questions about whether he might join a potential Kamala Harris administration or where his own political ambitions might take him in the future.

When asked during an interview with NBC about a possible role in a Harris White House, the Democratic governor at first appeared to stumble over his words, saying, Yes, and.

The interviewer then interjected, asking again if he would accept a role in her administration, he said, My role in the administration is to deliver for California.

He said he plans to make her a success by being successful for residents in their home state  regardless of whether or not they voted for a Democrat.

There has been widespread speculation about Newsoms political future and he was asked if he was thinking about 2032, when a possible two-term Harris administration would end.

In 2032, I hope to be walking without a cane, Newsom said.

Tonights surprise guest is not Mitt Romney

Theres been a lot of speculation as to what surprises may be in store for attendees at this closing night of the DNC. But Sen. Mitt Romney says hes not among them.

The Utah Republican posted on X on Thursday that, Contrary to fake news posts, I am not the surprise guest at the DNC tonight.

Romney, who has long had disagreements with Trump, has said he wouldnt back the former president in this years election.

Rep. Elissa Slotkin says Trump will take the US backward

Rep. Elissa Slotkin, the Democratic Senate candidate in Michigan, used her convention speech to bring light to what a second Trump presidency would mean for America on the global stage.

Trump wants to take us backward, she said. He admires dictators ... a lot. He treats our friends as adversaries and our adversaries as friends.

She also tried to bridge her states fierce sports rivalries as she called on its voters to support Harris.

Slotkin saluted the college football champion Michigan Wolverines, shoutingGo Blue! But then she added, Go Green! a reference to one of Michigans top rivals, Michigan State.

The oversized book is back

A large, bound copy of the roughly 900-page Project 2025 that Democrats have used all week as a prop at their convention made a return appearance for the final night.

Democrats have used the plan as a way to attack Trump and his policies.

Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado brought the oversized book on stage and said that Project 2025 would abandon U.S. troops, alleys and values. He said the plan endorses turning away from support for Ukraine in its war with Russia and calls for personnel changes of top military leaders.

Bob Casey takes corporations to task over greedflation

Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey, who is running for reelection in one of the countrys most closely contested swing states, spoke about Harris promises to crack down on food producers and other corporations that she argues have unfairly raised prices to pad their profits.

Theyre selling you a lie, Casey said, after discussing how much more expensive diapers have gotten in his state. Prices are up because these corporations are scheming to drive them up.

He denounced greedflation, something Harris frequently does.

Trump has countered by dismissing Harris anti-price-gouging proposals as communist-style price controls.

Elizabeth Warren fights back tears during a minutes-long standing ovation

Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts became the second and last woman to run against Harris in 2020. Now shes at the convention that is nominating her. She was welcomed with a standing ovation and minutes-long cheers from the crowd while openly fighting back tears.

Kamala Harris cant be bought and she cant be bossed around, Warren said about her former Democratic rival. The two women served in the Senate together.

Morgan Freeman lends his voice to Harris campaign video

Morgan Freeman has become the next prominent Black actor to narrate a Kamala Harris campaign video played at the Democratic convention.

The 87-year-old Oscar winner lent his signature voice of God narration to a montage of moments from the vice presidents life that was played early in the program on Thursday night, speaking lines like, And then came a moment that changed Kamala Harris destiny, and lit the fire within.

Actor Jeffrey Wright provided the narration for a similar video that played on Monday.

Sen. Tammy Baldwin speaks on the importance of Social Security and Medicare

Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin rallied convention delegates with calls to protect entitlements for older Americans.

Baldwin, who is up for reelection this cycle, spoke as members of her home state delegation chanted Tammy! Tammy!

She told of her mother being a teenager who struggled with addiction when she was born, and of having never met her father. Baldwin was raised by her grandparents, she said, and, as they aged, she saw the importance of Social Security and Medicare.

Baldwin said Trump has suggested both programs could be cut but we wont let that happen.

We Democrats, we honor our elders and ask the wealthy to pay their fair share, she said.

Its a packed house in advance of Harris arrival

Unlike some of the other nights of this DNC, just about every single seat appears to be filled in the United Center as programming kicks off.

Long security lines have meant that delegates and guests had a hard time getting inside the arena. But as early as 2 p.m., delegates were already streaming toward the facility in which Harris will later accept the presidential nomination. Now, as the first speakers take the stage, theyre in their seats, with many wearing blinking or sparkly accessories like flashing blue hats for Illinois delegates, and foam cheese heads for Wisconsin delegates.

Sen. Alex Padilla says Harris and Walz will defend the dream

California Sen. Alex Padilla, who was sworn in to fill Kamala Harris Senate seat in 2021 after she became vice president, talked about how both he and Harris are a product of the American dream, coming from immigrant households and ascending to the highest levels of public office.

My question to you is this: This November, who is ready to defend the dream? Padilla asked convention goers. Tim Walz is ready to defend the dream. Kamala Harris is ready to defend the dream.

Teacher union leaders back the Harris-Walz ticket

No surprise that teachers unions are backing the Harris-Walz ticket  the vice presidential candidate is a former social studies teacher himself. Becky Pringle, president of the National Education Association, tried to school delegates on Republican plans such as eliminating the Department of Education.

We are coming together to say not on our watch, Pringle said.

Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, went a bit deeper by talking about the idea of the social contract, a concept that originated with the French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau. She said teachers know that actions are often more important than words.

My students taught me youve got to walk the walk, she said.

Female delegates are wearing white to honor womens suffrage on the night of Harris speech

If you think youre seeing a lot of women wearing white tonight, you dont need to adjust your television set.

There appeared to be a coordinated effort among female delegates and Democratic supporters as they arrived at the United Center on Thursday afternoon, with security lines and convention floor seats filling up with women clad in white suits, dresses and other attire.

So when Harris takes the stage to accept the Democratic presidential nomination  becoming the first Black woman, and only the second woman overall, to do so  she will be looking out across a sea filled with the color of womens suffrage, the movement that culminated with American women securing the right to vote in 1920.

The homage is a couture callback to other momentous political events in which women wearing white have played a role, particularly for other glass ceiling moments.

 Read more about the coordinated fashion statement

The final night of the DNC is underway

Convention chairwoman Minyon Moore and Rep. Veronica Escobar, a Texas Democrat, took the stage to welcome the delegates for the last session.

Thursday nights program is packed with members of Congress and other Democratic leaders and will conclude with Vice President Harris formally accepting her partys nomination.

The arena is also buzzing about the possibility of a secret special guest making an appearance. But, so far at least, the secret is holding and who the guest might be  if its actually anyone at all  remains a mystery.

Demonstrators are amassing ahead of the DNCs final night

Demonstrators began amassing at Union Park Thursday on the final night of the convention for a march organized by the Coalition March on The DNC.

In the lead-up to the event, the grassy field teemed with Palestinian flags, as a speaker system played Palestinian dance songs. The largely festive atmosphere was briefly interrupted by the arrival of Vivek Ramaswamy, a former Republican presidential candidate and current Trump surrogate, who said he was interested in hearing alternative points of view. After describing himself as a supporter of Israel, Ramasway was driven from the park by protesters chanting racists go home.

The answer is no: Pro-Palestinian delegates say their request for a speaker at DNC was shut down

Leaders of the Uncommitted movement, which garnered hundreds of thousands of votes in Democratic primaries across the nation in protest of the Israel-Hamas war, have been negotiating for weeks to secure a speaking slot for a Palestinian American at the DNC this week.

The Uncommitted National Movement said Wednesday that a Democratic National Committee official delivered a firm response: The answer is no.

In response, delegates decided to stage a sit-in outside Chicagos United Center and vowed to remain until their request is granted or the convention ends on Thursday night. The sit-in has exposed the most visible cracks in the Democratic Party during an otherwise energized week.

The news came just a day after featuring the parents of an Israeli American hostage held by Hamas, igniting a firestorm of criticism from some on the left.

More than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war in Gaza, according to the territorys Health Ministry.

 Read more about the Uncommitted movements DNC shutout

Will Beyonce perform at the DNC tonight? The internet sure thinks so.

Intense speculation that Beyonce will make an appearance at the DNC has built to a frenzy in recent hours.

The pop icon already gave Harris permission to use her hit song Freedom as a campaign anthem. But many have surmised that Beyonce herself will make an appearance at the Democrats convention, pointing to a cryptic tweet by a top Harris aide, as well as an afternoon soundcheck inside the United Center that featured the Beyonce song Cuff It.

An hour before festivities were set to kick off, White House political director Emmy Ruiz tweeted out an emoji of a bee, which some took as a reference to the Beyhive, a colloquialism for avid Beyonce fans.

Beyonce isnt the only star who was rumored to be making a surprise appearance. Some on social media postulated that Taylor Swift could appear, too.

Live from the DNC, it could be one of your favorite online influencers

Across this weeks convention, more than 200 online influencers, streamers and other social media personalities have been capturing and livestreaming their impressions of whats going on.

Theres the 12-year-old nicknamed Knowa, whos posted with a swath of prominent Democrats and went head-to-head with Republican personalities like MyPillow founder Mike Lindell inside the convention hall.

A veteran from rural North Carolina with more than 5 million TikTok followers proclaimed himself a Hillbilly for Harris. Other influencers and social media personalities are sharing everything from the food available at trucks outside the United Center to attendees thoughts on more serious issues, such the war in Gaza.

The creators were invited to the DNC by convention organizers, a new but significant part of a digital strategy that aims to leverage the sizable followings of creators across platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Discord and Twitch, according to officials with Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris campaign. They hope it will help Harris and running mate Tim Walz reach new voters who might not be following along with political news via traditional media.

 Learn more about Democrats influencer strategy

Trump visits the US-Mexico border alongside victims of violent crime

Trump ticked through a list of brutal crimes blamed on people who were living in the country illegally during a campaign event on the Arizona-Mexico border.

Trump invited relatives of two victims to join him in front of the wall.

Alexis Nungaray, whose 12-year-old daughter Jocelyn was killed in Houston, said the men charged with killing her should have been in immigration detention. She implored Americans to vote for Trump, saying he would get the border controlled.

Please, please, I really hope everybody can hear my pain, she said. He needs to be in office. We need better control. We need to stop this. We need to stop losing our littles.

Trump said Harris likes to talk about the future, calling out a central message shes promoting at the Democratic convention, but the families joining him in Arizona, he said, want to go back to the safe past.

Sudden fame for Tim Walzs son focuses attention on challenges of people with learning disabilities

Thats my dad! 17-year-old Gus Walz could be seen exclaiming Wednesday night during his fathers speech at the DNC. He stood, tears streaming down his face, and pointed to his father, the governor of Minnesota, who accepted the party nomination for vice president.

Gus wept through much of the 16-minute speech, and took the stage with his family afterward, wrapping his dad in a tight bear hug, burying his face in his shoulder.

The high school seniors joy quickly went viral. He was still trending Thursday on X. And his newfound fame is focusing attention on the challenges of people with learning disabilities. His parents recently revealed to People magazine that Gus has ADHD, an anxiety disorder and something called a nonverbal learning disorder. Searches on Google have spiked since Thursday night this week for the disorder and for the teens name.

 Read more about Gus Walz and Democrats policy on disabled Americans

Denied a DNC speaking slot, uncommitted delegates call shutout soul-crushing

Uncommitted delegates who oppose U.S. support for Israeli military operations in Gaza said Thursday that they still want Democrats to feature a Palestinian American speaker on stage.

Sabrene Odeh, an uncommitted delegate from Washington, said that its incredibly soul-crushing to have their voices shut out of the convention.

She said party leadership gave them a flat out no on Wednesday, leading the uncommitted delegates to spend the night outside the United Center in protest.

The lowest bar we could set is asking for a Palestinian American to speak, said Asma Mohammed, an uncommitted delegate from Minnesota.

The delegates represent voters from several states who chose uncommitted during primary votes to protest President Joe Bidens approach to the war in Gaza.

Layla Elabed, a leader of the movement, said the goal was not another bomb.

Trump criticizes Harris' handling of border security

Before his remarks, Trump began criticizing Harris record on immigration and border security, calling her the worst vice president as he walked and talked to a few locals near a fence.

She was the border czar. All of a sudden she is saying she is not the border czar, he said. Theres never a border in the whole world thats leaked like this border.

Harris was tasked in March 2021 with tackling the root causes of migration from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador  Central America's so-called Northern Triangle  but was not given the title of border czar or put in charge of border security.

Trumps motorcade has arrived at the U.S.-Mexico border near Sierra Vista, Arizona

He plans to look at the fence with local law enforcement and border officials, then will speak to reporters. Trump sees border security, the issue that defined his first presidential campaign, as a major liability for Harris.

Illegal border crossings reached record levels during the Biden-Harris administration, though theyve ebbed more recently.

Trump stepped out of his SUV wearing a suit and red tie and was talking to about a dozen people who greeted him, including several wearing law enforcement uniforms.

In addition to it being the day of her DNC speech, Thursday is also Harris wedding anniversary

Thursday isnt just the biggest day of Kamala Harris political career as she accepts her historic presidential nomination.

Its also her 10th wedding anniversary with Doug Emhoff.

Harris and Emhoff met on a blind date in 2013. In a speech Tuesday night, Emhoff recalled introducing himself in a rambling voicemail.

I remember I was trying to grab the words out of the air and just put them back in my mouth, he said.

Emhoff added that Kamala saved that voicemail and she makes me listen to it on every anniversary.

CEO of Democratic-leaning think tank: Folks dont vote for 10-point plans

Patrick Gaspard, the CEO of the Center for American Progress Action Fund, the large Democratic-leaning think tank, says Vice President Kamala Harris doesnt need to roll out detailed policy plans to win in November.

Folks dont vote for 10-point plans, if they did, we probably would have had President Warren emerge in that contest or Hillary Clintons campaign might be remembered differently, Gaspard told reporters at a Bloomberg event at the Democratic National Convention.

He said voters are more focused on values and their perceptions of whom candidates are fighting for.

Said Gaspard: Its a vibes election, but guess what, every election for the last 200 years has been a vibes election. And thats actually one of the reasons that I feel more confident today than I thought I could feel, at this point in the election.

Sen. Schumer talks about his hopes for Harris speech at the DNC

Hours before Harris DNC speech, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said he hoped Kamala will talk about the aspirations of working families and what we, as Democrats, will do to help make their lives better.

He said hed be listening specifically for efforts to reduce costs on housing, prescription drugs and groceries and to create new jobs, particularly green ones  all themes Harris has spoken about while campaigning around the country recently.

Talking about the aspirations of working families, what we can do to both lower costs and create ladders to give people greater income, Schumer told a small group of reporters Thursday.

Asked if it felt like Trump  rather than President Joe Biden  was the incumbent given how much the Democratic convention has focused on the former president, Schumer said Harris will also talk about the danger of Trump winning again.

The reason hes mentioned so much is the great depth of the danger Trump poses, Schumer said. The feeling about the danger.

Police: It may have been mealworms, not maggots, that sickened hotel diner during the DNC

Mealworms may have been what sickened a diner at a Chicago hotel earlier this week during the Democratic National Convention, the city

While the investigation continues, Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling said clues point toward the foreign object being mealworms.

Im not sure that those were maggots, Snelling said when asked for an update on allegations of maggots being placed in food. There was sawdust, so they were probably mealworms. They look the same. But thats still under investigation.

Mealworms are common insects that have worm-like, yellow-to-brown colored bodies. They are the larval form of the mealworm beetle. Maggots are similar in appearance, but soft-bodied with white to transparent color. They are the larval stage of flies.

Multiple female suspects entered the Fairmont Chicago, which was hosting a breakfast for delegates at the DNC and began placing unknown objects onto tables with food before leaving the area at around 6:45 a.m. Wednesday, police said.

One person who ingested the food was treated by medical personnel and released at the scene, according to Chicago police.

Shapiro responds to Trump calling him the highly overrated Jewish Governor of Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said Donald Trump is obsessed with spewing hatred after the Republican nominee for president criticized Shapiro as the highly overrated Jewish Governor of the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Shapiro spoke Wednesday night at the Democratic National Convention and said Trump wants to take away our rights and our freedoms.

Trumps missive on social media also said Shapiro had refused to acknowledge that I am the best friend that Israel, and the Jewish people, ever had and that Shapiro has done nothing for Israel.

Asked about Trumps statement by a reporter Thursday morning, Shapiro said its clear over the last few years, Donald Trump is obsessed with me and obsessed with continuing to spew hate and division in our politics. Hes someone who has routinely peddled antisemitic tropes like this.

Shapiro has years of experience making Trump the focus of his rhetorical attacks, first as state attorney general and now as governor.

The White House issued a statement, saying it is antisemitic, dangerous, and hurtful to attack a fellow American by calling out their Jewish faith in a derogatory way, or perpetuating the centuries-old smear of dual loyalty.

Senates top Democrat shrugs off possible political effect of protesters staging a sit-in outside DNC

Asked about a small group of uncommitted delegates doing a sit-in because convention organizers havent including a pro-Palestinian voice among the speakers, New York Sen. Chuck Schumer recalled Vice President Kamala Harris saying when protesters interrupted her at a recent rally in Michigan that their disruptions might benefit Republican Donald Trump.

She said, Be quiet unless you want to elect Trump, Schumer told a small group of reporters Thursday, ahead of the conventions final evening.

We believe we need unity and theres overwhelming  I have never seen such unity, he said. A small handful of people does not represent close to even a sliver of where the Democratic Party is right now.

Pressed on whether a pro-Palestinian voice should have a convention speaking spot, Schumer responded, I think Kamala Harris has had a very diverse convention.

Chicago police say theyre not changing tactics and are ready for final night of pro-Palestinian demonstrations at DNC

On Wednesday night, more than 2,000 pro-Palestinian protesters marched peacefully past a park where pro-Israel demonstrators had gathered earlier. That demonstration came a day after violent clashes between police and protesters led to 56 arrests at a much smaller, unsanctioned protest outside the Israeli Consulate in downtown Chicago.

Police Superintendent Larry Snelling said the protest Wednesday night ended without arrests and that no one was injured.

 Read more about DNC protests

Democrats are rounding out list of speakers for DNCs final night before Harris takes the stage

Among the politicians on tap are Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona, who was considered as a possible running mate for Harris, and his wife Gabby Giffords, a former representative who was nearly killed in a mass shooting in 2011.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, a progressive leader, is scheduled to speak as well. So is former Rep. Adam Kinzinger, an Illinois Republican who became one of the few elected leaders of his party to oppose Donald Trump.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healy will also deliver remarks. And Tennessee state lawmakers Justin Jones, Justin Pearson and Gloria Johnson, the  Tennessee Three,  will speak. Jones and Pearson were expelled from the state Legislature for participating in a protest on gun control at the state Capitol.

Chicago police superintendent says Wednesday night protest ended with no arrests and no one injured

Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling said the protest was pretty large though not as large as we had necessarily anticipated.

Snelling praised organizers of the Wednesday protest, saying its an example of how people can hold First Amendment protected demonstrations peacefully by collaborating with law enforcement ahead of time.

Did we have a couple dustups? Sure, but those things were quickly rectified, he said.

Ramaswamy says media not giving enough coverage to Harris policy deficits

At a Thursday morning Trump campaign news conference in Chicago, Vivek Ramaswamy also blamed the media for what he characterized as lack of probative coverage of Harris policy proposals.

Many covered for Joe Bidens cognitive deficits in the same way that I worry the media is now covering for Kamala Harris policy deficits, and Americans are left holding the bag both times over.

Ramaswamy also listed celebrities participating in this weeks DNC, portraying them as a distraction from the issues at stake in this campaign.

I see Oprah Winfrey. I see John Legend. I see Lil Jon, Ramaswamy said. Great  then still tell me what she stands for.

Trump says he plans to do a LIVE PLAY BY PLAY on Truth Social of Harris speech at the DNC

Trump has been largely quiet on the platform during convention programming, commenting mostly in interviews and events hes been holding in battleground states.

White House responds to Trump criticizing Shapiro as the highly overrated Jewish governor of Pennsylvania

The White House issued a statement on antisemitism the morning after Donald Trump criticized Josh Shapiro as the highly overrated Jewish Governor of the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Trump wrote on social media that Shapiro had refused to acknowledge that I am the best friend that Israel, and the Jewish people, ever had.

Herbie Ziskend, the White House principal deputy communications director, said it is antisemitic, dangerous, and hurtful to attack a fellow American by calling out their Jewish faith in a derogatory way, or perpetuating the centuries-old smear of dual loyalty.

He added that President Biden and Vice President Harris believe we must come together as Americans to condemn and combat antisemitism  and hate and bigotry of all kinds.

Trumps allies are still counterprogramming against Harris policies as DNC wraps up

At a news conference Thursday morning, Carlos Trujillo, who served as Trumps ambassador to the Organization of American States, decried Biden-Harris administration policies that completely eliminated Trump-era immigration achievements.

Vivek Ramaswamy, a businessman who went from one of Trumps GOP primary rivals to one of his most vocal surrogates, listed crime statistics for the city of Chicago. The DNC host city, Ramaswamy said, has been ravaged and devastated ... by rampant crime worsened by the effects of illegal mass migration to this country he blamed on the Biden-Harris administration and the vice president specifically, due to her responsibilities related to the border.

From one kid of legal immigrants to this country to another, my message to her is, shame on you, Ramaswamy said.

Trump also said Democrats are spending more time at DNC talking about him than issues

Its like theyre having a party. They dont mention the border. All they do is make up lies about me, the GOP presidential nominee complained as he called into Fox & Friends on Thursday morning.

Trump is set to visit the southern border in Cochise County, Arizona, on Thursday as he continues to criticize the Biden administrations border policies.

Hes been spending the week campaigning across battleground states.

Democrats on Wednesday night argued that theyre offering leadership on the U.S.-Mexico border, working toward policy solutions rather than simply demonizing immigrants and trying to use the issue as a political motivator for their base.

Texas Rep. Veronica Escobar, from the border city of El Paso, said, Forget what you hear on the news, Im from there. ... When it comes to the border, hear me when I say, you know nothing, Donald Trump.

Trump criticizes Democrats for linking him to Project 2025

Former President Donald Trump is taking issue with continued efforts by Democrats to tie him to the conservative Heritage Foundations Project 2025 at this weeks Democratic National Convention.

Calling into Fox and Friends on Thursday ahead of the conventions final night, Trump called the efforts disgraceful.

They know I have nothing to do with it. I had no idea what it was, he said, despite the fact that the plan  which Trump and his campaign have repeatedly disavowed  was written by many longtime former staffers. I have no idea what Project 2025 is.

He took particular issue with Democrats saying he would sign a federal abortion ban after appointing the Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe v. Wade.

I would never, Trump said. There will not be a federal ban. This is now back in the states where it belongs.

Trump also lashed out at Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Harris running mate, who spoke at the convention Wednesday night, calling him a total lightweight.

Dems gave freedom an expansive definition

Wednesday nights convention theme was Freedom. Backed by Beyonces song of the same name, which the musician has authorized the Harris campaign to use, the word flashed on the video screen and in speech after speech at the United Center.

Democrats firmly tied it to the fight over reproductive rights that went into overdrive after the fall of Roe v. Wade.

But Democrats also used the freedom argument to slam Republicans on other social issues, from gay rights to the spread of book bans in schools.

Hundreds of protesters rallied at park and train station on Democratic conventions 3rd night

More than 1,000 pro-Palestinian protesters marched Wednesday past a park where pro-Israel demonstrators had gathered earlier.

The demonstration, which stayed largely peaceful, came a day after violent clashes between police and protesters led to 56 arrests.

As marchers passed under a new elevated train station near the United Center that was completed just before the DNC, officers were seen bringing a person to the ground on the platform above. In response, hundreds of protesters pushed against the edge of the station, banging on the glass with their hands and flag poles as they called on police to free the person. The person left through the stations emergency exit moments later, accompanied by officers but not in handcuffs, prompting cheers from the crowd.

 Read more about Wednesdays demonstrations
A Latvian man was extradited to Kansas and appeared in court at the Robert J. Dole Courthouse in Kansas City, Kansas, Wednesday in connection with a Russian illegal export scheme. (Grace Hills/Kansas Reflector)

TOPEKA  A Latvian man accused of participating in a scheme to export electronic aircraft equipment from Kansas for Russian companies appeared Wednesday in federal court in Kansas City, Kansas, after being extradited.

A grand jury in March indicted Oleg Chistyakov, or Olegs Cistjakovs, of Latvia on 26 charges related to six federal crimes. He was arrested March 19 in Latvia and detained there until his recent extradition.

Chistyakov, 55, allegedly conspired with Kansas residents Cyril Buyanovsky, 61, of Lawrence, and Douglas Robertson, 56, of Olathe to export avionics, or avian electronics, equipment to Russia through Kansas-based KanRus Trading Co. Inc. The company, which was headed by Buyanovsky and Robertson, had offices near the New Century AirCenter southwest of Kansas City and in a house south of Lawrence, according to Kansas Secretary of State business records.

Computer processors, radar sensors, transponders, speed indicators, antennae and equipment installation kits were among the exported items, a complaint filed by special agent Brian Newbury with the FBIs Kansas City division alleged.

The illegal export venture allegedly began in November 2020 when Chistyakov, operating in Latvia, emailed Robertson a list of avionics equipment KanRus could repair for a Moscow-based company, according to court documents.

The three largely communicated by email and used coded language to subvert their illegal conduct, court documents show.

Chistyakov allegedly acted as a broker for KanRus by soliciting quotes, negotiating prices and terms of delivery and facilitating payments between KanRus and customers in Russia, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a Wednesday news release.

Buyanovsky and Robertson bought items from U.S. companies to fulfill orders for Chistyakov, which involved providing fake information to those companies and circumventing U.S. export law, court documents show.

Chistyakov conducted business with KanRus through his United Arab Emirates-based company, RosAero FZC. The shipments would pass through other countries, like Germany and the UAE, and sometimes intermediary companies, before arriving in Russia, court documents show. Payments would come from foreign bank accounts in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and the UAE.

After Russias February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, which prompted the U.S. to expand its Russian trade sanctions, the three men continued their scheme, according to court documents. Their efforts continued until March 2023.

Chistyakov is charged with conspiracy, nine counts of smuggling, four counts of money laundering violations and 12 counts related to violations of the Export Control Reform Act, a 2018 law giving presidents the authority to control exports related to national security.

He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and an up to $1 million fine.

Buyanovsky, former KanRus president and owner, pleaded guilty in December to conspiracy and money laundering. Robertson, KanRus former vice president, pleaded guilty in July to conspiracy, money laundering and two counts related to violations of the export act. Both are scheduled to be sentenced later this year.
Republican members of Floridas congressional delegation have complained to the Biden administration that a former high-ranking communist official from Cuba recently immigrated to the United States through Miami International Airport.

We are outraged that an individual with a role in suppressing the Cuban people for decades was permitted the extraordinary privilege of U.S. entry so that he could spend his retirement in freedom and comfort, the lawmakers said in a letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

The Aug. 21 note, spearheaded by Rep. Mario Diaz Balart of Miami, says Manuel Menendez Castellanos flew into MIA last week. The lawmakers urged the two Biden administration cabinet officials to investigate the circumstances of Menendezs entry, and pointed to federal laws that generally bar members of foreign totalitarian or communist parties from immigrating to the U.S. Marti Noticias, part of the government-run U.S. Agency for Global Media, first reported Menendezs arrival in Miami.

We request that you assess whether the law was followed in this case and if not, what specific processes are in place to ensure that a similar mistake does not recur, the lawmakers letter said. Given this prohibition in U.S. law, it would seem likely to us that a high-level, longtime Cuban Communist Party member and agent of that brutal dictatorship would be inadmissible for U.S. entry.

Reps. Maria Elvira Salazar and Carlos Gimenez and Senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott also signed the letter.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection told the Miami Herald that due to privacy reasons it can not comment on an individuals processing and entry into the United States.

El Nuevo Herald previously reported that Menendez was at one time the top official in Cubas communist party in the central city of Cienfuegos, represented the island in international forums, and was given several awards by the government.

Manuel Menendez Castellanos, a former Cuban Communist Party leader, is pictured with FIdel Castro in 1996

Marti Noticias said Menendez arrived in Miami through the Cuban Reunification Parole Program, which allows certain U.S. citizens and permanent residents to request that the federal government grant humanitarian parole to family members from the island. A year and a day after entering the U.S., eligible Cubans who are paroled or admitted into the U.S. can apply for permanent residency under the Cuban Adjustment Act.

READ MORE: Changes are coming to the family-reunification programs for Cuba, Haiti. See what they are

The Biden administration resumed the program in June 2022 after a six-year hiatus. In August 2023, Homeland Security announced it would make it easier for people to apply through the program by making most of the application process virtual.

The development also comes after a judge from the province of Villa Clara who sentenced a group of youths for protesting in the historic 11 of July protests was recently denied humanitarian parole after arriving in Florida. She had come under the Biden administration parole program that allows Cubans, Nicaraguans, Haitians and Venezuelans to live and work in the United States for up to two years as long as they have a sponsor and pass background and health checks. Federal authorities detained her and she has applied for asylum.
(WKBN)  As the Valley continues to reel from the news that Steward Healths bankruptcy is forcing the closure of Trumbull Regional Medical Center and Hillside Rehabilitation Hospital, efforts are underway in other states to gain control of hospital properties.

Read next: Realty Building demolition nears completion

Pennsylvania Attorney General Michele Henry filed paperwork asking the court to slow down or stop the process to close Sharon Regional Medical Center. Henry said they have a buyer lined up with Meadville Medical Center and wants more time to raise capital, facilitate the acquisition and get Steward to stop demanding $1.5 million from the state in order to stop the closure.

In Massachusetts, Governor Maura Healey announced the state will take over one of Stewards hospitals there by eminent domain in a $4.5 million deal with creditors and work to line up a buyer, but she is getting pushback from the owners of the leased property where the hospital sits.

Both states are looking to the bankruptcy court to rule on their next moves. Its a contentious situation since laws are different in the states that Steward operates and closing procedures could go against those laws, as Henry has declared.

Hospitals cannot quickly, or unilaterally, be closed under Pennsylvania law, Henry wrote.

In the meantime, Steward said that lenders are pressuring them to raise any money they can and close hospitals quickly, sometimes with very little notice.

Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) joined by Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Ed Markey (D-MA) in a June letter to the Department of Justices U.S. Trustee Program (USTP) to appoint a Chapter 11 trustee to run Steward during the bankruptcy saying they dont trust Steward to make decisions during the bankruptcy because of mismanagement and a history of deception.

Brown said Thursday that his office is monitoring the situation with Trumbull Regional and Hillside.

This announcement is a slap in the face to the hardworking health care workers who made this company millions of dollars and to the patients in the Mahoning Valley who relied on Stewards facilities for care. Its disgraceful that corporate greed has resulted in the loss of a hospital thats been serving this community for more than 100 years. My office is monitoring this situation closely and working to support affected workers and ensure patients continue to have access to high quality care, Brown said.

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said he, too, is monitoring the situation and that Steward must be held accountable. However, he tried to temper fears by directing residents to other health care providers.

Nevertheless, we are optimistic that area residents will still be able to access quality care close to home. As many local residents are aware, Mercy Health St. Joseph Hospital is located close by (1.5 miles away) and Mercy Health St. Elizabeth Hospital in Youngstown (a large facility with more than 400 beds) is less than 15 miles away, DeWine said.

How much letters and filings will help save the medical facilities is unclear at best. Buyers have to come forward and prove they have capital to take over. States can try to boost those coffers, but the process is lengthy and creditors may not want to wait because each day a hospital stays open runs up the balance sheet.

Steward Health operates 31 hospitals across eight 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 WKBN.com.
SUFFOLK, Va. (WAVY)  A Portsmouth womans $5 million lawsuit against Bon Secours Healthcare System is set for trial in October, claiming that the OBGYN who operated on her should not have been credentialed at the providers Harbour View Surgery Center and Maryview Hospital.

Javaid Perwaiz was convicted for healthcare fraud in federal court in 2020 following unnecessary and invasive procedures he performed on more than 50 local women. The troubling saga was documented in the 10 On Your Side investigation, The Patients v. Perwaiz.

Perwaiz was sentenced to 59 years in prison, and ordered to repay government and private insurers more than $20 million.

Perwaiz first treated Toya Williams of Portsmouth in June 2019. She complained of pain associated with a scar from a previous Cesarean section. According to her lawsuit, Perwaiz performed tests and told her she had both cancerous and pre-cancerous cells, and needed surgery. After the procedure, an oncologist determined that she was never malignant, the lawsuit claims.

She did have an invasive procedure that was done, and part of her body was removed without her knowledge and consent, and that impacts her greatly. She is still shaken, said Williams attorney Travis Markley of the Trialhawk Litigation Group, LLC of Reston.

Williamss lawsuit against Bon Secours Harbour View Surgery Center and Maryview Hospital says they should have known about the numerous violations in Perwaizs past, including several disciplinary actions including periods of censure and revocation of his license by the Virginia Board of Medicine.

WAVY has reached out to Bon Secours for comment on the lawsuit and the healthcare system did not immediately respond.

[Both the surgery center and the hospital] needed to take full stock of who this gentleman was  his full history, all the way back to the 80s when his license was censured, Markley said. In the 90s, theres evidence hes a bad actor. In the 2000s, 2010s, at every step along the way, somebody needed to stand up and say enough is enough.

The lawsuit goes to trial in Suffolk in October, and Williams is preparing to be put on trial herself.

Shes holding up as well as one might expect knowing that theres an eight-day trial two months away where her personal life will be exposed, Markley said.

Markleys Northern Virginia-based law firm deals exclusively in medical malpractice. He said the Perwaiz case stands apart as an assault to the senses.

The shock that we see is about as high as it gets with respect to the systemic failure, Markley said.

In addition to Williams herself, Markley said he plans to call several experts on medical credentialing and OBGYN procedures as part of his 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 WAVY.com.
A Maasai villager stands in front of his home in a village in the Masai Mara National Reserve in Narok, Kenya, on Aug. 21, 2024. Maasai, one of the major tribes in Kenya, is mainly scattered in the south and southwest parts bordering Tanzania. The tribe is still living in nomadic way.

Their settlement covers the world-famous tourist destinations of Masai Mara National Reserve and Serengeti National Park. With the development of local tourism industry, the Maasai people have opened their villages to embrace the tourists, as a way of increasing their income while maintaining their traditional lifestyle. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen)

Maasai children have fun in a village in the Masai Mara National Reserve in Narok, Kenya, on Aug. 21, 2024. Maasai, one of the major tribes in Kenya, is mainly scattered in the south and southwest parts bordering Tanzania. The tribe is still living in nomadic way.

Their settlement covers the world-famous tourist destinations of Masai Mara National Reserve and Serengeti National Park. With the development of local tourism industry, the Maasai people have opened their villages to embrace the tourists, as a way of increasing their income while maintaining their traditional lifestyle. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen)

Maasai villagers communicate in a village in the Masai Mara National Reserve in Narok, Kenya, Aug. 21, 2024. Maasai, one of the major tribes in Kenya, is mainly scattered in the south and southwest parts bordering Tanzania. The tribe is still living in nomadic way.

Their settlement covers the world-famous tourist destinations of Masai Mara National Reserve and Serengeti National Park. With the development of local tourism industry, the Maasai people have opened their villages to embrace the tourists, as a way of increasing their income while maintaining their traditional lifestyle. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen)

Maasai villagers sell souvenirs in the Masai Mara National Reserve in Narok, Kenya, on Aug. 21, 2024. Maasai, one of the major tribes in Kenya, is mainly scattered in the south and southwest parts bordering Tanzania. The tribe is still living in nomadic way.

Their settlement covers the world-famous tourist destinations of Masai Mara National Reserve and Serengeti National Park. With the development of local tourism industry, the Maasai people have opened their villages to embrace the tourists, as a way of increasing their income while maintaining their traditional lifestyle. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen)

Maasai villagers sell souvenirs in the Masai Mara National Reserve in Narok, Kenya, on Aug. 21, 2024. Maasai, one of the major tribes in Kenya, is mainly scattered in the south and southwest parts bordering Tanzania. The tribe is still living in nomadic way.

Their settlement covers the world-famous tourist destinations of Masai Mara National Reserve and Serengeti National Park. With the development of local tourism industry, the Maasai people have opened their villages to embrace the tourists, as a way of increasing their income while maintaining their traditional lifestyle. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen)

Maasai villagers play traditional musical instruments in a village in the Masai Mara National Reserve in Narok, Kenya, on Aug. 21, 2024. Maasai, one of the major tribes in Kenya, is mainly scattered in the south and southwest parts bordering Tanzania. The tribe is still living in nomadic way.

Their settlement covers the world-famous tourist destinations of Masai Mara National Reserve and Serengeti National Park. With the development of local tourism industry, the Maasai people have opened their villages to embrace the tourists, as a way of increasing their income while maintaining their traditional lifestyle. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen)

A Maasai villager performs the traditional dance in a village in the Masai Mara National Reserve in Narok, Kenya, on Aug. 21, 2024. Maasai, one of the major tribes in Kenya, is mainly scattered in the south and southwest parts bordering Tanzania. The tribe is still living in nomadic way.

Their settlement covers the world-famous tourist destinations of Masai Mara National Reserve and Serengeti National Park. With the development of local tourism industry, the Maasai people have opened their villages to embrace the tourists, as a way of increasing their income while maintaining their traditional lifestyle. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen)

A Maasai villager sells souvenirs in the Masai Mara National Reserve in Narok, Kenya, on Aug. 21, 2024. Maasai, one of the major tribes in Kenya, is mainly scattered in the south and southwest parts bordering Tanzania. The tribe is still living in nomadic way.

Their settlement covers the world-famous tourist destinations of Masai Mara National Reserve and Serengeti National Park. With the development of local tourism industry, the Maasai people have opened their villages to embrace the tourists, as a way of increasing their income while maintaining their traditional lifestyle. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen)

Maasai villagers perform the traditional dance in a village in the Masai Mara National Reserve in Narok, Kenya, on Aug. 21, 2024. Maasai, one of the major tribes in Kenya, is mainly scattered in the south and southwest parts bordering Tanzania. The tribe is still living in nomadic way.

Their settlement covers the world-famous tourist destinations of Masai Mara National Reserve and Serengeti National Park. With the development of local tourism industry, the Maasai people have opened their villages to embrace the tourists, as a way of increasing their income while maintaining their traditional lifestyle. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen)

Maasai villagers perform the traditional dance in a village in the Masai Mara National Reserve in Narok, Kenya, on Aug. 21, 2024. Maasai, one of the major tribes in Kenya, is mainly scattered in the south and southwest parts bordering Tanzania. The tribe is still living in nomadic way.

Their settlement covers the world-famous tourist destinations of Masai Mara National Reserve and Serengeti National Park. With the development of local tourism industry, the Maasai people have opened their villages to embrace the tourists, as a way of increasing their income while maintaining their traditional lifestyle. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen)

A Maasai villager sells souvenirs in the Masai Mara National Reserve in Narok, Kenya, on Aug. 21, 2024. Maasai, one of the major tribes in Kenya, is mainly scattered in the south and southwest parts bordering Tanzania. The tribe is still living in nomadic way.

Their settlement covers the world-famous tourist destinations of Masai Mara National Reserve and Serengeti National Park. With the development of local tourism industry, the Maasai people have opened their villages to embrace the tourists, as a way of increasing their income while maintaining their traditional lifestyle. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen)

Maasai villagers perform the traditional dance in a village in the Masai Mara National Reserve in Narok, Kenya, on Aug. 21, 2024. Maasai, one of the major tribes in Kenya, is mainly scattered in the south and southwest parts bordering Tanzania. The tribe is still living in nomadic way.

Their settlement covers the world-famous tourist destinations of Masai Mara National Reserve and Serengeti National Park. With the development of local tourism industry, the Maasai people have opened their villages to embrace the tourists, as a way of increasing their income while maintaining their traditional lifestyle. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen)

Maasai villagers communicate in a village in the Masai Mara National Reserve in Narok, Kenya, on Aug. 21, 2024. Maasai, one of the major tribes in Kenya, is mainly scattered in the south and southwest parts bordering Tanzania. The tribe is still living in nomadic way.

Their settlement covers the world-famous tourist destinations of Masai Mara National Reserve and Serengeti National Park. With the development of local tourism industry, the Maasai people have opened their villages to embrace the tourists, as a way of increasing their income while maintaining their traditional lifestyle. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen)
JERSEY CITY, N.J. (PIX11)  Hed had a mental health episode and died after police showed up in response and shot him.

Andrew Washingtons family has filed a lawsuit against the police department that responded to his home last year. Also named in the legal action is the mayor of Jersey City, responsible for the citys law enforcement, the individual officers, and the medical center the family had first called to respond to Washingtons crisis.

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Bodycam video from the incident, which happened on Aug. 27, 2023, shows that a Jersey City Police Department emergency services unit came to Washingtons apartment with guns and Tasers drawn and holding up protective shields.

On the other side of the door they faced was Washington, 52, alone. The bodycam video captures him yelling at police, who ask him to come to the door.

According to the Washington Family in the lawsuit filed on Wednesday, the interaction never had to happen.

We did everything right, said Courtnie Washington, Andrews sister, who goes by the name Drew, according to the family.

We called for help, she continued, and instead of sending help, they sent armed police officers, who broke down his door and killed him.

Courtnie Washington is officially listed as the plaintiff in the legal filing as the familys representative. She said that having a fully armed police unit respond intensified Drew Washingtons mental crisis rather than de-escalating it.

That, in turn, prompted police to breach Drew Washingtons door, the lawsuit alleges.

When one of the officers kicks in the door, as seen in the bodycam video, he alerts the other responding cops that Washington has a knife. Its visible in the video.

The officers instruct him, Drop the knife! Drop the knife! as he heads through the doorway in their direction. Gunfire is heard, along with Taser blasts. Washington falls to the floor. Officers orders telling him not to move indicate that hes still alive. They called for EMTs whod responded to the call to come and administer aid.

Washington died at the hospital after the incident.

His family and their attorney, Amelia Green, said that everything captured in the bodycam video shows officers acting in ways that endangered an innocent mans life.

He was not an immediate threat to himself or anyone else, said Green.

Nothing had changed when the police were there, the entire time the police were there, she continued in an interview, to precipitate them legally entering his apartment, when he was alone in his own home, asking the police to leave.

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Courtnie Washington, Drews sister, said the lawsuit is necessary because of what happened a year earlier.

There isnt anything that will bring us Drew back, she said, but at least we can be his voice in this moment. He didnt do anything wrong.

The family seeks a jury trial and damages that would ultimately be determined at trial.

For its part, the Jersey City government stated a spokesperson:

Any loss of life saddens us, it begins. However, we cannot comment on active litigation.

Jersey City Medical Center, which is also named as a defendant in the lawsuit, issued a similar statement:

As this case is now in active litigation, the health system is unable to provide comment.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11.
Four large letters spell out "VOTE" on a brown wall. The American flag is seen in the foreground.

Signage at an early voting center on Sept. 23, 2016 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

A Montgomery County Circuit Judge Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit against a new law plaintiffs said could prevent them from voting.

The dismissal came after Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall issued guidance that the law  which expands the number of crimes that can cost a person their right to vote  would not go into effect until after the November election.

Ellen Boettcher, legal counsel for Campaign Legal Center, which represented plaintiffs Jai Gregory Clarke and Robert Crowley in their lawsuit, said in an interview Wednesday that the new guidance would provide some guidance ahead of the November elections.

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Boettcher added that Alabama voters have additional clarity on the voting laws for the coming election.

Because we are so close to the election, we really needed clarity on who is eligible to vote and who is not eligible to vote in this Novembers election, and the Secretary of State and the Attorney General were willing to provide that clarity, she said in an interview Wednesday.

A message was sent to the Alabama Attorney Generals Office seeking comment.

Montgomery Circuit Court Judge James Anderson granted the attorney generals motion to have the lawsuit dismissed since it would not affect voters in the coming election.

In July, Clarke and Crowley, who live in Jefferson and Blount counties, respectively, filed a suit challenging HB 100, sponsored by Rep. Adline Clarke, D-Mobile and signed by Gov. Kay Ivey on May 15. The bill enhanced penalties for misdemeanor and felony offenses committed against election officials for performing their duties, and prohibited people who committed those crimes from voting.

The bill garnered support from members from both parties. But as the bill was making its way through the legislative process, legislators added scores of other offenses to a category designated as crimes of moral turpitude. A person convicted of a crime of moral turpitude in Alabama loses their right to vote.

According to the Campaign Legal Centers estimates, the bill expanded the list from 40 offenses to 120. Clarke and Crowley said they had been convicted of crimes that, under the new law, would disqualify them from voting. The lawsuit alleged that HB 100 violated the state constitution because its provisions were implemented less than six months prior to an election.

Jai Gregory Clarke, who is also a Birmingham hub organizer and voting rights restoration state lead at Faith in Action Alabama, wrote in an email that he was grateful that an Alabama judge affirmed the right to vote in the upcoming election for people like me, who have labored long to regain our place in society, and exercise the most basic right of citizenship.

It is curious that by contrast, Alabama legislators have labored at least as long to suppress the voices of so many Alabamians, he wrote.

The state is allowed to enforce the provisions in HB 100 in the future.

Going forward, voters (affected by HB 100) should not register or vote after the November election unless they receive a certificate of eligibility to register to vote, Boettcher said. That is just to protect voters.

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Updated at 11:53 a.m. Aug. 23 to correct a quote that Boettcher said state officials were willing to offer guidance. An earlier version of the story mistakenly rendered it as unwilling.
This undated photo provided by the Alabama Department of Corrections shows Carey Dale Grayson, one of the state's death row inmates who asked to have his execution carried out by nitrogen gas. The Alabama Supreme Court on Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024, authorized the execution of Grayson by nitrogen gas. (Alabama Department of Corrections via AP File)

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP)  Lawyers for an Alabama inmate, scheduled to be executed with nitrogen gas this fall, argued in a Tuesday court filing that the state has ignored problems with the method as it seeks to carry out more nitrogen executions.

Attorneys for Carey Dale Grayson asked a federal judge to block the state from using the same nitrogen protocol that Alabama used in January to execute Kenneth Smith. The court filing cited witness descriptions of the execution and the findings of an autopsy conducted on Smith.

Alabama, after becoming the first state to carry out a nitrogen execution, has scheduled two additional executions with the new method. A second execution via nitrogen gas is set for Sept. 26 for Alan Eugene Miller. Grayson is scheduled to be executed Nov. 21.

Rather than investigating what went wrong  as other states have done following issues with executions. Defendants have chosen to ignore clear and obvious signs the current protocol contains major problems that will result in more unconstitutionally torturous executions if it continues to be employed, attorneys for Grayson wrote in the Tuesday night court filing.

The Alabama attorney generals office declined to comment Wednesday on the court filing but has maintained that the method is constitutional. Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall previously described the execution as textbook. The state will file a response later to the request for a preliminary injunction.

Smith had blood and fluid in his lungs after his death, according to an autopsy conducted by the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences. The state autopsy noted that his lungs when cut showed marked congestion and edema with dark maroon blood. It also noted that the tracheobronchial tree contained a small amount of frothy fluid.

An expert hired by Graysons legal team to review the autopsy wrote that the finding is highly concerning.

Dr. Brian McAlary, an anesthesiologist, wrote that it was the result of negative pressure pulmonary edema which occurs when drawing a breath is attempted against an upper airway obstruction, leading to fluid being drawn from blood vessels. He said it can also occur after strangulation or smothering with a plastic bag. He also wrote that the lack of a sedative given ahead of nitrogen gas increases the likelihood that the person will panic.

Mr. Smiths autopsy demonstrates what happens to the body when this panic response occurs. An individual experiencing panic and the sensation of the inability to breathe while also being denied oxygen will experience a constricted airway similar to an upper airway obstruction, McAlary wrote.

Dr. Thomas Andrew, who retired after two decades as the chief medical examiner of New Hampshire, told The Associated Press that lung congestion is consistent with asphyxia as the mechanism of death. He said as the heart rapidly fails, blood backs up and the lungs become quite congested.

Andrew said he thought it was possibly a bridge too far to conclude there was an airway obstruction. However, he did agree that the lack of sedation could cause a person to panic.

I think thats a critical critique of the protocols used in this form of execution... You certainly will have a sense of the absence of oxygen, air hunger, and all of the panic and discomfort that is part and parcel of that way of dying, Andrew said.

Alabama in 2018 authorized nitrogen gas as a new execution method. Grayson in 2018 selected it as his execution method but at the time the state had not developed a process for using it to carry out an execution.

Grayson was one of four teenagers convicted in the 1994 killing of 37-year-old Vickie Deblieux in Jefferson County. Prosecutors said Deblieux was hitchhiking from Tennessee to her mothers home in Louisiana when four teenagers, including Grayson, offered her a ride. Prosecutors said they took her to a wooded area, attacked and beat her and threw her off a cliff. The teens later mutilated her body, prosecutors said.

Grayson is the only one of the four facing the death penalty because he was 19 at the time of the crime.
If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, call the suicide prevention hotline at 988. National Alliance on Mental Illness Utah: namiut.org

LAYTON, Utah (ABC4)  One man is dead following a police-involved shooting in Layton on Wednesday evening, Aug. 21.

Lt. Travis Lyman with the Layton Police Department said a woman called dispatch just before 10 p.m., reporting her husband was in distress, threatening to harm himself, and was armed with a gun. Police responded to the neighborhood near Legacy Park and was able to get the woman safely out of the home.

St. George woman dies while hiking on famous southern Utah trail

Crisis negotiators made several phone attempts to communicate with the 59-year-old man with periodic success. In speaking with police, the man allegedly made statements that he was going to force a confrontation with responding officers. One officer reported hearing a gunshot go off inside the house during the incident.

Lyman said the man came outside of the home a short time later, holding and allegedly pointing a rifle and a handgun. The 59-year-old was shot by officers, who then immediately attempted life-saving measures until medical personnel could arrive and take over.

The man was taken to the Holy Cross Hospital in Davis County in critical condition. He later died due to his injuries at the hospital. Lyman said no officers were injured during the incident.

The Davis County Critical Incident Investigative Protocol Team is conducting an investigation into the shooting. The officers involved have been placed on administrative leave while the incident is investigated and reviewed.

The mans name and age have not been publicly released and no additional information is available at this time.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC4 Utah.
(KTAL/KMSS)  Louisiana will receive $352,000 in funding from the Environmental Protection Agency through a grant from the Biden-Harris Administrations Lead Pipe and Paint Action Plan.

A news release from the EPA said the 55 states and U.S. territories, including the District of Columbia, will benefit from a grant to reduce lead exposure where children learn and play.

Lead can harm childrens mental and physical development, slow learning outcomes, and irreversibly damage the brain. Adults who are exposed to high lead levels can experience issues with increased blood pressure, heart disease, decreased kidney function, and cancer.

The grant, authorized by the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act, is for lead testing and remediation in schools and childcare facilities. Over $150 million has been provided to conduct tests and remove lead sources in school and daycare facility water in the U.S. since 2019.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTALnews.com.
Lecanemab, the disease-modifying drug which can slow down the progression of Alzheimers disease, is set to be one of the most sought-after medications in the country after UK regulators greenlighted it earlier this week.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) have approved the drug for people in the early stages of the disease. This decision follows the results of clinical trials which demonstrated that lecanemab could slow the rate of cognitive deterioration by 27 per cent over the course of 18 months, making it the first novel treatment for Alzheimers in more than 20 years.

Jonathan Schott, a neurology professor at the Dementia Research Centre, University College London and the chief medical officer for Alzheimers Research UK, described the decision as a seminal moment, comparable to the first chemotherapy drugs which were developed for cancer. It definitely marks a line in the sand and a new phase for Alzheimers therapeutics in this country, he says. We hope and expect that this will mark the beginning of a really flourishing phase in dementia research.

However excitement has been tempered by a parallel decision from health assessment watchdog Nice not to offer lecanemab treatment on the NHS, citing the significant cost of the drug. Nice estimated that approximately 70,000 people in England would have been eligible to receive lecanemab.

This means that anyone with Alzheimers who wishes to try the drug will either have to pay for it privately or enrol for a clinical trial where they can receive it free of charge. Various trials are still ongoing for lecanemab along with other novel Alzheimers medications as researchers wish to assess the potential benefits over longer timeframes and in different patient populations.

So how does lecanemab work, who is eligible, and what will be the likely cost of going private?

How does it work?

Lecanemab is part of an emerging class of treatments which attempt to remove a protein called amyloid from the brain. Amyloid accumulates in the brain progressively throughout life, most notably after the age of 50. Once it is present in significant quantities it becomes toxic, driving brain inflammation and inducing the death of the brains nerve cells or neurons.

A monoclonal antibody which is administered intravenously into the bloodstream where it is capable of travelling to and accessing the brain, lecanemab targets and removes amyloid as it begins to form fibres in the brain.

Weve seen that lecanemab can bring amyloid levels down from the abnormal back into a more normal range within 18 months or sometimes sooner, which correlates with this slowing of progression of disease and symptoms, says Dr Emer MacSweeney. Dr MacSweeney is a consultant neuroradiologist and the chief executive at Re:Cognition Health, a leading clinic for delivering clinical trials of Alzheimers and other causes of dementia in the UK and United States, who treated patients with lecanemab as part of a phase three trial which led to the drugs regulatory approval.

Patients who have received the drug through trials have described their condition as stabilising after commencing treatment and seeing the amount of amyloid decrease in their brains. When I first went on the trial, my memory was getting worse and worse, says Larry Woelk, a 77-year-old retired business executive from east Hampshire who has been part of a trial since 2020. But I feel that the progression of my symptoms has plateaued. My memory assessments have not changed since I started on lecanemab.

How can I get it?

Various clinics are now gearing up to offer the drug privately. Re:Cognition Health told The Telegraph that from October 2024 their centres across the UK will begin offering lecanemab, commercially marketed under the name Leqembi, on a private basis.

The company has centres in London, Birmingham, Bristol, Guildford, Plymouth, and Winchester as well as Fairfax, Houston, Chicago and Fort Worth in the United States.

There are potential side effects and so its important that patients are monitored very carefully, says Dr MacSweeney. Weve given over 2,000 intravenous infusions of this treatment to our patients as part of the trials, so weve got considerable experience.

However, the cost of the treatment programme is likely to be considerable. According to Prof Schott, US clinics who have already begun offering lecanemab say that the cost of the drug alone is around $25,000 (19,103) per year. However, the full treatment programme  which involves fortnightly infusions, multiple MRI brain scans within the first six to nine months to assess safety, and additional tests to clarify that the patient definitively has Alzheimers disease rather than another form of dementia  is believed to be even more expensive.

Were talking somewhere between tens to hundreds of thousands of pounds, says Prof Schott.

Another doctor with inside knowledge who wished to remain anonymous told The Telegraph that the annual cost of receiving lecanemab on a private basis, will be at least 50,000.

Re:Cognition Health say that they are yet to finalise their pricing structure, but the final cost will also depend on the patients weight as that determines the amount of drug they need to receive.

The drug is going to come in 200mg and 500mg vials, Dr MacSweeney explains. If youre 70kg, youre going to need approximately 700mg. But itll also be a bit like with the Covid vaccines; if youve got five patients coming in one day, you can use the vials so that its more cost effective.

Who should take it and what tests will you need?

Because lecanemab aims to maintain and slow down the loss of brain function, rather than regenerating the brain, the MHRA have approved it for people with mild Alzheimers disease as those patients are thought to be most likely to experience the benefit.

Were not talking about people who have profound cognitive difficulties and need a lot of help and assistance, says Prof Schott. These are people with concerns about memory or thinking, who have problems which impact their day to day living, but who are still able to do most things.

Lecanemab also comes with a significant side effect called amyloid-related imaging abnormalities (ARIA) when the brain swells or bleeds which can occur as the amyloid is removed. When amyloid builds up in the brain, it gets clumped on top of the brains nerve cells, says Dr MacSweeney. All of these nerve cells are supplied by tiny blood vessels and when the monoclonal antibody comes in to break that up and remove it, it can disturb that microenvironment and the integrity of the vessel walls. So you can effectively get some leakiness of fluid.

In one trial approximately one in eight patients who received lecanemab suffered from ARIA, and Dr MacSweeney says that in her experience this typically happens within the first six to nine months which is why multiple MRI scans are needed during that period. In most cases, these symptoms are either mild or moderate and treatment can be paused and then resumed, once the brain has had a chance to heal.

However, because of this risk, patients who are also taking blood thinning medications are not allowed to receive lecanemab. The MHRA have also ruled that Alzheimers patients with two copies of the APOE4 gene, a genetic variant which is carried by around 3 per cent of the UK population, are not allowed to receive the treatment as studies have shown that they are at a heightened risk of experiencing side effects.

Because of this, anyone willing to pay to receive the drug privately will still need various tests to determine eligibility. These include a genetic test for APOE4 (via companies such as 23andMe  it is currently unknown whether private clinics offering lecanemab will provide such a test as part of their pre-assessments), an initial cognitive assessment at the private clinic to ensure that they are still in the early stages of the disease, and a screening for the presence of amyloid through either a PET brain scan or a lumbar puncture, to determine that they definitely have Alzheimers disease.

Theres also a number of companies that are developing blood tests which will hopefully be on the market in the UK in the future, which will enable people to be able to detect whether or not they have abnormal levels of amyloid much more easily, Dr MacSweeney explains.

Can I get on a clinical trial?

However, if you cant stump up the tens of thousands of pounds necessary to receive lecanemab on a private basis, there are alternative options.

Dr MacSweeney says she encourages anyone who thinks they or a family member may be eligible to register for a clinical trial where they may be able to get access to lecanemab or early access to other Alzheimers medications which are aiming to slow progression of the disease.

Theres no cost to the patient and these are big international trials, she says. The people receiving lecanemab today found out about the trial in 2020 and enrolled on it back then. Weve got about seven or eight different trials that were enrolling for at the minute.

Prof Schott also points out that while Nice have declined to fund lecanemab for now, it is possible that the decision will be reversed as more data is accrued on the potential benefits. Meanwhile there are similar, even safer drugs in the pipeline with improved mechanisms of action which the NHS may decide to fund.

He highlights one particular drug called trontinemab which also aims to remove amyloid, but is able to hitch a lift into the brain via a natural brain shuttle mechanism for transporting certain molecules across from the bloodstream. This means it can be used in far lower concentrations, making it potentially even safer and more applicable for a wider patient population.

There was some data that was presented recently at the Alzheimers Association International Conference in Philadelphia that suggested it may have fewer side effects, he says. Its very early stages, but its something exciting which were watching closely. So were gaining evidence all the time on these drugs and having the approval of lecanemab is a genuine breakthrough.

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Legacy of famous Northern California artist Thomas Kinkade to live on in Placerville

(FOX40.COM)  The Thomas Kinkade Hometown Gallery in Placerville is in its final days of operation, but the foothill natives legacy will remain in El Dorado County.

Kinkade was born in Sacramento in January 1958 and spent most of his life in Placerville, where he graduated from El Dorado High School in 1976.

His artwork became well-known across the United States to the point where one in every 20 Americans has owned or still owns a Kinkade painting, according to the Kinkade Company.

The Placerville gallery is one of three Kinkade galleries, with the others located in Monterey and Carmel.

Long-lost Placer County captured by the legendary Ansel Adams

The gallerys final day will be Saturday, but before closing shop, the gallery donated a significant Kinkade painting to an El Dorado County museum.

Kinkades last-ever painting, Eternal Springtime, was donated to the El Dorado Gold 1848 Museum as part of its Thomas Kinkade exhibit.

The museum is located in a previously county-owned building in Placerville at 515 Main Street.

El Dorado Gold 1848 also serves as a research center for Placerville history, provided by the Marilyn Ferguson collection, which was donated by Fergusons family following her death in 2022.

The research center includes primary source documents, maps, letters, photographs, architectural plans and objects.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX40.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI)  Rhode Island leaders unwillingness to point fingers at themselves over the Washington Bridge failure has been a consistent theme ever since the westbound bridge abruptly closed to 90,000 vehicles daily beginning in December.

And their stance didnt change last week when R.I. Attorney General Peter Neronha and a legal team hired by Gov. Dan McKees office filed a lawsuit against 13 companies, alleging they failed to identify or address worsening structural issues with the bridge in the years leading up to its closure.

Asked Friday whether anyone inside state government shared any responsibility for the infrastructure debacle, Neronha responded, Thats not something for me to answer either now or down the road.

Like any state agency  I run one, Ive run a federal agency  issues about performance are separate from a lawsuit, he added.

R.I. Department of Transportation Director Peter Alviti similarly deflected a question Tuesday about whether hed personally held anyone accountable inside his agency. The estimated cost of the infrastructure failure is already approaching $500 million.

We at RIDOT are held accountable on a daily basis for everything we do, Alviti said during an interview on 12 News at 4. The accused companies, he said, had the expertise that we rely on to make decisions, and they should be held responsible for that.

But the denial of any responsibility by state leaders  or at least their refusal to discuss such responsibility publicly  is also likely tied to their legal strategy. Admitting any fault heading into a civil lawsuit could hurt the states chances of getting money from the defendants down the road.

In other words, to the extent state officials could be partly or even fully to blame for the bridge failure, admitting as much would likely work against them whenever the case gets settled, or goes to a jury for trial.

When a company is building a project and they have some other people doing some of the work  and things go poorly  they dont sue themselves, explained Michael Yelnosky, a professor and former dean of Roger Williams University School of Law.

But the lawsuit now opens the door for the defendants to push back, which could lead to Rhode Islanders learning more about how  if at all  the state messed up.

The defendants will have every incentive to point the finger at the state, so any state misconduct  for lack of a better word  might get unearthed that way, Yelnosky said.

The defendants in the coming weeks will respond to the states complaint and either admit or deny the allegations. Some may even level their own accusations against the state, as is common in civil litigation.

We stand behind the quality of all our past work and the work we will perform in the future, said Frank McMahon, a spokesperson for Aetna Bridge Co., one of the businesses sued by the state. We will vigorously defend ourselves against any claims made in this lawsuit.

A crucial step will be legal discovery, when both sides turn over to each other any relevant documents, and key players on either side could be interviewed by attorneys. This step in litigation is often when dirt comes out.

McKee himself has suggested he expects the discovery process could help satisfy the publics appetite for accountability among state officials.

During that discovery youre going to see whether there were any management issues that need to be addressed, the governor told reporters last week.

The amount of discovery could be extensive. Theres decades of underlying information tied to the closed bridge, which opened in 1968.

The plot will get pretty thick, is my guess, Yelnosky said. He pointed out another reason that could happen: The feds are sniffing around.

RIDOT earlier this year turned over hundreds of bridge-related documents to the U.S. Department of Justice, which is investigating whether anyone inside or outside government who worked on the bridge violated any federal laws over the years.

Issues with the bridge were first identified in 1992, according to the states newly filed lawsuit. And state attorneys alleged the now-accused companies ignored ensuing red flags, which together contributed to the bridge deterioration, making them culpable.

But the states lawsuit is silent on the question of whether government should be held to the same standard. And even if the strategy could he helping the state in court, McKees unwillingness to hold anyone accountable inside his administration has drawn public criticism. A recent poll found only 29% of voters approve of the governors handling of the bridge crisis.

Only in RI could a state sue companies over their failure to deal with the bridge project, and not hold the state director responsible for overseeing them accountable, tweeted Gary Sasse, who served as director of administration under former Gov. Donald Carcieri.

If McKee ever were to take any action against someone inside government, Yelnosky said it woud benefit him to keep the reasons for doing so as close to the vest so as to not unnecessarily complicate the litigation.

Neronha declined to answer questions related to state accountability on Friday, saying whether or not someone should have overseen the experts differently is not a matter for us to discuss here.

In all likelihood, however, the matter will be discussed. At this point, its just a matter of when.

Eli Sherman (esherman@wpri.com) is a Target 12 investigative reporter for 12 News. Connect with him on Twitter and on Facebook.

Ted Nesi 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 WPRI.com.
To the Editor:

Most people experienced moments of shock when they received their electric bills this summer. We were among them. Connecticut has the third highest energy costs in the United States. Now in the last two months, we have seen the results of extreme legislation coming to bear here in Connecticut.

The Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) has charged Eversource and United Illuminating with collecting reimbursements for the states energy policies by pushing those costs directly onto residents electric bills under the Public Benefits portions of our bills. The price hikes are in part due to higher numbers of unpaid bills during COVID (a moratorium granted under COVID executive orders) which still existed a staggering four-plus years after the pandemic.

Residents especially our senior citizens and working families are also feeling the pain in their inflated energy bill. Along with State Sen. Tony Hwang, we call on Fairfields delegation, State Representatives Jennifer Leeper, Cristin McCarthy Vahey and Sarah Keitt to support and call for a special session to address the junk fees that we, the people, are burdened with. In an election year op/ed, Rep. Leeper says our utilities are broken and they are the ones to blame but where was her advocacy when we knew we would have to pay these junk fees?

Its time to act in a bipartisan way to help our residents and address this critical issue with their colleagues. Our lawmakers should pass policies which put consumers first, not the utilities.

The implications of these high rates could have far reaching effects. Business advocacy groups like CBIA and others have warned that such high costs adversely impact not only existing businesses in Connecticut but also make it more unlikely that companies will come to our state to start a new business or expand existing operations in the state. We should not be piling onto our affordability crisis.

Why was the electricity shut off moratorium continued for over four years? Red flags were raised over a year ago regarding the mounting cost of these reimbursements to the utilities. Even current State Rep. Sarah Keitt acknowledged in her email communication, Perhaps the COVID-related moratorium should have ended sooner But alas, she and her colleagues Reps. Leeper and McCarthy Vahey did and said nothing at the time.

Reps. Leeper, McCarthy Vahey and Keitt all voted for the 2024 budget which could have addressed this problem. Then, there was a chance to use Federal COVID-relief funds (which CT already had) to fund the $200 million shortfall created by unpaid electric bills. Why was that opportunity not seized?

Yet, the solution by Reps. Leeper, Keitt, and McCarthy Vahey is to send an after-the-fact, clean-up on aisle 5 letter to PURA asking them to reconsider the rate hike approval. Thats not proper advocacy and will only kick the can down the road, similar to what past legislatures have done on pension debt.

Many Questions

Why was the reimbursement to utilities of the moratorium costs pushed directly onto residents electric bills instead of paid out of the states coffers from COVID reimbursements from the Federal Government? This seems a proper match of costs and funding, given Connecticut was one of the last states to end emergency executive orders.

Why did PURA decide in August to raise the public benefits charge on residents electric bills to also reimburse the utilities for the subsidies for electric vehicle (EV) charging stations? Why are those installation costs not financed out of revenues obtained from EV owners that utilize the charging stations? Why are there any free charging stations in Connecticut? We dont have free gas stations to fill out our tanks. Why are all Connecticut ratepayers paying for an EV charging grid to the tune of $80 million when only 2.5% of drivers own an electric vehicle?

Why werent the financial impacts of the legislative policies on all residents, especially on modest to lowest income earners, considered when they decided to directly pass through those public benefit costs on residents electric bills? Why were these initiatives not paid out of the state's budget surplus?

House and Senate Republicans have asked for Governor Ned Lamont to call the General Assembly into Special Session and to his credit the governor is open to that request. And according to an August 21 article in the Connecticut Post, the Democrat leadership in the House has said they are open to a Special Session after the November elections. A bit late given the urgency of the situation.

We deserve better and should expect more.

One of the essential roles of a legislator is first, do no harm and its disappointing that our legislators are going along with the bad policies of the majority party. And we have to pay for it.

We also call on our fellow Fairfield residents to sign a petition that calls for ending the public benefits charge from our bills: Petition  Demand Gov Lamont and PURA to cease Public Benefit charge from Electric Bill - United States  Change.org

Sincerely yours,

Alexis Harrison

Candidate for State Representative, 132nd district

Fairfield & Southport

Melissa Longo

Candidate for State Representative, 134nd district

Fairfield & Trumbull





Letter To The Editor: Bi-Partisan Leadership Needed For Fairfield originally appeared on the Fairfield Patch
MOSCOW, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was informed about attempted attacks on the Kursk nuclear power plant.

The organization is expected to send specialists to assess the situation, Putin said at a meeting.

Alexei Smirnov, acting governor of the Kursk region, told Putin that the situation at the Kursk nuclear power station remained stable.

Earlier in the day, Russia's RIA Novosti reported that the IAEA's Director General Rafael Grossi will visit the Kursk plant next week. 
Letters to the Editor: Big Tech owes journalists -- and a lot of other workers too

To the editor: George Skelton's column warning about Big Tech's theft of news from journalists and newspapers across the country, putting them out of work and out of business, and without being punished and forced to pay compensation, was excellent.

Payment for such theft should also be extended to those who create literature, art, film, scholarship and knowledge  and whose work is also stolen for sale in the marketplace by artificial intelligence thieves.

And what about all of us who have our data taken every day by Google, Facebook, X and others, which then sell that data for substantial profit to companies that market their products and services on the internet? We too should be compensated.

Yes, recompense is due to all of us. Big Tech needs to pay big time.

John Wagner, Irvine

..

To the editor: My first job after I graduated from high school in 1959 was with a startup newspaper, the Pennsville Progress in New Jersey. There, I learned firsthand what goes into reporting local news.

It has saddened me that the Progress, Penns Grove Record and Salem Sunbeam were bought out by a news group that now publishes little news about Salem County.

It's the same here in Riverside County, and we are all the poorer for it.

Mary Anne Vincent, Corona

..

To the editor: I share Skelton's concerns over our shrinking national press corps, and like him, I believe a strong and free press is vital to our democracy.

But before Skelton finishes taking a bow on behalf of the press for forcing President Biden out of the 2024 election, I would ask him to seriously explain why the same standards have not been applied to former President Trump.

I am not seeing the same calls for recusal over Trump's egregious mistakes, outright lies, failure to answer questions honestly, his calling journalists stupid and nasty and just making things up, like the Taylor Swift endorsement. If Biden had done that, imagine the press response.

Trump's conduct is duly reported, but where is that equal judgment of basic ability to do the job? Is Skelton demanding Trump drop out? Is the New York Times? This newspaper?

Skelton and many others need to honestly confront the reality that they have let Trump skate while holding others to traditional standards for our politicians. Possibly that has contributed to the decline in paying and loyal readership.

Melissa Walsh, West Hills

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
David Dee Delgado/Getty Images

This post originally appeared on The 19th.

Editors note: Albert Aronovs name has been changed in this story to protect him from potential retribution from American officials as well as Russian authorities.

In 2022, facing the prospect of murder or torture for being gay, Russian doctor Albert Aronov started a long journey that landed at the U.S. border in San Diego in 2023.

Aronov asked for asylum. Hours later, he found himself on the floor of what looked like a basement with nothing but a toilet. A TV was playing. For six or seven days, the light never turned off.

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You cant sleep in this place because there is no bed, there is nothing, and we sleep on the floor, Aronov told The 19th. It was extremely cold.

The experience stunned him. In Russia, his brother had called him a pedophile because he was gay. A close friend of his, also gay, had been tortured. The United States represented hope to him. Now that he had finally made it here, he felt he was living a different kind of nightmare.

Aronovs experiences are hardly unique, according to a report released in July by LGBTQ+ immigration rights organizations based on interviews with 41 current and recent detainees.

The new report, No Human Being Should Be Held Here, claims that nearly a third of queer detainees interviewed (18 out of 41) were sexually assaulted while in the custody of federal immigration authorities. Almost all of those interviewed (35 out of the 41) reported being harassed for being LGBTQ+ or an immigrant in custody.

Bridget Crawford, director of law and policy at Immigration Equality, a nonprofit serving LGBTQ+ and HIV-positive people in the immigration system, said the report is the first of its kind to put numbers to what advocates have long heard anecdotally.

Asylum is a really critical lifeline for LGBTQ refugees who are just fleeing unimaginable violence and torture, Crawford said. Their experience in detention really compounds the trauma that many of these queer and trans asylum seekers faced in their home country.

Almost all the detainees who were HIV-positive in the survey (13 out of 17) reported that they were denied HIV treatment or other medical care while in custody, while 28 out of the larger group of 41 said they got inadequate medical care.

The report goes on to detail experiences from migrants who said they were held in open-air detention facilities, sometimes in the desert between two border walls, without food, water or restroom facilities.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials did not respond to requests to comment on the report.

The detainees allegations align with past claims made by LGBTQ+ advocates questioning ICEs ability to safely detain queer asylum seekers. In 2018, transgender Honduran migrant Roxana Hernandez died in ICE custody from complications of pneumonia and AIDS, setting off months of protests and calls for investigations into the agency. The Daily Beast later reported that it was likely Hernandez had been physically abused in custody.

Later that year, advocates successfully lobbied for the release of gay Nigerian asylee Udoka Nweke, who reported having a severe mental health crisis at Adelanto ICE Processing Center in Southern California. Nwekes release was soon followed by the 2019 death of another transgender detainee, Johana Medina Leon, who had complained of chest pains when entering custody.

That same year, 29 trans women detained in a pod in New Mexico released a statement through the advocacy organization Trans Queer Pueblo claiming that they were languishing in dire conditions.

Several of us are also not receiving needed medications, the women wrote. Some officials mistreat us daily, verbally, and psychologically assaulting us.

In January 2020, 45 members of Congress sent a letter to ICE demanding the release of all of its transgender detainees, claiming that the agency failed to safely house them by exposing them to sexual and physical violence. Three dozen former detainees reiterated that call in a letter to President Joe Biden the following year.

But advocates say the issue has gained little traction as former President Donald Trump takes aim at asylum-seekers and immigrants find themselves in the crosshairs of heated political debate.

Lee VanderLinden, a supervising attorney for the National Immigrant Justice Centers LGBT Immigrant Rights Initiative, said they have not seen any effort to address those allegations over the last three years.

I havent seen improvements for medical care of HIV-positive people or of trans people generally, with access to [hormone replacement therapy for gender-affirming care] or other medical interventions, they said. I havent seen a coordinated effort to improve those conditions.

In the meantime, the image of the United States for people like Aronov has changed fundamentally. To him, the immigration system presented another side of a country that once represented hope and safety.

I have a total different picture right now, he said. To meet a face like this, that can be homophobic and racist and everything, I dont know. Of course, I had different expectations.

Immigration officials released Aronov from custody last fall as his asylum case is still pending.

Get the best of whats queer. Sign up for them.'s weekly newsletter here.

Originally Appeared on them.
An ICE agent monitors asylum seekers being processed upon entering the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in New York City

An ICE agent monitors asylum seekers being processed upon entering the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building in New York City, in June 2023. (David Dee Delgado/Getty Images)

Editors note: Albert Aronovs name has been changed in this story to protect him from potential retribution from American officials as well as Russian authorities.

In 2022, facing the prospect of murder or torture for being gay, Russian doctor Albert Aronov started a long journey that landed at the U.S. border in San Diego in 2023.

Aronov asked for asylum. Hours later, he found himself on the floor of what looked like a basement with nothing but a toilet. A TV was playing. For six or seven days, the light never turned off.

You cant sleep in this place because there is no bed, there is nothing, and we sleep on the floor, Aronov told The 19th. It was extremely cold.

This report was originally published by The 19th. The Illuminator is a founding member of The 19th News Network.

The experience stunned him. In Russia, his brother had called him a pedophile because he was gay. A close friend of his, also gay, had been tortured. The United States represented hope to him. Now that he had finally made it here, he felt he was living a different kind of nightmare.

Aronovs experiences are hardly unique, according to a report released in July by LGBTQ+ immigration rights organizations based on interviews with 41 current and recent detainees.

The new report, No Human Being Should Be Held Here, claims that nearly a third of queer detainees interviewed (18 out of 41) were sexually assaulted while in the custody of federal immigration authorities. Almost all of those interviewed (35 out of the 41) reported being harassed for being LGBTQ+ or an immigrant in custody.

Bridget Crawford, director of law and policy at Immigration Equality, a nonprofit serving LGBTQ+ and HIV-positive people in the immigration system, said the report is the first of its kind to put numbers to what advocates have long heard anecdotally.

Asylum is a really critical lifeline for LGBTQ refugees who are just fleeing unimaginable violence and torture, Crawford said. Their experience in detention really compounds the trauma that many of these queer and trans asylum seekers faced in their home country.

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Almost all the detainees who were HIV-positive in the survey (13 out of 17) reported that they were denied HIV treatment or other medical care while in custody, while 28 out of the larger group of 41 said they got inadequate medical care.

The report goes on to detail experiences from migrants who said they were held in open-air detention facilities, sometimes in the desert between two border walls, without food, water or restroom facilities.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials did not respond to requests to comment on the report.

The detainees allegations align with past claims made by LGBTQ+ advocates questioning ICEs ability to safely detain queer asylum seekers. In 2018, transgender Honduran migrant Roxana Hernandez died in ICE custody from complications of pneumonia and AIDS, setting off months of protests and calls for investigations into the agency. The Daily Beast later reported that it was likely Hernandez had been physically abused in custody.

Later that year, advocates successfully lobbied for the release of gay Nigerian asylee Udoka Nweke, who reported having a severe mental health crisis at Adelanto ICE Processing Center in Southern California. Nwekes release was soon followed by the 2019 death of another transgender detainee, Johana Medina Leon, who had complained of chest pains when entering custody.

That same year, 29 trans women detained in a pod in New Mexico released a statement through the advocacy organization Trans Queer Pueblo claiming that they were languishing in dire conditions.

Several of us are also not receiving needed medications, the women wrote. Some officials mistreat us daily, verbally, and psychologically assaulting us.

In January 2020, 45 members of Congress sent a letter to ICE demanding the release of all of its transgender detainees, claiming that the agency failed to safely house them by exposing them to sexual and physical violence. Three dozen former detainees reiterated that call in a letter to President Joe Biden the following year.

But advocates say the issue has gained little traction as former President Donald Trump takes aim at asylum-seekers and immigrants find themselves in the crosshairs of heated political debate.

Lee VanderLinden, a supervising attorney for the National Immigrant Justice Centers LGBT Immigrant Rights Initiative, said they have not seen any effort to address those allegations over the last three years.

I havent seen improvements for medical care of HIV-positive people or of trans people generally, with access to [hormone replacement therapy for gender-affirming care] or other medical interventions, they said. I havent seen a coordinated effort to improve those conditions.

In the meantime, the image of the United States for people like Aronov has changed fundamentally. To him, the immigration system presented another side of a country that once represented hope and safety.

I have a total different picture right now, he said. To meet a face like this, that can be homophobic and racist and everything, I dont know. Of course, I had different expectations.

Immigration officials released Aronov from custody last fall as his asylum case is still pending.

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Raimundas Vaiksnoras, Commander of the Lithuanian Armed Forces, has reported that there is a noticeable reduction of Russian ground forces in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia.

Source: Baltic states news website Delfi, citing Vaiksnoras, as reported by European Pravda

Details: Vaiksnoras attributes this reduction to the successful Ukrainian offensive in Kursk Oblast, Russia. However, he cautioned against relaxing, noting that the Kremlin persists in its attempts to maintain control over the Baltic Sea region.

Quote: "As soon as the war in Ukraine started, we noticed that a lot of equipment and some personnel had been transferred from Kaliningrad. They have just come back after rotation, and now we can see that there is a sufficient reduction, at least in ground forces...

But let's not fool ourselves, they [the Russians] have a robust A2/AD system, which provides air cover. And nothing has changed there. They're still trying to control the Baltic Sea, they're still trying to control this region, so we also have to remain vigilant and keep an eye on what's going on there."

Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia.

Photo: Google Maps

Background:

Earlier, the United States spotted the redeployment of some of the Russian forces to Kursk Oblast.

Meanwhile, the US is concerned that continued Ukrainian operations in Kursk Oblast might stretch its forces too thin.

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Litman: What kind of prosecutor was Kamala Harris? The answer could be pivotal to her campaign

The presidential campaign is shaping up to be a tale of two prosecutors, both named Kamala Harris.

Harris record as a tough-on-crime prosecutor was a constant refrain through much of this weeks Democratic National Convention.

On Monday, the convention featured an ad parodying the television series Law & Order that asserted, We need a president who has spent her life prosecuting perpetrators like Donald Trump. Tuesdays program was even more blunt, including a five-minute video showcasing Harris as a crusading prosecutor who unflinchingly locked up murderers, rapists and child molesters.

Read more: Litman: How an Arizona prosecutor's mistake may have stopped Trump's fifth criminal indictment

A series of speakers echoed that theme, touting Harris lock-em-up bona fides. In his headlining speech Tuesday, former President Obama cast Harris, a former San Francisco district attorney and California attorney general, as an uncompromising prosecutor. As with the string of speakers making similar points, Obama focused on red-meat invocations of rapists, child molesters and other sexual predators.

Harris experience as a law woman has been the leading theme of her young campaign since she made her debut and rolled out the reliable applause line, I took on perpetrators of all kinds.  So hear me when I say: I know Donald Trumps type.

It all sounds like a vintage campaign for district attorney  and the kind of rhetoric much more frequently deployed by Republicans.

Read more: Litman: Will Trump's conviction survive the Supreme Court's immunity ruling? It's complicated

Yet even as Harris is selling her prosecutorial credentials, the Trump campaign is trotting out a vision of her as feckless and soft on crime  indeed, "one of the worst prosecutors in history, according to Trumps characteristically fact-free hyperbole.

This struggle over Harris prosecutorial identity is for now the core of the campaign, an unusual feature for a presidential contest. But given Trumps complete familiarity to supporters and opponents alike, the main variable in the campaign may well be whose vision of Harris prevails.

Trumps caricature of Harris record relies on a series of deceptive and false claims. He has asserted with no basis whatsoever that as district attorney, she  wouldnt arrest murderers . She wouldnt arrest anybody.

Trump also tells his supporters that Harris supports mandatory gun confiscation that would leave Americans defenseless. That refers to a mandatory assault weapons buyback program that Harris once supported but no longer does.

On immigration law, Trumps line is that Harris wanted to give mass amnesty and citizenship to all illegals. The basis for this claim is her past support for a path to citizenship and amnesty for limited groups such as the so-called Dreamers brought into the country illegally as children.

Or Trump accuses Harris of redefining child sex trafficking, assault with a deadly weapon and rape of a unconscious person  as nonviolent, a whopper that apparently refers to a 2016 California voter referendum that enabled early release consideration for those convicted of nonviolent felonies.

Trump also argues that Harris supports abolishing cash bail, which is in fact true. But his conclusion  which means bloodthirsty criminals that just killed somebody can immediately leave custody, go out and kill somebody else  is false. Rather, Harris and others support replacing traditional bail with other standards for detaining violent offenders before trial.

You get the idea: Combine the emotional politics of violent crime with Trumps indifference to truth, and you get a volatile brew of sensationalist accusations that make the George H.W. Bush campaigns infamous Willie Horton attack look like beanbag. But as the Horton episode demonstrated, deceptive claims about crime can be sticky.

And Harris has a complicated track record on the subject. When she first ran for president, in 2020, she adopted the identity of a progressive prosecutor, more or less the opposite of the portrait the convention painted this week. That drew fire from the left based on her past support of initiatives that might strike progressive voters as overly punitive, especially in the wake of that years police killing of George Floyd. She also encountered opposition from police groups based on her long-standing opposition to the death penalty.

Four years later, having suddenly acquired the nomination in the wake of President Bidens disastrous debate, Harris is no longer shying away from the characterizations that undermined her candidacy with the left as she competed in the crowded 2020 primary.

In fact, Harris enthusiastic donning of the mantle of tough prosecutor is of a piece with a broader theme of the convention that likely will carry on into the campaign: the Democrats self-conscious effort to reclaim an array of traditional American virtues. The first half of the convention was marked by appeals to a throwback, "Ozzie and Harriet" world of Little League games and church socials. Obama put it best in his patent appeal to swing or even Trump voters, saying the majority of the American people do not want to live in a country thats bitter and divided.

Harris is embracing that communitarian vision even as she is presenting herself as a zealous prosecutor of those who would disrupt it. Whether she can maintain that image in the face of Trumps darker vision may be the central drama of the campaign ahead.

Harry Litman is the host of the Talking Feds podcast and the Talking San Diego speaker series. @harrylitman

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.
LITTLE CHUTE, Wis. (WFRV)  Firefighters quickly put out a fire in the bathrooms of Little Chutes Doyle Park on Wednesday and are investigating the cause, however, Village officials are indicating vandalism.

According to the Little Chute Fire Department, crews responded to Doyle Park around 1 p.m. on August 21 for reports of black smoke coming from the bathrooms near the pool area.

Traffic stop on motorcycle with fake license plate leads to drug bust in Wisconsin

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Crews then worked to quickly put out the fire and ventilate the building to locate the cause, which authorities say is still officially under investigation. Damage estimates to the structure were not disclosed.

A Facebook post from the Village of Little Chute states that the fire damage was due to vandalism and efforts to reopen the bathrooms as soon as possible are being worked on.

Local kids speak after finding missing 11-year-old Howard boy safe in nearby woods

Authorities are asking anyone with relevant information to contact the Village of Little Chute Park, Recreation, & Forestry Department or officers with the Fox Valley Metro Police Department.

No injuries were reported and no further details were released.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  According to reports, nationwide crime has decreased since the COVID-19 pandemic. However, data indicates that the number of teens committing violent crimes has sharply increased throughout several US cities.

The unimaginable happened on Halloween of last year when a deadly mass shooting took place in Tampas Ybor City neighborhood. A 14-year-old and two adult suspects were arrested and charged for their roles in the incident.

Nearly a year later, juvenile crime is on the rise throughout the Tampa Bay region, including St. Petersburg. After an altercation with his 11-year-old friend in August, a 14-year-old boy fatally shot him. He was recently charged as an adult.

The community is calling for an end to the violence and demands explanations.

On todays episode of Rooted in Progress, St. Petersburg Police Chief Anthony Holloway joins hosts Deanne King and Terrance Middlebrooks to discuss the recent gun violence in his city. We ask the steps needed to put the weapons down and stop the violence. We also ask if there are ways residents can strengthen their relationship with local law enforcement.

Additionally, with every episode we get to learn more about our guests. We pull back the layers and get to know Chief Holloway, outside of his badge.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
"When I was in high school, I started to notice something about my best friend Wanda. She was sad at school. And there were times she didnt want to go home.



"So, one day, I asked if everything was alright. And she confided in me that she was being sexually abused by her step-father. And I immediately told her she had to come stay with us. And she did.



"That is one of the reasons I became a prosecutor. To protect people like Wanda. ...



"With this election, our nation has a precious, fleeting opportunity to move past the bitterness, cynicism, and divisive battles of the past. A chance to chart a New Way Forward. Not as members of any one party or faction, but as Americans.



"I know there are people of various political views watching tonight. And I want you to know: I promise to be a President for all Americans. ...



"I will be a President who unites us around our highest aspirations. A President who leads  and listens. Who is realistic. Practical. And has common sense. And always fights for the American people. From the courthouse to the White House, that has been my lifes work. ...



"We know what a second Trump term would look like. Its all laid out in 'Project 2025.' ... In many ways, Donald Trump is an unserious man. But the consequences of putting Donald Trump back in the White House are extremely serious Consider the power he will haveespecially after the United States Supreme Court just ruled he would be immune from criminal prosecution. ...



"We know a strong middle class has always been critical to Americas success. And building that middle class will be a defining goal of my presidency. This is personal for me. The middle class is where I come from. ...



"Fellow Americans, I love our country with all my heart. Everywhere I go in everyone I meetI see a nation ready to move forward. Ready for the next step, in the incredible journey that is America.
BEIJING, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- "Thanks to the visa-free transit policy, more and more Westerners are traveling to China and witnessing a China that is radically different from what Western media describe," French essayist Laurent Michelon has said.

"When they return home, they effectively become ambassadors for China," said Michelon, who has been living in China for over 20 years.

As China currently implements a 72/144-hour visa-free transit policy for people from 54 countries, the number of visa-free entries to China made by foreigners exceeded 8.54 million from January to June, according to the National Immigration Administration.

Global social media have seen the widespread portrayal of a hospitable and modern China based on travelers' observation on the ground, shattering Western media's distorting filters on China, Michelon said.

"In the past, it was complicated to obtain a visa to travel to China, but now the only effort required is to buy a plane ticket and book a hotel," he said.

Michelon also highlighted the ease of other aspects, such as electronic payments, travel reservations and accommodation.

Thanks to all this, many foreign tourists are sharing their experiences on social media, increasing the popularity of China for tourism and business, he said.

Michelon has just released the Chinese edition of his book "Understanding China-West Relations," in which he presents his analysis, which aims to be closer to the reality of Chinese society than the biased version portrayed by mainstream Western media.

"I hope that, in return, the Chinese version of my book will allow more Chinese people to understand how the Western system works," he said.

He had feared that it might be difficult for Western readers to recognize his book, as he described a China radically different from the one that readers know through Western media. To his surprise, many French and Francophone readers said: "Finally, there is someone who knows China and talks about it to us in a more objective way."

One of Western media's perceptions of China is the "collapse" of the Chinese economy. However, in the first half of 2024, China's GDP grew by about 5 percent, which remains high compared to the rest of the world, refuting the thesis of "collapse," Michelon said.

"There simply are no other markets whose growth allows foreign investors to generate such returns on investment," he added.

There are two contradictory narratives about China in Western media: the "collapse," and the "Chinese systemic threat," which is incompatible with the first, he noted.

Michelon mentioned the European Union's recent vote on tariffs imposed on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), in which 15 countries abstained or voted against the proposal.

"Abstention is a way of showing their disagreement. It means that many countries do not want to damage economic and trade relations with China," he said, adding that the discriminatory and protectionist imposition is not in the economic interests of the European side.

Currently, many European EVs are manufactured in China, making this proposal incomprehensible, he said. "From a commercial standpoint, such a decision should not be adopted, as it harms both the European and Chinese sides."

This year marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and France. Michelon expressed his happiness at the current high level of bilateral relations and his eagerness to see them deepen further.

"In France, whether it is the government, businesses, or ordinary citizens, many cherish the friendship between France and China," he said.

Based on their deep ties in culture, economy, and other areas, the two countries should strengthen cooperation in promoting the construction of a multipolar world in the future, said the essayist. 
HAMPDEN, Mass. (WWLP)  A local business owner was selected to be a contestant on an Amazon Prime series.

Theresa Allen, the owner of Champs Fighting and Fitness in Hampden will appear in the upcoming season of The Blox. It follows a group of entrepreneurs as they compete in a series of exercises, pitches, and tests to earn points and learn from successful business owners.

Credit: Theresa Allen

Credit: Theresa Allen

Credit: Theresa Allen

Credit: Theresa Allen

Credit: Theresa Allen

Credit: Theresa Allen

Credit: Theresa Allen

Credit: Theresa Allen

Credit: Theresa Allen

Credit: Theresa Allen

Credit: Theresa Allen

Credit: Theresa Allen

Credit: Theresa Allen

Credit: Theresa Allen

Theresa traveled to Tulsa, Oklahoma last week to compete against 110 other entrepreneurs from all over the country for five days. She tells 22News what this experience was like for her.

It was a lot of things, it was exciting. It was very stressful but it was definitely a great learning experience. Theres loads of information that you get not just from the mentors, but even more so from the other entrepreneur years, said Allen.

You can expect to see Theresa and the other contestants in action in about six months when the new season of The Blox airs on Amazon Prime Video.

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WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on WWLP.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 WWLP.
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WJHL)  A local church paid off around $8 million in community members medical debt in partnership with a national program.

The Altar Fellowship Church is changing many lives across the Tri-Cities by helping people relieve medical debt.

We heard about this program through our senior pastor, Pastor Mattie Montgomery, David Morrison, The Altar Fellowship Missions Pastor, said. A business friend of his who loves the Lord just like we do called him and said that he had been dreaming about one day being able to forgive medical debt in his hometown of Florida. But he looked where they were, and that was not available, but where there was a lot of medical debt that needed to be forgiven was here in the Tri-Cities region.

Some defendants dismissed in Jane Doe lawsuit against JC, police

Senior Pastor Mattie Montgomery cast the vision to his church years after losing his father.

The story meant so much like to our senior pastor, Pastor Matty, because [he lost] his father to cancer at the young age of eight, Morrison said. And while he was on hospice care at home, a businessman from their town bought Christmas gifts for their entire family. And so that was an inspiration for him and is continuing to be an inspiration for all of us, that not only can we be a church that brings hope inside these four walls, but we are called to be the light and the hope outside of these four walls and bless our community.

The church raised about $50,000 in one day, unknowingly helping to pay off the debts of some of its own congregation.

One of those congregation members was Carl Smith, whose dad benefited from the check.

My dad had some medical bills that we were just struggling to pay off, said Smith. And he came to my room and was like, hey, the Altar. Your church paid off my medical debt. And it was just such a blessing to find that out because its always good to have that off your shoulders.

Smith said he donated to the cause without knowing about his familys debt.

I only had a couple of dollars in my pocket, but I knew everything counted. So I gave them the most I could, he said.

Altar Fellowship member Owen Barclay said it doesnt surprise him that his church has helped thousands of people.

I know when I personally moved here, I came here with nothing, and I was just following the Holy Spirit, and I was praying for a job, Barclay said. A couple of days later, I got a job from a man that goes to this church and the Lord provided the car as well. And so seeing personal experiences and from friends and family here, the generosity of everyone is incredible.

The Altar Fellowship Church wanted to help whoever they could in the community, regardless of who they were.

We want to love not just the people at our church, but we want to love our neighbors, Morrison said. And Jesus said in Matthew Ten, he said freely, you have received so freely give, and we believe that he paid our debt when we didnt deserve it. This is just a beautiful example of what Jesus did for all of us by just paying the debt for people that many will never meet. And what of like relief of a burden. And to get that letter in the mail saying your debt is forgiven, you dont owe anything else, and we love you. And thats really our message. Its like God loves you, we love you, youre seen, and we believe in you. And we want to relieve this burden from you and your family.

The Altar Fellowship helped pay off the medical debt of 3921 families in Carter, Greene, Hancock, Hawkins, Johnson, Unicoi, and Washington Counties.

They have services on Sundays at 10 a.m. and Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m.

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Locals celebrate after decades-long project restores iconic U.S. lake from hazardous state: 'Our overarching goal ... was to essentially undo a number of manmade problems'

The Maple River in Michigan has become the United States' first major river to be returned to its natural free-flowing state.

The Conservation Resource Alliance broke the news in June, announcing that the 55-mile river's liberation was the result of 25 years of work. CRA partnered with nonprofits, public and private entities, and private landowners in a project that resulted in the removal of the Lake Kathleen Dam and the replacement of every undersized stream crossing in the river.

"Our overarching goal with the Maple River Free Span Project was to essentially undo a number of manmade problems that had been imposed on the river over many, many decades, starting back as early as the late 1800s," CRA director Amy Beyer told Up North Live.

The news organization explained that centuries of building roads, culverts, and dams had resulted in a segmented river wherein water could not pass freely. This, combined with the effects of past logging, caused problems such as erosion, increased water temperatures, and flooding. This impacted public safety, as flooding events and heavy rains washed out roads or made them impassable and dangerous. Now, previously dangerous stream crossings have been replaced with large free-spanning timber bridge structures, which let the water flow underneath.

Not only will the changes improve public safety, but Beyer told the News-Review that they will also save people cash because when rivers "flow like they're meant to then it saves us a lot of expensive water treatment."

Plus, healthy, free-flowing rivers help boost the recreation economy and fight rising global temperatures, according to Pew. Beyer also told Up North Live that rivers such as the Maple are part of the circulatory system of the Great Lakes, helping to keep these large bodies of water healthy for the millions of people who depend on them for drinking water, recreation, and views.

The project also has enhanced miles of fish habitat, according to CRA's news release  some of the species that swim in the river include brook, brown, and rainbow trout, per Michigan Interactive.

This is one of a handful of projects in recent years that have sought to rewild rivers with encouraging results. For instance, Atlantic salmon spawned for the first time in 100 years in the upper waters of the River Derwent in England following the removal of a dam. Likewise, experts expect local salmon populations to rebound after a dam removal in Maine.

As for the newly free-flowing river up in the Great Lakes State, Beyer said it takes a village.

"This spectacular achievement was possible only through the unwavering collaboration and commitment of our partners," Beyer stated in the release. "Together, we've reversed over a century of ecological damage in just two decades."

Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
London City Airport will be able to raise its annual passenger limit to 9 million by 2031, in what could mean quicker access to the British capital for more travellers. Victoria Jones/PA Wire/dpa

London City Airport has been permitted to lift its annual passenger cap by 2.5 million to 9 million by 2031.

The airport sits in East London by the River Thames and close to Greenwich, so the expansion should mean quicker access to the heart of the vast UK capital for more travellers.

However, the airport can neither exceed its 110,000-flights-per-year limit nor have aircraft land and take off after 12.30 pm on Saturdays, a curfew put in place to address noise-related concerns raised by people living nearby.

"As the government has recognised in its decision, rejecting our request to extend our Saturday afternoon operating hours will slow down airlines bringing cleaner, quieter next-generation aircraft to the airport," said chief executive Alison Fitzgerald.

The passenger number increase is to be facilitated by bigger aircraft carrying more people and by allowing more early morning flights, which will likely carry people from nearby cities travelling to London for work.

Going to London has typically meant long train commutes into the city from one of four main airports located at the edge of or outside London, namely Gatwick, Luton, Stansted and the massive 5-terminal Heathrow.

Landing at those hubs can double travel time for people on any of the dozens of daily flights from nearby capitals such as Brussels, Dublin and Paris - journeys made more troublesome and time-consuming in recent years by strikes by rail workers across the UK.

London City Airport is around 15 kilometres from Buckingham Palace, about 10 kilometres closer than Heathrow.

London's other airports are much farther away, with Luton a 54-kilometre journey and Stansted 65 kilometres. Gatwick, which has a fast train to London Victoria train station, is about 40 kilometres south.
BRYAN, Texas (FOX 44)  The longest-serving city secretary in the history of Bryan has officially retired.

The City of Bryan, mayor and City Council invited the public to a come-and-go retirement reception in honor of City Secretary Mary Lynne Stratta on Thursday afternoon. This event recognized her 34 years of service.







The event took place from 2 p.m.  6 p.m. at the Bryan Municipal Court, located at 401 S. Tabor Avenue. A special ceremony was held at 3 p.m.

Those invited who were out of town joined the reception and sent well-wishes through Zoom.

We at FOX 44 News would like to wish Mary Lynne Stratta the very best in her future endeavors!

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KWKT - FOX 44.
Mileah Kromer, founding director of the Goucher College poll, has moved on to become founding director of a new Institute of Politics at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

Mileah Kromer, a longtime pollster and director of Goucher Colleges Sarah T. Hughes Center for Politics, will become the founding director next week of a new Institute of Politics at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County  just in time for the fall elections.

Besides running the institute, which will be housed in the universitys College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, Kromer will teach courses in national and Maryland politics and in survey research methodology as an associate professor at UMBC.

In a statement announcing the move, the university said Kromer and the institute will begin public polling and other initiatives on topics related to this years general election and the 2025 Maryland legislative session. The institute will launch with the start of fall semester classes next week

There has never been a more crucial time in our democracy for credible, high-quality research and information on our political systems and electoral processes, UMBC President Valerie Sheares Ashby said in a statement Thursday.

As a public R1 [top research] institution located in the greater Washington, D.C., region, UMBC is ideally situated to enrich political understanding, elevate the level of public discourse, and better prepare our students to be active, engaged citizens of our state, our nation, and our world, her statement said.

Kromer has nearly two decades of public opinion polling and teaching politics. Since 2012, she has directed the center at Goucher College, where she founded the Goucher College Poll. In April, the center hosted a forum for leading U.S. Senate candidates that was co-sponsored by Maryland Matters.

In addition to writing opinion pieces for various publications, including Maryland Matters, Kromer is also the author of a book on former Gov. Larry Hogan (R), Blue-State Republican, released in 2022.

She said that as a first-generation college graduate, she was looking forward to joining a public university, which has the power to change the lives of students from all backgrounds.

Im excited to build an institute that supports learning opportunities for the next generation of policymakers and builds on the already excellent work done by faculty in the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences, she said in a statement provided by the university.
HENDERSON, Ky. (WEHT)- Loretta Rush has been re-appointed as Chief Justice of Indiana.

EPD confirm two arrests following shooting on Dresden Street

Chief Justice Rush was appointed to the high court in 2012 and was first selected to serve as Chief Justice in 2014 and was reappointed in 2019 and now in 2024. She led efforts statewide and nationally to transform how courts address people with behavioral health issues and substance use disorders.

Chief Justice Rush says that she looks forward to continuing the states efforts to evolve the Judicial Branch.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Eyewitness News (WEHT/WTVW).
When a child walks through the doors of a Child Advocacy Center (CAC), the first few minutes are some of the most vital in their recovery. For decades, Oklahomas CACs have served children involved in the most severe types of child abuse investigations. Across the state, these centers are consistently the first line of defense for these children and their families.

The foundation for this work is the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA), and through it the Crime Victims Fund (CVF). Instead of using taxpayer dollars, this legislation ensures that a portion of the fines, fees and settlements from federal criminal prosecutions are diverted to the aid of crime victims through this fund.

Child Advocacy Centers across the country rely heavily on continued federal support to guarantee the flow of resources and support to the children that seek us out.

However, due to the nature of the Victims of Crime Act and its variable funding sources like fines, settlements from federal criminal prosecutions and forfeited bonds, the pot has been drying up for years. With each year that the fund shrinks, Child Advocacy Centers have to determine how to provide the same support with fewer resources.

This year, despite a targeted effort by advocates representing a variety of disciplines from across the nation, the Crime Victims Fund suffered a $600 million slash to the final bottom line. Across the nation, this results in a significant reduction of financial support for victims of violent crimes, depleted legal resources in the pursuit of justice and fewer victims rights advocates.

For the CAC of Oklahoma, a cut like this to the Victims of Crime Act will mean all of that and more.

Thousands of Oklahoma children suffer abuse and neglect each year. According to the Oklahoma Department of Human Services, during the calendar year 2023, there were 13,773 confirmed cases of child abuse and neglect across the state. During that same time, Oklahomas 20 accredited childrens advocacy centers and three developing CACs served approximately 8,481 children who were directly involved in child abuse investigations as alleged victims.

More: Online predators target kids. Congress must prioritize funding to protect them. | Opinion

A drastic drop in the Crime Victims Fund support to our states 20 accredited CACs would only be the first domino to fall. With the initial cut, we will likely see losses to the mental health staff and programming as well as fewer victim advocates and forensic Interviewers. Losing such vital staff members will make it that much harder for our CACs to maintain National Children's Alliance accreditation status and remain eligible for state funding. Suddenly, federal Victims of Crime Act cuts would throw Oklahoma CAC state funding into jeopardy, too, and our communities could lose a quiet, yet vital, resource that is relied upon in the most trying times.

To end the programs for these young crime victims would be to abandon them. We owe crime victims more than that.

That is precisely what Rep. Ann Wagner (R-Missouri) and her colleagues are seeking to avoid with the Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act of 2024. This critical bill infuses desperately needed dollars into the Crime Victims Fund to stabilize the Victims of Crime Act funding. Until a permanent remedy can support this crucial system, we must offer our voices to these young victims and advocate for our congressional leaders to do their part to ensure these vital funds make it to Oklahoma children in need. We thank those in Congress, especially U.S. Rep. Stephanie Bice (R-Oklahoma City) as a co-sponsor, who have signed on in support of this important legislation. We urge those not yet signed on in support to do so swiftly.

We urge Congress to support us in this work and to swiftly pass the Crime Victims Fund Stabilization Act of 2024, guaranteeing sustained assistance to this most vulnerable population, now and for years to come.

Carrie Little

Carrie Little is executive director of the Children's Advocacy Centers of Oklahoma.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma Child Advocacy Centers in jeopardy. Congress needs to act now
Louisiana homeowners could get premium discounts with this inspection

Louisiana homeowners could get premium discounts with this inspection

METAIRIE, La. (WGNO)  As insurance rates skyrocket in Louisiana, theres a little-known option to help homeowners save money.

A wind mitigation inspection takes about an hour and costs around $300.

Ashley van der Muelen, a licensed wind mitigation surveyor with Compass Inspection Services, LLC, spoke with a Metairie homeowner on Wednesday before he performed a wind mitigation inspection.

The purpose of the inspection is to improve a homeowners insurance premium and potentially make the house more wind-resilient.

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These are a newer architectural roof shingle, van der Meulen explained while inspecting the house. The homeowner said that the roof was replaced after [Hurricane] Ida, so most shingles after Ida, if not all, would meet the standard that wind mitigation is looking for.

During the inspection, van der Muelen looked at the roof, windows and attic before filling out a survey that homeowners must give to their insurance carrier.

Van der Muelen looks for qualifying construction techniques, like roof bracing, secondary water barriers and opening protection.

Some homeowners have saved thousands of dollars as a result of the inspection.

In my case, personally, I was with [Louisiana Citizens], and I had an $18,000 premium, and after I did the survey, it went to 11 [thousand dollars], van der Meulen explained. Ive done a lot where [property owners] save $1,000 or $2,000.

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Louisiana law dictates admitted insurers must offer discounts to those who have constructed their homes to better withstand hurricanes, but discounts arent always guaranteed.

Unadmitted carriers, or what we may call surplus lines, they dont have to follow those laws, but the carrier chooses the discount, said van der Meulen. They do not have to do it.

Once the survey is completed, van der Muelen will inform the homeowner about upgrades that could be made to their house.

I think Louisianians are very resilient, and if the insurance commissioner would offer some sort of printed discount for wind mitigation, I think homeowners could justify the [return on investment] because nobody wants to spend money if youre not going to get anything back.

According to van der Meulen, the homeowner called his insurance carrier, USAA, and learned he will save more than $1,700 on his $6,500 premium because of the inspection.

Stay up to date with the latest news, weather and sports by downloading the WGNO app on the Apple or Google Play stores and by subscribing to the WGNO newsletter.

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SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS)  A new study shows that Louisiana residents have seen an improvement in mental health related issues post pandemic.

A group of medical assistants gathered data from around the country on the decline of mental health problems individuals are facing after the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Louisiana is not at the bottom of the list and has seen some improvement. The state pulled into ninth place seeing an almost 44% increase in improvement in mental health issues. The same study shows that during the pandemic, over 40 of Louisiana residents suffered from anxiety or depression compared to just under 23% in 2024.

Louisiana was not excluded from the mental and behavioral health impacts of COVID-19. A second study shows that many practitioners and clinicians viewed the original pandemic as a short lives condition, but with the emergence of other variants, there is a lasting impact on the behavioral health system in the state.

The COVID-19 pandemic brought an increase in substance use disorders on top of mental health issues. The pandemic caused social isolation, anxiety, depression, and financial hardship for many people and we are finally seeing the impacts decline.

There are several resources in the state for those who are struggling with substance use or mental illness. The National Alliance on Mental Health has ways to get help for whatever you are going through all across Louisiana.

If you are experiencing a mental health crisis, call 988 for help.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTALnews.com.
BEIJING, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- China urges the United States to honor the commitments it has made to China on issues related to Xizang, and to not allow the Dalai Lama to engage in political separatist activities in the United States or make any form of contact with him, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Thursday.

Senior U.S. officials met with the Dalai Lama in New York on Wednesday, according to a U.S. State Department statement.

In response to a related query, FM spokesperson Mao Ning said at a daily news briefing that it is well known that the 14th Dalai Lama is neither a pure religious figure, nor a nonviolent and peaceful person. He is, in fact, a political exile engaged in anti-China separatist activities under the cloak of religion.

China firmly opposes any country allowing the Dalai Lama to make visits under any pretext and strongly objects to government officials of any country meeting with him in any form, Mao said, adding that China has lodged solemn representations with the United States.

The establishment of the so-called "Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues" by the United States is an interference in China's internal affairs, which China has never recognized, Mao noted.

"We urge the United States to fully understand the gravity of Xizang-related issues, be fully aware of the anti-China and separatist nature of the Dalai clique, honor the commitments it has made to China on issues related to Xizang, earnestly respect China's core interests and major concerns, and not allow the Dalai Lama to engage in political separatist activities in the United States or make any form of contact with him," Mao said. 
A family is desperately searching for a missing Southern California father whose truck was found abandoned and ransacked on the highway.

Delfino Guadalupe Lopez Fajardo, 47, was last seen on Aug. 15 when he went to visit his sister in the hospital.

Known as Lupe by loved ones, the husband and father of two young children has lived in Idyllwild for over 20 years.

His wife, Rosa Aguilar, was told by authorities her husband may have nearly caused an accident while driving back home, which enraged another driver.

Lupe pulled over at a gas station on the 63000 block of Highway 74 in Mountain Center and parked his truck at around 6:30 p.m. The angry driver arrived shortly after and allegedly confronted Lupe and began pushing him.

Fearful of being assaulted, Lupe allegedly ran away from the suspect who was chasing him and eventually jumped over a fence. Its unclear what happened next but that was the last time Lupe was seen alive.

Delfino Guadalupe Lopez Fajardo, 47, is seen with his two children. (Fajardo Family)

Delfino Guadalupe Lopez Fajardo, 47, is seen with his wife and daughter. (Fajardo Family)

Delfino Guadalupe Lopez Fajardo, 47, is seen in a family photo.

The gas station located on the 63000 block of Highway 74 in Mountain Center where the missing father was last seen. (KTLA)

The missing mans sister and loved ones are hoping Delfino Guadalupe Lopez Fajardo will be found soon. (KTLA)

The Red Kettle restaurant in Idyllwild, California. (KTLA)

Missing posters of Delfino Guadalupe Lopez Fajardo can be seen at the Red Kettle restaurant in Idyllwild where he worked for over 20 years. (KTLA)

The missing mans coworkers are hoping Delfino Guadalupe Lopez Fajardo will be found soon. (KTLA)

A group of friends, family and community members gathered outside in Idyllwild asking for the publics help to find the missing man on August 21, 2024. (KTLA)

Delfino Guadalupe Lopez Fajardo, 47, is seen in a family photo.

The Riverside County Sheriffs Department deployed search teams to scour the remote area using drones, ground crews and more. No sign of Lupe was found.

His abandoned truck was eventually located in a different area and was found ransacked.

Lupes sister, Maria Victoria Lopez Fajardo, described her brother as a good person who is a hard worker and very responsible.

For us, its a very strange case, Maria said.

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Lupe had worked as a chef at the Red Kettle restaurant in Idyllwild for over 20 years. Inside the dining room, missing posters with his photo can be seen as loved ones plead with the public for help.

His coworkers are in disbelief over the incident and are hoping he will be found soon.

Hes been here for 20 years and he is the rock that has held the whole Kettle together for a long time, said Tamara McFarlane, Lupes coworker.

Friends and family said Lupe was a fixture in his community who was a proud father and loved his friends and family.

Im still waiting for him to walk in through the front door, said Damien Yawman, Lupes coworker.

We want to know that hes okay, Maria said.

No suspect description was provided as authorities continued searching the area for the missing man.

Lupe is described as 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighs around 200 pounds. He has black hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a blue shirt and gray sweatshorts.

Anyone who has seen the missing man or has additional information on the case is asked to call the Riverside County Sheriffs Department at 800-950-2444.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA.
LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY)  Eligible Lafayette Parish School System employees will get a one-time $500 stipend in mid-September, according to the Lafayette Parish School Board.

The one-time payment  called the COVID-19 Related Recovery, Recruitment and Retention Stipend  was proposed by Superintendent Francis Touchet Jr. to compensate employees for their effort in keeping schools running since the COVID-19 pandemic.

LPSS employees at every level work tirelessly to ensure that our students receive a quality education in a safe environment that offers opportunities unmatched in the Acadiana area. They strive every day to create a culture that encourages academic excellence and growth, he said.

To be eligible for the one-time payment, employees must be actively employed on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. Employees who were not employed that day due to long-term disability, assault pay and/or workers compensation will not be eligible. Substitute employees, tutors, contract employees and temporary employees are also not eligible, according to the school system.

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Questions or issues about eligibility should be directed to the superintendent.

The stipend will be paid to eligible employees via direct deposit, separate from their regular pay.

The stipend will be pulled from the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) II fund, the school system said.

According to a statement from the superintendent, the Louisiana Department of Education established guidelines in how the ESSER II funding could be used.

According to those guidelines, the stipends must related to preventing, preparing for, and responding to Coronavirus. The LPSS feels that the purposes for the stipend listed above are consistent with the LDOE guidelines, the superintendents statement read.

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Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko's criticism of Armenia and other countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in an interview aired earlier this week have caused condemnation and protests in Yerevan on Aug. 21 that Belarusian authorities referred to as an "act of vandalism."

Speaking on Russian state television, Lukashenko said, "Who needs Armenians? Nobody. Let them develop their economy and rely on their own resources. What is France? Who is (French President Emmanuel) Macron? Tomorrow, when Macron is gone, everybody will forget about the Armenians."

France, which has a large Armenian diaspora, is one of the country's strongest supporters.

Lukashenko also accused CIS countries, which includes Kazakhstan, of wanting "to take something from Russia and give nothing in return."

Referring to the violent protests in Kazakhstan in January 2022, Lukashenko said that when "something happened in Kazakhstan," Astana turned to Moscow and Minsk, not China, India, or Pakistan.

In response, protesters gathered in front of the Belarusian embassy in Yerevan and threw eggs and other produce at the building.

The following day, Belarusian lawmaker Aleh Haidukevich said, "No one has done so much for the prosperity of the Armenian people, for peace in the Armenian land as the Belarusians."

"This act of vandalism, which was committed, is outrageous. It is unacceptable. The perpetrators should be brought to justice," he concluded.

A flurry of diplomatic activity also came after Lukashenko's remarks, with Kazakhstan summoning the Belarusian ambassador and Belarus summoning the Armenian ambassador.

Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya also condemned Lukahshenko's comments, saying that she "categorically condemn(s) the outrageous insults directed at Armenia and the Armenian people."

"The dictator (Lukashenko) has betrayed both Belarusians and Armenians, acting on behalf of the Kremlin."

It was the latest rise in tension between Armenia and Belarus.

In June, Politico reported, citing leaked documents, that Belarus had delivered advanced weapons to Armenia's geopolitical foe Azerbaijan for years, despite the fact that both Belarus and Armenia belong to the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan told the parliament that the country plans to leave the alliance and accused the CSTO of plotting "against us with Azerbaijan."

The move was likely regarded as a "bitter betrayal" by Armenia as the supplies gave Baku the "upper hand" in its conflict with Yerevan, Politico wrote at the time.

Read also: Russian soldiers depart Yerevan airport, ending 32-year presence

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Amazon Fresh opens first store in Northern California. Our photos and video take you inside

Retail giant Amazon opened its first brick-and-mortar Amazon Fresh grocery store Thursday in Roseville.

The new 42,000-square-foot Amazon Fresh is located at 6780 Stanford Ranch Road off of Five Star Boulevard. It is the first Amazon Fresh grocery store in Northern California outside of the Bay Area after several years of anticipation.

We are so excited to be a part of this community and impress our customers with great value, selection and convenience, said Stockton Young, a regional manager for Amazon Freshs store operations.

The grocery store features more than 18,000 products, including meats, seafood, produce, bread, prepared meals and international offerings. It will also have items from more than 500 regional brands, the Seattle-based company said.

At the opening ceremony Thursday morning, more than 100 customers lined up around the building to be some of the first to enter the new store. The first person in line received a $100 Amazon gift card and next 99 shoppers were handed gift cards up to $15.

Ive been excited for this store to open for a long time, said Juliana Loconte, right, of Rocklin after she was the first in line at the Roseville grand opening of the first Amazon Fresh in Northern California on Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024.

Citrus Heights resident Lawanda Brown said she made the drive over in hopes Amazon Fresh would have a variety of low-cost products so she wouldnt have to shop elsewhere.

Im hoping they have it all, she said. If they have the deals I think they have, Ill be back.

Amazon Fresh offers customers five different ways to shop for products. Shoppers have the option to scan items as they go with a Dash Cart that allows them to simply walk out when finished shopping, or people can use self-checkout, assisted checkout or choose curbside pickup as well as same-day home delivery.

Isaiah Ramirez of Roseville loads a bag of carrots onto his Dash Cart on Thursday during the grand opening of Amazon Fresh in Roseville, the chains first location in Northern California. The cart has cameras, a scale to weigh produce and other items, and a bar code scanner that automatically adds the items to the Amazon app.

A salad bar at Amazon Fresh in Roseville offers customers prepared food sold by the pound.

Customers check out after as they attend the grand opening of the first Amazon Fresh in Northern California on Thursday.

According to the company, the new location created about 100 jobs for residents in the Sacramento area.

Its brought good quality jobs to the region, said Roseville Mayor Bruce Houdesheldt. We have a skilled workforce thats ready to contribute.

Amazon Fresh opened its first location in the Los Angeles area in September 2020 and has since been joined by nearly 50 locations across the United States. Amazon Fresh is similar to other supermarkets while being a physical extension of the popular online shopping retailer.

Tapping into its vast online inventory, shoppers can get discounts for up to 4,000 products across the store, while Amazon Prime customers can receive an additional 10% off on hundreds of other items, an Amazon spokesperson said.

Elizabeth Piven of Citrus Heights and her four-year-old son Sean leave Amazon Fresh as more customers wait in line to enter Thursday, the stores opening day.

The opening comes as the company also announced another Amazon Fresh was slated to open next month in Elk Grove.

The company  which also owns the upscale Whole Foods grocery chain  kept mum for years about the stores as it quickly took up retail spaces across the capital region before pausing its nationwide expansion.

In January 2022, The Sacramento Bee confirmed the Roseville location with city planning officials. According to previous Bee reporting, the building permit for the site of a former Toys R Us store never included Amazons name on it, only an architectural firm.

Then came a lull as Amazon CEO Andy Jassy told investors last year that the company wouldnt open new supermarket locations until it solidified a system that resonated with customers. He said at the time that Amazon also needed to like the economics.

With the two new stores coming online, it appears development efforts have begun on more Amazon Fresh stores in the capital region  but at a different location.

An opening date for a third location already built out, in the Country Club Centre in Arden Arcade, has not been announced.

In June, Sunrise Village shopping center in Citrus Heights listed a grocery store as coming soon to a space measuring more than 38,000 square feet.

Amazon Fresh locations will be open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day.

The Bees Brianna Taylor, Marcus D. Smith and Hanh Truong contributed to this story.

A line of customers waits for the grand opening of the Amazon Fresh store in Roseville on Thursday.
Todays edition of quick hits.

* Ukraines Russian targets: Dramatic video Thursday showed a Ukrainian drone attack on a military airfield in southern Russia, as Kyiv launches an expanding wave of strikes deep inside its neighbors territory.

* Difficult diplomacy: President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday as the United States presses Israel and Hamas to agree to a bridging proposal that could lead to a cease-fire in the war in Gaza.

* Elsewhere in the Middle East: The Pentagon on Thursday blasted Houthi rebels for striking an oil tanker and creating an environmental disaster in the Red Sea after the merchant vessel was lit ablaze with a million barrels of crude oil on board. Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters the Houthis striking the merchant vessel Sounion on Wednesday was threatening a catastrophe in Yemens backyard.

* SCOTUS news: The Supreme Court on Thursday partly granted a request from the Republican National Committee to make Arizona enforce measures requiring people to show proof of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote. In what is likely to be one of many election-related disputes to come before the court ahead of the November election, the justices allowed for one of three provisions of the state law to be enforced.

* Democracy could be in better shape in Arkansas: The Arkansas Supreme Court blocked an abortion-rights initiative from appearing on the states ballot this fall, upholding a July decision by the secretary of state to reject the measure for not following rules related to paid signature gatherers.

* One of Trumps many legal dilemmas: New York state lawyers urged an appeals court late Wednesday to uphold Donald Trumps nearly $500 million civil fraud judgment, arguing theres overwhelming evidence to support a judges finding that the former president lied for years about his wealth as he built his real estate empire.

* Vaccine news: The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved the new Covid vaccine from Pfizer and Moderna. Its the third time the vaccines have been updated to match circulating strains since the original series. The shots should be available within days. The agency hasnt yet approved a third vaccine, from drugmaker Novavax.

See you tomorrow.

This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiros remarks at the Democratic National Convention were very well received, though Donald Trump was apparently unimpressed. The Wall Street Journal reported:

Former President Donald Trump ranted on his social-media platform, Truth Social, early on Thursday about Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, calling him The highly overrated Jewish Governor of the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Republican presidential candidate also slammed Shapiro for refusing to acknowledge that I am the best friend that Israel, and the Jewish people, ever had. The post is the latest in a string of attacks Trump has made toward Jewish Democrats, whom he considers disloyal.

Even for Trump, who peddles antisemitic tropes as a matter of course, this was bizarre.

In a middle-of-the-night tirade, the GOP candidate began by arguing, The highly overrated Jewish Governor of the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro, made a really bad and poorly delivered speech. Whether Trump understands this or not, the fact that he emphasized the governors faith was itself emblematic of his prejudice: When the former president lashes out at Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, he doesnt call him a highly overrated Lutheran governor. When Trump whines about House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, he doesnt call her a highly overrated Catholic congresswoman.

But when targeting Shapiro, the Republican apparently finds it necessary to call out the governors religion  which says quite a bit about Trump, and none of its good.

In the same online missive, Trump added, I have done more for Israel than any President, and frankly, I have done more for Israel than any person, and its not even close. In other words, as far as the GOP candidate is concerned, in the history of Israel, no other human being  in the United States or abroad  has ever done more for the country than him, which is unintentionally hilarious.

In case that werent quite enough, the former president went on to say that Vice President Kamala Harris hates Israel and will do nothing but make its journey through the complexities of survival as difficult as possible, hoping in the end that it will fail.

To the extent that reality still has any meaning, theres literally no evidence of the Democratic presidential hopeful hating Israel, but this sentence stood out for me for an entirely different reason: While Trump habitually publishes angry screeds to his social media platform in the middle of the night, its difficult to believe that it was his hands that wrote that Israel is making its journey through the complexities of survival.

In other words, Trump didnt just peddle offensive nonsense, he also mightve had some help putting this one together.

For a politician whos a little too eager to falsely accuse his opponents of antisemitism, this was ridiculous.

Indeed, Trump's rhetoric was so ugly that a White House spokesperson condemned his missive, saying, It is Antisemitic, dangerous, and hurtful to attack a fellow American by calling out their Jewish faith in a derogatory way, or perpetuating the centuries-old smear of dual loyalty.

Shapiro himself wasn't impressed with Trump's nonsense, either.

WATCH @JoshShapiroPAs response to Donald Trumps late night ranting about him  and the contrast between this and the Democratic message of freedom, opportunity, and bringing people together.



Full answer this morning > https://t.co/Zqe6NmrTRy pic.twitter.com/5IGwp1jNk9  Manuel Bonder (@manuel_bonder) August 22, 2024

I mean, first off, I think its clear over the last few years, Donald Trump is obsessed with me and obsessed with continuing to spew hate and division in our politics," the governor said. "Hes someone who has routinely peddled antisemitic tropes like this. Look, remember, hes the guy who wanted Doug Mastriano to have his job. Hes the guy who has been repeatedly rejected by the voters of Pennsylvania. He himself lost in 2020, all of his handpicked candidates have lost, and I think hes heading for another loss  this time to Kamala Harris.

"I think you all heard me talk last night at the DNC  the exact polar opposite of what Donald Trump is talking about. Im talking about real freedom, bringing people together, accepting folks no matter what they look like, where they come from, who they love, who they pray to and saying, 'This is a place for you.' Thats diametrically opposed to everything Donald Trump believes, and its clear that hes going to continue to be the hateful, divisive person that hes always been in this campaign. And I think given his track record, its clear hes setting himself up for another defeat.

This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
Republicans havent exactly been subtle in claiming the idea of freedom as their own. When a group of right-wing GOP House members decided to create their own radical faction, for example, they called it the House Freedom Caucus.

When Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was preparing to launch an ill-fated national campaign, he labeled his state a citadel of freedom, freedoms linchpin and freedoms vanguard. He went on to title his memoir The Courage to Be Free and called his budget a Framework for Freedom.

But if freedom is a word that Republicans stole from Democrats, the Harris/Walz campaign and its allies are stealing it back.

In fact, as Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz accepted his partys vice presidential nomination, he explicitly said that freedom is what this election is about. From the transcript:

When Republicans use the word 'freedom,' they mean that the government should be free to invade your doctors office. Corporations, free to pollute your air and water. And banks, free to take advantage of customers. But when we Democrats talk about freedom, we mean the freedom to make a better life for yourself and the people that you love. Freedom to make your own health care decisions. And yeah, your kids freedom to go to school without worrying about being shot dead in the hall.

The Minnesotan was hardly alone. Earlier in the evening, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro emphasized a similar message, explaining Donald Trump cloaks himself in the blanket of freedom, what hes offering isnt freedom at all.

Its not freedom to tell our children what books theyre allowed to read, he added. And its not freedom to tell women what they can do with their bodies. It sure as hell isnt freedom to say, You can go vote, but he gets to pick the winner. Thats not freedom.

Soon after, convention attendees were presented with a new video from the Harris campaign. Its title: We believe in freedom.

Democratic Convention airs new ad: "We believe in freedom." pic.twitter.com/uhxKBigDf0  Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) August 22, 2024

It dovetails with a convention in which Beyonces Freedom has been a musical mainstay of the entire event, and as Walz ended his convention remarks, it was Neil Youngs Rockin in the Free World that played over the loudspeakers.

All of which is to say, Democrats arent just trying to change the public conversation, theyre also picking a fight over the mantle of freedom itself. As the ongoing convention is helping prove, its a fight the party thinks it can win.

This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  New documents reveal Madeline Sotos mother, Jennifer Soto, suggested the alleged sexual abuse involving the 13-year-old was not evil, according to investigators.

Jennifer Sotos boyfriend, Stephan Sterns, was accused of sexually abusing the girl for years before her disappearance and murder earlier this year.

Documents obtained by NBC affiliate WESH detail a police interview with Jennifer Soto from March 1, days after Sterns was charged with dozens of child sex crimes following a search of his phone, and the same day that Madeline Soto was found dead.

During the interview, Jennifer Soto continuously protected Stephan Sterns, was questioned about why she prioritizes Stephan Sterns over (Madeline), and even at one point referred to the sex stuff as not evil but the murder of (Madeline) as evil, an arrest report stated.

Jennifer Soto (WESH)

Jennifer Soto told police that Sterns often shared a bed with the teenager, and the pair slept in a separate bedroom with a chain lock on it. She said they went off to bed together the night before the child disappeared.

Jennifer Soto did not show the same level of emotion or care in regards to (Madelines) ongoing victimization by Stephan Sterns than she did her disappearance. It appeared to me that she has already accepted that the victimization was happening and her emotion appeared fictitious, the report noted, according to WESH.

One interview revealed that Madeline recently told Sterns she had a crush on a boy. Jennifer Soto said she didnt notice anything unusual going on before she disappeared. She has not been charged with any crimes.

The newly released evidence also showed Sterns secretly took photos of one of their female roommates naked through the crack at the bottom of the door, according to police.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA.
Maggots Reportedly Placed In Food At DNC Hotel By Activists

Activists are reportedly suspected of placing maggots into the breakfast food of Democratic National Convention delegates at the Fairmont Chicago hotel.

Chicago Police and the FBI are on the case, a law enforcement source told WGN Investigates on Wednesday.

State troopers were seen converging on the lobby near where the meal was served and an FBI evidence response team was stationed outside the hotel, the outlet reported.

They protected us, of course, and turned it around in minutes, Indiana delegate Tracy Boyd told WGN.

It wasnt reported whether any delegates actually ate the maggots before law enforcement arrived to delay the breakfast.

We can confirm that a group of individuals caused a disruption at a DNC-related breakfast event at our hotel this morning, the hotel said in a statement to ABC7. We are grateful for the swift response of law enforcement. The safety, security, and well-being of our guests and staff are our top priorities.

According to NBC Chicago, DNC officials said multiple female offenders entered the room and placed unknown objects onto tables with food and left.

Delegates told the station that the objects were maggots, and Chicago police and the FBI were investigating, according to the officials.

The affiliate noted that a similar stunt was done by pro-Palestinian activists at the D.C. hotel of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

All Americans have the right to peaceful protest, but ugly attacks like this have no place in our democracy, Indiana Democratic Party spokesperson Sam Barloga told Axios. We thank the security team for responding swiftly.

Related...
Nazrin Abdul

Azerbaijani entrepreneurs are keen on expanding their export activities to Uzbekistan, as highlighted by Yusif Abdullayev, Executive Director of the Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO), during the Uzbekistan-Azerbaijan Business Forum in Tashkent, Azernews reports.

Abdullayev noted that 67 Azerbaijani companies, including representatives from approximately 10 state institutions, are participating in the forum. The event features an exhibition titled "Main Directions of the Economy," showcasing Azerbaijani products.

The two-day business forum, which began on August 22 in Tashkent, aims to strengthen economic ties between the two nations, foster cooperation, attract investment, and initiate joint projects. The forum will provide a platform for discussing strategies to enhance trade volume, share expertise, and forge new business partnerships.

Currently, there are 236 enterprises with Azerbaijani investment in Uzbekistan, comprising 62 joint ventures and 174 wholly foreign-owned companies. Additionally, 70 Uzbek companies operate in Azerbaijan.

For the period of January to July 2024, trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan has surpassed $118.2 million.
HANOI, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Asian countries have become the largest market for Vietnam's cinnamon exports, with Indonesia and China being two major importers, the Voice of Vietnam (VOV) reported Thursday.

Vietnam exported 2,979 tons of cinnamon in the first seven months of this year, with the total turnover reaching more than 7.1 million U.S. dollars, the report said, citing the Vietnam Pepper and Spice Association.

Exports to Indonesia and China reached 1,299 tons and 1,242 tons, respectively, during the cited period.

Vietnam's cinnamon growing area totals up to 180,000 hectares in the northern mountainous localities and the north-central region.

The Southeast Asian country's cinnamon bark reserves are estimated at about 900,000 tons to 1,200,000 tons, with an average harvest of 70,000 tons to 80,000 tons per year, according to the VOV. 
A 73-year-old suspected serial killer from Mississippi extradited to Ventura County earlier this month in connection with three strangulation murders nearly a half-century ago pled not guilty at his arraignment Wednesday, officials announced.

In February 2023, the Ventura County Sheriffs Cold Case Unit began re-examining the deaths of the three women  Kimberly Carol Fritz, Velvet Ann Sanchez and Lorraine Ann Rodriguez  each of whom was killed in 1977, the Ventura County DAs Office said.

While the exact circumstances surrounding the womens deaths were not disclosed by the DA, an article published in 1978 in the Utah publication The Daily Herald stated that the three women were prostitutes who were strangled with their own underwear.

Warren Luther Alexander

Sanchez was 31 when she was found dead in an Oxnard motel on Sept. 9, 1977, the Daily Herald reported; the 18-year-old Fritz was found in a motel room on May 29 of that year and Rodriguez, then 22, was found dead near a highway in Oxnard on Dec. 27, but the Herald reported that investigators believed she was also killed at a motel and dumped there.

After decades and decades of investigation, detectives were eventually able to identify the suspect as Warren Luther Alexander, a resident of Diamondhead, Mississippi.

Alexander was extradited to Southern California on Aug. 6 from Surry County, North Carolina, where he was awaiting prosecution for a 1992 cold case murder.

Secret Los Angeles life of man dubbed the Boston Strip Mall Rapist

The 73-year-old has been charged by the Ventura County District Attorneys office with three counts of first-degree murder for the 1977 strangulations.

He is scheduled to appear in Ventura County Superior Court again on Aug. 30 and is being held in the Ventura County jail without bail.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA.
MURRAY HILL, Manhattan (PIX11)  A man accused of stealing mail around Manhattan will be arraigned Thursday, the United States Attorneys Office announced.

Daniel Holmes is allegedly linked to eight mail thefts between February 7 and July 4, according to court documents.

More Local News

In each incident, Holmes reportedly dressed as a postal worker, officials said. He also had a key suited to a lock adopted by the United States Postal Service.

Thefts happened at relay boxes throughout Murray Hill and buildings on East 27th and East 29th Streets, prosecutors said.

Surveillance footage gathered from nearby buildings of both the suspect and the vehicle used ultimately led to the identification of Holmes, officials said.

Rego Park residents express frustration over mail theft

Holmes was also arrested two hours after a robbery at an apartment building on East 37th Street in Manhattan on July 4, according to court documents. Police found an arrow key and mail that was addressed to the residents of the building, including what appeared to be a pension check in his possession.

Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, downloading the NYPD Crime Stoppers mobile app, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).

Ben Mitchell is a digital content producer from Vermont who has covered both local and international news since 2021. He joined PIX11 in 2024. See more of his work here.

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The two were arguing when the attack occurred, police allege

Facebook/Juanita Dallas Juanita Dallas

A 55-year-old woman in New York City was allegedly beaten to death with a broom, police say.

The Staten Island Advance, Patch and WPIX report that the victim was the aunt of the suspect.

Police allege in a statement that on the morning of Tuesday, Aug. 20, victim Juanita Dallas was in a verbal dispute with Alexander Fleming, 29, when the alleged attack occurred.

Officers arrived at the Queens home at around 10:30 a.m. after responding to a call about an assault in progress, the statement said.

Facebook/Juanita Dallas Juanita Dallas

Police allege that Fleming hit Dallas in the head with the broom. The victim was then taken to North Shore University Hospital where she was later pronounced dead.

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Later that evening, Fleming was arrested and charged with murder, assault with intent to cause physical injury with a weapon and criminal possession of a weapon, according to the statement.

It's not immediately clear if he has retained an attorney or entered pleas to the charges against him.



According to Dallas' Facebook page, she was born in Queens and attended Hillcrest High School in the borough.



The investigation is ongoing.

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Read the original article on People.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH)  Columbus police arrested a man Thursday morning after finding a woman dead in the Northland district.

Officers originally went at 9:19 a.m. to the 2100 block of Yorkhull Lane on a report of domestic violence. When they arrived in the area, they found 32-year-old Mariama Bah unresponsive, according to the Columbus Division of Police. Medics from the Division of Fire pronounced her dead at 9:37 a.m.

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CPD said homicide detectives were investigating the specifics of what happened, but did confirm they arrested 55-year-old Hassana Jalloh on a charge of aggravated murder.

Columbus police asked anyone with information on the incident to call the homicide unit at 614-645-4730. Anonymous tips can be left at 614-461-8477.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV.
Man arrested in connection to New Bern shooting

NEW BERN, N.C. (WNCT)  An arrest has been made in relation to a shooting Aug. 2 in New Bern.

Law enforcement in Iredell County arrested Tyron Kahlidrece Wallace, 33. Wallace was jailed without bond.

Wallaces charges include:

Assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury

Possession of a firearm by a felon

Discharging a weapon into occupied property



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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WNCT.
HINTON, WV (WVNS)  It has been a busy year for the Summers County Sheriffs Department.

Some of that work finally paid off, culminating in the arrest of an alleged fentanyl distributer in the county.

DUI Checkpoint to be held in Summers County

On the morning of August 21, 2024, Sheriff Justin Faris arrested Alfred Armstead in a coordinated traffic stop.

I did a felony traffic stop without incident. No shots were fired and he came peacefully. I think he knew that the gig was up at that point. Sheriff Justin Faris with the Summers County Sheriffs Department

According to the officials with the Summers County Sheriffs Department, Armstead trafficked fentanyl through the Beckley area.

Sheriff Faris said this arrest was the result of months of planning after Armstead allegedly made several drug purchases with confidential informants.

Sheriff Faris also said he could not be happier with his team.

Its not very often for us that were able to get a target of this caliber, because he was supplying several people throughout the county. Sheriff Justin Faris with the Summers County Sheriffs Department

According to Sheriff Faris, this is just the beginning. He said this arrest could lead to even more drug arrests in Southern West Virginia.

Louisiana bank suing the Greenbrier Hotel Corporation for allegedly failing to repay a loan

I know theyre probably watching this interview right now. If youre like I wonder if he knows [who I am], yes, we know everyone that he was dealing with. Were coming after you next and just be warned if you want to sell drugs in Summers County, were going to make it hard on you. Sheriff Justin Faris with the Summers County Sheriffs Department

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WVNS.
Man with bleeding scalp from hair transplant arrested in Miami after refusing to leave plane

A man who was bleeding from his head following a surgical procedure was arrested Tuesday after he refused to exit an American Airlines flight headed to Las Vegas from Miami, authorities said.

Eugenio Hernandez-Garnier, 27, was asked to leave American Airlines Flight 1858 because he was bleeding from his forehead and had a bloody bandage wrapped around his head, according to an arrest affidavit NBC News obtained Thursday.

Hernandez-Garnier was asked to clean up the blood and replace the bandages, but he said he did not have any clean bandages, the document says.

Hernandez-Garnier was asked multiple times to deboard the flight by the American Airlines supervisor, the affidavit says. Due to the fact that he was bleeding from his head and the crew members were concerned about his medical condition and body fluid contamination.

Hernandez-Garnier and Yusleydis Loyola Blanca, 32, his wife, were arrested and accused of trespassing and resisting an officer without violence, according to the affidavit and the couple's attorney.

The disturbance prompted the Monday night flight to be deboarded and delayed until Tuesday for the more than 100 passengers, the airline and the affidavit said.

Hernandez-Garnier told NBC South Florida he went to Miami to get a hair transplant and liposuction. His wife also underwent medical procedures, including a breast lift and liposuction.

Loyola went live on TikTok as she was being removed from the plane while thousands watched.

You guys know Ive got ... breast lift, arm lipo. ... I cant even walk, Loyola said on camera in Spanish, NBC South Florida reported. Call 911.  We are being discriminated against and abused.

The video shows two officers placing Hernandez-Garnier's arms behind his back. He screams, and then his wife starts yelling, Look, hes recently operated on, hes just been operated on!

Do not put my phone down! she yells at the first officer. Hes just been operated on, and theyre hitting him!

NBC South Florida reported that she was then walked off the plane and screamed, My breasts!

Attorney Michael Iglesia, who is representing the couple, said Thursday that the pair are from Las Vegas and had gone to Miami for medical procedures, which he would not specify.

Iglesia denied Hernandez-Garnier was bleeding from his head; he said it was dry blood. He also said the couple had a doctors note authorizing them to fly. They got past security and were given priority passes to board in the first group because of their delicate state, Iglesia said.

Hernandez-Garnier ran into a problem because passengers were complaining, Iglesia said.

After about 20 minutes sitting down in his seat, boarding had concluded, he was asked to get off the flight, Iglesia said. Passengers were uncomfortable with his appearance.

American Airlines said in a statement Thursday that two customers became disruptive and were non-compliant with crew member instructions."

"Law enforcement responded and removed both customers from the aircraft," the statement said. "We thank our crewmembers for their professionalism and apologize to our customers for the inconvenience.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. (WHTM)  A man is facing attempted homicide charges from a Tuesday shooting in Chambersburg that injured another man, police say.

Wd Jackson, 41, of Chambersburg, is accused of shooting the other man twice, while the two were in a dispute just before 2 a.m. at a property along the 1000 block of Wayne Avenue, Chambersburg Police said in the charging documents.

According to police, the man was shot in his arm and back.

Troopers were able to find Jackson on foot in the area of Orchard Drive and Chambersburg Avenue after the shooting and take him into custody.

Police: Parents charged with homicide, accused of neglect in childs 2021 death in Cumberland County

Seven shell casings were found at the scene, police said, and a handgun was also found in a black bag in a bush covered in a GAP sweatshirt. On a security camera, police said Jackson was seen wearing the sweatshirt and bag.

Police noted in the charges that Jackson was convicted of simple assault in 2017, meaning he was not allowed to possess a firearm.

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Jackson faces a felony charge of attempted homicide, aggravated assault, possession of firearm prohibited and firearms not to be carried without a license, along with misdemeanor counts of recklessly endangering another person.

Jackson is lodged in Franklin County Prison with bail denied and has a preliminary hearing scheduled for Sept. 3.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC27.
LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  A 40-year-old man faces a third-degree arson charge in connection to a wildfire that temporarily closed Interstate 80 and disrupted rail service, officials said. Several thousand residents in the area lost power.

The man tentatively identified as Johnnie Donald is accused of actions that ignited the 1,786-acre Ragland Fire in Humboldt County. He was taken into custody and charged with third-degree arson, negligence and violations of laws pertaining to illegal burning, officials said.

The fire on Bureau of Land Management property just southwest of Winnemucca on Interstate 80 is expected to be fully contained by Wednesday night after it was started Tuesday. The fire quickly spread due to dry conditions, endangering nearby properties and ranching operations, according to the BLM.

About a dozen homes or other structures were threatened at one point, but no injuries or damage were reported so far, the BLM said. Winnemucca is about 165 miles northeast of Reno

A stretch of the Amtrak route that travels between Chicago and Oakland, California, remained closed as safety inspectors assessed any potential damage.

This incident underscores the extreme danger posed by illegal burns, particularly during high-risk fire conditions, Sheriff Angel Cardenas said. We want to remind the public of the serious legal consequences and the potential harm these actions can cause.

The suspect is currently being held at the Humboldt County Detention Center and the investigation is continuing.

If you have information related to this case, contact the Humboldt County Sheriffs Office at (775) 623-6419.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KLAS.
Man charged with homicide in Lebanon County in daughters 2019 death, dumping her body in NY park

LEBANON COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM)  A New York man is facing homicide charges in Lebanon County in the death of his daughter in 2019, whose body was found in a New York park, according to charging documents from the Pennsylvania Attorney Generals office.

Kabary Salem, 56, of Staten Island, was charged with homicide and strangulation in the death of Ola Salem, 29, after a lengthy investigation, the criminal complaint filed in Magisterial District Judge David Warner Jr.s office shows.

Olas body was found, fully clothed, under leaves and branches in Bloomingdale Park on Oct. 24, 2019 before 9 a.m. According to the charges, police learned that Ola and Kabary left two days prior for Pennsylvania.

Fire police officer struck, flown from fire scene

Autopsy results showed that Olas cause of death was from asphyxia and the manner was ruled homicide. The AGs Office says the results showed she had injuries, such as blunt force trauma to the head, that were consistent with being strangled.

New York City Police interviewed Kabary, who said he had recently co-purchased a restaurant in Palmyra, and that he and Ola went to the place to do some work. Kabary said while working, him and Ola got into an argument, and she eventually left, and he claimed that was the last time he saw her.

In Kabarys story to police, he claimed he didnt leave for New York till early afternoon on Oct. 24, however, charging documents read that the car he used was a rental with a GPS tracker which showed investigators he went to Staten Island and the park where Olas body was found early in the morning before coming back to Palmyra. He then drove the car back to the rental place in New Jersey.

He also made a stop at a Lowes in Palmyra for a shovel before he went to Staten Island, investigators said they saw from GPS records and from surveillance camera at the store.

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DNA evidence was also found on Olas body during the autopsy that investigators were able to match to Kabarys through a cup he discarded after the interview with NYPD, the charges show.

In June this year, investigators were told by the NY Medical Examiner that Ola had to have been dead at least eight hours before her body was dumped, which was noted in the charges to match the time period of the GPS records.

Just four days after he was interviewed by NYPD in 2019, Kabary fled to the Middle East until he was arrested in Dec. 2020, court docs show.

Kabary is currently locked up in Lebanon County Prison with bail denied. He had a preliminary hearing on Aug. 6 and now awaits arraignment scheduled for Spt. 5, court docs show.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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People are seen at the site of an Israeli raid in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, on Aug. 22, 2024. Three Palestinians were killed on Thursday in an Israeli bombing on a house in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, according to the Palestinian official news agency WAFA. (Photo by Ayman Nobani/Xinhua)

RAMALLAH, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Three Palestinians were killed on Thursday in an Israeli bombing on a house in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, according to the Palestinian official news agency WAFA.

WAFA reported that Israeli military vehicles also bulldozed infrastructure throughout the camp, vandalizing public and private property, including homes and shops in central areas.

Israeli military spokesperson Avichay Adraee stated that the airstrike targeted armed militants during an operation by the Israeli Air Force in Tulkarm. He added that the operation involved clashes with militants and efforts to clear roads in the area.

As tensions continue in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank has seen escalating violence between the Israeli army and Palestinians. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported on Wednesday that Israeli airstrikes in the West Bank have resulted in an average of one Palestinian death per day in August.

Since Oct. 7, 2023, at least 128 Palestinians, including 26 children, have been killed in airstrikes in the West Bank, according to the UN. 

People gather at the site of an Israeli raid in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, on Aug. 22, 2024. Three Palestinians were killed on Thursday in an Israeli bombing on a house in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, according to the Palestinian official news agency WAFA. (Photo by Ayman Nobani/Xinhua)

People gather at the site of an Israeli raid in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, on Aug. 22, 2024. Three Palestinians were killed on Thursday in an Israeli bombing on a house in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, according to the Palestinian official news agency WAFA. (Photo by Ayman Nobani/Xinhua)

People gather at the site of an Israeli raid in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, on Aug. 22, 2024. Three Palestinians were killed on Thursday in an Israeli bombing on a house in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, according to the Palestinian official news agency WAFA. (Photo by Ayman Nobani/Xinhua)

People gather at the site of an Israeli raid in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, on Aug. 22, 2024. Three Palestinians were killed on Thursday in an Israeli bombing on a house in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, according to the Palestinian official news agency WAFA. (Photo by Ayman Nobani/Xinhua)

Israeli military vehicles are seen during an Israeli raid in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, on Aug. 22, 2024. Three Palestinians were killed on Thursday in an Israeli bombing on a house in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, according to the Palestinian official news agency WAFA. (Photo by Ayman Nobani/Xinhua)

Israeli military vehicles are seen during an Israeli raid in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, on Aug. 22, 2024. Three Palestinians were killed on Thursday in an Israeli bombing on a house in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, according to the Palestinian official news agency WAFA. (Photo by Ayman Nobani/Xinhua)

Israeli soldiers are seen during an Israeli raid in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, on Aug. 22, 2024. Three Palestinians were killed on Thursday in an Israeli bombing on a house in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, according to the Palestinian official news agency WAFA. (Photo by Ayman Nobani/Xinhua)

A Palestinian man holds a national flag in front of Israeli military vehicles during an Israeli raid in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, on Aug. 22, 2024. Three Palestinians were killed on Thursday in an Israeli bombing on a house in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, according to the Palestinian official news agency WAFA. (Photo by Ayman Nobani/Xinhua)

Israeli military vehicles are seen during an Israeli raid in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, on Aug. 22, 2024. Three Palestinians were killed on Thursday in an Israeli bombing on a house in the Tulkarm refugee camp in the northern West Bank, according to the Palestinian official news agency WAFA. (Photo by Ayman Nobani/Xinhua)
MEMPHIS, Tenn.  A man is dead after a police pursuit in Chester County led to an officer-involved shooting on Wednesday morning, according to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

The TBI is looking into the incident which began around 9:15 a.m. Reports say a Chester County deputy attempted to make a traffic stop on a vehicle that was driving recklessly near Henderson, but the vehicle refused to stop, initiating a pursuit.

The driver allegedly stopped his car briefly and pointed a weapon at deputies, and the deputies fired their weapons in response. The man fled the area and the pursuit continued with the driver of the vehicle shooting at the officers from his car.

Additional agencies joined in the pursuit which continued into McNairy County and Hardin County.

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Reports say that after an hour-long pursuit, the man drove down a boat ramp near Saltillo and into the Tennessee River.

Law enforcement agencies entered the water to apprehend the man, but he allegedly showed his weapon again and did not comply with officers. The man then went under the water and did not resurface again until his body was recovered from the water hours later, according to the TBI.

No officers were injured in the incident.

The TBI is investigating the events that led up to the shooting and the mans death.

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Man dies after trying to swallow bags of heroin, crack during Florida drug raid: deputies

Man dies after trying to swallow bags of heroin, crack during Florida drug raid: deputies

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  A man who attempted to conceal several plastic bags full of drugs in his mouth from Florida deputies has died, the Volusia Sheriffs Office announced Thursday.

Around 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, deputies executed a search warrant at a suspected drug house that had been under investigation, located at 808 South Clara Avenue in Deland.

54 arrested, 34 illegal firearms seized in summer-long operation in Sarasota

Five people were detained inside the home.

Deputies said one of the suspects, Cornell McKinney, 54, was not cooperating or verbally responding to authorities.

The sheriffs office suspected McKinney was attempting to conceal or swallow narcotics. He refused deputies orders to open his mouth and spit out whatever he had.

Hillsborough County paramedic among 148 arrested in human trafficking operation

McKinney then became unresponsive, and as fire personnel began life-saving measures, they pulled three plastic baggies out of his mouth. Two of those bags contained suspected heroin/fentanyl and crack cocaine, the sheriffs office said.

He was taken to a nearby hospital where he was later pronounced dead.

The cause of death is pending an autopsy from the Medical Examiner.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA.
Man gets 6 years in prison for Bloomington fentanyl bust that was one of states largest

A 38-year-old Washington state man has been sentenced to six years in federal prison in connection with a 2022 Bloomington fentanyl bust law enforcement called one of the biggest ever in the Upper Midwest.

Marcus Trice, of Lakewood, Wash., pleaded guilty to a federal drug trafficking charge earlier this year after police found 109,000 fentanyl pills weighing more than 24 pounds in his Bloomington hotel room.

The individual drug bust exceeded all seizures of fentanyl pills by a Minnesota-Wisconsin drug task force in the prior year, according to Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges. In the entirety of 2021, a total of 63,000 pills had been seized by law enforcement in Minnesota and Wisconsin, Hodges said.

Police had initially come to the hotel during the early morning hours of Aug. 31, 2022, as they investigated suspected financial fraud and arrested Trice, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office in Minneapolis. Trice was suspected of using another persons identity to pay for the room.

Law enforcement learned Trice had flown from Seattle to the Twin Cities the night before and while searching his belongings found eleven large vitamin bottles wrapped in clothing inside his suitcase, according to prosecutors.

Within the bottles were more than 100,000 round blue fentanyl pills marked with M-30. Law enforcement suspected the pills to be counterfeit oxycodone.

Trice was first charged in Hennepin County on Sept. 1, 2022, with first-degree possession with intent to distribute and credit card fraud, but on Sept. 20 was charged in U.S. District Court with one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.

Trice entered a guilty plea to the federal drug trafficking charge on Jan. 25 this year.

On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Michael J. Davis sentenced Trice to six years in prison followed by five years of supervised release.

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A man was kicked off a flight and arrested after the crew asked him to leave when he wouldn't change a bloody bandage on his head

A man was kicked off a flight and arrested after the crew asked him to leave when he wouldn't change a bloody bandage on his head

A man and his companion were arrested after refusing to leave an American Airlines flight.

The man was asked to leave the plane after saying he wasn't able to change the bandages on his bloodied head.

A mugshot of the man shows his bloodied head, which Sky News reported was the result of a hair transplant.

A man and his companion were removed from an American Airlines flight this week and arrested after he apparently refused to clean up his bloodied head.

Staff on board the American Airlines flight from Miami to Las Vegas became concerned when they noticed that the man, identified as Eugenio Ernesto Hernandez-Garnier, was bleeding from the forehead.

The Miami outlet Local 10 News, an ABC affiliate, first reported the news.

According to a screenshot of an arrest report viewed by Business Insider, airline staff asked him to clean up the blood and replace the bandages with fresh ones to prevent body-fluid contamination. The 27-year-old from Las Vegas said he didn't have any clean bandages.

Crew members then insisted that Hernandez-Garnier deboard the plane. He and his female companion, Yusleydis Blanca Loyola, 32, refused to disembark.

A spokesperson for American Airlines told Business Insider: "During boarding of American Airlines flight 1858 on Aug. 19 with service from Miami (MIA) to Las Vegas (LAS), two customers became disruptive and were non-compliant with crew member instructions. Law enforcement responded and removed both customers from the aircraft."

According to the arrest report, Loyola told crew members that "if they could not fly, no one else can either."

Police were called to the plane and warned the pair that they would be arrested if they didn't comply. Both once again refused.

Loyola started live-streaming the incident on TikTok and was seen explaining that Hernandez-Garnier had just had surgery. A mugshot of Hernandez-Garnier published by the Miami-Dade police shows his bloodied head, which Sky News reported was the result of a hair transplant.

The two each face two charges of trespassing and resisting arrest without violence, according to records published online by the Miami-Dade County Clerk of Courts.

As a result of the incident, the American Airlines flight was significantly delayed. According to data from Flightradar24, the plane was scheduled to depart at about 9 p.m. local time on Monday but didn't depart until about 6:45 a.m. on Tuesday.

Read the original article on Business Insider
A man was charged after police said he left his children unattended several times to go ride roller coasters at Cedar Point.

Sandusky police said that on Aug. 17, a woman found a small child playing in the dirt near the Magnum XL-200 coaster. The woman walked back with the child toward the Corkscrew and spotted a wagon with another unattended child sitting inside. The woman told police she waited for nearly 20 minutes before the kids father showed up.

The father, Anthony Gallina, 36, told police he and his oldest daughter, 9, got in line for the Corkscrew and left his 8-year-old daughter in charge of watching his other two daughters, who are 2 and 4. He told officers he was only in line for a few minutes before returning, but police noticed that the ride was shut down for at least 20 minutes while Gallina was in line.

Gallina and his daughters got to the amusement park around 1:30 p.m. and after officers spoke with Gallina, they determined he left his kids unattended multiple times throughout the day.

Court documents state that Gallina is charged with endangering children because he failed to provide supervision and caused a substantial risk of harm to his children. A judge determined that he could be released on his own recognizance because he is the only one to care for his children.

The incident was reported to the Seneca County Department of Job and Family Services since Gallina and his children are from Kansas, Ohio.

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Man overdoses after being in Miami police custody, lawsuit says. Family wants restitution

Rafael Sanchez was no stranger to the law.

An alleged repeat offender who faced several criminal cases and spent a year in prison for burglary. He would encounter police officers for the last time on the day he died in 2022.

An autopsy ruled his death a drug overdose at the time. Now, his family claims in a recently filed lawsuit that the Miami Police Department played a key role in his death.

Charlie Lanza, a representative of Sanchezs estate, sued the City of Miami on August 2 for his wrongful death and violating his civil rights. Lanza is seeking at least $75,000 in damages for Sanchezs young daughter to use for her past and future mental pain and suffering, among other things.

On the afternoon of Aug. 3, 2022, a trio of Miami officers were called to investigate a robbery in the 3400 block of Northwest 17th Ave, the lawsuit read. Within five minutes of arriving, they found Sanchez, whom they believed had committed the robbery, and promptly arrested him.

About four hours passed before he was taken to the police department for interrogation, the lawsuit read. He was then moved to an interview room and told to wait for a detective.

Alone in the room, Sanchez began to have a medical emergency as authorities watched through television monitors. Emergency services were called nearly two hours after he was brought to the station.

He was later taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital and pronounced dead.

According to Lanza and his attorney, it is believed Sanchez ate a large amount of drugs, presumed to be methamphetamine, that was hidden on him. His autopsy reported actual methamphetamine toxicity as the cause of death, the lawsuit read.

Miami officers did not properly search and seize any illegal or dangerous items on Sanchez before he was taken into custody, the lawsuit alleges, adding that this lapse caused his death.

The Miami Police Department and Lanzas attorney did not immediately comment on the lawsuit.
Man pleads guilty to deadly drive-by shooting in Pawtucket

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI)  A Providence man faces sentencing for the murder of a Pawtucket man in a drive-by shooting three years ago.

Jahcolin Rodrigues, 23, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and discharging a firearm from a motor vehicle, according to the Rhode Island Attorney Generals Office.

The victim, 20-year-old Leonardo Tavares, was found suffering from gunshot wounds inside a vehicle on Randall Street on May 15, 2021. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.

BACKGROUND : One person dead in Pawtucket shooting

Prosecutors said Rodrigues fired multiple rounds into Tavares SUV after spotting him driving through the city. Police believe the two men were involved in a gang feud.

Rodrigues was arrested about three weeks after the shooting.

Hes currently being held without bail at the ACI, with his sentencing set for Sept. 9.

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NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY)  A man has pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter after he accidentally shot and killed a Norfolk 14-year-old last year.

27-year-old Albert James Sutton pleaded guilty to that charge on Monday, as well as a charge of recklessly handling a firearm, per the Norfolk Commonwealths Attorneys Office. There was no plea agreement in the case.

Every gun owner has a legal and moral obligation to handle their guns safely and to protect children from them, said Commonwealths Attorney Ramin Fatehi. When a gun owner kills another person through their own recklessness, they have committed a criminal homicide, and we will hold them responsible. We extend our continued condolences to the family of this child, and we will seek a sentence for Mr. Sutton that fits his crime.

Previous: Manslaughter case involving death of Norview MS student heading to grand jury

Previous: Teen killed in Norfolk shooting; man charged with involuntary manslaughter

Prosecutors say Sutton was temporarily supervising about a dozen children inside a home on Wyngate Drive at the time of the incident back on September 3, 2023. He pulled a gun hed brought with him and was showing it off to the children when he accidentally shot 14-year-old Norview Middle student Amir Anthony Burnett in the chest.

Sutton fled the home with the gun, leaving the children to call 911 and try to help Burnett, who later died at the hospital.

Prosecutors say Sutton, who returned to the home after being identified by police, originally tried to blame one of the children for firing the gun, but eventually confessed to firing it himself. He also tried to claim the gun went off when he was trying to put it back in his waistband.

Sutton is scheduled to be sentenced on October 25.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com.
BEIJING, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The People's Republic of China and the Republic of Fiji on Tuesday issued a joint statement.

Please see the attachment for the full text of the statement. 

Full Text: Joint Statement between the People's Republic of China and the Republic of Fiji
ST. LOUIS  A St. Louis man has been charged in connection with a shooting earlier this summer in the citys Wells-Goodfellow neighborhood.

According to the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Departments probable cause statement, the shooting happened on June 1 in the 3400 block of Goodfellow Boulevard.

Police said Alvin D. Morris, 48, fired multiple shots at the victims car. Officers found eight 9 mm cartridge casings at the scene. Morris was later arrested.

Pevely third grader paralyzed in crash, school offering support

Morris has prior convictions over the last 30 years and is a persistent offender, police said.

The St. Louis Circuit Attorneys Office charged Morris with five counts of first-degree assault, one count of unlawful use of a weapon, one count of unlawful possession of a firearm, and five counts of armed criminal action. Morris remains jailed without bond. Hes due in court on Friday, August 23.

Morris also has a pending case against him in St. Louis County for unlawful possession of a firearm. A capias warrant was issued for his arrest for failing to appear in court.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2.
Man taken into custody for alleged social media threat to kill Trump: Sheriff

An Arizona man was taken into custody in connection with an alleged social media threat to kill former President Donald Trump, according to officials.

Ronald Lee Syvrud, 66, of Benson, was taken into custody on Thursday without incident, a Cochise County Sheriff's Office spokesperson told ABC News.

Syvrud was wanted for "suspicious activity," the sheriff's office in southeastern Arizona said.

"Syvrud is being sought as an investigative lead for threats to kill a presidential candidate," the sheriff's office said in a press release on Facebook.

PHOTO: The Cochise County Sheriff's Office released this booking photo of Ronald Lee Syvrud. (Cochise County Sheriff's Office)

The sheriff's office did not provide any additional details on the alleged threats, including the name of the candidate. However, two sources told ABC News the alleged social media threat was directed at Trump.

Trump was scheduled to visit the U.S.-Mexico border in Cochise County on Thursday.

The U.S. Secret Service is aware and monitoring the incident, according to sources.

"The U.S. Secret Service investigates all threats against our protectees. As this is an ongoing investigation, we cannot comment further at this time," a Secret Service spokesperson said.

An FBI spokesperson said they are aware of the incident but deferred to the local sheriff's office for further comment.

MORE: The top threats facing the 2024 election

Syvrud was also being sought for several outstanding warrants, including failure to appear for a DUI in Wisconsin and failure to register as a sex offender and a hit and run in Graham County, Arizona, the sheriff's office said.

Man taken into custody for alleged social media threat to kill Trump: Sheriff originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Man throws dog out of UTV during high-speed chase with troopers

Georgia deputies are searching for a man who threw a dog out of his UTV during a chase.

The Lee County Sheriffs Office said on July 27, Johnny Albert White was driving a Polaris Ranger on GA 520 when Georgia State Patrol attempted to pull him over.

White then sped away from troopers and while he was doing so, threw a black and white Shepadoodle dog out of the UTV.

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Now, deputies are asking for White to turn himself in to Lee County Jail.

The dogs status is unclear.

White is wanted for fleeing law enforcement, cruelty to animals, obstruction of a law enforcement officer, reckless driving, operating restrictions off-road vehicles and driving under the influence.

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IN OTHER NEWS:
Local employees gained new skills to help them advance in their careers.

The vice chairman said that Wednesday reflects whats going on within the business and manufacturing community in Erie.

Blasco Library now offering free tech lessons

Manufacturer & Business Association honored 53 graduates after completing months of training.

25 Local employers have sent their team members to develop and advance their skills within their companies.

Our focus is to maintain the health of our business community in northwest PA so we offer training for anybodys skill set, said Matt Clark, vice chairmen of the Manufacturer & Business Association.

According to the association, they offer more than 60 professional training classes with a variety of certificate series programs.

Millcreek group looking to push government study to Nov. ballot

Those include supervisory skills, HR essentials, leadership and more.

How to help better develop their employees that maybe they work with as a team or as a leadership role. To help build a team to keep the jobs in Erie, Clark explained.

One employee from Essentra components the training was so beneficial that she hopes to take more classes.

You have to have a positive attitude. Sometimes you cant get the answers you want at your job so you get them here, said Yvette Reyes, whos in the supervisory skills program and Essentra Components employee.

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Reyes was a part of their supervisory skills training program for the last five months.

She explained that things can be frustrating in her position but the key is patience.

Sometimes we struggle as supervisors and we try to improve but we just dont know how to get there and I think this class helped us out, helped me out. So I hoped it helped everyone out, Reyes went on to say.

Endangered birds successfully nest for first time since 1960s on Presque Isle

Clark said on average they have about 50 to 70 graduates and ongoing students.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJET/WFXP/YourErie.com.
In Reality Check stories, Star-Telegram journalists dig deeper into questions over facts, consequences and accountability. Read more. Story idea? RealityCheck@star-telegram.com.

Recent stories of noncitizens registering to vote in the upcoming general election might have led some to believe the activity is rampant in North Texas.

But the number of voter registration applications rejected in Tarrant County because the person is not a U.S. citizen tells a different story.

So far this year, Tarrant County has received and processed around 53,000 voter registrations, according to county spokesperson Bill Hanna.

Of those, 18 have been rejected for not providing proof of citizenship, he said.

That number represents 0.0003% of this years voter registration applications in Tarrant County.

The idea that noncitizens were registering to vote en masse in North Texas flared up earlier this week after Fox News personality Maria Bartiromo posted on X Sunday that there was a massive line of immigrants registering to vote outside a driver license office in Weatherford.

None of it is true, a spokesperson for the Texas Department of Public Safety, which operates the office, told the Star-Telegram on Monday, adding that the idea that a line of nonwhite people waiting to get their IDs were unauthorized immigrants was kind of racist.

Brady Gray, chair of the Republican party in Parker County, looked into Bartiromos story on Monday and found that there has been no large submission of registrants consistent with the claim. He told the Star-Telegram on Wednesday, however, that his findings should not be taken as representative of Texas counties writ large.

Bartiromo doubled down on her friends wifes account Thursday on her morning show on Fox, citing other parts of the DPS spokespersons statement to the Star-Telegram: that there was a voter registration booth outside a Lake Worth DPS office on Friday, but not at the other two sites mentioned.

Im told speaker Mike Johnson will move to attach the SAVE Act, which requires proof of citizenship to vote, to a continuing resolution to fund government when Congress returns in September, she said.

Noncitizens are already prohibited from voting in federal elections by the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996.

Daniel Taylor, a volunteer registrar who was at the Lake Worth registration tent on Friday, told the Star-Telegram on Thursday that anyone who says he registered noncitizens to vote is a damn liar.

Taylor, who speaks fluent Spanish, said people who are not citizens regularly tell him they are not eligible or that they are still only residents and cannot yet register to vote.

I resent the allegations which were reported, particularly given that I am a 74-year-old American patriot who was standing in the 100+ heat to encourage his fellow citizens to do their civic duty, he said in an email.

On Wednesday, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton launched an investigation into instances of noncitizens registering to vote in the state. He said he already had several confirmed cases.

The AGs Office did not respond to multiple requests for more details about the allegedly confirmed cases.

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On Thursday morning, a nonpartisan volunteer deputy registrar who had registered voters outside a Fort Worth DPS office for months was told by employees there that those activities were not permitted without permission from the regional director.

DPS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The volunteer deputy registrar preferred to remain anonymous out of fear of retaliation from the AGs Office, which he credited with the sudden prohibition of registrations outside DPS buildings.

Noncitizens registering to vote is a non-issue, according to Sarah Xiyi Chen, a senior supervising attorney for the voting rights division of the Texas Civil Rights Project.

Paxtons investigation is yet another example of Texas leaders villainizing immigrants in a harsh and unwarranted manner, she said in an emailed statement.

In the past, the TCRP has had to sue the state to stop it from discriminatorily flagging tens of thousands of eligible voters and denying them the right to vote, Chen said. The group has also sued DPS for not abiding by the National Voter Registration Act and leaving voters unsure of whether they registered to vote when renewing their licenses online, she added.

The reality is that elections officials have processes to ensure only eligible voters cast ballots, Chen said. Organizations promoting voter registration have a right to educate the public about the importance of voting and assist eligible citizens to register to vote in accordance with Texass already strict voter registration laws.

Anthony Gutierrez, executive director of Common Cause Texas, which works to expand voting rights in the state, compared the 18 rejected voter registrations in Tarrant County to the millions of Texans who are not registered to vote. Just under 18 million of Texas more than 30 million residents are registered to vote, according to census data cited by Austins NBC affiliate.

It seems pretty clear that the bigger problem here is that way too many Texans just arent participating in our elections, and the thing that Ken Paxton is paying attention to is really a nonissue, he said.
Maren Morris, Stevie Wonder, John Legend & More Take the Stage at Night 3 of DNC 2024

The Democratic National Convention continued on Wednesday night (Aug. 21) at Chicagos United Center for the evenings A Fight for Our Freedoms theme, and more music stars performed onstage to celebrate Vice President Kamala Harris presidential nomination.

Maren Morris delivered her protest song, Better Than We Found It. She sang to the crowd: When lines of tomorrow are drawn/ Can I live with the side that I chose to be on?/ Will we sit on our hands, do nothing about it?/ Or will we leave this world better than we found it?

More from Billboard

Stevie Wonder followed with some powerful remarks for the audience, before performing Higher Ground, off his 1973 album, Innervisions, his first of three consecutive LPs to win the Grammy for album of the year. This is a moment to tell your children where you were and what you did, he declared. When we stand between historys pain and tomorrows promises we must choose courage complacency.

Having supported Harris campaign from the beginning, John Legend also took the stage. Joined by Sheila E., he paid tribute to Prince by singing Lets Go Crazy from the late icons 1984 album Purple Rain.

Harris selection for Vice President, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, spoke Wednesday night, accepting the vice presidential nomination. Additionally, Sen. Cory Booker, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Former Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and former President Bill Clinton all shared remarks.

Harris took over the presidential campaign from President Joe Biden, who spoke on the opening night of the DNC. On Thursday night, when P!nk is scheduled to perform, the attorney-turned-politician will accept the presidential nomination.

Watch the performances below:

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Maria Teresa Kumar spoke at the 2024 DNC: Watch the speech

Maria Teresa Kumar spoke to the need for Latinos to get out the vote for Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago Wedenesday.

During Kumar's speech she said more Latinos will vote in this upcoming election than any other in history.

"Latinos have become eligible to vote this election. And I couldn't be prouder, because we are registering the faster than any time in our history. This year, we will prove it again with Latinos vote," Kumar said. "Together, we will make history and elect Kamala Harris as president VOCA.

Latinos are set to be a key voting bloc in the election and Harris has seen a groundswell of support from the demographic.

Watch Maria Teresa Kumar's full 2024 DNC Speech

Democratic convention live updates: What time does the DNC start? What's the speaker lineup?

What to know about Maria Teresa Kumar

Who are they : Founder and CEO of Voto Latino

What role they play : Get out the vote activist

Key quote: "When Latino's vote Democrats win."

When and where is the DNC

The Democratic National Convention will take place from August 19-22 in Chicago, Illinois.

The United Center, home of the Chicago Bulls and Blackhawks, will be the main venue for the DNC.

Chicago has hosted the Democratic Convention 11 times, most recently in 1996 when the United Center saw President Bill Clinton was nominated for a second time.

How to watch and stream the 2024 DNC

USA TODAY will provide livestream coverage on YouTube each night of the DNC, Monday through Thursday.

The convention will air live on its website, from the United Center in Chicago between 6:15 p.m. and 11 p.m. Eastern (5:15 p.m. to 10 p.m Central) on Monday, and 7 p.m to 11 p.m. Eastern (6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Central) the other days.

What are the themes for each night of the DNC?

The DNC announced nightly themes for the convention. The title of the convention is "For the People, For Our Future."

Here are the themes for each night:

Monday: "For the People"

Tuesday: "A Bold Vision for America's Future"

Wednesday: "A Fight for our Freedoms"

Thursday: "For our Future"

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Maria Teresa Kumar spoke 2024 DNC: watch the full speech
Mass. pharmacist blamed for deaths in US meningitis outbreak expected to plead no contest in case

A Massachusetts pharmacist charged with murder in the deaths of 11 Michigan residents from a 2012 U.S. meningitis outbreak is expected to plead no contest Thursday to involuntary manslaughter.

Glenn Chin, 56, was to appear Thursday in a Livingston County, Michigan, courtroom. His trial had been scheduled for November but has been scratched.

A no-contest plea is not an admission of guilt but is used as such at sentencing.

Chins plea deal calls for a 7 1/2-year prison sentence, with credit for his current longer sentence for federal crimes, Johanna Delp of the state attorney generals office said in an email sent last week to families and obtained by The Associated Press.

Michigan is the only state to charge Chin and Barry Cadden, an executive at the New England Compounding Center in Framingham, Massachusetts, for deaths related to the outbreak.

More than 700 people in 20 states were sickened with fungal meningitis or other debilitating illnesses, and dozens died as a result of tainted steroids shipped to pain clinics, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The laboratorys clean room, where steroids were prepared, was rife with mold, insects, and cracks, investigators said. Chin supervised production.

He is currently serving a 10 1/2-year federal sentence for racketeering, fraud, and other crimes connected to the outbreak, following a 2017 trial in Boston. Because of the credit for his federal sentence, Chin is unlikely to serve additional time in Michigans custody.

Cadden, 57, pleaded no contest to involuntary manslaughter in Michigan earlier this year and was sentenced to 10 years in prison. Second-degree murder charges were dropped.

Caddens state sentence is running at the same time as his 14 1/2-year federal sentence, and he has been getting credit for time in custody since 2018.

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
RAMALLAH, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas issued a decree on Wednesday evening to form a committee to prepare for his visit to the Gaza Strip.

The decree highlighted the goal of stopping the aggression in Gaza and ensuring an immediate withdrawal of Israeli forces, emphasizing that the State of Palestine has jurisdiction over the entire territory, including Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Last week, Abbas announced his intention to visit Gaza with other members of the Palestinian leadership.

The visit is aimed at restoring national unity under the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and enabling the government to function effectively across all Palestinian territories, particularly in relief and reconstruction work, according to the decree.

It noted that the preparatory committee, comprised of PLO Executive Committee members, would coordinate travel arrangements with international and regional parties.

The preparatory committee would also conduct a national dialogue to reach a unified vision on key issues and engage in political, diplomatic, and legal efforts while mobilizing support at the Arab, Islamic, and international levels to implement the PLO's plan.

The decree did not specify the date of the visit. 
LAWRENCE, Mass. (WWLP)  Three men from Lawrence are being charged in connection with robbing a jewelry store at gunpoint in December last year.

According to the Department of Justice in Boston, a criminal complaint was unsealed on Wednesday that revealed three men are being charged after allegedly stealing over $500,000 worth of jewelry and precious metals.

Fentanyl found during traffic stop for illegal Massachusetts window tint

The charging documents indicate that on December 15, 2023, the suspects allegedly entered a Lawrence jewelry store armed with firearms, took jewelry and cell phones from the employees, and forced them into the basement where safes were located. The store owner was allegedly forced to open the safes. Although the second safe could not be successfully opened, the thieves got away with stealing approximately $500,000 in jewelry and precious metals.

The suspected getaway vehicle was a rented Nissan Altima that was later found burned in a field in Maine the following day.

(Department of Justice)

(Department of Justice)

(Department of Justice)

(Department of Justice)

Three men were charged with conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery (commonly referred to as Hobbs Act robbery), 26-year-old Eric Rosario, 26-year-old Rosnel Polanco, and 29-year-old Robert Santana.

The defendants face up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000 if found guilty.

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Massachusetts man arrested for looking into occupied bathroom window in Roxbury

A New Bedford man has been arrested in connection with looking into an occupied bathroom window in Roxbury early Wednesday morning, police said.

John Furr, 26, was arrested on a warrant on Thursday and charged with secret sexual surveillance and trespassing, police said.

Members of the Youth Violence Strike Force arrested Furr in New Bedford.

Police earlier took a report for a person seen looking into an occupied bathroom window in the area of Devon Street in Roxbury at about 2:30 a,m. on Wednesday.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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Mayors opposition to cops using weed is ruse to boost campaign for governor, lawsuit says

Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop is fighting orders that he should reinstate cops his city fired for using cannabis. (Photo by Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images for Liberty Science Center)

A lawyer is accusing Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop of terminating cops for their off-duty cannabis consumption so he can get attention for his campaign for governor.

In a new legal filing, attorney Michael Rubas said Fulops move to fire cops for using legal cannabis in defiance of state law is a ruse done solely to bring attention to him and to assist his gubernatorial campaign to the detriment of Jersey City employees as well as taxpayers who are now footing the bill of hundreds of thousands of dollars in back pay awards and attorney fees.

Fulop is seeking the Democratic nomination for governor in 2025.

Rubas allegation comes in a wrongful termination lawsuit filed in Superior Court in Hudson County on behalf of one of the cops, Mackenzie Reilly, whom Jersey City fired in August 2023 when he tested positive for cannabis after a random drug screening. Last week, the state Civil Service Commission ordered the city to reinstate Reilly.

Jersey City officials have fired or suspended multiple cops for using regulated cannabis off duty, arguing that officers who use cannabis are violating federal law and cannot carry a firearm or ammunition.

The city has lost this battle involving three different cops, but the city has refused to relent. The Civil Service Commission has also ordered the city to rehire officers Norhan Mansour and Omar Polanco, who were also terminated for using regulated cannabis while off duty, but the city has not done so.

Under the states recreational marijuana legalization law, signed by Gov. Phil Murphy in 2021, police officers are allowed to use cannabis if theyre not on duty, per a 2022 memo from Attorney General Matt Platkin.

But Jersey Citys public safety director, James Shea, sued the state over this issue, arguing that it flies in the face of a federal law that bars people who use cannabis from owning guns or ammunition.

According to the latest complaint, before the city implemented its unlawful policy, city officials had a conference call with the state Attorney Generals Office where they were told that cops cant be disciplined for using legal cannabis. During that call, Jersey City officials openly conspired to violate the law, the complaint states.

Six days after Fulop announced Jersey Citys policy that cops cannot use cannabis, Fulop received an email from a political operative who sent him a Politico New Jersey article about the issue  South Jersey Democrats request clarification from Platkin on cannabis and cops memo  and five minutes later, Fulop sent an email to Shea saying, Little revolt we started.

Rubas legal filing calls that comment flippant.

City spokeswoman Kimberly Wallace-Scalcione said it is silly to accuse Fulop of playing political games, adding the city is following federal policy.

Most people would agree with the administration that police officers should not be coming to work stoned, she said in a statement.

Reilly was first suspended without pay in March 2023 and fired Aug. 25, 2023, the complaint says, in an arrogant and condescending disciplinary order from Shea, who failed to acknowledge the state constitution, the states marijuana legalization law, or the attorney generals memo.

At one point, Jersey City officials announced to the entire department that Reilly was guilty of serious misconduct that warranted termination, which the complaint says gave Reillys coworkers the false impression he was derelict in his employment.

By not rehiring Reilly, the city is acting in a willful and malicious manner with immoral purpose to injure and cause harm, the complaint says.

This constitutional right to possess and consume regulated cannabis is granted to all New Jersey citizens, including Jersey City Police Officers, it says.

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RUIDOSO, New Mexico (KTSM)  More than two months later and the Village of Ruidoso continues to show its resilience in the wake of two major wildfires and continuous flooding.

The mayor of the village, Lynn Crawford, has been a key player in navigating the disaster. From providing updates to the community via multiple social mediums to working with state and federal agencies for relief, he says throughout his two terms as mayor he has never dealt with something at this caliber.

This is historic. Its unprecedented. Weve had small fires here before. We had a big one 12 years ago, the little bear. So, its just hard to plan for this kind of things. When youre drowning, you know nothings fast enough. You know, and when someones trying to save a life, every second counts, said Crawford.

The South Fork and Salt fires are responsible for burning over 25,000 acres of land and destroying thousands of structures. Crawford says navigating to normalcy has been an obstacle in itself.

Its frustrating because of bureaucracy, an ocean of red tape. The local folks that we have, I know theyre really working hard to get these things done and a lot of the decisions that we need to be made were made in Washington, D.C. or at other levels. We need those to really speed up. We are working with our folks in the state and also in the county, because there are no defensible space ordinances, we do have them. Those ordinances look at building materials, also speeding up planning approval and everything through the construction industry division, working on planning reviews to get those in and get those out as quickly as the lots are cleared and safe to be built on so that we can get these people back in their homes as soon as possible. But its going to be a while, said Crawford.

On top of reopening roads, fixing bridges and removing debris, Ruidosos main opposition is an annual weather pattern.

Crawford said: As you can well imagine, every time we have a flood, it changes the course of the river and the floodplain. So, these are things that are so difficult. Unfortunately, were told that were not going to be able to really make a lot of headway on that until after monsoons.

With the erosion and debris brought on by fast-moving floodwaters, key tourist attractions that Ruidoso relies on to drive the economy were highly impacted.

Weve totally lost the racetrack at this point. Weve had to move all of our big stakes races and everything to Albuquerque. So, a lot of the business that goes along with it, with the track is gone for the summer. Then we hear about Ski Apache, which is up on top of Sierra Blanca. The road has been damaged so bad that we dont even know if were going to be able to have a ski season, said Crawford.

Crawfords main message to anyone looking to further assist the village and its residents very simple: A lot has happened. A lot is starting to happen as far as recovery efforts, you know, restoration and recovery. A lot needs to happen, so we need you to come in, sit down with our businesses, listen to the stories, talk to the people, and be helpful to them. Thats whats going to get us through this.

If youd like to donate or apply for assistance, the Community Foundation of Lincoln County has more information on resources.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE)  A McLane High School student has been arrested and a second boy could still be on the loose following a shooting near McLane High School, the Fresno County Sheriffs Office announced on Thursday.

Deputies were called to the intersection of Clinton and Cedar avenues at around 3:40 p.m. on Wednesday following a call about shots fired in the area. Deputies arrived and found no gunshot victims, but did establish that there was an incident involving a large group of students who attended nearby McLane High School.

According to investigators, a 16-year-old student fired shots during the disturbance. Bullets that were fired struck a parked car and a building. Witnesses identified the gunman as a 16-year-old student of McLane High School who was arrested in a nearby neighborhood. The incident is described as a gang-related shooting.

However, deputies say there may be a second boy who was armed with a gun who is still on the loose. The identities of either of those suspected to be involved have not been officially released.

Police in Fresno also announced on Thursday that they are aware of a threat made to McLane High School on social media. Detectives with the Fresno Police Department are investigating those threats.

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact the Fresno County Sheriffs Office at 559-600-3111. Anyone with information about the social media threat is asked to contact the Fresno Police Department at 559-621-7000.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Indiana Medicaid Director Cora Steinmetz responds to a lawmaker question during a Medicaid Advisory Committee on Aug. 21, 2024. (Whitney Downard/Indiana Capital Chronicle)

Legislators on the states Medicaid Advisory Committee spent hours Wednesday questioning state officials about Indianas ongoing lawsuit over provisions of the Healthy Indiana Plan as well as progress reports on the states transition to managed care, otherwise known as PathWays.

Of the lawmakers who spoke up during the meeting, all urged the Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) to drop POWER Account contributions under the Healthy Indiana Plan in favor of reducing barriers to coverage.

POWER Accounts are barriers to care and the General Assembly  first and foremost  intended to expand health coverage to those that are eligible, said Bloomington Sen. Shelli Yoder, a Democrat. It is my hope that we do away with those barriers and provide the coverage that is available to Hoosiers.

Others who spoke in favor of striking the premiums include New Albany Rep. Ed Clere, a Republican, as well as Democrats Sen. Fady Qaddoura, of Indianapolis, and Rep. Chris Campbell, of West Lafayette.

Additionally, many shared stories from constituents, including providers, experiencing difficulties under the PathWays transition.

Please understand that we are under immense pressure (from) our constituents to find answers and responses to real life cases, Qaddoura said. The data that you presented on that presentation might not fully articulate the human need of these individuals who are living under extreme anxiety.

HIP lawsuit update

A 2019 lawsuit seeking to curb the states use of POWER Account contributions under HIP was revived after the state sought to reinstate the premium-like charges for moderate-income Hoosiers using the insurance program this year after a pandemic pause. However, a federal judge ruled the overseeing agency erred in allowing Indiana to require such contributions in June.

FSSA also revealed a new waitlist dashboard to better inform the public about how quickly officials are working to process Hoosiers, breaking out the number of Medicaid waiver enrollees granted priority status. However, the dashboard doesnt include live updates on the number of Hoosiers on waitlists nor estimated times for processing the backlog.

Indianapolis Democrat Sen. Fady Qaddoura asked that FSSA estimate how many additional budget dollars would be needed to eliminate the waitlist. Lawmakers convene in January to discuss the next two-year budget.

Employees with FSSA presented an annual report on HIP Wednesday with the assumption that their appeal would prevail. On Tuesday, parties in the lawsuit agreed to a limited stay but FSSA will still seek an appeal and full stay.

Indiana Medicaid Director Cora Steinmetz said she was limited in what she could say due to the ongoing lawsuit, but spoke broadly about HIP oversight and the litigation.

If the state lost its appeal, We certainly will have to cross that if and when that happens. And are definitely preparing for eventualities, but are doing our best to maintain the status quo for the program.

The initial lawsuit included other aspects of HIP, such as prohibitions on non-emergency medical transportation and a lack of retroactive coverage. The partial stay from Tuesday allows FSSA to continue with those provisions but blocks the state from requiring POWER Accounts.

The state appeal of the June decision says that Indiana law required FSSA to charge the contributions. Hoosiers who couldnt pay the contributions, it said, would be reassigned to HIP Basic, a lower level plan that doesnt include vision or dental coverage  among other benefits.

But Rep. Ed Clere, of New Albany, said the 2016 law requiring such contributions also gave the agency secretary the ability to change HIP if it is required by federal law or regulation.

I just think its unfortunate  to say the least  to take away those benefits from hundreds of thousands of Hoosiers because of one interpretation of statute when there certainly is the reasonable opportunity to interpret it differently, said Clere, a Republican. No one has made a power account contribution in more than four years, and the sky hasnt fallen, right?

Bloomington Sen. Shelli Yoder, a Democrat, observed that none of the states general fund goes toward HIP expenses  rather, the federal government covers 90% of costs and the remaining 10% is paid for with tobacco taxes and hospital assessment fees.

Charging the contributions appears to cost the state more as an administrative burden than it reaped from the charges, which vary from as little as $1 to $20 per month, said Sen. Fady Qaddoura, an Indianapolis Democrat.

 I have not seen studies of any significant correlation with improved health with the few dollars that (HIP enrollees) pay, Qaddoura added.

Tracey Hutchings-Goetz, an advocate with Hoosier Action, said the churn created by Medicaid members losing coverage due to non-payment of POWER Account contributions added an additional $400 to $600 cost per member when the state had to re-enroll those beneficiaries.

HIP is an essential part of Indianas health and economic infrastructure, just like our roads and our bridges. HIP ensures Hoosiers can go to work, young people can pursue their dreams and go to school, and parents can take care of their families, Hutchings-Goetz told the committee.

Hoosier Action is one of several organizations that urged FSSA to do away with the charges and also allow Medicaid members to access the HIP Plus coverage regardless of payment in a letter earlier this month.

PathWays transition progress

On PathWays, Holly Cunningham Piggot  the director of care programs overseeing the transition  detailed the ways the state will continue to monitor managed care entities following the July 1 launch date.

Now that were in the real, live environment, we need to see that those things are really working, Cunningham Piggot said.

Such efforts include secret shopper calls to see how calls are addressed and onsite audits as well as weekly and monthly regulatory reports.

For the first 45+ days since launching, the most common call reasons were members seeking care and service coordination contact information followed by requests for medical supplies, transportation and/or meals. Home health care prior authorization requests and pharmacy inquiries also appeared on the top call reasons list shared Wednesday.

Individual provider issues with PathWays should first be routed to MCEs, including:

Anthem: (833) 569-4739, INmltssproviderrelations@anthem.com

Humana: (866) 274-5888, InMedicaidProviderRelations@humana.com

UnitedHealthcare: (877) 610-9785, in_providerservices@uhc.com

Provider issues may also be shared with INPathWays@fssa.in.gov

Between July 1 and August 17, the member helplines across the three managed care companies received over 56,600 calls. Over 95% of those calls were answered live within 30 seconds across all companies  higher than the 85% minimum required by the state.

Each managed care entity also reported their percentage of abandoned calls, which must be below 5% to meet the states performance standards. Each reported less than 1% of their calls were abandoned.

Cunningham Piggot said a PathWays issue resolution tracker followed up on emails sent to a specific address at FSSA, INPathWays@fssa.in.gov, as well as those compiled by a third party contractor.

 my team, we review the issues tracker daily. And then for outstanding items, we get with the MCEs to make sure that theyre doing follow up, Cunningham Piggot said. We have logged over 400 issues to date, and we have closed over 300 of those issues. And will continue to use this process until we feel comfortable that its not needed.

In particular, Cunningham Piggot said that some claims had been submitted using the wrong provider identification number as well as duplication of submitted claims and the implementation of electronic visit verification reporting.

We have seen an increase in the percentage of paid claims since July 1  we still have work to do, theres no doubt about it, Cunningham Piggot said.

For example, in light of the news that some waiver transportation claims werent being reimbursed for some PathWays members, Cunningham Piggot said that one managed care company reported it hadnt configured its system correctly and would be reprocessing claims. The other two entities said the claims were submitted without the appropriate modifier.

Nearly all, or 98%, of claims were adjudicated within 21 days, she shared, adding that companies had tried to work with the submitted claims rather than requiring providers to resubmit.

This didnt square with what Rep. Robin Shackleford, a Democrat from Indianapolis, said she heard from providers in her district.

 what were hearing from providers is that theres been a true delay in getting these claims processed, Shackleford said.

Shackleford has an insurance background and asked detailed questions about providers following Cunningham Piggots presentation, including care coordinator staffing and incorporating Medicaid data into the All Payers Claims Database.

Half of checking claims processing has been ensuring managed care entities have their systems set up properly while the other half has been re-educating providers on submissions, Cunningham Piggot said.

Steinmetz said that the next advisory committee meeting would provide another update on PathWays  which could include a more detailed breakdown of reported issues and secret shopper takeaways. That meeting is scheduled for Nov. 20, 2024.

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A highly ranked veteran cop can run for a council seat in the tiny town of Medley in Novembers general election because he bought a small property a year before he qualified to run and has lived in the village for long enough to satisfy the towns charter requirement, a judge ruled this week.

In her nine-page order, Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Tanya Brinkley found that Medley Police Lt. Arturo Jinete and his wife  who happens to be Medleys police chief  purchased a small trailer in the village that he planned to move into early enough to qualify for the November election.

The judge found that the only reason Jinete didnt move into the trailer until a month after the required residency date was because it was infested with mold and termites. He eventually rented a nearby trailer, where hes been living now for over a year. In her order, the judge citing precedent, determined that even though Jinete moved into the city a month late, he bought the property in time with the intent of moving into it.

Defendant never made a fraudulent effort to assert that he in fact slept in the City during the period at issue, rather he was frank as to his absence and provided a detailed explanation as to why, Judge Brinkely wrote.

Jinetes attorney David Winker said his client had the electricity and water turned on at the trailer site and that he also informed his bosses about the move and changed his voter registration card.

He took steps to establish it as his residency, Winker said.

The complaint to disqualify Jinete was brought by Medley Council member Ivan Pacheco, who questioned why the police lieutenant would give up the spacious Southwest Ranches property hes owned and lived in with his wife and children for the past two decades, for a 912-square-foot trailer. Pacheco also complained to the court that Jinete never lived in the Medley trailer.

Medleys charter requires a candidate to live at a property within the towns limits for a year before the qualifying date, which in this case was July 8, 2024. Jinete moved into a rental property near the trailer he bought on Aug. 6, 2023.

Medleys mayoral and two of its five council seats are up for election in November. Because the small town on Miami-Dades western fringe is not divided into districts, the three candidates who receive the most votes will win the mayoral and council seats.

Jinete, the towns long-serving police lieutenant, is married to Police Chief Jeanette Said-Jinete, whose $163,811 contracted annual salary is up at the end in October. In the small town of Medley, family members serving together in various capacities doesnt seem to be discouraged  though Floridas Government in the Sunshine laws prohibit elected council members from discussing business outside of public meetings.

Pacheco, who filed the lawsuit trying to stop Jinetes candidacy, serves along with his wife, Karina Pacheco. And two other council members are father and daughter.
Meet the women bringing Estonian art to the world stage  and growing the scene at home too

Meet the women bringing Estonian art to the world stage  and growing the scene at home too

If theres one thing New York really doesnt need, particularly amid a sharp downturn in the market, its another art fair. Or so you might have thought.

Undeterred by the citys already crowded marketplace, an Estonian gallerist duo decided to make their mark on the New York scene this year  with a touch of distinctive Baltic flair.

Installation view of Esther at the NY Estonian House. - Pierre Le Hors

Running alongside the Frieze frenzy, the Alternative art fair Esther invited collectors, dealers and art lovers to experience the architecture and history of Manhattans Estonian House, so named for its role as cultural centre for the diaspora Estonians who left when Estonia was annexed by the Soviet Union after World War II.

It's considered like Estonian territory, in a way, says Olga Temnikova of Tallinn-based gallery Temnikova & Kasela  one half of Esthers founding team, together with Margot Samel, creator of the eponymous Tribeca gallery.

A different kind of art fair

Unusually, for the wave-making gallerists it was this historical Estonian island on the East Side  far removed from the archetypal white cube, with its wood-panelled walls  that first sparked inspiration.

Installation view of Esther at the NY Estonian House. - Pierre Le Hors

It had this really incredible cultural, historical and architectural importance  it felt significant to take advantage of all that and have a slightly bizarre environment for galleries and artists to be able to experiment, Samel enthuses, adding that, beyond its unique locale, Esther was designed to be quite a different kind of art fair: smaller (with 26 participating galleries), and social.

The whole programming was centred around performances, talks, lunches, dinners and art  rather than around financial transactions, Samel tells Euronews Culture, though by all accounts the fair was also successful on the financial front.

Even if the Baltic States were well represented at Esther, which featured artists from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, Temnikova and Samel are keen to point out that it is not a Baltic art fair, as such. It wasnt about showing the artists in a Baltic capsule, Samel explains. Rather, they were excited by the idea of artists who are making work on the periphery, in the Baltics but also Romania and Georgia, for example, and bringing them to the centre.

Estonia meets a global audience

Nonetheless, Samel and Temnikova  both at Esther and beyond  are playing a key role in drawing the worlds attention to the Estonian art scene. Temnikova & Kasela, set by the water in Tallinns vibrant, hipster Kalamaja neighbourhood, has such internationally acclaimed local artists as Flo Kasearu, Kris Lemsalu and Merike Estna on its books; Lemsalu and Estna have also been before a New York public, on show at Margot Samel.

Olga Temnikova and Margot Samel - Jaanika Peerna

When it comes to launching artists onto the international stage, though, one event remains unrivalled: the Venice Biennale.

If anyone knows about the enduring importance of this epic showcase of contemporary art, its Maria Arusoo. She heads up the Estonian Centre for Contemporary Art (ECCA), the commissioner of the Estonian pavilion at the Venice Biennale since 1999 and the longest-standing centre of expertise for contemporary art in Estonia.

Our main goal is to contribute to and develop the local contemporary art field, and to bring in international contacts and projects as well as find possibilities for Estonian art internationally. We introduce Estonian art, through collaborative projects and our amazing archive, Arusoo tells Euronews Culture. Venice has been, for most of the artists who have been there, if not the jumping stone, then nonetheless a really strong push to the international scene.

This year, it is Edith Karlson  best known for her sculptures incorporating animal forms and anthropomorphic figures, and represented by Temnikova and Kasela  presenting at Venice, taking over the 18th-century Chiesa di Santa Maria delle Penitenti in Canareggio with her Hora Lupi exhibition.

For her, Venice is not just about the international exposure; the process of working in such a context was, in itself, powerful, and on an individual, experiential level.

Edith Karlson, Hora lupi . The Estonian Pavilion at the 60th International Art Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia. - Anu Vahtra/Estonian Centre for Contemporary Art

For Estonian artists, such a diverse international context is stimulating and important. I am really curious to see what other artists are doing, Karlson tells Euronews Culture. On a more personal level, I have worked and lived rather locally in Estonia and it was a really special and touching experience to exhibit my art in an international context, and to see how much it matters and how well it translated.

The 1980s generation

As well as their creative passion, Karlson, Kasearu, Lemsalu and Estna  together with Temnikova and Samel  are united by something else: all were born in the 1980s, growing up in the last days of the Soviet Union and the beginnings of Estonian (re)independence.

They stand alongside other such passionate and influential local female figures as Foto Tallinn organisers Helen Melesk and Kadi-Ell Tahiste and Kai Art Centre Artistic Director Karin Laansoo, who works between Tallinn and New York and plays a key role in promoting Estonian artists stateside. Strictly speaking, the latter two were born just either side of the 80s, but whats a few years between friends (or creative collaborators)?

Such details aside, beyond the simple fact of now coming to artistic maturity, as Temnikova terms it, what is it about this generation that makes it so ripe for artistic prowess and boldness  and a desire to drive the creative scene forward?

While Samel highlights that growing up in a state of constant flux might catalyse creativity, Karlson sees gratitude and humour as key traits born of that tumultuous period.

Edith Karlson, Hora lupi . The Estonian Pavilion at the 60th International Art Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia. - Anu Vahtra/Estonian Centre for Contemporary Art

Of course this history influences us; when you have experienced the entire system collapse it creates a base for your sense of life, she says. The key traits of our generation are an ability to be grateful and not to take things for granted, a way to cope through humour, and a really down to earth attitude.

Together with an appreciation of the challenges of the time, Arusoo looks back on a period of optimism and promise, particularly thinking of Estonias so-called Singing Revolution, and the Baltic Way peaceful political demonstration that saw around two million people join their hands to form a human chain of 690 kilometres across Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

We were all born into this romantic phase of the Soviet Union, because it was already melting, she remembers. It was the night singing parties, where in Estonia we sang ourselves to freedom. We were holding hands as a Baltic chain We come from this freedom generation.

The Baltic Way in Estonia - Jaan Kunnap / CC Licence

Collaboration at the core

The spirit of togetherness Arusoo describes  while not being blind to the many obstacles that remain  at least in part helps us to understand the dynamism that seems to characterise the small, but ever evolving, Estonian art scene.

All in all, there is a quite good ecosystem of collaboration, the CCA Estonia head says. And this collaboration is not only within the art field; we at CCA Estonia have been collaborating with, for example, the Vabamu Museum of Occupations and Freedom and Tallinn University, which also expands our audience.

Being in Estonia, collaboration with other galleries and museums is key to putting yourself out there  putting your artists out there too, Temnikova agrees, noting also the role of the current Estonian Minister of Culture, Heidy Purga, in creating the current energetic atmosphere.

For both Arusoo and Temnikova, though, its about more than ones own success, or the success of the artists one represents. If you do things in this kind of small field, you also do things to actually develop the field itself, and get the field somewhere. In this, collaboration is the key, Arusoo believes.

Maria Arusoo, Director of the Estonian Centre for Contemporary Art - Alana Proosa

In many ways, Esthers social design  a little unorthodox for usually transaction-focused art fairs  is symbolic of this sentiment, providing a forum for discussion not only within the Estonian art scene, but for artists and gallerists from the periphery to address both each other and the New York art world.

Esther, for me, was a gesture of inviting people to simply slow down and talk, Temnikova says.

While both she and Samel are keeping schtum on the details of any possible next edition, one thing feels certain: in bringing the art world  and what felt like half of New York  to Estonia House, Esther may just help Arusoo see her hopes become reality.

My most simple and wildest dream? That the vast array of talented artists from Estonia would have enough possibilities to work on the international scene on an equal footing with their colleagues, she tells Euronews Culture, a tone of optimism in her voice.

Edith Karlson's Hora Lupi will be on show at Chiesa di Santa Maria delle Penitenti in Canareggio at the 60th Venice Biennale until 24 November 2024.
SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS)  The Shreveport Fire Departments bomb squad welcomes a new member.

Im very excited to be a part of this elite group, said Lawrence LJ Bunton II, who is better known as LJ.

He recently completed six weeks of training at the FBIs hazardous devices school in Huntsville, Alabama, to become a member of the Bomb Squad.

The 17-year veteran joined a group with just 22 members in five decades.

How an eye in the sky helped CPSO locate and capture suspect

I believe 1973 was the first bomb technician Shreveport held, and I am number 22. So to the 21 guys ahead of me, I  I hope to do them proud, said Bunton.

The group currently has six members, and Bunton says theyre similar in many ways.

I think were just wired a little differently. We have like interests. We gel very well in the office as well. I dont know what it is that brought us together. I enjoy this. I like this and Im where I need to be, said Bunton. I mean, the most common person wouldnt want to go into a burning building. Also they wouldnt want to deal with hazard devices or bombs. Me, I see nothing wrong with that. Im kind of intrigued on how to defeat those.

Intrigue sparked by extra training all bomb squad members must go through.

Weve all gone to the police academy as well as the fire academy, said the Bomb Squads commander, Assistant Chief of Fire Prevention Joshua McCollum. So one way I like to describe what we do is, were essentially police detectives that investigate fire and bomb.

More: Salute the Badge

According to McCollum the unit makes close to 50 runs each year related to bombs and suspicious packages. 400 in investigating fires.

The group must master the use of state-of-the-art equipment, such as an unmanned bomb-defusing robot, which McCollum says is the most advanced unit in the state.

McCollum says the group is constantly training to ensure the units safety.

Got to be self motivated. I mean, I dont, I dont, you know, micro manage these guys. I mean, theyve got to be self-motivated and theyve got to want to know what theyve got to do and train and do the things theyve gotta do because, you know, there will be times that theyll make some of these runs and I wont be on scene, said McCollum.

Bunton says the training allows group members to remain calm in extremely dangerous situations.

Ice water in your veins. You have to say calm, cool and collected. You cant get flustered in the situation because theres people that depend on you at that moment, said Bunton. Our heart rate naturally, its our bodys way, its going to increase. Were going to get sweaty palms. But you have to calm yourself down and realize, Hey, Ive been trained to do this. Ive worked on this and Im going to continue to carry out this mission.

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Members of Idahos congressional delegation to host senior outreach days in September, October

In this file photo, U.S. Sen. Mike Crapo (center) takes part in a listening breakfast at the Idaho State Capitol Building in Boise on June 2, 2017. (Lance Cheung/USDA)

U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson and U.S. Sens. Mike Crapo and Jim Risch, all Idaho Republicans, are hosting senior center outreach opportunities throughout September and October across the state.

Mike Simpson

District staff from their offices will travel throughout Idaho to meet with constituents at senior centers to answer questions and address their concerns, according to a press release from Simpsons office.

Senior center outreach is a wonderful opportunity to expand accessibility to seniors across the state, Simpson said in the press release. Not all of my constituents can leave their homes and connect with staff from my district offices, which is why Senators Crapo and Risch and I are bringing these services directly to them.

Risch said these events will help Idahoans access the resources they need.

My staff is here to help answer questions and navigate challenges involving the federal government, he said in the press release. The Idaho delegations Senior Center Outreach Days presents a great opportunity to visit with my staff in person about issues you face.

Locations and times of senior outreach events

Minidoka County Senior Center

702 11th St., Rupert

When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 4

Wendell Senior Center

380 First Ave., Wendell

When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept.6

West End Senior Center

1010 Main St., Buhl

When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 9

Gooding County Senior Center

308 Senior Ave., Gooding

When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 11

Jerome Senior Citizen Center

520 N. Lincoln Ave., Jerome

When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 12

Hagerman Valley Senior Center

140 East Lake St., Hagerman

When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 16

Burley Senior Center

2421 Overland Ave., Burley

When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 18

Silver and Gold Senior Center

210 Wilson St., Eden

When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 24

Filer Senior Haven

222 Main St., Filer

When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 26

Camas County Senior Center

129 West Willow Ave. W, Fairfield

When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 27

Golden Years Senior Center

218 N. Rail St. W., Shoshone

When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 4

Blaine County Senior Connection

721 Third Ave. S., Hailey

When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 10

Lorna Reeder Senior Center

400 W. Market St., Albion

When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 16

Oakley Valley Senior Center

135 West Main St., Oakley

When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 17

Ageless Senior Citizens

310 Main St., N., Kimberly

When: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 18

Ensuring Idahos senior citizens have access to federal resources is a priority, Crapo said in the release. I am committed to bringing the information to them and sharing details about federal programs with which my office may be able to assist.

For additional information, contact Simpsons Twin Falls office at 208-734-7219.

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BEIJING, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese researchers have developed a new method of massive water production through the reaction between lunar regolith and endogenous hydrogen. Their study was published in the journal The Innovation on Thursday.

The study of the Moon's water content plays a vital role in the construction of future scientific research bases and human survival.

Research results from previous lunar explorations have revealed that ice may exist in a natural state at the moon's north and south poles and in its permanently shadowed regions.

However, the natural water content in lunar minerals is extremely low, ranging from 0.0001 percent to 0.02 percent, according to the Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering (NIMTE) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). It remains challenging to extract and utilize water in situ on the moon.

Recently, researchers from the NIMTE, Institute of Physics of the CAS, China Academy of Space Technology, Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory, Nanjing University and Harbin Institute of Technology used lunar regolith samples brought back by the Chang'e-5 mission to conduct related studies on various lunar minerals.

They found that the solar wind has irradiated the minerals in lunar soil for billions of years and stored abundant hydrogen. When heated to high temperatures, the hydrogen reacts with the iron oxides in the minerals to form elemental iron and large amounts of water.

When the temperature rises above 1,000 degrees Celsius, the lunar soil melts, and the water generated by this reaction is released as vapor.

The researchers confirmed that 1 g of molten lunar regolith can generate 51-76 mg of water. "In other words, 1 tonne of lunar regolith can produce more than 50 kg of water, which can meet the daily drinking water needs of 50 people per day," said Wang Junqiang, a professor at the NIMTE.

Besides, the researchers further investigated the differences in hydrogen content in different lunar minerals. The lunar ilmenite FeTiO3 was found to contain the highest amount of solar wind-implanted hydrogen among the five primary minerals, including ilmenite, plagioclase, olivine, pyroxene and lunar glass, in the lunar regolith.

The in situ heating experiments indicated that the hydrogen retained in lunar minerals is a substantial resource for producing water on the moon.

The researchers studied the atomic structure of lunar ilmenite in detail. They discovered that compared with ilmenite on Earth, the atomic spacing in lunar soil increased significantly due to the presence of hydrogen.

The simulation results showed that there are sub-nano tunnels in ilmenite in lunar soil, which can absorb and store many hydrogen atoms from the solar wind.

The experiment also found that the formation temperature of water can be reduced from 800 degrees Celsius to 200 degrees Celsius.

This result can explain the variation in the distribution of hydrogen on the moon with latitude differences. The equatorial position of the moon is the most irradiated by the solar wind, which contains a lot of electrons. Thus, more hydrogen is restored to water vapor and volatilized, while high latitudes are less affected by solar wind electron irradiation and can retain more hydrogen.

These discoveries provide pioneering insights into the water exploration on the moon, according to the NIMTE.

The Chang'e-5 probe, which returned to Earth on Dec. 17, 2020, retrieved 1,731 grams of lunar samples, consisting primarily of rocks and soil from the lunar surface. 
CHICAGO  Uncommitted delegates wearing keffiyeh scarves that read Democrats for Palestinian Rights called for a Palestinian American to be given a speaking slot at the Democratic National Convention.

Speaking at a rally Wednesday outside the United Center where the DNC is being held, the group included health care workers, Chicago Teachers Union representatives and two congresswomen who are part of The Squad, the informal group of progressive House members.

The Democratic Party prides itself on being the party of human rights, the party of justice, the party for democracy, said U.S. Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri. When it comes to defending Palestinian lives and ending the ongoing genocide in Gaza, the Democratic Party needs to uphold those same values.

Bush lost her Democratic primary earlier this month after a pro-Israel super PAC funneled millions in ads against her due to her pro-Palestinian position. Bush on Wednesday called the group that opposed her seat the pro-Genocide lobby.

U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, the other Squad member, joined about 40 people at the rally. Many, wearing red and white pins saying Democratic Majority for Palestine and Ceasefire Delegate, called on the White House to institute an arms embargo on Israel.

Abbas Alawieh, an uncommitted delegate from Michigan, said a coalition of uncommitted delegates presented the DNC with a whole long list of names of potential Palestinian Americans to speak at the DNC. He said he had not heard back from DNC organizers.

An uncommitted delegate movement developed in Michigan earlier this year in a push back against President Joe Biden and his administration providing military support to Israel for the war in Gaza.

Let me just make clear, if the issue is that there isnt room for Palestinian-Americans in the Democratic Party, then weve got a problem, Alawieh said.

Many speakers questioned how the U.S. government could say they wanted a cease-fire while continuing to provide weapons to Israel.

Now ask yourselves, how does our secretary of state travel 11 times, begging for an end to a situation (when) we truly have continued to provide the bombs and the weapons that are creating that situation? Omar asked the crowd. Where is our patriotism?

Yet Omar also emphasized that she and the people standing with her were Democrats, and that she wanted to prepare the party to defeat Donald Trump in November.

Chicago Teachers Union Vice President Jackson Potter also joined the calls for a cease-fire and an end to weapons support for Israel.

In this moment, public education is going to take a hit and cuts are on the horizon as the historic COVID relief funds come to an end, and were here in Chicago asking for the 80% plus schools that dont have a librarian, to ensure that we have libraries and librarians, he said, listing a litany of other CTU requests for schools. We cannot do that if simultaneously we are sending billions of dollars to bomb children and families indiscriminately in Gaza.

_____
A former meter reader who said she was traumatized by a workplace dog attack and claimed she fainted at the sight of dogs has pleaded guilty in a workers compensation fraud case, according to a release from the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) published on Wednesday.

The L&I investigation found Linda Lashell Jordan, 56, of Grays River in Wahkiakum County, had six dogs, including some she was fostering or advertising for sale, at her southwest Washington home. At the same time, she was insisting her PTSD and dog phobia were so severe she could not work, said L&I.

According to L&I, Jordan pleaded guilty Monday to second-degree attempted theft of state workers compensation benefits, a gross misdemeanor offense. Wahkiakum County Superior Court Judge Heidi Heywood sentenced Jordan to 30 days of jail but allowed her to serve it under electronic home monitoring.

L&Is investigation determined Jordan took over $162,000 in wage-replacement payments from September 2016 to October 2019.

The Washington Attorney Generals Office prosecuted the case.

This is clearly a case of someone abusing the workers comp system, said Celeste Monahan, assistant director of L&Is Fraud Prevention and Labor Standards division.

According to L&I, Jordan worked as a meter reader for the Pacific County Public Utility District when a dog bit her right arm in 2007, causing serious injury. Over the next several years, she filed injury claims to L&I, maintaining she couldnt risk working or even driving a vehicle because she might encounter a dog.

Her medical providers confirmed she couldnt work due to her on-the-job injuries, said L&I.

According to L&I, they started investigating Jordan in 2018 when a claim manager suspected something was amiss in her case. An L&I investigator visited Jordan at her home, by pretending to be interested in buying bricks shed advertised for sale. He found she had three French bulldogs and three boxers. Jordan told the investigator she and her husband had been rescuing and fostering boxers for 30 years, and warned him that one of the dogs might bite, charging papers said. She let him take a photo of her with two of the boxers.

The investigation also revealed that Jordan advertised dogs for sale on Facebook using her maiden name, an alias, and her husbands name. Though her healthcare provider advised her not to drive in case she saw a dog and fainted, investigators saw Jordan driving nine times in 2018 and 2019.

In August 2019, the case investigator showed photos and other surveillance materials to a psychiatrist who once treated Jordan, said L&I. The psychiatrist changed Jordans previous diagnosis from post-traumatic stress disorder and dog phobia to malingeringpretending an illness or injury to avoid workcharging papers said. He found that Jordan was capable of returning to work as a meter reader as early as September 2016.

L&I is seeking repayment from Jordan.
The Gaza war protesters who arrived in Dearborn at dawn Monday to trek to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago came to the charter bus from different backgrounds.

Young, middle-aged, Black, white, brown  and mostly strangers  the group of about 40 were united by a hope to bring an end to Israel's retaliatory war on Gaza. That afternoon, they would join thousands from across the country in calling on President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to end U.S. military support for Israel, marching on the convention and returning to Dearborn later that day.

The war that broke out after Hamas-led militants crossed into Israel on Oct. 7, killing approximately 1,200 people and taking some 250 hostage, has killed more than 40,000 Gazans, according to the territorys health ministry.

After 10 months of protest and no end to the violence, the convention offered activists an opportunity unlike any theyd had yet. With the party to vote on a new platform, uncommitted delegates pushing an embargo on U.S. arms to Israel and for a Palestinian American to speak on stage, and a new presidential nominee in Harris, they hoped a massive protest could trigger a change in course.

As the sleepy group rolled out of the Arab American museum parking lot in the pink glow of sunrise, Sumayya Cherri, a 32-year-old Dearborn resident with roots in southern Lebanon, focused on the demographics of those onboard.

After years protesting Israel's military actions and its occupation of the Palestinian territories and, until 2000, a portion of southern Lebanon, Cherri said she was heartened to see that Arab Americans and Muslims werent alone. On the bus, in fact, they were the minority.

When I came here in 2006 and protested the Lebanese war (between Israel and Hezbollah), you didn't see a lot of Americans, said Cherri, who was raised in Dearborn but attending college at the time in Kuwait. But the protests I've been to this year all have been less Arabs and Muslims and more of everyone else.

It brings me hope, it takes the stress off, she said. I was always stressed about like  how do I make the Americans understand why they need to align with our struggle?

Moved to activism

Many on the bus had been active for years across other social-justice issues and viewed the Palestinian struggle as another facet of the same broad system of oppression. On the four-hour ride, police accountability organizers discussed next steps in the case of Sherman Lee Butler, a Detroiter recently shot and killed by a court bailiff whod come to evict him, while a pair of socialist organizers waxed sarcastic about Harris mass appeal: Shes just having a good time, I get the vibe.

Nova Williams, a Wayne State University sophomore studying engineering, was new to activism. Her journey began just months ago, with a move from her childhood home in New Baltimore to her first apartment in Dearborn.

Nova Williams of Dearborn, second from left, marches on the Democratic National Convention in Chicago with Jacob Smith of Detroit, second from right, on Monday, Aug. 19, 2024.

Arriving Monday at the warm-up rally at Chicagos Union Park to a sea of demonstrators clad in keffiyehs, Williams, small-framed with long braids, recalled the green, red, white and black event flyer that started it all for her. Spotted in her neighborhood coffee shop in May, the flyer advertised the Peoples Conference for Palestine in Detroit.

Williams attended, and something clicked. By the end of the three-day event, she said, she viewed Israels occupation of the Palestinian territories as apartheid and the Palestinian and Black struggles as linked.

(I was) like wow, I didn't even know any of this even happened, said Williams, who is Black. I was very sheltered on a lot that was happening on the outside, especially coming from New Baltimore. Its such a small city thats more white-populated and right wing.

Since the Memorial Day weekend conference, the sophomore engineering student has dived headlong into pro-Palestinian and racial-justice activism. Now a member of the Detroit Alliance Against Racial and Political Repression, shes attended numerous protests against the Gaza war, always with an older family member playing chaperone.

In June, she joined a separate bus of demonstrators for a march on the White House, with her older sister keeping watch. On Independence Day, her father, an autoworker whose Palestinian American colleague influenced his support for a ceasefire, accompanied her to a rally in Dearborn.

On the bus Monday, she was escorted by her mother, an elementary school teacher whos taken pride watching Nova come into her own. Its incredible, said Natasha Williams, 48.

I used to be under the impression that whatever anyone else was voting for or was for, that I should just go along with it, but I didn't really think for myself then, Nova Williams said. (This is) also at the same time a self-discovery journey  I'm learning what I know is right and wrong and what's humane to do.

I want to be on the right side of history.

Leaving home changed his view

The seeds for bus trip co-organizer Jacob Smiths own "awakening" were planted in college too.

Protesters from metro Detroit arrive in Chicago by charter bus to march on the Democratic National Convention on Monday, Aug. 19, 2024.

Raised outside Flint by evangelical Christian Zionists  believers in a Biblical end-times prophecy wherein Jews must first return to Israel  Smith, 32, described having been propagandized from every angle until his worldview began to expand at the University of Michigan.

There, he took a course on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and befriended two pro-Palestinian students, one of whom went to high school in the United Arab Emirates. The friendships helped catalyze his political evolution, he said, thwarting mainstream narratives that are broadly pro-U.S. geopolitical interests.

A software engineer, Smith said he became politically active in 2019 because he began to see electoral participation as insufficient to affect change. While hes since largely focused on police accountability, the war that broke out in October kicked his occasional pro-Palestinian activism into high gear.

You kind of see it as all being connected, said Smith, who is white. So not only do you come out in support for things like Black Lives Matter, livable wages for working class people, but also  coming to the cause for Palestine.

(Its about) compassion and being a good person and understanding were all human beings and we should stand in solidarity with each other, but the broad causes for all of these things are kind of connected.

Smith estimates hes attended or helped organize approximately 20 Gaza-war protests in the past year. There was more work to be done Monday, and he hurried off to distribute signs.

What they see on social media

The thousands who marched on the convention Monday were part of a broad coalition of more than 200 activist groups. Some came by plane, train or bus, and from cities as far flung as Denver and New Orleans.

Hanan Alattar, 24, of Clawson, and Sumayya Cherri, 32, of Dearborn, prepare to march on the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Monday, Aug. 19, 2024.

A Lebanese-American woman with the metro Detroit contingent attributed American anti-war sentiment to what she sees as the cruelty of Israels assault on the besieged Gaza Strip. The country has bombed and limited aid to a captive population, killing scores of civilians in its stated effort to root out members of Hamas.

Cherri, however, credited social media.

Her parents left Lebanon during the countrys civil war, but saw the significant civilian toll of Israels invasion and occupation of the countrys south, in the 1980s.

"What you're witnessing now, we're familiar with it, Cherri said. It's no different, except now there's a lens to see it with.

As they prepared to depart Chicago, the metro Detroit demonstrators reflected on what theyd accomplished. The protest, one of the two largest expected this week, was much smaller than organizers predicted. (Despite preemptive comparisons to the 1968 convention where police and Vietnam War protesters clashed, there were scant reports of violence.)

Still, the demonstrators held out hope theyd sent a message.

Im never optimistic with what the Democratic party is going to do, but Im just kind of happy to see all these people come out from across the country, said Smith. Maybe they come to their senses.

By the end of the week, the party had approved a platform that did not include an arms embargo and rejected a request for a Palestinian American to address the convention. And so, the protests continued, with an "uncommitted" delegate from Michigan leading a sit in.

Violet Ikonomova is a reporter at the Free Press focused on investigations and government accountability. Contact her at vikonomova@freepress.com.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Metro Detroiters trek to DNC to protest US military support for Israel
Mexican government accuses El Chapos son of kidnapping cartel boss El Mayo and handing him to the US

The Mexican government is issuing an arrest warrant for the jailed son of Sinaloa Cartel founder Joaquin El Chapo Guzman, alleging he kidnapped a fellow narco boss and flew him straight into the waiting arms of US law enforcement a month ago.

In an announcement Wednesday, the Mexican Attorney Generals office confirmed it is issuing charges against Joaquin Guzman Lopez, who is in US custody in Chicago.

An order of apprehension is being prepared alleging kidnapping and illegal deprivation of liberty of an individual on national territory in order to hand them over to authorities in another country, Mexicos Attorney General wrote in the statement.

The office also said investigators have secured the vehicles and property believed to have been used in the act. Though they did not elaborate, they also stated the air strip where the flight originated has been identified.

The announcement comes about a month after Guzman Lopez  one of El Chapos sons, known as the Chapitos  flew in a private plane to a small airfield near El Paso, Texas, along with the notorious 76-year-old narco boss Ismael El Mayo Zambada. Both were taken into custody by US law enforcement on longstanding charges of running one of the most powerful narcotics trafficking organizations in the world.

The cartel is thought to be responsible for the trafficking of vast amounts of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and fentanyl into the US. DEA Administrator Anne Milgram said the arrests strike at the heart of the cartel that is responsible for the majority of drugs, including fentanyl and methamphetamine, killing Americans from coast to coast.

The surprise arrest raised questions about why they took that flight and what happened beforehand. Mexican officials have said they believe Joaquin Guzman Lopez made an agreement with his imprisoned brother Ovidio before the flight, but an attorney for Ovidio told CNN the claim was a complete and utter fabrication. Ovidio Guzman Lopez was extradited to the US in 2023 and is awaiting trial on drug and money laundering charges.

In a jailhouse letter earlier this month, Zambada claimed he was ambushed and kidnapped by Guzman Lopez at a ranch outside Culiacan, Sinaloa, the day of his arrest.

I did not turn myself in, and I did not come voluntarily to the United States, he said. To the contrary, I was kidnapped and brought to the U.S. forcibly and against my will.

Jeffrey Lichtman, Guzman Lopezs defense attorney, told CNN the Mexican government should be embarrassed for bringing forward these charges against his client.

The corrupt Mexican government has made more of an effort over the last three weeks to prosecute the alleged kidnapping of Mayo Zambada, the biggest drug dealer on the planet, than to actually locate and prosecute Zambada over the past 40 years, Lichtman said.

Im sure the many thousands of Americans killed by Zambadas fentanyl will rest easier knowing that the person allegedly responsible for bringing him to justice in America has instead been charged with kidnapping and treason in Mexico, he added.

Its unclear how the Mexican government will actively seek to prosecute its kidnapping case against Guzman Lopez in the face of an extensive and ongoing investigation led by the US Department of Justice targeting the Sinaloa Cartels global enterprise.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has repeatedly expressed frustration with the US governments involvement in this case and requested more information on the dramatic arrests of both Guzman Lopez and Zambada. Both remain in US detention after pleading not guilty to drug trafficking.

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Mexico to bring charges against capo, not for drugs, but for turning over another drug lord to US

FILE - This undated image provided by the U.S. Department of State shows Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, a historic leader of Mexico's Sinaloa cartel. (U.S. Department of State via AP)

MEXICO CITY (AP)  The strange saga of how two Mexican drug lords were detained after landing in a plane in the United States in July just got stranger.

The Mexican government now says it is bringing charges against Joaquin Guzman Lopez, but not because he was a leader of the Sinaloa drug cartel founded by his father, Joaquin El Chapo Guzman.

Instead, Mexican prosecutors are bringing charges against the younger Guzman for apparently kidnapping Ismael El Mayo Zambada  an older drug boss from a rival faction of the cartel  forcing him onto the plane and flying to an airport near El Paso, Texas.

The younger Guzman apparently intended to turn himself in to U.S. authorities, but may have brought Zambada along as a prize to sweeten any plea deal.

Federal prosecutors issued a statement saying an arrest warrant has been prepared against the younger Guzman for kidnapping.

But it also cited another charge under an article of Mexico's criminal code that defines what he did as treason. That section of the law says treason is committed by those who illegally abduct a person in Mexico in order to hand them over to authorities of another country.

That clause was apparently motivated by the abduction of a Mexican doctor wanted for allegedly participating in the 1985 torture and killing of Drug Enforcement Administration agent Kiki Camarena.

Nowhere in the statement does it mention that the younger Guzman was a member of th e little Chapos faction of the Sinaloa cartel, made up of Chapo's sons, that smuggles millions of doses of the deadly opioid fentanyl into the United States, causing about 70,000 overdose deaths each year.

The federal prosecutors' statement also included an unusually harsh and revealing description about evidence presented by prosecutors in the northern state of Sinaloa that has since proved to be false.

Sinaloa state prosecutors were apparently trying to distance the state's governor, Ruben Rocha, from the killing of a local political rival, Hector Cuen, who was at a meeting that was used as a pretext for luring Zambada to the abduction site. Zambada has said he expected the governor to be at that meeting; Rocha has said he made a trip out of the state that day.

To play down reports of the purported meeting, state prosecutors published a video of an apparent shooting during what they claimed was a botched robbery at a local gas station. They said Cuen was killed there, not at the meeting site, where Zambada said Cuen was murdered.

While federal prosecutors stopped short of saying the gas station video was a fake, they earlier noted that the number of gunshots heard on the video didn't match the number of gunshot wounds on Cuen's body.

On Wednesday, the federal prosecutors went further, saying the video is unacceptable, nor does it have sufficient value as evidence to be taken into account.

Zambada has said that Guzman, who he trusted, had invited him to the meeting to help iron out the fierce political rivalry between Cuen and Rocha. Zambada was known for eluding capture for decades because of his incredibly tight, loyal and sophisticated personal security apparatus.

The fact that he would knowingly leave that all behind to meet with Rocha means that Zambada viewed such a meeting as credible and feasible. The same goes for the idea that Zambada, as the leader of the oldest wing of the Sinaloa cartel, could act as an arbiter in the states political disputes.

The governor has denied he knew of or attended the meeting where Zambada was abducted.

The whole case has been an embarrassment for the Mexican government, which didn't even know about the detentions of the two drug lords on U.S. soil until after the fact.

President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has long viewed any U.S. intervention as an affront, and has refused to confront Mexicos drug cartels. He recently questioned the U.S. policy of detaining drug cartel leaders, asking, Why dont they change that policy?
NEW MEXICO (KRQE)  For those living in southern New Mexico, expect to see an influx of tarantulas searching for love. Right now, it is peak mating season for New Mexico tarantulas. The furry eight-legged creatures, from Valencia County down to the Texas state line, are embarking on a quest to find a mate.

Recently purchased Ohio home demolished; owner in disbelief

While female tarantulas stay safely inside their burrows, male tarantulas venture far and wide to sniff out female pheromones. An expert said they are so hyper-fixated on mating, they will pay no attention to peoples presence. They will not pose any danger, they wont come after you, they wont come towards you. As long as youre out of their way, theyll stay out of yours, said Science Education Coordinator Cesar Bustillos, City of Albuquerque.

There can be up to 1,000 tarantula babies in a single egg sac. Bustillos said their mating season lasts until October.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Michael Madsen and His Estranged Wife Speak Out After Actor's Arrest on Domestic Battery Charge

The actor's lawyer said he is "definitely not guilty of domestic violence," and his wife DeAnna said Madsen "is struggling with his own personal issues"

Luca Carlino/NurPhoto/Getty Michael Madsen on March 6, 2019

A lawyer for Michael Madsen is speaking out after the actor was arrested on a charge of misdemeanor domestic battery.

Madsen, 66, was taken into custody in Malibu, Calif., early in the morning of Saturday, Aug. 17. An attorney for the Kill Bill star claimed to The Hollywood Reporter that Madsen "confronted" DeAnna and "asked her to leave" the house, adding that the situation "has been an ongoing problem."

Michael has shown immense compassion and restraint during this period towards his estranged wife, Wander added. Hes definitely not guilty of domestic violence.

Additionally, DeAnna responded to THR in a statement, "Michael is struggling with his own personal issues. Myself and our children have been supporting him to the best of our ability. We would request privacy at this time."



Madsen's rep and lawyer did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's requests for comment.



VALERIE MACON/AFP via Getty DeAnna Madsen and Michael Madsen on Nov. 16, 2020

Online arrest records show that Madsen's bail was set at $20,000; a rep for the actor confirmed to PEOPLE on Aug. 19 that Madsen had returned home.

"It was a disagreement between Michael and his wife, which we hope resolves positively for them both," his rep told Variety in a previous statement.

The Los Angeles Sheriff's Department told PEOPLE in a statement Aug. 22 that deputies responded to a call just after midnight on Aug. 17 in which an informant "stated that a female adult alleged her husband pushed her and locked her out of their residence."

"The investigation is ongoing and will be forwarded to the Van Nuys Superior Court House for filing," the department added.



Albert L. Ortega/Getty Michael Madsen on Nov. 20, 2022

Michael and his wife DeAnna have been married since 1996, and he was previously married twice before. According to THR, the couple separated after their 26-year-old son Hudson died by suicide in January 2022.

Michael and DeAnna share one other son, Luke, 18, whom THR reported lives with Michael amid his parents' separation. The Reservoir Dogs star also has three other children: Christian, Calvin and Max.



If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.

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Michigan AG delivers message to Supreme Court: You can pry this wedding band from my cold, dead, gay hand!

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel discussed Kamala Harris record defending the rights of LGBTQ+ Americans  and channeled the movie star and gun rights activist Charlton Heston to deliver a message to Republicans who are trying to take away those rights.

Nessel, the states first openly gay attorney general, took the stage at the third night of the DNC on Wednesday to tout Harris record protecting same sex marriage when she was attorney general in California.

In 2011, she refused to defend Californias ban on same sex marriage. She refused to argue that some families should have fewer rights than other families. It meant a lot. She was fighting for families like mine, Nessel told the crowd in Chicago.

The Michigan AG said she faced a similar situation in 2022, when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade and her states archaic abortion ban was resurrected.

In his concurring opinion to reverse Roe, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas suggested that the Supreme Court should also reconsider the rulings protecting the right to contraception, same-sex relationships, and same-sex marriage.

Dana Nessel delivers powerful message to the Supreme Court justices who are trying to roll back the rights of some Americans (EPA)

Nessel then took a line from Charlton Heston, the actor-turned-president of the National Rifle Association. Heston, one of Hollywoods biggest movie stars of the 1950s, informed Democrats in 2000 that they wouldnt be able to strip him of his gun unless they took it from his cold, dead hands.

She put her own spin on the now-famous line: I got a message for the Republicans and the justices of the United States Supreme Court: You can pry this wedding band from my cold, dead, gay hand! She joked: And Im retaining a lot of water, so good luck with that!

The crowd erupted into cheers.

Just as the same sex marriage ban was overturned in California, so too was the abortion ban in Michigan, Nessel added.

I know that whether shes attorney general or president of the United States, Kamala Harris will always be in our corner, the Michigan AG said.

Nessel also took a few jabs at Donald Trump.

She pointed out that the former president not only appointed half of the Supreme Court justices who decided to reverse the landmark ruling but also is now facing his own legal battles: We know that she will appoint Supreme Court justices who will protect our freedoms. And let me tell ya, Kamala knows you go from the courthouse to the White House and not the other way around.

Later in the evening, the convention heard from Minnesota Governor and Harris running mate Tim Walz, when he accepted the vice presidential nomination.
When a teenager fell asleep during a field trip to a Michigan courtroom earlier this month, the judge responded by ordering her to be placed in a jumpsuit, handcuffed, and held in a cell for hourslivestreaming what he later called "my own version of Scared Straight" to social media followers.

The teen's mother has now filed a lawsuit, arguing that the judge, Kenneth King, violated her daughter's constitutional rights.

According to the suit, the 15-year-old, identified as ELG, was participating in a vocational program set up by a local nonprofit. As part of the program, ELG was attending a field trip to King's courtroom, aimed at teaching students about possible careers in law. Once the group arrived and were seated in the courtroom, the teenagers watched a homicide proceeding, followed by a lecture from King, which was livestreamed online.

During this lecture, ELG nodded off. The lawsuit claims that this was, in part, because she had been "exposed to a court hearing that forced her to relive a traumatic event." The suit says that when King noticed the teenager had fallen asleep, he began berating her. After ELG apologized, King allegedly moved on and continued with the lecture.

When ELG fell asleep again, King ordered her to get up, go to the bathroom, and get a drink of water, "because of what he had in store for her," according to the suit. When she returned, court officers locked her inside a detention cell and ordered her to take off her clothes and change into a jail jumpsuit.

ELG refused to remove all her clothes and "was permitted to put the jumpsuit over her clothing before being handcuffed and transported back to the original holding cell, where she was held captive for hours," according to the suit. She was eventually "re-cuffed and brought into the courtroom after the close of the day's proceedings, where a fake trial was convened."

After assigning a "random private attorney" to serve as the teenager's "counsel," King threatened to send her to "'juvey,' with vulgar stories of beatings and feces at the county's juvenile detention center."

"While panning the camera to focus upon his juvenile audience for the benefit of his internet fans," King directed ELG's "peers to serve as a fake jury of public opinion and decide whether to let her go home to her mother and grandmother, or to serve time in the juvenile jail," even though he completely lacked any jurisdiction to actually send her to jail.

"Was I really going to do that? Probably not. Could I have? Probably so. But that's not what I want to do to a kid who's there on a field trip," King later told 7 News Detroit, a local news station. "Do I think I was heavy handed in what I did? No, I don't. Because I'll do whatever it needs to be done to reach these kids and make sure that they don't end up in front of me."

In all, the lawsuit argues that King's actions clearly violated the teenager's constitutional right to due process.

ELG "was subjected to unusual punishment that was cruel, before farcical process, because she upset" King, the suit reads, adding that while he "acted under color of law, his actions were outside the bounds of his authority, providing no just process at all."

The post Michigan Judge Handcuffed and Jailed a Teen for Falling Asleep During a Field Trip appeared first on Reason.com.
President of the Michigan Police Officers Association of Michigan, or POAM, James Tignanelli (left) offers POAM's endorsement to former President Donald Trump (right) for the 2024 presidential Election on April 2, 2024. (Photo: Anna Liz Nichols)

During a Thursday press call organized by former President Donald Trumps election campaign, Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt (R-Porter Twp.) joined James Tignanelli, president of the Police Officers Association of Michigan and Republican sheriffs from counties across the state in criticizing President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harriss border policies.

Thursdays call comes on the heels of Trumps Tuesday visit to Howell, where he continued to attack Democrats on crime and immigration, despite preliminary data from the Major Cities Chiefs Association showcasing a 6% decrease in violent crime in the first half of 2024, with the FBI reporting historic declines in violent crime in the first quarter of the year.

Speakers echoed Trumps criticisms of Harriss support for immigration reforms, with Trump falsely claiming Harris supports mass amnesty and citizenship for all illegals.

Nesbitt also criticized Democratic majority in the Legislature, blaming the leadership for not holding hearings on Republican bills that would crack down on undocumented immigration in Michigan.

Thats why, now more than ever, we need President Trump to secure the border, Nesbitt said, pointing to Trumps pledge to carry out the largest deportation operation in American history.

While members of law enforcement presented examples of crimes committed by undocumented immigrants in their communities, they could not provide statistics on the percentage of crimes committed by undocumented immigrants in Michigan, with Livingston County Sheriff Mike Murphy saying there is not a mechanism for capturing that data within the state.

Republicans have repeatedly tied undocumented immigrants to rising crime, however an investigation from the Marshall Project found no link between undocumented immigrants and increased crime. Another study published by Oxford Economic Papers found undocumented immigrants were 33% less likely to be incarcerated than U.S. natives.

Law enforcement officials on the call also pointed to concerns of fentanyl and drug trafficking in their communities, with Mason County Sheriff Kim Cole pointing to a recent case where his department recovered nearly 60 grams of pure fentanyl.

Investigators tell us that came directly from our southern border, we also learned that that was enough fentanyl to kill every resident in our community, and when you think about losing an entire county to fentanyl, its a pretty significant issue, Cole said.

I would submit to you that our southern border is a three legged stool for law enforcement. Its a national security threat. It is a humanitarian crisis and its a criminal enterprise, Cole said, pointing to previous comments from FBI Director Christopher Wray, with Wray saying there was no doubt dangerous individuals had entered the country through the southern border.

While fentanyl is entering the country through Mexico, 90% of illicit fentanyl is smuggled is seized at legal ports of entry, with more than being brought in by U.S. citizens who are legally authorized to cross the border, according to a report from NPR.

In an email to the Advance Harriss campaign criticized Trump for pressuring lawmakers to kill the Senates bipartisan border deal, which would have added more than 1,500 new Customs and Border Protection personnel, funded the installation of 100 cutting-edge inspection machines to help detect fentanyl, and established an emergency authority allowing the President and Secretary of Homeland Security to temporarily prohibit individuals from seeking asylum when the Southwest Border is overwhelmed, with limited exceptions.

Whether as a district attorney, attorney general, United States senator, or vice president, Kamala Harris has never been scared to take on crime to keep communities safe, dedicating resources to stem the flow of dangerous drugs and human trafficking, Harris spokesperson Ammar Moussa said in a statement.

On the other side, Donald Trump and extreme MAGA Republicans have shown theyre completely uninterested in delivering solutions, blocking the strongest set of reforms to secure the border in decades simply for politics. Theres only one candidate in this race who will fight for bipartisan solutions to fix the border, and thats Vice President Harris, Moussa said.

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People mourn for victims killed in an Israeli airstrike at Salah al-Din school in Gaza City, on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Mahmoud Zaki/Xinhua)

GAZA, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Palestinian death toll from ongoing Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip has risen to 40,265, Gaza-based health authorities said in a statement on Thursday.

During the past 24 hours, the Israeli military killed 42 people and wounded 163 others, bringing the total death toll to 40,265 and injuries to 93,144 since the Palestinian-Israeli conflict broke out, it added.

There are still a number of victims trapped under the rubble and scattered on roads, as ambulance and civil defense crews cannot reach them, it said.

"Critical water wells and sanitation infrastructure have been repeatedly damaged throughout the war," the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East said on social media platform X on Thursday.

"With overcrowding, lack of hygiene and unbearable heat, access to clean water continues to be a struggle in the Gaza Strip," it added.

Israel has been conducting a large-scale offensive against Hamas in Gaza to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on Oct. 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and around 250 others taken hostage. 
Scientists have found microplastics in brain tissue. Their discovery, detailed in a new paper, is the latest in a litany of studies finding tiny plastic particles no larger than a grain of sand in virtually every part of the human body.

The new study unearthed microplastics in the livers, kidneys, and brains of human cadavers, with brain tissue containing up to 20 times more plastic than the other organs. More concerning, the brains of people who suffered from dementia contained significantly more plastic than the brains of healthy people. The findings, which are still undergoing peer review, were shared by the National Institutes of Health.

Its pretty alarming, lead author Matthew Campen, of the University of New Mexico, told The New Lede. Theres much more plastic in our brains than I ever would have imagined or been comfortable with.

Microplastics have been discovered nearly everywhere, from the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea to the clouds above Mount Fuji, as well as in the food we eat, water we drink, and air we breathe. In people, microplastics have been found in lungs, placentas, testicles, and bone marrow, among other organs, as well as in blood, urine, semen, and breast milk. Scientists are still investigating the potential impact of microplastics, which have been shown to damage human cells.

Troublingly, the new study found more plastic in brain samples gathered in 2024 than in samples gathered in 2016. The 2024 samples were 0.5 percent plastic by weight. You can draw a line  its increasing over time, Campen said. Its consistent with what youre seeing in the environment.

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SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4)  The U.S. Attorneys Office has convicted a Midvale man for bankruptcy crimes committed in 2017 as he attempted to defraud the bankruptcy court.

According to the press release from the Utah district office, Richard Villanueva Mitchell, 53, was found guilty of bankruptcy fraud, false bankruptcy declaration, and bribery in bankruptcy.

READ NEXT: I just want him to rot in Hell: Victims mother speaks about Jonathan Dunns life sentence

From April 2017 through November 2017, Mitchell schemed to defraud the bankruptcy court, bankruptcy trustee, and his creditors through fraudulent bankruptcy proceedings, the office stated.

Defrauding is the act of illegally obtaining money from someone or some entity by deception.

As part of the scheme to defraud, Mitchell was found to have concealed several hundred appliances including dishwashers, refrigerators, washers, and dryers.

These were appliances that Mitchell had previously borrowed roughly $500,000 to purchase, according to the Attorneys Office. They say Mitchell was self-employed, as he was supplying, installing and repairing appliances for building contractors.

Attorneys say the jury was presented with proof that Mitchell filed a voluntary bankruptcy petition in May 2017, seeking to eventually discharge more than $1 million in debt.

The office says that Mitchells petition for bankruptcy falsely stated he had assets worth less than $50,000. Mitchell filed his mandatory Schedules of Assets and Liabilities and Statement of Financial Affairs, signing them under penalty of perjury, but failed to disclose the appliances.

By Mitchells estimation, the appliances worth over $350,000.

Mitchell also withheld mention of the appliances when questioned under oath by the trustee about his assets during standard bankruptcy proceedings.

While the bankruptcy proceedings were ongoing, Mitchell is said to have conspired with a third party to sell the appliances outside the bankruptcy process, enriching himself and harming his creditors.

The trustee learned of the appliances and obtained a court order to sell them at auction to partially satisfy Mitchells debts.

Mitchell is scheduled to be sentenced later 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 ABC4 Utah.
SAN FRANCSICO (KRON)  Tech tycoon Mike Lynch died on a luxury superyacht that sank off the coast of Italy, the Italian coast guard confirmed on Thursday after recovering his body from the sea.

Lynch, 59, was wrapped up in a Silicon Valley scandal involving Hewlett-Packard until a jury in San Francisco acquitted him earlier this summer. Lynch was celebrating the verdict with friends and family off the Italian coast when a storm hit and their yacht sank on Monday. According to officials, it was struck by a waterspout.

Mike Lynch, former chief executive officer of Autonomy Corp., arrives at a courthouse in San Francisco on March 18, 2024 for his trial. (Photographer: Loren Elliott/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Lynch was once hailed as Britains king of technology, and drew comparisons to Apple co-founder Steve Jobs.

His legal battles stemmed from when Lynch sold his software company, Autonomy, to HP in Palo Alto for $11 billion in 2011. The deal turned into an albatross after he was accused of engineering a massive fraud.

Earlier this year, Lynch stood trial in San Francisco as U.S. Justice Department prosecutors accused him of bilking billions of dollars from HP. Lynch testified in self defense and told jurors that HP was making him into a scapegoat for its own problems. The federal trial last nearly three months before the San Francisco jury found him not guilty of criminal conspiracy and wire fraud charges in June.

Following the verdict, Lynch said he was elated and thanked the jury. I am looking forward to returning to the UK and getting back to what I love most: my family and innovating in my field, Lynch wrote at the time.

Forbes magazine estimated Lynchs net worth to be $1 billion.

A member of Lynchs legal team, Reid Weingarten, said the trip to Italy was intended in part as a celebration of the acquittal. On Monday around 4 a.m., the yacht went down less than a mile from shore.

Italian emergency services prepare to head out to sea to search for technology tycoon Mike Lynch and his daughter Hannah on August 20, 2024. (Photo by Jonathan Brady/PA Images via Getty Images)

Divers head out to sea to look for yacht victims on Aug. 20, 2024. (Photo by Jonathan Brady/PA Images via Getty Images)

People who were onboard included Lynchs 18-year-old daughter, his wife, and his high-powered defense attorney, Christopher Morvillo. At least six people died, officials said.

Fifteen people were rescued from the ocean and survived, including a woman who reported holding her 1-year-old baby over waves to save her. Lynchs daughter is missing, officials said, and his wife, Angela Bacares, survived.

Bacares told Italys La Repubblica that she escaped from the rapidly sinking boat by darting across broken glass in her cabin and jumping into the ocean.

Dive teams are still searching the boats wreckage 164 feet below the oceans surface.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4.
Mike Lynch (top left), Chris and Neda Morvillo, and Jonathan and Judith Bloomer have been confirmed dead (PA/Getty)

British technology tycoon Mike Lynch has been confirmed dead after his superyacht sank off the coast of Italy, while search efforts continue for his 18-year-old daughter Hannah.

Five bodies have now been recovered from the wreckage of the Bayesian, which capsized during the early hours of Monday morning in stormy weather and a freak tornado.

An Italian government official confirmed that the sixth and final missing passenger is Lynchs daughter Hannah, and that she is believed to be on the boat.

The former Latymer Upper School pupil had joined her parents on the vessel, ahead of starting an English degree at the University of Oxford in September.

Morgan Stanley international bank chair Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judy Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo, and his wife Neda Morvillo, have also been identified as among the deceased after a three-day search operation.

Specialist divers returned to the wreckage site on Thursday (AP)

A statement from the Bloomer family expressed gratitude to the emergency services, and added: Our parents were incredible people and an inspiration to many, but first and foremost they were focused on and loved their family and spending time with their new grandchildren.

Together for five decades, our only comfort is that they are still together now.

This is an unimaginable grief to shoulder. Our only ask is that our familys privacy is respected at this time.

The body of Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, who was working as a chef on the superyacht Bayesian, was recovered at the scene of the sinking on Monday.

Itaiian rescue workers bringing a body bag to shore on Thursday morning (AP)

It is understood that Lynch, who was the creator of software giant Autonomy, had organised the boat trip for his family, close friends, colleagues and his legal team after winning an $11bn fraud case in June.

Tributes have begun flooding in for the 59-year-old entrepreneur, with Lynchs Autonomy co-founder David Tabizel saying: It looks like weve lost our dear Dr Mike Lynch. RIP. The world has lost a genius. His family have lost a giant of a man.

As well as Autonomy, Lynch was on the board of several prominent institutions including the BBC and the British Library, and was a fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.

Tim Davie, BBC director-general, said: We are deeply saddened by the awful news about the deaths of those aboard the Bayesian yacht.

Mike Lynch was an outstanding BBC director who made a major contribution during his time on the board, from 2007 to 2012.

Lynch was on the board of several prominent institutions including the BBC and the British Library (PA)

Wise, generous and insightful, he played a particularly key role in accelerating our transformation as a digital organisation.

His wife, Angela Bacares, was among the 15 guests and crew to be rescued from the sea after they escaped on a lifeboat.

Specialist divers, fire service crew and the Italian coastguard were seen on Thursday returning to the site of the wreckage, which is resting on the seabed around half a mile off the coast of Porticello.

Salvo Cocina, of Sicilys civil protection agency, said that an investigation would take place in due course but that the priority remained focused on finding Hannah Lynch.

However, the operation has been described as complex, with debris and furniture cluttering the narrow passageways leading to the cabin bedrooms, where the drowned guests have been discovered.

Rescue workers off the coast of Porticello harbour (AFP via Getty)

Divers are also only able to search the vessel in 10-minute windows due to the distance and the risk of developing nausea, known as the bends.

The tragedy comes as industry sources told The DailyTelegraph that Lynch put the 30m sailboat up for sale in March earlier this year, before changing his mind after he was acquitted of fraud and withdrawing it from the market four months later. He was reportedly set to review the decision in the autumn after enjoying the summer on board.

A decision on whether to immediately raise the sunken yacht from the seabed is not on the agenda, but will be considered in due course, a spokesperson from the Italian coastguard has said.

The disaster has baffled naval marine experts who said such a vessel, built by Italian high-end yacht manufacturer Perini and presumed to have top-class safety features, should not have sunk.

Giovanni Costantino, CEO of The Italian Sea Group, which includes Perini, said the Bayesian was one of the safest boats in the world and practically unsinkable.

Lynch reportedly had tried to sell the Bayesian earlier this year (costanostrayachtsupply.com/PA)

Authorities have been gathering witness statements from the survivors at a hotel complex in Porticello, while the captain James Cutfield was reportedly questioned for two hours.

An Italian doctor at the hospital where British tourist Charlotte Emsley and her one-year-old daughter were taken said the mother held her baby above the waves after the yacht sank.

Dr Domenico Cipolla, of Di Cristina Childrens Hospital in Palermo, told PA: Obviously the mother and the husband were so shaken by what has happened, it was a tragedy for them.

She told me that two minutes after falling asleep with her baby they were in the water, she did not understand how this happened, it went dark.

She held the child high in her arms above the waves, for a few seconds the baby was in the water, but she saved her. She sometimes cried for her friends in the hospital.
Mike Lynch won a dramatic 12-year legal battle over his tech company. Weeks later, he and his top lawyer are dead.

Mike Lynch won an unexpected jury acquittal after a dramatic 12-year legal saga.

HP accused him of cooking the books of his company Autonomy to make it seem worth billions more.

He finally won  and then he, his lawyer, and his codefendant all died within days.

In 2011, Mike Lynch was the toast of the tech world.

Hailed as Britain's Bill Gates, Lynch sold Autonomy, his groundbreaking data-management company, to Hewlett-Packard for $11 billion.

Shareholders and business commentators were puzzled about what HP, a hardware company, would do with Autonomy, a software company  and why the latter was worth $11 billion. HP's executives said at the time that Autonomy had the potential to transform HP and usher the Silicon Valley titan into a new generation.

None of that happened. A year after the acquisition, HP wrote down $8.8 billion of the purchase value and accused Lynch of lying about Autonomy's finances.

The claim led to a vicious decadelong series of legal disputes.

Another Autonomy executive, Sushovan Hussain, was convicted of fraud in 2018 and sentenced to five years in prison. Federal prosecutors brought criminal charges against Lynch and Stephen Chamberlain, the company's former vice president of finance.

Lynch's court battles concluded with a three-month criminal trial in San Francisco. After just two days of deliberation, jurors found Lynch and Chamberlain not guilty on all counts.

"The truth has finally prevailed," his lawyer Chris Morvillo said.

Within months, Lynch, Chamberlain, and Morvillo were all dead.

A takeover doomed from the start

Lynch, who studied neural networks for his Ph.D. at Cambridge University, spun off Autonomy from a previous company, Cambridge Neurodynamics, in 1996.

Using sophisticated algorithms, Autonomy allowed users to organize and search through large amounts of unstructured data. It was a bright spot in Britain's tech industry and was listed on the country's stock-market index.

Autonomy's clients included Oracle, Adobe, Cisco, AT&T, and HP itself. But HP's purchase of Autonomy was controversial.

The hardware company's CEO, Leo Apotheker, who had been in the position for less than a year, tried to shift the company's direction. HP had struggled to sell printers and servers as part of its traditional hardware business. Apotheker wanted to spin off HP's personal-computing division and make a big bet on moving the company into software, which had higher margins.

Analysts hated the idea. Shareholders sued. HP's value dropped by more than half. The company's board fired Apotheker within weeks of the decision to buy Autonomy, before the deal even closed.

His successor, Meg Whitman, fired Lynch and wrote down the value of Autonomy by $8.8 billion, which indicated HP paid nearly four times what it should have. The New York Times columnist James B. Stewart floated the case that it was the worst acquisition in corporate history  even worse than AOL's ill-fated purchase of Time Warner.

Lynch at the headquarters of Autonomy in 2000. Bryn Colton/Getty Images

In a stunning move, HP accused Lynch of fraud the following year. The company alleged he and Hussain, a former CFO, inflated Autonomy's sales figures. The FBI and the UK's Serious Fraud Office both opened investigations.

Lynch fervently denied accusations of wrongdoing. He pointed out that Autonomy was audited by Deloitte, which hadn't found issues. Lynch said HP stifled Autonomy with mismanagement and bureaucracy that pushed out employees and stymied sales.

The culture at HP, he said, was poisonous.

"It was like boarding a plane, realizing the engine is on fire, and then going up to the cockpit only to find that the pilots are having a fight," he told The Telegraph at the time.

According to The New York Times, lawyers representing shareholders in the lawsuit against HP obtained a copy of the company's own KPMG-prepared due-diligence report. The report said that Autonomy wasn't transparent enough with its finances, but Apotheker moved forward with the takeover anyway, deciding that Autonomy's potential was worth it.

A legal morass

The UK's Serious Fraud Office announced in January 2015 that it closed its investigation into Autonomy, finding insufficient evidence for legal action, though it referred some issues to the US Justice Department.

In the subsequent months, HP and Lynch sued each other in the UK. As those cases wound their way through the British court system, US prosecutors continued investigating HP's purchase of Autonomy. In 2016, they brought fraud charges against Hussain, who was found guilty in a 2018 jury trial. British regulators formally barred him from the financial industry earlier this year after he completed a five-year sentence in the US.

HP unloaded Autonomy altogether, selling parts of it in 2016 and 2017.

In November 2018, Justice Department prosecutors went directly after Lynch and Chamberlain.

Their indictment accused Lynch and Chamberlain of falsifying financial documents, lying to auditors and regulators, and suppressing the voices of people who criticized Autonomy's financial practices.

Lynch was no longer looking at civil fights over money. He was facing the prospect of up to 20 years in prison.

Lynch leaving the High Court in London. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls

For years, Lynch fought extradition to the US. Powerful in British political circles  he had advised David Cameron when Cameron was prime minister and served on the boards of the BBC and the British Museum  he and his lawyers argued that his legal issues should play out in the UK, not the US. American criminal laws were unfairly stacked against him, his lawyers said.

HP's lawsuit against Lynch  still churning in the background  finally went to trial in 2019. Apotheker testified he would have abandoned the Autonomy acquisition if he had a better understanding of its finances. Lynch argued that the whole morass was orchestrated by Whitman, Apotheker's successor, who harbored political ambitions (she ran for governor in California and is currently the US ambassador to Kenya) and wanted to shift the blame for Autonomy's failures to someone else.

Robert Hildyard, the judge who oversaw the case, ruled mostly in HP's favor. In a 2022 decision that ran over 1,700 pages, he wrote that HP overpaid for Autonomy because of deceit from Lynch and Hussain. Hildyard hadn't yet decided how much they would owe in damages, but he wrote it would be "substantially less" than the $5 billion HP asked for.

When he wasn't fighting legal battles, Lynch continued to be an entrepreneur. He founded a venture-capital firm, Invoke Capital, and invested in and helped run the cybersecurity firm Darktrace, which, Politico reported, has deep ties to Britain's intelligence agencies.

Financial disclosures Lynch filed last year as part of his criminal case indicated he was worth about $450 million.

The criminal trial

The UK finally extradited Lynch to the US in May 2023, where he prepared for his trial  alongside Chamberlain as a codefendant  while under house arrest in San Francisco.

Lynch had a top-shelf legal team, but after the British court loss and Hussain's conviction, the chances of an acquittal seemed bleak.

Lynch testified at the end of his three-month trial, which began in March, telling jurors he wasn't involved in day-to-day financial oversight of the company. Misunderstandings, he said, could be chalked up to the differences between British and American accounting practices.

"A lot of what we've been looking at is like peering through the door of a kitchen and seeing the sausage-making machine, and that's how it really works," he told jurors, according to The Times of London. "If you take the microscope into even the most spotless kitchen, you'd find bacteria. If it wasn't there, that'd be something very abnormal. I don't think Autonomy was any different."

Jurors believed him. In June, they declared Lynch not guilty of the 15 charges against him, clearing Chamberlain as well.

Rescue personnel operating at a port to search for the missing passengers of the yacht. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane

Morvillo, one of Lynch's lawyers in the trial  as well as in the preceding decade of legal disputes  praised the jury, saying it had rejected "the government's profound overreach in this case."

"This verdict closes the book on a relentless 13-year effort to pin HP's well-documented ineptitude on Dr. Lynch," Morvillo said in a joint statement with his attorney colleague Brian Heberlig. "Thankfully, the truth has finally prevailed."

In an interview with The Times of London after the trial, Lynch reflected on how, with a great burden lifted off him at the age of 59, he could remake his life.

He mourned the deaths of his brother and mother, who both died ahead of the criminal trial. He mused about using his fortune to start a British version of the Innocence Project, which prevents wrongful convictions in the US.

"Now you have a second life," he told The Times. "The question is, what do you want to do with it?"

But first, a celebration. Lynch; his wife, Angela Bacares; one of his two daughters; Morvillo and his wife, Neda; and several others went on a superyacht, the Bayesian, which was anchored outside Sicily and owned by Bacares.

Chamberlain moved back to the UK. While running near his home, a driver hit him with a car. He died in a hospital on Saturday.

On Monday, a sudden storm struck the Bayesian. The yacht capsized.

Of its 22 passengers, 15, including Bacares, were rescued.

But rescuers have pulled five bodies from the wreckage, including Morvillo's and Lynch's. A sixth remains trapped inside the boat. Lynch's daughter Hannah remains missing.

Correction: August 22, 2024  An earlier version of this story misnamed Lynch's lawyer. His name was Chris Morvillo, not Charles Morvillo.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Mike Lynch's yacht was state-of-the-art and shouldn't have sunk so easily, search-and-rescue expert says

The tech tycoon Mike Lynch died in a yacht sinking near Palermo, Italy.

An investigation is underway, with experts questioning how the state-of-the-art yacht sank.

One expert said the $40 million yacht should have been "unsinkable."

A search-and-rescue expert said the superyacht disaster that killed Mike Lynch was difficult to comprehend  because the vessel never should have sunk.

Lynch, a British tech tycoon, was celebrating his fraud acquittal with friends and family when the 183-foot ship sank during stormy weather near Palermo, Italy.

Lynch in London in 2019. Yui Mok/PA/Getty Images

Of the 22 people on board, six people, including Lynch, have been confirmed dead.

Fifteen people, including Lynch's wife, were rescued. Lynch's 18-year-old daughter remained unaccounted for as of Thursday afternoon local time.

An investigation into the cause of the tragedy is underway.

'Unsinkable'

Matthew Schanck is a maritime search-and-rescue consultant with 14 years of experience. He told Business Insider that his reaction to the sinking was "disbelief."

When the news of the sinking broke, Schanck said he envisioned a far smaller ship  "some sort of 40-foot yacht with a couple on board."

"That wouldn't have been as unusual or extraordinary," he said.

"It was really shocking," he added. "But what's more shocking is the fact that it's a modern, state-of-the-art superyacht, which would have been commercially certified and regulated by the Maritime Coastguard Agency."

Schanck previously told BI there was no indication that the ship breached "any international maritime construction or safety standards."

The superyacht was worth $40 million, The New York Times reported.

Giovanni Costantino is the CEO of the Italian Sea Group, which built the yacht. Speaking with Sky News, Costantino said the sinking sounded "like an unbelievable story, both technically and as a fact."

"Sailing ships, it is well known, are the safest in the most absolute sense," he said. They tend, he said, to be "unsinkable."

Though the cause of the sinking has not been established, authorities confirmed a strong storm had been in the area.

Witnesses told BBC News they saw a waterspout  an uncommon tornadolike column of wind and water  before the ship went down.

"This tends to have been the accepted theory, that the vessel was hit by a waterspout and the crew didn't see it coming because it was nighttime and dark," Schanck said.

He said that while this scenario made sense, it's not clear how witnesses would have noticed a waterspout if the crew didn't.

Speaking with the Times, Costantino said the ship had the second-tallest aluminum mast in the world, which made it safe and secure.

However, he said that if any of the doors had been open during the storm, it could have taken on water more easily.

Correction: August 22, 2024  An earlier version of this story misspelled the surname of the search-and-rescue consultant. It's Schanck, not Schank.

Read the original article on Business Insider
In this photo provided by Randi Marcucio, the remains of her home sits collapsed during heavy flooding in Oxford, Conn., Monday, Aug. 19, 2024. (Randi Marcucio via AP)

Devastated after her home collapsed in the aftermath of Sunday's deadly flooding in Connecticut, Randi Marcucio got some good news this week that warmed her heart and eased her despair.

Sonograms of the single mom's now-3-year-old son that washed away in the swollen brook next to her home in Oxford were found some 30 miles (48 kilometers) away on a beach in Westport and returned to her Wednesday.

Honestly, it felt like holding a piece of my heart, a piece of my soul," Marcucio, an emergency room nurse, told The Associated Press in a phone interview Wednesday evening. Seeing pictures of your child in your womb, and suffering such a great loss, there are no words. I don't know how to describe it.

A stranger, Nancy Lewis, was walking with a friend along Compo Beach in Westport on Monday when she saw what looked like a photo in the water. She picked it up and saw there were two sonograms on a single piece of paper with Marcucio's name on it.

She looked up the name and was heartbroken when she saw news of of Marcucio's home collapsing. Lewis contacted WVIT-TV, which recorded Lewis meeting Marcucio near the collapsed house to give her the sonograms.

I saw the devastation and read your story  a single mom, emergency room nurse, Lewis told Marcucio. I figured you were somebody whos always caring for other people and I just wanted to see if there was anything that I could do for you, apart from this little sonogram that I found.

Marcucio looked at the sonograms and held them to her heart.

Thats him. Thank you, Marcucio said before hugging Lewis. "Thats incredible. What are the chances?

Oxford is an inland town along the Housatonic River, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) north of where the river empties into Long Island Sound between Stratford and Milford. It's another 15 miles (24 kilometers) west to Compo Beach. The brook next to Marcucio's home runs into the Housatonic.

When a foot or more of rain fell Sunday, it turned the normally tranquil brook into a raging river and washed away a good chunk of the land under Marcucio's home. Her son, Rhylee, was staying with her parents at the time. Marcucio left her house and stayed the night with neighbors.

The house she bought two years ago on Mother's Day collapsed the next day  a moment caught on video by a neighbor when Marcucio wasn't there.

She considers herself lucky. The storm wreaked havoc on towns in the area, washing out bridges, flooding homes and businesses and leading to numerous rescues. Two women died after being swept away by floodwaters elsewhere in Oxford in different incidents.

Marcucio has been overwhelmed by the support of so many people, in town and around the country. A GoFundMe page has raised about $157,000 for her and her son. A developer is letting them stay in one of his condos for a year. Donations of clothes and food have poured in. She said she wants to thank so many people, including local construction company workers and Oxford public works crews.

Marcucio said she spoke with an insurance adjuster, and it appears there's little chance the destruction of her home will be covered by her policy. Her home wasn't in a flood zone and she did not have, or think she needed, flood insurance. Most of the land her house sat on is gone, so she doesn't think she can rebuild. She hasn't had a lot of time to think about the future.

The sonograms were not boxed up or in a plastic bag. They're among the few belongings she was able to recoup. She didn't think the house was going to collapse and didn't believe she needed to remove important items. But she did get her son's teddy bear out the night before. Priceless mementos of her mother, who died when she was 12, are gone, including a hairbrush and a bottle of perfume.

Unfortunately, there was loss of life in my community, so I cannot complain about the tangible items that were lost, she told the AP. The support from the community is just moving me forward. I havent really had the processing time or the grieving time. Its just really survival mode and things along those lines at this point.
Ed Miliband has backed increasing taxes on oil and gas profits to 78pc - Jamie Lorriman

Ed Miliband and Rachel Reeves have put thousands of skilled manufacturing jobs at risk with a tax raid on oil and gas, industry leaders have warned.

The tax plan threatens 200bn of investment in domestic energy including both renewables and fossil fuels, according to an open letter to the Treasury signed by 42 companies.

Signatories include Bristow Helicopters, Wood Group and Subsea7  who all work on offshore green power as well as oil and gas.

Ms Reeves, the Chancellor, has announced plans backed by Mr Miliband, the Energy Secretary, to increase windfall taxes on oil and gas profits from 75pc to 78pc. She also extended the windfall tax until 2030 and abolished tax incentives for further investment.

The letter, coordinated by the industry trade body Offshore Energies UK (OEUK), said the plans would be a blunt response which could undermine the levers to long-term solutions and jeopardise jobs in communities across the UK.

It added: For our companies, this surprise risks operators  big and small  further scaling back or postponing their investment plans in response.

Mr Miliband has said the UK will block licensing for new oil and gas fields as part of the move to lower carbon energies.

The North Sea Transition Authority, a key industry regulator, has warned that if no new fields are opened then UK oil and gas production would fall sharply over the next few years.

Gas output in particular could fall 80pc by 2030, leaving the UK increasingly dependent on imports.

Critics argue that such moves are premature because the UK remains highly reliant on both oil and gas for 75pc of its total energy.

About 25m homes rely on gas for heating and hot water, gas-fired power stations make up about 35pc of UK electricity and there are still around 32m petrol and diesel cars on UK roads.

David Whitehouse, chief executive of OEUK, said the UK would need oil and gas for many years to come  and UK supplies would be cheaper, more secure and have a smaller carbon footprint than imports.

He said: There is no simple choice between oil and gas or renewables. The reality is that we will need both to support these companies, power the country and grow the economy.

This letter shows the level of concern felt by supply chain companies about the Governments new tax proposals.

If oil and gas operators scale back activity as a result of the proposed windfall tax changes it will have a direct impact on our world-class supply chain.

A Treasury spokesman said: We are extending and increasing the Energy Profits Levy, and closing its core investment allowance, to ensure oil and gas companies contribute more towards our clean energy transition.

We will work with the sector to ensure the transition over the next decades does not jeopardise workers, starting with Great British Energy, which is set to create thousands of jobs.

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A commercial tanker vessel came under attack in the Red Sea on Wednesday and was left stranded.

When a French warship was sent to rescue the crew, it had to fight off a hostile drone boat.

The incident follows months of Houthi attacks on merchant ships in the area.

A new photo released by the French military on Thursday captures one of its warships battling an explosive drone boat during a rescue mission in the Red Sea.

The European Union's counter-Houthi mission, known as Operation Aspides, said that it dispatched a French frigate to rescue the crew of a wounded commercial tanker following an attack on Wednesday that left the vessel without power and stranded in the water.

As the frigate arrived in the area, the warship detected another incoming attack on the oil tanker from a drone boat "heavily loaded" with explosives and destroyed the threat on-site, the French military said Thursday.

The military said that the frigate then evacuated more than two dozen crew members from the tanker, which is presently anchored in international waters.

The rescue mission in the Red Sea. Operation Aspides photo

The French armed forces did not specify who was responsible for the incident, but it follows months of regular attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels on merchant shipping lanes in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden with unmanned systems and missiles and drone boats in assaults like this. The Houthis have not claimed responsibility for the initial or follow-on attack on the tanker.

On the latest incident, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, an element of the Royal Navy, said that gunmen in small watercraft opened fire on the Greek-flagged MV Sounion as it was sailing through the Red Sea on Wednesday. The vessel was later struck by several unidentified projectiles.

The attack left the Sounion without power and adrift off the coast of Yemen, prompting the French rescue mission. Operation Aspides said on Thursday that the crew was transported to the nearest safe port of call in Djibouti.

"The lives of seafarers and freedom on the high seas are nonnegotiable values and their protection is a key objective" of the security mission, Operation Aspides said.

The MV Sounion in the Red Sea. French military photo

But the European Union warned that the Sounion and the loads of crude oil it's carrying "now represents a navigational and environmental hazard. It is essential that everyone in the area exercises caution and refrains from any actions that could lead to a deterioration of the current situation."

The incident appears to be the latest successful attack on a Red Sea vessel. The Houthis have struck a number of merchant ships since they began their campaign last October, even sinking at least two of them.

US and European naval forces operating in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden have been tasked with intercepting Houthi missiles and drones, and the American military frequently carries out strikes in Yemen targeting rebel facilities and weapons.

US forces destroyed a Houthi surface-to-air missile and radar system earlier in the week, the Pentagon announced on Wednesday.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Millcreek officials partner to crack down on safety ahead of upcoming school year

If you blow by a stopped school bus, you not only put local children at risk but your vehicle will be caught on camera and you could face a $300 fine.

That was the message from Millcreek school officials and township police on Thursday as they joined forces for the second straight year to keep students safe.

Erie kids become local veterinarians for a day

In Pennsylvania, drivers are required to slow down when a school bus displays a flashing yellow light and stop at least 10 feet from a bus displaying a flashing red light.

Last year, Millcreeks bus patrol partnership  which feeds video captured from its school bus fleet to police  led to 2,700 citations. Two-thirds of those were in three locations: all four-lane roads with turn lanes.

New Motors Subaru donates thousands of dollars to teachers for school supplies

If theres not a physical barrier or a median separating the lanes, then they do have to stop for the busses. Again, Peach Street by the mall, West Ridge Road from Powell Avenue to the Wegmans/Walmart area and 38th Street by Zuck Road account for about two-thirds of our violations, said Trevor Murnock, assistant superintendent, Millcreek School District.

Due to the bus driver shortage, Millcreek schools are adding an additional run. That means a change in start times for the high school and middle school.

The high school start time has been moved up to 7:30 a.m., while the middle school time has been moved back to 8:05 a.m.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJET/WFXP/YourErie.com.
BAGHDAD, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- A civilian was killed and seven others injured on Thursday in a tribal shootout in Iraq's holy Shiite province of Najaf, according to a local security source.

The shootout erupted in the early hours between armed men from the local tribe in the al-Zarga area in northern Najaf, some 160 km south of Baghdad, a local police officer told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

The clash resulted in the killing of an Iraqi civilian and the injury of seven others, including three Iranian Shiite pilgrims, the source added.

A joint force from the Interior Ministry's emergency response division and Najaf provincial police arrested 53 gunmen from both sides of the shootout and seized weapons and ammunition, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

It added that search operations are ongoing to locate additional gunmen and weapons, with more details to be released later.

The incident took place as numerous pilgrims traveled to the city of Karbala to observe Arbaeen, which marks the end of a 40-day mourning period for the killing of Imam Hussein, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad, in the Battle of Karbala in 680 A.D.

Typically, these pilgrims also visit Najaf as part of their journey to Karbala. 
Crispin la valiente | Getty Images

Currently, nearly half of states across the US completely ban or heavily restrict access to abortion, which means that this fall, millions of students will return to college campuses in states without access to abortion care.

According to estimates from the Center for Reproductive Rights, about six million students are expected to attend college in abortion-restricted states. For context, abortion is illegal in 14 states according to the Guttmacher Institute, some of which are home to massive student populations that attend state schools from both in-state and out-of-state, such as Texas, Indiana and Missouri. Other states like Florida and Georgia, which are also home to huge student populations each school year, restrict abortion after six weeks of pregnancy  which essentially acts as an abortion ban.

Fifty-five percent of the undergraduate students enrolled in college last year were womenand the highest rate of unintended pregnancy in the U.S. is among women 20 to 24 years of age, the Center for Reproductive Rights wrote, underscoring how heavily these bans impact college-aged people.

Young people can experience particular difficulty accessing abortion. Barriers like cost, travel time, lack of resources, and more all apply to young people, but for those under 18, there can be yet another set of hoops to jump through  even in places that support abortion access.

We know that young people experience all the burdens, all the barriers that adult abortion seekers do, but in many states where abortion is legal, they also have to deal with parental involvement laws, and so they are facing even more restrictions and more barriers, MaryRose Mazzola, an attorney and the director of the Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts ASPIRE Center for Sexual and Reproductive Health, previously told Teen Vogue.

If a college student hasn't yet turned 18, they may be required to get parental permission before getting an abortion, making the process even more difficult, especially if they don't want to tell their parents about their pregnancy.

Abortion will be on the ballot in multiple states in November, which could make abortion access either better or worse for people in those places. To highlight the impact that abortion bans have on college students, the Center for Reproductive Rights spoke to students graduating in 2025 about attending school in these states.

It was incredibly sad to see a privilege I had always taken for granted growing up in a liberal state become an impossibility in the place I live, a student at Tulane University in Louisiana, where abortion is illegal, said. This state is rife with problems  violence, climate and infrastructure issues, lack of healthcare access  how about trying to fix some of that instead of stripping away our rights?

Going back to campus in an abortion-restricted state makes me incredibly anxious and scared about the inherent loss of autonomy you have over your body, a Duke University student said. Losing this freedom of choice threatens to put women back in boxes that we have been struggling to get out of for so long.

A college senior returning for her final year at Wesleyan University in Connecticuta state with abortion protections and expanded accesscommented, I feel really lucky to be a student in a state that has strengthened protections for abortion rights and access when so many of my friends have experienced the direct opposite.

Originally Appeared on Teen Vogue
Milwaukee woman, 22, accused of killing boy, 14, after she suspected him of breaking into a car

Vigil held at the corner of North 40th and West Vliet streets for Alijah Golden-Richmond. The 14-year-old was shot and killed near where the vigil was held.

A 22-year-old Milwaukee woman is accused of shooting and killing 14-year-old Alijah S. Golden-Richmond after she suspected him of breaking into her sister's car.

Zariah A. Johnson was charged Tuesday with first-degree reckless homicide, as party to a crime, use of a dangerous weapon. She appeared in court Wednesday, where bail was set at $150,000.

Milwaukee police say the shooting took place at about 3:15 p.m. Aug. 15 on the 1400 block of North 39th Street.

According to a criminal complaint, Johnson admitted to being the shooter, and said she fired shots at a group of four in her neighborhood, who she suspected of breaking into her sister's vehicle that was parked outside her residence.

Johnson said she wanted to "scare" the group and didn't intend to strike anyone. Prosecutors say a bullet struck Golden-Richmond in the back, however, and he would later die at Froedtert Hospital.

Johnson's sister observed four people trying to break into her vehicle, so Johnson grabbed her mother's gun and confronted the group, who ran away, the complaint states.

But Johnson, with her mother in the passenger seat, decided to drive around and go looking for the group when they came across four people walking, according to the complaint.

Johnson yelled something at them and two of them ran away before Johnson fired about four shots until her gun jammed, prosecutors said.

One of the young people from the group of four that is identified by the initials EPL in the complaint said Johnson initially began firing in the air but then "starting shooting in their direction and hit dirt by his feet," according to the complaint. EPL also said that Golden-Richmond wanted to steal a car and broke the window on a Hyundai, the complaint states.

Johnson didn't think she hit anyone and said "she was only trying to scare people so they did not come back," the complaint states. Both Johnson and her mother said they don't know what the boys looked like and weren't sure if it was the same group of four breaking into their family's vehicle.

Johnson then drove home and found a Facebook Live stream of the aftermath of the shooting. A group of residents began to gather at the scene and at one point administered Narcan, thinking he may be overdosing. Johnson said she came to the realization while watching the stream that she likely was the person who killed Golden-Richmond, the complaint states.

Johnson told her mother that she disposed of the gun in a garbage can in the area of North 23rd Street and West Keefe Avenue, according to complaint. Police said a search of the area led to no discovery of a gun and no gun was discovered with the group of four.

Alijah Golden-Richmond, 14

Golden-Richmond was looking forward to starting high school this fall, according to his mother, Princella, who spoke briefly at a vigil Friday and asked that her last name not be used. She couldn't be reached for comment on Wednesday.

Pastor Belinda Jones of Walking in the Spirit Ministries was Golden-Richmond's aunt and led a prayer at Friday's vigil. "Tell these Black young men, your life is valuable," she said. "You're an endangered species, young men. Your life is valuable."

Where to find help

Milwaukee's Office of Community Wellness of Safety recommends these resources for free support:

414Life outreach and conflict mediation support: 414-439-5525.

Milwaukee County's 24-Hour Mental Health Crisis Line: 414-257-7222.

Milwaukee's Child Mobile Crisis and Trauma Response Team: 414-257-7621.

National crisis text line: Text HOPELINE to 741741 to text with a trained crisis counselor.

National Suicide Prevention Hotline: 800-273-8255.

The National Domestic Violence Hotline is 800-799-7233.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee woman accused of shooting and killing teenage boy
STATESVILLE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  A Missing-Endangered Alert has been issued after a woman in Statesville hasnt been seen in a few days, according to Statesville Police and the North Carolina Center for Missing Persons.

Matilda Jamelle Turner, 66, told staff at Fifth Street Ministries, located at 1421 Fifth Street, that she was headed to Virginia. According to their website, Fifth Street Ministries is an organization that seeks to provide basic needs to those who happen to be homeless or working poor.

Sheriff Charles Lemon cleaning house upon return to office Thursday

Ms. Turner was last seen leaving the non-profit. She has not been seen or heard from in several days.

Ms. Turner is described as a black woman standing 5 feet, 5 inches, and weighing about 200 pounds. She has long black hair and brown eyes.

Its unclear what she was wearing when she disappeared, but Ms. Turner walks with a cane. Officials say she has been diagnosed with dementia and schizophrenia.

Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to call Statesville Police at 704-878-3406 or Investigator Chapman at 704-878-3529.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
MISSING PERSON: Columbus police looking for woman last seen near Veterans Parkway

COLUMBUS, Ga. (WRBL)  The Columbus Police Department is asking for the publics help in locating a woman who was reported missing Wednesday.

Police say Tiffany Crystal Sadlo, 37, was last seen near the Rent-A-Center in the 3400 block of Veterans Parkway. The last time her family made contact with her was by phone on Aug. 6 and she was last seen July 31.

Authorities say she stands at 5-foot-6-inches tall with blond hair, blue eyes and weighs about 150 pounds. Her clothing description is unknown by police at this time.

Anyone with information is asked to call the CPD Special Victims Unit at 706-225-3449, lead investigator Sgt. Thomas Hill at 706-225-4345 or 911.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WRBL.
DENVER (KDVR)  A Canadian woman was found alive in the Colorado wilderness after participating in an excursion where hikers were discouraged from bringing their cell phones and eating, authorities recently announced.

The woman from Victoria, Canada, had joined a group of 11 campers who set off on solo treks from the Lone Cone trailhead outside of Norwood on Wednesday, Aug. 14, according to the San Miguel County Sheriffs Office.

Why are so many people wearing camo at the DNC?

Authorities said organizers with the the Animas Valley Institute discouraged the campers from bringing electronic devices on their quests and advised them to fast to help maximize a spiritual experience with nature. To ensure their safety, organizers reportedly implemented a buddy system, requiring pairs to check in with each other upon arriving at the main camp on Aug. 15.

The missing hiker had not checked in, and guides who searched her campsite found that she had not stayed there the previous night and that her daypack was also missing.

The San Miguel County Sheriffs Office shared this photo of search and rescue efforts in the field near Norwood after a hiker went missing for four days. (Photo credit: San Miguel County Sheriffs Office)

Rescuers used aircraft resources, K-9 teams and on-foot teams to search for the woman. She was found alive and uninjured in the targeted search area on Sunday.

Obviously, this is the outcome we were all hoping for, and we couldnt be happier for (the hiker) and her family, said San Miguel County Sheriff Bill Masters in a Facebook post. You should always bring technology for communications. Furthermore, you should not starve yourself even if a guide service suggests the opposite of these basic safety rules. Nature does not care about your safety and will kill you, especially if are not properly prepared.

WATCH: Man steals money jar from Virginia brother and sister at their lemonade stand

The Animas Valley Institute posted a message to its website thanking search crews who helped locate the missing hiker.

The Institute is immensely grateful to the team of professionals and volunteers who led the search. Their commitment and dedication have been exemplary, the organization wrote. The Animas Valley Institute has run backcountry programs in Colorado since 1980 with no serious incidents. The safety of our participants remains our highest priority. We have been in direct contact with the participants family during this immensely difficult time and remain committed to supporting them over the coming days and weeks.

Numerous agencies assisted with the search, in addition to private citizens, according to the San Miguel County Sheriffs Office.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News.
Missing Woman's Remains Found on Husbands Property More Than 3 Years After She Vanished: Police

Michigan State Police confirmed on Wednesday, Aug. 21 that Dee Warner's death has been "ruled a homicide"

Michigan State Police Dee Warner

The remains of a missing Michigan woman have been found on a property owned by her husband more than three years after she vanished.

On Wednesday, Aug. 21, Michigan State Police (MSP) confirmed that human remains found on Dale Warner's property were that of mother of four Dee Ann Warner, 52, of Tecumseh, Mich., who was reported missing on April 25, 2021 from her home on Munger Road in Franklin Township, Lenawee County.

"Today further investigation was conducted by the Jackson County Medical Examiners Office on the human remains that were found on Dale Warners property," a statement shared on the MSP First District X (formerly known as Twitter) account read. "The Jackson County Medical Examiner has positively identified the remains as Dee Warner."

Police confirmed Dee's death has been "ruled a homicide."

Lenawee County Jail Dale Warner

"The manner of death has been confirmed however it will be withheld pending further investigation. Although there has been positive identification on the remains and manner of death has been confirmed, this is an ongoing investigation," the statement added.

"Investigators will continue to gather evidence and work with the Lenawee County Prosecutors Office to ensure a conviction," it concluded.

Dale Warner's attorney didn't immediately respond when contacted by PEOPLE.

The update comes after police confirmed on Sunday, Aug. 18 that human remains had been found in a propane tank on a property owned by Dale during the execution of a search warrant on Friday, Aug. 16.

Dale Warner is pictured with his lead attorney, Mary Chartier, on May 2, 2024 in Lenawee County District Court

The missing womans family members said at the time that they believed the remains, which were found inside a weather-worn, secluded barn on one of Dales properties off Paragon Road, were Dees.

The tank usually held anhydrous ammonia, which is used in fertilizer for farming, a family spokesperson previously told WTVG. The tank was reportedly sealed shut with a "do not use" sign on it, per the outlet. The family spokesperson stated the chemicals weren't in the tank when the remains were found.

Crimestoppers Lenawee County/ Facebook Dee Warner

State police confirmed in a news release on Nov. 22, 2023 that Dale had been arrested and was facing charges of open murder and tampering with evidence, stating he'd been arraigned in Lenawee County District Court.

I am extremely proud of the tireless work our detectives have put in to solve this case, Captain Steve ONeill, Commander First District Headquarters, said in the release at the time.

With incredible determination, they have pieced together a very difficult case culminating with an arrest. This arrest is another step in our investigation, and we will continue our efforts to bring closure to the family and to find Dee Warners remains so that her family can lay her to rest, O'Neill added, per the November release.

Dale previously pleaded not guilty and has long maintained his innocence. In June 2024, a judge ruled that there was enough evidence for him to stand trial for his wifes murder, WXYZ stated.

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California Department of Public Health investigations found violations at Ararat in Mission Hills that were "a substantial factor" in two deaths. The nursing home says it will appeal. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)

California regulators faulted a Mission Hills nursing home for violations that played a part in the deaths of two residents in less than three months, potentially putting its license at risk.

The California Department of Public Health investigated two deaths of Ararat Nursing Facility residents, one of whom died in March, the other in June. In both cases, their investigations found violations at the Mission Hills home that were "a substantial factor" in those deaths, according to state findings.

In June, an elderly woman died after falling from a lifting device where she had been left unattended, state investigators found. A nursing assistant had brought in the lift to weigh the woman, put a fabric sling underneath her, then left the room to get another staffer, according to the state findings. The woman suffered broken bones in her face and ultimately died at the hospital. Ararat was cited and faces a $120,000 fine over the June incident.

Another elderly woman living at Ararat had been hospitalized and ultimately died in March after she stopped breathing during a meal, according to the public health department. She was known to be at risk for choking or inhaling food, but state investigators found that a family member had been helping her eat mashed potatoes without a staffer monitoring them.

Ararat employees told state investigators that her family members had been taught about mealtime precautions to prevent the woman from inhaling food, but could not provide written evidence of that training. State investigators cited Ararat for failing to provide "safe eating practices" and levied a $120,000 fine.

Ararat Nursing Facility said in a statement that it was "committed to providing the highest level of safe and compassionate care for all of our residents" and had been repeatedly recognized for its quality throughout its history.

"We are currently in the process of appealing the citations in Superior Court and cannot comment further on the citations at this time," the facility said.

Read more: Long, frustrating waits for home care persist despite California expanding program

The two citations issued to Ararat were categorized as "AA"  ones in which violations were found to be a substantial factor in the death of a resident. Fewer than 200 have been levied on California skilled nursing facilities since 2010, making up roughly 2% of state enforcement actions involving nursing homes, state data show. Seventeen have been issued so far this year to nursing homes across the state.

Under California law, if a nursing home gets two such citations within two years, the state "shall commence action to suspend or revoke" its license.

However, the California Department of Public Health said it has the authority to resolve such cases with other actions, "such as an appeal or settlement, that may not include immediate licensure suspension or revocation actions." For instance, an appeal by a nursing facility could result in downgrading the level of a citation.

"Virtually all of the AA citations are appealed," said Tony Chicotel, a senior staff attorney with California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform. Its review of scores of citation appeals found that nearly half of AA citations that were appealed were reduced.

Chicotel was concerned that by granting such reductions, the state has been "encouraging continued noncompliance with the rules." Because it can take a long time for the state to defend such a citation, "it's just so much easier to downgrade it and come up with a settlement and save themselves lots of time and energy."

The public health department said there was "no set resolution date" for the appeals, which Ararat had notified the department they would be lodging. Ararat has not yet paid the fines, according to the state: CDPH said such payments are required within 30 days of a final decision, once the appeal process has been concluded.

Read more: Nearly $1 billion in funds left unspent by centers for disabled Californians

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo.  Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has launched an investigation into National Public Data, a company designed to conduct background checks. The move comes amid reports last week of a widespread data breach.

Hackers claim to have stolen the personal data of every American, including birthdays and Social Security numbers. Its expected up to 2.7 billion personal records may have been exposed in an April data breach.

Pevely third grader paralyzed in crash, school offering support

Bailey says the investigation will focus on allegations that National Public Data failed to properly secure and safeguard Missourians personally-identifiable information prior to the breach.

I will always fight for Missouri consumers, especially if their personal information was stolen by bad actors, said Bailey via a news release. Companies have a duty under the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act to safeguard Missourians personally identifiable information, and Missourians deserve to know whether their information is at risk. No stone will be left unturned in this investigation.

For Missourians who believe they may have been affected by this data breach, Bailey asks them to call his offices consumer protection hotline at 1-800-392-8222 or submit a complaint online.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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The case of a Missouri man trying to get off of death row hit roadblocks this week when two pivotal hearings didnt go as planned.

Marcellus Khaliifah Williams had planned to try to prove his innocence in a hearing on Wednesday, but the hearing was held when Williams agreed to a plea deal with prosecutors. The deal included re-sentencing him to life without parole instead of the death penalty.

But the deal fell apart on Thursday after the Missouri Attorney Generals Office opposed it, and the Missouri Supreme Court ruled to halt the re-sentencing hearing.

The series of events illustrates an increasingly complicated legal battle unfolding in Missouri with a tight deadline  Williams faces a Sept. 24 execution date.

The 55-year-old was convicted in the 1998 murder of Felicia Gayle in St. Louis County and given a death sentence.

An uphill legal battle

In January, the St. Louis County Prosecutors Office filed a motion to vacate Williams conviction, saying no physical evidence tied him to Gayles death. DNA on the murder weapon excluded Williams.

The Missouri Attorney Generals Office opposes Williams case. The office under Attorney General Andrew Bailey has been particularly hostile toward innocence claims and this summer, kept three people in prison after they were deemed wrongfully convicted.

Evidence in Williams case was to be presented Wednesday before St. Louis County Circuit Judge Bruce Hilton. Many viewed the hearing as Williams best shot at avoiding lethal injection next month.

DNA results from the murder weapon have always showed Williams was not a match.

But in an unexpected turn of events, St. Louis County prosecutors backpedaled on the strength of DNA evidence supporting Williams innocence. Matthew Jacober, an attorney for the St. Louis County Prosecutors Office, said a new round of testing showed two investigators were likely contributors to DNA on the knife, meaning the evidence had been contaminated. DNA had likely been removed and added, according to Jacober.

Prosecutors announced Williams had agreed to plead no contest in what is known as an Alford plea. The deal included re-sentencing him to life without parole instead of facing the death penalty.

Judge Hilton accepted the agreement, called a consent judgment, Wednesday and scheduled re-sentencing for Thursday morning.

Shortly after, the attorney generals office filed a writ opposing the deal. It argued that Hilton did not have authority to accept the agreement because the judge had not heard evidence to set aside Williams original conviction.

Late Wednesday, the Missouri Supreme Court ordered Hilton to set aside the consent judgment containing the plea deal.

Tricia Rojo Bushnell, an attorney with the Midwest Innocence Project which represents WIlliams, said the attorney general fought to invalidate the agreement.

It is impossible to understand who this decision serves or what justice it provides, she said in a statement. This decision directly contradicts the will of a duly elected prosecutor and the community he represents and the wishes of a family who has already lost so much. That is not justice.

The family of Gayle, the victim in the case, wants the case to be finalized and does not support going through with Williams execution.

During a brief hearing Thursday morning, Hilton set aside the agreement and ordered an evidentiary hearing for Aug. 28, similar to what had been scheduled for Wednesday before the plea deal.

It is in the interest of every Missourian that the rule of law is fought for and upheld  every time, without fail, Attorney General Bailey said in a statement. I am glad the Missouri Supreme Court recognized that. We look forward to putting on evidence in a hearing like we were prepared to do yesterday.

The St. Louis County Prosecutors Office said it still has concerns about the integrity of Williams conviction.

Bushnell said Williams legal team looks forward to presenting their case at the evidentiary hearing next week. She has also maintained Williams innocence and said they will continue to pursue new evidence to prove their case.
FILE - This undated booking photo provided by the Missouri Department of Corrections shows Marcellus Williams. (Missouri Department of Corrections via AP, File)

CLAYTON, Mo. (AP)  The Missouri Supreme Court blocked an agreement that would spare the life of a man on death row. Instead, Marcellus Williams must now proceed with a hearing on his innocence claim, with a little over a month to go before his scheduled execution.

The ruling late Wednesday came hours after St. Louis County Circuit Judge Bruce Hilton approved a plan allowing Williams to enter a new no-contest plea to first-degree murder in the 1998 death of Lisha Gayle. Though Williams' lawyers said he still maintains he is innocent, the plea would acknowledge evidence was sufficient for a conviction.

Williams, 55, would have been sentenced to life in prison without parole on Thursday. Instead the Sept. 24 execution date is still on, pending a hearing before Hilton on Williams' innocence claim.

Here's what there is to know about the case:

The killing

Lisha Gayle was a social worker and a former St. Louis Post-Dispatch reporter. She was stabbed to death inside her home in University City on Aug. 11, 1998.

At the time, prosecutors said Williams broke into Gayle's home and heard water running in the shower upstairs. They said he found a large butcher knife and waited for her to come down. When she did, Gayle was stabbed 43 times. Her purse and her husbands laptop were stolen.

Authorities said Williams also stole a jacket to conceal blood on his shirt, and his girlfriend asked him why he was wearing it on a hot day. The girlfriend said she later saw the laptop in the car and that Williams sold it a day or two later.

Prosecutors also cited testimony from Henry Cole, who shared a St. Louis cell with Williams in 1999 while Williams was jailed on unrelated charges. Cole told prosecutors that Williams confessed to the killing and offered details about it.

Williams attorneys responded that the girlfriend and Cole, who were both convicted of felonies, wanted a $10,000 reward for information in the case.

Williams was found guilty in 2001 and sentenced to death, and the conviction was later upheld by the Missouri Supreme Court.

DNA evidence emerges

In 2017, Williams was hours away from execution  he'd already eaten his last meal. His lawyers made one final appeal citing DNA testing unavailable at the time of the original trial indicating that the DNA of someone other than Williams was found on the knife.

It was enough to persuade then-Gov. Eric Greitens to grant a stay of execution and appoint a board of inquiry made up of former judges.

But that board never issued a report or released findings. In 2023, Gov. Mike Parson  like Greitens, a Republican  dissolved the inquiry board. The Missouri Supreme Court ruled in June that Parson had the right to do so, and set the Sept. 24 execution date.

Prosecutor challenges the murder conviction

When Williams was convicted, St. Louis County's prosecutor was Bob McCulloch, a tough-on-crime prosecutor who served 28 years before he was upset by Ferguson City Council member Wesley Bell in the 2018 Democratic primary. Bell, who made his name in Ferguson after Michael Brown's death, pledged a more progressive approach to running the office.

That included taking a new look at potential wrongful convictions. In January, Bell announced that he would seek a hearing before a judge to vacate Williams' murder conviction, citing the DNA testing. That hearing was set for Wednesday before Judge Hilton.

New DNA test results, released on Monday, changed everything.

They determined that the knife used in the killing was mishandled in the aftermath of the crime. DNA from Edward Magee, an investigator for the prosecutor's office at the time, was found, and testing also couldn't exclude the original prosecutor in the case, Keith Larner.

Additional investigating and testing demonstrated that the evidence was not handled properly at the time of (Williams') conviction, Matthew Jacober, a special counsel for Bell's office, told the judge. "As a result, DNA was likely removed and added between 1998 and 2001.

Bell was not at the hearing because he was at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Bell defeated incumbent Cori Bush in Missouris 1st Congressional District Democratic primary on Aug. 6 and will be heavily favored in November.

A consent judgment

While Williams still maintains his innocence, the contaminated DNA evidence was a gut-punch to his case. The finding prompted hours of negotiations between his lawyers and prosecutors.

By Wednesday afternoon, they reached an agreement: Williams would enter an Alford plea, which is not an admission of guilt but an acknowledgment that there is enough evidence for a conviction. In exchange, his death sentence would be commuted to life without parole.

Robin Maher, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, said that given the contaminated DNA evidence, the plea was Williams' best option.

Mr. Williams faced an impossible choice: with an execution date in just over a month, he could take a chance on a legal process that has never given him a fair shake and hope that things turn out differently  or he could take the deal that would save his life and bring the victims family the closure they sought, Maher said in an email. Anyone would take the deal.

Peter Joy, a professor at the Washington University School of Law, said many aspects of the case are troubling, including the bungled DNA evidence and the setting of an execution date while an innocence claim was still being examined.

I hope theres not a rush to execution, Joy said.

Supreme Court quickly overrules

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey immediately challenged the new plea and reduced penalty, contending that the lower court lacked the authority to essentially overrule the state's Supreme Court. Within hours, the high court agreed.

Its order also required Hilton to hold the evidentiary hearing, scheduled for Aug. 28.

In a statement, Bailey said people too often forget about all of the evidence that was used to convict the defendant  the evidence the jury relied on  and the victims."

But Williams' attorney, Tricia Bushnell, noted that Gayle's family supported the new plea and penalty. She said in a statement that the Supreme Court ruling directly contradicts the will of a duly elected prosecutor and the community he represents and the wishes of a family who has already lost so much.

Maher, of the Death Penalty Information Center, said there are also credible claims of innocence for men on death row in Texas, Oklahoma and Alabama.

These cases create an impression that our legal system values process and finality more than it values innocence and justice and explains why so many people are losing confidence in the death penalty, Maher said.
MINSK, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang said here Thursday that China is willing to further strengthen multilateral cooperation with Belarus, promote the development of the global governance system towards a more just and reasonable direction, and safeguard the common interests of developing countries.

Li made the remarks when meeting with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko at the Palace of Independence. 
Modestos sister city needs help

Ukrainian ex-soldiers, defense officials visit Modesto. Heres why, (modbee.com, Feb. 3)

In February of 2022, Modesto Sister Cities International held a borscht dinner fundraiser to provide financial support to our sister city, Khmelnytskyi, Ukraine. Generous donors raised over $75,000, funds sent to Khmelnytskyi to purchase electrical generators for a hospital and school, as well as medical equipment.

The mayor of Khmelnytskyi has reached out to Modesto Sister Cities International for further financial assistance to purchase additional generators for schools. The Russians have targeted the Ukrainian power grid to disrupt the lives of Ukrainian citizens, especially families and children.

Now, we are asking for your generous support to help address the pressing need of children in Modestos Sister City. Ukrainians have courageously battled to preserve their country and democracy. Your contribution will support their efforts and make a significant impact on the lives of our sisters and brothers in Khmelnytskyi.

Contributions may be made by visiting our webpage or mailing a check to Modesto Sister Cities International, 1509 K Street, Box #155, Modesto, CA 95354.

Mary Barberis

President, Modesto Sister Cities International

Opinion

Shameful

How will Gavin Newsoms order to sweep homeless encampments change Stanislaus County? (modbee.com, July 24)

I would like to know exactly what Gov. Gavin Newsom has in mind after his order to rid the state of homeless encampments. Where does he plan to shelter those individuals whose only place to sleep has been taken from them? It is entirely useless to propose an idea that will only inevitably cause bigger problems.

Unless Newsom or anyone in support of his cold and thoughtless executive mistake has created an emergency plan to re-home or shelter these people, leave them alone! It sickens me to be part of a country that would rather bully its own most vulnerable residents when we should instead be offering them a solution.

We should all be ashamed.

Eucelia D Fritch

Modesto

Our votes belong to us, not the church

Trump Claims Catholics Are Persecuted Under Biden, Who Is Catholic, (modbee.com, July 30)

As a practicing Catholic, I was happy to attend a recent Sunday Mass. All was well, until the latter part of the homily, when the speaker excoriated woke ideology. Back home, I explored definitions and explanations of modern wokeness (originally a reminder to be aware and be safe), yet each definition differed radically. Which one inspires hatred, and why?

The homilist melded politics with religion, which never ends well. The subject was the difficult and multi-faceted issue of abortion. While President Joe Biden and I are generally opposed, most of us understand that heavy-handed state laws are scaring doctors away from providing needed care for any affliction or difficulty of the pregnant person.

The homilist stated that abortion is always murder and Catholics can never agree (or vote for it) in any form. However, Catholics are not and should not be, single-issue voters. If anything is a sin, it would be supporting the candidate who threatens to worsen climate change and terminate the Constitution  among other evil actions.

Catholics deeply appreciate the priests and deacons who give their lives in service to the Lord. But here in the U.S., our votes belong to us.

Diana Doll

Modesto

What does Alvarado-Gil stand for?

Stanislaus Democrats and Republicans react to Sen. Marie Alvarado-Gils party switch, (modbee.com, Aug. 13)

Will the real Sen. Marie Alvarado-Gil please stand up?

Now that State Senator Alvarado-Gil of Stanislaus County has abandoned the Democratic Party, the one of competence and human dignity, for the party of conspiracy theories, it begs the question: What does she really stand for?

Alvarado-Gil should refund every donation she has received for the last two years to the people who made them under false pretenses. She should also resign and allow the voters to choose a candidate with sincere beliefs and convictions.

Larry Bolton

Modesto

Proud of my vote

Voter Guide: Modesto, CA 2024 Elections, (modbee.com)

I left the Republican Party years ago, troubled by their choice of Sarah Palin as a vice presidential candidate, and have voted third party ever since. I chose a party that reflects my values as an American Catholic who believes it is possible to combine fiscal responsibility with strong social justice.

Every election I am told it is my faul that (fill in candidates name here) was elected. One time, a very progressive person told me I would be responsible for Hillary Clinton being elected, and then later blamed when she lost.

My vote for the American Solidarity Party is my right as a citizen. If I did not have that party to support, I would not vote at all.

I am not taking a vote away from your particular candidate; rather, I am supporting mine. If more Americans refused to hold their nose and vote, maybe we could get those in power to actually listen to us.

Leslie Shaw Klinger

Modesto
Modi to visit Kyiv after hugging it out with Putin. Can Ukraine crack their alliance?

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in Ukraine on Aug. 23 for a historic visit, the first time an Indian prime minister set foot in Ukraine since diplomatic relations were established over 30 years ago.

India, the world's largest country by population and an increasingly powerful player on the geopolitical stage, has yet to firmly come down on one of the sides in Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine.

Modi's visit to Ukraine comes just weeks after a trip to Moscow, where he held talks with President Vladimir Putin. The visit included a widely criticized hug between the two leaders, hours after Russia bombed Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv, killing two.

President Volodymyr Zelensky called the meeting a "huge disappointment" and "a devastating blow to peace efforts."

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (L) and Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) hug during Modi's visit to Moscow, Russia, on July 9, 2024. (Sefa Karacan/Anadolu via Getty Images)

What can Ukraine hope to gain from Modi's visit?

Some believe that the trip is an attempt at damage control following Modi's talks with Putin  and the warm embrace  which coincided with a massive Russian missile attack on Ukraine that killed at least 38 people. During the barrage, a missile struck the Okhmatdyt Hospital, Ukraine's largest children's medical center.

Speaking from Poland ahead of the meeting, Modi said: "It is India's strong belief that no problem can be resolved on a battlefield."

According to Ukraine's President's Office, Modi will meet with Zelensky, and the two will discuss bilateral and multilateral cooperation and sign several cooperation documents.

A historical ally of Russia, New Delhi has maintained its close economic and diplomatic ties with Moscow since February 2022, with bilateral trade reaching a historic high in 2023.

At the same time, India has refrained from overtly supporting Russia, likely not wanting to damage its vital partnerships with the West. The West also has not pushed India too hard to change or moderate its position. The U.S. sees India as a potential partner to counter China, which has tense relations with New Delhi.

India's role has been described as "tightrope walking" between Russia and the West.

Ukraine, a country with a negligible bilateral trade turnover from India's perspective, has faced an uphill battle to persuade New Delhi to take a tougher stance on Russia.

On March 28, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba made his ever first trip to the country.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba (center) during his visit to New Delhi, India, on March 28, 2024. (Eduard Kryzhanivskyi/Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)

"The Ukrainian-Indian cooperation is important, and we will be reinvigorating ties," Kuleba wrote at the time.

In a post on X, Kuleba said he had come to New Delhi at the invitation of Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, who had just said during a visit to Moscow in December 2023 that Indo-Russian ties were "very strong (and) very steady."

"Many in India, including many in the corridors of power, see Russia as perhaps India's most trusted and dependable power," Michael Kugelman, director of the South Asia Institute at the Wilson Center, said to the Kyiv Independent.

Ukraine's push

Kuleba made his first trip to India in March, ahead of Ukraine's peace summit. Despite the diplomatic effort, Modi did not attend the summit, and the Indian representative did not ultimately sign the joint communique.

While Modi and other Indian officials have repeatedly called for a peaceful solution to the full-scale war, Western and Ukrainian efforts to get more purposeful engagement from India have so far proved to be largely fruitless.

In terms of financial cooperation with India, Ukraine is clearly at a considerable disadvantage compared to Russia.

India's trade volume with Russia surpasses that of Ukraine by a significant margin. In 2023, estimates of the bilateral trade between Russia and India surpassed $50 billion, while at pre-war levels, trade between Ukraine and India amounted to less than $3.5 billion.

"India continues to rely heavily on Russian arms and Russian energy," Kugelman said.

Russia emerged as the top supplier of oil to India in 2023, beating out Middle Eastern countries like Iraq which had previously been India's main source of oil. In 2021, Russia was India's 6th largest supplier.

India has also taken advantage of Western sanctions on Russian oil by importing crude, refining it, and then at times selling it back to Europe and the U.S. The arrangement has been mutually beneficial, providing Russia with much-needed cash for its war machine while also allowing India to develop its refined export industry.

"India's view is that it gets important products (from Russia) at a price point that it is unable to get from other countries," said Kugelman.

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (R) and India's Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar (L) exchange documents following their talks in Moscow, Russia, on Dec. 27, 2023. (Alexander Nemenov/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

Deputy Foreign Minister Iryna Borovets said in an interview in February 2024 that India "represents the voices of the Global South and it's very important that India could lead by example."

Kuleba offered a glimpse at what tangible benefits India could obtain from increasing ties with Ukraine in an interview with the Financial Times (FT) published in March.

"After the war, Ukraine will probably become the largest construction site in the world, and Indian companies are welcome to participate in the recovery," Kuleba said.

Kuleba also said that Ukraine is seeking to "restore trade" with India, including growth in Ukrainian agricultural exports to India and the import of Indian machinery.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba (L) with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar in New Delhi, India, on March 29, 2024. (Subrahmanyam Jaishankar/X).

Following his meeting with Jaishankar, Kuleba wrote on March 29 that the two ministers "agreed to restore the level of cooperation between our countries that existed prior to the full-scale war" but did not identify any specific steps.

Similarly, Jaishankar said that the "discussions focused on the ongoing conflict and its wider ramifications" and that he and Kuleba "reiterated our commitment to strengthen the overall relationship, including bilateral cooperation."

No concrete agreements were listed.

Ukraine can offer India "tech resources and solid higher education institutions, especially for medical school," said Kugelman. Around 19,000 Indian students were studying in Ukraine in 2021, the vast majority of whom left in the immediate aftermath of the full-scale war and have not returned.

But these simply do not stack up to the critical supplies of arms and energy India receives from Russia.

India's Neutral Path

India currently seems content to play both sides.

The Indian newspaper The Hindu wrote in February 2024 that the government's largely neutral position has been a "major success."

Even after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi became one of the only democratically elected leaders to congratulate Russian President Vladimir Putin on his "victory" in the sham presidential election earlier in March, ties with the West have largely remained unaffected.

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) leaders' summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan on Sept. 16, 2022. (Alexandr Demyanchuk /Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images)

Just days before his meeting with Kuleba, Jaishankar described India's relations with Russia in purely pragmatic terms.

"So, tell me has Russia helped us or harmed us? Has Russia, at crucial moments, contributed or obstructed?" Jaishankar said in Singapore on March 25.

"So, if I do my calculations from my perspective and my experiences, I will get the answer  and the answer in this case is that Russia is a country with which we have always had a positive relationship."

Nonetheless, Kuleba said that India's close ties with Russia are the remnants of a "Soviet legacy" that is "evaporating."

In standing by Russia, India is neglecting the threat emanating from China, Kuleba added.

Russia has become increasingly reliant on China since the beginning of the full-scale war, which "increases the leverage China is able to exert over Russia," Kugelman told the Kyiv Independent.

"The fear for New Delhi is that Beijing could try to pressure Russia to do things that could work against India's interests."

Potential barriers to the Indo-Russia relationship

As much as India would likely prefer the war not to impact its pragmatic approach to relations with Russia, there are several related factors that could hinder their continued partnership.

Even as India's purchase of Russian oil has significantly increased in the past two years, there are signs that Western sanctions targeting the Russian energy industry may threaten continued exports to India.

Reuters reported in February 2024 that the stepped-up enforcement of the Western-imposed $60 price cap on Russian oil could "complicate efforts by Indian state refiners to secure annual supply deals."

Oil storage tanks stand at the RN-Tuapsinsky refinery, operated by Rosneft Oil Co., as a tanker sails beyond in Tuapse, Russia, on March 23, 2020. Photo for illustrative purposes. (Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Despite that, India overtook China as the worlds largest importer of Russian oil in July as Chinese refiners bought less due to lower profit margins from fuel production, Reuters reported on Aug. 22, citing a comparison of import data.

Yet, Western sanctions against Russia have created payment issues that delay the delivery of Russian oil to India.

Following the recent spate of drone strikes against Russian oil refineries and imposition of fresh sanctions against Russia's largest shipping company, Sovcomflot, Bloomberg wrote that Russia's oil industry is beginning to feel the pressure of Western punitive measures.

Another potential stumbling block in Indo-Russian relations centers around reports that Russia is coercing Indian nationals to join its army and fight in Ukraine.

The Indian Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) announced earlier in March that it had busted a "major human trafficking network" using false pretenses to lure Indians to fight in Ukraine. At least five Indian citizens have been killed fighting for Russia in Ukraine.

Following Modi's July visit to Moscow, Russia agreed to release all Indian nationals serving in its army.

A printout of Indian national Mohammed Asfan, seen wearing Russian military fatigues, who last called family from the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don before being deployed to the war in Ukraine, held by his brother Mohammed Imran in Hyderabad, India, on Feb. 22, 2024. (Noah Seelam/AFP via Getty Images)



While still occupying the first place at 45% of the total, Russia's arms exports to India dropped 17% from 2017-2022, according to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. Imports from France, South Korea, and other countries simultaneously increased.

The Indian Air Force said in March 2023 that Russia has not been able to meet some of its weapons delivery commitments due to the overwhelming focus on Ukraine.

The poor performance of Russian-made weapons on the battlefield in Ukraine has created further doubts in India about their quality, especially compared to their Western-made equivalents.

There is a further risk that "the trajectory of India's relationship with Russia might change if the war in Ukraine grinds on for quite some time," Kugelman said.

"If Russia becomes increasingly battle-scarred, cash strapped, isolated, and not in a position to produce the type of weaponry that India has long been able to rely on," it could be an opportunity for other suppliers to step in.

Nonetheless, in the immediate term, "India is not going to turn away from Russia in terms of its arms acquisitions," Kugelman said.

India's historically pragmatic approach to the war does not provide ample evidence that it will soon fully embrace Ukraine's cause, nor that it would abandon the financially beneficial relationship it has with Russia.

While Modi's visit is likely to be received well by the West  and appreciated by Ukraine  expectations for substantive outcomes are low.

Read also: Opinion: Modis Kyiv visit will be a tightrope walk between Washington and Moscow

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
By Anna Koper

WARSAW (Reuters) - Poland wants to deepen its cooperation with India in the defence industry, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Thursday, as Warsaw seeks to benefit from New Delhi's drive to modernise its armed forces and diversify away from Russian suppliers.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting Warsaw en route to Kyiv, where he has said he will "share perspectives" on the peaceful resolution of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

The trip follows Modi's July 8-9 visit to Moscow which drew criticism from the U.S. and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy as it coincided with a lethal Russian strike on a children's hospital in Kyiv.

"It is no coincidence that we talked about intensification in terms of the defense industry," Tusk told a news conference alongside Modi in Warsaw. "We are ready as Poland to take part in the modernisation of military equipment."

Poland has been one of Ukraine's staunchest supporters since Russia's 2022 invasion, while India has remained neutral.

Nevertheless, cooperation concerning the defence industry was high on the agenda for the first visit to Warsaw by an Indian prime minister in 45 years, officials said.

New Delhi had historically relied heavily on Moscow for defence supplies but in recent years has sought to diversify, a process that has intensified since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

A Polish official who declined to be named told Reuters that India had a lot of Soviet-era equipment such T-72 tanks which Poland was able to repair or refit, creating an opportunity for cooperation.

India recently reopened the defence wing at its embassy in Warsaw.

Modi said that India is willing to offer its help to end the conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia.

"India firmly believes that no issue can be solved on a battlefield," Modi said. "We support dialogue and diplomacy for the quick restoration of peace."

Tusk praised Modi's engagement and said the he was convinced India could play a positive role.

(Reporting by Anna Koper, Alan Charlish, Pawel Florkiewicz in Warsaw, Shilpa Jamkhandikar in Mumbai; Editing by Toby Chopra)
HONOLULU (KHON2)  After a few days of grounded flights, Mokulele said they are back to normal operations.

Get Hawaiis latest morning news delivered to your inbox, sign up for News 2 You

The grounding came after routine maintenance found potential problems with landing gear.

They took it upon themselves to make sure the logs were all in check. That the landing gear was properly installed and that it was workable. You know, it was a mechanical issue, said Sen. Lynn DeCoite (D) East and Upcountry Maui, Molokai, Lanai, Kahoolawe.

Mokulele fleet grounded, solution for sole airline issue left unanswered

At the time, Mokulele officials said they were working diligently to safely return the fleet to service and had re-accommodated passengers.

The documentation issues have been resolved. As of yesterday evening, we have returned to normal operations, Louis Saint Cyr, President of Hawaii Operations told KHON2.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KHON2.
BAY SHORE, N.Y. (PIX11)  A 9-year-old child was killed in a wrong-way crash on Long Island Thursday morning, and his mother is accused of driving under the influence, according to the New York State Police.

Investigators with the department are questioning her now. The four-vehicle crash occurred on the eastbound Southern State Parkway near Exit 42 in Bay Shore, state police said.

3 teens stabbed after fight breaks out on Bronx playground: sources

A Suffolk County Sheriffs deputy spotted the woman driving the wrong way about 5 miles east of the crash and tried to pull the woman over, according to Suffolk County and New York state officials.

The woman sped up and kept driving the wrong way on the eastbound side of the parkway, so the deputy followed along with her on the westbound side of the highway but lost sight of the wrong-way driver.

When the sheriffs deputy caught up with the mother again, she had crashed head-on into another vehicle and was standing outside her car with her 9-year-old son in the back seat with a seat belt on. The child was given emergency medical attention at the scene and rushed to an area hospital, where he was later pronounced dead, according to officials.

The wrong-way driver, who has not yet been identified or charged, was also taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Two other drivers involved in the crash were also taken to the hospital, officials said.

The woman was given a sobriety test at the scene of the crash, but the results have not yet been released.

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.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE)  A Monroe County inmate who the Knox County District Attorneys office says escaped while on a work detail in November 2022 has been convicted of stealing a maintenance employees truck.

DA Charme Allens office released on Thursday that Ricky Lynn Burnette, 54, was convicted of theft of over $2,500. His sentencing was scheduled for October 4, however, the DAs office noted that because of Burnettes criminal history, the only possible sentence in this case under Tennessee law is a 12 year sentence in the Tennessee Department of Correction.

Sean Finnegan sentenced to death in Oak Ridge murder case

During the trial, prosecutors told the court that on November 18, 2022, Burnette escaped from a Monroe County Sheriffs Office inmate work crew and stole a truck that belonged to a maintenance employee.

When Burnette was accused of stealing the truck, the Monroe County Sheriffs Office shared that he should have been considered armed and dangerous because the maintenance worker had two personal handguns in the truck.

The next day, deputies with the Knox County Sheriffs Office received information about a stolen vehicle on Chapman Highway that Burnette may have been in. The DAs office said that deputies located the vehicle at a Dollar General and took Burnette into custody.

With this latest conviction, this career criminal is back in custody where he belongs, said Allen.

DA: No charging decision made in hit-and-run of Knox County student

The Allens office explained that Burnette has 15 prior felony convictions out of Monroe, Loudon, Hamilton, and Knox Counties for Aggravated Robbery, Aggravated Assault, Theft, Escape, and Evading Arrest.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WATE 6 On Your Side.
Sens. Barry Usher (left) and Jason Ellsworth (right) address the Senate Select Committee on Judicial Oversight and Reform on Monday, April 29, 2024. (Photo by Blair Miller, Daily Montanan)

Sens. Barry Usher (left) and Jason Ellsworth (right) address the Senate Select Committee on Judicial Oversight and Reform on Monday, April 29, 2024. (Photo by Blair Miller, Daily Montanan)

Sen. Jason Ellsworth, be prepared to be disappointed, possibly even highly so.

The Montana Senates top leader said Tuesday hes going to be highly disappointed if anyone mistakes his judicial oversight committee as political theater.

Truthfully, its not even very good theater.

Its a reboot of a tired theme, a rerun, in which Republicans are flummoxed by the states Constitution and concepts that should have been taught to them in elementary school, like separation of powers. Despite repeated attempts by sympathetic conservative lawyers to disabuse lawmakers of ideas that deserve ridicule, like ignoring court orders (an actual idea the committee considered), the citizens who have testified have been reserved and restrained about the truth, which is that most of our Republican Senators couldnt pass a basic test about how the judiciary works, even though they desire to corral that branch in the absolute worst way.

So Ellsworth trudges on, needing just a little more power and a few more hearings in the hopes that he may accidentally stumble on some clandestine plot that would reveal a sinister and complex conspiracy that would prove the judiciary has had it in for the lawmakers all along.

When you spend as much time as Ellsworth and some of his Republican friends have searching and finding as little as they have, I think I understand the urge to find something  anything  that justifies their ridiculous endeavor, which the Democrats refuse to participate in, calling it a waste of time and money.

Now, the committee wants to beef up subpoena powers to compel testimony of judges and attorneys so that if they dont show up or dont answer all the questions, the committee could refer those reluctant witnesses for prosecution. In other words, the great witch hunters need more gasoline and some matches.

But you know, if you suggest such an exercise is political or theater, youre risking making Ellsworth disappointed.

So, Ill resist the temptation to call it theater until the same committee tries subpoenaing sitting judges only to watch the government standoff that will serve as the next half-baked impetus for what is a growing raft of legislation aimed at the judiciary.

For right now, the committee isnt theater, just an extremely compelling case for better civics and government education in our public schools.

All of these special select committees and hearings have one common through-line: They all are predicated upon the faulty notion that the acts of the Legislature and the will of the lawmakers are the final and ultimate authority, superseding even the Constitution itself. By sprinkling the phrases for the people and peoples representatives, the committee members led by Ellsworth have tried to give their actions a patina of patriotism.

But a cursory look at the very things that are so upsetting to the lawmakers shows that theres nothing wrong with the people or the judges who have faithfully, and almost uniformly, showed ultimate deference to the Constitution itself.

Take, for example, two of the topics that have rankled the lawmakers the most, climate change and abortion. Abortion, as weve covered so many times, is tied to the Montana Constitutional right to privacy. And, I cannot imagine something more private than the decision to give birth to a child. Furthermore, that same constitution guarantees that children shall have no fewer rights than those given to adults.

So when it comes time to enact anti-abortion laws, the Legislature must do so without violating those two very fundamental concepts, which for reasons that I cannot comprehend, seem to elude the special select committee.

Furthermore, that same constitution guarantees a right to a clean and healthful environment. A plain reading of it seems to mean that mining pollution, climate change due to greenhouse gases, and polluting rivers and streams cant be ignored  something that Judge Kathy Seeley found in now-famous Held vs. State of Montana.

A growing want-list of legislator ideas seems as dubious as the rest of the committees work, and includes such ideas as showing deference to the executive and legislative branch, a concept that is already deeply rooted in the very concept of judicial review.

But in case you may think that I am just cherry-picking the most outlandish ideas, theres simply not enough room to write about the inane exercises that legislative drafters must start contemplating, like creating either appellate or constitutional courts (there is one already, its called the Montana Supreme Court). Or, a bill that would allow the Legislature to ignore certain court orders ( at that point, why even have courts at all?). Theres another bill that would seem to require legislative approval of citizens ballot initiatives, an idea that would mean ignoring the constitution and our states history (the original impetus for the citizens initiative goes all the way back to 1912 when lawmakers wouldnt listen to the people).

During Tuesdays meeting, Ellsworth declared:

I dont care if youre a Democrat or youre a Republican, what you want and what the court is obligated to do is to be fair, impartial. And theyre a separate branch of government, and theyre co-equal, and we all want that. But we dont want politics in the judiciary. Thats all were here to do.

And yet that same committees list of proposed legislation includes resurrecting a failed attempt at making judicial races in Montana partisan.

Lemme get this correct: Ellsworth expects Montanans to believe the committee is acting earnestly out of nonpartisan concern, when the very committee he is leading wants to do the exact opposite of what he just said?

The simplest explanation for this committee is that Republicans are trying to find a way to undercut, undermine and dismantle the state courts because theyve been unflinchingly loyal to the law and the Constitution, not the Legislatures ultra-conservative agenda. And like spoiled children, the Republicans are throwing a temper tantrum masquerading as a legislative hearing.

Ellsworth may be correct on one thing, though.

Its not theater.

These lawmakers arent acting.

They are, to borrow a phrase from the same courts they despise, holding the courts in contempt.
SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI)  The number of passengers who used the San Diego Metropolitan Transit Systems public transit network increased over the last year, pushing ridership levels closer to those seen before the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a release on Thursday, MTS officials said the transit agency logged 10% more bus and Trolley rides during the 2024 fiscal year, which ran from July 2023 and June 2024, compared to the prior fiscal year.

A total of 75,663,343 trips were recorded during this period, which rounds out to roughly 85 to 90% of pre-pandemic ridership levels, according to MTS.

New murals unveiled at Grossmont Transit Center

While there is still has some ground to cover before reaching a full rebound, MTS officials are lauding the uptick as a major step towards recovery from the pandemic, when the agency fell into a multi-million-dollar budget deficit due to fare revenue losses amid lower ridership levels.

The recent ridership increase has put MTS on a path to welcome even more passengers in the coming years, Stephen Whitburn, MTS Board Chair and San Diego City Councilmember, said in a statement. This success is a testament to the partnership between riders and the dedicated MTS staff and Board of Directors to improve transit for our region.

MTS chief executive officer Sharon Cooney credits higher ridership numbers to a few different things, including shifts back to in-person work and school, new policing efforts throughout the network, and high costs making public transit more appealing as a cheaper alternative to driving.

The agency also said that wider accessibility to the Youth Opportunity Pass pilot program helped grow ridership over the last year specifically among teenage passengers, increasing by 22.7%  more than double the rate general ridership levels jumped.

While ridership grew across the board, MTS Trolley remains its most popular transit option, logging more than 39 million trips from July 2023 to June 2024. According to MTS, bus routes saw 35 million passengers during this same time period.

Metropolitan Transit System rolls out contactless payments

Of its three Trolley lines, the expanded UC San Diego Blue Line, which connects the UCSD campus to Otay Mesa West, racked up the most rides last year with over 24 million  more than double what the Green and Orange lines recorded, according to MTS.

Additional changes to MTS services remain on the horizon with the hopes of bettering its reliability and accessibility, including creation of an overnight express bus service between the border and downtown, increases to Trolley and bus frequency to lower wait times, and a rehabilitation to the Orange Lines infrastructure.

According to MTS, these improvements will begin when the agency receives its state funding from Senate Bill 125.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (WBOY)  The Morgantown High School Pep Band paid a special visit to The Village at Heritage Point on Wednesday where it put on a special musical performance for the residents.

Selections from the bands 2024 show Harmony of Soul were performed featuring songs like Ill Be There by Jackson 5 and Dont Worry Bout A Thing by Stevie Wonder to name a few. The performance took place outside in the courtyard located on The Village at Heritage Points property.

We are one of the best bands in the state if not the best band in the state. And it feels like when we get these opportunities to be here with people its almost like, it just feels good, like were doing something good for the people, a freshman and band member Nick Deem said.

Band members said it is great for them to give back to the community through music and are looking forward to more opportunities to perform throughout the year.

Local WWII US Navy veteran honored with replica bridge sign

I think its really important to show our kids that whenever we have the ability to give back to our community we should because our community is our number one supporter, its our parents, its our family, its our friends, its our neighbors. And I think it only makes sense for us to be as supportive as we can and share our talents with them, Morgantown High School Band Director Lorne Hyskell said.

The performance concluded with Hail West Virginia and Fight Mountaineers, which band members said are always a crowds favorite tunes.

Our program is incredibly steeped in tradition right, this is our 103 seasons of existence, they started in 1922 under the direction of Charles Stump, Hyskell said. Its been this growing machine, its a huge train to get rolling every year, but its something that the community expects to see out and about.

The Morgantown High School Pep Band will be featured in several parades throughout the area this year and will perform at the Morgantown High School Band Spectacular on Saturday, Oct. 5, at 2 p.m.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WBOY.com.
African trainees participate in a research and learning activity at the Zhejiang Provincial Museum in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Aug. 27, 2024. Eighteen officials and scholars from six African countries are in China for an urban landscape construction and planning training program. The 14-day training program began on Aug. 21 in Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province. The participants from Egypt, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Mauritius, Lesotho and Tunisia will be trained in Hangzhou and Guiyang, the capital of Guizhou Province, among other places. The training program is hosted by China's Ministry of Commerce and the China National Bamboo Research Center, which is part of the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.(Xinhua/Jiang Han)

HANGZHOU, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Eighteen officials and scholars from six African countries are in China for an urban landscape construction and planning training program.

The 14-day training program began on Wednesday in Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province.

The participants from Egypt, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Mauritius, Lesotho and Tunisia will be trained in Hangzhou and Guiyang, the capital of Guizhou Province, among other places.

The training program is hosted by China's Ministry of Commerce and the China National Bamboo Research Center, which is part of the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.

Wu Tonggui, deputy head of the China National Bamboo Research Center, said Hangzhou, dubbed "paradise on earth," epitomizes the harmony between environmental protection and economic development.

Wu said he hoped the program would offer reference suggestions for African countries on how to protect and use their natural resources to create unique landscapes in their cities.

He expressed the hope that the program will encourage African countries to develop forestry and landscape industries to accelerate diversified poverty alleviation plans and help China and Africa join hands to promote modernization and achieve harmonious coexistence between man and nature.

Through lectures, case sharing and on-site teaching, the African trainees will learn landscape design, horticulture and urban planning. They will also visit natural and cultural attractions and participate in cultural activities to learn about new modes of urban landscape development. 

An African trainee participates in a research and learning activity at the Zhejiang Provincial Museum in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Aug. 27, 2024. Eighteen officials and scholars from six African countries are in China for an urban landscape construction and planning training program.

The 14-day training program began on Aug. 21 in Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province.

The participants from Egypt, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Mauritius, Lesotho and Tunisia will be trained in Hangzhou and Guiyang, the capital of Guizhou Province, among other places.

The training program is hosted by China's Ministry of Commerce and the China National Bamboo Research Center, which is part of the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.(Xinhua/Jiang Han)

African trainees participate in a research and learning activity at the Zhejiang Provincial Museum in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Aug. 27, 2024. Eighteen officials and scholars from six African countries are in China for an urban landscape construction and planning training program.

The 14-day training program began on Aug. 21 in Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province.

The participants from Egypt, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Mauritius, Lesotho and Tunisia will be trained in Hangzhou and Guiyang, the capital of Guizhou Province, among other places.

The training program is hosted by China's Ministry of Commerce and the China National Bamboo Research Center, which is part of the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.(Xinhua/Jiang Han)
Thank you, Joe, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said to President Joe Biden in her remarks at the Democratic National Convention. SAUL LOEB via Getty Images

CHICAGO  Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) did what she had to do Wednesday night in her speech at the Democratic National Convention.

She hailed President Joe Biden for his legacy. She celebrated Vice President Kamala Harris as the partys new nominee, calling her a leader of strength and wisdom and eloquence. She warned how dangerous Donald Trump would be as president in a second term.

And then, she left.

It was a surprisingly short speech. She talked a little bit about the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. That day was a perilous moment for our democracy, she said. And just as Democrats protected it that day, Pelosi said, they are being called upon to do it again by voting for Harris in November  and preventing Trump from ever entering the White House again.

Her brief remarks about Biden were the most delicate. She declared him the force behind one of the most successful presidencies of modern times, ticking off his successes with job creation, infrastructure investment and lowering the cost of prescription drugs.

Thank you, Joe, Pelosi said.

Moments later, she was back to celebrating Harris. Onward to victory! she declared.

Everything about this Democratic convention  the lofty speeches, the wonky panels, the volunteer training, the surging excitement  is aimed at one thing: lifting up Harris as the partys new leader and the person best positioned to defeat Trump in November.

But the person really at the center of it is Pelosi.

Harris and then-House speaker Pelosi react during Biden's first State of the Union. via Associated Press

One month ago today, Biden dropped his reelection bid amid Democratic fears that he was on track to lose to Trump and hand Republicans full control of not just the White House, but Congress too.

The concerns began in earnest with his disastrous debate performance in late June. Within a couple of weeks, as Biden failed to demonstrate he simply had a bad night, they morphed into full-blown panic. As he tried to fendoff questions about his mental acuity, Biden was tanking in the polls, big donors were backing out and vulnerable elected Democrats were distancing themselves from him.

Biden dug in for a while, enduring weeks of humiliation as Democratic lawmakers publicly urged him to pass the torch to someone else. But privately, Pelosi was waging her own pressure campaign. As a decades-long colleague, ally and friend to the president, she was one of a handful of people with the sway to directly influence Biden.

Its not clear what, exactly, Pelosi told him in her private conversations with him. But the message delivered by the former speaker, who is laser-focused on defeating Trump above all else, is obvious: Youre about to hand the U.S. presidency to a twice-impeached convicted felon intent on destroying American democracy, and also hand over Congress to his GOP allies. You need to step aside.

Since then, the political landscape has changed dramatically. Harris is the nominee. Shes way up in the polls, with a much stronger chance of winning than Biden had. Voter enthusiasm is off the charts, money is pouring into Democratic coffers, Trump is flailing and Biden is being hailed as a hero for putting the country before himself.

This is precisely how Pelosi wanted things to change  and used her statureto make it happen. She was even reportedly advocating for Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to be Harris pick for vice president before she chose him.

Look at the response they are getting. What is more eloquent than what we saw last night in Philadelphia? she told HuffPost and other reporters in a pre-convention interview, beaming about Harris and Walzs campaign launch. The response from  our members in the House, the volunteers, the small-donor contributions and all of the enthusiasm, the hope, the joy, in their districts.

Everyone at the Democratic convention knows Pelosi was key to orchestrating this moment. Some House Democrats were spotted wearing pins with Pelosis face on them next to the word Godmother, a reference to the movie The Godfather. The former House speaker isnt apologizing for her role in Bidens decision to step aside, either. Shes been making appearances at events all over Chicago, emphasizing how thrilled and excited she is by the Harris-Walz ticket  and the reality that Democrats are in a better position to beat Trump.

Even Mindy Kaling, the actor who hosted the nights festivities, seemed to acknowledge the role Pelosi has played in rearranging the top of the ticket.

The woman who was doing brat before brat was brat, the mother of dragons, Nancy Pelosi! Kaling said, as she introduced her.

The mother of dragons, Nancy Pelosi!Mindy Kaling

There is still tension between Pelosi and Biden. They still havent spoken since he dropped his bid for a second term. The California Democrat has shown rare flashes of guilt at hurting her friend, someone she hasotherwise proudly hailed as an exceptional leader and just a good person.

On Monday night, as the president stood on stage amid deafening cheers and gratitude from the thousands of Democratic delegates gathered to hear him speak, Pelosi was spotted right up there in front, misty-eyed and waving a sign: We <3 Joe.

Ive cried over this, she said at a Wednesday morning event with David Axelrod, a former top aide to President Barack Obama. Im sad about this.

Pelosi still wont say what she said to Biden in their talks about his sinking campaign, though shes acknowledged they did talk about this. She declined to give any details to Axelrod on Wednesday, and previously refused to tell HuffPost if she ever directly told the president he had to go, for the good of the party and for the country.

Maybe one of these days, Ill write that, is all she said, suggesting shed perhaps share it in a book one day. I pray over that.

Related...
This colorized electron microscope image provided by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases shows mpox particles, red, found within an infected cell, blue, cultured in a laboratory in Fort Detrick, Md. (Associated Press)

Two years ago, cases of the infectious viral disease mpox were rapidly increasing in cities across the globe  particularly in the U.S.  causing a scramble for vaccine doses to help contain the outbreak and ease the virus' uncomfortable symptoms.

That strain of mpox was rarely deadly; even still, officials soon declared it a worldwide public health emergency in July 2022. In the months that followed, the spread of the virus steadily fell, though cases have never completely gone away.

But last week, a much more concerning variant of mpox, previously called monkeypox, has once again prompted such a global health alert. This outbreak is primarily affecting Central African countries, but officials warn that it appears to spread more easily than the 2022 strain  and is significantly more deadly.

Where is mpox a concern right now?

The World Health Organization has deemed this clade, or variant, of mpox the latest global health emergency. The majority of these mpox Clade I cases have been recorded in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where there have already been 14,000 cases and 524 deaths this year, according to Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the World Health Organization.

Mpox belongs to the same family of viruses as smallpox but causes milder symptoms such as fever, chills and body aches. People with more serious cases can develop lesions on the face, hands and chest. With the latest outbreaks of mpox, lesions can also develop on a person's genitals, which can make it harder to spot, in turn making it easier to spread.

While this virus is endemic, or naturally occurring, in Congo and parts of Central Africa, health officials have also recently detected this more concerning strain in other nearby, non-endemic countries, and the first case was confirmed outside of Africa in Sweden. Public health officials are concerned about the "potential to spread further across countries in Africa and possibly outside the continent," according to the World Health Organization.

As of this summer, the CDC still considers the risk of mpox to the general public in the U.S. very low, but said the risk is slightly higher among men who have sex with men. During the global outbreak of mpox in 2022, gay and bisexual men made up the vast majority of cases, as the virus was primarily spread through close contact, including sex.

Some of those patterns have been observed in the new outbreak in Central Africa, but officials have said that children under 15 now account for more than 70% of the mpox cases and 85% of deaths in Congo.

It's important to note, though, there have been no cases of the new mpox variant confirmed in the U.S., and health officials say they are closely monitoring the situation.

Should Californians be concerned?

The 2022 outbreak should have driven the point home that infectious diseases do not respect borders and what happens in one part of the world can quickly become a concern for everyone, said Dr. Anne Rimoin, professor of epidemiology at UCLA.

And while the risk is very low for widespread transmission outside of Africa, she said public health officials should not be complacent.

That said, as I always say, an infection anywhere is potentially an infection everywhere, Rimoin said, and our best chance to reduce the impact of Clade I-related infections is early detection and response.

But Californians shouldnt stress about the transmission of this latest strain because, we have the tools to be able to control mpox through surveillance, testing, case management, vaccines and public health messaging, she said.

What are local officials doing?

The 2022 variant, known as Clade II, continues to circulate in the U.S., including in Los Angeles and San Francisco  two the epicenters of the last outbreak.

"We see intermittent detections of Clade II in our wastewater," said Dr. Julia Janssen, the deputy director of the HIV/STI Prevention and Control branch for the San Francisco Department of Public Health. "It is not a cause for alarm."

San Francisco has seen about one case per week so far this year. L.A. has recorded a slight uptick in cases this summer.

"We're continuing to monitor mpox development alongside our state and federal partners," Janssen said. She noted there's robust testing infrastructure in place now, unlike the last mpox outbreak, which will help identify when and if the Clade I strain makes it to the U.S.

The recent international health emergency declaration puts countries, including the U.S. on alert to improve surveillance and detection, said Rimoin.

The California Department of Health this month issued an advisory to healthcare providers advising "a heightened index of suspicion for Clade I mpox in patients with recent travel to Africa and present with signs and symptoms consistent with mpox."

The recent health emergency declarations will also unlock resources that are otherwise unavailable for global coordination, critical research to address gaps in knowledge, and public health response, Rimoin said.

It also helps that this is not a completely new virus, she said. The key to containment is early detection and response.

What should you do, if anything?

"We continue to strongly recommend and encourage the two-dose vaccination," for those considered most at risk, Janssen said. She noted that only certain groups of people fall within the recommendations for vaccination, because the risk to the general public remains low. The CDC continues to recommend that anyone exposed to mpox should get vaccinated, as well as certain gay, bisexual or other men who have sex with men.

Despite the geographic location of the new outbreak, Janssen said "there's not a recommendation for vaccination for travel alone."

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health continues to recommend people who should get a vaccine are:



Men or or transgender persons who have sex with men or transgender persons.

Persons of any gender or sexual orientation who engage in commercial and/or transactional sex.

Individuals living with HIV, especially persons with uncontrolled or advanced HIV disease.

Persons who had skin-to-skin or intimate contact with someone with suspected or confirmed mpox, including those who have not yet been confirmed by the public health department.

Are vaccines and/or treatment available to prevent mpox?

Yes. The good news is there are plenty of doses of the Jynneos vaccine, which is used to prevent both mpox and smallpox.

CDC officials have said that "the medical countermeasures that have been effective for Clade II mpox are expected to also be effective for Clade I mpox," Janssen said. "That includes Jynneos, the vaccine that's been recommended ... as well as other treatments."

At this time the mpox vaccine is free throughout the U.S. and in California. Los Angeles Countys Department of Public Health is providing the JYNNEOS 2-dose vaccine. The county has an online list of vaccination sites where the mpox vaccine is being offered.

If I was vaccinated two years ago, should I get a booster?

Booster shots are not currently recommended.

"People who have completed the series, there's no need to get additional doses," Janssen said. "And people who have been previously infected  no need to get vaccinated."

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
STARKVILLE, Miss. (WJTV)  Mississippi State University (MSU) students now have an accelerated pathway into the legal profession thanks to a partnership with Mississippi College (MC).

MSU and MCs School of Law officials signed an agreement Wednesday, August 21 allowing qualified MSU students to enter MCs Juris Doctor program before fully completing an MSU bachelors degree.

Mississippi State and Mississippi College share similar values and a commitment to serve, and Im so pleased we have been able to work with President Thompson and his leadership team to develop this accelerated academic pathway, MSU President Mark E. Keenum said. Its an exceptional opportunity for students, our institutions, and the state of Mississippi.

Officials said MSU students who have completed 75% of the coursework required for a bachelors degree will be eligible for admission to MC. After the student completes the first year of the J.D. program (30 hours), MSU will award the bachelors degree. Then, after completing requirements for the J.D. degree, MC will award the diploma.

Mississippi State offers bachelors degree in applied behavior analysis

MC will accept applications September 1 through March 31 for admission to the entering class for the following fall semester, which begins each August.

This new partnership between MSU and MC Law allows us to better serve Mississippi by pairing our states largest land-grant university and its only capital city law school. The arrangement offers a tremendous benefit to the students of both institutions, and it will help to keep our brightest future lawyers in the state, said MC President Blake Thompson.

Students participating in the accelerated degree program must be admitted separately to MC. Those seeking this accelerated admission should apply to MC using the normal law school application process provided by the Law School Admission Test (LSAT).

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Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Mt. Juliet police pursue two separate suspects, ask for publics help finding one

MT. JULIET, Tenn. (WKRN)  The Mt. Juliet Police Department (MJPD) pursued two suspects in separate incidents on Wednesday and they are seeking the publics help finding one.

The first incident happened at around 11 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 21, when police said in a social media post that officers attempted to stop 42-year-old Londra Johnson. The convicted felon allegedly fled twice, though officers did not engage in a chase, police said.

Jack-knifed tractor trailer leads to backup on I-65

An officer had been watching the Golden Bear Way on-ramp to Interstate 40 when they reportedly saw Johnson speed by and throw out a backpack. That backpack contained:

A handgun

Fentanyl

Crack cocaine

Powder cocaine

Ecstasy

Marijuana

Johnson was previously wanted out of Nashville for failure to be booked and was wanted out of Mt. Juliet for felony evasion. The MJPD said additional warrants were since obtained, including for being a felon in possession of a firearm during a dangerous felony, felony evading, reckless driving and drug possession charges.

Police have asked anyone with information about Johnsons whereabouts to contact the MJPD at (615) 754-2550. Anonymous tips could also be submitted to (615) 754-TIPS (8477) or online here.

CRIME TRACKER | Read the latest crime news from Middle Tennessee

The second incident happened just after 1 p.m. when officers were alerted to a Honda Pilot SUV that had been stolen out of Nashville on Aug. 18. Officers found the vehicle in the Providence MarketPlace area. The vehicle shortly fled from officers, and officers soon stopped pursuing the vehicle due to heightened risk to the public.

Deputies with the Wilson County Sheriffs Office later spotted the vehicle in the Lebanon area. A spike system was deployed to disable the vehicle before authorities apprehended a 34-year-old Nashville man. Police did not identify the man.

No further information was released.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Multiple departments called to fight fire at casino in Brown Co.

Multiple departments called to fight fire at casino in Brown Co.

POWHATTAN (KSNT)  A large group of firefighters were assembled after a propane fire threatened a casino in Brown County.

Around 9:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 21 the Sabetha Fire Department (SFD) was called to assist with a fire at Sac and Fox Casino in Powhattan. The SFD said on social media that due to the size of the fire, a large firefighter presence was requested.

Firefighters from Fairview, Powhatan, Kickapoo Tribe, Wetmore and Horton were called to assist with the blaze, according to the SFD.

False Alarm: Computer glitch sets off tornado sirens in Osage County

The SFD said they helped control the fire while the gas could be shut off. Once the gas was shut off, firefighters used water to cool the propane tank to help burn off the remaining fuel.

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.
Liz Murrill speaks to reporters after qualifying for the 2023 election for Louisiana attorney general.

Attorney General Liz Murrill. (Matthew Perschall/Louisiana Illuminator)

Republican Attorney General Liz Murrill came out in defense of Louisianas abortion ban Wednesday, saying on social media that Democrats have their facts wrong.

Her remarks drew an immediate and sharp rebuke from one of the states leading abortion rights advocates.

Murrills comments came a day after three women, including one from Louisiana, spoke at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago about their difficulties obtaining life-saving reproductive health care in states with abortion bans. All three have campaigned for pending Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris.

They included Kaitlyn Joshua of Baton Rouge, who was turned away from two emergency rooms when she miscarried 11 weeks into her pregnancy. Doctors refused treatment because they feared the criminal consequences of Louisianas strict abortion ban, she said.

The state law allows abortions in instances when a pregnant persons life is in jeopardy or they risk permanent damage to a vital organ, but physicians have said the law lacks enough clarity to ensure they wont face prosecution.

Murrill challenged Joshuas perspective on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. She made her statement through her campaign X account, not the official Louisiana attorney generals account.

There is nothing in our bipartisan law that prohibits emergency care for someone having a miscarriage or any emergency situation during pregnancy. Nothing. Hard stop, Murrill wrote.

In fact, doctors are legally required to care for a pregnant woman who suffers an emergent health crisis, whether thats appendicitis or a miscarriage, the attorney general added in a reply to her original post.

State Rep. Mandie Landry, D-New Orleans, an attorney who has represented reproductive health providers, challenged Murrills version of the facts.

Are you really calling Kaitlyn a liar? And all the women like her who have publicly testified to the same treatment when they were suffering? Despicable, Landry replied to Murrills post.

Joshua also told the DNC delegates she was unable to obtain prenatal care during the first trimester of her pregnancy, which she said her doctor attributed to Louisianas abortion law.

When she was seeking emergency care after going into extremely early labor, doctors were reluctant to provide her with a drug to help treat her miscarriage because its the same one used for medication abortions, Joshua said.

Rep. Mandie Landry, D-New Orleans. (Matthew Perschall for Louisiana Illuminator)

I was in pain, bleeding so much my husband feared for my life, Joshua said. No woman should experience what I endured, but too many have.

Landry also noted that Murrill and the anti-abortion group Louisiana Right to Life helped defeat a proposal from the Legislature to add more clarity to the exceptions in the states abortion ban.

Louisiana may have a law on the books re: life of the mother exception but its not followed because hospitals are afraid of YOU. Sit this one out, Landry responded to Murrill.

The New Orleans legislator is among Louisianas delegates attending the Democratic National Convention.

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Once again, the Democrats have their facts wrong. There is nothing in our bipartisan law that prohibits emergency care for someone having a miscarriage or any emergency situation during pregnancy. Nothing. Hard stop. 1/2 #DNC2024#lalege  Liz Murrill (@LizMurrillforLA) August 20, 2024

Are you really calling Kaitlyn a liar? And all the women like her who have publicly testified to the same treatment when they were suffering? Despicable. #lalege https://t.co/FETDmKOu2Q  Mandie Landry (@votelandry) August 21, 2024
Through the Sarah D. Lande Education Co., in partnership with Wanxiang America Corporation, 13 students from Muscatine participated in a Study in China Experience Program, according to a news release.

This immersive four-week program allowed students to explore China, study the Chinese language, participate in cultural experiences, and gain insight into clean energy science.

I feel inspired to be more ambitious and innovative due to this trip, said a student participant. From the company we visited to the green architecture in the cities  it makes me want to study hard and make an impact in the world!

The Study in China Experience Program ran from July 7 through August 3, 2024. During their time in China, students visited historical landmarks, participated in traditional Chinese arts, and engaged with local communities. In addition, they attended seminars and hands-on workshops focused on Chinese language, culture, and clean energy technologies at Wanxiang Polytechnic in Hangzhou, China.

Every city we visited was a highlight in its own right in terms of infrastructure, technology, people, and cultural customs, said Jesse Garcia, a trip chaperone. Through our experiences and time together, both U.S. and Chinese students formed bonds and friendships that allowed for a greater understanding of each other. I hope this trip will allow students to walk away with a greater understanding of humanity as many of them shared the sentiment regarding our similarities more than our differences.

This partnership is part of the 100,000+ Strong Education Exchange Initiative in China. This national effort is designed to deepen the friendship and cultural understanding between China and the United States.

A student noted, This opportunity is a moment to learn about yourself and what you understand about the world. It helps challenge your own worldview, which can be scary, but it is also really rewarding.

The Sarah D. Lande Education Co. and Wanxiang America Corporation Study in China Experience is supported by the Friendship Education Fund at the Community Foundation of Greater Muscatine, which was established to provide opportunities for students to continue and expand our cultural and educational citizen diplomacy and friendship relationships, primarily with China. This study abroad program has been offered four times since 2014.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WHBF - OurQuadCities.com.
NEW DELHI, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The death toll in Wednesday's explosion at a pharmaceutical manufacturing unit in India's southern state of Andhra Pradesh rose to 17, confirmed a police officer on Thursday.

More than 35 injured people were admitted to a local hospital, he added. However, some media reports stated that nearly 50 people were injured in the mishap, which was said to be the biggest in the past decade in the state.

A major fire was triggered by the blast near the reactor site inside the factory in Atchutapuram Special Economic Zone of Anakapalle district, about 30 km west of Vishakhapatnam, one of the main cities of Andhra Pradesh.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences at the deaths and announced a monetary compensation from the PM National Relief Fund for the deceased's families, and those injured. 
Amid reports that the Democratic National Convention (DNC) will refuse demands to feature a Palestinian American speaker at the Chicago convention, Muslim Women for Harris announced that they cannot in good conscience continue the organization.

We cannot in good conscience, continue Muslim Women for Harris-Walz, in light of this new information from the Uncommitted movement, that VP Harris team declined their request to have a Palestinian American speaker take the stage at the DNC, the group wrote in a statement.

We pray that the DNC and VP Harris team makes the right decision before this convention is over. For the sake of each of us.

There are 30 uncommitted delegates at the Democratic convention, and leaders of the Uncommitted movement, which has called on Vice President Harris and the Democratic Party to commit to an arms embargo, have also been pushing Harris and Democrats to allow a Palestinian to speak at the convention.

The convention and uncommitted delegates had been negotiating throughout the week, according to uncommitted organizers.

However, in the early hours of Thursday morning, the last day of the convention, Abbas Alawieh, one of the leaders of the Uncommitted movement, announced that convention officials had called and told him that no Palestinian would be allowed to speak during the event.

Alawieh, other Uncommitted organizers and protesters then started a sit-in in front of the convention site in Chicago.

Alawieh has said that he is still waiting for a call from the Harris team or Democratic officials allowing for a Palestinian to speak.

The Hill has contacted the Harris campaign and convention organizers for comment.

Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) and Cori Bush (D-Mo.) FaceTimed with participants of the sit-in and expressed their support, and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) joined the protesters and sat with them. During the sit-in, Muslim Women for Harris-Walz announced they planned to disband.

The family of the Israeli Hostage that was on the stage tonight, has shown more empathy towards Palestinian Americans and Palestinians, than our candidate or the DNC has, Muslim Women for Harris-Walz said in their statement. This is a terrible message to send to Democrats. Palestinians have the right to speak about Palestine.

The group was referring Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, the parents of hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin who spoke Wednesday and called for a cease-fire that ends the suffering of the innocent people in Gaza.

Ruwa Romman, a state representative from Georgia who is Palestinian and has been floated as a potential convention speaker, told The Hill that the disbanding of Muslim Women for Harris-Walz represents a glimmer of hope being snuffed.

There was a glimmer of hope. Community members just wanted to see they were seen. Its what Ive been warning about before, said Romman. The group was the beginning of something amazing but it was snuffed.

Harris and Democrats have been walking a tightrope working to engage Palestinian, Muslim and Arab voters almost 10 months after Hamass attack on Israel killed some 1,200 people and provoked an Israeli military response that has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza, most of whom are women and children, according to the United Nations.

Before Harris became the nominee, large swathes of uncommitted voters had turned away from the Democratic Party, but some viewed Harris as more likely to hear their concerns and work with 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.
Serial election denier and MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell is sporting a new, mustache-less look at the Democratic National Convention this week in Chicagobut hes still spewing the same old election lies while arguing with attendees.

Lindell, who has spent the last few years insisting wrongly that widespread voter fraud swung the 2020 presidential election in favor of President Joe Biden, still hasnt proven so. Yet he continued to bark up that tree in a viral face-to-face meeting with a young Harris-Walz campaign advocate and merchandise seller who goes by the name Knowa.

During the Tuesday confrontation, Lindell spoke at length about hundreds of thousands of missing votes in Georgiaa wild claim that isnt supported by any evidence.

257,000 votesthis happened last week, a judge ruled in Georgiathat are missing from the 2020 election, Lindell said, according to a video from Meidas Touch Network that was later posted on X.

Lol wow Mike Lindell debates Knowa pic.twitter.com/K5KSCstgYG  Acyn (@Acyn) August 21, 2024

Knowa, who had asked Lindell to cite a source while he was talking, replied, So your source is, Trust me, bro?

No, Lindell insisted. Its in your papers in Georgia. You need to read your news.

After telling Lindell that he still hadnt provided any names, Knowa walked away while telling Lindell that he was full of crap.

Knowa later posted the full exchange with Lindell.

Mike Lindell is an idiot as expected  pic.twitter.com/mIygqo02qj  Knowa (@KnowaWasTaken) August 22, 2024

The closest news headline regarding missing votes in Georgia from the last presidential election is an Associated Press fact check from last December which debunks a claim that more than 20,000 votes that were tallied do not exist.

After publication of this story, Lindell responded to a request for clarification from the Daily Beast by linking to a September 2022 Wordpress page for a purported election integrity group in Georgia showing a list of alleged findings regarding the 2020 electionunaccompanied by citations or links to any sources, like reputable newspapers.

Earlier this year, Lindell saw some of his bravado about the 2020 election come back to bite him. In February, a federal judge in Minnesota ruled that the pillow manufacturer had to pay $5 million to a man who successfully completed his Prove Mike Wrong challenge, in effect proving that the 2020 election wasnt stolen from Donald Trump.

Lindells company has also been struggling financially. His MyPillow ads no longer appear on Fox News, two law firms defending Lindell in a massive defamation lawsuit brought by Dominion Voter Systems quit last October, and MyPillow was evicted from a Minnesota warehouse this past March for lack of payment.

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(Reuters) - A dense bamboo forest in rebel-held territory surrounds the training ground in eastern Myanmar where more than 100 young people, mostly in their twenties, are undergoing rigorous military drills.

From former chefs to ex-journalists, rappers and poets, people from all walks of life have joined the resistance movement with a single goal: to overthrow the military regime that seized power in the Southeast Asian nation in 2021.

The Bamar People's Liberation Army (BPLA), led by onetime anti-war poet Maung Saungkha, is a prominent force in Myanmar's resistance movement.

A trainer, whistle in hand, commands the synchronized movements of the recruits. Discipline is enforced with harsh blows for any mistake. Under the scorching sun, sweat soaks their bodies, and their skin is marked with bruises from the demanding training.

The trainees' daily routine starts at 4 a.m. and ends at 9 p.m., with Sunday being their only day off. They endure hours of intense training without being allowed a single drop of water during the sessions.

Representing Myanmar's Bamar ethnic majority, the BPLA was formed in April 2021 to fight the junta after it toppled an elected government in February that year. Since October, the group has been a key player in Operation 1027, a joint offensive with other rebel militias that has significantly weakened the military.

Myanmar, which won independence from Britain in 1948, has long been dominated by its military. A brief spell of civilian rule ended with the 2021 coup that toppled the government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.

For those joining the fight under the BPLA's banner, their home in the jungle are makeshift tents, accommodating around 20 to 30 people each.

Their sleeping mats are laid out a few inches apart on the floor. Maintaining a tidy space is essential, so uniforms, toiletries and study books are neatly arranged on their makeshift beds.

The BPLA's basic training is renowned for its harshness and strict discipline. The training spans three months, pushing recruits to their physical and mental limits. Upon arrival at the training camp, all personal belongings, including phones, are confiscated and returned only after the completion of the training period.

One trainee, an 18-year-old woman standing about 5 feet tall, shows signs of wear from the gruelling regimen. She has dark circles under her eyes, her hair is cut almost to the scalp, and her skin is sunburned from long hours spent outdoors. Despite her exhaustion, she carries a hint of resilience and determination.

Among her few possessions, she said, was a stuffed toy that she brought with her to the camp. When asked about it, she smiled and said: "One of the trainers kept it for me, and she will give it back after the training."

LESSONS IN POLITICS

In addition to military training, BPLA recruits undergo political education. After morning drills, a short break allows for rest or review of recent political lessons.

Following dinner, everyone gathers in the bamboo-constructed assembly hall. The BPLA flag hangs above the whiteboard. Powered by a generator, fluorescent lights illuminate the room. Here, evening political classes take place.

Every evening, Maung Saungkha delves into the BPLA's founding principles, government structure, federalism, and even gender equality. His words echo through the makeshift hall.

"I know you're exhausted," he told them, "but a soldier's duty transcends fatigue."

One night, as the lesson progresses, a chilling silence descends upon the camp. A junta scout drone has detected their presence. The generator shuts down, plunging the camp into darkness. Everyone freezes, waiting for the drone to disappear.

The following morning, Maung Saungkha gathers his officers to reinforce emergency procedures in case of a fighter jet attack. The roar of jets is a familiar threat in the jungle, but vigilance remains crucial.

Ma Chel, a 25-year-old woman and deputy head of recruitment and screening for the BPLA, recalls her journey from civilian to soldier. After completing basic training, she said she was proud to become an instructor.

"My trainer told me that if one soldier goes to the frontline, there's one bullet fired. But if 100 students go, there are 100 bullets, Ma Chel said. "This made me feel proud and motivated."

Last April, the BPLA held a graduation ceremony for new recruits. Soon after the graduation, some of them were sent to the frontlines in Karen State. More than 20 BPLA soldiers have died in battles since 2021, including some from the recent graduate batch in April, the movement's leaders said.

One of the young recruits, a young woman who asked to be identified only by the initials G.G. reminisces on the transformation from soft city girl to revolutionary.

"I couldnt hold a gun at first because it was so heavy, and I had to be really careful when handling it," G.G. said.

She marvels that before the coup, she could barely walk up to her family's fifth-floor apartment but now carries heavy bags up steep hills.

She once dreamed of working in a hotel and had started hospitality training before the coup. But here in the jungle, that seems a distant memory.

"I might continue working toward my dream," she said. "If I am still alive after the revolution."

(Editing by Kay Johnson and Raju Gopalakrishnan)
Nancy Pelosi passes the torch to a new generation at Democratic convention

Nancy Pelosi Wednesday told Democratic convention delegates and the nation to turn to a new generation of leaders, led by Vice President Kamala Harrisbut also reminded everyone shes still in there slugging away at Republicans.

All thanks to President Bidens patriotic vision of a fairer Americadoing so with liberty and justice for all. Thank you Joe, she said. And I know Vice President Harris is ready to take us to new heights.

Pelosi recalled how shes known Harris for decades. Pelosi has been a San Francisco congresswoman since 1987. Harris is a former city prosecutor, state attorney general and U.S. senator.

Pelosi spent much of her short convention speech reminding listeners about the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the Capitol.

Let us not forget who assaulted democracy on January 6th. He did. But let us not forget who saved democracy that day. We did, said Pelosi, who at the time was House speaker. She wouldnt speak former President Donald Trumps name.

Pelosi, 84, stepped down as speaker last year but is still a member of Congress. She reportedly was instrumental in convincing President Joe Biden, 81, to not seek another term.

Shes been ubiquitous this week, traveling around Chicago telling delegation meetings and the media the torch has passed.

Throughout this week, a recurring theme is that its time for a new generation, one that has begun to take power. Biden spoke Monday, then left for a vacation. Former President Barack Obama spoke Tuesday and Bill Clinton spoke Wednesday. Thursday, the convention will turn to presidential nominee Harris for her acceptance speech.

There were breaks with convention tradition everywhere. Hundreds of content creators helped pitch the message on social media. The roll call of the states Tuesday was basically a rock concert.

An hour before Pelosi spoke Wednesday, Stevie Wonder sang Higher Ground as six dancers performed behind him. Then Saturday Night Lives Kenan Thompson offered biting satire about the conservative Project 2025 blueprint.

Pelosi and the insurrection

Pelosi had no choreography or string of jokes. It was just vintage Pelosi.

Most of her short speech was a reminder of what happened at the Capitol nearly three years ago.

Never before had a president of the United States so brazenly assaulted the bedrock of our democracy, so gleefully embraced political violence, sod willfully betrayed his oath of office, she said. She would not mention Trump by name.

Congress reconvened later January 6 and formally declared Biden the president. The House would later impeach Trump for his actions that day, though the Senate would not convict him.

Thank God we had a Democratic House of Representatives, Pelosi said.

Remember, she said, the parable of January 6th reminds us that our democracy is only as strong as the courage and commitment of those entrusted with its care. And we must choose leaders who believe in free and fair elections and who respect the peaceful transfer of power. The choice couldnt be clearer.

Pelosi still commands immense respect in the party, not only for shepherding through historical health care and economic legislation, but for her skill at keeping her often-fractured caucus together.

Shes faced some criticism within the party for pushing Biden, whose disastrous June 27 debate with Trump ignited calls for him to leave the race.

This week, shes bristled at the same question repeated by the mediawere you instrumental in nudging Biden out of the race?

I have my relationship with the president and I just wanted to win this election, she told reporters after speaking at a California delegation breakfast.

She wanted to talk about November. She wanted to talk more about it Wednesday.

When the sun rose on January 7 (2021), as our national anthem declares, we gave proof through the night that our flag was still there. she said. Now in this election, we are called upon o do the same. To stand together, to reject autocracy. To choose democracy.
Nancy Pelosi spoke on Vice President Kamala Harris religion during her brief speech Wednesday night at the Democratic National Convention.

Pelosi, the former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, said that shes gotten to know the vice president as a person of faith as theyve worked together in politics.

Ive known Kamala Harris for decades. ... I know her as a person of deep faith, which is reflected in her community care and service, Pelosi said.

She praised her strength and wisdom in policy battles, including recent conflict over abortion rights.

I know that Vice President Harris is ready to take us to new heights, Pelosi said.

Pelosi also thanked President Joe Biden for his service in her speech and reflected on what happened during the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

We demonstrated to America, and to the world, that American democracy prevailed, she said, as the Deseret News previously reported.

What religion is Kamala Harris?

Pelosis comments on Harris religion were notable since the vice president hasnt made religion a big part of her presidential campaign  at least not yet.

Although, as the Deseret News previously reported, its known that Harris identifies as a Baptist and belongs to Third Baptist Church in San Francisco, she only rarely speaks or writes about the role faith has played in her political journey.

Harris was raised Christian but was also connected to Hinduism from a young age through her relationship with her mother.

As an adult, Harris married Douglas Emhoff, who is Jewish, and helped raised his Jewish children.
Kamala Harris is the candidate, but Nancy Pelosis hold on the party is still strong, as the Speaker Emerita made clear Wednesday at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

I know that Vice President Harris is ready to take us to new heights, said the longtime congresswoman from Californias 11th district in a primetime address to a packed United Center, one day before the first Black woman ever nominated for president by a major American political party takes the same stage. Politically, she is astute and strategic in winning difficult elections, quickly securing the nomination with dignity and grace and choosing Tim Walz as our vice president, Pelosi added in the highest praise possible for such a political grandmaster.

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In that context, in the complicated factions of the Democratic Party, Pelosis daughter put it best when she tweeted tonight:

Through her army of loyalists, the 84-year-old Pelosi is widely viewed as the pivotal force in the effort to see 81-year-old Joe Bidens exit the scene after his debate debacle against Donald Trump live on CNN on June 27. The numbers-crunching San Francisco politician, who grew up as Democratic Party royalty through her Baltimore mayor father, has scoffed off tales of her role in the presidents ouster from the White House race.

Despite Pelosis protests, not many people are buying The Art of Power authors pleas of innocence. Which is probably why Pelosi opened her remarks with an extended Thank you Joe! to soothe over the resentment cracks in party unity.

At least for the moment, Pelosi even erased her own role in the legislative achievements of the past three years  all of which she ushered through the Congress.

On January 20, 2021, with the inauguration of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, we established one of the most successful presidencies of modern times, Pelosi said.

And we quickly proved that Democrats deliver  millions of jobs, stronger infrastructure and rural broadband, a Biden Child Tax Credit, rescuing human pensions, honoring our veterans, bold climate action, lowering the cost of prescription drugs, she said. All thanks to President Bidens patriotic vision of a fair America doing so with liberty and justice for all.

As she praised one president, Pelosi unsurprisingly roundly condemned another.

January 6 was a perilous moment for our democracy, she said of her despised former foil Donald Trump. Never before had a president of the United States so brazenly assaulted the bedrock of our democracy so lethally embraced political violence so willfully betrayed his oath of office, Pelosi told her fellow Democrats of the attack on Congress that found many MAGA insurgents directly looking to attack her.

The crowd tonight was certainly pro-Pelosi, despite friction over the Biden situation. On cable news, there was at least one voice of dissent.

In a rare act of self-reflection, seasoned Pelosi basher Fox News even made a joke about coverage of the speech tonight  or rather, how they werent covering it. I know youre missing Nancy Pelosi right now, Laura Ingraham told viewers with a near-straight face. Were very sad about that.

After Bill Clinton went long in his own speech, Pelosi seemed to hurry through her own remarks, which went less than five minutes.

Tightening the schedule from the indulgence of the opening nights, the third day of the DNC saw moving words from family members of hostages held in Gaza, inspirational words and music from Stevie Wonder and a primetime introduction from Mindy Kaling. With Ava DuVernay (seen filming), Lynda Carter, Captain Phillips scribe and Deadline Strike Talk podcast host Billy Ray and comedian Alex Eldeman among the Hollywood contingency in the house, the star power was inching up as Thursdays marquee night loomed.

As well, Wednesday also saw speeches from Republican Geoff Duncan the former Lt. Gov of Georgia, various Democratic leaders past, present and future, a scathing takedown of the GOPs draconian Project 2025, and a killer set from House Speaker-to-be Hakeem Jefferies.

Just before Pelosi, Clinton spoke from the stage in a relatively low-key and McDonalds-punchline-filled speech from the man who has never met a microphone he didnt like. Later tonight, 2024 VP nominee and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz will face the delegates after being in and out of Chicago and on the campaign trail with Harris.

Vice President Harris is set to address the delegates tomorrow night with her own acceptance speech.

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Nancy Pelosi thanks Biden at convention and says Harris will take us to new heights

Nancy Pelosi waves to the audience during the third night of the Democratic national convention in Chicago, Illinois, on Wednesday.

Nancy Pelosi waves to the audience during the third night of the Democratic national convention in Chicago, Illinois, on Wednesday. Photograph: Caroline Brehman/EPA

Democrats rose to their feet when Nancy Pelosi walked on stage at the United Center in Chicago for the Democratic national convention. They applauded, and then applauded louder. Pelosi waved before quieting the room.

The former House speaker began by expressing her gratitude to Joe Biden, calling his term one of the most successful presidencies of modern times. even though she had pushed subtly but forcefully for the president to step aside.

Thank you, Joe, she said, before turning to Kamala Harris, a fellow California Democrat who Pelosi proclaimed was ready to take us to new heights.

Pelosi may have retired as House Democratic leader, but the convention has proved  if proof were needed  that the veteran congresswoman remains one of the most consequentially and uniquely influential power brokers in the party who can make  or break  a US president.

Earlier on Wednesday, Pelosi, now House speaker emerita, was reluctant to reveal details of her conversation with Biden just over a month ago, during the deeply agonizing period before he decided to abandon his re-election bid and endorse Harris.

Speaking at the University Club of Chicago, in a room paneled with stained glass, Pelosi insisted that the monumental decision was Bidens alone to make. But pressed by the Democratic strategist David Axelrod, she conceded that she believed it essential Democrats deny Donald Trump a second term. The cost was denying Biden one, too.

I wanted very much to protect his legacy, she said. But her highest priority was to win the election  and not just the White House, but the House and the Senate.

A great sacrifice was made here, said Pelosi, who will seek another term  her 20th  in Novembers elections.

The former speaker appeared uncomfortable with the insinuation that she was a central figure in pushing Biden to end his re-election campaign, a decision that has transformed the presidential race. Harriss ascent has electrified Democrats and unified the party behind the new presidential ticket, which includes her running mate, Tim Walz, a former Minnesota congressman who Pelosi had also advocated for.

You have to make the decision to win, and you have to make every decision in favor of winning, she said.

Biden has denied that any one person had pushed him out of the race. Speaking to reporters on Monday, after delivering what amounted to a farewell speech at the Democratic convention, he said: No one influenced my decision. No one knew it was coming.

Pelosi and Biden, devout Catholics who have known each other for decades, have not spoken since he ended his campaign. The rupture has weighed on Pelosi, she said: Ive cried over this. Im sad about it.

But, she added emphasizing the word, But, we take an oath to protect and defend the constitution of the United States.

In Chicago, Pelosi has been a presence at the many events surrounding the convention. On Wednesday she joked that she was doing nearly 10 events a day, taking something of a victory lap at the joy-filled convention she helped set in motion.

At almost every stop, she was received as a conquering hero among Democrats, who have long held the speaker in awe. During the roll call on Tuesday, Gavin Newsom, Californias governor, declared he was from the great state of Nancy Pelosi and the actor Mindy Kaling introduced Pelosi the following night as the mother of dragons and a woman who was doing brat before brat was brat. Some attendees, including her allies in Congress, are sporting pins that call her the godmother  a nod to her influence.

During his remarks in Chicago, Biden said: All this talk about how Im angry at all those people who said I should step down, its not true.

Pelosi, the daughter of a longtime Baltimore mayor and student of the citys brass knuckle politics, shared anecdotes from her new book, The Art of Power, about her extraordinary career arc that she described as: housewife, House member, House speaker.

She was the first  and so far only  female speaker of the House, and was the highest ranking woman in US politics until Harris was elected to serve as the nations first female vice-president.

You have to be able to take a punch, you have to be able to throw a punch  for the children, she said, a Pelosi-ism that drew laughs from the packed audience.

Asked by Axelrod whether Harris should emphasize the history-making possibility of her candidacy, Pelosi said breaking what Hillary Clinton once called the highest hardest glass ceiling in US politics was important, but not a political message.

Related: Walz, Bill Clinton and surprise Oprah: Democratic convention day three key takeaways

The prospect of Harris becoming the first female president brings tears to my eyes Pelosi said, but it doesnt necessarily bring votes to the ballot box.

Its icing on the cake, she said. But it aint the cake.

Now considered one of the most powerful House speakers in modern political history, Pelosi said it was not her ambition to become a member of the party leadership when she first arrived in Washington DC.

I became interested in running because we kept losing the elections, 94, 96, 98 and then it was 2000 I thought: Im so tired of losing, she said.

Soon after, when she made her decision to run known, Pelosi said she was met with incredulity by male colleagues, who admonished her to wait her turn.

Who said she could run? Pelosi recalled them saying. She was told there was a pecking order and she wasnt in it.

They said: These people have been waiting a long time, Pelosi recounted. So I said: Was it over 200 years?

Democratic convention highlights:
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) recently reported that 19 cases of Oropouche virusalso known as the sloth viruswere found in Germany, Italy, and Spain.

Although there is no evidence that the virus spreads human-to-human, health officials have seen a huge uptick in cases around the world.

The Oropouche virus comes with symptoms similar to dengue, Zika, and the chikungunya virus, but has a very low mortality rate.

While the world quickly approaches the fifth anniversary of the first detection of the COVID-19 coronavirus, the World Health Organization (WHO) has another transmissible virus that its keeping its eyes on. Unlike the virus behind the previous deadly global pandemic, this illness isnt nearly as deadly, but the number of cases has risen almost 10 times this year, as compared to 2023and that has health agencies around the world worried.

This midge-and-mosquito-spreading disease is the Oropouche virus (OROV)also known as the sloth virus, as the disease infects sloths (among other animals) while in its enzootic cycle. And also unlike the coronavirus, the Oropouche virus (pronounced o-ro-push) isnt a new enemy. Health officials recorded the first case of the virus in 1955 in Vega de Oropouche, which is a village in Trinidad and Tobago near the Oropouche River.

Despite showing up in the southernmost Caribbean island, the virus is actually endemic to the Amazon basin. And until the year 2000, the illness remained largely contained in Brazil, Panama, Colombia, and Peru, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention .

Now, things are changing.

This past June, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported the first case of the virus in Cuba. More recently, European health officials notched 19 cases located in Italy, Germany, and Spainmost of which were related to travelers who returned to the continent from Cuba. So far, no cases have been reported in the U.S. or Canada.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) identifies a species of biting midge (Culicoides paraensis)which has a native range stretching from the northern U.S. to Argentinaas the main vector for the contraction for this disease. But, not to be outdone, the endlessly intolerable mosquito has also been known to get in on some sloth virus-spreading action. That makes the sloth virus technically an arbovirus, meaning its spread via insect bite. Currently, the ECDC doesnt know if European midges could be capable of spreading the disease.

From January 1 to August 1, 2024, 8,000 cases of the virus have been reported, which is a meteoric jump from the 832 that were recorded the previous year. Around 60 percent of those infected become symptomatic and experience headaches, chills, nausea, fever, general achiness, or joint painsimilar symptoms to other virus like Zika, dengue, and chikungunya viruses. However, like those virus, things can go from bad to worse and symptoms can come to include vomiting, diarrhea, fatigue, and abdominal pain. Of those 8,000 cases, two people have died from the virus, and eight cases from vertical transmission (mother to fetus) caused fetal death or abnormalities.

Despite that mountain of bad news, the virus (thankfully) doesnt appear to spread very wellat least, not among humans.

Direct, horizontal, human-to-human transmission of the virus has not been documented so far, the ECDC said in a threat assessment brief last week. The likelihood of human exposure to OROV in the EU/EEA is considered very low, despite the possible importation of further OROV disease cases, as the competent vectors commonly described in the Americas are absent from continental Europe, and to date, no secondary transmission has ever been reported.

So, while we most likely dont have another pandemic in the works, health officials will continue keeping an eye on this troublesome illness from the deep Amazon rainforest.



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CHICAGO  On the first day of the Democratic National Convention, Monday August 19, Democrats For Palestinian Human Rights held a panel to hear from organizers, humanitarians and elected officials who are working to accomplish a ceasefire in Gaza. Native people have shown their support for those suffering in Gaza.

[Trigger warning: talk of genocide and graphic descriptions of injuries.]

Organization Not Another Bomb! have garnered support from DNC delegates for a permanent ceasefire. They are calling themselves Ceasefire Delegates. At the panel, speaker Layla Elabed, co-founder of Uncommitted, a movement urging voters to vote uncommitted as a way to pressure elected officials, asked Ceasefire Delegates to stand. Over 50 people in the room stood up.

Gabriella Cazares-Kelly (Tohono Oodham Nation) was a speaker for the second panel during Mondays DNC Native American Caucus meeting and spoke to the importance of Indigenous people supporting Indigenous people everywhere, including Gaza. She is the Pima County, AZ Recorder, a former public school educator, and one of four women who co-founded Indivisible Tohono, an organization that provides education and civic-engagement opportunities for members of her tribe.

As survivors of genocide, Indigenous people know firsthand that the government can make mistakes, and they can do that with policy, and they can do that with weapons, said Cazares-Kelly. We have the opportunity to do something, and if we can't push past that, what are we fighting for?

Keith Ellison, Minnesota Attorney General and previous U.S. Representative, was the moderator for the panel discussing the Palestinian-Isreali conflict. During his time in Congress, he visited Palestine and Israel thirteen times.

We have this situation where on October 7, 1200 Israelis were killed or captured, and now 40,000 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children. Everyone has been displaced, said Ellison.

The Israeli attacks on Gaza have resulted in the direct death of 40,000 Palestianians which is 2 percent of Gazas population. Accounting for indirect deaths, experts estimate the numbers are much higher, around 186,000, nearly 10 percent of the population. 1.9 million Palestinians in Gaza have been internally displaced, as stated on the Ceasefire Delegate Fact Sheet handed out for the panel.

Dr. Tanya Haj-Hassan, pediatric surgeon who served in Gaza, shared two heart wrenching stories of her time as a doctor in Gaza. She has been helping in Gaza in the West Bank for over 10 years as a part of a team of doctors and surgeons from Oxford University.

Every single one of us, many of us, have worked in many wars before, and we have never seen anything so egregious, so atrocious, said Haj-Hassan. I received a young boy to the emergency department during one of the mass casualties who had half of his face and neck missing He kept asking for his sister. His sister was in the bed next to him. The majority of her body was burned beyond recognition. He didn't recognize that the girl in the bed next sister, his entire family, parents and the rest of the siblings were killed in the same attack that boy survived.

Dr. Haj-Hassan explained she visited him later, and he, to the best of his ability, told her I wish I had died tooEverybody I love is now in heaven. I don't want to be here anymore.

In April, Congress passed a supplemental funding bill that gave $16.5 billion in military aid to Israel in addition to the $3.8 billion given annually. As for the weapons being used against Palestianians, 69 percent of them have been provided by the United States.

With the unwavering protests outside the DNC and other ongoing protests and boycotts, support for a permanent ceasefire and arms embargo have increased among voters. A poll conducted in three key swing states, Pennsylvania, Georgia, and Arizona, by YouGov found that voters were more likely to vote for Harris if she publicly supported an arms embargo. Nearly 1,500 likely Democratic and independent voters were polled.

In Pennsylvania, 34 percent of voters polled said they would be more likely to vote for Harris compared to the 7 percent who indicated they would be less likely to vote for her. In Arizona and Georgia the numbers are similar, with 35 percent more likely in Arizona and 39 percent in Georgia.

My office doesn't create legislation. My office has to do with voter registration and early voting. My office would never need to have any type of policy surrounding that. However, I am a political figure, and I am somebody who is in the public light, and somebody who is handed a microphone and on stage, and I need to use that opportunity and talk about it, Cazares-Kelly said. For those who don't have a microphone, call the people who have the microphone. Call your representatives and make noise about this.

About the Author: "Neely Bardwell (descendant of the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indian) is a staff reporter for Native News Online. Bardwell is also a student at Michigan State University where she is majoring in policy and minoring in Native American studies. "

Contact: neely@nativenewsonline.net
BERLIN (Reuters) -The NATO air base in the German town of Geilenkirchen has raised its security level "based on intelligence information indicating a potential threat," it said late on Thursday.

"All non-mission essential staff have been sent home as a precautionary measure," the base said in a statement on the social media platform X, without giving details. "The safety of our staff is our top priority. Operations continue as planned."

A spokesperson for the base in Geilenkirchen said the threat level had been raised to Charlie, the second-highest of four states of alert, which is defined as "an incident (that) has occurred or intelligence has been received indicating that some form of terrorist action against NATO organisations or personnel is highly likely".

It was the second time the base housing NATO's fleet of AWACS surveillance planes raised the security level after an incident last week when a military base in nearby Cologne was temporarily sealed off as authorities investigated possible sabotage of the water supply.

The same day, the base in Geilenkirchen also reported an attempted trespassing incident that prompted a full sweep of the premises.

With regard to the suspected sabotage at the base in Cologne, the German military later gave the all-clear, saying test results had shown that the tap water was not contaminated.

NATO has warned in the past of a campaign of hostile activities staged by Russia, including acts of sabotage and cyberattacks. Russia has regularly accused NATO of threatening its security.

In June, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the Western military alliance saw a pattern evolving and that recent attacks were a result of Russian intelligence becoming more active.

Several incidents on NATO territory have been treated as suspicious by analysts in recent years, among them the severance of a vital undersea cable connecting Svalbard to mainland Norway in 2022.

(Reporting by Sabine SieboldEditing by Chris Reese and David Gregorio)
Fatima Latifova

Georgia will send a new ambassador to Azerbaijan next year, Azernews reports, citing the statement Embassy of Georgia in Azerbaijan shared.

"According to the decision of the Georgian government, due to the completion of the term established by rotation, the ambassador will conclude his diplomatic mission in Azerbaijan on January 1, 2025," the statement emphasized.

It should be noted that the current ambassador, Zurab Pataradze, has been serving as Georgia's Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador to Azerbaijan since August 2018.
CANBERRA, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Australia will begin producing long-range missiles from 2027 under a partnership with Norwegian defense company Kongsberg.

Pat Conroy, minister for defense industry and capability delivery, on Thursday announced the government will contribute up to 850 million Australian dollars (572.2 million U.S. dollars) in partnership with Kongsberg Defense Australia to manufacture and service missiles locally.

Under the partnership, a missile factory at the airport precinct in the city of Newcastle -- over 100 km north of Sydney -- will open in 2026 and in 2027 begin manufacturing and servicing Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) and Joint Strike Missiles to be used by the Australian Defense Force (ADF).

The NSM will replace the Harpoon anti-ship missiles on the ADF's Hobart class destroyers and Anzac class frigates. 
HONOLULU (KHON2)  In recent months, the Navy has taken significant steps to address and rectify the long-standing environmental concerns surrounding the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility (RHBFSF) on Oahu.

The facility has been the center of controversy due to the potential contamination of the islands water supply, raising fears among local communities about the safety of their drinking water and the future of Oahus precious aquifer.

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The Navys efforts, though extensive, have been closely monitored by state regulators, environmental agencies, and the public, all of whom demand transparency and accountability.

The Navy Closure Task Force-Red Hill (NCTF-RH), led by Rear Adm. Steve Barnett, has been at the forefront of these remediation efforts.

According to Barnett, the task forces mission has been to assess and clean up the environment around Red Hill while also decommissioning the underground fuel storage tanks.

The task forces work has involved collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Hawaii Department of Health (DOH) to ensure all regulatory requirements are met.

Barnett emphasized that the Navy remains committed to protecting Oahus aquifer and working closely with stakeholders to understand the islands groundwater conditions.

One of the Navys primary focuses has been the Red Hill Site Assessment of Fuel Contamination.

This summer, the Navy developed an environmental site assessment plan, which serves as the foundation for all future remediation activities at Red Hill. This plan was submitted to regulators for review and comments, marking a significant step forward in addressing the contamination concerns.

Another critical area of focus has been the investigation of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly known as PFAS.

These chemicals, often referred to as forever chemicals due to their persistence in the environment, have been a growing concern for both regulators and the public. In response to these concerns, the Navy agreed to expedite the schedule and expand its sampling efforts.

A work plan was submitted to the Hawaii DOH in June 2024, with a commitment to begin sampling at a series of monitoring wells around Red Hill in September 2024.

The Navy has also made significant progress in monitoring groundwater around Red Hill. Since 2021, the NCTF-RH has installed 21 new groundwater monitoring wells, with plans to complete a 22nd well by the end of August.

These wells are part of a comprehensive network designed to provide a better understanding of groundwater conditions in and around the facility. The Navy conducts bi-weekly sampling of these wells in accordance with a plan approved by the EPA and DOH.

In addition to these monitoring efforts, the Navy has been working on a Groundwater Flow Model, which was submitted in draft form to the DOH, EPA, and University of Hawaii researchers in July 2024.

This model includes a contaminant fate and transport component, which is essential for understanding how contaminants move and interact with the environment over time. The final version of the model is expected to be submitted in September 2024.

The Navys response to potential spills has also been tested. On July 22, NCTF-RH staff completed a joint spill drill exercise that involved multiple agencies, including the EPA and Hawaii Emergency Management Agency.

The exercise simulated a release of a mixture of water and cleaning solution during pressure washing operations, testing the Navys emergency response capabilities. Rear Adm. Marc Williams, NCTF-RH deputy commander, praised the teams efforts, noting that the drill was crucial for ensuring the safe and efficient cleaning of tanks 7 and 8.

Despite these efforts, challenges remain. On August 15, a backup in the fuel-oil recovery line caused 25 gallons of a water-sludge mixture to enter a primary containment area at the facility.

Fortunately, there was no release to the environment, and the mixture was safely contained and disposed of. The EPA and DOH validated the Navys response the following day, confirming that the system operated as designed.

Cleaning efforts for tanks 7 and 8 have progressed, but not without setbacks. After sludge removal operations concluded in early July, inspections revealed the need for structural repairs before pressure washing equipment could be installed.

These repairs are currently underway. Air quality monitoring at the facility continues, with volatile organic compound levels remaining well below regulatory limits.

Preparatory work has also begun on tanks 5 and 6, with the installation of a forced air ventilation system. The initial venting phase is expected to begin within the next month, following required notifications to regulators and the public.

Throughout these efforts, NCTF-RH has maintained ongoing communication with the community and stakeholders. In July, task force leaders met with congressional staff, the Red Hill Remediation Roundtable, and various community groups, including the Waianae Moku Kupuna Council.

They also provided updates to Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi and the Governors Water Committee on the progress being made at Red Hill.

To further engage with the public, NCTF-RH will host an Open House at the Moanalua Terrace Community Center on August 21.

The event will feature information booths, displays about the tank cleaning process, and a demonstration of an online dashboard showing the progress of the closure efforts.

Community members will have the opportunity to ask questions, view samples of sludge removed from the tanks, and learn more about the history of the Red Hill facility.

As the Navy continues its work at Red Hill, the eyes of Oahus residents remain fixed on the outcome. The stakes are high, with the future of the islands water supply hanging in the balance.

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The task forces actions in the coming months will be crucial in determining whether trust can be rebuilt and whether the environment can be restored.

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As they await a decision from Centre Countys top judge, prosecutors and lawyers for a State College man who claims he was wrongfully convicted of murder in the 1980s have sparred after a leading forensic expert joined the call to reverse his conviction.

Ann H. Ross, a North Carolina State faculty member who has doctorate in anthropology, wrote in a report filed earlier this month that she believes a .22-caliber bullet killed Thomas Kinser, not a larger .25-caliber bullet as alleged by Centre County prosecutors.

In ruling out a correlation between the fatal wound and the gun prosecutors said Subramanyam Subu Vedam used to kill Kinser, Ross said she examined crime scene and autopsy photographs, trial transcripts and other legal filings.

She wrote she also reviewed the full FBI report into Kinsers killing, one that Vedams defense team claimed prosecutors concealed for more than four decades. Ross wrote she could not have completed her report without access to the newly discovered FBI records.

Vedams lead defense lawyer Gopal Balachandran said in a statement that his team is thrilled to have retained Dr. Ross to testify on behalf of Subu. She is one of only 70 board-certified forensic anthropologists in the United States.

She only rarely testifies on behalf of criminal defendants, but does get involved when she sees forensic science distorted in harmful, egregious ways, as happened in this case, Balachandran said. Most important, her testimony will show what our filings have indicated all along  Subu is innocent because a .25 caliber handgun could not have been the murder weapon.

Ross report seemingly did little to change the minds of Centre County prosecutors. First Assistant District Attorney Joshua Andrews wrote in response that nothing in that report establishes any basis for relief, nor any justification for further proceedings.

Much of the information Ross reviewed was available to Vedam for decades, Andrews wrote. He also described the report as untimely and said it did not contradict testimony that was presented at trial.

There is no reasonable likelihood of a different trial outcome, Andrews wrote.

Supporters of Subramanyam Vedam hold up signs outside the Centre County Courthouse on Monday, July 22, 2024.

Kinser borrowed his parents van in December 1980 to give Vedam a ride so he could buy drugs in Lewistown. It was the last time he was seen alive by his family or friends.

Two hikers found his decomposing remains about nine months later in a sinkhole in Harris Township. A forensic pathologist determined Kinser, 19, of Boalsburg, died of a gunshot to the head.

Vedam was convicted on circumstantial evidence; no weapon was ever recovered and there were no witnesses. The former Penn State student was sentenced in his 20s to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Now 63, Vedam has spent about two-thirds of his life at Huntingdon state prison. If hes successful in proving his innocence and gaining his release, he would become the longest-serving inmate in Pennsylvania history to be exonerated.

Its been 41 years, six months and 144 days as of Thursday since his first conviction. The longest imprisoned Pennsylvania inmate to be cleared of guilt spent 40 years, three months and four days behind bars, according to data kept by The National Registry of Exonerations.

Its not known when Centre County President Judge Jonathan Grine is expected to rule on Vedams request for a new hearing. He did not offer a timeline after a July hearing in front of a standing-room-only crowd.

Mr. Vedam is well into his fifth decade of an unjust incarceration. Instead of honestly engaging with the robust evidence establishing his innocence, the Commonwealth continues to defend the indefensible, Vedams lawyers wrote. It is past time to correct this outrage.

An undated photo of Subramanyam Subu Vedam, a State College man who says hes spent more than 40 years in prison for a murder he did not commit.
Driftwood Apartments, a 15-unit permanent supportive housing apartment complex in Wilmington, recently reopened after being closed for renovations. (Photo: Greg Childress)

The North Carolina Housing Finance Agency (NCHFA) is one of 18 state housing agencies that recently received an award from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to secure affordable housing for people with disabilities. NCHFA will receive nearly $8 million to help people with disabilities pay for affordable, safe housing. The agency will spend the money on 225 housing units in the form of rental assistance.

The awards may be used to address long-term housing security and affordability issues within existing, new or renovated multifamily developments. Agencies will will work with Medicaid and/or state health and human services agencies to connect tenants with community-based support services.

Scott Farmer addresses a crowd

Adults with disabilities often face significant barriers in securing a safe and stable place to live, Assistant Secretary for Housing and Federal Housing Commissioner Julia Gordon said in a statement. These awards create opportunities for more housing thats available, accessible, and inclusive.

Funding for the grants come from HUDs Section 811 Project Rental Assistance for Persons with Disabilities program.

Under the Biden-Harris Administration, we are committed to removing barriers to housing and ensuring that everyone has access to an accessible, quality, and affordable home that meets their needs, said HUD Acting Secretary Adrianne Todman. Todays [August 14] awards will support Americans with disabilities by both creating affordable housing and expanding crucial support services.

Scott Farmer, executive director of NCHFA said his agency applied for the Section 811 award in partnership with the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services.

Our intent with the plan we submitted to HUD, were going to utilize this as rental assistance for units that are set aside within some of our recently funded or to be funded Housing Credit property, Farmer said. With our tax credit program, were already setting aside 10% of all of the units for persons with disabilities through what we call the Targeting [Housing] Program.

The states Targeting Housing Program to which Farmer referred is a supportive housing program for people who are very low income and disabled and in need of affordable housing. The program is a partnership between NCHFA and NCDHHS in collaboration with owners, property management and service provider agencies.

Each year, 10% of all the rental apartments that are developed using the federal Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) are reserved to allow people with disabilities to apply to live in them. Under the housing tax credit program, developers are awarded tax credits in exchange for agreeing to maintain the property as affordable housing for a minimum of 30 years.

Farmer said the state funded rental assistance program administered through NCDHSS doesnt meet all of the needs.

Its not enough, Farmer said. With rents escalating and an increase in demand for units overall, but especially for those at the lowest incomes and those with different disabilities, there needs to be additional resources. So, when this federal resource popped up, we applied for it.

The agency received a Section 811 award in 2019, Farmer said, but did not receive it until January 2024 due to the pandemic and other delays.

We were getting ready to implement those funds [from 2019] while we were applying for this second round, Farmer said.

NC Newsline recently reported that the N.C. Department of Health & Human Services Strategic Housing Plan published in March 2023 calls for the agency to support the creation of 3,500 PSH [permanent supportive housing] opportunities for people with disabilities through new construction and rehabilitation of existing properties.

Research shows that PSH is effective for those with more severe disabilities and complex needs  including people with severe mental illness, people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD), people impacted by substance use and substance use disorder, those experiencing chronic homelessness, and people exiting institutions, the strategic housing plan said.

The research also shows that such housing is cost effective for people with co-occurring conditions who are experiencing homelessness and frequently use costly emergency and institutional services, the plan says. And overall, PSH results in positive outcomes on health, including behavioral health, as well as overall housing stability, according to the plan.
RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN)  The U.S. Attorney for eastern North Carolina said Thursday that nearly $5 million worth of cryptocurrency has been seized in a major move to disrupt investment fraud.

The cryptocurrency, called Tether, is pegged to the U.S. dollar. According to U.S. Attorney Michael Easley, the funds were traced to cryptocurrency addresses that are allegedly associated with laundering schemes which stole from victims of crypto investment scams. Its a practice Easley said is commonly known as pig butchering.

Hamas money laundering worries spark proposed new U.S. crypto rule

Americans are losing their lifes savings to investment frauds as funds are being rapidly transferred to cryptocurrency accounts overseas, said U.S. Attorney Michael Easley. In this case, one victim lost his entire individual retirement account to a scam. We are clawing back every dollar we can, even when criminals are located abroad. We are determined to seize their illegal proceeds and return money to the victims.

Court filings said that criminal actors approached and recruited victims through the guise of a romantic relationship to develop their trust.

Once the relationship was established, the scammer would claim to have a technique to make large profits trading crypto and introduce the victim to a crypto trading platform that bore a similar name and appearance to a legitimate trading platform. These fake investment platforms display fictitious investment portfolios with abnormally large investment returns, which are designed to induce the victim to invest more.

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When the victim then attempts to withdraw funds, they are unable to do so and are often met with excuses, which is a technique the scammers use to elicit more money out of their victims.

Once the victims funds have been transferred to a crypto wallet under the scammers control, the funds are moved through many other wallets to obfuscate the nature, source, control and ownership of those fraud proceeds. In this case, agents with the FBI were able to trace those victims funds into and through various wallets allegedly used in the fraud and money laundering scheme.

As criminal actors continue to evolve in the world of cyber-enabled fraud, the FBI and its law enforcement partners must also evolve, said FBI Charlotte Special Agent in Charge Robert M. DeWitt. This cryptocurrency seizure serves as an example of the FBI adapting to the changing criminal landscape and fighting for victims of cyber-enabled fraud schemes.

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A South Los Angeles woman is suing Starbucks after an incident at a drive-through. (Charlie Neibergall / Associated Press)

A South Los Angeles woman is suing Starbucks for negligence, alleging she was scalded at a drive-through window in Lynwood.

Muriel Evans filed a complaint Wednesday with the Los Angeles County Superior Court in Compton. She alleges that a faulty coffee cup lid and the excessive heat from her beverage led to severe burns after a barista spilled coffee into her lap.

Evans is asking for general and special damages, including her medical, hospital and incidental expenses, and punitive damages to set an example of Starbucks. She alleges the corporation is indifferent to the obviously dangerous mixture of excessively hot temperatures combined with defective lids.

Starbucks has shown a reckless disregard for the safety of its customers, continuing to serve scalding hot coffee in defective cups despite countless reports and warnings, Evans attorney Nick Rowley said in a statement.

A Starbucks representative responded briefly: We take pride in ensuring our beverages are crafted with care and delivered to customers safely. We take all claims seriously, but we will not be commenting on pending litigation.

Read more: Starbucks replaces its CEO, names Chipotle chief to head the company

Evans pulled into the Starbucks drive-through on Aug. 25, 2022, and ordered a coffee, according to the lawsuit.

A Starbucks employee then mishandled the coffee and spilled it onto Evans lap, with the hot liquid rolling down her left leg, according to the lawsuit.

Evans said she suffered severe burns to her body along with nerve damage and disfigurement.

Evans legal team believes the coffee's temperature was 190 degrees, just a little less than boiling.

Previous Starbucks guides have listed most hot beverages at between 150 and 170 degrees .

Read more: Supreme Court rules for Starbucks, limits power of judges to protect fired union organizers

Water heated to 120 degrees takes five to 10 minutes to cause a third-degree burn; at 131 degrees, it's 10 to 30 seconds; and at 140 degrees, it's two to five seconds, according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information .

As for the lids, there have been various media articles and threads and videos complaining about Starbucks lids and their ease in falling off, including on Reddit and TikTok .

Starbucks is facing similar lid lawsuits.

A San Fernando Valley teen filed a suit in June against the company, alleging she was burned by hot tea. The teens drink was double-cupped, but the lid popped off, the lawsuit alleges.

Muriel Evans suffered severe burns because Starbucks prioritized cost-cutting over basic customer safety, Rowley said. We intend to hold Starbucks fully accountable for their blatant disregard and gross negligence.

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DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN)  Across Ohio, drought conditions are continuing to worsen.

With only four intensities of drought, the National Drought Mitigation Center has placed 21 of Ohios 88 counties into an extreme drought. Drought condition levels range from none to exceptional drought.

In an extreme drought, NDMC reports lawns can become dormant, as well as negatively impact livestock.

Oldest Dayton tavern hits the market

Conditions in the Miami Valley looks very similar from the week of Aug. 15 to the week of Aug. 22. Portions of Clark, Clinton, Greene and Montgomery counties remain in moderate drought conditions. Multiple local counties are also still in abnormally dry conditions.

An estimated 2,709,128 Ohioans are currently living in some sort of drought 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 WDTN.com.
Nebraskas new $3M, regional approach to spurring economic development is off and running

Colored map shows the different regions in the '6 Regions, One Nebraska' initiative that encourages a regional approach to economic development. Organizers see the pooling of resources and ideas in the region as a way to attract more workers and to grow economies. Wednesday marked the first meeting of the Metropolitan Community College region based in Omaha. That means all six regions are now up and running. (Courtesy of the Nebraska Department of Economic Development)

OMAHA  Armed with an initial $3 million in public funds, Nebraska has now fully launched a new regional approach to economic development that organizers hope will accelerate growth and sharpen the states competitive edge.

On Wednesday in Omaha, the last of six regional teams had an inaugural meeting and started planning a signature project for the largely urban four-county area in and around Nebraskas biggest city.

K.C Belitz, director of Nebraskas Department of Economic Development, called it the big swing  a unique initiative to be shaped by regional needs, aimed at attracting young professionals and boosting local economies.

Organizers expect at least another $3 million in matching private investment to help communities carry out kickoff projects that they said could range from a public amenity to a youth-centered or affordable housing effort.

Night and day different

The states other five regional teams over the last three months already held their respective introductory meetings for what is dubbed the 6 Regions, One Nebraska three-year initiative.

Belitz said the longer-term goal is to build a culture where neighboring communities combine assets, energy and ideas to meet challenges of an economic development era he said is night and day different from that of 20 years ago.

Its time to think regionally about this work, he said.

Financial incentive

The states initial $3 million investment, to be matched by private dollars, will help provide financial incentive for each of the six regions to create a regional project in one of the following areas: Resident recruitment; youth engagement; entrepreneurship; technology; infrastructure, a selected regional project.

Each of the six regional teams is centered around one of the states community college districts and is led by a paid navigator who will work with co-chairs to organize meetings of community partners.

While each region is tasked with strengthening its own area, the end result should be a stronger Nebraska, said Dana Bradford, co-chair of the Omaha area region, based at Metro Community College.

There are 50 states, all competing to retain and recruit people, said Bradford, chief executive of C3 Brands. Its about competing outside the borders of Nebraska.

Underlying the effort, organizers said, is the urgency to address gaps including the 50,000 to 80,000 jobs open in Nebraska and the shortage of affordable housing and child care services.

Alarming disparity

Wednesday marked the first gathering of the 100 or so people representing business, education, nonprofits and other segments of the Metropolitan Community College region of Douglas, Sarpy, Washington and Dodge Counties.

Fremont Mayor Joey Spellerberg chairs the region with Bradford. They were joined at the daylong session, held at Metros Fort Omaha campus, by speakers including Randy Schmailzl, president of Metropolitan Community College and Bryan Slone and president of the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce & Industry.

Josie Schafer, a data expert who heads the Center for Public Affairs Research at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, provided a statistical overview of demographic, income, education, workforce, housing and other trends in the region.

Data-driven graphics reinforced, for example, a shortage of licensed child care providers, which can be a turnoff in luring a workforce.

The MCC region actually fares better than others in the state, with 68,196 spots for 69,077 children under age 6. That compares to 6,302 spots for 12,219 preschoolers in the Northeast region and 3,017 spots for 6,254 kids in the Mid-Plains district.

We need spots. I need choice. We dont have enough even in the Metro region, said Schafer.

Bradford was particularly alarmed at a graphic that showed median household incomes in North and South Omaha far below the rest of Douglas County ($35,711 for North and $42,487 for South, compared to $83,651 for the remainder of the county).

This defines the problem for me, he said. At the end of the day we have to grow wages and jobs. Theres no way we win if North Omaha, South Omaha or rural communities have such disparate incomes.

ARPA funds launched initiative

The DED and Nebraska Chamber are overseeing the 6 Regions, One Nebraska effort, which was funded by $3 million in seed money from American Rescue Plan Act funding. Gov. Jim Pillen, who requested the allocation from the Legislature, is to meet with the working team of each region twice annually.

At the end of the day we have to grow wages and jobs. Theres no way we win if North Omaha, South Omaha or rural communities have such disparate incomes.

 Dana Bradford, co-chair of the Metropolitan Community College regional team

Slone said in an interview that the initiative builds upon Blueprint Nebraska, a far-reaching statewide planning effort in 2018-19 that laid out strategies to grow the states population and economy.

He said the blueprint still stands, but execution of strategies has been difficult, in part because of differing conditions in towns across the state. He foresees more success with a regional approach.

This is about execution, the how-to, said Slone.

An example of what a region might do better than a single town, he said, is building housing. With a shortage of contractor availability in rural areas, Slone said, a cluster of communities could pool resources and guarantee ongoing work that would make it more alluring for a contractor to bring a crew to town.

Its scope and scale, said Slone.

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Neil Young gives Tim Walz permission for his song  after he sued Trump for using it

Legendary rocker Neil Young gave Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz permission to use his song "Rockin' in the Free World" as an entrance theme at the Democratic National Convention.

Walz reportedly specifically sought permission from Young to use the song, CNN reports.

It's not the first time the song has been used by a political candidate; back in 2015 Donald Trump also used the song, but famously not with Young's permission to do so.

Young not only did not give his permission, but he actively tried to force Trump to stop using the song. He sent the campaign several cease-and-desist threats, but Trump ignored the artist's wishes for years.

The rocker eventually filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Trump in 2020.

Tim Walz used Neil Youngs Rockin in the Free World as entrance music after seeking  and receiving  the legendary rockers permission to use the song (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Unlike with Trump, Young reportedly had no issued with Walz using the song.

Rockin' in the Free World  like Bruce Springsteen's Born in the USA  is often assumed to be patriotic, when in fact both are protest songs, lobbing critiques of society. Young's song highlights a lack of empathy for the poor and references pollution, war, and drug abuse in the US.

The song's gripes with the US were what raised eyebrows when US Secretary of State Antony Blinken played the song at a bar in Kyiv in May.

He played "Rockin' in the Free World" alongside Ukrainian band 19.99 during a visit to address the nation's ongoing war with Russia.

"The United States is with you, so much of the world is with you. And theyre fighting, not just for Ukraine but for the free world  and the free world is with you too," Blinken said during his performance.

At the same time, Blinken was facing criticism for the US's stance on Israel's violence in Gaza, and his on-stage appearance didn't earn him any goodwill amongst those critical of the war.

Four days after his big guitar show in Ukraine, Israel conducted an airstrike at a Gaza refugee camp that killed more than 30 people. Days later, protesters yelled at Blinken that he would be remembered as the "butcher of Gaza."

Blinken  acting as an executor of the will of the US government  probably wasn't who Young had in mind to carry his tune.

Young  like many other artists  has tried to force Trump to stop using his song (Getty Images)

Similarly, Beyonce almost certainly did not have Trump in mind when she released Freedom, but the former president used the song in a video anyway. At least he tried to earlier this week, but Beyonce threatened to sue, and Trump's campaign removed the video.

Instead of playing over Trump, Beyonce's Freedom will be used by Vice President Kamala Harris as her campaign walk-out song.
The Neosho School District is heartbroken to confirm that one of our dedicated staff members, Mrs. Autumn Qualls, Neosho Middle School librarian, was involved in a fatal car accident this morning. Our heartfelt condolences are with her family and friends during this very difficult time.

She was an important part of our school family, as she worked in the district for almost 20 years. She was always committed to the well-being and success of our students.

Additional support from our counseling team will be available at Neosho Middle School for the remainder of the week.

Thank you for understanding as we support our community through this time of grief.
Nessel delivers her argument on Harris v. Trump at the DNC

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel speaks on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel danced onstage at the Democratic National Convention Wednesday night, as she took the stand in support of Vice President Kamala Harriss bid for president.

Let me tell you, being attorney general is a tough job, right? But as Californias attorney general, Kamala Harris never shied away from a good fight. Shes held accountable environmental polluters, sexual abusers and transnational gangs, Nessel said to the crowd in Chicago.

What really stands out is when she stood up and protected her constituents freedoms. In 2011, she refused to defend Californias ban on same-sex marriage. She refused to argue that some families should have fewer rights than other families. It meant a lot. She was fighting for families like mine, Nessel said.

She said Harris also offered her support when Roe v. Wade was overturned, resurrecting Michigans 1931 ban on abortion, as Nessel pledged not to enforce or defend the law.

[Harris] reminded me that protecting peoples lives and defending their rights is our job, and just as the same sex marriage ban was overturned in California, so, too, was the abortion ban in Michigan, Nessel said.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel speaks on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel speaks on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel speaks on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel speaks on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel speaks on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel speaks on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel speaks on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel speaks on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel speaks on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel speaks on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel speaks on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel speaks on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel speaks on night three of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Prior to her election as attorney general in 2018  where she became the first LGBTQ+ person to win a top statewide office in Michigan  Nessel as a private attorney took on Michigans ban on same-sex marriage. That case was rolled into Obergefell v. Hobbs, which was taken up by the U.S. Supreme Court. In 2015, the court legalized same-sex marriage, which allowed Nessel to marry her partner, Alanna Maguire.

By the way, Ive got a message for the Republicans and the justices of the United States Supreme Court, you can pry this wedding ban from my cold, dead, gay hand. I know that whether shes attorney general or president of the United States, Kamala Harris will always be in our corner, Nessel said Wednesday night.

While presenting her closing statement, Nessel asked the audience to be the judge of how the nation will move forward.

Do we go back to the corruption, criminality and chaos of Donald Trump? Or do we move forward with Kamala Harris? We know when she takes an oath to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution, shes actually read it. We know that shell appoint Supreme Court justices who will protect our freedoms, Nessel said.

And let me tell you Kamala knows you go from the courthouse to the White House, not the other way around, Nessel said. Ladies and gentlemen, I rest my case.

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SEOUL, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Six people were killed and 11 others injured as a fire broke out at a South Korean hotel, multiple local media said Thursday citing the fire authorities and the police.

The fire broke out at a nine-story hotel in Bucheon, some 20 km southwest of the capital Seoul, at about 7:39 p.m. local time (1039 GMT).

Six guests were killed, and three were seriously wounded. Eight others suffered minor injuries. The number of casualties may increase as recuse operations were underway.

The fire, which started from a room on the eighth floor, did not spread throughout the hotel, but the entire building was filled with black smoke, causing casualties.

Up to 46 fire vehicles and about 150 firefighters were sent to the scene for rescue operations. 
With the Conservative leadership race now swinging, we are hearing a lot about unity and the expected tough talk on immigration, defence, benefits and the tax burden. If only many of the candidates had been around the Cabinet table recently, to advance the Conservative policies our membership wishes to hear.

But there has been less discussion of net zero. Previous prime ministers, from Blair onwards, dithered on energy policy. But all committed by varying degrees to international Climate accords, even going as far as legislation.

Tony Blair oversaw the Climate Change Act (CCA) 2008, Theresa May the 2050 target amendment. We are one of just a handful of nations to have bound ourselves legislatively. But Parliament is sovereign and can repeal and adapt any legislation it wishes. I recommend, on energy policy, that it does.

The results of this target are now becoming clear, with British consumers paying some of the highest prices for electricity in the world. We pay 2.5 times that paid by US consumers, and four times the amount paid in China. We then wonder why high energy businesses, from steel to ceramics, are preferring to invest overseas.

What all previous administrations agreed on, no matter how misguidedly, was a reduction in fossil fuel use with little to no plan on how to replace the gigawatts of power lost through detonating perfectly serviceable power stations, and all the while planning for massive increases in electricity demand  electric cars, heat pumps and the substitution of gas or coal power from high energy industrial processes.

As we destroyed our traditional fossil fuel-provisioned power stations, our international competitors, notably China and India, have turbocharged the building of new ones. The power stations we havent knocked down have been repurposed to burn pelletised wood, largely from virgin North American forests.

The CO2 output per KWh of energy is roughly 1.5 that of coal burning and three times that of using natural gas. This form of biomass energy accounts for 15pc of UK electricity production and yet we call this a zero carbon form of energy. Net zero has indeed sunk this low.

Beyond burning North American forests, substitution, where planned at all, consists of wind turbines and solar power. Far from being cheap, a claim dependent on ideal conditions of generation in the right place, meeting demand through existing distribution networks, the true cost is yet to be seen.

Disparate wind or solar farms need to be connected to the grid through copper, aluminium and concrete-hungry pylons and cabling, and the reserve power needed to cope with generation irregularity has yet to be considered.

The choices include storage batteries at an unimaginable scale. Californian studies suggest a cost of $15 trillion (11.5 trillion) for that state alone, with replacement every 10-12 years.

The plundering of Africa and South America to yield up the minerals required has not been calculated.

Other energy storage methods include: water being raised uphill to reservoirs, geography-permitting, using the stored gravitational energy for release later; the electrolysis of water into hydrogen; or the production of liquid e-fuels, but using current liquid fuel infrastructure and transportation via the reliable internal combustion engine.

In order to cope with often long periods of anticyclones of low wind, freezing conditions and low light which can sit upon an entire continent for days, the cost of wind and solar with back-up is significantly amplified. Thats a lot of copper, steel and concrete, and a lot of despoiled land taken out of productive agricultural use.

The other grand plan is for massive interconnectors between countries to share generation and match demand. How this is supposed to equate to energy independence and security is never explained. Frances threat to the energy supply of the Channel Islands in the face of a mini fishing war three years ago should be instructive that reliance on others, however benign, is not a good idea.

The final piece of the current thinking involves maintaining and building new gas-powered plants to provide reserve power when the wind doesnt blow and the sun doesnt shine. The wasted capital in building underused gas plants (the owners of which will demand super-high prices as their fixed cost, capital intensive plants are only partially used) is obvious.

Labours latest plan to stop further North Sea gas exploration guarantees imported gas, with a far higher carbon footprint, will be needed to burn in these plants. There will be little of GB plc left for Qatar to buy over future decades.

Whereas the last decade has been the battle for Brexit, the next decade will be the battle for energy. Labours plan to decarbonise the grid by 2030 is not only impossible, it will be astronomically expensive in its futility and potentially dangerous. Electricity blackouts are likely. This will be a factor that will bring this Labour Government down.

Our energy policy needs to be entirely different. I propose the following.

First, we must amend the Climate Change Act 2008 to put Britain back on track with most of the world. Not only does the CCA result in warped energy policy, it is now being used regularly to oppose most infrastructure developments by well-funded activist groups. More worryingly, some Supreme Court judgments have supported this view. If we want growth, we must regain the right to build necessary infrastructure.

Second, we must move towards a nuclear future. We are still considering Small Modular Reactors (SMRs), but the Conservatives wasted our final years in government with more indecision. The large EDF reactors in progress or on the drawing board are complex, overpriced and beset with delays.

We need scalable Model-T Fords, not Bentleys. If nuclear fusion ever becomes a reality, a whole new chapter in human energy production opens up with sufficient cheap electricity to produce hydrogen and e-fuels at scale. Traditional fission reactors can still deliver this.

Third, we need a dash for domestic gas. Gas is the bridging fuel as we scale up nuclear. Domestic is key and we need to open up, as Norway continues to do, all and every extractable field in the North Sea basin.

We should look favourably at fracking to ensure domestic gas consumption, diminishing as is likely over coming decades, is at least matched by domestic production. Exports would be a bonus. The benefits are obvious: investment, high paying jobs, big tax receipts and balance of payment savings.

Lastly, we need an end to taxpayer support for wasteful wind and solar projects. Energy auctions need to be a price for 24/7, 365 energy provision. If wind and solar owners can provide this, then the economics should be a commercial decision for them, not an additional burden for the taxpayer.

Craig Mackinlay was the Conservative MP for South Thanet 2015-24 and becomes Lord Mackinlay of Richborough from August 23, 2024. He founded the Net Zero Scrutiny Group of Parliamentarians.

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NEWARK, N.J. (PIX11)  Newark residents of 333 Park Avenue were allowed back in their homes Wednesday evening.

The Office of Emergency Management and Red Cross were on hand outside the building Wednesday evening to provide help as residents returned home.

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According to OEM officials on scene, a drain pipe on the roof became clogged with debris, flooding the roof and breaching the roof door Sunday night. Officials say the roof did not collapse, as previously reported.

When asked how Newark OEM determined the building was safe to return to, Newark Public Safety Officer spokesperson Catherine Adams said:

Code Enforcement required the buildings owner to obtain a report from the Citys Engineering Department to confirm that the building was safe for tenants to return. The buildings owner was also advised to ensure that the drain pipe on the roof remains unclogged to avoid a similar incident of water backing up on the roof in the future. Code Enforcement and the Citys Engineering Department are working with the buildings owners to confirm the completion of secondary repairs. No further information is 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 PIX11.
The National Weather Service reports no tropical cyclone activity is expected this week. However, the hurricane center has identified four tropical waves in the Atlantic Ocean that warrant monitoring as we approach the peak of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season.

Forecasters note that one wave is near Senegal and Gambia, two are in the Caribbean Sea, and the fourth affects the southwest Gulf of Mexico and southern Mexico. All of these systems are moving westward across the Atlantic.

Here is what to be aware of as the hurricane season peaks.

National Hurricane Center tracking 4 tropical waves

As of 8 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, the National Hurricane Center in Miami said no tropical cyclone activity was expected for the next 48 hours. However, the hurricane center was monitoring three tropical waves in the Atlantic Ocean.

Tropical wave 1: A tropical wave is in the eastern Atlantic Ocean just offshore the west coast of Africa, moving west. Scattered moderate convection is noted.

Tropical wave 2: A tropical wave is in the Atlantic Ocean approaching the Lesser Antilles, moving west. No deep convection is associated with this tropical wave.

Tropical wave 3: A tropical wave is in the central Caribbean Sea southward to Panama is moving west. Scattered moderate to locally strong convection is noted off the coast of Panama and Costa Rica.

Tropical wave 4: A tropical wave has moved into the Bay of Campeche, moving west. Isolated convection is occurring in far southern portions of the Bay of Campeche.

When is the peak of hurricane season?

August is historically when tropical storm and hurricane activity in the Atlantic begins to heat up, peaking around Sept. 10.

Hurricane Ernesto struck Bermuda on Saturday, causing dangerous surf and rip currents along the East Coast. Earlier in July, Hurricane Beryl became the earliest Category 5 hurricane on record, causing "catastrophic damage" and leading to 20 deaths as it ravaged several Caribbean islands.

Hurricane storm tracker: See active storms in the Atlantic

Texas weather watches and warnings

When is hurricane season in Texas?

Hurricane season in Texas runs from June 1 to November 30, with the peak typically occurring from late August through September.

During this time, the state is most at risk for hurricanes and tropical storms, especially along the Gulf Coast.

Sign up for text alerts about severe weather

Staying informed about severe weather is crucial for your safety, and one of the most effective ways to do this is by receiving free weather alerts directly on your phone. There are several ways to get these alerts, ensuring you're always prepared for sudden changes in the weather.

Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA): Most smartphones automatically receive Wireless Emergency Alerts, which are government-issued warnings for severe weather, like tornadoes, hurricanes, and flash floods. These alerts are sent based on your location, so youll get the information you need, right when you need it.

Weather Apps: Downloading a reliable weather app is another great way to get real-time updates. Apps like The Weather Channel, AccuWeather, and NOAA Weather Radar offer free alerts that can be customized to notify you of severe weather conditions, including thunderstorms, high winds, and extreme temperatures.

Emergency Alert Services: Many local governments and emergency management agencies offer free subscription services that send text alerts for weather emergencies in your area. Check with your local municipality to see if this service is available where you live.

How many hurricanes have hit your area?

How can Texans prepare for hurricane season?

It's a good idea to have a disaster kit and an evacuation plan ready, in the event that a hurricane hits your city.

Key items for a disaster kit include:

Water  one gallon per person per day

Nonperishable foods such as canned or dry items

A flashlight

A battery-powered or hand-cranked radio

Extra batteries

A first-aid kit

Prescription medications and medical items

A multipurpose tool that includes a screwdriver, a knife and pliers

Sanitation and personal hygiene items such as wet wipes

Copies of personal documents such as medication lists, medical information, proof of address, deed/lease to home, passports, birth certificates and insurance policies

A cellphone with chargers and/or a portable battery bank

Family and emergency contact information

Extra cash

A sleeping bag or warm blanket

Maps of your area

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: NHC tracking 4 tropical waves as peak hurricane season nears
NMs revenue growth said to slow for first time this decade, but state still flush, analysts say

The Roundhouse in Santa Fe pictured Jan. 24, 2024. Lawmakers will have more than $650 million in new money to spend this upcoming session, according to forecasts released Wednesday. (Photo by Patrick Lohmann / Source NM)

New Mexicos budget is expected to have .2% less revenue this fiscal year than last thanks to a slowing global oil market. But itll still be enough to give lawmakers more than $650 million in new money to spend at the legislative session come January.

Thats according to fresh projections released Wednesday by an expert group of legislative and academic analysts  projections that state leaders tout as proof the state is on rock-solid financial footing to meet obligations and continue growing.

The actions that the Legislature and this administration have taken over the past several years to diversify our revenues and prepare for the eventual slowdown in oil and gas revenues are already starting to have an effect, said Wayne Probst, Secretary for the states Department of Finance and Administration, in a news release.

New Mexico is expected to generate a little more than $13 billion in revenue this fiscal year, which ends June 30, 2025, from taxes, investments and other sources. The $13.016 billion estimate this year is $19.7 million less than what the state pulled in last fiscal year.

Its the first time that the state was expected to collect less in revenues over the prior year since at least 2020, according to a chart in a 31-page report released Wednesday. Instead, growth has usually ranged anywhere from 2% and 20% since then, according to the report.

In 2026, revenues are expected to rise again about 3% above 2025 levels, according to the report.

Even as oil and gas revenue hit record levels, the volatility of the industry pushed lawmakers to try to use budget surpluses wisely and in ways that generate their own returns on investment.

In February, lawmakers passed a record $10.2 billion budget that spent much of the budget surplus on new trust funds overseen and invested by the New Mexico Finance Authority, as well as additional infusions of cash into existing return-generating funds that pay for early childhood education.

Because the state is meeting its legally required reserves, some money that would otherwise go into a reserve fund can go to the Early Childhood Trust Fund. According to the report, more than $680 million can be deposited into that fund this year. The state holds in reserves more than 31% of what it intends to spend this year.

Still, forecasters warn that the New Mexico economy will grow more slowly than the rest of the country, and they noted some challenges that could affect the states bottom line.

For one, New Mexicos labor force participation rate  57.3%  is far below the national average and hasnt returned to pre-pandemic levels. And the state is expected to see less of a jump in oil production, down from the 30% increases seen in the last few years.

The state is expected to produce 735 million barrels of oil in the coming year. It produced 705 million last year, according to the report.
HONOLULU (KHON2)  Due to rail construction, businesses along Dillingham Boulevard have had no left-turns in. HART officials confirm this is a permanent change, surprising many we spoke to.

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Thats a surprise, said Kevin Young, owner of Egghead Cafe. Have no idea. Never heard of this before.

Right now, everybodys making adjustments, finding ways to get to us, said Jennifer Rafael, manager at Ace Auto Glass.

Bascially, the big posts that support the rail system will block the roads, only allowing left-turns at stoplights.

You dont have no left-turn and have no place for U-turn, how people gonna come here? asked Young.

In a statement, HART said it began informing businesses of the changes in October 2022, saying it reached out to 200 businesses directly and gave updates during business and community meetings.

Oahu to see 20 school bus routes reinstated starting Monday

HART also added the left-turn restriction was put in for safety purposes, and allowing left-turns would likely result in more congestion.

Its caused a major drop for businesses.

They (customers) dont have enough time to even grab and go, said Young. They might (get) stuck in traffic for 30 minutes, they cannot make it back to work so they avoid coming into Dillingham.

They have that idea in their heads that its traffic because theres only one lane on each side, so they go to the other locations, said Rafael.

Now we open it up to catering, said Young. We cater to offices, and for parties we deliver the food out. Instead of waiting for customers to come in, we have to find other ways to survive the business.

The next segment of the rail construction project runs along Dillingham from Middle Street to South Street. Construction is scheduled to start next year and be completed in 2030.

It just seems like its been like this for years, said Rafael. Im getting used to it. I dont want to, but Im so used to it.

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We hope this gonna end soon, said Young.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KHON2.
On the day the door opened for a new Democratic presidential nominee, Rep. Deborah Ross didnt hesitate to offer her endorsement for Vice President Kamala Harris to lead the country.

That wasnt just because Harris was the Democratic Partys favorite to win.

It was because of a relationship that stretches back 20 years.

I like that what you see is what you get, and she absolutely puts her heart and soul into what she does, Ross said.

Ross said she finds it comical that former President Donald Trump insults Harris intelligence because she has always seen Harris as whip smart.

The thing about her is, there are a lot of smart people, there are a lot of policy people, there are a lot of good manipulators in politics, Ross said. She cares. She has this fundamental desire to make something better, to figure out whats wrong with it and to right that wrong, and that served her well as a prosecutor, as an attorney general, but I dont think she just does it as a job or to say, I succeeded and Im the best. I think she does it because she really cares.

Meeting Kamala Harris

Ross got a near front-row seat to Harris career progression in the early 2000s after they both attended the Rodel Fellowship, a leadership development program for elected officials offered by the Aspen Institute, a nonpartisan, nonprofit think tank.

At the time, Harris was district attorney of San Francisco. Their fellowship also included several other rising stars in the Democratic Party: Eric Garcetti, future mayor of Los Angeles, future Rep. Greg Stanton, a Democrat from Arizona, and future Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who was considered a favorite to be Harris running mate..

As part of the fellowship, the group traveled to Aspen, Colorado, and New Orleans, as well as the Middle East, China and India.

She and I had a good connection, Ross said. When we were there, there were more men than women. Both of us were lawyers, and so we traveled together, but we also did some little side trips together, like we went jewelry shopping in the Arab market in Jerusalem together.

Ross was quick to note that she and Harris are not besties and shes not in Harris inner circle, but they have a relationship that has continued. Harris ran for Senate the year of Ross failed campaign against former Sen. Richard Burr. Harris and Ross often saw each other on the campaign trail.

Once they marched from Shaw University, in Ross congressional district, to the polls.

And Ross has met with Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff in both Washington and North Carolina.

She has always been very clear about her values, always willing to express what is important in the moment, Ross said, of Harris. A lot of the leadership training had all this reading and talking about moral dilemmas, talking about how to bring people together. She wasnt a shrinking violet. There were some people who didnt do the reading or talk, and she was always completely engaged.

Hearing that Harris could become the next president, after President Joe Biden abruptly ended his campaign, was not a shock to Ross.

I think in that group, we all saw each other doing something more, Ross said. So I am not surprised at all.

A supercharged Democratic National Convention

This week marks the third time Ross has gone to the Democratic National Convention during her political career.

She attended the 2012 convention in Charlotte and the 2016 convention in Philadelphia.

But this convention is different, Ross said.

There is just something supercharged about this convention, Ross said. The energy is over the top. The people are coming in to show their support, coming in from everywhere. There are people who are coming without credentials because they just need to be there for this historic moment.

Ross said during her first convention there was an excitement about reelecting President Barack Obama, and a lot of people attended the convention because of that, but this gathering is on another level.

I think weve been pretty much pent up since 2016  and in 2020 there was no convention, Ross said. I think its a combination of eight years and getting through the trauma of the Trump presidency, getting through the trauma of the pandemic, getting through the trauma of Jan. 6, and theres just, its true, theres joy and theres energy and theres excitement, and people want to be part of turning the page in history, and people want to be part of electing the first woman president. Its just been unbelievable.

Ross said, for her, she was excited for the possibility that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton could become the first female president, but with Harris theres a different level of excitement.

Shes my generation, Ross said. To have somebody who is the first female president, but also somebody who I know, who is my contemporary, I just feel real pride for my generation.

Winning North Carolina

Democrats see North Carolina as a key state for Harris to win to maintain the White House.

Ross said thats been clear just attending North Carolinas delegation breakfasts at the convention throughout the week. The meal has brought in big names to address the states Democrats.

North Carolina is definitely an attraction, Ross said.

Throughout this campaign cycle Democrats have invested time and resources into North Carolina, bringing in surrogates on a regular basis to stump for Biden, and then Harris. That includes the president, vice president and their spouses as frequent visitors.

Ross said the state seems to be at play in a way shes never seen before. Looking back at the 2008 election, when Obama won North Carolina, the first time for a Democrat since 1976, that took Ross party by surprise. This time, Ross said, Democrats already believe it can happen.

She added that having statewide elections with open seats, including the governor, the lieutenant governor, the superintendent of public instruction and the attorney general, has brought together people from every level of campaigning to work together to drive voters to the polls.

Ross said Democrats now need to take the excitement and energy they felt at the convention and bring it back to North Carolina.

What we should be doing in Chicago is getting the energy, to bring it back and put it on the streets, and put it on the streets until the polls close on Election Day, because its going to be a close election, Ross said. We know that there are going to be a lot of election disputes, and the only way, really, to make this clear is to win by a big margin, and so we have work to do.

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Joe Fiala, partner relations director for the Governor's Office of Economic Development, speaks Sept. 21, 2023, at an Early Learner Summit in Brookings. (Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight)

Joe Fiala, partner relations director for the Governor's Office of Economic Development, speaks Sept. 21, 2023, at an Early Learner Summit in Brookings. (Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight)

Gov. Kristi Noem appointed longtime economic development official Joe Fiala as the new Governors Office of Economic Development (GOED) commissioner Wednesday.

The department is charged with recruiting, retaining and expanding business within South Dakota, including funding business projects in the state and incentivizing out-of-state businesses to relocate.

Joe has been a great member of our economic development team for years. He has helped build the strongest jobs market in America, and well keep that work going with him as our Commissioner, Noem said in a news release.

GOED came under fire during the last legislative session when the Legislatures Executive Board questioned the departments selection of an agency for Noems Freedom Works Here workforce recruitment campaign and when lawmakers questioned uses of the Future Fund, which is held by the department and controlled exclusively by the governor.

The commissioner position has been open since February, when then-Commissioner Chris Schilken stepped down to serve as deputy commissioner. The department website currently lists Schilken and Jesse Fonkert as deputy commissioners.

Fiala, who grew up in the southern Black Hills, worked in the software industry before entering economic development in 2007. He joined GOED in 2012 and has since served as a director in research, community development, business development and partner relations, working on projects totaling billions of dollars in capital investment in the state, according to the news release.

Fiala lives in Miller with his wife and two daughters.

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NC Supreme Court (File photo)

As we sprint towards Election Day 2024 with high-profile presidential and congressional elections on the horizon, many of us are talking about how these elections will impact abortion access in North Carolina and around the country. Even if we elect a pro-choice White House, however, the specter of nine unelected justices appointed for life to the highest court in the land where they play an outsized role in abortion access remains. For anti-abortion lawmakers, getting six anti-abortion justices to form a supermajority on the U.S. Supreme Court was indeed the key to pushing their unpopular and regressive agenda.

With presidents appointing U.S. Supreme Court justices and the U.S. Senate confirming them, we do have a way to bring our voices to this branch of the federal government, albeit indirectly. Voters shouldnt forget that we also have state judges issuing rulings that are equally as consequential for our states residents, often impacting our day-to-day lives. In North Carolina these judges are not appointed  we directly elect them.

As judges are part of our political system, acting as the third branch in our system of checks and balances, they are political actors but not necessarily in the same ways as legislators or governors. While judges certainly have their own personal ideologies, and in North Carolina are labeled on the ballot with a political party, their role is to act as a check on any executive and legislative overreach that acts to deny us our rights as promised in documents such as the federal and state constitutions, as well as interpret our laws. The role of judges is not to advance any type of personal ideology, but to look at laws and facts in front of them to determine if they are unduly restricting the rights and freedoms set forth in our foundational documents.

This is especially true of state Supreme Courts. While we would never expect judges to have no personal political beliefs, we can and should expect them to leave politics to the side as they rule on cases that impact our most fundamental rights and freedoms. In a time of hyper-polarization in our electoral politics, judges are supposed to conduct themselves above the political fray.

A good example of this is the Kansas Supreme Court. While the voters of Kansas were the first to vote on a ballot initiative to protect abortion rights after the 2022 Dobbs decision that overturned Roe v. Wade, the Kansas legislature is still a reliably anti-abortion institution. Despite the supposed red nature of the state government, though, the justices on the Kansas Supreme Court ruled in 2019 that the Kansas state constitution protects the right to abortion for residents of the state, a ruling they affirmed again earlier this summer.

Contrast that to the highly politicized Florida Supreme Court, which earlier this year overturned its own ruling about state protections for abortion access. In a 1980 ballot initiative, Florida voters opted to add a right to privacy and freedom from governmental interference in personal decisions to their state constitution. A 1989 Florida Supreme Court ruling affirmed that this meant the state constitution protected the right to abortion, and all abortion restrictions passed by the state legislature needed to be balanced against this right.

This was the standard in Florida for 30 years. That changed in 2019, with the ascension of an ultra-conservative governor who set his sights on achieving national prominence within a political party that had an increasingly extreme anti-abortion platform. This governor appointed five of the seven current justices on the state supreme court while signing into law a six-week ban that would have been considered unconstitutional under the original court ruling. This past spring that same state supreme court overturned the courts 1989 ruling. Abortion access in Florida has been decimated not because of a change in the constitution, but because of a change in who was on the court.

Who serves on the court matters, not because of political ideology, but because of judicial philosophy. We need and demand judges who will leave their politics behind when they put on their judicial robes to make decisions that impact all North Carolinians.

In North Carolina, we vote on judges for our state Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, Superior Courts, and District Courts. While access to abortion has not often come directly in front of our state courts in North Carolina, the loss of federal protections makes it more likely for that to happen here. State courts around the country are weighing in on the full range of reproductive healthcare access, and there is no reason to think North Carolina will be an exception.

Its not just our state Supreme Court that is important in protecting our rights. The lower courts often impact us more directly and may be where more of us interact with judges. These courts hear criminal and civil cases, small claims, and family law proceedings. Its been said we can have our best days, like getting married before a judge, and our worst days, like a difficult child custody hearing, in front of our state courts.

With the increasing criminalization of abortion, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare by hostile legislatures, cases involving self-managed abortion, miscarriages, stillbirths, assisting minors accessing abortion, interactions with anti-abortion protestors at clinics, and even providing information for abortion care can and will come before our states courts. These types of cases have been happening across the country in the wake of Dobbs, and even before the fall of Roe.

As weve seen anti-abortion elected officials become more emboldened, weve also seen more attempts by these officials to use their office, at whatever level, to push an anti-abortion agenda. As an example, late last year we saw a North Carolina Appeals Court ruling where some judges tried to insert their belief that life begins at conception into a ruling, despite the case having nothing to do with reproductive rights (the case concerned parental custody). That ruling was later withdrawn, but we in the reproductive justice movement know that legal recognition of personhood for fertilized eggs at the time of conception is the ultimate goal of anti-abortion extremists, as that recognition would outlaw all abortion, everywhere, and many types of contraception. While this particular ruling was withdrawn, we know that we cant ignore these seemingly minor attempts to insert personal beliefs into legal precedent.

Again, judges have their personal beliefs, but that cant translate into partisan agendas from the bench. Your plan to vote must include how you will vote in judicial races. Too often voters will check off the top-ticket races and leave the races further down the ballot  like judges  blank. In lower profile elections where the winner may have a few hundred more votes than their opponent(s), every vote counts, and who is on the bench matters.

Common Cause NC, Emancipate NC, North Carolina for the People, and Pro-Choice North Carolina have created a website to help you better understand the importance of judicial races and the need for a fair and independent judiciary. The website content continues to be built out and you can add to it! You can find the website here: www.whyjudgesmatternc.com
Whatcom Countys closest connection to Eastern Washington is open again after mudslide covered the road and a wildfire burned nearby.

Highway 20 opened east of Newhalem at noon Thursday, officials with the Washington State Department of Transportation said in an emailed statement.

Fire crews continue to work in the area in response to the Easy Fire and a 35 mph advisory speed zone has been posted between milepost 150 and 154. There are no pullouts or passing through in this section and travelers should remain alert for fire and maintenance vehicles exiting and entering the roadway, WSDOT said.

Highway 20, also called the North Cascades Highway, closed Aug. 4 because of the Easy Fire and stayed closed after an Aug. 11 mudslide that was caused by heavy rain from thunderstorms that passed through Western Washington.

Maintenance crews are still working to clear basins and restore drainage on weekdays.

Flagger-controlled traffic with a pilot car will guide drivers between milepost 150 and 154 starting at 7 a.m. Monday, WSDOT said. The road will be open without a pilot car during non-working hours, WSDOT said.

Some 7,000 tons of trees, rocks and dirt was cleared from the roadway.

8/22 Update: OPEN! SR 20/North Cascades Hwy is now open btwn MP 148-157.

Wildfire operations closed the road on Aug. 4 for & it was forced to remain closed after a mudslide on Aug. 11. We'll have pilot car operations while Fire crews continue working in the area of the Easy Fire. https://t.co/AoY26tzy33 pic.twitter.com/zp33p3ivXx  WSDOT North (@wsdot_north) August 22, 2024

Meanwhile, recent cooler weather has allowed fire crews to gain ground on the Easy Fire, which is burning near southeastern Whatcom County.

Aided by recent rain, cloud cover and moderated temperatures, firefighters have successfully held the Easy Fire within its existing footprint. Unmanned aircraft systems (drones) were used to look for areas of remaining heat and found a small number of heat signatures. Helicopters dropped water bucket to cool down the hot spots, according to a media briefing issued Wednesday.

The Easy Fire has grown to 2,130 acres since it was sparked by lighting on July 17, according to the federal government wildfire information service InciWeb.

Its 36% contained and burning in timber, mostly creeping and smoldering. Several buildings are threatened.
North Korea slams US sale of Apache helicopters to South Korea as 'provocative'

Soldiers of the U.S. Army's 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division conduct a live-fire drill, in Pocheon

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea's foreign ministry denounced a U.S. planned sale of Apache helicopters to South Korea, state media KCNA said on Friday, vowing to take additional steps to bolster its self-defence.

The Pentagon said on Monday that the U.S. State Department has approved the potential sale of Apache helicopters and related logistics and support to South Korea for an estimated $3.5 billion.

An unnamed senior official in charge of foreign news at North Korea's foreign ministry issued a press statement on Thursday criticising the sale plan as a move to aggravate tension, alongside ongoing annual military drills by the allies.

"This is a reckless provocative act of deliberately increasing the security instability in the region," the official said, according to KCNA.

The official accused Washington of escalating military confrontation, "disturbing the military balance and thus increasing the danger of a new conflict" in the region by supplying lethal weapons to its allies and friends.

Pyongyang's "strategic deterrence will be further strengthened to protect the national security and interests and the regional peace," the statement said, pledging to steadily conduct military activities to boost self-defence.

(Reporting by Hyonhee Shin; Editing by Josie Kao)
CANBERRA, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- A Senate inquiry has been established to investigate the dangers posed by "forever chemicals" to the Australian public.

The governing Labor Party on Thursday agreed to support independent Senator Lidia Thorpe's proposal for a parliamentary inquiry into the health and environmental impacts of per-and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) chemicals.

Also known as "forever chemicals" due to their persistence in the environment and human body, PFAS encompasses over 10,000 synthetic chemicals used in products including firefighting foam, food packaging, non-stick pans, cosmetics and clothing.

According to Australia's Department of Health, exposure to certain PFAS chemicals including perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) has been linked to an increased risk of testicular and kidney cancer.

The inquiry will be chaired by Thorpe, who said it would examine the sources that expose Australians to PFAS, the extent of their presence in the environment, consumer goods and food systems, their health, environmental, social, cultural and economic impact and how regulation can be strengthened to protect Australians.

"These chemicals already affect every single person in the world, yet not enough is being done to manage our exposure to them and reduce the risks," she said in the Senate.

"We've already seen worrying instances of cancer clusters with suspected links to PFAS chemicals. We cannot take them seriously enough."

Sydney Water on Tuesday confirmed that testing conducted in June and July detected PFAS at several drinking water catchments across the city for the first time.

The highest levels were found in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney at Cascade Dam, which supplies water to approximately 30,000 people, where the chemical PFOS was found at a concentration of 0.0164 micrograms per liter.

Japan's Food Safety Commission in June assessed the allowable daily intake of PFOS for a person as 20 nanograms per 1 kg of body weight after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in April found there was no safe level of exposure to the chemical. 
An Oath Keeper attorney from North Texas pleaded guilty to felony and misdemeanor charges in connection to the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Columbia.

She was accused of disrupting a joint session of the U.S. Congress, convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes to the 2020 presidential election.

Kellye SoRelle, 45, of Granbury, pleaded guilty to a felony charge of obstruction of justice by tampering with documents and a misdemeanor charge of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds.

SoRelle was an affiliate of the Oath Keepers, which prosecutors described as a far-right militia group, and its founder and leader, Elmer Stewart Rhodes. She was also an attorney practicing out of Texas.

In the days following the 2020 presidential election, members of the Oath Keepers began discussing their opposition against President Joe Biden taking office. This opposition extended to advocating the use of force, court documents say.

On Nov. 5, 2020, Rhodes sent messages to Oath Keepers members, including SoRelle, saying they MUST refuse to accept Biden as a legitimate winner, and, We arent getting through this without a civil war, according to the release.

While hostile behavior escalated, some members distanced themselves from the group, but SoRelle stayed and worked on projects with Oath Keepers, the release says.

SoRelle and Rhodes traveled from Texas to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 3, 2021, in preparation for the riot, court documents say. By the morning of Jan. 6, 2021, SoRelle and Rhodes were in the vicinity of the U.S. Capitol, according to the release.

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As the riot unfolded, SoRelle texted Oath Keepers in a group chat, We are acting like the founding fatherscant stand down, the release says.

Surveillance video showed SoRelle, Rhodes, and another Oath Keeper member entering the restricted areas of the Capital grounds, according to court documents.

While entering restricted areas, SoRelle live-streamed a video on Facebook, expressing her support for the rioters and urging others to not be afraid, the release reads.

She called the scene one of the coolest damn things she had ever witnessed and said the riot was a necessary step to prevent the U.S. from descending into communism and tyranny, the release says.

The group, including SoRelle and Rhodes, gathered for a dinner following the events that transpired at the riot. After being notified law enforcement was making arrests and searching for involved individuals, Rhodes turned his phone off and handed it to SoRelle, in an attempt to avoid tracking, according to the release, and drove back to Texas.

While traveling, Rhodes and SoRelle sent messages from her phone, urging Oath Keepers members to delete any evidence of their involvement at the riot, court documents say.

SoRelle also directed Rhodes to clean up his message chats, the release states.

The group of Oath Keepers complied and deleted messages, photos, and videos from their electronic devices that could serve as evidence of their participation in the riot, according to the release.

The FBI arrested SoRelle on Sept. 1, 2022, in Junction, Texas.

Judge Amit Mehta is scheduled to sentence her on Jan. 17.

The U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Divisions Counterterrorism Section are prosecuting the case. The U.S. Attorneys Offices for the Western and Eastern Districts of Texas assisted.

This case is being investigated by the FBIs Dallas and Washington Field Offices.

In the 43 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,400 people have been charged in almost all 50 states with crimes related to the U.S. Capitol riot, including about 550 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office.
(FOX40.COM)  A Northern California district attorneys office filed murder charges against a 34-year-old man on Tuesday for being the alleged fentanyl dealer to someone who died from fentanyl poisoning.

According to the Placer County District Attorneys Office, James Teahan will be the fifth murder charge filed in response to a fatal fentanyl poisoning.

Sacramento County fentanyl dealer arrested for homicide, police say

This arrest was made after an investigation by the Placer County Sheriffs Office newly created Opioid Response Team in partnership with the Placer DAs Special Prosecution Unit, the DAs Office said. This is the first murder charge investigated by the Placer Opioid Response Team, which was founded in April of 2024, the same month this case occurred.

The Placer County District Attorneys Office added that Teahans next hearing will be August 27, 2024, at the Placer County Superior Court in Roseville. Teahan is being held at the Placer County jail without bail.

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Not the new COVID: Health officials share what you need to know about Mpox global health emergency

Not the new COVID: Health officials share what you need to know about Mpox global health emergency

NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY)  The World Health Organization has declared Mpox a global health emergency. This outbreak, officials said, is more serious than the outbreak in 2022 as more than 14,000 cases have been reported in Africa so far this year.

Those who are infected with Mpox can get a rash and symptoms similar to the flu.

Cases have been on the rise in Virginia over the last couple of years, with the Virginia Department of Health reporting Virginia Beach and Norfolk with the highest number of cases among Hampton Roads cities at about 40 each.

Virginia Beach and Norfolk are places where there are higher populations of people at risk, said Dr. Susan Girois Director of the Norfolk Department of Public Health.

Those at highest risk are men who have sex with other men, but Mpox is not a sexually transmitted infection. Its spread through close contact, as well as by those who travel to places such as Africa and parts of Europe, where Mpox is endemic and are also at greater risk.

There are two variants, clade one and clade two. Clade two is typically mild, but can lead to death for some. Clade one, seemingly spreads quicker and is cause for growing concern worldwide.

We can and must tackle Mpox together across regions and continents. said WHO Regional Director for Europe Hans Kluge Monday at a news conference in Sweden. How we respond now and in the years to come will prove a critical test for Europe and the world.

Some now fear a pandemic like shutdown in the future, but Kluge and Girois say Mpox is not the new COVID-19.

COVID was something very different, Girois said. It was airborne. We didnt know a lot about it, and we had no immunity to it, we had no vaccine, we had no treatment. It is a very different situation right now.

There is an Mpox vaccine, and the Virginia Department of Health urges those most at risk to get the vaccination, which is a two-shot series taken several weeks apart.

Theres no reason for any fear, Girois said. Lets just go ahead and get active and protect ourselves and each other.

Community vaccination events were held in 2022 and 2023 in Norfolk. Girois said another one is in the works for September.

In the meantime, you can get the vaccination at your local health 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.
Former President Donald Trump, reacting furiously to Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro's mockery of him at the Democratic National Convention, derided the one-time vice presidential prospect on a Truth Social post as a "highly overrated Jewish Governor" who was has "done nothing for Israel and never will."

Shapiro's address, Trump wrote, was "a really bad and poorly delivered speech talking about freedom and fighting for Comrade Kamala Harris for President, yet she hates Israel and will do nothing but make its journey through the complexities of survival as difficult as possible, hoping in the end that it will fail." He also boasted about his own support for Israel, claiming to have "done more for Israel than any other person, and it's not even close."

While that ambitious claim was panned by some critics as the product of a "delusional narcissist," Trump did continue the longstanding U.S. policy of sending billions of dollars in weapons to Israel while also taking the unprecedented step of recognizing Jerusalem as its capital and moving the embassy there from Tel Aviv. After leaving the presidency, Trump has used "Palestinian" as a pejorative for weak victim and called on Israel to "finish the job" in Gaza.

But Shapiro can hardly be called soft on Israel either. During the antiwar protests in April and May, Shapiro, querying "whether or not we would tolerate this if this were people dressed up in KKK outfits or KKK regalia," called for a swift police crackdown on the students. Shapiro's revisions to his administration's code of conduct to target "scandalous or disgraceful" behavior sparked concerns that he could use the vaguely-worded language to suppress pro-Palestine speech that is often conflated with antisemitism. And as Pennsylvania attorney general, he threatened to sue companies like Ben & Jerry's for divesting from illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

That has not stopped Trump from tapping into the strain of thought that one's Jewishness is defined by their allegiance to the Israeli state, even though many actual Jews do not see it that way. Some commentators, and the White House itself, suggested that the former president is also sending a rather unsubtle smoke signal to his supporters.

"He will identify Josh Shapiro not as the governor, not as the great governor, not as the effective governor, but as the Jewish governor, and making him then another part of another group," said journalist Katty Kay on MSNBC's Morning Joe. "And its the its not even a dog whistle at this point. Its a bullhorn. Its out there and its blunt."

In a statement emailed to Mediaite, a White House spokesperson said that it is "antisemitic, dangerous, and hurtful to attack a fellow American by calling out their Jewish faith in a derogatory way, or perpetuating the centuries-old smear of 'dual loyalty.' President Biden and Vice President Harris believe we must come together as Americans to condemn and combat Antisemitism  and hate and bigotry of all kinds."

Trump's tactics against Shapiro may backfire, given that the latter remains popular in a vote-rich battleground state. "Its always helpful to your campaign when you attack the governor of a state you desperately need," quipped Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski.
PIERRE, S.D. (KELO)  Nearly all of the money that the South Dakota Legislature committed to housing infrastructure grants at the governors suggestion has been spoken for. But local governments have shown little interest so far in borrowing from the housing infrastructure pool.

Chas Olson is executive director for the South Dakota Housing Development Authority that administers the infrastructure program. Lawmakers earmarked $100 million for grants and $100 million for loans. So far, there have been 69 grants totaling more than $98 million awarded by the authoritys board of directors, with just $1,708,174 left.

Olson noted that most of the remaining grant funding would likely be approved this fall for a project that has already applied.

In comparison, nine loans totaling less than $15 million have been awarded so far from the pool, leaving $85,502,286 yet to be committed. Based on the requirements in the 2023 law, theres $27,492,461 of loan funding still specifically available for the Sioux Falls and Rapid City areas, and $57,455,089 for the balance of state, according to Olson.

The money can be used for up to one-third of the cost of public infrastructure, which is defined as a right of way, water distribution system, sanitary sewer system, storm sewer system, lift station, street, road, bridge, curb, gutter, sidewalk, traffic signal, or streetlight within South Dakota and owned, maintained, or provided by a political subdivision of this state or federally recognized Indian tribe. The money also can be used for excavation, compaction, or acquisition of land for those purposes.

RAIN, RAIN, GO AWAY: The rainstorm that prompted flash flood warnings for the Pierre area on early Tuesday morning left three of the Capitol annexs fourth-floor meeting rooms wet and damaged some of the equipment. (See above photo.)

There didnt appear to be any new damage to either of the Senate or House chambers that are part of the original Capitol building, however. A crew has been resurfacing the portion of Capitol annex roof that is directly above the meeting rooms.

VOTING COMPLEXITIES, PART ONE: How long must a person live in one place in South Dakota in order to register to vote from there in a state election? The answer isnt clear, according to the Legislatures professional staff.

The Legislative Research Council recently completed an official memorandum that the Legislatures Executive Board discussed at a meeting last week.

The law seems to require that a county auditor or judge have the ability to read the mind of the person whos applying to be registered as a voter.

For the purposes of this title, the term, residence, means the place in which a person is domiciled as shown by an actual fixed permanent dwelling, establishment, or any other abode to which the person returns after a period of absence, the law begins.

A person who leaves the residence and goes into another county of this state or another state or territory for a temporary purpose has not changed residence, it continues. Next comes the mind-reading part: A person is considered to have gained residence in any county or municipality of this state in which the person actually lives, if the person has no present intention of leaving.

The law concludes with more mind-reading: A person retains residence in this state until another residence has been gained. If a person moves from this state to another state or territory with the intention of making it the persons permanent home, the person loses residence in this state.

Republican Sen. Lee Schoenbeck chairs the Executive Board that supervises the Legislatures operations during the nine months when lawmakers arent in regular session. Schoenbeck said the voter residency question was being posed as a mental exercise for University of South Dakota law school students when he was there during the early 1980s.

He said the answer is where the person intends to reside and can present the facts to support the intention  in other words, theres no definite answer. Its that loose of a standard and it hasnt changed in 50 years, Schoenbeck said.

Republican Sen. Jim Bolin, a retired K-12 educator, said that the residency standard seems like its almost impossible to explain.

Its a very difficult thing, Bolin said. He added, This is the Gordian knot of politics, referring to a Greek legend that the person who could untie such a knot would rule all of Asia.

VOTING COMPLEXITIES, PART TWO: Republican Rep. Mike Weisgram pointed to a relatively new statute that the Legislature added in 2023 requiring a minimum residency of 30 days on voter registration forms. Weisgram asked whether that meant an RV owner would have to park in one spot for 30 consecutive days before registering to vote, or could be in that spot off and on for a total of 30 days.

Thousands of RVers maintain voter registration in South Dakota, many through mail-forwarding businesses, while motoring throughout the nation most or all of the year.

Jacob Carlson, the LRC analyst who wrote the memo, said the current statute doesnt have a timeframe. It says 30 days, Carlson said. Theres no real clarity in the statute when that 30 days is counted.

Republican Rep. Rebecca Reimer suggested that the Legislature should instead focus on the residency requirement for driver licenses. The state Division of Motor Vehicles requires only that applicants present two documents less than one year old showing a current address. Under that requirement, a person could get a driver license after spending as little as one night in South Dakota.

ONE IN, ONE OUT: The governor announced Wednesday the promotion of Joe Fiala as her administrations new commissioner of economic development.

Fiala had been the partner relations director on the Governors Office of Economic Development staff. He fills the vacancy created months ago when Chris Schilken quietly stepped back from commissioner to deputy commissioner.

Fialas annual salary for his prior role was listed as $111,325.53. Schilken was making $152,975.82 as commissioner. Deputy commissioner Jesse Fonkert has a current salary of $124,800.

Governor Kristi Noems original commissioner of economic development, Steve Westra, had an annual salary of $203,248.64 when he resigned in spring 2023. Noem announced on June 1, 2023, that she had chosen Schilken to replace Westra.

Meanwhile, the Noem administration will be looking for a successor to Jeff Clines, whos leaving as commissioner of the state Bureau of Information and Telecommunications to accept a similar post one state to the west.

Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon announced recently that Clines will be the next chief information officer in the Cowboy States Department of Enterprise Technology Services

Clines had joined the Noem administration in 2020, coming from the Illinois secretary of state office, where he was chief information officer. His current annual salary at South Dakota BIT was listed as $184,805.29.

IN REMEMBRANCE: A notable former member of the Legislative Research Councils staff has died. Reuben Bezpaletz passed away August 11 at age 77.

U.S. Senator Mike Rounds served as a state senator for 10 of the years that Bezpaletz was at the council, where Bezpaletz was chief of research. Rounds issued a statement on X: South Dakota lost a true public servant with the passing of Reuben Bezpaletz. Reuben spent a remarkable 42 years at the Legislative Research Council before retiring in 2014. His legacy will live on in the hundreds of legislators he worked with.

You can reach KELOLAND Capitol Bureau reporter Bob Mercer with news tips, story ideas, questions and complaints at 605-280-7580 or bmercer@keloland.com or @pierremercer on X or even through good old-fashioned U.S. mail at 1810 Camden Court, Pierre, SD, 57501.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KELOLAND.com.
The National Transportation Safety Board has launched an investigation into a fiery crash on Monday that led the batteries on a Tesla big-rig truck to burn for four hours along Interstate 80 in Northern Californias Sierra Nevada mountains.

The NTSB on Wednesday afternoon announced that it had opened its safety investigation, in coordination with the California Highway Patrol, of the crash and fire of the Tesla electric truck near Emigrant Gap in Placer County.

Sarah Taylor Sulick, an NTSB spokeswoman, said on Thursday that investigators from the agencys Office of Highway Safety were expected to travel to Emigrant Gap to examine the wreckage and gather details about the events leading up to the crash and the subsequent response to the truck fire.

The crash occurred about 3:15 a.m. Monday, when the electric vehicle heading east on I-80 at the Laing Road offramp crashed onto the right shoulder and into trees, according to the CHPs incident log.

Sulick said preliminary information indicates the Tesla truck went off the freeway, struck trees and caught fire. She also said the trucks batteries continued to burn for four hours.

The NTSB is investigating this event due to its interest in the fire risks associated with lithium-ion batteries, Sulick said in a written statement.

Teslas news media relations officials did not immediately respond Thursday to The Sacramento Bees request for a comment.

Officer Jason Lyman, a spokesman for the CHPs Gold Run office, said Monday that only one vehicle was involved in the crash, and the truck driver was not injured. Lyman said the white Tesla Semi truck was without a trailer when it was headed uphill west of Yuba Gap. But he also said investigators were still trying to piece together what led the Tesla to leave the road.

The fire, sparked by the batteries of the roughly 13-ton vehicle, produced quite the plume of smoke early on as firefighters rushed in to fight the flames with chemicals, Lyman said. The fire was still smoldering nearly six hours after the crash, according to the CHP spokesman.

He said authorities had to create a half-mile buffer zone around the truck fire to keep toxic fumes from injuring bystanders and passing drivers. Firefighters from Cal Fires Nevada-Yuba-Placer unit battled the flames using masks and breathing apparatus.

CAL FIRE performing air attacks to keep fire under control. I-80 remains closed between Colfax and SR-20. No ETO. Check back here and https://t.co/ImyScHtthM for any updates.@CHPGoldRun @CHP_Truckee pic.twitter.com/wcSGjkIeYY  Caltrans District 3 (@CaltransDist3) August 19, 2024

I-80 was closed in both directions at 5:30 a.m. Monday. Caltrans announced shortly before 2 p.m. that firefighting planes from Cal Fire performed aerial drops to keep the fire under control as crews continued to cordon off the burn area.

After working on the fire for more than 16 hours, the CHP announced on Monday evening that I-80 was reopened in both directions to vehicle traffic.

In November 2020, the NTSB published a report based on its investigation of three electric vehicle crashes resulting in fires involving an electric vehicle. The NTSB said these fires illustrated the risks to emergency responders posed by the vehicles high-voltage lithium-ion batteries.

Fires in electric vehicles powered by high-voltage lithium-ion batteries pose the risk of electric shock to emergency responders from exposure to the high-voltage components of a damaged lithium-ion battery, NTSB officials wrote in a summary of the report. A further risk is that damaged cells in the battery can experience uncontrolled increases in temperature and pressure (thermal runaway), which can lead to hazards such as battery reignition/fire.

NTSB officials also said the risks of electric shock and battery reignition of the fire arise from the stranded energy that remains in a damaged battery.
(Bloomberg) -- The United Nations nuclear watchdog said its enormously concerned by fighting near a Russian nuclear power plant because the old Soviet reactors in operation are particularly exposed.

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The Kursk Nuclear Power Plant has been thrust onto the front line of the war between Russia and Ukraine after an incursion by Kyivs forces placed them within artillery range, according to International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi.

Making matters worse, the two units in operation use the same so-called RBMK technology that melted down during the notorious 1986 accident in Chernobyl. Unlike modern nuclear reactors, the two units operating near the fighting dont have extra layers of protection to contain radiation in the event of an accident.

They dont have a protective dome around them, just the normal roof, which means that the reactors core is pretty exposed, Grossi said in an interview with Bloomberg TV.

And when you add up the fact that you have advancing troops, objectively speaking within artillery range, then of course this is a source of enormous concern to me and the agency, he added.

The Chernobyl meltdown left a 2,600 square kilometer (1,000 square mile) exclusion zone in Ukraine, where long-lived radioactive material will take thousands of years to decay. Unlike the 2011 meltdowns in Fukushima, Japan, where secondary containment largely kept radiation from spreading into the atmosphere, the Chernobyl disaster wafted plumes of radiation over a wide swathe of Europe.

Grossi plans to visit the plant in the next few days, then follow up with a trip to Kyiv, where he expects to speak to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

Deteriorating nuclear safety at the Kursk plant underscores the new pressure bearing on Russian President Vladimir Putin since Ukraines surprise incursion began earlier this month. Putin started the war when he ordered the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine that was meant to end within days and is now in its third year.

The Kremlins IAEA envoy told diplomats on Aug. 8 that fragments of intercepted rockets had landed on the Kursk nuclear site, where Russian engineers are also building two additional modern reactors.

Military threats endanger not only the particular Russian facility but also the whole global nuclear industry, warned Russia, which remains the worlds biggest exporter of nuclear fuel and technology.

For its part, Ukraines government has accused Russia of plotting a radiological emergency.

Despite the IAEA having an on-the-ground presence at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine, Grossi said his inspectors havent found conclusive evidence pointing to whos behind drone attacks targeting Europes biggest atomic station.

If we had indisputable irrefutable evidence pointing to a source we would say it, Grossi said. Whoever is behind this must stop: a nuclear power plant should never be a military target.

(Adds reactor details from the sixth, Russian comment from the ninth paragraphs)

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PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI)  The Rhode Island Department of Health has suspended the license of a nursing home administrator accused of forcing an employee to work despite testing positive for COVID-19, 12 News has learned.

Kristine Pacheco reportedly directed the employee to return to work prior to the end of her seven-day isolation period, according to a suspension notice made public by the Health Department earlier this month.

Pacheco repeatedly asked the employee to prepare residents meals without supervision, even though the suspension notice stated she was not properly trained, certified or licensed to do such work.

The employee tested positive for COVID-19 on July 31. The suspension notice claimed she was told to leave by an infection prevention specialist and not return until Aug. 7.

But Pacheco directed her to return to work on Aug. 3 to cook in the kitchen, even though she was only four days into her mandatory isolation period.

The employee prepared residents meals that weekend as requested. Thirteen residents contracted the virus later that week, the suspension notice said.

Rhode Island Health Director Jerome Larkin temporarily suspended Pachecos license upon determining that she engaged in behavior that constituted gross unprofessional conduct' by potentially exposing the nursing homes residents to COVID-19.

The suspension notice stopped short of identifying the nursing home where this happened. The Health Department told 12 News the nursing home was not identified in the suspension notice because the issue solely involves Pachecos license and not the facilitys.

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Chinese Premier Li Qiang is greeted by Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko upon his arrival at the airport in Minsk, Belarus, Aug. 22, 2024. Li Qiang arrived here Thursday for an official visit to Belarus at the invitation of Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko. (Xinhua/Liu Bin)

MINSK, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang arrived here Thursday for an official visit to Belarus at the invitation of Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko.

Li's visit followed his co-chairing the 29th regular meeting between the Chinese and Russian heads of government in Moscow and visit to Russia.

Highlighting the long-standing friendship between China and Belarus, Li noted upon his arrival that bilateral relations have rapidly advanced since the establishment of diplomatic ties 32 years ago.

In recent years, under the leadership of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, the bilateral relationship has been continuously upgraded to an all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership, with political mutual trust continuing to strengthen, high-quality Belt and Road cooperation being solidly advanced, people-to-people and cultural exchanges becoming increasingly close, and international collaboration achieving fruitful results, Li said.

He added that the meeting between the two heads of state this July provided strategic direction and new arrangements for the future of China-Belarus relations.

China, Li said, is ready to work closely with Belarus to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, further enhance the alignment of development strategies, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, share development opportunities, and achieve more practical results, so as to continuously enhance the well-being of the two peoples and make more contribution to regional and global peace, stability, development and prosperity. 

Chinese Premier Li Qiang arrives at the airport for an official visit to Belarus at the invitation of Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko in Minsk, Belarus, Aug. 22, 2024. Li Qiang was greeted by Roman Golovchenko upon his arrival at the airport. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)
NYC Park Worker Does The Unthinkable to a Migrant. Here's What He Had to Say About It Afterwards

A New York City Parks Department employee is in major trouble after authorities accused him of going on a fatal fit of rage toward a group of Venezuelan migrants.



As of August, over 200,000 migrants are reported to have arrived in New York City from South America, majority of them being refugees who fled from Venezuela upon the rise in crime and political chaos, per The New York Times. Unfortunately, with the citys overpopulation and unlivable wages, many of these migrants are taking shelter in the subways or under scaffolding on the sidewalks.

However, when 23-year-old Elijah Mitchell showed up to clean the Steuben Playground off the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway on July 18, he encountered a group of migrants who set up shelter there in tents, per The New York Post. Police said Mitchell grew enraged and began yelling at the migrants. One of them confronted Mitchell and the two began arguing. Police said the spout resulted in Mitchell going to his car and coming back to the scene to flash his gun. Luckily, Mitchells coworkers pulled him away before he pulled the trigger, police said.

However, three days later, police say Mitchell returned to the park in the evening to get his lick back. Prosecutors say he went up to the Venezuelan man hed argued with and shot him multiple times. The victim was pronounced dead at Brooklyn Methodist Hospital.

Read what happened from The New York Post:

Mitchell was indicted on charges of second-degree murder as a hate crime, second-degree murder, criminal possession of a weapon, menacing as a hate crime and menacing. He pleaded not guilty during a court hearing Wednesday and was held on bail of $350,000 cash or $2.5 million bond. He is due back in court on Oct. 23. Mitchell was suspended from the Parks Department on July 30.

The Post reports that Mitchell told detectives the migrants were aggressive toward him, threatening him with weapons. However, upon his arrest, he went on an offensive anti-migrant tirade to detectives exposing why he really had beef with them.

I dont have time to let a migrant f-ck up what I got going on in my life, he said according to court documents. The government let them come in here and they get $1,500 a month. They get free money a month. You work for your money, right? Yall were born here. This is yall country. This is our country.

Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez wasnt going for any of that, writing in a statement that he believes Mitchells actions were premeditated and cold-blooded. Mitchell is due back in court Oct. 23.

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NEW YORK  A New York City Parks Department worker has been indicted for the deadly hate-crime shooting of a Venezuelan migrant, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced Wednesday.

Elijah Mitchell, 23, of Queens, is charged in the July 21 slaying of Arturo Jose Rodriguez Marcano, 30, at Steuben Playground near Flushing Avenue and Steuben Street in Brooklyn.

This defendant allegedly came to the location where the victim was staying, armed with a gun, to settle a score, Gonzalez stated. This premeditated and coldblooded homicide is outrageous on many levels, not least because the alleged motive was hatred towards new arrivals to our city.

In his statement, Gonzalez concluded the horrific case merited these enhanced charges to send a strong message that hate crimes will never be tolerated in Brooklyn.

According to the DA, Mitchell and Rodriguez Marcano got into a heated argument about a migrant tent in the park on July 18, when Mitchell ranted about the encampment and started tearing down the tarps.

Mitchell then retreated to his car, only to return to confront Rodriguez Marcano by lifting his shirt and revealing a gun  but was held back by other park workers, according to the DA.Three days later, while off duty, Mitchell went back to the park and shot Rodriguez Marcano in the chest while he was sleeping, the DA said.

Police initially said they believed the slaying was connected to a fatal shooting of two men outside a Clinton Hill migrant shelter on Ryberson Street near Clinton Hill, which happened minutes before Rodriguez Maracano was slain. It was later determined the shootings were not related.

Mitchell was arraigned Wednesday in Brooklyn Supreme Court, where charges included murder as a hate crime and menacing as a hate crime, and was ordered held on bail for $350,000 cash or $2.5 million bond.

_____
A New York City resident, who owns a trio of emotional support parrots, has been awarded $750,000 after being evicted from her apartment building. | Mike Terry

Polly is about to get all the crackers she wants after a federal lawsuit resulted in a Manhattan apartment owner getting $165,000 in damages plus $585,000 for her shares in a co-op  for a total of $750,000  after a dispute over emotional support parrots.

Meril Lesser, who has owned a unit at The Rutherford apartment building in Manhattan since 1999, was evicted in 2016 due to alleged excessive noise from her three emotional support parrots, Ginger, Layla and Curtis. The New York Post reported that the New York City Department of Environmental Protection responded to 15 separate noise complaints regarding the parrots, but found no disturbances on any of the occasions.

Charlotte Kullen, Lessers former neighbor, told the Daily News that when Lesser first moved into the building, there were no noise problems. As soon as the third one came 16 years later, she said her life became a living hell.

Lawsuit over emotional support animals

According to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which is more commonly known as HUD, it is unlawful for a housing provider to refuse to make a reasonable accommodation that a person with a disability may need in order to have equal opportunity to enjoy and use a dwelling.

In a different document, HUD said that eligible emotional support animals may include dogs, cats, small birds, rabbits, hamsters, gerbils, other rodents, fish, turtles or other small, domesticated animals that are traditionally kept in the home for pleasure rather than for commercial purposes.

The Associated Press reported that Lesser had submitted documents from a mental health professional stating that the parrots were necessary for her mental well-being. When The Rutherford proceeded with Lessers eviction, she argued that there was insufficient reason for eviction.

After being evicted, Lesser sublet her apartment and filed a grievance with HUD. She tried to sell the apartment in 2018, but the buildings co-op board rejected the sale.

The Rutherford opted not to settle outside of court, and Lesser ended up with the most money ever awarded in an emotional support animal claim, according to Manhattan U.S. Attorney Damian Williams.

Of the $750,000 awarded to Lesser, $585,000 was to buy out her shares in The Rutherfords co-op board  an above-market rate, according to the New York Post. The remaining $165,000 was for damages.

This outcome should prompt all housing providers to consider carefully whether their policies and procedures comply with federal law, Williams told The Associated Press.
Oconomowoc woman, 71, dies in bicycle-vehicle collision in Minocqua, police say

An Oconomowoc woman riding a bicycle died after colliding with a vehicle Tuesday in Minocqua, according to the Minocqua Police Department.

Susan Kass, 71, died on the scene after being hit by a vehicle while riding a bike at the intersection of Highway 51 and Timber Ridge Road at around 12:48 p.m. She was traveling southbound, according to police.

The driver of the vehicle, Morgan Emily Christianson, 20, of Minocqua was transported to the Howard Young Medical Center in Woodruff with injuries sustained in the accident, police said.

Police did not provide any updates on Christianson's condition, and the accident is under investigation.

According to the police department, this investigation is being assisted by the Oneida County Sheriff's Office, Wisconsin State Patrol, Minocqua Fire and Rescue, Hazelhurst Fire Department, Oneida County Ambulance Service and the Oneida County Medical Examiner's Office.

More: Family of Oconomowoc HS graduate advocates for greater bicycle safety in her memory

More: Bicyclist struck and killed by Amtrak train in Oconomowoc, authorities say

Cathy Kozlowicz can be reached at 262-361-9132 or cathy.kozlowicz@jrn.com. Follow her on X at @kozlowicz_cathy.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Oconomowoc woman dies in bicycle-vehicle collision in Minocqua
KINGS COUNTY, Brooklyn (PIX11)  An off-duty New York City Parks employee was indicted for fatally shooting a migrant in Brooklyn on July 21, officials announced.

The shooting happened at Steuben Playground at around 10:40 p.m., according to court documents.

More Local News

Police received multiple 911 calls on July 21 and located Arturo Jose Rodriguez Marcano, 30, with a gunshot wound inside Steuben Park. He was taken to a local hospital and pronounced dead, according to the NYPD.

After an investigation, Elijah Mitchell, 23, of Queens, was arrested on July 29. Mitchell allegedly fired multiple shots, striking the victim, Arturo Jose Rodriguez Marcano, officials said.

Mitchell is facing murder, murder as a hate crime, criminal possession of a weapon, and menacing charges.

He admitted to being at the location at the time of the crime, according to court documents.

Woman charged with hate crime for assaulting Uber driver in Manhattan: DA

Police also located two additional individuals with gunshot wounds in front of 29 Ryerson Street. Enny DeJesus Urbina Mendez, 21, was pronounced dead at Bellevue Hospital. Francisco Fuentes Rangel, 59, sustained a gunshot wound to the head and later passed away in a hospital in Brooklyn, police said.

Jorge Said Benitez Villa, 26, was arrested in connection to the deaths of Mendez and Rangel, according to the NYPD.

Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, downloading the NYPD Crime Stoppers mobile app, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).

Ben Mitchell is a digital content producer from Vermont who has covered both local and international news since 2021. He joined PIX11 in 2024. See more of his work here.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11.
Three people were hurt in a shooting at an Ohio bar early Thursday morning.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WHIO-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

Officers responded around midnight to The Office Club Springdale Road in Colerain Township on initial reports of a shooting, according to our news partner WCPO in Cincinnati.

Two men and a woman were shot.

Medics transported them to UC Medical Center.

Their conditions are unknown at this time, WKRC reports.

It happened as the club was celebrating Karaoke Night during a birthday party, according to its social media page.

The shooting remains under investigation.

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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.

When Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft last year released an official summary of a proposed abortion rights ballot measure that said the proposal would allow dangerous and unrestricted abortions, state courts struck down the description as partisan.

The Republican official, now in the twilight of his time in office, is trying again.

Ashcroft this month certified for the November general election a proposed constitutional amendment to overturn Missouris abortion ban. The decision came after election officials verified that supporters had gathered enough valid petition signatures from across the state.

The secretary of state also released fair ballot language summarizing the proposal  a brief statement displayed at polling locations that provides a high-level overview of the consequences of a yes or no vote. Ashcroft has also posted the fair ballot language, which does not actually appear on the ballot, on the secretary of states website.

But the fair ballot language approved by Ashcroft says the amendment would enshrine the right to abortion at any time of pregnancy and would prohibit any regulation of abortion, including rules to protect women. It says the measure would prohibit any civil or criminal penalties for anyone who performs an abortion that injuries or kills a pregnant woman.

The description echoes language already rejected by Missouri courts that Ashcroft tried to use to summarize the proposal in 2023. The Missouri Court of Appeals Western District unanimously rejected that summary and ordered the secretary of state to instead use less inflammatory phrasing.

The proposed constitutional amendment would enshrine the right to an abortion in the state constitution while also giving lawmakers some leeway to regulate the procedure after fetal viability. If voters approve the measure, Missouri could be the first  or one of the first  states where voters have overturned an abortion ban since the U.S. Supreme Court ended the federal right to abortion in 2022.

Under the amendment, fetal viability is defined as the point in a pregnancy when a health care professional decides, based on the facts of the situation, there is a significant likelihood of the fetuss sustained survival outside of the uterus without the application of extraordinary medical measures.

The fair ballot language reflects arguments advanced by amendment opponents, including the idea, which amendment supporters call false, that the proposal would wipe away protections for women injured during a procedure. Abortion opponents say the amendment would allow abortion at any point in pregnancy; supporters say it would guarantee abortion access up until fetal viability with exceptions for the health and safety of the patient.

Just like last year, Ashcroft faces a legal challenge over his word choice.

The ACLU of Missouri last week filed a lawsuit in Cole County Circuit Court seeking to overturn the fair ballot language. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Anna Fitz-James, a retired St. Louis doctor who originally submitted the amendment proposal.

The ACLU of Missouris petition goes point by point through the similarities between the fair ballot language and the summary language previously tossed by the appeals court. The petition asks a judge to write a new, impartial description.

The summary language Ashcroft attempted to advance last year said the measure would allow for dangerous, unregulated, and unrestricted abortions.

Rather than reflecting the fair and sufficient summary statement certified by the Court of Appeals, the fair ballot language here echoes the Secretary of States original, misleading summary statement that was rejected by the Court of Appeals as unfair, insufficient, misleading, prejudicial, and argumentative, the petition says.

Several hundred protesters marched through the Country Club Plaza in 2019 in response to the passage of Missouri legislation that in 2022 would allow the state to become the first in the country to enact a near-total ban on abortion.

Concerns with SOS site

The court filing also voices concern with Ashcrofts decision to publish the current fair ballot language on the secretary of states website. The filing warns the posting will cause voter confusion and asks a judge to prohibit Ashcroft from including the current language on the website.

The secretary of state continues to act unconstitutionally to mislead Missouri voters, Tori Schafer, ACLU of Missouri director for policy and campaigns, said in an interview on Wednesday.

Its disappointing the secretary of state chose to use this language when a court has so clearly told him on multiple occasions the language the secretary of states office uses and the attorney general approves needs to be impartial and fair, Schafer said. And this language clearly is not that.

Ashcroft, who came in third in the GOP primary for governor and will leave office in January, appears to welcome the fight, which could lead to a repeat of last years legal wrangling over the ballot summary in which Ashcroft and Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey grabbed headlines promoting their effort to uphold the secretary of states summary even as courts eviscerated their arguments.

I am appalled that factions want to use the courts to misrepresent the truth to push a political agenda, Ashcroft said in a statement. I will always fight for the right of Missourians to have clear, understandable ballot language when they vote on such an important fundamental issue as life.

Bailey, a Republican, is seeking election in November after he was appointed attorney general in 2023. The legal fight over the fair ballot language could provide a new round of publicity for the candidate.

Baileys office didnt respond to a request for comment.

Michael Wolff, a former Missouri Supreme Court chief justice, said that fair ballot language has never been an issue before because voters typically dont read them.

But the problem now is that Ashcroft put the language on his website. Wolff, who said he gave some legal advice to lawyers representing the abortion rights campaign, warned the language could be used by abortion opponents to confuse voters.

Now that we have the widespread use of the web and social media and all that, you have false information on the official website of the Secretary of State, Wolff said.

Hoskins backs Ashcroft

While lawsuits over ballot summaries are common, fewer legal challenges have been brought over fair ballot language. The outcome of the current suit could send a signal about how much leeway courts are willing to give future secretaries of state who attempt to bend the descriptions one way or another.

Sen. Denny Hoskins of Warrensburg, the Republican candidate for secretary of state, has aligned himself with Ashcroft on his description of the abortion amendment. In a statement, he called the language fair and accurate and called the amendment barbaric.

It would also prevent our state from passing laws to protect pregnant women from being harmed or even killed by botched abortions, Hoskins said.

Schafer has previously called that claim fully false. The amendment wouldnt impact previous malpractice laws, she said.

Missouri state Sen. Denny Hoskins.

Rep. Barbara Phifer, the Democratic candidate for secretary of state, said that Ashcroft fundamentally misunderstands the job of secretary of state.

That job, she said, is to ensure that people know what theyre voting on, have accurate information and that all eligible voters are able to vote. Its not to push a particular agenda, she said.

Just doing this kind of thing creates uncertainty about the election process, which threatens democracy, she said. Its not funny, its not silly. Its a fundamental attack on who we are as the American people.
Oh No He Didn't! Trump Attacks Kamala Harris By Dissing Black Greek Fraternities and Sororities

Former President Donald Trump once again opened his ignorant mouth to attack Vice President Kamala Harris. This time, he attempted to shame Harris for attending the historically Black sorority Sigma Gamma Rhos boule which took place from July 31 to Aug. 4 in Houston.

Not only should he never speak on Black people, but Trump needs to stay silent when it comes to anything related to Black culture. During a radio interview with conservative political personality Hugh Hewitt, Trump labeled the event a party.

She went actually, to a party, Trump said to Hewitt. And you know that she went to a sorority, sorority party and a very unimportant one. They have them numerous times during the year. Its a shame. Harris is a proud Howard University graduate and member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha (AKA) sorority.



Trump attacks Kamala Harris for attending a Black sorority event: A very unimportant one pic.twitter.com/jEOBtxKiX5  Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) August 21, 2024

What Trump failed to realize is that Black fraternities and sororities are organizations that prioritize community engagement, racial equity and public service. His dismissive nature when it comes to the complexity of Blackness is nothing new.

Just last month during a controversial appearance at NABJ 2024, Trump said that Harris happened to turn Black to garner support from the community. In a statement, Sigma Gamma Rhos 26th International Grand Basileus Marica T. Harris spoke out about Trumps obtuse remarks about the sororitys vital event.

The [boule] was an opportunity to commemorate the philanthropic efforts of our sisterhood. Vice President Kamala Harris brought forth greetings to an audience of ten thousand community leaders, entrepreneurs, civic leaders, and corporate partners.

In addition, when Trump insulted the Divine Nine, he also disparaged some of the most important Black leaders in history including Martin Luther King Jr., Coretta Scott King, Thurgood Marshall and Rev. Jesse Jackson.

Trump will keep lobbing these racist attacks against the Vice President until Novemberwhich is why he needs to be checked every time he does it.

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(WJET/WFXP) Police in Venango County have issued a felony arrest warrant for a Jefferson, Ohio man after allegedly using a demolition derby event to defraud a regional fire department.

According to Sugarcreek Borough Police, the theft was reported on June 19 with members of the Rock Grove Volunteer Fire Department working with a known organization for a demolition derby fundraising event.

Driver identified after police chase earlier this summer in Venango Co.

Police said the department wrote a check for a $2,400 donation to the event at an unspecified date and had been cashed.

However, Rocky Groves treasurer reported the check had been cashed a second time on May 22 for the same amount with police saying it was altered to have the name of the suspect, 41-year-old Keith Morris of Jefferson, Ohio.

Several arrested on weapon, drug charges in NY narcotics investigation

Police said Rocky Grove firefighters talked to Morris about the check and wanted him to rectify the situation but he was unable to and police were called.

Police issued a warrant for Morris charging him with felony forgery, access device fraud, theft by deception and theft by unlawful taking.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJET/WFXP/YourErie.com.
ADEN, Yemen, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- A Panama-flagged commercial vessel was struck by an explosive-laden drone boat off the coast of Yemen's Red Sea port city of Hodeidah on Thursday, a Yemeni naval official told Xinhua.

The official said on condition of anonymity that the vessel, identified as SW North Wind I, a 15-year-old bulk carrier, was navigating the southern Red Sea when the attack occurred.

The ship sustained damage to its hull from the strike, but all crew members were unharmed, according to the official.

The attack followed a series of reported missile strikes against the same vessel on Wednesday, as it traversed from the Gulf of Aden toward the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

Also on Thursday, the European Union's Red Sea naval mission "Aspides" said the Greek-flagged oil tanker MV SOUNION, which came under attack in the Red Sea a day before and subsequently lost engine power, is now adrift and posing an environmental and navigational hazard in the region.

"Carrying 150,000 tonnes of crude oil, the MV SOUNION now represents a navigational and environmental hazard," Aspides said.

The naval mission called on vessels in the vicinity to "exercise caution and refrain from any actions that could lead to a deterioration of the current situation."

No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks.

The incidents occurred amid ongoing tension in the region. The Houthis in Yemen have been attacking "Israeli-linked" ships since November last year in what they said in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, and have vowed to escalate their strikes until Israel stops its offensive against the Palestinian enclave.

In response, the United States and Britain have conducted air and naval strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen since mid-January to deter the group from interrupting international shipping lanes. However, the intervention has prompted the Houthi group to expand their targeting to include U.S. and British commercial and military vessels in both the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. 
FINDLAY, Ill. (WCIA)  Police released new details, including a name and charges, in the case of a teacher accused of inappropriate communications with a student at Okaw Valley.

The teacher accused in that case was identified as Jason Engler and he was arrested by the Findlay Police Department. Chief Joshua Ekiss said in a press release that his department was informed on Aug. 16 by Okaw Valley School District that Engler, a teacher at their middle school, was communicating with a high school student.

One hurt in Thursday morning crash outside of Urbana

Ekiss said that after executing a search warrant and interviewing Engler that day, officers arrested him for indecent solicitation of a child and grooming. He was taken to the Shelby County Detention Center to await arraignment.

The Findlay Police Department would like to commend the bravery of the victims in this case who came forward, Ekiss said. We encourage all victims of sexual abuse to come forward, and we promise to do everything in our power to offer support.

Ekiss also thanked the Bethany Police Department, Shelby County Sheriffs Office and Illinois State Police for assistance in the investigation.

Five men charged for string of 22 burglaries at Illinois video gaming machines

Court records show that Engler made his first appearance on Monday. A detention hearing was scheduled for the following day; it was decided to place Engler on house arrest with electronic monitoring. He was forbidden from using the Internet altogether, including social media, and from having contact with people under the age of 18 other than his own children.

A status hearing has been scheduled for Sept. 18.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
State Superintendent Ryan Walters said Oklahoma student testing data is now 'very different' but claimed his agency isn't responsible. (Photo by Nuria Martinez-Keel/Oklahoma Voice)

OKLAHOMA CITY  Despite calling media reports on the topic fan fiction, Oklahomas top education official acknowledged the states student assessment process changed significantly without any announcement informing the public.

State Superintendent Ryan Walters said Thursday that Oklahomas scoring data and annual tests are now very different. He said there has been no public announcement because his administration is busy explaining the new results to school districts.

However, several school leaders told Oklahoma Voice they received their test scores from the state Department of Education with no notice that there were material changes to scoring.

State test results were released to schools, families and the public this month with the appearance of dramatic improvements in student proficiency.

However, public records Oklahoma Voice obtained show the cause of spiking scores was not better school performance, but rather a result of the state lowering the bar for students to receive a proficient score on English and math tests.

Had the state not changed its scoring methods, test results would have been similar or slightly lower than student performance in 2023, according to internal data analysis from the state Education Department, which Oklahoma Voice obtained from a source involved in the assessment process.

Walters said his administration intends to give clarity to educators and parents.

We are actively working with districts through that process, Walters said. You guys havent seen this big announcement from the (state Board of Education). You guys havent seen us walk through it yet because, again, what were trying to do is make sure the districts understand how do you use these (results) with your teachers and training for next year? How do you make sure that the context is there?

Leaders of a legislative committee on education funding said the state dropped the ball by failing to announce the scoring change sooner.

This left districts shocked and surprised when they saw this years scores, and it puts a false narrative out there, said Rep. Mark McBride, R-Moore, and Rep. Dick Lowe, R-Amber, in a joint statement Thursday.

Schools and families received their students test scores this month, and the Education Department posted statewide results on its website for public view.

Regardless, Walters denied the state ever released this years test scores.

It is an incredible position of the media gaslighting the public on whats happening here, he said. We have not rolled out the test scores yet. So to be attacked on how we rolled out test scores before we roll out test scores, I found (a) really fascinating bit of fan fiction out there.

Over the summer, the state Education Department initiated a process, called standard setting, to reset grade-level expectations for student performance on annual English and math exams. The agency did this because requirements for what schools must teach in English and math classes have changed since the last scoring update.

Standard setting involves several panels of teachers describing which competencies students should be able to demonstrate on state tests in order to be considered ready for the next grade.

The process resulted in new expectations that lowered the performance level needed to get a proficient score, according to public records Oklahoma Voice obtained from the state.

As a result, statewide proficiency rates skyrocketed by as much as 33% even while students performed at relatively the same level as the year before, state records and internal data show.

Walters claimed the committees that developed the new grade-level expectations had no connection to his agency.

But, Education Department officials explained in detail how they oversaw the standard setting process in a July presentation to the Commission for Educational Quality and Accountability, which had to approve the new scoring system. Oklahoma Voice obtained the presentation slides and the new scoring expectations through an open records request.

Oklahoma last made a major reset to test scoring in 2017, when it aligned its assessments with national standards.

At that time, the state Education Department warned schools and the public that the new scoring system would cause proficiency rates to drop significantly. The agency did so before releasing the scores to the public at large.

Thats what the Education Department should have done this time, said McBride, the chairperson of the House education funding committee.

Had (the agency) done its job and communicated this process clearly before these scores were released, we would not have this misunderstanding, McBride said. I can only hope they do better in the future.

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An Indiana police sergeant who for years has been hailed as a hero is now accused of exploiting children and trading child pornography, officials say and news outlets report.

Sgt. Javed Richards, of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, is charged with 13 counts of child exploitation and one count of possessing child porn, records show. The charges were filed Aug. 21.

Until recently, Richards appeared to be a highly respected member of the police department.

In 2015, he was awarded a Purple Heart and a Medal of Valor after being injured in a shootout, the Indianapolis Star reported. During the ceremony, Chief Rick Hite called Richards a real hero.

Sergeant Javed Richards (center) receiving a commendation in 2015.

The 12-year veteran was later assigned to Internal Affairs and was a part of that division until his alleged activities were discovered, the IMPD said in a news release.

That discovery might never have happened if it werent for a tip sent Aug. 6 to the federal Internet Crimes Against Children task force, police said.

According to investigators, more than 40 files of child porn had been shared on the messaging app Kik, by a user named chasepleez, later determined to be Richards, WXIN reported. Hes accused of sending messages, videos and images with other users on Kik, trading with each other.

Richards had experience as an investigator and took precautions to hide what he was doing, using out-of-state IP addresses and servers when hed shared photos or videos of children, the outlet reported. However, he used his home IP address when logging into Kik and, at one point, uploaded two files while still using his homes IP  likely by accident, investigators said, according to the station.

He was taken into custody on Aug. 19, and interviewed by investigators, who confronted him with evidence they had collected, WTHR reported.

Whatever happened in that moment, whatever it was, is not who I am, right? It is not who I am, Richards said, the station reported.

Detectives searched Richards apartment while he was at the interview and found further evidence tying his home internet address to the Kik account, WTHR reported.

In the IMPD news release, Chief Chris Bailey said he is profoundly shocked and disturbed by the allegations against Richards.

His alleged actions constitute a betrayal of the sacred oath we take to protect and serve our community. These actions do not reflect the character of the brave men and women who serve Indianapolis with integrity and dedication every day, Bailey continued.

The exploitation of children through pornography is an unimaginable crime that inflicts lasting harm on our most vulnerable. I commend the unwavering dedication of our detectives in the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Unit. Their efforts in investigating, prosecuting, and formulating responses to these heinous crimes ensure that those who prey on children are held accountable.

Richards was suspended on Aug. 19, and Bailey is awaiting approval to fire him, according to the release.
One civilian killed, six more injured in Russian attack on Bohodukhiv in Kharkiv Oblast

Russian forces targeted the city of Bohodukhiv in Kharkiv Oblast on 22 August, claiming the life of a 57-year-old man and leaving six more civilians injured.

Source: Kharkiv Oblast Military Administration

Details: The authorities noted that a 57-year-old man had been killed in the Russian missile strike on the city of Bohodukhiv.

Among those who were injured in the attack are a 15-year-old teenage boy, a 50-year-old man, and women aged 28 and 45. The ages of two other women injured in the attack are still being established.

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH)  One person is in critical condition Wednesday evening after a motorcycle crash on the southwest side of Columbus.

Three dead identified in east Columbus wrong-way, head-on collision

At around 6:27 p.m., officers were called to the 2000 block of Jackson Pike on reports of an accident. One person was transported to a nearby hospital in critical condition, according to dispatchers.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

The other car involved in the crash stayed at the scene. Columbus police have not shared details, like the cause of the crash, as of 7 p.m.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV.
Zhang Peiyi, a Shanghai resident, tears up during an interview at her home in Shanghai on July 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

BANGKOK (AP)  It's been more than four years since Zhang Peiyi last saw her son, one of two children from her former marriage.

Denied custody of both kids, Zhang finally settled in June for visitations with her daughter. But after seeing her only once, Zhang's ex-wife called the meetings off indefinitely. What Zhang thought was the end of a yearslong legal battle is facing yet another hurdle, as she has to go through court again to ask them to enforce her visitation rights.

These types of disputes are not well protected in our country, said Gao Mingyue, the lawyer representing Zhang. This is a reminder that we have to be self-sufficient.

LGBTQ+ families like Zhang's have no law to cite when faced with situations like custody or divorce, as same-sex marriage is not recognized in China, meaning the outcome of each case is uncertain and inconsistent.

For straight couples  regardless of marriage status  both are recognized as custodians by law. If the two split, the court decides who gets custody based on factors like the parents financial resources, the childs desire and the home environment  operating from the principle of making the best decision for the child.

But for same-sex couples who have children via surrogacy or in vitro fertilization, nothing is guaranteed.

Zhang, a Shanghai resident, knows this firsthand. She's been fighting to see her children since 2020, after a difficult separation.

The two women went to the United States to be legally married and give birth to their children. Zhang's ex provided the eggs, and Zhang gave birth to a girl and her ex birthed a boy. Back in China, a few years later when the relationship ended, Zhangs ex took both children and cut off all communication.

When Zhang turned to the law, she discovered just how little protections there were for LGBTQ+ couples in China, where there's no legal standard for two mothers or two fathers. The law around families is written exclusively for cases of a mother and a father.

While surrogacy is not illegal, hospitals are forbidden from selling eggs or sperm, so laws don't address issues of parentage where surrogacy is involved. And the courts have so far avoided making any legal precedent; Zhang's court granted custody to the biological mother, while another court in another case denied custody to the biological mother.

Gao represented both cases.

Zhang's case, which landed in a Beijing court, granted her ex custody and Zhang visitation of the child she birthed. But because the outcome was reached through a settlement, there is no legal precedent set. Although China is not a precedent-dependent country in the way the U.S. is, legal judgements can still have an impact that lawyers and academics cite.

In the other case, in the southern coastal city of Xiamen, the court's 2020 ruling said the woman suing, who provided the egg that her partner carried, "had no legal basis for her argument and that it could not affirm that she was the childs mother. Further, it said, the defendant and plaintiff are same-sex partners, and this is not regulated by our countrys marriage law or any other civil laws.

No DNA testing was done for the case, but Gao wanted to prove that his client was the genetic mother. They provided medical evidence and the opposing side admitted it was his client's egg, but the court didn't want to make a ruling, he said. They just said theres no way to prove youre the genetic mother, but even if you had no way to affirm the parent-child relationship, the law actually allows the court to make this judgement," he said.

Its quite messy, and different courts at different times and different places have come to different solutions, said Darius Longarino, a senior fellow at the Paul Tsai China Center at Yale Law School.

The case drew criticism from one of Chinas top legal experts on civil law.

We can put aside the issue of surrogacy or same-sex couples, when a child is born, thats a human being, Yang Lixin, a professor at Renmin Universitys law school in Beijing said in an online commentary when the Xiamen case issued a first judgement in 2020.

He said that the courts decision was basically nonsense," adding that the child's "rights and his position must be protected.

Some LGBTQ+ couples are trying to stave off the legal ambiguities with a legal agreement, similar to how a prenup works, outlining what would happen to their children if they broke up.

For same-sex partners, when they decide to have kids, we advise them to sign an agreement on the births, said Gao. He said some 30 couples have come to his practice inquiring abut drafting agreements that establish the identity of the parents, their mutual agreement to have children, and the responsibility, financial and otherwise, to raise the kids.

Hes drafted eight or nine, but none have had a chance to be tested yet, so its unclear how the courts will receive them.

In July, when Zhang got her first legally guaranteed visit to see her daughter for the first time in more than four years, it was a subdued occasion.

I felt very calm, in those four hours, she said. I couldnt cry then. I didnt even have time to have a happy reaction, but I was satisfied that at least in those four hours, I was in the same space as her.

The Peoples Court in Beijings Fengtai district granted Zhang the right to see her daughter once a month, four hours per visit, which is common in cases with young children. Zhang traveled up from Shanghai and then drove to Hebei province, two hours outside of Beijing, to a home that her ex-partner owns.

Her ex-partner, the only other person present during the visit, required their daughter to wear a face mask, and the girl spent the time doing homework, Zhang recalled. But there were moments when the little girl would sneak looks at the woman sitting with her in the quiet house. They didnt talk at all, Zhang said, partly because she didnt know what to say.

It was only after Zhang walked out of the house, she said, that she burst into tears.

Now, Zhang doesn't know when she'll see her daughter again. Her ex-partner is denying visitation on the claim that Zhang violated the childrens privacy. The woman's lawyer, Tian Yuanyuan, said his client would not give any interviews as the court requested that both sides refrain from talking to media. He also said The Associated Press was violating their privacy by calling.

Well be telling the court about this, he said.

With few options left, Zhang says she will keep fighting by recording all that has happened to her, while taking what precautions she can such as keeping the children's names and ages private.

The children have the right to know what happened. And so I wanted to give my greatest effort. One day, maybe after they know, they know, Our mom really tried her best and gave it her all, Zhang said. I want to take 99 steps forward, and the children, after they see Ive taken these 99 steps, they can take one step toward me.
ONEIDA COUNTY, NY (WUTR/WFXV/WPNY)  The Oneida County Health Department announced on Thursday, August 22 that mobile vaccination clinics will be offered throughout the remainder of August as kids return to school.

The clinics will be held in conjunction with the Rome City School District and the City of Utica.

In New York State, children must be immunized against several diseases if they wish to attend or remain in school. Children may remain in school without the required immunizations if they have a valid medical exemption to do so. If not up to date, children may be excluded from attending school.

We recognize that residents and families may have some challenges to staying up to date on vaccines, Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente said in a statement. This mobile public health unit allows us to remove some of those barriers and lend a helping hand to those in need.

The clinics will be held at the following places:

Rome Free Academy will host two separate clinics, on Friday, August 23, and Wednesday, August 28. Both clinics will run from 10 am to 2 pm, and will be for students in grades 9 through 12.

The Parkway Recreation Center in Utica will host a clinic on Saturday, August 24 from 10 am to 2 pm and is for students from Kindergarten to grade 12.

Gansevoort Elementary School in Rome will host their clinic on Saturday, August 31 from 10 am to 12 pm. The clinic will be for students entering kindergarten through grade 5.

Strough Middle School in Rome will host a clinic on Saturday, August 31 from 1 pm to 3 pm. This will be for students entering grades 6 through 8.

Appointments are preferred for all clinics, as walk-in availability varies. If you wish to schedule an appointment, please call the Oneida County Health Department at 315-798-3651.

If you represent an agency that wishes to host a mobile vaccination clinic, you are encouraged to make a request through the Oneida County Health Departments 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 WUTR/WFXV - CNYhomepage.com.
Opening date for Elk Groves Amazon Fresh announced as stores come to life across Sacramento

As Amazon Fresh kicks off its first store in the capital region, the retail juggernaut has set an opening date for its highly anticipated, long-awaited Elk Grove location.

The new, 42,000-square-foot grocery store in The Ridge shopping center will open Thursday, Sept. 12, according to Amazon spokesperson Griffin Buch.

Its going to be in three weeks, Buch said about opening. Im super excited to share this news.

The opening at Elk Grove Boulevard and Bruceville Road comes three weeks after the Seattle-based company opened its Roseville location, at 6780 Stanford Ranch Road, on Thursday morning, the first in Northern California outside the Bay Area.

The space at The Ridge, decked out in hues of gray with green accents, has been closely watched in the Elk Grove community since it was first built in 2022. A sign branding the store has been up for well over a year and glimpses behind the exteriors glass showed fixtures and lighting in place since last summer.

At the planned Amazon Fresh location in Elk Grove in July 2023, signage and fixtures are seen installed in the empty store. The company announced that the store would open on Sept. 12, 2024.

Amazon Fresh opened its first location in Woodland Hills in September 2020 and has since been joined by more than 40 locations in California, Illinois, New York, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Washington state and New Jersey, as well as the Washington, D.C., area.

According to the company, Amazon Fresh is similar to other supermarkets while being a physical extension of the popular online shopping behemoth.

The stores feature innovations like Dash Cart, which uses a combination of computer vision algorithms and sensor fusion to allow customers to skip the checkout line and pay by phone.

The company  which also owns the upscale Whole Foods grocery chain  kept mum for years about the stores as it quickly took up retail spaces across the capital region before pausing its nationwide expansion.

In January 2022, The Bee confirmed the Roseville location with city planning officials. According to previous Bee reporting, the building permit for the site of a former Toys R US store never included Amazons name on it, only an architectural firm.

Several weeks later, sources not authorized to comment on the project confirmed the Elk Grove project.

Then came a lull as Amazon CEO Andy Jassy told investors last year that the company wouldnt open new supermarket locations until it solidified a system that resonated with customers. He said at the time that Amazon also needed to like the economics.

Elk Grove resident Scott Barcellos used to meet up with friends and other community members every other Wednesday in the Amazon Fresh parking lot at The Ridge.

He and members of Elk Grove Motorcycle Riders, a community of bikers, decided they would occupy the space until the store opened. They did just that for about a year.

Barcellos said this month that the group felt that their time in the parking lot could soon come to an end as signs pointed to an eventual opening.

We heard in the last couple of days that they are going to open the store, so we might find another spot, Barcellos said weeks before the announcement. We could probably go just a couple of rows over if we had to.

With the two new stores coming online, it appears development efforts have begun on more Amazon Fresh stores in the capital region  but at a different location.

An opening date for a third location already built out, in the Country Club Centre in Arden Arcade, has not been announced.

In June, Sunrise Village shopping center in Citrus Heights listed a grocery store as coming soon to a space measuring more than 38,000 square feet.

The buildings exterior is similar to other vacant Amazon Fresh stores in the area, but its unclear if the company is leasing the building.

Buch, the company spokesperson who also is a Roseville native, said hes happy Amazon Fresh is coming to his hometown as well as Elk Grove.

The Elk Grove opening will be exciting, Buch said. Its a big deal.

The stores will operate daily from 8 a.m to 10 p.m.

The Bees Brianna Taylor and Hanh Truong contributed to this story.
Sirens fill the streets. Police cars flash passersby with blue lights. The capital city pauses. But no ones phone buzzes with alerts. No one seeks shelter. No one scans the sky for missiles. The scene is Warsaw, not Kyiv. Every year on Aug. 1, at 5:00 p.m., sirens wail, and civilians stop to remember the start of the Warsaw Uprising.

This year, the 80th anniversary of this armed resistance against foreign rule coincided with Taylor Swifts concerts in Warsaw. It was a moment of cultural collision: Polish scouts in uniform stood beside visiting fans dressed in sequins. Even the Swifties were informed of what to expect and how to pay their respects.

On Aug. 1, 1944, fighting erupted across Warsaw as coordinated units of combatants attempted to reclaim the city from the Germans. The Warsaw Uprising was an attempt to assert a free and independent Poland, separate from the occupying Nazis and distinct from the approaching Soviet army.

The Uprising ultimately failed. After 63 days, 150,000-200,000 people had been killed. The survivors were deported, and the Germans leveled the city to punish its residents for daring to fight for home rule instead of enduring brutal occupation.

Read also: Opinion: As war rages, Ukraine faces an escalating HIV crisis

Though the Uprising did not secure an independent, democratic Poland, it continued a long tradition of resisting invaders. Ukraine, too, has a proud history of fighting for independence. These shared histories make the Warsaw Uprising relevant to Ukraine  and its allies  80 years later.

The Uprising was a sophisticated political and military effort that relied on both combatants and non-combatants. Similarly, today, people across Ukraine and in the global diaspora are fighting to protect the country, volunteering to build drones, raising funds, and supporting displaced compatriots.

The participants in the Warsaw Uprising were diverse  not only in age and professional background but also in political ideology. Various Polish political parties and popular movements formed brigades and provided logistical support. Jews who had survived the 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising also led attacks.

In Ukraines current struggle for freedom, there are roles for people of all ages, with and without formal military training. A historian can become a medic, a jeweler can assemble drones, and a literary hero can join the national guard.

Yet, like the Warsaw resistance 80 years ago, Ukraines mobilization will only succeed with sustained international support and adequate military supplies from its allies.

In the summer of 1944, only a fraction of Warsaws combatants had access to weapons  estimates suggest just 10-25% were armed. They faced a well-armed, professionally trained enemy. The people of Ukraine have already proven themselves ingenious and tenacious throughout Russias full-scale invasion, from making Molotov cocktails to preparing for winter conditions.

But Ukraine needs weapons  and needed them six months ago. Whether shipped from abroad or produced domestically, international allies must fulfill their military commitments so that Ukrainian valor can be matched by power on the battlefield.

Sadly, slogans from Ukraines war echo the history of armed struggle in Warsaw. When Ukrainians urged governments to close the sky, the tepid international response mirrored the limited air support Warsaw received decades ago. During World War II, allies were prepared to fly supplies to Warsaw, but their efforts were stymied by a lack of access to Soviet airfields. When people protest to #ArmUkraineNow, hashtags and banners evoke the image of Warsaw fighters who faced Nazis without weapons.

Read also: The Counteroffensive: Online weddings and missile tracking  how Ukraines digital innovations thrive amid war

As Ukrainians already know, the word humanitarian has no meaning for Russia. In 1944, Stalin delayed humanitarian air drops of food and other essentials until it was too late to turn the tide in Warsaw.

We have a chance to correct the mistakes of history. After the defeat of the Uprising, Warsaw and Poland suffered almost 50 years of Communist control. Ukraine has already endured years of war, decades of Soviet authoritarianism, and generations of Russian attempts to erase Ukrainian culture, identity, and existence.

With swift funding for weapons, consistent international support, and ongoing humanitarian assistance, Ukraine can achieve what Warsaw could not  defeat the invaders and secure a lasting peace within its borders.

Today, Warsaw is a bustling cultural and economic hub. Restaurants and bars have revitalized old industrial buildings, and people of all ages bike or roller skate between neighborhoods. But Communist-era buildings still loom on the skyline, and plaques commemorating the Uprisings victims are visible on many downtown streets.

Each August, ribbons appear on national monuments, and candles are lit beneath memorial plaques. Residents lay flowers in the streets and hang flags from balconies, remembering the fight even as the world moves on. This summer, Warsaw can show the international community why learning from past defeats is crucial to securing victory for Ukraine.

Editors Note: The opinions expressed in the op-ed section are those of the author and do not purport to reflect the views of the Kyiv Independent.

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Much of the focus at the Democratic National Convention this week will be on how Vice President Kamala Harris, who will accept her partys presidential nomination, and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, address policy issues. The momentum Harris has generated since she reached the top of the ticket has been sensational but largely based on rhetoric that has provided a jolt of hopefulness to voters seeking an alternative to Republican nominee Donald Trump. While Harris seems to understand the priorities of voters and has released her economic plan, one major policy area that she cannot afford to overlook is the future of civil rights.

Last month, after an Illinois sheriffs deputy shot and killed Sonya Massey, a 36-year-old Black mother of two who had called police for help, Harris reached out to Masseys family to offer her condolences. The vice presidents public comments echoed the widespread and noncontroversial sentiment that Massey deserved to be safe. Still, at no point did Harris couple her statements about Masseys being killed with any real plans to address future police violence in America. It is unclear whether, in this pivotal moment, 10 years after a Ferguson, Missouri, police officer shot and killed Michael Brown, Harris and the Democratic Party are committed not only to protecting existing civil rights but also to expanding them.

For those who are concerned with addressing civil rights and police violence, and criminal justice in particular, Harris identity as a Black, Asian woman will not be enough. As her campaign begins to roll out more substantive policies around other issues, she must also lay out a concrete agenda around civil rights.

Harris past as a prosecutor  she was the self-proclaimed top cop in California  has generated some skepticism about what policing and criminal justice might look like in a Harris administration. Some of her critics concerns are based on a distortion of her record, if not downright misinformation. However, even for the most objective of people, Kamala Harris history with regard to criminal justice reform and civil rights can be described as complicated. While she is a Democrat, her policies and practices as a prosecutor would not rank anywhere near the more progressive end compared with those of many of her counterparts across the country. It would not be inaccurate to label her a centrist, at best, who at times acted more as a populist.

In communities of color especially, theres a tenuous understanding of the role prosecutors play in relation to overall public safety and community. I say that as a former prosecutor myself. Though Black people want and deserve to live in safe communities, there are legitimate questions as to what role  if any  law enforcement should and can play in bringing about that safety.

We learned during President Barack Obamas two terms in the Oval Office that a Black president, even when paired with a Black attorney general, does not mean the police will stop abusing and killing Black people. Whether it is a vigilante private citizen, as in the cases of Trayvon Martin and Jordan Davis, or violence stemming directly from police, as in the cases of Tamir Rice, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Alton Sterling, Atiana Jefferson and countless others whose ultimately went free, that a Black man was in office did not matter. So many Black people experienced violence at the hands of law enforcement during Obamas presidency and Eric Holders time as the first Black U.S. attorney general, but they were generally powerless in terms of their ability to hold those offending police officers accountable.

The easiest and lowest-hanging fruit for Harris on the issue of police violence is to commit to the abolition of qualified immunity. This is the legal doctrine that shields law enforcement from accountability for wrongdoing. If Harris were to prioritize getting rid of qualified immunity as the bedrock of her civil rights agenda, it would immediately quell much of the apprehension around her candidacy from a civil rights perspective. Likewise, this is the time for her to lean in, not only with her words but also with substantive policy measures, to her experience as a prosecutor in addressing real criminal justice reform, as well as reform around policing. It would also distinguish her from Trump, who has called for absolute immunity for police.

Civil rights, fundamentally, is about access and the opening of doors. The blowback against DEI is, for example, at its core steeped in anti-Blackness but rooted in a pendulum swing away from civil rights. There are a host of issue areas in which Harris could seek to have influence under the banner of civil rights. A commitment to closing the achievement gap for Black boys is a civil rights issue in that a denial of equal access to quality educational opportunities is a violation of their federally protected civil rights. Likewise, access to the ballot is a civil right, and it is instructive that Harris has been vocal in this vein.

Presidents are not lawmakers, but Harris ought to commit to using the insuperable power of the bully pulpit to apply pressure and influence policy. This is why an omission of substantive talking points around civil rights is glaring and unacceptable. While Harris can and should take a broad approach in setting forth an ambitious civil rights policy agenda, its imperative that she keep the main thing as the main thing and squarely address the issues of criminal justice reform, abolishing qualified immunity and eliminating police violence in America through substantive policy reform.

This week she will be on the biggest stage with the brightest lights and the loudest microphone. For the sake of Sonya Massey and so many others, Harris, with so many watching and listening, must present a plan.

This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
MOSCOW, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Ukraine has launched an attack on a railway ferry with fuel tanks in Russia's Black Sea port of Kavkaz, resulting in a fire, local authorities said Thursday.

The area of the fire and information about any victims are being clarified, the operational headquarters of the Krasnodar region said on Telegram.

There was no immediate comment from Ukraine. 
What kind of president would Kamala Harris be?

Thats a question many Americans are rightly asking themselves since the vice president became our presumptive Democratic nominee. As the only member of Congress whos worked for Kamala Harris, I can provide some insight.

Weve already seen Donald Trumps record as president. He let the ultrawealthy off the hook for paying their fair share in taxes. He weakened our international alliances. He proposed cuts to Social Security. In a second Trump term, he would do all this again.

The Biden-Harris administration has cracked down on tax cheats, restored our global standing and protected Social Security. Vice President Harris would continue this work, while bringing her own leadership style. We can look to her record of public service  a record I have observed up close  to see how she works for the people.

Kamala Harris took office as Californias attorney general in 2011, during the long, painful aftermath of the Great Recession. At the time, attorneys general from 49 states were negotiating with the nations largest banks, demanding that these institutions take responsibility for their role in the foreclosure crisis.

Kamala spent months pushing for a better deal, channeling the pain shed heard from families on the campaign trail. When the banks refused to do enough, she pulled out of the talks, which threatened to derail the compromise because of Californias size.

This angered the bankers. It annoyed other attorneys general, some of whom had been in office for decades. But it was the right thing for her constituents  and it worked. She got the banks to promise more than quadruple what they initially offered to help Californians. Thats someone who cant be bought or bullied.

Now, think about Kamala bringing this tenacity to a high-level international meeting like the G7. She wont go along to get along; shell do whats right for Americans and for a safer, more peaceful world. Kamala knows that respect is not something one can petulantly demand, as Trump does. Respect comes from the moral authority of doing whats right and speaking truth to power.

Kamala was savvy to press the big banks to do more, but her most remarkable insight guided her next move. She understood that the settlement depended on the banks promises to change their unlawful practices  and that given their illegal conduct, it wasnt enough just to hope that they shaped up. For Kamala, the victory wasnt the words on the pages of the National Mortgage Settlement or the press conference announcing the deal. Families were counting on government to deliver actual help that improved their lives.

Over objections from the big banks, Kamala appointed me as an independent watchdog for the settlement. She empowered me to hold the banks feet to the fire and to get results for Californians. I had no formal legal authority, but I had Kamalas force of will behind me.

With her backing, we halted hundreds of foreclosures and forced the banks to consider families for loan modifications. We were able to get one family a six-figure compensation check from one major bank for its flawed processes. We caught another major bank forcing consumers to sign away their right to sue for legal violations breaking a promise it had made in the settlement  and we forced it to send out hundreds of thousands of correction letters. We successfully pressed the banks to work more to reach the hardest-hit communities, and we held workshops for service members and seniors.

We changed lives on the ground. Thats how Kamala is: She sees things through, not stopping until people get help, because she cares about our families.

When she called me to offer me the job as California monitor, I had a 2-month-old. Like many working moms, I had to bring my infant to work because she had nowhere else to go. I remember being embarrassed on the call, worrying if Betsy would cry or fuss while I was talking to the attorney general. I nervously confessed that I had my baby with me.

Kamala didnt hesitate. She asked how my baby and I were doing and how her siblings were adjusting. She wasnt making small talk; she genuinely wanted to know. And then she continued to tell me about how important it was that Californians have a watchdog and a place to report any continued bank misconduct.

I had a newborn, two other kids and a full-time job as a college professor. Kamala did not even blink; she expressed confidence in me to do the job and emphasized the importance of the work. This is how I know, very personally, that Americans can count on Kamala to fill her administration with the best, most qualified leaders from all walks of life to advocate for everyday Americans. There couldnt be a clearer contrast with Donald Trump. As I exposed in congressional hearings, his appointees included a housing secretary who didnt know basic real estate terms and a postmaster general who didnt know how much it costs to mail a postcard.

I can assure Americans from personal experience: Kamala Harris vision for moving America forward will not just be words on a convention stage or at a press conference. Nor will it be the empty promises and lip service that we hear from too many politicians who pose as leaders. Kamala will do whats right and go to the mat to get it done.

This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walzs meteoric rise and his aptitude for putting down Republicans is driving the GOP crazy and has it scrambling desperately to find comebacks. By far the funniest attempt to take down Walz has come from Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis.

In an interview this week with Fox Business, Johnson warned that Walz is a radical leftist and made the case by pointing out what he called Walzs strange relationship with China. He got married on the anniversary of Tiananmen Square. Hes gone to China. Hes taught in China. Hes got deep connections to China, Johnson said in the interview.

I had to listen to the interview twice to make sure I wasnt mishearing it, because I couldnt believe Johnson had pointed to Walzs remembrance of the Tiananmen Square massacre as evidence that he could be some kind of Manchurian candidate. Johnson seems unaware that he scored an own goal.

Follow MSNBCs live blog for real-time updates on the final night of the Democratic National Convention.

Johnson is right about the basic fact: Walz did choose the date of the incident for his marriage. But the 1989 incident, during which Chinese troops opened fire on and killed hundreds  possibly thousands  of peaceful protesters in Beijing who were calling for political reforms, is an event that the Chinese Communist Party loathes anybody mentioning. The government has aggressively sought to suppress information about the protests and the Communist Partys crackdown in China; even so, the event remains one of the most iconic reference points for human rights criticism of Beijing. Walz has said the date will always have a lot of bitter memories for the people; his choice to make it the date of his wedding anniversary is clearly an homage to the victims. Walzs act of remembrance is an act of rebellion against the Chinese governments agenda to conceal its murderous repression.

In other words, Johnson, a China hawk like most members of his party, ought to be encouraged by Walzs symbolic gesture, not suspicious of it. Either hes illiterate about Chinese history or hes just throwing anything at the wall to see whatll stick. Maybe its both. The GOP has gone all in trying to peddle conspiracy theories that Walzs many trips to China  first to teach English, and then as a teacher escorting American students on cultural exchange visits  have compromised him somehow. House Republicans are investigating Walz for ties to China, and Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., has hysterically accused Walz of having been covertly co-opted by China, posting on X that Walz is an example of how Beijing patiently grooms future American leaders.

But, again, the GOP has gotten everything exactly upside down. Walzs background and record on China are not liabilities but strengths. Theres nothing known about Walzs trips there that suggest anything unseemly. His comments on the record  many of which were documented in local papers long before he expressed any political ambitions  show that he has consistently expressed affection for the Chinese people and criticism of their government. If they had the proper leadership, there are no limits on what [Chinese people] could accomplish, he told the Alliance Star-Herald in Nebraska in 1990. Walz also speaks Mandarin. This kind of background is not a warning sign. Its reflective of the kind of cosmopolitan, critically engaged sensibility one wants in a politician who can influence international affairs.

As my colleague Clarissa-Jan Lim has pointed out, Walzs congressional record suggests hes far from a pushover when it comes to pointing out Chinas problems:

As a member of Congress, he met with Tibetan leaders and Chinese dissidents, and he served on a congressional commission that tracks human rights abuses in China. In 2017, he co-sponsored the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act; Jeffrey Ngo, a senior policy and research fellow at the Washington-based Hong Kong Democracy Council, credited its passage years later to Walzs early support.

Walz also opposes Chinas expansion in the South China Sea but has expressed optimism about areas of cooperation that we can work on, and believes the U.S.-Chinese relationship doesn't necessarily need "to be an adversarial relationship.

As Paul Musgrave, a political scientist at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, puts it, Walzs record is that of a measured critic of the Chinese Communist Partyprone neither to exaggeration nor accommodation. In Musgrave's assessment, Walz is a moderate who defies the categories of "hawk" and "dove" on China, and approaches the issue as "a student and a teacher."

Republicans, frantic to find a vulnerability in Walzs armor as an affable happy warrior from the Midwest, have decided that his China affiliations are a path to taking him down. But the more one learns about those affiliations, the more one realizes that its a good thing that someone with his background could soon become the vice president.

This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
Shirley Chisholm (Rep. N.Y.), left, announcing her candidacy for the presidency in Brooklyn on Jan. 25, 1972. Vice President Kamala Harris, right, at a campaign rally in Las Vegas on Aug. 10. (Jim Wells /Associated Press, Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

When Kamala Harris takes the stage on Thursday night, becoming the first woman of color to accept the Democratic Party nomination for president, she will be charting new territory  something she has done in every elected position she has held since winning the race for San Francisco district attorney in 2003.

While Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton precede the vice president in this ceiling-breaking pantheon, neither experienced the double jeopardy of being Black and female. In those, and in many other ways, Harris has more in common with Shirley Chisholm.

Chisholm was the first Black woman member of Congress. She was elected in 1968 and she had the fearlessness and audacity to run for president just four years later, joining the white male candidates in the crowded 1972 Democratic primary. Her Black male colleagues in Congress and the civil rights movement were furious because they thought the honor of becoming the first Black presidential candidate should go to a man. Even the National Womens Political Caucus, which Chisholm co-founded, did not endorse her because its leaders were trying to build political clout for womens issues, and they knew Chisholm couldnt win.

Read more: Granderson: President Harris would be a 'first' in many ways. She can handle it

The Chisholm campaign slogan, Unbought and Unbossed, perfectly described her outsider candidacy. She barnstormed the country speaking to large crowds of young, multiracial voters who embraced her message of gender and racial equity, abortion rights, alleviating poverty and ending the Vietnam War. With a campaign run on a shoestring budget by hundreds of young volunteers, Chisholm saw it as her mission to engage alienated youth (the voting age had just dropped from 21 to 18) in the political system.

When she met Barbara Lee, then a single mother on welfare and Mills Colleges president of the Black Student Union, Chisholm tried to compel her to register to vote. I said, Not me. Thats bourgeoise. Im a revolutionary, so Im not going to recalls Lee. But Chisholm was persuasive and Lee joined her campaign, starting the political life that led to her becoming a now 13-term congresswoman from Oakland.

The parallels between todays political environment and the upheaval in the 1960s and 1970s that Chisholm encountered are striking. These include a new civil rights movement (Black Lives Matter) and a new womens rights movement (#MeToo), as well as widespread student protests over a foreign war, this time not in Vietnam but in Israel and Gaza.

Read more: Editorial: Harris' nomination marks an extraordinary moment in American history

Of course, the most arresting part of the past roaring back into the present is the 2022 Supreme Court decision wiping out 50 years of federal abortion rights. The urgency women now feel about regaining their lost freedom echoes the grassroots uprising of the womens liberation movement in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

And just as Chisholm worked to engage young people, Harris is energizing a TikTok generation that notoriously distrusts political institutions. Gen Z had been as apathetic about voting for either Donald Trump or Joe Biden as Barbara Lees generation had been about voting for Richard Nixon or George McGovern.

In 1969, when the 535 members of Congress included only 10 Black and 11 female members, Chisholm was treated with a disdain that verged on disgust by many of her colleagues on Capitol Hill. Her campaign signs were defaced with racial slurs, and Nixons dirty tricksters tried to smear her reputation in a secret campaign that they brazenly code-named Operation COAL.

Read more: Column: Democrats are embracing that hopey-changey thing again in Chicago. Will it work?

Again, the past roars into the present as Trumps campaign brings racist strategy to life. His campaigns racist attacks on Harris started with mispronouncing her first name and then accusing her of deciding only recently to "turn Black. The three Supreme Court justices appointed by Trump who were part of the majority that overturned Roe vs. Wade, along with JD Vances general denigration of women (especially women who dont bear children), appears to be the tip of the iceberg of anti-woman elements in the Republican tickets Christian nationalist-inspired strategy.

But along with this open misogyny and racism, the Trump-Vance ticket is also playing a macho card (complete with Hulk Hogan and Kid Rock) and as a result, this election is already predicted to have the largest gender gap in presidential election history.

Back in 1972, the National Womens Political Caucus, led by Congresswoman Bella Abzug and Ms. magazine founder Gloria Steinem, endorsed McGovern over Chisholm because Chisholm had no pathway to winning the nomination and McGovern agreed to place abortion rights on the party platform. But in the end, McGovern reversed course and would not back the hot-button position. Chisholm, who had asked the women delegates to vote their conscience and endorse her, felt vindicated.

Feminist and civil rights advocate Florynce Kennedy attributed McGoverns betrayal to the womens caucus giving up their endorsement too easily, without securing an airtight deal. As she said colorfully, Honey, if youll f for a dime, you cant complain because somebody else is getting a fur coat.

Chisholm earned just 2.7% of the popular vote and 152 delegates at the Democratic convention in Miami Beach. Her candidacy may not have been politically practical, but it proved a colossal success in exposing the entrenched culture of racism and sexism in American politics.

Chisholm recalled the glory of her time at the DNC, later writing: When I got to the convention hall, it was lit up by noise. That was a wonderful moment for me, to see the way all of the delegates received me at the convention.  Because I had felt that someday, a Black person or a female person should run for the presidency of the United States, and now I was a catalyst for change.

Kamala Harris has the winds of this history at her back. The groundwork laid by Shirley Chisholm and her generation of second-wave feminists might just be solid enough for this country to elect a woman of color for president.

Clara Bingham is a former Newsweek White House correspondent. Her latest book is The Movement: How Women's Liberation Transformed America 1963-1973.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Opinion: The Speech RFK Jr. Should Deliver to Be Worthy of His Name

Two months before his murder, Robert F. Kennedy delivered brief remarks in Phoenix, Arizona, while campaigning for the Democratic nomination for president.

If there is one overriding reality in this country, it is that we must resist any erosion of a sense of national decency, the March 30, 1968, speech began.

Make no mistake: Decency is at the heart of the matterand at the heart of this campaign. Poverty is indecent. Illiteracy is indecent.

The Vietnam War was at its bloody height, and he continued, The death or maiming of brave young men in the swamps of Asia, that is indecent.

But the rest of what he had to say would also apply to our present-day troubles.

It is indecent for a man to work with his back and his hands without hope of ever seeing his son enter a university. It is indecent for a man in the streets of New York or Portland, Detroit or Watts, to surrender the only life he will ever have to despair. It is indecent for the best of our young people to be driven to the terrors of drugs and violence, to allow their hearts to wither with hatred.

And the remedy was the same then as now.

This is a time to create, not destroy. This is a time for men to work out a sense of decency, not bitterness. This is a time to begin again. And that is why I run for president, and that is why I ask for your help.

Independent US presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy during an event in Oakland, California. Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images

On Friday, 56 years after those remarksand a day after the Democratic convention in Chicago that affirmed anew the principles Kennedy avowedhis son and namesake is scheduled to make a speech regarding his own candidacy for president.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.s appearance was preceded by a grandiose press statement headlined Kennedy to Address the Nation.

Independent Presidential Candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. will address the nation live on Friday about the present historical moment and his path forward, the release said.

The younger Kennedy is expected to announce his withdrawal from a race where he has never been more than a spoiled spoiler. He is a reckless anti-vaxxer given to conspiracy theories who has gone against much of what his father championed. The ultimate betrayal began two months ago, when he began discussions with the least principled major figure in American politics, someone who is an ongoing affront to national decency.

As reported by CNN and others, Kennedy and Donald Trump together weighed trading an endorsement in exchange for a high-level position in a new administration. Trump made clear that he was open to what he termed a deal with Kennedy.

I like him a lot. I respect him a lot, Trump told CNN. I probably would, if something like that would happen. Hes a very different kind of a guy  a very smart guy. And, yeah, I would be honored by that endorsement, certainly.

Independent Presidential Candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced attorney, tech entrepreneur, and philanthropist Nicole Shanahan as his running mate. Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images

Kennedy, who did not respond to a Daily Beast request for comment, is said to have also approached Kamala Harris with thoughts of a similar deal. He was met with silence.

But Trump remained open to a deal and the two mens schedules suggest it is at least close to being finalized. Kennedy is set to speak at 3 p.m. MT in Phoenix. That is 20 minutes away from Glendale, Arizona, where a Trump rally is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m.

A Kennedy endorsementwith him near enough to perhaps deliver it in personwould give Trump a much-needed boost after the all-encompassing drama of the Democratic convention in Chicago.

But the proximity to that gathering and its historical context also make the younger Kennedy seem all the more an apostate son.

President John F. Kennedy with his nephew, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., in the Oval Office. CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images

Five days after the 1968 speech by Kennedys father in Phoenix, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. Kennedy was campaigning that day in Gary, Indiana, and as riots broke in other cities, he proved able to calm a restive crowd by quoting his favorite poet, Aeschylus: In our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God.

Kennedy had continued with his own words, What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence or lawlessness; but love and wisdom and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice toward those who still suffer within our country, whether they be white or they be black.

With the power of that decency, Kennedy went on to win the California primary in June. He delivered a triumphant victory speech in a packed ballroom at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles

Now, its on to Chicago and lets win this! he exhorted.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. serving as pallbearer at the funeral for his father in New York. Fairchild Archive/Penske Media via Getty Images

Kennedy then stepped away from the podium and began to exit through the kitchen, where a 24 year-old assassin waited with a stolen revolver. Kennedy never made it to the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago, but he was prominent among the better angels at this years gathering.

More than a half-century after his death, the elder Kennedys passion for social justice was as alive as ever, particularly in the speeches by former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama. But neither they nor anybody else at the podium uttered the great mans name.

To have said Robert F. Kennedy would have raised the disgraceful specter of his son. RFK Jr. could prove himself worthy of his fathers name on Friday by using his fathers words and sticking to his vision: decency.

Instead he will seal his disgrace by throwing in his lot with an enemynot just of the Democratic Party, but of decency itself.

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If you left the U.S. for a summer vacation, you may have encountered a strange and refreshing custom: not tipping. Or at least not tipping everyone in sight.

Americans have long been among the worlds most profligate tippers. We tip more occupations than any other country, and we tend to tip larger amounts than other countries, says Michael Lynn, a professor of consumer behavior at Cornell Universitys School of Hotel Administration whose research focuses on tipping. Were kind of the tip-happiest country out there.

Read more: Opinion: The problem with self-checkout at the grocery store  and a way to fix it

Just wait. American tipping culture is poised to get even more intense. In a rare case of bipartisan agreement, presidential candidates Donald Trump and Kamala Harris both advocate exempting tips from federal income taxes. Its a popular stance with many potential voters, notably in Nevada, a swing state whose many casino, hotel and restaurant workers rely heavily on tips.

The idea would be bad news for customers  and perhaps even for tipped workers themselves.

Read more: 'Do y'all think tipping culture has gotten out of control?' Inside our evolving tipping dilemma

Consumers are already weary of the way tip expectations have expanded since the pandemic. As people curbed their restaurant dining to avoid COVID-19, they increased the size of the tips they left, whether for dining in, takeout or delivery. Meanwhile businesses gravitated toward machines for cashless, no-contact transactions.

Soon tip jars that once collected loose change at cash registers morphed into touch screens suggesting significantly larger tip amounts, even for small purchases. Restaurants without waiter service  and takeout coffee places  now come with pressure to tip.

A Pew Research Center survey last November found that 72% of U.S. adults believe tipping is expected at more places than five years ago. You have to wonder how often the other 28% get out of the house.

Read more: Letters to the Editor: 'I detest American tipping culture'  the case for just paying workers more

Its all a bit much. In a February WalletHub survey , three out of four respondents said tipping has gotten out of control. Tipping isnt just a financial burden. It creates psychological stress. Is a tip optional or expected? How much is enough? Am I a bad person if I say no?

Excluding tips from federal income tax might simplify employer paperwork and erase the difference between easily tracked credit card charges and cash gratuities, which often go unreported. The exemption could also allow employers to pay lower (taxed) wages, because workers would have the hope of keeping more (untaxed) tips.

All of those factors would encourage even more transactions to come with real or virtual tip jars. If your barista, tattoo artist and massage therapist get tips, why not the supermarket cashier, dental hygienist and plumber? Tipping in those situations might seem odd, even unseemly today, but tax-free income is hard to resist.

Vice President Harris has specified that the exemption would apply to service and hospitality workers, but they arent the only people who currently receive tips. Its hard to imagine those limits surviving the political pressure to include at least all tipped workers below a given income threshold.

Either way, however, the proposal picks winners. To help all workers in low-paid jobs, presidential candidates might propose increasing the standard deduction or the earned income tax credit. That would be fairer. But the tip loophole isnt about a general increase in take-home pay; its about winning votes in Nevada.

Like the tax credits that oil companies get for blending ethanol with gasoline , thereby subsidizing demand for Iowa corn, making tips tax free offers big benefits to a concentrated group while spreading the costs over the general public. Nobodys likely to vote against a candidate because they dread proliferating tip jars, but workers who make a lot of tips might vote for them.

If either proposal came to pass, the revenue forgone by the Treasury would have to come from somewhere else. But that would be a next year problem, an unpleasant reality not destined to get much attention this fall or sway many votes in November.

Thats why we see two fiercely opposed candidates rushing to agree on this harebrained scheme. We can only hope that they cancel each other out and that whoever is elected drops the idea.

Virginia Postrel is a contributing editor for WorksinProgress.co and writes a newsletter at vpostrel.substack.com. Her most recent book is The Fabric of Civilization: How Textiles Made the World.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
When my parents got married in 1996, they knew they wanted to start a family. After the second round of IVF, they were pregnant  with twins.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walzs Midwestern dad energy is hard to miss. Memes and social media posts  some silly, some earnest  have proliferated as online progressives celebrate Americas dad.

Walz reminds me of my dad, too. But in a different way.

Walz has spoken candidly about his familys experience with assisted reproductive technologies, more commonly known as fertility treatments. Walz and his wife, Gwen, had their daughter, Hope, through intrauterine insemination (IUI) in 2001, after seven years of trying to have children. (Although Walz has sometimes used IVF as a catch-all term to refer to the fertility treatments his family went through, IUI is less invasive and less expensive than IVF, and it is often a first option for families struggling to conceive.)

Since 1978, over 10 million children globally are believed to have been born as a result of assisted reproductive technologies, according to the National Institutes of Health. I am one of those 10 million, as is my brother.

Father and mother holding their twin babies (Courtesy Deanna Schwartz)

When my parents got married in 1996, they knew they wanted to start a family. When they had trouble conceiving naturally, they decided to pursue fertility treatments. They started with IUI and then tried IVF.

They were devastated when the first treatments failed. But after the second round of IVF, they were pregnant  with twins. My brother and I arrived in August 2000.

We wouldnt exist without IVF. And when I hear Walz speak about the importance of access to fertility treatment, it reminds me of my own parents.

My dad is the most emotive person I know. Hes never been the stoic macho type. In fact, when I called him to check some facts for this essay, he cried.

I see the same raw emotion from Walz. Im not crying, youre crying, Walz said at an Arizona rally after the crowd began chanting his daughters name.

My parents describe their IVF experience as deeply trying, even as it led to the ultimate reward. And theyve always expressed gratitude for the science that gave them their family.

As a teenager, I would joke about being a test tube baby and a GMO. But, deep down, I took pride in it, knowing the lengths my parents went to start their family. The method of our conception was never hidden from us  it was a part of our familys story.

Those who have gone through fertility treatments like IVF share a special connection. Gwen Walz has spoken about the community assistance she received during her fertility process, sharing recently about a neighbor who assisted her with her IUI treatments.

When my parents were going through the process, my mom developed a similar community of women at her doctors appointments and on an early internet message board. They shared the highs and lows, the ups and downs. And when my mom became pregnant, she gave her unused medicine, worth over $2,000, to another woman struggling to pay for the treatments.

Having this community of women was a lifeline for me, my mom told me. It was so validating to share my feelings and know others were feeling the same way. I didnt know them well, but I felt like we were really close friends because we were going through such an intense experience together.

Walz is talking about fertility treatments on the campaign trail for a reason: IVF in particular is under attack by some conservatives. In February, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos are legally considered children, forcing many reproductive clinics to halt treatment in fear of legal challenges. And while most Republicans havent publicly endorsed an IVF ban, over 100 Republicans in Congress signed the Life at Conception Act, which claims legal protections for human beings should begin at the moment of fertilization.

After the Alabama ruling, Walz posted on Facebook: Gwen and I have two beautiful children because of reproductive health care like IVF. This issue is deeply personal to our family and so many others. Dont let these guys get away with this by telling you they support IVF when their handpicked judges oppose it. Actions speak louder than words, and their actions are clear. Theyre bringing anti-science government into your exam room, bedroom, and classroom.

Walz calls out their hypocrisy for what it is. How can a party that claims to believe in the sanctity of the family deny someone who wants a child? Thats another part of my father that I see in Walz  a sense of righteous anger about what he deems to be unjust and cruel.

Walz is reminding voters that reproductive rights are a mens issue, too, as Faith Hill wrote in The Atlantic. But the way he speaks about this topic matters, too. Hes demonstrating a kind of masculinity that couldnt be more different from the Trump-Vance machismo brand.

Hope Walz and I may not have much in common, life-wise. But we both have parents who went to great lengths to achieve their dream of starting a family.

And there are hundreds of thousands of Americans, like Hope and me, born through assisted reproductive technologies. We all see a piece of our own families in Tim Walz. And Walz carries a piece of all of us in his and Kamala Harris fight for reproductive rights.

This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
HONOLULU (KHON2)  An opossum discovered Tuesday in a shipping container was the second live opossum in a month found in Hawaii, raising the concerns about the growing threat of invasive species in our islands.

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KHON2 raised the question, whats bringing the animal here and whats being done to prevent them from ending up in Hawaii in the first place?

It was relatively small, so its probably a juvenile, I think male, so one-and-a-half to two-feet, said Jonathan Ho, acting manager for the Plant Quarantine Branch at the State Department of Agriculture.

This tasty Chinese treat transformed into a Hawaii favorite

The four-legged stowaway captured Tuesday while small, poses a huge risk to the delicate ecosystem of the islands as omnivores and carriers of parasites.

The opossum was tested for rabies, as was the one caught last month on a window ledge of an office building in downtown Honolulu.

From animal advocacy to pageant queen: Mrs. Hawaii United States journey

In all, there have been 7 opossums captured in Hawaii since 2005 and theyve all been in the summer months.

Experts speculate the animals are looking for cooler shelter.

Opossum captured in downtown Honolulu

Anecdotally its hot. Theyre basically looking for shelter. Containers are open when these guys are doing their loading or its inside a pallet they get placed in and they get a trip to Hawaii, said Ho.

This discovery highlights a broader issue of the inspection and prevention efforts in Hawaii.

The State has no jurisdiction on inspections outside of the islands, the sole responsibility of capturing these invasive species falls on the State DOAG. The challenge for inspectors are the same as with all State departments: not enough money or resources.

Navy ramps up Red Hill cleanup amid water safety fears

While the departments general fund was given a significant boost of $19.2 million dollars for combating invasive species this past legislative session, with 4 to 5,000 containers arriving in Hawaii a week, and only around 65 inspectors statewide, the chances of these unwelcomed critters slipping through are real.

A consistent stream of funding is what Ho said would be more effective.

What Hawaii needs to know about Japans megaquake

Just trying to really manage constant pressure when youre kind of year to year is really not an efficient way to really manage this problem, because its not going to stop. Were going to continually import, you know, opossums or whatever is going to be in containers, continued Ho.

For now, the Department of Agriculture says education is the easiest solution.

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Anyone spotting an illegal animal should call the statewide pest hotline at 808-643-PEST (7378).





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Oprah Winfrey called upon independent and undecided voters to support Vice President Kamala Harris on this years presidential ballot during a rousing speech at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday evening.

The media mogul opened her speech by emphasizing: America is an ongoing project. It requires commitment. It requires being open to the hard work and the heart work of democracy and every now and then, it requires standing up to lifes bullies.

Winfrey then offered an example of the best of America, squeezing in a dig at Donald Trumps running mate J.D Vances largely unpopular cat lady remarks: When a house is on fire, we dont ask about a homeowners race or religion. We dont wonder who their partner is or how they voted  no! We just try to do the best we can to save them. And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady, well, we try to get that cat out too.

Oprah: When a house is on fire, we do not ask about the homeowners race or religion. We just try to do the best we can to save them. And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady. We try to get the cat out, too. pic.twitter.com/Oms9vO3d5c  Acyn (@Acyn) August 22, 2024

Her hypothetical anecdote drew cheers from the crowd as Winfrey pressed on and told the story of New Orleans civil rights icon Tessie Prevost, who died last month and was born not long after the Supreme Court ruled that segregated public schools were unconstitutional. Winfrey credited Prevost, along with Ruby Bridges, Leona Tate, and Gail Etienne, for breaking barriers and showing a young Harris how to challenge the people at the top and empower the people at the bottom and instilling in her a passion for justice and freedom.

Very soon, were going to be teaching our daughters and sons about how this child of an Indian mother and a Jamaican father  two idealistic, energetic immigrants  how this child grew up to become the 47th president of the United States, declared Winfrey to thunderous applause.

Before closing her speech, the media mogul, a registered Independent, addressed voters directly: Im calling on all you independents and all you undecideds  Values and character matter most of all in leadership and in life. And more than anything  you know this is true  that decency and respect are on the ballot in 2024.

Let us choose the sweet promise of tomorrow over the bitter return to yesterday. We wont go back. We wont be set back, pushed back, bullied back, kicked back. Were not going back, she continued. Let us choose truth. Let us choose honor and let us choose joy! Because thats the best of America.

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(The Hill) CHICAGO  Daytime television mega-celebrity Oprah Winfrey told a cheering crowd at the United Center that the 2024 presidential election boils down to a choice of values and character and warned that decency and respect are on the ballot.

Winfrey, who identified herself as an independent, made it clear she thinks Vice President Kamala Harris is the clear winner over former President Trump in the decency and respect department.

(AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

Theres a certain candidate that says if we just go to the polls this one time, well never have to do it again, she said, referring to Trumps cryptic remarks last month in which he assured supporters they would not have to vote again if hes elected president.

Winfrey called out those remarks as un-American and said it highlighted the election as a choice of candidates values that will set the future trajectory of the country.

So Im calling on all you independents and all you undecideds. You know this is true. You know Im telling you the truth, that values and character matter most of all, she added. In leadership and in life.

Winfrey said that preserving decency and respect in this years election is a matter of common sense.

Common sense tells you that Kamala Harris and Tim Walz can give us decency and respect, she said.

Let us choose loyalty to the Constitution over loyalty to any individual because thats the best of America. And let us choose optimism over cynicism and let us include inclusion over retribution, she said.

Winfrey then energized the crowd by defiantly declaring that we wont go back, we wont be sent back, pushed back, bullied back, kicked back. Were not going back, she said in a rhythmic cadence, appearing to warn implicitly that electing Trump to a second term would have consequences for civil rights and equality in America.

The former television show host paid tribute to four six-year-old girls who desegregated New Orleans elementary schools in 1960, including Tessie Provost, who died last month at the age of 69.

The New Orleans Four they were called. They broke barriers and they paid dearly for it but it was the grace and guts and courage of women like Tessie Provost Williams that paved the way for another young girl who nine years later became part of the second class to integrate the public schools in Berkeley, California, she said, drawing a line to Harris.

Harris was part of the second integrated class at Berkeleys Thousand Oaks Elementary School in 1968.

Soon and very soon well be teaching our daughters and sons how this child of an Indian mother and a Jamaican father, two idealistic, energetic immigrants  grew up to become the 47th president of the United States, Winfrey said, drawing wild cheers from the crowd.

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Decency and respect are on the ballot in 2024, Oprah Winfrey told the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday night in a semi-surprise visit to the town that made her famous. Common sense tells us Kamala Harris and Tim Walz can give us decency and respect.

Let us chose common sense over nonsense, Winfrey said in her 10-minute the best of America address to the thousands of delegates. America is an ongoing project that required commitment and every once in a while it requires standing up to lifes bullies.

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When we stand together, it is impossible to conquer us.

No matter what ship our ancestors arrived on, we are all in the same boat now, the former daytime TV queen informed the United Center with a quote from civil rights leader John Lewis. We are beyond ridiculous tweets and tomfoolery, Winfrey added, in a clear swipe at GOP candidate Donald Trump.

Trump wasnt the only Republican that self-declared Independent Winfrey took to task. The American icon mocked GOP VP candidate Sen J.D. Vance (D-OH) for slagging childless cat ladies who are supposedly both ruling and ruining the country.

When a house is on fire, we dont ask about the homeowners race or religion, Winfrey said. We dont wonder who their partner is or how they voted. No, we just try to do the best we can to save them. And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady, well, we try to get that cat out, too.

She also took the cruelty and hate Tump and his MAGA supporters vent to a very personal place.

Ive lived in Mississippi, in Tennessee, in Wisconsin, Maryland, Indiana, Florida, Hawaii, Colorado, California and sweet home Chicago, Oprah told the crowd. Ive seen racism and sexism and income inequality and division. Ive not only seen it, at times Ive been on the receiving end of it. But more often than not, what Ive witnessed and experienced are human beings, both conservative and liberal, who may not agree with each other, but who still help you in a heartbeat if you are in trouble. These are the people who make me proud to say that I am an American.

Jumping ahead of Trump in the polls, Vice President Kamala Harris will deliver her own speech to the DNC on Thursday in an acceptance speech as the first Black woman to be nominated for president by a major American political party.

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NANJING, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese military spokesperson said on Thursday that the Eastern Theater Command of the People's Liberation Army tracked and monitored the U.S. destroyer USS Ralph Johnson throughout its passage through the Taiwan Strait.

Senior Colonel Li Xi, spokesperson for the theater command, said it has deployed naval and air forces to monitor the entire passage of the U.S. vessel, and handled the issue in accordance with laws and regulations.

"The Eastern Theater Command remains on high alert, and will resolutely safeguard national sovereignty and security, as well as regional peace and stability," Li said. 
CHICAGOBillionaire media mogul Oprah Winfrey, who built her fortune in the Windy City, joined the mocking of JD Vances cat lady comments Wednesday.

In one of many surprise speeches scheduled at the last minute on the third night of the Democratic National Convention, Winfrey was met with thunderous cheering and applause. She noted that Americans dont tend to discriminate on the basis of race, religion, or sexual orientation when it comes to rescuing a neighbor from a house fire.

And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady, she added, well we try to get that cat out, too.

Wearing a purple power suit and matching glasses, eye shadow, and lipstick, Oprah warned the audience about people who want to scare you, people who want to rule you. But mostly, she focused on a positive vision.

Im so honored to have been asked to speak on tonights theme about what matters most to me, to you, and all of us Americans: freedom.

A USA chant started in one corner of the hall. The crowd applauded as Oprah predicted that Kamala Harris, the child of two idealistic and energetic immigrants, would soon be elected, then got even louder when she repeated the word, immigrants.

And though she was appearing at the Democratic Partys biggest confab, and called the Obamas speeches Tuesday night some epic fire, she made clear that she wasnt a committed partisan.

Youre looking at a registered independent who is proud to vote again and again and again because Im an American and thats what Americans do, she said. I have always voted my values. And that is what is needed in this election now more than ever. So Im calling on all you independents and all you undecidedsyou know this is true.

Let us choose truth, let us choose honor, and let us choose jooyyy, she sang as the crowd applauded.

Her purple ensemble was as much a nod to her 1985 movie The Color Purple as to the musical theme of the night with John Legend and Sheila E performing a tribute to Prince, the late Purple Rain artist from Minnesota, the home state of Harris running mate, Gov. Tim Walz.

Together, lets all choose Kamala Harris, she crooned in closing.

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Winfrey touched on the night's theme of "freedom" in her remarks at night three of the event

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Oprah Winfrey

Oprah Winfrey made a surprise appearance at day three of the 2024 Democratic National Convention, delivering powerful remarks in which she touched on Kamala Harris' history-making nomination for president  and offered a dig at now-viral comments made by Republican vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance.

Winfrey, 70, took the stage on Wednesday, Aug. 21, telling the crowd at Chicagos United Center that Harris  who officially secured the 2024 Democratic presidential nomination earlier this month  is passionate about "justice and freedom and the glorious, fighting spirit necessary to pursue that passion."

"And soon, and very soon, we're going to be teaching our daughters and sons about how this child of an Indian mother and a Jamaican father  two idealistic immigrants  grew up to become the 47th president of the United States," Winfrey said. "That is the best of America."

In her remarks, Winfrey touched on the night's theme of "freedom," saying, "there are people who want you to see our country as a nation of us against them, people who want to scare you, who want to rule you."

CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Oprah Winfrey

Related: Lil Jon Pumps Up the 2024 Democratic National Convention with Surprise Performance During Georgia's Roll Call

"People who'd have you believe that books are dangerous and assault rifles are safe. That there's a right way to worship, and a wrong way to love ... but here's the thing: when we stand together, it is impossible to conquer us," she added.

Elsewhere in her speech, Winfrey said that, even amid our divisions, most human beings "would still help you in a heartbeat if you were in trouble."

When a house is on fire, Winfrey said, "we don't ask" about the homeowners' race or religion  "We just try to do the best we can to save them."

"And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady  well, we try to get that cat out, too," Winfrey said in a nod to Vance's remarks, in which he said the country under Joe Biden was being run by a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives."

Winfrey's on-stage remarks were preceded by the short film, American Family: A Film About Freedom, directed by portrait photographer Platon and filmmaker and journalist Scott Dadich and produced by Godfrey Dadich Partners.

The video features interviews with a range of individuals, couples and families  traditional, LGBTQ+, and chosen families  about what "freedom" means to them.

MIKE SEGAR/POOL/AFP via Getty Oprah Winfrey

Related: J.D. Vance Once Called Kamala Harris a 'Childless Cat Lady.' Now Real-Life 'Cat Ladies' Have Thoughts

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Winfrey spoke with PEOPLE in 2020, days after Harris was projected to become the first woman vice-president as well as the first Black or Asian person to hold the office.

"I think what she means for women of the world is so extraordinary. For women here in the United States, we can't even measure it," Winfrey says. "Because to see someone who looks like you in this role, you see what's possible for yourself. Period."

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CHICAGO  Oprah Winfrey made a surprise appearance at the Democratic National Convention Wednesday night to throw her support behind Vice President Kamala Harris.

The talk show host called on Americans to move beyond political divides and described the November presidential election as a choice between common sense and nonsense in her 15-minute speech.

I am calling on all you independents and all you undecideds, Winfrey said. More than anything, you know this is true, that decency and respect are on the ballot in 2024. And just plain common sense.

It was a homecoming for the purple-clad star, who hosted the nationally syndicated Oprah Winfrey Show talk show in Chicago for twenty-five years. Winfrey became the first Black owner of a TV and film facility when she purchased with a group of investors a West Side studio near the United Center.

On Wednesday, she marked her return as she took the mic at the United Center blocks away from where Harpo Studios once stood.

Who says you cant go home again, she said to start her speech.

As Winfrey rattled off the list of each state where shes lived, the respective delegations cheered in turn. She then received a standing ovation from many delegates on the floor when made the joke referencing GOP vice presidential nominee JD Vances comments about childless cat ladies.

Americans help their neighbors and would look beyond divides like race, religion and political affiliation when a house is on fire, she said.

We just try to do the best we can to save them, Winfrey said. And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady, well, we try to get that cat out too.

She also took jabs at the top of the Republican ticket, making unsubtle references to former President Donald Trump. The choice in the presidential election should be loyalty to the Constitution over loyalty to any individual, optimism over cynicism and inclusion over retribution, she said.

America is an ongoing project. It requires being open to the hard work  and the heart work  of democracy, she said. And every now and then, it requires standing up to lifes bullies.

The crowd throughout the United Center rose to its feet as Winfrey highlighted Harris background as the child of immigrants, waving signs and chanting, USA! USA! USA!

That is the best of America, she said of Harris origin.

The media mogul joined a star-studded lineup backing the Harris-Walz ticket on stage Wednesday night. Comedians Mindy Kaling and Kenan Thompson joked, and musicians Stevie Wonder and Maren Morris performed, while Sheila E. and John Legend were set to perform later.

Winfrey joined in the singing herself, belting out Harris name in her trademark vibrato fashion as she left.

_____
Ramping up to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz's speech during night three of the Democratic National Convention, Oprah Winfrey took the stage to urge voters to "choose common sense over nonsense" by voting for Kamala Harris, maintaining a running theme that evening of Donald Trump  positioned as a depressing and chaotic cloud that's been looming over our country for years and years  being a crashing wave of oppression that Democrats and independents, such as herself, can steer their ships away from.

"Values and character matter most of all  in leadership and in life," she said. "Decency and respect are on the ballot in 2024. And just plain common sense, common sense tells you that Kamala Harris and Tim Walz can give us decency and respect . . . Let us choose optimism over cynicism, because thats the best of America. And let us choose inclusion over retribution. Let us choose common sense over nonsense, because thats the best of America. Let us choose the sweet promise of tomorrow over the bitter return to yesterday. We wont go back. We wont be set back, pushed back, bullied back, kicked back. We are not going back."

Prior to leading the crowd in a chant of "Were not going back," Winfrey even managed to work in a reference to JD Vance's "childless cat ladies" comment, saying, "When a house is on fire, we dont ask about the homeowners race or religion. We dont wonder who their partner is or how they voted. No, we just try to do the best we can to save them. And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady, well, we try to get that cat out, too."

Watch here:

Oprah Winfreys full remarks endorsing Kamala Harris: Lets choose common sense over nonsense pic.twitter.com/hXrIlB95Ym  Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) August 22, 2024
Oprah Winfrey has always tried to stay out of the political fray, her friend CBS host Gayle King said Wednesday. But the 70-year-old legendary TV personality decided to speak at the Democratic Convention this year because, according to King, she feels theres a lot at stake.

Who says you cant go home again? Winfrey said at the start of her surprise appearance at the convention in Chicago, where her long-running The Oprah Winfrey Show, which ended in 2011, was based.

It was the first time Oprah, who is known for her philanthropy and advocacy but has rarely made electoral endorsements, has spoken at a political convention. And in a 15-minute speech, she spoke passionately about why she is supporting the Democratic ticket of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walzand what she believes to represent the best of America.

Read More: Read the Full Speech Oprah Winfrey Gave at the 2024 Democratic National Convention

Here are the biggest moments from Winfreys DNC speech.

There are people

Winfrey recalled the speeches from the previous night by former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama. That was some epic fire, wasnt it? she said. Were now so fired up we cant wait to leave here and do something, she said, referencing Barack Obamas fired up, ready to go chant and Michelle Obamas do something call to action. And what were going to do is to elect Kamala Harris as the next President of the United States.

Throughout her speech, Winfrey never named Harris Republican opponents, former President Donald Trump and his running mate Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, though she made clear allusions to them and their campaign, contrasting a platform of fear and division with her preferred way forward.

There are people who want you to see our country as a nation of us against them. People who want to scare you, who want to rule you. People whod have you believe that books are dangerous and assault rifles are safe, that theres a right way to worship and a wrong way to love. People who seek first to divide and then to conquer, she said. But heres the thing: when we stand together, it is impossible to conquer us.

We know all the old tricks and tropes that are designed to distract us from what actually matters, but we are beyond ridiculous tweets and lies and foolery. These are complicated times, people, and they require adult conversation, she added later. And I welcome those conversations because civilized debate is vital to democracy, and it is the best of America.

Freedom isnt free

Winfrey paid tribute to the late civil rights activist and House representative John Lewis as well as Tessie Prevost Williams, one of the New Orleans Four who was at the forefront of school desegregation in the 1960s and who passed away last month at 69.

Congressman Lewis knew very well how far this country has come, because he was one of the brilliant Americans who helped to get us where we are. But he also knew that the work is not done, the work will never be done, because freedom isnt free, Winfrey said. America is an ongoing project. It requires commitment, it requires being open to the hard work and the heart work of democracy. And every now and then, it requires standing up to lifes bullies.

They broke barriers, and they paid dearly for it, Winfrey said of Prevost Williams and the New Orleans Four. But it was the grace and guts and courage of women like Tessie Prevost Williams that paved the way for another young girl, who nine years later became part of the second class to integrate the public schools in Berkeley, California.

Continuing on the theme of standing on the shoulders of previous generations, Winfrey lauded Harris upbringing. It seems to me that, at school and at home, somebody did a beautiful job of showing this young girl how to challenge the people at the top and empower the people at the bottom. They showed her how to look at the world and see not just what is, but what can be, she said.

And soon and very soon, were going to be teaching our daughters and sons about how this child of an Indian mother and a Jamaican father  grew up to become the 47th president of the United States.

When a house is on fire...

Winfrey rattled off a list of the many U.S. states shes lived in and places shes traveled across the country, and she said shes not only seen racism and sexism and income inequality and division but at times, Ive been on the receiving end of it.

But that doesnt define America for her, she said. More often than not, what Ive witnessed and experienced are human beings, both conservative and liberal, who may not agree with each other, but who would still help you in a heartbeat if you were in trouble. These are the people who make me proud to say that I am an American.

They are the best of America, she continued. And despite what some would have you think, we are not so different from our neighbors. When a house is on fire, we dont ask about the homeowners race or religion. We dont wonder who their partner is or how they voted. No, we just try to do the best we can to save them.

And in a tongue-in-cheek jab at Vances now-viral 2021 critique of childless cat ladies, who he claimed wanted to make the country miserable, Winfreywho is proudly unmarried and without children, and owns dogsadded: And if the place happens to belong to a childless cat lady, well, we try to get that cat out too.

Let us choose

Winfrey ended her speech by urging people to see the 2024 election beyond a partisan dynamic and to embrace the patriotism and responsibility of participating in democracy. There are choices to be made when we cast our ballot, she said.

Now, theres a certain candidate that says, if we just go to the polls this one time, then well never have to do it again, she alluded to Trump again. Well, you know what? Youre looking at a registered Independent whos proud to vote again and again and again. Because Im an American, and thats what Americans do.

Ive always voted my values, and that is what is needed in this election, now more than ever, Winfrey said. Values and character matter most of all, in leadership and in life. Winfrey called on fellow independents and undecideds to realize that decency and respect are on the ballot in 2024. And just plain common sense.

So, let us choose, Winfrey concluded. Let us choose loyalty to the Constitution over loyalty to any individual, because thats the best of America. And let us choose optimism over cynicism, because thats the best of America. And let us choose inclusion over retribution. Let us choose common sense over nonsense, because thats the best of America, she said. And let us choose the sweet promise of tomorrow over the bitter return to yesterday. We wont go back. We wont be sent back, pushed back, bullied back, kicked back. Were not going back.

Let us choose truth, let us choose honor, and let us choose joy! she said, as she belted out the last word to thunderous applause from the crowd. Because thats the best of America. But more than anything else, let us choose freedom. Why? Because thats the best of America. Were all Americans. And together, lets all choose Kamala Harris!"

Contact us at letters@time.com.
ORANGE CITY, Iowa (KCAU)  Though Orange City is known for its Dutch roots, the community is recognizing its growing diverse population.

Even though its a small town, there is an opportunity to welcome people who are new to this small town, The Same House CEO Rodney Bullard said. Whether it be a Hispanic community that is new to this town, or whether it be a gentleman who is from Perth, Australia that we met today who is new to this town, theres an opportunity to continue to grow stronger.

Orange City introduces Chalk Art Competition at Arts on Central

In the last decade, Orange Citys population has seen an increase of newcomers from all over the world, and its not hard to see why people want to call the small town their home.

We have zero unemployment in Sioux County and we have a lot of agriculture jobs, Neighbor to Neighbor committee member Anita Bomgaars said. People new to our country are familiar with agricultural jobs, so they are drawn by that. Secondly, they are drawn by friendly, safe communities, and thirdly they know we have a good school system, and if you want a family life here in the United States, many are willing to endure winter to experience life here in the small town.

Since 2000, Orange Citys school district population has grown from 3.7 percent minority representation to now having 25 percent of the student population identifying as not-white, with ten countries being represented in the public elementary school alone.

Im thinking of the challenge of being able to teach everybody. That should be celebrated, Bomgaars said. Im thinking of people who are my age or older learning how to use the translator app as they approach people who speak Vietnamese or Spanish or Ukrainian. Its just a great way to showcase who we are in northwest Iowa and how we have had to change and how we are meeting the challenge.

As Orange City continues to welcome newcomers, the community is figuring out ways to ensure that every resident has a place they belong.

Ho-Chunk, Inc. celebrating 30 years in Winnebago

The more our community continues to grow, we have to look at different populations, whether thats Ukrainian, Hispanic, Dutchman, whatever you have, wherever those people are coming from, the citys Chamber of Commerce executive director Mike Hofman said. We want to welcome them and get them involved in our not-for-profit organizations, our events such as the Tulip Festival, our churches, our businesses, our schools. We want to just integrate those people and have them be a part of our community.

Orange Citys population has increased by 2.55 percent since the 2020 census.

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ORANGE CITY, Iowa (KCAU)  Orange City showed off all colors of the rainbow as they celebrated local art.

As part of the annual Arts on Central event, the Orange City Arts Council introduced the first Chalk Art Competition. Artists had the opportunity to express themselves on the sidewalk in Windmill Park as visitors walked by to admire the creations and vote for their favorite masterpiece.

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Art is a really important way to communicate to people, and visual arts are a fantastic way of doing that, and so were really just trying to get people out here and see the visual arts, said Orange City Arts Council creative administrative assistant Alisha Hauber. This really gives an opportunity for artists in the community who maybe havent shown an art display or something like that to come out and really show their passion and to speak whatever message they have.

Four teams participated in the Chalk Art Competition covering nine sidewalk squares. The competition winners were announced at the end of the Arts on Central event.

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The wild Owyhee Canyonlands in southeast Oregon as seen by a drone. (Courtesy of the Center for Western Priorities)

Following nearly five years of negotiations and three attempts by Oregons U.S. senators to get federal protection for southeast Oregons Owyhee Canyonlands, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek is throwing her hat into the fight.

Kotek wrote to President Joe Biden this month, asking that he designate a large share of the 2.5 million-acre canyonlands and a stretch of the Owyhee River, often called Oregons Grand Canyon, a national monument under the Antiquities Act of 1906 should Congress not pass legislation this year to protect it. Congress has repeatedly failed to vote on proposals to protect the canyonlands under the National Wilderness Preservation System and the Wild and Scenic Rivers System. The Antiquities Act allows the president to designate areas national monuments if they hold cultural, natural or historical significance.

The Antiquities Act has a long history of being used to protect Americas most cherished landscapes, from the Grand Canyon to the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument here in Oregon, Kotek wrote. Permanent safeguards will protect the Owyhee Canyonlands against the growing threats of development, extraction and other detrimental activities and, most importantly, will pay endless dividends for generations to come.

The Owyhee Canyonlands have economic, cultural impact

The canyonlands have significant health, economic and cultural value to the Northern Paiute, Bannock and Shoshone tribes. They are a source of tourism dollars in Malheur County and are home to threatened sage grouse, as well as bighorn sheep, elk and deer. The animals and their habitats face growing risks from wildfire due to invasive grasses and juniper. Fish species in the Owyhee River face challenges from poorly preserved riparian areas and cattle grazing.

Oregons U.S. Sens. Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, both Democrats, first proposed the bill called the Malheur Community Empowerment for the Owyhee Act in 2019, following requests from ranchers in the area for intervention amid prolonged debate among ranchers, conservationists, tribes, hunting and fishing groups and government officials over how to preserve parts of the canyonlands.

The first proposal failed to make it out of the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. A second attempt in 2022 also failed to advance, and the latest attempt in July 2023 remains in the committee. This iteration of the bill calls for protection of 1.1 million acres of the canyonlands and a 15-mile stretch of the Owyhee River, the same areas Kotek wants protected. The bill, signed by southeast Oregon ranchers, conservationists, tribal leaders and small business owners in the area, also proposes to transfer 30,000 acres of federal and private land into a trust overseen by the Burns Paiute Tribe.

By securing this designation, you will collectively send a powerful message that people from different perspectives and ideological persuasions can still come together to accomplish great feats, Kotek wrote to Biden.

The Oregon Capital Chronicle, 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. Oregon Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Lynne Terry for questions: info@oregoncapitalchronicle.com. Follow Oregon Capital Chronicle on Facebook and X.
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  More than 100 endangered northern leopard frogs leapt into the wild last week, after being raised by the Oregon Zoo in their latest conservation effort.

The frogs hatched from eggs collected by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) earlier this year and were reared by zoo staff before being released into the Columbia National Wildlife Refuge on Aug. 15.

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They come to us as eggs, then they grow into tadpoles and develop into frogs, said Jennifer Osburn Eliot, who oversaw the frogs care at the zoo. We care for them at the zoo until theyre big enough to have a better chance at surviving in the wild.

According to the zoo, northern leopard frogs have been listed as endangered since 1999 and are are quickly disappearing from their native habitats in Pacific Northwest and western Canada.

Biologists say their decline is due to a number of threats, including loss of habitat, disease, predation by bullfrogs, pollution and climate change. As a result, the zoo  which partnered with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington State University and Northwest Trek Wildlife Park for this conservation effort  hopes this release will increase the population.

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Every frog we release makes a difference for this vulnerable species, Eliot said.

Conservationists add helping these frogs and the wetland habitat will also benefit other species overall.

Northern leopard frogs are an important indicator of water quality, said WDFW biologist Emily Grabowsky. If we can improve and conserve wetland habitat that is good for frogs, we will also benefit other species ranging from other amphibians to waterfowl and deer.

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Around 35 people have been displaced after a fire at a condominium complex in southern Ohio.

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The fire broke out around midnight at Carrington Crossing in Loveland, according to our news partners at WCPO.

Olzhas Dairbkov was on the third floor sleeping when the fire started. He told WCPO that the sound coming through his cracked window woke him up.

I heard people screaming, Help! Help! I was getting scared, he said.

He then ran to the balcony and saw the flames spreading. Dairbkov ran back inside, woke up his mother visiting from Dayton, and ran outside. From there, he watched as his condo caught on fire.

Look at me. Its all I have right now. Just my car, thats it, he said. I mean, its just hard to explain what I feel right now. Its just very, very sad.

Fire Chief Otto Huber told WCPO that the fire started on the second floor from burn tools a resident was using for fingernails. She thought she put the fire out, but it spread.

The fire spread to the roof, attic, and other units before it took over the whole building.

Huber confirmed that no injuries were reported and no one needed to be rescued from the building.

The Red Cross is helping those who were displaced.

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BEIJING, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- A delegation from Taiwan's Kinmen County is visiting Beijing and has called for enhanced cross-Strait exchanges and cooperation, especially between the county and the mainland.

Song Tao, head of both the Taiwan Work Office of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, met with the delegation on Thursday.

During the meeting, Song said the third plenary session of the 20th CPC Central Committee has made overall arrangements for further comprehensively deepening reform, which will also provide better conditions and broader space for Taiwan compatriots and enterprises to develop on the mainland.

"We will fully implement the guiding principles from the plenum, promote economic and cultural exchanges and cooperation between the two sides of the Strait, deepen the integrated development in various fields, and enable Taiwan compatriots to share the mainland's development achievements," Song said.

Song also vowed resolute actions against "Taiwan independence" separatism and stressed the mainland's commitment to promoting normal personnel exchanges and regular communication and cooperation between the two sides.

"We strongly support the integrated development of Xiamen and Kinmen," Song added, while calling on representatives from Kinmen to speak up for cross-Strait ties, adhere to the 1992 Consensus, and oppose "Taiwan independence."

Hung Yun-tien, a leader of the delegation and local chief lawmaker in Kinmen, called on compatriots on both sides to jointly plan and construct a twin city life circle between Kinmen and Xiamen, so as to improve the well-being of the people on both sides.

Another delegation member voiced opposition against "Taiwan independence," expressing the hope that visits by the mainland's Fujian Province residents to Kinmen would resume soon. 
SHARON, Pa. (WKBN)  Pennsylvania Attorney General Michele Henry filed a motion in bankruptcy court for Steward Health objecting to any closure of Sharon Regional Medical Center.

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Henry wrote in her filing that Steward Health seeks to close Sharon Regional but a buyer has been lined up for the facility.

Members of the Attorney Generals team have been working around the clock on efforts to enable another hospital center to acquire Sharon Hospital. A potential purchaser has been located, Meadville Medical Center Meadville or MMC, Henry wrote.

A Letter of Intent was submitted by MMC to Steward on Aug. 16, and while obtaining the financing for the acquisition is challenging, MMC informed Steward on Aug. 17 that funding has been preliminarily worked out.

Henry wants the court to address the fact that since MMC announced they had the funding to acquire Sharon Regional, Steward wants to be gifted funds from Pennsylvania on an emergency basis or they will close the hospital. She also alleges that Stewards closing procedures go against Pennsylvania law.

Henry said Steward is asking for $1.5 million from Pennsylvania by Friday, Aug. 23 or they will send a closure notice to Sharon Regional. She said they are getting daily threats of closure from Steward and are considering the funding, but it cant be done by Aug. 23.

Steward said they are being pressured by lenders to obtain the funding and that the lenders want them to close hospitals immediately.

Henrys motion is asking the court for more time to complete the deal with MMC and to direct Steward to stop threatening closure. She said the funding could take up to two weeks and that 60 to 90 days is needed to obtain a firm financial accounting of Sharon Regional.

This time period is needed to allow Pennsylvania sufficient time to obtain funding for MMC and then proceed to close the transaction, Henry wrote.

Steward Health Care announced Wednesday that they are beginning the process of closing Trumbull Regional Medical Center in Warren and Hillside Rehabilitation Hospital in Howland. Several local Steward Health satellite facilities are also set to close.

Closing procedures will commence on Sept. 19.

The closures come on the heels of the health systems financial breakdown and Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in May. The system recently closed hospitals in Massachusetts and another was taken over the state.

Steward operates, or once operated, more than 30 hospitals across Arizona, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Texas and Massachusetts.

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Attorney General Michelle Henry reached a settlement with a Butler County landlord over alleged unlawful leasing and debt collection practices.

The settlement resolves the Office of Attorney Generals November 2023 lawsuit against A.R. Building, which owns 20 apartment complexes in Pennsylvania. The lawsuit claimed the company arbitrarily inflated the repair costs the company billed to tenants for alleged damage to apartments and alleged the landlord used leases with unfair and unenforceable terms and engaged in unfair debt collection practices.

This settlement ensures that A.R. Buildings billing and leasing practices will comply with the law going forward, Attorney General Henry said. Many renters face challenges in searching for and securing safe and suitable housing due to their unequal bargaining power in the housing market. My office will continue to hold landlords accountable for violations of state consumer protection laws.

In the recent settlement, A.R. Building has agreed to change its prior practices and pay $35,000 in consumer restitution, $10,000 in costs and $5,000 in civil penalties.

Eligible consumers have 60 days to file a complaint with the Office of Attorney General, establishing that they paid for damages in excess of actual costs incurred by A.R. Building, during the last four years. Eligible consumers may file a complaint online at https://www.attorneygeneral.gov, call 717-787-9707 or email at consumers@attorneygeneral.gov.

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A local food pantry turned to the competitive side to give back to the community.

The Second Harvest Food Bank hosted the 9th annual Legislative Challenge Wednesday night at their warehouse.

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Several local Pennsylvania legislators and their staff volunteered at the food pantry along with taking on a friendly competition.

Wednesdays task entailed supporting the Second Harvests Backpack Program which provides children healthy school lunches or after-school meals.

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A lot of these representatives can agree on one thing  that hunger is unacceptable and we need to do something about it. And theyve all been very supportive of our work and our anti-hunger network, said Karen Seggie, CEO of the Second Harvest Food Bank.

A total of 1,297 backpacks were filled.

Senator Dan Laughlins team packed the most backpacks totaling 35 boxes.

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Pa. Senate to introduce bill that would require cursive writing in schools

HARRISBURG, Pa. (WTAJ)  The Pennsylvania Senate has plans to introduce legislation that would affect handwriting being taught in schools.

The legislation, written by Senator Wayne Langerholc (R-Cambria), would require Pennsylvania schools to teach cursive handwriting. Currently, at least 18 states mandate the teaching of cursive, including but not limited to states such as Alabama, Florida, California and Maryland.

In recent years, there has been a decrease in cursive writing in the classroom and an increased emphasis on digital literacy and standardized testing. Despite these trends, Langerholc believes that cursive writing is still an essential skill that supports broader educational and developmental outcomes.

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Cursive writing is pivotal for students to have cognitive development, legal preparedness and historical literacy, according to Langerholc.

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PENNSYLVANIA (WTAJ)  The Pennsylvania Treasury is reminding Commonwealth residents to check for unclaimed properties.

Unclaimed properties can come from old bank accounts, uncashed checks or forgotten safe deposits, according to the Treasury. One-in-ten Pennsylvanians have unclaimed property, with the average claim being about $1,600.

Looking to check if you have any unclaimed properties? Residents can search the Treasury Vault for property belonging to themselves, family members or the organizations they are apart of.

Treasury receives hundreds of millions of dollars in unclaimed property every year, often because of something as simple as a misspelled name or an out-of-date address, Stacy Garrity, State Treasurer, said. But lets be clear: this is your money were talking about, and I want to return it to you.

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If you have unclaimed property, the Treasury will provide you with claim forms to file. Additional information, such as social security and the owners name or legal representative of the owner, may be needed to process the claim.

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(Getty Images)

Democratic U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwrights campaign announced Wednesday that he will debate Republican challenger Rob Bresnahan in Pennsylvanias 8th Congressional District race in October.

The debate, which will take place at Wilkes-Barres Kings College Burke Auditorium on either Oct. 22 or 23, will be simulcast live on WVIA-TV and WVIA Radio. WVIA is Northeast Pennsylvanias PBS and NPR member station.

Bresnahans campaign said he would like to face off more than once.

Its disappointing that Congressman Cartwright is only agreeing to a single debate over a month after early voting starts and just days before the election, showing a total lack of respect for the people of Northeastern Pennsylvania, Bresnahan wrote in a press release.

Bresnahans campaign said theyve also agreed to a debate hosted by WBRE/WYOU for late September or early October and called on Cartwright to accept that invitation, as well.

Both parties are going all-in for the seat this cycle.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) announced in June that it reserved $1,976,000 in ad time for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton TV market, while the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) reserved $1.6 million for the market. Although the DCCC and NRCC have made ad reservations for other TV markets in Pennsylvania, none is larger than the amount reserved for this market included in the 8th Congressional District.

The candidates are also raising their share. Cartwright has raised more than any other congressional candidate in Pennsylvania the past two quarters, bringing in $1.68 million in the most recent filing and $1.38 million in the beginning of the year. Bresnahan raised $1.13 million in the latest filing, which included a $400,000 loan he gave to his campaign, and raised just under $730,000 in the previous filing, which also included another $400,000 loan.

Cartwright, serving his sixth term in the U.S. House, has a cash on hand advantage. The Lackawanna County Democrat entered July with $4.53 million on hand, while Bresnahans campaign had $1.22 million.

Cartwright is the only Democrat in the states congressional delegation to represent a district that former President Donald Trump won in 2016 and 2020. He won in 2022 by 2.4 points over Republican Jim Bognet.

The Cook Political Report and Larry Sabatos Crystal Ball, two different national ratings outlets, rate the race for the 8th Congressional District as a toss-up.

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A police car burning on the streets of Hartlepool, England, on July 31.

PESHAWAR, Pakistan  Police in Pakistan have arrested a man accused of spreading false information online that fueled anti-immigrant riots in Britain.

Violence erupted across Britain this month after the deaths of three young girls in a July 29 stabbing attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport, England. Rumors quickly spread online that the assailant was a refugee and a radical Islamist, prompting right-wing mobs to attack hotels that house asylum-seekers, as well as mosques and libraries.

Farhan Asif was arrested in the eastern city of Lahore and charged with cybercrime, Pakistans Federal Investigation Agency said in a report dated Tuesday and seen by NBC News. It said Asif had posted an article on the website for his publication Channel3Now falsely reporting that British police had arrested a Muslim asylum-seeker in connection with the Southport stabbings.

The false claim, widely circulated in social media, spurred the far right section into violent rioting, the report said.

Asif was also accused of reposting false information on his X account without verifying its authenticity and with the intent of glorifying the incident. Police said his actions created a sense of fear in Britain and damaged Pakistans reputation.

Authorities raided Asifs house and seized two laptops and a mobile phone belonging to Asif, who confessed his guilt during an interrogation on the spot, the report said.

Asif told police the purpose of his X account was to share national and international news. The website appeared to be offline Wednesday, while there have been no posts on the X account since Aug. 12.

Asif had earlier told British broadcaster ITV that he was not responsible for the violence, saying, I dont know how such a small article or a minor Twitter account could cause widespread confusion.

More than 1,000 people were arrested in connection with the British riots, almost 500 of whom have been charged. In a subsequent show of solidarity, anti-racism protesters flooded the streets, especially in neighborhoods with large immigrant populations.

The suspect in the attack, Axel Rudakubana, 18, was born in the Welsh capital, Cardiff, to Rwandan parents and had lived for years in a village near Southport itself, police said. Though reporting restrictions would normally have prevented authorities from naming Rudakubana, who was 17 at the time of the attack, a judge ordered that they be lifted in part to stop the spread of misinformation.

The motive behind the attack remains unknown.

Mushtaq Yusufzai reported from Peshawar and Mithil Aggarwal from Hong Kong.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Pakistani man to remain in officers' custody over misinformation that sparked rioting in the U.K

Farhan Asif, center, a freelance web developer who was arrested and charged with cyber terrorism for his alleged role in spreading misinformation that led to widespread rioting in the U.K. earlier this month, waits for his court appearance, in Lahore, Pakistan, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

LAHORE, Pakistan (AP)  A court in Pakistan on Thursday allowed investigators to question a man in their custody for four more days about his role in spreading misinformation that sparked widespread rioting in the U.K. earlier this month, officials said.

The court's decision came a day after authorities charged the suspect Farhan Asif, 32, with cyber terrorism following his arrest from his home in Lahore, the capital of eastern Punjab province.

Asif, who is a freelance web developer, was produced before the court amid tight security. He was not allowed to talk to the media.

Kiran Muqeem, a prosecutor for the Federal Investigation Agency, told the court that Asif did not cooperate with officers after the same court the previous day allowed them to question him for a day. They demanded his custody for two weeks but the court said it would only allow it for four more days.

Muqeem later told reporters that Asif disseminated fake news and caused riots in England.

Asif was handcuffed and wearing blue shalwar kameez garments when brought to the court.

His lawyer Rana Rizwan told reporters that the court remanded his client into the custody of the federal agency in a hurry and without hearing him.

We were informed by the court that the case of Asif would be taken up after lunch break. But the court took up the matter before the lunch break, and allowed FIA to keep him in their custody, Rizwan said.

Asif is accused of spreading misinformation from YouTube and Facebook about the British teenage suspect in a stabbing attack that killed three girls and injured 10 other people on July 29 at a dance class in Northwest England.

The false information claimed that the suspect was a recently arrived asylum-seeker and had a name that suggested he was Muslim. After the misinformation led to a violent mob attacking a mosque near the site of the stabbing the next day, police took the unusual step of clarifying that the suspect was born in the U.K.

British media has widely reported that his parents are from Rwanda and are said to have Christian beliefs. Channel3 Now, an account on the X social media platform that purports to be a news channel, was one of the first outlets to report the false name, Ali Al-Shakati.

A Facebook account for the channel said it is managed by people in Pakistan and the U.S. But, officials say Asif was solely running the Channel3 Now, and he spread misinformation to gain more viewers.
Panama to launch deportation flights to China and India, as well as regional neighbors

Panama will deport over 100 people from China, India, Ecuador and Colombia, in a widening crackdown on the number of migrants traveling north through Central America, President Jose Mulino announced on Thursday.

The deportation flights are part of Panamas partnership with the US that aims to discourage irregular migration northward  a growing phenomenon in recent years.

Panama plans to send 70 people to India on September 3, and an unspecified number of Chinese migrants, Mulino said without providing details.

Flights carrying dozens of Ecuadorians and Colombians will also depart in the coming days, he said, noting that Ecuadorians represent the second-largest group of migrants in the region, after Venezuelans.

Twenty-nine Colombians were already sent back on an earlier flight under the same program.

A growing number of US-bound migrants have been crossing into Panama from the Darien Gap, a treacherous rainforest region connecting South and Central America. The Biden administration has been trying to push migrants back from the US southern border by setting up processing centers in Latin America and encouraging neighboring nations to step up border enforcement measures.

People arrive at the Reception Center for Migrant Care in Lajas Blancas, in the jungle province of Darien, Panama, on June 28, 2024. - Martin Bernetti/AFP/Getty Images/File

So far this year, more than 230,000 people have entered Panama through the Darien.

This marks a 30% increase in crossings compared to the same period from January to August 2023, Panamas migration agency chief Roger Mojica said Tuesday.

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MANILA, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Two suspected rebels were killed on Thursday in a clash with soldiers in Negros Occidental province in the central Philippines, according to the military.

The military said the two slain New People's Army (NPA) rebels were among the five insurgents involved in a five-minute firefight on the outskirts of Himamaylan City. The other three managed to flee.

No soldier was wounded or killed in the fighting, the military said, adding that it recovered firearms and several rounds of assorted ammunition on the site.

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. 
This article was originally published in Arkansas Advocate.

Public school districts across Arkansas are expected to be able to lock up students cell phones during school hours, with the state Department of Education distributing $7 million to pay for pouches or lockers.

The Arkansas Legislative Council will take up the restricted reserve fund request Friday after the Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review subcommittee approved it Monday on a voice vote with some dissent.

This initiative seeks to foster a phone-free environment, enabling an evaluation of its impact on student learning, engagement, and overall student health, Department of Education Chief Fiscal Officer Greg Rogers wrote to Department of Finance and Administration Secretary Jim Hudson requesting the funds.

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The phone restriction initiative is part of a pilot program Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Education Secretary Jacob Oliva announced in July. The program will also provide grant funding for telehealth mental health services and support for locating mental health providers and navigating insurance matters, according to a news release.

Cell phone policies at Arkansas schools vary among districts and individual classrooms. While some teachers collect phones at the start of instructional time, others allow students to access their devices after completing assignments.

Related

So Your School Wants to Ban Cellphones. Now What?

The $7 million allocation is an estimate of the cost of the locking devices based on the number of students in the roughly 180 school districts that have applied to participate in the pilot program, said Courtney Salas-Ford, the education departments chief of staff.

School districts rather than the state would be responsible for replacing the devices, but metal lockers and magnetically-sealed cloth pouches have a very long life expectancy, Salas-Ford said.

The pouches from YONDR, a California-based company with the goal of creating phone-free spaces, can be locked and unlocked by separate unlocking devices kept under the supervision of adults while students keep the pouches with them at all times. In July, the De Queen School District approved the use of the pouches for middle school and junior high students as part of its participation in the pilot program.

Sanders has repeatedly advocated for reducing social media use among teenagers, citing concerns about depression and suicide rates.

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Exclusive: Sales Skyrocket for Phone Pouch Company as In-School Bans Spread

Our country has been experimenting with unregulated smartphone use for more than a decade, and unfortunately the results have been absolutely devastating for our young people, Sanders said at an Aug. 8 press conference at Bentonvilles Ardis Ann Middle School.

Bentonville West High School piloted a program last year that required cell phones to be silenced and stored during class. Bentonville School District Director of Communications Leslee Wright said in July that the initiative was a remarkable success, with 86% of staff reporting a positive impact. Administrators also recorded a 57% reduction in verbal or physical aggression offenses and a 51% reduction in drug-related offenses, she said.

YONDR CEO Graham Dugoni attended the press conference, which marked the start of the pilot program a month after it was announced.

One of the things he said that really stuck with me [is] this isnt about taking anything away, Sanders said. This is about giving students the freedom to enjoy a phone-free education.

As part of the pilot program, the University of Arkansas Office for Education Policy will examine how students mental health may be impacted by reduced access to cell phones and social media. A smaller group of districts from the pilot program will participate in the UA study.

In May, Sanders sent a copy of Jonathan Haidts book, The Anxious Generation, to all state and territorial governors in America, as well as Arkansas legislators. According to the July press release, she expressed support for four main goals: no smartphones before high school, no social media before age 16, phone-free schools, and more outdoor play and childhood independence.

Proposals to reduce smartphone use have been gaining traction across the country, including in California, Florida, Ohio and Indiana.

A 2023 law that Sanders championed would have been the first in the nation to require minors to receive parental permission before signing up for a social media account. A federal judge blocked the law last August, hours before it was set to take effect.

Arkansas lawmakers might introduce legislation in January requiring all districts to lock up students phones during the school day, House Speaker Pro Tempore Jon Eubanks, R-Paris, said during Mondays PEER meeting.

Arkansas Advocate is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Arkansas Advocate maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Sonny Albarado for questions: info@arkansasadvocate.com. Follow Arkansas Advocate on Facebook and X.
U.S. Senator John Boozman (R-Arkansas) speaks at a roundtable discussion on maternal health at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville on Aug. 21, 2024. (Antoinette Grajeda/Arkansas Advocate)

Participants in a maternal health roundtable discussion in Bentonville Wednesday morning said education, collaboration, meeting patients where they are and telemedicine are all strategies for addressing Arkansas poor maternal health outcomes.

Arkansas has one of the nations highest maternal mortality rates and the third-highest infant mortality rate, according to the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement.

A panel of maternal health experts joined U.S. Sen. John Boozman at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, where museum board chair Oliva Walton moderated the discussion. Walton is also the founder and CEO of Ingeborg Investments, which is focused on improving maternal health, advancing womens economic opportunity and expanding access to quality care and early learning opportunities for children, according to its website.

Boozman, who participated in a Little Rock maternal health roundtable in February, told reporters Wednesday that the goal is to host these events in all four of Arkansas congressional districts this year. Boozman said a key part of addressing the states maternal health crisis is educating Arkansans about available resources.

I think the most important thing is education, making sure that people understand that there are programs out there, he said. [the] federal government provides these dollars, weve got to inform people that theyre there, and I think you have to go to where [people are].

Olivia Walton and U.S. Senator John Boozman

Medicaid is an important federal program in Arkansas, where more than half of births are covered by the program, Department of Human Services Kristi Putnam told lawmakers in March.

Arkansas is one of two states that has not or has no plans to take advantage of a federal option to extend postpartum Medicaid coverage from 60 days to 12 months after birth, according to KFF. A 2023 bill would have extended this coverage but did not advance in the Legislature due to cost concerns.

At Februarys maternal health event, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said better education about available programs, not necessarily additional legislation, was needed to help Arkansas moms. Sanders said the Medicaid option would create a redundant program during a March press conference where she signed an executive order creating the Arkansas Strategic Committee for Maternal Health, which was tasked with creating a statewide strategic maternal health plan.

Secretary of Health Renee Mallory said Wednesday that the group is preparing to deliver a report to the governor around the first of September and that some of its recommendations deal with Medicaid and reimbursement rates.

Boozman, a former optometrist, said Medicaid reimbursement rates pose a huge problem in medicine and as a result, some physicians may limit accepting Medicaid patients.

If it costs you more money to provide a service than what youre actually going to get, its difficult, he said.

This can further limit access to physicians in a rural state that already struggles with health care access. Some of Arkansas 75 counties do not have hospitals, while only 35 hospitals in the state have labor and delivery units.

Cara Osborne, a nurse midwife and panel participant, said a broad range of professionals can participate in the maternity care and delivery system. Arkansas system, like many other places, has defaulted to physicians in hospitals, but its not sustainable, Osborne said.

At the national level, we have the most alarming maternity care statistics of any developed country. It is the system who is broken, she said. Its not the people, its not the women that are broken and its not the physicians or the providers. Nobodys done something wrong here. Its the way that the system has developed.

Panel participants discussed the importance of training more midwives and doulas as one way to tackle the states maternal health crisis.

In April, lawmakers approved redirecting $500,000 from the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement to support a new certified midwifery program at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, which the school plans to begin in 2026. Meanwhile, the Doula Alliance of Arkansas announced its launched earlier this month thanks to a $250,000 seed grant from Ingeborg Initiatives.

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Opponents and supporters of the Arkansas Abortion Amendment gather at the state Capitol on Friday, July 5, 2024. (Tess Vrbin/Arkansas Advocate)

This story originally appeared on Arkansas Advocate.

A proposed abortion-rights amendment to the Arkansas Constitution will not be on the statewide November ballot, the state Supreme Court ruled in a 4-3 decision Thursday.

Supporters of the amendment, which would have created a limited right to abortion, did not submit the correct paperwork to Secretary of State John Thurstons office at the right time, the courts majority said.

The courts opinion concludes a five-week legal dispute over the signatures collected by paid canvassers for the proposed amendment. The decision also comes on the deadline for Thurstons office to distribute certified election ballots to county election officials.

As the facts are undisputed, we hold that AFLG, by its own admission, failed to submit the required paid canvasser training certification.

 Arkansas Supreme Court majority opinion, CV-24-455

The ballot question committee Arkansans for Limited Government said in a statement that Thursday was a dark day in Arkansas and that Thurston and the court silenced the over 102,000 supporters of the amendment.

Despite this infuriating result, our fight isnt over, the group stated. We cant  and wont  rest until Arkansas women have access to safe, standard health care and the autonomy to make decisions about their bodies free from governmental interference.

Proposed constitutional amendments require 90,704 signatures from 50 counties to qualify for the ballot. Supporters of the Arkansas Abortion Amendment gathered in the Capitol and cheered as AFLG submitted 102,730 signatures to Thurstons office on the deadline of July 5.

Thurston said July 10 that the 14,143 signatures collected by paid canvassers were invalid and that he would not count the remaining signatures because they would fall below the required minimum.

State law requires ballot question committees to submit an affidavit identifying paid canvassers by name and provide proof that the committee explained to canvassers the states laws for soliciting signatures and gave them the Secretary of States initiatives and referenda handbook before they started canvassing.

AFLG repeatedly insisted that it did submit the required documents. The group submitted a Sponsor Affidavit signed by Allison Clark to Thurstons office June 27, testifying to the signature collection education portion of the law, and court filings state it was the seventeenth time the document was submitted.

The group also said it routinely submitted lists of paid canvassers to Thurston, including on July 4 and 5, and did not include another sponsor affidavit on those days because Thurstons staff said it was not necessary and all the correct paperwork had been filed.

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We have explained that even in election matters, the burden of determining what the law requires falls on the filernot office staff, Associate Justice Rhonda Wood wrote in the majority opinion. Thus, as the facts are undisputed, we hold that AFLG, by its own admission, failed to submit the required paid canvasser training certification.

AFLG submitted the certification on July 11 and argued that Thurston should accept it, but the court disagreed.

The committee initially asked the Supreme Court July 16 to order Thurston to count the remaining signatures, and the court granted the request July 23. Thurstons office counted 87,675 signatures from registered voters that were collected by unpaid canvassers.

The court reiterated its decision to grant this request Thursday, but it denied the remaining petition, which asked for Thurston to certify the proposed amendment for the ballot.

We order that the 87,675 signatures be counted for purposes of the initial facial count because there is no constitutional or statutory authority to support not counting them, the opinion states. We find that the Secretary correctly refused to count the signatures collected by paid canvassers AFLG needed 90,704 signatures to complete the first stage of the initial facial count to proceed to the verification stage. As it failed to obtain this number of signatures, AFLG is not entitled to any further relief.

Alleged discrimination

AFLG told the court earlier this month that Thurstons rejection of the amendment was viewpoint discrimination, citing his 2022 endorsement from Arkansas Right to Life and his donation to the group earlier this year.

Associate Justice Karen Baker agreed in her dissent Thursday that Thurston and the four justices who ruled in his favor have treated [the proposed amendment] differently for the sole purpose of preventing the people from voting on this issue.

Baker agreed with AFLG that state law does not require ballot measure petitions and paid canvasser certifications to be filed simultaneously.

On the contrary, this requirement was made up out of whole cloth by the respondent and inexplicably ratified by the majority of this court, Baker wrote.

Associate Justice Courtney Hudson co-signed Bakers dissent, which states she would prefer to advance all the signatures to the verification stage, appoint a special master to make findings of fact, grant a thirty-day provisional cure period, and order conditional certification of the proposed amendment.

Chief Justice John Dan Kemp said in his own dissent that he would have made the same orders.

Additionally, Baker noted that the majority  Associate Justices Barbara Webb, Shawn Womack, Cody Hiland and Wood  did not address the concerns of another ballot question committee.

On July 31, Thurston gave supporters of changes to the states medical marijuana industry until Aug. 30 to collect more signatures for another proposed amendment. State law allows this cure period if a ballot question committees initial submission contains valid signatures equal to at least 75% of the overall required number of signatures and 75% of the required number from at least 50 counties.

The ballot question committee Arkansans for Patient Access intervened in the abortion amendment case last week, arguing that Thurstons reasons for rejecting the proposed amendment relied on an erroneous and out-of-the-ether interpretation of the law and threatened to keep the medical marijuana proposal off the ballot.

Thurston told APA on Aug. 8 that his office would not count signatures collected during the cure period by paid canvassers because a company that hired paid canvassers had signed legally required paperwork instead of the sponsor of the amendment. Thurston used this same argument against AFLG, and APA criticized Thurston in court documents for making the same eleventh-hour about-face.

Disqualifying signatures should be a high bar for the state to clear, APA member Bill Paschall said in a Thursday statement after the Supreme Court ruled against the abortion amendment. We believe when Arkansans take the time and make the effort to sign a petition that those signatures should be counted. Disqualifying based on a new interpretation of the canvasser registration filing process in midstream does not meet that high bar.

Baker expressed concern in her dissent that Thurston told APA that the thousands of signatures gathered by paid canvassers that he had previously deemed valid will remain so, despite any alleged statutory violationa courtesy that the respondent chose not to extend to the petitioners in the present case.

She called the differing treatment of the two measures alarming.

Why are the respondent and the majority determined to keep this particular vote from the people? Baker wrote. The majority has succeeded in its efforts to change the law in order to deprive the voters of the opportunity to vote on this issue, which is not the proper role of this court.

AFLGs statement praised Bakers assessment of the majority opinion and declared, Democracy demands better.

Supporters struggles

The Arkansas Abortion Amendment would have disallowed government entities to prohibit, penalize, delay or restrict abortion services within 18 weeks of fertilization.

The proposal would also have permitted abortion services in cases of rape, incest, a fatal fetal anomaly or to protect the pregnant females life or physical health, and it would have nullified any of the states existing provisions of the Constitution, statutes and common law that conflict with it.

Abortion has been illegal in Arkansas, except to save the pregnant persons life, since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. State Rep. Mary Bentley, R-Perryville, and former Republican state Sen. Jason Rapert of Conway sponsored the 2019 trigger law.

In Thursdays statement, AFLG praised the hundreds of volunteers who worked tirelessly to educate voters, coordinate signing opportunities, and collect signatures.

They were fearless in the face of misinformation, intimidation, and harassment, the statement reads. And their work will leave an indelible mark on Arkansas politics.

The group referred to a range of hurdles the amendments supporters faced in the months before the submission deadline. The anti-abortion groups Arkansas Right to Life and the Family Council led a Decline to Sign effort encouraging voters not to sign petitions for the amendment, and protesters targeted canvassing sites throughout the state.

In May, Little Rock police told supporters of the abortion amendment that they could be arrested for obstructing traffic while canvassing from a public sidewalk at a busy intersection.

We cant  and wont  rest until Arkansas women have access to safe, standard health care and the autonomy to make decisions about their bodies free from governmental interference.

 Arkansans for Limited Government

In June, the Family Council posted on its website a list of 79 people paid by AFLG to collect signatures. AFLG called the post attempted intimidation; the Family Council has since removed the list from the post but has kept it publicly available on its political action committee website. Acquiring and publishing the list is legal under the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act.

On Independence Day, the day before the deadline to submit signatures to Thurston, an email claiming to be from AFLG caused confusion by stating no more signatures for the Arkansas Abortion Amendment were needed. AFLG quickly alerted supporters that the misleading email was not from them and encouraged people to continue signing petitions.

Bentley and Rapert have both broadcast their opposition to the amendment on social media.

Praise the Lord these cold-blooded baby killers lost their appeal to get their unholy abortion amendment on the ballot in #Arkansas, Rapert said Thursday on X, reposting a July 5 video from a supporter of the amendment celebrating the submission of signatures. Thanks to the 4 justices on the Arkansas Supreme Court for following the law. Just look at the way the abortion supporters cheered for death. Its crazy.

A unique challenge to the Arkansas Abortion Amendment was a lack of national support. While several states have approved citizen-led abortion-rights initiatives over the past two years and more have pursued similar efforts  including in neighboring Missouri, where abortion will be on the November ballot  Arkansas proposal has been controversial among reproductive justice advocates because it would reinstate an abortion policy more restrictive than the one in place under Roe v. Wade. For this reason, major national abortion-rights groups were not involved in promoting or funding the campaign, Slate reported.

In South Dakota, a proposed abortion-rights ballot measure faced a court challenge from an anti-abortion group alleging that supporters did not follow state canvassing laws. The measure remains likely to appear on the ballot, but the timing and outcome of the lawsuit could change that.

Like Arkansas, South Dakota bans abortion except to save the pregnant persons life.

Responses to courts ruling

Attorney General Tim Griffin, representing Thurston, asked the Arkansas Supreme Court on July 19 to dismiss AFLGs case. The courts Thursday decision denied the motion.

Griffin praised the courts decision in a statement, calling it a win for the rule of law in Arkansas.

The people rule in Arkansas, through the law, Griffin said, referring to the state motto, Regnat Populus, Latin for the people rule.

Changing the Arkansas Constitution involves a rigorous process requiring strict adherence to the law, Griffin continued. The Arkansas Supreme Court confirmed today that the abortion advocates failed to follow the law that other ballot committees had successfully followed for over a decade since Governor Mike Beebe signed the law governing paid canvassers in 2013.

Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders wrote on X in July that the far left pro-abortion crowd in Arkansas showed they are both immoral and incompetent in response to Thurstons initial rejection of the amendment.

Proud I helped build the first conservative Supreme Court majority in the history of Arkansas and today that court upheld the rule of law, and with it, the right to life, Sanders posted Thursday, referring to her appointment last year of Hiland, the former chairman of the state Republican Party.

The Democratic Party of Arkansas denounced the courts ruling in a news release.

The MAGA Republicans total abortion ban has brought to light countless stories of women and girls who have been harmed by this extreme policy, which makes no exceptions for rape, incest, child victims, or mothers in danger, party chairman Grant Tennille said. This no-exceptions ban is too extreme, and voters deserved the opportunity to vote for common-sense access and exceptions. Republicans know their extreme views are unpopular; thats why they repeatedly used their power to cheat Arkansans out of the opportunity to let their voices be heard.

Family Council President Jerry Cox called the proposed amendment deceptively worded in a statement praising the ruling.

This radical abortion amendment might have made the ballot had it not been for all of the pro-life Arkansans who spread the word about it and had it not been for the Arkansas Secretary of State and Arkansas Attorney General being willing to enforce Arkansas ballot initiative laws, Cox said. Arkansas women and unborn children will be protected from unrestricted abortion as a result. Arkansas remains the most pro-life state in America. Thats something to celebrate.

The majority has succeeded in its efforts to change the law in order to deprive the voters of the opportunity to vote on this issue, which is not the proper role of this court.

 Arkansas Supreme Court Associate Justice Karen Baker, dissenting from the majority opinion in CV-24-455

Updated at 6:15 p.m. with comment from Family Council President Jerry Cox.

Arkansas Advocate is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Arkansas Advocate maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Sonny Albarado for questions: info@arkansasadvocate.com. Follow Arkansas Advocate on Facebook and X.

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Parents arraigned on manslaughter charges after newborn baby was mauled to death in Rochester

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC)  Two people were arrested and charged with manslaughter after a 3-month-old baby boy died after a dog attack in Rochester, according to police.

Investigators said Anastasia Weaver and Sulamain Hawkins Sr., both 19, were staying in the attic of an acquaintances home on Bidwell Terrace with their 3-month-old baby, Sulamain Hawkins Jr.

Prosecutors Thursday in court said they had been staying there for a few months, further describing the conditions in the attic as deplorable.

Its alleged that on Aug. 3, the two left the baby alone in the attic alongside two pitbulls while they went downstairs to smoke marijuana. In court, prosecutors said the child was left alone for up to an hour.

3-month-old baby dead after dog attack in Rochester

When the parents returned to the attic, the baby was found unresponsive after being attacked by at least one of the dogs, police said. He died from his injuries in the hospital several hours later.

Weaver and Hawkins Sr. were arrested and charged with Manslaughter in the second degree. Both were arraigned in court Thursday morning with bail set at $15,000. The father denied the allegations against him.

The allegations here, we feel, support the recklessness that a reasonable person in these defendants situations would not have acted the way they did, said Assistant DA Sara VanStrydonck. They knew a risk and they consciously disregarded that risk.

The tenants of the home where the couple was staying have since been evicted.

Since the attack, Rochester Animal Services euthanized both dogs. Hawkins Sr. and Weavers next court appearance is Aug. 27 at 9:30 a.m.

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Jon Polin, left, and Rachel Goldberg, parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, speak on stage during the Democratic National Convention Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

The parents of a 23-year-old American taken hostage by Hamas during the Oct. 7 attack on Israel gave a moving speech Wednesday at the Democratic National Convention, pleading for the release of the dozens of people who continue to be held captive in Gaza.

This is a political convention. But needing our only son  and all of the cherished hostages  home is not a political issue. It is a humanitarian issue, said Jon Polin, whose son Hersh Goldberg-Polin lost part of his left arm and was kidnapped from Israel by militants who attacked the music festival he was attending.

Polin and his wife, Rachel Goldberg-Polin, were greeted with an extended ovation and chants of bring him home by the thousands of Democratic delegates in Chicago.

They steered clear of politics in their 10-minute speech, but Jon Polin said the families of the American hostages meet regularly in Washington and are heartened to see bipartisan support for securing the release of their loved ones. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, he said, are both working tirelessly" for a deal between Israel and Hamas for a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of the remaining hostages.

Hersh, if you can hear us, we love you, stay strong, survive, Rachel Polin-Goldberg said.

She and her husband wore stickers with the number 320, drawing attention to the number of days their son has been held.

The speech put an emotional and human face on the Israel-Hamas conflict, a sensitive issue for Democrats, who face pressure from pro-Palestinian protesters to more forcefully press Israel to end the siege that has leveled much of the Gaza Strip and killed tens of thousands of people, according to the Gaza health ministry, which does not distinguish in its death count between militants and civilians.

Delegates of the uncommitted movement, which was sparked by dissatisfaction with President Joe Bidens handling of the Israel-Hamas war, announced to reporters late Wednesday that officials denied their request for a Palestinian to speak during the convention. The group of 36 delegates has outsized influence as they stem from pivotal battleground states like Michigan, which is part of the so-called blue wall critical to Democratic chances in November.

The movement's leaders had negotiated for weeks with the Harris campaign and convention organizers, and were given a panel Monday afternoon to discuss family members lost or maimed in Israel's offensive.

I have asked for the vice president to call us back and tell us that the suppression of Palestinian Americans does not belong in the Democratic Party and a Palestinian speaker will speak on this stage, Uncommitted National Movement co-founder Abbas Alawieh said. Im waiting for the call.

U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called on convention organizers to make space for a Palestinian speaker.

Just as we must honor the humanity of hostages, so too must we center the humanity of the 40,000 Palestinians killed under Israeli bombardment, the New York lawmaker wrote on the X platform. To deny that story is to participate in the dehumanization of Palestinians.

More than 100 hostages remain in Gaza, though some are believed to have died. Family members of six of the eight American hostages still held by Hamas were in Chicago to raise awareness about their loved ones' plight.

Ronen and Orna Neutra, the parents of hostage Omer Neutra, were given a speaking slot at the Republican National Convention last month.

Time is running out, Ronen Neutra told The Associated Press at the Democratic convention. "And all leaders must work together in a bipartisan fashion to put pressure on both Hamas and the Israeli government and reach a deal that is so much overdue, so much overdue.

On Tuesday, multiple pro-Palestinian demonstrators were arrested after clashing with police during a protest that began outside the Israeli consulate and spilled out onto the surrounding streets.

Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday as the United States presses Israel and Hamas to agree to a bridging proposal that could lead to a cease-fire in the war in Gaza.

___ Cooper reported from Phoenix. Associated Press journalists Farnoush Amiri and Mike Householder in Chicago contributed to this report.
Parents of American held hostage by Hamas speak at DNC

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  Pro-Palestinian protesters are ramping up their efforts to make the war in Gaza a central focus of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

Uncommitted delegates pushed for a Palestinian-American to be granted a speaking spot on the conventions last night.

Our vote matters, and we know that, said Fedaa Ballouta, a Palestinian-American at a nearby rally. The Democratic Party will not get our vote if the genocide in Gaza doesnt end immediately.

Thousands of voters made that clear when they cast uncommitted ballots in this years Democratic primaries. Those votes sent uncommitted delegates to the convention. Organizers said they do not take these voters for granted but have no intention of letting them speak.

However, the convention did acknowledge the Gaza war, and the hostages still held by Hamas.

We love you, said Rachel Goldberg, the mother of 23-year-old hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin. Stay strong. Survive.

Goldberg and her husband spoke to the convention Wednesday, demanding a ceasefire and hostage release agreement.

This is a political convention, said Jon Polin. But needing our only son and all of the cherished hostages home is not a political issue.

Near the convention, artists opened Hostage Square Chicago to highlight Hershs story, along with the other remaining American hostages, including the bodies of Lea Silverts aunt and uncle.

Im sad, Silvert said at the temporary exhibit. Im disappointed that were still in this situation.

The White House said President Joe Biden pressed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Wednesday to get a ceasefire deal across the finish line, but its still unclear whether it will come together.

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DOUGLAS COUNTY, Mo.  Two women and one man were arrested Wednesday in rural southwest Missouri on child endangerment charges following a tip to the states Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline.

According to the Douglas County Sheriffs Office, the arrests were made in Oldfield, located approximately 25 miles southeast of Springfield.

A sheriffs office spokesman said a deputy and members of the Childrens Division went to the residence early Wednesday, where they located about 80 well-maintained, mature marijuana plants. However, the deputy did not find anyone at the home.

An hour later, the sheriff and that same deputy went back to the home and saw that the marijuana plants had been cut down and placed in a pile. The sheriff knocked on the door and spoke with Jammie J. White.

The sheriffs office said White, 44, told the sheriff that Ashlee M. Dean, 21, and Nicholas W. Womble, 25, ran into the woods with an 8-week-old infant after the deputy and Childrens Division workers first left. White also admitted to cutting down the marijuana plants in the interim.

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White yelled out toward the woods, and Womble and Dean emerged with the infant.

The sheriffs office said the infant was very malnourished and in poor physical health. The child was taken to a local hospital, where doctors learned the baby had not been given its prescribed medication.

In addition, the sheriffs office said the parents were feeding the infant goat milk replacement, mashed up Vienna sausages, and Mountain Dew Code Red.

The infant was placed in state custody and is receiving ongoing medical care.

The Douglas County Prosecuting Attorneys Office charged White, Womble, and Dean with first-degree endangering the welfare of a child  serious physical injury and abuse or neglect of a child. White remains jailed on a $150,000 cash-only bond; Womble and Dean were each jailed on $15,000 cash-only bonds.

The trio is due back in court on September 3.

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As parents of Israeli American hostage address DNC, critics ask: Why no pro-Palestinian speakers?

Jon Polin, left, and Rachel Goldberg, parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, a hostage held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, speak at the Democratic National Convention. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Rachel Goldberg broke down almost as soon as she stepped onto the stage of the Democratic National Convention.

She put her hand to her chest, bowed her head and then dropped it onto the wooden lectern as the crowd erupted in chants of Bring them home! Bring them home! Her shoulders shook.

Then she stood upright and called for the release of her son, Hersh Goldberg-Polin.

At this moment, 109 treasured human beings are being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza, Goldberg said. They are Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists. They are from 23 different countries. The youngest hostage is a 1-year-old red-headed baby boy and the oldest is an 86-year-old mustachioed grandpa. Among the hostages are eight American citizens. One of those Americans is our only son. His name is Hersh.

The Israel-Hamas war has been the main source of division at this weeks gathering of Democrats in Chicago. Thousands of pro-Palestinian activists marched through downtown Chicago on Monday to protest the Biden-Harris administrations actions on the war. Scores were arrested Tuesday night after violent clashes with police.

The arena was hushed Wednesday night as Goldberg and her husband, Jon Polin, spoke of their son, Hersh, a 23-year-old Israeli American and one of the U.S. citizens held in captivity in Gaza. His left arm was blown off by a grenade Oct. 7 when Hamas attacked the Nova music festival.

Read more: A Berkeley-born Israeli hostage hadn't been seen since Oct. 7. His family finally glimpses him

As Goldberg and Polin addressed the convention, they wore tape on their chests that read 320, a reference to the number of days their son has been held in captivity.

Since Goldberg-Polin was captured, his parents have campaigned ceaselessly for his release. In addition to meeting President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, they have met Pope Francis and traveled to New York and Geneva to speak with United Nations officials.

Speaking to Democratic delegates, they eschewed partisan framing of the Israel-Hamas war.

This is a political convention, Polin acknowledged, but needing our only son and all of the cherished hostages home is not a political issue. It is a humanitarian issue.

There is a surplus of agony on all sides of the tragic conflict in the Middle East, he added. In a competition of pain, there are no winners.

Polin called for a deal that brought all the hostages home, and he also acknowledged the suffering of Palestinian civilians in Gaza.

In our Jewish tradition, we say... every person is an entire universe, he said. We must save all these universes. In an inflamed Middle East, we now the one thing that can most immediately release pressure and bring hope to the entire region, a deal that brings this diverse group of 109 hostages home and ends the suffering of the innocent civilians in Gaza. The time is now.

After Goldberg and Polin spoke, Abbas Alawieh, a Michigan delegate who said he spoke for more than 100,000 voters who cast uncommitted ballots in the Democratic primary, said he sat with them.

Read more: Column: Pro-Palestinian Democrats face conundrum at DNC: Joy over Harris, but despair over Gaza

I was thinking about how, in the Muslim tradition, we know that if you harm or if you kill any one person, it's as if you harmed or killed all of humanity, Alawieh said at a news conference held by uncommitted delegates outside the convention hall.

Every one of those 109 people are people. They're universes, he said, referring back to Polins speech.

He said he also was thinking of the thousands of children who perished in Gaza. I could have been one of those children, he said.

A Lebanese immigrant, Alawieh said he grew up amid terrifying bombing.

He gathered with other uncommitted delegates after Goldberg and Polin spoke to address their main grievance with the convention: no Palestinian representation among the weeks speakers.

We know that Palestinians and us, we're all human, he said. And so it would be unacceptable for the voices of Palestinians to be suppressed to a level where they're not even allowed on stage.

"A party that prides itself on family values, and a party that prides itself on protecting children, and a party that prides itself on expanding rights  of course, this is the party where we would be heard, he added.

But Alawieh said the Harris campaign was asked if a Palestinian could address the convention and the answer was no. Flanked by more than a dozen supporters draped in kaffiyeh scarves, Alawieh broke into an impassioned plea, addressing Biden and Harris.

You want the bombs to stop? You stop sending bombs, he said. It's actually a very simple idea, Mr. President, Vice President Harris.

Late Wednesday night, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) urged DNC leaders to honor Palestinian voices.

"Just as we must honor the humanity of hostages, so too must we center the humanity of the 40,000 Palestinians killed under Israeli bombardment," Ocasio-Cortez posted on X. "To deny that story is to participate in the dehumanization of Palestinians. The @DNC must change course and affirm our shared humanity."

A pro-Harris group, Muslim Women for Harris-Walz, announced on Instagram it was disbanding over the DNC's refusal to allow a Palestinian American to take the stage.

The family of the Israeli Hostage that was on the stage tonight has shown more empathy towards Palestinian Americans and Palestinians than our candidate or the DNC has, the group said in a statement. This is a terrible message to send to Democrats.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Parents of Oct. 7 Hostage Leave DNC Crowd in Tears With Plea to Bring the Hostages Home: Not a Political Issue

The Jewish community was represented broadly at the Democratic National Conventions third night where Rachel Goldberg-Polin and Jon Polin, the parents of a 23-year-old American hostage held in Gaza, brought the United Center to tears as they made the case that bringing the hostages home is not a political issue.

The Goldberg-Polins recounted the attack on Israel by Hamas on Oct. 7, where their son Hersh was captured while attending the Nova Music Festival, held near the Gaza border.

Hes 23 years old, and like Vice President Kamala Harris, Hersh was born in Oakland, California, Rachel Goldberg-Polin said from the DNC stage. Hersh is a happy-go-lucky, laid-back, good humor, respectful and curious person. He is a civilian.

She said that in the attack, Hershs left forearm, his dominant arm, was blown off before he was loaded onto a pickup truck and stolen from his life, and me and John into Gaza.

And that was 320 days ago, she added pointedly. Since then, we live on another planet. Anyone who is a parent or has had a parent can try to imagine the anguish and misery that John and I and all the hostage families are enduring.

Many in the audience were crying during the emotional speech, touched by the struggle of two parents attempting to bring home their only son.

This is a political convention, but needing our only son and all of the cherished hostages home is not a political issue, Jon Polin said as he took the microphone. It is a humanitarian issue.

There is a surplus of agony on all sides of the tragic conflict in the Middle East. In a competition of pain, there are no winners, he added, calling for both the return of the hostages and a lasting ceasefire with Hamas as the cameras kept cutting to audience members in tears. One was holding onto a #BringThemHome wristband so tight it looked like it might snap.

Hersh, if you can hear us, we love you. Stay strong. Survive, Goldberg-Polin concluded.

Hersh Goldberg-Polin's parents full speech. pic.twitter.com/4imen7kbR1  Blue Georgia (@BlueATLGeorgia) August 21, 2024

The entire audience gave the couple a standing ovation, both before and after their speech, while a chant of Bring Them Home broke out among DNC attendees.

Other Democrats displayed their support for the return of all the captives, including Debbie Wasserman-Schultz wearing a pin in honor of hostages in Gaza.

Jason Kaufman, Cantor for a Jewish congregation in Alexandria, Virginia, told TheWrap that throughout his experience volunteering for the DNC this week, he has felt a strong showing of the Jewish community.

Its been very heartwarming to see, Kaufman added, noting that many attendees stopped him throughout the conference to admire his yarmulke, which says Harris 2024.

Jason Kaufman shows off his Harris-Walz yarmulke at the DNC (Photo by Natalie Korach)

So many people are coming to take pictures with it and are excited to see Jewish support for Kamala Harris, who has stood with the Jewish people throughout her entire career, the DNC volunteer said.

Kaufman added that Harris has stood with the Jewish people throughout this incredibly challenging time, referencing the attack on Israel on Oct. 7 and the subsequent war in Gaza. Tensions in the U.S. flared early this year over Israels attacks against Hamas in Gaza, and the debate over Americas support for Israels actions spilled over into the presidential election as some view the Biden administrations stance as too hard and others too soft.

Pro-Palestine protests even materialized outside the DNC in Chicago this week, but turned up a more muted and smaller crowd than expected.

Im just so proud to express my Jewish values by throwing my support to Vice President Kamala Harris on her quest to be the first female president, Kaufman said, who describes himself as a proud American, proud Democrat, and a proud Zionist.

The post Parents of Oct. 7 Hostage Leave DNC Crowd in Tears With Plea to Bring the Hostages Home: Not a Political Issue appeared first on TheWrap.
PARIS, Ill. (WTWO/WAWV)  Hampton by Hilton unveiled its first-ever group of Hampton Waffle Bosses and a Paris, Illinois native was announced as part of the talented team.

According to a news release from Hilton, the trio selected is exceptional breakfast hosts from around the globe have been recognized for their outstanding skills in creating innovative recipes for Hamptons signature and seasonal waffle flavors.

Beverly Christmas of Paris began crafting the hotels beloved waffles soon after joining the Hampton Inn by Hilton Paris team.

This is just the greatest opportunity ever, said Beverly.

The Waffle Boss title, awarded as part of the brands 40th Anniversary celebrations, is the culmination of an internal talent search in collaboration with the iconic Paris Hilton.

Earlier this summer, Beverly had the opportunity to travel to London to film with Paris Hilton herself! You can see all the exclusive content on Hamptons social media channels over the next few weeks.

As a Waffle Boss, Beverly aims to develop new specialty waffle recipes for Hampton hotels nationwide. Her determination stem from her upbringing on a farm, where her parents hard work inspired her to pursue her dreams with unwavering support.

On Friday, WTWO will have an exclusive interview with Beverly Christmas to speak with her about the opportunity of a lifetime. Plus, she will be in studio for our morning show and Good Day Live on Tuesday, August 27th.

To learn more about Hampton by Hilton and its new Waffle Bosses, please visit stories.hilton.com/hampton and HamptonbyHilton.com.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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WELLINGTON, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- As New Zealand greenhouse tomato growers are concerned about a virus found in Australia, New Zealand's biosecurity department has placed import restrictions on tomato seed imports from Australia.

The department has stepped up biosecurity requirements in response to the Tomato Brown Rugose Fruit Virus (ToBRFV) recently detected at two South Australian growing properties, Stuart Anderson, Biosecurity New Zealand deputy director general, said on Thursday.

"Imported seeds for sowing from Australia will now require testing for the virus prior to arrival in New Zealand, which is a requirement that is already in place for other countries where the virus is present," Anderson said.

New Zealand has also temporarily suspended tomato imports from all Australian states except Queensland, where there is no evidence of the disease or links to the affected properties in South Australia, he said, adding the situation continues to be monitored closely to ensure New Zealand growers are protected.

The virus, which was first noted in the Middle East and has never been found in New Zealand, affects tomatoes, capsicums and chilies, causing yellowing and deformity in the host plants, but has no impact on human health, Anderson said.

TomatoesNZ Chair Barry O'Neil said if ToBRFV were to get to New Zealand, it could have dire consequences for New Zealand's greenhouse tomato and capsicum industry, because the virus spreads extremely easily and has such a major impact on production, with reported crop losses of up to 80 percent.

"The best line of defense is to keep the virus out of New Zealand," O'Neil said, adding the second-best line of defense is for growers to have strict hygiene measures in place to try to stop ToBRFV from entering a particular property, if it does arrive in New Zealand. 
The Paris Prosecutors Office has requested that actor Gerard Depardieu stand trial in a criminal court in relation to rape allegations by actress Charlotte Arnould, French media reported on Thursday.

The investigating judge must now make a decision on whether to endorse the request or not.

More from Deadline

Arnoulds lawyer Carine Durrieu-Diebolt told French news network BFMTV that the trial request marked a major breakthrough in the case for her client.

For Charlotte Arnould, its an enormous step forward in the direction of a trial. She is now impatiently waiting for the end of the investigation, she said.

Depardieu is already facing trial this October on separate charges of sexual assault against two women on the set of the film The Green Shutters in 2021.

The fresh trial request is related to allegations of two counts of rape lodged in a police complaint by Arnould in August 2018.

RELATED: French President Emmanuel Macron Distances Himself From Gerard Depardieu Amid Frances #MeToo Wave

The actress, whose parents were friends of the actor, alleges Depardieu raped her on August 7 and 13, 2018, when she visited his Paris home seeking advice about her career.

Arnould was the first woman to pursue Depardieu in the courts in relation to sexual assault allegations, but her move came against a backdrop of growing rumors around the actors sexually inappropriate treatment of female extras and crew members on film sets.

Her complaint was initially dismissed by the courts following a nine-month investigation for lack of evidence, but she filed a second complaint as a civil party, which resulted in an investigating judge being appointed in 2020, and Depardieu being indicted for rape and sexual assault in 2021.

Previously one of Frances most lauded actors, Depardieus public star has fallen over the past 18 months due a series of investigations into his behaviour towards women, including a bombshell documentary produced by France Televisions strand Complement dEnquete and an in-depth report by Mediapart, which both came out last year.

The actor has vehemently denied the rape allegations and mounting sexual assault accusations against him. In an open letter published in Le Figaro newspaper last October, he suggested his acts and behaviour had been misinterpreted.

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UPDATED: California Governor Gavin Newsom on Sunday signed a bill into law that allows exclusive areas inside Steve Ballmers $2B Intuit Dome to sell alcohol until 4 a.m. At every other club in Los Angeles, alcohol sales are prohibited past 2 a.m.

The law never specifically mentions Ballmer, the Intuit Dome or the billionaires Los Angeles Clippers who play there, but it seems to carefully constructed to allow the fun to continue until 4 a.m. at just one L.A. venue.

More from Deadline

AB 3206, introduced by Assemblymember Tina McKinnor and passed by the State Senate in late August, authorizes alcoholic beverage sales to occur between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. upon the on-sale licensed premises operated in a fully enclosed arena with a seating capacity of at least 18,000 seats located in the City of Inglewood. Those sales must occur in a private area in the arena no larger than 2,500 square feet in the hours immediately following a day on which a sporting event, concert, or other major event, or a private event not open to the public, has occurred in the arena.

Conveniently, the Intuit Dome seats 18,000. The Forum  also owned by Ballmer  only seats 17,500, and so cannot avail itself of the benefits of AB 3206. And while the nearby SoFi Stadium seats upward of 70,000 for Rams games and such, it is not a fully enclosed arena, as required by the bill. That makes the Intuit Dome, quite literally, the only game in town for legal alcohol sales after 2 a.m.

PREVIOUSLY on August 21: Jerry Buss would be jealous.

The legendary Lakers owner innovated the Forum Club, an exclusive in-stadium VIP zone for L.A.s A-list during games and concerts. But, like every other club in Los Angeles, alcohol sales were prohibited past 2 a.m., even in the heyday of Showtime.

Now, thanks to a bill quietly passed in the California Senate last night, an exclusive venue in Steve Ballmers brand-new Intuit Dome in Inglewood  new home of the Los Angeles Clippers  looks likely to party until 4 a.m.

AB 3206, introduced by Assemblymember Tina McKinnor, authorizes alcoholic beverage sales to occur between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. upon the on-sale licensed premises operated in a fully enclosed arena with a seating capacity of at least 18,000 seats located in the City of Inglewood. Those sales must occur in a private area in the arena no larger than 2,500 square feet in the hours immediately following a day on which a sporting event, concert, or other major event, or a private event not open to the public, has occurred in the arena.

Conveniently, the Intuit Dome seats 18,000. The Forum  also owned by Ballmer  only seats 17,500, and so cannot avail itself of the benefits of AB 3206. And while the nearby SoFi Stadium seats upward of 70,000 for Rams games and such, it is not a fully enclosed arena, as required by the bill. That would make the Intuit Dome, quite literally, the only game in town for legal alcohol sales after 2 a.m.

The bill still needs to be signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Our office does not typically comment on pending legislation, Izzy Gardon, a spokesman for the Newsom told KCRA California Capitol Correspondent Ashley Zavala. The governor will evaluate the Legislatures proposal on its merits if it reaches his desk.

The bill likewise must be approved by the Inglewood City Council, but that seems likely given McKinnors involvement and the pro-development stance the city has taken in recent years.

Deadline has reached out to representatives for the Clippers for comment and will update this story when one is received.

The Dome made its debut last week with a concert by Bruno Mars. The Clippers first preseason home game is October 14 against the Dallas Mavericks.

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH)  If theres one thing the city needs to do as it navigates the aftermath of a data leak, cybersecurity experts are telling NBC4 Investigates its finding patient zero.

NBC4 Investigates is digging into what the City of Columbus ransomware attack means for people across Central Ohio and beyond.

As the days go by since the July 18 attack, more and more people fall into the victim category as their information turns up on the dark web. That data has included names, drivers license numbers and addresses, all stemming from a leak by the Rhysida ransomware group. The photos themselves  pictures of the IDs  are also stored in the stolen system.

Cybersecurity expert Connor Goodwolf has been poring through the data from the dark web, and told NBC4 hes found drivers licenses, concealed carry licenses, passport cards and city and state work badges. While Goodwolf has zeroed in on the effects, SecureCyber CEO Shawn Waldman wants to know more about the cause. He told NBC4 in the City of Columbus case, as soon as ransomware is downloaded it can quickly corrupt any system on the network.

Think of it like a wildfire. As soon as the wind blows and blows oxygen into that fire, it will spread so fast, Waldman said. The majority of networks that we encounter are not properly prepared to stop the wildfire from spreading. So before you know it, somebody opens an attachment, they get ransomware, and then all of their devices are encrypted over a short period of time.

Another lawsuit piles on Columbus over ransomware attack and leak

While Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther has told reporters that the citys IT staff were able to stop Rhysida from encrypting any systems with ransomware, NBC4 Investigates asked him a different question at a Saturday news conference: Have you found patient zero?

Waldman told NBC4 thats the one device inside the city that was originally attacked by Rhysida. Its a yes or no question, but the answer can have big implications on the status of the investigation, and if the city has the tools in place to uncover everything that was taken. Patient zero is the device where this all started: the computer, phone or any electronic device connected to the internet where a city employee interacted with the ransomware. Ginther has previously said Rhysidas attack started when someone downloaded a .zip file.

You need to find the originating device. If you dont, then you risk potentially whatever happened, the ransomware or whatever the event was, you risk it happening again, Waldman said.

The SecureCyber CEO has investigated more than a dozen breaches, and said finding patient zero comes standard as a necessity.

One of the first conversations that were having with an organization, when we respond to an incident like this, is What logs do you have? The only way for me to find patient zero is to have proper logging, Waldman said.

Logs are a record of how devices communicate with one another on the network, as well as what data is accessed. Waldman says in some cases, hes seen attacks where the victim does not have the right logs in place, which means patient zero may not be found.

In the aftermath of the attack, NBC4 has asked Ginther multiple times if the city has found patient zero. On Aug. 13, the mayor said: No. I think that all comes about throughout the investigation.

Hype isnt dying around Ohio recreational marijuana, sales data shows

On Aug. 17, NBC4 asked again.

I dont know if we have yet, Ginther replied. As part of the ongoing investigation, and probably not know that for some time.

On Monday, the mayors office said: The patient zero question is still under investigation.

Waldman told NBC4 it concerns him that the mayor wont or cant say if the city has found patient zero.

If you dont have the right logs and you dont have the right things in the right place, it is possible that you would never know who patient zero is, Waldman said. And in that case, really the only option that you really have to protect yourself is to almost reimage or reload every device because you dont know which one started it.

If an organization cant find patient zero, it may mean that the group will never know the extent of data that was accessed or stolen.

NBC4 asked Wednesday for an interview with the mayor and director of the Columbus Department of Technology. Neither had time.

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PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  After months of planning, Portland transportation officials officially launched a maintenance project that could transform one of the citys most dangerous corridors into a safe area for drivers and pedestrians by 2027.

Construction on PBOTs Building a Better 82nd program began Thursday morning with Oregon State Rep. Khanh Pham, City Commissioner Mingus Mapps and other community partners joining PBOT on-site to officially commemorate the start of the project.

It was built as a place to pass through, but now 82nd Avenue is a place for people to come to, PBOT Director Millicent Williams said.

Counting ranked-choice votes in Portland could take weeks this November, officials say

Overall, the project will prioritize the 2.5-mile stretch from Northeast 82nd Avenue from Fremont Street to Schuyler Street, and Southeast 82nd Avenue from Mill Street to Foster Road. This stretch includes some of the major community destinations including McDaniel High School and the Jade District.

This project isnt just about better pavement. Its about improving lives. Its about making sure that every project that the City of Portland undertakes helps Portlanders get to where they need to go safely, conveniently and sustainably, Commissioner Mingus Mapps said.

The corridor straddles a historically diverse and underserved community and is among the citys most dangerous. The stretch has seen 14 traffic deaths and more than 120 serious injuries between 2012 and 2021, and Portland police have recorded three deaths along 82nd Avenue so far in 2024.

These deaths will continue in the years to come, unless we change something about it, State Representative Khanh Pham said. These are people with families and friends, and these deaths impact entire communities.

According to PBOT, the majority of the victims were pedestrians, cyclists, or people in cars making left turns in an area with no traffic signals.

Interstate 5 crash causes massive slowdown south of Wilsonville

The last thing is whenever you do major public investments, you have the potential of pushing people out who have lived here for decades and decades and decades, said Zachary Lauritzen, Executive Director of Oregon Walks. And we are asking for our leaders and our partners to invest in 82nd, in housing, in trees, in peoples in workforce.

Between now and 2026, PBP and Raimore Construction will work on improvements including repaving more than two miles, updating 140 ADA curb ramps, upgrading 10,000 feet of sidewalk  as well as new signs, crossing and signals for bikes and pedestrians  and planting almost 200 trees to help mitigate the impacts of extreme heat.

The project is called Better 82nd, but its the best of what community can do when it comes together to make impacts for those who are most impacted, Williams said.

Joint Office of Homeless Services sees 28% increase of homeless placed in housing

PBOT also plans to plant about 175 trees along the corridor to mitigate the impact of extreme heat events.

This was a commitment to a vision of a better future, said JJ Kunsevi, a McDaniel High School student. So today, as we are here together, we can probably say we now live in that better 82nd.

Construction will be ongoing on that corridor through 2026.

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PBS Judy Woodruff apologizes for falsely telling live audience Trump tried to talk Israel out of cease-fire deal

A PBS senior correspondent apologized Wednesday after falsely telling her audience that former President Donald Trump tried to talk Israel out of a cease-fire amid its ongoing war in Gaza.

Judy Woodruff passed off blame for the blunder by clarifying that she based the flimsy scoop on outside reporting she had read before broadcasting from the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago on Monday.

The reporting is that former President Trump is on the phone with the prime minister of Israel, urging him not to cut a deal right now, because its believed that would help the Harris campaign, Woodruff told a PBS roundtable.

Judy Woodruff claimed during live coverage at the DNC that ex-President Donald Trump tried to talk Israel out of cease-fire negotiations. Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

Who knows whether that will come about or not, but I have to think that the Harris campaign would like for President Biden to do what presidents do, which is work on that one.

Woodruff caught plenty of flak online for the comment  overwhelmingly from those who pointed out that the rumors she was citing were proved false days before she regurgitated them live on air.

On Wednesday, the former NewsHour host said she wanted to clarify the remarks she made about the ongoing cease-fire talks.

As I said, this was not based on my original reporting; I was referring to reports I had read, in Axios and Reuters, about former President Trump having spoken to the Israeli Prime Minister, Woodruff wrote on X.

Woodruff claimed Trump tried to stamp out a deal because a cease-fire would reflect positively on the Harris campaign. REUTERS

In the live TV moment, I repeated the story because I hadnt seen later reporting that both sides denied it. This was a mistake and I apologize for it.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus office told the Jerusalem Post Wednesday that Woodruffs statements were a complete lie.

The Axios story Woodruff was referring to was published Aug. 14 and cited two sources who claimed Trump, 78, spoke on the phone with Netanyahu, 74, about the Gaza hostage and cease-fire deal.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus office said Woodruffs statements were a complete lie. ZUMAPRESS.com

It has to get over with fast  get your victory, and get it over with. It has to stop, the killing has to stop, Trump said of his call with Netanyahu. Adam Vander Kooy/Special to the Daily / USA TODAY NETWORK

Reuters reshared the story on its site  but neither report claimed Trump urged Netanyahu to hold off on a deal.

The day after the story was published, Netanyahus office published a statement denying that any phone call between the prime minister and Trump had occurred.

That same day, both Axios and Reuters published new stories to reflect the new denials  four days before Woodruff repeated the false information to her live audience.

PBS did not respond to messages from The Post.

Trump, however, has maintained that he did speak with Netanyahu.

At a press conference, the Republican presidential nominee claimed he encouraged the prime minister to end the war, but he criticized the terms of the proposed cease-fire.

He knows what hes doing, I did encourage him to get this over with, Trump said.

It has to get over with fast  get your victory, and get it over with. It has to stop, the killing has to stop.
Pelosi on Biden dropping: Sometimes you just gotta take a punch for the children

Pelosi on Biden dropping: Sometimes you just gotta take a punch for the children

(KRON)  After Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) made efforts to get President Joe Biden to reassess his determination to remain the Democratic nominee, the former speakers daughter, Christine Pelosi, claims Pelosi said Bidens dropping was ultimately his decision.

Watch live: DNC Day 3 underway with Walz, Bill Clinton set to headline tonight

Christine Pelosi was at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday ahead of night three.

She expressed her and her familys excitement toward Harris official announcement to run for Democratic nominee earlier this week, claiming Harris is fit for the presidency due to her experience as vice president.

Its fantastic We are all so joyful and excited Because Kamala Harris is ready, shes tested, shes fantastic, and she understands what it takes not only to win a massive coalition but to govern, Christine Pelosi said.

Former US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her daughter Christine Pelosi attend the first day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on August 19, 2024. Vice President Kamala Harris will formally accept the partys nomination for president at the DNC which runs from August 19-22 in Chicago. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

When asked why her mother is running for reelection again despite her age, Nancy Pelosi told her daughter that she has work to do for the children.

Similarly, when asked why she was pushing for Biden to drop out of the race, Christine Pelosi recounted her mother telling her, Sometimes, you just gotta take a punch for the children.

When Pelosi was credited with much of Bidens decision, Christine Pelosi called her mother, telling her, Mom, you just took a punch for the children.' The former speaker then credited the move to Biden, saying, Its his decision.

Pelosi, who helped push Biden out, to take convention stage

Christine Pelosi, a San Francisco resident, said her 15-year-old daughter, Bella, was in support of Harris but could not meet her because she was at the Outside Lands music festival.

Bella says she loves [Harris], she sends her love, but shes at Outside Lands And [Bella] said [to Harris], if you were 15 years old, youd be at Outside lands too.. Kamala then said, Shes exactly right; Bella is exactly where she needs to be!.. Bella will get ready to vote, and to get out the brat volunteers organized. Christine Pelosi said to Kamala Harris

When asked if she is interested in following in her mothers footsteps, Christine Pelosi said, Well see. That future is a long way off. The person you should ask is Bella.

She claimed she is only currently running for the DNCs Executive Committee. So if you see anybody from the western states, territories or islands, you tell thempick me!

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Pelosi says Harris has no political reason to stray from Biden policies

CHICAGO  Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Thursday that a future President Harris would have no reason, politically, to stray from the polices of President Biden.

Pelosi emphasized that the vice president should carve her own path if she wins the White House, advising Harris  and everyone  to be yourself.

Take it where you want to take it. What is your vision, your values, whats in your heart of concern for people? Pelosi said during an interview at the CNN/Politico Grill, an event space set up for the Democratic National Convention.

But Pelosi also praised the policy track record of the Biden administration and argued that Harris is under no political pressure to diverge from that platform.

Thats up to her, Pelosi said. I dont think theres any political reason to do so.

The remarks arrive as liberal, pro-Palestinian Democrats are furious with Bidens continued military support for Israel amid its war with Hamas in Gaza. The conflict was triggered by Hamass Oct. 7 attacks, which left more than 1,100 people dead. But Israels response has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians, sparking an outcry that Israeli leaders have done far too little to protect civilians. Some have accused them of war crimes.

The anger has spilled this week into Chicago, where thousands of protestors have gathered to press the administration to demand a cease-fire from Israeli leaders, and an arms embargo if they dont comply.

Those protests have been largely an afterthought among conventiongoers, who have been insulated from the demonstrations by a massive security presence surrounding the United Center, the hub of the event.

But the issue got some attention Wednesday night when delegates associated with the Uncommitted National Movement, a pro-Palestinian group, pressed convention leaders to allow a Palestinian doctor to address the crowd. Convention leaders refused the request.

The group is vowing to withhold support from the Democratic presidential candidate if the administration doesnt halt its military aid for Israel  votes that could prove crucial in a battleground state like Michigan, which is home to a significant Muslim population.

Pelosi acknowledged the importance of winning the Wolverine State if Democrats are going to have a chance of keeping control of the White House.

We must win Michigan, she said.

But Pelosi declined to offer Harris specific advice about how to go about it except to be true to yourself.

Thats what I keep saying: Be yourself. Theres nobody like any of you in the history of the world. You  youre individual, youre authentic, youre sincere, she said.

She has to project her own authenticity.

Alex Gangitano contributed.

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Former House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., arrives to speak on stage during the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on Aug. 21, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. (Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images)

Democratic members of Congress took the stage throughout the third night of the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday, urging voters to give the party control of the House during the November elections.

Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi and Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries were among the lawmakers who drew a stark contrast between the types of policies theyd pursue and those of the GOP.

The parable of January 6 reminds us that our democracy is only as strong as the courage and commitment of those entrusted with its care, Pelosi said. And we must choose leaders who believe in free and fair elections, who respect the peaceful transfer of power.

Pelosi called on voters to reject the types of ideologies and violence that led a mob to attack the U.S. Capitol more than three years ago as lawmakers tried to certify the Electoral College vote for President Joe Biden.

Pelosi recalled that after federal law enforcement officers cleared the building and lawmakers returned, they were able to complete their task.

In this election, we are called upon to do the same; to stand together, to reject autocracy, to choose democracy, Pelosi said.

And we will do so by electing a Democratic House with Hakeem Jeffries as speaker of the House, she added. Electing a Democratic Senate. Electing Tim Walz as vice president of the United States. And electing Kamala Harris as President of the United States.

Jeffries said that in the United States, when someone works hard and plays by the rules, they deserve to earn a living wage.

You deserve to have an affordable place to call home. You deserve to educate your children in a great public school that is free from gun violence. And you deserve high quality, affordable health care, and you deserve the chance to one day retire with grace and with dignity, Jeffries said.

But for far too many people in our great country, they are struggling to live paycheck to paycheck, and as a result, the American Dream is out of reach, he added.

Democrats in control of the House, Senate and White House, he said, would look for ways to fix our broken immigration system and secure the border, strengthen the relationship between the police and the community and continue to combat the climate crisis with the fierce urgency of now.

Slender GOP majority

Republicans hold an especially thin majority in the House and are hoping to grow those ranks during the next Congress. But Democrats, who hold 212 seats, only need to get a net gain of four members to become the majority.

Experts closely tracking the 435 House races say the election could go either way.

The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter rates 22 seats as toss-ups, while Larry Sabatos Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics categorizes 19 races as winnable by either the Democrat or the Republican.

The Democratic lawmakers speaking Wednesday night at the DNC said a blue Congress would lead to votes on reproductive rights, an expanded child tax credit and investments in the middle class.

Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz urged voters not to let the rest of the country follow the path her home state has taken under the tenure of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Today in Florida, state policy requires that kids are taught racist lies about so-called benefits of slavery, books are banned, teachers are censored, and our LGBTQ+ community endures endless state-sponsored hate, she said. Today in Florida, as we grapple with record heat and rising seas, extreme MAGA Republicans deleted mentions of climate change from state law. Today in Florida, a near-total abortion ban endangers womens health and their lives.

Earlier in the day Sen. Patty Murray, a Washington state Democrat, and Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins released a joint statement expressing dismay that a book about women in the United States Senate had been thrown out of a Florida school library.

We were stunned to discover that the state of Florida chose to discard Nine and Counting from its collection of books at New College  this is a book we penned together with our Senate colleagues to tell our stories as women senators, at a time when there were far fewer of us, to help inspire the next generation of women to pursue public service, Murray and Collins said in the statement.

The act of banning books, they said, goes against our constitutional values and the idea that our universities should be places where the freedom of speech is allowed to flourish and perspectives of all kinds are heard.

Rep. Suzan DelBene, chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and a U.S. representative from the state of Washington, said during the DNC that giving the party control of the House could head off unfounded challenges to Congress certifying the presidential election.

A Democratic majority means lowering costs and growing the middle class, expanding the child tax credit and making it permanent, protecting reproductive freedom  and yes, a Democratic House means Speaker Jeffries will certify the 2024 election, DelBene said.

Immigration reform

Democratic lawmakers also sought to upend the narrative from Republicans that Harris is not well positioned to address immigration and border security.

Texas Rep. Veronica Escobar said during her speech that Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and GOP lawmakers have sought to use the border as a political opportunity to exploit instead of an issue to address.

Escobar rebuked Republicans for blocking a border security and immigration package that was negotiated by a bipartisan group of senators but stalled after Trump signaled he didnt want to lose it as an election issue.

All Republicans have to offer is demonization and bluster, Escobar said. Democrats have solutions. With Kamala Harris as President, we can live up to the promise of America. We can strengthen legal pathways to immigration. We can secure our borders. And we can treat with dignity those who seek a better future within them.

Connecticut Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy  one of the three senators who negotiated the border security bill after GOP leaders insisted it was necessary to pass another round of aid to Ukraine  said that if Harris is elected shell renew the push to get that legislation through Congress.

Trump killed that bill, Murphy said. And he did it because he knew that if we fixed the border, hed lose his ability to divide us, his ability to fan the flames of fear about people who come from different places.

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Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro speaks during the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 21, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

CHICAGO  He didnt get the nod to be Vice President Kamala Harris running mate, but Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro has been a ubiquitous and sought-after presence at the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago this week.

Hes appeared daily at numerous state delegations breakfasts and has made headlines with comments about a reported feud with U.S. Sen. John Fetterman and refuting former President Donald Trumps assertion that antisemitism played a role in his not getting the VP nod.

On Wednesday night, Shapiro took the stage at the DNC, the same night that Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Harris choice for running mate, delivers the keynote address. Sounding a bit hoarse, Shapiro spoke after former President Bill Clinton and former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a plum spot in the third night of the DNCs prime time lineup.

Shapiro delivered a rousing speech that energized the audience at the United Center, opening with a familiar reference to the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection.

Two-and-a-half centuries ago, in Philadelphia, a band of patriots declared their independence from a king and set ourselves on a path of self determination, Shapiro said. Generation after generation has embraced that responsibility. Ordinary Americans rising up, demanding more, seeking justice. And in every chapter of our American story, weve made progress and advanced the cause of freedom.

Harris, Shapiro said, has spent her entire career making progress. He called Trump a man with no guardrails, who cloaks himself in the blanket of freedom.

Its not freedom to tell our children what books theyre allowed to read. Its not freedom to tell women what they can do with their bodies, he continued. And it sure as hell isnt freedom to say you can go vote, but he gets to pick the winner. Thats not freedom.

Pennsylvania has been the battleground of battleground states in 2024: a state that went red in 2016 for Trump, and back to blue in 2020 for President Joe Biden. Both the GOP and Democratic ticket have visited the state numerous times, with its 19 electoral votes a tempting prize for the victor.

Shapiro, as he noted in an interview with Politico earlier on Wednesday, has never lost an election, and was part of the blue wave of 2022 defeating state Sen. Doug Mastriano (R-Franklin) by a margin of 15 points.

He told the DNC during his remarks that Democrats are the party of real freedom.

The kind of real freedom that comes when that child has a great public school with an awesome teacher because we believe in her future. Real freedom that comes when we invest in the police and in the community so that child can walk to and from school safely and get home to her mama. Real freedom that comes when she can join a union, marry who she loves, start a family on her own terms, breathe clean air and drink pure water, worship how she wants, and live a life of purpose where shes respected for who she is. Real freedom that comes when she looks at Madam President and know that this is a nation where anything and everything is possible.

Shapiro said Kamalas and Tims names may be on the ballot but that rights and freedoms were on the line.

You have the power to shape the future of this country, just like our ancestors who fought for freedom on the battlefield and sat-in at lunch counters so their kids could stand up.

He closed with a series of questions for the crowd, which responded with resounding yes to each one.

Are you ready to protect our rights? Are you ready to secure our freedoms? Are you ready to defend our democracy? And are you ready to elect Kamala Harris and Tim Walz?

Lets get to work!

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BATH, Pa. (WHTM)  A Lehigh Valley man is facing federal charges, accused of mail fraud and wire fraud as authorities allege he schemed to defraud the federal government and several car dealerships.

Justin Heimbach, 33, of Bath, was indicted by federal authorities this week on six counts of mail fraud and four counts of wire fraud.

The U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania said Heimbach, who operated TeamKJ Construction, engaged in a scheme that led to several fraudulent pandemic unemployment assistance applications.

Those applications were filed in the names of people allegedly let go because of the pandemic, using materially false statements regarding their employment.

Authorities also alleged hat Heimbach also defrauded multiple Lehigh Valley car dealerships by purchasing several vehicles in the names of other construction companies registered to or associated with him, writing checks for those vehicles on closed bank accounts or accounts without enough funds to cover the transaction.

If convicted, Heimbach could face a maximum sentence of 200 years in prison.

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Significant projects are being implemented for the restoration of religious and historical monuments in the territories liberated from occupation, Azernews reports, citing Ramin Mammadov, the Chairman of the State Committee on Religious Associations, as he said at the G20 Interfaith Forum (IF20) held in Brazil.

During the forum, R. Mammadov provided detailed information about Azerbaijan's model of multiculturalism, which is based on interfaith and intercultural harmony, as well as the state policies aimed at preserving this exemplary environment.

The committee chairman emphasized that for centuries, representatives of various religious denominations in Azerbaijan have lived in peace and mutual understanding. Religious freedom and traditions of tolerance have become integral elements of Azerbaijani identity and evidence of the nations unwavering commitment to pluralism. The coexistence of mosques, churches, and synagogues side by side in Baku is a testament to the harmonious living of different religious communities:

"The comprehensive legislative framework established by the Azerbaijani state to preserve this rich historical, material, and spiritual heritage ensures equal rights and freedoms for everyone, regardless of race, nationality, religion, language, or gender.

As expressed by the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, our country has always been recognized as a model of tolerance and inclusivity. The chairman noted that the restoration, reconstruction, and preservation of historical and religious monuments, sacred sites, and pilgrimage centers reflect the states deep respect for religion and national-spiritual values. Azerbaijans activities in preserving cultural heritage extend beyond its borders. For instance, Azerbaijan has contributed to the restoration of the catacombs of Saints Marcellinus, Peter, and Sebastian in the Vatican and has allocated funds for the repair of the Notre-Dame Cathedral in France."

R. Mammadov highlighted that the Azerbaijani people have suffered from the most brutal forms of religious discrimination throughout various periods in history. He noted that 65 out of 67 mosques in the territories that were under occupation for 30 years were destroyed:

"Despite the brutal attacks on our religious heritage in Garabagh and in the areas of present-day Armenia where Azerbaijanis had lived for centuries, our people remain focused on the future, continuing to uphold religious and ethnic tolerance as a fundamental pillar of national identity. They are striving to open a new chapter in the region's history, based on peace and cooperation, by undertaking significant projects for the restoration of religious and historical monuments in the liberated territories."
ISLAMABAD, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Two students were killed and five others injured when a school van was attacked in Pakistan's east Punjab province on Thursday morning, police said.

The incident happened in the Attock district of the province where a gunman sprayed bullets at the van and fled the scene, the District Police Officer of Attock, Ghayas Gul told the media.

He said that an investigation into the incident is underway. Still, according to the initial probe, the attacker targeted the van due to personal enmity with the driver, who remained safe in the attack.

The injured children have been shifted to a nearby hospital.

The country's President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the attack and directed the authorities to take strict action against those responsible. 
The Pentagon on Thursday blasted Houthi rebels for striking an oil tanker and creating an environmental disaster in the Red Sea after the merchant vessel was lit ablaze with a million barrels of crude oil on board.

Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters the Houthis striking the Greek-owned merchant vessel Sounion on Wednesday was threatening a catastrophe in Yemens backyard.

That is an environmental disaster that they are going to have to deal with, she said, also slamming the groups motives in the attack. What exactly does this accomplish? They said they were launching these attacks to help the people of Gaza, not sure how that helps anyone in Gaza.

The Houthi attack on the Sounion sparked a fire that was extinguished, but it also led to engine failure, forcing the crew to evacuate to Djibouti.

The European Union naval military operation in the Red Sea said in a post on the social platform X that the Sounion, carrying 150,000 tons of crude oil, now represents a navigational and environmental hazard.

In a Thursday statement shared on pro-Iranian media channels, the Houthis claimed the Sounion entered Israel, violating their so-called ban on entering Israeli ports.

In a campaign that has lasted some 10 months, the Houthis have sunk at least two ships and damaged at least two others, while killing three sailors.

The Iranian-backed group that controls most of Yemen say they are targeting ships in the Red Sea that are linked to Israel in a bid to support the Palestinian people in Gaza, where Israeli forces are waging a major war against Hamas.

In the statement Thursday, the Houthis said they will not cease until the aggression is stopped and the siege on our brothers in the Gaza Strip is lifted.

The U.S. Navy is leading a major operation to protect merchant ships in the Red Sea and has defeated the vast majority of Houthi attacks, which are fired almost daily. The U.S. is also carrying out strikes to target Houthi assets.

Still, more than half a year of fighting has failed to deter the Houthis or degrade their capabilities enough to stop the attacks.

Singh said Thursday that the U.S. has been successful in meeting its mission objectives, even if it remains a challenge.

Yes they have gotten a few attacks through, she said. But we have been able to degrade their capabilities over time and we have been able to protect ships that transit the Red Sea through our alliance [and] its not for nothing.

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PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD)  A man received a 16-year prison term for his part of an April 2023 robbery near the Bradley University Campus.

Keith Clark, 20, pleaded guilty but mentally ill in July to aggravated robbery. The charge normally has a maximum of 15 years but his past record meant he faced up to 30 years behind bars if he did not plead guilty.

Guilty but mentally ill is a legal distinction that will allow Clark to get treatment while in prison. It will not have any effect on the length of his sentence, of which he is eligible for day for day good-time credit.

Armed robbery suspect placed under arrest

As part of his plea agreement with Peoria County prosecutors, there was an agreed-upon cap of 20 years as the maximum term he could receive. Probation was taken off the table in the agreement but the prosecutor also dropped two other cases that involved charges of aggravated battery, according to court records.

On April 10, 2023, Peoria police had been dispatched to a business in the 900 block of North Bourland Avenue on a report of an armed robbery. The victim at the business told police the suspect displayed a handgun and demanded money from the register.

No one was injured. The suspect took an undisclosed amount of currency and fled the scene on foot.

With credit for more than a year already served and day-for-day good-time credit, he could be released in less than seven years.

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Pete Buttigieg took center stage at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday night, delivering a powerful speech that highlighted the stark contrast between the Democratic vision of America and what he described as the darkness being sold by former President Donald Trump and his running mate, JD Vance.



The gay former South Bend mayor and current U.S. Transportation secretary also offered a glimpse into his personal life at home with husband Chasten and their two young children  a family makeup that he said seemed impossible less than a generation ago.

Heres a sentence I never thought Id hear myself saying, Buttigieg began in front of a packed crowd at the United Center in Chicago. Im Pete Buttigieg, and you might recognize me from Fox News.

The line drew laughter and applause, but Buttigieg quickly pivoted to the seriousness of the moment, adding, I believe in going anywhere, anywhere in service of a good cause. And friends, we gather in a very good causeelecting Kamala Harris and Tim Walz as the next president and vice president of the United States.

Buttigieg wasted no time drawing a clear line between the Democratic ticket and the Republican contenders, targeting Trumps rhetoric and record.

Donald Trump rants about law and order as if he wasnt a convicted criminal, running against a prosecutor as if we were going to forget that crime was higher on his watch, Buttigieg said. He criticized Trump for betraying the very people he claims to champion, pointing out that the only economic promise that he actually kept was to cut taxes for the rich.

He reserved some of his sharpest criticism for JD Vance, Trumps vice-presidential running mate, who Buttigieg argued embodies a vision of America that is out of touch and exclusionary. JD Vance is one of those guys who thinks if you dont live the life that he has in mind for you, then you dont count, Buttigieg said. He recounted his own experience as a soldier deployed to Afghanistan, a time when he didnt have children. Many of the men and women who went outside the wire with me didnt have kids either. But let me tell you, our commitment to the future of this country was pretty damn physical, he declared, drawing a roar of approval from the crowd.

For Buttigieg, the choice in this election is not just about policy but about the very soul of the nation. Choosing a guy like JD Vance to be Americas next vice president sends a message, and the message is that they are doubling down on negativity and grievance. Committing to a concept of campaigning best summed up in one word: darkness, Buttigieg said. Darkness is what they are selling. The thing is, I just dont believe that America today is in the market for darkness.

Instead, Buttigieg offered a vision of politics that is empowering, uplifting, and, as he put it, even a kind of soulcraft. Drawing on his faith, he reminded the audience that the world is not divided into good and bad people but that each person is capable of both.

Leaders matter because of what they bring out in each of us, the good or the bad, he said, contrasting the negativity of the Trump campaign with the inclusive and hopeful message of Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Tim Walz.

Buttigieg spoke warmly of his home in Michigan, where dinnertime with his husband Chasten and their 3-year-old twins often feels more chaotic than political. The makeup of our kitchen table, the existence of my family, is just one example of something that was literally impossible as recently as 25 years ago when an anxious teenager growing up in Indiana wondered if he would ever find belonging in this world, Buttigieg said.

This, he emphasized, is what is at stake in the upcoming electionthe ability to continue building a world where dreams that once seemed impossible can become an everyday reality for all Americans. But that didnt just happen, Buttigieg reminded the audience. It was brought about through idealism and courage, through organizing and persuasion and storytelling, and yes, through politicsthe right kind of politics.

Buttigieg argued that the kind of politics offered by Harris and Walz represents a better future for all Americans. A politics that calls us to our better selves and offers us a better every day, he said. He urged the crowd to reject Trumps politics of darkness and to choose leaders who are out there building bridges rather than banning books.

As Buttigieg wrapped up his speech, the crowd erupted in cheers, energized by his call to action. This November, we get to choose. We get to choose our president. We get to choose our policies. But most of all, we will choose a better politics, Buttigieg declared. This is what we will work for every day to November and beyond. So lets go win this!
Pete Buttigieg used a good chunk of his speech at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday to criticize Donald Trumps running mate, JD Vance, over his attacks on Americans without children.

The Ohio senator previously claimed that the childless left have no physical commitment to the future of this countrya sentiment the transportation secretary rebuked by invoking his wartime deployment to Afghanistan. He assured the DNC crowd that the tour was pretty damn physical.

Buttigieg, who was in the Middle Eastern country for seven months in 2014 as a member of the Navy Reserve, said that even though he had no children at the time, that didnt mean he was any less committed to his country.

Vance, he said, is one of those guys who thinks if you dont live the life he has in mind for you, then you dont count.

Buttigieg then recalled Vances 2021 comments. Vance, he quoted, was someone who said if you dont have kids, you have no physical commitment to the future of this country.

Buttigieg then directly addressed Vance, a former Marine who deployed to Iraq for six months in 2005 and worked in the Public Affairs office.

You know, senator, Buttigieg said, when I deployed to Afghanistan, I didnt have kids then. Many of the men and women who went outside the wire with me didnt have kids either. But let me tell you: Our commitment to the future of this country was pretty damn physical.

US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg speaks on the third day of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Vance made similar controversial comments in 2020, as CNN noted recently. That year, he claimed on a right-wing podcast that the most deranged and most psychotic users of Twitter, now known as X, generally didnt have children.

Thats on top of Vance criticizing childless cat ladiesa remark that drew backlash from many, including Jennifer Aniston and billionaire media mogul Oprah Winfrey, who made a dig about the comment during her own DNC speech Wednesday.

Later in his speech, Buttigieg contrasted Kamala Harris campaign with Donald Trumps, which he said is filled with negativity and grievance. A second Trump term, he added, would only amplify that.

I dont presume to know what it is like in your kitchen, Buttigieg said, but I know, as sure as Im standing here, that everything in itthe bills that you pay at that table, the shape of the family that sits there, their fears and dreams that you talk about late into the nightall of it compels us to demand more from our politics then a rerun of some TV wrestling death match.

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Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg compared Donald Trumps running mate, Sen. JD Vance, with Trumps former vice president, Mike Pence, during his speech Wednesday night at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.



After criticizing Trump, Buttigieg pivoted his attention to the former presidents running mate.



And dont even get me started on [Trumps] new running mate. At least Mike Pence was polite. JD Vance is one of those guys who thinks if you dont live the life that he has in mind for you, then you dont count, Buttigieg, a Democratic presidential candidate in 2020, said as he made comparisons between the two. Someone who said that if you dont have kids, you have no physical commitment to the future of this country.



Buttigiegs remarks referred to a 2021 interview that resurfaced last month in which Vance mocked Vice President Kamala Harris for being among the Democratic Partys childless cat ladies who are miserable with their lives. The interview prompted massive backlash from celebrities and elected officials, but Vance chose to back his remarks.



In response to the criticism, the Ohio senator insisted that he was being sarcastic and has nothing against cats, but he then urged people to pray for those people who did not birth children. The vice presidential nominee has made other offensive comments about childless people, such as saying that not having children makes people more sociopathic.



You know, senator, when I was deployed to Afghanistan, I didnt have kids then. Many of the men and women who went outside the wire with me didnt have kids either. But let me tell you, our commitment to the future of this country was pretty damn physical.

Related...
Pete Buttigieg, the U.S. Transportation Secretary and former mayor of South Bend, has become one of the Democratic Partys most relied upon messengers on cable news and late-night television. And on Tuesday night, he continued to show why.

Im Pete Buttigieg, and you might recognize me from Fox News, the 42-year-old, who has drawn attention for taking the Democratic Partys message to the conservative network, joked at the beginning of his primetime speech at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

The 2020 presidential primary candidate, who went on to join the Biden Administration and has emerged as one of the Democrats most valuable talking heads, was reportedly among the short list considered to be selected as Vice President Kamala Harris running mate. But despite not being tapped for the role, Buttigieg has enthusiastically rallied support for the Democratic ticket and criticized their Republican opponents.

On Tuesday night, he also touched on his family life and how his experiences have helped shape his vision of what he called a better politics.

I believe in a better politicsone that finds us at our most decent, and open, and bravethe kind of politics that Kamala Harris and Tim Walz are offering, Buttigieg said. As youve felt in the last couple of days, that kind of politics just feels good to be a part of. There is joy in it, as well as power.

Here are some of the biggest moments from Buttigiegs DNC speech.

Americas not in the market for darkness

As he often does in interviews and media appearances, Buttigieg took aim at Trumps running mate Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, claiming that Vance is one of those guys who thinks if you dont live the life he has in mind for you, then you dont count.

Choosing a guy like J.D. Vance to be Americas next vice president sends a message, Buttigieg said. And the message is that they are doubling down on negativity and grievance, committing to a concept of campaigning best summed up in one word: darkness.

The thing is, he added, I just dont believe that America today is in the market for darkness.

Buttigieg criticized Vance for his previous suggestion that political leaders who dont have biological childrensuch as Buttigieg and Harrisdont really have a direct stake in the country. (Harris became a stepmother when she married Doug Emhoff, who has two kids; and Buttigieg and his husband Chasten have adopted infant twins).

You know, Senator, when I was deployed to Afghanistan, I didnt have kids, Buttigieg said. Some of the men and women who went outside the wire with me did not have kids. But let me tell you, our commitment to the future of this country was nothing if not physical.

At least Mike Pence was polite, he said of Trumps former running mate and vice president.

The right kind of politics

Buttigieg said that Harris and her running mate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who was the conventions headline speaker later the same night, represent what American politics is supposed to beinvoking a sense of hope, promise, freedom, and trust.

He argued that good leaders are those who are out there building bridges and not those who are out there banning books. He added that the right kind of politics made it possible for him to have the political and military careerand family lifehes had as a gay man.

The makeup of our kitchen tablethe existence of my familyis just one example of something that was literally impossible as recently as 25 years ago when an anxious teenager growing up in Indiana wondered if he would ever find belonging in the world, he said.

But over time, that changed. This kind of life went from impossible, to possible; from possible to real; from real to almost ordinary, in less than half a lifetime, Buttigieg said. But that didnt just happen. It was brought about. Through idealism and courage. Through organizing and persuasion. And storytelling and, yes, through politics. The right kind of politics.

This November we get to choose, Buttigieg said. We get to choose our President, we get to choose our policies, but most of all, we can choose a better politics.

Write to Nik Popli at nik.popli@time.com.
Peter Doocy Of Fox News Is Asked If He'll Miss Joe Biden. His Response Is Interesting.

Peter Doocy, the Fox News reporter whose line of questioning has often angered President Joe Biden, said hell miss the outgoing commander in chief.

Yes. I really will, Doocy said at the Democratic National Convention when asked by New York Magazines Intelligencer. I dont think it took long for them to know exactly what to expect from me. They knew I was always going to ask him something hard and he continued to engage for years after that and his team did, too ... and so yes, I will miss him.

Biden would perhaps have less polite terminology for Doocy.

As Bidens reelection campaign faced scrutiny in February amid concerns over his mental acuity, the reporter asked him, How bad is your memory, and can you continue as president?

My memory is so bad [that] I let you speak, Biden sniped.

Looking back, Doocy told Intelligencer, I thought he had a quick-witted response to me, but ultimately that was the beginning of the end.

Joe Biden, right, answers a question from Fox News' Peter Doocy on Nov. 9, 2023. Kevin Dietsch via Getty Images

Months later, Biden withdrew from the White House race following a disastrous debate against GOP rival Donald Trump.

But Biden and Doocy will always have their memorable tension. Exchanges between the two have been both comical and downright confrontational. And Biden still has several more months in office for other possible dustups.

Regardless, maybe theres hope for a Christmas card exchange between those two in the future, even if Biden once called Doocy a stupid son of a bitch on a hot mic.

As for the reporters relationship with White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, however, that might be another story.

Read more at Intelligencer.

Related...
Were in Northfield, Mike Hoey said. Steve, were on the Norwich University campus, and people can certainly recognize what general type of object this is. How does it relate to the person were talking about?

(Last week), we talked about Ernest Harmon, who was an Olympian and a president here at Norwich but really had a huge impact on the American armed forces, Vermont Historical Society executive director Steve Perkins said. Especially in armor. He started off as a cavalry officer and moved into armor leadership in World War II. So, weve invited Andrew Liptak back; hes on the staff with us at the Vermont Historical Society.

This is a Sherman tank, Liptak said. And this is a really common vehicle that the armored forces would have used during World War II.

He commanded mechanized cavalry in World War II, but he actually started out in the traditional horse-based cavalry, Perkins noted. Can you tell us a bit about his early military career?

Yeah, he attended Norwich in 1912 and then went over to West Point and from there, he went to Fort Ethan Allen here in Vermont and was commissioned as a cavalry officer, Liptak continued. He was then sent over to France for World War I in the Second Cavalry. World War I introduced a lot of different technologies to the battlefield  airplanes, tanks, submarines.

In between the two wars, the U.S. Army was trying to figure out how do we use these? and basically ended up using (tanks) in place of horse-based cavalry units. Harmon was part of a cohort of officers who had all gone to the same schools around the same time, and they were figuring out the tactics and the strategies and how do you use these on the battlefield?. Thats sort of where he started to rise up to the ranks.

He was commanding the 2nd Armored Division during the Battle of the Bulge, and it was December 1944 when the call came through that the Germans had broken through Allied lines. When the Germans broke through, they took the Allies by surprise. This was sort of the last gasp of Nazi Germanys forces.

Harmon got the call and was basically told, you need to move your division 50 miles behind the lines, behind where the Germans were, and they had to do it quickly. They did it overnight. The divisions are huge, huge organizations. Theres thousands and thousands of men, lots of vehicles, lots of tanks, and they had to do this at night, blackout, and they were able to move 50 miles overnight. (They) didnt lose a person, and they got basically to the rear of the action, and thats where they basically hung out. They waited until the German forces came and basically ran right into them.

He eventually retired as a general, Perkins observed. What happened after World War II?

He was head of the Constabulary in Europe, over in Czechoslovakia, so hes sort of a military governor and sort of overseeing some of the rebuilding in the immediate years afterwards, Liptak replied. (Harmon) retired (from the Army) in 1947 and basically came back to Norwich in 1950 and became the president, and it was there that he oversaw this big expansion of the campus. He was here until 1965.

Hoey asked, For anyone that might want to learn about this facet of General Harmons background, where might people be able to turn?

You can stop here at Norwich, Liptak concluded. If youre a scholar, you can go visit the Special Collections. They have 21 boxes of Harmons papers from his time as an Olympian all the way up to his presidency. Theres also a lot of books out there that, especially if youre looking specifically at the 2nd Armored Division, you can find him pop up in a lot of places in those.

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Plans to turn Hotel Knoxville into apartments take next step with name, signs approved

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE)  Work to turn one of the most unique buildings in Knoxville into apartments is moving forward with designs plans for public-facing signage approved by the city.

The Design Review Board on Wednesday approved sign plans for Hotel Knoxville, the angular concrete building that has remained empty since March 2020.

Work to turn Andrew Johnson Building into hotel may soon begin, developers say

The approved signage uses the name Vision at Knoxville. Signs would be placed on exterior walls on the east and south elevations.

The building was sold to a California-based investment firm in October 2020 for nearly $17 million. Plans brought before the Development Committee of the Downtown Knoxville Alliance called for units to be refurbished with the majority becoming studio apartments.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WATE 6 On Your Side.
Smoke billows following Israeli artillery shelling in Lebanese town of Khiam, as seen from Marjeyoun, Lebanon, on Aug. 22, 2024. Israeli warplanes and drones carried out 12 airstrikes on 10 Lebanese border towns and villages during the dawn and morning hours, according to Lebanese military sources. (Photo by Taher Abu Hamdan/Xinhua)

BEIRUT, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Two Hezbollah members were killed and two civilians wounded on Thursday in Israeli airstrikes on southern Lebanese sites, Lebanese military sources told Xinhua.

The sources, who spoke anonymously, said one of the airstrikes targeted a house in the village of Aita al-Shaab, killing two Hezbollah members.

They added that the casualties had been transported to Bint Jbeil Governmental Hospital.

In a separate attack, "an Israeli warplane fired two air-to-ground missiles at the town of Mhaibib, east of southern Lebanon, wounding two civilians," said the sources.

Israeli warplanes and drones carried out 12 airstrikes on 10 Lebanese border towns and villages during the dawn and morning hours, destroying about 20 homes and damaging more than 60 others, they added.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah said in a statement that its fighters launched an air attack with a squadron of suicide drones on the positions of Israeli soldiers in the Kiryat Shmona settlement, adding the drones "hit their targets accurately."

During the past 24 hours, the Lebanese army monitored the launch of about eight drones and about 150 surface-to-surface missiles from southern Lebanon toward northern Israel.

Israeli Iron Dome missiles intercepted some of them in the airspace of the border area in southern Lebanon, and Israeli warplanes also participated in intercepting these drones, according to the army.

Tensions along the Lebanon-Israel border escalated on Oct. 8, 2023, following a barrage of rockets launched by Hezbollah toward Israel in solidarity with Hamas' attack on Israel the day before. Israel then retaliated by firing heavy artillery toward southeastern Lebanon. 

Smoke billows following Israeli artillery shelling in Lebanese town of Khiam, as seen from Marjeyoun, Lebanon, on Aug. 22, 2024. Israeli warplanes and drones carried out 12 airstrikes on 10 Lebanese border towns and villages during the dawn and morning hours, according to Lebanese military sources. (Photo by Taher Abu Hamdan/Xinhua)
The Crew of the SpaceX private astronaut flight Polaris Dawn, Anna Menon, who works to develop astronaut operations for SpaceX, Scott Poteet, who served as the mission director of the Inspiration4 mission, Jared Isaacman, who is financing the mission, and Sarah Gillis, lead space operations engineer, SpaceX, at the Starbase Complex in Boca Chica, Texas on Feb. 11. Credit - Jonathan NewtonThe Washington/Getty Images

It was a very big deal on Sept. 14, 1966, when astronauts Pete Conrad and Dick Gordon flew their Gemini XI spacecraft to a never-before-attained altitude of 850 miles. Its still a big deal 58 years later, since that record for a crewed spacecraft in Earth orbit remains. But that will change later this month, when the crewmembers of the Polaris Dawn missionset for launch on Aug. 26fire their thrusters and climb to a new benchmark of 870 miles, venturing farther from home than any astronauts on any non-lunar mission have ever traveled.

The Polaris Dawn crew will notch other achievements toobecoming the first commercial astronauts to perform extravehicular activity (EVA, also known as a spacewalk), and the first to test communications between a spacecraft and the satellites that make up the SpaceX Starlink system. They will also conduct a suite of more than 40 scientific experiments, testing the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft at altitudes that take it through the Van Allen radiation belts, and also performing more than a dozen experiments on the crewmembers themselves, including exploring what to do about the stubborn problem of space motion sickness, which is experienced by 60% to 80% of all space travelers during their first two or three days off the Earth. In addition, they hope to raise tens of millions of dollars for St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital.

Lon Tweeten for TIME; Polaris Program

The mission is bankrolled by Jared Isaacman, the billionaire founder and CEO of Shift4, an internet payment company. It will be Isaacmans second trip to space, after the all-civilian mission of Inspiration4, in September of 2021. That journey too raised a lot of money for St. Jude, Isaacmans favorite charity, and marked the first time an all-civilian crew journeyed spaceward. For both missions, Isaacman was effectively a paying customer of SpaceX, buying seats aboard the Dragon at a reported $50 million each. Polaris Dawn has a bigger mission, kicking off the first of three flights in the Polaris series, which could see private crews perform maintenance on the Hubble Space Telescope, and also fly aboard the inaugural mission of SpaceXs massive Starship rocket.

We named the Polaris program after our North Star, says Isaacman, which is actually a constellation of three stars, and Polaris is contemplated to be three missions.

Isaacman could be on all of those Polaris flights, which, after Inspiration4, will give him a total of four trips into space, making him one of the worlds most experienced astronautsdespite his never having been part of NASA or any other governmental space program. His crew the first time around was noteworthy for its inclusion of Hayley Arceneaux, then 29, a physician assistant at St. Jude, who had been treated there for bone cancer when she was a child, and became the first person to fly in space with a prosthetica rod in place of her left femur. This time around, the crew includes pilot Scott Poteet, a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel, and vice president of strategy at Shift4; mission specialist Sarah Gillis, a lead space operations engineer at SpaceX; and mission specialist and medical officer Anna Menon, another SpaceX lead space operations engineer.

For all of the contributions to science the Polaris series could make, it is the possibility of servicing Hubble and raising its altitude to a higher, longer lasting orbit that might be the greatest. Hubble has been aloft since 1990, and in the decades since, it has established itself as one of the most important cosmic observatories ever built. Five servicing missions conducted by space-shuttle crews helped extend its useful life, but since the shuttles stood down in 2011, the telescope has always been just one breakdown away from going offline for good. A new servicing mission by a new crew could keep it in operation for years to come.

Theres been a study jointly conducted with SpaceX, Polaris, and NASA, on the feasibility of boosting Hubble, says Isaacman. [Its] a pretty easy risk-reward ratio in my mind.

Flying the maiden mission of Starshipwhich would happen on the third missionwould be no small thing either. The spacecraft has been selected by NASA for use as its Human Landing Systemthe lunar module for the Artemis program, which aims to have astronauts back on the moon before the end of this decade. Only a handful of NASA giants have commanded first missions in a new spacecraftAlan Shepard in Mercury, Gus Grissom in Gemini, Wally Schirra in Apollo, and John Young in the shuttles. Whoever flies Starship on its first Earth orbital mission will be in rarefied company.

But Polaris Dawn will be the first out of the gate for the Polaris series, and it has manifold jobs to do. The business of conducting medical testsincluding performing head tilts while spinning in the spacecraftto puzzle out the stubborn problem of space sickness, could go a long way toward making space habitation and settlement more practical. Astronauts have been suffering from motion sickness since the first humans flew in space, and no one has ever come up with a good solution beyond administering antiemetics and other drugs.

You cant have this great SpaceX vision of putting hundreds of thousands of people in space if half of them are throwing up, because the other half are going to throw up too, says Isaacman. Thats certainly something that has to be conquered for a species that evolved in 1g, or normal gravity.

More immediately, the Polaris Dawn crew will also be the first to try out a new, more robust spacesuit design. Not only will it protect astronauts when theyre inside a nominally pressurized spacecraft, but also when theyre in the hard vacuum and extreme temperatures encountered during EVAs and on the surface of the moon. Like the old Apollo lunar suits, the new ones are rugged and allow for outdoor mobilitybut unlike the old suits, they are also comfortable.

One of the things you have to consider is oftentimes you introduce hard joint points around the suit, says Menon. If you're sitting in a seat with restraints on, you can actually hurt the person inside with that. So SpaceX has developed this really novel joint design that, when a suit is unpressurized, actually becomes like a soft joint. On the EVA, Sarah and Jared will gather great data on the suit performance.

The Starlink work could be groundbreaking too. More than 6,200 Starlink satellites are currently in orbit, and up to 42,000 could eventually be deployed. The system, which has most famously been used by both Ukraine and Russia in their ongoing war, provides broadband service from the sky to the ground, but has not been used to date between two spacecraft. Polaris Dawn will run a proof-of-concept experiment establishing that it can be done.

We are adding a laser to the trunk of Dragon, says Gillis. In order to communicate and send internet to the spacecraft, you have a laser directing information [from Starlink], and then another laser returning information to that moving constellation at all times. Its incredible bandwidth availability.

Life aboard Dragon during the five-day Polaris Dawn mission will be relatively comfortable. The four-person spacecraft has a habitable volume of 328 cubic ft., somewhat roomier per person than the three-person, 210 cubic ft. Apollo. In orbit, that volume goes further still, since a weightless crew can make use of ceiling and bulkhead room that is not available in 1g.

The crews food will be better and fresher than commonplace astronaut food tooat least for the first two and a half days. The fresh-food options include little sandwiches, pizza slices, and empanadas before you get into Clif Bars, beef jerky, and stuff like that, says Poteet. The crew will have cold-brew coffee as well, which will serve a dual purposefrozen into pouches that will be used to keep the fresh food cool, and becoming potable once the pouches thaw.

An earthly audience will be able to follow the mission as it unfoldswith liftoff, EVA, splashdown and other segments broadcast live. Menon, who is the mother of two small children, has co-authored a childrens book titled Kisses From Space, about a cosmic dragon and her terrestrial babies, which she will read from orbit. Copies of the book are being sold on the Polaris Dawn site and the one she takes to orbit will be auctioned off, with all proceeds going to St. Jude.

There may be music from space as well. During Inspiration4, crewmember Chris Sembroski played the ukulele for viewers at home. Polaris Dawns Gillis is a classically trained violinist and may be taking her instrument to space with her. Some secrets Im going to keep, she says with a laugh.

Menon and the other crewmembers, of course, take little about their mission lightly. The journey will require lifting off atop a 23-story Falcon 9 rocket generating 1.7 million pounds of thrust, and flying a 13,228-pound Dragon around the world at 17,500 miles per houror 4.9 miles per second. A lot can go wrong with that thrust, weight, and speed. The men and women who will fly the Polaris missions know that they will be taking their chanceschances in the interests of high adventure, yes, but solid science too.

Correction: The original version of this story misspelled the name of an astronaut. He was Dick Gordon, not Dock Gordon.

Write to Jeffrey Kluger at jeffrey.kluger@time.com.
Seattle Police announced Wednesday that they arrested a man in connection to the deadly carjacking of a dog walker in Seattle.

In a news conference, they identified him as 48-year-old Jahmed Haynes.

Officers lifted a fingerprint off the womans phone and identified him.

When they arrested him, police said he had a knife on him with blood still on it, as well as the keys to Ruth Daltons car.

In Wednesdays news conference, Seattle Police also mentioned that Haynes has eight prior felonies and a history of mental health issues.

Seattle police said around 9:55 a.m. Tuesday Haynes tried to get into the passenger side of Daltons car near the intersection of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard East and East Harrison Street.

She had several dogs in the car with her at the time.

Officers said there was a struggle of some kind and the car went up onto a planter, as Haynes pulled Dalton out of the car.

A bystander tried to intervene, but Hayes reportedly pulled a knife on him.

Officers said the man came back with a bat to try and help save her, but the car backed up, crashing into several cars and hitting Dalton before speeding away.

Daltons dog was still inside the car.

Police say Haynes drove to Brighton and killed the dog. Its body was found at the playfield near the 3900 block of South Juneau Street.

Officers located the stolen car nearby.

Seattle Police said Haynes will be facing a number of charges including murder, theft and animal abuse.
























Husband of missing Manassas Park woman taken out of home in handcuffs, neighbors say

MANASSAS PARK, Va. (DC News Now)  Weeks after a mother and nurse disappeared, neighbors in Manassas Park said police led the womans husband out of their home in handcuffs.

This comes after the Manassas Park Police Department (MPPD) executed numerous search warrants at the couples house on Heather Court.

MPPD said Mamta Kafle Bhatt was missing under involuntary circumstances. Police said officers followed up on more than 100 leads and have conducted hundreds of interviews.

Prince William County police wishing first female K-9 officer happy 2nd birthday

During a news conference on Wednesday night, police confirmed that they had a few people of interest, including Bhatts husband, Naresh Bhatt. They said he has not been cooperating with their investigation.

(Anthony Deng/DC News Now)

(Anthony Deng/DC News Now)

(Anthony Deng/DC News Now)

Bhatt, 28, was a nurse, and one of her coworkers, who came out Wednesday evening as police searched Bhatts home, told DC News Now that she had been praying for a positive outcome.

The case isnt going to have a positive outcome the way that weve been praying for and I think thats really hard to say out loud. Justice for Mamta may come in a different form or fashion, the coworker said.

Adrian, a Manassas Park community member who has been helping out in the search efforts, said he was shocked to find out that Bhatts husband was a person of interest.

It was very shocking. As a matter of fact, I had spoken with him this afternoon, said Adrian. I asked hows the baby, hows he doing and he says Im going through, making it through.'

Adrian said hes been frustrated with police over the lack of new information in the search for Bhatt.

Ive been demanding with the police, dont give the information what we already know. You have to have something that weve been waiting for,' Adrian told DC News Now. We need to have more information.

Bhatt was last seen on the night of July 31 at her home. Her husband reported her missing on Aug. 5.

Stafford County deputies want to know if youre missing a parrot

Friends and neighbors of Bhatt have been searching tirelessly for her for weeks. People close to her told DC News Now they havent heard from her in weeks and when she didnt report to work on Aug. 1 and Aug. 2, her colleagues got worried, prompting them to call the police.

On Wednesday, Aug. 14, around 10 people went to Blooms Park Trail, a place Bhatt frequented with her now-1-year-old baby, to hang up flyers and search for her.

Bhatts husband did not participate in the search.

Later that day, Bhatts husband addressed the community and reporters during a news conference outside the police department thanking everyones efforts in searching for his wife.

I need your help in a positive way. Thank you for doing what you are doing, keep doing what you are doing during this difficult time, he said.

Police said the investigation is still ongoing.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to DC News Now | Washington, DC.
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  Police have identified the man who was killed in a shooting in Southeast Portlands Powellhurst-Gilbert Neighborhood on Monday night as 50-year-old Lorenzo U. Miranda.

The family was notified of his death and provided a photo for public release, the Portland Police Bureau said in a release. The Medical Examiner has determined Miranda died of homicide by gunshot wound.

Gov. Kotek joins panel led by Julia Louis-Dreyfus

The shooting happened around 7:35 p.m. in the 12000 block of Southeast Division Street, officials said. Officers found a man seriously wounded but, despite emergency measures, the man died at the scene.

No arrests have been made, and no other details were immediately available.

Anyone with information about the shooting is encouraged to call Portland police.

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WISE COUNTY, Va. (WJHL)  A man was injured after police reported he pulled into the path of a train in Coeburn, Virginia, on Thursday.

According to the Coeburn Police Department, officers were called to the crash on Front Street around 1:18 p.m. Deputies with the Wise County Sheriffs Office also responded to the scene.

Local church helps pay off $8 million in medical debt

The police department reports a vehicle had pulled out of a driveway and into the path of the train that was passing through.

Coeburn police stated the driver, who was identified only as an elderly male, was the only person in the vehicle. He was transported to a nearby hospital with injuries.

As of 2:47 p.m., the railroad and all roads in the area were open again.

Police thanked the sheriffs office, Lifecare Ambulance and maintenance workers in the Town of Coeburn for their response and assistance.

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Authorities are asking the public for any video they may possess of a hit-and-run crash that occurred on Tuesday afternoon.

According to Newburyport Police, a vehicle struck and injured a bicyclist around 4:43 p.m. at the intersection of Pond Street and High Street.

The extent of the victims injuries was not immediately available.

Investigators say the vehicle was traveling west on High Street and turning left on Pond Street when the driver struck a cyclist traveling in a group of three in the eastbound bike lane on High Street.

As the victim was being tended to, the vehicle fled the area traveling down Pond Street towards Route 1, according to authorities.

Witnesses describe the suspect vehicle as a newer model Mini Cooper (possibly Clubman model) that was a newer style grey or green color.

Police provided a picture of the suspects vehicle and said it likely will have damage on the passenger side.

Thanks to public assistance we have a photo of the actual vehicle involved in Tuesdays hit and run crash at High and Pond St. Please contact NPD with any possible info on owner. pic.twitter.com/dZStKyQbxG  Newburyport Police (@NewburyportPD) August 22, 2024

The vehicle is also said to have a New Hampshire registration.

Newburyport Police are asking for residents, motorists, and businesses in the area to check for any video (dash cam, home/business security) that may have picked up the vehicle before, during, or after the crash.

No further information was immediately available.

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Can a political party get any attention when its rival holds a national convention? Yes, but its not easy

Even for former U.S. President Donald Trump, a master at attention-getting, trying to counterprogram during the Democratic National Convention is nearly impossible.

When one partys members and supporters gather for their biggest party every four years, the other party routinely endures a week of being largely ignored, no matter how creative or dramatic its own counterprogramming efforts may be.

That doesnt mean that opposing party campaigns should go on vacation during convention week. They can and do make their case regarding the upcoming election while the other party honors its nominees.

But with all the reporters and public attention focused on the convention, these four-day gatherings are far from optimal times for the opposing party to be heard.

The typically one-sided media attention of convention weeks is part of the reason that political campaigns usually see a post-convention bounce of a few percentage points. But the impact of conventions on public opinion used to be much greater in the past, when there was less political polarization.

Convention bounce

In 1992, for instance, Democratic presidential candidate Bill Clinton was a single percentage point behind incumbent GOP President George H.W. Bush when the Democratic convention started. After the convention, Clinton was up by 29 points.

In 2000, GOP candidate George W. Bush saw an 8-point gain over Democratic rival Al Gore after the 2000 Republican convention.

But those bounces are often short-lived.

As I discuss in my book Presidential Communication and Character, even those huge bounces in 1992 and 2000 gave way to much closer elections.

More recently, the only candidate who enjoyed a post-convention polling gain of more than 4 points was 2008 Republican nominee John McCain. He went on to lose to the Democratic nominee, Barack Obama.

Few openings for political attacks

The best an opposing party can hope for during convention week is a convention misfire.

The trouble is, such debacles rarely happen in an era where the presidential selection process is usually absent any last-minute drama. Designed to minimize controversy, the conventions themselves have become ever more scripted.

That wasnt always the case.

The tumultuous Democratic convention of 1968 created lots of opportunities for Republicans to draw attention to the chaotic scene in Chicago  and, by extension, the chaos within the Democratic Party. But they didnt need to do so, because the nationally televised images of Chicago riot police using tear gas and billy clubs to subdue anti-Vietnam War demonstrators spoke for themselves.

Police attack demonstrators on Chicagos Michigan Avenue during the Democratic National Convention on Aug. 28, 1968. Bettman/Getty Images

Troubled vice-presidential selections, like Democrat Tom Eagleton in 1972 and Republican Sarah Palin in 2008, can also trigger sustained partisan responses as Democrats quickly launched after Trump selected JD Vance, an Ohio U.S. Senator, as his running mate.

Those partisan attacks usually intensify in the days and weeks after the convention, particularly if the running mate struggles to find their footing on the national stage.

Trumps playbook

In the days leading up to the Democratic convention, Republican officials emphasized Democratic divisions over Israels war in the Gaza Strip. GOP leaders also have tried to capitalize on potential discontent over how Vice President Kamala Harris became the partys nominee without having to go through a primary, a process that Trump has called a "coup.

Former President Donald Trump stands with Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance on the second day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on July 16, 2024. Joe Raedle/Getty Images

The Trump campaign has tried to paint Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, as a communist or pro-China and has falsely argued that images of enthusiastic Democratic crowds cheering on the ticket were generated by artificial intelligence.

Even though some Republicans encouraged Trump to spend less time talking about conspiracies and making character attacks against Harris, Trump is drawn to his own strategy. Instead of heeding their advice, Trump has continued his personal attacks against Harris, subsequently calling her father, a Stanford University economics professor, a Marxist.

So far, though, the 2024 Democratic Convention doesnt look at all like 1968. The comparatively small number of protesters inside and outside the convention hall has not given the Republican counterprogramming team much to exploit.

Not easy for Democrats, either

Earlier this summer, Democratic efforts at counterprogramming during the Republican convention also fell flat.

The limited media attention Democrats received during Trumps renomination week focused almost exclusively on the question of whether President Joe Biden would abandon his reelection bid  not the preferred topic of the partys counterprogrammers.

In addition, Bidens timing demonstrated the challenges of shaping the narrative during opposing party conventions.

By Biden making his announcement that he was leaving the race three days after the Republican convention ended on July 18, Harris campaign launch did not have to compete with Republican convention news.

Conventions last less than a week, and campaigns go on for months. Absent any major misfires, counterprogramming efforts this year  like so many convention years before them  wont be remembered for long.

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: Stephen J. Farnsworth, University of Mary Washington

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Stephen J. Farnsworth 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.
A high school science teacher holding a digital tablet and explaining a chemistry model to two of his students during class. (Getty Images.)

Scientific theory has had a rough time in Americas public schools.

Almost 100 years ago, science teacher John Scopes was convicted of violating a Tennessee law that prohibited teaching the theory of evolution. Although his conviction was overturned on a technicality in 1927, laws banning classes on Darwins theory stuck around for another 40 years. They were ruled unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1968.

Over the past few decades, conservative or religious groups that object to including the theory of evolution in science classes have tried a different approach. Now, they argue, if the scientific theory of evolution is taught, other views, such as intelligent design  a stand-in for creationism  should also be taught.

Broadening efforts

The approach is not limited to evolution. Legislatures across the country are proposing or passing laws that purport to encourage scientific discussion, but instead encourage students to treat established, scientific theories as equivalent to ideas that lack scientific study.

In 2012, legislators in Tennessee  the same state where the Scopes trial took place nearly a century ago  approved a law that obligated teachers to present the scientific strengths and scientific weaknesses of existing scientific theories. What constituted a scientific strength or weakness was not defined.

Similar bills were introduced in North Dakota in 2019 and Oklahoma in 2023. If the Oklahoma bill passes, teachers will be encouraged to explore scientific theories in class and to help students analyze certain scientific strengths and weaknesses.

And a new law in West Virginia allows teachers to discuss or answer questions from students about scientific theories. The bills author, state Sen. Amy Grady, said the law is about encouraging students to think, encouraging students to ask questions and encouraging our teachers to be able to answer them.

Court battles ahead

In my view, legislation dealing with the teaching of scientific theories is being used to influence what is taught in public schools. The law is likely to face a legal challenge. More than 20 years ago, in Kitzmiller v. Dover, a federal court ruled that intelligent design was not science; it lacked empirical evidence and testable hypotheses. Teaching it would violate the First Amendments prohibition against state support of religion.

As an educator  and as a scholar who studies the nature of science  I believe an understanding of scientific knowledge is critical; scientific theories are part of this knowledge.

Accepted scientific theories are the best explanations available so far for how the world works. They have been thoroughly tested and are supported by evidence, often pulled from different fields. For example, evidence supporting large-scale evolution comes from fossils, DNA analysis and comparing the anatomy of different organisms.

Updating theories

Scientific theories can be revised. They can change, or even be discarded, but they are durable. The history of science is full of stories about new evidence, reinterpretation of existing evidence and advances in technology spurring changes in the sciences. For instance, the discovery of the microscope in the 16th century literally changed how scientists saw the world.

Scientific theories have explanatory power about the natural world. The Earths gravity, for instance, can be explained through the theory of general relativity. Theories have predictive power, too. They can be used to generate research ideas. As summarized by astrophysicist and author Neil deGrasse Tyson: A well-constructed theory should explain some of what is not understood and, more importantly, predict previously unknown phenomena that can be tested. A successful theory is one where experiments consistently confirm its predictions.

Given these characteristics of scientific theories, the current crop of legislation governing how theories are introduced and taught in classrooms is concerning. Underpinning these laws is the assumption that accepted scientific theories are nothing more than conjecture.

Debating facts

For example, a 2023 bill from Montana prohibits science instruction on subject matter that is not scientific fact. The bill devalues scientific theories as hunches or unproved assumptions. It undermines their inclusion, as established ideas, in the K-12 curriculum. Atomic theory may be a theory, but it is fundamental to peoples understanding of matter and is a foundation of all the physical sciences.

Legislation that invites classroom exploration, debate or analysis of theories may mask other intentions. The sponsor of Senate Bill 140 in Oklahoma, for example, said he hoped the law would expose the theory aspect of evolution by allowing alternate views to be presented.

Laws like the one passed in West Virginia go a step further. They open the door to discussions about alternatives to scientific theories. This allows nonscientific notions to be introduced covertly. Writing for Scientific American, Amanda Townley, executive director of the National Center for Science Education, criticized the West Virginia law. She expressed concern and said such laws open the public classroom door to false beliefs such as the Earth being flat or that crystals can heal.

Toward scientific literacy

In contrast to legislators who would allow any kind of theory to be taught in science class, experts such as Fouad Abd-El-Khalick, a leading international science education researcher, advocate that students in K-12 be taught about the characteristics of scientific theories in developmentally appropriate ways. U.S. standards for teaching science, for instance, say that by the end of 12th grade, students should understand that a scientific theory is a substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world, based on a body of facts that has been repeatedly confirmed through observation and experiment.

Students should be encouraged to think critically and ask questions  like What is the evidence that supports this theory? or How was this theory tested?  with the caveat that any theories in question should have already attained the status of scientific theory before being admitted into the curriculum.

Education scholars say K-12 education must provide students a functional level of scientific literacy that enables them to understand and make decisions about issues related to science in everyday life, from vaccines to baking cakes.

Part of attaining this literacy is understanding and trusting knowledge produced by science, such as facts, laws  and scientific theories.

Ryan Summers, Associate Professor of Science Education, University of North Dakota

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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KASUNGU, Malawi, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Twenty-six people, including two children, died after a minibus they were travelling in collided with a fuel tanker in western Malawi Thursday morning, police said. 
Ukrainian servicemen of 148th separate artillery brigade of the Air Assault Forces prepare a M777 howitzer to fire towards Russian positions at the frontline in Donetsk region, Ukraine, Wednesday, August 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP)  Some new Ukrainian soldiers refuse to fire at the enemy. Others, according to commanders and fellow fighters, struggle to assemble weapons or to coordinate basic combat movements. A few have even walked away from their posts, abandoning the battlefield altogether.

While Ukraine presses on with its incursion into Russias Kursk region, its troops are still losing precious ground along the country's eastern front  a grim erosion that military commanders blame in part on poorly trained recruits drawn from a recent mobilization drive, as well as Russias clear superiority in ammunition and air power.

Some people dont want to shoot. They see the enemy in the firing position in trenches but dont open fire. ... That is why our men are dying, said a frustrated battalion commander in Ukraines 47th Brigade. When they dont use the weapon, they are ineffective.

The accounts come from commanders and soldiers who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity in order to speak freely about sensitive military matters. Others spoke on the condition that they be identified only by their call signs in keeping with Ukrainian military protocol.

Commanders say the recruits have contributed to a string of territorial losses that enabled Russias army to advance, including near the city of Pokrovsk, a critical logistics hub. If it falls, the defeat would imperil Ukraines defenses and bring Russia closer to its stated aim of capturing the Donetsk region. Russian soldiers are now just 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) away.

Adding to Ukraine's woes are Russia's huge advantage in manpower and its willingness to accept staggering losses in return for capturing small objectives.

The recently conscripted Ukrainians are a far cry from the battle-hardened fighters who flocked to join the war in the first year of the full-scale invasion. The new troops lack even a minimal level of training, commanders and soldiers from four brigades defending the Pokrovsk area said.

They described having to plan operations with infantry who are unable to shoot targets and uninformed about basic topography. Some recruits simply lacked faith in the battle plans of their superiors and walked away from prepared positions.

Frustrated with the quality of the new conscripts sent to the front line by territorial recruitment centers, commanders are now seeking to conduct their own mobilization drives to better screen and train new fighters, multiple commanders and soldiers said.

The main problem is the survival instinct of newcomers. Before, people could stand until the last moment to hold the position. Now, even when there is light shelling of firing positions, they are retreating, said a soldier with the 110th Brigade.

Not everyone is turning around and running away from battle, he added.

No, there are motivated people, but they are just very, very few, he said. The position is held as far as there are these people who are motivated and committed.

Following the implementation of a controversial mobilization law in May that established clearer regulations for territorial recruitment centers, Ukraine is reportedly drafting tens of thousands of fighters per month. Demand is highest in the infantry.

But there are logistical hurdles to train, equip and pay so many incoming people, and commanders constantly demand new soldiers. To ease that pressure, military leaders have had to take units from brigades in one region and transfer them to different areas to stabilize weak spots.

Some point the finger back at commanders who single out recent recruits for losses.

Viktor Kevliuk, a military expert with the Ukraine-based Center for Defense Strategies think tank, said the training offered to recruits is adequate. He said brigade commanders are looking for an explanation for tactical failures.

Likewise, the brigade commander has the appropriate tools to influence morale. If all these processes are established in the brigade, there will be no significant problems. If these mechanisms fail, we read about the negativity in social networks, he added.

And in intense fights such as the one in Pokrovsk, "it is the timely tactical decisions of commanders that make the difference, Kevliuk said.

In some instances, terrified new recruits have fled from the fight.

This fear creates panic and chaos, said the battalion commander in the 47th Brigade. This is also the reason we have lost.

The loss of the village of Prohres last month in the Pokrovsk region is the most recent example of territorial loss blamed on new recruits, commanders said. Units from the 31st Brigade left in a poorly coordinated frenzy, prompting the 47th Brigade to enter the battle and attempt to stabilize the line. A similar scenario unfolded in the village of Ocheretyne in May.

Not enough is done to train newcomers, the battalion commander said. They dont receive even the lowest standard of training required for our (combat) actions, he said.

The new men do not have enough practice assembling and shooting their rifles, he said. They also have not learned how to coordinate combat tasks in small groups or to use even simple tactics, he added.

From the command point, I would like to issue orders to small (infantry) groups, but I am not sure if they are capable of executing these orders because they lack coordination and communication, he said, adding, Sometimes, I want to shoot myself.

Ukraines sudden foray into Russia initially stirred hopes that the Kremlin might be forced to divide its military resources to respond. But so far, Russian forces have not wavered in their push toward Pokrovsk and other potential conquests.

Meanwhile, Ukraines lightning advance into Russian territory has slowed after two weeks, making only small gains, a possible sign that Moscow is counter-attacking more effectively.

Commanders in the east report that battles have only intensified since the incursion. Local authorities on Monday ordered Pokrovsks nearly 53,000 residents to evacuate within two weeks. In the neighboring town of Myrnohrad, even closer to Russian positions, residents were given only days.

The capture of Pokrovsk would undermine Ukrainian supply routes to the Donetsk region and ease Russias advance to the eastern cities of Sloviansk and Kostiantynivka. It would also mark Russias first major strategic win after months of painfully fought marginal gains.

In the last three months, the majority of Ukrainian territorial losses were recorded in the Pokrovsk area, according to three open-source monitoring groups, with fighting intensifying in the vicinity of the towns of Toretsk and Chasiv Yar. Russian forces dialed up the attacks in an attempt to capitalize on troop fatigue and shortages.

The offensive has also come at a huge cost to Moscow, with an estimated 70,000 troops lost in two months, according to the U.K. Defense Ministry, which posted the projection last month on X. Heavy losses have continued as Russian forces gradually approach Pokrovsk from the east and southeast.

Another challenge for Ukraine is a new tactic in which Russia deploys recurrent waves of smaller infantry units of two to four men. That has flummoxed Ukrainian drone operators, who find it difficult to target them, according to a drone operator with the 25th Brigade who uses the call sign Groot.

This is one of the main reasons for (Russias) success in Pokrovsk, he said. Its harder to detect them," especially under the cover of leafy trees.

As soon as the infantry get under the tree lines, its really hard to get them out of there with drones, and thats why we depend a lot on our infantry.

___

Associated Press journalist Volodymyr Yurchuk contributed to this report.
CHICAGO - There's a good chance you'd recognize Nadine Seiler.

Seiler, 59, has developed a knack for being at the right place at the right time to get photographed by the media as she protests former President Donald Trump and conservative policies like the Project 2025 plan to remake the federal government.

Multiple news photographers have captured Seiler's protests across the country since at least 2019, from Chicago to Milwaukee to Miami to outside the Virginia home of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.

This isn't how she'd planned to spend her retirement savings after arriving in the United States from the Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago nearly 40 years ago. But with her bright makeup and eye-catching signs, protest has become her calling. In Chicago, she's sleeping in a friend's van so she can keep costs down.

"I am crazy," Seiler said with a laugh. "Nobody who is totally sane would do this."

Nadine Seiler of Waldorf, Maryland, is pictured in this Aug. 20, 2024, photograph taken at a pro-Palestinian protest outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

On Sunday she waved a banner as protesters marched down Michigan Avenue, and then popped back up Tuesday in a "Stop Project 2025" headband at a pro-Palestinian march. She's also been interviewed by national media outlets for her work preserving Black Lives Matter displays.

In addition to opposing Trump, she's also recently protested the Gaza war and abortion restrictions. She takes pains to explain she's not some young radical or a dark-money-funded operative, just an older woman who wants to share her perspective.

Seiler arrived in the U.S. on a tourist visa as a young woman and overstayed. She cleared up her residency via a marriage that later ended. For years, she worked in people's houses, mostly cleaning and organizing. It gave her a lot of scheduling flexibility, and now she's largely put work on hold so she can travel the country protesting.

Nadine Seiler of Waldorf, Maryland, protests outside the Trump International Hotel and Tower, on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2024, during the Democratic National Convention.

Seiler said she's frustrated and disappointed that Trump supporters are so willing to back and encourage his autocratic tendencies. She said she hopes her protests reach through the media attention to sway those voters, one by one.

"America goes around the world telling people to be democracies but you can't be doing that and at the same time be an authoritarian country yourself," she said as pro-Palestinian protesters marched and chanted nearby.

Yanna Krupnikov, a professor of communication and media at the University of Michigan, said Seiler falls into a group of people who feel personally obligated to share their perspective. Unlike most of us who are content to talk to friends and family, or maybe volunteer with a political campaign, a certain subset of the population is internally driven to protest.

"You have this feeling of you have to tell others, you have to warn others," Krupnikov said. "For people who are deeply involved, political expression feels really immediate, feels like something important they can do. Politics is so abstract and disconnected, so huge, that sometimes it feels like the only thing we can do is express ourselves and hope others hear it."

Seiler said that's exactly how she feels. Along the way, she's made friends with fellow protesters, including Guy Young, 70, whom she met protesting the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. When Young heard Seiler was planning to protest the DNC, he immediately offered her his van as a bedroom, parked on the street outside his house.

During the Democratic convention, Seiler protested during the day and then returned with Young to his neighborhood. In the morning, he brought her a pancake-wrapped sausage-on-a-stick.

"She's getting better room service than the Hilton," Young said with a laugh.

Seiler said traveling on a shoestring helps stretch her savings, which she's using to fund her protests. She said she heard that a FOX News commentator had wondered aloud how she could afford to keep popping up, and suggested maybe that Seiler was being paid with liberal dark money.

Seiler laughs at the idea.

"I'm so concerned that we are on the precipice of an autocratic society that I have decided to sacrifice my finances to bring this message out here," she said. "People keep saying I'm being paid with dark money. Well, I need to get them to pay me more!"

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why one woman quit work to travel and protest Trump full-time
Port Canaveral leaders are scrapping plans for a new cruise terminal at an existing cargo berth.

The plan would have jeopardized state funding for the port.

The Secretaries for Florida DOT and Florida Commerce outlined their concerns to the port in a letter addressed to commissioners.

The letter reiterated the ports dual purpose as a traditional cruise and cargo operation, and commercial spaceport.

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It also stated that if port commissioners didnt abandon plans for a new cruise terminal at the North 8 Berth, FDOT would review all current investments in Port Canaveral.

Additionally, Florida Commerce wouldnt support funding for Port Canaveral projects.

And neither agency would certify Port Canaverals three most recent applications to the Florida Seaport Tourism Economic Development Council for projects related to the cruise industry, which generates the vast majority of the ports revenue.

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The North 8 Berth is used for both cargo and space recovery operations.

The Florida Department of Transportation invested over $13 million in improvements to support operations there.

When you have an asset this valuable as the port is, and the importance extends beyond regional to really encompass state and federal concerns and, you know, desires and wishes, said Port Commissioner Fritz VanVolkburg. 

The funding isnt the issue, really. Its the relationships. The Florida Department of Transportation is a key partner of ours, and it was something that was upsetting them. CEO Captain John Murray said, It was important to us and the Department of Commerce that we figure out what it is, resolve it, and move forward. Murray also told us, the port is now exploring every available option.

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Zabawa is right around the corner, and polka music and the smell of Polish cuisine are already filling the air at Holy Trinity Church on East 23rd Street.

It draws people from near and far every year.

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There are so many Polish people that have moved into different parishes, but a lot of people have their roots around here, said Ray Luniewski, co-chairman of Zabawa.

For people returning to the neighborhood, that is exactly what people are counting on.

Polish chefs have been busy at work for months making authentic food from scratch.

And it does not get much better than this. Potato pancakes were being made by the thousands along with pierogi and other cuisine.

We actually started the first week in April. Theres nine weeks that it takes to make all of the pierogies that are there, and theres 15,000. There are thousands of cookies, that was another four weeks to do that, said Luniewski.

On Wednesday, volunteers were on potato pancake duty. By the end, theyll have about 50 five-gallon buckets filled to the brim with a batter thats ready to be cooked this weekend.

We started with 1,000 pounds of potatoes, 300 pounds of onions, flour, the mix, eggs 75 or 80 dozen eggs the weight of it in total is probably about 2,000 pounds of ingredients, said Keith Zambrzycki, co-chair of the potato pancake booth.

Zambrzycki has been a part of every Zabawa since they began.

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He said its always a pleasure to share his culture with new people, and returning friends and family who come home.

They know the food. Their grandmothers made it, mothers made it, and they get a little bit of that taste here because everythings homemade, said Zambrzycki. Its just one big get-together and everybody that grew up on the east side of town that likes Polish food will probably be here Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

The festival kicks off Friday at 5:00 p.m. with the raising of the Polish flag. Then, the fun begins.

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SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI)  The president of an education center in the Rolando Park neighborhood was sentenced to 27 months in prison Wednesday for his involvement in a multi-million dollar childcare benefits fraud scheme.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Attorneys Office said Mohamed Muriidi Mohamed, 47, of Spring Valley was one of four people who caused two agencies to pay out millions of dollars in childcare program funds by falsely claiming parents were working at or attending school at the UMI Learning Center although they were not.

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The two agencies  Child Development Associates (CDA) and the Young Mens Christian Association (YMCA)  administer funds as part of a childcare benefits program under the Department of Health and Human Services. To distribute money, CDA and YMCA both require verification forms to be completed by the parent and their employer and/or school.

Federal prosecutors stated that Muriidi issued paychecks to make it seem as if the parents were working at the school but told them not to cash them out.

As part of the scheme, childcare providers submitted daily attendance forms that claimed they cared for children while their parents were supposedly working or learning at the school, according to prosecutors.

Parents scrambling after SAT at MiraCosta College gets abruptly canceled

In exchange for the forms, parents had to pay $200 to UMI Learning Center each month, and the providers were expected to split the money they received from childcare benefit program funds with the parents, prosecutors added.

This resulted in CDA and YMCA paying out $3.7 million dollars in funds to approximately 150 households, according to the attorneys office.

Muriidi and three co-defendants were charged with wire fraud and theft conspiracy.

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In addition to spending 27 months in prison, Muriidi was ordered to pay $3.7 million in restitution to CDA.

His co-defendants include his wife, Amina Abdirazak Omar, her sister, Osob Abdirazak Omar, and their brother, Omar Omar. They have also pleaded guilty to the same charge.

Osob was sentenced on July 26 to 12 months and one day in custody and ordered to pay $298,910 in restitution. Omar was sentenced on Aug. 2 to 90 days in custody and ordered to pay $101,153 in restitution. Amina is scheduled for sentencing on Oct. 4.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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(Bloomberg) -- To hear people in the private equity industry talk publicly, theres not a lot concern about any changes the UKs new Labour government might make to a tax break theyve enjoyed for the better part of four decades. Behind the scenes, though, the lobbying is intense.

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The industry has just a few weeks to persuade Labour, which took over with last months election, that carried interest  fund managers portion of profits on asset sales  should continue to be taxed as capital gains rather than as income. If the UK government makes a switch, its likely to be big, boosting the tax rate for carry to 45%, the top rate for income, from 28%.

The challenge for private equity  which traditionally tried to avoid the limelight  is to make the case that the special perk should continue. Against a backdrop of tough economic times for the country and a rocky history for the industry, arguing for private equitys contribution to society isnt easy, especially now that the UKs main left-leaning political party is in control.

Labour has set a short consultation, with submissions due by Aug. 30. Some in the industry are writing their own, but most say they are going through their trade group, the British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association, which is planning to emphasize jobs and the industrys positive role in the economy.

The private-capital industry makes a huge contribution to UK economic growth, supporting 2.2 million jobs and investing over 20 billion in UK businesses in 2023, Michael Moore, the BVCAs chief executive, said in an email.

Private equity is hardly the only sector of the finance industry seeking to influence Labour. Banks, asset managers and insurers have been talking to the party about ways to boost growth and a possible wide-scale overhaul of the pensions industry.

I dont say this lightly: in 30 years of campaigning, Ive never seen financial lobbying having so much influence on government policy, said Mick McAteer, co-director of the Financial Inclusion Centre, which advocates for under-served consumers, and a former board member of the Financial Conduct Authority.

Some in the private equity industry say they are focused on engaging with members of the new government about investment opportunities in the UK, and havent raised the topic of carried interest. But the mood privately is quite different.

There is talk of anger at Labours plans, meetings in Mayfair restaurants to come up with strategies including threats to leave the UK and discussions with lawyers to look at legal arguments. At the same time, industry leaders want to avoid triggering extreme measures such as an exit tax on wealthy people leaving the country, several people involved in the talks said.

Some are seeking help from advisers, especially those with strong ties to the Labour party. Several firms have hired Global Counsel, set up by former Labour minister Peter Mandelson, who remains a key figure in the partys circles.

And there are encouraging signs that Labour has moderated its position, according to people with knowledge of the partys thinking. And Labour, through its call for evidence, has indicated that its open to discussion on the matter.

New UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves attended a private dinner with Blackstone Inc. Chief Executive Officer Stephen Schwarzman during a trip to New York to see Wall Street bigwigs this month. Spencer Livermore, former chief strategist to Gordon Brown when he was prime minister and appointed growth minister for the Treasury by the new Labour government, has been meeting industry figures.

Reeves herself has shifted her position. After attacking private equity for asset stripping back in 2021, shes now signaled that the new rules will distinguish between returns on individuals money put at risk and rewards with no personal risk. Policy changes will be fair, transparent and justified, the Treasury has said.

But as the Budget approaches, at the end of October, some in the industry continue to worry. Reeves has identified a 22 billion ($28 billion) black hole in the public finances, raising expectations for a range of tax hikes targeting the wealthy.

In addition to concerns about the degree of any changes, there are mounting fears that they could come immediately  and not when the next tax year starts in April. A quicker change would be sensible, according to Dan Neidle, founder of the Tax Policy Associates think tank.

If it takes affect in April, there will be some exits beforehand, motivated by wanting to get the old carry regime, Neidle said.

There are already signs of people speeding up sales that are already in process, according to one adviser to the sector, but private equity executives said they wouldnt rush into unplanned transactions.

Since 1987, British private equity has had special arrangements for carry to be treated as a capital gain, on the basis it is an investment, not a bonus, giving it a lower tax rate.

For individuals, there is a lot on the line  255 top dealmakers earned 2.7 billion in carried interest in the 2020-to-21 tax year, the law firm Macfarlanes LLP said in a report last year. Labour believes it could raise 565 million in additional tax revenue annually by treating more carry as income, according to its manifesto.

Some in the industry are frustrated that the BVCA  its trade group  hasnt managed to kill Labours carry plans, according to people familiar with the matter. Thats especially so given that the party is also wooing firms for investment and wants to unveil attention-grabbing announcements with the private sector at its investment summit on Oct. 14, two weeks before the Budget, the people said.

Tensions High

Others say that Moore, the BVCAs chief executive, has done a good job of emphasizing the need for private equity to win public support and moving the debate away from historic associations with failing care homes and overly indebted high-street businesses.

Tensions are running particularly high as firms also await details of Labours workers-rights plans, which will have a big impact on the consumer-facing businesses several of them own  with implications for their own returns, the people said.

To gain closer ties to Reeves and Keir Starmer, the new prime minister, several private equity firms hired Global Counsel earlier this year, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The firms include CVC Capital Partners, Advent International and Apax Partners, with some planning to use Global Counsel to help with their carry comment submissions, the people said.

Representatives for CVC, Advent, Apax and Global Counsel declined to comment.

Of the more than a dozen private equity executives interviewed by Bloomberg News  all of whom asked not to be identified discussing such a politically sensitive issue  most said they were resigned to carried-interest perks being trimmed, and some said they knew the current benefits were unjustifiable.

In the industry, theres also something of a generational divide. While some veterans whove made large sums during their careers were less concerned about paying more, younger executives expressed frustration at possibly missing out on the largesse.

According to Moore of the BVCA, it is encouraging that the Treasury has said the government will protect the UK as a world-leading asset-management hub.

Many private equity executives are foreigners, so Labours plans to cut perks for wealthy residents from overseas  so-called non-doms  could also impact the industry. Overall, the UK is expected to lose 9,500 millionaires in 2024, more than double the 4,200 who left last year, according to global migration advisory firm Henley & Partners.

Yet for all the talk of private equity executives fleeing the UK, the threats seem largely empty. Senior executives from the UKs biggest private equity firms have expressed plans to stay put even if tax laws change  as have most of their team members, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

For Reeves, whos searching for sources of revenue while wanting the UK to remain a center for capital and wealth, its a question of how far to go.

UK Competitiveness

Reeves needs to be mindful about overall competitiveness or the long-term impact of tax changes could be like Brexit, with people currently here not leaving but deterring new investors from coming to the UK, said Haakon Overli, general partner at venture capital firm Dawn Capital. He also believes Reeves should distinguish between early-stage investors like his company and those focused on leveraged buyouts of mature businesses.

The government is keen on AI and technology, Overli said. It wont be a big private equity fund that creates the next Google. It will be Dawn or Sequoia.

If Labour does distinguish between different types of carried interest, it could lead to wider reforms that might make the industry more accountable.

One reason why people are paid so much is because everything is so opaque, said Peter Morris, an associate scholar at University of Oxfords Said Business School and a former financier. That could be dealt with by forcing more public disclosure of which companies firms have invested in, what their returns are and how their fees are calculated, he said.

According to David Pitt-Watson, a pioneer in responsible investment as co-founder of Hermes Focus Asset Management and now visiting fellow at the Cambridge Judge Business School, private equity plays an important role in funneling investment into promising projects.

But if individuals get outsize pay packages, it should be because they are doing their job really well, he said, not because of some trick of the trade.

--With assistance from Swetha Gopinath and Ben Stupples.

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Boises City Council has at last given its blessing to the Catholic Dioceses plans for a new office building near the North End.

The unanimous decision came Tuesday after months of contentious public hearings, conflict between Boises Catholic Diocese and the local neighborhood association, revised building plans, and threats of a lawsuit against the city.

The diocese had submitted an updated project proposal for a shorter building  about 45 feet tall instead of its previously proposed height of about 62 feet at its tallest point  that includes 1,000 square feet of commercial space on its ground floor. Plans for that commercial space are still in the works, but the diocese is considering a child care center, a Christian bookstore or a coffee shop, said attorney Deborah Nelson, the dioceses representative.

At a Tuesday hearing, Boises Catholic Diocese presented an updated rendering of its proposed administrative building at 902 N. 8th St. The diocese agreed to lower the buildings height as a compromise with the North End Neighborhood Association.

The original architectural rendering of the proposed diocese office building at 902 N. 8th Street.

The City Councils decision resurrected a project that could have died after a public hearing in April, Council Member Luci Willits said Tuesday.

At the April meeting, council members denied one of the churchs key requests: to modify an existing development agreement at the same site that would allow the church to use the building just for office space, rather than a combination of office, commercial and residential space. Without those other uses, they said the changes to the original agreement would be too significant to align with its original intent.

That decision came as a complete surprise to the church, as it was a departure from previous concerns the church had fielded over the project, Christian Welp, the churchs director of special projects, told the Idaho Statesman at that meeting.

In April, Mayor Lauren McLean expressed her disappointment that a key spot in the neighborhood would likely remain an empty lot.

On Tuesday, Boises City Council approved plans to build new offices at the corner of West Fort and North 8th streets, near the Cathedral of Saint John and Saint Joseph Catholic School in Boises North End.

At that meeting, Willits pushed back on other council members requests for housing and retail in the space.

The reality is, the Catholic Diocese (is) not going to put retail in the bottom of their facility, Willits said. Theyre not going to put an ice cream shop. Thats not what its for.

Diocese, neighborhood group compromise on buildings height

The North End Neighborhood Association, which had opposed several aspects of the projects proposed appearance, also expressed its concern in April about the councils approval of a separate request from the church: a conditional-use permit to increase the buildings height beyond what zoning allows.

Before Tuesdays meeting for the church to appeal the councils denial, the diocese worked to secure the neighborhood associations buy-in by lowering the buildings proposed height, even though it wasnt a requirement to win the City Councils approval.

Its a real show, a true show, of goodwill when you compromise when its not required, Willits said.

Though some council members expressed regret that there would be no housing in the space, they said they were pleased that the proposal incorporated commercial space on its ground floor  and that the church and neighborhood had mended fences.

This modified proposal is an improvement to what was originally brought before us, but I think the biggest improvement is the relationship between the diocese and the neighborhood association, added Council Member Jordan Morales.

The neighborhood association expressed its gratitude to the diocese for its willingness to meet and compromise.

The board deeply appreciates the diocese representatives and the architects for their flexibility and willingness to finally consider and address our concerns, Erik Hagen, the associations president, told the Statesman in an email. Their decision to make these changes, even though not required at this point, was a significant factor in our decision to support them.

Diocese threatened lawsuit for government burden on religion

In early August, the diocese published a news release sharing its efforts to adjust its proposal to incorporate neighbors and council members concerns about the buildings height and use. But it also shared that it had come to view the councils demand for the building to include housing as a government burden on its exercise of religion.

The church accused the city of violating federal and state laws. It implicitly threatened a lawsuit if the city did not approve the churchs appeal, and modified application, at the upcoming hearing. The diocese separately sent a letter to McLean and the City Council outlining the legal limits to the citys authority to deny the dioceses application, the statement said.

City regulations that require the diocese to include housing substantially burden the dioceses religious exercise according to state and federal law, the statement reads. Put simply, the offices for the administration of the Catholic Church in Idaho should not have to include apartments or condos for the city at large. Requiring the diocesan offices to build city housing and be a landlord violates these federal and state statutes.

In the statement, the diocese avoided outright confrontation with the city, writing that it remains committed to compromises to try to find common ground for approval.

And on Tuesday, Nelson sought to smooth things over and reassure council members that they and the diocese were on the same side.

I hope you can appreciate how the diocese is not insensitive to city desires and your plans for the city, she said. They have their own plans, and they really do envision a partnership with the city going forward with those plans (that) align in so many ways.

Catholic Diocese threatens Boise with lawsuit over denial of church office building

A debate over the fate of Catholic Church offices  and an accusation of religious bias

Catholic Churchs proposed building draws criticism in Boises gateway to the North End
ST. LOUIS  Nearly a year after a woman was indicted for alleged misuse of $11 million in funds to feed children in low-income areas during the pandemic, an assistant U.S. attorney has filed a motion to annul her bond, which officials say she has broken.

Connie Bobo, of St. Charles, serves as the executive director of the New Heights Community Resource Center, a nonprofit designed to provide meals to low-income, school-age children after school and during the summer.

During COVID-19, Bobo has claimed she delivered over 3 million meals to kids, which was paid for with the $11 million the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services gave her.

However, an indictment in October 2023 accuses Bobo of never purchasing or supplying these meals. Rather, the money was allegedly used elsewhere in Bobos life, including a $1 million home, a $2.2 million real estate investment, property for her relatives, gifting $1.4 million to her partner, and around $4.3 million on personal expenses.

Pevely third grader paralyzed in crash, school offering support

A federal grand jury indicted Bobo on three felony counts of wire fraud, three counts of aggravated identity theft and two counts of obstruction of an official proceeding amid the investigation.

Bobo was released on bond and she was ordered to give up her access to personal and financial information at the Infinite Wisdom Early Childhood Center, which is the daycare she owns in St. Charles, as well as make it known to parents and employees of the charges against her. However, officials believe she has not taken these steps back from the program.

Our partners with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch have reported that Assistant U.S. Attorney Derek Wiseman submitted a motion last week in an attempt to reverse her bond as a result of their suspicions. They also reported that within the motion, prosecutors noted that Bobo admitted to being the current leaseholder and handling the financials.

Bobo has pleaded not guilty.

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A Chinese envoy on Wednesday urged some countries to "immediately" lift all unilateral sanctions. #XinhuaNews
The Paris Prosecutors Office has requested that actor Gerard Depardieu stand trial in relation to rape allegations against him made by actress Charlotte Arnould, the French media reported on Thursday.

Arnould brought the charges in 2020, alleging Depardieu twice raped and assaulted her at his Paris home in August 2018. Depardieu, who denies the allegations, lost his appeal for the court to drop the case.

More from The Hollywood Reporter

Speaking to French channel BFMTV, Arnoulds lawyer Carine Durrieu-Diebolt called the request a huge step forward towards a trial, noting that Arnould is now impatiently awaiting the end of the investigation.

Arnould alleges that Depardieu, a friend of her fathers, raped her on two separate occasions in the summer of 2018, when she had visited his Parisian home to ask for advice. Arnould was 22 years old at the time, while Depardieu was 69. After various legal wrangling, including the actors failed attempt to get the case dismissed, a Parisian investigating judge indicted Depardieu for rape and sexual assault, releasing him without judicial supervision. A judge has yet to decide on the fresh trial request.

In April, the prosecutors office confirmed that the Green Card and Cyrano de Bergerac actor will stand trial in another sexual assault case, brought by two women who claim he assaulted them on set of French film The Green Shutters in 2021. That trial is expected to begin in October.

Depardieu denies all wrongdoing in these and the many other sexual assault accusations brought against him in recent years. In an open letter published in the conservative Le Figaro newspaper last fall, he suggested his acts had been misinterpreted.

Best of The Hollywood Reporter
Nadine Menendez leaves the Southern District of New York courthouse Oct. 2 after attorneys held a trial conference. (Sophie Nieto-Munoz for New Jersey Monitor)

Federal prosecutors have asked a judge to schedule a hearing in Nadine Menendezs bribery case, hinting theyd welcome a plea deal.

In a letter to Judge Sidney H. Stein made public on Thursday, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said a trial for Nadine Menendez would be similarly long, or only modestly shorter, as the 10-week trial her husband and co-defendant, former Sen. Bob Menendez, endured earlier this year. Her trial had been indefinitely postponed to accommodate her medical treatment for breast cancer.

In the heavily redacted letter, Williams asked Stein to set a scheduling hearing on Dec. 9 and exclude the delay under a federal law that guarantees criminal defendants the right to a speedy trial. That date would give defense attorneys a chance to review the voluminous discovery in this complex case and to engage in discussions with the Government concerning a possible disposition of this matter, Williams wrote.

Stein agreed to the request, and directed both sides to clear their trial calendars for January and February to accommodate a trial. He also directed defense attorneys to file an update from Nadine Menendezs doctors by Nov. 22.

If the case does go to trial, prosecutors could introduce evidence of her consciousness of guilt, Williams warned. He did not specify what that evidence is, but noted it wasnt introduced in Bob Menendezs trial.

Nadine Menendez is charged with 15 federal crimes in a six-year corruption scheme that earned her husband and three business associates felony convictions last month.

Prosecutors have said she began injecting herself into her husbands political doings just weeks after they began dating in 2018, becoming the go-between linking Bob Menendez to the men who gave them cash, gold bars, a luxury car, and other valuables for political favors. Bob Menendezs defense team blamed his wife for his troubles, saying she took money and made deals without his knowledge.

On Tuesday, the day before he resigned from the Senate, Menendez and his co-defendants Wael Hana and Fred Daibes asked Stein to reverse their convictions.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a meeting on the situation in the Kursk border region, where Ukrainian troops launched a counteroffensive about two weeks ago. -/Kremlin/dpa

Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Ukraine on Thursday of attempting an attack on the Kursk nuclear power plant, without providing evidence.

Putin made the comments during a meeting in Moscow on the situation in the Kursk border region, where Ukrainian troops launched a counteroffensive about two weeks ago.

"The enemy attempted to carry out strikes at the

nuclear power plant today," Putin said, according to the state news agency TASS. Putin added that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) had been informed and was preparing a mission to Kursk.

The nuclear power plant in the town of Kurchatov is around 30 kilometres away from the furthest Ukrainian advance.

It is currently unclear whether the facility is a specific target of the Ukrainian operations. Nonetheless, security measures at the plant have been significantly heightened.

A spokesman for Rafael Grossi, the IAEA director general, has confirmed a planned visit to the Kursk nuclear power plant next week.

Gossi was cited in the Financial Times newspaper as saying that the nuclear power plant is within range of Ukrainian artillery positions which is of "special concern."

After the Ukrainian advance began, the IAEA warned that the safety of nuclear power plants must not be jeopardized. The same applies to Kursk as to the Russian-occupied Ukrainian nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia, it said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a meeting on the situation in the Kursk border region, where Ukrainian troops launched a counteroffensive about two weeks ago. -/Kremlin/dpa
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese Premier Li Qiang shake hands during their meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow - Alexey Filippov

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinas premier Li Qiang have celebrated their deepening political and economic ties in the face of growing friction with the West over the grinding war in Ukraine.

Trade relations were developing successfully and yielding results, Mr Putin told Mr Li, who visited the Kremlin on Wednesday as part of a four-day trip by a senior Chinese delegation to Russia and Belarus.

Mr Li, in turn, praised the efforts by the Russian leader and Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, to inject strong momentum into bilateral relations which he said had reached an unprecedentedly high level.

The longstanding annual visit of the Chinese premier, who holds the second highest position in the Communist Party hierarchy, comes at a time when Moscow is increasingly dependent on economic cooperation with China to continue its war in Ukraine.

On Wednesday night, Moscow fought off one of the largest ever drone attacks on the capital while Russian troops entered their third week of a struggle to push back a surprise Ukrainian incursion into the Kursk region.

China has attempted to position itself as neutral in the Ukraine conflict and denies supporting Russias war effort but it has faced criticism for helping Moscow avoid the impact of heavy western sanctions by buying up Russian oil.

NATO in July accused China of becoming a decisive enabler of Russias war by providing equipment, microelectronics and tools to allow the Kremlin to build the weapons it needed to prolong the conflict.

Beijing vehemently rejected the accusations, but its intensifying political ties with Moscow reflect joint animosity towards the West and what both states view as US domination of global affairs.

In his own meeting with Mr Li, Mikhail Mishustin, the Russian prime minister condemned Western attempts to contain their two nations through illegitimate sanctions and unfair competition methods that curbed their economic and technological potential.

Our partnership and strategic cooperation is especially important in a situation where new contours of the global order are being formed, Mr Mishustin said.

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Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting on situation in Belgorod, Kursk and Bryansk following Ukraine's invasion - AFP

Vladimir Putin has claimed Ukraine tried to attack a nuclear power plant in Russias Kursk region overnight.

The Russian president made the claim in a meeting with senior officials on Thursday in which Moscows response to Ukraines invasion of Russias border region was discussed.

The enemy tried to strike the nuclear power plant at night, the International Atomic Energy Agency has been informed, Putin said on Thursday.

Kursks governor Alexei Smirnov said that 133,190 people had left the border region, while Bryansks governor Alexander Bogomaz told Putin that an attempt by Ukraine to pierce its border had been repelled overnight.

Kyivs incursion into Kursk, which was launched more than two weeks ago, saw thousands of Ukrainian troops pierce Russias western border, catching Moscow by surprise.

Ukraine did not immediately respond to Putins claim.

03:31 PM BST

Thanks for following todays live blog

Thank you for following todays live coverage of the war in Ukraine.

Well be back soon with more updates and analysis from the conflict.

03:24 PM BST

Military officers blame new recruits for losses in eastern Ukraine

Ukrainian military officers have reportedly blamed new recruits for the losses Kyivs forces have experienced in Donetsk.

Some new recruits have refused to fire at the enemy and struggled to carry out basic combat movements, the Associated Press reported on Thursday.

Several new recruits have walked away from their posts altogether, the officers claimed.

Ukrainian civilians flee areas close to the front line as Russian troops steadily seize more territory across the eastern Donetsk region - AFP

03:04 PM BST

Ukraines drones hammer Moscow, bringing a harsh message to Russian oligarchs

It wont have escaped even the most casual observer that Russian tyrant Vladamir Putin is having a disastrous summer, writes Robert Clark.

The highly successful Ukrainian incursion into the Russian territory of Kursk has cast doubt on his ability to maintain the control which is essential to his grip on power.

Now that Ukrainian forces hold more than 1,250 square kilometres of Russian territory  a psychologically damaging situation which has not occurred since the Second World War  Putins worries will only have been magnified by successful drone strikes overnight and this morning on Moscow itself.

Read more here.

Ukraine hits Moscow in 'one of the largest ever' drone attacks

02:45 PM BST

Ukraine destroys Russian pontoon bridges with Himars

Ukraines special forces have released video footage which they claim shows pontoon bridges being destroyed with US-made missiles in Kursk.

The footage shows Himars hitting the pontoon bridge, which Kyiv said was destroyed along with crucial Russian equipment.

While Washington has not commented on the strike, Kyiv acknowledged for the first time on Wednesday that US-made weapons had been used in its Kursk incursion.

Where are the Russian pontoons disappearing [to] in the Kursk Region? Special Operations Forces operators, together with units of the Defense Forces of Ukraine, are effectively destroying them, Ukraines Special Operations Forces said.

Russia scrambled to build the pontoons after Ukraine destroyed three crucial bridges along the River Seym last weekend near the settlements of Glushkovo, Zvan, and Karyzh.

Click here to view this content.

02:11 PM BST

Ukraine continuing to inflict losses in Kursk, says Kyiv

Ukraines forces are continuing to inflict tangible losses in Russias Kursk region, the countrys staff of armed forces said on Thursday.

Defence forces of Ukraine continue operations in the Kursk direction, they said.

Our soldiers are actively inflicting tangible losses in live force and equipment to the occupation forces.

Smoke rises from explosions during a Ukrainian strike on Glushkovo, Kursk - REUTERS

01:33 PM BST

Pictured: Lyut 2.0 unmanned ground vehicle

According to Ukrainian forces, the unmanned Lyut 2.0 provides fire support to infantry and conducting reconnaissance in high-risk areas.

It is equipped with a machine gun, has an operational range of up to 20 kilometres, and can operate alone for three days.

A Lyut 2.0 ground drone combat platform in service with Ukraine's 12th Azov Brigade - Cover Images

12:42 PM BST

Putin holds meeting to discuss Kursk invasion

Vladimir Putin has held a meeting with senior officials about Ukraines ongoing invasion of Russias Kursk region, which was launched on Aug 6.

I have gathered you in order to discuss the situation that is developing at the moment in the border regions of Russia, the Russian president said at the opening of the meeting on Thursday.

Denis Manturov, the first deputy prime minister, said that Russia was continuing to assess the damage to agriculture and industry in the border regions.

Alexei Smirnov, Kursks acting governor, added that 133,190 people had left or been evacuated from his region.

Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, listens during a face-to-face meeting with Ramzan Kadyrov, the Chechen leader - Shutterstock

12:20 PM BST

No signs of Belarusian troops near border, says Ukraine

Ukraine has seen no increase in military activity around its border with Belarus since Minsk announced it was sending additional forces to the area, Kyiv said on Thursday.

We do not see any movement directly near our border - neither equipment nor personnel, Andriy Demchenko from Ukraines border guard service told national TV.

Vladimir Putin and his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko - Reuters

11:59 AM BST

Moscow claims another village in Donetsk

Russian forces captured another village in Ukraines eastern Donetsk region, Moscow claimed on Thursday.

The defence ministry said its forces had captured the village of Mezhove, located between Avdiivka, captured in February, and the logistics hub of Pokrovsk.

Russian troops have been advancing towards Pokrovsk for several months as it aims to capture the entire Donetsk region.

11:35 AM BST

Nothing can be resolved on the battlefield, says Modi

Narendra Modi has said nothing can be resolved on the battlefield ahead of his visit to Ukraine on Friday.

The Indian prime minister arrived in Warsaw, Poland, on Wednesday as part of his three-day trip to eastern Europe.

India has been a close ally of Russia but also has ties to the West and hopes to play a part in bringing the conflict in Ukraine to an end.

Donald Tusk, the Polish prime minister, and Narendra Modi, the Indian prime minister, pose for a photo after their meeting in Warsaw - AFP

11:14 AM BST

Military base hit by Ukraine stores fuel and glide bombs

A military base hit by Ukraine in an overnight drone strike hosts fuel and glide bombs, a security source in Kyiv said on Thursday.

Ukraine conducted the drone attack on the Marinovka military airfield in the southern Russian region of Volgograd on Thursday.

The source told Reuters the attack was part of a campaign on Russian airfields that are used by warplanes to conduct regular attacks on targets in Ukraine.

10:52 AM BST

Zelensky visits Sumy border region

Volodymyr Zelensky said he went on Thursday to Sumy in Ukraine, which borders Russias Kursk region.

The Ukrainian president said during his visit that another Kursk settlement had been taken by Kyivs forces.

Additionally, another settlement in the Kursk region is now under Ukrainian control, and we have replenished the exchange fund, the Ukrainian president said.

The visit came more than two weeks after Ukraine launched its invasion of Russias border region.

I visited the border area of the Sumy region and held a meeting with Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi and the Head of the Sumy Regional Military Administration.



The Commander-in-Chief reported on the operational situation across all active combat zones, with a particular focus on the pic.twitter.com/GvaCEAUBBj  Volodymyr Zelenskyy /   (@ZelenskyyUa) August 22, 2024

10:41 AM BST

Himars explained

The US-made High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (Himars) was a key introduction to the war for the Ukrainians.

The long-range rocket system allowed Ukraine to fire missiles into Russia, enabling multiple counter-offensives.

10:31 AM BST

Reinforcements from the EU, sir...

In case you missed it, here is Patrick Blowers Telegraph cartoon from Wednesday.

Reinforcements from the EU, sir Liquified Indecision Bottled Cowardice Tape Weaponised Dithering Steel-Cased Communiques Armour-Plated Rhetoric

10:17 AM BST

Watch: Russian military base hit in Ukrainian drone strike

A military airbase in southern Russia was hit in a fresh Ukrainian drone strike overnight, causing damage to several aircraft and surrounding buildings.

Andrei Bocharov, the regional governor in Volgograd, confirmed the attack took place in the Marinovka village, where a military airbase is located.

Footage showed a fire raging at the Marinovka Air Base, while buildings in Krasnooktyabrskiy Rayon, Volgograd, are understood to have been damaged in Russias air defence response.

The attack came after Moscow was targeted on Wednesday in what the citys mayor described as one of the largest ever Ukrainian drone strikes since the start of the war in February 2022.

Russia then moved to close two more airports in Russias Far North amid fears of further Ukrainian drone attacks.

Click here to view this content.

09:38 AM BST

Pictured: Ukraine fires rockets towards Russian troops in Donetsk

A drone view shows what the 68th Separate Jaeger Brigade 'Oleksy Dovbusha' says are multiple launch rocket system strikes on Russian troops, in Novozhelanne, Donetsk - REUTERS

09:26 AM BST

Ukraine planned Kursk offensive very secretly, says Olaf Scholz

Germany has denied any involvement in helping Ukraine launch its daring invasion of Russias Kursk region, insisting it was planned very secretly.

Kyiv caught both its allies and Russia off-guard when it launched the incursion on Aug 6.

Ukraine prepared its military operation in the Kursk region very secretly and without any feedback, which is certainly due to the situation, Olaf Scholz, the German chancellor, told reporters during his visit to Moldova, which neighbours Ukraine.

Olaf Scholz, the German chancellor, speaks during a press conference following talks with Maia Sandu, the Moldovan president - REUTERS

09:03 AM BST

Ukraine offensive into Bryansk foiled, says Russia

A Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance team were prevented from piercing the border in the western Bryansk region, Russia said on Thursday.

Alexander Bogomaz, the Bryansk governor, said the attempted invasion took place in the Klimovo district which borders Ukraines Chernihiv region and is about 240km (150 miles) from where Ukraines forces are stationed in Kursk.

He also warned that Ukrainian forces were regrouping for another attack in Kursk ,where Kyiv launched its daring counter-offensive more than two weeks ago.

08:41 AM BST

Pictured: Russia fires rockets towards Ukraine in Kursk

Russian Mi-35m attack helicopter fires rockets on Ukrainian Armed Forces at the border area of Kursk region - AFP

08:26 AM BST

Ukraine on alert ahead of independence day

Ukraine is preparing for a barrage of Russian drone attacks ahead of its independence day, the US embassy in Kyiv said on Thursday.

Saturday will mark 33 years of independence from the Soviet Union.

Locals view a bomb crater following a Russian missile strike in a village outside of Kyiv - Shutterstock

08:02 AM BST

Russian authorities install concrete shelters in Kursk

Russian authorities in Kursk have begun installing concrete shelters to help protect civilians as Ukraine continues its invasion, the acting regional governor said on Thursday.

Governor Alexei Smirnov said shelters were being built in crowded places, including in 60 bus stations.

Similar shelters will be placed in two other towns, he added.

07:47 AM BST

Russian areas targeted by Ukrainian drone strikes

Ukraine stepped up its counter-offensive this week with a series of drone strikes inside Russia.

Moscow was targeted on Wednesday, while on Thursday Volgograd, a military base, was damaged in an overnight attack.

07:37 AM BST

Kremlin tells Russians: Ukrainian invasion is new normal

Moscow has used state media and propaganda to convince Russian citizens that the presence of Ukrainian forces on its soil is the new normal, repurposing messaging from the Covid pandemic.

Kremlin officials reportedly said they believed Kyivs invasion of Kursk, which was launched more than two weeks ago, will last for several months, according to the Institute for the Study of War.

Russian government sources reportedly told Meduza, a Russian outlet based in Latvia, that the estimate is quite optimistic - if everything goes well.

During a shock, and this was certainly a shock, there are always jumps (in public alarm), then people get used to it, and everything settles down, a source told Meduza.

07:33 AM BST

Welcome to our live coverage

Good morning and welcome to our live coverage.

Were bringing you the latest updates from the Ukraine war.

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Putin convenes meeting on border area with Ukraine, government requires funds for self-defence

Russian ruler Vladimir Putin held a new meeting with the Russian government and power bloc concerning the situation in the areas close to the Russo-Ukrainian border on 22 August.

Source: Russian media

Details: Alexei Smirnov, the acting governor of Kursk Oblast, reported that 133,190 civilians had evacuated from border areas of the region, while 19,376 still remained there.

It was also stated that Putin "supported" Smirnovs initiative about automatic payment of 15,000 roubles (US$164) to the residents of Kursk Oblast who left the region after the breakthrough of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

At the meeting, the governors of Belgorod and Bryansk oblasts asked Putin to fund self-defence regiments.

Background:

Russian Kremlin-aligned news agency reported that earlier Putin discussed the situation in Kursk Oblast at meetings on 7 and 12 August.

Ukrainian forces crossed the Russo-Ukrainian border near the town of Sudzha in Kursk Oblast on 6 August 2024.

On 10 August, it became known that Ukrainian forces had taken control of the village of Poroz in Russia's Belgorod Oblast. A counter-terrorism operation (CTO) regime was imposed in Bryansk, Kursk, and Belgorod oblasts of the Russian Federation, which involved heightened security, traffic restrictions, document checks and phone monitoring.

On 12 August, the Ukrainian authorities confirmed for the first time that Ukraine's Armed Forces were involved in a special operation in Kursk Oblast.

Read also: Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi's raid: how the Ukrainian offensive in Russia's Kursk Oblast is progressing and what to expect next

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BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)  Rachels Mediterranean Grill, the popular local chain with nearly a dozen locations across Western New York, is being sued by a Cheektowaga construction company that claims Rachels did not make payments for work the company performed.

The suit, filed on Aug. 5 in Erie County Supreme Court, accuses the owners of not paying for work totaling $283,392 that began in November 2023 at five of Rachels 11 locations across Erie County. The work was done by Lamparellis Construction Company. The five locations the company worked at include two in Buffalo and one each in Amherst, Getzville and Williamsville.

The filing is the latest in a string of lawsuits against the fast-growing restaurant chain since December 2022, totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars owed to various companies in Western and Central New York in unpaid debts. That includes construction costs, not paying rent at a location in Syracuse, and unpaid advertising dollars.

For example, in 2023 owner Joseph Khoury was ordered to pay Unique Development Companies of Syracuse over $120,000 in unpaid construction costs. It was one of two suits filed in Syracuse: Rachels opened a new location at the Destiny USA mall in Syracuse in September 2023, but was sued in December 2023 by the Carousel Center Company, the owner of the mall, claiming that Rachels owed over $200,000 in past due rent.

In April of this year, Rachels abruptly closed the Destiny USA location as well as a location in the Syracuse suburb of Camillus. The company also has a location in Rochester.

Back in Western New York, Rachels has also been sued twice by media companies with local affiliates over unpaid advertising costs. In one of the cases, Rachels was ordered to pay broadcasting company Scripps over $15,000 worth of unpaid advertising costs and other fees. They were also sued by Audacy New York for over $25,000 in a case that remains active.

Finally, in April 2023 Rachels was ordered to pay more than $6,000 to a Buffalo-based fire and security company for goods and merchandise. They made the payment in March of this year.

WIVB News 4 has reached out to Rachels for comment and will update if they reply.

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.

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NEW MEXICO (KRQE)  Two different weather patterns will battle it out todayThe Monsoon wetter weather pattern to The Northwest, versus the hot and dry bubble to The Southeast with more Heat Advisories in effect. Showers, with some lightning strikes, are still holding together while moving north-northeast along I-25 from north of Hatch, through Truth or Consequences, and approaching Socorro. A few showers are also drifting from The Gila National Forest to The Zuni Mountains, as well as the far northwestern parts of The Four Corners. The western tier is dealing with more clouds, while everywhere else is mostly clear from clouds and still relatively mild. While moisture is slowly drifting east, where conditions have been dry in Eastern New Mexico will become even drier, courtesy of a high pressure system drifting to the east overhead.

Forecast Continues Below

Morning temperatures are still a bit above normal, but it is a tad cooler, with the northern mountain communities mostly starting off around the high 30s, 40s, and 50s, while valley locations are mostly ranging from the 50s to the 70s. As temperatures across the region rise from the morning school commute into the 70s, 80s, 90s, and above 100 degrees for some areas by the afternoon, more moisture in the air that is mostly confined to the west, along with plenty of daytime heating, will lead to slightly more areas receiving rainfall across the viewing area. The western two-thirds of the region has the best chance of rain for today with the flash flooding risk still mostly low, but more possible in the early-to-mid afternoon hours. Hit-and-miss stronger thunderstorms will pick up speed to the northeast from The Gila National Forest, to The Northern Mountains, then eventually to not only parts of The Northeastern Highlands, but also, parts of The Rio Grande Valley. Todays storms have the higher possibility for localized heavy doses of rain, some pockets of hail, stronger winds, and more-frequent lightning strikes.

While moisture coming in from the southwest continues to drift east across New Mexico, the strengthening high pressure in Far West Texas will continue to drift east by the weekend, allowing for the stormier pattern to become more widespread eventually, as well as the lower temperatures.

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Based on information provided to the Raleigh County Commission from three current Circuit judges of Raleigh County pertaining to allegations of inappropriate conduct by Raleigh County Prosecuting Attorney Benjamin Hatfield, the Raleigh County Commission will request the West Virginia Commission on Special Investigations to initiate an investigation into these allegations and inform the Commission of their findings and recommendations.

There will be no additional statement by the Raleigh County Commission or Raleigh County Commissioners until the investigation has been completed.
Over 400 cultural heritage conservation experts and scholars from 16 countries have gathered in China's Dunhuang to pool wisdom for the global conservation of cave temples. #MogaoGrottoes
BECKLEY, WV (WVNS) Raleigh County Prosecuting Attorney Ben Hatfield was cleared of a domestic violence protective order in court on Wednesday, August 21, 2024.

A woman had filed the petition against him, claiming she had a relationship with Hatfield and accusing him of domestic violence.

Ohio man pleads guilty to money laundering in West Virginia

In a hearing at the Raleigh County Judicial Center at 1 p.m., evidence was presented to Family Court Judge Harley E. Stollings, who ruled to dismiss the DVPO against Hatfield.

I really just want to get back to doing my job and get back to my family and Im looking forward to just getting my life back, said Hatfield. Its been tossed upside down over the last couple days, and I want to continue doing good work and trying to lead my family.

The entire hearing took around three and a half hours.

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RALEIGH COUNTY, WV (WVNS)  As the school year begins, the Raleigh County Sheriffs Office reminded drivers about school zone laws.

According to a press release from the Raleigh County Sheriffs Office, members of the Raleigh County Sheriffs Office and the West Virginia Southern Regional Highway Safety Program will patrol bus routes school zones throughout the school year due to buses and children being on and around roadways.

The West Virginia Governors Highway Safety Program offers driving tips to keep children safe as they go back to school

The Raleigh County Sheriffs Office stated that people will be cited or arrested when they are caught not following state laws involving school zones and school buses.

According to the press release, West Virginia law states:

When around a stopped school bus with flashing lights and extended stop arms, drivers should stop before getting too close, and remain stopped until the bus continues to move and the lights stop flashing. It includes when children are getting on or off of the bus on streets, private roads, highways, driveways, and parking lots. Drivers who are on different roads or different parts of a highway where people cannot cross the road do not need to stop.

According to the press release, repercussions for people who do not follow laws regarding stopped school buses include:

Passing a stopped school bus could result in at least a $500 fine and a maximum of six months in jail.

Injuring someone when passing a stopped school bus is a felony. Those who injure someone while passing stopped school buses could be fined up to $2,000 and go to prison for one to three years.

A person could go to jail for one to ten years, with up to $3,000 fines for the felony offense of causing a death by passing a stopped school bus.

DUI Checkpoint to be held in Raleigh County

A person who does not follow West Virginia laws about school buses could face:

Arrest

Fines

Jail time

Driving privileges could also be revoked for those who do not follow the law, and a person can lose their drivers license from between 30 and 180 days if they are found guilty of passing a stopped school bus.

The press release from the Raleigh County Sheriffs Office not only stated that people should follow laws regarding stopped school buses, but also speed limits in school zones. They stated that a person could face up to $500 fines, a maximum of six months in jail depending on the circumstances, and the risk of suspended driving privileges.

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WASHINGTON  Donald Trump likes to make fun of people, but he doesn't like others who make fun of him  especially about his criminal record.

The former president has been on the defensive during his weeklong campaign swing designed to counter the Democratic National Convention. In Chicago, speaker after speaker have mocked the 2024 GOP nominee on any number of topics, from his seeming obsession with crowd sizes to what they call his "weirdness" to, especially, his historic legal problems and criminal conviction in the New York hush money case.

"Did you see Barack Hussein Obama last night take little shots?" Trump asked supporters Wednesday during a national security speech at the North Carolina Aviation Museum & Hall of Fame, referring to his predecessor in the White House. He was very nasty last night. I try and be nice to people, you know? But it's a little tough when they get personal.

During his convention speech in praise of new Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, Obama taunted Trump's entire political career as "a constant stream of gripes and grievances thats actually gotten worse now that hes afraid of losing to Kamala. ... The childish nicknames and crazy conspiracy theories and weird obsession with crowd size ... it just goes on and on."

Other convention speakers  a few Republicans as well as Democrats  have zeroed in on Trump's many legal problems, particularly his conviction in May in the New York hush money case. U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, said that "Kamala Harris has a resume  Donald Trump has a rap sheet." In the United Center, convention attendees took selfies with Michael Cohen, the former Trump lawyer who testified against his former boss as a star witness during the Manhattan trial.

Trump has said his advisers want him to stay on policy and avoid personal attacks, but he hasn't always taken their advice. "I don't know ... my advisers are fired," Trump joked in his North Carolina speech. "Nah, we'd rather keep it on policy ... but sometimes it's hard when you're attacked."

'Convicted felon'

Trump's aides said he objects to being called a "convicted felon," but he also isn't particularly surprised.

As far as Trump allies are concerned, the Democratic convention's legal attacks are a continuation of what they called the "weaponization" of the judicial system. They claimed, without proof, that law enforcement officials pursued four sets of indictments against the former president in 2023 for the purpose of using them against him during the 2024 election campaign.

The Chicago convention boils down to "more unfounded personal attacks from washed-up Democrats because they dont have any real solutions for the problems everyday Americans face," said Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung.

In a public safety speech Tuesday in Michigan, Trump accused Democrats of being lax on law enforcement and added, "They go after guys like me, but they don't go after people that kill people."

As for the election, Trump and aides said, they don't think his prosecutions will play a large role for voters over the next 2 months. They said many voters agree with him that the cases are political.

Said Cheung: "People know its a weaponized justice system to meddle in an election."

Michael Cohen, former attorney for Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump, attends Day 3 of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 21, 2024.

'Don't get personal'

Beyond the legal issues, in public and in private, Trump and aides criticized what they described as the media's "glowing" coverage of Harris and her convention.

At one point in North Carolina, Trump roughed up his own political advisers for urging him to stick to policy and "don't get personal," even though his opponents are often personal with him.

"They're getting personal all night long, these people," Trump people. "Do I still have to stick to policy?"

Coming back to the topic later, Trump then polled the North Carolina crowd on whether he should get "personal" with his Democratic critics; the crowd cheered loudly in the affirmative, although the former president has engaged in personal insults for decades.

Though Trump and aides say they are not concerned about the political implications of the former president's legal issues, many pollsters believe they will hurt the Republican nominee with swing voters.

On Sept. 18  little more than a week after his first debate with Harris  Trump faces sentencing in the hush money case. In late May, a New York jury convicted Trump of 34 counts of falsifying business records to hide payments designed to cover up a past liaison with an adult film star. (In her speech, Crockett called Trump a career criminal, with 34 felonies, two impeachments and one porn star.")

New York Judge Juan Merchan could conceivably sentence him to prison, though it his highly unlikely Trump would be locked up anytime soon. He is appealing the verdict and would remain free pending that appeal.

Trump has denounced the prosecution for months, telling supporters Wednesday that "they want to put you in jail for nothing."

FILE PHOTO: Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump attends a press conference, the day after a guilty verdict in his criminal trial over charges that he falsified business records to conceal money paid to silence porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016, at Trump Tower in New York City, U.S., May 31, 2024. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

Other cases

Trump and his aides also said that, if anything, they believe they are winning on the legal front.

At one time, Trump faced the prospect of four trials before Election Day on Nov. 5. Though the New York case did move forward, Trump faces no trials during the stretch run of the presidential campaign, although there could be some pretrial activity.

In early July, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that former presidents are immune from prosecution for "official" acts. That landmark decision that has pushed back a federal case charging Trump with trying to steal the 2020 election from Biden, actions that led to the pro-Trump insurrection of Jan. 6, 2021.

A federal judge must now decide whether the allegations against Trump involve official acts. That could require hearings in September and or October that would become part of the campaign.

A similar election theft case is pending in the state of Georgia, but it has been pushed back because of pretrial maneuvering.

Trump's legal team managed to get a fourth cases against him dismissed. A Florida-based federal judge tossed an indictment accusing Trump of mishandling classified documents, although the government has appealed that decision.

Hillary Rodham Clinton, Former Secretary of State, speaks during the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center. The DNC program will feature President Joe Biden and Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during Monday's ceremonies.

'Lock him up'

Former first lady Hillary Clinton, who lost the 2016 election to Trump, combined mockery with a legal critique during her convention speech, reminding fellow Democrats that Trump fell asleep during parts of the hush money trial. "And when he woke up," Clinton said. "he made his own kind of history  the first person to run for president with 34 felony convictions."

At one point, Democratic delegates chanted "lock him up," a variation of the chant that Trump backers used against Clinton during the 2016 campaign.

Trump's response? He said he could have had Clinton thrown in jail when he was president, but he chose not to.

Trump's most critical response was directed at a lesser-known politician: Kathy Hochul, the governor of New York.

"Adversarial relationships are not good in politics!" Trump said Wednesday on his Truth Social platform, never mind that he has launched some of the most venomous attacks on opponents in political history. In this case, Trump labeled Hochul "the nastiest speaker" at the convention's opening night.

In her speech on Monday night, Hochul said Trump does not reflect American values. Donald Trump was born a New Yorker," she said, "but ended up a fraud, a philanderer and a felon."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Democratic convention puts Trump on defense over legal troubles
Montpelier, VT.  The Canada lynx, a rarely seem wild cat, was caught on video in Rutland County earlier this month, Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department says

The August 17 sighting was the first confirmed in Vermont since 2018.

Brehan Furfey, wildlife biologist and furbearer project leader with the Vermont Fish and Wildlife, said Canada lynx are endangered in Vermont.

That makes any verifiable lynx sighting in our state important, Furfey said. This newest sighting is especially exciting ebecause the cat was spotted in Rutland County, far south of most confirmed lynx reports in Vermont.

Vermont is on the southernmost edge of the Canada lynxs range. Most confirmed sightings are from the Northeast Kingdom, which supports the best climate, habitat and food sources for lynx in the state.

While Rutland County is not native for the Canadian Lynx, there are plenty of well-connected landscapes for wildlife to move between.

Furfey suspects this lynx was dispersing  a male moving through the region to establish territory. A dispersing lynx can move quickly, so its entirely possible that it is no longer in Vermont.

Although this lynx appears to be on the thinner side, its calm behavior around passing cars as reported by observers is not unusual for a dispersing individual, said Furfey. This lynx was probably just focused on finding food in an area where hares are not abundant and on avoiding competition with bobcats and fishers while passing through southern Vermont.

Since 2016 the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department has received over 160 reports of lynx, but only seven of these were confirmed. The most recent credible report was from Jericho in 2018.

If you think youre looking at a lynx the most helpful thing you can do is take a photo or video and send it to the Fish and Wildlife Department, said Furfey.

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Gov. Roy Cooper intends to use his prime-time speech Thursday at the Democratic National Convention to try to solidify to Americans the work Vice President Kamala Harris did as California attorney general, her desire to help people and why she deserves their vote.

And by giving Cooper a prime speaking slot, Democrats are telling voters that they still believe North Carolina is in play this election cycle.

A source familiar with convention planning gave McClatchy a preview of what Cooper plans to say Thursday night. The source said Cooper will make the case for Harris and her commitment to working people. Hes also expected to discuss the work they did together that, he will say, helped middle-class families.

Cooper and Harris have known each other for decades. Their careers overlapped as attorneys general for six of Coopers 16 years serving as North Carolinas top legal adviser.

Their relationship was strong enough that Cooper was considered a potential running mate for Harris, a position he chose not to pursue, saying it wasnt the right time. But that hasnt stopped Cooper from stumping for her.

On stage, McClatchy was told, Cooper will describe Harris as having a record of going after violent criminals and making communities safer. He will say they did shared work to hold banks accountable and fight for the middle class during the mortgage crisis.

Former President Barack Obama discussed that work during his own speech Tuesday night.

As an attorney general of the most populous state in the country, she fought big banks and for-profit colleges, securing billions of dollars for the people they had scammed, Obama said, on stage. After the home mortgage crisis, she pushed me and my administration hard to make sure homeowners got a fair settlement. It didnt matter that I was a Democrat. It didnt matter that she had knocked on doors for my campaign. She was going to fight to get as much relief as possible for the families who deserved it.

Coopers speech will also focus on his belief that Harris can win North Carolina. Doing so would make Harris the first Democratic presidential nominee to do so since Obama in 2008. And he, in turn, was the first Democrat since 1976.

Democrats have been hyper-focused on North Carolina this campaign season, investing resources, time and money into the state to win its 16 electoral votes. Theyve also sent Biden, Harris and surrogates, including First Lady Jill Biden and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, into the state nearly weekly. Harris has visited eight times since 2024 began.

Despite Republicans almost always winning the state, North Carolina is considered a battleground state because of the narrow margins between Republican and Democratic presidential candidates.

And this week, the University of Virginias Center for Politics Sabatos Crystal Ball moved North Carolina from a leans Republican state to a toss-up, after Harris repeatedly polled ahead of Trump recently.

In interviews that Cooper has given throughout DNC, he could hardly contain his excitement, grinning ear-to-ear, and expressing his belief that Harris will pull off the win. He called it a 2008 feeling, to Politico.

The source said Cooper will speak about how Harris is needed to fight for American families and will ensure bright futures for large and small communities across the country.

Cooper is one of at least two North Carolinians speaking on Thursday. Eric Fitts, an educator from Wake County, will take the stage around 9 p.m.

Under the Dome

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Ready for the rainy season? Heres how La Nina is influencing the autumn weather outlook

Washington state could be looking at an abnormally wet autumn season because of an emerging La Nina weather pattern, according to forecasts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations Climate Prediction Center.

An outlook for September-October-November released Aug. 15 calls for a greater than normal chance for precipitation, along with an equal chance of normal temperatures through fall.

Theres a 66% chance of a La Nina forming in next few months and a 74% chance of a La Nina lasting into 2025, according to an Aug. 8 report from the Climate Prediction Center.

La Nina refers to cooling of Pacific Ocean surface temperatures along the equator west of South America.

Those changes in water temperature affect tropical rainfall patterns that in turn influence weather systems across the globe.

In the Northwest, including Bellingham, a La Nina year often means more precipitation and colder temperatures, offering a greater chance of snowfall  including both in the mountains and lowlands of Whatcom County.

Heavy rain during La Nina years has been blamed for severe flooding in communities along the Nooksack River and elsewhere in Washington state.

Flooding from a relentless series of atmospheric rivers caused an estimated $1 billion in damage across Washington and Oregon in 2021, including more than $150 million in Whatcom County.
NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY)  Nearly a dozen units are damaged in a tightly packed community across the street from Ocean View Beach.

The most significant damage is to a townhome in between the Beach Comber Apartments and the Port View Condominiums. The damage is extensive on three neighboring structures.

1 person injured, 1 cat dead after apartment fire in Norfolk

Caretakers with the Hope House Foundation are called heroes for hearing burning noises and quickly alerting others to evacuate at the Beach Comber Apartments.

Thankfully, we had two [people] working last night who heard a noise and came out, found flames and immediately called 911, said Shannon Pociask, Hope House Foundation executive director. Then they called her coworker and supported the gentleman to get out of his unit, which was the one closest to the fire. It had smoke in the unit, they were able to pull them out and then further evacuated everybody else at the complex.

Theyre probably just going to tell you that the just did their job, but they really are heroes who saved lives, really. So, Im very grateful.

Said Pociask:, Were just so thankful that they were here to be able to respond so calmly.

Hope House supports adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities who live independently in their own apartment or home.

Todays thought is making sure everybodys safe, Pociask said, making sure the staff are feeling supported. This was really tragic, middle of the night situation.

The man was rescued, but sadly, his cat of about 15 years did not survive.

Hes doing OK, Pociask said. Thankfully, we have tremendous staff who went into action.

The clients home and another unit under renovation are now unlivable.

We are renovating multiple units, she said. We would like to be able to support two or three more people. Were renovating those apartments. Some of the work has already been damaged.  When you add water after a fire, the damage really is more.

Eric Crafton, with Crafton remodeling, was leading the Hope House renovation project.

Everything is under water, Crafton said. Weve got brand new cabinets that are sitting in the water. They are probably no good. Weve got flooring thats underwater. Ive got tools around the corner thats under water.

For the last month, Crafton said hes made relationships with those in the community, including veterans.

Im a vet, Crafton said. Ive got a couple of kids, actually I have three, that are in the military. So, I understand how it goes. They are all nice people. Weve been here a little over four weeks now. Ive gotten to know some of them, and they are really nice. Youll waive at them, they enjoy it, they smile.

For him, the hard part was over, but now its a different story.

We would have been out of here completely in both units in about two weeks, Crafton said.

The American Red Cross is assisting the families impacted.

I dont know what to do, Crafton said. I feel bad for the people that were living here, that is for sure.

The resident receiving assistance from Hope House is now living in another apartment provided by Hope House.

We have another apartment that was vacant nearby, Pociask said. Staff, maintenance, and everybody helped to move him to another apartment, coordinating his care and making sure hes getting the services that he needs.

The damaged row of Beach Comber apartments is now boarded up, with a condemned sign. The hope is that more people come forward.

Anybody else who wants to help reach out, Pociask said.

We just have so many great community supporters and we are already so thankful, Pociask said. But anybody else who wants to help reach out, if you want to donate specifically to the fire, you can put OV Fire in the memo line for Ocean View Fire. Well know thats exactly what you want to be supporting for Hope House Foundation.

Want to help?

If you would like to help Hope House Foundation continue to assist adults with developmental disabilities visit https://hope-house.org/get-involved/donate/#donatesec.

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With a series of speakers focused on Donald Trumps attempt to overturn the 2020 election results, Democrats on Wednesday had an ominous message for the months ahead: Trump is plotting again.

He would rather subvert democracy than submit to it, Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), who chaired the congressional Jan. 6 committee, told the Democratic National Convention crowd. Now hes plotting again. His campaign proclaims that elections wont end until the moment of the inauguration. We will win, or it was rigged. We win or else. This is Donald Trumps America.

Trump himself emphasized that same message earlier Wednesday, telling a rally crowd that his win was a foregone conclusion  and reiterating his 2020 message that Democrats only win if they cheat.

When, if, but when  I have to always say if, you know, because they cheat, Trump said of Democrats. I would say when if they didnt cheat, but they cheat. Thats the one thing  theyre great at cheating in elections.

Thompson drew a parallel between Trumps attempt to overturn voters choice in 2020 and Thompsons fathers own inability to vote due to Jim Crow laws.

Elections are about choice, said Thompson, the ranking member of the House Homeland Security Committee. Choose democracy, not political violence.

The key congressional Democrat was part of a string of speakers focused on Trumps election subversion attempt. Geoff Duncan, a Republican and former lieutenant governor of Georgia, recalled having armed officers outside his house protecting us from other Republicans as Trump contested the 2020 results.

His action disqualified him from ever, ever, ever stepping foot in the Oval Office again, Duncan said.

After Thompson, Aquilino Gonell, a former sergeant of the United States Capitol Police, recalled being beaten with a pole attached to the American flag on Jan. 6 as he protected the Capitol. Trump incited the crowd and betrayed us, Gonell said.

Rep. Andy Kim (D-N.J.), who famously began cleaning up the Capitol shortly after the attack subsided, admonished the audience.

Always remember this chaos that we see, it doesnt have to be this way, he said. As a father, I refuse to believe that our kids are doomed to grow up in a broken America, Kim said.

In the middle of the series of speakers, convention organizers played a video montage showing Trumps remarks on Jan. 6  refusing to concede the election and telling the crowd he would accompany them to the Capitol  followed by the crowd of Trump supporters roaring with rage as he tweeted a condemnation of then-Vice President Mike Pence and watched the attack unfold on television.

The video closed with a list of the felonies Trump faces for his election subversion attempt and a caption: If re-elected, he will never be held accountable.

WATCH: A video shown at the Democratic National Convention replayed some of the violence, destruction and chaos unleashed during the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, and included recordings of former President Donald Trump urging protesters on that day and afterward. pic.twitter.com/SGPnuYIZhG  PBS News (@NewsHour) August 22, 2024

Related...
HONOLULU (KHON2)  A heightened law enforcement presence on Oahus Leeward Coast has led to numerous arrests and citations.

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Last week, Honolulu police announced they would deploy more uniformed and plainclothes officers in response to a rise in violent crime.

The increased effort also includes support from state sheriffs and the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR).

This tasty Chinese treat transformed into a Hawaii favorite

Deputy Chief Horikawa of the Honolulu Police Department said, This resulted in numerous arrests over the weekend for violent crimes, narcotics offenses, OVI or DUI, and warrants, as well as over 80 citations being issued.

The recent uptick in crime has prompted lawmakers to hold a Youth Empowerment and Crime Prevention town hall meeting at Waianae High School which KHON2s Jenn Boneza attended.

Honolulu police chief Joe Logan receives strong annual review

Boneza reported hundreds of people gathered at the Waianae High School cafeteria for the meeting.

She said its main goal is to provide teens and young adults with a safe space to express their concerns and discuss recent issues with crime and gun violence in their community.

Navy ramps up Red Hill cleanup amid water safety fears

It also aims to connect at-risk youth with organizations that can offer them the help they need.

Is there enough services? Is there enough follow-up? Do we need more mental health providers to come through? What are the home situations of these families? How do we actually be preventative and not just responsive? We appreciate the response, but to really get to the root of the issue, we need to address problems before they arise, notes Andria Tupola of the Honolulu City Council.

Boneza added some lawmakers have argued that more needs to be done for a long-term solution, besides increased law enforcement.

Download the free KHON2 app for iOS or Android to stay informed on the latest news

More will be covered as the meeting continues.

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(WFRV)  With school season right around the corner, Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) officials are reminding drivers about the distance required by state law to be stopped while a school bus is showing flashing red lights.

A recent WisDOT Facebook post quizzes Wisconsinites on the distance that drivers need to be stopped (in both directions) when a school bus is stopped with red lights flashing, giving the options of 10, 20, 30, and 40 feet.

Green Bay Area schools plan to start early to accommodate for the 2025 NFL Draft

According to school bus laws on WisDOTs website, the stopping distance required by a Wisconsin law is no less than 20 feet from the stopped school bus.

A vehicle that approaches a stopped school bus that is displaying flashing red warning lights, must stop not less than 20 feet from the bus and remain stopped until the bus resumes motion or the operator extinguishes the flashing red warning lights. Failure to do so could result in a fine between $30 and $300. Wisconsin Department of Transportation

WisDOTs website also notes that the law does not apply to vehicles driving in the opposite direction on a divided highway but does apply if no barrier is present on multi-lane streets or highways.

Wisconsin Sheriffs Office shares interest cards, emphasizes childrens privacy as school approaches

As the 2024 school year approaches, drivers are encouraged to stay vigilant and be aware of the increase in kids on and near Wisconsin roadways.

More information about school bus laws can be found here.

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Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, delivers an important speech during a meeting to mark the 120th birth anniversary of late leader Deng Xiaoping, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 22, 2024. (Xinhua/Ju Peng)

BEIJING, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping lauded the "outstanding contributions" of late leader Deng Xiaoping and urged advancing socialism with Chinese characteristics initiated by Deng, as the country marked Deng's 120th birth anniversary on Thursday.

Addressing a meeting held to mark the anniversary, Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, said the country must continue to thoroughly study and apply Deng Xiaoping Theory.

"Deng made outstanding contributions to the Party, the people, the country, the nation and the world," Xi said, adding that Deng's achievements have been immortalized in history and will always inspire future generations.

Deng was the core of the second generation of the Party's central collective leadership, the chief architect of China's socialist reform, opening up and modernization, and the trailblazer of socialism with Chinese characteristics, Xi said, adding that Deng was also a great internationalist who made major contributions to world peace and development.

"Comrade Deng Xiaoping had lived a glorious, fighting and extraordinary life," he said.

Xi noted that, after the Cultural Revolution, a decade-long turmoil that ended in 1976, Deng had led the Party and the people in achieving China's historic transformation.

Deng pushed China to achieve a new breakthrough in adapting Marxism to the Chinese context, break new ground in socialist modernization, and set a correct path for the country's complete reunification, Xi said.

Deng's historical achievements are comprehensive and groundbreaking, with profound and lasting impacts on both China and the world, Xi said.

"We will forever remember his great historical achievements and forever revere his noble revolutionary conduct," Xi said.

The most important intellectual legacy left by Deng is Deng Xiaoping Theory, Xi said, calling for thoroughly studying and applying the theory to address real-world problems.

"The best way to honor Deng is to continue advancing the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics that he initiated," Xi said.

Xi called for further comprehensively deepening reform to continuously provide strong momentum and institutional safeguards for Chinese modernization.

He urged moving faster to build a modernized economy, working toward greater self-reliance in the science and technology sector, and developing advanced socialist culture.

Xi also urged efforts to achieve more notable and substantive progress in promoting common prosperity for all.

Realizing China's complete reunification has long been the aspiration of Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping and other members of the older generation of revolutionaries, Xi said.

He urged resolute efforts to promote the peaceful development of relations across the Taiwan Strait, and demanded firm opposition to "Taiwan independence" to safeguard China's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Stressing that China has always been a staunch force for world peace, Xi called for unremitting efforts to uphold peace, development, cooperation and mutual benefit.

Xi said China will take an active role in the reform and development of the global governance system, and create new opportunities for the world with new progress in Chinese modernization.

Senior leaders Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Ding Xuexiang, Li Xi and Han Zheng attended the meeting, which was presided over by Cai Qi.

Zhao, Wang, Ding, Li and Cai are all members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee. Han is the country's vice president. 

A meeting marking the 120th birth anniversary of late leader Deng Xiaoping is held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 22, 2024. Xi Jinping and other senior leaders of the Communist Party of China and the state including Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang, Li Xi and Han Zheng attended the meeting here on Thursday. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)

A meeting marking the 120th birth anniversary of late leader Deng Xiaoping is held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 22, 2024. Xi Jinping and other senior leaders of the Communist Party of China and the state including Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang, Li Xi and Han Zheng attended the meeting here on Thursday. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)

A meeting marking the 120th birth anniversary of late leader Deng Xiaoping is held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 22, 2024. Xi Jinping and other senior leaders of the Communist Party of China and the state including Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang, Li Xi and Han Zheng attended the meeting here on Thursday. (Xinhua/Yan Yan)
Businesses in the North Country are worried about supply-chain disruptions after both of Canadas major freight railroads came to a full stop Thursday because of a contract dispute with their workers.

Canadian National and CPKC railroads both locked out their employees after the deadline of 12:01 a.m. Eastern Thursday passed without new agreements with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference that represents some 10,000 engineers, conductors and dispatchers.

All rail traffic in Canada and all shipments crossing the U.S. border have stopped, although CPKC and CNs trains will continue to operate in the U.S. and Mexico.

Billions of dollars of goods each month move between Canada and the U.S. via rail, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. Garry Douglas, president of the North Country Chamber of Commerce, said businesses, from agriculture to energy to manufacturing, rely on the cross-border supply chain, especially the Port of Montreal.

In Plattsburgh, indications are that CPKC operations within the U.S. will be uninterrupted for now but rail shipments from the north will cease including sand and cement for Schluter, he said. And while some things might manage to shift to trucks temporarily, it is not feasible for most cargo to do so.

Business groups had urged the government to intervene, but Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has declined to force both sides into arbitration yet.

CN said it was waiting for a response on one final offer made late Wednesday when it locked the workers out. CPKC spokesperson Patrick Waldron said the union rejected its last offer that CEO Keith Creel made at the table in person. Both railroads have said they would end the lockout if the union agreed to binding arbitration.

CN had been negotiating with the Teamsters for nine months while CPKC had been trying to reach an agreement for a year, the unions said. Many companies across all industries rely on railroads to deliver their raw materials and finished products, so without regular rail service they may have to cut back or even close.

Douglas said chambers of commerce in the U.S. and Canada have called for action by the Canadian Government to get the trains moving again and to help secure an agreement before this stoppage does lasting economic damage.

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Remains found on Michigan property confirmed to be from woman missing since 2021

A banner shows a photo of missing woman Dee Warner in Tipton, Mich. on May 9 2022. (Jacob Hamilton/Jackson Citizen Patriot via AP)

ADRIAN, Mich. (AP)  More than three years later, investigators have solved the disappearance of a Michigan woman after tests confirmed her remains were found on property owned by her husband, state police said Wednesday.

Dee Warner's death "has been ruled a homicide. ... Although there has been positive identification on the remains and manner of death has been confirmed, this is an ongoing investigation, state police said on the social media platform X.

Warner, 52, was reported missing in April 2021. Her husband, Dale Warner, was charged in November with murder and tampering with evidence in her disappearance. He has pleaded not guilty.

His attorney had no immediate comment Wednesday night.

State police publicly disclosed Sunday that human remains were found last week in Lenawee County, about 70 miles (110 kilometers) southwest of Detroit.

Family members have told TV stations that the remains were inside a sealed, empty tank typically used for crop fertilizer.

In the dark of night, in a building that had no cameras: slide her body in there, put the end cap back on it, and weld it completely shut, Dee's brother Greg Hardy told WDIV-TV during a visit to the site.
SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage)  Due to a partnership between the San Angelo Hispanic Heritage Museum and San Angelo Independent School District, astronaut Dr. Jose Hernandez will be speaking to fifth graders within the district on Sept. 16.

The San Angelo Hispanic Heritage Museum shared that during the morning presentation. Dr. Hernandez will share insight into his career as an astronaut which includes his role and work in developing groundbreaking medical imaging systems.

We are honored to collaborate with San Angelo Independent School District to offer this extraordinary experience to our local students, said Suzanna Valenzuela, Vice-President of the San Angelo Hispanic Heritage Museum. Dr. Hernandezs story of overcoming obstacles and achieving great heights in the field of space exploration will undoubtedly serve as a powerful inspiration for our young learners. Its a wonderful way to kick off our Hispanic Heritage Month celebrations and foster a deeper connection to the values of perseverance and excellence.

RELATED: NASA astronaut to come to San Angelo for Hispanic Heritage Month banquet

SAISD Superintendent Dr. Christopher Moran shared that the school district is excited to welcome Dr. Hernandez and encourage students to pursue their dreams.

This partnership underscores our commitment to providing engaging educational experiences and celebrating the diverse heritage of our community, said Dr. Moran. We are excited to welcome Dr. Hernandez to our schools as we encourage our students to dream big and pursue their passions with tenacity!

During the evening of Sept. 16, Dr, Hernandez will be the keynote speaker at the San Angelo Hispanic Heritage Month Banquet at the McNease Convention Center. Individual tickets for the San Angelo Hispanic Heritage Month Banquet are sold out.

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CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - AUGUST 21: U.S. Rep. Andy Kim (D-NJ) speaks on stage during the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 21, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. Delegates, politicians, and Democratic Party supporters are in Chicago for the convention, concluding with current Vice President Kamala Harris accepting her party's presidential nomination. The DNC takes place from August 19-22. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Twenty years after he graduated from the University of Chicago, Rep. Andy Kim returned to the Windy City Wednesday as part of a group of speakers at the Democratic National Convention who made the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol a focal point of the conventions third day.

In a speech that lasted just under three minutes, Kim (D-03) discussed his efforts to clear the Capitol Rotunda of debris after it was ransacked by supporters of then-President Donald Trump. The convention gave Kim a chance to introduce himself to a national audience as he seeks a U.S. Senate seat in November.

Kim said when he was a child, his Korean immigrant parents brought him to the Capitol and taught him the building is sacred ground, a symbol of democracy. But on Jan. 6, he said, we saw something unimaginable  a mob tearing down flags, assaulting police officers.

The floor was covered in broken glass and garbage, strewn with the chaos unleashed by Donald Trump. And I thought to myself, how did it get this bad? So I did the only thing I could think of  I grabbed a trash bag and started cleaning up, he said.

Kim has evoked the Jan. 6 riot frequently on the campaign trail, as well as his clean-up effort that garnered him national attention.

What I learned on January 6 is that all of us are caretakers for our great republic. We can heal this country, but only if we try, Kim said Wednesday. Always remember, this chaos that we see, it doesnt have to be this way.

Kim faces Republican hotelier Curtis Bashaw in November in a race to succeed Sen. Bob Menendez, a Democrat who resigned in disgrace from the Senate Tuesday following his conviction last month on federal corruption charges. Menendez had intended to seek reelection as an independent in November, but suspended that campaign last week.

Kim ended his speech by calling on the crowd and the country to support the Democratic presidential ticket, Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

There is a hunger right now in this country for a new generation of leadership to step up. Lets choose Kamala Harris and Tim Walz. Lets do this for our kids and our grandkids, he said.

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NEW MEXICO (KRQE)  Editors Note: This story has been updated to show how much money the state believes it missed out on from oil and gas revenue since 2015.

New Mexico is missing out on hundreds of millions of dollars in oil and gas revenue according to the New Mexico State Land commissioner. The past three years, New Mexico has produced more new barrels of oil than Texas, said a speaker at Wednesdays meeting.

Story continues below

Thats the good news. Over the last three years, New Mexico has had more oil production than any other state and that includes Texas, according to the state land office. Texas has 5,400 leases, while New Mexico has 6,000 and it continues to grow. And this is an outdated figure yall since 2019, $10 billion for New Mexicos beneficiaries, said a speaker at Wednesdays meeting.

That growth in oil and gas production has delivered billions of dollars to state coffers. Just last year, the state earned nearly $13.9 billion from the industry, according to the New Mexico Oil and Gas Association.

But the State Land Office said that figure should be even higher. And we would see an additional distribution to our beneficiaries of between $750 million and $1.5 billion over that same period, approximately 25 years up to 2050, said a speaker at Wednesdays meeting.

The land office has tried to pass a bill that would increase the states royalty rates from 20% to 25%. Texas already has those rates. The land office estimate is that once a sizable number of leases have been sold and put into production, that we believe, the land office believes that we would earn 50 million to 84 million dollars extra per year, said a speaker at Wednesdays meeting.

In total, the state Land Office said New Mexico has missed out on $405 million from oil and gas revenue since 2015.

Another disadvantage, New Mexico takes royalties from the net proceeds, whereas Texas pulls from gross proceeds. The land office is pushing for new laws to level the playing field should the bill pass this next legislative session, New Mexico could see tens of millions of dollars more in oil revenue each year. Thats our shot at getting top dollar for those leases. Once theyre leased at the lower royalty rate, they get held by production for the next, however many generations. And weve lost the opportunity to get top dollar market value for a public resource, said a speaker at Wednesdays meeting.

Last year, House Bill 48 passed the state House but did not make it through the Senate. Versions of the bill have failed to pass the state legislature since 2019.

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN)  Some schools in Davidson, Robertson, Wilson and Williamson counties were placed on lockdown Thursday morning due to reported threats, officials said.

Metro Nashville Public Schools spokesperson Sean Braisted said Gower Elementary School was placed on lockdown following a threat that was received by the Metro Police Nashville Department (MNPD).

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(Photo: WKRN)

(Photo: WKRN)

(Photo: WKRN)

According to Braisted, officers responded to the elementary school, conducted a thorough search and cleared the building shortly after. Officials said the school has since resumed to normal operations and has transitioned from a lockdown to a lockout, meaning students are allowed to move freely but visitor access is restricted.

A News 2 crew captured families at the school picking their children up early for the day.

| READ MORE | Latest headlines from Nashville and Davidson County

Meanwhile, law enforcement in Wilson County responded to the Watertown area Thursday morning after a threat was reported through a chatline.

Wilson County Schools ensured parents that no active threats were found and all school grounds were thoroughly searched. Authorities are reportedly investigating the incident as potential swatting.

Our investigators worked with Homeland Security to quickly identify this threat as a hoax, said Wilson County Sheriffs Captain Scott Moore.

Wilson County Schools also have several extra security measures in place, to ensure school safety. According to Public Information Officer Bart Barker, some of these extra measures include: multiple school resource officers, high sound detecting cameras and K-9 service dogs.

Metro Nashville schools implement clear bag policy at athletic events

The threat calls also affected operations in Robertson County. According to school officials there, there was a report of a threat that resulted in safety procedures being implemented.

According to Steve Sorrells with Robertson County Schools, local law enforcement received a report of suicide ideation with a weapon in the parking lot of Greenbrier Elementary School. As a result of the threat, the school was placed on a hard lockdown procedure, and two other schools nearby went to a soft lockdown as an added precaution.

A quick response by the Greenbrier Police Department, the School Resource Officers, the Robertson County Sheriffs Office and the Department of Homeland Security allowed the report to be investigated and the campus cleared of any potential threat, Sorrells told News 2. The school lockdown was lifted and parent contacts made to inform of the reaction and a return to normal school schedule.

 Read todays top stories on wkrn.com

Sorrells added the call appeared to be a hoax, but the need to be proactive to protect students and staff was necessary.

Then, just after 3:05 p.m., the Williamson County Sheriffs Office announced that a school in the Brentwood area also received a reported threat. Authorities said they determined the call was a hoax following a thorough investigation and the school was safely cleared.

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Republic man pleads guilty in DWI crash that killed 3 in Springfield

SPRINGFIELD, Mo.  A man from Republic has entered a guilty plea stemming from a wrong-way DWI crash that led to the death of three people in Springfield in 2023.

67-year-old Steven Allan Jordan was set to go to trial for his 12 felonies related to the crash starting April 21, 2025, before pleading guilty on Tuesday.

Steven Jordan mugshot

Jordan was charged with the following, according to court records:

Three counts of second-degree murder.

Three counts of DWI resulting in the death of another.

One count of habitual DWI.

Two counts of DWI resulting in serious physical injury.

Three counts of DWI resulting in physical injury.

Jordans attorney says his three counts of DWI resulting in the death of another will be dismissed at sentencing.

On Jan. 20, 2023, Jordans white Dodge pickup was traveling on the wrong side of James River Freeway when his truck collided with a Ford Expedition carrying eight members of a Texas family who were coming to southwest Missouri for a funeral.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Three killed after wrong-way crash on James River Freeway

Three of the passengers  Sharon Farmer, Ukena Farmer and Stephen Figgins  died in the crash, while the five others were taken to the hospital with various injuries.

Jordan later confessed to police that he was drunk when the crash occurred. Jordans blood later tested positive for alcohol and drugs and his blood alcohol concentration was measured at .211%, well above Missouris legal limit of .08%.

Jordans sentencing hearing is scheduled for Nov. 8 at 1:30 p.m.

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Ohio Senator and Republican Vice Presidential nominee J.D. Vance is heading to Georgia on Thursday afternoon to discuss border security and immigration.

Hell be making a stop in Valdosta for a 1 p.m. event, where he will speak about what his and former President Donald Trumps 2024 election campaign call a path of death and destruction left behind by Kamala Harris and Tim Walz, the Democratic presidential and vice presidential nominees.

According to the event announcement from the Trump-Vance campaign, the immigration policies of the Harris agenda is making American families pay a steep price for Kamalas dangerously liberal agenda devastating American cities with skyrocketing costs and crime-ridden streets.

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The campaign said 5,000 undocumented migrants are released into the United States every day and that more than 900,000 were released in fiscal year 2023, still waiting to have their immigration court dates.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in FY2023, about 5,654 Title 8 apprehensions and Title 42 encounters happened on a typical day between the various ports of entry.

CBP says Title 8 Enforcement Actions refer to the apprehensions or inadmissible migrants processed by the agency, meaning those seeking lawful admission into the United States, but who are not admissible at the time.

Separately, a Title 42 encounter is when individuals encountered by United States Border Patrol and the Office of Field Operations are expelled from the U.S. to their last transit or home country, in the interest of public health.

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The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said that as of 2023, the agency had reduced its backlog by 15%, the first reduction in more than 10 years.

In 2023, 870,332 migrants from countries in Central and South America, Africa and Asia applied for temporary protection status in the United States, more popularly referred to as a request for asylum. USCIS reported in the same year that 497,514 of the applicants were of an unknown immigration status at the time of filing for asylum.

Of the overall applicants in 2023, 3.2% of them were living in the state of Georgia when they filed. Thats more than 28,000 asylum-seekers, according to USCIS data from their yearly congressional report.

In the weeks since becoming the presumptive presidential nominee for the Democratic Party, Harris campaign has come out against the title of border czar used by critics of current border policy and the Trump-Vance campaign. Rather than accept the title, the campaign said Harris chose to take a long-term approach to border crossing and immigration issues, as border crossings increased during the presidency of Joe Biden.

She felt  and I think she was right  that what she could do the most was help basically lead the effort to draw in investment, using the confidence that a relationship with the White House would give to investors, Ricardo Zuniga, a former State Department official who specialized in the Northern Triangle and who traveled with Harris to the region, told the Associated Press previously.

In Georgia, Vance will speak in Valdosta at the Lowndes County Sheriffs Office.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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IN OTHER NEWS:
GUIYANG, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The number of Chinese students studying in ASEAN countries and students of ASEAN countries studying in China surpassed 175,000 in 2023, indicating that exchanges between the two sides' younger generations are becoming more active, according to sources at the ongoing 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week in southwest China's Guizhou Province.

Shi Zhongjun, secretary-general of the ASEAN-China Center, said education is an important component of people-to-people exchanges between China and ASEAN, and talent is a crucial support for the development of China and ASEAN countries. In recent years, the two sides' education cooperation at all levels has grown, and personnel training and scientific and technological cooperation have achieved fruitful results.

The 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week is being held from Aug. 20 to 25. More than 70 activities have been scheduled for this year's education cooperation week, the event's organizers said.

This year's event is co-hosted by China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Education, as well as the provincial government of Guizhou.

The education cooperation week, which was first held in 2008, has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations. 
Search and rescue crews made a grim discovery on the third day of the search for six missing passengers from the luxury Bayesian superyacht, which sank early Monday morning after being caught in a violent storm. Six bodies were found in the underwater wreckage, according to The Guardian, bringing the total recovered since the incident to seven.

Italian authorities reportedly told The Telegraph that two of the bodies are believed to be British billionaire Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah, although none of the identities of the recovered bodies have been publicly confirmed by authorities.

Those missing or presumed dead aside from Lynch and his daughter include Morgan Stanley chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife, Judy as well as Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife, Neda. The chartered trip had been to celebrate Lynch's recent acquittal following a 13-year legal battle over fraud allegations stemming from the $11 billion sale of his software company to Hewlett-Packard in 2011.

According to The Independent, two bodies of the recovered were brought to shore earlier on Wednesday, one of which reportedly belonged to a "heavily-built man," while two others have been located within the yacht.

Related: Video Shows Steve Jobs' Massive $130M Yacht Crashing Into Another Boat

There were 22 people aboard the doomed vessel when it sank, including 12 passengers and 10 crew members. Fifteen people were rescued shortly after the incident, with the body of chef Recaldo Thomas recovered from the site of the wreckage on Monday.

The complex rescue efforts have been hampered by debris obstructing access to the cabins, and so far crews have only been able to access the common areas of the ship. Further complicating the operation, Sicilian fire service divers have been restricted to 12-minute underwater shifts.

Bloomer's brother, Jeremy Bloomer, said that there were hopes that the victims still aboard the yacht might be still alive. "Its a slow process and it will take time," he explained. "So there might be air pockets, but we dont know. Its still wait and see, so fingers crossed."

London-based lawyer Ayla Ronald, 36, a senior associate who was part of the Clifford Chance legal team, was among those rescued along with her partner Matthew Fletcher. Her father, Lin Ronald, told the New Zealand Herald that his daughter was "very shaken" after the incident.

Ronald said that his daughter had only texted him that "there are deaths, and she and her partner are alive," adding that she was also the only one with a charged phone, and had been helping coordinate efforts with medics.

Correction: A previous version of this story stated that two of the bodies had been identified as Mike Lynch and his daughter, Hannah. While Italian authorities reportedly told The Telegraph they believe this to be the case, they have not publicly confirmed the identity of the recovered victims
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD)  Researchers are starting a 10-year project to keep so-called vampire fish out of Michigan rivers.

Over the last 20 years, three dams have been removed along the Boardman-Ottaway River, which runs through Traverse City, in a massive effort to restore the river, according to Michigan State University. The only one thats left is the Union Street dam in Traverse City, standing in between the river and Lake Michigan.

The dam is aging and has had unintended consequences on native wildlife, but it cant just be removed. Doing so would allow invasive species like sea lampreys and others into the river, making it much more difficult and expensive to try to control those populations.

FILE  Sea lamprey, shown here attached to a lake trout, are an invasive species in the Great Lakes. (Courtesy Great Lakes Fishery Commission)

We face a particular challenge here in the Great Lakes, thats common to other places in the world, and that is that if we freely reconnect our rivers to the lakes or oceans and other places, it increases the possibility that invasive species move into those rivers and cause harm to the species that are in there, sea lamprey expert Michael Wagner, an associate professor at MSU, told News 8. There can be ecological and economic damage.

Lake Effect: What changes scientists are seeing on Lake Michigan

Wagner said despite humans trying to help fish pass over dams for 400 years, were still not really very good at it.

These dams are critical to being able to control this really harmful species, but they have other consequences that we want to work to alleviate, he said.

The Great Lakes Fishery Commission has put together a team of researchers from MSU and other universities to work on FishPass, a project that broke ground in May and will replace the Union Street Dam. The goal is to let fish like walleye and lake sturgeon into the Boardman-Ottaway River while keeping out invasive species.

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FROM CUTE LITTLE LARVAL FISH TO PARASITE

Sea lamprey are native to the Atlantic Basin. They got into the Great Lakes around 100 years ago through canal systems connecting the lakes to the Saint Lawrence Seaway, Wagner said.

For most of its life, the sea lamprey is a harmless larvae.

The mouth of a mature sea lamprey  the area that attaches to fish of the Great Lakes. (Photo by MARLIN LEVISON/Star Tribune via Getty Images)

The first four years of their life, theyre this cute little  cute to biologists  but cute little larval fish, living in the sediments of rivers and living off of organic matter and actually doing some positive things for the ecosystem, Wagner explained.

But after four years, the lamprey turns into its juvenile form, developing eyes and a mouth with tons of teeth. It also stops eating things like algae, instead attaching itself to fish like lake trout and whitefish, earning it the nickname vampire fish.

(They) drill a hole into the side of the fish using a toothy tongue that they have, and then they live off of blood, fluids and some tissue, Wagner said.

Treatments kill invasive sea lamprey in West Michigan waterways

The sea lamprey will stay in that parasitic phase for 12 to 18 months. During that time, it will kill around 40 pounds of fish, Wagner said. A lot of the fish it kills are ecologically, economically and culturally important in the Great Lakes area.

Uncontrolled, they decimated lake trout populations. They extirpated some native species from the system, Wagner said. Thats why Canada and the U.S. got together and said, We really need to control this species, and have been doing so with great success ever since.

A lake trout taken from Lake Superior was bitten by sea lamprey during an annual spring population survey Tuesday May 8, 2018 in Duluth, MN. (Photo By Jerry Holt/Star Tribune via Getty Images)

SO HOW WOULD FISHPASS HELP?

After 12 or 18 months, the sea lamprey stops eating for good. It will migrate back into a river to spawn and die, Wagner said.

FishPass would trap the sea lamprey as it tries to get into the river, about a month before the nocturnal, solitary critter would naturally die.

Ask Ellen: Why are invasive species so bad?

How would you catch a fish thats by itself at night and doesnt eat? Wagner said. You cant exactly bait a hook.

Sea lamprey use odors to navigate their way into rivers and spawning grounds. The larvae produce an odor that tells the sea lamprey its a good habitat, and sexually mature males will produce a pheromone to attract females.

Mature sea lamprey. (Photo by MARLIN LEVISON/Star Tribune via Getty Images)

On the flip side, when a sea lamprey is bitten by a predator, it releases a warning chemical that others can smell, something Wagner compared to a smoke alarm.

Researchers hope to use those two attracting and deterring odors to guide sea lamprey away from the river passageway and into a trap.

From their perspective, everything is normal, Wagner said. The technique that weve been experimenting with is can we use this alarm cue to keep them out of the fish passage device and guide them over into another area of the stream where maybe we can use attractants or other approaches to get them into a trap and catch them.

He noted that its important to trap the sea lamprey, because otherwise it might eventually ignore the repellent odor and go into the river anyway.

Ancient tool could help new tech protect Great Lakes waters from sea lamprey

The mouth of a Sea Lamprey features 150 teeth and a tongue that is cerated. (Steve Russell/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

They need to get upstream to spawn. They have this one shot in their life. They could, as they become increasingly desperate to get to the spawning grounds, choose to ignore the risk, Wagner explained. Just like you might choose to ignore a smoke alarm if you need to run through the building to get out because the door is on the other side.

The goal of the project is to eventually automate the selective passageway, but for now, researchers will be monitoring and tagging all fish that go through the passageway, according to MSU. Trapped sea lamprey will be used for further research, public outreach on invasive species and in classrooms for dissection.

If the project is successful, the sorting system can be used at other spots in the Great Lakes and throughout the world, something Wagner said would be a critical conservation advance.

It is cutting edge work that were doing  for a problem that we believe can be solved, he said.

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Families who recently arrived in Erie as legal refugees were shown the ropes on Wednesday.

Catholic Charities hosted an orientation for about 20 adults who fled war-torn countries with their children in search of a better life.

The orientation is part of the refugee resettlement project aimed at giving new arrivals a shot at a successful start.

Chilumba Mulumba spent the last 31 years in a refugee camp in Zambia. His story is much like the other legal refugees who received a warm welcome from City of Erie Mayor Joe Schember and members of the Erie police department on Wednesday.

Refugees learn everything Erie has to offer at new arrivals orientation

Having the police around, it is very encouraging in that we are trying to adjust to life in the U.S. so they are trying all they can in order to help us adjust so that we may not be fearful, said Chilumba Mulumba, just arrived in Erie from Zambia.

About 20 families who are new to the city and the United States took part in an orientation by catholic charities. Its one of three agencies that helps them find housing and food while they learn to be self-sufficient.

We help them immediately looking for jobs and gain skills so the orientation process is part of that of how to get adjusted and adapted to U.S. culture, and immediately, theyre expected to be self-sufficient within three months so its a big task, said Sarah Speir, coordinator of educational programs at Catholic Charities Refugee Resettlement.

The new arrivals were especially excited to send their children to school in Erie. Its an opportunity thats not available in all of their home countries.

Millcreek group looking to push government study to Nov. ballot

I have a daughter. Shes 10 years old. But she couldnt go to school in Afghanistan right now because there are some prohibitions for girls going to school. I have a big hope for her to start her education here, said Noor Muhamed Nooraui, a legal refugee from Afghanistan.

For many, learning the language is the first step. Catholic charities is providing English lessons along with cultural immersion with the hope that these refugees will find happiness and security in their new home.

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MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG)  Wednesdays city-hosted Celebration of Life drew in hundreds, hoping to say their final goodbyes to the Mobile Civic Center before crews begin an extensive demolition project.

Pensacola man killed in Escambia County crash involving bicycle, pickup truck

This is definitely showing signs of age, Mobile mayor Sandy Stimpson said.

The event started with a handful of speakers who reflected on their memories from the Civic Center.

Immediately following the speakers, Mobile City Council members carried a paper mache replica of the civic center to the back of a hearse owned by City Council President C.J. Small. Small brought the hearse from the mortician business that he owns.

The ambient noise of the room was filled with the cries of Joe Caines Merry Widows.

When the back door of the hearse closed, the car horn honked, and the Excelsior Band started marching a lap around the Civic Center. Behind the band came an army of people there to celebrate the start of a new chapter in Mobile.

When I got up this morning to come over here, I didnt really know what I was getting myself into, William Odom, who was there to celebrate, said.

The short parade ended at the arena entrance on Civic Center Drive, where Stimpson took control of an excavator and knocked down the Civic Center sign.

I was here about 7:30 or 8 this morning and had a couple of practice runs to make sure we didnt embarrass the media, Stimpson said.

Dozens of people rushed to collect a brick from the small pile of rubble. Odom was one of them.

Odom recalled a memory of seeing a lightning bolt strike the corner of the Civic Center years before when he was leaving an event. The strike knocked a brick off the side of the building.

UPDATE: Search for Okaloosa County woman ends  body found

Maybe I shouldve kept the lightning brick, but now Ive got an actual brick, Odom said. Im really going to enjoy having this brick.

The city said they would make the bricks available to the public, but they are still trying to decide how to make them accessible.

The demolition of the current facility will make way for a new, $300 million Civic Center able to host an audience of 10,000 people.

Organizations have started putting items in an acrylic time capsule that will be placed somewhere inside the new Civic Center.

I think well probably have to catalog everything thats being put in there, Stimpson said.

Demolition will include the Arena, Expo Hall, and Theater. In July, a petition was created to urge the city to build a new theater large enough to accommodate dance recitals.

VIDEO: Destin teen arrested after leading Florida, Alabama law enforcement on chase: FHP

District 2 Councilman William Carroll addressed the issue at the start of the event, saying if the city can find the funding to build a new, $300 million facility, they can find the money to build a new theater.

We should be able to find the funding and the capital structure to build a new theatre, Carroll said.

While the current Civic Center is being demolished and the new one is being built, local dance groups have moved their dance recitals to the much smaller Saenger Theatre.

Stimpson said the price tag of a new theater would be around $120 million.

Its not an insignificant number, Stimpson said. Its not something that you go online and make a GoFundMe account and say were going to build a theater.

Previously, the city said a new theater likely would not come until after Phase 1 of the new civic center construction is complete.

Stimpson said the University of South Alabama is looking to build a new theatre on its campus.

Its not in the next couple of years, but its on their long-range plans to build a theater, Stimpson said. I think that we need a theatre downtown, Stimpson said.

Immediately following the event, crews started cleaning the building of asbestos. Stimson said true demolition would start by mid-September.

Bus driver holds student to save her from being injured in distracted-driving crash: Florida Highway Patrol

The two murals in the concourse will be removed and protected before being placed in the new facility.

Construction of the new Civic Center is expected to start in February.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WKRG News 5.
The city of Miami is offering a $25,000 reward for information on the authors of graffiti written on a Bayfront Park wall declaring that the Bolivarian fury is here, echoing a message widely used by the Venezuelan government to intimidate its opponents.

In Venezuela the message was most recently used by the government to dissuade voters from participating in the presidential election on July 28.

The threat is usually spray painted at night on buildings or homes linked to the opposition movement, as a warning that they could soon be targeted by paramilitary gangs linked to the regime.

Thousands of exiled Venezuelans living in South Florida protested alongside their brothers and sisters in Venezuela as tensions in Venezuela continue to rise after Nicolas Maduro refused to recognized that Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia won the most votes in the form of more than two-thirds of the tally sheets that each electronic voting machine printed after polls closed, at Bayfront Park in Miami, on Saturday August 17, 2024.

In Miami the message was written on a wall of the park where days earlier some 8,000 Venezuelans protested against what they called the latest attempt by strongman Nicolas Maduro to remain in the presidency through electoral fraud.

Bolivarian is a reference to Simon Bolivar, the 19th Century South American independence leader. The regime in Caracas calls the country the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

South Florida has the largest community of Venezuelans living in the United States and Miami is frequently mentioned by Maduro and high-ranking members of his regime as the capital of a permanent conspiracy to overthrow him.

The $25,000 reward was offered by the Bayfront Park Trust, a city agency, a few hours after the discovery of the graffiti. Its unclear when the graffiti first showed up, but it comments about began to appear on social media on Wednesday.

Some 800,000 Venezuelans have sought refuge in the United States in recent years, many of them to escape political persecution or the economic collapse attributed to the socialist regime in Caracas.

Gang members and people linked to paramilitary groups affiliated with the Maduro regime are believed to be hiding among Venezuelans living abroad, according to former Venezuelan police officials now residing in Miami.
Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy will be on the ballot in Arizona, the Arizona secretary of states office confirmed Wednesday to The Hill.

The Kennedy campaign has been notified we conditionally accepted 118,752 petition signatures, and those electors will appear on the ballot, JP Martin, a deputy communications director in the Arizona secretary of states office, said in an email to The Hill. They needed 42,303 to qualify.

The news about Arizona comes alongside reporting from The Hill that Kennedy insiders were coming together via phone Wednesday to talk about campaign developments. According to ABC News, Kennedy might exit the race by the end of the week and is thinking of supporting former President Trump.

Kennedy also announced Wednesday that he will address the nation on Friday about his political future. According to a press release from the Kennedy campaign, the speech will center on the present historical moment and his path forward and will occur in Phoenix at 2 p.m. EDT.

Donald Trump Jr., the former presidents son, said Wednesday that he is in favor of having Kennedy be a part of a government agency and allowing him to blow it up.

I loved the idea, love the idea of giving him some sort of role in some sort of major three-letter entity or whatever it may be and let him blow it up, Trump Jr. said on The Glenn Beck Program.

I think thats what we need. And so, I think that kind of unity, even where there may be certain disagreements on certain things, I think he could be a really great asset for that.

The Hill has reached out to the Kennedy campaign.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
RFK Jr. wants administration job in return for endorsing Trump, super PAC says

CHICAGO, (Reuters) - Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wants a deal with Donald Trump in which he endorses the Republican rival in exchange for a job in a potential Trump administration, a super PAC supporting Kennedy told Reuters on Wednesday.

Kennedy's campaign said Wednesday he would address the nation on Friday in Arizona, where he will talk about "the present historical moment and his path forward."

Kennedy is planning to drop out of the election and endorse Trump, but that hinges on whether the Republican offers Kennedy "and others" a position in the White House if elected, Larry Sharpe, outreach director with American Values 2024, told Reuters.

Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr speaks at Bitcoin 2024 in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. July 26, 2024. REUTERS/Kevin Wurm

Trump told CNN this week he would "certainly be open" to Kennedy playing a role in his administration if the independent candidate drops out of the race and endorses him.

Kennedy also wants Trump to allow his political movement to continue in some fashion, which could include staying on the ballot in some states, Sharpe said.

ABC News reported earlier on Wednesday, citing unnamed sources, that Kennedy plans to drop out of the race by the end of the week and endorse Trump.

Super PACs, or political action committees, can raise unlimited amounts of money for candidates but are prohibited from coordinating directly with the campaign. American Values has raised over $50 million in support of Kennedy, according to Federal Election Commission filings through June 30.

The Kennedy campaign did not respond to requests for comment from Reuters.

Kennedy's running mate, Nicole Shanahan, told Los Angeles media company Impact Theory on Tuesday that he was considering ending his campaign to join forces with Trump.

Trump has previously sought Kennedy's support, a phone call leaked to Reuters and other outlets in July showed. Shanahan in the interview released on Tuesday said Trump had taken an interest in their healthcare policies, making it worth exploring "a unity party."

Kennedy, 70, the son of late Democratic politician Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of the late President John F. Kennedy, started his presidential campaign as a Democrat, challenging President Joe Biden for the nomination.

An environmental advocate who has spread vaccine misinformation, Kennedy has yet to qualify for the ballot in many states.

Kennedy's support stood at 4% in an Ipsos poll taken this month, down from 10% the month before.

Reporting by Stephanie Kelly and Jasper Ward

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: RFK Jr. wants administration job in return for endorsing Trump
UPDATED: The Los Angeles County Medical Examiners Office on Thursday confirmed the cause of death for fitness guru Richard Simmons. The 76-year-old died as a result of blunt traumatic injuries with arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease as a contributing condition, the MEs office said in a statement. The death was ruled accidental.

Simmons reportedly fell at his home on July 11 and spent the following day in bed. He was found unresponsive on his bedroom floor the morning of July 13th. 9-1-1 was called and he was pronounced dead at the scene, the coroners office said.

More from Deadline

PREVIOUS, August 21: Fitness guru Richard Simmons death was a result of complications from recent falls and heart disease, according to his brother, Lenny Simmons.

A spokesperson for the Simmons family, Tom Estey, told People on Wednesday, This morning, Richard Simmons brother Lenny received a call from the L.A. County Coroners Office. He explained, The Coroner informed Lenny that Richards death was accidental due to complications from recent falls and heart disease as a contributing factor. The toxicology report was negative other than medication Richard had been prescribed. The Family wishes to thank everyone for their outpouring of love and support during this time of great loss.

His death was originally deferred, as additional testing by the Medical Examiners Office was needed.

Simmons was found dead on July 13, a day after his 76th birthday, at his Hollywood Hills home.

Born and raised in Louisiana, Simmons admitted he weighed 268 pounds when he graduated high school. By adjusting his eating habits and incorporating moderate exercise, he managed to lose weight. It was a methodology that he shared with millions over his career.

He moved to Los Angeles in the 1970s and opened a fitness studio, Slimmons, in Beverly Hills. His following there grew into the nationally syndicated The Richard Simmons Show on TV, where he gave fitness instructions to viewers at home. The show ran for four years and earned multiple Emmy awards.

He later was behind one of the all-time biggest fitness video empires with his Sweatin To The Oldies video series.

Simmons released 65 fitness videos over the course of his life, which sold more than 20 million copies, and authored nine books and three cookbooks, according to his website.

In January, he spoke out against an upcoming biopic being made about his life starring actor and comedian Pauly Shore, which Simmons said he never permitted.

I have never given my permission for this movie. So dont believe everything you read, he wrote on Facebook at the time. I no longer have a manager, and I no longer have a publicist. I just try to live a quiet life and be peaceful. Thank you for all your love and support.

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Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, center, served as chair of the State Election Board until former President Donald Trump's allies in the Georgia Legislature responded to the 2020 election by removing the Republican from the oversight panel. (File, 2019)

In the aftermath of the 2020 election, Donald Trump mounted a concerted effort to defy the voters verdict and remain in office, even if it meant fomenting violence and blocking the peaceful transfer of power.

Yes, he failed, but failure is a very good teacher. Trump and his allies had tested the integrity of our election system in a way that no one in American history had dared, and in the process they discovered where it was weak and where it was strong. They learned how and where to strike the next time, and here in Georgia they have been diligent in putting those lessons to work.

In 2020, for example, Trump and his co-conspirators learned that Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger was more loyal to the Constitution, fairness and the facts than he was to Trump. They also realized that if they couldnt remove Raffensperger as secretary of state, they could at least strip him of some of his power.

So thats what theyve done.

Back in 2020, for example, Raffensperger served as chair of the state election board, the appointed body entrusted to help conduct fair, legal and orderly elections. He and other members of the board at that time, Republican and Democratic alike, were sane, responsible, fact-based citizens who took the mission of honest elections seriously.

No longer.

Thanks to laws passed by Trump allies in the state Legislature, Raffensperger has been removed from the election board. Other members were removed as well, eventually handing control of the board to a three-member MAGA majority that is dedicated not to free and fair elections but to elections that Trump can win. Trump himself, at a recent rally in Georgia, celebrated those three members, by name, as his pitbulls for victory.

In 2020, Trump and his allies also learned the legal significance of certifying an election. Their plot to steal that election by creating fake presidential electors failed because Joe Bidens victory had already been officially certified. Their plot to get Congress to invalidate Georgias election through false claims of fraud was thwarted for the same reason.

So this time, using their pitbull majority on the state election board, they are trying to ensure that a potential victory for Kamala Harris could not be easily or quickly certified. They are doing so by a two-step process.

First, they are passing a series of last-minute, unnecessary, unrealistic and in some cases illegal rule changes in how elections are conducted. They have done so despite clear warnings from local election officials that they are setting up 159 counties for failure. According to the Georgia Association of Voter Registration and Election Officials, those changes will create unnecessary confusion among both the public and the dedicated poll workers and election officials who are critical to ensuring a smooth and efficient voting process.

If those warnings prove valid, if county election officials have indeed been set up for failure through rules they cannot realistically honor, then Trump will have the excuse he needs to challenge the election outcome and delay or halt certification.

Step Two is a direct assault on that process of certification.

Back in 2020, county election boards in Georgia had no authority to block final certification of elections. If conservative-dominated county boards were unhappy with an elections outcome, they had no legal power to challenge, overturn or delay it. All they could do was certify the numbers by the deadline required by law.

State law hasnt changed in that regard, but the unelected members of the state election board are trying to rewrite it on their own, bureaucratically. Through their rule-making power, they are telling local boards that if they doubt the validity of an election, for reasons real or imagined, they are now free to refuse to certify the results.

If an election cant be certified, then there is no official winner.

If there is no official winner, then alternate electors can come into play, or the state Legislature or Congress can be pressured to declare a winner on its own, in effect silencing the voice of Georgia voters. The door to election shenanigans swings wide open.

This is not a tolerable state of affairs. An important state entity has gone rogue, claiming powers it does not legally have, breaking laws that it finds inconvenient, and consciously, intentionally undermining public faith in elections that are the basis of self-government.

And so far, the Georgia Republican leadership that handed control of the state election board to Trumps pitbulls have been too intimidated by their far-right base to take that control away and put it back in responsible hands.

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WELLINGTON, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Greenhouse gas emissions decreased in 13 out of 16 regions in New Zealand in 2023, despite the increase of household emissions in most regions from 2022 to 2023, according to the statistics department Stats NZ on Thursday.

Household emissions accounted for 11 percent of New Zealand's total emissions last year, with the remainder coming from industry, Stats NZ said, adding total regional household emissions increased 105 kilotons, or 1.3 percent, from the previous year.

Between 2022 and 2023, household emissions increased in 11 out of 16 regions, primarily due to increases in household transport emissions, which increased 1.1 percent, or 83 kilotons, at the total regional level, it said.

South Island's Canterbury had the largest increase in household emissions, up 40 kilotons, or 3.9 percent, largely due to an increase in household transport, which made up 91 percent of its household emissions in 2023, statistics showed.

The population in Canterbury grew 2 percent, contributing to the growth in household emissions in the region, Stats NZ said.

The city also had the largest increase in emissions due to agriculture, forestry, and fishing, up 404 kilotons, or 3.3 percent, Stats NZ said.

The Auckland region had the biggest growth in population in 2023, but household emissions remained relatively unchanged, down 3 kilotons, or 0.1 percent, due to a decrease of 10 kilotons, or 0.4 percent, in household transport emissions, it said, adding this resulted in a slight decrease in household emissions per capita in the region.

North Island's Waikato had the largest decrease in total greenhouse gas emissions between 2022 and 2023, down 772 kilotons, or 5.3 percent, followed by Bay of Plenty down 358 kilotons, or 10.2 percent, and Northland down 348 kilotons, or 9.1 percent. 
Ridgeland leaders ban kratom from being sold in stores

RIDGELAND, Miss. (WJTV)  Leaders in the City of Ridgeland have banned kratom from being sold in stores.

The Madison County Journal reported Ridgeland police will work with location business owners to remove kratom from their stores.

The new ordinance bans the distribution, purchase, possession or sale of synthetic cocaine, other synthetic products or kratom. The newspaper reported violators could face a $1,000 fine or 90 days in jail.

Vicksburg man arrested after deputies seize drugs, guns

Extracted from the leaves of a tropical tree native to Southeast Asia, kratom is used to make capsules, powders and liquids. Its often sold in gas stations or smoke shops, marketed as an aid for pain, anxiety and drug dependence.

Proponents of kratom say its a safe, natural herbal supplement that can help manage pain and ease the effects of opioid withdrawal.

It acts as a stimulant in low doses and a sedative at high doses, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, which says kratom can be addictive and can cause hallucinations, delusions and confusion. The DEA considers kratom a drug and chemical of concern, but it is not a controlled substance. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration hasnt approved any drug products containing kratom or its main chemical components.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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(COLORADO SPRINGS)  The Colorado Springs Police Department (CSPD) is asking the community for help locating an at-risk adult who was last seen on Tuesday, Aug. 20 near North Nevada Avenue.

According to CSPD, 26-year-old Matthew Jamaal James was last seen around 9 a.m. on Tuesday in the 5400 block of Nevada Avenue, near University Village. CSPD said he might be trying to make his way to New Mexico.

Courtesy: Colorado Springs Police Department

If you have seen James or believe you know where he is, you are asked to contact CSPD at (719) 444-7000.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX21 News Colorado.
DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN)  A drug store chain has announced the closure of all locations in the Miami Valley.

According to Rite Aid, which filed for bankruptcy in Oct. 2023, all locations in western, central and southern Ohio will permanently close by the end of September.

AES Ohio making significant changes to all accounts

The company told WDTN.com that it would only operate four stores in Ohio beginning Oct. 1.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

The decision to close a store is not one we take lightly. We carefully consider various factors in our decision-making, including our overall business strategy. In addition, we were required to go through a retail sale process as part of our Chapter 11 process, which allows prospective buyers to bid on parts of our business. As a result, we made the difficult but necessary business decision to exit these markets. While we have had to make difficult business decisions over the past several months to improve our business and optimize our retail footprint, we are committed to becoming financially and operationally healthy. Rite Aid

If you are a patient who utilizes Rite Aid pharmacy, prescriptions will likely be transferred to a nearby Walgreens location, according to the company.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WDTN.com.
ROCHELLE, Ill. (WTVO)  The Rochelle Fire Department has been applying for grants for many years, and they were finally awarded one that gives them the opportunity to hire three new employees.

The Fire Department was received a Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant in the amount of $919,368. This substantial award, from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), allows the city to add three full-time firefighters to the Rochelle Fire Department. Fire Chief Dave Sawlsville said this opportunity will help address the lack of staff he has.

For the last probably 15 years, its been very tough to come up with a paid, on-call firefighters, or volunteer firefighters, Chief Sawlsville said. As those numbers go down, our call volume continues to rise. Eventually, you have to you have to look at our means of staffing.

Chief Sawlsville said that over the past few years, the demand for help has grown, and while his team is able to keep up, they have a lot of area to cover.

We would partner with the Ogle-Lee Fire Protection District to cover 135 square miles, Chief Sawlsville said. Whatever the call is, its us. We dont have the luxury of saying, oh, thats not our job. If they call 9-1-1 its our job. We have to be prepared and staffed and trained and equipped to make sure that we can handle all those calls.

City Manager Jeff Fiegenschuh said the Fire Department is crucial to the city, so the more help they get, the better protected the area is.

Ive been here seven years, and every year Ive been here, weve seen call volumes increase, Fiegenschuh said. There are multifamily housing developments coming in on the south side of town that are adversaries. Typically, older folks need more services. One of the reasons that we want to expand our fire department is because we need somebody to make those services happen.

Chief Sawlsville said the training process is stressful and long and most employees will not be out on the job for almost two years. He said that him and his staff are excited for the future of the department.

The hiring is just the first step in a really long process, Chief Sawlsville said. It was definitely a team effort, and it shows. A $900,000 grant is what happens when you can pull together a really amazing team, which we have.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to MyStateline | WTVO News, Weather and Sports.
Rochelle Police say Molotov cocktail used to start vehicle fire

ROCHELLE, Ill. (WTVO)  Rochelle Police are searching for a suspect responsible for setting a car on fire in July with a Molotov cocktail-like device.

According to authorities, around 9:19 a.m. on July 27th, police and fire were called to the area of 6th Avenue and Woolf Court for a car on fire.

Investigators were able to determine the fire was started by an ignition device.

No descriptions of suspect were given, and no arrests have been announced.

Anyone with information on the incident is asked to call the Rochelle Police Department at 815-562-2131.

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Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) said in a Wednesday interview it would be fabulous if former President Trump and independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. joined forces to win a hypothetical second term in office for Trump.

Johnson specifically cheered the prospect of Kennedy dropping out of the race to endorse Trump, and, in turn, getting tapped to lead the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in a hypothetical second Trump term.

I think its fabulous news, if it is true, if this actually comes about, where Bobby Kennedy endorses Trump, and Trump tells him that hell be HHS secretary. I think thatd be fabulous news, Johnson said in a radio interview on Cats & Cosby with hosts John Catsimatidis and Rita Cosby.

Johnson said Kennedy, a vaccine skeptic, would be able to clean house at government health agencies and work with Trump toward the goal of draining the swamp.

We have such an enormous problem in America based on chronic illness. Bobby Kennedy has been talking about that for years, and we need to completely clean house within the HHS, within the [Food and Drug Administration], within the [National Institutes of Health], within the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention], and I cant think of a better person to do it than Bobby Kennedy, Johnson said, while noting President Trump is going to have his hands full.

And I cant think of a better duo in terms of draining the swamp: Bobby Kennedy at HHS  and President Trump being in there and draining the rest of the swamp, Johnson added.

Johnsons interview comes amid speculation that Kennedy might soon end his campaign and back Trump. Kennedy on Wednesday announced he would address the present historical moment and his path forward in a speech this coming Friday.

Kennedy campaign insiders convened by phone Wednesday to discuss campaign developments, The Hill reported. ABC News reported that Kennedy could end his campaign by the end of the week and that he is considering endorsing Trump, but that no decision had been made yet.

Trump said earlier this week he is open to giving Kennedy a role in his administration.

I didnt know he was thinking about getting out, but if he is thinking about getting out, certainly Id be open to it, Trump said Tuesday in a CNN interview.

I respect him, he added.

Kennedys running mate, Nicole Shanahan, said in a podcast released Tuesday that she and Kennedy were weighing their options and were considering joining forces with the Trump campaign.

We are taking a very serious look at making sure that the people that have corrupted our fair and free democracy do not end up in office in November, she said.

Theres two options that were looking at, and one is staying in: forming [a new political party], but we run the risk of a Kamala Harris and [Harris running mate Tim] Walz presidency because we draw votes from Trump, she said. Or we walk away right now and join forces with Donald Trump, and we explain to our base why we are making this decision.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Emergency services, including over 500 people and special trains, have been battling a fire for the fifth consecutive day at an oil depot in Proletarsk, a town in Russia's Rostov Oblast, following a drone strike on Aug. 18, the Russian state-run media outlet TASS reported on Aug. 22.

The Rostov Oblast government told the media that as of the morning of Aug. 22, the number of injured firefighters had risen to 49. Fifteen were taken to the hospital. TASS reported that emergency services had managed to extinguish six out of 20 burning diesel fuel tanks.

As of Aug. 20, the area of the blaze was at 10,0000 square meters, local authorities told TASS.

Ukraine's General Staff later confirmed a strike on the Kavkaz plant, which stored oil and petroleum products for the Russian army.

The fire reportedly began after Russian air defense units repelled a drone, but debris hit an industrial warehouse at the oil depot, igniting a diesel fuel fire.

Proletarsk is located some 230 kilometers (142 miles) southeast of the regional capital of Rostov-on-Don and 340 kilometers (211 miles) from the border with the Russian-occupied part of Ukraine's Donetsk Oblast.

Read also: Ukraine targeted Russian S-300 air defense system in Rostov Oblast, military claims

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Tel Aviv  A new round of urgent talks aimed at hammering out a cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas was expected to kick off Thursday in Cairo  a follow-up to quickly-announced negotiations held last week in Doha. The results may show whether the optimism projected by the White House over the past week has been based more in reality, or wishful thinking.

One of the biggest sticking points between Israel and Hamas getting attention ahead of the talks was whether Israel would agree to pull back its military from Gaza's southern border with Egypt  the so-called Philadelphi Corridor.

President Biden had been expected to push Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to that shifting of forces on his call with the Israeli leader Wednesday evening. But on Israeli TV, Netanyahu rebuffed a report in the Washington Post saying he would pull the troops back from the border zone as "not true."

Netanyahu has stressed for months that Gaza's southern border must be closed and controlled by Israel to ensure that Hamas cannot smuggle in weapons via Egypt. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Wednesday that Israeli forces had destroyed more than 150 Hamas tunnels in the border corridor, but Egyptian officials have rejected Israeli claims that significant material support for Hamas comes via that route.

Sima Shine, a top Israeli expert on Iran who worked previously for the country's Mossad intelligence agency, told CBS News that if the cease-fire talks fail, then "not long after that we'll see, especially Israel and Hezbollah in a military-wide conflict," with Israel pulling in the United States.

Washington is Israel's most important backer and, as of last year, the U.S. had more than 30,000 troops stationed across the Middle East, according to the Department of Defense. Since Hamas sparked the ongoing war in Gaza with its Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel, the U.S. military presence in the region has increased significantly.

Shine said Iran's so-called "Axis of Resistance" includes proxy groups Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, the Houthis in Yemen and a number of militias in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Syria, which, "if we combine them all together," amounts to "hundreds of thousands" of fighters.

/ Credit: CBS News

While many Americans likely consider Iran the biggest security threat to Israel  and Israeli officials regularly refer to the Islamic republic in those terms  Shine says it's Iran's Hezbollah allies in Lebanon who represent the most immediate threat.

"Hezbollah is close to our borders. It is not Iran 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) from Israel. It's completely different. The military estimates it [Hezbollah] has around 150,000 rockets and missiles. They have precise missiles. This could be a devastating attack on Israel. No question."

A readout from the U.S. Embassy in Israel of Wednesday's call between Mr. Biden and Netanyahu notably highlighted the bolstered U.S. military presence in the region. More F-18 and F-22 warplanes, more naval destroyers, a submarine armed with Patriot missiles and the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group with F-35 fighter jets that arrived Wednesday from the Pacific all show that Washington stands ready to help defend Israel.

The talks in Cairo are expected to last through the weekend. Israel and Hamas have accused each other of sabotaging the negotiations for months. The U.S. said early this week that Israel had accepted a so-called bridging proposal  suggestions to close the supposed final gaps between demands from both sides  to get a deal done, but with some changes made.

Palestinians carry their children as they flee after an Israeli strike on a school housing displaced people in the Rimal neighborhood of central Gaza City, Aug. 20, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the militant Hamas group. / Credit: OMAR AL-QATTAA/AFP/Getty

Hamas says it wants to work off an earlier, July 2 proposal that was supported then by the U.S. and the United Nations. The militant group accuses Israel of changing the terms in that proposal  and the U.S. of accepting those changes due to a pro-Israel bias.

The health ministry in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip says Israel's war has killed more than 40,200 people, though it does not distinguish between combatant and civilian casualties. That toll includes 42 deaths and 163 injuries recorded over the previous 24 hours alone, the ministry said Thursday.

Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel saw the militants kill about 1,200 people and take some 250 others hostage, about 80 of whom are still believed to be held alive in Gaza.

DNC highlights Project 2025 and links it to Trump. Fact checking some claims.

Top three finalists are announced in "CBS Mornings" Mixtape Music Competition

Donald Trump heads to Arizona for U.S.-Mexico border tour
Republican strategist Karl Rove suggested Wednesday that independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. endorsing former President Trump could help the GOP nominee in Georgia and Arizona, two key swing states in November.

My gut tells me it probably helps Donald Trump, because the people who were for him because he was a Kennedy, I think they began leaving after Joe Biden pulled out on the 21st, so a small amount of help, Rove told Fox News in an interview.

But as you know, in a race like this, think about it. Did he have 10,000 followers in Georgia? Did he have 11,000 followers in Arizona? And then how did they split? Its probably not this positive, but it could have an impact, he added.

Roves comments came after multiple Kennedy insiders spoke over the phone Wednesday to discuss the state of the race. It also follows reporting from multiple outlets that Kennedy is weighing dropping out of the race and endorsing Trump.

The independent candidate will deliver special remarks Friday in Arizona, the same day Trump will be in the Grand Canyon State, his campaign announced Wednesday. The speech will focus on the present historical moment and his path forward, according to a press release.

Trump has said he would be honored to have an endorsement from Kennedy.

If he endorsed me. I would be honored by it. I would be very honored by it, Trump said during a phone call with Fox & Friends.

He really has his heart in the right place. He is a respected person, the former president added. Women love some of his policies, and I guess some people dont like some of his policies.

Georgia and Arizona are slated to be close races in the fall after President Biden narrowly won both states in 2020. The election handicapper Cook Political Report earlier this month shifted its ratings for both states toward Vice President Harris, as she rose to the top of the ticket following Bidens decision to withdraw from the race.

The Hill/Decision Desk HQs polling index shows Trump with a 2.7 percentage point lead in Georgia and a 0.1 percentage point lead in Arizona over Harris.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC)  Police said they were weighing charges Wednesday night after a stolen car crash in the City of Rochester.

According to investigators, witnesses saw a stolen Hyundai driving recklessly around Glenwood Avenue shortly after 7:00 p.m. The car crashed into a utility pole, which then caught fire.

The three people inside the car  a 16-year-old boy, a 15-year-old girl, and a 13-year-old girl  got out of the car before the fire started. Police said the 15-year-old was taken to Rochester General Hospital for an arm injury. The others were not hurt.

Police said they were considering potential criminal charges.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to RochesterFirst.
LONDON, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The gap in top grades between private and state schools in the United Kingdom (UK) has widened this year, an educational charity reported this week, as indicated by the results of the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) and A-level exams.

The Sutton Trust released an analysis on Thursday, the same day that the GCSE results were announced, highlighting the increased disparity in top grades between private and state schools.

According to the report, independent schools saw a greater increase in the percentage of grades at A level or higher, compared to grades in academies and comprehensives. The gap between the two types of schools therefore widened from 28.2 percentage points last year to 29 percentage points this year.

"This reflects a broader pattern of widening gaps between the most and least well-off young people since the pandemic and cost of living crisis," said Peter Lampl, founder of the Sutton Trust, who described the situation as "concerning."

The disparity between the two types of schools was also evident in top grades achieved at A-levels.

In an analysis released after A-level results day last week, the educational charity said this gap "has continued to widen since 2019."

This year, A*/A grades at independent schools rose by 4.5 percentage points from 2019, while at comprehensives the increase was 2.2 percentage points, and at academies, it was 2.5 percentage points.

The Sutton Trust also highlighted "stubborn" and "substantial" regional gaps in attainment across England, as shown by both exams, with London's top position in achieving higher grades remaining unchanged.

Lampl said "sustained investment in teaching, particularly in areas with lower attainment" is needed to close these gaps.

"Fulfilling your potential at school shouldn't be down to your postcode or how much your parents earn but sadly, this still has a major impact on attainment," said Chris Paterson, co-CEO of the Education Endowment Foundation.

In England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, GCSE exams mark students' completion of the Key Stage Four phase of secondary education, while A-level exams are school-leaving qualifications for students completing secondary or pre-university education. 
As misinformation continued to spread in the build-up to the 2024 U.S presidential election, one quote attributed to Democratic candidate Kamala Harris caught the internet's attention. On Aug. 17, one X user claimed the vice president once said she could ruin lives with "the swipe of a pen" (archived).

Similar claims appeared elsewhere on the platform, where one user's post had amassed more than 1.8 million views as of this writing (archived). It was captioned: "Power hungry Kamala Harris describing how she can ruin lives with the 'swipe of a pen' If elected, Kamala Harris would be a dictator on day 1."

Power hungry Kamala Harris describing how she can ruin lives with the 'swipe of a pen':

"I learned that with the swipe of my pen, I could charge someone with the lowest level offense. And because of the swipe of my pen, that person could be arrested, they could sit in jail for at pic.twitter.com/AX7HQEYhOB  Eric Abbenante (@EricAbbenante) August 16, 2024

The above X posts featured a video of Harris speaking at the Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Democratic Party's annual banquet during the 2020 presidential campaign. In the recording, she said:

I learned  I think I was, I don't know, 22 when I started that work  I learned that with the swipe of my pen, I could charge someone with the lowest-level offense. And because of the swipe of my pen, that person could be arrested, they could sit in jail for at least 48 hours, they could lose time from work and their family, maybe lose their job, they'd have to come out of their own pocket to help hire a lawyer, they'd lose standing in their community, all because of the swipe of my pen. Weeks later I could dismiss the charges, but their life would forever be changed. So I learned at a very young age, the power.

Snopes examined the claim and concluded the footage was real, meaning it was not AI-generated, digitally manipulated, or otherwise altered. However, it was missing context because the user only posted a small clip from a longer video.

The full footage, which was available on C-SPAN (at 18:58), showed Harris was referring to then-President Donald Trump. The quote above continued in the longer video (at 19:47):

So I learned at a very young age, the power, the power, to impact real human beings that we have when we hold these offices. And I was just a lowly deputy DA. Yet we have a person in the White House who holds the office of president of the United States who does not fully  or even partially  understand what it means to have power. Let's be clear about that. He goes around swinging what he thinks is his power, he doesn't understand  he doesn't understand what it means to be powerful. Because when you truly understand what it means to be powerful, you understand that the greatest measure of your strength is not who you beat down, it's who you lift up.

Harris told a similar story at a Google event in 2010: "It's an incredible amount of power, and you want to make sure that the people who have this kind of power are taking seriously the responsibility in terms of understanding, as much as anything, the impact on the people who will be affected by that."

Here is an example of what I was referencing in my post below



Kamala Harris in 2010: "The power I have as a prosecutor is that with a swipe of my pen, I can charge someone with a misdemeanor, the lowest level offense possible. And by virtue of that swipe of my pen, you will https://t.co/Xy1BTWV2gJ pic.twitter.com/CIdLMWS33z  Tony Seruga (@TonySeruga) August 6, 2024

In sum, Harris did once speak about the amount of power she wielded as a district attorney and how "the swipe of her pen" could affect someone's life, but she was speaking in the context of Trump not understanding "what it means to be powerful."

She did not specifically use the phrase "ruin lives," as several posts on X claimed.

Sources:

User Clip: 'Swipe of My Pen' with Context | C-SPAN.Org. https://www.c-span.org/video/?c5128567/user-clip-swipe-pen-context. Accessed 19 Aug. 2024.

'X.Com'. X (Formerly Twitter), https://x.com/TonySeruga/status/1820902718615298246. Accessed 21 Aug. 2024.
The Russian army is reinforcing its forces around the city of Pokrovsk, Donetsk Oblast, with the strategic goal of capturing it.

Source: The Economist

Details: The Economist writes that Pokrovsk is preparing for a "nasty, new phase of war." Russia sees its capture as a strategic goal because this city opens a springboard for an attack on Dnipro and Zaporizhzhia.

The article states that the police and local administration have fled the city, and two supermarkets have closed. Locals are queuing up in front of banks and pension offices, while some heed officials' calls to leave the city.

Quote: "Ukraines withdrawal from Avdiivka in February and a bungled rotation in nearby Ocheretyne in May set the stage for the charge on Pokrovsk. Russia is now 10 kilometres from the town."

"Ukrainian commanders give different reasons for the Russian advance. Some say there arent enough shells, with the enemy firing up to ten times as many. Others point to Russian tacticssmall infantry assaults, glide bombs, new types of electronic warfare. But exhaustion and manpower issues seem to be at the heart of the collapse."

Details: The Economist also reports that when Ukraine launched an offensive in Kursk Oblast, it was an expectation that Russia would withdraw its forces from the Pokrovsk front, but this did not happen. However, Russia just reinforced its forces near the city.

Background:

The Pokrovsk front remains one of the most intensive areas of the frontline. The majority of combat clashes were recorded there in the past month.

Serhii Dobriak, Head of Pokrovsk City Military Administration, said on 19 August that, given the timing of the advance of the Russian army, residents of the city have a week or two to evacuate.

On 22 August, Oleksandr Syrskyi, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, informed President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who visited Sumy Oblast, on the steps being taken to strengthen the Ukrainian defences on the Toretsk and Pokrovsk fronts in Donetsk Oblast.

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Russian attacks over the past day in Ukraine killed six people and injured 28, local authorities said on Aug. 22.

In Kherson Oblast, an 87-year-old woman was killed in a Russian strike on the town of Tomaryne, Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said. In the town of Kozatske, a 58-year-old was killed during nighttime shelling. Another 18 people were injured across the oblast, he added.

The electrical supply of the city of Kherson was also damaged by Russian strikes, leading to power cuts across the city.

In Kharkiv Oblast, two people were injured in separate Russian attacks across the region, Governor Oleh Syniehubov said. Civilian infrastructure, including local government buildings, was also damaged.

In Donetsk Oblast, four people were killed in Russian strikes, and another three were injured, said Governor Vadym Filashkin.

In Sumy Oblast, Russian attacks across the region injured five people, the local military administration said.

Zaporizhzhia, Mykolaiv, and Dnipropetrovsk oblasts were also attacked and there were damages, but local authorities reported no casualties.

Read also: Russian attacks against Ukraine kill 5, injure 31 over past day

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MOSCOW (Reuters) - Authorities in Russia's western Kursk region have begun installing concrete shelters to help protect civilians amid an ongoing Ukrainian incursion, the acting regional governor said on Thursday.

Russian forces have been fighting Ukrainian troops in Kursk, which borders Ukraine, since Aug. 6, when thousands of Kyiv's troops smashed through the border, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people.

"On my instructions, the administration of the city of Kursk has identified key points for the placement of concrete modular shelters  in crowded places," Acting Governor Alexei Smirnov wrote on Telegram. Some 60 bus stations would be equipped with the shelters, he said.

Smirnov published a photograph of one of the concrete structures being delivered by truck. The city of Kursk has a population of around 450,000 people.

The governor said the shelters would be erected in two other towns, Zheleznogorsk and Kurchatov. The latter is home to the Kursk nuclear power plant, which Russia has accused Ukraine of planning to attack, something Kyiv has denied.

Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), is scheduled to visit the plant at the end of August.

Separately, a Russian official said on Thursday that Moscow's forces had prevented Ukrainian troops from piercing the border in the western Bryansk region, about 240 km (150 miles) from the site of the battles in Kursk.

Meanwhile, Russian forces are pressing ahead with their own offensive in eastern Ukraine as they seek to take full control of the Donetsk region.

(Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Lucy Papachristou; editing by Andrew Osborn)
Russia launched a criminal investigation into CNN correspondent Nick Walsh and Ukrainian journalists Diana Butsko and Olesia Borovyk on the grounds of an "illegal border crossing" while reporting on Ukraines incursion into Kursk Oblast, the state-owned news agency TASS reported on Aug. 22.

Russias Federal Security Service (FSB) also said it would put out an international warrant for their arrest.

The journalists reported from the Russian town of Sudzha, which is now controlled by the Ukrainian Armed Forces following Ukraines incursion in Kursk Oblast.

Butsko told her outlet, Hromadske, that she saw the investigation as an attempt to pressure the independent press and hide the truth about what was happening in the area.

The FSB previousy opened a criminal case on similar grounds against a journalist and a cameraman of the Italian Rai 1 channel, Stefani Battistini and Simoni Traini, Meduza reported on Aug. 17.

Russia's Foreign Ministry on Aug. 16 summoned the Italian ambassador regarding the news team, accusing them of "illegally" crossing the border into Kursk Oblast and promising to press criminal charges against the journalists.

The Kyiv Independent also published a report from Sudzha but did not reveal the identities of the people involved for security reasons.

Ukraine started its incursion into Russias Kursk Oblast on Aug. 6. As of Aug. 20, the Ukrainian military said it controlled 1,263 square kilometers (488 square miles) and 93 settlements, including the town of Sudzha. President Volodymyr Zelensky said that another settlement was captured as of Aug. 22.

Read also: Morning in Sudzha: Inside Ukrainian-occupied Russia as Kursk operation continues

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Russia keeps trying to replace the bridges that Ukraine destroys. Ukraine is taking out those, too.

Russia keeps trying to replace the bridges that Ukraine destroys. Ukraine is taking out those, too.

Ukraine appears to be targeting Russian attempts to build temporary bridges in Kursk.

This comes after 3 permanent bridges were reportedly destroyed by Ukraine.

Ukraine looks to be trying to cut off Russian forces in the region.

Ukraine says it is destroying Russian pontoon bridges in Kursk before they can even be constructed.

On Wednesday, Ukrainian special forces released a video compilation that appeared to show attacks on several Russian efforts to build pontoons, or temporary floating bridges.

"Where do Russian pontoon bridges 'disappear' in the Kursk region?" wrote Ukraine's Special Operations Forces Telegram account, adding that its soldiers "accurately destroy them," according to Reuters' translation.

The claim comes after reports that Ukrainian forces had destroyed three permanent bridges over the Seym river in the western Russian region, in an apparent effort to isolate Russian forces there.

The footage, which Business Insider was unable to verify, was shared on the 16th day of Ukraine's incursion into Russian territory.

As of Monday, Ukrainian forces were "striking pontoon bridges and engineering equipment in the western part of their operational zone in the Glushkovo district," the Ukrainian think tank the Centre for Defence Strategies reported.

Satellite imagery seen by the Associated Press showed pontoons at two locations along the Seym.

One of them, between Glushkovo and Zvannoye, was visible in the imagery as of Sunday  but by Monday it had disappeared, with smoke rising nearby, the news agency reported.

The images were shared on X by Radio Free Europe reporter Mark Krutov:

A low-res @planet satellite image taken today, Aug. 19th, shows that the Russian pontoon bridge between Zvannoye and Glushkovo in Kursk oblast is gone, with smoke rising 500 meters away from where it used to be, on the 'Russian' bank. Makes sense if we speak about the withdrawal. pic.twitter.com/YxtaNeyOzh  Mark Krutov (@kromark) August 19, 2024

Ukraine says it has captured just under 500 square miles of territory in Kursk, and has set up a military headquarters there, in a sign that it intends to dig in for a while.

On Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he intended to create a buffer zone in the region.

The bridges destroyed so far are all along the Seym; their destruction appears to be an attempt to pin Russian troops between Ukrainian-controlled territory, the Ukrainian border, and the river, the AP reported.

The footage shared by Ukraine's special forces on Wednesday appeared to show drones targeting engineering equipment on the banks of the Seym being used to lay down the temporary bridges.

Other clips show vehicles  presumably carrying the necessary equipment  also being taken out by drones.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Russias Putin and Chinas No. 2 official praise deepening ties as Ukraine war grinds on

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday hailed flourishing trade ties with China during a meeting with a top Chinese official in Moscow as the two countries bolster their partnership in the face of mounting frictions with the West.

Speaking to Chinese Premier Li Qiang, Putin said Russia-China large-scale joint plans and projects in economic and humanitarian areas would continue for many years, according to a Kremlin readout.

Li, Chinas No. 2 official under leader Xi Jinping, had traveled to Moscow for a longstanding annual meeting with Russias prime minister, which focused on economic and practical cooperation as the Kremlin continues to look to Beijing for economic partnership as its war with Ukraine grinds on.

In his remarks to Putin, the Chinese premier hailed efforts by the Russian leader and Xi to inject strong momentum into deepening bilateral relations and cooperation, according to Chinese state media.

Lis four-day trip, which will include a stop in Russian ally Belarus, is the first visit to Russia by a high-level Chinese official since the Kremlins war with Ukraine took on a new dimension following a surprise, ongoing military incursion by Ukrainian forces into the Russian border region of Kursk two weeks ago.

Russia has been scrambling to repel that assault, which marks the first time foreign troops entered Russian territory since World War II and comes amid mounting pressure for a conclusion to the war in Ukraine, which began in 2022 with Russias full-scale invasion of its neighbor.

The Kremlin has become increasingly reliant on Chinas market, goods and investment since the start of the war, when it was slapped with broad international sanctions  and both Moscow and Beijing see the other as a key counterweight against a West they see as seeking to suppress their development.

In his meeting Wednesday with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, Li said China was ready to work with Russia to strengthen all-round practical cooperation and stressed that the countries relations did not target any third party.

The two nominal heads of government agreed to expand bilateral economic and trade cooperation and pledged to oppose any attempt to restrict their economic development, technological progress, and international development, according to Chinese state media.

Certain countries obstruct the collective rise of emerging markets and developing countries, the two officials said, using typical language to refer to their shared view on the United States and its allies.

An official readout from the meeting released by Chinas Foreign Ministry did not mention the war in Ukraine.

Speaking to Li, Mishustin said Russia and China were in a difficult external situation as Western countries impose illegitimate sanctions under far-fetched pretexts and seek to contain the economic and technological potential of Russia and China.

That is why it is important to concentrate efforts on protecting our common interests, building a multipolar world order and strengthening coordination on international platforms, he said, according to Russian state media.

Record trade

Beijing has faced mounting scrutiny and pressure from the West to curtail the export of dual-use goods such as aerospace, manufacturing and technology equipment to Russia, which Western leaders and Kyiv have alleged are propping up the Russian war effort.

Chinese officials have sought to present the country as a neutral, aspiring peace broker in the war, but have had limited high-level contact with Kyiv while continuing to deepen relations with Moscow across trade, diplomacy and security.

China last month hosted a top Ukrainian official for the first time since Russias invasion of the country nearly two and half years ago.

Last week, in response to a media inquiry on the situation in Kursk, a spokesperson for Chinas Foreign Ministry called on all parties not to expand the battlefield, escalate fighting and fuel the flame, saying China would continue to work for a political settlement of the crisis.

Wednesdays meeting between Li and Mishustin is part of annual talks held since 1996, typically focused on economic, cultural and humanitarian cooperation and seen as a means to implement broader policy direction set by Xi and Putin.

Following Wednesdays talks, the two sides signed a host of cooperation documents in areas including science and technology, chemical industry, maritime search and rescue, and cross-border cargo transport, according to Chinese state media.

Trade between China and Russia hit record highs last year, surpassing a target of $240 billion ahead of schedule. Russia has grown hugely reliant on Chinas market, goods and investment since it was slapped with broad international sanctions following its Ukraine invasion.

Bilateral trade increased by more than a quarter year-on-year in 2023 from 2022, but has only grown about 1.6% between January and July this year over the same period last year, according to Chinas customs data.

Li is expected to end his four-day trip in Belarus, where he will meet Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko for an in-depth exchange of views on bilateral relations and cooperation in various fields, Chinas Foreign Ministry said Monday.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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Russia to retaliate on Latvia's residence permit move, official tells RIA

(Reuters) - Russia will take steps to respond after Latvia made it harder for Russian citizens to extend residence permits, foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told the RIA news agency on Thursday.

Moscow would "continue to take tough measures, including those of asymmetric nature", Zakharova added, but gave no examples of possible steps.

She said Riga's moves, which include requiring a Latvian language test for Russians seeking to renew the permits, were arbitrary and contradicted a number of human rights treaties.

(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
LHASA, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Almost 12,000 talents in 10 batches have gone to southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region since a pairing-up assistance program was initiated 30 years ago, the regional government said Thursday.

Over the past three decades, the number of talents selected to assist Xizang's development has increased steadily, from 622 in the first batch to 2,117 in the 10th batch, said Song Liqiang, deputy head of the organization department of the regional Party committee, and such a talent himself.

The composition of these batches of talents, consisting of professionals, technicians, government officials and enterprise managers, has become more optimized over the years in terms of gender, educational background, age and professional structure, Song added.

In 1994, the central government made a strategic decision to rally national support for Xizang. Under the policy of pairing-up assistance for the region, some central state organs, provincial-level regions and centrally administered state-owned enterprises were designated to assist in specific areas of Xizang, injecting strong impetus into the development of the plateau region. 
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) has reported that Russian Colonel General Alexander Lapin, who oversaw security in Russias Kursk Oblast, dissolved the authority that was responsible for protecting the vulnerable border region months before Ukraine's operation.

Source: WSJ

Quote: "In the spring of this year, Colonel General Alexander Lapin said the military alone had the strength and the resources to protect Russias border, according to an official in Russian security services.

That plan left yet another hole in Russias weak border defences, which crumbled earlier this month when Ukrainian troops executed a lightning offensive across the border into Kursk. Ukrainian troops crossed the border to find Russian troops in disarray."

Details: The WSJ noted that "Lapin alone didnt open the gates to the first foreign invasion of Russian territory since World War II". The reasons for this were a critical shortage of personnel, as well as a mistake typical of Russia's top leadership, which is often unaware of the realities of the battlefield.

"Since the start of the [full-scale] war, Russias centralised, top-down thinking, one of the defining features of Russia under leader Vladimir Putin, has backfired on the battlefield. It has hampered sober planning in the Kremlin, and when those plans have failed, it has prevented Russian forces from improvising to react to fast-moving developments", the WSJ writes.

The WSJ noted that it was unclear whether the interagency council (which brought together military officers and local and regional security officials) that Lapin disbanded would have helped organise a coordinated response to the Ukrainian offensive. However, it is worth mentioning that without a centralised body in charge of Russia's response, Russian efforts to dislodge Ukraines forces have so far been chaotic and ineffective.

The Russian Defence Ministry did not respond to a WSJ request for comment. It did not release an explanation for basically letting Ukrainian troops cross the Russian border, either.

"Hours after Ukraines incursion, Russias chief of general staff, General Valery Gerasimov, said Lapins forces and border guards were working to destroy the enemy in areas directly adjacent to the Russian-Ukrainian border. Gerasimov hasnt made any public appearances since the incursion," the WSJ points out.

The WSJ emphasises that the initial reaction is reminiscent of the first hours of the uprising led by Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin in 2023, who moved his forces towards Moscow to remove Gerasimov and then-Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, whom he blamed for Russia's military problems.

Despite tons of signals in the days before the coup, the Kremlin was caught off guard and froze in the face of Prigozhin's actions.

The WSJ noted that Lapin knew that Ukrainian troops were amassing their troops near the Russian border and even sent such messages to Moscow, but the military authorities took no action, perceiving the Ukrainian manoeuvres as a tactic of psychological warfare.

When Ukrainian soldiers entered the no-man's land between Ukraine and Russia, they faced no resistance, and there were no territorial defence forces inside Russia to slow them down.

Ukrainian troops used electronic jamming to disrupt communications, leaving Russian troops unable to contact their commanders. Lightly armed Russian troops were trapped and scattered in the forest.

Quote: "The defensive planning was almost as disastrous as Russias initial invasion itself when military planners relying on faulty intelligence  and a belief that the Ukrainian military would crumble under a full-scale assault  sent armoured columns into Ukraine in parade formation, making them easy targets for drones and antitank weapons."

More details: When the Ukrainian soldiers entered Russias Kursk Oblast, the first armed resistance came from the 488th Motorised Rifle Regiment of the 144th Separate Guards Motorised Rifle Brigade, a unit composed almost entirely of conscripts who, according to Russian policy, should not participate in combat actions.

"It wasnt the first time poor planning and a lack of men had come together under Lapins command," the WSJ writes.

In particular, in early September 2022, it was Lapin who led a group of Russian troops and occupied part of Kharkiv Oblast. At that time, Ukrainian troops quickly broke through the Russian defences and liberated almost the entire oblast in a matter of days.

Following this defeat, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov called for Lapin's resignation.

For reference: Lapin was born in 1964 in Kazan.

From 2012 until 8 July 2014, Lapin was the Commander of the 20th Guards Combined Arms Army, which includes the 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade. According to an international investigation, the Buk missile system used to shoot down the Malaysian Boeing on 17 July 2014 was delivered to Ukraines east from the base of this particular brigade near Kursk.

In 2017, he was appointed Chief of Staff of the Russian troops in Syria. Then, in November 2017, he was appointed Commander of the Central Military District.

On 29 March 2022, Lapin decorated the military who "showed courage and heroism during the liberation of settlements in Chernihiv Oblast", including his son, Lieutenant Colonel Denis Lapin. A few days later, Russia completely withdrew its troops from Ukraines north.

Lapin also led the Centre Group of Forces, which took part in the battles for Lysychansk, Luhansk Oblast. On 4 July 2022, he was awarded the title of Hero of Russia.

Ukrainian intelligence noted that after Ukrainian troops successfully advanced in and liberated Kharkiv Oblast, Lapin was entrusted with commanding the forces of the Western Military District, which failed to capture the area.

At the end of October 2022, Lapin led the seizure of the town of Svatove in Luhansk Oblast.

In October 2022, Lapin was harshly criticised by Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, who called him a "fool" and blamed him for the "crisis on the Lyman front".

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Yo Putin

A group of Russian senior citizens recently gathered to deliver an unusual message to the country's president Vladimir Putin: bring those American astronauts home!

"There are two American astronauts in space right now," one man says in a Telegram video flagged by Ars Technica, referring to the astronauts currently stuck on the International Space Station by technical problems with their ride up, Boeing's troubled Starliner spacecraft.

"They have been in trouble for two months," he continued, while flanked by four women in the video. "Their Boeing broke down on the way. The engines failed, they somehow made it to the International Space Station. And now they don't know how to get back. We ask you to help them."

The video, posted Monday, is apparently part of a long running propaganda series, according to Ars, in which a bunch of random elderly Russians espouse on random topics such as how Russia should take back Alaska or lob unfounded accusations that Americans bombed the Nord Stream pipeline.

The videos are a sad bit of staged propaganda that seem to be geared towards a domestic audience, meant to boost Putin's image and the Russian space program. But in this particular case, they do have a ghost of a point.

Space Race

It's true though that NASA and the Russian space program closely cooperate when it comes to ferrying astronauts back and forth to the International Space Station, plus co-launching uncrewed resupply shipments.

But as for NASA's response to Boeing's troubles, not once has Russian help been mentioned. And it looks like the two stranded American astronauts will stay for several months, possibly returning home in a SpaceX capsule instead.

We can only speculate at Putin and his security apparatus' rationale for forcing a bunch of senior citizens to talk about the Boeing Starliner boondoggle, but it's clearly a risk-free move that bolsters the Russian space program while also denigrating American efforts in space.

Setting aside issues with Starliner, the video masks the true picture of space: America is once again in ascendency, and is racing with fellow superpower China when it comes to influence and ambitions in space.

And Russia, despite its deep history in space, is limping along.

More on Boeing Starliner: Boeing Official Says He's Not Surprised Company's Starliner Spacecraft Got Astronauts Stuck in Space
The aftermath of the Russian attack on Kherson Oblast. Photo: Ukraine's National Police

Russian forces have attacked settlements in Beryslav, Kherson and Kakhovka districts of Kherson Oblast with artillery, multiple-launch rocket systems, aircraft and UAVs, claiming the life of an 84-year-old woman and injuring 14 other civilians.

Source: National Police of Ukraine (NPU) on Telegram

Details: An 84-year-old woman was reportedly killed in her own yard due to a Russian artillery attack on the village of Antonivka. Additionally, 55-year-old and 42-year-old critical infrastructure workers, who were dealing with the aftermath of earlier Russian strikes, along with four other men and one woman, were injured in the attack on the village.

The aftermath of the Russian attack on Kherson Oblast.

Photo: Ukraine's National Police

A 64-year-old woman was injured in the Russian bombardment of the settlement of Mykilske. The Russians targeted the village of Komyshany in the morning, leaving a 72-year-old woman and two men aged 66 and 74 injured.

The aftermath of the Russian attack on Kherson Oblast.

Photo: Ukraine's National Police

Russian forces dropped explosives on the settlement of Kizomys from a drone, injuring a 57-year-old man. Another 57-year-old man was injured in a Russian drone attack on the Dniprovskyi district of the city of Kherson.

The aftermath of the Russian attack on Kherson Oblast.

Photo: Ukraine's National Police

A 54-year-old woman was wounded by a Russian drone on the central street of Kherson in the morning.

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Russian forces attacked 16 communities in Sumy Oblast on Aug. 21, injuring five civilians, according to the Sumy Oblast Military Administration. In total, 256 explosions were recorded in 113 separate attacks on the region.

The security situation in Sumy Oblast became more tense with the start of Ukraine's cross-border incursion into neighboring Kursk Oblast in Russia, which began on Aug. 6.

Sumy Oblast borders Russia's Bryansk, Belgorod regions and shares a 245-kilometer (152-mile) border with Kursk Oblast.

The communities of Khotin, Yunakivka, Myropillia, Bilopillia, Krasnopillia, Velyka Pysarivka, Putyvl, Nova Sloboda, Berezivka, Hlukhiv, Esman, Shalyhye, Druzhbivka, Seredyna-Buda, Znob-Novhorodske were targeted over the past 24 hours. The regional capital of Sumy was also under attack.

Three people were injured in the Krasnopillia community which the Russian forces struck with drones, missiles and explosives. At least 46 mines were dropped onto the town of Krasnopillia and surrounding areas, according to the Ukrainian military. One person was injured in the drone attack on the Hlukhiv community and another one in the Druzhbivka community. No details were provided on the extent of the victims' injuries.

Throughout the day, Russia assailed the border communities with mortar, artillery, rocket launchers, explosives, unguided rockets, and drone attacks. The town of Krasnopillia, with a pre-war population of about 7,700 residents, experienced the bulk of the attacks, with over 60 explosions reported in the area.

Ukrainian authorities are planning to evacuate a total of 45,000 residents from Sumy Oblast, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko told reporters on Aug. 20, amid ongoing attacks on the region. Klymenko said that about 21,000 residents have been evacuated from Sumy Oblast thus far, including 5,000 children.

Read also: Ukraine war latest: Ukraine destroys 3, damages around 5 Russian aircraft in recent attack, source says

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
"Rust" armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed has received a hearing date for a possible new trial.

The 27-year-old armorer was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in March 2023, only a few months before Alec Baldwin saw his involuntary manslaughter trial dismissed when a judge determined that law enforcement officials worked with the prosecution to conceal evidence from his lawyers.

Both Hannah Gutierrez-Reed and Alec Baldwin had been charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection with the October 2021 shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, who died on the set of the Western film.

'Rust' Armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed May Receive A New Trial... Or Get Her Old One Dismissed

MEGA

Following the end of Alec Baldwin's highly publicized trial, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed is hoping that she will get a new "Rust" trial or potentially even have her guilty verdict dismissed. Despite this being her first offense, Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer - who also presided over Baldwin's trial - sentenced the rookie armorer to the state maximum of 18 months behind bars after she felt that Gutierrez-Reed showed no remorse for Hutchins' death in phone calls recorded from prison that insulted the jury.

Although her appeal has been met with frequent legal delays, Gutierrez-Reed has an online online hearing set for September 27 at 3:30 PM EST, as reported by Newsweek. The court will consider her motion asking for an immediate release from detention and her motion to either get a new trial or have the old one dismissed. The hearing will be streamed live on the YouTube channel for the New Mexico court system.

Hannah Gutierrez-Reed's Lawyer Feels That She Is Being Used As A 'Scapegoat'

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Although Hannah Gutierrez-Reed pleaded not guilty, a 12-person jury found her guilty of involuntary manslaughter in less than three hours. She was acquitted of a lesser charge of tampering with evidence that had been added several months after the initial charge of involuntary manslaughter. A witness came forward claiming that the former "Rust" armorer handed her a bag of white powder on the day that Hutchins was killed. However, the witness claimed that they immediately threw the bag into the garbage can in a hotel lobby where the crew was staying. Although the prosecution argued that this white powder was believed to be cocaine, the bag of white powder was never found and the substance was never identified.

Gutierrez-Reed's lawyer, Jason Bowles, had previously argued that she was being used as a "scapegoat" throughout the trial. "They're trying to blame it all on Hannah, a 24-year-old," Bowles said at the time of her trial. "Because why? Because she's an easy target. She's the least powerful person on that set."

Jason Bowles Accused Prosecutors of Withholding Evidence During 'Rust' Armorer Trial

MEGA

In July, Alec Baldwin's trial was dismissed on the third day of witness testimony after Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer agreed with the defense that the prosecution had violated the Brady Rule and worked with law enforcement officials to bury evidence that could have been helpful to the defense. She ruled that, as a result of the misconduct, the only acceptable remedy was to dismiss Baldwin's trial with prejudice, meaning that he could no longer be criminally responsible for Halyna Hutchins' death. He and several other "Rust" producers are, however, still facing several civil lawsuits.

The week after Baldwin's trial was dismissed, Jason Bowles filed a motion also accusing special prosecutor Kari T. Morrissey of withholding evidence in their own trial. "There can be no legitimate debate that the state violated Ms. Gutierrez's due process rights," Bowles wrote in his motion, asking the judge to "order a new trial or dismissal of the case for egregious prosecutorial misconduct. The Court should also order Ms. Gutierrez's release." That hearing has now been scheduled for September, with the possibility of Hannah Gutierrez-Reed getting an immediate release from prison.

'Rust' Director Joel Souza Speaks Out After Fatal Shooting

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Director Joel Souza recently spoke to Vanity Fair about the fatal shooting and admitted that he didnt know if justice had been served when it came to Halyna Hutchins' death. I dont know, and I dont know what that even is anymore  Ill be very honest with you about that, he said. No one feels good about someone going to jail. If you feel good about that, take a hard look in the mirror.

He also did not want to comment on whether or not it was "fair" for charges to be filed against both the armorer and the film's main star.

Does it matter if I think its fair or not? There is an argument that says, if he checks it and starts fiddling around with it, hes creating a safety issue. And then there is another thing that says, its common sense, Jesus Christ. Be careful with this godd-mn thing, he said. So I dont know anymore, to be honest with you. The charges got filed. Thats what they decided to do. Was he overcharged? I dont know.

Joel Souza Decided To Finish 'Rust' For Halyna Hutchins' Family

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After the fatal shooting in October 2021, "Rust" left New Mexico for Montana and finished the film with a new cinematographer. Although Alec Baldwin returned to star and Joel Souza returned to direct, he admitted that there was a very long period of time where I thought I was just done ever doing this for a living. However, he decided to return in order to help Halyna Hutchins' family.

I knew that the movie being finished would financially benefit Halynas family, which is very important to me, he explained. And I know this can sound trite for people who arent creative, but her last work matters. People seeing her last work matters. That was the tipping point for me in the decision.
A Sacramento toddler was killed Thursday in a crash after the California Highway Patrol said a motorist failed to steer alongside a curve on an off-ramp near Interstate 5 in Central California, hitting a tree.

The crash also left the female driver and a 3-year-old male passenger hospitalized with injuries.

A 28-year-old Sacramento woman was driving south on Interstate 5, approaching the Coalinga Avenal rest area in a 2022 Kia Forte, the CHP said in a news release. She exited the highway but CHP investigators said she failed to negotiate the curve, careering into dirt and grass before the small SUV struck a tree.

Officers, who were alerted to the crash about 5:15 a.m., said a witness began to render CPR on a 1-year-old boy also in the vehicle. He was pronounced dead before reaching the hospital, the release said.

The Fresno County Coroners Office identified the boy as Amante Williams. He was three days short of turning 2, said Tony Botti, a spokesman for the Fresno County Sheriffs Office.

The driver suffered major injuries while the 3-year-old boy, also from Sacramento, suffered minor injuries, the release said.

Drugs and alcohol were ruled out as factors in the crash, the CHP said.

The investigation behind the crashs cause was ongoing.
Reality Check is a Bee series holding officials and organizations accountable and shining a light on their decisions. Have a tip? Email realitycheck@sacbee.com.

City Councilmember Mai Vang has rescinded her endorsement of RoLanda Wilkins for the Sacramento City Unified School District board after a video of the candidate sharing her views on Vice President Kamala Harris and Donald Trump surfaced. Vang told the Sacramento Bee that she made the decision with a heavy heart after the video was brought to her attention. Vang had also donated $1,000 to Wilkins campaign.

In an archived Facebook livestream from 2020, Wilkins, who is a community activist and nonprofit founder, said that she does not have a problem with Donald Trump and called Harris a derogatory term for women. The vlog centers around her criticism of several Democratic party leaders who she said have not done enough to support Black Americans, saying that they are worse than the KKK.

Wilkins said that she was shocked to learn that Vang rescinded her nomination, but that she understands and still respects the city councilmember.

Im not upset at Mai, she said. I think shes a wonderful city councilmember and I thank her for the support that she did give me.

A two-minute clip of the vlog has been making the rounds in the Sacramento political sphere. The clip includes Wilkins saying four more years of Donald Trump may be the best thing for Black people.

What it does is give those of us at the bottom who folks did not value, now we can rise up and take our own place. Those fake Black leaders, we gotta kill them. We gotta make them be out there pissing in the wind. They can no longer represent Black folks. Theyre not qualified, and they aint ready.

Wilkins is largely referring to Harris, who she criticized earlier in the video and in other Facebook posts, for claiming Black identity and for her career as a prosecutor in California. Wilkins takes issue with the presidential nominees involvement in passing truancy laws that disproportionately affected Black families and her disputed involvement in jailing marijuana-users when she was the San Francisco district attorney. Political experts have said that her home states high rate of incarcerating people of color hurt her support among Black voters nationwide during the 2020 primary election.

Dont be so in love with the image of a person that you dont even look to see if this b---- is poison, Wilkins says in the video.

In several other Facebook posts, Wilkins contests Harriss identity as a Black woman, drawing attention to her Indian heritage and questioning her loyalty to African Americans who are descendants of slavery. Harris has long publicly identified as both Black and South Asian American.

I dont see her as a Black woman, I just dont, Wilkins said in the video. Later on, she said whats going to make you think that Kamala really understands our struggle? Shes not even African American-Black  her fathers Jamaican and mothers from India, no disrespecting that, God bless you, they dont owe us anything.

Beliefs about the Democratic Party

In the full 18-minute vlog, Wilkins does not state support for the Republican party and said that she planned to vote independent, but did say that she preferred a candidate like Trump as opposed to liberal politicians who state support for the Black community but ultimately do not help them. She calls President Joe Biden the devil.

At least they are who they are who they are, she said. I can deal with a person who reveals themselves, who tells you who they are. Thats why, to me, Donald Trump doesnt scare me, it just means we need to pull together, which is what the hell we should have been doing.

She goes on to address Democrats who she says had the opportunity to help Black people, saying you didnt because you didnt want to appear like you were giving favoritism but yet you helped every other group. Earlier in the video, she said that she doesnt connect with politicians promises to help LGBTQ and immigrant groups because those issues do not involve her.

In another two-minute video posted to Facebook Tuesday, Wilkins addresses the controversial video, clarifying that she does not support Trump and that her words were largely taken out of context. She said that her words were sarcastically pointed at Black Democratic leaders who she said would be put in the same social position as the average Black person should Trump be reelected for another term. She claimed that her opponents supporters, such as the local teachers union, have circulated the video to her endorsers and maintains her right to share her opinion that Black Democratic leaders have failed Black people.

Right now in the Black world there is a big debate happening around the grassroots Black folks, everyday Black folks, feeling like Kamala wants our vote but she doesnt want to address our needs, and thats basically what I was talking about in the video, Wilkins said.

Wilkins said she will likely vote for Harris, but that people should be open to a dialogue that questions leaders allegiance to the groups they claim to represent. In a phone call with the Bee, she expressed regret for calling the vice president the swear word.

I probably shouldnt have said that word, Wilkins said. I think I got really emotional and it flew out of my mouth. Im a human being, sometimes I do stuff like that, but my community knows who I am.

Wilkins stands by her comments about Harriss heritage, saying that she feels Harris uses her identity as a Black woman to garner support among Black people without speaking to their needs directly.

My thing is that, this is what I am every day. No one has to Google me to see what I am, she said. We need to stop playing these racial politics with Black peoples identity. Im descended from people who were enslaved and in spite of the system Im still making waves.

Comment about Latinos

Wilkins was also asked to answer for a comment she made in 2018 in response to another Facebook user within the comment section of a post about crime rates among Black people in Chicago. The comment to which she was responding has been taken down.

I am not of Latino Ancestry and an a pure blood Black Woman, she wrote. Please stop trying to make me be concerned with other group. Because at the end of the day. They do nothing for us. Unlike you I worked and travel thought out South and Latin American as well as the US and most of them are anti Black. We are not in the same situation. If you cannot just focus on Black People please block me. I have no need for people like you. We are at war, the comment reads.

Wilkins said that the comment does not reflect her feelings about Latinos and that the war she was referring to was not between the Black community and Latino community, but within the Black community about how to handle the social and political issues they face. She felt frustrated with the distraction from the Black issues she was trying to highlight.

I meant we are at war with poverty  Black people are the disproportionate amount of the homeless,  she said. I was really talking to my own people, because in the Black community we are at war with each other.

Who is RoLanda Wilkins and who is supporting her?

Wilkins is a longtime community activist and founder of Earth Mama Healing, a Sacramento-based nonprofit that provides youth empowerment opportunities with a focus on health and wellness. Her many advocacy programs have put her in classrooms within Sacramento City Unified, Folsom-Cordova Unified and Elk Grove Unified School Districts, mentoring students and holding workshops. For more than a decade, Wilkins has organized a monthlong road trip across the country for high school-age girls to learn about the historical contributions of Black women. In 2008, then state Senator Darrell Steinberg named her the districts California 2008 Woman of the Year.

Her advocacy has long surrounded young Black women. Prior to starting the nonprofit, Wilkins worked for the Birthing Project, a nonprofit that mentored teen moms and sought to reduce infant mortality in the Black community. She was originally empowered to do this type of work after intervention by her sixth-grade teacher, Winnie Bender.

Thats why I do the work that I do with young people, she said.

According to the Office of the Attorney Generals charity registry, Earth Mama Healing Network is currently delinquent. Wilkins said this is because the organization had a bad bookkeeper, and that the organization is running under a new title, Earth Mama Healing Foundation.

The community organizer is running for Sacramento City Unified School District Area 3 seat with the blessing of Christina Pritchett, who currently occupies the seat and opted not to run again. Pritchett said she is aware of the video circulating but has not watched it. She will continue to support Wilkins candidacy.

I can tell you that seeing RoLandas work and seeing what shes done in our community is remarkable, especially compared to her opponent, Pritchett said. I really want to see the best person who really wants to work for our students win, and seeing what she does in our community, she is definitely the right choice.

Sacramento County Board of Education member Bina Lefkovitz also reaffirmed her support for Wilkins, saying that the video was concerning, but that she is satisfied with the candidates explanation of the posts and response to the criticism.

What I observe is that she embraces all the young people she works with, Lefkovitz said. At her core, she cares about kids and is not in the pocket of any special interest group.

Wilkins opponent for the seat is Jose Navarro, who unsuccessfully ran against incumbent Christina Pritchett in 2020. Navarro, an IT specialist and member of the Service Employees International Union, received significant financial support from the Sacramento City Teachers Association during his last campaign  amounting to nearly $120,000. Navarro has not yet reported any campaign contributions this election cycle.
This year, the Transportation Security Administration is prepping for the busiest Labor Day weekend on record. With peak travel expected on Aug. 28, TSA across the country is expected to screen more than 17 million people.

People are traveling more than ever this summer and TSA along with our airline and airport partners stand ready to close the busiest summer travel period on record during this upcoming Labor Day weekend, TSA Administrator David Pekoske said in a national press release.

After an international software glitch last month canceled more than 6,000 Delta flights and affected millions of travelers flight plans, some may be holding their breath, hoping their travel plans go smoothly. According to a new Jettly study, the likelihood of a change in flight status varies depending on where youre traveling to and from.

Top three most on-time airports:

Daniel K. Inouye International, Hawaii (HNL)  92%. Minneapolis-St. Paul International, Minnesota (MSP)  91%. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International, Georgia (ATL)  90%.

Top three airports with the most canceled flights:

Louis Armstrong New Orleans International, Louisiana (MSY)  17.77%. Orlando International, Florida (MCO)  6.35%. Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International, Florida (FLL)  4.95%.

Salt Lake City International Airport ranked fifth for on-time departures over Labor Day weekend, with 89% of flights leaving as scheduled.

The airport team works diligently to prepare for busy holiday periods to ensure our passengers have a smooth experience from curb to gate, director of communication & marketing at Salt Lake City International Airport, Nancy Volmer, told the Deseret News.

This includes coordinating with all of our partners  from the airlines to security  to prepare for increased passengers, such scheduling additional staff. Passengers can help too by arriving early, packing according to TSA guidelines and being patient, she added.

The study also reported that 15% of Labor Day flights saw schedule delays in the last five years, and only 1.54% were canceled. Cancellation and delays can be likelier depending on the airline.

Top three airlines with the most delayed flights:

JetBlue Airways  21%. Allegiant Air  18%. Southwest Airlines  17%.

Fortunately, Utahs international airport is a hub for Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines, and according to Jettly, the airline was second behind Hawaiian Airlines for most on-time flights (91%).
(KRON)  A San Rafael resident was arrested Wednesday night after authorities said he stalked three separate female victims, according to the San Rafael Police Department. Willie Jessie Clinton-Jones, 44, is a registered sex offender with several arrests in the city since 2017 and was out on parole with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, police said.

At around 9 p.m., the police department received reports of Clinton-Jones allegedly stalking and crudely gesturing to three separate female victims along Second, B and C streets, SRPD said.

One victim was followed and harassed in a local grocery store before Clinton-Jones left the business, according to police. A second victim was harassed and chased for several city blocks, which ended when the victim got another persons attention, SRPD said. In the third incident, Clinton-Jones allegedly followed a woman to a residence and then fled once the victims spouse appeared.

Obviously, all three victims were traumatized by Clinton-Jones dangerous and lewd behavior, San Rafael PD wrote in a social media post.

Arrest made in 51-year-old Marin County cold case

Clinton-Jones was released from jail a day before the three incidents unfolded. San Rafael police said he had been arrested and booked for being under the influence of drugs and a parole violation.

Clinton-Jones is known to SRPD for several arrests involving dangerous and indecent criminal acts, police said. Clinton-Jones conviction history includes two cases of annoying or molesting a child under 18 years of age in 2018 and 2021, and indecent exposure in 2019, according to Californias Megans Law website.

Officers located Clinton-Jones within 45 minutes of the first report Wednesday, SRPD said. He was arrested and booked into the Marin County Jail for felony stalking and violating parole. Clinton-Jones is being held without bail due to a parole hold.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the San Rafael Police Department at (415)-485-3000.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4.
A delegation led by Elchin Amirbeyov, the Special Representative of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, is on a business trip in Southeast Asia to expand cooperation with international organisations specialised in mine risk management and exchange experiences, Azernews reports.

During the visit, the Azerbaijani delegation held a meeting with General-Lieutenant Nattavut Sabyeroop, the Director General of the Thailand Mine Action Centre.

The purpose of the meeting was to exchange knowledge and experience in humanitarian mine action, discuss joint training programs, innovative approaches and methods in demining operations, as well as potential capacity building and technical assistance.

Elchin Amirbeyov provided information about the scale of the mine problem facing Azerbaijan and emphasised the importance of increasing international attention and support to address this issue. He noted that the meeting would make a significant contribution to the development of cooperation in this field.

Vugar Suleymanov, Chairman of ANAMA's Board, highlighted the need for close and direct inter-agency communication, considering the long-standing experience of both organisations in humanitarian mine action. V. Suleymanov invited representatives of the Thailand Mine Action Centre (TMAC) to an upcoming international conference on mine risk management planned to be held in Azerbaijan.

The meeting included discussions on the activities of both ANAMA and the Thailand Mine Action Centre in the field of mine risk management, as well as achievements in this direction. The exchange of experiences and potential future cooperation regarding the establishment of the ANAMA-UNDP International Centre for Advanced Mine Action Practices and Training were also discussed.

Rotna But, Executive Director of the ASEAN Regional Mine Action Center (ARMAC), expressed the importance of expanding cooperation between mine action organizations of ARMAC member countries and ANAMA.

The Director General of the Thailand Mine Action Center also expressed their readiness for experience and training exchanges with Azerbaijan.

The meeting at the Thailand Mine Action Center was organized by ARMAC, the regional organization for mine risk management among ASEAN member countries.

During the visit, meetings continue to focus on learning international best practices in mine risk management, exchanging experiences, and raising international awareness about Azerbaijan's existing mine problem.




People visit the booth of Chinese automaker BYD during the Busworld Europe in Brussels, Belgium, Oct. 7, 2023. (Xinhua/Pan Geping)

The China Chamber of Commerce to the EU (CCCEU) urged the EU to promote free trade, respect globalization, and support the global green transition by canceling the countervailing duties on Chinese-manufactured EVs.

BRUSSELS, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The European Union's planned tariffs on electric vehicles (EVs) imported from China have drawn criticism from industry insiders, who warned that the protectionist measures could exacerbate trade tensions between the two sides and send a negative signal to global cooperation and green development.

The European Commission released on Tuesday its draft decision to impose definitive countervailing duties on imports of EVs from China, ranging from 17 percent to 36.3 percent, which is subject to approval by EU member states at the end of this month.

The move came after the commission imposed provisional additional tariffs on Chinese EV makers in July, following its anti-subsidy probe on Chinese EVs launched in October 2023.

The China Chamber of Commerce to the EU (CCCEU) strongly criticized the EU's protectionist stance, expressing "deep dissatisfaction."

The Brussels-based business group argued there is insufficient evidence to prove that Chinese EVs cause substantial material injury to the EU market, noting the allegation of "threat of injury" used by the EU to justify imposing these trade measures is "contrary to fair trade principles and unacceptable to the industry."

The tariffs are "not based on proven facts," but on assertions to justify them, said Ferdinand Dudenhoeffer, director of the Center for Automotive Research in Bochum, Germany.

"The European Commission's unfair use of trade tools to hinder free trade in electric vehicles, along with this protectionist approach, will ultimately weaken the resilience of the European electric vehicle industry, disrupt the level playing field, and undermine the EU's own green transition," the CCCEU said in a statement.

"Moreover, it will exacerbate trade tensions between China and the EU, sending a profoundly negative signal to global cooperation and green development," it added.

Echoing these concerns, Hrvoje Prpic, president of the Croatian EV Drivers Association, said the EU tariffs on Chinese EVs are "not helpful" and "not beneficial" for European manufacturers who are struggling to keep pace with the rapidly developing EV industry.

Prpic noted it is the European consumers who would bear the cost as the tariffs would make the Chinese EVs much more expensive.

"The end users are the ones who will have to eventually pay for it," he said, adding that it is "definitely not good" for the whole European market.

Staff members work at the NIO Power Europe Plant in Biatorbagy, Hungary, March 18, 2024. (Xinhua/Zhang Fan)

The CCCEU urged the EU to promote free trade, respect globalization, and support the global green transition by canceling the countervailing duties on Chinese-manufactured EVs.

"This action would encourage mutual benefit, strengthen the collaborative development of the automotive industry chain between China and Europe, and boost green trade. It would also contribute meaningfully to global efforts to combat climate change," the CCCEU said.

China's Ministry of Commerce also condemned the EU's tariffs on Tuesday, stating that the country would take all necessary measures to protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises.

The ministry emphasized that more than 10 rounds of technical consultations have been held since late June, urging the EU to take practical steps to prevent the escalation of trade disputes.

Earlier this month, China filed an appeal with the World Trade Organization, challenging the EU's imposition of provisional additional tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles. 
SANTEE, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI)  A Santee firefighter is raising concerns about the citys lack of fire stations, which he believes is putting residents lives at risk. The firefighter is urging voters to support a new ballot measure aimed at addressing the issue.

Captain Patrick Henry, who has served in Santee for 15 years, said that the city has only two fire stations protecting a population of more than 60,000. He noted that in 2000, the city had 18 firefighters on duty, but now there are only 17, despite the citys growth.

Henry emphasized that the current shortage of personnel has led to response times of over eight minutes to the northern and southern ends of the city. He is pushing for the construction of at least two more fire stations, including one in the northern section of Santee, where developers have been trying to build more than 3,000 homes as part of the Fanita Ranch project. The project would include a new fire station.

That fire station would have to be paid for by the developer, according to a spokesperson for Yes on Measure S, as the new ballot initiative deals only with meeting the needs of current Santee residents.

Henry, skeptical that the Fanita Ranch project will ever be built, is supporting Measure S. The measure proposes a half-cent sales tax increase for 15 years, with funds going into infrastructure improvements and six additional firefighter positions. The initiative would help fund the construction of at least two more fire stations in Santee.

Mayor John Minto has supported the Fanita Ranch project, because he said it would help ease Californias housing crisis. The project would set aside more than 2,000 acres as wildlife habitat and include amenities such as lakes, orchards, and vineyards.

However, the project has faced legal challenges. Earlier this month, a San Diego judge ruled in favor of environmental groups opposing the development due to concerns about wildlife habitat encroachment and wildfire risks.

John Buse of the Center for Biological Diversity argued that new residents from the Fanita Ranch development would strain the citys evacuation routes during emergencies.

Henry acknowledged that raising taxes is a difficult decision but believes it is necessary for public safety. The measure will be on the November ballot and requires more than 50% of the vote to pass.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News.
The Arkansas Supreme Court sided with state officials in a ruling on Thursday that will keep an abortion rights question off the ballot in November over what is, essentially, a paperwork issue.

The court upheld state officials decision to reject certain signatures that were collected by paid petitioners. The officials had found that the organizers behind the effort to get the amendment on the ballot  which would protect abortion access in the state  submitted the signatures in a way that did not comply with state law.

Per the Associated Press:

Election officials said Arkansans for Limited Government failed to comply with state law primarily because it submitted documentation regarding paid signature gatherers separately and not in a single bundle. The group argued that it should have been given more time to provide any additional documents needed. We find that the Secretary correctly refused to count the signatures collected by paid canvassers because the sponsor failed to file the paid canvasser training certification in the way the law requires, Justice Rhonda Wood wrote for the 4-3 majority. A dissenting justice wrote that the decision strips Arkansans of their rights and effectively changes the states initiative law.

Nepo baby-turned-Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders  who is vehemently anti-abortion  celebrated the decision, and even took credit for the ruling in a tweet on Thursday.

Proud I helped build the first conservative Supreme Court majority in the history of Arkansas and today that court upheld the rule of law, and with it, the right to life.  Sarah Huckabee Sanders (@SarahHuckabee) August 22, 2024

Abortion is currently banned in Arkansas, with exceptions only if the pregnant persons life is in danger.

This effort has generated a wave of fiercely engaged Arkansas women, Arkansas for Limited Government, the group behind the measure, said in a statement to the AP. We are outraged. We will not back down. And we will remember this in November.

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Saturday Night Live star Kenan Thompson skewers Project 2025, talks to Americans who could be affected at the DNC

Saturday Night Live star Kenan Thompson made fun of the conservative Project 2025 and talked to Americans that could be affected by its proposals while on stage at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday night.

Thompson walked out onto the stage carrying a large prop book that appeared to be the conservative Project 2025, a 920-page document.

You ever seen a document that could kill a small animal and democracy at the same time? Here it is, Thompson said to laughter from the audience. He also likened the document to the terms and conditions of a second Trump presidency.

He then spoke with Americans over video who could be affected by proposed Project 2025 policies organized by The Heritage Foundation think tank and developed in significant part by people who served in Trumps administration.

After some technical snafus, Thompson spoke over video with a woman named Becky, who said she has been with her wife for about 8 years.

Thompson said he had some bad news for Becky, referring to part of Project 2025 that calls for the elimination of protections for LGBTQ+ Americans. He added that the policy is like going right back to the Stone Age.

He then spoke with a person named Nirvana, who is on insulin to manage her diabetes. Nirvana said thanks to President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, she only pays $35 per month for her insulin.

That is great, Thompson said, but then shot that down too, citing another page of Project 2025 that calls for millions of people to pay more for prescription drugs like insulin.

Then came Anita, who is an OBGYN who delivers babies and does surgery.

Uh oh, Thompson said. On page 459, Projects 2025 resurrects a law from the 1800s called the Comstock Act to ban abortion nationwide and throw healthcare providers in jail.

That is awful, Anita replied.

Lastly, Thompson spoke to a proud civil servant who works for the Department of Education.

Well, unfortunately for you, on page 78, Project 2025 calls for President Trump to purge the civil service of everyone who isnt a Maga loyalist, Thompson stated. He also referred to another excerpt of the document, which calls for the complete elimination of the Department of Education.

Thompson ended his presentation by reminding viewers that everything that they spoke about is very real and in this book.

Most importantly you can stop it from ever happening by electing Kamala Harris as the next President of the United States.

Former President Donald Trump has repeatedly sought to distance himself from Project 2025. In a post to his social media site, Trump claimed, I know nothing about Project 2025.

Other famous faces on the DNC stage on Wednesday night included Stevie Wonder, who performed Higher Ground, and host for the evening Mindy Kaling.

CNNs MJ Lee contributed to this report.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO)  A six-month investigation into the sudden closure of a Sioux Falls spa business has come to a quiet close.

Man wanted, accused of sexual misconduct with minor

The South Dakota Attorney Generals Office told KELOLAND News they had started an investigation into The Sauna Haus in February, 2024 after receiving three formal complaints since mid-January.

These complaints came after The Sauna Haus permanently closed on January 14, 2024, leaving a number of customers who had prepaid for services asking where their money went.

Customer concern after sudden sauna business closure











The Better Business Bureau had also received complaints about the business as well, and was advising customers to dispute charges on their credit cards and to reach out to the Attorney Generals Office.

On Wednesday, KELOLAND News was informed by the Attorney Generals Office the investigation by the Consumer Protection Division had come to an end, finding nothing actionable by the AGs 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 KELOLAND.com.
A former Florence County Sheriffs deputy accused of fatally shooting a speeding driver and whose police dog mauled an innocent civilian has been charged with manslaughter, according to the South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division.

Florence County deputy Treyvon Jonathan Sellers, 29, was charged Wednesday with voluntary manslaughter, assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, and misconduct in office, according to a SLED press release, affidavits and warrants in the case.

Sellers is in custody at the Florence County Detention Center and being held, according to the jails web site on Thursday morning. No bond has been set for him.

The events that led to Wednesdays charges took place on May 26 and began with a high speed pursuit several miles east of Florence by Sellers of a fleeing driver identified as Dewayne Rankin, according to SLED.

After four minutes, Rankins vehicle struck a tree in front of a residence. Rankin jumped out and ran inside, followed quickly by Sellers and his unleashed police dog, Ikar. The dog quickly apprehended the homeowner and began actively mauling him, according to warrants.

Then, Sellers encountered Rankin, who was unarmed and lying on a couch... (and) discharged his department-issued handgun five times, unlawfully killing Rankin..., a warrant charging Sellers with voluntary manslaughter said.

Another warrant, charging Sellers with assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, said the deputy took Ikar off his leash without knowing who might be in the house and gave him the apprehend command with reckless disregard to .... the risk of great bodily injury to another person.

Sellers gave K9 Ikar incorrect commands and did not use available resources to remove K9 Ikar, the warrant said, adding the dog mauled the homeowner for 87 seconds. The homeowner sustained permanent disfigurement to his left arm and left shoulder, the warrant said. The entire incident was recorded on video, the warrant said.

The homeowner mauled by the dog was identified by officials as Johnny Cooper.

The case will be prosecuted by the S.C. Attorney Generals office, a SLED press release said.

Florence County Sheriff T.J. Joye released a statement that said, I have personally met with the families of Mr. Rankin and Mr. Cooper where I have been as candid and transparent as I know how, and I have expressed my deep regret and sorrow over this incident. Our office and our officers are held to a high standard.

This incident is not indicative of our values, our mission or our training, the sheriff said. As your sheriff, I stand for doing the right thing for our citizens regardless of the circumstances.

Immediately following the May incident, the sheriff said, he placed Sellers on administrative leave and requested a full and independent SLED investigation.

On July 25, 2024 while on administrative leave, Sellers was investigated by Darlington County Sheriffs Office and SLED for Domestic Violence, Sheriff Joye said. The next day I terminated Sellers employment with this agency. This matter is now in the hands of the judicial system.
A Richland School District 1 board member used a district phone to take inappropriate photos of a teacher during a public meeting last spring and shared them with others via text message and email, according to a lawsuit filed against the district and the board member.

Jamie Devine, a longtime Richland 1 school board member, took multiple inappropriate, upskirt photographs of the teacher at the meeting without her knowledge or consent while she was sitting in the front row next to her husband, according to the lawsuit.

His conduct was so extreme and outrageous as to exceed all possible bounds of decency and must be regarded as atrocious and utterly intolerable in a civilized community, the lawsuit, filed by Spartanburg attorney Tyler Rody, read.

Devine, husband of state Sen. Tameika Isaac Devine, D-Richland, could not be reached for immediate comment Thursday afternoon. The school district declined to comment.

Ali De La Cruz, an adult education teacher at Richland 1, regularly attends school board meetings.

She criticized the district during the public participation session of the April 23 school board meeting, claiming it failed to evaluate her daughter with ADHD after several requests to do so, the lawsuit said. At that meeting, De La Cruz also faulted the district for its budget and for not being able to hire psychologists to assist students with learning disabilities.

The photos, the lawsuit claims, were taken on a phone that was property of the school district with harmful intent. It was a crime of moral turpitude, the lawsuit said.

Devine took the photos for his own sexual gratification or the sexual gratification of others, the lawsuit alleges, and distributed the photos to others via text message and email to harass, intimidate, and/or embarrass De La Cruz while acting in his official role as a school board member.

It was retaliation for De La Cruz critique of school board conduct, the lawsuit claims, which was protected free speech under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Such retaliation would deter an ordinary person from speaking at future school board meetings.

The lawsuit blamed the school district for developing and maintaining policies and practices of deliberate indifference towards the constitutional protections of citizens.

De La Cruz has since experienced embarrassment and emotional distress, the lawsuit said, and Devine was further accused of negligence and voyeurism. He was also accused of violating the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, which is meant to shield citizens from discrimination, because Devine would not have taken the photos had De La Cruz not been a woman. According to the lawsuit, it was sexual harassment.
Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey leans over to speak with outgoing Sen. Nikki Setzler, D-West Columbia, during a legislative hearing held Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, addressing the future energy needs of the state. (Jessica Holdman/SC Daily Gazette)

COLUMBIA  A South Carolina Senate panel began work Thursday to make good on a pledge to address the future of energy in the rapidly growing Palmetto State.

The Special Committee on South Carolinas Energy Future came about after the Senate shut the lights off on an 80-page piece of legislation that would have paved the way for a new power plant in South Carolina while also overhauling the states utility regulations.

Earlier this year, state-owned utility Santee Cooper sought legislative permission to partner with Virginia-based utility company Dominion Energy on a 2,000-megawatt natural gas-fired power plant, which the companies wanted to build on the site of a former coal-fired power plant along the Edisto River in Colleton County. Santee Cooper CEO Jimmy Staton estimated that plant could cost up to $2.5 billion to build.

At the same time, legislation to allow the partnership introduced sweeping regulatory changes criticized by environmental and consumer groups.

The bill sailed through the House in March and advanced in the Senate committee level without testimony from consumer advocates. But it ran into a wall of opposition on the Senate floor over concerns the process was being rushed.

Refusing to ram a complicated bill through in the legislative sessions closing days, senators voted instead to turn the legislation into a promise to deal with the issue this fall.

Dominion Energy South Carolina President Keller Kissam,left, leans in to speak with Mike Callahan, president of Duke Energys utility operations in S.C., in a crowded legislative hearing room Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024. (Jessica Holdman/SC Daily Gazette)

To start Thursday, the special committee heard from executives of the states three major utilities. Over the next couple months, customers, environmentalists, and economic development officials are expected to testify. The goal is to have a bill ready by the time the new legislative session starts in January 2025.

Among those who wanted to see the issue vetted further was chairman of the special committee, Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey, who said he still felt the burn of the last partnership between Santee Cooper and Dominions predecessor South Carolina Electric & Gas.

In 2007, the companies asked state lawmakers to pass the now-notorious Base Load Review Act. The law blessed plans for what was to be two first-of-their-kind nuclear reactors alongside a unit in Fairfield County and allowed power companies to bill customers for the project upfront.

But the project was riddled with delays, cost overruns and fraud that led to the mothballing of the expansion in 2017  but not before the companies spent $9 billion. The failed project left SCE&Gs customers on the hook for more than $2 billion for a reactor that never generated power.

Santee Coopers share of the debt was $3.6 billion. About 5% of its customers power bills goes toward paying that off, according to estimates reported in 2020 when rates were frozen as part of a legal settlement.

Dominion Energy stepped in, buying out SCE&Gs parent company, SCANA, as it spiraled into bankruptcy.

Some of those feelings were still raw Thursday.

Everybody thinks if we go to build anything that were going to absolutely repeat what we did with V.C. Summer said Keller Kissam, president of Dominion Energy South Carolina. Well, I promise you, that aint gonna happen. OK? Ill pack up and leave. I can assure you.

But Massey told Kissam the company still needs to earn South Carolinians trust.

The problem is, is there are too many people right now who dont trust, the Edgefield Republican said.

Massey said its hard to hear pleas that power customers in the state put that failure in the past and move forward.

I cant put that behind, he said.

But South Carolina, like much of the country, is wrestling with a need for more electricity, both to maintain its track record of economic development success and to serve a ballooning population. Also fueling the need for more power are the electric vehicle industry, driven by federal incentives, and technology advancements that require massive amounts of energy.

Growth is here and more, much more, is coming, said Duke Energys president in South Carolina, Mike Callahan, who told senators that the utility expects electricity usage over the next decade to be eight times greater than predictions it made just two years ago.

We need clear and effective energy policy to plan for that growth, Callahan added.

That includes guidance on what kind of power  natural gas, solar, nuclear  the state wants to see.

One major talking point over the next couple months will likely circle around data centers and the large amount of electricity they devour to power advancing technology, from 5G streaming of videos on mobile devices to high-speed financial trades.

Staton estimated 70% or more of his utilitys increased demand is from data centers.

Kissam said his company has 1,300 megawatts worth of data centers in its expected business pipeline in the state. Industrial and manufacturing, by comparison, accounts for 700 megawatts worth of future business.

We clearly need them. I dont want to go back in time, Massey said. What Im trying to get at is a better understanding, a better handle on how much of the projected growth is based on data centers.

But Staton said, even if the data center demand were to go away, Santee Cooper would still have use for any power generated by a new natural gas plant as it faces pressure from federal environmental regulators to retire coal plants in the state.

Roughly two-thirds of Santee Coopers more than 5,700 megawatt hours of capacity is coal-fired. By 2030, the utility plans to shut down 1,150 megawatts of that with the anticipated closure of its Winyah Generating Station near Georgetown.
Erin Doolittle walks around her prekindergarten classroom Aug. 19 at Hillcrest Elementary School in Frederick County. The first day of school there was Aug. 21. Photo by William J. Ford.

When Maryland public schools welcome nearly 890,000 students back to classes in the coming days, it will also be the beginning of year three of the Blueprint for Marylands Future, the states sweeping education reform plan.

But the plans future is suddenly up in the air, as state and local lawmakers are raising new concerns about its costs in a time of budget uncertainty.

That was highlighted last weekend, when Gov. Wes Moore (D) told a gathering of county leaders the plan may need to be refined due to pending fiscal challenges. Moore said he supports the goals of the Blueprint but the challenge now is to address our fiscal challenges  and right now, everything is on the table.

But Paul Lemle hopes the state stays the course.

Its a once-in-a-generation investment in our students and our educators. So, it makes no sense that people would say its not a good thing, or blame it for some other problem, said Lemle, a Howard County high school social studies teacher who began a three-year term this month as president of the Maryland State Education Association.

The bad part of it is when you hear local elected officials saying, Our budgets are tighter. We cant afford it. Thats wrong, Lemle said Monday, while in Chicago for the Democratic National Convention. Its a really short-sighted perspective because the Blueprint is doing exactly what it is intended to do  improve educator salaries, put more people into the profession, hire more of them.

The Blueprint law passed in 2020, but was vetoed by then-Gov. Larry Hogan (R). The General Assembly overrode his veto in 2021, but implementation was pushed back a year because of COVID-19 school closures.

The education plan is based on five priorities, or pillars: hiring and retaining high-quality and diverse teachers, early childhood education, providing additional resources for students in need, preparing students for college and technical careers, and governance and accountability.

Some aspects of the Blueprint have already been implemented, such as an increase in prekindergarten enrollment and more high school students able to take local college courses for free, a plan known as dual enrollment.

But local school officials for months have outlined challenges in implementing the Blueprint, such as funding, diversifying teacher workforce and the need for more flexibility from the state to continue implementing the 10-year plan.

And county government leaders joined in last week at the Maryland Association of Counties conference, where high costs and inflexibility of the plan were mentioned frequently.

Between state revenues, between fund balances getting lower, its going to be more and more cataclysmic without course corrections on the way, Dorchester County Councilman Michael Detmer (R) said during a Saturday session. He said he is skeptical the Blueprints supporters will readily agree to changes.

Del. Jefferson Ghrist (R-Upper Shore) moderates a panel Aug. 15 at the Maryland Association of Counties summer conference in Ocean City. Photo by William J. Ford.

A Thursday session on the Blueprints early childhood pillar  which includes a requirement that school districts provide a mixed-delivery system to serve students in both public schools and private child care centers  brought a plea for flexibility.

No matter what the issue is, one size never fits all and pre-k is a great example of that, said Del. Jefferson Ghrist (R-Upper Shore), who moderated the discussion. Ghrist voted against the Blueprint three years ago, but said he does support the early childhood part of the plan.

Better collaboration

Erin Doolittle, a prekindergarten teacher at Hillcrest Elementary in Frederick County, agrees that one size doesnt fit all. But she said that she likes what shes seen of the Blueprint so far.

Doolittle said the Blueprint has provided additional support for her school, where shes entering her 21st year teaching, like the requirement to have a coordinator in schools designated as community schools. For her school, the coordinator organized a weekly afternoon gathering with families this summer at a local park, where children read books, practiced the alphabet and did other activities. Doolittle said parents could also receive information about transit services in the county.

Hillcrest serves as a community school that partners with local organizations to help teachers as well as parents and students families. Last school year, Doolittle said at least 75% of her 20 students spoke English as a second language at home.

As Doolittle prepared her classroom Monday for classes that began Wednesday, there were colorful phrases in English and Spanish posted around the room, such as Nadie es como tu y ese es tu poder  or No one is like you and that is your power in English.

I think with the community schools coordinator, were being intentional about how were integrating the community and helping the community, rather than just kind of throwing things out there and hoping something helps, she said. Weve always served as a community school, but the Blueprint has improved collaboration tremendously.

In Doolittles room, she has several stations for reading, art and a carpet for morning meetings next to a full-size touchscreen board. Besides recognizing letters and numbers, social skills are a key component in prekindergarten, like learning to ask for help, being able to work with others and showing patience while waiting for a teacher to acknowledge them.

Since children are 3 and 4 years old, they take daily naps, or rest time, for about an hour. The goal is to get that down to about 40 minutes near the end of the school year, Doolittle said, so students bodies and minds are able to handle kindergarten.

I think pre-k is kind of this very nebulous thing. What were doing is very, very different, Doolittle said. Theyre singing and dancing and learning. Theres a lot going on, but its fun.

Doolittles advice for state lawmakers and other officials to improve the Blueprint: Just come and visit the classroom. See whats going on. Then youll see how it really works.

Still learning the Blueprint

Unlike Doolittle, Michelle Early, calls herself a career changer. She worked in nonprofit management, retail management and for one year at a bank before settling on teaching. She is beginning her fourth year this week as a business teacher at Frederick Countys Walkersville High School.

Michelle Early, a business teacher at Walkersville High School in Frederick County, talks about students who can write their names on the cabinets just before they graduate. Photo by William J. Ford.

Im still learning the Blueprint, she said Tuesday in her classroom, where she was getting ready for the start of classes Wednesday.

But Early, who teaches students in grades nine through 12, said the Blueprint has given her students more opportunities for college and career readiness. For those who may not want to enroll in free community college courses, Early said the school offers field trips to visit local businesses. Students can also get certified in a particular industry and get a job prior or after high school graduation.

I see the excitement level on those students faces, Early said. Some arent or dont want to go to college, but having another option for them makes all the difference.

One part of the law she appreciates is increasing teacher starting salaries to $60,000 by July 2026. Early said shes fortunate to work down the street from her school, but knows of other teachers who work in the county and live in Washington County or even Pennsylvania, because they cannot afford to live in Frederick County.

Our wages are not enough. We go beyond the 35-to-40-hour work week, she said. This is beneficial for educators.

One aspect of the Blueprint shes still trying to grasp encourages teachers to earn national board certification, which recognizes them as accomplished, or experts in a certain area.

Every school district in the state has at least one teacher with that designation. But the state Department of Education said in a teacher workforce report in May that slightly more than 1,200, or 74%, of Maryland teachers designated as National Board Certified were concentrated in Anne Arundel, Howard, Montgomery and Prince Georges counties.

The report notes more than 3,000 teachers during the previous school year of 2023-24 registered to receive fee support to pursue the certification. Once certified, teachers are eligible for a $10,000 raise, with an additional $7,000 for those who teach at an identified low-performing school.

Early thinks educators who pursue continuing education should be rewarded just the same as those who seek national board certification.

As a teacher, I can see the importance of national board certification. Michelle, the person, I dont see that a national board certification should be more important than someone who works at [earning] a doctorate, she said. Shouldnt we as educators compensate that person in an equitable manner for having achieved that doctoral status, just as we are compensating someone whos doing national board certification?

Lemle, the teachers union president, said national board certification for a teacher improves the quality of instruction in the classroom by providing teachers with incentives to stay in the classroom instead of  becoming administrators or leaving a classroom for other positions.

Thats why its money so well spent for our kids because were improving teacher quality and keeping them [teachers] in the classroom, he said.
School choice and a history of segregation collide as one Florida county shutters its rural schools

Mannika Hopkins talks with her fourth graders on the first day of school at Greenville Elementary in Greenville, Fla. on Aug. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Kate Payne)

MADISON, Fla. (AP)  Tens of thousands of students have left Floridas public schools in recent years amid an explosive expansion in school choice. Now, districts large and small are grappling with the harsh financial realities of empty seats in aging classrooms.

As some districts are being forced to close schools, administrators are facing another long-avoided reckoning: how to integrate students in buildings that remain racially and economically segregated.

In the Florida panhandle, one tiny district plans to consolidate its last three stand-alone elementary schools into one campus because there arent enough students to cover the costs of keeping the doors open. But the Madison County School District's decision to do so has exposed tensions around race in a community where for years some white families have resisted integrating public schools.

Its the elephant in the room that nobody wants to talk about, county school board member Katie Knight told The Associated Press.

At the end of the day, these kids are going to have to interact with all people of races, skill sets, personality types," she said. Trying to segregate our children is not an option.

Segregation, integration, consolidation

Shirley Joseph is a product of Floridas segregated schools  and was a Black student in some of the first integrated classes at one of the local high schools.

Now, as superintendent of Madison Countys public schools, its her job to close some of them.

There are fewer than 1,700 students left in traditional public schools in this rural county in the state's old cotton belt. Many families have moved away to places with more jobs and housing  or chosen other kinds of schooling. For those who remain, the schools provide more than just an education: All of Madison's students qualify for free meals because of the countys poverty rate. One in three children there live in poverty.

If we are to survive as a district, Joseph said, we have got to make the hard decisions.

Earlier this month, Joseph walked the halls of the elementary campuses on their last first day of school, pointing out classroom after empty classroom.

One of the schools slated to close is Greenville Elementary, which has fewer than 100 students  roughly a third of the schools capacity. When Florida schools were officially segregated, Joseph attended classes there at what was then called the Greenville Training School.

Generations of Black residents cherish the school's legacy in the tiny town of Greenville where music legend Ray Charles grew up.

More than 50 years after desegregation, the school remains 85% Black. Class sizes have dwindled as the school struggles to hold onto certified teachers. State ratings of the school have fluctuated, but Greenville has been rated an F five times over the past decade for low rates of student achievement.

Fourth grade teacher Mannika Hopkins had just eight students in her class when an Associated Press reporter visited recently.

I hate it that its closing. This is my heart. This is our community.  This is us, Hopkins said. Who wants to move into a community that doesnt have a school thats close by?

Starting next year, Greenville will consolidate with Lee and Pinetta Elementary Schools, which are predominantly white. All those students will be sent to Madison County Central School, a majority Black K-8 campus that's a 15- to 20-minute drive from the outlying elementary schools. The district hasn't announced yet which teachers will move to the consolidated school and which ones will be out of job.

School choice fuels declining enrollment

Madison County sits an hour east of Tallahassee in a region once dominated by cotton and tobacco plantations. A statue of a Confederate soldier still towers over the central park in the county seat of Madison.

The area has been losing students for years as birth rates decline, businesses close and families move to places with more jobs other than in the timber industry, trucking and working at the nearby state prison.

Other families have stayed but simply left the public schools.

For decades, Aucilla Christian Academy in neighboring Jefferson County has attracted some of the areas wealthiest families. Established in 1970, Aucilla opened as a wave of new private schools sprang up across the South, founded by white people who opposed integration. Researchers call these segregation academies, and many of them remain mostly white. As of the 2021-2022 school year, Aucillas student body was more than 90% white, according to federal data.

Madison families have pushed back against consolidation in the past: In 1998, the U.S. Department of Educations Office for Civil Rights stepped in when residents resisted plans to send students from predominantly white Lee Elementary to Central, the school that will soon receive the county's elementary schoolers. After the department got involved, the district went ahead with the plan.

Today, its arguably never been easier to leave Floridas public schools. The chaos of COVID-19 pushed many families to try homeschooling or microschooling  tiny, private learning environments that often serve multiple families. And now, under Gov. Ron DeSantis, all Florida students can qualify for taxpayer-funded vouchers worth about $8,000 a year to cover private school tuition, regardless of household income.

For families opposed to Madison's consolidation, Aucilla is a possible destination, along with Madison Creative Arts Academy, a public charter school.

Nine-year-old Noel Brouillette's parents hope she gets a seat at the Academy. Its not about race, mom Nicole Brouillette said, but rather the majority Black Central school's reputation of having more fights. If Noel doesn't get into the charter school, the family might leave Madison County entirely.

The fourth grader says she's heartbroken she can't stay at Pinetta Elementary.

"If I never went here, I would have never met my best friend," she said.

Other parents are considering homeschooling, like Alexis Molden. She said her sons love going to Lee Elementary, but shes heard rumors about Central  that multiracial kids like hers get bullied there.

Ive heard that  its pretty much segregated, Molden said. Youve got the white kids, the Black kids and then the mixed kids pretty much have to decide which side theyre going to.

Katie Knight, the school board member, said that if she had a dollar for every rumor she heard about Central, she could retire.

Still, the county has a history.

When now-Superintendent Shirley Joseph taught at Madison County High School a couple of decades ago, she said her students would sort themselves when they filed into her classroom  white kids on one side, Black kids on the other  until shed make them change seats.

Somehow weve got to find out: How do we mesh the communities? Joseph said.

There's always talk about leaving the public schools, Joseph said, but she believes most families will stay. In the meantime, shes focused on delivering the best education possible for the students she has  the ones who cant leave.

___

Kate Payne is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
School choice and history of segregation collide as one Florida county shutters its rural schools

School choice and history of segregation collide as one Florida county shutters its rural schools

Video above: Schools seeks solutions to student absenteeism as classes resume

MADISON, Fla. (AP)  Tens of thousands of students have left Floridas public schools in recent years amid an explosive expansion in school choice. Now, districts large and small are grappling with the harsh financial realities of empty seats in aging classrooms.

As some districts are being forced to close schools, administrators are facing another long-avoided reckoning: how to integrate students in buildings that remain racially and economically segregated.

In the Florida panhandle, one tiny district plans to consolidate its last three stand-alone elementary schools into one campus because there arent enough students to cover the costs of keeping the doors open. But the Madison County School Districts decision to do so has exposed tensions around race in a community where for years some white families have resisted integrating public schools.

Its the elephant in the room that nobody wants to talk about, county school board member Katie Knight told The Associated Press.

At the end of the day, these kids are going to have to interact with all people of races, skill sets, personality types, she said. Trying to segregate our children is not an option.

Segregation, integration, consolidation

Shirley Joseph is a product of Floridas segregated schools  and was a Black student in some of the first integrated classes at one of the local high schools.

Now, as superintendent of Madison Countys public schools, its her job to close some of them.

There are fewer than 1,700 students left in traditional public schools in this rural county in the states old cotton belt. Many families have moved away to places with more jobs and housing  or chosen other kinds of schooling. For those who remain, the schools provide more than just an education: All of Madisons students qualify for free meals because of the countys poverty rate. One in three children there live in poverty.

If we are to survive as a district, Joseph said, we have got to make the hard decisions.

Earlier this month, Joseph walked the halls of the elementary campuses on their last first day of school, pointing out classroom after empty classroom.

One of the schools slated to close is Greenville Elementary, which has fewer than 100 students  roughly a third of the schools capacity. When Florida schools were officially segregated, Joseph attended classes there at what was then called the Greenville Training School.

Generations of Black residents cherish the schools legacy in the tiny town of Greenville where music legend Ray Charles grew up.

More than 50 years after desegregation, the school remains 85% Black. Class sizes have dwindled as the school struggles to hold onto certified teachers. State ratings of the school have fluctuated, but Greenville has been rated an F five times over the past decade for low rates of student achievement.

Fourth grade teacher Mannika Hopkins had just eight students in her class when an Associated Press reporter visited recently.

I hate it that its closing. This is my heart. This is our community.  This is us, Hopkins said. Who wants to move into a community that doesnt have a school thats close by?

Starting next year, Greenville will consolidate with Lee and Pinetta Elementary Schools, which are predominantly white. All those students will be sent to Madison County Central School, a majority Black K-8 campus thats a 15- to 20-minute drive from the outlying elementary schools. The district hasnt announced yet which teachers will move to the consolidated school and which ones will be out of job.

School choice fuels declining enrollment

Madison County sits an hour east of Tallahassee in a region once dominated by cotton and tobacco plantations. A statue of a Confederate soldier still towers over the central park in the county seat of Madison.

The area has been losing students for years as birth rates decline, businesses close and families move to places with more jobs other than in the timber industry, trucking and working at the nearby state prison.

Other families have stayed but simply left the public schools.

For decades, Aucilla Christian Academy in neighboring Jefferson County has attracted some of the areas wealthiest families. Established in 1970, Aucilla opened as a wave of new private schools sprang up across the South, founded by white people who opposed integration. Researchers call these segregation academies, and many of them remain mostly white. As of the 2021-2022 school year, Aucillas student body was more than 90% white, according to federal data.

Madison families have pushed back against consolidation in the past: In 1998, the U.S. Department of Educations Office for Civil Rights stepped in when residents resisted plans to send students from predominantly white Lee Elementary to Central, the school that will soon receive the countys elementary schoolers. After the department got involved, the district went ahead with the plan.

Today, its arguably never been easier to leave Floridas public schools. The chaos of COVID-19 pushed many families to try homeschooling or microschooling  tiny, private learning environments that often serve multiple families. And now, under Gov. Ron DeSantis, all Florida students can qualify for taxpayer-funded vouchers worth about $8,000 a year to cover private school tuition, regardless of household income.

For families opposed to Madisons consolidation, Aucilla is a possible destination, along with Madison Creative Arts Academy, a public charter school.

Nine-year-old Noel Brouillettes parents hope she gets a seat at the Academy. Its not about race, mom Nicole Brouillette said, but rather the majority Black Central schools reputation of having more fights. If Noel doesnt get into the charter school, the family might leave Madison County entirely.

The fourth grader says shes heartbroken she cant stay at Pinetta Elementary.

If I never went here, I would have never met my best friend, she said.

Other parents are considering homeschooling, like Alexis Molden. She said her sons love going to Lee Elementary, but shes heard rumors about Central  that multiracial kids like hers get bullied there.

Ive heard that  its pretty much segregated, Molden said. Youve got the white kids, the Black kids and then the mixed kids pretty much have to decide which side theyre going to.

Katie Knight, the school board member, said that if she had a dollar for every rumor she heard about Central, she could retire.

Still, the county has a history.

When now-Superintendent Shirley Joseph taught at Madison County High School a couple of decades ago, she said her students would sort themselves when they filed into her classroom  white kids on one side, Black kids on the other  until shed make them change seats.

Somehow weve got to find out: How do we mesh the communities? Joseph said.

Theres always talk about leaving the public schools, Joseph said, but she believes most families will stay. In the meantime, shes focused on delivering the best education possible for the students she has  the ones who cant leave.

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BEIJING, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese authorities have committed to tough measures to safeguard arable land by releasing case studies involving the confiscation and disposal of illegal buildings and structures.

The Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) and the Ministry of Natural Resources have published four typical cases from Sichuan, Guangxi, Hebei, and Heilongjiang.

An SPP official noted that removing illegal buildings and structures remains a challenge for Chinese prosecutors in land use law enforcement. This situation necessitates strengthened accountability, clearer disposal procedures, and effective handling of cases by relevant authorities.

The SPP and the ministry plan to enhance regular communication mechanisms, including transfer of leads, information sharing, and case reporting.

They also aim to improve institutional frameworks to better address land use violations, thereby ensuring the protection of arable land and food security. 
School Nurse Tried To Resuscitate Toddler After She Was Left in Hot Car, Mom Now Charged in Connection With Child's Death

Hilda Ann Adame allegedly left her 22-month-old daughter in her vehicle after going to work

Corpus Christi Police Department Hilda Ann Adame

A Texas mother is facing charges for the death of her toddler after claiming she forgot the child was left in a hot car.

Hilda Ann Adame, 33, was arrested and charged with injury to a child, serious bodily injury and abandonment, endangerment of a child and imminent bodily injury, the Corpus Christi Police Department said in a press release on Tuesday, Aug. 20.

The department added that Adames 22-month-old child Harley Adame had been left in a vehicle. Adame went to work but forgot that she was supposed to take the toddler to daycare on Kostoryz Road, reports KIII TV, citing a probable cause statement released by Corpus Christi Police Department officials. Adame works for Communities in Schools, a nonprofit that helps at-risk students, per the outlet.

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"Harley was asleep in the vehicle when Hilda arrived at Tom Browne at 0800hrs where she works, and she forgot Harley was in the vehicle and proceeded to go into the school," an arrest affidavit reads, reports KRIS TV.

The toddler was left in Adames vehicle around 8 a.m. according to the arrest affidavit. It wasnt until about 1:29 pm [when] officers were dispatched to 4301 Schanen Blvd (Tom Browne Middle School)," per the press release.

Getty child in car  stock image

Adame reportedly then went into the school with Harley to get help.

Once CCPD and the Corpus Christi Fire Department arrived on the scene, they were directed to the toddler, who they saw was actively receiving CPR by the school nurse, the press release said.

Related: What to Know About Hot Car Deaths and How to Avoid Them

The child was then taken to Driscoll Children's Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 1:53 p.m., reports KIII TV.

CCFD transported the 22-month-old infant to a local hospital where they were later pronounced deceased, per the press release.

KIII 3 News Corpus Christi first responder

Corpus Christi ISD and school officials are aware of a young child being found in a hot car Tuesday at Tom Browne Middle School. We want to express our gratitude to those who swiftly responded upon learning of this crisis, including school staff as well as district police and local law enforcement, CCISD Chief Communications Officer Leanne Libby said in a statement, per KIII TV.

On Tuesday, the City of Corpus Christi issued an excessive heat warning after the National Weather Service forecasted that above-average temperatures and an abundance of moisture across South Texas would result in a dangerous heat index for the week.

Related: Prevent Hot-Car Deaths: A Checklist for Parents

Heat index values are expected to range up to 118F today and 115F tomorrow (Wednesday, Aug. 21), the advisory said.

PEOPLE reached out to Corpus Christis Police Media Relations Office for comment, but did not immediately hear back.

It is not immediately known if Adame has legal counsel representing her.



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Read the original article on People.
EBENSBURG, Pa. (WTAJ)  Pennsylvania State Police are amping up school and school bus safety measures as students return from summer break this week.

PSP Troop A will be following school buses as they pick-up and drop-off students this week to monitor for drivers violating school bus safety laws and to remind drivers to stop when the school bus stops.

Drivers that do not adhere to these laws could face a fine of up to $250, have their drivers license suspended for up to 60 days and receive five points on their driving record.

While local and state police are taking an active approach to student and school safety by partnering with school districts, Trooper Cliff Greenfield with Troop A believes that school safety starts at home.

Back to school: WTAJ team school photos

Every school should have a student handbook with what items are prohibited. And its really important that the parents review those rules with their child or children so the children know ahead of time, These are the things youre not allowed to bring to school,' Greenfield said.

State police said one of the biggest safety concerns schools face is cyberbullying. According to Greenfield, parents need to have open conversations about the dangers of social media and their expectations for their kids while using social media or texting.

Greenfield said that in some cases, not following these guidelines and engaging in bullying behaviors can even lead to criminal charges.

Police are also focusing on community policing by letting students know that theyre safe adults students can trust.

It is very, very important that students have developed some level of trust with their local police, whether it be municipal police officers or state troopers like myself. We need that mutual trust. And the primary way to do that is to actually have face-to-face, one-to-one conversations with young folk, Greenfield said.

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PSP is also reminding students of the statewide Safe2Say Program that allows students to report safety concerns to their school and officials completely anonymously.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WTAJ - www.wtaj.com.
Scientists brace for highly destructive, seemingly ceaseless disease spread by birds: 'Not if, but when'

The Australian government has warned residents to prepare themselves for the spread of a devastating disease whose arrival appears to be inevitable.

What's happening?

As explained by the Guardian, "a highly pathogenic and contagious strain" of bird flu is likely to reach Australia through its Antarctic territory and Macquarie Island in the Southern Ocean. The virulent H5N1 Avian flu strain has already killed millions of seabirds, wild birds, and poultry overseas.

Government agencies led by the Australian Antarctic Division were informed during a planning exercise earlier in August that the arrival of the disease was a case of "not if, but when."

The H5N1 strain was confirmed in western Antarctica in February and has also claimed the lives of an estimated 30,000 sea lions and 17,000 southern elephant seal pups in the Antarctic region, per the Guardian.

Dr. Louise Emmerson, a seabird ecologist with the Antarctic division, warned that the strain could arrive in Australia's Antarctic territory or on Macquarie Island when animals migrate back to the area during the spring.

Why is this important?

According to the Guardian, Australia is the only continent in the world that has yet to experience the H5N1 strain of the bird flu. Since 2003, other variants have caused over 400 deaths in humans and over 900 cases.

The spread of H5N1 to mammals is particularly concerning. Emmerson noted that the rapid spread of the strain has caused infections in unexpected animals like cats, raccoons, and cows.

"It's had a very big impact on many different species  some populations have been really badly impacted with in excess of 90% mortality," Emmerson told the Guardian.

Scientists are worried that the continued infections in unexpected animals could lead to the virus mutating to become more adapted to mammals, which could increase the risk of it jumping to humans.

The spread of bird flu is also worrisome because it can be exacerbated by changing climate conditions. For example, rising temperatures can alter bird migratory patterns, potentially spreading the virus to new and unexpected areas like Australia. Tanya Plibersek, Australia's environment minister, warned that its arrival Down Under could push some bird species toward extinction.

What's being done about this?

Plibersek added that there needs to be an "all-in" approach from the government and private organizations to minimize the threat of the H5N1 strain reaching Australia. The planning exercise from earlier this month served as a way to test the emergency response in the event of an outbreak and the coordination of preparations for mass seabird deaths and potential wildlife-to-human transmission.

Robb Clifton, the Antarctic division's acting branch head of operations and logistics, told the Guardian that there's a plan to send scientists to Australia's Antarctica territory in the spring to evaluate if signs of the strain are present during breeding months.

"What we do know is spring and going into summer we get a lot more wildlife moving around the sub-Antarctic," Clifton said. "We know the risk of [transmission] is going up."

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The North Star as seen from France. | Credit: Getty Images

In our solar system, scattered across one of Earth's verdant mountains, six eggshell-white telescopes gaze into the deep universe. As one cohesive hive, the domed structures collect cosmic light to guide modern astronomers exploring space  and it is thanks to this hive that we now have a brilliant new perspective on the light that guided astronomers of the past: the North Star.

Our visual knowledge of the current North Star (because of Earth's axial wobble, the title passes to different stars over the eons) runs deep. Artists, old and new, have depicted Polaris shining in their paintings, astrophotographers have imaged it from their backyards and scientists have pointed their instruments at it for decades. But what's special about these new Polaris views, courtesy of the CHARA Array on Mount Wilson in California, has to do with resolution. The special thing about CHARA is, as touched on, its telescopes work in tandem with one another. Their light data is combined in a central facility to provide one whole, clear picture of a source. It's as though the sextet of worker telescopes forms one ultimate telescope with a diameter of 330 meters (1,083 feet). And because of this, the project's image resolution  specifically, angular resolution  is excellent.

Sure enough, after checking out some of these Polaris images, put together with CHARA observations taken between 2016 and 2021, scientists found some previously unknown features of the star. Most notably, there are discernable spots on the star's surface, kind of like the sunspots we see on the sun every now and then.

"The CHARA images revealed large bright and dark spots on the surface of Polaris that changed over time," Gail Schaefer, director of the CHARA Array, said in a statement .

One of the major reasons this finding came as a surprise has to do with the fact that Polaris isn't any old star. It's a sort of star known as a Cepheid variable, which means it brightens and dims periodically. Polaris in particular gets brighter and fainter according to a four-day cycle, and scientists love locating Cepheids due to such very predictable behavior. That's because it allows these stars to be used for cosmic distance measurements. Basically, watching the change in a Cepheid's brightness over one cycle can reveal its true brightness.

Related: A rare nova ignites a 'new star' in the sky this year. Here's how to see it

By contrast, without predictably periodic pulsations, a star wouldn't be very reliable for such measurements. At risk of simplification, a dim star, for instance, could be either far away or just small  or, it could be weirdly dim for some other reason. Or, it could just happen to be dim during the time at which it was observed.

Returning to those spots, as the CHARA team says, these high-resolution images of Polaris mark the first "glimpse of what the surface of a Cepheid variable looks like." So, to find spots with that first glimpse was intriguing. But these spots weren't the only result of the team's analysis.

A diagram of an orange pixelated star with some dark sections.

Unlike our lonely sun, Polaris doesn't roam the universe by itself. Boasting about 46 times the size of our host star and lying over 400 light-years away from us, it's part of a triple-star system. It just happens to be the brightest of its siblings. In fact, the original goal of CHARA's Polaris investigation was to map the orbit of the star that circles our North Star once every 30 years. It's the one that's way closer than the other, making the endeavor a complex feat. Not only does this star float very close to Polaris, but the companion is also incredibly faint. It wasn't even confirmed to exist until around 2005, owing its documentation to the Hubble Space Telescope.

"The small separation and large contrast in brightness between the two stars makes it extremely challenging to resolve the binary system during their closest approach," team lead Nancy Evans at the Center for Astrophysics, Harvard & Smithsonian, who also helped with the companion's identification, said in the statement. For that reason, the team dipped into some other astronomy tool boxes as well, such as a speckle interferometer at the Apache Point Observatory in New Mexico.

Polaris and a tiny dot to the right of it, which represents its companion.

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This mission was indeed a success, helping to confirm things like the size of Polaris and suggesting that the star may be about five times more massive than the sun  which is heavier than previously thought. That discovery is important in its own right because, as Evans told ScienceNews , only a few Cepheids have had their masses determined. It also poses some interesting questions to explore in the future. "The mass combined with the distance shows that the Cepheid is more luminous than predicted for this mass from evolutionary tracks," the study authors write, for instance.

Still, the North Star's spotty nature seems to have taken the limelight. Consider how the areas of the star on which spots are seen and the rate at which the star rotates appear to suggest a 120-day radial velocity variation  essentially referring to changes in the object's velocity as seen along an observer's line of sight. That poses yet another puzzle.

"We plan to continue imaging Polaris in the future," John Monnier, an astronomy professor at the University of Michigan and co-author of the study, said in the statement. "We hope to better understand the mechanism that generates the spots on the surface of Polaris."

The study was published on Aug. 20 in The Astrophysical Journal.
Scientists make disturbing discovery after analyzing samples from dried-out area of Great Salt Lake: 'This is something that's on us'

New research suggests the Great Salt Lake and other dried-out lakes are a significant yet overlooked source of planet-warming carbon pollution. Worryingly, this source of pollution is not currently included in already high estimates of harmful carbon pollution in our atmosphere.

What's happening?

As outlined in a Washington Post report, new research out of Utah is sounding alarms when it comes to the impact of dried-out lakes on air pollution.

A new study in the journal One Earth reports that 4.1 million tons of carbon dioxide and other air pollution were released from the drying bed of the Great Salt Lake in 2020. This would amount to about a 7% increase in Utah's human-caused planet-warming pollution in that year.

Other existing research has documented carbon pollution from dried-out lakes, but this new study points directly to human actions as the cause of such high levels of pollution. The Great Salt Lake has largely been drawn down for human use in agriculture, mining, and urban consumption. The lake's health has also worsened from our changing climate and the region's decades-long drought, according to researchers.

"This is the first time we're saying, 'This is something that's on us,'" study author Soren Brothers told the Washington Post.

Why is this type of carbon pollution important?

Healthy lakes normally store carbon in their beds. That's because plant and animal remains settle on the bottom of lakes, usually degrading slowly in low-oxygen areas of sediment. But when a lake dries out, those remains become exposed to high levels of oxygen, making this carbon-releasing decay happen much faster.

This type of pollution is concerning for many reasons. As Utah's state website outlines, the drying of the Great Salt Lake could cause further environmental impacts like "increased dust, less snow, reduced lake access, elevated salinity, habitat loss, island bridges, more invasive plant growth and negative economic consequences to the state."

The Great Salt Lake has been in danger for some time, with some research estimating the lake could disappear entirely in just five years without appropriate action.

What's being done about carbon pollution from dried-out lakes?

The Washington Post reported that researchers  including those involved in this study  are collecting evidence with the hopes of convincing the United Nations to include carbon pollution from dried-out lakes in their global carbon inventories.

As for the Great Salt Lake, politicians have already taken action to help protect its levels, passing laws to help preserve the lake. Still, environmental activists are calling for local and federal governments to do more, given the lake's dire condition.

Utah has also called for locals to shift their behavior to help curb water usage. The state currently grants subsidies to farmers if they upgrade their irrigation systems and encourages citizens to collect rainwater to help preserve the lake.

Though the issue of dried-out lakes needs governmental action to be solved, it's important to be aware of your own water consumption. Consider taking shorter showers, checking your pipes for leaks, and running your dishwasher and laundry washer only when full to help manage your water waste.

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Scientists raise concerns as extreme conditions threaten efforts to fight parasitic disease: 'Understanding these changes is a necessary area of science for the control of the disease in the future'

Human-caused habitat destruction and pollution has led to various downstream consequences  among them, the spread of various diseases. In Brazil, scientists are warning about a debilitating parasitic disease that is currently on the rise, MedicalXpress reported.

The disease, schistosomiasis, is carried by parasitic worms, which are spread by freshwater snails. It can cause abdominal pain, diarrhea, and blood in the stool, with long-term effects including kidney damage and even bladder cancer.

Public health officials are now concerned that deforestation and extreme weather events such as flooding could help the snails expand their range, infecting even more people. In 2021, over 250 million people required preventative treatment for schistosomiasis. Scientists worry that, without major intervention, that number could grow even higher in coming years.

"With climate change, more frequent and intense rains will impact many diseases here, including schistosomiasis," said Roseli Tuan, a senior researcher at the Sao Paulo Secretariat of Health. "Understanding these changes is a necessary area of science for the control of the disease in the future."

To help fight the disease, researchers at the Sao Paulo Secretariat of Health have teamed up with Stanford University scientists to try to predict how it will spread.

"For the first time, we have been able to combine tools like long-term snail surveillance records with satellite imagery that tracks agricultural expansion, the growth of urban areas, and climate at fine resolution across entire countries," said Erin Mordecai, a Stanford professor who is involved in the research. "With these tools, we can map how the habitat for schistosomiasis-transmitting snails is changing across Brazil with unprecedented precision that helps us understand where schistosomiasis could appear next."

Other diseases that have been aided by the overheating of our planet include those spread by mosquitoes, such as dengue fever, malaria, Zika virus, and more. Mosquitoes thrive and breed in hot, humid environments, and as the planet overheats, their habitats and ranges are expanding.

To keep people safe from these deadly diseases, we must use every scientific tool at our disposal in the short term and, in the longer term, stop the overheating of our planet by turning away from dirty energy sources like gas and oil and toward clean, renewable sources like wind and solar.

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Although cocaine use became widespread in the 19th century once it was synthesized into cocaine hydrochloride salts, Europeans knew of the coca plants stimulating effects since the early 15th century.

A new study of 17th-century remains from a crypt in Milan shows traces of an active component of the coca plant in the subjects brain tissue.

This suggests Europeans used coca leaves earlier than previously thought and is the earliest evidence of such drug use on the European continent.

Of the approximately 200 members in the genus Erythroxylum, most species contain the central nervous system stimulant tropane alkaloid, known more commonly as cocaine. Because the plant is endemic to South America, indigenous groups throughout the continent chewed the leaves of these plants to reach the high that eventually sparked a lucrative, deadly drug trade in the here and now.

Some of the earliest evidence of the drugs can be found in tissue samples of Chilean mummies, dated to around 1,000 BCE, though the practice is likely even older than that.

However, theres much less evidence pointing to when this natural narcotic made its way to Europe. Spanish conquistadors first encountered the plant in the late 15th century, and their writings at the time describe natives carry[ing] these leaves in their mouths without eating them, but simply between their teeth and that it kept them from feeling hungry, giving them great vigor and strength.

Although they tried to ban the practice in the Americas, the plant made its way to Europe around the late 16th century, and now a new study shows that the continent wasted little time partaking in the natural stimulant of the New World.

According to a new study published in the Journal of Archaeological Science, an analysis of brain tissue from human remains located at the Ca Granda crypt in Milan, Italy, shows evidence of active components of the coca plant. The crypt was used as a burial place for the Ospedale Maggiorea world-class hospital in the 17th centuryand the studys lead author, University of Milans Gaia Giordano, previously found evidence of opium use among the cadavers of this crypt. But this new study extends that the eras drug list by also including cocaine.

Toxicological analyses were performed on preserved human brains revealing the first evidence of Erythroxylum spp. use in Europe before the 19th century, the paper reads, backdating our understanding of the presence of the plant by almost two centuries. Given that the plant was not listed inside the detailed hospital pharmacopeia, it may not have been given as a medicinal remedy but may have been used for other purposes.

Most historians believe cocaine use didnt proliferate throughout Europe until the 19th century when the drug was synthesized as cocaine hydrochloride salts. However, Spaniards certainly knew of the plants effects centuries earlier, and some conquistadors, including a Spanish doctor named Nicholas Monardes, were known to grow plants from the Americas in Spain.

By the 17th century, when those buried in the crypt would have lived, Milan (then a possession of Spain) was a major importer of exotic plants, especially from the Americas, so cocaine couldve taken hold there earlier than the rest of Europe. Also these people likely werent well-off, meaning that coca leaves mightve been more easily available even during its early introduction to the continent.

To the authors knowledge, this is the earliest evidence of a detection of compounds derived from the Erythroxylum spp in continental Europe. However, its not the first detection in the Old World. In 1992 a study purported the existence of cocaine in Egyptian mummies, a surprising anachronism since no evidence suggests contact existed between this ancient Nile civilization and the Americas. Although those results remain disputed, Giordanos surprising discovery doesnt require such a fantastical leap, and suggests that cocaine useat least in the form of coca leavesmay have taken hold in Europe sooner than previously believed.

Of course, this perplexing answer leads to the next logical question: Just how far did cocas influence reach in 17th century Europe?



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Scottsdale changed its upcoming parks tax proposal after a panel of judges ruled on Monday that the city's initial description of the measure misled voters and could not appear on the Nov. 5 ballot.

The adjustment is expected to keep the tax on the general election ballot, but it has proven to be a divisive decision inside City Hall.

The tax initiative is called Proposition 490. It's designed to replace a voter-approved 0.2% sales tax that's been in place since 1995 and is set to expire next June, which the city used to buy land for its McDowell Sonoran Preserve.

Unlike the 1995 tax, Proposition 490 would impose a smaller, 0.15% sales tax over the next 30 years to fund upkeep and improvements at the Preserve and city parks. Scottsdale billed it as an effort that would reduce taxes overall because the new lower rate means the average Scottsdale household would pay $1.24 less in monthly taxes if it passed.

The Goldwater Institute, a libertarian think tank, called that false advertising in its June lawsuit against the city. The group argued the initiative was not an actual reduction in taxes because residents would pay less if they did not pass Proposition 490 and just let the 1995 tax expire.

A Maricopa County Superior Court judge tossed out Goldwater's lawsuit in June, but three Arizona Court of Appeals judges said that was a mistake in their Aug. 19 ruling and ordered the city to remove Proposition 490 from the November ballot.

On Tuesday, the City Council voted 4-3 in an emergency meeting to nix its description of the measure as a "reduction" in taxes and instead frame it as a new tax. A city press release said "With that change, the city will send the updated ballot language to Maricopa County so that Prop. 490 remains on the Nov. 5 General Election ballot."

The process irked Vice Mayor Barry Graham who slammed the decision as rushed and non-transparent in his own press release on Tuesday.

"While the rushed description might be technically legal, I remain concerned that denying residents enough time to consider the revised language of the proposition will further erode their trust in city government," wrote Graham, who along with Councilmember Kathy Littlefield, was against the tax measure from the beginning.

They are the council's most staunchly conservative members who tend to oppose tax initiatives and increased spending more broadly.

They were joined in voting 'no' on the description change by Councilmember Tammy Caputi, a more moderate conservative who rarely sides with Graham and Littlefield on split votes.

Caputi voted in favor of putting Proposition 490 on the November ballot earlier this year, saying she wanted to give residents a chance to weigh in. And that's also why she took issue with the "rushed" process that she described as "divisive," emphasizing that she did not believe the same was true about the measure itself.

"Everyone agrees funding our parks and Preserve is essential and part of what keeps Scottsdale special. I have always supported letting the residents decide on this important issue. We need to be transparent and accountable to our residents, and a last-minute change did not provide enough time for review and transparency," Caputi said.

She added, "This is not an issue of left or right. Our parks aren't partisan. I'm an Independent so that I can weigh each decision on its own merits of what best serves the residents."

It would have been tricky for the city to include Proposition 490 on the November ballot without the rushed process because it's been nearly two months since the deadline for submitting ballot language.

There may have been other opportunities for the city to propose the measure during a special election sometime next year before the 1995 tax expired. Tempe held such an election in April 2023 when it sought voter approval for its failed development deal with the Arizona Coyotes.

Goldwater has not released a statement on Scottsdale changing its description of the measure.

Proposition 490 would generate about $1.15 billion over its 30-year lifespan if it gets voter approval. The specific spending breakdown for that money would be:

51% to replace "capital assets" at citywide parks, like playground equipment and irrigation systems.

14% for more maintenance workers and contracts to "enhance park maintenance."

7% for the Police Park Ranger program to boost enforcement of city rules in its parks.

18% for conservation efforts and maintenance of things such as trailheads at the Preserve.

10% for the Fire Department to fight and prevent wildfires at the Preserve.

Reporter Sam Kmack covers Tempe, Scottsdale and Chandler. Follow him on X @KmackSam or reach him at sam.kmack@arizonarepublic.com.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Scottsdale pivots on $1.2B parks tax after court ruling
CHICAGO, IL (KELO)  More than 4,000 delegates will pack into the Democratic National Convention to listen to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz Wednesday night.

The South Dakota delegates at the Democratic National Convention made their support for Vice President Kamala Harris clear at roll call Tuesday night.

South Dakota is honored to cast all 20 of our votes for Vice President Kamala Harris, who will soon be known as Madam President, South Dakota Democratic party chair Shane Merrill said.

And today, they are just as optimistic about the Harris and Walz ticket.

Well, I think people are fired up. Its a change. Its something different that we havent had in a long time. Id probably compare it to something like 2008 when we had just a fresh voice on the stage, Merrill said.

MN Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan talks election at DNC

Were real excited. When youre on a campaign, Ive been doing this a long time, you want this excitement, enthusiasm going into the final stretch, South Dakota Democratic Party national committeeman Dennis Olson said.

When Minnesota Gov. Walz speaks Wednesday night, the delegates hope he sheds a light on rural America.

From Gov. Walz, Id just say the agriculture thing. I think thats been lacking a little bit this week, if anything, so hopefully, he can bring that message forward for us and be a voice for rural South Dakota, Merrill said.

Im so proud that they picked Walz because of what that says is they know the road to the White House is through rural America, Olson said.

Vice President Kamala Harris will speak Thursday night to wrap up the convention. Meanwhile, Republican candidates former President Donald Trump and Senator J.D. Vance were campaigning in North Carolina on Wednesday.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KELOLAND.com.
PIERRE, S.D. (KELO)  A tribal courts decision to grant a divorce to one of the tribes members isnt enforceable, because the husband wasnt a tribal member as the tribes legal code requires for dissolving a marriage, according to the South Dakota Supreme Court.

In a complex opinion publicly released Thursday, the Supreme Court said a state circuit judge erred in dismissing the husbands request to have the matter decided in state court instead.

The wife, Terri Torgerson, is an enrolled member of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate. She sought a divorce in SWO tribal court from Leslie Torgerson, a non-Indian.

The couple married in Vermillion and had made their home in Sisseton. Leslie Torgerson adopted Terris son. The couple had no biological children of their own.

After Terri Torgerson sought divorce in tribal court, Leslie Torgerson filed for divorce in state court. He asked state Circuit Judge Jon Flemmer to dismiss the tribal proceeding for lack of jurisdiction and improper service of process.

Terri Torgerson in turn asked Judge Flemmer to dismiss the state proceedings, which the state judge did. Leslie Torgerson then appealed the dismissal to the South Dakota Supreme Court.

After reviewing the matter, the Supreme Court found that the state judges dismissal was an error. Justice Janine Kern wrote the Supreme Courts opinion.

South Dakota law allows state courts to recognize actions of tribal courts under specific conditions. One of those conditions is that the tribal court have jurisdiction over both the subject matter and the parties. Justice Kern stated that the state judge failed to conduct the analysis and that the state judge erroneously recognized the tribal courts authority to proceed.

Further, Justice Kern found that the SWO tribal code regarding dissolution of marriages required either a death or that both parties be enrolled as members of an Indian tribe.

Thus, SWOs subject matter jurisdiction over divorces appears to be limited to marriages between members of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Sioux Tribe or any Indian Tribe, thus excluding marriages involving a non-Indian. Because SWO lacks subject matter jurisdiction, the tribal

court order is not enforceable under SDCL 1-1-25, Justice Kern wrote.

Justice Kern also found that Terri Torgerson failed to show that the SWO court had personal jurisdiction over Leslie Torgerson.

The Supreme Courts opinion concluded with a special statement written by Justice Kern regarding the relationship between state courts and tribal courts.

In rendering this opinion, we note that our decision does not, nor could it, determine or seek to limit the tribal courts inherent judicial authority, nor do we sit as an appellate tribal court, the statement said. We accord the utmost respect to the nine sovereign tribal courts operating within this States territorial boundaries. However, our decision must apply the standards our Legislature requires us to follow and controlling federal precedent in determining whether a tribal courts judicial acts are entitled to recognition by the courts of this State.

Chief Justice Steven Jensen concurred with Justice Kerns opinion.

Justice Mark Salter concurred on the state judges failure to follow state law, but Justice Salter noted in a dissenting viewpoint that he was writing specially to suggest that our cases may not adequately account for the United States Supreme Courts decisions involving the assertion of tribal jurisdiction over non Indians. Justice Patricia DeVaney joined in Justice Salters dissent.

Justice Scott Myren wrote a separate dissent. Justice Myren agreed with Justice Kern that the state judge made an incorrect ruling against Leslie Torgerson. But Justice Myren said the case should be returned to state court, so that Judge Flemmer could conduct the review required by state law.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KELOLAND.com.
BUENOS AIRES, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Workers from the Association of State Workers (ATE) launched a "national day of struggle" on Wednesday to protest austerity measures proposed by President Javier Milei's administration.

Protesters took to the streets in the country's main cities, including the capital Buenos Aires, where demonstrators gathered outside National Congress, setting up tents and tables to collect signatures to request that Congress annul the Decree of Necessity and Urgency (DNU).

"In the second half of the year, the levels of conflict are going to increase, unemployment is going to become a societal drama again, and in the lead-up to Christmas, societal peace will be seriously damaged. It will be very difficult to get to December," said Rodolfo Aguiar, general secretary of the ATE.

Describing Wednesday's protests as "the stopover prior to the general strike," the labor leader said the goal was to "get the DNU annulled and declared unconstitutional."

"We have to deepen the plan of struggle against an economic program that is destroying all of our lives. The program designed by the government does not work and will not work. It is failing," Aguiar added. 
Malynda Hale angled her iPhone toward her face and filmed a quick selfie video as she headed over to the first day of the Democratic National Convention.

Im already annoyed and its not even 8:30. Nobody knows anything and this is very confusing, the 38-year-old influencer says in the clip, which she immediately uploaded to her 53,000 Instagram followers. Im gonna give you the real, unfiltered version of what its like to be at the DNC.

Hale, a singer and actor from Northridge, is one of more than 200 social media influencers who received credentials  a first for the DNC  to attend the four-day convention. In granting digital content creators access to delegates, studio space and events, Kamala Harris campaign hopes they will use their vast online followings to promote the partys message and galvanize young voters, who showed deep apathy about President Bidens bid for reelection.

They obviously view us as a direct line to this demographic, because a lot of them are bypassing traditional media to see what the influencers and the public figures and creators that they follow are saying about political events, Hale said in an interview with The Times. It's a great idea to kind of use us as, like, a democratic liaison to certain generations.

Since arriving in Chicago over the weekend, Hale has been unleashing a quick-fire barrage of Instagram stories, reels, grid photos and TikTok videos, capturing the glam and grind of being a chosen influencer.

In more than 50 posts uploaded to her social channels on Monday alone, she chronicled her difficulties picking up her badge, the scene at the creator lounge at the United Center and her view from the arena floor before the evenings speakers took the stage (Our actual seats are in the nosebleeds, she says into the camera).

The trip to Chicago for Hale, whose following swelled during the pandemic when she began speaking out about social justice issues, was sponsored by Stand Up America; the nonprofit organization paid for flights for her and four family members and covered the cost of their Airbnb.

As Harris has kept her distance from the mainstream news media, the decision to open the door to influencers is a reflection of her campaigns belief that social media creators are an important conduit for getting its message to voters.

A few were even invited to make speeches to rally support for Harris, sharing the same spotlight reserved for her and her running mate, Tim Walz, as well as powerful Democrats including Barack and Michelle Obama, Nancy Pelosi, and Bill and Hillary Clinton.

On the sidelines of the convention Monday, influencers were provided a special pavilion and luxury box. Democratic aides brought officials over to a blue carpet to be interviewed by the social media stars. In the convention hall, some had positioned ring lights to better capture themselves during the more marquee events.

One of the most recognizable social media personalities on the blue carpet was drag queen BenDeLaCreme. "You see how I come dressed for the DNC? Very demure, very mindful," she said in an Instagram reel, giving her 1.1 million followers a close-up look at her towering bouffant, dramatic makeup and swirly black, white and pink dress.

BenDeLaCreme, who lives in Los Angeles, came to the convention with Drag PAC. The political action committee was founded by drag queens to bring awareness to Gen Z voters of how important their voice really is, and try to engage more of Gen Z in this year's election, she said in an interview with The Times.

And appearing at the DNC was an opportunity to draw attention to the personal causes she supports.

The drag community is also here to protect our trans siblings, said BenDeLaCreme, who spoke on a panel hosted by the LGBTQ+ Caucus earlier in the day. We in the queer community know that we can't go anywhere without protecting reproductive rights, without protecting people of color.

Actress Charlize Theron, left, and activist Deja Foxx at the Global Citizen Festival at Central Park in New York last year. Foxx was one of the influencers invited to speak at the DNC this week. (Yuki Iwamura / Associated Press)

The DNC's speaker lineup on Monday night featured 24-year-old Deja Foxx, a Columbia University graduate who spoke about reproductive rights, an issue that has given Democrats ammunition against the Republicans after the Supreme Court's conservative majority overturned federal abortion protections.

For young people, this is a fight for our future, said Foxx, who has more than 141,000 followers on TikTok and 54,000 on Instagram.

The party's outreach to prominent influencers extends beyond the DNC.

Biden's administration last week hosted the first White House Creator Economy Conference in Washington. The one-day gathering brought together a group of digital creators and industry professionals to discuss pressing issues within the creator economy, including privacy, AI and mental health.

Loren Piretra, an influencer from Brentwood, was among those invited to attend the conference, which included time with Biden.

"This is a massive industry, and it's time that it's taken seriously," said Piretra, who is also chief marketing officer of Los Angeles creator platform Fanfix. "Creators have been able to democratize the idea of celebrity and influence, so it's only natural that the White House wants to strengthen their connections to this important community."

Times staff writer Noah Bierman in Chicago and Bloomberg contributed to this report.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Diablo Lake and Diablo Dam on the Skagit River, in Washington's North Cascades. (Alan Majchrowicz/Getty Images)

This article was first published by the Salish Current.

After three years of negotiations, there remains some distance between Seattle City Light and state and federal regulators over what the utility must do to improve operations at its upper Skagit River hydropower dams to enhance conditions for salmon  including the threatened chinook species.

Empowered by law to enforce the U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA), the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) wants City Light to do more to improve conditions on the Skagit River for fish. So far, City Light has held to its preference for the status quo, with dam operations continuing they were under the current license from 1995, which expires in 2025. Salmon runs in 1995 were already far below the averages before the three dams were built.

Meanwhile, it is possible that a lawsuit filed Aug. 2 by the National Hydropower Association against NMFS might offer City Light a bigger bargaining chip. The lawsuit, joined by the Northwest Hydropower Association, accuses the federal agency of creating a standard for ESA compliance that goes beyond congressional intent.

Downstream from the Chevron decision

The hydropower associations say they are filing the lawsuit on behalf of their members. City Light is a member of both groups. A key point City Light noted in its March 15 response to a NMFS letter is that the federal agency has shifted the definition of what it considers reasonable and prudent measures to protect threatened fish species. City Light says the new standard is tougher to meet and that it exceeds what Congress intended in passing the ESA.

The hydropower associations lawsuit echoes the U.S. Supreme Courts recent decision declaring the so-called Chevron deference to be unconstitutional. The deference rule, upheld by the Supreme Court 40 years ago, held that when the meaning of a federal statute was unclear, the rule set by a federal agency would be the prevailing interpretation.

Jenn Strang, spokesperson for City Light, said that the outcome of that lawsuit will not have any bearing on the outcome of the Federal Regulatory Commission (FERC) relicensing for the Skagit River Project.

These are fragile ecosystems, and we will continue this ongoing work with our many partners and environmental experts to support fish populations for restoration and harvest, she said.

All parties to these settlement negotiations are bound by a pledge of confidentiality, to prevent public posturing by any participants. Those at the table, besides NMFS, have been state and federal fish and wildlife agencies, Department of Ecology, North Cascades National Park Service and the Swinomish, Upper Skagit and Sauk-Suiattle tribes. As a federal agency, NMFS also has a trust responsibility to treaty tribes to protect their fishing rights.

A peek behind the door of secrecy

Thus far it appears that all parties have kept details of the negotiations under wraps. But the door to the secret room has been left ajar, if only indirectly. NMFS has written letters to the FERC complaining about what it says is City Lights slow-footed response to diminishing salmon populations in the Skagit River watershed. FERC will have final approval authority over City Lights relicensing application.

City Light, in its March 15 letter to FERC, had negative comments about NMFS scientific and factual basis for calling on the utility to significantly alter its dam operations to improve river flow patterns and temperatures of waters downstream from Gorge Dam. The letters of both entities ended up in FERCs public access file.

Not present in that same City Light letter was any mention of a way to move spawning adult salmonids around the utilitys three dams, or of downriver passage for juvenile salmon.

Scott Schuyler is the lead negotiator for the Upper Skagit Tribe for fish and wildlife issues since 1994 and for hydro power relicensing in the Skagit since 2002. He has said in the past that a City Light operating license without fish passage is a nonstarter for the tribe.

Beginning with a letter dated Feb. 24, 2023, NMFS outlined the sharp differences between the benign view by City Light of its own impact on the Skagit watershed and the way NMFS sees it. Commenting on the utilitys Draft License Application (DLA), NMFS wrote, Throughout the DLA, the Licensee provides discussions and arguments suggesting that the current license has been successful as justification for maintaining the status quo.

Exporting hydropower benefits

All the electricity produced by City Lights three hydropower dams in the upper Skagit watershed, about 711 megawatts per year, goes to Seattle. The negative impacts of the dams on fish and wildlife, and on the communities along the river from the western slopes of the Cascades to Puget Sound, remain mostly in the Skagit River watershed.

NMFS, in its Feb. 24, 2023, letter to FERC, stated flatly that City Light operations at the Skagit dams have produced significant hydrological and temperature deviations from the unregulated condition, and that these changes have predictable, deleterious effects on downstream salmonid species 

In that same letter, NMFS said it wants City Light to install a temperature conditioning system that would draw cooler water from the depths of Ross Lake and mix it with the regular outfall from the Gorge Dam and powerhouse, when needed. City Light responded to the NMFS proposal in its March 15 letter this year.

The utility offered only to continue monitoring water temperatures at various points along the Skagit River. City Light challenged NMFSs scientific basis for the temperature conditioning proposal. Besides, it said that building the system would cost hundreds of millions of dollars.

A Snohomish County comparison

NMFS pointed out that temperature conditioning systems have been effective in dams in Oregon, California and Washington. In fact, Snohomish PUD installed one in 2018 at Culmback Dam on the Sultan River, which provides both hydropower and drinking water for customers in Snohomish County. Six years after its opening, the PUD reported increases in the growth patterns of rainbow trout at various stages in their life cycle. Keith Binkley, the PUDs manager of natural resources, says that the chinook and coho salmon populations also appear to have grown in the main stem of the Sultan River below the dam.

A water conditioning system relies on the temperature differences at various levels in a dams reservoir. It is built as a tower against the inside wall of a dam. The tower usually has three doors set at varying depths and can draw water from any of those doors to condition the dams outfall to temperatures suited to salmon at stages from migration, to spawning, to egg hatching.

NMFS says that the way City Light operates Gorge, Diablo and Ross dams changes the peak water flows during spawning and hatching of salmonid eggs from what the pre-dam river provided. It also leads to changes in water temperatures that can cause either premature or delayed hatching, which could limit the growth and health of fish. The dams sacrificed the natural spawning and hatching cycles that the fish had adapted to through thousands of years.

City Light disputed NMFSs claim in its March 15 letter to FERC.

Site-specific empirical information summarized in this memo clearly indicates that under existing conditions  project operations are not only within applicable temperature criterion but protect and provide benefits to fish and aquatic resources in the upper Skagit River, the utility said.

However, NMFS says the state parameters of the acceptable ranges of water temperatures may be too broad for specific times in the breeding cycle.

Elizabeth Babcock, supervisor of the North Puget Sound branch of NMFS, has been sitting across the table from City Light and its lawyers for more than three years. She signed the letters representing NMFSs proposals that go beyond the mostly status quo plan the utility has in mind, water temperature conditioning systems chief among them.

Babcocks relations with City Light appear to have been contentious throughout the negotiations. City Light stirred her ire early on as she complained to FERC in her Sept. 5, 2023, letter that the utility had failed to complete a number of studies that might inform the final discussions toward dam licensing. Instead, she wrote, City Light has applied the findings of incomplete studies in their final license application.

More seats at one table

Recently, the relationship became frayed to the point of a complaint to FERC on July 15. City Light had responded to questions from a Canadian tribe about the structure of negotiations among the several parties by saying that all the stakeholders had requested the two-tiered system  regulators and tribes in one group and lesser parties in another.

That statement is inaccurate, Babcock wrote. NMFSs firm understanding as an active member of the relicensing process is that Seattle City Light insisted that two separate tables be formed to enable the City to negotiate regulatory matters  She wrote that NMFS preferred having all parties at the table, including Skagit County government and the diking and draining districts that make farming in the Skagit delta feasible.

Skagit County interests were cut out of the main negotiating table until June of this year, a source of considerable annoyance to county officials. Also sent to the lesser table was the Skagit County Drainage and Irrigation Districts Consortium, which the countys agricultural community depends on to keep seawater from penetrating farm fields in the delta.

Suddenly, in June, the situation changed. All parties are now at one table, including Skagit County government and the Consortium, which represents the 12 diking districts. In a joint statement, all three commissioners agreed that progress is finally being made toward their goals, especially having City Light create storage capacity at Ross Dam as protection against winter and spring flooding on the Skagit River.

Asked for comment on Babcocks correction, City Light would only issue a general statement of its intention to continue engaging with federal, state and local government agencies, Tribes, nonprofits and many other experts.

Settlement negotiation protocols have been agreed to by the settlement negotiation parties, and we are all working on getting to a settlement agreement that comprehensively addresses all the parties interests, the statement said.

The City Light license to operate the dams expires April 30, 2025. Meanwhile, the clock is relentlessly eating up time, with much yet to resolve.
Seattle dental office broken into 3 times in one night, owner says

Seattle dental office broken into 3 times in one night, owner says

A Seattle dental office was broken into three separate times in a span of a few hours, the owner said.

The next-door apartment was also allegedly broken into by the same suspects during the same night.

KIRO 7 News spoke with Stephanie Mendoza, operations manager of South Lake Union Dentist Office, who said the small business lost around $3,000 worth of items in three separate break-ins Sunday, just before 10 p.m.

The break-ins were captured on surveillance video.

Mendoza said at least four people stole a safe, three laptops, three Sonicare toothbrushes and Mendozas iPad.

After logging into her iCloud account, she said she was able to track her electronic device back to Lynnwood.

I still see where its at. Its been at the same location for the past couple of days, she said. That area is pretty sketchy where its at and I dont want to put myself in danger.

Mendoza said a police report has been filed.

Seattle Police confirmed the incident with KIRO 7.

South Lake Union Dentist Office says it was broken into 3x in a few hours Sunday night. The manager says at least four suspects stole around $3,000 worth of items. The same suspects are also accused of breaking into Fox & Finch Apartments next door. More on @KIRO7Seattle at 5. pic.twitter.com/3VOWwco2pw  Louie Tran (@louie_tran) August 22, 2024

Stephanie Pedersen, the owner, said this is not the first time her business was broken into.

It just feels very violating and invasive. We work hard for what we earn and then to have somebody to so brazenly take that, it makes it difficult to thrive and survive in Seattle when were working hard and this happens and we get set back to square one, especially with school loans, business loans, all sorts of bills and payments, she said.

Mendoza said the suspects broke into the business from the backdoor. However, the building next door was also broken into, she added while she showed us the wired gate that the suspects allegedly cut through to get inside Fox & Finch Apartments.

They cut this bar open and then they were able to reach in and open this door, she explained.

The property manager, who did not want to go on camera, confirmed with KIRO 7 News that the 49-unit apartment building was broken into Sunday night.

The suspects were able to break a key lock box and use a key to gain access to the entire building, the property manager added.

They had the key fob, so they were able to open the garage. A car pulled in, said Mendoza.

Surveillance video also captured the break-in inside the apartment, showing the accused suspects driving off inside a vehicle that was parked inside a garage located near the back of the building.
Second former Memphis police officer is changing his plea to guilty in Tyre Nichols death

Tyre Nichols, 29, was a free spirit with a passion for skateboarding and capturing sunsets on his camera. - Provided by Ben Crump

A second former Memphis police officer charged in the violent arrest and beating death of Tyre Nichols intends to change his plea to guilty, according to federal court documents.

Former Memphis Police Officer Emmitt Martin III had previously pleaded not guilty to charges related to the death of Nichols, the 29-year-old Black man who was beaten by Memphis police officers following a traffic stop in January 2023.

In November, former Memphis Police Officer Desmond Mills Jr. also agreed to plead guilty in the case as part of a global settlement to both the state and federal charges he was facing for his role in Nichols death.

Mills Jr., 33, pleaded guilty to two of the four federal charges he was facing, according to the US Attorneys Office for the Western District of Tennessee. He also agreed to plead guilty in state court at an upcoming hearing on charges related to Nichols death, according to the Shelby County district attorney.

Mills and Martin were among the five officers charged in the death. Three other former officers, Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith, are still awaiting trial.

A change of plea hearing has been set in Martins case for Friday at 3 p.m. ET, according to a notice filed with the Western District of Tennessee Federal Court. Its unclear if Martin intends to change his plea in his state case.

CNN reached out to Martins attorney for comment but has not yet heard back.

The Shelby County District Attorneys Office is aware of the expected change of plea, spokesperson Erica Williams told CNN. We have consistently collaborated with the federal authorities throughout the entire process, Williams said.

Nichols death sparked fresh protests over how police in America treat people of color after he was violently beaten by Memphis police officers. He required hospitalization after the encounter and died three days later from blunt force trauma to the head. His autopsy report said he had tearing and rupturing in his brain and suffered cuts and bruising all over his body  including his neck and torso  and his death was ruled a homicide.

After an internal investigation, Memphis police identified and fired five officers involved in the traffic stop due to their violation of multiple department policies, including failing in their excessive use of force, duty to intervene, and duty to render aid, the department had said in a statement.

The five officers were charged in Tennessee state court with counts of murder, assault and kidnapping related to Nichols death.

In addition, the officers were charged in September in a federal indictment with four criminal counts, including civil rights, conspiracy and obstruction offenses resulting in Nichols death. Two of the counts carried a maximum penalty of life in prison.

The indictment accused the officers of using unreasonable force, failing to render medical aid, conspiring to cover up their use of unlawful force and intentionally providing false and misleading information in an arrest report.

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Windsor became the second Northern Colorado community to have its own life jacket loaner station this summer.

The station, which loans free life jackets on a first-come, first-served basis and operates on the honor system, was installed at the south end of the Windsor Lake swim beach in July, according to the town of Windsor.

It is one of two life jacket stations installed in Northern Colorado with the help of Drennen's Dreams Foundation, a Colorado-based drowning prevention and water safety nonprofit named for Drennen O'Melia, a 12-year-old boy who drowned in a Centennial country club pool in 2010.

Windsor became the latest Northern Colorado community to have a life jacket loaner station when one was installed at Windsor Lake in July 2024.

The organization's first life jacket loaner station was added to Boyd Lake in Loveland last summer.

Headed to Horsetooth Reservoir? Check out conditions on this live webcam

Besides loaning free life jackets to Windsor Laker recreators, the station also seeks to educate the public about the importance of life jackets and how to properly wear them, according to the town of Windsor.

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: How Windsor Lake's life jacket loaner station works
What to do if you see one of these in Monongalia County

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (WBOY)  During and after the week of Aug. 24 through Aug. 28, those in Monongalia County may encounter what looks like a small container that may have been discarded as litter.

Baits distributed by hand are green like the one shown here. The ones dropped from aircraft are usually wrapped in white and are also lighter. Credit: Monongalia County Health Department

While they may look like litter, theyre actually edible rabies vaccines for raccoons and other wildlife to consume, the Monongalia County Health Department (MCHD) said in a press release.

The vaccines are being air-dropped around Monongalia County from planes and helicopters the weekend of Aug. 24 and Aug. 25, and on Tuesday, Aug. 27 and Wednesday, Aug. 28, MCHD employees will be distributing the baits by hand in grassy areas of parks and along the rail trail.

When will monarch butterflies migrate through West Virginia?

So what should you do if you see one on your property?

The MCHD said that the oral vaccines are not toxic or harmful to dogs, but could cause an upset stomach if your dog ingests too many of them.

Pet owners, especially those whose dogs are left unattended in a large yard near a field or woods, are encouraged to inspect their yards periodically during this time to see if there are any baits.

If you do find any in those places, wear gloves and remove the baits, and put them in an area where raccoons and wild animals will find them, MCHD Environmental Health Program Manager Todd Powroznik said in the release.

Powroznik said this year, the county has 1,400 baits to distribute around the greater Morgantown 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 WBOY.com.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren will tour Wisconsin next week to talk economy for Harris-Walz campaign

GREEN BAY  U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren will tour Wisconsin as an economic surrogate for Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, next Monday and Tuesday.

It will be the second time the Massachusetts senator visits America's Dairyland in the 2024 presidential election cycle.

"I am thrilled to be back in Wisconsin to share their message directly with voters and underscore the stakes of this election for Wisconsinites," the senator said through the Harris campaign.

Her first visit to Madison and Eau Claire in June stressed reproductive access for women, an issue that may decide the election for many swing voters in Wisconsin, a state crucial to win for both parties in November. At the same time, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, often regarded as her kindred political spirit, was talking to Wisconsinites on the economy.

It's Warren's turn to stump on the issue that the state's voters rank ahead of all others in this election.

She will highlight Harris' economic agenda released last week centered around housing affordability, medical debt, food costs and child care issues that the campaign says will be enacted within the first 100 days of taking office, as well as job creation.

Warren will begin her tour in Grafton, outside of Milwaukee, make her way up Lake Michigan to Manitowoc, and end her Monday in Door County. She will start off her Tuesday morning in Green Bay, arrive in Appleton by lunchtime, and end the day  and the tour  in Oshkosh.

The senator's tour

Monday, Aug. 26

Grafton, 12:30 p.m.

Manitowoc, 3 p.m.

Door County, 5:45 p.m.

Tuesday, Aug. 27

Green Bay, 10:15 a.m.

Appleton, 12:15 p.m.

Oshkosh, 2:15 p.m.

More event details will be added as provided by the Harris-Walz campaign.

Jesse Lin is a reporter covering the community of Green Bay and politics in northeast Wisconsin. Contact him at 920-431-8247 or jlin@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Elizabeth Warren to promote Harris-Walz campaign in Wisconsin
Who is Sen. Tammy Baldwin, the first woman elected to Congress from Wisconsin?

Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin will speak Thursday night at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

Baldwin, whose seat is up for election this fall, has served in the Senate since 2012, succeeding the late Herb Kohl. She's running against Republican Eric Hovde in 2024 in what is projected to be a close race. Baldwin's seat is a priority for both parties as the Democrats fight to maintain their slim majority in the Senate.

Here's more information about Baldwin's background and time in public service:

What is Tammy Baldwin's political party?

Baldwin is a member of the Democratic Party.

When was Tammy Baldwin elected and how long has she served?

Baldwin won her first seat in politics on the Dane County Board of Supervisors at age 24. She was elected to four terms.

Since then, she has held seats in the state Assembly, U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate. In each chamber, she has been the first openly LGBTQ representative elected, and she was the first woman elected to U.S. Congress from Wisconsin.

Baldwin has used her platform to seek progress on LGBTQ issues, from proposing the legalization of same-sex marriage in the state Assembly to criticizing the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy. Her advocacy came during a period when even her own party was divided over gay rights.

Where did Tammy Baldwin grow up?

Baldwin was born in Madison and attended Madison West High School.

How old is Tammy Baldwin?

Baldwin is 62 years old.

Where did Tammy Baldwin go to college?

The senator attended Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, and the University of Wisconsin Law School.

Who is Tammy Baldwin's family?

Baldwin was raised by her grandparents, who both worked at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She has spoken openly about her mother, who struggled with opioid addiction and mental health.

The senator was in a domestic partnership with attorney Lauren Azar. They ended their relationship in 2010.

How has Tammy Baldwin voted on recent bills?

Baldwin twice voted to convict Donald Trump after the former president was impeached by the House of Representatives.

Baldwin voted to create a commission to study the Capitol riots of Jan. 6, 2021.

Baldwin voted for the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

Baldwin voted for the confirmation of Ketanji Brown Jackson to be a justice on the U.S. Supreme Court.

Baldwin voted for the CHIPS Act and the climate, tax and health care bill.

In 2022, she spearheaded the push for codifying same-sex and interracial marriage in the U.S. Senate. In November that year, the measure passed the Senate by a 61-36 vote.

Baldwin voted with Trump's position 22.7% of the time. She has voted with President Joe Biden's position 95.5% of the time.

How popular is Tammy Baldwin?

Baldwin had a 44% approval rating in an August 2024 Marquette poll. That represented a slight dip in her approval rating from earlier in the summer. She has generally won elections by wide margins.

What are some controversial moments of Tammy Baldwin's tenure?

Baldwin's office came under fire for inaction in 2015 over alleged overmedication at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Tomah.

How do I contact Tammy Baldwin?

Baldwin maintains offices in Eau Claire, Milwaukee, Madison, La Crosse, Green Bay, Ashland and Washington, D.C. Feedback can be submitted on Baldwin's website. For time-sensitive issues, her staff can be reached at 202-224-5653.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Who is Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin? She's speaking tonight at DNC.
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO)  A settlement is allowing girls gymnastics to continue in the Sioux Falls School District through the 2026-2027 school year. It all started last September when a group of parents filed a lawsuit after the district cut the program due to declining numbers. The lawsuit said the district violated Title IX requirements.

A settlement between parents and the district was approved by the U.S District Court on Friday.

Court documents said gymnastics will be offered for the next three school years at one east and one west side high school location.

The settlement said any decision to cut the gymnastics program after the 2026-2027 school year must be made through the districts budget approval process and recommended to the School District Board.

Hamlin County deer vs motorcycle crash injures 2

Additionally, the settlement said that for as long as the district offers gymnastics, parents who filed the lawsuit can not assert any Title IX-related claims against the District related to gymnastics.

KELOLAND News reached out to the Sioux Falls School District about the settlement and was told no interviews are being done at this time. The SFSD said a joint statement will be released later on.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KELOLAND.com.
Several arrested on weapon, drug charges in NY narcotics investigation

(WJET/WFXP)  Several New York residents were arrested for charges including weapon and drug possession after a search warrant was performed in Chautauqua County.

According to a police report, narcotics investigators from multiple organizations were dispatched to the 160 block of Newton Street in the Village of Fredonia for the search warrant where the following suspects were located inside:

26-year-old Faith Grisanti, of Dunkirk

27-year-old Dakota Cordell, of Fredonia

31-year-old Nicholas Culmo, of Fredonia

34-year-old Brett Plucinski, of Fredonia

36-year-old Joseph Culmo, of Fredonia

63-year-old Richard Culmo, of Village of Fredonia

After searching the residence, law enforcement found 81.8 g of fentanyl, six handguns, a rifle, 50 suboxone strips, a quantity of oxycodone, scales and packaging material for the sale and distribution of narcotics and $6,170.00 in U.S. currency.

Dakota Cordell, Faith Grisanti, Brett Plucinski, Joseph Culmo and Nicholas Culmo were all charged with two counts of third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and second-degree criminally using drug paraphernalia.

Cordell was additionally charged with fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon, and police also learned he had three arrest warrants against him.

Joseph Culmo also had an arrest warrant from the Village of Fredonia Court.

Richard Culmo was charged with first-degree criminal nuisance and was released on an appearance ticket, according to the report.

All other suspects were transported to Chautauqua County Jail for the centralized arraignment program.

Members of the Chautauqua County Sheriffs Office, Dunkirk Police Department, Jamestown Police Department and the Village of Fredonia assisted in this case.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJET/WFXP/YourErie.com.
SOFIA, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Bulgarian President Rumen Radev tasked the current caretaker Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev on Thursday with forming a new caretaker government.

Glavchev has been serving as the caretaker prime minister since April 9. Following the snap parliamentary elections on June 9, the Balkan country failed to elect a regular cabinet. According to the Bulgarian constitution, a new caretaker government is compulsory before the next parliamentary elections.

Glavchev was not Radev's first choice to lead the next caretaker government, so the president first nominated Goritsa Grancharova-Kozhareva, who previously served as president of the Bulgarian National Audit Office, as the new caretaker prime minister on Aug. 9. However, this Monday, Grancharova-Kozhareva's proposal of the caretaker government lineup was refused by the president, who later withdrew her nomination.

According to a statement issued Thursday by the president's office, Radev has required Glavchev to carefully consider changes in a new Council of Ministers, and expects to receive the lineup of the new caretaker government by Aug. 26.

If Glavchev can successfully form a caretaker government, the date of early parliamentary elections would be on Oct. 27, Radev said. 
Several BB gun incidents near Tufts University campus prompts warning from police

Just as students are getting ready to move into Tufts University, theres already a warning about crime.

Police say theyre following several reports of BB guns being used in the area and are urging area residents to stay vigilant, especially students and staff.

Tufts University sent out a warning to the college community about someone firing off a BB gun from a car recently. Those pellets allegedly struck several people.

Police say it happened in the areas of Medford, Somerville, and Brookline.

They believe the suspect approached people walking by and fired a BB gun from a dark-colored SUV, possibly an older model Jeep.

Tufts police want to remind the community to be aware of their surroundings and to try to walk in well-lit areas.

Anyone with information about the incidents is asked to call police.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

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Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) clapped back at former President Trumps criticism of his Democratic National Convention speech, stating the former president is obsessed with him and continuing to spew hate and division.

I think its clear over the last few years, Donald Trump is obsessed with me and obsessed with continuing to spew hate and division in our politics. Hes someone whos routinely peddled antisemitic tropes like this, Shapiro told reporters Thursday morning.

The Pennsylvania Democrat later said his speech was the exact polar opposite of what Trump is discussing.

Im talking about real freedom, bringing people together, accepting folks no matter what they look like, where they come from, who they love, who they pray to and say this is a place for you, he said. Thats diametrically opposed to everything Donald Trump believes and its clear that hes going to continue to be the hateful, divisive person that hes always been in this campaign.

The comments came hours after Trump jabbed Shapiro as a highly overrated Jewish governor and called his convention speech really bad.

The highly overrated Jewish Governor of the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro, made a really bad and poorly delivered speech talking about freedom and fighting for Comrade Kamala Harris for President, Trump wrote overnight on Truth Social.

Yet she hates Israel and will do nothing but make its journey through the complexities of survival as difficult as possible, hoping in the end that it will fail, he added.

Shapiro, the former president said, refused to acknowledge that I am the best friend that Israel, and the Jewish people, ever had.

Look, remember hes the guy who wanted Doug Mastriano to have this job, Shapiro said Thursday, referring to his Trump-backed Republican opponent in the 2022 gubernatorial race. Hes the guy who has been repeatedly rejected by the voters in Pennsylvania. He himself in 2020, all of his handpicked candidates have lost and I think hes headed for another loss to Kamala Harris.

The focus on Shapiros Jewish faith comes after various Republicans alleged Harris did not tap the Pennsylvania governor as her vice presidential pick because of his heritage.

Shapiro, a rising Democratic star, was thought to be one of the top options for Harriss running mate as he governs one of the countrys key swing states. She eventually went with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D).

Earlier this week, Shapiro criticized Trump for having no credibility to discuss antisemitism in response to Republicans claims.

Well, look, the person leading that effort to inject that into the dialogue is Donald Trump, someone who has absolutely no credibility to speak about antisemitism or hatred or bigotry in any form because he is someone who pushes that into the dialogue. He is someone who divides Americans, Shapiro told MSNBCs Joy Reid.

The White House slammed Trumps most recent remarks.

It is Antisemitic, dangerous, and hurtful to attack a fellow American by calling out their Jewish faith in a derogatory way, or perpetuating the centuries-old smear of dual loyalty, White House spokesperson Herbie Ziskend said in a statement responding to Trumps attack. President Biden and Vice President Harris believe we must come together as Americans to condemn and combat Antisemitism  and hate and bigotry of all kinds.

Brett Samuels and Lauren Sforza 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.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) lauded his partys vice presidential pick, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D), ahead of his speech at the Democratic National Convention Wednesday night.

Im excited for Tim Walz, Im excited for [Vice President] Kamala Harris, Shapiro said Wednesday on Fox Newss Special Report with anchor Bret Baier. She made the exact right pick, and Im looking forward to supportin the ticket.

Shapiro was among multiple names floated as a possible vice presidential pick for Harris before she announced earlier this month that the Minnesota governor had the role. Shapiro previously called him an exceptionally strong addition to the ticket who will help Kamala move our country forward in a statement in the wake of the vice presidents decision.

There was strife in the Democratic Party over who would get Harriss running mate slot before she made her announcement. Progressives voiced concern over Shapiros stance on the Israel-Hamas war and previous position on school vouchers.

However, there was frustration against progressive attacks from those in Congress aligned with Shapiro, especially from Jewish lawmakers who said they hadnt correctly presented his stance on the Israel-Hamas war and were leaning toward antisemitism.

Joshs position on Israel is almost identical to everybody else, but hes being held to a different standard. So, you have to ask yourself why, Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) said.

When asked by Baier if he believes that the Israel-Hamas situation is a divider for Democrats, Shapiro responded that he is of the view that its really hard to look at a situation where you had 1,200 dead folks in Israel, over 200 hostages, including American hostages, taken on Oct. 7 from a music festival, from a kibbutz, and then thousands of people in Gaza who have been killed, communities destroyed.

Shapiro later said he believes what the Democratic Party does is, it understands the suffering on all sides of this and wants to see an end to the war  a return of these hostages and maybe, maybe, just maybe, a pathway towards some peace.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) delivered a fiery speech at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday, warning that former President Trump would take away the rights and freedoms of Americans if elected in November.

While he cloaks himself in the blanket of freedom, what hes offering isnt freedom at all, Shapiro said.

Hear me on this, its not freedom to tell our children what books theyre allowed to read. And its not freedom to tell women what they can do with their bodies, he said to applause.

And hear me on this, it sure as hell is not freedom to say you can go vote but he gets to pick the winner. Thats not freedom, he said. You know what Democrats? We are the party of real freedom.

Shapiro praised Vice President Harris in his remarks, saying she has spent her entire career making progress.

Will we be a nation defined by chaos or extremism? Or will we choose a path of decency, honor and continued progress, the governor said.

Shapiro is one of Harriss most high-profile surrogates going into the general election. The governor has received praise for his charismatic public speaking style, with many comparing him to former President Obama.

Harriss vice presidential selection process came down to Shapiro and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. Shapiro faced pushback and criticism from the progressive wing of the party, citing his stance on the Israel-Hamas war and his response to pro-Palestinian protests in Pennsylvania. While Harris ultimately picked Walz, Shapiro will be a valuable asset in must-win Pennsylvania.

Shapiro praised Walz ahead of his speech on Wednesday, saying Harris made the exact right pick.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE)  An alumna of Fresno State says she has been able to tell important stories and make a difference with her art because she wasnt afraid to challenge the limits forced upon her.

When I was in like third grade, I remember I was clicking the button to cross the street, said artist Lizbeth De La Cruz Santana. And an older white man grabs my hand and burns a cigar on my hand.

Santana says she did not respond to that because she was conditioned to believe she would make it worse for herself due to her background as a Mexican-American.

Veterans are being deported, this Fresno mural is dedicated to them

She grew up in Compton, moving from the United States and Mexico frequently. She always had a strong connection to her roots and an understanding of how the world perceived her  more so than some of her Mexican-American classmates.

I remember growing up in Jalisco and thats where my Spanish came, Santana said. Coming back to elementary school in the States I realized that a lot of kids didnt speak Spanish the way that I did.

The oldest of three, Santana says she always felt a responsibility to excel in school. She says she enjoyed her Spanish classes in particular and knew early on she wanted to be a Spanish teacher, but she says she continued to see and hear reminders that she was an outsider.

I was still in Fresno State finishing up my Masters, Santana said. I had a professor there tell me that I shouldnt worry if I dont get into a Ph.D. program because Fresno State does not train students like myself to be a part of, you know, an academic program such as a Ph.D.

Santana says people would say things like shes dreaming too much, and she wants too much, but she only took it as a challenge and pushed forward.

During her Ph.D. research at UC Davis, Santana says she was yet again continuously discouraged and felt imposter syndrome.

It was hard, you know, finishing the Ph.D., Santana said. Not just because of the studies or the academic work. It was harder because of the social aspect of completing a Ph.D.

Santana says in reconnecting to her love for photography, she was able to merge the world of academia and art to start working on mural projects along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Among those projects is her most recent project, the Deported Veterans Diaspora Project, in which murals of deported veterans were showcased on the border.

The murals were painted in Fresno and San Diego and told stories of veterans deported for minor offenses or simply missing a hearing on their road to citizenship while on deployment.

Santana says through her work she has not only been able to heal spiritually but also see the value of telling the stories of Mexican-Americans and Chicanos to promote representation and acceptance.

Because were not fully accepted, Santana said. Its so important not to believe everyone around you who puts limits on what you can do  because those are limits that they have put on themselves.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. (WTAJ) Often what can get lost in stories about violent crime is the concern for the victim and their family. WTAJ News spoke with the uncle of Jilly Todaro, Bill Mazzarese, to learn more about what kind of person she was.

Nearly four years after Jilly went missing and over two months after her body was found. A now convicted murderer is being accused of also killing her.

After attending Jillys funeral services earlier this month, Mazzarese said everyone that he spoke with at the funeral had the same things to say about Jilly.

They said that she was a good person, Mazzarese said. What I noticed the most about her was her child-like heart and her trusting nature.

Mazzarese said Jilly was kind and accepting of everyone, no matter what they had gone through in their lives.

She never thought that anyone would do her any harm. She opened up her heart to people who didnt have her best interests in mind, Mazzarese said.

Mazzarese hadnt heard from Jilly in about ten years, as he was living in Washington state and Utah. He said that no one really suspected anything bad had happened to her because Jilly had always done her own thing.

When he learned from his brother that Jilly had been reported missing, Mazzarese said he started paying closer attention to the news. That all came to a head when he saw that remains were discovered on June 7, at the former home that she lived at with Brian Giles.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: He was a predator convicted Johnstown murderer charged in death of woman Jilly Todaro

I saw them working in that house and discovering the body in the basement, it was gut-wrenching it made me cry because I knew it was going to be her, Mazzarese said.

At the time of this interview with Mazzarese, Brian Giles had not yet been charged in the death of Jilly Todaro. However, on Wednesday, Aug. 21 during a press conference, Cambria County Coroner Jeff Lees and Cambria County District Attorney Greg Neugebauer announced that charges have been filed against Giles.

However, Mazzarese said that they dont want vengeance, because it isnt equal to what they lost.

Justice is a poor consolation when a life is lost due to injustice, Mazzarese said. The only reason we need justice is because injustice prevails.

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Giles is now facing a felony charge of criminal homicide and aggravated assault and a misdemeanor charge of false reports.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WTAJ - www.wtaj.com.
She tweeted about protesting Kamala Harris at the DNC. Then the K-Hive called the Feds

Days before the Democratic National Convention kicked off in Chicago, a university professor innocuously tweeted her excitement about the upcoming protests against the Gaza war outside the United Center, triggering a firestorm.

Oh Kamala is NOT ready for Chicago. But dont worry; were ready for her, Eman Abdelhadi, an activist and professor of sociology at the University of Chicago, wrote.

Just minutes later, Kamala Harris supporters replied that they had reported her to the Feds.

The @SecretService & @FBI have just entered the chat because this seems like a real threat against the Vice President of the United States, wrote one .

I reported it/her and flagged the FBI Secret Service and FBI Chicago field office dont play with K-Hive, wrote another in response, referencing the nickname Harriss online supporters go by.

Abdelhadi, who is Palestinian, was shocked that her seemingly inoffensive tweet was being depicted as a violent threat.

I think its very clear that if I werent Muslim, if I werent Palestinian, if I werent Arab, that none of this would have happened, she told The Independent.

Emad Abdelhadi, a sociology professor at the University of Chicago, was called by the FBI over a tweet she posted about a Gaza protest at the DNC. (Sarah-Ji / The Independent)

She also saw the jump to suspicion as a painful reminder of the way Muslim Americans have been treated by Americans for decades, especially after the September 11 attacks in 2001.

I dont think its an accident that they called the FBI. It was like this is whos supposed to deal with you people when you get rowdy, she added.

Nine days later, Abdelhadi got a phone call from the Chicago FBI office. The words US Government flashed up on caller ID. She was too afraid to answer.

Good morning, Im looking to speak with Professor Abdelhadi, the man who identified himself as an FBI agent said on the voicemail. Your name came across my desk and I had a couple of questions for you.

Abdelhadi said listening to it transported her back to the aftermath of 9/11, when massive FBI surveillance programs targeted Muslim communities like hers across the country. Authorities raided her mothers workplace and people in her community went to jail.

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators protest outside the United Center, the host venue of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, U.S., August 22, 2024. (REUTERS)

I cried, she said. I was triggered, and I was surprised by that.

It just brought up so much for me, because the FBI was a regular presence in my community, she said. And even when they werent physically there, the threat and the knowledge that they were surveilling us was very real, it affected everything.

Abdelhadi quickly found a lawyer and they called the FBI agent back. Her lawyer instructed her to remain quiet while he answered the questions for her. The agent asked if Abdelhadi planned to commit any acts of violence, and if she had a history of drug abuse or access to a weapon, to which her lawyer answered no.

Eman Abdelhadis tweet. (Screengrab / X)

The FBI did not respond to a request from The Independent for comment.

Abdelhadi saw her experience of pro-Harris supporters seeing her as a threat as emblematic of how Gaza protesters have been treated by the Democratic Party since the war began last year.

It just speaks to the cruelty and callousness that the Democrats are treating this with, she said. What was really shocking about this, and whats been shocking about the DNC, is seeing that same callousness and cruelty filter down even to the Democratic base.

Some 69 per cent of Democrats disapprove of Israels war in Gaza, according to a Gallup poll published in July. But President Joe Biden has refused calls from within his own party to withhold weapons sales to Israel to pressure it to agree to a ceasefire, even as the death toll from the conflict has reached 40,000 and famine has spread across the territory .

When Biden announced that he would abandon his re-election campaign, the movement had expressed hope that Harris might usher in a shift in policy. Abdelhadi and others who protested at the DNC were trying to shift Harris on policy, but the convention has largely shunned those efforts.

Until Harris changes US policy and at least considers the prospect of limiting arms to Israel, Abdelhadi said she could not vote for her.

Ive made it very clear publicly, and I think many like me have made it clear, that we need for our votes to be earned, Abdelhadi said. I dont want to see Trump win, but she hasnt earned it.

Protesters march during a demonstration outside the Democratic National Convention Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024, in Chicago. (Associated Press)

Roughly three dozen uncommitted delegates  who were sent to the DNC by voters in Democratic primaries in protest of the Biden administrations support for Israels war in Gaza  had asked the Harris campaign to allow a Palestinian American to speak on stage during this weeks convention. That request was denied on Wednesday.

To add insult to injury, a viral video showed Democrats leaving the convention hall on Wednesday, passing by a group of protesters who were reading the names of Palestinian children killed in Gaza. Some of them covered their ears as they went by, others mocked the protesters.

Its a reminder of something that as a Muslim and Arab Ive always known, Abdelhadi said, which is that my life doesnt really matter to most of my countrymen, that Im deeply disposable, and so is my community.
ALTOONA, Pa. (WTAJ)  Pennsylvania-based Sheetz, a nearly 700-store convenience and restaurant chain, ranked in the top 10 companies that care by PEOPLE, drastically beating out Target and Walmart.

PEOPLE Magazine releases a yearly list of the Top Companies that Care in America and Sheetz has been on the list four times in the past five years. This year is their third year in a row and they came in at number nine  the highest spot theyve taken on this list.

Giving back and helping those we serve is at the forefront of everything we do. That is why being included on this list is something we are not taking for granted, Travis Sheetz, President & CEO of Sheetz said. We are truly honored to be ranked ninth on this list, standing alongside some of the leading companies in the country that prioritize the well-being of their communities.

Sheetz vs Wawa: Heres what the numbers say

Sheetz said that 88 percent of employees surveyed said it is a great place to work and 91 percent of Sheetz employees feel good about the ways the company contributes to the community.

Ranking number nine means Sheetz drastically beat out companies like Target which ranked 42 and Walmart which ranked 50.

Stay up to date with the latest news in the palm of your hand. Click here to download the WTAJ app for Apple and Android devices.

The list, which is not surprisingly dominated by tech companies, can be found here.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WTAJ - www.wtaj.com.
A Russian Roll On Roll Off (RORO) vessel full of fuel train cars was struck and sunk by a Ukrainian missile near the Kerch Bridge, Russian media and milbloggers are claiming. The fate of more than a dozen crew members after the attack on the Kerch Strait port of Kavkaz remains unknown.

After the Ukrainian Armed Forces struck with a Neptune missile, 15 people who were on board the Conro Trader with fuel tanks went missing, the Russian Baza news outlet reported on Telegram. The vessel, damaged as a result of the attack by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, sank in the waters of the port of Kavkaz. This was reported by the operational headquarters of the Krasnodar Territory. They added that there are no sources of fire on the territory of the port itself.

After the attack, videos emerged on social media showing the ship engulfed in flames, with thick black plumes of smoke rising into the air.

The Russian ro/ro ferry Conro Trader is ablaze in the port of Kavkaz after a successful Ukrainian Navy Neptune cruise missile strike.



The ferry was reportedly carrying fuel tankers. pic.twitter.com/A4ZitQG6QC  OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) August 22, 2024

Ukrainian Neptune missile strike hit Russian ferry Conro Trader with fuel tanks in the port of Kavkaz.



The ferry was loaded with railway tank cars containing fuel. https://t.co/SGeHztlp3Q pic.twitter.com/QfwIovplmj  Clash Report (@clashreport) August 22, 2024

Moments ago, a Ukrainian Navy Neptune cruise missile successfully struck a Russian ferry carrying fuel tankers in the Kavkaz port, near Kerch.



A series of explosions have ripped through the port area. pic.twitter.com/BVfnpiecom  OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) August 22, 2024

Russian authorities confirmed the strike on Kavkaz port. A railroad ferry with fuel tanks was hit. pic.twitter.com/VeU4mpesUD  Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) August 22, 2024

The fire and flames were visible far in the distance.

The Conro Trader was carrying 30 fuel tanks when it was hit, Russian milblogger Vladimir Rogov claimed on Telegram. A dozen fire brigades, three ambulance brigades and other first responders are at the scene, he added.

Fuel supplies to Crimea go via different routes, problems do not threaten the peninsula, he explained, citing Crimean authorities.

Traffic on the Kerch Bridge was temporarily halted as a result of the strike, the Russian SHOT news outlet said on Telegram.

The claim that the ship was struck by a Neptune missile is plausible, a Ukrainian defense official told us. As we first reported a year ago, Ukraine has adapted the indigenous Neptune anti-ship missile for longer range and land-attack capability.

The missile likely traveled about 150 to 180 miles to hit Kavkaz, said the official, adding that the converted Neptunes have a maximum range of 190 miles with a 350-pound warhead.

The Neptune had previously gained notoriety after two were used to hit the Russian Navys Project 1164 Slava class cruiser Moskva in the Black Sea in April 2022. You can read more about that in our story here. The missile had just entered very limited service when the war began, with few on hand for operational applications.

The Russian Black Sea port of Kavkaz, where the Conro Trader was reportedly sunk, is at least 150 miles from the front lines. (Google Earth image)

Its thought that the land attack Neptune uses and imaging infrared seeker with scene/image matching to prosecute its terminal attack. This would make sense for hitting a docked ship, just as Storm Shadows and SCALP-EGs that use a similar guidance system have done repeatedly. Traditional anti-ship missiles with radar seekers are not well suited for striking ships in complex port areas.

Still, we cannot confirm what struck this vessel  a Neptune or any other type of weapon  if anything struck it at all. There is also the possibility that an accident onboard resulted in the destruction seen in the clips above.

If indeed Ukraine attacked the Kavkaz, it would be just the latest Ukrainian strike on Russias energy supply and infrastructure.

A massive fire at a Russian oil depot in Proletarsk, Rostov region is still burning five days after being hit by Ukrainian drones. It is located about 250 miles from the front lines.

The governor of Rostov on Thursday said at least 13 firefighters have been hospitalized after fighting the blaze and that several measures are underway to try to douse it.

To prevent the occurrence of a landscape fire nearby, additional mineralized strips have been created around the industrial site, Vasily Golubev said on Telegram. Also, two water drops were carried out on the adjacent territory today by Il-76 [Candid] aircraft of the Russian Emergencies Ministry.

I regularly receive reports on the progress of extinguishing, he added. According to experts from operational rescue units, there is no threat of the fire spreading to residential buildings and other objects.

Five days after it was struck by Ukrainian drones, the Kavkaz oil depot in Russia's Rostov Oblast continues to burn, with additional tanks at the depot exploding as the fire continues to spread.



The facility has almost certainly been completely destroyed by the blaze. pic.twitter.com/t9tD6Yv52d  Jimmy Rushton (@JimmySecUK) August 22, 2024

These attacks are hurting Russias economy, which relies heavily on energy exports. Though it still appears to be providing natural gas to Europe, one of the first targets of the Kursk invasion was the Sudzha gas metering station. It is the last operational trans-shipping point for Russian gas exports to Europe via Ukraine, according to Reuters.

While Russian strikes on Ukraines power infrastructure have caused widespread damage, Ukrainian attacks on Russian fuel depots and electrical grid are taking a tremendous toll as well, said Pavel Luzin, Senior Fellow, Democratic Resilience at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA).

I think this upcoming winter can be the first winter when people on the Russian side will feel more harder times than people on Ukrainian side, he said during a panel discussion Thursday morning about Ukraines Kursk invasion.

Update: 8:01 PM Eastern 

A new video emerged of the Conro Trader loaded with fuel tank train cars before the attack.

The ferry had 30 (!) fuel tanks and up to 5 crew members,  local authorities said. https://t.co/SCYu05UBOxpic.twitter.com/hy3I4knokQ  MAKS 24 (@Maks_NAFO_FELLA) August 22, 2024

Contact the author: howard@thewarzone.com
The Dearborn Police Department is investigating a shooting at Benihana near Fairlane Mall that left two people injured.

Police responded to the incident around 9 p.m. Monday evening in the 18000 block of Hubbard Drive at Benihana. Authorities say both parties engaged in a shootout in the parking lot, and have not yet found the person who fired the initial shot.

The victims of the shooting were taken to a hospital and are in stable condition, authorities say.

"I can tell you it appears to be a targeted attack and robbery is not the motive," said Dearborn Police Chief Issa Shahin.

Police are currently investigating the incident and are asking residents to avoid the area as the investigation continues.

The incident, not far from University of Michigan-Dearborn, prompted an alert from the school encouraging students to avoid the area, then notified them that the area was secured and that they may resume normal activities.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Shooting near Benihana in Dearborn leaves 2 injured
VIENTIANE, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Representatives from the member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have met in northern Laos' Luang Prabang province discussing enhancing regional connectivity and resilience.

The representatives gathered on Wednesday for the ASEAN Senior Officials' Meeting (SOM), hosted by the Lao Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the ministry said in a report on Thursday.

The meeting reviewed the implementation of the decisions made at the 57th ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting and related meetings, especially the implementation of the nine priorities under Laos' ASEAN chairmanship in 2024 under the theme of "ASEAN: Enhancing Connectivity and Resilience".

The officials concluded at the meeting that the overall work in this regard is progressing well.

The meeting also discussed implementing an action plan for Timor-Leste to become a full member of ASEAN, and applications by countries outside the region to become a party to ASEAN's Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia. 
FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE)  A person has been detained after a disturbance involving high school students led to a shooting on Wednesday afternoon, the Fresno County Sheriffs announced.

Deputies say they received a call of shots fired near an Auto Zone store in the area of Clinton and Cedar Avenues in Fresno at about 3:40 p.m.

Upon arrival, the Sheriffs Office says they learned there was a disturbance between a large group of students that attend nearby McLane High School. A gun was pulled out, and several shots were fired, causing everyone to run away.

According to officials, bullets struck a parked vehicle and a building. Witnesses gave them descriptions of the people involved, including the gunman. No injuries were reported.

30 minutes after the shooting, deputies say they detained a person matching the description of the gunman. Investigators say they will continue to follow leads and search the area for other people involved.

The Sheriffs Office is working with the Fresno Polices School Resource Office at McLane High to learn more about the people involved and what may have led to the initial argument.

Anyone with information regarding this case, including photos or video, is encouraged to contact the Sheriffs Office at 559-600-3111.

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CADDO PARISH, La. (KTAL/KMSS)  A Shreveport man who killed a neighbor in a dispute over a phone charger was found guilty Wednesday.

A media release from the Caddo Parish District Attorneys office said that 30-year-old Joshua Parks was found guilty as charged of second-degree murder in Caddo District Court.

Four members have resigned from Bossier City Charter Review Commission

Officials say the seven-woman, five-man jury took just a half hour to determine that Parks shot and killed his neighbor 34-year-old Edward Lattin in Shreveports last homicide of 2020. The shooting happened on December 18, 2020.

Lattin was at his residence in the 2900 block of DeSoto Street with his girlfriend, his girlfriends best friend, and the girlfriends mother when he went next door to Parks residence to get a phone charger. There, Lattin argued with Parks girlfriend over the charger. Lattin returned home and told his girlfriend about the argument, then went outside where the argument between Lattin and the female neighbor continued. Parks came outside, stood behind his girlfriend and started to argue with Lattin.

Louisiana sees decline in mental health issues post pandemic

Officials say Lattin and Parks were about to escalate the argument to a physical altercation when Parks pulled out a .380 caliber handgun and shot at Lattin as he turned to run away. According to witness statements, after Parks fired the gun, Lattin fell face forward to the ground. Parks walked over to Lattin and shot him several more times, including the back of the head. Lattin was shot a total of eight times. Parks then fled with the handgun. When he surrendered at Caddo Correctional Center later, his bloody shoes held Lattins DNA.

Parks returns to court September 4, and he faces a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment at hard labor without the benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence.

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All signs point to Beyonce as the 2024 Democratic National Convention's surprise guest on its final night

HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 01: Beyonce accepts the Innovator Award onstage during the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards at Dolby Theatre on April 01, 2024 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images)

To close out the 2024 Democratic National Convention, a special guest has been tipped for the final night.

After CNN reported that a block of time during the 2024 DNC's final night had been reserved for a surprise appearance, lots of guesses filled the air as to who it might be.

Well, all signs point to it being Beyonce, who has given the green light for Democratic Presidential nominee Kamala Harris to use the song "Freedom" for her and Tim Walz's campaign.

Outside of Beyonce's support for the Barack Obama presidential campaigns, the music megastar campaigned for Hillary Clinton in 2016 and endorsed the Joe Biden/Kamala Harris presidential ticket in 2020.

Two big hints came on Thursday afternoon after Rep. Fentrice Driskell filmed a band practicing Beyonce' songs on the DNC stage and White House Political Director Emmy Ruiz shared a bee emoji, which hints to the "Queen Bey" nickname and the "Beyhive" of Beyonce fans.

Live update from the @DemConvention: The band is practicing @Beyonce songs  pic.twitter.com/Ji0r2lTz1Z  Representative Fentrice Driskell (@FentriceForFL) August 22, 2024

White House Political Director: https://t.co/JII6N3Mm49  philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) August 22, 2024

We'll know soon enough once the final night of the DNC kicks off in Chicago at the United Center, one where Harris will formally accept her party's nomination for president and deliver her keynote address.

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This article originally appeared on For The Win: All signs point to Beyonce as the 2024 Democratic National Convention's surprise guest on its final night
Singapore says it has detected 13 cases of mpox Clade 2 infection in 2024

SINGAPORE (Reuters) -Singapore has detected 13 cases of mpox Clade 2 infections this year, the health ministry said in a bulletin on Thursday.

To date, all mpox infections in the city state have been the "less severe" Clade 2 infections, it added.

Earlier on Thursday, Thailand confirmed an mpox case reported this week was the Clade 1b strain of the virus, the second confirmed case of the variant outside of Africa. Clade 1b has triggered global concern due to the ease with which it spreads though routine close contact.

The World Health Organization declared the recent outbreak of the disease a public health emergency of international concern after the new variant was identified.

Singapore said it was monitoring the global situation closely.

The health ministry said that as a precaution, it will from Friday screen the temperatures of travellers arriving at Changi and Seletar airports from places exposed to the risk of mpox outbreaks.

(Reporting by Xinghui Kok; editing by Mark Heinrich, Kirsten Donovan)
SIOUX CITY, Iowa (KCAU)  Closing arguments in the trial of a Sioux City man charged with first-degree murder have been delayed until Thursday.

The delay comes after attorneys were unable to come to terms on language for jury instructions. Jury deliberations were expected to begin Wednesday in the case against Mario Corona-Ruiz, 21. He is charged in connection with the Sep. 21 shooting death of Michael Schwebach, 34, of Sioux City.

Northwest Iowa man given probation for vehicular homicide

Schwebach died of a single gunshot wound after coming in contact with Corona-Ruiz in an alley near West 20th Street and Center Street. Corona-Ruiz was arrested the following day in South Sioux City and faces mandatory life in prison without parole if found guilty.

Wednesday marked day six of the trial, leading judge Patrick Tott to acknowledge the commitment made by the jurors.

I appreciate very much your patience, trials like this you just dont know how its going exactly to schedule, Tott said. Were pretty close to on schedule but not perfect, so again Im very appreciative of your time and patience with us.

Closing arguments are now slated for 9 a.m. Thursday, with deliberations to begin shortly after.

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SIOUX CITY, Iowa (KCAU)  A Sioux City man has been found guilty of first-degree murder.

Mario Alberto Corona Ruiz was found guilty of first-degree murder on Thursday in the Woodbury County Courthouse.

Corona Ruiz was on trial after he shot and killed Michael Schwebach on W. 19th Street in September of 2023.

On Sep. 21, 2023, Ruiz was driving down an alleyway near West 20th Street in a full-size white SUV, approaching the intersection of the alley and Center Street where the vehicle came to a stop. Ruiz spoke to Schwebach at the stop.

After the conversation, Schwebach turned and walked away from the vehicle and Ruiz shot him. Two witnesses called the police. Later that morning, Sioux City Police officers were dispatched to the location.

Schwebach received first aid from officers and was taken to the hospital via ambulance where he was later pronounced dead.

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SIOUX CITY, Iowa (KCAU)  The Sioux City Police Department is searching for the suspect of a shooting at a downtown Sioux City bar that happened back in June.

According to the Sioux City Police Department, they currently have a warrant out for Tristian Reyes, 28, of South Sioux City, for attempted murder.

Tristian Reyes courtesy Sioux City Police Department

Sioux City first-degree murder trial nears conclusion

Reyes was identified as the suspect in the shooting that happened at 1008 Key Club in the early hours of June 23.

Reyes is described as a Hispanic male approximately 56 or 57 and 160 pounds.

Reyes is accused of going to Key Club at around 1:40 a.m. and firing several rounds into the bar, injuring three people.

Anyone who has information on Reyess whereabouts are asked to contact the Sioux City Police Department at 712-279-6440 or by submitting an anonymous tip to Crime Stoppers at 712-258-TIPS.

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DES MOINES, Iowa (KCAU)  Some Disaster Recovery Centers in Siouxland will be closing permanently in the coming weeks.

According to a joint release from the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management and FEMA, the Disaster Recovery Centers in Cherokee, Emmet, and OBrien counties will be closing soon.

The Disaster Recovery Center located at the Cherokee County Emergency Management building in Cherokee and the Disaster Recovery Center located in Emmet County at St. Patricks Churchs gym in Estherville are scheduled to close on August 28 at 6 p.m.

The Disaster Recovery Center in OBrien County at the Sheldon Community Services Center in Sheldon is scheduled to close on August 30 at 6 p.m.

Reynolds announces $7.2M to build new homes for disaster victims

Despite the upcoming closure of these Disaster Recovery Centers, centers will still be open in a few Siouxland towns. If you still need support from a Disaster Recovery Center, you can find them at the following locations:

Buena Vista County at the Sioux Rapids Municipal Pool in Sioux Rapids

Clay County at the Spencer City Hall Council Chambers in Spencer

Dickinson County at the Dickinson County Expo Building Meeting Room in Spirit Lake

Lyon County at Forster Community Center in Rock Rapids

Palo Alto County at Iowa Lakes Community College in Emmetsburg

Sioux County at City Park Shelter House in Rock Valley

Additionally, support from FEMA is still available. You can begin the process of receiving help from FEMA by calling them at 800-621-3362, visiting their website, or downloading their app. The deadline to apply for FEMA in the State of Iowa is currently October 22.

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MOSCOW, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- A fire broke out at a military facility in Russia's Volgograd region early Thursday following a Ukrainian drone attack, local authorities said.

Russian air defense forces repelled the assault, destroying most of the Ukrainian drones, Volgograd Governor Andrei Bocharov was quoted by the regional administration's Telegram channel as saying.

The attack occurred near the village of Marinovka, where the Ukrainian drones targeted a Russian military site.

No casualties were reported, the governor said.

Flight operations at Volgograd Airport have been disrupted. There has been no official confirmation regarding restrictions on airspace usage in the region. 
Slocomb man was driving under the influence before deadly crash that killed wife and daughter, troopers say

SLOCOMB, Ala (WDHN)  A Slocomb father was under the influence when he crashed in rural Geneva County, a crash that killed his wife and young daughter, a report from the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency claims.

According to the report obtained by WDHN, 26-year-old Wesley Cobb was under the influence of drugs and alcohol when his pickup truck crashed into oncoming traffic on July 13, around 10 miles south of Slocomb near the Alabama-Florida line.

The crash killed Cobbs 26-year-old wife, Tiffany, who was pronounced dead on the scene, and their 6-year-old daughter, Rylan, who died four days later at a Birmingham hospital.

The Cobbs 4-year-old was critically injured and is recovering, while their 10-month-old escaped unharmed, the Geneva County Coroner told WDHN at the time of the crash.

Cobbs name was redacted from the report, but an ALEA release provided to WDHN in July claimed he was driving the truck when it collided with a 2015 Dodge Ram 2500 driven by an unidentified 16-year-old.

The ALEA report did not include the drugs Cobb was allegedly under the influence of, and as of Wednesday afternoon, no charges had been filed.

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Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico addresses the nation for the first time after the shooting, before the EU Parliamentary Election, in Bratislava

(Reuters) - Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico will visit South Korea at the end of September to discuss plans to build a new nuclear power unit at the Slovak Jaslovske Bohunice plant, news agency TASR reported on Thursday.

Slovakia may be interested in a 1,200-megawatt unit, it said.

In May, government tasked its economy and finance ministers to draw up a plan for a new nuclear power plant by the end of October.

The new plant would be fully state-owned, the government has said, unlike the country's current two nuclear plants at Bohunice and Mochovce, which are operated by the 33% state-owned Slovenske Elektrarne.

Slovenske Elektrarne last year completed the 472-megawatt Unit 3 at the Mochovce plant and is now completing another at the same site. It also operates two 505-megawatt units at the Jaslovske Bohunice plant.

The government has mentioned French and Korean companies as potential bidders for the new unit. Korea's KHNP was picked over France's EDF to last month to build two new units in the Czech Republic.

(Reporting by Jan Lopatka in Prague; editing by David Evans)
CHICAGO  Bill Clinton served as Barack Obamas economics explainer-in-chief in a memorable speech a dozen years ago at the Democratic convention in Charlotte.

On Wednesday, the Big Dog, a little older and his bark more faint, sunk his teeth into another favorite topic and savaged Donald Trump as a narcissist obsessed with himself.

Lets cut to the chase: The stakes are too high and Im too old to gild the lily, Clinton said in his twelfth convention address, which he peppered with references to his advancing age. I actually turned 78 two days ago. And Im still not quite as old as Donald Trump.

Clinton has long compared himself not to a dog, but to a racehorse, with his party the stable-keeper. Every two years, he would joke, they let him out of the barn for another lap around the track. Clinton was noticeably slower on Wednesday, but he still seemed to relish getting off his lines about Trump, whom he described as a paragon of consistency.

Trump, Clinton said, is still divisive, still casting blame, still belittling other people.

He creates chaos, and then he sort of curates it, he said, pausing slightly, as if it were precious art.



Clinton contrasted Trumps self-centeredness with what he described as Harriss inclusive vision for the country.

The next time you hear him, dont count the lies. Count the Is, he said, adding, When Kamala Harris is president, every day will begin with you, you, you, you.

The audience inside the United Center listened respectfully as Clinton, whose clout and standing within the party has diminished, continued to lay into Trump while returning to the contrasts with Harris. He spoke about her summer job at McDonalds, which she worked to earn some spending money.

She greeted every person with a 1,000-watt smile and said, How can I help you?

Even as she rose to power, he said shes still doing the same. Clinton spoke about her prosecutorial record and her plans to lower the cost of housing and healthcare, increase financing for small businesses and strengthen Americas alliances around the world.

He also dwelled, albeit briefly, on the challenges of the job. But he returned to Trump, time and again.

I almost croaked in the first debate of this election season when President Trump said, Nobody respected America anymore like they did when he was president. Wait wait, and with a straight face. Look, you got to give it to him: He's a good actor. With a straight face, he cited as evidence the respect that existed for us when he was there, the presidents of North Korea and Russia.

Then, he asked, what to make of Trumps endless tributes to the late great Hannibal Lecter?
FARMERSVILLE, Ohio (WDTN)  In Farmersville, local businesses are doing their best to stay afloat after seeing others close, including the towns major bank branch.

Some residents question whats being done to attract new businesses. In the meantime, a lack of resources means residents are traveling elsewhere for services.

Losing the bank, I think has been hard on the local people because we have a lot of elderly in town. That means they have to go banking someplace else, said Susan Hartman, resident.

Oldest Dayton tavern hits the market

Hartman says she has seen a change in the town over the past few years, with businesses coming and going. This past year, the local Sears hardware store closed as well as a local U.S. Bank branch. She says these closures are being felt by everyone in the village.

So when we lose a small business like the bank or the post office that closed many years ago, it does affect people, said Hartman.

People like Tony McKinney say his business has been forced to become more creative as its become more difficult to attract customers.

He says a major issue is the lack of foot traffic in Farmersville. McKinney says hes always looking for ways to reach customers outside of the Farmersville area.

2 significant police responses occur within 1-hour in Troy

Most of our business is brought from the outside. And so, like I said, social media running ads and doing everything we can just to help bring foot traffic into the town, said McKinney.

We reached out to the mayor of Farmersville for an interview about the next steps for the closed locations and he declined to comment.

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Democrats are highlighting Project 2025the controversial policy agenda produced by the Heritage Foundationdespite the Trump campaigns attempts to distance themselves from the proposals.

On Wednesday, Saturday Night Live legend Kenan Thompson took the stage at the Democratic National Convention with a massive copy of the agenda, making jabs at the document that has stirred controversy for months.

You ever see a document that could kill a small animal and democracy at the same time? Thompson laughed.

Thompson compared it to a Terms & Conditions page for Trumps second term in office. You vote for him, you vote for all of this.

Must-watch: @kenanthompson shows individual Americans how Trumps Project 2025 is planning to take away their rights pic.twitter.com/baQ2wJj202  Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) August 22, 2024

In a speech with voters appearing on a video chat behind him, Thompson highlighted some of the Democrats main objections with the project: elimination of protections for same-sex marriages, raising costs of prescription drugs, eliminating the Department of Education, and resurrecting the Comstock Act to crack down on abortion providers.

Thats amazing, very, very cute, Thompson tells one voter, who tells Thompson she has been married to her wife for almost a decade. But, I have got some bad news for you, he quips. On page 584 Project 2025 calls for the elimination of protections for LGBTQ+ Americans. So yeah, right back to the Stone Age.

Comedian and actor Kenan Thompson arrives to speak about Project 2025 on stage during the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 21, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Speaking to another voter, who is on insulin to manage their diabetes, Thompson warned her $35 monthly fee would disappear under a Republican administration. Why? Well I guess maybe to help big pharma make more money that they can donate to Republican politicians, I assume, Thompson replies.

The Trump campaign has since tried to distance itself from the conservative policy agenda, calling some of the agenda ridiculous and abysmal in a post on Truth Social in July. The campaign forced Project 2025s director, Paul Dans, to step down the same month, and Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts delayed publication of a book meant as a companion piece.

But for three nights in a row the Democrats have presented the oversized book on the conference stage and criticized Trump on the policies within. Sen. Mallory McMorrow, a state senator in Michigan, presented the book on Monday.

They went ahead and wrote down all the extreme things Donald Trump wants to do in the next four years, McMorrow said. And then they just tweeted it out.

McMorrow told CNN that a new presenter would bring out the copy once each night. Pennsylvania state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta brought the oversized agenda out on Tuesday.

The association with Project 2025 has reportedly irked the Trump campaign in the past. A representative for the Trump campaign said Agenda47, the policy platform laid out on the former presidents website, was the only platform endorsed by Trump.

Dangerously liberal Kamala Harris and the DNC are LYING and fear-mongering because they have NOTHING else to offer the American people, said Trump Senior Campaign Adviser Danielle Alvarez in a statement sent to the Daily Beast.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WJHL)  State of Franklin Healthcare Associates (SOFHA) was awarded a $10,000 grant, which it plans to put to use in its apprenticeship program.

A news release from SOFHA announced the healthcare provider received the grant from the Workforce Development Board.

Boones Creek ALDI opens for business

Received in partnership with the Johnson City chapter of the First Tennessee Development District, the grant will support SOFHAs Certified Medical Assistant (CCMA) Apprenticeship Program, which aspires to improve the career opportunities for the community while creating a pipeline to qualified clinical staff for SOFHA, the release states.

SOFHA launched the apprenticeship program in 2023 with the help of Northeast State Community College. Both internal SOFHA employees who seek to further their careers and external candidates looking for new job opportunities take part in the program.

According to SOFHA, the grant will help offset administrative costs associated with running the program.

The CCMAs inaugural class of four recently graduated, and the second cohort, made up of nine participants, has begun its studies.

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South Asian donors gave almost $2.4 million to Harris in first days of campaign

Almost $2.4 million in donations poured in from South Asian donors to Vice President Kamala Harris campaign within 10 days of President Biden's endorsement.

When Harris stepped up as likely Democratic nominee on July 21, more than 23,000 South Asian doctors, attorneys, C-suite executives and IT professionals from California to New York pulled out their checkbooks in support of the first major presidential candidate with Indian heritage.

Indians, Pakistanis and Bangladeshis have also donated to Biden with nearly $6.3 million this year, according to a Times analysis of July fundraising reports released Aug. 20.

Collectively, South Asian donors gave a daily average of $31,000 to Biden in 2024. Their support for Harris jumped to more than $508,000 the day Biden withdrew from the presidential race. Each day since her nomination, all South Asian supporters have steadily given an average of $186,000.

Read more: For all her star power, Kamala Harris is still 'a blank slate' to many voters

These donors represent a sliver of almost $184 million donated to Harris campaign committees from individual donors since Biden dropped out of the race July 21, according to a Times analysis of Federal Election Commission filings released this week. The Times analysis includes itemized contributions to Harris for President, Harris Victory Fund, Harris Action Fund and Harris Baldwin Victory Fund. Some contributions to these committees were given through the left's fundraising platform, ActBlue.

The Times identified contributors of South Asian descent, including India, Bangladesh and Pakistan by combining fundraising disclosures with a database of South Asian names. The list, compiled by a University of Chicago epidemiologist, Diane Lauderdale, and doctoral student Cal Chengqi Fang, was derived from administrative data, which include last names and associated countries of birth. The method is used by top universities to conduct elections research. However, it cannot identify all South Asian Americans, so The Times analysis likely represents an undercount.

Many of the donors are first-time supporters, pointing to a growing political force.

However, this is not the first time this group has given en masse. Indian Americans donated more than $3 million to 2020 presidential campaigns, according to a Times analysis .

We've seen an extraordinary level of excitement and engagement where people are stepping up to support Kamala Harris for president in a meaningful way, Neil Makhija, president of Indian American Impact and Montgomery County, Pa., commissioner said. You're going to see a significant number of new donors that give more and more frequently. This is just the beginning.

Times staff writer Gabrielle LaMarr LeMee contributed to this report.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (WCBD)  South Carolina leaders are hoping to further incentivize the redevelopment of abandoned buildings across the state with the expansion of a decade-old program.

Gov. Henry McMaster held a ceremonial signing for S.1021 on Wednesday, a bill that extends the states tax credit for abandoned buildings through 2035. It also raises the maximum tax credit that developers and business owners can earn in a year to $700,000.

The bill, which received broad support in the state legislature, also added an income tax credit for corporations that maintain, reconstruct, or replace railroad infrastructure, such as track and bridges. The credit is worth up to $5,000 per mile of replaced or repaired track.

McMaster, who was joined by state legislators at Savage Craft Ale Works in West Columbia, lauded tax credits as one of the states most effective economic development tools.

By providing this tax credit, we encourage developers, business owners, and entrepreneurs to breathe new life into once-neglected properties, McMaster said. This will have a ripple effect in the areas around them, preserving our history, creating new jobs, and helping to bring even more pride to our communities.

State lawmakers request investigation into proposed sale of 30 homes by Charleston County Housing Authority

The new law expands a 2013 program that was created to promote the rehabilitation of empty or underutilized properties. South Carolina is the only state with this kind of program, according to Sen. Tom Davis (R-Beaufort).

We care about our history, Davis said. It may be cheaper to bulldoze an old building and ruin its character, but there is a value to rehabilitating and revitalizing.

Officials said at least two-thirds of a building must be vacant for at least five years to qualify as abandoned.

Every restored building is a step toward a more vibrant, prosperous South Carolina, Rep. Micah Caskey (R-Lexington). We are taking a proactive stance on safety, ensuring our towns and cities are not just beautiful, but also secure places for our families and businesses.

The law has been effect since late May.

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PIERRE, S.D. (KELO)  The South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation is considering asking the Legislature to raise an unemployment administrative fee charged to most of the businesses in the state.

Labor Secretary Marcia Hultman outlined a possible plan on Thursday during a teleconference meeting of the state Reemployment Assistance Council.

The fee helps cover the costs of personnel and operation of South Dakotas reemployment system that is based in Aberdeen.

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The governor-appointed council serves as an advisory group for the department on unemployment insurance issues.

Hultman said that the department receives nearly $5 million in federal aid to help with the system. Thats millions of dollars less than some neighboring states receive, she said.

Hultman showed the council how the Reemployment Divisions costs have risen since 2019 :44% more for salaries and benefits, 44% more for system development, 32% more to operate and maintain the technology, and 33% more for postage.

Hultman acknowledged that the division was probably understaffed going into the (COVID-19) pandemic in 2020 but more people have been hired. I would say that we are not overstaffed at all in RA, she said.

The department has getting by by tapping into the additional federal aid that was received during the COVID-19 pandemic, but that is running dry. Because we have the other funding it delayed the timing of taking it back, Hultman said.

Pam Roberts of Pierre, a council member, retired from the department where she had been secretary prior to Hultman. Roberts said during the meeting Thursday that the fee increase could be a hard sell.

The yearly fee of $3 per employee currently brings in about $1 million. The increase under discussion would take it to $12 and bring in about $4 million.

As of June 30, there were 34,749 businesses with unemployment coverage in South Dakota, according to RA Division director Pauline Heier. Most of them are charged the administrative fee.

Currently exempt however are all businesses that have been in operation shorter than four years, as well as a group of several thousands of businesses whose reemployment accounts have reserve ratios of 2.25 or greater.

In 2023, the Legislature reduced unemployment tax rates that many businesses pay. The lower rates took effect on January 1, 2024. The department estimates that businesses will save $18 million this year.

Hultman said Thursday that the department is considering asking the Legislature to make a smaller $3 million reduction in the tax rates as an offset for the higher administrative fee.

Council member David Owen of Sioux Falls, who is president of the South Dakota Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that raising the administrative fee would be such a huge step.

Owen noted that 60% of employers are now paying zero rates for unemployment coverage because of the rate change. Our success is going to get in our way, he said.

Hultman didnt disagree. That memory might be short, she said. But, she continued, We would never come with this proposal unless we needed to come with this proposal. And, she added, We would definitely be looking for any suggestions about how to best package this.

One of the comments that followed was a suggestion that perhaps new employers should pay the administrative fee starting in their second year of operation.

Your questions help to collect more data to tell our story, Hultman said.

The potential increase will be further discussed when the council meets again in October.

The department would like to have a proposal ready in case Governor Kristi Noem decides to speak about it in the annual budget address to the Legislature in December.

A goal of the 2023 tax cut was to gradually spend down the reemployment trust fund. That appears to be on track.

According to numbers presented Thursday, the fund in calendar 2023 took in $45.9 million and paid out $25.4 million in benefits, finishing 2023 with a $217 million balance.

Through two quarters of 2024, under the new lower rates, the fund has received $16.6 million and has paid out $20.2 million in benefits. Projections show the fund by the end of calendar 2024 will have received $28.4 million in income and paid out $28.9 million in benefits.

Looking ahead to 2025, the projections point to the fund receiving $26.5 million and paying out $28.9 million.

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BEIJING, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) on Thursday said it had ordered the arrest of Wang Yong, a former vice chairman of the government of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, for suspected bribery.

The case of Wang, also a former member of the leading Party members' group of the Xizang regional government, was investigated by the National Commission of Supervision before being handed over to prosecutors, the SPP said in a statement. 
GENEVA TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD)  Authorities say a South Haven woman was arrested on sexual assault and child pornography charges.

The Van Buren County Sheriffs Office said a 30-year-old South Haven woman was arrested after its Criminal Investigations Division and Michigan State Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force received a tip of a possible child exploitation case. Investigators conducted a search warrant at her house on County Road 687 near the intersection of Phoenix Street in Geneva Township.

The woman was taken to the Van Buren County Jail on one count of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, two counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct, four counts of manufacturing child sexually abusive activity and four counts of using a computer to commit a crime.

Her name was not released pending arraignment.

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Southern California police say woman, 39, pretended to be Russian police in effort to kidnap 8-year-old

An 8-year-old girl is safe despite almost being kidnapped by a woman posing as a Russian police officer in Santa Monica on Wednesday, according to authorities.

The incident was reported at about 2:30 p.m. in the 800 block of the alley south of Maple Street, according to the Santa Monica Police Department.

Investigations revealed that an 8-year-old girl was assisting a neighbor put several pets in his vehicle that was parked in the alley. The woman, later identified as 39-year-old Courtney Perrone, approached the pair and stated that she was with Russian police and was there to take the child, police said.

Perrone and the man then had what the police called a tug-of-war for the child, whom Perrone allegedly grabbed. The man ultimately won the struggle and secured the child in his vehicle, ordering Perrone to leave. The child was unharmed during the incident.

Police return to Sun Valley hoarder property, make arrest

Perrone refused to leave and subsequently tried to pry the vehicle door open. She then pulled out a switchblade knife, police said.

Perrone eventually fled the scene on foot.

There were two parties that reported the incident to police, the second of which told authorities that the woman fled southbound into the Gelsons parking lot.

Thats where officers found her standing next to a white BMW. She was then arrested.

Police say Perrone is likely to be homeless, living in the BMW.

Perrone has an extensive arrest record outside of the state of California that includes assault and battery, resisting arrest, possession of controlled substance and trespassing. She was recently arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon by the Los Angeles Police Department, authorities said, but was released for a lack of evidence.

At the time of her arrest Wednesday, she had outstanding warrants from New Hampshire on suspicion of stalking and forgery. She was also on probation from a Nevada conviction for assault with a deadly weapon.

Perrone will be formally charged on Friday in an arraignment hearing, police say. Shell be charged with two felonies for attempted kidnapping and false imprisonment and a misdemeanor for brandishing.

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Southwest to launch two new nonstops from Austin in March 2025

AUSTIN (KXAN)  Southwest Airlines is expanding its network from Austin, launching two new nonstop routes in March 2025.

Flights from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Reno, Nevada, will take off March 6. The Milwaukee route will operate year-round each weekday, while the Reno route will be seasonal and less than daily.

The Austin-Reno route is currently served by American Airlines, while the Milwaukee route is brand new for AUS. Milwaukee ranked as the top domestic market for passengers from Austin currently without nonstop service, according to airport officials.

Southwest will also resume seasonal service to Panama City, Florida; Montrose, Colorado and San Juan, Puerto Rico, in March.

AUS Data Hub: Passenger totals, busiest months and new flights in 2024

We are excited to see Southwest expand their presence here at AUS with new and returning nonstop flights compared to last year, AUS CEO Ghizlane Badawi said in a press release Thursday. We appreciate Southwests investment into new and returning services and cant wait for our travelers to enjoy more options to travel to and from Austin.

The new routes mean the airline will offer 125 daily nonstop flights from AUS at peak service, Badawi said.

Southwest continues to be the largest airline operating at AUS in terms of passenger traffic. More than 4.5 million passengers flew in or out of Austin on a Southwest flight in the first six months of the year, accounting for 42% of all passengers at the airport. Passenger totals for the airline are up 10% over the same time period in 2023.

In June, Southwest began seasonal service from AUS to Boston, while flights to Omaha, Nebraska, are set to begin in November.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin.
SpaceX is set to launch an ambitious mission featuring the first civilian spacewalk

Four private citizens are set to launch on an ambitious, first-of-its-kind space mission next week that is expected to include the first spacewalk conducted entirely by a commercial crew.

The mission, dubbed Polaris Dawn, is scheduled to lift off at 3:38 a.m. ET on Tuesday from NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. SpaceX was initially targeting a Monday launch but said that delaying it one day allows additional time for teams to complete preflight checkouts.

Billionaire entrepreneur Jared Isaacman, founder and CEO of the payment processing company Shift4, will be commander of the Polaris Dawn flight. Its the first of three planned spaceflights that Isaacman is funding and organizing in partnership with SpaceX, collectively known as the Polaris program. Isaacman launched to space as part of the first all-civilian SpaceX mission to orbit in 2021.

The crew of the Polaris Dawn mission, from left: Anna Menon, Sarah Gillis, Scott "Kidd" Poteet and Jared Isaacman.

The missions three other crew members are Scott Kidd Poteet, a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel who will be the pilot, and two SpaceX engineers, Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon.

They will ride into space in a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule atop a Falcon 9 rocket. The plan for the five-day mission is to send them to an orbital altitude more than three times higher than the International Space Station  the highest that humans have reached since the final Apollo moon mission in 1972.

Three days into the flight should come the spacewalk, in which two crew members will exit the capsule on a tether for up to 20 minutes. Previously, only astronauts from government space agencies have conducted spacewalks to build or upgrade space stations in orbit, repair satellites and complete science experiments.

The Polaris Dawn spacewalk is scheduled at an altitude of 435 miles above Earth. Because the Crew Dragon spacecraft does not have an airlock, the entire capsule will be exposed to the vacuum of space during the planned outing.

As a result, all four astronauts  including the two remaining inside  will wear and test spacesuits SpaceX designed for future long-duration missions.

The idea is to learn as much as we possibly can about this suit and get it back to the engineers to inform future suit design evolutions, Isaacman said in an Aug. 19 news briefing from the Kennedy Space Center.

Isaacman and his fellow crew members spent the past two years training for the flight.

Throughout our mission, we will aim to inspire humankind to look up and imagine what we can achieve here on Earth and in the worlds beyond our own, Isaacman said in a statement.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with its Crew Dragon capsule at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., on Jan. 18.

The mission plan calls for the commercial astronauts to conduct dozens of scientific experiments and test laser-based satellite communication using SpaceXs Starlink satellites during their five days in space.

Their Crew Dragon capsule will soar to altitudes of up to 870 miles above the planets surface  distant enough to move through parts of the inner Van Allen radiation belt, a donut-shaped zone of high-energy radiation particles that are trapped in place by Earth's magnetosphere.

The flight is designed to study the health of the astronauts and their spacecraft in different space radiation environments. Such research will be valuable for planning future missions to the moon and Mars, because astronauts must fly though the inner and outer Van Allen radiation belts to reach outer space.

In a statement, Poteet called the mission the pinnacle of my flying career.

He spent 20 years as a military fighter pilot and was the mission director on the ground during Isaacsons 2021 trip to orbit.

Im so thankful for the opportunity to head into space, Poteet said.

The SpaceX engineers accompanying Poteet and Isaacson have similarly labored behind the scenes on commercial spaceflights. Gillis, a lead space operations engineer at SpaceX, oversees its astronaut training program. Menon, also a SpaceX lead space operations engineer, has served in the companys mission control center.

The Polaris Dawn mission will raise money for St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital, as Isaacman did on his previous journey to space.

Isaacman declined to reveal the cost of the Polaris Dawn mission and has not publicly discussed the possible objectives or timeline for the second and third Polaris flights.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
SPD to hand out vouchers instead of tickets for broken tail lights

SPRINGFIELD, Mo.  If you get pulled over for something like a broken tail light, Springfield police officers can now hand you a voucher to get the problem fixed for free, instead of giving you a ticket

This is all possible because of the Lights On program.

Since they got the vouchers earlier this summer, SPD has handed out 35 vouchers instead of tickets.

Instead of getting a traffic ticket, youll get a voucher to resolve the issue and you come in, said owner of MAACO Repair, Michael Bryars. It doesnt cost you anything.

Lights On is a micro-grant program that serves over 20 states. MAACO Repair on S. Campbell is one of the local repair shops participating.

Those of us that have been able to do things like establish businesses in town and so forth, one of the things we want to do is to service the community, Bryars said. And this is yet another way we can do that.

Police Chief Paul Williams hopes the program will lead to positive interactions between officers and people in the community.

We began the program with 100 vouchers using money that we have from a grant from the Lights On program, and then we coupled that with some forfeiture money from the police department to provide funding for that, Williams said.

The Lights On vouchers are good for repairs up to $250.

A lot of people are struggling to pay their bills, living paycheck to paycheck, Bryars said. We have other efforts that we do to try to help people in the community. But this is one of the programs that we really like.

The other shops participating in this program are A-1 Custom Car Care, 1st Choice Auto Sales, Autocool Radiator and Automotive, and Transformative Auto Group.

SPD will continue with the program until the remaining 65 vouchers are gone. After that, Lights On will need private donations to continue. To donate for the program to continue at SPD, click here.

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The DNC has had a party atmosphere in Chicago this week, but the once-every-four-years pep rally is set to hear serious testimony about gun violence on its final night.

That will include a speech from former Rep. Gabby Giffords, who narrowly survived being shot in the head at an event in Arizona in 2011.

Giffords, whos married to the former veepstakes finalist Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), is slated to be the penultimate speaker before Kamala Harris takes the stage around 10 p.m. ESTassuming the events final day actually runs on time.

Former Rep. Gabby Giffords and her husband, Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), campaigned alongside Kamala Harris and Tim Walz at a rally in Arizona earlier this month. Elizabeth Frantz/Reuters

Other Thursday speakers include Rep. Lucy McBath (D-GA), whose son was shot dead in 2012, and a group of state lawmakers known as the Tennessee Three, who were expelled by Republicans after they advocated for gun control legislation in the wake of the deadly Covenant School shooting.

McBath will reportedly moderate a panel with activists and gun violence survivors from across the country. That panel will include Abbey Clements, a second-grade teacher who survived the Sandy Hook shooting; Melody McFadden, a gun violence survivor from South Carolina whose mother was fatally gunned down when she was 17; Edgar Vilchez, a gun safety advocate from Chicago; and Kimberly Rubio, whose daughter was killed inside Robb Elementary School in 2022.

Were not numbers and statistics, McBath said this week. Were real, live human beings having such traumatic experiences that do not have to happen.

Lucy McBath hit the campaign trail hard for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in Georgia in 2020. Shes expected to lead a panel with gun violence victims on Thursday night. Reuters

Also expected to attend Thursday are the mothers of Black victims who died at the hands of police and vigilantes, including Eric Garner, Trayvon Martin, and Michael Brown, Axios reported.

Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) told CNN that he plans to speak about the awkward, uneasy coalition between the sane right, center, and the left. He added that he hell make an argument to Republicans that they need to quit following a man off the cliff if they want their party to survive.

You dont have to agree with the politics, he said, but this is really [about] common decencylike the future of democracy.

Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) said he hopes to appeal to the sane right and make the case for why Donald Trump is dangerous for democracy. Reuters

Party officials announced Thursdays theme was For Our Future.

The DNC will kick off its main programming Thursday at 6:30 p.m. EST, with The Chicks performing the national anthem. The group, which has taken home 13 Grammy Awards, also performed an a cappella version of the song at Democrats virtual convention in 2020.

Amos Brown, a pastor and longtime friend of Kamala Harris, is expected to say a prayer ahead of the nights speeches. MCNBC reports the speaker order will then go on as follows:

Hon. Deb Haaland, U.S. Secretary of the Interior

Marcia Fudge, Ex-U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development

Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA)

Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA)

Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ)

Gov. Maura Healey, of Massachusetts

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, of Michigan

Gov. Roy Cooper, of North Carolina

Rep. Katherine Clark (D-MA)

Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL)

Rep. Lucy McBath (D-GA)

Rep. Joe Neguse (D-CO)

Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-FL)

Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI)

Rep. Colin Allred (D-TX)

Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ)

Gloria Johnson, Justin Jones and Justin Pearson (Tennessee Three)

Former Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-AZ)

Vice President Kamala Harris

Donald Trump said Thursday hell be watching Harris speech in full, giving his followers on Truth Social a LIVE PLAY BY PLAY.

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SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4)  The Utah Legislature met in a special session on Wednesday, Aug. 21, to discuss a proposal to amend the Utah Constitution  and both the Senate and the House of Representatives voted to pass the resolution.

However, the passage of Senate Joint Resolution 401 was not unanimous. Utah Senators passed the bill with 20 votes in favor, eight votes opposing, and one absentee. After that, the House passed the resolution with 54 yeas and 21 nays. That amendment is now headed to the Nov. 5 ballot for voters to approve.

READ NEXT: Utah Dems: Republican super-majority going to extreme lengths to seize power

While the special session followed the Utah Supreme Courts decision on a lawsuit regarding gerrymandering, Floor Sponsor Rep. Jordan Teuscher said, This constitutional amendment has nothing to do with redistricting.

We know that law is a living, breathing thing, bill sponsor Sen. Kirk Cullimore said in the special session.

According to Cullimore, the resolution would have three main purposes:

To clarify and codify the opinion of the Supreme Court.

To maintain the appropriate flexibility and ensure laws are adaptable.

To protect Utah from outside influence and make sure the laws are made by Utahns for Utahns.

Cullimore also explained that, if passed, the resolution would be able to affect past initiatives.

At the conclusion of the session, the Utah House Minority Caucus released a statement, saying the amendment would give the Legislature unprecedented power to amend, enact, or repeal laws established by citizen initiatives or referendums.

On the other hand, bill sponsor Cullimore said the bill would protect the integrity of the initiative process.

Those who supported the bill also argued that its passage would encourage more powers for voters and would not do away with the initiative process. Several supporters said they dont want to turn Utah into California.

The statement from House Democrats argued Republicans were stripping away [voters] power to reform government and that the amendment was a blatant attempt to silence Utah voters.

Those who opposed the bill  in both the Senate and the House  also sought explanations and definitions from the sponsors explaining some of the language in the bill, specifically the phrasing of foreign individuals.

Teuscher explained that foreign should be understood as meaning from outside the United States. He also said the wording would be further discussed and clarified in the General Session.

Utahs constitution places the power to reform government in the hands of the people, but with this proposed amendment, the Republican supermajority is trying to take that power awaya betrayal of the trust Utahns place in their democracy, House Democrats said.

After its passage, the bill will go to the desk of Utah Gov. Spencer Cox for his signature or veto. Should he pass the bill, the proposal will appear on the ballot in November.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC4 Utah.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA)  Officials in the Springfield area are celebrating new records for the local tourism industry.

Sangamon County has generated $18.8 million dollars in local tax revenue and $601.3 million in visitor spending, according to a news release from Visit Springfield sent Wednesday. The latest data comes from Tourism Economics, a global research firm.

Visit Springfield said this boost in tourism also supported 5,000 local jobs in the tourism and hospitality industry.

Springfield YMCA welcomes back two-time Olympic gold medalist alum

For the third consecutive year, the Springfield area realized record breaking traveler expenditures in 2023, Tourism Director for the Springfield Convention & Visitors Bureau Scott Dahl said. Travelers spent $601 million dollars at hotels, restaurants, retail, gas stations, sites and attractions last year. The visitor economy is strong, creates over 5,000 local jobs and generates $18.8 million annually in local taxes.

Statewide, Illinois also saw growth for its tourism industry. Governor JB Pritzker recently announced Illinois reached its highest-ever hotel tax revenue figures, with $322 million spent in fiscal year 2024.

The state welcomed 112 million domestic and international visitors who spent $47 billion dollars in the 2023 calendar year.

President Biden designates Springfield 1908 Race Riot site as national monument

Illinois tourism is thriving, with another record-breaking year across key metrics such as the average length of stay, visitor spending, and overall growth, said Daniel Thomas, Deputy Director of the DCEO Office of Tourism. Whether its the vibrant energy of Chicago or the charm of our small towns, weve introduced new initiatives like LUXE By Illinois, which highlights luxury experiences and expanded our outdoor experiences campaign, Real People, Real Stories, Real Outdoors, giving visitors even more compelling reasons to extend their stay and spend more.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WCIA.com.
MORRISTOWN, N.Y. (WWTI)  A 28-year-old Potsdam man is facing charges after a Wednesday police pursuit ended with a crash involving him and a police officer.

New York State Police stated that Kody LaRock crashed into the Ogdensburg police SUV with an alleged stolen Wednesday on State Route 37 in the Town of Morristown.

Rochester trio arrested after traffic stop allegedly finds drugs in St. Lawrence Co.

LaRock allegedly collided into the police vehicle while trying to avoid a tire-deflation device.

The alleged incident started just before 11:40 a.m. when State Police Troopers and the St. Lawrence County Sheriffs Department were involved in a failure to comply with a stolen vehicle on State Highway 58 in the town of Morristown.

The multiple agencies were in pursuit of a tan 2012 Chevrolet vehicle that traveled down numerous roadways. This chase lasted around 26 minutes and traveled nearly 30 miles according to authorities.

LaRock is facing multiple charges including second-degree reckless endangerment, second-degree criminal mischief, third-degree unlawful fleeing a police officer in a motor vehicle, third-degree unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and numerous vehicle and traffic violations.

He was taken into custody and transported to the state police headquarters in Ogdensburg for further questioning after the pursuit was ended. LaRock was medically evaluated by Ogdensburg Rescue while at the state police barracks.

The Ogdensburg Police officer was transported to Claxton Hepburn Medical Center for further evaluation.

LaRock was arraigned in the Town of Morristown Court where he was remanded to St. Lawrence County Jail without bail.

State troopers were assisted by St. Lawrence County Sheriffs Department, Ogdensburg Police Department, and local fire and rescue departments.

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NORTH PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI)  St. Marys Home for Children has announced it will be closing the George M. Hunt School on its North Providence campus as it transfers management of its remaining programs over to Tides Family Services.

The embattled organization turned over management of its residential psychiatric treatment facility in May after a report by Rhode Islands Office of the Child Advocate (OCA) sparked a change in leadership and increased scrutiny from lawmakers, as well as the states Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF).

Before this year, St. Marys had been providing specialized educational and therapeutic residential and outpatient services to Rhode Islands youth since 1877, the St. Marys Board of Directors said in a statement.

St. Marys had originally planned for Tides Family Services to take over operations of the George M. Hunt school along with the rest of the organizations outpatient programs, but that proved to be unfeasible, according to the board. Instead, the students will be transferred to Tides Pawtucket school.

As for the residential psychiatric treatment facility, Tides Family Services plan to reopen the North Providence Campus was rejected by the state, the board said. Construction on the planned expansion has been terminated as a result.

READ: Neighbors concerned about St. Marys expansion as police logs reveal hundreds of missing juvenile reports

Rep. Patricia Serpa, chair of the R.I. House Oversight Committee, had strong words for DCYF.

It was more than a little disconcerting to find out on social media that St. Marys was closing, she told 12 News. Its important enough that we should have at least had a heads up  and we didnt get a heads up.

She expressed concern over the states plans for the children who were previously housed at St. Marys, which was Rhode Islands only inpatient facility that provided both a residential environment and individualized psychiatric care to at-risk young people.

What next? Serpa asked. We broke ground just last week for a 16-bed residential facility, but that wont be ready for at least another year and a half and its specifically for girls. St. Marys Home is for young men and young women.

ALSO READ: McKee, state leaders break ground on new DCYF residential facility in Exeter

This is critical. This is not small potatoes, she continued. This is a big deal. Im going to have to have an oversight meeting next month, call DCYF in and say, So, whats your plan B?'

In a statement to 12 News, DCYF said it appreciates Tides willingness to explore a partnership with St. Marys to maintain operations.

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KASUNGU, Malawi, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Malawian President Lazarus Chakwera said he and his wife are saddened by the tragic road accident that claimed 26 lives, including two children, Thursday on one of the country's roads in Kasungu district, about 70 km north of Lilongwe, the Malawian capital.

According to police and eyewitnesses, the accident occurred when a minibus with 25 people on board hit a cyclist before colliding with a fuel tanker and catching fire, burning all the passengers on board to death.

The cyclist also died on the spot, bringing the death toll to 26.

A statement from Chakwera shared by his press office said the president and his wife are "deeply saddened by the tragic road accident."

The president, who is on a state visit to Europe, has since condoled with the grieving families and friends on the loss of lives.

Meanwhile, police in Zomba, Malawi's former capital, confirmed the deaths of four people in another road accident that also occurred Thursday, after the minibus they were traveling in overturned. Ten other passengers sustained injuries, and they were rushed to the city's hospital. 
Rob Minard, right, and his wife Anne, left, appear in 54B District Court for their arraignment on Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024, in East Lansing.

EAST LANSING  Anne and Rob Minard, who were key staffers for former Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield when he led House Republicans in 2019 and 2020, were back in court Thursday as state attorneys begin to lay out their case alleging the couple misappropriated funds tied to social welfare nonprofits and political campaign committees.

The Minards face multiple felony charges including embezzlement, conducting a criminal enterprise and intent to defraud under false pretenses. At a December news conference announcing the charges, Attorney General Dana Nessel said the couple illegally enriched themselves, allegedly obtaining at least $525,000 illicitly from 2018 through 2020. Nessels office is prosecuting the case, which is in Ingham Countys 54B District Court in East Lansing.

Prosecutors say Anne and Rob Minard orchestrated a scheme to enrich themselves through inflated reimbursement requests and misrepresented expenses.

Both Anne and Rob Minard have pleaded not guilty to all charges, through their attorneys. During Chatfield's time as speaker, Rob Minard served as his chief of staff while Anne Minard was his director of external affairs.

During Thursdays preliminary examination hearing, Robert Menard, a special agent in the Attorney Generals office, testified as the first government witness. Menard, who compiled the affidavits used to file criminal charges against Anne and Rob Minard, recalled obtaining bank statements, receipts of credit card transactions and emails during an investigation. State prosecutors argue the items are evidence of inflated reimbursements.

Menard said investigators sought the financial records of both Anne and Rob Minard to determine if there were illegitimate or illegal payments to and from nonprofits. Along with bank accounts for Anne and Rob Minard, investigators also obtained and executed warrants to bank records for nonprofit organizations, including Lift Up Michigan and the Peninsula Fund, Menard testified. Lift Up Michigan was run by the Minards, according to prosecutors, and the Peninsula Fund was used to fund Chatfields political activities.

Affidavits previously filed by the Attorney Generals Office paint a picture of alleged repeated reimbursements to personal accounts belonging to Anne and Rob Minard for expenses that were actually paid for with funds from various nonprofits associated with Chatfield, a Republican from Levering.

Assistant Attorney General Bill Rollstin, during direct examination of Menard, brought up a series of reimbursements prosecutors say were requested by Anne and Rob Minard. The reimbursements covered costs for travel, meals, campaign materials and more, according to court filings submitted by prosecutors.

The actual costs, however, were covered by different organizations, including a slew of different nonprofits tied to Chatfield and vendors, prosecutors assert. Prosecutors also allege that Victor Strategies, a consulting firm launched in 2011 by Anne and Robert Minard, improperly collected reimbursements, receiving payments inflated beyond the actual costs the firm incurred.

In a memo filed ahead of Thursdays hearing, Anne Minards attorney Gerald Gleeson argued state prosecutors lacked standing to charge her, citing a lack of evidence toward a criminal enterprise and alleging a Feb. 2022 search conducted at the Minard home of Anne Minards computer by investigators was done without enough probable cause to justify a warrant. In the filing, Gleeson wrote Anne Minard also wasnt properly informed of her Miranda rights during the search.

Ingham County District Judge Molly Hennessey Greenwalt said Thursday that evidence obtained during the search of Anne Minards computer could be admitted, on the condition that she would make a future ruling on Gleesons assertion that the warrant wasnt properly obtained.

Anne Minard, right, and her lawyer Gerald Gleeson during Minard's arraignment in 54B District Court on Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024, in East Lansing.

Menard testified Thursday that state investigators also requested and obtained search warrants for years of bank and credit card statements for both Anne and Rob Minard, along with statements for accounts tied to their consulting firm Victor Strategies and political nonprofit organizations which have come under scrutiny in the probe.

More: 'I woke up mad as hell': UAW's Shawn Fain rallies in Belvidere after death of auto worker

More: Staffers for ex-Speaker Chatfield back in court over alleged financial misconduct scheme

Menard remained on the stand when the court adjourned Thursday afternoon. The preliminary examinations are expected to continue through at least Friday. A preliminary examination is a hearing in criminal proceedings where a judge determines if there is enough evidence to send a case to trial. Ingham County District Judge Molly Hennessey Greenwalt is overseeing the case and will rule on whether to bind over Anne and Robert Minard for trial at some point following the preliminary hearing.

Unlike with a trial, there is no jury present for a preliminary examination. The standard of evidence is also lower in a preliminary examination  in a jury trial, prosecutors must prove the charge "beyond a reasonable doubt," while a judge at a preliminary examination has to determine whether there is probable cause to uphold charges.

The most serious charges faced by the Minards, conducting a criminal enterprise and conspiring to conduct a criminal enterprise, each carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, if convicted.

In a separate criminal case, Nessels office charged Chatfield in April with 13 embezzlement, conspiracy and larceny charges, alleging that he improperly used public funds and money raised through a nonprofit to pay for flights, meals and family vacations while he was in office. Chatfields wife, Stephanie, also faces a pair of felony charges of alleged embezzlement and conspiracy.

Both Lee and Stephanie Chatfield pleaded not guilty to all charges when they were arraigned in May. Preliminary examinations for Lee and Stephanie Chatfield are currently slated to take place in October, also in front of Hennessey Greenwalt.

A spokesperson for Nessels office said Thursday an investigation into Lee Chatfields financial conduct remains open and ongoing.

Michigan State Police first opened an investigation into Lee Chatfield in Jan. 2022, after his sister-in-law accused him of sexual assault. Through his attorney, the former lawmaker said he had a consensual affair with his brothers wife, but denied any criminal wrongdoing. Nessels office joined the investigation, which later expanded to probe potential financial misconduct.

In April, Nessel said the investigation into allegations of possible sexual assault was closed without charges.

The proceedings of both the Minards and Chatfields have highlighted weaknesses in Michigans campaign finance laws, Nessel has said. Both Nessel and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson have said Michigan lawmakers should strengthen the states anti-corruption laws.

 Contact Arpan Lobo: alobo@freepress.com.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Former Chatfield staffers back in court in financial misconduct probe
TOPEKA (KSNT)  Aimee Copp-Hasty with Valeo Behavioral Health joined the 27 News Morning Show to discuss an upcoming fundraiser event.

Valeo Behavioral Health will be hosting Unmasking Stigma, an event focused on mental health, on from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Nov. 9 at the Townsite Towers at 534 South Kansas Ave. Copp-Hasty said a mental health comedian will be there. She said the comedian works to train other stand-up comics to help people suffering from mental health issues.

Copp-Hasty said fundraisers like this help Valeo fund projects like their shower trailer for the homeless.

False Alarm: Computer glitch sets off tornado sirens in Osage County

Attendees can participate in live and silent auctions on the day of the event. For more information on Unmasking Stigma, click here. You can watch the full interview with Copp-Hasty above.

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.

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Starbucks in Brockton plans to close dining area during school dismissal hours

A Brockton Starbucks across the street from the High School will close its dining room area in the afternoon as students leave school.

Brockton police say its in an attempt to deter kids from congregating.

A Brockton police lieutenant says theyve had some issues with local businesses in the past of students congregating after school.

The lieutenant told the Brockton School Committee that he met with management at Starbucks they decided to close the dining area between 1:30 and 3 p.m. on weekdays.

Brocktons mayor Robert Sullivan told the enterprise that he was unaware of Starbuckss plans to close dining during those hours and he says it should be fully open daily during all business hours.

Starbucks media relations tells Boston.com this isnt a change, that this has been this locations hours since opening, and their local operators are empowered to make those decisions.

When kids congregate, the areas that are closest to the high school, it seems to be more of a concentrated area of those that congregate. So theyre gonna close between one and three right now. Well see what happens with that, said Lt. Paul Bonanca.

The drive-thrus will remain open here.

In the winter some school committee members wanted the National Guard called into Brockton High because of fights and attacks.

About 3,700 students attend Brockton High School and classes begin Labor Day on September 4th.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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The U.S. Navy says it is on the verge of having persistent, reliable, and secure high-speed internet connections across its fleets thanks to a project leveraging commercial satellite constellations like SpaceX's Starlink.

The U.S. Navy says it is on the verge of having improved persistent, reliable, and secure high-speed internet connections across its fleets thanks to a project leveraging commercial satellite constellations like SpaceXs Starlink. This is a sorely needed upgrade in connectivity that offers important operational and morale-boosting benefits for the crews of Navy ships wherever they might be sailing.

What is formally known as Sailor Edge Afloat and Ashore (SEA2) originally began as an ad-hoc effort aboard the Nimitz class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln. Now it is on the cusp of being available on every Navy ship and more shore sites, according to a recent news item from the Naval Information Warfare Systems Command (NAVWAR).

A US Marine sets up a Starlink antenna on the expeditionary sea base ship USS Lewis B. Puller. USMC Task Force 51/5th Marine Expedit

Before SEA2, ship communications have relied upon Department of Defense (DOD) satellites for the past 30 years, the NAVWAR piece explains. These six satellites were roughly 22,300 miles away in geostationary orbit and provided a footprint on Earth the size of a hemisphere, resulting in slow data rates as the signal traveled up to the satellite and back down to its final destination.

Navy ships have also made use of other largely ad-hoc commercial internet links over the years, including with local networks ashore during port visits, However, the services top information warfare command says these previous internet solutions had no full authority to operate and were only tolerated.

The need for increased connectivity was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown in March 2020 when ships were unable to perform port calls due to country restrictions, thus severing their connection to the rest of the world, the recent Navy news story notes. Better and more reliable Internet access would mitigate the issues that arise from less frequent interactions with external sources.

Technological developments with low-orbit satellites like Starlink and [Eutelsat] OneWeb have made them a more viable and accessible option for use with architectures like systems like SEA2, according to NAVWAR. Sitting between 375 to 750 miles above Earth and numbering around 7,000 currently in orbit, they could provide a much faster and more reliable connection if appropriately utilized.

Distributed satellite constellations have the added benefit of being more resilient against various kinds of attacks, including electronic warfare jamming and even the physical loss of individual nodes.

Per NAVWAR, in order to utilize low-orbit satellites for a naval ships needs, three key objectives needed to be achieved: laser crosslink capability so satellites could communicate with each other, a downlink for shore sites to connect to the Internet and a mobility code so a ships terminal could remain connected to a satellite even as it traverses an ocean.

As part of SEA2s development, NAVWARs Program Executive Office Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence (PEO C4I)  was tasked to develop the capabilities to overcome those three obstacles through its PMW 170 Communications and Global Positioning System Navigation program office. The connection established by PMW 170 is known as STtNG, or Satellite Terminal (transportable) Non-Geostationary, which allows ships tactical feeds to gain secure access to low-orbit satellites, according to the recent news item from the command. It provides a midline level of throughput, about 30 to 50 megabits per second. From there, the bandwidth was scaled up by connecting multiple Starlink antennas to achieve the objective of one gigabit per second.

As already noted, SEA2 also leverages OneWeb, and commercial antennas from Kymeta have been used to link to that network. The architecture is designed to be network agnostic and can also make use of military satellite communications constellations.

Examples of a Starlink antenna (on the table at left) and one from Kymeta (at right), on display at a US Marine Corps event in Japan unrelated to SEA2. USMC Cpl. Haley Fourmet Gustavsen

From an operational perspective, there are clear benefits to having constant high-bandwidth internet access available across all Navy ships, as well as sites ashore. This includes just being able to communicate more reliably using the internet, including via video call, helping to streamline day-to-day operations. SEA2 presents a clear avenue to a broader resilient beyond-line-of-sight communications capability, as well.

In addition, many tactical computer applications, even certain ones designed to handle encrypted classified data, are already designed to work with commercial internet, according to another Navy news story on SEA2 published earlier this year. That piece centered on an interview with Cmdr. Kevin White, a Combat Systems Officer aboard Abraham Lincoln, who is credited as being the driving force behind SEA2s development.

Cmdr. Kevin White poses with Lt. Giovanni Scozzi, combat systems officer on the Italian aircraft carrier Cavour, using a live video call function enabled by SEA2 to plan a bilateral exercise between the two ships. USN Lily Chen

The fact that were not making use of that opportunity with modern technology to allow classified tactical applications to ride the commercial internet is where we are missing out, so we built Sailor Edge Afloat and Ashore to be able to do that in the future, White, a Combat Systems Officer aboard Abraham Lincoln, said. Were close to demonstrating a couple of those applications, and I am fully confident it will be game changing.

Other applications have already been demonstrated together with SEA2, including one called Flank Speed Edge, which the Navy describes as a cloud system capable of transferring terabytes of data from the cloud to users aboard a ship. The Navy has also previously said that the new internet connectively has made it easier for the crew of Abraham Lincoln, specifically, to put in orders for things like spare parts and fuel, as well as manage maintenance data.

The USS Abraham Lincoln receives fuel and other supplies at sea from the fast combat support ship USNS Arctic. USN

Right now our logs are showing that were able to pass between 3 and 5 terabytes of data per day, which is absolutely massive. And what were able to do with software defined networks is scale exactly how that data is used, Cmdr. White told Federal News Network earlier this year. Right now were demonstrating pushing applications like air wing maintenance apps that live in the cloud, and all of our pay and personnel apps. And thats just scratching the surface.

White also told that outlet that SEA2 coupled with Flank Speed Edge had provided more general computing benefits for his ship by allowing them to keep their systems more up to date on a regular basis.

While were out at sea right now, with this P-LEO [proliferated low Earth orbit; also abbreviated pLEO] capability, a cloud connected node and all the right elements in place, were able to scale new capabilities as they become available and rapidly deploy them while theyre monitored from the shore side, he White explained. One of the big challenges we have is the cycle of Windows updates and the cycle of patches, and with that high-speed capability, we can have those update services enabled.

All this being said, SEA2 still looks to be in fledging state and has had limitations, at least in the past. As of June, the Navy had not authorized it for use with classified data, according to Federal News Network. The service has since said that SEA2 has received a first-of-its-kind cybersecurity certification, but it is unclear if this means it can now be used to send and receive classified information. As makes sense, commercial links also wouldnt be used in certain operational circumstances, such as when emissions control tactics or heightened cyber-hardening is required.

Sailors work inside USS Abraham Lincolns Carrier Air Traffic Control Center (CATTC). DOD

Even if SEA2 remains limited to handling transfers of unclassified information, that is a still major boon for ships like the Abraham Lincoln. Many routine, but still critical day-to-day military logistics and other activities happen in the unclassified realm.

Constant high-bandwidth internet offers important morale-boosting benefits, too, especially for personnel on ships far out to sea for months at a time. SEA2 is in use now to provide improved connectivity for personal voice-over-IP and video calls between sailors and their families back home and recreational television and internet use. Sailors on Abraham Lincoln watched this years Super Bowl back in February via a livestream thanks to the new network architecture. Satellite television has been available on Navy warships since the late 1990s, but it is still relatively limited in its offerings with just four channels today.

Sailors watch the Super Bowl live on the USS Abraham Lincoln on February 11, 2024, thanks to SEA2. USN Lily Chen

This all has the knock-on effect of reducing the burden on the ships other networks, something the Navy has highlighted in its use of other ad-hoc commercial internet links on other ships in the past.

There is a broader trend toward ever-greater internet access for personnel on ships at sea, especially for morale-boosting reasons, among navies around the world. In June, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Forces began trialing Starlink on two ships to improve internet access for personal use. SpaceXs satellite internet service has very rapidly become a dominant force in the maritime realm more generally, as well.

As already noted, distributed constellations like Starlink offer extremely valuable resiliency against attacks and, by extension, architecture like SEA2 that can tap into them could offer an important alternative option, at least for certain purposes, if other networks are rendered unusable. Growing concerns about the vulnerability of U.S. government space-based assets to a host of different threats in recent years has already prompted increased interest within Americas armed forces in the use of commercial satellite constellations for communications and other functions.

Use of Starlink, specifically, by the U.S. military already been growing steadily for years and is not limited to the maritime domain. This has included tests utilizing the space-based internet network for tactical applications. SpaceX now has an entire government-focused business unit called Starshield, which, among other things, supplied more military-tailored versions of Starlink to Americas armed forces.

I dont think you could take 10 steps without tripping over a Starshield terminal, Mark Kitz, head of the Armys Program Executive Office Command Control Communications-Tactical (PEO C3T), said at the TechNet Augusta 2024 conference just this week, according to Defense News. I would say the Army is very committed to pLEO and Starshield.

Similar to what the Navy has been doing with SEA2, we want to get out of bringing a new antenna every time we want to change providers, Kitz added. If a unit deploys and they want to leverage a Ka-band Kuiper [antenna for the satellite network from Amazon], they have that RF front end. If they want to be leveraging Starshield, we swap modems and we go.

A member of the US Air Force sets up a Starshield terminal during a visit by the services aircraft to Indonesia in August 2024. USAF

There are clear signs that interest in expanding use of commercial satellite internet services, and Starlink specifically, is only set to grow among other armed forces globally, and with an eye toward potential tactical applications.

There are potential operational security and other concerns that come from increased usage of commercial networks. For instance, in June, the U.S. Army began blocking the use of commercial internet services to access certain Email accounts and other online applications for cybersecurity reasons.

SpaceX, and more specifically its CEO Elon Musk, has also notably faced criticism over how Starlink has and hasnt been allowed to be used in the course of the conflict in Ukraine.

The U.S. military has been working with SpaceX and others to develop and field new distributed communications and intelligence-gathering satellite constellations that will be fully under its control, as you can read more about here.

Regardless, the new SEA2 architecture pioneered aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln presents an important step forward for Navy internet access at sea that opens a new door to other important future networking developments for the service warships.

Contact the author: joe@twz.com
Sir Keir Starmer is to consider reviving the scrapped High Speed Two (HS2) rail routes north of Birmingham after a Labour-commissioned study recommended a sweeping programme of infrastructure spending.

A report on rail by former Siemens UK boss Juergen Maier that was presented to party officials this week called for much of the HS2 network that was controversially abandoned by Rishi Sunak last October to be revived.

The report was commissioned when Labour was in opposition and is not regarded as official. However, a party source said its findings would inform decision-making as the Government carries out its own review of rail projects.

Mr Maiers review calls for a number of big-ticket projects that are either at the planning stage, on hold or officially jettisoned to be completed.

Those include a rail route from Birmingham to Manchester  without which the West Coast Main Line and M6 motorway face collapse  and a new rail line from the Midlands to Leeds now that HS2 in the North has been cancelled.

Mr Maier also called for the completion of a link from HS2s initial terminus at Old Oak Common in west London to Euston station.

While the report stops short of calling for a revival of HS2 outright, or the same running speeds, taken together its recommendations would amount to the same network being constructed piecemeal.

Mr Sunak scrapped the northern leg of HS2 last year after cost overruns threatened to take the total expense of the scheme beyond 100bn.

The line will also no longer be extended to Euston without private investment.

The Labour source said that when the study was first commissioned it was expected that its findings would be published before a general election, which at that point was anticipated this coming autumn.

With Labour now in power, the timing of the report is uncomfortable for ministers. Enacting Mr Maiers plans would involve spending billions of pounds at a time when public finances are stretched.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has ordered a comprehensive review into public spending, expected to be published next spring, after identifying what she claimed was a 22bn hole in the public finances. Some 2.9bn of that figure is related to unfunded transport commitments.

The Treasury has asked the Department for Transport (DfT) to undertake its own inhouse review of infrastructure plans. The DfT said when announcing that review that communities up and down the country have been given hope for new transport infrastructure, with no plans or funds to deliver them.

Transport Secretary Louise Haigh, who appointed Mr Maier to undertake his study last December, is cited in the launch of its findings as saying they will help inform this new Governments thinking.

The DfT added: The Transport Secretary has made clear her commitment to transforming Britains transport infrastructure and implementing the most radical overhaul of public transport in a generation.

We welcome this report, and we will review its recommendations.

Mr Maiers 81-page study calls for a shift in the Governments approach to transport infrastructure and urges Labour to seize this moment with bold ambition and zeal.

Click here to view this content.

The British-Austrian businessman made clear following the launch that he expects major projects including those related to HS2 to be taken up.

Asked which could happen quickly, he listed the Euston link and the creation of new capacity from Birmingham to Manchester, saying that both unfortunately were cancelled down by our last government and would be very complicated and difficult to deliver.

Other proposals put forward by Mr Maier include the delivery of a new east-west route across Northern England; enhanced links between England and Scotland and between the East and West Midlands; upgrades to the East Coast Mainline from York to the northeast; a new station in Bradford; electrification of the line to Hull; and the easing of bottlenecks in central Birmingham.

The appointment of Lord Peter Hendy, a former chairman of Network Rail and a leading advocate for HS2, had already stoked industry hopes that scrapped parts of the project might be revived.

Mr Maier, who Labour last month also made chairman of GB Energy, said partnerships between the public and private sectors could ease the impact of his proposals for taxpayers.

That wouldnt mean a revival of private finance initiatives, reviled by many in Labour. Instead the study envisages a more complex model where costs and risk are shared and companies are paid back in part through fares rather than via a fixed fee.

Project costs could be cut by 20pc and delivery times by 25pc if red tape were eliminated, according to the study, which was compiled with design-engineering firm Arup and also involved former HS2 chairman Allan Cook and the TUCs head of economics, Nicola Smith.

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A startup wants travelers to live on a cruise ship for 3 years. See what the $181,790 global voyage promises.

GlobeCruises says it will use investor money  not guest deposits  to purchase a ship, shown in a rendering. GlobeCruises LTD

GlobeCruises says its three-year world cruise will sail in April 2025, starting at $181,790 per person.

The voyage would visit 413 ports in 171 countries, although the startup has yet to acquire a ship.

Its CEO and COO worked for Life at Sea, a three-year cruise project that recently filed for bankruptcy.

A startup is inviting travelers to live on a cruise ship for three years as it sails around the world.

GlobeCruises says its 1,095-day voyage will depart Barcelona on April 12, 2025. From there, it would visit 413 ports in 171 countries before concluding in Southampton, England, on April 13, 2028.

Along the way, travelers could experience the night markets of Taiwan, the beaches of Brazil, the wildlife of Tanzania, and the landmarks of Spain.

The startup's COO, Robert Dixon, told Business Insider that the voyage was designed to chase warm weather. But according to its itinerary, destinations will stretch as far south as chilly Antarctica and as far north as Longyearbyen, Norway.

The first segment of GlobeCruises' itinerary includes stops in Greece. Maglara/Getty Images

Dixon said the cruise would also dock overnight at 355 of the 413 ports  in some cases for as long as seven nights, like in Singapore  giving guests more time to explore the destinations.

Inside cabins start at about $181,790 per person, while the more luxurious suites cost $624,150 per person. The cheapest option costs about $166 per person and day.

Demand has been growing in recent years for extended cruises, but their duration is typically several months, not years. Oceania's 2024 six-month world cruise sold out within 30 minutes of reservations opening in 2022, the premium cruise line said at the time. Cruise lines like Regent Seven Seas and Silversea operate annual around-the-world sailings, most of which are capped at four to six months.

GlobeCruises is promising an activity-filled ship

GlobeCruises says its ship will have a business center, shown in a rendering. GlobeCruises LTD

GlobeCruises says its vessel will have amenities like a gym, a movie theater, a nightclub, and rentable offices. To pass the time, guests could take a dip in the pool, crack open a new book in the library, or relax in the spa.

Kendra Holmes, GlobeCruises' CEO, said she envisions at least two pools and restaurants and "as many bars and lounges" as possible, but no casino  which is a popular feature of some cruises.

The company also promises a scuba diving certification program and homeschooling opportunities for its youngest guests. The ship would host entertainers and chefs local to the port stops, as well.

The concept is similar to Life at Sea

Life at Sea Cruises canceled its three-year voyage two weeks before it was supposed to set sail in November 2023. Life at Sea Cruises

GlobeCruises' plans are similar to those of now-defunct Life at Sea Cruises. The latter canceled its planned three-year voyage in November 2023, two weeks before its departure, after failing to secure enough funding to purchase a ship.

Dixon and Holmes previously worked with Life at Sea. Holmes served as CEO of its parent company, Miray Cruises, until her departure about a week before the company canceled its global voyage.

Dixon told BI that he helped develop the concept for Life at Sea and later brought it to Miray. He said he left the team in late October 2023, a couple of weeks after Miray said it couldn't acquire a vessel.

In January, 78 would-be Life at Sea cruisers sent a letter to Markenzy Lapointe, the US attorney for the Southern District of Florida, asking him to investigate Miray Cruises for criminal fraud. The letter accused the company of using about $16 million of its customers' funds to pay for a ship it didn't purchase.

In July, Life at Sea Cruises filed for bankruptcy.

GlobeCruises says its ship would have a buffet-style breakfast and lunch and a sit-down dinner, shown in a rendering. GlobeCruises LTD

The company's demise is "in the past," Holmes told BI.

"I can't dwell, but it's terrible it happened," Holmes said. "We all put our hearts and souls into it, and at the end of the day, it fell apart. I hate to say 'shit happens,' but shit happens."

To avoid another failed launch, Dixon said GlobeCruises has partnered with ship management firm Anglo-Eastern. The Hong Kong-based company has "expressed their confidence in the viability of our project." (Anglo-Eastern did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BI.)

But there is a caveat: GlobeCruises still needs a ship.

GlobeCruises doesn't have a ship  yet

GlobeCruises says its ship would have bars and lounges, shown in a rendering, with nightly entertainment. GlobeCruises LTD

Holmes said GlobeCruises would use investor money  not guest deposits  to pay for its future vessel.

Dixon told BI that he has already secured funding to "commit to" a ship and has narrowed the choice to three options that are currently in operation and would ideally accommodate 1,200 to 1,500 passengers

He said he aims to announce his final pick in early September and take ownership of the vessel in February 2025, two months before the start of the voyage.

GlobeCruises says its ship would have venues for live entertainment, such as lounges and a theater, as shown in a rendering. GlobeCruises LTD

In the meantime, guests can reserve the world cruise by signing a commitment contract. A 20% deposit would be due 14 days after GlobeCruises announces their ship of choice, and held in escrow until the sailing begins, Holmes said.

"At the end of the day, if we aren't able to get the investor support we need and we aren't able to acquire a ship, we're not going to sail," Holmes said. "That's something we're focusing on this time to make people feel more comfortable."

Travelers who don't want to pay at least $181,790 can book cheaper and shorter segments of the cruise. Holmes also suggested guests get a travel loan instead of selling their homes and cars. Some Life at Sea buyers had sold many of their belongings ahead of the ultimately canceled voyage.

Rival cruise Villa Vie could soon set sail

Villa Vie is launching a never-ending residential cruise ship. Angela and Stephen Theriac

Holmes said several would-be Life at Sea guests have signed commitment contracts for her new project. (She declined to share the exact number.)

Villa Vie Residences, a never-ending cruise startup, has also attracted some travelers who've been burned by the recent demise or delay of other residential cruise concepts, such as Storylines and Victoria Cruises Line.

Villa Vie was founded by another Life at Sea alum, Mikael Petterson. But unlike the newer startup, Petterson's company already has a ship that could embark "any day now," he told BI in an email on Monday.

Despite the two companies' shared history, Dixon said there's no bad blood. He said he wants Villa Vie to succeed.

"I want people to go on Petterson's adventure," Dixon told BI. "It's going to be a door opener for the whole industry. It makes it easier for us because then there's a bit of confidence in this whole concept."

Are you sailing on a residential cruise ship like Villa Vie or have a tip? Contact the reporter at bchang@businessinsider.com or on X @brittanymchang .

Read the original article on Business Insider
State legislature approves $10 billion plan that will appear on the 2024 ballot  here's what it could fund

California's November 2024 election ballot will include a $10 billion equity-focused climate resilience bond. The proposal aims to "protect Californians suffering the real-time devastating and often deadly consequences of climate change."

As The Hill reported in July, the California Legislature agreed to the bond's terms after addressing state budget cuts for climate initiatives. The agreement proposes focusing on communities most at risk of rising temperatures and extreme weather events.

"Our historically underserved communities on the front lines of the climate crisis could not afford to wait any longer, requiring us to move with urgency to strengthen California climate resiliency," said Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia.

At least 40% of the $10 billion proposal will go toward disadvantaged communities in California, according to the news outlet. The Legislature will apply funds to eight different categories related to climate resilience.

This month, the League of California Cities, which supports what is now also called Proposition 4, published a guide indicating that the final measure on the ballot will have this same breakdown of funding.

"These crucial investments allow us to improve safe drinking water and air quality, prevent and prepare for future disasters like wildfires and drought, and accelerate our renewable energy goals while creating crucial jobs and economic opportunities," Garcia said in July, per The Hill.

The investment will include $3.8 billion for safe drinking water, drought, flood, and water resilience, along with $1.5 billion for wildfire and forest resilience.

It also contains provisions for $1.2 billion toward coastal and rising sea level resilience, $1.2 billion for biodiversity and nature-based climate solutions, and $850 million to support clean air.

Meanwhile, $700 million will help create parks and promote outdoor access, $450 million will help mitigate extreme heat, and $300 million will support sustainable farms, ranches, and other lands, all according to the Hill.

This new bill is significant because it addresses environmental justice and geographic inequities related to our changing climate.

Although the $10 billion investment is less than the original proposals  which exceeded $15 billion  it still offers hope, as California faces a $46.8 billion budget deficit that could otherwise lead to more environmental funding cuts.

California has long been a leader in environmental policy; however, other states and cities have also been making progress with climate resilience bills. For example, a Missouri bill proposed paying emergency leave time for employees unable to work due to climate-related disasters.

Meanwhile, new building efficiency standards signed into law in Seattle require all new large buildings in the city to achieve zero pollution by 2050.

"I will be voting yes for the climate," one social media user on X, previously known as Twitter, commented on the $10 billion climate investment news. "Glad to live in a state where we can choose to make our state better."

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A fence surrounds the LNG facility on Old Mill Lane in Portsmouth. (Photo by Larry Weisman/Rhode Island Current)

State regulators gave long-awaited authorization Thursday to a long-term plan to expand liquefied natural gas storage on the Portsmouth-Middletown line.

But its not the carte blanche approval Rhode Island Energy wanted. Rather than a permanent LNG storage and equipment facility, the Rhode Island Energy Facility Siting Board granted the company a five-year license to expand its storage capacity and equipment at its existing site on Old Mill Lane. The 3-0 vote also came with a host of conditions, alongside ongoing review of a proposed ban on new gas hookups on Aquidneck Island, and noise to the neighboring residents.

Rhode Island Energys predecessor, National Grid, revived the site in 2019 in the wake of an emergency outage that left about 7,000 Aquidneck Island customers without heat for a frigid January week. Since then, state regulators have granted a temporary waiver each winter (ending March 31) to house LNG equipment in case of emergency.

Seeking a more permanent solution, National Grid also applied in 2021 for a permanent license to expand the LNG storage and vaporization equipment facility. The Rhode Island Energy Facility Siting Board, which has final authority over proposals to create or significantly change state energy facilities including this one, has spent the last three years reviewing the proposal, through internal meetings and public hearings.

The $33.5 million project, more than double the initial cost estimate, would allow the states primary gas supplier to house 70,000 gallons of LNG onsite  enough to provide gas to the island for 37 continuous hours, or three days of up to six hours per day when considering capacity constraints, according to the license application. The permanent facility plans also call for relocating equipment away from the road and adding fencing and noise walls to minimize impacts to neighboring residents.

The gap between peak demand for gas and the existing supply is widely acknowledged, as is the vulnerability of a system reliant on a single, six inch pipe connecting the main gas pipeline to the island. But critics, including the Portsmouth and Middletown town councils and environmental groups, pushed for more environmentally friendly and less disruptive alternatives.

The Rhode Island Office of the Attorney General also weighed in with concern over the natural gas expansion amid the states ongoing decarbonization efforts, mandated by the 2021 Act on Climate Law.

Board Chairman Ron Gerwatowksi acknowledged the apparent contradiction.

It doesnt make sense to spend money to eliminate [demand] and, at the same time, allow gas demand to grow on the island, he said during the Thursday meeting. That would be like pumping water from a swimming pool and leaving the hose on at the same time.

Alternative proposals included having the utility company offer to buy at least 13 homes directly surrounding the site due to noise complaints and forcing the company not to accept new gas customers on the island altogether.

The Energy Facility Siting Board did not take a definitive stand on these suggestions Wednesday, instead centering on whether a license should be granted, and for how long. A five-year initial duration, noting the projected two-year buildout, offers time for initial operational data as well as potential progress toward cheaper and more readily available clean heat alternatives, board members agreed.

As part of the approval, Rhode Island Energy will also have to file a plan with the related regulatory body, the Public Utilities Commission, outlining an island-specific energy efficiency plan to decrease reliance on natural gas. The first report must be submitted no later than June 1, 2025.

Gerwatowski stressed the need for energy efficiency first and foremost due to the vulnerability of the existing gas pipeline; the emissions benefits are an important, but secondary consideration, he said.

This is a reliability concern first, he said.

He also pointed out that structural and lifestyle-related energy efficiency efforts take time, particularly with rental properties which require communications with tenants and a landlord who might live somewhere else.

Additional reports on construction progress and operation of the temporary vaporization equipment during winter months must also be submitted as part of the approval.

As for questions over noise and a moratorium on new gas hookups, regulators are leaving those decisions open for further review and input. Specifically, they plan to seek input from the Middletown, Portsmouth and Newport town councils on how banning Rhode Island Energy from taking on new gas customers on the island might impact development and area residents. Noise complaints are also better addressed once there is new data available showing the sound impacts of the expanded facility, which Rhode Island Energy has said will be less disruptive than the existing site due to relocation of equipment and new sound barriers.

In a June 5 memo to state regulators, Steven Boyajian, an attorney representing Rhode Island Energy, said the company would cooperate in providing regular check-ins or reporting on its operations, including noise studies once the new equipment and $500,000 sound wall are in place. However, Boyajian objected to the proposal of a ban on new gas hookups, citing the lack of legal authority for regulators to impose a moratorium as well as the additional costs to Aquidneck Island customers who would be forced to pay for alternative, more expensive heating sources like electric heat pumps.

A moratorium is effectively a tax on the greenhouse gas emissions of Aquidneck Island residents, in the form of higher heating bills, which would not be imposed elsewhere in the State, Boyajian wrote. This is nonsensical given the obvious fact that there is no difference between greenhouse gas emissions on Aquidneck Island and the emissions in the rest of the state insofar as the Act on Climate or any other State policy is concerned.

Evelyn Garcia, a spokesperson for Rhode Island Energy, said in an email Thursday that the company supported the boards decision for a five-year license.

It is an important component of our continued commitment to provide safe, reliable, and affordable gas service to our customers on Aquidneck Island, Garcia said.

As highlighted in todays outcome, further proceedings will consider the potential for some sort of gas moratorium on the island, Garcia said. We strongly encourage the publicboth residential and commercialto fully participate in those forthcoming proceedings.

The Conservation Law Foundation, which participated in the hearings on the proposal, praised state regulators for making the best decision in a difficult situation.

Families and businesses on Aquidneck Island shouldnt be left in the cold again, staff attorney James Crowley said in a statement. And they shouldnt be left to rely on dirty, polluting fossil fuels like gas that accelerate climate change and harm our communities. The sooner we upgrade to clean energy sources and eliminate the need for LNG facilities like this, the better equipped we will be to protect our environment and the Rhode Island we know and love for future generations.

The existing, temporary facility will open for the 2024-25 winter season, while construction on the expanded operation is underway.

Updated to include a response from Rhode Island Energy.

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Attorney General Matt Platkin on Aug. 22, 2024, expanded the state's use of force policy for police encounters with people in barricade situations. (Courtesy of the Attorney General's Office)

New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin issued a new directive Thursday intended to slow and stabilize encounters between New Jersey police and barricaded people.

Under the new directive, police will be required to bring a mental health professional when they respond to barricaded people, wait instead of forcing their way inside, bring less lethal weapons like Tasers to such calls, and immediately involve a supervisor.

The changes come three weeks after police busted into an apartment in Fort Lee, where a woman in mental crisis was barricaded inside, and shot her to death in an encounter that has sparked protests. The family of Victoria Lee, 25, had called 911 for help and repeatedly asked that no police come or enter their home, but officers entered anyway and one shot Lee when she threw a water jug at them (police say she had a knife). Lee joins a dismal list of several people who police in New Jersey have killed in recent years in barricade situations, resulting in lawsuits and protests.

Platkin said he first directed his staff draft changes to make police encounters with barricaded people safer in March 2023, three weeks after Paterson police gunned down advocate Najee Seabrooks after he barricaded himself in a bathroom during a mental crisis. The directive announced Thursday, with changes made in consultation with mental health professionals, community members, and faith leaders, expands the states existing use-of-force policy.

Encounters involving barricaded individuals are often difficult and high risk, regularly involving individuals in the midst of crisis who are armed, Platkin said in a statement. Our goal is to provide first responders with the tools to slow and stabilize these standoffs, empowering officers to navigate the dangerous first minutes of these encounters, so proper resources can be deployed to intervene and resolve the situations safely without force, significant injuries, or death.

Under the new directive, police responding to a barricade call must bring mental health professionals, in addition to crisis negotiators. The mental health professionals will train with law enforcement at least quarterly and be available around the clock to monitor communications with the barricaded person and offer advice and assistance to resolve the situation peacefully. Its unclear when this change will be implemented, because Platkin noted it will take time to ensure adequate staffing and resource availability.

Other changes, set to take effect in October, include:

Responding officers must wait for mental health professionals to respond, establish a perimeter, and begin communicating with the barricaded person  but not try to force a resolution unless that would be immediately necessary to prevent injury or death.

In situations where police involvement poses unreasonable risk, officers should leave, delay contact, or return at a different time and under different circumstances. Agencies must consider using community-based crisis response teams groups to help de-escalate encounters.

An on-duty supervisor must immediately respond to barricade situations, take command, and summon a tier 1 or tier 2 SWAT tactical team, which have more personnel and experience in hostages and barricade situations.

Tactical teams must be equipped with less lethal weapons, such as stun guns and impact munitions, like bean bag or rubber projectiles.

The changes drew lukewarm praise from some still mourning Lees death.

The true test of their value will come in implementation, said Amber Reed, co-executive director of AAPI New Jersey.

Its very clear this policy is saying the best practice is not to break down the door within a minute and go in shooting. It says things like time is your ally, and talks about how to bring in mental health professionals to help the de-escalate the interaction, Reed said. But there was already good guidance in the use of force directive that the officers actions did not reflect. So how do you operationalize this? Can you do more regular audits to make sure that these policies, which are fundamentally good policies, are being complied with in the field?

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Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet worships Khmer ancient statues at the Peace Palace in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on Aug. 22, 2024. Cambodia on Thursday celebrated the return of 70 stolen Khmer ancient artifacts to the Southeast Asian nation from abroad. (Photo by Rani/Xinhua)

PHNOM PENH, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia on Thursday celebrated the return of 70 stolen Khmer ancient artifacts to the Southeast Asian nation from abroad.

Recently, a total of 70 Khmer cultural objects have been repatriated to the kingdom through a range of different processes, including voluntary returns, negotiations, seizures, and legal proceedings, said a statement from the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts.

These artifacts have been returned from different collections such as from the Lindemann family, Jim Clark, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and other private collectors in the United States, the statement said.

Speaking at the event held at the Peace Palace in Phnom Penh, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said peace has provided a great opportunity for the country to return the souls of ancestors and precious treasures to their homeland.

"These cultural treasures, which are the legacy of our ancestors, were away from their homeland for many years due to war, theft, and illegal trade abroad," he said. "These returned ancient artifacts are 'priceless' for the Cambodian people, who are the rightful owners of these cultural treasures."

Hun Manet said since 1996 to date, Cambodia has reclaimed 1,098 looted antiquities from countries including the United States, France, Australia, Britain, Thailand, Japan, Indonesia, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, and Norway.

Cambodian Minister of Culture and Fine Arts Phoeurng Sackona said the recent return of these Khmer ancestors' souls is the result of the great efforts of the government, in cooperation with all relevant partners, including public institutions, private sectors, national and international experts, as well as various countries.

She said amongst the returned Khmer cultural treasures, there are some important Hindu and Buddhist masterpieces from pre-Angkor and Angkor periods, especially priceless stone statues such as a mythical warrior from the Hindu epic Mahabharata, statues of Shiva and Uma, and a statue of Ardhanarishvara from the ancient capital of Koh Ker, as well as the bronze head of Lokeshvara, which has been reunited with its body at the National Museum of Phnom Penh after being separated for decades due to war and illicit trafficking.

"The Cambodian people are proud and filled with joy for the return of these national treasures representing our ancestral souls and identity, under the umbrella of peace and development," she said. 

Khmer ancient statues are on display at the Peace Palace in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on Aug. 22, 2024. Cambodia on Thursday celebrated the return of 70 stolen Khmer ancient artifacts to the Southeast Asian nation from abroad. (Photo by Rani/Xinhua)

A Khmer ancient statue is on display at the Peace Palace in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on Aug. 22, 2024. Cambodia on Thursday celebrated the return of 70 stolen Khmer ancient artifacts to the Southeast Asian nation from abroad. (Photo by Rani/Xinhua)

A Khmer ancient statue is on display at the Peace Palace in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on Aug. 22, 2024. Cambodia on Thursday celebrated the return of 70 stolen Khmer ancient artifacts to the Southeast Asian nation from abroad. (Photo by Rani/Xinhua)

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet speaks during an event celebrating the return of looted Khmer ancient statues at the Peace Palace in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on Aug. 22, 2024. Cambodia on Thursday celebrated the return of 70 stolen Khmer ancient artifacts to the Southeast Asian nation from abroad. (Photo by Rani/Xinhua)

Khmer ancient statues are on display at the Peace Palace in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on Aug. 22, 2024. Cambodia on Thursday celebrated the return of 70 stolen Khmer ancient artifacts to the Southeast Asian nation from abroad. (Photo by Rani/Xinhua)
State trooper who fatally shot man at hospital was justified in use of deadly force, report says

FILE - Police stand at the entrance to New Hampshire Hospital, Nov. 17, 2023, in Concord, N.H. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, file)

CONCORD, N.H. (AP)  A New Hampshire state trooper who fatally shot a man at a psychiatric hospital in November shortly after the man killed a security guard was justified in using deadly force, the state attorney general said in a report Thursday.

The trooper, Nathan Sleight, fired at John Madore on Nov. 17 after Madore fatally shot Bradley Haas, a state Department of Safety security officer who was working at the New Hampshire Hospitals front entrance. Madore was a former patient at the Concord hospital.

The report said Madore entered the hospital and fired a pistol at the unarmed Haas, who was standing near the entrance, immediately and without warning" before firing multiple shots at the lobby wall, a switchboard service window, a secured door leading into the hospital from the lobby, and back at Haas.

He started to reload his pistol when Sleight drew his own service pistol, opened a door leading from his office into the lobby and commanded Madore to drop his gun.

.Madore turned and faced Trooper Sleight, ignored his commands and continued to try to reload his pistol, Attorney General John Formella's report said. Sleight shot him and Madore fell to the floor.

While on the floor Madore again continued to try to reload his pistol, causing Trooper Sleight to fire the remaining ammunition in his service pistol at Madore in an effort to stop Madore from reloading, the report said.

At about that time, a residential patient who was unaware of what was happening entered the lobby and heard Madore say something to the effect of I hate this place, the report said. Sleight escorted the man back to the parking lot.

Video cameras showed that all those events happened in under a minute.

The report said Sleight's conclusion that Madore was an immediately deadly threat was objectively and reasonably sound.

Sleight has about 11 years of law enforcement experience.

The report noted that Madore had a history of mental health issues and had previously been a residential treatment patient at the hospital for 13 days in February 2016 and again for approximately nine months between May of 2016 to March of 2017.

His father told investigators that Madore previously expressed paranoid ideations that the providers at the hospital were trying to harvest his organs, which he continued to periodically discuss even after his discharge.
CHICAGO  In an address that brought some attendees of the Democratic National Convention to tears, the parents of one of the eight American citizens held hostage in Gaza addressed the gathering  and their absent son  on Wednesday evening.

Rachel Goldberg-Polin, the mother of 23-year-old Hersh Goldberg-Polin, closed out her remarks with an appeal not to negotiators or convention-goers but to her beleaguered son.

Hersh, if you can hear us, we love you, Goldberg-Polin said. Stay strong. Survive.

Jon Polin, Hersh Goldberg-Polins father, also addressed U.S. leaders. The time is now, he said, for an agreement to secure the release of the captives and stop the despair in Gaza.

The pair were speaking as part of an effort to keep attention on the hostages still being held in Gaza by Hamas, the Palestinian militant group whose Oct. 7 attack on Israel sparked the latest episode of outright fighting in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Of those the group captured in the shocking attack, some 109 are still in captivity; some are dead.

The hostages include Christians, Jews, Muslims and Buddhists, and represent 23 different nationalities, Polin noted, calling them all treasured human beings.

The U.S., along with Qatar and Egypt, is serving as a mediator in negotiations between Hamas and the Israeli government for a deal that would free the captives and end Israels devastating months-long offensive in Gaza. Last year, a brief bargain between the two sides led to more than 80 women and children being freed. The hostages still being held include a 1-year-old.

The talks faltered this week, despite the Biden administration promising just days ago that they were, per a senior administration official on Friday, in the end game.

In addition to the capture of more than 250 hostages, the Hamas-led attack inside Israel killed some 1,200 civilians, according to Israeli statistics. Israels retaliation in Gaza since has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to Palestinian authorities.

There is a surplus of agony on all sides of the tragic conflict in the Middle East, Polin told the DNC. In a competition of pain, there are no winners.

The remarks by the couple also come amid intense activism over the Gaza war, and the U.S. role in it, at the convention.

Earlier in the day, advocates for a ceasefire and an end to U.S. military support for Israels military campaign in the Palestinian region held a press conference urging the DNCs organizers to grant a speaking slot to a Palestinian American who can describe the effect of the war on their community.

Abbas Alawieh  a leader of the uncommitted movement, which seeks to deny support for the Democratic Party over President Joe Bidens support for the Israeli offensive in Gaza  said that in addition to having the parents of a hostage speak, it was vital to have a Palestinian voice at the convention as well.

As of Wednesday evening, no Palestinian speaker had been announced.

Critics of the war, among both the families of hostages and advocates for Palestinian rights, have been urging leaders in the U.S., Israel and Hamas to reach a bargain for months, arguing their political considerations pale in comparison to the humanitarian imperative for a deal.

Related...
Stevie Wonder performs at the DNC on Aug. 21, 2024 in Chicago, IL. - Credit: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Stevie Wonder graced the Democratic National Convention stage on Wednesday to deliver both a heartfelt speech and performance in support of Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota governor Tim Walz.

Speaking to the thousands gathered at the United Center in Chicago, Wonder declared: I love you. Every song that Ive sing, every song that Ive written is because of my love for you right here.

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He continued, But this year, I prayed very hard for peace to come to our worlds nations, but also to each one of our hearts, even though our hearts have been beaten and broken beyond prayer. Wonder urged: Now is the time to understand where we are and what it will take to win. Win the broken hearts, win the disenchanted, win the angry spirits  now is the time.

The LEGEND Stevie Wonder is in the house at the DNC!!



 pic.twitter.com/IbFyIHadqi  MoveOn (@MoveOn) August 22, 2024

The music icon called on the crowd to choose courage over complacency and to keep on keeping on until we truly are a united people of these United States, before segueing into his performance for the night.

Are yall ready to reach a higher ground? he said before launching into his iconic 1973 track Higher Ground. Backed by dancers dressed in white, Wonder sang: People keep on learning/Soldiers keep on warring/World keep on turning/Cause it wont be too long.

Watch Stevie Wonder's amazing performance at the DNC convention.



He's such an icon!



 pic.twitter.com/DFyCQPl7R5  Art Candee  (@ArtCandee) August 22, 2024

Harris has been a longtime fan of Wonder, sharing in 2019 that her favorite album is the legends Songs in the Key of Life. The Democratic nominee also shared a birthday post for Wonder in 2020 and called him a living legend and longtime hero of mine.

Earlier this month, Wonder shouted out Harris during Duke Fakirs funeral service. After singing The Lords Prayer and sharing an Amen with the Hartford Memorial Baptist Church crowd, Wonder simply said Kamala Harris and repeated: Kamala Harris. There, I said it.

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WEST CARROLLTON, Ohio (WDTN)  A reported incident involving a weapon sent officers to a West Carrollton school.

The West Carrollton City School District was reportedly provided information by an outside source claiming a student showed another student a weapon outside of school. When the information was told to an adult, they contacted the district in a timely manner.

District officials were made aware, and law enforcement responded to West Carrollton Middle School to conduct a search of the school for any possible weapons. Authorities did discover the weapon, but the student did not have access to it during the search.

Nearly 1/4 of Ohio experiencing extreme drought conditions

West Carrollton Schools reports the student accused of bringing the weapon onto school grounds was separated from their peers and is now in the hands of law enforcement.

Students and staff were kept safe at all times during the search, said West Carrollton Schools. At no time were students or staff in direct danger.

The district encourages parents and guardians to have a conversation with your children to report anything to any adult or official they trust if they believe something is not right.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WDTN.com.
Student suspended after threat made to student at Scottsboro High School

SCOTTSBORO, Ala (WHNT)  Scottsboro City Schools (SCS) says a student has been suspended after a threat was made to another student at Scottsboro High School.

The school system said on Wednesday that it learned that a student made a threat to another student. The district said it took immediate action to ensure student safety.

The system said the Scottsboro Police Department (SPD) was informed and is assisting in handling the issue appropriately.

SCS said the student has been suspended pending an investigation by SPD and the school system.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO)  A new playground at Rockfords Haight Park, at the intersection of Jefferson and N. Second Street, had a grand opening on Thursday.

Students from All Saints Academy returned to class today and were greeted by the brand-new playground when they went out for recess.

The original playground was built in 1993. It was demolished in May. The new-and-improved edition was built using feedback from the children who use it the most.

The Northwest Illinois Alliance of Realtors helped fundraise for the $85,000 renovation.

The Rockford Park District said the Haight Park project was one of several its working on.

This is part of our long-term strategic plan, to invest in neighborhood parks, said communications manager Laura Gibbs-Green. Whether its a playground, whether its a complete makeover of a park, weve got a lot of other playgrounds and parks that were also eyeing. Weve got a laundry list of places that we need to address.

Gibbs-Green also said that she heard positive feedback from all the children who used the playground today.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to MyStateline | WTVO News, Weather and Sports.
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO)  The time has come once again for goodbye hugs and cheers as Sioux Falls students head back into the classroom.

But its not just the students who are excited.

This year the Sioux Falls School District has 148 new teachers.

Im just looking forward to meeting my students and building those relationships, getting to know the school, Sydney Cork, a new fifth-grade teacher at RF Pettigrew, said. Im just excited, Im ready. Im eager to learn.

Hoping to inspire the kids like the teachers in their lives did.

SFPD: Teenage boy dead from gunshot early Tuesday

When I was in school, I had a lot of teachers that impacted me in a positive way, Drew Van Regenmorter, a new third-grade teacher at RF Pettigrew, said. They made me want to come to school, they made it engaging, exciting. Just kind of made it a safe space and thats what I strive to do for my students.

And for all students heading back to the classroom, these new teachers have some advice:

Dont be scared, were here for you, Van Regenmorter said.

Dont be nervous, everybodys nervous, even the teachers are nervous. Be yourself, have fun and just smile and have a good year, Cork said.

The 148 new hires in the Sioux Falls School District include 59 elementary teachers, 34 high school teachers and 31 middle school teachers.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KELOLAND.com.
For the second consecutive year, the percentages of women working both as TV creators and in major on-camera roles have declined, according to the latest Boxed In study released Thursday.

The report, which tracked over 3,200 characters and more than 4,400 behind-the-scenes credits during the 2023-24 television year, was authored by Dr. Martha Lauzen, executive director of the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University. Within its pages, she found that females comprised just 23 percent of creators employed across broadcast and streaming, down from 26 percent in 2022-23, and from 30 percent the year prior. Onscreen, women accounted for just 43 percent of characters in speaking roles (both major and minor, down from 44 percent the year before. As for major characters, females made up only 45 percent of them this year, down from 48 percent in 2022-23.

More from The Hollywood Reporter

As creators of television series, the percentages of women are now substantially below the historic highs they experienced between 2019 and 2022. Their numbers have plummeted, particularly on broadcast network programs. The percentage of women working as creators on broadcast network series in 2023-24 was only 2 points higher than it was in 1997-1998, the first year of the study, noted Lauzen, whos been conducting research on the subject of female representation in TV for more than two decades. The size of the population of female characters onscreen is tied to gender ratios behind the scenes. When the percentage of women creators declines, the population of female characters also declines.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, television shows created by women also employed considerably higher percentages of women in other key roles behind the scenes. For example, of those with at least one female creator, women made up 30 percent of the directors involved and 60 percent of the writers. On series with strictly male creators, women made up only 15 percent of the directors and just 17 percent of the writers.

What viewers ultimately see onscreen is similarly distressing. Per the study, on shows with at least one female creator, women made up half of the protagonists, compared to only 26 percent on programming from male creators. Moreover, female characters are notably younger than their male counterparts. In fact, across broadcast and streaming, 51 percent of male characters were 40 and older versus only 29 percent of female characters.

Females begin to disappear from the television landscape around the age of 40. The number of males declines a decade later as they age from their 40s into their 50s. As a result, male characters are more likely to age into positions of professional and personal power, added Lauzen. Its not something viewers would necessarily be aware of, but these patterns have prevailed since this project started collecting data in the late 1990s. It reinforces the idea that men remain visible and vital past the age of 40 but women do not.

The Boxed In report has been analyzing both onscreen portrayals and offscreen credits for 27 years. In that time, the study, which provides one of the most comprehensive historical records of womens representation and employment in TV, has monitored more than 59,700 characters and over 74,000 behind-the-scenes credits.

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This superyacht hot spot for the uber-wealthy is heating up  and becoming more dangerous

The storm that sank the Bayesian, a luxury yacht anchored off the Sicily coast, was sudden, violent and deadly  and scientists say it may be a warning of whats to come as global warming fuels more extreme weather in the Mediterranean.

The superyacht, which was carrying 22 people, sank in the early hours of Monday morning, near the port of Porticello, claiming at least five lives. Rescue operations are still ongoing, hampered by the difficulties of reaching the vessel, which is resting on the sea floor approximately 165 feet deep.

The incident has shocked many. The Mediterranean, prized for its crystal clear, tranquil waters, is a prime summer destination for the very wealthy and their superyachts.

But these waters can still be dangerous  one of the reasons thousands of people die every year trying to migrate across it  and experts say its only becoming more so as human-caused climate change warms the sea, whipping up stronger and more intense storms.

Rescue boats take part in the search operation off the coast of Porticello on Wednesday. - Louiza Vradi/Reuters

The reasons for the sinking of the Bayesian are still being investigated. It was dark and no images are available, said Luca Mercalli, president of the Italian Meteorological Society.

But many believe the yacht was struck by a waterspout  one of several types of tornadoes. The coast guard reported the yacht was struck by a tornado, and a waterspout was reported to the European Severe Weather Database around the same time. Storms that day resulted in at least two dozen waterspout reports across Italy.

Waterspouts are narrow spinning columns of air below a thunderstorm which happen over water, and thrive on heat and humidity.

Most waterspouts are fairly weak with a few seconds of strong, gusty winds before they move on or dissipate, said Peter Inness, a meteorologist at the University of Reading. But some can be much stronger.

There arent huge amounts of data about waterspouts as they often happen unobserved out at sea, but there is evidence ocean temperatures can affect them. A study by University of Barcelona scientists, which was focused on Spains Balearic Islands, found waterspouts are more likely when the ocean is very warm.

However, drawing a link between climate change and more frequent or more intense waterspouts is a step too far at the moment, Inness said. They require several different conditions to form in addition to heat, including winds and temperature differences between the air and sea.

What is clear however, is that climate change is leading to more intense storms, some of which are fueled by warm ocean water.

And the Mediterranean is currently very, very hot.

Water temperatures around Sicily are approximately 30 degrees, Mercalli said. Thats 3 degrees Celsius (5.4 Fahrenheit) warmer than average for this time of year  an extreme anomaly, he told CNN.

While ocean heat is affected by natural climate fluctuations, such as El Nino, scientists are clear that it is being supercharged by human-caused global warming driven by burning fossil fuels.

When oceans are hot, they are able to inject more energy into the atmosphere. This can be converted into strong winds or rapid updrafts of air in thunderstorms, Inness said. Warm air is also able to hold more moisture, so when storms produce rain, it can be heavier and more intense.

There has been an increase in heavy thunderstorms dumping large amounts of rain, as well as downbursts  strong winds that descend from thunderstorms  in Italy and worldwide over the past few decades, Mercalli said.

The storm that hit Sicily reached the Mediterranean from the west, where it gained energy from high ocean temperatures, said Justino Martinez, a researcher at the Institute of Marine Scientists in Spain.

Spains Balearic Islands were particularly affected. Torrential rain last week flooded roads, forced evacuations and flight cancellations and overturned yachts moored on the popular island of Formentera.

The storm then gained more energy before reaching Italy, Martinez told CNN. In addition to the waterspout, other strong storms across Sicily brought torrential rainfall late Sunday, dumping more than 100 mm of rainfall, or 4 inches, in Brolo in less than four hours.

Ships stranded in Formentera, Spain following a storm last week. - GIM/GTRES/Shutterstock

The Mediterranean region is on the frontlines of the climate crisis. Dubbed a climate change hot spot, its warming around 20% faster than the global average. And the toll is clear in the extreme weather the region is experiencing, from brutal rolling heat waves to ferocious storms bringing catastrophic flooding.

Global warming  and specifically warming of the Mediterranean Sea  is quite likely to lead to an intensification of a number of potentially dangerous weather systems in that region, Inness said.

Italy, surrounded by the fast-warming waters of the Mediterranean, is particularly affected. Last year, a downburst hit a ship on Lake Maggiore in northern Italy, killing four people.

The country also grappled with once in a century deadly floods that killed at least 14 people in May last year, while Sicily hit 48.8 degrees Celsius (119.8 Fahrenheit) last August, breaking Europes temperature record.

Outside Italy, last years Storm Daniel, fueled by unusually warm ocean waters, claimed lives in Greece, Turkey and Bulgaria. But by far the most devastation from the storm happened in Libya.

Flash flooding killed thousands of people following a so-called medicane  a rare, hurricane-like cyclone in the Mediterranean that gains energy from warm water.

Global warming is intensifying all extreme weather events, Mercalli said, with huge costs for people and society.

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TAIYUAN, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- North China's culturally-rich province of Shanxi has significantly increased investment in cultural relic preservation and diversified funding channels in recent years, according to the provincial finance department.

In 2024, the province allocated 408 million yuan (57.28 million U.S. dollars) at the provincial level for cultural relic protection, an increase of 84 million yuan from 2021, with an average annual growth rate of 8 percent.

Additionally, the province has secured 525 million yuan in national funds for cultural relic protection this year, up by 197 million yuan from 2023, representing a 60 percent increase.

As a leading repository of heritage resources in China, Shanxi is home to 53,875 immovable cultural relics, and boasts 531 key historical and cultural sites under national-level protection, the highest number among provincial-level regions.

However, the province faces challenges in protecting numerous low-grade cultural relics, with substantial conservation work and inadequate management personnel. Since 2023, Shanxi has also used general bond funds to bolster cultural relic protection in financially strained cities and counties.

The province has pioneered a special fund, the Shanxi Cultural Relic Protection Fund, to mobilize and attract social capital, which has emerged into a new model for heritage preservation, the department said.

Shanxi has also encouraged public participation in relic protection through initiatives. By the end of 2023, the province had attracted nearly 520 million yuan in social funds for relic protection. Enditem (Intern Dai Xiang contributed to the story.)
British tech-billionaire Mike Lynch was confirmed by the Italian coast guard as being one of five bodies pulled from the wreck of the superyacht Bayesian three days after it went down in a storm off the coast of Sicily with only his 18-year-old daughter, Hannah, remaining missing. Photo by Igor Petyx/EPA-EFE

Aug. 22 (UPI) -- British tech-billionaire Mike Lynch was confirmed by the Italian coast guard on Thursday as being one of five bodies pulled from the wreck of the superyacht Bayesian three days after it went down in a storm off the coast of Sicily with only his 18-year-old daughter, Hannah, remaining missing.

The others who have been identified after being recovered by specialist divers Wednesday are Morgan Stanley International Chairman Jonathan Bloomer, his wife Judith Bloomer, Lynch's American lawyer Christopher Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillio.

The body of the fifth victim, said to be the 59-year-old Lynch, was brought ashore on board a fire service boat to nearby Porticello at around 8:45 a.m. local time.

Together with the Bayesian's chef, Antigua-based Canadian national Recaldo Thomas, whose body was pulled from the water Monday, it brings to six the number of confirmed deceased.

The coast guard said the remaining missing person was a woman -- presumed to be Hannah Lynch.

An Italian fire service spokesman said the search was continuing but that it was impossible for emergency workers to know if and when another body would be found.

"We would need a crystal ball to know when we'll be able to find the next body," said Luca Cari, spokesperson for the fire rescue service.

"It's very difficult to move inside the wreckage. Moving just one metre can take up to 24 hours," he said.

Hannah, a former honor student at London's prestigious Latymer Upper School, was due to take up a place at Oxford University in the fall.

Tributes for Mike Lynch, co-founder of software firms Autonomy and Darktrace and founder of the tech venture capital firm Invoke Capital, poured in Thursday from friends and from across the tech, business and professional worlds.

He was lauded as a cheerleader for Britain's tech sector who put his money where his mouth was.

Offering his condolences in a post on X, former BP CEO Lord John Browne of Madingley, lauded what he said was Lynch's global contribution to science and technology.

"Mike Lynch should be remembered as the person who catalyzed a breed of deep tech entrepreneurs in the U.K. His ideas and his personal vision were a powerful contribution to science and technology in both Britain and globally," wrote Browne who now heads up the BeyondNetZero Fund. "We have lost a human being of great ability."

The Royal Academy of Engineering in London said it held fond memories of him as a "mentor, donor and former council member."

"The trustee board, fellows and staff of the Royal Academy of Engineering are deeply saddened to learn of the death of Mike Lynch, and send our profound condolences to his family," the academy said in a post on X.

"Mike became a fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2008 and we have fond memories of the active role he played in the past as a mentor, donor and former council member."

Tech London Advocates and Global Tech Advocates founder, Russ Shaw, told CNBC Lynch left "a legacy as one of the great modern British tech entrepreneurs."

"His ability to understand how tech can solve big challenges, and then successfully commercialize it was truly unique," Shaw said.

Friend, Brent Hoberman, called Lynch an inspirational figure in the tech world whose passing was "unbelievably tragic" but whose achievement should never be forgotten.

"We were all hoping for a miracle -- we knew it was unlikely but you still hold out hope," he told Sky News.

"It's just so unbelievably tragic for him to go through what he went through over the last 12 years, defending his name and not really living a full life, to now for his death to be confirmed is obviously incredibly sad."

Lynch, his wife Angela Bacares, daughter Hannah and 19 guests were on the Bayesian for a "victory" trip celebrating Lynch clearing his name after a lengthy legal battle that saw him extradited to the United States last year to stand trial on fraud charges related to the $11 billion sale of Autonomy, to Hewlett Packard.

After HP took an $8.8 billion haircut on the value of the company within a year, Lynch was accused of conspiring to inflate its value and wire fraud but after a trial lasting three months a jury in a federal court in San Francisco acquitted him and co-defendant Stephen Chamberlain in June of all 15 counts.

It emerged Monday that former Autonomy Vice President Chamberlain was killed two days before Lynch.

The 52-year-old died in a road accident while out running in Stretham, 76 miles northeast of London, in rural Cambridgeshire.
A divided Supreme Court partially granted an emergency request from the Republican National Committee to enforce an Arizona law that requires documentary proof of citizenship to vote, specifically letting the state require such proof when registering to vote using a state form.

Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch would have fully granted the Republican application. Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Amy Coney Barrett and Ketanji Brown Jackson would have fully denied it.

The GOP went to the high court after a federal appeals court panel approved a district court injunction against the law. The emergency application, from the RNC and the Arizona state Senate president and House speaker, sought to pause (or stay) the injunction immediately, to the extent that it makes the state (1) accept voter registration applications via a state form without documentary proof of citizenship and (2) allow voters who have not provided documentary proof of citizenship to cast ballots for president or to vote by mail.

The Supreme Courts order on Thursday rejected the Republican request when it comes to voting for president or voting by mail.

Opposing the Republicans bid, Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes told the justices that a stay this close to an election will create chaos and confusion, and in turn undermine the credibility of our elections. The federal government also opposed the stay, noting that judicial intervention at this stage would undermine the orderly administration of the election, risking the disfranchisement of thousands of voters who have already registered to vote using the federal form.

The federal form refers to the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, which requires states to accept and use a standard federal form to register voters for federal elections. That form requires voters to attest under penalty of perjury that theyre U.S. citizens but doesnt make them to submit documentary proof. Yet the 2022 Arizona law at issue requires federal form users to submit documentary proof to vote for president or by mail, and makes voters submit such proof when they register using an alternative state form.

Subscribe to the Deadline: Legal Newsletter for updates and expert analysis on the top legal stories. The newsletter will return to its regular weekly schedule when the Supreme Courts next term kicks off in October.

This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
The Supreme Court on Thursday partially agreed to the Republican National Committees (RNC) emergency request to revive an Arizona law that strengthens proof-of-citizenship requirements for voting.

In a 5-4 vote, the justices reinstated Arizonas law mandating officials reject state voter registration forms if the person did not provide proof of citizenship.

The courts three liberal justices  Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson  dissented alongside conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett.

But in voting to deny the RNCs other request, those four found themselves in the majority, bolstered by support from at least one of Chief Justice John Roberts or Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

A seismic win in the fight to stop non-citizens from voting  more to come! RNC Chairman Michael Whatley wrote on social platform X.

The RNC had demanded the reinstatement of Arizonas prohibition that prevents registered voters from casting ballots for president or in the mail if they didnt provide citizenship proof, even if they used a federal-level form to register, where proof is not required.

If enacted, Arizonas secretary of states office estimated it could prevent roughly 42,000 people already registered from voting for president this November.

Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch, who are viewed as the Supreme Courts three leading conservatives, voted to reinstate those provisions, too.

The ruling came just ahead of Arizonas ballot printing deadline, enabling the provision to go into effect for this years elections, when Arizona is expected to be a critical swing state in the presidential race.

By not fully agreeing to the RNCs request, the Supreme Courts decision sides with the Biden administration.

The Justice Department has sued over the latter provision as conflicting with federal law, but it has not challenged the portion impacting only state-level forms.

Even putting aside the merits, applicants are not entitled to a stay, U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar wrote in court filings.

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) and various voting rights groups have challenged both sets of the provisions. The case revolves around claims that the changes are unconstitutional, preempted by federal law and violate a consent decree a state official signed in 2018.

After a federal district judge blocked the provisions and an appeals court refused to lift it, the RNC, joined by Arizonas top two Republican state lawmakers, thrusted the Supreme Court into the dispute earlier this month by filing an emergency appeal.

They urged the justices to stay the lower ruling by Aug. 22, which is the states ballot printing deadline, arguing that the state was authorized to make the voter registration changes.

The challengers, however, urged the Supreme Court to stay out the case, insisting the RNC hadnt cleared their high burden to receive emergency relief.

Lawyers for the DNC and other private plaintiffs told the justices the RNC sat on their hands after losing in a lower court.

The tardiness is particularly inexcusable here, as applicants seek to weaponize Arizonas forthcoming ballot-printing deadline to obtain relief, their written response reads.

Democratic Arizona state officials, meanwhile, argued that the Supreme Courts intervention would be destabilizing given the short timeframe before Novembers election.

Updated 3:27 p.m.

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The U.S. Supreme Court partially reinstated Arizonas state law requiring proof-of-citizenship for voting.

The 5-4 ruling means Arizona election officials can reject an application for state voter registration if the person does not present documentary proof of citizenship.

Other parts of the law remain on hold. The court left on hold part of the law that said a person who already registered to vote without providing proof of citizenship is not allowed to vote in presidential elections. The order also said the part of the law preventing a person who registered to vote only in federal elections from receiving an early ballot by mail remains on hold.

The order does not take up a full page and also does not include reasonings behind the decisions.

Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch would have granted the application from the Republican National Committee in full, allowing all provisions of the law to be enforced. Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Amy Coney Barrett and Ketanji Brown Jackson would have denied the application, the order said.

Background on the litigation over the law

The decision comes after the Republican National Committee asked the Supreme Court to take emergency action on the law.

The 2022 Arizona voting law is currently being litigated. A federal district court in Arizona blocked the law. Then, after an appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, part of the district courts order was put on temporary hold.

The block against the law was reinstated after a panel of judges looked at the case, and then, the Republican National Committee sought emergency relief from the countrys highest court.

The district courts injunction is an unprecedented abrogation of the Arizona Legislatures sovereign authority to determine the qualifications of voters and structure participation in its elections, wrote attorneys for the Republican National Committee in the emergency request.

The request said they needed emergency relief because ballots will soon be printed.

Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes asked the Supreme Court to deny the Republican National Committees request because he said a stay this close to an election will create chaos and confusion, and in turn undermine the credibility of our elections.

Fontes said 42,301 Arizona voters are only registered federally and would be impacted if the court lifted the hold.

The future of the law will play out as the litigation continues.

The Justice Department sued to block the law in July 2022, shortly after it was passed. The suit dealt with the provisions of the law requiring voters who registered to vote with a federal form to show proof of citizenship. The form requires a declaration of citizenship under penalty of perjury not documentary proof of citizenship.

The suit said the National Voter Registration Act prevents Arizona from enforcing those provisions. This part of the law remains blocked for now after the Supreme Courts response.

The Arizona law was initially passed in 2022 and signed into law by Gov. Doug Ducey.

RNC Chairman Michael Whatley called Thursdays ruling a major victory for election integrity in a statement.

While Democrats have worked to undermine basic election safeguards and make it easier for non-citizens to vote, we have fought tooth and nail to preserve citizenship requirements, see the law enforced, and secure our elections, said Whatley. The Supreme Court has sided with the RNC, and the American people, to protect the vote in November.

We are disappointed that the supreme court is upending longstanding rules on the eve of an election that will clearly cause voter confusion. Free and fair elections rely on every citizen being able to cast a ballot and the fight is far from over, Bruce Spiva, lawyer for Campaign Legal Center which helped challenge the law, told The Guardian.

Utah was one of 24 states that filed a brief in support of the Republican National Committee.

The right to police elections involves a core aspect of State sovereignty, said the brief, then quoting from a previous case, It is fundamental to the definition of our national political community that foreign citizens do not have a constitutional right to participate in, and thus may be excluded from, activities of democratic self-government.
(Bloomberg) -- The US Supreme Court will let Arizona partially enforce a state law that requires residents to provide proof of US citizenship to register to vote ahead of the November election.

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The Republican National Committee had asked the justices to intervene in the battleground state for Donald Trumps campaign after a federal district judge blocked the law. The case tested an 18-year-old Supreme Court precedent that cautions federal judges against changing voting rules too close to an election.

The order Thursday means Arizona officials will reject state registration applications that dont meet the criteria for proving citizenship though not federal forms. The state attorney generals office had opposed putting the law into effect now, citing concerns about injecting confusion into the 2024 election cycle.

Four justices  liberals Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson and conservative Amy Coney Barrett  would have rejected the RNC request.

Conservatives Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch would have gone further and also allowed enforcement of provisions that would bar Arizonans from voting in presidential races or by mail if they used a federally provided form to register without giving proof of citizenship.

The Supreme Court as a whole gave no explanation for its decision, as is frequently the case with emergency applications.

The case took a tangled path to the Supreme Court. A federal judge blocked the state from enforcing the law, and the RNC appealed to the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals, asking for an order to let the state enforce the law while the court fight continued.

A three-person panel  made up of all Trump-appointed judges  partially granted the RNCs request, ruling that the law could be enforced for registration forms produced by the state.

The advocacy groups that brought the case then asked to have a different 9th Circuit panel review that decision. On Aug. 1, the second panel voted 2-1 to restore the district courts original injunction fully blocking enforcement of the law.

The two judges in the majority, both appointed by former President Bill Clinton, chastised the first panel for a manifest injustice by upending the status quo close to the July primary and during registration for the November general election.

Judge Patrick Bumatay, who was appointed by Trump, dissented. He wrote that the majoritys reversal of the first panel was highly irregular and that the court should be careful to avoid such steps given the political nature of this case.

Much of the wrangling concerned a 2006 Supreme Court case, Purcell v. Gonzalez, that has increasingly played a key role in pre-election legal fights. Individual justices have weighed in over the years with guidance on how lower courts should account for election proximity, but the court hasnt offered a comprehensive framework. Leading up to the 2020 election, the justices disagreed about how the so-called Purcell principle should apply to litigation over voting procedures during the pandemic.

In its application to the Supreme Court, the RNC argued that the 9th Circuit majority got Purcell wrong, and that it was supposed to protect state laws against federal court intrusion during an election cycle, not broadly preserve the status quo.

The US Department of Justice, which also sued over the Arizona law, weighed in before the high court to argue in favor of leaving the injunction in place for the federal registration forms.

The case is Republican National Committee v. Mi Familia Vota, 24A164.

(Updates with breakdown of court in fourth and fifth paragraphs.)

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The Arizona Supreme Court has ruled that Proposition 138, also known as the Tipped Workers Protection Act, will remain on the ballot in the November election.

The measure was challenged in court back in June by Raise the Wage AZ, a political action committee that has been advocating for increasing the minimum wage. In its lawsuit, Raise the Wage AZ claimed that the ballot proposition sent to voters by Republican state lawmakers was deceptive and creates a significant danger of electorate confusion and unfairness.

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The group wanted the court to declare that the proposed constitutional amendment violates the Arizona Constitution and bar it from appearing on the ballot. A lower court ruled in favor of Prop 138, however, it was appealed to the Arizona Supreme Court.

Raise the Wage AZ was formed to back a minimum wage increase on the 2024 ballot, but its measure did not end up qualifying for the ballot.

State law currently allows restaurants to pay tipped workers $3 less than minimum wage and use workers tips to backfill up to the minimum wage. If voters approve Prop. 138, Arizona businesses would be allowed to pay tipped workers 25% less than minimum wage  whatever that may be in the future  if their tips and hourly wage amount to at least $2 per hour more than the minimum wage.

Arizona servers and tipped employees work hard, and Prop 138 will protect their pay and jobs, Steve Chucri, President & CEO of the ARA said in a statement on the ruling. We thank the Arizona Supreme Court for ruling in our favor and letting Arizona voters have their say on Prop 138, the Tipped Workers Protection Act.

The measure was brought to the Arizona legislature by the Arizona Restaurant Association, which also created an advocacy group that purported to be made up of tipped workers who wanted the proposition on the ballot. The group was created by the president of the ARA and speakers from the advocacy group did not disclose their connections to the ARA.

Jim Barton, an attorney for Raise the Wage AZ, said the courts ruling opens the door for voters to be fooled by businesses who want to pay their employees less.

It is called the Tipped Worker Protection Act, and it LOWERS tipped workers wages. It never raises their wages. It never provides them any protection, Barton told the Arizona Mirror in an email. So, voters need to be very careful this year when it comes to deceptively titled referrals from the Legislature.

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Supreme Court says Arizona can require proof of citizenship to register new voters

Voters deliver their ballot to a polling station in Tempe, Ariz., on Nov. 3, 2020. (Associated Press)

A divided Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that Arizona may require proof of citizenship when registering new voters for future elections.

But the court refused a GOP request to block voting in November by more than 40,000 people who had already registered without providing such proof.

The court issued a one-paragraph order and did not explain its ruling, which arose from an emergency appeal filed by the Republican National Committee.

The decision is unlikely to have a significant impact on the presidential race in Arizona. But it breaks new ground by affirming that states may require proof of citizenship when they register all new voters through their state system.

Voting rights experts said Arizona will be the only state enforcing a proof-of-citizenship requirement for would-be voters.

It also shows the sharp split within the high court on how to handle partisan disputes over election rules.

Conservative Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel A. Alito Jr. and Neil M. Gorsuch said they would have granted the full appeal from the RNC and held that thousands of Arizonans could be barred from voting this year because they did not show proof of citizenship.

Such a decision would have all but overturned a 2013 opinion written by the late Justice Antonin Scalia. Writing for a 7-2 majority, he said Arizona and other states must "accept and use" the federal registration form created by the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. It requires voters to sign a sworn statement confirming their citizenship but does not require that they show a birth certificate or passport.

Arizona says it has about 41,000 voters who registered using this federal form.

In response to the ruling, Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes said that "Arizona's law requiring documentary proof of citizenship for voter registration is reinstated. Counties will reject new state forms missing documented proof of citizenship. Voters may still register using the National Mail Voter Registration Form, which requires an attestation of citizenship under penalty of perjury."

Justices Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor, Amy Coney Barrett and Ketanji Brown Jackson said Thursday that they would would have denied the RNC appeal entirely.

Speaking for a coalition of 24 Republican-led states, West Virginia Atty. Gen. Patrick Morrisey called the decision a "great victory for the rule of law and the integrity of our elections. This is a commonsense law. You should not be allowed to vote if youre not a United States citizen, and having proof of your citizenship is vital in making sure we conduct free, safe and lawful elections.

Danielle Lang, voting rights lawyer with the Campaign Legal Center, said it was disappointing the court agreed to change the rules on the eve of the election. "If the court is going to weigh in on eleventh-hour election law challenges, it needs to enforce the principle against last-minute changes evenhandedly. This decision fails to do that.

The justices usually frown on lawsuits or appeals that seek to change voting rules in the weeks before an election.

In this instance, Arizona's Republican leaders were seeking to enforce a new law that would forbid voting by Arizonans who do not show a birth certificate or passport when they register.

A federal judge in Phoenix had blocked the 2022 law from taking effect because it clashed with the federal "motor voter" law.

Following that ruling, Arizona adopted a two-track system of voter registrations. Residents who registered to vote in state and local elections were required to show proof of their citizenship.

Those who registered through the federal form signed a sworn statement that they were U.S. citizens. These "federal only voters" were allowed to cast ballots only for members of Congress and the president.

The state later agreed in a 2018 consent decree to give full registration to new voters whose residence and citizenship could be confirmed through its motor vehicles department database.

But two years ago, the Republican-controlled Legislature passed a new law to prohibit registered voters who did not provide proof of their citizenship from casting ballots in a presidential election.

The Justice Department and voting rights advocates sued to challenge the law. Last year, U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton held a 10-day trial in Phoenix, and she blocked enforcement of the new proof-of-citizenship requirement.

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, by a 2-1 vote, refused to lift her order.

The RNC, the Arizona Senate and the speaker of the state assembly filed an emergency appeal with the Supreme Court on Aug. 8. They argued that the Arizona Legislature has the final authority to decide who can vote in the state's elections.

But the Arizona attorney general and secretary of state, both Democrats, urged the court to turn down the appeal.

Fontes, the secretary of state, told the court a ruling upsetting the current registration rules would "create chaos and confusion." He said newly registered voters who used the federal form would be disenfranchised, along with "the 42,301 federal-only registrants" who will not be able to vote in the presidential election.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
BELMAR, N.J. (PIX11)  A surfer was put into a chokehold and forced to the ground after not being able to show police his beach badge in New Jersey, according to a video posted to Facebook.

The incident happened in Belmar on Tuesday, police said.

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The individual, 28-year-old Liam Mahoney of Junction City, California, has been charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, both disorderly persons offenses, as well as obstruction of justice, a petty disorderly persons offense, Belmar Chief of Police Tina M. Scott said in a statement Wednesday. He was also issued a borough ordinance for Beach Badge Required.

In the video on Facebook, a woman asks why Mahoney is being arrested, saying he has his badge and holding it in the air. An officer then puts Mahoney in a chokehold position while another officer holds his hands behind his back, the video shows. The officers wrestle the surfer to the ground as multiple onlookers scream at the police to let him go, the video shows.

The Belmar Beautiful Sea Beach website notes that badges are required to enter the beach seven days a week. The website notes that violators will be issued a summons and escorted from the beach. The website does not say whether you must always wear the badge while on the beach.

An investigation into the circumstances of the arrest will take place, according to the Belmar chief of police.

Matthew Euzarraga is a multimedia journalist from El Paso, Texas. He has covered local news and LGBTQIA topics in the New York City Metro area since 2021. He joined the PIX11 Digital team in 2023. You can see more of his work here.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11.
Suspect found dead after he allegedly killed a woman in Crawford County, deputies say

A suspect died by suicide Wednesday, weeks after a woman he allegedly murdered was found dead, according to the Crawford County Sheriffs Office.

Timothy Lamar Crow, 52, was found dead in Rockdale County after the US Marshals Service ended up in a standoff with Crow, on Wednesday, deputies said in a media release.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation had secured warrants for Crow on charges of felony murder, malice murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, aggravated assault, and possession of a firearm or knife during commission of or attempt to commit certain crimes.

Callie Brooke Goolsby was found dead on Smith Chapel Road in Crawford County on Aug. 8, deputies said.

The GBI and Crawford County Sheriffs Office were still investigating the case Thursday.

The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is a hotline for individuals in crisis or for those who want to help someone else. Call 988 to speak with a trained listener or visit 988lifeline.org for crisis chat services or more information.
ALTON, Ill.  One suspect and a K-9 police dog were killed, while one police officer was hurt following an apparent shootout Thursday morning in Alton, according to Illinois State Police.

The incident under investigation unfolded around 6 a.m. Thursday near the 700 block of East 6th Street.

Lawsuit aims to block sports betting on Missouri ballot

Odin

ISP says, based on preliminary reports, officers from the Alton Police Department engaged in gunfire with a suspect. The suspect was hurt and taken to a hospital with injuries, where he was later pronounced deceased.

Investigators say one officer and one K-9, both from the Alton Police Department, were shot amid gunfire. The officer is being treated for undisclosed injuries at a nearby hospital. The K-9 was rushed to a local veterinary hospital, but later died from its injuries.

The dog has been identified as Odin, who was just shy of being two years old. He graduated from the academy in May.

Illinois State Police says it will investigate the use of force in this incident, then turn over the investigation to the Madison County States Attorneys Office.

Over 30 law enforcement vehicles from different agencies formed a procession Thursday afternoon for Odin as he was transported to Gents Funeral Home.

The loss of Odin is not just a loss of a service animal, but of a loyal companion and a trusted team member, Alton Mayor David Goins said.

Illinois Sen. Erica Harriss was in attendance of the procession, soon releasing a statement that read, in-part:

It was a humbling honor to pay my respects to fallen K9 Officer Odin and our brave officers this afternoon. This solemn occasion is a powerful reminder to remember and pray for our local first responders. My thoughts are with Officer Averbeck, his family, the Alton Police Department, and our entire law enforcement community during this difficult time.

Letters and flowers were left in Odins honor at the Alton Police Department, and flags are flying at half mast.

Officer Averback is safely at home and thankful for everyones support as he is devastated over the loss of his K-9.

Photo courtesy: FOX 2/Dave Sharp

Photo courtesy: FOX 2/Dave Sharp

Photo courtesy: FOX 2/Dave Sharp

Photo courtesy: FOX 2/Dave Sharp

Photo courtesy: FOX 2/Dave Sharp

Photo courtesy: FOX 2/Dave Sharp

Photo courtesy: FOX 2/Dave Sharp

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2.
Fatima Latifova

An August 22 meeting was held with the Press Group of the Central Election Commission (CEC) in connection with the early parliamentary elections scheduled for September 1, 2024, Azernews reports.

The meeting, which included representatives of the international observation mission, was attended by CEC members and media representatives who are part of the Press Group.

The meeting began with a discussion on the functions, powers, and responsibilities of the Press Group, emphasizing that the Group oversees compliance with the rules for election campaigning in the media. The Press Group, which consists mainly of experts in journalism, operates under the Election Code and the relevant regulations adopted by the CEC. In its activities, the Press Group ensures adherence to the norms and requirements set by legislation, takes measures to ensure compliance with the rules and methods of pre-election campaigning in the media, and, if necessary, submits its recommendations to the CEC for discussion.

The meeting also addressed the role and responsibilities of the media in elections, noting that media representatives participate freely in elections and play a significant role in informing the public about the progress of the processes. It was emphasized that legislation provides media representatives with broad rights as well as duties and responsibilities, both during the elections and in the pre-election campaigning phase and on the voting day. Therefore, strict and precise adherence to the requirements of the Election Code and relevant legislation during the pre-election campaign is crucial.

The meeting also discussed preparations for the parliamentary elections, informing that large-scale projects aimed at informing voters and educating election participants with different statuses are being implemented by the CEC. Attention was drawn to the fact that, to ensure that the pre-election campaign, a significant phase of the elections, meets civil and modern standards, all campaigning entities have been provided with extensive opportunities and equal conditions. The campaign, which started on August 9, continues successfully with high activity from the candidates. According to the requirements of the Election Code, candidates registered for the parliamentary elections, their authorized representatives and proxies, as well as registered political parties, their authorized representatives and proxies, have the right to conduct pre-election campaigning.

The Press Group of the CEC reiterated the importance of strict adherence to legislative requirements during pre-election campaigning and reminded that non-compliance with these requirements could result in legal liability. They expressed confidence that media representatives would fulfill their responsibilities appropriately.

The Press Group also mentioned that, if necessary or upon relevant requests, they will hold further meetings related to the pre-election campaign.

After extensive discussions on various issues related to pre-election campaigning and clarifying participants' questions, the meeting concluded.
SHIJIAZHUANG, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Hao Hongjun, a former senior municipal political advisor in Dalian, northeast China's Liaoning Province, stood trial at a court in the northern city of Handan on Thursday on the charge of accepting bribes.

Hao, former chairman of the Dalian Municipal Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, was accused of leveraging his various positions in Liaoning as well as the privileges associated with his status, to seek benefits for others in the purchase of bank stocks, project contracting, job promotions and other areas, from 2006 to 2023.

In return, he accepted money and gifts worth a total of more than 74.98 million yuan (about 10.53 million U.S. dollars), according to the indictment. Prosecutors have recommended that Hao be held criminally responsible for the crime of accepting bribes.

During the trial, Hao pleaded guilty and expressed remorse. His sentence will be announced at a later date. 
One suspect was killed in a shootout with Alton police officers early Thursday and an officer and a police dog were injured by gunfire, Illinois State Police said.

The suspect was taken to a hospital and pronounced deceased there, according to a news release from Illinois State Police, which is handling the investigation as requested by the Alton Police Department.

The injured officer was taken to a hospital but the officers medical condition was not released.

The police dog was taken to a veterinary hospital with critical injuries, according to a news release from Illinois State Police.

The names of the victims have not been released.

Alton police officers engaged in gunfire with a suspect in the 700 block of East Sixth Street, according to the news release.

The news release doesnt describe what happened prior to the shootout.

Alton requested assistance from state police at about 6:05 a.m.

Illinois State Police will investigate the use of force portion of this incident and turn over its findings to the Madison County States Attorneys Office, according to the news release.
Suspect in two 1989 Framingham rapes made case for bail in LA. What California judge heard

FRAMINGHAM - A man wanted for allegedly raping two women in 1989 in Framingham appeared in a Los Angeles court on Tuesday for the first time since his Aug. 8 arrest.

Stephen Paul Gale, 71, was arraigned on charges connected to a 1996 check forgery charges in Los Angeles. A Van Nuys West Superior Court judge ordered Gale held on $2 million bail.

Gale was brought into court in a gurney, according to ABC7 in LA. His lawyer told the judge that Gale recently had heart surgery and was unwell. He had been scheduled to appear in court last Friday and then Monday, but the arraignments were postponed due to health reasons. The lawyer asked for Gale to be released without bail.

Boston Police sketch, a 1995 photo taken from the California Department of Motor Vehicles and an FBI age progression of Stephen Paul Gale, 71, who was identified through DNA as allegedly having committed two rapes at a Route 9 clothing store in 1989.

Gale was wanted for the 1989 rape of two women at the now-closed Hit-or-Miss clothing store on Route 9 in Framingham. Authorities say he raped two women at gunpoint after he went into the store posing as a customer.

Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan identified Gale publicly as a suspect in May after she said he was identified through DNA testing.

Gale, who ABC 7 said was living on a yacht, was arrested after a more than an hour-long car chase in LA on Aug. 8.

More: Framingham rape suspect isn't medically cleared to appear in Los Angeles court

He is charged with four counts of aggravated rape; two counts of kidnapping; and one count of armed robbery.

It is unknown when Gale will be brought back to Massachusetts to be arraigned in Middlesex Superior Court. A rendition hearing has not been scheduled and he has the right to fight rendition and oppose being brought back to Massachusetts.

Norman Miller can be reached at 508-626-3823 or nmiller@wickedlocal.com. For up-to-date public safety news, follow Norman Miller on X @Norman_MillerMW or on Facebook at facebook.com/NormanMillerCrime.

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Suspect in 1989 Framingham rapes made case for bail in Los Angeles CA
Suspects arrested after leading officers on pursuit through San Fernando Valley

Two suspects were arrested after leading officers on a chase through the San Fernando Valley Wednesday night.

Inside the vehicle were four suspects with at least one person who was possibly armed and dangerous, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

During the chase, the vehicle stopped in an alleyway near Leigh Avenue and Van Nuys Boulevard in Van Nuys where three suspects jumped out of the car.

The male driver continued speeding away after the passengers left as police units followed closely behind.

Shortly after, the suspect pulled over in a parking lot outside an apartment complex and surrendered to officers.

Three suspects jumped out of the car in a Van Nuys alleyway during a pursuit on August 21, 2024. (KTLA)

Four suspects were inside the vehicle leading Los Angeles police officers on a pursuit through the San Fernando Valley on August 21, 2024. (KTLA)

Four suspects were inside the vehicle leading Los Angeles police officers on a pursuit through the San Fernando Valley on August 21, 2024. (KTLA)

The male driver pulled over at an apartment complex parking lot and surrendered to police on August 21, 2024. (KTLA)

The male driver pulled over at an apartment complex parking lot and surrendered to police on August 21, 2024. (KTLA)

A suspect passenger was located and arrested a few streets away from the suspect driver. (KTLA)

Four suspects were inside the vehicle leading Los Angeles police officers on a pursuit through the San Fernando Valley on August 21, 2024. (KTLA)

The male driver was taken into custody and officers located at least one other passenger nearby. Two additional passengers remain at large as officers search the area.

Footage of the pursuit can be seen in the video player above.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA.
Suspects steal over $1.5K in ATM robberies in Manhattan: NYPD

Suspects steal over $1.5K in ATM robberies in Manhattan: NYPD

MIDTOWN SOUTH, Manhattan (PIX11)  Police are searching for two suspects in connection to a theft in Manhattan on July 27.

The suspects stole approximately $1,516, according to the NYPD.

More Local News

Police say two individuals approached the 22-year-old victim at around 8 p.m. in front of 1293 Broadway and offered to sell him candy.

The victim allegedly didnt have the money so the suspects forced him to go to Capital One Bank and Chase Bank and withdraw money, police said.

No injuries were reported to the police.

FedEx employee injured in Bronx shooting while on the job, police say

The NYPD released surveillance photos of the two suspects.

Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, downloading the NYPD Crime Stoppers mobile app, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).

Ben Mitchell is a digital content producer from Vermont who has covered both local and international news since 2021. He joined PIX11 in 2024. See more of his work here.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11.
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO)  Its Thursday, August 22. Take a look at our top stories in news and weather with KELOLAND On The GO First@4.

A teenage boy has died from a gunshot that police are calling accidental, but not self-inflicted.

SFPD: Teenage boy dead from gunshot early Tuesday

The Minnehaha Sheriffs Office is asking for the publics help in finding a man accused of rape of a minor.

Man wanted, accused of sexual misconduct with minor

We are learning more about what brought the SWAT team to a central Sioux Falls neighborhood Wednesday afternoon.

Swat team dispatched to central Sioux Falls Wednesday

South Central and southeastern South Dakota will have to be monitored in case we do get a thunderstorm to develop.

Hot And Humid Weekend Coming

A 64-year-old man died in a two-vehicle crash Wednesday morning near Pukwana.

Deadly crash near Pukwana

One man was killed in a motorcycle crash west of Oral, South Dakota.

Oral man dies in motorcycle crash

The 59-year-old Ohio man killed in a motorcycle crash Monday afternoon near Presho has been identified.

Lyman County motorcycle crash victim identified

Download the KELOLAND News app to find the latest headlines while on the go.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KELOLAND.com.
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO)  We are learning more about what brought the SWAT team to a central Sioux Falls neighborhood Wednesday afternoon.

Our KELOLAND News crew was able to capture video of the scene at 22nd Street and Spring Avenue.

Sioux Falls Police say it was part of a drug investigation and there was a warrant.

SFPD: Teenage boy dead from gunshot early Tuesday

Authorities say there are certain pieces of information that go into activating the SWAT Team.

Theres a few different reasons the SWAT Team is called, but usually there is some information that there may be a weapon or a possibility of a weapon could be involved. So, really its an abundance of caution, said Communications Officer Sam Clemens.

Clemens says the SWAT Team was on the scene for around an hour.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KELOLAND.com.
This story was updated to include a statement provided by Regions Bank.

SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS)Regions Tower, one of Shreveports most recognized downtown buildings, has been put on notice by SWEPCO.

Workers and tenants found signs on the doors entering the building saying Electric Power Disconnection Notice.

The electric power to 301 and 333 Texas Street, Shreveport, La. 71101, is scheduled to be disconnected on Monday, August 26th, or after for an undetermined duration. Questions regarding this notice or time frame for power restoration to this facility should be discussed with your property management company.

How the City of Shreveport is taking on foreign, out-of-state property owners who neglect responsibilities

SWEPCO said in a statement that the building owner, the Hertz Group, is aware and has been working with SWEPCO to reach a solution.

Janie Landry with the Shreveport DDA said, Those tenants deserve to have the best service possible and they dont deserve to have their businesses interrupted because they are paying their rent on time, so its up to the owner of the property to pay his to SWEPCO and anybody else on time.

The DDA says buildings 301 and 333, Texas, have occupancy rates of 80% or more and should generate sufficient cash flow to cover the electricity. Our request for a statement was given no comment, and an escort led our news crew out of the building.

We did catch up with some employees who told us they were shocked but believed the issue would be resolved before the power cut deadline.

A representative from Regions Bank contacted KTAL News to provide the following statement regarding the issues at the building that shares the banks name.

It is important to note that while our name is on the tower, Regions Bank does not actually own the facility. In other words, we are not the ones responsible for paying the buildings power bill or other building expenses. As one of many tenants in the tower, we are actively monitoring the situation and remain hopeful for a solution from the buildings owners. In the meantime, it is business as usual for Regions as we continue serving our Northwest Louisiana clients. Statement from Regions Bank

Additionally, Regions said the towers issues had not affected daily banking customers as there is no branch at that location. All Shreveport banking operations are as usual at local branches.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 KTALnews.com.
SWOSU students frustrated, forced to walk up flights of stairs at their dorm

WEATHERFORD, Okla. (KFOR)  Students living in Mann Hall at Southwestern Oklahoma State University say enough is enough after dealing with constant elevator issues at their dorm.

Madison Munden, a freshman living on the seventh floor, says its been a frustrating experience.

Its so frustrating, especially after walking around all day, says Munden.

OKLAHOMA POLITICS: OSDE tells districts it miscalculated Title I funding allocations

Photo of broken dorm elevator at SWOSU

Another student, who asked to remain anonymous, says the the conditions were horrible on her move-in day.

Housing staff is aware of the problem.

Were trying to get it fixed as soon as possible, says Boone Clemmons, the Vice President of Marketing at SWOSU. Its been worked on in May and June where we were sourcing parts and unfortunately because of the elevators age, we were unable to get the parts in a timely manner to be able to fix it.

Samuel Coleman is another student with complaints, living on the fifth floor.

Its very frustrating not having the elevator fixed because the stairwells are also not very air conditioned, says Coleman.

A News 4 employee also went to school at SWOSU a couple years ago and had problems with the same elevator.

Clemmons wants parents and students to know that the students are their biggest concern.

Were hoping that its fixed by mid-semester, says Clemmons.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Syringes on the streets: Is intravenous drug use making a comeback in Portland?

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  Portland Police Bureau officers are noticing a recent resurgence in the number of syringes scattered along Portlands city streets, according to officials.

Theres really no way to know with certainty why there are more needles out there right now, but its certainly something our members at Central Precinct have noticed, PPB spokesperson Mike Benner told KOIN 6. Im told that, in all likelihood, those needles are being used for meth and fentanyl.

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Syringes were once a more common sight on city sidewalks as heroin rose in popularity between 2010 and 2017, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention overdose data shows. Local government bodies in Oregon around the U.S. scrambled to address citizen complaints as used syringes littered city streets. However, heroin use subsided when the synthetic opioid fentanyl exploded onto the drug scene in 2015.

U.S. overdose deaths by drug or drug category from 1999 to 2022. (CDC)

National overdose deaths from heroin between 1999 and 2022. (CDC)

Fentanyl is commonly ingested in pill form or with blotter paper, used as a powder, or taken through an eye dropper or nasal spray, the National Institute on Drug Abuse states. However, according to accounts from Portland drug users, people are switching to injecting the drug, Multnomah County Health Department Communications Coordinator Sarah Dean told KOIN.

MAX stop shooter still at large since July incident

The County has received anecdotal information from clients at our harm reduction clinic that they may be switching to injecting fentanyl due to the lower potency of fentanyl powder, Dean said. However, we havent seen a marked increase yet in our data reflecting an increase in demand for syringes.

If true, the Multnomah County Health Department said that it has serious concerns about people switching to intravenous fentanyl use.

File photo: A bag full of used needles were collected by residents in North Portlands University Park, January 30, 2020. (KOIN)

We are particularly concerned with an increase in overdose risk and the risk of bloodborne infections like HIV and Hepatitis C, skin infections and abscesses, and heart infections when someone switches to injecting fentanyl compared to smoking fentanyl, Dean said. Fentanyl more rapidly crosses the blood-brain barrier when injected compared to smoking, which can lead to a stronger effect and a higher overdose risk.

Synthetic opioids like fentanyl are overwhelmingly the largest cause of overdose deaths in the U.S. More than 73,800 people died overdosing on synthetic opioids in 2022, primarily fentanyl, according to the CDC. In comparison, 5,871 people died of heroin overdose in the same period.

House 4002, a law passed in Oregon that rolls back aspects of the voter-passed Measure 110 in 2020. The new law re-introduces criminal penalties for possessing small amounts of hard drugs.

Multnomah County is working to open its first deflection center in October as drug possession is set to be recriminalized in Oregon on Sept. 1, per the passage of House Bill 4002. The center, located in Portlands Buckman neighborhood, will give arrested drug offenders the choice of seeking addiction treatment or going to jail.

The drug-user, drop-off center was supposed to open on Sept. 1, but the opening was delayed until mid-to-late October amid ongoing concerns about how the facility will operate.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
VILNIUS, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Lithuania has opened its first counter-mobility equipment park near Vilnius, and begun filling it with engineered obstacles, the Ministry of National Defense of Lithuania said on Thursday.

Elements of roadblocks, a reserve barrier, and other park components were presented during an event on Thursday at a training area in Pabrade.

Defense Minister Laurynas Kasciunas emphasized the effectiveness of counter-mobility measures, which he said will help increase the country's deterrent and defensive potential.

In late July, the Lithuanian government gave the go-ahead to implement certain counter-mobility measures, including setting up equipment parks, roadblocks, and tree alleys along road sections.

A total of 27 counter-mobility parks are to be set up in Lithuania, and filled with engineered obstacles. 
By Yimou Lee and Ben Blanchard

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan's defence spending will rise 7.7% next year, outpacing expected economic growth, the cabinet said on Thursday, as the island adds more fighter jets and missiles to strengthen deterrence against a rising threat from Beijing.

China, which views democratically-governed Taiwan as its own territory, has ramped up military and political pressure over the past five years to assert those claims, which Taipei strongly rejects.

Taiwan's cabinet said following a regular weekly meeting that 2025 defence spending would rise 7.7% year-on-year to T$647 billion ($20.25 billion), accounting for 2.45% of gross domestic product - up from 2.38% this year - and exceeding the government's expectation for economic growth of 3.26% for the year.

The spending includes a special budget worth T$90.4 billion to buy new fighter jets and ramp up missile production. That was part of the military's extra spending worth T$240 billion announced in 2021 over five years.

Hsieh Chi-hsien, head of the defence ministry's comptroller bureau, told reporters defence spending reaching 3% of GDP was a goal they were hoping to reach, and that at the moment Taiwan's defence spending is "growing steadily".

"We will not join in an arms race with other countries. We will increase (spending) steadily according to our needs," he said.

Future spending also depends on whether Taiwan could acquire "key and important" equipment, Hsieh added, without elaborating.

Taiwan's government has made military modernisation a key policy platform and has repeatedly pledged to spend more on its defences given the rising threat from China, including developing made-in-Taiwan submarines.

China's air force flies almost daily missions into the skies near Taiwan, and in May staged war games around the island shortly after President Lai Ching-te took office, a man Beijing brands a "separatist". Lai rejects China's sovereignty claims, saying only Taiwan's people can decide their future.

The budget will still need to be passed by parliament, where the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lost its majority in January elections.

Taiwan's main opposition party, the Kuomintang, has repeatedly expressed its support for firming up the island's defences, though it is currently involved in a stand off with the DPP about contested reforms to give parliament greater oversight powers the government says is unconstitutional.

China is also rapidly modernising its armed forces, with new aircraft carriers, stealth fighter jets and missiles.

China in March announced a 7.2% rise in defence spending for this year to 1.67 trillion yuan ($234.10 billion) outpacing the economic growth target of around 5% for 2024, though accounting for only some 1.3% of GDP according to analysts.

Successive U.S. administrations have pushed Taiwan to modernise its military and spend more. The United States is Taiwan's most important arms provider and international backer, despite the absence of diplomatic relations.

Speaking at a security forum in Taipei on Wednesday, Nikki Haley, a United Nations ambassador under the Trump administration, praised Taiwan's commitment to spending more on defence.

"Other free nations should learn from them, especially many U.S. allies," she said.

($1 = 31.9490 Taiwan dollars)

($1 = 7.1338 Chinese yuan renminbi)

(Reporting by Yimou Lee, Ben Blanchard and Jeanny Kao; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman, Michael Perry and Raju Gopalakrishnan)
(Bloomberg) -- Taiwans high court convicted eight people, including active-duty and retired military personnel, of collecting state secrets on behalf of China, the official Central News Agency reported, in one of the largest espionage cases in years.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The verdict on Thursday handed down sentences ranging from 1.5 to 13 years in prison. The ruling is eligible for appeal. One person who was previously indicted as part of the same investigation was found innocent, with another suspect still listed as wanted, the report said.

The Ministry of Justices Investigation Bureau said in a statement it determined the people were recruited by the Chinese Communist Party to collect secrets including military intelligence. Beijing also used virtual currency to make payments, it added.

Several of the defendants denied all or some of the accusations.

The case exposed what Taiwan describes as Beijings efforts to infiltrate the islands army. Prosecutors earlier accused some of the people on trial of building a spy ring for China and alleged others were paid to film a video saying they would surrender to Chinas military, as part of what was seen as Beijings psychological warfare.

Taiwan Indicted Military Personnel Suspected of Spying for China

The US  Taiwans biggest military backer  has long been worried about the self-ruled islands ability to keep tech and other secrets out of Beijings hands. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has vowed to bring it under control.

Taiwans Defense Ministry warned in 2022 that Chinas spying posed a serious threat. Months later, Taiwanese officials detained three active-duty personnel and a retired Air Force officer on suspicion of spying.

The Defense Ministry said in a statement on Thursday it will continue to conduct strict and confidential probes in the future to root out suspicious activity.

--With assistance from Cindy Wang.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
By Ben Blanchard

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan President Lai Ching-te will on Friday make his first visit since taking office in May to the sensitive Kinmen islands that sit next to the Chinese coast and have been the scene of stepped up tensions between Taipei and Beijing.

Taiwan has controlled Kinmen, and the Matsu islands further up the Chinese coast, since the defeated Republic of China government fled to Taipei in 1949 after losing a civil war with Mao Zedong's communists. No peace treaty or armistice has ever been signed.

The scene of on-off fighting during the height of the Cold War, China's coast guard has since February conducted regular patrols around Kinmen following the death of two Chinese people on a speedboat which Beijing blamed on Taipei.

Lai's office said on Thursday that he would travel to Kinmen on Friday for events marking the 66th anniversary of a key military clash with Chinese forces, better known internationally as the start of the second Taiwan Strait crisis.

"Located in the first island chain, Taiwan faces the immediate threat of China. But Taiwan will not be intimidated," Lai told a security forum in Taipei on Wednesday.

China views democratically-governed Taiwan as its own territory and has repeatedly denounced Lai as a "separatist". He rejects Beijing's sovereignty saying only Taiwan's people can decide their future, but has also offered talks with China.

Kinmen faces the Chinese cities of Xiamen and Quanzhou and at its closest is less than two kms (1.2 miles) away from Chinese-controlled territory.

The 1958 crisis was the last time Taiwanese forces battled China on a large scale.

In August of that year, Chinese forces began more than a month of bombardment of Kinmen, along with Matsu, including naval and air battles, seeking to force them into submission.

Taiwan fought back at the time with support from the United States, which sent military equipment like advanced Sidewinder anti-aircraft missiles, giving Taiwan a technological edge.

The crisis ended in a stalemate, and Taiwan observes Aug. 23 every year as the date it fended off the Chinese attack.

Late Wednesday, Taiwan's defence ministry held a concert in Taipei that celebrated the "glorious" anniversary, with songs about shooting down Chinese MiG fighter jets and bemoaning the "red catastrophe" of communism.

Formerly called Quemoy in English, Kinmen today is a popular tourist destination, though Taiwan maintains a significant military presence.

(Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Michael Perry)
Taking a selfie with your ballot is illegal in NC. A Raleigh woman is suing to change that.

North Carolinians right to a certain type of selfie is going to court.

Susan Hogarth, a Raleigh native and Libertarian candidate for state Senate, sued the State Board of Elections on Thursday over its enforcement of the states ban on ballot selfies.

North Carolina, along with several other states, bans taking photos of voted ballots. The reason behind this ban is that those photos could be used as proof in a vote-buying scheme, the State Board of Elections has explained in the past.

Asked about the lawsuit on Thursday, a spokesperson for the board said they generally do not comment on pending litigation.

In the March primary election, Hogarth posted a photo of herself and her voted Libertarian ballot, on which she selected Chase Oliver for president and Mike Ross for governor.

Laws against #ballotselfie are bullshit, her Tweet said.

Shortly after posting her photo, Hogarth received a letter from the State Board of Elections informing her that she had broken the law by sharing a photo of her ballot.

The NCSBE has a duty to investigate violations of election laws in North Carolina, it said. ... Photographing a voted ballot is prohibited by law and is punishable as a Class 1 Misdemeanor.

The letter asked Hogarth to delete the post.

Instead, she sued.

It would have been easier to just take the post down, Hogarth said in a press release. But in a free society, you should be able to show the world how you voted without fear of punishment. Privacy is good for those who want it, openness should be available to those who prefer it.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court with the help of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, alleges that the states ballot selfie ban violates the First Amendment.

Ballot selfie bans turn innocent Americans into criminals for nothing more than showing their excitement about how they voted, or even just showing that they voted, FIRE attorney Jeff Zeman said in a press release. Thats core political speech protected by the First Amendment.

Several states have similar bans on ballot selfies, including New York and Texas. Other states, however, like California and Alabama, have passed laws permitting voters to share photos of their ballots.

Hogarth is running in Senate District 13 against Democratic incumbent Lisa Grafstein and Republican challenger Scott Lassiter.

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Taliban fighters celebrate the third anniversary of the withdrawal of US-led troops from Afghanistan, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Siddiqullah Alizai)

ISLAMABAD (AP)  Afghanistans Taliban rulers have issued a ban on womens voices and bare faces in public under new laws approved by the supreme leader in efforts to combat vice and promote virtue.

The laws were issued Wednesday after they were approved by supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, a government spokesman said. The Taliban had set up a ministry for the propagation of virtue and the prevention of vice after seizing power in 2021.

The ministry published its vice and virtue laws on Wednesday that cover aspects of everyday life like public transportation, music, shaving and celebrations.

They are set out in a 114-page, 35-article document seen by The Associated Press and are the first formal declaration of vice and virtue laws in Afghanistan since the takeover.

Inshallah we assure you that this Islamic law will be of great help in the promotion of virtue and the elimination of vice, said ministry spokesman Maulvi Abdul Ghafar Farooq on Thursday.

The laws empower the ministry to be at the frontline of regulating personal conduct, administering punishments like warnings or arrest if enforcers allege that Afghans have broken the laws.

Article 13 relates to women. It says it is mandatory for a woman to veil her body at all times in public and that a face covering is essential to avoid temptation and tempting others. Clothing should not be thin, tight or short.

Women should veil themselves in front of all male strangers, including Muslims, and in front of all non-Muslims to avoid being corrupted. A womans voice is deemed intimate and so should not be heard singing, reciting, or reading aloud in public. It is forbidden for women to look at men they are not related to by blood or marriage and vice versa.

Article 17 bans the publication of images of living beings, threatening an already fragile Afghan media landscape.

Article 19 bans the playing of music, the transportation of solo female travelers, and the mixing of men and women who are not related to each other. The law also obliges passengers and drivers to perform prayers at designated times.

According to the ministry website, the promotion of virtue includes prayer, aligning the character and behavior of Muslims with Islamic law, encouraging women to wear hijab, and inviting people to comply with the five pillars of Islam. It also says the elimination of vice involves prohibiting people from doing things forbidden by Islamic law.

Last month, a U.N. report said the ministry was contributing to a climate of fear and intimidation among Afghans through edicts and the methods used to enforce them.

It said the ministrys role was expanding into other areas of public life, including media monitoring and eradicating drug addiction.

Given the multiple issues outlined in the report, the position expressed by the de facto authorities that this oversight will be increasing and expanding gives cause for significant concern for all Afghans, especially women and girls, said Fiona Frazer, the head of the human rights service at the U.N. mission in Afghanistan.

The Taliban rejected the U.N. report.

___

This story was first published on Aug. 22, 2024. It was updated on Aug. 23, 2024 to make clear that the Taliban vice and virtue laws say that women should veil themselves in front of all male strangers, including Muslims, and in front of all non-Muslims.
The Taliban says it wants people to visit Afghanistan. Heres what its like

Ben Herskowitz stood on a hill overlooking the ancient archaeological landscape of Bamiyan, nestled among the high mountains of the Hindu Kush. In the distance, he could see white snow-capped mountains, greenery and blossoming trees spread across Afghanistans Bamiyan Valley.

It was one of the most beautiful places Ive been to in my life, Herskowitz said. So many different diverse landscapes in one area. Ive never seen contrast like that in one place.

Herskowitz, a 22-year-old from Vermont in the United States, found himself thousands of miles from home in May, with Afghanistans spectacular landscapes nearly all to himself.

You go to Rome or Greece to see ruins and there are thousands of tourists blocking your way all around you, but here you can sit up in these beautiful places that have so much history from so many periods, and youre the only one there, Herskowitz explained.

The conflict-ravaged country, not known as a vacation hot spot, has seen an increase in tourism since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021 after the US withdrawal.

Visitors from around the world have been immersing themselves in Afghanistans scenic landscape and ancient history. Theyve been taking dips in the turquoise lakes of Band-e-Amir National Park, exploring Buddhist art and ruins in Bamiyan and shopping in the bustling bazaars of Kabul, all while experiencing the legendary hospitality of Afghans.

About 691 tourists visited Afghanistan in 2021, rising to 2,300 the following year and 7,000 in 2023, according to the Associated Press, citing Mohammad Saeed, head of the Tourism Directorate in Kabul. More than 10,179 have visited the country since August 2021, a spokesperson for Afghanistans Ministry of Tourism told CNN.

While those figures seem low, the steady increase points to a new buzz around tourism in Afghanistan even while the country struggles with a humanitarian crisis and poverty following decades of war. Many countries have not formally recognized the Taliban as the government of Afghanistan, and the United Nations calls Afghanistan under the Taliban the most repressive country in the world for womens rights.

Theres a flow of tourists coming into the country since the fall of the republic, says Khyber Khan, founder of Afghan tour company Unchartered Afghanistan. The country is known as a conflict zone, but we have so many things to offer  culture, people, landscape, Khan said. One now sees a lot of tourists especially in Kabul, you always see a group of tourists, Khan said.

Taliban officials say they are supporting tourism.

The growth of the tourism industry has a positive effect on the countrys economy, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Culture said. The country sees most tourists coming from the United States, the European Union, China, India, the United Arab Emirates and Iran, the spokesperson added.

A department has been created under the ministry to provide services to tourists and train students in the tourism industry and hotel management, the spokesperson said.

Bringing tourism money into a country largely isolated by international sanctions is seen by some as lending unwarranted legitimacy to the Talibans repressive regime at a time when it continues to deny many of its citizens basic human rights.

The UNs special rapporteur for human rights, Richard Bennett, said this week that he had been barred from Afghanistan, a move that sent a concerning signal about [the Talibans] engagement with the United Nations and the international community on human rights.

Hospitality there is so welcoming

Content creator Ben Herskowitz and friends enjoying a pedal boat excursion on a lake in Band-e-Amir national park. - Ben Herskowitz

Herskowitz, a part-time social media content creator and traveler, says he was intrigued to explore Afghanistan after hearing how beautiful and hospitable it is from other tourists who recently visited.

While many travelers have reported positive experiences, many Western governments warn against traveling to the country.

Afghanistan carries a Level 4: Do Not Travel advisory from the US State Department, which cites terrorism, risk of wrongful detention, civil unrest, kidnapping and crime as reasons for its rating. The United Kingdom also advises against all travel to Afghanistan.

In May 2024, three Spanish tourists were among four people killed when gunmen opened fire on a group of international tourists and Afghans in Bamiyan. It was not clear who was behind the attack.

Despite being aware of the travel advisories warnings, Herskowitz still opted to go to Afghanistan after learning from his community of fellow extreme travelers that its a relatively safe place for tourists.

I prefer to get my information from friends who have actually been to these places recently and give me an update on what its actually like to visit, Herskowitz told CNN. From my experience, I felt super safe the entire time.

With his best friend from Vermont and two other UK travelers and content creators, Herskowitz embarked on a private eight-day tour across the country with two local Afghan tour guides.

Bamiyan, a central Afghanistan city and region thats listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, was Herskowitzs favorite destination they visited.

Its an ancient city and has these amazing ruins that are really spectacular to see, Herskowitz said. He described staying in a hotel with views of the remains of monumental sixth-century Buddha statues. Two of the standing Buddha statues in this area were destroyed by the Taliban in 2001.

Herskowtiz also explored Band-e-Amirs series of six lakes by pedal boat amid picturesque red-hued cliffs and rocky natural dams. The park was just out of this world, Herskowitz said.

But experiencing Afghan hospitality is what really struck Herskowitz. The hospitality there is so welcoming, Herskowitz said.

Locals were so happy to see a tourist in their country. Youre a guest in their country and so they want to invite you for something to show their hospitality.

When shopping in Kabul, Herskowitz said shopkeepers constantly offered him and his friends tea, food and even safe lodging if they needed it.

Herskowitz also said he saw a good amount of other tourists during his time in Afghanistan. He said he came across three different 14-member tour groups from Italy, Greece and Indonesia.

Everyone is coming

The site of giant Buddha statues ruins in Bamiyan province is a draw for tourists despite their destruction by the Taliban in 2001. - Xinhua/Shutterstock

To accommodate the increase in tourists, tourism companies have popped up in Afghanistan.

The presence of tourists has increased because its not an active war zone anymore, Khan said. He started Unchartered Afghanistan in 2023.

Ehsan Barakzai, founder of Afghan tour company Destination Afghanistan, says the gate (to Afghanistan) has just opened, so everyone is coming.

Barakzai personally gave 130 people tours of Afghanistan in 2023, he said, adding that most of his customers come from China, Germany, Canada and the United States.

A lot of tourists came from watching YouTubers and people on social documenting their travel to Afghanistan, Barakzai explained.

Tourists can enter Afghanistan only after obtaining a tourist visa from one of Afghanistans consulates. A consulate will normally provide the visa if an individual has a letter of invitation from a tour company in Afghanistan. Afghanistan has consulates in the United Arab Emirates and Pakistan as well as embassies in Germany, Spain and the Netherlands, among other countries.

Additionally, tour companies must be registered and licensed to operate with the Ministry of Culture for better coordination, the ministry spokesperson said.

Bookings for Afghanistan in 2023 were at the highest ever level for tour company Untamed Borders, founder James Wilcox told CNN. Untamed Borders has been offering tours in Afghanistan since 2007, Wilcox said.

Since the Taliban took over, the security situation has changed. One of the biggest risks isnt there anymore  before the risk was the Taliban, Wilcox explained. A security risk for tourists traveling to Afghanistan before the Taliban takeover was the deadly fighting between the Taliban as an insurgency group against US forces and the previous US-backed government of Afghanistan.

That major  risk has diminished, he said, adding, there are a lot of historical things to see. Its culturally very rich.

Touring Afghanistan as a woman

Emma Witters has visited Afghanistan solo four times. - Emma Witters

Afghan women have seen their rights rolled back in areas such as education and employment since the Taliban returned to power in 2021.

But those restrictions dont usually apply to female tourists, Unchartered Afghanistan said. Tourists who are women will generally have the opportunity to explore Afghanistan as men do, the company says on its website.

Emma Witters, a 56-year-old tourist and YouTuber from the United Kingdom, has visited Afghanistan solo four times since the Taliban retook Afghanistan.

Witters felt safe as a female tourist security-wise and had a protective tour guide. But she did run into certain challenges, she said. Her attempt to travel from Kabul to the city of Kandahar on her first trip was unsuccessful when a bus driver refused to sell her a ticket because she was traveling as a solo female, she explained. Witters had to take a flight instead.

She first went to Afghanistan in August of 2022 on a nine-day private tour with a guide. She enjoyed trekking the country so much that she extended her stay.

She befriended Afghan women who showed her around. But Witters said it became difficult to travel to certain places with Afghan female friends when the Taliban banned women from entering some public places such as parks in 2022.

Overall, Witters said she had many memorable experiences, adding, the people in Afghanistan have been some of the kindest people I met ever. Her favorite area was Nuristan, a northeastern province bordering Pakistan thats known for the breathtaking natural beauty of its rivers, mountains and greenery.

Another memorable experience for Witters was when she drove a car through a Taliban checkpoint in the province of Ghazni on her second trip in October 2022. Taliban officials at the checkpoint stopped her and she thought they would prevent her from driving, but they didnt.  It was fine, she said.

The Taliban have banned women from taking long-distance road trips in Afghanistan on their own, requiring that a male relative accompany them for any distance beyond 45 miles.

Afghanistan is misunderstood

Afghan tour operator Khyber Khan says tourists are now a familiar site in Afghanistan. - Khyber Khan

Jacqueline Gonzalez, an American woman from Virginia, visited Afghanistan this past June on a 10-day private tour with Unchartered Afghanistan, she told CNN. She explored four cities: Kabul, Herat, Kandahar and Bamiyan.

The country had been on her bucket list and, after learning more about other tourists experiences on YouTube, the risk seemed like it was worth it, she said.

I had seen photos and videos, but experiencing it firsthand makes you wonder and realize how archaeologically grand and historic those sites are, Gonzalez said, adding that seeing the remains of Buddha statues in Bamiyan and Band-e-Amir park were highlights.

Her most memorable experiences, however, were meeting Afghans, she said.

The media hardly focuses on the generosity of Afghans and seeing firsthand the warmth and hospitable attitude of Afghans made me realize how much of the story of Afghanistan is missing from the media, she explained. Afghanistan is misunderstood.

Although the country struggles with basic infrastructure and cannot accommodate large-scale tourism, Gonzalez believes Afghanistan has the potential to grow its industry with time.

I hope to live long enough to see its infrastructure strengthen and for girls and women to have equal opportunity at life, Gonzalez said.

An experienced traveler, she said it wasnt her first time visiting a more conservative country.

But it was my first time in a post-war country where women are expected to take on more traditional feminine and limited roles in society, she said, adding it took some adjustment on her part.

She had minimal interaction with men besides her male tour guides and focused intently on her attire, manners and behavior, she said.

I found that because I was foreign, I was treated with respect and was given special privileges that I hope local women could one day soon have, she said.

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The Tallahassee-based company that supports Palm Beach County's Supervisor of Elections website and much of the rest of Florida's elections sites, accepted blame for a glitch that caused the delay of Tuesday's primary results posted online.

In a statement released Wednesday afternoon, VR Systems said the glitches affected every client's website that they host, and they "take full responsibility." It is not yet known how many Florida counties were affected and what time all the issues were resolved. VR Systems serves the results web pages for 64 out of 67 Florida county elections sites.

While most sites' results were back up and running fairly soon after polls closed at 7 p.m., Palm Beach and Lake counties were the last to see results posted. Palm Beach County was forced to direct people to an alternate web page that displayed results in pdf formats. Results on the Palm Beach County's Supervisor of Elections website was restored around 10:15 p.m., according to the office.

In a press briefing Tuesday evening, Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd made clear there were no problems with the data or vote tallies being transmitted to the Department of State. He said it was a county-level issue, and there was "no evidence at this juncture" that the technical difficulties were because of a cyber attack.

Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday said he was "not familiar" and "wasn't necessarily aware" of the website issues that happened and directed questions to Byrd.

"I know Cord will press the issue because one of the things that Florida stands apart from the rest of this country is you actually have the results by like 9 o'clock on election night," DeSantis said. "That's good, that's confidence-inspiring. There's no time for tomfoolery."

A voter drops off their ballot Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections offices at on August 20, 2024 in West Palm Beach, Florida.

He said the state would make sure the system was working for the general election in November.

Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Wendy Sartory Link said she would talk with her offices information technology staff to determine what the next step is in the countys relationship with VR Systems. I dont want anything like this to happen again, ever, especially not a during a general election," she said.

VR Systems said they suffered "extraordinary stress."

"We believe the logging that was enabled as a security measure was at the root of the issues that our customers experienced," VR Systems said on Tuesday evening.

Logging means the automatic recording of everything that happens on a website, such as who's using it and how, including which pages are viewed and what information is downloaded.

Election supervisor websites crashed in multiple Florida counties on Tuesday, due to what VR Systems called "extraordinary stress on the system."

"Late in the day, (the logging) began to grow exponentially due to the increase in traffic to the websites," the company added.

Even before the first polls closed at 7 p.m., many Floridians were forced to bypass their county election supervisors' websites on Tuesday night and find results elsewhere.

VR Systems said the glitches weren't a sign of malicious activity like hacking and said the websites had been fully restored: "We have begun working with external technical experts to assist us with further analyzing and optimizing our system to ensure this doesnt happen again."

In 2016, VR Systems was also the victim of cyberattack attempts by Russia to influence the U.S. presidential election, according to published reports and local election officials.

Hackers with the Russian military sent phishing emails posing as VR Systems employees to local government organizations, according to leaked National Security Agency documents. Phishing refers to hackers luring people into opening harmless looking email attachments that contain malicious programs.

As previously reported in June of 2017, information taken in the attack  perhaps including email contacts of VR Systems clients  was likely used to launch a subsequent hacking operation in the fall. Russian hackers reportedly sent a malicious email from an account called vr.elections@gmail.com to up to 122 local government offices.

At the time, Mindy Perkins, CEO of VR Systems, said in a statement there was no sign the intended victims were compromised.

Ana Goni-Lessan, state watchdog reporter for the USA TODAY Network  Florida, can be reached at agonilessan@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: VR Systems Florida: 'Full responsibility' for elections sites crash
Tarpon Springs Mayor Costa Vatikiotis said he will resign at the close of business Thursday, seven months before the end of a three-year term where he has increasingly lost the allegiance of his fellow city commissioners.

He announced his intentions in a letter to commissioners Wednesday, writing that the decision had been building for some time with constant infighting among his colleagues. But he said a commission meeting Tuesday made him realize it was pointless for me to continue.

The agenda included an item to address what the mayor called a residents relentless cyber-bullying of him, but commissioners voted to table the matter before having any discussion on it. The resident regularly critiqued the mayor on social media and recently insinuated in text messages that Vatikiotis pressured a witness to lie during a deposition in a lawsuit against the city  a claim Vatikiotis denied to commissioners after a closed meeting earlier month.

By not discussing the allegation publicly, Vatikiotis wrote that the commission condones the activity.

Also, for the shallow minded who have a propensity toward name calling, there is a difference between quitting and moving on, Vatikiotis wrote. Quitting is giving up because things are difficult, and a person does not want the effort. A person moving on with his life is being honest with himself and knows when enough is enough. I am moving on.

City spokesperson Karen Lemmons said city attorneys are determining the next steps for filling the mayors seat. The city charter states the commission must appoint a person to a vacancy within 60 days to serve until the next regular election.

In early 2023, the commission was largely in step, made up of four commissioners Vatikiotis had encouraged to run for office or endorsed. In Tarpon Springs city manager form of government, the mayor is one of five votes but leads meetings and sets the tone of discussions.

That unity gradually dissolved. The city government has been consumed by contentious meetings where Vatikiotis has been criticized for not gaveling commissioners who were trading insults; turmoil around an approved apartment project that has been delayed by Vatikiotis pushback; a lawsuit by the former city attorney; and a judges ruling that the city violated Floridas public records law during that litigation.

One of Vatikiotis allies, Commissioner Craig Lunt, resigned in December, citing new financial disclosure requirements. Commissioners John Koulianos and Panagiotis Koulias increasingly failed to be rubber stamps for the mayor. Last year they both accused Vatikiotis of steering a city manager search to his preferred candidate. They pushed instead to keep City Manager Mark LeCouris in office longer, derailing one of Vatikiotis priorities of replacing the administrator.

Im not a pawn on a chessboard, Koulianos said at the time.

Only Commissioner Mike Eisner remains a clear ally of Vatikiotis, and he regularly spars with Koulias at meetings.

City Commissioner Frank DiDonato was appointed in February to fill Lunts vacant seat, and on Tuesday, he defeated a Vatikiotis ally in a special election to complete the remaining 19 months of the term.

At the commission meeting that night, Koulias announced he was dropping his bid for mayor in Marchs election to run for a commission seat instead. It left Koulianos as the only candidate who has announced intentions to run for mayor. During his closing comments at Tuesdays meeting, Koulianos alluded to the upcoming election as an opportunity for less chaos.

We have a chance for what I call the coalition of the reasonable, because we have lost the reasonable, Koulianos said. We lost it for a couple years here. It just got out of hand.

Vatikiotis referenced these shifting political winds in his resignation letter the next day, noting it also appears the city already has a new mayor. I wish the new commission well.

Please do not contact me, Vatikiotis wrote to the commissioners. I promise I will not be contacting you.

Vatikiotis served as a city engineer and city manager in the 1990s before being elected to the commission in 2020. But the Anclote Harbor project, a 404-unit apartment complex on the Anclote River, would become a defining issue of Vatikiotis time in office.

He was the lone no vote when a former commission approved it in November 2021. He left his seat a year early to run for mayor in March 2022, when Eisner, Koulias and Lunt were elected after opposing the project as residents.

The new majority put a stay on issuing permits until a resident groups failed lawsuit against the city and developer played out. They hired a special counsel to investigate interactions between the developer, city staff and the attorneys. The $160,000 probe found no wrongdoing but had significant fallout.

Former City Attorney Tom Trask resigned in late 2022 amid what he called baseless public attacks from commissioners and residents.

He sued the city to obtain commissioners correspondence about his tenure. Last month a judge ruled the city violated Floridas public records law by withholding the documents, including exchanges from Vatikiotis and Eisner.

In his resignation letter, Vatikiotis defended his push for the probe to investigate the Anclote Harbor project as a needed expense to (end) suspicion and controversy.

Vatikiotis said he was proud of his achievements as mayor, including completing sustainability, comprehensive and strategic plans and hiring a new city manager for the first time in 16 years. Charles Rudd is set to start Oct. 1.

During his comments at Tuesdays meeting, Koulianos also alluded to an opportunity to change before the arrival of Rudd, the current city manager of Crescent City, whom the commission voted unanimously to hire last month.

I think we have a chance to turn the page and get more civility up here, Koulianos said. Were getting a new city manager. Are we going to bring him into this mosh pit? Come on.
MOSCOW, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Moscow is closely monitoring Tokyo's naval presence near Russia's borders and is concerned over a potential shift in Japan's non-nuclear policy, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday.

Japan's plans to erode its non-nuclear status by joining U.S. nuclear missions, holding multilateral exercises with the involvement of strategic aircraft for nuclear missions, and considering the deployment of U.S. medium-range missiles on its territory are particularly concerning, Zakharova said during a weekly briefing.

She said that Moscow was closely monitoring Tokyo's increased naval activities near Russia's borders in the Fast East with the involvement of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) members from outside the region.

Japan's policy ultimately poses concrete risks to regional stability and security, she added. 
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  Tarpon Springs Mayor Costa Vatikiotis announced he will step down from his position on Thursday.

In a resignation letter addressed to the Board of Commissioners, Vatikiotis cited constant infighting among commissioners and developments during Tuesdays commission meeting that appeared to be the last straw.

This decision was not spontaneous, the mayor wrote in the letter. Tuesday nights meeting simply made it easier.

The meeting included an agenda item to discuss what Vatikiotis described in his letter as relentless cyber-bullying from a resident. He accused commissioners of turning a blind eye by not addressing his claims, saying the board condones the activity.

Please do not contact me, Vatikiotis wrote. I promise I will not be contacting you.

The Tarpon Springs City Charter says commissioners must appoint someone to fill the vacancy within 60 days. That individual will serve as mayor until the next regular election, which is in March 2025.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA.
Taylor Swift made her first remarks on the cancelation of her Eras Tour shows in Vienna on Wednesday evening.

The shows, which were originally scheduled for Aug. 8-10, were canceled due to a threat of a terror attack. Two people have been arrested in connection to the threat.

>> Were just really sad: Local woman flew to Austria for now-canceled Taylor Swift concert

Swift made a post to Instagram once the European leg of her tour officially ended after multiple shows in London. She mentioned the Vienna cancelations in her post.

Swift said the cancelations were devastating and the threat filled her with a new sense of fear and a tremendous amount of guilt.

Ultimately, the star said shes grateful she and her fans were grieving concerts and not lives.

>> Organizers cancel Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna over fears of an attack

The portion of her post regarding Vienna said:

Having our Vienna shows canceled was devastating. The reason for the cancelations filled me with a new sense of fear, and a tremendous amount of guilt because so many people had planned on coming to those shows. But I was also so grateful to the authorities because thanks to them, we were grieving concerts and not lives. I was heartened by the love and unity I saw in the fans who banded together. I decided that all of my energy had to go toward helping to protect the nearly half a million people I had coming to see the shows in London. My team and I worked hand in hand with stadium staff and British authorities every day in pursuit of that goal, and I want to thank them for everything they did for us. Let me be very clear: I am not going to speak about something publicly if I think doing so might provoke those who would want to harm the fans who come to my shows. In cases like this one, silence is actually showing restraint, and waiting to express yourself at a time when its right to. My priority was finishing our European tour safely, and it is with great relief that I can say we did that.

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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WIAT)  A proposed program would give Birmingham-area students a chance to learn about outer space while traveling to different states.

The Catalyze Birmingham Challenge grant provides educators funding for innovative and educational opportunities that pave the way toward their students future careers.

Local teachers Arlinda Davis, Yuvraj Verma and Cassandra Young, alongside social worker Jackie Backay-Parks, have applied for the grant with a proposed STEM-based program. Dubbed the Alabama STEM Astronomers, students would get a chance to learn about astronomy at national museums, space centers and planetariums during the summer.

A lot of these children havent traveled out of the state. Some havent traveled out of the city, Davis said.

The two-week trip would be followed by monthly STEM exhibitions and continuous mentorships for the participating students. One of the primary goals is to showcase what careers in the STEM field look like firsthand.

Alabama Public Library Service hosts homework help program

We are educators who are serving children in the classroom, and we are excited to do even more outside of the classroom setting, Verma said.

If the group is awarded the grant, the program would provide immersive, hands-on learning for the students it would serve.

From a social work perspective, children, if theyre always in the same environment, seeing the same type of things, not being exposed to more, then their desire for more is limited, and they dont really have anything to pique their interest, Backay-Parks said. With the proposed grant that we wrote, this would give them an opportunity to learn that there is more than their personal environment, and once a child or an adult is exposed to more, they want more, and their thinking turns different.

This program would provide a unique opportunity for participating students. Young explained that one of the groups primary goals is exposure.

I think it would be the first of its kind in Birmingham or Jefferson County. I havent seen anything of this nature before, and I have taught for over 20 years, Young said. Were looking at students who are not normally exposed to things that are in the sciences, STEM and STEAM.

Ragland community rallies together to save high school from closure

She explained that the group aims to go further than typical summer camp experiences.

Students will participate in a summer camp, and a lot of times, thats where things kind of stop, Young said. However, the gist of this particular program is to continue to expose students throughout the school year. So, during the school year, they would actually participate in ongoing learning about the concepts that have, you know, been learned and that theyve been introduced to throughout the summer.

The program will primarily be targeted towards middle school students in underrepresented communities, presenting opportunities they may not have thought about otherwise.

Your middle school kids usually get dropped when it comes to summer camps or after-school programs and things of that nature, so our goal is to meet the needs of those middle school students, Young said.

The program would also allow students from different schools to connect and build relationships with students from other schools.

We want to bring these students together and show them how they can impact the city, said Davis.

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The body of British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch was retrieved Wednesday from the wreckage of the Bayesian yacht Wednesday, the Italian Coastguard said. The yacht, whose builders have suggested was unsinkable," went down off the coast of Sicily early Monday in a storm.

Five bodies have been retrieved from the wreck in the days since, and a recovery operation is ongoing.

Officials believe the Bayesian sank after being hit by a waterspout, which is essentially a tornado that occurs over water. Fifteen people survived the incident, with six people confirmed dead and one person unaccounted for.

Lynch had been in Sicily to celebrate his acquittal in the US, where he was found not guilty of misleading Hewlett Packard in its purchase of his firm, Autonomy, for $11 billion in 2011.
Originally appeared on E! Online

More details about the Sicily yacht tragedy have come to light.

Days after a superyacht sank off the coast of Palermo, Italy, during a violent storm, the body of British tech businessman Mike Lynch, 59, was recovered Aug. 22, NBC News confirmed.

Lynchs daughter Hannah, 18, is the sixth and final missing person from the 184-foot sailboatwhich sank Aug. 19and rescuers are still searching for her.

The Royal Academy of Engineering, where Lynch was a fellow since 2008, gave their condolences following the news of his death. We have fond memories of the active role he played in the past, as a mentor, donor and former Council member, the academy wrote on X Aug. 22. Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this time.

Lynch, nicknamed by the U.K. media as Britains Bill Gates, had been acquitted of fraud charges this summer related to Hewlett Packard's $11 billion takeover of his company Autonomy Corp, according to the outlet. The sailing vacation was a celebration after the case, as part of his defense team was also in attendance.

More from E! Online

The others recovered from the wreckage were Lynchs associates, many of whom were part of his defense during his fraud case, including Morgan Stanley International Chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy Bloomer; Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo, the Director of Sicilys Civil Protection Agency Salvatore Cocina told NBC News Aug. 21.

Lynchs wife Angela Bacares and the ships cook Recaldo Thomas were recovered shortly after the accident along with nine other crew members and two other passengers. Eight were brought to a hospital and the rest were sent to a hotel nearby. Thomas later died, according to the publication. Fifteen of the 22 people aboard survived.

Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg via Getty Images

One survivor, Charlotte Golunski, recalled the harrowing event and how she, her 1-year-old daughter Sophie and partner James Emsley survived.

Golunski said she and her family survived because they were on the yachts deck when it started to sink, she told Italian newspaper La Repubblica Aug. 20, per the BBC.

She explained that she and her family woke up to "thunder, lightning and waves that made our boat dance," and it felt like "the end of the world."

ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP via Getty Images

"For two seconds, I lost my daughter in the sea, then quickly hugged her amid the fury of the waves," she added. "It was all dark. In the water I couldn't keep my eyes open. I screamed for help but all I could hear around me was the screams of others."

A lifeboat inflated, she said, and 11 people, including her family, climbed in.

Director of Sicily's Civil Protection Agency Salvatore Cocina shared that it was likely a waterborne tornado, known as a waterspout, that struck the area. He noted that the luxury boat was "in the wrong place at the wrong time."

(E! News and NBC News are part of the NBCUniversal family.)

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Ted Cruz or Colin Allred for Senate? Heres what these Texas voters said in new poll

The race between Sen. Ted Cruz and U.S. Rep. Colin Allred to represent Texas in the U.S. Senate remains close, according to a new poll.

A University of Houston Hobby School and Texas Southern University Jordan-Leland School poll released Thursday found that 46.6% of likely Texas voters plan to vote for Cruz, while 44.5% said theyd vote for Allred  putting Cruz 2.1 points ahead. Of those polled, 2.5% said they were voting for Libertarian Ted Brown and 6.4% said theyre undecided.

The poll surveyed 1,365 likely Texas voters between between Aug. 5 and Aug 16. The poll has a 2.65 percentage point margin of error.

The results are similar to the schools poll from earlier this year that also predicted single digit margins. The survey of likely voters between June 20 and July 1 showed Cruz up by 2.4 percentage points.

There were 878 respondents who participated in both polls.

Cruz was last up for reelection in 2018 when he won against former El Paso U.S. Rep. Beto ORourke by 2.6 points.
MEMPHIS, Tenn.  A teenage boy is dead after crashing his car into a tree early Thursday morning in Jonesboro, Arkansas.

At 6:20 a.m., police say they responded to a crash on the south side of Magnolia Road.

According to reports, driver William Coffman, 18, of a 2024 Toyota Corolla was traveling East on Magnolia Road just West of Winesap Drive. The boy struck a tree after he left the roadway.

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Jonesboro Police say the driver was pronounced dead at the scene.

He was taken to the county coroners office.

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Scituate residents can thank a teenage girl for uncovering the whereabouts of a Level 3 sex offender, after she rebuffed his offer to give her a ride on Tuesday evening.

Police said that teen was out jogging on Ferry Street in Marshfield, just across the water from the Humarock section of Scituate, when Edmund LaChance -- also known by the alias Edmund Chance -- offered that ride. After she declined, he continued to follow her in his car -- until she ran.

LaChance was apprehended, arrested and arraigned Thursday afternoon in Hingham -- but not for a sex crime.

After the teen reported the encounter to police, LaChance was located and questioned. He had not committed, at that point, an arrestable offense.

Edmund D. LaChance, 53

Only later did Scituate Police discover he was a sex offender who allegedly failed to update his address. Thats when a warrant was issued.

LaChance is a twice-convicted rapist -- those judgments coming down in 1991 and 2001.

He had no last known address, as he was listed on the states Sex Offender Registry as homeless.

Neighbors say he moved into 23 Hawthorne Ave. a few weeks ago. Neighbors told Boston 25 News that LaChance seemed out of place in the community which is made up of a mix of retirees, families and, in summer months, vacationers.

Just on this street alone, there are a number of teenage girls who summer here and spend a lot of time here, one neighbor said.

Its very disturbing, said another. And Im glad that young girl was smart enough to do what she did.

I live right in the area, so it is scary, said one mother. Theres a lot of young girls that are riding their bicycles and walking in the evening.

Level 3 sex offenders are considered dangerous to the public because of the likelihood theyll re-offend. Massachusetts law requires Level 3 offenders, if in homeless shelters, to check in with local police every 30 days.

In Hingham District Court, a judge ordered LaChance held on $250,000 bail.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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CANTON BORO., BRADFORD COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU)  State police report two 15-year-olds were arrested after crashing a stolen car.

According to Pennsylvania State Police, on July 18 troopers responded to a crash at Canton Borough.

Lyft driver accused of sexually assaulting passenger

Police said they discovered two 15-year-olds had stolen the car involved in the crash from Griffin Automotive.

Troopers arrested the teens and they were charged through the district court.

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SANAA, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- A Greek-flagged oil tanker, MV Sounion, is at risk of sinking after being attacked by the Houthi group earlier this week, forcing all crew members to evacuate, a Yemeni government coastguard source told Xinhua on Thursday.

The MV Sounion was attacked on Wednesday and was anchored off Eritrea on Thursday, the source said anonymously. The UK Maritime Trade Operations also confirmed that the ship, which was hit multiple times, has lost engine power and all crew members have been rescued.

The European Union's Red Sea naval mission "Aspides" stated on Thursday that the MV Sounion, carrying 150,000 tonnes of crude oil, now poses a navigational and environmental hazard. The mission urged vessels in the area to "exercise caution and avoid actions that could worsen the situation."

The Houthi group claimed responsibility for the attacks on the Greek-flagged tanker in a statement released Thursday evening. The attacks come amid ongoing regional tensions. The Houthis have targeted "Israeli-linked" ships since November 2023 in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, vowing to escalate strikes until Israel halts its offensive.

In response, the United States and Britain have conducted air and naval strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen since mid-January to prevent disruptions to international shipping lanes. This intervention has led the Houthis to expand their targets to include U.S. and British commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

On Thursday, Houthi leader Abdulmalik al-Houthi claimed in a televised speech that his group has attacked 182 ships in shipping lanes off Yemen since November of last year. 
TELFORD, Tenn. (WJHL)  Related manufacturing plants that employ almost 250 people combined and have operated in Telford for nearly 20 years will cease operations in 2026.

JTEKT and Nakatetsu Machining Technologies (NMT) announced in separate news releases that their facilities in the Washington County Industrial Park will cease manufacturing in either April 2026 or October 2026.

Local church helps pay off $8 million in medical debt

NMT employs about 50 people and creates bearing materials, which are used by its partner, JTEKT, to make parts such as taper roller bearings and ball bearings for the automotive industry. Those products are then used in components produced at JTEKT.

JTEKTs general manager for corporate planning and communications, Scott Craig, said 192 people work at that plant.

The releases stated that the changing landscape of the industry, particularly the shifted focus to electric vehicles, has caused a decline in the demand for parts used in conventional engines. Craig told News Channel 11 the employees at the JTEKT plant in Telford were among the large, global companys best.

They set a benchmark for the globe for productivity and quality and so this is nothing to do with their performance; were really just caught up in a global electrification process, he said.

Electric vehicles use an electric motor that does not require as much bearing material in its assembly, NMT stated.

This was a difficult but necessary decision to align with market demands and sustain profitability, JNA President and CEO Gary Bourque said in the JTEKT news release. We are proud of the contributions of our Washington team and will provide comprehensive support throughout this transition.

Craig said that would include opportunities for transfer to JTEKT plants in Morristown and Vonore, Tenn. or in Greenville, S.C. Those who work until the plant closes will receive severance packages and full job transition assistance, he said.

Photo: WJHL

The plants began operating in Telford in 2006, and NMT President Takeshi Kasai thanked Washington County for welcoming the facility during its time of operation.

We are extremely disappointed that market conditions in our industry have led to a steep decline in demand for our product, resulting in the need for us to phase out and close our Telford plant, Kasai stated in the release. NMT was warmly welcomed here 20 years ago and has enjoyed being a part of the community ever since. I personally lived in Washington County for seven years and made many lasting friendships with our local employees as well as community leaders and neighbors. We regret that we must close our plant here.

The general administration manager of the Telford NMT site, Shelia Brown, thanked the employees for their dedication to the company.

We have been very fortunate to have had so many dedicated and skilled employees at our facility, and the relationships that we have made with one another and with our Japanese ownership have enriched our lives, Brown said.

Kasai said NMT will work to keep its workers employed until the closure and will help them as they search for other next jobs.

The employees who helped us succeed here were outstanding and we were proud to host many of them in Japan over the years, Kasai stated. We are very grateful for their dedication and are committed to doing all we can to keep them employed as long as possible and providing financial support and assistance as they transition to other jobs.

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As federal investigators scrutinize alleged civil rights violations at a privately operated prison in Tennessee, Gov. Bill Lee on Wednesday called private prison operator CoreCivic a very important partner of the state, and praised the companys commitment to reducing turnover.

The U.S. Department of Justice on Tuesday announced a civil investigation into conditions at Trousdale Turner Correctional Center in Hartsville, a privately run prison plagued by understaffing, violence, contraband and sexual misconduct allegations.

In response to the investigation CoreCivic has said the company is working with the Department of Corrections and DOJ to address areas of concern, as the "safety and dignity of every person in our care is a top priority."

Outside at Trousdale Turner Correctional Facility in Hartsville, Tenn., Monday, Aug. 14, 2023.

For years, allegations of misconduct at CoreCivic facilities, including Trousdale, have been made in lawsuits, testimony before state lawmakers, and audits by the Tennessee Comptroller. While the state routinely fines CoreCivic for contract violations, lawmakers have continued to approve increases to CoreCivic contracts, including a $7 million increase for the states contract with South Central Correctional Facility approved in this years budget.

On Tuesday, Lee said CoreCivic is responsible for performing to the state's contract standards, and praised the publicly traded company for its efforts to reduce astronomical staff turnover at Trousdale, the state's largest prison.

Commissioner [Frank] Strada has spent quite a bit of time going to that very facility to make sure that if there are deficiencies that we work to meet them, Lee told reporters on Wednesday.

Gov. Bill Lee talks with reporters at Pruitt's Discount Pharmacy on Dickerson Pike on August 21, 2024.

CoreCivic's been a very important partner to the state in operating the prisons that they operate, Lee said. We want to know when there are deficiencies. We want to make sure that we're operating our prisons in the way that we should. And we will determine that through this process. We'll see what happens.

CoreCivic's political action committee is among the highest spenders in Tennessee politics, contributing more than $100,000 to candidates in the 2022 and 2018 cycles, and $73,000 so far this year. Lee's campaign directly received at least $85,300 from CoreCivic Inc. and its partner PAC during the 2018 and 2022 cycles.

State has charged CoreCivic millions in breach of contract fines

In fact, CoreCivic has been required to pay millions of dollars in damages to the Tennessee Department of Corrections for breach of contract violations in recent years, records of correspondence between TDOC commissioners and CoreCivic leadership shows.

TDOC has fined CoreCivic $7.27 million in damages for violations at South Central Correctional Facility alone since January 2019. CoreCivic operates four prisons in Tennessee.

More: Court records detail years of understaffing at a Tennessee CoreCivic prison

Its unclear when CoreCivic was last successful in meeting contract standards at any of its four facilities in Tennessee.

Its important that they do live up to them and that we continue to hold them accountable when they dont live up to the standards, Lee said, noting the state charges CoreCivic fines when they fall short of contract requirements.

Lee did not comment Tuesday on whether fines imposed by the state are enough to ensure the companys compliance with its state prison contracts.

Records, audit shows chronic staff vacancies impacting inmate safety

Chief among the contract violations outlined in state damages records is CoreCivics chronic staffing vacancies across all four prison facilities it operates  most notably at Trousdale.

State auditors found in December that 57% of necessary posts at Trousdale were unfilled. During a site visit at Trousdale in March 2023, 131 of 230 necessary posts were vacant, the audit found.

Most positions were left unfilled for 100 or more days and some had been vacant for more than a year, according to TDOC notices of noncompliance sent to CoreCivic through the departments contract monitoring protocol. State contracts require positions to be filled within 45 days.

Unstaffed positions at the facility included correctional officers, nurses, mental health professionals, case managers, an investigator, a recreation coordinator, academic and vocational instructors, and administrative clerks. Entire housing units were left unstaffed for weeks.

Barbed Wire fencing lines the walkways at Trousdale Turner Correctional Facility in Hartsville , Tenn., Monday, Aug. 14, 2023.

We have seen turnover numbers and vacancies  that problem  we've seen that improve, and we'll be looking for more improvement, Lee said Tuesday, without citing specific data. "And we will hold them accountable, because they have a responsibility  ultimately, the state does  but through our providers, they have a responsibility to operate prisons in the way that they should be operated.

Auditors in December found that staffing shortages impacted managements ability to operate safely and securely. Trousdale correctional officers surveyed by the comptrollers office said short staffing made the job that much more dangerous and makes it difficult and very tiring to complete all duties.

While at Trousdale I feel unsafe at all times, one officer wrote in an audit survey response.

Correction Officers are working blocks by themselves, another wrote. We havent had partners in over 2 years. Sometimes there is one officer for 4 blocks. We are hiring young kids who have NO idea how to speak to grown men.

Lee praises efforts to decrease turnover

On Wednesday, Lee praised CoreCivics efforts to reduce staff turnover.

The state increased correctional officer pay by 30% just about a year ago  and that has had a ripple effect, even on private providers as well, he said. That process will take time.

Trousdale has the highest turnover rate of any state prison facility: seeing a 188% staff turnover in 2023  74% higher than the preceding year, according to the December 2023 audit.

I certainly think CoreCivic has begun to show that commitment to reducing turnover in their correctional department, he added, called audits an important part of the state's oversight.

We want to know where the shortcomings are, and we want to take steps moving forward, and I believe that we will see that we have taken steps, Lee said, calling accountability a never-ending process.

Vivian Jones covers state government and politics for The Tennessean. Reach her at vjones@tennessean.com or on X at @Vivian_E_Jones.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Federal private prison probe: TN Gov. Bill Lee defends CoreCivic
Terri Stewart, an experienced newsroom leader, is senior vice president of newsgathering for CBS News and Stations where she oversees day-to-day editorial newsgathering for the division.

An award-winning journalist, Stewart guides the Network's newsgathering efforts. She also oversees CBS News and Station's news hubs to support the organization's community journalism initiative. And she is focused on the development of a cross-division news coverage desk.

In a career that spans decades, Stewart has played a vital role in the Network's coverage of many of the major news events of our time, from political campaigns to terrorist attacks, wars, mass shootings and natural disasters.

Since joining CBS News in 1981, Stewart has held several important and increasingly critical newsgathering positions. She's equally adept at marshaling correspondents and production teams to cover breaking news, as she is at spotting and developing the perfect end piece for a broadcast.

Previously, Stewart was senior vice president and national executive editor for CBS News.

As executive editor, Stewart worked with all CBS News broadcasts and bureaus, managing hard news and special event coverage, and worked closely with CBS Stations.

Earlier in her career at CBS News, she served as northeast bureau chief, overseeing news coverage from Maine to Delaware and the Midwest. She also served as the deputy bureau chief.

Before that role, she worked in the political unit from 1988 to 1992 and in Newspath, where she was a senior producer. She covered part of the 1988 presidential race as one of CBS News' first group of campaign embeds.

She began her career at WCAU-TV in Philadelphia, where she produced talk shows and eventually was promoted to the assignment desk.

Stewart is based in New York.

DNC highlights Project 2025 and links it to Trump. Fact checking some claims.

Top three finalists are announced in "CBS Mornings" Mixtape Music Competition

Donald Trump heads to Arizona for U.S.-Mexico border tour
Tesla recalls for 9,100 Model X SUVs in the US over roof trim hazard

US electric car manufacturer Tesla on Wednesday announced a recall for about 9,100 Model X SUVs in the United States due to concerns over roof trim that may detach.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said that the front and centre roof cosmetic trim pieces might have been adhered without primer, potentially causing them to separate from the vehicle and pose a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.

The recall affects 2016 Model X SUVs.

Tesla said a change in process had been made at the supplier in July 2016 to prevent the issue in later models.

Tesla will test the adhesion of the roof trim and reattach the trim pieces as necessary at no cost to the owners of the vehicles.

Tesla said it was aware of about 170 reports and claims that may be related to the issue, but said it had no reports of crashes or injuries tied to the recall issues.
ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC)  The Texas A&M Forest Service station at the Abilene Airport acquired two Black Hawk helicopters to assist in managing wildfires as the risk statistics increase.

The Texas A&M Forest Services most recent Fire Danger Forecast, which analyzes conditions throughout the state of Texas for their potential wildfire risks, has set the area of the Big Country as a literal hot zone for potential fire danger. The areas with the highest risks are primarily in the central and western regions of the state of Texas. In response to this, the A&M Forest Service Station at the Abilene Airport is accepting the help of military black hawks, courtesy of the Texas Army National Guard. Program Coordinator for Rotor Wing Aviation for the Texas A&M Forest Service, Elise Roberts, spoke about how their Fire Danger Forecast corresponds with their response in high-risk areas.

So as a result of that, we then will staff more resources in those areas, such as aircraft task forces, strike teams of engines in different locations that are able to respond quickly to any new starts within that kind of problematic area, Roberts shared.

Texas A&M Forest Service utilizes Abilene airport to fight wildfires

Two Black Hawk helicopters from the Texas National Guard base in San Antonio are now stationed at the Abilene Airport and have been responding to fires in the Big Country area since the beginning of August. They are predicted to be at the Abilene station until sometime in mid-September, when the wildfire season drops, but Roberts explained that since their arrival, these crews have been working nonstop in our area.

Theyve been here since August 6th, and theyve pretty much been on a fire almost every day except for about two or three days, Roberts said.

One of the pilots of the two Black Hawk helicopters, Captain Tom Molnar, from the Texas National Guard, 2nd Battalion, 149th Aviation Regiment, spoke about their methods for tackling fires in our area.

The idea here is to have us an immediate response. So, we can get off the ground here in about 15 minutes, and we have two Bambi buckets in the back. Basically, orange buckets dangle down about 40 feet and hold about 500 gallons of water, Molnar explained.

Abilene Air Tanker base expansions bring higher firefighting efficiency to Abilene Airport

Due to the increased risks in our area this season, Molnar and his crew have been working almost daily since their arrival. They believe that the peoples needs outweigh the risks they take.

Thats kind of our whole mantra here: Texans helping and saving Texans.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
A bus with dozens of migrants leaves an El Paso shelter and heads to New York City on Aug. 31, 2022. The city and county of El Paso sponsored the voluntary bus trips to relieve pressure on local shelters that summer. Credit: Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune

For more than two years, Gov. Greg Abbott has sent thousands of migrants whove recently arrived at the southern border to cities run by Democrats.

But in border towns, the buses have largely stopped rolling in recent weeks.

Texas sent no buses north in July, according to one report published this week. Another report said that Texas has not sent any buses since late June for a lack of passengers.

The New York Times reported that the last bus dispatched by Texas left the border near El Paso on June 27 with 50 migrants headed to New York. Texas officials attributed the decrease in buses to a decrease in migrants, according to the Times.

Texas has decreased illegal crossings into the state by over 85% thanks to our historic border mission, Abbott spokesperson Andrew Mahaleris said in a statement.

Abbott has vowed to continue the busing program, which only takes migrants who voluntarily get onboard.

The slowdown has coincided with a decrease in the number of migrants entering the country illegally following an executive order from President Joe Biden in early June that widely stopped granting asylum to migrants.

Federal authorities apprehended roughly 32% fewer migrants in Texas in June, the first month that Bidens order was in place. The sharp drop of apprehensions in Texas was also seen across the rest of the southwest border and continued in July, when they hit a new low during the Biden administration.

The administration has credited his executive order for the decrease, while Abbott has credited the states $11 billion Operation Lone Star border mission that launched in March 2021. Through the border initiative, the state has dispatched thousands of Texas National Guard troops to patrol the border and thousands of Department of Public Safety troopers who arrest migrants on state charges.

Two immigrants' rights groups in Texas sued to stop the executive order. Texas, which has sued the administration over its previous immigration policies, has asked a federal court to help defend the policy, according to court records.

Officials in cities that have received buses from Texas have struggled to handle the influx of newcomers, opening new shelters and saying the unexpected costs of caring for migrants strained their budgets.

A spokesperson for New York Mayor Eric Adams on Thursday said the mayor signed an executive order requiring bus companies to notify city officials before transporting migrants into the city and limiting the hours they could  which they credited for a decrease in migrants in the citys care.

Migration patterns historically ebb and flow due to many variables including changing U.S. border policies and extreme heat during summer months, according to immigration and foreign policy experts. Some of those experts point to efforts by Mexico and other Latin American countries in recent months to block migrants from reaching the U.S.-Mexico border.

Since Abbott began the program in 2022, the state has transported approximately 119,400 migrants to other states, according to figures shared by Abbotts office last week.

Disclosure: The New York Times 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.

TribFest Keynotes Announced! Be there when Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin take the keynote stage at The Texas Tribune Festival! Whitmer will talk with Texas Tribune co-founder Evan Smith about her memoir, her key victories in Michigan and the importance of every vote. Youngkin and Smith will close out TribFest with a conversation about his record, the state of his party and a conservative policy agenda for America. Explore the full program of 300+ speakers and 100+ events. Get tickets today.
AUSTIN (KXAN)  A judge has sentenced a Dallas man to more than seven years in federal prison in connection with paper tag fraud.

Daniel Christine-Tani, 35, pleaded guilty to running fake car dealerships in order to print and sell more than 700,000 Texas temporary buyer tags to people all over the country, over the internet, without actually selling cars, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of Texas.

We were very pleased with the sentencing in this case, said Sgt. Jose Escribano, who helped investigate the case with the Travis County Constables Office Precinct 3. We want to give thanks again to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Department of Justice.

Escribano said the sentence sends a message pretty loud and clear.

EXPLORE: KXANs Risky Rides investigation

For years, KXAN has investigated widespread fraud tied to Texas paper tags. Authorities say criminals use phony plates to turn getaway vehicles into ghost cars in order to avoid detection.

Through the sale of thousands of fake Texas temporary tags, Christine-Tani and his partners permitted criminals to commit crimes without fearing the consequences, said FBI Houston Special Agent in Charge Douglas Williams. This paper tag scheme enabled criminals to use fake Texas buyer tags while perpetrating violent crimes like drive-by shootings and armed robberies. FBI Houston agents proudly worked alongside law enforcement partners across the nation to dismantle this conspiracy which endangered so many American lives.

Last year, KXAN reporting helped inspire a new law that will replace paper license plates with metal ones on July 1, 2025.

If it wasnt for you guys, the media, if you hadnt started what you did, Escribano said, this never would have gone anywhere.

Escribano cautioned the fraud has not ended completely, not yet.

Theres a lot of exploitation still going on, he added. You have to stay vigilant constantly.

As part of his sentence, Christine-Tani must pay the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles $3.4 million in restitution.

The FBI is offering a $5,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest of fugitive Emmanuel Padilla Reyes  also known as Christian Hernandez Bonilla or Noel Rivera  who is accused of being connected with this case, the release said.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the FBIs online tip form or by phone at 1-800-CALL-FBI.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Texas Rep. Veronica Escobar took the stage at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wednesday to talk about her experience living, working, and governing in El Paso.

After receiving an invitation Tuesday night to address the convention, Escobar decided to speak on an issue very close to her: border security.

People are also reading: What song did Texas choose for 2024 DNC roll call? 'Park your Lexus' and see list by state

Escobar on US-Mexico border: 'You know nothing, Donald Trump'

Escobar recalled how, growing up in El Paso, she went back and forth across the border countless times and about how people who live near the border understand the need for legal immigration pathways. In her three-minute address at the DNC, she criticized how Republicans like former President Donald Trump used the issue to their benefit.

"The border is my beloved home, the place where my children grew up. Forget what you hear on the news. Im from there. When it comes to the border, hear me when I say, you know nothing, Donald Trump," Escobar said. "He and his Republican imitators see the border and immigration as a political opportunity to exploit instead of an issue to address."

U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso, will serve as a nightly co-chair during this week's Democratic National Convention Committee in Chicago. Democrats will rally starting Monday, Aug. 19, to help elect Kamala Harris president against Republican Donald Trump.

Even while touting border security as a campaign issue, Escobar said Republicans have repeatedly blocked action to address it.

"Congress hasn't passed comprehensive immigration reform in nearly four decades," Escobar said. "The three times they tried, Republicans blocked legislation that would have funded more security and created a more humane immigration system. They are not serious people."

Escobar endorses Harris: 'We can live up to the promise of America'

"You know who is serious? Kamala Harris."

Escobar spoke about meeting Vice President Harris during a visit to El Paso.

"I saw first-hand how she engaged with law enforcement, migrants and human rights advocates," Escobar said. "She was curious. She asked questions. She listened. And she didn't care if the cameras were on."

"Most of all, she recognized that the situation at the border is complicated  as filled with opportunities as it is with challenges. All Republicans have to offer is demonization and bluster. Democrats have solutions."

"With Kamala Harris as president, we can live up to the promise of America. We can strengthen legal pathways to immigration. We can secure our borders, and we can treat with dignity those who seek a better future within them."

Read more: Texans at the DNC: US Rep. Veronica Escobar tapped to chair convention Thursday night

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - AUGUST 21: U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-TX) departs after speaking on stage during the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 21, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. Delegates, politicians, and Democratic Party supporters are in Chicago for the convention, concluding with current Vice President Kamala Harris accepting her party's presidential nomination. The DNC takes place from August 19-22. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

WATCH: Rep. Veronica Escobar's full DNC speech

Texans at the DNC: Kate Cox speaks on reproductive rights

Rep. Escobar's address came a day after Texans participated in the delegate roll call. Kate Cox spoke about how she was forced to flee the state to terminate an unviable pregnancy, after doctors back home refused the operation due to state law.

Cox, a Texas mother of two, also shared she was pregnant again  which would not have been possible if she had not received abortion care in December.

"If I hadn't gotten an abortion, it would have put our future pregnancy at risk," Cox said at the DNC Tuesday. "Trump didn't care. Because of his abortion bans, I had to flee my home. There is nothing pro-family about abortion bans. There is nothing pro-life about letting women suffer and even die."

Maria Shriver (L), Kate Cox (2nd L), who was denied emergency abortion care by the Texas Supreme Court, and US First Lady Jill Biden (R) applaud Latorya Beasley (2nd R), who recently had an IVF embryo transfer cancelled following the result of a recent Alabama Supreme Court decision during President Joe Biden the State of the Union address to Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on March 7, 2024.

"Today, because I found a way to access abortion care, I am pregnant again and my baby is due just in time to see Kamala Harris sworn in as president of the United States."

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas Rep. Veronica Escobar talks border security at 2024 DNC
EL PASO, Texas (KTSM)  Texas Tech Physicians of El Paso notified Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX) its intent to terminate their existing in-network provider contract, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso (TTUHSC) announced in a news release sent Wednesday, Aug. 21.

BCBSTX is Texas Tech Physicians of El Pasos Teacher Retirement System of Texas provider, according to the news release.

TTUHSC said following a protracted negotiation process, they have been unable to come to a resolution with BCBSTX that would equitably reimburse and allow medical providers to offer essential and critical patient care to the regions residents.

If the contract is terminated, Texas Tech Physicians of El Paso specialists will no longer be considered in-network for BCBSTX plan holders. This includes HMO, PPO and Blue Advantage HMO, according to TTUHSC

TTUHSC said if both parties cannot come to a resolution, effective termination will be Oct. 7, for HMO and PPO plans and January 5, 2025, for Blue Advantage HMO.

We value our relationship with BCBSTX and are hopeful that we can come to a resolution that meets the needs of both parties in the coming weeks. We acknowledge that our patients, Texas Tech Health El Paso employees and their families will be most impacted and are working diligently to minimize disruptions to care and provide clear and frequent communication. Our patients and employees are our top priority, read the news release.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News.
Earlier this week, a World Health Organization (WHO) official stressed that the mpox virus is not the new COVID-19, because we know how to handle its spread, but the current outbreak is steadily growing, alarming health experts. It involves two different versions of the mpox virus: one that caused a global outbreak in 2022-2023 and a new, mutated and potentially more deadly strain.

So far, most of the cases of the deadlier strain, known as clade Ib, have been on the African content, especially in the Democratic Republic of Congo. On Thursday, Thailand became the second country outside Africa to report a clade 1b case, following Sweden last week. According to BBC, the infected 66-year-old European man had residency in Thailand and arrived in Bangkok from an unnamed African country on 14 August.

The WHO declared a public health emergency of international concern on August 14. At least 14 African countries have reported cases, with over 1,000 in a week in Congo, prompting African health authorities to plead for vaccines. (The smallpox vaccine works against mpox, as the viruses are related.)

Other recently detected cases around the world  in Spain, Taiwan, Pakistan and the Philippines  turned out to be clade II. Although both versions of the disease result in flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions, the Ib strain is generally considered to be much deadlier, killing 1 in 10 people in some outbreaks. On the other hand, Clade II has a survival rate greater than 99.9%.

Nonetheless, the current outbreak of both strains continues to expand. Speaking with Salon earlier this month about the outbreak, officials from the World Health Organization (WHO) explained they are concerned but are taking proactive measures.

Spread to other countries and areas is also likely and remains very concerning, the WHO said. There remains a risk of wider outbreaks, and WHO is working with countries in the region to step up preparedness, strengthen surveillance and cross-border collaboration.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said the public health agency is closely monitoring the situation in the United States.

Given how widespread the clade I outbreak is in Central and Eastern Africa, a case diagnosed in an occasional traveler is not unexpected, Dave Daigle said in a statement. Rapid detection and containment of any mpox case are key to stopping mpox spread.
MINSK, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- China and Belarus pledged here on Thursday to promote their cooperation in agriculture and the China-Europe Railway Express service.

In a joint communique issued following a meeting between Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko, the two sides are ready to give full play to the huge potential of cooperation in agriculture and strengthen investment cooperation in this sector.

The two sides are willing to expand access to the Chinese market for agricultural and food products, said the document, adding that they welcome the entry of high-quality agricultural products into each other's markets and encourage their enterprises to participate in exhibitions and events held by the two countries.

Also in the communique, the two sides agreed to strengthen cooperation in the China-Europe Railway Express, set up an inter-governmental cooperation mechanism on the service, promote infrastructure connectivity, and jointly ensure the safety of the China-Europe freight train transport corridor. 
The News

Thailand confirmed Asias first case of the new, more deadly mpox strain after a European male patient who arrived in Bangkok from Africa tested positive for the mutated variant clade Ib.

The Southeast Asian countrys health ministry said it would report the result to the World Health Organization, and that it was keeping close contacts of the patient under close surveillance.

The confirmation comes a week after the WHO declared mpox a public health emergency of international concern, citing its upsurge in the Democratic Republic of Congo and other parts of Africa. Last week Sweden confirmed the first case of this mpox strain outside Africa.

The newer strain has a fatality rate of around 4% in adults and 10% in children. Africas top health body said countries could start vaccinating against the viral disease as early as next week.
Thailand confirms mpox case is clade 1b, second outside of Africa

By Panarat Thepgumpanat

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand on Thursday confirmed an mpox case reported this week was the clade 1b strain of the virus, the second confirmed case of the variant outside of Africa.

The case is a 66-year-old European man who had arrived in Thailand last week from an unspecified African country where the disease was spreading.

"The test results confirm that he is infected with the Clade 1b strain of monkeypox, which is the first case diagnosed in Thailand, but this man is likely infected from an endemic country," Thongchai Keeratihattayakorn, director-general of the Department of Disease Control, told Reuters.

He said no other local infections had been detected through contact tracing.

Clade 1b has triggered global concern due to the ease with which it spreads though routine close contact.

A case of the variant was confirmed last week in Sweden and linked to a growing outbreak in Africa, the first sign of its spread outside the continent.

The World Health Organization declared the recent outbreak of the disease a public health emergency of international concern after the new variant was identified.

Thailand on Wednesday said the man confirmed as having mpox had transited in a Middle Eastern country, which he also did not name, before flying on to Thailand.

Thailand has detected 800 cases of mpox Clade 2 since 2022, but so far not detected a case of the Clade 1 or Clade 1b variants.

(Reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat; Writing by Martin Petty; Editing by Bernadette Baum and Chizu Nomiyama)
(Bloomberg) -- Thailand needs to urgently tackle its high levels of household and public debt, and focus on policies that can propel the countrys growth rate to match some of its Southeast Asian neighbors, according to former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

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A debt restructuring initiative to cover the households and businesses should be undertaken as Thailand and its people are trapped in debt, the two-time premier and father of newly elected leader Paetongtarn Shinawatra said Thursday in a talk titled Vision for Thailand.

The finance minister and others should take the lead in addressing the chronic debt burden along with the central bank, Thaksin, seen as the de facto chief of the ruling Pheu Thai Party, told a gathering of more than 1,400 bankers, business executives and politicians in Bangkok. The event marked the first anniversary of Thaksins dramatic return to Thailand from a self-imposed exile after he fled corruption charges in 2008.

While Thaksin is unlikely to assume any official or political position in the new government, hes expected to wield considerable influence on Paetongtarn administrations policies. A popular and polarizing figure in Thai politics for over two decades, his years in power saw populist policies dubbed as Thaksinomics to drive economic growth. He introduced a debt moratorium for farmers, fuel and electricity subsidies and a universal healthcare scheme that propelled annual growth rate to above 5%.

Paetongtarn, who is still in the process of finalizing her cabinet, faces the challenge of reviving an economy stifled by a near record-house hold debt, sluggish exports and the high cost of living. While her predecessor Srettha Thavisin pushed ahead with a $14 billion cash handout to shore up growth from a decade of average sub-2% rate, shes ordered a review of the payout amid concerns of legal challenges to the controversial plan.

Thailands household debt has soared to almost 91% of the nations gross domestic product and has been seen as one reason behind the central banks reluctance to reduce interest from a decade high 2.5%. As the key rate remains high, a reduction in the bailout fee paid by commercial banks may be explored to ease the burden on those struggling with car and housing loans, Thaksin said.

The billionaire politician said the government should respect the central banks independence and opt for more talks with it on lowering interest rates. He said greater coordination between fiscal and monetary policymakers was needed to address Thailands economic problems.

Paetongtarns government plans to tweak the so-called digital wallet program and focus on providing financial relief first to the fragile groups in the society, Thaksin said. The new administration may give 10,000 baht ($289) each to about 14.5 million people, including 1 million disabled, in September before taking a call on extending the benefit to another 30 million, he said.

Were in capitalism whether we like it or not, Thaksin said. But without empathy for those without economic power, we will be crippled.

Thaksin defended Pheu Thais coalition with a clutch of establishment parties to form the government last year, and said Paetongtarns new administration will be stable and help the party emerge once again as the largest group in the next election due in 2027.

Paetongtarn was chosen as the premier after the countrys Constitutional Court dismissed Srettha in an ethics violation case, cutting his time in office to only less than a year. Sretthas elevation as the premier was seen as part of a deal that Thaksin cut with the royalist establishment to help pro-military and conservative parties stay in power and pave the way for his return.

What to Know About Thailands Youngest Prime Minister: QuickTake

On Thursday, Thaksin denied there was any deal with the establishment, and said the constitution should be amended to return Thailand to true democracy and vest parliament with the sole power to appoint and dismiss a government. He also called for steps to end judicial overreach.

Thaksins Other Remarks...

On the economy: I think the Thai economy hasnt hit the bottom yet but its unlikely to slide any further. The government has done many things and that will help control the situation. The government needs to take the lead and the private sector should also help.

Thaksin said the Bank of Thailand and the Thai Bankers Association can play their roles in supporting the economy by doing the needful in terms of interest rates and soft loans. BOT should provide soft loans to help resolve the debt trap, he said.

On interest rates & BOT:

We dont need to persuade them. But some times we need to talk about how it goes while they can maintain their independence, Thaksin said. We need to coordinate economic policies with the central bank to ensure fiscal and monetary policies move in the same direction.

Banks have told Thaksin that if BOT cuts the Financial Institutions Development Fund fee by half from 0.46%, they can use the fund to help car and housing loan borrowers and avoid assets seizures.

On legalizing casinos:

Thaksin backs legalizing casinos as part of large entertainment complex being proposed by the government as it can lead to investment of about 100 billion baht each for one facility in Bangkok and about 50 billion baht each for those set up in provinces.

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How about them apples? NCAE threatens to sue Michele Morrow over fruit campaign logo.

The North Carolina Association of Educators is threatening to sue Michele Morrow unless she removes an apple logo from materials promoting her campaign to be state superintendent of public instruction.

NCAE had sent Morrows campaign a cease-and-desist letter in July in which the teachers group alleged it has exclusive legal rights to use a registered service mark of an apple outline in North Carolina for political advocacy.

On Thursday, NCAE sent a follow-up letter to Morrow, the GOP candidate, saying immediate legal action will result if the campaign continues to use the apple symbol.

Michelle Morrow does not support public education and has never worked in or even sent her children to a North Carolina public school, NCAE president Tamika Walker Kelly said in a news release Thursday. Voters can see shes trying to hide behind the apple symbol, but her disrespect of public school teachers and staff, support for political violence, and her plan to put cameras in school bathrooms, just to name a few, makes her unqualified for State Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Morrows campaign has accused NCAE of showing political animus in asking it to stop using the apple. The campaign says apples are a generic symbol not exclusively associated with NCAE.

Why would NCAE use bogus legal tactics to thwart NCs Student-First Candidate? Morrow posted on X on Aug. 8. Because Michele Morrow is fighting for you! Thats why.

Morrow a public school critic

Morrow is a homeschool parent, conservative activist, registered nurse and former Christian missionary who upset incumbent Catherine Truitt in the March Republican primary for state superintendent.

She is running against Democrat Mo Green, the former superintendent of Guilford County Schools, and former executive director of the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, a group that funds progressive causes. NCAE has endorsed Green.

Candidates for N.C. Superintendent of Schools Maurice Green (left) and Republican Michele Morrow (right).

Morrow made national headlines after CNN reported on her past social media posts that talked about killing former President Barack Obama and encouraged President Donald Trump to use the military to stay in power in 2021. Shes also called public schools socialist indoctrination centers.

Morrow uses red apple-shaped campaign signs, as well as showing a red apple on her campaign material and website.

NCAE asks Morrow to remove apple logo

But NCAE says the Montgomery County Education Association in Maryland has been registered to use the apple in connection with political advocacy since 2009 with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

In 2014, NCAE reached a licensing agreement with the Maryland State Education Association to use the apple symbol for political advocacy in North Carolina. All three groups are affiliates of the National Education Association.

NCAE has used the apple symbol in political campaigns, including on candidate endorsements.

In the July 12 letter, NCAE says Morrow is not permitted to use the apple symbol because it hasnt endorsed her. The group says Morrows use of the apple is deceptively similar to the groups apple.

Morrows claim that the apple image is just a generic symbol of education is misleading, Walker Kelly said. To her, it might just be a cutout of an apple, but the trademarked property helps ensure the public knows what is genuine and authentic.

In this case, the Apple Ballot is trademarked and licensed property used by hardworking public education professionals to voice their support for candidates that support public education  something she clearly does not understand.

The North Carolina Association of Educators says it has a licensing agreement to use the apple symbol for political advocacy in the state. At left, an NCAE apple promoting Democrat Mo Greens candidacy. At right, an apple promoting Republican Michele Morrows candidacy.

Morrow wants no connection to NCAE

Morrows campaign told NCAE that its arguments are without legal merit. The campaign pointed to the widespread use of the apple in logos in the United States.

Apples are iconic symbols in the United States for education and education related goods and services, Anthony Biller, an attorney representing Morrows campaign, wrote in a July 31 letter to NCAE. The pervasive use of apples in conjunction with such goods and services is so widespread that, if not generic, the icon is so diluted to have effectively no source indicating strength..

Biller added that Morrow is concerned by the assertion that her campaign could even possibly be associated with NCAE. Morrow has been a frequent critic of the NCAE.

Mrs. Morrow is willing to go the extra mile to distance herself from NCAE and its long established and routine endorsements of left wing, Democratic party politicians, such as Josh Stein and Mo Green, as well as your history of endorsing and promoting public policies Mrs. Morrow finds disastrous, such as your past advocacy to close public schools throughout most of 2020 and your aggressive demands for mask mandates for students, Biller wrote.

As such,the Morrow campaign will make efforts to let the public know that she is not associated with nor endorsed by your organization.
Thousands of pensioners could receive winter payments too late as helplines struggle with a benefits rush triggered by Labours fuel raid, The Telegraph has learned.

Rachel Reevess decision to strip the payment from some 10 million pensioners has led to a surge in calls to the pension credit helpline, with some applicants facing nine-week delays, charities have warned.

The Government is allowing pensioners to backdate benefits claims until December, but campaigners fear that money might not reach pensioners until after the first cold spell of winter has hit.

Research by campaign group the End Fuel Poverty Coalition found application processing times had risen from six weeks at the start of August to nine weeks  meaning pensioners who apply now face significant delays in receiving payments.

Simon Francis, of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, said: Its clear ministers have not thought this through. When the Chancellor cruelly snatched away the winter fuel payment from millions of pensioners, she promised to help households who are eligible to claim the benefit.

But as it takes so long to process new claims, even those applying now may be forced into a back-dating procedure which will delay payments.

Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK, added: We know that there are quite significant delays in the processing of claims, meaning that older people may not receive any money until after the cold weather has set in.

A woman I spoke to this week from London submitted a claim about a month ago and after following it up had been told she was unlikely to hear the outcome until mid September.

These delays mean that pensioners who are very short of cash and who submit a claim now may well have to bridge quite a gap before their pension credit and winter fuel payment finally come through.

Ms Reeves announced in July that winter fuel payments, previously available to all pensioners, will now only be paid to those already in receipt of means-tested benefits.

The Chancellor said the move would save the Treasury up to 1.4bn a year, citing a so-called 22bn fiscal black hole left by the Conservatives  but charities and MPs have since urged Labour to reconsider the shake-up.

Energy bills are forecast to rise by 9pc to 1,714 a year in October, according to analysts Cornwall Insight. This equates to lower bills than last year, but the loss of the winter fuel payment will mean 10 million pensioners will be the only group to see their bills go up.

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It comes as the Government announced pay rises for public sector workers, including a 22pc increase for junior doctors and a 14pc rise for train drivers.

The Government is now pushing for increased uptake of pension credit. Liz Kendall, the work and pensions secretary, said: The 22bn black hole in the public finances we have inherited has required us to take difficult decisions, but I am determined to ensure low-income pensioners are supported.

However, Jonathan Bean, of the Fuel Poverty Action campaign group, said the process had been mired in confusion, adding that Labour gave pensioners just three months notice of the change.

He added: Left caught up in the chaos are older people who will be left fearful of the winter ahead. Many will be unsure if they will get the winter fuel payment or not and delays to payments will only add to the misery.

If ministers think that a communications campaign to encourage take-up of pension credit is any substitute for actual help with energy bills this winter, then they are very much mistaken.

Almost 900,000 people eligible for pension credit do not claim it, and the benefit entitles claimants to thousands of pounds worth of passported support, which includes housing benefit and free TV licences.

Experts have warned that the move could result in a benefits bill so large it would wipe out Labours estimated savings.

Former pensions minister Sir Steve Webb said a surge in pension credit claimants could cost the Treasury 490m  and analysts Policy In Practice told The Telegraph last week that 3.8bn worth of support linked to pension credit currently goes unclaimed.

A DWP spokesman said: There is no increase in pension credit processing time. We have surged additional staff to cover increasing pension credit calls and urge anyone who thinks they may be entitled to pension credit to check now.

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Three Palestinians killed in Israeli attack on West Bank

Palestinians inspect a destroyed building following a raid by Israeli forces in the town of Tamoun. Israeli forces condicted a raid in Tamoun, during which a house has been destroyed and four young men have been arrested. Nasser Ishtayeh/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

Palestinian authorities on Thursday said three people have been killed in an Israeli military operation in the occupied West Bank.

The Health Ministry in Ramallah said the three Palestinians were killed when an Israeli rocket hit a building in a refugee camp in the northern city of Tulkarem.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said an airborne device was used in an "anti-terrorist operation" in the West Bank. It often uses drones in raids on the territory.

Palestinian media reported that roads and buildings in the area have been destroyed during the operation, which started on Wednesday night.

According to the IDF, soldiers searched under roads for explosives.

Armed groups in the West Bank often hide explosives on and under roads to attack Israeli forces during their raids.

Tulkarem is located on the border of the West Bank to Israel and is considered a stronghold of militant Palestinians.

Earlier in August, nine militants, including a Hamas commander, were killed in Israeli airstrikes there.

The situation in the West Bank has deteriorated significantly since the beginning of the war in Gaza, which followed the October 7 attacks.

Since then, 613 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli military operations, confrontations or their own attacks, according to the Health Ministry.

Violence from Israeli settlers against Palestinians has also increased.

Palestinians gather around a destroyed house following a raid by Israeli forces in the town of Tamoun. Israeli forces condicted a raid in Tamoun, during which a house has been destroyed and four young men have been arrested. Nasser Ishtayeh/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
Three police officers have been injured after being attacked at Manchester Airport, a force has said.

A female officer and two male colleagues were assaulted and injured by a man after they found a vehicle in an unauthorised parking space at the airport at about 7.15am on Wednesday.

They had been on patrol and were inspecting the vehicle, which was not insured, when confronted by the suspect.

Officers had to deploy a taser before a man and two women were taken into custody on suspicion of assault. They have all been bailed pending further investigations.

A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said: Assaults on officers are unacceptable and we will not hesitate to take action should any criminal offences be found.

The attack follows an incident last month involving GMP officers which made international headlines after a viral video showed an officer kicking a man in the head.

Two police officers are still under investigation and four men have been bailed following that incident.

This is a breaking story. More to follow

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SANAA, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's armed Houthi group on Thursday claimed responsibility for launching attacks against two ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

"In support of Palestinians in Gaza and in response to American-British aggression against our country, we carried out two military operations in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden," Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said in a statement aired by Houthi-run al-Masirah TV.

"The first operation targeted the oil tanker MV Sounion because the company that operates it has dealt with the Israeli enemy," he said. "The ship was accurately and directly hit while sailing in the Red Sea and is at risk of sinking."

"The other operation targeted the ship SW North Wind I, also belonging to a company that deals with the Israeli enemy. It was directly and accurately hit while sailing in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea," he added.

According to the UK Maritime Trade Operations, MV Sounion, a Greek-flagged oil tanker, and SW North Wind I, a Panama-flagged commercial vessel, were both attacked on Wednesday.

The attacks come amid ongoing regional tensions. The Houthis have targeted "Israeli-linked" ships since November 2023 in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, vowing to escalate strikes until Israel halts its offensive.

In response, the United States and Britain have conducted air and naval strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen since mid-January to prevent disruptions to international shipping lanes. This intervention has led the Houthis to expand their targets to include U.S. and British commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

On Thursday, Houthi leader Abdulmalik al-Houthi claimed in a televised speech that his group has attacked 182 ships in shipping lanes off Yemen since November of last year. 
Three years ago, he killed two people. Now, hes getting out

GALESBURG, Mich. (WOOD)  Denise Cooper vividly remembers driving to the Galesburg apartment of her daughter and son-in-law in the summer of 2021 to find it crowded with police investigating their deaths.

Three years later, the man who admitted to shooting and killing them is expected to be released from psychiatric care.

The hardest part is not being able to say what I want to say to the person that did this, Cooper said. The individual that did this, in my opinion, is being treated better than the victims themselves.

Virgil and Kailey Walker.

Kailey and Virgil Walker were shot in their apartment by William Wolfe on June 3, 2021. Wolfe called 911 dispatchers to report the shooting. More than a year later in 2022, he was found not guilty by reason of insanity and was committed by a judge to the Center for Forensic Psychiatry.

Court document: Galesburg man called 911 after fatally shooting neighbors

Cooper said a phone call from officials Monday morning notified her of Wolfes expected release within the week.

Kalamazoo County Chief Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Jeff Williams said the office was notified of the pending release by Cooper. He said court documents seem to confirm what Cooper was told.

File  William Wolfe in court for arraignment on June 8, 2021.

He explained that generally, the legal system stresses the intent of the suspect. A finding of not guilty by reason of insanity, Williams said, accounts for cases when a suspects mental health prevented them from understanding the situation.

Was your mental illness so severe at the time the crime was committed that you didnt realize that you were doing something harmful or something in violation of the law? And thats the situation that presented itself in this case, Williams said.

He said that once a person is found not guilty by reason of insanity, their case is handed over to the state psychiatric hospital system. State doctors handle evaluations and treatment. Reports are reviewed by a probate court.

Once a person is released, Williams said there are few legal options left for prosecutors. He said the goal now is taking care of the Walkers loved ones.

My number one reaction to that is just how terrible it is for the victims, Williams said. Losing a loved one suddenly as what happened in this case is a terribly challenging thing for anyone and for any family. And despite our best efforts, the court system can be really traumatic for victims.

Denise Cooper sits next to photos of her daughter and son-in-law, Kailey and Virgil Walker. (Aug. 21. 2024)

Surrounded by pictures of Kailey and Virgil, who Cooper called Larry, she said she is working to contact lawmakers to intervene in Wolfes release. She said her determination comes from the life her daughter and son-in-law lived.

No matter how hard they were knocked down, they always got back up, Cooper said.

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A spokesperson with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services said the agency cannot provide an update on Wolfes status or his release due to patient privacy laws. The spokesperson said a person declared not guilty by reason of insanity must meet the criteria set by the Michigan Mental Health code for a person requiring treatment to continue involuntary treatment.

Before a patient is discharged to another facility or into the community, the spokesperson said, a committee of trained forensic staff reviews the risks. Its part of the process to support a patients continued treatment and address possible security risks.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Originally appeared on E! Online

The TikTok community has lost a fun-loving star.

Jainer Moises Pinedo Vargas, also known as TikToker Ingeniero Bailarin, or Dancing Engineer, died on Aug. 18 after complications from dengue fevera mosquito-borne viral diseasehealth officials confirmed to Peruvian publication Peru 21 Aug. 19. He was 34.

This patient arrived with a diagnosis of dengue; however, during his evolution and up to his care at the Almanzor Aguinaga Asenjo hospital, he was diagnosed with pleural effusion and respiratory failure and, upon entering the ICU, they confirmed that he had a diagnosis of Hodgkin's lymphoma, Deputy Minister of Public Health of the Ministry of Health Ricardo Pena Sanchez told Peru 21 in a statement translated from Spanish. The patient had a neoplastic underlying disease and that probably explains the fatal outcome.

The late 34-year-old reportedly came down with the illness while doing work in the Condorcanqui province of Peru andbecause dengue more often occurs in the summertime of the South American countryhis death is still being investigated.

More from E! Online

The CDC Rapid Response Team is conducting the investigation," Sanchez added to Peru 21. But also given the number of days of evolution, it is most likely that this underlying disease is linked, precisely, to this outcome.

Vargas mother, Betty Vargas Garcia, later shared a note of grief to her Facebook page.

Rest in peace beloved son, Garcia wrote. We are going to miss you!!!

Vargaswho was a forest engineerfirst started posting to TikTok in 2021. He was known for his easily replicated dance stylings and received millions of views on his videos over the years, as well as amassing over 200,000 followers on the video platform, as well as over 50,000 on Instagram.

Dancing Engineer/Instagram

The late 34-year-olds last post was earlier this month, where he showed off his moves from his hospital room.

Ive wanted to try this trend for a long time but I wasnt able to, he wrote in the Aug. 1 video. Now, with 20 percent of my energy it can be done!

Even while continuing his health battle, Vargas maintained a positive disposition, joking about his incontinence diaper falling around his ankles. And many of his fans continue to mourn him on his social media.

Dancing engineer, you didnt deserve to die so young, one fan wrote in a comment. Your talent was unique. Thank you for giving us joy through your art. How sad. My condolences to your family.

For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News App


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Democrats have been obsessing over Tim Walz since presidential nominee Kamala Harris named him as her vice presidential pick earlier this month. Over the last few weeks, the Minnesota governor has made headlines for his neutral-turned-progressive views on issues that matter (and which will be crucial issues come Election Day in November)but he has also gone viral for his relatable, liberal Midwestern dad swag. Hes shown that rizz not only via his passionate support of Harris and his undeniable resemblance to beloved actor Steve Martin, but also through his adorable, candid videos with his daughter, Hope.

On his Instagram, Walz regularly posts snapshots of his family life, including fun outings with his 23-year-old daughter. In one of them, the two are seen attending the Minnesota State Fair and choosing which rides to go on, with Walz saying he always gets to choose an old or classic ride, while Hope picks a newer one. The video later shows the father-daughter duo laughing and screaming while up on the ride Hope chose. My daughter, Hope, tricked me into doing the most extreme ride, Walz later wrote in his post caption.

In another video shared on Instagrama PSA announcing Minnesotas ban on using devices while drivingthe Dem politician is seen sitting in his car with Hope. Were making sure we remind all of you hands-free driving starts on the first of August. We want to make sure our teen drivers are not texting, and he says, before Hope interjects. No, no, noI think its actually mostly bald men, she says, poking fun at her old guy dad throughout the clip.

Walz has also struck a chord with voters by sharing the story of his and wife Gwens seven-year struggle to conceive Hope through fertility treatmentsan issue that is top of mind this election year, especially because since overturning Roe v. Wade in 2022, Republicans have threatened to make in vitro fertilization illegal. Walz and Gwen have a younger son, Gus, as well.

The Washington Post - Getty Images

It took Gwen and I years to conceive, Walz said at the Democratic National Convention this week. But we had access to fertility treatments, and when our daughter was born, we named her Hope. He held back tears as his spoke, while his wife, son, and daughter became equally emotional watching him. Hope, Gus, and Gwen, you are my entire world and I love you.

Chip Somodevilla - Getty Images

Andrew Harnik - Getty Images

Unsurprisingly, the social media clips featuring Hope have resurfaced in the wake of Harriss selection of Walz, and have earned the former teacher plenty of fans among Demsparticularly the younger voters he and Harris will need if they hope to win the election against Republican nominee Donald Trump.

For days, people on Instagram, TikTok, and X have been gushing about the governors happy dad vibes, small-town charm, and pro-joy energy. Only time will tell if this will be enough to incite his young fans to vote come the presidential elections.

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Tim Walz Delivers Rousing DNC Speech: Im Ready to Turn the Page on These Guys

Tim Walz accepted the vice presidential nomination at the Democratic convention on Wednesday night, declaring it was time to move on from Donald Trump.

Im ready to turn the page on these guys, Walz said. Were not going back.

More from Variety

The Minnesota governor was introduced by a former student at Mankato West High School, who was joined on stage by members of the football team.

In his speech, Walz sketched his biography, including his time as high school teacher and coach. He cited his two children, Hope and Gus, who were born with the help of fertility treatments and were watching from the audience.

And he leaned heavily on sports metaphors, as when he warned about the Project 2025 agenda.

I coached high school football long enough to know  and trust me on this, Walz said. When somebody takes the time to draw up a playbook, theyre going to use it.

In closing, he urged Democrats to campaign for him and Kamala Harris as though theyre the underdogs.

Were down a field goal, but were on offense and weve got the ball, Walz said.

In honor of Minnesota, John Legend performed the Prince song Lets Go Crazy in a duet with Sheila E. The pop star lived and recorded music in the state that Walz governs, and is a favorite of the new Democratic vice presidential nominee.

Oprah Winfrey also made a surprise appearance, touching on the history of school desegregation, and urging voters to choose common sense over nonsense.

Values and character matter most of all in leadership and in life, she said. Decency and respect are on the ballot in 2024.

Earlier in the night, former President Bill Clinton called Harris a breath of fresh air compared to Trump.

He mostly talks about himself, he said. So the next time you hear him, dont count the lies. Count the Is.

Clinton loaded up the folksy charm with lines like Shell break my record as the president who spends the most time at McDonalds.

In closing, Clinton choked up at the prospect of Harris historic election and his own advancing years. He told the crowd that he hasnt missed a DNC since his first one in 1976  which he quickly corrected to 1972. I have no idea how many more Ill be able to come to, Clinton said, his hoarse voice cracking.

Mindy Kaling served as the evenings celebrity host, joking about having outed Harris as Indian by filming an Instagram cooking video in 2019.

I truly believe that as a woman of color, and as a single mother of three, it is incredibly that i be appointed ambassador to Italy, Kaling said. Thats how this works right?

She also gave a shout-out to fellow Massachusetts native Ben Affleck, a day after Jennifer Lopez filed for divorce, saying Hang in there. Kaling also introduced former Speaker Nancy Pelosi as the mother of dragons, saying she was brat before brat was brat.

Kenan Thompson, of SNL, also did a comedy bit about Project 2025, highlighting conservative plans to close the Department of Education and outlaw abortion, and likening it to the terms of service of a new Donald Trump administration.

You can stop it from ever happening by electing Kamala Harris as the next president of the United States, Thompson said.

Stevie Wonder took the stage as well, performing Higher Ground.

We must keep on keepin on until we truly are a united people of these United States, he said.

The convention also showed a video of the Jan. 6 attack, which closed by noting that Trump is facing conspiracy and obstruction charges: If re-elected, he will never be held accountable.

Some of the delegates chanted Lock him up.

He betrayed us, said Sgt. Aquilino Gonell, a retired Capitol police officer. On Jan. 6, I nearly died protecting our Capitol. And I would do it again to protect our democracy.

The convention also heard a heart-tugging plea from Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, the parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who is being held hostage in Gaza. The delegates chanted Bring them home.

Cynthia Littleton contributed to this story.

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For Tim Walz, in vitro fertilization (IVF) is a deeply personal issueor at least he made it seem that way. In several recent interviews, the Minnesota governor and Democratic vice presidential candidate implied or outright suggested that his own two children were conceived using IVF.

One problem: It's not true. Walz's children were conceived using intrauterine insemination (IUI), not IVF. These are two very different things, and the policy conversations about them are fundamentally distinct; many religious conservatives want to prohibit IVFwhich can result in the destruction of unused fertilized embryos outside the wombbut not IUI.

Yet Walz tried to link his own personal experience with potential efforts by Republicans to ban IVF. This is misleading, since he and his wife used IUI, not IVF.

It was an oft-repeated error. On Facebook, Walz wrote that his family had taken advantage of reproductive health care options like IVF, which is true enough. But then he told the Pod Save America podcast that his two kids were born "that way," in reference to IVF. Worse still, on MSNBC, he flatly stated: "Thank God for IVF, my wife and I have two beautiful children."

It makes sense that some people who have little familiarity with either procedure use IVF as shorthand for both. But Walz should have a more granular understanding of what they involve. Moreover, he has accused his opponents of wanting to ban IVF. Walz attacked his rival, Republican vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance, saying: "If it were up to him, I wouldn't have a family, because of IVF, and the things that we need to do reproductively."

In June, Vance joined most other Senate Republicans to block a bill that would have made access to IVF a protected right nationwide. Republicans offered a counter bill that would have discouraged states from banning IVF; Democrats blocked that one. Reasonable minds can disagree on whether IVF is in danger of being prohibited under a Trump-Vance administrationbut again, this is entirely separate from IUI.

Service Record

Walz is no stranger to making exaggerations. He also misrepresented his military service, indirectly implying that he saw combat while stationed overseas in the National Guard. In 2018, Walz spoke favorably of gun control initiatives, saying: "We can make sure that those weapons of war, that I carried in war, is the only place where those weapons are at."

One might have assumed, based on those remarks, that Walz carried weapons in an actual war zone, but no: He never served in combat. During the Afghanistan War, Walz was deployed to Italy and served in a support role. When referred to by others as an "Afghanistan veteran" and a veteran who served in "Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan," he offered no correction, according to The New York Times. He also claimed to have retired from active service as a command sergeant major; his actual rank upon retirement was one level lower.

Republicans have said these misstatements amount to "stolen valor." In the scheme of things, they are not the most egregious war-related exaggerations ever told by a major political figure. Hillary Clinton once said that her airplane came under sniper fire while landing in Bosnia, a claim that received four Pinocchios from The Washington Post. President Joe Biden has frequently stated that his son Beau Biden died in Iraq. (Beau died of a brain tumor, and his proximity to a burn pit while serving in Baghdad, Iraq, could be the proximate cause; he died in a U.S. hospital around six years after his deployment, however.)

But it's important to demand frank honesty from those seeking higher office, and the media should not let politicians off the hook for even slightly embellishing the truth. Kudos to The New York Times, for instance, for very closely scrutinizing Walz's military record and statements.

Unfortunately, proper media scrutiny of his IVF comments only materialized after countless articles had already been written that praised him for making IVF central to his identity as a political actor. At a bare minimum, those need to be corrected.

Reckless Conduct

The best major media expose on Walz's incautious truth telling came from CNN's Andrew Kaczynski, who revealed that Walz repeatedly lied about his 1995 arrest for drunk driving when he ran for Congress a decade later.

Walz was stopped for driving 96 mph in a 55 mph zone and admitted to police that he had been drinking. His blood alcohol level was .128.

"But in 2006, his campaign repeatedly told the press that he had not been drinking that night, claiming that his failed field sobriety test was due to a misunderstanding related to hearing loss from his time in the National Guard," wrote Kaczynski. "The campaign also claimed that Walz was allowed to drive himself to jail that night. None of that was true."

These were direct lies, and there's no excuse for them.

This Week on Free Media

We are actually taking the next two weeks off, but I'll be back with Amber Duke in September. There's much more Free Media to come!

In the meantime, my Rising co-host Jessica Burbank and I received an on-the-ground report from Amber Duke concerning events at the Democratic National Convention. Watch here.

Worth Watching

I finally, at long last, had time to start watching The Boys on Amazon Prime. My friends have been telling me for years that I'd love this show, which is about a team of vigilantes working to take down the planet's biggest superheroes. That's because the superheroes are actually very bad people; Exhibit A is Homelander, an ostensible Superman-type figure who is secretly a violent, megalomaniacal psychopath.

I'm two episodes in, and, yes, I'm hooked. I highly recommend it.

The post Tim Walz Keeps Lying appeared first on Reason.com.
Tim Walz slammed by GOP veterans in letter over his misrepresentations of service

A group of 50 Republican veterans have written a letter to Tim Walzaccusing him of egregious misrepresentations when discussing his military service.

The letter, posted on the official Trump-Vance campaign website, said the Minnesota governor had exploited and co-opted the experiences of Americas combat veterans for personal gain.

To be blunt, when you falsely claim military service that did not happen and abandon your post, you diminish the real sacrifices made by veterans who did serve in combat, the letter reads. Military service is not merely a job or a uniform.

It continued: Those who serve in the Armed Forces endure rigorous training, face perilous situations, and make sacrifices that most civilians cant comprehend. The honor of wearing the uniform is earned through dedication, bravery, and an unwavering sense of duty.

You have displayed none of these characteristics as you have lied your way through a political career launched on the foundation of a title you did not earn and combat deployments you did not take part in.

50 Republican veterans have written a letter to Tim Walz accusing him of egregious misrepresentations over his military service (Getty Images)

The letter marks the latest attempt by Republicans to attack Walz over his service since he joined the Democratic ticket. Such attacks have been spearheaded by JD Vance, a Marine Corps veteran. Before retiring and running for Congress, Walz served 24 years in the Army National Guard.

It also highlighted remarks made by the governor in 2018, in which he spoke of weapons of war that I carried in war while making a speech about gun violence. Harriss campaign said in a statement Walz misspoke at the time.

Wednesdays letter cited Walzs previous comments, and his decision to resign from the National Guard months before his unit deployed overseas.

The Harris campaign previously referred to Walz as a retired command sergeant major. Walz reached that rank, but he did not complete the requirements to keep it before he retired  something the lawmakers described as not honorable.

You have stated that you are damn proud of your service, and like any American veteran, you should be. But there is no honor in lying about the nature of your service, the letter stated.

It concluded: Americas veterans and servicemembers are rightfully concerned about what would happen to them should you ascend to the Presidency. When America asked you to lead your troops into War, you turned your back on your troops.

Attacks on Walzs military service have been spearheaded by Republican rival JD Vance, a Marine Corps veteran (REUTERS)

You have violated the trust of our brothers and sisters in arms. Their blood, sweat, and sacrifice are the only reason our nation is able to exist. Until you admit you lied to them, there is no way you can be trusted to serve as Vice President.

Walz spoke out over the attacks during a speech to the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union. These guys are even attacking me for my record of service, he said last week.

And I just want to say, Im proud to have served my country and I always will be. With my dads encouragement  a guy who served in the Army during the Korean War  I signed by for the Army National Guard two days after my 17th birthday.

Then in 2005, I felt the call of duty again, this time of being a service to my country in the halls of Congress. My students inspired me to run for that office, he added.

The Independent has contacted the Harris-Walz campaign for comment on the letter.
Thursday, Aug. 22, marks the one-year anniversary of the fatal school bus crash in Clark Countty that claimed the life of student Aiden Clark.

Here is 2 NEWS previous coverage of the crash, its aftermath, and the case against Hermanio Joseph, the driver of the van that hit the bus.

1 child dead after school bus crash in Clark County, multiple injured (Aug. 22, 2023)

Truly heartbreaking: Gov. DeWine responds to deadly school bus crash (Aug. 22, 2023)

Dayton Childrens discusses coping with traumatic events (Aug. 22, 2023)

Man charged with homicide after collision with school bus kills child, injures others (Aug. 23, 2023)

Its just God moving us together: Memorial started for victim in school bus crash (Aug. 23, 2023)

All are welcome: Prayer service to be held for family of child who died in Clark County school bus crash (Aug. 23, 2023)

1 child remains in serious condition after Clark County school bus crash (Aug. 24, 2023)

Community prayer service held for boy killed in Clark County bus crash (Aug. 24, 2023)

Driver charged in fatal Clark County school bus crash arraigned (Aug. 24, 2023)

Man accused of hitting Northwestern Local Schools bus appears in court (Aug. 24, 2023)

All children released from hospitals after fatal school bus crash (Aug. 25, 2023)

Funeral service honors boy killed in Clark County school bus crash (Aug. 28, 2023)

Driver charged in fatal Clark County school bus crash appears in court (Aug. 28, 2023)

Suspect in fatal school bus crash formally charged by grand jury (Aug. 29, 2023)

Grateful for the thoughts and prayers: Family of boy killed in school bus crash speaks (Aug. 31, 2023)

A heavy reminder: Clark County bus crash memorial to be removed (Sept. 1, 2023)

School bus safety initiative launched in response to Clark County crash (Sept. 11, 2023)

Suspect in fatal school bus crash seeks to move trial location (Sept. 21, 2023)

Trial for suspect in fatal school bus crash to remain in Clark County (Oct. 17, 2023)

Ohio task force addresses bus safety concerns (Nov. 16, 2023)

Ohio School Bus Safety Working Group meeting for final time Friday (Dec. 1, 2023)

Man accused of causing deadly bus crash argues charges inappropriate (Jan. 16, 2024)

Bus safety group shares recommendations, proposes funding (Jan. 31, 2024)

Driver in fatal bus crash had invalid license: court documents (Feb. 8, 2024)

Trial begins Monday for man accused in deadly school bus crash (April 23, 2024)

Day 1: Trial begins against man accused of causing deadly school bus crash (April 29, 2024)

Day 2: Trial begins in August 2023 fatal bus crash (April 30, 2024)

Jury reaches verdict in fatal bus crash trial (May 1, 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 WDTN.com.
Fresno State Title IX coordinator Jamie Pontius-Hogan is no longer in the department following a restructuring of an understaffed unit that was found to be lacking in its intake, investigations and record keeping by multiple independent investigations into how the university responded to sexual harassment and discrimination claims.

Pontius-Hogan, however, remains employed at the university, transitioning to a role as director of administrative operations. Erin Boele, the campus director of student housing and deputy Title IX coordinator, also has been removed from her Title IX position. She remains in the campus housing department.

The university declined to comment on the changes to the administration of its Title IX office, which is charged with coordinating the universitys compliance with the 1972 federal civil rights law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or education program that receives federal funding. At Fresno State, the department oversaw all complaints of sexual discrimination, harassment and misconduct involving students and employees.

Title IX operations at the university, as well as the Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation (DHR) department, are now part of the Office of Compliance and Civil Rights and under the direction of newly-hired Anne Githae, assistant vice president for compliance and civil rights. Githae comes to Fresno State from Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va., where she was assistant vice president for institutional equity and the deputy Title IX coordinator.

The Office of Compliance and Civil Rights remains part of the universitys division of administration and finance led by vice president of administration Debbie Adishian-Astone, who also oversees human resources, the university police and a number of other campus departments.

Fresno State was the flash point for recent sexual harassment and discrimination scandals in the 23-campus California State University system, ultimately leading to the resignation of former chancellor Joseph I. Castro.

The university was criticized for a failure to properly address complaints of sexual harassment, bullying and retaliation by Frank Lamas, the former former vice president of student affairs. Lamas had a close personal relationship with Castro, who was the president at Fresno State at the time. A report commissioned by the CSU by Los Angeles-based attorney Mary Lee Wegner found Castro exhibited a blind spot to allegations against Lamas, who left the university with a $260,000 settlement and promise of letters of recommendation.

The report also found the university received nine complaints of inappropriate conduct by Lamas and while it took action to address those reports, only some of its responses complied with CSUs policy against sexual harassment and discrimination. The audit also found poor record keeping and other deficiencies in the universitys response to those allegations.

The law firm Cozen OConnor, which conducted an assessment of Title IX and DHR programs in the wider California State University system, recommended Fresno State combine its Title IX and DHR departments to streamline the universitys response to sexual harassment and discrimination cases.

The department remains understaffed, but it has an open posting for an intake coordinator, whose duties will include assessing initial reports of violations of CSUs nondiscrimination policies and providing resolution options. It also has plans to recruit a prevention/education coordinator.

The California State Auditor, which investigated harassment complaints made against CSU employees at Fresno State, San Jose State and Sonoma State and the chancellors office from 2016-22, found a number of deficiencies in how cases were handled.

The cases of alleged sexual harassment in the report were not identified by campus, but it said there were 40 reviewed by the auditor  12 on one campus, 11 on another, 10 on a third and seven on the fourth. The auditor found issues at all four campuses. In 11 of the 15 cases that were closed at intake, the auditor found further investigation might have been warranted and that the campuses did not document a clear rationale for its decisions not to proceed.

There were also other issues related to documentation and whether complainants, who are potential victims, were contacted by investigators.

The auditor also found significant issues with seven of the cases that were investigated, raising questions about campus rulings that sexual harassment had not occurred. There was at least one such case on each of the four campuses investigated. There also were instances when a campus was found to not have made reasonable attempts to gather all relevant evidence, and failed to appropriately weigh the evidence to determine whether the alleged conduct had occurred.

The auditor found that nearly two-thirds of the investigations it reviewed exceeded the time frames for completion that were established by the CSU and that the campuses did not consistently take any disciplinary action to address the employees behavior.
On Aug. 22, 1944, the Soviet Union secured an armistice with Romania for the Allies.

Level the playing field

In 1937, Romanias king, Carol II, dissolved what became a fascist government not unlike that of Nazi Germany. In 1940, the Soviet Union co-opted control of two Romanian provinces, so the king turned to Nazi Germany to help level the playing field against the Russian bear.

On Nov. 23, 1940, Romania signed the Tripartite Pact and officially became an Axis power allied with Germany, Italy and Japan.

The Romanians wrested control of their territories from the Soviets with German help.

Their German allies tore through Romanias resources to support their war. Hitler pillaged Romanias oil wells, installations and food crops, causing a food shortage for native Romanians.

Overthrow

Eventually, the deposed kings son would overthrow the fascist regime and swing Romania to the Allied side. Caught between the Germans and the Soviets in 1944, King Michael, son of the late King Carol, decided to fight alongside the Soviet Union and declare war against a losing Germany.

King Michael. Wikimedia Commons.

Sadly for King Michael, the Soviets would force him to abdicate as they established a communist government in his place.

Featured image: American B-24 Liberator flying over a burning oil refinery at Ploiesti, as part of Operation Tidal Wave on Aug. 1, 1943. Due to its role as a major supplier of oil to the Axis, Romania was a prime target of Allied strategic bombing in 1943 and 1944.
Too many families paid taxes to lift up SC schools only to be let down. What we changed | Opinion

This school year, nearly 3,000 South Carolina students will begin a new academic journey at the school of their choosing. Thats because the South Carolina Education Scholarship Trust Fund program, which was signed into law last year, empowered low-income families throughout the State with real choices in their childrens education.

For years, these South Carolina students were stuck in consistently underperforming schools or schools that failed to meet their needs. The parents of these children paid taxes to lift up these schools, only to be let down. There were no other options for these families.

The Education Scholarship Trust Fund legislation, which I wrote, posed a simple question: Why not return those hard-earned tax dollars in the form of scholarships for families to use as they choose? Empowering families with choice injects free market principles into our education system, driving innovation and improving the quality of education. Its a transformational approach, and now its law in South Carolina.

The process is easy. Prospective students first apply to the South Carolina Department of Education. The agency then awards education scholarships to qualifying families in the amount of $6,000. These funds may be used to cover education expenses like transportation, textbooks, tutoring, and tuition and fees incurred for attending another public school or private school.

Far from endangering South Carolinas public schools, education scholarships became law alongside landmark investments in public education.

Over the last seven years, the General Assembly has voted to increase teacher pay by 56%. Public school teachers salaries now start at $47,000 annually, and their benefits include paid family leave after the birth or adoption of a child. Individual districts offer starting salaries beyond the state minimum, like the district in my home county of Berkeley, where a new teacher will make $52,450 in his or her first year.

The only thing school choice threatens is the status quo.

As of April of this year, 18 states have deployed an education scholarship program in an effort to expand opportunities for students. Choice in education is winning.

In South Carolina, initial scholarship application data revealed that the number of applications far exceeded the available scholarships. Applicants represent all corners of the state, and more than half come from minority backgrounds.

For the inaugural class, participation was limited to 5,000 students from households with incomes of no more than 200% of the federal poverty level, which is $62,400 for a family of four. By year three, the program will accept up to 15,000 applicants from households with incomes up to 400% of the poverty level.

Despite high demand for one of the limited spots, just over one-third of the applicants were ultimately approved. How did that happen? Its because thousands of applicants, nearly 80% of those who were denied, applied after the deadline or did not fully complete the application. This must be fixed.

Its clear to me that the state must improve the application process in order to ensure that the families who wish to participate are able to do so. No student who otherwise qualifies should be turned away over paperwork. I am confident the South Carolina Department of Education will work diligently to make sure qualified students are equipped with any application guidance they may require.

For too long, weve invested in systems instead of students. No more.

South Carolina has embarked on a revolutionary path of education freedom and  as I said when the bill was signed  freedom only works every time.

Thanks to education scholarship trust funds, the quality of a students education will no longer be defined by his or her ZIP code.

Sen. Larry Grooms is chair of the Senate Transportation Committee and the primary sponsor of Senate Bill 39. He serves Senate District 37, which includes parts of Berkeley and Charleston counties.
Alaeddin Boroujerdi, chairman of the Iran-China Friendship Association and a senior Iranian lawmaker, speaks to the media in Tehran, Iran, Aug. 22, 2024. Boroujerdi commended the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Iran and emphasized that Iran's new administration would be committed to enhancing bilateral ties. (Xinhua/Shadati)

TEHRAN, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese Embassy in Tehran celebrated the 53rd anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Iran with a ceremony on Thursday.

Chinese Ambassador to Tehran Cong Peiwu, Alaeddin Boroujerdi -- chairman of the Iran-China Friendship Association and a senior Iranian lawmaker -- and other association members attended the event.

Diplomatic relations between China and Iran were formally established on Aug. 16, 1971.

In his address, Cong noted that the friendship between China and Iran has strengthened over the years, highlighting a relationship that dates back more than 2,000 years. He stated that since the establishment of diplomatic ties, bilateral relations have made significant progress and sustained strong development momentum.

Cong also mentioned that mutual political trust has deepened, practical cooperation has yielded new results, and people-to-people and cultural exchanges have increased. He expressed satisfaction with the expansion of bilateral relations, pointing out that China has been Iran's largest trade partner for several years.

Boroujerdi commended the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two nations and emphasized that Iran's new administration would be committed to enhancing bilateral ties. He also expressed hope that Iran's role in the Belt and Road Initiative would be clearly defined and anticipated significant practical steps forward. 

Attendees pose for a group photo during a ceremony celebrating the 53rd anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Iran in Tehran, Iran, Aug. 22, 2024. The Chinese Embassy in Tehran celebrated the 53rd anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Iran with a ceremony on Thursday. (Xinhua/Shadati)

Alaeddin Boroujerdi, chairman of the Iran-China Friendship Association, speaks during a ceremony celebrating the 53rd anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Iran in Tehran, Iran, Aug. 22, 2024. The Chinese Embassy in Tehran celebrated the 53rd anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Iran with a ceremony on Thursday. (Xinhua/Shadati)

Chinese Ambassador to Tehran Cong Peiwu speaks during a ceremony celebrating the 53rd anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Iran in Tehran, Iran, Aug. 22, 2024. The Chinese Embassy in Tehran celebrated the 53rd anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Iran with a ceremony on Thursday. (Xinhua/Shadati)
TOPEKA (KSNT)  A group of students had an out-of-this-world experience this after getting their questions answered by astronauts in space.

At Whitson Elementary, students had the opportunity to hear from two NASA astronauts live from the International Space Station (ISS). The students submitted their questions last school year, and the astronauts answered their 12 pre-recorded questions from space.

27 News spoke with three students, Nora Fulbright, Corben Manson and Grace Johnson-Castillo, about their thoughts on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

It was cool cause like thats something you have to work really hard for, Fulbright said.

Thats not an everyday thing that normal humans do, Manson stated.

I would want to go to space because I love space, Johnson-Castillo said. I think it is very interesting and I would want to know how it feels to float.

Kansas ranks as one of the least fun states: WalletHub study

Whitson Elementarys Principal, Keelin Pierce, said the second graders are currently learning about space in the classroom, so this opportunity came at the perfect time.

For more Kansas news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here.

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When tornadoes are least likely in Tennessee

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN)  Everyone in Middle Tennessee and Southern Kentucky knows tornado season is during the spring months, but do you know when tornadoes are least likely?

Meteorologists at the National Weather Service Nashville say its right now. August and September are Tennessees calmest months when it comes to tornadoes.

Tornado data has been recorded by the National Weather Service since 1811 and during that time over 900 tornadoes have impacted the Volunteer State.

Out of all those tornadoes, only 20 occurred during August with just 12 in September.

How La Nina could impact Tennessees winter

The months with the most tornadoes in Tennessee are April and May. Over 200 tornadoes have touched down in April with 180 during May.

Krissy Hurley the meteorologist in charge at National Weather Service Nashville said typically the only chance to see a tornado this time of year is with a tropical system.

So for us to really get any kind of tornadic storms up here in August and September its usually from decaying tropical systems that have hit the Gulf of Mexico. So thats why August and September are our two least tornadic months said Hurley.

Hurley mentioned this quiet time for tornadoes doesnt last long and Tennessees secondary tornado season starts pretty soon. What you may not know is that we have a secondary severe weather season. We usually get one tornado event or at least a severe weather event in the months of November or December.

In fact, Tennessees second deadliest tornado outbreak occurred during the secondary tornado season. The tornado outbreak of November 20th, 1900 killed 41 Tennesseans.

 Read todays top stories on wkrn.com

Hurley said to always be weather aware, but to enjoy this time of year when tornadoes are least likely.

Dont forget to take the power and reliability of the WKRN Weather Authority with you at all times by downloading the News 2 Storm Tracker app.

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A Torpedoed WWI Warship Has Appeared at the Bottom of the Sea, 110 Years After It Sank



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A World War I Royal Navy warship was discovered in remarkable condition at the bottom of the North Seanearly 110 years later after it was sunk.

The Edgar-class protected cruiser, the HMS Hawke, was torpedoed by a German U-boat in 1914 in an attack that killed 524 sailors.

Divers found Royal Navy crockery still sitting in the ships rooms.

Nearly 110 years ago, the HMS Hawke was sent plunging to the bottom of the sea by a torpedo launched from a German U-boat. Lost within minutes of the German strike on October 15, 1914, the location of the ship and the 524 sailors who were on board has been a mystery since World War I.

But now, that mystery has been solved, thanks to the work of the Lost in Waters Deep team. The divers located the ship roughly 70 miles east of Fraserburgh, Scotland, in the North Sea, and and dived to it on August 11.

Not only did the team locate the shipand the final resting place of the lost sailorsbut the researchers also found the HMS Hawke in truly remarkable condition. Much of the teak decking was still in place, the captains walkway was secure on the back of the stern, plenty of World War I-era guns were still on board, and even Royal Navy crockery was still present in the wreckage.

It is fascinating, Steve Mortimer, a diver working alongside the Lost in Waters Deep project, told BBC Scotland. She clearly was taken completely by surprise because lots of the portholes are still open. You can look into the portholes and see rooms with artifactsteacups, bowls, and plates just there on the floor.

The 387-foot-long, 60-foot-wide Edgar-class protected cruiser was first launched in 1891. It had a brush with fame in 1911, when an accident in the Solent shipping channel in Britain saw it collide with the RMS Olympic, the Titanics sister ship.

The Hawke vs. Olympic accident went to trial, and a theory purported that the large amount of water displaced by the Olympic generated a sort of suction that drew the Hawke off course and into the Olympic. After repairs to the bow, the Hawkes next major use was as part of the Royal Navys 10th Cruiser Squadron, which patrolled the North Sea and engaged in blockade efforts between the island of Shetland and Norway, north of Scotland, during World War I.

According to Scottish Shipwrecks, the HMS Hawke was working with HMS Theseus a bit farther south when they picked up mail from the steamship SS Endymion on October 15, 1914. Unbeknownst to the British, the ships were being tracked the entire time by a German U-9 submarine. Following the successful mail transfer, the Hawke returned to patrol duties.

But at 10:50 a.m., a single torpedo smashed into the starboard side of the Hawke, immediately listing the ship and making it difficult for sailors to lower collision mats or deploy lifeboats. A fire and explosion had the ship under water in somewhere between five and eight minutes. Only two rescue boats made it off the Hawke, but one flipped and sank, meaning that just 70 sailors survived the ordeal.

Further rescue attempts were thwarted by the presence of multiple German U-boats.

The Lost in Deep Waters teams found the ship in part by mining data from 1914. The group had the U-boat commanders day journal, which showed a rough estimation of where the submarine was when it launched the torpedo. Comparing that information with logs from other royal cruisers (which moved in tandem with the HMS Hawke before the attack) gave the team a solid idea of where to start looking.

Mortimer added that Scottish fisheries reported an obstruction on the seabed in the 1980s near their target zone. Less than a mile from that obstruction spot, the team found the shipwreck.

It took years of research but the actual time on the ground was just a few hours, Mortimer told the BBC.

Mortimer said that the area in which the ship went down lacks nutrients that bring creatures to an area, which helped preserve the wreck. That preservation, he added, has made the ship a really remarkable time capsule.

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NEW MEXICO (KRQE)  One of the big draws to the Land of Enchantment is the vast array of state parks; from lakes to mountains, to desert landscapes. But, how much of an economic impact do they have on our communities? On Wednesday, Toby Velasquez, the director of the State Parks Division of the Energy Mineral and Natural Resources Department (EMNRD) gave lawmakers in the Economic and Rural Development and Policy Committee an idea of how valuable an asset New Mexicos wildlands are.

La Tierra Encantada, the Land of Enchantment. We all invite people to come to New Mexico because of the outdoors, Velasquez said.

Story continues below

He said the amount of people visiting New Mexicos State Parks is on the rise. Five million visitors a year on average since coming out of the pandemic. Before that, it would average between four and four and a half million, Velasquez said.

There are 35 state parks in New Mexico ranging across 25 of 33 counties. Velasquez said while it is a growing portion of the states gross domestic product, or GDP, New Mexico still trails behind other southwestern states like Arizona and Colorado. However, he said that in New Mexico, it really supports rural economies. We support services like shops, restaurants, hotels. The outdoor recreation economy is huge, Velasquez said.

He told lawmakers data shows the majority of tourists in New Mexico spent roughly $1,800 per trip to see the great outdoors. The Bureau of Economic Analysis, this is all part of the SCORP plan, reported that in 2019 outdoor recreation contributed $2.4 Billion to New Mexicos GDP, Velasquez said.

It has only increased since the pandemic. The analysis also provided that outdoor recreation contributes to over 35,000 jobs. That is tremendous in New Mexico, especially in a state where were wage poor and we need more jobs in rural areas, Velasquez said.

Velasquez said visitation to the states parks increased 12% between 2015 and 2019, and spending grew 18%. Theyre working to get up-to-date numbers currently. We have served 18 million people, almost 19, since January 1st of 2021, Velasquez said.

New Mexicos Tourism Department said the great outdoors are one of the states biggest attractions. In our most recent annual visitation study, we saw that 60 percent of all trips to New Mexico involved an outdoor activity, said Cody Johnson, Director of Communications.

Thats an economic stimulus that is valuable to our state and I think needs to be held in higher regard moving forward, Velasquez said.

Velasquez also told lawmakers they have been able to invest nearly all of the $20 million in funding they received in 2021 from the American Rescue Plan (ARPA) across New Mexico for things like roads and infrastructure in the parks.

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(PUEBLO, Colo.)  For people who call Pueblo home, they know the struggle of accessing quality mental health care, among other crucial services like those for substance use disorder.

I grew up in a community where having lived experience and seeing people struggle with alcoholism, drug addiction, and behavioral health, and not really knowing where to go or having those resources, Dr. Rob Archuleta said.

This realization inspired Dr. Rob Archuleta, to found his own inpatient drug and alcohol rehab center, Crossroads Turning Points, Inc., in Steel City.

Its just morphed into understanding behaviors, advocating for people and, you know, just taking a different path to working with as many different people as I can in behavioral health, Dr. Archuleta said.

But tackling these issues, cannot be done alone.

Now, Pueblo will be the first community in the entire state to play host to Colorados newly appointed Behavioral Health Administration Commissioner Dannette R. Smith, whose goal is to strengthen communities and bolster access to care.

I think the number one thing that I really want to focus on is access, she said. Theres a lot of satellite offices around Pueblo. Well, how do we strengthen a persons ability to access that service right at the time that they need it?

The first step will begin with a town-hall style meeting on Thursday, August 22, at 5 p.m. at the Pueblo Community College in the Fortino Ballroom where Smith will hear firsthand from community members on what changes they would like to see take place.

Were going to be contracting with key providers in the community to ensure that we have a network of providers who can provide real-time support in that community, driven by what the community says their needs are, and being able to provide those services in a timely manner, and where they can access it in their community, Smith said.

For Puebloans, this boots-on-the-ground approach is a refreshing change of pace that they hope will garner the support they need to make positive changes to the community they call home.

And so what we want to do is we want to be right there with the BHA as a partner, doing outreach and educating our communities, educating our judges, educating our attorneys, educating our city council, our mayors, so that they understand that addiction its a medical [issue], its psychiatric, its social, its everything. And that we can all work to address it together, Dr. Archuleta said.

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Treating Nord Stream blasts as a whodunit misses the point  and plays into Russias plan to distract and divide

In the two years since saboteurs planted explosives on Nord Stream 1 and 2  gas pipelines that spanned the Baltic Sea to connect Russia to Germany  the finger of suspicion has fallen on a succession of possible culprits.

Immediately after the Sept. 26, 2022, blast, many Western experts blamed Russia. The theory was that Moscow blew up the pipelines as part of its hybrid warfare approach  showing a willingness and capability to attack critical infrastructure  or as a false flag operation to smear Ukraine.

Since then, journalists and pundits have suggested a range of culprits, including President Joe Biden and the CIA, Ukraine and Poland.

Swedish and Danish intelligence investigations ended in February 2024 without identifying the saboteurs, doing little to tamp down conspiracy theories.

Then, in August 2024, it was reported in German media that as part of the ongoing German investigation, prosecutors had issued an arrest warrant for a Ukrainian diving instructor living in Poland.

Kyiv has dismissed the claim of official complicity as absolute nonsense; meanwhile, Krzysztof Gawkowski, Polands deputy prime minister and the minister of digital affairs, suggested that the German findings were inspired by Moscow and intended to cause a rift between NATO countries.

Nonetheless, it has helped shift the consensus framing of the incident toward the blast being an international crime against majority Russian-owned civilian infrastructure.

And this represents a clear win for Russia. Cementing Russias narrative, rather than establishing the truth, may have always been the point for Moscow.

While investigators look for the motives, means and opportunity for the sabotage itself, observers of post-Soviet geopolitics and President Vladimir Putins tactics like myself can likewise examine Russias motives for framing the attack as a deliberate criminal act. And here, the Nord Stream case serves as a reminder of how effectively the Kremlin uses disinformation and manipulation to push its narratives, often to sow dissent in the West and distract from Russias actual crimes elsewhere.

This is true even when, as appears the case at the present with the Nord Stream blasts, the forensic evidence so far assembled aligns with Russias preferred narrative.

Nord Stream in context

The Nord Stream explosions occurred seven months after Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine. By then, the Kremlins military offensive had stalled and Putin was reorienting his efforts toward a long war of attrition. His military had already inflicted almost 15,000 civilian casualties, and September 2022 saw the start of sustained attacks on critical Ukrainian infrastructure, including dams, railways, hospitals, schools and the energy grid.

Gas leaking at Nord Stream 2. Danish Defence/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Built and operated by a consortium led by the majority state-owned Gazprom, the Nord Stream pipelines expanded Russias ability to weaponize energy by exerting control over natural gas pricing and rates of flow. For this reason, Putins adversaries, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, viewed Nord Stream 2 as a dangerous geopolitical weapon during its construction in 2021. Nord Stream 2s completion meant Russias gas delivery to Europe  much of which is dependent on Russia for its natural gas needs  could largely bypass Ukraine and end the need to pay transit fees to both Ukraine and Poland.

As such, Ukraine had a clear interest in stopping the flow of gas through the Nord Stream pipelines. So, too, did Russias competitors in the European energy market, including Norway and the United States. And so too, arguably, did German political parties advocating for energy transition toward sustainable and renewable sources.

Despite being completed, Nord Stream 2 was not in use when Russia launched its full-scale invasion, having been blocked by German energy regulators. And Nord Stream 1, which had entered service in 2012, was shut down indefinitely by Russia in August 2022.

More than a mystery

As such, it wasnt such a jump for Western analysts to accuse Russia of destroying its own now-useless pipeline to signal its willingness and capacity to attack undersea infrastructure.

But as time passed, this view was crowded out by stories that treated the sabotage as a real-life whodunit mystery, with a focus on uncovering motives and means. Investigative journalists and other analysts studied statements in the public record, leaks from alleged whistleblowers, geospatial data, financial records and even reenactments of the attack in an attempt to crack the case.

Some, including Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh, traced responsibility all the way to the CIA and the Oval Office.

Unable to corroborate Hershs story, most U.S. media opted against echoing its claims, and the White House has consistently denied them.

Feeding conspiracy theories

Hershs take includes a belief that powerful Western interests pressured investigators and fed stories to the media to conceal the truth.

This second-order speculation  claiming that the original crime has been compounded by a cover-up  has long been promoted by Russia, too. After Sweden and Denmark halted their investigations, Moscows representative to the United Nations Security Council, Vasily Nebenzya, called for the U.N. to take over the investigation, saying: It is as if a crime was committed  a murder  and a year later, the investigative authorities concluded that the victim was murdered.

Russian disinformation

Russia has since accused German prosecutors of preparing to close the investigation without identifying those responsible.

The appeal of this framing to Moscow is clear. First, it fits Putins argument that NATO is constantly scheming against Russia. And second, it offers the promise of Russia recouping the cost of the Nord Stream sabotage from insurance companies. Insurers have so far refused to pay out, citing official findings that the sabotage was an act of war.

Mapping out the investigation into the Nord Stream blasts. Stefan Sauer/picture alliance via Getty Images

Moscow, in its relentless pursuit of proof of NATO and U.S. complicity, will likely not be satisfied by the German investigations single arrest warrant. Russia wants to put the U.S. in the dock, too  after all, President Joe Biden did threaten NATO action to shut down Nord Stream early in 2022. And Moscow responded to the German warrant of a Ukrainian by doubling down on its accusation that the U.S. ordered the attack.

Here, Russia could lean on the words of high-profile U.S. figures such as Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has repeated disinformation from confirmed Russian propaganda outlets, and former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, who praised the quality of life in Moscow during a much-criticized Putin interview.

After the Nord Stream blasts, both Greene and Carlson were quick to assert that Russia was not responsible and, by implication, that the U.S. may have had a role.

Truth isnt the goal

Keeping the Nord Stream mystery alive distracts attention from Russias documented crimes in Ukraine, including attacking civilian infrastructure and, according to the U.N. Human Rights Council, displaying a disregard for basic principles of humanitarian law and its human rights obligations.

In the years since the Nord Stream blast, Russia has leaned on its extensive capacities in disinformation and propaganda to push its narrative. In this, Russia has form.

In January 2022, U.S. government sources reported that Russia was staging attacks against pro-Russian civilians in eastern Ukraine and blaming Kyiv, to justify the invasion. Similarly, analysts have cited the supposed May 2023 Ukrainian drone attack on Moscow as an example of Soviet-style false flag operations. It is this track record that has prompted German security personnel to suspect that in regard to Nord Stream, the evidence trail leading to Ukraine was fabricated by Russian operatives.

Speculation is seductive, and the Nord Stream case has attracted its fair share over the past two years  a period in which Russia has pursued a broad campaign to sow deliberate lies and disinformation. In that same period, Putin has persistently violated international law.

Russias narrative on Nord Stream may well, when all the investigations are said and done, be the dominant one. But what is clear is that Putins accusations against Ukraine and the United States are motivated not by commitment to justice, but by a drive to disrupt and distract. Truth is not his goal, but a target.

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: Keith Brown, Arizona State University

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Keith Brown is the Director of Arizona State University's Melikian Center for Russian, Eurasian and East European Studies, that receives support from the US Department of State to train US graduate students in less-commonly taught languages of Russia, East Europe and Central Asia.
Its been 28 years to the date since the last time anyone saw Trudy Appleby.

Trudy Appleby was 11 years old that Aug. 21  the last time anyone saw her. She was seen getting into a car with a man nobodys been able to identify.

A t-shirt shows Trudy Appleby when she went missing at 11 years old, and what she might look like now.

She would be 40 years old next month. On Wednesday night, her friends and family came out to honor her, remember, and hope at a candlelight vigil.

No lead will go unfollowed, no stone unturned, until the Appleby family has the answers they have long deserved. At the vigil, Trudys uncle, Ray Eddleman says he will continue to raise awareness and search for his niece.

I really want something so bad and at the same time it scares the hell out of me that its going to happen, because then Im going to have to admit that she is gone, he said.

Trudy Appleby

Detective Michael Griffin joined Trudys case about a decade ago and is determined in his pursuit of justice for Trudy.

Im extremely confident in how this case is going, he said. My confidence in this case is very high. He hopes those involved or people who have information about Trudys disappearance will come forward, and so does Eddleman.

Its not just about Trudy, either, Eddleman said. If you see something that you know is wrong, speak up and say something. I dont want to do this again next year.

Over the years, investigators identified three people of interest in Trudys disappearance: William Smith was a friend of Trudys father. He named two more people of interest in August of 2020: David Whipple of Colona, now deceased, and Jamison Fisher, of Silvis.

Fisher was sentenced to prison in May of 2021 in an unrelated case.

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(The Hill)  Former President Trump is facing backlash after criticizing Vice President Harris for attending the historically Black sorority Sigma Gamma Rho boule.

In an interview with radio host Hugh Hewitt, Trump called the boule, when a sororitys entire membership over the years assembles together, a party.

She went actually, to a party, said Trump. And you know that she went to a sorority, sorority party and a very unimportant one. They have them numerous times during the year. Its a shame.

Harris, a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha (AKA) sorority, attended both AKAs and Sigma Gamma Rhos boules in July. The two sororities are among the Divine Nine group, which are nine historically Black fraternities and sororities.

In her remarks at the Sigma Gamma Rho boule, Harris said she was looking out at a family that shares the same vision for the future of the nation that she holds.

In this moment, we face a choice between two very different visions for our nation: one focused on the future, the other focused on the past. And we in this room are fighting for the future, Harris said.

We are working to build up  to build up, not tear down  and to build up Americas families and Americas middle class, because we know when our middle class is strong, America is strong, she added.

Diving Nine boules hold a deep sense of significance for members. The events often include keynote speakers, workshops and networking events. Theyre often described as a way to strengthen the bonds of sisterhood among the sororities.

Antjuan Seawright, a democratic strategist, said Trumps comments indicate he is unaware of the history and meaning of not just the boules, but of the Divine Nine.

This is not the first time that we bear witness to Donald Trumps racism not having boundaries, said Seawright.

Clearly, he has no acknowledgement of the history the Divine Nine has played to not only shaping the African American community, but shaping his country, and certainly the blatant continued disrespect of Black women shows his disconnect with the realities of what this country is all about.

According to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, Black Greek-letter organizations were established on the principles of personal excellence, racial uplift, community service, civic action and kinship.

The founding of the organizations collided with the rise of Jim Crow laws and widespread racial violence and prejudice. The organizations were also formed during a time when Greek life at predominantly white institutions barred Black students from participation.

Quite frankly, when you criticize one, you criticize all, said Seawright, and I dont think he understands the historical power that comes along with the designer.

Some of the most prominent Black leaders in American history were members of a Divine Nine.

Martin Luther King Jr. and Thurgood Marshall were members of Alpha Phi Alpha. Like Harris, Coretta Scott King was also an AKA.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson is a member of Omega Psi Phi. Former Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) is a member of Iota Phi Theta. Rep. Robin Kelly (D-Ill.) is an active a member of Sigma Gamma Rho.

Im not surprised by Trumps inaccurate comment, Kelly told The Hill.

As a proud member of the Divine Nine, Sigma Gamma Rho instilled in me the values of leadership and public service  both of which Trump severely lacks. Trump should really stop blundering his campaign because he just gave Black women yet another reason to defeat him in November and elect our sister Kamala Harris.

Journalist Roland Martin is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha. After Trumps remarks, he took to the social platform X, calling for all Sigma Gamma Rho and Divine 9 members to please vote accordingly.

Neither the Trump nor Harris campaigns immediately responded to a request for comment.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang meets with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko at the Palace of Independence in Minsk, Belarus, Aug. 22, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Xiang)

MINSK, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang said here Thursday that China stands ready to work with the Belarusian side to push for the high-level development of their all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership.

Li made the remarks while meeting with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko at the Palace of Independence in Minsk.

Li conveyed Chinese President Xi Jinping's cordial greetings to Lukashenko. Li said that China-Belarus relations, regardless of how the international situation changes, have always shown vigor and vitality since the establishment of diplomatic ties 32 years ago.

The two sides adhere to mutual benefit and common development, and their practical cooperation has yielded fruitful results and brought tangible benefits to the two peoples, Li noted, pointing out that the two heads of state met in Astana this July and made strategic arrangements on deepening bilateral relations.

China is willing to work with Belarus to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, continuously consolidate political mutual trust, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, and push for the high-level development of the China-Belarus all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership to better benefit the two peoples, Li said.

Noting that China will continue to firmly support Belarus in pursuing a development path suited to its national conditions, Li said that China stands ready to further synergize development strategies with Belarus, solidly advance cooperation in various fields, steadily expand trade scale, effectively implement projects such as the China-Belarus Industrial Park, and continuously deepen people-to-people exchanges.

Li also said that China is willing to further strengthen multilateral cooperation with Belarus, jointly promote the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, advocate an equal and orderly multipolar world and universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization, promote the development of the global governance system towards a more just and reasonable direction, and safeguard the common interests of developing countries.

Lukashenko asked Li to convey his sincere greetings to Xi. Noting the two countries have always firmly supported each other on major issues concerning each other's core interests, he said that the Belarus-China relations are enjoying a strong momentum of development and are at an all-time high.

The Belarusian side sincerely appreciates China's long-term selfless assistance to its economic and social development, Lukashenko said, adding that Belarus stands ready to maintain close high-level exchanges with China, deepen practical cooperation in the fields of economy, trade, agriculture, science and technology.

Belarus is willing to actively participate in the important global initiatives proposed by President Xi and make greater progress of the Belarus-China all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership, said Lukashenko. 

Chinese Premier Li Qiang meets with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko at the Palace of Independence in Minsk, Belarus, Aug. 22, 2024. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)
Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks during a press conference at the East Senate Building at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Jan. 3, 2024. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

New national and Utah polls show if Robert F. Kennedy Jr. drops out of the presidential race as expected on Friday, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump will likely benefit the most.

Kennedy is set to announce plans for his independent presidential run in Phoenix, not far from where Trump will hold a rally later that day.

A former Democrat, Kennedy launched an independent bid after he said he was kept from competing in a primary against President Joe Biden, who has since decided not to run for a second term, making way for Vice President Kamala Harris, who officially became the Democratic nominee for president this week at the Democratic National Convention.

A national Deseret News/HarrisX poll conducted at the beginning of August shows Kennedy languishing at the national level, with about 8% support. But he performs much better in Utah, a new Deseret News/Hinckley Institute of Politics poll conducted by HarrisX shows, where he has 15% support.

Without Kennedy, Trump benefits both at the national and state level.

Trump vs. Harris  who benefits if Kennedy drops out?

The Deseret News/HarrisX national poll, conducted August 2-3 among 1,011 registered voters, showed Donald Trump at 47% and Kamala Harris at 45%, with 9% of voters saying they were unsure.

In a three-way race between Trump, Harris and Kennedy, Trumps support drops to 42%, while Harris drops only one point to 44%, and Kennedy picks up 8% of voters support. Another 7% said they were unsure who they would vote for.

Breaking Kennedys support down along party lines shows him with 6% support among Republicans, versus 3% of Democrats and 15% of independent voters.

The Deseret News/HarrisX poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

DNpoll-3wayrcen

Trump way out ahead, but Kennedy enjoys support of 15% of voters in Utah

In Utah, Trump is the clear front-runner whether just against Harris, or against both Harris and Kennedy.

In a head to head matchup against Harris, Trump garners 60% of the vote compared to 28% for Harris. Another 12% of voters say theyre unsure who theyll vote for.

When facing just Harris, Trump enjoys support among majorities of men and women, young and older voters, white and Hispanic voters, and among Latter-day Saint voters. The few categories where he lags behind Harris includes voters who identify and liberal and those who are atheists or agnostics.

But while Trump is still well ahead when Kennedy is also on the ballot, Kennedy pulls more voters away from Trump than from Harris.

After visiting the state several times since announcing his independent presidential run, Kennedy has managed to garner the support 15% of Utah voters, according to the Deseret News/Hinckley Institute poll.

In a three-way race between Trump, Harris and Kennedy, Trumps support drops to 51%, while Harris drops to 25%, and Kennedy captures 15%. Another 9% say theyre unsure.

Kennedy pulls some Republican voters from Trump, while eroding his support more significantly among independent voters.

Dritan Nesho, CEO of HarrisX, said if Kennedy drops out and endorses Trump it will be welcome news for the GOP candidate in Utah and nationally.

Independent voters that support RFK are ambivalent about both Trump and Harris, and may yet shift, but today they are coming out of Trumps pocket marginally more than Harriss, as reflected in our latest August Utah poll with the Hinkley Institute and Deseret News  11 points from Trump and 7 points from Harris voter pool, he said.

Nesho said a separate poll they conducted for Harvard University shows some of Kennedys voters could shift to other candidates based on his endorsement.

Nationally, a poll we conducted with Harvard University in July suggests that RFKs endorsement does sway about 10% of his base in either direction and can contribute up to 2 percent total vote share to either candidate  small, but potentially significant in such a tight race, Nesho said.

DNpoll-3wayraceu
Trump campaign aired more TV ads than Harris everywhere except for these 8 media markets

As of mid-August, Republicans are airing more campaign ads than Democrats almost everywhere nationally  except for a few counties largely in Wisconsin and Michigan, where supporters of Vice President Kamala Harris's campaign are pouring money into ads, according to a new analysis by Wesleyan Media Project.

The swing toward pro-Trump TV ads comes after President Joe Biden, prior to dropping out of the race, was considerably out-airing the Trump campaign, according to the analysis. In early July, the then-Biden campaign launched a $50 million ad blitz slamming Trump over his felony convictions.

But the Trump campaign appears to have escalated its ad presence in the wake of Harris replacing Biden at the top of the ticket. In most of the 210 media markets in the U.S., the Trump campaign and Republican political action committees are airing more ads than their Democratic counterparts.

But that doesn't mean Democrats still aren't investing in key swing state markets, including in Wisconsin. Here's what to know about how both campaigns are approaching TV advertising.

Supporters packed Fiserv Forum for Kamala Harris' rally on Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024. Her running mate Tim Walz took the stage ahead of Harris.

Where in Wisconsin are Democrats airing more ads than Republicans?

Democrats are airing more ads than Republicans in just eight of the 25 swing state markets analyzed in the report, including two in Wisconsin: Milwaukee and Green Bay.

In Milwaukee, Democrats are spending $1.8 million to air 1,058 ads, while Republicans have put down $1.16 million for 848 ads  meaning Democrats are spending an additional $640,000 in Milwaukee.

In Green Bay, the difference is even more stark, with Democrats spending more than twice as much as Republicans. Democrats spent $2.34 million to air 1,708 ads, while Republicans invested $1 million in 989 ads.

The investment in Wisconsin is another sign the Harris campaign is especially focused on winning the state in November: This week, Harris and Walz logged their third visit to the state in less than month with a rally at Fiserv Forum.

Republicans are airing more ads, but Democrats are spending more

How the number of Democratic and Republican TV ads changed from April to August.

Between July 12 and August 11, the Trump campaign spent more than $10 million on nearly 15,000 ads. In particular, the number of pro-Trump ads jumped significantly after Biden dropped out. In the week after the president ended his campaign, the number of pro-Trump ads nearly doubled.

Still, the Harris campaign, which only launched in late July, managed to outspend Trump in that same time period. The campaign spent more than $15 million on about 12,500 ads.

In other words, the Harris campaign spent more money on fewer ads in the last month. The same trend holds for pro-Harris and pro-Democratic ads more broadly, with the campaign and political action committees combined spending more than $60 million on about 33,000 ads. That's compared to just under $50 million on about 44,000 ads on the Republican side.

Travis Ridout, co-director of the Wesleyan Media Project, said this may be because pro-Harris groups are investing in more expensive media markets. Prices for ads can range drastically, he said: an ad in the middle of the night in a small media market could be just a couple dollars, while an ad on the local news in a major city could run campaigns a couple thousand dollars.

It's possible Republicans are paying for more ads in cheaper markets during cheaper time slots, said Ridout, who is also a political science professor at Washington State University.

"The more you pay, the more eyeballs you get," he added.

Which other markets are Democrats investing in?

Along with Milwaukee and Green Bay, Democrats are out-airing Republicans in six other counties. The counties are in Michigan and Georgia, which are both battleground states Biden narrowly won in 2020.

Here are the other media markets where Democrats are airing more on TV ads:

Detroit

Grand Rapids, Michigan

Flint, Michigan

Lansing, Michigan

Traverse City, Michigan

Columbus, Georgia

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Harris is outspending Trump on TV ads in these two Wisconsin cities
Former President Donald Trump took his Democratic National Convention counterprogramming message on illegal immigration to battleground Arizona on Thursday as his newly minted Democratic opponent prepared to take the stage in Chicago.

Vice President Kamala Harris will give her acceptance speech on Thursday night, capping off a week of events that have featured speakers warning voters about the dangers of a second Trump term. Harris has tightened the race against Trump ever since she rose to the top of the ticket after President Joe Biden dropped out of the contest  and races in several crucial states like Arizona, a border state, are set to determine the presidency.

The choice is simple: Kamala's mass amnesty of criminals, or President Trumps mass deportation of criminals, Trump said in Cochise County, Arizona, while standing next to a stretch of border wall.

Trump had been trolling Harris throughout Thursday ahead of her appearance in Chicago, beginning with a Fox News interview in the morning, the visit to the southern border in the middle of the day and plans to post his play by play of the DNCs prime time speakers.

The Trump campaign and Republicans for several weeks have tried to cast Harris as responsible for the surges in illegal immigration under the first three years of Bidens presidency, given that the president put her in charge of addressing the root causes of migration in Central America. Trump and Republicans have used the title border czar to describe her role though she and the Biden administration reject it. The term also was previously used as a shorthand by numerous news outlets.



She loved the title, but she didn't want to do the work, or she's lazy, Trump said. And probably more importantly than being lazy, she wants to have an open border.

Harris leads Trump 59 percent to 34 percent among likely Hispanic voters in Arizona, per a new poll from TelevisaUnivisions Strategy & Insights and Media in partnership with Media Predict , though more than a third of them said theyre not sure yet who theyll vote for. The voting bloc will be crucial in the battleground state given that Hispanics comprise roughly 20 percent of the electorate there.

Trump has promised if reelected that hell carry out mass deportations, finish building a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border, end birthright citizenship and reinstitute his prohibition on people entering the U.S. from certain Muslim-majority nations. During his speech, he graphically recounted roughly a dozen cases of violent murder and rape allegedly committed by people whove entered the U.S. illegally.

As Kamala gives her convention speech tonight, she will not mention the victims, she won't even talk about them  although now that she sees us, maybe she will, Trump said. She'll not say their names or express remorse to their families. Kamala says she wants to talk about the future. No, these people want to go back to the safe past. We don't have a future with open borders and all of the other problems.

Trump also praised the Supreme Courts ruling from earlier in the day that will allow Arizona to require new voters to submit proof of citizenship when they register to vote using a state form, but its unlikely to have broad impact because voters can use a federal form instead. It is illegal in the U.S. for noncitizens to vote and studies show its rare, but the Supreme Court was responding to an emergency appeal from the Republican National Committee.

I give the Supreme Court great credit for this, Trump said of the decision. They have great courage in doing what they're doing.

Trump early this year discouraged Republicans from agreeing to a bipartisan border deal that Biden backed. In turn, the president issued an executive order in June to suspend asylum cases when the border sees an average of 2,500 crossings a day over a seven day period. Illegal border crossings to plummeted as a result.

Undocumented immigration has not been a dominating theme at the DNC, compared with the Republican National Convention, which featured speeches from people whose loved ones had been victims of violent crime and drug overdoses. Three people affected by violent crime allegedly committed by undocumented immigrants appeared alongside Trump during his Arizona visit.



Alexis Nungaray took the lectern to talk about how her 12-year-old daughter, Jocelyn, was strangled to death. Please take into consideration how important border control is, she said, because we are losing very innocent people to heinous crimes that shouldnt be happening in the first place.

Harris hasnt granted interviews about her evolution on immigration laws since becoming the Democratic nominee. She previously supported decriminalizing border crossing and extending Medicare to everyone living in the U.S., regardless of immigration status.

Since then, Harris campaign has emphasized her support for the bipartisan border bill and her work fighting transnational gangs . She also visited a Customs and Border Protection processing center on the border city of El Paso, Texas, in June 2021 after facing criticisms from Republicans.

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), who was on Harris running mate shortlist, panned Trumps visit to the border as a photo op during a call with reporters organized by the presidential campaign. He said he wanted this for a campaign issue, Kelly said of Trump urging Republicans to reject the legislation. Trump and Vance, they only want to campaign on this issue, he added. Donald Trump did not fix this the last time he was in office, and he doesnt really want to fix it now. 

Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, the former presidents running mate, argued in a press conference held ahead of Trumps remarks that the bill had nothing to do with border security and instead codified existing executive orders.

He accused Harris of having found Jesus about being tough on crime when Biden dropped out of the race given that she had embraced her law-and-order image as a former prosecutor.

Republicans have also drawn attention to a new report from the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General that found at least 32,000 unaccompanied minors havent shown up for their immigration court hearings in the last five years, making it difficult to track their whereabouts and making them vulnerable to exploitation.
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks at a news conference at Trump National Golf Club, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2024, in Bedminster, N.J. A planned fundraiser for Trump in Utah this month has been postponed, organizers say. | Julia Nikhinson

Former President Donald Trump will no longer be visiting Utah next week, after a fundraiser scheduled for Park City was postponed.

In an email sent to donors Thursday morning, Taylor Binkley, a regional finance director for the Republican National Committee, said the event is postponed due to changes in the Presidents schedule.

He looks forward to seeing you in Park City soon, the email read. We will let you know as soon as new date is confirmed.

This is the second time the Utah fundraiser has been postponed. In April, the fundraiser was scheduled for late June, but Trump later agreed to a debate with President Joe Biden on the same night. In July, organizers scheduled the fundraiser for Aug. 29.

The event is being organized by George Glass, a Trump campaign fundraiser and former ambassador to Portugal, and Marlon Bateman, a State Department official during the Trump administration. In the email, Binkley thanked Glass and Bateman  along with co-host Doug Quezada  for being loyal supporters of the President and close friends.

The Trump campaign recently underwent personnel changes, including bringing back 2016 campaign manager Cory Lewandowski. With less than three months until Election Day, the campaign is retraining its focus on battleground states, like nearby Arizona and Nevada.

Further, perceived infighting within the Utah Republican Party  like gubernatorial candidate Phil Lymans write-in campaign  concerned top Trump campaign officials, according to a person close to the deliberations.

The price tag for attending the fundraiser was $10,000 to get inside the reception, and $35,000 to get a picture with Trump, according to a copy of the invitation obtained by the Deseret News. To become a co-host, it cost $150,000; to join the host committee, $500,000.

To date, the Utah fundraiser garnered over $8 million in commitments, one organizer said. Co-hosts included John Schnatter, the founder of Papa Johns Pizza, and talk show host Glenn Beck.

The event would be Trumps first visit to Utah since 2017, when he announced reductions to Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments. During his 2016 campaign, Trump held one rally in Salt Lake City.

During this election cycle, Democrats have held three fundraisers in Utah, each hosted by Nancy and Mark Gilbert, the former ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa. In August, President Joe Biden headlined an event at the Gilbert home in Park City; in January, first lady Jill Biden visited, and in June, Vice President Kamala Harris visited.
Trump Goes Off The Rails In Midnight Attack On 'Highly Overrated Jewish Governor'

Donald Trump fired off an angry middle-of-the-night attack on highly overrated Jewish Governor Josh Shapiro after he spoke out against the former president at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday night.

Trump said Shapiro  who, as Pennsylvanias governor, has no foreign policy role  has done nothing for Israel and never will.

Shapiro, for strictly political reasons, refused to acknowledge that I am the best friend that Israel, and the Jewish people, ever had, Trump wrote on Truth Social just after midnight. I have done more for Israel than any President, and frankly, I have done more for Israel than any person, and its not even close.

Donald Trump on Truth Social Comedy Central

He also claimed that Vice President Kamala Harris hates Israel and hopes that it will fail.

Critics slammed the former president for a post many said was brimming with antisemitism:

"The Highly overrated Jewish Governor" Wow! That's pretty racist.



Trump thinks Jewish people only care about Israel, he doesn't see them as Americans who care about healthcare, pro-choice, gun control, etc. pic.twitter.com/ufcWDy0Bgp  Alex Cole (@acnewsitics) August 22, 2024

I know it's passe to think Trump's rhetoric matters, but Trump has said multiple obviously antisemitic things over the years, including just now. Imagine if a Democrat started a screed by referring to someone as that "overrated Jewish Governor." It would be headline news.  Steven White (@notstevenwhite) August 22, 2024

Trump calls Governor Josh Shapiro: Highly overrated Jewish governor



This is not normal. pic.twitter.com/sT1b78GiRo  Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) August 22, 2024

After purporting to fight antisemitism by claiming Josh Shapiro was snubbed by Kamala for being Jewish, Trump now refers to Shapiro as "the highly overrated Jewish governor": pic.twitter.com/JNVjD3Waef  Nurit Baytch (@NuritBaytch) August 22, 2024

Highly overrated Jewish governor My Jewish friends here, please stop asking how I could vote Dem this year. This person is the leader of your party. pic.twitter.com/9ixQLm59iU  Sandi   (@DemSandiL) August 22, 2024

There is an intelligent way to discuss things decisions made from the Trump era like moving the embassy to Jerusalem and the Abraham Accords



Instead we get this nonsense and phrases like highly overrated Jewish governor



He cant even talk about his own legacy coherently pic.twitter.com/gMnznSNzne  Jeremy Louis (@JeremyLevine92) August 22, 2024

Golda Meir would have something to say about that https://t.co/nTGaxpWDlF  Gregg Kilday (@gkilday) August 22, 2024

The highly overrated Jewish Governor yiiiiiiiikes pic.twitter.com/dO7ngtLCLB  Armand Domalewski (@ArmandDoma) August 22, 2024
Former President Trump on Thursday highlighted stories of individuals killed by migrants during a visit to the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona, seeking to go on offense against Vice President Harris on immigration in a critical battleground state.

Trump spoke in Cochise County with a backdrop of stacks of metal beams, intended to illustrate unfinished portions of a barrier along the U.S.-Mexico border that he made central to his first term in office.

The former president recounted graphic details of crimes in Michigan, New York, Georgia and Virginia that authorities said were committed by migrants who entered the country illegally, blaming the incidents on Harris and the Biden administrations border policies.

He invited the family members of Rachel Morin, who was killed in Maryland, and Jocelyn Nungaray, who was killed in Texas. Migrants who crossed the border illegally have been arrested in both cases.

[Trump] needs to be in office, and we need better control and we need to stop this. We need to stop losing children, mothers, sisters, because now I get to grieve every single day, said Alexis Nungaray, Jocelyns mother.

Trump has pledged to complete construction of the wall along the border, to push for tougher criminal sentences for drug traffickers and to enact the largest deportation operation in history if he is reelected. He has said deportation efforts would mostly rely on local law enforcement to round up those who enter the country illegally.

She will never build the wall. She doesnt want to build the wall, Trump said of Harris. If she changes her mind its only because she wants to get elected, because who wouldnt want to have a strong border.

President Biden, upon taking office in January 2021, issued a proclamation directing a review of all resources appropriated or directed toward constructing a wall along the southern border and declaring no more American taxpayer dollars be diverted to construct a border wall.

Biden in June announced new policies that make migrants who enter the country between ports of entry generally ineligible for asylum unless they meet certain exceptions, and a presidential proclamation that limits when border officials screen migrants for asylum claims.

Arizona is a border state, and immigration is likely to play a significant role in the outcome there in November. A Decision Desk HQ/The Hill average of polls from the state showed Trump and Harris deadlocked, reflective of how Harris has wiped out Trumps polling lead since entering the race a month ago.

The Trump campaign has aggressively attacked Harris on immigration, branding her the border czar, a reference to her work on addressing root causes of migration from Central American countries. Republicans have cited record numbers of apprehensions at the southern border and highlighted crimes committed by those who entered the country illegally to go after Democrats.

Harris and her campaign have attempted to blunt those attacks by blaming Trump for tanking a bipartisan border security proposal put forward earlier this year in the Senate that would have increased resources for law enforcement and cracked down on the number of individuals who could cross each day.

Democrats have also criticized Trump for his rhetoric on immigration, blasting the former president for saying immigrants were poisoning the blood of the country.

The former president, as he has during each of his campaign stops this week, at times struggled to focus on the intended policy purpose of his speech.

He questioned FBI statistics that showed violent crime decreasing. He claimed Bidens decision to end his campaign amounted to a coup. And he repeated a false claim that an anticipated revision of jobs numbers released this week amounted to a conspiracy.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  Hours before Vice President Kamala Harris is set to accept the Democratic partys nomination for president, former President Donald Trump and Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) held campaign events talking about the border.

Former President Trump criticized Harris, calling her the border czar, which the White House has denied.

We had a border czar, Trump said. She loved the title, but she didnt do the work because shes lazy.

Trump took credit for the border fence he toured in Sierra Vista, Arizona.

I was never in love with it architecturally, until I saw the fact that nobody could climb over it, Trump said.

The Biden administration said Republicans are to blame for the nations issues at the border. President Joe Biden addressed it during his speech at the Democratic National Convention on Monday.

Trump killed the strongest bipartisan border deal in the history of the United States, Biden said.

Earlier this year, an immigration bill failed to pass the Senate. Some Democrats and nearly all Republicans voted against the bill, including Sen. JD Vance, Trumps vice-presidential candidate.

It had nothing to do with border security, Vance said. We have got to close down the border and stop the cartels from bringing this poison into our communities.

Vance spoke at a border policy event in Valdosta, Georgia.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
Just one day after lengthy footage of violent insurrectionists storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 was shown to attendees and remote viewers of the Democratic National Convention, word has begun to circulate that former president Donald Trump will be hosting a gala event in their honor in September at his Bedminster, New Jersey country club.

A flyer for the "J6 Awards Gala" reported on by MTN lists Rudy Giuliani as a guest speaker for the event where "attendees will have a chance to win a plaque commemorating the MAGA community's purchase of numerous copies of Trump's 'Justice for All' song," with the event description reading: "We gather to pay tribute...to all J6 defendants who have shown incredible courage and sacrifice."

On Wednesday, Sergeant Aquilino Gonell  a retired United States Capitol Police Officer  spoke at the DNC about the events of Jan. 6, which took a toll on him personally, both emotionally as well as physically, saying he "nearly died" that day after being beaten by rioters wielding a pole attached to an American flag.

"I had seen violence while serving in Iraq, but nothing, nothing prepared me for Jan. 6." Gonell said.

Watch the Capitol riot footage shown at the DNC here:

WATCH: A video shown at the Democratic National Convention replayed some of the violence, destruction and chaos unleashed during the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, and included recordings of former President Donald Trump urging protesters on that day and afterward. pic.twitter.com/SGPnuYIZhG  PBS News (@NewsHour) August 22, 2024

Per Huffington Post, a video promoting the J6 Awards Gala features Trump praising the Capitol riot defendants, saying, They ought to release the J6 hostages. Theyve suffered enough. I call them hostages. Some people call them prisoners. I call them hostages."

Tickets for the event start at $1,500 and are intended to "help cover costs and support the defendants and their families, with exclusive benefits and recognition at the gala."
Former President Donald Trump speaks at "Crime and Safety" press conference held in Howell. Aug. 20, 2024. Photo by Jon King.

Updated, 4:57 p.m., 8/22/24

An event Tuesday labeled as a press conference by former President Donald Trump was instead a blatant violation of state election law, which ironically also featured a former state legislator who helped pass the law making it illegal.

Thats the conclusion of election attorney Mark Brewer of the Goodman Acker law firm, whos a former Michigan Democratic Party chair. He told the Michigan Advance that everything about the event held at the Livingston County Sheriffs Office in Howell was in direct violation of the Michigan Campaign Finance Act.

Billed as a crime and safety press conference by the Trump campaign, the gathering had the distinctive features of a political rally, including signs that said Michigan is Trump Country and Make America Safe Again, while several official patrol vehicles were parked behind Trump and approximately 75 invited guests, mostly local Republican officials and donors, cheered on his remarks attacking his Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris.

While local, state and national press had all gathered for the press conference, Trump only took one question before leaving.

Ive never seen anything just so blatant and repeated, said Brewer, the former head of the Michigan Democratic Party. MCL 169.257 expressly prohibits the use of any public resources for political campaign purposes and it gives a long list; vehicles, buildings, any public resources. I mean, they held it in a public building, which was obviously cleaned up for Trump, and then they staged the vehicles behind him. And then you have uniformed officers there, as well. Those are all public resources. And he can call it a press conference, but he was clearly advocating for his election as president. That was a campaign event, and what the Livingston County Sheriffs Department did was illegal.

Livingston County Sheriff Mike Murphy told the Advance prior to the event that it was not political, but instead simply a press conference and opportunity to have someone vying for the highest office in the land speak on the topic of law enforcement.

That theme was echoed by Livingston County Administrator Nathan Burd, who attended the event, and spoke to the Advance afterward.

I dont have a concern about that, but others may, said Burd. Well see what happens. But, again, its an opportunity to have somebody who obviously has strong feelings on law enforcement to come meet and see facilities of law enforcement and meet with people on the ground who are doing the work.

However, Brewer said that whatever one wants to label it, the violation of the statute is clear.

Thats not an answer to the legal problem, he said. Sure, if Trump wanted to speak outside in a public place, in a park or on a span of grass where anybody could speak. But staging what they did [Tuesday] in a public building with those officers, with those vehicles, thats clearly illegal.

While there have been questions whether the visit to Howell, and others in Michigan featuring law enforcement officers, violated the federal Hatch Act, which limits the political activities of federal employees, experts have said that doesnt apply, as Trump is not an employee of the federal government.

Brewer said that as for the potential state campaign law violations, any registered voter could bring such a charge, which would go to the Bureau of Elections and the Department of State. A knowing violation of the statute is a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment for an individual held liable of up to a year in jail and/or a fine up to $1,000. If the violator is not an individual, the fine could go as high as $20,000 or equal to the amount of the improper contribution or expenditure.

On Thursday afternoon, Angela Benander, spokesperson for Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, told the Advance in an email that the Bureau of Elections has received two complaints against the Livingston County Sheriffs Office and Murphy regarding alleged violations of the Michigan Campaign Finance Act. The bureau will investigate and Benander said she cant provide any additional comment until the probe concludes and makes a determination.

Brewer noted that former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers (R-White Lake), who is running against U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly) for Michigans open U.S. Senate seat, was present and spoke prior to Trump.

Its more than irony, its hypocrisy, said Brewer, referring to the fact that as a state Senator in 1999, Rogers voted for legislation that specifically added federal elections to fall under MCL 169.257.

I mean, he was part of a violation of a law that he voted for when he was in the state Legislature, said Brewer.

A request for comment was made to the Rogers campaign, but has yet to be returned.

Brewer did say that criticism leveled at Livingston County for closing down their court facility, which is adjacent to the sheriffs office, early on Tuesday are misguided.

I think when you have the president of the United States appearing, you have to take security precautions, so some of those closings may have been legitimate, said Brewer. But that does not excuse the illegal use of public resources to stage a Trump campaign event.

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Chinese Premier Li Qiang holds talks with Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko in Minsk, Belarus, Aug. 22, 2024. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)

MINSK, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang said here Thursday that China stands ready to work with Belarus to firmly support each other in defending core interests and remain each other's true friend and good partner.

Li made the remarks while holding talks with Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko.

Noting that China and Belarus enjoy a time-honored traditional friendship, Li said that under the strategic guidance of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, China-Belarus all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership has been developing in depth.

The two countries have continuously consolidated political mutual trust and deepened mutually beneficial cooperation, Li said, adding that China is ready to work with Belarus to fully implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, firmly support each other in safeguarding their core interests, unswervingly be each other's true friend and good partner, maintain the sound and steady development of bilateral relations at a high level, deepen cooperation in various fields and better promote each other's modernization drive.

Li pointed out that China is willing to give full play to the role of the intergovernmental cooperation committee between the two countries, strengthen the docking of development strategies, jointly build the Belt and Road with high quality, further tap the cooperation potential in trade and investment, digital economy and green development, and expand people-to-people exchanges in education, culture and tourism.

China is willing to strengthen communication and cooperation with Belarus in the United Nations, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and other multilateral mechanisms, actively implement the three global initiatives, promote the practice of the genuine multilateralism, and jointly build a community with a shared future for mankind, he added.

For his part, Golovchenko said under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state, bilateral relations have made remarkable progress in recent years, adding that Belarus is willing to remain a good friend and partner of China, firmly abide by the one-China principle and firmly support China's position on issues concerning Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Xizang.

Noting that the support and assistance provided by China over the years have strongly promoted Belarus' economic and social development, he said Belarus is willing to work with China to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, strengthen exchanges at all levels, expand practical cooperation on trade, industry, science and technology, and agriculture under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative, strengthen subnational and cultural exchanges as well as coordination in international and multilateral affairs, and continuously enrich the connotation of the all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership between Belarus and China.

Li and Golovchenko jointly announced the official launch of the China-Belarus years of science and technology innovation from 2024 to 2025 and the establishment of the China-Belarus basic science research center and the Chinese book center of the National Library of Belarus.

Following the talks, the two leaders signed a joint communique between the two governments, witnessed the signing of a number of bilateral cooperation documents on Belt and Road cooperation, service trade and investment, green development, science and technology, culture and local affairs. They also jointly met the press. 

Chinese Premier Li Qiang holds talks with Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko in Minsk, Belarus, Aug. 22, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Bin)
This week, Donald Trump gave his clearest answer to date about whether he would enforce the Comstock Act, a 19th-century obscenity law, as an abortion ban. In truth, Trumps answer was anything but clear: He suggested that specifics remained to be determined, but that he generally wouldnt enforce the Comstock Act against abortion pills, whatever that means. This was played up in mainstream media as Trump rejecting the use of Comstock Act as a de facto national abortion ban. They should not have gone so far.

Trumps statement wasnt actually all that new: Trump has spent the election season giving muddy answers in the hope of keeping antiabortion voters close without alienating everyone else. But Trumps latest interview has infuriated key anti-abortion supporters, in the process revealing a major mistake made by conservatives in the aftermath of Dobbs. Abortion opponents were so sure of their chances of continuing to win before a conservative Supreme Court that they unveiled a disastrously unpopular Comstock strategy before an election year. As reaction to the CBS interview suggests, conservatives overconfidence might have created a trap that Trump will have trouble getting out of.

The idea for Comstock revival came from Jonathan Mitchell, the former Texas solicitor general, and pastor Mark Lee Dickson, the team behind Texass S.B. 8 bounty law, which allows anyone to sue an abortion provider or someone aiding them for at least $10,000. Mitchell and Dicksons objective was to find a way to bring about an abortion ban that could succeed before the Supreme Courts conservative supermajority, not to win an election.

Thats where the Comstock Act came in. It was clear that Americans didnt want a sweeping national ban on abortion. It seemed improbable that Congress would have a large enough Republican majority to pass one in the near term, or that Republicans would prioritize such a move given how unpopular such bans had become.

Mitchell and Dickson argued that there was no need for new legislation because the Comstock Act already was a national ban. The two pointed to language in the statute referring to items or information related to items designed, intended, or adapted for abortion, arguing that the Comstock Act made it a crime to mail or receive abortion drugs or paraphernalia. They contended that the law operated as a de facto ban on all abortions because no procedure in the United States takes place without items shipped across state lines by drug or medical supply companies.

From the beginning, this strategy didnt seem likely to be a political winner. Americans have become more supportive of abortion rights since Dobbs, with support at near-record highs. And as conservatives interpreted Comstock, it was even more extreme than state bans: lacking exceptions for rape, incest, or even the life of the patient, and applying to women and other abortion seekers. Nevertheless, prominent anti-abortion groups embraced it. So did J.D. Vance and a whos who of congressional conservatives. Comstock became a cornerstone of Project 2025. A Comstock claim even figured centrally in the Supreme Courts recent mifepristone case, Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine.

All of that speaks to the overconfidence of abortion opponents in the wake of Dobbs. The movement recognized that its best path to victory was to rely on the federal courts and the executive branch because voters seemed irrevocably opposed to anti-abortion leaders priorities. And with Trump long leading Joe Biden in the polls, anti-abortion leaders were convinced their candidate would come out ahead. But publicly embracing Comstock because it didnt require voter support might have been a step too far, especially now that Kamala Harris has replaced the unpopular Biden at the top of the Democratic ticket.

Trumps campaign was well aware that it wouldnt do him any favors to embrace Comstock. At the same time, clearly rejecting a Comstock strategy seemed likely to alienate anti-abortion voters already unsure of Trumps commitment to their cause. Trump tried to thread the needle by avoiding the subject. He went months without saying anything, then promised Time magazine a policy statement on Comstock that never appeared. Most recently, in speaking to CBS, Trump tried the same tactic again. He answered the question but hardly offered any clarity. What does it mean to generally avoid Comstock enforcement? That only some doctors or drug companies or patients would be prosecuted? Which specifics remain to be worked out?

With Biden at the top of the ticket, Trumps efforts to confuse the electorate seemed to benefit him. But now, it looks like Trump might end up with the worst of all possible outcomes. His latest comments were roundly criticized by anti-abortion leadersincluding some who had defended Trump in the past.

It would be one thing if Trump were winning over swing voters, especially women, by angering anti-abortion conservatives, but its not clear thats whats happening. The gender gapthe difference in the stated voting intentions of male and female votersseems to be at an all-time high. Whatever Trumps potential appeal to swing voters, its likely not his honesty. Given his close ties to the authors of Project 2025, voters may simply not believe his faint-hearted denials about Comstock. At the same time, anti-abortion leaders have grown fed up with what they feel is Trumps cowardice.

For the moment, abortion opponents overconfidence seems to be helping Kamala Harris. But in the longer term, the effects of Trumps possible backpedaling on Comstock wont be as straightforward. Jonathan Mitchell famously told Lisa Lerer and Elizabeth Dias of the New York Times that he hoped that anti-abortion groups would keep their mouths shut as much as possible until after the election. In some ways, that was the opposite of what happened.

If Trump doesnt winor even if he prevails and doesnt enforce Comstock as strictly as abortion opponents hopethe lesson may well be that Mitchell was right. Publicly detailing plans for Comstock enforcement, like making Project 2025 broadly available, has created an opening for public exposure and criticism.

Since Dobbs, abortion opponents have looked for ways to win without the support of voters. Now, they may be incentivized to hide their plans altogether until well after the election ends.
Still fresh off of a scandal in which he was accused of advising against peace talks between Israel and Palestine, Donald Trump claimed that he had done more for Israel than any person.

The highly overrated Jewish Governor of the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro, made a really bad and poorly delivered speech talking about freedom and fighting for Comrade Kamala Harris for President, yet she hates Israel and will do nothing but make its journey through the complexities of survival as difficult as possible, hoping in the end that it will fail, Trump wrote on Truth Social in the early hours of Thursday. Judge only by her actions!

Yet Shapiro, for strictly political reasons, refused to acknowledge that I am the best friend that Israel, and the Jewish people, ever had, Trump continued. I have done more for Israel than any President, and frankly, I have done more for Israel than any person, and its not even close.

Its far from the first time that Trump has claimed hes done more for minority groups than the individuals involved in their actual liberation movements. In November, Trump rattled Black voters while attempting to make inroads with them by swearing that he had done more for Black people than any other President, including President Abraham Lincoln, who ended slavery.

Shapiro has done nothing for Israel, and never will, Trump continued on Thursday. Comrade Kamala Harris, the Radical Left Marxist who stole the nomination from Crooked Joe, will do even less. Israel is in BIG trouble!

Harris has been fielding fire from both sides of the strenuous issue. Monday saw the quiet launch of a new, self-proclaimed progressive and pro-Israel nonprofit, Zioness, with a Democratic political lineup to beat the band, reported Slate. Meanwhile, attendees inside the DNC were caught hiding and even hitting protesters waving a banner that read Stop Arming Israel.

Meanwhile, a pro-Palestine protest that was expected to draw upwards of 50,000 attendees brought just 2,000 people to the footsteps of the DNC. On Wednesday, Harriss campaign told the Uncommitted Movement that they would not be inviting a speaker to discuss Palestine on the convention stage, sending the movement reeling.

Ive had some pretty crushing days, but to be honest today took the cake, wrote Georgia state Representative Ruwa Romman, who is Palestinian American. I do not understand how theres room for an anti choice Republican but not me in our party.
Donald Trump revealed on Wednesday who he thinks has been the nastiest speaker at the Democratic National Convention so far.

Its New York Governor Kathy Hochul.

The former president took to Truth Social to slam the governors total hatred, which Trump argued had no bounds.

During the first night of the DNC on August 19, Hochul spoke of her shared values with presidential candidate, Kamala Harris, namely grit, determination, and compassion.

The governor, who took office three years ago after Andrew Cuomo left amid sexual misconduct allegations, went on to say that those values have always defined New Yorkers. But not Trump.

Donald Trump was born a New Yorker, but ended up a fraud, a philanderer, and a felon, she said.

Hochul said that New York has had to deal with Trump for 78 long years and slammed the fraud, the tax-dodging, the sham university, the shady charities.

Former President Donald Trump responded on Truth Social to criticism from New York Governor Kathy Hochul who called him a fraud (Getty / AFP)

She also blasted Trump for stiffing contractors and ripping off workers.

He abuses women, brags about it, and then takes away their rights. And New Yorkers are sick of it, she said, before she apologized to Floridians because Trump had to flee to Mar-a-Lago.

Trump hasnt spent much time in New York lately. Except, that is, to get convicted of 34 felonies, she said.

In a Truth Social post on Wednesday, Trump responded to Hochuls remarks. He called her a very unpopular governor, adding that she was the nastiest speaker on Monday evening ... as it pertains to your favorite President, me.

Her total hatred, and statements made about me, had no bounds, Trump said.

Trump claimed that he did a GREAT job in New York, saying that he employed thousands of people, built some of the most beautiful and successful buildings, and paid billions of dollars in taxes.

Noting that he may win the November election, Trump asked if it wouldnt ... be better for the people of New York State to have a Governor who got along with the President? 

Adversarial relationships are not good in politics! he wrote.

He called the New York courts biased and hateful, saying it was no wonder the judges have treated me so badly considering the vitriol displayed by Hochul.

In her Monday speech, Hochul, in one of the most high-profile moments of her career, praised the Biden administration, saying Trump talked big about bringing back manufacturing jobs. But you know who actually did it? President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
Trump is obsessed with me Shapiro says in reply to snarky comment from the former president

Gov. Josh Shapiro arrives to speak on stage during the third day of the Democratic National Convention August 21, 2024 in Chicago. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

CHICAGO  Former President Donald Trump has rarely mentioned Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro by name during the 2024 election cycle, but in a social media post late Wednesday, he referred to him as The highly overrated Jewish Governor of the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro.

The snarky comment came after Shapiro delivered a brief but energetic speech at the Democratic National Convention Wednesday night, urging Democrats to fight for their fundamental freedoms.

Its not freedom to tell our children what books theyre allowed to read. Its not freedom to tell women what they can do with their bodies, Shapiro told the DNC. And it sure as hell isnt freedom to say you can go vote, but he gets to pick the winner. Thats not freedom.

Trump called Shapiros remarks a really bad and poorly delivered speech talking about freedom and fighting for Comrade Kamala Harris for President, and called himself the best friend that Israel, and the Jewish people, ever had.



Shapiro clapped back on Thursday. I think its clear over the last few years, Donald Trump is obsessed with me and obsessed with continuing to spew hate and division in our politics, the governor said in a video statement. Hes someone who has routinely peddled antisemitic tropes like this.

Shapiro noted that Trump had backed his 2022 gubernatorial opponent, state Sen. Doug Mastriano (R-Franklin). Shapiro beat Mastriano in that election by 15 percentage points.

[Trump] himself lost in 2020, all of his hand picked candidates have lost, and I think hes heading for another loss, this time to Kamala Harris, Shapiro said Thursday.

Shapiro was a finalist to be Vice President Kamala Harris running mate, and during an Aug. 17 campaign rally in Wilkes-Barre, Trump argued that he was not selected because he is Jewish, a claim Shapiro and the Harris campaign emphatically denied.

Its clear that hes going to continue to be the hateful, divisive person that hes always been in this campaign, Shapiro said Thursday. And I think given his track record, its clear hes setting himself up for another defeat.

The Democrats close out their 2024 convention Thursday night. During the week, the Trump campaign has offered counter-programming in swing states including Pennsylvania, which culminates in Arizona with a visit to the U.S. border with Mexico Thursday.

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Trump Is Promising Cheap Gas. Too Bad Getting It Would Likely Crash The Economy.

Donald Trump has taken to promising that he will lower gasoline and energy prices by more than half in his first year back in office  a pledge that, if carried out, would result in the destruction of the U.S. oil industry followed by a deep recession, experts said.

Energy costs, all of it, air conditioning, heating, all of it, including gasoline, will drop by more than 50% within the first 12 months, Trump promised again on Monday in Pennsylvania in what his campaign billed as an economic policy speech. Your bill will be less than half.

The problem, industry experts explained, is that energy is bought and sold in a global market, and the only way that gasoline could go from $3.40 a gallon now down to $1.70 a gallon is for crude oil prices to fall from $75 a barrel to between $20 and $30 a barrel. And at those lower prices, U.S. oil producers would not be able to break even.

That would bankrupt the U.S. industry. And the entire U.S. industry would shut down before that happened, said one oil executive with decades of experience who spoke on condition of anonymity to avoid antagonizing Trump and his campaign. Its classic Trump. He speaks hyperbolically without making any common sense.

The coup-attempting former president, now also a convicted felon, has not provided any details about how he would lower gas prices so dramatically, other than his Drill, baby, drill mantra, which he offers as virtually the sole mechanism for his entire economic policy.

His campaign did not respond to HuffPost queries about whether Trump consulted with any actual oil industry leaders before issuing his cheap-energy promise.

Energy industry insiders said they doubt that he did because people with expertise would have told him that what he is suggesting is absurd.

This kind of thing came out of the political shop, the oil executive said.

Former President Donald Trump holds a news conference Aug.15 outside his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey. In his presidential campaign, Trump is promising that all energy costs will drop more than 50% if he's elected. Adam Gray/Getty Images

Though Trump frequently brags that gasoline was less than $2 per gallon during his presidency, he fails to mention that the national average price of regular gas was only below that mark for two months during the depths of the COVID pandemic, when much of the economy had shut down and demand for gas had plummeted.

We hit that price as a consequence of circumstances that most people would not want to repeat, said industry analyst Kevin Book.

The average price for the rest of his term ranged from $2.08 to $2.90  substantially higher than the last two years of Democrat Barack Obamas presidency. The average price per gallon when Trump left office, two weeks after his failed coup attempt, was $2.34.

Matt Randolph, another oil industry executive with more than three decades of experience in the business, frequently posts videos on social media lampooning politicians  both Democrat and Republican  for their claims about energy.

In a video he posted last week following a previous instance of Trumps half-price promise, Randolph laughed at Trumps pledge, laying out a scenario of oil industry layoffs triggering a recession. This may be one of the dumbest statements that Donald Trump has ever made, he said in closing.

In an interview with HuffPost, Randolph said that the only way to achieve a price of $1.70 a gallon for regular would be for crude oil prices to come down to $20 a barrel. And that, in turn, would collapse the domestic industry.

Twenty dollar-a-barrel oil would just decimate new production, he said, adding that the shutdown of oil production would also crater the production of natural gas, which is often extracted along with oil. Natural gas prices would actually skyrocket.

And, with so many power plants now burning methane, that would translate into much more expensive electricity, undermining a second element of Trumps promise.

With no market mechanism to slash prices that sharply, Trump would be left with government action. The only other way is massive subsidies to the American consumer, Randolph said. And that isnt going to fly.

Book, the oil analyst, agreed that he cannot think of a possible scenario, short of a global economic calamity, that would lead to $1.70-a-gallon gasoline. This is one of those take it seriously not literally policy proposals.

Related...
While Democrats seek to reclaim the mantle of freedom from Republicans this election season, the GOPs presidential nominee pushed for an unconstitutional punishment for those who exercise their freedom in a way he dislikes  that is, by burning the American flag.

Citing such behavior by protesters outside the Israeli consulate during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago this week, Donald Trump called for Congress to pass a law mandating a year in jail for anyone who protests in that manner.

The legal problem with that proposal is that it violates the First Amendment. The Supreme Court addressed the issue in the 1989 case Texas v. Johnson, when conservative icon Antonin Scalia joined the high court majority in deciding that a conviction for burning the flag was unconstitutional.

This isnt the first time that the former president has advocated for such an unconstitutional punishment. Just last month, Trump did so after people burned flags while protesting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus Washington, D.C., congressional address. And in 2016, as president-elect, he suggested that flag-burners be stripped of their citizenship.

Its unsurprising that the man who flouted his constitutional oath the first time around should lack the understanding, appreciation or both of the law and the freedoms it secures.

Subscribe to the Deadline: Legal Newsletter for updates and expert analysis on the top legal stories. The newsletter will return to its regular weekly schedule when the Supreme Courts next term kicks off in October.

This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
Native Vote 2024. CHICAGO  While Democrats were gathering in Chicago for the 2024 Democratic National Convention, former President Donald Trump made a stop at the Livingston County Sheriffs Office in Howell, Mich. on Tuesday, August 20, to talk about crime and safety and counter statements made about him at the DNC.

Were here today to talk about how we are going to stop the Kamala crime wave that is going on at levels that nobodys ever seen before, he told the group of law enforcement officials, many of whom stood behind him in uniform. She is, as you know, the most radical left person ever even thought of for a high office.

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During the event, Trump highlighted the rise in violent crime under Kamala Harris: "She has presided over a 43% increase in violent crime ... including a 58% increase in rape, 89% increase in aggravated assault, and a 56% increase in robbery."

Native News Online reached out to the Trump campaign to ask where they received these figures. There has been no response at time of publication.

These numbers Trump cited contradict the most recent figures from the Federal Bureau of Investigation that show murder decreased 26.4%, rape decreased 25.7%, aggravated assault fell 12.5% and robbery decreased 17.8% in the first quarter of 2024 compared with a year earlier. A new report from the Major Cities Chiefs Association shows the majority of U.S. cities whose law enforcement agencies provided preliminary data had lower violent crime figures between January through June this year compared to the same time period in 2023.

Trump went on to discuss immigration, claiming Harris allowed millions of peopleopen borderto flow into our countrytotally unchecked." Arrests for illegal crossings at the southern border reached an all-time high in December but have been declining in 2024, falling to a three-year low in June, according to Customs and Border Protection. This is the lowest level since the Biden-Harris administration took office. In July, they fell again to their lowest level since 2020 after President Joe Biden issued an executive order President Biden in June sharply restricting asylum.

Border Patrol reported 56,408 encounters between ports of entry along the U.S.-Mexico border in July, the lowest monthly total since September 2020. It also represents a 32% drop from the month prior.

On Friday, August 23, Trump plans to deliver remarks in Las Vegas, Nevada at 12 noon - PDT.

About the Author: "Neely Bardwell (descendant of the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indian) is a staff reporter for Native News Online. Bardwell is also a student at Michigan State University where she is majoring in policy and minoring in Native American studies. "

Contact: neely@nativenewsonline.net
Nevada Republican U.S. Senate candidate Sam Brown speaking at a campaign event with Republican vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance in Henderson in July. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Democrats nationwide are attempting to make former President Donald Trump synonymous with Project 2025, an expansive plan to reconstruct the federal government under a Republican administration. And that narrative is trickling down to the Nevada Senate race.

Federal Election Commission data shows Republican Sam Brown, who is challenging Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen, has received tens of thousands of dollars in campaign donations from several leaders of think tanks connected to Project 2025, which is spearheaded by the Heritage Foundation but involves a coalition of more than 100 conservative groups.

Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee for president, has repeatedly referred to Trumps Project 2025 while on the campaign trail, and Democrats have blistered the nearly 1,000-page document on stage during the partys convention in Chicago.

Trump has publicly tried to distance himself from the proposal, posting on social media last month that knew nothing about the project and had no idea who was behind it. Trump has attempted to highlight his Agenda 47 platform, but leaked audio has suggested the architects behind Project 2025, which is described as a Presidential Transition Project, believe he is quietly in full support of their efforts.

In Nevada, the Republican state party mailed flyers highlighting nine of Trumps campaign promises, describing them as straight from Trumps platform not Project 2025, which Trump didnt write and does not support.

The flier also features a Forbes headline reading: Trump Disavows Project 2025: Calls Some Of Conservative Groups Ideas: Absolutely Ridiculous And Abysmal.

The Rosen campaign has pushed hard to tie Brown to Trump and much of their messaging has focused on tying Brown to policies that align with Project 2025, even if they dont explicitly name it. That has included highlighting comments Brown made supporting the storage of nuclear waste in Yucca Mountain (a position he has since recanted) and supporting the wholesale dismantling of federal agencies including the Department of Education and Environmental Protection Agency (positions he since declined to confirm or stand by).

Browns campaign did not respond to the Currents request to comment on Project 2025.

Campaign finance reports show Brown has received at least $50,000 in donations from Trump allies and leaders of conservative think tanks that have directly contributed to, or signed onto, Project 2025.

That includes a $3,000 donation from America First Policy Institute chair Linda McMahon, who was recently appointed to oversee Trumps transition team, and $6,000 from Timothy Dunn, the oil tycoon and Trump mega donor who serves as vice chair of the Texas Public Policy Foundation.

Claremont Institute chair Thomas Klingenstein and his wife, Robin Weaver, have given more than $23,000 to Brown. Like the America First Policy Institute and Texas Public Policy Foundation, Claremont has signed onto Project 2025 as a coalition partner.

In a July post on his personal website, Klingenstein praised Brown for fighting against woke radicals.

He hates how they are attacking America, its institutions and values, Klingenstein wrote of Brown. And most particularly he hates how they are attacking education. He knows that white children are being taught they are oppressors. He heard a mom say that she does not want her child on the back burner. Students of all colors are being taught that America is a hateful country, conceived in racism and committed to its perpetuation. What kind of country, Sam Brown asks, teaches its children to loathe their homeland. He asks as well, what kind of country ushers in millions of immigrants with cultures different from its own and then insists on not assimilating them? Such a country has a death wish.

A Rosen for Nevada campaign spokesperson in an emailed statement said Brown has proven time and time again that he cares more about pleasing MAGA Republicans in Washington and passing their far-right agenda than he does about Nevada, so its not surprising to see that the extremists writing Project 2025 are propping up Browns campaign.

The statement continued, These far-right figures know that Brown would support their plans to gut Social Security and Medicare, take away abortion rights, tear immigrant families apart, and eliminate entire federal agencies like the Department of Education. Brown will sell out Nevadans every chance he gets for MAGA extremism, and our state deserves better from its elected officials.

Browns campaign has previously pushed back on suggestions that he would gut Social Security, saying in earlier statements that like President Trump he will not cut Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid. He has also said he will not support a federal abortion ban, though his history of working for anti-abortion rights candidates, attending anti-abortion rights galas and refusing to disclose his position on a proposed state constitutional amendment, has left room for uncertainty.

This years U.S. Senate race between Brown and Jacky Rosen is expected to help determine which political party controls Congress, and depending on the outcome of the presidential race, brings the potential for major policy shifts for the country.
Donald Trump invoked Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiros religion while attacking him early Thursday in a rambling rant about Judaism and Israel.

The former president made the remarks in a Truth Social post hours after Shapiro spoke at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Shapiro used the speech to describe Trump as a man with no guardrails who wants to take away our rights and our freedoms.

Josh Shapiro Shares Daily Beast Podcast in Response to Trump Attack

The highly overrated Jewish Governor of the Great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro, made a really bad and poorly delivered speech talking about freedom and fighting for Comrade Kamala Harris for President, Trump wrote in his post.

He continued to claim that Harris hates Israel and hopes in the end that it will fail.

Yet Shapiro, for strictly political reasons, refused to acknowledge that I am the best friend that Israel, and the Jewish people, ever had, Trump wrote. I have done more for Israel than any President, and frankly, I have done more for Israel than any person, and its not even close. Shapiro has done nothing for Israel, and never will.

The Republican nominee signed off his post claiming Harris stole the Democratic nomination from President Joe Biden and will do even less than Shapiro to support Israel. Israel is in BIG trouble! Trump wrote.

Shapiro, asked for his reaction to the unhinged post, said that Trump is obsessed with him and has set himself up for another defeat.

WATCH @JoshShapiroPAs response to Donald Trumps late night ranting about him  and the contrast between this and the Democratic message of freedom, opportunity, and bringing people together.



Full answer this morning > https://t.co/Zqe6NmrTRy pic.twitter.com/5IGwp1jNk9  Manuel Bonder (@manuel_bonder) August 22, 2024

Donald Trump is obsessed with me and obsessed with continuing to spew hate and division in our politics, Shapiro said. Hes someone whos routinely peddled antisemitic tropes like this... Its clear that he is going to continue to be the hateful, divisive person that hes always been in this campaign.

Trump has previously claimed that Harris decision to choose Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz over Shapiro as her running mate was very insulting to Jewish people, insisting that she did so because of the fact that hes Jewish.

This week, Shapiro hit back, telling reporters that Trump is the least credible person to listen to when it comes to hate and bigotry and certainly antisemitism.

Antisemitism played absolutely no role in my dialogue with the vice president, Shapiro said. Absolutely none. It is also true that antisemitism is present in our commonwealth, in our country, and in some areas within our party, and we have to stand up and speak out against that.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Tourists visit the ancient city of Ephesus at night in Izmir, Turkiye, Aug. 14, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Lei)

ISTANBUL, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- As twilight descends on Ephesus, founded in the 10th century B.C. in Turkiye's Izmir province, lights will cast a captivating glow over the ancient city, offering a mesmerizing cultural experience for visitors until midnight.

The light show is part of the Night Museum project promoted by the Turkish Culture and Tourism Ministry, which aims to attract more tourists and promote the country's historical sites during summer, Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy announced earlier.

The initiative brings some of the Aegean and Mediterranean coasts' most extraordinary ancient sites, such as Ephesus, Hierapolis, Aspendos, Patara, Side, Phaselis, and Olympos, to life after sunset.

Tourists visit the ancient city of Ephesus at night in Izmir, Turkiye, Aug. 14, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Lei)

Mustafa Cevik, a first-time visitor, was profoundly impressed by Ephesus's nighttime illumination.

"When I was a child, we saw pictures of Ephesus's columns in our books. Seeing them in person, under the combined lighting and moonlight, was beautiful. It's truly a place worth seeing," Cevik told Xinhua.

He was particularly moved by the ancient library, stating, "Its existence underscores the profound importance of valuing literature from that era," and noted that the illumination made it even more magnificent at night.

Ephesus's grand structures, including the theater and library, were primarily built during the Roman period, particularly from the 1st century B.C. onward.

Tourists visit the ancient city of Ephesus in Izmir, Turkiye, Aug. 14, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Lei)

While the Night Museums project attracts more tourists, it has also boosted the number of visitors to the digital museums in the ancient cities.

DEM Museums, a visual art design company, has transformed an old gendarmerie building into a stunning digital museum that brings Ephesus's history to life through projections and holograms.

"Looking around now, we truly enjoy the ambiance of the nighttime museum experience. The lighting and the way people experience the night here are unique," Eda Bildiricioglu, CEO of the DEM, told Xinhua after a show.

Tourists visit the Ephesus Experience Museum in Izmir, Turkiye, Aug. 14, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Lei)

According to Bildiricioglu, the project has resulted in at least a 10 percent increase in visitors compared to last year. "This rise has certainly been reflected in the museum's attendance," she noted.

Bildiricioglu also highlighted that exploring historical sites in the evening provides a refreshing experience, allowing visitors to enjoy the comfort of the cool night air rather than the heat of the summer sun. 
Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday delivered his latest campaign trail remarks protected by bulletproof glass and multiple visible counter snipers on top of nearby buildings  his first outdoor campaign event not at his properties since a gunman attempted his life at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, last month.

It was his third counterprogramming event of the week against the Democratic National Convention, continuing with the series of events in battleground states focused on key election issues this year.

In Asheboro, North Carolina, on Wednesday, Trump focused on national security, attacking the Biden-Harris administration on ongoing foreign conflicts, the Afghanistan withdrawal, American hostage deals and other issues.

Contrary to his intimate and small counterprogramming events in Pennsylvania and Michigan earlier this week, this was his biggest campaign event so far this week. Trump  with the American flag in the backdrop just like in Butler  speaking in an open field in front of thousands of supporters, including some who told ABC News they were at the Butler rally and said the set up in Asheboro reminded them of the Butler rally.

As ABC News previously reported, the U.S. Secret Service has ordered multiple sets of bulletproof glass panels to be stored around the country so it can be trucked to wherever it's needed, sources said. While the measure is typically reserved exclusively for sitting presidents, the Secret Service has made an exception following the attempt on Trump's life.

PHOTO: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speaks from a bulletproof glass housing during a campaign rally, at the North Carolina Aviation Museum & Hall of Fame in Asheboro, North Carolina, August 21, 2024. (Jonathan Drake/Reuters)

MORE: Secret Service prepares use of bulletproof glass for outdoor Trump rallies: Sources

The Secret Service had recommended that Trump stop holding outdoor rallies last month after a gunman in Butler fired at him from a rooftop 400 feet from the stage, nicking his ear and killing a spectator in the crowd.

Since July 13, Trump has held nearly a dozen campaign events, all of them indoors.

Claiming the United States was respected during his administration, Trump repeatedly painted a grim picture of a possible Kamala Harris presidency, saying, "If Comrade Kamala wins this November, World War three is virtually guaranteed to happen. Everything she touches, she destroys."

Escalating his attacks on the sitting vice president, Trump began to directly blame Harris for the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia, even falsely claiming that Harris met with Russian President Vladimir Putin days before the Russia-Ukraine war broke out.

"Remember when Biden sent Kamala to Europe to stop the war in Ukraine? She met with Putin, and then three days later, he attacked," Trump falsely claimed. "How did she do it? Think she did a good job. She met with Putin to tell him, don't do it. And three days later he attacked. That's when the attack started."

In reality, there's no public record of Harris meeting with Putin. Instead, she met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at a security conference in Munich five days before the war broke out.

PHOTO: Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump gestures from a bulletproof glass housing during a campaign rally, at the North Carolina Aviation Museum & Hall of Fame in Asheboro, North Carolina, Aug. 21, 2024. (Jonathan Drake/Reuters)

MORE: In boosting Kamala Harris at DNC, Obamas go high and low

Trump also suggested Harris was responsible for the way U.S. troops left Afghanistan, saying "she was the last person in the room with Biden when the two of them decided to pull the troops out of Afghanistan."

"She had the final vote; she had the final say, and she was all for it," Trump said, later promising to hold the Biden-Harris administration accountable by asking for the resignations of "every single senior military official who touched the Afghanistan disaster."

Trump also claimed he would have handled the Afghanistan withdrawal better, claiming he has had conversations with the head of Taliban and that he "respected" him.

"Our adversaries knew that America was not to be trifled with when I was your commander in chief," Trump said. "... But since the Afghanistan catastrophe, it's been open season on America and our allies."

Trump also railed against "woke" military generals throughout his speech, claiming, "I know the good ones, the weak ones," praising his former military officials like Gen. Keith Kellogg.

Offering a glimpse of what his second term would look like, Trump declared "the days of blank checks for the weapons systems" are over and said he will build "a great Iron Dome" and give it to other countries like Israel.

"We will increase funding, but at the same time, the days of blank checks for the weapons systems over the past are over. I tell you what we will build, we're going to build a great Iron Dome over our country so that we don't have to get hit. We give it to other countries, we help Israel and other countries," Trump said.

Trump also said he would "aggressively" shift funding to "keep American on the cutting edge, investing in drones and other technology, saying he wants to invest "heavily" in "drones and robotics and artificial intelligence and hypersonics."

Even as he focused on policies, Trump dismissed the idea of stopping personal attacks on Harris  at one point, mocking his advisers for suggesting he should stick to policy and stray away from personal attacks. He then said that many speakers at the Democratic National Convention personally attacked him, referencing Barack and Michelle Obamas speeches last night.

Trump then polled the crowd to see if he should "get personal," followed by many in the crowd cheering. Prior to Obama's speech last night, Trump spoke highly of the former president, but quickly shifted his tone saying he was "nasty."

"Did you see Barack Hussein Obama last night? He was taking shots at your president. And so is Michelle. They always say, please stick to policy, don't get personal. Yet they are getting personal all night long, these people. Do I still have to stick to policy?"

"I try and be nice to people, you know, but it's a little tough when they get personal," Trump said.

"He was very nasty last night. I try and be nice," Trump said about former Obama's speech at the DNC Tuesday night.

"Should I not get personal? he asked the crowd. After few agreed, Trump quipped, "I don't know -- my advisers are fired."

Trump speaks from behind bulletproof glass at 1st outdoor rally since Butler shooting originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Donald Trump made an appearance in Cochise County, Arizona, near the southern U.S. border Thursday, touting a list of violent crimes allegedly committed by undocumented immigrants in an effort to boost his own political campaign.

During Trumps speech, he read out a list of several gruesome crimes committed against young girls and women across the country, which Trump claimed had been carried out by undocumented immigrantsoutright blaming his opponent Kamala Harris for allowing the immigrants into the country. Devoid of any emotion from Trump, the list was presented solely to create shock and outrage.

DEMS: Let's have a more joyful politics!



TRUMP: *at the border highlighting horrible incidents of brutal crimes and pushing collective guilt on migrants* pic.twitter.com/tqw98oCFtF  Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 22, 2024

During his address, Trump invited Patty Morin to speak. Morin is the mother of Rachel Morin, who was sexually assaulted and murdered in Maryland in 2023, allegedly by a migrant from El Salvador. Morin spoke emotionally about the devastating loss of her daughter, which compelled her to speak on behalf of Trump.

I really want our words to be heard, and I really want you to take to heart what Im saying. Were not here for a political standalthough we are, Morin said. Were here because were losing our moms, our daughters, our children to criminals. That shouldnt happen.

Trump and other MAGA figures have repeatedly highlighted Morins story as a tool to criticize the Biden administrations efforts to expand legal protections for undocumented immigrants. Rachels brother was invited to speak at the Republican National Convention last month.

The Republican nominee also invited family members of Jocelyn Nungaray, a 12-year-old from Houston, Texas, who was allegedly killed by an undocumented immigrant.

In highlighting these stories and their disturbing details, Trump hopes to feed into the anti-immigrant narrative his campaign has created, convincing Americans to support whichever candidate would close the southern border. But his fear-mongering regularly dives into overt racism and baseless claims, such as on Sunday, when Trump shared a post on his Truth Social account showing video footage of a line of people of color walking on a dirt road. The video was captioned, If youre a woman you can either vote for Trump or wait until one of these monsters goes after you or your daughter.

Trump was also accompanied Thursday by Sheriff Mark Dannels, who has been linked to the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association, a right-wing group of law enforcement officers that believe the countynot the state or federal governments-should control all land within its borders, giving sheriffs license to ignore federal law and enforce their own vision of justice.
New York Attorney General Letitia James urged an appeals court to uphold the $454 million court judgment against former President Donald Trump for misleading lenders, arguing the award was "supported by overwhelming evidence" of his deception.

James' Wednesday night brief responded to Trump's appeal over the $454 million judgment he and some Trump entities face after Judge Arthur Engoron concluded that he inflated the value of his assets over several years to get better loan and insurance terms. Interest is continuing to grow on that judgment, as well as on about $10 million in liability Engoron imposed against former Trump Organization executive Allen Weisselberg and Trump's sons Eric and Don Jr.

New York Attorney General Letitia James looks on as she attends former U.S. President Donald Trump's Manhattan courthouse trial in a civil fraud case, in New York, U.S., October 18, 2023.

In defending her court victory, James pointed to various ways in which Engoron concluded Trump fraudulently boosted his net worth in his financial statements, from tripling the size of his penthouse to ignoring apartment rent regulations to disregarding deed restrictions on his Mar-a-Lago club.

Perhaps most crucially, James pushed back against two core claims in Trump's appeal  that the loan transactions were victimless, and that it matters.

A victimless offense? NY AG disagrees

Trump argued in his July appeal brief that he didn't violate the New York fraud statute at issue in the case because, even assuming he misvalued his assets, he didn't hurt anyone. He noted, for example, that the Trump Organization repaid Deutsche Bank hundreds of millions of dollars in loans it received after giving the bank Trump's financial statements, which included asset valuations that Engoron concluded were fraudulent.

The financial representations "involved no victims, no complaints, no evidence of causation, no injuries, no losses to any business or consumer, and no impact on any public interest," his lawyers wrote on his behalf.

James shot back that evidence of past harm isn't the only issue because one of the statute's purposes is to stop fraud before it causes harm.

"A core focus of (the statute) has thus always been protecting both the integrity of the marketplace and honest market participants from the risks of misconducteven if those risks have not yet come to pass," lawyers from her office said.

James also argued that Trump did harm lenders because they offered his business empire better loan terms as a result of his fraud. She noted one Deutsche Bank executive's testimony that getting repaid didn't mean the bank was properly compensated for the risk it took on.

James' office filed the brief hours after the Manhattan-based appeals court scheduled arguments in Trump's appeal for Sept. 26.

The stakes are large

If Trump loses his appeal, he would have to come up with the hefty judgment in cash or watch James seize his assets.

The Republican presidential nominee has already indicated that would be painful: In March, his lawyers said coming up with a bond of more than $450 million bond to block James from seizing assets during his appeal was a "practical impossibility" unless he engaged in a real estate fire sale that "would inevitably result in massive, irrecoverable losses." The appeals court later reduced the bond to $175 million for him and his co-defendants.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump $454 million court loss backed by 'overwhelming evidence': NY AG
Former President Donald Trump is not happy with the Obamas after they blasted him in Democratic National Convention speeches on Tuesday.

While the nations first black president mocked Trumps tireless stream of gripes and grievances and weird obsession with crowd sizes, the former first lady mocked the Republicans previous comments at the National Association of Black Journalists. She said, Whos gonna tell [Trump] that the job hes currently seeking might just be one of those Black jobs?

The 78-year-old Trump did muster up a response to the ridicule, if only a day later. He asked his supporters on Wednesday during a rally in Asheboro, North Carolina if they had seen the Obamas speeches Did you see Barack Hussein Obama last night? Taking little shots, he was taking shots at your president. And so is Michelle.

They always say, sure, please stick to policy, dont get personal, Trump complained. And yet theyre getting personal all night long, these people. Do I still have to stick to policy? asked a clearly upset Trump.

The former president has recently received considerable criticism from his own party and campaign members who want him to stay on message, especially while questions regarding his ability to lead at his age have begun to spread.

During what was supposed to be his national security speech, Trump who has spent much of his campaign succumbing to what Barack Obama called childish nicknames to show up his political opponent, Kamala Harris  took a free poll from his supporters on whether he too should get personal.

David Axelrod, the chief strategist for the 2008 and 2012 Obama presidential campaigns, told the Guardian on Wednesday that Trump is struggling to pigeonhole Harris with his insults that have varied from racial ones to ones questioning her intelligence.

Hes a jazz man when it comes to all of this and he gets in front of a crowd and he tries to find the groove and he throws everything against the wall, Axelrod said. Its generally bile, its personal and its negative. But hes just trying out themes.

This might be true based on Trumps own admission during his North Carolina rally, he told his supporters: This calamity is on Comrade Kamala Harris. I think her name will be Comrade because I think thats the most accurate name. You know Ive been looking for a name. I really didnt find one with her.

Trump: Did you see Barack Hussein Obama last night? He was taking shots at your president. And so is Michelle. They always say, please stick to policy, don't get personal. Yet they are getting personal all night long, these people. Do I still have to stick to policy? pic.twitter.com/sEJHgUOWtf  Acyn (@Acyn) August 21, 2024
Tucker Carlson and Don Jr are behind RFK Jrs expected decision to drop campaign, report says

Donald Trump Jr and Tucker Carlson pressured Robert F Kennedy Jr to drop his presidential campaign.

The former presidents oldest son, the former Fox News personality and a Florida businessman, Omeed Malik, urged the independent candidate to abandon his campaign and endorse Donald Trump for president, NBC News reported, citing two unnamed sources familiar with the matter.

Robert F Kennedy Jr, who is expected to drop out of the race this week, may have been pressured to end his campaign by Donald Trump Jr and Tucker Carlson (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

These conversations began in July during the Republican National Convention, according to NBC News. Trump and Kennedy had at least two conversations the week of the convention.

The report revealed that Trump Jr, Carlson and Malik then intensified their conversations with Kennedy after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, who is now the Democratic nominee.

These conversations came amid polling that showed Kennedy could leech support from Trump.

Trump Jr and Carlson pressured Kennedy to drop out of the presidential race, a new report reveals. The independent candidate is expected to end his bid on Friday (Getty Images)

Kennedy and his running mate Nicole Shanahan are planning to drop out of the race by the end of this week, sources told ABC News.

Shanahan also revealed on a recent podcast they are considering dropping out and joining the Trump camp.

Theres two options that were looking at, Shanahan said on the business podcast Impact Theory.

One is staying in, forming that new party but we run the risk of a Kamala Harris and Walz presidency because we draw votes from Trump. Or we walk away right now and join forces with Donald Trump, she continued.

Trump Jr speaks with his father, Donald Trump. The former presidents son may be behind Kennedys expected decision to drop out of the race (AFP via Getty Images)

Vance also confirmed there has been a lot of communication back and forth between Kennedy, his campaign and the Trump campaign.

Our argument to RFK ... is ... if you want a Democratic Party that protected American workers and stood for strong borders, maybe disagreed with Republicans on things like tax policy, that party doesnt exist anymore, Vance said.

Trump and Carlson speak at the Republican National Convention (Getty Images)

Kennedys campaign events have slowed down in recent weeks. Jeff Hays, who has given the campaign more than $300,000, told ABC News that Shanahans recent comments also killed fundraising efforts.

The independent candidate is also facing problems getting his name on the ballot in some states. In New York, challengers accused him of using a sham address on election forms, leading a judge to remove him from the ballot. Similar challenges could be brought against the independent candidate in Georgia.

The Independent has contacted Kennedys campaign, Trumps campaign, Carlson and Malik for comment.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has drawn ire from the Turkish Orthodox Church for referring to Bartholomew as the "ecumenical patriarch", in a move that critics say violates Turkey's sovereignty and could harm Kyiv's relationship with Ankara.

Zelenskyy said in a post on social media platform X on Wednesday that he "had a call with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I", in which he "expressed [his] gratitude for His All-Holiness' prayers for Ukraine and his unwavering support for our nation".

The post prompted backlash from Turkey, with the Autocephalous Turkish Orthodox Patriarchate  an unrecognised, independent Eastern Orthodox church also known as the Turkish Orthodox Church  warning that Zelenskyy's comments were deliberate and could threaten peace.

A spokesperson for the church said in a statement: "When the traitor is from within, the door does not lock. There can be neither peace at home nor in the world if you place above the supreme Turkish law what Ataturk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey, who gave you the seats you sit in, called a 'nest of treason'. This is not meritlessness; it is intent," he said.

The controversy stems from the fact that Turkey only considers Bartholomew I to be the spiritual leader of the local Greek Orthodox minority in Turkey rather than playing any international role. It refuses to acknowledge the "ecumenical", or universal, title of the patriarch used by Western countries.

According to the Turkish government, he is subject to the authority of the Republic of Turkey under the Treaty of Lausanne, signed in 1923, which paved the way for the foundation of the Republic of Turkey.

Turkey worries that granting wider status to the patriarch could undermine the idea of a single Turkish nationality  a pillar of the nation's secular system.

Bartholomew's use of the term "ecumenical" during some of his visits abroad in the past has often caused tension between the church and the Turkish government. Turkey says the title interferes with its internal affairs.

His conversation with Zelenskyy happened against the backdrop of a rift within Ukrainian orthodoxy, which the president highlighted in his post on X.

Related

"I stressed the significance of the new law on spiritual independence, supported by the Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations, emphasizing that an independent nation must also be spiritually independent," Zelenskyy said.

Recently a law approved by the Ukrainian parliament bans the activities of religious groups tied to the Russian Orthodox Church, in addition to any other religious group that supports Russia's invasion.

It's been seen as targeting the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) in particular, which has long had ties with its Russian counterpart.

The UOC vehemently insists on its loyalty to Ukraine and claims that it has broken from the authority of Russia after its centuries-long affiliation, but Kyiv has remained doubtful, launching war-crime-related criminal proceedings against UOC clerics and allegedly finding pro-Russian propaganda in churches.

The issue has driven a wedge through Ukraine's Orthodox Christian community, with the similarly-named yet distinct Orthodox Church of Ukraine splitting off and receiving official recognition by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in 2019.

Bartholomew has been a repeated critic of Russia's war in Ukraine.

Despite the rifts in Ukraine's orthodox churches, Zelenskyy said that his conversation with Bartholomew finished on a positive note for the community: "I reaffirmed our state's commitment to strengthening Orthodoxy in Ukraine and promoting open dialogue between churches," he said.
TAYLOR COUNTY, Texas (KTAB/KRBC)  A man from Tuscola has been arrested on the charge of Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Child, a first-degree felony.

On August 20, 2024, the Taylor County Sheriffs Office interviewed suspect Adam Comeaux for allegations of sexual assault involving a 3-year-old female victim.

Comeaux was taken into custody and charged with Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Child. He is currently held in the Taylor County Jail on bonds totaling more than $200,000.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTAB - BigCountryHomepage.com.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk welcomes India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Polish Chancellery in Warsaw. Dominika Zarzycka/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said he supports Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi playing the role of mediator between Ukraine and Russia.

"I am very pleased that the prime minister has reaffirmed his willingness to work personally for a peaceful, just and swift end to the war," Tusk said in Warsaw after talks with Modi.

Modi said during a press conference that he believed the conflict could not be resolved on the battlefield.

India engages diplomatically with both Ukraine and Russia - and has repeatedly criticized Western sanctions on Moscow.

Modi has been keen to be seen as a peacemaker between the warring sides.

He met Russian President Vladimir Putin near Moscow in July. Video of the two leaders embracing raised eyebrows in Europe and Washington, especially as it came shortly after a deadly Russian strike on a paediatric hospital in Kiev. Analysts said it showed the failure of efforts by Western powers to isolate Putin in the wake of his all-out invasion of Ukraine.

Modi plans to travel on from Warsaw to Kiev, where he is scheduled to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Zelensky had condemned Modi's talks with Putin.

Modi's visit to Poland was the first by an Indian prime minister since 1979.

Poland is a key military supporters of Ukraine. The EU and NATO member state also plays a critical role as a logistical hub for Western aid to Kiev.
Minister of Trade Omer Bolat, attending the opening ceremony of a pickling factory in Zonguldak's Ere?li district, discussed Turkiye's progress in global trade.

"Our share of world goods exports was 0.55 percent 21 years ago. We increased this to 1.08 percent by the end of last year. God willing, our goal for 2028 is to reach 1.30 percent. Our share in global services exports was around 0.80 percent, and we are currently at approximately 1.30 percent. Increasing these figures will enhance our share in world trade. The medium-term program is progressing successfully."

Bolat, accompanied by local officials and business leaders, emphasized that Turkiye is making strides in employment and exports by supporting technological investments and productivity. "Our distinguished cities play a crucial role in reaching our economic goals, and each province's contribution to exports is vital."

He highlighted the growth in national income and exports. "Our national income increased from $230 billion to $1.158 trillion in the last 21 years, with per capita income rising from $3,600 to $13,110. We hope to reach $14,000 per capita by the end of this year. Goods exports have grown from $3 billion in 1980 to $261.5 billion, and services exports from $14 billion to $110 billion."

Minister noted that political stability, effective economic management, and contributions from various sectors are driving this progress. "As natural gas transportation increases, Turkiyes energy costs will decrease, giving our industry a significant boost."

Bolat stressed the importance of metal, engineering, automotive, and information technologies. "Developed countries, particularly G7 nations, excel in these sectors. Thanks to the AK Party and the People's Alliance, we have made significant progress in the economy over the past 22 years."

He outlined Turkiye's achievements in the steel sector and technology. "Turkiye ranks 8th globally and 1st or 2nd in Europe in metal and steel exports. Our steel exports are approaching $30 billion, with a nearly 10 percent increase in production and exports. We exported $3.3 billion in software, and the number of tech parks and industrial zones has grown significantly."

Minister concluded by reaffirming Turkiye 's goals for 2028 and the nation's strong position despite regional tensions and natural disasters. "We aim to increase our share of world goods exports to 1.30 percent. Turkiye shines as a reliable and high-quality supplier in the global economy, attracting foreign investments with our ports and free zones."

Minister Bolat highlighted Turkiye's strong performance in global contracting, stating, "Turkish contractors are ranked 2nd in the world, having completed $510 billion worth of projects in 137 countries. Of this, $50 billion was completed before 2002, and $460 billion since then. The significant increase reflects the dedicated service and work of the AK Party cadres under the leadership of our esteemed President, coupled with the effective management and unity of the People's Alliance and the support of our great nation. We are optimistic about achieving even greater success and prosperity in the future."

He continued, "The medium-term program is progressing successfully. Over the past 20 years, Turkiye has grown by 5.4 percent annually, surpassing the world average of 3.4 percent and the EU's lower growth rate. In the first quarter of this year, Turkiye's growth was 5.7 percent, while Europe grew by only 0.8 percent and the US by 2 percent."

Minister Bolat urged industrialists to focus on green economy compliance, emphasizing the 'Green Steel for the Future' initiative. He said, "We are working in coordination with the business world. Two weeks ago, our General Directorate of Exports launched a new incentive program, the 'Responsible' program. This initiative provides consultancy services to enhance our companies' competitiveness in the European market and promote the export of sustainable products. We will offer a 10 million TL grant for consultancy expenses per company."
BAGHDAD, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani and visiting Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud discussed on Thursday regional developments and jointly urged a ceasefire in Gaza.

The two sides reviewed key developments in the Middle East, including the ongoing aggression in the Gaza Strip, and emphasized the importance of continued joint efforts and coordination of Arab and international actions to halt the aggression, according to a statement released by al-Sudani's media office.

Al-Sudani urged the international community to fully play its role in preventing the ongoing "genocide" inflicted on the Palestinian people for over 10 months, the statement said.

The two sides also discussed prospects for further development in various fields, particularly in political and economic cooperation, and the activation of the Iraqi-Saudi Coordination Council to achieve mutual benefits and shared interests for both nations, the statement added. 
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk (R) and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi speak during a press conference after their meeting at the Polish Chancellery in Warsaw. Marek Antoni Iwanczuk/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said he supports Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi playing the role of mediator between Ukraine and Russia.

"I am very pleased that the prime minister has reaffirmed his willingness to work personally for a peaceful, just and swift end to the war," Tusk said in Warsaw after talks with Modi.

Modi said during a press conference that he believed the conflict could not be resolved on the battlefield.

In the afternoon, Modi met with Polish President Andrzej Duda.

India engages diplomatically with both Ukraine and Russia - and has repeatedly criticized Western sanctions on Moscow.

Modi has been keen to be seen as a peacemaker between the warring sides.

He met Russian President Vladimir Putin near Moscow in July. Video of the two leaders embracing raised eyebrows in Europe and Washington, especially as it came shortly after a deadly Russian strike on a paediatric hospital in Kiev.

Analysts said it showed the failure of efforts by Western powers to isolate Putin in the wake of his all-out invasion of Ukraine.

Modi plans to travel on from Warsaw to Kiev, where he is scheduled to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Zelensky had condemned Modi's talks with Putin.

Modi's visit to Poland was the first by an Indian prime minister since 1979.

Poland is a key military supporters of Ukraine. The European Union and NATO member state also plays a critical role as a logistical hub for Western aid to Kiev.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk welcomes India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Polish Chancellery in Warsaw. Marek Antoni Iwanczuk/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
BLOUNTVILLE, Tenn. (WJHL)  The nationally known traveling exhibit Rise Above Tuskegee Airmen is coming to the Tri-Cities Airport in September thanks to a local non-profit.

The Commemorative Air Force (CAF) exhibit, which also features a working P51C Mustang fighter plane and separate short films about both the Airmen and the historic Womens Airforce Service Pilots (WASPS), opens at the airport on Sept. 25 and runs through Sept. 29.

Johnson City-based Langston Education and Arts Development (LEAD) is funding the event, which is called Soar Tri-Cities: LEADing to New Heights.

A group of Tuskegee Airmen. (CAF Rise Above)

This is all about education and supporting the community, LEAD board member Pauline Douglas said. I think for the community to be able to go out and see the obstacles and the trials that not only the Tuskegee Airmen, but the women that were pilots, the WASPs overcame during that time gives hope and it shows you that everybody can overcome.

The free event is at Tri-City Aviation, 350 Aviation Drive, and involves a partnership with Tri-Cities Regional Airport. Northeast State Community Colleges Aviation Maintenance Program representatives will also be on hand with a helicopter and a flight simulation trailer.

The P51 Mustang will fly in on Sept. 25 and fly out on Sept. 29 in a show the airports marketing and air service development manager said will be a cant-miss event.

I am thrilled that they are also going to bring the P51 to this exhibit because it adds so much to it, Trevor Rice said. He said CAF has also brought its Air Power History Tour to the Tri-Cities twice in recent years.

The films on the Tuskegee Airmen and the WASPS  two groups that broke barriers and overcame obstacles to serve the United States  will play on a panoramic 160-degree screen inside a 53-foot, fully accessible semi-trailer. The screen creates the sensation of soaring above the clouds in the cockpit of a World War II-era aircraft, according to a news release.

Its just a chance to actually see, almost touch the history that occurred, said Douglas, who has seen the exhibit.

Regarding the P51, Douglas said people are apparently in for a treat.

A restored P51 Mustang  which was among the aircraft flown by Tuskegee Airmen. (Courtesy Jeff Berlin)

I have not seen it land before, but they say just the sound of that plane coming in and taking off is just something to behold, she said.

Even though hes a self-described av (aviation) geek, Rice said he wasnt familiar with the Tuskegee Airmen before Douglas approached him about bringing the exhibit.

Nearly 1,000 Black Americans became military fighter and bomber pilots during World War II, serving in various squadrons within the Army Air Forces 332nd Fighter and 477th Medium Bombardment groups. Black Americans who volunteered to become aerial observers in World War I had been rejected just a quarter-century earlier  leading to two decades of advocacy by the NAACP and other groups.

I love the whole premise of it and showing how minorities  the adversity that they had to overcome in order to serve their country, and this is just a great example of that, Rice said.

Douglas said the exhibit is among the single biggest investments LEAD has made in promoting education and the arts over the past five years.

It was important to have such an educational opportunity, not only for our young folks but for the whole community, she said. So we made the commitment that we were going to bring it here.

The exhibit will be open to the public during the following times:

2-4 p.m. on Sept. 25-27

9 a.m.- 4 p.m. on Sept. 28

10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sept 29

Field trips for area schools are planned for other weekday hours, but access will be limited.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
By Giselda Vagnoni and Guglielmo Mangiapane

PORTICELLO, Italy (Reuters) -The body of British tech magnate Mike Lynch was retrieved on Thursday from the wreck of his family yacht that sank this week off the coast of Sicily during a violent storm, a senior Italian official said.

Lynch's 18-year-old daughter Hannah is still unaccounted for, interior ministry official Massimo Mariani told Reuters after being briefed by the emergency services.

The British-flagged Bayesian, a 56-metre-long (184-foot) superyacht carrying 22 passengers and crew, was anchored off the port of Porticello, near Palermo, when it disappeared beneath the waves in minutes after bad weather struck early Monday.

Lynch, 59, was one of the UK's best-known tech entrepreneurs and had invited friends to join him on the yacht to celebrate his acquittal in June in a U.S. fraud trial.

Seven people are believed to have died in the disaster while 15 survived, including Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares, who is the owner of the Bayesian.

Italian officials confirmed they had retrieved on Wednesday the bodies of Jonathan Bloomer, a non-executive chair of Morgan Stanley International, and Christopher Morvillo of the law firm Clifford Chance, alongside their wives, Judy Bloomer and Neda Morvillo.

The body of the onboard chef, Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, was recovered near the wreck on Monday.

Mariani said it was possible that Hannah Lynch's body was not in the boat, but might have been swept out to sea.

Fire brigade spokesperson Luca Cari said if her body was still in the yacht it could take time to find, given the difficulty divers were having in accessing all areas of the boat, which is lying on its side at a depth of 50 metres (165 feet).

A judicial investigation has been opened into the disaster, which has baffled naval marine experts, who say a boat like the Bayesian, built by Italian high-end yacht manufacturer Perini, should have withstood the storm.

Giovanni Costantino, CEO of the Italian Sea Group, which owns Perini, told Italian media the Bayesian was "one of the safest boats in the world" and blamed the crew for failing to follow correct safety procedures.

The captain, James Cutfield, and his eight surviving crew members, have made no public comment on the disaster. The prosecutor leading the investigation, Ambrogio Cartosio, has scheduled a press conference for Saturday.

CHALLENGING CONDITIONS

Specialist rescuers have been searching inside the hull of the sunken yacht for the past three days in what they said were extremely challenging conditions due to the depth and the narrowness of the places that the divers are scouring.

The fire brigade compared the efforts to those that were carried out, on a larger scale, for the Costa Concordia, a luxury cruise liner that capsized off the Italian island of Giglio in January 2012, killing 32 people.

Once the final body is recovered, experts will have to decide whether, or how, to salvage the vessel.

The CEO of Italian Sea Group said the yacht's automatic tracking system suggested that it took 16 minutes from the moment the storm first hit to the sinking.

He said it was clear the ship took in large amounts of water, adding that investigators would need to see what doorways or hatches might have been left open, focusing notably on a main door located on the left side of the yacht.

"A Perini boat survived the Category 5 Katrina hurricane. Do you think one couldn't survive a waterspout here," he told Corriere della Sera newspaper, referring to a type of tornado which is believed to have hit the Bayesian.

Under maritime law, a captain has full responsibility for the ship and the crew, as well as the safety of all those aboard.

The captain of the Costa Concordia, Francesco Schettino, is serving a 16-year prison term for his role in the 2012 disaster after he admitted to sailing too close to underwater rocks.

(Writing by Crispian BalmerReporting by Giselda VagnoniAdditional reporting by Giulia Segreti in Rome and William James in LondonEditing by Bernadette Baum, Sharon Singleton Frances Kerry and Rod Nickel)
Two Central Texas cities file lawsuit to stop development near residential neighborhood

AUSTIN (KXAN)  Two Central Texas cities are joining forces to put an end to a development near residential neighborhoods.

Bee Cave City Council votes to file lawsuit to stop development near residential area

The cities of Lakeway and Bee Cave are filing a lawsuit to stop the construction of a distribution center. It is near the intersection of Highway 71 and Serene Hills Drive.

The distribution center is located in Bee Caves extra-territorial jurisdiction. (Photo: KXAN)

Leaders with Bee Cave City Council told KXAN the property is actually in Bee Caves extra-territorial jurisdiction, despite the proximity to the city of Lakeway.

Online plans show the property would have three buildings with 80 docking bays that could hold big rigs, warehouse space and offices.

KXAN received drone footage of the site from Real Estate Broker Ed Neuhaus.

Online plans show the business park would be nearly 270,000 square feet. (Photo: Ed Neuhaus)

Online plans show the business park would be nearly 270,000 square feet. (Photo: Ed Neuhaus)

Online plans show the business park would be nearly 270,000 square feet. (Photo: Ed Neuhaus)

Online plans show the business park would be nearly 270,000 square feet. (Photo: KXAN)

Online plans show the business park would be nearly 270,000 square feet. (Photo: KXAN)

Online plans show the business park would be nearly 270,000 square feet. (Photo: KXAN)

Online plans show the business park would be nearly 270,000 square feet. (Photo: KXAN)

Online plans show the business park would be nearly 270,000 square feet. (Photo: KXAN)

But officials want to stop the project.

The injunction

On Monday, the Bee Cave City Council voted to file a lawsuit blocking the development of the KBC Service Center Distribution Facility.

Lakeway City Council voted to join the lawsuit on that same day.

Lakeway City Council recently voted (5-0) in favor of authorizing the city attorney to intervene in litigation with Bee Cave regarding the West Austin Business Park. We also had more than 30 residents come out to speak on this topic at the most recent city council meeting earlier this week, all in support of the city taking this action. At this time, we dont have any specifics on the next steps in this process, but our city attorney is currently exploring our options. The City of Lakeway

At the meeting, dozens of people voiced their support to intervene. Among those in the line was Nicole Cox. Cox lives in a neighborhood near the site.

Its like the walls came up overnight. We saw the cranes coming up. We had no word of any other plans that were going on there. Nicole Cox, neighbor

She isnt against distribution companies. Cox actually works at one. However, she said they dont belong near a residential area.

Light pollution in addition to the noise pollution and air pollution in that area, Cox said.

Cox said there are plans to build a new high school in that area. Her biggest concern is the increased traffic with the potential distribution site.

Highway 71 is already very dangerous, very congested, and adding an 80 bay distribution center and all the trucks, thats just going to exasperate the issue, Cox said. More dangerous for residents, for students, for commuters going through there.

Ultimately, Cox hopes the project doesnt go through and the neighborhood can put this behind them.

But shed also like to look at other ETJ agreements to have peace of mind something like this wont happen again.

Really look at those and how do they get transferred and communicated, and whos responsible for that communication? Cox said.

Erica Pauda 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 KXAN Austin.
Two civilians killed in Russian bombardment of Sumy Oblast

The aftermath of a Russian strike on Sumy Oblast. Stock photo: Sumy Oblast Prosecutor's Office

Two people were killed and one more injured in Russian strikes targeting Sumy Oblast on the afternoon of 22 August.

Source: Sumy Oblast Prosecutor's Office on Telegram

Quote: "The invaders launched two guided aerial bombs on the civilian infrastructure of Esman hromada in Shostka district at around 13:00 on 22 August. [A hromada is an administrative unit designating a village, several villages, or a town, and their adjacent territories  ed.]

Two civilian men, aged 74 and 67, were killed in the attack. The wife of one of the deceased was injured and has been hospitalised."

Details: Criminal proceedings have been initiated under Article 438.2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (violation of the laws and customs of war, combined with premeditated murder).

Law enforcement officers are documenting the aftermath of the attack.

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Two former presidents and five current and former employees of the Kansas City-based International Brotherhood of Boilermakers have been indicted for their alleged roles in a 15-year, $20 million embezzlement scheme, the Justice Department announced Thursday.

The seven are charged with conspiracy to commit offenses under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. They also face charges of embezzlement, health care fraud, wire fraud and theft in connection with health care and retirement plans.

The grand jury indictments were returned Wednesday, and the case is filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas. The unions headquarters was in Kansas City, Kansas, for decades, but has recently moved to Kansas City.

As alleged in the indictment, these defendants, including two former presidents of the Boilermakers Union, enriched themselves by spending millions of dollars in union funds for their own benefit, including for salary and benefits for no-show jobs, tuition, rent, luxury international travel, meals, vacation payouts, and unauthorized loans, said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Departments Criminal Division.

This indictment marks an important step in restoring financial security to the Boilermakers Union and control of the unions future to its membership. The department is committed to protecting union members from officials who abuse their positions of authority for their own personal ends.

The defendants are former union president Newton B. Jones, 71, of Chapel Hill, North Carolina; former secretary-treasurer William Creeden, 76, of Kearney, Missouri; former president Truman Warren Fairley, 59, of Chapel Hill; current secretary-treasurer Kathy Stapp, 53, of Shawnee, Kansas; former vice president Lawrence McManamon, 76, of Rocky River, Ohio; Newton Jones wife, Kateryna Jones, 32, of Chapel Hill; and Newton Jones son, Cullen Jones, 35, of Chapel Hill.

Stapp replaced Creeden as secretary-treasurer in August 2023. Fairley announced his retirement on Monday, effective immediately, according to a news release issued by the union. He was replaced by Timothy Simmons, one of the unions five international vice presidents.

Warren Fairley speaks with union members outside the Robert J. Dole Federal Courthouse in Kansas City, Kansas.

If convicted, the defendants face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on the RICO conspiracy count.

The charges allege that over 15 years, Jones and Creeden led the defendants in engaging in widespread embezzlement of Boilermakers union funds. That embezzlement, according to the charges, included:

 more than $5 million in unnecessary luxury international travel

 more than $2 million in salary and benefits to Kateryna and Cullen Jones for no-show jobs at which they did not work, including two years salary to Kateryna Jones when she lived in Ukraine and was dating Newton Jones

 hundreds of thousands of dollars for tuition, rent and relocation expenses for Newton Jones family members

 millions of dollars in cash payments in relation to vacation time that was fraudulently claimed

 hundreds of fraudulent restaurant expenses for Newton and Kateryna Jones in their hometown

 funds spent on email surveillance of union employees to defend Newton Jones and McManamon from internal union charges; and

 $7 million in unauthorized loans received from the Boilermakers Union MORE Fund that were executed by Newton Jones and Creeden to the union-owned Bank of Labor

Newton Jones and Creeden also were charged with wire fraud in connection to their alleged demand and acceptance of no-show employment with the Bank of Labor, the Justice Department said, for which they were paid more than $3.4 million each in salary and benefits.

The indictment also seeks forfeiture of $20 million.

Concerns go back decades

Many of the charges are for issues The Star revealed in a 2012 investigation, finding that Jones and other executives were living the good life. Jones salary and business expenses that year totaled more than $607,000, which put him above the presidents of the biggest unions in the country. The Star also found that several of Jones family members and relatives of other officers were earning hefty union salaries as well.

A follow-up story in 2017 found that little had changed. Six-figure salaries were still common for officers and their relatives, as were fine dining, stays in posh hotels and expensive hunting retreats. Cars were still being given as parting gifts for retired employees, and hundreds of thousands of dollars continued to be spent on promotional events and videos  all while membership continued its downward spiral and the unions pension fund struggled to stay afloat.

Rank-and-file union members, who have long criticized Jones and other top officials for misspending their dues, welcomed the new indictments.

This is a HUGE win for the members of our union, said Darrell and Jessica Manroe, members of Local 83 in Kansas City, in an email. We would like to send out a big thanks to the FBI, all that helped with this long, drawn-out investigation and the members who got involved with the rallies.

This just goes to show if you play with fire, youre going to get burned. Finally justice!

Boilermakers International President Newton B. Jones talks to angry union members outside the federal courthouse in Kansas City, Kansas, after a hearing on July 27.

The indictments come a little more than a year after the unions executive council voted to oust Jones as international president, accusing him of misusing union funds for personal gain  including funneling large sums of money to his Ukrainian wife for work she never performed. That led to a monthslong court battle over who controlled the union.

In August 2023, a federal judge upheld the union executives June 2 decision to remove Jones as president and replace him with Fairley, who had recently retired as an international vice president.

Jones, who had led the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers since his father retired in 2003, has denied any wrongdoing and said the executive council had no authority under the unions constitution to dismiss him. After the August hearing, he told The Star that Ive done a lot of great things for this union and said the allegations of financial malfeasance were all bullshit.

Jones attorney, Patrick McInerney, declined to comment on Thursday.

In May, former union official Tyler Brown pleaded guilty to one count of racketeering conspiracy in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas. Brown, who served as the unions chief of staff and as special assistant to Jones, was accused of scheming with others known and unknown to steal from the union.

At the time, Jones had not been charged with any crimes, but the actions described in Browns plea agreement made it clear that he was a focus of the federal investigation.

The International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, Iron Ship Builders, Blacksmiths, Forgers and Helpers was established in 1880 and is one of the nations oldest unions. It represents about 45,000 workers in the United States and Canada who assemble, install and repair boilers, fit pipes and build power plants and ships.

Treated as personal piggy bank

The FBI Kansas City Field Office and the U.S. Department of Labor are investigating the case.

Christiane Abendroth, of the Department of Labors Office of Labor-Management Standards, said the indictment is a direct result of OLMSs audit findings and a multi-agency criminal investigation.

We look forward to obtaining justice for the rank-and-file union members by removing officers who allegedly treated the union as their personal piggy bank, she said.

Stephen A. Cyrus, special agent in charge of the FBI Kansas City Field Office, said union employees believed their executive would promote and protect their best interests.

Instead, they allegedly utilized their positions for personal and financial gain, Cyrus said. By allegedly unlawfully misappropriating Union funds, the defendants betrayed their members trust and confidence. Anyone who unlawfully profits at the expense of others will be held accountable.
Two men sentenced for child exploitation charges in Mississippi

JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV)  Two men were sentenced on child exploitation charges in Mississippi.

On August 5, a Harrison County judge sentenced Robert Christian McMorrow, of San Diego, California, to six years in prison without the possibility of parole. He was also sentenced to five years of supervised probation for possession of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

University of Mississippi advisor arrested for enticement of child

According to the Mississippi Attorney Generals Office, McMorrow was temporarily stationed at the Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi when the crime occurred.

On July 23, a Jones County judge sentenced Scott Kevin Merrill, of Moselle, to 40 years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDOC), with 10 years to serve day-for-day without the possibility of parole. He was also sentenced to five years of supervised probation for Possession of CSAM.

Robert Christian McMorrow (Courtesy: MS Attorney Generals Office)

Scott Kevin Merrill (Courtesy: MS Attorney Generals Office)

Both men will be required to register as sex offenders upon their release from prison.

The Mississippi Attorney Generals Office said both men were arrested as a result of CyberTips reported to the office.

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2 people from Jacksonville arrested, accused of throwing acid on woman in New Jersey

Three people, including two from Jacksonville, have been arrested and charged for throwing acid on a woman in New Jersey.

>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<

Police in Monroe Township, New Jersey said Betty Jo Lane, 38, and Jmarr McNeil, 39, were paid by William DiBernardino of Boynton Beach, Florida to attack his ex-girlfriend.

The pair rented a car, drove up to New Jersey, and then threw acid on the victim as she got out of her vehicle. It happened after she returned home from work on Jul. 26.

READ: JSO: Victim in surgery after suffering gunshot to the stomach in Moncrief

Police said the victim sustained burns on over 35 percent of her body and was airlifted to a burn center where she is still being treated for her injuries. The liquid used in the attack is believed to be a highly caustic acid.

The Jacksonville Sheriffs Office, Boynton Beach Police Department, Fort Pierce Police Department, and U.S. Marshals Service were also assisted in the investigation and arrests.

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Education Secretary Miguel Cardona speaks at Department of Education headquarters in Washington, D.C., on July 22, 2024. (U.S. Department of Education photo)

WASHINGTON  U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said Thursday he is launching a 2024 Back to School Bus Tour in early September that will include stops in multiple battleground states across the United States as he and other Biden administration officials highlight their work in investing in public education.

While not a campaign event, the Sept. 3-6 tour will take place in the swing states of Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, along with stops in Indiana and Illinois. As schools are getting back in session, the department said Cardona, Deputy Secretary of Education Cindy Marten and Under Secretary of Education James Kvaal will shed light on the administrations commitment to helping students and communities recover from the impacts of the pandemic by improving academic achievement and succeed from cradle to college and career.

Cardona said this years Back to School Bus Tour will remind the American people why the Biden-Harris Administration has unapologetically fought for public education, the foundation of opportunity in this country, and the contrast between our efforts and those who wish to destroy public education, per a Thursday statement.

The Education secretary added that he is looking forward to lifting up whats working in public education and celebrating the exciting work taking place in our schools and communities to ensure that all students, no matter their race, place, or background, have opportunities to succeed and contribute to our country.

Cardona and other officials will be talking about some of the Biden administrations initiatives in education, such as promoting the importance of regular attendance, providing student debt relief  including through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program  expanding full-service community schools and widening mental health support access at schools.

The department said it has invested more than $357 billion under the Biden administration to strengthen education across America.

This years tour, with a Fighting for Public Education theme, will kick off in Green Bay, Wisconsin, on Sept. 3. Other stops in the Badger State will include Madison and Milwaukee. The Education Department said White House domestic policy adviser Neera Tanden and Mandy Cohen, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, will also be at some of the stops.

Officials will also visit Chicago, Illinois, and La Porte, Indiana.

Cardona and other administration officials will then take the tour to Michigan, with stops in Grand Rapids, Lansing and Detroit. Becky Pringle, president of the National Education Association, will join the tour in Grand Rapids, according to the department. NEA is the largest labor union in the country.

The tour will wrap up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and feature U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers. Both the NEA and AFT have endorsed Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, the vice president.

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The United Auto Workers (UAW) union joined calls for a Palestinian American to speak on the final night of Democratic National Convention, implying that the party risks losing the election amid ongoing protests over the administrations handling of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

If we want the war in Gaza to end, we cant put our heads in the sand or ignore the voices of the Palestinian Americans in the Democratic Party, the UAW wrote Thursday on social platform X.

If we want peace, if we want real democracy, and if we want to win this election, the Democratic Party must allow a Palestinian American speaker to be heard from the DNC stage tonight, the union added.

Hundreds of thousands of people voted uncommitted during the presidential primaries as a sign of opposition to President Bidens approach to the conflict and perceived embrace of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Vice President Harris, now at the top of the ticket after Biden withdrew from the race, is planning to send a message about the conflict during her remarks Thursday evening, although the speech will be focused mainly on policy issues including the economy and abortion.

The UAW endorsed Harris in the November election, and union President Shawn Fain spoke Monday on the opening night of the convention in Chicago. He did not mention the conflict during his remarks.

The union called for an immediate, permanent cease-fire in Israel and Palestine in December after Hamass Oct. 7 attack on the country sparked an Israeli offensive that has devastated Gaza.

Hamas killed around 1,200 people in the initial attack on Israel and abducted approximately 250 hostages. The local Health Ministry estimates that more than 40,000 Palestinians have since died in Gaza.

Pro-Palestinians protesters have gathered at the convention this week to condemn the administrations policies on Israel and Gaza. The protesters have accused Biden and Harris of supporting what they claim is genocide, a term pro-Israel Democrats as well as most Republicans dispute and argue downplays Hamass role in the conflict.

While their ranks were smaller than expected during the initial days of the protests, which have been overwhelmingly peaceful, numerous protesters were reportedly arrested Tuesday during a clash with police.

The Democratic National Convention did not immediately return a request for comment. A list of speakers for Thursday has not yet been released.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
BAGHDAD, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Iraqi military announced on Thursday that it had conducted an airstrike in the eastern province of Diyala, destroying an Islamic State (IS) hideout and killing all militants inside.

Based on intelligence reports, the Iraqi military sent F-16 fighter jets to attack the IS hideout in the Hamrin mountain range in northern Diyala at 7:00 a.m. local time (0400 GMT), according to a statement released by the Security Media Cell, a media outlet of the Iraqi Joint Operations Command.

The statement added that the destroyed hideout served as a logistical support site for IS terrorists.

Captain Asaad Salman from the federal police told Xinhua that a team of soldiers and federal police was sent to the scene, where they discovered scattered remains of militants, along with weapons, ammunition, and other logistical materials. The death toll was not specified.

While the security situation in Iraq has improved since the defeat of IS in 2017, remnants of the group have sneaked into urban centers, deserts, and rugged areas, continuing to conduct frequent guerrilla attacks against security forces and civilians. 
BELVIDERE, Ill. (WTVO)  United Auto Workers members and leadership held a rally in Belvidere on Thursday, calling on automaker Stellantis to honor its commitments to reopen the Belvidere Assembly Plant.

The victories we won last year in our Stand Up Strike at the Big Three weren`t suggestions, they were binding commitments in a union contract, and we as the UAW intend to enforce that contract to the fullest extent, said UAW President Shawn Fain.

Fain will be joined by Region 4 Director Brandon Campbell, and Local 1268 President Matt Frantzen.

On Monday, UAW locals filed grievances with the company over what they said was its failure to honor commitments it made in the latest union contract.

In October 2023, Stellantis agreed to build a $3.2 billion battery plant in Belvidere and invest $1.5 billion to retool the factory for an all-new mid-sized truck.

The automaker said market conditions were the reason for the delay, saying that to ensure the companys future competitiveness and sustainability, which are necessary to preserve U.S. manufacturing jobs, it is critical that the business case for all investments is aligned with market conditions and our ability to accommodate a wide range of consumer demands. Therefore, the company confirms it has notified the UAW that plans for Belvidere will be delayed, but firmly stands by its commitment.

I find a pathetic irony in the fact that Stellantis is now, for the first time, citing market conditions as their reason for attempting to break their promises to Belvidere and autoworkers in America. Its always market conditions when they have to stiff an autoworker or close a plant. Its never market conditions when they want to raise CEO pay by 56%. Carlos Tavares is telling the American autoworker, Market conditions for thee, but not for me,' Fain said in a statement.

The UAW has threatened to authorize a strike at assembly plants in Toledo, Ohio; Warren, Michigan; Sterling Heights, Michigan; Detroit, Michigan; and Kokomo, Indiana.

Stellantis said it notified the UAW of plans to delay reopening of Belvidere. Still, they said it stands by the commitment and strongly objects to union allegations that its violating terms of the UAW contract.

The UAW agreed to language that expressly allows the company to modify product investments and employment levels, spokeswoman Jodi Tinson said. Therefore the union cannot legally strike over a violation of this letter at this time.

Stellantis idled the Belvidere plant in February 2023.

The Belvidere plant opened as a Chrysler factory in 1965, manufacturing the Plymouth Fury. When it was idled in 2023, it was making the Jeep Cherokee.

Stellantis reported that its net profits fell by half during the first six months of the year largely because of lower sales and restructuring costs.

Earlier this year, the Biden administration announced a $334.8 million investment to retool the plant to build electric vehicles and components.

In the automotive sector, other manufacturers are delaying timelines for electric vehicle production in a global market dominated by Tesla and Chinese alternatives, such as BYD. In October 2023, General Motors announced it would be delaying the production of its electric Silverado pick-up truck.

On Wednesday, Ford said it would cut its spending on EVs and canceled plans for a three-row SUV. Ford said the global EV market is changing rapidly, and it must evolve to compete with Chinese automakers that have lower production and engineering costs.

I think we all know; this corporation is slow playing us right now due to the elections coming up in November. You have one candidate [Trump] that says hell end EV mandates on day one and the other [Harris] maintaining their position on EV mandates. The $1.4 billion dollars from the government is contingent on us building EV in Belvidere. In my opinion, Stellantis will not move forward with anything until they know what mandates there will be, if any, Frantzen added.

According to the Associated Press, U.S. electric vehicle sales rose about 7% during the first half of the year to 599,134, accounting for 7.6% of the U.S. new vehicle market, about the same as it was for all of last year.

Sales of gas-electric hybrids went up 35.3% from January through June to 715,768, outpacing electric vehicle sales.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Former UFC fighter Casey Kenney has been released from jail on a $10,000 bond after pleading not guilty to kidnapping and assault charges.

Kenney was arrested on 16 August on charges including kidnapping and aggravated assault, according to Phoenix court records. Per Maricopa County court documents, the 33-year-old faced six charges relating to an alleged domestic violence incident: kidnapping; aggravated assault (strangulation); three cases of assault; and disorderly conduct.

Kenney was subsequently let go by the UFC, but the American was released on bond after an arraignment hearing at Maricopa County Court in Arizona this week. A representative from the Maricopa County Sheriffs Department confirmed the news to MMA Fighting, after Kenney paid his $10,000 bond as ordered by the court.

In July, Phoenix police confirmed an incident that was reported on Instagram by the mother of an alleged victim; the mother accused Kenney of domestic violence.

According to MMA Fighting, the police report described an adult female victim with some visible abrasions reporting a domestic violence assault. The female was treated by paramedics and interviewed by investigators. No contact was made with the suspect at that time. This case is still active.

A court document obtained by MMA Fighting read: Between the dates of 7-21-2024 at approximately 11:00 p.m. and 7-22-24 at approximately 12:14 p.m. while at the single family residence located at [address redacted], [suspect] Casey Kenney committed kidnapping, aggravated assault by strangulation and assault against [victim] Jasmine Mendez by repeatedly striking, slapping, biting, headbutting and choking [victim] Jasmine for several hours resulting in abrasions to Jasmines lip and discoloration to Jasmines arms and petechiae to Jasmines neck.

Furthermore, during the 13 hours at Casey Kenneys residence, Jasmine was incapable of escaping the residence due to Casey routinely grabbing hold of Jasmine and holding her in place during her attempts while threatening to cause more physical harm.

Casey Kenney advised Jasmine Mendez that if anyone shows up he will shoot them and if her mother shows up he will shoot her in the head. Jasmine Mendez stated she desires prosecution in this matter at this time.

Bantamweight Kenney has not fought since August 2021, when he lost to Song Yadong on points.
In 2019, University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouto gave an interview to UKs Louis Nunn Center for Oral History for something called I Am Diversity: The Unconscious Bias Initiative Oral History Project.

In the interview, Capilouto recounted returning to his home state of Alabama to visit Montgomerys National Memorial for Peace and Justice, which honors victims of lynching from every state, and its nearby counterpart, the Legacy Museum: From Enslavement to Mass Incarceration.

He spoke with real emotion of the 4 million people held in slavery in the American South, the estimated 4,000 lynchings of Black people in the post-Civil War South, and the terror of Jim Crow laws that were enforced with violence, including in Kentucky, where 168 people of color were lynched.

Each name has a story that has to echo through a community, Capilouto said. Some of those things we have never reconciled that still need more work. But if that is your history, if that is what you must carry with you, thats different than most of the people that surround you.

He then went on to speak of efforts made to promote diversity, equity and inclusion at UK, including increases in a diverse student body, scholarships, trainings and other developments.

W.E.B. Du Bois wrote that the challenge of the 20th Century is the color line, Capilouto said. Well its the 21st Century and its still a challenge.

But on Tuesday, Capilouto abruptly changed that point of view when he announced he was abolishing the Office of Institutional Diversity, and ending any diversity training on campus.

Capilouto made a pragmatic, if overly cautious, calculation to end DEI before the Kentucky General Assembly forced him to.

DEI is the latest imaginary culture war target. The far right wing of the GOP supermajority, stung by its failure to pass such laws last session, are determined to continue their holy war on Black and brown students another time around.

The General Assembly does carry a a big stick: Nearly $360 million in funding, an increase of $50 million from the year before, plus required approval for all the buildings UK wants to build, whether for UK HealthCare or on the main campus.

Policy of appeasement?

DEI is such a threat in our commonwealth. After all, six of Kentuckys eight public universities, like our legislative and executive branches, are headed by white men. But Heritage Foundation marching orders are Heritage Foundation marching orders, and the acronym DEI has become radioactive.

The GOP has a point about one thing. In trying to correct the historic inequities that persist to this day, many universities created yet another layer of costly administration whose role in actually correcting inequities became unclear.

For example, in 2023-2024, the former vice-president of the UK Office of Institutional Diversity, Katrice Albert, made a salary of $377,000, and her chief of staff, Damon Williams, made $217,000. They now work for the newly established Office of Community Relations.

Capilouto clearly believes righting historical wrongs through education. The question remains whether UK will continue the work of welcoming, including and educating students under-represented minorities without an explicit mandate to do so.

I am hopeful that UK can integrate the work that we have done to make education accessible to everyone into all of campus, said Anastasia Curwood, a history professor who is also director of the Commonwealth Institute of Black Studies.

The president has stated that we as a community value bringing together multiple communities into our UK community, and I hope that the new approach will continue to make that happen.

There is also the question of whether Capiloutos move is a policy of appeasement that will be treated by the GOP supermajority like the Nazis treated the British government in the 1930s.

In 2022, Kentucky Republicans went after critical race theory, because they think, for example, its a divisive concept to note the straight line between slavery and todays criminal justice system. Whos to say they wont think Capiloutos policy doesnt go far enough and pass a law outlawing the Commonwealth Institute for Black Studies or the Office of LGBTQ Resources?

Sure, its divisive to say our society is still plagued by racism, but it has the added bonus of being true.

The real culprits

So lets blame the real villains of this piece, the far right wing of the Kentucky legislature. They are the ones convinced that higher education is a liberal breeding ground.

Theyve obviously never heard academics joke about indoctrination: if I could indoctrinate students, Id get them to put down their phone and read the syllabus.

Those lawmakers dont know or dont believe that American racial laws and policies still affect educational access today. They think educating students on those finer points of U.S. history is somehow warping their brains. They havent spent much time on UKs campus because if they had, theyd know that its hardly a bastion of liberal thought.

Could anyone who watched the 2022 video of UK student Sophia Rosing screaming the N-word at a Black classmate really think UK is too woke?

If only the zealots in the General Assembly could be as pragmatic as Capilouto about the future of Kentucky. Theyd realize that this kind of extremism alienates Kentuckys diverse best and the brightest who either leave here as soon as they can or refuse to come back.

Like most culture wars, this one is a distraction from the hard work Kentucky lawmakers need to do to make our schools better, our universities stronger and our economy more successful. But that takes vision, not demagoguery. That takes open minds, not parochial ones.

It takes hard work they are so far unwilling to do.
Ukraines special forces have released footage that they claim shows pontoon bridges being destroyed with US-made missiles in Kursk.

The shows a range of attacks in Russias border region, including Himars missiles hitting the bridges, which Kyiv said were destroyed along with crucial Russian equipment.

It also shows Ukrainian forces destroying Russian field ammunition, fuel depots, a radio-electronic warfare complex and a 152-mm D-20 gun, a Ukrainian military officer told the Kyiv Post.

While Washington has not commented on the strike, Kyiv acknowledged for the first time on Wednesday that US-made weapons had been used in its Kursk incursion.

Where are the Russian pontoons disappearing [to] in the Kursk region? Special operations forces operators, together with units of the defence forces of Ukraine, are effectively destroying them, Ukraines special operations forces said.

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Another military officer said the purpose of the attacks was to cut off Russian supply lines, which he claimed had been used to coordinate attacks against Ukraine.

Its clear that as the enemy retreats, they havent ensured the proper function of all military systems, while the Ukrainian armed forces are effectively utilising resources to cut off the Russians logistical routes, he said.

The officer added that another purpose behind the destruction of Russias pontoon bridges was to demotivate Moscows army, given Ukraines advances in Kursk.

Russia scrambled to build the pontoons after Ukraine destroyed three crucial bridges along the River Seym last weekend near the settlements of Glushkovo, Zvan, and Karyzh.

The destruction of the final bridge near Karyzh on Sunday left Moscow with few options to bring supplies across the water.

Analysts have said the destruction of the bridges could help Kyiv consolidate control of the territory it has gained since launching the daring invasion of the Russian border region nearly two weeks ago.

Drone footage shows smoke rising after strikes on pontoon crossings over the River Seym - Reuters

The week, Kyivs top general said Ukrainian forces had advanced 28-35km (17-22 miles) into the Kursk border region, capturing more than 90 settlements.

The destruction of bridges inside Russia by Ukraine has formed part of a wider counter-offensive by Kyiv, which has included a series of drone strikes against key Russian targets.

On Wednesday, Moscow was targeted with what the citys mayor said was one of the largest drone strikes launched against Russia since the war started in February 2022.

Meanwhile, a military base in southern Russia was hit in a Ukrainian drone strike overnight on Thursday.

The Marinovka military airfield, believed to host fuel and glide bombs, was hit as part of a campaign on Russian airfields used by warplanes to carry out attacks in Ukraine, a source told Reuters.

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Ukraine will provide education for children in parts of Russia's Kursk Oblast captured by Ukrainian forces if necessary

Ukraine is ready to provide education to children residing in the parts of Russia's Kursk Oblast captured by Ukrainian forces if such a need arises.

Source: Interfax Ukraine news agency, citing Mykhailo Vynnytskyi, Deputy Minister of Education and Science, at a briefing on 22 August

Details: However, there is no discussion about relocating schoolchildren to Ukraine.

"International humanitarian law prohibits the relocation of minors across borders during occupation or hostilities. We condemn our enemy for displacing children of Ukrainian citizens to the territory of the Russian Federation.

We consider this a fundamental violation of human rights. Therefore, we are definitely not talking about any transfer of children from Kursk Oblast to the territory of Ukraine," said Vynnytskyi.

The official also mentioned that if the situation in Kursk Oblast continues to unfold as it is now, educators will need to develop a plan by autumn to ensure that children living in this region of Russia receive their education.

The deputy minister also added that Ukraine's Ministry of Education and Science is considering merging the agricultural college in the Russian town of Sudzha, which is controlled by Ukrainian forces, with Sumy National Agrarian University.

"There is an idea to merge the college with Sumy National Agrarian University. This idea has been voiced in the ministry before. We have not yet made any moves in this direction," added Mykhailo Vynnytskyi.

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Stock photo: the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook

The Wall Street Journal reports that Ukrainian troops say they are moving to encircle about 3,000 Russian troops surrounded against a river in Russia's Kursk Oblast as Ukraine destroys bridges and crossings.

Source: WSJ

Details: The Ukrainian military used US-supplied HIMARS missile systems and drones with explosive devices to attack the bridges.

Quote WSJ: "Ukraines 6 August incursion has embarrassed Russian President Vladimir Putin by seizing dozens of towns and villages across a territory as large as any Russia has captured in a year of offensives in Ukraine. Kyivs forces are now expanding their control along the border and striking Russian supply routes, as Moscow is ramping up counterattacks using massive glide bombs and troops rushed in from Ukraine and other parts of Russia."

Details: Mick Ryan, a military strategist and retired Australian Army Major General, believes that Ukraine is not seeking a deeper advance that would be easier to cut off in Russias Kursk Oblast but is instead increasing the breadth of its operation in Russia.

Quote from Mick Ryan: "They are holding more-defensible terrain thats closer to Ukraine and easier to support."

At the same time, WSJ believes that regaining control of the entire Kursk Oblast may be a secondary goal for Russia compared to the more strategic one of advancing farther into Donetsk Oblast, which Putin has declared part of Russia.

Although Moscow mobilises around 25,000 soldiers a month, it suffers from a shortage of experienced military personnel to push the Ukrainians out.

Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, believes that there is slight panic in Moscow over the situation in Kursk Oblast because Putin believes that Ukraine's offensive has little impact on his broader strategic calculus, which focuses on seizing all of Donetsk, causing the collapse of the Ukrainian government, and promote negotiations more beneficial to Russia.

Quote from Tatiana Stanovaya: "If he [Putin] doesnt find a military solution, then [Ukrainian troops holding part of Russias Kursk Oblast  ed.] may go on for months or a year. And people in Moscow have got used to this idea."

Quote from WSJ: "Still, the Ukrainian operation has dealt a blow to Putins pledge that the war he calls a special military operation will be confined to Ukraine and have a minimal effect on the lives of ordinary Russians. Some of Ukraines military command have long argued that making Russians feel the war should be a key part of Kyivs strategy because it increases the pressure on Putin to end it."

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Editor's note: This is a developing story.

Ukraine attacked a train ferry carrying fuel tanks at the Kavkaz port in Russia's Krasnodar Krai on Aug. 22, the Krasnodar Krai authorities claimed.

The Kavkaz port, located on the Chushka Spit in the Kerch Strait, is one of Russia's largest passenger ports. Its main task is to serve the Kerch ferry crossing in Russian-occupied Crimea.

The Crimean Wind Telegram channel published photos and videos showing smoke rising over the Taman Peninsula in Krasnodar Krai, which can be seen near the Kerch Bridge in Crimea.

Soon after the attack, the ferry in a Russian port sank, according to the local authorities. There were reportedly 30 fuel tankers onboard at the moment of the strike.

The Kyiv Independent could not verify Russia's claims. The Ukrainian military has not commented on the reports.

Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukraine has regularly launched attacks on occupied Crimea as well as neighboring Krasnodar Krai. Kyiv has struck ferry crossings between occupied Crimea and Russia's Krasnodar Krai several times.

Ukraine's military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov said in early August that Ukraine is working on a "complex solution" that could destroy the illegally constructed Kerch Bridge in the coming months.

Navy spokesperson Dmytro Pletenchuk said in June that destroying the Kerch Bridge now would not have the same effect because Russia barely uses it for military purposes anymore.

The bridge accounts for less than a quarter of the total transiting cargo, and for the rest, Russia uses a ferry crossing in Kerch, Pletenchuk said.

Read also: Updated: Ukraine hits fuel and bomb warehouses in Russias Volgograd region airfield, source says

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Editor's note: This is a breaking news story and is being updated.

Ukraine's 3rd Separate Assault Brigade launched a counterattack in Kharkiv Oblast and advanced almost 2 square kilometers deep into the front line area, the brigade said on Aug. 22.

Earlier in the day, the brigade released a video showing what it claims was the first footage of an "offensive in full swing" filmed in the eastern region.

"The main aim of the operation was to bring down the offensive potential of the 20th Army of the Russian Federation. At the moment, this task has been accomplished," Brigade Commander Andrii Biletskyi said.

It is unclear when the attack was launched, its scale, and the area of the offensive. The brigade said that Russia lost around 300 soldiers in four days, and "a significant amount of equipment and weapons were broken or damaged."

Ukrainian soldiers also took control of a battalion defense area of Russian troops and some Russian strongholds, according to the statement.

The Kyiv Independent could not verify these claims.

"The assault operations prevented the enemy's attack from the direction of Makiivka and relieved tension from other critical frontline areas in the neighboring brigades' zones," the brigade said.

The village of Makiivka in Luhansk Oblast is located some 180 kilometers (111 miles) southeast of the city of Kharkiv.

According to Biletsky, Ukrainian forces attacked Russian troops that had superiority "and won." The ratio of forces on the battlefield was 2.5:1 in Moscow's favor, the statement read.

"The success depended on detailed planning, non-standard solutions, coordinated work of artillery, air defenses, and intelligence," the commander said.

After Ukraine's reported counterattack, Russia's forces are stepping up the use of aircraft and other weapons, attempting to regain lost ground, the brigade said.

The 3rd Separate Assault Brigade is known to have been operating around the village of Borova in Kharkiv Oblast, as it reported the thwarting of a Russian attempt to make a breakthrough in the area in early July.

While initially gaining ground in May, a Russian offensive in northeastern Kharkiv Oblast quickly bogged down, with Russian troops reportedly suffering heavy losses.

The intensity of fighting had decreased somewhat compared to other sectors, though several reports of Russia preparing new attacks have emerged since then.

Read also: Morning in Sudzha: Inside Ukrainian-occupied Russia as Kursk operation continues

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Parliament Press Office, the Ukrainian Parliament is seen during a session in Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. Ukraine has ratified the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court Wednesday, opening the possibility of more prosecutions of Russian officials for war crimes and crimes against humanity. (Andrii Nesterenko, Ukrainian Parliament Press Office via AP)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP)  Ukraine ratified the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, taking a step toward membership that Kyiv says will increase chances of prosecuting war crimes by Russians and boost victims' chances of receiving compensation.

Ukraines parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, voted Wednesday to ratify the founding treaty of the ICC, which currently has 124 member states.

We are trying to take real steps on all of the fronts of international justice to bring the Russian Federation to justice, said Deputy Justice Minister Iryna Mudra.

The ratification of the Rome Statute will increase the chances of victims receiving compensation for Russian war crimes, she added.

Ukraine is not a member of the court but has accepted its jurisdiction dating back to 2013. The court's prosecution office opened an investigation in 2022.

In 2023 the ICC issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova, Russias Presidential Commissioner for Childrens Rights, over allegations of war crimes involving the forced deportation of Ukrainian children. The following year, more warrants were issued for Russias Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Army, Gen. Valery Gerasimov.

Membership of the ICC also is a requirement for joining the European Union, which Ukraine hopes to do. It was formally accepted as a candidate in June 2022, four months after Russia began its full-scale invasion.

The document was initially signed by the Ukrainian government in 2000, but the Constitutional Court blocked ratification in 2001 and declaring it unconstitutional to authorize the ICC to rule on Ukraine's actions.

The question of ICC membership resurfaced in 2014, after Russia illegally annexed the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine and occupied parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

However, many Ukrainians feared that ratification of the Rome Statute could allow the ICC to prosecute Ukrainian citizens participating in the armed conflict on Ukrainian territory.

To reflect those concerns, the legislation contains a clause that says Ukraine will not recognize the ICCs jurisdiction in cases where the crimes may have been committed by Ukrainian nationals.

Liz Evenson, International Justice Director at Human Rights Watch, welcomed the move as a welcome advance in building a global system for accountability for the worst crimes.

However she urged Kyiv to ratify the Rome Statute without reservations.

Limitations in the law, however, risk shielding perpetrators from justice and fall short of the needs and hopes of victims and survivors in Ukraine who have been advocating for ICC membership for years, Evenson said.

___

Associated Press writer Molly Quell in The Hague, Netherlands, contributed.
Ukraine says it destroyed glide bombs at a Russian air base that aircraft fly out of to bomb the front lines

Ukraine says it destroyed glide bombs at a Russian air base that aircraft fly out of to bomb the front lines

Ukraine used long-range drones to strike a Russian airbase in the Volgograd region overnight.

The attack caused blasts at warehouses storing glide bombs, a Ukrainian security source said.

It appears to mark the latest Ukrainian effort to target military facilities inside Russia.

Ukrainian forces used long-range drones to attack a key Russian airbase overnight, destroying warehouses that stored fuel, ammunition, and highly destructive glide bombs.

The attack targeted the Marinovka airfield in Russia's Volgograd region, a site actively used to launch aircraft that bomb the front lines, a source in the Security Service of Ukraine told Business Insider on Thursday, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive operations.

It appeared to mark Ukraine's latest long-range strike on an important military installation inside Russia.

The SBU source said that the attack was a joint effort between the SBU and Ukraine's Special Operations Forces. The strikes on the Russian airfield triggered explosions at warehouses storing guided aerial bombs, ammo, and fuel throughout the night and morning.

Video footage circulating on social media is said to show black plumes of smoke rising from the airfield. Business Insider, however, was not able to independently verify the details of the video.

The fires and continuing explosions at the Russian Air Force base Marinovka in the Volgograd region look pretty apocalyptic. One of the most successful Ukrainian long-range strikes on Russian military facilities so far, by the looks of it. Video source: https://t.co/8SgIMVpQ1f pic.twitter.com/mXqoVmxVVC  Yaroslav Trofimov (@yarotrof) August 22, 2024

"The SBU works with surgical precision at the airfields from which the enemy attacks Ukraine," the source said, per a translation of remarks shared with BI, adding that each strike like this "reduces the superiority of the Russians in the air and significantly limits their aviation capabilities."

Ukraine is prohibited from using its arsenal of powerful, Western-made missiles to strike inside Russia. To work around these restrictions, Kyiv has relied heavily on locally produced, long-range attack drones to wage a monthslong campaign targeting Moscow's military and energy facilities.

During this campaign, Ukraine has specifically attempted to clamp down on the Russian glide-bomb threat.

Glide bombs are dumb bombs that are equipped with special kits to turn them into precision-guided munitions. They are highly destructive (Russia has used some weighing over 6,000 pounds in combat) and are difficult to intercept because they have fairly short flight times, small radar signatures, and travel on non-ballistic trajectories, creating a challenge for air defense units.

An image shows what Russia says is a FAB-3000 glide bomb being loaded onto a Su-34 fighter-bomber. Telegram/Ministry of Defense of Russia/Business Insider

Russia has used its glide bombs to inflict damage on both Ukrainian troop positions and civilian infrastructure throughout much of the war, but these troubling weapons have been especially problematic in recent months.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Sunday that Russia used more than 750 glide bombs in a single week earlier this month.

Because glide bombs are notoriously tough to stop, the only way for Ukraine to really eliminate the threat is to either shoot down the Russian fighter-bombers before they release the munition or strike the aircraft  and the bombs  on the ground at their airfields.

Ukraine has carried out a number of strikes over the past few months targeting airfields in Russia where fighter-bombers and glide bombs are kept, including the most recent attack at Marinovka.

Read the original article on Business Insider
BEIRUT, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Lebanese Health Ministry announced Thursday that 564 deaths and 1,848 injuries were recorded from Oct. 8, 2023 to Tuesday due to Israeli raids and shelling targeting southern Lebanon and reaching the Bekaa Valley in the east of the country.

The ministry said in a report that 84 percent of the injuries were males, and 93 percent of them Lebanese, adding that 53 percent of the injuries were under the age of 44.

A total of 42 percent of the injuries were caused by shock, 43 percent by an explosion, and 15 percent by chemical exposure, said the ministry.

It said that 110,099 people in the country have been displaced as of Friday.

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 situation escalated further after Israel's attack on Dahieh in Beirut's southern suburbs, killing Hezbollah senior military commander Fouad Shokor and seven civilians. Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah threatened a definite and painful response to the Israeli raid at the appropriate time and place. 
Ukraine says it sees no Belarusian troop movements near border

Positions of Ukrainian servicemen near the border with Belarus

(Reuters) - Ukraine's border guard service said on Thursday that Kyiv had seen no signs of Belarusian troop or military hardware movements near their shared border since Minsk announced it was sending additional forces to the area.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Sunday the country had deployed nearly a third of its armed forces along the border, claiming that Kyiv had stationed more than 120,000 troops there.

"We do not see any movement directly near our border - neither equipment nor personnel," Andriy Demchenko, Ukraine's border guard service spokesman, told national television.

He added that the situation near the Belarus border "generally has not changed".

On Monday, Andrei Lukyanovich, commander of Belarus' air defence, said its forces near the border had been "significantly increased". Aviation, anti-aircraft missile forces and radio-technical troops had been deployed, he added.

Days after Ukraine's surprise Aug. 6 incursion into Russia's territory, Lukashenko - a loyal ally of President Vladimir Putin - suggested, without providing evidence, that Kyiv could have designs on attacking Belarus.

Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and now holds about 18% of its territory in the east and south. Belarus shares a border with northwest Ukraine.

(Reporting by Yuliia Dysa; editing by Bernadette Baum and Mark Heinrich)
Ukraine  Standing amid ruins in east Ukraine, Ruslan Mokrytskyi held a combat knife and concentrated on cutting onions without crying. As trivial as it seems on the front line, it's still not easy.



The mustachioed 32-year-old in military fatigues instructed his comrade to get the right shot of him with his phone. The angle matters. Mokrytskyi is one of Ukraine's soldier-influencers helping to keep up spirits amid the war sparked by Russia's full-scale invasion early in 2022. His TikTok account has 131,600 followers.



"Take a close-up of my fingers," he told his friend, a cameraman for the day. "Lower the frame."



The shot showed his shrapnel-scarred hands as he peeled the onions carefully.



Mokrytskyi's social media profile describes his life as a part-time celebrity chef and soldier in a nutshell: "A cook from the hell of war."

Ukrainian serviceman Ruslan Mokrytskyi cooks pasta as a fellow soldier records video of him for TikTok, at an undisclosed location in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region, July 27, 2024, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. / Credit: ANATOLII STEPANOV/AFP/Getty

The day AFP met him, he revisited an Italian classic, pasta all'arrabbiata.



Just 24 hours earlier, he was a drone pilot in what he called the "hell of Toretsk"  defending the eastern city that Russia has been trying to capture for months.

"I needed to recuperate mentally"

At the front since the start of the war in 2022, Mokrytskyi needed a form of escape while being under constant fire.

"After missions, there were, let's say... many horrible and stressful images," he said. "I needed to recuperate mentally."



He tried to forget the horrors by plunging into films, music, reading and going on walks despite the bombs. But nothing worked.



"I got to the point where I told myself that it would be cool to film myself making fries," the soldier said.



The success of that idea exceeded his expectations: his fries video got three million views.



Encouraged, Mokrytskyi involved friends from his battalion, who would call their wives to get ideas for recipes.



He then realised he was not only helping his own mental health but that of his comrades too.



"Everyone was joking around," he said. "It's not just me rebuilding myself mentally, but also everyone around me."

Ukrainian serviceman Ruslan Mokrytskyi cooks pasta as a fellow soldier records video of him for TikTok at an undisclosed location in Ukraine's Donetsk region, July 27, 2024. / Credit: ANATOLII STEPANOV/AFP/Getty

His video sessions offer "an hour or two" of light-heartedness  an unusual feeling on the front in Donbas, where fighting has been incessant for two and half years since Moscow invaded.

A vital link to family and friends

His fellow battalion member Ivan played with the camera and looked delighted with the uplifting break from war.



Normally, Ivan's nights are restless.



"When I film Ruslan, I don't think about the war," the 25-year-old said, adding that he also gets the extra bonus of a good meal while helping make the videos.



On his TikTok page, Mokrytskyi's content alternates between cooking recipes and raw images showing the realities of war.



On top of having "vital" psychological benefits, running the social media page means the soldier retains a link with civilian life.



It also allows civilians  as well as his family  to keep informed on what a soldier's life is like in the east.



Mokrytskyi said that "if you do not have contact with your family, you can go mad."



He strives to make the content entertaining but war-related, like converting a rifle cartridge into a pepper shaker and using products found in destroyed cities he travels through.

Some fame, and countering Russia's narrative

Now a recognizable face, some businesses are getting interested in Mokrytskyi.



"An energy drinks company approached me," he said, to make him a brand ambassador.



"They sent packs of drinks and helped me when I was wounded," he added, his hands still bearing the scars.



Last year Mokrytskyi even did a video with one of Ukraine's best-known chefs, award-winning Kyiv restauranteur Ievgen Klopotenko, who CBS News met not long after he was forced to temporarily close down his establishment after Russia launched its full-scale invasion.

Mokrytskyi initially got generous donations from civilians but, after two and a half years of war, those have dried up.

Yet he knows his videos help keep up Ukrainian spirits  and even may be helping undermine the enemy's stereotypes.

"The Russians also watch my videos," he said with a smile.

"They see that we are ordinary people defending their country, and not fascists or I don't know what else," he said, referring to Moscow's portrayal of Ukraine and its stated aim of "de-Nazifying" the country.



That, in part, motivates him to keep running his cooking war channel, despite his very demanding obligations as a soldier.



When a friend was killed, he said it took him "four days to get back my spirits," but then he went back to making the videos.



Back on his cooking spree, the aroma of hot parmesan was rising above the ruins as Mokrytskyi emptied the pasta onto the plastic plates of his comrades.



Smiles lit up their faces.

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Key developments on Aug. 22:

Ukraine launches counterattack in Kharkiv Oblast, advancing 2 square km, brigade says

Ukraine hits train ferry at Kavkaz port in Krasnodar Krai, Russia claims

Ukrainian official rejects Putin's accusations of attempted attack on Kursk nuclear plant

Russia building concrete bunkers in Kursk city as Ukraine's incursion continues

Ukraine hits fuel and bomb warehouses in Russia's Volgograd region airfield, source says

Ukraine's 3rd Separate Assault Brigade launched a counterattack in Kharkiv Oblast and advanced almost 2 square kilometers deep into the front line area, the brigade said on Aug. 22.

Earlier in the day, the brigade released a video showing what it claims was the first footage of an "offensive in full swing" filmed in the eastern region.

"The main aim of the operation was to bring down the offensive potential of the 20th Army of the Russian Federation. At the moment, this task has been accomplished," Brigade Commander Andrii Biletskyi said.

It is unclear when the attack was launched, its scale, and the area of the offensive. The brigade said that Russia lost around 300 soldiers in four days, and "a significant amount of equipment and weapons were broken or damaged."

Ukrainian soldiers also took control of a battalion defense area of Russian troops and some Russian strongholds, according to the statement.

"The assault operations prevented the enemy's attack from the direction of Makiivka and relieved tension from other critical front-line areas in the neighboring brigades' zones," the brigade said.

The village of Makiivka in Luhansk Oblast is located some 200 kilometers (124 miles) from bordering Kharkiv Oblast.

The 3rd Separate Assault Brigade is known to have been operating around the village of Borova in Kharkiv Oblast, as it reported the thwarting of a Russian attempt to make a breakthrough in the area in early July.

The Kyiv Independent could not verify these claims.

Read also: Gen. Ben Hodges on Ukraines Kursk incursion in Russia

Ukraine hits train ferry at Kavkaz port in Krasnodar Krai, Russia claims

Ukraine attacked a train ferry carrying fuel tanks at the Kavkaz port in Russia's Krasnodar Krai on Aug. 22, the Krasnodar Krai authorities claimed.

The Kavkaz port, located on the Chushka Spit in the Kerch Strait, is one of Russia's largest passenger ports. Its main task is to serve the Kerch ferry crossing in Russian-occupied Crimea.

The Crimean Wind Telegram channel published photos and videos showing smoke rising over the Taman Peninsula in Krasnodar Krai, which can be seen near the Kerch Bridge in Crimea.

Soon after the attack, the ferry in a Russian port sank, according to the local authorities. There were reportedly 30 fuel tankers on board at the moment of the strike.

The Kyiv Independent could not verify Russia's claims. The Ukrainian military has not commented on the reports.

Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukraine has regularly launched attacks on occupied Crimea as well as neighboring Krasnodar Krai. Kyiv has struck ferry crossings between occupied Crimea and Russia's Krasnodar Krai several times.

Ukraine's military intelligence chief, Kyrylo Budanov, said in early August that Ukraine is working on a "complex solution" that could destroy the illegally constructed Kerch Bridge in the coming months.

Read also: Morning in Sudzha: Inside Ukrainian-occupied Russia as Kursk operation continues

Ukrainian official rejects Putin's accusations of attempted attack on Kursk nuclear plant

A top Ukrainian counter-disinformation official on Aug. 22 refuted Russian President Vladimir Putin's accusations that Kyiv attempted to attack the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant.

Speaking at a meeting on the situation in Russia's border region, Putin alleged that Ukraine tried to "strike the nuclear power plant overnight." He did not provide evidence to back up the claim.

This comes as yet another accusation regarding the nuclear plant aimed at Ukraine amid the ongoing incursion in Kursk Oblast.

"Russia's desired scenario of Ukraine's Defense Forces attacking the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant to accuse them of nuclear terrorism fell apart, so Putin joined the propaganda," said Andrii Kovalenko, the head of the counter-disinformation department at Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council.

"Everything points to the fact that Russia itself can carry out this provocation and will try to bring it to the international level."

The Kremlin's chief said he hoped that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) would send its specialists to assess the situation.

Earlier the same day, IAEA chief Rafael Grossi said he would visit the Kursk plant due to safety risks associated with Ukraine's ongoing incursion.

Russia has claimed several times that Ukraine was planning to attack the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant without providing evidence.

Read also: Modi to visit Kyiv after hugging it out with Putin. Can Ukraine crack their alliance?

Russia building concrete bunkers in Kursk city as Ukraine's incursion continues

Russian authorities in the city of Kursk said on Aug. 22 they had begun installing concrete shelters "in crowded places" as Ukraine's incursion into the oblast continues.

In a post on Telegram, acting governor Alexei Smirnov said the locations of 10 had already been decided, with plans to install 60 in total.

"On my instructions, the Kursk city administration identified key points for placing concrete modular shelters in crowded places," he said.

"Also, the operational headquarters is currently considering installing reinforced concrete structures in other settlements in our region."

Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi, said on Aug. 20 that Kyiv had advanced between 28-35 kilometers (18-21 miles) into Russia's Kursk Oblast as the unprecedented incursion enters its third week.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Aug. 22 while visiting the border areas in Sumy Oblast that Ukraine had captured another Russian settlement in Kursk Oblast, as well as more Russian prisoners of war.

Read also: Cutting ties with Moscow  What does Ukraines church bill really mean

Ukraine hits fuel and bomb warehouses in Russia's Volgograd region airfield, source says

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and special forces hit KAB bomb and fuel warehouses at a Russian military airfield in Volgograd Oblast overnight on Aug. 22, an SBU source told the Kyiv Independent.

Volgograd Oblast is located some 900 kilometers (560 miles) southeast of Moscow.

"(Russia) actively uses the Marinovka airfield in the Volgograd region to bomb front lines in Ukraine," the source told the Kyiv Independent.

Witnesses from nearby areas reported hearing between six and 10 loud explosions during the attack, accompanied by the distinctive sounds of drones, according to several Russian Telegram channels.

Residents of Kalach-na-Donu began reporting explosions at around 3:30 a.m. local time. The Telegram channel Baza said that one of the drones was allegedly intercepted several kilometers from the airfield, while debris from the second drone fell on a nearby temporary structure, causing a fire.

Andrey Bocharov, the regional governor, claimed later in the day that most of the drones attacking the region near Marinovka had been intercepted.

"As a result of a drone crash, a fire broke out on the territory of a Defense Ministry facility," Bocharov said.

The Kyiv Independent could not immediately verify the claims.

Read also: Kursk incursion breaks Russias attempts to dictate peace terms, boosts Ukraines leverage

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Latest: Ukraine launches counterattack in Kharkiv Oblast, advancing 2 square km, brigade says.

Ukraine's 3rd Separate Assault Brigade on Aug. 22 released a video showing what it claims is the first footage of an "offensive in full swing" filmed "somewhere in Kharkiv Oblast."

"The details will be revealed later. Expect good news from the 3rd Assault Brigade," the post on Telegram reads.

In the video, Ukrainian tanks can be seen advancing and firing in an undisclosed location.

Other sections show what appears to be Ukrainian troops firing into trenches and Ukrainian drones dropping bombs on Russian soldiers.

Hmmmmm..



3rd Assault has published this short teaser allegedly showing the formations new offensive action somewhere in the Kharkiv oblast



Expect good news, details soon. pic.twitter.com/fcGhlLnffn  Illia Ponomarenko  (@IAPonomarenko) August 22, 2024

The location of the footage and when it was filmed was not been revealed, but in a later post on Telegram the brigade said it had launched a counterattack in Kharkiv Oblast and advanced almost 2 square kilometers deep into the front line area.

"The main aim of the operation was to bring down the offensive potential of the 20th Army of the Russian Federation. At the moment, this task has been accomplished," Brigade Commander Andrii Biletskyi said.

The Kyiv Independent contacted the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade for more information but had not received a reply at the time of publication.

The 3rd Separate Assault Brigade is known to have been operating around the village of Borova in Kharkiv Oblast, as it reported the thwarting of a Russian attempt to make a breakthrough in the area in early July.

Borova was occupied by Russian forces in March 2022 and subsequently liberated later that year during Ukraine's sweeping counteroffensive in Kharkiv Oblast.

While initially gaining ground in May, a Russian offensive in northeastern Kharkiv Oblast quickly bogged down, with Russian troops reportedly suffering heavy losses.

The intensity of fighting had decreased somewhat compared to other sectors, though several reports of Russia preparing new attacks have emerged since then.

Russia has increased aerial reconnaissance and is preparing new assault operations in Vovchansk in Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine's Kharkiv group of forces reported on Aug. 20.

Read also: Morning in Sudzha: Inside Ukrainian-occupied Russia as Kursk operation continues

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Russia launched a dozen kamikaze drones, two Iskander-M ballistic missiles, and used anti-radiation missiles against Ukraine on the night of 21-22 August. Air defence forces shot down two UAVs and destroyed most of the missiles.

Source: Lieutenant General Mykola Oleshchuk, Commander of Ukraine's Air Force

Details: Oleshchuk said the Russians launched an attack with 10 Shahed-type UAVs from the Kursk front on Thursday night.

Reportedly, most of the detected UAVs targeted the positions of Ukraines defence forces in the frontline areas in Kharkiv Oblast.

The Russians also launched Kh-31P anti-radiation missiles from airspace over the Black Sea and two Iskander-M ballistic missiles from Belgorod Oblast and Crimea.

Quote: "Air defence forces downed two attack drones, and another two were lost due to location issues (they fell on their own). As a result of active countermeasures, most of the enemy missiles did not reach their targets. Early reports indicate no casualties or serious consequences."

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Ukraine's Defence Minister meets UK Defence Staff official to discuss destruction of targets in Russian rear  photo

Rustem Umierov, Ukraine's Minister of Defence, has discussed Ukraine's defence needs with Harvey Smith, the Deputy Head of Defence Staff of the United Kingdom on Military Operations and Strategies.

Source: Umierov on Facebook

Quote: "It is crucial that we prevent the accumulation of hostile forces near our land. Equally crucial is the ability to destroy military sites in the Russian Federation's rear with long-range Western weapons. This is almost the only way to protect our people from guided aerial bombs and other enemy strikes."

Photo: Umierov on Facebook

Details: Umierov thanked the UK leadership for supporting Ukraine.

He added that the Ukrainian command is constantly in touch with its partners.

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The National Police of Ukraine has officially stated that it is ready to ensure safety during the celebration of the National Flag Day on 23 August and Independence Day of Ukraine on 24 August.

Source: National Police on social media

Details: The National Police reported that 486 events are expected to be held on the territory of Ukraine, except for Donetsk, Luhansk, Sumy and Kherson oblasts, on the occasion of the national holidays.

Quote: "All units of the National Police are ready to provide enhanced security measures under martial law."

Details: Maksym Akhramieiev, Head of the Police Department for Preventive Actions, stressed that there is a high probability that Russia will launch numerous missile attacks on Ukraine's territory during these days, so special attention should be paid to the algorithm of actions during an air-raid warning.

Police units, investigative teams, bomb disposal experts, dog handlers and other services will be involved in providing enhanced security measures.

The National Police also asks citizens to take care of their own safety, respond to air-raid warnings, stay in shelters during them, not touch suspicious items, and report violations of law and order to the police.

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Ukraine's shock invasion of Kursk takes away one of Russia's biggest advantages and may force it to rethink how this war is fought

Ukraine is assaulting Russia's Kursk region, altering a war that had really only been in one country.

Russia had advantages, allowing it to focus on Ukraine instead of giving its border heavy resources.

The shift may make Russia reevaluate and stretch its resources, somewhat leveling the playing field.

Ukraine's unprecedented assault into Russia threatens the sanctuary Moscow has enjoyed throughout much of the war, which could force the Kremlin to rethink how this conflict is being fought.

George Barros, a Russia military expert at the US's Institute for the Study of War, which has closely monitored the war, said that Ukraine's advance into Russia's Kursk region would push Russian military leaders to take certain things under consideration that they had not had to since the launch of the full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin, have not invested significant resources into protecting the country's border, instead focusing on putting troops into Ukraine.

Ukraine is far smaller than Russia, and until it recently proved otherwise, it seemed to lack the capacity for any notable offensive into Russian territory. Additionally, its Western allies have put restrictions on how Ukraine can use the weaponry they provide. Russia has thus had a kind of sanctuary at home, making it seemingly unnecessary to send troops and weapons to defend its long borders.

But the invasion of the Kursk region is now "challenging and invalidating some of Putin's planning assumptions for what it takes to fight this war," Barros said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin with defense officials at a meeting about Ukraine's incursion into the Kursk region. Sputnik/Aleksey Babushkin/Kremlin via REUTERS

He said that over the past two years, the Russian military had decided "to not protect the border region in northeastern Ukraine."

Barros said there were about 620 miles of border "that the Russians have not adequately manned, not defended in depth, and so on and so forth."

He added: "The Russians really have had the luxury of not having to defend that border, and they've been able to use the men that otherwise would be protecting that border in operations elsewhere in Ukraine."

That appears to be changing and could, as a result, change the nature of this war, he said.

Ukraine advanced into Russia

Ukraine launched a surprise incursion into Kursk on August 6. By Monday, it had control of more than 480 square miles of Russian territory, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

The development is hugely embarrassing for Russia. The amount of territory that Ukraine's commander in chief said the country had captured within the first week was almost as much territory as Russia had captured in Ukraine in the whole of 2024 so far . Ukraine surpassed that figure on Tuesday.

A crossing point on the border with Russia in Ukraine. REUTERS/Viacheslav Ratynskyi

The shock move massively contrasted with Ukraine's typical way of fighting Russia.

Ukraine's previous attacks on Russia typically targeted only specific military assets and didn't involve any troops crossing into Russia. Instead, drones and long-range weaponry hit military bases and stores, aircraft, and oil refineries.

Ukrainian soldiers described an easy crossing into the country, a sign Russia was not adequately protecting its borders.

One Ukrainian deputy commander involved in the invasion said that the soldiers guarding the Russian borders "were mainly kids doing their mandatory service," and other Ukrainian service members told the BBC that they were able to enter easily.

Russian troops are starting to be stretched

Russia's need to rethink how it protects its borders is a long-term consideration, Barros said, partly because doing it at scale will take time and partly because the amount of effort Russia needs to put in will depend on how much territory Ukraine keeps and holds.

But Ukraine is already finding success at stretching Russia's troops, he added.

He said that Russia needed to carefully consider "which units from along the front line in Ukraine are going to be redeployed to go to Kursk."

Those decisions are still in the early stages, he said, but reports and open-source information indicate that Russia has pulled troops from some of its lower-priority fighting areas in Ukraine.

A building damaged by Ukrainian strikes in Kursk on Friday. TATYANA MAKEYEVA/AFP via Getty Images

This includes units being pulled from Kharkiv in northern Ukraine and some other areas, such as Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, and Luhansk.

US officials told CNN last week that Russia appeared to be diverting thousands of its troops from Ukraine into Kursk. And a NATO country said that Russia moved troops from its enclave of Kaliningrad to Kursk.

Barros said Russia had not been observed taking forces from its priority areas in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk, where Russia is gaining ground. He said he didn't "expect the tempo of operations there to decrease" anytime soon.

Warfare experts have told Business Insider that straining Russia's forces is likely a motivation for Ukraine's invasion of Kursk.

"If the Russians do indeed decide they have to redeploy a lot of forces and properly defend an additional thousand kilometers worth of border," Barros said, "that's a substantial change because that is not a trivial amount of manpower and resources that now have to get bogged down for a larger undertaking."

He added: "It will reduce the Russian command's flexibility for planning operations within Ukraine, and ideally, in the long run, it will drastically increase the cost of protracting and extending this war."

Russia has had huge advantages

Barros said that the time Russia spent not protecting its borders demonstrated how much of an advantage it had for so long.

He described Moscow as "the beneficiary of a laundry list of luxuries" that allow the Russian military to focus its resources on Ukraine. These luxuries include how Ukraine is not allowed to use some Western weapons on Russian territory, he said.

A Ukrainian soldier in an M2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicle in Ukraine's Donetsk region in February. Vitalii Nosach/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images

Additionally, for Russia, "there's a minimal requirement to protect the home front, minimal requirement to conceal any of the activity that it does," he said, adding: "There's very few costs for sustaining and protecting, and that's kind of the sick irony of it, right?"

He said that Ukraine, on the other hand, had to invest heavy resources into protecting its power stations, rail lines, airspace, and aid arriving from the West.

"The Russians categorically don't have to really deal with any of that," Barros said, the only real exception being Ukraine's drone attacks, which pale in comparison to the strength of the weaponry Russia uses against Ukraine.

He said the West should remove the weaponry restrictions it put on Ukraine. "If we were to remove all of those advantages, then it forces the Russians to have to spread the resources," Barros said, noting just how unfair of a fight this war has been.

"Russia is a belligerent and a combatant in the war under the norms and laws of armed conflict," he said, adding: "Ukrainians are fully within their rights to take the war to Russian soil to engage in legitimate military actions on Russian soil. So far, for the most part, Russia has enjoyed a relatively cost-free waging of this war for 2  years."

But the situation now is rapidly changing, and how it will end is unclear.

Rajan Menon, a senior research scholar at Columbia University's Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies, told BI that Ukraine's actions may flip how the war is fought.

He said that Russia, with its much-larger force, so far has been able to stretch Ukrainian forces along the front lines and put them under great pressure. Now, "in some sense, the Ukrainians have turned the tables," Menon said.

A destroyed Russian tank outside Sudzha. YAN DOBRONOSOV/AFP via Getty Images

It's not clear what will happen in such a fast-paced operation and how it will play out, he said.

But so far, "it is a moment of embarrassment because it shows the Russian response to this  whether in terms of evacuating people or dealing with this Ukrainian incursion on multiple fronts  has been disastrous," he said, adding: "There's just no other way of putting it."

Barros said that the invasion of Russia had been a win for Ukraine after it spent months on defense holding against Russian attacks with little territory changing hands.

Ukrainians, he said, "are no longer stuck in the rut where they no longer have the initiative."

"It is now no longer the Ukrainians lying on their back for nine-plus months at a time simply trying their best to triage," he said, and "deal with a buffet of bad decisions and dilemmas that the Russian command was serving up for them."

Read the original article on Business Insider
FILE PHOTO: Ukraine's President Zelenskiy speaks next to service members next to F-16 fighting aircrafts during marking the Day of the Ukrainian Air Forces in an undisclosed location in Ukraine

KYIV (Reuters) - Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Thursday he had travelled to the country's northeast border area from where Kyiv's forces have conducted a major cross-border offensive into Russia's Kursk region, and touted the capture of one more Russian village.

The Ukrainian leader said he had met his top commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi, during the visit to the Sumy region more than two weeks since Ukraine wrongfooted Russia by smashing through the border with thousands of troops.

"In certain areas of the Kursk region under the control of Ukraine, there is one more settlement, and we have a replenishment of the exchange fund," he said, referring to the capture of Russian soldiers who could be exchanged for Ukrainian prisoners of war held by Moscow.

Zelenskiy published a video showing him shaking Syrskyi's hand and embracing him. The operation into the Kursk region has given a major morale boost to the Ukrainian military after months of slow but steady Russian gains in the east.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Moscow will deliver a "worthy response" to the incursion, which he has described as a major provocation.

Ukraine has closely guarded its overarching aims in the Kursk region, but said it has carved out a buffer zone from an area that Russia has used to pound targets in Ukraine with cross-border strikes.

In a statement accompanying the video, Zelenskiy wrote that there had been a decrease in shelling and in civilian casualties in the Sumy region since the Kursk operation.

Zelenskiy said Syrskyi had briefed him on steps taken by Ukraine to reinforce its defences on the eastern fronts near the settlements of Toretsk and Pokrovsk, where Moscow's forces have concentrated their offensive for months.

(Reporting by Olena Harmash and Tom Balmforth; Editing by Alison Williams and David Holmes)
A Russian tank being destroyed by a Ukrainian L119 howitzer. Photo: Screenshot from a video by 46th SAE

Ukrainian soldiers from the 46th Separate Airmobile Brigade (SAB) destroyed 13 pieces of Russian weaponry and military equipment and repelled 3 attacks on 21 August.

Source: 46th SAB

Quote: "On 21 August, the air assault troops of the 46th Separate Airmobile Brigade put on a memorable 'scrap metal day' for the invaders.

The day's events unfolded in three acts. The first involved taking out a Russian T-90 tank and two infantry fighting vehicles. Our artillery units and attack UAVs led the charge. The enemys boastful claims quickly turned to dust as two tanks were hit by precise artillery strikes. Shortly after, the supposedly 'invincible' tank received a 105 mm 'greeting' from the 46th SAB gunners. Operators of First-Person View (FPV) drones played a crucial role, ensuring the job was thoroughly completed."

Details: Ukrainian forces reported that the Russians split their second assault into two columns.

Each group comprised two tanks and two armoured combat vehicles. Thanks to the coordinated efforts of artillery, anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs), and FPV units, two armoured personnel carriers and two tanks were destroyed. The second column was forced to retreat under intense fire.

The third time, Russian troops mounted an assault using three infantry fighting vehicles and a mortar. Ukrainian defenders destroyed their equipment thanks to the efforts made by artillery, ATGM and UAV units with the involvement of the 148th Separate Artillery Brigade of Ukraine's Air Assault Forces.

The total Russian losses reportedly amounted to 13 pieces of weaponry and military equipment.

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MINSK, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang said here Thursday that China stands ready to work with Belarus to firmly support each other in defending core interests and remain each other's true friend and good partner.

Li made the remarks while holding talks with Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko. 
Oleksandr Syrskyi, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, has informed President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who visited Sumy Oblast, that the Armed Forces of Ukraine had captured another settlement in Kursk Oblast, Russia.

Source: Zelenskyy on Telegram

Quote by Zelenskyy: "I visited the border areas of Sumy Oblast and held a meeting with Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi and the head of the Sumy Oblast Military Administration."

Details: Syrskyi reported that one more settlement in a designated area of Kursk Oblast was claimed by Ukrainian forces. The Ukrainian soldiers also captured some Russian soldiers, replenishing the exchange pool.

Syrskyi reported on operative situations all over the battlefield, mainly on its hottest spots. He added that the steps were being taken to strengthen the Ukrainian defences on the Toretsk and Pokrovsk fronts in Donetsk Oblast.

Volodymyr Artiukh, head of the Sumy Oblast Military Administration, described the situation in Sumy Oblast after the beginning of the Kursk operation. As a result of the operation, the number of Russian attacks from tubed weapons decreased, as well as the number of casualties among civilians. It also created an opportunity to repair the power infrastructure in safer conditions and prepare it for the beginning of the heating season.

During the meeting, coordination of actions between the military, the police and the State Emergency Service of Ukraine was discussed, specifically for the organisation of humanitarian convoys to the designated areas of Kursk Oblast.

Background: As of 20 August, Ukrainian forces controlled more than 1,260 sq km of territory and 93 settlements in Kursk Oblast, Russia.

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Hackers of Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) broke into servers of several Russian television channels and broadcasted "objective videos about the war in Ukraine," a source in the agency told the Kyiv Independent on Aug. 22.

According to the source, HUR's footage was displayed three times on prime-time TV channels: Pervouralsk TV, Eurasia 360, Eurasia Pervyi Kanal, and others.

The targeted channels further reportedly included Lugansk 24, Pervyi Respublikanskyi, SpB, Oplot, TV-3, and Pervyi Rosiyskyi. Some of the targeted channels belong to Russian oligarch Andrey Komarov.

According to the source, the nine channels had to suspend their broadcasting as a result of the hack.

The claims appear to be corroborated by Russian media reports and footage shared on social media.

The TV company Pervouralsk issued an apology on the VKontakte social network, saying that unspecified "attackers gained access to the live broadcast and launched unauthorized video materials that contradict the TV channel's policy."

"Our specialists are currently taking all necessary security steps. In this regard, broadcasting will be suspended on Aug. 22."

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In a video provided by the source, footage of a TV screen, presumably in a Russian household, shows a clip of Ukrainian soldiers and Russian casualties. A Russian-language voiceover comments on Sudzha  a Russian town in Kursk Oblast held by Ukraine  and on Moscow's losses.

"As of the morning of Aug. 22, only Eurasia 360 and TV-3 have partially resumed their work, while the broadcasting of others remains blocked," the source said.

Cyberattacks have been widely used by both sides during the full-scale war.

Earlier in July, HUR claimed responsibility for cyberattacks on nearly 100 Russian websites that support the Kremlin's war effort and, separately, on a number of Russian banks and financial institutions.

In turn, Ukraine's Monobank came under a two-day-long DDoS attack earlier this week.

Read also: Cyberattack hits Monobank, Ukraines largest direct bank

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A top Ukrainian counter-disinformation official on Aug. 22 refuted Russian President Vladimir Putin's accusations that Kyiv attempted to attack the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant.

Speaking at a meeting on the situation in Russia's border region, Putin alleged that Ukraine tried to "strike the nuclear power plant." He did not provide evidence to back up the claim.

This comes as yet another accusation regarding the nuclear plant aimed at Ukraine amid the ongoing incursion in Kursk Oblast.

"Russia's desired scenario of Ukraine's Defense Forces attacking the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant to accuse them of nuclear terrorism fell apart, so Putin joined the propaganda," said Andrii Kovalenko, the head of the counter-disinformation department at Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council.

"Everything points to the fact that Russia itself can carry out this provocation and will try to bring it to the international level."

The Kremlin's chief said he hoped that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) would send its specialists to assess the situation.

Earlier the same day, IAEA chief Rafael Grossi said he would visit the Kursk plant due to safety risks associated with Ukraine's ongoing incursion.

Russia has claimed several times that Ukraine was planning to attack the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant, as well as the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine, without providing evidence.

"We officially refute these false reports. Ukraine has neither the intention nor the ability to carry out any such actions. Russia must stop spreading dangerous lies," Heorhii Tykhyi, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry's spokesperson, said on Aug. 16.

The Zaporizhzhia plant, Europe's largest nuclear power plant, has been under Russian occupation since March 2022. Kyiv has repeatedly accused Russia of using the plant for nuclear blackmail and endangering its safety.

Kyiv said on Aug. 11 that Russian forces set fire to "a large number of automobile tires in cooling towers" at the nuclear plant in an effort to "create panic in the settlements on the right bank of the former reservoir."

Read also: Morning in Sudzha: Inside Ukrainian-occupied Russia as Kursk operation continues

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Ukraine's parliament ratified the agreement on political cooperation, free trade, and strategic partnership between Ukraine and the U.K., the parliaments press center reported on Aug. 22.

The agreement consolidates the U.K.'s decision in February this year to abolish import duties and tariff quotas in trade with Ukraine until 2029.

The tariff-free trade extension aims to support Ukraine's long-term economic recovery from the war with Russia, which has disrupted supply chains and transport routes and impacted Ukraine's ability to export goods.

The five-year extension applies to all categories of goods except eggs and poultry, which will be extended only for two years.

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"This extension will boost opportunities for Ukrainian business in key sectors such as oils, grains, and other agri-foods," the head of trade policy at the British Chambers of Commerce, William Bain, said when the extension of the deal was first announced.

"This agreement provides much-needed long-term economic support to Ukraine, its businesses, and its people  critical to its recovery from (Russian President Vladimir) Putin's illegal invasion," U.K. Trade Policy Minister Greg Hands said at the time.

The agreement between Ukraine and the U.K. is bilateral, meaning that British companies can also benefit from duty-free trade with Ukraine.

The U.K. and Ukraine signed an agreement on July 19 that provides credit support for the development of Ukraine's defense industry. The agreement aims to support the partial production of air defense systems, armored vehicles, and ammunition in Ukraine.

Read also: Modi to visit Kyiv after hugging it out with Putin. Can Ukraine crack their alliance?

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Dozens of Democratic officials are demanding Kamala Harriss campaign and Democratic National Convention organizers let a Palestinian American speak on the stage on the final night of the event.

Roughly three dozen uncommitted delegates  sent to the DNC by voters in primaries who selected uncommitted in protest of the Biden administrations support for Israels war in Gaza  have successfully recruited more than 200 Harris delegates to support calls for an immediate ceasefire and stop the flow of US-supplied bombs into Israel.

But Uncommitted National Movement leaders announced on Wednesday that the DNC rejected their request for a speaking slot. A petition urging the DNC to reverse course has collected more than 90 signatures from Democratic elected officials and party chairs.

Including a Palestinian speaker would not only honor our commitment to inclusivity but also provide an opportunity for these deeply personal and painful narratives to be heard, the petition reads.

Just as we have collectively mourned and stood in solidarity with hostage families who have endured unimaginable grief, we must also offer compassion and understanding to Palestinians who have suffered under indiscriminate bombing.

After vice presidential candidate Tim Walzs keynote speech on Wednesday night, uncommitted delegates and supporters staged a sit-in demonstration outside Chicagos United Center.

Demonstrators included Georgia state representative Ruwa Romman, the first Palestinian elected to public office in the state, criticizing the fact that the convention included Republican speakers opposed to abortion.

Clearly they have room for anti-choice Republicans, but sadly, it doesn't seem like they have room for Palestinians Romman said, during the demonstration, she told The Independent.

Uncommitted delegates and supporters have been urging the DNC and the Harris campaign to give Romman a two-minute speaking slot, or calling on other elected officials to give up their spot to let her or another Palestinian American speak instead.

Rashida Tlaib, a Palestinian-American congresswoman representing Michigan, went further on X: I know for a fact that the [DNC] did not act in good faith and continue to lie about the negotiations. They are exposing themselves.

A Harris campaign adviser, Ian Sams, was asked about the issue on CNN but deflected, saying that Palestinian-American supporters had been given other opportunitites to engage with the party at the DNC. He then pivoted to arguing that the vice president was focused on efforts to protect civilians while stressing that Israel had a right to self-defense.

In her remarks, Romman planned to discuss her familys roots in the villages of Suba in Jerusalem and Al Khalil in the West Bank. Her parents, who were born in Jordan, moved to Georgia when she was eight years old.

After her grandfather passed away a few years ago, and as weve been moral witnesses to the massacres in Gaza, Ive thought of him, wondering if this was the pain he knew too well, she planned to say. When we watched Palestinians displaced from one end of the Gaza Strip to the other I wanted to ask him how he found the strength to walk all those miles decades ago and leave everything behind.

She also planned to celebrate the beautiful, multifaith, multiracial, and multigenerational coalition within the Democratic Party that is calling for a ceasefire, end the killing of Palestinians, free all the Israeli and Palestinian hostages, and to begin the difficult work of building a path to collective peace and safety.

Pro-Palestinian uncommitted delegates continued to protest outside the venue ahead of the fourth day of the Democratic National Convention, which had rejected their pleas for a Palestinian American speaker at the conference. (REUTERS)

Biden has refused calls from within his own party to withhold weapons sales to Israel to pressure a ceasefire in Gaza, even as the death toll from the conflict has reached more than 40,000 and famine has spread across the territory.

The DNC heard from Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg-Polin, the parents of a 23-year-old American taken hostage by Hamas. The couple also made an emotional plea for a ceasefire and the release of hostages.

In his message from the stage of the conference on Wednesday, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said Harris and Walz are listening.

They agree with us, said Ellison, a former DNC deputy chair. If you wanna know where they stand on some of the most urgent issues  let me assure you, Kamala and Tim hear you. They listen, they care, and everyone is included in their circle of compassion.

On Thursday, he wrote that a Palestinian-American sharing his or her story, calling for cease fire and release of all hostages, and calling everyone to support the ticket against facism would be powerful.

Campaign communications director Michael Tyler did not directly answer reporters on Thursday when pressed why the campaign is not allowing a Palestinian speaker on the stage.

A group of uncommitted delegates held a sit-in just outside the United Center to protest the lack of a Palestinian American speaker at the Democratic National Convention on August 21. The protests continued into the following day, ahead of Kamala Harriss closing remarks. (EPA)

Harris is committed to ending the violence, ending the conflict, making sure that we resolve this conflict with a permanent ceasefire that allows Israel to fully secure itself  and make sure that we have full humanitarian aid, and also make sure that Gazans are able to peacefully live and prosper in Gaza, according to Tyler.

In a letter to Democratic National Committee chair Jaime Harrison, Michigan state Representative Alabas Farhat -- whose district includes Dearborn, where the uncommitted movement was born -- said the DNCs failure to address the movement cannot be understated.

Leaders of the [DNC] cannot claim to want peace in Gaza but actively thwart the ability for Palestinians to speak their truth at the DNC, said Michigan House leader Abraham Aiyash.

The plight of the Palestinians isnt just an inconvenience you can ignore because itll ruin vibes  children and families are being blown to pieces by US funded bombs, and to silence folks who want to lift their stories is another sad attempt to dehumanize Palestinians, he added. It is shameful that this is even a conversation that needs to be had.

Still, Abbas Alawieh, one of the leaders of the Uncommitted Movement and former chief of staff to Representative Cori Bush, said that the movement made strides.

Our movement is strong and our movement is growing, Im very hopeful, he told The Independent.

John Bowden and Eric Garcia contributed reporting
CHICAGO  A group of delegates at the Democratic National Convention started a sit-in protest outside the convention hall Wednesday night, saying they will stay put until the Kamala Harris campaign allows a Palestinian to speak on the main stage in Chicago.

It is unacceptable for a Palestinian person to not be accepted on stage, said Abbas Alawieh, a Michigan delegate.

Approximately 30 uncommitted delegates are attending the convention this week. The group has hosted daily events, pleading with Biden-Harris administration to end the Gaza war and stop U.S. arms shipments to Israel.

On Wednesday night, the convention featured a speech by Jonathan Dekel-Chen, whose son Sagui is a hostage in Gaza. "The time is long past due to end this war," Dekel-Chen said in an interview with USA TODAY.

But no Palestinian-American was permitted to make the same case.

Abbas Alaweih, a Michigan delegate, announces a sit-in outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Aug. 22, 2024.

Alawieh said that the group of uncommitted delegates strongly supports Israeli families on the convention program, but he criticized the Democratic Party for not showing that Palestinian and Israeli lives were of equal value.

We are the most powerful nation supplying billions of dollars to a country that is waging genocide against people who have been occupied, who have faced apartheid, who have been displaced, Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota at a press conference Wednesday afternoon. I beg Vice President Harris to not lose our democracy by not changing our policy towards Israel, because the people behind me are not undemocratic.

More than 40,000 Gazans have been reported killed in Israeli fire since Islamist militants rampaged across southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200.

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minnesota, speaks outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Aug. 21, 2024.

As protesters outside the convention hall struggled to make their voices heard, Alawieh said it was wrong that not a single Palestinian anti-war voice was heard on the floor."We made the ask every which way," he said. "It's very reasonable...This level of suppression is unacceptable."

Alawieh and a few other of the 30 uncommitted delegates then sat down outside on the street, where they were later joined by Rep. Omar.

Were not going anywhere. Our movement is winning, he said. People see their own humanity in the children whose limbs are being blown off in Gaza.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Delegates hold sit-in at Chicago convention over snubbed Palestinians
Leaders of the Uncommitted National Movement said on Thursday that Democratic convention organizers denied their request for a Palestinian American to address the convention in part because they did not want to risk distracting from Vice President Kamala Harris acceptance speech later in the evening.

The group is now in the second day of a sit-in outside the convention after being told on Wednesday night that its allies would not be allowed to address the United Center from the stage.

Co-founder Abbas Alawieh, whose group emerged during the Democratic presidential primary to marshal protest votes against the Biden administrations support for Israels war on Hamas in Gaza after the October 7 attacks, told reporters he received a call from a convention official Wednesday night, saying, Abbas, the answer is no.

The message overnight from convention officials, Uncommitted spokesman Waleed Shahid said, has been, This is the vice presidents biggest night, and we cant have it be about this.

Alawieh, an uncommitted delegate from Michigan, first took a seat on the concrete outside the United Center on Wednesday night, with images of Harris shining out over him, and said he would not leave the spot until the vice president and convention organizers reversed their decision. He was quickly joined by other uncommitted delegates and, toward the end of the program, Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar briefly joined the group.

Omar returned on Thursday, along with others, including Missouri Rep. Cori Bush, who compared the delegates demonstration to those she led in Ferguson, Missouri, after the police killing of Michael Brown, an unarmed Black teen, in 2014. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also expressed support for the group on social media and urged the DNC to reverse its decision.

The DNC has not responded to requests for comment, but senior Harris adviser Ian Sams on Thursday told CNN the Uncommitted group have a right to have their voice heard and weve been proud in this convention to engage them through dedicated conversations and meetings and everything.

But I think the really important thing to think about, too, is, What is the vice president doing about it? Sams added. He then pointed to Harris efforts with President Joe Biden to secure a ceasefire.

Michigan Democratic Party Chair Lavora Barnes told CNN on Thursday that she supported calls for providing the microphone to a Palestinian-American speaker.

The thing Ive been saying and I will always say is that these uncommitted voters are our voters, theyre our family, Barnes said. They are good Democrats who have an issue that they want to voice, and they have every right to voice it.

Later in the day, the Michigan Democrats doubled down, saying in a statement that Barnes believes that a Palestinian American should have a speaking role at the DNC tonight so that their voices can be heard.

A range of Democratic-aligned organizations and officials have also now called on the convention to change course and allow a Palestinian-American speaker to take the stage. Florida Rep. Maxwell Frost, the youngest member of Congress, endorsed a proposal for Georgia state Rep. Ruwa Romman to deliver an address that Uncommitted posted online earlier in the day.

Lets commit to each other, to electing Vice President Harris and defeating Donald Trump who uses my identity as a Palestinian as a slur, she would say, according to prepared marks. Lets fight for the policies long overduefrom restoring access to abortions to ensuring a living wage, to demanding an end to reckless war and a ceasefire in Gaza.

In a statement, Jeremy Ben-Ami, president of the liberal pro-Israel group J Street, called the situation a challenge but said the party had erred.

Hosting a Palestinian American speaker at the DNC would have been a powerful way to further underscore the shared goal of an immediate ceasefire and hostage deal and the compassion the party feels for all civilians suffering from this terrible conflict, Ben-Ami said.

The United Auto Workers union, whose president  Shawn Fain  spoke at the convention earlier this week, also issued a statement in support of the Uncommitted group, accused the party of putting our heads in the sand and ignoring Palestinian American voices.

If we want peace, if we want real democracy, and if we want to win this election, the Democratic Party must allow a Palestinian American speaker to be heard from the DNC stage tonight, the UAW said in a social media post.

There has also been increased pushback against the idea from some Harris allies, including former United States Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice, who questioned why Harris would offer airtime to the group.

They havent pledged their support to Vice President Harris, so to demand a seat or a speaking slot is a little bit rich, Rice told CNNs Jake Tapper, adding that Harris and Biden are deeply committed to ending the conflict.

Uncommitted leaders have said over the course of the week and before that they are supporting Harris, are delegates now for the vice president and have attempted to rebrand themselves as ceasefire delegates.

Democratic Majority for Israel, a political action group that has opposed progressive critics of Israel in Democratic primaries, said in a statement to CNN they too backed the DNCs decision.

The president, the vice president and the party through its platform have a clear position on this issue, spokesperson Rachel Rosen said. There is nothing to be gained by giving a speaking slot to a tiny minority intent on attacking the president, our nominee for president and our party.

Beside five minutes on stage in Chicago, movement leaders also had other asks, including for a US government arms embargo against Israel, that were rejected out of hand by Democratic leaders.

Before addressing reporters, Alawieh on Wednesday called for a moment of silence. He then described being a child, at 15, in Southern Lebanon during an Israeli bombing.

Our governments policy is to kill people like me, he said, growing increasingly emotional.

Alawieh recalled that he decided not to protest in the streets but to work with the Democratic Party hierarchy and to lobby convention organizers and the Harris campaign, reasoning that his group could persuade Democrats to allow it a voice in Chicago.

Im an insider. I work the system, said Alawieh, who previously worked for former Michigan Rep. Andy Levin and was a staffer on Capitol Hill during the January 6, 2021, insurrection. (Alawieh repeatedly said that his group had no desire to lift up Donald Trump or help the former presidents campaign in any way.)

He called the decision to deny the uncommitted movement a speaking slot infuriating and heartbreaking, especially after so many phone calls and talks with organizers and the Harris camp.

The Democratic National Committee on Monday sanctioned a panel, inside the formal convention perimeter, about Palestinian and Arab issues. The group called it a small win but continued to push for a more prominent stage.

The combination of new enthusiasm for Harris campaign, which Democrats have been celebrating all week, and frustration among activist groups over President Joe Bidens refusal to stop arms shipments to Israel has created an occasionally disorienting split-screen in Chicago, where protesters have marched outside the convention every day. Though little has changed on the ground in Gaza in recent months, some leading progressive groups, anti-war organizers and Palestinian American and other Arab American activists initially expressed openness to Harris, who has spoken with greater empathy about the bloodshed. More than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, according to the health ministry in the enclave.

Earlier Wednesday, less than an hour before the parents of Israeli American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin addressed the convention, Alawieh praised the DNCs decision to give the family a platform.

We strongly support the family being given a speaking slot, he said before the speech. We are glad to see that the DNC is taking this step. And, as Democrats, we know that our own partys platform includes specific language that says that our party recognizes that Israeli lives and Palestinian lives, that they are valued the same.

Speaking to reporters later, Alawieh said that while he was seated as a delegate inside the United Center and hearing about the 109 hostages still in Gaza, he also thought about the thousands of Gazan children who have been killed.

I could have been one of those children, he said repeatedly. President Biden, Vice President Harris, what are we talking about? Were talking about children.

This story and headline have been updated with new reporting.

CNNs Veronica Stracqualursi and Alison Main contributed to this report.

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Undocumented NY resident accused of swindling $100K in Gold Bullion from Nelson Co. man, sheriff says

Undocumented NY resident accused of swindling $100K in Gold Bullion from Nelson Co. man, sheriff says

NELSON COUNTY, Va. (WFXR)  The Nelson County Sheriff says an undocumented man living in NYS, has been charged with racketeering after posing as a Federal Reserve employee to swindle over $100,000 of Gold Bullion from a Virginia resident.

The sheriff says that on August 16, a Nelson County resident reported being the victim of a financial exploitation scam.

It was determined by investigators that the incident started in July 2024 when the victims laptop was infected with a malware virus. The victim attempted to remove the infected malware but was directed to a person by telephone who claimed to be a Microsoft employee.

Ridgeway man leads deputies on car chase into NC at speeds over 100mph, sheriff says

The person on the phone said their identity was compromised and they would need to purchase a substantial amount of Gold Bullion which would need to be collected and stored at a Federal Reserve in order to resolve the problem.

On July 31, the victim ordered $100,000 worth of Gold Bullion with the help of the alleged Microsoft employee. The gold was delivered to the victims home in Nelson County on August 2. But an unknown man in a dark-colored SUV quickly arrived, picked up the gold from the victim, and then left.

On August 6, the victim received a written letter with the letterhead Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve requesting an additional purchase of Gold Bullion for identity protection.

Man wanted by 4 agencies arrested in Henry County, hiding under trap door

The victim again complied and made a second purchase of gold on August 14 with the assistance of an alleged Federal Reserve employee. The second delivery of bullion occurred to the Nelson County residence on August 19; however, investigators with Nelson County and the Richmond F.B.I. intercepted the currier as they arrived at the home.

The courier has been identified as Liang Wang, who is believed to be an illegal resident living in Flushing, NY.

Wang has been arrested and charged with the following:

Racketeering

Conspiracy to Commit a Felony Larceny

Conspiracy to Obtain Money by False Pretenses

Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering

He is currently being held at the Albermarle/Charlottesville Regional Jail without bond.

The Nelson County Sheriffs Office would like to thank the joint efforts of the Virginia State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the safe apprehension of Mr. Wang, and for exposing this organized criminal enterprise.  Nelson County Sheriffs Office

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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DURHAM  Kelly Ayotte holds a wide lead over Chuck Morse in the race for the 2024 Republican nomination for governor in New Hampshire, according to a UNH Survey Center poll, while Joyce Craig holds a slight advantage over Cinde Warmington on the Democratic side. Maggie Goodlander and Colin Van Ostern are neck-and-neck in the race for the Democratic nomination in the Second Congressional District.

Republican candidates in both the 1st and 2nd congressional districts in New Hampshire are largely unknown.

These findings are based on the latest Granite State Poll, conducted by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center. One thousand, seven hundred and eighty-nine (1,789) Granite State Panel members completed the survey online. In addition, 351 New Hampshire residents completed the survey after receiving an invitation via text message to complete the survey online. A total of 2,140 people completed the survey between Aug. 15 and 19. The margin of sampling error for the survey is +/- 2.1 percent. Included in the sample were 936 likely Republican primary voters and 837 likely Democratic primary voters.

The state primary is Sept. 10. The winners in reach race will advance to the ballot for the Nov. 5 election.

Craig leads Warmington in NH Democratic governor primary race

Joyce Craig, left, former mayor of Manchester, and Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington are the leading Democratic candidates for governor of New Hampshire in 2024.

Former Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig and Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington are in a closer race. If the primary were held today, 39% of likely Democratic primary voters said they would vote for Craig and 30% chose Warmington, while 8% would vote for former Newmarket Town Councilor Jon Kiper. Less than 1% would write in someone else and 23% are undecided. Thirty-six percent of likely Democratic primary voters say they have definitely decided.

Craig holds double-digit leads over Warmington among self-described moderate and progressive likely Democratic primary voters while liberals are about evenly split between the two candidates. Kiper earns a plurality of support among socialist voters.

More: Craig and Warmington seek Democratic nomination for governor. What voters need to know.

Ayotte way ahead in NH Republican governor race

Chuck Morse and Kelly Ayotte are competing for the Republican nomination for governor of New Hampshire in 2024.

Ayotte, the former U.S. senator who was recently endorsed by Gov. Chris Sununu, received 65% support from Republican voters when asked who they would vote for today. Twenty-one percent said they would vote for Morse, a former state Senate president, while 13% are undecided and 1% said they'd vote for another candidate. About 54% of voters said they had definitely decided.

Ayotte is leading now in large part because she has higher name recognition," said Andrew Smith, director of the UNH Survey Center. "But New Hampshire primaries are low-turnout elections, and a lot can change over the final month as voters start to pay attention."

More: Ayotte and Morse seek Republican nomination for NH governor: What voters need to know

Goodlander has edge over Van Ostern in Democratic 2nd District race for US House

Second District Congresswoman Ann Kuster is retiring, and former Executive Councilor Colin Van Ostern and former Deputy Assistant Attorney General Maggie Goodlander are in a close primary race in a bid to replace her. If the election were held today, 34% of likely Democratic primary voters say they would vote for Goodlander, 28% support Van Ostern, and 38% are undecided. Goodlander holds small leads over Van Ostern among self-described liberals and moderates, and the two candidates are about evenly matched among progressives.

This race is likely to remain close as both candidates are well-funded to advertise heavily as voters are making their decisions," Smith said.

On the Republican side in the blue district, about half of voters are undecided with 21% saying they would vote for entrepreneur Vikram Mansharamani and 17% choosing Lily Tang Williams.

Prescott leads among Republicans in NH US House 1st District, with most undecided

Several candidates are seeking the Republican nomination to take on incumbent Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas, with 60% of likely Republican primary voters undecided. Nineteen percent say they would vote for former Executive Councilor Russell Prescott, and 10% would vote for Manchester Alderman Joseph Kelly Levasseur. Businesswoman Hollie Noveletsky and businessman Chris Bright both received 4% support in the poll.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: UNH poll: NH Democrats in close primary for governor's race
U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) speaks at a press conference held by 'uncommitted' delegates at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Wed. Aug 21, 2024 | Photo by Ruth Conniff

Heba Mohammad, a Palestinian Wisconsinite, was an organizer with Listen to Wisconsins uninstructed campaign during the 2024 presidential primary. Her group encouraged Wisconsin Democrats to mark their ballots uninstructed to voice their objection to the Biden administrations policy supporting Israel in its war in Gaza. The campaign outperformed expectations, receiving almost 50,000 votes.

Mohammad says she felt a range of reactions initially when Biden stepped out of the race and was replaced by Vice President Kamala Harris, including some satisfaction because I really believe that the Palestinian Liberation Movement played a huge role in his decision.

But when it came to Harris as the presumptive nominee, she says she felt apprehension, because we knew Kamala didnt have a substantively different position on Palestine than Joe Biden.

Harris has walked a line, supporting Israels right to defend itself while also calling for a ceasefire. After a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Harris expressed serious concern about the scale of human suffering in Gaza, including the death of far too many innocent civilians.

At a campaign rally on Aug. 7 in Detroit, Harris hushed pro-Palestinian protestors who chanted Kamala, Kamala, you cant hide! We wont vote for genocide, saying, Because we believe in democracy, everyones voice matters, but I am speaking now. When the chanting continued, she followed up more bluntly: If you want Donald Trump to win, then say that. Otherwise, Im speaking.

After the rally, Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz met with Layla Elabed and Abbas Alawieh, the founders of the national campaign to vote uncommitted (uninstructed on Wisconsin ballots) which garnered hundreds of thousands of votes in primaries across the country, particularly in battleground states like Michigan and Wisconsin. Alawieh, an uncommitted delegate at the DNC, told CNN Harris was receptive.

It feels fruitful, Alawieh continued. Were hopeful that she will engage substantively with our request for an arms embargo that stops sending bombs to kill people we love.

Kyle Johnson, political director of the Milwaukee-based organization Black Leaders Organizing for Communities (BLOC), which helped organize the uninstructed campaign, shared Alawiehs cautious optimism.

We see an opening just because theres a new nominee for the Democratic Party, Johnson says, though he says he doesnt know if there is a position besides the pronounced desire to see a ceasefire and wants to see a more concrete plan and acknowledgement of Harris and the U.S.s power.

Thats the type of rhetoric or language you hear from people who dont have power, who arent elected officials, Johnson says. Im not confident in saying I know what her position is because I havent seen or heard the strong language or seen the action to back it up, that there is an actual position in not supporting the genocide.

We havent gotten clarity on whether she will do what it takes, if elected, to end the genocide and stop weapons to Israels horrific warfare on Palestinians, Halah Ahmad, an organizer with Listen To Wisconsin, one of the organizations behind the uninstructed campaign told The Wisconsin Examiner by text message. We havent heard her depart from Bidens policy. We havent heard her affirm that she will apply U.S. policy even when it comes to Israels violations of human rights and attacks on civilians with U.S. weapons. We havent heard her talk about restoring aid to UNRWA (the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, which works with Palestinian refugees), and we havent heard her promise that Gaza will get full humanitarian aid which is the right of every Palestinian living there.

Harriss back-and-forth on Gaza was echoed in the Democratic Partys platform released Monday. Dahlia Saba, an uninstructed campaign organizer at UW-Madison, who participated in the March on the DNC protest says the platform is frankly a recipe for continuing this genocide indefinitely and continuing the conditions that led to this genocide in the first place, including unconditional support for Israel.

At the DNC, uncommitted delegates have demanded that a Palestinian speaker be included in the line-up on the main stage, where an Israeli family of a hostage held in Gaza was scheduled to speak Wednesday night. As of late Wednesday, Alawieh of the national campaign to vote uncommitted told reporters, the group was still waiting for an answer from DNC organizers. The group is also calling for Biden and Harris to immediately stop supplying U.S. weapons to Israel.

While Saba says there is still an opening for her and other ceasefire supporters to vote for Harris, it is up to Harris and the Democratic Party to take action to earn that vote.

I want to emphasize that it is up to the Democratic Party to win my vote or not, Saba says. My vote could still be won if Vice President Harris makes significant commitments to protect the interests of Palestinians. But unfortunately, I have yet to see her do that.

Our communities remain undecided on VP Harris but certain that ceasefire must come first before were asked about our votes, Ahmad wrote. We cant support a candidate that will aid and abet a genocide.

Mohammad is concerned that as Harris has stepped into her role as the presumptive nominee, she has been given a clean slate on the genocide, even though shes been just as complicit as Joe Biden on what is happening in Palestine.

Ultimately our goals as a movementof continuing to hold the administration accountable and the presidential nominees accountable to ending the genocideare still the same, Mohammad says. And regardless of who is in office and who the nominees are, we will continue pushing for an end to the genocide.

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LILONGWE, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) has adopted Electoral Management Devices (EMDs) to streamline the electoral processes for the country's general elections scheduled for September 2025.

MEC Spokesperson Sangwani Mwafulirwa said Wednesday that the electoral body has procured a total of 6,500 EMDs from the Netherlands-based Smartmatic International Holding B V Company.

The new technology will replace the Biometric Voter Registration system used in the 2019 general elections, and the 2020 re-run of the presidential election.

The commission is expected to use the new system for conducting voter registration, managing the transfer of voters, and inspecting the voters' register.

Mwafulirwa said that the introduction of EMDs is part of the strategy of the MEC to enhance efficiency in electoral processes during the upcoming general elections. 
GREENVILLE, S.C. (WSPA)  Its not every day deputy coroners are honored for saving lives.

Two members of the Greenville County Coroners Office are being praised for their investigative work, which could very well safe thousands of lives, after they brought attention to the dangers of adult portable bed rails.

A medical supply company is recalling more than one million bed rails after a number of deaths were linked to Medlines Bed Assist Bars.

Our two deputy coroners are extremely diligent and everybody in our office works these cases just like its their own family, said Greenville County Chief Deputy Coroner, Mike Ellis.

When responding to a scene, the Greenville County Coroners Office said they treat every case with the same level of care. Sometimes those cases require more in-depth investigations, including two that happened in November 2023.

Thats when two people were found dead at an assisted living facility in Greenville.

The coroners office said both cases happened just days apart and both victims had the same cause of death: entrapment and asphyxiation. Investigators said both deaths were ruled accidental.

It was a situation where it was like a positional asphyxiation and strangulation between the bed and the bed rail, said Deputy Coroner Brent Stephens, Greenville County Coroners Office.

They started working these cases as suspicious. After a forensic autopsy, there were able to tell that this was not a natural death, said Ellis.

Courtesy: United States Consumer Product Safety Commission

Investigators turned their attention to Medline Industries adult bed rails.

When the now-recalled bed rails are attached to an adults bed, users can become entrapped within the bed rail or between the bed rail, and the side of the mattress, according to the CPSC.

It was an unusual case. A case you dont get all the time and to have two similar cases in the same facility within two days of each other certainly threw off some red flags, said Stephens.

Deputy coroners, Brent Stephens and Robert Parker, spearheaded the Greenville investigations and worked closely with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission to identify the hazards caused by the products.

The gentleman was trying to get out of bed, rolled out of bed and got caught, said Deputy Coroner Robert Parker, Greenville County Coroners Office.

Thursday, months after the initial investigations, both Stephens and Parker were honored for their critical roles that helped reveal the dangers of the bed rails and lead to a global recall.

They are definitely instrumental in us gathering the information to move forward with this recall and we appreciate their attentiveness to consumer safety, said Cody Remy, investigator with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

We see a lot of death. So just knowing that we could potentially contribute to someone being alive otherwise. Its pretty awesome, said Stephens.

We are very humbled by it. We get a lot of support from our office and couldnt be any more supported in the job that we do. I am just very grateful to work for an office that really stands behind us and encourages us and give us direction. Its really good to be there, Stephens added.

While at least two lives were lost in South Carolina, the Coroners Office said theyre pleased their roles in the investigations could help make a difference.

We will never know exactly how many lives it saves but we will know that it made a difference, said Ellis.

More than 1.5 million portable adult bed rails have since been recalled across the United States and Canada.

The coroners office said this case serves as a reminder of the importance of thorough death investigations and the impact they can have on consumer safety.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WSPA 7NEWS.
ALTOONA, Iowa  An Urbandale man was arrested at a metro hotel Wednesday night for allegedly soliciting someone to find a mother whose young daughter he could have sex with.

The Polk County Sheriffs Office says Kevin Lind, 69, showed up at an Altoona hotel expecting to meet a 13-year-old girl and her mother for sex, but instead was met with investigators and learned hed been corresponding with an undercover detective.

Iowa sex offender arrested after over a year on the run

Criminal complaints filed in the case say the investigation began when an independent witness contacted detectives with the Mid-Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force and told them Lind had asked the witness to find a mother with a younger daughter he could have sex with. Lind allegedly told the witness hed pay money to make it happen and the witness provided evidence to detectives of Linds requests.

Detectives then provided a phone number for an undercover female detective who would pose as a mother with a 13-year-old child and the witness passed it along to Lind.

The Polk County Sheriffs Office says the undercover detective met with Lind and he provided money. He was arrested at the Motel 6 at 3225 Adventureland Drive at 8:42 p.m. Wednesday. The Iowa State University Police Department assisted in the arrest.

Investigators say Lind admitted he believed the person he would be meeting was under the age of 18.

Lind is charged with human trafficking, enticing a minor under 16, solicit commercial sexual activity, and conspiracy to commit a forcible felony. He is being held in the Polk County Jail.

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One killed, multiple injured in crash on US 65

5 P.M. UPDATE: The Pleasant Hill Police Department announced Thursday evening that one person was killed and at least two others were injured in a multi-vehicle crash on US 65.

Capt. Kramer with the Pleasant Hill Police Department said that the two known individuals injured in the crash experienced non-life threatening injuries.

One lane of southbound US 65 between I-80 and the East University Avenue exit is closed. Northbound US 65 and one lane of southbound US 65 are now open to traffic.

ORIGINAL STORY:

PLEASANT HILL, Iowa  Both directions of US 65 near the East University Avenue exit in Pleasant Hill are blocked due to a multi-vehicle crash.

Urbandale man charged with human trafficking, enticing a minor

Early Thursday afternoon a multiple vehicle crash was reported on US 65 between the Hubbell Avenue exit and East University Avenue exit. According to a Pleasant Hill Police Department Facebook post, the crash affected the southbound and northbound lanes of US 65. Multiple people were extricated from the vehicles involved in the crash.

According to Pleasant Hill Police Captain Amy Kramer there were injuries reported in the crash, but the extent and number of injuries is unknown at this time. Pleasant Hill and Altoona Fire Departments and Life Flight responded to the scene to care for and transport injured patients to hospitals.

The Iowa State Patrol, Polk County Sheriffs Office, and Altoona Police Department are assisting the Pleasant Hill Police Department with traffic control, as well as with the investigation into the crash.

Both lanes of travel on US 65 between Interstate 80 and East University Avenue will be closed while crews work to clear the area.

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Unionized federal court workers hold signs and shout slogans as they strike over reforms that would make all judges stand for election, outside a federal court in Mexico City, Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

MEXICO CITY (AP)  U.S. Ambassador Ken Salazar said Thursday a judicial overhaul proposed by Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador poses a risk" to Mexico's democracy and "threatens the historic commercial relationship between Mexico and the U.S.

The proposal, including a provision to require judges be elected, has spurred a fierce outcry from investors and financial institutions in recent days, with the Mexican peso steadily dropping in currency markets.

Democracies can't function without a strong, independent and non-corrupt judicial branch, Salazar told reporters. Any judicial reform needs to have safeguards that the judicial branch is strengthened, and not the subject to political conditions.

He said the proposed overhaul would "help cartels and other bad actors take advantage of inexperienced judges with political motivations, and create turbulence both economically and politically for years to come.

The measures would allow virtually anyone with a law degree with a few years experience as a lawyer to become a judge through popular vote.

Given major electoral wins by Lopez Obradors Morena party in June, academics, financial institutions and court employees say the changes would pave the way to stack courts with politically biased judges. That could hand the governing party control all three branches of government and dealing a blow to checks and balances, they warn.

The proposal must be approved by Mexicos newly elected congress, which will take office Sept. 1 with Morena and its allies holding a majority. The president's six-year term runs to Sept. 30, and President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum has also defended the proposal.

Salazar dodged multiple questions by reporters asking if adoption of the overhaul would result in any sanctions or actions by U.S. authorities against Mexico.

Lopez Obrador, a populist averse to independent regulatory agencies, has long been at odds with the judicial branch.

He contends judges are part of a mafia that opposes him, and says the proposal is meant to clean up corruption. He has gone on winding rants against the judicial system, ignored court orders and publicly sparred with judges whose rulings he has disagreed with.

While Salazar said rooting out corruption in Mexicos judiciary is not a bad idea, he expressed deep concern over the prospect of having judges elected.

The direct election of judges represents a risk for the functioning of Mexicos democracy, and the integration of the American, Mexican and Canadian economies, Salazar said.

Criticism of the proposed changes has mounted as thousands of judges and court employees started striking this week, bringing most federal courts to a standstill.

Their concerns were shared by major financial institutions in both the U.S. and Mexico.

On Tuesday, Morgan Stanley downgraded its recommendation for investing in Mexico, saying the overhaul would increase risk. Others, like Citibanamex, warned that passage of the proposal could end in the cancellation of liberal democracy." The Mexican peso has fallen since court workers started their strikes Monday.

Lopez Obrador has brushed off the concerns, arguing Wednesday that the peso's dip has been due to larger global market changes. He said the idea that his judicial overhaul has caused the peso's problem is a complete lie."
Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su and Canadian Minister of Labour Steve MacKinnon are in contact about a railroad shutdown north of the U.S. border that is already having far-reaching consequences for the economies of both countries.

I just spoke with my U.S. counterpart about work stoppages in the rail sector and discussed the importance of the sector and its workplaces to our countries, MacKinnon wrote in a social media post Thursday morning.

Railway companies Canadian National (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) locked out around 10,000 Teamsters employees Thursday following a breakdown in labor contract negotiations.

The White House National Economic Council (NEC) said Thursday its been monitoring the Canadian railway labor situation for a matter of weeks through its supply chain disruption task force.

This work, involving multiple agencies across the federal government, has included extensive analysis and engagement with industry and other stakeholders to assess and mitigate impacts for U.S. consumers, businesses and workers, the White House said in a statement sent to The Hill.

The NEC has been in touch with the parties, the White House added.

Rail operator CN told The Hill Thursday afternoon that the company remains at the table, attempting to reach an agreement.

While our operations within the U.S. remain unaffected, cross-border trains are safely parked and will be ready to move once operations in Canada resume, a company spokesperson told The Hill in an email.

The lockout, which is a managerial decision preventing employees from going to work, is distinct from an employee-initiated strike and allows the companies to keep better track of equipment and cargoes spread out over a vast rail network, labor experts told The Hill.

Its easier to restart after the work stoppage, Arthur Wheaton, director of labor studies at the Cornell School of Industrial and Labor Relations Buffalo Co-Lab, told The Hill. By taking this approach, he said, management is indicating they know where all the trains are, so theyre just going to freeze everything in place and turn off the power.

If the union had the option of striking, you wouldnt know what day theyre going to strike, which trains are going to strike, which cities are going to be impacted, and it can create a huge amount of chaos, he added.

MacKinnon turned down a request from CN and CPKC earlier in the negotiating process to send the contract dispute into binding arbitration, forcing management and the union to reach their own agreement. In August, the Canada Industrial Relations Board determined that the maintenance of essential services during a work stoppage was unnecessary.

The work stoppage has U.S. rail companies worried about the extent of its economic impact, since U.S. and Canadian freight rail networks are highly interconnected. A representative for Union Pacific told The Hill in an email that a prolonged shutdown could have a big impact on various industries.

For Union Pacific, a rail stoppage in Canada would mean thousands of cars per day not moving across the border. Everything from grain and fertilizer during the critical summer season, and lumber for building homes could be impacted. A prolonged shutdown could have even more significant implications, Union Pacific communications manager Robynn Tysver said.

U.S. railway BNSF said the stoppage would not have an impact on its operations but noted that shipments would not be moving through a Canadian railway exchange during the shutdown.

Representatives for the Canadian Teamsters and CPKC did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the status of negotiations.

Melissa Atkins, a partner at law firm Obermayer who frequently represents management in labor disputes, told the Hill that a brewing East Coast U.S. port strike from longshoremen and port workers could further strain the North American transportation and logistics sector.

If we have two strikes, with two major modes of transportation for goods and commodities, this could be huge, she said.

This story was updated at 4:01 p.m.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
The US Embassy has warned of possible Russian strikes on Ukrainian targets before Ukraines Independence Day.

Source: the US Embassy in Ukraine, citing information from the US State Department, as reported by European Pravda

Details: The United States said it has information that Russia is stepping up its efforts to launch both night- and daytime attacks with drones and missiles across Ukraine. The embassy noted that this could happen before Ukraine's Independence Day on 24 August.

Over the past few days, Russia has massively attacked Ukrainian oblasts with various types of weapons.

On 21 August alone, Ukraine's air defence assets and personnel managed to destroy 50 attack drones and one missile in 14 oblasts. In total, the Air Force reported that Russia attacked Ukraine with 72 aerial targets that day.

Background:

Earlier, the United States recorded the redeployment of a small Russian force to the territory of Kursk Oblast.

On 21 August, UK Defence Intelligence said that Russia was deploying units in Kursk Oblast whose personnel were not fighting for their intended purpose, so it could reduce Russia's ability to regain the territories controlled by Ukrainian forces.

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By Michelle Nichols

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - A Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal "now is in sight," the U.S. envoy to the United Nations told the Security Council on Thursday, urging members to press Palestinian militant group Hamas to accept a bridging proposal agreed to by Israel.

Months of on-off talks have circled the same issues, but Israel and Hamas have stuck to their demands.

U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield said a bridging proposal put forward last week by the U.S., Qatar and Egypt was consistent with a plan outlined by President Joe Biden in May and endorsed by the Security Council in June.

"Israel has accepted the bridging proposal. Now Hamas must do the same," she told the council. "As members of this council, we must speak with one voice, and we must use our leverage to press Hamas to accept the bridging proposal."

Disagreements over Israel's future military presence in Gaza and over Palestinian prisoner releases are obstructing a deal, sources familiar with talks told Reuters, stemming from demands Israel has introduced since Hamas accepted Biden's May proposal.

"It's a decisive moment for ceasefire talks and for the region, and so every member of this council should continue to send strong messages to other actors in the region to avoid actions that would move us away from finalizing this deal," said Thomas-Greenfield.

The conflict in Gaza put the entire Middle East region on edge, triggering months of border clashes between Israel and Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah movement, and threatening a wider escalation drawing in major powers.

Iran has also vowed retaliation over the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on July 31, which it blamed on Israel. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied it was behind the killing.

"There's very real danger of regional escalation," Thomas-Greenfield said. "So let us do everything in our power to get this ceasefire and hostage release deal over the finish line now."

The current war in the Gaza Strip began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas gunmen stormed into Israeli communities, killing around 1,200 people and abducting about 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.

Since then, Israel's military has leveled swathes of the Palestinian enclave, driving nearly all of its 2.3 million people from their homes, giving rise to deadly hunger and disease and killing at least 40,000 people, according to Palestinian health authorities.

(Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Katharine Jackson and David Gregorio)
Jessie Petersons family spent a year searching for her after they were told that she had checked herself out of a California hospital against medical advice  before they learned that she had been dead all along.

The 31-year-old died in the care of Mercy San Juan medical center in Sacramento in April 2023. The hospital shipped her body to a storage facility and did not inform her mother and sisters. The family only learned her fate the following April after months of trying to find her, according to a civil lawsuit against the hospital.

In the lawsuit, filed earlier this month, the family described the hospitals conduct as malicious and outrageous and accused the facility of negligence, the negligent handling of a corpse and negligent infliction of emotional distress.

Mercy San Juan hospital failed in its most fundamental duty to notify Jessies family of her death, the lawsuit states. Mercy San Juan stored Jessie in an off-site warehouse morgue and she was left to decompose for nearly a year while her family relentlessly inquired about her whereabouts.

Peterson, whom her family described in the lawsuit as loving and energetic, had type 1 diabetes. She was experiencing a diabetic episode when she was admitted to Mercy San Juan on 6 April 2023. Her mother, Ginger Congi, stated that Peterson had called her two days later asking for a ride because she would be leaving the hospital, according to the lawsuit.

Congi was later told that Peterson had left the hospital against medical advice, and her medical records indicate she was discharged on 8 April. After her sudden disappearance, the family spent months relentlessly searching for her, posting flyers, speaking with unhoused residents in the area, and contacting police and the coroners office, according to the lawsuit.

On 12 April 2024, more than a year after Peterson was last seen, the Sacramento county detectives office informed the family that she had been found dead at Mercy San Juan, the suit states. According to her death certificate, which was completed in April 2024, Peterson died of cardiopulmonary arrest at age 31.

Petersons sister went to the coroners office seeking her remains, but a worker told her that the office did not have Petersons body and directed her to contact the hospital. Mercy San Juan was not responsive to efforts to contact them, according to the lawsuit, and a mortuary eventually informed Congi that Petersons body had been found in one of the hospitals off-site storage facilities.

Her body was so decomposed the family could not obtain her fingerprints or hold an open casket funeral, and an autopsy that could have indicated whether there had been medical malpractice associated with her death was rendered impossible, according to the lawsuit.

Defendants failure to issue a timely certificate of death, failure to notify Jessies next of kin, failure to allow an autopsy, and mishandling of Jessies remains [was] negligent, careless, and heartless, the lawsuit states. Defendants violated their own promise of dignity and respect for the people in their care. Defendants conduct is so egregious and malicious to shock the conscious and punitive damages should be awarded.

The family is seeking more than $5m in damages, as well as five times the jurys award of actual damages to punish defendants for their outrageous and inexcusable negligence and attorneys fees.

Dignity Health, which operates Mercy San Juan, said in a statement: We extend our deepest sympathies to the family during this difficult time. We are unable to comment on pending litigation.
Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa (L) receive food assistance provided by China in Harare, Zimbabwe, on Aug. 22, 2024. China on Thursday provided emergency food assistance to Zimbabwe to assist the southern African country in tackling widespread food insecurity due to the effects of an El Nino-induced drought. (Photo by Tafara Mugwara/Xinhua)

HARARE, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- China on Thursday provided emergency food assistance to Zimbabwe to assist the southern African country in tackling widespread food insecurity due to the effects of an El Nino-induced drought.

Chinese Ambassador to Zimbabwe Zhou Ding handed over the 1,760 metric tons of rice to Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa at a ceremony at the State House in Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe.

Thursday's handover event was also attended by several Zimbabwean government ministers and senior officials, as well as representatives of beneficiary institutions.

Speaking at the handover ceremony, Mnangagwa expressed his gratitude to the Chinese government for the generous donation.

"Each time when we have this problem of food insecurity, China has always come to our aid," said the president, adding that the donated food will be distributed to the most vulnerable members of the community, including orphanages, institutions that care for elderly persons and people living with disabilities.

"As a result of the El Nino-drought, the food insecurity not only in Zimbabwe but in the region is actually prevalent, but we believe that we shall continue to receive assistance and cooperation from our cooperating partners as well as our sister republics like the People's Republic of China, who have always stood by us when we are faced with challenges of this nature. We are very grateful," he said.

Zhou said he was pleased to hand over the food assistance in response to the Zimbabwean government's appeal for humanitarian aid following the drought.

"Right after your Excellency declared the state of national disaster, the Chinese government acted quickly to answer your call for support. So this is a new batch of emergency food assistance to Zimbabwe, and China will donate another batch of food assistance this year," Zhou said.

Beneficiaries expressed gratitude to China for the donation, noting that the food assistance will go a long way in alleviating food shortages at their institutions.

"We are so grateful to China for this assistance, especially in this time of the El Nino-induced drought. This is a very important intervention, and we expect Zimbabweans to go ahead in this difficult time because of this special assistance, which came on time. We remain grateful," said Douglas Matatani, one of the beneficiaries. 

This photo taken on Aug. 22, 2024 shows bags of rice donated by China to Zimbabwe in Harare, Zimbabwe. China on Thursday provided emergency food assistance to Zimbabwe to assist the southern African country in tackling widespread food insecurity due to the effects of an El Nino-induced drought. (Photo by Tafara Mugwara/Xinhua)
The US is sending $125 million in new military aid to Ukraine

Ukrainian servicemen of 148th separate artillery brigade of the Air Assault Forces fire towards Russian positions by a M777 howitzer at the frontline in Donetsk region, Ukraine, Wednesday, August 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

WASHINGTON (AP)  The Biden administration is sending about $125 million in new military aid to Ukraine, the Defense Department said Friday, even as Washington works to get a better understanding of Kyiv's incursion into Russia and how it advances the broader battlefield goals more than two years into the war.

The latest package of aid includes air defense missiles, munitions for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), Javelins and an array of other anti-armor missiles, counter-drone and counter-electronic warfare systems and equipment, 155mm and 105mm artillery ammunition, vehicles and other equipment.

The formal announcement came on Friday, which is the eve of Ukraine's Independence Day.

The weapons are being provided through presidential drawdown authority, which means they are taken from Pentagon stockpiles and can be delivered more quickly.

The aid comes as Ukrainian forces continue to broaden their surprise offensive into Russia, where officials say they have taken about 100 square kilometers (62 square miles) of territory in the Kursk region. Russian troops, meanwhile, are making gains in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, around the city of Pokrovsk, a critical logistics hub.

Pentagon officials have said repeatedly that the U.S. has been talking with Ukrainian leaders to get a better assessment of their longer-term goals for the Kursk operation, particularly as they see Russia advancing near Pokrovsk.

If Pokrovsk falls, the defeat would imperil Ukraines defenses and bring Russia closer to its stated aim of capturing the Donetsk region. Russian soldiers are now just 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) away.

Asked about the Kursk operation, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said Thursday that we are still working with Ukraine on how that fits into their strategic objectives on the battlefield itself.

The U.S., she said, understands that Ukraine wants to build a buffer zone along the border, but the administration still has more questions about how it furthers Ukraine's broader war effort.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made his first visit Thursday to the border area where his forces launched the offensive on Aug. 6. He said Kyivs military had taken control of another Russian village and captured more prisoners of war.

The latest package of aid brings the total amount of U.S. security assistance to Ukraine to more than $55.7 billion since Russia's invasion in February 2022.
A "vote here/aqui" sign is set up at Burton Barr Central Library in Phoenix

By John Kruzel

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday revived part of an Arizona voter law requiring documented proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote, in response to a request from the Republican National Committee and Arizona Republicans.

The justices in a 5-4 ruling agreed to reinstate a provision of the law after a federal judge blocked it in response to legal challenges by Democratic President Joe Biden's administration and advocacy groups.

The decision comes before the Nov. 5 election in which Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris is facing off against Republican former President Donald Trump, who continues to falsely claim that his 2020 election defeat was the result of fraud.

Arizona's Republican-controlled legislature adopted new restrictions on voter registration in 2022. The law requires applicants who submit a federal registration form to provide evidence of U.S. citizenship to vote in presidential elections or vote by mail in any federal election.

Voter registrants who use a separate, state-created form face even tighter restrictions. Without proof of U.S. citizenship, state applications are rejected in their entirety, and officials who fail to do so face a minor felony charge under the law.

The Supreme Court's ruling revived the restriction related to the state voter registration form, but kept intact a judicial decision blocking the provision that sought to tighten limits on the federal form.

Chief Justice John Roberts joined with fellow conservative Justices Brett Kavanaugh, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch to grant Republicans' request in part, though Thomas, Alito and Gorsuch indicated they would have granted the entire request.

Liberal Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, along with conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett, would have denied the request in full.

When Republican then-Governor Doug Ducey signed the legislation in March 2022, he said the measure balanced voting accessibility with election security.

"Election integrity means counting every lawful vote and prohibiting any attempt to illegally cast a vote," Ducey said.

The Biden administration sued to block the Arizona law in July 2022, claiming it is superseded by a 1993 federal law called the National Voter Registration Act. The law says that states must register voters for federal elections after they submit the federal registration form, which requires a declaration of U.S. citizenship under penalty of perjury, but not documentary proof.

A separate legal challenge argued that the Arizona law violated a 2018 court-approved settlement requiring state election officials to register voters who lack documented proof of U.S. citizenship for federal elections, regardless of whether they use the federal or state form.

The Republican National Committee and Arizona's top Republican lawmakers intervened to defend the law.

Phoenix-based U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton in September 2023 sided with the Biden administration and other plaintiffs in their challenge to Arizona's proof of citizenship requirements. She blocked the state from barring federal-form applicants from voting for president or voting by mail, or rejecting state-form applications, for lacking citizenship documentation.

A three-judge panel on the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that reviewed the case on its merits declined to halt Bolton's ruling. This prompted an emergency Supreme Court filing from the Republican National Committee and Arizona Republicans.

Arizona's attorney general and secretary of state, both Democrats, opposed the Republicans' request to the justices.

Arizona, which is expected to be one of the most competitive states in the November election, has been a flashpoint in the U.S. battle over voting rights.

A widely criticized Republican review of the 2020 presidential election found no evidence that irregularities marred Biden's narrow victory over Trump.

Arizona enacted a law in 2005 requiring new voters to provide proof of citizenship, but the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2013 that the state could not impose that requirement on those who used a federal form to register. Since then, the state has allowed those voters to participate only in federal elections, not state or local races.

Arizona had more than 42,000 "federal only" registered voters as of July 1, according to state data.

The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives earlier this year passed a similar bill requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote in elections, but it went nowhere in the Democratic-majority U.S. Senate.

(Reporting by John Kruzel; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
USF incoming freshmen move in as school expects record number of students to live on campus

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  Thursday marked move-in day for incoming students at the University of South Floridas Tampa and St. Petersburg campuses, as the school expects a record number of students  7,500 in total  to call its three campuses home this year.

Those students will live across 34 residence halls across the Tampa Bay Area.

Pickleball courts, other changes proposed at several Florida State Parks

While the downpours early Thursday morning did send the student volunteer Bull Haul inside for about an hour due to thunder and lightning, they came back out to help. For the most part, freshmen and their parents accepted that it would be a wet move-in day.

Im excited for my daughter, said parent Meredith Kupcho. This is a great opportunity for her.

Excitement and nerves were the two most common feelings expressed by USF parents and students as they moved in.

Especially with the rain, said freshman Riley Watson. Were like the only people here.

Early arrivals had to go about moving themselves, but the rain and traffic picked up as the day went on.

It was slow going, said parent John Watson. I-75 was just, people were slow, we came through Brandon, there was an accident in Brandon.

Facial recognition software leads to arrest at Tampa International Airport

But move-in continued.

Were pulling the plastic stuff out so we can wipe it off real quick, leaving the boxes, John Watson explained. We have some boxes, but we covered them, so hopefully theyll be able to get in quickly before they disintegrate.

Many families said they knew and appreciated that this was the next chapter in their lives.

Shes worked really, really hard and shes earned her way here, said Meredith Kupcho. Every step of the way.

Meredith Kupcho and her husband Troy Colson were one of the 10,000 anticipated helpers of one of the 3,000 USF students moving into the Tampa campus on Thursday.

Were awful proud of her, said parent Troy Colson. Were looking forward to the next steps in her life.

On USFs Sarasota-Manatee campus, the brand new, 200-bed Atala Hall just had its unveiling this week. It is the campuss first-ever residence hall, and students will be able to move in on Friday.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA.
The aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln and its strike group are now operating in the Middle Eastern waters of U.S. Central Command as the Pentagon aims to strengthen its presence amid heightened tensions in the region.

Escalations stem from the recent killings of top leaders of Iran-backed militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah in suspected Israeli strikes, while U.S. forces experience continued attacks in Iraq and Syria that U.S. leaders attribute to militias supported by Iran.

US to boost military presence in Middle East amid growing tensions

As a result, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Aug. 11 instructed the Abraham Lincoln, then operating in the Indo-Pacific en route to the Middle East, to expedite its arrival to the region.

Austin also ordered the guided-missile submarine Georgia to the CENTCOM region. Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters Tuesday the submarine would arrive there soon.

USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), equipped with F-35C and F/A-18 Block III fighters, entered the U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) area of responsibility.



The USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), the flagship of Carrier Strike Group 3, is accompanied by Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 21 and pic.twitter.com/RKoJQshigR  U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) August 21, 2024

The Abraham Lincoln is outfitted with F-35C and F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jets and will replace the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt that started operating in the Middle East in July.

The U.S. enhanced its presence in the Middle East after Hamas Oct. 7 attack on Israel and Israels subsequent retaliatory strikes in Gaza. Naval assets sent to the region in October included the aircraft carrier Dwight D. Eisenhower, marking the first time a U.S. aircraft carrier sailed in Middle Eastern waters since the end of the Afghanistan war in 2021.

The carrier, along with its accompanying destroyers Gravely and Mason and cruiser Philippine Sea, fended off routine attacks of Iran-backed Houthi drones and missiles targeting civilian commercial vessels in the Red Sea. The Eisenhower returned to Naval Station Norfolk in July, concluding a total of 275 days underway.

Meanwhile, Ryder declined Tuesday to provide specifics regarding how long he expects an enhanced presence of roughly 40,000 U.S. troops  up from 32,000 troops  will remain in the Middle East.

Weve had a significant force presence in the Middle East for a very long time.  I dont foresee that changing anytime soon, Ryder said.

Ryder also said 11 U.S. personnel were treated for traumatic brain injury and smoke inhalation following an attack Aug. 9 at the Rumalyn Landing Zone American base in Syria. Ryder previously told reporters eight troops experienced injuries after that attack.

Were not going to tolerate attacks on our forces, and we will always respond appropriately in a timely manner of our choosing, Ryder said.
People watch from a packed gallery as the Senate discusses a proposed constitutional amendment related to citizen initiatives during a special legislative session at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

The Republican-controlled Utah Legislature on Wednesday called itself into an emergency special session to place a proposed constitutional amendment on the Nov. 5 ballot, asking voters to skirt a recent Utah Supreme Court ruling that Republicans worry will handcuff their power to alter or repeal ballot initiatives.

The proposed constitutional amendment passed in the Senate 20-8 and in the House 54-21, with most Republicans voting in favor and Democrats against. A handful of Republicans (Sens. Wayne Harper, and Daniel Thatcher; and Reps. Steve Eliason, James Cobb, Ray Ward, Jim Dunnigan, Matt MacPherson, Marsha Judkins and Anthony Loubet), crossed party lines to vote against.

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The debate pitted people with preferences for two democratic ideals against each other: those in favor of allowing more direct democracy (through ballot initiatives) in Utah and those wanting to protect representative democracy (through the Legislature).

Republicans argued the constitutional amendment is needed because the Utah Supreme Courts ruling paved the way for invincible super laws enacted by ballot initiatives that the Utah Legislature would have no way of changing and invite California-style governance to the Beehive State.

But Democrats, some Republicans that voted against, and other opponents, including anti-gerrymandering groups, argued that fear of super laws were unfounded, and thats not what the Supreme Courts decision necessarily said.

Though the constitutional amendment comes in direct reaction to a recent Utah Supreme Court decision in lawsuit over a ballot initiative attempting to alter Utahs redistricting process, one of the proposals sponsors, Rep. Jordan Teuscher, said on the House floor its so much bigger than redistricting.

Were not bringing forth this constitutional amendment because the Legislature is butthurt that maybe we might have to redraw a map. It has nothing to do with that, Teuscher, R-South Jordan, said.

Rather, he argued its meant to address a Utah Supreme Court decision that he and other conservatives have interpreted as one that could have a devastating impact on Utahs governance for generations and completely change our state.

He said under previous assumptions of the Utah Constitutions meaning, there has been a balance between ballot initiative power and the Legislature, but the Utah Supreme Courts recent ruling disrupted it.

The decision, Teuscher continued, opens the door to outside interest groups to pour millions of dollars into our state pushing their agendas through initiatives that, if passed, could be nearly impossible to change.

Thatcher argued most of his fellow Republicans were going too far in their interpretation of the Utah Supreme Court ruling.

The language from the Supreme Court ruling, verbatim, says, This does not mean that the Legislature cannot amend a government reform initiative at all, Thatcher, R-West Valley City, said on the Senate floor, quoting directly from the courts opinion, before he voted against the proposed constitutional amendment. Rather, legislative changes that facilitate or support the reform, or at least do not impair the reform enacted by the people, would not implicate the peoples rights.

Senate President Stuart Adams, R-Layton, oversees debate in the Senate about a proposed constitutional amendment related to citizen initiatives during a special legislative session at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

To that argument, Republican legislative leaders including Senate President Stuart Adams, R-Layton, said at best the Supreme Court decision only invites more litigation because, he argued, the opinion did not clearly define what government reform means.

Thatcher predicted Utahns will see through the Legislatures arguments and that it will fail during the November election. What it will do, however, is give us the biggest black eye weve ever had in the Legislature.

Opponents also accused Utahs Republican supermajority of a power grab, looking to assert their legislative power by asking voters to give up some of their power by weakening the might of ballot initiatives  even though the Utah Supreme Court, the body tasked with interpreting the state constitution, came to a different conclusion.

Republicans, on the other hand, argued they werent looking to take away ballot initiative power, but preserve it as theyve understood for nearly 100 years, in balance with legislative powers.

In a media scrum after Wednesdays special session, reporters pressed Adams and Teuscher, and the constitutional amendments Senate sponsor, Senate Majority Whip Kirk Cullimore, R-Sandy, on how Utahs five Supreme Court justices could have gotten an interpretation so wrong (in GOP lawmakers minds) in a unanimous decision, when its the courts job to interpret the constitution.

I dont know if Im capable of answering that, maybe you ought to ask them that, Adams said, though he added their ruling doesnt work for the Legislature by leaving too many unanswered legal questions.

Quite honestly, at this point, I dont think it really matters whether they got it wrong or they got it right, Teuscher said. What were doing here is asking (voters) the question, What should it be? What ought it to be? And the Supreme Courts job isnt to decide what policy should be. Their job is to interpret the law. We disagree with their interpretation, and we have a constitutional amendment now that allows the people to decide what they want that power to be.

During the special session, the Utah Legislature passed four pieces of legislation:

SJR 401, a resolution to put a question on the Nov. 5 ballot to ask voters whether to amend the Utah Constitution to make clear the Utah Legislature has the ultimate power to amend, enact or repeal a law adopted by a ballot initiative, as well as ban foreign individuals, entities or governments from influencing an initiative or referendum.

SB4002, a bill to establish an expedited timeline and process to place the above constitutional amendment question on the Nov. 5 ballot.

SB4003, a bill that would be contingent on the passage of the constitutional amendment at the polls, that would make it slightly easier to successfully place a voter referendum (a petition to refer an existing law to voters for approval or rejection) on the ballot by increasing the window of time referendum sponsors can gather signatures, extending it from 40 days to 60 days. It would also require the Legislature, if its amending a ballot initiative to give deference to the initiatives general purpose  but also allows lawmakers to amend the law in any manner if lawmakers determine it necessary to mitigate an adverse fiscal impact.

SB4001, a bill unrelated to the debate over the Utah Supreme Court ruling to fix an oversight in a bill passed earlier this year, SB180, that led to justice court backlogs.

People watch from a packed gallery as the Senate discusses a proposed constitutional amendment related to citizen initiatives during a special legislative session at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

What spurred the special session and proposed constitutional amendment?

At the heart of the issue is a court case over Utahs redistricting process after the anti-gerrymandering group Better Boundaries successfully sought and voters approved a 2018 ballot initiative to create an independent commission to draw political boundaries Utahs redistricting process.

Believing the Utah Constitution gave them ultimate authority to repeal and replace ballot initiatives with their own versions of the law, the Utah Legislature adopted a watered-down version of the new redistricting process. That allowed Utah Lawmakers to ignore independently-drawn maps and adopt their own versions, which is ultimately what Republican lawmakers did in 2021 when it came time to set Utahs new political districts for the next 10 years.

Those 2021 maps cracked Democratic strongholds in the red state of Utah, including a congressional map that sliced Utahs most populated county, Salt Lake County, into four congressional districts.

Then came a lawsuit. The League of Women Voters of Utah  along with the group Mormon Women for Ethical Government and individual Salt Lake County residents who alleged they were disenfranchised by unlawful gerrymandering  claimed the Utah Legislature overstepped when it repealed and replaced the group Better Boundaries voter-approved initiative.

The Utah Supreme Courts unanimous decision that upset Utahs Republican legislative leadership was issued July 11. It remanded that lawsuit over Utahs redistricting process back to district court, with all five of Utahs justices ruling that the district court erred when it dismissed the League of Women Voters claim that the Utah Legislature violated the Utah Constitution in 2021 when it repealed and replaced Better Boundaries voter-approved initiative. That litigation now continues.

Leading up to Mondays special session call, the Utah Republican Party and dozens of other signees, as well as the conservative think tank Sutherland Institute, issued letters urging Utah lawmakers to correct the Utah Supreme Courts ruling, expressing concerns that the opinion effectively allowed ballot initiatives to become super laws that cant be changed by the Legislature.

Its worth noting that thats not necessarily what the Utah Supreme Court ruling explicitly said, though it does leave a question over how other ballot initiatives could be litigated. The courts opinion was targeted at initiatives specifically dealing with government reform, and it makes clear the Legislatures powers to amend government-reform initiatives have limits  but it doesnt say the Legislature cant amend all government-reform initiatives.

An excerpt from the Utah Supreme Courts July 11, 2024 unanimous opinion issued in the League of Women Voters of Utahs lawsuit against the states changes to Better Boundaries redistricting ballot initiative.

Debate over super laws vs. respecting judicial branch

Cullimore, R-Sandy, an attorney and sponsor of the proposed constitutional amendment, argued that because of the way the courts decision was written, it essentially created a new class of laws  super laws, if you will  which had never before been contemplated in this state. He also said nowhere in law or case law do we have a definition of what it means to alter or reform government, and that opens the door to more litigation over past and future ballot initiatives.

Therefore it can be reasonably deduced that any initiative that is modified in any way by the Legislature for whatever reason, could be subject to litigation, and ultimately the judgments of the courts as to whether it sufficiently alters and reforms government, Cullimore said in a committee hearing before the special session while presenting the proposed constitutional amendment.

At a minimum, with the current ambiguities, we will have to ask the courts to essentially legislate what that standard is, he continued. Additionally, that discretion of what meets a strict scrutiny standard when revising the initiative, for whatever reason, may be subject to judicial determination as well. So even if we determine that these amendments meet the strict scrutiny standard, anybody can challenge that. And now were subject to judicial determination.

Rather than leave it to the courts  or let the Utah Supreme Courts interpretation of the Utah Constitution stand  Cullimore said the Legislature should go to voters themselves to ask what they think.

Sen. Kirk Cullimore, R-Sandy, who is sponsoring a proposed constitutional amendment related to citizen initiatives, speaks in favor of his legislation during a special legislative session at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

Let the people decide and the people interpret what the constitution says, Cullimore said.

The potential for super laws, he continued, is not just fear mongering.

This perception is shared by many from all across the political spectrum. Weve heard from many groups that are concerned about what this elevated initiative process can mean for our state, Cullimore said, adding hes aware of lobbyists and PR firms that have been contacted by numerous groups from outside of Utah that are now motivated to run and significantly fund initiatives in Utah. Thats what this has invited.

Utahs Democratic minority fought to oppose the constitutional amendment in both chambers. On the House floor, Rep. Andrew Stoddard, D-Sandy, described it as an undermining of the judiciary based on recent Supreme Court decisions.

Theyre in an equal branch of government. We need to treat them as such, he said.

Stoddard pointed to a recent Utah Foundation survey, which found Utahns listed legislators overreach and politicians not listening as top concerns. Stoddard also compared the Legislatures reaction to the Utah Supreme Court ruling to a childs tantrums when they dont like something that happens.

We havent had problems with initiatives, we havent had problems with referenda. We should let it play out, Stoddard said of ongoing litigation over the redistricting ballot initiative that still has yet to play out in district court.

A rushed public hearing

Wednesdays special session and the proposed constitutional amendments passage came less than 24 hours after the bills language was made public, and after a committee hearing that left less than an hour for members of the public to weigh in.

Katie Wright, executive director of Better Boundaries  the group that successfully sought the 2018 voter initiative to create an independent redistricting commission, only for it be repealed and replaced later by the Utah Legislature  decried that rushed process in an interview with Utah News Dispatch.

This is a power grab, she said. The people of Utah filled the rooms to help prevent it right now, and this process is too fast, not thoughtful, and not deliberative. What well see, ultimately, that people of Utah will oppose this. Theyre making it clear now, and well see it when it comes (to a vote).

Utahs Republican legislative leaders defended the rushed special session as necessary because deadlines to finalize the general election ballot by early September are fast approaching, and they didnt want to wait until the next opportunity to put a constitutional amendment before voters, in 2026, because by then the state could be facing a flood of ballot initiatives empowered by the Utah Supreme Courts ruling.

Wright also said the provision in the proposed constitutional amendment to also ban foreign influence is a red herring designed to entice Utahns to vote in favor. There is no evidence that foreign entities have contributed to any ballot initiatives or referenda in Utah, but legislative leaders argued its meant to prevent it from ever happening.

Voters see this for what it is. One branch of the government amassing power and very much targeting a constitutional right we have and trying to take it away, Wright said. Ultimately, people will vote no because theyll see the big picture.

Now that the proposed constitutional amendment is headed for the Nov. 5 ballot, Wright said Better Boundaries planned to be part of a coalition of groups over the next two and a half months to urge voters to vote it down.

Weve been at this for seven years. Were not going anywhere, she said. The people of Utah are with us. I think everyone will see a lot of us between now and Election Day.

A significant number of people line up to speak about a proposed constitutional amendment related to citizen initiatives, despite the committee limited speakers to 3 in favor and 3 against, during a special legislative session at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

Contributing: Alixel Cabrera

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On Wednesday, the Legislature questioned Rocky Mountain Powers president regarding the energy companys proposed 30% rate increase, which was announced in July.

There is no doubt (that) theres incredible upward pressure on rates, RMPs President Dick Garlish said in the public utilities, energy and technology interim committee meeting at the Capitol. As a company, we are trying to find the balance of making sure that we are recovering the cost to be able to provide the essential service, because electricity is the backbone of our quality of life, and it is our engine of economic development, being reliable and being affordable.

Rocky Mountain Power provides energy for Utah, Idaho and Wyoming. Its sister company, Pacific Power, provides energy services for Oregon, Washington and California. With states like California and Oregon having faced wildfire damages in recent months, Rep. Carl Albrecht, R-Richfield, questioned Garlish on whether or not the increase in rates in Utah is being used as funding for other states natural disasters.

I can assure you that this current case does not include any judgments, liabilities or settlement dollars, but added that with insurance costs having gone up in the last five years, its driving the insurance industry rates, availability of coverage and rates up for all utilities and all co-ops. But, to say our insurance went up because we had a fire in Oregon isnt accurate, he said.

Utahns are concerned about the increased rate

Since RMPs proposed increased rate was announced, Rep. Judy Weeks Rohner, R-West Valley, said shes received phone calls from multiple people in her district and surrounding areas accusing the energy company of turning off their electricity intermittently.

Your rate increase has caused people to be concerned about their bills, especially in my area. I dont know about the others, but in my area, theyre calling, she added.

Garlish responded, 1,000% we are not turning peoples powers off because were having a rate increase.

He added, Were not trying to punish our customers in any way possible. And on the rate impacts, you know, we get that. None of us enjoy having to make a rate case and ask for money, especially when were living in this environment where costs are just up generally and impacting different folks in different ways. We dont take it lightly, but we have to recover some of those costs that we use to provide the service to keep going.

If approved by the Public Service Commission, the initial phase of the increase would take effect on Feb. 23, 2025, resulting in an overall rise of 1.32% per kilowatt hour for Utah customers, bringing the price to 9.50 cents per kilowatt hour. The second phase would raise the price to 10.49 cents per kilowatt hour by Jan. 1, 2026.

The last subject discussed in the Legislature on Wednesday was the potential of Rocky Mountain Power separating itself from PacifiCorp, which Albrecht said would make sense for Utah from a policy perspective.

Theres more and more interest in restructuring and what that looks like, driven by all of these factors, upward rate pressures, changes in policy, Garlish said, adding that it would take around 20 months to figure out all the entanglements. Albrecht requested Rocky Mountain Power bring a report in November on what a separation with PacifiCorp will entail.

We can do a report that really touches on what we have today, what the benefits and challenges are, and what an alternative might be, Garlish added.
Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) on Wednesday pushed back against Minnesota Gov. Tim Walzs (D) dig at him for going to Yale University, saying he is proud of what he has accomplished.

As you guys know, I grew up in a very poor family. I was raised by a grandmother who didnt graduate from high school, much less from college, and Im proud of the fact that she really worked her tail off, that she, you know, went to her grave fighting to give me opportunities, Vance said Wednesday on Fox News. Im not ashamed of the fact that my grandmother scarified for me and I was able to live the American dream.

Vance, the Republican vice presidential candidate, was responding to Walzs speech accepting the vice presidential nomination at the Democratic National Convention, during which the governor brought up Yale, the Ivy League school where Vance studied law.

The speech leaned heavily into Walzs small-town and Midwestern roots.

I had 24 kids in my high school class and none of them went to Yale, Walz said Wednesday night. But Ill tell you what, growing up in a small town like that, you learn to take care of each other.

Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum, speaking with Vance shortly after the speech, suggested Walz was basically calling [Vance] Mr. Fancy Pants Ivy league.'

Im proud of what I accomplished, and more importantly, Im proud of all the people who scarified in order to give me a better life, Vance responded. I would think Tim Walz would want to praise people who scarified to give their children and grandchildren a better life. Not put me down, but I guess this is the political order of the day. Hes going to attack me. Thats fine, but Im proud of my family.

Walz grew up in a small town in Nebraska, enlisted in the Army National Guard after high school graduation and attended Chadron State College in Nebraska to study social sciences.

Vance also frequently touts his own upbringing in Middletown, Ohio, and his decision to join the Marines out of high school.

Walzs comments gained attention on other networks as well.

NBC Newss Tom Llamas said to Vance, He made fun of the fact you went to Yale.

What a nasty personal attack, Vance responded. Why isnt Governor Walz talking about Kamala Harriss record and how shes made the lives of the American people better? The answer is: because he cant say that.

The Yale dig also came up during a CNN panel, during which Republican strategist Scott Jennings said the constant attacks on JD Vance for going to Yale are so weird.

I dont understand this. Ive heard Walz proclaim to be a small-town guy who wants everybody to get an education and succeed, but spends a fair amount of time attacking JD Vance, who grew up poor and got an education, worked hard to get an education and rise above his station in life, Jennings said.

And he has used it as a punchline on the campaign trail. I dont understand what hes trying to communicate to every small-town poor kid out there saying, If you choose to work hard and go to an Ivy League school, you somehow abandoned your hometown,' he continued.

Democratic strategist Van Jones, who also sat on the panel and graduated from Yale Law School, said he agreed with the point.

As one of those small-town kids who actually went to Yale, I do take exception to that. I think you are correct on that, he said.

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A contract to bring a Vanderbilt University business school to West Palm Beach could be acted upon by Palm Beach County commissioners as soon Oct. 8. Commissioners instructed their staff to bring back a contract for its consideration no later than that date after a 30-minute presentation Tuesday that touted the benefits that the facility would generate for region.

The staff is expected to update the commission on the status of the negotiations Sept. 17. At issue is whether the county should donate 5 acres of prime real estate to the university for the business school.

On Monday, the West Palm Beach City Commission voted unanimously to donate $12.8 million worth of city land  about 2 acres  to the university for the campus.

Vanderbilt University wants to build a 300,000-square foot graduate campus in downtown West Palm Beach on August 21, 2024 in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Vanderbilt Chancellor Daniel Diermeier and Vice Chancellor Nathan Green detailed the findings of an economic-impact study prepared by the consulting firm TXP Inc., based in Austin, Texas. The study projected that the school would generate $7.1 billion in total local economic activity over the next 25 years, a figure that doubles to over $14.2 billion when stretched out for 50 years.

There are other benefits as well, noted Diermeier.

He assured the county that the school will work with community officials to address issues such as traffic congestion by developing modeling programs. He said Vanderbilt has worked closely with officials in Nashville, where its main campus is located, to improve the community there.

"We will be as committed to this region as we are there," said Diermeier. "We will weave our way into the fabric of the community."

Vanderbilt is a leading private research university, and while not an Ivy League school, it is often referred to as "Southern Ivy" because of its selective admissions process and strong academic reputation.

The West Palm Beach business school would be as large as the one on its main campus in Nashville, university officials said.

More: Vanderbilt rolls out detailed plan, economic impact for its West Palm business school

The business school would include an innovation hub and a college for computer science and artificial intelligence. Vanderbilt would spend $268 million for academic buildings, $217 million for student housing and another $35 million for a parking garage.

About 1,000 students are expected to attend the school, spending a projected $18 million a year in the region. Current plans call for a 300,000-square-feet business school. One-time construction costs would create more than 5,600 jobs.

The site is along South Tamarind Avenue, from Datura Street south to Fern Street, in a section of the city dubbed Government Hill.

"I love what I heard," Commissioner Michael Barnett said. "This is a great project."

A University of Florida proposal to build a graduate school in West Palm Beach fell apart two years ago amid disagreements between the university and Jeff Greene, the billionaire developer who was to contribute some of his downtown land in exchange for naming rights. The Greene property is not needed for the Vanderbilt proposal.

County commissioners ask staff to bring back a contract by Oct. 8

County commissioners called on their staff to use much of the contract that was prepared for UF. That contract would have resulted in the county donating the land to UF, a requirement that Vanderbilt is expected to also insist upon.

Commissioner Maria Marino wanted to ensure that safeguards are included in the contract to have the land revert back to the county if Vanderbilt fails to follow through on its plans. A similar clause was included in the UF contract.

The developer Stephen Ross predicted that the business school would trigger a "Silicon Valley" impact, attracting new businesses to the region, noting that every great city needs a great university. "You could not find a better school," Ross said.

West Palm Beach Mayor Keith James noted that his city has already agreed to donate its 2 acres to Vanderbilt to help advance the project. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," he told county commissioners. "We need to take full advantage of it."

County Mayor Maria Sachs said the Vanderbilt proposal is better than the UF one, adding that Vanderbilt will attract research grants that UF never would have. She also noted that as a private school, it will not compete for state funds with Florida Atlantic University as UF would have.

Mike Diamond is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. He covers Palm Beach County government. You can reach him at mdiamond@pbpost.com. Help support local journalism. Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Vanderbilt unveils plan for business school in South Florida
Beatrice Inyangala, principal secretary in the Ministry of Education, speaks during a farewell reception in Nairobi, Kenya, Aug. 22, 2024. A farewell reception was held for Kenyan students who received scholarships from the Chinese government to pursue advanced studies at universities in China. (Xinhua/Han Xu)

NAIROBI, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- A farewell reception was held for Kenyan students who received scholarships from the Chinese government to pursue advanced studies at universities in China.

Held at the Chinese Embassy in Kenya, the reception for 13 scholarship beneficiaries coincided with an award ceremony for the winners of the "China-Africa Cooperation in My Eyes" Essay Competition.

Senior Kenyan officials, diplomats, students, parents, and faculty attended the ceremony to bid farewell to local youth who will soon join Chinese universities to pursue undergraduate and postgraduate studies in several disciplines, including civil engineering and finance.

Beatrice Inyangala, principal secretary in the Ministry of Education, hailed the robust partnership with China to promote tertiary education and reskill local youth.

"I extend my sincere gratitude to the People's Republic of China for their continued support of the government of Kenya in education, research, innovation and development," Inyangala said.

She noted that over four decades, more than 2,000 Kenyans have benefited from scholarships to pursue advanced studies in China, and in the 2024-2025 financial year, 19 scholarships have been awarded to students at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

Zhang Zhizhong, minister counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Kenya, noted that awarding scholarships to local students to study in the Asian nation has fostered cultural exchanges and friendship.

"We hope that scholarship awardees are not only witnesses and beneficiaries but will also be contributors and promoters for the progress of China-Kenya and China-Africa friendship," Zhang said.

Zhang added that scholarships awarded to Kenyan youth to study in China align with the long-term objectives of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative.

Henry Rotich, chairman of the Kenya-China Alumni Association, said that local youth have gained invaluable technical and soft skills from scholarships awarded by the Chinese government and enterprises.

"The scholarships awarded by the Chinese government have paved the way for many of us who might have otherwise been denied the chance to pursue higher education," Rotich said.

He said that Kenyan beneficiaries of Chinese government scholarships since the early 1980s have returned home to contribute to the country's socioeconomic development. 
HRC

This article contains a description of fatal violence against a Black trans woman.

Vanity Williams, a Black transgender woman who also used the name Chanel on social media, was shot and killed in Houston, Texas on August 2, 2024. A nursing student and Air Force veteran, she was 34 years old.

Williams was found dead shortly after 11 p.m. in the lobby of the Caroline Apartments in downtown Houston, where she lived, as ABC affiliate KTRK reported earlier this month. One week later, on August 9, police arrested Tristian Sanders, 26, in Louisiana, charging him with Williams murder. Sanders was still being held in Nelson Coleman Correctional Center in Louisiana this week while awaiting extradition to Texas, according to jail records. Williams friends told KTRK she and Sanders knew one another, but no further information was publicly available this week.

Friends described Williams to KTRK as a loyal and straightforward person, and struggled to understand why someone would want to kill her. She created and made a safe space for everybody, so to think that someone would want to hurt her and have a justified reason is something I cannot fathom, said Williams friend Hope Giselle, an author and public speaker.

Dylan Gurley, a Beloved 20-Year-Old Trans Woman, Was Killed In Texas

According to the Human Rights Campaign, Texas accounts for more than one in 10 trans murder victims.

Johnae Wright, one of Williams close friends and a community advisor to the Human Rights Campaigns Next Level program, called Williams my friend, my sister, my heart in an HRC press release this week. Words cant explain the pain that cuts deep into my soul, Wright wrote. I will always hold a special place in my heart for you and continue to fight for you and our community. Wright is also the organizer of a GoFundMe for Williams funeral expenses. Graveside services were held earlier this week.

Across social media, Vanitys friends echoed a quote she often said: I dont fear death! I fear injustice! wrote Tori Cooper, Director of Community Engagement for HRCs Transgender Justice Initiative, in the organizations release. Vanity spent her life serving her country and community, and she should still be here today, continuing to pursue her own dreams. Instead, in another senseless death, she was let down by the same forces that continue to plague our community  transphobia, misogynoir, and gun violence.

Williams is one of at least 25 trans people who have been violently killed this year, and at least the third victim in Texas, following the deaths of Diamond Brigman in March and Dylan Gurley in July. HRCs press release noted that the organization has recorded at least 37 violent deaths of trans people in Texas since 2013, making up one in 10 of all such murders in that period.

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MADISON TWP., Ohio (WKBN)  Members of the Columbiana County Airport Authority are gearing up for a big weekend  Wings-N-Wheels is this Saturday.

Its a car, plane and bike show for a cause.

Organizers are expecting several hundred show cars and dozens of planes and motorcycles to fill the ground at the Columbiana County Airport.

Probably eight, ten, maybe even 12 World War II vintage aircraft will be here and our center is a TBM Avenger, said Bruce Mays, with the Columbiana County Airport Authority.

Attendees can also enjoy food, music and a silent auction.

The event is from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and is free to attend.

All the money raised this year through the auction and donations will benefit the Columbiana County Dog Pound and Adoption Center. You can even adopt a dog at the event.

If you bring a dog item to donate, you can get a free auction ticket.

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(Bloomberg) -- Venezuelas top court certified President Nicolas Maduros reelection in July after saying it analyzed voting data handed in by the electoral authority and several political parties.

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Maduro won the presidential elections with 51.2% of the votes against opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez, the same result announced by the electoral authority on July 28, Supreme Court President Caryslia Rodriguez said on Thursday. The court is made up of Maduro appointees and has been loyal to him during his presidency.

The courts decision cannot be appealed, top lawmaker Jorge Rodriguez said earlier this month. Edmundo Gonzalez, who was summoned by the court, declined to attend after stating the top court did not have authority over the elections results.

Maduro requested the court verify his victory after claims of fraud by the opposition, a group of political parties led by Maria Corina Machado. The court said its judges personally supervised the totality of the votes tabulations.

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In a widely expected decision Venezuelas Supreme Tribunal, which has often been accused of serving as a rubber stamp and repression tool for the regime, ruled that strongman Nicolas Maduro was the winner of last months presidential election.

The highest court said the evidence presented to the court by Maduro validated the pronouncement made on election night by the National Electoral Council that the strongman was reelected with nearly 52% of the vote.

The court certifies in an unobjectionable manner the expert material presented and validates the results issued by the [electoral council] establishing that Nicolas Maduro was elected, said tribunal president Caryslia Beatriz Rodriguez. The CNE is urged to publish the final results in the official gazette.

Rodriguez said the decision was made with the help of qualified national and international experts, but their identities were not disclosed.

Carrying a banner bearing her countrys colors with the word Freedom! written on it, Zarahy Carrera arrives at the rally at Bayfront Park

In addition, Rodriguez announced that the court would urgently send the information gathered against the Venezuelan opposition, accusing its members of generating anxiety in the population by accusing Maduro of committing electoral fraud.

The ruling in favor of Maduro was widely expected by a large part of the Venezuelan population in view of the top courts lack of independence. The court has repeatedly been accused by multilateral organizations of acting more as an instrument of political persecution than as an independent body dedicated to the administration of justice.

A few hours before the court ruled, the United Nations Human Rights Council issued another warning through its X account about the courts lack of independence, highlighting a previous report from its independent international mission on Venezuela, which concluded that the court was part of the repressive machinery of the State and that the government exercises undue interference in the courts decisions through direct messages to judges and public statements issued by Maduro and other senior members of his regime.

The Venezuelan top court issued the ruling 22 days after Maduro asked it to decide the dispute over the elections.

Opposition leaders said Maduro was not really fooling anyone by taking the issue to the governments top court, describing the move as a ploy to validate the electoral councils pronouncement given that the regime was unable to provide the official vote tallies. The tallies, known as actas, confirmed that opposition leader Edmundo Gonzalez was the winner of the July 28 election.

The regime has so far failed to present the actas confirming Maduros victory despite numerous requests from the international community to do so, in contrast to the opposition, which has presented the tallies from more than 80% of the voting centers confirming that Gonzalez defeated Maduro by margin of more than 2-1.

Speaking out through his X account, Gonzalez rejected the decision and questioned the legitimacy of the court.

Sovereignty resides untransferably in the people, the opposition leader said. The institutions of the state emanate from the popular sovereignty and are subject to it. They will not usurp the truth.
TOPEKA (KSNT)  Born in Great Bend Kansas, Sgt. Gary Hurley would go on to supply fellow service members all across the globe for his decade-plus of service.

Being a Supply Tech, it was actually a calling for me, Hurley said. It has been it for me since the day I chose that.

Nearly two decades after his time in the service ended, Hurleys commitment to the Supply Tech role is still in full force, albeit in a different manner nowadays.

Working as a Supply Tech at the Colmery ONeil Veterans Administration Medical Center in Topeka, he learned a lot of the skills he relies on nowadays through his service in the same position he held with the Army.

It was critical, even down to the smallest tool that they needed to take care of that tank, Hurley said. If somethings wrong, if its something simple and easy theyd have the tools to actually fix it. If I was there with them, Id be right down there getting dirty with them.

Across Korea, North Carolina, Iraq and beyond  Hurley toured all over the world with different units and battalions all within that supply role.

The first Cav division, we went over to Iraq, Hurley said. We were tasked to be at the Baghdad International Airport. We were right close to one of Saddam Husseins palaces.

Kansas water treatment plants find moderate levels of influenza

Even in his final placement overseas just months before exiting the service, Hurley took every opportunity to improve and grow.

Not only was I learning how they did their supply work over there, he said, I was also trying to teach them a little bit about how Americans did it. It really brought an overwhelming sense of pride not only for me, but for the Iraqis.

His service to fellow veterans continues outside of his job as well. Hurley is proud to be an American Legionnaire, a part of the same post that ONeil and Colmery were a part of. Both members were memorialized in the Topeka VAs full name, and Colmery was instrumental in veteran education post-service, drafting up the GI bill.

For more Veteran Salute, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here.

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CHICAGO  Earlier this month, longtime Republican LaTrell Bell took up a friends invitation to attend a Harris-Walz rally in his hometown of Detroit.

He was skeptical going in  he's a Black pro-life conservative and two-time Trump voter  but promised to listen to what Vice President Kamala Harris and her Democratic running mate Tim Walz had to say. Harris has been drawing massive crowds ever since President Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race and endorsed her.

I stood back in the crowd to take it all in to get a feel of what was going on, said Bell, 32. "There was an energy, an excitement I had not felt in quite a while for a candidate."

Now he's going to vote for Harris.

Polls suggest millions of Americans are changing their presidential voting plans with Harris currently topping the Democratic ticket, signing up for who she is and what they feel she represents.

Many voters interviewed by USA TODAY find themselves surprised to be supporting the new Democratic candidate for president this year, swept up in the excitement and "vibes" of her campaign.

Vice President Kamala Harris takes the stage during the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center. The DNC program will feature President Joe Biden and Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during Monday's ceremonies.

The momentum she is building is very unique and the enthusiasm she is projecting is so refreshing because our politics can often be a dark place, said Dr. Tania Israel, a psychologist at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and author of the book, Facing the Fracture: How to Navigate the Challenges of Living in a Divided Nation. It's wonderful when we can see people from all walks of life, including those who have felt marginalized, feeling joy and seeing someone who might be able to uplift their communities.

Thats the case for Aaron Genus, 23, from Redford Township in Michigan, who describes himself as a Black moderate conservative Republican whos also gay. He now plans to support Harris instead of his previous choice, Trump.

Honest to God, I think Kamala Harris is going to win, Genus said. Its just a vibe Im feeling with her.

Her support is simply stronger

There are at least four distinct groups of Harris supporters: The Democrats who would have voted for whoever their party put at the top of the ticket; the Democrats who weren't sure they would have bothered to vote for Biden, but are enthusiastically behind Harris; the undecideds who have come down on the side of Harris; and the former Trump supporters who are excited about someone new.

Data and anecdotes suggest Democrats liked Biden, but are more jazzed about Harris' bid.

Two recent USA TODAY/Suffolk University polls found substantially more support for Harris in August than Biden received in June among Black voters in the battleground states of Pennsylvania and Michigan.

In Michigan in August, for instance, 88% of Black Democrats said they supported Harris and 79% of them were "very motivated" to vote for her. In June by contrast, 79% of Black Michigan Democrats said they supported Biden and just 51% were "very motivated" to vote for him.

Initially, Marion Cooke, 87, a registered Democrat from Philadelphia, had been disturbed by how Democrats treated Biden, pushing him aside at the midnight hour.

It was a horrible way to do it, said Cooke, a retired elementary school music teacher. Cooke said Harris, whom she didnt know much about, had appeared as a silent partner during the administration.

But once she heard Harris speak and her positions on issues, Cooke became a supporter. "I respect her efforts and her goals,'' she said, adding that she trusts Harris "would be able to handle anything they throw at her.

Salima Suswell, who founded the Pennsylvania-based Black Muslim Leadership Council, said she feels the same surge of excitement for Harris.

"I see myself reflected in her  her accomplishments are hard-won," Suswell said.

Although her nonprofit cannot endorse candidates, its political-action arm, BMLC Fund, backed Harris earlier this month after remaining uncommitted to Biden because he refused to condemn Israel's attacks in Gaza.

Suswell said the fund believes Harris has a firmer grasp of issues facing Black Americans, including urban violence, police reform, affordable housing and maternal healthcare. Harris' willingness to call for a cease-fire in Gaza was the tipping point, she said.

We believe democracy will have the best chance to flourish under Vice President Harris," she said.

The League of United Latin American Citizens or LULAC, the nation's oldest and largest Latino civil rights organization, also endorsed Harris for president, the first time it has supported a candidate in its 95-year history.

Last month, the organization created the LULAC Adelante PAC, a political action committee.

Were extremely concerned that former President Trump would keep his word in his bizarro crazy world about cutting the Department of Education and initiating mass deportation, said Domingo Garcia, the PACs chairman and LULACs past president. And when we saw the details about Project 2025, we know this is not the America we believe in.

Shiloh Peterson of Denver, Colorado, and Skylar Ross of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, consider Democratic candidate Kamala Harris the best option to become president in 2024.

Skylar Ross, 23, of Denver, and Shiloh Peterson, 24, of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, sported White Dudes for Harris 2024 T-shirts Monday at a protest at this week's Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

They came to talk to people for their new podcast. They expected backlash for wearing their shirts, but even some Harris haters "respectfully" shared comments with them.

Harris is the best option when you consider the alternative is a danger to the country and American culture, said Ross.

Some Republicans bail on Trump

Genus, the moderate conservative Republican, said hes ready to move on from Trump.

Former President Donald Trump campaigns for reelection on Aug. 19, 2024, in York, Pa.

Im sick of his lies. He doesnt have a real plan for America. He says the same old tired rhetoric. The country cant move forward with him, Genus said. I find it interesting (Harris is) giving speeches and having 10- to 15,000 people show up. Now she's pulling Trump-like numbers.

Genus is running for Trustee in his mostly Democratic township, though he admits he likely won't win. He said he's not the only Republican ready to move on from Trump.

"There are millions who have grown sick of him and his nonsense, Genus said. If she can do something to bring them over and some Independents in the bag, it might be a wrap. If she focuses too much on one group, she might not make it.

Bell said he could sense a shift once Harris replaced Biden and he stood in a long line at a local high school to be shuttled to the recent Detroit rally.

I saw white people and Black people, blue-collar mingling with white-collar folks in the same line, different age groups, different backgrounds  that excited me, Bell said, adding that he talked with a man who immigrated from the United Kingdom and is now a U.S. citizen.

We discussed politics and had a good conversation. A lifelong Republican and a lifelong Democrat. I said to myself This is America, said Bell who voted for Trump in 2016 and 2020, but chose Nicki Haley in the recent state primary. Honestly, it was a breath of fresh air.

Longtime Republican LaTrell Bell of Detroit, Michigan, said he's breaking rank and cast his vote for Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris. Michigan is among several closely watched battleground states in the 2024 election.

Bell said he was particularly disappointed when Trump selected Ohio Senator JD Vance as his running mate.

Do I love all of the agenda thats coming from the left, no I dont, said Bell, who describes himself as a conservative and a pro-lifer. But Im not comfortable putting my vote behind Trump.

Groups say 'folks are pumped up'

Spurred by the momentum for Harris, some civic engagement groups and others ramped up their get-out-the vote efforts ahead of the Democratic National convention.

Vote.Org launched a voter registration project targeting young people, including through social media and with a pledge to register campaign for young people when they turn 18 years old.

The organization said it has registered more than 286,000 new voters, most between 18 and 34 years old, since Biden stepped down.

We really want to capitalize on the moment to on-ramp this next generation, said Andrea Hailey, CEO of Vote.Org. We've used the momentum  the excitement that's happening right now to get people thinking and talking about elections for the long term and building up civic participation.

Earlier this month, State Voices held a virtual vote rally to provide participants with information about how to engage their communities.

We know folks are pumped up right now, said Alexis Anderson-Reed, CEO of State Voices, a nonpartisan group of advocates and organizers. I just think that this has moved people in a different way. We're just going to continue to harness that, not only over the next couple of weeks but through Election Day.

Not everyone supports Harris' bid

There are still those who don't support Harris.

Cornel West, an independent presidential candidate, recently questioned Harris abilities to be the first female to lead the nation.

It is not about your skin pigmentation or your gender. What kind of moral substance do you have?'' West asked at a rally in Chicago Monday before demonstrators marched toward the site of the Democratic National convention.

Hours later during the protest, Hassan Abdel Salam held a bright yellow sign that read Abandon Harris.

Abdel Salam, of Minneapolis and a former human rights professor at the University of Minnesota, helped create the site AbandonBiden24.com last fall with other activists after Biden didnt meet their demand to call for a permanent cease-fire between Israel and Hamas.

Harris reflects the Biden administrations goals, he said.

We want to punish her for enabling genocide and causing mass destruction in Gaza, Abdel Salam said. Our campaign is to ensure that on Nov. 5, the vice president will be defeated.

Hassan Abdel Salam of Minneapolis, Minnesota, holds a sign that reads Abandon Harris, in objection to Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris' efforts to his demand in October 2023 to call for a permanent cease-fire between Israel and Hamas.

Bell, the registered Republican, is willing to give Harris a chance, but wants to see more substance than style.

You know what I want to hear, where does she stand on the economy, taxes, the day-to-day issues? Bell said. Show me something. Please. I want to hear her plans and her complete vision for America.

Harris is expected to lay out details of her platform on Thursday at the Democratic National Convention. Her speech might turn off people like Bell  or might bring more into the fold.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Voters say momentum for Kamala Harris is fueled by positive 'vibe'
DHAKA, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Bangladesh's interim government has sought 1 billion U.S. dollars from the World Bank as budgetary support.

The call came from the country's Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan's meeting with Abdoulaye Seck, the World Bank's country director for Bangladesh and Bhutan, in Dhaka Wednesday.

He made the plea as the ministry owes more than 2 billion dollars to suppliers in import costs of power and energy.

Khan mentioned that the interim government, which was formed with many pressing mandates, is due to settle a 2 billion U.S. dollars debt left by the previous government in the power sector.

He said they have already suspended activities under the much-criticized Quick Enhancement of Electricity and Energy Supply Act 2010 and abolished the government's power to set energy prices without any public hearing. 
VICKSBURG, Miss. (WJTV)  Warren County deputies arrested a Vicksburg man after they seized drugs and firearms.

Warren County Sheriff Martin Pace said investigators arrested Kory Kevin Grayer, 34, on Tuesday, August 20.

Woman arrested for two armed robberies in Ridgeland

According to Pace, deputies responded to an apartment complex in the 700 block of Highway 61 North around 8:00 a.m. and served a search warrant. During the search, Pace said investigators seized one ounce of cocaine, three ounces of methamphetamine, 5.5 pounds of high-grade marijuana, more than 1,400 MDMA pills, seven firearms (one was reported stolen) and $600 in cash.

The sheriff said Grayer faces several charges after a months-long investigation. Pace said Grayer had outstanding warrants with Vicksburg police and the Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDOC) for the sale of controlled substances and avoiding probation.

Kory Kevin Grayer (Courtesy: Warren Co. Sheriffs Office)

Warren County deputies arrested a Vicksburg man after they seized drugs and firearms at a home. (Courtesy: Warren County Sheriffs Office)

Grayer is being held without bond in the Warren County Jail.

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(COLORADO SPRINGS)  The Colorado Springs Police Department (CSPD) has released the identity of the pedestrian injured in a hit-and-run on Sunday, Aug. 4, at the intersection of Hancock Expressway and Jet Wing Drive. The victim died of his injuries on Tuesday, Aug. 6.

The El Paso County Coroners Office conducted an autopsy and identified the victim as 31-year-old Nicholas Bates. The photo below was provided by his family.

Courtesy: Colorado Springs Police Department

According to CSPD, officers responded to a crash involving a car and a pedestrian around 9:30 p.m. on Aug. 4, and when they arrived they found Bates, but the car had left the scene. Bates was brought to the hospital with life-threatening injuries.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Pedestrian seriously injured in evening crash

The investigation revealed that Bates was crossing Hancock southbound when he was hit by a westbound vehicle.

CSPD reported that on Friday, Aug. 9, an arrest warrant was issued for 31-year-old Landis Bryant Jamal Hester min connection to the crash. Hester was taken into custody on Monday, Aug. 19, and charged with an Accident Involving Death  Hit and Run, Motor Vehicle Theft, and other traffic-related charges.

Courtesy: Colorado Springs Police Department

This is the 35th traffic fatality in Colorado Springs in 2024. At this time in 2023, there were 27 traffic fatalities.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX21 News Colorado.
Vice President Kamala Harris is scheduled to accept her partys nomination Thursday night at the Democratic National Convention inside the United Center.

The tradition of a nominee appearing in person at their partys convention to receive this honor began in Chicago in 1932.

Heres a look back at what these candidates said at their conventions and how they fared in the presidential election.

Chicago will be Convention City again in 2024. Take a look back at its history as a host.

June 16, 1932: Herbert Hoover (Republican)

Chicago was the center of the American political universe in summer 1932, playing host to the Democratic and Republican presidential nominating conventions.

For the next three weeks Chicago will be in the spotlight, the Tribune declared. By newspaper and radio the American audience will follow with breathless interest the unfolding of the plot of the quadrennial thriller.

With the nation mired in its worst economic crisis, the Great Depression, the election would be one of the most crucial in the countrys history, and the two parties would offer dramatically different candidates.

A dispirited GOP trooped into the Chicago Stadium to renominate President Herbert Hoover  with 1,126 of the 1,154 votes  who earlier preached rugged individualism as a way for Americans to see themselves through the bad times.

Once notified in Washington, D.C., of his renomination, Hoover sent this message to the convention: I shall labor, as I have labored, to meet the effects of the world-wide storm which has devastated us with trials and suffering unequaled in but few periods of our history. That storm still surrounds us.

July 2, 1932: Franklin D. Roosevelt (Democrat)

Two weeks later, eight candidates turned up at the Democratic convention  also in the stadium  to challenge the front-runner, New York Gov. Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who called for massive government intervention to end the Depression.

The biggest threat to FDR came from Al Smith, who had been the 1928 Democratic nominee. Smiths strategy was to deadlock the convention and give control of the nomination to party leaders, many of whom were wary of Roosevelts ideas about social and government reforms. Roosevelt, Smith asserted, cant get elected.

Through three tedious roll calls, the Roosevelt forces bartered with delegations and finally put their man over the top on the fourth try when House Speaker John Nance Garner of Texas folded his candidacy in exchange for the vice presidential nomination.

Roosevelt broke major party tradition by flying nine hours from Albany to Chicago to personally deliver his acceptance speech at the Congress Plaza Hotel, which was carried live from the Chicago Stadium on WGN-AM. Roosevelt, certain of victory against the Republicans because of the Great Depression, promised a New Deal for the American people.

These are unprecedented and unusual times, Roosevelt said. May this (appearance) be the symbol of my intention to be honest and to avoid all hypocrisy or sham.

Roosevelt, who would trounce Hoover and be nominated in Chicago again in 1940 and 1944, summoned the nation to battle back from despair. I pledge you, I pledge myself, to a New Deal for the American people, he said, introducing the name for the governmental programs that would be created to fight the Depression.

July 18, 1940: Eleanor Roosevelt (Democrat)

Democrats returned to Chicago to nominate Franklin D. Roosevelt for his third term. (Before the first year of his third term was over, the nation would be at war with Japan and Germany.)

When Roosevelt was encountering opposition to an unprecedented third term, the specially installed microphones at the Democratic convention went dead. They were switched off by Thomas Garry, Chicagos superintendent of sewers, who turned on the arenas own sound system and started chanting: Illinois wants Roosevelt! Ohio wants Roosevelt! We all want Roosevelt!

Dubbed the voice of the sewers, Garry was spontaneously joined by hundreds of Chicago payrollers, ordered by Garry to attend. The crowd goes wild, and the convention stampedes to Roosevelt, who will be nominated here again in 1944.

Roosevelt delivered his acceptance speech from the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., which was boomed through the sound system at the Chicago Stadium. First lady Eleanor Roosevelt, however, was at the convention during a seven-hour visit. She gave whats now known as the No Ordinary Time speech in support of Roosevelts running mate, Henry Wallace.

Apparently referring to her husbands third-term candidacy in violation of political tradition, she said, I know and you know that any man within that office of great responsibility today faces a heavier responsibility perhaps than any man has ever faced before in this country.

She concluded that the situation can only be carried by a united people who love their country and have the determination that their party shall be absolutely devoted to the good of the nation.

Roosevelt was reelected to a third term on Nov. 5, 1940, defeating New York Republican Wendell Willkie.

June 28, 1944: Thomas E. Dewey (Republican)

Both parties return to Chicago Stadium for their conventions  the last ones held in the building, which was razed in 1994.

The Tribune differed from its publishing peers because it did not simply support the Republican Party; it believed, with great cause, that it was the Republican Party. The paper would not endorse a Democrat for almost anything until 1972. This powerful and loud editorial voice originated with publisher Col. Robert R. McCormick, who appeared on the cover of Time magazine during the papers 100th anniversary in 1947 and was hailed for making the Tribune indispensable while violating the commonly accepted requirement of objectivity on front pages.

New York Gov. Thomas E. Dewey accepted his partys nomination before 25,000 people at the Chicago Stadium by stating he came to this great task a free man and portrayed the Roosevelt administration as an aggregation of tired, old, squabbling men.

This election will bring an end to one-man government in America, Dewey told the crowd.

Four years later, the Tribune found a variety of ways to support Dewey in print.

Vintage Chicago Tribune: 5 things that led to Dewey Defeats Truman, the newspapers most famous headline

It ran a full-page color portrait of him and even praised his mustache. Dewey, however, made no effort to defend his reluctant ally. On a campaign visit to Chicago that same month, McCormick confided to Alf Landon that Dewey acted as though he was not in his right mind. The governor and senator met him at the station, and he put them in the fourth and fifth cars in the procession behind some New York state policemen. At the meeting, he came on the stage just as he was introduced and left immediately afterwards without speaking to anybody.

Notwithstanding these reservations, on Oct. 31, 1948, the Tribune editorialized that voters should Mark It Straight Republican. (We all now know what happened next.)

July 21, 1944: Franklin Roosevelt (Democrat)

With American troops fighting their way through Normandy, Roosevelt didnt keep anyone in suspense. He announced he would accept a fourth-term nomination  saying if elected he would serve reluctantly as a good soldier  a week before the Chicago convention.

Roosevelt was clearly suffering from the wear-and-tear of years in the White House  dealing with the Great Depression and World War II, traveling to conferences with European allies. And there was no end in sight.

You in this convention are aware of what I have sought to gain for the nation, and you have asked me to continue, FDR said in accepting its nomination on July 20, 1944.

It was broadcast to the delegates in the Chicago Stadium from a San Diego naval base. Roosevelt was en route to Hawaii to join military brass debating strategies for the Pacific theater of war.

He was reelected on Nov. 7, 1944, but died on April 12, 1945.

July 11, 1952: Dwight Eisenhower (Republican)

The Democrats and the Republicans convened in Chicago in July 1952 at the start of the most prosperous decade in the history of any country on Earth.

The great social and political divisions and world traumas of war and economic depression that marked conventions from 1860 to the 1940s had been resolved. The aftermath of World War II found America unchallenged as the worlds leader, and the pace of invention spurred by the collective effort to destroy fascism opened a magic new world of technology that spread luxury from the exclusive realm of the very rich to almost anyone who drew a paycheck.

The 1950s were about television. There were fewer than 1 million television sets in America in 1949, the first full year of programming by three networks called CBS, ABC and NBC. By the end of 1952, 20 million homes had televisions, and one reason was the political conventions held by the Republicans and the Democrats in Chicagos International Amphitheatre in July.

The 1952 Republican National Convention was the first ever broadcast nationwide on TV. It was a primitive broadcast with cameras focused mostly on the podium or providing long shots of the delegations. Television reporters were heard but rarely seen.

In his acceptance speech at the Hilton Chicago, Dwight D. Eisenhower called for party unity.

The noble service to which we Republicans summon all Americans is not only for one campaign or for one election. Our summons is to a lifetime enrollment. And our party shall always remain committed to a more secure, a brighter and an even better future for our people, he said.

July 26, 1952: Adlai Stevenson II (Democrat)

Two weeks later, the Democrats came to town.

For the first time since 1932, the Democrats faced a truly open convention. It would also be the last truly open convention of the 20th century, even though many Democrats would not believe it for another 30 years.

Truman had made it an open convention by declaring on March 29 that he would not be a candidate. The 1952 aspirants were plentiful and had excellent credentials. Sen. Richard Russell of Georgia was back, with a more moderate outlook on civil rights. Tennessean Estes Kefauver, a senator, had pulled a surprising vote in the New Hampshire primary. Robert Kerr of Oklahoma was the log cabin candidate, the first since Lincoln to boast that he had been born there en route to his oil millions. Averell Harriman of New York, a worldly diplomat and White House troubleshooter, was available and so was lovable, aging Vice President Alben Barkley.

The man who kept saying he wasnt available had been alternately the favorite and the dark horse throughout the year: Gov. Adlai Stevenson of Illinois.

Stevenson, who did not seek the presidential nomination, was drafted on the third ballot. Although he was a reluctant candidate, he pledged a hard-fighting campaign.

I have no feeling of exultation, nor sense of triumph, Stevenson said outside the home of William McCormick Blair at 1416 Astor St. I shall ask my God to give me courage in this great undertaking.

Eisenhower won the 1952 election on Nov. 4, 1952, bringing the Republican Party its first White House victory in 24 years.

Aug. 17, 1956: Adlai Stevenson II (Democrat)

Stevenson won his second chance to defeat Eisenhower at the Democrats Chicago convention.

It was also at the 1956 convention in Chicago that another, eventually brighter, political star got his first major exposure.

When Stevenson accepted the nomination, he said the country was on the threshold of a new America  the America of the great ideas and noble visions which are the stuff our future must be made of.

A fight broke out on the floor under the watchful eyes of the infant television medium when Stevenson asked the delegates to choose his running mate.

Although the nod eventually went to Kefauver of Tennessee, who often wore a coonskin hat, his closest rival, the youthful Sen. John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts, benefited from the national television exposure that helped propel him to the Democratic presidential nomination four years later.

Incumbent Eisenhower defeated Stevenson on Nov. 6, 1956, for the second time.

July 28, 1960: Richard Nixon (Republican)

Republicans nominated Vice President Richard M. Nixon to run against Democrat John F. Kennedy.

In a solemn, but fighting acceptance speech, the California grocers son bid for support for the highest office. He based his appeal on his experience and training for preserving national security.

A hundred years ago Abraham Lincoln was asked during the darkest days of the tragic War between the States whether he thought God was on his side and his answer was, My concern is not whether God is on our side, but whether we are on Gods side,' Nixon said. My fellow Americans, may that ever be our prayer for this country; and in that spirit, with faith in America, with faith in her ideals and in her people, I accept your nomination for president of the United States.

Nixon narrowly lost the election to Kennedy on Nov. 8, 1960.

Aug. 29, 1968: Hubert H. Humphrey (Democrat)

Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey was nominated at a stormy Democratic convention that was marked by riots on the streets as well as raucous political demonstrations on the floor of the Chicago Amphitheater.

This moment is one of personal pride and gratification. Yet we cannot help but reflect the sadness we feel at the violence  in the streets of this great city and for the personal injuries which have occurred, Humphrey said. Surely we have now learned the lesson that  violence cannot be condoned, whatever the source. I know that every delegate to this convention shares tonight my sorrow and my distress at these incidents and may we for just one moment of sober reflection  silently  each in his own way, pray for our country 

Nixon was elected on Nov. 5, 1968, defeating not only Humphrey but also American Independent Party candidate and former Alabama Gov. George Wallace.

Aug. 29, 1996: Bill Clinton (Democrat)

Promising to build a bridge into the 21st century on a foundation of middle-class hopes and dreams, Bill Clinton accepted the Democratic Partys presidential nomination, a chief executive who has tasted sweet triumph and bitter defeat now ready to face his final White House campaign.

The real choice is about whether we will build a bridge to the future or a bridge to the past; about whether we believe our best days are ahead or behind us; about whether we want a country of people working together, or one where youre on your own, Clinton said.

Clintons planned moment of triumph after the first three days of a flawless convention came amid a new political crisis for the president. Earlier in the day, old friend and political consultant Richard Morris submitted his resignation after a steamy tabloid newspaper story alleged he had a long-running sex-for-money relationship with a Washington prostitute.

The president and Vice President Al Gore, who accepted his nomination before Clinton, did not address the Morris scandal in their acceptance speeches. But that did not stop endless partisan speculation on the effect of the resignation of Clintons top political aide, the architect of his centrist policies and a convention dominated by moderate themes.

The development and Clintons prime-time address capped the Democrats first convention in Chicago in 28 years, ending a week that saw the president zigzagging up and down the Midwest on a long, telegenic train ride aimed at underlining his agenda and punching at the Republicans who would drive him from office.

Repeatedly invoking the image of a bridge to the next century, Clinton offered two new proposals: a $3.5 billion incentive program to create jobs for welfare recipients who are leaving the rolls and a fat plum for the middle class  elimination of capital gains on profits of under $500,000 on the sale of homes.

If the bad timing of the Morris debacle was on Clintons mind Thursday night, that was not seen in his acceptance address, carefully constructed to repeat the themes that dozens of campaign speakers have presented at the podium over four days as they praised the Clinton record.

The presidents speech was preceded by a Democratic National Committee video that offered a Clinton family cameo, including the Clintons daughter, Chelsea, seen more at this convention than at any point during Clintons presidency.

First lady Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chelsea sat in the United Center listening to the speech with a special guest, former world champion boxer Muhammad Ali. Clinton thanked Chicago for giving him a great convention, and for the love and light of my life, Hillary.

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YORK COUNTY, Va. (WAVY)  It wasnt the original plan, but it turned out to be a perfect fit.

The Virginia Beer Company, a popular brewer near the Williamsburg line, is taking over the new brewpub space at 7120 George Washington Memorial Highway in York County.

When the county approached us about expanding, we brought the idea to our advisors. They were all practically screaming, Why wouldnt you do this? Virginia Beer Companys owners said.

The space was set to be the eastern location for Beales, a craft brewery in Bedford, southwest of Lynchburg. Beales though ended up having to withdraw due to family health issues, but the space was nearly ready to go with kitchen and brewing equipment installed.

When we realized we could not bring our own brand to the space, we felt it our duty and

responsibility to find a great tenant with the right energy, said Emily Sanfratella, chief

operating officer for Waukeshaw, Beales parent company. We were really impressed with The Virginia Beer Company and have followed their business for a long time. Theyll be a nice addition to this part of the county.

The new Virginia Beer Company space on Route 17 (Courtesy of York County)

I cant believe our luck that The Virginia Beer Company was interested, added Kristi Olsen-Hayes, director of York Countys Department of Economic and Tourism Development, in a press release from the county. Its opportune because theyre a known commodityyou know theyre going to bring great energy and products because theyve already proven themselves as a huge success in The Edge District.

Virginia Beer Company will lease the building from Waukeshaw, with a projected opening in early 2025.

The brewers original location was the dream for William & Mary grads and former finance guys Chris Smith and Robby Willey, who opened the microbrewery in 2016 in York Countys Edge District with the mantra of: beer, people, purpose.

Eight years later, Virginia Beer Companys built a strong fanbase and has racked up several awards, including just recently being named the Greater Williamsburg Chamber of Commerces 2024 Small Business of the Year.

The brewerys owners are grateful for their popularity in the Historic Triangle, but say theyre excited the new location allows them to be more easily accessible for residents down the county like Grafton, Tabb and Seaford.

Theyll also be able to make their own food for the first time (the original location has rotating food trucks), with a menu celebrating the area and its local ingredients.

We want to give them an elevated experience thats memorable for those who come

occasionally, but welcoming for regulars, said Willey. Whether its beer or food, the idea is

that we put out a product thats exceptionally fine-tuned, but under a brand thats approachable. In addition to beer and food pairings, other alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage options will be offered. Of course, their most popular beverages will be plentifulincluding Free Verse IPA, a favorite of brewmaster Newman, who was formerly an English teacher.

Virginia Beer Company also just announced an official beer partnership with William & Mary last week. It includes the Tribes first officially licensed beer, Griffin Gold, a Kolsch-style Golden Ale.

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A Virginia mom has been missing for over 3 weeks. Her husband has now been charged with concealing a body, police say

The husband of Mamta Kafle Bhatt, a 28-year-old Virginia mother who has been missing for over three weeks, has been charged with concealing a body in connection with her disappearance, which has received an outpour of community attention and prompted authorities to conduct hundreds of interviews and execute 10 related search warrants.

The husband, Naresh Bhatt, was taken away in handcuffs outside the couples home Thursday morning, according to video from CNN affiliate WJLA.

The husband faces a felony charge of prohibition against concealment of a body, according to Manassas Park Police. The wife has yet to be found and the investigation into her disappearance is ongoing.

An infant was also carried out of the home under a yellow blanket, video shows, and police say the couples young daughter is being looked after by a caregiver approved by the Department of Social Services.

The couples home was searched by detectives Wednesday, police said, though no details were provided on the evidence that led Naresh Bhatts arrest.

CNN reached out to Bhatt before his arrest. He will be arraigned Friday morning, according to court records.

The last time Bhatt saw his wife was at the dinner table more than three weeks ago, he previously told police.

He hadnt seen her since and stopped cooperating with investigators, according to Manassas Park Police.

Kafle Bhatt was last seen on July 27 at UVA Health Prince William Medical Center in Manassas, according to police. The next day, she spoke with a friend and on July 31, she was last seen by her husband.

Mamta Kafle Bhatt - From Mamta Kafle Bhatt/Facebook

On August 2, police conducted a welfare check at the couples home and spoke to her husband, who provided additional information and told investigators he didnt want to report her as missing at the time, police said. Three days later, he reported her missing, authorities said in a news release on August 15.

The welfare check request came from Kafle Bhatts work colleagues, CNN affiliate WUSA reported.

Detectives conducted an exhaustive investigation from August 5-8, they said, and found there was significant lack of recent contact between Kafle Bhatt and her family, friends, employer and on social media, so they elevated her missing status to involuntary/critical missing person status.

While I acknowledge and respect the publics concerns for answers I assure each of you that although these answers are limited by this continuing to be an active investigation and process, this investigation remains a top priority for the police department, Manassas Park Police Chief Mario Lugo said during a Wednesday news conference.

Investigators have executed 10 search warrants and conducted hundreds of interviews related to to this case, Lugo shared Wednesday evening as a search warrant on the Bhatt residence was underway.

When asked Wednesday if there was a person of interest in Kafle Bhatts disappearance, Lugo said her husband has been a point of interest and everybody knows that, adding that he has not been cooperative with police, a departure from the departments initial release on August 15, where they said the husband, friends and co-workers have all been cooperative throughout the investigation and detectives will continue to follow up on all investigative leads to locate Mamta Kafle.

In an interview with WUSA last week, Bhatt said he was worried about where his wife may be and that this wasnt the first time she had gone missing.

Although shes disappeared three times before, she had never been gone this long, Bhatt said.

Im the one who is suffering, he told WUSA. She is my babys mom. She is my wife. Im the one suffering, so I dont know what Im supposed to say.

A community looking for answers

Madan Uprety, the president of the Nepali American Community Center in Manassas, told WUSA the group has established a line of communication with police, talking to authorities every day for updates on the investigation.

A friend launched a community Facebook group on August 10 to raise awareness and coordinate search efforts for Kafle Bhatt, its first post reads. Since its inception, the page has been updated daily with flyer distribution efforts, search and rescue details along with photos of Kafle Bhatt.

A GoFundMe has also been launched to fund the search efforts for Kafle Bhatt.

If anyone has information on Kafle Bhatts whereabouts, they are encouraged to contact Manassas Park Police at 703-361-1136. Anonymous tips can also be shared with Manassas Park Crime Solvers at 703-330-0330 or manassascrimesolvers.org.

CNNs Braden Walker contributed to this report.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
GROVE, Okla.  Grove school leaders are proposing a third bond to the voters on August 27.

On the ballot is a $9.8 million notaxincrease bond issue earmarked for maintenance. If passed, the bond will continue a 2015 bond that provided furnishings and other amenities to the new performing arts center. That bond is slated to go off the books June 2025.

This bond is to address our immediate needs with no tax increase. Grove Superintendent Pat Dodson

We listened to the people after the last bond was defeated  so we made some changes to address our maintenance issues  without a tax increase, Dodson said.

Early voting started Wednesday for the special bond issue. Registered voters can vote now and Friday from 8 AM to 6 PM at the Delaware County Election Board in Jay.

The voters defeated two previous multi-million-dollar bond proposals to build new buildings to relieve the schools overcrowding and address maintenance issues. The the largest school district in Ottawa and Delaware counties, Grove Schools, has around 2,500 students on its five campuses.













If passed, most of the bond money will be used to replace new roofs at the lower elementary and high school campuses, install new flooring at the high school campus, remodel playgrounds to accommodate children with disabilities, and repair bathrooms. The parking lot next to the Performing Arts Center will also be enlarged to provide additional and safer parking options.

When it rains, we have some teachers having to put buckets in their classrooms, and others have had lesson plans, and the students work is destroyed due to water, Dodson said.

A tour of the 25-year-old high school shows missing ceiling tiles and flooring repaired with grey duct tape due to constant leaking. Teachers have posted on social media sites photographs of buckets and tubs in their classrooms catching water dripping from ceiling tiles.

The school still struggles with several issues, including sizable maintenance issues, that would have been fixed if the previous bonds had passed, but Dodson said the school decided to address what could be fixed without raising taxes  starting with the roofs at the lower elementary and high school campuses.

Dodson said he had to push for a bond because the schools building fund doesnt provide enough funds for capital improvements

Dodson would like a higher voter turnout from the students parents. About 20 % of parents with children attending Grove schools voted in the last election. The bond has to pass by 60 percent.

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SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV)  Vice President Kamala Harris will be heading to the Hostess City after all, Mayor Van Johnson tells WSAV.

Harris planned visit last week was delayed as Tropical Storm Debby made its way through the area.

They promised to come back and were just working to nail down a date in the midst of a busy campaign schedule, Johnson said in an interview with News 3 at the Democratic National Convention.

Sen. Warnock: Republicans running scared this election season

This will be Harris second visit to Savannah this year. She brought her Fight for Reproductive Freedom tour to the city back in February.

I dont think ever in our history have we had a president or vice president in Savannah within the same six months, Johnson said. And were getting ready to have that twice.

Air Force 2, used by the vice president, touched down twice on Monday at the Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport, though its unclear if she was on board.

Harris is expected in Chicago Thursday for the Democratic National Convention where she will accept the partys nomination for president.

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Georgia, VT- A Georgia man is facing multiple charges following a police standoff that shut down Sand Hill Road for four hours on Thursday.

Matthew Richard, 40, was arrested following the standoff. Hes due in court on Friday on charges of aggravated domestic assault, burglary, unlawful mischief, and violating the conditions of his release.

Police say the incident began around 8:30 am when it was reported that Richard was trying to break into a home and threatening a family member with a machete. According to investigators, he then barricaded himself inside a nearby home, and police learned he might have a gun.

A large police presence developed at the scene as negotiators tried to get Richard to come out. Police say flash-bang devices were used outside the home, and Richard then ran outside and was taken into custody.

Richard was jailed with $10,000 bail on an outstanding arrest warrant from the Swanton Police Department for allegedly assaulting a police officer in an unrelated incident. Sand Hill Road near the intersection with Wildwood Drive was closed down from 10 am to 2 pm.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC22 & FOX44.
HANOI, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam should position durian as a national product by setting quality standards and building its brand to compete with major exporters like Thailand and Malaysia, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan has said.

The minister was quoted as saying in a VnExpress report on Thursday.

He added that designating durian as a national product requires comprehensive farm policies and educating farmers and businesses.

This has become a vital need since Vietnam now lags behind Thailand and Malaysia in exporting the fruit to China and its production is fragmented and on a small scale in the Southeast Asian country, according to him.

To qualify as a national product, an item must meet several criteria like production size, export competitiveness, adoption of technology, and potential for acquiring intellectual property rights, he said.

According to local experts, Vietnam's durian exports are projected to hit 3.5 billion U.S. dollars by the end of this year given the current favorable conditions.

The country's durian export revenue reached approximately 1.7 billion U.S. dollars between January and July. China was the biggest importer of the Vietnamese durians. 
WASHINGTON COUNTY, Fla. (WMBB)  The Washington County Sheriffs Office is seeking information regarding the whereabouts of 21-year-old, Andrew Lamar Wilson.

Wilson is a 56 male weighing about 140 lbs, with light brown hair and brown eyes, WCSO officials wrote.

According to a news release, authorities are unsure of what Wilson was wearing when he left his residence in Washington County, but he is believed to be traveling with his dog.

If you have any information, please contact the Washington County Sheriffs Office at 850-638-6111 or any other law enforcement agency.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to mypanhandle.com.
What to watch on the Democratic National Conventions fourth and final day in Chicago

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at the Fiserv Forum during a campaign rally in Milwaukee, Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

CHICAGO (AP)  The Democratic National Convention will kick off its fourth and final night on Thursday.

After a week of Democrats most prominent figures rallying the party faithful, Vice President Kamala Harris will accept her partys nomination during a speech in which she is widely expected to offer her vision and policy agenda to the American people.

The theme of the final night is For Our Future."

Only weeks ago, the Democratic Party was wracked by debate over whether President Joe Biden should step aside as the partys nominee and over the partys general message and values ahead of the 2024 election. In the weeks since Biden decided to stand down, however, left-of-center politics has taken hold around Harris at the top of the party ticket.

While Harris candidacy has unleashed a high level of enthusiasm and determination among Democrats, she is still defining her policy priorities and the ideological direction she will take the party. Last Friday, she unveiled her first major goal when she announced a raft of economic policies meant to lower the cost of living for working- and middle-class Americans.

The convention's final night will include remarks from some of the party's most prominent battleground state Democrats, including figures in competitive statewide races.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healy will all deliver remarks. Tennessee state lawmakers Justin Jones, Justin Pearson and Gloria Johnson, the  Tennessee Three, " will speak. Jones and Pearson were expelled from the state Legislature for participating in a protest on gun control at the state Capitol.

Other speakers include Interior Secretary Deb Haaland and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Marcia Fudge; Sens. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., Bob Casey, D-Pa., Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Mark Kelly, D-Ariz.; Reps. Katherine Clark, D-Mass., Lucy McBath, D-Ga., Joe Neguse, D-Colo., Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., Colin Allred, D-Texas, and Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., as well as former Reps. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., and Gabby Giffords, D-Ariz.

The Rev. Al Sharpton, the prominent civil rights leader, also will speak. The pop star Pink will perform.
Former President Donald Trump is scheduled to hold a press conference at the southern border at the Montezuma Pass in Arizona on Thursday.

Trump will also be holding a rally in Glendale, Arizona on Friday. Also in Arizona, independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy will speak on Friday in Phoenix, where he is expected to address speculation that he will likely be dropping out of the 2024 presidential race. According to Kennedys running mate Nicole Shanahan, their campaign is considering two options  stay in the race or join forces with the Trump campaign. New Utah and nationwide polls show that Trump will likely benefit the most if Kennedy drops out.

Trumps Thursday event coincides with the final day of the Democratic National Convention, where Vice President Kamala Harris is slated to take the stage to officially accept the Democratic nomination for president in a finale speech of the four-day convention.

The former presidents Thursday press conference is expected to focus on criticizing the Biden-Harris administrations immigration policies. Trump announced he would hold a press conference overlooking stretches of his unfinished border wall to pin the blame for the nations historic number of border crossings on border Czar Kamala Harris, the Deseret News previously reported.

The Montezuma Pass event is scheduled to begin at 12:30 p.m. Thursday, and you can watch the event live here.
Donald Trump threw out a claim on Fox & Friends Thursday morning that the show hastily corrected.



According to Trump, President Joe Biden sent comrade Kamala to see Putin in Russia three days before the attack [on Ukraine], falsely claiming that it was a little-known fact that the press doesnt want to talk about.

Trump didnt stop there, saying that in this meeting, Harris gave her case to Putin, who still attacked Ukraine days later.



He laughed at her, Trump said. He thought she was a joke. Now hes really laughing when he sees her. Can you imagine her negotiating with President Xi of China, with Kim Jong Un of North Korea? The whole thing is like were living in a fantasy land.

Trump just confused President Zelensky with Putin.



During an Interview on Fox & Friends, Trump said that President Biden sent VP Harris to meet Putin 3 days before Russia invaded Ukraine. The truth is that VP Harris met Zelensky, not Putin, at the Munich conference five days pic.twitter.com/ESzBcR9VJ7  Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) August 22, 2024

After the interview, host Brian Kilmeade quickly tried to correct Trumps comments.



Just as a quick clarification, we dont have confirmation that the vice president went to Russia to meet with Vladimir Putin, Kilmeade said. I know she went over to Europe right before the incursion when Russia invaded Ukraine, and its a war thats still going on right now.

In true Fox News fashion, one of Kilmeades colleagues tried to defend Trump, claiming to have heard about the meeting.



Ive heard that said a lot, Ainsley Earhardt said to Kilmeade. You dont have confirmation that thats true?

No, Kilmeade replied. I dont think thatI dont know if the vice president ever met Vladimir Putin.

In reality, Harris traveled to the Munich Security Conference in Germany before the 2022 invasion, but Putin did not attend. Instead, she met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. And, according to a Russian spokesperson, its unclear whether Harris and Putin have ever met at all.



While its no surprise that Trump would make something up, it is unusual to see Fox News correcting him, even after the fact, considering the networks efforts to help his campaign. Even this week, they let Maria Bartiromo repeat lies about noncitizens voting. Maybe in Trumps case, theyre starting to worry about his cognitive decline.


TechCrunch

The final agenda for the Space Stage at TechCrunch Disrupt is live and we'd love to see you there. Impulse Space has been having a great year. Case in point: This week alone, the startup announced the close of a $150 million Series B round and a $34.5 million contract from the U.S. Space Force for two ultra-mobile spacecraft missions.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison praised Kamala Harris' and Tim Walz's record during the third night of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

During his speech Wednesday, Ellison said he was heartbroken and angry when he first saw the video of George Floyd's murder and said Walz felt the same way. He detailed how the Minnesota's governor appointed him to prosecute the case against Derek Chauvin and the time Harris called to congratulate him when the former police officer was found guilty of the crime.

Ellison added that Walz and Harris are listening to calls for a cease-fire and hostage deal in the Middle East.

The Democratic National Committee convention is in Chicago through Thursday and Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday is scheduled to formally accept the party's nomination for the 2024 presidential election on Nov. 5.

DNC Day 2 live updates: Democratic all-stars to take the stage

Watch Keith Ellison's full DNC Convention speech here

What to know about Keith Ellison

Who is he? Ellison was first sworn in as the North Star State's attorney general in 2019. He previously served as a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives for more than a decade where he built a reputation as a progressive lawmaker. From 2017 to 2018, Ellison served as the Democratic National Committee's deputy chair.

What role he plays: As a Democratic leader from Minnesota, vice presidential nominee Tim Walz's home state, Ellison can speak to the governor's record and their relationship.

Key quote: "In the Republican party, everyone thinks they're above the law. Hell, nearly a dozen of their own lawyers are facing serious charges. Even their lawyers need lawyers."

Sign-up for Your Vote: Text with the USA TODAY elections team.

When and where is the DNC

The Democratic National Convention will take place from August 19-22 in Chicago, Illinois.

The United Center, home of the Chicago Bulls and Blackhawks, will be the main venue for the DNC.

Chicago has hosted the Democratic Convention 11 times, most recently in 1996 when the United Center saw President Bill Clinton was nominated for a second time.

How to watch and stream the 2024 DNC

The convention will air live on its website, from the United Center in Chicago between 6:15 p.m. and 11 p.m. Eastern (5:15 p.m. to 10 p.m Central) on Monday, and 7 p.m to 11 p.m. Eastern (6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Central) the other days.

USA TODAY will provide livestream coverage on YouTube each night of the DNC, Monday through Thursday.

What are the themes for each night of the DNC?

The DNC announced nightly themes for the convention. The title of the convention is "For the People, For Our Future."

Here are the themes for each night:

Monday: "For the People"

Tuesday: "A Bold Vision for America's Future"

Wednesday: "A Fight for our Freedoms"

Thursday: "For our Future"

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Minnesota AG Keith Ellison speech at the DNC convention: Watch
HONOLULU, Hawaii (KMID/KPEJ)  An Opossum that was recently discovered in a shipping container was the second live opossum in a month found in Hawaii, raising concerns about the growing threat of invasive species on the islands.

The Department of Agricultures General Fund was given a boost of 19 million dollars for addressing invasive species during the previous legislative session. However, with four to five thousand creatures arriving in Hawaii each week, and only around 65 inspectors statewide, the chances of these unwelcomed creatures slipping through are real.

WATCH: CO construction company uncovers WWII era bomb

And just trying to really manage constant pressure when youre kind of year to year is really not an efficient way to really manage this problem, because its not going to stop, like, were going to continually import, you know, opossums or whatever is going to be in containers, said Jonathan Ho, Acting Manager of the Department of Agriculture Plant Quarantine.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Yourbasin.
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The shocking footage is an important reminder to always obey trail closures. | Credit: TrueCapture

Dramatic footage has emerged showing a group of hikers fleeing for their lives when the volcano they had just reached the rim of unexpectedly erupted.

The video, which you can watch below, was captured by an Indonesian government drone earlier this month, according to The Telegraph, which also says the hikers had disregarded a ban on climbing Mount Dukono.

The clip shows enormous plumes of smoke and ash spewing into the air as more than a dozen hikers scramble down the steep side of the mountain, only narrowly avoiding the eruption. All hikers are reported to have escaped to safety.

A post shared by Morocco World News (@moroccoworldnews) A photo posted by on

Dukono is an active volcano located on northern Halmahera island in Indonesia. It has been erupting continuously since 1933 with eruptions increasing over the last 10 years. The National Disaster Management Agency has issued a strict warning against climbing Dukono, placing it under Level II alert status, according to local news sources in Indonesia.

The incident is an important reminder to always obey trail closures, which are usually in effect for your safety, or for the safety of others.

There's always an inherent risk attached to volcano hiking. It's advised to go with a guide and, if you drop your phone into the volcano, don't go after it like the American hiker who fell into Mount Vesuvius in 2022.

If you're interested in hiking a volcano, check out our article with eight awesome volcano hikes across the world.
WATONGA  Watonga sits in the sparsely populated prairie of northwestern Oklahoma. A little more than an hour's drive from Oklahoma City, it's surrounded by farms and wells pumping oil and gas.

The city's big annual event is the Watonga Cheese Festival, although the cheese factory that spurred the celebration closed in 2007. About 2,600 people live there.

But recent events have revealed a simmering tension between residents who see corruption in city leadership and others who say the furor is overblown and unproductive.

At the heart of the issue are allegations that a police officer mistreated residents while on duty. That officer, Monty Goodwin, is no longer employed by the Watonga Police Department after an internal investigation.

After a video of Goodwin went viral, the city has faced weeks of intense pressure from both locals and anonymous trolls on social media. A group of residents began organizing meetings to list grievances and demand the replacement of the city manager. After a contentious city council meeting last week, the mayor and vice-mayor abruptly resigned.

Both sides claim they've received threats.

Officer accused of misconduct

Before dawn on July 4, Goodwin and another officer approached John Sexton as he was walking in an alleyway with his 6-year-old son and asked for his ID. Sexton, who was wearing a T-shirt and shorts, told the officers that in this state, a police officer must have reasonable suspicion of a crime to demand a pedestrian's ID. Even so, Sexton said he wasn't carrying it that morning.

The confrontation quickly became heated as Goodwin threatened to arrest Sexton for failure to produce identification. As Goodwin reached for Sexton's arm, he pulled away and said the police should let him bring his son home first.

Sexton continued backing away from the officer and pulled out his phone to record. At that point, Goodwin swept Sexton's legs and handcuffed him on the ground.

After a warrant check, Sexton was released. He eventually created a TikTok account to share the bodycam video of the interaction, and it went viral.

More: DA declines charges against Watonga cop accused of misconduct

As Sexton sat on a park bench Tuesday morning recounting his story for a reporter, he seemed on edge, looking over his shoulder at every car that passed by. He said family members of local police have made threats against him online.

"I ain't been here long, but it's horrible. This maybe sounds bad, but as soon as this case is resolved and my civil suit is done, I'm out of here," Sexton said. "I don't feel safe in this town and there's just too many corrupt people that's up at the top."

After Sexton's viral interaction, another resident came forward with a complaint about how Goodwin treated her autistic 15-year-old son. In early June, Goodwin was dispatched to help Andrea Lambert control her son, who had reportedly threatened family members and himself with a knife and threw a printer at someone in the home.

Lambert was recovering from spinal surgery and called police to help with de-escalation.

By the time police arrived, the teen was unarmed but resisted being placed in custody, according to a bodycam video of the event. Goodwin spoke with the boy for several minutes, explaining why he had to be hospitalized and trying to convince him to cooperate. Both officers who responded wrote in their reports that as they tried to handcuff the boy, he tried to bite Goodwin. The video shows his hands were behind his back.

Goodwin wrote in his report that he responded by striking him three times, although the contact is difficult to see in the officers' videos. According to the National Institute of Justice, department policy on the use of force can include punches and kicks to restrain an individual.

Still, Lambert said the punches were excessive.

"It's rough being a mom of an autistic child," she said. "But I trusted that those officers were there that day to de-escalate the situation, not beat my son up."

Andrea Lambert is pictured during a city council meeting in Watonga, Okla., Wednesday, Aug., 21, 2024.

The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation looked into Sexton's complaint and ultimately turned over the investigation to the district attorney without making their recommendation public. However, prosecutors declined to file criminal charges. Lambert said she has sent information to the OSBI about her interaction with Goodwin.

Before Goodwin worked for Watonga, he was a sheriff's deputy in the same county. Blaine County Sheriff Travis Daugherty has told media that Goodwin was demoted and eventually left the office after complaints from other deputies he supervised.

The Watonga Police Department also conducted its own disciplinary review. As of Tuesday, Goodwin was no longer employed by the city. A police department employee who answered the phone would not say whether he resigned or was fired.

A city fractured

At a meeting last week, the Watonga City Council demoted the current city manager to an "interim" role after the police controversy and other more common local government complaints about utility bills and city spending. At the same meeting, the mayor and vice mayor resigned, leaving just three seats filled.

At a disorganized follow-up meeting on Tuesday attended by over 50 people, the council picked Kayla Ragsdale to become mayor. Ragsdale had only joined the council in March. Another member reluctantly volunteered as vice-mayor.

More than 50 people attend a disorganized follow-up city council meeting Tuesday in Watonga. The council picked Kayla Ragsdale to become mayor. Another member reluctantly volunteered as vice-mayor.

This rapid series of events effectively stunned the council. Tuesday's agenda included votes to develop a new policing policy and begin the search for a new city manager. Both items were tabled without a vote.

Jacky Morris, a local business owner and former councilor, stood up to defend the city manager.

"Everyone's emotions in here are running past the ceiling," Morris said. "We've got a fantastic city manager, and I feel like she was treated very rudely at your last meeting. You guys went into executive session with high emotions, you came out and made a hasty decision."

Outside City Hall after the council meeting, resident Carla Flynn dismissed the commotion as being driven by people who are seeking attention and hoping for a lawsuit settlement. Flynn, who is executive director of the region's community action agency, described how city employees have been on the receiving end of death threats and racial slurs since Sexton's interaction with Goodwin went viral.

"That girl right there in the green," Flynn said, pointing out another woman outside City Hall, "she works at the police department. She's getting death threats. They're calling her, threatening her. She didn't have anything to do with any of this. She's a dispatcher. They're calling her the N-word."

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Watonga officer's use-of-force case fractures Oklahoma community
The Emmy Award-winning "CBS News Sunday Morning" is broadcast on CBS Sundays beginning at 9:00 a.m. ET. "Sunday Morning" also streams on the CBS News app beginning at 11:00 a.m. ET. (Download it here.)

Guest host: Seth Doane

WATCH THE FULL AUGUST 25 BROADCAST!

Ella McGrath, a candidate for governor at Hoosier Girls State. / Credit: CBS News

COVER STORY: Young women on Girls State: "The most life-changing week of my life" | Watch Video

At a time when politics leaves many of us bitterly divided, high school students from all walks of life attend the week-long Girls State to participate in an exercise in democracy. "Sunday Morning" anchor Jane Pauley (herself a veteran of Hoosier Girls State, where she was elected governor) talks to young women in Indiana engaging in mock political campaigns to create a model government; and meets Emily Worthmore, now a college sophomore, who was featured in the Apple TV+ documentary "Girls State," who talks about how the experienced shaped her life.

For more info:

Girls State, sponsored by the American Legion AuxilaryHoosier Girls StateWatch "Girls State" on Apple TV+



ALMANAC: August 25 (Video)

"Sunday Morning" looks back at historical events on this date.

MUSIC: Opera for Peace: A master class for diversity in the arts (Video)

By inviting singers from around the world, the non-profit Opera for Peace hopes to develop greater diversity among performers of opera, and to inspire the next generation of opera audiences. Correspondent Seth Doane talks with African American singer Hannah Jeane Jones, who traveled to Rome to participate in the program; and with soprano Forooz Razavi, who sang with an R&B group in Iran before she fell in love with opera.

For more info:

Opera for PeaceHannah Jeane Jones (Facebook)Forooz Razavi (Instagram)Metropolitan Opera's Lindemann Young Artist Development Program

An experimental eVTOL (electric vertical take-off and landing) aircraft, from Archer Aviation. / Credit: CBS News

TECHNOLOGY: The electric-plane future is about to take off | Watch Video

Correspondent David Pogue checks out advances being made in aviation technology that allow a plane to be powered by batteries, promising a more environmentally-friendly, quieter and cheaper ride that doesn't require a runway.

For more info:

Beta Technologies, Burlington, Vt. Archer Aviation, San Jose, Calif.Sergio Cecutta, SMG Consulting



Creative Corner Books, which sells books about cooking and crafts, is one of seven bookstores in the tiny New York village of Hobart. / Credit: CBS News

U.S.: The tiny N.Y. town where bookstores rule | Watch Video

The tiny town of Hobart, New York, is home to around 400 residents and seven bookstores. Correspondent Conor Knighton finds out how this "book village" became a dream destination for bibliophiles.

For more info:

Hobart Book VillageWilliam H. Adams' Antiquarian Books, Hobart, N.Y. Blenheim Hill Books, Hobart, N.Y. The Book Nook (Children's lending library), Hobart, N.Y. Creative Corner Books, Hobart, N.Y. Liberty Rock Books, Hobart, N.Y. More Good Books, Hobart, N.Y. New York Books & Ephemera, Hobart, N.Y. (Facebook)Quarry Books, Hobart, N.Y.Hobart Festival of Women WritersHobart Farmers' Market, Hobart, N.Y. (Facebook)

Humorist David Sedaris. / Credit: CBS News

COMMENTARY: "Siri, what the heck?" David Sedaris on talking to one's devices | Watch Video

Commanding your device to do things you could just as well do yourself is a mark of technological progress that humorist David Sedaris finds peculiar, when your voice-activated app is not up to the job.

For more info:

davidsedarisbooks.com"Happy-Go-Lucky" by David Sedaris (Little, Brown), in Hardcover, Trade Paperback, eBook and Audio formats, available via Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Bookshop.org

The 92nd Street Y offers classes and programs in the arts, sports, and parenting, as well as talks featuring some of the world's most fascinating figures. / Credit: CBS News

U.S.: The 92nd Street Y at 150 | Watch Video

One-hundred-and-fifty years ago, New York City's 92nd Street Y was founded as a community and performance center, an inclusive meeting place where people could go to make their lives more meaningful. Correspondent Faith Salie talks with 92NY's CEO Seth Pinsky about its remarkable history, stemming from a simple mission.

For more info:

92nd Street Y, New York CityPhotos courtesy of the 92NY, Jack Prelutsky, Lura Burnette and Michael Priest Photography



HARTMAN: One bus driver's simple act of kindness (Video)

When Minneapolis bus driver Jayne Arendt-Verhelst saw a woman, apparently homeless, enter her bus barefoot, she broke a rule in order to help. Correspondent Steve Hartman reports on an act of kindness, as a result of seeing someone too often viewed as invisible.

Keith Richards, Mick Jagger and Ronnie Wood of The Rolling Stones. / Credit: CBS News

MUSIC: The Rolling Stones on life, music, and loss (Video)

The Rolling Stones' "Hackney Diamonds" was the band's first album of original music in 18 years  and their first since the death, in 2021, of drummer Charlie Watts. Correspondent Anthony Mason sat down with Keith Richards, Mick Jagger and Ronnie Wood to discuss their unique chemistry; reuniting with the Stones' original bassist Bill Wyman; and what becoming octogenarians meant to Jagger and Richards. (This story was originally broadcast on October 15, 2023.)

You can stream the Rolling Stones album "Hackney Diamonds" by clicking on the embed below (Free Spotify registration required to hear the tracks in full):

This embedded content is not available in your region.

For more info:

rollingstones.comElectric Lady Studios, New York

Walden Pond in Concord, Mass. / Credit: CBS News

U.S.: Saving Walden Pond: How a treasured landmark is under threat | Watch Video

The National Trust for Historic Preservation has listed Walden Pond and Walden Woods, where Henry David Thoreau wrote his 1854 classic "Walden," one of "America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places." Historian Douglas Brinkley reports on how the Concord, Mass., pond and its surrounding, spiritually-nourishing woods  a storied part of our national heritage  is under threat from nearby development.

For more info:

The National Trust for Historic Preservation: "America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places"Walden Pond State Reservation, Concord, Mass. The Walden Woods ProjectFriends of Walden PondMassachusetts Department of Conservation & Recreation: Park AlertsMinute Man National Historical Park, Concord, Massachusetts"Walden" by Henry David Thoreau (Project Gutenberg)



See also:

Passage: The life of Henry David Thoreau ("Sunday Morning")

Rugs produced by Afghani artisans. / Credit: CBS News

WORLD: How handmade rugs are providing a future for Afghans (Video)

After the Taliban regained power in Afghanistan, education for girls and boys has been a rare commodity in a country where families must make devastating choices in order to guarantee their survival. Correspondent Tracy Smith talks with Nargis Habib, a California entrepreneur who pays artisans in Afghanistan to produce beautiful woven rugs for a price that helps support families' financial freedom.

For more info:

The Rug Mine  Showroom, Vista, Calif. Afghan Literacy Foundation

Ana Villafane and Holland Taylor in the play

COMMENTARY: "N/A" playwright Mario Correa on the power of removing labels | Watch Video

An Off-Broadway play, "N/A," features characters based on former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who remain nameless. The play's author, Mario Correa, talks about the hope that one day names and labels will no longer magnify loyalties and divide audiences.

For more info:

"N/A," at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, Lincoln Center, New York (through September 1) | Ticket info



NATURE: Walden Pond in Massachusetts (Extended Video)

We leave you this Sunday at Walden Pond, site of Henry David Thoreau's literary sojourn, in Concord, Mass. Videographer: Gary Cohen.



WEB EXCLUSIVES:

NEWS: "CBS Sunday Morning" anchor Jane Pauley, documentarian Alex Gibney to receive lifetime Emmy honors

The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences announced the special awards to be presented at next month's News & Documentary Emmy ceremonies.

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Jane Pauley interviews doc filmmaker Alex Gibney | Watch Video

Filmmaker Alex Gibney is prolific - he has made 14 documentaries in just five years. His subjects range from Enron and the fall of former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer to the Church of Scientology. His latest project puts Apple founder Steve Jobs in his crosshairs. Jane Pauley reports on the director who shines a spotlight onto the grey areas of stories that may appear at first very black-and-white. (Originally aired September 20, 2015.)

GALLERY: Notable Deaths in 2024

A look back at the esteemed personalities who've left us this year, who'd touched us with their innovation, creativity and humanity.

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Robert Redford x 3 (YouTube Video)

Academy Award-winning actor-director Robert Redford turned 88 on August 18, 2024. To celebrate, we look back at three "Sunday Morning" interviews with Redford over the years: From 1994, with Charles Kuralt, who visited Redford's home in Utah and talked about his early career, and his advocacy of Native American art and culture; from 2008, with Rita Braver, discussing his iconic roles in "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" and "All the President's Men," and how he nurtures young filmmakers through the Sundance Institute and Sundance Film Festival; and from 2018, with Lee Cowan, at the actor's ranch in New Mexico, where  at age 82  he discussed his last film appearance, "The Old Man & the Gun," and why he doesn't like watching himself on screen.

The Emmy Award-winning "CBS News Sunday Morning" is broadcast on CBS Sundays beginning at 9:00 a.m. ET. Executive producer is Rand Morrison.

DVR Alert! Find out when "Sunday Morning" airs in your city

"Sunday Morning" also streams on the CBS News app beginning at 11:00 a.m. ET. (Download it here.)

Full episodes of "Sunday Morning" are now available to watch on demand on CBSNews.com, CBS.com and Paramount+, including via Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, Chromecast, Amazon FireTV/FireTV stick and Xbox.

Follow us on Twitter; Facebook; Instagram; YouTube; TikTok; and at cbssundaymorning.com.

You can also download the free "Sunday Morning" audio podcast at iTunes and at Play.it. Now you'll never miss the trumpet!

Ex-FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb says "timing is about right" for new COVID booster rollout

Ex-FDA commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb says U.S. "not at risk right now" for new mpox variant

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt says presidential campaigns should not be "about winning an argument"
COLOMBO, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka's total exports for July 2024, including both merchandise and services, amounted to 1.3 billion U.S. dollars, an increase of 8.53 percent year on year, according to the export development board on Thursday.

The merchandise export performance amounted to over 1 billion U.S. dollars in July, an increase of 6.58 percent compared to the corresponding month of last year, the EDB said.

The EDB said it was mainly due to the increase in earnings from export of apparel and textiles, tea, coconut based products, spices, concentrates and seafood.

The estimated value of services exports for July was 293.26 million U.S. dollars, an increase of 16.44 percent from the corresponding period of 2023.

Export earnings from apparel and textile increased by 3.8 percent to 443.74 million U.S. dollars in July 2024 compared to the same period of 2023. 
SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV)  This past weekend, surfers from Florida to New England rejoiced as long period swell from Hurricane Ernesto came crashing into shore. For beaches across the southeast coastline, surf in the waist to chest-high range during the morning and afternoon high tide cycles were the best times to target.

For the beginning of the workweek, the surf has been small after Ernesto pulled away, which is changing quickly to end the week and start the weekend. With high pressure centered over the Great Lakes region and a stalled boundary offshore, a pressure gradient has tightened allowing for strong northeasterly winds to set up and produce a short-period wind swell.

This wind swell will last throughout the day Friday and into the weekend but the only downside will be the choppy conditions. For beachgoers, this weekend will be one to relax on the beach and avoid the ocean. Due to the rough ocean conditions, the rip current risk will remain on the higher side, so be sure to ask lifeguards about the conditions.

Additionally, with a boundary offshore, our cloud cover will be a bit thicker and the chance for rain will be higher, especially for the coastline heading into the weekend.

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Storm Team 3 Weather Alerts

SURF-CAST

Short-period wind swell is being driven into our coastline due to a strong fetch of northeasterly winds. Wind speeds will be sustained at 10-20 mph heading into the weekend with gusts around 25 mph possible so make sure you watch those umbrellas if you are on the beach this weekend. Wave heights across the region will peak later this afternoon and into the day tomorrow with sets in the three to four-foot range.

How waves form

Waves form as winds blow over the surface of a body of water. As the wind blows, it transfers its energy to the water causing water molecules to move in a circular motion. As the water molecules move up and down in a circular pattern, waves will form and move in the direction that the wind is blowing.

FRIDAY

A mostly cloudy sky will be overhead throughout the morning and afternoon hours. Peeks of sunshine will be possible in between scattered showers and storms. Rain chances will be highest during the late morning and afternoon hours and a few cells may contain brief periods of heavy rain. Temperatures will be in the lower and middle 80s during the afternoon and winds will be sustained throughout the day at 10-20 mph making for choppy conditions and disorganized surf. Wave heights will be in the 3-4 ft. range with the largest sets occurring during high tide.

UV Index: Moderate

Rip current risk: Moderate to High  Check in with lifeguards

Tides:

Low: 5:36 am / 6:05 pm

High: 11:42 am

SATURDAY

A bit more sunshine will be possible throughout the day on Saturday however, showers and thunderstorms will remain scattered especially for the afternoon hours with a stalled front remaining offshore. Some cells could still contain heavy downpours. High temperatures with the northeasterly winds and the cloud cover will once again be back in the low 80s. Speaking of winds, it will be another gusty day with sustained wind speeds of 10-15 mph and gusts over 20 mph possible. This will make for another day of disorganized surf with wave heights a bit smaller than Friday in the 2-3 foot range. Larger sets will likely roll into the lineup during high tide.

UV Index: High  Sunglasses and sunscreen recommended!

Rip current risk: Moderate to High  Check in with lifeguards

Tides:

Low: 6:25 am / 7:01 pm

High: 12:41 pm

SUNDAY

A partly cloudy to mostly sunny sky will start the day. Sunday overall appears to be the more sun-filled day as the pesky stationary front starts to pull away. With that being said, isolated shower and storm chances will remain for the morning and afternoon hours but it will not be as widespread as on Saturday. High temperatures will be able to reach the middle and upper 80s due to the increase in sunshine. As for wind speeds, they will continue to be gusty out of the northeast at 10-15 mph making for a rough day on the water so be sure to check in with lifeguards if it is safe to swim. Wave heights will remain in the 2-3 foot range.

UV Index: Very High  Sunglasses and sunscreen recommended!

Rip current risk: Moderate to High  Check in with lifeguards

Tides:

Low: 7:17 am / 8:03 pm

High: 1:40 pm

If you are headed to the coast this weekend the main story will be our rough ocean conditions due to strong onshore winds. Make sure to bring an umbrella that can be screwed tight into the sand to make sure that the wind can not pick up your umbrella and hit other beachgoers. As for surfing, if you do not mind a bit of chop, waves should be a decent size and with onshore winds they will have a good amount of power making paddling easy.

See you in the water!

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Weeks Before Mike Lynch Died in Yacht Sinking, He Spoke About Making the Most of 'Second Life'

Lynch was looking forward to "making up for lost time" with his family, a reporter who spoke to the businessman about his acquittal tells PEOPLE

Simon Dawson/Bloomberg via Getty Mike Lynch, former chief executive officer of Autonomy Corp., in London, U.K., on Tuesday, July 8, 2014.

British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch spoke about having a new lease on life and how he was looking forward to spending time with his family in the weeks before his death, according to a journalist who spoke with Lynch about his life after being acquitted of fraud.

On Thursday, Aug. 22, an Italian government official said Lynch's body had been retrieved from the luxury yacht that sank off the coast of Sicily days earlier, while his family and friends were celebrating his legal victory.

PEOPLE previously reported that five bodies had been found in the days after the Bayesian went into the water.

Although the Italian coast guard has not formally identified the bodies that have been recovered, an official with the Italian interior ministry, confirmed to Reuters that Lynch was one of the victim's found while his daughter Hannah remained missing.

The father-daughter pair had been among six passengers missing in the aftermath of the sinking, while Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares, was one of 15 people who were rescued.

The remaining victims reported as missing were Christopher Morvillo, a New York City attorney, his wife, jewelry designer Neda Morvillo; as well as Chairman of Morgan Stanley International Jonathan Bloomer, and his wife, Judy.

The body of victim, identified as chef Recaldo Thomas, was recovered shortly after the yacht went down.

Related: Yacht Sank in Sicily Due to Endless Chain of Errors,' Ship Maker's Owner Speculates: Everything Was Predictable

In the weeks before the ill-fated trip, Lynch's life changed after being acquitted of multiple fraud and conspiracy charges following a lengthy legal battle.

Speaking with The Sunday Times in an interview that was published on July 27, the father of two said that when the verdict came in, it felt like he had been given a "second life."

But, he added, "The question is, what do you want to do with it?



Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg via Getty Mike Lynch

In 2018, federal prosecutors in California indicted Lynch on several counts of securities fraud and conspiracy, per the Associated Press and the BBC. The indictment related to the 2011 sale of Autonomy, a business software company he founded, for $11 billion to Hewlett Packard, per the AP.

At the time, the sale made him one of the richest people in the U.K., according to CBS News.

Lynch, who faced spending up to 25 years in U.S. prison, spent years fighting extradition, according to the BBC. Last May, he was finally extradited from Britain and then spent 13 months under house arrest while waiting for the trial to begin, per The Sunday Times.

If this had gone the wrong way, it would have been the end of life as I have known it in any sense," Lynch told the outlet, noting at another point that he also had "various medical things that would have made it difficult to survive."

The trial began in 2024 and in June, he was acquitted on all 15 counts.

As he wondered what he would do with his freedom, he even told the newspaper he was interested in creating a British equivalent to the American nonprofit the Innocence Project.

Graham Barclay/Bloomberg via Getty Mike Lynch, former chief executive officer of Autonomy Corp., speaks at the Confederation of British Industry conference in London, U.K., on Tuesday, June 10, 2003.

Related: Weeks Before Yacht Sank in Sicily, Missing Lawyer Shared Post About Living 'Happily Ever After'

Speaking with PEOPLE before Lynch's body was recovered, Danny Fortson  who interviewed Lynch for the The Sunday Times  said that he felt the businessman was "excited and very thankful," but also still "struggling to accept" his new reality after such a sudden change.

He was also looking forward to "making up for lost time" with his family.

"This case, especially as it got closer to trial, became all-encompassing and so he missed out on a lot of stuff with his daughters," the journalist 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.

According to The Sunday Times, Hannah was set to study poetry at Oxford while her older sister, 21, was studying physics at Imperial College, just like her father.

Related: Italian Authorities Currently Dont Have Anyone Under Investigation over Luxury Yacht Sinking

Hannah's disappearance left her former school Latymer Upper School in London "incredibly shocked."

In a statement obtained by PEOPLE before her body was found, a spokesperson said, "our thoughts are with their family and everyone involved as we await further updates."

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.
(WJET/WFXP)  Wegmans and Sheetz have ranked in the top 10 in the PEOPLE Companies that Care. This list compiles companies around the nation that best demonstrate outstanding respect, care and concern for their communities, their employees and the environment.

Wegmans placed 7th on the list out of the 100 other companies. However, the company has historically ranked high on workplace lists as the #1 large workplace to work for the past 8 years. 91% of employees say that Wegmans is a great place to work, compared to the national average of 57%. The company describes itself as a values-based family company on a mission to help people live healthier better lives through exceptional food.

The Rochester, New York-based company has 111 supermarkets with 53,784 employees across the East Coast. Wegmans began in 1916 with John and Walter Wegman becoming fresh produce pushcart peddlers. In 1930, the brothers made national headlines when they opened a 20,000-square-foot store, which was gigantic by 1930s standards. The company quickly grew into what it is today, with stores sprawling across 7 states.

Three Erie companies land a spot on the prestigious Inc. 5000 list

Sheetz falls not far behind Wegmans at number 9 on the list. Sheetz describes itself as one of Americas fastest-growing, family-owned, and operated convenience retailers employing 24,873 people across 681 stores. The stores are open 24/7/365 and offer fuel along with coffee, merchandise, and made-to-order foods. 88% of employees at Sheetz say that it is a great place to work, with most saying that the company makes employees feel welcome when they join.

Sheetz was founded in Altoona, Pennsylvania, in 1952 by Bob Sheetz after he purchased one of his dads dairy stores. The company has since exploded into a multi-billion dollar company, serving over 1.6 million people a day. The company is still run by the Sheetz family, with Travis Sheetz serving as the current CEO & President.

You can click here to view the entire PEOPLE Companies That Care list.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJET/WFXP/YourErie.com.
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Credit: Anotherhood via Getty Images

Mysterious zones in the deep mantle where earthquake waves slow to a crawl may actually be everywhere, new research finds.

Scientists already knew that ultra-low velocity zones (ULVZs), hover near hotspots  regions of the mantle where hot rock moves upward, forming volcanic island chains such as Hawaii. But mysterious earthquake waves suggest that these features might be widespread.

ULVZs, which are located in the lower mantle near the core-mantle boundary, can slow seismic waves by up to 50%. That's remarkable, said Michael Thorne , a geologist and geophysicist at the University of Utah.

"Here's one of the most extreme features that we see anywhere inside the planet," Thorne told Live Science. "And we don't know what they are, where they're coming from, what they're made of, [or] what role they play inside the Earth."

Thorne wasn't thinking of ULVZs when he launched the new research, published Aug. 10 in the journal AGU Advances . Instead, he was intrigued by another mantle mystery. Very large quakes, like those that occur at subduction zones where one tectonic plate slides under another, release powerful waves. Some of these so-called PKP waves travel through the mantle, the liquid outer core, and then the mantle again on their way to the opposite side of the planet from where they originated. These waves are sometimes preceded by another strange type of wave, called a precursor PKP wave.

Precursor PKP waves arrive before the main wave after scattering off mystery features in Earth's lower mantle. To identify these features, Thorne and his colleagues modeled PKP waves traveling through a computer model of Earth's mantle, into which they added areas that changed the waves' velocity. They found predictable patterns in how PKP waves varied in speed.

So the team hunted for similar patterns in real earthquake data. The researchers used data from 58 deep earthquakes with magnitudes over 5.8 near New Guinea that occurred between 2008 and 2022. Waves from these quakes traveled through the core and up to North America, where they were recorded by EarthScope, a project that deployed portable seismic monitors across the U.S. between 2003 and 2018.

The findings suggested that something was dramatically slowing the earthquake waves to scatter their energy, Thorne said. The two likely candidates were valleys and ridges along the core-mantle boundary where the waves traveled, or ULVZs. The core-mantle boundary under the western Pacific, where the waves passed, is thought to be smooth. But previous research found a large ULVZ under the western Pacific, east of the Philippines, overlapping the area studied.

And the researchers also found signatures of ULVZs when they looked elsewhere. The study found smaller patches of what seem to be more ULVZs under North America. And other research has found signs of ULVZs underneath North Africa, East Asia, Papua New Guinea and the Pacific Northwest,Thorne said.

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Some researchers have theorized that ULVZs might be the remnants of giant impactors from Earth's early stage of meteor bombardment. However, if ULVZs are widespread, it suggests they're being actively generated today, Thorne said. He suspects that these zones may be areas of the volcanic rock basalt, formed at mid-ocean ridges where the seafloor spreads apart. When this mid-ocean basalt eventually gets pulled into the mantle by subduction, it melts easily and could form pockets where seismic waves slow. These pockets could then get pushed around the mantle by other slabs of subducting crust, which poke into Earth's interior like stirring sticks into a smoothie.

Better understanding these ULVZs could improve geologists' grasp of volcanic hotspots as well as how the mantle moves.

"There are a lot of open questions we don't have answers to yet," Thorne said.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.s extremely colorful run for office has come to an end, but it will not be forgotten. Since his campaign began last April, the anti-vaxxer told us about his brain worm, his uncertainty around 9/11, and the time that he left a dead bear cub in Central Park. Democrats have made hay calling Donald Trump, J.D. Vance, and Republicans weird, but Kennedy exists on a plane of strangeness inaccessible to anyone operating within the two-party system. As the cash-strapped Independent reportedly prepares to drop out of the race and endorse Trump, here are some of the most bizarre moments from his failed  but memorable  campaign.

He said doctors found a dead worm in his brain

In May, The New York Times reported that in a 2012 deposition Kennedy said doctors found a dead worm in his brain, which contributed to memory loss and mental fog. He explained that what doctors found in scans was caused by a worm that got into my brain and ate a portion of it and then died.

RFK responded by posting on X: I offer to eat 5 more brain worms and still beat President Trump and President Biden in a debate.

He admitted he left a dead bear in Central Park

Kennedy posted a video in early August in an attempt to get ahead of a New Yorker profile that included a story about how in 2014 he left a dead bear in Central Park. In the video, Kennedy explains that he was in the Hudson Valley when he says he saw a woman hit a bear cub with her car. He says planned to skin the bear and put the meat in my refrigerator. He took the bear carcass and spent the day doing falconry, drove back to New York for dinner, then had to get on a plane. He needed to do something with the bear, though, so he decided it would be funny to dump it in Central Park and create the impression that a cyclist hit it. He did so, and the next day the dead bear was a major local news story. No one knew how the bear got into the park  until now.

Looking forward to seeing how you spin this one, @NewYorker pic.twitter.com/G13taEGzba  Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) August 4, 2024

Kennedy later told the New York Post that he has been picking up roadkill all of his life. At one point, he said, he had a freezer full of it. He continued that he had a thousand cubic foot freezer full of roadkill.

He said Im not a church boy in response to sexual assault allegations

In July, Vanity Fair published a story on Kennedys dark past that included an accusation that he sexually assaulted a family babysitter. Eliza Cooney alleged that in 1998, when she was 23, Kennedy came up behind her in the kitchen pantry and groped her breasts. On another occasion, a shirtless Kennedy allegedly asked her to rub lotion on his back.

The crazy part is that Kennedy did not deny the allegations. Listen, he responsed on a podcast, Ive said this from the beginning. Im not a church boy. I am not running like that. I had a very, very rambunctious youth.

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, he added.

He was accused of eating a dog

The bear story is not the only time Kennedy has appeared to be an adventurous eater. The Vanity Fair story on Kennedys past included an image of Kennedy making like he was eating what was speculated to be a dog. He said that he was actually eating a goat in Patagonia.

He expanded on his culinary morals in an interview with NewsNation: Ill eat virtually anything. Theres two things I wouldnt eat. Well, three. I wouldnt eat a human, I wouldnt eat a monkey, and I wouldnt eat a dog. I think Id eat anything else, but I just couldnt bring myself to do those things, so it is a goat and you are what you eat.

Thank you for sharing!

He held a sweepstakes to fly falcons with him for a day

Kennedy held a sweepstakes to win a day of falconry with him on his campaigns website. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. discovered hawking when he was 9 years old and has been involved in the sport ever since. Its one of the great joys of his life. And now, hed like to share his love of hawking with you.

I started doing hawking when I was 9 years old and there's not been any time in my life since then that I haven't had birds and haven't been involved in the sport. It's one of the great joys of my life. pic.twitter.com/y7h2WGS0tE  Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) November 26, 2023

Kennedy also has two pet ravens, and he claims they can talk like a parrot. At one point, he had a pet emu that would attack his wife.

His son leaked a phone call of him talking with Trump about vaccine conspiracy theories

RFK Jr. apologized last month after his son leaked a video of him talking on the phone with Donald Trump about vaccine conspiracy theories. When you feed a baby, Bobby, Trump apparently said, a vaccination that is like 38 different vaccines, and it looks like its meant for a horse, not a, you know, 10 pound or 20 pound baby.

Trump seemingly offered Kennedy an administration spot in the phone call. The Washington Post later reported that the two have discussed an administration position, contingent on Kennedy dropping out and endorsing Trump.

He pushed bigoted Covid conspiracies

Last year, video surfaced that showed Kennedy saying: Covid-19 is targeted to attack Caucasians and Black people. The people who are most immune are Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese. We dont know whether it was deliberately targeted that or not.

He said the story was mistaken, but also mentioned a study that shows that COVID-19 appears to disproportionately affect certain races.

This year, a TV station in Maine gave Kennedy another opportunity to respond. All I was doing, he said, was quoting an NIH [National Institutes of Health] funded paper that anybody can look up  that was funded by the United States government  that showed that certain races were more susceptible.

He continued: The races that it was least compatible with were people from Finland. The second most was Ashkenazi Jews. The third most was Chinese nationals. It was most compatible with Blacks, with people from Africa, and with Caucasians. Kennedy attempted to clarify: There are ethnically targeted bio-weapons. I never said that Covid was one of those.

He apologized for a Super Bowl ad imagining him as his uncle, John F. Kennedy

RFK Jr. apologized in February after his super PAC ran a Super Bowl ad that recreated a famous ad for former President John F. Kennedy, his uncle, but with pictures of himself. This was after JFKs grandson called the campaign an embarrassment.

Bobby Shriver, RFKs cousin, posted on X that the ad used our uncles faces  and my Mothers. She would be appalled by his deadly health care views.

Im so sorry if the Super Bowl advertisement caused anyone in my family pain, Kennedy responded on X. The ad was created and aired by the American Values Super PAC without any involvement or approval from my campaign. FEC rules prohibit Super PACs from consulting with me or my staff. I love you all. God bless you.

He told Elon Musk anti-depressants are responsible for school shootings

Last year, Kennedy told Elon Musk in a long-winded X interview that he blames school shootings on anti-depressants. I also am going to look very closely at the role of psychiatric drugs in these events, Kennedy promised. And there are no good studies right now. That should have been done years ago on this issue, because theres a tremendous circumstantial evidence [that] SSRIs and benzos and other drugs are doing this.

He added: Prior to the introduction of Prozac, we had almost none of these events in our country.

He debated by himself

In June, CNN excluded Kennedy from the presidential debate between former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden because he didnt meet certain criteria. Kennedys solution was to hold his own debate  by himself. Kennedy stood behind a podium and watched the CNN debate, which he would pause and offer his own responses to the questions.

He said he wont take sides on 9/11

In July, Kennedy said he was unsure of his take on 9/11. He posted on X: My take on 9/11: Its hard to tell what is a conspiracy theory and what isnt. But conspiracy theories flourish when the government routinely lies to the public.

He continued: As President I wont take sides on 9/11 or any of the other debates. But I can promise is that I will open the files and usher in a new era of transparency. He said that he was referring to a CBS 60 Minutes segment on possible involvement by Saudi Arabia. He promised transparency on the matter should he become president.

More from Rolling Stone

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'We're fighting for joy': Watch Kelley Robinson speak about LGBTQ community at DNC

Kelley Robinson is the president of the Human Rights Campaign, the first Black queer woman to do so, and she spoke passionately on the importance of LGBTQ rights and protections on day three of the Democratic National Convention. Her message was focused on keeping the LGBTQ community safe and protecting their joy, in line with the theme of "A Fight for our Freedoms."

She praised Harris and Walz for being "champions for LGBTQ+ freedom" and said, "Tonight, we're fighting for lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, and trans freedom without exception. We're fighting for equality for all without exception. We're fighting for joy."

The Democratic National Committee convention is in Chicago through Thursday. Vice President Kamala Harris is scheduled to formally accept the party's nomination for the 2024 presidential nomination on the last night of the convention.

What to know about Kelley Robinson

Who is she? The president of the Human Rights Campaign.

What role does she play? Robinson highlights the importance of LGBTQ people this election, championing the work Harris and Walz have already done and drawing a distinction between how the Democratic ticket and Trump treat the community.

Key quote: "Donald Trump wants to erase us. He would ban our healthcare, belittle our marriages, bury our stories, but we are not going anywhere. We are not going back."

Watch Kelley Robinson's full DNC Convention speech here

When and where is the DNC

The Democratic National Convention will take place from August 19-22 in Chicago, Illinois.

The United Center, home of the Chicago Bulls and Blackhawks, will be the main venue for the DNC.

Chicago has hosted the Democratic Convention 11 times, most recently in 1996 when the United Center saw President Bill Clinton nominated for a second time.

How to watch and stream the 2024 DNC

The convention will air live on its website from the United Center in Chicago between 6:15 p.m. and 11 p.m. Eastern (5:15 p.m. to 10 p.m. Central) on Monday and 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. Eastern (6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Central) the other days.

USA TODAY will provide livestream coverage on YouTube each night of the DNC, Monday through Thursday.

What are the themes for each night of the DNC?

The DNC announced nightly themes for the convention. The title of the convention is "For the People, For Our Future."

Here are the themes for each night:

Monday: "For the People"

Tuesday: "A Bold Vision for America's Future"

Wednesday: "A Fight for our Freedoms"

Thursday: "For our Future"

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who is Kelley Robinson? Human Rights Campaign president's DNC speech
Sen. Laphonza Butler (D-Calif.) addresses a crowd at the California Democratic Party delegation breakfast Monday. A similar breakfast at a different Chicago hotel was disrupted Wednesday after individuals allegedly put bugs on tables. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

Chicago police and the FBI are investigating whether maggots were intentionally placed in a hotel breakfast being served to delegates attending the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday, according to law enforcement and media reports.

Authorities said multiple women had reportedly been seen entering the Fairmont Hotel around 6:45 a.m. and placing "unknown objects" onto tables containing food before leaving the area.

It is not clear whether anyone has been arrested. Emergency responders treated one person at the scene, officials said, not specifying whether the patient had gotten ill or been injured.

The delegation breakfasts, which are held at various hotels across Chicago, begin at 7 a.m. and end at 9:30 a.m., according to a schedule of convention events.

"We were all coming down to breakfast, and there were these two women who had hidden themselves in the bathroom," Indiana delegate Karen Tallian told USA Today. "And they ran out and threw maggots into the breakfast buffet."

In a statement cited by CNN, Fairmont Hotel spokesperson Haley Robles said a group of individuals "caused a disruption at at DNC-related breakfast event at our hotel this morning."

"Our team acted immediately to clean and sanitize the area, ensuring that the event could continue without further incident. We maintain the highest standards of food safety and cleanliness throughout our property and have strict protocols in place to handle any disruptions," she said.

Some attendees suspect the incident was a form of protest.

Last month, maggots were allegedly dumped at the Watergate Hotel in Washington, D.C., where Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was staying during his trip to the United States. The Palestinian Youth Movement, an advocacy group, posted a video to Instagram showing mealworms and maggots crawling across white linen tablecloths on banquet tables at the hotel, apparently placed there to protest the war in Gaza.

The safety and well-being of our delegation is our top priority," Indiana Democratic Party spokesperson Sam Barloga said of the situation in Chicago on Wednesday. "All Americans have the right to peaceful protest, but ugly attacks like this have no place in our democracy. We thank the security team for responding swiftly."

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
West African gangs who blackmail teenagers over nude images could be extradited to UK

Internet watchdogs have said "sextortion" is a rising trend in the UK - ANDREW BROOKES/CULTURA RF

West African gangs who blackmail teenagers over nude images could be extradited under a crackdown on cyber criminals, the National Crime Agency has said.

The organisation said that gangs were not safe from prosecution in our country and that it would seek justice for all victims of sextortion.

Under the crime, teenagers are duped into sending intimate pictures of themselves to fraudsters online who then threaten to share them with others if victims do not hand over money.

The crime has been described by internet watchdogs as the biggest trend weve seen and one of the cruellest.

The NCA is planning to introduce a new recording measure to assess the extent of the problem.

Criminals to be brought to justice

Adam Priestley, a senior manager at the National Crime Agency, told The Guardian extradition was not the only option and that they may work with law enforcement abroad to bring criminals to justice at home.

It is the ambition of the NCA to work together with UK and international partners to achieve a judicial outcome, he said.

In particular, where a young person has died, we strive for a judicial outcome that adequately reflects the severity of the crime. If you offend against people in the UK, this is what happens. You are not safe from prosecution in our country.

The NCA believes West Africa, particularly Nigeria, is a hub for the gangs and earlier this year hosted a four-day visit from Nigerias National Cyber Crime Centre to London.

The agency is planning to introduce a specific category for recording sextortion cases after acknowledging that it remained challenging to accurately estimate the scale of sextortion because it could be logged under different offences, such as blackmail and fraud.

NCA to coordinate a better response

Sean Sutton, another NCA senior manager, added: We are in the processes of agreeing the use of one codeword to use across law enforcement to help track the scale and better coordinate our response to this threat moving forward.

Sextortion has been implicated in the deaths of at least two teenagers in Britain in recent years.

Dinal De Alwis, 16, from south London, took his own life after being blackmailed over nude photographs while Murray Dowey, 16, from Dunblane, died soon after he was targeted by online blackmailers.

The Internet Watch Foundation has found there was a 19 per cent increase in reports of child sexual abuse material related to financial sextortion in the first six months of this year, compared with 2023.

It received 89 confirmed reports of sextortion-related content involving under-18s, in contrast with 75 in the same period last year.

The number of female victims has increased from one last year to 27, while then number of boys, who are more often targeted, fell by 12 per cent to 61.

The biggest trend and one of the cruellest

Tamsin McNally, the manager of the IWFs hotline, said the reason for the rise was probably that now perpetrators have become more adept at what they are doing, they are widening their nets because they know they can make money.

According to the charity, the most affected age group was 16-17, with 45 victims, and the biggest increase was in 14- to 15-year-olds, up by a quarter to 40.

Sextortion is the biggest trend weve seen and one of the cruellest, Ms McNally said. Its something I see on a daily basis, with reports coming to the hotline internationally as well as from the UK.

Nigerian authorities have been assisting with the crackdown and last year, two Nigerian men were extradited to the US in to face charges relating to online extortion and their alleged part in the suicide of 17-year-old Jordan DeMay from Michigan.

Two men were also charged earlier this year over the alleged sexual extortion of a 16-year-old Australian boy who took his own life.

Cyber criminals have been writing guides online, with The Guardian reporting that one ran to more than 80 pages and claims the top three countries in which to commit successful online extortion are Britain, the US and Canada.

The guide advises others to focus on teenagers and young adults and suggests the criminals will receive sexually explicit content from at least 5-10 targets out of 200.

Sophie Mortimer, the manager of the Revenge Porn Helpline, said sextortion cases had increased massively since the support line was launched nine years ago.

Lives are being devastated. We need to see more political will about tackling these issues. We know the money is going abroad, and its going to the same countries again and again.

Its going to the Philippines, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Morocco. My big ask of the new Labour government and senior police officers is to start taking some action.

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West Nile Virus continues to spread in mosquito samples across the state, including in Hampden County

HOLYOKE, Mass. (WWLP)  West Nile Virus continues to spread in mosquito samples. Another mosquito has tested positive for the virus in Hampden County. 22News spoke with local doctors on why we are seeing more positive detection.

The virus is here in Hampden County, said Chief of Infectious Diseases at Baystate Medical Center, Dr. Armando Paez.

The city of Holyoke is the newest community to have a mosquito test positive for West Nile Virus this year. This adds to the total of 255 positive mosquitos found in the state so far.

This is you know Typically a large number of mosquito positives, said State Epidemiologist at Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Dr. Catherine Brown.

According to the state Department of Public Health, West Nile Virus was found in a mosquito sample collected in Holyoke last month. The risk level for Hampden County has been elevated to moderate. Pittsfield and West Springfield also had positive mosquito samples last week with East Longmeadow reporting the states first human case.

The mosquitoes that carry West Nile Virus are going to continue to persist and wont entirely die off until we have a hard frost in a area, said Dr. Brown.

The virus can infect people of all ages but people over 50 are at a higher risk of infection. Symptoms include flu-like illness, however, most people have no symptoms.

Mosquitoes they become very active between the dusk and the dawn of the time of day so schedule other events to avoid those hours, said Paez.

You want to make sure your using a mosquito repellent with an EPA registered active ingredient and you should do that anytime your outdoors, added Brown.

Dr. Brown also recommends eliminating mosquito breeding at your home by draining any standing water outside. Its also not too late to check your window screens and make sure there are no holes in them.

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SYDNEY, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Antarctica could be vulnerable to invasive species carried to the continent on floating plastic and organic debris, according to new oceanographic modeling.

In a new research published on Thursday, researchers led by a team from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in Australia found that floating objects can reach the Antarctic coastline from all southern continents.

The finding triggered a warning that non-native species could be carried to Antarctica on floating objects including plastic, kelp and driftwood and dramatically change marine ecosystems in the region.

Hannah Dawson, who led the research as part of her PhD at the UNSW and is now based at the University of Tasmania, said that it was previously thought that debris only drifted to Antarctica from remote and unpopulated islands in the Southern Ocean.

However, by building an oceanographic model based on surface current and wave data from 1997 to 2015 the research team found that floating debris reaches Antarctica from various Southern Ocean land sources every year.

Dawson said in a media release that an increasing abundance of plastics and other human-made debris in the oceans means more opportunities for non-native biota to reach Antarctica.

"We knew that kelp could raft to Antarctica from sub-Antarctic islands, such as Macquarie and Kerguelen Islands, but our study suggests that floating objects can reach Antarctica from much further north, including South America, New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa," she said.

"The shortest time it took for particles to reach the Antarctic coastline was from Macquarie Island, south of New Zealand, some of which arrived in just under nine months. On average, the longest journey was for objects released from South America."

The study was co-authored by researchers from the Australian National University, the University of South Florida in the United States and New Zealand's University of Otago.

They found that most of the rafting objects arrive at the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula -- a region with relatively warm ocean temperatures and regular ice-free periods -- making it a likely area for non-native species to first establish on the continent. 
Robin Koda is co-owner of Koda Farms along with her brother, mother and sister. Their rice and flour have won acclaim from chefs and food experts, and Kokuho Rose is credited with playing a key role in the 1960s in the spread of sushi in Los Angeles. (Mariah Tauger/Los Angeles Times)

Ever since news broke that the renowned rice-producing family at Koda Farms planned to step back from day-to-day farming, co-owner Robin Koda has fielded dozens of telephone calls and messages on social media from panicked consumers wondering about the fate of their beloved heirloom rice  particularly the heirloom Kokuho Rose developed by her grandfather Keisaburo Koda, who started the farm 97 years ago.

Her response?

Stop freaking out. Stay calm. This is Koda family legacy chapter two.

The rice products will continue to be widely available at Japanese and specialty grocers on the West Coast and other markets throughout the nation. However, Koda Farms rice products will no longer be sold at Santa Monica and Hollywood farmers' markets.

Read more: Koda Farms, California rice and Asian American dreams

Robin Koda holds uncooked organic Kokuho Rose heirloom rice from her family's nearly 100-year-old farm. (Mariah Tauger/Los Angeles Times)

The quality of the rice will stay the same and likely get better, Koda added.

Koda Farms' trademarks for its different types of rice and rice flour will now be licensed to grain manufacturer, Western Foods LLC, a family-owned company that sources and processes gluten-free grains in Northern California and Arkansas. Koda said that the family will ensure that all products associated with the Koda name will meet with their approval.

The Koda family produces two rice varieties, proprietary heirloom medium-grain Kokuho Rose and glutinous short-grain rice Sho-Chiku-Bai. They additionally mill Blue Star Brand mochiko and Diamond K rice flour. Their rice and flours have won acclaim from chefs and food experts, and Kokuho Rose  which has a loyal following to this day  is credited with playing a key role in the 1960s in the spread of sushi in Los Angeles.

Founder Keisaburo Koda returned to farming after his family was forced into a Colorado incarceration camp during World War II and much of his land and equipment were sold. He hired rice breeder Arthur Hughes Williams, and both developed the first premium medium-grain rice that was introduced to the market as Kokuho Rose. The variety was bred specifically for the farms adobe and saline soil and climate in 1962. The flavorful heirloom rice is a result from the cross of California medium-grain rice with a Middle Eastern long-grain.

Read more: L.A.s sushi revolution was fueled by this secret ingredient from the Central Valley

Robin Koda said she and her brother, co-owner Ross Koda, will stay on as brand ambassadors and their rice will continue to be available and likely expand its reach to other markets.

We aint going anywhere, Robin Koda emphasized.

Robin Koda, in her rice field, said there are no plans to sell the farm in South Dos Palos, which has been in the family since 1927. (Mariah Tauger/Los Angeles Times)

Koda said it became too arduous to continue farming in California. She cited various expenses  such as water and insurance  as too high. Also, her most loyal workers were retirement age and the labor pool for new workers in South Dos Palos is limited, she said.

Koda's brother and co-owner Ross Koda said he had a lifelong attachment to Koda Farms as the only son in the family but he had no choice but to move on.

"When I finally had to face the reality that the economics of farming in California, water availability, and climate change have imposed paradigm shifts over which we have no control, then there was no choice but to make a business decision without personal and emotional attachments to the farm's history," he said in a written statement to The Times.

There are no plans to sell the farm in South Dos Palos, Koda said, which has been in the family since 1927. She said they will no longer sell rice in the fall, when the crop is harvested, at the family farm. However, rice is currently being grown on their land, which Koda Farms is now leasing to another farmer who contracts with Western Foods.

Dried panicles of organic Kokuho Rose heirloom rice from Koda Farms. (Mariah Tauger/Los Angeles Times)

For the next few years, much of the heirloom Kokuho Rose rice will likely be grown primarily at the Koda Farm, which is on several hundred acres , but eventually will also be grown in Northern California, close to Western Foods, said Miguel Reyna, president and co-owner of the company

I think its really important to have some acres there. Its where it started, Reyna, 52, said. I feel like Im part of the family now, and I want to make sure to retain the Koda family legacy.

Robin Koda said she and her brother have previously contracted Reyna to supplement their supply of conventional sweet rice.

"We trust him," Robin Koda said. She said she likes how Reynas business is also family owned and operated.

Processing of the rice will no longer take place at Koda Farms but will move to a state-of-the-art processing facility owned by Western Foods in Woodland, Calif. pictured is the original Koda Farms headquarters in South Dos Palos that was lost during the Koda family's incarceration during World War II. (Mariah Tauger/Los Angeles Times)

Hes the next generation. In a sense thats how we view Miguel and Western Foods, Koda said. This is just a transition. Its going to a family-owned business.

The processing of the rice  drying and milling it  will no longer take place at Koda Farms in South Dos Palos but instead will move to a state-of-the-art processing facility owned by Western Foods in Woodland in Northern California, which can process more rice. Reyna said some rice may eventually be processed at a plant in Arkansas.

The Koda family will slowly dismantle the processing plant at their farm. The buildings used to process the rice are decades old, Robin Koda said. Part of the mill dates back to the 1950s, and the machinery is slow and old, she said.

It's impossible to find replacement parts for some of the machinery, she said.

Pallets of packaged sweet rice flour at Koda Farms. (Mariah Tauger/Los Angeles Times)

Thats the main reason why some of their products are still packaged in paper. They never transitioned to modern plastic packaging for the 5- and 10-pound bags, Robin Koda said.

She understands how some may see the paper packaging as charming. However, plastic packaging, she said, helps better protect the rice from pantry pests and doesnt hold moisture like paper does.

Reyna said Western Foods hopes to grow the brand by using Koda rice to produce gluten-free mixes, panko and other organic products with the Koda Farms brand.

Koda is excited about Reynas ability to scale the rice production and get the grain to more consumers.

Considered a modern variety in her grandfathers time, Kokuho Rose grows too slowly and is too low-yielding by today's standards, Koda said. Shes hoping Reyna will find a way to produce better yields.

Reyna said Western Foods hopes to increase production and processing in Northern California by double digits each year and expand customer demand.

Reyna said eventually Kokuho Rose will be grown in the Sacramento area, the largest rice-growing region in the state. "It could be a better growing region for the Kokuho Rose, said Reyna, who's working with a team of researchers at UC Davis to assess whether the rice will do well there.

Robin Koda tours the rice fields at Koda Farms. (Mariah Tauger/Los Angeles Times)

Koda says Reyna reminds her of her grandfather. The son of Mexican immigrant farm workers, Reyna got his start as a laborer at a rice mill and worked his way up to leadership roles before owning his business.

Miguel just has this huge vision and endless energy, Koda said. He has drive and ambition and on top of that, he has the resources."

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
While in NC, Vance claims Harris wants people in US illegally to vote. Here are the facts

During a rally in Asheboro on Wednesday, former President Donald Trump, his running mate JD Vance and other GOP surrogates spoke often about illegal immigration and the need to curb it.

Vance, an Ohio senator, repeated a claim often made by Republicans: that Vice President Kamala Harris wants to give people in the country illegally the right to vote.

Heres a deeper look at Vances claim.

What exactly did he say?

Shortly after taking the stage, Vance said of Harris, Her party wants more power and the way theyre going to do it, is she wants to give all those illegal aliens the right to vote.

But out here in the state of North Carolina, we believe the only people who get to vote in our elections are the people who have a right to be here, not illegal aliens, he said.

Whats the current law on people not legally in the country voting?

It is illegal in federal elections for people not legally in the country to vote, under a law passed in 1996. Under this law, there are criminal penalties for violations.

This year, a group of Republicans introduced the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act that looks to further ensure noncitizen voting does not happen, including by requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote. That bill has stalled in the Senate after passing the House.

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson has been a champion of that bill and has also blamed Harris for allowing noncitizens to vote.

Referring to voter registration forms used in some states that ask applicants to check a box noting that they are U.S. citizens, Johnson said, If a nefarious actor wants to intervene in our elections, all they have to do is check a box on a form and sign their name.

Thats it. Thats all thats required. And theres a very small chance that illegals would get caught,Johnson said during a press conference in May, as reported by Poynter. Johnson did not say how many noncitizens had illegally voted, Poynter reported.

Noncitizen voting is very rare: A study by the Brennan Center that looked at 42 jurisdictions in the 2016 general election found that of 23.5 million votes, only an estimated 30 incidents of suspected noncitizen voting may have occurred.

North Carolina law requires residents to be citizens to register to vote. It also requires voters to show a photo ID to vote. Lawmakers in North Carolinas GOP-controlled legislature also passed a law this year calling for a constitutional amendment to further clarify that only citizens are allowed to vote.

In November, state voters will consider this proposed amendment to the state constitution, as previously reported by The News & Observer.

A few localities, with none in North Carolina, allow noncitizens to vote in local elections.

California, Maryland and Vermont allow noncitizens to vote in some or all local elections, according to Ballotpedia. Harris was formerly San Franciscos district attorney and Californias attorney general.

So has Harris attempted to allow people not legally in the country to vote?

Theres no record we could find of Harris attempting to allow people not in the country to legally vote, and its not clear yet what Harris policies on immigration will be if shes elected, as shes not yet laid them out since becoming the Democratic nominee.

In 2019, she called for creating a pathway to citizenship for DREAMers, or immigrants without legal authorization who arrived in the United States as children.

Harris held a role briefly in 2021 as the point person in charge of examining the causes of increasing immigration, in particular from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, countries from which many people immigrate to the United States.

President Joe Biden has issued humanitarian parole to immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela. In June, he signed an executive order to suspend the processing of most asylum claims at the southern border if illegal crossings reached an average of 2,500 migrants a day in a given week.

Larger packages of immigration policy changes have died in Congress, including one in February due to a lack of support from Republicans.

During the Biden-Harris administration, there have been all-time-high levels of immigration reported. But immigrants cannot vote in a U.S. election until they become naturalized. This naturalization process takes years.

Under the Dome

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WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  The White House is pumping millions of dollars into an effort to get lead out of the water in schools and child care centers.

On Thursday, the Biden administration announced $26 million in grants will go to states across the country to reduce lead contamination in drinking water.

John Rumpler is with the Clean Water Director for the Environment America Research & Policy Center. He says testing revels that lead contamination is a big, nationwide problem.

Everywhere we go where there is available comprehensive data, we find widespread lead contamination of schools water., Rumplert said. The good news is this is a problem we can solve.

White House Principal Deputy Communications Director Herbie Ziskend says removing lead contamination is a big priority for the Biden administration.

Half of Americas kids, half, could be exposed to lead. And theres no safe exposure level for kids, Ziskend said. It could have a negative impact on a childs health, on their brain, on their development.

He says these grants are an important step in mitigating the issue.

This is a big deal when it comes to childrens health and their well-being, Ziskend said.

Rumpler applauds the new funding but says the challenge will be in how states use the money.

Will states and schools use this money for the proven cost-effective measures to prevent lead contamination? Rumpler asked.

From his perspective the best thing would be for schools to spend on solutions like installing filters at every tap and replacing old water fountains with new water stations. He argues that needs to happen instead of testing, which he says is redundant when we know lead contamination is so widespread.

Thats not a good use of school money. Lets just put the filters on and get the lead out, Rumpler said.

You can see how much grant money the White House is allocating to each state and territory below:

Chart showing grant money being allocated to each state and territory provided by the White House.

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Electricity pylons home

Power lines and pylons can reduce the value of nearby homes by an average of 12,000, according to research from the London School of Economics (LSE).

The findings are thought to be the first evidence of how energy infrastructure can damage property values, reflecting the risks attached to the Governments bid to expand transmission networks.

As well as accounting for traditional electricity infrastructure, the LSE study suggests a similar financial impact from homes located near wind turbines and solar farms.

Based on an average loss of value of 3.9pc, a 1m home would be worth around 40,000 less if power lines were built nearby.

When applied to the average UK house price of 300,000, the same calculation leads to a 12,000 drop in value.

However, for others the loss would be far greater  as the 3.9pc average only applies to homes located within 1,500 metres of pylons or power lines.

That could rise to a 21pc reduction if a property is within 250 metres, implying a 63,000 drop in value for an average 300,000 home.

The results of the LSE analysis will raise concerns for Ed Miliband as the Energy Secretary prepares to install a raft of new pylons across the UK alongside 1,000 miles of onshore cable.

To carry out the study, LSE professor Steve Gibbons and former PhD student Cheng Keat Tang researched the change in sale value of 38,000 homes in England and Wales located near pylons or power lines.

They said: Our findings suggest that the construction of new overhead pylons reduces prices by 3.9pc for properties up to 1500 metres away, suggesting the impacts extend further than previously estimated.

The results suggest that the impacts of these infrastructures are more widespread than previously estimated, collectively causing a loss in home values of around 19bn.

The growing number of power lines and pylons over the past century has sparked criticism from some campaigners over claims they blight the English landscape.

Others have raised concerns over noise pollution from power lines, which also raising health fears over the powerful electromagnetic fields that surround the cables.

However, despite such concerns, there are currently no restrictions on how close a home can be built to energy infrastructure.

The researchers said up to 4m homes are situated nearby power lines or pylons.

They said: Based on estimates from National Grid, approximately 46,000 homes lie within 100m [of pylons]. This figure increases exponentially to 600,000 homes (2.7pc of all homes) within 500m and up to 3.1m homes at 1200m.

A separate study of homes in Scotland, cited by the researchers, indicated that house values fell by up to 21pc within 250m of a pylon or power line.

Story continues

This implies a 63,000 reduction in value for the average 300,000 property, or a 210,000 drop for a 1m property.

The National Grid, which owns the high-voltage transmissions system across England and Wales, has around 22,000 pylons and 4,500 miles of cable.

However, the UKs total electricity network overall comprises around 600,000 miles of cable and 90,000 pylons.

The researchers warned that the destruction of property values from building pylons and cables risks being so great that it would be cheaper to install them offshore.

They said: The costs of compensating households for the construction of land-based pylons could become very large. Compensating just 10pc of the 28m households in the UK for pylons within 1500 metres would cost 24bn in 2024 prices.

A strategic infrastructure project to route power lines offshore could become a cost effective solution.

The researchers warned of a similar destructive impact from wind and solar farms.

A spokesman for the Energy Networks Association, which represents the UKs energy network operators, said: Upgrading the grid without delay is crucial to meeting the UKs energy needs.

It has been built, and will continue to be built, in a way that balances delivering a robust and reliable electricity supply for millions of homes and businesses with landscape, visual and community considerations.

Wherever possible, infrastructure is located away from homes in towns and cities, but where this is unavoidable, transmission network operators believe a community benefit framework will provide support and clarity for communities hosting this vital infrastructure.

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Why has the executive promised to veto bill allowing temporary shelters in Pierce County?

Shortly after the Pierce County Council passed an ordinance intended to make it easier to establish temporary shelters such as tiny home villages in unincorporated parts of the county, Executive Bruce Dammeier announced he would veto the legislation.

This ordinance would permit large tent encampments to be legally established throughout Pierce County with little to no public notice. I cannot support this, Dammeier wrote in a statement regarding his veto decision.

Council member Ryan Mello (District 4, Democrat) has been spearheading for months an effort by Democrats on the council to be able to establish temporary shelters for the unhoused, but the issue seems to have divided the council along party lines from the beginning.

With the realization that Tacoma disproportionately hosts the majority of shelter and services for the unhoused, the council has been pushing to establish shelter in other parts of the county.

The council previously allocated $2.5 million in American Rescue Plan Act federal dollars to establish a stability site for the homeless somewhere outside the Tacoma city limits. The federal dollars need to be allocated before they expire at the end of 2024.

Early in the process to find a place for the stability site, county staff reported barriers created by county code which prohibits emergency shelters from existing longer than 90 days.

In the beginning of July, Mello and other Democrats on the council brought forward an emergency ordinance which sought to address the zoning obstacles preventing the stability site and other shelter projects from being opened. The emergency ordinance, which circumvented the typical committee process and required five of seven council votes, failed along party lines on July 9 after several hours of public hearing.

Republicans object to emergency ordinance

Councilmember Dave Morell (District 1, Republican), who voted no on the emergency ordinance, said in a statement the ordinance was circumventing processes that are intended to protect the community.

I dont see the emergency. Rushing to change regulations to allow temporary homeless housing villages like tents or pallet shelters is short-sighted, Morell said in a statement July 16. Probably the most concerning is that it limits the communitys ability to influence what happens when one of these villages is planned in their neighborhood.

During the July 9 meeting, Morell also pointed out the ordinance was drafted without input or collaboration from the Human Services Department. During the meeting, a representative from the countys Planning and Public Works Department told the council it also was not contacted during the drafting of the ordinance. Morell suggested that not asking county staff for input could be an overreach by the council.

When asked why he objected to the ordinance, council member Paul Herrera (District 2, Republican) told The News Tribune he had serious concerns about the lack of process.

With only one week for the public to understand that the council was considering allowing 100 person encampments all over the county, Herrera wrote in an email to The News Tribune. Ive seen first hand the failures and challenges of low-barrier tent cities, what drugs and alcohol can do to compound behavior health issues and drive up crime, and I know we can do better.

In an interview with The News Tribune on July 17, Dammeier said he thinks the county already has enough temporary housing and needs more permanent, supportive housing instead.

The new ordinance

Following the failure of the emergency ordinance, Mello, Robyn Denson (District 7, Democrat) and Jani Hitchen (District 6, Democrat) brought forward a similar ordinance that would go through the typical committee process.

This is a well thought through path forward while we wait for permanent housing, which we know takes years to do, Mello said before final consideration of the ordinance on Aug. 20.

The bill passed on a four-to-three vote, again on party lines. Republican council members did not suggest any amendments to the ordinance to make it more palatable for their vote.

Just hours later, Dammeier announced he would be vetoing the legislation.

Fundamentally, the Councils effort to declare homelessness an emergency, force through an ill-advised stability site, and establish a new homelessness bureaucracy is misguided, Dammeier wrote in his statement. All of these tactics have been tried locally and regionally none of them have worked.

He wrote he believes the ordinance circumvents community involvement and allows tent encampments of up to 60 people to move into residential neighborhoods with zero notice.

This is unacceptable, he stated.

Dammeier pointed to Tacomas stability site at 1423 Puyallup Ave., which was originally called temporary before existing for more than seven years.

This cautionary tale tells us that temporary encampments are rarely temporary, he wrote. In this ordinance, so called temporary housing communities  including tent encampments, outdoor encampments, and other stability sites  could be indefinitely extended; in fact, experience tells us that they will.

Mello accused Dammeier and his Republican colleagues of using fear tactics when they described the ordinance as allowing tent encampments to be established in residential areas with no community input.

They are trying to conjure images that would scare people, he told The News Tribune. They know fully well they are mischaracterizing it.

Mello said the ordinance would allow well-managed temporary housing communities to be established, as the ordinance includes a list of requirements for the shelters that include proper hygiene facilities, regulations on structures, and case management.

He also said the countys Planning & Public Works department as well as the Human Services department will hold community meetings when planning the shelters and will have leeway to incorporate more public hearings and meetings when they deem it necessary.

Mello said the homelessness crisis is more complicated than Dammeier says it is, and will require both temporary emergency shelters like what would have been allowed by the ordinance in conjunction with supportive housing to mitigate the crisis.

After a veto from the executive, the ordinance will return to the council and require five of seven council members to approve.

Mello and Kelly Chambers are running for the office of Pierce County Executive.
Why is this KC place called the Carmen Building and why is it a part of railroad history?

Inside Look is a Star series that takes our readers behind the scenes of some of the most well-known and not-so-well-known places and events in Kansas City. Have a suggestion for a future story? Email our journalists at InsideLook@kcstar.com.

Sometimes 100 year-old buildings are more notable for whats transpired inside them than for their architectural flair. The Carmen Building, as its usually referred to, is one of them.

If things had gone differently, the 4 story structure on Linwood Avenue just west of Main Street might have been known as the Deaner Building.

It opened its doors in 1924 as the Deaner Dental Institute, where dentists could learn more about their profession. But that enterprise was painfully short-lived.

The next occupants made a far bigger impact.

The International Brotherhood of Railway Carmen was the labor union for workers who repaired and inspected train cars. During its years housed in the building (1927 to 1948) the union conducted a number of significant labor negotiations, including the Railroad Retirement Act of 1937.

After the Carmen moved into offices near the Plaza, a second medical facility took over the premises.

Philanthropist William Volker founded the Midwest Clinic (also called the Research Medical Clinic) as a facility affordable enough that the average American. might use its services. Much like the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota.

It too failed to gain traction, and after a few years, the engineering firm Burns and McDonnell moved in.

In 1967, the Salvation Army chose 101 W. Linwood as its headquarters, an address from which it served the metro for over forty years.

The Carmen Building has been in the news quite a bit lately. In early 2024, the Historic Kansas City Foundation and the Old Hyde Park Historic District Neighborhood mounted a campaign to stop the owner from demolishing it. Action taken by the city has temporarily halted any further dismantling of the site.

Having trouble seeing the video? Watch it here.

Looking for more Kansas City history?

Pullman porters also played an important role in railroad history here and around the U.S.

How the Heim family built a small brewing empire in this young and thirsty town

KCs parks and boulevards owe a lot to a man named Meyer
Why are there so many food recalls lately?

Why are there so many food recalls lately?

DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN)  Many different food recalls have made their way into circulation in recent weeks, some on a large scale and even one deadly.

The CDC has reported over 400 cases of salmonella in 31 states, linked to cucumbers from the Thomas Produce Company. Those cucumbers have been recalled.

Perdue Foods recalled more than 165,000 pounds of frozen breaded chicken nuggets and tenders. The company says they contained a foreign substance.

FTC report casts doubt on retailers justification for high prices

Boars Head has recalled 7 million pounds of deli meat due to a Listeria outbreak. At least 43 people were infected, and three people have died.

On the Food and Drug Administrations website, a total of 740 types of food and drinks have been issued a recall. Concerns are growing as more items continue to get flagged.

I keep wondering what is happening, why our food isnt safe. But I have not personally suffered from them. I guess I am lucky, said Beth Kolotkin, Germantown resident.

With grocery prices continuing to soar, some residents are concerned that the expensive items they buy will damage more than their wallets.

Most of it is produce chicken, thats an expensive thing, said Kolotkin.

Small town feeling impact of business closures: It does affect people

The large number of recalls could be traced back to multiple companies that have a variety of brands under their roof.

You get production operations that are generally larger. And can effect a greater span of the food products that we eat, said Chris Cook, Clark County health commissioner.

Cook says with these large companies, if one health hazard is detected, it could impact many different products.

He also states that the advancement of technology has made these checks more seamless, causing more alerts to be issued even if a small issue is detected.

That goes for those that both regulate, and companies that are invested in making safe food as well. I think that is why we are seeing more evidence. When you look for more, you find more, said Cook.

These food recalls could also affect those with underlying conditions more seriously.

Perdue recalls 167,000 pounds of chicken nuggets after consumers find metal wire in some packages

There are a lot of folks that have had chronic G.I issues, this might be something that hits them, that we have to be cognizant of. Typically we are going to think of diabetes and consistent heart failure and COPD, said Dr. Joseph Allen, Premier Health regional medical director.

If you do consume recalled foods, make sure to take note of any symptoms.

Youll get fevers chills, flu-like symptoms, but its generally G.I. So nausea, vomiting, loose stool, those types of things, said Allen.

The FDA is now offering alerts for recalls. To sign up, visit the FDAs website.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WDTN.com.
Why Modesto students, teachers thought funding for visual and performing arts had been cut

In our Reality Check stories, Modesto Bee journalists deliver fast facts about the issues that matter to local residents to hold officials and institutions accountable. Read more. Story idea? Tips@modbee.com.

Information provided by Modesto City Schools shows an increase in funding for visual and performing arts programs  not cuts, as speakers at Monday nights Board of Education meeting said they feared.

During public comment at the meeting, around 100 student musicians, artists and actors united with community members and teachers to protest expected cuts to arts and music programs that would affect over 15,000 high school students.

But with both California Proposition 28 money and whats allocated in the LCAP (Local Control and Accountability Plan), funding for the programs last year was $8.5 million and this year is $10.3 million  a $1.8 million increase.

Without Prop. 28 funding, the Modesto City Schools budget for visual and performing arts (VAPA) programs was around $3.4 million during the 2023-24 school year. For this school year, VAPA in the budget is $5.4 million.

Modesto City Schools allocation from Prop. 28, known as the art and music K-12 education funding initiative, was $5.13 million during the 2023-24 school year. This school year, its $4.97 million  a $158,000 decrease.

The decrease in Prop. 28 funding is determined by the California Department of Education. At the school district level, VAPA funding has not been cut, is not being cut, and is not being supplanted with other funding, said Sharokina Shams, the chief communications officer for Modesto City Schools.

Why the confusion?

Shams said the reason many community members thought there were budget cuts was communication failure by the district office.

One key disconnect was this: an accounting report showed that dollars previously allocated to schools for repair of musical instruments would no longer be provided, she said. However, we have determined that there was no clear explanation to those schools that the district has hired two full-time instrument repair technicians so that those repairs can occur in house rather than through outside repair service providers.

She said the district did not adequately communicate this to principals. Shams believes the principals saw a line item on their school site budget disappear and assumed that there would no longer be any repair of musical instruments.

The school district attributes the increase to the Arts Music and Instructional Materials grant, known as AMIM, from the state until the 2025-2026 school year.

The grant provides districts with one-time funds to obtain standards-aligned professional development and instructional materials in specified areas, improve school culture, develop relevant book collections and more.

Funds are distributed by the California Department of Education, which calculates the grant based on attendance of the 2021-22 fiscal year.

Its worth noting here that in addition to the increase in funding for instrument repair, our district is putting more dollars toward instrument replacement, Shams said. Specifically, thanks to the AMIM grant, $778,000 is earmarked for instrument replacement.

The Modesto Bee reached out to several community members who spoke at public comment but did not hear back by time of publication.
Why One Texas School District Is Enrolling All Eighth Graders In Algebra

This article was originally published in El Paso Matters.

El Paso Independent School District middle schoolers will be automatically enrolled in an advanced math class this school year, with the plan of getting nearly all eighth graders enrolled in Algebra 1 by the 2025-26 school year.

This comes as school districts throughout the state ramp up advanced math class enrollment for middle schoolers to comply with a new law intended to get more eighth graders enrolled in Algebra 1  a course most Texas students have taken in ninth grade.

Senate Bill 2124, passed during the 2023 legislative session, requires schools to enroll students who performed in the top 40% in their fifth-grade math assessment into advanced math in sixth grade starting the 2024-25 school year, to prepare them for the high school level course.

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The law also requires schools to track performance and enrollment for students in advanced math classes, and allows parents to opt their children out of taking them.

EPISD plans to go beyond the states requirements, hoping to give more students the opportunity to take calculus in high school  a class that is usually required to get a college degree in math or science.

If students dont take algebra in the eighth grade, its very difficult to get to calculus by their senior year. The benefit of having everybody exposed to algebra in eighth grade is that it opens that door to more advanced math classes, Jason Long, EPISDs executive director of advanced academics, told El Paso Matters.

Still, some worry EPISDs goal may take more than one school year to accomplish successfully.

Theyre not going to be ready for it. Its going to be setting kids up for failure, El Paso American Federation of Teachers President Ross Moore told El Paso Matters.

Moore said he was not aware of EPISDs plan before being approached by El Paso Matters.

Roughly 30% of eighth graders in the district took Algebra 1 during the 2023-24 school year, Long said.

Meanwhile, some El Paso school districts have already reached or surpassed the states goal.

About 40% of sixth graders attending the Ysleta Independent School District took advanced math during the 2023-24 school year, and thats expected to reach 50% this coming school year, YISD Chief Academic Officer Brenda Chacon said.

Related

San Francisco Voters Overwhelmingly Support Algebras Return to 8th Grade

Roughly 28% of eighth graders in YISD were enrolled in Algebra 1 in 2023-24, according to Texas Education Agency data compiled by the El Paso nonprofit Council on Regional Economic Expansion and Educational Development  or CREEED.

The Socorro Independent School District had 96% of its eighth graders enrolled in Algebra 1, the data shows.

The district aims to have all its students take the class in middle school with exceptions for those who transferred from another district or were opted out by their parents.

During the 2022-23 school year all of the top performing middle schools in Algebra 1 throughout El Paso had 92% to 98% of its students enrolled in the class.

For the past two school years, SISD had the top five schools with the highest eighth-grade Algebra 1 STAAR test scores in El Paso County.

These include Hernando, Montwood, Ensor, Antwine and Puentes middle schools for the 2023-24 school year.

SISDs assistant superintendent of schools, Enrique Herrera, credited the districts decade-long initiative to get more students into advanced math for this accomplishment.

A lot of the success has happened because of how weve coordinated our curriculum, Herrera told El Paso Matters. For the most part, we try to prep sixth graders with honors math, unless parents want to opt out of it, but they start getting that rigor in sixth grade. Theyre really doubling up in seventh and eighth grade, which then prepares them for the algebra that theyll experience as eighth graders.

Meanwhile, EPISD and the Clint Independent School District had the bottom five performing campuses: Bobby Joe Hill and Tinajero pre-K to eighth-grade schools, and Estrada, Guillen and Horizon middle schools.

How EPISD plans to implement Algebra 1 for eighth graders

EPISD already offered Algebra 1 and advanced math in middle school, which it calls honors courses, to certain students.

All the pre-K through eighth-grade schools had it, but it was either at a parents request or a teachers recommendation, Long said.

Now EPISD plans to reach the states 40% goal and will enroll all eighth graders at seven of its schools into Algebra 1 starting in August, as part of a pilot program.

This includes Brown, Canyon Hills, Charles, Guillen and Wiggs middle schools, and the Bobby Joe Hill and Tinajero pre-K to eighth-grade schools.

These pilot campuses already started working with their seventh-grade students to prep them for the eighth-grade algebra, Long said.

Long said the district plans to have all its eighth graders take algebra by the 2025-26 school year, with exceptions for students who transferred from another school district and were not enrolled in advanced math the previous year.

To ensure all students are prepared for these classes, Long said students who struggle with algebra may have to take two math courses in whats called a double block  two periods that provide more instructional time.

SISD implemented a similar schedule that required students to take an intervention class along with their regular math course.

EPISD students also will be able to get help during an intervention and enrichment period known as What I Need, or WIN.

Long said the period works almost like an elective that allows students who are struggling with their classes to get extra support.

EPISDs WIN period gained controversy when it was first started in the 2023-24 school year after the district in order to implement it eliminated a policy requiring elementary school students to take physical education daily.

The debate over eighth-grade algebra

As lawmakers and educators around the country look into ways to close achievement gaps in education, a debate has brewed about when students should take algebra and who has access to advanced math classes.

Some states have drastically different approaches.

Related

San Fran Ballot Measure Reflects 10-Year Battle to Reinstate 8th-Grade Algebra

In Texas, lawmakers, education advocates and business leaders have pushed for more students to take part in advanced classes to prepare more students to pursue college and enter STEM careers.

Eighth-grade algebra is the gateway to taking advanced math in high school. Taking college-level math courses in high school is predictive of higher rates of postsecondary success, said Gabe Grantham, policy advisor for Texas 2036.

The organization is a nonpartisan Dallas-based think tank that uses research to inform public policy changes.

Students who take college-level math courses in high school are six times more likely to complete college compared to their peers. Completing Algebra 1 in eighth grade has also been linked to higher wages.

In California, lawmakers decided students would need to wait until high school to take Algebra 1 in hopes of addressing inequities in education.

We know that students of color, primarily black and brown students, and students from low-income backgrounds have lower test scores because the opportunities that they have available to them are not as good as their peers. And so because their test scores are lower theyre going to be less likely to be given the opportunity to take algebra in eighth grade, or if they are pushed into algebra early, they might not be as prepared for it as some of their peers, Andrew McEachin, senior research director for the Educational Testing Service Research Institute, told El Paso Matters.

ETS develops and administers educational assessments, including the California High School Exit Exam.

McEachin agreed that eighth-grade algebra can serve as a gateway course to get students into college, but noted schools need to start early to ensure students are prepared for it.

The framing should be around a successful opportunity for students, not so much that they just added or took it. What that means is that theyve been set up for success for that course in eighth grade, and that likely is going to start from kindergarten or the first time they entered the district, McEachin said when asked about EPISDs goal.

Research conducted by the E3 Alliance found that the bottom 60% of performers in fifth-grade math were less successful in completing Algebra I in eighth grade.

E3 Alliance is a Central Texas based collaborative non-profit that aims to transform education through data driven initiatives.

Students who do not demonstrate proficiency in assessments should not be placed in advanced math until they receive the proper support, said Jennifer Cavazos Saenz, E3 Alliance senior director of communications and policy.

Texas school districts that have implemented this approach have seen dramatic drops in student performance and outcomes, Cavazos Saenz said.

Moore agreed it may take more preparation.

Its not ready unless they have good solid backing, they do it in an incremental basis, there is a training plan, personnel aspects have been brought out, and teachers arent being told on the first day back, Youre not teaching eighth-grade math anymore, youre teaching algebra, Moore said.

EPISD leaders said they have implemented a comprehensive approach which includes tutoring for students and additional support for teachers to ensure success for all.

The district is fully staffed with highly qualified and certified teachers who are eager to kickstart this new opportunity. EPISD stands firm in its commitment to supporting teachers and students guaranteeing the success of this Algebra for All offering, EPISD spokesperson Ernie Chacon said in a statement.

Correction: Because of incorrect information provided by the Ysleta Independent School District, an earlier version incorrectly stated the percentage of eighth-grade students enrolled in Algebra 1 in 2023-24.

This article first appeared on El Paso Matters and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
A pop-up Planned Parenthood mobile health clinic is parked in downtown Chicago outside the United Center, the site of the Democratic National Convention, for a two-day clinic that ended Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024. (Courtesy of Planned Parenthood)

This story was originally published by The 19th

Alicia Hurtado of Chicago got the alert Tuesday morning: A person in the region needed an abortion. Could they help?

As a staff member for the Chicago Abortion Fund, an organization that provides resources to people facing barriers to abortion services, Hurtado got to work. Within hours, they and a case manager had plans in motion for the person to get a medication abortion that same day.

The setting for the patient, who Hurtado said was traveling by bus from a state with an abortion ban, was a pop-up mobile health clinic parked in downtown Chicago. It also happened to be located outside the United Center, the site of the Democratic National Convention.

Organizers for the two-day clinic, which wrapped Tuesday, provided not just medication abortions, but also vasectomies. Both services were free to patients who pre-registered for appointments. On both days, the clinic was fully booked.

Im glad that this option was at the right place and the right time for our caller, and all of the people who were able to access the services over the two days, said Hurtado, who helped distribute emergency contraception at the pop-up clinic alongside staff from Planned Parenthood Great Rivers, the St. Louis region affiliate of the national group that hosted the clinic.

The affiliate was the first in the country with a mobile unit like this, and it has traveled the region to provide services.

The DNC was not associated with the clinic. Some anti-abortion protestors appeared outside the mobile unit at times, including at least one person with a van offering services they claimed would help people seeking abortions. At least one company that publicly does not support abortions provided diapers.

Dr. Colleen McNicholas, the chief medical officer for Planned Parenthood Great Rivers, was at the clinic both days. She said organizers knew that tens of thousands of people would be coming from across the country for the DNC, including policymakers and those who influence policy. That offered an opportunity to showcase how Illinois has stepped in to fill abortion gaps left by other states.

When you have policies that support scientifically grounded health care policy, we as providers can be innovative and we can be creative, and we can do more to meet patients where they are, she said. And so, Illinois in many ways can serve as a model for other states.

The U.S. Supreme Courts 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade, which guaranteed federal abortion protections through the second trimester, has created a policy landscape where Republicans have severely restricted the procedure or nearly banned it. Patients have had to turn to out-of-state travel or online to obtain abortion pills.

In the Midwest, states like Illinois and Minnesota, both led by Democrats, have become access havens.

A total of eight medication abortions and nine vasectomies were provided over the two days, according to Planned Parenthood Great Rivers.

McNicholas said that over the two days, she treated patients for both types of care. Some traveled long distances to be there.

The mobile unit is here to do what it does best, and do what Planned Parenthood does best, which is to continue to fill gaps and health care for everyday, regular human beings, she said.

McNicholas also noted that several vasectomy patients expressed wanting the procedure years earlier.

For many of them, the opportunity to have more accessible and, specifically, more affordable, free health care has really made the difference, she said.

Abortion access is already expected to be a defining issue in this historic presidential election, with the major parties offering stark policy contrasts on reproductive health.

Republicans did not highlight abortion during their party convention last month, despite former President Donald Trump crediting his Supreme Court nominees for overturning federal abortion rights in a decision known as Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization. During the first night of the DNC, several women spoke on stage about the roadblocks they faced in seeking abortion care following the ruling.

The issue has motivated other groups in different ways. Voters of Tomorrow, a Gen Z civic engagement group, distributed condoms at the DNC with a message condemning Project 2025.

Hurtado noted the work they did on Tuesday  connecting a person in need with services  is an everyday reality. Hurtado was at the clinic both days to also offer what they described as post-medication abortion care, a kit that included pads, drug pain management, facemasks and tea.

Were constantly connecting the dots of a really complex and ever-changing abortion access landscape, they said.

There have been mounting demands on organizations like the Chicago Abortion Fund. Hurtado said since the Dobbs decision, the staff has fielded over 25,000 requests for support and distributed over $7.5 million in direct assistance. That has helped cover not just abortions, but costs related to travel, food and childcare needs.

Were in this moment of a clear healthcare crisis that is only worsening, they said.

Hurtado is clear about her resolve to help people. That means building what they described as a robust infrastructure.

Were focused on building up our capacity as an abortion fund to ensure that nobody is turned away from a clinic, or nobody is put in a position that they cant even get to a clinic where theyve made an appointment, Hurtado said. That takes a lot of investment, that takes a lot of capacity. But were committed to continuing to do that work.
SEOUL, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- A fire broke out at a hotel in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province of South Korea, leaving one dead and four in cardiac arrest, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported Thursday night, quoting sources with the police. 
The News

Russian mercenaries have become more active in African conflicts since the death of Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin a year ago, a new report suggests.

The number of political violence events involving Russian fighters in Africa was higher in the final quarter of 2023, and in each of the first two quarters of 2024, than in the comparable periods since Wagner group began operations in Africa in 2017. This is according to data from the Armed Conflict Location Event Data (ACLED), a US-based conflict monitoring group.

Prigozhin, who founded Wagner Group, oversaw the deployment of the private military companys fighters in a number of African countries including the Central African Republic, Mali and Libya. He died in a plane crash on Aug. 23 last year, two months after leading a short lived mutiny against Russias defense ministry.

In the fourth quarter of 2023, after Prigozhins death, Russian mercenary activity in Africa doubled from the previous quarter, the ACLED data showed.

The increased activity involving fighters from the group, which Moscow renamed Africa Corps, has largely been driven by the escalating conflict in Mali where the military junta is fighting Tuareg rebels.

Violence involving Russian mercenaries in Mali has spiked 81% since Prigozhins death compared to the previous year.

ACLED analyst Ladd Serwat told Semafor Africa that the increased activity by Russian mercenaries in Africa was likely to continue going into 2025, and potentially spread to new areas.

Recent high-fatality attacks by jihadist insurgents and rebel groups have already led to some retaliatory violence by Russian mercenaries, with further reprisals likely in the near term, Serwat said. The Mali operation was, he said, likely to continue contributing to the elevated levels of political violence in the coming months and may push contestation into new areas.

Know More

Reuters/Yulia Morozova

An ambush by Tuareg separatist rebels and al-Qaeda-linked militants in northern Mali in July saw Russian mercenaries, fighting alongside the Malian Armed Forces, suffer what has been described as Wagners largest loss to date in Africa.

Some 84 Russian military contractors were killed, along with 47 Malian soldiers. The death of Russian fighters prompted a public outpouring of grief in Moscow, with mourners leaving tributes at a shrine in Russias capital.

The ACLED report described Africa Corps as a more direct extension of the Russian Ministry of Defence compared to the Prigozhin-era Wagner Group, whose ties to the Kremlin were often downplayed or hidden.

While many Wagner fighters in Ukraine were reportedly pressured to sign contracts with the Russian military or quit, Moscow largely maintained the groups Africa operations.

Step Back

A report by the Polish Institute of International Affairs says that under new supervision by the Russian Ministry of Defence, Africa Corps has more effectively supported Moscows strategic plans. It has focused on formal security and economic cooperation, in contrast to Wagner Groups past alleged involvement in illicit activities including smuggling and money laundering in Africa.

The new formation is being used to pursue Russian strategic objectives more coherently than was the case under the Prigozhin-led Wagner Group, stated the report, published in May. It noted that Russia aimed to use Africa Corps to displace Western political influence  particularly that of France and the United States  on the continent.

The View From Washington

Cameron Hudson, a senior analyst at the Washington-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies told Semafor Africa the outcome of the upcoming US election could influence how the nation counters Russias growing presence in Africa.

He said Washingtons approach had so far largely been limited to exposing Russian disinformation operations, which isnt nearly enough to check their growing ambitions in Africa.

One could imagine a Trump administration taking a more restrained view and scaling back levels of support and engagement and focusing on only the most critical battleground states with the most strategic value to Washington, said Hudson.

A Harris administration could take a more expansive approach, seeking to counter Russian malign influence wherever it emerges, he said, while stating that approach could spread our attention and resources very thin and have only limited effect.
Almost immediately after Russias Vladimir Putin launched an invasion into Ukraine, Donald Trump has tried to blame the war on the Biden administration. The line has never made sense  even John Bolton, Trumps former White House national security advisor, didnt buy it  but the former president has peddled the line in recent years anyway.

In a speech in North Carolina devoted to national security, however, the Republican added a new chapter to his weird story. This was the anecdote the GOP candidate shared with supporters:

Remember when Biden sent Kamala to Europe to stop the war in Ukraine. She met with Putin, and then three days later, he attacked. How did she do? Do you think she did a good job? She met with Putin to tell him, Dont do it. And three days later, he attacked. Thats when the attack started.

At that point, Trump turned to retired Army Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg and asked, Did you know that, general?

Follow MSNBCs live blog for real-time updates on the final night of the Democratic National Convention.

Cameras didnt capture Kelloggs response, but I have a hunch he wasnt familiar the story about the Harris-Putin meeting  because it only happened in Trumps overactive imagination.

Lets briefly review a handful of pertinent details.

First, Trump still doesnt pronounce Vice President Kamala Harris name correctly.

Second, Harris didnt meet with Putin ahead of Russias invasion of Ukraine. Trump, whose relationship with reality is often fractured, appears to have simply made this up.

Third, the Democratic vice president, shortly before the war began, did attend the 2022 Munich Security Conference, representing the Biden administration. Trump would apparently have people believe that the vice presidents efforts were somehow a failure, but reality suggests otherwise: Harris met with officials from U.S. allies  not with Russias authoritarian leader  and helped solidify the Western alliance, which has been steadfast in its opposition to Moscows aggression.

And finally, Im going to go out on a limb here and say that if anyone should avoid talking about private and undisclosed chats with Putin, its the Republican Partys 2024 presidential nominee. Remember this Politico report from June 2019?

President Donald Trump said Wednesday his lips are sealed about what he and Russian President Vladimir Putin say to each other behind closed doors. Ahead of his expected meeting with Putin on the sidelines of this weekends G-20 Summit in Osaka, Japan, the president told reporters that while he expected to have a positive conversation with Putin, he would not divulge whether he will press the adversarial leader about election interference. I will have a very good conversation with him, Trump said, adding, What I say to him is none of your business.

Months earlier, The Washington Post reported that Trump went to extraordinary lengths to conceal details of his conversations with the Russian autocrat  at one point even taking possession of his own interpreters notes after a conversation with Putin.

Its a dynamic, in other words, in which Trump has to make up an imaginary conversation between Harris and Putin, while Democrats can reference actual conversations between Trump and Putin.

This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
Independent journalist Seamus Malekafzali, an American who lives in Beirut, wanted to make some plans for the weekend. So he opened up Tinder, the location-based dating app. But instead of interested singles, he found an apparent ad from his own government threatening to bomb his city.

"The United States will protect its partners in the face of threats by the Iranian regime and its proxies," the ad read in Arabic, along with images of warplanes and the logo of CENTCOM, the U.S. military command responsible for the Middle East and Central Asia. "Do not take up arms against the United States or its partners."

Just in case the message wasn't clear enough, the ad continued: "CENTCOM is fully prepared with F-16 Fighting Falcon fighters and supersonic A-10 Thunderbolt fighters already in the region." Whoever translated the ad seems to have gotten things mixed up. The F-16 is supersonic and the A-10 is not.

(Screenshots courtesy Seamus Malekafzali)

Malekafzali, who was surprised by the ads, posted screenshots on social media. "I had been getting ads on Twitter from Israel before specifically about Lebanon but ads on Tinder and other apps are usually businesses," he tells Reason. "I've never ever seen a government, especially a military, place an ad in a dating app."

CENTCOM's media team declined to comment. Tinder did not respond to a request for comment.

Israel and Lebanon have a history of conflict, and they have been in a low-grade border war since October 2023, when the Lebanese militia Hezbollah began bombarding the Israeli border in the name of the Palestinian cause.

As of last month, Hezbollah attacks on Israel had killed 23 soldiers and 10 civilians, and Israeli attacks on Lebanon had killed around 366 fighters and 100 civilians. Tens of thousands of people in both countries were forced to flee their homes. So far, the fighting has been contained to border areas, although Israeli jets have frequently buzzed Beirut, the Lebanese capital, and Hezbollah drones have buzzed Haifa, a major Israeli port.

Some Israeli officials have been calling for a full invasion of Lebanon, and there is a growing movement of Israelis who want to conquer and resettle Lebanese territory. Officially, the Biden administration has been opposed to expanding the war. But the administration is also signaling that it will back Israel to the hilt, perhaps even by sending in American forces.

After Israel assassinated a Hezbollah commander in Beirut and a Hamas leader in Tehran last month, the U.S. military moved two aircraft carrier groups and a guided missile submarine into the Middle East. The United States is committed "to take every possible step to defend Israel" from retaliation, Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said.

Buying ads on a dating website is a strange way to signal U.S. support. But it wouldn't be the first time that CENTCOM used taxpayer money to manipulate social media on behalf of another country. In 2017, U.S. military personnel posing as Arab citizens spread messages in support of the Saudi war in Yemen.

How much the Tinder ads cost is unclear. It's also unclear whether ads on a dating app will have the effect that U.S. military planners are hoping foror what audience they're even aimed at. Hezbollah fighters are reportedly banned from using cellphones due to the dangers of location tracking. The likely audience is Lebanese civilians, and there's not much they can do in the face of an impending war.

"The people are rising up against Hezbollah because they were micro-targeted while looking for stuff to do on a Thursday night," Malekafzali joked.

The post Why Is the U.S. Military Buying Tinder Ads in Lebanon? appeared first on Reason.com.
People wear white at the Democratic National Convention to honor the legacy of suffragettes who fought to give women the right to vote on Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago, IL. (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times)

As Vice President Kamala Harris prepared to greet delegates at the final night of the Democratic National Convention on Thursday night, a sea of women clad in white clothing was preparing to meet her.

White suits, white dresses and at least one pair of white lace socks filled the Chicago arena, as women dressed to honor the legacy of suffragists who fought to give women the right to vote  and to celebrate the first Black and Indian American woman to become a major party's nominee.

"Wearing white today reminds everybody that this is women on the move, women who have suffered, who are now taking their rightful place in leadership of Democratic Party politics in a profound way," said Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Los Angeles), who wore a white pantsuit over a colorful blouse. She added that "women are on the ballot," with abortion access such a prominent issue for Democrats this year.

Dressed in all white, Californians Diana Madoshi, 78, left, and Jackie Smith, 68, unfurl a homemade "Kamala" banner before Thursday night's final session of the Democratic National Convention. (Faith Pinho / Los Angeles Times)

Wearing a white top and shorts, Alice Mungia, 62, a teacher from Ontario, said fighting for reproductive rights was the main reason she traveled to the DNC this year. Mungia had two miscarriages which required dilation and curettage procedures. She said she didn't want her granddaughter to have to live through something like that with fewer protections than she had.

"[Republicans] are just sending us back to the kitchen, barefoot and pregnant," she said. "I'm like, what's going on here?"

Jackie Smith of Placer County came decked in full suffragist gear  a white blazer and pants, as well as a wide-brimmed white hat. She topped off her outfit with a sash emblazoned with: "Women win the vote."

Read more: For all her star power, Kamala Harris is still 'a blank slate' to many voters

The convention week coincided with the anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, the constitutional provision that gave women the right to vote in 1920.

"It's not lost on me that I just boarded a flight to Chicago on the 104th anniversary of the 19th Amendment  for which the publication I helped start and I write for is named  to see the first woman of color officially accept the Democratic Party nomination for president," tweeted Errin Haines, editor at large of 19th News  a publication covering the intersection of gender, politics and policy.

"Elections are about the future, but we cannot forget the history also present in this moment."

Democratic women clad in white are becoming an increasingly common spectacle at political bashes.

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wore white to become the first woman accepting the party's nomination for president at the DNC in 2016. In 2018, a sea of women in white filled Congress after a historic number of Democratic women won seats in the House. Female politicians have sported white clothing to most State of the Union addresses in recent years, sometimes with the intention of drawing attention to certain issues such as abortion access.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Wisconsin cast 94 votes for Harris, and one 'present' at DNC. What does that mean?

CHICAGO  When Gov. Tony Evers delivered the roll call of the Wisconsin delegation at the Democratic National Convention Tuesday night, there were 94 votes for Vice President Kamala Harris and one vote "present."

That present vote was cast by Roman Fritz, at 19 one of the youngest members of the delegation and a University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee student. He's part of a small contingent of delegates at the convention who didn't vote for Harris at the roll call over frustration with the administration's handling of the war in Gaza.

Roman Fritz, a Wisconsin Democratic delegate.

"The way that I use it is to protest vote. I could have either exclaimed my support for Kamala Harris, or I could have voted present," Fritz said. He said he still feels supported by the delegation despite getting some "weird looks" at the daily breakfasts.

About 48,000 people in Wisconsin voted "uninstructed delegation" in April's presidential primary election. But they didn't reach the 15% threshold in the Democratic primary to gain formal uninstructed delegates at the convention, while other states like Minnesota did.

Wajiha Akhtar, a delegate from Madison, also wants to see a ceasefire but cast her vote for Harris.

"For me, at the moment, I truly believe that there is collective power in unity with our values," Akhtar said. "I did vote for Harris as a delegate, but at the same time, that doesn't change the fact that I was still pushing for a ceasefire and an arms embargo."

Asked whether she thinks a majority of Wisconsin's 95 delegates support a ceasefire, Akhtar said she hasn't talked individually with everyone in Wisconsin's delegation, but noted many people pushed for a ceasefire resolution at the state party's convention earlier this year.

"I think the overall sympathy for this incredible humanitarian crisis that's happening at the moment is there," she said.

On Thursday morning, Fritz had just returned from a sit-in outside the United Center  the main convention venue where speeches are held  organized by other uncommitted delegates. About 30 uncommitted delegates are attending the convention this week out of about 4,000.

"I got one hour of sleep. I slept on the pavement during the sit-in, and it was very, very cold," Fritz said.

The delegates plan to stay outside the United Center until the campaign allows a Palestinian American to speak onstage. Thursday marks the last night of convention programming.

More: Wisconsin pro-Palestinian activists heading to Chicago to join Gaza war protests at DNC

More: Muslim Women for Harris-Walz disbands after Palestinian speaker denied a slot at DNC

Fritz supported letting parents of an Israeli American hostage speak at the convention. "I think that's a horrible, horrible problem, and it's important to bring attention to that," Fritz said. "But when you're bringing attention to something like that, you have to be consistent across the board, and that means including Palestinian Americans."

Asked if he would still vote for Harris in the Nov. 5 election, Fritz said "it's the politically strategic thing to do to vote for Harris in November. That doesn't mean that I think the youth are going to be voting with me."

Harris will need young voters to succeed, he said, and they need to feel enthusiastic about her policies. Those would include an arms embargo on Israel, a ceasefire and including a Palestinian American in the speaker lineup, Fritz said.

"Kamala Harris has called for a ceasefire," he said. "The issue with that, I think, is she hasn't had a tenable plan for a ceasefire. You can call for something, but not have a plan to work towards it."

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Why one Wisconsin delegate voted 'present' during the DNC roll call
These Wisconsin grocery stores and businesses are open on Labor Day 2024

Shoppers looking for any last minute items to bring to Labor Day gatherings this year have several grocery options in Milwaukee.

Here's a look at what's opened and closed on the holiday in 2024:

When is Labor Day 2024?

Labor Day falls on Monday, Sept. 2, 2024.

Which grocery stores are open or closed on Labor Day 2024?

Here's a list of grocery stores in Wisconsin that are open and closed on Labor Day 2024:

Is Walmart open on Labor Day?

Walmart locations will be open regular hours from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Labor Day, a company spokesperson told the Journal Sentinel. To check the hours of your local Walmart location, you can use the online store directory here.

Is Target open on Labor Day?

Target locations will be open on Labor Day, according to the company's website. Hours of operation are from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. You can find specific holiday hours for your local store using the the company's store locator.

Are Kroger stores open on Labor Day?

Most Kroger stores will be open on Labor Day. You can check with your local store for specific hours. Kroger stores in Wisconsin include Metro Market and Pick 'n Save locations.

Is Costco open on Labor Day?

Costco will be closed on Labor Day, according to the company's website.

Is Aldi open on Labor Day?

Aldi stores operate limited hours on Labor Day, according to the company's website. You can find specific holiday hours for your local store using the store locator.

Is Whole Foods open on Labor Day?

Whole Foods locations will be open on Labor Day during regular hours, from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., a spokesperson told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Is the post office, UPS or other businesses open on Labor Day 2024?

Here's a list of other businesses and schools that will be open and closed on Labor Day 2024:

Is the post office open on Labor Day?

Post office locations are closed on Labor Day and there will be no residential or business deliveries on the holiday, according to its website.

Is UPS open on Labor Day?

UPS pickup and delivery is not available on Labor Day, according to the company's website. Store locations may be closed, so be sure to check with your local store for specific hours of operation.

Will the city of Milwaukee garbage pickup change on Labor Day?

The city of Milwaukee will pause garbage collection on Labor Day 2024. Make sure to check your schedule to see when garbage pickup is scheduled for your area.

Are schools closed on Labor Day?

Milwaukee Public Schools do not have school on Labor Day. You can find the school calendar on the MPS website.

RELATED: Here's everything you need to know about the 2024 Third Ward Art Festival

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Which Wisconsin grocery stores, businesses are open on Labor Day 2024?
The Wisconsin Supreme Court chambers. (Henry Redman | Wisconsin Examiner)

The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Thursday accepted a petition from the Democratic National Committee to hear a lawsuit challenging the Green Partys access to the presidential ballot in November.

Democrats had previously filed a complaint with the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) against the Green Partys candidate for president, Jill Stein, alleging she should not be placed on the states presidential ballot because the Green Party of Wisconsin does not have official state officers who can serve as presidential electors.

The WEC denied the Democrats complaint on a technicality, prompting the party to bring the lawsuit to the Supreme Court.

Earlier this year, the WEC voted to allow the Green Party onto the ballot because it got at least 1% of the vote in a statewide election in 2022.

But the Democrats argue that the party cant nominate presidential electors in Wisconsin and without electors, the party cant be on the ballot. State law requires that presidential electors nominated in October be state officers, which includes members of the Legislature, judges and others. Legislative candidates can also be electors.

The statute states that presidential electors must be candidates for the senate and assembly nominated by each political party at the primary, the state officers of each political party and the holdover state senators of each political party.

The complaint alleges the Green Party doesnt have anyone who qualifies, so it cant be on the ballot.

Because the Wisconsin Green Party has no affiliated individuals who are eligible under Wisconsin law to nominate presidential electors for the Wisconsin Green Party, the Party cannot as a matter of law field a candidate for president for which electors in [each] county may vote, the petition from the DNC states.

Wisconsin Green Party officials have said the organizations coordinating council functions as its state officers, who can serve as electors.

In a dissent against the majority decision to accept the case written by Justice Rebecca Bradley and joined by Chief Justice Annette Ziegler, Bradley objected to the lawsuits accelerated timeline. After accepting the case on Thursday, the Court ordered that the parties involved file responses to the Democrats 5 p.m. on Friday.

To my knowledge, at no time in history has the court issued such orders before parties had made their appearances or retained lawyers, Bradley wrote. While WEC has the Department of Justice for counsel, nothing in the record suggests the Wisconsin Green Party has even retained counsel yet.

Dr. Michael White, chair of the Wisconsin Green Party, said the party is still looking for legal representation.

We do not have counsel, we have not had opportunity to obtain counsel, White told the Wisconsin Examiner. This is an effort to silence dissenting voices in swing states. We will fight to the best of our ability. It is the position of the Wisconsin Green Party that all voices should be heard and all votes should be counted.

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KALAMAZOO, Mich. (WOOD)  Western Michigan University students are waving goodbye to their parents as they move into campus this week.

WMU Housing and Residence Life officials told News 8 on Thursday that the process was going smoothly thanks to scheduled times for moving in, something the university launched during the pandemic.

Nervous, excited GVSU students move in

Were just really excited to have our students back on campus. Campus looks really different in the summertime. And so today kind of kicks off that vibrancy. We just love having our students on campus. Interacting with our families is absolutely amazing, Housing and Residence Life Director Roshona Porter said.

Some changes to the Kalamazoo campus include the reopening of Henry hall after interior updates like new bathrooms, carpeting and furniture. The facelift is expected to accommodate students as the Valley 3 residence hall is demolished to make space for a new residence hall.

Students move in at Western Michigan University on Aug. 22, 2024.

Students move in at Western Michigan University on Aug. 22, 2024.

Students move in at Western Michigan University on Aug. 22, 2024.

Some first-years students said leaving home is bittersweet, but they are excited for the school year.

Its a little sad. At the same time, its like its a good thing because its new beginnings and moving on in life, freshman Antoine Jones of Grand Rapids, who will study aviation at WMU, said.

Im excited. Its a long journey, Jones mom Tasha Irvin said. Its my second oldest going off to college, and its hard being a single mom and pushing your kids to do the right thing for yourself in life.

Freshmen move into MSU and say goodbye to family for now

Thursday also marked the kickoff of the Fall Welcome for first-year students. Classes begin Aug. 28.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com.
Woman, 20, shot in forearm while standing at street corner in Barrio Logan

Woman, 20, shot in forearm while standing at street corner in Barrio Logan

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI)  A young woman was shot in the forearm in a seemingly random attack in Barrio Logan early Thursday morning, according to San Diego police.

The shooting occurred just after 3 a.m. The victim, identified as a 20-year-old woman, had been standing at the intersection of Dalbergia and Vesta streets.

According to SDPD, a male suspect approached the woman as she was standing there, produced a firearm and began shooting at her. The suspect then fled the scene prior to officers arrival. No exchange, dispute or physical altercation occurred prior to the gunshots, SDPD noted.

Police investigating smash-and-grab at Rancho Bernardo jewelry store

The victim sustained one non-life-threatening gunshot wound to her right forearm in the shooting. She was transported by ambulance to a hospital for treatment.

An investigation into the incident remains ongoing by SDPDs Central Division Investigations Unit.

At this time, police are working to identify the suspect. He was last seen wearing all black clothing and a black mask, according to SDPD. No additional identifying details about the suspect were provided.

Anyone with information on the incident is encouraged to contact SDPD or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477.

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 5 San Diego & KUSI News.
Woman arrested on warrant for driving while intoxicated with a child

Woman arrested on warrant for driving while intoxicated with a child

EL PASO, Texas (KTSM)  A woman who was wanted for an active personal recognizance bond revocation warrant for driving while intoxicated with a child under 15-years-old was recently taken into custody, according to the El Paso County Constable Office Precinct Three.

The El Paso County Constable Office says on Thursday, Aug. 22, deputies received information about the revocation warrant on Jeanette Liles, 33.

Deputies took Liles into custody at the 11000 block of Art Wall and she was booked into the El Paso County Jail under a $100,000 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.
KATHMANDU, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Nepal's cabinet on Thursday lifted a months-long ban on the popular short-video app TikTok, a cabinet minister said.

"The cabinet decided to lift the ban on TikTok under certain conditions," said Prithvi Subba Gurung, minister for communication and information technology, who is also the government's spokesperson.

"As TikTok agreed to abide by the social media operation directives issued by the Nepali government after being registered in Nepal, the decision to lift the ban was taken," the minister told the press.

The Nepali government imposed a ban on TikTok in November last year. 
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)  A Buffalo woman is facing a host of charges for an alleged drive-by shooting earlier this month, the Erie County District Attorneys Office said Thursday.

Rhodesia Anderson, 34, is accused of shooting into a group of people as she drove past the entrance of a store on the corner of Genesee and May streets on the afternoon of Aug. 2.

One man was shot in the hand and was treated at ECMC. Prosecutors said the shooting came following a physical altercation with a known associate outside of the store.

Anderson was taken into custody Tuesday after being located on Buffalos West Side. She is charged with the following:

second-degree attempted murder

first-degree attempted assault

second-degree criminal possession of a weapon

second-degree assault

first-degree reckless endangerment

If convicted of the highest charge, she faces up to 25 years in prison. She is currently being held on bail.

Latest Local News

Aidan Joly joined the News 4 staff in 2022. He is a graduate of Canisius College. You can see more of his work here.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to News 4 Buffalo.
Woman charged with hate crime for assaulting Uber driver in Manhattan: DA

Woman charged with hate crime for assaulting Uber driver in Manhattan: DA

MANHATTAN, N.Y. (PIX11)  The woman who pepper-sprayed an Uber driver in the Upper East Side on July 31 is now being charged with a hate crime, the Manhattan District Attorneys Office announced.

Jennifer Guilbeault, 23, was arraigned on Monday on charges of assault and assault as a hate crime.

More Local News

The attack was caught on camera, and the victim spoke exclusively to PIX11 News.

Shohel Mahmud, the veteran Uber driver, believes the incident was racially motivated, but Guilbeault denies that.

Mahmud was on the phone while passengers Jennifer Guilbeault and a friend were quietly sitting in the backseat.

Then, 90 seconds into three minutes of dashcam video, Guilbeault suddenly stands up, yelling. According to police, the 23-year-old unprovokedly attacked Mahmud and pepper-sprayed him in the face.

Mahmud described the attack, saying, My whole face was burning. It lasted two hours. He also feared that the attackers were going to hijack his car.

Man, 71, brutally attacked on Manhattan subway platform: NYPD

According to the complaint, the attack happened after Mahmud began praying in Arabic at an intersection. When her friend asked why she attacked Mahmud, Guilbeault allegedly responded, hes brown.

Following arraignment, Guilbeault was granted supervised release. She is due back in court on October 3.

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.
Woman who checked into hospital and vanished was actually in the morgue, family learns

A California woman who was the subject of a year-long search by her family was dead and decomposing in a Northern California hospital's warehouse morgue the entire time because the hospital never notified the family of her death, according to a new lawsuit.

Jessie Marie Peterson, 31, died at Mercy San Juan Medical Center in Carmichael, California, on April 8, 2023, from cardiopulmonary arrest, something her family, including her mother, Ginger Congi, never learned of until April 12, 2024, according to a civil complaint obtained by USA TODAY.

I had bad thoughts that she might be lying some place, decomposing, and nobody knew where she was and that we might never see her again, Congi told USA TODAY. Turns out she was lying decomposing some place, but somebody knew where she was, and they didn't tell us.

Pictured is Jessie Marie Peterson

The complaint filed on Aug. 7 in Sacramento Superior Court alleges that Mercy San Juan Medical Center, whose parent company is Dignity Health, indicated that Peterson discharged herself on April 8, 2023, against medical advice. In truth, "Jessie had died while in the care of Mercy San Juan," according to the complaint.

She was admitted to the hospital after suffering a diabetic episode on April 6, 2023, the document says.

Peterson's death certificate was not completed until nearly a year after her death, the complaint says. Since Peterson's family did not know she died, they "tirelessly tried to locate (her)," including filing a Missing Persons report with the Sacramento County Sheriffs Office, the court document continued.

The lawsuit also alleges that this is not the first time Mercy San Juan has mishandled a decedent. Since the news of Petersons case has spread, the family's attorney, Marc Greenberg, told USA TODAY that other people have called him to say their loved ones faced similar fates at Dignity Health hospitals.

"We extend our deepest sympathies to the family during this difficult time. We are unable to comment on pending litigation," a spokesperson for Dignity Health told USA TODAY.

Jessie Marie Peterson's body found 'decomposed'

The Sacramento County Detectives Office notified Congi and others on April 12 that they found Peterson deceased at Mercy San Juan Hospital, according to the complaint. Her body was being stored in the medical center's off-site warehouse morgue.

"At this point, Jessies body was so decomposed that an open casket funeral was not feasible, and Jessies fingerprints were not even obtainable for any keepsake," the complaint continued. "Mercy San Juan hospital advertises that 'at our care facilities, we take pride in treating all people with dignity and respect.' In this case, there was no dignity and no respect."

On the day of Peterson's death, she called Congi and asked her mother to pick her up because she was going to leave the hospital, the complaint says. This would be the final time Congi ever heard her daughter speak because Peterson was pronounced dead by the medical center at 4:27 p.m., two hours after that phone call.

"It's pretty heartbreaking that we now know she was just transferred to a storage facility less than 24 hours after she died and placed in a freezer on a shelf some place and forgotten," Congi said. "It makes me angry that they just discarded her like she was a piece of furniture."

Who was Jessie Marie Peterson?

Peterson, who grew up in Sacramento along with her sisters Angie and Chandra, is described in the complaint as a "very loving and energetic person." She was diagnosed with Type I diabetes at the age of 10, which "affected her energy and participation in gymnastics when she was younger."

She loved us all she was the kind of kid that would give you the last Jelly Belly out of her pocket, even though it was full of fuzz," Congi said, per WXIA-TV.

Peterson was a member of Roseville High School's water polo and dance teams before she graduated and went on to attend Sierra College in Rocklin, California, the complaint says. She then became a prosecuting attorney for the Placer County Peer Court.

Peterson had been admitted to Mercy San Juan Hospital before her death, including on Jan. 10, 2023, when she suffered a separate diabetic episode. She also underwent surgery at the medical center on Jan. 14, 2023, to treat an infection in her right foot, according to the complaint.

"While a patient that doesnt survive may be just another lifeless body to Mercy San Juan hospital, Jessie was a family member, daughter, and sister, all of whom deserved the dignity and respect Mercy San Juan grossly failed to provide. Even to this day, the hospital has not apologized to Jessies family members," the complaint says.

Peterson's family is seeking $5 million in damages and "five times the jurys award of actual damages" to "punish" the medical center for "their outrageous and inexcusable negligence and complete disregard for the dignity of Jessie," according to the complaint.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jessie Peterson's family sues California hospital in hidden-death case
Police are searching for a woman who hopped over a safety fence to approach, and taunt, a tiger at the Cohanzick Zoo in Bridgeton, New Jersey. The Bridgeton Police Department released a video of the incident on their social media channels on Tuesday, August 20th, though it's unclear when the incident took place. ABC News also shared the video on Wednesday, August 21st.

The video starts with the woman already face to face with the tiger. She can be seen taunting the big cat, who appears to be agitated by her presence. Soon after, she put her hand through the fence and was almost bit. She then turned around to face someone behind her before jumping back over the safety fence.

ABC News commenters were not impressed by the unidentified woman's actions. Many commenters said the woman was cruel, while others were 'rooting' for the cat to attack the woman like @Duane Brown740, "I was rooting for the kitty!" while @Jen said simply, "Idiot." @Paumanok shared just how fast these tigers can move, "There is a tiger sanctuary nearby and the cats hit the fence at 30 MPH and are gone. Folks who wander too close can hear it but see nothing. The cats cant get out, but they hit fast and hard and are gone."

Related: Tiger Cub Supervises Window Washing at Nashville Zoo and Its the Cutest

More About the Woman Who Taunted the Tiger at Cohanzick Zoo

Bridgeton PD said in a statement posted on Facebook, "A female at the Cohanzick Zoo went over the wooden fence at the tiger enclosure and began enticing the tiger almost getting bit by putting her hand through the wire enclosure. We are asking if anyone recognizes the female in the video/photo." They went on to say, "Reminder to the public when visiting the zoo that it is against City Ordinance to climb over any fence." and included contact information should anybody have any information. They requested that anybody with information call Patrolman Cusano at 856-451-0033, extension 0, or send anonymous tips to BPD.TIPS.

Different zoos have different penalties for approaching animal enclosures. For example, according to the Denver Zoo's website, violators can face a criminal citation with penalties of up to 300 days in jail and a $999 fine. This includes actions like feeding, chasing, or teasing the animals like the woman in the video.

This video serves up a couple of common sense reminders that apparently aren't common sense for everybody. Zoos and wildlife parks that house wild animals have rules for a reason, the main reason being that wild animals are dangerous. If the woman would've been bitten, she probably would've sued because the barrier was climbable even though common sense tells most of us not to go over it unless you want to get eaten. It also is a great reminder about the importance of these safety guidelines and respecting boundaries put in place for the safety of you and the animals. I hope this woman is found and receives some sort of punishment. I'll continue to follow this story and report if she is found.

Looking for more PetHelpful updates? Follow us on YouTube for more entertaining videos. Or, share your own adorable pet by submitting a video, and sign up for our newsletter for the latest pet updates and tips.


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One night last year, just weeks before one of the deadliest wildfires in American history decimated Maui, Adri Haias great-grandmothers visited her in a dreamone from her Native Hawaiian background, and the other from her Filipina side. Go do the work, they both told her. Haia awoke with a start. She didnt know what it meant. But after the fires leveled her hometown of Lahaina, she would find out.

Haia was working as a postpartum doula, offering emotional support to local mothers navigating stress and loneliness. She also hosted informal discussions about womanhood from a shed in her backyard that she nicknamed the She-Shed. Nestled into a futon decorated with a pillow reading Lets Talk Story, a Hawaiian phrase for sharing wisdom and experiences, Haia would listen to struggles of infertility, miscarriage, and motherhood.

But on Aug. 8, 2023, the 35-year-old found herself fleeing the safety of the She-Shed and steering her Honda Odyssey through smoke-filled streets with five of her kids and two pet bunnies in tow.



As the flames inched closer, and she maneuvered through violent wind and flying debris, Haias heart began to race. She turned to the same techniques she often taught other women in the She-Shed. Its okay to be scared, she reminded her children, narrating the moment aloud. Were in the car. Were listening to the radio. Focus on the ocean, she urged, as a telephone pole crashed to the ground ahead of them. Worst case scenario, Haia told her kids calmly, mom is just going to leave her car. Grab the backpacks. Keep moving. We will walk.

Portia Marcelo

Like many Lahaina residents, Haia did not receive any official warning to evacuate. Luckily, she and her husband had devised an escape plan after a wildfire in 2018 also forced them to flee their home: In case of an emergency, they would meet at a luxury resort eight miles away, where Haia had worked as a maid part-time and he cleaned the pools.

When she arrived, guests were milling about the lobby, completely unaware of the horrors her family had just narrowly escaped. Her husband arrived later, after steering his electric bike through the smoke to find two of their daughters, as well as his parents. They managed to make it out before fire swallowed the streets.

Their family home and the She-Shed didnt burn down, but many neighbors and extended family were not as fortunate. The blaze damaged or destroyed around 3,000 Lahaina properties and killed 102 people . Other survivors ended up in the hotel, including a local woman with two toddlers, one of whom darted into a burning building to save his grandmabut was too late. There were countless stories of pets being left behind and missing friends. Haias 13-year-old daughter, Kensy, was initially separated from the rest of the family when the inferno spread. Kensy had called Haia, screaming that the fire was close, before they got disconnected. Its really hard for my daughter to voice what shes been through, Haia said. I just give space, I dont force her [to talk].

The Red Cross and FEMA helped survivors in need of shelter check into the hotel where Haia and her family were staying. The lobby had been converted into an emergency donation hub for clothes and food. Over the next few weeks, 1,400 survivors took up temporary residence at the resort, a portion of the 8,000 displaced people who ended up sheltering in hotels and rentals across the island.

Months passed by in the hotel. The bunnies did not survive the move. Some days, volunteers dropped off coloring books for kids and stress balls for adults. Haia felt grateful, but stuck. She was frightened to bring her family back home. In December, the Hawaii Department of Health released data showing elevated levels of arsenic, lead, cobalt, and copper in wildfire ash collected in Lahaina. The department advised that the ash was toxic, and that children should not play near the burned areas. They would not be going back any time soon.

Haia missed her meetings with women in the She-Shed. Familiar faces began reaching out on social media or stopping by the hotel to share their stories. Haia coaxed a local mom shed known long before the fires to see her. The woman, who was also staying at the hotel, said it was hard to even leave her room. Im losing my mind, she said. Haia could relate. Looking around the lobby one afternoon, Haia admitted, It just kind of feels like a luxurious jail.

Portia Marcelo

To cope with the uncertainty, she forced herself into new routines, like spending time with her cousin, who also lived at the hotel with her son and husband after their home burned down. They walked on the beach together, along with other moms at the hotel and their kids. Sometimes, they watched the sun sink into the ocean. Hues of lavender, baby blue, cotton-candy pink, and orange glimmering through shreds of silvery clouds. Everything was different now, but thisthis never changed.

Even before the fires, housing inventory was scarce on Maui. Off-island real estate investors snatched up properties and turned them into vacation rentals. In west Maui, where Lahaina is, only 34 percent of all housing units are used for residents; the rest are second homes and vacation rentals.

Six months after the fires, tourists were already back to booking their Hawaiian vacations and honeymoons. But many locals like Haia still had nowhere to live. There were two different realities on the island, Haia said. By spring, the push to move families out of hotels grew more expeditious. Hundreds of fire evacuees were being relocated into new shelters and temporary housing every week .



In April, Haia and her family moved back to their three-bedroom home in Lahaina. Nine of Haias in-laws had been left homeless after the fires, and to her, there was no question about where they would end up. Her culture embraced multigenerational housing, keeping grandparents close to grandchildren.

Today, there are 19 family members living on the Haia property. Some stay in a newly-built backyard structure next to the She-Shed; others sleep in a storage unit in the front driveway. They also converted the garage into a living space. With everyones pets, they now have six dogs. The living situation is tight, but manageable.

Since Mauis Department of Health eventually deemed the burned land safe to live on, residents are applying for permits to rebuild. Maui Mayor Richard Bison urged the state to pass legislation reverting rentals to long-term use, something residents have been pushing for. We simply cannot continue to prioritize offshore investments over the needs of our people, he said, calling housing for Hawaiins a basic human need.

Mario Tama

The community has been rebuilding in other ways. Haia now works as a care coordinator for Maui Behavioral Health Resources Pulama na Ohana team, which is part of a network of nonprofit agencies offering mental health, substance abuse, and trauma support to wildfire survivors and island residents. Theres still a lot of lingering trauma from what happeneda constant wave of grief that we feel, Haia explained. We dont know how to process it. We may not know how to even vocalize it.

The University of Hawaii is conducting a study that aims to track at least 1,000 Lahaina wildfire survivors over the next decade. Alika Maunakea, a professor co-leading the study, said that, so far, more than half of the participants have reported feeling depressed and 30 percent are suffering from anxiety.

After the fires, the federal government contributed $17.3 million to support mental health services for survivors. But many locals are still consumed with day-to-day survival and do not always trust outsiders or the government, a wariness that can be traced back to Hawaiis colonial history. Weve had things just taken from us, prior to the fire, Haia said. You have to learn how to build a relationship.



Back home, Haia got right to work. On a recent afternoon, she sat cross-legged on the floor of the She-Shed, surrounded by crystals, candles, and art gifted to her by women in the community. She welcomes them in at no charge. After the fires, safe places like this have taken on a new meaning. This is my calling, she says, remembering what her grandmas said in the dream, my responsibility.

Every week, she hosts meetings. We get to sit, and we get to be present, she says. We get to listen to their stories. Survivors are now scattered all over the island and beyond, so its not always easy to gather physically in one place. Yet the need is deeper than ever. People are still looking for housing and employment; theyre still in mourning. The weight of what happened hasnt stopped taking its toll. Even if only a few women show up to the circles, Haia wants them to know she is here for them.

Photos of life in Lahaina before the fires regularly pop up on Haias phonea reminder of the people she knew who left, or died; a reminder of the places she and her family once loved, places that are now gone. There was a point where I grieved my old life, like I would give anything to go back, she says.

Haia tells herself what she told her kids on the day they escaped the fire, and what she tells the women who come see her: Some days are more uncomfortable than others, but Im choosing to keep moving forward.

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1 in custody, woman seriously injured in far East El Paso

1 in custody, woman seriously injured in far East El Paso

EL PASO, Texas (KTSM)  A subject was taken into custody on Thursday, Aug. 22, after an injured woman arrived at a neighbors door in far East El Paso.

El Paso Police say they responded just after 6 a.m. to a welfare check Thursday on the 3300 block of Tierra Mision.

Once police arrived, they located a woman in her upper 30s who was seriously injured and was transported to a local hospital.

A spokesperson with the El Paso Fire Department also says that officials were called out at 6:18 a.m. to reports of an injured woman arriving at a neighbors door.

Police activity was seen in the area Thursday morning.

No further information has been released.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW)  A 58-year-old woman was shot and killed outside of her daughters home overnight on Tuesday, the Horry County Coroners Office said.

Diana Osborne of Longs was killed in the shooting, which happened on Star Bluff Road in the Longs area, Chief Deputy Coroner Tamara Willard said. It happened at about 12:30 a.m. on Tuesday.

Horry County police said Ramondez Deandre Myers, 20, is wanted in the shooting. He may be driving a white 2011 Hyundai Sonata with South Carolina license plate WPW749. He may be armed.

No additional information was immediately available. Horry County police are investigating.

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 Find todays top stories on WBTW.com for the Grand Strand and Pee Dee.

Count on News13 for updates.

* * *

Caleb is a digital producer at News13. Caleb joined the team in January 2023 after graduating from Liberty University. He is from Northern Virginia. Follow Caleb on X, formerly Twitter, and read more of his work here.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WBTW.
KANSAS CITY, Mo.  A Topeka woman has pleaded guilty in a case regarding theft from an elderly woman.

Beverly Anne Freeman, 64, of Topeka, pleaded guilty on Wednesday, August 21 on charges related to stealing over $42,000 from a woman under her guardianship. Freeman is facing two counts of mistreatment of a dependent adult or elderly person and one count of unlawful acts concerning computers.

According to court documents, Freeman was appointed as the guardian of an elderly family member. This allowed her to facilitate payments from the victims bank account to a nursing home in Easton, Kansas. During this process, it was found that Freeman was using the victims account for personal gain and not paying the nursing home bills.

Woman charged in Kansas City crash where 93-year-old was killed

Freeman used online banking, phones and ATMs to take the money which she used for things like food purchases and bill payments.

The Leavenworth County Attorney, Todd Thompson put out this statement regarding the incident:

Check on the elderly and ask questions if you ever think anything is suspicious. This victim shouldve been able to trust that her guardian had her best interest in hand, but that simply wasnt the case.

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for September 25.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
CHICAGO  The womens caucus was cut short Tuesday when Pro-Palestine protesters interrupted Governor Tim Walz while speaking.

Governor Waltz stop murdering children in Gaza, one of the protesters shouted. Behind her stood a group holding up a banner that read Kamala No Weapons to Israel.

The womens caucus, who had hosted the event, rushed the speakers off the stage as security escorted the protesters out of the banquet room.

Eventually, the womens caucus continued the array of speakers that were set. However, tensions were still high causing some delegates to leave. As they trickled out, they were met with more protesters exclaiming that Palestine is a feminist issue. One convention goer felt aggravated that these protesters blamed not only Kamala Harris and Walz but the democratic party as a whole. She said now is the time for democrats to be united. We are for peace. We are fighting for the futurefor our kids.

Former Onondaga County lawmaker and delegate, Peggy Chase recognizes protesters need to get their message out but wants to make it clear her party is not divisive. They come to be disruptiveand to make sure theyre heard, Chase said. Moreover, Chase emphasized she thinks its important they know elected officials are not just representing one side but everyone.

Since its start, there have been multiple attempts by Pro-Palestine protesters to interfere with the DNCs progress. However, the program has continued to run as scheduled.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WSYR.
Hadley Duvall, a sexual assault survivor, speaks onstage during the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on Monday in Chicago. She appeared alongside reproductive rights advocates from states with post-Roe abortion restrictions. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) (This image cannot be republished unless you have a Getty subscription.)

Most major party leaders who took the stage at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Illinois, mentioned that Vice President Kamala Harris would work to restore federal abortion rights if elected president.

But the most poignant remarks about the issue on the DNCs first day came from Southern women who had traumatic pregnancies and spoke about the erosion of abortion rights since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade more than two years ago.

Kaitlyn Joshua of Louisiana, Amanda Zurawski of Texas and Hadley Duvall of Kentucky spoke at the convention on Monday night. Joshua and Zurawski were denied care for pregnancy complications in 2022. Duvall, a 22-year-old who became pregnant as a child after she was raped by her stepfather, has called for exceptions to Kentuckys abortion ban for sexual assault survivors.

At age 12, I took my first pregnancy test, and it was positive, Duvall told the DNC crowd. That was the first time I was ever told, You have options. I cant imagine not having a choice, but today, thats the reality for many women and girls across the country because of Donald Trumps abortion bans.

Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, nominated three of the Supreme Court justices who voted to overturn Roe v. Wade during his first term as president.

Joshua spoke about being denied miscarriage treatment when she was pregnant with her second child. Two emergency rooms sent me away. Because of Louisianas abortion ban, no one would confirm that I was miscarrying, she said.

Appearing alongside her husband, Zurawski said delayed pregnancy care threatened her life. Every time I share our story, my heart breaks for the baby girl we wanted so desperately, for the doctors and nurses who couldnt help me deliver safely, for Josh who feared hed lose me too, she said.

All three women have campaigned in battleground states such as Florida, Michigan and Wisconsin this year for Harris, the Democratic Partys presidential nominee, and President Joe Biden before he suspended his reelection bid. Like Biden, Harris has pledged to sign legislation codifying the federal right to an abortion if shes elected and if Congress passes such a bill.

Our daughters deserve better. America deserves better, Joshua said.

During a campaign stop in Florida last week, she told the story of how she was 11 weeks pregnant when she drove herself to an emergency room in Baton Rouge after experiencing heavy bleeding, Florida Phoenix reported. Providers said her fetus stopped growing but sent her home and said they would pray for her. Joshua went to a different hospital after her bleeding worsened, but she was told to go home again until her pregnancy passed.

I no longer feel safe being pregnant in Louisiana, Joshua wrote in an opinion piece for Louisiana Illuminator this spring. Not as a Black woman who received inadequate and delayed medical care while enduring a painful miscarriage because of my home states abortion ban.

When Zurawski learned her state enacted its trigger law after the Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization ruling in June 2022, she was in the intensive care unit of a hospital dealing with septic shock, according to Texas Tribune. Days earlier, she found out she had premature prelabor rupture of the membranes at 18 weeks of pregnancy. Zurawski was initially denied an abortion  her fetus had cardiac activity  until she went into sepsis.

What I went through was nothing short of barbaric, and it did not need to happen, Zurawski said in May while campaigning for Biden in Madison, Wisconsin. It was completely avoidable. It was preventable.

Zurawski is one of the plaintiffs who sued Texas last year asking for clarity on what type of medical emergency warrants abortion under the states bans. The state Supreme Court rejected the challenge in May, ruling that medical exceptions in the law were broad enough, the Tribune reported.

While Joshua and Zurawski have often traveled together in swing states to share their stories of denied care in a post-Roe United States, Duvall rose to prominence after she appeared in an ad for Kentucky Democratic Gov. Andy Beshears reelection campaign last year.

Duvall, who miscarried a pregnancy resulting from assault, criticized Beshears opponent and former Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron for his lack of support for adding rape and incest exceptions to the states ban, Kentucky Lantern reported. To tell a 12-year-old girl she must have the baby of her stepfather who raped her is unthinkable, she said.

She has since become a reproductive rights advocate and hit the campaign trail for national Democrats, appearing alongside Harris on MSNBC in June and in an ad for Biden last month.

There are other survivors out there who have no options, Duvall said Monday before introducing Beshears DNC speech. And I want you to know that we see you. We hear you.

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NEW DELHI, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Security paraphernalia in southern India went into a tizzy on Thursday morning after a phone call was received regarding a bomb being placed inside a flight flying from Mumbai to Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of the southern state of Kerala.

The flight, belonging to the private airline company "Air India," landed safely at the Thiruvananthapuram airport under emergency conditions.

Immediately after landing, all passengers were evacuated and the aircraft was parked in the isolation bay at the airport.

There were 135 passengers onboard the flight number AI-657, confirmed an official at the Thiruvananthapuram airport.

The aircraft was scanned by security personnel, but no explosive material was found yet. The call seemed to be a hoax.

Media reports quoted a statement by the Thiruvananthapuram airport as saying, "There has been no impact on life. Airport operations are currently uninterrupted." 
Students and law enforcement officers are mourning the sudden death of a school resource officer.

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>> PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Community mourning unexpected death of sheriffs deputy

As reported on News Center 7 at 6, Joel Markowski was working as a school resource officer for the Butler County Sheriffs Office when he died unexpectedly, collapsing without warning.

The way he connected with people is being missed across the area.

Great guy, infectious smile, he always lit up the room, Capt. Rich Bucheit with Butler County Sheriffs Office said.

Bucheit said that Markowski was serving his second term with the sheriffs office as a school resource officer at Edgewood Schools near Middletown.

Did a great job, the kids love him, the teachers ... just a wonderful person, he said.

Markowski also worked for the Sugarcreek Township Police Department in the past.

He was assigned as a school resource officer at Bellbrook Schools.

He did everything the sheriffs office asked of him, above and beyond, the sheriff is big on treating people well and he did that, Bucheit said.

Markowski also served in the military.

But the biggest thing in Markowskis life was his family, Bucheit said.

Any conversation you ever had with him always went back to his family and very proud of his family and just a great guy, he said.

Markowski also worked as an officer at Miami Valley Hospital.

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SIOUX CITY, Iowa (KCAU)  Woodbury Countys finance director has passed away Wednesday after battling cancer.

The Missouri River Boat Club said on Sunday that Woodbury Countys finance director Dennis Butlers battle with cancer was coming to an end. The Boat Club said, Our friend Dennis Butler that is the heart and soul of the Boat Club has been fighting cancer very hard but unfortunately his brave fight is coming to an end and is preparing for heaven. Please feel free to send a message of love and support here as I know Theresa will be reading them to Dennis and would cherish hearing from you all! We love you Dennis! God speed!

Woodbury County Board of Supervisors Chairman Matthew Ung said that Butler had been the finance director for Woodbury County for over 47 years. This is the longest anyone has worked for the county, Ung said.

Ung announced in his post that Butler had passed away on Wednesday saying, It is with a heavy heart that I share the news that Dennis Butler, our finance director, passed away yesterday afternoon, August 21.

When the county celebrated Butlers 45th work anniversary, Ung recalls Butler saying, I love my job, health-wise, if I can, I will stay here another 5 years. We have 3 new projects in the works and I want to see them through to the end, we are re-doing all the gravel roads over the next 5 years, getting them in top-notch shape, the new LEC, and renovations to the courthouse. We have a lot to be proud of here.

Ung said he was able to speak with Butler before his passing and offered condolences to those who knew Butler on behalf of the local government. To those who knew him better than I, please accept this: On behalf of the local government he served with devotion, Woodbury County offers our deepest condolences, and our deepest gratitude for the friendship you showed a soft-hearted, hard-working man: Dennis Butler.

On Thursday afternoon, the Missouri River Boat Club made a post confirming Butlers passing saying, Our hearts are heavy today as we share that Dennis fought his greatest fight and was ready to surrender to the Lord and is now in peace and painfree in Heaven.

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WOODSTOCK, Conn. (WTNH)  A Woodstock woman is facing more than 100 animal cruelty charges after dozens of animals were seized from her home in distressing- and ultimately deadly- conditions.

59-year-old Tracy Donovan was located at the Northeastern Connecticut Council of Governments Animal Shelter in Killingly Wednesday, where she was taken into police custody.

Dozens of animals rescued from harsh conditions in Woodbridge

She was charged with 103 counts of animal cruelty.

Her charges come after 96 dogs, two cats, two exotic birds, one wild rabbit, and two goats were removed from her residence, according to an arrest warrant. Of those, at least four dogs were euthanized due their severe conditions.

An investigation into Donovan began with a written compliant NECCOG received in January from a home appraiser, about the welfare of dogs in a home on Route 169.

According to the arrest warrant, photos taken during the appraisement showed household trash and construction material strewn around the property, several outbuildings and mobile campers, and about 20 dog crates containing small dogs inside.

Dog found in Connecticut animal cruelty case looking for new home

The conditions of the interior of the residence, scattered with wood shavings, animal feces, as well as a large amount of household garage about the entire house, the warrant states.

The dogs in the photos did not appear to have access to water or food while confined to small dirty cages and crates. They also appeared underweight, extremely dirty, and matted, according to the warrant.

Another concerned person reported the home in June, after they saw the owner of the residence- identified as Donovan- offering dirty and skinny dogs and puppies for sale.

When a Connecticut Department of Agriculture State Animal Control officer and NECCOG representative visited the home, they reported an extreme odor of urine and feces even from 50 feet away.

Waterbury woman charged with animal cruelty faces judge as advocates seek justice

They also verified conditions seen in the appraisers photos- describing the conditions as deplorable.

Dozens of extremely dirty dog crates and cages containing live animals were found to be inside the residence. Feces and urine covered wood chips were found heavily scattered about the residence. The stench of feces, urine, and ammonia was found to be overwhelming to the officers executing the warrant, the warrant describes.

A veterinary hospital listed the following health problems found in the 96 dogs: dehydration, severe matting of hair and fur, flea anemia, severe dental disease, skin infection, and long nails.

The hospital said they were all covered with dried urine and feces. The cats had similar issues, plus upper respiratory illness.

Man faces animal cruelty charges after video shows dog being kicked in East Haven

The exotic birds also showed signs of dehydration, skin infection, loss of feather, and beak issues and the goats were found to be dehydrated and anemic, according to the warrant.

The warrant stated all the health issues stemmed from lack of veterinary care, significant neglect, and lack of accessibility to food, water, and wholesome air.

Donovan was held on a $150,000 cash/surety bond. She was scheduled to appear in Danielson court on Aug. 22.

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Worker dies after being crushed while working at Ohio Jeep plant

A Jeep plant worker has died after being crushed while working in Ohio.

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Medics responded around 1 p.m. to the Toledo Assembly Complex.

The employee was working when crushed and died from their injuries, according to CBS affiliate WTOL in Toledo.

The United Auto Workers Local represents the workers at the plant and offered condolences on social media.

The entire Local 12 Family extends our deepest sympathy and condolences to the family of our brother lost today while on the job, they said on its Facebook page.

Stellantis also released a statement about the incident, WTOL said.

Stellantis is aware of an incident involving one of our employees at the Toledo Assembly Complex. The Toledo Fire Department has been called for assistance. As this incident is currently under investigation, we cannot provide any further details at this time.

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KHARKIV OBLAST, Ukraine  After tough months of fighting, Ukraines troops have been pushing Russian forces back in Kharkiv Oblast. The situation is a little bit better  but we still fire one shell for every ten of theirs, said Roman, an artillery gunner with the 406th Artillery Brigade, who gave only his first name in keeping with Kyivs military regulations.

A reporter visited troops at a staging base outside of Kharkiv city in late July, near where Russias military opened a new front line in May of this year. The assault caused near panic among Ukrainian forces, as Russian forces pushed over the border and steamrolled weak Ukrainian defenses.

A determined defense by some of Ukraines best troops halted the Russian advance at the towns of Vovchansk and Lyptsy. Now, the tide is turning, thanks in no small part to donated Western arms like the towed M777 howitzer, a weapon considered a relic of past wars just a few years ago.

The M777s had their own special type of advanced ammunition that was initially used to great effect. Artillery units fired GPS-guided Excalibur shells with pinpoint accuracy, taking out crucial Russian nodes and complicating the invaders advances. Meanwhile, in Washington, U.S. officials loosened caveats that had previously prevented Ukrainian forces to target Russian units shooting across the border, lifting a key limitation on organizing defenses here.

Vitali Sarantsev, a Ukrainian military spokesperson, said: It gave us the chance to hold them, and slow their advance. They dont feel comfortable on border territories, so they cant mass troops without big problems. Basically, it gives [us] an opportunity to destroy them deeply into their territory, so they cant properly prepare.

Artillery goes trucking to survive drones swarming the battlefield

By now, however, Russians forces have managed to throw a wrench into the calculus of Western high-tech weaponry working its magic. Russian electronic warfare systems have vastly improved, and they are now able to jam technology like the one guiding Excalibur.

Without a satellite connection, the vaunted rounds amount to expensive pieces of metal. It is firing but it is not exploding, said Roman. So, it lands, and it is like a dud.

The M777s still use standard, unguided explosive rounds, making them an important weapon. But they do not have the outsized impact they did when they were first introduced.

The wider significance of this is that Western assumptions about technological superiority have a limited shelf life here.

Recently introduced ATACMS missiles, supplied by the United States, are still working, but many analysts believe it is just a matter of time until the Russians discover countermeasures to these most advanced technologies.

Warfare is about the speed of adaptation, former Air Marshal Edward Stringer, a British Defense official, told the Wall Street Journal. If you drip-feed an antibiotic weekly, youll actually train the pathogen  and we have trained the pathogen.  We didnt need to give them that time, but we did.

The NATO standard weapons still have an important advantage over their older, Soviet counterparts. For one, they are lighter, and more maneuverable  Ukrainian soldiers pack and unpack an M777 in and out of firing positions in about 90 seconds. When not firing, the equipment is meticulously camouflaged.

But the artillerymen here predict the days of their weapons are numbered. When Ukraine was suffering from a huge ammunition shortage, mainly due to a deadlock in the U.S. Congress and a reluctance by Republicans to approve additional military aid, Ukraine plugged the gaps in its artillery consumption with drones. Now the skies over the battlefield are saturated with Mavics, first-person-view drones, Vampyrs and all types of cheap gadgetry, many of them repurposed from civilian models that can be bought on Amazon.

Aerial drones have become so omnipresent on the battlefield that they match artillery in the amount of enemy armor destroyed and fighters killed. Crucially, they also dont depend on the domestic political whims of Ukraines Western allies.

The soldiers here claim that there are still many advantages to artillery over drones. For example, artillery can hit targets much more quickly, and the shells have enough explosive power to crack armored vehicles. In addition, a hail of artillery is utterly terrifying, dealing a profoundly shocking effect on enemy morale that drones cannot yet match.

While the Ukrainians have stabilized the frontlines near Kharkiv, Russian forces are on the march elsewhere.

They have recently made territorial gains in the Donetsk region and have pushed close to the crucial logistics hub of Pokrovsk. Moscows forces have taken enormous casualties but appear to be able to afford them.

As long as we have enough ammunition here, we will be fighting until the victory, Roman, the artillery commander says.

It is a familiar refrain, repeated dozens of times on this battlefield. Every time, it is said more wearily, and slightly less hopefully than the last. When we ask the soldiers what they need from the West, the answer is the same all around: shells.

The soldiers here have accepted the logic of a bitter war of attrition, where one side will grind down the other. Despite that dynamic, none of the service members interviewed here are ready to entertain the thought of a peace deal that would cede Ukrainian territory to Russia  or at least nobody will admit to it.

A poll from the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology showed that more than 30% of Ukrainians were now willing to consider giving Ukrainian territory to Russia for an end to the fighting.

Romans soldiers were contemptuous of this idea. When asked what he thought of people who suggested ceding territory for peace, one of them grinned and said, I want to punch those people in the face.

Meanwhile, in Kharkiv city, urban Ukrainian life continues. A bridal party that had just celebrated a wedding  a half-hour affair for close friends and family so as to not present a target for Russian missiles  could be seen in the streets on a warm evening in late July, as the sounds of birdsong and casual conversation mixed with the wail of an air raid siren in the background.

These worries didnt deter large crowds from packing into bars and clubs lining Kharkivs main streets. If a bomb fell in the street next to us, people would turn their heads to have a look, and then go back to their partying, one reveler said.

The fight for their right to party here is entirely down to men like Roman holding the frontline against a seemingly unending stream of Russian soldiers.
A girl runs carrying her belongings in search of a shelter to hide from the sandstorm and the looming rain in Adre refugee camp. Credit - Nicolo Filippo Rosso

Adre is supposed to be a town of transition. Perched on the border between Chad and Sudan, the city, which was initially used for cross-border trade, has now become the passing point for people escaping civil war and famine in what some diplomats have called the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.

More than 600,000 refugees have reportedly fled from Sudan to Chad in the last 16 months, meaning the neighboring country has seen more Sudanese refugees in one year than the previous 20 years combined, many of which have settled in makeshift borders, per remarks made by Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Another 10 million people remain forcibly displaced within Sudan since the internal political conflict began in April 2023.

The newly-arrived families, mostly women and children, are entirely reliant on the aid of humanitarian groups, but in order to receive such assistance people must first wait their turn to be registered, which can take days, says Nicolo Filippo Rosso. A documentary photographer, Rosso visited refugee camps in Chad earlier in the summer, during trips with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

Sudanese women and children register with Chadian authorities upon arrival in Adre, a border town in the Ouaddai province. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

Rosso recounts meeting one pregnant woman who had recently arrived at the refugee camp in Adre with her children and was on the verge of giving birth. Sharing her plight, the woman told him that her children were exhausted from walking, had high temperatures, and were not eating properly.

The town of Adre is largely overwhelmed. I've seen a lot of things related to migration in many places, but this was the first time that I really felt that it couldn't be worse than that, says Rosso. There is a lot of intervention from NGOs and from United Nations agencies, but it's not complete because Adre is so close to the border that it is unsafe because there are gangs raiding the camps at night, and raping women and girls, and there is a lot of traffic of weapons.

Even so, there have been several obstacles to distributing aid. Adre was closed off to international aid for six months, though it was announced on Aug. 15 that the embargo had been lifted. In June, the UNHCR said they only received 10% of the requested $214.8 million in aid necessary to help refugees at the border. The ask was made just prior to the rainy season, which typically lasts through September, and could exacerbate the existing crisis and cause outbreaks of waterborne diseases, according to the UNHCR.

Sudanese refugee women collect water from a well at Adre refugee camp. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

Rosso, who himself contracted malaria, pneumonia, and COVID-19, says it's very common to get these diseases. The point is that you can cure malaria, you can cure COVID, but it's open [defecation]. There is no sanitation, so the condition[s] people are living in is bad, he says.

The photographer, who has documented other migrant crises in the Americas, typically composes black-and-white work, but has used color in the project to better encapsulate the dignity that the Sudanese refugees have and their openness to each other, to others.

These women who are alone and [have gone] through violence of all kinds are there with their children maintaining pride, Rosso says. Color also is full of details that sometimes can distract you from the pain.

Namarkh Babikir (left) and Hawa Adam (right) stand together during a wedding at Adre refugee camp. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

Sudanese refugees crossing into neighboring Chad at the border town of Adre. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

Sudanese women and children register with Chadian authorities upon arrival in Adre. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

Afrah Amdelkarim Hamid, 24, and her child, 2-year-old Mandoub, wait to see medical personnel at hospital run by Doctors Without Borders in Aboutengue, a refugee site in eastern Chad a few hours from Adre. Aboutengue is home to some 50,000 refugees fleeing ongoing hostilities in Sudan. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

Women cover themselves with shawls while a sandstorm ravages the Adre refugee camp. Without proper sanitation and open defecation as a common practice, the wind raises and scatters waste across the camp. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

Sudanese refugees wait for the WFP monthly food distribution in Adre. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

Alsadik Isshak Arbab, 45, relies on a cane as a result of injuries he sustained as he fled fighting in his native Sudan, taking refuge in neighboring Chad. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

Two boys cross the rugged landscape around the Aboutengue refugee camp. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

People unload food from WFP trucks during the monthly distribution at Adre. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

Sudanese women from Geneina, who live in the Adre refugee camp, pile bricks from a hoven for 1000XAF per day, equivalent to $1.60 USD, insufficient to feed a person. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

Ahmat Abakar Bakhit, a 27-year-old Sudanese refugee, gets fitted for a prosthesis at a clinic run by the charity Handicap International in Abutengue refugee camp. Ahmat lost a leg in a bombing back in his native Sudan, and his injuries have complicated the already-difficult task of adapting to his new life as a refugee in Chad. But now, thanks to the crucial contribution of the European Union, he has received a prosthesis and is undergoing physical therapy aimed at teaching him how to adapt to the new limb. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

Children play on a metal structure inside the Adre refugee camp. UNICEF has reported that almost four million children in Sudan face acute malnutrition, and within refugee sites in Chad such as Adre, budget cuts mean that residents have seen their food rations reduced. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

Naba Akbar Azien, an 8-year-old Sudanese girl whose family fled to neighboring Chad, poses in front of a building in Aboutengue. Her father, Aboubakar, sustained injuries back in his native Sudan that have complicated the already difficult task of adapting to life as a refugee. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

A sandstorm ravages the Adre refugee camp. Nicolo Filippo Rosso

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MONTROSE, Colo. (KREX)  The Western Slope Native American Resource Center is hosting its inaugural Uncompahgre Powwow on Saturday, Sept. 21.

The powwow will feature a dance contest with more than $14,000 total in prize money to be awarded to winners across nine categories. For dancers who dont make the top three, there will be a drawing with up to $4,500 in prizes. The event will also feature a silent auction starting at 11 a.m. with winners announced after the last dance.

The Uncompahgre Powwow will take place at Montroses Ute Indian Museum, 17253 Chipeta Road, from 11 a.m. to dusk. Dance registration will be from 10 a.m. to noon and Grand Entry will be at 1 p.m.

Organizers say the museums parking is limited and suggest attendees ride their free shuttle, located at the Target parking lot by Discount Tire; it will run every 15 minutes from 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.

For more information on the upcoming powwow, sponsorship opportunities and WSNARC itself, visit the Western Slope Native American Resource Centers website  and before you head to the event, view a list of rules of etiquette, terminology used at powwows and a brief history of the celebration below.

Pow-Wow-Rules-of-Etiquette

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Cubbys Child Care Center in Bridgeport, W.Va., serves 450 families, around half of which use the states child care assistance program. (Jennifer Trippett | Courtesy photo)

Child care assistance for thousands of West Virginia kids still is in limbo as the Department of Human Services needs anywhere from $23-30 million for a funding shortfall. Lawmakers are unlikely to step in and give the department funds, saying the embattled agency already has the money to cover it.

DoHS has been using federal emergency funds to subsidize child care centers to avoid a Sept. 1 funding cliff, which could have removed 2,000 kids from the program by next month. Gov. Jim Justice said on Thursday that the money could sustain the program through the end of the year.

Weve found enough federal funds to cover the cost of our centers with entirety til the end of the year, he said. Weve got to make sure that we improve child care, because thats what drives young people to this great state and weve got to have workers.

But how DoHS will pay for it beyond that  as well as the states plan for sufficient, long-term child care funding  remains a question that DoHS hasnt yet clarified for lawmakers, child care providers, families or this news outlet.

We are just business owners fighting to get funding for families right now, said Jennifer Trippett, owner of Cubbys Child Care Center in Bridgeport. It is impossible to run a business that you dont know what your funding stream is going to be in six months.

The center serves 450 families; around 50% of those children use the states child care assistance program, which pays the center per child.

Were told there is funding, but theres no one who can say where it will come from, she said.

The federal government recently mandated without funding that states subsidize child care centers based on the total enrollment rather than attendance. About 15,000 West Virginia families used the child care assistance program in 2023.

DoHS has been using money from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program to cover the costs of child care subsidies.

The plan is to use TANF dollars as long as they can, said Del. Amy Summers, R-Taylor.

My goal is that families feel less nervous, she continued. What I wish is that we had a clear answer. I worry about these families and children and their planning. Id like to have accurate information.

TANF dollars arent permanent, and DoHS leaders said theyll give families and providers a 60-day notice when the funding changes.

DoHS did not respond to multiple interview requests or questions about child care from West Virginia Watch. A spokesperson for Justice didnt respond to questions for this story.

House Minority Leader Sean Horbuckle, D-Cabell, said his caucus had tried with little success to get information from DoHS about the funding issue.

The lack of communication for child providers and families was disrespectful to the citizens of West Virginia on such an important matter, he said.

DoHS says its the legislatures problem to fix, lawmakers disagree

DoHS Secretary Cynthia Persily told WV News on Aug. 16 that she needed the Legislature to allocate additional funds for the shortfall and that she couldnt dip into a recently-created $180 million reserve fund.

Lawmakers, concerned with DoHS spending transparency, required in the bill that DoHS report to them any spending out of the reserve. It doesnt prohibit the department from using the money for the child care assistance program.

[Speaker Roger Hanshaw] is confident the Department of Human Services has enough funds for child care assistance to continue  and the speaker also is confident the departments reserve fund for making up any funding shortfall in the short term is available to the secretary relatively unencumbered for that purpose, House of Delegates Communications Director Ann Ali said.

Hornbuckle said that he didnt want to focus on who was right or wrong.

Its not time to hide or tell fables or bend the truth. Lets figure out why we havent moved on this and lets get it moved on, he said. Besides the parents and kids, it hurts the economy. Its a tough thing.

He also noted that House Democrats, under the leadership of Del. Kayla Young, D-Kanawha, prioritized child care legislation during the session.

With more than 20,000 child care spots needed in the state, Republican leaders had also said it was a priority as they looked to improve the states chronically-low rate of workforce participation.

But a bundle of bi-partisan bills focused on increasing child care access never went up for a vote in the full House or Senate. Then during the May special session, lawmakers voted down a bipartisan amendment that would have required DoHS to spend some of the $180 million reserve on child care and avoid the current funding shortfall.

The funding cliff wont likely be addressed in an August special session should Justice decide to call one. He has been pushing a Child and Dependent Care tax credit that would allow 16,300 eligible families to claim up to 50% of the allowable federal tax credit.

I think what Im gathering is that the governor hasnt given that to us to fund. He had opportunities during the session and [May] special session, Summers said. He wants his tax credit.

More issues plaguing child care providers

Lawmakers will be at the State Capitol on Sunday for the start of August interim meetings. Trippett and other child care providers will hold a rally at 2:30 p.m to ask lawmakers to solve the funding issue.

While the states enrollment subsidy model will help stabilize child care centers income, Trippett stressed that DoHS must increase the amount it pays in subsidies for children.

The state lost 750 child care spots this year because the subsidy amount failed to keep up with rising operational costs.

I lose a ton of money on every child who has assistance, she said. Since 2019, any child care center that is hiring someone with or without a degree who has training  instead of paying $9-10 an hour, we now have to pay $17 an hour because thats what fast food is paying. And the cost of food has tripled.

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"A series of activities should have been done to avoid finding oneself in that situation," argues Giovanni Costantino, who owns the firm that built the vessel in 2008

PERINI NAVI PRESS OFFICE/HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock A photo of the 'Bayesian'

Giovanni Costantino  who is the CEO of The Italian Sea Group, the company that now owns Perini Navi, which built the Bayesian in 2008  blames an "endless chain of errors" for the luxury yachts sinking on Monday, Aug. 19

"Everything was predictable. I have the weather charts in front of me here," Constantino told Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera of the storm the boat was caught in

"An unsinkable ship but from the crew an endless chain of errors," the CEO claimed to the outlet

The sinking of the luxury Bayesian yacht off the coast of Sicily this week resulted from an "endless chain of errors" by the crew, the ship maker's CEO is speculating.

"This episode sounds like an unbelievable story, both technically and as a fact," Giovanni Costantino  who leads The Italian Sea Group, the company that now owns Perini Navi, which built the Bayesian in 2008  said, according to CNN.

While speaking to Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, Costantino said he believes those on board should not have been in their cabins, as he claims they were, when the Bayesian sank in the early hours of Monday, Aug. 19.

Many details of why the yacht went into the water so quickly remain unclear and it's not yet known what the passengers and crew were doing before tragedy struck.

PERINI NAVI PRESS OFFICE/HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock A photo of the 'Bayesian'

The 183-foot British vessel sank around 5 a.m. local time on Monday after a "violent storm" while near Porticello, the Italian coast guard said in a statement that was previously obtained by PEOPLE.

"Everything that has been done reveals a very long sum of errors. The people should not have been in the cabins, the boat should not have been at anchor. And then why didn't the crew know about the incoming disturbance?" Costantino said in his interview, translated from Italian.

Related: Italian Authorities Currently Dont Have Anyone Under Investigation over Luxury Yacht Sinking

PERINI NAVI PRESS OFFICE/HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock A photo of the 'Bayesian'

"The passengers reported an absurd thing, namely that the storm came unexpected, suddenly. It's not true. Everything was predictable. I have the weather charts in front of me here. Nothing came suddenly ... Ask yourself, why was no fisherman from Porticello out that night? A fisherman reads the weather conditions and a ship doesn't? The disturbance was fully readable in all the weather charts. One could not not know," he argued.

"An unsinkable ship but from the crew an endless chain of errors," the CEO asserted.

The coast guard has said 22 people were aboard the Bayesian when it sank  12 passengers and 10 crew  and that 15 of those were subsequently rescued.

The body of the yacht's chef, Recaldo Thomas, was recovered nearby.

ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP via Getty Five bodies have been found after the luxury yacht sank off the coast of Sicily

Costantino's comments came as it was reported that five bodies had been found in the search for the missing six people as of Wednesday, Aug. 21, a source close to the rescue operations confirmed to PEOPLE. Authorities have said that their work is ongoing.

An Italian government official, Massimo Mariani, reportedly named one of the dead as British tech tycoon Mike Lynch. The other bodies have not yet been publicly identified by authorities.

Lynch was celebrating with family and friends on the yacht following his acquittal in a fraud trial in June, PEOPLE previously reported.

Related: 'We Are in Shock,' Prominent N.Y.C. Attorney's Firm Says After He and His Wife Go Missing in Yacht Sinking

Costantino offered his view of how the tragedy could have been avoided: "To begin with, in a weather alert situation it was inappropriate to have, as I read, a party. Not that evening. The hull and deck needed to be secured by closing all doors and hatches, after putting the guests at the ship's meeting point as per emergency procedure. Then start the engines and pull up the anchor or release it automatically, put the bow to the wind and lower the keel.

"The next morning they would have departed with zero damage."



Jonathan Brady/PA Images via Getty One person remains missing amid the incident

When discussing whether the crew were at fault, Costantino reiterated to the Italian outlet that he believes "errors were made."

"A series of activities should have been done to avoid finding oneself in that situation," he said. "I as the ship's captain would have moved, but even if for some reason I had to stay there, I would have managed those weather conditions which then, let's face it, weren't so crazy."

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Costantino contended that there would have been "a zero risk if the correct maneuvers had been made and if situations that compromised the ship's stability had not occurred," adding to the newspaper that reports that the boat went down in seconds is "nonsense." He believes the yacht would have "went down" after water "started to enter" within "six minutes."

The remaining missing Bayesian passengers are Lynch's daughter Hannah as well as Chairman of Morgan Stanley International Jonathan Bloomer, his wife, Judy, and New York City-based lawyer Christopher Morvillo and his wife, Neda, sources have said.

Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares, was among those rescued, PEOPLE previously reported.



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SUVA, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Leaders from the Pacific Island countries started gathering in Tonga for the 53rd Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) Leaders Meeting, which will officially take place from Aug. 26 to Aug. 30.

The PIF leaders meet annually to develop collective responses to regional issues and deliver their vision for a resilient Pacific region of peace, harmony, security, social inclusion, and prosperity.

Tonga Prime Minister Hu'akavameiliku Siaosi Sovaleni said the leaders will discuss policies that will ultimately benefit people in the region, reported Fiji Broadcasting Corporation on Thursday.

Sovaleni added that the gathering will give the leaders an opportunity to address challenges for the Blue Pacific Continent and foster cooperation in pursuing shared goals. 
New York Attorney General Letitia James asked a state appeals court Wednesday to uphold a lower court's determination that former President Donald Trump, his adult sons and his company are liable for a fraudulent scheme that inflated Trump's net worth by as much as $2.2 billion, arguing the judge "properly ordered defendants to disgorge only the ill-gotten profits of their wrongdoing."

Trump had asked the New York Appellate Division's First Department to reverse February's ruling from Judge Arthur Engoron that ordered Trump to pay $454 million for frauds that Engoron said "leap off the page and shock the conscience."

MORE: Trump appeals his $454 million New York civil fraud case

The attorney general's office said the intermediate appellate court should reject Trump's appeal because Engoron correctly decided that Trump and his codefendants "used a variety of deceptive strategies to vastly misrepresent the values of Mr. Trump's assets."

Oral arguments in Trump's appeal are scheduled for Sept. 26.

In an 11-week civil trial that concluded in February, Judge Engoron found that Trump inflated his net worth, including by valuing his own apartment as if it was triple its actual size and by valuing his Mar-a-Lago estate as if deed restrictions did not exist. Trump and his codefendants then used his false and misleading financial statements to do business more than two dozen times between 2014 and 2021, Engoron found.

PHOTO: Former President Donald Trump at New York State Supreme Court in New York, on Oct. 2, 2023. (Stephanie Keith/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

"On appeal, defendants tellingly ignore almost all their deceptions," assistant solicitor general Daniel Magy wrote in Wednesday's filing.

Defense attorneys argued the attorney general misapplied the law, known as New York Executive Law 63(12), and that Trump's alleged business fraud had no clear victims or monetary losses.

"Defendants are wrong on the law," Magy wrote in Wednesday's filing, arguing that the state was not required to prove that victims relied on the Trump's financial statements or that they lost money.

"Indeed, one of  63(12)'s core remedial purposes is to protect the honesty and integrity of commercial marketplaces in New York by stopping fraudulent and illegal practices before they cause financial losses to market participants or broader harms to the public," Magy wrote.

New York AG asks appeals court to uphold Trump's $454M fraud judgment originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
After being accepted into a top university to study law, Aisha Caunhye decided to pursue an apprenticeship instead - Clara Molden

Not long ago, going to university was understood to be a golden ticket  and for many, the only available option.

But with the prospect of taking on at least 27,000 of debt, more young people are now questioning the value of degrees and the university experience as a whole.

Instead they are seeking out alternatives. Many are now considering apprenticeships over the traditional university route, according to Ucas, with 59pc of people in school years nine to 12 weighing up both options. The number of people searching for apprenticeships on Ucas increased by 62.4pc compared to last year.

Instead of loading up with debt, apprentices get paid to learn and quickly dive in to hands-on, practical work. Some apprenticeships, such as engineering and construction, promise higher salaries after five years than their graduate counterparts.

Apprenticeships, once mainly linked to manual trades, can now be found in almost every profession. Here, we meet four young adults who have chosen to do an apprenticeship and never looked back  from law to healthcare.

Firms dont want just another cardboard cut-out law student

Noah Lloyd, trainee solicitor

Noah, 21, decided to follow a career path in law  but was not keen about studying it at a degree level. They were disillusioned with how the subject is taught at university, with lectures regularly held online and limited office hours with professors.

Id spoken to people doing law at university and found that a lot of it is theoretical and, because a lot of our precedents are now rather old, they dont always reflect how law is practised day to day, they say.

Noah Lloyd, 21, was not keen about studying law at a degree level - Andrew Fox

Noah, from Birmingham, is now halfway through their level seven, six-year degree apprenticeship at FBC Manby Bowdler Solicitors in Shrewsbury; upon completing the course they will be a fully-qualified solicitor.

I thought Id be able to get some practical experience of what law is actually like to be practised, they say. [I also wanted to] get more information about how law firms work commercially, which is obviously a really important part [of being] a solicitor which you dont always get going through university.

Learning on the job in an apprenticeship means that Noah has many more opportunities to learn from colleagues.

I have access to such a wealth of knowledge and experience. I sit in an open-plan office next to a newly-qualified junior solicitor who also took the apprenticeship route, and we have two equity partners...Theyre always there to answer questions whenever they can, they say.

Noah warns, however, that becoming a lawyer via an apprenticeship shouldnt be taken lightly, and applicants must be aware of the level of commitment.

When it comes to the application process, know your value and what you can bring to a team, and dont become too consumed with the academic side of law, advises Noah.

At 18, youre going into an office to interact with other people of different ages and its really important to firms that they employ people with the right people skills, those who are able to bring something to the workplace and arent just another cardboard cut-out law student.

I hated being in classrooms  I needed to be learning skills

Fabian Ali, plumbing and gas engineer

After leaving school at 16, Fabian, 22, trained as a plumbing and gas engineer. After completing work experience in plumbing he fell in love with the trade  university was never a consideration for him.

I really hated being in classrooms. I struggled to concentrate a lot just sitting there. I felt I needed to be doing something where I was learning skills as a tool for life and a specific job, he says.

Fabian recalls there being little support during the application process from his school and noticed that teachers paid less attention to those who werent performing as well academically.

It certainly felt like the message they were pushing was that to get the best out of life, you had to go to university. A lot of our assemblies were about going to top-grade universities and there was nothing on apprenticeships, he says.

After leaving school at 16, Fabian Ali completed work experience in plumbing  he never considered university - Lorne Campbell

Keen to work locally, he remembers there being no mention of any local employers who might be good to work for.

I was very stressed having no idea what I was going to head into after leaving school, he says.

Fabian notes that manual labour apprenticeships like plumbing dont just close you off to one profession.

Theres so many different roles that you dont think about. Theres people that fit the kitchens, carpet fitters and the people who put the granite in, for example. Theres also commercial plumbing, and the engineering and innovation aspect of it all, like bringing out new products.

So if youre qualified in plumbing but want to move into an office role, theres those routes that are available, he says.

Shunning university was the best decision Ive ever made

Aisha Caunhye, design engineer with Virgin Media O2

Aisha Caunhye describes herself as being academic during school and was accepted into a top university to study law. But the 19-year-old Londoner decided to pursue an apprenticeship instead.

She now works as a design engineer for Virgin Media O2, studying project management and being paid to learn on the job. The 18-month course will provide her with an APM qualification.

Its genuinely the best decision Ive ever made, she says.

Unsure whether to accept her offer to study law at university, Aisha felt project management would provide her with more transferable skills.

Law is very specialised and I wanted to go for something that could open up a lot more avenues because I wasnt entirely sure on that path. Im not the type of person that has a dream career and I think a lot of young people are like that.

She adds: Having a degree is becoming something more of a standard rather than something individualistic.

Aisha feels her decision to pursue an apprenticeship has put her 'one step ahead' of her peers - Clara Molden

Aisha feels her decision has put her one step ahead of her peers, both financially and in gaining hands-on skills.

An employer might value the fact I have both a qualification and work experience compared to somebody whos fresh out of university. Thats not to say that going to university or doing an apprenticeship is better than the other  I just think that nowadays employers are looking for people that have experience and qualifications, rather than just learning in the classroom.

She also notes that if shed chosen university, shed have accumulated 27,000 in debt so far and is happy to be earning a salary already.

Lets not lie, the money side is great, she says.

However, Aisha notes the route was a lifestyle she never envisioned for herself. One of the downsides is that socialising as a young person in the workplace can be challenging, and that many apprentices find the journey lonely.

At first I felt quite secluded, she says. But I did some research and found there are lots of apprenticeship communities set up by other communities  some that are social and others which offer support.

She struggled with the application process and thinks applying for university is an easier experience.

Researching apprenticeships was so difficult, she adds. Firstly, finding where to even look and then specifically, finding out that there are more than one type of apprenticeship which I didnt even know at the time. It was quite a different experience and I felt kind of lonely. It was a difficult process, but 100pc worth it.

I quit university to get hands-on experience

Charlie Laycock, radiographer

Charlie Laycock initially studied biomedical engineering at the University of Southampton, beginning in 2017. However, when his course was affected by Covid  shutting the labs and removing the much-valued practical element of the course  he no longer felt it was the correct route for him and quit.

In 2022, the 25-year-old from Warminster in Wiltshire joined Practice Plus Hospital Group in Shepton Mallet as an apprentice radiographer, a profession he has been interested in since school. Upon completing the three-year course, Charlie will qualify with a bachelors degree in diagnostic radiography.

If Charlie Laycock could go back to 2017, he would have applied for an apprenticeship over university - John Lawrence

When he was at university, instead of carrying out experiments in labs, they were simulated online.

I thought if we were just doing practical work online then why pay the university for this, he explains.

By contrast, his apprenticeship is packed with hands-on experience. On a Monday, he may learn how to position a patient to X-ray a body part, then he will spend the Tuesday to Friday practically carrying out the procedure and critiquing his images.

The largest difference is seeing how our learning actually gets put into action within the job, Charlie says.

If he could go back to 2017, he would have applied for an apprenticeship over university, and recommends the route specifically for jobs in healthcare.

Radiography is such a practical job and I was more interested in the amount of clinical time Id be spending in the role over sitting in lectures. Having colleagues who have gone through the same courses I have and know how it all works is so helpful, too.

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Tennessee state Rep. Justin Pearson speaks at VoteFest Chicago. Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder

CHICAGO  In the sanctuary of a historic church converted into an event space, not far from the hustle and bustle of the Democratic National Convention, a group of young people with a passion for politics met.

The Youth VoteFest, hosted by University of Chicagos Institute of Politics, aimed to provide lessons in political organizing with topics like how to run a high school voter drive building inclusive campus voting coalitions.

The young attendees heard from a series of high-powered speakers, including U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg; Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson; Florida Democratic U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost, the nations first Gen Z member of Congress, and Tennessee Rep. Justin Pearson, who gained national attention when he was expelled from the House and later reinstated for participating in a protest over gun laws on the House floor.

Pearson told the participants about his first foray into public policy, when he spoke out to members of his local school board about a lack of adequate textbooks.

If you use your power, you shame a couple people, things start to happen, he said. We have to remember that we are powerful. And we have to show other people their power. We dont have to have fancy suits and fancy titles. All you have to do is use your voice, use your vote, use your power. We are powerful, and our power scares people.

Organizers emphasized that the fest was nonpartisan, though several of the speakers and attendees indicated support for Vice President Kamala Harris for president. The Institute of Politics hosted a similar event featuring a conservative slate of speakers in Milwaukee last month to coincide with the Republican National Convention.

The IOP was founded by former Obama strategist David Axelrod, and its director is former Democratic U.S. Sen. Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, who opened the program encouraging the youngsters in attendance.

I want you to imagine, just look around, and every state legislature, you take 10 people out of the state legislature, and you replace them with 10 of you, she said. I want you to think about your city council, and you replace that city council with three of you. And I want you to think about Congress, and you replace congressional people with 20 of you. Do you think you would talk about other things in the legislature, at city council?

Your voice in the room matters, especially right now. And if young people, young people voted at the same percentage as people over the age of 65, the priorities of public policy in this country would change dramatically, Heitkamp said.

Some members of the audience had already thrown their hats into various state and local rings. At 25, Ashwin Ramaswami is running for a seat on the Georgia Senate as a Democrat. His opponent is state Sen. Shawn Still, a Republican first elected in 2022, who was indicted in the Fulton County election interference case against former President Donald Trump. Still has pleaded not guilty and denied any wrongdoing.

Ramaswami said campaigning as a Gen Zer comes with challenges  its tough to raise funds when all of your friends are recent college graduates  but with opportunities as well.

When Im canvassing, people that initially first see me, the first thing that pops out is my age, because they see me, theyre like, oh, my kids are your age, or they dont know how old I am, he said. I think after talking to me, they start to realize that I have a lot of experience, I have a lot of things I bring to the table. In a way, thats an advantage, because then people start thinking about me in a different way.

Other attendees, like Joseph Rice, student government president at Chicagos Kennedy King College, said they were looking for pointers on increasing engagement on their college campuses. The sophomore finance major said he hopes to use what he has learned to make voter registrations drives more efficient.

Me personally, Im a blue guy, but Im moving toward bipartisan, you know, just not to get the students to vote for who I want them to vote for, but for the students to vote for who they want to vote for, if that makes sense, he said. So Im coming as a bipartisan approach, just so they can vote, just so they can have their information. Whether they vote for red or blue is their decision, and I respect that just as long as they get to vote.

One of the guys was a red guy  former Illinois Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger, who broke ranks with his party by voting to impeach Trump over the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol and later sat on the House committee investigating the Capitol attack.

People disagree on issues, all of us, he said. A hundred years ago, we were having the same debate about taxation and everything else. And in 100 years, were going to be having the same debate. But were facing a specific moment in this country where the question is, are you, as young people, when you get to be my age  Im old, Im 46  when you get to be my age, are you going to have a democracy that works as well as I was able to have when I was your age?

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Tennessee state Rep. Justin Pearson speaks at VoteFest Chicago. (Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder)

CHICAGO  In the sanctuary of a historic church converted into an event space, not far from the hustle and bustle of the Democratic National Convention, a group of young people with a passion for politics met.

The Youth VoteFest, hosted by University of Chicagos Institute of Politics, aimed to provide lessons in political organizing with topics like how to run a high school voter drive building inclusive campus voting coalitions.

The young attendees heard from a series of high-powered speakers, including U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg; Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson; Florida Democratic U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost, the nations first Gen Z member of Congress, and Tennessee Rep. Justin Pearson, who gained national attention when he was expelled from the House and later reinstated for participating in a protest over gun laws on the House floor.

Pearson told the participants about his first foray into public policy, when he spoke out to members of his local school board about a lack of adequate textbooks.

If you use your power, you shame a couple people, things start to happen, he said. We have to remember that we are powerful. And we have to show other people their power. We dont have to have fancy suits and fancy titles. All you have to do is use your voice, use your vote, use your power. We are powerful, and our power scares people.

Organizers emphasized that the fest was nonpartisan, though several of the speakers and attendees indicated support for Vice President Kamala Harris for president. The Institute of Politics hosted a similar event featuring a conservative slate of speakers in Milwaukee last month to coincide with the Republican National Convention.

The IOP was founded by former Obama strategist David Axelrod, and its director is former Democratic U.S. Sen. Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, who opened the program encouraging the youngsters in attendance.

I want you to imagine, just look around, and every state legislature, you take 10 people out of the state legislature, and you replace them with 10 of you, she said. I want you to think about your city council, and you replace that city council with three of you. And I want you to think about Congress, and you replace congressional people with 20 of you. Do you think you would talk about other things in the legislature, at city council?

Your voice in the room matters, especially right now. And if young people, young people voted at the same percentage as people over the age of 65, the priorities of public policy in this country would change dramatically, Heitkamp said.

Some members of the audience had already thrown their hats into various state and local rings. At 25, Ashwin Ramaswami is running for a seat on the Georgia Senate as a Democrat. His opponent is state Sen. Shawn Still, a Republican first elected in 2022, who was indicted in the Fulton County election interference case against former President Donald Trump. Still has pleaded not guilty and denied any wrongdoing.

Ramaswami said campaigning as a Gen Zer comes with challenges  its tough to raise funds when all of your friends are recent college graduates  but with opportunities as well.

When Im canvassing, people that initially first see me, the first thing that pops out is my age, because they see me, theyre like, oh, my kids are your age, or they dont know how old I am, he said. I think after talking to me, they start to realize that I have a lot of experience, I have a lot of things I bring to the table. In a way, thats an advantage, because then people start thinking about me in a different way.

Other attendees, like Joseph Rice, student government president at Chicagos Kennedy King College, said they were looking for pointers on increasing engagement on their college campuses. The sophomore finance major said he hopes to use what he has learned to make voter registrations drives more efficient.

Me personally, Im a blue guy, but Im moving toward bipartisan, you know, just not to get the students to vote for who I want them to vote for, but for the students to vote for who they want to vote for, if that makes sense, he said. So Im coming as a bipartisan approach, just so they can vote, just so they can have their information. Whether they vote for red or blue is their decision, and I respect that just as long as they get to vote.

One of the guys was a red guy  former Illinois Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger, who broke ranks with his party by voting to impeach Trump over the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol and later sat on the House committee investigating the Capitol attack.

People disagree on issues, all of us, he said. A hundred years ago, we were having the same debate about taxation and everything else. And in 100 years, were going to be having the same debate. But were facing a specific moment in this country where the question is, are you, as young people, when you get to be my age  Im old, Im 46  when you get to be my age, are you going to have a democracy that works as well as I was able to have when I was your age?

Georgia Recorder is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Georgia Recorder maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor John McCosh for questions: info@georgiarecorder.com. Follow Georgia Recorder on Facebook and X.
The Auckland City Mission, which works with homeless people, said the candies were donated by an unknown member of the public

The New Zealand Drug Foundation Rinda brand pineapple lollies containing methamphetamine

A New Zealand charity that works with homeless people in Auckland unknowingly distributed candy containing potentially lethal levels of methamphetamine in its food parcels.

The Auckland City Mission announced on Aug. 14 that the charity was notified from several people that the candies, which were donated by an unknown member of the public, were funny tasting. Those who consumed the sweets reported a bitter taste and feeling unusual.

For safety measures, the white pineapple candies  labeled with the Malaysian brand Rinda  were sent to the NZ Drug Foundation for testing. Tests later confirmed that the candies contained approximately 3 grams of meth.

A common dose to swallow is between 10-25mg, so this contaminated lolly contained up to 300 doses, executive director Sarah Helm said in a statement. Swallowing that much methamphetamine is extremely dangerous and could result in death.

The Auckland City Mission is working to contact those who received the food parcels and the police have since launched an investigation.

To say we are devastated is an understatement, the charity said in a release. We are reliant on the generosity of the public to help support people in need, and we are thankful to everyone who supports us.

Our immediate priority is safety of people we support, the statement continued. In time we will conduct an internal investigation to understand if our processes can be improved.

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The New Zealand Drug Foundation Rinda brand pineapple lollies containing methamphetamine

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Glenn Baldwin, a detective on the case, said that 29 candies have been recovered so far but it's unclear how many were circling, the Associated Press reported.

One staff member was reportedly hospitalized after consuming the treats. Baldwin said a child and a young person were also hospitalized and later discharged.

Rinda said in a statement that the company learned through news reports that its candies may have been misused, insisting that they would cooperate with authorities.

We want to make it clear that Rinda Food Industries does not use or condone the use of any illegal drugs in our products, General Manager Steven Teh said, per the AP.

The NZ Drug Foundation warned that symptoms after consuming the candy include chest pain, racing heart, seizures, hyperthermia, delirium and loss of consciousness. Anyone who has eaten one and feels unwell is urged to seek medical attention immediately.

We dont know how widespread these contaminated lollies are, so we recommend not eating any Rinda brand pineapple lollies if you have them, Helm said.



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(Bloomberg) -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited his top general in a northeastern region bordering the area of Russia where his troops are fighting to expand the territory theyve controlled for more than two weeks after a surprise attack.

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Kyivs forces took another settlement in Russias Kursk region and have increased the number of captured Russian soldiers for later exchange, military chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said, according to a post on Zelenskiys Telegram channel. The incursion has helped decrease the shelling of Ukraines Sumy region, local officials said.

Zelenskiy has said the operation in the Kursk region aims to establish a buffer zone to protect border communities in Ukraine from Russian attacks. NATO allies have cited the risk that the incursion could divert badly needed troops from a fragile front line, according to Western officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The army is seeking to bolster defenses in the east, where Russia has continued to advance toward Pokrovsk and Toretsk, key logistics centers, according to Syrskyi.

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President Volodymyr Zelensky tasked Ukraine's government on Aug. 22 to approve the national strategy of veterans policy and the strategy shaping the transition from military service to civilian life.

As of May, there were 1.2 million registered veterans in Ukraine, Deputy Veterans Affairs Minister Maksym Kushnir said. This number is expected to increase to 5-6 million after Russia's full-scale war is over.

Speaking at the International Veterans Forum in Kyiv, Zelensky voiced hope that veterans would strengthen Ukraine's future development and should be fully integrated into social life.

"The key meaning of this policy is heroes. This is respect for the defenders of Ukraine, their protection, real support, effective, without bureaucracy and equally with respect, with the opportunity to further realize themselves for the sake of Ukraine and Ukrainians, for their own development, for the sake of their family, their community, our entire state," the president said.

According to Zelensky's decree, the government must approve a strategy for veteran policy up to 2030 and a strategy for the formation of a transition system from military service to civilian life up to 2032.

Rustem Umerov, Ukraine's defense minister, also said that the government is developing the Veteran+ online application, which will include public services for Ukrainian veterans.

A poll conducted in spring showed that as many as 70% of Ukrainians have friends or family who have fought or are currently fighting at the front line since February 2022.

Read also: Ukraine launches new military app, aims to make soldiers service paperless

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KYIV, Ukraine (AP)  Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made his first visit Thursday to the border area where his forces launched their surprise offensive into Russia, saying that Kyivs military had taken control of another Russian village and captured more prisoners of war.

While in Ukraines northern Sumy region, Zelenskyy said the new POWs from the Russian region of Kursk would help build an exchange fund to swap for captured Ukrainians.

Another settlement in the Kursk region is now under Ukrainian control, and we have replenished the exchange fund, Zelenskyy wrote on the social media platform X after hearing a report from his countrys top military commander, Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi.

Zelenskyy did not name the newly captured village and did not cross over into Russia, which would been regarded by Moscow as a provocation. He previously has said that Ukraine has no plans to occupy the area long term but wants to create a buffer zone to prevent further attacks from that area into Ukraine.

Zelenskyy said the Kursk operation launched Aug. 6 has reduced Russian shelling and civilian casualties in the Sumy region.

In another example of Ukraines intensifying attacks on Russia, emergency authorities in Russias Krasnodar region said a Ukrainian strike hit a cargo ferry loaded with fuel tanks at the port of Kavkaz, sparking a blaze. The port is on the Kerch Strait linking the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.

Russian Telegram channels posted videos purportedly showing a huge fire caused by the strike.

The daring Ukrainian foray has rattled the Kremlin, showing Russias vulnerability and shattering President Vladimir Putins efforts to pretend that the country has been largely unaffected by the 2 1/2-year war.

Ukraines push into Russia marks the first capture of Russian territory since World War II, but it comes as Kyiv continues to lose ground in eastern Ukraine.

Authorities in the city of Kursk, the capital of the Kursk region, began to put up concrete shelters at bus stops and other locations to protect against shelling. They plan similar work in Zheleznogorsk and Kurchatov, where a nuclear power plant is located, the regions acting Gov. Alexei Smirnov said on his Telegram channel.

Putin has ordered the creation of self-defense units in Russian regions bordering Ukraine, the Russian leader said in a video call with officials.

Smirnov reported to Putin that over 133,000 people have left areas affected by the fighting in the Kursk region, while more than 19,000 have stayed.

The governor of Bryansk, another Russian region bordering Ukraine, said authorities there have conducted training for emergency evacuation as a precaution.

Separately, the Russian Defense Ministry reported repelling Ukrainian attacks near the villages of Komarovka, Malaya Loknya, Korenevka and several other settlements in the Kursk region.

Education Minister Sergey Kravtsov said 114 schools in Russias border regions will start teaching remotely when the school year begins at the start of September.

Elsewhere, the Defense Ministry said Thursday that its military has claimed control of the Ukrainian village of Mezhove in Donetsk, part of the industrial Donbas region that Moscow seeks to take entirely.

Both sides in the war have been using drones to attack deep behind enemy lines.

Ukraine attacked Russia overnight with 28 drones, the Defense Ministry said. Thirteen were shot down over the Volgograd region, seven over the Rostov region, four over the Belgorod region, two over the Voronezh region, and one each over the Bryansk and Kursk regions, the ministry said.

Andrei Bocharov, governor of the Volgograd region, said Thursday that a military facility caught fire after being attacked by drones in the area of Marinovka, where Russia has a military air base. He did not specify what was damaged.

Videos shared on Russian social media showed an explosion in the night sky, reportedly near the base. Marinovka is about 300 kilometers (185 miles) east of the Ukrainian border.

Ukraine claimed responsibility for the attack. Ukraines security service and its special operation forces conducted the drone attack Wednesday night, striking the Marinovka airfield, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.

The Baza Telegram channel, which is close to Russian law enforcement, said one drone was taken down several kilometers (miles) from the airfield near Marinovka and that wreckage from another fell on a trailer near the air base, causing it to catch fire.

Data from NASA fire-watching satellites, which monitor Earth for forest blazes, showed fires breaking out around the air bases apron, where fighter jets were previously seen parked.

Another fire burned Thursday in Russias Rostov region, where firefighters struggled for a fifth day to put out flames at an oil depot following a Ukrainian attack in the town of Proletarsk. State news agency Tass said 47 firefighters have been injured while putting out the blaze.

Satellite photos from Planet Labs PBC analyzed Thursday by The Associated Press showed the fire at the oil depot still intensely burning as of Wednesday. Storage tanks at the facility appeared engulfed in flames. Flames could be seen in the images, with a thick black smoke cloud drifting west over the city of Proletarsk.

___

Associated Press writers Emma Burrows in London and Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed to this report.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WSAV-TV.
Zion man accused of driving on Campbell Airports runway, climbing into plane

LAKE COUNTY, Ill.  A suburban man was pulled out of a plane after driving on an active runway at Campbell Airport, according to police.

Erik Deanda-Gonzalez, 30, of Zion, is facing five charges after what police called an unusual set of circumstances on Tuesday.

Just before noon, Lake County deputies were dispatched to Campbell Airport, in unincorporated Grayslake, on the report of a Toyota racing back and forth on an active runway.

Police allege Deanda-Gonzalez then parked his Toyota and began entering hangars. Deputies arrived and stated he was found inside of an aircraft parked near a taxiway.

Airfield employees told him he had no business being inside of an aircraft.

Deanda-Gonzalez began walking with police to his vehicle when he allegedly turned around and ran back to to the plane and attempted to crawl inside. He was pulled out of the aircraft by deputies and placed into custody, according to police.

Ammunition was found in his vehicle. He was released with conditions on Wednesday and the FAA was notified of the incident.

Deanda-Gonzalezs next court date is scheduled for Sept. 3.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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.
SACRAMENTO, the United States, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- In California, the most populous U.S. state with the most school students, public schools have stepped up addressing a growing crisis: the unaffordable housing market that is driving teachers out of the state.

California officials have turned to innovative solutions to keep educators from leaving with the cost of living skyrocketing and teachers' salaries lagging.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond unveiled a plan last month to develop land owned by school districts into 2.3 million new housing units.

The plan involved collaborating with various stakeholders, including construction professionals, labor unions, and school districts, to identify and overcome obstacles in housing development.

While some school districts have already embarked on such projects, the state aims to have all districts consider this possibility. Thurmond emphasized that this new strategy is aimed at retaining the education workforce.

Steven Ma, a veteran educator in the San Francisco Bay Area, told Xinhua on Wednesday that the housing crisis in California affects everyone, but educators in the Bay Area face exceptionally severe challenges due to the region's extraordinarily high cost of living.

"In affluent areas like Palo Alto, the high cost of living creates significant obstacles for school districts in recruiting capable educators. It's not a lack of interest from teachers, but rather the inability to maintain a reasonable standard of living in these expensive communities on a teacher's salary," he said.

His observation was echoed by Teri Baldwin, president of Palo Alto Educators Association. "Our teachers, especially our newer teachers who are lower on the salary scale, they can't afford to live close by," Baldwin told TV station KQED in a recent report.

Ma said he personally knew many teachers who have to share housing in order to live in the districts where they teach.

"That might be okay for a young teacher, but for teachers in their 40s or 50s who have a family and children, it's a very serious and challenging problem," said Ma, a member of the Regents Selection Advisory Committee of University of California.

California's housing market has been notoriously unaffordable for years, with home prices and rents outpacing the salaries of many professionals. Though California boasts the highest average teacher salary in the nation at 95,160 U.S. dollars a year, according to the National Education Association, teachers are struggling to afford housing in the state.

Higher home prices and elevated mortgage rates push California housing affordability to a near-17-year low in the second quarter of this year, according to the California Association of Realtors report last week.

The median home price in California stands at about 906,600 dollars, and a minimum annual income of 236,800 dollars is needed to qualify for the purchase of the median-priced, single-family home in the state, the report said.

In recent years, school districts across California have experienced drastic teacher shortages, partly due to increasing housing costs, according to the 2022 report "Education Workforce Housing in California" by the University of California, Berkeley.

In high-cost counties like Alameda, only 1.2 percent of homes on the market are affordable for the average teacher in 2022, a drastic drop from 14.5 percent in 2012, the report showed.

As a result of "rapidly rising housing costs" and "stagnant incomes," teacher recruitment and turnover challenges have grown "substantially" in California, with the average teacher turnover rate at 12 percent, said the report.

Experts worry that high teacher turnover could result in a disproportionate impact on already disadvantaged students in California due to less consistency in teaching and relationship-building with students.

"The state's efforts to increase teacher housing are positive steps," said Ma. "California's economic strength and competitiveness are closely tied to its educational system. To maintain and improve educational quality and student outcomes, providing competitive resources is crucial," said Ma.

"If we fail to support our teachers, particularly in addressing their housing challenges, we risk losing valuable educators," he added. 
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Credit: Nicholas Sutrich / Android Central

The Pixel 9 series represents some of the biggest design changes in Pixel history, and that begins with the Google Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro XL. Both phones deliver a singular vision of what Google sees in the future of Pixel phones, offering an identical experience at two distinct sizes.

Since there's no real difference between these two phones other than their size, we're combining the reviews to give you a better look at the best Pixel 9 experience available. I've been using both models interchangeably over the past week and have come away disappointed about problems that have plagued Pixels for years. Thankfully, many of Google's latest feature additions help offset those disappointing feelings.

If you're looking to pick up a Google Pixel 9 Pro or Google Pixel 9 Pro XL this year, read on to find out why that's a great choice for some folks, while others might want to look elsewhere for their next smartphone upgrade.

Google Pixel 9 Pro: Price and availability

Google Pixel 9 Pro and its retail box

The Google Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro XL are now officially available as of August 22, 2024. Both models offer a choice of 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB of storage, as well as 16GB of RAM. You can choose from either size in a range of colors, including Obsidian (black), Porcelain (white), Hazel (grey), and Rose Quartz (pink).

The Google Pixel 9 Pro starts at $999 with 128GB of storage, while the larger Pixel 9 Pro XL starts at $1099 with 128GB of storage. You can buy the Pixel 9 series in any of the following countries:

NAMER: US, Canada

EMEA: Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Finland, France, Estonia, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Sweden, UK

APAC: Australia, India, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan

All Pixel 9 models include Pixel VPN at no additional cost, which helps protect you while on the go and connecting to potentially unscrupulous public Wi-Fi hotspots. Google is also including one year of Gemini Advanced with every Google Pixel 9 Pro or 9 Pro XL, which would normally cost $20 per month with the AI-tier Google One subscription.

Each Google Pixel 9 Pro box contains no plastic and is impressively environmentally friendly.

Google Pixel 9 Pro: What I like so far

Taking a photo with the Google Pixel 9 Pro

This past weekend, I spent a lot of time with my family. Inevitably, lots of pictures are taken, but none of them ever have everyone in the frame. The Pixel 9 Pro changed that for the better, and I couldn't be happier with the result. Some have wondered how useful the Add Me feature might be, but let me tell you this: it's totally invaluable, and I hope this comes to other Android phones.

Being able to include everyone in a photo  one that's an actual good photo of everyone and not a lame selfie at an awkward angle to fit everyone in  is pure genius of the highest form. It's one of those features that makes AI make sense, something particularly important in a day in age where AI is invading everything and seemingly providing very little value given it's monumental R&D cost.

Add Me is my favorite new camera mode of the decade, so far.

It's not perfect  there are some telltale signs that someone was cropped and placed into the frame if you look close  but I'd wager no one would look for these small imperfections if you don't ask them to look. As it stands, Add Me is my favorite new camera mode so far this decade.

An example of how good Google's Add Me camera feature can automatically stitch together two photos and make it look like one

Fans of Panoramas will also adore the Pixel 9 Pro series, as the new panorama mode allows it to take substantially better panoramas, especially when the lighting isn't exactly perfect.

Putting them side-by-side with quite literally any other phone shows how much better Google's new panorama feature is, and I fully expect to see these upgrades make their way to other phones in the future. For now, though, this is the phone for panorama lovers.

Comparing a panorama captured in the evening between a Google Pixel 9 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

And while I'm covering new features, the Pixel Screenshots app has been even more impressive than I initially expected it to be. One of the biggest reasons for this is that it automatically imported every screenshot stored in Google Photos that I've ever taken.

That's years of screenshots, all processed and indexed, now searchable locally. If I were to continue using this phone long-term, I'd be changing how I take notes and, instead, just take screenshots and categorize them for later.

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The back of the Obsidian Google Pixel 9 Pro

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The back of the Hazel Google Pixel 9 Pro XL

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The back of the Hazel Google Pixel 9 Pro XL

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A Google Pixel 9 Pro in a Thinborne aramid fiber case

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A Google Pixel 9 Pro in a Thinborne aramid fiber case

Another surprise came in the form of the phone's design itself. Despite initial misgivings about the very iPhone-like redesign, the design has grown on me even if I still prefer the Pixel 8's design language overall. Google's design director said the company now designs its phones to be put in cases, and that seems to fit perfectly with my experience with the phone. Indeed, both phones look and feel best in a case, and that's saying a lot since I'm normally a case-less kind of guy.

So far, my favorite case is the Thinborne Pixel 9 Pro case, which came as no surprise since I've loved Thinborne's minimalist cases for years. It adds almost no bulk to the phone while giving it an important element of grippiness, something that's vital given how crazy slippery these new phones are. It also adds MagSafe capability, so you can use some compatible MagSafe accessories and chargers.

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Comparing the display sizes of the Google Pixel 9 Pro to the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL

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Comparing the display sizes of the Google Pixel 9 Pro to the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL

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Comparing the backs and sizes of the Obsidian Google Pixel 9 Pro with the Hazel Google Pixel 9 Pro XL

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Comparing the backs and sizes of the Obsidian Google Pixel 9 Pro with the Hazel Google Pixel 9 Pro XL

Ever since the first Samsung Galaxy Note came out, I've been the person who picks the biggest phone possible. But while I've been using the Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro XL, I've found myself grabbing the smaller one most of the time.

I've also been very surprised at how much I love the smaller-sized Pixel 9 Pro. Ever since the first Samsung Galaxy Note came out, I've been the person who picks the biggest phone possible. But while I've been using the Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro XL, I've find myself grabbing the smaller one most of the time.

Part of it is that it just feels so much nicer to use, particularly one-handed. It's a wonderful size, and its flatter shape makes it a delight to use all day. It also helps that there's feature parity between the models, so I don't miss out on anything important when choosing the smaller model. That's a first for Pixels.

Taking a photo with the Google Pixel 9 Pro

Unsurprisingly, the camera is another one of the phone's best features. I've already covered how amazing the Add Me feature and the panorama upgrades are, but the best-hidden feature is one I've written about since the Pixel 6 days: Pixels take photos of moving objects  that primarily means pets and kids  better than any phone in the U.S. market.

You can't buy another phone series in the U.S. that takes crisp imagery of your never-sit-still kids or pets like a Pixel can.

Internationally, phones from Honor (like the Honor 200 Pro) have caught up, but you can't buy another phone series in the U.S. that takes crisp imagery of your favorite little ones like a Pixel can. I'll have a more detailed breakdown of these phones' cameras in a separate camera review, but overall, it seems like a marginal upgrade over the Pixel 8 Pro in most ways.

Battery life has also been wonderful, and while I haven't noticed much of a difference between either of these phones and last year's Pixel 8 Pro, benchmarks tell a different story.

Our parent company, Future PLC, runs lab tests via the Future Labs department and found that it took over an average of 13 hours to run down the battery on the Pixel 9 Pro and the Pixel 9 Pro XL. Comparatively, the Pixel 8 Pro died after just 9 hours of running the same test. Clearly, Google wasn't kidding when they said Tensor G4's efficiency was better.

Daily performance is worse than Pixel 8 Pro in some cases, but Pixel 9 Pro/XL don't get searingly hot like that phone.

Lastly, I'm very pleased to report that Google seems to have finally conquered the excessive heat issues that have plagued Tensor-powered Pixels with Tensor G4 on the Pixel 9 series. While performance is actually worse in some cases when compared to the Pixel 8 series (read below for that), the phone doesn't become as hot as a frying pan when playing games for a long time  although it does still get warm.

This more aggressive throttling not only keeps the phone from heating up as the Pixel 8 Pro does, but it also keeps it from having huge framerate dips while playing. In a Minecraft test, I saw the Pixel 8 Pro drop to as low as 35FPS for a minute, while the Pixel 9 Pro XL never dipped below 65FPS.

Google Pixel 9 Pro: What's not great

Comparing the display sizes of the Google Pixel 9 Pro to the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL

Some of my biggest problems with both of these phones are ones that, thankfully, not everyone will have to deal with. First off, the new ultrasonic fingerprint scanner has been super hit-or-miss with me. Some days, it works fine and feels no different from the excellent optical fingerprint sensor on the Google Pixel 8 Pro.

On other days, it works half the time or less. There have been times when it flat-out doesn't work at all for me, which you can see in the GIF below. I've complained about this problem since Samsung started using ultrasonic fingerprint sensors on the Galaxy S10 many moons ago. It turns out that I'm not alone, and this technology just doesn't work well for some people, although I've yet to get a straight answer as to why.

Having a hard time using the Google Pixel 9 Pro's fingerprint sensor

The new fingerprint sensor doesn't work with some screen protectors and was generally unreliable for me.

Worse yet, some screen protectors cause the fingerprint sensor to stop working entirely, forcing you to use Google's "bank grade" face unlock. Some people prefer face unlock, but I'm not sure how much I trust the single-camera solution despite Google telling us otherwise.

Thankfully, some people have reported that this cheap tempered glass protector on Amazon will work with the phone. Google says it officially supports options from companies like Case-Mate, Zagg, Otterbox, and others. However, this won't fix the scanner's inconsistent nature for me, which seems incredibly susceptible to changes in skin moisture (and maybe other factors).

If Google had just made the fingerprint sensor in the power button a capacitive sensor  as it is on every foldable phone  this problem wouldn't exist.

Theming the homescreen of the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL blue

Second, the ultra-low 240Hz PWM rate used to "dim" the phone's display gives me terrible headaches, especially when I try to use the phone in the evening. This problem started about 2 years ago for me and has only gotten worse as displays have gotten ultra-bright.

The 3000-nit display on these phones is insanely bright, and flickering on and off at a low rate of 240Hz is nothing short of abysmal. Google is the only smartphone company that hasn't upgraded its rate  Samsung and Apple now use 480Hz on most devices  and companies like Honor and OnePlus push that rate to 2160Hz, 4320Hz, and beyond.

The PWM rate of the Google Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro XL at 100% brightness

At this brightness, Google is not even close to complying with the recommended IEEE PAR 1789 standard for displays and lighting.

And before we move beyond displays, the new rounder corners on the Pixel 9 series will inevitably cut off some UI elements in apps or games. It's not the end of the world, but I noticed some obvious clipping in Minecraft and other titles, which might bother some folks.

For the second year in a row, Google has raised the price of Pixel Pro models by $100.

Beyond my personal issues with the phone are some more objective criticisms people are bound to face when using a Pixel 9 Pro or Pixel 9 Pro XL. As Android Central contributor Brady Snyder pointed out when he wrote this article, the Tensor G4 processor inside the Pixel 9 series isn't much of an upgrade over the Tensor G3 in everyday tasks, including gaming performance.

As I said in the section above, the Pixel 9 Pro and Pro XL stay cool even after gaming for 30 minutes or more. However, these phones throttle a lot faster than the Pixel 8 Pro and stay throttled while under heavy loads.

An up-close look at the new in-display ultrasonic fingerprint sensor on the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL

On the best of days, the Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro XL are as fast as a Galaxy S22.

In one test, I opened Minecraft on the bamboo forest template and left it running looking in the same direction on both phones for 30 minutes. At the end of the test, the Pixel 8 Pro had a framerate that stayed around the 80-95 FPS mark with dips into the 60s for a minute to cool down.

Meanwhile, the Pixel 9 Pro hovered around 65-70FPS without these drastic dips  but also without the higher framerates of the Pixel 8 Pro. On the best of days, the Pixel 9 Pro and Pro XL are as fast as a Galaxy S22 based on any number of tests I've run over the past week.

Initial charging speed is faster than Pixel 8, but a full charge takes just as long.

In my Pixel 9 hands-on, I talked about the new charging speeds for the phones and even was able to use Google's new 45W charger. While that charger is great for topping up the battery quickly from 0% to about 50% in under 30 minutes, a full charge isn't any faster than the Pixel 8 series  and charging the phone when it's above 50% battery level results in a much slower charge than you might expect.

Comparing the average framerate in Minecraft between a Google Pixel 9 Pro XL and a Google Pixel 8 Pro

All of this comes at $100 more than last year's phones, which were also $100 more than the Pixel 7 generation. Google offers a lot of value with its phones  things like seven years of software updates, quarterly feature updates and additions, free Pixel VPN, and lots of other goodies  but it's hard for me to justify paying $1100 for a phone with 128GB of storage in the second half of 2024.

And while a Pixel 9 Pro is "the same price" as a Pixel 8 Pro  $999  you'll actually have to spend $1099 to get the same size phone as last year, the Pixel 9 Pro XL.

Since Tensor isn't anywhere near as fast as the competition for everyday tasks or gaming, I have a distinct worry that the Pixel 9 will start feeling very slow before long, much less by the time seven years of software updates are up.

Google Pixel 9 Pro: The competition

The back of the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra in the Titanium Grey colorway

Google's biggest competition in the U.S. is both Samsung and Apple, and both companies offer phones with faster processors and displays with better PWM rates. The Galaxy S24 series is promised to deliver the same seven years of software updates as the Pixel 9 series, and given the gulf in performance between Google and Samsung's phones, any Galaxy S24 model will likely last longer without feeling sluggish like the Pixel 9 eventually will.

If you're looking for an even better display and crazy fast charging speeds, the OnePlus 12 does it all while costing even less than a Pixel 9 Pro. I personally use a OnePlus 12 daily and am more than happy with it, especially given its superior multitasking UI. OnePlus only offers four years of software and OS updates, but you may not plan to hold on to your phone for more than that, so it's probably an OK trade-off.

Of course, none of these phones come with those nifty Pixel-exclusive features like call screening, VPN, Pixel Studio, and others. Plus, as I've covered many times, Pixels take the best photos of kids and pets and now even have great features like Add Me that offer even more interesting photography options. And, unlike Samsung or OnePlus, The Pixel 9 Pro family gives you a choice of phone size without losing features or camera prowess.

Google Pixel 9 Pro: Should you buy it?

Holding an Obsidian Google Pixel 9 Pro

You should buy it if...

You have pets or kids that you take lots of pictures of.

You love Google's clever AI features and Pixel exclusives like call screening.

You like to keep your phones for years before updating.

You should not buy it if...

You play lots of mobile games.

You want faster charging or more storage at a lower price.

You're sensitive to light flicker or displays that use low-Hz PWM dimming.

Over the years, Google has figured out clever ways to differentiate its Pixel line from other phones in meaningful ways. Pixel-exclusive features like Call Screening, advanced spam detection, and Pixel VPN have been mainstays of the line for years, while new Pixel-exclusive features like Pixel Screenshots, Pixel Studio, and camera modes like Add Me are sure to make your friends and family jealous.

But there's an underlying upfront value problem that continues to grow. Pixel is once again $100 more than the previous year. Tensor is still slower than other competing processors and heats up more quickly than those, too. Google hasn't improved its display dimming rate as other companies have, and the ultrasonic fingerprint sensor is problematic for some people, too.

Thankfully, Pixel 9 deals will often get you the phone for next to nothing as Google tries to expand its reach globally and get more Pixels into more people's hands. It doesn't make up for some of the other problems the phone has, but it's easy to give Pixel a shot and see if all those amazing exclusive features and apps are more important to you than raw performance or charging speed. Plus, being able to choose a size without losing important features is finally a reality.

As for me, I'll be going back to using my OnePlus 12 now.

Google Pixel 9 Pro

Finally! Get a smaller phone without losing all the great features of the biggest models. The Pixel 9 Pro includes a triple camera system on the back with a 5x optical zoom camera, Pro-grade software features, and a bold new design you just might love.





Google Pixel 9 Pro XL

When only the biggest display will do, the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL is the right phone for you. Packing Google smarts and the latest bag of AI tricks powered by Gemini, the Pixel 9 Pro XL will get it done.




Editor's Note

To make informed decisions, voters need accurate, timely and impartial information, and they need it in the language they speak. So, with generous support from the Yakima Free Press Fund, the Yakima Voter Project is providing free access to general election coverage by the Yakima Herald-Republic and El Sol de Yakima. To contribute to the Free Press Fund, visit www.yakimafreepress.org.
A hallway inside the former St. Elizabeth Hospital school of nursing. The building is being renovated and updated for use as a YWCA Yakima domestic violence emergency shelter.
Over the last 7 days, the South Korean market has risen 1.9%, and over the past 12 months, it is up by 5.0%. With earnings expected to grow by 29% per annum over the next few years, identifying growth companies with high insider ownership can be a key strategy for investors looking to capitalize on this upward trend.

Top 10 Growth Companies With High Insider Ownership In South Korea

Name Insider Ownership Earnings Growth People & Technology (KOSDAQ:A137400) 16.5% 35.6% ALTEOGEN (KOSDAQ:A196170) 26.6% 72.9% Bioneer (KOSDAQ:A064550) 17.5% 89.7% Global Tax Free (KOSDAQ:A204620) 21.4% 78.5% Seojin SystemLtd (KOSDAQ:A178320) 30.8% 62.1% Oscotec (KOSDAQ:A039200) 26.3% 114.7% Vuno (KOSDAQ:A338220) 19.5% 110.9% HANA Micron (KOSDAQ:A067310) 20.2% 97.4% UTI (KOSDAQ:A179900) 33.1% 122.7% Techwing (KOSDAQ:A089030) 18.7% 77.8%

Click here to see the full list of 90 stocks from our Fast Growing KRX Companies With High Insider Ownership screener.

We're going to check out a few of the best picks from our screener tool.

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: Genomictree Inc., with a market cap of 399.06 billion, is a biomarker-based molecular diagnostics company that develops and commercializes products for detecting cancer and various infectious diseases.

Operations: The company's revenue segments include 1.86 billion from the Cancer Molecular Diagnosis Business and 681.43 million from Genomic Analysis and Other Business.

Insider Ownership: 16.2%

Genomictree, trading at 59.5% below its estimated fair value, exhibits significant growth potential with an expected annual revenue increase of 81%, outpacing the South Korean market's 10.5%. Despite anticipated profitability within three years and a forecasted earnings growth of 98.46% per year, the company has experienced shareholder dilution over the past year and maintains a highly volatile share price. Currently, there is no substantial insider trading information available for the past three months.

KOSDAQ:A228760 Ownership Breakdown as at Aug 2024

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: Shinsung E&G Co., Ltd. operates in the solar energy sector, offering solar modules and systems both in Korea and internationally, with a market cap of 363.57 billion.

Operations: The company's revenue segments include the Renewable Energy Business Division generating 53.41 billion and the Clean Environment Business Division contributing 533.30 billion.

Story continues

Insider Ownership: 19.2%

Shinsung E&G Ltd. shows promising growth potential with earnings forecasted to grow 84.4% per year, significantly outpacing the South Korean market's 28.5%. Revenue is expected to increase by 14.6% annually, faster than the market average of 10.5%. However, its return on equity is projected to be low at 14.2%, and profit margins have decreased from last year's 8.2% to 0.7%. The stock trades at a substantial discount of 41.3% below its estimated fair value, though interest payments are not well covered by earnings.

KOSE:A011930 Ownership Breakdown as at Aug 2024

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: Lotte Tour Development Co., Ltd., with a market cap of 674.34 billion, operates in South Korea providing travel and tourism services through its subsidiaries.

Operations: Lotte Tour Development's revenue segments include the Internet Media Sector (2.12 million), Dream Tower Integrated Resort Division (302.75 billion), and Travel Related Service Sector excluding Internet Journalism (67.80 billion).

Insider Ownership: 29.4%

Lotte Tour Development's revenue is forecast to grow 16.5% per year, outpacing the South Korean market's 10.5%. Earnings are projected to increase by 96.43% annually, and the company is expected to become profitable within three years. However, its return on equity is anticipated to be low at 9%, and shareholders have experienced dilution over the past year. The stock trades at a significant discount of 37.7% below its estimated fair value.

KOSE:A032350 Ownership Breakdown as at Aug 2024

Seize The Opportunity

Get an in-depth perspective on all 90 Fast Growing KRX Companies With High Insider Ownership by using our screener here.

Already own these companies? Link your portfolio to Simply Wall St and get alerts on any new warning signs to your stocks.

Simply Wall St is your key to unlocking global market trends, a free user-friendly app for forward-thinking investors.

Interested In Other Possibilities?

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.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 KOSDAQ:A228760 KOSE:A011930 and KOSE:A032350.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
German energy firms may have lost billions in income as a result of fraud in a carbon credit program.

The program lets companies offset emissions by supporting carbon reduction projects abroad.

Yet, reports claim that many of the projects were fake or exaggerated.

A scandal engulfing Germany's carbon credit market may have resulted in billions in lost income for firms.

The country's program allows its biggest carbon producers  companies like Shell and other oil firms  to offset some of their emissions by supporting carbon-reduction projects abroad.

However, reports in German media this year show that some projects are misleading in their claims of reducing emissions  and some don't exist at all.

A report in Semafor on Wednesday notes that in one case, a whistleblower informed Shell that a carbon-reduction project the oil giant was involved with was, in fact, a chicken farm.

According to an industry group, the scandal has led to $5 billion in lost income for companies involved in inadequately verified or fraudulent projects.

In December, a report in the German outlet Handelsblatt said that half of projects in China are probably fake or misrepresenting their effectiveness.

The scandal involves Upstream Emission Reduction credits, which are produced by third-party energy firms and sold to producers looking to offset 1.2% of their emissions, as mandated by the German government.

Most UER projects are located in China, with others in Azerbaijan and Nigeria. However, German media identified at least 27 projects that aren't actually reducing any emissions or are exaggerating their results.

"In 27 UER projects from China, we have received indications of massive irregularities and even clear fraud," an industry insider told Handelsblatt in December.

Some revelations about fraudulent projects  like the chicken farm Shell was involved with  come from whistleblowers, while others have surfaced from satellite photos of project locations showing empty land.

Semafor notes that the scandal is highly damaging to the global carbon-reduction effort, which is already operating on little trust in the biggest polluters' ability to self-regulate and actually reduce their carbon footprint.

It is also a blow to regulators who are meant to be policing the effort and overseeing the transition to net-zero. In the case of the fraudulent UERs, compliance with the 1.2% reduction is not voluntary but legally mandated by the government, leading to questions over why agencies did not have more oversight of the program.

Read the original article on Business Insider
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In a recent GOBankingRates survey, 62% of respondents aged 65 and older said they have never been scammed, while only 52% of respondents aged 55-64 had the same response. Conventional wisdom has always pointed to older people being more susceptible to scams, but is this really the case?

Check Out: 3 Things To Do This Week If You Have Debt

Read Next: 7 Reasons You Must Speak To a Financial Advisor Before Spending $10,000 or More

Its true that the stereotypical scam picture paints older people as disproportionately victimized. Today, however, we know that scams affect everyone, no matter what age they are. Different demographics are simply affected by scams differently, Paige Schaffer  CEO of Iris powered by Generali, an identity and cyber protection company  wrote in an email.

Schaffer also pointed out that the Federal Trade Commissions (FTC) latest Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book showed that younger people reported losing money to fraud more often than older people. However, when older people did lose money, the median amount was much higher.

Its a similar story for scams, she noted. And it would also make sense that scammers go after different age groups in ways that better align with their lifestyles (think fake social media ads for younger people and government impersonation phone calls for older folks).

Here are several ways retirees have avoided getting scammed out of money, according to experts.

Learn More: Im a Bank Teller  9 Reasons You Should Never Ask for $2 Bills From the Bank

Earning passive income doesn't need to be difficult. You can start this week.

Education Is Key

Education is the best prevention method when it comes to scams, according to Schaffer. The FTC has a ton of great scam resources so that consumers can always stay in the know about the latest scam tactics and how to protect themselves, she wrote. They can even sign up for consumer alerts so that scam advice will hit their inbox the moment it becomes available.

You can sign up for consumer alerts through the FTC or the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) for the latest consumer advice and scams  and for tips on what you can do to better protect yourself. You can also stay up-to-date on the latest scams by following reliable news sources and staying connected with local law enforcement.

Watch Out for Red Flags

Some scams have telltale red flags to look out for. According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), some of these warning signs include:

Claiming to be from the government, bank, business or someone you know, asking to pay them money.

Asking you to pay money or taxes to receive a prize or gift.

Asking you to send cryptocurrency or money via a wire transfer service, payment app, prepaid card or gift card.

Asking for access to ATM cards, bank accounts, credit cards, investment accounts or cryptocurrency wallet keys.

Creating a false sense of urgency and telling you to act immediately.

Story continues

Verify the Sender

Criminals are constantly adapting their social engineering and phishing techniques, according to the National Council on Aging (NCOA). A criminal can call, text or email you to convince you theyre someone you know or a reputable company. The email or phone number may even be recognizable, as well.

They are keeping a pulse on the way reputable organizations are communicating with consumers, and they are replicating those communications through all sorts of different communication channels, said Abigail Bishop, head of external relations for scam prevention at Amazon, during a panel at Age + Action 2024.

Schaffer recommended verifying a messages legitimacy and always remaining skeptical, especially when asked to provide personal information or send money. You can do this by contacting the organization or individual directly using verified contact details.

Take Your Time

Dont let scammers play on your emotions. According to Psychology Today, people under time pressure are more likely to fall for phishing scams. Some scammers will even make their scheme a little more obvious to specifically target impulsive thinkers.

Take your time when reading emails or messages, especially those related to money. Honest businesses will also give you time to make a decision, and anyone who pressures you to pay or give them information is likely a scammer, the FTC reported.

Invest in an Identity Protection Program

You can also monitor your personal information closely by investing in an identity protection program that includes scam support. The best solution would combine powerful technology that can comb the dark web for compromised information or credentials while also providing access to real humans around the clock to help with any fraud or scam questions, Schaffer wrote.

These services can also monitor for signs of your personally identifiable information (PII), such as your Social Security number or bank account information. Youll receive alerts if it appears on social media, court or arrest records, payday loan applications, check cashing requests, USPS address change requests or orders for a new utility or phone service, CNBC Select reported.

More From GOBankingRates

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 5 Ways Retirees Have Avoided Getting Scammed Out of Money
The Hungarian Charity Service of the Order of Malta has launched a campaign to invite donations of school equipment for children in poor families, the organisation told MTI.

Between Wednesday and Saturday, volunteers of the charity will receive pens, exercise books, pencil cases, school bags and other equipment at their stands set up at Interspar supermarkets, where those accessories can be purchased, their statement said.



The volunteers will sort the donations into packages and send them locally to needy children before the start of the school year, the statement said.



Interspar also offers vouchers between 500 and 10,000 forints (EUR 1.30-26) that can be donated, the statement added. For details of the campaign visit the website www.adniorom.hu



Jobbik Proposes HUF100,000 Aid for Each School Starter

The opposition Jobbik-Conservatives party is proposing that each child starting school should receive a grant of 100,000 forints (EUR 250), deputy leader Daniel Z Karpat said.



The MP said Hungarian families do not in fact receive any assistance when their children go to school, adding that the governments family allowances earlier made them miss that amount from their budget later on.



On average, sending a child to primary school costs between 50,000-75,000 forints to start with, while within weeks after the start of the school year, they may be required to come up with extra amounts required by the school, he said.



Z Karpat said the subsidy could easily be financed from one half or one third of a major state project.



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The European Commission and certain member states are whipping up emotions on the matter of Hungarys National Card programme, the EU affairs minister said on Facebook.

Janos Boka also posted a letter signed by Interior Minister Sandor Pinter, written to EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson who has earlier voiced concerns about extending the card programme to include Russians and Belarusians wishing to work in Hungary.



Boka said in the post that applications for the card were tied to the same migration and security screening processes as other residence permits.



The card is issued only in consideration of the relevant EU guidelines and after an assessment of security risks, and the EU had so far not objected to the practice, he said.



Hungary is hosting only a fraction of Russian and Belarusian citizens currently staying in the EU, and the country issues a fraction of EU residence permits for Russian and Belarusian citizens, he said.



Pinter said in the letter that Hungary continued to place great emphasis on the protection of its national security and the security of the Schengen area as a whole.



Szijjarto: Extending Hungary National Card Programme to Belarus, Russia No Security Threat

Extending Hungarys National Card Programme to include Russian and Belorusian citizens poses no security threat to the Schengen Area, as card holders undergo comprehensive vetting before they are allowed to enter or stay in Hungary, the foreign minister said on Sunday.



We are sorry to see that our north European and Baltic colleagues continue their smear campaign against Hungary, Peter Szijjarto said on Facebook.



The truth is that involving Belorusian and Russian citizens in the National Card programme poses no security threat whatsoever for the Schengen Area, as they have to go through a comprehensive vetting process before they enter or stay in Hungary, he said.



All statements to the contrary are lies, pure and simple, perpetuated by our northern European and Baltic colleagues blinded by their pro-war approach.



Deutsch: 'Pro-War Political Interests Supersede All Else' for EC on Ukraine

Tamas Deutsch, the head of ruling Fideszs European parliamentary delegation, has said that for the European Commission pro-war political interests supersede all else regarding Ukraine.



In an interview to public radio, Deutsch insisted that the EC had failed to fulfil even its most basic obligations if it led to bolstering pro-peace efforts, and was even prepared to look the other way when it came to political blackmail.



Brussels decisions, Deutsch said, were dictated by an ideological bias that ignores the law.



He said the EC would take action once Ukraine started taking steps that directly went against the economic, political and security interests of western European countries, adding that such a scenario was easy to imagine as Ukraine becomes emboldened.



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The fresh newsletter for the International Community in Hungary - described by readers as a "Great read each week" - is now available for your interest and use via the link below.
Key taxi firms in the Hungarian capital were recently tested across multiple criteria by the local Conscious Consumers Association. The one aim was to determine which of seven key companies tested is the best choice when you need a cab in Budapest.

In case of a special night out, an emergency situation, or getting to and from the airport, we all might need a taxi from time to time in Budapest.



In recent years, Budapest has seen significant changes in its taxi services, with the introduction of ride-hailing apps and increased competition among traditional taxi companies.



Budapest taxis are easily identifiable by their yellow color and the mandatory use of a taximeter. Prices are regulated by the government, ensuring a fixed base fare and per-kilometer charge.



However higher prices are charged above the fixed rates, and differences in service quality, availability, and customer experience mean that not all taxi rides in the capital are created equal.



For foreigners  both expats and tourists who often dont speak Hungarian - the most important thing is likely to be a taxi service that is easily accessible and always reliable. But if they speak English, then some may wonder if they have special prices for foreigners.



So, which taxi company to choose? This article aims to make your choice easier based on test results.



What Taxi Test Criteria Were Used?

The practical part of the test was special, as it was conducted this June by two "tourists"actually American university students participating in the Leadership for Social Good study abroad program from Georgia Tech (Atlanta, GA).



These results are particularly valuable, as they offer insight into the experience of using Budapest taxis from a foreigner's perspective.



The testers evaluated the services based on the following five criteria, all weighted equally in the final results:



Method of booking and availability,

Appeal to foreigners,

Booking process,

Travel experience,

Price.



How Were the Budapest Taxi Companies Chosen?

The testers had no prior knowledge of Budapest taxi companies, so the first step was to select the service providers to be reviewed. This selection process closely mirrors the situation when a tourist or a first-time expat or local taxi user tries to hail a ride using their smartphone.



Four of the taxi companies were booked via phone apps, one online through a web form, and two by phone.



All rides took place along the same route and at the same time of day to ensure the results and experiences were as comparable as possible.



So Which Taxis Were Tested & Which Were Best?

Seven taxi service providers were compared, they are ranked in order of their overall test score:



1. Bolt - Test Score: 88



Originally known as Taxify, Bolt is a ride-hailing app that has gained significant popularity in Budapest. Bolt offers a modern and user-friendly experience, combining the convenience of app-based bookings with competitive pricing.



2. 6x6 - Test Score: 86



This trustworthy company has built a solid reputation over many years, and is a popular choice among locals and lots of expats for fair pricing and reliable service.



3. City Taxi - Test Score: 83



This is another well-established taxi firm in Budapest, for several decades its proven to be very reliable and user-friendly. Its long been a favorite among expats who appreciate the companys consistent quality, fair pricing and English speaking customer service.



4. Uber - Test Score: 74



After exiting Budapest in 2016, following opposition from traditional taxi drivers, the worldwide taxi giant has made a comeback to the Hungarian capital. Now they've partnered up with Fotaxi, and have sparked up some serious competition in the ride-hailing market here.



5. Fotaxi - Test Score: 66



This is one of the oldest and most established taxi companies in Budapest, with a history dating back to 1913. It has a strong reputation for reliability and decent prices, making it a popular choice among locals and expats alike, especially from Budapest Airport.



6. Welcome Pickups - Test Score: 63



This web-based service caters primarily to foreigners who want a more personalized travel experience. While its not a traditional taxi service, Welcome Pickups offers pre-booked rides with added services like tourist trips in Budapest, and many of the drivers speak multiple languages.



7. Tele5Taxi - 55



This is another reliable option in Budapest, known to be trustworthy and have a large service coverage area.



Notes: The test involved a ride of approximately four kilometers, costing between 2,860 and 4,020 forints in June 2024.



It also needs to be noted that the results are of course subjective, reflecting the personal opinions and experiences of the testers, but they provide valuable insights into the world of taxis in Budapest.



Conclusion According to the Test Comparison:



* The cheapest service among those tested was Bolt. The testers also found Bolt to be the best in terms of tourist appeal, and it was their overall favorite.

* In terms of booking method and availability, 6x6 and Welcome Pickups stood out, with 6x6 Taxi having the smoothest booking process.

* The travel experience was rated the most pleasant with Bolt and City Taxi.



For more details (in Hungarian), see the Conscious Consumers Association's website: https://tesztek.tudatosvasarlo.hu





Bolt vs. Uber: Who's Winning in Hungary's Taxi Wars?



In an interview with Vilaggazdasag, Bolt's Managing Director mentioned that they exceeded their expected targets for June: suggesting that most passengers still prefer Bolt.



Although Uber re-entered the Hungarian market about a month ago, many predicted this would end Bolt's dominance. However, Dr. Laszlo Sabjanyi noted that drivers who left in recent weeks have already expressed their intention to return.



Sources include:

Vilaggazdasag
Air India Flights To Kolkata: Air India announced on Thursday that it will operate additional flights to Kolkata from four major cities to accommodate the increased travel demand during Durga Puja. Starting September 20, daily flights to Kolkata will be available from Bengaluru and Hyderabad for nearly a month. Additionally, an extra flight from Mumbai to Kolkata will start on September 25.

The airline also increased the frequency to Kolkata from Delhi from August 15. With these additions, Air India increased frequency on the Delhi-Kolkata route from 28 weekly to 35 weekly flights, and on the Mumbai-Kolkata route it will increase from 21 weekly to 28 weekly, the statement said.

The flights will operate at convenient times, providing greater choice and ease to travellers who plan to visit their loved ones during the joyous festive season, it said.
(Bloomberg) -- Amazon.com Inc. was legally the boss of a group of subcontracted delivery drivers, US labor board prosecutors have concluded, rejecting the companys claims that workers in its sprawling delivery network arent its employees.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The general counsel office of the US National Labor Relations Board has determined that a group of drivers in Southern California were employees of Amazon itself, as well as of the delivery service partner company that hired them, agency spokesperson Kayla Blado said Thursday.

The agency prosecutors also concluded that Amazon violated federal labor law by making illegal threats and refusing to negotiate after the workers organized last year with the Teamsters. Absent a settlement, the agencys regional director plans to issue a formal complaint against Amazon, deeming it a joint employer, meaning a company with enough control over workers conditions to be legally responsible if theyre mistreated  and obligated to negotiate if they unionize.

Amazon denied wrongdoing. As we have said all along, there is no merit to the Teamsters claims, company spokesperson Eileen Hards said in a statement, noting that the agency dismissed other allegations from the union. If and when the agency decides it wants to litigate the remaining allegations, we expect they will be dismissed as well.

The company has denied being the boss of its subcontracted drivers, saying that those workers are only employees of delivery service partners, or DSPs  small independent businesses that the retail giant contracts with for its delivery needs.

Delivery drivers are responsible for a crucial aspect of Amazons business, and by not directly employing them, the company has shielded itself from costs and liabilities that come with their work.

While the NLRB determination applies to a small group of drivers at a DSP that Amazon has already cut off work with, it creates a landmark precedent that could affect the companys operations nationwide. More subcontracted drivers may now try to unionize and force Amazon to negotiate with them, and have a better chance of also being deemed by the government to be jointly employed by the company.

Bloomberg News reported in 2021 that Amazon imposes extensive rules regarding such drivers, including policies requiring clean teeth, face/ears, fingernails and hair, as well as drug testing whenever requested by the company. Theres also a prohibition on obscene social media posts.

Story continues

DSPs are mandated to adhere to Amazons policies, which the company can unilaterally change at its discretion, and are required to provide the retailer with physical access to their premises and information such as geolocation data, speed and movement of the drivers, according to a contract viewed by Bloomberg at the time.

Complaints issued by NLRB prosecutors are considered by agency judges, whose rulings can be appealed to labor board members in Washington. From there, they can go to federal appeals court. The agency lacks authority to impose punitive damages or hold executives personally liable for wrongdoing, but can order companies to change policies, compensate and reinstate terminated workers, and negotiate with unions.

A group of drivers in Illinois, hired through a different DSP, have also been organizing with the Teamsters this year. The Amazon Labor Union, which won a landmark unionization vote at a New York City warehouse in 2022  but has so far been unable to bring Amazon to the bargaining table  also affiliated with the Teamsters this summer.

While siding with the union on other issues, the NLRB regional director dismissed the Teamsters claims that the companys decision to cut off business with the Southern California DSP constituted illegal retaliation.

In an emailed statement, Teamsters President Sean OBrien said the workers activism in Palmdale, California, has paved the way for every other Amazon worker in the country to demand what they deserve and to get Amazon to the bargaining table.

--With assistance from Spencer Soper.

(Updates with comment from Amazon in the fourth paragraph.)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
New Delhi: Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut, known for her roles in films such as Krrish 3 and Manikarnika, is facing significant backlash due to her upcoming political drama, Emergency. The film, which centers on former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and the political upheaval of 1975, has been accused of offending Sikh sentiments.

The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) and Akal Takht have called for an immediate ban on the film, claiming that it deliberately aims to undermine the Sikh community. They have also demanded the filing of a First Information Report (FIR) against Ranaut, alleging that the film is designed to character assassinate Sikhs by presenting them in a negative light.

SGPC Chief Harjinder Singh Dhami addressed the media through a press conference on Wednesday, criticizing the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) for being biased and advocating for the inclusion of Sikh members on the censor board. Dhami expressed concern that the film misrepresents Sikh history and sentiments, echoing past grievances over the portrayal of Sikhs in cinema.

Similarly, Gyani Raghbir Singh, Jathedar (head) of the Akal Takht, claimed that Emergency disrespects the community and targets Jarnail Singh Khalsa Bhindranwale, who is honored as a martyr by the Akal Takht. Singh also criticized the government for failing to take action against Ranaut, urging authorities to address what he views as incitement of religious sentiments.

Although Kangana Ranaut announced Emergency in 2021, she later clarified that the film is a political drama rather than a direct biopic of Indira Gandhi. Ranaut not only stars in the film but also directs it. The cast includes Anupam Kher, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry, and Shreyas Talpade, with Talpade portraying Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Kher taking on the role of Jayaprakash Narayan. The late Satish Kaushik will appear as Former Deputy Prime Minister Jagjivan Ram.

Originally slated for earlier releases, Emergency has been postponed multiple times and is now scheduled for a theatrical release on September 6, 2024.
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Thursday referred a dispute between BharatPe, an online money transaction platform, and its former managing director Ashneer Grover to a sole arbitrator.

In its plea filed before the Delhi High Court, the fintech company alleged that Grover disclosed confidential information relating to BharatPe on social media platforms, in violation of the employment agreement.

Before the issue reached Delhi HC, responding to BharatPes notice to refer the matter to arbitration, Grover agreed on the formation of an arbitral tribunal but disagreed on the name of sole arbitrator.

In an earlier round of litigation, the Delhi High Court imposed a fine of Rs 2 lakh on Grover over blatant violation of earlier orders and assurances made by him to not post on social media defamatory posts against BharatPe.

It had asked Ashneer Grover as well as the officials of the fintech company not to speak in a "unparliamentary" or "defamatory" manner against one another.

The Delhi High Court issued an order restraining Grover from making defamatory and derogatory statements against BharatPe, its office bearers, or officials, and asked Grover to remove his posts, including one calling the SBI Chairperson "petty".

Ashneer and his wife allegedly committed financial irregularities when they were at the helm of the fintech platform.

BharatPe terminated the services of Madhuri Jain, head of controls, after an internal probe found misappropriation of funds that ran into crores during her tenure.

The fintech platform claimed that Grover, his wife, and their relatives were engaged in extensive misappropriation of company funds and grossly abused company money to fund their lavish lifestyles.

Grover had already moved an arbitration plea with the Singapore International Arbitration Centre pleading that the investigation launched against him was illegal because it violated the shareholder agreement and articles of association.
Krishna Janmashtami, one of the most revered festivals in Hinduism. It is a festival that expresses the essence of Hindu spirituality and cultural richness. It commemorates the birth of Lord Krishna, a deity whose wisdom and love continue to guide and inspire humanity. As devotees come together to celebrate, they not only pay homage to a divine figure but also reaffirm their commitment to leading a life of righteousness and devotion.

Krishna Janmashtami 2024: Puja Time and Duration

This year, as per Drik Panchang, Nishita Puja Time for Krishna Janmashtami 2024 will start from 12:01 AM on Aug 27 and end at 12:45 AM on Aug 27. The duration for Krishna Janmashtami is- 00 Hours 45 Mins.

Krishna Janmashtami 2024: Date And Shubh Muhurat

Krishna Janmashtami also known as Gokulashtami, Shrikrishna Jayanti, Krishnasthami, and Janmashtami, the festival is celebrated on the Ashtami Tithi of Krishna Paksha in the month of Bhadrapad. Krishna Janmashtami 2024 is the 5251st Birth Anniversary of Lord Krishna.

This year, as per Drik Panchang, Rohini Nakshatra for Janmashtami will start from 03:55 PM on Aug 26 and continue till 03:38 PM on Aug 27. Meanwhile, Ashtami Tithi will begin at 03:39 AM on Aug 26 and end at 02:19 AM on Aug 27.

Krishna Janmashtami 2024: History And Significance

The history of Krishna Janmashtami traces back to ancient India. Lord Krishna was born in Mathura to King Vasudeva and Queen Devaki, but he grew up in Gokul under the care of his foster parents, Nanda and Yashoda. His life is beautifully depicted in the ancient scriptures, primarily the Bhagavad Gita, Mahabharata, and Srimad Bhagavatam.

The birth of Lord Krishna took place in a tumultuous period when the evil King Kansa ruled Mathura. A divine prophecy had foretold that Kansa would be killed by Devaki's eighth child, which led to the king imprisoning Devaki and Vasudeva. However, Lord Krishna's miraculous birth in the middle of a stormy night, inside the prison, marked the beginning of a new era of righteousness and the eventual downfall of Kansa.

Krishna Janmashtami symbolizes the victory of good over evil and the triumph of dharma (righteousness) over adharma (unrighteousness). Lord Krishna, often referred to as the "God of Love" and the "Supreme Personality of Godhead," imparted invaluable wisdom through the Bhagavad Gita, emphasizing the importance of duty and devotion.

His teachings have transcended time and continue to inspire people to lead a life of virtue, empathy, and spirituality. The festival serves as a reminder of these teachings and encourages devotees to strive for a higher spiritual consciousness.

Krishna Janmashtami 2024: Celebration

Krishna Janmashtami is celebrated with immense enthusiasm and devotion across India and among Hindu communities worldwide. The festivities commence at midnight, the time of Lord Krishna's birth, and continue throughout the day. Here are some key aspects of the celebration:

Fasting: Many devotees observe a fast on this day, consuming only water and fruits until midnight when the birth of Lord Krishna is celebrated with grandeur.

Midnight Aarti: At midnight, temples and homes resound with melodious bhajans (devotional songs) and prayers. The deity's idol or image is bathed, adorned, and offered special sweets, symbolizing the birth of Lord Krishna.

Dahi Handi: In Maharashtra and other regions, young men form human pyramids to break the "Dahi Handi" (pot of curd) suspended high above the ground. This reenacts Lord Krishna's mischievous childhood escapades of stealing butter and curd.

Jhanki and Processions: Elaborate jhankis (tableaux) depicting scenes from Lord Krishna's life are set up in temples and homes. Processions with beautifully decorated idols of Lord Krishna and Radha are conducted, accompanied by music and dance.

Feasting: A sumptuous feast is prepared with a variety of dishes, especially butter, milk, and sweets, as these were Lord Krishna's favorites.

Rasa Lila: In some regions, enactments of Lord Krishna's playful dance with the gopis (milkmaids) known as "Rasa Lila" are performed.

(This article is intended for your general information only. Zee News does not vouch for its accuracy or reliability.)
New Delhi: Several states will experience a three-day bank closure starting this Saturday, August 24, 2024. This is due to some states observing a bank holiday on Monday, August 25, in celebration of Krishna Janmashtami. To ensure smooth banking transactions, it's a good idea for customers to check if their state will be affected by this holiday.

Are All Banks Closed on August 24?

Yes, banks will be closed this Saturday, August 24, because it's the fourth Saturday of the month. As per RBI guidelines, banks observe closures on the second and fourth Saturdays along with Sundays and other national or regional holidays.

August Bank Holidays in 2024

August 24 (Saturday): Fourth Saturday of the month; banks are closed.

August 25 (Sunday): Banks are closed as it is Sunday.

August 26 (Monday): On August 26, 2024, in observance of Krishna Janmashtami (Shravan Vad-8), banks will be closed in several states across India. This includes Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Jammu, Karnataka, Meghalaya, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal.

Please note that while physical bank branches will be closed on Monday in the listed states, digital banking services will still be available. You can continue to use internet banking, mobile banking, WhatsApp banking, as well as NEFT and RTGS services without interruption.
ICSI CS Result 2024: The Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) has announced that the results for the CS Professional Programme (Syllabus 2017 & Syllabus 2022) and the Executive Programme (Syllabus 2017 & Syllabus 2022) Examinations for the June 2024 session will be declared on August 25, 2024. Students can check their results on the official website, icsi.edu.

ICSI has also confirmed that the registration for the CS Executive and Professional December programs will begin on August 26, 2024. Participants in the CS Executive exam will be able to access their e-result-cum-marks statement online immediately after the result declaration. Note that no physical copies of the result-cum-marks statement will be issued.

As per the ICSI's announced schedule, the CS Professional Programme result for the June 2024 exam will be released at 11 AM on August 25, while the Executive Programme result will be declared at 2 PM the same day. For the Professional Programme examination, the result-cum-marks statement will be sent to candidates at their registered addresses shortly after the results are declared. If any candidate does not receive the physical copy within 30 days of the result announcement, they should contact the institute at the official website with their details.

ICSI CS Result 2024: Heres how to check

Visit the official website at icsi.edu.

On the homepage, find and click on the CS result link.

Choose the link for the Executive and Professional results.

Enter your roll number and registration number as required.

Your ICSI CS exam result will appear on the screen.

Review the result and download it.

Print a copy for future reference.

"The result along with individual Candidate's subject-wise break-up of marks will be available on the Institute's website: www.icsi.edu on declaration of the result, says the official notification. "In case the physical copy of Result-cum-Marks Statement is not received by any Candidate within 30 days of declaration of result, such Candidates may contact the Institute at: exam@icsi.edu along with his/her particulars," ICSI notice reads.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who will be meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during his visit to Kyiv, has reiterated India's position that it's not the era of war. Modi today said India firmly believes that no problem can be solved on the battlefield and it is ready to extend all possible cooperation for the restoration of peace and stability in the region.

After extensive discussions with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Prime Minister Modi highlighted the strengthening of India-Poland relations, which were elevated to a strategic partnership. The talks also resulted in the finalization of a social security agreement to facilitate the mobility of skilled workers. Both leaders emphasized the significance of adhering to international law and reaffirmed that all nations must avoid the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity, sovereignty, or political independence of any state, according to a joint statement.

Modi also said that ongoing conflicts among Ukraine-Russia and West Asia including Israel-Palestine are a matter of 'deep concern for all of us'. "This is India's firm belief that no problem can be solved on the battlefield. In any crisis, the loss of lives of innocent people has become the biggest challenge for the whole of humanity...We support dialogue and diplomacy for the early restoration of peace and stability. For this, India, along with its friendly countries, is ready to provide all possible support," said PM Modi.

Following his visit to Warsaw, Prime Minister Modi is en route to Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, travelling by train under tight security. The journey is expected to take around 10 hours. During his nearly seven-hour stay in Kyiv on Friday, Modi will engage in both one-on-one and delegation-level talks with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, with discussions likely to focus on exploring solutions to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

Modi's visit to Ukraine comes six weeks after he travelled to Moscow. India has not yet condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine and it has been calling for resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy.
In a breakthrough just a week after Independence Day, the Delhi Police has dismantled a terror module allegedly inspired by al-Qaeda. In a coordinated effort by police forces from Jharkhand, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh, 14 individuals suspected of being connected to a terrorist group were arrested. The group was allegedly planning a series of high-profile attacks aimed at establishing a 'Khilafat' in India.

According to a statement from the Delhi Police, "The module, led by Dr. Ishtiyaq from Ranchi (Jharkhand), was intending to declare a 'Khilafat' and carry out significant terrorist activities in the country."

Authorities disclosed that the members of the group had received training at various locations, including instruction on handling weapons. The operation was initiated after crucial intelligence revealed the group's plans and locations. The collaboration between the Delhi Police and state forces played a key role in identifying and neutralizing the threat.

During the operation, six suspects were apprehended in Bhiwadi, Rajasthan, where they were undergoing weapons training. Additionally, eight individuals were detained in Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh for further investigation. Police also seized arms, ammunition, and materials related to terrorist activities.

Delhi Police officials stated that the investigation is still ongoing, with more arrests expected as the raids continue.

Earlier in February this year, the Delhi Police arrested an alleged member of a Lashkar-e-Taiba module operating in Jammu and Kashmir's Kupwara. The accused, a retired army personnel, is believed to have played a crucial role in receiving arms and ammunition from across the Line of Control (LoC). Identified as Riyaz Ahmad Rather, a resident of Kupwara district, he was apprehended on Sunday at the New Delhi Railway Station, according to police reports.
Farooq Abdullah has ended speculation by announcing a pre-poll alliance between the National Conference and Congress. This announcement came after Rahul Gandhi and Malikarjun Kharge met with him at his residence. The National Conference has declared a pre-poll alliance with the Congress and CPI(M) in Jammu and Kashmir, in anticipation of the assembly elections scheduled to begin on September 18.

Congress Leader Rahul Gandhi, accompanied by Congress President Malikarjun Kharge, visited Dr. Farooq Abdullah's residence in Srinagar before their departure to Jammu. Rahul was on a two-day visit to the Union Territory.

At the meeting, former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and several party leaders were also in attendance. Shortly after Rahul Gandhi's departure from the Abdullah residence, Farooq Abdullah addressed the media to announce the National Conference's pre-poll alliance with the Congress and CPI(M) for the forthcoming elections.

The president of the National Conference said, "There will be an alliance across all 90 assembly seats between the two parties. The paperwork is expected to be completed by tonight. Congress, NC, and CPI(M) will join forces. We are united in our efforts and will contest the elections together. We are optimistic that statehood will be reinstated. Our doors remain open to everyone."

Previously, Rahul Gandhi had expressed his party's and the INDIA block's commitment to the prompt restoration of statehood in J&K.

Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition and head of the Congress Party, said, "Restoring statehood to Jammu and Kashmir as swiftly as possible is our top priority. Although we had hoped for this to occur before the elections, we are hopeful that statehood will soon be reinstated. This is an unprecedented situation since independence, where a state has been downgraded to a union territory. It is our foremost concern to return their democratic rights. The Congress Party stands in solidarity with the people of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh."

Congress President Malikarjun Kharge also spoke on the occasion and said that We want to keep the entire opposition together.

Congress President Malikarjun Kharge said BJP couldnt ensure elections in J&K. The party announced polls under pressure in the wake of Supreme Court directions. I want to put it on record that BJP cant suppress the peoples voices anymore in J&K. Congress is committed to work for the welfare of the people of J&K. Tall claims of BJP that post Article 370, terrorism has been wiped out in J&K, have fallen flat. Infiltration has gone up and terrorism incidents have also witnessed a spike

The Assembly Elections in Jammu and Kashmir will start on September 18 and will be held in three phases and on 4th October results will be announced.
NEW DELHI: In a suspected case of honour killing, two men smothered their 35-year-old sister to death here over suspicion that she was having an affair, officials said on Thursday. Police examined footage from CCTV cameras to trace and arrest Abdullah and Arib in connection with the case, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) M Harsha Vardhan said. He added that there were no signs of sexual assault.

Police said the accused suspected that after her divorce, she had an affair. "They were suspicious over her activities and felt insulted, and planned to kill their sister," Vardhan said.

He said according to initial investigation, she was smothered to death. The exact cause of death will be known after postmortem, the DCP said. Her body was recovered from her house in the Hauz Qazi area of central Delhi after police were informed about it around 4.30 am on Thursday, Vardhan said.
The Supreme Court on Thursday described the Kolkata Police's delay in registering the unnatural death of a female doctor, who was raped and murdered at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, as "extremely disturbing." The court also urged protesting doctors to return to work, assuring them that they would face no adverse action upon their return.

The bench, led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, questioned the sequence and timing of the police's legal procedures, expressing surprise that the postmortem was conducted on August 9 from 6:10 pm to 7:10 pm, prior to the case being registered as an unnatural death.

"The post-mortem was conducted at 6:10 pm on August 9, yet the report of unnatural death was sent to Tala police station at 11:30 pm on the same day. This is extremely disturbing," remarked the bench, which also included Justice J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra.

The court ordered the Kolkata Police officer who made the initial entry regarding the rape-murder case to appear at the next hearing to disclose the time of the entry.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the CBI, informed the court that the FIR was shockingly registered at 11:45 pm, after the cremation of the postgraduate doctor.

"The state police initially deemed it a suicide, then declared it a murder. A friend of the victim suspected a cover-up and demanded videography," Mehta stated to the bench.

At the start of the hearing, the court requested that protesting doctors resume their duties, promising that no adverse action would be taken against them once they rejoined.

Counsel for the resident doctors at AIIMS Nagpur informed the apex court that they are facing victimization for protesting the Kolkata rape-murder case.

"We will ensure that authorities do not take adverse action once they return to duty. The public health infrastructure cannot function without the doctors," the bench said.

If there is difficulty after that, come to us but let them first report to work, it said. The top court said its heart goes out to all patients visiting public hospitals. It assured doctors' associations that the National Task Force will hear all stakeholders.

The brutal assault and murder of the junior doctor has sparked nationwide protests. Her body was found with severe injury marks inside the seminar hall of the state-run hospital's chest department. A civic volunteer was arrested by the Kolkata Police in connection with the case the following day on August 10.

On August 13, the Calcutta High Court ordered the transfer of the probe from the Kolkata Police to the CBI, which started its investigation on August 14.
China-Africa media cooperation forum focuses on support for modernization

Xinhua) 08:04, August 22, 2024

Li Shulei, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, delivers a speech at the opening ceremony of the 6th Forum on China-Africa Media Cooperation & China-Africa Think Tank High-Level Dialogue in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. (Xinhua/Zhang Ling)

BEIJING, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese and African media organizations and think tanks should make joint efforts to facilitate the modernization drive of developing countries, according to attendees at the 6th Forum on China-Africa Media Cooperation &China-Africa Think Tank High-Level Dialogue held in Beijing on Wednesday.

They said that China-Africa relations have entered a new phase in the joint construction of a high-level China-Africa community with a shared future, calling on media and think tanks to enhance their efforts to disseminate the successful story of China-Africa cooperation.

They said that topics related to modernization should be high on media reporting and think tank research agendas, and that intellectual and public support should be provided to the Global South on their journey toward modernization.

Li Shulei, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, delivered a speech at the opening ceremony.

During the forum, relevant authorities and institutions on both sides signed six radio and television agreements, announced 20 cooperation projects, and held an exhibition focusing on cooperation achievements.

Over 500 representatives of government departments, media outlets, think tanks and international organizations in China and more than 40 African countries were in attendance.

The event was held under the framework of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC). The 2024 Summit of the FOCAC will be held in Beijing from Sept. 4 to 6.

Li Shulei, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, meets with Chinese and foreign guests attending the 6th Forum on China-Africa Media Cooperation & China-Africa Think Tank High-Level Dialogue before the opening ceremony of the event in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. Li delivered a speech at the opening ceremony here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Zhang Ling)

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
The call was made at a recent panel discussion hosted by the Pakistan Accord Secretariat and attended by 70 participants representing 30 covered factories as well as the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).

The Workplace Program, which includes Safety Training and a Complaints Mechanism at covered factories, is a key component of the Pakistan Accord. It aims to help build the capacity of joint labour management Safety Committees to maintain safe workplaces, raise workers awareness of safety and health, ensure compliance with OSH-related requirements, and provide workers with access to remedies.

In his opening remarks, Zulfiqar Shah, country manager of the Pakistan Accord, highlighted the importance of workplace safety. He also appreciated the cooperation extended by key stakeholders, particularly the factories.

In his update, he noted that since the Pakistan Accord on Health and Safety in the Textile and Garment Industry took effect in January 2023, 128 brands that collectively source over $3bn worth of goods from 500 factories in Pakistans Sindh and Punjab provinces have signed the agreement. It aims to reach over 500,000 workers through its safety training programme and has conducted safety inspections in over 80 factories.

Kirstine Drew, chief complaints officer, Pakistan Accord explained in her presentation that the right to refuse unsafe work, provision of safety training programmes, joint labour management safety committees, and the complaints mechanism are the cornerstones of worker participation in the Accord programme.

The complaints mechanism is implemented on behalf of signatory brands and in accordance with UN effectiveness criteria  legitimate, accessible, predictable, equitable, transparent, and rights-compatible  as well as the requirements of due diligence legislation. The Accord team works with factory management and brands to address complaints and ensure the delivery of remedies.

In the panel discussion, Rehan Ahmedani, representing Synergies Sourcing, and Neelofar Saleem, representing Bestseller, emphasised that having an independent complaints mechanism in place is now a legal requirement for brands under various legislations in Europe, such as the German Supply Chain Act and the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD).

Both speakers noted that receiving complaints is not necessarily bad, and they prefer to work with suppliers who have efficient and effective systems to address them.

They also encouraged supplier factories to embrace the Safety Training Program as an opportunity to strengthen workplace safety and health and contribute to learning.

Story continues

The event concluded with a collective commitment to make workplaces safer for factory workers. The Pakistan Accord Secretariat is planning to organise similar informational sessions with additional covered factories in Lahore and Karachi.

In April the Pakistan Accord started equipping engineers with technical knowledge and practical skills to conduct factory inspections and produce reports for the programme.

"Apparel sector voices support for worker safety Pakistan Accord" was originally created and published by Just Style, a GlobalData owned brand.







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As the Central Bureau of Investigation continues to carry out its investigation in the rape-murder case of a trainee doctor in the Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has now written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking stringent rape law. Banerjee proposed the establishment of fast-track special courts for speedy trials in these cases. To ensure quick justice, trials should preferably be completed within 15 days, she wrote in the letter.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has called for stringent central legislation with severe punishment for rapists, a senior official revealed. Alapan Bandopadhyay, Chief Advisor to the Chief Minister, read Banerjee's letter during a press conference.

The Trinamool Congress leader penned the letter in response to nationwide protests following the alleged rape and murder of a woman doctor at Kolkata's state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital earlier this month. Banerjee expressed concern over the frequent occurrence of rape cases across the country, noting that, according to available data, nearly 90 rape incidents happen daily, with many victims also being murdered.

It is horrifying to see this trend. It shakes the confidence and conscience of society and the nation. It is our bounden duty to put an end to it so that women feel safe and secure. Such a serious and sensitive issue needs to be addressed comprehensively through stringent central legislation that prescribes exemplary punishment for those involved in these dastardly crimes, the letter read.
Kerala Lottery Results Thursday 22-08-2024 LIVE: The Kerala Lottery Department, on behalf of the Keralan government, announces the "Karunya KN-535" Lucky Draw Result today Karunya KN-535, August 22, 2024. The draw will be held at Gorky Bhavan near Bakery Junction in Thiruvananthapuram. The Kerala Lottery Result 2024 for "Karunya KN-535" will feature 12 series, with changes in series possible each week. A total of 108 lakh tickets are available for purchase weekly. The ticket prices may vary. Check the Karunya KN-535 results right here to see if youre the first-place winner of 80 Lakhs. Stay tuned to this website for the live update of Kerala Lottery Karunya KN-535 results today.

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Many organisations called for Bharat Bandh on August 21 which was partially successful. Now, political parties have called for a Maharashtra bandh on August 24. The call comes at a time when doctors across the country are protesting demanding their safety after the brutal rape and murder case of a trainee doctor in Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College.

Maharashtra Bandh On August 24 Reason?

Political parties like Shiv Sena-UBT, Nationalist Congress Party-Sharad Pawar and Congress have called for a state-wide bandh. The Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance has called for a bandh in the wake of rising crime against women in the state. The call was sparked by the recent sexual assault case involving two minors in a Badlapur School in Thane district. People had taken to the streets while blocking the railway line demanding action against the accused who is said to be the contractual sweeper of the school. Seeing the outrage, the opposition not only slammed the ruling government but also announced to hold a state-wide bandh on August 24.

Opposition's Claim

Shiv Sena (UBT) President and former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray fiercely criticized CM Eknath Shinde over the Badlapur horror, accusing him of having a "crooked mentality and insensitivity" towards the emotions of the people. Thackeray highlighted the growing incidents of atrocities against women in the state, stating that "remaining silent is no longer an option" and emphasizing the urgent need to prioritize the safety and security of mothers, sisters, and daughters.

Badlapur Case And Protest

A massive protest erupted in Badlapur town, Thane district, on Tuesday, as thousands of people took to the streets and blocked railway tracks in response to the alleged sexual assault of two four-year-old girls by a male attendant at a local school. The protest turned violent, with stone-pelting incidents at the railway station and other areas of Badlapur, resulting in injuries to at least 25 police personnel. In connection with the unrest, police have arrested 72 individuals involved in the violence.
JAMMU: Striking an emotional chord with the people of Jammu and Kashmir, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi Thursday said he considers himself their soldier in New Delhi, and added his doors are always open for party workers -- "the lions of the Congress". Taking a dig at the prime minister, Gandhi said Modi's body language and confidence have drastically changed after the parliamentary poll results.

"You know my relationship with you. It is not a political connection. It is a relationship of love and that of my family's background. My family comes from your state," the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha told Congress workers here. He was addressing them on the second and concluding day of his visit to poll-bound Jammu and Kashmir.

"So, you should always feel that you have a sepoy in Delhi. I am your sepoy. Whatever you need, my doors are always open for you," he said. "You only have to give me an order, and I will be present before you," Gandhi said amid amid huge applause.

Flanked by Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Gandhi referred to party leaders as his 'generals' and the workers as 'sepoys'. He emphasised that both must be respected in all situations, including during alliances with other parties.

In an apparent dig at former Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, without naming him, Gandhi told the party workers, "When there was a difficult time, and you and your ideology were under attack, you still fought on the ground, keeping the flag flying high. Several people threw down the flag and ran away. You did not run away. You faced bullets, sticks, and abuses, and stood your ground firmly. I call you the lions of the Congress." Asserting that the Congress and its workers have shaken Prime Minister Modi's confidence, Gandhi remarked he has lost the self-assured body language he displayed before the elections.

"Congress workers have given him so much psychological tension that his confidence has been badly hit. Congress workers have forced him to bow before the Constitution. He is not the same PM he was before the elections," he added. He affirmed that the Congress will continue to challenge the BJP across the country.

"Whenever they try to do any mischief, they will find the Congress challenging them. The Congress and its workers have saved the Constitution and democracy in the country. We will thwart their design. They will not be allowed to pass their bills," he said.

He said the Congress is engaged in a battle of ideologies with the BJP. "It is a fight between the ideologies of Congress and the RSS." On the issue of ticket distribution by the Congress in Jammu and Kashmir, Gandhi expressed his desire to see tickets being given to grassroots workers. "They should have the opportunity to become MLAs. I want to see them in assembly." He also called for the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir's statehood at the earliest. He said the people of J&K have gained nothing under the current regime, which has handed over all the region's resources to "outsiders".

Gandhi and Kharge were welcomed and honoured with a Dogri pagri and picture of Mata Vaishnodevi.
Thailand has reported its first case of the highly transmissible Clade 1b strain of Mpox, marking the first known case of this strain in Asia. This development has heightened concerns over a potential global outbreak, following similar reports from Europe.

First Case in Asia

The case involves a 66-year-old European man who recently arrived in Thailand from an undisclosed African country where the Clade 1b strain is spreading. Thai health officials confirmed the diagnosis and stated that the individual likely contracted the virus in the African nation before travelling to Thailand.

Global Health Emergency Declared

This ne case comes just after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the surge in Mpox cases a public health emergency of international concern, its highest level of alert. The declaration followed a significant increase in cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where the Clade 1b strain first emerged.

Clade 1bs Unique Transmission Pattern

Unlike Clade 1a, which traditionally spreads through zoonotic transmission (from animals to humans) with limited human-to-human transmission, Clade 1b appears to be circulating exclusively within human populations. Experts have not yet detected any evidence of zoonotic transmission for this strain, suggesting a significant shift in how the virus spreads.

Researchers are currently investigating whether there is a difference in disease severity between Clades 1a and 1b. As the global health community continues to monitor the situation, the rapid spread of Clade 1b underscores the urgent need for international cooperation and preparedness to prevent a wider outbreak.
London: A UK-based YouTuber known for his controversial online presence, Miles Routledge, is back in the limelight for the wrong reasons. He has sparked outrage after making racist remarks directed at Indians on the social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter). Routledge, who previously gained attention for his harrowing experience of being stranded in Afghanistan during the Taliban takeover in 2021, has now come under fire for his offensive posts.

The controversy began when Routledge shared a meme video depicting U.S. President Joe Biden launching nuclear missiles. He accompanied the video with a provocative caption. He suggested that if he were to become Prime Minister of the UK, he would not hesitate to use nuclear weapons in response to even minor provocations from foreign powers.

He is clearly a Dalit (lowest caste in India), imagine the smell. I love how there are numerous tiers of castes they're proud of but everyone in the world just points and goes "brown" lol  Lord Miles (@real_lord_miles) August 21, 2024

Shortly after posting the video, Routledge escalated the situation by making a specific threat against India. "Hell, I might just launch at India just for the sake of it!" he wrote, drawing immediate criticism for his incendiary remarks.

Routledge did not stop there. He proceeded to share a tweet from an anonymous user, mocking them with derogatory language and stereotypes. His comments composed of racial slurs and offensive language targeted the Indian community.

When I become prime minister of England, I'll open the nuclear silos as an explicit warning to any foreign power that interferes with British interests and affairs.



I'm not talking huge incidents, I'm itching to launch and atomize entire nations over the smallest infraction. pic.twitter.com/UGBKYB3pku  Lord Miles (@real_lord_miles) August 20, 2024

As criticism mounted, Routledge responded by doubling down on his stance, claiming that his dislike for India was genuine. "Believe it or not, I just don't like India," he stated in response to a user who accused him of engaging in "rage-baiting."

The YouTuber's remarks have been met with widespread condemnation on social media, with many users calling for accountability and urging platforms to take action against hate speech.

Routledge's comments have reignited debates about online hate speech and the responsibilities of social media platforms in curbing harmful content. Despite the backlash, the YouTuber has yet to issue an apology or retract his statements.
Auto-Taxi Drivers Strike In Delhi-NCR: Commuters in Delhi-NCR faced a tough time as taxi and autorickshaw drivers began their two-day strike on Thursday demanding better compensation from cab aggregator services. Taxi and auto unions said inadequate compensation coupled with aggergators launching bike taxi services has hit their livelihood.

Eighty per cent of autorickshaws and taxis are off the road in the national capital, Delhi Auto Taxi Transport Congress Union (DATTCU) president Kishan Verma claimed and announced that a protest will be held at the Jantar Mantar.

Anil Pradhan, a cab driver, demanded a ban on bike taxis that offer services using non-commercial numberplates. "The government should step in and ban the commercial plying of vehicles with non-commercial numberplates. It is becoming difficult to make ends meet," he said.

Adarsh Tiwari, another cab driver, said, "The companies offer us very less rate for our services. Due to this, we are unable to pay the installments of our vehicles and meet other expenses. We are unable to ensure good education for our children and sufficient food for our families."

People took to social media to complain about delays in getting cabs and cancellations. "Spent the last 35 mins trying to get a cab in Noida for Delhi. Whats wrong with @Olacabs @Uber_India @rapidobikeapp," X user Prashhush posted.

Another X user, Kshitiz Agarwal said, "Is it only me or Uber doesnt work anymore now? Couldnt find an Uber cab for 30 mins nowadays even at posh localities like south extension, new Delhi #uber #ola."

DATTCU president Verma, "We will also be holding a protest at Jantar Mantar to demand a ban on plying of private vehicles by cab aggregator companies. Why are we made to take permits and pay taxes when private vehicles are allowed to ply? We demand that the government impose a ban on them."
New Delhi: Andaz Apna Apna is a cult comedy starring Aamir Khan and Salman Khan. The film to date managed to tickle your funny bones and who doesn't want the sequel? And it seems like the sequel is on its way. Recently superstar Salman Khan's old tweet got a reaction from Aamir Khan's production team the handle mentioned how they think a lot about his tweet where he had written," I didn't let Aamir touch me after the film. Agar mujhe gold mein badal deta toh (What if he turned me into gold)".

This reaction from Aamir's team has got fans excited. And they are predicting Amar-Prem is all set to make a comeback with Andaz Apna Apna 2. The reaction from Aamir's team got everyone's attention. The users on social media asked them to buck up and make the film soon. One user said." 14 years later, you are still thinking about it?! Get to work and make a movie featuring Salman and Aamir together! Andaz Apna Apna 2 or something new!". Another user mentioned that there is something cooking between Amar Prem and they cannot wait for them to share the news.

Aamir and Salman are one of the biggest superstars and their reunion is indeed one of the most awaited one. In one of the interactions, Raveena Tandon expressed her excitement to team up with Aamir in the sequel. Indeed the fans cannot keep calm and we totally get it.
Mumbai: Ever since Anushka Sharma embraced motherhood, the actress took a sabbatical from her acting career. She was last seen in Zero in 2018, and her fans were eagerly waiting for her to make a comeback. But in 2024 she announced the arrival of her baby boy Akaay Kohli and for 7 months she has been staying in London along with her husband Virat Kohli. But here's some good news for the fans, the actress is all set to return to Mumbai for an event and will have a meet and greet with the lucky fans. Anushka herself shared this news on her Instagram profile where she assured her fans to see them soon.

Though Anushka is not working in films she has been actively doing endorsements and one of the advertisements is for the kid's food which she happens to promote in Mumbai, and this will make the diva return to the town. But it looks like this is just a two-day event and she will once again head back to London.

Anushka and Virat both like to stay away from the media glare and hence London is the best place for them to stay as there is no hullabaloo around their presence. Virat and Anushka are one of the most loved and ideal couples in the tinsel town, the way they both root for each other is every bit admirable and inspiring.
New Delhi: Known for his movie The Dairy of West Bengal, film director Sanoj Mishra has been reported missing. Mishra's film, which explores the violent incidents in West Bengal, has sparked intense controversy and debate, leading to numerous threats against the filmmaker.

The situation escalated following the release of the film's trailer, which prompted the West Bengal Government to file a legal case against Mishra. In response, Mishra travelled to Kolkata on August 14 to attend a court hearing related to the case.

Bollywood actress turned politician, Kangana Ranaut drew attention to Mishra's plight through an Instagram Story. Sharing a photo of the filmmaker, Ranaut wrote "He is Sanoj Kumar Mishra, he has directed a film called The Diary of West Bengal. After the trailer of his movie released Mamata Banerjee government filed a case on him and he went to Kolkata on 14th August to attend the court hearing of the same."

Kangana added, "He reached Kolkata and went missing. His wife is calling me everyday she is beyond devastated last night she left for Bengal, I request @mamataofficial to help poor lady find her husband. Thanks."

The film, set for release on August 30, has drawn significant criticism, exacerbating Mishra's stress. In a recent Instagram post, Mishra conveyed his growing distress:                             which translates to Friends, as the release date of the film The Diary of West Bengal is finalized on 30th August, my problems are increasing a lot, I am under a lot of mental pressure.

The case has attracted considerable attention with many questioning the circumstances surrounding his disappearance and the possible involvement of external forces.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP)  California will be the first U.S. state to direct millions of dollars from taxpayer money and tech companies to help pay for journalism and AI research under a new deal announced Wednesday.

Under the first-in-the-nation agreement, the state and tech companies would collectively pay roughly $250 million over five years to support California-based news organization and create an AI research program. The initiatives are set to kick in in 2025 with $100 million the first year, and the majority of the money would go to news organizations, said Democratic Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, who brokered the deal.

This agreement represents a major breakthrough in ensuring the survival of newsrooms and bolstering local journalism across California  leveraging substantial tech industry resources without imposing new taxes on Californians, Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement. The deal not only provides funding to support hundreds of new journalists but helps rebuild a robust and dynamic California press corps for years to come, reinforcing the vital role of journalism in our democracy.

Wicks' office didn't immediately answer questions about specifics on how much funding would come from the state, which news organizations would be eligible and how much money would go to the AI research program.

The deal effectively marks the end of a yearlong fight between tech giants and lawmakers over Wicks' proposal to require companies like Google, Facebook and Microsoft to pay a certain percentage of advertising revenue to media companies for linking to their content.

The bill, modelled after a legislation in Canada aiming at providing financial help to local news organizations, faced intense backlash from the tech industry, which launched ads over the summer to attack the bill. Google also tried to pressure lawmakers to drop the bill by temporarily removing news websites from some people's search results in April.

This partnership represents a cross-sector commitment to supporting a free and vibrant press, empowering local news outlets up and down the state to continue in their essential work," Wicks said in a statement. This is just the beginning.

California has tried different ways to stop the loss of journalism jobs, which have been disappearing rapidly as legacy media companies have struggled to profit in the digital age. More than 2,500 newspapers have closed in the U.S. since 2005, according to Northwestern Universitys Medill School of Journalism. California has lost more than 100 news organizations in the past decade, according to Wicks' office.

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The Wednesday agreement is supported by California News Publishers Association, which represents more than 700 news organizations, Googles corporate parent Alphabet and OpenAI. But journalists, including those in Media Guild of the West, slammed the deal and said it would hurt California news organizations.

State Sen. Steve Glazer, who authored a bill to provide news organizations a tax credit for hiring full-time journalists, said the agreement seriously undercuts our work toward a long term solution to rescue independent journalism.

State Senate President Pro Tempore Mike McGuire also said the deal doesn't go far enough to address the dire situation in California.

Newsrooms have been hollowed out across this state while tech platforms have seen multi-billion dollar profits, he said in a statement. We have concerns that this proposal lacks sufficient funding for newspapers and local media, and doesnt fully address the inequities facing the industry.
New Delhi: As many as over 58 lakh people filed their ITRs for the first time for AY 2024-25, as per an official data.

Union Minister of Finance & Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman, presiding over the 165th anniversary of Income Tax Day observed by Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), in New Delhi, thanked these taxpayers for voluntarily coming forward to pay their due taxes.

"Underlining the growing trust of taxpayers towards the Department, the Union Finance Minister further expressed her heartfelt gratitude to the honest taxpayers for their contribution in delivering on welfare & development, appreciating the fact that there were 58.57 lakh first-time ITR filers for AY 2024-25. It showcased that India was getting more formalized as an economy and more people are coming forward to voluntarily pay taxes, She said," FM Sitharaman said.

The Union Finance Minister also commended the Department for achieving the highest ever tax collection; as also the success of the faceless assessment and appeals regime.

Sitharaman exhorted the Department to be fair and friendly and ensure that there is improved taxpayer experience.

"The tax notices should be temperate, simple and easy to understand for the taxpayer," she said.

The Union Finance Minister underlined judicious use of power to ensure compliance, not create fear among the taxpayers and laid emphasis on speedy issue of refunds and following of due process to encourage voluntary compliance. At the same time, Smt. Sitharaman emphasised upon capacity building especially in terms of adopting global best practices in tax administration.
It is always a joy to search for the appropriate gift for the special woman in ones life. Whether it is a wedding anniversary, a birthday, Diwali, or Mothers Day, the choice of a gift should be perfect to suit her personality and choice. From the luxurious fragrances and scented candles to the functional and beautiful kitchen gadgets, our selection of the best gifts for women is diverse. Discover these unconventional ideas that are both stylish and practical, as well as considerate, to ensure that each event is special.

1. Gleevers Anniversary Gift for Women

Price: 1,299

Image source: Amazon.in

Order Now

Make celebrating special moments exquisite with Gleevers Anniversary Gift for Women. This beautifully arranged thoughtful gift sent includes a super luxurious perfume duo  Tapestry Sling and Mystere Perfume  bringing a touch of elegance to everyone wearing it. The compact travel size makes it easy to carry and keep refreshed all day long.

Features

Brand: Gleevers

Item Form: Liquid

Item Volume: 30 Millilitres

Scent: Tapestry Sling + Mystere Perfume

Special Feature: Travel Size

2. Gleevers x andMe Scented Candles Gift Set of 2

Price: 569

Image source: Amazon.in

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Fill your room with the warm glow of the Gleevers  and Scented Candles Gift Set, perfect for housewarming and anniversary celebrations, or birthday parties during Diwali. These tin candles possess a timeless gift aesthetic. Great for changing seasons, the classical round shape fits perfectly with all times of the year.

Features

Brand: Gleevers

Product Dimensions: 13W x 13H Centimeters

Item Weight: 120 Grams

Number of Items: 2

Scent: Floral

Are Batteries Included: No

Shape: Round

Container Material: Tin

Occasion: Diwali, Housewarming, Anniversary, Birthday

Seasons: All Season

3. Gleevers Anniversary Gift for Women

Price: 839

Image source: Amazon.in

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Make your anniversary more special with the Gleevers Anniversary Gift for Women. It is a long-lasting cedar-scented aerosol that demonstrates class and sophistication. The strong design and strength of the fragrance match perfectly with daily courtesy.

Features

Brand: Gleevers

Item Form: Aerosol

Item Volume: 30 Millilitres

Scent: Cedar

Special Feature: Long Lasting

4. Gleevers The Better Home FUMATO Wedding Gift Set

Price: 3,639

Image source: Amazon.in

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Make way for the perfect infusion of style and functionality with the Gleevers The Better Home FUMATO Wedding Gift Set, providing you with your very own rice cooker and a corded electric kettle in the most delightful pink hue. Perfect for new homeowners or newlyweds, this gift set is powered by a corded electric source and is easy to clean up with hand wash care instructions.

Features

Brand: Gleevers

Product Dimensions: 27D x 18W x 17.5H Centimeters

Power Source: Corded Electric

Product Care Instructions: Hand Wash

Colour: Rice Cooker + Electric Kettle (Pink)

5. Gleevers X The Clownfish Mother's Day Gift for Mom

Price:1,359

Image source: Amazon.in

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Make her feel special with the perfect giftGleevers X The Clownfish Mother's Day Gift pour Maman. It's an ideal gift well-crafted for women with chic designs that fuse style and functionality. Far from France, this gift set made in India is an impeccable way to express love and gratitude towards moms on the special day of the year.

Features

Brand: Clownfish

Gender: For women

Country of Origin: India

Item Weight: 650 g

Net Quantity: 1.00 count

Conclusion

Finding the right gift for the women in your life can turn any occasion into one to remember. From an anniversary to a birthday, or a Diwali or Mothers Day gift, these cute and chic gifts from Gleevers and Clownfish will put a smile on her face. Check out these ideas and take your next celebration up a notch with a thoughtful gift. Do not miss the opportunity to buy the right gift and make her day special!

Disclaimer: The above-mentioned article is a sponsored feature. This article is a paid publication and does not have journalistic or editorial involvement from IDPL, and IDPL claims no responsibility whatsoever.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has refuted claims that he consented to withdraw military forces from the Gaza-Egypt border as part of a potential ceasefire agreement with Hamas, his office stated. Contrary to reports by Israel's state-owned Kan TV, the current ceasefire proposal backed by the US, which includes the release of hostages and was announced by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken as accepted by Israel on Monday, purportedly involves the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Philadelphi Corridor, a strategic border area between the Gaza Strip and Egypt. Both Hamas and Egypt, who play a pivotal role in the negotiations, are said to oppose Israeli control of the corridor.

Netanyahu labeled these reports as "incorrect" and stressed that Israel has not consented to cede control of the area, as reported by Xinhua news agency, citing his office's Wednesday statement.

"Israel will insist on achieving all of its war objectives as defined by the Security Cabinet, including ensuring that Gaza never again poses a security threat to Israel," the statement said.

"This requires securing the southern border," it added. Also on Wednesday, Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden spoke by phone to discuss advancing the ceasefire-for-hostages deal, the White House said in a statement, without elaborating.

Israeli military officials have consistently asserted that Israel can fulfill its security requirements without controlling the Philadelphi Corridor. The Israeli Ynet news website cited unnamed Israeli security officials who criticized Netanyahu for obstructing the negotiation process, suggesting that his insistence on maintaining control over the corridor might compromise the agreement.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled for a bilateral meeting with his Polish counterpart, Donald Tusk, on Thursday. He will also meet Poland's President Andrzej Duda and engage with business leaders. Later, Prime Minister Modi will interact with Indologists and kabaddi players to explore the mutual attractions between India and Poland at a grassroots level, as stated by Randhir Jaiswal, Spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

Arriving in Warsaw on Wednesday for a two-day visit, Prime Minister Modi is the first Indian leader to visit Poland in 45 years. During his visit, he paid homage at The Dobry Maharaja Memorial, Kolhapur Memorial, and the Monument to the Battle of Monte Cassino, and also addressed the Indian community in Warsaw.

Following his visit to Poland, he will proceed to Ukraine, marking the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister since the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1992.

"I will be visiting Ukraine at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, marking the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister. I anticipate building upon previous discussions with President Zelenskyy to enhance bilateral cooperation and exchange views on the peaceful resolution of the conflict in Ukraine. We aspire for an early restoration of peace and stability in the region," said Prime Minister Modi in a pre-departure statement.

The MEA notes that the Prime Minister's agenda in Kyiv will encompass various facets of bilateral relations, including political, trade, economic, investment, educational, cultural, and humanitarian assistance, among others. Prime Minister Modi is also set to engage with the Indian diaspora, including students, during his visit. This visit is considered a significant milestone.
During an official visit to Pakistan, German Federal Minister of Cooperation, Svenja Schulze, reportedly encountered an unexpected situation at the Prime Minister's meeting venue, leading to a wave of online criticism and questions about Pakistan's hospitality towards foreign dignitaries. Several social media users claimed that Schulze was subjected to unexpected security check during her visit.

As Schulze arrived to meet Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and the Ministers for Economic Affairs and Commerce, she was reportedly stopped by a security official at the entrance. The official allegedly asked Schulze to hand over her bag before entering the building. Schulze, however, refused to comply, politely thanked the official, and began walking back towards her car.

Watch The Viral Video

The situation took an unusual turn when it was noted that neither Prime Minister Sharif nor any of his ministers were present at the gate to receive the German Minister. This absence added to the growing tension as Schulze returned to her vehicle. Realizing the potential diplomatic faux pas, the security team quickly reconsidered their stance and allowed Schulze to enter the building with her bag. While the video is being shared online with the mentioned claim and the same has not been verified by the Zee News independently.

Islamabad: German Development Minister Schulze arrives for a meeting with Pakistan's Prime Minister Sharif,his security guards demand that she hand over her handbag.



Schulze turns around and walks back towards the car.

Suddenly the handbag is allowed in.

pic.twitter.com/LtADGMjrlu August 21, 2024

The incident quickly gained attention online, with netizens expressing their shock and dismay over the treatment of a visiting foreign dignitary. Many criticized the lack of courtesy extended to Schulze, with some pointing out that had she decided to leave, it could have impacted Pakistan's ongoing economic discussions.

One user mocked the situation, saying, "Had Schulze returned, Pakistan's begging bowl would have been left empty." Another commented on the power dynamics, stating, "They tried to make a show of force & authorityShe showed them that they are irrelevant to her. If they wouldn't play by her rules, they wouldn't play at all. So they yieldedTheir power move backfired & they got humiliated."

The incident has cast a shadow over what was supposed to be a diplomatic visit aimed at strengthening cooperation between Germany and Pakistan, raising questions about the handling of foreign dignitaries by Pakistani authorities.
California Republic flag with grizzly bear raised in city downtown

A California bill that would allow home loans for illegal immigrants faces strong opposition from state Republicans. Assembly Bill (AB) 1840, which passed in the Senate Appropriations Committee last week, faces a floor vote in the state Senate and potentially a signature by Gov. Gavin Newsom to become law.

Assemblymember Joaquin Arambula (D) introduced the bill in January. It broadens the definition of a first-time homebuyer to include an undocumented person.

AB 1840 would prevent the California Dream For All Shared Appreciation Loan program from denying individuals based on their immigration status. About 2 million illegal aliens live in California, according to the Pew Research Center.

The loan program launched in 2023 and provides first-time homebuyers with a loan of up to 20% of the homes purchase price for down payment or closing cost assistance.

When the qualified homeowner sells or transfers the home, they repay the down payment, as well as a share of the homes appreciation, according to the California Housing Finance Agency.

When undocumented individuals are excluded from such programs, they miss out on a crucial method of securing financial security and personal stability for themselves and their families, Arambula said in a statement to The Center Square.

Arambula didnt respond to HousingWires request for comment. Newsom didnt respond to a request for comment on whether he would sign the legislation.

Opponents of the bill say that expanding the program to include illegal immigrants would exert financial burdens onto law-abiding taxpayers when California is experiencing a massive budget shortfall.

Californias budget deficit continues to grow and Democratic lawmakers are so out of touch with everyday Californians that they are quite literally taking money away from law-abiding citizens, their own constituents, and handing it over as a free gift to people who broke federal law to cross the border illegally, state Sen. Brian Dahle said in a statement.

Once again, California has chosen to prioritize illegal immigration and fiscal irresponsibility over the needs of its citizens, all while facing a $60 billion deficit that will ultimately be passed onto taxpayers, San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond added.

When applications opened in May 2023 for the $300 million program  which offered interest-free loans to about 2,300 middle- and lower-income buyers  the fund ran out in less than two weeks, the Los Angeles Times reported.
(Reuters) - Chevron plans to invest 83 billion rupees ($989.20 million) in India's Bengaluru, in what will be the oil and gas firm's largest tech center outside the United States, a minister with the state government of Karnataka said late Wednesday.

Chevron's proposed new research and development hub will create 600 engineering jobs, Karnataka Commerce & Industries, and Infrastructure Minister MB Patil said in a post on social media platform X.

The billion-dollar investment will be spread over 5-6 years, with the company aiming to hire over 600 employees by the end of 2025, Akshay Sahni, the incoming head of Chevron India, said in an interview with the Times of India published on Wednesday.

($1 = 83.9040 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Harshita Meenaktshi in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich)
Cruise's trouble-ridden robotaxis are joining Uber's ride-hailing service next year as part of a multiyear partnership bringing together two companies that once appeared poised to compete for passengers.

The alliance is the latest change in direction for Cruise since its California license to provide driverless rides was suspended in October 2023 after one of its robotaxis dragged a jaywalking pedestrian who had been struck by a human-driven vehicle across a darkened San Francisco street.

The incident spurred regulatory inquiries into Cruise and prompted its corporate parent, automaker General Motors, to tamp down its once audacious ambitions in autonomous driving.

GM had envisioned Cruise generating $1 billion in annual revenue by 2025 as its robotaxis steadily expanded beyond San Francisco and into other cities to offer a driverless alternative to the ride-hailing services operated by Uber and Lyft.

But now GM and Cruise are looking to make money by mixing the robotaxis with Uber's human-driven cars, giving passengers the option to ask for an autonomous ride if they want. The financial details of the partnership weren't disclosed, nor were the cities in which Uber intends to offer Cruise's robotaxis next year.

Unless something changes, California won't be in the mix of options because Cruise's license remains suspended in the state.

Meanwhile, a robotaxi fleet operated by Google spinoff Waymo is expanding beyond San Francisco into cities around the Bay Area and Southern California. Earlier this week, Waymo announced its robotaxis are completing more than 100,000 paid rides per week  a number that includes its operations in Phoenix, where it has been operating for several years.

Cruise is currently operating Chevy Bolts autonomously in Phoenix and Dallas, with humans sitting behind the wheel ready to take over if something goes wrong. The Uber deal underscores Cruise's determination to get back to the point where its robotaxis navigate the roads entirely on their own.

Cruise is on a mission to leverage driverless technology to create safer streets and redefine urban life, said Cruise CEO Marc Whitten, who is filling a void created after Cruise founder Kyle Vogt stepped down in the fallout from the California license suspension.

GM also laid off hundreds of employees in the California blowback as part of its financial belt-tightening after sustaining $5.8 billion in losses on the robotaxi service from 2021 to 2023. The Detroit automaker sustained another operating loss of $900 million on Cruise during the first half of this year, but that was down from nearly $1.2 billion at the same point last year.

Story continues

Despite Cruise's recent woes, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi expressed confidence the ride-hailing service could get the robotaxis back on the right track.

We believe Uber can play an important role in helping to safely and reliably introduce autonomous technology to consumers and cities around the world, Khosrowshahi said.
$1.5M seed round investment from Joyful Ventures will accelerate commercialization of De Novo's flagship product

TORONTO, Aug. 22, 2024 /CNW/ - CULT Food Science Corp. ("CULT" or the "Company") (CSE: CULT) (OTC: CULTF) (FRA: LN00), a disruptive food technology platform pioneering the commercialization of lab grown meat and cellular agriculture to reshape the global food industry, proudly recognizes De Novo Foodlabs ("De Novo") for successfully closing their seed funding round and advancing the commercialization of their revolutionary precision fermented lactoferrin product, NanoFerrin.

Cult Food Science Corp. Logo (CNW Group/Cult Food Science Corp)

Key Takeaways:

De Novo Foodlabs secured $1.5M in funding from Joyful Ventures, bringing its total funds raised to $4M.





Joyful Ventures launched in 2023 and raised $23M from leaders in the alternative protein industry. Joyful Ventures is led by Vegan Women Summit's Jennifer Stojkovic, Good Food Institute co-founder Milo Runkle, and Student Brands' Blaine Vess. Among its advisors and investors are Oatly co-founder Bjorn Oste, Shiok Meats co-founder Sandhya Sriram, The Every Company CEO Arturo Elizondo, and Wild Earth CEO Ryan Bethencourt.





The fresh capital will accelerate the commercialization of NanoFerrin, an animal-free alternative to bovine lactoferrin, in the U.S.





NanoFerrin provides key health benefits like improved immunity and longevity without the ethical and sustainability challenges of traditional lactoferrin production.

Lactoferrin, a functional protein primarily found in milk, plays a crucial role in infant development, and offers numerous health benefits for adults, such as improved immunity, brain health, iron absorption, gut health, and longevity. Lactoferrin has been shown to be effective in alleviating aging-related changes through its anti-oxidation, anti-cellular senescence, and anti-inflammation properties.1 Traditional extraction methods from cow milk are not only prohibitively expensive but also plagued by sustainability and ethical challenges.

De Novo Foodlabs' NanoFerrin utilizes precision fermentation technology to produce a more affordable and sustainable alternative to bovine lactoferrin. The product is designed to meet growing demand across food, beverage, and supplements sectors, offering key health benefits such as enhanced iron absorption, gut health, and anti-aging properties. The global lactoferrin market, valued at $773M in 2023, is projected to grow annually by 15.8% over the next decade and De Novo is poised for rapid growth and market expansion with NanoFerrin.2

Story continues

De Novo's successful funding round, led by Joyful Ventures, along with prior investments from CULT, Sustainable Food Ventures, Siddhi Capital, Pascual Innoventures, UM6P Ventures, Big Idea Ventures and Prithvi Capital, will help De Novo scale up and accelerate the commercialization of NanoFerrin.

As part of CULT's venture portfolio, De Novo's progress aligns with the company's strategic vision of leading the cellular agriculture sector. CULT continues to support its venture companies, like De Novo, in pushing the boundaries of food innovation and creating long-term value for shareholders. For more information on CULT Food Science and its portfolio companies, visit www.cultfoodscience.com.

Management Commentary

Mitchell Scott, CEO of CULT Food Science, "De Novo's success is a testament to their leadership in the functional nutrition space. Their precision-fermented NanoFerrin protein has the potential to transform how we approach health and nutrition, offering a scalable, ethical alternative to traditional animal-derived proteins. This progress not only underscores De Novo's innovation but also adds value to CULT's venture portfolio as we continue to support game-changing advancements in food technology."

Warrant Amendment

The Company also announces that it intends to amend the exercise price of a total of 6,824,800 common share purchase warrants (the "Warrants"), which are exercisable to acquire common shares in the capital of the Company (the "Shares"). The Warrants were originally issued on July 5, 2024, and are currently exercisable at a price of $0.35 per Share.

Subject to the consent of the holders of the Warrants, the Company will reduce the exercise price of the Warrants to $0.13 per Share. In accordance with the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange ("CSE"), the expiration of the Warrants will be accelerated to thirty days if, for any ten consecutive trading days, the closing price of the common shares of the Company on the CSE exceeds $0.17. However, if the expiry acceleration is triggered prior to November 6, 2024 (being the date that the four month hold period applicable to the Warrants and any shares issued on exercise of the Warrants expires), the thirty day period would not start until November 6, 2024. All other terms of the Warrants will remain unchanged.

An officer of the Company holds 268,800 Warrants, and amending the officer's Warrants is considered to be a "related party transaction" as defined under Multilateral Instrument 61-101  Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"). Amending the officer's Warrants is exempt from the formal valuation requirement under MI 61-101 because the Company's securities are not listed on any of the markets specified in MI 61-101 and is exempt from the minority shareholder approval requirement under MI 61-101 because the aggregate fair market value of the officer's Warrants is not more than $2,500,000. The Company's directors have unanimously approved amending the officer's Warrants. The anticipated effect of amending the officer's Warrants on the Company's business and affairs is to increase the likelihood of the officer exercising the Warrants, which would provide the Company with additional working capital. There were no prior valuations made in the past 24 months in respect of the Company that relates to the subject matter of or is otherwise relevant to amending the Warrants. Depending on the timing of obtaining the consent of the holders of the Warrants, the Warrants may be amended less than 21 days after the Company files a material change report respecting such amendment, which timing is reasonable given the MI 61-101 exemptions noted above and relatively minimal value of the officer's Warrants.

About CULT Food Science

CULT Food Science is a disruptive food technology platform pioneering the commercialization of lab grown meat and cellular agriculture to reshape the global food industry. CULT's robust portfolio of investments in cutting-edge, venture-backed cellular agriculture and lab-grown meat companies provides widespread investor access to the future of food. Backed by a team of experts with extensive experience in food technology and launching consumer food products, CULT is committed to being at the forefront of the food revolution.

About Further Foods

Further Foods is revolutionizing pet nutrition through its innovative brand, Noochies! Noochies! leverages advanced cellular agriculture technologies to create pet food products with superior nutrition profiles and ethical standards. Noochies! recently introduced the world's first freeze-dried, high-protein, nutrient-rich pet treats made without factory farming. Noochies! products are currently available for sale in the United States and Canada at select retailers and online at https://www.noochies.co/ .

Additional information can be found by viewing the Company's website at cultfoodscience.com or its regulatory filings on sedar.com .

On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Company,

CULT FOOD SCIENCE CORP.

"Mitchell Scott"

Mitchell Scott, Chief Executive Officer

Forward-Looking Information:

Information set forth in this news release may involve 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 but are not limited to the following risks: those associated with marketing and sale of securities; the need for additional financing; reliance on key personnel; the potential for conflicts of interest among certain officers or directors with certain other projects; and the volatility of common share price and volume. Forward-looking statements are made based on management's beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date that statements are made and except as required by law, 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. For further information on risk, investors are advised to see the Company's MD&A and other disclosure filings with the regulators which are found at sedar.com .

SOURCE Cult Food Science Corp

Cision

View original content to download multimedia: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/August2024/22/c4730.html
MIAMI, Aug. 22, 2024 /CNW/ -- DCK Worldwide Group, LLC ("DCK"), a global leader in construction and development with over 100 years of experience, announces the addition of three distinguished clients to its portfolio: Royal Caribbean Group, The Balam Reserve Belize, and Grand Reserve Puerto Rico.

DCK Worldwide Logo (PRNewsfoto/DCK Worldwide Group, LLC)

Royal Caribbean Group: DCK is collaborating with Royal Caribbean Group, a global leader in the cruise industry, to support their innovative port and destination projects. Royal Caribbean, the largest cruise company in the world by revenue, has been named the Best Cruise Line in the Caribbean for 21 years running by Travel Weekly Readers' Choice Awards.

The Balam Reserve Belize: DCK is partnering with The Balam Reserve Belize on the development and construction of a 5-star luxury resort and branded residences. Set amidst Belize's breathtaking natural beauty, this project will blend world-class amenities with sustainable Net-Zero infrastructure, offering an unparalleled experience of eco-luxury.

Grand Reserve Puerto Rico: DCK will work with Grand Reserve Puerto Rico, a premier Caribbean resort and luxury residential destination, operated by Hyatt Hotels Corporation and recipient of the AAA Four Diamond designation, on the expansion of their world-class facilities.

A Legacy of Excellence

For over 100 years, DCK has been a trusted name in construction and development, delivering iconic projects globally. These new partnerships reaffirm our dedication to excellence, innovation, and client satisfaction.

"We are deeply honored to welcome Royal Caribbean Group, The Balam Reserve Belize, and Grand Reserve Puerto Rico to the DCK family," said Bill Brown, President of DCK. "These partnerships underscore our commitment to delivering exceptional results, where we believe DCK's expertise and capabilities in large-scale Caribbean-based projects makes us the clear preferred partner."

DCK is backed by Arena Investors, LP ("Arena"), a global institutional investment firm. It has partnered with Arena and its affiliates to execute its comprehensive growth strategy, which includes DCK's bespoke capital markets capabilities in offering equity and debt financing through key partnerships. These bespoke capital markets capabilities distinguish DCK, providing comprehensive financing solutions that ensure the successful delivery of even the most complex construction projects.

For more about DCK and our projects, please visit www.dckwwgroup.com.

About DCK Worldwide Group, LLC:

DCK is recognized as the Caribbean's Leading Builder, with a rich legacy dating back to 1922. The firm has successfully completed over $4 billion in hospitality projects, delivering more than 39,000 hotel keys globally. With a total project value exceeding $38 billion, DCK's portfolio spans multiple sectors worldwide, underscoring our versatility and commitment to excellence.

Story continues

About Arena Investors, LP:

Arena is an institutional asset manager founded in partnership with The Westaim Corporation (TSXV: WED). With approximately $3.5 billion of invested and committed assets under management as of June 30, 2024, and a team of over 180 employees in offices globally, Arena provides creative solutions for those seeking capital in special situations. The firm brings individuals with decades of experience, a track record of comfort with complexity, the ability to deliver within time constraints, and the flexibility to engage in transactions that cannot be addressed by banks and other conventional financial institutions. For more information, please visit www.arenaco.com.

For media inquiries, please contact:

DCK Worldwide Group, LLC:

Valerie Palacios

vpalacios@dckwwgroup.com

Prosek Partners:

Joshua Clarkson

pro-arena@prosek.com

Arena Investors, LP:

Parag Shah

ir@arenaco.com

Cision

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/dck-expands-global-portfolio-with-prestigious-new-clients-royal-caribbean-group-balam-reserve-belize-and-grand-reserve-puerto-rico-302228039.html

SOURCE DCK Worldwide Group, LLC

Cision

View original content to download multimedia: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/August2024/22/c3918.html
Deleum Berhad (KLSE:DELEUM) Second Quarter 2024 Results

Key Financial Results

Revenue: RM225.9m (up 20% from 2Q 2023).

Net income: RM22.4m (up 130% from 2Q 2023).

Profit margin: 9.9% (up from 5.2% in 2Q 2023). The increase in margin was driven by higher revenue.

EPS: RM0.056 (up from RM0.024 in 2Q 2023).

All figures shown in the chart above are for the trailing 12 month (TTM) period

Deleum Berhad Earnings Insights

Looking ahead, revenue is forecast to grow 6.2% p.a. on average during the next 3 years, compared to a 5.7% decline forecast for the Energy Services industry in Malaysia.

Performance of the Malaysian Energy Services industry.

The company's shares are up 6.5% from a week ago.

Risk Analysis

What about risks? Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Deleum Berhad you should know about.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
The investment in electric equipment and charging stations at the Port of Caucedo will reduce carbon emissions and enhance operational efficiency.

SANTO DOMINGO, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, Aug. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- DP World, a global leader in logistics and supply chain solutions, is embarking upon a multi-phase initiative to improve sustainability at the Port of Caucedo in the Dominican Republic.

The first phase of the project involves the acquisition of 12 electric internal transfer vehicles (ITVs), which will enable DP World to transition its fleet of diesel-powered ITVs to fully electric models. The new equipment is expected to reduce annual diesel fuel consumption by 4.6%, saving 100,000 gallons of fuel each year, while reducing CO2 emissions by more than 7,500 tons over the next decade. The transition will also reduce repair and maintenance costs by 25%.

The second phase involves the installation of on-site electric charging infrastructure. The new station, which will comprise five new chargers, represents an investment of approximately US$3.2 million. Construction is currently underway; the terminal is using temporary chargers until the project completes in October. This phase also includes the acquisition of four more electric ITVs, bringing the total number to 16.

Manuel Martinez, CEO of DP World in the Dominican Republic, said: Our commitment to environmental stewardship is demonstrated through our investment in these electric ITVs. By upgrading our infrastructure at the Port of Caucedo, we not only enhance operational efficiency but also make significant progress towards our goal of becoming net zero. We will continue to invest in infrastructure that supports the Dominican Republic's vision of becoming a regional logistics hub.

DP World continues to advance its commitment to environmental sustainability across the Americas. In Peru, the company has completed the expansion of the Bicentennial Pier at DP World Callao, which now features advanced electric-powered equipment and the first electric truck charging station in Latin America. At Brazil's Port of Santos, DP World replaced 22 diesel Rubber-Tired Gantry Cranes (RTGs) with electric versions, cutting the terminal's diesel consumption by up to 60%.

Morten Johansen, COO and executive vice president of DP World Americas, said: With this transition, we are not only fostering a sustainable environment but also enhancing the operational competitiveness by lowering costs and waste. Our commitment to decarbonization is firm, and we are dedicated to integrating renewable energy and innovative technologies across all our operations in the region.

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- END -

DP World Americas Media Contact:

Melina Vissat, Head of Communications

M: (+1) 704-605-6159

E: melina.vissat@dpworld.com

About DP World

Trade is the lifeblood of the global economy, creating opportunities and improving the quality of life for people around the world. DP World exists to make the worlds trade flow better, changing whats possible for the customers and communities we serve globally.

With a dedicated, diverse and professional team of more than 113,000 employees from 160 nationalities, spanning 78 countries on six continents, DP World is pushing trade further and faster towards a seamless supply chain thats fit for the future.

Were rapidly transforming and integrating our businesses -- Ports and Terminals, Marine Services, Logistics and Technology  and uniting our global infrastructure with local expertise to create stronger, more efficient end-to-end supply chain solutions that can change the way the world trades.

What's more, we're reshaping the future by investing in innovation. From intelligent delivery systems to automated warehouse stacking, were at the cutting edge of disruptive technology, pushing the sector towards better ways to trade, minimising disruptions from the factory floor to the customers door.

WE MAKE TRADE FLOW

TO CHANGE WHAT'S POSSIBLE FOR EVERYONE.

CONTACT: Melina Vissat DP World Americas (704) 605-6159 melina.vissat@dpworld.com




For beginners, it can seem like a good idea (and an exciting prospect) to buy a company that tells a good story to investors, even if it currently lacks a track record of revenue and profit. But the reality is that when a company loses money each year, for long enough, its investors will usually take their share of those losses. Loss-making companies are always racing against time to reach financial sustainability, so investors in these companies may be taking on more risk than they should.

So if this idea of high risk and high reward doesn't suit, you might be more interested in profitable, growing companies, like Michelmersh Brick Holdings (LON:MBH). While this doesn't necessarily speak to whether it's undervalued, the profitability of the business is enough to warrant some appreciation - especially if its growing.

Check out our latest analysis for Michelmersh Brick Holdings

Michelmersh Brick Holdings' Earnings Per Share Are Growing

The market is a voting machine in the short term, but a weighing machine in the long term, so you'd expect share price to follow earnings per share (EPS) outcomes eventually. Therefore, there are plenty of investors who like to buy shares in companies that are growing EPS. Impressively, Michelmersh Brick Holdings has grown EPS by 26% per year, compound, in the last three years. If growth like this continues on into the future, then shareholders will have plenty to smile about.

Top-line growth is a great indicator that growth is sustainable, and combined with a high earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) margin, it's a great way for a company to maintain a competitive advantage in the market. Michelmersh Brick Holdings maintained stable EBIT margins over the last year, all while growing revenue 13% to UK77m. That's encouraging news for the company!

In the chart below, you can see how the company has grown earnings and revenue, over time. To see the actual numbers, click on the chart.

The trick, as an investor, is to find companies that are going to perform well in the future, not just in the past. While crystal balls don't exist, you can check our visualization of consensus analyst forecasts for Michelmersh Brick Holdings' future EPS 100% free.

Are Michelmersh Brick Holdings Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

Investors are always searching for a vote of confidence in the companies they hold and insider buying is one of the key indicators for optimism on the market. Because often, the purchase of stock is a sign that the buyer views it as undervalued. Of course, we can never be sure what insiders are thinking, we can only judge their actions.

It's nice to see that there have been no reports of any insiders selling shares in Michelmersh Brick Holdings in the previous 12 months. With that in mind, it's heartening that Robert Fenwick, the company insider of the company, paid UK20k for shares at around UK1.00 each. Purchases like this can help the investors understand the views of the management team; in which case they see some potential in Michelmersh Brick Holdings.

The good news, alongside the insider buying, for Michelmersh Brick Holdings bulls is that insiders (collectively) have a meaningful investment in the stock. As a matter of fact, their holding is valued at UK29m. This considerable investment should help drive long-term value in the business. That amounts to 30% of the company, demonstrating a degree of high-level alignment with shareholders.

Is Michelmersh Brick Holdings Worth Keeping An Eye On?

If you believe that share price follows earnings per share you should definitely be delving further into Michelmersh Brick Holdings' strong EPS growth. Moreover, the management and board of the company hold a significant stake in the company, with one party adding to this total. These things considered, this is one stock worth watching. However, before you get too excited we've discovered 1 warning sign for Michelmersh Brick Holdings that you should be aware of.

Keen growth investors love to see insider activity. Thankfully, Michelmersh Brick Holdings isn't the only one. You can see a a curated list of British companies which have exhibited consistent growth accompanied by high insider ownership.

Please note the insider transactions discussed in this article refer to reportable transactions in the relevant jurisdiction.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)  A French destroyer rescued 29 mariners from an oil tanker that came under repeated attack in the Red Sea by Yemen's Houthi rebels, officials said Thursday, while also destroying a bomb-carrying drone boat in the area.

The assault on the Sounion, the most serious in the Red Sea in weeks, comes during a monthslong campaign by the Houthis targeting ships over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip that has disrupted a trade route through which $1 trillion in cargo typically passes each year.

The Sounion is now at anchor in the Red Sea and no longer drifting, the European Union's Operation Aspides said. The vessel had been staffed by a crew of 25 Filipinos and Russians, as well as four private security personnel, who have been taken to nearby Djibouti, the EU mission in the Red Sea said.

The Sounion has 150,000 tons of crude oil aboard and represents a "navigational and environmental hazard, the mission warned. It is essential that everyone in the area exercises caution and refrains from any actions that could lead to a deterioration of the current situation.

Military officials did not name the French destroyer involved in the rescue. The Sounion also had not asked for an escort prior to the attacks, the EU mission said.

The French military separately released an image of the Sounion, showing the blaze on board had been extinguished. It also published an image of its fire targeting the drone boat as well.

Houthi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree claimed the attack in a prerecorded statement late Thursday night, as well as another attempted attack Wednesday.

The ship was accurately and directly hit while sailing in the Red Sea and is at risk of sinking, thanks to God, he said.

In the attack on the Sounion, men on small boats first opened fire with small arms about 140 kilometers (90 miles) west of the rebel-held Yemeni port city of Hodeida, the British militarys United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said. Private security on board the tanker returned fire.

Four projectiles also hit the ship, it added. It wasnt immediately clear if that meant drones or missiles.

The U.S. meanwhile destroyed three Houthi drones in strikes Thursday, the American militarys Central Command said.

The Houthis have targeted more than 80 vessels with missiles and drones since the war in Gaza started in October. They seized one vessel and sank two in the campaign that also killed four sailors.

Other missiles and drones have either been intercepted by a U.S.-led coalition in the Red Sea or failed to reach their targets.

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The rebels maintain that they target ships linked to Israel, the United States or the UK to force an end to Israels war against Hamas in Gaza. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the conflict, including some bound for Iran.

As Iran threatens to retaliate against Israel over the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, the U.S. military told the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group to sail more quickly to the area. Early Thursday, the U.S. militarys Central Command said the Lincoln had reached the Mideasts waters, without elaborating.

America also has ordered the USS Georgia-guided missile submarine into the Mideast, while the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier strike group was in the Gulf of Oman.

Additional F-22 fighter jets have flown into the region and the USS Wasp, a large amphibious assault ship carrying F-35 fighter jets, is in the Mediterranean Sea.
An employee fills a coffee cup in a Tchibo store in Hamburg. German coffee group Tchibo returned to profitability in its 2023 financial year, the Hamburg-based parent company Maxingvest reported on Thursday. Angelika Warmuth/dpa

German coffee group Tchibo returned to profitability in its 2023 financial year, the Hamburg-based parent company Maxingvest reported on Thursday.

Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) amounted to 68 million ($76 million), Maxingvest said. In the 2022 financial year, the retail group and coffee roaster posted a loss of 167 million.

The company did not disclose its earnings after taxes.

Tchibo credited the turnaround to lower raw material, energy and logistics prices as well as lower marketing and sales costs.

In addition, strategic and structural changes, including almost 300 job cuts, had begun to take effect, the company said. Product ranges have been aligned more closely with the various sales channels - stores and online retail.

Sales amounted to around 3.2 billion, down 1% compared to the previous year. The consumer goods business performed comparatively worse due to a general decline in demand.

In addition to coffee, Tchibo also sells clothing, household items and home accessories.

Sales abroad have also increased, according to the earnings report.

Tchibo exports coffee to more than 60 countries and has retail operations in several countries such as Austria, Switzerland and Poland.
By Byron Kaye

SYDNEY (Reuters) -Google and Australia's national science agency will join hands to develop digital tools that automatically detect and fix software vulnerabilities for operators of critical infrastructure, seeking to combat a surge in cyberattacks.

The software for organisations such as hospitals, defence bodies and energy suppliers will be customised to be in line with Australia's regulatory environment.

"Software supply chain vulnerabilities are a global issue, and Australia has led the way in legislative measures to control and combat the risks," said Stefan Avgoustakis, head of security practice for Google Cloud in Australia and New Zealand.

The Australian government has been imposing tougher requirements on critical infrastructure operators to report and prevent cyberattacks after a spate of breaches in the past two years left the personal information of half the country's 26 million population exposed.

The research partnership will pair up Google's existing open source vulnerability database and artificial intelligence services with the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation's (CSIRO) research methods, the parties said in a statement.

Google said the plan was part of a five-year commitment it made in 2021 to spend A$1 billion ($675 million) in Australia at a time when the country's push for tougher regulation of global tech firms had cooled relations with the U.S. firm.

Google also supplies cybersecurity services to the U.S. as part of a $9 billion contract between the U.S. Department of Defense and a number of large tech firms.

CSIRO's project lead Ejaz Ahmed said locally developed cybersecurity software would "be better aligned with local regulations, promoting greater compliance and trustworthiness."

The project's findings will be made public to provide operators of critical infrastructure easy access to the information.

($1 = 1.4826 Australian dollars)

(Reporting by Byron Kaye; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)
Young woman coding

For some 18-year-olds, todays A-level results day will be one to celebrate, as months of hard work will be rewarded with a ticket to their dream university. But those who miss the mark may have to make a plan for their future more-or-less on the spot.

Though going through clearing is always an option, in todays job market having a degree is increasingly seen as superfluous.

Official figures indicate waning enthusiasm among school leavers for higher education.

Data from the University College Admissions Service (Ucas) show that the share of 18-year-olds applying for university fell from 42.1pc to 41.9pc this year, with just a third of sixth-formers in the northeast going through the system  a regional disparity that some have found alarming.

The soaring cost of further education is understandably off-putting for many. Under the relatively new Plan 5 loan, this cohort of students may be paying off their loan well into their sixties.

Graduate careers website Prospects found 40pc of students were worried about money  up from 32pc in 2022 at the start of the cost of living crisis. It added that six in 10 students were worried about the cost of living and tuition fees.

Indeed, Prospects report found that the share of students taking on apprenticeships had risen from 15pc to 24pc, while those opting for university dropped from 59pc to 54pc. Of those who are pursuing higher education, roughly half were motivated by the career prospects of completing a degree course.

Traditional wisdom suggests a degree is the ticket to higher salaries, but does that still stack up?

Here, Telegraph Money reveals the lucrative careers open to those that dont have a degree  and some pay up to 65,000.

High salary jobs that dont require a degree

Wage growth has remained at a strong 5.7pc, according to the latest official figures. However, unemployment levels have soared by 133,000 to 1.5m, a rate of 4.4pc.

In the wake of the pandemic, a strong demand for workers had companies jostling for top talent, offering high salaries and cost-saving perks. However the so-called talent war appears to be winding down.

Against this backdrop, business leaders and politicians alike have turned cold on university degrees. When he was Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, disparaged so-called Mickey Mouse degrees and vowed to increase funding for apprenticeships instead.

The careers outlined in the table below show how much someone at the start of their career could earn, having achieved A-levels but without any university education. The jobs are for junior and entry level positions, excluding managerial roles.

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School leavers who opt not to go to university can still have ambitions of earning lucrative salaries early on in their careers, according to data from Adzuna, another job site. There were more than 800 vacancies listed for estate agent roles in July, with an average salary of 53,097.

Blue-collar jobs also offered high pay for entry-level positions, with average pay for several skilled labour jobs exceeding 45,000. These included insulation workers (55,040), welding inspectors (52,825), and riggers (51,144).

Other high-paying roles, such as those in pension consultancy, would require specific qualifications, but not necessarily a degree. Adzuna said there were 108 vacancies on the site in July, with an average salary of 63,820.

This year saw a surge in demand for Java developers, with 2,145 vacancies advertised this year compared to just 96 in 2023, and an average advertised salary of 71,808  up 3,858 from last year.

Andrew Hunter, of Adzuna, noted that there isnt much differentiation between different types of A-level and the different salary pathways a choice can lead to.

He added: School leavers not choosing to go to university should take heart, the subjects chosen will likely have little impact on entry-level earnings, and instead it will be the skills you hone on the job that can bump you up the pay charts.

Whats more, those who eschew the university route will also avoid years of student loan repayments  which even high earners find difficult to pay back.

Higher education still holds significant weight with employers

Despite increased attention and funding for alternative paths for university, research from hiring platform HireVue found that university degrees still hold significant weight in the recruitment process in the UK.

The companys survey of HR professionals found that while 78pc believe their organisations offer equal opportunities for candidates without degrees, 86pc acknowledge they cant do without zoning in on academic achievement before they make hiring decisions.

Tom Cornell, of HireVue, said: The picture is clear: there is a marked unconscious bias towards candidates with university degrees.

To overcome this hiring bias, businesses need to integrate skills-based assessment into the core of their recruitment process. In return, they will get a much fairer  and more accurate  tool to evaluate candidates for job competencies.

Less than a third of businesses use skills-based approaches when hiring, HireVues research found. A mere 14pc of businesses surveyed by the platform had gone as far as to drop degree requirements from their job listings.

One explanation for this is the increasing use of artificial intelligence by hiring professionals. Companies have been known to use AI-powered filters to sift through thousands of applicants, meaning those without a degree on their CV may find themselves automatically filtered out. Others have gone as far as to use AI in the interview process.

Mr Cornell said: The current job market is paradoxical: more people are unemployed, job vacancies are still abundant, and yet there seems to be a shortage of suitable talent.

This is because there is a significant flaw in the current hiring processes, and the solution lies in broadening the talent pool to identify more suitable candidates with better-suited skills.

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The Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation (HART) has awarded a $1.66bn contract to the Tutor Perini Corporation (TPC) for the design and construction of the next segment of its rail transit Skyline project for the city of Honolulu in Hawaii, US.

The City Centre Guideway and Stations (CCGS) contract will see TPC work on three miles of elevated rail guideway via six stations through downtown Honolulu for the final segment of the citys long gestating project.

HART CEO Lori Kahikina said: This is another huge milestone for our rail project. This is the largest single contract of the entire project and sets the course for completing the project through downtown Honolulu.

The awarding of the CCGS contract comes four years after the authority scrapped a previous Public-Private Partnership procurement process after being unsatisfied with the proposed costs of the bids put forward by contractors.

TPCs work on designing the final section of Skyline is set to begin following the execution of the contract in mid-September, with construction expected to start in the second half of 2025 for completion by 2030.

The CGGS section will run from a station near the Middle Street Transit Centre Station and end at the Civic Centre Station, adding to the first Skyline section, West Side Stations and Guideway, which opened to the public in June 2030 and the second section, Airport Guideway and Stations (AGS), which is expected to open in late 2025,

The idea of a fixed rail guideway connecting the city has been in the works since 2006, when it was first selected as the best option for a mass transit system by Honolulu City Council, but has faced several delays related to funding, legal issues, and the scope of the project.

Issues with the project have also persisted into the last year with HART launching multiple legal actions the Shimmick/Traylor/Granite Joint Venture responsible for the AGS section over delays to the completion of the project.

"Honolulu finds contractor for final section of Skyline rail transit project" was originally created and published by Railway 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.
SINGAPORE, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Organised by Constellar, in partnership with DECHEMA Ausstellungs-GmbH (DECHEMA Exhibitions)[1], the inaugural Process Innovation Asia Pacific - Powered by ACHEMA (PIA) will be held from 19 to 21 November 2024 at Singapore EXPO.

The most comprehensive Process Technology show for South-East Asia, PIA 2024 will address the market's unmet needs for a dedicated show driving transformation and incubating innovation in the region's process technology industries with strong growth potential. These industries include pharmaceutical, (petro-) chemical, biotechnology and food processing[2]. PIA 2024 will enable key decision makers, global players and end users to build sustainable connections, learn latest process technologies, inspire innovation and collaborate for long-term business growth.

A Comprehensive Showcase of Global Innovative Solutions

PIA 2024 expects to welcome more than 200 exhibitors and 10,000 attendees from 20 countries and regions, including Belgium, China, Germany, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, who will be showcasing latest process technologies and applications for optimising performance, enhancing sustainability and driving higher value-add for the various industries.

PIA 2024 is partnering with key leaders in the process industry to meet the growing demand for practical, real-world applications of advanced process technologies. These collaborations will be featured as innovation hubs at the event, where attendees can experience the implementation of cutting-edge innovations firsthand.

For example, Evonik, a Gold Partner for PIA 2024, will showcase its Next Generation Technologies along with new advancements in sustainability and life sciences[3]. Other prominent exhibitors include Art Photonics, Bosch, Calgavin, CTW Cleaning Systems, Cyclect, HIMA Asia, Huizhou Newland Magtech Corp, Italvacuum, L.B. Bohle, LKH Electro, Nantong Sutong Separation Tech, Piller, Satake Multimix, tec5 AG, Wasson-ECE, Wiese Europe, and Wuxi Zhanghua Pharmaceutical Equipment Co., among others.

Enhancing Professional Experience with Expert Perspectives and Insights

On top of enabling established industry players and start-ups to showcase pioneering technologies and inventive processes, PIA 2024 will leverage on the successful event legacy of ACHEMA - world forum and leading show for the process industries  to feature carefully curated content addressing key trends and developments. Taking place across 50 content sessions at the Process Innovation Summit, technical seminars and workshops, PIA 2024 will empower process technology professionals with latest insights into critical topics revolving three pillars driving business growth and fostering sustainability in the process industry. These are:

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industry and landscape developments in Asia, including trade policies, investment opportunities, and sustainability initiatives in key countries;

the adoption of digital technologies and best practices; and

advancements and tangible solutions in sustainable practices.

Notable speakers include Mr Rajesh Krishnamurthy, Chief Executive Officer for Laurus Bio; Dr Claus Rettig, Member of the Extended Executive Board of Evonik Industries AG and President Asia Pacific; and Dr Anthony M. Watanabe, Chief Sustainability Officer for Indorama Ventures PC. They will be sharing more on biotech process innovations, potential of biotech applications, the future of South-East Asia's chemical industries and evolving circular product value and supply chains for the process industries.

"Asia Pacific is one of the key growth markets for Evonik, with South-East Asia being a pivotal region for our manufacturing and R&D development. As a specialty chemicals company committed to sustainability, we go beyond to enable transformation by integrating next generation technologies, sustainable production practices, collaborative partnerships, talent development, and community engagement into our core operations," said Dr Claus Rettig. "The upcoming event in Singapore will provide numerous opportunities for us to strengthen our network across the industry, R&D, and government sectors. We are looking forward to advancing sustainability together with other key ecosystem players in Asia Pacific to protect our environment for future generations."

"ASEAN is home to Indorama Ventures' roots, our sister organization, and our global headquarters. It is also a region where we have a significant and growing manufacturing footprint. As such, its importance to the value we deliver to customers cannot be overstated. Engaging in a meaningful way with the stakeholders of the PIA in Singapore therefore presents strategic opportunities for technology scouting, innovation and new partnerships," said Dr Watanabe.

Register to exhibit/visit and find out more event information on Process Innovation Asia Pacific - Powered by ACHEMA here.

For media enquiries and interview requests, contact the Constellar Communications team at comms@constellar.co.

About Process Innovation Asia-Pacific - Powered by ACHEMA (PIA)

As South-East Asia's First Dedicated Process Technology Trade Event, PIA's key government partners include Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), EnterpriseSG, JTC Corporation and Singapore Tourism Board. PIA is honoured to have the support from regional associations in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. These include Indonesian Food & Beverage Association (GAPMMI) and Federation Of The Indonesian Chemical Industry (FIKI) in Indonesia; Chemical Industries Council of Malaysia (CICM) and Malaysian Society for Engineering and Technology (MySET) in Malaysia; Association of Process Industries (ASPRI), Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Association of Singapore, Institute of Engineers Singapore (IES), Singapore Chemical Industry Council (SCIC) and Singapore Manufacturing Federation (SMF) in Singapore; as well as the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI), Plastic Institute Thailand, Thai Biotechnology Industry Association (ThaiBio) and Thai Food Processors Association (TFPA) in Thailand.

About Constellar

Constellar is Asia's preferred partner for convening businesses, curating ideas and creating opportunities for sustainable business growth and global impact. Based in Singapore with a regional footprint in China and Malaysia, we curate and develop influential trade and consumer events for key industries, connecting global marketplaces in sectors such as fintech, industrial transformation and ESG. We also manage the Singapore EXPO, Singapore's largest purpose-built venue for Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions (MICE). Our vision is to be a global leader made in Asia, activating impactful networks to enable cross-industry collaboration and innovation through our holistic portfolio of intellectual properties (IP) in the MICE industry. Visit constellar.co for more information.

About DECHEMA

DECHEMA Gesellschaft fur Chemische Technik und Biotechnologie e.V. (Society for Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology) brings together experts from a wide range of disciplines, institutions and generations to stimulate scientific exchange in chemical engineering, process engineering and biotechnology. We identify and evaluate emerging technological trends and facilitate the transfer of research results into industrial applications. DECHEMA has over 5,500 members - individuals, institutions and companies. DECHEMA Ausstellungs-GmbH (DECHEMA Exhibitons) draws on the technical and organizational expertise of DECHEMA for the organization of capital goods fairs. Together with DECHEMA Gesellschaft fur Chemische Technik und Biotechnologie e.V., we are the organizers of ACHEMA and AchemAsia.

About ACHEMA

ACHEMA is the world forum for chemical engineering, process engineering and biotechnology. The world's leading show for the process industry takes place every three years in Frankfurt. The spectrum ranges from laboratory equipment, pumps and analytical devices to packaging machinery, boilers and stirrers to safety technology, materials and software, thus covering all the needs of the chemical, pharmaceutical and food production industries. The accompanying congress, featuring scientific lectures and numerous guest and partner events, complements the wide range of exhibition themes. The next ACHEMA will take place from 10 to 14 June 2024 in Frankfurt am Main. More at www.achema.de/en

[1] One of Singapore's leading trade exhibition organisers, Constellar organises regional shows related to process technology such as the Agri-Food Tech Expo Asia, BuildTech Asia, Industrial Transformation ASIA-PACIFIC and the Malaysian International Food & Beverage Trade Fair. DECHEMA Exhibitions is organiser of the tri-annual ACHEMA, world forum and leading show for the process industries, with its 34th edition coming up in June 2024 in Frankfurt, Germany. With their spin-off show AchemAsia in China, they have been active in Asia for over 30 years. [2] The Asia-Pacific region, led by emerging markets like India, Singapore, and Vietnam, is set to grow its pharmaceutical market by 4.2% from 2022 to 2027, with over US$15 billion invested in R&D in 2022. South-East Asia's demand for oil and gas, projected to grow at a CAGR of 2.2 percent to 3.2 percent from 2021 to 2030, is also fueling the necessity for process innovation. The food manufacturing and processing sector is also poised for transformation, driven by mass urbanization and rising demand for sustainable products, creating a US$10 trillion consumption opportunity by 2030. South-East Asia, particularly Singapore, is a key investment target, aligning with Singapore's goals to boost manufacturing value-added by 50 per cent from 2020 to 2030 in key sectors, including a 3% annual growth in the Energy & Chemicals sector to US$10.4 billion by 2025. [3] Evonik is a leading global specialty chemicals company headquartered in Essen, Germany with operations in over 100 countries, focusing on creating innovative and sustainable solutions across various industries, including health, nutrition, resource efficiency, and smart materials. With a strong emphasis on research and development, Evonik drives advancements in biotechnology, high-performance polymers, and additives, among others. Committed to sustainability, Evonik aims to create value for its stakeholders while minimizing its environmental impact.

Cision

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/inaugural-process-innovation-asia-pacific-to-drive-industry-transformation-for-south-east-asias-chemicals-and-pharmaceuticals-302228250.html

SOURCE Constellar
LONDON (AP)  Italian authorities have launched an investigation after two easyJet flight attendants were injured when their flight from Corfu to Londons Gatwick Airport was buffeted by turbulence earlier this week.

As a result of the incident, the pilot made an unscheduled landing at Romes Fiumicino Airport at 1:48 p.m. on Monday. The two crew members received medical treatment in Rome, and the passengers completed their journey on a replacement aircraft, easyJet said in a statement.

Italys civil aviation authority opened a safety investigation into the incident, which it classified as an accident due to the type and severity of the injuries reported. While neither the agency nor easyJet released details of the injuries, news reports indicated that one flight attendant broke her leg and another had a severely sprained ankle.

The incident comes less than three months after a 73-year-old British man died of a suspected heart attack and dozens of other passengers were injured when a Singapore Airlines flight ran into severe turbulence over the Indian Ocean.

While turbulence-related deaths are rare, injuries have piled up in recent years, with some meteorologists and aviation analysts noting that reports of aircraft encountering turbulence have also increased.

Meteorologists point to the impact of climate change, which increases the difference in temperature between the warm and cold air masses in the upper atmosphere that together form the jet stream of air flowing from east to west around the globe. These air masses collide and unsettle the jet stream, generating greater turbulence.
MILAN (Reuters) -Italy's industry minister said on Thursday he expected "within hours" a firm commitment by Stellantis over its plan to build a battery-making plant in the country, otherwise the government would move public funds for the project elsewhere.

ACC, a battery joint venture in which Stellantis is the largest investor, has plans for three gigafactories in Europe. But earlier this year it said it was putting on hold works on two of them, in Italy and Germany, as the company switches to lower cost batteries amid slowing demand for electric vehicles.

"Stellantis must give us a reply, and it must do so shortly," Minister Adolfo Urso said during a conference in Rimini.

"If Stellantis does not give us a positive feedback within hours, we'll move ... funds elsewhere. We can't afford to lose these funds because Stellantis is not sticking to its commitments."

ACC's plan for an Italian gigafactory, based on the conversion of a Stellantis engine-making plant in Termoli, envisages a total investment of around 2 billion euros ($2.2 billion), including 370 million euros in public money, through the EU's post-COVID recovery fund.

Stellantis said in a note late on Thursday that ACC was currently enhancing the Termoli gigafactory plan, as well as the one for Germany, "to introduce a new technology for the production of cells and modules, to be in line with the evolution of the market".

In the meantime, it had taken decisions aimed at increasing output of components for hybrid engines at the plant, it added.

The Termoli gigafactory was initially expected to start operations in 2026.

ACC, which also has Mercedes and TotalEnergies as shareholders, has said it would confirm its industrial and construction timeline later this year or in early 2025.

Urso, who has repeatedly criticised Stellantis, Italy's sole major automaker, for not producing enough vehicles in the country, said the government would assess how to support the Termoli gigafactory plan with other public funds, should Stellantis confirm its plans at a later stage.

($1 = 0.8980 euros)

(Reporting by Giulio Piovaccari; editing by David Evans, Kirsten Donovan)
Brian Niccol, the new chairman and chief executive officer of Starbucks, could rack up 6,000 air miles a week on his commute - Mark Lennihan/AP

Most coffee connoisseurs wouldnt be seen dead in a Starbucks  its all sugar and cream, say the purists. Critics accuse it of making expensive desserts rather than real coffee.

With menu highlights such as the Double Chocolatey Chip Frappuccino, which is not only a real drink but also contains 450 calories and 48g of sugar, the naysayers may have a point.

What surely cant be in doubt is the chains desire to show how committed it is to saving the planet.

In fact, anyone who has ever had the misfortune to spend a few minutes scouring the Starbucks corporate website would be forgiven for thinking they had accidentally been redirected to the homepage of Greenpeace, such is the vast amount of time and resources it has dedicated to shouting about its green credentials.

The companys most recent annual global impact report  stretching to an impressive 66 pages no less  takes this supposed environmental dedication to its most absurd extremes.

Among the vacuous promises it makes are that when Starbucks is at its best (whatever that means), it will bridge to a better future for our partners; uplift the everyday for our customers; help ensure the future of coffee for all for our farmers; contribute positively to each of our communities; and finally, give more than we take from the environment, in the words of its former boss Laxman Narasimhan.

Laxman Narasimhan was summarily dismissed by Starbucks just 17 months into the job - Stephen Brashear/AP

At which point it is hard to take anything else that comes out of Starbucks HQ seriously.

In the face of such wispy corporate gobbledygook, it is of absolutely no surprise that it has taken just a single, desperate act to demonstrate that Starbucks commitment to saving the planet is as weak as one of its over-priced, oversized lattes.

Its dedication to sustainability  at least as far as management is concerned  was already under question after Narasimhan was summarily dismissed just 17 months into the job following a bigger-than-expected drop in sales.

Narisimhans exit looked rash given that the fall amounted to just 3pc across its many territories, and over a financial quarter too, but the stupendously generous package handed to successor Brian Niccol leaves the judgement and reputation of a board that is seemingly obsessed with green objectives in complete tatters.

Among the obscene lengths that the company has gone to get their man is an undertaking that Niccol wont have to relocate to the companys base in Seattle when he joins the coffee giant next month. Instead, he will be allowed to commute to the office from his home 1,000 miles away in Newport Beach, California by private jet.

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Such unfathomably long journeys, which are becoming more common for executives in the post-Covid workplace, are being dubbed a super-commute, though surely the super part of it ends when youre joining an organisation that has pledged a multi-decade commitment to become a resource positive company.

Given that Niccol is expected at Starbucks HQ a minimum of three days a week under the terms of its hybrid work policies, it means he could potentially rack up 6,000 air miles in one week alone shuttling to and from the office.

The arrangement is even more ridiculous given that Starbucks felt compelled to hand him a pay deal worth as much as $113m (86m) during his first year in charge. Not only is it four times larger than his predecessors annual earnings but its one of the largest such executive deals in corporate history.

As if that wasnt enough, Starbucks has also agreed to provide Niccol with a remote office close to home, along with an assistant of your choosing for such office  less work from home and more work close to home.

His turnaround of wannabe Mexican dining chain Chipotle was undeniably impressive, but Starbucks chairman Mellody Hobson has bent so far backwards to accommodate Niccols many whims that she must be in danger of folding like a used Starbucks napkin.

Starbucks chairman Mellody Hobson has bent over backwards in her efforts to get Niccol on board - Calvin Sit/Bloomberg

Still, even Starbucks stupidity is eclipsed by that of Niccols previous employers. Within months of Niccol taking the helm of Chipotle in 2018, the restaurant operator announced it was shifting its headquarters from Denver, Colorado, where it had been based for 25 years to Newport Beach where, coincidentally, Niccol was living with his family.

The company claimed it would help in the competition for top talent, but according to reports Niccols wife didnt want to uproot the couples children. The statement was also somewhat at odds with the need to try and persuade 400 employees at its existing head office to relocate.

The cult of the star CEO where companies convince themselves that a single individual is so brilliant that they must fork out whatever it takes to land them was already beginning to get out of hand  but situations like this are when it is at its most ludicrous.

Its unclear where all the forthcoming flying up the West Coast will leave Niccols carbon footprint in the rankings, but one imagines that it will dwarf that of your typical Starbucks customer. Thats where the companys green hypocrisy really rankles.

From its ethically sourced coffee to its reforestation programs and vegan milk substitutes, the chain seemingly never tires of trying to convince people that it is a force for good in the world  despite several of its initiatives being dismissed by environmental campaigners as greenwashing.

If Starbucks really wants to make the world a better place, it should focus on what it does best: pouring creamy drinks down the gullets of its customers instead of endlessly trying to force its empty green agenda down their throats.

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[Source]

Jollibee Foods, led by CEO Ernesto Tanmantiong, is making a bold move into the global coffee market with ambitions to rival Starbucks.

With a recent $238 million acquisition of a 70% stake in South Koreas Compose Coffee, Jollibee aims to expand its coffee presence with over 4,700 stores across Asia, the Middle East and North America. The company has invested nearly $700 million in coffee ventures, including the earlier purchase of The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. Despite facing challenges, including the impact of the pandemic and the need to turn around unprofitable acquisitions, Tanmantiong is determined to make Jollibee Foods one of the world's top five fast-food chains within a decade, with plans to double coffee-related revenue from its current 15% share to 30% by 2030. Its a rapidly growing marketa huge opportunity for us, he told Forbes.

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I just cant do it anymore: This struggling Nebraska mom is in tears after a property tax spike

A serious medical diagnosis and property revaluation have left a family in dire financial straits and close to losing their home.

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Lincoln, Neb. resident Connie Vogt is a single working mother helping her two sons through college and taking care of her elderly mother who has dementia. She told Channel 8 KLKN-TV that she had a mastectomy in November after an irregular mammogram result showed she was at significant risk of developing breast cancer. Two months later, she suffered complications and had to have emergency surgery that her insurance wouldnt cover because it was out of network.

The result was medical debt, lost wages from taking time off work, and a deferred mortgage payment.

To make matters worse, her home valuation nearly doubled, significantly increasing her property taxes. She said the new mortgage payments are almost $700 more a month and take up 50% of her income.

It just seems like every time you try to get on top of it, theres another blow, she said. I was trying to be the best mom I could be, trying to be the best for my mom. And I just cant do it anymore.

Vogt's son Frank started a Go Fund Me that has so far raised $11,822 out of a $60,000 goal. "We tried to hold out as long as possible to get ourselves out of this pit, but we're very close to the breaking point and making this GoFundMe is our very last resort," he wrote. "Asking for help like this is extremely difficult, but we're at the end our rope and any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated."

Why Are Property Taxes Going Up?

Across the country, property taxes are increasing at a significant rate, making it difficult for many Americans to keep their homes.

There is no federal property tax in the U.S., and according to the Tax Policy Center, the tax on real property (land and buildings, both residential and commercial) is primarily levied by local governments (cities, counties, and school districts).

The funds are then used for public services, such as schools, libraries, emergency services, and roads. Property tax rates vary based on where you live. In 2022, New Jersey had the highest effective tax rate of any state at 2.23%, while Hawaii had the lowest at 0.32%.

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Property taxes are based on assessed value  when values are low, taxes are set at a low rate. Home prices have increased significantly in the last few years, driven by several factors including low inventory. The median sale price of a home in the U.S. was $412,300 in Q2 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, up 30% from Q2 2020 when it was $317,100.

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Dealing with a 'crisis'

Vogt is one of many dealing with increasing property taxes in Nebraska. Last month, Governor Jim Pillen called lawmakers for a special session to solve the issue, which he called a crisis. The result was $185 million in new tax relief, or about 3.5% of the $5.3 billion in local property taxes collected in 2023, according to the Nebraska Examiner.

For homeowners who are facing increased property tax prices, there are relief options available. If your payment has gone up because of a regularly scheduled reassessment, you can appeal the revaluation of your property to the local authorities. CBS News notes each authority has different deadlines for filing appeals, so its important to check yours once you receive your reassessment notice. The article also recommends looking at local real estate sales for comparable homes and getting a third-party assessment before deciding to make an appeal.

Some governments also offer property tax relief programs to help homeowners. The AARP Foundation has a database of state property tax relief programs and can help homeowners learn how to apply for assistance. The foundation says relief services can help owners in need save from $200 up to $6,000 on their tax assessment.

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This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
Costa Rican artist joins MIRAME Fine Art Gallery, bringing hyperrealism to environmental discourse.

SAN JOSE, COSTA RICA / ACCESSWIRE / August 22, 2024 / As the premier online gallery supporting Costa Rican artists, MIRAME Fine Art promotes the nation's rich cultural heritage to art lovers worldwide.

Eliecer Rodriguez, Antonym

MIRAME Fine Art is delighted to announce the addition of Eliecer Rodriguez to its roster of artists. Known for his hyperrealist paintings, Rodriguez depicts everyday objects - such as plastic bags and disposable cups - in exquisite detail, juxtaposing them with natural elements like the ocean and marine life. His work, deeply concerned with environmental issues, invites reflection on the impact of consumerism on the planet.

An Ecological Focus

Born in Heredia, Costa Rica, in 1978, Rodriguez has consistently explored themes of ecological preservation through his art. His hyperrealist approach, developed through years of dedicated study and practice, emphasizes the immediacy of environmental challenges. By rendering everyday objects with such detail, Rodriguez blurs art and reality, confronting viewers with the stark realities of pollution and ecological degradation. Objects like a plastic cup floating alongside a shark become symbols of a broader environmental crisis, making the impact of these issues feel both urgent and inescapable.

"My connection to the sea and the ecological heritage of my country is a constant source of inspiration," Rodriguez shares. "Through my paintings, I seek to engage viewers with the urgent environmental issues we face today."

A Path Shaped by Experience and Innovation

Rodriguez began his career in the mid-1990s, studying under the tutelage of respected artists Luis Paulino Delgado and Guillermo Porras. His artistic education continued at the University of Costa Rica and through specialized workshops with Cuban printmaker Luis Miguel Valdes. Working as an assistant to the renowned Cuban artist Tomas Sanchez since 2009 has further influenced his technique and conceptual development.

Throughout his career, Rodriguez has participated in various solo and group exhibitions, earning recognition for his distinctive style and thought-provoking themes. His affiliation with MIRAME Fine Art Gallery marks a significant moment in his evolving career, as he continues to refine his artistic vision and deepen his engagement with environmental issues.

An Artistic Vision That Challenges Perception

Rodriguez's hyperrealist paintings bring the ordinary into sharp focus, asking viewers to reconsider their relationship with the environment. By placing everyday items at the forefront and rendering them with meticulous detail, Rodriguez emphasizes their significance and challenges us to reflect on the consequences of consumer culture and environmental neglect.

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MIRAME Fine Art Gallery is excited to support Eliecer Rodriguez as he continues to develop his remarkable painting style and unique perspective. Art lovers are encouraged to stay tuned for future developments from this forward-looking artist who is making significant waves in the Costa Rica and wider Latin American art scene.

Contact Information

Belinda Seppings

Co-Founder

belinda@miramefineart.com

+447821591397

SOURCE: MIRAME Fine Art

.

View the original press release on newswire.com.
US retail giant Macys is facing a challenging consumer landscape, but the company says it remains committed to its strategy of enhancing the customer experience and improving profitability.

Despite a 3.8% decline in net sales for the second quarter of 2024, Macys managed to deliver adjusted earnings per share of 53, exceeding analysts expectations.

This was primarily due to improved margins resulting from lower costs and effective expense control.

The companys 'First 50' locations, which have been a key focus of Macys turnaround strategy, continued to show positive comparable sales for the second consecutive quarter.

This is a promising sign that the companys efforts to enhance the customer experience and optimise operations are starting to bear fruit.

However, Macys remains cautious about the outlook for the remainder of the year, as the discretionary consumer market continues to face uncertainty.

The company has revised its annual net sales forecast to $22.1bn to $22.4bn, down from its previous estimate of $22.3bn to $22.9bn.

To further improve profitability and adapt to changing consumer preferences, Macys is accelerating its store closure plan.

The company now expects to close 55 stores in 2024, up from the previously estimated 50.

This is part of a broader three-year cost-saving initiative aimed at optimising the companys store network and reducing expenses.

In addition to these measures, Macys is investing in digital initiatives to enhance its online presence and provide customers with a seamless shopping experience.

The company is focusing on improving its website, mobile app, and omnichannel capabilities to meet the evolving needs of todays consumers.

The department store giant terminated discussions with an investor group comprising Arkhouse Management and Brigade Capital regarding a potential buyout in July this year.

Macys cited the proposals lack of compelling value and uncertainty around financing as the primary reasons for ending the talks.

The company said it would shift its full focus to executing its A Bold New Chapter turnaround strategy, which includes store closures, job cuts, and a renewed emphasis on its luxury brands.

Despite the challenges faced by the retail industry, Macys remains committed to its long-term strategy of returning to sustainable profitable growth.

The company believes that by focusing on enhancing the customer experience, improving operational efficiency, and adapting to changing consumer preferences, it can emerge from this challenging period stronger than ever.

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"Macys cuts sales outlook amidst consumer uncertainty" was originally created and published by Retail Insight Network, a GlobalData owned brand.







The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
By Paul Sandle

LONDON (Reuters) - Mike Lynch, the tech tycoon who died when his luxury yacht sank off Sicily, spent more than a decade building Britain's biggest software company and almost as long again fighting charges he had inflated its value to secure a multi-billion-pound sale.

Lynch's body was retrieved on Thursday from the wreck of Monday's disaster, a senior Italian official said.

Lynch founded Autonomy in 1996 from his ground-breaking research at Cambridge University, and was lauded by shareholders, business leaders and politicians when he sold it to Hewlett-Packard for $11 billion 15 years later.

But in late 2012, HP stunned Wall Street and the City of London by saying it had discovered a massive accounting scandal. Lynch denied the charges.

HP wrote off $8.8 billion of value and triggered 12 years of legal battles in courtrooms from London to San Francisco.

Lynch was known for his formidable intelligence, turning his cutting-edge academic research into a multi-billion pound tech business and becoming known as Britain's Bill Gates.

He did not shy away from clashing with critics of his company - including on one occasion Oracle's Larry Ellison - and took a central role in building his defence.

He hired the biggest names in Britain's legal and corporate communications professions, and invited some journalists into a room filled with neatly stacked piles of company documents to be briefed on its accounts.

HP had been drawn to Autonomy's ability to search and organise unstructured information for clients, a killer application in a world of unlimited data, before the emergence of advanced artificial intelligence.

Lynch received about $800 million for his stake in Autonomy.

A NOD TO BAYES THEOREM

Autonomy's software used patented algorithms based on a mathematical formula developed in the 18th Century by Reverend Thomas Bayes. In a nod to the formula, Lynch had named his yacht that sank off Italy the Bayesian.

HP pursued Lynch in a civil case in London's High Court for $5 billion, with the entrepreneur spending 22 days in the witness box, one of the longest cross-examinations in the UK.

The U.S. firm won much of the case in 2022 after the judge found that Lynch and a colleague had fraudulently concealed a "fire sale" of hardware and engaged in convoluted reselling schemes to mask a shortfall in sales of Autonomy's software, the business HP coveted. Damages are still to be decided in the civil case.

Lynch then faced extradition to the U.S. on criminal charges including wire fraud and conspiracy, where he could have faced decades in jail if found guilty.

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He took the stand in San Francisco in his own defence, denying wrongdoing and telling jurors that HP had botched the integration of its acquisition.

"Autonomy was an extremely successful company," he said.

Lynch was acquitted on all charges in June and freed after a year under house arrest. He said he was "elated" and looking forward to returning to his family and his estate in Suffolk, England, where he had a herd of rare-breed cattle and many dogs.

As part of the celebration, Lynch invited those who had supported him to join his family on his 56-metre (184-foot) yacht for a sailing holiday around southern Italy. Guests included his lawyer and a Morgan Stanley executive who had appeared as a character witness.

The boat was at anchor, its sails down, when it was hit by a violent storm before dawn on Monday and sank quickly.

His wife survived but on Thursday their younger daughter was still missing, the last person unaccounted for after four other bodies were recovered. The ship's chef was also found dead hours after the disaster.

UK TECH CHAMPION

Lynch was born in 1965 and raised in Chelmsford near London. He said his parents, a nurse and a fireman, instilled in him an appreciation of the value of education.

At Cambridge University, he studied physics, mathematics and biochemistry, and went on to research signal processing for his doctorate. His thesis is still one of the most widely consulted in the university's library, local media reports have said.

He founded Autonomy in 1996 and used some of the sale proceeds to become a champion of UK tech. His venture capital firm Invoke backed Darktrace, a British cybersecurity company in the process of being sold to U.S. firm Thoma Bravo for $5.32 billion, and other tech businesses.

"Mike's ability to identify and solve complex problems was phenomenal, as was his ability to simplify and explain them," said family friend Patrick Jacob, in a statement distributed by a Lynch family spokesperson.

"As a friend, Mike was never dull and always ready for a lively debate on almost any topic conducted with intelligence and convivial vigour. He could be challenging and direct but I never came away from seeing him without feeling my life was enriched by the experience."

Lynch, a married father of two daughters, was keen to share his expertise.

He advised the government on science and innovation, was on the boards of the BBC and British Library, and was a fellow of both the Royal Academy of Engineering and the Royal Society.

After his acquittal, he vowed to campaign against the extradition treaty between Britain and the United States, which British critics have long called too one-sided, and he told the BBC in August that he could not have been acquitted without the money to fund his defence.

"You shouldn't need to have funds to protect yourself as a British citizen", he said.

(Editing by Kate Holton, Bernadette Baum, Sharon Singleton and Rosalba O'Brien)
ETF Investing Tools

Morgan Stanley is to close its remaining six smart beta exchange-traded funds available on its FundLogic platform.

The group said assets had fallen below a specific threshold of $50 million across its six remaining ETFs, which will stop trading on Sept. 17.

Morgan Stanley declined to comment on the closures.

Morgan Stanley ETFs Closing

The ETFs have total expense ratios (TERs) of 0.30%, with total assets of the individual funds sitting between $1 million and less than $3 million.

The ETFs look to capture six factors, value, size, low volatility, high momentum, low investment and high profitability.

It highlights how smart beta ETFs have fallen out of popularity, with the asset class suffering outflows of $1.7 billion (1.5 billion euros) in the first quarter of 2024.

Last year, Northern Trust Asset Management closed four of its five factor ETFs, before Waystone ETFs agreed to take over its Irish platform and its one remaining ETF in June.

The group entered the U.S. ETF market last year and now looks to be focusing its ETF efforts solely on the market.

The multi-factor range lost 91.7% of its assets in 2023 after amassing $334 million (300million euros) in its first five years. USHF held $224 million in assets under management on the closure of MS Scientific Beta US Equity Factors UCITS ETF (USEF) in October 2022.

Morgan Stanley shut USEF in 2022 with less than $1 million AUM, and previously closed the MS Scientific Beta Global Equity Factors UCITS ETF (GEF) which delisted in Aug. 2021.





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Mark Schneider, chief executive of Swiss giant Nestle, is set to depart the company after eight years at the worlds biggest food company.

The KitKat and Maggi brands owner revealed today (22 August) it had appointed Laurent Freixe, current executive vice president and CEO of Nestles Latin America business, as Schneiders successor from 1 September.

Nestle did not disclose the reasons behind Schneiders departure, but said he decided to relinquish his roles as CEO and member of the board of directors.

Schneider joined Nestle from Germany-based healthcare company Fresenius at the start of 2017, taking the reins from Paul Bulcke, who is now chairman of the Nestle board of directors.

Freixe joined Nestle in France in 1986. His career at the company included managing its Zone Europe during the financial and economic crisis, from 2008 until 2014. He then took over as CEO of Zone Americas and, following changes to Nestles new Zone structure in 2022, Freixe was named CEO of Zone Latin America.

Bulcke described Freixe as the perfect fit for Nestle at this time and expressed his gratitude to Mark for his significant contributions to Nestle and for his outstanding, steady leadership in turbulent times.

Freixe said: I am privileged to have been given the opportunity to continue building and strengthening Nestle, and I am excited to take on this responsibility.

There will always be challenges, but we have unparalleled strengths, such as iconic brands and products, an unmatched global presence, leading innovation and execution capabilities, and above all, exceptional people and teams. We can strategically position Nestle to lead and win everywhere we operate.

The company also recently announced another C-suite change, naming London Stock Exchange Group finance chief Anna Manz as CFO last year.

Schneider added: Leading Nestle for the past eight years has been an honour for me. I am grateful for what we have achieved, having transformed Nestle into a future-proofed, innovative and sustainable business.

I would like to thank the entire Nestle community for what we have accomplished together and wish Laurent all the best in his new role.

Schneiders tenure was marked by moves to reshape Nestles portfolio through asset disposals. These included the first major disposal of its US confectionery business, including brands such as Butterfinger and Raisinets, to the privately-owned Ferrero for a deal worth Sfr2.8bn (then $2.91bn) in 2018.

Following that sale, Daniel Loeb, the activist investor who was pushing for change at Nestle, said he expected the decisive disposal of other ill-fitting businesses.

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The Swiss company struck a deal one year later to sell its ice-cream business in the US to Froneri, the global ice-cream supplier which the worlds largest food maker co-owns with private-equity firm PAI Partners.

Froneri agreed to pay $4bn for the business that included brands like Drumstick, as well as the local licence to Haagen-Dazs.

Schneider narrowed the companys focus on fewer categories, including pet food, coffee and infant nutrition, which have been central to the business recent sales growth.

Last month, Nestle trimmed its forecast for organic growth in 2024 from around 4% to at least 3%. It also cut its EPS guidance from 6-10% to a mid-single-digit range.

Nestles share price stood at Sfr73.10 (then $71.20) on 23 December 2016 shortly before Schneider took the wheel. Today, at the close of market trading, Nestles share price reached Sfr89.44 ($104.92).

"Nestle names LatAm boss Freixe new CEO as Schneider steps down" was originally created and published by Just Food, a GlobalData owned brand.







The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
By John Revill and Richa Naidu

ZURICH/LONDON (Reuters) - Nestle is replacing CEO Mark Schneider with company veteran Laurent Freixe, the Swiss food group said on Thursday, marking a change of leadership as it faces a challenge to grow sales.

Schneider has decided to step down as CEO and a member of the board of directors after eight years leading the world's biggest packaged food company.

The 58-year-old German moved the Swiss firm away from its decades-old category-led structure in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the company enjoyed a boom as people bought its food and drinks to eat at home during lockdowns.

But it has struggled recently, last month cutting its full-year sales outlook and saying it had to slow its price hikes as cash-strapped customers became more price conscious.

Under Schneider's leadership, Nestle's shares hit their highest level in January 2022, before hitting a downward trajectory since May 2023.

The executive appeared to lose investor confidence, as the maker of KitKat chocolate bars and Nescafe instant coffee sharply underperformed rivals like Unilever.

Where Unilever, Danone and other food makers have in recent quarters been able to lower some product prices and drive sales volumes, Nestle has struggled to regain shopper loyalty that it lost in price hikes it had to make after the pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

When asked how his strategy would differ from Schneider's, Freixe told journalists that Nestle, a company with more than 2,000 brands, spanning dog food to water and infant nutrition - would focus on its "core" activities.

"I will put a lot of focus on the core. I won't exclude, of course, M&A," Freixe said. "But...the big message is focus on the core."

Freixe, whose new role will be effective on Sept. 1, joined the company in France in 1986, going on to lead Nestle's European business during the 2008 financial crisis.

He then headed Nestle's Americas unit and, eventually led the Latin America business from 2022 where he oversaw strong growth in recent years.

He was an unsuccessful contender for the CEO post in 2016, said Jefferies analyst David Hayes.

"After an increasingly difficult year, it's not a total surprise to see a CEO change," said Hayes.

The 62-year-old Freixe, a popular figure at Nestle's HQ in Vevey, next to Lake Geneva, has already started work in his new role, but knows it will take time to rebuild market share and increase sales volumes in a tough market.

"There will always be challenges, but we have unparalleled strengths," he said. "We can strategically position Nestle to lead and win everywhere we operate."

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As well as his inside knowledge and wide network within Nestle, Freixe's marketing and sales expertise was highlighted by analysts.

"He's a sales and marketing guy with a real passion for the products," said Jean-Philippe Bertschy at Bank Vontobel.

"If you look at successful food companies lately, like Lindt and Danone among others, they all have marketing and sales people as CEO."

The switch to Freixe also marks a return to the Nestle's normal practice of promoting chief executives from within the company.

Schneider, the former boss of German healthcare company Fresenius, was its first external CEO in nearly a century.

Kepler Cheuvreux analyst Jon Cox described Freixe as a "very safe pair of hands" with the executive possibly deciding whether to prune weaker businesses.

Freixe's in-tray could include turning around Nestle's underperforming health science unit, while its frozen food business in North America, where its brands include Lean Cuisine and DiGiorno, has also struggled.

Chairman Paul Bulcke, said Nestle had not considered an outside candidate before choosing Freixe.

"Having Laurent, there was no need to look outside," Bulcke said.

(Reporting by John Revill, additional reporting by Jessica DiNapoli; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Stephen Coates)
(Bloomberg) -- Neuralink Corp., Elon Musks brain-computer company, said surgery for its second implant in a human went well and the patient is now able to design 3D objects and play video games like Counter-Strike 2.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The procedure also appears to have successfully averted an issue that dogged the experience of the first patient, Noland Arbaugh, who had the unexpected complication of electrode threads retracting from his brain.

To reduce the probability of thread retraction in our second participant, we implemented a number of mitigations, including reducing brain motion during the surgery and reducing the gap between the implant and the surface of the brain, the company said in a blog post.

In the case of Arbaugh, Neuralink made post-surgical software tweaks that also mitigated the issue.

The company said it was working on new capabilities for its brain interface device, dubbed Link, which for now allows patients to control on-screen cursors and digital devices, click by click. In the future, it said, Link would be able to decode multiple simultaneous movement intents and recognize handwriting intent to help patients write faster.

These capabilities would not only help restore digital autonomy for those who are unable to use their limbs, but also restore the ability to communicate for those who are unable to speak, such as people with neurological conditions, Neuralink wrote.

For now, the Link device is designed for patients with quadriplegia and other conditions that severely limit movement. Musk has said Neuralink implants could eventually help augment the abilities of healthy people, such as assisting with memory recall.

The blog post gave the patients first name, Alex, and identified him as a former automotive technician that suffered a spinal-cord injury. He left the hospital, the Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix, one day after undergoing the surgery. Alex is now able to use computer-assisted design software to design a custom mount for his Neuralink charger, the company said.

Musk has said he hopes to have the device in several more patients by the end of the year. Participants are part of Neuralinks Prime study, an investigational medical device trial.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

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2024 Bloomberg L.P.
Hospitality company Minor Hotels is set to open NH Maldives Kuda Rah Resort, its first NH Hotels & Resorts branded property in the Indian Ocean, on 1 September 2024.

Located in South Ari Atoll, the property will offer 51 suites and villas, ranging from 90m to 231m and featuring an inner courtyard or pool.

The resort will also offer various restaurants, a spa with three treatment rooms, a gym, an indoor kids' club, and babysitting services.

Minor Hotels CEO and Minor International CEO Dillip Rajakarier said: "Minor Hotels has long been one of the largest global hospitality operators in the Maldives, a destination of immense strategic importance for our group.

"Adding to our luxury portfolio, the introduction of NH Maldives Kuda Rah Resort marks our first upscale property in the archipelago, as we expand our reach and deliver a stunning Maldives experience to guests seeking the perfect blend of indulgence and accessibility."

The new resort will expand Minor Hotels' presence in the Maldives to eight properties.

It represents the third resort property globally under the NH Hotels & Resorts brand, joining NH Marina Portimao Resort in Portugal and NH Boat Lagoon Phuket Resort in Thailand.

NH Maldives Kuda Rah Resort is a 25-minute seaplane journey from Male, followed by a brief speedboat transfer.

Its location also offers guests easy access to diving and snorkelling sites.

In June, Minor Hotels signed a management agreement with Boulevard Hotel Company to introduce the NH Hotels & Resorts brand in Bangkok.

"NH Hotels & Resorts to launch new Maldives property in September" 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.
Thursday, Aug. 22

Tanssi, Appchain Protocol Historically Focused on Polkadot, Expands to Ethereum With Symbiotic

Appchain protocol Tanssi, historically focused on the Polkadot blockchain, is expanding to Ethereum with Symbiotic, a restaking protocol. According to the team, the effort could set "a new standard for the rapid launch of decentralized networks, aka Actively Validated Services (AVSs). What usually takes months can be done in minutes, allowing developers to deploy highly customizable and decentralized networks, with Ethereums robust security."

SatLayer, Project for Staking Bitcoin Through Babylon, Raises $8M

SatLayer has raised $8 million in pre-seed funding, led by Hack VC and Castle Island Ventures, "to expand Bitcoin as a universal security layer," according to the team: "Founded by MIT, Y Combinator, and Stanford alumni, SatLayer leverages Babylon Chains Proof of Stake to secure Actively Validated Services via BTC staking. 'We're excited for SatLayers launch on Babylon and its impact on BTC-secured AVSs,' said Fisher Yu, Babylons co-founder and CTO. Users can stake Bitcoin on Babylon, restake liquid staking tokens (LST) through platforms like Lombard, PumpBTC and PStake on SatLayer, and earn rewards."

VitaDAO Founders Launch Protocol 'BIO' With DAOs to Raise Funding for Scientific Research

The founders of VitaDAO, a Web3 community devoted to longevity health research and products, launched BIO, a "new protocol enabling global communities of patients, scientists and biotech builders to collectively fund and commercialize new therapeutics," according to the team: "Revenue from new therapeutics flow back into the BIO Network, creating value for network participants. BIO completed the first round of its TGE, raising $6.2 in a public sale, with participation from VCs like Zee Prime, 1kx ID Theory. Details on the second round of BIOs TGE will be announced soon." According to the project documentation: "BioDAOs raise funding via token sales, and use their treasuries to back and develop biotech projects related to their mission, creating shared IP ownership between their members. BioDAOs use Molecule's on-chain IP framework to own, license, and transact in intellectual property generated from the projects they support."

Conceptual illustration of a

Bitcoin Layer-2 Developer Ark Labs Raises $2.5M From Draper, Fulgur, Axiom, Stephen Cole

Ark Labs, building a Bitcoin layer-2 network, has secured $2.5 million in pre-seed funding led by Draper Associates, with backing from Fulgur Ventures, Axiom Capital and angel investor Stephen Cole. According to the team: "This funding will advance Ark Labs work on seamless, scalable Bitcoin payments via the Ark protocol. Signups are open for the Ark Node beta, a user-friendly Lightning Network wallet. Ark Labs is seeking talent, developers, and partners to join its mission to revolutionize global payments."

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A key element of Ark's design is the

Paradigm-Backed Bug Bounty Platform Code4rena Acquired by Security Audit Provider Zellic

Zellic, a provider of security audits in the blockchain industry, announced its acquisition of Code4rena, a project for competitive audits, claiming "the largest collection of security researchers in the space." According to the team "This strategic move marks Zellic's first acquisition and will enable both companies to offer clients a new level of deeply comprehensive security review, Audits+. Code4rena will continue to operate as its own business under its original brand, with its existing team and leadership intact."

Stork Network, Provider of Pricing Oracles, Raises $4.7M, Led by Lightspeed Faction, Lattice

Stork Network, a provider of pricing oracles across several asset classes, announced that it has raised $4.705 million in seed funding. According to the team: "This fundraising round is co-led by Lightspeed Faction and Lattice, with participation from CMS and Wintermute Ventures. The funds will be used to expand Stork Network's product suite including building out and bringing to market the Open Data Market. Meredith Pitkoff, co-founder at Stork Network.

SwapKit.dev, Cross-Chain Infrastructure Solutions Provider, Integrates With BitPay

SwapKit.dev, a provider of cross-chain infrastructure solutions, announced an integration with BitPay, the Bitcoin and cryptocurrency payment processor. According to the team: "This integration will empower BitPay users to unlock a wider range of digital assets, leveraging SwapKit to access cross-chain liquidity via THORChain for seamless in-wallet exchange of diverse cryptocurrencies. This partnership will provide significant benefits for Bitpay users, including:

Expanded Blockchain Support ERC-20 Asset support Reduced Friction Enhanced User Experience

Credbull Closes $5.2M Round Led by Gnosis VC to 'Democratize Private Credit' On-chain

PROTOCOL VILLAGE EXCLUSIVE: Credbull, which in April launched what it described as the "first licensed on-chain private credit fund" on the Polygon PoS blockchain, announced a $5.2M funding round led by GnosisVC, with strategic participation from Outlier Ventures, HODL Ventures, XBTO, LucidBlue Ventures, CryptoHedge, Marcello Mari (SingularityDAO) and others. According to the team, "Credbull aims to democratize private credit RWA investments by connecting traditional finance with Web3."

Aave Comes to Ethereum Layer-2 Project ZKsync's Era Mainnet

Aave, the biggest DeFi lending protocol with a total value locked of $11.9 billion, announced the launch of Aave V3 on Era Mainnet, powered by ZKsync. According to the team, "Aave can access advanced ZK tech with low-cost transactions while deriving security from ETH with cryptographic validity proofs." Chainlink, the blockchain oracle project, "will provide secure and reliable price feeds." Aave founder Stani Kulechov said in a statement relayed by a spokesperson for the project: "Era Mainnet offers the highest level of scalability and performance and with zero knowledge proofs, the opportunity to add privacy capabilities and additional security for users and institutions. Additionally, the Elastic Chain ecosystem can expand to accommodate various institutional use cases while ensuring scalability. {{AAVE}} {{ZK}}

Blockchain Oracle Chronicle Launches 'RWA Oracle' Via Integration with M^0

Chronicle, which was the first oracle on Ethereum and is currently the sole securer of MakerDAO, has launched its RWA Oracle via an integration with M^0, "an on-chain protocol that allows multiple Minters to issue a fully fungible cryptodollar called $M." According to the team: "In this collaboration, Chronicle serves as an independent validator, verifying M^0s collateral balances. As a result of its integration with M^0, Chronicle is permissioned by the protocols governance to provide timely information on the off-chain collateral being used by Minters to generate $M, ensuring the integrity and reliability of the $M cryptodollar."

Legion, 'Merit-Based ICO Platform,' Emerges From Stealth With $2M

Legion, describing itself as a "merit-based ICO platform," has emerged from stealth and announced a $2 million raise from founders, accelerators and angels. Backers include Cyber Fund, AllianceDAO, Delphi Labs, CoinGecko, Mike Dudas, Alex Svanevik, Peter Smith, Maggie Love, Jon Wu, Ryan Watkins and LongHash. According to the team: "The platform plans to become MiCA compliant and provide investment access to non-accredited investors. By ranking investors by merit (on-chain and off-chain reputation), rather than net-wealth, Legion says teams can build higher quality communities, and short-term holders are disincentivized."

Binance Labs Invests in BNB Chain Accelerator Projects Aggegata, Opinion Labs, SideKick, Vooi

BNB Chain has announced that four top-performing projects from Season 7 of its MVB program  an accelerator designed to drive growth within the BNB Chain ecosystem  have received investment from Binance Labs. The selected projects include:

Aggregata unifies AI data, models, and computing into a seamless, one-stop platform.

Opinion Labs is building dynamic opinion and continuous prediction markets.

SideKick is the Consolidation Hub For Social, games & beyond

Vooi is a cross-chain perp DEX aggregator supporting EVM and non-EVM chains.

Web3 Streaming Platform Myco.io to Ship Content on Aptos

Myco.io, a Web3 streaming platform, announced a strategic partnership with Aptos Foundation to ship content on the Aptos blockchain. According to the team: "The collaboration will focus around technical integration, developing builder resources and a mutual commitment to advancing Web3 technologies and delivering next-generation, decentralized digital streaming experiences." {{APT}}

Aave Adds METIS as Collateral on Metis L2

Aave, which had already deployed on the Ethereum layer-2 network Metis, has integrated METIS as collateral, "expanding asset management strategies for users," according to the team: "With a 30% LTV ratio, users can borrow assets based on their METIS holdings. This offers liquidity without selling METIS, access to various financial tools and benefits from faster, cheaper transactions on Metis compared to Ethereum mainnet."

Decentralized AI Project Mira Hires Uber's Naik as Chief Product Officer

Mira, a decentralized AI infrastructure platform, hired Ninad Naik, a former Uber executive, as chief product officer. According to the team: "In his new role, Ninad will spearhead product innovation, playing a crucial role in Miras mission to expand global AI access through decentralization. Ninad joins Mira from Uber, where he led the core marketplace product for Uber's food and grocery delivery business globally. Prior to Uber, Ninad has held multiple GM and product leadership roles at Amazon across its AI, hardware, and marketplace businesses."

Mira Chief Product Officer Ninad Naik (Mira)

Yonsei University AI Researchers to Use Theta EdgeCloud to Accelerate Model Training

Yonsei University's AI researchers will use Theta EdgeCloud to accelerate AI model training and inference for research in machine reasoning and data mining, according to the team: "Led by Professor Dongha Lee, the lab will develop advanced tools like a table reasoner and summarizer to extract implicit knowledge from tabular data. By utilizing Theta's scalable platform, the lab can reduce costs by more than 50% compared to traditional cloud services."

OORT, Provider of Blockchain-Based Verification Layer for AI Data, Partners With National Science Foundation Center

OORT, a cloud platform for decentralized AI, has partnered with the National Science Foundation's(NSF) eCAT (Electric, Connected, and Autonomous Technologies for Mobility) IUCRC research center. According to the team: "OORT, which provides a blockchain-based verification layer for data used by AI engines, will collaborate closely with leading institutions in this project including Wayne State University, Clarkson University, the University of North Texas, the University of Delaware and Oakland University. OORT will also work alongside companies including leading American Data Storage and Western Digital."

GaiaNet, Decentralized AI Inferencing Project, Launches Hackathon

GaiaNet, a project for decentralized AI inferencing, is launching a global "Living Knowledge Systems Hackathon," which will run from Aug. 22 to Sept. 13. Registration began Aug. 19, 2024. According to the team: "The prize pool will include up to $50K in rewards. Winning participants will also be invited on an expense-paid trip to TOKEN2049 Singapore, where they will join the GaiaNet executive team at an exclusive launch party. The aim of the event is to build decentralized nodes, solve security vulnerabilities in centralized AI models and tackle issues like censorship, algorithmic bias and data privacy."

Protocol Village is a regular feature of The Protocol, our weekly newsletter exploring the tech behind crypto, one block at a time. Sign up here to get it in your inbox every Wednesday. Project teams can submit updates here. For previous versions of Protocol Village, please go here.




BEIJING/LONDON (Reuters) -China launched an anti-subsidy investigation into dairy imports from the European Union a day after the bloc's revised tariff plan for China-made electric vehicles.

Wednesday's inquiry, targeting cheese, milk and cream meant for human consumption, came after the EU amended proposed punitive duties on Chinese EV imports to 36.3% from an initial 37.6%. Beijing had urged Brussels to abandon the tariffs.

DAIRY PRODUCER ARLA FOODS:

The CEO of Arla Foods, one of the world's biggest dairy producers owned by more than 9,000 dairy farmers in Denmark, Sweden, Britain, Germany, Belgium, Luxemburg and the Netherlands, said the company is not directly impacted by China's anti-subsidy probe.

"I'm confident that the EU and the system can handle this, and that it doesn't necessarily have to become as dramatic as it initially seems," Peder Tuborgh said.

"(China is) far from self-sufficient, and the exports to China are still reasonable, but they are able to meet their growth consumption nicely through the development they are undergoing themselves... (I see this) as a normal market mechanism, more than being a specifically protectionist thing.

EUROPEAN UNION CHAMBER OF COMMERCE IN CHINA:

"Regrettably, the use of trade defence instruments by one government is increasingly being responded to seemingly in kind by the recipient government.

"The chamber will be monitoring the investigation and hopes it will be conducted fairly and transparently. We expect our affected member companies to co-operate to the fullest with the investigation."

FRIESLANDCAMPINA:

Dutch dairy cooperative FrieslandCampina, whose specialised nutrition business sells infant nutrition products in China and which has a small business selling condensed milk products and creamers for the business-to-business market, said it was aware of the announcement of the anti-subsidy investigation.

"Naturally, we will provide the necessary information related to the investigation, if requested, in accordance with laws and regulations," a spokesperson said.

THE IRISH FARMERS ASSOCIATION:

Tadhg Buckley, director of policy and chief economist at Ireland's largest farming lobby group the Irish Farmers' Association, said Chinese authorities are looking predominantly at "cheese, cream and other related processed cheese, blue cheeses and cheeses of that type".

He said that would account for about 45 million of 430 million euros ($478.55 million) worth of Irish exports last year. Specialised powders used for nutritional purposes make up the bulk of exports to China, he added.

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"If the investigation... expanded outside into powders, it would certainly be a much different and much more significant issue for Ireland," he said, adding that a trade delegation was heading to China at the end of the month.

IRISH MINISTRY FOR AGRICULTURE, FOOD AND THE MARINE:

"I will be engaging with the EU Commission to ensure that it has all of the data necessary in so far as Ireland is concerned to resolve any issues raised in the proposed investigation," Charlie McConalogue, Ireland's Minister of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, said.

JACOB GUNTER, LEAD ECONOMY ANALYST AT MERCATOR INSTITUTE FOR CHINA STUDIES:

"EU dairy exports to China come out to around 1.7 billion euros, which is less than 1% of total EU exports to China, so even if tariffs go so high as to de facto block all dairy trade, it will have a relatively small impact on EU exports.

"Nevertheless, the pain will be felt more acutely in the biggest exporters to China, from Irish butter to Finnish milk powder to Spanish Manchego to Italian Parmigiano Reggiano.

"China has been ramping up its own dairy production for years, and only a small portion of all dairy products consumed in China are imported.

"China is important for butter and cheese exports, but considering the size of the country, it is still a minor player.

"I expect that more replaceable dairy products will be most affected by tariff hikes, as alternatives from the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand will be more cost competitive  think butter, milk, milk powder, cream, and the most common types of cheese.

"For less replaceable product types  many of Europes high-end and specialized cheeses, for example  the main question will be at (what) point a given product just becomes cost prohibitive."

($1 = 0.8986 euros)

(Reporting by Liz Lee, Joe Cash, Richa Naidu, Padraic Halpin and Isabelle Yr Carlsson said; Editing by David Holmes, Kirsten Donovan, Michael Perry and Jan Harvey)
Pekic / Getty Images

With retirement comes the freedom to live life on your own terms, but it also brings the need for judicious financial planning. Car insurance rates go up when you turn 65 because seniors report more accidents and claims, according to Forbes Advisor.

Check Out: Im an Economist: Heres My Prediction for Social Security if Trump Wins the 2024 Election

Read Next: 7 Reasons You Shouldnt Retire Before Speaking To a Financial Advisor

In 2025, the car insurance industry will see more rate increases, for instance, California, the state with the most drivers, will dramatically raise its liability limits on the first of the year. So its even more important than ever for retirees to budget wisely.

With that in mind, GoBankingRates tapped the expertise of the pros for strategies on how retirees can get the best car insurance rates heading into 2025  Shavon Roman, Atlanta-based Licensed Insurance Agent and Personal Finance Expert of Heal. Plan. Invest., and Jacqueline Keer, owner of Keer & Heyer Insurance in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey.

Earning passive income doesn't need to be difficult. You can start this week.

Work With a Broker That Partners With Several Insurance Companies

Insurance brokers maintain relationships with multiple insurance companies, making it easier to find customers more competitive rates than an insurance agent representing one insurance agency.

Learn More: If You Have $1 Million in Retirement Savings, Heres How Much You Could Withdraw Per Year

Most people are overinsured and have no idea why or how to fix it, said Roman. She recalls a couple in their mid-sixties coming to her for advice whose car insurance rates were double what they should have been paying.

The husband was adamant about staying with the company they had been with for 40 years. He said State Farm had been good to them; they were in car accidents and handled the claims really well.

But he questioned why his insurance had kept increasing over the years and said he didnt understand his policy.

Why dont you hire someone that works for you? said Roman. She referred them to an insurance broker that saved them $1,300 a year on their two cars.

The policy was the exact same; the only difference was the insurance carrier wasnt a big brand like State Farm or Allstate; it was a small company [with] strong ratings and a good claims history.

Sometimes clients get tied into insurance company names that have been around for a long time, but there are good smaller companies regulated by the state with strong financial ratings, said Roman.

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Seniors on a fixed income should pay attention to their insurance policy,  Roman said. It doesnt matter if its $2,000 or if its $20,000 a month, its still a fixed amount of money.

Bundle Home and Auto

One of the best things to do is bundle your homeowner and auto and even a personal umbrella policy, said Keer.

The exception, Roman said, is if you live in Florida or California whose car insurance companies that used to carry homeowners and renters insurance have pulled out of the market.

In those states, the way to get bundled car insurance is to add an umbrella liability policy.

Protect Your Assets With an Umbrella Policy

If youre in an accident, and your liability is $50,000, but youre only insured for $25,000 that umbrella policy will pay the difference, so youre not personally responsible for it, said Roman.

The umbrella policy protects your income and your assets by paying the difference of the claim against your actual policy limits. Lets face it, a small accident could easily be a six-figure liability, especially now [when] everything is so expensive; they arent carrying those high limits, she said.

If someone gets hurt and sues you, and you only have $15,000 per person, $30,000 per accident, and that person sues you for $500,000, youll pay out of pocket for that, Keer added.

Thats why its important to have an umbrella policy, if theres a lawsuit and theyre awarded money.

Enroll in a Defensive Driving Course

Another way to save money on your car insurance is to take a defensive driving course.

AARP offers it; it takes six hours; its online, and you can do it from the comfort of your home, said Roman. I usually see discounts between 5 and 20% depending on the carrier and the state that client is in.

Keer said in New Jersey, the defensive drivers course could save people about 10% off their collision coverage, not their whole policy.

If your policy is $1,000 a year but the portion of your policy is your collision coverage, say its $500 of that $1,000, youre only going to save 10% on that $500.

Consider Removing Collision If You Have an Old Car

Retirees tend to keep their cars longer, but if you have a 15-year-old car, the value may not be enough to warrant keeping collision coverage, said Keer. If the car doesnt have a lot of value, its $1,000 more that [you] have to put out for the car.

Save With Low Mileage Car Insurance

Most people arent aware that theres a type of insurance called low car mileage insurance, said Roman. [Its simply a discount based on the mileage you drive every year.

Its really important, especially if youre in your early sixties or mid-60s and youre getting ready to retire or are retired, to adjust your commuting miles with your insurance carrier so youre not paying the same rate as when you commuted to work every day, said Roman.

Keer and Roman both recommend notifying your broker when you stop commuting to work.

Additional Ways Seniors Can Save on Car Insurance Rates

Paperless discount: With paperless billing, Keer has seen people save up as much as 10%.

Opt for an annual policy: Keer and Roman recommend annual policies because you wont have to pay a rate increase until the policy renews. With a six-month policy, your rates can increase twice in one year.

Combine savings: Keer helped a client save $100 off her annual premium by combining a higher deductible, paperless billing, paying her policy in full and installing an app on her phone to monitor and reward her good driving behavior.

Pay in full: Paying your bill in full will save you from paying $5 for each installment, said Keer.

Enroll in autopay: You can save $20 to $30 on your bill by having your premium withdrawn electronically from your checking account or credit card.

More From GOBankingRates

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Senior Savings: The Best Car Insurance Rates for Retirees Heading Into 2025
CHICAGO  For University of Illinois Chicago visiting senior research specialist T. Chedgzsey Smith-McKeever, creating a path to higher education became a road to debt.

Her San Diego beginnings led to stints at the University of California, Irvine and the University of Southern California, and ended with a Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin. But Smith-McKeever, who had been diagnosed with diabetes at age 13, had to juggle school debt with paying out of pocket for her preexisting condition.

In between her bachelors and masters degrees, she defaulted on her student loans.

I got out of undergrad owing around $15,000, she said. Then Smith-McKeever became pregnant. That was my great motivator. What killed me was getting my masters degree because Im paying for me to survive, for my daughter to survive. The tuition was outrageous. I went from owing $15,000 to $120,000.

She remembers being in and out of homelessness even with a bachelors degree in psychology. I knew I had to get more education, she said, otherwise there is no way Im going to be able to take care of this child.

Smith-McKeever got lucky when a friend offered her late mothers home as a place for her to stay. Without having to pay rent, she saved enough money to get out of default to continue her education. Once she got her masters degree, a job at the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services adoption division allowed Smith-McKeever to be able to afford rent for a studio apartment and child care.

Although she was able to manage things, her student loan payments were $1,200 a month. It was a number that she didnt even share with her spouse.

It was killing me, said the social work educator and researcher, who moved to Chicago in 2002.

She managed to get that number down to $560 per month by negotiating with her lender and demonstrating with her income tax returns that much of her income was consumed by medical expenses.

It doesnt matter if Im paying $560 if I owe over $200,000, the Evergreen Park resident said. Youre not paying as much, but youre seeing that interest accumulate. Its terrifying because its just getting bigger and bigger.

So she Googled help with managing my student loan debt and was pointed to the Chicago law firm of Rae Kaplan. Smith-McKeever had spent nearly 20 years working at public universities and struggling to get her loans forgiven. But after working with Kaplan for a few years, Smith-McKeever finally received a letter in the mail saying, your debt of $274,000 is forgiven.

I have an autoimmune disease; I dont have a strong immune system, Smith-McKeever said. Between the end of COVID and now, like a year ago, I lost my right leg. Ive had setback after setback. However, I believe the weight that retiring that student loan debt took off me, the psychological emotional stress that it removed from me really helped me be able to get through this challenge of losing my leg.

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Kaplan Law Firm was solely working on bankruptcies until 2014, when Kaplan decided to focus on helping people with student loan debt.

We still practice bankruptcy law, but our student loan practice has eclipsed what the bankruptcy practice ever was. There are so many more people who need answers on their student loans and dont need a bankruptcy, Kaplan said. If you forgive $40,000 or $50,000, for a middle-class family, thats life-changing.

The Kaplan Law Firm helps individuals and families understand the educational loan process before and after they sign the loan papers. Kaplan and her team help determine the best course of action for limiting and eliminating student loan debt. In most cases, Kaplan said, the federal loan monies taken out will be eligible for a type of income-driven repayment plan provided by the United States Department of Education.

Kaplan analyzes each clients loans, federal and private, and if they are private, Kaplan goes over best strategies to reduce payments and get maximum loan forgiveness.

For private loans, were looking at whether or not the best options are refinancing because in many cases, the borrower will have taken out a high interest loan that really just needs to be refinanced and that will do a lot to lower their payments and reduce the amount that they pay back overall on that loan, Kaplan said. If those private loans are already in default, then we can negotiate a reduced balance settlement. Very often you can get the creditor to agree to a 50% settlement. Thats a big money saver.

Whether its a parent curious about taking out Parent Plus Loans for their child, a high school student who has plans for their major and career, or a person who has been paying their student loan for 10 to 25 years, Kaplan said she can be of assistance.

She said the student loan process is confusing. Kaplan spoke of an attorney who owed six figures in student loans but got confused by the information and misinformation about student loan debt. So she came to Kaplan, who got her enrolled in the Saving on a Valuable Education, or SAVE, plan, an initiative of President Joe Bidens administration that went into effect this year. It is an income-driven repayment plan that calculates a monthly payment based on income and family size. The attorney is now paying $180 per month under the repayment plan and Kaplan said the woman is going to wind up paying back about $25,000 of her loans and then the remaining balance will be forgiven.

If you know what youre doing when it comes to your student loans, you can save so much money, but the key is you have to know the system and understand how it was set up and how it works and how that applies to you and to your loans because its a very fact-specific situation, Kaplan said. There is a lot of information out there, but its still confusing because there are different types of loans and the law applies to them differently depending on your circumstances. Some people are going to have to pay back their loans in full. Those are usually high-income earners  but you might still be able to get some forgiveness of the interest that accrues. The interest is a killer, because it starts accruing as soon as the loans are disbursed to your school. Most people dont know that and theyre shocked when they come out of school  and then they see the balance has doubled and tripled.

Kaplan said having a servicer provide incorrect information can add to the frustration. She has been on the phone with servicers for hours on behalf of her clients and then the call drops; shes also had servicers incorrectly calculate monthly payments.

The servicers are not there to help you, she said. Theyre just there to keep track of your payments and keep your loans out of default. So they very often will tell people, OK, youre having trouble making payments, lets put the loans into forbearance when thats very often the wrong thing to do because interest is then accruing and capitalizing, so its increasing the balance. And during that time, maybe that person was eligible for a $10 monthly payment plan that would get them further on track for forgiveness.

Despite a recent federal stay on the SAVE plan, Kaplan is a big proponent of the plan because most people will have their payments reduced by 50% just by enrolling, she said. The plan also has a 100% interest subsidy, which means any interest that accrues gets waived by the Department of Education. Before July, over 5,500 Illinoisans were identified for loan forgiveness with the SAVE plan, amounting to $43.8 million.

Even though there is litigation challenging whether the Biden administration had authority to create the plan under the Higher Education Act, Kaplan said she thinks SAVE will survive. But in the interim, there are other income-driven plans that are very reasonable and based on a percentage of the borrowers income  usually 10% to 20%, Kaplan said.

Kaplan counsels borrowers before they take out loans so they dont upend their financial futures. For student loans, it requires careful planning and knowledge so that you pay what youre supposed to pay, but again, not more than youre supposed to pay. And there is tremendous relief available; you just have to know how to access it, Kaplan said.

After a 45-year career in the shoe industry, Homewood resident Marc Atkins endured a deep vein thrombosis in his left leg in 2020. When the world was reopening after lockdown and the possibility of going back to his job at Nordstrom in womens shoes was an option, he opted to take early retirement. But student loans in the amount of $232,195 loomed for the DeVry graduate. He, too, Googled student loan attorneys and found Rae Kaplan.

That was the only thing on my credit report  two loans that came to about $165,000 or something like that collectively, but the interest is what shot it up, said Atkins, 66. Interest alone was soaking up any payments I was able to make. I knew there was no way I was gonna be able to take on (student loan payments) dealing with my monthly living expense.  Im retired and on a fixed income; it was not feasible that I could deal with that included.

Within months of touching base with Kaplan, Atkins had all of his student loans forgiven. My stress level is pretty much zero.  Im at peace  living life, being comfortable, the 66-year-old said.

Since then, Atkins has referred former co-workers and residents in his building to Kaplan, whose fees start at $350 for a consultation. After that, the range depends on how much work is involved in the case, which can start at $1,500 and go up to $3,500. But Kaplan says she does many pro bono cases when a client isnt in a position to pay.

Education used to be the great equalizer, said Smith-McKeever, whose daughter signed up for the SAVE Plan. But the cost of education has gone so far out that it seems a trap, Smith-McKeever said. Its crazy how expensive its gotten, but theres an out, theres a secret: Its Public Service Loan Forgiveness and income-driven repayment plans.

The educator has since told many students about Kaplans expertise. Her rationale: A cost of hundreds now is better than thousands of dollars down the road. Kaplan is trying to line up free seminars at area schools and institutions so more people are privy to the details of debt relief.

Every Black, brown and Indigenous person needs to know not to let the cost of college be a barrier, because theres a way out of the debt, Smith-McKeever said. Our lives are overwhelming. Having somebody to send you the paperwork, so you dont get caught up, and you get out of (debt) and live your life in the process  thats the drum that Ive been beating.

Its also a drum that a number of other services have been beating for years. The Illinois Student Assistance Commission, the states college access and financial aid agency, offers free help with college planning and financial aid.

The Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Northern Illinois, a nonprofit credit counseling agency, has been helping with debt management for over 40 years. And the nonprofit Institute of Student Loan Advisors was started in 2018 by Betsy Mayotte, a former compliance officer at a nonprofit student loan organization, because she wanted an avenue for people who needed help with their student loans.

Ive researched the Higher Education Act and the history of student loans back to the 70s, and I can say unequivocally that Ive never seen a period of time in student loans like this, sort of chaotic, said Mayotte, who is based in Massachusetts. Its become really difficult to try to advise someone what to do because this is uncharted territory.

Donna Rasmussen, executive director at Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Northern Illinois, said that when people think theyre getting in trouble with their student loans, they should contact their loan servicer to work out feasible options for repayment. She also recommends families seek out a counselors help at a nonprofit credit counseling agency when their child is in high school to start planning their higher education goals and how much in loans one needs.

What we try and put in their head is that whatever you think you might be making your first year at your career out of college  that entire year of your income  thats about the amount of student loan debt that we recommend people take, Rasmussen said. Dont take more.

She added that although occasionally theres assistance for loan repayment or forgiveness, its not always an option. So if youre taking on debt, you want to make sure that you have the capacity to pay it back. Thats why her firm helps people with budgeting plans to make sure they can do that.

Ana Moya, an ISAC professional development specialist, recommends not taking out the maximum amount of loans, even if theyre offered to you. Take only what you need, she said. And figure out how much you need by filling out the FAFSA, the application for federal, state and institutional aid, or if you are an eligible undocumented student, the Alternative Application for Illinois Financial Aid. The FAFSA is not just for loans, but also scholarships and grants. And check student loan forgiveness programs for certain professions prior to enrolling in higher education as it could affect your college planning.

On our website, we have a ton of information, Moya said. If you go to any of our webinars, and youre like Would I qualify for this program? we can ask you a set of questions to see if youre on the right track and what questions you should be asking the servicer, since we dont have direct access to your loans.

Smith-McKeever said she had planned to go into the Navy and have that pay for her education, but the diabetes diagnosis derailed that plan. While paying her student loans, her living expenses and health care expenses, she hasnt been able to accumulate wealth, but shes looking forward to breathing a bit easier without the suffocating debt.

Kaplan said that although the Biden administration has done a lot to make the student loan process easier, theres still a long way to go in terms of educating borrowers. I have a lot of clients who are doctors, lawyers, financial planners, and none of them have any idea how to approach student loans, Kaplan said. I like being able to help people and take that stressor off their shoulders.
Key Insights

Using the 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity, Synlait Milk fair value estimate is NZ$0.69

Current share price of NZ$0.46 suggests Synlait Milk is potentially 33% undervalued

Analyst price target for SML is NZ$0.41 which is 40% below our fair value estimate

Today we will run through one way of estimating the intrinsic value of Synlait Milk Limited (NZSE:SML) by estimating the company's future cash flows and discounting them to their present value. Our analysis will employ the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Models like these may appear beyond the comprehension of a lay person, but they're fairly easy to follow.

Companies can be valued in a lot of ways, so we would point out that a DCF is not perfect for every situation. For those who are keen learners of equity analysis, the Simply Wall St analysis model here may be something of interest to you.

View our latest analysis for Synlait Milk

Step By Step Through The Calculation

We use what is known as a 2-stage model, which simply means we have two different periods of growth rates for the company's cash flows. Generally the first stage is higher growth, and the second stage is a lower growth phase. To begin with, we have to get estimates of the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.

A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, and so the sum of these future cash flows is then discounted to today's value:

10-year free cash flow (FCF) forecast

2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 2034 Levered FCF (NZ$, Millions) NZ$3.21m -NZ$24.2m NZ$10.8m NZ$13.2m NZ$15.3m NZ$17.1m NZ$18.7m NZ$20.1m NZ$21.3m NZ$22.4m Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Est @ 21.78% Est @ 16.09% Est @ 12.11% Est @ 9.32% Est @ 7.37% Est @ 6.01% Est @ 5.05% Present Value (NZ$, Millions) Discounted @ 11% NZ$2.9 -NZ$19.6 NZ$7.9 NZ$8.7 NZ$9.0 NZ$9.1 NZ$9.0 NZ$8.7 NZ$8.3 NZ$7.8

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)

Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = NZ$52m

We now need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all the future cash flows after this ten year period. For a number of reasons a very conservative growth rate is used that cannot exceed that of a country's GDP growth. In this case we have used the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield (2.8%) to estimate future growth. In the same way as with the 10-year 'growth' period, we discount future cash flows to today's value, using a cost of equity of 11%.

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Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2034  (1 + g)  (r  g) = NZ$22m (1 + 2.8%)  (11% 2.8%) = NZ$280m

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= NZ$280m ( 1 + 11%)10= NZ$98m

The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is NZ$150m. To get the intrinsic value per share, we divide this by the total number of shares outstanding. Relative to the current share price of NZ$0.5, the company appears quite undervalued at a 33% discount to where the stock price trades currently. Remember though, that this is just an approximate valuation, and like any complex formula - garbage in, garbage out.

dcf

The Assumptions

The calculation above is very dependent on two assumptions. The first is the discount rate and the other is the cash flows. Part of investing is coming up with your own evaluation of a company's future performance, so try the calculation yourself and check your own assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Synlait Milk as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 11%, which is based on a levered beta of 2.000. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business.

Moving On:

Whilst important, the DCF calculation shouldn't be the only metric you look at when researching a company. It's not possible to obtain a foolproof valuation with a DCF model. Preferably you'd apply different cases and assumptions and see how they would impact the company's valuation. If a company grows at a different rate, or if its cost of equity or risk free rate changes sharply, the output can look very different. What is the reason for the share price sitting below the intrinsic value? For Synlait Milk, we've put together three fundamental aspects you should explore:

Risks: We feel that you should assess the 3 warning signs for Synlait Milk (2 are a bit unpleasant!) we've flagged before making an investment in the company. Future Earnings: How does SML's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other Solid Businesses: Low debt, high returns on equity and good past performance are fundamental to a strong business. Why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals to see if there are other companies you may not have considered!

PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every New Zealander stock every day, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any other stock just search here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
NEW DELHI, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Talent Corporation Malaysia Berhad (TalentCorp), an agency and think tank under Malaysia's Ministry of Human Resources (KESUMA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with NSDC International, a subsidiary of India's National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC). This strategic collaboration aims to deliver robust digital skilling solutions to equip Malaysian youth with future-ready skills, while also strengthening the Malaysia-India relationship and advancing skill development initiatives in both nations.

MoU Exchange between TalentCorp represented by Thomas Mathew (TalentCorp GCEO) and NSDC International represented by Ved Mani Tiwari (NSDC International MD & CEO) witnessed by YB Steven Sim Chee Keong, Minister of KESUMA together Indias Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, YB Jayant Chaudhary Accompanied by senior officials from India MSDE and KESUMA.

The MoU exchange between TalentCorp's Group CEO, Thomas Mathew and NSDC International's MD and CEO, Ved Mani Tiwari took place at the NSDC headquarters, witnessed by the Minister of KESUMA, YB Steven Sim Chee Keong and India's Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, YB Jayant Chaudhary.

This MoU is a supplementary to the first agreement signed in March 2023 between TalentCorp and NSDC, which led to the creation of TalentCorp's industry-driven MyMAHIR Future Skills Talent Councils (FSTC). These councils enable industry leaders to identify the evolving skill requirements in their sectors and spearhead the necessary training to ensure talent is equipped with both current and future competencies.

To date, six FSTCs have been established, covering sectors such as E&E, ICT, Aerospace, Biopharma & Manufacturing, Food Manufacturing Services, and Global Services & Data Centres, with four more set to launch by September 2024.

Speaking at the event, YB Steven Sim, Minister of KESUMA said that the discussion with India has led to this partnership to enhance the skills of Malaysian youth.

"KESUMA, through TalentCorp, has tailored specific skills training programmes based on recommendations and guidance from the FSTCs. We've observed that participants in these FSTC-guided programmes typically earn 10-15% higher salaries, demonstrating the strong link between enhanced productivity and increased wages."

"With the new MoU, we will continue to intensify our collaboration and achieve even greater success for both the Ministry and for our two nations," he said.

TalentCorp and NSDC's renewed partnership will focus on two key areas: digitalising Malaysia's talent ecosystem through knowledge sharing and partnership in NSDC's Skills India Digital Hub and the second, introducing verifiable digital credentials for Indian nationals working in Malaysia. KESUMA will launch a digital platform covering curriculum development, training design, content creation, and certification best practices to boost youth employment in Malaysia, the region, and globally.

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This strategy is adapted NSDC's Skill India Digital Hub that integrates skills, education, employment, and entrepreneurship in India. This digital ecosystem will present Malaysia with an opportunity to adopt this successful model, with its drive in AI and Digital.

Speaking during the occasion, YB Jayant Chaudhary, India's Minister of State (Independent Charge) and Minister of State for Education said, "Our skill development programme is designed with a strong focus on industry needs. By conducting extensive grassroots surveys, we have identified critical skill gaps, and the Skill India Digital Hub plays a pivotal role in bridging them. I am confident that TalentCorp will greatly benefit from the tech advisory solutions provided by NSDC International. This partnership offers valuable opportunities for mutual learning and growth for both the countries."

Also present at the event were Atul Kumar Tiwari, Secretary of India's Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE); and senior representatives from KESUMA, TalentCorp, MSDE and NSDC.

For information on MyMAHIR FSTC, go to: www.talentcorp.com.my/mymahir

About Talent Corporation Malaysia Berhad (TalentCorp)

Talent Corporation Malaysia Berhad (TalentCorp) is a Ministry of Human Resources (KESUMA) agency that drives Malaysia's talent strategy towards becoming a dynamic talent hub. To support the growth and well-being of all Malaysians, we partner with the public and private sectors on initiatives that attract, nurture, and retain the right expertise needed to meet current and future talent demands. In March 2024, TalentCorp was mandated the strategic think tank for KESUMA, working with departments and agencies under the ministry to address the evolving challenges within the Malaysian workforce.

About NSDC International

NSDC International is a 100% subsidiary company of NSDC that is enabling the Skill India International objectives to make India a global source for quality talent, provide global job opportunities for resident Indians, provide global career mobility for overseas Indians, and create an internationally benchmarked quality skills ecosystem. NSDC International aims to position India as the preferred hub for supply of skilled workforce across the globe. NSDC International plays a pivotal role in creating enabling systems and steering national and international partnerships for overseas employment through specific programs, mapped to global job requirements and benchmarked to international standards. In addition, it also aims to leverage NSDC's existing knowledge base and experiential learning to provide technical services for skill development.

Cision

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/talentcorp-and-nsdc-international-sign-tech-advisory-mou-to-build-digital-skilling-ecosystem-in-malaysia-302228412.html

SOURCE Talent Corporation Malaysia Berhad
By Nivedita Balu and Arasu Kannagi Basil

TORONTO (Reuters) -TD Bank on Thursday reported its first loss in over two decades after setting aside an extra $2.6 billion to cover expected fines from U.S. regulators which have been probing weaknesses in Canada's second-largest lender's anti-money laundering (AML) controls.

TD said late Wednesday that it would sell part of its 12.3% stake in U.S. brokerage Charles Schwab to help offset the impact of the fine, for which it had already provisioned $450 million in the prior quarter.

"Although this is a large amount, we remain well- capitalized... I am confident we are doing all the right things to manage through this," TD CEO Bharat Masrani wrote in a memo to staff, seen by Reuters, after reporting quarterly earnings.

The U.S. regulatory probes relate to allegations that Chinese drug traffickers used the bank to launder at least $650 million from 2016 through 2021 and an employee took a bribe to facilitate laundering of drug money.

The bank said it expects to resolve the matter by year end and flagged that regulators could also impose non-monetary restrictions.

Analysts said the disclosures should help provide more clarity for investors over the ultimate cost, timing and impact of the probe, which has been a major overhang for TD's stock.

TD's shares are down 7.7% this year compared with the TSX banking index's 8.2% growth. They were down about 3% in Toronto on Thursday.

At nearly $3 billion, the fines could be one of the biggest ever for a Canadian bank, although Scotiabank analyst Meny Grauman said "the real issue" for the bank will be the non-monetary penalties.

Masrani declined to provide details on what those penalties could be when quizzed by analysts on Thursday's earnings call.

The U.S. has been a key growth market for TD where it has invested billions over the past two decades to acquire smaller regional banks on the east coast, building a network of about 1,100 branches, more than it has across Canada.

Potential U.S. regulatory restrictions could dampen that growth, analysts said. Banks operating under regulatory orders to fix their money laundering controls are usually barred from doing deals and potentially from opening new branches.

National Bank analyst Gabriel Dechaine wrote in a note that regulators could also contemplate the type of asset cap. U.S. regulators in 2018 imposed a cap on Wells Fargo that would restrict loan growth.

"If growth here is restricted, TD could deliver sub-par earnings growth relative to peers over the next several years," Dechaine wrote.

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TD first disclosed the probe last year shortly after its $13.4 billion bid to acquire U.S. lender First Horizon fell apart.

The bank said in May it had spent $500 million to tighten its AML program and risk controls, hired several key executives and invested in staff training programs.

"But there's still much work ahead ... this is a priority. The U.S. business is an important part of the bank and of our future," Masrani told analysts.

"The failures were serious. We own it," he said.

In Canada, TD's personal and commercial banking recorded a 13% rise in net income driven by new account openings and volume growth. TD's wealth management and insurance earnings were flat, reflecting impact from severe weather events.

The net loss was C$181 million, or 14 Canadian cents per share, in the three months ended July 31, compared with a profit of C$2.88 billion, or C$1.53 per share, a year earlier.

On an adjusted basis, TD earned C$2.05 ($1.51) per share, 2 Canadian cents short of analysts' estimates, according to LSEG data.

Provision for credit losses rose to C$1.07 billion, compared with C$766 million a year ago.

The bank's U.S. business, which accounts for about a quarter of TD's profit, reported a 5.6% fall in net income hurt by lower deposit volumes and loan margins.

($1 = 1.3577 Canadian dollars)

(Reporting by Arasu Kannagi Basil in Bengaluru and Nivedita Balu in Toronto; Editing by Vijay Kishore, Michelle Price, Elaine Hardcastle, David Evans and Marguerita Choy)
Challenges keep mounting for TD Bank (TD), making a rough year for the Canadian banking giant even rougher.

The Toronto lender on Thursday reported a third quarter net loss of $133 million, largely in light of billions the bank set aside to pay for expected fines from an ongoing US investigation into its anti-money laundering practices.

The bank said in a separate filing Wednesday that it set aside an additional $2.6 billion to absorb expected penalties from the investigation, which is led by the Justice Department, on top of another $450 million set aside in April.

Bharat Masrani, CEO of TD Bank. (Richard Lautens/Toronto Star via Getty Images) (Richard Lautens via Getty Images)

To raise money for those penalties, TD also sold 40.5 million shares it held in money manager Charles Schwab (SCHW), trimming its total stake to 10.1% from 12.3%.

TD's stock fell 2% Thursday. It's down nearly 10% year to date despite a broader rally across other financial stocks.

"While we are not through the tunnel yet, we can see the light at the end of this journey," Bharat Masrani, TD Bank's CEO, told analysts Thursday. "Our remediation program is well underway."

The new disclosure this week comes after a year of escalating turmoil for TD, which is the second-largest bank based in Canada and has an American operation that ranks it as the 10th-largest bank in the US.

It was on its way to becoming an even bigger player in the US, fueled by a series of acquisitions that culminated in a 2022 announcement that it would buy Tennessee-based regional bank First Horizon (FHN) for $13.4 billion.

Read more: These are the 20 biggest banks in the US

But that plan collapsed in May 2023 as both sides pulled away, costing TD $306 million in termination fees and a separate $199 million loss. At the time, TD attributed the deal's collapse to a lack of clarity about when the pact would be able to get regulatory approval.

Several months later things got worse when TD disclosed inquiries from law enforcement about compliance with anti-money laundering rules, including a Department of Justice investigation, and said it expected penalties as a result of the probe.

This year, the Wall Street Journal reported that the Justice Department's investigation into TD's controls focused on how Chinese crime groups and drug traffickers were using the Canadian bank to launder money tied to fentanyl sales in the US.

"We recognize the seriousness of our U.S. AML program deficiencies and the work required to meet our obligations and responsibilities is of paramount importance, the CEO, Masrani, added in a press release.

A TD Bank branch in New York City. (GHI/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) (UCG via Getty Images)

Leo Salom, TD's head of US retail banking, told analysts Thursday the bank has already added "over 500 colleagues" from other major banks, regulatory agencies, and law enforcement organizations to enhance its AML program.

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Though some of that personnel "will fade away" over time, going forward there will be "a structural increase" to TD's personnel and risk-related costs, Salom added.

One unknown is how much new regulatory oversight TD may face if it is, in fact, hit with billions in penalties.

A concern analysts posed to TD executives Thursday was the possibility of a so-called asset cap, where regulators would prevent TD from growing its balance sheet for a period of years.

San Francisco banking giant Wells Fargo (WFC) is still dealing with such a cap imposed by the Federal Reserve in 2018 as a result of its fake accounts scandal. The cap has stunted the bank's growth relative to rivals.

TD executives could not meaningfully address those concerns due to the ongoing investigation.

"We're in the middle of our negotiations. We're making progress, and it's not appropriate to speculate what the final deal would be," Masrani said in response to a question about the possibility of an asset cap.

"I understand that you want to know more. And I'm looking forward to the day that we can provide you all the details that you need," he said at the end of the call.

David Hollerith is a senior reporter for Yahoo Finance covering banking, crypto, and other areas in finance.

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
By Pete Schroeder

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. regulators will not be able to finalize contentious bank capital hikes before the November presidential election, casting doubt over whether those and other stiff draft rules for Wall Street banks will be completed at all, said five people familiar with the matter.

The so-called Basel III Endgame rules would overhaul how banks with more than $100 billion in assets manage their capital, potentially crimping their lending and trading. Banks say extra capital is unnecessary and will hurt the economy, and have aggressively lobbied to kill Basel.

Now, the outcome of that fight will depend on the Nov. 5 election.

The Democratic candidate for president, Vice President Kamala Harris, has called for strengthening bank rules. But if Republican candidate Donald Trump wins, his administration is widely expected to rip up or dramatically weaken the new rules, the sources said. Trump has pledged to cut red tape.

The two candidates are locked in a tight race although Harris is leading in some battleground states.

Regulators have been arguing for months over whether to reissue the Basel draft and allow banks to feed back, Reuters reported in June.

Industry executives widely expect the agencies will re-propose the rule after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell told Congress last month it was "essential" to do so given there had been major changes. But it remains unclear how the Fed will persuade the other agencies, which want to finalize the rule before the election, to back that plan, the sources said.

Even if the agencies reach an agreement next month at the earliest, they would likely give banks at least 60 days to provide feedback, which is typical for complex rules, the sources said. That would make it almost impossible for officials to absorb the comments and achieve a final draft before a new U.S. administration takes over in January 2025, the sources said.

That previously unreported timeline endangers Basel and two other debt and liquidity rules for big banks which cannot be completed until the Basel draft is in good shape and the staff working on it are freed up, the people said.

Combined, the rules could require banks to hold more than $200 billion in extra capital and debt, based on regulatory estimates, meaning substantial or indefinite delays could be extremely valuable to the industry.

Some progressives who favor tougher rules fret that the Basel fight in which banks have spent millions of dollars on public campaigns will ultimately succeed in stymieing the sweeping regulatory overhaul they had hoped for under Democratic leadership, despite last year's bank failures exposing risks in the system.

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"They were overly optimistic about how easy it would be to get Basel III Endgame done. When it turned out that wouldn't be as easy, that just sucked up all the oxygen," said University of Michigan professor Jeremy Kress, referring to the agencies.

Spokespeople for the Fed, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), which are jointly drafting the rules, declined to comment. Spokespeople for the Harris and Trump campaigns did not respond to requests for comment.

Speaking to Congress in July, Powell said his goal was to get Basel right, "not do it quickly."

'MALPRACTICE'

Several Fed officials share Powell's view that the new draft must be re-proposed, two of the sources said. Some believe that would reduce the risk that Wall Street banks will sue to kill the final rule on the grounds the agencies did not follow proper procedure, Reuters previously reported.

While the OCC and FDIC are against re-proposing, it would be almost unprecedented for them to finalize the draft without the Fed.

"It's too substantial of a proposal, it would be malpractice for them to finalize at this stage, in my opinion," said Michael Bright, CEO of the Structured Finance Association, an industry group pushing for some changes to the draft. "I don't think this is going to be done before the election."

Trump could not remove Fed regulatory chief Michael Barr, but he could immediately replace Acting Comptroller Michael Hsu and tilt the FDIC board, which votes on rules, toward Republicans. Those changes would quickly hand control of the majority of the bank regulatory agenda to Trump appointees.

Another major draft rule at risk directs large regional banks to issue up to $70 billion in new long-term debt to buffer potential losses.

Proposed a year ago, that rule is delayed partly because the amount of debt banks will have to hold depends on how Basel measures their risks, two sources said. Work on that rule could proceed when there is "support" for the final Basel draft, Powell said in July.

Also stuck behind Basel is a plan officials have flagged to impose new liquidity rules on banks, the sources said.

Even if Harris wins, the expected appointment of FDIC chair nominee Christy Goldsmith Romero could delay the rules further, and if the Senate flips to Republicans, political pressure to weaken the rules could increase.

"There are a whole lot of things up in the air," said Bright.

(Reporting by Pete Schroeder in Washington; Editing by Michelle Price and Matthew Lewis)
Expensive roaming fees are a thing of the past with Voyafly eSIM, a market disruptor that now offers unlimited travel data plans tailored for frequent travelers and digital nomads. This innovative solution redefines the way global travelers stay connected, providing seamless mobile connectivity.

Singapore, Singapore--(Newsfile Corp. - August 22, 2024) - Voyafly, an international eSIM provider, has launched its latest offering: unlimited travel data plans across 150+ countries. This innovative solution allows digital nomads, frequent travelers, and tourists to enjoy uninterrupted connectivity abroad without the fear of exorbitant roaming charges.

Voyafly eSIM Unveils Unlimited Travel Data Plans to Avoid Bill Shock While Traveling Overseas

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8814/220380_fdcb369bd4761b50_002full.jpg

Bryan Hanson, Head of Marketing at Voyafly, explains, "Our mission is to remove the financial burden of staying connected while abroad. Many international travelers and digital nomads have been scarred by hefty roaming charges while enjoying a great vacation or living that 'work from anywhere' lifestyle. With our new unlimited data plans, travelers can now explore the globe without worrying about unexpected phone bills. We are making global connectivity more accessible and affordable than ever."

The End of Data Roaming Fees

Roaming fees have been a persistent pain point for international travelers, often resulting in hefty bills that can ruin an otherwise perfect trip. Voyafly eSIM is here to change the narrative.

"With the increasing demand for reliable mobile data services among digital nomads and global travelers, Voyafly eSIM is putting an end to unexpected roaming charges," Hanson told the press in an interview.

What is Voyafly eSIM?

Voyafly eSIM is a virtual SIM card that supports a variety of devices, including iPhones, Samsung, and Android smartphones with eSIM capabilities. This digital solution eliminates the need for a physical SIM card, ensuring that users can remain connected anywhere in the world without the hassle of swapping SIMs.





Cannot view this video? Visit:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEmvDKTn-7U

"The beauty of Voyafly eSIM lies in its simplicity and convenience," Hanson adds. "Users can activate their eSIM instantly via a QR code, ensuring they are connected the moment they arrive in a new country. There's no need for lengthy registrations or subscriptions - just scan, connect, and go," Hanson added.

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Recognized for its ease of use, Voyafly eSIM offers unlimited 4G and 5G data, enabling high-speed internet access across multiple devices. The eSIM can be activated instantly via a QR code, allowing users to connect to local networks.

A standout feature of Voyafly eSIM is its ability to retain an existing WhatsApp number, so there's no need to update contacts when traveling.

Voyafly eSIM is also praised for its flexibility, making it the top choice for travelers in Europe, Asia, and beyond. Users can easily switch between networks, ensuring consistent connectivity in multiple countries.

Share Unlimited Data with Multiple Devices

Moreover, Voyafly eSIM includes mobile hotspot functionality, allowing users to share their data connection with other devices such as laptops and tablets. This feature is particularly beneficial for digital nomads who need to stay connected while working remotely.

With these offerings, Hanson said Voyafly's eSIM is already positioned as a top travel eSIM for Europe and Asia. Whether traveling for business or leisure, Voyafly eSIM offers the much-needed flexibility to switch between different networks on a single device. This makes Voyafly a go-to choice for those traveling in multiple countries and navigating with different network providers.

The activation process for Voyafly eSIM is quick and straightforward, taking less than a minute. Users can choose when to activate their eSIM, ensuring that data usage only starts when they begin traveling. This flexibility is designed to meet the needs of modern travelers who require immediate and reliable access to data without the complications of physical SIM cards.

For more information, visit www.voyafly.com.

About Voyafly eSIM:

Voyafly is an international eSIM provider offering unlimited data roaming plans across 150+ countries. Focused on affordability, convenience, and reliability, Voyafly eSIM allows global travelers to stay connected by simply scanning a QR code to activate their data plan, eliminating the need for physical SIM cards. This service revolutionizes the way travelers experience mobile connectivity worldwide.

Contact Info:

Name: Bryan Hanson

Email: han@voyafly.com

Organization: Voyafly eSIM

Website: https://www.voyafly.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/220380
(Bloomberg) -- Xiaomi Corp. is willing to grow its nascent electric vehicle arm at the expense of profits for now, as it angles to join Tesla Inc. and BYD Co. among the worlds biggest automakers over the next decade or two.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The company, known for making everything from smartphones to rice cookers and luggage, is prioritizing growth of the EV business over margins for now, Chief Financial Officer Alain Lam told Bloomberg Television. The five-month-old business will take some time to stem losses, he said.

Were more focused on our growth than profitability at this point, said Lam, a trained engineer and former Credit Suisse banker who orchestrated some of Xiaomis biggest bets. The value-for-money philosophy that Xiaomi used to climb into the upper echelons of the global phone business will also apply to its EVs, he added.

We do believe scale will bring profit in the future. Right now at this point I only have one SKU, its far away from what we call profitability, he said. We need to continue to invest in this business.

Xiaomis shares rose as much as 8.5% Thursday after it reported its fastest pace of quarterly revenue growth since 2021  taking its gain since the advent of its EV business in March to about 25%.

The results may fuel investors hope that Xiaomi has hit upon a new source of growth. They also serve as an early vindication for billionaire founder Lei Jun, whos taking his company into uncharted territory after staking out a claim on smartphones and consumer electronics.

Xiaomi Surges After 2Q Results Highlight EV Margins: Street Wrap

Lei has pledged to invest $10 billion on carmaking, making a bold bet to replicate the success Xiaomi enjoyed in smartphones. His company launched its first EV into a space already crowded with far bigger players. The billionaire has said the firm aims to become one of the worlds top five carmakers in 15 to 20 years.

But that takes a lot of capital. Xiaomi recorded an adjusted net loss relating to smart EVs and other new initiatives of 1.8 billion yuan ($252 million) in the second quarter alone, on just 27,307 vehicles delivered. That means Xiaomi lost roughly 60,000 yuan per car sold (on an adjusted basis), based on Bloomberg calculations.

Story continues

Lei wrote on his Weibo account that making cars was tough, asking for understanding while Xiaomi soldiers through an investment phase.

Lam wouldnt be drawn on Xiaomis plans beyond 2024, when its targeting the delivery of 120,000 EVs  a target it raised in May from around 100,000. On Wednesday, President Lu Weibing told analysts he expects shipments to continue accelerating in coming months, and losses to gradually diminish.

The company is now developing more models in its EV lineup to better compete with industry leaders, with plans to sell a sport utility vehicle similar to Teslas Model Y as early as 2025, Bloomberg News has reported. Its also expanding its capacity, purchasing a site in Beijing recently.

What Bloomberg Intelligence Says

Its surprisingly strong EV gross margin last quarter might have more room to run, as delivery continues to ramp up. The companys 3Q EV sales might sequentially grow by 40% to about 9 billion yuan, we calculate.

- Steven Tseng and Sean Chen, analysts

Click here for the research.

While Xiaomi is only selling the SU7 in China, it showcased the sedan during the Olympic Games in Paris and set up a pit garage at Germanys famed Nurburgring race track. Lei said in Paris the company will make the vehicle available globally, without providing a time frame. In a live stream Aug. 17, group president Lu said that Xiaomi is studying how to take its cars to Europe, according to Chinese media, despite the European Commission working on import tariffs on made-in-China EVs.

We do have the global expansion in mind, although right now we are trying to fulfill all the demand from customers in China, Lam said.

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2024 Bloomberg L.P.
For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL  August 21, 2024  Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: NVIDIA Corp. NVDA, Super Micro Computer, Inc. SMCI, Dell Technologies Inc. DELL, Bank of America Corporation BAC and Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. AMD.

Here are highlights from Tuesdays Analyst Blog:

The Better AI Stock to Buy Now: NVDA or SMCI

Two of the most sought-after artificial intelligence (AI) stocks on Wall Street are NVIDIA Corp. and Super Micro Computer, Inc. These top-notch stocks took advantage of the booming AI-empowered hardware market for quite some time, with NVIDIA and Super Micro shares surging 161.5% and 119.4%, respectively, so far this year. In 2023, the stocks rallied more than 200% each.

Notably, the AI-enabled hardware market is well-positioned to surpass $84.9 billion by 2031, at a CAGR of 15.5% from 2024 to 2031, per Skyquest. NVIDIA, in particular, is making the most of the ever-expanding AI-driven chip market, which is poised to be $383.7 billion by 2032, at a CAGR of 38.2% from 2023 to 2032, according to Allied Market Research.

NVIDIA controls the bulk of the AI chip market, which has given the tech behemoth an imposing pricing power. Such dominance has helped NVIDIA post a stunning performance in the fiscal first quarter. Revenues soared a remarkable 262% year over year in the quarter to $26 billion. Earnings per share skyrocketed 461% to $6.12 a share.

NVIDIA is likely to do even better due to the evolving growth avenues in the blossoming AI market. Countries such as Singapore, Japan, France and Italy are investing profoundly in AI infrastructure, which in due course should boost NVIDIAs top line. Additionally, some prominent companies in India, such as Reliance Industries and Tata Group, are banking on NVIDIAs chips to train large language models.

Whats more, outlays on AI chips are expected to jump tenfold in the coming years, a blessing in disguise for NVIDIA. Having said that, Super Micros business is entangled with chipmakers like NVIDIA, which should certainly boost its share price. After all, Super Micro is one of the major producers of steadfast AI servers needed to mount AI chips that chipmakers sell.

So, in a way, NVIDIA and Super Micro complement each other, and they arent competitors. Nonetheless, Super Micro recently concluded its fiscal 2024 and achieved $14.94 billion in sales, up an astounding 110% year over year.

Story continues

Super Micro is expected to maintain this stellar performance due to healthy demand for AI servers in the next couple of fiscal years. The AI server market is estimated to register a CAGR of more than 18% from 2024 to 2032, added Global Market Insights.

In reality, for quite some time, Super Micro has been growing at a much faster pace than more established players in the server market, like Dell Technologies Inc. So, the obvious question is, does it make any sense to buy Super Micro over NVIDIA?

SMCI Has More Room to Run

Both NVIDIA and Super Micro are poised to grow, but Super Micro has more room to grow since it only accounts for nearly 10% of the dedicated AI server market. Consequently, Bank of America Corporation expects Super Micros share in the AI server market to increase to 17% in the next three-year period.

Super Micro, no doubt, has a long-term partnership with NVIDIA. But now, its also making dedicated AI servers for Advanced Micro Devices, Inc., and this divergence should certainly provide Super Micro more room to scale upward.

SMCI Less Pricey Than NVDA

Super Micros shares are less expensive than NVIDIA, which has given the AI server maker an edge over the AI chip maker. After all, buying Super Micros shares will burn a smaller hole in your pocket compared to the NVIDIA stock.

This is because, per the Price/Earnings ratio, Super Micro stock currently trades at 18.6X forward earnings. However, the NVIDIAs forward earnings multiple is 48.3X.

SMCI  A Solid Buy, Very Strong ROE

Super Micro, rightfully, is a better buy than NVIDIA due to more growth potential and lower valuation. SMCI has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present.

Notable brokerage companies have also jacked up the average short-term price target of SMCI by 45.7% from the server solution providers last closing price of $628.80. The analysts highest price target is at $1,500.

To top it off, Super Micro has generated profits competently since SMCI has a return on equity (ROE) of 30.6%. Any ROE of more than 20% is generally considered very strong.

Separately, NVIDIA, at the moment, has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

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Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.

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(Bloomberg) -- Zoom Video Communications Inc. gave a sales forecast for the current quarter that beat analysts estimates, suggesting its expanded suite of products is making gains with business customers.

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Revenue will be $1.16 billion to $1.17 billion in the period ending in October, the company said Wednesday in a statement. Profit, excluding some items, will be about $1.30 per share. Analysts, on average, projected adjusted earnings of $1.24 per share on sales of $1.16 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The company also raised its fiscal year sales and profit forecasts.

Separately, Zoom announced that Chief Financial Officer Kelly Steckelberg will step down from her role at the end of the current fiscal quarter on Oct. 31. The company said Steckelbergs departure isnt a result of any disagreement with Zoom and a search has begun for a successor.

The company, known for its signature videoconferencing software, is focused on offering more tools for business customers, including phone systems, contact centers and an artificial intelligence assistant. Zoom said it had 191,600 enterprise customers, including 3,933 contributing more than $100,000 in trailing 12-month revenue at the end of the quarter. Enterprise revenue increased 3.5% to $682.8 million in the fiscal second quarter.

The shares rose about 2% in extended trading after closing at $60.23 in New York. The stock has dropped 16% this year and hit a record low earlier this month.

Total sales increased 2.1% to $1.16 billion in the period ended July 31. Analysts, on average, estimated $1.15 billion. Profit, excluding some items, was $1.39 a share in the period ended July 31, compared with the average projection of $1.22.

An ongoing loss of consumers and small businesses from Zoom has concerned investors, particularly since these customers are higher-profit than corporate clients. Average monthly churn in this segment was 2.9% in the quarter, compared with 3.2% in the previous period. Sales in the segment were $479.7 million, little changed from a year earlier.

Chief Executive Officer Eric Yuan said the companys business with smaller customers showed resilience, adding that the churn number was Zooms lowest ever.

Story continues

Zooms video product has been host to massive political events in recent weeks, such as with groups organizing fundraising and support for Vice President Kamala Harris. The company Monday launched a new single-use webinar offering that can support as many as 1 million attendees.

(Updates with comments from CEO in the eighth paragraph.)

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2024 Bloomberg L.P.
A review by The Denver Gazette of homeless provider contracts, invoices, performance outcomes and federal data shows that metro Denver trails many other major metropolitan regions in tackling homelessness with permanent housing. Just two out of every 10 people exiting homeless programming in Denver in 2023 found long-term permanent housing, a rate far worse than most other areas in the nation, according to the records.
Deka Simmons, 40, was found guilty of first-degree murder on Wednesday for killing and dismembering 48-year-old Daxcimo Ceja in 2022.

The trial against Simmons began this month. Prosecutors alleged during closing arguments Tuesday that Simmons killed Ceja in a garage in Colorado Springs because he was a registered sex offender. Prosecutor Sharon Flaherty said that Ceja allegedly had a relationship with a 17-year-old girl in California when he was 25.

Flaherty described Simmons during closing arguments as a woman with an obsession over child molestation because of fears that her daughter was a victim of sex trafficking.

(Simmons) has an unrestrained hatred for anyone who would molest a child, Flaherty said, going on to describe it as a fixation and paranoia for Simmons.

Closing arguments ended late afternoon Tuesday, and the jury deliberated for approximately seven hours before reaching a verdict on Wednesday afternoon.

The jury of 10 women and two men found Simmons guilty on three charges, the highest being first-degree murder.

As the verdict was read by Judge David Gilbert, Simmons expressed little emotion, writing and passing notes with members of her defense team.

I dont think I can fully put into words the relief I have for this family, prosecutor Jennifer Viehman said. It really has been a long road, there really have been a lot of hurdles. ... What this family had to endure is unimaginable.

While the court was in recess before sentencing began, Simmons seemed relaxed, chatting with court staff and laughing with her defense team.

Cejas parents, Karen and Barry Joseph Fancher, gave brief victim-impact statements to the court to admonish the actions of Simmons.

(Ceja) was killed for something he did 24 years ago, Karen Fancher said to the court. She wont be on the street to hurt anyone elses families like she has done her whole entire life.

Dax (Ceja) was a good person. He didnt deserve to go out this way, Barry Joseph Fancher said.

Simmons sentencing outcome was not a mystery: A conviction on first-degree murder in Colorado requires a sentence of life in prison without parole. Viehman requested the court also give the maximum possible sentences on the other two charges Simmons was found guilty of, tampering with a body and tampering with physical evidence. The judge gave Simmons sentences of 24 years and three years, respectively, on the lesser charges.

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The emotional toll of what Ms. Simmons did to Mr. Ceja  the emotional toll that this took on this family  I think that is deserving of this sentence, Viehman told the court.

Simmons and her attorney David Lipka declined to comment to the court during sentencing, as is standard, Lipka said.

The only emotional outburst from Simmons came during sentencing while Gilbert was speaking to the defendant about her obsession with child molesters. While speaking about Simmons daughter, who Simmons believes was a victim of sex trafficking, Gilbert stated that the reality was that there were court proceedings to keep her (Simmons daughter) safe from her.

You dont know s--- about me! F--- you! Simmons yelled in response.

As Gilbert continued, Simmons cried and continued to say expletives quietly.

At a hearing in 2022, Simmons was accused by prosecutors of being a suspect in other potential homicides, including the disappearance of Santino Tino Cardella.

One detective testified during the hearing that a confidential police informant claimed Simmons had killed at least three other people besides Ceja.

Simmons has not been charged in relation to Cardellas disappearance or any homicides other than Cejas. Cardella was reported missing in April 2022.

When asked about potential further charges against Simmons, Viehman stated that an investigation is ongoing, but that she could not comment further.

Simmons does, however, face four open criminal cases in El Paso County: two cases that predate the homicide in which she is accused of felony menacing and aggravated robbery; a 2023 case in which she is accused of witness tampering and intimidation; and a 2019 assault case in which she is accused of probation violation.

Simmons is set to appear in court on all four open criminal cases Tuesday.

The Gazette previously reported that Simmons had an extensive criminal history in Colorado before her arrest for Cejas death, including a conviction in 2003 on accessory to murder for her involvement in the shooting death of Donna Oliveto, a former inmate with her in the El Paso County jail. Simmons was sentenced to 12 years in prison for her involvement in Olivetos death.
An arrest affidavit obtained by The Gazette for the suspect in the Saturday home invasion, 33-year-old Xavier Smith, has revealed that seven children and one teen were among the residents in the home that Smith is charged with menacing.

Just before 7 p.m., Colorado Springs officers with the Sand Creek Division responded to the 1200 block of Flycatcher Lane for a reported home invasion.

Upon officer arrival, it was determined that the suspect, allegedly Smith, had left the scene but one of the victims provided officers with a photograph of the truck he fled in.

None of the victims in the affidavit were referred to by name, but the document lists them by age, with the youngest being 2. Six other children are listed, with the oldest being 9. In addition, a 14-year-old and two adult women were listed.

One of the victims told law enforcement that she was in the basement when she heard screams and eventually spotted Smith walking down the stairs with a crowbar in hand.

According to the affidavit, Smiths identity was confirmed through photographs in a law enforcement database.

Further investigation after the incident showed pry marks around the wooden frame of the front entrance. One of the victims told law enforcement he saw Smiths silhouette in the window before it was pried open. Once inside the home, the affidavit claims that Smith allegedly yelled at the victim who saw him first, demanding money while pointing a gun.

After Smith continued downstairs where an additional seven victims were, he demanded money once again while still holding a gun. The victims fled the house shortly after, and Smith locked the door behind them, leaving him inside alone.

The affidavit alleges Smith was in the residence for five minutes before exiting out the back door to a truck and fleeing the scene.

Investigators say camera footage obtained after the incident shows Smith attempting to ring the doorbell on the front entrance and looking around. A later clip shows the victims running out of the house prior to Smith allegedly locking them out.

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One of the victims of the home invasion told law enforcement she thinks Smith might have targeted the house due to a post on Snapchat two weeks prior regarding her receiving a large cash settlement from a traffic crash.

While Smith was able to flee, he was located a short time after by officers, where a search of his car uncovered various items including cocaine, $320 in cash, a light blue ski mask, black gloves and a black tire iron separated into two pieces.

Smith was charged with the following:

First-degree burglary, class three felony

Aggravated robbery, attempted, class four felony

Nine counts of menacing, class five felony

Eight counts of child abuse, class two misdemeanor

Unlawful distribution, manufacturing, dispensing or sale, class three drug felony

Smith is set to appear in court for his first appearance on the charges on Aug. 28.
One of the larger hindrances of public education after the COVID-19 pandemic was a dramatic rise in chronic student absenteeism. However, new state data released Thursday indicates schools are continuing to recover from this.

According to the Colorado Department of Education (CDE), student attendance increased by 0.7 percentage points, up to 91.5%, while chronic absenteeism decreased by 3.4 percentage points to 27.7% in the 2023-24 school year.

Both figures reflect continued trends from the previous school year with attendance rising and absenteeism dropping. A state-high rate of chronic absenteeism was recorded at 35.5% during the 2021-22 school year.

We know that our educators and school leaders are working urgently to keep students engaged and feeling connected to their school communities, and we see that effort reflected in attendance and chronic absentee rates, Colorado Education Commissioner Susana Cordova said in a statement regarding the data.

If students arent in school, we know they wont have access to the opportunities designed to help them continue learning.

Chronic absenteeism is defined by the CDE as students missing at least 10% of the school year. Across the nation, about 1 in 4 students were chronically absent during the 2022-23 school year.

Despite the positive trends, statewide attendance has yet to reach pre-COVID marks. In 2019-20, the state average for attendance was 92.8% and the average chronic absentee rate was 22.6%.

This year, more than 241,000 of the states 902,854 students were chronically absent.

The trend of missing significant school time coincides with declining test scores during the same years, contributing to substantial learning losses and greater high school dropout rates.

And we have found that even missing a couple of days here and there can cause problems, Cordova said. In the early grades, multiple absences can cause students to fall behind on their reading skills. And in fact, 83% of chronically absent kids are not reading on grade level by third grade.

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Factors contributing to chronic absenteeism beyond the pandemic include students experiencing homelessness, transportation challenges, disengagement and personal and family illnesses.

So, some of those we have seen increase over time even if theyre not necessarily new ones, said Johann Liljengren, CDE director of dropout prevention and student re-engagement.

State data also revealed rates of chronic absenteeism continuing to decline and attendance to rise for unhoused, migrant, special-needs and multilingual students along with students of color and those who were economically disadvantaged.

Nearly 70% of Colorados districts improved their attendance rates last year. The districts with the highest reported rates of chronic absenteeism last year included Adams County 14 (48.9%), Centennial R-1 (53.5%), Hanover 28 (46.6 %) and Ouray R-1 (60.5%).

The Centennial Board of Cooperative Educational Services reported the highest rate of chronic absenteeism at 80.8%.

This week, the CDE also released its statewide testing results that revealed promising signs of COVID recovery, though not at high school levels.

To help promote attendance in school and continue to these positive trajectories, the CDE announced the Every School Day Matters campaign. Its goal is to support students, families, and educators in reducing chronic absenteeism to 17.8% by the 2026-27 school year.

The online portal will include training and resources for educators and school leaders, communications tools for districts and an attendance tracking calendar in English and Spanish for families.

What data tells us, what the research has found and what common sense show is that you cant grow academically if youre not in school, Cordova said.

The campaigns resources along with complete attendance data can be found at the CDEs website.
UPDATE: James has been found safe as of Sept. 18.

The Colorado Springs Police Department is asking for community assistance in locating missing 26-year-old Matthew Jamaal James.

James was last seen on Tuesday around 9 a.m. in the 5400 block of North Nevada Avenue. Police say he may be trying to make his way to New Mexico.

If anyone has seen or knows of James' location, they are encouraged to call CSPD at 719-444-7000.
Kurdish Leader Barzani Pledges to Protect the Rights of Assyrians

KDP President Masoud Barzani (R) and the Patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Church in Iraq and the World Louis Raphael Sako (L). On Thursday, Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) President Masoud Barzani met with the Patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Church in Iraq and the World Louis Raphael Sako, along with an accompanying delegation, in Pirmam.

During the meeting, Patriarch Sako expressed his deep appreciation for President Barzani's steadfast efforts to protect the Christian community in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq.

He commended Barzani's ongoing support for the community's rights and his assurances aimed at safeguarding their future.

President Barzani warmly welcomed the delegation and reiterated his unwavering commitment to defending the rights of Christians and all religious and ethnic communities in Kurdistan.

"We consider Christians and all religious and ethnic communities of Kurdistan as part of our people, and we will defend their rights in every way," President Barzani emphasized.

The discussions also touched on the broader political situation in Iraq, the current state of affairs in Kirkuk, and various issues concerning minority communities.
UPDATE: As of 6:45 p.m., Longacre has been safely located, according to police.

The Fountain Police Department is asking for the community's assistance in locating 17-year-old Jarrett James Longacre.

Longacre was last seen walking north on Jimmy Camp Road away from Fountain-Fort Carson High School around noon Wednesday, according to social media posts by the department. He suffers from a cognitive disorder and law enforcement is worried for his safety.

Longacre is a Native American male, with dark colored eyes and dark hair, police say. He is 6 feet tall and weighs 200 pounds.

He was last seen wearing a white T-shirt and camouflage pants.

If anyone has seen Longacre, they are asked to call (719)390-5555.
Colorado Springs residents are likely to see a question asking them to legalize recreational marijuana sales on the November ballot.

Responsible Rec for Colorado Springs, a local group that advocates the legalization of recreational marijuana sales, submitted about 3,400 petition signatures above the minimum needed to place a question on the ballot that seeks voter approval, city officials said Thursday.

The proposal would allow only existing medical marijuana shops to transition to selling recreational marijuana and dedicate revenue to funding public safety programs, mental health services and post-traumatic stress disorder treatment programs.

Its balanced. It is reasonable, said Tom Scudder, president of the Colorado Springs Cannabis Association at a recent City Council meeting.

He said the question was designed to meet the needs of citizens. The citizens group submitted 28,000 signatures to make the ballot.

The industry employs 1,500 to 2,000 people in town, he said, although thats declining as the industry matures and consolidates.

The City Council has the option Tuesday to either adopt the citizen-initiated question as an ordinance or send it on to voters, spokesman Max DOnofrio said.

The council is likely to send it on to the voters because the board recently approved its question asking voters to ban recreational marijuana sales in the City Charter.

In the unlikely event that both questions passed, the charter amendment would take precedence.

The dueling questions sparked intense debate at the most recent council meeting with advocates pointing out recreational marijuana is widely available, and Colorado Springs simply doesnt benefit from it, while opponents highlighted the potential health risks of marijuana.

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Colorado was the first state to legalize recreational marijuana in 2012. The law allowed cities to decide whether recreational marijuana would be sold within their city limits.

Colorado Springs is home to about 90 medical marijuana dispensaries. The community had 114 dispensaries in 2022 the last time voters were asked to legalize recreational marijuana sales in town. The question failed by a margin of 57% to 43%.

Truman Bradley, the executive director of Marijuana Industry Group, told the council that 96 municipalities in the state allow recreational marijuana sales.

At the same time, marijuana use among teens has dropped, he said.

The Healthy Kids Colorado survey shows that the percentage of high school students who have used marijuana has fallen from 41% in 2009 to 26% in 2023. The survey does not include data from El Paso County because of lack of participation.

Jack Briggs, president and CEO of the Springs Rescue Mission, was among those opposed to legalizing sales and noted that he rarely meets someone whose path to addiction did not start with marijuana.

I have to clean up what happens when it goes bad and thats what I see every day, he said.

The marijuana industry in Colorado has gone through a prolonged downturn the last two years as marijuana tourism in the state has declined.

Twenty-four states and the District of Columbia allow recreational marijuana. A change in the 2018 Farm Bill also has given rise to the sale of THC products derived from hemp in states where recreational marijuana is not legal.

Contact the writer at mary.shinn@gazette.com or 719-429-9264.
George Brauchler is the former district attorney for the 18th Judicial District and is a candidate for district attorney in the newly created 23rd Judicial District. He has served as an Owens Early Criminal Justice Fellow at the Common Sense Institute. Follow him on Twitter(X): @GeorgeBrauchler.
CLEAR LAKE -- Members of the Clear Lake City Council have spoken in favor of contributing $250,000 in city funds toward the construction of a new Chamber of Commerce Visitors Center building.

The Chamber of Commerce is planning to build the new facility at its existing location at 205 Main Ave. Due to the need to expand and a limited horizontal footprint, two additional floors will be added to the one-story building.

In addition to being undersized, the 50-year-old existing building has an outdated HVAC system and has safety egress and accessibility issues, City Administrator Scott Flory told council members during a meeting Monday. The technology and security infrastructure also needs to be updated, he said.

The new building would feature a more direct and welcoming public entry and service desk arrangement, additional meeting room space, and office space for each Chamber employee, according to Flory.

The total estimated cost of the project is $2.3 to $2.5 million. The Clear Lake Chamber's fundraising goal is $2 million, and the organization has already raised $612,000 in private donations. The public phase of the fundraising campaign has just been launched.

"We are off to a very good start," Chamber President and CEO Stacy Doughan told the Globe Gazette.

The Chamber also has set aside around $500,000 in cash on hand for the project.

Ward 2 Councilman Bennett Smith said the Chamber does an excellent job of promoting Clear Lake as a tourism destination, but the current building "leaves a lot to be desired."

Mayor Nelson Crabbe said the facility "sits on a postage stamp."

Crabbe also said the town's senior citizens group meets at the Chamber building, "and they can barely move" when they are inside it.

In addition, the damp basement is not a good storage space, according to Crabbe.

Smith proposed the city contribute $125,000 toward the new Chamber building this fiscal year and another $125,000 the following fiscal year.

Ward 3 Councilwoman Beth Ann Schumacher agreed, noting she loves the idea of the Chamber facility staying where it is and expanding vertically because "it has to be a welcoming place with a front door on Main."

"I'm positive it's going to be awesome," she said.

The council will vote on the funding at its next meeting at 5:30 p.m. Sept. 3 at City Hall, which has moved back to its downtown location at 15 N. Sixth St.

The Chamber hopes to bid the building project this winter and begin construction in the spring. The goal is to have the building completed during the summer 2026.
Carroll College announced it will pay off tuition gaps for in-state, Pell Grant-qualifying students starting fall 2025.

Carroll College delivers a world-class education, and with this new program, we are making it more accessible to talented students across Montana, John Cech, president of Carroll College, said in a news release.

The program is called Pell Promise for Montana Students. It targets incoming, undergraduate and in-state freshmen who are Pell Grant recipients, meaning students who are getting federal aid after showing significant financial need.

The students also need to apply for at least $3,500 in subsidized federal Stafford loans. Any tuition gap leftover will be paid for by Carroll, and the award can be renewed as long as students maintain a 3.0 GPA and full-time student status.

About 24% of Carroll Colleges student population (about 1,100 students in 2023) could qualify, Financial Aid Director Janet Riis said.

While the majority of the program was put together over the summer, talks of making college easier for Montanas most needy have gone on for years.

The COVID-19 pandemic was big, Riis said. Dropout rates shot up across the country in 2020 and 2021, and low-income students lost some of the momentum needed to stay in school.

Then, Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) updated its portal last year, and students nationwide saw months of delay and frustration over their applications.

Only 25% of Montana high school seniors completed the FAFSA form going into April 2024, the governor's office reported, which was 35% fewer than last year.

As of Aug. 9, Montana has inched up to 40%, ranking 44th of 52 states (Puerto Rico and D.C. included), according to the National College Attainment Network.

Montana is still low, Riis said, and students who dropped out are unlikely to come back. The point of the Pell Promise is to keep low-income students applying.

Were trying to keep the door open, she said.

Pell Promise money comes from a general financial aid pot and isnt directly sourced by any one donor, she said. The goal is for the program to become self-sustainable by recruiting more students, bringing enough new dollars to balance out the granted ones.

If not enough new students come, the program could eat at Carroll funds, but shes anticipating a three-year trial period to see how the cards play, similar to other financial programs at the school. If there were huge doubts, the program wouldnt have moved forward, she said.

As a whole, she hopes it helps students realize college, especially at Carroll College, is accessible.

Carrolls sticker price might seem lofty, but 99% of students receive some form of financial aid, she said. After knocking down the numbers, she said Carroll is competitive with other Montana universities for price.

Carroll lists its total potential price at $53,032 a year, but caveats that the average student will pay only half that after Carroll-provided gift aid.

Across the Montana University System, which serves public institutions like Montana State and University of Montana, need-based financial aid recipients (including Pell Grants and similar programs) have gone down while the amount of money has gone up.

In the 2022-23 school year, 33% of first-time, full-time students received need-based federal dollars, averaging around $5,800, according to MUS data.

Ten years prior, during the 2012-13 school year, nearly half of Montanas qualifying students received federal aid, receiving an average gift of $4,600.
In an effort to block Darby resident Robert Barb, a Green Party candidate for Montanas U.S. Senate seat, from winning the June primary election, Michael Downey filed to run as a Green Party candidate as well.

Downey, of Helena, was briefly successful: He won the primary in a landslide, but now Barb is set to be the partys nominee.

After winning the June primary by nearly 25 points, Downey continued his candidacy until he withdrew his name from consideration on Aug. 12, the last day to officially bow out. When a candidate withdraws before the deadline, a replacement may be appointed and Barb appears poised to secure that appointment.

Downey said he jumped in the race  only 90 minutes before the March deadline to file  because he did not feel like Barb embodied the tenets of the Green Party.

I had felt like if were going to have a Green Party candidate at least have somebody who's Green, Downey said, adding that he found online that Barb had contributed money to Republicans in the past.

In reality, both Downey and Barb harbor evidence that they're not Green through and through.

Barb made multiple small-dollar donations to the Republican National Committee over a few days in April 2021, according to federal filings. And while Barbs campaign materials and court statements conform to Green ideals, his social media pushes conspiracy theories popular among the far-right. Meanwhile, Downey has a multi-year history of ties to the Democratic Party.

Downey said he exited the race after he started to worry that he would suck votes away from Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Tester in what is shaping up to be a race decided on thin margins (theres a frequent worry that Green Party candidates have the potential to garner votes that would otherwise go to Democrats). Tester is being challenged by Republican nominee and political newcomer Tim Sheehy, who has the backing of former President Donald Trump and Sen. Steve Daines and the group he chairs, the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC).

The votes that are siphoned off by a Green Party candidate  could be determinative of who wins that race, Downey said.

Downey said he dropped out on the last day because he thought there would be shenanigans and wanted to give as little time as possible for that to play out before the party had to nominate a replacement.

I obviously wasn't going to win the race for the U.S. Senate, the former candidate said.

Steve Kelly, ballot access coordinator of the Montana Green Party, says he intends to get Barb on the ballot before Thursdays deadline. But that commitment from Kelly only comes after Barb sued the Montana Green Party and others to ensure the Green Party fielded a replacement candidate in the general election. That suit has since been withdrawn.

Im not worried about the lawsuit, I'm worried about the [Green] voters who don't have anybody to vote for, Kelly said.

The Green Party is known for its progressive stances on social issues and its aggressive approach to climate change, pushing renewable energy and the Green New Deal.

The Montana Green Party calls itself a progressive political organization that is dedicated to grassroots democracy, social justice, decentralization, respect for diversity, and environmental and economic sustainability, according to the groups Facebook page.

Both Barbs campaign site and court filings conform with Green Party ideals.

I have been a member of both the Green Party and the Montana Green Party for years. I support the Montana Green Partys mission and am disillusioned with Republicans and Democrats having the only voice in national politics, Barb wrote in the since-withdrawn court filing.  A) I am strongly opposed to the U.S. providing weapons in foreign wars; b) I strongly advocate for equal rights and/pay for women; c) I recognize climate change as the enormous threat to our planet, and support all private and governmental efforts to battle climate change; the document continued.

Barbs campaign website also says he supports a two-state solution and a ceasefire in the war in Gaza.

But Barbs personal Instagram account does not reflect what one might expect from a Green Party candidate, particularly after reading his campaign website and court declarations.

Barbs account contains multiple conspiratorial posts about the COVID-19 vaccine (calling it the plandemic, a portmanteau that references the false theory that a shadowy group of elites used COVID and the vaccine to gain power). Barb also makes reference to a major conspiracy theory known as the New World Order that claims global elites are plotting to take over the world by forming a worldwide government. A core part of this theory is the idea that population control is necessary to achieve the end goal, and the COVID-19 pandemic is often falsely pushed as a form of this calculated population control.

"The New World Order does not want healthy strong people that will resist their manipulation and agenda," Barb wrote in an Instagram caption. "They want to kill off BILLIONS of [people] by 2030."

Barb, who has Instagram posts praising hunting and firearms, wrote in a post that Any gun law or restrictions are infringements upon those inalienable rights and therefore unconstitutional, while the Green Party has called for a ban on the sale of all assault weapons and expanded background checks.

When asked about these conflicts, Barbs attorney, Rob Cameron said The Green Party is a big tent. Im sure Robert stands by whatevers in his Instagram account, pointing out that his client filed the pro-Green court declaration under penalty of perjury.

When the Montana State News Bureau reached out to Barb for comment using the phone number listed on the elections filing website and a court filing, the recipient of the message responded wrong number (it does not appear that it was in fact the wrong number). Cameron said he was not able to get ahold of his client before deadline.

Downey said he believes that there is collusion between Barb and the Republicans, and Barb said the same about Downeys campaign and the Democrats, but neither have provided evidence to the effect.

In researching my opponent in the upcoming primary, it is clear that my opponent is nothing but a political plant for Jon Tester, Barbs website reads. He and his wife have a history of supporting Democrat party leaders and funding their campaigns.

Downey denies coordinating with the Tester campaign, the Montana Democratic Party or any other Democrats with an interest in this race. Likewise, Cameron said [Barb] is by no means a Republican plant. The Tester campaign declined to comment for this story.

According to federal elections filings, Downey has made donations to several Democrats, including President Joe Biden and Cory Bookers 2020 presidential campaigns and Kathleen Williams 2018 bid for Montanas U.S. House seat.

Its a tired story, but for a decade now, Jon Tester and his allies have tried to disenfranchise Green Party voters each election season, NRSC communications director Mike Berg said in a written statement, going on to offer without evidence that Tester played a role in Downey's entrance and exit to the race.

 ... Sen. Daines has never met Robert Barb," Berg continued, saying voters should take any of Downey's "ridiculous accusations with a grain of salt.

Kelly previously called Downey a firm Democrat and identified Barb as affiliated with the Tea Party, but Kelly said he is taking Barb at face value.

Kelly said he is moving forward with Barb as the candidate because he liked the platform statement provided to him by Barb, adding that he can't assign any contempt or judgment on Barb himself because the policy platforms Barb sent were strong.

Because Republicans see Testers seat as one of the major barriers to a Senate majority, the GOP (particularly Daines and the NRSC) are deeply involved in flipping the seat from blue to red.

More Jobs, Less Government, a super PAC with ties to Sen. Steve Daines, funded more than $44,000 in oppositional campaigning against Barb, including mailers calling Barb a radical progressive and an extremist leftwinger. Though the PAC has ties to Daines, Berg worked to point out that "Daines and the NRSC have no control over the group or how they spend their money."

Radical environmentalist Robert Barb is too extreme for Montana. Hell go much further than Jon Tester to combat climate change, the mailer reads. Robert Barb will stop at nothing to reduce Americas carbon footprint, even if he makes enemies on both sides of the aisle. He wants to practice ecological wisdom and bring the Green Party platform to the national stage.

Overall, the super PAC has so far spent over $11 million on the Montana senate race.

Daines was working to keep Rep. Matt Rosendale from running as a Republican in the race (Rosendale lost to Tester in 2018 in Tester's largest margin of victory of all his Senate elections) and Daines was also said to be meddling in the Libertarian side of things earlier this month: Daines, Trump, Chairman of the Montana GOP Don K Kaltschmidt and others were said to have encouraged Libertarian candidate Sid Daoud to exit the U.S. Senate race.

Just like Green Party stands to play spoiler to the Democrats, there also exists the idea  true or not  in Montana and nationwide that Libertarian candidates may pull votes from Republican candidates, thereby paving the Democrats' path to victory.

In Tester's 2018 race, Libertarian candidate Rick Breckenridge just before Election Day said he was backing Republican candidate Matt Rosendale. Tester won with 50.3% of the vote. And in 2012, a liberal group bought ads in the Senate race supporting Libertarian Dan Cox to boost his conservative credentials. Tester pulled in about 48% of the vote in that race to Republican Denny Rehberg's 44%, with Cox taking about 6%.

Republicans playing in Montanas third-party sandbox is not new, either.

In 2020, the Montana GOP paid for an effort to qualify the Montana Green Party for the ballot that election cycle by paying petitioners in the states major cities to gather signatures to qualify Greens for the ballot, despite the fact that the Green Party made clear it did not do any work to qualify for the ballot that year and had not planned to run any candidates.

It's hard being a Green, Kelly said. Nobodys out to help Green voters.

Kelly expressed frustration that Downey jumped in solely to block another candidate, but sounded pleased with how the chips fell.

I love the universe. The universe has its ways, he said, referring to Barb's comeback.

For Downeys part, he said he does and doesnt have regrets about bowing out.

On the one hand, Barb was able to jump back into the race, but how gross the political landscape is right now left Downey relieved to not be involved anymore, he said.
DECATUR  The Illinois Supreme Court has ruled that the rights of Jessica A. Logan, the Decatur mom convicted of suffocating her 19-month-old son to death, were violated by the cops who built the case against her.

But that wont earn the 30-year-old defendant a shot at overturning her 33-year prison sentence.

For while the justices agreed on the rights violation, they also said it ultimately made no difference because, overall, the evidence in the tragic case was overwhelmingly in favor of guilt. The court then rejected her appeal for a new trial.

Logan was found guilty by a Macon County Circuit Court jury of murdering Jayden M. Comage in his bed on the night of Oct. 7, 2019.

The most controversial part of the evidence against her was the results of a video-taped reenactment of the toddlers death at the scene of the murder in Logans apartment home. This was done using a child-size mannequin and jurors watched the video during the trial.

The reenactment was organized by detectives with the Decatur Police Department at the request of a forensic pathologist who was probing the cause of death. Logan, who claims her son was smothered by accident in the bed sheets, was supposed to show how that might have happened.

Police, already suspicious of Logan, didnt buy her version of events and, a week after the video was taped, she was under arrest for murder.

Logan had tried to get the video thrown out before her trial and was denied. After her conviction she appealed the issue to the Fourth District Appellate Court but was turned down in September of 2022.

But the Supreme Court justices, in their unanimous recent ruling, did decide the video reenactment was a violation of her rights.

They agreed with Logans lawyers arguments that, although police claimed the defendant had been free to leave at any time, the reenactment was effectively a custodial interview. That meant she should have been read a Miranda warning about the right to remain silent and offered the opportunity to have a defense attorney present.

Accordingly, we hold that Logans motion to suppress should have been allowed and the trial court erred in admitting the recording of the reenactment into evidence at her trial, said Justice Joy Cunningham, who delivered the judgment.

But Cunningham also said the justices found it made no difference in the central issue of whether Logan was correctly found guilty of having killed her child, given the weight of the other evidence against her.

The justices noted how the Decatur mom was desperate for money and started the process of cashing in a $25,000 life insurance policy on her son on the day of his death. Detectives who examined Logans cellphone found Google searches on how do you suffocate? the day before the toddler died.

And the pathologist who examined Jaydens body concluded the cause of death was asphyxia due to smothering and compression of the neck. The pathologist said the boy had either had pressure applied while he lay face down or pressure was applied with a comforter or pillow as he lay face up.

Considering the totality of the evidence presented at trial, we conclude that the evidence in this case was not closely balanced but was overwhelmingly in favor of guilt, Justice Cunningham said.

Logan is incarcerated in the Logan Correctional Center and prison records show she is due for parole in October of 2052. The prison record also notes she has a tattoo on her left arm that says RIP Baby Comage.

What is the actual cost of crime in America's largest citiesand which spend the most and least per capita? What is the actual cost of crime in America's largest citiesand which spend the most and least per capita? Key findings The safest cities in America Are larger cities safer or more dangerous? The most dangerous cities in America
DECATUR  Northeast Community Fund can always use extra hands to get things done that regular staff and volunteers just haven't had time to do.

It's a huge help, said Josh Perkins, food director at Northeast. We love it when the students come out and help every year. It gives us a chance to show them the need that's in the community, and let them learn a little bit about things they might not otherwise be privy to, and it gives them a chance to give back, and it helps us out a lot.

Thursday was the Millikin University Day of Service for first-year students, who come to school earlier than the other students for Welcome Week, when they get familiar with campus, settle into their dorms, and spend time getting to know each other and the community.

Daniel Soars is a Decatur native, and has done plenty of volunteer work through GT Church, where he is a member.

I like to give back to the community I grew up in, Soars said. Having grown up here, I've seen the struggles, and I've participated in helping out with my church. I've helped out with Love Week and outreach, and it's so nice to give back, especially as part of my new community of Millikin.

Millikin students fanned out throughout Decatur, working at The Salvation Army, the Children's Museum of Illinois, Beautify Decatur, Crossing Healthcare, James Millikin Homestead, Old Kings Orchard Community Center, World Service Enterprise Organization, Oakwood Business District, Dove Inc., First Evangelical Lutheran Church, Millikin Facility Services, God's Shelter of Love and Holy Cross Lutheran Church.

I think it's important because it really shows what Millikin's about, said Honor Crosby, a Philadelphia native who is majoring in musical theater. It helps the community and it shows that we're here to help people and I think that's what we want to do as students.

Poverty, homelessness and addiction are serious problems in Philadelphia, Crosby said, and she grew up doing community service with her church there.

I actually work at the YMCA when I'm at home, said Kamden Peterson, a music education major from Plainfield. We do a lot to give back to the community. I help people be able to have memberships and have someplace to take their kids when they want to do things elsewhere. We do charity events, and I've gone to Feed My Starving Children multiple times with my community. I just like to give back to my community.

They were assisted by ADM Cares volunteers.

"Its an exciting opportunity for ADM volunteers and Millikin University students to come together to give back to the Decatur community through service initiatives," said Dane Lisser, ADM spokesman. "This partnership not only serves as a way to give back to Decatur, but it puts our ADM colleagues in a unique position to be mentors for Millikin students who are just beginning their college journey. Todays Day of Service is a great example of us wanting to do our part to help ensure that Decatur remains a strong and vibrant community long into the future."

We're helping them get extra stuff done today, said ADM volunteer Sarah Mahnke. We're all Millikin alums, and we're giving back to our school.

Millikin University homecoming ceremonies through the years  1973 Queen candidates 1974 queen candidates 1975 queen candidates 1976 queen candidates 1976 king candidates 1977 king candidates 1977 queen candidates 1978: king and queen candidates 1979 Homecoming candidates 1980: Homecoming king and queen candidates 1981 homecoming king and queen candidates 1983 King and queen candidates 1984 Homecoming court 1985: Homecoming court 1987 Homecoming court 1989 homecoming court 1990 homecoming court 1991 homecoming court 1993 homecoming court 1986 Homecoming court
CLINTWOOD, Va.  Spearhead Trails, a premier destination for outdoor enthusiasts in Southwest Virginia, has announced the new Ballad Health Medical Aid Station at its Sportsman Adventures Complex.

According to a news release, the station will serve as a vital resource for medical emergencies, ensuring the safety and well-being of visitors.

The medical aid station was made possible when the health system and Norton Community Hospital donated a trauma kit containing a torniquet and other supplies to address serious injuries, an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) for cardiac emergencies and $10,000 for additional first aid supplies to Spearhead Trails.

We are committed to providing comprehensive care throughout the Appalachian Highlands, and our regional network of care is strengthened through collaborations with local organizations, said Shannon Showalter, CEO for Ballad Health operations in Wise, Lee and Dickenson counties. Working with places like Spearhead Trails  which sees thousands of visitors a year  allows us to extend vital resources and support throughout our communities and further promote emergency preparedness and education.

Furnishing the Ballad Health Medical Aid Station is the health systems latest support with Spearhead Trails.

In 2023, Ballad Health held a seminar to provide defibrillator, first aid and CPR training and supplied tourniquet and trauma response kits to the staff of Spearhead Trails and several local emergency response agencies, including Clintwood EMS and Fire Department. During that training, Virginia State Police also flew its Aviation Unit helicopter to Spearhead Trails to review procedures for medical emergencies and situational protocols for search, rescue and medical evacuations.

At outdoor recreational areas like Spearhead Trails, timely medical intervention can make all the difference, said Dr. Herbert Ladley, a practicing cardiologist and chief medical officer of Ballad Healths services in Wise, Dickenson and Lee counties. The AED and financial support we were blessed to be able to supply will help ensure visitors to Spearhead Trails can receive immediate care in the event of a medical emergency. We are proud to give back to our community by contributing to the safety and well-being of those who enjoy these beautiful trails.

Remote and rural areas of Southwest Virginia are also parts of the Ballad Health Trauma Network, said Anita Perry, corporate director of trauma services and EMS for Ballad Health. We want to do what we can to ensure the teams at Spearhead are prepared with the right resources to help them best respond to medical emergencies. By providing tools like AEDs and establishing medical aid stations, we can help bridge the gap in emergency services and improve outcomes for those enjoying outdoor activities in these beautiful but remote areas.

Spearhead Trails spans approximately 600 miles across seven counties in Southwest Virginia, offering diverse recreational opportunities, including hiking, biking, off-road vehicle use and marksmanship. The trails have significantly impacted the local economy, generating approximately $15 million in economic impact for the region in 2019.

We are incredibly thankful for Ballad Healths support, said Rick Wood, board chair of the Southwest Regional Recreation Authority, which oversees Spearhead Trails. The establishment of the Ballad Health Medical Aid Station and the provision of an AED will enhance our ability to serve tourists and locals alike. This partnership helps us continue to provide a safe and enjoyable experience for all who visit Spearhead Trails.

The Spearhead Trails project was started and initially facilitated by Virginia Tourism Corporations Partnership Alliance Marketing division. In 2008, the Virginia General Assembly established the Southwest Regional Recreation Authority, whose purpose and goal is to oversee the development and management of the Spearhead Trail System within the counties of Buchanan, Dickenson, Lee, Russell, Scott, Tazewell, Wise and the City of Norton.

More information about the Ballad Health Trauma Networks locations, services and outreach are available at balladhealth.org. More information about Spearhead Trails can be found by visiting spearheadtrails.com.
World Robot Conference 2024 opens in Beijing

Xinhua) 08:21, August 22, 2024

This photo shows an exterior view of the venue for the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

A humanoid robot is pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

A humanoid robot is pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

Visitors watch as a robot makes Jian Bing, or the Chinese crepe, during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Chen Zhonghao)

A robot is pictured at the booth of Tesla during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Chen Zhonghao)

Humanoid robots are pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

Visitors watch as a robot plays ping-pong during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Chen Zhonghao)

Visitors watch as a robot writes Chinese calligraphy during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Zhang Chenlin)

Visitors watch as a robot writes Chinese calligraphy during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

Robots greet each other during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

A biped robot demonstrates climbing skills during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Zhang Chenlin)

A humanoid robot demonstrates cooking skills during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Zhang Chenlin)

A robot plays ping-pong during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

People visit the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

This photo shows an exterior view of the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

A humanoid robot is pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

A robot makes Jian Bing, or the Chinese crepe, during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

A humanoid robot is pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

Humanoid robots of the "Q Family" are pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Jin Liwang)

A visitor plays Go game, known as Weiqi in Chinese, with a robot during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Zhang Chenlin)

Visitors examine an educational robot during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

People visit the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

An intelligent electroencephalogram (EEG) device is pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

People visit the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

People visit the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Intelligent robotic hands are pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

People visit the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

A humanoid robot is pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Humanoid robots are pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Intelligent robotic hands are pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

A visitor interacts with a medical robot during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Humanoid robots are pictured during the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

People visit the World Robot Conference 2024 in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 21, 2024. The World Robot Conference 2024 opened here on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
COMPANY NEWS: Provider of unique Australian developed Do Not Disturb feature for workforce management, nimbus says many Australian companies remain vulnerable to regulatory crackdown after the RTD laws take effect on August 26, but they could be improving staff loyalty by embracing the new laws.

nimbus, a leading Australian Workforce Optimisation technology provider, has warned that Australian companies risk missing an opportunity to increase productivity and improve workforce loyalty when new Federal Right to Disconnect laws come into effect.

A Melbourne based global innovator in the provision of workforce management software, nimbus is a trusted adviser by countless organisations seeking to improve their workforce environment  for management and staff. The companys patent-based technology helps improve workforce management and staff retention in many industries, including Australian retail icons, transport and logistics companies, banking and finance, government, and multinational providers of services to the military, healthcare, and space industries.

Based partly on in depth analysis of the tenure of nimbus retail client staff who use nimbus unique Do Not Disturb (DND) technology, nimbus senior executives are taking issue with claims that the new Federal laws limiting worker and manager contact after hours, will automatically lead to lower productivity, and cause industrial relations unrest.

With the Fair Work Commission expected to closely monitor the compliance of large companies to the new Right to Disconnect (RTD) laws from August 26, nimbus has drawn on years of industry leadership and innovation to ensure its customers have the tools available to minimise the risk of non-compliance to these and other regulations. This includes the availability since 2018 of a Do Not Disturb feature on its mobile app  updated in recent months.

Now experiencing a surge in customer interest as the RTD deadline looms, nimbus Do Not Disturb is a simple to use feature which staff can utilise to ensure they can disconnect from work after hours and nominate when they can be contacted.

Grant Custance, CEO of nimbus said; nimbus has a long history of innovating ahead of changes to workplace regulations and the Do Not Disturb feature is another example of it  we are ahead of the regulators and the industry in general.

However, Mr. Custance warned that much of the commentary around the new laws, which could lead to directors facing large fines for non-compliance, ignored the positive opportunity for Australian companies to reset and improve their workforce management environments. Mr. Custance said, the new laws provide an opportunity for greater management-workforce collaboration, leading to higher productivity, fewer sick days, lower staff turnover, improved morale, and workforce loyalty  as well as improved workplace safety by reducing the risk of worker fatigue in some industries.

Far from being a drag on productivity, these new RTD laws could help improve it, if organisations accept that they must now collaborate with their staff and provide them with the tools to improve their work life balance. With so many of us working remotely now, it is possible for businesses to use these new laws to introduce greater clarity and shift/training optimisation for staff. Getting the right people with the right skills more motivated because they know where they stand with their working hours, is a good thing. But this will only happen if companies provide their teams with the right workplace management tools.

Mr. Custance pointed to anonymized analysis by nimbus technical team of the length of employment for staff at its retail client base, comparing those who had turned on the nimbus Do Not Disturb feature, versus those who had not.

While more analysis is warranted, initial findings confirm that retail companies which use the feature also have longer average staff employment longevity, a key determinant of productivity, skill development and staff satisfaction. The analysis of approximately 24,000 workers in a representative sample of some of Australias most iconic retailers in the past five years, showed that on average, there was a 40 per cent increase in staff retention in retail companies where staff used the DND feature. Additionally, the analysis showed that more than 14,000 of those workers had chosen to turn on the nimbus DND feature. Mr. Custance expects this ratio to rise in the coming months once workers and managers become more aware of the RTD legislation.

One of Australias leading workforce management experts, Michael Clark, CEO of CXTT Consulting and former Executive Director at the Fair Work Ombudsman, said there is no doubt that as with any legislative change, the regulators will be looking for some early wins and case studies of what not to do around non-compliance of the Right to Disconnect law. The time where a 6am message or call from the boss to come into work today is over! Right to disconnect has killed this archaic practice and puts the power of when messages are received into the hands of the employee. This will increase employee satisfaction and engagement when done right. Unfortunately, many organisations have yet to get the message and are ill-prepared. This seems to be the case the most with customer service facing organisations, including contact centres and retail, where many younger and less experienced staff are employed.

About the nimbus Do Not Disturb Feature

In the nimbus mobile app, a staff member can nominate via the app that they are offline from 9pm to 8am the next day, meaning they cannot be contacted other than for extraordinary reasons. If the staff member chooses, they can, in seconds, go back into the app after hours to change their connection to indicate when they receive notifications again, allowing for additional shifts, shift changes or requests. Additionally, their manager can also put in place rules via the nimbus app which enforces the disconnect protocol. The highly agile and dynamic nature of the innovation is an Australian workplace technology first, and reflects nimbus history of leadership, including achieving world first patents across many countries.

About nimbus

As one of Australias fastest growing technology innovators, nimbus is at the forefront of the future of work, providing integrated tools to optimise human endeavor, drive positive business results, and create a live anywhere, work everywhere world.

Through future-proofed, cloud, patent protected software, nimbus transforms employee management capabilities for location-based, remote, and work from home staff with compliance, workforce optimisation, and business continuity solutions.

nimbus' suite of Software as a Service products are deployed by some of Australias top ASX companies, and globally by organisations and Government in Australia the United States, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Canada and the Middle East.

www.nimbus.cloud
COMPANY NEWS: Healthcare leaders from across the Asia Pacific region have come together for the InterSystems Asia Healthcare Summit, featuring an AI and Connected Care Symposium designed to help healthcare leaders navigate a future shaped by data and AI-enabled care.

The summit, from August 21-22 in Jakarta, advanced data-enabled healthcare initiatives across the Asia Pacific region, with a particular focus on Indonesias rapidly evolving healthcare landscape.

The opening day of the summit focused on preparing healthcare organisations for a data and AI-enabled future. Discussions centred on the integration of health and care data and the critical role of the HL7 FHIR interoperability standard.

InterSystems regional managing director Luciano Brustia highlighted how the companys innovative technologies are revolutionising healthcare delivery across the Asia Pacific region. Many of the regions best private hospitals rely on our TrakCare electronic medical record system to deliver world-class care and service and to improve efficiency. A growing number of healthcare organisations are also using our InterSystems Iris for Health data platform to fully unlock the potential of their data, resulting in improved decision-making and business agility. We are proud of our regional partnerships and growing customer community and we remain dedicated to supporting the ongoing digital transformation of healthcare in Asia, he said.

InterSystems global head of healthcare market strategy Kathleen Aller engaged delegates with the question, Are You and Your Data AI Ready?. She discussed strategies for preparing data for AI. Meanwhile, InterSystems director of customer relations  healthcare, Southeast Asia Stella Ramette presented strategies for Putting AI into Action. Kathleen Aller highlighted the challenge of AI readiness, noting, According to Gartner, only 5% of organisations feel their data is AI-ready. Without comprehensive, usable data, AI initiatives may not achieve the desired outcomes.

Local perspectives were shared by BitHealth head of data analytics Alwidyarly Zufly and Prodia digital service transformation and IT director Andri Hidayat who presented valuable case studies on building FHIR repositories in their session Getting Value from FHIR. These sessions highlighted the successful implementation of InterSystems technology in Indonesia, demonstrating how local organisations leveraged data to achieve improved patient outcomes, enhanced operational efficiencies, and streamlined healthcare delivery.

A notable panel session titled Driving Change featured PT Affinity Health vice president of information technology Benedict Sulaiman, Eka Hospital director of medical ancillary service, quality, and patient safety Dr Gracia Yudo, and Thailand's Bumrungrad International Hospital chief process innovation officer Ignacio Diaz Sanchez. They discussed the importance of managing change within an organisation when implementing disruptive technology initiatives like Electronic Medical Record systems. This session shed light on how healthcare providers addressed these challenges and drove significant value from their investments.

Attendees also experienced demonstrations of the latest innovations from InterSystems and its partners participating in the Partner Pavilion. Malaysia-based Hesper Technologies chief technology officer Thomas How and Singapore-based Jonda Health co-founder and chief technology officer Daniel Wang showcased cutting-edge solutions built upon InterSystems technology in a session titled Data Visualization and Interoperability with InterSystems Iris. These demonstrations provided insights into the future of healthcare technology.

InterSystems vice president of strategic planning Paul Grabscheid stated that InterSystems is proud to contribute to healthcare transformation by enabling customers to not only meet todays data management challenges but to be ready for what comes next. Our long-term partnerships with Indonesias premier private hospital groups and more recently with its largest laboratory network underscore our commitment. Technologies like TrakCare have empowered hospitals such as Eka Hospital, EMC Healthcare, Rumah Sakit Pondok Indah Group, and PT Affinity Health Indonesia to deliver consistent, high-quality care. Additionally, our support in building FHIR repositories is helping customers to unlock their data for new uses, driving innovation and excellence, he said.

InterSystems unveiled upcoming AI capabilities for its TrakCare electronic medical record (EMR) system, including an AI-enabled assistant designed to enhance patient care and reduce administrative tasks. This AI-driven innovation is set to be a game-changer for many leading private hospitals that already rely on TrakCare, positioning them at the forefront of healthcare technology.

The summit also served as a platform to outline InterSystems future plans in Indonesia, which include expanding collaborations with local healthcare providers, seeking new partners who want to build interoperable, AI-enabled software solutions, and supporting the governments health information exchange initiatives like SATUSEHAT. The event was tailored for healthcare leaders, technology innovators, and industry professionals. By continuing to build robust solutions that unify healthcare delivery and empower Indonesian healthcare organisations to unlock the full potential of their data, InterSystems aims to improve patient care and health outcomes.

For more information and updates from the InterSystems Asia Healthcare Summit, visit here.

About InterSystems

InterSystems, a creative data technology provider, delivers a unified foundation for next-generation applications for healthcare, finance, manufacturing and supply chain customers in more than 80 countries. Our cloud-first data platforms solve interoperability, speed and scalability problems for large organisations around the globe to unlock the power of data and allow people to perceive data in imaginative ways. Established in 1978, InterSystems is committed to excellence through its award-winning, 247 support for customers and partners in more than 80 countries. Privately held and headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, InterSystems has 39 offices in 28 countries worldwide. For more information, please visit InterSystems.com/sg.
Smartphone CPU maker Qualcomm has announced a new version of its Snapdragon 7 chipset series - the Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 Mobile Platform - which the company says builds on the 7-series momentum of bringing enhanced capabilities to the mid-range smartphones market.

Qualcomm says the Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 Mobile Platform leverages specially selected features from the 7-series to make its technologies more accessible to all, including generative AI, mobile gaming, camera and video.

"The new platform offers on-device generative AI capabilities with support for LLMs including Baichuan-7B, Llama 2 at 1B parameters and others," Qualcomm says in its announcement.

"It also features new adventure-packed mobile gaming experiences powered by the powerful Qualcomm Adreno GPU, and professional-grade camera and video capture features such as 12-bit triple ISP and 4K sHDR."

According to Qualcomm, the platform achieves new performance heights across the board, with nearly 20% improved CPU performance thanks to the latest Qualcomm Kryo CPU, up to 40% accelerated GPU, over 30% better AI performance and 12% overall power savings.

Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi will be the first cab off the rank to incorporate the new Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 platform, with the first device expected to be announced next month.

Other smartphone OEMs, including Realme, Samsung, and Sharp are expected to announce the adoption of Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 in the coming months.



Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 will bring the best of the 7-series to more mid-tier devices by selecting top 7-series features including on-device AI support, said Chris Patrick, senior vice president and general manager of mobile handsets, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.

This platform is another proof point in our commitment to deliver the best-in-class mobile experiences to consumers at every price.
CHARLESTON  Cabinets full of free food and hygiene items that people in need can access 24 hours a day have been popping up in recent months in Charleston and Mattoon neighborhoods.

Those cabinets have been built, stocked and maintained by volunteers through the Coles County Blessing Box Project, which started in October and has continued growing. An Ashmore location is set to open in coming weeks.

One of the current seven Blessing Box locations is in Charleston on the west side of Family Worship Center, 411 Jackson Ave. Leslie Wright, who volunteers with the project through this Charleston church, said their Blessing Box was donated by Central Roofing LLC of Mattoon and put into place in June.

"We are centrally located downtown," Wright said. "We get a lot of foot traffic."

Their stock of peanut butter, microwaveable meals, canned meat and vegetables, fruit cups, cereal bars, bottled water and other nonperishable food is usually depleted by the end of each day. Wright said this Blessing Box near the courthouse square is helping fill a need in Charleston, where social services providers that offer food are located on the outer edges of town.

Wright said she saw this need in their neighborhood firsthand on Aug. 8 when her husband, pastor Brandon Wright, and others with the church grilled hotdogs and offered them for free to the community. She said the meal served approximately 40 people who arrived on foot, adding that the church is now planning a community taco meal in September.

Other Blessing Boxes are located in Mattoon at the Community Food Center, 600 Moultrie Ave.; Freedom Life Church, 2205 Lafayette Ave.; The Haven, 1812 Western Ave. (helped by Homestead Church); Kingdom Driven Church, 606 S. 17th St.; the Salvation Army, 1300 Richmond Ave.; and Winebrenner Church of God, 300 Illinois Ave.

More information is posted on the Blessing Box Project - Coles County, Illinois page on Facebook.

The Coles County Blessing Box Project idea originated with Mattoon resident Janie Youhas, who attends the Family Worship Center location in Mattoon. Youhas said she had long been aware of Blessing Boxes in other communities and thought about working on such an effort locally when she was inspired to take action by one of pastor Brad Brown's sermons on being of service to others.

Youhas said the Blessing Boxes serve anyone in need of free food or hygiene items, such as laundry soap and wipes, and can be stocked by anyone who wants to place supplies in them.

"The main thing is to take what you need and leave what you can, but always be blessed," Youhas said.

While pursuing this effort, Youhas said she has been pleasantly surprised by how many contractors have been willing to donate supplies and labor for constructing the needed wooden cabinets with acrylic glass display windows.

Those builders also have included Legacy Roofing, McDowell Construction, Miller Construction and Stan Hoelscher, who built the Blessing Box at Salvation Army. In addition, Youhas said Tracy and Steve Becker of Mattoon were both instrumental in helping get the project up and going.

Miller Construction, operated by father and son Ron and Corey Miller, built the Blessing Box that is located in front of The Haven homeless shelter and community kitchen in downtown Mattoon. Ron Miller noted that all the needed supplies for this cabinet were donated by Kull Lumber Co. in Mattoon.

"I just hope it goes well and people don't tear them up," Ron Miller said of the Blessing Boxes. "It's a nice project. I didn't mind helping with it at all. It's a good thing. That's for sure."

The next Coles County Blessing Box in the works is set to be located at Ashmore Baptist Church. Pastor David Colvin said deacon Kurt Crail, who is mayor of Ashmore, has built the cabinet in preparation for volunteers installing it on the church grounds in coming weeks.

"It definitely fits with what our church is trying to be about, which is trying to help community in any way we can," Colvin said.

Photos: 2024 Illinois Run for the Fallen COMMUNITY BAND MOTHER, DAUGHTER BLOOMINGTON FALLEN FIRING DETAIL MEMORIAL DISPLAY GOLD STAR FAMILY HONOR AND REMEMBER PANTHER SOCCER LINDER SPORTS COMPLEX LINDER TRAIL
The Mawangdui Han Tombs in Changsha, Hunan province, which have been recognized as one of the greatest archaeological findings of the 20th century, have offered not only massive pieces of artifacts but also presented a mini "library" of the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220).

Silk painting excavated from the Mawangdui Han Tombs in Changsha, Hunan province. CHINA DAILY

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the excavation of the Mawangdui Han Tombs. On Sunday, after four years of efforts in making revisions and additions, an amended version of the Mawangdui Bamboo Slips and Silk Manuscripts was published, which is compiled by Hunan Museum and the Center for Research on Chinese Excavated Classics and Paleography at Fudan University in Shanghai, to celebrate the special occasion.

The two institutions committed decades to demystifying the characters and texts found on bamboo slips and silk manuscripts excavated from the Mawangdui tombs.

In June 2014, the first collection of Mawangdui bamboo slips and silk manuscripts was published. Compiled by the center and Hunan Museum, the seven-book collection reveals the complete raw materials of bamboo and silk manuscripts for the first time, offering a most comprehensive and accurate interpretation.

"There is no end in sight for the sorting and interpreting of the Mawangdui silk manuscripts. Although we have made many annotations, there is still much work unfinished. New silk pieces were published and a large number of scattered pieces have not been bound yet," says paleographer Qiu Xigui, chief editor of both collections and the leading professor at the center.

Liu Zhao, head of the center and organizer of the amendment and an editor of the collection, pointed out that the Mawangdui Han Tombs represent one of the most significant archaeological discoveries of the 20th century in China and the world.

"The thousands of artifacts excavated from Mawangdui depict a vivid, dimensional and stunning picture of the colorful Han Dynasty's social life. The bamboo and silk manuscripts discovered from the tombs are like a mini library, opening the door to learn more about the thoughts of the dynasty," says Liu.

According to a recent announcement from Hunan Museum, the Mawangdui Han Tombs were initially excavated between 1972 and 1974 and have produced 26,937 artifacts after decades of excavations.

The unearthed artifacts include the remains of Lady Xin Zhui, wife to an aristocrat and also called by some scholars as Lady Bi. Also unearthed were lacquerware, textiles and bamboo and silk manuscripts. The lacquerware unearthed from Mawangdui totals 1,017 pieces, 869 of which are intact. The textiles unearthed  mainly silk and hemp  total 24,490 pieces, including 212 intact pieces. The bamboo and silk manuscripts total 1,430 items, including silk books and paintings, wooden tablets and bamboo slips.

The center's research and the compiled collections focus on the bamboo and silk manuscripts, which tally over 130,000 characters. The texts include more than 50 classics with topics ranging from politics, military, philosophy, medicine and healthcare, astrology and more. Among the classics are I Ching (The Book of Changes) and Tao Te Ching, a philosophy book by Lao Tzu (571-470 BC).

"Our center's work is not only about recognizing the characters but also interpreting the texts and unlocking the historical, cultural and philosophical value in the content.  Some of the classics have been passed on till today. However, many have not been handed down, which will offer us new knowledge and are of extremely high academic value," says Liu.

The restoration process has not been easy. The silk pieces that have survived thousands of years are extremely fragile. Moreover, as most silk pieces were originally kept folded multiple times in a box with blank spaces and leaves in some layers, they closely clung together with printed scripts, making the main texts difficult to read after being immersed in water for ages.

The collection's first version has drawn extensive attention, discussion and feedback since its publication in 2014. A year later, over 60 scholars and experts gathered at a meeting to discuss the books' revisions. By May 2020, more than 500 papers and works were published based on the collection and raw materials, and the amendment was put on the schedule. Later in January 2022, Hunan Museum sorted over 230 new pictures of silk pieces for research.

During the four-year amendment, over half the center's professors and researchers have made contributions. While each specializes in one or several classics, the center also hailed the team's work in ensuring comprehensive and accurate output, according to the center.

The amended collection makes up about 1,000 pieces of revisions and complements. In addition, other major amendments include the rewriting of several classics, picture publication of the newly uncovered raw silk pieces, modification of over 60 silk pieces in the previous version, about 230 new bindings of silk pieces and color tuning of silk pieces to better display the texts and patterns.

"As Professor Qiu said, the research on Mawangdui sees no end  not only in the ancient writing field but also in diverse sectors such as artifacts, textiles, chemicals and technology. It is a long-term and sustainable subject," says Liu. "We believe the research on Mawangdui will flourish in the upcoming years and the Mawangdui Han Tomb culture will play a bigger role in showcasing traditional Chinese culture and telling China's story."
The decision to close the Office of Diversity and Inclusion at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln drew praise from the highest elected office in the state on Wednesday.

But civil rights groups and LGBT advocates said dissolving the office responsible for fostering an inclusive campus for all sent the wrong message to students of color and LGBTQ students.

On Tuesday, Chancellor Rodney Bennett announced his decision to shutter the Office of Diversity and Inclusion and eliminate the position of vice chancellor for diversity and inclusion, which was created in 2018.

In an email to faculty and staff, as well as in an interview with the Journal Star, Bennett said he believed the centralized approach to improving diversity and inclusion "is no longer right for" UNL.

The decision was made outside of budget discussions, which saw the campus cut funding to the office last year as well as independent of influence from elected leaders, according to Bennett.

A bill (LB1330) introduced at the Legislature last year by Education Committee chairman Sen. Dave Murman of Glenvil would have forced UNL to close the Office of Diversity and Inclusion.

"I like to be and I like this university, as the leader of higher education across the state, to be in charge of its own narrative," Bennett said of the decision, which comes as universities in several conservative-led states have made similar moves.

Instead of a centralized office, Bennett said it would fall to UNL's 6,000-plus employees, as well as the students and others, to build "a welcoming environment for all members of our community."

A day after the announcement was made, Gov. Jim Pillen said he was pleased with Bennett's decision.

"Although that office should never have been established in the first place, it takes courage for a leader to recognize a mistake and chart a new direction," Pillen said.

The governor, who was elected to the NU Board of Regents in 2012 and served until he was elected governor in November 2022, was a member when Marco Barker was hired as vice chancellor for diversity and inclusion in 2018.

NU regents' meeting records show Pillen made the motion to approve the consent agenda item that included Barker's appointment. He later voted in favor of the hire along with seven other regents. Only Omaha Regent Hal Daub abstained.

Pillen later led a crusade against critical race theory at NU, joining in a national movement pushed by conservatives in 2021 against the academic theory that views inequalities that stem from racial discrimination.

His resolution to ban the "imposition" of critical race theory failed to be adopted, however, following a lengthy meeting where most students, faculty and alumni spoke against it.

Pillen, along with Regents Paul Kenney of Amherst and Rob Schafer of Beatrice, later pledged to keep fighting against the academic field.

"The work of eliminating (diversity, equity and inclusion) and critical race theory (CRT) from our public institutions is not complete with the elimination of one bureaucratic office, though," Pillen added on Wednesday. "We must continue the work of keeping our university curriculum, programming and its mission free of discrimination or racial preferences in any form."

Two civil rights advocacy groups panned Bennett's decision in their own statements Wednesday as problematic.

Joy Kathurima, legal and policy counsel for the ACLU of Nebraska, said without a firm plan in place for how to continue efforts to make all students and employees welcome on campus, that they viewed Bennett's decision as "deeply troubling."

"We need higher education leaders to do more than talk about fostering a welcoming campus and supporting underrepresented students," Kathurima said in a statement. "They need to walk the walk."

OutNebraska, which advocates for the LGBTQ community in the Cornhusker State, called the development "disappointing."

"This announcement comes only months after Nebraska senators introduced bills targeting diversity and inclusion efforts in public institutions," OutNebraska said. "A clear pattern has emerged across our nation's university systems, including in Nebraska."

Programs serving students of color and LGBTQ students are often the first cut when higher education funding dries up, often ending opportunities and spaces for those individuals, the organization said.

"The need for a 'decentralized approach' from Chancellor Bennett concerns us," said Abbi Swatsworth, OutNebraska's executive director. "His suggestion that a welcoming environment will come about simply by instructing staff and faculty to 'welcome all students' is unconvincing.

"We know this work requires the same care and attention that keeps any university initiative running: staff, funding and institutional support," Swatsworth added.

Pillen, however, signaled he would push NU further to remove taxpayer dollars from programs designed to promote diversity and inclusion.

"I will continue to fight to ensure taxpayer dollars are not used for these purposes, not only in state government, but throughout our university system, too," he said.

Top Journal Star photos for August 2024
Episode 156: Hosts Scott Rada and Rick Kyte discuss the findings of a New York Times/Siena College poll that revealed some intriguing insights into American beliefs and behaviors.

The poll found that while 88% of Americans support the legalization of marijuana for medical use, our federal policies do not reflect this widespread approval. Kyte noted that survey results don't always translate directly into policy, as there are often other practical considerations involved.

The hosts also examined the public's views on small businesses vs. large retailers. While 86% of Americans say small businesses have a positive effect, their spending habits often favor big-box stores and online giants. Rada and Kyte discussed how personal convenience and cost savings can outweigh stated beliefs about supporting local enterprises.

Other topics covered included the disconnect between the 81% who claim to believe in God and the much smaller percentage who actively practice their faith. The hosts also addressed Americans' near-constant smartphone use, with 81% keeping their devices close by, despite 57% admitting to addiction.

About the hosts
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.

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China's top sci-fi franchise, "The Three-Body Problem," has a new addition to its abundant and prosperous universe: a virtual reality interactive story called "Three-Body: Expedition," aimed at providing an immersive experience for science fiction fans and VR enthusiasts worldwide.



A player experiences "Three-Body: Expedition" in Beijing, Aug. 20, 2024. [Photo courtesy of The Three-Body Universe]

The VR experience, based on Liu Cixin's Hugo Award-winning novel, widely considered China's landmark sci-fi work, lets players immerse themselves in the story firsthand.

The project was unveiled on Tuesday in Beijing at a product launch event by Pico, a leading VR headset maker acquired by ByteDance in 2021. During the event, Pico announced that "Three-Body: Expedition" will be released on Aug. 26 on its platform.

"Three-Body: Expedition" uses 6 degrees of freedom (6DoF) panoramic interactive narration to guide players through key scenes from the book, such as the three-sun system and Qin Shi Huang computer. Players can also interact with characters from the novel.

The Three-Body Universe, a pioneering company in China's sci-fi industry that holds global rights for the "Three-Body" trilogy, said this was their first VR collaboration with Pico, allowing fans to experience the mysterious online game described in the book. The project represents another exploration of content that combines excellent Chinese stories with new technologies.

"For loyal fans of 'The Three-Body Problem,' this work will be a dream-come-true journey to new dimensions of experience," the company said in a statement.

"Audiences can step into the world they have imagined countless times, delve deeply into the character's inner worlds and life trajectories, and enhance their emotional resonance and identification with the original work through interactions with familiar figures.

"For those new to 'The Three-Body Problem' or VR experiences, this is a brand-new, 360-degree immersive adventure that can introduce them to the profound ideas and grand narratives of the original work, sparking a stronger interest in sci-fi literature."

A breathtaking still from "Three-Body: Expedition" recreates an iconic scene from the original novel. [Photo courtesy of The Three-Body Universe]

The Three-Body Universe spent two years developing the VR story with Pico's hardware support, focusing on design, visuals and gameplay. The company plans to continue producing immersive, interactive works using VR, mixed reality, and new media technologies, aiming to release one or two such projects annually.

The company also plans to create large-scale, in-person multiplayer extended reality experiences. "Three-Body: Expedition" will become the first such project. The company is also exploring artificial intelligence to improve virtual characters' behavior in games and interactions.

"The Three-Body Problem" has gained significant attention lately, with high-profile TV and animation series produced by Tencent Video and Bilibili, respectively. A much-anticipated live-action film adaptation by prominent Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou was also recently announced.
After three years of trying for a biological child, Samantha Lovelien and her husband decided to welcome children into their Wisconsin family a different way.

The Chippewa County couple became a part of a group of people who are greatly needed across the region: foster parents.

We didn't have any children, so we became foster parents to help children that were in need, because we had that extra space and I've always wanted to be a mom," Lovelien said.

Over the past four years through foster care, Lovelien and her husband have adopted three children and invited several others into their lives on a temporary basis.

She found motherhood fulfilling and enjoyed the opportunity to see the world through the perspectives of the foster children and their families.

'Stable, loving, safe, predictable environment'

Sarah Mumaw-Flury and her husband became respite and foster care parents after having three biological children.

The La Crosse County couple was looking to have more children in their lives.

When we first started foster care, we started nervously just saying we would do respite care, because we were, like most people, afraid to get attached to a child and then have them not stay with us," Mumaw-Flury said. "And so our first kiddo came to us for respite, and then we ended up adopting him.

In the nine years since welcoming their first respite child, they've continued to welcome children in their home for various amounts of time.

We love the opportunity to connect with kiddos consistently and provide some respite, some support to their family, and then just really give them some opportunities to do fun things that they otherwise maybe wouldn't have the opportunity to do, Mumaw-Flury said about offering respite care.

As for foster care, she said, "We're always open to expanding our family, too, and just giving opportunity or giving support to families that need it.

Respite caregivers take in children for shorter amounts of time than foster families.

Through both options, Mumaw-Flury and her family work to provide a stable and caring home for children placed with them.

It gives them some stability in a time that their family is not stable or is struggling maybe. It gives kiddos a safe and a predictable environment to be in. It offers some support to the family as they're trying to get their things figured out," she said. When we have a child placed, we just want to make sure that they're in a stable, loving, safe, predictable environment, so that their needs are being met, they know what to expect, they can grow, they can flourish, they get what they need.

She has watched growth in the children she welcomes into her home, like how they behave in public spaces and how they go about getting things they want.

She also witnessed them express more interest in reading, discover an easier time with emotional regulation and improved coping strategies.

It also has benefited her and her children, too, she said. She said her children have welcomed those that are placed in their home. They have learned to be more resilient, empathetic, compassionate and helpful through the process.

Older kids need foster families, too

Foster care authorities say more foster families are needed to help children facing issues like abuse and neglect throughout the region, including in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

In Chippewa County, Ashley Brott, manager of the county's Child Protective Services and Birth-to-Three for Chippewa County Department of Human Services, said while more foster families are needed across the board, a few critical areas stand out.

We really are in need of foster homes that are willing to take teenage children, and I would say teenage being age 10 and up," Brott said. "Most of our families would prefer children 0 to 6. Most of the foster homes would like young children. And so when we have children who are 10 or older, we typically have to look at either treatment foster homes that are not in our county or have to look at residential facilities in order to have them placed somewhere.

Brott believes families may prefer younger children because older children often have experienced more trauma and may have more behavioral issues that are harder to address.

As of July 25, Chippewa County had about 30 foster homes with 27 children in care outside of their homes. Brott said not every licensed foster home is available due to prior placements or personal reasons.

The majority of placed children were in the homes of family members, which is a goal in foster care cases whenever possible, Brott said.

While administrators try to first match children with family members when possible, foster families are still highly needed.

Really, they're the pillars to the child welfare system, Brott said. If we didn't have foster families, children would not be able to get the opportunity to live in a family home. They would be in group homes or residential facilities.

Brott said the shortage of available foster families causes some states to have to send children to other states for placement, something foster care officials try to avoid to keep families closer together.

In La Crosse County, La Crosse County Family & Children's supervisor Kari Heal said families willing to take in older children are in need.

A lot of those older kids, 12 and up really, are not in foster homes because we don't have foster homes that can meet their needs, which is really tough," Heal said. Most are in more like group care, which is really not ideal for most kids. They mostly do better in like a family setting, but we just had a hard time finding good matches for them.

She said it's sometimes difficult to find homes even for children over 5 years old.

Those are just some of our tougher kids to place, and they have such huge potential, but they just really need the right people to offer them that love and stability," she said.

In La Crosse County, Heal said, there had been 75 children placed in care outside of their homes during 2024 by June 14.

We have 75 kids in care, and we only have 68 homes licensed through La Crosse County. Some of those have more than one spot open. There are still some available beds, but it's a low number, Heal said June 14.

Of the 75 children, 28 were 4 years old or younger.

All types of caregivers, including foster and respite care are in need.

I would say a lot of these kids just really are looking for and would like stability and care from people who are in a good place in their lives, but also who are going to be open to their family," Heal said. "They all still love their parents, and even if they know that they're struggling and are having a hard time, there is still that love there. And so people who are able to provide that love and stability to the child, but also to the parents, are especially valuable resources for us and for those kids and those families.

In Minnesota's Winona County, Ashley Rankin, a children and family services licensing social worker with Winona County Health and Human Services, said the need for more foster families in the county continues to grow.

The need for foster families in Winona County is greater now than ever. We have seen a steady decline in traditional foster homes," Rankin stated. "Winona County has been very fortunate for frequently having relative options, but there are many occasions we need a traditional foster home. Typically, we are in need of foster homes for children ages 7 and older, but currently we are needing foster homes for youth of all ages.

On Aug. 9, Winona County was home to 19 licensed traditional foster homes, along with 11 other licensed foster homes that are only approved for relative or kinship care. Only four of the traditional homes did not have a placement at that time.

Each family with no placement has a different availability regarding a childs ages and needs of a child which can make finding a local placement for a child difficult, Rankin said.

On that date, there were 59 Winona County children in foster care. To help meet the needs of those children, some were placed in homes away from Winona County. Others were able to stay in Winona County in homes of relatives or kin that are working to become licensed.

Just as they are for other counties in the region, foster families are extremely important for Winona County, Rankin said.

"They are the people that open their hearts to caring for and keeping a child safe until they are hopefully able to return home. They really are the rocks that hold our realm of the world together by being available to take a placement without notice. They are often the reason children are able to reunify with their parents and maintain being a support to a family even after child protection is no longer involved. Foster families really do deserve more recognition than they receive for all they do," she stated.

Overall, there is a need for foster families throughout Minnesota  not just Winona County.

We have an ongoing need for more foster parents because Minnesota wants the most diverse pool of foster parents to choose from to best meet the needs of each child, stated Tikki Brown, Minnesotas Department of Children, Youth and Families commissioner. Many county and tribal agencies have a shortage of family foster homes and urgently need additional families to be licensed to care for Minnesotas children. Another growing need is foster parents who have the skills or are interested in training to support youth with specific needs related to developmental disabilities, mental health or other behavioral needs.

Minnesota needs foster parents who reflect the diversity of the children in care, representing all neighborhoods and communities across the state. Quite simply, we need more foster parents who reflect the children in the foster care system who can meet childrens needs," she stated.

Throughout the region, foster families are a safe place for children while counties work to reunify children with their parents.

That is the top goal for any child that is placed in care," Brott said.

"If reunification cannot occur, definitely our goal is for children to have permanency as quickly as possible, and so we either do that through adoption or guardianship or reunification," she said.

Becoming a foster parent

Both Mumaw-Flury and Lovelien recommend people who are considering becoming foster parents to just try it.

Lovelien said that the idea of being a foster parent may be scary at the start, but people should do it for the many kids who need their help. Foster parents, she said, better the lives of children in need even if they just open their homes to them temporarily.

Lovelien believes being a foster parent is rewarding, even though it can at times be overwhelming.

I feel like the good outweighs the bad," she said. "It's very rewarding in knowing that you're giving them a safe place, even if it's just temporary. You're giving them a safe place to call home and getting them set up to achieve their goals in life and also helping their families along the way.

Mumaw-Flury said the opportunity to spend time with foster children and possibly welcome them permanently into the foster family outweighs any risk of heartbreak that might come if the foster child eventually leaves the home after the foster parents have become attached to them.

To become a foster family or respite care provider in La Crosse County, people can call the county at 608-784-4357. Those interested will then start the process by going to orientation and pre-placement classes.

Potential foster parents must then complete paperwork and have a case worker assigned to them who will speak about foster care and home visits, interviews and other steps.

People interested in becoming a foster family in Winona County can apply to be one via apply via Binti, which is found after searching foster care on www.co.winona.mn.us. From there, the process starts with background checks and orientation.

Rankin then meets with prospective families to complete a home safety checklist and a home study. Policies and trainings will also be completed after that. There may be some other requirements, Rankin said, depending on the family, their background and needs.

In Chippewa County, people interested can call Sydney Kwallek, the county's foster care coordinator, at 715-726-7869. Kwallek will meet with the potential foster families then and share more information about foster care. From there, the process will begin with paperwork, background checks, home visits and more.

In Chippewa County, families interested also have the chance to speak with more experienced foster families, Brott said.

The county, she said, also makes sure to support the foster families through both the ups and downs of foster care.
An aerial drone photo taken on Jan. 10, 2024 shows wind turbines in Liutang Township of Shizhu Tujia Autonomous County, southwest China's Chongqing. [Photo/Xinhua]

Chinese authorities on Wednesday unveiled an action plan to promote large-scale equipment renewals in the energy sector, as it moves towards achieving carbon reduction goals.

By 2027, China's equipment investment in key areas of the energy sector is expected to increase by more than 25 percent compared with 2023, according to the action plan jointly released by the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration.

Measures detailed in the plan will focus on transformation of coal-fired power generation units, as well as equipment renewals and technological upgrading of wind power, solar power, hydropower and other areas.

Key tasks outlined also include promoting equipment renewals and technical transformation related to power transmission and distribution, and upgrading clean energy heating equipment.

To ensure implementation of the plan, China will step up fiscal, tax and financial support. Financial institutions will be encouraged to make good use of supporting policies and increase medium- and long-term loans to the manufacturing sector, according to the plan.

In March, the State Council released an action plan to promote the large-scale renewal of equipment and the trade-in of consumer goods, setting out a raft of key tasks in five categories.

The country has announced that it will peak carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060.
Operators of artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot tools have made it clear that users requests can be saved and used to further develop the AI systems.

But what if a user does not want that? Some tools permit users to request that personal information used in chatbot requests not be saved or used to develop or train AI systems.

Technology experts say it could be too late for users who have already provided information to these tools to have the data removed. But the Associated Press is offering the following advice for users who want to increase their privacy protections.

Google Gemini

Google saves chatbot interactions, known as conversations, with its Gemini tool. The company says it uses the data to train its machine learning systems. But the company does give users a way to limit the information captured and to remove past conversations.

For users 18 or older, requests are kept for 18 months, although this can be changed in user settings. Human workers are sometimes used by Google to examine some user conversations as part of efforts to improve Geminis systems. In general, Google warns Gemini users not to enter any sensitive information they do not want human workers to see.

Gemini users can change or opt-out of these default settings. From the main Gemini website page, users should find and click on the Activity button toward the bottom left of the page. From there, they can click the Turn off button next to the heading Gemini Apps Activity. Users then have the chance to block future conversations from being saved. They can also choose to have all previous conversations removed.

Whether a user chooses to turn their activity off or leave it on, Google notes that all conversations with Gemini are saved for 72 hours to provide the service and process any feedback.

Meta AI

Meta has an AI chatbot used across its social media services Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram. The company says its AI models are trained on information shared by users including social media posts and photos. Meta says it does not train its AI systems on private messages sent by users to friends or family.

Not everyone can opt out of this policy. People in the 27-nation European Union and Britain  both of which have strong privacy rules  can. This process can be completed from Metas main Privacy Center. Click Other Policies and Articles from the list near the bottom on the left side, then click the part related to AI. Users can then find a link to a form to opt out.

People in the United States and other countries without national data privacy laws do not have this ability.

Meta's Privacy Center does link to a form where users can request that their data captured by third parties not be used to "develop and improve AI at Meta. But the company says these requests are examined before being acted upon and might be rejected based on local laws.

Microsoft Copilot

With Microsofts Copilot chatbot, personal users cannot opt out of having their data used to develop the companys AI models. The best a user can do is to remove conversations with the chatbot by going to Microsoft account's settings and privacy page. Find the drop-down choice called Copilot interaction history or Copilot activity history to find the button to remove the history.

OpenAIs ChatGPT

Users of OpenAIs ChatGPT service can make privacy changes from the tools settings page. Find the data controls setting and remove the choice called "Improve the model for everyone." If a user does not have an account, they can click on the small question mark at the bottom right of the page. Then click Settings to see the same choice to opt out of AI training.

OpenAI explains on its data controls help page that when users opt out, their conversations will still appear in the history but will not be used for training. The company says these temporary conversations will be kept for 30 days.

Anthropic's Claude AI

Anthropic is an AI research company based in San Francisco. The company says its Claude AI tool is not trained on personal data. However, users can request permission for specific conversations to be used in training or not. Users can do this by giving the conversation a thumbs up or thumbs down or by emailing the company.

Im Bryan Lynn.

Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English, based on reports from The Associated Press, Google, Meta and other online sources.

Quiz - Tech Tip: How to Keep Your Chatbot Activity More Private Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz

___________________________________________

Words in This Story

chatbot  n. a computer program designed to interact with humans

default  n. what exists or usually happens if no changes are made

button  n. an image, or icon, that appears on a computer screen which the user can click to cause software to perform some kind of action

feedback  n. information or statements of opinion about something
An investigation into the death of American actor Matthew Perry has led to criminal charges against five people. Perry, a star of the popular television series Friends, died suddenly in October. He was 54. Doctors who examined his body after death said Perry died from an overdose of the powerful drug ketamine.

So what is ketamine?

Ketamine is a powerful anesthetic. The drug is often used to put people into a deep sleep for medical operations, also called surgery. The treatment is called general anesthesia. A doctor can inject the drug into a muscle or through a liquid flow directly into a patients veins.

The drugs chemistry is similar to the recreational drug called PCP. Some people use ketamine recreationally for its euphoric effects. It can cause hallucinations and can affect breathing and the heart.

Ketamine becomes popular

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved ketamine for use only for general anesthesia. However, American doctors are free to prescribe drugs for treatments other than those approved by the FDA. This is known as off-label use.

Ketamine use has seen a huge, fast rise in recent years as a treatment for pain and mental health disorders, including depression and anxiety.

Perry was using it to treat depression. His usual doctors were treating him with what is called ketamine infusion therapy. However, investigators say the actor turned to other sources when his doctors refused to give him as much as he wanted.

Last week, government lawyers said Perry got ketamine illegally through a group that included two doctors, Perrys assistant and a woman they identified as the Ketamine Queen. Perrys assistant injected the actor with ketamine  including several times on the day Perry died.

How else is ketamine being used?

Emergency medical workers also sometimes use ketamine to sedate people who appear to be out of control, aggressive or a threat to themselves or others. Some states and agencies around the country have begun to reconsider this use of ketamine because of the drugs health risks.

In 2019, an American court found two emergency medical workers guilty in the overdose killing of a teenager in Colorado. The medical team injected the man with a deadly amount of ketamine during a police operation.

An Associated Press investigation found that, generally, use of ketamine and similar drugs as a policing or security tool has spread quietly across the nation over the last 15 years.

Im Caty Weaver.

The Associated Press reported this story. Caty Weaver adapted the report for VOA Learning English.

_______________________________________________

Words in This Story

overdose n. a lethal or toxic amount (as of a drug)

euphoric adj. marked by a feeling of great happiness and excitement: characterized by, based on, or producing euphoria

hallucination n. the awareness of something (as a visual image, a sound, or a smell) that seems to be experienced through one of the senses but is not real, cannot be sensed by someone else, and is usually the result of mental illness or the effect of a drug

prescribe v. to write or give medical orders, such as for drugs or other treatments

sedate v to dose with sedatives, drugs that can make people sleep

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Mary, the Queen Consort of Denmark, appeared in public in a fashionable skirt that is perfect for hot weather. The wife of King Frederik and her lover visited an island in the Baltic Sea, where the temperature is quite high at this time, as indicated by the ruler's desire to cover her head with a hat.

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The centerpiece of the look was the beige pleated skirt of the king's wife, which gathered in pleats at the hips. The upper part was one-piece and emphasized the queen consort's waist.

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Fashion glossy Lofficiel USA called pleated skirts "timeless elegance". Summer looks with this element of the wardrobe are considered "casually luxurious".

Earlier, OBOZ.UA wrote that the First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska showed a stylish emerald-colored outfit at a diplomatic meeting.

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Police are investigating a suspected arson incident at a pedestrian bridge near Taipa Lake. The fire, reported around 10 p.m. on August 20, caused burn marks on a beehive located under the overpass opposite Estrada Padre Estevao Eusebio Situ. Witnesses reported seeing ashes falling from the beehive, which was approximately three meters above the ground. Fire officials confirmed no injuries occurred, and initial inspections revealed no other signs of burning on the bridge.

Related
A worker counts Chinese currency renminbi at a bank in Linyi, East China's Shandong province. [Photo/Xinhua]

China's banks have seen steady asset expansion since the start of the year, an official with the country's financial regulator said on Wednesday.

The assets of financial institutions in China's banking sector grew 7 percent year on year to 423.8 trillion yuan (about 59.43 trillion U.S. dollars) at the end of July, Xiao Yuanqi, deputy head of the National Financial Regulatory Administration, told a press conference.

Xiao said the sector's non-performing loan ratio stood at 1.61 percent at the end of July, down 0.08 percentage points compared to the same period last year.

The sector's capital adequacy ratio stood at 15.53 percent at the end of June, indicating that the sector has sufficient "ammunition" to withstand risks, Xiao said.

Looking to the future, the administration will continue to help banks optimize asset-liability structure and cultivate new sources of profit growth to enhance profitability, he added.
A zerbaijan formally applied to join the BRICS bloc of developing economies, a day after Russian leader Vladimir Putins visit to the oil-rich South Caucasus country to shore up regional ties and secure Moscows under-pressure trade routes.

The announcement from the foreign ministry in Azerbaijans capital, Baku, comes as the BRICS alliance has seen a major expansion. For over a decade, the bloc included just five nations: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates joined in January, and Saudi Arabia has said its considering doing so as well.

The club already includes some of the worlds biggest oil producers, and accounts for well over a quarter of the worlds GDP. Its members Russia and Iran have had their relations with the West stretched to breaking point over Moscows war on Ukraine and Irans regional policies.

Business ties were high on the agenda during the meeting between Putin and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on Monday, with Aliyev announcing that $120 million had been earmarked to boost cargo transport between the two countries.

Putin increasingly depends on countries such as Azerbaijan to access global markets because of sanctions imposed on Moscow over its actions in Ukraine, according to political scientist Zardusht Alizade.

For Azerbaijan, retaining Moscows good-will is important for national security over tensions with neighboring Armenia, said Alizade. MDT/AP
The Macau Portuguese Schools (EPM) recent announcement of hiring five new teachers has raised questions about recent departures from the institution, according to Diogo Baptista, president of the General Assembly of the Association of Parents of the Portuguese School in Macau.

The hiring notice was published on the schools website on Tuesday, seeking candidates to teach math, physics, chemistry, computer science and French to high school students. The application period runs from Aug. 20 to 26.

What worries us is whether this indicates that classes might not resume as normal, said Baptista in an interview with TDM. He noted that the hiring comes just days before the new school year is set to begin on Sep. 5.

The association is uncertain if the new hires are related to the departure of 10 teachers, a process initiated by school director Acacio de Brito at the end of May. That process concluded with the reinstating of special licenses for four teachers and a psychologist by the Portuguese Ministry of Education.

It also remains unclear if the 10 replacements Brito mentioned have arrived in Macau. The Portuguese governments dispatch orders the immediate hiring of any new teachers needed to ensure classes start on time. Brito was unavailable for comment.

Baptista praised the public announcement and selection process, which involves representatives from the school board and parents association. This is the first time that we, as the Association of Parents, have been informed of an announcement posted on the website to recruit in this manner. It is the first time that we have been involved in the recruitment process in this way, he said.

Experience outside Portugal is also seen as a plus, Batista noted, given Macaus specific cultural context and student body, which is not primarily made up of native Portuguese speakers. Victoria Chan
Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng has announced yesterday that he will not run for re-election due to health issues. This decision comes just a month after the government extended his leave, which began on June 21. This leave marks his first significant break since he took office on Dec. 20, 2019.

In a statement from the Government Information Bureau (GCS), Ho clarified that his health has not been fully restored and expressed his gratitude for the support he has received throughout his term.

I have profound feelings for Macau and have done my utmost for Macaus development, but due to the fact that my health has not been fully restored, for the sake of Macaus long-term development and from the perspective of the overall situation, I have decided not to participate in the election for the sixth-term Chief Executive, he said.

As the term of office of the fifth Chief Executive of the Macao Special Administrative Region is coming to an end, I, Ho Iat Seng, sincerely thank the Central Government, all sectors of Macau society, and our residents for their full trust and steadfast support over the past five years. I would also like to thank all the civil servants for their close collaboration and coordination, he added.

Ho Iat Seng is notable for being the first Chief Executive to serve only one term.

In May, following a visit from Xia Baolong, the top official for Hong Kong and Macau affairs, questions arose about Hos potential re-election.

However, Ho clarified that no discussions regarding his replacement took place during Xias inspection of the SAR.

Last weekend, Shi Taifeng, a 68-year-old official who sits on the Politburo  the countrys top decision-making body  was in town for a two-day visit. He was said to have met with all the key officials and conveyed the messages of the resolution adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee held in mid-July.

Sam Hou Fai on queue

A source familiar with the process, who requested anonymity, told the Times earlier this week that if Ho decided not to seek reelection, top judge Sam Hou Fai would run for the top post.

On Dec. 20, 1999, Sam was appointed by the then-Chief Executive as the president of the Court of Final Appeal of the SAR. He also serves as the President of the Council of the Judicial Magistrates.

Born in May 1962 in China and raised in Zhongshan, he began university in 1978 and attended law school in 1981, eventually earning his bachelors degree in law from Peking University. After practicing law in China, he moved to Macau in 1986, studied at the University of Coimbra, and joined the Public Prosecutions Office of Macau in 1995.

Other personalities being touted as potential nominees include members of Hos government, Andre Cheong, Wong Sio Chak and Prosecutor General Ip Son Sang.

According to political scientist Sonny Lo, the new Chief Executive is expected to continue focusing on economic and livelihood issues, similar to Ho.

But the election will be more competitive as we can expect more than one candidate, Lo told the Times.

An interesting factor is the youthfulness of some members of the Election Committee and their orientation will make the election quite uncertain and competitive. Given Chinas concern about national security, any candidate from a disciplinary and legal background may have a competitive edge, he added.

So far, Jorge Chiang, the president of the Macau Lotus Chamber of Commerce and the Macau Society of Institutional Studies, is the only individual who has announced his intention to run.

In a Facebook post last month, Chiang pledged to establish a responsible and clean government, governed by the rule of law, with people as the priority.

Electoral process

The Electoral Affairs Commission for the Chief Executive (CAECE) of Macau announced last week that the official period for the nomination of candidates for the Chief Executive Election will run from Aug. 29 to Sep. 12.

During this period, potential candidates must submit their applications in person or through a designated representative at the Electoral Affairs Service Counter located in the Public Administration Building. They will need to collect and submit the Nomination Form for the Chief Executive Election within the specified period.

All candidates must affirm their commitment to the Basic Law and their loyalty to the Peoples Republic of China and the Macau SAR, according to the commissions statement.

With input from the State Security Commission of the Macau SAR (CDSE), the CAECE will verify the eligibility of all candidates.

The nomination process requires the support of at least 66 members of the Electoral Commission, as stipulated by the Chief Executive Electoral Law. The CAECEs decisions regarding candidate eligibility are final, with no recourse for appeal.

According to Executive Order No. 40/2024, published in the Official Gazette on Aug. 12, the election date for the Chief Executive has been set for Oct. 13, 2024.
A flood of Chinese products into Indonesia has hit local manufacturers hard, prompting the government to look for ways to placate domestic producers while avoiding angering the countrys biggest trading partner.

Garment makers  both home-based piece work producers and factories  have appealed for help as they lose market share to low-cost apparel and textiles from China. A surge of products bought online has added to the problem.

A protest by workers in Jakarta prompted Indonesian Minister of Trade Zulkifli Hasan to announce in July that the government will impose import tariffs of up to 200% on some products from China, particularly textiles, clothing, footwear, electronics, ceramics and cosmetics, to try to protect local businesses and prevent layoffs.

The United States can impose a 200% tariff on imported ceramics or clothes, so we can do it as well, Zulkifli said, to ensure micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises and industries survive and thrive.

But China is Indonesias largest trading partner, with two-way trade exceeding $127 billion in 2023. Imposing higher tariffs could prompt Chinese manufacturers to invest in more in factories in Indonesia, but could also backfire, leading Beijing to retaliate. As a result, the government announced in July that it was setting up a task force to monitor and handle problems related to certain imports.

Its an urgent matter, Hasan said, given the flood of imported products that has caused closures of textile factories and mass layoffs. From January to July 2024, at least 12 textile factories shut down operations, causing more than 12,000 workers to lose their jobs, according to the Nusantara Trade Union Confederation.

In Bandung district in Indonesias West Java province  an area famous for textiles such as batiks, handwoven fabrics and silks  imports of Chinese products have left thousands of workers idle and without regular incomes, said Neng Wati, a manager at manufacturing company Asnur Konveksi.

Now they take turns. The number of workers stays the same, but the work is divided up and not all get some. Some of them have been off for two weeks, some of them havent gotten work for a month, Wati said.

Thats a hard blow coming after the slow days of the COVID-19 pandemic, when many workers were shifted to e-commerce to make ends meet, said Nandi Herdiaman, head of a local organization of small- and medium-sized entrepreneurs. Only 60% of the 8,000 members of the association kept working after the pandemic.

Now, the biggest challenge is cheap imports from China. In the past two months, output from home-based industries has fallen by 70%, the industry organization says.

The uptick in imports of Chinese products is partly seen as the result of trade friction between the U.S. and China, which has led to increased American tariffs on Chinese goods. But it also reflects rising trade within Asia as the region implements various free trade pacts, as well as weakening demand in Western markets for Chinese exports.

Industry groups in Thailand have also expressed increasing concern about an influx of cheap products from China, which they say have greatly hurt sales by domestic producers who are unable to compete.

In what it called an urgent measure, the Thai government imposed a 7% value-added tax on all imported products, a change from the previous rule that only collected taxes on imported products that cost more than 1,500 baht ($44). The policy is only in effect from July until December this year to give the government time to study the issue before a longer-term solution can be applied.

In December, Indonesia issued a regulation to tighten monitoring of more than 3,000 imported goods, including food ingredients, electronics and chemicals. But the regulation was reversed after domestic industry said it hindered the flow of imported materials needed for local production, and the government began considering steep tariff hikes instead.

While smaller manufacturers have suffered the greatest setbacks, big factories are also hurting.

Jany Suhertan, managing director of PT Eksonindo Multi Product Industry, which makes clothing and accessories like backpacks and handbags in West Java, wants the government to raise import duties on finished goods from China but not on raw materials needed to make products in Indonesia.

Nearly half of the materials his company uses are from China.

I dont agree with imposing (higher tariffs) on raw products, since the government should protect the supply chain. If it is not secure, it will impact production, Suhertan said. EDNA TARIGAN, JAKARTA, MDT/AP
In a significant crackdown, Chinas Ministry of Public Security announced that joint operations with Macau authorities have led to the detention of 252 suspects involved in unauthorized currency exchange activities. The ministry estimates that the illicit trading network was valued at approximately RMB3 billion.

According to a press release from the ministry, these operations targeted 19 suspected syndicates operating across Nanchang city in Jiangxi province, Zhuhai in Guangdong, and Macau.

Authorities believe around 300 individuals are linked to these criminal groups, which reportedly include family and friends working together. The suspects are accused of executing remote orders to withdraw cash from banks and connect with underground financial networks, facilitating currency trading in and around Macaus casinos and hotels.

The ministry noted that these criminal activities have been ongoing for years, with an escalation in recent years posing a serious threat to Macaus security. Reported crimes associated with the illicit forex trading network include scams, robberies, and illegal immigration.

The recent enforcement actions, described by the ministry as analogous to an ant eradication, underscore the extensive efforts being made to dismantle these criminal enterprises. Of the detained individuals, 57 were identified by Macau police as mainland residents and have since been handed over to their respective authorities.

In response to the ongoing issue of unauthorized money exchange, the Macau government is proposing legislation to criminalize such activities within all casino areas. Discussions on this proposal are set to continue in the Legislative Assembly. This initiative aims to enhance regulatory control and combat the rising tide of illicit financial transactions in the region.
The directly elected lawmakers from the group New Hope, which primarily represents civil servants, are hopeful that the government will increase the wages of civil servants next year, Jose Pereira Coutinho and Che Sai Wang said during a media briefing yesterday where they reviewed the legislative work at the Legislative Assembly (AL).

Regarding the upcoming Chief Executive (CE election), Pereira Coutinho stated that he is not currently supporting any candidate but emphasized the need for a new CE to provide a change in attitude from their predecessors.

Pereira Coutinho, who maintains close ties with some factions within the Portuguese community in Macau, also highlighted the importance of ensuring that the Macau Basic Law enshrines the customs and traditions of the community of Portuguese descent in Macau. He urged the new CE to ensure that these traditions are upheld and respected, and that no discrimination occurs against residents of Portuguese descent in Macau.

He specifically called for the regulation of Article 42 of the Basic Law, which mandates that The interests of the residents of Portuguese descent in Macau shall be protected by the Macau Special Administrative Region following the law, and their customs and cultural traditions shall be respected.

Pereira Coutinho noted that, despite this legal provision that clearly stipulates the need to protect this heritage, there are no concrete rules to ensure its implementation in practice, leading to potential abuses and discrimination. For example, he cited issues with accessing subsidies and reserving venues for Portuguese community celebrations.

Looking ahead to the new Macau government, which will follow the election of the new CE on Oct. 13, Pereira Coutinho urged a focus on improving the populaces quality of life, guaranteeing that basic needs are met, and resolving transportation issues.

He also called on the new government to consider the publics opinions and to communicate more directly with citizens.

Reflecting on the legislative year, the lawmaker expressed disappointment with the administration, noting a weakening of the ALs supervisory powers over government activities and decisions.

He noted the constant vetoing of debate motions from the government-appointed lawmakers, and the lack of transparency in the responses from government officials to the lawmakers inquiries and requests for clarification, with many inquiries remaining unanswered.

According to recent statistics, during the last legislative year, both Pereira Coutinho and Che Sai Wang submitted a total of 119 inquiries on matters relating to government supervision and 634 inquiries to the CE and various government departments on social issues.

Both Pereira Coutinho and Che Sai Wang have expressed the belief that the governments response to lawmakers inquiries has been inadequate, and called for greater transparency in governance and improved governance capabilities.
Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Chinese premier Li Qiang yesterday, hailing growing trade relations as Moscow becomes increasingly dependent on Beijing for political and economic support.

Our trade relations are developing, developing successfully  The attention that the governments of the two countries on both sides are paying to trade and economic ties is yielding results, Putin said at the meeting in the Kremlin.

He also said that Russia and China have developed large-scale plans for economic and other projects.

Chinese-Russian relations are at an unprecedentedly high level, said Li, who earlier had met with his Russian counterpart, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.

The meeting took place as Russia struggled to push back an incursion by Ukrainian forces into the Kursk region that began more than two weeks ago. Moscow saw overnight drone attacks that officials said were one of the largest wave of drones on the Russian capital since the start of the Ukraine conflict.

Russian news reports did not indicate whether Putin and Li discussed Ukraine.

China has tried to position itself as neutral in the Ukraine conflict.
A year ago this week, President Vladmir Putin strode onto a stage in the Kursk region to commemorate the 80th anniversary of one of the Soviet armys proudest moments in World War II.

Addressing a rapt audience that included soldiers fresh from fighting in Ukraine, Putin called the decisive victory in the Battle of Kursk one of the great feats of our people.

Now, as Russia prepares to celebrate the 81st anniversary of that 1943 battle on Friday, Kursk is again in the news  but for a very different reason.

On Aug. 6, Ukrainian forces made a lightning push into the region, seizing villages, taking hundreds of prisoners and forcing the evacuation of tens of thousands of civilians. Russia was caught unprepared by the offensive and reportedly is drafting conscripts to repel some of Ukraines most battle-hardened units.

Putin has a history of responding slowly to various crises in his tenure, and he has so far played down the attack. But 2 1/2 years after launching a war in Ukraine to remove what he called a threat to Russia, it is his own country that seems more turbulent.

He appeared uneasy at an Aug. 12 televised meeting of his security staff about Kursk, cutting off the acting regional governor who had started listing the settlements seized by Ukraine. The president and his officials referred to the events in the Kursk region as a situation, or provocation.

State media fell into line, showing evacuees queueing for aid or donating blood, as if the events in Kursk were a humanitarian disaster and not the largest attack on Russia since World War II.

In his 24 years in power, Putin has portrayed himself as the only person who can guarantee Russias security and stability, but that image has suffered since the war began.

Russian cities have come under drone attacks and shelling from Kyivs forces. Mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin launched a brief uprising last year to try to oust his military leaders. Gunmen stormed a Moscow concert hall and killed 145 people in March.

The Kremlin has given tacit approval to a wide-ranging purge of Defense Ministry officials, with many facing corruption charges.

In another reminder that fortunes in Russia can change quickly, authorities started criminal cases against other officials and are seeking to confiscate land from some of the countrys wealthiest people in a posh area outside Moscow near a Putin residence.

While state TV drives the still-strong support for Putin despite setbacks like the Kursk incursion, its harder to gauge the opinions of his key constituency  Russias elites.

Putin is dependent on their acquiescence, said Ekaterina Schulmann, a nonresident scholar at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center in Berlin.

The calculation thats going on in their heads 24/7 is whether the status quo is to their advantage or not, she said.

Since the war began, life for those elites  Putins inner circle, top bureaucrats, security and military officials, and business leaders  has gotten worse, not better. While many have been enriched by the war, they have fewer places to spend their money because of Western sanctions.

The question they are asking themselves about Putin, Schulmann said, is whether the old man is still an asset or already a liability.

Russias elites could be described as being in a state of unhappy compliance, said Nigel Gould-Davies, senior fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London. They are discontented with the status quo, he said, but fearful about who would win if there were to be a leadership struggle.

They could be hoping, the analysts said, that Putins reaction to the events in Kursk fits a pattern in which he is initially slow to respond to a crisis before eventually managing to prevail.

On Aug. 19, 2000, less than a year after Putin became president, the Kursk sank in the Barents Sea after one of its torpedoes exploded, killing all 118 sailors aboard. Putin stayed on vacation early in the crisis  setting off widespread criticism  and waited five days before accepting Western offers of help that might have saved some sailors who initially survived the explosion.

Putin also appeared sluggish in responding to the June 2023 uprising by Wagner chief Prigozhin in what became the most serious challenge to his authority yet.

After the mutiny fizzled, Prigozhin initially was allowed to remain free, but Schulmann said Putin eventually got the last laugh when the mercenary leader was killed a month later in a still-mysterious crash on his private plane.

As the Ukrainian offensive enters its third week, Putin sought to keep to his schedule and even embarked on a two-day trip to Azerbaijan, without mentioning the crisis. On Tuesday he briefly referred to it, promising to fight those who commit crimes in the Kursk region.

With domestic dissent stifled and with the media firmly under his control, Putin can afford to make the absolutely cynical decision to ignore what is happening in the Kursk region, Schulmann said.

Still, Putins hold on power is unlikely to be weakened as a result of this humiliation, wrote Eugene Rumer, senior fellow and the director of the Carnegie Russia and Eurasia Program, in a commentary. The entire Russian political and military establishment is complicit in his war and responsible for this disaster.

The longer the Ukrainian offensive goes on, however, the more military and political challenges it presents.

Russia appears to be struggling to find suitable forces to repel the Ukrainian assault. EMMA BURROWS, Associated Press, MDT/AP
The Municipal Affairs Bureau (IAM) has returned two male Sichuan golden monkeys to the mainland after their loan period expired. In 2017, the IAM signed an agreement with the Qinhuangdao Wildlife Rescue Center to borrow the monkeys for conservation and educational purposes at Seac Pai Van Park in Coloane. Originally scheduled to return in 2022, the plan was delayed due to the pandemic. Following extensive monitoring and evaluation, the monkeys, named Sanhei and Liansheng, were safely transported to Shenzhen Wildlife Park for continued breeding efforts to support their species conservation.

Related
Mobile phone operator SmarTone has announced that it will discontinue services in Macau.

In a statement on its website, the company explained that the decision followed extensive business evaluation. To ensure continuity of service, SmarTone has partnered with Companhia de Telecomunicacoes de Macau (CTM). Customers will be able to rely on CTM for the duration of their existing contracts and can opt for new service plans available through the provider.

Starting yesterday, SmarTone began individually notifying customers via SMS about the timeline for SIM card replacement and other related details. The replacement process will occur from Aug. 22 to Oct. 31.

The Macau Post and Telecommunications Bureau has acknowledged SmarTones application to abandon its 4G license and its decision not to renew its 3G license upon expiration.

The bureau confirmed that SmarTone and CTM have reached an agreement for customer transfers.

Regarding staffing, SmarTone is dedicated to handling employee arrangements in accordance with the Labour Relations Law. The company stated that it will collaborate with CTM to offer suitable employment opportunities to current employees, aiming to retain talent within the telecommunications sector.
Dubai, an economic powerhouse of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), hosted a business forum in Beijing on Wednesday, seeking to attract more Chinese companies and investment to the Middle East's leading business hub.

The event, which drew over 700 participants to a packed conference hall in downtown Beijing, underscored the growing interest among Chinese enterprises in forging partnerships amid increasingly warm ties between China and the Middle East.

Mohammad Ali Rashed Lootah, president and CEO of Dubai Chambers, addresses the Dubai Business Forum  China, in Beijing, on Aug. 21, 2024. [Photo provided by Dubai Chambers]

Mohammad Ali Rashed Lootah, president and CEO of Dubai Chambers, host of the forum, emphasized Dubai's strategic role as a gateway to the Middle East in his opening address. He highlighted the city's world-class infrastructure, business-friendly environment, supportive regulatory framework, and favorable tax regime as key factors making Dubai an ideal launch pad for global business.

Lootah also identified the digital economy, green technologies, and healthcare as priority sectors for collaboration. He pointed out that as the UAE seeks to double the digital economy's contribution to national GDP from 9.7% in 2022 to 19.4% within the next decade, Dubai has developed a robust ecosystem to support tech entrepreneurs. "Chinese companies can benefit from unrivalled access to investment and financing, together with a wide range of business accelerators and incubators," he said.

Speaking to the media on the sidelines of the forum, Hadi Badri, CEO of Economic Development at Dubai Economy and Tourism, highlighted the increasing presence of Chinese companies in Dubai. According to Badri, approximately 740 Chinese businesses established operations in the city during the first half of this year, adding to the existing 5,000.

"I think the importance of China to Dubai and the UAE is very clear. And we believe also the importance of Dubai and the UAE to China is also becoming very apparent, because the Middle East is an attractive place for China to do business," Badri said.

A panel discussion centering on China-UAE collaboration takes place during the Dubai Business Forum  China, in Beijing, on Aug. 21, 2024. [Photo provided by Dubai Chambers]

During a panel discussion, Jeffrey Li, managing partner at Tencent Investment, said that Chinese companies, particularly in the tech sector, should be aware of differences in cultures, legal systems, and languages, and the challenge of local talent recruitment when expanding into the Middle Eastern market.

Trade in goods between China and the UAE climbed 6.2% year on year in the first seven months of this year to over US$57.9 billion, with Chinese exports rising 13.8% in the same period, data from China Customs shows.
An ambitious plan to build a massive solar farm in remote northern Australia that would transmit energy by submarine cable to Singapore is a step closer after the Australian government granted environmental approvals for the 30 billion Australian dollar ($19 billion) project yesterday.

Australian company Sun Cable plans to build a 12,400-hectare solar farm and transport electricity to the northern Australian city of Darwin via an 800-kilometer (497-mile) overhead transmission line, then on to large-scale industrial customers in Singapore through a 4,300-kilometer (2,672-mile) submarine cable.

The Australia-Asia PowerLink project aims to deliver up to six gigawatts of green electricity each year, which according to Australian Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek will help turn Australia into a renewable energy superpower and boost its economy.

This massive project is a generation-defining piece of infrastructure, Plibersek said in a written statement yesterday. It will be the largest solar precinct in the world  and heralds Australia as the world leader in green energy.

The project was initially backed by Australian mining magnate Andrew Forrest and Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes. The plans were highlighted during a state visit by then Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese as part of a  Green Economy  agreement in 2022.

In January 2023, the project collapsed when Sun Cable entered voluntary administration due to a funding dispute between Forrest and Cannon-Brookes. By May of that year, a consortium led by Cannon-Brookes Grok Ventures acquired the company, finalizing the takeover in September 2023.

SunCable Australias managing director Cameron Garnsworthy said it was pleased to have cleared a major regulatory hurdle and will now focus its efforts on the next stage of planning to advance the project towards a Final Investment Decision targeted by 2027.

The company said electricity supply would commence in the early 2030s.

Energy has been a politically charged issue for nearly two decades in Australia, which is reliant on coal and gas as well as royalties from exporting those fuels to help underpin its economy.

This reliance on fossil fuels has historically made it one of the worlds worst greenhouse gas emitters on a per capita basis.

Australias main opposition party in June announced plans to build the countrys first nuclear power plants as early as 2035, ensuring the major parties will be divided on how Australia curbs its greenhouse gas emissions at elections due within a year.

The parties havent gone to an election with the same carbon reduction policies since 2007.

Australians have a choice between a renewable energy transition thats already underway creating jobs and driving down prices; or paying for an expensive nuclear fantasy that may never happen, Plibersek said. KEIRAN SMITH, NEWCASTLE, MDT/AP
A town of Bristol house was destroyed by a fire early Thursday morning, authorities reported.

At about 1:55 a.m. Thursday, Dane County deputies and fire crews from Sun Prairie, Columbus, Madison and Dane were sent to a structure fire at 2042 Branch Road in the town of Bristol, Dane County Sheriffs House Lt. Donald Dudley said in a statement.

They found the house fully engulfed in flames when they arrived, but it was unoccupied, Dudley said, and no injuries were reported.

The main fire was in the kitchen, living area, roof, and attic space, Sun Prairie Fire Department Battalion Chief Christopher Reese said in a statement.

The house was located on a narrow dead-end road which made it a challenge to position fire apparatus and establish water supply, Reese said.

Fire damage is estimated at $250,000-$275,000, Reese said.

The cause of the blaze remains under investigation, Reese said.
You are here: China





[Photo/chinapost.com.cn]

China Post will issue a set of four stamps on Thursday to commemorate the 120th anniversary of late leader Deng Xiaoping's birth.

Each of the stamps features an oil painting portrait of Deng in memory of his glorious career and charismatic demeanor, China Post said Wednesday.

The paintings are titled "Diligent Work-Frugal Study experiences," "years of military service," "spring of science" and "reform and opening-up."

Born on Aug. 22, 1904 in Sichuan Province, southwest China, Deng is remembered as "chief architect" of China's reform and opening-up that started in the late 1970s.

Priced at 4.8 yuan (67 U.S. cents) per set, 7 million sets of the stamps will be issued.
The Metropolitan Museum of the Philippines has collaborated with the Singapore Embassy in Manila for the joint exhibition Chances of Contact: Contemporary Prints from the Philippines and Singapore.

Serving as part of the celebrations for the 55th anniversary of bilateral relations between the Philippines and Singapore, the exhibition is set to feature creations by 16 artists from both countries. These artworks were made during their residency at the STPIs Creative Workshop.

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The exhibit aims to provide new ways for people to enjoy the art of print and papermaking through the lens of different time periods, mediums, and art forms.

The exhibition is curated by Patrick Flores, Deputy Director of Curatorial & Research at National Gallery Singapore and professor of Art History and Criticism at the University of the Philippines.

In addition to the exhibition, there will also be a printing workshop where attendees can transfer their designs by hand. The workshops will be held on Aug. 24, Aug. 31, Sept. 7, and Sept. 14.

With Aug. 23 declared a holiday, the opening of the Chances of Contact: Contemporary Prints from the Philippines and Singapore exhibition will now be on Aug. 24 and will run until Oct. 26 at the Metropolitan Museum of Manilas South Gallery.
SFA Semicon Philippines Corp. (SSP) said Thursday it is voluntarily delisting its shares from the Philippine Stock Exchange.

SFA Semicon Co. Ltd. will acquire all outstanding common shares in the company it did not own at P2.22 per share, the company said in a disclosure to the stock exchange.

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SSP said the P2.22 per share acquisition price is the highest valuation of the companys shares based on the fairness opinion and valuation report prepared by R.G. Manabat & Co.

Following the disclosure, SSP requested for a voluntary trading suspension of its common shares to give the investing public time to absorb the disclosed information. The share price of SSP closed at P1.50 on Wednesday.

The company has public float of 10.01 percent with 204.662 million common shares being held by minority investors. At P2.22 per share, SFA Korea will spend P454.34 million to acquire all shares held by minority investors.

The board approved the filing of an application for the voluntary delisting subject to shareholders approval and conduct of a tender offering during a special meeting held on Wednesday.

The company intends to file with the PSE the petition for voluntary delisting, and SFA Korea intends to launch the tender offer in support of the petition for voluntary delisting, as soon as stockholders approval on the voluntary delisting is obtained by the company, SSP said.

The company will conduct a special stockholders meeting on Oct. 11, 2024, with record date of Sept. 6, 2024.

SSP is a majority-owned subsidiary of SFA Korea and a part of the SFA Engineering Group of South Korea. SSP is one the countrys largest semiconductor companies and the biggest exporters in terms of dollar revenues in the Clark Freeport Zone in Pampanga.

The company is one of the major technology employers in the Freeport. Jenniffer B. Austria

SSP posted a net loss of $3.13 million in the first half of 2024, a turnaround from $3.16 million net income recorded in the same period last year.

Revenues reached $105.7 million, slightly lower than $119.35 million posted a year ago.

SSP will be the second company to voluntarily delist its shares on the local bourse this year, after Premium Leisure Corp., the gaming investment firm of the Sy family which delisted its shares in July.
Chinese businessmen proposed the development of a business district around the Manila Bay similar to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area (GBA).

The proposal aims to deepen economic ties and open up opportunities for the Philippines in innovation, high-technology, new energy and sustainability.

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Chinese General Chamber of Commerce-Hong Kong chairman Jonathan Choi Koon-shum suggested creating a Greater Bay Area of Cavite, Bataan and Zambales with Manila Bay at the center.

We welcome the Philippines to join the GBA in a parallel capacity. We hope that the Philippines will also create a similar GBA that will include growth areas in Manila, Cavite, Bataan and Zambales with Manila Bay as its anchor, he said during the Manila Forum for Philippines-China Relation at the Conrad Hotel Wednesday.

The forum with the theme Exploring the Opportunities with Guangdong-Hong Kong- Macau Greater Bay Area aims to foster closer trade and investment collaboration.

Koon-shum said this presents an exciting opportunity for the Philippines to leverage the GBAs success and create a dynamic economic zone that fosters innovation, trade, and investment.

We can expand our trade relations [with China] through the Greater Bay Area in the field of electronics and textiles. The regions demand for high-quality goods aligns perfectly with the Philippines export strength, said Association for Philippines-China Understanding chairman Raul Lambino.

Lambino highlighted the potential benefits the Philippines stands to gain from increased trade with China.

The GBA could potentially bring millions of Chinese tourists to the Philippines, creating significant job opportunities.

Data from the Department of Tourism showed that China was the top source of international travelers before the pandemic. More than 1.7 million Chinese tourists visited the Philippines in 2019, but this went down during the pandemic.

Some 263,836 Chinese tourists visited the Philippines in 2023.

The potential for increased tourism from China is immense. Millions of Chinese tourists could visit the Philippines, creating jobs and boosting our economy, Lambino said.

Lambino said the planned Bataan, Cavite and Manila Bridge, similar to the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge would further enhance connectivity and economic activity.

China is a top trading partner of the Philippines, being the second-largest export market and top import source in 2023. The value of bilateral trade exceeded $40 billion in 2023. China is also a major source of foreign direct investments (FDI) in the Philippines.
The two companions of dismissed Bamban, Tarlac mayor Alice Guo were arrested and detained in Indonesia, according to Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Benjamin Abalos, Jr., citing a report from Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Rommel Marbil.

I received a report last night from the Chief PNP that two of [her] companions are already detained in Indonesia, Abalos said in an ambush interview on Thursday.

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The report identified Cassandra Li Ong and the mayors sister, Shiela Guo, as the ones being held in detention. They were arrested by Indonesian immigration authorities on Wednesday.

Guo, together with her companions and family members reportedly fled the Philippines via a backdoor exit and went to Malaysia. They also traveled to Indonesia and Singapore last July based on the report presented by Senator Risa Hontiveros.

The former mayor allegedly plans to travel China to reunite with her family and evade pressing charges in the Philippines. Guo is linked to illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), among other administrative and criminal charges.
As the world becomes increasingly digital, customers are constantly sourcing information online. LG Philippines is actively rolling out Ask LG, a new Voice of Customer (VOC) online content initiative designed to bring the brand closer to its customers.

This innovative series gathers customer inquiries and concerns from LGs online and customer service channels and transforms them into short, informative videos. The goal is to provide customers with easy-to-follow solutions to common appliance concerns, available right at their fingertips.

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A Data-Driven Approach to Customer Service

The content for Ask LG is carefully curated based on the questions and concerns gathered through various social media channels, the LG Customer Service Information Center, Facebook communities, and in-store customer queries. This approach ensures that the videos address the most relevant and common concerns, making Ask LG a valuable resource for LG customers. Since its launch, Ask LG has garnered significant attention, with over 100 videos, accumulating 26.3 million views and 119k followers.

Empowering Modern Customers with Accessible, On-Demand Content

Ask LG is designed to meet the needs of the modern, tech-savvy customer who frequently turns to online platforms for information. Ask LG makes customer service more accessible, responsive, and engagingone video at a time. These concise videos empower customers to resolve simple appliance issues independently, reflecting LGs dedication to customer empowerment. By offering quick access to troubleshooting guides and product information through social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. Ask LG raises awareness and invites customer engagement, highlighting the unique VOC content and providing a reliable channel for addressing appliance concerns. By providing these resources, LG is not just solving problemsits building a community of informed and empowered customers.

Why Ask LG?

By directly addressing online questions, Ask LG strengthens LGs connection with customers, ensuring their needs are met efficiently. To get started with Ask LG, take a look at these informative videos that cover a variety of LG products you can explore:

Learn about the different types of nozzles and how to use them efficiently: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/CzUPs2DhzXI

<iframe width=403 height=717 src=https://www.youtube.com/embed/9eVVvYslt3Q title="What nozzle should I use to clean my sofa?" frameborder=0 allow=accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share referrerpolicy=strict-origin-when-cross-origin allowfullscreen></iframe>

2. No ice producing in your ref? Heres a quick fix:

<iframe width=505 height=897 src=https://www.youtube.com/embed/R1vfKvA6Alk title=Why is there no ice being produced in my side-by-side French door refrigerator? | LG frameborder=0 allow=accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share referrerpolicy=strict-origin-when-cross-origin allowfullscreen></iframe>

3. Discover essential tips to extend the lifespan of your OLED TV: https://youtube.com/shorts/usubf0jbdpI?feature=share

<iframe width=403 height=717 src=https://www.youtube.com/embed/usubf0jbdpI title="How can I properly take care of my LG OLED TV?" frameborder=0 allow=accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share referrerpolicy=strict-origin-when-cross-origin allowfullscreen></iframe>

4. Find out where to get your air conditioner serviced by certified technicians: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFuLrJzclyA

<iframe width=1424 height=644 src=https://www.youtube.com/embed/VFuLrJzclyA title=Where can I find a reliable service center for my air conditioner? | AskLG #AskLG frameborder=0 allow=accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share referrerpolicy=strict-origin-when-cross-origin allowfullscreen></iframe>

5. Get inspired with easy and healthy microwave meal prep ideas for the school season: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4x06Y5htRNs

<iframe width=1424 height=644 src=https://www.youtube.com/embed/4x06Y5htRNs title=My kids are going back to school. What are the quick microwave recipes I can cook? | AskLG frameborder=0 allow=accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share referrerpolicy=strict-origin-when-cross-origin allowfullscreen></iframe>

6. Tips on how to care for your washing machine during the rainy season: https://youtu.be/9SnNpFyPvnA

<iframe width=1424 height=644 src=https://www.youtube.com/embed/9SnNpFyPvnA title=Now that it's the rainy season, I'm worried that my clothes will not dry completely. | AskLG frameborder=0 allow=accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share referrerpolicy=strict-origin-when-cross-origin allowfullscreen></iframe>

7. Learn how to prevent clothes from shrinking when using your dryer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWtNiUfG5JE

<iframe width=1424 height=644 src=https://www.youtube.com/embed/zWtNiUfG5JE title=Im worried that my clothes will shrink after repetitive drying. How can I prevent this? | LG frameborder=0 allow=accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share referrerpolicy=strict-origin-when-cross-origin allowfullscreen></iframe>

8. Maximize the use of the dehumidifying feature in your LG Styler:

<iframe width=1424 height=644 src=https://www.youtube.com/embed/ILe8o5cjhew title=Will the LG Styler's dehumidifying feature be enough to keep my jacket fresh? | AskLG frameborder=0 allow=accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share referrerpolicy=strict-origin-when-cross-origin allowfullscreen></iframe>

9. Ensure your air purifier is working at its best to keep your home air clean: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCwIxvKhiVY

<iframe width=1424 height=644 src=https://www.youtube.com/embed/OCwIxvKhiVY title="What is the coverage area of the Puricare 360 Hit?" | LG #AskLG frameborder=0 allow=accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share referrerpolicy=strict-origin-when-cross-origin allowfullscreen></iframe>

LG Philippines invites all customers to follow @lgphilippines on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube to stay updated on the latest Ask LG content and to join the conversation by submitting their own questions and concerns.
NBI takes custody of 2 women; Guo, brother still at large

The sister and associate of dismissed Bamban Mayor Alice Guo were deported by Indonesian authorities to Manila yesterday amid a standing arrest order and subpoena from the Senate in connection with illegal POGO operations in the country.

Guos sister Sheila and business associate Cassandra Li Ong arrived at NAIA Terminal 1 at around 5 p.m. via a Philippine Airlines flight from Jakarta.

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The two were immediately brought to the National Bureau of Investigation.

Justice Secretary Jesus Remulla earlier said Sheila and Ong would be debriefed first as the Bureau of Immigration prepares the necessary cases against them.

They were intercepted in Indonesia, said Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission spokesperson Winston Casio.

Let me clarify the terminology. It may not technically be an arrest, but rather they are being deported primarily because they are deemed undesirable aliensdue to their connection with this criminal organization, Casio added.

He said the apprehension of Sheila and Ongan incorporator of the raided POGO Lucky South 99 in Porac, Pampangawill obviously help in efforts to locate the dismissed mayor.

The Directorate General (DG) of Immigration in Indonesia said Sheila and Ong, along with Guoearlier identified as the same person as Chinese national Guo Hua Pingand her brother Wesley who are still at large, are four fugitives from the Philippine government for their alleged involvement in immigration violations and are prime suspects in transnational crime cases.

DG Immigration head of public relations team Achmad Nur Saleh said Batam Immigration officers made the arrest following reports that Sheila and Ong were included in the wanted Filipino citizens in accordance with the request letter from the Department of Justice, Bureau of Immigration Philippines dated August 19.

Saleh said the Guos and Ong booked four rooms at the Harris Hotel Batam Center for the last three days.

Shiela and Ong were caught at Mega Mall Batam Center, a mall in Riau, Indonesia, on Aug. 20.

The dismissed mayor and Ong reportedly arrived in Indonesia via a cruise ship from Singapore.

Director of Immigration Supervision and Enforcement Safar Godam said they also found out that a Singaporean national helped the four to make the hotel reservations.

Casio said in an interview that this Singaporean national was the former president of Lucky South 99.

President Marcos, for his part, thanked Indonesia for the close coordination that led to the arrest of Sheila and Ong.

We are now in coordination with the Indonesian government and agencies, arranging for them to be brought backProbably within a day, Mr. Marcos said.

The Bureau of Immigration earlier said Guo departed the country on July 18, flying to Malaysia then to Singapore to meet with her relatives and Ong before proceeding to Indonesia.

Senator Risa Hontiveros, for her part, said Ong can now point to those behind the illegal POGO operations in Porac, Pampanga.

What were the involvement of Alice Guo, (former presidential spokesperson) Harry Roque, and others (in the illegal POGO operations)? Hontiveros said.

This goes to show how human trafficking facilitated by POGOs is a regional problem that needs a regional, even global, solution, she added.

Senate President Francis Escudero, for his part, said Sheila Guo will eventually stay at the Senate detention facility to ensure her attendance in the hearings looking into illegal POGO operations in the country.

The Senate committee on women, children, family relations and gender led by Hontiveros will resume its hearing on Tuesday.

Ong, on the other hand, will be placed under the custody of the House of Representatives.

Timeline

 July 18  Dismissed Bamban Mayor Guo leaves PH for Malaysia

 July 21  Guo flies to Singapore, meets with her family

 Aug. 18  Guo and Ong take ferry to Batam, Indonesia

 Aug. 19  PH sends request letter to Indonesia

 Aug. 20  Guos sister, Sheila, and Ong are apprehendee at Mega Mall Batam Center

 Aug. 22  Sheila Guo and Ong are deported to Manila
PHNOM PENG  Cambodia on Thursday welcomed the return of a batch of trafficked Buddhist and Hindu statues from collectors and museums in the United States.

In recent years the kingdom has worked closely with US officials to secure the return of hundreds of precious cultural artifacts  many of them stolen and exported illegally.

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The latest return is of 70 Khmer objects including stone statues of a mythical warrior from the Hindu epic Mahabharata and the deities Shiva and Uma, as well as a bronze head.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet presided over a ceremony to welcome the items.

The artifacts we have reclaimed are invaluable as national cultural heritage for the Cambodian people, the real owners, he said.

Culture and fine arts minister Phoeurng Sackona said a significant portion of Cambodian cultural heritage had been repatriated over the past five years through a series of negotiations, court cases and voluntary returns.

As Cambodia was ravaged by civil wars and a genocide by the Khmer Rouge regime in the 1970s, thousands of antiques were looted and sold through dealers in Thailand and Hong Kong to wealthy buyers and museums in Europe and the United States.

The late British antiquities trafficker Douglas Latchford was held responsible for much of the trade in Cambodian relics.

He died in 2020 while awaiting trial in the United States for art trafficking, and his family have worked with the authorities to help return many Khmer antiquities.
The Mrs. Universe Philippines FDN 2024 coronation will be held at the Dusit Thani Hotel in Makati on Sunday. The pageant recently presented its twelve official candidates to the press, with Maria Charo Calalo, the national director of the Mrs. Universe Philippines FDN organization, presiding over the event.

The twelve candidates are Christine Serato, Graciel Suarez, Marilou Ponlaqui, Vehverly Gador, Jes-Lin Delmundo, Joy Orta, Cachet Oaman, Marie Claire Briones, Jimaymah Mayang Coching, Mikay Giselle Reymus, Marilou Rosete-Pasolo, and Catherine Muguerza.

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What Im looking for is attitude; that is very important. I dont want the candidates to feel afraid because the reason they are in the pageant is to bring out the best in them and to show their talent to the world. I am thankful that I found Mrs. Universe Philippines, which gives married women like me a chance, said Calalo during the presentation.

Three winners will be chosen to represent the Philippines at the Mrs. Universe 2024 pageant in South Korea. The Coronation Night is set for this Sunday, Aug. 25 at the Mauri Ballroom of the Dusit Thani Hotel in Makati City.

* * *

Fil-Canadian vies for Mutya ng Pilipinas 2024 crown

A standout in the Mutya ng Pilipinas 2024 pageant is the beautiful and articulate Arianna Pantaleon, who recently spoke at a press meetup held at the Brittany Hotel in BGC, Taguig City. Born and raised in Ontario, Canada, the 21-year-old, who holds a degree in Public Speaking and Communication, proudly identifies as Filipino despite her upbringing in Canada.

Pantaleon, an advocate for anti-domestic violence awareness, previously worked for a photography company in Canada before moving to the Philippines to pursue her dreams. She won her first title as Little Miss Philippines Canada in 2012, which she credits with shaping her future aspirations. She also won Mutya ng Pilipinas Canada 2022.

Im thankful to be Filipino, even though I live in Canada. I enjoy those big family gatherings, especially during Christmas, feeling all the love in the household, along with the food and presents, Pantaleon said.

I cant thank everyone enoughmy trainers, teachers, management, family, and friendsfor collectively supporting me and allowing me to become the person I am today, able to stand and speak my mind. I hope to continue making you proud as your Mutya ng Pilipinas queen, she added.
the Supreme Court has granted Kenyan President Ruto the authority to temporarily uphold the taxes introduced under the Finance Act 2023 until further court hearings. Last month, the Court of Appeal had ruled that the Act was unconstitutional due to irregularities in the parliamentary process.

The Supreme Courts ruling issued on Tuesday, August 20, 2024, aims to maintain the stability of the budget by allowing the government to keep the taxes stipulated in the 2023 Finance Act in effect until the next hearings, scheduled for mid-September. This includes the increased VAT on fuel and higher tax rates on top incomes.

The Kenyan government argues that canceling these provisions would result in a loss of over 1 billion in tax revenue, which is crucial for funding development projects and managing the countrys significant debt, which stands at 70% of GDP. President William Ruto has insisted that tax increases are necessary to address these financial challenges.

The government plans to reintroduce several tax measures from the contentious 2024 budget proposal, including an ecological tax. However, sanitary towels, a key issue in previous protests, will be exempted.

The prospect of new taxes has sparked widespread criticism on social media, with some Kenyans threatening to return to the streets in protest.
Law enforcement authorities in Myanmar recently handed over 307 Chinese people allegedly involved in cross-border telecom fraud to Chinese police, the Ministry of Public Security announced on Wednesday.

The ministry said that public security organs in Yunnan province had collaborated with law enforcement agencies in Myanmar to capture the suspects.

Myanmar authorities also seized a large number of mobile phones, computers and other tools used in the alleged crimes.

Investigations revealed that the suspects had been operating in the Wa State region of northern Myanmar, establishing a virtual currency network investment platform that they used to deceive victims, the ministry said.

All the suspects and related evidence were handed over to Chinese authorities at the Menglian Port in Menglian county, Yunnan. Police at various public security bureaus in Yunnan simultaneously captured nine domestic accomplices in the case, and investigations are proceeding.

The ministry said it has worked to deepen its international law enforcement cooperation with Myanmar in the past year and has jointly carried out a series of crackdowns that have resulted in over 50,000 Chinese fraud suspects being handed over to China.

A ministry official said that although the telecom fraud problem in northern Myanmar has been effectively curbed, some criminals are still resisting crackdowns.

The ministry pledged to further strengthen international law enforcement cooperation, intensify efforts to eliminate fraud dens and apprehend those suspected of fraud.
Zambia is facing a food safety crisis as contaminated maize, the countrys staple food, is linked to the deaths of approximately 400 dogs over the past month. Health Minister Elijah Muchima revealed that about half of the samples taken from milling companies contained dangerously high levels of aflatoxins, a poisonous substance produced by fungi.

The investigation into the nations maize supply was triggered by reports of numerous dog deaths from aflatoxin poisoning, believed to be caused by contaminated dog food. Alarmingly, the same companies processing maize for dog food also produce maize meal for human consumption, raising serious public health concerns.

While no human deaths have been reported yet, authorities are working to assess the potential impact on the general population. The government has initiated recalls of affected maize meal batches and issued seizure notices to implicated companies, though specific brands havent been named publicly.

Climate change and recent drought conditions are believed to have exacerbated the aflatoxin problem this season. With maize providing about 60% of Zambians daily calorie intake, the contamination has sparked widespread worry among politicians and the public.

The crisis has highlighted potential gaps in food safety measures, with industry representatives admitting that aflatoxin testing hasnt been a routine practice. As the government ramps up surveillance and sampling efforts, theres growing pressure for transparency about affected brands and more rigorous safety protocols to protect public health.
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A federal lawsuit in Texas against Planned Parenthood has a web of ties to conservative activist Leonard Leo, whose decades-long effort to steer the U.S. court system to the right overturned Roe v. Wade, yielding the biggest rollback of reproductive health access in half a century.

Brought by an anonymous whistleblower and later joined by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the suit alleges the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and three Planned Parenthood affiliates defrauded the Texas and Louisiana Medicaid programs by collecting $17 million for services provided while it fought state efforts to remove it as an approved provider.

The suit claims violations of the False Claims Act, an obscure but powerful law protecting the government from fraud, and seeks $1.8 billion in penalties from Planned Parenthood, according to a motion that lawyers for the whistleblower filed in federal court in 2023.

The lawsuit builds on efforts over years by the religious right and politicians who oppose abortion to deliver blows to Planned Parenthoodwhich provides sexual and reproductive health care at nearly 600 sites nationwidenow bolstered by Leo's work reshaping the American judiciary.

Anti-abortion groups and their allies secured a generational victory in 2022 when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, which ended the constitutional right to abortion and paved the way for bans or severe restrictions in 20 states. The court challenge in Texas demonstrates how the forces behind the end of Roe threaten access to other health and family planning services.

The Planned Parenthood clinics being sued do not provide abortions. They are in Texas and Louisiana, which banned nearly all abortions, respectively, in 2021 and 2022.

Leo, an anti-abortion Catholic, is connected to the key players in the Texas lawsuitthe whistleblower plaintiff, an attorney general, and the judgeaccording to a KFF Health News review of tax records, court documents from multiple lawsuits, statements to lawmakers, and website archives.

Leo provided legal counsel to the anti-abortion group at its center, and he has financial and other connections to Paxton.

They filed the case in federal court in Amarillo, Texas, where Matthew Kacsmaryk is the only judge. He is a longtime member of the Federalist Society, the conservative legal juggernaut for which Leo has worked for over 25 years in various capacities and currently serves as co-chair.

Kacsmaryk's rulings have curtailed access to reproductive health since the Senate confirmed him in 2019. He suspended the FDA's approval of mifepristone, a drug used in medication abortion, propelling the issue to the Supreme Court, which ultimately threw out the case. In another case, Kacsmaryk ruled to limit young people's access to birth control through a federal family planning program.

Leo did not respond to questions for this article and a spokesperson declined to comment. Through a court spokesperson, Kacsmaryk declined to comment for this article.

The anonymous whistleblower in 2021 accused the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Planned Parenthood affiliates of defrauding the Medicaid programs of Texas and Louisiana. Paxton, who has repeatedly acted to thwart abortion rights and joined the case in 2022, alleges in the lawsuit that clinics received payments they weren't entitled to from Texas Medicaid from early 2017 to early 2021 as the state was pushing to end Planned Parenthood's status as a Medicaid provider. Louisiana and the Department of Justice have not joined the complaint.

The lawsuit's origins go back a decade. The anonymous whistleblower, between 2013 and 2015, "conducted an undercover investigation to determine whether Planned Parenthood's fetal tissue procurement practices were continuing, and if they were legal and/or ethical," according to the whistleblower's complaint filed in 2021.

The explanation mimics how the Center for Medical Progress, a California-based anti-abortion group founded by activist David Daleiden in 2013, has publicly described its work. "The Human Capital project is a 30-month-long investigative journalism study by The Center for Medical Progress, documenting how Planned Parenthood sells the body parts of aborted babies," the group states on its website.

In a November 2022 court order, Kacsmaryk said the private party initiating the lawsuit is "the president of CMP," the title Daleiden held at that time, according to a Center for Medical Progress tax filing.

The Center for Medical Progress and Daleiden did not respond to requests for comment.

By law, federal funds can't pay for abortions unless the pregnancy threatens the life of a woman or is the result of rape or incest, but the program reimburses for other care such as contraception, screenings for sexually transmitted infections, and cancer screenings. Medicaid, which provides health coverage for people with low incomes, is jointly financed by states and the federal government.

According to its 202223 annual report, Planned Parenthood affiliate clinics provided 9.13 million health care services to 2.05 million patients nationally in 2022. Testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections accounted for about half of those services, contraception amounted to a quarter, and abortions constituted 4%.

Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast, which operates clinics in Texas and Louisiana, is among the branches Paxton and the whistleblower are suing. From July 2022 to June 2023, its clinics provided patients with more than 86,000 tests for sexually transmitted infections, 44,000 visits for birth control, and nearly 7,000 cancer screening and prevention services, CEO Melaney Linton told KFF Health News.

"All of these services and more are at risk in this politically motivated lawsuit," Linton said. The lawsuit's allegations "are false. Planned Parenthood did not commit Medicaid fraud."

Linton has said the lawsuit's purpose is clear: "trying to shut Planned Parenthood down."

Texas terminated Planned Parenthood's Medicaid participation in March 2021. Until then, affiliates "were entitled to receive reimbursement" for services to Medicaid patients because their provider agreements with Texas' Medicaid program were valid, attorneys for the Planned Parenthood clinics wrote in a February 2023 court filing in support of their motion for summary judgment.

Louisiana has not removed Planned Parenthood from its Medicaid program.

Leo served as legal counsel to the Center for Medical Progress, according to documents produced as part of a separate lawsuit Planned Parenthood filed in federal court in California against the anti-abortion group. Among those, a July 2018 document lists 25 emails Leo and Daleiden traded in June and July 2015, including in the days before the anti-abortion group released its first video.

Paxton's ties to Leo can be traced back at least a decade to when the former state senator and rising conservative star was about to begin his first term as attorney general.

In 2014, Leo, then executive vice president of the Federalist Society, was a rare non-Texan named to Paxton's attorney general transition advisory team.

Tax filings show that the Concord Fund, one of several Leo-linked groups that spend money to influence elections and aren't required to disclose their donors, gave $20.3 million from July 2014 through June 2023 to the Republican Attorneys General Association, the political nonprofit that works to elect Republicans as states' top law enforcement officers.

Known as RAGA, the group funneled more than $1.2 million to Paxton's campaign over three election cycles from 2014 to 2022, Texas campaign finance records show.

Texas government officials knew the state was reimbursing Planned Parenthood clinics for medical services from 2017 to 2021, which renders the state's argument that clinics violated the False Claims Act "without merit," said Jacob Elberg, a professor at Seton Hall Law School and an expert in health care fraud.

The law is intended for situations "where essentially someone submits a claim for payment or keeps money that they're not entitled to where they have information that the government doesn't have," Elberg said. "And they essentially know that if the government knew the truth, the government wouldn't pay them or would be demanding money back."

But with Planned Parenthood, "everything involved here happened out in the open," Elberg said. "They were submitting bills and the government knew what was going on and was paying those bills."

The plaintiffs' arguments are a "tortured use" of the False Claims Act, said Sarah Saldana, a former U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Texas.

"Things like this, which have these obvious political overtones, tend to undermine further the view of the public of the judicial courts system," Saldana said.

The office of the attorney general did not respond to requests for comment.

Anti-abortion groups support the Paxton lawsuit even though abortion is essentially outlawed in the Lone Star State. Planned Parenthood "is still a pro-abortion organization," said John Seago, president of Texas Right to Life. Even though Planned Parenthood provides other care, "all of those services are tainted by their pro-abortion mindset," he said.

"Planned Parenthood is a danger to Texans. We wish that Planned Parenthood didn't have a single location within our state," Seago said. "Whenever the state pays Planned Parenthood to do something, even if it's a good service, we are building up their brand and giving them more reach into our Texas communities."

Roughly three dozen Planned Parenthood clinics in Texas continue to provide non-abortion services like birth control and STI screenings. The $1.8 billion the whistleblower is seeking is equivalent to nearly 90% of Planned Parenthood's annual revenue, according to its most recent annual report.

The campaign against Planned Parenthood

The Center for Medical Progress was little known in 2015 when it began releasing videos containing explosive allegations that Planned Parenthood was illegally selling tissue from aborted fetuses, which Planned Parenthood denies.

The group and Daleiden had ties to powerful anti-abortion organizations. They include Live Action, where Daleiden worked before creating the Center for Medical Progress, and Operation Rescue, the Kansas-based group that staged demonstrations against George Tiller's abortion clinic in that state before a gunman killed the physician in 2009.

"The evidence I am gathering deeply implicates Planned Parenthood affiliates across the country in multiple felonies and can trigger severe legal and financial consequences for PP and their associates, while providing new justifications for state defunding efforts and turning public opinion against Planned Parenthood and abortion," Daleiden wrote in a May 2013 email produced as part of the litigation Planned Parenthood brought in California. The subject line: "Meeting to Take Down PP."

Texas tried to remove Planned Parenthood clinics from its Medicaid program following the center's release of the undercover videos, a move that was part of a larger political firestorm. Roughly a dozen states launched investigations into the reproductive health provider, and Republicans in Congress renewed calls to strip Planned Parenthood of government funding.

Paxton made his feelings clear about abortion as he pursued an investigation of Planned Parenthood in Texas. During a July 29, 2015, legislative hearing, he said "the true abomination in all of this is the institution of abortion."

"We are rightfully horrified by what we've seen on these videos," Paxton said. "However these videos also serve as a larger reminder that, as a society, we've turned a blind eye to the gruesome horrors that occur in abortion clinics across America every single day. They remind us that this industry as a whole has lost the perspective of humanity."

Planned Parenthood denied selling fetal tissue and other claims in the videos, some of which contained graphic footage. It said the videos were "deceptive" and heavily edited to be misleading. A grand jury in Texas cleared Planned Parenthood of wrongdoing.

Daleiden worked on the center's "Human Capital Project" for years, receiving advice from Leo and his associates, according to the Center for Medical Progress' website, and Daleiden's email correspondence and other documents produced as part of the separate lawsuit in federal court in California.

The July 2018 document filed as part of the litigation in California describes emails between Leo and Daleiden as "providing legal communication with counsel regarding legal planning" and "for counsel to provide legal advice regarding investigative journalism methods and the legality of fetal tissue procurement practices," among other descriptions. Daleiden sent one email to Leo "regarding legal planning" on July 13, 2015, the day before the Center for Medical Progress released its first video.

A November 2018 letter from the Center for Medical Progress' lawyers stated "CMP was receiving legal advice" from Leo, as well as other conservative lawyers and organizations. Lawyers representing the center and Daleiden in a December 2018 legal filing said Leo "provided legal advice on how to ensure successful prosecutions of the criminal actors which CMP identified."

In its defense, Planned Parenthood has said it billed the Texas Medicaid program for reimbursement for "lawfully provided" services from February 2017 to March 2021 as a participating Medicaid provider in the state.

In 2015 and 2017, federal courts in Louisiana and Texas blocked those states from terminating Planned Parenthood's Medicaid provider agreements. Judge John deGravelles of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana said the state was prohibited "from suspending Medicaid payments to [Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast] for services rendered to Medicaid beneficiaries."

The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in November 2020 vacated the Texas and Louisiana injunctions, but the court never weighed in on clawing back Medicaid funds that had been paid to clinics. Texas terminated Planned Parenthood in March 2021, following a state court ruling.

Texas and the whistleblower argue that, once the court injunctions were lifted, Planned Parenthood's termination from each state's Medicaid program became effective years earlier2015 in Louisiana and 2017 in Texasdue to the dates that state officials gave clinics final notice.

Planned Parenthood has argued that it is under no obligation to return payments received while injunctions were in place. Kacsmaryk disagrees. In a recently unsealed summary judgment order in the case, the judge wrote that Planned Parenthood clinics "had an obligation to repay the government payments they received as a matter of law."

The order was unsealed after attorneys for the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press intervened. The committee argued the public has a presumptive and constitutional right to access judicial records, and that Kacsmaryk's stated concernswhich included the tainting of a potential jury pool or jeopardizing the safety of those involved in the lawsuitdidn't justify keeping the document secret.

Kacsmaryk's brief justification for sealing the document, contained in the order itself, "was very thin," said Katie Townsend, legal director for the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.

She said his decision to seal such an important document was "highly unusual" and "very troubling."

"Those orders are almost always completely public," she said.

What Paxton gains

Paxton has publicly toyed with the idea of pursuing federal office, and former President Donald Trump has said he'd consider him for U.S. attorney general should Trump return to the White House.

For Republicans in Texas, there are political benefits to going after Planned Parenthood, said Mark Jones, a political scientist at Rice University in Houston.

"Doing anything punitive against Planned Parenthood and anything that would reduce the ability of Planned Parenthood to be active and effective in Texas is going to be greeted with near-universal consensus within the Republican primary electorate," Jones said. "There's no downside to it."

The Republican Attorneys General Association, which can accept unlimited political donations that it distributes to candidates, is a Paxton supporter. Campaign finance records show it gave more than $730,000 to Paxton's attorney general campaigns in 2014 and 2018.

Tax filings show that the Marble Freedom Trust, a political nonprofit where Leo serves as trustee and chair, gave the Concord Fund $100.9 million from May 2020 through April 2023. During the 2022 election cycle, the Concord Fund gave $6.5 million to RAGA, which then contributed $500,000 to Paxton's campaign.

It was tied as the highest contribution to the Texas attorney general, matched by a $500,000 contribution from a political action committee backed by conservative Texas billionaires, according to Transparency U.S., a nonprofit that tracks spending in state politics.

RAGA has praised Leo's role, calling him its "greatest champion."

"Leonard Leo has helped shape the trajectory of RAGA and the conservative legal movement more than anyone else. As RAGA's greatest champion, Leonard Leo reimagined the role of the state attorney general and promoted men and women dedicated to the persistence of the rule of law and the original meaning of the Constitution," reads a RAGA website post from 2019 that has since been deleted.

"You want access to Leo because Leo gives you access to money," said Chris Toth, former executive director of the National Association of Attorneys General.

In many conservative states like Texas, Toth said, "the issue is worrying about getting primaried. And that is where playing nice with Leonard Leo and the Concord Fund come in, because if you're on their side, basically, you're going to have no problem getting reelected."

Abortion rights supporters have warned that they anticipate ongoing reproductive health battles in Texas and beyond, with access to contraception, fertility services, and other types of care under threat.

As an example, some point to the Griswold v. Connecticut decision from 1965, in which the Supreme Court legalized the use of contraception among married couples. The high court ruled that a state law violated a constitutional right to privacy, a rationale that was central to Roe v. Wade eight years later.

In a 2017 speech at the Acton Institute, a conservative think tank, Leo criticized Griswold as a decision amounting to "the creation of rights found nowhere in the text or structure of the Constitution."

The Planned Parenthood lawsuit in Texas is expected to go to trial, potentially this year. The central question is whether Planned Parenthood knowingly withheld money owed to the government.

All the while the public is expressing greater uncertainty about rights once considered constitutionally guaranteed. In a KFF poll conducted in February, one in five adults said the right to use contraception is threatened and likely to be overturned.

2024 KFF Health News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Cold water swimming is growing in popularity among women, but more support is needed to make many wild swimming sites in the UK safer and more accessible, finds a new study led by UCL researchers.

The research, published in Women's Health, explored the habits of women who enjoy cold water swimming and was carried out in collaboration with researchers from the University of Portsmouth, University of Sussex, University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust, University of Plymouth and Bournemouth University.

The team surveyed 1,114 women in the UK aged 16 to 80 years old in 2022 and found that most women who participated in wild swimming usually did so in the sea (64.4%) and the majority (89%) swam all year around.

The women surveyed stated that they swam for longer in the summer, with the most common length of time being 3060 minutes (48.2%). However, in the winter, a majority of swims lasted between 515 minutes (53.8%).

Earlier this year, the same survey revealed that menopausal women who regularly swim in cold water report significant improvements to their physical and mental symptoms. It was also found to improve menstrual symptoms.

However, while there are many benefits to the sport, there are also risks that can be exacerbated by the swimming environment.

Lead author, Professor Joyce Harper (UCL EGA Institute for Women's Health) said, "One of the health risks linked to cold water swimming is the increased likelihood of gastroenteritis and other infections due to pollution in UK rivers and seas. This could be avoidable with better monitoring of sites."

Co-author Dr. Mark Harper (University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust) added, "Barriers to cold water swimming can be overcome and our early research in non-pregnant populations suggests that the activity has a significantly positive effect on mental health."

Designated bathing waters in the UK are typically monitored during the summer months (May-September). However, many do not meet the prescribed standards and researchers believe this may be worse for undesignated sites.

As a result, the researchers are calling for the UK government, water companies, the Environment Agency, and others across the world, to improve the safety and accessibility of open water for people who like to swim outdoors.

Professor Harper said, "Our previous research has found that women strongly perceive cold water swimming to benefit their health. Exercising in nature, with a community, is a combination that should be encouraged. However, it is currently not well supported.

"For example, in the UK, the government bathing-water quality website only runs from May to September, ignoring the winter months where heavy rainfall and consequent sewage overflow most commonly occur.

"Globally, we should be ensuring that cold water swimming is accessible and safe. It is time to make this increasingly popular and beneficial sport more secure and supported for all."

Co-author Professor Sasha Roseneil (University of Sussex) said, "In recent years cold water swimming has become a passion for many thousands of women across the UK, bringing numerous benefits to well-being. While the free and unregulated nature of swimming in open water is part of its attraction, it is time for the government and regulators to pay serious attention to the quality of our rivers, lakes and seas, to protect both swimmers today, and the ecosystems of these precious natural resources for the future."

The team are continuing their research into the topic and are involved in an upcoming study led by Professor Jill Shawe (University of Plymouth) into cold water swimming and pregnancy.

More information: The swimming habits of women who cold water swim, Womens Health (2024). DOI: 10.1177/17455057241265080
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In the 18 months after Francine Milano was diagnosed with a recurrence of the ovarian cancer she thought she'd beaten 20 years ago, she traveled twice from her home in Pennsylvania to Vermont. She went not to ski, hike, or leaf-peep, but to arrange to die.

"I really wanted to take control over how I left this world," said the 61-year-old who lives in Lancaster. "I decided that this was an option for me."

Dying with medical assistance wasn't an option when Milano learned in early 2023 that her disease was incurable. At that point, she would have had to travel to Switzerlandor live in the District of Columbia or one of the 10 states where medical aid for dying was legal.

But Vermont lifted its residency requirement in May 2023, followed by Oregon two months later. (Montana effectively allows aid in dying through a 2009 court decision, but that ruling doesn't spell out rules around residency. And though New York and California recently considered legislation that would allow out-of-staters to secure aid for dying, neither provision passed.)

Despite the limited options and the challengessuch as finding doctors in a new state, figuring out where to die, and traveling when too sick to walk to the next room, let alone climb into a cardozens have made the trek to the two states that have opened their doors to terminally ill nonresidents seeking aid in dying.

At least 26 people have traveled to Vermont to die, representing nearly 25% of the reported assisted deaths in the state from May 2023 through this June, according to the Vermont Department of Health. In Oregon, 23 out-of-state residents died using medical assistance in 2023, just over 6% of the state total, according to the Oregon Health Authority.

Oncologist Charles Blanke, whose clinic in Portland is devoted to end-of-life care, said he thinks that Oregon's total is likely an undercount and he expects the numbers to grow. Over the past year, he said, he's seen two to four out-of-state patients a weekabout one-quarter of his practiceand fielded calls from across the U.S., including New York, the Carolinas, Florida, and "tons from Texas." But just because patients are willing to travel doesn't mean it's easy or that they get their desired outcome.

"The law is pretty strict about what has to be done," Blanke said.

As in other states that allow what some call physician-assisted death or assisted suicide, Oregon and Vermont require patients to be assessed by two doctors. Patients must have less than six months to live, be mentally and cognitively sound, and be physically able to ingest the drugs to end their lives.

Charts and records must be reviewed in the state; neglecting to do so constitutes practicing medicine out of state, which violates medical licensing requirements. For the same reason, the patients must be in the state for the initial exam, when they request the drugs, and when they ingest them.

State legislatures impose those restrictions as safeguardsto balance the rights of patients seeking aid in dying with a legislative imperative not to pass laws that are harmful to anyone, said Peg Sandeen, CEO of the group Death With Dignity. Like many aid-in-dying advocates, however, she said such rules create undue burdens for people who are already suffering.

Diana Barnard, a Vermont palliative care physician, said some patients cannot even come for their appointments. "They end up being sick or not feeling like traveling, so there's rescheduling involved," she said.

"It's asking people to use a significant part of their energy to come here when they really deserve to have the option closer to home."

Those opposed to aid in dying include religious groups that say taking a life is immoral, and medical practitioners who argue their job is to make people more comfortable at the end of life, not to end the life itself.

Anthropologist Anita Hannig, who interviewed dozens of terminally ill patients while researching her 2022 book, "The Day I Die: The Untold Story of Assisted Dying in America," said she doesn't expect federal legislation to settle the issue anytime soon. As the Supreme Court did with abortion in 2022, it ruled assisted dying to be a states' rights issue in 1997.

During the 2023-24 legislative sessions, 19 states (including Milano's home state of Pennsylvania) considered aid-in-dying legislation, according to the advocacy group Compassion & Choices. Delaware was the sole state to pass it, but the governor has yet to act on it.

Sandeen said that many states initially pass restrictive lawsrequiring 21-day wait times and psychiatric evaluations, for instanceonly to eventually repeal provisions that prove unduly onerous. That makes her optimistic that more states will eventually follow Vermont and Oregon, she said.

Milano would have preferred to travel to neighboring New Jersey, where aid in dying has been legal since 2019, but its residency requirement made that a nonstarter. And though Oregon has more providers than the largely rural state of Vermont, Milano opted for the nine-hour car ride to Burlington because it was less physically and financially draining than a cross-country trip.

The logistics were key because Milano knew she'd have to return. When she traveled to Vermont in May 2023 with her husband and her brother, she wasn't near death. She figured that the next time she was in Vermont, it would be to request the medication. Then she'd have to wait 15 days to receive it.

The waiting period is standard to ensure that a person has what Barnard calls "thoughtful time to contemplate the decision," although she said most have done that long before. Some states have shortened the period or, like Oregon, have a waiver option.

That waiting period can be hard on patients, on top of being away from their health care team, home, and family. Blanke said he has seen as many as 25 relatives attend the death of an Oregon resident, but out-of-staters usually bring only one person. And while finding a place to die can be a problem for Oregonians who are in care homes or hospitals that prohibit aid in dying, it's especially challenging for nonresidents.

When Oregon lifted its residency requirement, Blanke advertised on Craigslist and used the results to compile a list of short-term accommodations, including Airbnbs, willing to allow patients to die there. Nonprofits in states with aid-in-dying laws also maintain such lists, Sandeen said.

Milano hasn't gotten to the point where she needs to find a place to take the meds and end her life. In fact, because she had a relatively healthy year after her first trip to Vermont, she let her six-month approval period lapse.

In June, though, she headed back to open another six-month window. This time, she went with a girlfriend who has a camper van. They drove six hours to cross the state border, stopping at a playground and gift shop before sitting in a parking lot where Milano had a Zoom appointment with her doctors rather than driving three more hours to Burlington to meet in person.

"I don't know if they do GPS tracking or IP address kind of stuff, but I would have been afraid not to be honest," she said.

That's not all that scares her. She worries she'll be too sick to return to Vermont when she is ready to die. And, even if she can get there, she wonders whether she'll have the courage to take the medication. About one-third of people approved for assisted death don't follow through, Blanke said. For them, it's often enough to know they have the medsthe controlto end their lives when they want.

Milano said she is grateful she has that power now while she's still healthy enough to travel and enjoy life. "I just wish more people had the option," she said.

2024 KFF Health News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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In the span of a few short years, the residents of Puerto Rico endured a series of devastating stormsincluding Hurricanes Irma, Maria, and Fionaand were faced with hundreds of earthquakes. Then, the COVID-19 pandemic struck, stressing the island's health care infrastructure when it was already compromised.

"Puerto Rico has experienced multiple, compounding disasters in recent years. It's been a recipe for health care challenges, to say the least," said Anna-Michelle McSorley, a postdoctoral associate at the NYU School of Global Public Health and the NYU Center for Anti-racism, Social Justice & Public Health.

In an article published in the American Journal of Public Health, McSorley and her colleagues describe how federal policies treat the "often-forgotten US territory of Puerto Rico" differently than the 50 states. As a result, these policies exacerbate existing health disparities in the territory.

The researchers focus on three key policy differences that put the health of Puerto Ricans at a disadvantage: unequal disaster response from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the lack of parity in Medicaid funding, and Puerto Rico's limited political power.

"Our lens needs to gaze upstreamwhich is so much of what we do in public healthto say, 'This is where the policy is failing. This is where it's creating a barrier, and that is ultimately what's leading to the consequences that we see,'" said McSorley, the lead author of the study, who will join the faculty of the University of Connecticut this fall.

NYU News spoke with McSorley about the unique public health challenges facing Puerto Rico and how US policies are contributing to disparities.

How has the US response to natural disasters in Puerto Rico hampered recovery?

In the wake of Hurricane Maria in 2017, FEMA provided funding to the territory. But a 2019 study looked at how much aid was sent in the days after, and Puerto Rico received significantly less than Texas and Florida, which had also been impacted by major hurricanes in that same year.

Moreover, the federal government did an internal investigation and found that FEMA mismanaged about $257 million in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria.

But if we dig a little deeper to look at policies that apply to Puerto Rico distinctly, we can also look at the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, a federal law that regulates how cargo is transported by sea and requires Puerto Rico to import resources on US ships.

As a territory, Puerto Rico can't independently negotiate with other countries, so that restricts how resources can come in. It also increases the cost of nearly every product you can imagine, especially food, because of tariffs.

That policy creates an additional level of burden. Even if other governments were trying to figure out how to provide support after a natural disaster, it would need to happen by way of the USwhich during the time of Hurricane Maria was also navigating several other natural disasters within the contiguous United States.

How do federal policies impact Puerto Rico's health care workforce?

Puerto Rico has a shortage of health care providers, both primary care and specialists. It's a multi-layered problem, but one contributing factor is that Medicaid reimbursement rates are lower than the rates in the states.

Approximately half of the population in Puerto Rico relies on Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program, so the reimbursement rate matters quite a bit for sustaining the health care system.

Unlike the states where Medicaid operates as an entitlement program, Puerto Rico's Medicaid program is funded through a block grant that has historically been an annual fixed amount that only covered about 55 percent of expenditures.

Over the years, particularly as hurricanes and COVID-19 have hit, that percentage has varied. Congress has put into place legislation to increase the level of funding that is being sent. But the extensions that were applied to Puerto Rico to infuse additional funding are about to expire, and legislation that has been proposed to permanently cement the ability to gradually increase the percentage of reimbursement for Medicaidwith the goal being to get to a dollar-for-dollar matchhasn't really moved forward.

This leaves Puerto Rico unable to compensate their providers at a competitive rate, and the reality is that there are higher paying jobs within the 50 states with higher rates of reimbursement.

In terms of training doctors in Puerto Rico, there are excellent medical schools on the island, but there aren't sufficient residencies to meet the need for folks to stay. Many medical students have to seek residencies elsewherethat is where we end up losing lots of health care providers.

Once they leave, they are illuminated to the fact that they can be paid significantly more and their living conditions improve. Many want to return to Puerto Rico, but options are limited. If you can land a position, you are likely in an underfunded infrastructure that can't get reimbursed at the rate that it needs to, with a high level of demand from patients who wait months to get appointments.

That dynamic is challenging and can lead to burnout, particularly post-pandemic.

How does political power play into these public health issues?

The Puerto Rican people are extremely politically active. Election day is a holidaythere are parades in the streets, flags, facepaint, and everyone is actively engaging in the political system. There is a really strong tradition of having the Puerto Rican voice heard.

While there is an ability to participate with that vigor in the territorial legislative processPuerto Rico can vote for its own governorthey're still not a nation with self-determination. In US elections, they can't vote for president, and they don't have senators with voting power. They do elect the Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico, a member of Congress who is part of the House, but this representative doesn't have full voting power.

This makes it really challenging when you're talking about things like FEMA money being mismanaged, or Medicaid block grants, which are congressional decisions. When you have a territory that has the ability to make local decisions but doesn't have voting power at the federal level, it creates severe restrictions and a system that is largely unjust.

Do you think Americans' perceptions of Puerto Rico play into this?

A poll was conducted among Americans shortly after Hurricane Maria. It found that nearly half didn't know that Puerto Ricans are fellow US citizenscitizens who contribute to federal tax revenue streams, follow federal laws, and serve in the military.

From a political perspective, if you're saying, "Hey, we need to send resources to this region," it's being thought of as a foreign affair. But that can complicate the matter because folks may be thinking, "Let's focus on distributing resources internally"especially in the face of simultaneous disasters in Texas and Florida.

In the midst of other domestic challenges, if you have a perception that the territory is not a domestic space, it makes people less inclined to spread the resources.

What can be done to reduce health inequities? Does Puerto Rico's status as a territory need to change?

The status question is a hot onewhether Puerto Rico should remain as a territory, or if it should become a state or be independent. This questionwhich can literally break up families!is often debated over dinner tables.

I'm a Nuyorican, born in New York and raised between both spaces. In terms of statehood or independence, I believe that the decision should be made by the Puerto Rican peopleit should be for them to decide what would be the best path forward.

But I also think that part of the solution lies with the Latino vote here in the 50 states, as Latinos are a huge portion of the demographic in the United States and growing. If we could unify and see issues facing Puerto Rico as solidarity issues across the Latino population, that would be a great way to move the needle in the name of folks that can't have their vote counted.

More information: Anna-Michelle Marie McSorley et al, United States Federal Policies Contributing to Health and Health Care Inequities in Puerto Rico, American Journal of Public Health (2024). DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.2024.307585 Journal information: American Journal of Public Health
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Men who work offshore and have been in contact with asbestos in their working environment have a higher risk of developing pleural cancer.

The risk of pleural cancer may also be linked to having worked in an environment containing asbestos before beginning work offshore. These are among the findings of a new study published in Occupational and Environmental Medicine involving 25,000 offshore workers.

"In our study we found an association between exposure to asbestos in offshore working environments and pleural cancer in offshore petroleum workers. Findings like this can help develop measures targeted at preventing cancer but are also important when assessing whether it is the actual offshore work that is the cause of the cancer," says researcher Leon Mclaren Berge of the Department of Biostatistics at the Institute of Basic Medical Sciences.

Estimating the risk among Norwegian offshore workers

The research group EpiStat at the Department of Biostatistics collaborates with the Cancer Registry of Norway on research into cancer risk among offshore workers. In 2022, the group was awarded 10 million kroners to study other diseases that offshore workers can be exposed to through their profession.

The fact that asbestos can cause pleural cancer has been known for a long time, says Berge.

"But our study is the first to estimate this risk among Norwegian offshore workers using detailed and expert-assessed data on asbestos exposure. However, based on a coarser categorization of the offshore workers' work history outside offshore work, the risk of pleural cancer may also be linked to their potential exposure to asbestos before they began work in the offshore industry. This is an important discovery which contributes to our understanding of the disease risks faced by such workers," he says.

In recent years, there has been a good deal of focus on oil pioneers and whether they have fallen ill because of their work offshore and should therefore receive compensation.

More information: Leon Alexander Mclaren Berge et al, Exposure to fibres and risk of pleural mesothelioma in the Norwegian Offshore Petroleum Workers cohort, Occupational and Environmental Medicine (2024). DOI: 10.1136/oemed-2024-109424 Journal information: Occupational and Environmental Medicine
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Graphical Abstract. Credit: Diabetes Care (2024). DOI: 10.2337/dc24-0818

Heart attack, stroke, nerve damage. These are just some of the complications for which millions of Americans with diabetes are at greater risk.

When a person has any of these chronic diabetes complications, they are more likely to have a mental health disorder, and vice versa, according to a University of Michigan-led study. That is, the relationship goes both ways: having a mental health condition also increases the risk of developing chronic complications of diabetes.

"We wanted to see if chronic diabetes complications led to mental health disorders or if mental health disorders led to those diabetes complicationsbut we found that both relationships are true," said Brian Callaghan, M.D., M.S., senior author and the Eva L. Feldman, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Neurology at U-M Medical School.

"The findings highlight a need for clinicians to actively screen for mental health disorders in patients with diabetes in addition to screening for chronic complications, which is the recommended standard of care in diabetes."

Three-times greater risk

The research team, led by Michigan Medicine and the Department of Biostatistics at the U-M School of Public Health, examined insurance claims data from over 500,000 individuals with type 1 or type 2 diabetes and 350,000 people without diabetes.

Results published in Diabetes Care reveal that people with chronic diabetes complications had up to a three-times greater risk of having a mental health condition, such as anxiety or depression. This effect increased as adults got older.

Those with mental health disorders were up to 2.5 times more likely to experience sustained diabetes complications.

In adults younger than 60 years old, having type 1 diabetes was more associated with chronic complications. People with the more common type 2 diabetes were more likely to experience mental health difficulties.

A possible reason for this bi-directional relationship, researchers say, may be that having a diabetes complication or mental health condition has direct effects on developing the other complication.

"For instance, a stroke causes detrimental effects on the brain, which may directly lead to depression," Callaghan said.

"And having a mental health condition and diabetes may affect a person's self-management of their conditionlike poor glycemic control or not taking medicationswhich, in turn, may increase their risk of diabetes complications."

Common risk factors

The relationship may also be less direct. Diabetes complications and mental health conditions share common risk factors; obesity, issues with glycemic control and social determinants of health can all increase the likelihood of developing both comorbidities.

"Most likely, a combination of direct and indirect effects and shared risk factors drive the association we are seeing," said first author Maya Watanabe, M.S., a biostatistician at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and former graduate student research assistant at U-M.

"Diabetes care providers may be able to simultaneously prevent the risk of multiple complications by providing interventions to treat these shared risk factors."

In any 18-month period, up to 50% of people with diabetes may have feelings of distress related to their condition, according to the CDC.

Several national diabetes centers have implemented depression and distress screening for their patients, but there is no universal screening process for mental health in diabetes care.

The researchers note that additional resources will be needed to screen and manage mental health conditions, as many clinicians who manage diabetes lack specific training to adequately identify and treat them.

Mental health care

This echoes a statement from the U.S. Preventive Service Task Force, which said that if patients who screen positive for mental health conditions must be "appropriately diagnosed and treated with evidence based care or referred to a setting that can provide the necessary care."

"Primary care providers and endocrinologists are already overworked; therefore, systems of care need to be in place to help provide mental health care when needed," said co-author Eva Feldman, M.D., Ph.D., Director of the ALS Center of Excellence and James W. Albers Distinguished University Professor at U-M.

"These systems should include mental health screening, easily accessible insurance coverage for mental health services and both physician and patient education programs. Action is needed, and our new research provides further evidence that this action needs to occur now."

More information: Maya Watanabe et al, Bidirectional Associations Between Mental Health Disorders and Chronic Diabetic Complications in Individuals With Type 1 or Type 2 Diabetes, Diabetes Care (2024). DOI: 10.2337/dc24-0818 Journal information: Diabetes Care
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An mpox outbreak spreading across several African countries, which the World Health Organization has called a global emergency, has caused a spike in online disinformation about the viral disease.

No links to shingles or the COVID vaccine

In a video circulated on X and Facebook, Wolfgang Wodarg, a German doctor known for his anti-vaccine views, claimed that mpox and shingles shared the same symptoms.

The physician also accused the pharmaceutical industry of frightening people to make profit.

This is false. Mpox is not a shingles epidemic caused by the COVID-19 vaccine.

Much is already known about the virus and the means to control it. Mpox, which was first detected in the 1970s in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), long predates COVID vaccines.

The disease, which is caused by a virus transmitted by infected animals but passed from human to human through close physical contact, belongs to the family of poxviruseswhereas shingles is a kind of herpes.

Symptoms also differ, with shingles causing smaller, painful lesions and rashes.

Mpox does not affect only gay men

Some social media users have dismissed their risk of contracting mpox with homophobic comments.

"There is no infectious disease in the world whose transmission is limited by a person's sexual orientation," said Richard Martinello, an infectious disease specialist at Yale University.

"It is close, skin-to-skin contact which can lead to the spread of mpox, not one's sexual orientation."

The virus is carried by liquid enclosed in vesiclessmall pimples that form on the skinsaid Antoine Gessain, an mpox expert at the Pasteur Institute, adding that children can be infected through skin contact.

Heterosexuals with multiple partners, the population that drove the epidemic in the DRC in late 2023, can also transmit the disease.

No miracle cure

A popular conspiracy theory sparked by a 2022 video by controversial French researcher Didier Raoult has re-emerged on social media.

According to Raoult, a very effective drug used to treat mpox exists but is not made available.

The "most effective molecule" against mpox is "a Japanese drug called Tranilast," he said in the video.

"It will never be marketed here (Europe) because it is extremely cheap."

But Tranilast, which was approved in 1982 in Japan and China to treat asthma, has never been clinically tested on humans for treating mpox.

However, vaccination combined with educating at-risk individuals and isolating contact cases, helped the world contain the 2022 mpox outbreak.

Raoult, who is the former head of France's IHU Mediterranee research hospital, has been accused by French medical bodies of conducting "the largest 'unauthorised' clinical trial ever seen" into the use of hydroxychloroquine to treat COVID-19.

WHO has not ordered lockdowns

"The WHO cannot and has not ordered governments to prepare for 'mega lockdowns' or any kind of lockdown due to mpox," the organization told AFP, debunking disinformation that has spread online.

The UN agency added that while its mission is to provide "technical advice and support," countries retain "the sovereignty to take decisions and actions concerning the health of their populations."

For some conspiracy theorists, mpox is what they call a "plandemic," a pandemic orchestrated by the WHOwhich they say is being manipulated by major pharmaceutical companies.

Tiktok users have alleged that the start of the school year had been delayed in France due to mpox. Contacted by AFP, the French Education Ministry rejected the claims.

 2024 AFP
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Danish drugmaker Bavarian Nordic said last week that it was ready to supply up to 10 million doses of its vaccine targeting mpox by the end of 2025.

Danish drugmaker Bavarian Nordic said Thursday that it was "better prepared" to supply its mpox vaccine for the current surge of the virus than it was for the 2022 epidemic.

The vaccine maker said last week that it was ready to supply up to 10 million doses of its vaccine targeting mpox by the end of 2025, with some 500,000 doses currently in stock.

According to the company, the level of "panic is not as high maybe as it was in 2022-2023."

Speaking at a presentation of its quarterly earnings on Thursday, CEO Paul Chaplin said, "We are better prepared".

"Not only have we built up inventory that supply the anticipated orders, we've also built up an inventory to allow us to potentially have a capacity for outbreaks which we currently find ourselves in," Chaplin explained.

The World Health Organization (WHO) last week declared the rapid spread of the new, more dangerous mpox strain, dubbed Clade 1b, in Africa a public health emergency of international concernthe highest alarm the UN agency can sound.

The UN health agency has called for a major increase in vaccine production and said that a vaccination campaign must be a key priority for affected countries.

Last week, the health agency of the African Union said some 200,000 vaccines would be deployed across Africa, thanks to agreements with the EU and the Danish drugmaker, whose vaccine was approved in 2019.

While mpox has been known for decades, a new more deadly and more transmissible strainknown as Clade 1bhas driven the recent surge in cases.

Clade 1b causes death in about 3.6 percent of cases, with children more at risk, according to the WHO.

France this week announced that it would donate 100,000 mpox vaccine doses to countries suffering from the emergency and the United States has said it will donate 50,000 mpox vaccine doses to Democratic Republic of Congo, which has reported more than 16,000 cases and 500 deaths this year.

 2024 AFP
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Jose Rodriguez-Romaguera, PhD, assistant professor in the UNC Neuroscience Center at the UNC School of Medicine. Credit: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine

Diversity is the driving factor for scientific discovery. However, racial diversification efforts among researchers have fallen short. In a perspective published in Neuron, Jose Rodriguez-Romaguera, Ph.D., assistant professor in the UNC Neuroscience Center at the UNC School of Medicine, describes how critical mentormentee relationships are for the next generation of neuroscientists, especially for those, like him, who come from racially underrepresented groups.

In the piece, Rodriguez-Romaguera and his former mentor, Gregory Quirk, Ph.D., a supervising scientist at the University of the Philippines-Manila, formerly a professor at the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, reflect on lessons learned from their cross-racial mentormentee relationship that could apply to many researchers today.

The perspective addresses boundaries of mentormentee relationships, lab environments that value caring and inclusivity, and strategies to overcome impostor syndrome.

"I did not perceive myself as a scientist prior to joining the Quirk Lab because most scientists did not look like me," said Rodriguez-Romaguera. "In fact, my own mentor did not look like me! However, my mentor, Greg, who 'looked' like a scientist telling me I could also "be a scientist" was a powerful motivator and started my journey to become a neuroscientist."

To create racially inclusive environments, this perspective acknowledges areas of focus and questions to address in order to be more effective in mentoring trainees from underrepresented and historically excluded backgrounds. Fostering a mentee's sense of belonging can ignite a positive attitude in academic pursuits leading to career success.

Yet, the perspective explains how the imposter syndromeone's self-doubt in intellect or skillscan make mentees feel incapable of belonging in the research realm. It is in this instance where Rodriguez-Romaguera urges mentors to allocate time to being accessible to help trainees form their scientific identity.

"As a graduate student, I used to suffer from this type of impostor phenomenon until my mentor asked me, 'Do you prefer to fail, or would you rather succeed and leave your impostor identity behind?' While I was horrified that my mentor could think that I was failing on purpose, I realized that there were unconscious processes preventing me from succeeding in an environment where I thought I already belonged," said Rodriguez-Romaguera.

Acknowledging the mentee as the whole person with proper caring, understanding and boundaries is another recommendation for establishing a collaborative mentormentee relationship. Rodriguez-Romaguera states that personal issues and scientific issues can be successfully compartmentalized between a mentee and mentor.

Personal problems can affect a mentee's work professionally, and it's important for the mentor to recognize the challenges these can bring to both academic and nonacademic life. On the other hand, the piece stresses the importance of balancing boundaries between the mentor and mentee. Mentoring can lead to a friendship which poses the risk of hurting the purpose of the relationship, and it can spiral the mentee into establishing unnecessary dependence.

"My mentor, Greg, jolted me late one afternoon by saying, 'I may be friendly, but I'm not your friend, I'm your mentor,'" said Rodriguez-Romaguera. "While inconvenient to hear, this can allow the mentee to relax, knowing that the mentor will not lose sight of the mentee's professional needs. Establishing boundaries by both the mentor and the mentee are very important to mentoring scientists so the relationship maintains its focus on the science and the career progression of the trainee."

When it comes to focusing on productivity or focusing on a caring, personal tone, Rodriguez-Romaguera says both are necessary for the mentee. Additionally, he says trainees from underrepresented backgrounds may need more caring initially than non-underrepresented trainees because of the additional work needed to overcome racial stereotypes.

From the positive lab environment to participating in close-knit group activities, building cohesiveness between a mentor and mentee can strengthen career aspirations, especially as a mentee moves into postdoctoral training and eventually become mentors in their own labs.

More information: Jose Rodriguez-Romaguera and Gregory J. Quirk, Mentoring to propagate racial inclusivity in neuroscience, Neuron (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2024.08.004. www.cell.com/neuron/fulltext/S0896-6273(24)00577-4 Journal information: Neuron
The European Commission's latest draft decision to slap hefty import duties on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) will definitely hurt European businesses, as the decision ignores a bare truth: the shared weal and woe along industrial chains.



Some politicians are busy stoking fears over the supposed risk of relying too much on China-made products while trumpeting the de-risking narrative, but they have lost sight of the fact that China's EVs are increasingly manufactured globally, which means that erecting a tariff barrier will not benefit local industries in Europe.

China's EV industry has a long industrial chain and involves extensive participation from the United States and Europe. From assembly robots and car chips to tires and stereos, the auto parts and components of a China-made EV demonstrate the close cooperation among global companies across various industries.

As with an iPhone, one can hardly say with complete certainty that it is made or not made in the United States, as every product coming off the production lines has taken a global journey that involves multiple suppliers in multiple countries.

This reality check echoes well the response of the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) on Wednesday, which warned that the commission's move could "severely impact the EU's automotive industry, employment, and efforts toward green and sustainable development."

CAAM urged the European side to uphold dialogue and cooperation to foster a "fair, non-discriminatory and predictable market environment" conducive to the automotive industry's development.

The automotive industries of China and Europe are highly complementary, a fact that has been proved repeatedly by BMW, Volkswagen, Faurecia and other EU companies with their expanding new energy vehicle (NEV) business in China.

Foreign brands, in fact, hold an important position in China's EV exports. One example is Tesla, which ranked a steady first in China's export volume of NEVs in 2023.

In the meantime, Chinese companies such as CATL, NIO and BYD have built factories in European countries including Germany and Hungary, contributing to the competitiveness of the EU electric vehicle industry.

The draft decision to impose definitive countervailing duties, however, has heightened the concerns of Chinese EV manufacturers over the possible risks of investing in Europe.

Industrial analysts have criticized using "overcapacity" as a pretext to pan-politicize economic and trade issues to restrict China's EV industry. Such actions not only fail to address relevant countries' own industrial challenges, but will further drag down the growth of global trade and the recovery of the world economy.

As the commission's investigation advances, it is worth noting that the probe on Chinese EVs that started last October was not initiated by the EU's industries, but was an ex-officio action, meaning it was initiated by the commission grounded on the threat of damage.

The China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products responded on Wednesday that there was a serious lack of procedural transparency in the commission's probe, which failed to provide objective analysis of the indicators of damage to the EU industry.

Standing in sharp contrast to the repulsion of some EU politicians over China's EV industry is the welcome from the broader market. For instance, Chinese EV manufacturers have tapped into the Southeast Asian markets, including Thailand and Indonesia, forming partnerships with local companies and establishing production facilities.

The New York Times described Thailand's ambitious goal to have EVs account for 30 percent of its automobile production by 2030 as an objective "that seems unattainable without Chinese companies."

So far, at least 12 Chinese car companies have entered the Mexican market, a move expected to facilitate local transition to clean energy and strengthen the latter's competitive position in the global EV industry.

All of these suffice to illustrate what may be overlooked by misconceptions about industrial chains. It is not just about the already globalized EV industry. From chips to semiconductors, industrial chain cooperation is a vivid demonstration of a community with a shared future for humanity in the industrial age.

Some politicians love to play the "China threat" card for political gain, fueling fear of the so-called China-centric industrial chains. The truth is that there has never been a global supply chain that centers around a single country, nor will there ever be in the future.

The dynamism and sustainability of value chains, including crucial aspects like research and development, must rely on multi-centered cooperation across the globe.

That being said, what political headwinds cannot change is the trend that businesses are ever more interdependent, comprising integrated communities with shared interests. Thus, openness, inclusiveness and mutually beneficial cooperation are the only right choice.
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Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

A wildly popular class of drugs called GLP-1 agonistswhich includes Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, and Zepboundare revolutionizing the treatment of obesity.

One in eight adults has tried a GLP-1 drug for weight loss or to manage their diabetes, and a tidal wave of research is revealing that these medications may also help with a range of health issues, from lowering the risk of heart disease and certain cancers to treating sleep apnea and substance use disorders.

"These drugs are making a big difference because of how effective they are," says Angela Godwin Beoku-Betts, a clinical assistant professor at the NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing and board-certified family nurse practitioner who runs a private clinic in the Bronx focused on obesity and weight loss.

While millions have readily embraced these medications, they're new, and there's not a lot of data on how they'll affect patientsand societyover the long term. The high demand and costs for GLP-1s have driven patients to telehealth prescribers and less-regulated compounded versions, and gaps have emerged in who can access them.

"What does it mean to be medicating a population instead of addressing the social and structural issues that contribute to obesity?" asks Virginia Chang, a physician, sociologist, and associate professor of social and behavioral science at the NYU School of Global Public Health who studies obesity and health disparities.

NYU News spoke with Chang and Godwin about how this new generation of weight-loss drugs is both raising questions while offering some unexpected answers.

Are these drugs addressing the root causes of obesity?

Chang: Obesity has always been a tug of war between individual behaviors and the culture and society that structures those behaviors. What you eat and how much you exercise is a matter of individual choicebut we also have a food environment that has changed tremendously in the last several decades.

Food has become much less expensive, and we now contend with ultraprocessed foods and food deserts where people can't get healthy foods.

The built environment has also changed. We now live in an economy where more people have desk jobs and are not doing manual labor. Labor-saving devices, suburbanizationall of those things have changed to create the increase in obesity that we've seen. It's not a genetic change; the human gene pool is the same as it was in the eighties, when the prevalence of obesity started to go up.

Applying a medication disrupts that equation, because suddenly, we have a highly effective drug that can intervene on the entire process. But it takes our attention away from the broader environment and all of the upstream factors that contributed to the epidemic of obesity we currently see.

We're applying a medical solution to social problems. But these are also social problems that have proven to be very intractable for the last several decades.

Godwin: These medications don't make changes to eliminate food deserts. They don't change how we make decisions day to day. If we don't fix those societal issues, my concern is what will happen long-term.

Are weight loss drugs reaching those who most need them?

Godwin: My research focuses on minority individuals, mostly women. Many have Medicare or Medicaid, which generally are not paying for weight-loss drugs. For these patients, paying out of pocket isn't an option. There's still a lot of work to be done as to who is able to get these medications.

Chang: In addition to weight loss, these drugs have also been shown to reduce cardiovascular risk, which expanded their domain of clinical application. It will be interesting to see if there's more pressure on insurance, both public and private, to cover these drugs, given their added benefits.

There are already social gradients in obesity and cardiovascular disease. We now know that there are social gradients in access to these drugs, which will only exacerbate those other gradients.

Many people are learning about GLP-1 drugs on social media and are using telehealth services to get them. Where does that leave the role of the traditional health care provider?

Chang: I'm a general internist. When people go to a telehealth provider, they're not evaluated in a traditional, holistic medical setting where a provider sees someone in personwhere they give them a physical exam and then weigh their entire medical history and make a global assessment of whether they should be on a drug.

In the current environment, some people are going to the internet in pursuit of one drugthey might answer five questions online and get the drug in the mail, and there's huge variation in whether there's any follow-up. I don't think we've really seen that kind of thing with other drugs, so it's a very different situation.

Godwin: A lot is missing in these types of virtual interactions. In my clinic, I like seeing patients face to face. I have a million questions for them: Do you have a history of pancreatitis or thyroid cancer?

Are you skipping meals or eating late at night? Are you eating meals high in protein? Are you having GERD? Are you on the right dose? These questions lead to conversations about the futureif you don't change your habits now, what does your life look like in five, 10, or 15 years?

Also, when people come to see me, there's often something else that needs to be addressed. For instance, some men have low testosterone, or women have perimenopausal factors.

While these drugs are really effective, there are some people on them who never lose weight. Why not? Often they're not talking with a provider about ithow to actually eat on Ozempic.

My concern in general is that there's a lack of education and guidance as to what your life should look like aside from these medications. It's just, "I want the medication," and not a whole discussion of lifestyle and eating and cooking and exercising.

What will you be keeping an eye on when it comes to the long-term impact of these drugs?

Chang: There's not been a lot of talk around these drugs making people not want to eat as much. What does this mean from a sociological standpoint? What if we're not spending as much time at dinner? Eatingsitting together at a tableis a major form of human interaction in all societies. And if we spend less time at the table, do we find other ways to socialize in the long-term? We just don't know right now.

But I would particularly like to see where social disparities go with obesity, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes. Clinical trials, by definition, don't have long-term data in the beginning. I would like to know what the long-term health effects are.

Godwin: I would also like to see an improvement in chronic health conditionsa decrease in the gap between those with diabetes and cardiovascular diseases and everyone else. My concern is, if people think this is a "fix," then we won't address the issues that lead to obesity anymore. But my hope is that we don't ignore improvements that still need to be made.
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:

Unripe green orange (A) within the orange net, (B) in isolated view, and (C) with a "Munker-net." Credit: i-Perception (2024). DOI: 10.1177/20416695241258748

People who shop for groceries at their local supermarket may have noticed that some of the fruit they purchase may not look the same at home as it did in the storeor more specifically, after it is removed from its packaging. This is due to what has come to be known as the "confetti illusion"in which pieces of colored material partially obstructing the view of an image can change the way our brain processes its coloring.

Karl Gegenfurtner, a psychologist at Giessen University, in Germany, has found that the "confetti illusion" used by fruit sellers and others to push products is due to a perceptual illusion that involves the way our brains are programmed to interpret visual information. In his paper published in the journal i-Perception, he describes a brain phenomenon called color assimilation and how it contributes to optical illusions.

Food growers learned a long time ago that if they packed oranges in orange netting, the oranges inside look more orange, which the mind interprets as a more luscious ripe fruit. The same thing is true for yellow netting for lemons and green netting for limes. The color of the fruit as seen between the plastic netting is altered by what Gegenfurtner describes as color assimilation.

He felt compelled to take a new look at the confetti illusion after experiencing it himself upon returning home from the supermarket to discover the bright orange appearance of his oranges was noticeably greener once removed from their netted bag.

After some thought, he noted that it could be explained by prior research showing that sensory stimuli are always made up of partial informationthe things we see are assembled into images only after the brain has knitted together input from several sources. When we look at an ordinary sidewalk, for example, we may perceive different images depending on ambient temperature, scents like recently mowed grass, or even the leftover residue in our mouths from our latest meal.

Version of the confetti illusion with the faces of Helmholtz, Maxwell and Young. Credit: i-Perception (2024). DOI: 10.1177/20416695241258748

By posting pictures of human faces with colored bars drawn across their faces in his paper, Gegenfurtner demonstrates that the change in fruit color is not due to the way light reflects off the netting. Because the images are 2D, there is no chance of colors from the bars reflecting off the imagery under them, yet the skin color and tone of the person behind them seems to change anyway.

More information: Karl R. Gegenfurtner, Perceptual ripening of oranges, i-Perception (2024). DOI: 10.1177/20416695241258748

 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:

A holiday traveler looks out at a airplane at Salt Lake City International Airport, in Salt Lake City, July 3, 2024. Credit: AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File

It's the bane of many travelers: jet lag. Nobody wants to lose out because they're too tired to enjoy the delights of their vacation spot.

Here are some tips on how to handle jet lag, wherever you might end up.

What is jet lag?

Scientists define jet lag as the effect on the human body of traveling across different time zones. Our bodies have biological clocks programmed into almost every cell in the body, according to Sofia Axelrod, who studies circadian rhythms at Rockefeller University in New York.

"The clock is set by the 24-hour light and dark pattern," Axelrod said. "Every morning when we wake up, specialized (light) receptor cells in our retina receive a daylight signal, which is transmitted to the brain and from there, the whole body."

When we travel to another time zone, our eyes receive the daylight signal at a different time than usual, causing our internal clocks to reset. But that process can take awhileand it's during that adjustment period that we feel the effects of jet lag.

Is jet lag preventable?

Yes, but that can come at a cost. Malcolm von Schantz, a professor who specializes in circadian rhythms at Northumbria University in Newcastle, said that flying in premium cabins where travelers can stretch out and properly rest, can ward off sleep deprivation, but he acknowledges that isn't an option for most people. Still, he said that timing your flights can help. For example, he suggests flying from Europe to North America during the day, so that it's evening when passengers land and they can get a proper night's sleep.

"If you take the evening flight instead, you'll be woken up at midnight to be served breakfast and land an hour or two later, when both jet lag and sleep deprivation will hit you hard and simultaneously," he said.

Von Schantz also said flying in newer models with a lighter frame, like the Airbus A350 or Boeing 787 Dreamliner, would help. That's because those planes can maintain a more comfortable cabin atmosphere, which should help travelers feel less worn out by the end of their flights.

A Southwest plane lands at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Va., Dec. 30, 2022. Credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File

What should you do when you arrive?

Experts say getting exposure to sunlight is critical to resetting your internal body clock. That can mean either avoiding morning sun or deliberately seeking it out, depending on where you've travelled from. Getting light in the morning will advance your body clock, while light exposure in the early evening will delay it. Naps are OK, but scientists warn against taking long siestas later in the day, as that might compromise your ability to sleep through the night.

Are there supplements or medicines that might help?

Melatonin, a hormone that the brain naturally produces when the body thinks it's night, can be helpful. But it's not available everywhere and in some countries like the U.K. and France, a prescription is required. Von Schantz of Northumbria University said that one of the advantages of melatonin is that you can start taking it before your journey, to reset your internal clock quicker.

"If you're in a part of the world where melatonin is available over the counter, you can combine the effects of light and melatonin to achieve the advance or delay (in your body clock) that you need," he said.

What can you do to deal with the effects of jet lag?

Business travelers might want to consider arriving a day or two ahead of any important meetings or events, said Russell Foster of Oxford University, who has authored a book on circadian rhythms.

"You should just be aware that if you're jet-lagged, you're more likely to make unwise decisions, be less empathetic and unable to multitask," he said.

Tourists might not need to be as alert as business travelers, but they should still be careful, he said. He advises tourists to get caught up on their sleep before doing anything potentially risky or that requires concentration, like driving.

Foster said he tries to maximize his light exposure when he arrives at a new destination to offset jet lag. But he also has a fallback strategy: coffee.

"I'm not suggesting it's an ideal thing to do, but caffeine will help override the sleepiness and cognitive impairment you might be feeling as a result of jet lag," he said.

 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
If you go The Best Westerns and Junior will play Friday at Free Cycles, 732 S. 1st St. in Missoula. Doors at 6:30 p.m. Junior is on at 7 p.m. and the Best Westerns from 8:30-10 p.m. Admission is $10; no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

The Best Westerns, a cult favorite Montana band with members stretched across county and state lines, are reuniting to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of their debut album, High Country, with a Friday show at Free Cycles.

Since 2014, the only rarities more elusive than a Best Westerns performance are their recordings, with High Country standing as their exclusive studio release. However, even after a decade, the bands opus draws a stiff shot to the gut in its honest and inventive exploration of country-twang heartache.

High Country showcases Izaak Opatzs adept songwriting and house brand of tumbling drawl. Helping craft a distinction between High Country and Opatzs later solo material are his fellow Best Westerns: Ray Lombardi on guitar, Dave Martens on pedal steel, Ryan Scott on bass and Matt Tipton on drums. Caroline Keys and Leah McBreairty are also credited as contributing artists.

Aside from the obvious, like the invocation of June Carter Cash in the delightfully ramshackle opener Emmylou, musical elements like Martens haunting steel on Cant Raise the Dead and Lombardis snappy leads on Backsliding make certain theres no mistaking this records honky-tonk foundations.

Opatz, too, occasionally surrenders to the better tropes of alternative country, whether its in the valences of lost love driving the lyrics as a whole or, more acutely, in the high lonesome shuffle of a song like Broken Heart.

In these qualities, High Country fits as a familiar pair of shoes and follows with respect in the footsteps of prior country greats. However, the Best Westerns self-proclaimed electric folk thrives in their defiance to fit cleanly into any genre of influence.

Opatzs lyrics are nimble and relevant, mostly skirting around the cowpoked-to-death pitfalls of self-victimizing laments or forlorn whiskey binges meant to wash away any inconvenient accountability. Insead, Opatz uses his pen to probe new lenses of heartbreak and own their deeper personal manifestations. In Backsliding, poignant lines about jealous cartilage or prolonging a rekindling cup of coffee tease out the coltish nuances of soured romance as a patchwork of desire, resentment, and old vulnerabilities. Lubbock for Love strikes a playful and raw take on place, the songwriter wallowing in feelings of inadequacy when they realize their former lover is willing to embrace the smokestacks and strip malls of Lubbock for a new partner instead of relocating to a Missoula-esque mountain paradise.

In tandem with Opatz writing, musical composition poises High Country with graceful nudges to keep listeners from old country-western constraints. Lombardis guitar work on Hamstrung and Broken Heart is a perfect show of both his determined restraint and musical dexterity across complementary genres like jazz. In tracks like Rattletrap Engine, Scott and Tipton anchor the tune in a classic country drum and bass drag, while songs like Jump My Bones illustrate their simultaneous drive to think beyond the traditional. Peppered throughout the album, a horn section defies all expectations and manages, through co-producer and studio engineer Christopher Baumanns skilled ear, to complement the melodic variance with subtlety.

For its refusal to fit into a classic country-western box, High Country manages never to stray too far. The Best Westerns neither take their listeners for granted nor demand too much of them. Their ability to walk this line is what gives High Country the ability to live up to its name in more than one facet, elevating the genre without being condescending or stifling. Moreover, the Best Westerns work still resonates in a sub-genre that has continued to grow from the actual western high-country with regional artists such as Andy Shauf, Colter Wall and Dean Johnson.

Even after a decade, High Country remains an album worth celebrating.
The Montana Housing Task Force delivered its third set of policy recommendations to Gov. Greg Gianforte on Wednesday, and the document calls for measures like limiting subdivision approval conditions and setting reasonable limits on impact fees.

A total of 23 different recommendations, which would have to be implemented as bills in the Montana Legislature and approved by the governor, are in the document, which is online at deq.mt.gov/about/Housing-Task-Force under the Phase III section.

Gianforte praised the bipartisan cooperation of the Housing Task Force, which has previously submitted two other recommendation reports. Some of those recommendations have been implemented as law and some were not in the last session. A few recommendations have been challenged in court.

Gianforte said that over the last decade, Montana's population has grown by 10% while the number of housing starts in the same time period has grown by only 7%, leading to a shortage of homes and rising prices.

"We all have an obligation to solve this problem," Gianforte said. "Owning a home is foundational to the American dream. And for at least the last 12 years, owning a home has gotten more difficult."

Gianforte said that the laws passed in the most recent session were a great start, and he noted that at least one national publication called it the "Montana Miracle." He also noted that Zillow rental market data recently showed that the median rental price in Missoula has dropped by over $400 annually in 2024 compared to last year.

Still, he said, there's a lot more work to be done.

The first recommendation in the most recent document is to eliminate minimum lot size and lot width requirements in cities to facilitate starter home construction with less expensive detached single-family houses and townhouses. The report noted that places that have implemented that change, such as Houston, have seen a marked increase in starter home construction.

"A 2021 University of Montana report found minimum lot sizes raise housing prices by as much as 20% by forcing buyers to purchase more land than they want," the report states. "Several additional studies have confirmed this finding. The City of Bozeman 2021 Development Code Audit for Affordable Housing notes that additional-lot-area-per-unit standards are a significant contributor to high housing prices for non-single-household development.

Each recommendation comes with a dissenting opinion, with many of the dissenting opinions stating that the Montana Land Use and Planning Act, which was signed into law this year but is currently being challenged in court, should be allowed to stand because it preserves "local control."

Todd O'Hair, the executive director of the Montana Chamber of Commerce, said high housing costs are stifling the economy in the state.

"The housing issue has become a leading economic headwind for development in Montana," he said. "Prior to 2020, you would hear pockets of concern about affordable housing primarily in metro areas like Missoula and Bozeman. Since 2020 it's become a statewide issue."

He said businesses that are looking to relocate to Montana or expand here see housing as an obstacle, as do existing Montana businesses that are looking to establish themselves. That's because their workers can't afford to live here.

"The only way we're going to address this challenge is increasing the supply of housing," O'Hair said.

Danny Tenenbaum of Missoula, a member of the task force and a former state lawmaker, helped write a few of the recommendations. He said he and task force members looked at the obstacles that builders face and tried to write policies that would eliminate obstacles that are outdated or counterproductive. The goal, Tenenbaum said, is to give builders the ability to get more units on the market.

For example, he said, the one recommendation in the report would make "taller buildings easier to build" and another would eliminate protest petitions for people seeking to rezone their property for higher density.

Tenenbaum said that the housing crisis in Montana's cities, like Missoula, means that developers are now submitting applications for large subdivisions that will drastically change rural places like Arlee and Stevensville. That means, according to Tenenbaum, that the issue is spiraling out of control and requires statewide action. Tenenbaum believes that most of the opposition to many of the recommendations comes from government officials in places like Missoula who don't want to give up local control.

State Sen. Ellie Boldman, a Democrat from Missoula, said that there are many teachers in Missoula schools who have to live out of town and commute into work every day.

"This is an urban issue, a rural issue and a Tribal issue," she said. She praised the work of the task force and thanked Gov. Gianforte for his leadership on the issue.

Don Sterhan, the CEO of a housing financing company in Billings, said insurance costs for many multifamily complexes have doubled and property taxes have risen drastically. He also said that profit margins for builders who try to construct large apartment complexes are already thin.

Gianforte said he hopes he can get state lawmakers to keep working on the issue, noting that the state "can't keep doing the same things" it's been doing for the last decade.

"To address this urgent need, we must increase the supply of housing and bring home ownership within reach of more Montanans," he said.
2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week kicks off in Guizhou

Xinhua) 08:27, August 22, 2024

Photo taken on Aug. 21, 2024 shows the opening ceremony of the 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week in Gui'an New Area, southwest China's Guizhou Province. The 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week kicked off here on Wednesday. The education cooperation week, which was first held in 2008, has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations. (Xinhua/Tao Liang)

Foreign students sell products via livestream during the 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week in Gui'an New Area, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 21, 2024. The 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week kicked off here on Wednesday. The education cooperation week, which was first held in 2008, has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations. (Xinhua/Tao Liang)

Foreign students take selfies during the 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week in Gui'an New Area, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 21, 2024. The 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week kicked off here on Wednesday. The education cooperation week, which was first held in 2008, has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations. (Xinhua/Tao Liang)

A foreign student experiences Miao embroidery during the 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week in Gui'an New Area, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 21, 2024. The 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week kicked off here on Wednesday. The education cooperation week, which was first held in 2008, has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations. (Xinhua/Tao Liang)

Representatives of foreign students sing songs at the opening ceremony of the 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week in Gui'an New Area, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 21, 2024. The 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week kicked off here on Wednesday. The education cooperation week, which was first held in 2008, has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations. (Xinhua/Tao Liang)

A visitor (L) praises the tea products of Guizhou Province during the 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week in Gui'an New Area, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 21, 2024. The 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week kicked off here on Wednesday. The education cooperation week, which was first held in 2008, has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations. (Xinhua/Tao Liang)

Guests attend the opening ceremony of the 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week in Gui'an New Area, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 21, 2024. The 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week kicked off here on Wednesday. The education cooperation week, which was first held in 2008, has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations. (Xinhua/Tao Liang)

A staff member (R) introduces tea products of Guizhou Province during the 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week in Gui'an New Area, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 21, 2024. The 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week kicked off here on Wednesday. The education cooperation week, which was first held in 2008, has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations. (Xinhua/Tao Liang)

Foreign students visit a batik craft exhibition during the 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week in Gui'an New Area, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 21, 2024. The 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week kicked off here on Wednesday. The education cooperation week, which was first held in 2008, has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations. (Xinhua/Tao Liang)

Foreign students visit an exhibition of intangible cultural heritage crafts during the 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week in Gui'an New Area, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 21, 2024. The 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week kicked off here on Wednesday. The education cooperation week, which was first held in 2008, has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations. (Xinhua/Tao Liang)

A foreign student experiences batik craft making during the 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week in Gui'an New Area, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 21, 2024. The 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week kicked off here on Wednesday. The education cooperation week, which was first held in 2008, has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations. (Xinhua/Tao Liang)

Foreign students visit an exhibition of intangible cultural heritage crafts during the 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week in Gui'an New Area, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 21, 2024. The 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week kicked off here on Wednesday. The education cooperation week, which was first held in 2008, has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations. (Xinhua/Tao Liang)

A foreign student learns about Miao embroidery making during the 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week in Gui'an New Area, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 21, 2024. The 2024 China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week kicked off here on Wednesday. The education cooperation week, which was first held in 2008, has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations. (Xinhua/Tao Liang)

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
 Flash

Kenya and China signed an agreement on Wednesday to promote cooperation in renewable energy in the East African country.

Cynthia Muhati, acting chief executive officer at the Kenya Renewable Energy Association, said that under the partnership, Chinese counterparts are expected to help Kenya unlock finance for additional investment in green energy projects.

"Kenya will also benefit from capacity building through technology from China to ensure locals develop solar and other renewable technologies and products that are competitive," Muhati said in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, during the 2024 China-Africa Digital Financial Inclusion Summit.

The day-long meeting, attended by over 100 participants from China and Africa, was convened to deliberate on strategies for decreasing the percentage of the population without access to financial services. The participants included officials from central banks, governments, and development financial institutions.

Data from the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Agency indicates that Kenya's installed electricity capacity stands at 3,112 megawatts (MW) out of which solar contributes 210 MW.

Wang Weiquan, director of the China Renewable Energy Industry Association, said that the Asian nation is committed to supporting Kenya to expand its electricity generation capacity from renewable sources of energy.

Wang added that, under the agreement, China and Kenya will also undertake joint assessments to better understand the needs of Kenya's renewable energy market.
El Paso Tex Mex Grill Adalberto Aquino welcomes patrons to his authentic Mexican spot in Cranford, New Jersey, on Monday, Aug. 19, 2024. (Karim Shamsi-Basha/Karim Shamsi-Basha)

Adalberto Aquino grew up eating the delicious foods of his grandmother, Catalina Aquino. She was a professional chef at El Rincon Gaucho restaurant in Mexico City, and she made him his favorite dishes, including Milanese de pollo (chicken Milanese).

Fast forward to 1996, the year Aquino immigrated to the United States. He worked in the food industry at various spots, and now, hes proud to own El Paso Tex Mex Grill in Cranford. The authentic eatery has garnered four and a half stars on Yelp.

My grandmother taught me how to cook, Aquino said. She loved making food for us when we were little, and I try to make her recipes. Then, he added with a chuckle, My food is almost as good.

El Paso Tex Mex Grill The veggie quesadilla is brimming with Mexican flavors. (Karim Shamsi-Basha/Karim Shamsi-Basha)

I tried three entrees at El Paso Tex Mex Grill, starting with the veggie quesadillas ($10.95). They came with guacamole, salsa, and crema agria (Mexican sour cream). The sour cream had less of a tang than the American version and complimented the dish well, and the quesadillas were tasty with tons of vegetables inside and melted queso.

Next, I tried the pork and chicken burrito ($13.95). Ive seen those for $18.00 - $22.00 at other Mexican restaurants in Central Jersey. The burrito was full of intense flavor and appetizing aroma, and it was too big to bite into. I had to eat it with a knife and a fork! The tender meat inside matched the veggies in softness and texture.

El Paso Tex Mex Grill Good luck trying to bite into the giant and tasty pork and chicken burrito! (Karim Shamsi-Basha/Karim Shamsi-Basha)

My next dish was the shrimp quesadillas ($12.95). Again, usually $18.00 and up. I must digress here and mention that I came to New Jersey from Alabama two and a half years ago. Back in Birmingham, I used to get shrimp quesadillas at this Mexican cantina, and they were super delicious.

I am glad to say the ones at El Paso Tex Mex Grill tasted better than my Birmingham version. The shrimp was so tender it required no chewing, and the accoutrements of cheese and veggies were complex with those authentic Mexican spices. I could have eaten 12!

I highly recommend El Paso Tex Mex Grill in Cranford. The price is fair, and the flavor is super yummy.

El Paso Tex Mex Grill The shrimp quesadillas were delicious and full of flavor. (Karim Shamsi-Basha/Karim Shamsi-Basha)

Sticking with the Mexican theme, I will add two other restaurants where you can save money and have ample deliciousness. These recommendations are based on Yelp reviews.

Up in Jersey City, you can stop by El Ranchero Taqueria, where the steak, cheese and egg breakfast burrito is ($9.00), and the lamb and beef quesadilla is ($7.50). Now, thats cheap. The place garnered four and a half stars on Yelp.

Heading South to La Esperanza Restaurant and Bar in Lindenwold, youll find just about every item on the menu under $10. That includes fajitas, tacos, burritos and quesadillas. Some items there are quite authentic to Mexico, like the Nopales La Mexicana (Cactus) for ($7.99).

There are your cheap eats this week. Shoot me an email if you know of other spots where the meal is a steal!

Karim Shamsi-Basha may be reached at kshamsi-basha@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter & Instagram. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Welcome to Mosaic. Follow us on Instagram at @MosaicNJcom and on Facebook at MosaicNJcom and on YouTube at @MosaicNJcom. (edited)
EDITORS NOTE: If you have something going on in southwest Montana that you would like to share, send an email to editor@mtstandard.com. To get even more coverage, people are encouraged to go to eventsinbutte.com to add their special event.

THURSDAY, AUG. 22

Hike Through History: Greenway Trail: Fairmont Road to German Gulch with Dori Skrukrud. Discover the Greenway Trail and the restoration along this portion of the trail from Fairmont Road through Durant Canyon. Participants meet at 9 a.m. at Fairmont Road. Each walk is free, but a $5 donation is appreciated with proceeds going to the Friends of the Archives and the Local Breast and Cervical Cancer Screening Fund. Snacks and water are available.

The Jefferson County Fair and Rodeo, A Fair of the Heart, continues Thursday through Sunday at the Jefferson County Recreation Park located one-half mile south of Boulder. The event is affordable fun for the whole family with free admission and a $2 per car parking fee Friday and Saturday. For more details, call 406-225-4039.

Buttes final Music on Main for the summer will feature Jeff Crosby, 6-9 p.m., Main Street, along with vendors and childrens activities. For further details, go to the Music on Main Facebook page.

FRIDAY, AUG. 23

AWARE will be hosting an open house and resource fair from noon to 3 p.m. at the AWARE Center for Excellence, 200 Polk St., Anaconda. The free event is to mark a decade at the center. Children and families from Anaconda and surrounding areas are invited to attend the event, which includes a free barbecue and root beer floats, family resources and a free raffle. For more details, contact Maria Goheen, AWARE Community Outreach, at 406-563-8117 or mgoheen@aware-inc.org.

The Butte Vigilante PRCA Pro Rodeo will be Friday-Sunday at the Don Harrington Arena, 6354 Albany Ave. The three-day event will include top PRCA and WPRA competitors in bronc riding, barrel racing, bull riding and much more. Also on hand will be several food vendors. General admission tickets are $25 and can be purchased on the Butte Vigilante website, or at the gate. These tickets also include access to the Friday concert with Levi Blom and the Saturday concert with Kalyn Beasley & the Honky Tonk Arcade.

Willson & McKee will perform in concert at 7 p.m. at the Elling House Arts & Humanities Center at 404 E. Idaho St., Virginia City. The duo will perform traditional Irish and Scottish music while playing such instruments as the dulcimer, Celtic harp, accordion, guitar, Irish bouzouki and bodhran. Admission is $20 and reservations are recommended by calling 406-843-5454 or 406-843-5508.

SATURDAY, AUG. 24

The third annual Big Butte Brewfest will be from noon to 6 p.m. at the historic World Museum of Mining, 155 Museum Way. Several Montana and regional breweries will be there, along with food vendors and live music. In addition, raffles will be held throughout the day with proceeds going towards the expansion of the museums Mining Heritage Center. Tickets are $40 the day of the event and includes six drink tickets. Underground mine tours will be offered for an additional fee.

The Elling House Arts & Humanities Center, along with St. Pauls Episcopal Church, will present a Baroque Music Montana Concert titled Lands of the Free: Languages of Improvisation at 7 p.m. at 102 E. Idaho St., Virginia City. The hour-long concert features 17th century European music with artists Carrie Krause, baroque violin; Manami Mizumoto, baroque violin; Phoebe Carrai, baroque cello; and John Lenti, theorbo. The public is invited to attend. Admission is by donation.

Jesse Daniel with Tylor & The Train Robbers, 7 p.m. doors, 8 p.m. show, Covellite Theatre, 215 W. Broadway St. California native Daniel is blazing the trail for a new wave of traditional artists, bringing his kind of country music to stages all over the world. Tickets $25-$30. Visit covellitepresents.org.

TUESDAY, AUG. 27

The Covellite Theatres Open Mic Night starts at 7 p.m. at 215 W. Broadway St. Guest host will be Peyton Waters. Musicians, poets, comedians, dancers and mimes are encouraged to participate. You can sign up in advance to perform by leaving a note on the Covellites Facebook page or by emailing OpenMic@CovellitePresents.org. There will also be some slots available at the door, so come on time to sign up.

WEDNESDAY, AUG. 28

The Lil Smokies with Trout Basket, 6 p.m. doors, 7 p.m. show. Since forming on the streets of Missoula, where the group got its start busking back in 2009, the band has performed everywhere from Red Rocks to The Rialto and captivated festival audiences at Telluride, High Sierra, LOCKN, Freshgrass, FloydFest and countless more. Tickets $30-$37. Visit covellitepresents.org.
Five police officers from Gigiri Police Station will remain in custody while authorities investigate the escape of 13 suspects, including Collins Jumaisi, the prime suspect in the Kware murders.

The officersCPL Ronald Babo, PC Evans Kipkirui, PC Mollent Achieng, PC Zachary Nyabuto, and PC Gerald Mutukuare among eight senior officers implicated in the escape. These five officers appeared in court on Wednesday.

During the mitigation hearing, Police Constable Mollent Achieng made an emotional plea to attend to her child, who collapsed upon learning of her alleged involvement. The court was informed that the child remains unconscious.

The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) is seeking a 14-day extension of detention to thoroughly investigate the incident, which has raised concerns about possible internal complicity.

Senior Principal Magistrate Martha Nanzushi will rule on Thursday regarding the Miscellaneous Application for this extension, which would allow the DCI to complete its probe.

Acting Inspector-General of Police Gilbert Masengeli stated that preliminary investigations suggested an inside job involving officers who were on duty.

A police report under OB 05/20/08/2024 revealed that Kipkirui and Mutuku, who were on duty, reported the escape.

The report indicated that they, along with the canteen manager, discovered the escape during their routine visit to the cells to serve breakfast. They were shocked to find that the suspects had escaped by cutting through the wire mesh in the basking bay.
Dadaab Member of Parliament (MP) Farah Maalim has called for the immediate dissolution of the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC).

Maalim criticized the commission, alleging that it has strayed from its original mission of integrating Kenyans and ensuring ethnic balance in the public sector.

NCIC should be disbanded as soon as possible. The body was mooted with the express purpose of integrating Kenyans. One of the principal roles was to act as a watchdog for ethnic balance in the public sector, Maalim said.

Maalim argued that the NCIC has become the most segregated institution in Kenya. He noted that the Chair, Vice Chair, CEO, CFO, Head of HR, and over 70% of Principal Officers are from a single community.

NCIC is the most segregated institution in Kenya today. The Chair, Vice Chair, CEO, CFO, head of HR & over 70% of Principal Officers are drawn from one community, he remarked.

Also Read  Farah Maalim Summoned, Kicked Out of Wiper Party for Remarks on Gen Z Protesters

Maalim also claimed that the commission has lost its founding purpose and stressed that no one should be above or below the law. It has lost its founding purpose. No one should be above or below the law, yet many top officials are untouchable, he stated.

Maalim at the same time singled out Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, accusing him of violating cohesion rules without facing consequences from the commission.

DP Gachagua can flout basic cohesion rules with impunity, without fear of legal consequences, the MP argued.

Maalim insisted that the NCIC must first undergo integration before it can effectively oversee national unity. NCIC has to be integrated before it can serve as an effective watchdog for integration, he added.
Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has reportedly dismissed two of his top aides, Deputy Director of Public Communications Martha Wanjiru Miano and Personal Assistant Francis Ngotho Maina. Termination letters, shared on Tuesday, indicate that both aides are expected to leave their positions by October 20.

The official reason for their dismissal is cited as incompetence, but sources within the administration suggest that their loyalty to President William Ruto may have played a role in the decision. This development follows recent rumors of espionage within Gachaguas office.

In a letter addressed to Francis Ngotho Maina, the Deputy Presidents office referenced the Local Agreement Form (Revised 2017), which states, The Government may at any time terminate the engagement of the person employed by giving two (2) months notice in writing or paying two (2) months salary in lieu of notice.

The letter also assured Maina that he would receive his full remuneration package and service gratuity up to October 19.

Martha Miano received a similar notice, with the same clause from the Local Agreement Form cited as the basis for her dismissal. Both letters detailed the terms of their departure, including a prorated service gratuity amounting to 31 percent of their basic salary.

Miano Responds

However, in response to her dismissal, Martha Miano revealed that she had not received the termination letter directly. Instead, she discovered her dismissal through social media after the letter was circulated online.

Its unfortunate that my termination letter had to pass through social media to get to me. As at now, I have not seen or received the letter. But Its okay. I think thats how life is, Miano stated.

Despite the abrupt end to her role, the former blogger expressed pride in her work under the Deputy Presidents office. She conveyed her gratitude to President William Ruto for allowing her to serve and affirmed her unwavering belief in his vision for the country. Miano also promised to continue supporting him.

I walk head high without shame or regrets. I know I did my best. My heart is full, and my conscience is clear. To my former boss under the Presidency, President William Ruto, thank you very much. I believe you have a great vision for this country, and you mean well for all of us. Even without the job, I remain your number one supporter, and I will forever be grateful, she stated.

Miano also took a moment to express her appreciation to Riggy G for the opportunity to work under his leadership. To my immediate former boss, Rigathi Gachagua, Im grateful as well, she added.

Reflecting on her experience, Miano shared that working in the Deputy Presidents office had been a dream come true, crediting all her success to God.

From me, it is nothing but gratitude. Working in the second highest office felt like one of those childhood dreams, but God made it happen when President Ruto took over power. Its purely Gods work. And for the tenure to come to an end, I walk away easy, she said.
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Chinese Premier Li Qiang co-chairs the 29th regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin in Moscow, Russia, Aug. 21, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua]

China-Russia relations are based on non-alliance, non-confrontation and not targeting any third party, both sides reaffirmed in a joint communique issued following a meeting between Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin on Wednesday.

The two sides pledged to firmly safeguard their legitimate rights and interests, and oppose any attempt to obstruct the normal development of bilateral relations, interfere in the internal affairs of the two countries, or restrict the economic development, technological progress, and international development opportunities of the two countries.

China and Russia always regard each other as priority cooperative partners and adhere to mutual respect, equal treatment and win-win cooperation, the two sides reaffirmed.

The two sides agreed that it is essential to fully adhere to the UN Charter, international law, and the basic norms governing international relations, and to promote the formation of a more just and stable multipolar world order.

The two sides pointed out that certain countries cling to hegemonism and neocolonialism, attempt to use the so-called "rules-based order" to maintain their own privileges, infringe upon the sovereignty of other nations, interfere in their internal affairs, suppress their economic growth and technological development, and obstruct the collective rise of emerging markets and developing countries.

Li co-chaired the 29th regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government with Mishustin on Wednesday.

The regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government, held every year since its inception in 1996, is an important mechanism for implementing the consensus reached by the two heads of state and promoting bilateral cooperation and people-to-people exchanges.
Thirty Nairobi residents faced consequences for urinating and littering in the Central Business District (CBD) as part of the county governments recent crackdown on minor offenses.

Nairobis Environment Chief Officer, Geoffrey Mosiria, led enforcement teams on Monday night, patrolling CBD streets to catch offenders. Under the Nairobi Public Nuisance Act 2021, those caught urinating or defecating in public can face a fine of Kes.10,000, a six-month jail term, or both.

Following their arrest, the 30 individuals were arraigned in court on Tuesday. The court sentenced them to community service, specifically to clean the City Mortuary and Uhuru Park, which remains closed to the public due to recent anti-government protests.

Mosiria confirmed that the county has bolstered its personnel to tackle such offenses more effectively.

Mosiria praised the courts decision to impose community service and called on all Nairobi residents to be proactive in protecting the environment.

In our efforts to clean and green our city, we arrested 30 individuals for urinating in the CBD. The court has mandated that they perform community service at the City Mortuary. We all need to contribute to maintaining a clean environment, Mosiria said.

He added, Nairobi today is different from what it once was. Everyone must be conscious of their surroundings. It is unacceptable to urinate or dump garbage anywhere in the CBD.
Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga is gearing up to compete for the chairmanship of the African Union Commission (AUC), ready to articulate his vision for the continent. On Wednesday, Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi confirmed Odingas preparedness to face his opponents and outline his agenda, which aims to advance Africas transformation by implementing the AU Mandate and Africas Agenda 2063.

Mudavadi emphasized that the upcoming debate, Mjadala Africa, will provide a platform for Raila to present his vision and demonstrate his leadership capabilities. This event will also allow African citizens and other stakeholders to engage directly with Raila and the three other candidates, raising issues they wish to see addressed by the future AUC chair.

Confident in Railas qualifications, Mudavadi stated that the former prime minister will make a compelling case for his candidacy, aiming to garner widespread support across the continent. He expressed his belief that Railas extensive experience and readiness would enable him to participate effectively in the live debate, where he will discuss his plans to drive Africas growth, integrate the continent, and ensure sustainable development. Mudavadi highlighted that these goals would position Africa as a significant player on the global stage.

Speaking at a joint press briefing with Raila, Mudavadi, who also holds the position of Foreign Affairs Minister, confirmed that Kenya has completed the necessary paperwork to officially submit Raila Odingas candidacy to the African Union Secretariat. He urged Kenyans to unite behind Raila, revealing that President William Ruto will officially launch Railas candidacy continent-wide next Tuesday.

Raila faces competition from Djibouti Foreign Affairs Minister, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, Anil Kumarsingh Gayan from Mauritius and Richard Randriamandrato from Madagascar.

Raila Represents Kenyas Voice

Mudavadi called on Kenyans to support Raila with the same enthusiasm they show for their athletes on the world stage. As Kenyans, we have always rallied behind our own, whether on the track, the field, or the stage. Just as we cheered our athletes in the recent Olympics, let us fully support Raila as he carries the Kenyan flag high in the race for the Chairmanship of the African Union Commission, he said during the media briefing at his office.

He stressed that Railas candidacy is not just a personal endeavor but a national mission. Hon Raila Odinga represents Kenyas voice, values, and aspirations on the continent. As he steps forward, let us stand with him, not just as a government but as a united people, Mudavadi added.

Expressing his gratitude to the government for its efforts to mobilize support for his bid, Raila shared his optimism about his chances of securing the position. He underscored the importance of strengthening the African Union to fulfill the dreams of Africas founding fathersa united, peaceful, and prosperous Africa where citizens enjoy freedom and contribute productively to the continents development.

Challenges Facing Africa

Raila highlighted the significant challenges Africa faces, including issues in health, education, and employment. He particularly focused on the dire situation of young Africans risking their lives crossing the Mediterranean in search of better opportunities in Europe, fleeing poverty and hardship. This tragedy should not happen, Raila stated emphatically.

Regarding his political engagement at home, Raila indicated that his focus would shift towards continental politics if elected AUC chair. I am not going to be very active in Kenyan politics henceforth so that I continue to focus my attention on continental campaign. But it is a transitional face from local politics towards African continental politics, he explained.

Raila assured that, while his role would shift towards working with the continent, his commitment to Kenya remains unwavering.

You know that I am going to begin to work with the continent once I am elected that is February next year, at the moment I am involved in the campaign. But that does not mean that Kenya ceases to exist, he declared.
Police announced a felony arrest connected to the attempted online extortion of an American Canyon resident.

Bhupinder Singh, a 23-year-old Fremont man, was detained at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday in Martinez, American Canyon Police said in a news release. He was booked into the Napa County jail for investigation of felony grand theft, extortion and elder abuse.

The inquiry into Singh began after man reported to American Canyon Police that his computer had been hacked, according to the department. Suspects claiming to be with the U.S. Department of the Treasury tried to extort about $95,000 from the man, police reported.

Singh was being held Wednesday afternoon on $50,000 bail.

Members of American Canyon Police, the Napa County Sheriffs Office and the Napa Special Investigations Bureau connected Singh to the hacking incident before his arrest, according to the statement, which added that the suspects are believed to be linked to other extortion attempts in different communities.

Cybersecurity roles among most in-demand in US amid rising data breaches Cybersecurity roles among most in-demand in US amid rising data breaches
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Chinese Premier Li Qiang co-chairs the 29th regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin in Moscow, Russia, Aug. 21, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua]

China and Russia will work together to expand bilateral economic and trade cooperation, said a joint communique issued Wednesday following the 29th regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang co-chaired the meeting with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.

The document said the two sides agreed that joint efforts will be made to optimize trade structure, create new growth points for the two countries' economies and bilateral trade volume, and promote the development of e-commerce.

Both sides support the holding of the ninth China-Russia Expo in Russia in 2025 and the 5th China-Russia Forum on Interregional Cooperation within the framework of the Expo, said the joint communique.

The communique pointed out that efforts will be made to expand mutually beneficial cooperation in the Arctic, strengthen cooperation in shipping development, navigation safety, polar ship technology and construction. Both countries will encourage their enterprises to actively engage in Arctic shipping routes cooperation based on market principles, and pay special attention to the protection of the Arctic ecosystem.

The two sides will work actively to expand bilateral trade in the agricultural sector, expand the mutual access categories of agricultural products between the two countries, and promote the export of Russian processed meat products to China at an early date, said the document.

They also agreed that support will be given to the BRICS countries in their cooperation on capacity building, joint research and global governance in the field of artificial intelligence.
The 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) will be held in Beijing from Sept. 4 to 6. China will expand institutional opening-up and deepen cooperation with Africa in terms of industrial and supply chains, in order for the two sides to share development benefits, said Tang Wenhong, assistant minister of commerce, at a press briefing Tuesday.
SMPL Jaipur (Rajasthan) [India], August 22: Apex University Jaipur has set a new benchmark in higher education with its extraordinary performance in the Common University Entrance Test (CUET). The university recorded over 6 lakh registrations in 2023 and 2024, marking a significant milestone in its 59-year legacy. This achievement highlights the growing popularity and trust the university has earned among students and parents nationwide. Building on this success, the university is set to welcome its new batch of students with a grand orientation program featuring Aman Gupta, founder of boAt and judge on Shark Tank India. The event, scheduled from August 22nd to 24th, 2024, promises to inspire and empower the next generation of leaders and entrepreneurs. Dr. Ravi Juniwal, Chairperson of Apex University Jaipur commented on the institution's recent achievements, saying, "Our record-breaking CUET performance is a testament to the trust students place in our academic excellence and commitment to holistic development. We are thrilled to welcome Aman Gupta, whose entrepreneurial journey will undoubtedly inspire our students to dream big and innovate." A Legacy of Excellence For nearly six decades, Apex University has been a cornerstone of quality education in India. The institution's unwavering focus on academic rigor, ethical values, and student-centric learning has produced over 56,000 alumni who are making their mark across various industries globally. Strong Placement Track Record for Graduates The university's strong industry connections have resulted in impressive placement records. The highest package secured by a student stands at an impressive 36 LPA with Sheraton Edison Hotel. The university boasts an average package of 14.4 LPA, with companies like iZOOlogic Ltd. offering lucrative opportunities. Even the minimum package of 7 LPA, offered by Paisa on Demand demonstrates the university's commitment to ensuring every student's career success. State-of-the-Art Facilities and Experienced Faculty Students at Apex University benefit from modern classrooms, advanced laboratories, and a vast library. The faculty comprises seasoned academics and industry experts who bring real-world insights to the classroom, ensuring students are well-prepared for their future careers. Holistic Development The university goes beyond academics, encouraging students to participate in sports, cultural events, and community service. These activities foster leadership, teamwork, and social responsibility, shaping well-rounded individuals ready to make a positive impact on society. Global Exposure Understanding the importance of a global perspective, Apex University has partnered with leading international institutions. These collaborations offer students opportunities for exchange programs, joint research projects, and global internships, preparing them for success in an interconnected world. Orientation Program: Inspiring the Next Generation The orientation program, featuring Aman Gupta, underscores Apex University's commitment to inspiring its students. Gupta, known for his innovative approach to business and his ability to turn challenges into opportunities, will share his entrepreneurial journey with the new batch of students. During his session, Aman Gupta will offer insights into the world of entrepreneurship, discussing the importance of resilience, innovation, and strategic thinking. This interaction with true industry luminaries will encourage students to think big, embrace challenges, and pursue their entrepreneurial dreams with confidence. A Bright Future Ahead Apex University Jaipur continues to build on its legacy of excellence, offering students a supportive environment where they can reach their full potential. With its strong academic foundation, industry connections, and focus on holistic development, the university is well-equipped to nurture the leaders and innovators of tomorrow. As the university welcomes its new batch of students, it reaffirms its dedication to providing not just an education but an experience that shapes every student's future. The institution's record-breaking CUET success, combined with its commitment to bringing inspirational figures like Aman Gupta to campus, demonstrates its ongoing efforts to empower students with the knowledge, skills, and confidence they need to excel in their chosen fields. In conclusion, Apex University Jaipur stands as a beacon of excellence in higher education, where dreams take flight and students are prepared to make a meaningful impact in the world. With its rich legacy, unparalleled opportunities, and a clear vision for the future, the university continues to set new standards in the ever-evolving landscape of higher education in India. For more information, please visit: https://www.apexuniversity.co.in/index.php?utm_source=Digitalpr&utm_medium=online&utm_campaign=2024 (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 Gurugram (Haryana) [India], August 22: Capterra conducted a recent survey among 200 project managers who utilize AI-enabled project management software. The survey findings showcase the positive impact of AI on project outcomes and the increasing adoption of emotional intelligence (EQ) in the field. Growing Recognition of AI's Potential in Project Management * 97% of respondents experienced a positive return on investment (ROI) from their company's AI project management technology investments. * 47% of project managers leveraging AI-enabled project management software anticipate a substantial increase of 20-50% in AI investments within their organization's project management function by 2025. * Increased productivity and efficiency (69%) and improved planning/scheduling (66%) were identified as the most beneficial aspects of AI in project management. * PMs believe that decision-making (43%), predictive analysis (40%), and project planning (37%) are the top areas where AI has the greatest impact on project management. Challenges Associated with AI in Project Management Despite the positive findings, the survey also addressed the challenges associated with AI in project management. 80% of project managers expressed scepticism towards AI, emphasizing the need to effectively address these obstacles. Key challenges include high initial costs of integration, hardware, and software, as well as the criticality of data availability and quality for AI efficacy. Adoption of EQ by Project Managers Has Increased in the Past Two Years - 93% of surveyed project managers reported an increase in their use of EQ in their roles over the past two years. - 55% significantly increased their use of EQ, while 38% moderately increased it. - 96% of project managers are able to accurately identify their own emotions when highly stressed in the workplace, indicating a greater awareness of their emotional well-being while at work. The first part of the survey also revealed that 60% of project managers consistently incorporate EQ-based techniques into their project management responsibilities, while an additional 40% often do so. This integration of EQ into project management has proven beneficial, with 66% of project managers believing that it has enabled them to make better decisions, and 53% reporting that it has helped with team management. Commenting on the survey, Sukanya Awasthi, the analyst of the study, said: "A modern workplace demands a shift from traditional management styles. Majority of project managers we surveyed are incorporating EQ-based techniques and seeing positive outcomes. Moreover, when it comes to using AI, businesses should start small by integrating AI in strategic areas, regularly reviewing and modifying AI models, and cultivating an environment that welcomes AI-driven models if they want to succeed with their efforts to use artificial intelligence in project management. Having said that, it is also important for businesses to maintain a balance between human judgement and AI outcomes in order to best reap the benefits of artificial intelligence." For more information and in-depth survey findings, please visit: https://www.capterra.in/blog/6855/ai-project-management To view previous research reports from Capterra, please visit: https://www.capterra.in/blog/6515/newsroom-capterra-india-2024 About Capterra Capterra helps organisations around the world find the right software for their needs. Founded in 1999, Capterra's global product footprint, verified user reviews backbone, independent research, and tailored comparison tools provide more than five million in-market buyers with a confidence-building discovery experience every month. For more information, visit https://www.capterra.in/ Survey methodology Capterra's 2024 Impactful Project Management Tools Survey was conducted online in May 2024 among 2,500 respondents in the U.S. (n=300), Canada (n=200), Brazil (n=200), Mexico (n=200), the U.K. (n=200), France (n=200), Italy (n=200), Germany (n=200), Spain (n=200), Australia (n=200), India (n=200), and Japan (n=200). The goal of the study was to understand the leadership and emotional intelligence skills needed for PMs to successfully lead teams and projects leveraging/incorporating AI. Respondents were screened to be project management professionals at organizations of all sizes. Their organization must currently use project management software. Media Contact Palash Bhattacharjee PR and Marketing Specialist, Gartner Inc palash.bhattacharjee@gartner.com palash.bhattacharjee@gartner.com (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)
VMPL Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], August 22: ON U Clothing, the fast-growing Pune-based fashion brand, has officially announced the launch of a new outlet in Pune. This expansion marks a significant milestone in the brand's journey, further solidifying its presence in the city's bustling fashion landscape. Founded by Ayub Shaikh, ON U Clothing has quickly gained recognition for its unique blend of modern trends and distinctive style, offering a wide range of apparel and accessories that cater to all age groups. The brand's first outlet in Pune has already made a strong impact, attracting a loyal customer base with its trendy collections and commitment to quality craftsmanship. The upcoming outlet is set to offer an even broader selection of clothing and accessories, with several new collections that will be exclusive to this store. The expansion is part of ON U Clothing's strategy to meet growing customer demand and enhance the shopping experience for fashion enthusiasts in the region. As the brand continues to grow, ON U Clothing remains dedicated to setting new fashion trends and providing stylish yet affordable options. This latest development reflects the brand's ambition to become a leading name in the Indian fashion industry, with plans to further expand its reach in the future. Established by Ayub Shaikh, ON U Clothing has quickly gained recognition for its unique fashion offerings that blend modern trends with a distinct sense of style. The brand's first outlet in Pune has already made waves among fashion enthusiasts, thanks to its trendy collections and quality craftsmanship. During the interview, Shaikh expressed his enthusiasm for the upcoming outlet, emphasizing his commitment to expanding ON U Clothing's reach and continuing to offer customers a fresh and innovative shopping experience. "We've received an overwhelming response from our customers in Pune," Shaikh said. "The demand for our products has been incredible, and we're thrilled to be opening another outlet to better serve our growing customer base." The new outlet is expected to offer a wider range of clothing and accessories, continuing the brand's tradition of providing stylish and affordable options for all age groups. Shaikh hinted at some exciting new collections that will be exclusive to the upcoming store, adding that ON U Clothing remains dedicated to setting new fashion trends in the region. With this expansion, ON U Clothing aims to solidify its presence in Pune's vibrant fashion scene and cater to the evolving tastes of its customers. The brand's growth reflects Shaikh's vision of making ON U a household name not just in Pune but across India. As ON U Clothing prepares for its next chapter, fashion enthusiasts in Pune have much to look forward to with the launch of the new outlet. The brand's continued success is a testament to Ayub Shaikh's entrepreneurial spirit and dedication to bringing quality fashion to the masses. About ON U Clothing: ON U Clothing is a contemporary fashion brand founded by Ayub Shaikh. Based in Pune, the brand is known for its trendy apparel and accessories that appeal to a wide audience. With a focus on quality and affordability, ON U Clothing has quickly become a favorite among fashion-forward individuals. (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)
The 77th meeting of the Network Planning Group (NPG) under the PM GatiShakti initiative was convened in New Delhi under the chairmanship of Additional Secretary, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Rajeev Singh Thakur, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a release on Thursday. According to the release, the meeting focused on evaluating six important infrastructure projects from Ministry of Railways (MoR), Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) and Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) were evaluated for their alignment with the principles of integrated planning outlined in the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan (NMP). The evaluation and the anticipated impacts of these projects are detailed below. Hazira - Gothangam New Rail Line, Gujarat involves constructing a 36.35 km Broad Gauge Double Line connecting Gothangam to Hazira. It aims to increase section capacity and enhance connectivity to key industries and the Hazira port, a vital cargo hub. The project is expected to boost regional economic development, reduce road traffic, and minimize environmental impacts by shifting cargo from road to rail. Bilasipara - Guwahati Road, Assam, upgrade involves expanding a 44.56 km stretch of NH-17 between Chirakuta (Bilasipara) and Tulungia to four lanes. The project will improve regional connectivity, linking Assam with West Bengal, Meghalaya, and critical infrastructure such as the Multi-Modal Logistics Park at Jogighopa, Rupsi, and Guwahati Airports. It is anticipated to enhance economic activities, cut travel time, and alleviate regional congestion. The development of Multi-Modal Logistics Park (MMLP), Nashik, Maharashtra on 109.97 acres in Nashik is designed to integrate road and rail transport. This greenfield project aims to improve logistics efficiency, reduce costs, and support regional industries with facilities for cargo consolidation, storage, and customs clearance. It is projected to handle 3.11 million metric tons of cargo annually from 2029. New Civil Enclave at Bihta Airport, Patna, Bihar focuses on developing a new civil enclave at Bihta Airfield, located 28 km from Jay Prakash Narayan International Airport in Patna. The new terminal will accommodate 5 million passengers annually and include a 10-bay apron for A-321 aircraft, addressing capacity issues at Patna Airport and enhancing regional connectivity. New Civil Enclave at Bagdogra Airport, Siliguri, West Bengal involves expanding Bagdogra Airport with a new terminal capable of handling 10 million passengers annually and an apron for 10 aircraft. Strategically located in the "chicken neck" area, Bagdogra Airport is crucial for the North-eastern region, and this expansion is vital for meeting growing connectivity demands. International Container Transshipment Port at Galathea Bay, Andaman & Nicobar aims to develop an International Container Transshipment Port (ICTP) at Galathea Bay on Great Nicobar Island. With a projected cost of Rs. 44,313 crores, the port will leverage the bay's strategic location and deeper waters to handle transhipment cargo from Indian ports and neighbouring countries, boosting India's maritime trade competitiveness and generating significant economic benefits. The NPG assessed these projects based on the PM GatiShakti principles, including integrated multimodal infrastructure development, last-mile connectivity, intermodal connectivity, and synchronized project implementation. These initiatives are expected to play crucial roles in national development, integrating various transport modes, and delivering significant socio-economic benefits while enhancing the overall quality of life in the respective regions. (ANI)
BusinessWire India Bangalore (Karnataka) [India], August 22: IBSFINtech, India's leading enterprise TreasuryTech solution provider, is thrilled to announce its entry into the SME segment with the launch of their specialised SaaS TMS Solution, InnoTreasury for the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) of the country. One of the premier banks of the country has joined hands with IBSFINtech to promote this solution to their vast network of SMEs.With around 75 million registered SME's, India leads the SME market in the world. SMEs contribute to more than a trillion dollars to the country's economy, yet this segment is most deprived of digitalisation which accounts for only 30% of these businesses. SME segment represents a huge untapped opportunity, not just in India, but globally as well.IBSFINtech pioneers the space of Corporate Treasury management solutions and is trusted by the very large and large multinational corporations of the country. With SMEs playing a crucial role in India's economic landscape, the need for fully digitized financial solutions is more pressing than ever. Recognising this opportunity, IBSFINtech carved out a specialised solution carrying the legacy from its solutions trusted by marquee corporations of the country.In India, SMEs contribute about 45.56% of total exports, and thereby making it crucial for the SMEs to efficiently manage their foreign exchange exposure to maintain financial stability and competitive advantage.SaaS TMS InnoTreasuryTM is designed particularly for the Small and Medium Enterprises, empowering them to manage their forex operations more efficiently. InnoTreasury enables the corporates to visualise their foreign exchange exposures and manage their hedges effectively.Speaking about this milestone in company's growth journey and entry into the SME segment, C M Grover, Promoter, MD & CEO of IBSFINtech, expressed his thoughts, stating, "We are delighted to bring forward a solution for empowering the SMEs with advanced digital treasury management platform. Today's SMEs are progressive and are actively adopting the new-age technology solutions to support their digitization requirements and fuel their exponential growth aspirations. Having mastered the space of treasury management for large enterprises with our tailored portfolio of solutions, it was a strategic choice to roll out a simpler solution for the SMEs and support them in their growth. This product launch reflects our commitment to India's growth story and bringing out new-age solutions with customer-centricity."With InnoTreasury, the company expands the reach of end-to-end service offerings to all sizes of Enterprises, across sectors and geographies.Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Digital India program offers numerous benefits for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and the SME digitization landscape is truly transforming in the country. Moreover, the strategic collaborations between Fintechs and Banks are playing an instrumental role. This expansion by IBSFINtech is a strategic move by the company, and as their MD Grover quotes, he considers it as the company's participation in the country's growth journey, contributing towards the Government of India's vision for Viksit Bharat.He adds, "SME segment has a huge potential for digitalization, and SMEs are not just in India. With this product offering, we will be facilitating the treasury digitization mandates for SMEs globally."SMEs are the backbone of the Indian economy, contributing to GDP, employment, regional development, innovation, and exports. Their role in fostering economic growth, reducing disparities, and promoting sustainable development cannot be overstated. The government's support and favorable policies further enhance the growth and stability of this vital sector.IBSFINtech has already onboarded multiple SME customers across industries, and from different parts of the country on this innovative solution.Albert Chacko, MD of Copia Mining, a customer leveraging the tool shares, "Copia Mining is excited to announce the significant progress in its treasury transformation and digital journey, fuelling our global growth aspirations. This transformation, facilitated by our trusted banking partner and IBSFINtech, has revolutionized our treasury management capabilities. It has empowered our businesses to navigate the global market complexities with precision and agility, leading to enhanced capabilities for mitigating the foreign currency risk exposures."The solution runs on the latest technology stack and leverages the world's leading cloud service provider, providing highly secure, flexible and scalable environment thereby ensuring maximum benefits for the end customer.With InnoTreasury, the company has carved out a simplified solution which caters to the requirements of treasury management for SMEs. InnoTreasury enables end-to-end management of currency forward contracts, with provision for settlement, cancellation, both full or partial rollover. The solution provides detailed analytics and dashboards for daily reporting and monitoring. Bundled with the value-added features like user access control, audit trails, alerts and notifications, the solution truly simplifies the life of the SME promoters who are most likely managing their currency risk exposures themselves.Muralirao A, Senior Manager Accounts & Finance at Sidvin Core-Tech (India) Private Limited, shares his experience, "Treasury transformation journey of Sidvin Core-Tech (India) Private Limited has been incredible. Our trusted banking partner played a key role in introducing us to IBSFINtech - The TreasuryTech company. The entire onboarding process was extremely efficient and hassle-free. We are eagerly anticipating leveraging the treasury platform completely to enhance and streamline our forex management operations."CM Grover is looking forward to expanding the reach of this solution to thousands of SMEs and ensure the benefits reach to all corners of the country. Furthermore, the company is expanding the products also, to cover the entire gamut of corporate finance activities, which is simpler for them as the company already has a robust comprehensive technology platform, encompassing Cashflow & Liquidity, Trade Finance, Supply Chain Finance, Investments and Debt management function."With the "Inno" range of our solution, we are focused on empowering the SME customers with new-age innovative treasury solution which puts the power of technology in their hands and facilitates their business growth at a global scale. We have begun this journey with Forex risk management solution by launching InnoTreasury and are expanding the technology solutions to areas of trade and cash management as well in this 'Inno' range." CM Grover added.IBSFINtech is a Made-in-India TreasuryTech solution provider, with established credibility in the industry for offering comprehensive solutions for cashflow & liquidity, treasury, risk, trade finance and supply chain finance function of the marquee corporations of the country.With such innovative and intuitive solutions available at ease, it's time that SMEs should leverage these initiatives to streamline operations, improve efficiency, and enhance competitiveness in the digital era. (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by BusinessWire India. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
India PR Distribution Singapore, August 22: SquareX delivered a groundbreaking presentation at DEF CON 32, univocally proving that Secure Web Gateways (SWGs) are broken beyond repair. Presented by SquareX founder Vivek Ramachandran and the research team, the talk exposed over 30 bypass techniques that highlight core architectural vulnerabilities in SWGs, challenging the effectiveness and relevance of a technology that has been trusted for over two decades. To demonstrate the ease with which SWGs can be bypassed, SquareX introduced browser.security, a website designed to allow anyone--including SWG vendors--to test their products. The framework's release has already garnered much attention, with thousands of requests logged through SWG solutions from top SASE/SSE vendors, potentially indicating that both customers and vendors are scrutinizing their products for vulnerabilities. Audience reactions to the talk were overwhelmingly positive. One attendee, representing a security team, commented, "We are very surprised to see how easy it is to deliver malware to the endpoints by bypassing SWGs." Another added, "It's surprising that SWG vendors have not acknowledged these issues in their public documentation." Many are unaware of how much browsers have evolved into complex systems that resemble standalone operating systems. SWGs are becoming obsolete in monitoring and securing the browser. These revelations sparked widespread discussion on social media and across industry platforms, highlighting the need for a new approach to web security. A CISO from a Fortune 500 enterprise commented on one of the threads, stating, "It's evident that the only way to protect users is to build security solutions natively within the browser." Vivek Ramachandran, Founder & CEO of SquareX, emphasized this point, "Attackers are targeting employees of organizations while they are online, and the old guard SWGs are failing to detect and block new-age client-side web threats due to their antiquated architecture. In our view, the only way to detect and block these complex attacks is to have access to DOM changes, browser events, user interactivity etc., as input to detection algorithms, and the only way to do this is to have a browser-native product. This is exactly what SquareX is building." SquareX invites enterprises concerned about the security of their SWG solutions to engage with the company directly. For more information or to request an assessment, visit sqrx.com or contact SquareX at founder@sqrx.com. About SquareX: SquareX helps organizations detect, mitigate and threat-hunt web attacks happening against their users in real time. With our innovative browser-native security product, SquareX safeguards enterprise users from a spectrum of web-based threats, encompassing malicious files, websites, scripts, and compromised networks. For more information, visit http://www.sqrx.com About Vivek Ramachandran: Vivek Ramachandran is a security researcher, book author, speaker-trainer, and serial entrepreneur with over two decades of experience in offensive cybersecurity. He is currently the founder of SquareX, building a browser-native security product focused on detecting, mitigating, and threat-hunting web attacks against enterprise users and consumers. Prior to that, he was the founder of Pentester Academy (acquired in 2021), which has trained thousands of customers from government agencies, Fortune 500 companies, and enterprises from over 140+ countries. Before that, Vivek's company built an 802.11ac monitoring product sold exclusively to defense agencies. Vivek discovered the Caffe Latte attack, broke WEP Cloaking, conceptualized enterprise Wi-Fi Backdoors, and created Chellam (Wi-Fi Firewall), WiMonitor Enterprise (802.11ac monitoring), Chigula (Wi-Fi traffic analysis via SQL), Deceptacon (IoT Honeypots), among others. He is the author of multiple five-star-rated books in offensive cybersecurity, which have sold thousands of copies worldwide and have been translated into multiple languages. He has been a speaker/trainer at top security conferences such as Blackhat USA, Europe and Abu Dhabi, DEFCON, Nullcon, Brucon, HITB, Hacktivity, and others. Vivek's work in cybersecurity has been covered in Forbes, TechCrunch, and other popular media outlets. In a past life, he was one of the programmers of the 802.1x protocol and Port Security in Cisco's 6500 Catalyst series of switches. He was also one of the winners of the Microsoft Security Shootout contest held in India among a reported 65,000 participants. He has also published multiple research papers in the field of DDoS, ARP Spoofing Detection, and Anomaly-based Intrusion Detection Systems. In 2021, he was awarded an honorary title of Regional Director of Cybersecurity by Microsoft for a period of three years, and in 2024 he joined the BlackHat Arsenal Review Board. (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by India PR Distribution. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
Sunil Barthwal, Commerce Secretary, identified four key sectors poised for substantial collaboration- automotive, agriculture and agro-processing, pharmaceuticals, and transport and logistics, at the final day of 19th CII India-Africa Business Conclave, organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in partnership with the Ministry of External Affairs and the Ministry of Commerce & Industry. He said, "Identified four potential sectors, and this is very important for everybody to understand. And these four sectors are automotive, second one is agriculture and agro-processing third one is pharmaceuticals and the fourth one is transport and logistics." He added, "And we firmly believe that these sectors have huge potential for collaboration in terms of investment, trade, technology empowerment and capacity building between Africa and India. Agriculture remains a critical sector in India Africa, and trade. Currently, the majority of Africa's essential food imports originate from outside the continent." Barthwal emphasized the growth in trade between the two regions, noting that India's total trade with Africa reached nearly USD 100 billion in the fiscal year 2022-23. This represents the highest trade level ever recorded between the two regions. Barthwal projected that with the current growth trajectory, bilateral trade could double to approximately USD 200 billion by 2030. He said, "India's total trade with Africa reached close to US dollar 100 billion in 2022-23 recording the highest level ever witnessed by both regions, there is no doubt that with this speed and this growth rate, we should be able to double our trade by 2030, this will be about USD 200 million." Despite its own food security challenges, India has prioritized supporting African nations through government-to-government arrangements. India continues to supply essential commodities, such as rice, to maintain stability and food availability in Africa. Barthwal said, "India continues to supply essential commodities like rice, to ensure stability and food availability in African countries. This commitment highlights India's solidarity with Africa, particularly in times of need, ensuring that our partnership remains robust and responsive." He added, "Indian pharmaceutical companies are playing a vital role in improving health care access and affordability in Africa, with pharmaceutical exports from India to Africa at USD 3.8 billion in 2023. We see much higher trade growth potential in view of the need to provide affordable medicines and affordable healthcare in Africa, not only through collaboration in the manufacturing of medical equipment." India is committed to offering trade-related capacity-building programs in areas such as trade facilitation, promotion, finance, policy, and negotiations. Barthwal urged both regions to leverage their combined strengths to maximize economic benefits for their people, the global south, and the world at large. Barthwal said, "India and African countries share strong common views and interest on issues related to food security, agriculture, technology transfer, policy space for industrial development and WTO reformers, we must remain together. And this is very, very important the way there has been a fragmentation of the whole globe." He added, "India is also willing to offer trade-related capacity-building programs in areas such as trade facilitation, trade promotion, trade finance, trade policy and trade negotiations. Let us work on the new opportunities and leverage our combined strengths to derive maximum economic benefits for the people of India, Africa, the global south and the world as a whole." (ANI)
India PR Distribution Bangalore (Karnataka) [India], August 22: FinGrad Ventures Pvt. Ltd., a prominent Bangalore-based startup, recently announced the successful conclusion of its much-anticipated Traders Gala event. Held from July 26th to July 29th, 2024, at the prestigious Hard Rock Hotel in Goa, India, this four-day festival by FinGrad gathered over 140 traders, 10 expert mentors, and a host of technology partners, marking a significant moment for India's trading community. The Traders Gala, sponsored by leading financial institutions, attracted enthusiastic participation from both seasoned and emerging traders. HDFC Sky, the event's lead sponsor, played a key role in its success, with Tradejini, Mudrex, and Trade Brains Portal serving as Gold Sponsors, further enhancing the event's prominence. The event featured a series of engaging keynote sessions from over eight market experts, including industry veterans such as CA Manish Singh, Ashish Kyal, Mukta Dhamankar, Prasad Lendwe, Dinesh Nagpal, Akshat Siddhant, and Anuj Gupta. These thought leaders shared their deep insights into the evolving financial markets, offering valuable strategies and perspectives to the attendees. In addition to the keynotes, the Traders Gala hosted two thought-provoking panel discussions on Days 2 and 3, each lasting over an hour. Esteemed participants included Kritesh Abhishek, founder of Trade Brains, Trivesh D, Anuj Gupta, among others. These panels offered a diverse range of perspectives on market trends, trading strategies, and investment approaches, providing a platform for rich discussions and knowledge sharing. Beyond its educational focus, the Traders Gala also facilitated extensive networking opportunities in a luxurious environment. Attendees enjoyed an exceptional stay at the Hard Rock Hotel, with access to exclusive amenities such as complimentary gourmet meals, pool access, and a vibrant Gala cocktail party. The event fostered a collaborative atmosphere, where participants could engage with each other, share insights, and establish valuable connections. Reflecting on the event's success, Hitesh Singhi, CEO of FinGrad, remarked, "The Traders Gala exceeded our expectations, with all tickets selling out well in advance. The engagement from both traders and sponsors was incredible, and the event delivered an enriching experience for everyone involved. We have received overwhelming positive feedback, with participants eager for the next edition of Traders Gala." This sentiment was echoed by the event's attendees, including Mirza Waseem, a corporate banker, who shared: "I want to express my sincere gratitude for the hard work that made the Traders Gala a resounding success. The speakers were exceptional, providing valuable insights into market research and trading discipline. This experience has certainly enhanced my approach to trading." As the 2024 Traders Gala comes to a close, anticipation is already building for next year's edition. While FinGrad has yet to announce the location for the 2025 Traders Gala, it is expected to be one of the most highly anticipated events for traders across India. (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by India PR Distribution. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
NewsVoir New Delhi [India], August 22: ApplyBoard, the leading international student mobility platform, is thrilled to announce the winners of its 2024 International Alumni of Impact program. Now in its second year, the esteemed program recognizes 10 exceptional former international students who have leveraged their Canadian education to create significant positive impact around the world. This year's program shines a light on the accomplishments of 10 remarkable alumni, including four inspiring individuals from India. Lefin Paruvaparampil Chacko from Kerala, Puneet Kaur Johal from Punjab, Ritika Saraswat from Maharashtra and Urvish Patel from Gujarat, all studied in Canada and have not only excelled academically but have also leveraged their education and experiences to create a meaningful difference around the world. ApplyBoard is honoured to share their stories, which serve as a powerful source of inspiration for future generations of international students. "Our 2024 International Alumni of Impact winners demonstrate the incredible potential of international students to shape the future," says Meti Basiri, Co-Founder & CEO, ApplyBoard. "Their stories of resilience, leadership, and dedication to their communities powerfully illustrate how education fosters global citizens. These remarkable individuals inspire us to further our commitment to supporting students worldwide, unlocking potential through global education and fueling innovation across borders." The 2024 International Alumni of Impact winners from India are: Lefin Paruvaparampil Chacko Graduate of Cape Breton University, 2022 Lefin's journey from a small town in North Veliyanadu Alleppey District of Kerala, India to becoming a respected Electrical Engineer in Nova Scotia is a testament to his resilience, determination, and compassion. As a Project Coordinator/Engineer at Lindsay Construction with Nova Scotia Health, he has played a key role in enhancing healthcare services, particularly through his work on the Cape Breton Regional Hospital Expansion project, including its new cancer centre. His story underscores the transformative power of education and his dedication to making a positive difference. Despite facing personal challenges, including navigating immigration and entering the workforce during the pandemic, Lefin stayed true to his goals and his community, leaving a lasting impact on healthcare and the lives of others. Ritika Saraswat Graduate of University of British Columbia, 2023 Ritika's journey from Pune, Maharashtra, India to Canada is a story of resilience and determination. Arriving with little, she juggled multiple jobs while studying at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. Through her persistence and networking, Ritika secured a role at a Big 4 consulting firm and founded "Re-Defined", a community that now supports over 50,000 international students and immigrants across Canada. Her leadership in organizing events like the Newcomers Summit at Deloitte and her recognition as a LinkedIn Top Voice have made her a role model, offering guidance and inspiration to those facing similar challenges. A highly respected voice in her field, Ritika has delivered keynote speeches at over 40+ events including TEDX, One Young World Conference & Josh Talks, addressing critical issues such as education & empowerment. Apart from this her philanthropic efforts are equally commendable. Ritika cofunds a School on Wheels initiative in Ajmer, India, providing educational opportunities to 1,000 students from underprivileged backgrounds per year. Urvish Patel Graduate of George Brown College, 2021 Urvish's journey from Nadiad, Gujarat, India to Canada is marked by resilience, innovation, and a commitment to community. While pursuing a diploma at George Brown College, he co-founded Orbit 5, a platform offering AI-driven resume solutions to help job seekers, Urvish has revolutionized the resume writing process, significantly reducing job application rejection rates for international students. His impact extends to education, where he formerly mentored future tech professionals as a software engineer professor at Centennial College. His leadership, from serving as student body president to organizing major events, reflects his dedication to empowering others. Puneet Kaur Johal Graduate of Sheridan College, 2021 Puneet Kaur Johal from Dasuya, Punjab, India is a leader and advocate who made a significant impact on the lives of international students during the pandemic and beyond. At Sheridan College, she improved COVID-19 protocols, created a food and basic needs support program that helped over 4,000 students, and advocated for systemic changes in housing and wellness. Her leadership was recognized at the national level. Puneet's initiatives, including the creation of Sheridan's Off-Campus Housing department and organizing cultural events, demonstrate her commitment to community and the well-being of her peers. In recognition of their exceptional contributions, ApplyBoard will establish one-time scholarships in each winner's name. These scholarships, awarded to incoming international students at the institutions where the winners studied, aim to nurture the next generation of global leaders. Since its launch in 2023, this initiative has provided $20,000 in scholarships, embodying ApplyBoard's mission to make education accessible to students worldwide. To learn more about the International Alumni of Impact program and the winners, please visit applyboard.com/info/iaoi. ApplyBoard has empowered more than 1 million students from over 125 countries to access global education since 2015. Driven by its mission to unlock the potential of every aspiring mind, ApplyBoard simplifies the international education journey by connecting students to over 1,500 institutions across Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Ireland. To learn more, visit: www.applyboard.com. (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
PRNewswire Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], August 22: Stockify Fintech, a leading customer-oriented platform specializing in Unlisted and Pre-IPO shares in India, is excited to announce the expansion of its operations to Kolkata. This move aims to serve the rapidly growing business community in Eastern India, particularly in Tier 2 cities like Ranchi, Patna, Guwahati, Siliguri, Asansol, and Dhanbad. Founded by Piyush Jhunjhunwala and Rahul Khatuwala, Stockify Fintech is committed to helping High Net-Worth Individuals (HNIs) and Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) gain access to multiple unlisted shares via the pre-IPO route, maximizing investors' wealth. With offices already in Bangalore and Dubai, Stockify is now expanding to Kolkata to reach more investors in this growing region. "Kolkata is a strategic step in our growth plan. By expanding to this vibrant city, we're not only reaching a new and dynamic business community but also empowering investors in Eastern India with unique investment opportunities. Our goal is to make high-potential unlisted shares accessible to everyone, and Kolkata is key to that vision," said Piyush Jhunjhunwala, CEO of Stockify Fintech. The new office in Kolkata reflects the company's vision to cater to the growing demand for unlisted shares and startup funding in Eastern India. With a dedicated team of 10-15 members, this office marks a significant step in further solidifying the company's footprint in the region. Kolkata's rich history in finance and its emerging role as a fintech hub made it the ideal location for the company's next phase of growth. Stockify Fintech offers a diverse range of investment products beyond unlisted shares, including startup funding, mutual funds, bonds, non-convertible debentures (NCDs), and insurance-linked investments. The company's unique proposition lies in providing access to Blue-Chip Stocks before their listing on the Indian Stock Market (BSE/NSE), allowing investors to maximize returns by investing early. With a target of achieving $20 million in revenue this year, Stockify is not only focused on expanding within India but also has plans for global outreach. The company plans to host a series of events for top HNIs in Dubai and key cities in India to educate them on the vast investment opportunities in India, including startups, Pre-IPO, and listed stocks. About Stockify Stockify Fintech is a leading platform offering unlisted or Pre-IPO shares in India, helping investors maximize their wealth through early investments. The company also provides startup funding, mutual funds, bonds, NCDs, and insurance-linked investments. To learn more about Stockify Fintech and its innovative financial solutions, visit https://stockify.net.in/ and https://stockify.net.in/buy-unlisted-shares/ For more information, Call Rahul Khatuwala on +91-9591810391 (Bengaluru, India), Email: rahulkhatuwala@stockify.net.in or Piyush Jhunjhunwala on +97-1502344662 (Dubai, UAE). Office Address: Office no 715, Abacus by PS group, Rajarhat, Kolkata. Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2221118/4770942/Stockify_Logo.jpg (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by PRNewswire. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
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Chinese Premier Li Qiang arrived in Minsk on Thursday for an official visit to Belarus at the invitation of Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko.

During the visit, Li will hold talks with Golovchenko on bilateral relations and cooperation in various fields.
Union Minister for Power Manohar Lal, accompanied by Power and New and Renewable Energy Minister Shripad Naik on Thursday held a meeting with a US delegation to discuss energy collaboration between the two countries. During the discussions, the Power Minister emphasised the longstanding bilateral partnership between India and the United States, highlighting the shared commitment to a 'clean' energy future that fosters economic growth and development, the Ministry of Power said in a statement. The union minister further states that the Ministry of Power is committed to strengthening this partnership. Emphasising the need for collaboration, he said that India and US engagements under the 'Power & Energy Efficiency Pillar', which is led by the Ministry of Power under the Strategic Clean Energy Partnership (SCEP), are important to realise our goals to achieve the energy transition H.E. John Podesta, who led the US delegation said that India is a valuable partner and both countries support each other in building resilient supply chains and investment-led partnership strategies. He also remarked that India and the US can collaborate on areas like clean energy, energy storage systems and energy efficiency. He further said that the US can support India in enhancing its manufacturing capacity. During the meeting, Both sides explored the possibility of technical exchanges on efforts to upgrade grid transmission to handle future load growth. Discussions also covered policy consultations and potential financial support to advance these modernisation efforts. In addition, the ways to enhance the manufacturing capacity were also discussed during the meeting. Both sides explored possibilities of state-to-state partnerships on long-duration energy storage studies, with further collaboration on grid-scale battery storage solutions, as per the statement. Going further, the discussions highlighted the importance of stimulating manufacturing projects and policies to increase India's capacity to build, deploy, and export high-efficiency air conditioning systems and fans.(ANI)
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday asked Regional rural banks (RRBs) to ensure easy credit to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). She asked the RRBs to become more customer-friendly and leverage their local connections to further improve performance. All RRBs have devised customised MSME products aligning with cluster activities. However, they need to regularly review their credit portfolio in that segment, she said.The Finance Minister chaired a meeting to review the performance of nine Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) of the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan, in Udaipur today. The review meeting focused on business performance, upgrading digital technology services, fostering business growth in MSME clusters, and deepening financial inclusion in rural areas. Union Finance Minister also highlighted that Sponsor Banks and RRBs must recognise the challenges that lie ahead, especially maintaining asset quality, expanding digital services, and ensuring robust corporate governance are the areas that require continued focus. Sitharaman noted the lower offtake of the MUDRA scheme in the Bundelkhand region and directed the State Level Bankers' Committee (SLBC) to hold specific meetings with State Government officials, Sponsor Banks and RRBs to improve the performance of the MUDRA scheme along with other financial inclusion schemes in Bundelkhand region and aspirational districts. Similarly, RRBs were directed to identify potential trades under the PM Vishwakarma scheme in their areas of operation to provide credit. RRBs were also directed to increase their share in ground-level agriculture credit disbursement and achieve the stated objectives of Priority Sector Lending. The Union Finance Minister acknowledged the satisfactory improvement in the technology upgradation of the nine RRBs of the Western Central region since 2022 - the year when regular review of RRBs started; and urged these RRBs to continue the momentum in future also. The Union Finance Minister directed RRBs to leverage their healthy CASA ratio to disseminate more credit and also urged the intervention of RBI in resolving the pending dues to RRBs from State Governments, apart from the efforts being taken by the Government and Sponsor Banks. The Consolidated Capital to Risk (Weighted) Assets Ratio (CRAR) of RRBs has increased from 7.8 per cent in FY 2021 to 13.7 per cent in FY 2024 and profitability has improved from losses of Rs. 41 crores in FY 2021 to a net profit of Rs. 2,018 crore in FY 2024 and Gross Non-Performing Assets (GNPA) are relatively lower with a ratio of 3.9 per cent. (ANI)
Anya Taylor-Joy is set to make a highly anticipated return to Netflix with her latest project, a series adaptation of Bella Mackie's best-selling novel, 'How to Kill Your Family'. Taylor-Joy will take on the lead role of Grace Bernard, a character-driven by revenge in this gripping narrative, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The adaptation will consist of eight episodes and is being produced by Sid Gentle Films Ltd., known for their work on 'Killing Eve'. Bella Mackie, the author of the novel, is also serving as a co-executive producer for the series. The story follows Grace Bernard, the illegitimate daughter of a wealthy man who abandoned her and her mother. Determined to seek vengeance, Grace embarks on a mission to eliminate every member of her father's family, reserving him for last, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Taylor-Joy, who has previously captivated audiences with her performances in 'Furiosa: A Mad Max Story', 'The Menu', and 'Last Night in Soho', expressed her excitement about the project. "As soon as I turned the last page, I knew I had to be a part of bringing this story to life," Taylor-Joy remarked, as per The Hollywood Reporter. She continued, "After some (light) stalking of the inimitable Bella Mackie, I could not be more thrilled to be collaborating with the team that is Sally, Lizzie and Emma. I am looking forward to getting our hands even dirtier." Emma Moran, known for her work on 'Extraordinary', will serve as the lead writer and an executive producer alongside Sally Woodward Gentle, Lizzie Rusbridger, and Lee Morris for Sid Gentle Film. Taylor-Joy will also act as an executive producer through her company, LadyKiller. Bella Mackie expressed her enthusiasm for the adaptation, stating, "It's been thrilling to watch the characters I wrote take on new life under this magnificent creative team. Anya is the most perfect fit to play Grace; I often think she understands her better than I do. Pairing up with Sid Gentle has been joyful, and introducing me to Emma has made me supremely confident the book is in safe hands," according to The Hollywood Reporter. The series announcement was made during the Edinburgh TV Festival, which showcased a range of new Netflix projects. (ANI)
US fitness icon Richard Summons's death was accidental as confirmed by his brother Lenny Simmons, reported People. As per a statement, the Simmons family spokesperson, Tom Estey, said, "This morning, Richard Simmons' brother Lenny, received a call from the LA Coroner's office. The Coroner informed Lenny that Richard's death was accidental due to complications from recent falls and heart disease as a contributing factor. The toxicology report was negative other than medication Richard had been prescribed. The Family wishes to thank everyone for their outpouring of love and support during this time of great loss." The fitness guru, who turned 76 on July 12, was found dead in his Los Angeles home by his housekeeper on July 13, one day after celebrating his 76th birthday, as confirmed by his publicist Tom Estey. An investigation into the death of US fitness icon Richard Summons who was found dead at his Los Angeles home suggested no involvement of any foul play, a US law enforcement source familiar with the probe was cited as saying by People. Although the Los Angeles Police Department stated "there is no foul play," the cause of death was first delayed for further testing. According to previous reports, Simmons fell at his home on July 12 due to dizziness and informed his housekeeper that he planned to seek medical attention the next day if he felt ill. "The world has truly lost an angel," said Estey. Simmons shared how he planned to celebrate his 76th birthday two days before he died. He joked that he'll blow out a candle, but "the candle will probably be on a zucchini," he quipped. "You know, I'm a vegetarian." At the time, Simmons shared, "I feel good! I am grateful that I'm here, that I am alive for another day. I'll spend my birthday doing what I do every day, which is to help people." He said in the interview that "I never thought of myself as a celebrity." "People don't know this, I'm really a shy person and a little bit of an introvert," said Simmons. "But when that curtain goes up that's a different story. I'm there to make people happy." Simmons was a famous was a fitness motivator, regularly appearing on talk shows such as Late Night with David Letterman and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. It's Simmons' career and the joy he found in helping others that his brother, Lenny, hopes people remember. "I don't want people to be sad about my brother," he said earlier. "I want them to remember him for the genuine joy and love he brought to people's lives," he continued. "He truly cared about people. He called, wrote and emailed thousands of people throughout his career to offer help." "So don't be sad," Lenny added. "Celebrate his life," he said, according to People. (ANI)
In an exciting development for cinema enthusiasts, veteran actor Anupam Kher has officially announced that Iain Glen, known for his role in 'Game of Thrones', will be starring in his upcoming film, 'Tanvi The Great'. The announcement has been met with enthusiasm from both actors, marking a notable collaboration in the film industry. https://www.instagram.com/p/C-9lwTSvmkZ/ Anupam Kher took to social media to share the news, posting a video in which they are seen talking and sharing excitement about the collaboration. "Ladies and Gentlemen! Since our pic went viral from the sets of #TanviTheGreat yesterday, both #IainGlen and I decided to announce to the world about our collaboration for the film," Kher wrote in his post. He further expressed his admiration for Glen, stating, "On a personal note, I feel delighted and privileged to have #Iain act in my directorial venture. I have been an admirer of his brilliance on stage and on screen and of course of #GameOfThrones!" In response, Iain Glen praised Kher and expressed his joy at being part of the project. "Anupam is a very special man. It's impossible to spend any time with him without your view of the world being enriched," Glen remarked. He also conveyed his excitement about his debut in Indian cinema, adding, "I'm so happy to be part of his film #TanviTheGreat. And my first time in India. A beautiful country with beautiful people." The collaboration between Kher and Glen is not entirely new, as the two actors previously worked together on the BBC drama 'Mrs Wilson'. Their reunion in 'Tanvi The Great' is highly anticipated, with the film promising to deliver a compelling cinematic experience. 'Tanvi The Great' will feature music composed by MM Keeravani, the acclaimed Oscar-winning composer known for his work on 'RRR'. Additionally, the film's sound design will be handled by Resul Pookutty, an Academy Award winner recognised for his work on 'Slumdog Millionaire'. The project is being directed and produced by Anupam Kher Studio. (ANI)
Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha visited and inspected various flood-affected areas and relief camps on Wednesday to ensure that flood victims receive all necessary facilities. CM Saha visited Baldakhal Area, as well as relief camps set up at Swami Dayalananda Vidyaniketan in Dhaleshwar, Ramthakur Higher Secondary Girls' School, and Swami Vivekananda School in Town Bardowali. Speaking with reporters after the visit, the Chief Minister said, "I have been visiting all the flood-affected areas. Today, I was supposed to go to the South district, but the road conditions were poor, so I could not go. I have now visited the flood-affected areas in and around Agartala city. We can't even imagine such a situation in Tripura." "There has been massive rainfall everywhere. We have not seen such rain before. This is a natural disaster. I also visited the relief camps to ensure that they were receiving all necessary facilities. Everyone is working hard. All government machinery, councillors and even party workers are on the ground working around the clock," CM Saha said. The Chief Minister mentioned that around 320 relief camps have been set up, with over 30,000 people shifted to these shelters. During the visit to relief camps, CM Saha interacted with the victims and assured all support from the government. CM Saha also assessed the flood situation in Agartala through the Integrated Command & Control Centre at IT Bhavan, Agartala. "Relief measures are being prioritized by the administration. Let's come together to tackle this natural calamity with collective efforts and support for those affected," the Chief Minister said. (ANI)
Referring to the reaction of the people over the Badlapur incident, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP-SCP) supremo Sharad Pawar said that there is "uneasiness" among the people for a political change in Maharashtra. The voting for 288 assembly constituencies will be held later this year. Speaking at a press conference at the party's regional office in Mumbai, Sharad Pawar said, "Assembly elections are ahead. Meetings are being held. People of Maharashtra want change." Pawar's comments come in the wake of a protest in Badlapur, Thane district, following an alleged sexual assault on two minor girls, which he cited as a clear indicator of the current political situation. "How strong is the reaction of the people when a serious incident happens? An example of this was seen yesterday in Badlapur. This means that there is a lot of uneasiness among the people," Pawar outlined. "I saw an example yesterday of how people react strongly. People want change, and we want to change the state." The sexual assault incident has created massive outrage among the people in Badlapur. On August 17, police arrested a school attendant for alleged assault. On August 16, the Election Commission of India (ECI) announced the schedule of elections in Haryana and the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir that will be held from September 18 to October 1 while the schedule for elections in Maharashtra is yet to be announced. During the press conference, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar said that the high demand for security forces in Jammu and Kashmir is the primary reason for not holding elections in Maharashtra. Earlier, the Central government accorded 'Z+' category Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) armed security cover to Sharad Pawar. Ministry of Home Affairs has issued the order to the CRPF considering a recent threat analysis report shared with the ministry by the intelligence bureau. The CRPF personnel will soon provide its elite 'Z+' VIP security cover to the 83-year-old politician round the clock at his residence and during his travel across India. (ANI)
Anakapalli District Collector Vijaya Krishnan confirmed the deaths on Wednesday and said that the casualties are feared to rise.

The incident happened after a 500-kilo-litre capacitor reactor exploded at a pharma company with around 200 workers still working at the time.

Anakapalli SP M Deepika said that rescue operations are underway at the blast site and a team of NDRF is coordinating the rescue efforts.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident. The Chief Minister is expected to visit the family of the deceased and injured on Thursday.

Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered condolences and said that he was "pained" by the loss of lives in the mishap.

The Prime Minister has announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh to the next of kin of the deceased, as per the PMO.

"Pained by the loss of lives due to a mishap at a factory in Anakapalle. Condolences to those who lost their near and dear ones. May the injured recover soon. An ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakhs from PMNRF would be given to the next of kin of each deceased. The injured would be given Rs 50,000," PMO mentioned in a post on X.

President Droupadi Murmu also offered condolences on the loss of lives in the reactor blast. (ANI)
In the aftermath of the Badlapur sexual assault case, the Maharashtra State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (MSCPCR) has recommended the establishment of special branches or "mini-police stations" for women and children in every police station across the state. This development came in the wake of an alleged delay in registering the crime by the police in Badlapur. Chairperson Susieben Shah shared a detailed plan in this regard during a press conference in Mumbai on Wednesday. Addressing the press conference, Shah said, "Currently, police stations have Women's Help Desks, Special Juvenile Police Units, and Child Welfare Police Officers. However, these units are not dedicated solely to addressing complaints from women and children, often leading to the unavailability of trained personnel when needed. Officers in these units are frequently assigned to other duties, causing delays in registering and investigating complaints." She said that the Crime Branch units in police stations are exclusively reserved for investigating crimes, ensuring that officers are not diverted to other duties and that their sole responsibility is to investigate and solve crimes efficiently. "Considering that women and children constitute 70 per cent of the country's population, we cannot exclude such a significant demographic from the process of justice and security. It is crucial to establish a dedicated unit similar to the Crime Branch in every police station for registering and investigating crimes against women and children," Susieben Shah said. She further said that the role of the police in the Badlapur sexual assault case was "notably controversial." "Despite being a woman herself, the senior police inspector delayed registering the crime, showing a lack of sensitivity," she added. Shah said that she believed that if a specialized branch is established, it will be possible to provide the necessary training to handle such cases effectively, ensuring the smooth registration and investigation of crimes against women and children. Shah said that under the leadership of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, the state government has taken bold decisions for the safety and dignity of women. Therefore, the establishment of such a dedicated branch is feasible during this government's tenure, she added. "We are recommending to the state government that they quickly establish these special branches in every police station. We will also advocate for specialized training for the officers working in these branches," Shah added. (ANI)
"I am deeply saddened to hear of the passing of senior photojournalist and EPA Weekly Editor-in-Chief Anil Prasad Mishra. May the late Mishra's soul rest in peace. May Lord Shri Jagannath give strength to his family to bear this sad event. Om Shanti" CM Majhi wrote on X.

Anil Prasad Mishra was a senior photo journalist, founder of the only photo news agency of Odisha, 'Eastern Press Agency' and EPA weekly, and a close associate of former Chief Minister Biju Patnaik.

He passed away at the age of 63 in a private hospital due to prolonged illness. On Wednesday evening, his last rights were performed at Puri swarg dwar.

Former Union Minister Bhakta Charan Das also expressed condolences on the demise of Anil Prasad Mishra.

"Senior photo journalist, founder of Eastern press Agency and editor in chief of #EPA Weekly Anil Prasad Mishra passed away today at 10.56 pm. He was under treatment at Sparsh hospital. My deepest condolences to the bereaved family. May his soul rest in peace," Bhakt Charan Das wrote on X.

Anil Prasad Mishra was closely associated with Biju Patnaik former CM of Odisha. He had written a book called 'Memories ' on Biju Patnaik with rare photographs of Biju Patnaik, his son Naveen Patnaik and former president of Indonesia Meghawati Sukarnoputri.

He was instrumental in building the career of many photo journalists in Odisha. He was a pioneer in this field and associated with many national and international newspapers and magazines. He also worked with Reuters for so many years. (ANI)
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A Chinese military spokesperson said on Thursday that the Eastern Theater Command of the People's Liberation Army tracked and monitored the U.S. destroyer USS Ralph Johnson throughout its passage through the Taiwan Strait.

Senior Colonel Li Xi, spokesperson for the theater command, said it has deployed naval and air forces to monitor the entire passage of the U.S. vessel, and handled the issue in accordance with laws and regulations.

"The Eastern Theater Command remains on high alert, and will resolutely safeguard national sovereignty and security, as well as regional peace and stability," Li said.
As the election commission of India announced the dates of the state assembly elections in Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir, Leader of opposition in Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi along with Congress Rajya Sabha MP Mallikarjun Kharge will be holding a meeting with the party workers of Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday. Security has been heightened outside the hotel where Rahul Gandhi and Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge will be holding a meeting with party workers today. Arshid Tantary a Congress youth leader said " As you can see when Rahul Gandhi came to Srinagar yesterday, people were excited from the airport to the hotel. We have a worker's meeting today. Around 500 workers are meeting him today. everyone wants to vote for the Congress". Asif Beigh Congress Youth Gen secretary of Jammu and Kashmir said on the occasion "We were with Rahul Gandhi toll 3 AM, then we started preparing for the event. we are filled with enthusiasm as our leader Rahul Gandhi is here. Rahul Gandhi will spread his 'Mohabbat ka dukan' in Jammu and Kashmir and will form ties with secular forces". Congress is likely to ally with the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference ahead of the polls. The two parties had contested the Lok Sabha polls in alliance. On August 18, Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC) Vice President Omar Abdullah said that his party has started preparing for the Assembly elections. "Give us some time, we have begun our preparations. On August 20, the notification will be issued for the first phase. Following this, we will announce the names of our candidates and hope for a victory. It would be better if the BJP doesn't talk about over-confidence. We only said that we were hoping to receive the support of the people and get a chance to form the government. We are not counting the number of seats. The BJP has always counted the number (seats) here," Omar said. Omar Abdullah also launched the Party manifesto that includes some huge promises like- restoration of Article 370, 35-A and statehood, redrawing the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 and return and rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pandits. The first guarantee of the NC's manifesto envisages the restoration of the political and legal status of the Union Territory and said that the party would strive to restore Article 370-35A and statehood prior to August 5, 2019. The polling in the Union Territory will be held in three phases on September 18, 25, and October 1, as per the Election Commission of India. The counting of the votes will take place on October 4. These are the first elections to be held in Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370. The election body has directed the enforcement agencies to be impartial and transparent for smooth and fair polling, ensuring a level playing field. There are a total of 90 assembly constituencies, of which 74 are general, nine are ST, and seven are SC. There are 87.09 lakh total electors, including 44.46 lakh are male, 42.62 lakh are female, 169 are transgender, 82,590 PwDs, 73943 are very senior citizens, 2660 are centenarians, 76092 are service electors, and 3.71 lakh are first-time voters. Jammu and Kashmir will witness elections after a gap of ten years, as the last assembly election was held in 2014. The PDP-BJP coalition government fell in June 2018 when the latter withdrew support to the then-Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti. In December of last year, the Supreme Court directed the Centre to conclude the election process by September 30, 2024. (ANI)
Delhi Minister Atishi on Thursday issued Show Cause Notices to the Director and Secretary of the Information and Publicity Department for issuing an Independence Day advertisement with the photo of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. In the Show Cause notice, AAP leader Atishi alleged that On August 15, the Information and Publicity department, without the approval of the minister-in-charge-issued a half-page newspaper advertisement without the photo of CM of Arvind Kejriwal. The notice reads, "Despite the written directions dated 14.08.2024 and the express approval to the creatives and the media plan bearing a full-page advertisement with the photo of the CM, the DIP, under your authority, and without the approval of the Minister-in-charge had proceeded to release a half-page advertisement without the photo of the CM on 15.08.2024, in complete violation of the directions of the Minister-in-charge which amounts to wilful disobedience and gross insubordination." The notice further reads, "the fact that the advertisements and creatives that were released and published did not receive the necessary approval from the Minister in charge, the entire process stands compromised and is rendered procedurally invalid;" The Notice further mentions the action to deduct the cost of the advertisements from the salary of the Director and Secretary of the Information and Publicity Department. "Notice is served upon to show cause as to why the action should not be initiated against you and why should the cost of the media plan and advertisement which were published without the approval of the Minister in charge not be recovered from your salary, within a period of 03 days of receipt of this notice," the notice said. Earlier on Tuesday, Delhi Minister Atishi wrote to the Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on the issue of severe waterlogging under the Zakhira underpass in Delhi. In her letter, Atishi wrote "I would like to draw your kind attention towards the serious issue of waterlogging under Zahira underpass in Delhi. I have been informed that the main cause of this waterlogging is due to non-channelization of water coming from the area belonging to Indian Railways as there is no drain culvert to channel the water to the nearby MCD drain/Najafgarh drain." (ANI)
Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Thursday said that the administration is giving top priority to rescue and relief operations and added that he is monitoring the situation, amid heavy rainfall across various districts in Tripura over past three days, that has led to severe flooding in several parts of the state. He said, "I have information that there is a depression in the Bay of Bengal and due to this rain happening, there has been a lot of impact of the depression in almost every district, I was monitoring from Delhi". "I talked to every concerned department and reviewed the flood situation. Heavy rain occurred in Tripura. I had never seen this kind of rain in Tripura before there were many instances of landslides. Many rivers have come above the danger level," the chief minister said. "NDRF, SDRF, BSF, Police and volunteers are engaged in the rescue operation". CM informed that there are 321 relief camps operating in the state currently. He stated "I ordered to rescue people from low-lying areas through boats. As per the information I received there are 321 relief camps and around 30,000 people are staying in those camps. we are ensuring the food, health and hygiene of the people stranded in the camps. 1 NDRF team from Assam has already arrived and 4 teams from Arunachal Pradesh are to arrive soon". He stressed that the priority of the government is to rescue people stranded in unsafe places. He said "The priority is to bring back people from the unsafe places to safe places and provide them food. Then we will look into the restoration process. The rain may continue till 24 to 25 August, so we will take steps of restoration after the rain will lessen down". He said there has been a lot of damage to the agricultural sector. "We are ready and the central government has assured us to help. I will go on the ground and monitor the affected areas" he added. Taking to X, CM Manik Saha shared, "In the last two days, heavy rains have caused flooding in various districts of the state. The administration is engaged in relief and rescue operations with the highest priority. The state government is regularly informing the central government about the flood situation. It was initially reported that apart from the destruction of houses, livestock, roads, electricity and agricultural crops were also damaged." He said that the joint initiative of NDRF, SDRF and local administration is in full swing to rescue the citizens at various places. "Citizens are being rushed to safe shelters from vulnerable areas, especially along the river banks. The administration is fully on the side of the people; I appeal to the people not to listen to unnecessary rumours. I earnestly request the people of the State to exercise utmost caution and help the administration. We need patience and courage to stand next to the affected people. Let's pray to the almighty for everyone's well-being," he added. CM Manik Saha said that this kind of situation was unprecedented and this much rainfall never happened in the past. He said that in the South district, the amount of rainfall recorded was 375 mm. CM Saha said, "Spoke to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and briefed him on the current situation arising out of severe flood situation. I also requested to dispatch additional NDRF teams to support our response efforts. The Home Minister assured me of all possible support during this crisis. I am grateful to him for providing all possible support to us at this hour." Meanwhile, heavy to very heavy rainfall is expected to continue over Tripura for the next two days, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). (ANI)
Former principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, Sandip Ghosh, reached the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) office in Kolkata on Thursday morning regarding the ongoing probe into the alleged rape and murder case of a trainee doctor. Following a directive from the Calcutta High Court, the West Bengal Health Department cancelled the appointment of Prof. Sandip Ghosh as the Principal of National Medical College & Hospital. Ghosh had resigned from his position as principal of RG Kar Medical College, alleging defamation on social media following the rape and murder of a trainee doctor on the hospital premises. The rape and murder of the trainee doctor has sparked nationwide protests. The Supreme Court took suo motu cognizance of the matter and constituted a National Task Force to recommend guidelines to ensure the safety of medical professionals. A CBI investigation into the matter is underway. Earlier, a team of the CBI arrived at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital and conducted a thorough check of the former principal of the institute. Earlier, West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose paid a visit to the family of the victim. "I came here straight from Delhi to meet the parents (of the deceased) and to understand their sentiments. They told me certain things. I would keep them confidential now. Based on the information that I have, I will write a letter today and send it to the Chief Minister in a sealed cover. I will discuss the rest of the things with you later," Ananda Bose said. The top court said that it is deeply concerned about the safety of doctors across India. "If women cannot go to work and be safe, we are denying them the basic right to equality. We have to do something" the court said. The top court also asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to file a status report on the status of the investigation in the rape case. Also, the court asked the West Bengal government to file a status report on the mob attack incident that took place at the RG Kar hospital on August 15. The trainee doctor was found dead in the seminar hall of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata on August 9. (ANI)
Amid reports that Democratic Progressive Azad Party Chief, Ghulam Nabi Azad will join the Congress, Congress leader Ghulam Ahmad Mir said that Congress is open to working with anyone who wants to fight the ideology of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Congress leader Ghulam Ahmad Mir said, "It is not about approach. Before the Parliament election and now before the Assembly elections, we have said that it is the Congress party that fights with the ideology of BJP. Be it in the country or J&K if anyone no matter how big or small the party is and wants to follow this line, we are ready to work with them. Whoever wants to fight against BJP, Congress party's platform is available for them." Earlier, JKPCC President Tariq Hameed Karra said that a denial has come from Azad's side so it is a closed chapter now."A denial from the Azad Sahab's party has come. After that, there is nothing to talk about be it an alliance or merger. It is a closed chapter now." Speaking about the visit of Congress' top leadership to Srinagar, Ghulam Mir said "Rahul Gandhi and KC Venugopal have come to Srinagar and in a while, they will conduct a rally to meet the party workers. He will also interact with them. It was Rahul Gandhi's wish to meet the party workers and directly talk to them. Rahul Gandhi had a long wish to meet party workers to know their wishes and dreams for Kashmir". Leader of opposition in Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi along with Congress Rajya Sabha MP Mallikarjun Kharge will hold a meeting with the party workers of Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday. Congress leaders stated that Rahul Gandhi will meet party workers on this occasion. "He has an interaction scheduled with party workers. Workers will arrive as per capacity", JKPCC President Tariq Hameed Karra said, Congress' top leadership visit comes following the announcement of the election in the Union Territory. Security has been heightened outside the hotel where Rahul Gandhi and Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge will be holding a meeting with party workers today. Earlier, Arshid Tantary a Congress youth leader said " As you can see when Rahul Gandhi came to Srinagar yesterday, people were excited from the airport to the hotel. We have a worker's meeting today. Around 500 workers are meeting him today. everyone wants to vote for the Congress". Asif Beigh Congress Youth Gen secretary of Jammu and Kashmir said on the occasion "We were with Rahul Gandhi toll 3 AM, then we started preparing for the event. we are filled with enthusiasm as our leader Rahul Gandhi is here. Rahul Gandhi will spread his 'Mohabbat ka dukan' in Jammu and Kashmir and will form ties with secular forces". Congress is likely to ally with the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference ahead of the polls. The two parties had contested the Lok Sabha polls in alliance. The polling in the Union Territory will be held in three phases on September 18, 25, and October 1, as per the Election Commission of India. The counting of the votes will take place on October 4. These are the first elections to be held in Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370. The election body has directed the enforcement agencies to be impartial and transparent for smooth and fair polling, ensuring a level playing field. There are a total of 90 assembly constituencies, of which 74 are general, nine are ST, and seven are SC. There are 87.09 lakh total electors, including 44.46 lakh are male, 42.62 lakh are female, 169 are transgender, 82,590 PwDs, 73943 are very senior citizens, 2660 are centenarians, 76092 are service electors, and 3.71 lakh are first-time voters. Jammu and Kashmir will witness elections after a gap of ten years, as the last assembly election was held in 2014. (ANI)
Ahead of the Joint Parliamentary Committee meeting on the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024, the Chairperson of the Committee, Jagdambika Pal, said on Thursday that they will give maximum opportunities to the maximum number of people from minority organizations while discussing the bill. Pal said that the government has a specific purpose for bringing this bill that the the properties handed to the Waqf should help the backward Muslims and women. "The government presented the bill and it has been referred to the JPC today. It is the Speaker's mandate that after it is referred to the JPC, we have to give it till the last days of the first week of the next session. So, it is natural that the JPC meeting is starting today. All the members of our JPC will discuss this bill in it. Whatever the concerns are we will discuss them in the JPC. We should not only discuss this JPC with our members who are stakeholders, the Waqf (Amendment) Bill the Act that we are amending, but we should also call the chairmen of the State Waqf Boards, the organizations of our minority communities whether it is All India Muslim Personal Law Board, Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind or others. We will give opportunities to the maximum number of people," he said. "The government has a specific purpose of bringing this bill that the people in the country who hand their properties to the Waqf, their purpose is that they are dedicating it for religious or charitable purposes. If everyone fulfils this sacred sentiment, it will help common Muslims, and women, and improve their education," he added. Meanwhile, during the meeting, representatives of the Minority Affairs Ministry would brief the members on the bill and the amendments proposed in the bill. Representatives of the Law Ministry will also be present. The parliamentary committee examining the bill has 21 members from Lok Sabha and 10 from Rajya Sabha. The government introduced the bill in the budget session of Parliament which concluded earlier this month and it was decided to send the legislation to JPC for further scrutiny. The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, Waqf Act provides for the renaming of the Waqf Act, 1995, as the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act, 1995. It seeks to clearly define "Waqf" as Waqf by any person practising Islam for at least five years and having ownership of such property and ensure that the creation of Waqf-alal-aulad does not lead to the denial of inheritance rights to women. It also seeks to omit the provisions relating to the "Waqf by user", provide the functions of the Survey Commissioner to the Collector or any other officer not below the rank of Deputy Collector duly nominated by the Collector for the survey of waqf properties, provide for a broad-based composition of the Central Waqf Council and the State Waqf Boards and ensure representation of Muslim women and non-Muslims. The bill seeks to provide for the establishment of a separate Board of Auqaf for Boharas and Aghakhanis. The bill seeks to omit section 40 relating to the powers of the Board to decide if a property is Waqf property, provide for filing of accounts of waqf by mutawallis to the Board through a central portal for better control over their activities, reform the Tribunal structure with two members and provide for appeals against the orders of the Tribunal to the High Court within a specified period of ninety days. Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, who introduced the bill in the Lok Sabha, has said that the JPC will submit its report to the Lok Sabha by the last day of the first week of the winter session of Parliament. (ANI)
As the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) meeting is underway on the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024, Aam Aadmi Party MP Sanjay Singh targeted the Centre on Thursday and said that the efforts of the Modi government are intended to seize the lands of Waqf and hand them over to his friends. Sanjay Singh also claimed that after Waqf, lands belonging to Gurudwaras, churches, and temples will also be taken and handed over to the friends of the Centre. He said, "Article 26 of the Constitution provides for the freedom of religious management. The Constitution drafted by Dr BR Ambedkar, which is implemented in India, states that there should be no government interference in the management of religious institutions, whether it is a temple, Mosque, Gurdwara, or Church." "The efforts being made by the Modi government are solely driven by the intention to seize lands and hand them over to Adani. They have introduced a bill to give land to their friends. Once the Waqf Board's lands are seized, the lands belonging to Gurdwaras across the country will be taken, followed by churches and temples," he added. The AAP MP also claimed that the government has already given railway land to their friends and handed over 13,000 acres of Indian Army land in Ayodhya. "They want to seize the lands of Dalits and Adivasis. This bill is unconstitutional. We will certainly oppose it. There is no reason for government interference where it is not necessary, so why are they doing it? They want to snatch away the rights given in the Constitution of India," Sanjay Singh said. Meanwhile, the Chairperson of the Joint Parliamentary Committee, Jagdambika Pal, said on Thursday that they will give maximum opportunities to the maximum number of people from minority organizations while discussing the bill. Pal said that the government has a specific purpose for bringing this bill that the the properties handed to the Waqf should help the backward Muslims and women. The parliamentary committee examining the bill has 21 members from Lok Sabha and 10 from Rajya Sabha. The government introduced the bill in the budget session of Parliament which concluded earlier this month and it was decided to send the legislation to JPC for further scrutiny. The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, Waqf Act provides for the renaming of the Waqf Act, 1995, as the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act, 1995. The bill seeks to omit section 40 relating to the powers of the Board to decide if a property is Waqf property, provide for filing of accounts of waqf by mutawallis to the Board through a central portal for better control over their activities, reform the Tribunal structure with two members and provide for appeals against the orders of the Tribunal to the High Court within a specified period of ninety days. (ANI)
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday held a state-wide protest against the Congress for disrespecting Governor Thawarchand Gehlot after he sanctioned prosecution against CM Siddaramaiah in the MUDA scam. The protest was led by the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council Chalavadi Narayanaswamy. BJP leaders and BJP Party Workers including former Deputy Chief Minister Dr.CN Ashwath Narayan joined the protest. CN Ashwath Narayan said, "It is a fight against corruption, a fight for justice. Urging Congres to take action against its CM Siddaramaiah and ensure that he is immediately dismissed..." Earlier Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah wondered whether the Karnataka governor Thawar Chand Gehlot has not discriminated against him after granting immediate permission to prosecute him in the alleged MUDA 'scam' while following a delaying approach in the case of HD Kumaraswamy. "Has the governor not discriminated by giving immediate permission for prosecution against me? In the case of former Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy, the Governor has been following a delay policy but he has permitted the prosecution without relying on any investigation report against me. Is this not discrimination?", CM told reporters in Koppal on Wednesday. In a post on X, the Karnataka CM said that the Lokayukta Special Investigation Team sought permission for prosecution against the Janata Dal (Secular) leader in the alleged illegal mining case but the governor did not take any action. Karnataka CM added, " In HD Kumarawamy's case, the Governor is following a delaying approach, but he has allowed prosecution against me alone any investigation report. What else is this but discrimination?" "Kumaraswamy is already scared. They are worried that the governor may allow an investigation into the illegal mining case. Lokayukta SIT submitted an investigation report against him and sought permission for prosecution, but as no action was taken by the Governor, SIT applied again," CM added. The CM was speaking in the context of the SIT seeking the Governor's nod to file a chargesheet against HD Kumaraswamy over an alleged 'illegal' mining lease. H.D.Kumarswamy, in turn, accused the Congress of vendetta politics and said that the Congress wanted to malign him using a dead case. The Karnataka High Court on Monday asked the trial court concerned not to take any precipitative action against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah based on the Governor's sanction in the MUDA 'scam', till the next date of hearing before the High Court. Earlier, a complaint was filed by social activist Snehamayi Krishna against the Karnataka CM and nine others for allegedly forging documents to claim compensation from the Mysuru Urban Development Authority. (ANI)
Delhi High Court on Thursday has appointed a sole arbitrator to address the conflicts between BharatPe and its former MD Ashneer Grover. The disputes center around allegations that Grover breached confidentiality terms outlined in his employment agreement with the fintech firm. Justice C. Hari Shankar of the Delhi High Court has ordered the appointment of a sole arbitrator to resolve disputes between Ashneer Grover and BharatPe. BharatPe's plea under a relevant section of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act sought to resolve issues stemming from Grover's alleged breach of confidentiality by disclosing sensitive company information on social media. BharatPe proposed former Supreme Court Justice Hemant Gupta as the arbitrator, but Grover suggested Justice (Retired) J.R. Midha instead. Grover's advocate, Giriraj Subramanium, did not oppose arbitration but proposed that the matter be handled by the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC), given its ongoing involvement with related disputes over the shareholders' agreement. BharatPe's advocate, Anuj Berry, contested this, asserting that the employment agreement specifies arbitration under the Delhi International Arbitration Centre (DIAC), which the Court upheld. Additionally, BharatPe had previously sought a restraining order to prevent Grover from publicly disclosing company details. The Delhi High Court had previously imposed a penalty of Rs. 2 lakh on Ashneer Grover for breaching a court order by posting derogatory content about BharatPe on social media. Justice Rekha Palli, expressing disapproval of Grover's repeated violations, mandated that he pay the costs to the Delhi High Court Clerk Association. Grover issued an unconditional apology, which the court accepted, contingent upon the payment of the imposed costs. (ANI)
The Leader of Opposition, Rahul Gandhi on Thursday asserted that it was his and his party's duty to ensure that the people of Jammu and Kashmir get their democratic rights back and that statehood is restored. Addressing a press conference here today, Rahul Gandhi said that it is the priority of both the Congress Party and the INDIA alliance to restore statehood to Jammu and Kashmir as soon as possible. "We had expected that this would be done before the elections but elections have been declared. It is a step forward and we are hoping that statehood will be restored as soon as possible and the rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, democratic rights will be restored to them. This is the first time since independence that a state has become a union territory. This has never happened before. Union territories have become states but it is the first time that a State has become Union Territory. So, we are very clear in our national manifesto as well that it is a priority for us that the people of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh get their democratic rights back," he said. "My message to the people of Jammu and Kashmir is, however, we can help you, the Congress Party is always there. We understand that you're going through a very difficult period, a tough period, and we want to remove violence," he added. Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge slammed the Central government and said that the promises made to Jammu and Kashmir were not fulfilled. "Our party has decided that under the leadership of Rahul Ji, we will restore statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, and we make this promise. So far, all the Union Territories (UTs) mentioned in the Constitution have been made into states, but Jammu and Kashmir, which was a state, was made into a UT, and today, there is no council, assembly, panchayat, or municipality here. Instead of protecting democracy, it has been dismantled," he said. "No matter how much BJP and PM Modi try; they cannot suppress the voice of the people. We will stand with the people and strive to fulfil their aspirations," Kharge added. Rahul Gandhi also visited the residence of National Conference President Farooq Abdullah in Srinagar today. The Congress is expected to ally with the National Conference for the state polls although a formal announcement is yet to be made. The two parties which are part of the INDIA bloc and contested the Lok Sabha elections in alliance. Polling in Jammu and Kashmir will occur in three phases on September 18, 25, and October 1, with vote counting scheduled for October 4. These will be the first elections held in the region since the abrogation of Article 370. Jammu and Kashmir will witness elections after a gap of ten years, as the last assembly election was held in 2014. The PDP-BJP coalition government fell in June 2018 when the latter withdrew support to the then-Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti. In December of last year, the Supreme Court directed the Centre to conclude the election process by September 30, 2024. (ANI)
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Chinese Premier Li Qiang arrived Thursday for an official visit to Belarus at the invitation of Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko.

Li's visit followed his co-chairing the 29th regular meeting between the Chinese and Russian heads of government in Moscow and visit to Russia.

Highlighting the long-standing friendship between China and Belarus, Li noted upon his arrival that bilateral relations have rapidly advanced since the establishment of diplomatic ties 32 years ago.

In recent years, under the leadership of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, the bilateral relationship has been continuously upgraded to an all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership, with political mutual trust continuing to strengthen, high-quality Belt and Road cooperation being solidly advanced, people-to-people and cultural exchanges becoming increasingly close, and international collaboration achieving fruitful results, Li said.

He added that the meeting between the two heads of state this July provided strategic direction and new arrangements for the future of China-Belarus relations.

China, Li said, is ready to work closely with Belarus to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, further enhance the alignment of development strategies, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, share development opportunities, and achieve more practical results, so as to continuously enhance the well-being of the two peoples and make more contribution to regional and global peace, stability, development and prosperity.
Ahead of the Joint Parliamentary Committee meeting on the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024, Shiv Sena Leader and Panelist of the JPC Naresh Mhaske on Thursday stated that as part of the Waqf Amendment Bill, we want the poorest and the most backwards of the citizens to get justice. Speaking to ANI, Naresh Mhaske mentioned, "As part of the Waqf Amendment Bill (2024), we want the poorest and the most backwards of the citizens to get justice... This bill is based on the Sachar Committee report presented by the Congress. We are not doing anything different... If the Waqf Board stands ahead of the Constitution, a legal decision will have to be taken..." The chairperson of the JPC, Jagdambika Pal, said that they will give maximum opportunities to the maximum number of people from minority organisations while discussing the bill. Pal said that the government has a specific purpose for bringing this bill that the the properties handed to the Waqf should help the backward Muslims and women. Notably, the parliamentary committee examining the bill has 21 members from the Lok Sabha and 10 from the Rajya Sabha. The government introduced the bill in the budget session of Parliament which concluded earlier this month and it was decided to send the legislation to JPC for further scrutiny. The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, Waqf Act provides for the renaming of the Waqf Act, 1995, as the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act, 1995. It seeks to clearly define "Waqf" as Waqf by any person practising Islam for at least five years and having ownership of such property and ensure that the creation of Waqf-alal-aulad does not lead to the denial of inheritance rights to women. It also seeks to omit the provisions relating to the "Waqf by user", provide the functions of the Survey Commissioner to the Collector or any other officer not below the rank of Deputy Collector duly nominated by the Collector for the survey of waqf properties, provide for a broad-based composition of the Central Waqf Council and the State Waqf Boards and ensure representation of Muslim women and non-Muslims. The bill seeks to provide for the establishment of a separate Board of Auqaf for Boharas and Aghakhanis. The bill seeks to omit section 40 relating to the powers of the Board to decide if a property is Waqf property, provide for filing of accounts of waqf by mutawallis to the Board through a central portal for better control over their activities, reform the Tribunal structure with two members and provide for appeals against the orders of the Tribunal to the High Court within a specified period of ninety days. Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, who introduced the bill in the Lok Sabha, has said that the JPC will submit its report to the Lok Sabha by the last day of the first week of the winter session of Parliament. (ANI)
The protest rally was held by Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) from Gun Park to the ED office in Hyderabad.

PCC Chief and Telangana CM Revanth Reddy, AICC In-Charge for Telangana Deepa Dasmunsi, Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka, Ministers, MPs, MLAs, MLCs, and other leaders participated in the protest.

Hindenburg's reports have created significant controversy on two occasions. The first was last year when it made allegations about the Adani Group, leading to a substantial drop in Adani's stock prices. More recently, Hindenburg claimed that the SEBI failed to investigate these allegations due to conflicts of interest involving SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch and offshore funds related to Adani.

Both the Adani Group and SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch have dismissed the allegations made by Hindenburg. SEBI has advised investors to remain calm and has highlighted a disclaimer in the Hindenburg report indicating that Hindenburg might hold a short position in the securities mentioned, which could influence the report's content.

Earlier, the All India Bar Association sought a 360-degree probe into the international conspiracy angle behind the Hindenburg report.

AIBA Chairman and Senior Advocate Dr Adish C. Aggarwala, Chairman of the All India Bar Association (AIBA) urged the Indian government to initiate a 360-degree investigation into the alleged international conspiracy behind the latest Hindenburg report.

Earlier on August 16, Congress RS MP Jairam Ramesh reiterated the party demand for a JPC into the Hindenburg report revelations, "The demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) investigation into the Adani Mega Scam goes far beyond the revelations made by Hindenburg Research's reports. Irregularities and wrongdoings relating to the Adani Group span every dimension of the political economy." (ANI)
Illegal constructions belonging to the key accused involved in a stone-pelting incident at a police station in Madhya Pradesh's Chhatarpur district were demolished on Thursday, officials said. The demolition action was taken up jointly by district administration and police. According to officials, a group from a different community visited Kotwali police station on Wednesday to submit a memorandum against Mahant Ramgiri Maharaj against his controversial remarks on Prophet Mohammed. During the visit, some miscreants among them began pelting stones at the police station, injuring the station in-charge and two constables. The police quickly responded and dispersed the mob. Chhatarpur Superintendent of Police (SP) Agam Jain told ANI, "The police and district administration are continuously taking strict action. Three to four main suspects, involved in the stone pelting incident have been identified, and their illegal constructions are being removed with the help of district administration. The law and order situation is now normal in the region." Earlier, SP Jain had said, "A group of people from a different community came to submit a memorandum at Kotwali police station on Wednesday. While senior police officials were speaking with them, some rioters among the group began pelting stones. The police immediately took action, dispersed the rioters, and calmed the situation." An FIR has been registered against over 150 individuals, and strict action will be taken against the accused, Jain added. Following the incident, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav posted on X that strict action would be taken to prevent such incidents in the future. "An unfortunate incident occurred in Chhatarpur district and on receiving information about some policemen getting injured, I immediately inquired about the incident from the higher officials and directed for proper treatment of police personnel," CM Yadav wrote. "Madhya Pradesh is a 'state of peace', anyone involved in breaking the law in a planned manner will not be tolerated at all. I have given clear instructions to the higher officials that the culprits should be identified soon and strict action should be taken against them so that such an incident does not happen again in future. It is our priority to maintain peace and harmony in the state," CM Yadav further wrote. (ANI)
Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole on Thursday welcomed the decision of the High Court taking Suo Motu cognizance of Badlapur sexual assault. He said, "I welcome the decision of the court. We are expecting the High Court to hear the Suo Moto cognizance the way the Supreme Court heard in the case of Kolkata rape and murder case". When asked about the SIT investigation, he said "SIT is led by IPS Arti Singh and we doubt her. The government-appointed advocate to represent the case in the fast track court is already a member of the BJP". "We demand to change both of them", he added He added, "Congress demands that the culprits should be punished severely". Meanwhile, Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday condemned the alleged sexual assault of two girls at a school in Badlapur and said that the accused should be punished in a way that others also feel scared before doing such things. Speaking to the media after visiting Malad Chinchvali Marathi School, Goyal said, "This is a very unfortunate incident. I strongly condemn it. The accused in this case should face the harshest action as soon as possible. They should be punished in such a way that other people also feel scared before doing such things." "Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Ministers Devendra Fadnavis, and Ajit Pawar have taken full cognizance of the incident. I have full faith that the culprits will be punished through the fast-track court," he added. Amid violent protests in Maharashtra, the Bombay High Court has taken suo motu cognizance of the alleged sexual assault of two girls at a school in Badlapur. The matter is being heard today, on Thursday, by a division bench of Justice Revati Mohite Dere and Justice Prithviraj Chavan. The alleged sexual assault of two fourth-grade girls at a school in Maharashtra's Badlapur has sparked outrage. On August 17 police arrested an attendant of the school for allegedly abusing the girls. This incident has created massive outrage among the people in Badlapur. Meanwhile, the Maharashtra State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (MSCPCR) has recommended the establishment of special branches or "mini-police stations" for women and children in every police station across the state. This development came in the wake of an alleged delay in registering the crime by the police in Badlapur. Chairperson Susieben Shah shared a detailed plan in this regard during a press conference in Mumbai on Wednesday. Addressing the press conference, Shah said, "Currently, police stations have Women's Help Desks, Special Juvenile Police Units, and Child Welfare Police Officers. However, these units are not dedicated solely to addressing complaints from women and children, often leading to the unavailability of trained personnel when needed. Officers in these units are frequently assigned to other duties, causing delays in registering and investigating complaints." She said that the Crime Branch units in police stations are exclusively reserved for investigating crimes, ensuring that officers are not diverted to other duties and that their sole responsibility is to investigate and solve crimes efficiently. (ANI)
Amid heavy rainfall across various districts in Tripura over the past three days, which has led to severe flooding in several parts of the state, Chief Minister Manik Saha on Thursday provided his boats and flood safety materials for public use and rescue work. CM Manik Saha while inspecting the flood-affected area, walked through waterlogged roads in Agartala and ensured that the flood victim received all the necessary facilities. "I walked the streets of Agartala, met affected families & listened to their concerns. I assured them that we'll overcome this flood situation together & return to normalcy soon. All possible support will be provided to ensure their well-being," the CM posted on X. The state government has also said that all educational institutions shall remain closed until further notice. "Due to the current flood situation, it has been decided that all educational institutions, including Government, Government-aided, and private (Schools, Colleges and State-run universities) will remain closed until further notice," the CM posted on X. CM Manik Saha also held a review meeting in the presence of the Chief Secretary and other officials at the Secretariat in Agartala. He instructed the official to rescue stranded individuals from flood-hit areas and ensure prompt delivery of relief materials. Earlier on Thursday, CM Saha said that the administration is giving top priority to rescue and relief operations and added that he is monitoring the situation. He said, "I have information that there is a depression in the Bay of Bengal and due to this rain happening, there has been a lot of impact of the depression in almost every district, I was monitoring from Delhi". "I talked to every concerned department and reviewed the flood situation. Heavy rain occurred in Tripura. I had never seen this kind of rain in Tripura before there were many instances of landslides. Many rivers have come above the danger level," the chief minister said. CM informed that 321 relief camps are operating in the state currently. Assam Rifles has also launched relief and rescue operations in East Kanchanbari of Kumarghat district and Karbook and Amarpur of Gomati district, Tripura. Assam Rifles launched the rescue operations as hundreds of homes washed away in the state periphery due to a surge of flash floods following 72 hours of incessant rains. While Haora, Karki, Dhalai, Manu, Muhuri and Gomti rivers swelled dangerously, the rains lashed out at the upper catchment areas as well. These six rivers are flowing above the danger mark. As many as 5607 families have been shifted to 183 relief camps in the wake of the deteriorating situation due to the rise in the water levels of rivers.Assam Rifles following its tradition of being the first responder is working in close coordination with civil administration to reduce the plight of stranded citizens alongwith providing relief to them. (ANI)
The Delhi High Court has recently granted regular bail to the accused in the Kanjhawla hit-and-drag case. These accused were in the car involved in the accident that resulted in the victim's death on January 1, 2023, and have been in custody since then. While granting bail, the High Court said that, at this stage, it cannot be said that these accused had the intention to cause the accident. Whether they conspired in the offence or not, is a matter of trial. Justice Amit Mahajan granted bail to Krishan and Manoj Mittal. "While the nature of the offence is heinous, and the applicants were admittedly passengers of the said vehicle which caused the accident, at this stage, it cannot be said that the applicants had the intention to cause the said accident," justice Mahajan said in the order passed on August 14. The High Court noted the contention of the applicants's counsels that they had allegedly asked the driver to stop the car. The bench observed, "The applicants, it appears are sought to be made accused by invoking the provisions of Section 120B of the IPC which makes every person guilty who is part of the criminal conspiracy to commit an offence." "Whether the applicants conspired with the driver to commit an act which was so imminently dangerous that in all probability would cause death or such bodily injury as is likely to cause death of the victim is a matter of trial," the bench added. Justice Mahajan held, "It cannot, prima facie, be alleged that solely for the reasons that the applicants were sitting in the same vehicle or were aware that the victim was caught under the vehicle and still the vehicle was being driven, they are guilty of criminal conspiracy. The same would be tested at the time of trial." The High Court said that the object of Jail is to secure the appearance of the accused during the trial. The object is neither punitive nor preventive and the deprivation of liberty has been considered as a punishment. However, appropriate conditions ought to be put to allay the apprehension of the applicant tampering with the evidence or evading the trial, the bench said. The applicants are in custody since January 1, 2023, and the chargesheet has already been filed. On being asked, it is pointed out that only six witnesses have been examined and as yet the trial is not likely to conclude expeditiously, the bench noted in the bail order. However, the court clarified that In the event of there being any FIR/ DD entry/ complaint lodged against the applicants, it would be open to the State to seek redressal by filing an application seeking cancellation of bail. Advocate JP Singh appeared for accused Krishan and Advocate Akshay Bhandari appeared for Manoj Mittal. (ANI)
Calling for the resignation of CM Mamata Banerjee over the rape and murder case of junior doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, Bhartiya Janata Party MLA Agnimitra Paul on Thursday said that we are protesting to ensure the safety of every citizen of West Bengal. Agnimitra Paul, in a BJP protest outside the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, said, "We are protesting to ensure the safety of every citizen. We want every citizen in West Bengal to be safe." She further called for the resignation of West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee for loss of confidence. "We also want the resignation of Mamata Banerjee. We have no faith in her," Paul said. Earlier on Thursday, BJP MP Saumitra Khan also called for the resignation of CM Mamata Banerjee. "Everyone demands that the rapist and murderers be arrested at the earliest," said Khan. Moreover, he called for the arrest of the Kolkata Police Commissioner and also the arrest of the team which informed the victim's family of a suicide. "The Kolkata Police Commissioner should be arrested first and taken into CBI custody. The team which informed the victim's parents of suicide should be arrested", added the BJP MP. The MP expressed concern and claimed that the Kolkata Police is trying to cover up the case and asked for the resignation of the West Bengal Chief Minister. "The way Kolkata Police is trying to cover up the case, we are scared whether this case will go forward. Being a woman, Mamata Banerjee should take responsibility and resign...", said the BJP MP. Earlier, BJP leader CR Kesavan had also claimed that Mamata Banerjee had lost the confidence of the people of West Bengal and called for her resignation. "Mamata Banerjee has lost the confidence of the people of West Bengal and the country. Her continuation as the Chief Minister is undefendable. I think she should immediately resign in the best interest of the people of West Bengal", said Kesavan. Additionally, BJP leader and National Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla also accused TMC of trying to save the accused in the case. The rape and murder of the trainee doctor on August 09 has sparked nationwide protests. The Supreme Court took suo motu cognizance of the matter and constituted a National Task Force to recommend guidelines to ensure the safety of medical professionals. A CBI investigation into the matter is underway. Earlier, a team of the CBI arrived at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital and conducted a thorough check of the former principal of the institute. Earlier, West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose paid a visit to the family of the victim. "I came here straight from Delhi to meet the parents (of the deceased) and to understand their sentiments. They told me certain things. I would keep them confidential now. Based on the information that I have, I will write a letter today and send it to the Chief Minister in a sealed cover. I will discuss the rest of the things with you later," Ananda Bose said. (ANI)
The apprehended Bangladeshi national has been identified as Masud Rehman (18 years old) and was trying to infiltrate India.

"On August 21, 2024, at about 2205 hrs, troops of BOP Changrabanda under Jalpaiguri Sector of North Bengal Frontier deployed on the Indo-Bangladesh border in the Coochbehar district of West Bengal apprehended one Bangladeshi national Masud Rehman (18 years) S/o Late Azizul Rehman, R/o Vill-Kagjipara, PS-Gangachara, Distt-Rangpur (Bangladesh) while he was trying to cross border from Bangladesh to India," the release stated.

"On search, one mobile phone was recovered from his possession. The apprehended Bangladeshi National with a seized mobile phone was handed over to PS Mekhliganj," it stated

Furthermore, anti-smuggling operations conducted by BSF North Bengal Frontier from 17 to 21 August 2024 led to the seizure of 19 Cattle, 2555 bottles of Phensedyl, Ganja-02 Kgs and other contraband items valued at Rs 9,38,548 preventing them from being smuggled across the Indo-Bangladesh border, the release stated.

BSF North Bengal Frontier remains committed to thwarting the nefarious designs of anti-national elements and maintaining the integrity of the border.

The Bangladeshi National has been handed over to Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB).

Earlier on August 10, BSF troops, in collaboration with the Meghalaya Police, apprehended seven Bangladeshi nationals along with two Indian facilitators at a checkpoint, said BSF in a statement.

In view of ongoing unrest in Bangladesh, BSF Meghalaya has assessed and heightened security along the Indo-Bangladesh border, adopting a multi-tier dominance strategy.

All the apprehended illegal Bangladeshi migrants with Indian facilitators were handed over to the concerned police station for further disposal and legal action, added BSF. (ANI)
Amid heavy rainfall across various districts in Tripura, three Indian Air Force aircraft carrying 120 members of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) landed at Maharaja Bir Bikram Airport in Tripura on Thursday. The NDRF team is expected to begin rescue operations in the flood-affected areas shortly. The Chief Minister's Office, on behalf of the people of Tripura extended a heartfelt thanks to the Honourable Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, and the Honourable Home Minister, Shri Amit Shah, for standing by the state during this challenging time. Earlier today, Chief Minister Manik Saha held a review meeting at the State Secretariat to assess the flood situation. The meeting was attended by the Chief Secretary and other officials. The Chief Minister has directed that citizens be promptly rescued from flood-affected areas and that relief materials be swiftly delivered to those in need. Looking at the severity of the flood situation, the CM announced the closure of all educational institutes in the state. "Due to the current flood situation, it has been decided that all educational institutions, including Government, Government-aided, and private (Schools, Colleges and State-run universities) will remain closed until further notice," the CM posted on X. Earlier today, The Chief Minister was also seen walking through the water-logged roads in Agartala and ensured that the flood victims received all the necessary facilities. "I walked the streets of Agartala, met affected families & listened to their concerns. I assured them that we'll overcome this flood situation together & return to normalcy soon. All possible support will be provided to ensure their well-being," another post of the CM highlighted on X. Assam Rifles has also launched relief and rescue operations in East Kanchanbari of Kumarghat district and Karbook and Amarpur of Gomati district, Tripura. As many as 5607 families have been shifted to 183 relief camps in the wake of the deteriorating situation due to the rise in the water levels of rivers. (ANI)
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said that the representation of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and giving back the statehood is most important for the Congress, adding that there is a "battle of ideologies" between Congress and RSS." Addressing the people of Jammu, the LoP emphasised the culture of Jammu and said that it's a land of Maa Vaishno devi, adding that the people here have different thinking and styles. "Jammu has a culture, a history, it's a land of Maa Vaishno devi, your lifestyle and thinking style are different. Every state has a different style, we want all these cultures, history and languages to be protected. We want your voice in your govt. BJP has a different thinking, they want to run the entire country from Nagpur, through remote control. The complaint that you are making is that outsiders are getting benefits, if you go to Maharashtra, you'll hear a similar complaint," he said. "We want statehood for you, that is in your heart. We want you to run your state the way you want to, this is the message we came to convey," he added. Rahul Gandhi further said that his relationship with the people of Jammu is of love and family. "My relation with you all is that of love and family. My family comes from your state, so you have to keep in mind that I am your soldier in Delhi. Whatever you want... my doors are always open for you," he said. He further asserted that the assembly elections are a battle of ideologies between Congress and RSS. "Alliance is happening... I want our workers and commanders to get respect from whatever alliance takes place. You fight for us and it's a battle of ideologies - between Congress and RSS... I sit in parliament, I see him (PM Modi). I can tell you that you have finished the confidence of PM Modi. Congress workers have given so much psychological tension to him that his psychology has collapsed," he said. Rahul Gandhi said, "You know your sipahi is in Delhi. Anything you want you can tell me I will do that." Earlier today, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge along with Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi met National Conference president Farooq Abdullah. "We, along with Rahul Gandhi had a warm courtesy meeting with JKNC President, Farooq Abdullah and JKNC Vice President, Omar Abdullah in Srinagar, today," the Congress chief posted on X. The National Conference and the Congress will contest the forthcoming assembly election in Jammu and Kashmir together and have formed an alliance. The formal announcement of the tie-up was made by NC patron Farooq Abdullah in Srinagar on Thursday. The announcement was made after Farooq Abdullah and his son Omar met Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi. "The alliance has been finalised and by this evening the details of seat-sharing will be announced. The Alliance is for 90 seats," Farooq Abdullah said. "People have suffered much in the last 10 years. Statehood is the prime concern for us. And we want all the powers of the state. Our common program is to fight divisive forces. Our doors are open for all, let's first win the election. My heart is happy today," the NC patron added. When asked if he will contest the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections, Farooq Abdullah candidly said, "...It's better if you don't me ask me this question. I will not answer it." The Congress and the NC had fought the Lok Sabha elections in an alliance with each other. The National Conference won two seats - Anantnag and Srinagar. The Congress could not win any seat. Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir will be held in three phases on September 18, 25 and October 1. The results will be announced on October 4. The Election Commission has issued notification for the first phase of assembly seats for 24 seats. This is the first assembly poll in Jammu and Kashmir since abrogation of Article 370 (ANI)
The Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT Delhi) has launched the fourth batch of its prestigious Certificate Programme in Machine Learning and Deep Learning. This programme is designed to equip professionals with the latest skills and in-depth knowledge required to excel in the rapidly evolving domain of machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI). As AI and ML technologies continue to transform various industries, there is a growing demand for skilled professionals who can leverage these technologies effectively. The global machine learning market was valued at USD 19.45 billion in 2022 and is projected to reach USD 188.34 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 37.47% from 2023 to 2030. In India, the machine learning market is expected to experience similarly remarkable growth, with a CAGR of 36.11% from 2024 to 2030, reaching a market volume of USD 17.87 billion by 2030. Through this programme, learners will develop proficiency in efficient Python programming, mastering the skills to effectively load and pre-process data from both online and offline databases using the Pandas library. Furthermore, they will delve into the fundamental principles and challenges of machine learning, designing and training neural networks with the powerful Keras and TensorFlow modules. By the end of the programme, learners will be equipped to design and implement a range of machine learning and deep learning techniques, applying them to real-world problems and applications. Speaking at the announcement of the fourth batch, Dr Manav Bhatnagar, Head CEPQIP, Brigadier Bhopinder Singh Chair Professor, Department of Electrical Engineering, IIT Delhi, said, "At IIT Delhi, our mission is to deliver education that is at the forefront of innovation, aligning with the evolving needs of the industry. As machine learning and deep learning continue to revolutionise industries worldwide, our certificate programme is designed to provide learners with a rigorous and comprehensive education that combines theoretical foundations with practical expertise. We take pride in empowering individuals to become leaders in the field of artificial intelligence, shaping its future and driving transformation across sectors." The six-month Certificate Programme in Machine Learning and Deep Learning is meticulously curated by esteemed IIT Delhi faculty and includes comprehensive coursework covering critical aspects of machine learning and deep learning. Learners will delve into subjects like Python, data processing, data analysis, neural networks, deep learning, architectures and recent advances, and NLP, among others. The programme will be conducted via the state-of-the-art Interactive Learning (IL) platform and delivered in Direct-to-Device (D2D) mode. This will include 76 hours each of online and self-paced learning, a three-week capstone project, a masterclass and an immersion session for interaction between faculty and learners on the IIT Delhi campus. (ANI)
The first meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, witnessed a heated exchange between BJP and opposition members over the provisions of the proposed legislation, sources said. The meeting saw a detailed presentation from officials of the Minority Affairs ministry, who elaborated on the various provisions of the bill. Representatives from the Ministry of Law and Justice were also present to provide legal perspective on the bill. Sources said several opposition members in the committee questioned the government's intentions and alleged that the bill has provisions that are "unconstitutional" and "detrimental to the interests" of the Muslim community. They said this stance was opposed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) members and also its allies in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) leading to heated arguments. Sources said the opposition MPs alleged that the bill violates the right of freedom of religion, freedom of equality and Article 26. Some MPs are learnt to have expressed dissatisfaction over the presentation of the representatives of the Minority Affairs Ministry. Sources said BJP's allies in the meeting conveyed that the interests of the main minority community should be protected. BJP MP Jagdambika Pal, chairman of the committee, sought to steer the discussions towards a constructive outcome. Speaking to the media before the meeting, Pal emphasized the importance of considering the views of all stakeholders. He said the panel has an inclusive approach. "The government presented the bill and it has been referred to the JPC. All members of JPC will discuss this bill in it. Whatever the concerns are, we will discuss them in the JPC," he said. Jagdambika Pal talked about engaging with a wide spectrum including stakeholders such as the chairmen of State Waqf Boards and organizations representing minority communities. "We will give the opportunity to the maximum number of people," he said. The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2023 was introduced in the budget session of Parliament. The government has said that the amendments are necessary to streamline the functioning of Waqf properties and ensure better governance. Opposition parties have raised concerns about potential overreach and the implications on the autonomy of Waqf institutions. The JPC, comprising 31 members--21 from the Lok Sabha and 10 from the Rajya Sabha--has been tasked with thoroughly examining the bill. Today's meeting has underscored the challenges ahead in achieving a consensus on the issue. Jagdambika Pal later said that the meeting was "fruitful" and the next meeting will be held on August 30. The committee is to submit its report to the Lok Sabha by the last day of the first week of the next parliament session. (ANI)
According to the Delhi Police, they had received a PCR call regarding a person lying in an injured and unconscious condition with a stab injury to his body at Gali No. 10, Vijay Vihar at 5:20 AM.

Responding to the call, the local police team immediately reached the spot and shifted the injured person to the hospital, where he was declared dead by the doctors. The deceased was identified as Parveen (52), a resident of Village Rithala, Delhi.

The dead body was preserved in the hospital for postmortem. Accordingly, a case has been registered at PS Vijay Vihar, police added.

Multiple teams have been constituted to nab the culprits. Further investigation is underway.

In a similar kind of incident, a security guard at a factory in Delhi's Khyala village was allegedly stabbed to death by a group of four juveniles, police said on Thursday.

According to officials, the deceased security guard, identified as Vinod (35), had reported the unruly behaviour of a juvenile worker to the factory owner, leading to the worker's dismissal.

To avenge that, the juvenile, along with three friends, attacked Vinod and stabbed him with knives. Vinod was taken to the hospital where he was declared dead. (ANI)
Shiv Sena Social Media Head Rahool N Kanal on Thursday took a dig at ShivSena UBT MP Priyanka Chaturvedi for mocking Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. https://x.com/rahoolnkanal/status/1826573740076917107 Rahool called Chaturvedi a "social media addict" and accused her of destroying the Shivsena party which was created by Balasaheb Thackeray. "..Let me come to the point. Being drunk on power without power must be painful. People like you contributed to the destruction of the party created by Balasaheb Thackeray....Do something more constructive with your time. Social media "addiction" is not healthy! Your sheer frustration after being unable to negotiate an entry into our party is understandable," Kanal said in a series of posts on X. This statement came after ShivSena UBT MP Priyanka Chaturvedi, in a social media post (with video) took a dig at the Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde's speech. In the video post by the UBT Sena MP, Eknath Shinde is heard applauding the efforts of the state government for working towards the safety of women in the state. Citing an example of a case, Shinde said that the government ran the case in the fast-track court, gave all the evidence, and provided special lawyers and as a result, the case was solved in just two months and the accused was hanged. "In this state of Maharashtra, they (opposition) were saying that we don't want Ladli sister, we want safe sister. Let me tell you that three months ago, a similar incident happened with one of our sisters. We ran the case in the fast-track court, gave all the evidence, and provided special lawyers. A lot of hard work was done in this whole case and it took only two months and the accused in that case was hanged. This is our government, here if anything happens to anyone," Shinde is heard saying in the video clip. This latest war of words between the Sena factions comes in the wake of the alleged sexual assault of two girls at a school in Badlapur. In the latest development, amid violent protests in Maharashtra, the Bombay High Court took suo motu cognizance of the alleged sexual assault of two girls at a school in Badlapur. On August 17 Maharashtra police arrested an attendant of the school for allegedly abusing the girls. This incident triggered massive outrage among the people in Badlapur. (ANI)
On a call by the Supreme Court, doctors of the Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, All India Institutes of Medical Sciences, Indira Gandhi Hospital and several other hospitals on Thursday ended their strike in protest against the rape and murder at a Kolkata hospital. The Resident Doctors Association of Indira Gandhi Hospital has officially called off its 11-day strike in protest against the rape and murder at RG Kar Medical Hospital. The decision to end the strike came on Thursday after the Supreme Court appealed to the medical fraternity to return to work The strike, which had garnered attention, disrupted medical services and highlighted the doctors' demand for justice and safety in the healthcare environment. This comes days after the rape and murder of a junior doctor in Kolkata sparked nationwide protests. The apex court suo motu took up the case and directed the task force to submit an interim report within three weeks and a final report within two months. "In a spirit of national interest and public service, the RDA, IGH, New Delhi, has decided to conclude its 11-day strike. This decision has been made in response to the appeal and directive of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India," the Indira Gandhi Hospital said in an official release. "We express our deep gratitude to the Supreme Court for taking cognizance of the RG Kar Medical College incident and for addressing the broader issue of the safety and security of healthcare workers nationwide. We also commend the establishment of a national task force to ensure these concerns are addressed in a timely and effective manner," the release stated. The hospital management also expressed gratitude towards the Supreme Court for its direction that no action will be taken against the protesting doctors. "Our dedication to our responsibilities remains unwavering, and we will continue to advocate for the rights and safety of healthcare workers through ongoing engagement with various authorities, ministries, institutional heads, members of the National Task Force and the Honourable Supreme Court, as well as our demand for the CPA," the release further said. Earlier today, doctors at the Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital and the All India Institutes of Medical Sciences also ended their strikes and resumed services. "In view of the developments with respect to our demands, and our concerns being addressed by the Honorable SC, we hereby declare the strike to be withheld," the Resident Doctors Association said in an official release. "We hereby have decided to resume all our duties. Recent mishappening at RG Kar Medical College highlighted the sorry state in which residents are working in our country. We have requested residents to resume services from 8 AM onwards, 23rd August," the release stated further. The All India Institutes of Medical Sciences doctors also ended their 11-day strike and resumed services. In a statement, the Resident Doctors Association made the announcement and said, "In the interest of the nation and the spirit of public service, the RDA, AIIMS, New Delhi, has decided to call off the 11-day strike. This decision comes in response to the appeal and direction of the Supreme Court. We extend our sincere appreciation to the Supreme Court for taking cognizance of the RG Kar Medical College incident and addressing the broader issue of safety and security for healthcare workers across the country."Earlier, the Supreme Court, while commencing its hearing on the Kolkata doctor rape-murder case, said that health professionals must return to work and that once they resume their duties, the court will prevail upon authorities to not take adverse action against them. A bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and also comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Mishra passed these directions while hearing the suo motu petition that it initiated in the wake of the rape and murder of a doctor at state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, West Bengal. The top court asked how public health infrastructure will work if the doctors do not resume work. It also took note of the long working hours of the doctors in public hospitals. "Let the health professionals return to work and once they return to duties, the court will prevail upon authorities to not take adverse action. How would the public health infrastructure function if doctors did not return to work," the court said. CJI DY Chandrachud shared one of his stories and said that he had once slept in a public hospital when one of his relatives was not well and was admitted to the hospital.The top court also directed the secretary of the Health Ministry to engage with the Chief Secretaries of the State and Director General of Police to ensure the safety of the doctors willing to return to work. (ANI)
As part of efforts to thwart the Pakistan Army's designs to revive terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir, the Indian Army and other security agencies have redeployed troops and special forces in the higher reaches of areas south of Pir Panjal to carry out search and destroy operations. The Indian Army and security forces have deployed more than 10 battalions and over 500 Special Forces operatives in the areas south of Pir Panjal ranges to tackle the terrorist activities prompted by the Pakistan Army, sources in security agencies told ANI. The Indian Army has now moved the troops to carry out searches in the forested areas with a proactive approach to take out terrorists who have been hiding in natural caves and man-made underground hideouts, sources said. The sources said the idea is to search and locate l terrorists at higher reaches itself and not let them come down and target civilians and security forces there, sources added. The human intelligence grid has also been strengthened in the area with induction of new police officials in the area while the central police forces have also strengthened their presence and activities, the sources said. Indian Army and security agencies have suffered multiple casualties taking advantage of the relatively less presence of troops in view of redeployments done for the standoff at the northern borders. The new inductions in the area including the armoured vehicles and mine-protected vehicles have also strengthened the forces. The security deployment and standard operating procedures in the entire Jammu division including Rajouri, Poonch, Udhampur and Doda districts have been revised and all troops in the area are on high alert to thwart any terror attack, the sources said. The local over-ground workers and terrorist sympathisers have also been identified and are being taken care of by the security agencies, they said. Support by some locals in these areas to help terrorists has also been found and measures are being taken to curb that with area domination and other measures, they said. The top Army brass have also discussed the terror situation in the area recently and have also briefed the top leadership on the action being taken by them. (ANI)
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers on Thursday staged a protest against the rape and murder of the PG-trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata. BJP leaders, including LoP Suvendu Adhikari and MLA Agnimitra Paul, and workers stage a protest outside the premises of the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, however, they were later detained by the Kolkata Police. Meanwhile, the Central Bureau of Investigation on Thursday approached Kolkata High Court for permission to conduct a polygraph test on RG Kar Medical College and Hospital's ex-principal, Dr Sandip Ghosh, and four doctors after finding discrepancies in their statements during the investigation. A senior CBI official informed that they have approached the court for permission and after getting the permission, the polygraph test will be conducted. "We will corroborate their statements with the result of the polygraph test to verify their statement given to the agency," the official added. The CBI official stated that the polygraph test would help verify their statements and corroborate evidence. Ghosh was previously questioned about his response to the incident, notification to police and parents, and other aspects. Meanwhile, after the Supreme Court's appeal, health professionals at All India Institutes of Medical Sciences, Delhi called off their 11-day-long strike and are back on their duties as of Thursday. In a statement, the Resident Doctors Association made the announcement and said, "In the interest of the nation and the spirit of public service, the RDA, AIIMS, New Delhi, has decided to call off the 11-day strike. This decision comes in response to the appeal and direction of the Supreme Court. We extend our sincere appreciation to the Supreme Court for taking cognizance of the RG Kar Medical College incident and addressing the broader issue of safety and security for healthcare workers across the country." (ANI)
BRS MLA T Harish Rao on Thursday slammed the Congress government in Telangana for "not waiving off" the farmers' loans as had been promised by the party before the Assembly election. "Before the assembly elections, the Revanth Reddy government promised to waive off loans of Rs 2 lakhs to farmers. They promised to waive off loans on 9th December. But they did not waive off loans on 9th December," Rao told ANI. "Later, in the parliamentary elections, they went to every district and promised to waive off loans by the 15th of August. They looted the votes of farmers in the parliamentary elections as well. Today, 15th August is over. The loan waiver has not happened yet. Even half of the farmers have not got their loans waived," he added. The Congress had promised a complete loan waiver of up to Rs 2 lakh for farmers as part of its 'Warangal Rythu Declaration', ahead of the Assembly elections. The party had said that if they came to power, it would waive off farmers' loans of Rs 2 lakh per acre. However, after coming to power, the government split the waiver scheme into three instalments, which irked the farmers in dismay. Meanwhile, BRS held protests in all Mandal and Constituency centres on Thursday, demanding an unconditional loan waiver for all farmers in the state. In a press release, BRS Working President KT Rama Rao said that while the Chief Minister claims that loans up to two lakh rupees have been waived for everyone the ministers are giving contradictory statements, saying the loan waiver process is not yet complete. "A large number of farmers across the state are agitating because they have not benefited from the Congress party's loan waiver scheme", added KTR. Mentioning the promises of the Congress party before the elections, KTR highlighted Chief Minister Revanth Reddy's statement that Rs 40,000 crores would be required for the loan waiver. However, it was noted that only Rs 18,000 crores have been spent by the state government till now. He also reminded that before the elections, the Congress party clearly promised to implement a loan waiver of up to two lakh rupees for all farmers. KTR criticised the state Congress leadership, saying that instead of supporting the distressed farmers who are protesting the lack of a proper loan waiver, ministers and Congress leaders are making statements that only add to the confusion. He claimed that there is ground-level information that not even 40 per cent of farmers have benefited from the loan waiver. "Due to the Congress government's stance, lakhs of farmers are being forced to visit government offices repeatedly", mentioned the BRS leader. Additionally, it was demanded that the state government immediately announce a loan waiver of up to two lakh rupees for every farmer. (ANI)
In a significant move towards the protection of endangered animals, Anil Agarwal Foundation (AAF) through its flagship animal welfare initiative The Animal Care Organization (TACO), on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve to provide a surveillance centre and dwelling units for frontline workers who are at the forefront of the Park's conservation efforts. As part of TACO's wildlife conservation project 'Mission Vanraksha', this collaboration will strengthen the protection of the Park's wildlife especially endangered species such as the Greater One-Horned Rhinos, Asiatic Elephants and Bengal Tigers. The MoU outlines a grant of Rs 6 crore to be utilised over a period of three years for this collaboration. The MoU signing ceremony was graced by Assam Minister of Environment & Forest, Act East Policy Affairs and Welfare of Minorities Chandra Mohan Patowary, emphasizing the state's commitment to preserving its natural heritage. The MoU was signed between Ritu Jhingon, President, Anil Agarwal Foundation and Dr. Sonali Ghosh, Director of Kaziranga National Park & Tiger Reserve. Also present at the ceremony was Priya Agarwal Hebbar, Chairperson, Hindustan Zinc Ltd, and Non-Executive Director, Vedanta Ltd who anchors the TACO project. Speaking on the occasion, Assam Minister of Environment & Forest Chandra Mohan Patowary, expressed his support for the initiative, stating, "Kaziranga National Park is not just a treasure of Assam but of the entire world. We are committing to support TACO's initiative 'Mission Vanraksha' where they will provide surveillance centre to maintain a zero poaching zone and to promote conservation and sustainability in our state. The establishment of dwelling units for forest frontline workers is a critical component of this initiative, ensuring that those who protect our heritage are well-supported. The well-being of the frontline workers will help them maintain Kaziranga's unparalleled beauty and biodiversity." Priya Agarwal Hebbar, Chairperson, Hindustan Zinc Ltd, and Non-Executive Director, Vedanta Ltd, emphasizing the importance of the partnership, said, "This MoU is especially important as it focuses on improving facilities for frontline workers, including 'Van Durgas' or women forest guards, providing an impetus to conservation activities in Kaziranga. I am delighted that TACO will be contributing to the ongoing efforts in collaboration with the Government of Assam to preserve the region's unique ecosystem while supporting the green warriors of the forest. Together, we can create a sustainable model that benefits both wildlife and the local communities." The grant to build the surveillance centre and dwelling units for the forest guards and staff marks a pivotal step towards enhancing conservation efforts at Kaziranga National Park and will aid in the surveillance and protection of the Park's wildlife population, including rhinos and elephants. The structure set up shall be undertaken in accordance with due compliances under Forest, Wildlife & Environmental laws and regulations, etc. Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve, spread over 1302 sq km, is famous for its success story of reviving the population of Greater One-Horned Rhinoceros and is today home to over 2613 of these iconic species. Besides, the park also boasts of the largest population of Asiatic Water Buffalo in the world with estimates at over 2565 individuals, over 1200 Asiatic Elephants, along with significant densities of Bengal Tiger and Eastern Swamp Deer. More than 30 mammalian species, 556 bird species, 17 freshwater turtles, 35 Snakes, 29 lizards and 24 frogs have also been recorded. The park also provides habitat for several globally threatened species including Sambar Deer, Hog Deer, Capped Langur, Hoolock Gibbon, Sloth Bear, Bengal florican and the Gangetic Dolphin. The park is a crucial part of the ecosystem that needs careful safeguarding, and TACO commits to supporting the authorities in their efforts. Notably, TACO's initiatives encompass a holistic approach to 'One Health', recognizing the interconnection between people, animals, plants, and their shared environment. TACO's commitment to wildlife conservation encompasses a multifaceted approach. In 2022, it collaborated with to the Forest Department, Government of Rajasthan, by providing seven patrolling vehicles at Ranthambore National Park to enhance on ground surveillance efforts. TACO's shelter in Faridabad, Haryana is home to 160+ animals, including cows, bulls, and dogs, focusing on rescue, rehabilitation, advanced veterinary care and overall well-being. It recently unveiled a multi-specialty veterinary hospital focused on advanced animal healthcare in Faridabad where it is also running Mobile Health Van and Ambulance services. Since its inception two years ago, it has treated more than 60,000 animals through health camps held across several operational areas of Vedanta group and rescued almost 5,000 animals during the Delhi and Haryana floods. Its dedication also extends to education and training through the TACO Academy, which conducts sessions for veterinarians and paraprofessionals. TACO is the animal welfare initiative by Anil Agarwal Foundation, the umbrella entity for 140+ social impact projects of Vedanta and its business units. Vedanta Ltd., one of the world's leading critical minerals, energy and technology companies, through its subsidiary Cairn Oil & Gas has been exploring and developing the untapped hydrocarbon potential of Northeast India. Cairn has been providing gas supply to the tea estates, from its production facility in Hazarigaon. Further, through its association with Assam Gas Company Limited (AGCL), it is fuelling 100 CNG buses in Guwahati, supporting the clean energy initiative of the Government of Assam. In line with its mission to 'transforming communities', Cairn has set-up a Handloom Center at Borchapori Village, Borpathar District, Golaghat, Assam. This has been developed as a part of the livelihood generation initiatives in partnership with Assam State Rural Livelihood Mission (ASRLM) and District Handloom Department, Govt. of Assam. (ANI)
The Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal unveiled major sustainable initiatives after inaugurating Three Freshwater Lakes at Jawaharlal Nehru Port on Thursday. All these lakes were rejuvenated and beautified which will serve as vital reservoirs for rainwater harvesting and habitat restoration. Sonowal also reviewed various port infrastructure and developmental projects. The Union Minister Sonowal also attended the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signing ceremony among the JN Port Authority (JNPA), Rural Electrification Corporation (REC) and Vadhavan Port to shore up financing for infrastructure projects. The second MoU was signed between JNPA and Gateway Terminal India (GTI) to shore up the sustainable initiative of the port. Speaking on the occasion, Sonowal said, "Our ports are our country's greatest assets which must be harnessed to power the economic growth of Bharat to become 'Atmanirbhar' - the vision of our Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji. The sustainable drive at our ports is a major driver to advance India's maritime infrastructure and contribute to the nation's growth under the 'Viksit Bharat' vision. "It is a moment of great pride that we have named these three pristine lakes in honour of revered saints of Maharashtra, Saint Dyaneshwar Maharaj, Saint Eknath Maharaj and Saint Namdeo Maharaj. With the replenished and rejuvenated lakes, I am sure the efforts will further the sustainability efforts in JN Port," he added Sarbananda Sonowal also performed the groundbreaking ceremony for the Smart SEZ project. This project includes preventing perimeter intrusions, ensuring disciplined vehicle movement, streamlining gate operations, smart tracking of staff and vehicles, as well as extending network connectivity to all utility buildings for LAN users. The project aims to provide the necessary infrastructure for future applications such as an Energy Management System, Smart Water Management, Smart Street Lighting, Smart Parking, and weighbridge. Sonowal also planted a sapling under the 'Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam' initiative at JNPA SEZ. Sonowal added, "Today, we also witnessed the signing up of two major MoUs between JNS Vadhavan Port and REC as well as between JNPA and GTI. These will further bolster the efforts of the Modi Government to propel infrastructure as well as shore up efforts towards sustainability. Our ports are dedicated to advancing India's economic growth by facilitating seamless trade and strengthening its role in global supply chains. Under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji, our ministry is working towards more sustainability efforts as we must replenish our environment and achieve economic growth with utmost responsibility for the future generations of our country." The three inaugurated key water bodies designed to enhance the region's ecological balance. Among these are the Admin Building Foothill Lake and the CPP Lake, both strategically situated within the port area. Additionally, the Minister performed the groundbreaking ceremony for Jashkar Lake. These lakes have been named in honour of the revered saints of Maharashtra: Saint Dyaneshwar Maharaj, Saint Eknath Maharaj, and Saint Namdeo Maharaj. Sonowal also issued Letters of Intent (LoI) to SEZ concessionaires. Earlier, the Union Minister was welcomed by the Chairman of JNPT, Unmesh Sharad Wagh. JNPA has allotted plots in 7 phases. The recent e-auction of phase 7 for 57 Acres saw a remarkable response, with 21 bidders submitting bids for 6 unit plots and 3 co-developer plots. Notably, there was an overall 95.23% increase in quoted value for the said plots above the reserve price, resulting revenue increase of 63% above the reserve price for JNPA. As part of the strategic engagements, JNPA issued the date of award of concession to the concessionaires of Liquid Berth 3/ Liquid Berth 4 (LB3/LB4). JNPA announced the successful expansion of its liquid cargo handling capacity with the introduction of Additional Liquid Cargo Berths (ALCB), specifically Liquid Berth-3 and Liquid Berth-4. These berths will be equipped, operated, maintained, and eventually transferred through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model. Currently, JNPA handles approximately 6.5 Million Metric Tonnes Per Annum (MMTPA) of liquid cargo through its existing Liquid Berth-1 and Liquid Berth-2. With the completion of the Additional Liquid Cargo Berths LB3 and LB4, JNPA's total liquid cargo handling capacity will increase to 11 MMTPA. In a move to further empower the local community and enhance workforce development, the Union Minister launched the Vadhvan Skilling Program's Whatsapp ChatBot developed by JNPA, designed to facilitate access to skilling programs, provide information about Vadhvan Port, and guide users through the process of visiting JNPort. The primary goal of this chatbot is to gather valuable data and ensure that the youth of Vadhvan receive targeted training that aligns with employment opportunities. The Vadhvan Port project is expected to create approximately 10 lakh employment opportunities. (ANI)
West Bengal BJP President Sukanta Majumdar on Thursday criticised the TMC-led West Bengal Government on the handling of the RG Kar Medical College alleged rape and murder of a trainee doctor in Kolkata. During a protest against the incident, the BJP state president called it a unique incident and alleged that it highlights the total failure of law and order in the state. He also challenged Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee to show another incident which has happened in the heart of Kolkata. "I challenge Abhishek Banerjee, that from the 900 cases you mentioned, apart from the RG Kar case, show the people another incident which has happened in the capital, or an incident which has happened in government premises, or an incident where an on duty medical doctor has been a victim". Majumdar was replying to a post by the Trinamool Congress MP on X, where he wrote "Over the past 10 days, while the nation has been protesting against the #RGKarMedicalcollege incident and demanding justice, 900 RAPES have occurred across different parts of India - DURING THE VERY TIME WHEN PEOPLE WERE ON THE STREETS PROTESTING AGAINST THIS HORRIBLE CRIME. Sadly, a lasting solution still remains largely undiscussed." Majumdar also hit out against West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for her handling of the case. The BJP state president alleged that the Bengal CM is stealing from the people of the state by hiring Kapil Sibal to represent the state in the Supreme Court. "Kapil Sibal is fighting for Mamata Banerjee along with 21 lawyers who have been engaged by the state government in the Supreme Court. The government has pickpocketed the people and is now trying save the culprits", said the BJP state president. During the protest, he also called for the resignation of the Chief Minister, who is also the Home Minister and Health Minister for the state of Bengal, claiming that the whole state is angry with the CM because of the mishandling of the RG Kar incident. The trainee doctor was found dead in the seminar hall of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata on August 9. (ANI)
Earlier today, in a joint operation with police forces from Jharkhand, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh, the Delhi Police Special Cell busted an Al-Qaeda-inspired terror module.

The module, led by Dr Ishtiyaq from Ranchi, aimed to establish a 'Khilafat' and carry out terrorist activities in India.

"The members of the module have received indoctrination and weapons training at various locations," the police said.

Interrogations are currently underway at various locations and additional arrests are anticipated.

As per the police, 15 places in Ranchi, one in Rajasthan, and one in Aligarh have been raided so far.

The police seized various items from the spot, including, one AK-47 rifle, a 38-bore revolver, one air rifle, one iron elbow pipe, one hand grenade, and six live cartridges of AK-47, among others.

The operation has foiled a potential terrorist threat, and investigations are continuing to uncover more details about the module's plans and activities. (ANI)
Ahead of the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections, the Congress and the National Conference announced a pre-poll alliance on Thursday and said that seat-sharing talks are currently underway. The pre-poll alliance was announced soon after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and party chief Mallikarjun Kharge met NC chief Farooq Abdullah. After the meeting was over, Farooq said that the Congress-NC would fight on all 90 seats in the assembly polls. The announcement came after Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Omar and Farooq Abdullah met for an hour. The formal announcement of the tie-up was made by NC patron Farooq Abdullah in Srinagar. "United we stand," JKNC posted on X. The announcement was made after Farooq Abdullah and his son Omar met Kharge and Rahul Gandhi. "Congress and we (NC) are together. Tarigami sahab (CPM's M.Y. Tarigami) is also with us. I hope that our people are with us so that we can win and do better for the people. The alliance has been finalised and by this evening the details of seat-sharing will be announced. The Alliance is for 90 seats," Farooq Abdullah said. "People have suffered much in the last 10 years. Statehood is the prime concern for us. And we want all the powers of the state. Our common program is to fight divisive forces. Our doors are open for all, let's first win the election. My heart is happy today," the NC patron added. Earlier, Rahul Gandhi asserted that it was his and his party's duty to ensure that the people of Jammu and Kashmir get their democratic rights back and that statehood is restored. Rahul Gandhi said that the representation of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and giving back the statehood is most important for the Congress, adding that there is a "battle of ideologies between the Congress and RSS." Addressing the people of Jammu, the LoP emphasised the culture of Jammu and said that it's a land of Maa Vaishno Devi, adding that the people here have different thinking and styles. "Jammu has a culture, a history, it's a land of Maa Vaishno Devi, your lifestyle and thinking style are different. Every state has a different style, we want all these cultures, history and languages to be protected. We want your voice in your govt. BJP has a different thinking, they want to run the entire country from Nagpur, through remote control. The complaint that you are making is that outsiders are getting benefits, if you go to Maharashtra, you'll hear a similar complaint," he said. "We want statehood for you, that is in your heart. We want you to run your state the way you want to. This is the message we came to convey," he added. Rahul Gandhi further said that his relationship with the people of Jammu is of love and family. "My relation with you all is that of love and family. My family comes from your state, so you have to keep in mind that I am your soldier in Delhi. Whatever you want... my doors are always open for you," he said. He further asserted that the assembly elections are a battle of ideologies between Congress and RSS. "Alliance is happening... I want our workers and commanders to get respect from whatever alliance takes place. You fight for us and it's a battle of ideologies - between Congress and RSS... I sit in parliament, I see him (PM Modi). I can tell you that you have finished the confidence of PM Modi. Congress workers have given so much psychological tension to him that his psychology has collapsed," he said. Rahul Gandhi said, "You know your sipahi is in Delhi. Anything you want you can tell me I will do that." The Congress and the NC had fought the Lok Sabha elections in alliance with each other. The National Conference won two seats - Anantnag and Srinagar. The Congress could not win any seat. Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir will be held in three phases on September 18, 25 and October 1. The results will be announced on October 4. The Election Commission has issued notification for the first phase of assembly seats for 24 seats. This is the first assembly poll in Jammu and Kashmir since abrogation of Article 370 (ANI)
Telangana Civil Supplies and Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy on Thursday announced that fine rice would be distributed to all ration card holders across Telangana from January. Speaking at the State Level Vigilance Committee meeting at the Telangana Secretariat, he emphasised that this initiative is a key election promise of the Congress government. During the meeting, Uttam Kumar Reddy reviewed issues related to the Civil Supplies Department. He stressed the importance of delivering the best quality rice to consumers. He also instructed officials to supply wheat at subsidised prices wherever needed, ensuring that demands are met across the state. The Minister issued a stern warning to ration dealers against diverting Public Distribution System (PDS) rice. He assured that the government is addressing the grievances of ration dealers and providing them with incentives. However, he warned that any diversion of PDS rice would not be tolerated, suggesting that the penalty should be the cancellation of the dealership. He called for strict measures to prevent the illegal trading of PDS rice. Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy, who was also present at the meeting, raised concerns about the poor quality and insufficient quantity of rice being supplied under the mid-day meal scheme. In response, Uttam Kumar Reddy directed officials to address these issues and ensure a significant improvement in the quality of rice supplied to schools and hostels. Therefore, there should be a special focus on the rice being supplied to residential schools, hostels and Anganwadi centres, he said. Uttam Kumar Reddy also expressed concerns about the quality of fortified rice and instructed officials to carry out checks to ensure beneficiaries receive the designated quantity and best quality. The Minister asked officials to explore the possibility of increasing the number of Antyodaya cards in the state. It was informed during the meeting that the demand for kerosene had dropped, leading to the discontinuation of its allocation in June. Regarding the Mahalakshmi scheme, Uttam Kumar Reddy directed the Civil Supplies Department to give wide publicity to the provision of gas cylinders at Rs 500. He suggested that the department should send messages to all beneficiaries and use balloons and other publicity materials to inform the public about the scheme. Lastly, the Minister inquired about the 1,629 vacancies in Fair Price Shops and urged officials to fill these positions promptly. Civil Supplies Commissioner DS Chauhan assured the Minister that he would provide a detailed report on various issues within 10 days. (ANI)
Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Thursday expressed confidence in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) securing a third consecutive term in the upcoming state assembly elections. Speaking at a gathering in Kaithal, Saini described the moment as a homecoming, saying, "I am extremely fortunate that today, I have come to my family, for your blessings for the third tenure of the BJP." The Chief Minister further asserted his optimism for the party's success in the elections, scheduled for October 1 with results to be declared on October 4. "I believe that when the voting takes place on 1st October and results come on 4th October, 'Lotus' will bloom for the third time with maximum number of votes," Saini remarked. The Chief Minister earlier announced that the party is set to lag off 'Sankalp Patra Van' that will take suggestions for manifesto from people. "Today our first meeting of Sankalp Patra has taken place and the entire plan has been made in it. Today we are going to send the Sankalp Patra Van from here. This van will go among the public, and collect suggestions from the public. Starting from Panchkula, a 15-member committee will go in all 22 districts to take suggestions from people," CM Saini said. "In the last 10 years, our government has fulfilled what was promised in the earlier manifesto. People should also suggest the solution to the problems. We will also inform about our work," he added. Former Haryana Chief Minister and Union Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Friday asserted that the BJP will form the government for the third time in the state as the public has lost faith in Congress. "I welcome the announcement and our workers were already preparing to contest the elections. And of course, just like the government has been formed at the Centre under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi, in the same way, the BJP will form the government for the third time in Haryana. The public has lost faith in Congress and the people of Haryana will not trust them," Khattar told reporters. While addressing the press conference in the national capital, the Chief Election Commissioner said that "Assembly Elections will be held in one phase; voting on October 1. Counting of votes will take place on October 4."In 2024, Haryana is likely to see a four-way contest between the BJP, the Congress, the JJP, and the AAP. (ANI)
In a significant step to enhance the security of government hospitals, the Vishnu Deo Sai government in Chhattisgarh has now directed the deployment of retired army personnel in hospitals. Following directives from the Chief Minister, armed retired army personnel will now be deployed in all government hospitals across the state. This measure aims to strengthen hospital and staff security, particularly in light of a recent serious incident at the RG Kar medical college in Kolkata involving a medical student, which has raised nationwide concerns about hospital security. Acting on the Chief Minister's instructions, the state's Health Minister inspected key government hospitals in the capital city of Raipur. During the visit, the Minister reviewed security arrangements and issued further directives to ensure that security is robust and foolproof. In response to the Kolkata incident, doctors across the country went on strike, demanding better security measures. The strike ended following an appeal from the Supreme Court. Addressing the concerns raised by doctors, the Chhattisgarh government has decided to deploy retired army personnel to safeguard hospitals. This initiative is expected to significantly enhance hospital security, boost the morale of both patients and staff and deter potential wrongdoers. This move comes amid nationwide protest over the murder and rape of a second-year trainee doctor at Kolkata's RG Kar medical hospital. Meanwhile, the Bhartiya Janata party workers on Thursday staged a protest against the rape and murder of the PG-trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata. BJP leaders, including LoP Suvendu Adhikari and MLA Agnimitra Paul, and workers stage a protest outside the premises of the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, however, they were later detained by the Kolkata Police. The Central Bureau of Investigation on Thursday approached Kolkata High Court for permission to conduct a polygraph test on RG Kar Medical College and Hospital's ex-principal, Dr Sandip Ghosh, and four doctors after finding discrepancies in their statements during the investigation. A senior CBI official informed that they have approached the court for permission and after getting the permission, the polygraph test will be conducted. "We will corroborate their statements with the result of the polygraph test to verify their statement given to the agency," the official added. (ANI)
In light of the upcoming assembly elections and to ensure coordination among the forces deployed in Jammu and Kashmir, the Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Jammu Zone, IPS Anand Jain convened a high-level meeting at the Police Control Room Jammu on Thursday. The meeting was held under the chairmanship of Anand Jain. According to officials, the primary agenda of the meeting was to focus on the induction of the Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) units, their strategic mobilization and addressing any logistic and operational challenges that might arise during the deployment. Anand Jain, IPS emphasized the importance of maintaining coordination and communication between the various forces. He directed the officers to expedite the finalization of the induction plan and ensure that all necessary resources were in place for a smooth deployment. During the meeting, detailed discussions were held on various related issues, including the allocation of accommodation, transportation, and other logistical support required for the CAPF personnel. IPS Anand Jain urged all the officers to remain vigilant and proactive in addressing any challenges that may arise during the induction and deployment of the CAPF units. Senior officers from CAPF which include; IG CRPF, IG BSF, DIG SSB, DIG CISF, CO of RPF and other related agencies were present to provide insights and discuss the intricacies involved in the process. The meeting concluded with a comprehensive action plan being laid out for the timely induction and mobilization of CAPF units, with clear responsibilities assigned to the respective officers. (ANI)
Punjab Police has secured the extradition of 2016 Nabha Jailbreak mastermind Ramanjit Singh alias Romy, from Hong Kong. The latter was brought back to India by the team of the Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF) of the Punjab Police on Thursday, said the Information And Public Relations Department, Punjab. "After tireless efforts by @PunjabPoliceInd, Romy, the key conspirator, is being brought back today to face justice. He was in touch with #ISI and other escaped prisoners, including Harminder Singh Mintu and Kashmir Singh Galwaddi of the Khalistan Liberation Force (#KLF)," informed Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav in a post on X. The DGP's post further reads, "We thank the Hong Kong authorities, the CBI, Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of External Affairs and all other central agencies as part of this international cooperation." Pertinently, the fugitive Ramanjit Singh alias Romi played a vital role in Nabha Jailbreak took place on November 27, 2016 at around 9am, in which, gangsters dressed as policemen, broke open the high security jail and freed six dreaded inmates and gangsters, namely Harminder Singh alias Mintu, Gurpreet Singh Sekhon, Amandeep Singh Dhotian, Kulpreet Singh alias Neeta Deol, Kashmir Singh alias Galwaddi and gangster Harjinder Singh alias Vicky Gonder, who were later neutralised by Punjab Police on January 26, 2018 in Rajasthan, while others were arrested. Romi, who is a key member of the Shera Khuban/Vicky Gaunder gang, had provided logistical in the form of financial aid, weapons used in Nabha Jail break, fake IDs used to gain access in the jail and financial support to the gang members in the preparation to execute the jail break, besides, providing safe houses and hideouts to the prisoners, who had escaped from the jail. DGP Gaurav Yadav said that through relentless investigation and meticulous operations, a total of 26 accused of Nabha Jailbreak were arrested and chargesheeted, however, Ramanjit Singh alias Romy, who was the foreign handler was declared a proclaimed offender. The latter, who was also in touch with ISI and Harminder Singh Mintu and Kashmir Singh Galwaddi of the Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF), emerged as the mastermind behind the jailbreak, he said. "Our relentless pursuit of justice led to issuance of a Look Out Circular (LOC) and Red Corner Notice (RCN) against Romi. The extradition process was set in motion in 2018 as per the mutual legal assistance treaty (MLAT) with the Government of Special Administrative Region (SAR) Hong Kong, where the case was robustly presented to the Department of Justice and the Courts of Hong Kong," said the Punjab DGP, while adding that the Chief Executive Officer of Hong Kong issued the order for Romi's surrender on August 6, 2024. DGP Gaurav Yadav commended the strenuous efforts of the entire team of AGTF headed by ADGP Promod Ban for marking the culmination of an extraordinary international operation with the cooperation of Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the Government of India that demonstrated the resolve and competence of the Punjab Police. (ANI)
Urging the central government to bring in central legalization and set up fast-track courts for "sensitive" issues, to ensure fast speedy trial, West Bengal Mamata Banerjee on Thursday wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the wake of the national outrage over the RG Kar medical hospital incident where a second year trainee doctor was raped and murdered. As the nation fumes over the RG Kar medical hospital incident, igniting discussions and protests on crime against women in India, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in a letter to PM Modi wrote, "I wish to bring your kind attention to the regular and increasing occurrence of rape cases throughout the country and in many cases, rapes with murder are committed." Mamata, in the letter, mentioned that such "sensitive" issues need to be addressed comprehensively through stringent central legalization prescribing exemplary punishment against the persons involved in such dastardly crimes. The Bengal Chief Minister suggested setting up of "fast track special courts" to deal with such cases, which need a speedy trial. "To ensure justice, trial in such cases should preferably be completed within 15 days," the letter further read. The West bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is facing a huge backlash from the opposition over the safety and security of women in her state after the horrific RG Kar medical hospital incident. Earlier, BJP leader Anil K Antony on Friday demanded the resignation of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. He alleged that atrocities against women are high in West Bengal despite the state being ruled by a woman chief minister. "West Bengal is a state with a woman Chief Minister but when it comes to atrocities against women, West Bengal has become the state with one of the highest number of cases. In the last few months, we have seen what happened in Sandeshkhali, and now in Kolkata. There are allegations as well as proof coming out that the police have been trying to tamper with evidence and protect people involved in this kind of heinous incident," Anil K Antony told ANI."Law and order in the state is non-existent. Both the police department and the health ministry are under the Chief Minister and both ministries are not functioning. BJP demands that the CM should resign for the safety and well-being of the citizens of India," he added.On August 9, a postgraduate trainee doctor was raped and murdered on duty at RG Kar Medical College in Kolkata, which has led to nationwide strikes and protests by the medical fraternity. (ANI)
The trade war between China and the European Union escalated after Beijing launched an investigation into EU diary products over government subsidies. The announcement comes a day after the EU confirmed of imposing additional tariffs on most electric vehicles imported from China. China's Ministry of Commerce said that local dairy producers had requested the probe, citing 20 different subsidy programs that may benefit the EU dairy industry.These ranged from financial support for farming equipment and supplementary income for young farmers to environmental and administrative subsidies, CNN reported. An initial review of the evidence had found sufficient grounds for an anti-subsidy investigation, the commerce ministry added in a statement. According to the CNN the investigation could take up to 18 months. The EU's executive arm would follow Beijing's investigation "very closely" and "intervene as appropriate" to ensure the probe complied with World Trade Organization rules, CNN quoted Olof Gill, a spokesperson for the European Commission as saying. "The Commission will firmly defend the interests of the EU dairy industry and the common agricultural policy," he added, referring to the bloc's official program of support for farmers. The China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products on Wednesday voiced its strong objection to the European Commission's plan to slap tariffs of up to 36.3 percent on imports of Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), Xinhua reported. In a statement, the industry body said that the commission's anti-subsidy probe into Chinese EVs did not originate from an EU industry complaint, lacked transparency, and failed to provide an objective analysis of damage to the EU industry. On Tuesday, the commission published a draft plan to make the tariffs definitive, at slightly revised rates, subject to approval by EU member states. This came after it announced extra provisional tariffs of up to 37.6 percent on Chinese EV makers in July. It launched its anti-subsidy investigation into Chinese EVs in October 2023. Since October 2023, the EU has issued more than 40 restrictions on trade and investment against China. Among them, the EU launched 35 trade remedy investigations into Chinese products worth $28.4 billion. The United States imposed sanctions on more than a dozen companies in China and Hong Kong for their support of Russia's war in Ukraine as part of a tranche of nearly 300 new sanctions unveiled Wednesday. (ANI)
US Congressman Jonathan Jackson has called US Vice President Kamala Harris the "most qualified" at this time to be at the top of the ticket. He stated that she has the blood from two continents and was raised by an Asian mother in the US. Speaking to ANI, Jackson, son of American civil rights activist, Reverend Jesse Jackson, called Kamala Harris loving and caring and understands a culture of many worlds. When asked about Kamala Harris' biracial identity, he stated, "God made one blood type, I mean, several variations of it, but we have the same blood. She's got the blood of two continents, she's got the blood of the diaspora and Jamaican lineage and heritage, raised in America with an Asian mother, and so she is America in so many ways." "She understands the culture of many worlds. She's a loving and caring and has a giving spirit of a person. She's the most qualified at this time to be at the top of the ticket. When we talk about what was different then versus now, we've had a female to become a Speaker of the House. We've had females become the Democratic nominees, which have females to be in the Vice Presidency. Females have done all the highest roles in government except for the presidency. And young girls will now look to the future and say, of course this can happen," he added. Harris is the daughter of Jamaican-born Donald Harris, an 85-year-old retired Stanford University economist, and Indian-born Shyamala Gopalan, a breast cancer researcher who passed away in 2009. She is the first Asian American woman and Black woman to head a significant party ticket. Harris secured her party's nomination for president, after US President Joe Biden quit the presidential race amid mounting concerns over his age, particularly after his poor show in the debate with Donald Trump in June. Jonathan Jackson stated that India has grown in prominence in the modern world and has had the historical world with vastness, richness and culture. He said that there is continuous sharing of trade and cultures if the Democratic Party wins the presidential elections in November. On being asked what the Democratic win means for the India-US relationship, he stated, "Continued trade, continued sharing of cultures, that India has grown in such prominence in the modern world. It's always had the historical world with so much vastness and richness and history and culture. And now it's being popularized around the world through technology and through its movement of its people." "There's great leadership right here in the United States of America, in Congress with Congressman Ro Khanna. We also have Congressman Christian Murphy, this is my colleague, out of Illinois. And Congressman Ro Khanna, let me say something specific about him. He and I are doing an event with historically black colleges. He's bringing 40 historically black colleges together to marry them up with the tech sector, Indian and African American culture, and continuity in technology and in business. for that, I'm grateful. He is showing leadership and he's also reaching out and has done a marvellous job with the black colleges," he added. He said that there is an overwhelming demand for people to see the Democratic National Convention which began on Monday. He stated that Harris is generating her glow, smile and welcome spirit. Speaking about the DNC, he stated, "US Congressman Jonathan Jackson said, "I think it's building. It's getting greater and greater. People are excited. It's permeated all the way down to the grassroots. There's overwhelming demand for people to come to this convention. The excitement of Mrs Harris, that she's generating her glow, her smile, her welcome spirit. And it's a clear contrast." "There was always a clear contrast in policy, but now, as far as even looks and messaging, that you've got the young versus the old tyrant. You've got a future and you see hope versus a man that's looking back for revenge and grievances and past retributions. So I'm excited. It feels like it's a brand new day in American politics right now," he added. The Democratic National Convention (DNC) kicked off in Chicago on Monday, one month after Republicans held their convention in Milwaukee. The theme of the convention is "For the People, For Our Future." Mike Waltz, Kamala Harris's running mate, will speak on Wednesday to officially accept the vice-presidential nomination. Asked whether he has seen this kind of an energy within the Democratic Party during the past conventions, he responded, "No." Explaining his response, he said, "I would tell you why. It was a big idea when my father had Mr Ron Brown to get elected to be the DNC chairman. That was something new. It was a big idea to talk about a woman being on the ticket. It was a big idea to talk about a free South African and Free Nelson Mandela, a two-state solution in the Middle East and now this is commonplace. We've seen a president, a female Democratic nominee before, Mrs Hillary Clinton." "Now we see another Democratic nominee that's a female, Ms Harris. We've seen a vice president to become, to be a female. That this is now the new norm, and that's great. So our expectations have risen, and now we can meet them. We don't have to look at floors. We're looking at ceilings being removed, not just glass ceilings but concrete ceilings, and let us recognize women in leadership," he added. Speaking about the ongoing DNC, where his father American civil rights activist, Reverend Jesse Jackson also made appearance, he stated, "Well, it's tremendous. To see that President Joe Biden has served the nation for 50 years. This has been his life's passion. That's tremendous. A man from the north and the east to see President Bill Clinton here, coming from the south to see President - Obama coming from the Midwest, that we are America in so many ways." "To see women, black, white, the North, the South, East, and now the West will have a presidential candidate. I think that shows you the generations have now normalized our progress. When you look out in that audience tonight, you're going to see what the future of America looks like. You look at the Republican audience, that is the past," he added. Jesse Jackson received a standing ovation at DNC in Chicago when he made a surpise appearance on Monday (local time). A well-known figure in the US civil rights movement, Rev Jackson received a tribute from the Democrats for his tireless dedication to advancing civil rights and equality for all Americans, reported CNN. He came at the DNC on a wheelchair--- due to his ongoing battle with Parkinson's disease, which was detected in 2017, and since then, kept him out of the spotlight. The 82-year-old civil rights leader appeared on stage Monday night, alongside Reverend Al Sharpton and NAACP President Derrick Johnson. He received a standing ovation and waved to the crowd. He, however, did not speak. (ANI)
Tel Aviv [Israel], August 22 (ANI/TPS): Earlier on Thursday the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) identified a Hezbollah terrorist cell that had launched rockets into the area of Zerait in Israel, operating in a building in the area of Chihine in southern Lebanon. Israel fighter jets attacked the building where the terrorist squad was operating. In additional attacks, Israel Air Force fighter jets attacked a military structure used by the terrorist organization Hezbollah in the Kfarkela area in southern Lebanon, alongside artillery strikes to remove a threat in the areas of Ayta al-Sha'ab and Alma al-Sha'ab. (ANI/TPS)
The forum convened under the theme "Leave No One Behind: The Well-Being of the Planet and Its People," inspired by G20 Brazil's theme of "Building a just world and a sustainable planet. It brought together a distinguished assembly of peacemakers and interfaith dialogue practitioners.

Shaikh Al Mahfouz bin Bayyah, Secretary-General of the Abu Dhabi Forum for Peace, and Chair of Religion and Civil Society Commission on Artificial Intelligence, addressed the forum and emphasised the UAE's unwavering commitment to cultivating cultural diversity as a fundamental pillar of humanitarian cooperation.

Under the visionary leadership of President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE has successfully transformed its international relations into avenues for dialogue, solidarity, and global initiatives promoting peace and brotherhood, he said.

He also highlighted 'The Mohammed bin Zayed Water Initiative' as a tangible demonstration of the UAE's dedication to addressing pressing global challenges. The initiative seeks to ensure water access for billions of people worldwide, underscoring the UAE's commitment to a sustainable and equitable future for all.

The G20 Interfaith Forum seeks global solutions by collaborating with religious thought leaders and political representatives to help shape the overall G20 agenda. It draws on the vital roles that religious institutions and beliefs play in world affairs, reflecting a rich diversity of institutions, ideas, and values. Through its extensive network of networks, it helps prioritise key global policy goals and point toward practical means of implementation at every level of society. (ANI/WAM)
The No Objection Certificate (NOC) has been revoked by the Islamabad administration for the public gathering of Imran Khan founded Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, which is slated to take place in Tarnol on August 22, Thursday, as reported by ARY News. Tarnol is a small town and suburb located about 3 miles north-west of Islamabad. The Chief Commissioner of Islamabad presided over the Intelligence Committee meeting where the decision was made. The district argued that religious organisations had also demanded protests and added that under these conditions, authorisation for the public meeting cannot be given. However, despite the administration cancelling the NOC, PTI Islamabad President Amir Mughal stated that the public meeting will still take place according to schedule, ARY News reported. He stated that the party had chosen to hold the meeting according to schedule and that they have a constitutional and legal right to engage in "peaceful" political conflict. Amir Mughal extended an invitation to the public to join him for the "peaceful" meeting on August 22 at 4 p.m. The Islamabad High Court on July 24 declared the order of the Chief Commissioner to revoke the NOC for the Tehreek-e-Insaf public gathering in the capital city, null and void. A formal ruling spanning five pages was issued by IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq, instructing the Islamabad administration to reevaluate the PTI's motion for a notice of correction in compliance with the law. In addition to overturning the Chief Commissioner's July 5 order to cancel the NOC, the Islamabad government was ordered by the IHC to justify its decision to accept or deny the PTI's appeal, reported ARY News. The PTI's request would be regarded as pending before the administration, the court decided. The IHC declared in its ruling that it was illegal for the NOC to be revoked without giving PTI prior notice, reported ARY News. Imran Khan's party further filed a petition in the court against the Chief Commissioner's order for revoking the NOC for a public gathering on July 6 near Tarnol Chowk in Islamabad. The contempt of court plea was filed in Islamabad High Court against the suspension of NOC for PTI Islamabad power show. (ANI)
In response to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan's call for an open trial of former ISI chief Lieutenant General (retd) Faiz Hameed, Atta Tarar, the minister of information, said on Wednesday that he should better make his position clear in the 190 million pounds case, instead of raising this demand, ARY News reported. The information minister said in a statement that the PTI founder had interfered in Pakistan Army matters by calling for an open trial for Faiz Hameed. According to Atta Tarar, the PTI founder has tried more than once to incite controversy surrounding the ex-spy chief trial. "Instead of giving statements in defence of Faiz Hameed, the PTI founder should better make his position clear in the 190 million pounds case," Atta Tarar said. He added that Imran Khan's 'controversial' statements showed that he is suffering from "serious anxiety and uncertainty," reported ARY News. The information minister said the PTI founder is hesitant to acknowledge that the Faiz Hameed problem is an internal affair involving the Pakistan Army. He claimed that the PTI chief's inconsistent statements about calling Faiz Hameed an "asset or a hero" and his occasionally contradictory statements suggested that he was mentally unstable. "The PTI founder is an expert in ditching his well-wishers," the information minister went on to say. Former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan on Wednesday, called for an open court trial of ex-ISI chief Faiz Hameed, saying that the "matter should not be treated as an internal military issue." During an informal conversation with the reporters, Imran Khan made it clear that his relationship with Faiz Hameed terminated upon the latter's retirement, refuting rumours that he stays in touch with the former director general of the ISI, reported ARY News. "General Faiz became insignificant after retirement. How could he benefit me in any way?" he questioned, the ARY News report added. (ANI)
In his Democratic National Convention (DNC) speech on Wednesday (local time), former US President Bill Clinton expressed his support for the Democratic nominee for the upcoming US Presidential election, Kamala Harris, and urged Americans to vote for the "president of joy" for the White House. Clinton said that Harris' Presidential candidacy represents the country, as he narrated the crowd her life story during his convention speech. "From a man who once had the honour to be called in this convention, a man from Hope, we need Kamala Harris - the president of joy - to lead us...So, I'll be doing my part. You do yours," he said during his convention speech on Wednesday night. Clinton, who was the 42nd President of the United States further said that he now wants America to be "more inclusive, more future-focused." "Just think what a burden it's been on us to get up day after day after day after day, buried in meaningless hot rhetoric when there are so many opportunities out there, so many problems that need to be solved -- I want that. And that's the America Kamala Harris will lead," Clinton said during his speech. The former president also cited a few instances, stating that Harris spearheaded the charge for reproductive rights while serving as president and that she had "fought for kids her whole life" as a prosecutor. Clinton also cited Harris's proposal to address the issue of affordable housing and lower the cost of owning. Last week, Harris released her housing plan, which included incentives to develop affordable rental housing as well as tax breaks for builders who build starter houses for first-time buyers and first-time homeowners up to a USD 25,000 down payment, reported CNN. "She's gained an invaluable amount of experience as vice president advancing our values and interests around the world," he said. Clinton further went all guns blazing at Donald Trump, who is eyeing the White House from the Republican Party and said that all he does is just talk about himself all the time. Praising Harris, he said, "Kamala Harris is the only candidate in this race who has the vision, the experience, the temperament, the will, and yes, the sheer joy, to get something done. I mean, look, what does her opponent do with his voice? He mostly talks about himself. So, the next time you hear him, don't count the lies, count the 'I's." As he further went on to criticize the former president's "vendettas, his vengeance, his complaints, his conspiracies," Clinton added, "He is like the tenors opening up before he goes on stage, like I did, by saying, 'me, me, me, me, me.' When Kamala Harris is president, every day will begin with you, you, you, you." The highly critical speech of Clinton on Trump, as he vowed his staunch support to Kamala Harris did not just end there. He also made a joke at the age of Republican presidential contender Donald Trump, saying "Two days ago, I turned 78, the oldest man in my family for four generations. And the only personal vanity I want to assert is I'm still younger than Donald Trump." Addressing the Democratic National Convention, Clinton said that Americans have a "clear choice" between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris in November, according to CNN. He said, "In 2024, we gotta pretty clear choice, it seems to me," Clinton said. "Kamala Harris, for the people, and the other guy, who has proved even more than the first go-around that he's about me, myself and I." "Kamala Harris will work to solve our problems, seize our opportunities, ease our fears, and make sure every single American, however they vote, has a chance to chase their dreams," he added. The Democratic National Convention (DNC) kicked off in Chicago on Monday, one month after Republicans held their convention in Milwaukee. The theme of the convention is "For the People, For Our Future." Harris is the first Asian American woman and woman of colour to head a significant party ticket. Earlier last month, a virtual vote officially recognised the vice president as the Democratic party nominee. After Biden withdrew from the contest and backed her, the party came together in support of her. Whereas, on the other hand, in November Trump prevails, he would be the oldest president to take office, having been in office at the age of 78 years and 219 days, breaking the mark held by former President Joe Biden, who was 78 years and 61 days. (ANI)
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has called the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) leaders to a meeting on Thursday (today) to resolve concerns amid mounting disagreements between the two major ruling coalition parties regarding the federal government's downsizing of ministries and the power rate subsidy for Punjab province alone, Dawn reported citing sources. "Yes, [PPP] chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has received a formal invitation from the prime minister for a meeting at the PM House [on Thursday] which will be followed by a dinner," said a source in the PPP on Wednesday. The PPP delegation was expected to include Sherry Rahman, the party's parliamentary leader in the Senate, Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, the former prime minister, and seasoned leader Syed Naveed Qamar, the source said, though this is not confirmed yet. The party also planned to discuss its future legislative agenda. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Advisor on Political and Public Affairs Rana Sanaullah, and a few other important members of his cabinet are expected to support the prime minister at the meeting, according to Dawn. Bhutto-Zardari has already arrived in Islamabad. He chaired a meeting of the party's central Punjab chapter at Zardari House on Wednesday which, according to a handout, reported Dawn, and added that the discussions were held on the political situation and PPP's organisational matters. The verbal spat between the ruling ally and the PPP over the PML-N-led federal and Punjabi administrations over problems of skyrocketing electricity prices and the rightsizing of ministries as part of austerity measures. When PML-N President Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz announced a PKR 14 per unit relief for Punjabi users who use 200 to 500 units per month, the tension increased on Friday. Both the PTI-led Khyber Pakhtunkhwa administration and the PPP-led Sindh government expressed contempt for this declaration. Appearing to be short of funds to provide comparable assistance, both provinces denounced the federal and Punjabi administrations, reported Dawn. PM Sharif on Tuesday came to the Punjab government's rescue, highlighting the Centre had not provided a single penny to the province. Moreover, the PM asked other provinces to follow in Punjab's footsteps during a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, by reallocating their development funds to provide similar relief to electricity consumers. (ANI)
Extending his wishes to his Iranian counterpart, Jaishankar, in a post on X, wrote "Congratulate Seyed Abbas Aragchi @araghchi on your appointment as Foreign Minister of Iran."

"Look forward to working with you to further relations," he added.

https://x.com/DrSJaishankar/status/1826271847392133171

Snap elections were held in Iran after President Ebrahim Raisi died in a chopper crash along with Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and other officials in Iran's remote northwest in May.

Reformist candidate Masoud Pezeshkian has secured a win in the presidential elections in Iran.

Pezeshkian was elected in a second round of voting after he received the highest number of votes in the first round, ahead of Jalili. The first round witnessed the lowest turnout for a presidential election since Iran was established in 1979.

The President of Iran enjoys some powers. However, the ultimate authority lies with Iran's supreme leader, who has the final say on the matters of state.

Masoud Pezeshkian was a health minister under reformist president Mohammad Khatami. He is a trained heart surgeon and lawmaker. He gained the attention of people for his stance against the crackdown on the 2009 pro-democracy protests and the violence perpetrated by the notorious morality police in 2022 after Mahsa Amini's death.

Initially, the election was scheduled for June next year in Iran, which would have been four years after Raisi's election. However, a 50-day constitutional window to hold a new referendum was triggered by the president's death in a helicopter crash.

The snap election on June 28 occurred inside the 50-day legally mandated deadline for selecting a new president after Ebrahim Raisi and seven others, including Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, were killed in a helicopter accident on May 19. (ANI)
Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley emphasized the "moral clarity" of supporting Taiwan in its ongoing tensions with China during a meeting with President Lai Ching-te on Thursday, as reported by Taiwan's Central News Agency (CNA). Haley, who served as the U.S.' top envoy to the U.N. from January 2017 to December 2018 under former President Donald Trump, stressed the urgent need for moral clarity in global affairs. In her address at the Presidential Office, Haley contrasted Taiwan's values with China's approach of "control and suppression," a difference particularly evident during the COVID-19 pandemic. Taiwan's Central News Agency reported Haley's critique of China's handling of the outbreak, accusing it of concealing the virus's origins and contributing to global suffering due to its "arrogance." She praised Taiwan for its efforts to warn the World Health Organization (WHO) about the virus despite facing international isolation due to Chinese pressure. Haley reiterated that her visit is meant to show American support for Taiwan and to encourage a strong partnership across military, business, and academic domains. According to the Central News Agency, Haley stressed the importance of addressing potential threats proactively, especially considering global conflicts such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas War. "We can't wait to see if China invades Taiwan; we need to get in front of the situation now," Haley said. President Lai welcomed Haley on her first visit to Taiwan and thanked her for her support during her U.N. tenure. Lai also acknowledged Haley's recent address at the Taipei-based Ketagalan Forum, where she called on the U.N. to "stop ignoring" Taiwan and argued for its inclusion as a "full member" of the international organization. According to Taiwan's Central News Agency, Lai reaffirmed Taiwan's commitment to strengthening its national defence and economic resilience while standing with democracies worldwide. Haley's visit primarily focused on her speech at the Ketagalan Forum, an annual international seminar funded by the Taiwan government that deals with security issues in the Indo-Pacific region. Central News Agency noted that Taiwan, officially known as the Republic of China (ROC), was expelled from the WHO in 1972 following the U.N.'s decision to recognize the People's Republic of China (PRC) as the sole representative of China. (ANI)